Battle For Equestria

by Cutiemarkcrusader

Chapter Twenty Three

Silence. That was all that followed after time stopped. But like everything in the world, time has to come back at some point or another. And it was gone for approximately ten seconds. Together, the group stared out at their friend, their jaws agape. Apple Jack was still lounging in Celestia's throne, looking rather pleased with herself. Her eyes were glued onto the five ponies, large and unblinking. And then slowly, as if in slow-motion, Apple Jack stood up. Her bones cracked into place as she took a few steps toward them.

"Apple Jack?" Rainbow Dash croaked out finally.

"No, you idiot," the creature inside Apple Jack snapped with a roll of the eyes.

"T-Then s-s-she's poss-possesing Apple Jack. Right?" Fluttershy was startled to find herself talking at all. She quickly dived back into her long, pink hair.

Apple Jack beamed, taking another few steps closer, "What a smart, little filly. But yes, I possessed that hillbilly you call a friend. She was one of the first prisoners of war too. What a shame."

Twilight was next to speak up, but the voice that came out didn't seem like her's, "W-Who are you?"

"Good question," Apple Jack walked around the group slowly, taking the time to brush shoulders with every single one, "And since I'm most likely going to kill you all anyway...I suppose a name must be in place. Correct?"

Rainbow Dash was the only one to nod her head. Apple Jack wound her way toward her, a cruel smile bearing down on everyone, "My name is Night Shade. Queen Night Shade. I came all the way past the bad lands to conquer this place. Turns out it's easier than a lot of ponies say."

"Wait...That's why your voice sounds familiar," Pinkie piped up with her squeaky voice from the back, "Do we know one of your relatives?"

"That's preposterous," Queen Night Shade's voice faltered for a moment, but that was enough for Twilight.

Twilight's eyes widened in comprehension, "You're related to Queen Chrysalis, aren't you?"

Queen Night Shade whipped her head to stare at Twilight. Her eyes flashed red as her voice boomed throughout the ambient room, "DON'T YOU EVER SAY THAT NAME TO ME!"

"I'd take that as a big yes," Rainbow Dash snorted without so much as a flinch.

Night Shade let out a heavy sigh, "Chrysalis came back to the kingdom after years of planning, years of waiting, years of boasting about how she was going to rule over Equestria. She comes back with only twenty of our soldiers and says that something went wrong. I am NOT like her what so ever. I've made it past a day. Even if someone were to assassinate me now, I would still be more accomplished than that little crying, thing ever was."

"If you're related to Chrysalis...Aren't you supposed to be a changeling?" Rarity found her voice at last.

"What makes you think I'M the different one? We all could possess ponies and beings alike. Everyone but Chrysalis that was. She was different. She could mirror everything around her. Was that better than our powers? No. Was it rare? Yes, only a few select beings in history had that 'gift'. Was she spoiled rotten because of her disability? Of course she was. Mother and Father gave her everything she could hope for. They supplied her with that clay to mold out her army. They comforted her when she was overthrown. SHE WAS AN IDIOT. But none of that matters now...because I'm here and she isn't."

"You're sisters?" Pinkie Pie gasped, "I thought you were cousins or something."

"Shut-up, you," Night Shade glared across the room at Pinkie.

"But I-I don't understand..." Twilight began, "What happens to the body, er, or the host when you possess them?"

Night Shade bowed down her head, smirking slightly, "My, my...take a look at the brains on Twilight Sparkle. Tell me Twilight, I have managed to destroy your government, send all of your leaders to the moon, twist your world from the inside out...and you want to learn more about the science of what my kind do to ponies such as yourself?"

"I want to learn about all of the above...If I'm going to die, I might as well get the curiosity out of my system."

"Very well, Sparkle," snorted Night Shade as she sat back down on Celestia's throne, "But only because you amuse me...slightly."

Rainbow Dash glanced over to Twilight; the confusion on her face was anything but subtle. Twilight stared straight ahead, but slowly gave a backwards nod over to Pinkie. Rainbow's brows furrowed.

