The Twilight Wanderer

by Tyrael

Act III: The Tower of Powers

As the two unicorns cautiously made their way down into the valley, Silver Shock began describing her recurring dreams to Twilight. "They always start the same way. I am in an ancient unicorn castle's library, trying to find the spell I need to fix the Frozen North. But every book I open has no words. I grow more and more frantic, pulling down books until I am surrounded by a heap of useless tomes. I sit down in despair and suddenly my horn's magic activates on its own."

Silver Shock laughed, "It's kind of funny now that I think about it. I've had this same dream so many times, yet I always feel this great sense of hope when this part happens. So, my horn grabs this one last tome for me and my eyes light up. 'This is it!' I yell. I grab the book and open it up, and it suddenly bursts into flames. I throw the book to the ground and stagger back, then all the books that I had piled around me also ignite. I use my magic to conjure up a rain cloud, and then I see her. Well, you, I should say."

Twilight sighed, "I think I know where that is going..."

Silver Shock smirked, "So I see the burning terror standing there with this look of pure hatred on her face. I see the magic of her horn activate and the room becomes a raging inferno. Fire elementals and magical constructs swarm towards me as the burning terror laughs and launches fiery bolts of magic at me. I use my magic on the rain cloud I summoned to trigger lightning bolts and clear myself a path to the exit."

Silver Shock paused and stared towards the tower. "I run away from you and flee into the night. Everywhere I go, you appear, this cloaked nemesis, haunting my every move. I run and run until finally I arrive at this place, Star Swirl's tower. I step through the gates and a great feeling of tranquility overtakes me. I roam through the halls in amazement, marveling at the magical artifacts. Enchanted weapons and armor, tomes of spells, history books, ancient artifacts, and gems, lots and lots of gems... everything a unicorn could ever dream of..."

A tear ran down Silver Shock's cheek, "I wander into the solarium as the sun is rising and immediately am surrounded by darkness. I ignite my horn, but even my magic can not penetrate this gloom. I can not see anything, but I feel this horrible presence in the room with me. I always wake up at this point, but each night I dream, it takes longer for me to awaken, and the lurking evil gets closer and closer..."

Twilight hugged her companion, "It sounds to me as though you were chosen to accompany me on this task, and whatever this evil thing is, it was trying to sabotage us. Cause you to fear me. Whatever it is, it's probably the reason my simmering fury got the better of me back in Evergreen Citadel." Twilight shuddered, "And probably responsible for all the ghastly creatures that were harassing me on the way there. But, that's good. That means whatever it is, it's scared of us, and their plan failed. It knows we are going to vanquish it!"

"Twilight?" Silver Shock asked, "I know she's Princess Luna again, but do you think this evil in the tower is Nightmare Moon?"

Twilight paused and looked up at the sky, "Well, I saw Luna days ago in Canterlot and she seemed fine, and the sun is rising right now. I suppose anything is possible, and who knows what has been going on down in Equestria since I left."

Twilight saw the look of fear on Silver Shock's face. "Don't worry. As a personal friend of the Princess, I can assure you those stories about her from Nightmare Night are a bunch of hooey. She's really very nice when you get to know her. But if she has gone back to Nightmare Moon, well, I'll just have to defeat her again!"

Twilight winked and Silver Shock grinned at her, but deep down, they both knew if Nightmare Moon had returned, they would be in very deep trouble, as the Elements of Harmony were required to stop her on her two previous appearances.

Twilight stopped and titled her head at Silver Shock, "Wait, I thought you didn't know I was a wielder of the Elements earlier, but you know about Nightmare Moon?"

Silver Shock chuckled, "Well, it was a little obvious when the giant mare in the moon vanished and the sun still rose. Not many Equestrian ponies travel as far north as Evergreen Citadel and the other cities way out there, but we do get some news up here, you know. We all just thought Princess Celestia did it again."

Twilight pouted, "Well, what about Discord? I helped use the Elements on him, too!"

