> Pinkie Pie The Royal Knight > by Diablomuerte2 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Goodbye Ponyville, Hello Canterlot! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Goodbye Ponyville, Hello Canterlot! It had been a week since that fateful day, a baker had spent an entire day with a princess and they fell in love. The romance was deemed impossible unless the baker was willing to go through a trial of courage and physical prowess. The ruler, of the nation known as Equestria, had challenged the baker to join her royal guard and if she passed the tests needed she could be with the princess that the baker desired. The royal court, and all of Canterlot, wasn't prepared for the valiance and craziness of the pink party pony. Pinkie Pie was excited about the prospect of being officially made into a knight. With the prestige of being a knight people would have to always show her respect. She was always the fun mare of the group and loved to party hard even when nopony else did. Her reputation wasn't as a noble hero, or skilled swords-pony, but she was going to try her hardest to become greater. Pinkie Pie wanted the job more than anything she had ever desired. It wasn't the honor of being a part of the Equestrian army or being a protector to a princess that Pinkie wanted, it was the ability to be with the princess of her dreams. Some ponies think they are rushing into the relationship and worry that Pinkie Pie would end up being made a fool of just for Twilight's sake. Twilight had silenced the opposition with her genuine affection and care of the baker. She had been in a state of bliss whenever they had hung out, and even if it was a short time, they had figured out their chemistry is strong. Pinkie Pie's crazy and random actions were the counter to Twilight's calm and logical thinking. Together they were one soul waiting to be free of social constrictions and misguided worries. The most recent issue, besides their rushed relationship, was the fact that in order for Pinkie Pie to start her journey of transcending her destiny to become a royal guard, she had to leave Ponyville and live in Canterlot to attend lessons and begin her trials. Most of the ponies in Ponyville were adamant about not letting Pinkie Pie go since she was their source joy and good fun when the days were bleak. With her ability to make anypony smile and the lack of activities to do in the small town, the news of her leaving caused the usually calm ponies to panic. Eventually the ponies of Ponyville had calm themselves and left the couple alone. It was hard for most ponies to have to accept the fact that the fun loving baker was going to be absent in their lives for an undetermined period of time. They weren't given a set date for her return; however, she promised that once she qualified for the royal guards and got her assignment to Twilight, they would return and stay in Ponyville. ____________________________________________________________ The day for them to leave Ponyville had arrived, Twilight was on the task of making sure everything was in order. "Spike, have you double checked the check list to check if we have everything?" She calmly inquired. Spike sighed and wished he didn't have to go with them, "yes Twilight I have made sure to double check the check list and make sure the proper luggage was filled with the proper items, now can we hurry up and go to the goodbye party I want to see Rarity before I go... It's going to break her heart when she finds out I won't be here for a month." Twilight held in a giggle, she had been informed of Rarity's recent relationship with Applejack officially by them one night and didn't mention it to Spike on account he wouldn't be able to handle the news with his crush still as huge as it was. "Sure let's go to the goodbye party that, for some reason, Pinkie thought would be a smart idea to plan for the morning before we head to Canterlot... why she does the things she do? I will never understand, but... that is what I love about her." Twilight's mood lifted at that moment thinking about her time with her marefriend. They had a weird start to their relationship and yet it was the perfect way to start it at the same time. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was having a blast at her goodbye party. She was jumping around and dancing like crazy, her erratic movements were even more zany than expected. She was happier than she has ever been, and not because she was leaving her friends and the cakes behind, because she was finally going to start a new chapter in her life. Most of the ponies at the party were being supportive of Pinkie's new endeavor and were congratulating her for the happy relationship. Some ponies were still skeptical about the whole thing and needed reassurance. "So Pinkie Pie, are you really serious about becoming a royal guard just to be with Twilight?" Rainbow Dash hastily asked. "Yes I am sure Dashie!" Pinkie Pie excitedly replied. Rainbow Dash was going to question her further about the subject but Fluttershy tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey Dashie, let's dance." Fluttershy softly requested. Rainbow Dash wasn't happy about being interrupted, she hid her dismay and went off to the dance floor. Pinkie Pie saw the two pegasi go off to the dance floor together and smiled, "Stole my word, and thankfully stole my mare...if not for that I would be stuck chasing a dream that I could never attain. I think I’m better off not having to run forever to never get anywhere. I have a mare, who wants me for me, and that is all I need." She was glad the events of the past turned out the way they did, especially since she was in a meaningful relationship with somepony like Twilight. She watched the two lovebirds dance for a bit and then sauntered off to the crowd in search of her marefriend wanting some much needed affection. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight had arrived at the party, ready to let loose and just have fun. She was already prepared to go to Canterlot and needed to unwind if she was going to show support for her marefriend. It was hard getting into a party mood when she had to make sure they didn't miss a train. She scanned the crowd for the usually cheery pink pony and saw her making her way through it. When they got close enough they embraced passionately before they sensually kissed each other getting lost in their own world. "I missed you Pinkie," Twilight softly admitted. "Aww shucks babe, I missed you even more than the tastiest cupcake." Pinkie enthusiastically replied. They broke their embrace and began dancing on the dance floor enjoying themselves. The world could end while they danced and they wouldn't care, they were lost in their own worlds. They kept their dance going until the music faded and they kissed softly ignoring the eyes watching them. Scootaloo ruined the moment with a "Ewww," she wasn't expecting to see a love fest at a goodbye party. She expected sappy goodbyes but not make outs. The party goers started laughing at the filly's reaction and the party went back into the swing of things. Lot's of ponies went up to the couple wishing them well on their new journey and saying their goodbyes. It was slowly causing the ponies to leave one by one until the small circle of friends were left. "Well sugarcubes, I jus' hope ya take good care of each other. I'll be taking a trip ta Canterlot ta visit ya but after ya get settled in real good." Applejack joyfully said. She was with a cider in one hoof and Rarity wrapped around her other. Rarity nuzzled Applejack's hoof earning a confused stare from Spike. "Oh yes, I will be visiting too and will most likely go with Applejack to keep her company." Rarity nonchalantly added. Rainbow Dash wanted to say something about how concerned she was about the whole ordeal, she was on the fence about speaking out. "Yeah me and Shy will definitely visit you girls but just... be careful out there Pinkie." She hesitantly stated. Fluttershy was going to question Rainbow Dash about her attitude later but for the moment she let it go. "Yes we will visit you and Pinkie can tell us how it's like being a guard." She cheerfully said. "Well I still don't know why I am going, I mean I could stay here with Rarity, isn't that right?" Spike grumpily asked. He barely had time to talk to Rarity at the party since Applejack was all over her. He didn't want to go to Canterlot because it was boring, and he wasn't needed there for Pinkie's training. "Spike!" Twilight yelled, "How can I go to Canterlot without my number one assistant?" She angrily asked. Spike just grumbled and folded his clawed hands across his chest while wishing Rarity would have spoken up and wasn't being affectionate with Applejack. "Fine..." Pinkie Pie just watched the commotion and chuckled "I am going to miss you all soooo much, I am just glad I had an amazing goodbye party before we left. I just want you all to know I’m going to be fine, and I will never change, I will still be Pinkie, I will just be a more tougher Pinkie." She cheerfully said while bouncing around Twilight. Twilight smiled seeing how excited Pinkie Pie was, it made her feel more secure about the decision. "Alright well we have a train to catch soon and I don't want to be late, so we will be leaving now." Twilight hurriedly said. The group said their farewells and left in pairs, Spike was confused as to why Applejack and Rarity were so chummy since before their recent disappearance they were usually at odds. "I think it's just me but did Applejack and Rarity seem... close?" He forlornly asked. ____________________________________________________________ The train ride to Canterlot was enjoyed in silence. Pinkie Pie had snuggled up to Twilight, who was enjoying their intimacy, and rested up for her possibly grueling first day in Canterlot. The two soundly napped as the serene landscape passed by them. Spike himself was able to get rest on the train ride, forgetting about his inquiry and relaxing in the peacefulness of it all. When the train stopped the sleeping passengers all woke and exited the train with their luggage in tow. Spike packed light, he barely owned anything, which meant his luggage wasn't heavy nor taking too much space. He wasn't one for collecting trinkets or doodads, and so his limited supply of items made it easier for him to pack up and move along. Pinkie Pie packed somewhat accordingly. She had brought some essentials and proper supplies but also brought her party cannon and other various knickknacks. She wasn't sure what she would need so she just guessed and hoped it was the right amount of luggage for her extended stay in Canterlot. Twilight nearly packed the entire library. She was really unsure of what would be appropriate to bring for her stay since she didn't know where she would be staying and if the length of stay was going to be as estimated. She was on edge about the entire list of possibilities. Her luggage was very heavy and Pinkie offered to share task of moving it around town. They got a wagon that could support all the weight of the combined luggage and pulled it all the way to Canterlot Castle. The sight of a princess pulling a wagon made some of the citizens of Canterlot gasp and scoff. It was uncommon to see royalty pulling their own weight when it came to menial labor. Pinkie Pie responded to them with a gentle smile and Twilight decided to pull a Pinkie and smile as well. The two mares weren't going to let anything or anypony bother them for doing things together. They made their way to the castle and dropped the fake smiles and just laughed at each other. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia was eagerly awaiting the arrival of her student and the baker. She had been on edge the entire morning, her mind weaving through the possible outcomes of the union of the two subjects. She had felt a bit guilty about putting a circumstance on her acceptance of their relationship but had order to maintain. When she saw the two ponies in question, plus the baby dragon, enter the castle she smiled brightly. "Twilight Sparkle, my dearest student and friend, I have been waiting for you and Pinkie to arrive." She politely greeted. Twilight was happy to see Celestia again and politely responded with, "I have been excited to come here as well Celestia, Pinkie and I are ready for anything." Pinkie Pie had initially bowed since she was still in the presence of royalty that she wasn't banging. "So when do I start? Do I begin now? Oh wait, do I get to sleep in Twilight's room or is there a barracks? Oh please tell me." Pinkie Pie hurriedly blurted out. Celestia chuckled at Pinkie Pie's demeanor, "My little pony please calm down. I will let you know everything that you wish to learn about your future here at the castle, for now though I shall let you know that yes you and Twilight will be sharing a room." She was going to explain why but saw how overjoyed the ponies were. "Alright!" Pinkie Pie excitedly cheered. She was so happy she brought out her party cannon and launched streamers and confetti inside the throne room. Twilight blushed and avoided Celestia's gaze, she was happy about being roomed with her marefriend but afraid of being heard by anypony during their passionate love making sessions. Spike was not amused at the fact he could possibly be sharing a room with two passionate ponies. He didn't mind their relationship one bit, it was just he didn't enjoy watching them get intimate and having to evade a possible voyeur scenario. "Celestia where will I be staying?" > Settling In > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Settling In Celestia was confused as to what Spike was inquiring about, she always thought the baby dragon roomed with Twilight during their Canterlot visits." Spike is there something wrong with sharing a room with Twilight?" she gently asked. Her regal voice and radiance calmed most creatures in her presence. Spike sighed softly and thought of how to explain his issue. "Well not really, just when Pinkie is around... they're kinda... well... loud," he embarrassingly stammered. Twilight and Celestia blushed and Pinkie fell over in laughter. "This ... whole... time... he's been hearing us...that's so funny," Pinkie muttered during her laughing fit. She managed to compose herself when she noticed nopony else was laughing. "Well I thought it was funny." She huffed and crossed her forelegs. Twilight fighting through the embarrassment of the moment decided to speak up. "Spike, why didn't you tell me that you were able to hear us?" She gently asked. "Well.... I um... I didn't know how to bring it up... so I just let it go," Spike hesitantly answered. Celestia cleared her throat, "It seems that I will have to find suitable lodgings for Spike. Why don't you two get settled in and I shall have a conversation with him." Twilight was suspicious about Celestia's intent, however; she wasn't going to cause a scene if she didn't have to. "Alright we shall go and get moved in, Spike, see you later." She angrily stated. She walked close to Pinkie, who was growing concerned, and whispered into her ear "I will talk about it in the room, let's just go." Pinkie knew something was up, she ignored it for the moment and decided to help her marefriend with the luggage. She wasn't sure what to expect from the explanation she would receive but she had made sure to hurry with transferring all the possessions. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight had finished dragging the luggage with Pinkie's help, to their appointed room for the remainder of their visit. She was already tired so she left her possessions stay unpacked and just dived on the bed wanting to relax. She looked over to her marefriend and waved her over, gesturing her to get on the bed. Pinkie Pie was worried about Twilight, ever since the mare almost flipped out randomly. "Listen Twilight I don't know what's going on and my Pinkie sense isn't telling me anything... so what's going on babe?" She worriedly asked while getting into a comfortable position snuggled up to her mare. "Pinkie... last time somepony talked with Celestia alone, after she found out something, it went bad remember? I mean, what if after finding out we had sex... she decides to make you do something even more dangerous? What about Spike... we corrupted Spike... what does he think of us now?" Twilight frantically ranted. Pinkie Pie gently stroked Twilight's mane calming her slowly. "Twilight you are so silly, Celestia isn't some villainous fiend, and she isn't dead set on ruining our relationship with pointless trials of ancient traditions. Celestia is just being a wise and noble ruler... I think. It doesn't matter anyways, no matter what I have to endure to be with you it's absolutely, positively, without a doubt, worth it!" Twilight seized Pinkie Pie's lips with her own. The passion, Twilight put into the kiss, came from the unbridled adoration she had for Pinkie Pie during that moment of resolution. Twilight's heart pounded a bit faster during the kiss, her heart rate increased and her body heat followed suit. She was lost in the moment and decided to escalate things lustfully. "Pinkie...Spike might be gone a while, let's use this time to... test the foundation of our bed... for science." She huskily stammered. Pinkie Pie excitedly giggled, "Oh Twilight you're silly, you don't need to use science as an excuse to get naughty... I love being naughty." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia had waited until Twilight and Pinkie were out of sight, and earshot, before beginning her conversation with Spike. "I know what we shall speak about may feel strange for you to discuss but I assure you it's important," she carefully explained. She had to get a good grasp about the relationship and how it even began or progressed as fast. She had been careful to ward off any potential suitor for Twilight and felt that Flash Sentry was perfect for the task of being her protector. Spike was already uncomfortable having accidentally spilled a secret, he was on the line of betrayal and didn't want to cross it. "Well what is it you wish to discuss, your highness?" Spike politely asked. Celestia made sure they were not being heard by anypony before she pressed on. "I need to know why Twilight stopped being interested in Flash Sentry and how her interests in Pinkie Pie began," She nonchalantly informed. Spike wished he had been in a nightmare and not in this tight spot. He was in the position of possibly angering a princess or abusing the trust of a friend. "Well... Flash admitted he wasn't into Twilight at Rainbow Dash's wedding... he said he was a colt-cuddler and was more into Shining Armor... brazenly might I add." Celestia made a mental note to speak with Flash Sentry about this. "Alright, so when did Twilight and Pinkie begin their romantic journey?" She gently asked. Spike hoped he would be forgiven for just divulging information regardless of how unguarded it was. "The same day I got punched in the face by Rainbow Dash." He angrily replied. She didn't know how to respond to that, she had decided to wait in silence until he got the hint that his answer was insufficient. Spike had forgotten that his 'abuse' wasn't made into a big deal, and only those he told about it knew. "Oh yeah, it was also the same day that Pinkie and Twilight went to Canterlot." Celestia was startled by such news, "I thought it was their first date not their first day of showing interest." She couldn't believe they had fell for each other so quickly. "Spike... this may be a difficult thing for you to answer but... when was the first time they had intercourse?" Spike blushed at how awkward the situation just got. "Well... that very same night..." He hesitantly answered. ____________________________________________________________ Luna was usually a sleepy princess, she had to spend nights awake while her sister slept, and thus she spent the day asleep. Today though something loud was disturbing her sleep, and the sounds the loud thing was making were not appropriate for a castle setting. "Who dares disturb my slumber!" Luna angrily shouted. She had hoped the noise would stop at the intimidating tone of the royal Canterlot voice. She heard the noise maker continue on almost as if it was challenging her. Luna wasn't going to put up with that nonsense, she decided to investigate the source of the noise and put an end to it. Luna began stomping her hooves with each step as she made her way to the source of the ruckus. She was confused as she saw a huge cart filled with luggage, and an open door leading to a room where the noise came from. She grew curious as to what kind of animal was capable of making the loud sounds of adulation. She peeked her head inside and saw Twilight Sparkle being pleasured expertly by Pinkie Pie. She was momentarily stunned and confused about what she was seeing. She couldn't imagine that Twilight, of all ponies, would be this vocal about something so private. She didn't want to become a pervert and continue watching, she was originally there to yell at them anyways. Before she could turn away, and just let them be, she heard Twilight howl louder than ever before, and shake violently as if possessed by a demon. Luna watched as Twilight rode out her orgasm shakily, and panted heavily post coitus. Luna continued to watched, mesmerized by the display, and saw Pinkie Pie snuggle up with Twilight. It was the last thing she saw before she left. Luna had never understood romance, and hardly ever felt love. She only knew of one kind of love, and that was for her sister. She knew that no matter what pony she had became attached to it would be pale in comparison to the eternal commitment she had to the sun goddess. Thinking of her sister had made Luna wish to pay Celestia a visit. She began heading towards the throne room in hopes she was there. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia was in shock about the sudden influx of disheartening news, "Spike thanks again for sharing the information, I have a special room you may stay and if you need anything just ask the staff at the castle." She gently stated. "Hey Celestia, Pinkie isn't so bad... even if she may seem kinda odd, she really cares about Twilight," he honestly informed before running off. Celestia was sure Spike was right, but she needed to still test Pinkie's resolve. She walked back to her throne and sat down in silence. She had a lot to contemplate, and things she needed to investigate as well. She could have sworn Flash Sentry wasn't even at the wedding, it was probably ... before she could finish thinking about possible explanations, she was disturbed by the presence of her younger sister. "Hello Tia, I was hoping I could catch you here. I wish to speak with you," Luna cheerfully greeted. "Hello dearest Luna, did something wake you?" She gently asked. She noticed her sister was getting closer than usual and was unsure of her intention. Luna leaned in and nuzzled Celestia affectionately, wanting to show her sister some love. "Yes something lewd woke me from my slumber." She responded before she was nuzzled back in return. Celestia wasn't sure why Luna was openly affectionate with her, it was causing her to lose her thoughts. "Lewd... you don't mean Twi-" She was cut off by her sister's giggling and nodding. "Yes exactly... though I never thought she had the vocals to disturb my sleep... they had the door open as well. I am curious dear sister, we have been family for longer than they have been alive... why is it they can be openly intimate and we can't even spend ten minutes together without you having to run off?" Luna was face to face with Celestia. Celestia didn't have an honest answer to that question. She didn't know why she was always avoiding her sister at times and didn't realize she had been doing so. "Well if we are being honest here, I have been the princess for so long I sometimes forget I’m just another pony as well. I have been forced to rule Equestria on my own since..." She looked away shamefully. Luna knew exactly what Celestia was going to say, it was the one thing they tried not talking about. "I get it Tia... I am not the sister you love, I am the monster you keep close by," she uttered sadly. Celestia pulled her sister into a hug and whispered, "You are not a monster... I am just worried you might become one again... I had to banish you, my only sister, to the moon to protect my subjects... it wasn't fun for me." Tears fell from Celestia's eyes while she whispered, the memories hurting her deeply. Luna stayed silent while returning the hug. She had nothing to say to Celestia at that moment and she wasn't going to begin this argument now. Celestia wondered what being a princess was doing to her friendships as of late. Sticking to traditions and forcing her edicts on the others, in order to maintain balance and serenity, for all of Equestria to prosper. It was hard being royalty at times, and her sister was living proof that not all fates are kind. ____________________________________________________________ The pony who trains potential guards had been informed of the recent development. "You're bucking kidding me, right?" Steel Wall angrily asked the messenger. The tough as nails pegasus, was the one pony who ultimately decided if a stallion was suited for royal duty. If they didn't meet his approval than all the stallion did was waste his time. The messenger was scared. "No sir, Steel Wall sir," he feebly replied. Steel Wall was a built and fierce stallion, his efforts had produced the finest guardsmen in all of Canterlot. He was the one who Shining Armor learned his lessons from. "So you're telling me that a mare is going to be a recruit for the royal guards?" He furiously inquired. The messenger pony now even more intimidated barely squeaked out a "Yes," before he rushed off. "Of all the lousy and ridiculous nonsense, I have to deal with, this is the level of respect I get!" He loudly shouted. His anger was so potent that no pony dare even approach him. He raged on as he broke things in his office. It took him about an hour to calm down, and by that time the entire office was trashed. He was still infuriated with being mocked by having some mare think she was even fit enough to be in the royal guards. "She better have fun tonight because tomorrow I am going to make her life a living hell." He dangerously vowed. ____________________________________________________________ After spending the rest of the day moving stuff in and organizing everything, Twilight and Pinkie Pie took a nice shower together. The water had washed away the troubles of earlier and cleansed them of worries. They washed each other meticulously, not leaving any spot unwashed. They didn't use the opportunity to do anything sexual since they were just enjoying the tender moment. After the shower they dried each other off, making sure to take longer on certain areas. When they finished they put away the towels and went to bed together. They began positioning themselves into a rather intimate embrace, the position allowed them to gaze into each other's eyes lovingly. "Pinkie Pie, I can't believe you are doing this much for me, am I really worth it to you?" She nervously asked. "Twilight you were always worth it, you just never knew." Pinkie honestly replied. The two lovers became one that night and then drifted off into slumber. The night was theirs and tomorrow they would deal with whatever challenges come their way. They had no worries, no aches, no problems... for that moment they were lost in each other. Their desires gave way to passion, and their love shook the very foundation of Canterlot Castle. That night was theirs, and it ended in bliss. > When Laughter Meets Anger > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- When Laughter Meets Anger Steel Wall had risen before the sun, his disciplined schedule never broken. He would wake up before the sun deity herself and train his body. He was an older stallion but had the physique of a stallion in his prime. Steel Wall's regiment was excruciating but helped him be in top physical form and ready to take on anything the world could throw at him. Today he would learn that no amount of physical endurance was capable of withstanding the annoyance of Pinkamena Diane Pie. He hated that name without having met the mare, it only took her attempts to join the royal guards for him to despise her. He was already set on not giving her a chance because of her gender. It wasn't sexism but traditionalism that had made the stallion adverse to a mare in his ranks. His values came from a time lost where stallions were only suited for combat, and mares were meant for less strenuous activities. While training in the sunless morning, he was questioning the sanity of his ruler. He had no rational thought that could explain why Celestia, of all ponies, would allow such blatant disregard of tradition. She was supposed to be the keeper of order, it pained him to know she was the one who sent the messenger. He thought it probably was a prank, so he decided to meet her at breakfast to properly give a few laughs and congratulate her on a job well done. It's not everyday a pony pulled a fast one on Steel Wall. ____________________________________________________________ Luna was waiting for Celestia to get her flank up and lift the sun. She was tired and had plans of sleeping undisturbed, unlike last time she was ready for annoyances. She had created sound proof ear plugs that would allow her sleep to withstand Twilight's obnoxiously loud screams of pleasure. When Luna saw her sister arrive it made her smile a bit, "Finally up I see? I almost thought you were going to be late." Celestia chuckled softly, "I am sorry but it seemed while I was sleeping I was subject to hearing Twilight's adoration for Pinkie Pie... it was louder than I had anticipated." Luna yawned and headed off to bed, before leaving she carefully warned, "Sister, I don't know if your choice in allowing the Element of Laughter into the royal guards was such a good idea." Celestia, who finished raising the sun, had felt this talk would be coming. "Time's have changed Luna, and traditions that are archaic must die," she emphatically stated. Luna whispered something before finally taking her leave. She hadn't the will to challenge at such levels of fatigue and went off to sleep. Her whisper went unheard and it left Celestia in a bitter mood. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight Sparkle was slowly waking from her peaceful sleep. She opened her eyes and saw a blue pair staring right back at her. "Pinkie what are you doing up so early?" Twilight gingerly asked while rubbing Pinkie's face gently. Pinkie Pie was excited about the day, "I have been up for like hours just bouncing around waiting for you to wake up... I can't wait to start my first lesson, at first I was like 'I should wake Twilight' but then I remember you need your sleep or you get cranky." Pinkie's smile never faltered throughout her explanation. Twilight chuckled and leaned in to kiss Pinkie, in attempts to silence her. Their lips connected with such passion that it had been nearly impossible to contain. They usually started their mornings with a romp if they stayed over the previous night. The only issue was they had to be at breakfast and didn't want to keep the princess waiting. If it wasn't for that breakfast... they would have never left the room till exhaustion hit. Their kiss had stopped when Spike had walked into the room, he went there to see if they had already woken up. "Hey girls... I see you are both up now, so how did you two sleep? I slept like a baby." Pinkie chuckled and softly spoke, "Spike, you didn't hear us?" Twilight blushed and hid her face from her baby dragon. Spike smiled oblivious to what she was referring to, "No... I was on the other side of the castle. Celestia showed me this neat room but... I felt lonely." Twilight saddened at the news, "Spike, is there any way you can be transferred closer to us? I would hate to think of you being forced to spend your nights so alone." Pinkie Pie started putting her hoof on her chin, "Hmm maybe we can talk to Celestia about it at breakfast... which we should definitely get ready for, oh I hope they got cupcakes!" Pinkie wasn't well versed on the diet of royalty and would soon find out that cupcakes isn't a breakfast item. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia had begun a tradition of her own when Luna had been banished to the moon. With her heart feeling empty she had decided to heal her wound by allowing herself company for breakfast. It wasn't the grandest of ideas but it was definitely something she was glad she started. She was able to get to know her staff and subjects, by enjoying a meal with them, without the formalities of an audience. She had even been seen travelling to have breakfasts, or other meals, in different venues. Once she was in Ponyville having a meal with her subjects and it lead to an incident with Fluttershy stealing her phoenix. This morning, she had a more reserved guest list, she was going to discuss matters that were meant for the attending ponies only. She wanted Steel Wall to meet Pinkie before officially allowing her to take classes so he could prepare for her ... antics. Celestia felt it would be a shame if Pinkie was kicked out of the guards, based on her mannerisms, and wanted to avoid Twilight being angry about it. She watched as the guests had arrived. The first pony was Steel Wall, who was dressed in his finest tux and had his mane styled. The second guest to arrive was Spike who was naked as the sky was blue. The last two ponies to arrive were Twilight Sparkle and Pinkie Pie. Pinkie Pie wore a stallion's suit instead of a dress since she was informed that the instructor of the royal guards was going to attend the breakfast. She styled her mane to seem more stallion-like and even put on her signature mustache. Pinkie Pie was ready to impress Steel Wall. Twilight wore an elegant dress that Rarity had made for Twilight's many trips to Canterlot. It was an exquisite white gown with purple overlay. Twilight had her mane brushed, but not styled in any fashion since she lacked a hair stylist. She was hoping the stallion would not be offended by Pinkie's 'costume'. They all took their respective seats and the breakfast began with a speech by Celestia. "I hope you all had a lovely morning, and I wish you all well in the coming days. Pinkie Pie you have decided to embark on a journey that most stallions can't handle. The position of a royal guard isn't to be taken lightly and Steel Wall is a very tough teacher. Regardless of what you may think, I want your safety to always be priority. I'm sorry you have to be tested this way but, in order to maintain royal traditions, I must do so. I wish you luck in your trials and may you be successful." ____________________________________________________________ After the speech the ponies began eating their breakfast in silence. The silence became pregnant before somepony spoke up to ruin it. "So this isn't a joke Celestia?" Steel Wall nonchalantly asked. All heads turned towards the princess waiting for a response. Celestia sighed, "No, Pinkamena will be a student of yours and you will train her." Pinkie Pie smiled wide, "Oh this is going to be fun, I’ll be like Hiyaah and you will be like 'that's not how you do it.' Then I will be like 'I got it now' and you’ll be making me a guard in no time." Steel Wall's anger grew at her horrible masquerade, of a stallion, and her failure to mimic him correctly, "First of all, I will not be mocked and that attire isn't appropriate, now take off your clothes!" Pinkie Pie blushed, "Oh my... you should buy me a drink first!" She broke out in laughter. Steel Wall became even more upset, "No I didn't mean it in that way!" Pinkie Pie continued the game, "So angry pants, is this how you treat all mares who reject you?" Celestia could see how upset Steel Wall was becoming and intervened before things got out of control, "You both will stop this nonsense, this instant!" The silence was deafening and not a single soul dare utter another word while breakfast continued. The silence only lasted temporarily, Steel Wall had broken it with a question. "Celestia, what makes this mare qualified to be a guard?" He curiously inquired. She finished eating a piece of sliced apple before speaking gently, "I will have you know that her qualifications comes from her being one of the heroes who saved this world from Lu- Nightmare Moon." Steel Wall recalled that night when darkness had overtaken Equestria, he was busy giving Shining Armor specialized training during the events. "Shame I couldn't have helped I would have been a great asset." Celestia chuckled, "I am sure you wouldn't have been since you are not an Element of Harmony. It was the valiant efforts of the Elements of Harmony that were able to subdue Nightmare Moon and release my sister from her grip." Celestia's smile grew. Steel Wall was a bit impressed with Pinkie Pie, after finding out that bit of information. "Aren't the Elements of Harmony the same group of ponies who brought down that Disco thingy?" He inquisitively mumbled. "Discord," Twilight corrected. Celestia frowned upon that name, "Speaking of, I haven't seen him around lately, I need to ask him some questions about something I discovered... if any of you see him please let me know." The group at the table took note of her request and silently responded with a nod. They continued eating their breakfast in silence enjoying their meal, it was nearing it’s end as most of the ponies were either finishing their food or already finished. Pinkie Pie looked at Steel Wall and noticed his mood had shifted, she felt like this was her chance to talk to him. She tried using a more serious tone and asked, "Are we going to begin lessons today?" Steel Wall sighed and in defeat responded with, "Yes they do begin today, after breakfast as a matter of fact, But I am warning you, They won't be easy lessons and if you can't meet the expected goals you will not graduate... am I understood?" Pinkie Pie pounded her hood to the table and shouted, "Aye, aye, captain!" before saluting him intensely. Celestia couldn't help but chuckle at how Pinkie Pie was unintentionally making Steel Wall so angry. It wasn’t everyday she could see a usually calm pony go haywire, Celestia mentally noted to keep Pinkie Pie from disturbing Luna. Steel Wall was about to blow a gasket. He decided to excuse himself with the excuse of preparations. He felt like he was going to have to drink himself to sleep after a day of potentially dealing with Pinkie Pie. With him gone the breakfast became more lively and the conversation flowed effortlessly. The rest of the breakfast was talking about other issues like Spike’s living arrangements and the mention of soundproofing the area around Twilight and Pinkie’s room. The laughter and fun they had was soon going to end because breakfast was over. ____________________________________________________________ Breakfast ended and that meant the lovebirds would have to part ways. Pinkie Pie was reluctant to leave Twilight's side, enjoying her company immensely. "My dearest princess... I will miss you during classes," she softly spoke. Twilight kissed Pinkie's forehead softly and spoke,"Oh Pinkie... don't worry, I will see you at lunch and I will use my free time having spike teach me some baking skills, so I can make you a special cupcake for you to enjoy." Pinkie Pie was bouncing around at the news “That sounds great! I can’t wait to taste your cupcakes!” Spike, who was on Twilight's back, heard the brief conversation and was looking forward to spending a day with her. He noticed from the corner of his eyes a jealous looking Flash Sentry, it wasn't a fun sight to see. He couldn't have guessed why Flash would be jealous, of two mares being intimate, unless he was denied by a colt recently. Pinkie Pie was going to head off to class, not without kissing Twilight first. She gently pressed her lips to Twilight's and they shared a passionate kiss, only furthering the anguish of the hidden stallion watching the scene with disgust. Once the kiss broke off Pinkie Pie left and went on to begin her training. Twilight, who watched Pinkie walk off, kept the goofy grin on her face. When Pinkie was out of sight, Twilight walked towards the kitchen to begin her adventure in learning to bake. She didn't know she was being watched by a slighted stallion, who was wanting to speak to her about the wedding. > Honor of the Royal Guards > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Honor of the Royal Guards Steel Wall was prepared for the arrival of the new potential royal guards, and the arrival of the pink terror. He was going to whip the cadets into shape and make them into the protectorate of princesses. Steel Wall knew that out of every twenty cadets only eight would make it to the finale of the training. The ponies that didn't succeed had either died or quit, it was that intense. Steel Wall had successfully managed to help fill the roster of the royal guards active, in Canterlot Castle alone. He was able to train the ponies who wanted it the most and make them lean, mean, protecting machines. His dedication to the cause, of defending royalty and ensuring more young cadets were ready to take on the challenge when he finally passed on, was without equal. He never let any recruit who wasn't up to snuff graduate his course and never allowed any shenanigans to take place in his classes. His only motivation for his unyielding efforts were simply the honor of keeping the noble deities alive. He didn't need recognition, or even validation, for his existence to be vital to the future of Equestria. His job was bound by honor, and it was that same honor that each cadet, that he molded into a guard, would keep with them and hopefully pass on to their foals. There was no parades or fan clubs for royal guards, but that didn't stop them from being willing and able to die to keep the royal family safe. Steel Wall sized up the cadets as he walked past each of them. Those that faltered or showed any sign of cowardice were immediately expelled from his class, and sent back to wherever they came. This wasn't a beauty pageant and he wasn't going to coddle anypony. He continued doing his inspection of his recruits until he reached Pinkie Pie. He tried giving her a death stare, and in return got a funny face aimed at him and a bunch of laughing stallions. "Oh so you think this is funny huh? I wonder how funny it is when you are all forced to give me 500 push ups." His no nonsense attitude was key in keeping the cadets in line. "You! Pinkamena... I don't like you, and I don't appreciate you trying to change the world by being the first mare royal guard." Pinkie Pie tried keeping a straight face, "actually I am not trying to change the world, I already saved it, I am just here to become a guard so I can be with Twilight and then one day we will get married, and I will find some Pinkie way of making foals with her and live happily ever after..." She had a big smile on her face at this point. She couldn't contain the joy of her future possibilities with Twilight. Steel Wall looked around at all the blushing stallions and knew he needed to gain control of the group, "alright listen up this is exactly why you don't join the guards... You don't join the guards for the perks you do it for the honor of serving the princesses and their subjects," He announced. "Pinkamena, I will be honest with you, I will be tough to impress and, if the only reason you joined up was to bed wrestle a princess with no complaints from society then I suggest you leave now." Pinkie Pie stood very still and spoke with the utmost seriousness, "actually sir, I didn't come here just to get permission to bed a princess, as you so blatantly put it... I came here to become a better Pinkie Pie. Back in Ponyville, I was just a crazy baker who did random things. I was able to make people smile and laugh, and that was special... but I can't just be a silly pony forever and I want to be a strong pony. The royal guards are very strong and when I become strong I can be the pony to protect Twilight from threats instead of relying on her to protect me." Steel Wall took a step back in shock, "well... in that case I suggest you stick around and learn the hard way of why you don't belong in the royal guards." ____________________________________________________________ Twilight was in the royal kitchen with Spike preparing to learn her lesson in baking, "why is the apron necessary, if I am just baking a cupcake?" Spike sighed, "already a complaint and we haven't gotten to the hard part. I am trying to teach you to bake cupcakes and you complain about aprons..." Twilight sheepishly smiled, "I guess you're right, it is kind of silly." Spike chuckled, "so enough of apron talk let's get to baking, first do you have everything we need? If so then let's begin." ____________________________________________________________ The cadets who didn't get sent running off by Steel Wall's intimidation were hesitant about continuing on. The only one who kept a brave face on was Pinkie Pie. She had determination on her side and a goal to strive for. Success was going to be sweet with all the pain she knew it would take to reach it. Steel Wall started lessons with simple armor polishing techniques and issuing the training armor they would be assigned to maintain and wear during classes. "Now remember to polish your armor thoroughly and keep the metal from rusting, you don't want to wear rusty armor in combat." Pinkie Pie was bored out of her insane mind. "Teacher... what if you are in the rain, and fighting enemies, won't the armor rust anyways?" she tiredly asked. Steel Wall had just started to like Pinkie Pie up until she opened her mouth, "Actually it doesn't work that way, metal doesn't rust instantly it would take-" "So then why are we learning about rust if it won't affect us right away?" Pinkie inquisitively interjected. Steel Wall tossed the example armor he was holding up to the ground and stomped on it in anger, "Fine we won't learn about the importance of armor maintenance so next time anyone has a problem with their armor just ask Pinkamena for advice. She obviously knows more than me and I'm clearly just wasting your time." ____________________________________________________________ Flash Sentry had been following Twilight to the royal kitchen. He wasn't upset at her in particular, he was disappointed that his romantic build up had lead to a crash and burn. He wasn't allowed in the wedding due to Rainbow Dash putting a ban on 'lame' ponies, and only allowing awesome ponies to attend. He tried to enter the wedding as an on duty royal guard but the bouncer wouldn't let him through, no matter the credentials. He watched from afar as Twilight had been practicing baking something for the pink pony. He wasn't too versed on the names of the other ponies since it didn't matter to him. He was interested in Twilight Sparkle, and had never been more into another mare in his life. When he was kicked out of the wedding he kept his dignity and didn't force his way in, even though his lack of trying is what ultimately caused him to lose his potential marefriend. He didn't know of the events surrounding the wedding but rumor was that he was a colt-cuddler and was more into Shining Armor. He didn't like the rumors that started, nor appreciated the fact that ponies swear they saw him at the wedding telling Twilight the very same thing. He wanted to approach her and speak to her about the allegations, and the fact he still wanted to be with her, but he was on duty and didn't get off until later. Since he didn't want to potentially cause any problems, he decided to just leave the kitchen area before being spotted. He walked away and went to her room to plant a letter. The letter contained his invitation for them to meet up in private and discuss what really happened. He didn't want to let Twilight go without being given a fair chance, and would attempt to win her over at the proposed meeting spot. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was tired of being in class and couldn't wait till lunch. The morning had been nothing special and the entire session was about armor, armor management, when it was appropriate to wear armor, how to put away the armor once done being worn; It was downright a snooze fest. Steel Wall was in the middle of an important lesson about the durability of armor and how much protection it can actually offer in live combat. He noticed during his lesson that Pinkie Pie was slowly closing her eyes and falling asleep, in what he could only assume was sheer boredom. He decided to spice things up by attacking her with a hoof, to demonstrate why armor is important. Unfortunately for Steel Wall, Pinkie Pie has Pinkie Sense. Pinkie Sense is an innate ability to predict incoming physical harm and various hazards, and could tell when something was going to impact her by subtle movements of her body. She sensed the incoming attack and moved out of the way while still closing her eyes. "Missed me, missed me, but you can't kiss me," Pinkie Pie chanted. Steel Wall had never been so infuriated and impressed at the same time. He never had any cadet make a fool of him and laugh while doing so. "How did you dodge my attack, cadet Pinky?" Pinkie Pie smiled wide, "It was my Pinkie Sense; I felt my tail waggle and my ears crinkle, and that meant some jerk was going to sneak attack me." Steel Wall became intrigued about the Pinkie Sense and wanted to test the validity of it. "If what you say is true then you should be untouchable in combat," he deviously said. "Well, I don't know, I was able to fight off the changeling swarm and even help fend off a hydra or something like that," Pinkie nonchalantly replied. Steel Wall chuckled, "Well then how about you do me a favor, and spar with me, so I can put the Pinkie Sense to the test." Pinkie Pie grinned, "Let's do it!" ____________________________________________________________ Discord was watching Luna sleep, he wasn't sure if he could pull off his stunt with her snoring not being as constant. He needed to make sure she didn't wake up or it would ruin everything. He had a bucket of water placed right beside the bed where he could easily place one of her hooves in it. He wanted to cause chaos and nothing would be more chaotic then an enraged moon goddess with no victim to channel her rage to. He was meticulous about his plan and carefully began executing it. His slow movements had been silenced by his carefully placed steps. He relaxed his heart so it didn't beat loudly and continued to enact his mischievous plan. He gently placed a foreleg of hers inside the bucket of water and backed away slowly. He was glad it went easily and decided to slowly escape the room before being caught. When he turned around to begin his escape, he noticed Celestia giving him a look of anger. "We need to talk Discord," Celestia grimly spoke. Discord gulped and knew he had been caught in one of his various schemes he had been running across Equestria. "Well, what have you discovered and how did you find out?" he asked in an amused tone. "I know about Flash Sentry, and your stunt involving the breaking of Twilight's heart," Celestia angrily retorted. Luna was hearing two creatures arguing and shouted angrily, "Shut up!" before noticing her hoof had been placed in water. She looked at her bed hoping to find it urine free and was happy she didn't see a spot. "What is the meaning of this?" She angrily asked while looking at the intruders. Discord nervously chuckled, "Well... I can explain ... you see..." > This isn't a game! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- This isn't a game! Discord was, in between two pissed off princess and, being yelled at for various misdeeds he had committed since he became reformed. "Look girls I understand I did some things, but if you think about it, I think I did stuff to enhance the lives of the ponies," he egotistically commented. Luna wanted to vaporize him on the spot but was held back by her sister. "No Luna, I want to hear his insanity so I may understand it," Celestia gently said. She nuzzled Luna gently and that calmed her down. Discord giggled, "You two should just kiss already, I mean the tension between you two is palpable." Celestia sighed, "Discord never mind my relationship to Luna, let us focus on what you meant about enhancing the lives of ponies." Luna blushed and stood silent, she didn't understand what Discord meant and didn't want to. Discord chuckled, "Alright think of it this way, if Twilight had been with that boring pegasus guard would she have been happy? Potentially yes, but not certainly." Celestia was intrigued, "So you did all this to help Twilight and Pinkie be together?" She wasn't buying the load of bull he spewed, she was just humoring him. Discord looked around suspiciously, "Alright I will tell you the truth... you see... what really happened was.... ____________________________________________________________ Flashback Discord was bored, it was the most boring day of his life. He had to deal with Fluttershy being married to that overprotective and obnoxious pegasus. "My best friend is getting married to the Ponyville equivalent of Supermare... oh joy," he griped. Twilight had chuckled at his displeasure, "Hey it could be worse, imagine if it was you getting married to somepony." She stuck her tongue out at him. She was just playing around but that didn't get received well by the chaotic entity. When Twilight left his view, Discord began thinking of a way to get her back. "That bitch needs her comeuppance," he softly whispered. Just then he noticed the lame pegasus pony that was prohibited from being part of the wedding trying to get in. "Time for some fun," he wickedly stated. He made his way over to Flash and disguised himself as a security pony. "Excuse me sir, but you aren't on the list of cool ponies." Flash Sentry was tired of being judged without anypony really getting to know him. "Look sir, I am a royal guard and the princesses are at this event. I am requesting you to let me in as an order from authority," He commanded bravely. Discord almost laughed and blew his disguise, "Well... as much as you hold weight in Canterlot, I don't believe we are in Canterlot so how about you just skedaddle and go be self important elsewhere." Flash Sentry wasn't going to tolerate the insolent bouncer any longer, "You obviously don't understand I am a ro-" Discord was bored of him, "Listen bud... I don't care I have my orders to keep lame ponies out of this place, I am looking at the lame list and I didn't just make this list up, it's totally a rule and I have to enforce it." Flash grumbled, "Fine! I am outta here. I don't even like filly-foolers anyways." He stormed off in anger and went back to Canterlot. Discord felt the joys of chaos surging through him and knew it would be even more awesome to keep messing with Twilight, in hopes she learned her lesson. He decided to disguise himself as Flash Sentry using a transformation spell. He looked exactly like him and even mimicked his voice superbly. He went up to Twilight and saw how excited she was to see him. "Hey Twilight, how are things going?" he asked as if bored. Twilight was overjoyed to see him. She was inspired by the wedding of her two friends and wanted to advance her relationship by finally asking him out. "Well you see... it's just... I think we ... should go out," she nervously stammered. Discord had two choices and no moral compass to help guide him. He could be a dick and break her heart and ruin her life forever, or he could be nice and stop himself from doing that. "Well how awkward is this... I mean here you are trying to tell me you want to be with me, when I wanted to tell you that I... am gay," he happily stated. Twilight was shocked and felt she heard him wrong, "What?" Discord disguised as flash frowned, "You didn't know? I should have told you... I prefer stallions to mares... I mean... the only reason I was kind to you was because you are related to the hunkiest stallion in all Equestria. I could rear end Shining Armor all day if given the chance." Twilight began crying as her heart shattered into pieces. The scene wasn't pretty and Discord decided it was time to bail. "Hey if it's any consolation, it could be worse ... I could be getting married to you," he said with venom before flying off. ____________________________________________________________ "So that is what happened, and honestly now look at Twilight being happy with Pinkie," Discord nonchalantly said. Celestia had a look of extreme anger, "You have toiled with her love life for some petty revenge? This isn't a game Discord... you changed destinies and who knows how much the future will suffer?" Discord chuckled, "You are the pot calling the kettle black my dear Celestia, when was the last time some suitor came to you for permission, to date Twilight, in which you declined? How many times has Twilight's own destiny been altered by your actions? Oh wait you didn't tell her did you? So who's the one playing the game now?" Celestia was going to reply with a condescending tone but Discord vanished with a laughter that echoed inside the room. Luna watched Celestia lose her cool and it made her wonder, "Tia... that day a thousand years ago... you locked me away for trying to manipulate the lives of pony by turning day into night permanently... How is what you are doing any less revolting?" Celestia flared her horn in anger, "Don't you dare Luna, I am not doing anything that would harm ponies, your actions would have caused crops to suffer and sleep cycles to be thrown off." Luna shed a small tear, "Yes, remind me of the monster I was and how you are the righteous one." Celestia tried to apologize but was cut off. "Get out!" Luna roared. Celestia walked away from her sister and left the room feeling upset with herself. "Maybe... there is a way I can fix this... I need to make sure that Twilight's destiny stays intact, it's not for my sake but for hers." ____________________________________________________________ "So you really want to do this Pinkamena?" Steel Wall asked as they began preparing to spar. "I am going to warn you now, I won't be holding back my hits and I better feel your mightiest of blows." He stretched a bit and got into the arena, he was ready to show his cadets how royal guards kicked flank. Pinkie Pie was a bit nervous at the intense feeling she was getting before the spar had even started. "I am ready!" she excitedly yelled. They had a referee to make sure the fight didn't get out of hand and to officiate the spar. Even if it was just a spar there had to be a winner and a loser. Combat in the olden days was the only way for stallions to settle their dispute. Talking things over and other namby pamby stuff didn't exist in the days of old. Steel Wall was raised with that mindset that stallions are born to fight and mares are born to breed. It wasn't his own thinking, he was raised by traditionalists that had their views kept from ancient times. He was going to punish his foe for daring to accept his challenge. The referee waited till they both got into positions and then shouted, "Fight!" Pinkie Pie felt the signals her body were giving off. The Pinkie Sense was telling her where to move and she expertly dodged the first attack from Steel Wall who was expecting the first blow to miss. She wasn't sure how to strike back since he was a bigger and stronger opponent. Steel Wall continued his attack with a barrage style combo that was keeping Pinkie on her hooves. "Come on I can see you dodge all day but without hitting back you won't get anywhere," he bitterly informed. He wanted to see that Pinkie Sense be used to it's fullest and with her just dodging and not hitting back it's useless for actual combat. Pinkie Pie tried to get in a punch but felt a hoof land right into her stomach during her slow moving attack. She stumbled and with that opening she got punched right in the face and fell back from the force, "Ouch!... not fair." Steel Wall laughed, "Is this it? That's the extent of your will? Get up and fight me you pathetic excuse for a cadet." He wanted more, his combat experience had him lusting for a good fight and with Pinkie already seemingly quitting it was not enough to satisfy him. Pinkie got up and charged at him, "Hiyaah" she yelled out before kicking his armored side and reeling back from pain. "The hay... this isn't going well!" She charged again and again each time giving him swift kicks to the sides and eating the pain that came with such reckless attacks. Steel Wall tried dodging the pink menace but found himself blocking more than anything. "Nice, use that anger into energy and fight me with all you have, just don't leave yourself open or you will regret it," he instructed. He was having fun, no cadet had the balls to attack him head on like that. Pinkie Pie felt the incoming attack through her Pinkie Sense and dodged it effortlessly but without a counter attack she was back on the defensive. "Okay then I just have to find the mark," she mentally noted. She wasn't able to find the moment to attack when Steel Wall kept coming at her with everything he had. Steel Wall's defensive style combat was also a great for offensive tactics. He had the build to take hits for days and the stamina to outlast any foe. His cutie mark meant he was destined to be an indestructible wall that wouldn't falter against any foe. He believed it to be true and never allowed anypony to defeat him. Pinkie Pie kept dancing around the hits, trying to stall the pony, but noticed he wasn't getting as fatigued as she was. "You are not playing fair you big meanie," she huffed. She was used to having so much energy but with the strenuous amount of effort put into dodging each blow it was draining her rapidly. Steel Wall felt it was time to finish the fight and end her with a single blow. "Time to show you that this isn't a game!" He put all he had into one punch and aimed right for her protected side. His hoof went towards it as time seemed to have slowed down. The hoof almost made contact and ended the fight but the target had moved ever so slightly to the side and then he felt a hoof bash his jaw and momentarily stun him. "Take that!" Pinkie yelled excitedly. She finally found the right time to counter but without the force, to deliver a significant blow, it wasn't efficient enough to do anything but make Steel Wall mad. Steel Wall was infuriated but with his opening he went for the win with a powerful hook. Pinkie Pie didn't even see it coming, the hit came from seemingly nowhere and it knocked her out. Steel Wall stood over the unconscious Pinkie Pie and smiled at his victory. "Take ... that," He coldly said. He watched as the cadets gasp and whisper things to each other. "You see... this is what happens when you think you are entitled, when you feel special. Let me get this through to all of you. Your cutie mark is what guides you but ultimately it’s up to you to become something worthwhile. I won this fight because I worked hard to become the pony my cutie mark told me I would be." He watched the group of stallions that were watching go deathly silent and suddenly they looked in fear. Steel Wall noticed they weren't looking at him so he turned around to see Twilight giving him a death glare. Before he could say anything he was lifted into the air and held there. "You! I saw what you did and I don't approve of it. I don't know how the fight started and I really don't care," Twilight yelled while levitating the stallion. Steel Wall kept his emotions in check, he wasn't going to show fear to anypony. "Listen here, this was a spar and it was refereed, you are interfering in my training. Pinkamena knew what she was getting into when she accepted my challenge and I feel she learned a valuable lesson." The angry Twilight calmed when she felt a hoof on her shoulder, "Twilight... it's okay... put him down," Pinkie Pie woozily said trying to recover from being knocked out. Pinkie Pie was not angry at Steel Wall but disappointed in herself for being taken down so easily. She felt that after all she has been through with the opponents she has faced that taking down Steel Wall would be a breeze. Twilight nuzzled Pinkie Pie and let the stallion go from her magical grip. "Pinkie... are you alright?" she asked in hysterics. "Yes Twilight, I am fine... just need to eat and get my strength back... I got my flank kicked," Pinkie calmly said. She was trying to fake a smile for Twilight but the sting of defeat was keeping her joy in. Steel Wall smiled at her quick recovery, "Maybe there is hope for you yet, now it's lunch time so you all get to have an hour break. Enjoy your lunches and when the hour passes return for more lessons, I will not tolerate tardiness and anyone who decides not to return is expelled for good." Pinkie Pie chuckled, "Oh you better believe I am coming back, just know one day we will spar again and when that happens Pinkie won't be going down so easily." Steel Wall laughed, "I hope you don't, I wasn't even warmed up." Then they had an epic stare down before Pinkie Pie got levitated and dragged away by Twilight. Steel Wall never felt such determination from a pony, who lacked the necessities to even make it. He wondered just how far Pinkamena would push herself to achieve her goal. > Lunch and a letter. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lunch and a letter. Fluttershy was having a peaceful lunch with her wife Rainbow Dash, inside their cottage that they shared. It was an intimate lunch with both of them sitting really close to one another and casually caressing each other. The serenity of the moment was what kept the lunch so perfect. Then it all went to Tartarus when Discord decided to show up uninvited. "Fluttershy!" Discord cried out. He had fake tears streaming from his eyes and was being overly dramatic, "I had a relapse again and did something bad." Rainbow Dash sighed, "Seriously? You come here uninvited and ruin our lunch to admit your wrong doings as if it was really news worthy?" She wasn't too fond of Discord's random appearances and untimely interruptions. Fluttershy frowned at her wife, "Oh Dashie, please don't be mean to him. He is trying to better himself and needs all the support we can give him. Isn't that right Discord." Discord chuckled, "Oh yes, that is right, I need your support Fluttershy." He was enjoying how angry Rainbow Dash got at his intrusions, he was, after all, a world class prick with no bucks to give. Rainbow Dash grew angry, "Discord, why is it that every time I am trying to have a nice and quiet moment with my wife, you feel the need to interrupt it with something stupid?" Discord displayed signs of feeling hurt, "Well... it's because Fluttershy is my only friend. I am sorry that you can't be secure enough with your relationship to allow her to be friends with me... after all I am one sexy beast." Rainbow Dash chuckled, "As if I would have to worry about Shy leaving me for an ugly bastard as yourself. I mean seriously, you are the worst looking thing in Equestria, a timber wolf would have a better shot at Shy than you." Fluttershy was fed up with the arguing, "Enough! You both are acting immature, I want you two to stop this nonsense or I will... I will... yell." ____________________________________________________________ Twilight was having a nice picnic style lunch with Pinkie Pie. She was still upset from the prior experiences she just went through. Having to read a letter from an ex, that gave her an invitation to speak with him privately, and then seeing her marefriend being beaten was distressing. "So the baking is going well, I'm confident by the end of your training today I can feed you a delicious cupcake," Twilight softly informed. Pinkie was still saddened by being defeated, "Yeah, well that is great news, but where is Spike? I thought he would be joining us for lunch?" Twilight looked down, "Spike is... dealing with something, I need to tell you something my love." Pinkie was a bit worried at the sudden shift in Twilight's mood, "What is it my princess?" Twilight looked up with sadness spreading through her face, "It's about Flash... he sent me a letter and I didn't know what it was about. I opened it up and read it ... it was an invitation to meet with him privately when he gets off work tonight." Pinkie chuckled, "Is that all? Don't worry Twilight I trust you. I know you love me and I don't fear you accepting an invitation to speak with a stallion in private... I know you won't cheat on me." Twilight sheepishly smiled, "Well that is the thing... I didn't accept the invitation and Spike decided to make it his personal mission to get it through Flash Sentry's head that there is nothing to talk about." Pinkie laughed, "I would pay to see that, imagine Spike acting all manly." Twilight giggled a bit, "Yeah I just... don't get why he is suddenly trying to reach out to me. I don't honestly care what he has to say, I have you and that is enough to make me the happiest mare ever." Pinkie blushed, "Oh Twilight, you make me the happiest Pinkie in all Equestria." Twilight smiled, "Well let's get to eating, it seems you will need all your strength to keep up with the others huh?" Pinkie frowned, "I ... I will get stronger... I will be tough and you will be proud of me Twilight." Twilight rubbed Pinkie's face gently, "I already am proud of you my love." They had no words left to speak and ate their sandwiches in silence while enjoying the view of the gardens they were located at. ____________________________________________________________ Spike was searching the castle high and low until he found Flash Sentry. Luckily for Spike, Flash Sentry was alone and the man to stallion talk could take place. Spike approached Flash Sentry, who seemed not enthused about Twilight not being with him. Spike looked him in the eye and stood tall trying to seem intimidating, "Yo, Flash, I think you need to leave Twilight alone." Flash chuckled, "What do you mean pipsqueak? I haven't done anything to bother her." Spike got angry, "Don't play dumb with me. I saw your stupid letter and heard her reading it out loud. Listen I don't know what happened to you, or care honestly, but one thing I do know is you will not ruin Twilight's happiness." Flash became angry himself, "Oh and you think Twilight is happy being with that baker slut?" Spike was shocked at the hostility the pegasus had, "Actually, 'that baker slut' has made Twilight happier than anything ever has before. I have known Twilight since I was hatched from an egg, and I have only seen her this happy because of her relationship with Pinkie." Flash became even more agitated, "I don't care how happy that stupid pink pony can make her... I can make her happier and give her foals without resorting to some magic. I am better for Twilight, and she will see that." Spike shook his fist angrily, "No! You will not continue pursuing Twilight and potentially ruin her relationship. You had your chance and waited too long." Flash got dangerously close to Spike, "What if someone stole your love interest away? What if that happened and because of something you had no control over? Would you be this adamant about letting it go?" Spike chuckled, "Well... I would be upset obviously, but if Rarity was really happy with somepony else... I would have to deal with it. Part of loving somepony is wanting them to be happy, and if you really love Twilight then you will understand that she is happier without you." Flash Sentry laughed at Spike's face, "You stupid fool, I bet you don't know do you?" Spike became infuriated, "Know what?" Flash smiled darkly, "Rarity has been seen with Applejack in a romantic capacity." Spike chuckled, "Nice try, making up lies to piss me off. If they were going out I would know about it." Flash grinned, "Really? So then how come I, and handful of guards that were on break, caught them filly-fooling freaks making out in the Canterlot Gardens?" Spike lost his nerve, "I... I don't know... how did you?" Flash felt like a winner, "It was easy with them being so into each other, and losing themselves in the moment, that they didn't even notice us walking by." Spike felt crushed, "No... it's not true... it can't be," Flash frowned, "It is... go ask Twilight, and maybe you can convince her to speak with me since I was at least honest with you." He was hoping that Spike would be grateful enough to persuade Twilight into coming to meet him. Spike started sniffling, "I will ask her... but I won't try convincing her to meet with you... just because I may be suffering, doesn't mean I want others to suffer as well." Flash grew quiet and ignored the dragon since he was of no use to him. He was pissed off that his ploy to gain the dragon's favor didn't work out, and instead he might have solidified his chances of not gaining an audience with Twilight. He watched Spike walk away depressed and thought of how he could get rid of the baby dragon without getting his hooves dirty. ____________________________________________________________ Steel Wall was eating lunch alone, he never ate with cadets or anyone beneath him. "That damn mare... I can't help but feel like she could actually make it, if she tries hard enough." He was slowly leaning towards accepting the mare as an actual cadet and treating her better. It was still bugging him that some mare would break tradition so recklessly, it wasn't right in his opinion. He was eating a salad that was well rounded with proteins and vitamins to keep his aging body up to standards. "I hope I am not getting soft in my age... because I don't feel like retiring just yet." He chuckled at the notion of giving up being the most badass guard in Equestria for some cushy old pony life. Still it bothered him that he was slowly getting older with each passing year, and one day his body wouldn't be able to keep up with demand. He needed a successor to help him but he didn't know of any guards who were physically impressive and mentally disciplined like he was. "Well there was Shining... but he had to go get himself married to that princess," he grumbled to himself. "Wait there was that snappy young cadet Flash something... he has the potential but he isn't all that impressive." He continued eating his salad and looked over his plans for the day. He was still going to teach about the importance of armor for the day and if anypony had complaints there was always legalized beatings through sparring. "Though that Pinkamena sure was impressive in combat... if only she was a stallion and mentally disciplined... she would make a hell of a guard." ____________________________________________________________ "You did what?" Fluttershy angrily yelled at Discord after his confession. "How could you Discord? You don't know how much you hurt Twilight doing that," Fluttershy sadly stated. Rainbow Dash got really angry, "You really are a piece of shit! Twilight may be a lame egg head at times but that doesn't mean she deserves, anything close to, what you did to her." Discord was really sad now, "Well honestly I don't feel bad about it ... I mean she has Pinkie now, right? So technically I did a good thing, right?" Fluttershy shook her head, "No! That isn't a good thing... you toyed with her life and it could have ended badly. It still can..." "How?" Discord inquisitively interjected. "I mean they both are together and seem happy." Rainbow Dash felt pity for Discord, "You really don't know do you? Flash is most likely going to try and patch things up, and when she finds out it wasn't really him at the wedding, how awkward do you think it will be for every pony involved?" Discord rubbed the back of his neck, "I never really thought about all that..." He was slowly coming to terms with his reckless behavior. "Well... I mean... I just... wanted to get back at her." Fluttershy turned away from Discord, "I want you to leave my house Discord. Until the situation is settled, you are no longer welcome here." Discord shed a small tear, "I understand... I will be going now." Discord started flying away slowly. He flew through an open window and into the sky above. Rainbow Dash looked up into the sky and cursed herself for what she was about to do. She flew after him and whispered to him, "Listen Discord, I don't like you but for some reason Shy does. I know she is mad at you right now, and has the right to be, but I will try talking to her for you. Just stop being such a prick to others and constantly being a nuisance... and this won't happen again." Discord raised an eyebrow, "Was this supposed to cheer me up or piss me off?" Rainbow Dash chuckled, "I honestly don't know anymore, but hey, if you want to help... don't make the situation worse. I can't be held responsible if Shy permanently bans you from the house, if your actions lead to something terrible happening." Discord grew silent and watched as Rainbow Dash flew back down to Fluttershy. His past crime could lead to the downfall of his friendship with Fluttershy. He wasn't sure how to fix it besides obliterating Flash Sentry and getting himself into more trouble. He knew of one way to help make things better and it was easy to do. He was going to stop Celestia from meddling into the relationship, and potentially splitting up the lovebirds. > Back to Class > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Back to Class Lunch had ended for the ponies in Canterlot, and back to their duties they went. Celestia had been scheming of someway to restore the fates to how she wanted it to play out. She was thinking about how to get Flash Sentry alone with Twilight in a manner that would be inconspicuous to her plot. I got it! I can just throw a royal ball and have specific rules that state only a member of the royal guard can escort a princess... and since Pinkie isn't a royal guard ... yet, I can have Flash fill in for her. She wasn't going to throw one too soon it would be suspicious. She was going to plan it for the end of the week. She was feeling no guilt about her plan since she believed it was for the best. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was back in class and was being more attentive to the lessons. She had been shown that without proper knowledge and training even a mare with special abilities can be toppled by a stallion with lot's of combat experience. "When do we learn about weapons?" She cheerfully asked. Steel Wall was a bit calmer than before his lunch and didn't react harshly to the interruption, "Next week, this week we focus on armor and defensive stances. Being a guard is more about protection than destruction. Armor and defensive tactics are prevalent and weapons are not important when you can properly counter an opponent." The stallions watching the scene felt as if they entered some alternate dimension. With Steel Wall being calm and Pinkie not being a nuisance, it made the scene seem surreal. They were hoping the peace would last because the distractions made it hard for them to learn. Pinkie Pie tried sitting still and focusing but the lesson got boring again. She was humming to herself and doodling on her notepad as Steel Wall kept instructing the class. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight was back inside the kitchen attempting to make a decent batch of cupcakes, "Spike what am I doing wrong? I can't get it to taste right." She was worrying about missing the deadline of whenever Steel Wall decided to end his lessons for the day. She had no idea since no pony gave them a schedule. Spike wasn't in a good mood, with the information he was given just before. He tried keeping an upbeat attitude but failed, "Look Twilight, you are doing fine, I don't know what you're aiming for but they taste great... I just." Twilight turned towards Spike, her helpful assistant, and noticed his depressed state, "Anything wrong Spike?" Spike sighed softly before responding, "I went to tell Flash Sentry off so he could leave you be." Twilight grew angry, "Did he hurt you... I will go teach him a lesson." Spike waved his arms to get her attention, "No... he didn't hit me like Rainbow did... he just told me that Rarity is with Applejack... I don't know if it's true but... it hurt." Twilight frowned and became silent. She didn't know how to explain the situation to him without hurting the baby dragon. She knew how much he was crushing on Rarity, and how it borderline was love he was feeling. "Spike... Rarity... is with Applejack, I wanted to tell you but... I knew how much you feel about her," Twilight sadly explained. Spike began sobbing from the pain of heartbreak. His eyes leaked liquid sorrow as it pooled on the ground beneath him. "Why...I don't know who my parents are... I have no wings, and now the only thing I thought I did have is taken from me. Why can't I catch a break?" Twilight's tears began leaking from seeing her number one assistant crying, "I don't know Spike... I just don't know... but I do know that you're going to be alright. I had a heartbreaking moment long ago myself remember? Just know I will be here for you." Spike hugged Twilight and held on to her tight. "Twilight will I ever find my special somepony?" Twilight chuckled as she nuzzled him, "Spike... I am sure one day you will find true love and hopefully not with a mare." Spike chuckles, "Well to be fair Rarity is beautiful, and there seems to be a lack of dragon chicks around." Twilight sighed, "Chicks? Where are you learning this kind of talk from?" Spike smiled, "Rainbow Dash, she used to teach me all kinds of things before she got married and became tame." Twilight laughed at the idea of Rainbow Dash being tamed and calm. "Spike you going to be alright?" she asked getting back on topic. Spike looked down but shed no tears, "Yeah... I think I will be alright until I see Rarity again... I will confront her myself when she comes to visit. Since she isn't going to be here for a while let's focus on getting these cupcakes to be as tasty as you want them to be." Twilight beamed, "Yes! That's the spirit let's make some cake." ____________________________________________________________ Steel Wall knew things were too quiet, and hated being right in this particular incident. "Pinkamena... what are you doing that is so important you can't pay attention in class?" he asked offended. His lectures may be lengthy and his overload of information may seem hard to digest, but it was what kept ponies alive during heavy situations. Pinkie Pie without even skipping a beat replied, "Doodling stuff." She looked up from her sketch pad that mysteriously appeared from the void, and noticed the sour look on Steel Wall's face. "You know Pinkamena, just when I was beginning to think that you were being serious about this... I find you disappointing me yet again," Steel Wall said infuriated. He had a tiny bit of respect for Pinkie Pie after the spar for holding her own, now it was all gone. Pinkie Pie frowned, "I am taking this seriously... it's just... you're so boring!" She had no idea that being a royal guard meant having to learn about so many things. She had pictured her classes would be like the middle ages where she had an instructor teaching her to do battle and after some time passed she became a knight. This new age royal guard business wasn't meshing with her well. Steel Wall charged until he got face to face with Pinkie Pie, "Listen here you, I don't care that you are lovers with Princess Twilight, and I don't care if you saved Equestria before. I am not going to allow you to insult me while you are my student. I will allow this one insult to slide but the next time, you feel as if you can't behave, I will personally expel you and make sure you never become a royal guard." Pinkie Pie was shocked at the outburst and felt like crying from being treated so rudely, "You... big.. meanie... I was just bored is all... you didn't have to yell." Tears began spilling from her eyes. Steel Wall felt his initial prejudice return as Pinkie began crying. "See this is what I mean, mares are too sensitive for situations like this. You think if I yelled at a stallion like this he would cry?" He asked outraged. Pinkie Pie shook her head to the side, and stayed silent. She had never thought that this kind of situation would happen. "Why do you have to be so mean to me?" she asked when her curiosity was piqued. He chuckled, "Because you're soft, and you need to toughen up. If you think being sensitive is a trait royal guards have then you are wrong. I want you to understand that crying is pointless and you only weep when there is some pony to mourn. In battle you will endure pain and displaying any kind of weakness will surely cost more than just your life." ____________________________________________________________ Princess Cadence was spending time with her husband, Shining Armor, when a letter came in from seemingly out of nowhere. "Did Celestia send this?" she asked her equally confused husband. Shining Armor didn't know but wasn't taking chances, "Let me open it with magic from afar just in case." Cadence smiled at his vigilance and determination to keep them safe, "Alright my love be careful." Shining levitated the parchment and when he read it he smiled, "Well it just seems that Celestia is throwing some royal event and has invited us to attend." Cadence smiled in relief, "Well then let's get ready and head off to Canterlot." Shining chuckled, "It's not until two whole weeks Cadence... I don't think Celestia would like want to deal with more princesses in her castle. She already has her sister, and apparently Twilight is there for some business." Cadence blushed in embarrassment, "Well I see... so then what business does Twilight have in Canterlot or did it not say?" Shining Armor looked at the message again to see if he missed anything, "No, Celestia left out what it is, I guess it isn't that important if it's not being mentioned." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia couldn't shake the pain she felt from what her sister said. Even if she was determined to fulfill her goal and had things to set up she needed to fix things with Luna. She went to Luna's room and allowed herself in, not risking potentially waking up the cranky mare. She waited till she got close and gently stroked Luna's cheek with a hoof. "Wake up dear sister we need to talk," Celestia gently whispered. Luna groggily opened her eye and whined, "I don't wanna talk... just go away before I become evil again and you send me to the moon." Celestia shed a small tear and was getting ready to just leave, "Fine, I get it, you are still-" she got cut off. Luna grabbed her sister and pulled her on to the bed before whispering, "Don't go Tia... just stay here with me for a while... we hardly hang out as it is, and I miss spending time with you." Celestia smiled softly before getting herself comfortable, "Alright Luna, I will push my plans aside for now and just spend time with you." Luna sleepily smiled and began stroking Celestia's face with a hoof, "Good, now let's rest; I am the princess of the night, and need my beauty sleep if I am to be presentable in the dreams of my subjects." Celestia giggled, "Well since I am going to sleep care to join me in my dream? I wouldn't mind some company." Luna chuckled, "If that is what you desire then I shall be there." ____________________________________________________________ Twilight had finally accomplished her goal of making one tasty cupcake, "Yes! I did it, Now I can feed this to Pinkie and she can be... wait why did I do all this again?" Spike laughed, "You mean to tell me you forgot? It was a small token of your appreciation or something." Spike shrugged his shoulders. Twilight frowned a bit until she pictured Pinkie eating her tasty treat, "Well I can't wait to feed this to my marefriend, she deserves it for doing all this... I tell you Spike, sometimes heartbreak can lead to better things." Spike smiled at that, "Wow... that was sort of deep... anyways let's go over and see if Pinkie's class is over I kinda am tuckered out from baking so much cupcakes." Twilight agreed, "Yeah let's go, it does make me wonder though, how does she make all those treats and still have all that energy to..." she cut herself off to spare Spike nasty images. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was being more attentive and tried her hardest to keep in line. "Wait if armor is heavy then shouldn't we not wear it during a battle with a speedster?" she asked seriously. Steel Wall chuckled, "Well that depends actually, if the armor makes a significant difference in your top speed than yes, but movement speed isn't combat speed. We will go over that soon, but not a bad question Pinkamena." Pinkie smiled at the acknowledgement, and tried to keep her excitement to a minimal. She had failed in doing so and with being praised she brought out the party cannon and launched confetti everywhere with glee. Steel Wall was not a fan of the party cannon, "What the actual buck... was that?" Pinkie Pie blushed, "That... was my ... party cannon." ____________________________________________________________ Back in Ponyville, the rest of the Elements of Harmony weren't having such a great time about the situation. They all met and decided they should be visiting their two friends soon. They couldn't settle on a day for all of them to go with conflicting schedules and disagreements. In the end the mares all decided they would go when things weren't so hectic. They would wait until Twilight and Pinkie had at least spent a week alone in Canterlot and got used to their environments. Though with the information Discord gave, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash weren't as eager to wait. > A Good Night > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Good Night Pinkie Pie had been forced to clean the mess she made with her party cannon in lieu of discipline. She was finishing up her task when Twilight came into view with a basket. The basket was in the grip of her mouth and Pinkie Pie couldn't help but think she looked adorable holding the basket. Twilight was eager for Pinkie to eat the cupcake she made and guarded it with her life. Some of the guards on duty tried to sweet talk their way into getting the delicious treat but to no avail. She had Spike to help her keep guards at bay with his fire breath in case one of them got grabby. Spike was chuckling at how desperate the guards were for sweets, something about Celestia hogging them all and Luna not doing anything about it. It didn't matter what the excuse was, those ponies weren't getting their hooves on that cupcake. He ensured their safety with the more assertive guards. He was more worried about Flash Sentry showing up than anything else and was fortunate enough that he wasn't around. Pinkie Pie ran towards Twilight with glee and tackled her to the ground sending Spike airborne. "Twilight, I so missed you... I was really, really bored in class," Pinkie complained. Twilight frowned as the basket went airborne as well and she had to catch it with her magic. "Pinkie you almost ruined the treat I made you," she whined. Pinkie chuckled, "Oh silly you're the only treat I need." Twilight blushed and kissed her marefriend gently, "You're so getting laid tonight." ____________________________________________________________ Discord had been searching high and low for Celestia and even ventured into her room. With no sign of her he almost gave up his search until he thought of one more spot she could possibly be. She definitely must be in there, though what could she be doing? He made his way to Luna's room and opened the door silently. He was glad to be correct and with the position they were in it would be advantageous to his cause if he could take some sort of evident proof of the situation. He remembered camera's exist and he summoned one using his overpowered magic. With the camera in his clawed hand he lined it up with a good angle to get a perfect shot. A couple clicks later and he had all the blackmail photos he needed. He was going to do bad for the cause of good. "Fluttershy will forgive me now," he conspiratorially whispered. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia could have sworn she heard noises as she rose from her slumber. She hadn't the faintest idea of when she drifted off to sleep but never felt such peace when resting. She looked over to her sister and gently kissed her cheek before whispering, "Thanks Luna, I definitely needed that." Luna was sleeping with a blissful look on her face. She hadn't slept this well since she and Celestia were fillies and would share a bed at times. All they had was each other, back then it was all they needed. With Twilight's ascension Celestia's attentions were usually suited more on other things until recently which made Luna feel jealous again. Celestia was oblivious to the conflicting feelings of her sister, and only knew she wanted her happy. Celestia got off the bed or at least tried to but hooves were wrapped around her and weren't letting go. "Luna... Fine I shall stay, but only till dinner, unlike you I have to sleep tonight," she whispered softly. ____________________________________________________________ Flash Sentry was walking down a hallway doing patrol when he passed Discord and stopped, "Good afternoon." Discord chuckled, "Shove it up your ass, pansy." Flash got angry, "Hey that is no way to address me, and personally I don't deserve such treatment." Discord smiled, "Oh really? Well you would be right if I had even a shred of respect for you, and I don't." Flash Sentry couldn't grasp why some entity had disliked him for no known reason, "What did I ever do to you?" Discord took a picture of Flash Sentry, "I love that face, it's all sad and whiny. I just don't like you, I don't need a reason for that do I?" Flash Sentry had enough of the tom foolery, "Well fine you don't like me, I shall be on my way." Discord stopped him, "Listen up, pansy boy, I have a lot riding on Twilight and Pinkie not breaking up, and I will make sure that nothing tears them apart. So if you have any plans on trying to win Twilight back I would, for your sake, forget them and move on." Flash flared his wings in attempts to intimidate his foe, "Are you trying to threaten me... what I do is my business and no flying, retarded looking, menace will stop me." Discord scowled, "I will show you retarded." He flicked his fingers making Flash's wings disappear and then snapped them again to send him into the sky above the fountain in the royal gardens. He sauntered off hoping no witnesses would blurb about his mischievous activities. He had to maintain a good rep in order to stay "reformed" and not buck up his chances at being friends with Fluttershy. He needed her as a friend because frankly nopony else could stand him. ____________________________________________________________ Spike was angry at being flung into the air like a rag doll. It was a good lesson about being on top of a pony who has an overly energetic marefriend. "So anyways as much fun as it is watching you feed Pinkie there must be something to do around here," he complained. Pinkie was enjoying the cupcake immensely, it didn't taste all that great but it was made with love. "Oh Spike, you need a girlfriend." Spike chuckled, "Pinkie I think you meant marefriend." Pinkie laughed, "Don't be silly spike, dragon's don't mix with ponies. You need a female dragon to get all lovey dovey with." Twilight sighed softly, "Pinkie... don't bring that up around Spike right now... he just learned something about Rarity and Applejack... that he wasn't supposed to know about yet." Pinkie frowned, "Oh well no one told me... I am sorry Spike. Still friends?" Spike held a tear in, "Yeah still friends." ____________________________________________________________ Hours later Spike had decided to eat alone while Pinkie and Twilight went to some restaurant to eat together. He was invited but, he declined. "Stupid love, stupid ponies... I wish I wasn't a stupid dragon... I hate being alone," he grumbled while chewing on a gem. Celestia had arrived into Spike's room since she was informed the two mares were off for the evening. She had need of Spike's help if she was going to get her plan working. "Spike, I hear your pain and feel it as well," she said carefully. Spike looked over and didn't bother responding. He was still chewing on a gem and didn't care to open up to a princess who was not to be trusted. "I know you are upset with my earlier actions when you first arrived yesterday, but surely you must know I am doing what is best for every pony," she tried explaining to no avail. Spike sighed, "You can't possibly know how it feels to be alone when you have so many ponies that love you." Celestia chuckled, "Yes many ponies love me but I have never been in a romantic relationship and can understand your plight." Spike softened up a bit, "Doesn't it bother you? I mean living forever but not having anypony to share it with?" Celestia frowned a bit, "Yes Spike, eternity alone is quite saddening. Tell me you said you hate being a dragon why is that?" Spike sighed, "I don't really hate being a dragon just... there aren't really any other dragons like me that I could be with... it's hard when I have no one to understand me." Celestia gently smiled while responding with, "Well Spike, I could help you in that aspect... if you are willing to help me with something I need done." Spike eagerly accepted without knowing exactly what he was agreeing to, "Anything... I will do anything to be happy." Celestia grinned darkly, "Good... because if I get what I want, you shall have what you most desire." ____________________________________________________________ Luna was finally awake and ready for anything. She noticed the lack of her sister in her room and frowned a bit, "She could have at least woke me up before leaving," she whined. She got out of bed with attitude and even kicked her blankets off her. She hated blankets randomly with no cause, "Stupid blankets... stupid bed... I despise you." She lit her horn and attacked her bed and tore her blankets. "Take that... for offending me with your comfort and warmness." She wasn't rationally thinking. She ran out of her room in a hurry feeling like a filly who was about to get in trouble for doing something bad. She was looking for something and didn't really know what until she noticed what was missing. "Tia... where are you?" She roamed the halls until she passed Spike's room and heard her sister making some sort of deal with the young dragon. She waited and heard her sister's ominous words and felt ill. When Celestia exited Spike's room Luna approached her with a menacing glare, "Sister... how dare you make some deal with Twilight's dragon... what exactly are you up to?" Celestia looked shocked and had to improvise before the situation got sour, "Well my dearest sister-" "Don't you dare call me that!" Luna said in defiance. Celestia knew she had to do something quickly, "Alright if you must know, follow me and we shall talk in private. How about a moonlit stroll around the gardens?" Luna softened a bit, "That sounds lovely... I shall raise the moon and meet you there?" Celestia smiled, "Yes you do that while I finish tending to my duties." ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was enjoying her night out on the town with her marefriend, they had a lovely dinner together and were walking around Canterlot side by side. "So Twilight what you want to do tonight?" she asked with eagerness. Twilight chuckled, "Oh Pinkie anything we do is fine, as long as we do it together." Pinkie laughed, "You sound so cheesy, which reminds me, the cheesy bread was delicious." Twilight blushed and buried her face into Pinkie's side. She was happy that she had someone as amazing as Pinkie Pie with her, and was hoping that Pinkie could pass her tests and become a royal guard. "My love, how was your first class?" Pinkie sighed, "It's absolutely boring! I can't take it and it's just day one." Twilight looked saddened by the news asked, "Want to just quit and run off together?" Pinkie chuckled and pushed Twilight gently, "No way! Pinkie isn't a quitter, and plus. I think Celestia will be mad if you aren't a princess anymore." Twilight said something she never thought she would, "Buck Celestia... she isn't my owner and I don't need to be a princess when they are already three of them." Pinkie had a mischievous smile, "You really want to buck Celestia? I can invite her for a threesome if you want." Twilight blushed and pushed Pinkie gently, "Not even funny..." Pinkie chuckled, "Twilight I was just kidding, I wouldn't let any pony be with my marefriend as long as they were with me." Twilight smiled and gently kissed Pinkie Pie on the lips, "How about we go to bed my love, I want to sleep with the hottest baker in Equestria." Pinkie laughed, "You want to sleep with Mrs. Cake?" Twilight huffed, "You are so infuriating... but I love that about you." Pinkie nuzzled her marefriend lovingly, "Let's go home princess, I want to enjoy my night with you." ____________________________________________________________ Luna had been waiting in the gardens for quite a while and started hating plants and small animals irrationally. "Stupid small animals... drove my sister away didn't you," she mumbled angrily. Celestia chuckled as she made her presence known, "Dear Luna, are you really this worked up... I know what you thought you heard may be-" "No... don't you even begin to lie to me Tia... all this time since Twilight has been with Pinkie you haven't been the same sister I loved for all eternity... you have changed like when I was possessed," Luna angrily said. Celestia hated the situation she was in, possibly she would have to send her sister to the moon if she was going to be a problem. "Dear Luna... things have happened and well Twilight's future-" "Twilight, Twilight , Twilight! Is all I ever hear from you, is there any pony else you care about or is that all you have room in your heart for?" Luna asked with venom dripping from her words. Celestia shed a tear, "You know damn well it isn't... I love you Luna... now and forever." Luna moved closer, "If you truly mean that, than stop worrying about Twilight Sparkle so much, and focus more on me... I need you... We spent a thousand years apart and I want to make up for lost time." Celestia moved closer until their faces were inches apart, "How do you need me sister?" Luna whispered softly, "I need you as my eternal companion... my eternal love." Celestia blushed, "Then let us make up for lost time." > The game just got interesting. > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The game just got interesting. The morning came with revelations, as Luna was at the breakfast table with Celestia. The other ponies, and one baby dragon, eating breakfast were uncomfortable with how intimate the two rulers were. "Oh Luna stop feeding me like this, it's quite embarrassing." "Oh Tia, you know you enjoy it." "Seriously dear Luna, we have guests and they're trying to eat." "If they don't like the view they can shut their eyes off... I will not be censored." Celestia giggled. "Oh come on now Luna we have plenty of time to play, for now why don't you head to bed, I shall join you later and we can rest together." Luna smiled and yawned. "Alright Tia... don't keep me waiting too long." Celestia kissed her gently on the forehead while the others kept eating. "Go on now, get that cute flank to your bed." Luna wiggled her hips as she walked away. "Can't wait to see you my love." Celestia waited till Luna was not in hearing distance and looked at the group. "I hope that wasn't too much for you ponies to handle." Twilight had the courage to ask. "Celestia... are you and Luna... together?" Celestia smiled. "Why yes Twilight, I know it's forbidden but she is the only other mare who can stand the test of time and be at my side forever." Twilight gulped as she asked. "But isn't incest illegal in Equestria?" Celestia chuckled. "Curious Twilight, you are always eager to learn things. Yes technically it is, but I make the rules and I say it's okay for me and Luna, because our case is different." The mood changed as the words were spoken. Every pony in the area felt that wave of uneasiness wash over them as Celestia had declared herself above the laws she set. The rest of breakfast was ate in silence and no pony uttered another word until it was over. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight and Pinkie Pie made the slow walk to the outside area where the morning classes were held. Today was another day of boring lectures about defensive tactics and armor management. Pinkie Pie felt like she was being forced to endure torturous boredom for the sake of love. "Twilight... I really can't keep going to these boring classes, can't you order my teacher to make it fun?" "No Pinkie I won't be abusing my powers just because it will make your trials easier. I know you are suffering for me, and that is why when this is all said and done I want us to get engaged." Pinkie went wide eyed. "Are you serious Twilight?" Twilight blushed and nodded slowly. Pinkie jumped for joy "Yipeee!" Spike sighed. "You two are too lovey dovey for my tastes. I need to find something to do around here. I think I am going to head back to the throne room and talk to Celestia." Twilight felt the weight of Spike be relieved from her body and looked at Pinkie. "I am getting worried about Spike, recently he has been distant and it worries me." Pinkie nuzzled twilight softly. "Don't worry, I am sure he's alright. He usually would tell you if something is bothering him. He isn't like the Spike you brought to Ponyville, and I think he might be maturing a bit." Twilight kissed Pinkie's cheek. "You're one hell of a marefriend. Thanks my love." ____________________________________________________________ Discord was amused at the display of 'love' Celestia shared with Luna at breakfast. He even found it quite charming as to how she accidentally allowed herself to reveal how awful she truly was. "Hey there Celestia... manipulate any ponies this morning?" Celestia chuckled. "Discord what an awful thing to say, I’m not manipulating any ponies." She narrowed her eyes at him threateningly. Discord laughed along but his joke was funnier. "Oh you are so right... I mean this picture doesn't tell me that you're using Luna." He showed the picture he took and grinned. Celestia smirked. "Well you should have waited for last night. You could have had a better shot of us being intimate." Discord's jaw fell. "The what? You actually did your own sister?" Celestia blushed. "Oh yes I did, and I even enjoyed it." "That's evil, even for my standards... how low will you go Celestia, in order to achieve your goals?" "Oh I don't think this conversation would be appropriate, and I would hate to have to let Luna know you are being quite rude with me... who knows what she might do, if some villain was attacking me." Celestia flashed an evil grin at Discord. Discord thought he had the upper hand but it seems Celestia plays even dirtier than him. "This game just got a whole lot more interesting. Well played, Celestia." Celestia's smile hid the many lies she had spun to wear it. "Well Discord if you are done here I can get on to my scheduled meetings. I do have a busy day today and I will be making sweet, sweet love to my sister and it's only because I truly care about her." Discord felt sick. "You know I could understand using that Sparkle bitch, but your own sister? I never had any siblings, and as evil as I am, I would never use them if I did." Celestia stayed silent as Discord vanished. She didn't plan for Luna figuring it out and had to make a contingency plan in case Luna was to uncover anything. "I love my darling sister, but I can't let anything ruin my hard work. If Luna does find out then I will just have to... Darn it I can't do that again!" Spike was in complete shock of the entire thing he overheard. He decided not to approach Celestia and, love be damned, go report this to Luna before Celestia could sink her hooves into her further. ____________________________________________________________ Steel Wall was still in complete shock from breakfast about Celestia's haughty tone. "Alright class today we are going to talk about the proper way to defend yourself against magical enemies. In case a magical threat is looming over Equestria, we want to be ready to defend our nation from it." Pinkie Pie smiled, finally a new lesson. " Alright! so what you got planned to teach us? I'm so excited about this!" Steel Wall face hoofed before addressing her. "Listen Pinkamena, I can tell you're excited about today's lesson but for the love of all that is good and holy, can you please sit down and be quiet today?" Pinkie Pie sat down slowly with a blush. "Okay... I will behave for now." Steel Wall grumbled something under his breath but decided to let it go and continue on with his lessons. ____________________________________________________________ Spike was at Luna's room and the door was surprisingly left open. "Um... hey Princess Luna?" he called out questioningly. "What is it? oh it's the baby dragon, Twilight carries around. What do you want?" "Well... it's hard to explain with words but... I need to warn you about something before your sister arrives." "Why can't my sister be involved in this warning, young dragon?" "Because it's your sister that is the problem... she is using you and I know you don't believe me, as I see your horn flaring and your eyes glowing, but trust me... she doesn't actually love you. I heard her and Discord talking earlier about it I swear." He was able to dodge the first attack but got pinned by Luna's hoof right after. Luna looked down at her enemy and was about to vanquish him. "You dare accuse my eternal lover of using me... why do you wish to die, Spike?" Spike looked up with tears in his eyes. "I swear I am telling the truth. I gave up on my deal just to come here and tell you about it. I gave up my own happiness so you could have yours." Luna stopped pinning him with her right foreleg and backed away. "I remember that deal you and her made... if you truly gave up that to warn me... then what you say must be true. Which means I'm being used and Celestia ... doesn't really love me." Spike got up slowly and saw the intense sorrow Luna had on her face. "I'm sorry Luna, I would give anything for me to have not heard that... so I could have my one true love and you could be in ignorant bliss." Luna grew enraged. "No! You did the right thing... it isn't you who will suffer for this but Tia... when I see her I will-" "Stop." "Thou dares interrupt thee when thou knoweth the consequences?" "Luna I know you are mad, but hurting Celestia will only result in you being portrayed the villain. Until she can be proven to be the bad princess, we can't do anything towards her." "Then if I can't harm her, I shall seduce her... and then when she is thoroughly seduced and at my whim... I will expose her for the awful mare she is, and then I will banish her to the sun for a thousand years and see how she likes it." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia was sitting on her throne ready to make the visit to Luna's room. "I could go for some sex. I did enjoy my first time and they say it gets better after." She was about to get up and leave the area until she noticed Twilight making her way from the entrance. "Hey Princess Celestia, I was wondering if you have seen Spike anywhere?" "Now that I think about it I don't think I have, and I was supposed to meet with him." Celestia became nervous but hid it well. Twilight sighed. "Well I will keep looking for him. Oh by the way, Flash Sentry left me a letter the other day and was being rude towards Spike. I would like it if you could transfer him to the Crystal Empire while I am here. I wish to have nothing to do with him." Celestia cringed and grew angry. "I see... well I will have a talk with Flash later and see if I can reassign him. Until then please don't worry yourself about it." Twilight smiled gratefully. "Thanks Celestia, I don't need anything or anypony trying to separate me from my future wife." She walked out of the throne room and continued her search of Spike. Celestia's veins began bulging in anger. "Future wife... that shall not happen my most faithful subject." ____________________________________________________________ Luna was laying on her bed feigning joy of being with Celestia. She was going to act her way through everything and turn the tables on her lying sister. She heard somepony walk in angrily and could only assume it was her conniving backstabbing evil whore of a sister. "Oh hey baby... you kept me waiting and I almost fell asleep." Celestia smiled at the affectionate tone and title. "Dearest Luna... sorry for the delay, I had some nobles that were taking forever and holding me up." She walked close to her sister and got ready to join her on the bed. Luna smiled and made room for Celestia. "You know sister I was thinking about our wedding." Celestia smiled as she snuggled close to her loving sister. "Yes, what about our future wedding." Luna held Celestia close and gently kissed her forehead. "Well I was wondering if we were going to exchange rings like unicorns or feathers like pegasi?" Celestia began nibbling Luna's ear hinting her desires. "I don't care Luna, it's more for you than me. I want you happy my love." Luna almost cried at how sincere Celestia was sounding. "Yes, well I was thinking about horn rings... and I have one just for you." Celestia stopped her nibbling and raised an eyebrow. "Oh already?" Luna chuckled. "Don't be so surprised I was too excited to sleep and needed something to do... I forged this all by myself and want to see if it fits. May I put it on you, my love?" Celestia grinned softly. "I would be honored." Luna gently placed the horn ring on, it was beautiful and yet it also blocked the flow of magic. "There we go... you look fantastic with it on. Try using a spell for me, dearest Celestia." Celestia tried flaring her horn but noticed nothing happened. "Hmmm Luna what did you use to make this ring?" she asked calmly. Luna chuckled. "Celestia I think you know what I used... this shall block your magic until I remove it. I am glad to see it works." She began licking Celestia's horn gently. Celestia was scared and aroused, she became worried as well. "What... what will you do to me?" Luna smiled evilly. "Things my dear sister... wicked things." > Line of Sight > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Line of Sight Steel Wall had never been in a more messed up situation. His life was leading to greatness and glory. Now it was trying to teach a hyperactive mare combat lessons while secretly knowing she will never pass. He didn't have a grudge personally, towards the pink mare, just knew she wasn't cut out for royal guard duties. "For the last time, Pinkamena, you need to stay out of the line of sight. If you are in their LoS then you’re SoL got it?" Pinkie Pie couldn't grasp the concept of staying still and being hidden. She had to keep moving or suffer the sheer agony of being bored. "This isn't really helpful. Wouldn't somepony who knows magic find you, anyways using it?" Steel Wall sighed and wished he stayed in bed. "No! If you really are this dense, I suggest quitting now. You can't be targeted by spells if you can't be seen." Pinkie Pie rubbed her chin slowly as if in deep thought. "So then what about area of effect spells?" Steel Wall became stunned by the knowledgeable question Pinkie asked. "Well in that case, I would have to agree with your methods of running around like a chicken with her head cut off." Pinkie Pie gasped loudly. "Ponies cut the heads off chickens? For what? Do you eat chicken?" Steel Wall face hoofed and prayed to Celestia that Pinkie would vanish. "Just... continue practicing staying still and being hidden from your partner. This exercise is almost over anyways." ____________________________________________________________ Twilight's gingerly stroll, through the hallways of the Canterlot Castle, was interrupted by the appearance of an old flame. "Hey there Twilight, long time no see," the loser stallion said. He was the one pony Celestia thought would be with Twilight and actually approved of. "Hey Flash, let's just not do this," Twilight angrily said. The coldness of the hallway was matched only by the shoulder Twilight gave Flash Sentry. He felt disrespected and unworthy by her actions and became infuriated by her attitude. "I don't know what's gotten into you, but I don't remember being the enemy." "Pinkie got into me, if you must know, and you're the pony who threatened Spike," she answered while still walking away. Flash tackled Twilight and pinned her with fumes expelling from his nose from sheer rage. "I don't know what happened at the wedding, all I do know is I never told you I was a colt-cuddler. Now, I find you are filly-fooling with a friend, because you thought I didn't want you. All I want is to talk... so let's talk." Twilight struggled to get free. "Let me go, or I will use my magic to hurt you." Flash Sentry called her bluff. "I said let's talk... we can talk civilized, but you have to hear me out." "Let her go!" a voice called out in the distance. Twilight looked to her would be savior and yelled, "Spike!" Flash looked at the charging baby dragon with mirth and fury and got off Twilight and charged at Spike for interfering. "This will teach you to buck off." He almost stomped on Spike's head until a magical force teleported him a short distance away. Twilight rushed to Spike and checked him for injuries. "Oh Spike... are you alright?" Flash Sentry angrily flew away to cool off. He knew he was going to get in trouble, but with the support he had from Celestia, he was determined to not let it stop him. Spike tagged his own body to make sure he was still among the living. "Yeah... it's a good thing you zapped him with your magic before he stomped my head in... What's with that guy?" Twilight frowned. "I'm just so glad he didn't get to hurt you, before I reacted... if anything had happened to you..." "Hey I'm fine, alright... plus I think he won't be bothering us anymore," Spike said with a grin. ____________________________________________________________ Luna had Celestia at her mercy. She was gently sliding a hoof up and down her sides eyeing her predatorily. "Now dear sister, it seems your fate is in my hooves, and all I need to know is... do you trust me?" Celestia nervously nodded. Her breathing quickened and her body was displaying signs of discomfort. "Yes... I do," She weakly lied. "Is that so? Well then explain why I smell fear coming off you in waves?" Luna asked while caressing Celestia's face gently with slow strokes. "It's just the horn being unable to function worries me, not you. I just fear some pony taking advantage of the situation while you aren't attentive," Celestia said fearfully. "My dearest Tia, don't tell me you fear your subjects." Luna was rubbing her hoof along Celestia's lips gently. Celestia nervously giggled before slowly licking the said hoof. "Don't be absurd, I have no enemies." Luna allowed Celestia to lavish her hoof and grinned. "No enemies? Well that's good to know. I would hate having to smite other ponies just to keep my lovely sister alive." Celestia smiled and felt more relaxed. "Yes Luna, I am your lovely sister. So can we rid ourselves of this horn ring and get busy?" Luna caressed Celestia's horn and stimulated it. "Oh, I quite like this to be honest... It must feel odd being powerless to do anything about it I assume. So now you can understand the ponies around you better." Celestia could sense something was off. "I see... so you betray me. You won't get away with this Luna!" Luna put her horn near Celestia's neck and gingerly pressed it against it. "I could push it in right now Tia, and your reign would end. I could do so without consequence." Celestia started shaking in fear and resorted to begging. "Please don't do this Luna... I will give you anything you desire." Luna began planting kisses along Celestia's neck and moved her horn away. "What I want... is the truth... can you give me that?" ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was being chased by a unicorn cadet, who was zapping magic at her. "Darn it. How are we supposed to counter if we can't take them head on?" she asked Steel Wall who was supervising the exercise. "Well Pinkamena that is the million bit question. How do we counter a force that can subdue us from a distance? You must simply stay out of their linear path of aiming and only use erratic movements when in combat. Unicorns and alicorns alike, are easily outmaneuvered since they have to focus on their magic. Given that knowledge all you have to do is-" "Done!" Pinkie shouted making Steel Wall look at her direction. What he saw gave him a sense of awe. "Well would you look at that... you managed to counter attack an enemy you had no chance of winning against." There was a stallion lying on the ground with a proud Pinkie Pie standing over him. "Yeah, I used my Pinkie Sense to avoid his magical attack, and then did what you taught me. I used erratic movements, and that special punch you used on me in the spar!" Pinkie had a grin on her face and the attention of every pony in the class. Steel Wall then realized that Pinkie Pie used a powerful attack on a fellow student. "Somepony check to see if he is alive. Pinkamena, I should have told you, we don't use excessive force on fellow cadets," He said angrily. Pinkie Pie felt offended. "But, you used that attack on me!" she yelled sadly. Steel Wall was at a loss for words. It took him a minute to respond with, "Yeah, and for that I am sorry, but from now on be careful with yourself. You aren't like most mares, or ponies, I know. I don't know much about your abilities but with enough training, you could definitely be something amazing." Pinkie Pie beamed and jumped in joy. "You think I can be amazing! Oh I know I shouldn't, but I can't resist!" In her excitement she brought out the fabled party cannon again and, for the second time in her training, launched a party out of it. "Yay!" Needless to say, Steel Wall banned the party cannon. "Mother of Celestia... please tell me this is a joke." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia told Luna everything. In some ways it was a curse knowing all the secrets and lies the eternal sun deity kept. It was almost unbearable and it made her feel sick. "How long has this been going on?" Celestia had no reason to lie anymore. "Since you have been gone. I originally had plans to make Twilight your replacement... but when I thought of you... I honestly couldn't bear getting rid of you, Luna. I used Twilight to get you back... I knew one day you would return and prepared her for it." Luna was shaking from the images flowing in her head. "Why did you want me back, and the real reason, Tia." "Because I needed you. I felt incomplete and it wasn't just about love, it was about necessity. You raise the moon so I can recover from always being on duty. You lower the moon so I can raise my sun. Without you it was hard keeping everything in order. I needed you Luna... that was the only truth that mattered." "So why do you continue to plan out Twilight's life? If you got me back what do you need her for?" "Because she is the only pony I know who can find a way to better this world. She has talents that is beyond us, and she has compassion that I have never seen in my life." "Then why not allow her to be free and happy? Why force her to go through these trials and attempt to sabotage her relationship." "Because if she marries Pinkie Pie, then Pinkie Pie will be the first earth pony princess in Equestria... and if we turn her into an alicorn, to keep the status of princess to alicorns only, then it would be another disaster in it’s own right." "We can talk about that later, right now I want to know about your deal with Spike... you told me some horrific things but I can't believe you have that kept hidden from him." "Well if you want to tell him about it do so. I won't reveal the location of it, and until you let me go I can't let you know what I also have already planned." "You said that you told me everything..." "Everything I felt you should know, there are still things in the works that I can't tell you... until I feel you are ready." "You forget I have you where I want you." "Oh, dearest Luna... you actually think nopony will start searching for me? I will be reported missing and a nation wide search would begin." "So then why spill your secrets, if you didn't have to?" "Because it was fun watching you suffer for being curious. Now let me go, I have things to do." "Do you really love me sister?" "Luna, if I didn't love you. I would have killed you instead of banish you all those years ago. Now release me and I will forget you did this and we can go back to just being sisters." Luna began crying. "But I..." Celestia smirked. "You thought what? That there would be some way of us being together after this?" Luna nodded and wiped her tears. "Oh poor Luna. I tell you what, if you take the device off and apologize, we can kiss and make up." Luna tried fighting the feeling of giving in. "I really want to believe you Tia... I still love you even after everything I learned... I don't want us to be enemies." Celestia leaned up and gently kissed Luna's cheek. "Trust me sister... I will give you a chance if you can trust me." Luna began removing the horn ring. "Promise me you will stop all this nonsense, and grant Spike his reward... he did a brave thing." Celestia put on her most innocent tone. "Yes, Luna I promise you, and you shall not regret this." ____________________________________________________________ A loud noise erupted from the room of the lunar goddess. The entire castle of Canterlot shook with a great force. Ponies all over the castle stopped what they were doing to investigate such a ruckus fearing the worst. When Twilight and Spike made it to the room they saw something that made them confused and angry. Luna was lying on the ground unconscious with Celestia standing over her with a hoof firmly planted on Luna's neck and tears spilling from her eyes. "What happened here Celestia?" Twilight asked horrified. Celestia with the most deceitful act she could put on said, "Luna attacked me... I had no choice but to put her down." Spike gulped. "Is ... she dead?" ____________________________________________________________ Across the castle in the training grounds Steel Wall and the recruits were not able to see or hear the full effect of the magical blast. "What in Celestia's name was that?" He got ready to rush off and noticed Pinkie's body twitching. Pinkie became depressed at what her Pinkie Sense was alerting her to. "Whatever it is... it's not good…” > Missing > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Missing Rarity had been packing all sorts of unnecessary things just for Applejack to scold her. "Rares, I know ya love bein' prepared but it's just a weekend visit." The two mares had been taking their relationship slower than most but had been working on moving in together. They were learning how to deal with each other's flaws and habits to better make their eventual life together work. "I know but, what if we need to stay an extra day, or something?" "Rarity, that ain't gonna happen. Now, let's get a move on. The train ain't gonna wait for us." "Fine but if when we need things I didn't pack, you only have yourself to blame." "Anythin' you say, sugar cube." ____________________________________________________________ Rainbow Dash was being fussed over by Fluttershy and groomed. "Again why are you making sure my coat is shiny? It didn't matter before." She didn't like how much maintenance was being done for a visit. "Oh you know I just want you to look your best. After all, we are going to be visiting royalty." "Why didn't you ever fuss over me like this before?" "You weren't my wife before. Now stay still while I do your mane." "No!" "Excuse me?" "Fine... just hurry up will ya? The train isn't going to wait for anypony." "Well if you stay still instead of moving around we won't have to worry about missed trains." Rainbow Dash sighed in response. "So it's been a week since we last saw Pinkie and Twilight. Do you think everything is going okay over there?" Fluttershy was busy brushing Rainbow Dash's mane to answer but internally she was wondering that herself. ____________________________________________________________ It had been days since Twilight saw Spike or Luna. That incident that occurred hadn't been explained properly and Luna's whereabouts were kept hush hush. Celestia had been very meticulous about keeping Luna's condition and whereabouts secret. Pinkie Pie had been excelling in her studies. The incident had no set backs for her or the class. It was none of their business as Steel Wall mentioned. She had noticed that Twilight had been very on edge and that Spike wasn't around at all. Each time she asked Twilight about it she had some random excuse or told her not to worry. "Today is the day our friends come to visit. I am just wondering if Spike will be around to talk with Rarity." Twilight cringed at the thought of them knowing what was going on or Pinkie finding out. "I'm sure he will show up and if not as I said... don't worry about him alright? I don't want anything distracting you from your studies." Twilight had been running around asking everypony around about the whereabouts of her baby dragon. She had been sick from worry at one point but had been hiding her illness and worries from her lover. She didn't want anything to derail Pinkie's studies, since the mare she loved was working so hard on getting better. "You know I haven't seen Luna either. I think we should talk to Celestia." "No Pinkie... let's just enjoy the free weekend of no classes for you, and our friends being here. Trust me everything is fine." "If you say so, my love." "I do, my everything." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia had been taking breaks from her royal duties to enter a room only she had access to. It was her room after all, and no pony could enter it anymore. She was checking on her captive. "Hello my dearest Luna... how are you feeling today?" "...." "Oh come on Sister... please talk to me." "...." "I guess you never want to leave this room is that it?" "...." "Oh when you resist you make it so much fun." "Please stop this... I ..." "Luna, my precious sister, this can all end. All you have to do is pretend nothing is going on." "I can't... Twilight has to know about your actions." "If only you weren't my sister you would be dead right now... I can't have loose ends." "Then what will you do about Spike? He knows everything." "Spike has been dealt with already." "You killed him! He was just a baby." "Even I have my morals, Luna... I wouldn't kill a baby dragon. I just made sure he was taken care of is all." "Why are you doing this my lo... sister." "Because I deserve some semblance of happiness after running this place solo for an entire millennium." "So ruining Twilight's life is what brings you joy?" A loud slapping noise echoed across the room as Celestia reacted harshly to Luna's comment. "How dare you suggest that, Luna?" Celestia asked harshly. "Because she is happy with the pink baker. Please, sister, it's not too late. We can fix all this now, if you just release me." "You're injured Luna... I hurt you really bad and I can't take the chances of you wanting revenge... I so want to release you, that I do promise. I just don't want to release you and have to hurt you again." "Tia, I'm yours... you know that. Please just let me go and I can prove it to you." Celestia began contemplating about the situation. "Do you promise to not to strike me if I do release you?" "I promise dearest sister. I just want to be able to relax, I have no intention of hurting you." "Alright then, I shall give you a chance," Celestia said softly while undoing the magical restraints. ____________________________________________________________ Spike was trying to get used to his new environment. He was banished from Canterlot and forced to stay at the Crystal Empire until Celestia deemed it fit otherwise. He didn't even get a chance to say bye to Twilight at all. "So Cadence need any assistance today?" Cadence was in charge of watching over Spike until Celestia dealt with private matters involving Twilight. That was what she was told and had no reason not to believe it. "Well Spike if you want to help you can take survey of all the ponies who are happy with me and Shining ruling over them." Spike was used to doing menial tasks, and because of that, he was willing to do it if only to keep his mind off everything. "Alright I shall head out and get the census ready and return with your approval rating." ____________________________________________________________ Rainbow Dash was anxious the entire time the train was moving. "Oh come on, can't this train move any faster? I should have flown there." Fluttershy was laying down on the bed and grinned. "Oh Dashie, I know what can pass the time if you really need a distraction." Rainbow Dash heard the mating call and was instantly ready for action. "Let's do this!" Needless to say the trip to Canterlot became 20 percent more thrilling for Rainbow Dash and she settled down after the strenuous and labor intensive mare on mare coitus. ____________________________________________________________ Rarity and Applejack were trying to be civil on a train and not gallivant like their feathered pony friends. "So we're just going to pretend that they aren't doing what we know they're doing?" Rarity asked disgusted. "Well they ain't hurtin' anypony, let them have their fun." "But they are... doing it. How uncouth, it's not like we don't have self control." "Do ya want to make love, Rarity?" "Yes!" And then they kissed... passionately before they made love on a train heading to Canterlot. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie and Twilight were at the Canterlot train station. They were barely up since it was really early. "Usually we would be eating breakfast at this time," Twilight commented. "Yeah and I sure am hungry. All the workouts I do in the morning have really gotten me hungry." "Yeah I can feel the difference in your tone and frame. You really are working out hard." "All for you, my love, I just want to make sure I'm in top shape." "Yeah with your dedication to the guards it's a sure thing." "I hope so, because after this we will have nothing blocking us." "That's right after this... we can be married." Pinkie Pie leaned over and kissed Twilight gently on the lips. "I love you, Twilight." Twilight blushed. "I love you too Pinkie." Just then the train pulled up and out came the four mares they have been dying to see. ____________________________________________________________ Luna was finally free of the shackles and had been lulling her sister into a false sense of security. "That felt amazing Tia, if only you trusted me sooner we could have had more fun." Celestia was in bliss, having been rocked by Luna's expert techniques. "Where did you learn to do those things, Luna?" Luna grinned as she ran a hoof down her sister's body. "Books, very good books." "Remind me to get more books then, I had a lot of fun." "Of course, and since we're on the subject of getting things, where is Discord? Have you dealt with him as well?" "Oh don't worry about Discord, he won't be bothering anypony at all. So you won't need to worry about pictures being leaked" "That's good to hear." Luna's body shivered at the mental images in her head. She imagined her sister evaporating the Draconquus. "Yes, he thought he could blackmail the princess of Equestria... he was sadly mistaken." Luna giggled. "Serves him right." She continued running the hoof across Celestia's body. "Spike, he is?" Celestia shoved her hoof away. "You're asking so many questions, Luna. I don't like it at all." Luna flinched. "Sorry, I was just curious... I have been kept in here for days." "Everything outside of here is fine, Twilight did get curious but I handled it." "Sister... I really do love you still." "Is that so? Swear your loyalty to me then." Luna stayed silent. "I thou-" "I swear my loyalty to you, my love." "That's a good Luna, yes you are." "Yes, I am a good Luna." Celestia chuckled in delight. "Anyways as much fun as we're having dear sister, it's time we get presentable for our guests." "You mean I can actually leave the room? I don't have to be locked up anymore?" "Why would I keep you in here? You swore your loyalty to me, if you decide to betray me, then I will lose all my trust for you and make sure you suffer dearly." Luna gulped. "I would never dream of it... Thanks for giving me the chance to prove how much I am yours... you won't regret it." "I better not... if I do, you will regret it more." ____________________________________________________________ Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie, were all ahead of the other mares. They wanted to talk about Pinkie's progress with the training and other violent stuff that Fluttershy and Rarity didn't care to hear. "So like, are you the toughest in your class?