> Rise of Ponietheus
>  by twitterdick
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> 1. 'Theus: Prologue/Every Beginning has an Ending
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	A lady alicorn, deep gray, pushed her way thru the clouds and gently laid her hooves upon snow covered rock. A brisk cold swept around her, like nothing she'd felt in space, and her face squished with indignity as she shivered for the very first time. Fog had crept upon the mountain, though she cared little for the lands below.
Just then, a great white figure appeared from a nearby cave. He flexed his mighty wings, a stretch, then called to her. "Solon!" he said, "Always a pleasure. I'm a little surprised that you accepted my invitation, with most of us disinclined to set hoof on this planet."
Solon bit down as her neck stiffened. "What is this unbearable sensation!?"
The white figure laughed. "That's cold, sweetheart. The same cold Draco has confined my friends to. I've a shelter in a cave over there, it'll warm you up."  
Solon stepped into the cave and shook off the snow. Her host moved about the abode before her, sending sparks into a fire with his magic. He grabbed a grey, patchwork quilt from a rack and tossed it towards his kin. It landed upon her back as she settled in.
"What's this?" She asked.
"They call it a 'quilt'. The ponies use it to keep warm in these storms." The host replied. There were several others upon wooden racks, but he did not reach for one. "You're supposed to wrap it around yourself."
Solon was puzzled, but complied. She suffered one last shiver before settling. The warmth captured by the quilt embraced her. She shut her eyes for a brief second, relieved. Heat radiated from her host's fire. He was silent, as if anticipating a blow. Her eyes opened suddenly. Fire. She met her host's bright blue eyes with her own.
"This quilt, this fire, this was not your work but work from the Lessers. Draco has forbidden them fire. 'Theus, where did they get this fire!?"
Ponietheus smiled weakly. "I'd like to show you something, if you think you can handle that dire-some cold for a bit longer."
He took off then without waiting for her response. She followed him as a hound upon prey. He shot from the cave and leap from the edge of the snowy mountain in flight, diving downward against the wind. A valley entered view below with great mountains scattered around its contours, like the edges of an iron box. Beneath the dusty clouds was a stone city nestled in the valley as perfect a rectangle as nature would allow. Towers neared the skyline, and Solon found it hard to spot Ponietheus among the lights and buildings. Never had such a creation been carved from this planet, or any planet Solon had witnessed. Her heart fluttered at the marvel, and her eyes poured upon the white and grey structures, the banners, the streets and the ever expanding walls. Noises burst from the corners of bustling marketplaces, homes, business and industry. Smells of steam and of bakery blended with the bitter cold in her nostrils. Her head filled with thoughts of wonder, of anger and of foul things to come.
Ponietheus perched himself upon the highest structure there, a mighty watchtower near the city's southern border that oversaw vast plains of temperate green. He waited patiently for his guest to join him. She landed just behind him, her mouth still and agape in amazement - her brow a flurry of worry.
"…Pretty nice place, south of here. It would sure beat this cold." Ponietheus said, his gaze fixed upon the gardens beyond the southern mountains.
Solon scoffed. "That… that city! What is that!? Where did it come from?"
"The mighty city of Hailcryon; Those 'Lessers' built it. They finished it in just 87 years. All they needed was a little fire, a little thought and a little motivation." Ponietheus broke his stance and turned to her, his face uncannily sincere. "They are not chattel and they are not a living mockery. They are my friends, they think and they can barely stand the cold of this valley even with all I have given them."  
Solon shuttered from cold and anger. "So you summoned me here for this - to display your rash actions like a trophy? Do you not see what you've done? Do you not see the wrath you shall bring on yourself?"
Ponietheus paused and studied his guest. He smiled. "How are your girls?" he asked, "The younger one especially, I do miss her so."
"What right have you to ask such questions?"
"The same right you have to question me. Questions are a marvelous good, Solon. They have all sorts of uses. It's best that one should question everything; every fact, every belief… every order."
"You've done much wrong. Draco urged caution and you ignored him, and in doing so you've only sown more violence to come. These hornless, wingless creatures - All they do is eat and grow. They'll ruin the landscape and the other animals if they're allowed to roam freely."
"You're quite morbid. I only mean to pose a game - a game of questions. You ask me a question and I shall answer it truthfully. Then you provide the same for me. Deal?"
Solon stood still a second, eyeing her white host. She swallowed. "Very well. What's your plan, then?"
Ponietheus laughed merrily, as if at a social gathering. "Solon, it is my turn," he said. "You asked about the city before and I answered you. So it is your turn to answer me: How are your daughters?"
Solon slunk back, shifting her head lower. "They are both doing quite…well," she said with a voice fully embedded with hesitation. "Luna is very fond of you. She asks about you all the time."
A somber look fell upon Ponietheus's eyes. "Tell her I'll be away a long time, but I'm very fond of her as well. She'll be a powerful magic user in the future, if she remembers her training."
"Now then, what is your plan?"
"To ask Draco to allow my friends beyond the southern mountains so that they can lead better lives. If he complies, he'll see no more of them or of me - he'll keep his beloved order. If he refuses, which he'll probably will, then we will force our way out. He hasn't so much as glanced at the ponies here in 87 years."
Solon scoffed, "Your love of the Lessers and of challenging those above will be your downfall. Draco will hear nothing from you and he will sweep down from the heavens and destroy you. You wanted violence, you've sown it and you shall have it. You're so very quick to judge, but so slow to understand the consequences of your rash actions!!"
"Very cryptic, madam," he replied swiftly. "My turn."
He began to pace subtly. His eyes shifted in calculation and his head drifted in thought. "Have you ever wondered why Draco proclaims our liberator and savior then damns a race of creatures simply because they look like us without the wings, horns and words? Does it not bother you that he named himself our diligent and omnipotent lord then spends 87 years doing nothing? He didn't even look down and notice a city being built."
"Such thoughts never entered my mind; I am loyal to my lord, just as you should be. I won't play your game any longer. Draco will hear of your betrayal and your theft of fire, and you will meet a just punishment. I pray it swift and satisfying. You are my friend no longer."
With her poisonous words spattered at her unsuspecting host, the deep grey maiden rose to the skies and soured away with indignity. Ponietheus stood in place a moment, and dismissed such with a joke. It did not mitigate those words. He swallowed, and then walked towards the way into the tower.
Another alicorn pushed his way outside, swinging the door open wide. He was tall and broad with a coat like blood - more black than red; crimson, fiery. He met Ponietheus's eyes with his own auburn pair, and tipped his head slightly. 
Ponietheus's heart skipped. "Saturn!" he shouted. "You startled me."
"I have that effect on others." Saturn responded dryly with a voice like gravel. "Gaea and the rest of the dissenters await you below. They'd like to hear your plan."
"Solon did exactly what I expected," Ponietheus said, pushing his way into the tower's entrance. Saturn did not follow immediately.
"I do not approve of your alliance with Gaea, Drifter." Saturn said, employing his self-issued nicknames. His face was grave. "She has an agenda and she means to drag you into it. She does not care for your… friends, and I fear she will become another Draco; stagnant and hollow."
Ponietheus paused. He stared down at the floor. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, I suppose," he responded frankly. "I have no great love of her, and I doubt she feels any different. Our dealings are just a transaction. She gets her power and my friends get out of this valley. Everyone wins."
"Except Draco… and you," Saturn said.
"…And me." Ponietheus whispered. He turned to his friend, "No more wars after this, Saturn. This universe needs to… settle down a while and catch its breath. You'll see to it, won't you."
Saturn shook his head. "There will always be wars," he said coldly.
"…I fear you're right."

"So that's your plan then!?" Gaea barked, her deep green skin flustering. Her pale auburn eyes struck at Ponietheus. "…To have Solon run off to tattle to her husband - to pit all those hornless idiots against the might of Draco's followers? Are you blind or just careless?"
Ponietheus stood across from her at a stone table in the tower. She was dressed in silk and bore bands of gold and jewels. Her lap dog, Jupiter, stood diligently at her side. 
"Neither," Ponietheus replied, his voice struggling to mask anger. "My friends have known what's to come and I've spent many long years planning this. I do not proceed with these kind of things unless I am damn sure I know what I'm doing. I've got contingencies covered, Gaea, including if you choose not to uphold our agreement. Solon will relay a message to Draco and he will gather his best lackies and attack me. You will find his keep easy to take and the power you covet so will be yours."
Gaea scoffed, "Do not think your 'wit' frightens me. I am no 'contingency'. I remember my family and my people while you galavant in the fields of this fickle planet with your dear 'Lessers'. You can have them, and trust me - I mean not to betray you. I desire Draco gone as much as you, so don't call me to a council to fill my ears with your 'contingencies'-"
"Then don't come here to insult me!!" Ponietheus said firmly, "You and your lackies didn't have the brains to pull this off! You can to me, remember!? Draco will attack soon, and when he brings his guard planet-side, be sure you and all your followers are out of Earth's atmosphere. I will deploy my weapon, you take care of any that flee the system. Draco's place is yours, Earth is mine."
"Very well!" Gaea snarled. "Earth is yours - take it! Don't poke your nose up in the Empyrean after, or I very well might hack it off. My followers and I will keep our part of the bargain, you can be sure of that. Let's just hope your 'weapon' and your 'contingency plans' hold up."
She snapped her head towards the exit, and Jupiter moved quickly to get the door for her. The two pushed past Ponietheus and Saturn and embarked upwards into the cloudburst. Saturn stood still. Ponietheus remained in his place, staring down at the stone table.
Saturn spoke, "Can't seem to put you in a room with anyone with there being anger."
Ponietheus barely snickered, "Hmm. I have that effect on other folks, evidently."
"…What is this 'weapon' of yours. Is it truly so wicked?"
Ponietheus looked coldly at his friend. He pulled a shred paper from beneath his left wing and slapped it down on the vacant table. Saturn eyed the deep black letters and symbols that covered its surface and marveled. Anxiety spread about his frame like the flames of war, and he regarded that strip of meager paper like a prophet, or an ending. "No amount of hate… not even hate of Draco would power such a curse. That thing will shatter you, Drifter."
"Every pony in Hailcryon hates Draco, Saturn. There is enough to power this spell. No one can stop us now."  

---

Ponietheus awoke alone in a stone bed. He exhaled. It was a very special day. He pulled himself from his makeshift cot and ventured through a dimly lit stone hallway into a vast camber of pillars, shelves and books. He walked up a wide set of steps onto the second floor and approached a tall stone mural of times long since passed. The depicted pictures there were long since glossed over in immeasurable rows and columns of tally marks the stretched up high into the overhanging ceiling. Ponietheus levitated up to the bottom row of tallies that came down about 6 ft from the base of the wall. He dug his mighty horn into the stone work and crossed over a group of four tallies then redid the lingering math that haunted his mind. '1,599,999 plus 1 is equal to 1,600,000.' he thought, 'This is my 1,600,000th day in this forsaken place.'
It was Tuesday. Yesterday he had continued reading the many works of fiction stored in the grand library he lived in; so that was Monday. Today, Tuesday, he would walk eastward through the deserted marketplaces and crumbling buildings and hike up the great mountain and nap in that cave he used to live in. Tomorrow would be Wednesday, when he would walk south and climb the great tower to watch the sunset and look to that valley his 'friends' had long parted to. On Wednesdays he would bite his tongue and sneer up there, cursing himself for being so weak.
He walked amount the buildings as they fell further and further into decay. The life that had lived there was thousands of years dead, and he had stopped maintaining the ruins for some time. The walk would eat up for hours, and he would hum hymns of respite that had ceased meaning.
The abandoned streets echoed with his words, his songs:

I won't cry when you leave.
When I have lost you, I won't grieve.
I don't bleed when you bite.
Nor will I crawl back to you despite hate or fright.

I won't shiver in the cold.
I won't let the shadows take their toll.
I won't cover my head in the dark.
And I won't forget you, when we part.

I won't heal given time.
I don't try to change your mind.
I don't feel better in the cold light of day.

He repeated those words between fits of silence and thoughts, as if they were all he needed to stay darkness and cold. The winds of Hailcryon bit into him as he bit his tongue, and ignored the howling around him. Snow cut his soul, and he walked up into the mountains past the dead plants and cold rocks. He went into his cave and shot fire into the wood he had left last Tuesday. He slept there near the fire and dreamt nothing. 
His city welcomed him with its perennial silence, and he returned to find his library vacant and endless. All seemed as he left it - a still, disorganized study. Books were littered disjointly on shelves, and scattered on desks. A long stone table stretched from the dimly lit stairs where Ponietheus marked the days to the large, wooden double-doors where he enter. It was littered with scraps of food where he left them, books and sheets of paper where he left them and… a ceramic jar that was not there before. The oddment caught his eye almost a soon as he entered the library. He approached it and lifted it up into the air near his face. Etched on its front was a strange upright figure atop a wingless, hornless white alicorn - much too large for a pony. The Eldridge figure was draped in decrepit, emaciated bandages - save his left eye - and it wore a dim crown. It faced him, its left eye ablaze in blue. A note was suddenly illuminated by a candle near him, and he caught it with his gaze:

 Oh stricken one, doomed to linger within the dead city,
it has been thousands of years since you and Draco exchange curses
and you found yourself alone. 
But I have not forgotten you, despite your thoughts of the contrary, 
and I hope to repay your for your good deeds,
even after so much time.
I have searched for a certain mighty power for years, and I have found it.
Within this jar, you will find a powder that will answer that which burns inside you.
It's magic will bend to your will and override Draco's;
You will be free of Hailcryon, 
and able to return that kindness those you fought for gave you.

Oh, and Draco's daughters live south of here, in that kingdom you see off in the distance.
I'm sure they'd love to see you again.
Happy hunting.

Then, he slammed the jar back upon the stone table and backed away, backed away as if the note was the very specter of the past - the various moments he wasted in that library brought to life. His heart pounded like thunder, and his focus shifted upwards to the various dark places in the library. His mind buzzed with the perception of unheard voices, his eyes brought alicorn shapes to the shadows. "No, no, no…" he mumbled, "No, I won't…shiver." 
He moved away from the jar, up to the balcony where he could watch the sun set. His body stood in that place where the sun sank behind the western mountains, crossing the tip of the very tall one that held his cave. Yet his mind lay fixed on the jar, the note and the pale blue eye of the slender figure that stared into him - into all he was! He squeezed his blue eyes shut, and shook away those thoughts. The skies above him rumbled. 
Peace and sleep evaded him that night.
Morning crawled to the valley, and the sun found itself forced behind formations of cloud. Ponietheus pulled himself from his bed near noon after laying awake for hours. 'Wednesday…' he thought, 'It's Wednesday and I'm to climb the south tower.'
He rushed to the library's door. His eyes did not meet the jar, but his peripheral vision sure caught it. It was pushed to the edge of the table near the base of the stairs, as if it had been drawn closer to him. Light from windows above fell upon it perfectly, setting it apart from the rest of the clutter building up on the table. Ponietheus slammed the door behind him and did not mark the day upon the wall.
He sat still up on the great southern watchtower as the sun spiraled above him. His eyes were fixed on the wondrous green plains to the south, to the home of his old friends. Cloud clotted the skyline above. He baked in the warm bath of the sun, but all he felt was mud and red and a deep festering burning in the pit of his gut. He felt the urge to eye his library hinging on the back of his head as if it were a physical thing attached to his very skin. The sun began to approached the mountains to his right, and he stood and spread his wings. They pinged from the lack of exercise, but he shot above the dead city to his library. The front doors opened so very easily.  
There, before him on the table, was that terrible clay. He lifted it quickly and poured the black powder within onto the table. It sat and dissipated; lifeless. Then it shot up and spiraled around him, wrapping itself onto his very skin. Clouds gathered above unnaturally fast, and they shook and boomed violently. The winds outside howled mercilessly, and the black powder was set upon him now. It covered all but his snout, his left eye and the tip of his horn. He heard a buzzing then, and a masquerade of whispers - calling. Calling. He did not smile, but faded into a dark melody in his head.
A plague upon your home;
A defiler all alone.
A cat among the crows;
A butcher and his prose.
A raider… conquering.
> 2. Twilight Sparkle: Season Ending
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Celestia's voice chimed in, "Dear Twilight Sparkle, are you listening?"
Twilight Sparkle snapped back into reality, into her walk with the Princess in Canterlot's gardens. "Y-Yes. Yes, I am listening, your highness."
Celestia smiled. "You don't have to call me that anymore."
Twilight's crown dug uncomfortably into the left side of her head, no matter what she did to mitigate it. "Yes, I know. It's just a reflex, I can't help it."
"You'll need to learn to start. I'm not going to be around to hold your hoof forever, you know. Someday 'Princess' Twilight Sparkle won't be in a position to daydream in a lovely garden."
"I know."
Celestia then shed her authoritative pose, and leaned her head down with a playful smile. "Royalty isn't really everything its cracked up to be, isn't it."
Twilight Sparkle cracked a smiled in return, "Permission to speak freely?"
"Granted."
"Not even a little." She said, snickering. "There's so much sitting, waiting and talking. Everypony's voice is so… monotone in those dull meetings. Books on neuropharmacology have more life and excitement in them."
"Tedium can make even the most studious pony restless, particularly the ones used to regular adventure. You miss your friends, don't you?"
"I do see them less often."
Celestia sighed. "Take a break. Whatever lecture I give you now will fall upon deaf ears. Have lunch with a friend, and be back here in no more than an hour and a half."
Twilight lit up. "Thank you, thank you!"
The young princess pranced off while the elder one lingered. The mirth that had found its way into the heart of the younger had long since drifted from the thoughts of the older. Celestia inhaled in that garden, and looked northward. Bitter storms gathered far off, and more and more dark clouds gathered. The far away skies were as restless as Twilight Sparkle. The Princess dismissed rampant thoughts that clouded her head. Yet, as she shook them away, she felt as if plans were compromised. 

The garden was more quiet and peaceful than it had ever been for Twilight Sparkle. The midday sun glistened over head, and the soothing breeze and sounds of trees drifted into her eyes and nose like a symphony of sliver. She basked and reveled, if only for a few moments, as her royal discomfort faded back into the calmness of the garden. A sudden slinking was heard, and a deep voice whispered out to her.
"My, my…" it said. "The reverent Princess Twilight Sparkle moves to the garden's exit. What's the occasion?"
Twilight stopped and rolled her eyes. "Come on out, Discord. I don't have the patience for your games."
Shadows slinked together from under trees and bushes and soon Discord was at the young princess's side. He chuckled and clucked. "Whoa! Claws out today, aren't they. Just where are you off to?"
Twilight continued on her way out with her brow down low. "Celestia has granted me some time to each lunch with my friends. I'd prefer not to waste it."
"Lunch? With you? Why I'd love to!" Discord said. "Why, thank you for inviting me! I appreciate it. I mean, I was starting to get the impression that you were actively trying to avoid me…"
Twilight groaned. "Ugh. Alright. Come on!" she said.
"What's with the long face?" Discord asked as the two approached the edges of the castle. The Canterlot streets were buzzing with the usually business. The same things happening, just on a different day. Twilight normally only had time to peek out the great castle windows in-between meetings and royal training courses. The city beyond always looked the same. Discord continued, "Are you that unexcited to spend time with little old me or is royalty not all it was cracked up to be?"
"Nopony said being a princess was easy," Twilight responded dismissively.
"…'Nopony' hasn't said much of anything, has he?" Discord said.
Twilight sighed, "It's… it's just that-"
"That every day is the exact same," Discord said. "Same bed, same ponies, same food, same meetings, same lessons. It's like a crushing monotony - coupled with the paralyzing terror of knowing if you mess it up, a lot of your peers will be so very disappointed in you."
Twilight Sparkle was silent.
"Isn't it strange?" Discord continued, "It is as if all civilized life revolves around such crushing monotony and paralyzing terror. Students, workers, teachers, leaders, ageless-handsome-chaotic-creatures-forced-into-service-by-the-horrors-of-positive-emotion; we all suffer so."
"…Are you done?"
Discord sighed. "I need a vacation…" he mumbled. 
"What exactly is it that you do all day?" Twilight wondered.
"Often I sit around and contemplate the feasibility of the idea that I'm the only creature who's brain works properly. Other times I get the distinct feeling that I'm captive. Celestia keeps the guards light, but Luna sure doesn't. They've withheld a good level of trust from me, like I deserve such treatment! I can't help by shake the distinct feeling that I am hold for something…"
"Perhaps they keep you around for your philosophical insights."
Discord laughed, "They don't listen to me."
The uncanny nature of such a conversation with Discord pressed its weight down upon the thoughts of Twilight Sparkle, but she ignored them. Their walk from the castle grounds, through the ever stretching city of noise, of business, of motion and motion, then down to the lands beneath bristled with idol conversation - friendly conversation. Twilight Sparkle inhaled through her nostrils and out through her mouth. She didn't notice her crown sliding down into the left side of her head. It was nice for everything to be so calm and quiet.
She was ever conscious of her limited time. 'No more than an hour and a half', Celestia had commanded. She didn't have time to assemble the whole cast and she knew it. Her teeming mind had already made a decision on who to invite on this venture. Such a peaceful afternoon would surely be complimented by the soothing nature of Fluttershy - and her voice would stand an excellent foil to the ramblings of Discord, not to mention his modicum of camaraderie with her. She made the motions towards the path to Fluttershy's cabin.
"Oh, Fluttershy!" Discord cheered in a prodding manner, "Excellent choice. Your other pals are just so loud…"
There was something of a cliche in Fluttershy's cabin, like the cheapest and most prevalent pro-nature motifs from storybooks had outright come to life and consumed her home in a fit of gracious splendor that masked an insipid undertone. Apart from Discord's occasional satirical rambling and her own minimal response, Twilight found the place oddly void of activity. The only motion came from the leaves afloat in the breeze and a soft cooing from within the cabin. As she approached, the cooing congealed - transforming into soft bristles of sadness. Fluttershy was crying. 
She motioned Discord to wait, and the beast protested in word yet obeyed. She knocked on the door. "Fluttershy? Hey, are you in there?"
The cooing stopped instantly. Bumps and muffled sounds echoed from inside, then scrapes and bumps approached the door. Fluttershy answered with a forced smile. "Oh, Twilight!" she said, "It's so good to see you…"
Twilight opened her mouth to speak. A shadow moved above her.
"Boo!" shouted Discord, popping his head in from above the doorway. Fluttershy shrieked and fell back into her home. The beast threw his head back in laughter, haughty and amused at his prank. Twilight snarled, and seized the opportunity to enter Fluttershy's home and slam the door behind her. Discord snapped to reality. "Hey… hey!" he protested.
Fluttershy caught her breath. She smiled weakly at Twilight Sparkle, and moved in for a hug. "I didn't appreciate that at all. Oh, but it's so nice for you to visit, Twilight. I'm sure you must be awful busy."
Twilight responded with a warm smile of her own, "I had some time, so I thought I'd visit. Are you alright, you seem kind of down."
"Oh, it…it's nothing really…" Fluttershy said with a slight sniffle, "A lot of the animals have been behaving strangely - some have even disappeared all together! I'm simply… I'm worried about it, is all. I'm feeling a bit out of it. Oh, but I'm wasting your time… You don't get a lot of it, I'm sure."
Discord slithered in through a nearby window to Twilight's left. He was sure to be as noisy as possible. He grumbled, and Twilight paid him no mind.
"Let's talk about things over lunch - I'm buying!" Twilight said, "It'd be nice with just the two of us."
"The three of us, it seems," Fluttershy said, doing her best to smile over at Discord. She gleamed at him, "Thanks for the surprise Discord! You really gave me a scare!"
Discord let out a childish sneer, "You aren't supposed to thank somepony that scared you."
"I was being sarcastic!" Flutteshy said.
"You have to be more acerbic when your sarcastic. Say that in a smarmy, self-important kind of way!" Discord said.
"You did such a good job scaring me, Discord!" Fluttershy said with no change in tone, "How was that?"
"Erm… Well, you do have the concept down at least… B+." Discord said.
"Um, What's on earth is going on here?" Twilight wondered.
"Discord has been giving me 'sarcasm lessons'. It's where you say something that you don't mean like you mean it." Fluttershy said. 
The air seemed still as they exited. Twilight inhale through her nostrils again, and subtly choked on the aridness. She looked north. A storm, a violent one, was brewing near very tall mountains out in the distance. Clouds from all around the sky drifted as if they were being pulled that direction, like a tide in the sky - like the pull of the waves from the shore just before a tsunami.  
"Looks like a storms-a comin', Cap'n!!" Discord said in a forced accent as his gaze matched Twilight's. "That's just what your life needs, isn't it? Some heavy rain to provide a soundtrack for your dull, pointless royal lifestyle."
"I'm not too worried about it," Twilight said, "It's stormed before and it'll storm again. What's the worse a little rain can do? C'mon, let's eat."
> 3. Luna: Eerie Scenes Forced From a Dream
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The reverent Princess Luna found herself struck with a dream, a recurring dream. In that dream, she was stalked, followed and flooded by a being in grey and black with a bloody bone mask of white; and she sees flickers of light - white, red, grey - amongst a background of solipsistic drippings and drains, of isolation, of a miserable, terrible fading. She found bleak scriptures and towers there, all burning in slow motion, all still as if covered in ice that was melting in the dead of night but never, never getting any smaller. 
And then of the sounds, the sounds. They echoed and bellowed like a slick, shivering symphony playing laments in the barely noticeable distance. There were shrieks from shrill strings, and a whirling of whisper that trickled, tumbled down deep into a maelstrom at the bottom of a tub drain. It all so very unnoticeable, but so acute and resonant like the milky silk ghost of a sound you hear far from the corner of your ear that no one else seems to notice. There were distorted signals that beckoned and spoke of a reckoning, of terror and power. The sound drowned the light. There were psychic strings as speakers that never moved, never shrank and never stopped performing.
Luna found herself amidst a shady room, a place of tomes, and before her the being in grey and black held a jar. It poured a black powder to the floor, and the powder burst to ash. It stopped, and then poured more powder to the floor atop the festering first pile - which then burst to flame. It stopped again, then continued to pour the powder atop the burning pile, and the pile disintegrated, faded out, and drifted away. Then the being shattered the jar, and the black powder that remained rested there upon the floor and did nothing. Nothing.
Then Luna felt a pulling, a shifting, a drifting of her limbs and thoughts. She felt firmly pulled in all directions, and the sounds pushed onto the forefront, solidifying to weather; storms, bludgeoning wind, of thunder, of lighting, corrosion. She was pulled to somniferous lights that collected at the bottom of the storm drain, the sounds, and felt only pulling. Air filled her nose, her mouth, her lungs. And she awoke to silence. 
It was a dream that shakes you from sleep. It was a dream that haunts you while you stand awake. 

Luna pulled herself from her bed and poked her nose through the curtains on the northern window. It was midday - midway through her normal sleep cycle - and the warm sun above shined above a peaceful landscape. But there, near a horizon with high mountains all about its contours, bitter clouds burst and brewed. They appeared to be collecting there. Thoughts of the north, and of the shadowy figure of her dreams consumed all of Luna's conscious thought. She felt such rippling into and from her subconscious as well.
She made another trip to the Canterlot Castle library, as she had the other times she'd experience this dream. This time she felt lead by something, by a calling or the fragments of a dead memory. She pushed passed the larger, decorative doors into the big, look rooms of shelves and shelves of books. She immediately passed the nonfiction section where'd she had spent her previous trips to the library, and browsed through the section containing ancient literature. Then she found it, The Epic of Echelion, one of Equestia's oldest tales. She pulled the withered brown book from it's home on the shelf, and brought it to a small desk near a window on the north side of the library. The story was the only one she could think of that mentioned the long forgotten mountains to the north.
She read and read, until she came across a potent segment of the story. The first part of the epic, entitle 'Ponietheus Bound', ended thus: 

There, by a river, I sat and reflected with my head hung low. Although the darkness lie behind us and the southern valleys of Equestria before us, my mind remained upon the past. For I fear I alone remember the Benefactor, the one who gave us fire and knowledge; for when that great devil of the sky was set to rain down upon us and drive us down into the fires of perdition, our Benefactor leapt from his mountain and the sky was encased in darkness.
That devil was encased in the bitter darkness and molded, wearing the faces and parts of animals common and unrecognizable. His feeble crown became thorns and he screamed as he was banished south beyond the reaches of the horizon. All enemies from the sky were crippled; the ones in the air lost their wings and the ones upon the ground lost their horns. They shrieked and fled, becoming ones of the earth with us.
But our Benefactor shifted. He looked a shadow of the beasts under the earth - like all our dead mothers and waking fears. Our people shrouded under that darkness and we gathered all we had and fled with the cripples down into the valley beyond. We ran then into the wilderness for ten days and ten nights without rest, and regarded our Hailcryon and our Benefactor as a cage with a beast of blasphemy with ten horns, ten eyes and the faces of the dead, the damned and the forever lost. One devil was lost and replaced with another.
None would dare to go back, and my duty overtook my desire to return and see what became that place and of the friend that slew the enemy and lost himself because of it. Our land is now pure and warm, our friends many and our enemies in our debt. The cloven ones - hornless with wings and wingless with horns - know nothing of the ways of the earth. They know nothing of hunger, fire and cold. And our new homes are accompanied with bitterness, warm and a strong view south.
But my heart is enraptured with despair. I think I heard a glimmer of the Benefactor's thoughts, forced from a dream. I fear, and dreamt, for in that place - the great city that grew dark and arid - Ponietheus wept for all he knew. He wept for the death of the old ways as it rained down upon him and he watched all he loved cross into where he could not follow. He sat and stared long into the unknowable future, and cataloged all he had wasted.	

She whispered there to herself, "Old stories have a way of forcing themselves into the present."
"Luna? Dear sister, is that you?"
Celestia appeared from a nearby hallway and approached her sister, coming up on her left side. "What are you doing awake?"
Luna remained rather catatonic and dazed. She did not speak, but turned her head to her sister and gazed. Celestia met her gaze and tilted her head. Her eyes broke away to the brown book on the table. 
"What is that? What do you have?" Celestia asked.
Luna looked down upon the tome stretched out before her. Its words echoed in her mind, and sparks of old feelings and half-remembered dreams burst in the back of her head, just out of sight. She reached for them, but they moved farther - like they were pulled farther. She sat back mystified.
"Its just a story. A very old story with a very sad ending," she said.
Celestia moved closer, first in concern then kindness. She placed her head gently on her sister's shoulder and directed her gaze to the gleaming window and the storms beyond. "It's amazing how fictional characters work their way into our hearts easier then any real being. It's easy to get lost in this place, but there is no malice in it."
"No malice…" Luna said, her words were raspy and her mind in a haze. She sat daunted, overcome by a book. "No malice, but cruel nonetheless."
She turned to her older sister and whispered a question, "Can you imagine pouring so much of yourself into another, only to watch them leave you?"
Celestia paused. "…No," she said, "What's gotten into you?"
Luna sighed. "I've been having dreams again. No, it's the same dream over and over."
"Do you feel another mind is there? Do you feel a foreboding?"
"Absolutely, yet not quite. It's so uncanny. There's always a black figure, with a face like a skull - like the face of dead mothers. It just watches, but it's everywhere. There's always a library, a dead city and black powder. Then there's clouds and sounds - the kind of sounds that are so quiet that you cannot help but hear them. They don't belong there, nothing there belongs. They're like… that storm brewing in the north. Storms don't look like that, it's not right."
"How many times have you had this dream?"
"Four times. Details change, and every one seems more depraved and desperate in atmosphere than the one before. Every time I wake up, I see those clouds up north just collecting there, almost instinctively…"
"…And the black figure, she's always there?" Celestia said.
"'She'?" 
"…It."
"…Yes. Always."
Celestia broke away from her sister and stared out the nearby window. The clouds raddled in the distance, and she could almost feel their rumble in back drop of the ambient sounds. "Do you think the black figure is… real or just a piece of you?"
"…I don't know. I can never see it clearly," Luna said, "I mean, there's no part of me that I'd picture like that. But I don't know for sure."
Celestia inhaled, but smiled. "I trust your judgement, sister," she said, "If you think that storm is a foreboding thing, then find somepony to investigate it. I suppose I cannot truly see what your seeing through your eyes, but I feel for you. I agree, there is something that is… not right."
"I'd like to go myself, if possible," Luna said.
"I would not stop you, but I'd prefer if you didn't. I'm not so sure I'd want you running off to who knows where," Celestia said. She put on a playful smile, and leaned down near her sister's ear. "Besides, if you find a library out there, you might never come back."
Luna snickered. "I definitely would take any excuse to get away from you! You're quite the dictator, I hear."
"Why, who would say such a thing about their benevolent leader!?" Celestia said with a gasp, "Tell me their names so that I might throw them in prison!"
The two shared in a laugh the broke the arid stillness that was collecting upon the atmosphere - however briefly. Soon, their eyes turned again to the storms outside that seemed to stretch out further and further into the sky like a conqueror awaking with a morning stretched. The playful smiles corroded.
"…Shall we send Twilight Sparkle and her friends to investigate?" Luna said, "It's probably nothing, and I'm sure she's itching for any excuse to get away from here and assemble her friends."
Celestia sighed. "Well, since your the more compassionate and level-headed of the two of us, I'll leave it to your discretion. If it turns out to be nothing, then it's nothing. But if it's not…"
"It would be better to know as soon as possible."
Celestia relaxed from her authoritative posture somewhat and stretched her neck. "Please have it be nothing…" she murmured, "All these constant crises are getting somewhat repetitive."
"…You're running out of celestial objects to banish them to," Luna said.
"Indeed," Celestia responded. She backed away from her sister and bit her tongue. After a short silence she said, "Twilight Sparkle should be returning from her lunch break. You'll probably be able to catch her in her room."
The elder sister left and the younger one sat there a while, gazing out into the distance via the window there.

And there, in a bit of a thoughtless torpor, Princess Luna found herself irrevocably in front of Twilight Sparkle's bedroom door. It was strange, she thought, that all the will she had to walk up, knock on Twilight's door and deliver orders to her withered. She had stuck her hoof out prepared to knock upon the door but it froze in place is if suddenly rendered incapable of preforming the action. She breathed heavily and forced her hoof upon the door. It pushed open for it had not been latched. The inside was dark, the bed neat, books scattered, curtains closed and assistants joyful snoozing the midday away.
Luna was hesitant, but nonetheless resolved. "Um, excuse me…?" she called into the room.
Spike stirred. "Hmmm…Not now, Twilight…" he said, rolling to his side.
"I am not Twilight," Luna said, "but I was hoping I could-"
"…Hmm? Not Twilight?" Spike said. He forced himself upwards, and rubbed his eyes. He glanced over to the Princess, focused, processed then inhaled sharply with wide eyes. 
"Ah! Princess Luna!!" Spike shrieked and leap from his bed. He then frantically threw open the curtains and made sure everything in the room and on his person was neat and in order. He then stood militantly in front of the Princess with a firm salute. "What can I do for you, my lady?"
"…Um, oh goodness. Is… Is Twilight around, Sp-… Ssssp…?" Luna said.
"…S-Spike," Spike said.
"Right!" Luna said in-between a rather embarrassed set of chuckles. She clenched her teeth. "Where is Twilight Sparkle, Spike?" she asked.
"Umm…" Spike said, eying the room, "I… I think she's out to lunch. I was just guarding her things when I… uh, fell asleep."
"That's quite alright," Luna said, rubbing her shoulder nervously, "Could you take a message for me?"
Spike grabbed a quill and paper from a nearby desk. "Y-Yes, yes! Absolutely."
"Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle," Luna began, "You are hereby tentatively extricated from your royal duties in order to-"
"Ext-….extraaah…" Spike said. He glanced at the Princess with a worrisome expression.
"…Granted a sojourn of absence in order to-"
"So-… Sojjj-…"  
"…Given a break."
"…Given. A. Break." Spike mouthed as he wrote.
"Yes, 'given a break' from your royal duties to investigate the eldritch… I mean, the spooky storm clouds to the north to make sure they are not a threat. If they are not, then you will return to your duties. If they are, your… break will be extended so that you may mitigate… I mean, fix the situation. Any resources you need will be available to you."
"…Available. To. You. Okay, I got it!" Spike said. 
"Thank you very much, Spot!" Luna said cheerfully.
"…S-Spike," Spike said.
"…Oh, right…" Luna said, "…Sorry."
> 4. Twilight Sparkle: A Harrowing
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	And so, just like that, Twilight Sparkle found herself in her old library. She browsed over those books in her mind; those relics of the past preserved, reposed and enshrined. And so it was her immediate past stood before her - her five friends all aligned among the books. It had been weeks, but the burdens of responsibility had stretched the feeling of the length beyond scientific count. Twilight felt closer to the books than ever - shelved, repurposed.
Her reunification with her friends went pretty much as it had in her daydreams. There were long overdue words, greetings, hugs and displays of mirth. Her friends had thankfully retained their ability to mitigate her feeling that she was a utilitarian instrument. This was a meeting of business, not pleasure, but Twilight allowed herself spare time for fraternization before subtly steering the conversations towards the business.
Spike was there, having hand delivered Luna's message. And Discord too, though he was less than eager to participate. He sat in a easy chair a comfortable distance from the rest, tapping his fingers and sporting a sly grin like a filly on a field trip. Twilight Sparkle was the only pony he really acknowledged in that place. They were both servants of royal duty, they just bore different chains. Twilight exhaled. She found responsibility quite heavy.
She spoke of the cloud.
"Well, I for one am glad the Princess is concerned," Applejack said, "That storms been gatherin' for near three days. It's changin' the air, I tell ya! The crops ain't respondin' well to it, and if it wasn't for the extra food we got stashed away, we prob'ly wouldn't 've met the quota for this month!"
"The weather has certainly changed around here," Rainbow Dash said, "The clouds sure are getting stubborn. They won't listen to us, and more and more keep popping up out of nowheres!"
"The critters have all vanished…" said Fluttershy, "I don't know if it's connected, but it sure has me worried."
"Oh, whatever it is, it'll be a doozy!" Pinkie Pie said, "My knees have been pinchy all day!"
"…Not to mention what this weather is doing to my hair!" Rarity said, smiling jokingly.
Discord appeared before them on the table, smaller than usual. He feigned an impoverished look. "Your hair!? We're doomed!" he mocked, "Make for the hills before ponies start eating each other!" He then snapped back to his chair. He was quite pleased with himself. Rarity shot him a glare that could light a forest on fire.     
"Discord, knock it off!" Twilight said. Discord clucked his teeth merrily.
The low rumble of distant thunder filled the room. Attention was shifted to a nearby window, with a few view of the storm. The storm raved in the distance rather somniferously. Pinkie Pie's knee pinched, her eye twitched and she shuddered. "Ooooh," she cooed, "Now that is spooky!"
"Well, I think what we really need is a plan," Applejack said, "Don't you agree, Twilight?"
"Yeah, Twilight! What should we do, huh?" Pinkie Pie said.
"Yes, what are your orders, Ms. Leader?" Discord said.
'I never asked to be the leader,' Twilight thought.
"Well, that storm is still a couple miles away, so walking there would be a waste of time," Twilight said, "…and besides, we don't want to be caught unprepared. Somepony should see to it that the folks in town are both warned and ready for conflict. So how's this; Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Discord and I will fly up to the storm and check it out. The rest of you will warn the townsponies and make sure we have enough supplies to weather this thing should it get ugly. Agreed?"
"Yeah, that's sounds fine with me," said Rarity.
"Oh boy!" said Pinkie Pie, "I get to visit everypony again today!"
"Well, I guess I can put up with Discord for at least a little while…" Rainbow Dash said.
"Why, my feelings, Rainbow Dash…" Discord said, "I don't believe I've ever done anything to deserve your vehement verbal abuse!"
"Oh really?" Rainbow Dash said sneering, "Would you like for me to list the things you've done to earn my vehe-… uh, verbal abuse!"
"No, no - you've offend me quite enough for one day…" Discord said.
Rainbow Dash steamed. Fluttershy came up next to her. "Don't let him get to you," she said, putter her hoof on Rainbow Dash's shoulder, "He's a real sweetheart when you get to know them."
"Fluttershy, you think everypony is a sweetheart when you get to know them."
"And that's because they are!"
Spike approached Twilight, rubbing his arm nervously. "Uh, promise you'll come back safe, okay?" he said.
Twilight smiled, and nuzzled him. "Oh, Spike, we're investigating spooky weather! I mean, what's the worse that could happen?"  