Silver Shock smiled, "Um, we figured Celestia and Luna teamed up to trounce him again. We get some news, didn't say anything about the quality of that news."

The two continued in silence for several minutes until Twilight thought of something. "You said in your dream you were always searching for a spell to fix this region. I take it that is something you have really been trying to do?"

Silver Shock used her magic to pull a tome out of her saddlebag, "Yes. I'm descended from a long line of weather-talented unicorns, going all the way back to Lady Cloud Warper herself." Silver Shock opened a book and held it in front of Twilight, showing a painting of her ancestor channeling a typhoon spell.

"Our family's magic has been getting weaker and weaker, ever since the time of the windigos. Besides weather magic, my family's legacy is supposed to be this ancient prophecy." Silver Shock flipped through the book to an illustration of a tablet, written in the language of the ancient ponies, with a modern translation next to it. "The prophecy claims that though my family's magic may ebb, it shall roar back like the tides themselves, and a pony shall be born with magic as strong as Lady Cloud Warper's was." Silver Shock closed the tome and put it away, then looked at the ground, "Ever since I was young I was dreaming that pony was me. Obviously it is not me, and so I wander the lands of my ancestors, researching all the old weather spells I can find and compiling them so I can pass it on to the real destined pony..."

Twilight jumped out in front of Silver Shock, "Hey, don't think that way! Just because you're not some superpony, doesn't mean you're not special. You likely have more magical talent than most of the unicorns I know in Ponyville. Besides, you're here with me right now, so the PTB must have plans for you."

Silver Shock frowned, "PTB?"

Twilight said, "Oh, you know, the powers that be? Magic, fates, whatever it is that causes crazy things like this journey we are on."

Silver Shock sighed and looked around the valley, "Perhaps... but it would have been lovely to see this place how it was centuries ago. It must have been beautiful."

As they both gazed around at their surroundings and imagined what it may have been like in the past, something caught Twilight's eye. She couldn't believe what she had seen, and raced over towards it. Twilight yelled, "Rainbow Dash! I'd recognize that tail anywhere!"

Twilight grew even more excited, all of her friends were there. "Applejack! Fluttershy! Rarity! Pinkie Pie! I'm so happy to see you girls! How did you get here?"

Her friends ignored her, and as she approached she could hear them whispering a strange chant. Twilight looked back at Silver Shock, who was equally perplexed, and the two cautiously approached Twilight's friends. They were all clad in brown cloaks and Twilight could see their Elements of Harmony necklaces around their necks. As they got closer, they could see the cloaked figures were standing on the points of a pentagram that had been scorched into the ground.

Silver Shock grew greatly concerned, "I've got a bad feeling about this, Twilight. Something is not right."

Twilight's instincts were also telling her to run away, but continued forward. She walked up to Fluttershy and touched her with her hoof, "Fluttershy?" Fluttershy turned towards Twilight and leered at her, Twilight stumbled backwards and stuttered, "F-F-Fluttershy!?"

Fluttershy turned back to the pentagram and continued chanting as Twilight struggled to comprehend the situation. The chanting came to an abrupt stop and all together the five ponies screamed, "SHAMOKE!" The pentagram lit up with purple flames and there was a great shock wave, as if something magical had been detonated within the pentagram. The five ponies turned to the horrified Twilight, their eyes glowing with purple fire. They smiled at her, exposing their fanged teeth. Twilight ran.

Twilight caught up to Silver Shock, "I don't think those are my friends!"

Silver Shock looked back, regretted it, "Uh, doesn't look like it..."

"I don't want to hurt them if they really are my friends..." Twilight said as she looked around the valley, "Wait, I have an idea, head for that grove of trees!"

The two unicorns raced into the grove, and Twilight quickly explained her plan. "I'll use my magic to thaw the ground, then you need to use your weather magic to freeze it when they enter."

Silver Shock nodded, "Got it."