"Where to begin? Our power is quite extraordinary in its own form. I have possessed your little friend here, but there is no chance for her being conscience. As soon as a possessor takes hold of its host, the hosts' mind gets shut off until further notice. It's a simple hibernation mode if you could call it that."

"But what about the possessors that were wounded during the pony raids? What happens to the hosts inside of them?" Twilight asked, quickly nodding over to Pinkie Pie again before Night Shade could notice.

Rainbow Dash gazed over to Pinkie Pie. Her pink hooves shuffled silently, but somewhere not too far away, something jingled right next to her. Rainbow's eyes narrowed slightly as she tried to pinpoint the noise.

"The host is wounded and we feel all of their pain for them. The hosts' body stays wounded, but mentally, they can't feel anything-

"And if they die inside a hosts' body?"

Night Shade chuckled darkly, "The host would die. Their body wouldn't be able to withstand. But somewhere, their soul will drift off through time and space itself. As for us...we would be trapped inside that body until we ourselves perish. It's a dark twist of fate, so as you can see, not many of us are willing to die so easily. And that is usually because we can't. Possessors can heal very quickly before we 'die'. It's a type of guardian angel system if you could call it that."

"Wait, you can possess ponies, but you can't possess alicorns, right?"

Night Shade's smug smile dropped for a second before reappearing, "What made you come to that conclusion?"

It was Twilight's turn to smile as she explained, "I'm pretty sure that anypony who had the capabilities of possessing would take control of an alicorn that's as powerful as Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. But something tells me that even the best possessors can't do it even if they tried."

Night Shade cocked an eyebrow up slightly, "Nice deduction skills, Sherclop Pones. And yes, it's true...Although I am an alicorn myself, it is impossible to possess anyone of my certain structure. Alicorns have an immense defensive power against most magical elements. You can defeat them in combat, yes...but you can't take over their divine being. But if one was to, let's say, send somepony like me to the moon for infiltrating their government, a reflective spell is quite useful to have."

"You sent Luna and Celestia to the moon...by using a reflective spell?"

"You make it sound like such a petty thing," tsked Night Shade with a cruel smile.

"Well, you are a petty thing," Rainbow Dash mumbled under her breath.

There was a tense silence that filled the air.

Night Shade's gaze rested on Rainbow Dash and a snarl unfurled from her snout, "No one was talking to you, Rainbow Crash. And frankly, I don't like the attitude you've been giving off so far. Be careful, or you may be the last one to die."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, "The last one to die?"

Night Shade's nostrils flared once more, "Yes. It's a fate worse than dying, because you get to watch me kill each of your friends without being able to stop me."

"Is that supposed to scare me?"

"Yes," the sound of teeth grinding together could be heard, "But torture could be adequate for you as well."

"Good," Rainbow Dash bit back, "Oh, and by the way...you cheated."

"Cheated?" Night Shade smiled slowly, her teeth barred, "Really? What makes you say that?"

"During the duel. You just used some hocus-pocus spell that technically made Celestia send herself to the moon. You did nothing. At least your sister actually defeated Celestia last time she was here."

Like a bullet, Night Shade's breath shot out icily. Everypony's eyes were upon either Night Shade or Rainbow Dash.

"Guards," Night Shade's voice trembled in anger, "Leave us be right now."

The few guards that were standing at the door paused, unsure if they heard correctly, "Your highne-

"GO."

Twilight glanced back at the retreating guards. Her eyes lept toward Pinkie Pie hopefully, but Pinkie was still shuffling her feet. The jingling noise was just barely audible.

As soon as the giant doors closed, Night Shade got up from her throne quickly, "That was the last time you dare compare me to my sister. That was the LAST time you do anything at all. Do you hear me?"

"Yeah, crystal clear," Rainbow Dash's voice was dipped in sarcasm.

"Oh, you..." Night Shade fumed, "I will make you suffer, alright. And it will be the most satisfying part of my life."

Twilight leaned closer to Rainbow Dash, "What do you think you're doing?"

"Stalling," Rainbow whispered back, "Or does inkie-pay not have the lements-ey?"

"Wow, your pig latin in bad," Twilight muttered, "But that's what I assume all of that ruckus was coming from her backside."