---

The violent state of the skies in the northern mountains had spread southward like spilled water stretching itself across a table. One by one, the blissful white clouds of the ordinary sky sacrificed themselves to the outreaching storm's might. A deep rumble shot underneath the existing soundscape like a splinter. The wind picked up the closer they got, and the air stunk of unnatural. The wind swept at the approaching party, firmly discouraging their course. Twilight lead the search party. She was weak to the wind, stumbling before its sweeps. Rainbow Dash, the stronger flier, drifted next to her. She braced for Twilight, helping her stand against the wind. 
"Have you ever seen anything like this?" Twilight asked. 
"Never," said Rainbow Dash, "There's definitely something off…"
"So, do we really know anything about this big scary dark thing we're flying towards or are you bunch just throwing yourself at a problem you don't fully understand like usual?" Discord called from the back, raising his voice against the wind.
"Concern noted, Discord," Twilight said.
"Something about that cloud has really got Princess Luna concerned," said Rainbow Dash, "She's our leader, so we're investigating for her. That's what loyalty is, Discord."
"Oh, well, I apologize for seeking information!" Discord said, "But when I was the villain, I had a clear plan of action. But, as I am a good guy now, blind exuberance it is!"
Fluttershy huddled behind Discord as they flew. Taking notice, Discord peered behind his back at her. "What on Earth are you doing back there?" 
"Oh, just watching our flanks!…hahhah…" squeaked Fluttershy. A nearby lightning strike cracked the sky before them, sending Fluttershy back to her hiding spot. 
"Stupendous!" quirked Discord, "Backed by the adorable coward and an idiot. Twilight, think these things through!"
"This isn't right, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash shouted, "Storms don't behave like this!"
"It seems… autonomous," Twilight said.
The darkness beneath the clouds seemed to crawl. The closer they moved, the thicker the atmosphere. The wind picked up, raving at them. 
"Well, we certainly got a look at it! Definitely not a good thing," shrieked Fluttershy among the winds, "Better head back now!" 	
"You might be right on this one, Fluttershy…" cooed an Rainbow Dash, slowly pulling away from the approaching mass.
Twilight's words fell away. She braced herself against the winds, allowing them to brush over her like ocean waves. She stared into the storms, and the darkness beneath them. There was something there - a figure maybe. There was maybe a murky figure nearly out of sight. It rose like a shadow on smoke. 
As Rainbow Dash sunk away, Discord approached. He moved up beside Twilight, eying in the same direction. "What is that?" he wondered.
"Whatever it is, it's getting closer…" Twilight said.
The winds died down, taking the sound with them. Twilight heard only her breathing. Her heart raced, and she could feel Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy shouting behind her, but no words. There wasn't any sound but her breathing. She peered up at the clouds, sinking into relative awe at how they conglomerated - how they slithered across the skyline. The lands beneath fell dark. She felt a rumble deep in her ear, then, from a voice she had never heard before, a whisper - to the left.
Her head snapped left, and her body rotated accordingly. She was looking backwards now. She could see Canterlot in the distance. Sound slowly poured in. She looked down and saw a river. It flowed south through green lands until it reached her home. The river was a pathway. Twilight Sparkle closed her eyes and exhaled, listening again for that voice. She had only understood one word; Plague.
"…Twilight," Discord said. His voice became all she heard. "Twilight, I think we're in trouble."
She turned back towards the shadows and both heard and saw wings beating against the air. Dim light, like fire in a virulent cave, emerged near the top of the murky figure. It was anything but distant now. The light grow to fire, and Twilight saw a horn and an eye. It was a spell.
The sound, the wind; it all dropped back into place. Twilight pulled away. She screamed, "Back!!!"
A bolt of fire shot from the figure and shook the sky between Twilight Sparkle and Discord. The fire ignited the sweeping hands of the wind, which batted Twilight away like a pest. She felt the heat and hollered. The fire trickled away from her. It swept towards Discord and swirled around him like a serpentine's tail. It did not make contact, but spiraled like a cage. Discord panted heavily, but froze. His hands where trembling.
"Not good! Not good, very bad!" Discord cried. He turned to Twilight. "Run! Run!! Get out of here!" 
A indiscernible shout bellowed from within the darkness, and the fire-ensnared Discord was hurled into up the atmosphere and blasted away, off into the deep south. Thunder was heard, and lightning stretched across the clouded skies. The storms advanced farther and faster. The figure in the distance remained suspended in air, its attention fixated in their direction. Darkness slithered overhead.
"Discord!!" Fluttershy shouted. All her attention was upwards. "Twilight, what's happening!?"
"I said BACK!!" Twilight shouted, whipping around and pushing herself away. "Make for the library and do NOT stop until your inside!"
And so they struck out south into the wilderness as the skies erupted behind them. The flame that had taken Discord was far to the south now, shining bright above the clears skies of Ponyville. The clouds stretched out above them like the arms of a great beast, deterring their path with wind and sound. Rainbow Dash was in the back, using some of her strength to push Fluttershy along, and Twilight flew before them. The darkness pounded at their peripheral, and soon the clouds began to seem a black, moldy mass. The clouds hurled pillars of the dark mass at the three as they fled. They were akin to molten hailstones, artillery from heaven that dripped and trickled like a leak in the ceiling. 
Twilight's attention shifted up.
"Eyes up!" she warned.
When and where the black pillars left their births was completely arbitrary. They would drip and fall into the wind, and be hurled upon them. Twilight felt her own panic set in - the panic that shuts everything down save the calculus. The sounds dropped off again, and it was all about moving; dodging, drifting, shifting. 
"She's hit! Fluttershy - she's hit!!" Rainbow Dash had screamed.
Twilight broke calculus and glanced over at the two. Surely enough, a pillar had struck Fluttershy. The darkness was attached at her left side, and it pulsated. Fluttershy's eyes painted her thoughts - she couldn't even make a sound.
The calculus snapped back. "We do NOT stop until we're at the library!!"
The town was in sight, and the library right after. The wind shot to a new direction. The thick hand of clouds shifted course, taking a sharp left as they flew on forward. Twilight cared little for its destination. The town was in sight, and the library right after.
They touched down. The skies raved behind them, but diverted course for Canterlot. Twilight couldn't catch her breath. She felt so dizzy. Fluttershy shook and danced wildly, trying to shake off the eldritch darkness that had clung to her. Rainbow Dash's eyes were alight.
"What is it!?" Fluttershy cried, "Twilight, what is it? How do I get it off!?"
"Calm down, Fluttershy!" said Rainbow Dash.
"It's so cold! I can't… I can't…breathe…" Fluttershy said. She leaned against Rainbow Dash with her uninfected right side. Her eyelids drooped. Her breathes were shallow.
"Get her inside!" Twilight barked, "Lie her down, get her water, help her calm down. Be gentle, Rainbow Dash. Don't touch the black spot, not until we know what it is."
They burst into the library. Fluttershy was in hysterics. Rainbow Dash held her and laid her down on a couch, but was careful not to touch the dark spot on her flank. Twilight thought. She browsed the library catalog in her mind, thinking if any book she had read discussed, or even mentioned whatever the darkness was. Rainbow Dash was shouting at her, barking her wonder. Fluttershy was sobbing, curled up in herself. Twilight Sparkle shut out the sounds, and heard only thought. He knees were shaking. Her mouth was dry. Her eyes were burning.
Answers would not come. She had no plan, no course of action. She didn't even know where to begin. She felt the cold rush of a paradoxically calm panic settling upon her stomach like a slow glacier, and her heart beat pounded in her ears. She then heard a ringing among the rush. Then a clap of thunder. She couldn't see the room well. She then felt so tired. Twilight exhaled and crashed to the floor. 
> 5. Luna: Relegation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Luna signed. Sleep wasn't coming. In less than four hours she would raise the moon. All she could think about was that damn book. By rights, it shouldn't even be a book she liked. She found the characters dry and idealized; she thought the plot was sporadic and had way too much exposition; some parts were just plain boring. Yet, she found herself fascinated by the world it implied -- alicorns of space, eldritch magic, a character that acted shortsightedly but with noble intentions, at least from a certain point of view. It had monsters, giants, dark themes and more than one character being irreversibly exiled. She smiled to herself weakly.
'You really ought to get some sleep,' Celestia would say, putting on that motherly face of hers.
Luna pulled herself from her bed yet again, and sleepily tip-toed over to a desk in the corner of the room. The mid-afternoon sun, filtered thru the closed curtains, stretched across the still bedroom as Luna flipped the book open again. She sighed. She would much rather have gone to sleep, if only her mind would let her. It was simply one of those books, the ones read as if possessed with something. She flipped thru a few pages, skimming for any hint towards that hidden world she found so interesting.
A rather exuberant crack of thunder bellowed in the far off distance. It was loud enough to playfully startle her. Her eyes did not break from the book, however. She shuttered suddenly, and attributed the source to an otherwise insensible draft. The building was pretty old, so that kind of thing was just expected. Yet, her room felt more arid than usual, like something unseen was being pulled out of it.
Suddenly, a flare lit the sky outside and its brightness illuminated her room intensely. Luna eyes shot up. She turned in her chair towards the window. Foreboding light flickered beyond the curtains, like a fire had been lit within the panes. Luna, ever watchful, removed herself from her chair, and cautiously approached the window. She reached out and brushed the curtain away with her nose enough to peer outside at the perplexing source of the light.
What looked like a shooting star that had slinked down to Earth shot thru the sky like a beacon. It moved southward.
Luna exhaled. Her eyes drifted towards the storm that had been gathering. It was closer now, spreading over the landscape like water on rock. It beckoned, a likely source of the newly formed forlorn atmosphere. It stretched much too quickly for normal weather. A shot of dread rattled Luna's spine and settled down on her belly like stone. She shuddered again, and blamed no draft.
She threw the book into a bag she'd placed on her back and burst from her room, making way to the throne room. There would be her sister, and a better view. 
The hallways were full of mobilizing guardsmen - a Celestia-level precaution. 'Better to have them and not need them,' she'd say like a walking book of idioms. The guards barely acknowledged Luna as they passed her, save a quick "ma'am" or "m'lady" here or a held open door there. Luna payed no mind, she was fixated. She passed thru the familiar winding, decorated hallways to the large, open throne room. There were the columns, the big chair and her sister gazing out the panning windows. 
Luna brushed up beside her sister, and greeted her with a smile. "Mobilizing the guards, I see."
Celestia smiled back, then returned to the window. "Better to have them and not need them. You really ought to get some sleep."
Luna laughed to herself, "Yeah. I heard thunder and saw a flare. It… woke me."
"I see."
"Any word from Twilight Sparkle?"
"Nope."
"Any idea what this is?"
Celestia peered over her shoulder. After making quite sure nopony could hear her, she sighed. "None whatsoever."
"Awesome." 	
"Constant crises - repetitive. I need a vacation."
"…How about an era of night? It's not too late, you know."
"Hmm. Tempting. Talk to me after we deal with whatever this is."
The clouds covered the skyline. A bolt of lightning struck the top of the palace. Luna jumped, but quickly mirrored her sister's stoicism. Celestia ignored her sister's subtle embarrassment, instead drawing her attention to a small crack in the ceiling produced by the crack of lightning. A dark liquid dripped from its contours. Celestia levitated a small mass of the liquid and brought it a safe distance from her face. It spiraled within itself like quicksilver. It almost seemed to pull away from her, almost like it was aware that she was watching it.
"What is it?" Luna asked.
The torches that lit the room then flickered sporadically. Celestia's droplet moved away from her and settled back into the small black puddle on the floor beneath the crack. The puddle began to pulsate, then it grew. First out, then up.
Celestia lowered her horn towards it. "Trouble," she said. 
Milky black mass congealed vertically like a spring puddle. It spread to form an ovoid, a portal. And from that shadow a craven figure appeared. First his head, then body. He was an alicorn. From head to hoof, he was draped in decrepit gray bandages - all arbitrarily woven together - twisting at every turn. His white skin seen only at a point near his nose that stuck out of the ripped bandages and around his left eye, which was a piercing pale blue color. A dried stream of black tears formed a stain beneath his exposed eye and ran to the cusp of a helmet, appearing of a dim metal, he wore around a great sharp, bandaged and thorn like horn. He bore a dark mane that flowed to to his back, and - along with his tail - appeared of twisted shadows. Shadowy veins spiraled about his body like horrid lightning.
Near the base of his neck, he wore a dark pendant. It held the likeness of a chitinous claw from the depths of the earth that spiraled around itself, rising from a wrapped, twisted hive at the base -- like an insect ouroboros.  The pendant was held in place by a decadent thorn lace twisted around his neck. A tapetum lucidum reflected the fragmented light of the room in the catlike slit in his iridescent left eye.
"Pestilent wretch!" bellowed Princess Celestia, pressing harder into the ground as she lowered her horn towards the incoming beast. "I know not what you are, but you shall not have your way with my kingdom and my subjects!" 
Celestia raved, launching a fiery spell upon the invader. Bewilderingly, his stillness vanished, and he caught her fire and made it dance. It grew as he commanded it, and he employed a sweeping motion, driving the two sisters apart. Luna countered by stirring the air to a gust and hurling it upon him. As it approached, he ignited it in a panic and sent it up. It crashed into the window and burst, taking much of the window and stone work with it. The breach exposed the storm-ridden sky overhead.
He set his fire between them again as an able distraction. He levitated a patch of loose stone work and launched at Luna's fore-hooves. She stumbled from it, and lost her footing. She fell sideways, slamming her head upon one of the columns that held up the ceiling. Sharp pain took her thoughts, and she was left disorientated. Her bag flew from her back, sending the book sliding across the room.
His eye went dark, his head sunk low and tilted. One by one, the torches in the room went out, sacrificing themselves to his magic. He shifted back and forth, fixated on Celestia. She winced as if from a headache, and sporadically fired bolts of fire in a frenzied defense.
"Get out! Out!!" she cried.
"I'm wretched, but I'm powerful," he said, "and I am much older than you."
Celestia squeezed her eyes shut, and bent her head down. He swept his fire at her aggressively, driving her over more and more into the exposed section. Luna's vision blurred, but motioned to return. She swept up whatever rubble she could perceive and hurled it toward him desperately. They hit his torso and neck, and he snapped at her - throwing a bolt of fire at her fore-hooves, knocking her back more and blocking her view.
Celestia stood now in the open section, but regained her composure. He threw a small wall of fire around her, preventing her from leaving that area. Celestia pecked at the fire, rounding it up and brushing it down, and, as she did this, the invader's eye snapped to white, and he sent a stunning bolt up into the sky.
It ricocheted all about the cloud, from its birth to its source, and shifted from blazon white to cozen black. Celestia turned away from the fire and marveled. Luna coughed, and struggled to catch her breath. She motioned to push aside the rush of panic and looked onto her big sister.
Celestia turned to face her little sister, and began to cry out something incoherent before the black bolt gathered itself and struck her back like a fist from heaven. Celestia fell to the ground, and became consumed in black; her head, her eyes, her body -- all black!
"Big Sister!?" Luna cried as she pulled herself up.
His head shot back to her, and his eye shifted from white to black. He gathered the fire that laid before the catatonic Celestia and sent at Luna in broad sweeping motions -- never to attack, just pushing her away. They did not touch her, but she backed away to escape the heat. The combination of smoke and desperate emotion brought defensive tears to her eyes and muddled her vision. As she backed away, she unleashed sporadic gusts of wind in whatever direction she thought he was, but it proved useless. Options exhausted, she shot a gust up at the ceiling, creating a hole, and flew up into it and out into the night sky. He did not pursue.
Luna pushed herself up, up -- past the clouds and rumbling sounds. As she passed, she felt them snicker and crowd her. She held her breath. After she had burst out from above them, she peered back down. A black mass congealed along her path, but kept distance as if begrudgingly commanded to let her pass. The benevolent Sun glazed behind her, and the dark beneath bubbled like lava atop a molten pool.  
She closed her eyes, and exhaled. The sound scape spread out across her perceptions like a table cloth and she found herself directly observing a blank space filled with oscillating beams of visible energy. She searched those familiar colored currents that stretched out across the open landscape, and following one down to its blazon purple source. The source reeked of panic.
"Twilight Sparkle!"
The blank space shifted, shook and became filled with trees. They sprung up on all sides, save the one behind, which became populated by a cliff looking over the moonlight. Twilight Sparkle was suddenly there, standing before her in the clearing with a noteworthy look of confusion. Twilight cracked her jaw and grinned, showing no sign of the panic that had colored her mind before. Luna just stood in Twilight's dream panting, exhausted and terrified.
"Princess Luna?" Twilight said, not noticing Luna's bruised demeanor, "What are you doing out here?"
"You're in a dream, dear Twilight Sparkle," Luna said.
"A dream?" Twilight said. She looked all around her as an actor perceiving a stage out of character. Reality snapped back into her, and she looked to the Princess in terror. All that had happened filled her thoughts.
"Oh my!" she said, "The clouds! Princess, we're in trouble! There's… something or somepony controlling them!"
"I know," Luna said, "Canterlot has been attacked. My dear sister has been cursed by that foul creature that commands the storm, and I myself have been pushed out. But where are you, are you safe?"
"Um, um…" Twilight said, trying to remember the outside, "Oh, we're at the library; Me, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy… Oh no, Fluttershy!! Princess, Discord is gone and Fluttershy has been…"
"You need to get out, Twilight…" Luna said.
"Hey, but…"
"You need to get out. Find whomever you can and get out!! To Everfree, I will meet you there!"
"Wait…Princess!"
Luna did not wait. She sent Twilight from her dream and found herself back above the clouds. The sun sat still and shined down across the landscape, but the cloud cover all from Canterlot northward. It moved out over Ponyville more slowly, but was still far from Everfree. Luna made for that decadent forest, and did not look back.
> 6. Spike: The Empty Houses
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Oooh!" Pinkie Pie gleamed at the large overhead flare coursing through the sky, "That's bad! Oh, I'd bet that's a bad thing! Hey, hey you guys! Do you see this? I bet it's bad!"
The flare caught everypony's attention. The light brightened the whole town, flickering across the street corners and the roofs of buildings. Spike rubbed his eyes and refocused them to ensure they were perceiving correctly. They were.
Then there was a crack of thunder, followed closely by an arid breeze. The air smelled of incumbent rain. Spike shuddered. The storm above opened like a palm, shooting off towards Canterlot while still stretching languidly towards Ponyville itself. Wind picked up and smacked his face as he stared at the storm.
"Uhh, what happens now?" he said.
"My knee's getting super pinchy, you guys!" said Pinkie Pie, "Hey, we should go back to library - Twilight and company will probably be headed back there. Hey, let's go back to the library."
"We can't just mosey on back to the library now! We haven't even checked our food stocks," said Applejack, "'Sides, I need to swing by the farm anyway to make sure my kid sister alright."
"Hey, there's no time for that!" Pinkie Pie protested, "That light and that storm are super-duper spooky and we need to meet up with Twilight and all them so we can come up with a plan!!"
"I ain't goin' nowhere 'til I know for sure that Apple Bloom and her little Cutie Mark Cruisers are alright. That's that."
"Grr… Stubborn pony…" Pinkie Pie hissed, "Hey, Spike - back me up!"
Spike's eyes snapped down from the sky. He shrugged. "Hey, it's her sister. She's got to check up on her sister. She can check the food storage while she's there, too."
"Don't forget my sister!" said Rarity, "I've seen Sweetie Belle literally fall over nothing. I'd hate to imagine what would happen in this kind of weather. She'd probably cause an explosion or something."
Pinkie Pie smacked her hoof across her forehead. "You guys…" she moaned.
"Relax, Pinkie, I'm sure it'll be fine. I'll round up the kids and be back before ya know it!"
"Yeah," said Spike, "The three of us will head back to the library and warn anypony we see along the way. Applejack sees her sister, we warn the townsponies and we all go back to the library. See? Everypony wins!"
"I agree!" said Rarity, "It'll be fine, Pinkie. Now let's move, this humidity is absolutely turgent."
With that, Applejack nodded and took off. The remaining three made way for Twilight's library. The streets slowly emptied. Windows shut. Doors sealed. Citizens barricaded inside of buildings to choruses of 'remain calm, please return to your home, we're doing everything we can.'  The citizens here seemed rather used to immanent danger of any variety. There was a relative calm in the townsponies as they moved indoors. 
That calm was shaken at the sight of a squadron of Royal Guards as they passed through the town square. Spike counted 8 soldiers - 4 unicorn, 4 pegasi - 2 chariots and one carriage perfect for carting young princesses. A particularly aged unicorn guard with auburn eyes, a white, uptight mane and a thick grey coat stood up in the gold carriage as the clear commander. He soon noticed the trio approaching.
"Ah, you there!" said the clear commander, hoping down from the carriage, "You're Princess Twilight Sparkle's entourage, are you not? Tell me, just where is she?"
Each of them stopped and faced him.
Pinkie Pie responded almost instinctively, "Well, she's-"
Rarity hushed her. "Why?" she asked the guard, "Is the princess in any danger?"
The commander eyed her rather harshly. "I'm just following orders, madam," he said, "I've been dispatched to return her to Canterlot as a precautionary measure. Princess Celestia's orders, madam. Do you know where Princess Twilight Sparkle is?"
"Does Princess Celestia think that storm is dangerous?" asked Rarity.
"I do not know, madam. Once again, I am merely adhering to orders. Do you know where the young princess has gone?"
Spike entered. "…She took a small group to investigate the storm on Princess Luna's orders. I delivered them myself. Twi- …Er, Princess Twilight, in turn, ordered us to make sure Ponyville was prepared for the storm."
Rarity didn't seem to appreciate having the conversation usurped from her. She tensed up as Spike took the spot light from her, but kept her eye on the commander.
He smiled unexpectedly at Spike. "And is it?"
Spike pushed his chest out a bit and held a nice, stern look on his brow. "The Ponyville citizens are safe in their homes. One of our friends is making sure there is enough food to weather this… uh, weather as we speak - just in case it gets real ugly, I mean."
The commander nodded. "Followed your orders to the letter, eh? A true code of honor you have then, little soldier." He bent his head down to Spike's level. "You must then understand the importance of our orders as well," he said, "We were ordered to secure Princess Twilight Sparkle, so, by our honor, secure her we must."
He turned back to Rarity with all disposition faded. "Regardless of obstacles," he added.
"Then you must understand our orders, sir," Rarity said with a subtle sneer, "We're to warn Canterlot as well as Ponyville. Its citizens will be affected as well."
"Hey, Twilight never said-" Pinkie protested before compelled to silence by Rarity's small jab to her ribs.
"I assure you Canterlot is very well secure, madam." the commander responded, "You need not worry. I give my personal word. Now, with you all quite quickly rushing back somewhere, I assume you're to meet Princess Twilight Sparkle that somewhere, yes?"
"Yes! We were supposed to meet Twilight back the library!" Pinkie Pie said, more so to Spike and Rarity than the commander.
"Very well," he said, "Then we shall wait for her there. Could you show us the way, madam?"
Rarity stomped in protest. "And then what?" she said, "You're just going to rush her off the Canterlot?"
"Once again, those are my orders, madam," the commander said sternly, "You lot may accompany should Princess Twilight Sparkle permit it." 
Then thick streak of black lightning struck the castle in the distance. Jaws dropped. The commander eyed it incredulously. The sound of thunder bellowed across the town, and little Spike regrettably jumped in place. He quickly reformed his valiant posture, making sure that none had witnessed. He found it difficult to stand rod-stiff in the wind. Luckily, the commander didn't seem notice. He barked orders at his men and they lined up in front of him.
"Library!!" Pinkie Pie sung with vibrato as she nudged Rarity. 
"But what about the ponies in Canterlot, Pinkie?" Rarity whispered, "They've no idea just how serious this might be!"
Pinkie Pie protested. "Uh, the Royal Guard has been mobilized and a bolt of black terrifying lightning just struck the castle. I'm sure they're very aware of the spooky situation." 
Rarity shook her head. "No, those Royal Guard ponies are only interested in the princesses. They won't think twice about helping the townsponies." 
"Rarity!" Pinkie Pie scolded, driving her hoof into the dirt, "If this turns out to be more than just a big spooky storm, then we're going to need the Elements of Harmony and we can't use those if you're twenty minutes away in Canterlot!"
"Twilight Sparkle tasked us with warning the ponies of Ponyville and Canterlot. We've warned one but not the other. I will not shrink from my duties just because of some thunder, lightning and… a meteor that just happened by."
"What if you get lost? Canterlot is a big town, what happens if-"
"I can guide her!" Spike said, "I lived in Canterlot with Twilight for a long time before we moved to Ponyville. I know the town more than anypony here."
"Madam!" the commander barked suddenly. Rarity glared up at him. "Not you," he said. He looked at Pinkie Pie. "You."
Pinkie Pie met his gaze and responded perplexingly. She took a quick look behind her and pressed her hoof into her chest while tilting her head slightly to clarify. He nodded, "Yes, you. Might you show me to this library?"
"Ok, sure!" Pinkie Pie said.
"Wait!" Spike said, "What about the castle?"
"I'm sending 6 good guardsponies back to the capital. They'll meet up with the rest and make quite sure the castle's secure. Do not worry, little soldier."
"And you'll be sending me with them!" Rarity said.
The commander turned back to her. His eyes barely contained his indignation, but he retained his civility. "Am I?" he said.
"Yes, you are," Rarity said, "'It is the duty of the Royal Guard to see to the protection of the Princesses of Equestria AND all those acting in their stead.' Princess Twilight Sparkle ordered us to ensure the safety of the civilians in both Canterlot and Ponyville in her stead. So, until this task is complete, you, by your duty, must submit to our orders. And I'm ordering you to send me to Canterlot."
The commander remained stoic. "You must present a formal order written by the Princess herself that bears the royal seal, and you have no such thing. Now please, you are wasting my time."
"…What's your name, sir?" Spike asked.
The commander stared down at him, but relented. "Knight Commander Protean Joy of Her Majesty's Royal Guard, sir."
"Are you aware of my service to Princess Twilight Sparkle?"
"…Yes, I am, sir."
"Do you need a for-… um, formmmm-… uh, one of those special order thingies to take orders from me?"
The commander let his face slip slightly to that of a pony realizing he'd just admirably lost a trying game of chess.  "…No," he said, "I would not."
"Okay," said Spike, "Then I order you to take Rarity and I back to Canterlot, so that we might carry out Princess Twilight Sparkle's will. Should you refuse, I'll be sure to let Princess Twilight Sparkle know that Knight Commander Protean Joy stood in the way of my royal duty." 
Commander Protean Joy allowed himself a soft sigh, then bowed respectfully. "Yes sir."
He turned to his squadron. "Flash Sentry! Come here!"
A relatively smaller soldier from the end of the line promptly approached and stood stiffly before his commander.
"You're tasked with escorting this little soldier and-"
"...My name's Spike, sir."
"…You're tasked with escorting Lord Spike and his sycophant to the capital and ensure their royal mission is tasked to completion. You will then promptly take the two back into the castle to ensure their safety before rejoining your fellow soldiers."
Flash Sentry saluted. "Sir, yes sir!" he said.
Commander Protean Joy turned back to the rest of his squadron. "Knight Sergeant, you're with me. The rest of you will report back to the castle and tend to the safety of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. I will regroup with the lot of you once the Sergeant and I have claimed the package. Move out."
He turned towards Pinkie Pie. "Could you show us to this library, madam?"
Pinkie Pie looked over at her friends. "Please don't go, you two. Please."
Rarity smiled at her. "It'll be fine, love," she said, "We're just going to make sure the ponies of Canterlot are safe. We'll be back before you know it."
Commander Protean Joy locked eyes with Flash Sentry then, silently reinforcing his previous order. The young knight nodded. He called out to Rarity, "Ma'am? If you could come with me, please."
Rarity place her hoof reassuringly on Pinkie's cheek and walked over to Flash Sentry. Pinkie bent down to Spike. "Hey, order her not to go, Lord Spike!" she whispered.
Spike shrugged, "Just because it's dangerous doesn't mean we shouldn't go. Risk; reward - y'know?" He motioned his head towards Rarity and raised his brow.
Pinkie Pie looked back and forth between them and, in a moment of clarity, smacked her hoof onto her face. "Oh brother…" she muttered.
"Madam, to the library please," Commander Protean Joy said.
"Yes, yes… I'll show you. Good luck, Lord Spike."

---

Canterlot was as even more withdrawn than Ponyville. The storm was bleaker, the air was heavier, the streets were all the more void. Spike tapped his fingers together as Rarity politely knocked on doors and questioned residents a bit like a well intentioned but nonetheless fussy mother. He did his best to mimic Flash Sentry's stoic and dutiful patience, but his longing to return to the library struck through that pestilent ice-cold feeling that stung in his belly fractured his militant mindset. 
As time drug on, he even caught glimpses of such a feeling spark in Flash Sentry's eyes as he would take to quick gazes towards the looming Canterlot castle. Spike did his best to inspire the young soldier by displaying a clearly calm and in-control-state, much like the soldier's stark commander. To his dismay, Flash Sentry did not notice.
Then came another rumble from above. Spike brought his attention upwards to realize he couldn't see the sun now. Dots of torches and lanterns lit up inside the cobblestone houses to counteract the dim light filtering through the obscuring cloud line. The group walked along a road that intersected with the main one which stretched from the main gate to the great front doors of the mighty castle itself. As they crossed, they were caught off guard by a sudden shift in wind direction. The dreary lights that flickered through blurry windowpanes apexed then flashed away. Gasps and muffled worry echoed out of the nearby buildings. Soon, streams of fire flowed like wind currents from chimneys and out of the cracks beneath doors and windowsills. They sauntered in the immediate sky above the town with a haunting radiance like the Northern aura come to life and spread on a thick sheet of paper. All paths converged on the castle.
Flash Sentry went stiff.
"…Well, that's fairly beautiful if nothing else," Rarity squeaked in a frail attempt to break the silence.
"…Pinkie was right…" Spike whispered.
Flash Sentry said nothing. He stood ramrod stiff, but his breathing picked up and his eyes darted. Spike walked up next to him.
"What do you think it means?" he asked.
"I don't know, sir," Flash Sentry said, "I'm no meteorologist but that is not a natural weather phenomenon. I think we're in a lot of trouble, sir."
"No kidding…" said Spike.
"I… fear for the Princesses, sir," said Flash Sentry. The two of them looked back towards Rarity. Her eyes shifted between the two before she unleashed a relenting sigh. 
"Ok, fine," she said.
They slowly approached the castle's entrance. The streams of fire sunk into the vacant windows there and promptly disappeared inside.
Flash Sentry turned to Spike and said, "Might I request sir remain here? Villainy could be occurring inside the castle and I'd hate to put sir in unnecessary danger."
"What?" Rarity barked before Spike could answer, "You're just going to run off into the castle alone. By yourself? Have you never read a horror story?"
"I merely wish to keep the two of you from harm, ma'am," Flash Sentry said, "Think of me as a scout. I'll see if the castle is dangerous and if I can find any of my brethren there, then I'll return to you."
"Well, don't let me stop you. I'm just saying that you've said everything a pony in a good horror story says right before they disappear!"
Flash Sentry only looked at Spike.
Spike sighed. "Yeah, okay. We'll wait here. Just don't take too long, okay? That's an order."
Flash Sentry nodded then disappeared inside the castle.
Rarity scoffed. "This is ridiculous."	

---

"I still can't believe you let him run off into the castle without us. What if something happens to him? How are we supposed to get back to Ponyville? What if-"
"Hey, he just wanted to see if ponies were okay. Isn't that the reason you wanted to come here?"
Spike pressed on ear against the great palace door and scanned the soundscape inside. He heard nothing but Rarity's voice in his other ear.
"What? Hey, I wanted to make sure the citizens here were okay, not-"
"And he just wants to see if the Royal Guard is okay. See? You're not so different after all."
"…Spike, would you just let me complain? The more I complain the less I pay attention to how utterly creepy this place is. I mean, look at us; we're sitting in the dark on the doorstep of the royal palace itself underneath a storm that just needs to commit to starting already."
"…How long have we been waiting here."
"Oh, I don't know. Fifteen minutes maybe?"
"…How long do think it would take Flash Sentry to sweep the castle?"
"I don't know, I've never swept a castle before."
Spike sat down on the steps beside Rarity. A silence brewed, but, before long, she began to pat him on the back. "I do very much appreciate you helping me, Spike - particularly with the Knight Commander. It was very sweet of you."
Spike shrugged, but smiled. "Hey, I could understand your goals. You wanted to help ponies, so I helped you help ponies… That's all."  
Rarity smiled back and looked down. She paused for while, but soon relented. "Okay, when do you want to go in?"
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"You've had your ear pressed up against the door for the past ten minutes. You're worried about Flash Sentry and all the others that might be in there. You helped me so I'll help you. If you want to go in there, I will go with you."
Spike gulped and looked back at the door. The castle was so still, so lifeless. He'd much prefer something loud and menacing, that way he'd at least know for sure that they were in trouble. He sighed, and cursed his new found 'honor'.
"Okay, we'll go in and check the throne room. Maybe Princess Celestia will be in there. BUT, we'll keep a path open to the front door and not wander off in case things get hairy and we need to get out quickly. Agreed?"
Rarity smiled wearily. "Agreed. I'm not so altruistic that I'm not going to admit I don't want to go very far in there."
Rarity pushed the great doors of the palace open. Spike followed her inside. The halls were silent with the bright art and windows masked in a dim stillness as a shadow cloaked the ends of the long walkway to the throne room. There was no sign of the guards that had rushed here before them. Apart from a slight echo that ricocheted slightly from the looming columns, the whole palace seemed unresponsive, as if trapped in time on a particularly dreary, foggy night. The great stain glass art that contextualized the walkway seemed to leer down on the unsettled Rarity and Spike as they proceeded carefully down the hazed hallway towards the throne room.
The castle groaned as they walked and the wind could be heard throwing itself against the stonework outside. Thunder lightly tapped in the sky; it was much calmer than before. Spike swallowed, feeling the rush that comes with willingly placing oneself in danger, and lit a nearby unsullied torch with his breath. The dark gave way, just a little, for them to see the great emptiness of those decadent halls.
Spike felt compelled to holler, but Rarity discouraged him. Near the end of the hallway, they could just barely see the large doors of the throne room. They were cracked open slightly, barely enough for a full sized Royal Guard to fit through. The two approached it, mindful of the art work that colored the glass leering down at them. This dim castle was homely no more.
They reached the door. Rarity motioned for Spike to stop. She grasped his torch with her magic and skillfully slid it into the crack in the door before her. It slowed to a rest and illuminated that chamber. Next, Rarity pushed the door on the left open slowly, so that they might see what's inside. There was rubble, broken columns and evidence of a fight scarred into the walls and floors. The chamber bore two great holes; one in the ceiling, the other engulfing the far window and the roof above it. Both gave view to the dim, gray clouds above.
Rarity entered with Spike close behind. She slid the torch further along the ground, lighting more of the room as they entered. Spike found another unlit torch near the base of a broken column and set it alight. He tossed it to the right in a perpendicular motion. It smacked against the adjacent column. Near there was a dusty brown book.
Spike separated from Rarity and approached the book as if from sheer habit. Rarity continued along her path. She leaned on a column and, after a few coaxing breaths, whispered, "Flash Sentry? Princess Celestia? Anypony?"
Silence.
Spike picked up the book and struggled to view its decrepit title in the dim light. He could only make out one word - 'Epic'.
"Princess Celestia?" Rarity called again. The air and the angle of the walls began to press down on them. Spike found himself grinding his teeth and clasping the book firmly. His eyes shot up. Movement. He caught some residual movement scurrying through the dark on his left side. His breathing slowed, and he felt all will power sink into his eyes. He scanned. No movement.
"Flash Sen-"
"Shh."
Silence.
Then, a slow moment to the left. Spike's head turned, and he stared long at a small motion. It osculated like water waves, or… Princess Celestia's mane.
"Rarity, look to your right. Do you see anything?" he whispered.
"… No."
With his eyes glued on the movement, Spike reached out for the torch near his feet and tossed vaguely to his left. It landed near the base of the residual movement, and illuminated Princess Celestia's dark frame.
Rarity gasped. "Princess!"
"Don't. Move," Spike said with protective male anger. His order was not heeded.
She approached the princess and was taken aback. Many Royal Guards, perhaps even Flash Sentry as well, were as black as Celestia. They did little more than tremble, and seemed to be organized together. Each held space away from the windows and columns as if purposely placed away from danger. Yet, no sign of who afflicted them or moved them.
Then a sweeping fire.
"Rarity!" Spike cried.
A bandaged specter with a piercing blue eye appeared on the far side of the room opposite the entrance. He send his fire magic at Rarity rather gently, getting her to back up. She whimpered.
Rage shot through little Spike's veins like a hormonal response. He was compelled to shout. He felt a great pain in his fingers, then a swell, then a tear. He opened his mouth to yell and, much to his own surprise, a relatively mighty strain of green flame burst from him like it had been held back for years. It struck the dark figure, doing little more than startle him, and he stared back at little Spike in wonder with his eye piercing the shadows there.  
Spike swallowed but stared right back.
The dark figure conjured fire of his own from his horn and sent it at the sturdy column near Spike. Its intent was to startle the little dragon right back. Spike stumbled, using his hands to brace his fall. Curiously, his claws seemed longer. His right fingers had become lodged in the brown cover of the old book. Before long, he felt himself get swooped up by Rarity and placed on her back as she made for the door. Spike looked back. The figure did not pursue. His eye glowed white.
The dead torches in the hallway lit themselves methodically as the two fled from the throne room. The skies peered in through the grim stain glass grew pitch black. The darkness swallowed the palace around them. The stain glass art shattered from pressure and rained bits of glass behind them. The door to the exit seemed to stretch away as she neared it, but Rarity sprinted at a hysterical pace and dived out of the palace into the empty street. Spike employed the book as a makeshift shield against the tiny shards glass that managed to get close to them.
Thunder bellowed outside. Rarity burst from the castle into the empty streets. Windows shook open with a howling, and the clouds ahead swirled around, with the occasional lighting striking the roof tops and sending sparks to the street. The frightful activity that had populated the town coming in was all gone. The streets and houses stood idle and empty. 
Out; that's what Rarity's body language said. Out. She didn't even seem to see anything else. Spike understood. He watched for her. He watch the castle go black. He watched the chitinous darkness fester and boil. He watched the empty places. He watched the empty gates, the empty stores, empty guard posts, empty factories. He watched the city then fall into the distance. He watched his hands shake and that lodged in-between his fingers dance along them. He turned his head to watch the clouds overtake the light above Ponyville.
"Rarity?" Spike called.
She remained silent. She was overcome.
"Rarity…" 
Rarity was unresponsive. She just ran. Spike just stared back at the capital. It seemed to be set alight in black flame. His old home was gone. Spike felt a hot shred in his chest then fill up his blood, his veins, his lungs. His hands hurt and trembled. In stark contrast the sheer weight of the arid air around him, Spike wept and felt more like a child than ever. The thick, black sky above him rumbled like it was preparing tears of its own.
> 7. Twilight Sparkle: Black Dahlia
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Wake up, Twilight!! Hmm… it isn't working. …Maybe if I shout louder. TWILIGHT!"
Twilight Sparkle felt herself in that half suspension between awake and asleep. Soon she felt the ground she was laying on, then her curled body positioning and finally some more sound. She didn't move yet and her eyes remained closed. The hardwood floor was strangely comfortable. The air smelt wet.
"Ouch! Hey, Pinkie! Settle down, you're freakin' us out."
"I would appreciate it if you didn't shout, Pinkie Pie. I've just got the worst headache. Twilight probably just was exhausted, she'll snap out of it soon."
"Hmm… Maybe if I start poking her."
'Stop poking me, Pinkie.'
"Hey, she moved a bit! I'll poke harder."
'Stop. Let me sleep. I don't want to deal with this.'
"…Her Majesty isn't cold, is she?"
"No, she's pretty warm. She's twitching, I can see it!"
'Maybe it's a dream. No storm, no thunder, no blackness… just a dream.'
"The storm is getting worse, sir."
"Any sign of Flash Sentry, Sergeant?"
"None sir."
"Geez, it's really dark out there…"
"At least there hasn't been much thunder recently. Oh, poor Angel bunny just hated thunder…"
'Oooh, it's not a dream…'
Twilight felt Pinkie's mouth close up on her ear. She cringed, expecting Pinkie to scream or violent shake her. Instead, she heard a whisper, "Hey, Twilight… Can you hear me?"
"Mmm… I can hear you…" Twilight mumbled, eyes still closed. She buried her head into her hooves.
"Hey, she's awake! Ha! It worked!" said Pinkie Pie.
Silence. Twilight almost slipped back into sleeping.
"Get up, Twilight!" Pinkie Pie screamed as she violently shook Twilight, "We're in a lot of trouble!"
Twilight Sparkle curled up and clasped her hooves onto her face. "I know," she groaned, "…What do you expect me to do about it?"
"We have to think of a plan, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash said.
"Get up, silly!" said Pinkie Pie.
"Your Majesty…" said an old looking Royal Guard.
Twilight stirred and pressed herself up from the warm floor. Drool sopped from the corners of her mouth. She smacked her lips and looked around. There she was in the library; bookshelves, Rainbow Dash, wood, Pinkie Pie, some Royal Guard, more wood, more books, another Royal Guard… and thick black clouds rigidly stuck outside the nearby window. It was remarkably dark, save a few lanterns inside the library. She pawed her eyes sheepishly.
"Is it night time already? How long was I asleep?"
"About 45 minutes…" Rainbow Dash said solemnly.
"What?"
"The storm, it persisted," Rainbow Dash said, "It spread out over the sky in no time…"
Twilight scanned the room again, "Well, Princess Luna said… wait, where are the others?"	
"Hey, Princess Luna said what?"
"The others, Rainbow Dash, where are they? Spike and them, I mean."
"Oh, those stubborn ponies!" Pinkie Pie said, "I tried to tell them to go back to the library with me, but they wouldn't listen; 'Ah jus' dun got ta git back ta mah farm!'/'Darling, I've got make sure the darlings in Canterlot are alright, darling!'/'I've got to follow Rarity so nothing bad happens cuz we're in luuuhv!'"
"Hush, Pinkie!" Rainbow Dash snapped.
"I had my guardsponies escort Lord Spike and Miss Rarity to Canterlot per your orders, Your Majesty…" said the old Royal Guard. 
'Wait…Royal Guard?'
"My orders?" Twilight asked, her drowsiness shed, "What are you talking about? Hey, who are you? Wait… Fluttershy! Where's Fluttershy, is she alright?"
"I'm okay, Twilight," Fluttershy said calmly. She comfortably sat on a bench and wore a fragile smile. The black patch stuck to her coat like paint flung to a canvas. Rainbow Dash had collapsed into the wall but an arm's reach from her, and, of the two, looked far more exhausted. 
"Oh, I'll introduce everypony!" Pinkie Pie said. "This one with the grey coat and the serious face is Knight Commander Protean Joy. He's here to ensure your safety and he's very stern and authoritative and speaks firmly and with enunciation. Then this one over here with the white coat and the sleepy eyes is Knight Sergeant Mogadon. He's quiet and in the background and doesn't like it when I ask him questions. I'm not sure what his favorite color is, but my bits are on blue. Oh, and this lovely little thing is Fluttershy, who… wait, you know all about Fluttershy. Ha! Duh!!"
"They're sure polite," Fluttershy said.
"Your Majesty," the old guardspony said, extending his hoof towards her, "Might I help you up?"
Twilight took his hoof and came to her feet. "You're Commander Protean Joy, I take it."
"That I am, Your Majesty."
"Hm, 'Majesty'? … Hey, what did you say about Spike?"
"Lord Spike ordered me to escort him and Miss Rarity to Canterlot on the grounds that they were, by your orders, responsible for ensuring the safety of Canterlot's citizens."
"No, no, no… Canterlot's been attacked. Luna told me so. We need to get out of her. We need to meet her in the Everfree forest right now!"
Rainbow Dash stood. "'Canterlot's been attacked?' Do you think it was by the same guy that attacked Discord?"
Twilight Sparkle brought a cloth from the table to her mouth and wiped away the remaining drool. Any other time, and such an event would have embarrassed her greatly. Protean Joy began questioning and Rainbow Dash told the story of their investigation, during which Twilight stumbled over to the window to stare at the storm. It pulsated like waves throwing themselves upon a beach.
"Hey… Hey, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash said.
Twilight moved then to her bookshelves - the L's. She scanned the section while mouthing the word 'log' to herself repeatedly. 
"Twilight?"
Twilight pulled a book from the shelf; A Log of Unexplained Weather Phenomenon. Such a storm not crafted or otherwise managed by pegasi was troubling, even disregarding the previous events. She felt Rainbow Dash walk up beside her on the left side and stare down at the pages with her. She tilted her head, and Twilight felt a spark in her head. Rainbow Dash was on the same wavelength as her. 
Twilight flipped through the pages. There was nothing noteworthy - some logs of snowstorms in the dead of summer, ice melting despite freezing temperatures, unexplained floods, unexplained fires… There was nothing even close to such a dark storm.
"Check for black lightning. That ought to stick out," said Rainbow Dash.
Pinkie Pie crept up on the other side of Twilight. Twilight almost felt her, and winced in anticipation. "Twilight? Hey, Twilight, what's the plan?" Pinkie Pie asked.
Twilight squeezed her lips together and exhaled out her nose. "I don't know, stop asking me…" she said. She paused, then added, "We need to know something about this storm before we can come up with a plan on stopping it."
Pinkie Pie rubbed her chin slowly. "Hmmm…" she said, "Have you tried… looking it up in a book!"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "We're looking at a book right now!"
Pinkie Pie placated a look of sheer surprise and stared credulously at the old book on the table. She then tapped her chin and thought. "Well… You could look in a different book!"
Twilight sighed. "If only it were that simple," she said, "If only somepony could just burst through the door with all the information we need just glued in their hoof."
Just then, Rarity burst through the door with Spike, his hand still stuck through that book, on her back. She had a strange mix of trauma-induced terror and indignant anger brewing in midst the scowl on her face and she was sure to make her presence known in the way swung the door open and slammed it behind her. Still, her anger was not directed at anypony in particular, and she retained a level of glamour in her behavior. She plucked Spike from her back and placed him gently on the floor then took four or five deep breaths to calm herself, fluffed her hair to make it somewhat presentable and trotted over to a nearby table to take a hefty gulp of water. The room was in silence before her. She finished her glass, exhaled, and turned rather gently towards Fluttershy. "How are you feeling, dear?"
"Oh. I'm, um… fine. How are you? You look terribly exhausted…"
Rarity squeezed out an exhausted laugh and forced a smile. "Me? No, I'm fine. I only ran from Canterlot to here… It's only a few miles, I'm good…" She helped herself to more water.
Twilight Sparkle was more concerned with Spike. She helped him up and pulled the book from his hooves with her magic before discarding it onto the floor. 
"You alright, Spike?"
Spike frowned. "I'm alright. It's everypony else that I'm worried about."
Pinkie Pie poked at the book on the for like it was about to explode. She batted it around a bit, like a kitten with a ball of yarn, then opened it and read. Twilight shrugged this off. 
"Are you okay, Rarity?"
"Oh… I'm peachy," she said before guzzling down another glass of water, "…Thrill of a lifetime."
"My soldiers," Protean Joy said, "What of them?"
Rarity's sardonic veneer slipped away into grim territory as her lips tightened. She frowned and simply shook her head.
Mogadon, still quiet, allowed his ears to perk up. He scooted in from the back with a stern look on his face. Then he spoke. "What happened to them?"
Rarity shuddered. "…The whole castle, and everypony in it… They were all black and quivering. Some… thing, like a pony but bigger, came out of the shadows and attacked us. It seemed to be sapping fire…"
Twilight and Rainbow Dash both raised their eyebrows. "Fire!?" they said in unison.
Rainbow Dash turned to her. "Like whoever attack Discord!" she said.
Twilight nodded. "Same guy?"
"What do you remember?"
Twilight thought. "Um, a horn… and an eye."
Spike whimpered. "A piercing blue eye?"
Twilight felt a budding of dread plant in her stomach. Sound faded out again, and the continued conversation of those around her blurred away. She closed her eyes and thought. No ideas came. Then, she let go into the flow of quiet desperation.
"Errgh! C'mon! There's got to be something!!" Twilight Sparkle screamed as she softly panicked. She then furiously pawed through whatever books she thought might bear even tangental relevance. She pulled them from shelves, flipped through them, then discarded them hectically. All she could her was her own shortness of breath. Her breathing, her frantic tapping of her back hoofs, the slams of books on the ground - the ebb of echo pulsating around her. The very feeling of sound was so much different now.
"Oh, no, no, no! None of these are helping! What do we do?" Twilight cried.
"It'll be okay, Twilight. We'll think of something new to do," Fluttershy said with a fragile smile. She was stiff.
"Oh, there's nothing new to do… it's all been done!" Twilight lamented.
"I have faith in you."
"Well, put your faith in another place!!"
Fluttershy retracted and her face flickered pain. Twilight brought her hoof to her right temple, and exhaled.
"…I'm sorry. That was uncalled for."
"It's okay."
"It's just… we never seem to get away from this, do we?"
"No."
Twilight let her head fall onto the nearby table and basked in the terrible silence that befell the whole room. They were all just waiting for her to say something. It was so uncomfortable. She'd always been like this when things were out of her control - she either got frantic or just shut down. Nopony else knew what to do either, but she had nopony to look to - no other princesses around this time.
"…Hey, Twilight?" Fluttershy said at the contours of a whisper.
"What is it?"
"I'm terrified." 
Her voice trembled, then went to a jarring quiet.
"Fluttershy?"
Twilight looked up at her and saw her eyes go white. She had such a look of horror on her face, and the bottoms of her eyelids and the corners of her mouth trembled. Then the dark spot on her flank just covered her like it had swallowed her up. She went all black, from head to hoof.
"Fluttershy!?"
Twilight threw herself up and went to her side. "What's happening to her!?"
"No! Don't touch her!!" Rainbow Dash cried. She blocked Twilight, who pushed to reach out.
Fluttershy stiffly curled up and whispered, "…Never seem to get away from this…" 
Thunder cracked heavily enough to shake the whole library. Every candle flickered.
"What just happened!?" Rarity cried.
"Fluttershy!?"
They were all shouting. Twilight did not appreciate the shouting. She moved away from Fluttershy and panted. There was a ringing in her ears that she was compelled focus on, drowning out all the noise around her. Buried there, in the sounds and in the pit of her gut, was sheer, thick dread. She heard breathing, and, just past that, wings beating against the sky.
"…We have to get out now…" she mumbled.
"Your Majesty?"
"Twilight?"
Twilight felt her whole body tighten up and her heart pound. Her breathing had picked up.
"We have to get out NOW!" she screamed. "Grab whatever you think we need and run to Everfree! Princess Luna will be there!"
Rarity whimpered. "…Run?"
The ground shook. Twilight's breathing picked up. There was a ringing in her ears that felt like it was tunneling into the sides of her brain. She grasped her temple. Nopony was moving.
"I said now!"
Then they sprang, grabbing various items and throwing them into saddlebags. Pinkie Pie grasped that book in her teeth, the two guards grabbed food and water, Rarity blankets and other toiletries. Rainbow Dash just studied Fluttershy desperately, and shouted at her - she was unresponsive. Spike just froze with a panicked look on his face. Twilight was quick to pluck him up and put him on her back. She kicked the door open.
"Everypony out!!" she commanded.
"But what about Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash protested.
"I said, 'Everypony out!!'" Twilight screamed.
Rainbow Dash shortly acquiesced, and, bidding Fluttershy a pained nod, joined them in their evacuation. It was terribly dark outside, but still workably visible, like a room at night illuminated by a dim candle. Twilight gathered her bearings, but didn't know the exact way. She felt the precipice of that particular panic that builds against diminishing time, and she struggled to calm down. She shut her eyes and thought about which direction to go. Then, epiphany!
'Pinkie Pie should, with that memory of hers.'
"Pinkie Pie! Which direction is Everfree from here?"
"Serrfff!"
"What!?"
Pinkie Pie spat the book out. "South!"
Twilight nodded then winced at a sudden illumination. Streams of fire glistening like liquid streamed out from nearby windows - free floating. It was almost lovely. The buzzing in her ears came back. 
"Oh no!" Spike cried. "That thing is taking fire from here too!"
Twilight followed the streams with her eyes. They all gathered to a specific point high up in the sky to the north. That point was horrifying. The fire curled up on itself like a burning river, but, moreover, a faint figure could be seen flying up near the cloud line. Twilight's neck tendons tightened. The closer that figure got, the louder the buzzing was.
"South! Everypony south!"
They took off through the town. Lightning struck a nearby building, sending spiraling shocks down the houses and shops. Twilight kept a keen eye on that far off figure and lamented - it moved faster than they could run.
By the time they reached the town's square, there he was - right above them! The armor and necklace he bore appeared rusted, twisted and decrepit, as though left to nature for a millennia. White skin shown thru a hole at his nose, and around a bright blue left eye, staring down at the ponies amongst the stains of black tears. He caught wind of them almost immediately and looked remarkably surprised to see anypony outside. The fire that streamed in from all over collect there, atop his horn. His dreary body - the stark bandages, the dim helmet, his eye - all glowed from the light. He leered down on them as a conqueror bent on conquest.
"Hey, HEY!" Rainbow Dash shouted as she drove her hoof into the dirt. "Just what to you think you're doing to our home!!"
And they heard, as it were, the noise of thunder. The beast lifted himself into the air and said, "Come and see." And they saw. Fire was stricken from the houses and buildings and collected on him. He held it up above him and cackled. "You all have something of mine. I'd like it back." Then, there was another crack of thunder, and the beast winced. He turned to the sky, and their eyes followed him. The thick clouds loomed and beckoned. They stretched out, preparing their gifts for the earth.
"I said, 'HEY!'" Rainbow Dash screamed, "Don't ignore me! And don't give me any of your cryptic mumbo-jumbo. You better clear out of here! We're not scared of you!"
He tilted his head and looked down his nose at her. He scrunched his nose and said, "You should feel afraid." And then, his eye was stricken black and Rainbow Dash's muscles when stiff. Her face contorted, and Twilight Sparkle winced in sync from a buzzing in her ears. The beast above moved his head to and fro, and Rainbow's match suite - though jaggedly, for she tried to stop.  
"Make…him stop," Twilight said. She felt her right leg begin to give out, but Protean Joy caught her and propped her up. Spike slid from her back and onto the ground. She then shot a spell at the beast above, the first vaguely offensive one she could think of, and her purple blast smacked the harbinger's face. He was thrown off, and his eye shut. The buzzing snapped along and popped loudly like a string breaking from a violin. Rainbow Dash let out a scream and brought a hoof to her head.
Twilight returned to her feet. "Everypony! Get to Everfree right now! Move!!"
Rarity plucked up Spike, Mogadon pushed Rainbow Dash along and Pinkie Pie and Protean Joy took off right beside Twilight Sparkle. Rainbow Dash let out a pained moan, and a tear slipped from her left eye. Still, she ran.
"Rainbow Dash? You okay?" Twilight called.
"…Y-Yes. Don't worry about me, just… just lead the way…"
"Spike! Is he following us?"
"Umm… I can't see… I don't think so… wait, yes!!"
Twilight Sparkle dared to peek behind. He was there, up above them, yet tactfully behind. She was confused - he flew faster than they ran, why didn't he just swoop in and take them out? He body language did not communicate malice, but… curiosity, perhaps?
They all soon happened upon a small bridge crossing a stream. Lightning blasted it's way to the bridge, destroying it utterly before the ponies could cross. They halted, turning to see the dark harbinger approaching behind them. Clouds above them, not nearly as festering or bleak as the ones in the center of town, suddenly parted.
Princess Luna descended from on high and onto the ground before the bridge, positioning herself between the ponies and the harbinger. "Flee!" she commanded them, "into the forest!" Twilight Sparkle obeyed. She herded the others down the bank and across the stream.
The harbinger landed gently on the ground as well. Luna lowered her head with her horn outstretched and her eye fixated on his. 
"You will not touch them."
He stopped, that fickle beast, and bowed his head. "Hello, Princess Luna," he said.
"Begone, you dark harbinger! Reverse your foal becomings and leave us in peace. Stop this - stop this now."
"'Dark Harbinger', huh?" he said, tilting his head again. His left eye curled from a forced smile. 
"One more time - leave us, lest we find a way to destroy thee!"
"You don't have to shout, you just have to wait - I'll be gone before long," he said, nonchalantly. "But this…" his eyes wandered to the sky above him. He scanned the clouds. "This just has retribution written all over it, don't you think?"
Luna just gawked at him. Her nose curled up. "What… what are you doing?"
"You all really don't remember me, do you?" he said. "…This is all just a reckoning for shunning me and forsaking my gifts. Sound familiar?"
Luna snarled and indignantly snorted. "Mind your tongue, demon."
He dipped his head again and pushed back towards the town. "Stay away."  
Luna seemed perplexed at the lack of confrontation. She just let him go like she wasn't sure what else to do.
"Princess?" Twilight called.
No response. Luna just floated there a minute - taken aback, confused. Soon, Twilight saw her slowly turn and approach the forest. The clouds behind her swelled and bellowed in a soft juxtaposition to their pulsating movement. Then, a light black rain began to fall over the town. Twilight entered the forest.
> 8. Twilight Sparkle: Reprieve
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The forest churned around Twilight Sparkle and her friends as they all gathered in a clearing. The large, long leaves on the trees shook slightly in a breeze, and the group was surrounded on all sides by crackles and snips of sound echoing from the wood. The forest was still very much alive, untouched by the still storms that raged outside it's borders. The still sun shined out overhead. Thoughts buzzed in Twilight Sparkle's head, crashing against the borders of her mind and thrashing about in her skull. She thought of Fluttershy, Celestia and Discord; each trapped in the darkness. She thought of the destruction stewing in her home and of the tall white beast that brought it. She thought of him leering down on her, gazing with that pale blue eye exposed from those sickly bandages, and all that grim metal. She thought of the disease he wrought upon her home, and on her friends and comrades.
Lastly she thought of Applejack. And Spike. Poor thing looked like he was about to break down. 
"I'm tired… of running!!" shouted Rarity thru her panting, breaking the cold, soporific silence that had cast itself upon the group. She clasped her hoof to her chest and ventilated. 
Protean Joy hastily moved in front of her. "Listen to me," he said, "You're hyper-ventilating. If we don't slow your breathing down, you'll pass out. I want you to try to take in as much air as you can then breath all the way out. When you breathe, try to feel it in your gut. I'll do it with you, okay? Follow my hoof."
He brought his hoof up with inhales and down with exhales. Rarity nodded and struggled to follow. Still, her sporadic breathing slowed, and, with time, she was calm.
"That's it," Protean Joy said, smiling, "Good las."
He turned to his Sergeant, who stood diligently at his commander's side. "Mogadon," he said, "Have you any water?"
"Sir, yes sir," he responded softly. He stuck is nose into his saddlebag and pulled out his canteen. "Give Lady Rarity a few sips and help her calm down," Protean Joy ordered. His subordinate did so, and the commander next took a stance in the middle of the clearing. "Are any of you lot hurt? Scraps, cuts; anything at all?"
"I'm all good!" said Pinkie Pie with a forced smile.
"I'm… yeah, I'm fine…" Rainbow Dash said meekly as she let herself nestle down between the roots of a nearby tree. 
Twilight pulled the book away from Spike and discarded it nearby. "We're fine here, thanks…"
She pulled Spike close to her. "Are you alright, Spike?" she asked.
Spike sniffled but belligerently held back his instinct to sob. His whole body was stiff from the effort. "I wasn't scared…" he said, "I wasn't. At least, not for… me." He looked over at the commander snapping into his managerial duties, then Pinkie Pie, then Rainbow Dash, then Rarity and winced. He buried his face in Twilight's shoulder and whimpered, "…Don't let them… see me… cry."
Twilight brought her wing around him.
Pinkie Pie spit the brown book out. "Who was that? What did he do to Fluttershy?" she asked.
They all went silent. Rarity slurped down some water and coughed.
Twilight frowned and looked up and around for Princess Luna. "Hey, does anypony see Princess Luna anywhere?"
Protean Joy looked at Mogadon sternly. "Stay with her," he said, motioning towards Rarity. He was then the only one to move. He wondered around the clearing, methodically scanning the sky in various directions. Pinkie Pie looked over at Spike as he hid behind Twilight's wing. She covered a soft, sympathetic frown then joined Protean Joy in watching the sky. 
Twilight Sparkle looked over at Rainbow Dash. She was uncharacteristically withdrawn and somber. 
"Rainbow Dash, are you holding up alright?"
Rainbow Dash's eyes met Twilights. They settled beneath her relapsed brow as if pulled from a dream or overwhelming thought. She gave a look like she just now realized where she was, the reality she occupied.
"Rainbow?"
"Yeah, yeah… I'm ok!" she said. Twilight Sparkle was unconvinced.
"Why don't you come over here? Closer to the rest of us?"
"No, I-…I'm fine right here."
"Rainbow, what happened back there? When he stared at you, I mean. I felt-"
"He didn't do anything! I'm fine, I told you!"
"Rainbow!!" Twilight's aura of sweet motherly understanding gave way to a sharp tone, "You've got to talk to me. That… that stinging I felt. Tell me what happened!"
"Stop it!!" Rainbow Dash cried. She curled up at the base of the tree.
"Hey, calm down Twilight," came a soft coo from Spike, "Relax, she'll talk to us when she's ready."
"I got this one, Twilight. It's ok," said Pinkie Pie. She walked slowly over to Rainbow Dash, sitting down near her, but still keeping herself at a comfortable distance. Rainbow Dash's eyes were clamped shut, her head buried in her hoofs. Twilight felt the spark of agitation fade. She calmed and sat back into the warmth of the soothing sounds of the forest.
"Hey, Rainbow Dash. How are you holding up?" Pinkie Pie asked softly.
"I don't wanna talk about it! Don't make me talk about!" Rainbow Dash snapped, her voice raspy and weak. She remained buried in her hooves.
"I'm not going to ask you about what happened, I just want to know how you're feeling."
"Not very good! Can't you tell?"
Pinkie Pie inched closer.
"It's ok to be scared, Rainbow. The noise, the whispers, the wind; that by itself was overwhelming, let alone having that big scary guy… do whatever he did. But it's ok now, Rainbow. You're here with your friends, and he's back there. Try calming down now."
Rainbow Dash whimpered, but exhaled and brought her head up.
Twilight had never seen Pinkie Pie so calm and in control. She honestly thought that silly pony didn't have it in her. It just reminded her how grave the situation had become. The kingdom was lost, Fluttershy corrupted, Celestia and Discord gone… and Applejack missing. She moved her attention up, to the sky, looking for Princess Luna.
Spike pulled away from her, wiped his nose, and made his way to Rainbow Dash's retreat. He motioned passed Pinkie Pie and sat beside the settling Rainbow Dash and put his hand on her shoulder.
"It's over now, Rainbow Dash," he said, surprisingly calmly, "We're safe here and you don't have to worry now."
"Yes, it's… alright now!" pipped in Rarity. She remained where she was. Her voice revealed just how winded she was. Mogadon stood ramrod still next to her with a stern, stoic expression. Rarity guzzled down the last of his water, and he promptly placed the canteen back in his saddlebag. Rarity smiled at him - he didn't respond - and continued. "Mr. Sticky-Darkness can't get in here and he isn't going to make us run around anymore… If he makes me run again, I'll beat him." Her remark summoned an uneasy smile from Rainbow Dash.
Twilight felt the cue that she should chime in, the guilt from losing her temple settling on her stomach. "I'm sorry I raised my voice at you." She said, "This whole thing has got us all stressed and I didn't consider your feelings. It's easy to try to bury the emotions and thoughts you'd rather not have, but that won't make them go away. I'd like you to tell us what happened, but I'm not going to force anything out of you, Rainbow. And I am very glad that you're okay."
Rainbow Dash chuckled thru her terrified sniffles and shakes. "Ok softie brigade…" she joked weakly and rather softly, "Keep this up and I'll end up as girly as you guys." 
"Except me, of course!" Spike said - an obvious joke.
"Ha! Especially you, little Spikey-Wikey!" Rainbow Dash teased, nudging the little dragon.
The group managed to muster a laugh. Laughter was a welcome feeling in the stress of the night, the moonbeams beating down on the tired group. Rainbow Dash got herself up, smiling weakly thru her uneasiness, but a good feeling was settling on all of them. 	
Protean Joy then pointed up into the sky. "There!" he shouted.
Luna descended through the tree line and gently landed. She a strange look of shock about her; a confused surprise captured on her brow and face. Her wrinkled lip and stern expression matched her stiffness.
"Princess! Are you alright?" asked Twilight Sparkle.
"I'm fine…" said Luna, "And you?"
"I'm fine as well, but a little shaken. I… think we're all a little shaken."
She couldn't help but look at Rainbow Dash.
"What's happened?" asked Spike, "Did he follow us in?"
Luna shook her head. "No. He told me to leave."
"Leave?" said Mogadon, "You're Majesty, why not? There's nothing stopping us. We could get you and Princess Twilight Sparkle to safety."
Luna smiled. "I appreciate your concern, young soldier, but such a move would only grant reprieve from the inevitable. Wherever we when, he would just take his storm there."
"And I for one am not going anywhere," said Twilight Sparkle, "Nopony attacks my friends."
Spike cocked his head. "Twilight?"
"If we put our heads to it, we could beat this guy. The Elements of Harmony are just sitting in the library," Twilight said, "I seriously doubt that's what he's after, and, even if it was, he'd have no idea that it's there. Plus, that's where Fluttershy is."
"You're… you're not suggesting… we go back in there, are you?" Rarity said.
"That is exactly what I'm suggesting. Fluttershy's down and out, and who knows where Applejack is… But if we find her and find a way to reverse whatever that darkness is, then we can use the Elements of Harmony and defeat the dark harbinger. If we don't, that storm will keep spreading and who knows what kind of damage it will do."
Rarity grumbled to herself. "…if you make me run more, I will kill you…"
"Count me in!" said Pinkie Pie, "The towns all dark and spooky, so you need a pony who knows how to get everywhere from everywhere! Oh yeah, and I'm one of the elements. DUH! I have to go!"
Rainbow Dash smiled. "Me too. Wherever you go, I'll follow, Twilight."
Rarity sighed. "Alright, fine. I'll come too."
Spike closed his eyes and exhaled. "Me too," he said, "but we need a solid plan before we do anything."
"Solid plan…" Rainbow Dash said, "I'm going to hit that guy so hard he'll be digesting his teeth for a week."
"I admire your gusto, Ms. Dash, but I've been a soldier for a long time. I know first hand the repercussions of attacking a foe that's got you outmatched," said Protean Joy, "We've got Princess Luna and Princess Twilight Sparkle, sure. They're no slouches when it comes to magic, but that… thing defeated two of the most powerful magic users on this planet AND the entire Royal Guard regiment save two in under an hour. Face it: we are at a terminal disadvantage should we engage this 'dark harbinger' directly. We need a different plan."
Mogadon's pale eyes caught his commanders. He smiled subtly and recited, "A single cut can kill a manticore, and a single decision can destroy nations."  
Protean Joy smiled. He and Mogadon looked like they were communicating telepathically
Twilight Sparkle cocked her head, "What's he saying?"
"It's a quote, Your Majesty," Mogadon said.
"From whom?"
"A long dead strategist named Equo Facie. She employed brilliant tactics and took down two superior forces with an inferior one," said Mogadon.
Protean Joy shrugged. "Think of her as the 'Starswirl the Bearded' of soldiers…"
Mogadon dipped his head down and grinned. "He might be strong, but he's just one pony. He can't watch all of Ponyville by himself. Should Her Majesty be quiet and careful, she could wander about the whole town right under his nose. We need to exploit our advantage; subterfuge."
"Subterfuge?" asked Spike quickly, "What's that?"
"Umm… trickery; deceit," explained Luna, "Think of yourselves as fleas on the back of a hound. He can scratch all he wants, but he can't rid you." 
"Oh! Is it like going undercover??" asked Pinkie Pie.
"Exactly!" responded Twilight Sparkle in a smooth, authoritative tone. Her mind buzzed carefully, pouring over what words would be best to use. She had to do everything she could to reinforce the calm atmosphere of the clove. "Taking this guy head on isn't working, so let's do the opposite."
"I don't understand…" said Rainbow Dash, "How is sneaking around going to stop this guy?"
"There is an old saying…" said Luna, "'Information is power'. We know very little about the dark harbinger - who he is, what he wants, how he operates." 
"Oh, so we're going scouting?? Gathering intel on the enemy!?" squeaked Pinkie Pi.
"Precisely!" said Twilight Sparkle.
"Um, one little problem," said Rarity, "It started raining that black stuff that got on Fluttershy. If we just go waltzing into, sneaky or not, we're going to get the black stuff all over us, and then we'll end up just like her."
"Can't Princess Luna part the clouds? She can open a window for us!… uh, so to speak," suggested Spike.
"That's a good idea, Spike, but it'll be obvious where we were. We'd stick out in that storm like a sore hoof!" said Twilight Sparkle, "The dark harbinger would single us out in no time, then what? We'd be back at square one."
"Whilst it's true I can part the clouds in a limited area, I have to concur with Twilight Sparkle," said Princess Luna, "However, in the name of subterfuge, such a process could provide a quaint distraction. I could possible conjure several proxies, and lure attention away from you." 
"Uh, translation?" said Spike, looking up to Twilight Sparkle.
"Remember when she made the Shadow Bolts? She could do the same thing here!" Twilight Sparkle explained, "If we could find a way to remain unaffected by the rain, Princess Luna could part the clouds to guide around a fake set of us, and distract the dark harbinger. While he fixated on 'fake us', real us could travel around unnoticed."
"That's all fine and dandy," croaked Rarity, "But that black rain is our largest concern. How are we suppose to sneak around town unaffected by the stuff?"
"Well, I could summon a bubble or a shield of some sort," suggested Twilight Sparkle, "It's a very mundane spell actually, but one big enough to encompass all of us would take a toll on me. I could only keep it up for a limited time, and I'd have to stay very concentrated on the spell. It would be a great last resort, but there has to be something else we can do, right?"
"Oh, I got it!" shouted Rainbow Dash, "When characters in some of the stories I read have to go into dangerous environments, they wear 'hazmat suits'."
"What's a hazmat suit?" asked Pinkie Pie.
"It's a big piece of clothing you wear that covers your whole body!" said Rainbow Dash, "If Twilight's bubble could get us to Rarity's house, I bet she could whip some up! Then the rain would get on the suit, not on us!"
"Good idea, but let's say we even get that far. Then what? How are we supposed to defeat that terrifying pony? What if we can't find any weaknesses or anything?" asked Pinkie Pie.
"We've got all the time in the world," said Protean Joy, "He needs to sleep, he needs to eat and he's a fish out of water. This is just some place to him, but you lot know every nook and cranny. He'll slip up sooner or later."
"Patience and prudence are the virtues you all should employ. wait and watch," said Princess Luna, "It is of no doubt the dark harbinger will seek my proxies, and with that, I will be in grand peril. Study his movements, study his methods. No force in this universe is infallible. You simply must wait for an opportunity and seize it. You may not get another."	
"So we're just going to sneak around and wait until he flashes some big weakness at us? That's our plan??" said Rainbow Dash, "I get we can't just charge at this guy, but I think we need something a bit more solid than what we got before we go into town."
"Well, how about we start with what we already know about the Dark Harbinger?" said Twilight. She looked straight at Rainbow Dash. 
'If this guy can crack the bravest pony I know in one little instance, who knows what he can do to the rest of us. Just tell us what happened, Rainbow! I don't want this to bother you anymore.'
Rainbow Dash stared at Twilight and sighed, but there was no anger or resentment in it. There was just a weary resignation - a quiet, calm acceptance. 
"I probably have the best first hand knowledge. He… it felt like he went in my head."
At that, Luna brought grimly her head down low. She smoothly but firmly nudged Twilight out of the way and brought her face near Rainbow Dash's. Rainbow Dash sank back uncomfortably and her cheeks tightened in correlation with gritting teeth. Luna's face was remarkably serious.
"What did it feel like? Waves? A stinging?"
Rainbow Dash blinked and rubbed her nose. "It… it slithered, I guess…"
"Slithered? Did it feel like a grub had laid down on your brain and rolled back to and fro?"
Rainbow Dash raised her brow. "Yeah, that could describe it."
Luna brought her head back up and peered at the benevolent Sun blazing above. Her eyes wandered around and she wiggled her tongue between her teeth on the left side. "Crude," she said.
"Huh?" Twilight said. She tilted her head and stared straight up at the Princess.
Luna shook her head. "Crude mind reading magic," she said, "Masters of such would be more subtle. He's powerful, but he's crude and short sighted. Still, he must be very old. Many live and die without developing the ability to touch minds."
She laughed nonchalantly to herself then, "'A heretofore unnamed old evil sealed away before returning to reap havoc on little old Ponyville.' That sure sounds familiar…"
Twilight stirred, "Princess?"
Luna ignored her. She brought her head back down and looked straight at Rainbow Dash.	"Did you see or hear anything? Words? Noises? Anything?"
Rainbow Dash frowned. "I… didn't really see anything. There were noises though… it… it sounded like a wind tunnel, or… or, like, a piano that's out of tune. Or something… I don't know. There was this repetitive grinding. Then I heard some voices. Well, not really voices so much as… thoughts. Y'know, like when you think of stuff and hear a voice in your head but you don't really 'hear' it. It was like that. I think he was talking to me. Or… singing? There was something like a choir singing just at the edge of hearing."
"What did he say to you?"
"...It was frantic and sad. I tried asking him why he was here, but all he said was he's here to conquer. I told him I wasn't afraid of him… I mean, I really was, but I didn't want him to know that… Saying that seemed to really make him mad. And he shouted 'feel afraid' at me. That's when I heard Twilight Sparkle shouting at me, and then I came back here. But my head still hurt, like he had left tracks in there. I couldn't help but be afraid… Like he forced me to be afraid or something…"
A silence fell upon the group.
"That's really it." Rainbow Dash said. Her eyes flickered in a disappointment at the dying hope that relying the information would ease the pressure on her mind.
"You know…" said Rarity, "If I were to describe how Fluttershy and Princess Celestia looked under the dark harbinger's spell, I would say they looked afraid. Based on that story, it sounds like the guy is practically demanding ponies to be afraid."
"Maybe that's why it felt like he was slithering around in your head!" said Spike. "Maybe he was looking for what you're afraid of."
"The overwhelming atmosphere we all felt… all the darkness and noise… and the lack of noise… Maybe that's the point?" said Twilight Sparkle "Maybe he's driving ponies into a fear induced catatonic state… but how and why, those are the really big questions."
"Well…" said Pinkie Pie, "We won't find any answers sitting around here…"
Luna smiled. It was that particularly weary smile - one of bleary resignation. "We're going to need help."
"Help?" asked Twilight Sparkle, "From whom?"
"…If a messenger is required, I volunteer," said Mogadon. He still stood directly where his superior had ordered him to. "I have no wings, but I can run -- and I know the roads. At the very least, I could accompany Your Majesty, keep you-"
Luna smiled at him, but politely shook her head. "No, it's not them we need help from…"
"Princess Luna, if I may…" said Twilight Sparkle, "I agree not to call for aid - anypony that answered would just get caught in the storm and end up in the same place we are. But, he could at least warn them. If we go back in there, we may not get another chance to come back out."
Luna sighed. "Do what you wish. You're a princess now, you don't have to take orders from me. If you wish to warn others, than take whatever steps are necessary to warn them."
Twilight nodded. "It couldn't hurt, and it would be wise to at least get somepony to tell others what has happened. Commander Protean Joy and Sergeant Mogadon could get to the Crystal Empire in a day or two. They could warn my brother and Princess Cadence."
Protean Joy bit his lip.
"And, if I may ask, Princess, just who are you getting help from?" Twilight asked.
Luna looked at her grimly with that sour resolution. "Someone that might help if appropriately incentivized."
Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Some…'one'? An ally?"
Luna shook her head. "I wouldn't call her an ally. But she has a powerful group of followers. She lives up in space, that's why none of you can accompany me."
"'She?' Who's she?"
Luna sighed. "She's a powerful warrior named Gaea. Don't get too excited. She isn't exactly friendly or charitable… and, comparatively, she makes Discord seem quaint and approachable."
Twilight blinked. "Princess, I'm confused."
"You'll see soon enough, young Twilight Sparkle," Luna said. She spread her wings out and prepared. She looked up towards the hazy sun, then back to Twilight Sparkle. "Strange things happen to one's perception of time when traveling between here and there. What feels like twenty minutes to me will be half a day for you… maybe longer. If you venture back into Ponyville, seek shelter after a few hours. I will not be able to contact you until I return, but I will. I wouldn't want to make you sleep at the wrong time."
She bent her head down by Twilight's ear and whispered, "Don't be afraid to be the leader. Nopony can cultivate their talents like you can."
Twilight smiled. "Good luck, Princess…"
And, with that, Luna was off.
Twilight swallowed. "Spike," she said, "Take up a letter…"
"I, uh, don't have any paper…" Spike said.
"Oh, I do!!" said Pinkie Pie. She stuck her face in the sides of her saddlebag and pulled out a fresh clump of paper, a quill and ink. She set the items down near Spike, then stuck her face right back in her saddlebag. "I've also got streamers, balloons that haven't been blown up yet, red and blue icing, a pair of earmuffs, some blue ribbon that would go wonderfully with Rarity's eyes, a jar of pickles and my toothbrush!!" She pulled each item out after she said it and placed them neatly in a row in front of her. "Mommy always told me to pack a toothbrush. Dentists are terrifying!"
"Pinkie! You were supposed to pack actual supplies!" Rainbow Dash said, "Why the heck would we ever need any of those things!?"
Pinkie Pie sneered dramatically. "You never know when balloons or earmuffs or toothbrushes will come in handy. When, I say when we actually need this stuff, I'll be expecting your apology."
"Oh brother…"
"Girls!" said Twilight Sparkle, "Shush!" She turned to Spike.
"Spike, take a letter;
Dear Princess Cadence,