Twilight began firing super-heated bolts of energy into the ground. They heard Rarity calling for them, "Silver Shock. Twilight Sparkle. It's not nice to hide from your betters."

Pinkie Pie followed up, "We just want to talk to you, Twilight. It's been so long since we've seen you! We can have a party!"

Applejack yelled, "Yeah Twilight, I got some nice warm apple fritters for y'all. Just come an' get 'em!"

Twilight ignored them and continued setting up her traps, muttering to herself, "I really hope that isn't the real Pinkie Pie. I don't want to suddenly have her appear in one of these stumps or something..."

The trap set, Twilight climbed into a tree near Silver Shock. The hunters entered the grove and began stalking their prey. Rarity waded boldly through the muddy ground with nary a concern, and Twilight whispered, "Phew, I hoped they weren't really my friends. That proves it."

Twilight could only see Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie down below. "Dang, the phony pegasi must be searching from above. Wait, I see them. Okay, Silver, get ready to freeze these fakers."

Twilight used her magic to grab Rainbow Dash's tail and then smashed her against Fluttershy with all her might, sending both of them plummeting into the muddy field below. Twilight moved to signal Silver Shock but she was already casting her spell. The two unicorn's teeth rattled as the sudden cold front struck, freezing the imposter ponies in the mud.

Breathing a sigh of relief, the two unicorns continued on towards Star Swirl's tower, curses screamed by the frozen five followed in their wake.

---

The rest of the journey through the valley was uneventful, with Twilight and Silver both trying to figure out what it was they had just encountered. They were nearing the tower and quickened their pace. As they approached, there was a burst of magical energy from the top of the tower, sending shivers down their spines. Twilight sighed and looked back at Silver Shock, "What now?"

A murder of crows blanketed the sky and dove towards the two stunned unicorns. Twilight quickly cast her forcefield spell and surrounded the two of them with a bubble of energy. She strained to maintain the field as crow after crow smashed into her bubble, exploding into purple flames on impact.

"I can't keep this up, we need to get inside!" Twilight cried, struggling to ward off the arcane crows.

"Just hold on a little longer, Twilight! I'm almost done." Silver Shock said, as she focused her magic on a spell. Silver Shock nearly collapsed as her spell was completed. She had summoned an enormous storm cloud, which began to spew lightning at the murder of crows, decimating their ranks.

Seizing the opportunity, Twilight and Silver ran towards the gates to Star Swirl's tower. Twilight threw the doors open with her magic and they both ran inside, slamming the great doors shut behind them. They braced themselves against the door, waiting for the crows to try and force their way inside, but the attack never came.

They both breathed a sigh of relief and turned around to survey the entrance hall. Twilight gasped at the magical adornments and Silver Shock frowned, "It's exactly like in my dreams."

Twilight put her hoof on Silver's shoulder, "Don't worry, I'm here this time. Whatever evil being is lurking in here, we'll take care of it." Twilight glanced around the room, "Would be nice to have a little help here, Star Swirl. Could at least welcome us to your home... I don't know what happened to Star Swirl, he said he would be back to help me but he hasn't shown up yet. Well, you're the expert here, which way do we go to find his library?" Silver Shock stood and beckoned Twilight to follow her.

Star Swirl's tower truly was the unicorn's paradise that Silver Shock had seen in her dreams. All manner of magical paraphernalia lined the rooms and corridors. "Did you ever try to use any of this stuff in the dreams?" Twilight asked.

Silver Shock shook her head.

"Darn," Twilight said, "Would be nice to have some extra firepower if we need it, and Star Swirl certainly has arcane artifacts in spades here."

Twilight ran into the back of Silver, who had suddenly stopped. She turned back and whispered, "Twilight, my horn...." Silver's unicorn magic had activated on it's own and began pulling her towards a distant doorway. Silver reared back, recognizing the location, "Twilight! That's the solarium!" Twilight grabbed Silver's tail with her magic and pulled back, but whatever force was guiding her to the solarium was more powerful than both their efforts combined.