"Yeah, what is that exactly?" Rainbow Dash mumbled with a small, underlining hint of confusion.

"Her secret pocket. Where do you think she stores her party cannon?"

Rainbow tried to hide her flushed face from view, "Uh, that's not important right now."

"What are you two doing?" Night Shade glowered at the two ponies.

"We're, uh, saying our goodbyes..."

Night Shade sighed, "Isn't that sweet? I suppose you all would want to part ways with peaceful, heart-felt goodbyes, right?"

"Y-yes," Fluttershy's muzzle poked out from underneath her pink locks.

"Well, too bad!" Night Shade spat, "You all had plenty of time to do that on the way here."

"Please, just give us one minute," Twilight bowed her head respectfully, "If you will...We'll do whatever you'll command us to do."

There was another long pause. Night Shade's sneer faltered for a moment before returning to normal.

"Since I am a merciful queen...You get thirty seconds. And that is it. No more. no less. Understood?"

"Perfectly."

"Your time begins now..."

Twilight quickly beckoned everyone over to gather in a circle. Fluttershy and Rarity were both misty-eyed as they trotted over toward everypony else.

"We're not going to die. Not yet," Twilight whispered as fast as she could, "Pinkie, you have the...things we need, right?"

Pinkie gave a stiff nod, "Yep."

Rarity frowned, "The things...Oh, you mean th-

Rainbow Dash spoke loudly to mask Rarity's sentence, "It's okay, Rarity. I love you too!"

Twilight, "Thank you Rainbow Dash. Now, what Night Shade doesn't notice is that she's in an earth pony's body. She has no spells and no wings."

"Ten more seconds, fillies!"

"Neither do we at the moment," hissed Rarity.

"We tie her down, somepony gets Apple Jack's element, put it on her, and we get Night Shade out of Apple Jack's body."

"Sounds good to me," Pinkie chirped quietly.

"Time is up!"

Twilight gave a slight nod to Pinkie Pie before turning back to Night Shade, "Thank you for that...Night S-

"Queen Night Shade," she corrected with a growl.

Twilight took a few steps forward, "Queen Night Shade. Thatnk you for your hospitality...your, uh, mercifulness...and your graceful attitude. What I'm going to say next may be a bight rash-

"Then I wouldn't say it if I were you."

Another step forward, "That may be...but what I need to tell you is this...could you listen closely though?"

"Here is fine."

"I'd rather this be kept away from my friends..."

Night Shade smirked, "Betrayal? Is that your intention, Sparkle? I'm surprised."

Twilight nodded as she took one more step closer, "I suppose you could call it, uh, that."

Behind Twilight, however, Pinkie Pie was slipping the saddlebag out of her pocket as quietly as she could. Rainbow Dash and Rarity were moving just as close as Twilight was but at a slower pace.

"Go on," Night Shade's voice was peaked with interest, "Get on with it."

"What I need to tell you...is this..."

Before Twilight could continue, her hoof collided with Night Shade's jaw. She cringed as a dark pink mark spread its way across the cheek of Apple Jack.

"GO!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she and Rarity raced toward Night Shade.

Rainbow Dash was the first to reach the queen with a mighty punch to the neck. Night Shade kicked up her hooves with a small grunt, sending Rainbow Dash flying through the air. With a heavier kick, Twilight was sent spiraling down the throne room floor.

Night Shade lept up to her hooves and began to scream, "Gua-

But Rarity threw herself at Night Shade, wrapping her hooves around her mouth.

Pinkie scrambled as she opened the saddlebag, rustling through each necklace as fast as she could.

"Fluttershy!" Pinkie threw the butterfly embroidered necklace to her.

"SHE'S BITTING ME!" Rarity hollered.

Rainbow Dash stumbled over to the two ponies before landing another punch to Night Shade's gut.

"Get her off of me!" squealed Rarity as she threw Night Shade off of her.

"Rarity!" Pinkie flung the element of generosity Rarity's way.

Twilight's eyes fluttered open as her surroundings became clearer. Rainbow Dash had taken the place of Rarity and was now glued onto the backside of Night Shade for all it was worth.

"Rainbow Dash!"