Something terrible has happened in Ponyville! A dark harbinger has brought a storm from the north and is infecting the 		citizens here with some kind of dark magic. Should this darkness be brought upon you, avoid all contact! Have your subjects stay indoors and away from any and all windows. The dark harbinger also seems to be able to sap fire, so prepare for pitch blackness.
Do not engage the dark harbinger directly. Do not touch anything that's been infected by the darkness. And, most importantly, don't send any aid here - they'll just be caught in the 	storm. I'm working on getting the Elements or Harmony, and Princess Luna is fetching some allies from a distant place. 
Tell my brother not to worry.

-Twilight Sparkle."
Spike scribbled her words down.
"Can you send it to her with your breath?" she asked.
Spike shook his head. "That only works with Princess Celestia."
Twilight nodded. "Very well."
She turned to Mogadon. "Knight Sergeant, you volunteered as a messenger, so you will become one. Take this letter and deliver it straight to Princess Cadence in the Crystal Empire. Do not let it out of your sight until you see it in her hooves. Understood?"
Mogadon bowed. "Yes, Your Majesty."
Twilight smiled and turned away. "Knight Commander Protean Joy will accompany you," she said.
Protean Joy moved up beside Twilight Sparkle rather meekly. He opened his mouth, said nothing, then closed it again. He tried to slink off as if he hoped she wouldn't notice.
She had noticed.
"Yes?"
Protean Joy swallowed. "Might I request to accompany Your Majesty instead?" he said, "Mogadon could outrun me in his sleep, and, frankly, I believe my talents are more suitable for what you and your friends are diving into."
Twilight looked down. He made a point, but she honestly didn't really care either way.
She shrugged and looked at her friends. "How 'bout it everyone?"
"Sure!" said Pinkie Pie. 
Spike smiled and nodded.
Rainbow Dash shrugged, and her face mimicked Twilight's own opinion.
"If we have to run, he's carrying me," said Rarity.
Twilight Sparkle looked back at Protean Joy, and, for the first time, felt like a member of royalty. "Request granted, Knight Commander."
Protean Joy smiled.
"Shame…" said Mogadon, "I was looking forward to watching our dear commander fade into a little spec on the horizon behind me."
"Sergeant, my feelings," Protean Joy said. He placed his hoof on Mogadon's shoulder and bore a genuinely warmhearted smile. "You're a good kid at heart, I think. You'll pull through."
Mogadon remained stoic. He shrugged. "Sir, I am merely running down a road with little to no obstacles, hazards or any kind of predators, sir. Sir,you're the one that's being placed in danger, sir."
Protean Joy laughed. "Do you have a problem with that, soldier?"
Mogadon shrugged. "Sir, I think it's an idiotic and unnecessary risk, sir."
"Well then, let's just hope for the best then. I'll see you on the other side, Sergeant."
"Sir… Sir, hope has no effect on the outcome of events, sir. And… permission to speak freely, sir?"
"Spit it out, kid!"
"Sir, 'seeing you on the other side' seems unlikely… sir."
"What? Are you going to miss me?"
Mogadon hesitated. He looked down, his face still stern, then back up. "…Most likely, sir."
Protean Joy laughed again. "Get running."
Mogadon nodded. He looked at the other ponies in the clearing and they looked back at him. "I don't know any of you and most likely I won't get the chance to. But, you know… good luck and everything." His lip stiffened and he looked down. He closed his eyes and moved his head around, like he was trying to recall which direction the Crystal Empire was. Then he faced north and opened his eyes again. He looked back at them all again, dismissively shrugged, then disappeared into the forest.
"Oh! And if you see Discord, tell him we'd like him to come back!" shouted Pinkie Pie.
They were all quiet for a bit.
Pinkie Pie frowned. "I don't think I like him."
Protean Joy shrugged. "He's like that. All head, no heart."
Pinkie Pie shook her head. "I don't think I'll miss him."
"Ladies, Spike… Joy," said Twilight Sparkle, "Here's the plan: We will head from here to Sweet Apple Acres. To my memory, it's not very far. Plus, we won't be able to travel for long before Princess Luna makes me fall asleep again, so we'll be able to rest there before certain ponies are forced to run some more…"
"…and we can look for Applejack," said Rainbow Dash.
"And we can look for Applejack," said Twilight Sparkle, "We can also get some food and some sleep. Who knows what time it is, and we need to keep our energy up. Pinkie!"
Pinkie Pie has picked up the brown book and tucked it into her saddlebag. Hearing her name seemed to startle her.
Twilight Sparkle sighed, but smiled. "Which way to Sweet Apple Acres?"
> 9. Twilight Sparkle: Rubicon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	There was an oddity in the divide between the dank forest still illuminated by the still sun and the dim town beyond. It looked like a grained photograph, or a relic encompassing only what little familiarity hadn't been beaten from it by dust and time. The rain was a mere drizzle, despite that looming build up, but was noticeably thick and viscous.
The whole place, in just an hour or so, was destitute and cold.
The group was at the edge of the forest, a few feet from the cloud line. Twilight Sparkle sighed. Their plan was feeble and she knew it. She could see what was left of the bridge they'd crossed earlier, and a couple of building silhouettes, but not much else. She nodded to her comrades and shrugged.
"Well, here goes!" 
A fiery purple glow emerged from her horn. It formulated and morphed into a large dome that spread out over the group. Twilight let out a sigh of relief as they prepared to move into the storm covered areas within the magic bubble.
"I'll take the lead," said Pinkie Pie, "I remember exactly how to get to Sweet Apple Acres from here!"
"Twilight, I think you should get in the middle," said Spike.
"I'll take the back," said Protean Joy.
"Me too," said Rainbow Dash.
"I'll, um, hang out by Pinkie Pie," said Rarity. 
They all organized themselves - Pinkie in front with Spike and Rarity, Twilight in the middle and Rainbow Dash and Protean Joy in the back. Twilight felt strange there, however. While her magic bubble was up, her perceptions were bizarrely heightened. She could feel little Spike's heart pounding from within it's borders. She could feel the lingering fear haunting the group. She could almost hear it. She squeezed her eyes shut as they began to walk. She could feel them, all of them; their hearts, their heads, their movements, all of it. It was loud. It stung in the back of her head.
The falling rain collapsed into the transparent purple barrier and rolled to the side, with very little residue. Twilight could differentiate between each drop. Time hadn't slowed any, however. She perceived that normally. But her - her mental processes at least - must be going much faster.
"The barrier's pushing aside the big puddles, but there's still a lot of black stuff on the ground. Watch your step, ponies!" Pinkie Pie said loudly. 
Pinkie's voice stung, like it had prodded the part of Twilight's head that was already buzzing. The slight tapping of the rain upon the top of the barrier resonated brilliantly and loudly in the heightened hearing of Twilight Sparkle. She fixated much of her attention on maintaining the spell, and on little Spike who walked directly in front of her with his little hand on her chest. She mentally weaponized her perceptions of him to drown out the awful sounds of the rain beating against the bubble.
The landscape around them echoed a terrible silence. She felt nothing, nopony except them. Few of the sun's beams broke through the thick clouds above them. Twilight could see it in her head - her eyes were closed all this time. It looked a little like the waterline of a pool when one looks up from underneath it. 
"It's getting quite hard to see, Pinkie," said Rarity, "We're going to need a lantern or a flashlight or something."
Pinkie Pie stopped, stuck her hoof up in the air to motion the rest to stop too, then brought that hoof to her chin. She squeezed her eyes shut and tapped her hind leg rhythmically.
"The cake shop's near here! It's only a few minutes to our right!" she said, "We could stop and look for some supplies there!"
Although they all spoke rather softly, their words collected loudly in Twilight's ears. That little stinging tick wiggled in the back of her head spread. She grunted from the migraine and felt it pulse. Keeping this barrier up was must be taking it's toll on her. 'No,' she thought, 'No, I've practiced tougher spells than this… This perception, how do I turn it off!?'
"We're going to need to stop," Twilight said. Her voice was raspy, "Get us to cake shop, Pinkie …My head can't take much more…"
Pinkie Pie nodded and turned the party right towards the town. They waded through the shallow stream and out of the fields to the creaky, empty streets of their town. Time drug it's heels in at Twilight, and the pounding of the hoofsteps upon the stranded cobblestone streets reinforced the headache crawling about her skull. She felt so far away and so stiff, like her ears and hooves were about to burst.
"How much farther, Pinkie??" she moaned. The barrier was getting harder to maintain. It flickered slightly, threatening to collapse down and expose them to the rain. Twilight's left knee cramped and she released small cry. She could feel warmth behind her and her ears ringed. And, behind again, it felt like something was shuffling. Then her left leg gave out and she stumbled.
Protean Joy moved up beside her and knelt. He motioned for Rarity and Rainbow Dash. "Get her on my back!" he shouted.
The two obeyed. Twilight felt herself being whisked up and her stomach made contact with his spine. She was perpendicular to him with her legs at his sides. She felt Protean Joy frown and look at Rarity.
"We're going to have to run."
Rarity nodded and picked Spike up. Then they all took off. Twilight only thought about the barrier, about keeping the barrier. The barrier! She felt their hearts, their apprehension flavoring that sting in her head. Her joints ached. Time worked its rusted joints and chugged slowly to the virulent tune of hooves on cobblestone. Twilight felt her limbs shake and bit her lip. She heard shouts, banging and a door slam. She couldn't take anymore. She rolled her dice and dropped the barrier.
No, no, nothing was making sense. She opened her eyes but couldn't see, it was all mixed up and blurred like different flavored ice-cream all melted and shuffled together. She heard all wrong and felt like she was upside down. Her limbs didn't feel like they were in the right places, or even made of the right parts. But she didn't feel pain. She didn't feel much of anything, really. Strange. Was she trembling?
"Why is she shaking like that!?"
"What's going on?"
"Her Majesty is seizing, hold her head."
'Seizing!? Oh, that makes sense. My nervous system is reseting…'
She felt immersed in fluid. And like she was twitching. Like she was twitching and inside out. Still no pain, strangely. She began to feel her eyes, and like she was lying down. She felt fingers on her the back of her head - the tips slightly sharp. Then there was the tips of her hooves. Then she felt her ears.
"She's… she's not hurt, is she!?" said a whimpering voice. Sounded like Spike.
"No… No…" came a stern voice, deep, definitely male. That Protean pony, perhaps? "Her head's just reseting, that's all. It… it should subside… It… should." 
Hmm. He sounded worried. Didn't make sense. Twilight didn't feel worried. She felt fine. Better, even, now that the sounds and the sights went away. Couldn't explain it… what she 'perceived'. She saw all of them, but… but didn't 'see' them. It was like when you think thoughts - you hear it, but you don't 'hear' it. They were fuzzy, though, like melted chalk on a canvas. They were just blurs. A pink blur, a white blur, a purple blur.   
She could then feel her lungs and limbs. She tried blinking and could blink. Then sound dropped in with an almost audible thud like a needle touching a record. She felt a couch beneath her. She was lying on her back. Her limbs twitched a bit. But, other than that, she was fine. A little thirsty, perhaps, but fine. The blurs gave way to a very worried pack of ponies all huddled around her. Spike took his hands for her head and peered up over her. He looked like he'd seen a ghost.
The soft sting and swirling ringing subsided then. Twilight blinked a few more times. Things inside seemed more or less back to normal. She started laughing. Seriously, she had just had a seizure. Her. She had never even called off sick for school.
They all just looked at her with a mix of incredulous worry and surprise. Except Spike, he just looked sick. The laughing subsided.
"Ha…he, he…I'm thirsty," Twilight Sparkle said. She brought a hoof to her face and wiped a soft tear from her cheek.
Spike looked straight at her with watery eyes and a little boy's scowl. "Don't you ever do that again," he said.
"He, he… heh, I don't want to," she said back.
"What on earth was that!?!" said Rainbow Dash angrily. She sounded like Twilight's father when Shining skipped class. "You had us worried sick!"
"It's… okay now…" Twilight said. Was it? She thought so. "It was the sound. I think… being so focused on the spell heightened my senses. The noise, even the soft ones were almost unbearable. I could…feel sound."
"Sounds like somepony needs earmuffs," Pinkie Pie said in a purposefully verbose voice. Rainbow Dash sneered and snorted. Pinkie Pie pulled the earmuffs from her saddlebag and both the balloons and the brown book toppled out. She place the earmuffs lovingly on over Twilight's ears and kissed her forehead. "Don't hurt yourself anymore, Twilight!"
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "I'm going to look around," she muttered, "See if there's anypony else here…"
Rarity lit some candles on tables and cabinets around the living room they were in. It became decently lit. This must be the Cake's living room with the faint pictures on the wall. The couch was quite comfortable. Pinkie Pie picked up her balloons, sat in a chair near an end table with a candle, and began to read that brown book. Spike nestled up on the couch by Twilight's hind legs and nervously fiddled with his thumbs. Rarity then came up beside Twilight.
"I'm going to the kitchen," she said, "Would you like anything?"
Twilight smiled. "Water, please!"
Rarity nodded and smiled back then stiffly walked off to the kitchen. Twilight caught a glimpse of Protean Joy, who'd slunk off and taking refuge by a window. He stared off into it like an old mare at a picture album. Odd pony, that one. Twilight next looked at Spike.
"I'm so sorry that I frightened you," she said.
Spike looked at his thumbs and shrugged. "You didn't mean to…" he said.
Twilight tilted her head. "D'you wanna talk about it?"
Spike shook his head at first and looked away. But he relented. "I'm worried about you. You've been different since you became an alicorn. Like you get tired quicker. I'm worried because there's nothing I can do to help."
"Hey, Spike, you don't have to worry about me. It's okay. You don't have to wear yourself out protecting me."
Protean Joy's head hit the window with a clunk.
Spike frowned. "Yes I do. I can't help it. I don't know what I'd do… if I lost you."
Twilight smiled at him. "I'm not going anywhere, Spike…"
He was placated. He shuttered and went silent, like he hadn't said it right. Twilight let it go, knew he'd talk when he was ready. She laid her head back.
Commander Protean Joy stared bleary eyed out the yellow window pane. He didn't make much noise. He was stoic. It was hard to know what he was thinking. Twilight Sparkle frowned. She didn't like not knowing.
"So, Commander," she said, "Might I ask you a question."
Protean Joy nodded and looked back from the window. "Absolutely, Your Majesty," he said.
"Why'd you come with us? You had the chance to leave. Why didn't you take it?"
"It's my job to protect the Princesses of Equestria, Your Majesty," he said, "Princess Celestia is down and out, Princess Luna is off somewhere I can't follow. So, in order to uphold my oath and fulfill my duty, I am to follow you and protect you - even if it means my death."
Twilight looked at him quietly but sourly. He glanced over to her and sighed. "You don't look satisfied…"
"Your friend Mogadon didn't seem that interested in upholding his oath and duty and you didn't seem to really fault him on that. I'd like you to be honest with me, Commander." Hearing herself in such a blunt and authoritative manner was both drunkenly empowering and paralyzingly terrifying. She never thought she'd enjoy such a thing.
Protean Joy shook his head. "Mogadon is a special sort. He's cold. He doesn't care for oaths, honor or vows, and he'd tell you to your face if you asked him. He's only in the guard because they told him Earth ponies don't often make it and he wanted to see the looks on their smug faces when he pulled it off. Most don't know what to do with somepony like that, but I keep him around because when you tell him to do something, he'll beat himself bloody to do it. He respects me because I don't coddle him. But this discussion on Mogadon's attitude isn't what you're asking…"
Protean Joy swallowed and looked off out the window. His stern exterior was cracking. "…I understand how important you are. Princess Celestia would let this country burn if it meant preserving you."
Twilight Sparkle scowled. "Princess Celestia would never let such a thing happen!"
Protean Joy let out a chuckle, but quickly regained his composure.
"I've worn this tired old uniform for near forty years, and I've read enough history books to rival that library of yours," he said. He did his best to keep from lecturing a direct superior. "I can say without a sliver of a doubt that Princess Celestia is the fairest, kindest and most noble ruler this planet has seen in nearly twenty-five hundred years of recorded history. This place has endured tyrants, madmen, the selfish, the weak, the petty and she hasn't even called in sick. There are only two kinds of benevolent rulers on this Earth: One's that don't want to rule, and one's that do their damnedest to keep somepony worse from ruling. Can't figure which she is."
Twilight did not appreciate that opinion. Her wrinkled lip communicated that.
Protean Joy frowned softly, and placated. "Not a popular opinion, I know. But, it's my job to read ponies. It's not a negative opinion, just an honest one. But you… you're the first kind.  The kind that doesn't want to lead, but does so because nopony else will. No doubt about that.You're somepony that would genuinely care about every head under every roof. Princess Celestia's got plans for you, and those plans will benefit us all. You're her ace in the hole, so I won't let anything happen to you."
Twilight cocked her head. Her sour expression faded. It was strange how he'd made her the subject. "And what has Princess Celestia done to merit such loyalty?"
"Not her, you."
Twilight shrank away slightly. She feared her next question. "And… what have I done... to merit your loyalty?"
Protean Joy looked straight at her for the first time since she'd met him. His grey eyes were worn. He had a wallflower frown and an exhausted face. "...Nothing," he said. He bit his lip and stared back out the window.
Twilight Sparkle shuddered slightly. He was open, helpful, but he made her uncomfortable.
'I'd best leave it alone for now,' she thought.
Twilight's head slapped back into the pillow on the couch. Her thoughts drifted to the macabre, sickly pony attacking her home. He was like a faceless malevolence. What was his name, she wondered. Where had he been all this time? What is his ultimate goal? Was he born evil or did he become evil? 
The thought of one drifting to malevolence and losing all sense of self as well as right and wrong had always trouble Twilight Sparkle. From the books she read to the things she'd seen, absolute corruption had always disturbed her. The villains in some of her stories came to mind, the sympathetic ones. Those villains carried a lot more weight than the regular evil ones, Twilight thought. She always wanted the sympathetic villains and antiheroes of fiction to be redeemed - become one of the good guys - but such occurrences had never really happened in the many books she read. The hero would always try to save them, but in the end they often could not.
'That's the way it is, you know that,' Twilight thought to herself in her authoritative voice, 'Bad guys don't think they're bad guys. Everypony thinks they're doing the right thing. Nopony actively decides, 'I'm going to do bad today.''
Twilight thought about saving the dark harbinger, appealing to his sense of honor or righteousness or something. She at least wanted to understand him. If he sought to destroy Ponyville, then why hadn't he done so already? He was certainly more then capable, it seemed. No, not him, that storm. It blanketed both Canterlot and Ponyville in no time at all, relatively - especially within the context of weather, even the bizarre weather in that book she'd read. Does he command the storm? Why sap all the fire? Could they really snatch the Elements of Harmony right out from under his nose? She'd have to save Fluttershy and find Applejack first. How could she even save Fluttershy or find Applejack, for that matter? Could Discord come back? Is whomever Luna fetching really so powerful?
'Don't think about it, Twilight! Let's focus on the now. More information will reveal itself, we just have to wait. Uggh. We're not good a waiting.'
"I brought you your water, dear…" Rarity said. She placed it on an end table near Twilight's head.
"Oh, thank you!" Twilight lifted the cup with a levitation spell and brought it to her lips. 'Levitation spells,' she thought, 'How nice and simple compared to big, bubbly barriers.'
Rarity looked at her and smiled. "How's your head?"
"Fine, now, thanks! We should be able to head out soon. I'll test Pinkie Pie's earmuffs, see if they help."
Rainbow Dash reappeared. She carried a flashlight in her mouth and some bottles for water tucked under her wings. She placed them on the floor in front of the couch. "Found these," she said, "Light and water are scarce, we'll need all we can carry."
Protean Joy pulled away from the window and collected the bottles. "5 in total? Should be more than enough, combined with my canteen. I'll fill these up." He left for the kitchen. 
Rainbow Dash peeked into the door to the kitchen. "Pinkie Pie, you don't think the Cakes would mind if we grabbed a snack, do you? I mean, it's an emergency and all.
The mention of snacks reminded the derelict crew of their rumbling stomachs. They hadn't had much time to eat.
Pinkie Pie's stomach rumbled. She put her book down. "No, I mean, I have some leftovers and stuff in their fridge, and, I mean, I'm sure they wouldn't be bothered so longs as we don't eat everything."
"Well, I'm a Princess now," said Twilight Sparkle, "So, I could reimburse them for whatever we take when this is all over."
Spike shot her a quiet, bleak look. It matched the tone of that authoritative voice in her head. 'You can't guarantee this will be over.'
"Yeah, that sounds good…" said Rainbow Dash, "Let's all have lunch…or dinner… or whatever. Hey, does anypony know what time it is?"
"Mmm…It's snack time, that's for sure!" Piped Pinkie Pie, licking her lips. She trotted off towards the kitchen with the others close behind. They gathered what little food they had found, carrots, lettuce and other greens, and distributed it among themselves. Protean Joy, who was already in the kitchen, caught on quickly. He distributed water to them. Then, they all sat at the Cake's dining table, and quietly began to eat their meal.
Twilight felt the emptiness there. The atmosphere was like a blurry photograph of life - the appearance of such but none of the substance. She couldn't ignore it. "Where do you think the Cakes are, Pinkie?" she asked. 
Pinkie Pie stopped chewing and just shook her head somberly.
"There were signs upstairs that somepony was digging around looking for stuff, and a lot of the pictures of the walls are missing," said Rainbow Dash, "Maybe they ran off and hid somewhere? I'd bet they're fine, you know. We did our best to warn everypony."
"Maybe a lot of the townsponies ran off and hid somewhere," said Rarity, "I mean, everything is so empty… They can't all have been infected by the black stuff."
"Ugh…infected?" Twilight Sparkle's nose scrunched up at the thought. She detested disease.
Rarity shrugged. "Well, so to speak…" 
Twilight felt Spike look at her again - same bleak look. 'Hope all you want, we need to focus on finding the elements.' she thought. She shook her head. What compelled her to think such awful things? She tried to shake them off. 
"I mean, I could see 'infected'," said Rainbow Dash, "I mean, the black stuff that got on Fluttershy didn't really do anything at first. It could be kind of like getting sick, I think. You're actually sick for a few days before you feel sick… like before it really hits you. Maybe the black stuff's like that; it infects you but waits awhile before it swallows you up."
"That 'black stuff' sure doesn't sound like any disease I've ever heard of," said Pinkie Pie.
"Well, I'm not saying that it is a disease. I'm saying that it's like a disease," said Rainbow Dash. 
"Ah, I see!" said Protean Joy, "That 'black stuff' is infecting ponies, but not immediately. Like it's waiting for something…"
Rainbow Dash nodded. "Yeah, yeah!"
Protean Joy cocked his head. "Do you think it has to be triggered somehow?"
Twilight felt a gulp at that thought. If it were waiting to be triggered, what's the trigger? 
Spike shook his head. "It might not even be an 'it'," he said. He frowned like he was thinking something he didn't have the words to express. "Er, I mean, the black stuff might not think or feel. Do you know what I'm saying?"
"You're saying it isn't sentient - like it doesn't think or perceive really, but just is. Like a rock. Yeah?" said Twilight.
"Yeah, kind of," said Spike, "'Not sentient' - that's probably it." 
"Maybe it just takes time to really set in," said Rarity, "Like it's got to get in your bloodstream and get all over your body." She paused, drawn aback by a spur of thought. "All over your body?" she asked rhetorically, "Do you think it just covers the outside of your body, or does it get inside you as well?"        
"Yuck! Some of us are trying to eat here!" Rainbow Dash sputtered. She stuck her tongue out in protest. The room grew silent for a moment with the discussion on hiatus. Twilight Sparkle though as she chomped down her remaining food down. 
"Hey, Pinkie," she said after a while, "What's that book you were reading?"
Pinkie Pie chewed quickly, trying to swallow so she could talk. "It's a book of legends, like short stories. They're all concerned with how our species started. I've only glanced over one."
"Huh, I don't suppose there was anything like the darkness in that story…" Twilight said.
Pinkie Pie shrugged. "Um, maybe," she said, "Like, so in the story this Ponietheus guy gave ponies fire so they could be a civilization, and, like, his alicorn bosses didn't like that so they tried to attack him. So, he used a powerful spell to sever them - not, like, cut them half, but some lost they're wings and some lost their horns; unicorn and pegasi, you see - anyway, he used this spell and it was so powerful that it drew from the minds of all the ponies. Since the ponies had come to fear alicorns, he appear all dark and spooky to them - like, he was a piece of paper that all their fears got painted to. Anyway, he was cursed to be stuck in some city and they all left him. Kinda sad, really."
Twilight had never heard of these stories, not in all her time is libraries. "So, that 'sever' spell he used, it manifested as a sticky darkness."  
Pinkie Pie shook her head, "No, that's not what I meant. The sticky darkness wasn't actually, like, there in the story, it was an illusion. When Ponietheus cast the spell to sever the alicorns, the spell drew power from the collective knowledge of the Earth ponies. However, it needed so much power, that it 'descended deeper into something darker and more primal', and it made all the ponies afraid of him. They saw him as a darkness, he didn't actually become one. It was an illusion."  
Rainbow Dash shrugged. "I don't see what that story has to do with anything."
"Well, how'd you guys find the book?" Pinkie Pie asked.
Spike rubbed the tips of his claws against his cheek. "It was just lying on the ground in the throne room. I had picked it up when it got stuck in my fingers. I just didn't think to pull it off. I don't know if it means anything."
They were all quiet for a while.
"Hey, when a pony's eyes turn black - like Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy's - They were hallucinating, right?" She drew her head back, disappointed at the clutter of words she had spouted. Looks of subtle confusion swept her friends at the table, and Twilight rushed to reorganize her words.
"Er… I mean, when the black stuff… infects a pony and makes their eyes turn black, maybe it makes them hallucinate. Like when Fluttershy went all dark… She must be vividly hallucinating, like a dream or something."
"I don't see your point, Twilight," Rainbow Dash said. "I mean, I get what your saying, but I think we all gathered that. I mean, it's pretty obvious that I was hallucinating back at the library, for instance."
The corners of Twilight's mouth hinged in disappointment. She knew what she meant, but the right words to convey the idea proved difficult to pin down. 
"No, no…" she stuttered, eyes fluttering to and fro, "Like, when you get infected. Like when Fluttershy or Princess Celestia went all black, maybe they're dreaming! It's only a theory, but maybe the black stuff traps you in a dream, and all we have to do to counter it is find a way to wake them up!"
"I think I get what you're saying, Twilight," Rarity said,"That if we were to get infected like Fluttershy, that we'd all see and hear different things like in a dream. If being infected means you're dreaming, then we can save ponies by waking them up!"
"Yeah, yeah… That makes sense!" said Pinkie Pie, "but we'd definitely need to know more about the, um, 'infection'. All we have to go on right now is Rainbow Dash's experience and what Rarity saw at the castle…"
Protean Joy chewed and swallowed. He looked at Rainbow Dash. "Madam, didn't you say - when the Dark Harbinger was in your head, I mean - didn't he tell you to be afraid."
Rainbow Dash nodded.
Protean Joy looked at Twilight. "Maybe that's our trigger. The infected become afraid and the blackness swallows them up, renders them… mute, unresponsive."
"Well, we won't know for sure unless we test it," Twilight said. "In the name of subterfuge and all, I mean. We'd need a test subject."
'Maybe I could listen to them?,' Twilight thought, 'I mean, I could feel everypony around me earlier. Maybe I could feel what whomever is infected and know for sure if they're afraid...'
They all went a little quiet.
Rainbow Dash coughed. Something made her uncomfortable. "Well," she said, "If we get to Sweet Apple Acres and Applejack is infected, then…"
"…then we could study her," Twilight said, "We didn't get much of a chance with Fluttershy." The bitterness of referring to her friends as little more then hypothesis and test subjects did not settle well with Twilight Sparkle. But such unpleasantness was brutally necessary in the situation, and everypony seemed to understand it. Twilight Sparkle despised this side of intellectualism where objectivity became cold and unfeeling, only concerned with data and results. 
Twilight shook her head. "I don't like the sound of that. I don't like referring to my friends in such a cold manner."
"None of us do, Twilight," Rarity said, "but… this is what the situation calls out for. We need to know more about the 'infection' if we ever hope to reverse it."
"You're not the only one who hates that idea, Twilight…" Spike said softly, "but… well, here's hoping that Applejacks alright."
Rainbow Dash sipped from the cup upon the table before somberly pulling herself up from the table. She motioned for the door. 
"I know a way we can find out."
Twilight sighed. 'No going back now…'
"Let me test Pinkie's earmuffs, then we'll head out."
> 10. Spike: The Empty Spaces
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The group had only been walking for a while, but, still, it felt like hours for Spike. Pinkie Pie was at the front with that flashlight in her mouth. It didn't help much beyond illuminating mere inches in front of her, but she kept it pin-pointed to the ground. It was as if she was counting the tiles. Rainbow Dash and Rarity followed behind her and they conversed among themselves. Spike couldn't make much of what they said.
Twilight Sparkle was in the middle; earmuffs, eyes closed, head down - like she was entranced. Spike was worried. Before, she was violent and seizing; now, quiet. He didn't understand. He didn't get how earmuffs would prevent her from hearing whatever had caused her trouble. He sighed. Things had gotten far above his head with this whole alicorn business. 
He walked along with the commander in the back. He had figured this would be the best configuration. He didn't mind being the rear guard. It made him feel like a real soldier.
It seem lighter than it had before. He could make out the damped silhouettes of buildings, street signs and other oddments. Maybe it was just that his eyes were adjusting. He kept most of his attention on Twilight. It was strange how she followed suite with her eyes closed.
Protean Joy caught on.
"It's the strangest thing," he said, "Alicorns do that. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to the throne room and Princess Celestia is just sitting there like she's sleeping. No matter how quiet I try to be, she always catches on. She always knows it's me."
"I don't get it," Spike said, "I hate that I don't know what's happening to her."
"You've known her your whole life?"
"Yeah, she hatched me from an egg. It was a test. After that, Princess Celestia made Twilight her star pupil." Spike shrugged. "Did you mean what you said back there with Twilight being Princess Celestia's 'ace in the hole?' Like, what if I'm a part of that?"
Protean Joy sighed. He frown a bit like he regretted ever speaking. "No, it's not like that. I mean, you're not some tool to be used and thrown away. No, it's bigger than that. Twilight's important and she needs somepony like you, I think."
Spike cocked his head. "What do you mean?"
Protean Joy motioned his head up towards Pinkie Pie. "That book the pink one's got," he said, "That's a thick book. The cover's made of manticore leather. That stuff is old, hard to obtain and dense. You're a third my size and you tore a hole through that like it was toilet tissue. You're powerful, Spike."
"'Powerful,' huh?" Spike said meekly. No, he didn't think so. He'd cried twice in just the last few hours. No, powerful beings never cried, never slept in too late, never let ponies carry them to safety.
Spike was quiet for a while. He stared at the ground and was careful to avoid puddles of blackness Twilight's barrier missed. A question itched inside him and he did his best to ignore it. No, that just made it burn worse. Spike sighed. "Can… can I speak with you on the level?" he asked, "Y'know, guy to guy?"
Protean Joy nodded. "Of course…"
Spike swallowed and neared the commander's ear. He needed to know nopony else could hear. "I'm really scared," Spike whispered, "I need to stop being scared, but I can't help it. Then Twilight sees me cry… doesn't take me seriously. I want to stop crying."
Protean Joy laughed softly.
Spike pouted. "See what I mean!?" he said, "You don't take me seriously either."
"No, no," Protean Joy said, "It's not that. I mean, if you didn't want to cry, you wouldn't. You just don't want others to see you cry because they've been telling you all your life that feeling things makes you weak. Feeling things doesn't mean you're weak. It means you're alive inside. It means you're a living, breathing thing. It means something matters to you. Letting your feelings rule you, though - letting them make your decisions and compromise your values…That makes you weak. Weak ponies stare straight at a truth as plain as day and just ignore it because it doesn't reinforce their perspective, it doesn't meet their needs. They find themselves doing terrible things without even realizing it. Weak ponies don't see two feet in front of them. You're not weak, Spike. You're just young. When you're old, like me, you'll understand."
"C'mon," said Spike, "You're not that old…"
"I feel it, though," said Protean Joy, "You're young, Lord Spike. You can only see ahead. Once you can only look back - that's when you're old."
Spike shifted the commander's words about in his head. No, he didn't think that crying compromised his values. What where his values, he wondered? Maybe Protean Joy could help him in that department.
"Hey, Mr. Protean Joy? What, um, what are my 'values?'"
"Only you can decide that, Spike."
"Oh."
Spike frowned like a kid. The answer he got wasn't what he wanted.
"Um," he said, "Could I ask you what your values are?"
"Loyalty. Honor. Respect…" Protean Joy said. He paused, then frowned himself - like he didn't like his answer. "No, no, those are virtues…"
He was quiet for a bit. Spike shrank in on himself a bit, but at least he wasn't the only one stumped by the question.
Protean Joy breathed in, then out again. "I value… the lives of others more than my own. I value everypony's opportunity to lead a safe, comfortable life. So, I gave up my claim to such and became a member of the Royal Guard. I wanted to protect ponies. I wanted ponies to see me and feel safe. I wanted-"
Protean Joy thought. He looked at Spike a bit then relented. "…I wanted a fight," he said softly. 
"A fight?"
"Yeah," said Protean Joy. He face seemed almost juvenilely eager. "I wanted a real good one. I wanted one to make me feel like I've done something meaningful. ...I'm tired of just sitting around protecting a princess nopony wants to attack."
Spike raised his brow. "What are you talking about? Lots of folks have been attacking Princess Celestia - Nightmare Moon, Discord, Queen Chrysalis-"
"I know, I know," Protean Joy said, "But before then… Before Nightmare Moon, before you lot were put together - Nothing. No changelings, no Discord, not even the bloody griffons, nopony was against us. Not in my time, anyway. But now…"
"Now what?"
Protean Joy gritted his teeth. Spike was under his skin now. He sighed and relented again. "But Princess Celestia points Princess Twilight Sparkle in the right direction, and suddenly you lot are the element bearers and you bag Nightmare Moon, Discord and Queen Chrysalis in just under two years. Where are all these bad guys coming from? I mean, a thousand years of relative nothing and suddenly monsters are popping out of the woodwork. There's too much correlation."
"Oh, and Sombra too!"
Protean Joy cocked his head. "What on earth's a 'Sombra?'"
Spike frowned. "A big jerk that got what was coming to 'im."
"Ha! Don't they always?"
"Hmm, Nightmare Moon is reformed… Discord too," Spike said, "That's interesting."
Protean Joy nodded. "That's very interesting."
They both frowned a bit - talking in hushed voices right behind Princess Twilight Sparkle, Celestia's ace in the hole. Odds are the ladies up front overheard. Spike looked at Twilight. She seemed entranced, captivated. How could he protect her from whatever made her seize? It wasn't a 'thing' he could interact with. Protean Joy nudged him gently.
"She's a good one, from what little I've seen of her," he said, smiling.
Spike nodded. "She's the best pony I know…" 
Spike frowned. He didn't suppose he had any role in Princess Celestia's supposed master plan. He wasn't even an element bearer. Protean Joy looked over him a bit. He affably nudged him again, shoulder to shoulder. He brought his head down to Spike's level.
"You must protect her, Spike," he said, "Nopony is better suited to be her sentinel. I think she's going to need you more and more."
Spike smiled to himself. A lukewarm batch of pride flickered within him. The tips of his fingers stung a bit like growing pains, and he fidgeted.
Protean Joy looked admirably down at him again, like he had when they first met. He brought his head down to Spike's level.
"Will you ever abandon her?" he asked in a goading manner.
Spike scowled and shook his head. "Never."
"Good lad."
Spike was quiet a bit. A question roasted on the tip of his tongue, but he held it - afraid it would offend. He breathed out. Well, what would be the worst that would happen.
"Would you abandon her, commander?"
Protean Joy seemed struck by the question. A pallet of dread burst in Spike's gut. He bit his lip and hoped he hadn't upset Protean Joy. The commander briefly smiled at him, but noticeably closed up some.
"If it could be helped, no."
Spike nodded. "Then you have my permission to guard her."
Protean Joy laughed. He was quiet for a while with his eyes darting around. He walked like something was always sinking into him. He smiled at Spike - a genuine smile. It was the most emotion Spike had seen him convey that day.
"Thank you," he said.   