Silver Shock became increasingly distressed as she was dragged closer, and closer to the solarium. Twilight scanned the arcanum that lined the corridor. Her eyes were drawn to an insignia patch which bore the cross-like design she had seen on tapestries near Celestia's throne. She pulled it down with her magic then magically attached it to Silver Shock's dress.

Twilight continued scanning the objects as they drew nearer to the solarium. An ornate horn ring caught her eye and she dragged it over to herself for a closer look. The ring was engraved with arcane sigils and was studded with gemstones. There was a diamond snowflake, a ruby flame, and a topaz lightning bolt. Twilight had her doubts, but shrugged it off and slipped the ring onto her horn.

Silver Shock's horn pulled them into the solarium and the doors slammed shut behind them. "That's not good," Twilight said.

Silver Shock huddled against Twilight. "Any moment now...."

As if on cue, the room suddenly became pitch black. They could sense something was in the room with them, but just like in her dreams, their magical light couldn't pierce the darkness. As tears ran down Silver's face, Twilight shouted, "Show yourself!"

They heard feminine laughter and felt a rush of air as something in the room began to fly circles around them. Twilight strained to see into the darkness as Silver Shock buried her face in her hooves. Twilight suddenly found herself being lifted into the air and thrown towards a wall. She smashed into a cupboard, falling to the ground in a cascade of the shattered remains from Star Swirl's tea set. Twilight recovered and finally saw their tormentor, floating above them. Twilight and Silver Shock simultaneously yelled, "Nightmare Moon!"

"What do we do, Twilight?!" Silver Shock cried.

"I don't know! It took the Elements of Harmony to stop her last time! Even Celestia couldn't beat her without them... Celestia... That patch I put on you! That has something to do with Celestia, and if Star Swirl has it in his tower, it must be magical! Use it against her!"

Silver Shock tried to look at the patch, "I don't know what to do Twilight, it's a patch, not a sword!"

Nightmare Moon laughed, "Oh, you foals. Do you really think a small bit of fabric is enough to stop me?"

Nightmare Moon charged at Silver Shock and vanished as soon as she touched Silver's dress. The darkness ebbed and Twilight and Silver looked at each other in amazement. Twilight started laughing, "I don't think that was the real Nightmare Moon. I saw the real one, her mist form was blue and purpley, not green and sparkly."

Silver Shock grinned, "If I had known I could have stopped these dreams with a little sewing..." Twilight smiled at Silver, then walked back out into the hallway.

Twilight was looking over the objects on the walls again, "Ah, here's where that patch was! 'This insignia was worn by Commander Swiftwing at the First Battle Against Nightmare Moon.' Hmm, it doesn't say that it has any magical properties." Twilight leaned down and studied the patch she had put on Silver's dress. "I can't see anything special about it. I only grabbed it because it reminded me of home."

Silver laughed, "Well, even if it doesn't have any powers, it seemed to have got the job done. I get the feeling that that was and wasn't the evil threat in this tower, if you understand what I mean."

Twilight nodded, "Clearly Nightmare Moon was just an illusion of some kind." Twilight paused as a thought came to her head and spoke louder, "I sure hope this isn't all some crazy test by a crazy old mage named Star Swirl." Twilight stomped her hoof, "If you don't want us to play with all the toys you have collected, speak now." Silence was her only response.

The pair continued on towards the library, paying more attention to the various objects scattered about. They each gathered a small collection of artifacts. They both wore a horn ring and an amulet, and their pockets were filled with potions and trinkets.

Twilight was lagging behind and her blood froze as she heard familiar voices crying out in fear. "Help us, Twilight!" the voices cried. Twilight thought to herself, "The Cutie Mark Crusaders?! What are they doing here?"