The element of loyalty whizzed past Rarity's head and seemed to magically attach itself to Rainbow Dash's neckline. Night Shade growled and snarled as she whipped around and around, trying to get Dash off of her back.

"Twilight," Pinkie trotted straight toward Twilight with the element of magic in her mouth.

Twilight caught the crown before hastily flinging it onto her head.

"ME!" shrieked Pinkie as she fastened on her blue element.

A spark ignited smoothly from the tip of Twilight's horn, flickering and sparkling as it grew bigger and bigger. All together the elements individually lit up, humming as they did. Rainbow Dash pinned Night Shade to the cold ground as the others formed a circle before her.

"Stop it. You can't-I-I-Don't do this!"

Night Shade sputtered as the giant, emerald-colored orb that was now steadily sprouting out of Twilight's horn engulfed the room. A giant flash of green light erupted, blasting the stain-glass windows and brass doors open, flooding the entire grounds with its light. And then there was silence.

No pony moved. Twilight opened her eyes, awestruck at what had just happened. Night Shade was still trembling on the ground, held down by Rainbow Dash's strong hooves, but was still trapped inside Apple Jack's body. Slowly, she began to cackle.

"Green light? That's all that spell did? Cast a bright light? How did you manage to screw up this far? This is what Celestia's apprentice has to offer?" Night Shade spat, her fury rising once more as she let out a cold laugh, "I thought it would be a bit more climatic than that."

"Really? I thought this would be climatic enough without having to explain," Twilight snarked back at Night Shade, ignoring her insults completely, "But I guess I thought wrong. You see, that wasn't just a flash of green light, Night Shade. Oh no. It was a beacon of green light."

"Ha," Night Shade's eyes narrowed, "I don't see a difference."

"Oh, but I do," a voice rang out from behind the ponies.

All eyes widened as the figure strode into the circle, her green eyes set on Night Shade and only Night Shade. Her tall, white body was rigid, as though she had slept on rocks for months straight. Night Shade let out a small gulp before feigning laughter.

"Well, this was a-a surprise I wasn't, um, expecting-

"Quiet, you," Celestia's nostrils flared.

"Celestia?" Rarity squeaked, her voice wavering this way and that, "How? How did you-you..."

"That beacon of light Twilight sent out was bigger than you would think. It shot straight up into the air and was able to reach us on the moon. And luckily for us, that was what we needed. Not any simple unicorn magic would have sufficed. We needed element magic to grab onto. It was enough magic to get us back here in one piece."

"Us? But that means-

Luna trotted out from the main doors, her stare directly on Night Shade. Night Shade whimpered as Luna drew closer. Twilight beamed as she spied the purple outline of a small dragon clutched onto Luna's back.

"Sister, I took out the guards on watch," Luna siad hastily, "They're knocked out cold, but are still otherwise possessed."

"Possessed?" Rainbow Dash struggled for a split second to hold down Night Shade, "But that beacon of light was supposed to-

"It did exactly what I wanted it to do, Dash," Twilight explained quickly, "Send the princessess back home. We need them for the last step anyway. And besides, you didn't honestly think we could get the element of honesty on Night Shade without getting maimed in the process, did you?"

Rainbow Dash laughed nervously, "Just messing with you buddy. I know all about...beacons. And stuff."

"We haven't much time, so whatever it is you need to do, do it fast," Luna checked the coast behind her, sternly.

Celestia smiled, the corners of her mouth sliding up across her face just slightly, "Do you guys have the element of honesty with you?"

Pinkie jumped up and down, raising her hoof feverishly, "Ooh. Ooh. I know where it is!"

And with the last jump, she flung the element of honesty into the air, its orange, apple-shaped gem glistening in the light before she caught it expertly. Celestia gave another smile as Pinkie offered the necklace to her.

"Thank you, Pinkie," Celestia bowed her head before using her magic to levitate the necklace into the air.

It spun wildly before settling onto Night Shade's neck. Night Shade hissed as she started to struggle even harder, tossing and turning, and kicking up her hooves like an indignant filly.

"Activate the elements," commanded Celestia in a booming voice, "We need to get Night Shade out of Apple Jack before she ends up killing her. Along with the other things that are trapped in just about every pony else."