---

The group soon gathered atop a steep hill above Sweet Apple Acres. It was sordid now, like a phantom. A malign breeze drifted through dim trees, rustling the leaves. It circled the barrier above them, testing it. The soft rain trickled upon the beaten, quiet earth as well as the barrier itself. It was a soft, terrible music. It was very quiet. Spike frowned. It almost didn't look real, like a painting.
They descended the hill quietly, down onto a path into the apple trees. The branches loomed over them. The farm was much darker than the town. Twilight Sparkle had opened her eyes again. They paused as they passed further into the tree line.
"Has the blackness seeped into the ground, Pinkie?" Rarity asked.
Pinkie Pie set her flashlight down so it would light up the dirt before them. She bent her head down to look and the eclectic puddles. She squinted. "No, I don't think so," she said, "The puddles look like they're just sitting on top. Y'know, like when you spill water on a wood table? It's just sitting there, not sinking in."
"Are you absolutely sure, Pinkie?" said Rainbow Dash, "The last thing we need is black mud…" 
"Well, you look at it then!" Pinkie Pie snapped.
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and bent her head down like Pinkie's. Spike scooted past Twilight and looked for himself as well. Sure enough, a puddle just outside the barrier sat in such a way that it seemed to protrude from the earth - like it was repelled by it. Rain that made contact with the ground crawled along it and settled into smaller puddles. No, normal rain did not behave like this - not even when the pegasi didn't put it together correctly.
"Hey, let's get going," Twilight Sparkle said, "Princess Luna could contact me at any moment, and we'd sure be sorry if it happened out here. Applejack's house isn't too far from here."
At that, they continued. The house was only a few feet before them. Its familiar shape stood stoically in the distance.
Then, a blackened silhouette appeared crumpled upon the mud just before the porch. It trembled and sobbed, curled up upon itself.
"Oh no… No, no, no…" said Twilight Sparkle said. 
Spikes's heart sank. "That's Applejack, isn't it?"
There she was, their friend, cold and shivering in the rain.
"We… we're too late," Rarity said. She trembled. "No, if anypony could weather this thing, it should've been Applejack..." 
Twilight's ear flickered, and she twitched.
"What do we do know?" said Rainbow Dash, "We can't just leave her out here…"
Spike scowled and tried not to whimper. "We have to leave her here," he said.
Rainbow Dash snapped her head back towards him and sneered. "What!?"
Rarity and Pinkie Pie looked down and were quiet.
Spike frowned. "We can't touch her," he said, "She's covered in the darkness. If we touch her, it gets on us and then the clocks ticking. I don't like it either…"
"No, there's got to be another way," Rainbow Dash said, "There's always another way!"
"We'll think inside," Protean Joy said, motioning towards the door, "She's not going anywhere."
Rainbow Dash snorted. "And who do you think you are?"
Protean Joy glared back at her. Spike looked up at him. He was angry. "I'm one who's tasked himself with your safety, Ms. Dash. Princess Luna will contact Princess Twilight Sparkle soon and we are no use to anypony if we get caught in the storm when that happens. We're going inside if I have to drag you there…"
Rainbow Dash tilted her head down and glowered at him beneath lowered brows. She drove her hoof into the dirt. "You will not," she said.
Twilight Sparkle shook her head at Rainbow Dash mournfully. She didn't speak, but she mouthed one word; enough.
Rainbow Dash caught her eyes and begrudgingly relented. She snorted. "We're not leaving here until we think of a way to get her inside."
They entered the house. Twilight seemed relieved to drop the barrier. She took her earmuffs off and placed them gently on some furniture near the door. Spike caught her look nervously at Rainbow Dash, who festered and grumbled. She glared at Protean Joy, who was stern as always. Spike snuck a somber peeked at poor Applejack outside one last time before the commander closed the door.
"So, Twilight, do you have any way of knowing when Princess Luna might contact you?" Pinkie Pie asked.
Twilight shook her head softly. "None. I just feel a woozy sting in my head then, bam; lights out."
Pinkie Pie frowned and scrunched her nose slightly. "Well, that's annoying!" she said.
Twilight Sparkle laughed slightly. "I'll say."
Rainbow Dash was sour. She quietly poked her head around corners and through doorways; scouting. She didn't seem to dare venture away.
Rarity, however, frowned and pined. "Sweetie Belle!?" she cried out into the dark, quiet house. The soft, spluttering sound of some bleak rain water sprung from a leak in the ceiling down to the floor below. The house itself retained silence. Rarity was flustered. "Oh, do you think she's in here!?"
Spike hovered about the window in the living room. It provided a keen view of Applejack outside.
Rarity whimpered. "You don't think she's somewhere outside, do you? Oh, I should've never let her out of my sight…"
Spike felt for her, but was solemn and quiet. He turned from the window and looked at the floor. There, he spotted the leak and some tiny, black hoof prints.
"There!" he called, pointing out at the trail in the living room. "Watch out!"
Twilight conjured a small ball of light and illuminated the room. Sure enough, there was a leak and many hoof prints.	
"Yikes. Watch your step!" Pinkie Pie said.
"Oh no!" Rarity cried, "Are those…"
"It's okay, Rarity," Twilight said, "It'll all be okay."
Spike peered out the window again. Things weren't okay for Applejack or Fluttershy.
Rainbow Dash bent her head down and tilted it to get a perpendicular look at the puddle at the base of the leak. "Hey, it hasn't soaked into the woodwork…"
"Sweetie Belle!?" Rarity called up the stairs.
Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight. "I don't think this is water."
Rarity was indignant. "Never mind the stupid leak! Help me find my sister!"
Twilight grimaced. "Relax, Rarity, we'll look for your sister. Come with me, we'll follow the hoof prints around. Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, check the other rooms downstairs and see if you find anything. Take the flashlight and watch where you step. Spike, you and the commander stay here and keep a lookout."
They all nodded and when about their tasks. Soon, it was just Spike and Protean Joy.
Spike was glued to the window. The commander eyeballed him slightly. "Something out there got your attention?" he said.
Spike peeked out the window again. He squinted his eyes and searched for Applejack. Apprehension shot through Spike then, for he saw her - laying out there in the rain. He squeezed his eyes shut and relented. Rainbow Dash would not budge and inch until Applejack was inside. He shuttered slightly, but was resound.
He had an awful idea.
Spike grit his teeth and looked grimly down at his fingers. They tingled slightly, and his heartbeat resonated in his throat. He swallowed. It was a stupid idea - a shot in the dark - but he needed to do this; needed to try; needed to make up for crying then.
No, his mind was set.
"Um, could you check up on Twilight for me? She hasn't said anything in a while and I'd like to stay up here, if, uh, if that's okay…"
Protean Joy looked at him from the corners of his eyes, but relented and sighed. He nodded. "Very well," he said.
Spike sat on the couch a while as the commander left. Then, peeking over his shoulder to assure nopony could see him, he made for the front door. He opened it carefully and peered out into the rain. It was softer now. He could see Applejack lying just beyond the porch. He shuttered and winced, but committed. He ventured out into the rain and grabbed both of her front legs. The darkness stung a cold sting as he made contact with it. His hands when numb and the sections of his back struck by the raindrops cried out in a pseudo-pain. 
He drug Applejack from the rain into the house, placed her careful beside the door then closed it slowly with his nose. The darkness, surprisingly, left no residue on wood work. Spike's hands began to shake, but he sat down by the front door and waited.
Soon enough, they reappeared. Twilight had a ghastly look about her.
"S-Spike… Spike, what have you done!?"
Spike shrunk a bit. "I'm fixing this," he said, "Applejack needed to come inside and you needed to study the darkness."
Twilight Sparkle shuttered and whimpered dreadfully. The look on her face stuck Spike and made him doubt. 
"What… what do I do?" Twilight Sparkle said.
"It's okay," Spike said. He twitched slightly, as his fingertips where going numb.
"No it isn't, Spike!! Why would you do this!?"
Spike shrunk.
"D-Does the farmhouse have running water?" Rarity said, "We could wash it off, perhaps!?"
"I'm on it!" Rainbow Dash replied, rushing into the kitchen.
"Twilight…" Spike said. His eyes caught Pinkie Pie's, who simply stood there silently alongside Protean Joy. She tilted her head and looked puzzlingly at him. He breathed out, and the frantic mutterings of Twilight Sparkle and Rarity. 
"Water works!" Rainbow Dash cried from within the kitchen. "Be careful, though, there's darkness all over the sink in here!"
"What about in the bathroom? There's a bathroom upstairs, right?" Twilight called in reply.
Rainbow Dash returned to the room and grabbed Pinkie's flashlight. "I'll check." She muttered from clenched teeth. She preceded down the hall and up the stairs, where she disappeared into the darkness.
"Twilight, enough…" Spike said.
"'Enough!?'" Twilight shouted, "Spike, do you have any idea what you've done!?"
Spike stared back at her grimly but firmly. He nodded down towards the darkness on his hands. "Twilight, you need to understand this. You. If anypony has a shot at reversing whatever this is, it's you. You don't need me. You need Applejack and Fluttershy; you need the Elements of Harmony. I can't stop the darkness, I can't take on the Harbinger and… and I can't… protect you. But I could do this. I could bring Applejack inside and I can be your test subject."
They all became quiet. Twilight swirled and swayed. The rest were just still. Protean Joy caught Spike's gaze now. His stern brow communicate disapproval, but he still nodded at Spike. Spike sighed and calmed himself.
"…You guys don't need to baby me anymore," Spike said, "I know what's going to happen - and I know it's rash and short sighed - but you can watch and listen. You can see how it happens. I had to do something, y'know? Just…don't leave me by myself, please."
Twilight grimaced. "Spike…"
"It's okay, Twilight…." Spike whispered. "It's all okay…"
Twilight looked sick. She sauntered up before him and simply sat down. She was panting. She was tired. He just stared back at her with the same look.
"I'm sorry," Twilight said wearily. She whimpered again, like she was choking up. Spike felt a sympathetic urge to cry, but he repressed it.
Twilight buried her head in her hooves. "I… You've always…"
"It's okay. You don't have to say it," Spike said. He frowned. "There's no point in crying about it. We don't know what the darkness even does. This isn't a death sentence, Twilight, it's an opportunity. If you can figure out how this darkness works then you can save me. If you can't, then I'll end up like this anyway. You're the best scientific mind we have, Twilight. You're Celestia's ace in the hole, not me."
Twilight brought her head up. "But what if we can't. What do we do then?"
Spike shook his head. "We can't think about that now. We've got to hold onto hope, right? There's always a way, isn't there?"
Twilight brought her head up from her hooves. She was a portrait of lament, but still she nodded slightly. "You're… right," she said. She looked solemnly at Rarity. "He's right, isn't he?"
Rarity was abraded and silent. She looked meekly at little Spike and frowned. She looked away then. "…There's no going back now," she said, softly. She swallowed and made for a back room.
Twilight picked herself up from her heavy slump. She smiled weakly. "I'll study you," she said.
Spike motioned his head towards where he'd left Applejack.
"You're going to have to study her, too," Spike responded. "I'm the before picture and Applejack's the after, right? You have your test subjects; Rarity and Pinkie Pie are the control."
"You're not a test subject, Spike." Twilight said reassuringly, "This is not a science experiment."
Rarity appeared from the next room bearing quills and paper. "I brought you some scratch paper. I figured you'd want to take notes."
Twilight Sparkle nodded grimly. 
Spike looked at Protean Joy. "You have to watch over her now," he said.
Protean Joy was somber.
Spike frowned sternly. "Don't you leave her side," he said.
Protean Joy's brow was stiff. He raised his head and nodded firmly. "Never."
Twilight peered back at Protean Joy. His eyes hadn't left Spikes. She looked back at the dragon - with his stern lip and watery eyes - and nuzzled his face with her nose. "You don't have to worry about me," she whispered.
Twilight peered up the stairs now. "Rarity," she said, "Could you see where Rainbow Dash got off to?"
Rarity nodded wearily. She looked at Pinkie and motioned for the stairs. "Could you come with me, darling?"
"Yeah," Pinkie Pie said.  

---

It had been a while. Both Spike and Twilight Sparkle had calmed some. She had some paper stretched out along a small writing desk Protean Joy had pushed in from the other room. The room was soporific now. Spike lay atop a quilt on the couch. The darkness didn't spread to the quilt or the couch. It was like it didn't care to, if one could equipomorphize such a thing. Twilight Sparkle had asked many questions harboring both crushing banality and paralyzing terror. Her notes seemed spread out - like she was writing down things she didn't need to.
It was simply them in the room then. Rarity and the others had vanished upstairs and Protean Joy ventured to the kitchen to fetch them some water.
Spike hated the anticipation. He hated knowing what was going to happen more.
Twilight Sparkle yawned and rested her head upon her writing desk. "I'm… so proud of you, you know?" she gleamed softly. She stretched and rubbed her eyes. "Mmm…You've been… acting so grown up. You've handled this all so… well…"
Spike fluster a bit and bit his lip. He was quiet for a few seconds. He sighed then and closed his eyes. "Hey, Twilight? …I'm terrified."
She didn't answer.
"Twilight?"
A ringing flushed in his ears. He grimaced. The macabre creaking of the derelict farmhouse ostensibly amplified. He could feel a low rumbling. The shadows scattered about the room loomed upon him, and they intensified. His breathing picked up. Spike whimpered. Twilight was asleep. He was alone. The somniferous atmosphere trickled and trembled around him.
"Twilight, wake up!" he said. 
He peered down at his hands. The darkness seemed to breathe in time with him. He found himself chuckling morbidly. His shoulders were getting tense. He felt heavy. Spike that slow, subtle rumble building up in the back of his ears. He felt sick to his stomach. 
"Oh, it's happening…" he whispered somniferously.
He was quiet, then, for a single moment. Soon, a shock of terror shot up his spine and he scrambled to act. He threw himself from the couch to floor. He couldn't stand. He was so heavy. His ears were ringing. His mouth was dry. His eyes were burning.
Spike drug himself over to Twilight's writing desk, employed the chair to pull himself up, snatched some paper and a pen, then crashed down again. On the floor, he franticly scribbled any coherent thought or observation he could. There was a terrible howling in his ears and a throbbing pain in his head. The darkness upon his body began to impulse to a slow rhythm. The surrounding area melted and twisted together in his peripheral visions as he wrote. Tears welted up in his eyes, and whimpers escaped his lips. He was terrified.
Spike tried to focus himself upon the paper in which he wrote, but the streaks of the fading room gave way to darkness, taking his paper and pen with it. He couldn't see a thing. Spike's muscles locked in place, and he sat within the darkness remaining very still. He held back tears and whimpers with everything he had. Whispers whipped around his head.
Then everything fell away; Twilight, the paper, all of it. He was alone. He swore he heard music somewhere.
He put his hands down where he thought the floor might be and felt solid. He stuck his hand out and felt for the desk. No, it wasn't there. He whimpered, but was resolute and focused on his breathing. He stuck his hands in front of his face, hoping to see anything. Nothing at first, but soon they came into focus. Soon the room came back into focus. Twilight wasn't there. The whole place seemed more arid, more dusty - like… like it had been abandoned for years.
Spike stared at his hands. They were bright purple. They were normal. His eyes seemed to pulse. His head stung again, and he heard a voice. 'All alone…'
A sullen light gleamed from the kitchen. It was like the sun, illuminating the dust in the air and flooding the night away. Spike was so heavy, but he crawled for the light. It was farther away the closer he got. 
'But where's Spike?'
Spike hurried to the best of his ability. His head felt like it was tearing away from him.
'I haven't seen him.'
"Wait…" he called out to the light. "Wait for me…"
'No choice. We have to leave him.'
His heart sank and he abraded and moaned. Tears left his eyes. The doorway was in reach, and he clasp the corner with both hands. 
'I'm not getting turned into one of those things. Not for Spike, I'm not.'
He pulled himself into the doorway and marveled.
'I have to protect you, Your Majesty, not him.'
The walls of the kitchen had fallen away. The dark clouds festered the farmhouse. In the distance, the sun baked the darkness from Ponyville and Spike's friends basked in the glow of the sun - Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, all of them. Spike screamed out at them, but they didn't hear. He crawled into the kitchen and waved his arms, but they didn't see. Their figures swirled and swayed in the light. They danced away without him. Spike pined and cried. They left. They all left. He couldn't move. The lights went out. The kitchen walls closed up. He was stuck there and they hadn't come back for him. He clasped his head in his hands and wept.
Soon, he stopped.
A calm silence came and beckoned him. The ringing was drowned out. The world he saw seemed to crack, and to draw back. Spike felt a warmth from within and he gasped. He remembered. He remembered how he'd gotten there.
"…It's not real," he said.
'Spike!? Spike, can you hear me?'
> 11. Twilight Sparkle: The Blind House
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The bright moon settled over the hazy night as Twilight Sparkle stood upon a cliff etched out from the forest. The little town below was lit and untouched. 'This is a dream,' she thought. She had no memory of coming here, or why she had come here. However, this area looked similar to that where she'd met Luna earlier. The moon beamed up above her, and soon it pulsated with a wonderful light. Luna appeared and landed softly on the cliff before Twilight.
"It is good to see you again, Twilight." she said softly, "I apologize for inducing sleep upon you so suddenly, but I had important news to deliver."
Twilight had no recent memory of the conscious world. "It's alright, Princess. What did you have to tell me?"
Luna was somber. "Help is… on the way."
Twilight smiled, "Great!"
Luna forced her own smile back. "Have you made any progress in your endeavors?"
Twilight twitched. She suddenly felt sick to her stomach and the world she was in seemed to spin slowly. "Um… No, what happened?" she mumbled to herself. Thinking of the outside world increased the lucidity of the dream.
'Twilight, wake up!'
"We… we've made it to the farmhouse. Applejack is infected and Spike will be soon…"
Luna was surprised and appeared to hold her breath. "Spike? How?"
Twilight frowned. "He… he wanted to. He wanted me to study him."
Luna seemed unusually flustered by the news. She brought her hoof to her mouth and was solemn - almost morbid. Twilight tilted her head and her brows tightened. "Princess?"
Luna bit her lip. "Do you have faith it could be reversed? Do you think we can counter it before Gaea disperses the Harbinger?"
Twilight blinked and worried. "I don't know. I can only try." 
They were both quiet for a bit. Twilight's attention was whipped away by a ringing in one of her ears; the left one. She grimaced and batted at it as if a pestiferous fly had become enamored with her skull. 
'Oh, it's happening…'
"Twilight Sparkle?" Luna asked with concern.
Twilight patted her ear now. The ringing was subsiding. "Hm? No, I'm alright. I… I want to move Spike someplace that's more equipped for proper study. I doubt the library's an option…" Twilight's thoughts trailed off, but she was disquieted. Her head was rushing. "Hey, Princess, do you know if any other ponies are okay? I mean, we can't be the only ones left…"
"I've felt others, yes," Luna said, "I don't know where they are or if they can help you. Just sit tight for now, young Twilight Sparkle. We need to take this slow."
"Yeah, you're right."
However, Twilight couldn't shake a feeling of dread, like there was an important task in the physical world that was suddenly abandoned. A somniferous and quite panic settled upon her. Soon, she felt tired, despite being in a dream.
"Do you know what time it is, Princess? Between the storm and lack of sunset, I think everypony has lost their sense of time. Me in particular."
Luna shook her head. "I'm not sure. I'm in space. Time dilates up here."
"Space," Twilight Sparkle mused, "I didn't know you could go into space."
Luna smiled softly. "There's a lot you need to learn, Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight thought about the stinging she'd felt earlier. She thought about all the things she felt then that she'd never felt before. She was curious. 
"Princess, might I ask you something?" Twilight said.
Luna nodded.
"Earlier, you said you 'felt' others. What do you mean but that exactly?"
Luna had a slight gleam of pride about her. "I reach out with my perceptions and feel energy emitting from other pony's minds. It's like seeing, but you can feel it. Minds emit pockets of very concentrated energy - very easy to spot among the calm back noise of nature. It's… well, imagine listening to a record, but the record is stretched out over a landscape and you can navigate through it. No, no, that doesn't make sense…"
"Still, sounds impressive," Twilight said.
'Is that what's been happening to me? I can 'feel' other pony's minds?'
"Indeed," Luna said, a smirk curled upon her lips. "It was the only method I learned that my sister could not. It was… nice to have something she did not." Her eyes lowered with a bit of shame at the previous statement, but soon they transitioned into perplexity.
Twilight felt a sudden jolt, as if shook. The dream-space echoed in a quick distortion. Twilight's perception of this faux-world crumbled, and she felt a spinning sensation. "Oh my," she said quickly, "Princess, I think I'm waking up."
Princess Luna was soon privy with the quiet dissolution of her fabricated setting. "Yes, I think you are correct," she said, lifting herself into the air. Twilight felt like she was being pulled back. "Rest soon, Twilight Sparkle!" Luna called from up above, "I shall find you shortly."
The dream world pulled away, and Twilight found only darkness. Her senses returned, and she felt herself pressed into a table, head resting upon her hooves. She felt a sudden jolt.
"Your Majesty, wake up!"
Twilight was tired and so comfortable. She felt her writing desk again, fit with a slew of papers and a modicum of drool nestled on its surface. Her left arm was asleep, but she was too comfortable to budge.
Protean Joy shook her gently but firmly. "Princess Twilight Sparkle, please wake up!"
Twilight moaned and stretched. She didn't open her eyes yet. "Mm? Yeah, what is it?" she mumbled soporifically.
"It's Spike."
Twilight's eyes shot open and she brought her head up. She looked at Protean Joy sternly. "Where is he? Is he alright!?"
Protean Joy frowned and looked away. "He's in the kitchen…"
Twilight knew exactly what happened. She sprung from the table and bolted for the kitchen.
'Not yet, not yet,' she thought.
There he was, black as coal and crumpled on the floor in the kitchen. His form seemed less petrified than Applejack's and he twitched and whimpered less often. Twilight trembled at the sight, and lay down on the floor next to him across from him. He seemed eerily calm.
"Oh, Spike," she whispered, "I'm so sorry…"
Twilight grit her teeth. 'No, no more,' she thought, 'Time to test a hypothesis…'
She brought her head up and peered back into the living room. Protean Joy was in the doorway - keeping a respectable distance, no doubt.
"Has Pinkie Pie or any others come back while I was asleep?" she asked briskly.
"No. It's only been a few minutes," he said.
''A few minutes?' Hmm… felt longer in the dream. Stupid relativity…'
"Could you find them for me? You know, make sure they're alright?"
"As you command, Your Majesty."
He made for the stairs and was soon out of sight. Twilight watched him climb all the way up and disappear into the second story. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she picked herself up off the kitchen floor. 
Using an illumination spell, she investigated some papers that had fallen to the floor. The scribbles there were unintelligible but reinforced Twilight's foray - Spike tried to deliver a message. Unlike any others, he knew what was happening. 
She recalled hearing his voice in her dream. She peered back at him in the kitchen then over to the earmuff she'd left on a table near the door. She took a moment to seriously doubt she could 'listen' to Spike, how she'd seized earlier, and how if anypony else had suggested this to her, she'd call them nuts to their face. She shrugged, grabbed her earmuffs and went into the kitchen. She laid down next to him and closed her eyes.
Twilight focused, and summoned her barrier to encase herself and Spike. And she listened.
From within the dome, she heard only a familiar low hum. That sound had haunted her since her flight from the library, and as such seemed indicative of the Dark Harbinger's spell. The more she concentrated on Spike, the more intense the hum grew. From within the sound, a grinding and rattling could be heard - albeit slightly. All the noise was soon joined by subtle whispering. It reflected the background noise of Twilight's own mind whenever she meditated - snippets and cusps of incomplete thought and time intermingled with the smoothing background hum of life. Yet the noise felt disturbed; off. For reasons she couldn't grasp, Twilight felt pity.
Twilight breathed out. With her eyes closed, she slowly took off her earmuffs.
Fighting the beginning of a headache, Twilight could recognize whole words from within the soft, low whispers. She made out such things as "abandonment", "dependence", all spoken in weary, sullen tone in voices she did not recognize. She swore she heard a dissonant choir in the distance.
A louder whisper shot into her ear, nearly shattering her concentration: "A plague upon your home." It seemed angry; announcing intention. It was followed sharply by cohorts, all softer than the predecessor. 
"A defiler all alone."      
"A cat among the crows."
"A butcher and his prose."
Twilight quickly centered herself and focused more on her breathing. She felt no fear in this moment, and listened deeper. She hypothesized this layer of threatening whispers was encasing Spike's mind. No, it was rushed. It was weaker. Twilight pictured a breach - a hole in the dark walls thrown up by the Harbinger's magic.
She listened silently and the hostile whispers and low hums pass. They sounded as if they floated above her, settling quietly among the ceiling. The more she ignored them, the softer they became. From within the meditative space, past the horror wrought upon her dear friend, Twilight felt a gentle peace. She had breached the darkness.
"Spike?" she whispered.
Her words echoed in her own ears. She awaited response. The dark noises pulsated above her, seeking to return. 
'…It's not real.'
"Spike!? Spike, can you hear me?"
Time drug its heels into the dirt again. Twilight heard nothing but the peaceful gleam of the soundscape beneath the whispers. As she listened deeper, though, new whispers emerged.
'Twilight? I can hear you!' 
"Spike? Is that you?"
'Yeah, who else would it be? Where are you, I can't see you.'
"I'm right next to you. You're infected, Spike. You're all covered in darkness, just like Applejack and Fluttershy were."
'I know. …Hey, how are you talking to me right now?'
"It was a hunch. The barrier amplifies energy around me, so I thought if I concentrated hard enough, I could hear you thoughts. I guess it worked, huh?"
'Uh, yeah, sure. Did you get my notes? I tried to write some stuff down before it happened.'
"I saw them, but I couldn't read them. What happened, Spike?"
'It was pretty subtle at first. I mean, you fell asleep and then I was by myself for a bit. The room just kind of pressed down on me and… well, I was terrified. I heard that hum - you know, the one we heard in the library before the Harbinger appeared, and my vision blurred. I heard all kinds of whispers and stuff as the area kinda faded out around me. It was really awful.'
"Awful? Awful how?"
'I saw… I saw you all abandon me.'	
Twilight's heart sank again. "We won't. Spike, you know we won't."
'I know, that's how I figured out it wasn't real. You were right. We were right, I mean; what we said back at the cake shop. I'm dreaming. I was afraid and now I'm dreaming.'
"It's okay, Spike. We're all still here, and I don't think the black rain has effected you as much as the others. We can figure this out."
'Twilight, I feel all wrong. I feel like something terrible is going to happen.'
"Spike? You're not making sense."
'Twilight, I think you should get away from that farm. I think you should get away and stay away.'
"Why? It's safe here. What do we do with you and Applejack if we leave?"
'Applejack…'
Twilight snapped away. Her barrier fell down and she panted. She picked herself up again and stared deeply into the living room. She had a terrible feeling in her stomach. She inched towards the living room and poked her head in. She summoned a beam of light and lifted it gently to the ceiling, so that the whole room was lighter. She looked over to the front door. She swallowed.
Applejack wasn't there. Applejack wasn't where Spike had left her.
Twilight fretted.
She looked up the stairs and listened. 
Nothing.
"Rarity!?" she called out cautiously.
There was no response, only the soft padder of the rain slowing to a stop on the roof.
The room was arid now. Twilight walked softly to the couch and collected the quilts Spike had been sitting on. She inspected them carefully to ensure there was no darkness upon them and returned to the kitchen. There, she placed the quilt gently over Spike, only leaving his head uncovered. She placed the extra quilt along her back like a saddle, then, with care and precision, lifted Spike from the ground with her magic and placed him stomach down upon the quilt on her back.
She stuck her head through the doorway into the living room with the light illuminating from her horn once again. It was still as lifeless as before, and Applejack was nowhere to be found. She closed her eyes and listened. There was shouting upstairs; high-pitched, frantic, sobbing. It was probably Rarity. Then there was a bellowing; male, authoritative, acting on royal auspices. They were getting closer. 
Then, there was noise at the top of the stairs. Twilight opened her eyes. Pinkie Pie was there with a terrified look on her face. "Twilight!!" she screamed, "Something terrible has happened!"
"Where are the others, Pinkie?"
Pinkie Pie came down the stairs. She glanced at Spike, who was well secured on Twilight's back, and her face twisted. She shook it off. "It's Applejack. we need to go!" 
"Down the stairs! Now, now," Protean Joy shouted.
Rainbow Dash and Rarity appeared and came down the stairs, followed shortly by Protean Joy. Rainbow Dash looked bitter and Rarity seemed quite distraught. They all gathered downstairs.
There was a touch of darkness on the tip of one of the feathers on Rainbow Dash's left wing. She was very stern. She stretched her wing out and twisted her head to clasp the broad side of the afflicted feather. With a grunt, she plucked it out and spat it onto the floor.
"Rainbow?" Twilight said.
Rainbow Dash frowned. "Looks like the infected don't stay so docile for long."
"What do you mean?"
"It's Applejack. She's out and about, trembling and shouting at us."
"We need to leave, Your Majesty," Protean Joy said, "It is no longer safe here."
Then Applejack appeared at the top of the stairs. She was still quite black, but her eyes had gone white. Her legs shook violently and she panted. She whimpered like she was about to crumple into panic. Black tears strung her face.
"Applejack!" Twilight shouted, "Applejack, it's not real! Nothing you're seeing is real!"
Applejack screamed painfully and ran down the stairs after them.
"Spread out!" Rainbow Dash screamed, "Nopony let her touch you!"
Applejack launched herself after them and they jumped away from her. Twilight launched very light offensive spells at Applejack's feet and tried to directed her away. It backfired. Applejack stumbled by went the opposite direction Twilight had wanted her to. She was then between them and the door. Twilight froze.
"…Sacrifice the weakest piece," Protean Joy mumbled.
Twilight looked over at him. He had a sudden youthful resilience in his eyes and his mouth hung open, almost like a smile. He exhaled and shot a blast of wind magic to his left. It rattled some curtains and knocked a decorative bowl to the ground. Applejack's right ear shot in that direction and she turned to look. And, like that, he was on her.
He stood on his hind legs and grabbed her head with both of his front hooves and threw her to the left of the door. She was dazed, but uninjured. As she recollected herself, he drove his front hooves into the floorboards and kicked her in the side with his legs. She was pushed to the ground and away from the door. His front legs twitched and he positioned himself between Applejack and the doorway.
"Go," he said softly to Twilight without looking at her.
Twilight corralled her friends out the door. The rain had stopped. She snuck one last look at the farmhouse, only to see Applejack tackle the commander. She frowned and hurried off with her friends into the town. 

---	

They had stopped running for a while. The rain had stopped, and they had made it into town. Twilight had told them not to stop until they reached the city hall, but Spike was heavy and they had left most of their supplies back at Applejack's farm. They were quiet, thirsty and pined for rest. Even Rainbow Dash, though she was less inclined to admit it, sauntered like her feet hurt.
Lights and sounds beckoned from above the clouds, like brass being drug along a wooden floor one story up. The air was sticky and tense, and the entire town felt as though is was radiating a low hum. 
"Pinkie Pie, how much longer before we reach the town center?" Twilight asked.
"Ten more minutes, give or take." Pinkie Pie responded softly.
"We need to find a place to sleep," Twilight ordered, "Who knows if we'll even find anypony there, and if they're like Applejack was, I'm not interested in another fight."
Twilight was quiet then. 'I've no more pieces to sacrifice,' she thought.
"We're all tired," she said, "Who knows what time it is. We need to get some sleep."
Rarity sniffled.
"There's an inn on the next block to our left," Pinkie said, "Let's go there."
The soundscape picked up above them as they made their way to the inn. Twilight looked up to see the clouds stirring again and heard the soft rumble of thunder. 
"It'll rain soon," she said, "We need to get inside right now."
Pinkie Pie ran up the door of the inn, but it did not budge. "It's locked!" she lamented.
Rainbow Dash snorted, pushed Pinkie Pie out of the way, and kicked the door near the lock a few times until that section and gave way. She pushed the door open then.
"Time for bed," she sputtered.	
They had all been awake for too long. They were over stimulated. Twilight found herself far too weary to be alarmed or unsettled. They were all the same; bleak, tired and worn. They poked around the inside of the inn for a few minutes. It was empty. Rainbow Dash was the first to go up a set of stairs and look for a bedroom. They all soon followed her. They gathered in a big room with six beds. Rainbow Dash had already nestled herself in one by the window.
"Nopony up here," she said, "Goodnight."
"Yeah, let's all get some sleep," Twilight said.
She set Spike down on the floor near the door and settled into the bed closed to it. The others settled down as well. Twilight was worried, frantic even, but the bed was soft and she desperately need sleep. Thoughts circled about her wits like a legion of starved vultures and her limbs went numb. She couldn't move them if she wanted to. She let her eyelids slip closed and hoped to see Luna in her dreams. No vision came. Twilight didn't dream at all.

> 12. Luna: Besieged
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Rest soon, Twilight Sparkle!" Luna called down to the young princess, "I shall find you shortly."
She pulled herself away from Twilight's dream and felt the cold, familiar crust of the moon beneath her hooves. It was so strange to be back there. The Earth looked still and far away. Luna sighed and swallowed. Even if everything worked out, Celestia would not be happy with her. Her dear sister did not think much of Gaea.
Luna rubbed her nose and remembered Mogadon - their messenger. She closed her eyes and stretched out, looking for him. He was easy to find. His mind was a dim but brazen red, isolated from others. He was trying to sleep beside a fire on the side of some road. He was a quiet one. He stuck out amongst all the noise she could feel. Luna rubbed her mouth and focused. He was dreaming. 
She breathed in and opened her eyes. She was then in a small, vegetative garden with cobblestone pathways and a soft, spring ambience. The brick and stone that laced that place was colored with dirt and sunk into the earth. It was more nature's garden than that of a pony. Luna breathed in through her nostrils and caught the scent of cut grass. She listened to the sounds of content birds and running water. She followed the cobblestone path to a large opening with vivid, sun baked red bricks and stone steps. In the center was a circular fountain that spewed a spout of water up nearly ten feet. It was quite sizable - maybe twenty feet in diameter - and the water was crisp and clear. Mogadon sat on a bench on the side opposite to her.
He watched the fountain with his head tilted slightly to left and his mouth hung open. Luna walked around and motioned to greet him. He graced her with a closed mouth smile, but his eyes never left that fountain.
"Good morning, Your Majesty," he said, "Would you care to sit down."
Luna shrugged and sat on the steps a few feet from him. The brick was comfortably warm and the heat of the sun was snug on her back. She laughed quietly to herself. It was nice to enter such a sensibly detailed dream. She turned to look at him. He looked down and the garden seemed to shutter when he did.
"This is a dream. I'm dreaming," he said.
"I am sorry to interrupt," Luna said, "How close are you to the Crystal Empire?"
His brow furrowed with thought. He shifted his head around and the trees in the distance went grey and blurred away.
"I am… two days. A day and a half if I push myself."
"Don't," Luna said, "If… Should young Twilight Sparkle and I fail, you'll be the only one who knows what this storm really is. I fear it will spread."
Mogadon closed his eyes and thought. "I was watching it. I wanted to tell you. I climbed up a steppe so I could take a look." He turned and looked at her. "Up until it reaches Ponyville, it's a straight line. It pools in a perfect circle once it hits the town. It's like a puddle or water seeping into fabric. Your Majesty, I think it radiates from he that carries it - that bandaged creature. I think so long as he remains there, it won't go anywhere fast - but that's just what I think."
Luna rubbed her nose. "That tidbit could be useful regardless." 
She closed her eyes and reveled in the warm bath of the sun and in the cool breeze of early morning. It was satisfying, even though it wasn't real. She took a few deep breathes and was wearily committed.
"I'll speak to you again soon, if I can," she said.
Mogadon looked back at the fountain. "Don't worry about me," he said.
She was pulled away from his dream.
Luna breathed out. Her hoof were sunk into the familiar dust of the moon. She looked at the Earth from an eerily familiar angle. Her heart fluttered. She'd forgotten how it looked from here. She pushed herself from the moon dust and pushed for Earth. One would fall to Earth anyway, but the trick was to use your wings to slow yourself down. She closed her eyes and focused on her wings. She loved this jump as a kid. Now… not as much.
Luna felt the winds of Earth's thick atmosphere pick up in her ear and she opened her eyes. She extended her wings fully and glided along the winds, using her momentum to speed towards the thick, black storm beneath her. She approached the cloud's contours, summoned a small bubble to protect herself from the rain, and descended.
She passed through the clouds to the dark city underneath. To her surprise, it wasn't raining. She dropped her bubble and smelled the musky air. She grimaced. She hated normal humidity, let alone this thick, arid airway the felt like it chipped away at her. She breathed out and remembered Twilight had said she'd made it to the farmhouse.
Luna headed for Sweet Apple Acres.
Soon, she landed near the front porch. The house was quiet and the door had been left in.
She approached the doorway cautiously. The parts of the house she could see was dim and hazy with residue of sweat and snuffed out candles. She stuck her head through the doorway.
Then, from seemingly nowhere, Protean Joy was hurdled through the air to the wall to Luna's left. She jumped and retracted her head. Protean Joy didn't notice her. He grunted as he picked himself and wiped his nose. Small patches of darkness in the shaped of hoof-prints dotted his sides and legs. He winced, but nearly smiled. He laughed and charged at an unseen foe.
Luna entered the house. There, Protean Joy was wrestling with Applejack. Her skin was slick and black and her eyes where an incandescent white. Princess Luna lifted the two up magically. She placed Applejack in a nearby closet by the stairs and slammed the door. She placed Protean Joy on the couch and slid all the future in the room against that closet door. Applejack could be heard throwing herself against the door.
Luna turned to Protean Joy. "You! You're the Royal Guard that accompanied Twilight Sparkle, are you not!?"
Protean Joy winced and panted. He rubbed his eye. "Yeah," he said, "I mean, yes… Your Majesty…"
Luna glanced him over. He was a little bruised, but he wasn't bleeding. Still, he was covered in the darkness. "How are you feeling?"
"I've been… better," he said. He lifted up his arm and nodded at the darkness thereof. "That's not getting better. I'm done. It's only a matter of time."
Luna frowned. "I'm sorry."
Applejack threw herself against the door again.
Protean Joy shrugged. "Hey, just bidding time 'til you show up with the calvary." He glanced outside and frowned. "There's, uh, there's calvary coming, correct?"
Luna nodded somberly. "Where is Twilight Sparkle?"
"She and her lot took off. I'd bet they'd head for the town square. Spike's gone under, they're going to study him."
Luna nodded. Applejack threw herself against the door again.
"Hey," she said, "What about you?"
"Eh, just leave me here," he said, "Er, I mean, don't worry about me, Your Majesty. You can fly, and my leg is killing me. I'll keep an eye out for your calvary." He motioned towards his discarded saddlebag by the door. "There's a flare in there. When I see whomever's coming, I'll set if off. Then you lot will know."
Applejack threw herself against the door again.
Protean Joy shuddered. "Well, if Honesty doesn't bust out and rip my head off first."
Luna looked over at the closet. "What's wrong with her? All the infected I saw were lethargic and quiet…"
"I don't know," Protean Joy said, "They poked around upstairs and found her kid sister - Rarity's too, and some other kid. Then, she appeared and snapped. She hasn't said anything, she's just shouted and attacked."
Thunder cracked in the sky. Applejack moaned, then went quiet.
"Time's up," Protean Joy said, "I'll fire my flare if I see anything. It's your show now, Your Majesty."
Luna clenched her teeth and nodded. She headed for the door but stopped. She looked back at him. She felt like she should say something. She wasn't good at things like this.
"…See you later," she said.
He nodded and waved, but the way he curled a frown conveyed his skepticism.
Luna walked out and lifted herself up and looked onto the town. She frowned. She should've asked Protean Joy how long ago Twilight Sparkle left. She swallowed and flew off. The town was quiet beneath her. It wouldn't be too far until she reached the town square.
Then, benevolent light graced the lines between the clouds. Luna gasped and summoned her bubble. She poked up through the clouds and saw the sky. The sun was moving rapidly west and sunk beneath the horizon. From the east, the moon glistened upwards and painted the cloud tops a brilliant alabaster. Luna smiled.
Then, movement caught her eye.
Off to her left, about 30 or 40 feet away, the Harbinger surfaced as well. The darkness dripped from his form like smoke. He stared up at the stars in awe. 
Luna grimaced.
Soon, he noticed her. His breathing seemed noticeable heavier and he appeared to shutter. 
"Gaea!?" he shouted, "You… You've summoned Gaea?"
Luna clenched her teeth. She shouted back and shot a pillar of wind at him. He was struck and knocked asunder. As he recovered, she summoned her bubble again and dove back into the clouds. If he was that close to the town square, he was too close to Twilight Sparkle.
She drew her bubble away and waited for him. Sure enough, he sunk back through the cloud line and leered down from above her. 
"Hey!" he shouted.
Luna said nothing and shot at him again. This time it struck his mouth. His head whipped to the side and he lost his composure. He was knocked down to about her level. Now, he looked on her again from lowered brows and was angry.
"Stop," he said.
Luna's breathing picked up. No, she had to get him away - he that assault her home and her sister. She shouted and her eyes went white. Wind began to circle around her and she forced the clouds above her to churn. They resisted her, but she wasn't about to let some storm get the better of her. The Harbinger cautiously approached her. She stiffened the muscles in her legs and forced the wind to pick up. It spiraled and knocked him away. She felt a sting somewhere behind her left eye and whipped her head that direction. The wind circled her counter-clockwise then. She squinted. It was hard to see past the debris in the wind and the cozen white in her eyes.
Then, fire.
He set her wind ablaze and smoke filled her space. She coughed and lost composure. He split the fiery wind tunnel in the front and spread the tunnel wider. He stuck his torso in and grimaced at her.
"I know that look," he taunted. "Fear!"
He was snarling and bitter.
Luna swallowed and pushed him away with wind. The tunnel feel away and its fire struck the ground and was snuffed out. She flew down under him and flew east towards Canterlot. He leapt after here with her cool exterior cracking. She flipped herself over so that her back faced the ground and fired gales at him. He dodged and shot a stream of fire beneath her, then threw it upwards. It licked her back and she flipped to the side. She shot upward then. He followed.
He launch the occasional flame about her contours, like he was trying to herd her. When he shot fire beneath her again, she flipped upside-down and blasted a gust back at it. The gust overpowered the flame and blew it back at him. Its ambers struck his face and he screamed to shake them off. As he wiped at his face, she charged him and let her body swing so her hind-legs struck his left side. He was knocked a few feet.
He gave a blood curtailing scream and his eyes went black. He shot a thick, black stream of magic up into the clouds and they moaned like the damned in Tartarus. It was like his attack on the castle. Luna panted and braced for the lightning.
He was angry and reckless, though, and the lightning was sporadic. Luna kept her eyes to the skyline - the Harbinger was stiff and still - and weaved. The clouds blistered like burning skin before the lightning struck and the lingering moonlight indirectly lit enough to the clouds to make them easy to spot. She danced around them and positioned herself beneath him. She exhaled and shot a powerful gust up under him. The darkness in his eyes snapped away and he was thrown back. He screamed again and shot fired from his horn.
He searched and locked eyes with her. She smiled. It was working.
"I'll… drop you," he sputtered angrily, "Like I dropped your sister!"
Luna smiled melted away instantly. Her mind dropped away and something snapped behind her eyes. Rage - visceral, impermeable rage bubbled and sputtered inside her and she screamed. She threw another gust at him then, against his expectations, charged. She kicked him in the stomach and pushed him down. He moved away and panted. She looked at him and saw red. She charged again eager to pound and to bite. 
She swiped at him again, but he dodge. She kicked and hit his knee. She threw a punch at his face but he knocked it away. Then she throw an elbow and struck him right in the jaw. He trampled and kicked her away. The red snapped away and she stop to look at him. Then, he was on her. He shot fire right at her and it stung her face. She whimpered and wiped it away. He drove both his fore-hooves into her right side and pushed hard. She went flying towards the ground. She tried to stabilize, but failed. Her body hit the ground, her head smacked on the dirt and she blacked out.
> 13. Luna: A Meeting of the Minds
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Luna dreamt.
In her dreams she stood on a desolate plain. The air was thick and smelled of ash. Dust bit into her and made her eyes water. She rubbed them and looked on into the wasteland. Before her lie the wrecks of charred buildings that had sunk into the dirt. All life seemed like it had been swept away. Grass was extinguished, and the black husks that had been trunks of trees stuck from the ground like the fingers of the damned. The earth - if it was earth she was seeing - appeared to whimper like an animal breathing it's last.
She was compelled to set out into the wilderness. The wreckage seemed to stretch on for miles. Bones of unidentifiable victim lay broken and spread out amount the buildings. The sun blazed like a torch in the distance, baking the sands there to a near unbearable heat. She sauntered up a steep hill before her, and there, at the top, she saw the Canterlot Castle's spire. It had been cast away from the rest of the building and cloven in two. The familiar balcony sunk into the sand and the whole structure seemed to wane. The bottom half of the spire was upside-down and lent on the top half. Both were severely burned, but the architecture and some of the coloring were still identifiable.
Luna's heart sank.
She proceeded over the hill and saw a chitinous beast at the bottom of the hill. The beast was difficult to look at, for it seemed a presence more than a being. The beast's features were at least recognizable. It was as black as shadow and quadrupedal, with ten necks ascending to ten faces. Each face bore a flat white mask that covered all recognizable features. The masks were ovaline but did not accommodate equine features. Each bore a simple outline of a basic expression.
Upon the beast was Twilight Sparkle clad in a scarlet cape. She was still and curled up, and a mirky membrane was stretched over her. Her elemental tiara was on her head. She seemed one with the beast and was both as still and as silent as the grave.
Luna felt a cold sting in her spine, and the earth churned about the beast. Her joints locked and she struggled to breathe. Her throat felt like it was going to close up. Life threw itself at the feet of the beast, and all the sand and rock around it seemed withered and hollow. Luna began choking as the beast appeared to twist and turn like it was sucking up the reality around her. Luna whimpered and her vision blurred.   
Her head stung.
Luna awoke and gasped. She was inside Ponyville's library - of all places - lying on some blankets that had been laid out on the floor. She looked around. The library was not as virulent and depraved as she imagined it should be. The books were stacked rather neatly upon the shelves, the area well lit. The Harbinger was up the loft, just sitting.
He got up. "Are you okay? How are you feeling?"
Luna stared at him. Her left shoulder ached and she stretched it. She felt resistance. She winced and looked over at her shoulder. It was bruised and her left wing was bandaged. She had a terrible headache.
"Don't move so suddenly, I think you have a concussion," he said.
Luna wiped her face. "I do not want to talk to you."
"Oh," the Harbinger said. 
He was meek. She didn't like it. She expected somepony… harsher.
"Well, I'd like to apologize for hitting you like that," he said, "And for what I said about your sister. I was angry. I don't like it when beings hit me in the mouth, you see. I, uh, snapped some."
They were both quiet for a while.
He picked at the bandages on his face. "It was uncalled for on my part is all…"
Luna sneered. "'Uncalled for on your part?'" she mocked, "The storm, no, that is completely called for. But, hitting me after I attacked you, that was uncalled for?"
"I didn't want anyone to get hurt."
"Have you looked outside!?" Luna shouted. She paused. 'Anyone?' That's how Gaea spoke. She turned away and laid her head down.
He chewed his bottom lip nervously like some filly about to give a school presentation.  
Luna's head stung and she felt sick. She moaned and coughed slightly. She tried to get up again, but her joints and her nausea stopped her.
"No, really, I think it is a concussion," he said, "Your left shoulder and left wing have a couple of sprains too, but they should heal in just a few days."
Luna scratched her face and scoffed. It was like if Discord, in his prime, had turned around and played nurse.  
He came down the stairs and collected some jugs filled with water that had been placed on the table. He brought them near Luna. He looked at them, then her, then pulled a straw from the same table and placed it in the first jug.
"You should drink plenty of fluids," he said, "It helps with recovery."
Luna began laughing hysterically. She didn't know what else to do. "Are… are you serious!?" she said.
He seemed vaguely offended. "Of course I'm serious. I told you, I didn't want anyone hurt."
Luna calmed down and panted a bit. Her shoulder ached and she was horrifically confused.
"Okay, well, what did you want?" She looked out a nearby window at the storm. "That's causing quite a bit of damage, you know!"
"Oh, I know, that's why, when this is over, I'll fix it."
"What!?"
"Ok, ok, I'll show you."
He closed his eyes and lit a tiny flame on the base of his horn. "A long time ago, I gave you guys fire, so you could live better lives. Others didn't like that, so I defend you. Then, you all left without me. You forgot about me, you forgot about what I gave you, you forgot what I did for you. So, I've come back to remind you. That's all I want. I just want you to remember me. I just want you to remember my name."
The fire went out. "When you remember, I'll give you your fire back. I'll send the storm away, too."
Luna felt sick again. Her breathing picked up. She felt panic - not a physical panic, but an empathetic one. He didn't understand.
"You control that storm!?"
"Yeah. I mean, it follows me everywhere. It's just magic, you know. I used it to escape my prison and come here."
"Then why are you letting it swallow up ponies and make them afraid? Why'd you attack me and my sister?"
"First of all, you and your sister attacked me, remember!? I just wanted to talk, but as soon as I came into the room, you two just-"
"Oh, we're the bad guys here!?" Luna shouted angrily.
"Well, yeah, I mean, you guys abandoned me," he said.
"We do not know who you are!" Luna screamed.
"Calm down!" he said, raising his voice. He backed away. He seemed even smaller then, like he was disconnected and waning. He looked down and away and was quiet for a while. "How… how could you not remember me?" he said softly. 
Luna blinked for a bit and thought. How could he not get it? She brought her right hoof to her mouth and bit down as she thought. 
"How old are you?" she asked.
He looked at her and quiet like he didn't quite remember. "… around 11,000 or so…"
She nodded. Alicorns lived for so long. Perhaps he'd never seen creatures - like ponies - that didn't live that long. By his words, he didn't seem to have a concept of mortality.
"…And you gave ponies fire 'a long time ago?' How long ago? 3,000 years? 4, 000?"
He nodded meekly. "Yeah, thereabouts."
"Then…" She sighed, like she was wasting her breathe. No, he needed to hear. "Then, if what you say is true, all you physically gave fire to, all the ponies that were actually present then, would have died-"
"Died!?" he shouted. He was perked up and genuinely concerned. "What killed them!? No, no… no, if something had killed them, I'd have seen it. I'd have seen it!!"
"They would have died almost two thousand years ago. Ponies die of natural causes."
"'Natural causes!?'" he was more and more frantic, "What, you mean… you mean after a while, they just… died. Just like that!?"
Luna swallowed and scoffed. "Yes."
He was blinking and looking down. His muscles when stiff and his cheek bones clenched hard enough for her to see from the bottom floor. He whimpered slightly. He was masking it so she wouldn't hear. In that moment he seemed like a child; pathetic.
He brought his hoof to his mouth. "Oh…"
He blinked more and let his shoulder fall into a bookshelf. He propped himself up there and looked decidedly away from Princess Luna. He looked sick.
Luna shrugged and scowled. "Do you even know what you're doing!?"
He flustered and incompetently masked a whimper. He appeared to bite his lip and his legs were shaking. He looked around and his breathing picked up. Soon, however, he exhaled and tried to center himself. His cool exterior was cracked.
"Stay here," he said coldly. Then he left; he just walked outside.
Luna tried to get up again but it was no use. She'd just have to sit there. She breathed out and closed her eyes. She searched the soundscapes for Twilight Sparkle but couldn't find her. Luna rubbed her nose and sighed. 
> 14. Twilight Sparkle: Harmony Chlorine
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Twilight shook herself awake. There was no indication of the passage of time. She panted to herself in worry; there were no dreams of Princess Luna the night before. She felt tired, despite just sleeping. She scanned the dim room. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash lay still in their beds, asleep. Rarity was not.
Twilight collapsed back into her pillow. Her body ached. She didn't want to get up. She turned over and stared at the wall. She felt strangely placid, but still quite dull. It bothered immensely that they had such a feeble plan. She closed her eyes and relished in the the calm, comfortable silence for just a few more minutes. She then sat up, stretched and looked around for Rarity.
Rarity stood outside on small balcony. Twilight pulled herself from the bed and moved passed her sleeping comrades to that balcony. There were small cracks in the cloud line that exposed the sky above. It was filled with stars, and the moon stood promptly up overhead. The air was still and quiet, apart from a slight breeze, but had no sense of foreboding to it. It smelled cool and fresh, like a beach.  
Rarity stood quietly and braced herself with her hooves up on the railing. She peered at the stars in the sky like it was everything she could cling to. Twilight Sparkle approached and settled her chin on the railing beside her. She looked up at Rarity's face. She had this weird mix of existential wonder and foreboding. Rarity looked at her and forced a smile.
"Good morning, Twilight," she said softly.
Twilight yawned. "Good morning to you too."
They were both just quiet for a while.
"What are you doing up so early?" Twilight asked. 'What a stupid question. Rarity didn't 'decide' to wake up this early. We don't even know if it is early.'
"I don't know. I'm just… watching the stars," Rarity said. Her voice was soft and weary. "I've never really looked at them like this before. They're beautiful, aren't they?"
The clove between the storm clouds leaned and beckoned before them.
"All the rainclouds have certainly given me a new appreciation for them," Twilight said, "Back before all this started, I found myself with a sudden fascination with space and the stars. You be surprised how much yet how little we know about them."
"It's funny, isn't it?" Rarity said. Her eyes stayed fixed on the stars. "When I woke up a few days ago I could never had imagined this would happen. But, here we are. Everything that felt so important back then seems so inconsequential right now. All those things I worried about and doubted then mean pretty much nothing. But now, all I feel for is my baby sister… and for Spike, for all our friends caught in this. And we still have no idea how to even keep this darkness at bay, let alone defeat it. Kinda makes you feel so helpless, huh?"
"Yeah," Twilight said.
Rarity wiped her nose and whimpered. "I," she said. She paused for a bit and took a deep breath. "What's it all mean? What's the point? We're out here throwing ourselves at this and nothing is any different…"
"What are you saying?" Twilight said, "That we should just give up?"
"Of course not," Rarity said.
'What Rarity is saying… is that she's giving up. She's got a point. Why are we out here? What is the point? I guess I didn't know what else to do. I should've gotten everypony out when I had the chance. Now we've lost Fluttershy, Applejack, Spike… and who knows where Princess Luna or that Protean Joy are. Or his friend, for that matter. What if we don't stop it? What if the storm spreads and takes everything over? What if…'
"No," Twilight said assuredly, but hushed. 'Leaders do not think like this.'
"What?"
The clouds began to close over the shimmering moon like a hound snapping up his food. Thunder echoed from a distance very softly.
Twilight smiled at her. "This will all end, for better or worse. For better or worse, everything ends. Whether we defeat it or fall to it, this darkness will pass. But I'm not going to just sit around and let this thing beat me without a fight. And those stars… they will remember us for this."
Rarity sighed, "I guess you're right."
Twilight Sparkle watched the clouds slowly swallow the sky, and listen to the somber wind wisp at her ears. She closed her eyes and breathed out. 
'I think about this kind of stuff a lot - about the heroes in the stories and how they must've been years before their great adventure. I was always relished in the thought that that was where I was; I was living in that weird time before my adventure story started and that the quest would find me like it did all the heroes in all the stories I loved. And I was thrilled and entertained, even while they suffered such hardship and tribulation, because I knew it would all work out in the end. Now here I am, right in the middle of my story, and I miss that comfort. I don't know if everything's going to work out in the end...'
"Maybe… maybe defeat is the wrong way to look at it," Rarity said..
Twilight Sparkle was pulled from her little world. "What do you mean by that?"
"Just… Oh, I don't know," Rarity said, "Maybe looking at this as an obstacle to overcome isn't the right way to look at it. Like, maybe this isn't a problem that can be solved by convention. Maybe that's why we're failing. Does that make sense?"
'No.'
"I think I get what you're saying," Twilight said.
'Liar.'
"Well, if the way we've been going about this is the wrong way, what's the right way?"
Rarity shrugged. "I don't know," she said.
She looked back up at clouds as they consumed the view of the stars. "Do you think Harbinger is evil? Like, 'Sombra' evil or… or maybe 'Discord' evil… Or-"
Twilight sneered at this thought. "…or 'Nightmare Moon' evil?"
"Yeah, exactly!" Rarity said.
'Whether or not Harbinger is evil is irrelevant. The point is that he's attacking us. He brought the storm and he is attacking us.'
"Whether he's more Sombra or Nightmare Moon, we've got to stop him. He's attacking us and we've got to stop him."
Rarity didn't seem satisfied with that answer. 'Maybe such is too 'conventional' for her.'
"I mean, we don't know anything about him," Rarity said, "Imagine how much easier Discord or Nightmare Moon would've been if we'd known more about them before. If defeating is the wrong way to go, maybe we should try understanding him."
Twilight scoffed. "What, do you want to just walk up and talk to him?"
Rarity puzzled for a while. "Well, yeah. Maybe," she said.
'I don't think friendship is going to conquer this one, Rarity. We knew all we needed to know about Nightmare Moon and about Discord. It isn't about what we know, it's about what we can do… Wait, is it? Since when did I start to think like that? I've never been one to charge in without information. Information… Maybe we could use as much information on the Harbinger as we need on the darkness. Or, maybe this will all be for nothing when Princess Luna shows up with whomever. Wait, Princess Luna? The moon?'
"Hey, who raised the moon?"
"Huh?" Rarity said.
"The moon - who raised it?" Twilight said, "The sun was out before, now it's the moon. Who raised the moon and who set the sun?"
"You're right…" Rarity said, "Do you think it's a sign? Do you think Princess Luna is coming back with that whoever-she's-getting?"
Twilight rubbed her chin. She felt anxious. "Let's just get to the Town Square and see if we can't find any other ponies. Then, we'll focus on trying to figure out a countermeasure on the darkness. Then… who knows? Maybe Princess Luna will sweep in and clean everything up. Maybe her reinforcements will take care of the Harbinger. There's no way to know for certain. Even if we can cure the darkness, we've still got to find the Elements at the library AND find Fluttershy and Applejack. There's no point in vigorously planning out everything when there are so many unknowns."
"Yeah, okay," said Rarity.
"We're going to make it, Rarity," Twilight said. 'You can't know that.'
"I know," Rarity said with a forced smile, "I'm alright."
Rainbow Dash then poked her head through the doorway to the balcony and said, "Hey, you two, if your pow-wow is over, me and Pinkie Pie are starving."
Twilight Sparkle nodded. "Yeah, let's get inside. It might rain soon anyway."
The room was still dark. Rainbow Dash had already headed downstairs, and Rarity was quick to join. Soon, it was just Twilight and Pinkie Pie. She too still seemed tired, yet she smiled at Twilight like there was nothing else she could do. They headed downstairs together.
"How'd you sleep?" Twilight asked. 'What a stupid question. Of course none of us slept well.'
"Fine," Pinkie Pie said, "'though I had a… well, I had a bad dream."
Twilight cocked her head. "What about?"
Pinkie Pie stopped as they reached the bottom of the stairs. She had a grim look about her.
"I dreamt that all of you had dark eyes and pale skin," Pinkie Pie said. She was shaken. "I called out to each of you, but none of answered, like none of you even knew me. The more I called out, the farther and farther away you all moved. And then I was in a desert, all alone. Then I woke up."
"That sounds terrible."
"…Hey, Twilight?"
"Yeah?"
"You'd… Oh, never mind."
"What is it?"
Pinkie Pie rubbed her shoulder and sighed. "You'd never forget about me, would you?"
"Of course not, Pinkie," Twilight said, "You're one of my dearest friends. I couldn't possible forget about you."
Pinkie Pie fidgeted in place like she was embarrassed. "Thanks."
"What's with you all of a sudden."
Pinkie Pie scrunched her face and shuffled. "Nothing. No, I've been thinking. I didn't sleep much last night. I've been reading that book… You know, the book of legends I talked to you about yesterday…"
"What about it?"
"I… I've been thinking about that first legend a lot - the one about Ponietheus. I mean, he's just stuck in that city and nopony comes back for him. One character mentions him a little later, but after that, there's just nothing. That kinda stuff just gets to me, you know? Can you image fighting and struggling alongside so many friends for so long just to have them all forget about you in the end? I… It would be devastating, wouldn't it?"
Twilight Sparkle swallowed then hugged Pinkie Pie tightly.
"That isn't going to happen to you," she said.
Pinkie Pie sniffled. "Promise?"
"I promise."
"Pinkie-Promise?"
"I Pinkie-Promise. Cross my heart and hope to die, stick a cupcake in my eye."
"Thanks, Twilight."
"You're welcome. Now let's get something to eat."
"Yeah…"
They both walked into the kitchen. The fridge was wide open, Rarity was fixing herself something at the counter and Rainbow Dash was already at the table chomping at some apples.
"Mornin' egghead!" Rainbow Dash said with weary chipper. Her mouth was still full of apple. She swallowed and continued. "Nice of you to join us for breakfast!"
"How are you feeling, Rainbow? Did you sleep well." Twilight asked. She felt her stomach rumble. She hadn't eaten in a while.
"Yeah, I'm okay," Rainbow Dash responded, "I'm really hungry!" She returned to munching on her apple.
"She's eaten four of them," Rarity taunted as she settled down at the table next to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash elbowed her playfully. "Oh, shut up! I need the energy, seeing as I do more 'sides cry and yell the whole time!"
Rarity scoffed. "Uck! I've been rather distressed, you know. Three days without a shower! Disgusting! But you know, I seem to recall a certain brash pony cracking a bit in a forest somewhere…"
As Rainbow Dash and Rarity continued to rib each other, Twilight stuck her head into the fridge. She sniffled, and the smell made her cough. The fridge had been without power for three days, and, apart from a few apples tucked away on the shelves in the door, most of the food had begun to spoil. She closed the door and peered into the cupboard where she found a nice loaf of bread and some dried vegetables. She fixed herself a plate and said on the floor near Pinkie Pie.
Her stomach let out a terrible roar.
"Whoa!" said Rainbow Dash, "What, are you hiding a bear in there? They probably heard that in Manehatten."
"Oh, hush!" Twilight said, "I've haven't eaten in a very long time."
"Why, yes," Rarity said, "And Her Majesty is so used to the fine banquets of Canterlot that our meek peasant food simply won't due. You wait right there, Princess, and I'll whip you up some caviar and filet mignon!"
They all shared a laugh, though Pinkie Pie's was considerably more quiet. Twilight noticed she wasn't eating anything.
"Not hungry?" Twilight asked.
Pinkie Pie shook her head. "Nope," she said somberly.
Rarity peered down at the her. "Are you alright, Pinkie?"
Pinkie Pie smiled weakly. "I'm fine... just not hungry."
Rarity tilted her head with a look of gentle concern. "How long has it been since you last ate, dear?"
"I don't really know."
Twilight pushed her plate towards her. "Try to eat something, please."
Pinkie Pie just stared at Twilight's food a while. She frowned. Nevertheless, she leaned down and took a piece of bread with her teeth and chewed on it. At that, they all seemed to relax. Twilight Sparkle couldn't help but notice Pinkie Pie's somber attitude. She seemed so worried about something, yet so detached, so un-Pinkie-Pie. Twilight couldn't help but laugh to herself. 
'I'm the one that should be worried, not her. All I do is worry.'
Rarity looked at Twilight and broke the silence. "Tell me about Spike," she said, "What's going on with him?"
Twilight hurried her chewing, swallowed and cleared her throat. "Back at Sweet Apple Acres, I discovered that I could… well, 'talk' to Spike with the sound amplification side effect of my barrier. I can't really explain how or why, but it worked. He's conscious in there, and, if we can get to a safe place, I'd like to study him."
Rainbow Dash leaned back in her chair. "I don't get it," she said, "What, did you hear his thoughts or something? I didn't think that was even possible."
Twilight shrugged. "I don't know how to explain it. I 'listened' to him. I just thought about it really hard is all." 
Rainbow Dash scoffed. "Hmm… Glad I don't have to deal with that magic stuff."
"After breakfast, we're heading to the town square," Twilight said, "Whether or not we find others, we'll focus on making those hazmat suits and seeing if we can get in contact with Princess Luna. Then, I'll study Spike."
Rainbow Dash shook her head. "What about Harbinger?"
'Walk up and talk to him.'
"Let's just avoid him for now. There's no use in confronting him until we've dealt with the storm and the darkness. I don't think we can take him out without the elements anyway, and if Princess Luna's reinforcements are coming, I'm sure they'll take care of him. Let's focus on the darkness for now."
"Yeah, okay," Rainbow Dash said.
Pinkie Pie looked over at Twilight. "Do you think Applejack and Fluttershy are okay?" she asked.
Twilight didn't answer immediately. She took a quite bite of her food and chewed, like that was what postponed the answer. She swallowed and frown. "I don't know, Pinkie. We don't even know where Fluttershy is."
"Shouldn't she be back at the library?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Not if she's moving around like Applejack was…" said Rarity.
"We can't think like this," Twilight said, "We need to just focus on one thing at a time. If we over-think, we'll just exhaust ourselves with worrying. Let's just finish our food and head to the town's square."
They continued to eat quietly before packing up and leaving.
It was colder outside, but the wind had died down. Still, it was much harder to see, and Pinkie's flashlight flickered and was dim. The town was quiet and the black puddles had collected by the sides of buildings like trash heaps in a story-book slum. Twilight rubbed her tongue against her teeth. It filled her muffled ears with a strange distorted rubbing sound, but that was better than the dead silence. She was so tired. Spike was actually pretty heavy and his chin dug quite uncomfortably into her side. At least it wasn't raining and she didn't have to maintain that barrier.
'I'm so sick of this.'
That feeling seemed universal. None of them were talking. Pinkie Pie had started a cheery hum when they had first set out, but that quickly died. The town wasn't very big, however, and they weren't far from the town hall.
Twilight felt a twitch in her cheek and she stopped. The group stopped behind her.
"Hey, what's up?" said Rainbow Dash.
"Don't you feel that?" Twilight said.
She was compelled to look up. Her heart rate picked up for whatever reason, and the distant echo of hooves on rooftops danced around her ears. The buildings around her seemed to exhale. Then there was a silhouette on the auburn roof to her right. 
"Hey!" she called.
The others turned to face that direction as the silhouette ducked away into stillness. Twilight heard Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie speaking, but she didn't really process what they were saying. She closed her eyes and felt like heavy breathing and eyes darting in disbelief reverberated from that direction. She struggled.
"I saw you!" she called again, "Hey, it's Twilight Sparkle, if you're listening. Can you hear me?"
"Twilight, I don't see anypony," Rainbow Dash whispered to her.
"No, I saw them!" said Rarity, "Wait a bit! I know they're there!"
"What if it's Harbinger?" whispered Pinkie Pie.
"It wasn't big enough," said Rarity, "Besides, he flies. Why would he hide up on a roof?"
"It's okay, we're not infected!" Twilight shouted again, "We're looking for others. We just might have a way to reverse all this!"
Somepony was up there. Twilight could feel them.
The silhouette reappeared as a pony in black stained rain gear. It cried out in a shaky female voice, "Stay there! I'm coming down."  Then, she disappeared again.
"What was that all about?" said Rainbow Dash.
"We weren't the only ones to make it through this," Twilight said, "Whomever she is, she's used to being cautious."
They stood there and waited for a few minutes. Simply standing there made Twilight nervous. Her heart raced and she contemplated setting Spike down, but never got around to it. The silhouette emerged soon from an alleyway near them. She wore a tattered patchwork rain gown that covered her head and back, as well as thick black boots. She pulled her hood down.
"Hey, it's Cheerilee!" said Pinkie Pie.
"Where on Earth have you girls been?" Cheerilee said. She was scuffed up with her share of scraps, and her coat had scatter black stains all over it.
"It's a long story," Twilight said, "But we have hopeful news. Are you among the ponies hiding out in the town hall?"
Cheerilee blinked. "Why… yes! How did you know?"
"Princess Luna told me."
Cheerilee cocked her head. "Princess Luna? She's okay?"
Twilight nodded her head. 'I don't know. I haven't heard from her in a while.'
"Yeah, I've been keeping contact with her. Could you take us to the town hall. I've got news for everypony."
Cheerilee nodded but eyed Spike nervously. "Yeah… but what about him? How long has he been like that?"
Pinkie Pie shook her head and smiled. "No, he's different!"
Cheerilee cocked her head. "Different?"
Twilight nodded and smiled. "I'll explain everything later."
"Right," Cheerilee said, "Well, follow me then…"