The girls continued to cry out for her and Twilight followed the sounds of their voice. Silver Shock heard Twilight's hoofsteps and turned back to follow her. Twilight found herself in front a portcullis and could see the Crusaders (Rarity's sister, Sweetie Belle, Applejack's sister, Apple Bloom, and the pegasus Scootaloo) on the other side, chained to a wall. Twilight yelled, "I'm here, girls!" and tried to lift the portcullis with her magic. It wouldn't budge, so Twilight just teleported inside.

Twilight ran over to the fillies, "Who did this to you?"

Sweetie Belle cried, "We don't know! A bad mare took us here and locked us away!"

Twilight pulled at their bindings with her magic but couldn't break them.

Scootaloo pointed her wing at an arcane sigil sketched above them on the wall, "You need to use your magic on that Twilight. ...I mean, I think you should try that."

Twilight stood on her hind legs and stabbed her horn towards the sigil. Silver Shock looked on in terror from outside the portcullis and rattled the bars. "Twilight, no!" Silver grabbed Twilight's mane with her magic and pulled back on her, but she was too late.

The sigil erupted in a brilliant flare of sparks and Twilight was sent flying across the room. Twilight rubbed her sore flank and looked to make sure the Crusaders were okay. Her eyes went wide and her jaw dropped. Instead of the sweet little fillies, she saw three adult sized mares shrouded in black robes. Twilight could smell the stench of death upon them. Their flesh was pale with bluish tints, the hair of their manes and tails hung limp, and their eyes burned with unholy blue fire.

Silver Shock whispered, "Twilight! What have you done? Those are the Death Knights of Westmarech!"

Twilight regained her composure and teleported next to Silver Shock, staring through the gate at the unholy unicorns. Twilight glanced towards Silver, "I'm sorry, I was tricked. I thought I was saving these little fillies I know. Who, or what, are these mares?"

Silver Shock hurriedly whispered the tale, "Long ago, three sisters lost their parents to a magical plague. The three survived and spent decades researching the forbidden arts of necromancy to try and get their parents back. They eventually mastered the unholy powers over life and death, but lost their souls in the process. After their fall from grace, they were eventually slain. However, their powers allowed them to rise again as the undead nightmares you see before us."

The two unicorns backed away from the portcullis as it became enveloped in the unholy magical aura of one of the sisters and began to rise. Twilight found herself lifted into the air, her legs held out to the sides by the death knights' magic. Silver was running down the hall, the third death knight grabbed her tail with her magic and hauled her back towards them.

The death knights strode forward, smiling viciously. "We thank you for our freedom, friend. For that, you shall be rewarded with a quick death and eternal gratitude as our unliving servant." The death knight turned towards Silver and licked her lips, "However, your delicious looking little friend here will not share our gift of immortality. We have been imprisoned for so long.... our appetites are simply ravenous."

The death knight used her magic to slam Silver Shock into the wall, she groaned and crumpled to the floor. The death knight grinned evilly, "As for you my friend..." Twilight screamed and struggled against her magical bonds as the death knight approached.

Twilight recoiled in disgust as the death knight leaned in towards her face. "Hush," the death knight whispered, her breath reeking of death and decay, "Just stay still, it will be over quickly, I promise."

Her sisters moved Twilight into position as the death knight stood on her hind legs. Her horn began to glow with the unholy blue flames of her magic as she began chanting in a strange tongue. "Immalanath, yasoth nalarub!"

Her sisters joined in the chant and Twilight watched in terror as the lead death knight thrust out her hoof towards Twilight's chest. The death knight's leg began to quiver as their chanting intensified and she slowly moved her hoof towards Twilight. The unholy magic of the death knight enveloped her hoof and the chanting ceased.

The death knight's hoof penetrated Twilight and she could feel the surrounding flesh grow numb as it moved towards her heart. The death knight leered at her and said, "Y'knath k'th'rygg k'yi mrr'ungha gr'mula."

Silver Shock groggily awoke and her eyes popped out as she saw what was happening. She frantically looked around her for something, anything, to help Twilight. Silver saw one of the trinkets she had gathered earlier, which had fallen out of her pocket when she was smashed into the wall. It was a piece of scrimshaw with arcane runes and the picture of a sailing ship.