Twilight gave a single, short nod. Celestia's body stiffened all of a sudden, her eyes clenched shut and her teeth gritted together. A long, silver wisp trailed out the end of Celestia's horn, growing larger and larger. The smoke twirled and spun around throughout the circle, casting a mist upon the group. Soon the glowing elements were the only things to be seen in the dense, thick fog that was encircling everyone. All the elements except for Apple Jack's that was.

"Princess Celestia," came the sound of Fluttershy's soft voice through the fog, "What's happening? Why isn't Apple Jack's element lighting up?"

Celestia explained quickly as another wisp of smoke puffed out from her horn, "The element doesn't know that Apple Jack is in there. All it can make out is Night Shade. And the fact that, arg, Night Shade has been suppressing her beyond belief isn't a helping factor at the moment. Apple Jack will be lucky to make it out in one piece. But once I can lure Night Shade out of Apple Jack's body, the element should work almost instantly. When all of the, ah, elements are together they will-

A loud cough startled everyone. Rainbow Dash let out a yelp as if hot water had scorched her and let go of Night Shade. All was quiet until Celestia let out a loud groan that seemed to shake the throne room.

Celestia's body shook rigidly as a tiny ball of black light lifted out from the collected smoke havoc that bundled around the ponies.

"Princess?" Twilight called out in a light whisper, "What is that?"

"I'm not sure," Celestia's leg twitched slightly as she observed the ball of black light, "But I wouldn't get too close, Twilight-

There was a long pause as the blue light suddenly disappeared. Nothing happened. Once more, time stood still. And then an orange light flickered on from the center of the group. A whooshing sound roared through the heavy layers of fog, lifting the six ponies off of their feet. Twilight flinched as the wind whipped at her mane and her skin. Light bounced off every object, blinding everypony with its rays. And through the layers of noise, ponies were yelling and shrieking in the distance somwhere on the castle grounds, sending shivers down Twilight's spine. One single, pitiful scream shot out from the corner of the room. And then the whooshing stopped.

Slowly, one by one, each of the mares floated down, starting with Pinkie Pie first. Fluttershy landed with a soft thud next to Pinkie, her hair looking as though somepony had run it through a cotton candy machine. Rainbow Dash and Rarity followed suit, both landing crisply on the marble floor. Twilight felt herself being lowered down gently as well. Her hooves touched the marble as the noise began to die down. The only pony left that was floating down limply, was no pony other than Apple Jack. Her eyes were closed shut and tight and her breathing came out raspy and jagged.

Celestia jolted toward the orange mare, her head bowed down to examine her. She ignited her horn once more and kneeled against the hard floor. Apple Jack murmured softly to herself as her eyes rolled around under the safety of her eyelids. Celestia bit her lip softly.

"Sister," she spoke up in a hurry, "Go check the surroundings with Spike. The elements seemed to have done their job...but I'm going to need access to the nearest medical facility. She's going to go under soon and my magic isn't quite as strong as it was before this ordeal began. Fetch any pegasi nearby that can carry Apple Jack. Rainbow Dash, I'm going to be needing your assistace as well."

Rainbow Dash's voice cracked, "Of course, Princess. I-I-Of course..."

"Good," Celestia sighed, "Now, if you excuse me, I'll need to be alone for a few minutes. Give her all a bit more air."

Fluttershy whimpered, tears rolling down her yellow face, "Will-will she b-be alright?"

"I can't say for sure. But I will do everything in my power to make sure she will."

"Come, girls," Rarity nudged the rest of the group, "Let's give the Princess some space. Apple Jack will get better soon. Now is just not the time yet."

The girls slowly trailed away from Celestia, weary and downcast as they made their way to the open windows. Twilight peered outside, her eyes scanning the landscape.

Pegasi were littered around Canterlot, rubbing their heads, walking aimlessly around, all too confused to do anything. They all seemed like lost sheep in a herd. Twilight gazed around to Ponyville, still just a pile of rubble as far as she could see. But deep down she could feel herself smiling through all the layers of stress, sweat, and sorrow this war had brought with it. Little did the dumbstruck pegasi below know that it had all ended only a few minutes ago.