---

The interior of the town hall was quite somber. Sleeping bags and boxes of dried wheat were scattered around the atrium. Bruised cloaks like Cheerilee's hung upon hooks near the door. The air was musky and this place was dimly lit. There was also a large hole in the ceiling that exposed part of the atrium to the sky. Nopony loitered beneath it.
There were maybe a dozen ponies sheltered there. They seemed focused on their work. Some kept track of the supplies and some mended to the damages sustained by the structure. They all took notice of Twilight's group and Cheerilee showed them inside. They gave exuberant gasps and whispered hopefully into each others ears before more stern members hushed them and hurried them back to work.
Twilight sighed. 'No pressure…'
"The mayor will want to see you," Cheerilee said. She motioned towards a hallway on the left side of the atrium. 
"Thanks," Twilight said with a smile.
Cheerilee did not return the smile. She looked at the other ponies nervously than whispered in Twilight's ear. "Do you really think you can fix this."
Twilight bit her tongue and held her breath. 'No.'
"…I think we have a good chance, yes."
Cheerilee back away and nodded somberly. "I wish you all the luck in the world," she said. She turned away and attended to other duties.
Twilight's back hurt. She turned to her friends. "Alright, everypony, I think we're close but we're not out of the woods yet. Don't give up on me now," she said.	
They all nodded wearily. 
"We're with you until the end, Twilight," Rainbow Dash said.
Twilight smiled. "Let's see the mayor."
Twilight set Spike down on a nearby table, and her friends settled their supplies and saddle bags beside him. They then entered the hallway Cheerilee had pointed them to. The hallway was fairly dark, although light shimmered from doorways to different offices on either side. The door at the end belonged to the Mayor, and it was cracked open, more luminous and echoed with muffled voices. As they approached it, they heard strange noises in the rooms on either side of them. Each door had a mighty lock. 
Twilight shook a deep sense of foreboding and simply entered the Mayor's office. As she opened the door, the voices inside quickly hushed, and the two occupants quickly shifted their attention towards her. 
"Mayor Mare! Zecora! It's nice to see both of you!" Twilight exclaimed.
Zecora merely smiled at them. Mayor Mare, however, lit up and got up from her desk. She approached them.
"Princess Twilight Sparkle!" she said, "Words cannot express how relieved I am to see you. We were starting the fear Equestria's royalty had forgotten about us! …If, um, that is, if you were all still upright."
Twilight breathed out. Her royal disposition was returning. "On behalf of the Equestrian Royalty, I sincerely apologize for what you've been through. I… We would've come sooner if…"
She paused. 'Should I tell them? I'm not their salvation and the Equestrian Royalty has no firm grasp on the situation. Princess Celestia is…'
"'If?' If what?" Mayor Mare asked.
Twilight sighed. "If we, too, weren't beset so heavily by what has happened."
Mayor Mare pined. "But… but royal forces are coming to rescue us, right?"
'I guess it's better to be honest.'
"Princess Luna has gone for help and that help should be arriving any day," Twilight said, "But for now we-"
"'Any day!?'" Mayor Mare bellowed, "Why, it's been three days already! I don't know how much more I can handle here! The hope that you all would be coming to rescue us is all that has kept us going!"
"Hey, let Twilight talk!" Rainbow Dash shouted.
'Rainbow, please…'
"…Be quiet," Twilight snapped.
Rainbow Dash glared at her.
"Forgive me, Mayor," Twilight said, "I sympathize with your position but you must understand that these events are like nothing we've ever faced before."
"Madam Mayor, Twilight Sparkle's words are true," Zecora said calmly. "I'd relax and listen to her if I were you."
Mayor Mare frowned. "Alright, alright, I apologize for my outburst," she said. "Please, tell me what you have to tell me."
"…The situation is dire, Mayor. I won't lie to you," Twilight began. "But it is not hopeless. The last time I was in communication with Princess Luna, she told me those she'd gone to ask for help were coming. In that regard, it's only a matter of time. However, our principle challenge now is the storm itself, not Harbinger."
The Mayor cocked her head. "Harbinger?"
Twilight nodded. "That's what we've taken to calling the one who carries the storm. You've seen him, haven't you?"
"Many of our scavengers say they saw such a carrier in the sky," Zecora said, "For such an ominous figure, the name 'Harbinger' might apply."
The Mayor nodded. "Please, continue."
Twilight nodded. "As you no doubt have noticed, the rain changes ponies - freezes them. Some of our own have been taken by the storm."
"Yes, I have seen it. I have studied it myself," Zecora said, "Many hours I have spend examining their health."
Twilight turned to her. "You've studied the infected?"
Zecora nodded. "Yes, I have. I have seen those the storm has claimed. But I feel your interpretation of such has been inappropriately named. It is not that way - they do not grow sick, shake or weep. They grow sick and quiet. I believe they sleep. Yet, they awake shortly after; some burrow, some wander and some attack. Their motions are all eclectic. There's no pattern I can track."
"How do you know all this?" Twilight asked.
Mayor Mare motioned her head towards the hallway. "Did you notice the locked offices on your way here?"
Twilight nodded.
"We put some ponies that got the rain on them in there a few days ago. They turned and we took to studying them," the Mayor said, "Nothing unethical of course! We don't hurt them. We just wanted to know if we could treat them."
"Can you?" Twilight asked.
Zecora shook her head. "My potions are all useless. This condition they cannot sway. I fear the worldly forces of nature this ailment does not obey."
Twilight nodded. "That's because nothing is physically wrong with them. You said it yourself, Zecora. They're sleeping. The infection is all in their heads!"
Mayor Mare cocked her eyebrow. "What? Then why do they get up and move around?"
Twilight shrugged. "They're sleepwalking. Their behavior must correlate with whatever they're dreaming about."
She turned to Zecora. "I've studied the infection a bit myself. You see, it has to do with fear. When the infected pony grows fearful, they turn completely back and begin dreaming. They don't need to be cured, they need to wake up."
"How do you know this?" the Mayor asked.
"It was Spike, I… heard his thoughts," Twilight said. She shuttered at how foolish this sounded out loud. "The rain got on him and he went under soon. I don't know how I did it, but I listened to him and I heard him. He told me what he was seeing. He said he say us abandoning him. That's what he was afraid of."
"What a mysterious power you seem to have found," Zecora said, "Still, we've more information now that you've come around. Where is this Spike the storm does so affect. Perhaps together, the spell's cure we could detect."
Twilight Sparkle nodded. "That's one of the reason I came here, actually. I wanted to study Spike more."
"Bring him to this office after you and your own have a rest," Zecora said, "We shall conduct our research when we're both at our best."
"Zecora's right," Rarity said. She looked at Twilight. "You're no good to anypony if you're exhausted. Get some rest, Twilight. The three of us will find something to do."
Twilight nodded. "Okay, I'll take a breather. Don't get into trouble, you three."
"Don't worry about us," Pinkie Pie said, "I'm sure there's something around here we could help out with."
"…Maybe patch up that big hole for starters," Rainbow Dash grumbled.
"Sounds like a plan, you guys," Twilight said, "We'll see about finding Fluttershy and Applejack as well as collecting the Elements when the time comes. Until then, we do our best to help out the ponies here."
They returned to the atrium and split up. Twilight Sparkle went alone to the table where she'd left Spike. His face was almost calm and there was something oddly tranquil about him. Still, Twilight couldn't help but feel nervous. She went to pick him up again, but her hoof slipped past the blanket and onto his skin. Panic struck her and she whipped her hoof away from the stinging could.
The black residue remained.
"Oh no," she whispered trepidatiously to herself. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!"
She stared helplessly at the black spot on her hoof. Her heart raced.
"Not now," she lamented in a hushed, wheezy voice, "Not now! Not now!"
She closed her eyes.
'Calm down. Calm down. It's alright. It's okay. We can think our way out of this. Just don't panic. That's what triggered it.'
Twilight took deep breaths and looked around at the busy ponies all throughout the room. Luckily, none of them seemed to have noticed. She brought her infected hoof down and sat at the table.
'We've got time. We've got time. Oh, but how much time? This can't be happening to me right now. This can't be. It isn't supposed to be happening. We were turning it around! We were on our way out. No, no, no!!'
She looked at Spike as she pined. She covered her mouth with her other hoof and fought back tears and their choking accompaniment. She continued to take deeper and deeper breaths to calm herself down. Her heart still pounded.
'What would they have expected me to do anyway - looking at me like I'm some white knight. I've got no clue how this works, how long before it takes me or why Harbinger-'
She paused and ceased her whimpering. A strained idea light up in her brain. 
"Harbinger…" she whispered.
'Walk right up and talk to him. What could I possibly lose?'
She considered telling the others her awful condition and awful idea, but she couldn't bear to do it. It would be like admitting how little control she had on the situation. She picked herself up and choked down her impulse to whine. She eyed the other ponies nervously and slipped out when nopony was looking. 
She stood alone outside the doors and immediately wanted to retreat back inside, but she couldn't. She just stood there and allowed herself to cry. It was a strange eruption of tears that subsided relatively quickly, like her body just wanted to get it over with. She breathed out and looked all around. 
She could at least attempt to do some good before she turned.

---

It had gotten noticeably cold. The stale air seemed to bite at her. Twilight's leg stung.
'It's okay. It's okay. We just need to find Harbinger and make him fix it.'
She breathed out and suppressed her panic. Her eyes were pretty well adjusted to the dark and she decided the best place to start looking for Harbinger would be the library. She figured such would be a win-win; if he were there, she could walk up and talk to him. If not, she could look for the Elements of Harmony.
'Like that would matter. I don't think I can reverse whatever spell that is. Not to mention the difficulty in returning to Sweet Apple Acres and trying to cure Applejack. Oh, just don't think about. Don't think about it. It's okay, Twilight. Everything's going to work out.'
She walked alone through the quiet town. Every step she took pounded at her. The further she got, the more this all seemed like a bad idea.	
'This isn't a storybook. You have no idea if everything's going to work out.'
It wasn't windy, at least. Still, the storm had sat eerily still the past few hours, like it was just waiting for something. Twilight Sparkle did her best to just shake off that foreboding thought as little more than nerves, but such a twisted knot of anxiety rested on her guts. She felt like a raincloud herself. She was all set to burst.
'Can't think like that. It isn't like I have much of a choice.'
She winced and impulsively looked back at her leg. The dark patch basically taunted her.
She soon arrived at her library, as sullen as it looked now. She paused for a few seconds and decided to look around for Harbinger. And sure enough, there he was right above her. He danced among the clouds above her. He was flying around in circles.
Twilight rested her eyes and calmed her nerves.
'No going back now.'
"Harbinger!" she called out. A purple shockwave then poured from her. She had triggered an accidental spell. Her shockwave targeted and struck him, and he dropped from the clouds frantically. The smokey darkness still trickled around him as he fell. He tried to land graciously, but his legs were weak and he fell to his side. It was shocking to see him behave this way.
He got up and looked at her. He just started blinking like she'd kicked his guts. His iridescent blue eye was blood shot and beset by dark lines, like he hadn't been sleep. Or, perhaps, like he'd been crying. He just stared at her incredulously and continued blinking. He was hunched over and trembled slightly.
Twilight stood there as taken aback as he seemed to be. All her words left her. He was not what she was expecting. Her leg stung.
"…What?" she whispered to herself.
He breathed heavily. "What… what do you want?" he said.
"You're… I wanted to talk to you," she said.
"Talk to… Why?" he asked. He began trembling worse than before. His words were shaky and unfocused. Twilight cocked her head slightly.
'Is he freaking out?'
"I just… I just wanted to know why. I just want to know why you're doing this," she said. She pointed to the dark spot on her leg. "I want to know why so I can fix it. This need to stop! Tell me how to stop it!" 
She began to panic as well, with all her little half baked plans falling apart one by one. Her throat felt like it was closing up and she could shake this awful high pitch squealing in her ears. 
He was quiet.
"Answer me!" Twilight shouted, "Tell me why! Why'd you have to do this to us!? Who are you anyway!"
His eye widened. It was like she was kicking his ribs. He choked and coughed at that. Then he sat down and whimpered.
"I… I was wrong," he said quietly, "I thought… I thought you all were…"
"You control to storm, right?" Twilight shouted. "You control the infection and the dreams. You can put an end to it, right? You… You can stop this, can't you!?"
"I don't know," he whispered. "I don't know."
"If you can't stop it than I can stop it, right?" Twilight was bordering hysterics now. "Tell me how to stop it and I will!"
"I… I…" he said.
"How do I stop it!?" Twilight cried.
Harbinger choked. "I-I… I don't know!" he said, "I thought I was in control! But… But this! The storm won't listen to me anymore!
"What!? What do you mean it doesn't listen to you!!"
"I…"
Twilight froze in place. That frozen look of fear burned through that covered face of his, and she felt like an ice bag had burst atop her stomach. The chill dripped down her belly and she brought her hoof to her face.
'Don't be afraid, that's what triggers it. Just don't be afraid.'
Her eyes twitched and she felt the chill on her leg spread all over her body. Her eyes were forced shut.
'Too late...'
Twilight's eyes stung. She winced and blinked, but every time she opened her eyes they stung worse. She instinctively teared up and was stiff. She rubbed her eyes and whimpered. Her shoulder muscles waned and her hind legs buckled. She fell to her side and continued to rub her eyes. The sound around her ears trickled and churned like a fingernail dragged across copper wiring. Twilight grit her teeth and tried to talk deep breaths.
"It isn't real," she told herself, "It's in my head!"
"It isn't real," called a voice outside. It sounded pained and underwater. "It's in your head! All in your head! You should've seen this coming!"
Twilight curled herself up. Her head stung. Her eyes were burning. All her muscles seemed to lock up. "Stop it!" she whispered.
She continued to try to calm herself down, but her chest murmured and her throat seemed to be closing up. The scraping and screaming sounds around her closed in. She tried to open her eyes again but she couldn't see anything through dust and tears. She felt wind begin to whip around her.
"Should've known better!" 
"Should've seen this coming!"
"Shouldn't be surprised!"
"Enough!" Twilight screamed. At that, it all seemed to stop.
Twilight caught her breath again. Her muscles relaxed and she felt herself on cold, smooth stone. She sighed, wiped tears from her eyes and dared to open them. There seemed nothing but darkness. She focused a good deal of her attention on maintaining her breathing so her chest wouldn't seize up again. She reached her front hooves out before her and felt around. There was only more cold stone.
Her eyes and hears adjusted and she herd a gale and violent storm far away and saw a wide plumage of twisting wind all around her. She seemed to be in the middle of a large twister. Everything seemed so lucid. She pulled herself up and peered around that empty place.
Then she saw the Harbinger in his decadence push his way through the contour of the twister far off in front of her. The black wind circled around him, and his exposed left eye was filled with what seemed like black steam. His dark tears streamed down the side of his face and his body twitched beneath his bandages.
Twilight shuddered but called out to him. "Harbinger!?"
He pulled closer to her and his twitching movements didn't seem real. Twilight bit her tongue in shock and fell back. He was in front of her now and leered over her. The twister began to move inward.
Twilight wiped her mouth and panted. "It's not real. It isn't real."
Harbinger slowly cocked his head to left, and she felt her head mirror his. He brought his head back up and bent it left. Hers followed. He leveled his head again and seemed to sport a wicked grin.
Twilight was speechless.
And so, attune to the noises of thunder, he spread his wings and lifted himself up into the air. Twilight Sparkle felt herself seize up as she rose up with him. The blackness leaked violently from Harbinger's eye as he cocked it to left again. His mouth fell open and ripped some of the bandages. It wasn't right. It was too wide, like his jaw wasn't attached correctly. 
The sounds of wind and thunder faded into the background before becoming completely inaudible. A bleak, chitinous lightning bolt shot up form Harbinger's horn and it spread to the twister. Everything began to spin. Twilight began to rotate with the harbinger revolving opposite of her so that he remain immediately across from her. She couldn't close her eyes. His remained on her.
Twilight's head and eyes stung. She felt a pain worming and slithering around her thoughts like track of a terrible sound. It felt like a harmony of chlorine rushing through her ears; like a bleak symphony stretching its rusted, melancholic strings across her body. 
To this noise, Harbinger chanted wearily, "Rain! Come down and fall forever…"
Heavy rain fell from the epicenter there. "Drain the dirt into the wasteland…"
Twilight was stiff and her mouth fell open. It was hard to breathe.
"Pray for sound to quiet the howling…"
'You could've avoided this.'
"Kneel to fade the day's corrosion."
'You didn't have to come here.'
"Crawl…depart onto perdition."
'All you would've had to do was wait.'
"Gray…upon the bruise within you…" 
'So afraid not to know. Couldn't let it be. Had to see it for yourself.'
Twilight felt sick to her stomach. 
'You could've just waited.'
"Feel ashamed to break! Feel afraid to wait forever!"  
Twilight fell into the same bleak darkness that had claimed the minds of so many others. 
> 15. Pinkie Pie: The Deluge
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	"Twilight! Where has she gone!?" Rainbow Dash shouted.
"Search where you like. She said she was getting Spike!" Zecora said.
Pinkie Pie was rummaging through the snacks she had tucked away in her saddlebag when the commotion began. She quickly swallowed the bits of cupcake and wiped. Without thinking, she whipped up her saddlebag and put it on.
"What's going on?" Rarity asked as the four of them gathered around near Spike.
"Twilight Sparkle was to gather Spike so that we may study what the infected fear. I do not know why she would disappear!" Zecora said.
Pinkie Pie frowned. There was something more sinister about the way the air felt. She was all twitchy.
"Well, where would she have gone?" Rarity said, "She has to be somewhere around here. She has to be."
"Oh, Twilight, what's gotten into your head?" Rainbow Dash mumbled.
No, there was something much worse. Everything had suddenly just felt wrong.
"Oooh, you guys, my knee's real pinchy!!" Pinkie Pie said.
A descending Shepard tone graced their ears. The sky bellowed above them. The air had gotten more humid. There was such a noticeable foreboding about it that they all were silenced. A thunderous grinding echoed throughout the soundscape inside and out, like the very earth itself was moan. Pinkie shuddered and her tail twitched twice.
"Twitch-y tail! Look out!" she cried.
Lightning struck the large hole in the roof. The scaffolding cracked and it widened. A plumage of dark lightning continued to strike the upside of the roof like fingers tearing the building open. It was painfully loud, like dynamite going off, and it did well to mask the screams of those inside. 
Panic slithered its way throughout the ponies as the wooden planks and concrete collapsed inward. They all spread out, and Rarity and Zecora were effectively cut off from Pinkie and Rainbow Dash. Those inside dashed madly towards the contours of the building. More lightning began to strike inside. Some ponies were hit and went dark immediately.
Everything was happening so quickly. Pinkie Pie called out for Rarity but heard nothing. She backed up slightly and just froze. The roof continued to collapse and she was stunned by that horrible noise of the lightning punning away at the building. She closed her eyes and whimpered.
"Make it stop!"
She then felt herself get swooped up by Rainbow Dash. She held her by her front underarms and burst out the front town. The storm came alive, albeit without rain, and lighting continuously struck the rooftops around them. 
"Rainbow!!" Pinkie Pie squeaked, "Rainbow, what's going on!?"
Rainbow Dash struggled to maneuver through the storm. "Be quiet, Pinkie!!" she shouted.
It was too late. Lightning struck Rainbow Dash's back. She hollered and dropped Pinkie Pie, who crashed onto the ground below.
Pinkie Pie awoke suddenly. Her head was in pain, and her vision blurred. She struggled to gather her bounds and focus in on her surroundings. The town around her was more calm and quiet than it had been before she lost consciousness, but it was still wrapped in a dreary touch of foreboding. The lightning had subsided, and she stood alone in the coldly light street. She quickly checked herself all around for any black rain, but miraculously found none. She scratched her head and blinked.
"Rainbow Dash!?" she called out into the night before her. Rainbow Dash did not answer.
Spying a shattered window in the building behind her, Pinkie Pie turned and quickly made her way inside. Upon entering the small home, she almost immediately herd drown out thumping from the floor above her. The sound was both dissolute and desperate, like the feeble attempts to drag one's injured body towards safety and salvation. Pinkie Pie did not hesitate to hurry upstairs towards the eerie source of the noise. As she approached the door the the room that contained it, the noise stopped.
She did not hesitate to hurry into the next room. 
"Dashie?!"
Before her, amidst debris and broken glass, Rainbow Dash lay still and stern, peering up at her with hollow, infected eyes like she was a beast or predator. Pinkie Pie shuttered at the sight, but moved in closer regardless. 
"…Dashie?"
Rainbow Dash scurried away from her quickly as she drew closer, propping herself up by one of the beds in the room. She was clearly injured, her exposed left shoulder mildly scrapped and cut. Yet she masked her pain with fierce eye contact, like a feral beast in the wild. Pinkie Pie was unnerved, but moved closer.
Rainbow Dash murmured and tried to flare her wings in a defensive showmanship, but she clearly strained. They barely lifted past her shoulders.
"Dashie." 
Pinkie Pie was filled with a foreboding, subtly well aware of the futility of her words. There was no point, but she pined and tried anyway
"Dashie, it's okay. You don't have to be afraid. It's me - Pinkie Pie! Your friend!"
Rainbow Dash showed no reaction to her soft words, and made all efforts to pull away from her. 
"No," Pinkie Pie whispered.
Rainbow Dash appeared more and more depraved and horrified. She desperately crawled away from Pinkie Pie. Pinkie Pie sunk back towards the door, feeling a slight rush of tears coming to her eyes. 
"Rainbow Dash, don't do this! Not you too…"
Pinkie Pie felt a despairing whimper escape her lips before bottling all emotion and preceding downstairs and out of the building. She collapsed down into the curb by the street, slouching down into herself as her mind rushed to process the various enfeebling stimuli and disparage she felt. There, in that place, she felt so alone. Such a feeling always caused debilitation in her head, forcefully usurping and replacing the fragments of logos for rushes of strong emotion.
Yet, from there, she drew from the withered well of determination that had been formed by the recent events. She conjured what strength she could from the fact that, despite everything, she'd made it this far. She suppressed all the negative emotion stirring in her chest, and resolved to press on. Suddenly, as she picked herself up from the curb, the foul beating of the wings belonging to the accursed harbinger of darkness flickered above her.
He didn't notice her, but landed down a few feet from the town hall. It was as if he was investigating all the noise. He had a soft stance about him. He was almost shaking.
She sneered at him and bellowed, "You stupid jerk! This is all your fault!!"
He winced when she shouted and turned around. He seemed horrified.
"I'm sorry," he said quietly. "…Sorry." He trembled and turned to leave.
"What!?" she shouted back, "After all this, you're just going to walk off? You can't just leave us all in a state like this. It isn't right… This isn't right! It's not how the story's supposed to end!"
"I'm sorry," he whispered. His words were even softer now, and he seemed very shaken. He winched and stared up at the clouds. "I'm sorry to leave you alone. I'm so sorry."
He backed away slowly. He lifted himself up and apologized again. He flew off in the direction of the library. The thunder and muck in the skyline seemed to subside, and the clouds appeared to begin to slowly disperse. However, it was still so dark.
Pinkie Pie shuttered. "…Alone?"
Those words sauntered into her gut like fallout. The shock soon settled around her as the town sunk back into its silence. The meek Harbinger was far off now. She felt such a foreboding, like the first leak spewing from the cusp of a great dam. Words of fear and panic fluttered into her mind as she began to make her way back towards the town hall. Her pace quickened more and more as she drew closer.
The hall stood demoralized and broken with it's roof and top floor exposed. The great wooden doors were cast asunder, laying defeated in the cold, dank mud surrounding the building. As she approached, she witness dim figures laying broken in the lawn, overcome with the infection that had ransacked the area. They trembled in their rain coats, shaking in the dirt before her. She attempted to call out to some, but the thralls lay still and silent. Her heart continued to thump as she approached the large vacant doorway leading into the large building.
Poking her head inside, she was greet with nothing but the shivering choir of absolute silence. The hallway leading up to the large conference room ahead remained dark and oblique. Small strains of light struggled to shove their way into the great chamber, softly illuminating the overturned chairs, tables and supplies as they lay torn and scattered. The hall was very quiet, a stark contrast to the terrible noises that had flooded the place earlier.
Then, from amidst the debris, Pinkie Pie heard a moan; Not one of physical pain, but the call of great vexation. She rushed over to it's source, and used all within her to cast aside bits of plank and scaffolding that covered the being lying under them. There, crumpled before her among the rubble, was Rarity. Apart for a few scrapes and bruises, the alabaster pony did not appear to be critically injured. She was, however, as dim and grey as Spike had been when they had brought him to this place.
"Rarity," she whispered, clearing out a path in what remained of the debris, "Are you alright?"
She did not respond and remained curled and sobbing in the fetal position. Her royal purple hair had lost it's firmness and was wrapped across her face. Pinkie Pie motioned to brushed it away, but pulled her hand back at the icy touch of Rarity's skin. She was so very cold and, apart from small whimpers, so very quiet.  
Pinkie Pie inhaled quickly and the trembling of her throat reflected in the soft noise of air entering her body. 
"I'm so sorry we left you here," she whispered, her eyes saddened by the obvious futility of her apology, "Rainbow Dash and I… we fell back upon gut instinct… survivalism and all that. It's scary how in a tight spot, your body can just… override your heart and mind, and make you forget…"
Rarity's movements were unaffected by Pinkie's words. A tear forced it's way onto the pink pony's cheek and ran down her head before releasing and dripping down to the floor. "I shouldn't make excuses…" Pinkie Pie continued, holding back tears, "No, we left you here. I… left you here and that was wrong. And I'm… so sorry. And now here I am, I'm the last one. It shouldn't be me… It should be you and Twilight and Applejack…. Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Spike… You can all handle this… better than me. I-I've never been very good at… being by myself."
Her attention was shifted onto the surrounding room. Dim figures, all in raincoats, appeared from the corners and from beneath the debris. They began to march mindlessly towards the door, fulfilling the apparent thrall-like role of the second stage of the harbinger's magic. Rarity herself quit her sobbing and picked herself up, pushing past Pinkie Pie to join them. Pinkie Pie sobbed herself, watching her join the husks of Fluttershy and Zecora as they marched out of the building. Only Spike remained in that big empty room. He still flickered, despite everything.
Pinkie Pie sat in place, staring at the extraneous motions of Spike as he lay tucked under a table. Only the sound of her own breathing filled the corners of the decimated hallway, and as the indulgent self pity subsided, she was left with a curious thought: Whatever had happened to Twilight Sparkle?

--- 

She looked around for Twilight for what felt like days. Her hooves ached and she kept swallowing in attempt to shake the feeling that her throat was caving in. Things were so uncomfortably arid and cold. It was too quiet and Harbinger was nowhere to be found. She didn't care. Twilight was her last shot at not being by herself.
After a while she came across the library with a familiar figure curled up on the ground in front of it.	
"Oh no," she whimpered, "Not you. Not you. I can't be the only one that's left…"
She cried over Twilight's twitching black body. 
"You said this wouldn't happen. You said it wouldn't be down to just me. I don't want to be here. I don't want to be last one left. You were the one that was supposed to fix everything. What am I supposed to do?"
Twilight Sparkle was so quiet. That simply made Pinkie Pie cry harder.
"You don't even know what I'm saying."
Pinkie Pie collapsed backwards in that place, among the sorrow and the mud. The cobblestone beneath her trembling form sighed in sympathy, mimicking the cold desolation that filled her mind. Pinkie Pie felt like she was zoning out for a bit, but then her eyes spilled to the shock that poured down on her soul. She turned away from Twilight and quietly sauntered back into the center of the scorched, dry town. Pinkie Pie sat in place, whimpering. Soon, in that place, she released terrible moans and cries of emotion pain. Pinkie Pie sobbed.
She soon struggled to pick herself up. Everything was so quiet. She couldn't help but whimpered. She tried to pick herself up, but could not. She couldn't help by cry. Her throat ached and she bawled and sputtered.
"No!" she screamed, "This isn't real! This isn't happening! No! No, no, no."
She clasped her head in her hoofs and felt mocked; cheated. Her sobs when bitter soon. She felt starved and weak. "It isn't real. I'll wake up soon. It's not real. I'm not here! I simply am not here!!"
The thunder bellowed in the distance.
"SHUT UP!" she screamed, "Shut your stupid thunder FACE!"
She stood up and fell down again. The waters of anger brushed up against her. She felt frail and warm.
"ENOUGH!" she shouted at sky. "What else do you WANT?!"
Everything was silent.
"I don't wanna BE here!" she screamed again. She shuddered and spat. "Stupid WEATHER! What, we got beat by weather!?!"
She screamed awhile longer, then laughed. She didn't know what else to do but laugh. She just sat outside in the gloomy town and laughed. There was nothing else that could be done.
So she left. She went south.    
She walked past the buildings and the sullen earth. She felt like she faded out, like the very planet didn't even notice her. The infected wandered around about her, but she never minded them. They simply ignored her. She felt cold. Her legs were shaking. Her eyes festered and stung. Her hair was flat. Her mouth was dry. Her stomach hurt.
The town was soon behind her, and she wondered among the train tracks that stretched out among the earth. They only went one direction. They only lead to one outcome. She found herself yearning and she hated that kind of singularity. She drifted beneath the silver sky and never smiled. Pinkie Pie walked and retreated inside, like a filly pulling the blankets up over her head. She felt sick and she desperately wanted that to go away.
She soon found her way beyond the Harbinger's storm and found herself among a deep, thick fog. She still followed the railway tracks and the cozen moon remained the sky above. She sputtered and wanted distance. She wanted to disappear. She wanted it to stop. 
After the fog, she wandered southwest, away from the tracks, past the Ghastly Gorge and into the desert. She must of been walking for hours now, and her thoughts tormented her.  
The desert's sands stretched out far away, and said nothing. She felt weak. Her tears subsided and gave way to bitter ventilation as she felt her lungs and heart flutter. Her hooves went numb as her steps further out into that desert became more harsh and forceful. She pulled herself to a stop for a moment to release a curtailing, raspy shriek. She stood there in the reverb. That warm, arid place seemed a terrible anger. Then that stopped. Then Pinkie Pie wept for all she knew. She wept, like for death, like all she clanged to fell upon her and she watched all she loved cross into where she could not follow. She sat and stared long into the unknowable future, and cataloged all she had wasted.
"You know everything about everypony, Pinkie Pie," she said to herself, "You've learned and remembered what makes them laugh, cry or get scared, and you can always cheer them up. But where are they now that you need cheering up? What do all the other ponies know about you? Do you think they took time to remember all the things about you that you remember about them? Do they know what makes you laugh, cry or get scared? Of course, they don't. And now that you need them more then ever, they're gone. They're all gone. They forgot about you, Pinkie Pie. They didn't even know your name. How could they not even remember your name?"
She cursed all she knew and coughed. She quietly hated everything then. She quietly wished she had never met them. She coughed again like she was choking. A flash behind her drew her attention. Far away to the north, the Harbinger's storm was visibly violent. Then it went quiet.
Then, Harbinger's words entered her mind once more: "I have come forth conquering, and to conquer." 
She felt conquered. 
Soon, she came on upon a small hill, and, on the other side, she found something unexpected.
"Discord!?"
There he was, wandering in the desert like she was. He was not dark like the others in the town. He seemed surprised to hear his own. He looked around eagerly for the source, and, when his eyes happened on Pinkie Pie, he smiled slightly. "Oh! Hey, Pinkie Pie!"	
Pinkie Pie felt perdition brush away. She was soft bubble of reserved joy then, and burst forth into a hug with the soon startled Discord.
"Discord!" she cried, "Hey, you remember me!"
Discord remained reserved, stiffening and pulling back at the sudden and uncomfortable sign of rowdy affection. 
"Well, of course I remember you," he sputtered dismissively, "It is hard for one to forget the bouncy pink pony partially responsible for confining one into stone. Harder still when that same pink pony is responsible for releasing one after months of confinement and expect one to be her very best friend. You're acting quite strangely, pink pony. And for you, that's saying a lot."
Tears returned to Pinkie's tired eyes, but this time ones of relief. She pulled away from her hug, and sniffled as she struggled to regain her composure. "What… why are you all the way out here? What happened to you?"
Discord grimaced at the question, and he face became painted with grave vindication. "That shadowy mass launched me far out here. I couldn't find my way back, so I stopped here to take a rest. This desert is truly dreadful, isn't it? I mean, there's hardly anything out here. There's no fun to be had at all. Curious thing though, this place looks so very familiar…"
"I'm so very sorry to hear that, Discord. Such awful things have been going on in the last few days, huh?" Pinkie Pie responded earnestly. She reveled in the social contact.
"Have they?" Discord grumbled with a quasi-disinterested tone, "I'm out of the loop, I suppose. I've been stuck out here for who knows how long. It's been the same boring thing over and over, like an endless cycle. Nothing's more terrifying than such, I'll tell you."
Pinkie's eyes flickered. An idea buzzed around in her head, but it was distant and she could quite put it to conscience yet. As if instinctively, she reached into her saddle bag and pulled out a bright red balloon and worked all the air she could muster into it. Finishing her work, she tied the loop around it and handed it over towards the grumbling, grumpy Discord.
"Here, take this," she said softly, pushing the the balloon his direction, "Hopefully it will brighten up your bleak desert."
He took the balloon from her with a rare look of soft happiness. As he held it and looked at it, he began to snicker to himself. He then snapped his fingers rather sharply, and the balloon transformed instantly to a colorful cinderblock that crashed down into the undisturbed sands below with a powerful thud. Discord laughed at the spectacle, and snapped his fingers once again. The cinderblock changed again to a pink bowling pin that lifted itself up into the air before them like a rocket ship before exploding suddenly into an array of bright, vivid colors.
"Now there's some chaos, haha!" Discord said brightly between his chuckles. He seemed lighter in that moment. Then Pinkie Pie's idea struck her like a lightning bolt.
"Celestia have mercy," she whispered to herself. It all clicked; the legend, the curses, the rain, the fear - everything. "It's so simple."
Discord shifted his eyes her way before seising his laughter. He was visibly disappointed that she had not joined in the fun. 
"You know, for the 'element of laughter', you sure are a buzz kill today, Pinkie Pie." he muttered sarcastically.
"Laughter. It's so simple!" she shouted eagerly.
"Huh?" Discord asked.
"The darkness makes one's greatest fears come true, right!? And I know enough about everypony to figure out their fears, and giving Discord his balloon broke his fear of bored and samey-ness!"
"Are you even talking to me?" Discord questioned, now perturbed and annoyed.
"So all I have to do is 'break' everypony's fears and they'll go back to normal!" Pinkie's voice grew in volume as she spoke, her eyes widening and her flat hair springing upward in eclectic places.
"Uh, 'scuse me? Pinkie? Recall I've been stuck out here for the past while, I don't know what's happening or what you're talking about," Discord said.
"The darkness!" Pinkie screamed with excitement, "It causes fear, so we just have to make them overcome that fear and the spell will be broken! Giggle at the ghosty and all that!! Don't you see, Discord?? If I can break my friends out of their fear spells, then we can use the elements of harmony against the dark harbinger and save the city!!"
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Discord shouted, "I've literally been alone in the desert this whole time."
"Let's go!" Pinkie Pie shouted, "Let's get back there and finish this, Discord! I know what to do, I know how to break everypony out of their fears!!"
Pinkie Pie bounced in place for a bit, before turning herself around and making off towards Ponyville. She didn't even check to see if Discord was following.
Discord sat by himself for a bit, his face red with confusion. "Right, well," he said to himself, "It's not like I have much choice in the matter here. I mean it's blindly follow the insane pink pony or sit in the desert for all eternity, so I guess my choice is already made. Right. Off we go." 
He quickly picked himself up and pressed on after Pinkie Pie, who had already crossed the hill. The Harbinger's storm bellowed in the distance.
	  