In desperation, Silver Shock grabbed the scrimshaw with her magic and threw it towards the death knights. As it flew in the air, the scrimshaw transformed into a large model of the ship that had been etched onto its surface. The magical conjuration rammed into the death knights and carried them down the hallway, away from Twilight.

Silver Shock staggered to her feet and limped towards Twilight. She asked, "Are you okay?"

Twilight clutched at her chest where the death knight's hoof had penetrated her. "I...I think so." Twilight felt something cold against her rear and looked underneath her. She saw the circlet Queen Rimeantlter had given her and got an idea.

Twilight picked up the circlet with her magic and made her way towards the stunned death knights. As one began to rise, Twilight kicked her, sending the death knight reeling into her sisters. The shocked death knight looked upwards in amusement as Twilight placed the circlet on her head.

Twilight smirked as the circlet's magic took effect, tearing at the death knights' bodies as they were tossed around inside its field of sanctuary. The air crackled with magical energy as the death knights were rended by the holy magic. After a short period, their bodies fell to the ground.

The unholy fire gone from her eyes, one of the death knights looked up at Twilight. "But...why? We were going to make you immortal..."

Twilight smirked again, "I already am." The cleansed sister slumped to the ground as the circlet shattered on to the floor. The sister's bodies disintegrated, leaving only their robes and other possessions as their only remains.

Twilight and Silver stared at the scene in silence for a few minutes. Silver finally asked, "What did you mean, you 'already are' immortal?"

Twilight laughed, "I'm the Element of Magic, I beat Nightmare Moon, conquered Discord. That alone should be enough to guarantee that I live forever as a hero amongst our ponies."

Silver Shock smiled, "Huh. Never thought of that. I suppose that is true, as long as there isn't some apocalyptic catastrophe in the future that wipes everypony out."

Twilight's expression became dour, "Yes. Speaking of which, let's get to the library."

---

A great feeling of unease spread over them as they approached the library doors. Steeled by the magical baubles they had selected, they cautiously opened the doors. Twilight gasped. Inside, they saw Star Swirl the Bearded, trapped inside an orb of purple fire. Feminine laughter resounded across the library, although it did not sound like Nightmare Moon this time. At the far side of the room stood a figure clad in dark purple robes, the hood pulled low over her face. She stood on her hind legs with her fore legs crossed in the sleeves of her robes.

The figure continued laughing and reached her fore legs towards the two unicorns. Her hooves ignited into the purple flames that Twilight and Silver were all too familiar with. Twilight and Silver lept to the side as lances of energy flew towards them. Twilight fired her own magical bolt at their attacker, which the enemy blocked with a magical barrier. She began laughing even more as Twilight continued firing bolts, all of which were harmlessly absorbed by her barrier. Twilight's horn ring began to glow, and her magical bolts became imbued with the elements of ice, fire, and lightning. Their opponent was shocked, but her barrier held against the elemental assault.

Silver Shock summoned a storm cloud and their opponent quickly blocked the lightning bolts as well. The enemy looked towards Star Swirl, "These foals were expected to save you? Where's your precious Clover the Clever now?" Twilight and Silver looked at each other, glanced towards Star Swirl, and nodded. They both began slowly advancing while throwing everything they had towards their foe.

"Enough of this. You bore me, magelings." their foe said, dropping her barrier to unleash a barrage of energy lances towards the unicorns. Twilight took to the defensive, setting up her own forcefield, but as with the crow assault earlier, she could not last long against the attacks. As an energy lance passed perilously close to Silver, the amulet around her neck began to glow and suddenly the room was full of mirror images of her. Their opponent snarled and began firing lances at the images, trying to find the real Silver Shock.

Silver Shock manipulated her storm cloud, dropping it down onto their opponent. While their foe was blinded, Twilight used her teleportation magic to send the real Silver over to Star Swirl. Their enemy stuck her hooves into the cloud and it began to glow with purple energy before disintegrating. The foe laughed, "Clever, but tricks won't be enough to save you from me!"