"What was that black light?" Fluttershy spoke up at last, her eyes fidgeting from the windowsill to the outside world, "You don't think it was her, do you?"

"I'm not sure, Fluttershy. I'd like to think that Night Shade just vaporized right then and there, but even I know she didn't."

"Um, you guys?-

Rarity sniffed slightly, "And all of the others? Did they all just blast off the same way they did when Cadence and Shining Armor cast them out? Or do you reckon they're still out here?"

"Guys," Pinkie motioned at a spot on the ground, "I dont' know about the others...but I think I found Night Shade. Or what was left of her..."

There on the white, marble floor, over where Twilight had heard that one scream, was a mound of black dust, smeared across the slick surface. Twilight slowly made her toward Pinkie and the dust pile, not quite sure whether to be sympathetic or glad. Her eyes dropped to the floor with a grim smile.

"Are you- Are you sure that thing's her?" Fluttershy squeaked from the windowsill.

"Was her," corrected Twilight, "I heard her scream right before that wind tunnel we were in stopped. The elements must have incinerated her while she was getting away. I bet you anything that black light we saw was Night Shade."

Rainbow Dash's smile spread from ear to ear, "She got what she deserved in the end. Serves her right."

"I don't know," Fluttershy murmured.

Everypony stared at her with wide eyes and slackened jaws, as though she had just admitted to murder.

"Fluttershy, what on Equestria do you mean?" Rarity croaked, her eyelashes batting in surprise.

Fluttershy gave a low sigh as she turned her attention to the outside world, "I don't agree with what she did, don't get me wrong...but it all seems sad when you think about it. She marched into Canterlot, wiped out the government, committed acts of murder, and played an entire game of mousetrap with the kingdom...all to outshine her sister. That was the only reason."

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes heavily, "Sounds like the perfect reason to take over Equestria. Next time a tyrannic, egotistical, psychotic leader comes into town, I'll be the first to take them out to dinner."

"But, it just seems so sad to think about how much jealousy it took for her to do all of this," Fluttershy pressed on with a weary sigh, "Whenever you get jealous over someone for...um, being faster than you or being smarter, prettier, and for getting all the attention...you do stupid things in a way to spite them. But even if you were to sabotage them in a way, it would be nothing compared to all of this. I think Night Shade wanted her parent's attention so badly...she would've have done anything to just make them proud. And, well, here we are now."

"That was very well-thought of Fluttershy," Celestia spoke from behind the group, "Not many ponies are so keen to look into other ponies' perspective."

"Uh, Princess," Pinkie cringed a little, "Where's Apple Jack?"

"In the care of my sister. They're headed straight to the infirmary as we speak."

"And where's Spike?" Twilight looked around the throne room for any sign of her dear, purple-scaled friend.

Celestia gave a small chuckle, "Don't worry. I gave him the important tast of checking on the ponies outside for any mental stress or damage. There might be some in worse condition than Apple Jack for all we know, but it's a small chance. Not many of the possesslings were as strong as she was. But for know... you all should rest. We'll be needing you soon enough."

Twilight walked back to the windowsill, where Fluttershy still stood, "Do you think everypony will change?"

Celestia followed her faithful student to the window, "Change in inevitable. It can't be stopped. You know that the most."

"I know," sighed Twilight, "But will they change for the worst?"

"It depends on the ponies. Earth Ponies and Pegasi may forgive each other, whether it be the other side or themselves, but they won't forget it."

"I see..."

"Don't give up hope on them just yet, Twilight," Celestia cracked a smile, "We'll all figure out a path to tread in due time."

Twilight's eyes scanned the horizon, not quite sure what she was searching for, "You really think so?"

"I always have."

Comments

[GMZ_Casper]

Well, the bad guy finally got defeated and pulled out of Applejack, which also freeing the other possessed ponies from the 'Shadows'. It has been one heck of emotional rollercoaster for the gangs, but at least for now, they can recovered. Man, poor Applejack is going to be beating herself up for this, though.

Short C&C:
...Apple Jack...
> Correction: 'Applejack'.