> 16. Pinkie Pie: Amelioration
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Pinkie Pie and Discord occupied a small hill outside the guarded borders of town, watching. Discord peaked at the bleak sentries surrounding the sorry town beyond. Many infected gathered there, like they were patrol. Pinkie Pie wiggled her nose and thought. Sneaking past them would probably be safer. 
"What's with the spooks?" Discord asked.
"Oh, if you touch that rain you go into some kind of freaky fear coma," Pinkie Pie said.
"Seriously!? That's just great," Discord said, "Is 'coma' the right word? Those ponies seem to be out and about…"
"Yeah, after a while your eyes turn white and you attack ponies or whatever."
Discord frowned. "That doesn't make any sense. What, does the fear coma just do whatever it has to to make our lives difficult?"
"Pretty much," Pinkie Pie said, "That's why we've got to get in there and stop this thing!"
Discord scoffed. "Yeah, I hate to be 'that guy' here, but what exactly is your plan? Is there a plan?" he asked, "I mean, I don't think the power of friendship is going to cut it this time.
"We have to get to the town hall!" Pinkie Pie said, "Spike's in there and he's our best bet. He, like, wasn't as infected as others were. I think I can break him out like I did you!"
"Once again, hate being 'that guy', but I wasn't really 'infected', as you say, I was just bored in the desert. That's a real fatal flaw in your plan. Like an elephant-in-the-room size flaw in your otherwise brilliant and completely feasible plan…"
"Well, then we're testing a… a… oh, what's that science-y word Twilight always uses… A hippopotamus! No…. hypo-noose. Yeah, we're testing a hypo-noose!"
"An 'hypothesis'?!" Discord retorted, "You're having us waltz into happy-go-lucky infected zombie land on a 'hypothesis'?"
"Have a bit of faith!!" Pinkie Pie snapped, whipping her head towards him, "It'll work, I just know it! I feel it in my gut!"
"Great, okay. If it's not the power of friendship, it's gut feelings and hypotheses," Discord sputtered exhaustedly, collapsing back into the grass upon the hill. He ran his hand through his hair. "Oh, what the heck, it'll be fun. Let's do it!" He popped back up and nestled down beside Pinkie Pie as she surveyed. "So, how are we getting in, boss?"
Pinkie Pie pressed her hoof into her chin and pondered. Then, with the flash of a light bulb inside her skull, she dug deep into her saddlebag and pulled out a balloon and a few scraps of paper.

----

To the shock of the bleak sentries in town, a bright red hot air balloon suddenly peaked up over the rocky ridges to the south. It's bright and saturated colors defaced the dark skies as it sailed above them swiftly and silently. Breaking ranks, a few of the infected pegasi quickly took flight and viciously assaulted the floating monument; biting, ripping and slashing all manner of holes and ruptures into it's dome structure. Air bellowed out as the drove the scarlet beast down into a nearby hillside.
The rest stood fast, and did not adjust themselves to fill the significant holes in their guarding structure. And so, they failed to spot the hooded figures that passed thru their ranks, sneaking deep into the grim territory beneath the stormy skies above. Pinkie Pie and Discord turned and watched their bright red distraction crumple into itself and crash down soundlessly and effortlessly into the distance. However, they had no anticipated the return of the pegasi that had assaulted the balloon, for soon - in that very moment - the returning raiders descended upon them like wild fire. 
"Bad news, boss!!" Discord shouted.
He held fast, and magically hurled nearby rocks and debris towards the invaders, but their numbers increased as they flocked upon the two like ants upon a weakened feast, kicking and pecking all the while. The two did all they could to stay together and fend off the attackers, but were simply overwhelmed in a short time.
But then, eagles, vultures and creatures with all manner of talons swooped in from the skies above, sending the wings and bodies of the fiendish infected harpies to the ground. The dirt and grass parted as gophers, mice and all emerge from the underground to bind the infected, to keep them still and quiet. Pinkie Pie and Discord, who gathered together battered, baffled yet joyous, stood amazed at nature's uprising. Beasts, wolves and bears came from the sidelines and down from the hills into the field. Together, as if summoned by nature herself, the animals rounded and gathered the infected, pinning them down and binding them in moss, dirt and vine. They repeatedly motioned for the two to continue and press on into the town, and they did not waste the opportunity.
"What's this?" Discord said.
"Who cares!? Let's go!" Pinkie Pie shouted. 
Pulling away from the fray, the town pushed their way into the fractured town, navigating it's twisted streets and debris. The buildings around them seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, and the ravaged town relaxed a little. Homes and shops stood taller, and the clouds above lightened ever-so-slightly like the cracks of a barrier giving way to a powerful force behind it. Pinkie Pie found herself running with such a purpose thru the memorized streets, winding and turning, that all the stimuli - the sights and sounds - of the town faded into the muffled background. She could hear the cracks and sparks of wires and lanterns, as well as the acerbic quips of disapproval from Discord behind her, but none of it registered within her. She was so focused, more focused than she had ever been before, and thrilled.
After several minutes of nonstop motion, Pinkie Pie and Discord arrived at the battered town hall, barely standing after the assault that had occurred earlier. Pinkie Pie stopped in her tracks, peering at the wreck with withered, tired eyes that - somehow - became filled with determination and gusto. Between dreary, tired pants and what felt like absurd amounts of coursing adrenaline, she felt such a call to press forward, like she was being summoned.
"Stopped? We stopped! Why did we stop?" Discord quipped in a hasty manner. He had spoken often throughout the long run here, dispute how Sisyphean his attempts at conversation had been. To his utter lack of surprise, Pinkie Pie brushed off the questions and raced into the building. Discord was quick to follow, albeit filled with the mumbles and grumbles or both discontent and subtle regret.
The conference room was quiet and sordid now. It's upturned tables and piles of rock, rubble and concrete made the area akin to a tomb or an ancient ruin. Apart from Pinkie Pie's panting, the room created almost no audible noise - no crumbling or ticking nor sounds of water or residence. Silence is the most unsettling sound of all, and it served no other purpose there then to reinforce the despairing acts that had taken place there. Discord stopped at the entrance to the hall, despite the fact that Pinkie Pie and rushed in, and stood in unprecedented, uncharacteristic awe. He was taken aback by the sheer, pointless destruction and the apparent malice behind it. 
"What a shock," he mumbled, "Never thought I'd be this affected by pointlessness. That's kind of my department…" 
He felt strangely sad for a moment, then protective, and he had no idea why.
Pinkie Pie was quick to pick thru the rubble that lie upon a specific table. She diligently cleared the way, and stuck her head deep down into the darkness underneath. She grabbed Spike - who was still nestled in his quilts - and drug him out from his respite under that table and into the dim moonlit room. She sat back suddenly, as if stumped. Discord moved to her side, and peered down at the bleak little specimen.
"So, now what?" Discord asked.
"Hmmm…" Pinkie Pie rubbed her hoof on her chin, "I have no idea. I didn't think about what I'd do when I got here. I knew what I was going to do before here and after here, but not when I was here-here." 
She sat puzzled for a bit, her left eye twitching in calculation, extrapolation and all other manners of Pinkie Pie level reasoning.
Discord released a quick sigh of disappointment. Although he had anticipated - and frankly expected - this journey to fail completely, he was still genuinely discouraged. He began to move about the fractured facility, mumbling to himself, but keeping a close watch on the antics of Pinkie Pie as she sat in her calculation.
Pinkie's mind buzzed with admirable gusto. 
'What does Spike fear?' she thought, 'Growing up? He did run off to join some dragons once… No, that's not fear, that's dissatisfaction…. Hmmm… What happened when he turned? He was alone with Twilight Sparkle while the rest of us went to talk to scary ghost fillies… the Twilight admitted to falling asleep… and he was alone. Is he scared of being alone? No, that's no fun. That's my thing, I guess. And he was fine with being alone when we went to the Crystal Empire…. Hmm… he was by himself and he wrote that paper… the paper!'
What had happened to that paper? Nopony had even read it, really. Pinkie Pie thought back. Nopony had grabbed it - they were attacked. There was no time to grab it. But she could see it, in her head. She had glanced at it when they entered the room - it was scribbled and nonsensical. No, but there were a few words, or at least scraps of words, she had made out. She could see them in her head, but couldn't see them just yet. 'A…. a-something…' she thought, ' aban….. left behind….abandoned… abandonment!!'
"Spike fears abandonment!!" she shouted vibrantly. The sudden sound scared Discord ever-so-slightly, as he jump in place.
"What are you on about?!"
"Twilight was alone with Spike…'alone with Spike' - that's contradictory… anyway, Twilight was alone with Spike but then Princess Luna made her fall asleep so they could talk, and Spike felt abandoned cos he was left behind and alone! That's how it kicked it!" Pinkie Pie sputtered, "No, but he was aware it was kicking in. He wasn't fully afraid, that's why he's different - not fully infected, I mean. He was aware it was happening… so the darkness performed a botched operation. It rushed things. So my hypo-noose is that if we can make Spike unafraid again, he'll snap out of it!!"
Discord was visibly confused by her rapid explanation, but she payed him little mind. She was talking to herself, mostly. She turned to Spike then, his form still flickering, and hollered, "Spike!! Spike, it's okay! You're haven't been abandoned!! We're all here with you!!"
She stared at him intently, but nothing happened. Discord's eyes shifted between the two, but his face drew downwards. 
"Uh, hello?" he said.
She said nothing.
"Once again, hate being 'that guy', but I don't think it's working."
Pinkie Pie stared a bit longer, her Pinkie-specific scientific gaze withstanding. Without any feel of bitterness or scorn, her head shifted back into her downward-staring thought-mode.
"No, no, no…" she said, "My words won't carry the weight. Action's speak louder than words, perhaps? No, it can't be me… Twilight! or Rarity! He likes them best… It's all in the emotion, who or what will make Spike feel un-abandoned. We need Twilight or Rarity!! …oh, but how do we un-infect them?"
It was cold in that room, suddenly, and both their eyes were soon drawn upwards to the skyline. The clouds were cracking, and a figure could be seen up in the night sky, flying east. It passed in front of the moon, and was dark and noticeable feminine. Pinkie Pie's eyes widened. "Princess Luna!" she murmured to herself. "Discord! What's east of here?" she shouted.
"Oh, I don't know, boss. Let me pull out my limited edition Equestria map I keep with me at all times! You're the eidetic one here, why don't you know?"
"We have to head eastward! It's Princess Luna, I know it!" Pinkie Pie shouted. 
And with that, she raced for the exit as if no fatigue or weariness moved within her at all. And, with a sigh, Discord began to follow. He so disdained being led about like a hound on a leash, at the mercy of Pinkie's 'hypo-nooses.' Pinkie Pie stopped just outside of the door, as if she was waiting for him, but her whole figure pointed eastward and up at the large structure nestled gently into the mountains thereof.
"Canterlot!" she exclaimed, "Luna's headed for Canterlot! Golly, only Spike 'n Rarity have been up there…."
"What do you suppose lovely Luna is doing in that place, boss?" Discord asked.
Pinkie's eyes drifted off in thought for a moment and the corners of her mouth tightened. "Oh, Princess Celestia, of course! Let's go!"
Pinkie Pie took off. Discord scoffed and followed.
"Hey! HEY!! I can fly us there, you know!!"

---

Pinkie Pie and Discord flew to the silent city of Canterlot. They landed in the streets and marveled. It was simply lifeless. The once bright city felt so uncanny. Even Pinkie Pine found herself uncomfortable. Discord was quiet.
The two weaved their way through the streets. Pinkie Pie hummed a little impromptu song to herself uneasily in a futile attempt to lighten the atmosphere. They then approached the mighty castle at the edge of the eldritch city, still following the bright moon ahead. As they neared the bottom of the entree stairs, Pinkie Pie quickened her pace and raced up them and into the door. 
"Princess Luna!?" she hollered.
"Ouch!" Discord cried, "Really, screaming!? Why don't you just scream, 'Hey, darkly spooks, we're over here!?'"
Pinkie Pie shrugged him off and entered the castle. 
"Careful, there's some glass on the floor," Pinkie Pie said.
"Still can fly!" Discord said.
A path was cleared up into the throne room, and the dim lights of lanterns lit the hallway there. Pinkie Pie took off up into the hallway towards the throne room. Discord did indeed follow, but as he moved behind her he repaired the stain glass windows magically and restored the lights behind them as they moved. As the two entered the throne room, he conjured a light and sent up into the ceiling. The room was bright now, but with no trace of Luna. Celestia still lied crumpled in place in the corner of the room. She was grey now, as grey as the others, but she did not march off to the horde as they had. Her eyes her shut, and she was still like she was sleeping.
"Princess Luna!?!" Pinkie Pie shouted the loudest she could manage, "Are you here?! We followed the moon!!" 
Her words echoed throughout the empty room, and they both sat and waited in silence for a bit. 
"Is that Pinkie Pie!?" Luna cried. She dropped from a hiding place up in the ceiling. "Good graces, I was worried you were the Harbinger…"
She smiled at Pinkie Pie then noticed Discord.
"Discord? Where on earth have you been!?"
"Out on vacation, I'm afraid," he responded with a smile, "It was lovely, but our little pink friend here convinced me well enough to end the festivities earlier and jump into the fray. What a right mess has been made with this place."
Luna smiled back at him, "It's actually good to see you, all things considered."
Discord laughed, "Ha, I don't any pony's ever been glad to see me…"
Luna then turned to Pinkie Pie with a much more grave look on her face, "The others?"
Pinkie Pie shook her head solemnly. "Nope. Hey, what about back up?"
Luna sighed. "Gaea has been notified but she'll take her sweet time. I was hoping to get back to you all, but I had a running with the Harbinger." She looked around the throne room and sighed. "I figured this would be as good a place as any to wait. I was going to look for you, but you have found me, it seems."
Pinkie Pie rubbed her nose. "Do you really think Gaea can stop the Harbinger?"
Luna shrugged. "This storm and its disease concern me more."
Pinkie Pie light up then. "Hey, that's why we're here! I came up with a great idea; a hypo-noose!"
"…Hypothesis," Discord interrupted.
"Ugh! Whatever!!" she shouted back at him dismissively, "Anyway - if I could perhaps continue without getting interrupted - so when ponies get infected, they're overcome by their fears, right?"
"Wait, wait?" Luna interrupted.
Pinkie Pie grunted and furrowed in frustration, then simply continued. "Roll with it Princess, I'll explain later. Anyway, so the black stuff gets on you, then you get scared and it infects you! So, I think that we can 'break' a pony out of infection by helping them overcome their fears!"
"How in the world do you hope to accomplish that?" Luna asked, doubts withstanding.
"Well, we just have to figure out what each pony's afraid of. Like Spike's afraid of abandonment, so we need Twilight or Rarity - he likes them best, you see - to help him realize he hasn't been abandoned. If he's not afraid anymore, then he can't be infected!"
Luna blinked and looked at Discord. He shrugged. "Yeah, there was about four hours of this before now. She just talks. I don't know what's happening, I'm just kind of going along."
Pinkie Pie bounced. "Yeah, yeah, go along!! We can at least try it, right?"
Luna looked over at her sister, then downwards. She nodded and looked at Pinkie. "Yes, we can at least try it. I think I know the perfect candidate."
Pinkie Pie continued to bounce. "Who? Who!? Lemme guess… Ummm, Spike!"
Luna grimaced slightly and just shook her head. "No. No, no, my sister."
Pinkie Pie stopped bouncing. She was taken complete aback. Her mouth just hung open a bit.
"Oh," she said, "Oh, dang it! I haven't thought about Princess Celestia. Hmm, what could she be afraid of?"
"Think carefully!" Luna said, going along with it, "You have the greatest memory of anypony, right? Think of when circumstance eroded my sister's royal veneer - of when she has panicked, even slightly."
Discord laughed. "Celestia panicking? I'd pay to see it."
Luna shushed him.   
"Let's see… um…. um…" Pinkie Pie thought aloud. "When does Princess Celestia panic? errr… Queen Chrysalis! She couldn't defeat queen Chrysalis, she panicked a little… Um, so maybe it's being defeated, not being strong enough… or, or not being able to protect her kingdom!"
Her eyes brightened and she turned towards Discord. 
"Hey, Discord!" she shouted, "Attack the kingdom! Attack us and let Princess Celestia defeat you!"
"What?" he said, "Let her defeat me? Hardly. And besides, look at her! She's not moving a muscle! What makes you think she'll do anything? Is she even aware of us here? Can she even hear us?"
"…I can hear you," cooed Celestia over in the corner.
Discord grew quiet and they all peered over at her. Her eyes were still closed, but she seemed to be regaining color. She stirred at twitched, like she was just waking up.
"Big Sister!" Luna cried. She rushed over to her, but hesitated to touch her. Celestia opened her eyes and stretched her back. Her eyes caught Luna's and she smiled.
"Hello," she said.
Luna cried a little.
"Hey, what!? Is this for real?" Pinkie Pie asked. "Hey, how'd you come back? Hey, how come you just came back for no reason!! I didn't even get to test my hypo-noose! Hey, that's not fair!!"
"How are you feeling, Big Sister?" Luna asked.
Celestia rubbed her eyes. "I… feel like I've just been sleeping and I had horrible dreams." She then peered around the throne room. She looked at the shattered glass and the hole in the ceiling as well as one of the outside walls. She noted the few overturned columns and the debris. Then she noticed how worn Luna and Pinkie Pie looked. 
"No, I remember what happened…"
"You've been out for a long time," Luna said. She laughed through her tears and coughed a little bit. "It's been a few days and a lot has happened."
Pinkie Pie grumbled. "You don't know the half of it."
"I don't know the any of it," Discord said, "But informing me as to what's going on is clearly not a high priority. Anyway, uh, it's good to see you up and about, I guess."
"Is it just the three of you? Where is Twilight Sparkle?" Celestia asked.
"Twilight and basically everypony else got infected just like you did," Pinkie Pie said, "but it's okay! Princess Luna went and got reinforcements! And with the darkness wearing off, everypony should be okay soon, even though I don't get to test my hypo-noose on them…"
Celestia furrowed. "'Reinforcements?' From whom?"
Luna bit her lip hard and exhaled trepidatiously.
Then, a bright red light filled the open sky. A flare had been launched in the distance. They all turned to look at it as it blazed outside the hole in the wall. Luna stepped towards it. 
"Protean Joy…" she said.
"Protean Joy?" Pinkie Pie asked.
Luna nodded. "He is at Applejack's farm. He told me he would set off a flare to let me know Ga- …that the reinforcements are coming."
"Hey, let's go, then!" Pinkie Pie said. She took off towards the exit.
"Where are you going!?" Discord screamed, "We could just fly there! The three of us can fly!!!"

> 17. Pinkie Pie: Ark
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

 		
Celestia, Luna, Discord and Pinkie Pie all arrived at Sweet Apple Acres and landed with a powerful thud. Soon, another unfamiliar alicorn came out from the farmhouse to investigate the commotion. He had deep purple skin and bright white hair with soft, golden eyes. He peered around outside with his mouth hung open curiously before he spotted them. He smiled and his eyes brightened like a filly getting her birthday presents.
"Why, hello there!" he called out. His voice sounded old a worn. It was a little nasally and shifted around in pitch as he spoke. "You're soldier friend said you'd be along shortly. Come over here! Er, um, I don't bite!"
He came decisively off the porch to greet them. Pinkie Pie could help but smile at him. It was nice to see a stranger so upbeat.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"Oh! How terribly ill-mannered of me. I was so excited to see other beings that I plain forgot to tell you my name!" he said, "Excuse the poor manners. Er, um, I'm Pluto, the scientist. It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"Likewise! I'm Pinkie Pie!" she said cheerily.
The others were not so chipper. Discord in particular grumbled and rolled his eyes. "What a quack," Pinkie heard him mumble under his breath.
"Are you among the ones my sister sent for?" Celestia asked.
"Why yes!" he said, "Young Miss Luna explained your predicament to us and I volunteered to help. Curious things have been going on down here on old planet Earth, I hear. I was, um… Well, I was quite curious about it. Even more so, I was concerned, you see. Oh, and hello there, Pinkie Pie! I'm Pluto, the, er, um, the scientist. Oh, I do believe I said that already…"
Pinkie Pie smiled. "Hehe, I like him!"
Celestia frowned. "Are you the only one that was sent?"
"Oh, no!" Pluto said. "There are two others with me… er, were with me, I should say. They went off to try and find that Harbinger fellow. Nasty boy, I hear. I remained here to study one of the infected. Er, um, two of the infected technically. One is rather pleasant to talk to, and the other, well, was locked in a closet."
"Oh, that's Protean Joy and Applejack!" Pinkie Pie said excitedly. "Are they okay!?"
"Why, yes!" Pluto said. "Whatever ailment has beset them is wearing off naturally. Quite anti-climatic, if I say so myself. I must admit I had some young-being-like exuberance at the thought of working under pressure! Uh, oh well. Oh, and they're right inside, if, um, if you'd like to see them."
He gestured with a kind hoof towards the door. Pinkie Pie rushed in and the others, Pluto included, followed. Sure enough, there was Applejack and Protean Joy, both right as rain. Pinkie Pie beamed and squealed.
Applejack was rubbing her nose nervously, but lit up when she saw Pinkie. "Pinkie Pie!" she said, "It's great to see ya!"
Pinkie Pie leaped towards her and hugged her tightly around her shoulders. "Applejack!!" she said, "You're alright! Applejack, you're okay! You're all better now! Oh, Applejack, I was so worried. I was so worried about you!" Gentle tears streamed down Pinkie Pie's face.
Applejack coughed, but smiled. "Not so tightly, now!" she wheezed.
Protean Joy was quiet, but soon stood upright and bowed. "Your Majesties," he said towards Celestia and Luna, "It is good to see you both undamaged."
"Ah, you're a Knight Commander!" Celestia said politely, "I recognize you. You're Protean Joy, are you not?"
"I am, Your Majesty," he said. He frowned then. "Your Majesty, I must apologize. I had tasked myself with protecting young Princess Twilight Sparkle, but I failed. I had planned to stay with her until this was all over, but I was-"
Celestia shook her head. "You've done nothing to apologize for, Knight Commander. The past few days have been trying for all of us."
He smiled at that.
Applejack coughed. "Speakin' of Twilight, where is she, Princess?"
Celestia frowned.
"She was infected," Pinkie Pie said through sniffles, "Applejack, they all got infected but me. But, but, but you're better now and Princess Celestia is better now, so, so Twilight and everypony else should better now too, right?"
"Why, yes, if my hypothesis is correct," Pluto said.
Celestia turned to him. "Your hypothesis? What do you mean?"
Pluto gleamed at such a chance to extrapolate. "You see, I have a theory - based on observation and speculation, and, well, er, admittedly a little guesswork - that whatever took place here was not natural, but magical. Er, well, that might seem obvious on the surface, but if you compare the fundamentals of Magical Theory with the storm's apparent behavior, the implications are drastic indeed."
Pinkie Pie furrowed her brow. "'Magical Theory'? What's that?"
Pluto scratched his chin. "Oh! Um, I beg your pardon, I forget not all creatures posses the same abilities as alicorns. Er, um, let me think - how should I explain this?"
He fidgeted and grumbled to himself for a while.
"Oh, I've got it!" he said at last, "Think of magic as a simple machine, like an oven! Oven's exist for only one purpose - to cook food. It is the same with magical spells! Er, um, well, except without the food. No, scratch that. What was I saying? Oh, yes, never mind the former. Magic is more like baking, you see. It - er, magic, that is, not baking. Well, baking too, but anyway - magic exists to complete a simple directive, like baking cookies. Once the cookies are done, you stop baking. So it is with magical spells; once their directive is complete, they, er, stop. However, the caster decides what the spell's directive will be, like how a baker decides what to bake. So, why is the storm and the, er, 'infection' dissipating? Well, because whatever the spell's directive was has been completed, so its effects are waning."
"Oh, okay," Pinkie Pie said, "So the storm was a magic thing and now its all done? Like, it did what it needed to do?"
"Precisely!" Pluto said, "It's all quite esoteric, I think, but that's the basic concept."
"You are saying this whole storm was just a big magic spell?" Luna asked, "Impossible. It has to be. This storm's been going on for near three days. Nopony could cast a spell that long. It'd be way too exhausting."
Pluto blinked. "Three days, you say? Forgive me, er, um, Miss Luna, I don't have much grasp on how the time lag from here to, um, deep space is, um, well, like. Still, I have heard stories of powerful alicorn wizards casting perpetual spells. Or curses, as they came to be known. Takes lots of talent as well as practice, I hear. One such curse was cast upon an old colleague of mine. Draco was his name! Some fire chap turned him into an awful beast! No idea where he is now. Hmm. I had meant to keep track of him, but I, er, must have forgotten…"
Pinkie Pie was slightly taken aback. 'Draco' was a character from that book, from that story. It… it couldn't have been a coincidence.
Pluto blinked a few times and wiggled his tongue around in his mouth. "Oh!" he said, "Er, um, what was I talking about before?" 
Luna blinked as well. "Curses."
Pluto lit up. "Oh, yes, that was it!" he said, "No, even with the uncanny run time, if this, er, 'storm', as you call it, dissipated naturally, then it was a spell. Spells end, but curses can only be over-ridden or cured by other magic. They don't simply go away on their own, and I don't know of anyone casting a countermeasure. In fact - you'll never believe it - but curses can even be passed down through generations! There are creatures here that look, erm, well, strangely like alicorns, actually - but anyway, they're are some creatures here that are direct descendants of alicorns that were cursed to lose their wings and horns. In fact, the curse acted in parley with evolution itself! They're bodies adapted to the curse and to life here on Earth. They actually got smaller, their lifespans shorter and their natural magical abilities became more and more latent with every generation. Fascinating stuff, I tell you! In fact, if you're curious, I've been writing a little book on it, if you'd like to re-"
Celestia shook her head. "Sir!" she said, "That's more than enough information. Thank you."
Pluto frowned. He seemed a little hurt to be interrupted. Pinkie Pie couldn't help but feel a little bad for him. But his words; it was the story again. Pinkie Pie frowned. She couldn't be remembering the story wrong. No, but if the story was true - if that story could be true - and Harbinger started this whole thing by sapping away Ponyville's fire, then that would mean Harbinger might actually be...
Celestia sighed. "The storm and infection dissipating on their own is a miracle, but there's still the question of Harbinger. I don't think he's a facet of whatever spell - if it truly is a spell - that conjured this storm. What of him? If he could summon and maintain a spell for three days without collapse, he must be powerful indeed. It'll take more than latent magic to stop him."
Applejack frowned. "Who the hey is Harbinger?" she whispered to Pinkie Pie.
"He's an evil mummy alicorn," Pinkie Pie said.
"Oh," Applejack said. She frowned like that explanation had been worthless.
Luna shook her head. "I don't think he conjured the storm. He actually seems quite incompetent. But still, he does have combat experience and is a more than adequate magic user. You overestimate him, Big Sister, but it'd be a mistake to underestimate him."
"Oh, you mean Harbinger might not be the caster?" Pluto said with concern. "Well, then. If that were the case, then my hypothesis would be completely wrong, and my extrapolation of Harbinger's raw magical power by such would be severely - exponentially - overestimated."
He frowned in disappointment. But soon he shrugged and chuckled to himself. "Oh well!" he said. "At least I tried. Back to the drawing board, as, um, as they say!"
Discord chuckled and snapped his fingers. A rug near Pluto appeared to come to life and wrapped itself around poor Pluto, startling the old alicorn. About as soon as it had done so, however, the rug loosened and, with another snap, turned into Discord himself nonchalantly leaning up on Pluto his his had amicably on his shoulder.
"Oh, our new alicorn friend, what utter lack of imagination!" he said, "Magic exists outside the ways alicorns use it. Maybe this Harby character is not responsible for the storm, but that doesn't eliminate the fact it might be a spell. It just means an alicorn didn't cast it."
Pluto rubbed his chin. "What a curious beast you are. Er, um, what was your name?"
Discord chuckled. "The name's Discord, Pluto, old chap. Pleasure to meet you."
Pluto smacked his lips together. "Hmm. Maybe you're right. But then what exactly is Harbinger's role in this, anyway?"
Discord shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe he doesn't even matter. From what little I know about this whole mess, the storm's caused more of a ruckus than he has."
Celestia nodded. "True. With both the storm clouds and the infection waning, this take of how's and why's doesn't seem to be all that important. Putting an end to Harbinger is. I'd like to hear his side to things, as well as an answer for his crimes. He's caused more than enough trouble."
Applejack rubbed her head. "What's been goin' on the past while, Pinkie Pie?" she whispered. "I, uh, I don't remember much beyond issuin' a storm warnin' for the folks in town."
"Harbinger's storm turns ponies black and puts them to sleep, like what happened to you," Pinkie Pie whispered back. "We'd have put a stop to him, but with you and Fluttershy out of commission, we couldn't use the Elements of Harmony!"
"Pinkie Pie!" Celestia said.
Pinkie Pie blinked. "Oh. Yes, Princess?"
Celestia smiled. "I think it's time we found your friends, as well as the Elements of Harmony."
Pinkie Pie bounced up and down. "Yeah!"
Celestia smiled and turned to Pluto. "The other two that came with you - who are they?"
"Oh, yes, um, I had forgotten," he said, "Why, it was Jupiter and Saturn. Powerful warriors, I tell you. Why, Gaea must be taking this thing quite seriously be sending them down here. I don't know what she's taken such an interested in this whole, um, predicament. It's quite unlike her."
Celestia looked very worrisome. Luna, too, looked grave. Pinkie Pie blinked. "Princess?" she said.
"Twilight Sparkle," Celestia said. "It's time we find Twilight Sparkle."
"Um, yes," Pluto said, "Do what you must. Er, um, we - uh, that is, Jupiter, Saturn and myself - all agreed to meet, um, here before we finalized any kind of action. Gather your friends and we'll wait here for you."
"Good," Discord said, "Can we wrap this up, then? One mummy vs. the Deus Ex jewelry, five alicorns and a powerful and, dare I say, quite handsome draconequus are some pretty good odds, I think. Don't you, Benevolent Sun? I'd really like to kick ol' Harby's teeth through his cheek. This dim storm depressing fear sadness thing is getting really old."
Celestia nodded. "Yes. Save for the violent imagery, I agree that the time to strike is now." Celestia turned to her sister. "Find Twilight Sparkle and the rest of the element bearers for me, sweet sister. As for me, I think it's time to bring the sun back."  

---

"How is it that 'Tia gets to meet up with alicorn warriors and I get stuck filly-sitting you three!?" Discord grumbled. "How boring - collecting up the freedom-friendship-friends or whatever it is you six are called…"
"You're just mad cos you're starting to like us!" Pinkie Pie said.
Pinkie Pie felt terrific. Ponyville seemed a whole lot less gloomy, and she relished this little walk. Applejack was beside her, as well as Protean Joy, and Discord slink behind her like a grouchy dog yanking at his chain. The storm clouds were noticeably dissipating, although they were still pretty thick in some areas. The whole Earth around them seemed to just breathe out. Pinkie Pie hummed a little impromptu melody while they walked. It had been ages since she had just hummed.
Applejack seemed uncomfortable. "What happened here?" she asked, "It's… it's so-"
"Lifeless!? Spooky!? Dark!? Uncomfortable!?"
"…Boring?" said Discord.
"Has Ponyville really been like this for three days?" Applejack asked.
"Yup yup!" Pinkie Pie said. "Well, I think it's been three days. We went to bed twice. I had tried to count one-one-thousands-two-one-thousands to keep track but, by the time I reached two-thousand-three-hundred-and-twenty-four-one-thousands, it didn't seem to really matter anymore."
"It couldn't have been three days," Applejack said, "I'm not hungry or tired or nothin'. How could I have gone three days without eatin', without drinkin' or without rest?"
Pinkie Pie laughed. "I don't know, but who cares!? Everypony is back and soon we'll deal with… um, 'Harbinger'." Pinkie Pie's eyebrow flinched at that. She couldn't help but be a little worried. That thought of the old brown books story maybe being reality festered. Her nosed itched.
"We can ponder the nature of what happened here once we're rid of Harbinger for good, madam," Protean Joy said, "We're not out of this yet - not until we have the Elements…"
"It'll be okay!" Pinkie Pie said, "Twilight will have them then she'll stand that funny little way she does and tell us all what to do! Then, everything will be back to normal! Easy-peasy!"
"I hope so," Applejack said, "This whole here situation has me mighty uncomfortable."
"Say, um, Miss Pinkie," Protean Joy said, "Just where are you going?"
"The library, of course!" Pinkie Pie said, "I'd bet my bottom bit Twilight'll be there. And if not, the elements should be there too!"
Applejack rubbed her nose uneasily. "Hey, if we're all better, should all the townsponies that got - um, was it infected? Yeah, infected, or whatever you said - should they all be out and about too?"
Pinkie Pie snorted. "I have no idea! I don't even know where they went when they were infected!"
"You, uh, you never saw any? Ponyville got a population of near two hundred! There's no way they just up and vanished. Where'd they go!? Where are they now? This don't make a lick of sense."
"Oh, by the stars in the sky, would you all stop talking!" Discord said, "Why don't you just light up a signal flare that says, 'Hey, Harby, we're over here! Come on down and kick our teeth in!' We can ask boring questions later!"
They continued to wander for a bit. Pinkie Pie was all smiles and completely oblivious to the discomfort her companions felt. All she could do was think about the bright looks that'd be on her friends faces when they saw her. It was going to be over soon. Twilight would be at the library with the elements. She'd know what to do. Fluttershy, Rarity, Spike, Rainbow Dash - they'd all be there too.
Pinkie Pie stopped in place, and the others stopped with her. She squinted at a silhouette in the distance. It was definitely pony shaped and slinking around.
"Pinkie Pie, what is it?"
Pinkie Pie started to wiggle. Her back was itchy. "It's a pony!" she said. She started off after it.
"Pinkie, wait!"
She got close, but the other pony hadn't noticed her. She just stood there at an intersection of two roads as the other pony faced the other way and carefully crept around the street in front of her. Pinkie Pie soon recognized that cyan coat.
"Hey! It's Rainbow Dash!"
Rainbow Dash's ears perked up and she turned her head to look at them. Her eyes brighten when they met Pinkie's and she turned and ran to hug her.
"Pinkie Pie! It's great to see that you're alright!"
She looked up and noticed the whole entourage approaching. She beamed again at Applejack and went to hug her.
"Hey there, Applejack! It's good to see you on your hooves again!"
"You too, Rainbow Dash," Applejack said, "Or, um, however you've been. I, uh, I don't really know what the hey is goin' on."
Rainbow Dash smiled. "We'll talk about it later. Twilight sent me out to try and find you. I figured you wouldn't have gone far and that I could've out ran Harbinger if I ran across him."
She looked at the others.
"Hey, you were that old guy, right? What was your name again?"
"Protean Joy, miss," he said with a polite bow, "Just happy to included."
Rainbow Dash nodded with her mouth open then looked up and down and Discord. "Oh, hey," she said flatly.
"'Hey'?" Discord said, "What, everypony else got some big hello and I just get a 'hey'?"
Rainbow Dash shrugged. "What do you want, a parade?"
Discord scoffed and mumbled. "Well, I… er, a 'where have you been all this time' would've been nice, at least. Y'know, at least pretend that you care."
"Huh," Rainbow Dash said. She turned to Pinkie Pie. "So, where have you been all this time."
Discord mumbled curses to himself while Pinkie Pie responded, "Oh, well, first I was really sad and in the desert, then I found Discord and came back, then I found Princess Luna and then we all found Princess Celestia and she was just fine and I didn't get to test my hypo-noose and then Protean Joy shot a flare to signal that Princess Luna's reinforcements had shown up, then we met a scientist named Pluto who babbled on about magic and then we came her and found you!"
Rainbow Dash rubbed her face. "Sounds… um, exciting. What about Harbinger? Did Princess Luna's 'reinforcements' take him out already?"
"I don't know!" said Pinkie Pie, "But the point is we're back together again! Um, hey, where's Twilight?"
"She's at the library - or at least she will be. We found each other almost immediately whenever we woke up. We figured we'd scope out the library first to nab the Elements, then she went to the town hall to find Rarity and them, and I went to find you guys."
"And Fluttershy!? Did you ever find Fluttershy!?" Pinkie Pie asked.
"Yeah, she was just at the library," Rainbow Dash said, "She woke up, just like that. Like she'd taken a cat nap. She just smiled at us and asked us how we were." Rainbow Dash laughed. "Last thing she remembered was going to check out the storm before all this started. She just slept through this whole. Lucky."
Rainbow Dash looked around at all of them then her eyes broke away. Her brow furrowed as she thought.
"Hey, what about Princess Celestia and Princess Luna?"
Just then, the blazing sun arose in the east and silently burnt away the night. It's orange outreach shimmered through the decaying clouds and brightened the whole of the town. They all winced and covered their eyes at they adjusted. It was a great and brilliant resurgence, pulsating and riveting like a firework or a great flashbulb going off.
"Ah, I guess that answers that question," Rainbow Dash said.
Discord rubbed his eyes. "'Tia was always one for the self-aggrandizing entrance."
"Hey, let's get to the library!" Pinkie Pie said.
> 18. Pinkie Pie: Unto Conquest
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Pinkie Pie was elated. Her and her friends had regrouped and were walking back to Applejack's farm. She was smiling at them. They were all back - Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Spike… Discord and Protean Joy too, she was less excited about them. There was still some excitement at them, but significantly less than her friends with their grim and, in the case of Rainbow Dash especially, vague anger. Each had their respective Element of Harmony jewelry. Still, Pinkie Pie smiled and bounced. The storm was now small streams of cloud, save the concentration still rumbling in the south. The puddles were shrinking away. The townsponies were back, if confused and the sun gleamed in the sky. 
Structurally, Ponyville was pretty battered with various holes and cracks in the buildings, but Pinkie Pie didn't care much. Her friends were back. That's all that really matter.
She listened to them scoff and bewilder at the storm, the storm's vanishing, Harbinger, Princess Luna's reinforcements and all other kinds of negativity. Discord wasn't very vocal, surprisingly - he preferred mumbling to himself. Twilight was quiet as well. 
They soon reached the farm. Celestia and Luna were outside, alongside that Pluto character from before. A significant ways away, however, near the house but decidedly away from the rest, stood a large, crimson alicorn and a smaller, thinner but older deep orange one. The look of the two shook Pinkie Pie's euphoria. The red was stern with a furrowed brow and a stiff lip. The orange seemed annoyed or like he smelled something foul.
Princess Celestia was the first to notice them approaching and she beamed. "My little ponies!" she gasped, "It is good to see you all well again!"
Twilight Sparkle smiled uneasily. "Princess Celestia! Princess Luna! It's so good to see you again."
The two strange alicorns approached. The red one was sure to stay behind the orange one.
"Hello," the orange one said, "My name is Jupiter and my constituent here is named Saturn. You all must be Princess Celestia's specialists. Princess Luna spoke highly of you."
"Put that together yourself, eh?" Discord sneered.
Jupiter stared at Discord with contempt. He walked slowly up to Discord and stood before him. "Hmph. You fancy yourself a clever beast, don't you?"
Discord gave a snide smile. "I think I'm moderately clever, kingpin. That just so happens to put me head and shoulders above most ponies."
"Do you think your words intimidate me?" Jupiter said coldly.
Discord leaned closer to his face and clucked his words. "No, I think my dashing looks do that particular trick."
Jupiter did not budge. He lowered his head and pushed out his chest. "I do not know what possessed the reverent Princess Celestia to keep you, beast, but the leash she afforded you is not short enough. You're lucky you're her problem and not mine. I'd have tossed you into the nearest star without a second thought and be rid of your nonsense permanently."
Discord coiled and snarled.
"Discord..." Celestia said. He broke eye contact with Jupiter and looked at her. She blinked slowly and shook her head 'no.' Discord twisted his head in disbelief but was compelled to obey. He gave Jupiter one last glare then slunk away, muttering to himself.
Celestia stepped towards Jupiter then. "Discord is not your problem, my Lord, he is mine. And he is sworn to me."
"What compelled you to keep such a creature?" Jupiter asked, "I have never known you to be unwise in whom you associate yourself with. Such a creature serves himself first and his… allies second."
"Discord serves himself, yes, but it is in his best interest to keep faith with me."
"Discord is standing right here," Discord said.
"Quiet," Jupiter barked. He then eyed Twilight with a cold curiosity. He slowly approached her. "You are Twilight Sparkle, I take it," he said. He made sure to look down his nose at her while he scanned her. His mouth was hung openly slightly in his curiosity and he shifted his jaw back and forth. Twilight Sparkle matched matched his gaze but seemed uncomfortable and slowly pulled away. Pinkie Pie then noticed both Spike and Protean Joy tense up and move closer to her. Jupiter payed neither of them any attention, but his mouth slowly coiled to a stern frown and he lowered his head. "Do you speak?" he asked condescendingly.
Twilight Sparkle's mouth fell open and her eyes fell away. "Yes, I do," she said.
"Huh," Jupiter said dismissively. He turned his eyes towards Luna. "She's small," he said.
Pinkie Pie saw the reverent Princess Celestia shoot her sister a soft but vividly angry gaze. Simply witnessing it caused a bubble of dry fear to burst and spread through Pinkie Pie chest, and Luna herself seemed to feel and pull away from that particular heat.
Luna looked down then back up at Jupiter. "She's young."
Jupiter turned and walked to her. His face was twisted with paternal disappointment. "I do not doubt your intentions nor your word, my dear, but the threat you described to us is clearly gone if it ever was so intense. You have deliberately wasted my time. Your storm is gone and I don't think your Harbinger can withstand those Elements of Harmony if they are half as powerful as you believe them to be. I will lend to you Saturn as insurance, but my time will not be squandered further."
He pulled his head back then and relaxed. "Still, it is always nice to see you. Perhaps next time will be under more appropriate circumstances."
Pinkie Pie stared at Princess Celestia incredulously. It was clear she loathed Jupiter by her stiff posture and the way see looked at him, but to see the princess look at another like that was simply unbecoming of her. If Jupiter had noticed Celestia's stare, he did not acknowledge it. He turned towards the door and looked at Saturn and Pluto. "Harbinger is your responsibility. I trust you can handle him. Stay a while to ensure that Luna and Celestia's kingdom is back in order and I will see you back to your posts momentarily."
Saturn's eyes were cold, but his neck, lower lip and nose tensed up slightly whenever Jupiter seemed to address him. "It shall be done," he said stoically.
Jupiter nodded and turned to Pluto. His head sunk down again and his tone receded back into that of vague disappointment. "I will permit you to stay and 'gather intelligence' or whatever it is you do so long as Saturn remains here. But you are to return to space as soon as this Harbinger business is done as I have other tasks for you. Is that understood?"
Pluto looked over at Celestia then back at Jupiter. "Er, yes," he said, "Clear as a crystal, as they say."
Jupiter grunted dismissively then turned and walked away from him. He was beside Pinkie Pie now, though her eyes were still on Celestia. He stopped and looked at her. She could see him out of the corner of her eye.
"You there, pink one," he said, "Remind me of your name."
Pinkie Pie turned and made casual eye contact with him. She gave a genuine smile. "It's Pinkie Pie," she said.
The left corner of Jupiter's mouth curled up but collapsed back into his resting frown fairly quickly, like it attempted a smile but just gave up halfway through. "Hmm. How appropriate," he said deeply. He tilted his head to the side and almost looked at her warmly. "I hear you were among the few to survive this storm relatively untainted."
Pinkie Pie mimicked his head tilt and smiled even wider. "I was the only one, actually. Well, other than Princess Luna."
Jupiter nodded his head. "Impressive," he said with an upward inflection, "And you are one of these Elements of Harmony, I take it."
Pinkie Pie nodded in a similar fashion. "Yep. I'm the Element of Laughter!"
Jupiter's head dropped slightly. "I see," he said. He looked at the others then back to her. "A pony of Earth capable wielding a magic trinket - that's not something one sees everyday. You seem a clever and capable sort. I trust I can leave this Harbinger situation in your hooves, correct?"
Pinkie Pie just smiled and nodded. Jupiter smiled slightly back. "Then I will leave you to it. I hope to speak to you again… Pinkie Pie, was it?"
Pinkie Pie nodded happily. "Yep, that's it!"
"Very good," he said. He bowed his head and looked outside. "By your leave, then."
Pinkie Pie watched him as he walked away, spread his wings and lifted himself into the sky. When she turned back, she noticed the entire building seemed to breathe out and relax.
She shrugged it off and smacked her lips. "I'm thirsty," she said.
"Where did you say Harbinger was again?" Celestia asked tempestuously. Saturn frowned. "He hovering around a field just south of here, near a foreboding wood."
Celestia forced a smile. "Well, let us take care of that, then. I have a kingdom to reassemble." She shot a cold look at Luna. "Come, sweet sister." Luna gulped but stared decisively back. She soon rescinded, however. Celestia made for the door. Twilight Sparkle looked at her worriedly. "Princess…" she began.
Celestia sighed but looked at her sweetly. "We shall speak later, dear Twilight Sparkle, once Harbinger has been repelled. Gather you friends. We'll end this soon enough."
Twilight Sparkle nodded wearily. The others all looked at each other grimly, but Pinkie Pie made sure to smile at each of them - even Protean Joy. Twilight Sparkle adjusted her tiara and took a deep breath. "Alright, girls. This is it." 