As the onslaught against Twilight's shield continued, Silver tried to figure out how to free Star Swirl. Out of the corner of his mouth, Star Swirl whispered, "I believe it is the phoenix feather that you are looking for, my dear."

Silver smiled, "Oh, thanks." As Silver plucked the feather out of her saddlebags, an energy lance phased through Star Swirl's prison and sent Silver tumbling backwards as her mirror images shattered.

The robed figure laughed maniacally, "One down." Twilight looked in stunned disbelief at her companion's lifeless body. Twilight screamed, "No!" as tears began to well. She felt that uncontrollable rage swelling up within her, the darkness that had been growing since the death of Windwalk. As Twilight transformed into the embodiment of her wrath, their opponent's laughter was finally silenced. "How can this be? What trickery is this?"

Twilight launched volley after volley of fire bolts at her foe, who was now back on the defensive, struggling to hold her barrier against Twilight's relentless fury. Twilight kept advancing, then suddenly charged her enemy, ramming her and sending her flying across the room. Twilight didn't let up, firing a barrage of fire bolts after the stricken foe.

Their opponent staggered to her feet and tried to block Twilight's attacks but was too slow. The flames burned through her robes and set her ablaze. She fell to the ground and began rolling to douse the fire. Twilight charged in for the kill and cried out in anguish as the foe's hooves were thrust against her chest, sending powerful torrents of energy through Twilight's body. Twilight fell to the ground, transforming back to her normal self, screaming in agony.

Their foe slowly rose to her feet, continuing to press her fore legs against Twilight. "And now, Twilight Sparkle, you will die."

Silver Shock awoke in a daze and was suddenly terrified as she heard Twilight's cries of pain. She tried to stand, but fell back down. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the phoenix feather. Her body hurt so much she could barely concentrate, but she had to try. Each attempt sent pain rippling through her head, but she persevered, finally lifting the phoenix feather with her magic and slowly guiding it to Star Swirl's prison.

As the feather connected with the fiery orb, the flames dissipated and Star Swirl sprung into action. He charged towards Twilight's attacker, using his magic to grab a sheathed sword from above the mantle. It was the legendary Sword of Heaven, once wielded by ancient pony emperors. As he drew the sword from its scabbard, arcane sigils on the blade began to glow. With a snarl, Star Swirl closed in on the robed mage, striking many a blow with his magical blade. Twilight's attacker groaned and muttered, "You foals...." before collapsing.

Silver Shock watched this unfold and smiled, then she too joined Twilight and their foe in the bliss of unconsciousness.

---

Hours later, Twilight and Silver awoke after a dream-free slumber. Star Swirl was anxiously pacing the room. His eyes lit up as he saw his rescuers were awake. "Ah, splendid! My saviors have returned to the realm of the living!"

Silver Shock frowned, "'Realm of the living?' Uh, are you saying we were dead?"

Star Swirl winked at her, "Oh, I didn't say any such thing. However, one could say it took quite a number of elixirs to ensure you two would remain by my side."

Twilight shook her head, "Thanks for saving us, Star Swirl, but couldn't you have just gone back in time and stopped her before we got blasted by her?"

Star Swirl laughed, "Oh, would that I could, Twilight. You see, we're in a bit of predicament here. When I time traveled to help you on your journey here, bringing my physical body instead of merely an astral projection as I had used earlier, I found myself ambushed by our good friend over there," Star Swirl nodded at the robed figure, who was shackled and scowling at them. "As well as her comrades. Let me see how well Celestia is teaching you, Twilight. Do you know who she is?"

Twilight cautiously approached. Their nemesis was a donkey. Twilight said, "I didn't even know donkeys could use magic."