---

Saturn calmly lead them towards the long, grassy field that lay between the southern part of Ponyville and the Everfree forest. It was a solemn journey that's uncomfortable silent stuck it's finger in Pinkie Pie's ribs and nearly soured her good temper. What little remained of the storm hovered and waned indifferently above that field. Otherwise, it was lovely. The thick grass danced in a soft breeze. The air smelled vaguely of wet plant. Flowers bloomed and glistened in the sun. 
They gathered on a small hill that overlooked the field. Pinkie Pie swallowed and looked for Harbinger. Her Element of Harmony necklace felt tight on her neck.
There he was, throwing himself around like a dog at the smoke that seethed away from his back. His bandages were drifting away from his body in a near gentle manner. They slowly fell away and crumbled into ash and smoke. The once mighty storm that had swallowed all of Equestria was a small mist that just continuously floated away indifferently. Pinkie Pie was utterly shocked - that wastrel Harbinger with his looming demeanor was just panicking there on the field like a sad filly.
He was doing everything he could to throw the remaining bandages away. He frantically swiped at them with his front hooves and he bit at them, but they just continued to fade away regardless of what he did. And that sound he was making; Pinkie Pie could only describe it as a soft wail mixed with anguish.
It wasn't long before he noticed them all. He stopped and just stared at them with his mouth open. He breathed out and his eyes pulled away, and he then became very still. Then he breathed rapidly, like a whimper without the sound. Pinkie Pie knew it. He was done. His white coat was tarnished like it was covered in soot. The bags under his eyes were defined. His posture was down as if he bore such a weight. His eyes were bloodshot, like he hadn't been sleeping… or he'd been crying. Pinkie Pie had never seen anypony so defeated.
He looked at the element bearers and the princesses and just nodded lethargically. "Okay," he whimpered. His mouth coiled up and his eyes winced winced and filled with tears. "Okay," he said again.
Celestia took to foreground. "Harbinger," she shouted bitterly, "I trust you know my name."
Harbinger stumbled and he tried to move closer. "Yeah," he said in his raspy, tired voice.	Celestia stared at him in disbelief. Black ash still poured from his tattered body and took to the wind. What little black cloud was left from Harbinger's devastating storm was slowly sinking towards the Earth and scattering to the wind. Harbinger himself was just a boy in the field with placid eyes and a withered body. He just stared back at her and relaxed, like he was just waiting for it. He then caught eyes with Saturn of all ponies, and that resignation crumbled away into anguish. His knees buckled and he fell backwards, just staring at staring at Saturn. He began weeping as he stared. 
Pinkie Pie turned at looked at Saturn and saw such a look of twisted horror in his face. The mighty warrior backed up and stared at the blithering mess of an enemy before like he was a ghost.
"It can't be," he whispered. "It can't be…" 
Pinkie Pie knew exactly what all had happened then. It all clicked inside her head, although she didn't have the words for it. She knew then who Harbinger was, what had brought him to this place and how broken he must be. She turned and looked at Saturn again, then at Celestia and her friends, who each held a face of bewilderment and disgust. Nopony said anything.
Pinkie Pie felt like she might cry too. She looked at the ground, then to Harbinger. He was just sitting there, hunched over with his head down, crying. He wasn't loud, or even that noticeable. He was a crumpled piece of paper tossed on the floor. 
Pinkie Pie stepped forward after a while. She sighed and pulled her Element of Laughter pendant off her neck with her mouth and tossed it gently into the green grass beside her. She turned and looked at Twilight Sparkle, who was standing there with her mouth open and her eyebrows pulled back. Pinkie Pie shook her head. "Not like this..." she said quietly.
She walked over to Harbinger in the stillness of that afternoon. She looked at him and he hung his head low and cried quietly in the grass. The Everfree Forest beckoned behind him, and the nearby flowers fluttered in the breeze. Birds began chirping again, and the wind carried a sweet smell. Pinkie Pie then simply hugged Harbinger tightly around the back of the neck. He tensed up, but relaxed again. He wasn't comforted, just weary.
"It's okay," she said to him, "It's over now."
He started trembling and gently buried his eyes in her neck as she hugged him.
"You're Ponietheus from the storybook, aren't you?" she asked.
He slowly pulled away from her. She sat down in the grass in front of him and forced a small smile. He stared at her while blinking slowly. His mouth dropped open and he slowly drooped his head. His eyes moved away towards the ground. "…Yeah," he said.
Pinkie Pie looked down too, then turned and looked back at her friends and the princesses. Most of them just watched her. Rainbow Dash seemed furious, but Twilight had positioned herself near her as if to discourage action. Spike and Applejack just seemed confused. Rarity was tired. Discord was uninterested. Protean Joy just watched. Saturn was horrified. Luna looked sick. Celestia simply stared at Harbinger - Ponietheus - stoically, like she was measuring him. Pinkie Pie's eyes then focused on Ponyville's battered silhouette. She frowned. Then she locked eyes with Fluttershy. Fluttershy smiled at her sweetly then encouraged her with a small nod.
She looked back at Ponietheus and breathed out slowly. "You messed up," she said.
He was still looking down and shaking. He nodded wearily. "I know," he said. He coughed and whimpered a little. His face twisted up. Then he looked at her with his worn eyes and his weak demeanor. He was panting slightly. "…I'm the villain," he said, "…I'm the bad guy…"
"You were wrong to do this," Pinkie Pie said softly, "But you know that already." She looked down. "You don't have to keep being the bad guy. This doesn't have to end with us fighting."
She leaned closer.
"I read your story. It was in a brown book. I thought is was fake. …I'm sorry that you were left alone." 
Ponietheus started crying again, but he didn't make any noise. Pinkie Pie hugged him again.
"I'm afraid of being forgotten about, just like you. I'm afraid of being left all alone, just like you."
"…But, I…"
"It isn't about you anymore," Pinkie Pie said, "This is about all of us. I don't want this story to end with us fighting you, so I'll make you a deal… if you turn yourself in - if you give yourself up peacefully, then I'll remember you. I will. I remember everything about everypony." 
Ponietheus hugged her back. They both just sat there in the field together with the wind softly beating against the sky. They had lingered a while when Ponietheus started nodding. "Okay," he said softly. 
He stood up and looked around at the other ponies there. Then he looked down at the soft grass below. "I give up," he said. He looked at Princess Celestia. "I give up…peacefully." 
Pinkie Pie smiled and stared hopefully at Princess Celestia. Her hope was soured though, for the princess's gaze was strangely cold. She stared at Ponietheus as he looked away meekly. "Very well," she said.
All of Harbinger's storm and black ash drifted away in the wind.
> 19. Twilight Sparkle: The Aftermath
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	It had been two days since Harbinger's capture. Princess Celestia herself oversaw his temporary incarceration before a trial could be organized. Twilight had barely gotten her library back in order when she received a royal decree on that nice hemp paper to reside over his trial. This was her first de jure political activity. She was incredibly nervous. She never been a judge before, even to a "suspect" so obviously guilty.
She and her friends took the train up to Canterlot the morning of the trial. The train was quite full of passengers. Ponietheus's impending trial had become something of an event. Several ponies, particularly farmers and property owners who'd seen his storm damage their livelihood, were quite angry. Twilight Sparkle stared out the train window and listen to them wish Princess Celestia's wrath upon 'Harbinger'. He would certainly get it. Twilight had never seen the princess so angry. Still, she couldn't decide herself if she was angry with Ponietheus or if she felt sorry for him. Princess Luna had seemed equally unsure, though that look on her face conveyed how she lent towards anger.
Spike put his hand on her back as she watched the rocky precipices of the unnamed mountain Canterlot had been built into drift by. She then looked over to him. He gently smiled at her. She smiled back and softly rubbed his cheek with her hoof. She looked around her section of the train car at her friends. They were all oddly quiet with the exception of Rainbow Dash, who joined the other ponies in condemnations of Harbinger. Twilight listened to her raspy voice tell others of the horrors she and her friends witnessed while staring at Pinkie Pie, who simply looked sick. She was slowly rubbing her hooves together and listening to Rainbow Dash talk. Her frown communicated her disagreement.
Twilight Sparkle laughed a little. '…Angel and devil on my shoulders.' she thought.
The train pulled into Canterlot station before long. Twilight saw her royal escort of guardsponies led by a familiar face. Knight Commander Protean Joy spotted her through her window, then smiled and nodded. She smiled weakly back. The raucous points started to funnel out of the train. Twilight Sparkle stood up, waited patiently for her turn and exited.
Protean Joy waved at her and motioned her to come over to him. Twilight obeyed and her friends followed her, clinging to her like Protean Joy's fellow guardsponies. 
"You all look well," he said. He gave Twilight Sparkle a sympathetic look.
Spike was the only one out of her friends to be happy to see him. "Hey, Protean Joy!" he said, "How's it going?"
"There've been better days, Lord Spike," he said. His soft face fell back into the stern look of a pony of authority. "I'm sorry, but only Princess Twilight Sparkle and Spike are the only ones allowed in the castle at the moment. The trial will open to the public momentarily. Princess, Spike, if you'll follow me."
Twilight Sparkle nodded. "Come along, Spike," she said.
Protean Joy led them through the sullen streets of Canterlot. The roofs of the buildings had significant damage, and ponies were sweeping glass and rubble off the street. Twilight's stomach turned slightly. It amazed her the extent of which she hadn't have been aware of the scale of the storm's damage. Nopony had been hurt, but property damage was still very serious.
"…You've never served as a judge at a trial, have you Your Majesty?" Protean Joy said after a while. 
"…No. There hasn't been a trial this serious in Equestria for… years, at least."
"Things will only get difficult if Harbinger pleads 'not guilty', which he'd be a fool to do. Normally, the princesses simply act as judges, but, in this case, Princess Celestia is the prosecution. She might call on you to be a witness - to testify against Harbinger. Other than that, you, Princess Luna and a group of jurors will reach a verdict depending on the evidence. Three verdicts - no ties."
"But only if he pleads 'not guilty'."
"Yes."
'I doubt he will. This trial is a sham. Not sure why it's even happening. Due process, I guess.'
They arrived at the castle and Protean Joy opened the door for her. The other guardsponies remained outside. A small crowd was gathering, so they stood at the base of the entrance's steps. Protean Joy led her to the castle's court room. She had always known were it had been, of course, but she let him show her and explain the room's layout anyway. Half of being a princess seemed like showponyship and the other half seemed to be about knowing when to keep your mouth shut.
The castle's courtroom was an intimidating place. It was a two story dome like structure in the shape of a large oval. Protean Joy led her in from a archway on the upper story. The top story was a large balcony that overlooked the smaller story below. Down there was a small podium for the defense, with a few desks for defensive lawyers and some booths for spectators. 
Above, near the entrance, was a larger set of booths for spectators. Across from there on the other side was a smaller booth for the jurors, which were filled with very important looking ponies all murmuring among themselves. The Twilight's left was another podium for the persecution, as well as two smaller podiums reserved for the princesses. Princesses Celestia and Luna were already in the courtroom, as well as the jury. Protean Joy directed her to the vacant princess's podium, with Princess Luna stationed at the other one. Princess Celestia sat at the persecutor's podium with a stern face and was looking through a collection of papers. She spotted Twilight Sparkle and smiled quite warmly at her before the cold anger returned and she went back to the papers. Princess Luna had a forlorn look and was softly tapping at her podium impatiently. Two other guardsponies were stationed at either side of her.
Twilight Sparkle wordlessly took her place at the vacant podium. Protean Joy directed Spike to one side of her then took his place at the other side. Spike looked at the guards by Luna, then at Protean Joy and Twilight, then smiled to himself. Protean Joy had a small grin as well. Twilight looked at little Spike, who was beaming and sticking his chest out.
'At least somepony was having a good day,' she thought.   	
After a few minutes, the guards let the townsponies in. They were loud, and funneled into the booths on Twilight's level and below. Before long, Twilight Sparkle spotted her friends enter and sit at the booths on her level. She began tapping the floor nervously. She didn't like being set apart from them.
Twilight Sparkle breathed out, and reminded herself she'd only really have to participate if Ponietheus pleaded 'not guilty' - which was very unlikely, given that Pinkie Pie had convinced him to turn himself in, in the first place. Still, as more and more ponies filled the onlooker's seats, she grew more anxious. Spike dropped his guard pose, leaned over and put his and hand gently on her back. It calmed her down slightly, but her heart was still fluttering. He was shaken back into his guard pose by the sound of the doors below crashing open, signaling they were bringing Ponietheus in. The crowd grew quiet. 
He was led in by five guardsponies and was in restrains. He was a somber figure with his head down and his eyes low. Ponies muttered negatively to each other as he passed them. He noticeably winced. Twilight frowned. The atmosphere pressed down on her harder than the storm ever had. She could feel Celestia's anger and was afraid, even though none of it was directed at her.
"Ponietheus of Hailcryon - Harbinger," Celestia said, "Step forward."
He stepped to a little podium positioned beneath them. He swallowed and continued to stare at the floor.
Twilight saw Celestia lean forward in her peripheral. She couldn't bring herself to peek at her face.
"Look at me," Celestia said.
'Theus was stiff. He moved his head slightly upward and dared to make eye contact with her.
Celestia allowed herself to glare at him awhile, then relaxed. She lifted a piece of paper to her right and brought it into her view. "Ponietheus of Hailcryon - you are hereby charged with the following crimes against Equestria and her denizens - unauthorized use of extreme magic, use of extreme offensive magic against unarmed citizens unprovoked, various accounts of vandalism, various accounts of property damage, various accounts of assault and battery - two of which are filed against Equestrian royalty, the destruction of staple crops and, of course, disturbance of the peace. How do you plead?" 
'Theus was quiet. His mouth went agape and his eyebrows and lips curled. Twilight could practically hear his heart pounding in the back of her head. Celestia simply continued to glare at him and await his response.
"Uh… guilty…" he said.
"What was that?"
"Guilty!"
"Oh, guilty," Celestia said, "At least that saves me the trouble of presenting the library's worth of evidence to support my case against you. Very well. Guilty it is. Now, I'm sure I speak for nearly all of Equestria when I express my curiosity as to just why it is you decided to commit such heinous war crimes against us. Do explain to your peers here in jury - I'm sure they'd love to know the reason."
"I…uh…I-It was an accident…"
"Ah, an accident - something that was simply beyond your control," Celestia said, "Well, your 'accident' has cost the crown tens of thousands of bits in damage, erased three days from the lives of its citizens and caused considerable damage to various farmsteads and their vegetation during a crucial part of their gestation - with harvest being only a few weeks away. So, tell me, why should I waste my time with you?"
"I don't know!"
"Because why should I be expected to clean up your mess!?" Celestia bellowed.
Twilight felt her teeth clench and her shoulders tighten. It was terrifying to see Celestia this angry. She felt a sour weight in her stomach even though none of the anger was directed at her. She peeked down at 'Theus again. He was shrinking. He looked like he'd been kicked in the face.
Celestia sat back and breathed out. "A friend of yours urged me to spare you. He seemed to think you were something of a carpenter. Are you a carpenter?"
'Theus just stood there ramrod stiff with a frozen look of horror on his face. His mouth hung open like he'd forgotten how to make words.
"Are you a carpenter!?" Celestia repeated.
"Y-Yes," 'Theus said, "Though I'm… I'm more familiar with, uh, masonry…"
"Very well," Celestia said, "Then I have a job for you. You see, a violent storm knocked a few holes in various buildings here in Canterlot as well as a little town just west of here called Ponyville. Something tells me my little ponies would prefer sleeping with an intact roof over their heads. Should I grant you access to the proper supplies and equipment, might you fix up the buildings you ruined for me? I'd be happy to pay for your services. I hear you owe a princess quite a bit of money."
"Yeah," 'Theus said, "Yeah, okay. Okay, I can do that…"
"Perfect," Celestia said, "If the city I hear you helped construct is half a wondrous as your friend suggested, than such an assignment will be a breeze for you. Oh, but I suppose you need a place to stay as well. Princess Twilight Sparkle?"
Twilight's ears shot up and some unnecessary terror shot through her spine. "Oh!" she said, "Uh, yes, Princess Celestia?"
"Would happen to know anywhere our dear friend could stay will he is in my employment?"
"Oh, um… well, there's a, uh, an old watermill that went out of commission a few months ago. It's, um, just outside of town and could easily be repurposed as housing."
'Don't make him my responsibility. Don't make him my responsibility. Don't make make him my responsibility.'
Luna peered over and caught eyes with Twilight like she'd heard her very thoughts. Her face communicated everything affectively. 'Oh, she's going to make him my responsibility!'
"Very well. I'll purchase the property and put it in your name. Ponietheus will be your seneschal and be place directly into your command. I leave it to your discretion what privileges he is allowed to possess."
Twilight frowned.
Celestia turned back to 'Theus. "Look at me," she said. He obeyed. "This is not a vacation. You work for the crown, and you answer to the crown. I can be persuaded for second chances, Ponietheus of Hailcryon, but I care little for third ones. Is that clear?"
'Theus nodded slowly. 
"Very well," Celestia said, "This case is adjured. Jury, you are dismissed. Princess Twilight Sparkle, take a few guardsponies and escort our guest to his new living quarters and prepare him for work. Now, if you might excuse me, my sister and I have appropriations to make." 

---

Twilight and the same five-some of guards led Equestria's resident incarcerate down the street from the castle back to the train station. Twilight felt like she was parading Ponietheus, like having him stare at the city and listen to the townsponies whisper about him was part of his sentencing. She refused to let herself look back at him. She was so ambivalent; so unsure whether to pity him of condemn him.
A special train awaited him - a prisoner's train with two cars attached to the engine. Twilight watched the five essentially shove Ponietheus and his shackles into middle car. They then dispersed between the two cars, two and three, and invited Twilight Sparkle into the rear car. Twilight thought for a moment, then, to the surprise of all the guardsponies there, decisively entered the center car. The two that had already entered and locked Ponietheus behind a cage that occupied about the back third of the car stared at her in disbelief, then quickly rushed to attention. Ponietheus had simply laid down and was just staring at the floor. 
"Your Majesty!" cried one of the guards. Both gave her a stiff salute.
"At ease," Twilight Sparkle said, finding her authoritative voice. She wasn't intimidated by guardsponies. They both relaxed and took their places at either side of the cage's entrance. 
"…Could you two ride in the back car? I'd like to speak to the prisoner alone."
They hesitated. "Your…Majesty?" one asked.
Twilight held a stiff upper lip. "Do as I say," she said.
The two looked at each other nervously then nodded. They swiftly exited the car. Ponietheus looked up at them then at her. She tilted her head, trying to decide just what she thought of him. His hair was unkempt. His eyes were bloodshot and he had significant bags under them, like he hadn't slept for days. Twilight Sparkle tapped her foot on the floor as she thought of what to say. She then felt the shift of the train as it began to move. The train pulled out of the station and headed for Ponyville.
Words weren't coming to Twilight Sparkle. She just stood there staring at him, and he put his head down on the floor and decidedly looked away. Twilight Sparkle frowned.
"Stand up," she said at last with her cold, authoritative voice.
He did so wearily and looked her in the eyes. She began tapping again. She wasn't sure what to do.
"…Let's get something straight," she said coldly, "We're going to be seeing a lot of each other for the next couple of days, but I'm not your friend…"
He looked down again, but that was all he did. He didn't wince anymore, like he had in the courtroom.
Twilight's attitude shifted down and she tapped faster. "…But I'm not your enemy either. I don't know. I don't what to think of you."
He looked back at her and slightly clenched his teeth. It wasn't anger, it was more like resignation. "…That's okay," he said, "I don't expect anyone to like me."
"…Why did you do it?"
He shook his head. "I thought you were ponies I knew from a long time ago. I thought you had forgotten about me and I wanted to remind you. I didn't know what that storm would do, but I didn't stop it either. When I tried, it was too late. I've only ever been too late. Everyone I knew from back then died a long time ago."
"Back then? You mean in Pinkie Pie's story?"
"I don't know what story she was talking about, but it was probably written by a pony from back then."
"Tell me what happened."
He shook his head. "…It doesn't really matter."
'Yes it does. I need to understand. I need to know what I think of you.'
Twilight's authoritative voice returned. "I wasn't asking," she said sternly.
He sighed. "It was a long time ago, before your Princess Celestia started spinning the sun around the earth. Half of the planet was bright and sunny and the other half was cold and dark. Ponies lived on the precipice, up in what's now Hailcryon - where I was for a long time. When we came into the solar system, our leader, Draco, told us to stay away from the lifeforms of earth, but I didn't listen. Ponies were smart, but they couldn't survive in the cold and they couldn't make it south. So I disobeyed Draco and gave ponies fire, taught them how to use it, taught them how to build a city. Then Draco found out about it and ordered every pony, even the children killed. So I cursed him. I cursed all of them - took away their wings and horns and made them live down here. Then everyone left."
"That doesn't explain why you're here."
"I…found a jar."
"A jar?"
"Yes, a ceramic jar with a note that told me the jar's contents would get me out of Hailcryon."
"So that storm was in a jar?"
"It began as a powder, yes."
"Who left it?"
"I don't know."
'How can you be this stupid?' Twilight Sparkle thought. It was clear to her that his action the past few days were no where near as methodical as she had first assumed. He had repetitively dashed all her expectations. She was utterly suspended in judgement. She wanted to hug him. She wanted to punch him straight in the mouth. Still, more than Ponietheus, this jar and its assumed relation to the storm and his appearance as Harbinger was unprecedented and terrifying.
"Where is this jar now?"
"Back at Hailcryon's library, I guess. That's were I lived."
'How appropriate…'
Ponietheus looked away.
"Hey, look at me," Twilight said more gently. He obeyed. "…That was where you were, but it's not where you are now. You're here with me, and, like it or not, we're stuck with each other. Enough of this moping around."
Ponietheus swallowed and stared intently at her. 'You're no use to anypony whining...'
"…What happened to the first ponies wasn't necessarily your fault, but what you did to Equestria was and you have to pay for it. Keep appearances - stiff upper lip and all that."
He stretched his shoulders in his little cage and nodded slowly. This was followed by some stuttered deep breathing on his part.
'I feel like a life coach,' Twilight Sparkle thought, 'This is the almighty Harbinger? …What a shock. What am I supposed to do with this? What does Princess Celestia expect me to do with this guy?'	
He shuddered. "What foul circumstance has brought this to pass?"
Twilight Sparkle shook her head. "…Not circumstance. You made your choices. Nopony… No one made them for you."
That last phrase seemed to bite into him. He looked away from her and was silent. Twilight sighed wearily, yet almost indignantly, and moved to perch herself against the window in order to stare out of it. She still hadn't decided her opinion of the creature.
She forced herself to chuckle. 'The detestable Harbinger and the pathetic Ponietheus. My seneschal is like a filly.' 
They both remained wordless as the train pulled into the Ponyville station.
> 20. Spike: The Return to Formula
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Spike rubbed his nose and stared down at his unappetizing plate of vegetables. He forced another bland mouthful down just to satisfy his rumbling stomach. It had been aching ever since the end of the trial. It made the most noise of anypony at the table.
All but Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie had stopped for lunch at one of the undamaged cafes in Canterlot. The girls nervously picked at their food. Spike looked at each of their weary faces, then at the battered buildings that surrounded them. Life in Canterlot had just switched back to normal, minus the aforementioned building cosmetics. Townsponies swept rubble from the street and reopened shops. Lights were being tested in windows. Parents were walking fillies to school. Folks were chatting. Spike heard pleasantries, harsh words about the trial, stories about the storm - about who was overcome, who made it through, who did what.
After a silence, Rainbow Dash snorted. She looked at her food then rolled her eyes. "Are we not going to talk about this?"
"Talk about what?" Rarity said.
"About Harbinger!" Rainbow Dash said, "About Harbinger living here like nothing happened."
Spike and Fluttershy eyed each other nervously. They both sank in their seats.
"It's not like nothing happened," Rarity said, "He's going to repair Ponyville and Canterlot. That's fair, is it not? His storm wrecked the two and now he fixes it."
"It's not fair at all," Rainbow Dash said, "Do you not remember?" 
"Remember what?"
Rainbow Dash looked at her in dumbfounded horror. Her face was stricken with it. "Don't you remember their faces? Don't you remember Fluttershy's face when we brought her into the library? Don't you remember Spike's? Or Applejack's? Or your sister's? What Harbinger did can't be measured in bits and structural damage…"
"…What Harbinger did can't be measured at all," Fluttershy murmured. Spike heard her. She was staring down at the floor. Neither Rainbow Dash nor Rarity seemed to hear her. 
"Of course I remember," Rarity said defensively, "I when through the exact same ordeal as you. I remember seeing this place - this pavilion - empty and dark, like it was dead." Rarity sniffled and wiped her nose. She was an odd mix of anger and sadness. "But… but, I don't know..."
Rainbow Dash shook her head. "To be frank, I don't think he deserves his second chance."
"Everypony deserves a second chance…" Fluttershy murmured. Spike was mesmerized by her stern stare at the floor."
"He doesn't deserve that kind of a sentence. It's not right, not after what he did. He attacked us. He chose to. He made a choice, and when you make a choice, you deal with the consequences."
"Did you see his face?" Fluttershy whispered, "I think being hated is punishment enough for him."
"What do you want?" Rarity said, "Do you want him thrown in prison? Exiled? Shipped away to Tartarus? Do you want him to throw himself at your feet and beg forgiveness? I don't know what he deserves. I don't. I don't know how I would handle it, but putting him to work - getting some use out of him - I… I don't know. I think that's enough."
Rainbow Dash shook her head. "Rarity, he hurt you. He hurt all of you. I… I can't forgive that. I can't forget it." She stared at Rarity with intense eyes and almost started sniffling herself. "I… I don't want to see any of you hurt, I don't. And I… I can't just… just let the fact that he hurt you all go. I can't."
They all went quiet. Spike just stared at the ground. His stomach grumbled. Rarity bit her lip and Fluttershy brought her head up and rested it on the table. Rainbow Dash sniffed and wiped her nose. She blinked a few times then started to fluster.
"Somepony say something," she said. She looked over to Spike and Fluttershy, "What do you guys think? We… we can't just let him live here. We can't."
Spike frowned. He didn't know. He didn't know what to do, or even much about what he thought of Harbinger.
Fluttershy looked up at Rainbow Dash. Her eyes were more solemn than angry now. "He… just looked so lost," she said, "He looked so terribly, terribly lost…"
Applejack cleared her throat. "…Harbinger doesn't matter." 
Rainbow Dash sneered vilely at her. "What?"
Applejack shook her head. "Either he's useful and he stays or he isn't and he leaves. He doesn't matter. Not in the short run. That storm came at the worst possible time - three weeks before harvest. Crops died at the worst time. It's only a few weeks until winter hits. I'll say it plain as day; we don't have enough food in storage for winter. Punishing Harbinger or… or putting him to work… It won't change that."
Rainbow Dash smacked her hoof against the table and snarled at the thought. She grumbled at Applejack. The latter did not shutter, and stared right back. Spike looked up at them and bit his lip. His stomach churned harder as he wondered whether or not he should say something. Friends shouldn't fight, not over anything. He scratched his face and looked down. Rainbow Dash and Applejack argued in an increasingly bitter manner. Spike spotted Fluttershy looking over at him. There was no doubt she was in a similar situation. Spike flashed a smile and patted her on the shoulder. His upset stomach wailed.
Still, he breathed out and prepared himself to speak.
"Fancy seeing you lot here," came a deep voice that wasn't his. "…Am I interrupting?"
Spike turned around and saw Knight Commander Protean Joy in his full armor approaching the table. His face twisted softly from genuine pleasantness to awkward surprise at the scowls he found at that table. Rarity rolled her eyes and looked away. Rainbow Dash rubbed her nose with indignity and stared off into space. Applejack was quiet. Fluttershy simply stared at them in disbelief then smiled at the Commander. 
"Hello there," she said sweetly, "I don't believe we've been properly introduced…"
"Oh!" Spike said. He coughed and cleared his throat. "Fluttershy, this is Knight Commander Protean Joy. Knight Commander, meet Fluttershy."
He smiled politely and bowed his head. "It's a pleasure to truly meet you, my lady."
"Likewise," Fluttershy said.
No politesse in the universe could've alleviated the awkwardness there in that cafe. Spike coughed and grabbed his stomach. The ache was more powerful now. He winced.  
"Are you alright, Lord Spike?" Protean Joy asked.
"…My stomach hurts."
Protean Joy scratched his chin and looked back and forth. "…I live not far from here. If your stomach hurts, I have a remedy in my medicine cabinet. A short walk."
Spike rubbed his nose and looked over at his friends.
"Go on," Rarity said, "Feel better." She gave him a gentle smile. Spike nodded and pushed himself from his seat. He joined the kindly knight, and they walked through the streets. Protean Joy walked swiftly, but slowly enough for Spike to keep up. A few turns around corners later and Spike found himself before a humble brown door in a nice stone complex. "We're here," Protean Joy said.
He pulled a set of old keys from his pack and opened the old door. It was an eclectic place, and small for a Canterlot home. There were four rooms, each in the corner of a great square so that one room always had an entrance to two others. Protean Joy bid Spike take a set at his dining room table before he disappeared into his bedroom. Spike sat but was beset by curiosity. Protean Joy's home was full of antiquities.
There snow globes, wooden toys and ceramic plates tucked away behind sturdy cabinet doors. He had several larger cabinets that loomed from the floor. The dishes in the sink had yet to be washed and the shelves had yet to be dusted. Spike wandered back into the study and ran his fingers along a small bookshelf overburdened with stories, logs, history texts and sheet music. Every piece of furniture there was surely older than little Spike, and they were sturdy and well cared for. No, but something was missing.
Spike caught the gleam of the setting sun in his eye, and he turned to a wide windowsill to his left. Upon it were two old jars of honey, three books browned by years in the sun and a picture. Spike squinted to make sense of it. It was the only picture he'd seen in the house.
He approached the windowsill and picked it up. He blew dust from its mahogany frame and lifted it to the sun's light. The sepia toned picture contained an obvious younger Protean Joy and a pretty mare with pale eyes and cream skin. Her hair was darker than his, maybe brown or a dark red, but her colors were distorted by the age of the print. On her flank she born a cutie mark depicting two bees and an empty jar.
Spike heard glass break in the back of the house and the old commander cursed. He quickly placed the picture face down on the coffee table and hurried to the bedroom. There, he pushed past a queen sized bed too big for just Protean Joy and peek through a crooked doorway into the bathroom. Protean Joy was bent over, glaring at the broken bottle on the ground and grumbling.
"Can I help?" Spike asked.
Protean Joy looked up to him with a surprised look on his face. His face softened and he nodded.
"Could you?" he said, "Poke your head in that closet behind you. There should be a broom and dust pan to the left."
Spike nodded, entered the closet and found what he was looking for. He brought the utensils to the bathroom door. Protean Joy grasped the broom and dustpan with his magic and hastily swept up his mess. "Well, so much for modern medicine," he lamented. He lent the broom and dustpan against the door and motioned for the kitchen. "Come on. Luckily for you, my mother was something of a herbalist and taught me a mixture or two when I could be bothered to listen."
Spike followed him into the kitchen and sat at the table when the commander asked him to. Protean Joy rummaged through his pantry and pulled out a tall bottle of clear liquid and some jars with different powders in them. 
"The majority of heartburn and stomach pain is caused by a lack of hydrochloric acid," he explained, "When I was younger, I ate a lot of poor quality food that I wasn't supposed to and would suffer for it, so my mother practically made enough of this stuff to start her own business."
He pulled a conglomerate of measuring spoons wired together from a drawer and a bowl from the cupboard above him. "The recipe is quiet simple: 2 teaspoons of dandelion powder; 2 teaspoons of chicory powder and half a tablespoon of vinegar…"
He placed a glass of a light white liquid in front of Spike. It did not smell too appealing. 
"…for taste," said Protean Joy. He chuckled. "You're going to want to down that all in one go."
Spike held his nose and did so. The drink was bitter and made him shake slightly. A taste like brittle, sour mustard remain on his pallet. "Ack!" he sputtered.
Protean Joy laughed. "Lovely stuff, isn't it?"
Spike frowned and smacked his tongue a bit. "Well, I do feel a little better…"
Protean Joy nodded. "The serving size is meant for a school-filly, so it's probably a bit small for you, but it should definitely help. Besides, you looked like you would take any excuse to get away from that cafe…"
"Yeah…"
Protean Joy snickered and allowed his eyes to wander to the living room's doorway. He smiled faded away and his form stiffened. Spike looked at him then followed his eyes to see what he was looking at. Spike bit down and swallowed. The commander was looking at the picture he'd left on the coffee table.
"I-I'm sorry. I was curious…" Spike said.
Protean Joy walked into the living room and lifted the picture up with his magic. He tilted his head at it for a while then looked back at Spike. 
"Oh, it's alright, you were just looking." He placed the picture nonchalantly back on the windowsill.
Spike looked down and played with his thumbs. "I was just looking around when I saw that. Is that the only picture you have?"
Protean Joy sat down at the table across from him and sighed. "That I know of, at least. I'm sure there are some more tucked away somewhere. I've never been too big a fan of photography. They're frail and difficult to get your hooves on. Back then especially…" His eyes wandered away.
"Who, um - if I may ask, that is - who's the mare?" Spike said.
Protean Joy smiled slightly but looked away. His lips tightened and he fidgeted in his seat. "That's my wife… or, it was. She's, uh, she's gone now…"
Spike exhaled and felt bad. He rubbed his stomach, which was feeling better, all things considered. "I'm so sorry," he said. He paused, then continued. "How did she pass away?"
Protean Joy shook his head. "Oh, she isn't dead, she…she just left one day. She hated my job. We had one fight too many - it was a banal thing really. One day, she said she was leaving and I said I wouldn't miss her. And I meant it when I said it…"
Spike thought, in that moment, that the commander looked very old.
He tilted his head and softly squinted. He felt he could see right through him - or inside him. Protean Joy made eye contact with him and was grim. His cheek bones lifted into a broken smile. Spike felt his mouth fall open slightly, like he wanted to say something. But he hesitated.
Protean Joy was still, like he was just waiting.
"…But?" Spike whispered.
Protean Joy exhaled. Then he looked down and all around, like he was trying to make it seem like he hadn't been waiting for that. Still, he looked relieved. Spike shuttered. He looked old, sad and relieved all at the same time.
"…But I see her face in everything," Protean Joy said flatly.
They both were just quiet for a while. They both just simply looked at one another.
Finally, Protean Joy nodded towards the door.
"Let's get you back."   
> 21. Luna: High is the Way
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Princesses Celestia and Luna had both returned to the throne room after the trial. Celestia had delivered some line about appropriations, but Luna knew her better. She was tired, and she would often retreat to the the throne room where no guards nor townsponies would bother her. She insisted Luna be in there too, even if she never said anything. Luna usually empathized greatly with her sister in times like this, like she could even feel her emotions. However, things were different this time.
Luna did not sympathize with Harbinger. He seemed like a powerful, wretched fool to her. She stared at the two large holes in the throne room's ceiling - one caused by her, the other by Harbinger. Her mouth twisted.
"I… Was that really wise, sister?" Luna said nervously, "I mean, is Harbinger really worth the possible risk? The townsponies will take this as a slight."
Celestia looked out the window with her cold political stare. Ever since her return from exile, Luna had felt the changes in her sister. There were wheels turning beneath that stoic face and public persona. Two years had passed, and Luna knew Celestia wasn't completely comfortable letting her hair all the way down in front of her. Luna grinded her teeth, and shook away the thought. She didn't want to think that the trust they once had with each other could be irreparably damaged.
"…The truth, sweet sister, is I needed to buy some time. Ponietheus and, much more importantly, that storm, came from nowhere. How long had he been here on this very earth without my knowing? What was the source of his mysterious power. It's clear he wasn't controlling it, especially in the end. His friend Saturn told me he was throwing himself against the clouds, like he was trying to kill them. Sad."
More like pathetic. Luna continued to find it difficult to pity him, even with their apparent similarities - an exile unleashing a stormy temper tantrum on the ponies of Equestria. Perhaps this was the very reason of her dislike. She had come to despise anypony that reminded her of herself from the past. Still, Luna's magic had always been hers. Pluto and now Celestia seemed to think of Harbinger and his storm as separate.
Celestia shook her head, and her political guise resurfaced. "Harbinger… Ponietheus doesn't matter that much on his own. He's either an asset to the state and stays or he isn't and he doesn't. What's important on that front is that nopony appears to be hurt. Buildings can be replaced, but ponies can't. What worries me, sweet sister, is food. We're less than three weeks from the main harvest, and the recent weather had to have damaged a significant portion of our crop. I doubt food grown in autumn can cover the losses. Low stock in granaries by fall means hungry ponies in winter. That storm's done more damage than Ponietheus ever could."
"It still doesn't feel right to me," Luna said. 
"Ponietheus is a convent figure to place blame on. Having a living, breathing thing to be angry at is easier, but it is rarely applicable or helpful in the long run. Famine will be harder to change than him."
"…We'll need to purchase food from elsewhere. The Crystal Empire, perhaps?"
Celestia shook her head worryingly. "The Crystal Empire isn't large enough to cover the projected losses, nor is it in a healthy enough political state to handle such a burden."
"Who then?"
"The Griffins, maybe." 
Luna frowned. Griffins and ponies rarely got along, at least historically. The truth was that she hadn't seen the Griffin kingdoms since before her exile. A thousand years doesn't mean much to the longevous alicorn, but entire civilizations can rise and fall on earth in that span of time.
"…The modern Griffins are much different to the warring pests you remember, sweet sister," Celestia said, "They've united into a heretical monarchy, with a few bits of meritocracy and blatant militarism mixed in. They pride themselves on their history and their armored knights. Negotiating with them will be difficult…"
Suddenly, a noise like thunder struck the sky above them. Both went curiously to the balcony and saw a figure descending from the sky above. The small shock of the noise wore away quickly as they realized it be yet another alicorn from space sent to leer down on them. Celestia opened the two larges doors to the balcony and anticipate the guest. 
Soon, the guest landed spectacularly. 
"Gaea!?" Celestia sputtered in surprise.
Gaea was a spectacle in every sense of the word. She was taller and thinner than Celestia, and her coat was a darker shade of green. Her eyes and mane were a deep gold, and she wore rings of gold on her legs near her ankles, and a thick necklace of emeralds. Her mane was well kept and braided, with the long end of it resting on her left shoulder. Hers didn't flow out like Luna's or Celestia's. Her jawline resembled Princess Cadence's, and she made sure to stand up straight, and tilt her head back so that she looked slightly down her nose at you when she spoke to you. Her mouth seemed curled in a permanent self-satisfied grin.
"How's the kingdom?" she asked as she entered, "I heard you ran into a bit of trouble."
"It was trying at the time," Celestia said with composure, "But everything has been resolved for the best, I think."
"Hmph," Gaea said, slightly condescendingly, "And your little 'ponies' - how are they?"
"…There have been no injuries to report, serious or otherwise."
Gaea smiled like a snake. Her eyes twisted slightly and she began to pace back and forth in the throne room. Celestia stood stiffly. Luna felt her mouth curl into a frown and her brow lower. Of all the alicorns of space, smug Gaea could be tolerated the least. 
"I apologize for my Jupiter's behavior. He seemed so grumpy when he returned from here, with that frown of his. I swear, one day that scowl will just stick permanently. He didn't seem to take your little thunderstorm seriously."
"But you do," Luna said begrudgingly. Gaea's smirk faded and she looked at her gravely. Celestia seemed to clench her teeth.
"Does it seem to you that I came to visit this place just to disavow your thunderstorm? Hmm? Do you really think I came all the way down here just to mock you?" Gaea flustered like a terrible mother. Luna's face flushed with red anger. She hated feeling lectured like she was some kid.
"Please, Luna, be quiet," Celestia said. She turned to Gaea very diplomatically. "Forgive us, my lady, it's been a trying past few days…"
"Indeed," Gaea said curtly, "…Disrespectful."
"May I asked why you came all the way done here? You have never taken and interest in our affairs before."
"You never came to beg for my help before," Gaea said with her smug upper lip retaking it's shape, "I was rather curious about the thunderstorm that broke Princess Celestia's pride. Seems like that matter solved itself."
"It did," Celestia said with courtesy.
"And the perpetrator?"
"He is in our custody."
"'He?'" Gaea asked impatiently, "Who is 'he'? Some deep water kraken? Some devil the earth just… spat on your doorstep?"
"The storm was caused by what I can assume to be an alicorn exile," Celestia said, "A wastrel named Ponietheus."
Gaea seemed shocked by the mention of the name. That surprised Luna. It was a rare sight the day she gave any hint to lack of knowledge. It was clear from her eyes and her open mouth, however, that she recognized the name immediately and could put a face and story to it. "Truly? That fool? That petulant boy got the better of you?"
"Are you familiar with him?" Luna asked.
"Obviously," Gaea said, "He challenged my predecessor and I assumed he died in the ensuing struggle, given that he didn't make a peep afterwords, for once in his life. What to you plan to do with him?"
"He's tasked with repaying the crown for the damages he's caused," Celestia said, "Once his debt is paid… I don't know. I guess he's free to go."
Gaea tapped her foot nervously. "Has Saturn spoken with him?"
"Not…not that I know of," Celestia said. Her confusion at that sentence slipped through her political poker face just enough for Luna to spot it.
"And your reformed alicorn, what's his angle with her?"
Celestia's eyes widened and her mouth fell open slightly. Luna grinded her teeth as shot threw her system like a winter wind. She saw her sister tremble, and it was not with fear. Twilight Sparkle had been Celestia's secret, and Luna had told Gaea of that secret. Celestia would have to understand that it was the only way to get Gaea's help when they so badly needed it. Gaea wouldn't care if five million ponies fell victim to Harbinger's storm, but she'd care if a reformed alicorn did.
"I…I…I…" Celestia sputtered, "..Reformed-"
"Alicorn," Gaea said coldly, "You have one. When?"
"…A few months ago…"
"Earth months?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
The room fell silent for a while. Celestia sighed and recollected herself. "Because I needed an heir. What will become of this place when I'm gone. I needed some…one to pass my burdens to. To share in my mission."
"And what's this mission of yours, hm?" Gaea asked with her voice raised, "What's your grand plans for this reformed alicorn?"
"The galaxy…the universe - it's a very broken place, is it not?" Celestia's voice was getting louder too. Luna kept quiet. She knew her sister. She'd never gotten along with Gaea, nor Jupiter, nor any of them. She knew when her sister felt pushed better than anypony. Gaea was pushing her, and Celestia would not be moved. "It's going to take more than you or I to put it back together again. And you don't seem to… And your hooves are full out there in the solar system. You and your family are doing your part, and I'm doing mine."
"And what's your 'part', exactly?"
"The same as it has always been. I'm not your enemy, Gaea, so enough with your accusations. This reformed alicorn shouldn't be a concern of yours, no more so than you concern yourself with the ponies of the earth. She is mine and I will take care of her. She's likely the closest thing I'll ever have to having a child. Surely you can respect that, right? Surely you can respect protecting your children?"
Gaea backed down from that. Her face relaxed and she brought her head down. She looked at Celestia eye to eye now, and her thin mouth tightened. "What is her name?" she asked in a softer voice.
"…Twilight Sparkle," Celestia said. They were both stiff as they stared at each other.
"Very well," Gaea said as she lifted her chin up, "Bring your 'child' to meet my children in the upcoming equinox. If she's truly to be an asset in your 'rebuilding of the universe', she'll need to know just what she's getting herself into."
"We shall see," Celestia said.
Gaea got close to her, like a challenge. "We shall," she said. Then she turned to leave.  
Celestia was very stiff as she watched Gaea ascend up into the sky and out of sight. She brought her head down, then, after a few moments, she sauntered over to her throne and let herself slide into it. She pressed her right hoof up against her forehead, just below her horn, and let it slide down to her mouth. Luna could feel the tension. Celestia was angry.
"You…told her about Twilight Sparkle?" she said coldly.
Luna's heart skipped, but she did not wince. "If I hadn't, Twilight Sparkle would still be corrupted by the storm."
"The storm dissipated on its own, Luna."
"We don't know that for sure, and we certainly didn't know it then."
"How many times do I have to tell you to think of the consequences of-"
"I acted!" Luna was raising her voice now. Celestia was taken aback by her shouting, and her head snapped up. Their eyes met, and both pulsed with anger. "You were infected. The storm was on us. We couldn't use the Elements of Harmony, so I acted! I had to do something, sister!"
The room fell quiet. Celestia shut her eyes and sighed. "It wasn't your fault," Celestia said, though more to herself than Luna, "You didn't know. It's okay. It's not your fault."
Celestia pulled herself up, walked over to Luna, and gently hugged her. "I'm sorry I almost lost my temper…"
Luna took a deep breath of her own and hugged back. "It's okay. I… I'm sorry I was defensive."
Celestia pulled herself away and smiled solemnly.  
"We don't have to take Twilight Sparkle to see her, Big Sister," Luna said.
"No, Luna, we don't have to," Celestia said. She walked over to the window and gazed out over the green fields to the north, and the icy mountains beyond. "But we will," she continued, "Or Gaea will become more suspicious. I need more time to plan…" 
An all too familiar deep chuckle echoed throughout the chamber. 
Celestia rolled her eyes. "Discord, how much of that did you hear?"
Discord appeared. He hovered above them with his hands behind his head. "Oh, quite a bit. Boy, oh boy, does the plot ever thicken!"
He lowered himself down to the floor. "What a delightful lady that was! It's a shame she doesn't pop around more often. In fact, I don't recall ever seeing her in my many years on this happening planet…"
"That's enough!" Luna barked, "We don't have time for your nonsense, Discord. You're not allowed back here."
"'Nonsense!'" Discord said rather indignantly, "Here I was ready to humble myself before the crown and offer my assistance just to be met with snide contempt from number two! It seems your time among the stars did little on your manners…"
Luna sneered. "What did you say?"
"Enough, you too!" Celestia snapped. "This is neither the time nor the place for such childish banter! Discord, if you have a point, then make it."
"Oh, I just thought I'd pop in and let you know how Ponyville's most recent reformed villain is settling in. I say, you've got so many of us running around now, you could start a little post-evil freak show!"
"You're referring to Harbinger, I take it," Celestia said sternly, "I left Twilight Sparkle in charge of that matter. Your input is nothing but redundant and unnecessary."
"Yes, but I've got nothing to do around here!" Discord said, "Twilight Sparkle is so very young and impressionable, and little Harby's sob story is just so tragic - him being abandoned by his dear, dear friends and what not. Why, she just can't help but feel so sorry for him. And if he has not truly been changed for the better…"
Luna then saw her sister flinch ever so slightly. Discord paused and tried his hardest to mask a little satisfied grin. Luna simply glared at him.
"…I know you'd hate to see her damaged," Discord continued, "So, I figured why not have a pair of fresh eyes on the matter? After all, I don't care about Harby or his dark and troubled past. I could keep an eye on him for you while you tend to other matters."
"And what do you want in return for this… favor?" Celestia asked.
Discord grinned. "Why, it would be enough for me to know I'm of service to your holy worship-ness. I only want you to shine on, Benevolent Sun."
Celestia frowned. "Save the flattery. Tell me what you want."
"Oh, very well," Discord said, "All I ask for in return is a little trust and a little… wiggle room. It's so cramped here in the castle with all those guards poking their noses in every draconequus's business. I say, I'm not even sure why you bothered releasing me from that statue if you intended for me to just sit around the castle all day."
Celestia sighed. "Very well. Watch Harbinger for me and I see fit to indulge you some… privileges. But privileges may be revoked, Discord, and I am no fan of third chances. Do I make myself clear?"
Discord grinned and saluted. "Crystal, Benevolent Sun!" With that, he slinked out of the throne room.
Luna was silent a while, but built the courage to speak.
"Was that truly wise, Big Sister?" she asked, "I mean, do you honestly believe Discord can be trusted?"
"Discord's has had plenty of chances to betray my trust and he has yet to seize any of them," Celestia said.
She bit her lip then and scooted closer to her sister. "You overestimate him, sweet sister, as he overestimates himself," she whispered, "Discord is not a complicated beast. He's more predictable and prone to error if he believes me trusting and stupid. He's up to something and I want to know what."
She pulled away and stretched out her back. "Still, if his loyalty can be secured, he will be a great asset to Twilight Sparkle. The Elements of Harmony are still her most powerful tool, but they can be all too easily disbanded, as the last few days have taught us."
Luna approached her sister. "…You seem troubled."
Celestia sighed. "Do you recall that Knight Captain Protean Joy? He sent me a personal debrief of his experiences with young Twilight Sparkle. She's grown tremendously powerful - she may even soon compete with you in ability, sweet sister - but that power seems to take its toll on her body." Celestia shook her head. "Perhaps in my hastiness to augment her, I have placed her in danger."
"Won't she grow?" Luna asked, "Won't her body compensate for her increase of power?"
"It should with time," Celestia said, "But she's quite vulnerable until then. She needs time… and a teacher. She needs somepony more magically talented than I to teach her to control her newfound ability. That is the main reason I spared that Ponietheus, you see. Like Discord, he could be of great use to her. But both of them have to come to love her on their own. I can't force that. It would ruin everything."
Luna shook her head. "Why is Twilight Sparkle so important to you, Big Sister? Why put so much effort into just one student?"
Celestia smiled. "The universe beyond Equestria is a very broken place. It's going to take more than you and I to put it back together. That is all I want, sweet sister. I just want this vast place we live in to settle down for a while and catch its breath."
Luna smiled. "I'll do what I can to help you, Big Sister. But I don't trust Discord or Ponietheus and I don't trust the faith you've put in them…."
"It's not them I'm worried about," Celestia said, "It's Gaea."
Soon, there came a knock on the mighty chamber door. Celestia shook her head and blinked. Luna saw she was slipping on her smooth, stoic authoritative face like a mask. Luna frowned. Celestia walked over to the door and opened it.
On the other side stood a Royal Guard. Luna tilted her head. He was smaller than guards usually were; pegasus, orange coat, placid eyes. She couldn't place his name, though.
Celestia smiled. "Yes? Did you need something?" she asked sweetly.
The little orange guard stretched his back and did his damnedest to seem stern. "A visitor, Your Majesty," he said, "One of those… um, visiting alicorns. He says he'd like to speak with you."
Celestia sighed and her composure slipped just slightly. "He's not a deep orange, is he?" she asked with a slight sardonic attitude. Luna snickered a little.
"Um, no, ma'am," the little orange guard said, "Uh, I mean; no, Your Majesty. He, uh, he's purple and he, uh… well, frankly, he doesn't shut up."
Celestia smiled. "Send him in then."
The guard nodded and left the room.
"Sounds like Pluto," Luna said.
"It sure does," Celestia said, "At least things with him should be laxed. He seems like a harmless old alicorn. I'm surprised the likes of him even bothered to league with Gaea, honestly."
Soon the little orange guard returned with Pluto in tow. He politely lead him into the room, saluted and left, shutting the door behind him.
Pluto was smiling. "Nice boy!" he said, "Very polite."
Celestia flashed her warmest political smile and bowed slightly. Luna mimicked, but her political poker face had never been as refined.
"Welcome to Canterlot Castle, Lord Pluto. We're happy to receive you," Celestia said, "I only wished your visit was in better times. Now, what can I do for you?"
Pluto scratched his chin. "Mmm, eh, hello there!" he said, "I very much thank you for your hospitality and I feared our first meeting was under, um… less than optimal circumstances. I merely wished to reintroduce myself. Er, um, you have quite the impressive kingdom, I hear. I had meant to visit, but you know intentions. Run away things, those; so quick to dissipate!"
"I appreciate your kind gesture and words," Celestia said, "And I'd like to formally thank you for your part in reverse the unpleasantries that had befallen us the past few days."
"Oh, um, no need to thank me, dear young Miss Celestia," Pluto said, "I was happy to help. It gets, er, quite lonely on my little old planet. I was happy to get out and stretch my old legs a bit."
"Still, I am personally grateful," Celestia said, "Now, was there something I could do for you?"
"Oh, yes, um, down to business, as they say!" Pluto said, "I admit I am not here for a simple exchange of pleasantries, as much as I love a good chat. I'm here because I am both curious and admittedly a little worried." 
Luna saw her sister's placid face slip considerably.
"I just had a chat nice with young Twilight Sparkle. Oh, a nice girl; very bright!" Pluto said, "Oh, er, it was nothing menacing, I assure you. I was simply very interested in her - an alicorn reformed. The curse that severed Draco's followers was not fueled by Ponietheus alone, I suspect, but rather the collective hatred of alicorns the first ponies experienced. Ponietheus simply tapped into that collective anger and used it to power his curse, and I suspect that tapping is what caused them to grow to fear him. I remember the lad now. Talented boy, er, if a little reckless at times. He always had a knack for tapping into brains, as it were! Oh, er, forgive my rambling. The point is that you're quite powerful to have found a way to reverse such a thing. Powerful enough to challenge Gaea, or, um, or so she just might assume."
Celestia frowned. "Are you not loyal to Gaea?"
"I respect her, sure, er, but she's not my ruler. Though she'd like to be. Fancies herself the autocrat. Crude thing, really. She'd like to rule over the whole galaxy if it weren't for the Shadowlings. Oh, but that isn't important. What is important is that if Gaea decides that young Twilight Sparkle is a threat to her rule over the solar system and over us, she just might destroy her. Oh, how I abhor violence! I'd hate to see Twilight Sparkle damaged and I suspect you do as well."
Celestia swallowed. "What's your interest in her? What's your angle in this?"
Pluto chuckled. "Oh, dear young Miss Celestia, I beg of you! Don't mistake me for, er, for a… politically ambitious being nor a foul-hearted old being with some, er, well, diabolical machinations. I, er, I only seek to understand, well, the universe, for one thing, but living things especially. While Gaea and her family don't see any value in life beyond the mystical alicorn, I personally find ponies and the, um, er, for lack of a better term, subsidiary alicorn races to be unprecedentedly fascinating - as well as hopeful. Ponies in particular are the first sapient species I've discovered to have intelligence that matches an alicorn! Ponietheus might have sped up the process, but ponies built societies, language and rudimentary scientific thought all on their own. And without magic too!"
Pluto scratched his chin. "Gaea is currently content to ignore them. She doesn't perceive them as worth her time. Oh, er, but I know better. Given enough time baking the pot of evolution and ponies will become powerful. They might not have magic, but their minds expand with challenge while alicorn's wither with decay. It is best, I think, that Gaea's curiosity is not sustained any longer. It is my professional opinion that she not be given any more power. The universe is a much happier place when she's not out and about trying to pull at strings, if you see what I mean."
"Wait, what?" Luna asked, "You're trying to confine Gaea?"
Pluto nodded. "Yes! Well, mostly her influence. Gaea's not a bad being, I don't think, but she takes things too far. And the universe is still recovering from the last bout of, um, er… alicorn-too-far-thing-taking."
Luna frowned.
"Why tell us this?" Celestia asked. "Why trust us with such an opinion?"
"Well, I, er, think we share that opinion, don't we? I perceive that you have a similar lack of faith in Gaea and in the alicorn as I," Pluto said, "Isn't that why you chose to live down here?"
Celestia bit her tongue. Luna blinked and rubbed her head. "Are… are you saying you're on our side?" she asked.
"Uh, Oh! Well, er, saying that would've gotten the point across much easier, I suppose!" Pluto said. "Why, yes, I'm on your side and I came here to ask you for favor."
"What favor?" Celestia asked.
Pluto fidgeted. "Well, er, I find Ponietheus's storm magic - or, um, rather the storm magic that allowed Ponietheus to carry it - to be very, very alarming. I don't know the source of it. Ponietheus certainly wasn't it, but it perpetuated itself from his body. Er, it followed him. He was carrying it, but that magic seemed like it was following it's own protocol - A protocol so powerful, it permanently overrode the curse that kept him trapped in Hailcryon. I am most curious. I must find out. Magic doesn't move by its own volition, and magic like that rarely has a, um, benevolent caster. But, if I'm away studying this peculiar phenomenon, they're will be no one around to watch out for Gaea and keep her confined in her ignorance."
"You want us to watch Gaea?" Luna asked.
Pluto nodded. "Yes, and do all you can to dampen her interest in Twilight Sparkle. A curious Gaea sticking her snout where it shouldn't be is the last thing we need, especially while that nasty storm and its, er, um, unpleasant implications might be a sign of a far graver danger."
Celestia nodded. "Alright. We'll watch Gaea for you if you keep us update on your findings. If you turn out to be right about the storm and its… caster, then we must be prepared. It'd be a pity should all my efforts - and yours, I suspect - be for nothing."
Pluto smiled. "Partners then! Oh, how exciting! I haven't felt like this for eras! Very well! I will let you know what I find out. I, er, I think I know where to begin."  
	 