Star Swirl laughed, "Well, well. Looks like I have yet another thing to discuss with Celestia. She really should have consulted me about her school's curriculum. I suppose it is up to me to edify you." Star Swirl pulled a book down from a shelf with his magic and opened it on a table. "You see, this donkey is better known as Valdis, the Witch. Or perhaps not, apparently. " Star Swirl pointed towards an illustration of the donkey and five others.

"Valdis and her companions were ancient adventurers, ancient even in my day. They were known as the Order of the True Heart. They wandered the countryside, righting wrongs, sharing their bounty with the poor, all that namby-pamby goody-four-horseshoe behavior that heroes are prone to do. Valdis you know all too well of course. There is also the unicorn mage, Baroness von Richthooven. The pegasi knight, Colonel Stormwing. The Earth pony warrior, Striking Shadow. The griffon minstrel, Monika le Magnifique. And of course, the yak warlock, Shamoke."

Twilight and Silver Shock glanced at each other, "Okay, that last one we've heard of," Twilight said, "We thought we saw my friends earlier, but it turned out they were... not them, and they yelled that name before attacking us."

Star Swirl nodded, "Oh, yes. All six were here watching your progress. They were most displeased when that ruse failed to stop you. I think you frightened them actually, as all but our friend here left in a hurry. Unfortunately, not before Shamoke hexed me and temporarily bound my time traveling powers."

Star Swirl sighed, "Which brings me to our predicament. You see, those rascals knew all too well what they were doing when they attacked me here. They stole the tomes we need to fix your problem and save Equestria, along with my time traveling spell's components."

Twilight looked confused, "But I've used your time travel spell before, I didn't need any equipment."

Star Swirl winked at her, "Ah, you see, the spell we need is quite the masterpiece, if I do say so myself, allowing one to spend an indefinite amount of time in their destination should they so desire. With so much at stake, we can not take any chances. Whereas the spell you used was extremely limited. You do remember that, don't you?" Twilight rolled her eyes and nodded.

Star Swirl continued, "Do you also remember on that day, when Cerberus showed up in Ponyville?"

Twilight nodded, "Yes, I led him back to the gates of Tartarus before any of the evils escaped."

Star Swirl laughed, "Ah, my dear, that's what they." he nodded towards Valdis, "wanted you to believe. It was their machinations that led to Cerberus abandoning his post. They've been biding their time, letting their powers return. The incident with you at your brother's wedding, and the resulting calamity that has ensued back in Equestria, gave them the opportunity they needed to escape."

Silver Shock spoke up, "I don't understand, if the Order of the True Heart was full of good ponies, how did they end up in Tartarus?"

Star Swirl stroked his beard, "A very good question. Care to tell us the tale, Valdis? No? Very well then. In ancient times, there was a creature so dark and twisted, it brought misery wherever it roamed. The Order, and this might interest you, Twilight, were the bearers of the Elements of Harmony at the time," Star Swirl smirked at Valdis, "and our donkey friend over there was the Element of Kindness itself, if you can believe it. Then of course there was Loyalty; Colonel Stormwing, Magic; Shamoke, Honesty; Striking Shadow, Generosity; the Baroness, and Laughter; Monika."

Twilight stared at Valdis in disbelief. Star Swirl continued, "And so, our good heroes decided to vanquish that terrible creature with the Elements. Unfortunately for them, and now it appears, for us, the creature was so full of evil that it was able to shrug off the Elements' attack. It corrupted the Element's magic and redirected it back onto our heroes. The creature was destroyed in the process, thankfully, but its foul essence lived on in the six. They became shadows of their former selves, obsessed with power, ruling the land with an iron fist until the new bearers of the Elements were found and thwarted the former heroes. They have been imprisoned in Tartarus ever since."

Twilight sat back and contemplated the story. "So, we have five more super angry, super powerful, super evil bad guys out there, and they have what we need. What are we going to do?"

Star Swirl stood up and used his magic to strap his sword's scabbard to his belt. "Why, Twilight, we get back my books, of course!"

Comments

[Clawfoot]

... Could have been a good story. Oh well