> 22. Twilight Sparkle - Venit, Vidit, Vicit
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	To Twilight's surprise, Ponyville was incredibly copacetic. Apart from the obvious structural damage and all the broken glass, everything had basically returned to normal. She hadn't seen Ponyville since Ponietheus's surrender three days ago, and it was nice to see it and its citizens weren't as somber as those of Canterlot. The unicorns and such of the latter had always leant to the dramatic in Twilight's opinion. She preferred to get the objective or whatever it was over with and go home.
Ponyville's citizens had spent a great deal of time cleaning up the streets and doing some basic repairs. It almost made Ponietheus's sentence redundant. Ponyville was mainly home to earth ponies, after all, and, by Twilight's experience, they liked to do things themselves. Manual labor was beneath those in Canterlot.
The one thing both cities had in common was the horrid looks they gave the captive Ponietheus as he was paraded through the main street, surrounded by guards and some newbie princess. The playful banter and merriment of the citizens all subsided when they walked passed. Unlike before, however, the earth ponies' stares and whispers were angrier. Twilight Sparkle let herself look back at him. He kept his eyes on the ground and he looked pained.
She wondered if this was part of Princess Celestia's plan - to teach him some humility. Applejack had told her once that in order to teach a dog not to dedicate in the house, you had to stick its nose in it a few times before it grasped the concept. She wondered if that was the basic idea behind dragging him through two towns to some old water mill on the far side of time. If that was the game, she figured it was working. From the look on her "seneschal"'s face, he didn't like the smell.
Across the bridge between the town and the Everfree forest, near the small river that ran by the town, an old water mill had been decommissioned in favor of a more productive location upriver. It was a small wooden building with two stories and stone supports. The building wasn't in any kind of disrepair, but it was old, and dusty, and mildew had collected on the big wheel that sat idly in the river.  
Twilight requested that the guardsponies remain outside, and she lead Ponietheus into the old mill.
He was a little too big for the place. It was built for ponies, after all. He seemed an average build for an alicorn, at least to her knowledge. He was about as big as Princess Celestia. Maybe he was smaller for a male, but she didn't know. She didn't like not knowing. 
"This is it," she said, "Home sweet home, I guess."
"Yeah," he said softly, "I like the sound of that." 
Twilight Sparkle frowned to herself and puzzled at the strange nostalgic flair to his tone. When she looked at him, she saw him genuinely smile for the first. He showed no teeth, but his eyes smiled and, for a flash, he seemed sweet, like a filly. That happiness fell away soon, however, and he began poking around the mill. He felt around the floorboards, listening to their creaks. He tested the integrity of a few shelves by pressing down on them firmly with one of his hooves. He carefully opened a nearby window and let the soft breeze in.
Twilights eyes drifted outside to the gentleness of the warm, sunny day. It was like the planet didn't even remember what had happened - how dark it was, or how, for at least a while, she didn't think things would turn out alright in the end. It was almost embarrassing that somepony like Ponietheus, who'd happen to divert her every expectation, had spurred such a feeling in her. She wasn't used to doubt, not on that scale. She wasn't used to a lot of things that had happened recently. 
'Life never lets you just catch up, does it?'
She heard Ponietheus tapping on the walls. "This place seems really sturdy," he said, "How long has it been abandoned?"
"I'm not sure," Twilight said bluntly.
"The doorways are a little small, but I think I can manage."
"The place is yours, so I guess you can do what you want with it."
Twilight Sparkle surprised herself with the coldness in her own voice. She went over to the open window and let the breeze caress her face. In that moment, she felt really old and wanted nothing more than to go to bed. She considered laying down on the cold, hardwood floor and sleeping there. 
A low thump caught her attention. She looked over towards Ponietheus, who she must've transmitted her previous wish telepathically too, for he had just laid down on the floor and stretched out his limbs.
"What are you doing?" she asked.
"This floor is really comfortable!" he said before he pulled himself up. He smiled at her, but she could tell it was a fake. "Wood's a little aged, though."
"Well, get settled in. Tomorrow I'll show you the stone quarry and you can start working. I'm not one hundred percent sure how you'll be compensated or how you'll start paying the crown back, but I'm thinking it'll be something of a wage. The more hours you put in, the faster you pay your debt, I think."
"Sounds fair," he said. He walked over to a window on a wall perpendicular to the one where she opened a window. He stared out at the old water wheel. "You think that could work again?"
Twilight didn't care. "Maybe," she said placidly.
"River's a little too calm, maybe…"
He kept talking, but Twilight tuned him out.
It was then that Pinkie Pie of all ponies poked her head in through the open window and greet them both with a big smile. "Remember me?" she asked cheerfully, more at Ponietheus than Twilight Sparkle.
He just nodded and smiled softly. "Yeah, I remember you."
Pinkie Pie sniffed the air. "Nice place you have here! Smells a little old, though."
"You may come inside, if you like," Ponietheus said.
Pinkie Pie grinned and pulled herself in through the window. "Heya, Twilight!"
"Hi, Pinkie Pie," Twilight said wearily.
"Geez, you look bushed!"
Twilight Sparkle nodded. "I am," she said in earnest. She noticed she couldn't maintain her authoritative voice very well whenever her friends where near. Pinkie Pie never seemed to get tired, with the exception of her more somber mood back when the storm was looming overhead. It shocked Twilight how quickly the pink pony's moods changed. She was a cheerful as ever. Ponietheus, she noted, looked like he hadn't slept in days.
Pinkie Pie turned to him. "I hope you're not angry with Princess Celestia. She's only being harsh because it's her job."
Ponietheus smiled softly again. "I'm not angry. Your Princess Celestia is very fair."
"That's great to hear," Pinkie Pie said, "Oh, and you're just going to love it here in Ponyville! We're right in-between Cloudsdale and Canterlot, so we always get to see the big happenings and the meadows around town are wonderful and there's usually a party or two every week because we're always celebrating something and the cake shop I work at is delicious!! Oh, and harvest will be soon and we always have a big dinner and you should come!"
Ponietheus nodded politely and seemed to appreciate the fact that Pinkie Pie was just trying to cheer him. Twilight, however, was more somber.
'Nopony in Ponyville is going to be happy that he's here, even if he's my seneschal or working off his debt to the state or whatever. Things aren't just going to go back to normal. Things don't always work out the way you want them to.'
Twilight Sparkle thought back to what Protean Joy when they reentered Ponyville a few days ago - about her being Princess Celestia's 'ace in the hole.' She wondered if Ponietheus was some how now a part of that. It was clear that Princess Celestia didn't like him, but Twilight Sparkle doubted she liked Discord all that much either. Still, both were here and both were pretty much tied to her.
She wanted to speak to Princess Celestia. 
"I have to head back to Canterlot, you two," she said suddenly. The both looked at her surprised. She flashed a diplomatic smile and scratched her head. "Princess business, you know."
"Yeah, I get it," Pinkie Pie said. She went in to hug her. "Don't forget to relax every now and again, Twilight."
"I will," she said. She looked towards her seneschal. "I'll be back tomorrow morning to show you to that stone quarry. Please stay out of trouble until then."
He nodded. "Don't worry about me," he said softly.
Twilight Sparkle left the mill and headed back to the train station, daydreaming of her bed.
She spent the train ride dozing off with her head against the window. It vibrated with the rustling of the cars, but she was too tired to care. She found the repetitive taping sound of her skull against the glass comforting. It drown out the noise of the other passengers. Twilight smiled. It was nice to close her eyes and be alone in her own head. It was a good reprieve from the work that waited for her back in Canterlot. 
She wondered if Princess Celestia ever felt like this, hiding being the rumbling of the afternoon train. Twilight hated feeling unsure, feeling like she was working with half the information. She missed books: their stories; their complete information; their predictability. There was a terror in uncertainty. She'd never felt more nervous for the future.
The trees, rocks, grass and fields that colored the view out of the train window passed quickly, and, soon enough, the train pulled into Canterlot station. The castle loomed over the roof tops in the distance. It was now more foreboding to Twilight that Harbinger's storm had ever been. She allowed herself to sit in her seat while the other passengers and the few guardsponies exited. The guards offered to escort her back to the castle. She declined in her authoritative voice and dismissed them. She wanted the solace of a solitary walk. 
She decided to take the scenic route when she finally pulled herself from the train. There was a nice view of the valley to the south along a supportive wall that faced away from the mountains. She often walked along the the precipice there when she was attending school in Canterlot, and revisiting that spot had some nostalgic appeal. It was her favorite spot in the whole city. Nopony dare put a building so close the the edge, so there was always a nice breeze. The bustling sounds of the city faded into the background as Twilight walked along the wall. She enjoyed the relative peace and the feel of the sun.
She soon found, however, that she wasn't alone. Near the railing overlooking the valley stood the large, dark red alicorn from earlier. He stared out at Ponyville in the distance with a particular mixed look of grim sadness. He was slowing grinding his teeth underneath a soft frown. He seemed like he was waiting for something. Twilight Sparkle couldn't remember his name, but seeing him there made her stop in her tracks.
Soon he saw her and his vague expression settled. His eyebrows came down and his frown softened more. Twilight Sparkle swallowed. He was looking for her.
He solemnly walked over to her. "You're the mended princess, yes?"
Twilight bit her lip. He was huge, much bigger than Princess Celestia or Luna. His eyes were a darker red than his skin, and his coarse, black hair was slicked back and trimmed. He seemed to have a habit of keeping his head hung low so that he looked up at you from under his brow. On his left flank was a symbol she didn't recognize. It looked something like a lower case h, but a line perpendicularly crossed the stem above the curve, and the curve itself looped back instead of simply proceeding downward. There was a small hook shape at the bottom of the curve. It looked like a sickle or a scythe.
"…Can I help you?" she asked nervously. 
He cocked his head and studied her wings. "Wings. Horn. You're the mended princess. You haven't been an alicorn long. You're too small."
"My name is Twilight Sparkle, not 'mended princess'," Twilight said. "What are you still doing here? I thought the alicorn had all left."
"I am permitted to stay as long as that scientist is here. He wished to speak with your despot as I wish to speak to you."
Twilight Sparkle scratched her chin. She felt like she was talking to a robot. He had a strange way of talking, like he wasn't good at it. He had a deep monotone, a still face and he didn't emote much. She tried to think of his name, of what Jupiter had called him. 
"You're… Saturn, right?"
"I am called Saturn, yes."
"Why do you want to talk to me?"
He looked down and away. His eyes were quietly resigned. "I wanted to speak to you about my friend, the one that caused all this. I call him Drifter."
"Drifter?" It was the first name besides his own that she had heard him say.
He shook his head. "A simple nickname. Not the one he was born with, but I think Drifter fits him better than his real name, or the one your beings gave to him - Harbinger."
Twilight had figured this guy had some kind of vested interest in Ponietheus. She remembered when they saw each other on that field a few days earlier. Ponietheus cried and Saturn seemed like he'd seen a ghost.
"You knew him? Before all this, I mean."
Saturn nodded and grinded his teeth. "Yes. He is my brother, though not in the literal sense of course. We grew up together, under the same circumstances… until he found this place. Do you know the story?"
Twilight Sparkle nodded. "Yes, I know the story," she said wearily. 
"I thought he had died," Saturn said softly. He looked down at the ground and scowled. Twilight Sparkle understood everything once he said that. She couldn't explain it, but she thought she could see what he felt behind his stone face, his tired eyes and his dry words. Ponietheus was his friend, and he would look after her. It was like her and Spike - the way she looked after Spike. 
"…But he is in your hooves now, as well as your despot's," Saturn said, "Drifter is out of my reach. I came to ask you to look after him, if you can."
Twilight Sparkle smiled at him. "You're free to visit him if you want."
Saturn looked sad. "I-"
His eyes darted up towards something behind her. He sneered. Twilight could feel his anger in her gut. She turned to see. An deep green alicorn flew off from the castle into the distance, up into space. "That is why I cannot stay," Saturn said, "I tried to convince your despot to allow me to see my friend while he was incarcerated at her castle, but she would not allow it."
"Please don't be angry with Princess Celestia," Twilight Sparkle said, "This… this whole thing has been pretty personal for her."
"Be calm. I bear no ill will against her. I understand her position." Saturn turned and looked out over the valley. "She loves this place, I can see it. Drifter loved it too. I asked your despot to put him to work here, to pay for what he did, just as I ask you to watch over him."
'I really don't want to,' Twilight told herself in her head. Still, she couldn't shake this sorrowful feeling in her stomach. She didn't seem to have a choice. The words came out before she could stop them. "I will. Don't worry."
Saturn turned back around to face her. "That old one who just flew off - do you know her? She's the one your despot's sister came to fetch."
"Oh, Gaea?"
"Yes, her." Saturn seemed vaguely disgusted. His brow was more furrowed, and he looked off to the distance with an intense frown. "I believe you should know. She plans to meet you, to have you brought to her in space. A warning; She is not your ally. She stinks of age and fear - fear of the unknown, just as those who came before her. You are a something she doesn't have control over. And so, as I asked you to watch over my friend, tell him that I beg him to keep you safe from her."
Twilight Sparkle frowned. He hated Gaea, that much was clear. Something had happened with all these alicorn, something much bigger than Ponietheus. She felt toyed with. She felt like she had been thrown into something she didn't understand. She felt angry. In fact, she felt too angry, as if the anger wasn't all hers. Her head began to sting just a little, and she felt a slight pressure on her chest.
"What has Gaea done that's made so uncomfortable."
"She is old, and so are her ideas," Saturn said, "She… uses beings, is ruthless, merciless, uncompromising, needlessly pragmatic-" He cut himself off and shook his head. "It is not your problem, little mended princess. It is mine." He spread out his wings and looked upward.
"Please look after my friend," he said solemnly, "And look after yourself as well."
Then he was gone.
Twilight Sparkle watched him until he disappeared into the sky. She wished she could trade Ponietheus for him. She sighed and let herself stare off over the valley while her mind processed the encounter. The mix of sorrow and anger she felt in her gut had left as well, and the old feelings of resignation and fatigue settled back in. 'So, this is what it means to be a princess. I have so many questions.'
She closed her eyes and sucked in a good lungful of air. Then, she turned towards the castle, hoping to meet with Princess Celestia.
> 23. 'Theus: Drifter
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	'Theus loaded more stone onto his minecarts in the dead of the night. He hadn't been sleeping well these last few days, so he figured he might as well keep himself busy. Working distracted him from reflecting on the things he'd done and what a fool he was. He enjoyed feeling productive and fantasizing that his work would open their hearts to him, that he'd feel at home, but he didn't fool himself. 
It was the night of his fourth day as an Equestrian Government Employee/Royal Seneschal - which he understood was a nice way of saying he was an internment worker. He didn't mind and he didn't complain. Luna, Pinkie Pie and the days he'd spent in a Canterlot dungeon had made it quite clear that he was in the wrong. The angry stares of the ponies and the obvious unpopularity of the sentence did bother him greatly, but when he worked he didn't have to think about it.
With Twilight's permission, he'd constructed a small rail line between his mill house and the old stone quarry at the base of the mountain which held up Canterlot. She'd also granted him use of an unnamed section of old forest to the northeast of the town, which no one seemed to really care about, to use for collecting timber. With a few exceptions, Ponyville's buildings were mainly made of wood and stone, so repairs there were fairly straight-forward, especially since the Ponyville citizens had already started. Canterlot, on the other hoof, required a lot of brick, which meant a lot of clay. Equestria had to import clay, so Canterlot's repairs would have to wait. 'Theus wasn't one for waiting. He never was. 
The few hours he did sleep, the sleep wasn't satisfactory. The few times he dreamt, the dreams weren't pleasant ones. He dreamt of the faces of Draco's alicorn followers, the ones who'd supported him against the ponies, who wanted to kill them, and him; who'd he cursed. They were long dead now. He didn't remember most of their names. He, who'd lashed out for being forgotten, didn't remember most of their names.
'Theus filled the last of his seven minecarts with some gypsum he planed to use for mortar. There was plenty of it stored away in the stone quarry. He planned to ask for leave to head south towards a town called Apple Loosa to collect sand. Sand, gypsum and water would make mortar. He planned to build a wall around Ponyville, and a keep for Twilight Sparkle. Pinkie Pie visited him often, and would tell him stories of the adventures she'd been on with her friends. If even half her stories were true, someone had their eyes on attacking Ponyville every month or so. A wall and a keep would discourage that, he thought. Ponies could duck into the keep if things got bad. More than that, 'Theus wanted to add something to Ponyville, not just fix it. 
'Theus connected the minecarts together and used his magic to push them up the rail line back to his mill. They were heavy, and pushing them was draining, but he enjoyed the night sky, the soft breeze, the sounds of bugs and owls in the distance and the smell of grass. He liked this place better than Hailcryon, and, of all the places he'd been forced to be in his life, he decided he liked Ponyville the best.
His rail line ended near his mill house, and he'd built a storage shed along side the end of the line. He'd built the shed about ten meters across and three meters wide, with the longer end facing the track. It had three walls, the fourth open wall also facing towards the track with a large support beam in the middle. He'd put about twelve centimeters of gravel down beneath it, to keep the grass from overgrowing the area. Inside the shed were four large chests he would store the stone and a few smaller chests on a shelf above them where he would put the gypsum he'd collected. The lumber he used was stacked behind the shed in pyramids. 
He carefully lifted his gypsum from the mine cart and stored it away in vacant chests of the shelves, then he got to work smoothing out the stone he'd collected into bricks. They varied in length, but he was very careful to make them the same height - about twenty centimeters, or so he guessed. He kept the first brick he'd made for comparison. 
Making bricks with magic wasn't hard at all. All it took was focus. He'd always been best with fire magic, but he'd gotten some practice in with wind. He used small but powerful gusts to brush unwanted chucks away from the stone and smooth out small imperfections. He worked for a few hours, clearing out two and a half of his minecarts, and filling all his chests to the point that he had to start stacking the overflow on the side of the shed. It had to have been at least 3AM by the time he decided he'd have another go at falling asleep.
He'd purchased a long sofa on credit from a shop in town that sold only couches and quills. It was one of the more expensive couches there, putting him more in debt, but it was large enough for him to lie on and was still cheaper than an actual bed. He entered his mill and lied down, pulling a blanket Pinkie Pie had gave him over his body. It was too small, and only covered about half of his body, but he liked it. He still didn't have a pillow, but the couch was comfortable enough.
He didn't remember falling asleep, although that night he dreamt of his father, which was pleasant in comparison to the dreams he'd had lately. They were on a mountain overlooking a long forest in the dead of night. It was quiet, and there was snow falling lightly out over the valley. In the sky, behind translucent grey clouds, a bright, white moon shined out over the valley, lighting the snow on the ground, and on the trees and mountains. 'Theus had a blanket wrapped around himself to fight the cold, and his father lay with his back to the rocks near a small fire they had built. His father seemed grey, much more grey than 'Theus remember him being, and was so old. He was bleeding from a wound in his side, his eyes were dark and his eye lids hung low.
After some silence, 'Theus looked at his father, who lay quietly and weakly, but he did not shiver nor whimper, despite his wound or his lack of blanket. 'Theus shivered incessantly. He knew that his father was dying.
"Strength is continuing to move forward, even when you don't have much of a reason to," his father kept saying over and over in a low, whispery monotone. His dark eyes never left the fire. Afterwords, he began to fade away like sand being slowly dispersed by wind. 'Theus tried to call out to him, but the words stuck in his throat. He knew then that it was all on him, that he'd have to descend through the valley on his own and be responsible for all he had done and all he had wasted.
Strength is continuing to move forward, even when you don't have much of a reason to.
Then he woke up.
The light of the sun gleamed gently in through the window. It stretched out across the floor in front of him and lit a few cobwebs on the walls to his left. 'Theus's limbs felt weak and his eyes felt heavy. He had to go into town today; collect his stipend from Twilight Sparkle, purchase food, perchance borrow books or visit Pinkie Pie at the bakery. He'd been in there once, and the couple that owned the place were at least nice to his face. He loved the rock candy they sold there. He'd loved rock candy since the first ponies discovered it back at Hailcryon. It was like a tiny reminder of what that colossal wreck once was.
He got out of bed, stretched out and walked into town.
It was quiet in the street, for one reason or another. He figured it was about midday, so the Ponyville residents must've been at work. He passed a few in the street, but none of them even pretended to be interested in talking with him.
He reached Twilight's library before too long and the small purple dragon, Spike, opened the door when he knocked. Spike's sweet little face turned sour when he realized who'd called upon him.
"What do you want?" he asked curtly.
"…Let him in, Spike, it's just business," Twilight Sparkle called out from somewhere inside the library. 'Theus guessed she figured out he was there on the supposition that Spike wouldn't really take that tone with anyone else. 'Theus pretended that it didn't bother him, but at least a small part of him knew that was a lie.
Spike swung the door all the open and begrudgingly let him inside. "Thank you kindly," 'Theus said politely. Spike responded with an eye roll and a sneer.
The library was remarkably clean. It was as if he'd never been there. He figured Twilight Sparkle was the kind of being who needed something stable and unchanging to juxtapose at that which shifted incessantly around her. He found her near the back of the library squatting over a cluttered yet very organized desk of papers. She was busily writing what appeared to be a letter.
"How go the repairs?" she asked him without looking up.
"Pretty good!"
"…Pretty well," she corrected.
"Oh, right. Sorry." 'Theus noticed he couldn't make it through a conversation with anyone without apologizing a few times. He didn't feel slighted by Twilight Sparkle. She treated him more fairly than most. "I'd say Ponyville will be structurally complete by the end of the week. It'd be like I was never there."
Spike snickered and mumbled something under his breath. 'Theus figured it wasn't anything kind.
"And Canterlot?" Twilight Sparkle asked.
"…Canterlot's a different story," he admitted, "I still need clay, and there's the matter of getting all the supplies up there. I could carry them up there, but that would at least take a day…"
"Clay we've imported from the Crystal Empire should arrive within the next day or two. Once we get it, I'll arrange for a freight train for you to load whatever supplies you need in the next few days. I'd take caution when you go there. Ponies up there like you even less."
She peered meekly up at him after she let that slip, like she only just realized the emotion impact it could have. 'Theus just smiled back at her. She put her quill down and leaned back in her chair. "Princess Celestia has arranged for you to work with a skilled architect for the castle's repairs. I warn you, he is absolutely irritation. He's the kind of pony that second guesses everything you do. Personally, I wouldn't have paired you with that pain in the neck if you'd burn the entire place down. Nothing is more needlessly cruel."
She gave him a sly smile, and he appreciated the fact that she was trying to cheer him up. Frankly, this architect didn't sound like anyone who'd worry him. After all, he grew up with Draco.
"I'll do my best not to cast him from the mountain," he said.
"Good," she said with a nod, "Attempted murder is the last thing you need on your criminal record."
He couldn't help but glanced down at the papers she'd been scribbling on. They were letters to Celestia, and the one she was working on specifically logged the agricultural damage of his storm. His heart sank into his stomach.
"I have your stipend in the box over there," she said obliviously, "Three hundred bits. Should last you two weeks."
"Thanks," he said.
"Do you need a saddle bag to carry it?" she asked, "Well, I suppose I don't really have one in your size."
"I'll just carry the box, if it's all the same to you."
She nodded dismissively. "Whatever works."
She went silent and returned to her work. 'Theus realized she meant that as a farewell only after he stood there guffawing like an idiot. 
"…Anything else?" she asked.
"I'd like to build a keep," he blurted out.
"A what?"
"A keep. It's like a castle but smaller and more, uh, fort-y, if you get what I mean. A, uh, city wide wall would accompany it."
Twilight Sparkle eyed him incredulously with her mouth open. "Why would I need a keep."
'Theus shrugged. "In case Ponyville came under attack. The citizen could run to the keep for safety."
Twilight Sparkle's eyes wandered slowly about the room and she shifted her jaw back and forth. He figured it meant she was thinking.
"Would that take a lot of resources?"
"Mostly lumber and stone, and I've a bunch of that."
"What about gates?"
"Gates are pretty easy."
"Who will maintain the keep and the walls."
"Me, if I'm able to stick around. If not, more jobs for the Ponyville market."
Twilight Sparkle went back to her papers. "Get Canterlot fixed first, then I'll think about it."
'Theus smiled widely. It wasn't a no.
"Anything else?" she asked impatiently.
"No, that's it."
"I trust you can show yourself out."
He bowed politely, lifted the small box of money with his magic, and left without incident. He'd come to enjoy Twilight Sparkle and her entourage, even though it was quite clear most of them didn't like him very much. Twilight Sparkle herself tolerated him, Pinkie Pie reminded him often that she'd forgiven him and Fluttershy always smiled softly when she saw him, like she wanted him to know everything was going to be okay. The other three and Spike the baby dragon each wanted nothing to do with him. The cyan one, Rainbow Dash, absolutely hated him and wasn't quiet about it.
Being hated by anyone hurt him more than any slight he'd ever endured. He'd wanted to talk to her, to try and convince her that he was contrite and didn't deserve to be hated. Every time he'd gone into town, he looked around for her, but she was never around.
Until today.
He froze in place when he saw her approaching the library. No doubt she'd come for Twilight Sparkle. When she saw him, her casual smirk and laxed demeanor harden and she went stiff, eyeing him suspiciously. 
"Good afternoon," he said appeasingly.
She didn't respond. 
His forced smile cracked and fell away almost immediately. He felt a twist in his chest and his eyes dropped down to the ground. He figured he'd best apologize now and get the confrontation over with. She wasn't liable to like him any without speaking with him.
"…I'd been looking for you, you know," he said.
"Why?" she said harshly. 
'Theus swallowed and forced himself to look in her eyes. Rainbow Dash just stared at him with her mouth hung halfway open. Her face scrunched up on the right side, and her pupils danced back and forth with his. The more he stood there, like a fool, the more this all felt like a terrible idea. What could only be described as a twist sweltered in his chest.
"I had to find you and tell you I'm sorry."
Rainbow Dash blinked and frowned. "Um, thanks," she said coldly.
"I…"
He didn't have anything to say. She wouldn't have listened anyway. He bit down on his tongue and stared at the ground. In that moment, more than the field or the courtroom, he felt like a child. His tongue slipped back behind his teeth, and he soon noticed he was clenching them to the point of a near-pained pressure. He managed to look back up at her as he shrunk. She stood ramrod stiff - watching. Her soft sneer communicated a mistrust at best, and antipathy at worst.
"…Sorry."
"It's fine."
Her voice was rigid and filled with a barely contained disgust. She pushed passed him and went into the library. He stood there with his head low for a minute, then determinedly made off for the nearby fields. No one else would be there. He just needed some air. 
The fields were always calm, like nothing had ever happened there. The grass was withered by still green and the skies were clear. The soft scent of the peak of autumn caught the air and surround him as he furrowed and worried. He fidgeted and cursed himself. He was wincing. He had shivered.
No, but after a while he did not feel alone.
Another soft breeze caressed him, but he was suspicious and looked around. He had wandered near the edge of the Everfree forest, and the silky green and auburn grasses clashed with that decrepit place.
"Enjoying freedom? Or, at least, whatever you can, with all those asterisks attached to the word 'freedom.'" 
Discord slinked from the tree line and joined him with a coy smile. He behaved like he'd known 'Theus for years. 'Theus found himself quite discomforted. He eyed Discord nervously and rubbed his face. No, if Discord remembered what had happened before, he wouldn't have been so friendly.
"You're Discord, right?" 'Theus said.
Discord popped his jaw and smirked. "Hit the nail on the head, Harby, ol' boy!"
"My name is Ponietheus."
"To you, yes. But the littles ponies down in Ponyville, you're still Harbinger," Discord said. He lifted himself up from the ground and floated around 'Theus as he attempted to walk away. "But here you are, reformed and repentant and eager to serve. Oh, Celestia sure can pick 'em…"
'Theus stopped in place and flustered. "Can I help you with something?"
Discord remained laxed but stopped in place to his right. He let his feet touch the ground. "Hey, relax friend. We're just having a conversation. There's no need to get upset…"
'Theus frowned. "Look, I've got a town to help fix up, so if you'll excuse me…"
He motioned to leave but Discord placed his hand firmly on 'Theus's shoulder.
"I said 'relax friend,'" He said bluntly.
'Theus pulled away and smacked Discord's hand away with his hoof. "Hey, back off!"
Discord wiped his nose and sneered. He got up close to 'Theus and pointed his finger in his face. "Listen to me, friend: You just committed some hefty war crimes against one of the most powerful despots on this rock and painted yourself quite the devil in the eyes of the public and I'm offering to be your friend." Discord clenched his teeth but backed up slightly. "Trust me. You're going to need to make some friends here. They go crazy for that stuff. So, what's it going to be? Are you going to play hero or are you going to play ball?"
'Theus lowered his head and look away. Discord had an agenda, memories or no. He nodded and quickly looked back up. "What are you getting at?"
Discord smiled slightly and rubbed his chin. "You see, while you've been digging ditches and having mental breakdowns, I've been thinking. You and me? We find ourselves in very similar situations."
'Theus nodded and swallowed. "Reformed villains? I mean, if that's what you're referring to…"
Discord tilted his head and nodded. "Yeah, that's what I'm referring to."
Discord paused and looked away. He fidgeted for a bit; scratching his neck and rubbing his nose. He didn't like being compared to the likes of 'Theus.
Discord sighed. "Look, I don't think the good Sun Princess made us Ponyville's civilian villains out of the good graces of her being. I mean, her sweet sister might get a get-out-of-jail-free card straight from the kindness of ol' 'Tia's heart, but the likes of you and me? No. No, I'm not buying it."
He was actually right. 'Theus rubbed his face nervously. This guy's ego was suffocating, and 'Theus doubted he had good intentions. He decided it was best to play along for now. Discord clearly underestimated him.
'Theus shrugged. "Well, you've known her longer than I have. What are you thinking?"
Discord pulled himself closer. He placed his hand on 'Theus's shoulder and hushed himself. "You know what's interesting? You, I and Moon-Boots aren't the only big baddies 'Tia's gone up against. Some fog failure named Sombra and some insect spook got kicked back to wherever with no attempt at a reformation option. Why? Twilight Sparkle. She was in the position to get a leash on you and I, but not them. All Twilight Sparkle has to do is snap her little fingers and you're gone and I'm stone - er, so to speak."
"So, what, our sins are forgiven in exchange for serving Twilight Sparkle?"
Discord nodded. "Yeah. Look, I've got nothing against our supreme master. I'm just saying ol' 'Tia's going for the long haul in some game of chess, and that you and I aren't particularly important pieces. But Twilight Sparkle? Oh, she's a piece worth sacrificing the likes of you and me for. Look, I like the kid, sure, and I hope whatever 'Tia's working towards works out in her favor, but I'm not getting stuck with the bill on this one. I'm not going down for her, you follow?"
"What's your point?"
Discord frowned then grew unprecedentedly serious. "You and I are in the same boat, so I figure we've got to look out for each other."
'Theus swallowed.
Discord stuck his hand out, proposing a shake. "What do you say, friend? I'm a draconequus of my word."
'Theus scanned Discord and thought. He sighed and nodded. He stuck his hoof out and allowed Discord to clasp it. "Sure thing… friend." Discord had this wicked grin on his face, as if 'Theus was playing right into his hand. 'Theus caught that look quickly. He might be foolish, but he wasn't stupid. He figured he knew a thing or two about opportunists, both from his upbringing and from Gaea, who proved in the end she only sought power. 'Theus wouldn't be used again - not by the likes of this silver tongued devil who clearly wasn't half as smart as he thought he was.
Discord made some excuse to slink off and left. 'Theus just stood in place amidst his eclectic thoughts and furrowed. It wasn't like anyone would listen to him if he told them about Discord. Pinkie Pie might, but he didn't know their history very well. He could 'watch' things during his captivity, but the passed week or so had taught him that he didn't know a thing about this place. Sourly, he decided to wait on it.
It was a lonely walk back to his mill, his home. He ducked beneath the front door's small frame and smiled at his empty, old and decommissioned water mill that wasn't built to his scale. He really wanted to restore the mill to working condition, among other projects. He kept himself busy until he finally noticed the sun had set behind him and the stars had resumed their place above in the clear night sky. 'Theus wiped the sweat from his brow and went inside. He sat down on his small couch near his small blanket and relaxed. After about twenty minutes, Pinkie Pie, his only friend in Ponyville, poked her head in through his window. 
"Remember me?"
"Yeah, I remember you," he said as she climbed in. Every time she stopped by to visit, she stuck her head in through that window and asked those same words, and he always responded the same as well. She never used the door. Not once. Still, he welcomed and enjoyed the company. He'd never admit it to himself, but he was awfully lonely. "Would you like some water or something?" 
As soon as he asked that, a rumble in his belly reminded him that he didn't have an ice box or a working faucet… and he'd forgotten to grocery shop that day. In fact, he'd forgotten to eat that day.
"No thanks. I'm good!" she said, much to his relief. "Did ya have a good day?"
No. He wasn't sleeping and everyone that didn't hate didn't care one way or the other. "Yeah, it was a good day. You?"
"I had a great day, thanks for askin'!" she said. He couldn't really understand how she could be so chipper or so relaxed in his old mill. She found a place on the sofa a distance next to him and just waited, like she knew it was coming. Finally, his fake placidity collapsed, and he frowned, furrowed, worried and spoke.
"Hey Pinkie Pie, I… There are a lot of things that I'd like to talk to you about - talk to anyone about, but… now that I'm here, I don't remember what it was I wanted to say. It makes you want to laugh, doesn't it? I thought that there was something I could say to you - to anyone - and you'd get it. You'd get just who I am and where I've come from, and what I've carried along the way. Something that'd justify all this, you know? I had some words prepared, but now I don't…"
He felt like he was reaching out but failing to grasp. He didn't have the words for it, but - the way she looked at him - she seemed to understand, like she'd been there the whole time; seen everything, heard every sound, felt everything.
She just smiled at him like everything was alright. "Words aren't the only things that tell ponies what you're thinking, silly."
'Theus shook his head. "I thought once that I deserved better than what I got once. Now I'm not so sure what I deserve."
Still, Pinkie Pie smiled at him. "I don't think this is about what you deserve," she said sweetly.
"How do I…?" The words caught in his throat. His eyes burned and begged for rest. His mouth way dry. His chest was tight. He felt twisted and awful, with thorns in his guts. The worst part was that he didn't have anyone else to fault, so he had to face it. "How do I come back from this?" he asked quietly.
Pinkie Pie just shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. "I dunno," she said, "But you'll find a reason, I think! Nothing's caused you to stop yet, right? So you'll find the reason. Like, the reason isn't out there, y'know, it's not a set thing - there's not a purpose or destiny for you to fulfill. You just happen to be here and you've got to make your own reasons, I think."
'Theus scratched his own chin and forced himself to smile too. 
She patted him on the shoulder. "Let's go look at the stars."
> Epilogue: What Happens Now?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The Contrite and Wandering Trixie had been walking the long road from Vanhoover to Manehatten for nearly six days when her aching back and rumbling belly convinced her to stop by an homely inn tucked within a tree line. She had no money, but she had recently mastered the art of fluttering her eyes and putting on a pouty face - subterfuge - to squeeze meals out of fools with too big of hearts and too little of brains. She adjusted her tattered wizard's hat and her heavy saddlebag, stretched her back, and opened the wooden door.
Inside was lively stringed music and a roaring fire. Several boisterous ponies, griffons and even a few zebras were laughing loudly around the tables. The fire lit the stone pillars the held the building, and the air smelled of stew and cooked vegetables. The Contrite and Wandering Trixie's mouth watered at the smell, and she scanned the room for a victim for the subterfuge. Rich looking ponies with their fancy furs were awful targets - they didn't get to their positions by being friendly. Ponies in groups were another poor choice. Sure, it seemed reasonable in that one of them might be a generous sort, but most of them - the female members especially - just stare at you with that disgusted, curled upper lip.       
It was then she happened to spot, of all things, a royal guardspony of Equestria. He was a stout fellow of a decent build, if a little short. He was still in his armor, with the exception of the helmet, which he had removed and set to the side as if to discourage anypony from sitting next to him. His features were very plain: a short brown mane, brown eyes and a baluster white coat. He had a stern look on his beady little face like he was perpetually smelling something foul. A nearly full bowl of greens sat on the table in front of him, and he was occupying himself with a thick book. 
The Contrite and Wandering Trixie popped her jaw and practiced her puppy-dog eyes, set her bag down gently on the floor, then smoothly slid into the seat directly across from him. She loudly placed her elbows up on the table and rested her chin on her hooves. She cleared her throat and preformed a wonderfully warm smile.
"A pony in uniform!" she said in her best 'sweetheart' voice, "And a handsome one at that! What brings you so far from home, soldier?"
He didn't look up at her. 
She sat there in the growing awkwardness as he simply flipped a page in his book and the inn happily bustled around her.
She let a few more moments pass, then cleared her throat again. "I said-"
"I know what you said," the guardspony said curtly, "I'm not interested."
"What are you reading?"
"A book."
"Well, I put that together. What kind of book?"
"The kind best read without outside commentary."
The Contrite and Wandering Trixie flushed. Her newly acquired subterfuge tactics were getting her nowhere. She rubbed her nose and re-evaluated her strategy. She looked him up and down. He still hadn't looked at her.
"…You're from Equestria, are you not?" she said.
"Did the Equestrian armor give that away?" he said. He bent the corner of the page he was reading to mark his place, shut the book and slammed it on the table to the left of his meal. He leaned back in his chair and stared at her. He made no attempt to shield his annoyance. "Alright. What do you want?"
"'Want?'" said she in her best 'completely oblivious' voice. She fluttered her eyes for extra flavor. "Why, I don't necessarily 'want' anything…"
"Huh," he said flatly.
She looked at him, then down at his meal, then back at him. She could do nothing to stop her empty belly from releasing a powerful growl so loud she was sure half the inn heard it. She smiled and laughed nervously. The guardspony frowned and sneered a little. He grumbled to himself, rolled his eyes, then scooted his bowl of greens to her side with his nose. He relaxed back to the same position he held before, then resumed to stare at her.
She eyed the bowl and her mouth watered. "I, uh, I couldn't," she said.
He sighed and frowned harder. "It's yours."
She smacked her lips. "Well, if you insist," she said with barely contained adamance. She stuck her mouth into the bowl and bit off all she could fit, chewed it happily, swallowed, then bit more. After a few bites, she remembered herself, wiped her face and resumed her 'sweetheart' play. The guardspony just stared back at her with that stern face of his.
"So," she said, clearing her throat and tapping her chest, "What brings an Equestrian guardspony this far north?"
"…I was tasked to deliver a package to the Crystal Empire," he said.
"What was this package?"
"That isn't for you to know."
"I'm an acquaintance of Equestria, you know!"
"I think 'pariah' would be a better term." He tilted his head down and stared up her from beneath his eyebrows. "Did you really think I didn't know who you are. You're wearing the same hat, for Celestia's sake."
Her 'sweetheart' face cracked immediately and the Contrite and Wandering Trixie froze in place. Her mouth dropped open and her eyes were wide. He continued to stare at her, not like he was angry, but more like he was completely unimpressed. 
"I-I, uh, I…" was all she could manage to babble out.
"Yes - you, you, you," he said, "That's a big priority for you, isn't it? So, was it just food you wanted, or would you like to waste more of my time?"
The Contrite and Wandering Trixie frittered in her self from the heat of embarrassment. This thick headed, boisterous  and insufferable pony had made a fool of her with his egotistical stare and his…his… stupid face. She stuck her nose back into the bowl of greens has she thought of more sophisticated insults to hurl at this arrogant oaf. Meanwhile, he'd simply returned to his book, like she wasn't even there. The arrogance!
She decided to switch up her strategy. "…Thank you for the food," she said in a sweet little filly voice. If her fluttering eyes couldn't do the trick, innocent helplessness would. Even the most unpleasant of military ponies leapt at the opportunity to assist a poor pony down on her luck. Especially so if that pony was as drop dead gorgeous as her. He thought he was so tough beneath that stern face, but she was getting to him. Nopony resisted her for long.
"You're welcome," he said without looking away from his book. His tone was still annoyed, but she'd switch it around. After all, her silver tongue had kept her going this long. She wasn't about to be beaten by some punk in a uniform.
"You're traveling by hoof, I see. Tell me, how are the roads?"
"Paved," he said. 
"I meant are they safe?"
"What, do you expect to get robbed? You won't see a bandit from here to the Smokey Mountain or south to the Ghastly Gorge."
"What about west?" she asked.
"I don't know about west."
The Contrite and Wandering Trixie frowned. He was as useless as he was stupid and ugly and short and…and…and he had a stupid voice. Still, he as of Equestria and he probably knew Twilight Sparkle. She had thought of getting in contact with Twilight Sparkle ever since she stumbled across an old stone tablet during her visit to Galloping Gorge. 
It was small enough to fit in her saddle bag, but it was covered in strange markings she couldn't understand, with four figures carved into the top, bottom, left and right - each with a small gem as an eye. One had a blue eye and a crown, one a red eye and a sword, one a black eye and a scale and the last had two pale eyes and nothing at all. She would have sold it, but a few days ago the blue eye of the top figure had begun to glow. It spiked her curiosity. She stuffed it into a saddlebag and decided to take it to the Manehattan University where she figured some nut-job professor could tell her what it means. She also thought she could show it to that bookworm Twilight Sparkle. She would've gone to Ponyville too, but some big storm had shut down all the roads there. The storm had cleared out now, but she was closer to Manehattan than to Ponyville.
"You know Twilight Sparkle, don't you?" she asked.
"…Yes," he said.
"Could you deliver a message to her for me?"
He set his book down. "I'm not a delivery boy," he said sharply, "If you have business with Princess Twilight Sparkle, feel free to walk to Ponyville and talk with her." 
Princess Twilight Sparkle? The Contrite and Wandering Trixie hadn't realized that purple squirt had become royalty.
"Although," the guardspony continued with his dreary voice, "She is very busy dealing with some serious recent issues, so don't be surprised if it's a while before you can waste her time."
Trixie gasped indignantly. If this guy wanted a verbal fight, she was willing to abide. "How do you know what's going in Equestria, huh? You're all the way out here!"
He frowned. "They set me a letter, letting me know what had happened. It's called mail."
"Well, then why couldn't they have mailed that important package of yours?"
"Because my package was something of a very important piece of mail," he said, "And the mail service was… unavailable."
"Look, can you just give her a message for me or not?"
He looked incredulously at her. "Was the previous not enough of a no for you?"
Some dimwitted waitress butted in suddenly and laid a slip of paper down on the table. "Your check, sir!" she said, oblivious.
He pulled some coins from his things and laid them on the table. "If you'll excuse me," he said. As he pushed himself from the table, Trixie lifted her tablet out from her saddlebag and slammed it on the table. The noise shocked him, and he stared at the tablet uncomfortably. "What is that?" he asked.
"It's an old tablet I found underground a while ago," she said, "I'm on my way to Manehattan to get some information on it. I didn't think much of it at first, but a few days ago the blue gemstone started to glow, right when that big storm started to go away. Maybe it's connected, I don't know. Something big is always happening around Twilight Sparkle, right? Maybe she read something in a book once that this would remind her of. Look, just… If you see her, tell her I'm hoping to talk to her. Have her send me a letter through your precious mail service, maybe?"
He sighed. "Fine," he said, "If I get a moment with Princess Twilight Sparkle, I'll tell her about you and your tablet, okay?"
"Thank you, uh…" She realized then that she didn't know his name.
"It's Mogadon," he said. Then he gathered his things and left.
The Contrite and Wandering Trixie slid her tablet back into her bag and smiled. In the end, she could always get them to do what she wanted. She finished her acquired meal and patted herself on the back. She stretched and flexed before hitting the road. She could probably reach Manehattan by the next night, and hopefully a letter from Twilight Sparkle would be waiting for her. It was better, she thought, to get info from Twilight that way, because hopefully this tablet would lead to treasure or something, and Trixie didn't really want to share it. Twilight Sparkle would want to put it in a museum or something, that goody-two-shoes.
> Epistolary
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Princess Celestia,

As per your request, I've compiled a list of estimated crop damages by farm.





Farm				Staple Crop			Est. Loss (%)		Approx. value in bits (b.)

Acorn Flats			Wheat/Corn			28%				1,960b
Amity Almonds		Nuts/Asst. Veg.		43%				1,913.5b
Clouded Night		Corn/Barley			14%				513.1b
Crisp Waters			Asst. Fruit			32%				2,080b
Dust Torn Alley		Wheat/Asst. Veg.		34%				2,550b
Glistening Amber		Apples/Corn			19%				1,805b	
Honeybrew Orchid	Honey/Asst. Fruit		23%				4,025b
Meek Meadows		Wheat/Asst. Veg.		48%				3,600b
Merry Mires			Asst. Veg.			27%				675b
Sunburn Pastures	Wheat/Corn			18%				1,260b
Sunny Side			Wheat/Barley		24%				1,599.6b
Sweet Apple Acres	Apples				33%				2,475b
Tarred Wolfshead		Corn/Barley			38%				1,392.7b
Twisted Root			Asst. Veg.			11%				275b
Vestige Lands		Wheat/Barley/Fruit	43%				5,661b
Windy Willows		Asst. Fruit			21%				1,365b





Estimated Harvest Losses: 		28.5%			33,149.9b

Sincerely,
Twilight Sparkle

---

Dear Princess Celestia,

As per your request, I've been keeping in close contact with my brother and Princess Cadence. While they do have some food and money to donate to us (15,000b and enough wheat and barley to cover around 7 or 8% of our lost crop), they send their regrets as to not being able to cover our loses. Word of food shortages is spreading and I think it would be wise to release an official statement regarding such. I can take care of that for you, if you wish. 
Reconstruction around Ponyville is going better than I'd expected. Nopony here likes Ponietheus, but he's actually been very helpful. He seems to know a great deal about masonry.
I've caught him and Discord of all ponies(?) chatting together in a field near his home. I know better, or at least I hope I know better, but there's something odd about the way they creep around. I can't help but be suspicious.
I don't fully trust him. I don't suppose I ever will, given the circumstances. Rainbow Dash absolutely loathes him and isn't quiet about, and I can tell Spike doesn't like him, but most other ponies at least seem to begrudgingly accept his being here - at least, as long as he's a servant to the state.
I conducted an anonymous survey to garner an idea on public opinion of him and of your decision to offer him asylum. In a nutshell, neither he nor your decision are popular, but the nightmares induced by his storm are vaguely recalled as passing dreams and very few participants of the survey reported to any perceived psychological damage. I am hoping to conduct several clandestine experiments so that these results are more conclusive, and I of course am willing to submit them for approval. 
Please don't exhaust yourself, Princess. I'll attend to matters here.

Sincerely,
Twilight Sparkle

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Dear Princess Celestia,

I, Knight Commander Protean Joy, hereby humbly request to be placed with a small detachment into the personal command of Princess Twilight Sparkle. I also request permission to establish and maintain a small foreword operation base there to watch over the town and keep order. In light of recent events, I believe having boots in Ponyville would be wise strategically. 
Also, admittedly, I do not trust Harbinger. I've heard Discord's been slinking around near him as well. I'd like to personally keep an eye on matters there, as well as personally respond to any attempt by them to disturb the peace. 
I'll be awaiting your response.

With Respect,
Knight Commander Protean Joy

P.S. Since you asked, I think you're right. Princess Twilight Sparkle is a natural leader and seems to operate well under stress, so long as she's with her friends. She's also taken initiative in the reconstruction efforts and holds herself personally accountable for them as well as informally mediating the relationship that the townsponies have with Harbinger. I am impressed and I do not impress easily. However, I also believe her weakness is her inexperience. That is also why I'd like to keep an eye on things.

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Dear Princess Celestia,

I do hope that I'm not bothering you, it's just that all the critters have been acting very strangely. There's something rather off about them and I'm not so sure what to do. I know you must have so much on your mind, but I figured I'd at least voice my concern.They keep staring at a specific place in the sky at night, and they're really still. Does it have anything to do with the upcoming equinox? It's just got me a little worried, since we're still recovering from Ponietheus's attack.
I don't think he's settled in very well, since you asked. I think he has a hard time making friends as it is, let alone trying to make friends with ponies he spent four days attacking. He's very comfortable around Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie, and I think he's warming up to me, but other than that he's very quiet and reserved around other ponies.
We had a very pleasant conversation the other night. He was stargazing out in the meadow near my home, and I built up the courage to talk to him. He's strangely sweet and ask me lots of questions. He also told me a great deal about the planets, and about that equinox I mentioned before. He wouldn't give me any details about it, though. He said it would 'spoil the fun.' He seems to eat lots of candy, and frequents the candy store and the cake shop. That seems to be all he spends his money on. I think he'll fit in eventually and he's put a lot more effort into it than Discord ever has. He really is a sweetheart when you get to know him.

With love, 
Fluttershy

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Dear Princess Celestia, First of Her Name, Rightful Monarch of the Kingdom of Equestria and all Her Holdings,

Greetings. I am Lord Gyshwalle of House Rakeshire, steward to her royal majesty, Queen Gyrrasheda of the House of Fairbeak, Her Royal Majesty, Lady and Reverent Sovereign Monarch of the Lands of the Griffons and of All Her Protectorates. I am writing to you today at the behest of Her Grace as a response to your formal request of aid. Her Grace humbly accepts your offer of ten thousand bits annually for the next five years, to accept her son, Prince Hugo, as a personal student and to formally recognize her claim on the disputed island territories of Brownwolfe and Summerholme in exchange for a million bushels of wheat; half a million bushels each of barley, oats and rye; five thousand pounds of assorted fruit, mainly apples; and nearly three thousand pounds of assorted vegetables, such as corn, tomatoes and cabbage.
Such will be delivered in five shipments bi-weekly, starting the week after next.
Her Grace would ask you to send a small convoy to oversee the first shipment, and to safely escort her young son, Prince Hugo and his personal sworn knight back to Canterlot. As a gesture of good faith, Her Grace will include some one thousand pounds iron, steel and clay with the first shipment free of charge to assist in the repairs of your territories.
Feel free to contact me if you have any concerns.

Yours truly,
Lord Gyshwalle of House Rakeshire

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Dear Princess Celestia,

I'm sure I'm the last being you want to hear from, but Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie tell me I ought to write to you and tell you what I've learned. I don't know where to begin.
Lots of things happen that are out of one's control, but you are the only one that decides what you let circumstance turn you into. It's easy to get caught up in it. It's easy to only see things from your own perspective. I was selfish and I was caught up inside what I thought was going on. I couldn't see things from an outside point of view and I couldn't leave it alone. I was blind. I suppose I still am.
I considered myself a good being, but now I'm not so sure. Maybe good and bad aren't the way to look at it. Anyway, good and bad don't really seem to matter, but what I did was wrong. What I did to you and to this town was heinous and awful and I am so, so sorry. I only hope that one day I could be forgiven. I guess I've got a lot to make up for.
Thank you for not killing me, caging me or casting me away.

- Ponietheus of Hailcryon