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously. "Nah, I am pretty tough though. I even fought the teacher and held my own... until he got me good," Pinkie replied. Applejack chuckled. "Leave it to Pinkie Pie, to challenge a teacher." "Well he was a meanie pants!" Pinkie retaliated. "Well do you want me to kick his flank?" Rainbow asked enthused. "Nah, he isn't a bad stallion once you get to know him," Pinkie explained. Just behind the three mares were their significant others discussing another topic that was of interest. "So Spike is missing?" Rarity said almost loudly. "Shh!" Twilight hissed. "That's terrible news," Fluttershy said sadly. "Keep it down you two... Pinkie doesn't know and I don't want her to know." Twilight wasn't so sure about revealing the information after their reactions. "Keeping secrets, are we?" Rarity asked disappointed. "Well I just don't want her losing focus on her studies... she is doing so well," Twilight explained. "Still secrets are bad, just last week I thought about keeping a secret from Rainbow Dash, but I didn't," Fluttershy meekly said. "What was the secret?" The other two mares asked. "Well... it's that I want to... start a family," Fluttershy answered. ____________________________________________________________ Discord was trapped in a dungeon with Flash Sentry watching over him. "Help! Help! Help! Am I annoying you yet? Help!" Flash Sentry was getting annoyed and slammed his hoof against the bars. "Shut up!" Discord laughed maniacally. "You do know that as soon as I get released from here, I am so going to destroy you." "Yeah whatever you say tough guy, I don't even know what I did to make you hate me." "You made me lose my friendship with Fluttershy." "Whoever that is, I didn't do anything." "You sorta did by existing... why couldn't you just die? Then me and Fluttershy would be friends again." " I got plans with Celestia, and am needed alive. So buck Fluttershy, whoever she is." Discord's eyes flashed a vibrant yellow and in a dark voice he growled out, "You're death is guaranteed now." > Rainbow Dash VS Steel Wall > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rainbow Dash VS Steel Wall Rainbow Dash had been pumped about meeting the epic stallion who could take on the might of Pinkie Sense. Though Rainbow Dash herself was fast enough to counter Pinkie Sense, the aforementioned stallion wasn't. She wanted to see just how badass the instructor really was. "So you think I can challenge him to a fight or is there some certain procedure?" She asked Pinkie as they continued their way to the castle. Pinkie Pie chuckled. "You can't go challenging ponies silly. This isn't a dojo." Applejack smirked. "Knowin' RD she will find a way to make it happen." Rainbow Dash puffed her chest. "That's right, I will make him fight me... just without Fluttershy knowing." Pinkie Pie had a confused look on her face. "Why can't Fluttershy know?" Rainbow Dash sighed and moved in closer. "She doesn't like violence. She doesn't like me being violent... ergo, if I initiate violence, she will get mad." Applejack chuckled. "RD the tamed, never thought I would see that happenin'." Rainbow Dash angrily shot back. "Shut up! at least I wasn't afraid to be ta... with Fluttershy." Applejack got angry. "I wasn't afraid, ya feather head. I was jus' makin' sure I knew what I felt before makin' public." Pinkie steamed. "Stop arguing! Please just relax and enjoy your stay, I had a rough week and last thing I need is my best-est friends getting angry." Rainbow Dash sighed and apologized. Applejack followed suit. The rest of the walk there was in silence. ____________________________________________________________ Discord was furious, his one desire was to rip the skull off the pony who was guarding him. His magic being nullified by Celestia's device also made him more insane. I think I finally get her plan... she is going to make me evil again and force the elements of harmony to do battle with me... seriously, I thought I was evil. She can't get away with this... she needs to be outed. Flash Sentry hasn't been seen since Celestia "banished" him from Canterlot for his offenses. Secretly, she had kept him in the dungeon area as a guard and would allow him to rest in Luna's old room. Flash Sentry has no idea whats going on outside of the dungeon area since he isn't allowed to be discovered by Twilight. "Hey Loser wings. You know once she is done using you, it will be you in here." "Shut up prisoner... I don't want to repeat myself!" "So bossy, no wonder you can't get laid... at least not consensually. I doubt any ." "If you keep it up I will just kill you and say you forced me into it." "And then Celestia's little plan goes bye bye." "Why nopony cares about you. No pony would ever even ask about you let alone care." "Wrong! There is one pony and something tells me she is in the vicinity." "Oh yeah who?" ____________________________________________________________ Fluttershy sneezed gently. "Oh sorry, I didn't feel that one coming." Twilight just looked at her oddly. "So Fluttershy, what's it like being married? I mean now that you are planning on having foals... is it... different?" Fluttershy chuckled. "Not really, Rainbow Dash is still the same mare. She is just more considerate now. We really didn't change anything besides our sleeping arrangements since we got married. Now we always sleep on the same bed. So we try not to fight... it's hard sometimes." Twilight looked worried. "What do you mean?" Rarity butted in. "Twilight, it isn't proper for a princess to snoop into personal affairs." Twilight sighed. "So anyways Fluttershy you haven't seen Discord around anywhere have you?" Fluttershy shook her head sadly. "I was hoping to apologize to him when I came here. I said some awful things. He isn't a bad chaos being just a misunderstood one." Twilight looked down sadly. "Well he is missing as well. Spike, Luna, and Discord haven't been seen since Celestia and Luna fought. I don't want to think awful things about my teacher... but I am starting to worry that something may be up with her." ____________________________________________________________ When the group finally arrived at the castle Rainbow Dash took Pinkie away from the group and headed off to meet with Steel Wall. Fluttershy and Twilight went searching for the missing loved ones. Rarity and Applejack decided to get themselves settled in, since Rarity packed a lot of things. Rainbow Dash was excited, She was going to meet the trainer of the royal guards. Not like meeting the Wonderbolts but it was still an impressive moment. Until she met the stallion. "This is Steel Wall?" Steel Wall looked up from his busy work and noticed his soon to be star pupil and some rude pegasi next to her. "Yes, I am... and you are?" Rainbow Dash chuckled. "You mean you haven't heard of the legendary Rainbow Dash?!" Pinkie Pie blushed. "Yes he has." Steel Wall chuckled. "So you're the amazing pony that Pinkie can't shut up about. She thinks you're some amazing pony because of the fancy flights and loop da loops you do." Rainbow Dash smirked. "Yeah and I can do a Sonic Rainboom!" "Not impressed," Steel Wall gruffed out before looking down at his paperwork. Pinkie Pie's Pinkie Sense was telling her that shit was about to go down. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight began her search with Fluttershy, without informing Celestia or anypony else. They wanted to make sure they weren't going to be stopped by anypony. "So you think that Celestia could really do something like this?" "I don't know, Fluttershy, I just don't see any other way to add this all up." "Well... it's Celestia though. She is really nice." "I know she is, Luna is nice as well though. She was just... misguided in her youth." "Right but Celestia isn't Luna." "Sure but what if whatever happened to Luna to make her nightmare moon, is making Celestia some other random named monster?" "Monster?!" "Calm down, Fluttershy, this is a top secret mission." "I'm sorry... I will be quiet now." "ugg... don't be like that... anyways let's just stick to being silent so we don't alert any guards." "Where are we anyways?" "I don't know... this looks oddly unfamiliar and I have been to the castle many times." The two winged ponies continued their venture to the least visited area of Canterlot Castle. The dungeons weren't usually so laxed in security but Celestia had confidence in Flash Sentry and trusted he could manage the task alone. It was necessary for the task to be carried out alone if he was to be kept a secret. ____________________________________________________________ The stage was set and a battle was to take place between an arrogant and self proclaimed "awesome" pegasus and a serious militant pegasus. The natural progression of events that lead to this feud had escalated during the heated meeting. Rainbow Dash wasn't trying to start a war over a simple spar but the no nonsense trainer had enough of self entitled 'heroes'. Pinkie Pie was watching nervously. She didn't know who to root for since they both are important ponies in her life. While Steel Wall isn't her favorite pony in the world he was her instructor and with his teachings she has become stronger. Rainbow Dash was her first crush and one of her best friends. Either way, whoever wins, she loses. Rainbow Dash was ready with her wings flared and nostrils flaring. "Let's do this!" Steel Wall chuckled. "Then strike me with all that you have!" Rainbow Dash stomped her hoof and then zoomed with her intense speed. She was too fast for the stallion to keep up and she stayed moving the entire time she was attempting to land blows. Steel Wall wasn't able to see most of the incoming attacks but his instincts and battle experienced aided him in countering and blocking most of the attacks. Each second the battle continued the more nervous Pinkie Pie got. She knew the stallion was able to deliver massive blows if he could stop Rainbow Dash for even a second. Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, was capable of enduring lengthy bouts of speed. The match seemed to be a volley of attacks that were either being mitigated or countered. "Stop moving around so much and take your hits like a real stallion." "You're one to talk! Stop using your unnatural speed as your crutch. If you aren't able to fight without constantly being on the move against an opponent like me... what chances do you have against a real threat?" "Well I do pretty well in battle ask my enemies!" "I shall after I teach your arrogant flank a lesson!" Words being exchanged as rough as the blows that were attached to them. Each hoof that Rainbow Dash connected against Steel Wall only served to make him more determined to not lose. Steel Walls blows were actually hurting Rainbow Dash but with her arrogance and 'need to be cool' attitude she was pretending injuries weren't occurring. "One day you will thank me for this!" Steel Wall shouted before he launched his infamous one hitter quitter. Unfortunately for him Rainbow Dash saw it coming a mile away. "That day will be today!" Rainbow Dash yelled back as she dodged the attack and used her hind legs to land a powerful kick to Steel Wall's chest. Steel Wall stumbled back and stood on shaky legs. "That... was... excellent." He shook off the momentary pain and rushed back into battle. Rainbow Dash's eyes went wide. "How... what are you?" "I'm the best around," Steel Wall informed. He rushed towards Rainbow Dash and waited for her to react. "Well, you're going to be second best now!" She confidently roared as she charged back. The injury of her leg had been intensified by the attack she made. Her leg was giving out and she fell over in front of her opponent. Pinkie Pie watched in horror as Rainbow Dash was defenseless in front of an angry opponent. She watched Steel Wall raise his hoof ready to deliver a fatal blow. "Stop!" Steel Hoof looked over at Pinkie and laughed softly. "I wasn't going to actually do it... but I could have, and that is what you're friend needs to learn. She isn't the toughest thing around... the fastest, I shall give her that." Rainbow Dash started to rise from the floor unsteadily. "I'm not through... with ... you." Steel Wall sighed. "I will give you credit for being tenacious... but I can't in good conscious continue this fight." Rainbow Dash chuckled. "You're mother put up a better fight!" Steel Wall's vein twitched in anger. "Fine! But I won't be held resp-" Rainbow Dash had shoulder tackled him while he was busy getting angry. "Shut up and fight!" ____________________________________________________________ Rarity was finishing unpacking all her things and sorting them while Applejack was just sitting by watching. It wasn't the best help having somepony lounge about while putting things away, but Rarity wouldn't have it any other way. "Applejack, my love." "Yeah, Rares?" "It seems we are all alone... and the others seemed preoccupied..." "Ya ain't suggestin' we fool around are ya?" "Why yes I am." "Fine... jus' don't be too loud, Sugar cube." Rarity chuckled. "No promises, darling." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia was noticing a lack of ponies that have visited her. She was currently in the throne room waiting for Twilight and the others to arrive. The guards in the castle had notified her of their arrival but she hadn't seen mane nor flank of any pony fitting their descriptions. "Where is everypony?" She asked a random guard. "Your highness, I have no idea where they are. I have been here as requested." Celestia didn't like the sudden feeling she was getting. "Well I suggest you send some guards to go looking for my guests... Twilight has never missed an opportunity to meet with me, and I am beginning to get worried." The guard gave a curious look before accepting orders. "Alright your majesty, I shall have some stallions begin looking for the ponies you seek." He walked away feeling a little disturbed by how paranoid Celestia seems to be. ____________________________________________________________ Two very injured and tired pegasi were panting heavily as they squared off. The stallion was ready to end the fight with one final blow, the mare was ready to end it as well. They each got their attack ready, and when the first sweat to drop from either's face had hit the ground, they launched it. Rainbow Dash using her superior speed had been able to land the final blow first, but with Steel Wall's resilience he was able to use the distance to land his own. Down both pegasi went. Neither getting up or moving. Pinkie Pie was astonished that they even fought for as long as they did. She went to go see if they were even alive since it seemed neither was getting up. When she made it onto the field she checked both for signs of life. with each pony giving signals that they were still among the living, Pinkie Pie settled into a state of disbelief. "Is this what I will become when I learn to fight more? Is this what my destiny is?" Pinkie Pie questioned herself feeling depressed about a future in which she is made to be brutal and unflinching. She enjoyed her bubbly personality, and sure it was a goal of hers to become a royal guard. She just didn't know at what price would it come with. > Secrets > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Secrets Twilight and Fluttershy were making their way to the Dungeon of Canterlot Castle. It was a dungeon that held the worst criminals known to ponykind. All were being expertly guarded by members of the royal guard. The entrance usually well guarded was vacant of any ponies. "That's weird," Twilight commented as she surveyed the area. "Where are the guards that keep ponies out?" Fluttershy began shaking in fear. "I... I don't know." Twilight chuckled inwardly. "Well this seems suspicious and needs to be reported... but first we have to find Spike." Fluttershy nodded silently trying to remain calm, and failing to do so. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia was nervous, as things were falling apart around her. She had a kingdom with loyal subjects and destinies plotted out. She didn't think, even for a second, that her plans were able to be altered. She rushed to her room to find it empty and began panicking even further. "Luna!" No reply was heard and it made Celestia furious. "Luna!" She began pacing around with weighted feed, until she remembered she had released her sister from the binds. She had also allowed her to roam the castle once more. "Damn it!" She rushed off in search of her sister while avoiding the questioning gaze of the nearby maids. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was busy trying to wake up the injured pegasi. It wasn't fun being the only one conscious when her friends were all knocked out. She chuckled in amusement at the silly things she could do to her sleeping friends. The word friend sounded funny in her head when she thought of Steel Wall. Surely he had changed in Pinkie's mind from what he used to be. He was the enemy to her since he stood in the way of a "yes" that would allow her ultimate joy. The thought of him being an obstacle had changed when his attitude towards her did. lately she felt as if he was sort of a father figure in her life. Though that was the case, it was still difficult for him to show any sign that he was impressed with her progress. He was still cold during class but when out of class he seemed a bit softer. She was confused about him and his agenda. She had a goofy smile on her face over the antics she pulled in class over the past week and how much she had progressed due to her being handled like an adult. She knew exactly what would wake the ponies up. "Time to wake up!" She pulled the string on her party cannon and out came a loud sound that made both pegasi leap into the air in shock and confusion. Pinkie Pie looked up at the confused pegasi and beamed. "So now that you two are done fighting can we meet up with the others?" Rainbow Dash still groggy and injured looked at the stallion, who inflicted the injuries, and saw his body beaten as well. "Yeah I think I taught him the lesson he needed to learn." Steel Wall looked at Rainbow Dash and chuckled. "Seems I taught you a lesson as well, since we both learned a lesson I say we part ways while we still can." Pinkie Pie frowned at his attitude and gave Rainbow Dash a sad look. Rainbow Dash sighed and silently began leaving without further antagonizing the stallion. "Let's just go Pinkie," she called out as she reached the hallway. Pinkie Pie looked at Steel Wall, tending to his own wounds, and quickly turned from him before leaving with Rainbow Dash to find the others. ____________________________________________________________ Fluttershy and Twilight were traversing through the dungeons when they began hearing a heated conversation between two unknown individuals. "No! I will not silence myself, in fact I shall sing a jaunty tune about how much everyone hates you." "You think I care, when Celestia's device finishes its task you will be slain in self defense." "Oh and I suppose you think you're going to get away with it?" "Yes, we will... and when the time comes-" "You’ll still be a loser without a marefriend." Twilight crept closer as the voices began sounding familiar. She was unaware that Fluttershy had been too scared to continue on and stayed back a bit. "I am not a loser!" "Totally are a loser." "Oh yeah if I'm such a loser then why did Celestia pick me to be Twilight's lover?" "Because she is an idiot and has poor tastes in stallions." "That's enough! I will not continue to be disrespected by the likes of you!" "What are you going to do? Kill me? Then you will ruin everything. So stop acting tough unless you have the stones to actually do something about it." "Don't tempt me... I am this close to just killing you myself." Twilight began feeling sick listening on to the conversation. She got close enough to where she could pinpoint who the voices belong to. "Sure you are, and Celestia's going to just forgive you for ruining her plans?" "Celestia won't have to know the truth... I can just make a convincing story given the time." "So then why wait? Kill me now if you have the motivation to. I will be right here unable to move as planned." "I know you're up to something. What do you take me for a fool?" "Yes! I thought that was clear." Twilight continued closer and looked around a corner and saw the disturbing sight of the truth. It really was the two individuals she imagined, that were having the conversation that seemed out of place. "Psst Fluttershy I think something is wrong here," she whispered before turning to see no one behind her. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia rushed into Luna's room to find it devoid of any living creature. She looked around and found a small note on the bed. "No!" she cried out in sorrow and rage, when she read the note left for her. "She can't just leave... where is she going... and why now!" Celestia began pacing about and getting frustrated at the turn of events. She thought her sister would stay by her side in this crisis and instead she had bolted. ____________________________________________________________ Luna was disguised as a unicorn with a lunar cutie mark. She had made herself appear younger and boarded a train heading to the Crystal Empire. There she could finally be free of Celestia and warn the prince and princess of that kingdom about her behavior. She took one look back as the train started parting from the station. The single tear shedding from her eye was all she could muster as emotion. She had decided that she wouldn't betray her sister and yet she still had to stop her. "If only things were different," she whispered softly. ____________________________________________________________ Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were casually strolling along the halls looking for the other ponies. Just as they were turning a corner they got bumped into by a yellow slightly fast moving blur. "Darn it... watch where you're going... Fluttershy?" "Oh Rainbow... Pinkie... I need your help. I left Twilight alone in the dungeon and ran off scared." Pinkie Pie got angry. "You did what?!" Rainbow Dash got defensive. "Hey back off... don't yell at her. Twilight should know better than to bring Fluttershy to someplace scary." "I'm sorry... I just couldn't be there any longer... it was dark and creepy." Rainbow Dash looked at her tenderly. "It's fine just lead us to where you left her so we can make sure she is alright." "But..." "I will be there with you, love." "Okay... and sorry Pinkie." Pinkie Pie stayed silent not wanting to make the situation worse. Fluttershy began leading the two mares to where she and Twilight were heading in hopes that everything would be alright. She was disappointed in herself for abandoning her friend, but she was also glad she ran into some braver ponies. "This way you two... and once again... I'm sorry." ____________________________________________________________ Twilight had no back up but couldn't leave Discord in Flash's hold. Even if Discord wasn't the nicest being to exist, he was still a friend of sorts. She rushed in recklessly and made her presence known. "Let him go Flash!" Flash turned startled by the surprise entrance of his former girlfriend. "What are you doing here?!" "I am here to rescue Discord!" Discord chuckled. "See Flash, unlike you, I have ponies that care about me." Flash got angry and slammed his hoof down. "Shut up Discord! Twilight you should go." Twilight snorted through her nose in anger. "I will not back down Flash... if I have to hurt you... I will." Flash Sentry chuckled. "That's if you can even land a hit on me... I am known as Flash for a reason." Twilight was beginning to light her horn in warning but that triggered Flash to violently charge at amazing speeds. Before she could react she was hit hard and sent reeling back. "Now leave, Twilight, and don't come back." "I... won't abandon him." "You care for him? The same monster that broke us up? Don't you remember how happy we were before this freak broke us up?" Twilight got up on shaky legs and raised her voice. "I don't care! I was happy with you... that is true but I am happier now. You gave it your all and I was glad you tried. The problems were there still... you didn't get along with my friends... and you idolized my brother more than you cared for me. You put your duty before you're heart and I can't live with that." Flash grunted. "I was just being a good guard... I had my duties and unlike you, I took them seriously." Twilight chuckled. "I don't remember assaulting princesses as being part of your duties." Flash stomped his hoof in anger and began drawing near. "Since when was it the duty of a princess to be seduced by a baker, a mare baker at that?" Twilight smiled. "It never was my duty to fall for Pinkie... but it was definitely one of the greatest things to happen. I followed my heart not my crown." Flash began approaching and getting really close in a threatening way. "Well where is she now?" As if being summoned by those exact words, Pinkie Pie had appeared and her entrance was one that left all surprised. She charged through and impacted her body into the side of Flash Sentry sending his more built body flying a few inches. Before Flash could react there was more ponies on Twilight's side checking on her. "Damn it... what do I do now?" ____________________________________________________________ Spike was busy doing chores that he begged be given to him. He needed something to keep his mind off Twilight and Rarity. He wanted to be at Twilight's side if things were going down, and he wanted his closure from Rarity. Both things were impossible during his temporary exile from canterlot. "This sucks... are you sure there isn't any other chores I can do?" "Sorry... but you have done all the chores... now even the maids have nothing to do." "But Shining... I need something to do!" "Well there is something you can do... if you really need things to do." "I do! I do! Anything just give me something to do." "Well you can visit all the ponies in the empire and get a census on how pleased they are with me and Cadence running the show." "Alright, I will get right on it." "After that I will ask you take a nap or break... I don't like how you're running yourself ragged ..." "I'm fine... I just don't feel like slowing down right now... if I do I will think of things I rather not." "What's going on Spike? I know you feel that it's better to keep things bottled up, I used to think that way too. Just know it's better to let ponies know what is going on." "If I could tell you I would... It's just better for all of us if I keep things the way they are." Shining Armor knew not to push further and just let Spike be on his way. In the back of his mind he was wondering about the state of Canterlot and the condition of his sister. > Game Over > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Game Over Flash Sentry was outnumbered and out powered. He couldn't make a move to escape and there was no way he could explain himself out of this situation. "Alright... so you caught me, and now that you have, what will you do? Celestia is still the princess in charge so if anything happens to me you will have to answer to her." Pinkie Pie almost lost her cool and began charging at him but stopped right before she hurt the filth of a pegasus. "You're not worth it. I wouldn't bother beating up such a worthless pony. Instead I am going to make sure the mare I love is okay. Though I can't guarantee Rainbow Dash won't be coming over and beating you up. She isn't Twilight's mare-friend and loves beating up the bad guys." Rainbow Dash approached slowly to give off an intimidating air about her. "You see unlike Pinkie Pie who can show restraint I am a hot head that just springs into action. Now while Pinkie goes to check on her mare-friend someone has to give you a beating." Twilight felt Flash had enough torment and she called them off, "Pinkie, Rainbow, that's enough... he isn't worth our time. We have more important issues at hand. We need to free Discord and have a talk with Celestia. Flash Sentry isn't a priority and would rather we waste no time on him." Flash felt a bit of relief from being spared, and even though it hurt to be thought of as nothing more than filth it was better than being pummeled. His happiness was short lived because a yellow hoof ended up colliding with his face. He was in a state of shock and disbelief being attacked by Fluttershy. Fluttershy surprised everyone by hitting Flash. She wasn't a violent pony by any stretch of the imagination but she was so angry with him. "I... I'm sorry... I just... I thought you were a decent pony Flash... and you attacked Twilight and locked up Discord... how could you be such a jerk?" She walked away in sadness and nuzzled up to Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash was impressed and turned on. "Remind me never to piss you off Shy, I never knew you had that in you." Twilight, remembered that Discord was still locked up. "Alright girls let's free discord and get to the bottom of this mess." Discord was in awe of his pony friends. He especially had new admiration for Fluttershy, "Hey girls... I am just sitting here, you know, all locked up. If it wouldn't be too much trouble can I please get free?" Twilight was going to set him free but first wanted the truth from him. "No, not until you answer some questions. I first want to know if it was true that you intentionally broke me and Flash up just because you were bored?" Discord looked at Twilight and spoke with a modicum of honesty. "I honestly was just bored, and that was the only reason... however, I also knew you were unhappy. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out... maybe he was great in the beginning but as most tragic love stories go, it wasn't meant to be." Twilight got angry. "It's not up to you to decide who gets to be with who, and while this time it worked out for the better, at least in my case, it could have turned out really bad. I was on the brink of despair. I almost thought of doing something very stupid... thankfully I didn't but next time you get an inkling to even do something as outrageous, just stop to think about the consequences." Discord looked away, "Sorry... I am still trying to get used to this... nice business." Twilight smiled a bit, "Well I guess it's understandable... just really think about things before doing them next time. We all make mistakes and it's glad to see you can at least feel guilty. One more thing before I let you go. What's the deal with Celestia? Why did she lock you down here?" Before Discord could answer Flash used the opportunity to escape. He wanted to be far away from there as possible, especially since he was the one who was going to pay when Celestia's evil plot gets exposed. She warned him from the beginning that if she was ever discovered that he would face punishment. He made the mistake that led to this moment and now he was going to flee the scene before it was all over. When he made it out of the dungeon he thought he was in the clear until he noticed Celestia approaching. She didn't seem to know what was going on yet and he hoped she was going to just walk by him with no questions asked. Celestia was looking for Luna everywhere and when she saw Flash not in hiding it got her worried. "Flash? Where did you get that mark on your face?" She had sealed Discord's power away with the device and there weren't other guards in the dungeon with him. Flash gulped and attempted to fly away fast enough but was immediately pulled down by magic. "I shall ask you again and this time I am hoping you're not going to try anything foalish. Now tell me, where did you get that mark on your face?" "It was Fluttershy... She hit me after the ponies saw me attack Twilight, who I only attacked because she wasn't leaving and Discord was discovered... I panicked." "No... Twilight knows? How much does she know?" "Well if Discord isn't being extra lengthy with detail... she probably knows everything by now." ____________________________________________________________ Luna was sitting on the train next to an elderly pony who seemed very talkative. When the lady was done talking about her own life she had decided to ask Lunette, Luna's fake name, as to why she was on the train looking so distraught. Luna being bottled up with the events decided it would be fine to explain the situation with minor edits to the actual events. "Well I have this sister named Celestine, and she was a very kind and gracious... boss. She and I ran a company together and we each had our responsibilities. We got along well recently until I discovered that my sister was being a manipulative, controlling, evil user who was doing things to me for her own gain." The elderly pony was clueless to what the situation was but felt it would be nice for the young unicorn to get it out of her system. "So your sister, was being a mean pony eh? I remember when I got into a fight with my sister over a stallion, it didn't go so well for us both. Though no matter what my sister did during our 'war' the truth is nothing is more important than family. So whatever your sister did shouldn't you go kiss and make up?" Lunette looked away and a tear fell down her face. "If it was possible sure, but what my sister is doing is unforgivable. She manipulated an employee into believing she was okay with her life choices all the while she was trying to set her up with an ex... boyfriend. She also seems hell bent on making sure I obey her every whim... I love my sister... more than anyone can know but I want her to treat me with love and respect... not like some dumb toy she can play with." The elderly pony felt that something deeper was bothering the young unicorn. "Well so where are you headed then? If you're going to run away from your problems how can they ever be fixed?" Lunette looked at the elderly pony and smiled. "I am going to get some help, my other family members can probably help me talk sense into my sister. She isn't beyond saving... she just needs to be helped. I would never allow my sister to become so lost that she can't be saved... but I can't just sit there and do nothing. I will help my sister no matter how far gone she is." The elderly pony began snoring as she was asleep halfway through the last reply. She began mumbling things incoherently as she checked out mentally. Lunette chuckled softly and whispered "Thanks," before she put a soft smile on her face. She looked outside the train and watched the hills appear and disappear from sight as the train made it's way to the Crystal Empire. ____________________________________________________________ The group of ponies couldn't believe their ears because what they just heard come from Discord's mouth sounded like an erotic incest filled drama mixed with deceit and betrayal. Discord had explained everything he learned and seen with his own eyes and knew it was going to be hard to swallow. "So... she and her own sister?" Twilight was still unable to get past that issue. It didn't bother her as much as the Flash Sentry debacle but for her to use her own sister as a toy... it was downright disgusting. "Luna loves Celestia... more than Celestia even could imagine and she was used..." Pinkie began nuzzling Twilight in comfort. "That's so mean... Meany McMeany pants mean." Discord noticed that Fluttershy was in tears and Rainbow Dash comforting her. "Well as much as I love seeing ponies cry, is it possible I can be set free now?" The reply he got wasn't one he expected. "No!" came the loud booming voice of an overtly angry princess. "You are the sole reason this all happened. You are why my sister left and why these ponies are in tears. You don't deserve to live." Twilight turned around and saw Celestia's imposing form approach. Her eyes were pure white and her horn was glowing menacingly. "Celestia, stop this! You can't blame him for what you have done... I looked up to you... and you betrayed me?" Celestia chuckled, "You're so naive Twilight, you actually believe Discord? You forget Discord is the one who used his powers to ruin your relationship, he also almost took over the world? That is the kind of person you trust?" Twilight snorted angrily, "At least he didn't bucking lie about everything... he has been consistently truthful ever since he was reformed. How about you? Can you honestly say that you have been a noble princess? If Luna wasn't used as a ... Toy! then why isn't she here defending you? If Flash wasn't being forced into a plan then why did he bolt for his life when he had the chance?" Celestia stomped her hoof angrily. "This still changes nothing! I am the princess of this castle, and my word is law. So here is how things are going to play out; You're all going to leave this dungeon and either pack your things and leave the castle or you can all pretend this didn't happen and Pinkie can still have a shot at becoming a royal guard." Fluttershy's body was shaking but she spoke up. "What about Discord? Will you let him go?" Celestia chuckled, "No! I think Discord has proven he isn't fit for our society. I have no choice but to permanently put an end to him." Discord kept his facade of being brave and decided to throw one last witty comment her way. "No matter what you do to me... it won't change the fact that your own sister abandoned you... and at least my friends stood by my side in my final hour." Celestia's mood faltered. "Where is Luna? You tell me where she is now and I will spare you Discord." Discord noticed the shift in tone from authoritative to desperate. ""I can't tell you with my magic locked away... finding someone as emotionally troubled as Luna would be easy if I had my powers restored." Twilight stomped her hoof loudly. "It's over Celestia... Luna has escaped for a reason and honestly I am done playing this game, so this is how things are going to go; You will let Discord go, and you will let Pinkie graduate with her class. When and if Luna returns you will apologize to her for being so disgusting with her. That is if you have any shred of dignity and good left in you. I don't know what happened to you and why you are doing this, but it has to end." Celestia looked at Twilight and felt defeated. "I chose wisely when making you my student Twilight Sparkle... and you're right the game has ended. I lost... everything. Not only will I release Discord I shall also send word to the crystal empire and let Spike return... I will also step down as a princess and grant Luna the right to rule Equestria." She lit her horn and the device and shackles were broken freeing Discord from his imprisonment. Discord felt like a million bits. "Ah it feels good to move around again, I won't lie the bondage stuff was kinky but I am not that into S&M." He did a quick stretch and with that he disappeared without saying a word as to where he was going. Twilight saw Celestia laying on the ground in tears and, even after all the shit they were put through because of her, she still wanted to comfort her. "I don't know if I could ever trust you again, but this was a good start. I hope you really meant everything you said Celestia... because Pinkie has been working her flank off for this." Celestia nodded while keeping her head down. "I know you probably don't believe me but I truly do love Luna... I would do anything to make things right with her... no matter what she asked of me." Twilight sighed, "Now you know how I feel about Pinkie, I love her more than anything and when she graduates we are going to get married. The sad thing is Luna loved you very much. I could tell even from the day we stopped Nightmare Moon. The moment you accepted her into your life again was the happiest moment in her life. I don't know if she will ever return your feelings again... but I do know that you both have a lifetime to figure things out." Celestia smiled a bit. "Thank you Twilight, even though I don't deserve your kindness, I feel better now. I just hope Luna isn't gone forever from my life. If she doesn't return then I shall bestow the crown to you... as I feel you would make an excellent ruler for this nation." Twilight chuckled softly, "No trust me I am not ready to take control of an entire nation, plus something tells me Luna may be coming back soon." ____________________________________________________________ Lunette was getting tired of thinking about things and wanted nothing more than to rest. She began closing her eyes until she heard the voice of Discord. "Wake up, we got things to do." Discord whispered into her ear. "Discord?" Lunette asked confused. "What are you doing here?" "Well I am here to get you, since things have just become interesting back at Canterlot." "I am not ready to face my sister, not until I can save her from herself." "Well, you can if you hurry, right now she seems very vulnerable and needy since she was confronted by Twilight. They found out all about her scheme and who knows what they could be doing to her." Lunette grew angry, "They can't harm her... take me there now, she may have been a terrible princess but she is still my sister." Discord couldn't believe how easy it was... it was like stealing candy from a foal. "Alright then, hang on." He grabbed Luna in her disguised form and vanished into thin air as the ponies who saw the ordeal felt like they saw a pony-napping occur. The elderly pony had woken up and noticed the empty seat next to her. "Well you decided to go back home after all, good luck with your sister..." and proceeded to return to her slumber. > A Surprise Attack > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- A Surprise Attack Discord and Luna, who relinquished her disguise, weren't at Canterlot castle after they emerged from the spell that was supposed to transport them there. Discord was the first one to speak, "Well Luna it seems we took a left turn at Albuquerque, because this isn't Canterlot." Luna was not in the mood for games, "What is the meaning of this Discord?" She began preparing a spell to defend herself if need be. Discord wasn't sure what happened but remembered his ordeal. "Well Luna it seems either that my powers weren't fully restored and I spent what little I recovered or... something is happening at Canterlot that prevents me from arriving there using magic." Luna's eyes widened in horror and panicked, she knew that the only things that could prevent magical means to enter Canterlot was if a barrier was put in place. "Something is happening at Canterlot and we need to get there fast." ____________________________________________________________ The situation in Canterlot was almost nightmarish with the events that occurred soon after Twilight and Celestia began talking. One of the guards had rushed into the dungeon and warned of a great threat to the princess was approaching with haste. "Something massive is coming towards Canterlot... Steel Wall felt it was necessary to put up a barrier until a plan to deal with the creature is made." Celestia was in no condition to be giving orders and definitely not prepared to deal with something dangerous. "Twilight, Luna isn't here and I am not feeling so well... what would you do in this situation?" Twilight had no time to argue and thought on her feet. "First I suggest we identify what exactly is coming and from there we can coordinate the guards to deal with the creature." Rainbow Dash had spoken up. "Twilight, if you want I can use my speed to fly around and see what's the big deal. Since I am faster than most ponies I don't have to worry about being seen and attacked since I can easily dodge things in mid air." Twilight wasn't comfortable using her own friends in risky plans but she had no other choice. "Alright Rainbow Dash, you are only allowed to find out what it is, do not engage in combat against it. Pinkie I want you to join the other guards and await my orders. Fluttershy I want you to stay with Celestia until we know what we are up against." Fluttershy nodded nervously and obeyed. She wished her wife wasn't going to be in such danger since it would kill her if anything happened. "Just please be careful everyone, and Dashie, don't do anything reckless." Rainbow Dash nodded and began flying off. Pinkie gave Twilight a soft kiss and followed Rainbow Dash up the stairs. Twilight began heading upstairs to be of better use with her commands but looked at Celestia for a quick second, "Whatever it is we will handle it. Just remember to keep your word no matter what happens." She went up the stairs leaving Fluttershy and Celestia alone. ____________________________________________________________ Applejack and Rarity were startled by the commotion and Applejack began to investigate, "Stay here Rares, I ain't gonna be gone too long, ya hear?" Rarity wasn't happy with being left alone, even if it was for her own safety. She knew that something serious could be possibly happening and Applejack was just being protective. She decided to just stay in the room and hope that whatever is going on isn't too outrageous. Applejack ran downstairs and spotted Twilight surrounded by guards with badges. "Twilight? Where is everyone?" Twilight wasn't sure how to properly reply but luckily she didn't need to as a loud roaring sound was heard and a blur of colors interrupted any conversation taking place. Rainbow Dash was shaking and stuttered "Th-The mo-monster is a dra-dragon... not like anything I have ever seen before either ..." ____________________________________________________________ A few seconds ago Rainbow Dash had just flew out of the castle and reached a unicorn that was powering the barrier. "I was given instructions to leave the city and see what's exactly coming our way. When I come back you better open up the barrier again because I need to report to the princess." The unicorn guard was skeptical but noticed the rainbow mane. The hair was a dead give away that the pony was that reckless dare devil that Twilight was friends with. "Alright... but hurry, if anything happens to this barrier because I let up, I will be in deep trouble." Rainbow Dash chuckled. "Me hurry? As if I ever would be slow." She flew off at great speeds and rushed out into the sky looking for a sign of an intruder. She kept flying just for a bit when she spotted something massive and frightening. The dragon that was approaching had scales that rivaled the darkness of a moonless night. It's eyes were blood red and had a haunting glow that emanated from them. The claws were so sharp that it made a sword appear dull. The teeth were huge and shaped for maximum efficiency. The wings were huge and menacing they appeared to be used for more than just flying. The tips were blade-like and rare. This creature was almost too evil in design to be real. Rainbow Dash flew fast near it but kept herself from engaging it. She kept herself distanced until she could make out if it was traveling alone or with others. She noticed that behind the dragon was a tail that was spiked and dripping with what appeared to be a green liquid. With no dragon flying behind it and the way the creature was moving it seemed as an isolated incident. Rainbow Dash felt a bit at ease knowing that there wasn't more of them but realized she had to warn the others of it. She flew past the dragon with such speed that she avoided it's reflexive blast of fire that was emitted from the enraged creature. She approached the single hole in the barrier and rushed into the castle as a loud roar was bellowed from the mighty beast. ____________________________________________________________ Rainbow Dash was trying to calm herself but knowing what was coming their way had made her drop her bravado and panic. "What are we going to do Twilight?" She yelled out inquisitively. Applejack gave Rainbow Dash a much needed smack, "Calm yourself RD, this ain't the time to be freakin' out... I understand what you may have saw spooked ya a little but we ain't got time for that." Twilight hadn't much experience dealing with dragons besides the few she had encountered. The first dragon had been defeated by Fluttershy's secret ability, the second dragon she faced just gave up chasing her and spike. "Steel Wall... what do you suggest we do? I honestly have never encountered a dragon of that description and don't know what it's capable of. It's too close for me to study up on it and if it succeeds in taking down Canterlot we can't ever hope to mount an offensive counter strike." Steel Wall's experience with dragons were numerous but the only kind of dragon that fit that description was one of legends. "To be honest, princess, I don't know if we can defeat such a creature. If we do it could be with heavy losses, and if we don't engage the enemy it means we all die. I hate to be blunt but the only way we can take this creature down is with a miracle." Twilight knew that it was possible that Pinkie Pie could be killed by such a creature and had to, no matter how hard it was, ignore her feelings. "Alright... if you know of a way to deal with such a creature than use whatever means is necessary." Steel Wall knew that the princess was worried about the newest cadet. "I will assure you that no pony will die in vain. The truth is that I will be needing all able bodied Pegasus and Earth Ponies for this battle. Unicorns and Alicorns won't be much of use. Because the dragon we will be facing... feeds off the magical forces and consumes it to sustain life." Twilight couldn't believe her ears, her magic won't be useful and neither would the magic of friendship be. It was almost heartbreaking to know that such a creature existed. She had no time to do research and with Spike still not back from the Crystal Empire it meant she was helpless to do anything besides believe in the ponies whose lives were on the line. "Rainbow Dash and Applejack, I know you're not part of the royal guards but can you please help them? You don't have to say-" Twilight couldn't finish because both of the ponies had responded. Rainbow Dash and Applejack both said "Yes!" without hesitation. They knew that Pinkie Pie was going to be risking her life and even if their magical friendship couldn't save the day their friendship was still useful. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was with her unit and waiting for Steel Wall's return. She looked to the sky and saw the barrier was slowly dissolving as something menacing and ominous approached the city. "I know you guys must be scared, because I am scared too, but I promise that if we win... I will throw a huge party!" The other guards in the group were either laughing or being silent. While it felt good to hear some pony being hopeful and keeping the morale up, other ponies just wanted the nightmare to end. With the barrier quickly becoming nothing and the unicorns beginning to flee it was show time. With the odds against them and their leader still not with them the ponies were going to give it their all, because regardless of their mortality, it was vital that the princesses they protect weren't lost. The battle of will and force was going to begin and Pinkie wasn't going to accept defeat... ____________________________________________________________ Luna and Discord were still travelling together back to Canterlot, they had no clue that the barrier was down and presumed it was still holding. Luna was flying faster than ever before, her determination to save her sister became fuel for her body to consume. She wasn't going to give up hope in a world where she could be happy with Celestia and nothing would stop her from that. Discord was just hoping that his pony friends aren't biting the bullet. He wanted to desperately be there and help them. His usually nefarious mentality was actually gone in the face of a reality that his friends, the only ponies to care for him, could be possibly killed by whatever was attacking Canterlot. They both were trying their hardest to reach Canterlot in time, the only question was... would they make it in time? ____________________________________________________________ Spike was enjoying himself a snack when he heard a knock on his guest room door. He called out "Come in" and waited for some pony to show up. Prince Shining Armor entered the room and looked at the dragon with a smile. "Hey Spike, Cadence and I were wondering if you wanted to join us for a nice picnic?" Spike smirked, "What you mean to say is, 'Spike I feel bad for you and want to make sure you won't off yourself in loneliness' right?" Shining Armor laughed. "Spike you know I don't think you're capable of that... I just wish you would enjoy yourself a bit more instead of needlessly making your stay arduous." Spike was ready to make a retort until he coughed up a letter from Celestia. "What the?" He grabbed the rolled up paper and unrolled it while reading the content with horror in his eyes. Shining armor was suddenly worried by the shift in the dragon's demeanor. "Spike what's going on?" Spike had tears in his eyes and his clawed hand was unsteady, "It's a letter from Celestia... it says that I am able to return to Canterlot... but she requests I don't until she sends me another letter saying it's safe. It doesn't go further than that but I think Twilight might be in danger." Shining Armor had a look that was unreadable on his face. He was going through emotions and finally one stuck... sorrow. "Spike, pack your things... we are going to Canterlot." > Attack on Dragon > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Attack on Dragon The fearsome dragon had devoured the barrier's magical essence. It was a light snack for the hungry beast and he wanted more. When the barrier was depleted of it's magic the castle was in full view and the beast rushed towards it without hesitation. When he made it to the main entrance area, he noticed there were some insignificant pests trying to make a stand against him. He hadn't anticipated the possibility of ponies in armor willing to stupidly lay down their lives in a fruitless battle. He was the all powerful dragon who hadn't the slightest fear in the world and until this battle had begun it was remaining that way. Then he met Pinkie Pie and everything changed... ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was ready and as soon as the dragon appeared she yelled out "Charge!" before rushing to battle. The others that were in Pinkie's unit had seen how hard she dedicated herself into being a guard and knew a leader when they saw one. They joined her in the charge and thus the battle between ponies and the wicked dragon started. Pinkie Pie had one advantage and it was her Pinkie Sense. She knew that with that plus her training she couldn't fail because failure wasn't an option. If she died and failed to protect Twilight then everything she worked for would have been for nothing. "Hey bad breath, come get some Pinkie." She felt her appendages twitching randomly and knew that a fire blast was coming her way so she side stepped it and kept her assault. She pulled a sword out of the side of her armor and held it in her mouth and began running past the dragon and hacking away at it to no avail. The dragon's thick scales were too dense for the sword to cut through and his tail kept interfering with the other ponies attempt at attacking it. His fire breath was being avoided and it caused him to roar in anger. He lifted his mighty foot and stomped on the ground causing a quake to upset their balance and used the opportunity to swing his mighty tail and send a pony flying. Pinkie Pie was helpless to save that pony but, luckily for that poor guard, Rainbow Dash was on the scene. "Sonic Rainboom him Dashie," Pinkie yelled out. Rainbow Dash gathered the guard quickly and placed him on the ground leaving his care to any of the medically trained ponies in the area. She had to help with the assault especially since the aerial unit was using her as back up. She knew she could Sonic Rainboom the beast but it would cause collateral damage that she couldn't estimate. "Pinkie if I Sonic Rainboom that thing now I will end up destroying the castle..." Pinkie looked around for something that could help take down the dragon and came up with an idea. "Hey Rainbow Dash keep that thing busy I have a plan." Before Rainbow Dash could reply Pinkie ran off. Rainbow Dash didn't like the sound of Pinkie Pie having an idea. She had no choice but to help the other guards face off against the dragon until Pinkie did whatever she was planning. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie ran into the castle in a hurry and was confronted by Steel Wall who was heading out. Pinkie Pie didn't have time to explain but knew she would have to. "Pinkie Pie what are you doing inside when the enemy is out there?" Steel Wall asked in confusion. "Sir, I am going to use the roof as a vantage point to set up a party cannon in order to launch myself into the dragon's mouth," Pinkie explained in haste. Steel Wall knew his ears were not functioning because he could have sworn he heard Pinkie admitting to attempting suicide. "There are at least one thousand reasons as to why I won't allow that and your fiancee killing me for authorizing this is one of them." Pinkie had no time for authority she needed to hurry if her plan was going to work. "You can punish me later, Sir. I have to do this now and if anything just say I did it without you knowing." She saluted him and rushed off to make her way to higher grounds. Steel Wall sighed softly and whispered "I hope you know what you're doing Pinkie," before rushing off to aide his troops. ____________________________________________________________ Luna and Discord were still going as fast as they could to Canterlot and when they could see the city in the distance they noticed something big and black near the castle. Luna could see the barrier didn't hold so she immediately teleported inside leaving Discord to fly to the chaotic battle to aide the ponies. Discord had gotten close enough to see Rainbow Dash using her high speed to barrage the dragon with attacks. The other ponies were hesitantly rushing in and attacking while the dragon aimlessly swatted it's tail around in anger. Discord hadn't seen a creature like this in ages and knew that these ponies weren't going to win this battle. It was hard for him to accept that the situation was a dreadful one but instead of lose hope and accept defeat he decided to aid his fellow residents of Equestria in a losing battle. "The fun has arrived," he shouted before he rushed in and made himself big to intimidate the dragon. The dragon's rage continued to increase and his movement became more erratic. When he noticed the giant Draconquus he assumed the chimeric foe would be a match for him. He ignored the ponies and made his way to Discord wanting to fight something that actually could hurt him. Discord tried using magic against the beast to test if the dragon was the same one from ages past. When his magical attacks did nothing but sate the beast, Discord confirmed his theory. "Well this isn't going to end well," he said while swinging a fist at the incoming dragon only for it to momentarily stun him. The dragon could have sworn he was hit but the pain was minuscule. He almost felt insulted by the adversary being so imposing and so weak at the same time. He roared and charged at Discord who decided to make a smart move and shrink back to normal and evade the attack. The dragon was becoming annoyed and was not feeling like this endeavor was worth his time. He decided he would just destroy the castle and teach the ponies a lesson for ever interfering with him. ____________________________________________________________ Luna was inside the castle having just entered magically. She was inside the throne room where Twilight Sparkle was there giving orders to the staff and guards that weren't outside battling. "Twilight Sparkle, where is my sister?" Luna asked with anger in her tone. Twilight was shocked to see Luna in such a state of anger, especially since she knew there was another emotion hidden behind the anger. "She is in the dungeon with Fluttershy, and she is doing alright." Luna relaxed herself and composed herself before making her way to the dungeon. She felt slightly embarrassed making a scene and hoped she could keep herself calm when facing her sister. ____________________________________________________________ Spike and Shining Armor were heading to Canterlot by train. They had taken minimal supplies since it was an emergency visit. Spike was anxious about seeing his friends and hoped that they would all still be okay when he arrived. "Hey Shining, what's it like being in love?" Shining Armor wasn't sure how much Twilight had taught the baby dragon and didn't want to over step his bounds in teaching him about certain aspects about life. "Well to be honest, it's like flying without ever having a place to land. You know you could ride forever but if something goes wrong you will crash and burn... It's a great but scary feeling and when two people are both in love with each other, it's powerful." Spike was in awe of how poetic Shining was. "Do you think I will ever feel that way?" Shining chuckled, "Of course Spike, While it's rare to find that special some...Thing it's possible for all creatures in Equestria to find love." Spike reflected on that idea as the train continued to make it's way to Canterlot... ____________________________________________________________ Applejack had followed Pinkie Pie to the one of the balcony's and figured she would be the one to talk sense into the crazy mare. "So ya truly think that killin' yourself is goin' to make Twilight happy?" Pinkie Pie was startled by the sudden appearance of another pony. "What!?" She breathed heavily as her nerves settled. Applejack could see how frightened Pinkie was and couldn't let her go through with this. "Pinkie, you look terrified and I know it wasn't jus' me sneakin' up on ya that did this." Pinkie Pie started tearing up, "I have to do this, if I don't at least try and this kingdom falls or worse... if Twilight dies I could never live with myself. I am sworn to protect the princess and I would die if anything happened to Twilight." Applejack could tell how serious Pinkie Pie was about this whole thing. There was no pinkie-esque words or silly voice to tell Applejack that it was going to be alright. "Look I am sure we can take that thing down if we work together." Pinkie Pie frowned and shook her head. "My Pinkie Sense is telling me that every pony is going to die to that thing. On my way up here my whole body was shaking and my ears twitched my tail fizzled and everything else just felt cold. I am scared to die but worst of all I am scared to fail. I do know that if I don't follow through then it won't matter." Applejack felt disturbed by the revelation. "What can I do to help then?" Pinkie Pie smiled a bit and her energy came back. "Well you can help launch me into the beasts mouth. I have a party cannon stashed away just for these purposes." Applejack watched as Pinkie Pie suddenly pulled a cannon from seemingly thin air. She realized it was better not to ask questions about those sort of things. "How are you goin' to get it to look at ya and open it's mouth?" Pinkie Pie aimed the cannon and stuffed herself in after saying "You figure it out and make sure you don't miss. I can't do this more than once you know." ____________________________________________________________ The dragon was swinging his tail wildly hitting ponies and other annoyances with it. His body was building up a catastrophic fire ball that would level Canterlot and burn everything in it's wake. He was not going to be made a fool of by colorful equines who refuse to allow him to eat their magic. He was hearing something calling him names and turned his attention to it. He saw an equine standing behind some contraption yelling at him in some accent that made his ears hurt. He was going to kill that annoying creature and let it know by roaring at it. As soon as his mouth opened and the sound and force of his roar escaped his mouth something pink and fast went into it. He closed his mouth mid roar and hoped whatever went in his mouth wasn't toxic or upsetting to his stomach. He wasn't vulnerable to minor toxins but if the equine was willing to launch something at the expense of her own life then it must have been deadly. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was inside the belly of the beast; both metaphorically and physically. She had been momentarily stunned when she entered the mouth and luckily wasn't deaf from the decibels the dragon emitted. Because she was unable to get her footing when she first entered she got swallowed and thus her initial plan of stabbing the creature through the roof of it's mouth had failed. "Oh that's just bucking great," she said angrily. She had no back up plan and was now going to be digested by an ugly evil magic eating..."Wait a second, this dragon doesn't eat anything but magic, or so I hope." She wandered around the stomach looking for something vulnerable to stab. When she saw there wasn't anything dangling or anything that seemed would immediately hurt the dragon she just began cutting through the lining of the stomach and hoping for something to occur. ____________________________________________________________ The dragon was beginning to feel the effects of whatever the pink toxin thing was. He hadn't anticipated a poison that could affect him nor anything that was able to actually cause him harm. He roared in pain and began thrashing aimlessly while attacking the ponies that weren't already injured or smart enough to leave. The battle as short as it was had already left many injured and some casualties from both the ground units and aerial units. His claws had made quick work of some pegasi as his tail did most of the damage to the ground units. His fiery blasts from before his great build up burned some parts of the castle and injured some ponies. He wasn't satisfied and wanted to destroy Canterlot before his impending doom. He was ready to unleash all the fiery rage on the pitiful ponies since he felt he was ready to launch the giant blast but before he could launch the almighty fiery blast his internal bleeding had become severe. His body was starting to feel the effect of blood loss and even though he was fueled by magic his blood was his life force. The ponies that were still left in the battlefield had were watching in confusion the creature suddenly stop his actions and stand absolutely still. They didn't know if the creature was dead or just playing possum so Steel Wall rushed in and attacked the dragon with no reaction. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie had noticed the dragon's movements had ceased and the heart beat that was ever so booming was non-existent. "I did it... I actually killed it? Best dragon slaying ever!" She was enthused about the entire thing until she realized she was still stuck inside the beast. To Pinkie's surprise, the body began moving again and she was worried that the creature was still on the warpath. The body kept shaking and soon everything was shaking and seemingly unstable. "What's going on?" ____________________________________________________________ The ponies who were about to cheer suddenly became nervous when the dragon's body started making noises. The body was seemingly shaking and suddenly it started to decay rapidly. The scales that were once dense and impenetrable were now crackling and falling off. The meat underneath was full of holes and there was a mysterious liquid oozing out that seemed to have been doing the damage. When the body continued falling apart the ponies were all stunned when they noticed Pinkie Pie had been in there doing the damage from within. They could only watch in fear as the body was being melted away with no way to help Pinkie escape. Most of the aerial unit had been injured or were helping their comrades to safety and weren't alert of the situation. Pinkie Pie was watching the crowd not cheer but instead look horrified and she could see why. The body was slowly sinking into the puddle that was most likely going to destroy her as well once it touched her body. Since the puddle had been spreading there wasn't a safe distance for her to jump to. Pinkie Pie was not ready to die and she began making a leap of faith. She ran and jumped with all her might and in the end it wasn't enough. She was merely a second away from landing in black goop when something lavender and majestic had saved her from near death. Twilight Sparkle had rescued the love of her life and was glad she had made it just in time. She flew up with Pinkie and held her close. "Don't ever do something that crazy again...I don't know what I would have done if I had lost you." Pinkie Pie was so grateful that she had an amazing fiancee. "Sorry to worry you...I really screwed up back there huh?" Twilight was teary eyed but chuckled, "No, you actually didn't. You saved Canterlot and you saved my life Pinkie. I love you so much and I'm proud of you." Pinkie held Twilight closer as they flew off into the distance. "I love you too, that's why I would be willing to do it again if it mean't keeping you alive." Twilight kissed Pinkie Pie passionately while flying blindly in the air. She was so overjoyed to be alive and for her fiancee to be alive that she practically threw caution to the wind to have this passionate moment. ____________________________________________________________ While outside the castle all of Canterlot was celebrating the triumph over the dragon inside the dungeon Luna and Celestia were not. Fluttershy saw Luna arrive a while ago and took it as her cue to leave since she knew they would need to have a private conversation. When Fluttershy was gone Luna approached Celestia and looked her in the eye, "Sister I am so glad you're okay." Celestia couldn't face Luna after what she had done. "Please don't be so kind to me. I was so cruel to you..." Luna could see it was truly her sister and she had really came back to her. "Oh sister, I know you have hurt me but I would never turn my back on you." Celestia chuckled, "Even if it meant fun stuff was to come?" Luna blushed, "This isn't appropriate Tia. I was hurt badly... you used me." Celestia looked down again. "I know I have done bad things and I know my apologies aren't going to repair everything which is why I am also showing my remorse by granting you my spot as Equestria's princess." Luna was stunned and confused. "You're giving me the ruling position of the kingdom?" Celestia looked Luna in the eye and spoke honestly. "I don't trust myself right now and if I can't trust myself then how can I effectively lead my little ponies?" Luna nuzzled her sister/lover affectionately. "I will take care of you, Tia. Everything will return to normal and when you are ready, I will give you back your position." Celestia nuzzled Luna back but asked in a grim tone. "Can everything really return to normal?" ____________________________________________________________ Steel Wall was angry at the report he received from a medic pony. "This isn't acceptable I should have done more, it was my task to take the brunt and not let my subordinates die." He crumpled the report and tossed it in rage. He was grateful that Pinkie had saved them all but he wasn't happy with how many had to suffer before something like that occurred. He realized he wasn't keeping up with the times and that he needed to take examples from the more youthful ponies to improve the defenses of the castle. There would have been no reports of numerous injured ponies or four dead ponies if there had been better counter measures. He knew he would have to speak with whoever is running the place to implement some new defense mechanisms in order to prevent future disasters. What bothered Steel Wall the most was the way the dragon operated. It didn't mindlessly go after the ponies in the town it went straight to the castle. It absorbed so many attacks and didn't waste any effort with retaliating, it almost seemed so focused on a goal that it was distracted from battle. It wasn't until it lost sight of it's goal that the dragon decided to attempt a full scale assault on the castle. "Mindless beasts don't pick and choose who to kill they just kill relentlessly. Whatever sent this beast isn't going to be happy that it died and most likely will make their presence known. The only question is who or what is behind this?" > Confrontations > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Confrontations The crisis at Canterlot had sparked controversy; demands of an explanation were being shouted at the royal sisters. That was when Luna decided it was her time to rise as the leader of Equestria and speak to her citizens. "Citizens of Canterlot, fear not for the danger has finally ended. We understand your concern and are handling the situation with haste. For those wondering; I am now the ruler of Equestria, and will be the one you seek guidance from until my sister is fit to return to her throne. This may come as a surprise but I assure you that I will be doing all in my power to help my sister recover and to ensure the safety of all the ponies on her behalf. I know things seem scary with the recent tragedy and most of you are scared. I just want you all to know that this incident will not be allowed to repeat. I swear it to you as the temporary princess in charge that I shall do everything in my power to locate the source of this madness and end it even if it costs me my life." The ponies who heard the speech had all been calmed down a bit. Some were wondering what happened to Celestia and others worried if Luna was capable of doing her duties. In the end they all scattered and went back to their daily lives and hoped there wouldn't be a next time. ____________________________________________________________ Spike and Shining Armor had finally arrived to Canterlot and with great haste made their way to the castle. It was late in the afternoon and they had grown a bit hungry from the train ride. Spike was eager to see Twilight again and finally confront Rarity. He was hoping she and Applejack were still there as he wanted to get his feelings off his chest before he chickened out. When they arrived to the entrance they noticed the place was in disarray and the castle wasn't as guarded as usual. Spike ran in hoping the ponies he came to see were okay. He would have hated himself if he wasn't there during the final moments of Twilight or Rarity. Shining Armor was stunned at the mess and the damage that the castle suffered. Something terrible had happened and his sister could be dead for all he knew. He rushed in when his legs decided to move and he was determined more than ever to see his younger sister. ____________________________________________________________ Pinkie Pie was regaling her tale of going into the dragon with a bit of pep and enthusiasm. "So there I was like whoosh right into his mouth and he was not a happy dragon at that point. I was inside the belly of the beast, literally!" She was enjoying herself and with the reactions she earned from the listeners it was fun. The crowd she was entertaining had all her friends there and some injured soldiers who needed a bit of cheering up. She continued on with her tale but set the mood for fear. "Just then...It happened! The dragon was going to toast me alive and I could do nothing but panic. I slashed the stomach lining of the dragon, thanks to my super smart fiance teaching me about dragon biology." Pinkie looked over at a blushing Twilight and smiled gleefully at her. "Not to mention I also learned a lot from Steel Wall who isn't here right now. The dragon was no match for internal injuries and then he died...not without trying to take me with him. I was trapped inside a dying dragon that was oozing this black liquid and I had no hope for survival...I jumped and I wasn't going to make it but then luckily for me Twilight came like a goddess and saved me at the very end." The crowd of ponies clapped their hooves at the story and Pinkie took a light bow while giggling. "Well that's my story...I will be here all week." Just as the crowd finished clapping and Pinkie was giving her fiance a smooch, the door to the dining hall had busted open and Shining Armor plus a freaked out Spike had intruded.Things got awkward... ____________________________________________________________ Shining Armor was seeing things, or at least that is what he wanted to believe. His sister was being kissed by Pinkie Pie and she made no move to stop it. "What is going on? Why did Pinkie just kiss you and what happened to the castle?" He was angry and confused, with the castle being in such a state and his sister's closeness to the hyperactive pink pony. He noticed the group of injured guards eyeing him and Twilight's friend giving him a stare. He was getting frustrated not being answered and began to walk out of the room. He heard Twilight yell "Wait.." but made no move to stop until he was alone in a room with her. He turned to face his sister and gave her a look of anger. "Twilight you're a princess and you had something going with Flash Sentry. I don't know what has changed but, you and her?" Twilight was tired of having to justify herself and her choices, "Look, I don't have to take this from you. I barely have time to contact you and things have changed so much since we last spoke. I know you thought highly of Flash because he was a guard like you but he wasn't the pony for me. Pinkie has been not only loyal and kind but very caring and she always puts my needs before hers. If you can't accept her being with me then I don't know what to tell you." Shining Armor snorted in anger. "So then during the royal ball Celestia is hosting is she going to be your date? Are you going to announce that you're a filly fooler? Because I bet mom and dad would love to hear that." Twilight stomped her hoof. "Since when did mom or dad have anything against mares who love mares? Why are you so upset about this? I am happy and you are upset by this?" Shining Armor looked down and spoke coldly. "I have nothing against filly foolers in general sis, I went to Rainbow's wedding. I just thought you were straight and I imagined you wanting to have a foal and have a royal wedding." Twilight couldn't believe her brother's ignorance it was astounding. "You seriously think I can't have all that with Pinkie Pie? If so then don't come to our wedding, because if it wasn't for her I wouldn't even be here. Canterlot would have been in pieces and your precious Twiley would be dead..." Twilight walked away from her brother with tears streaming down her face.. ____________________________________________________________ Spike had asked to speak with Rarity alone and they went off to an empty hallway. Spike felt that he could finally say what was in his heart and whatever followed he would accept it. "Rarity, do you really love Applejack?" Rarity raised an eyebrow and answered, "Yes, Spike, I do." Spike sighed and gulped before he finally was ready to spill his heart out. "I just want you to know that I don't expect you to stop loving Applejack but I do have say this..." Rarity was getting nervous and wanted the conversation to end, but before she could protest Spike had continued. "It's just I can't go on living without telling you that since the day I saw you; I fell in love with you. Each day I spent by your side was nothing less than the happiest moments of my life. I know I’m a baby dragon but that won't be forever. I don't care if you are old by the time I mature I will still love you. You light my world up even in the darkest of days and I just have to let you know that you mean more to me than my own life. So Rarity; it brings me great joy and even greater sorrow to finally say I love you," Those last words were the breaking point for both parties involved. Spike had finally bled his heart out and his emotions overwhelmed him his eyes shed manly tears. Rarity was so moved by his words that she was going to feel awful rejecting him. She couldn't bear being the destroyer of his hopes and dreams but knew that she couldn't return those feelings, especially since she was already with another pony. They both cried and Rarity pulled Spike into a hug and held him close. No words were exchanged but much was said, and Spike had finally been able to be at peace with his feelings. He knew it would hurt for a while but in the end he was a better dragon for being honest with himself and with Rarity. ____________________________________________________________ Celestia was in Luna's room with shackles on her feet and a ring on her horn that negated her magic. She had begged Luna to imprison her until she was sure that she no longer had those dark thoughts in her mind. She had lost control of herself and until she felt she was of clean mind she couldn't serve as a princess of anything. Celestia wasn't alone as Discord was making sure nothing had taken advantage of Celestia's inability to defend herself while Luna did her princess duties. Discord knew that something wasn't adding up when Celestia suddenly went to the dark side. If he couldn't get Twilight to give in then how was Celestia being tainted without his influence. Celestia herself felt that her actions were isolated from the incident with the dragon. She knew that ponies would suspect that something was controlling her but she didn't want to get away with her crimes. She had to atone for her sins and in order to do that she would have to get better mentally. Discord wasn't buying Celestia's act. He felt that something was going on that Celestia was either involved in or a pawn in. The dragon came at the castle as soon as Celestia was in a vulnerable state. He gathered information from spying on the guards and their intelligence suggested that the dragon wasn't attacking aimlessly that it originally had a goal. That was concerning to Discord but since Celestia wants to pretend to be a goody goody again he can't interrogate her without drawing out Luna's wrath. Just as if summoned Luna had finally made it into the room and had a tired look on her face. Discord knew that when Luna returned to the room he was to be gone and that meant he was free to be a menace, reformed menace, but a menace none the less. ____________________________________________________________ Luna waited till Discord left before she spoke to her dear sister. "Tia, I don't like seeing you in those things...I want to take your bindings off." Celestia narrowed her eyes at Luna and spoke with a serious tone. "Don't! I can't be free until I am sure that I no longer feel the need to do horrible things. I understand you aren't comfortable with me being chained down but you must be strong for me." Luna's eyes began leaking tears as she approached her sister. "You can keep the ring on your head...Just allow me to remove the chains so we can embrace and sleep together." Celestia snorted in anger and whinnied, "If you can't handle this then I shall request that I be put in the Canterlot dungeons. I only decided to be in your room because you requested it. I know you and I have done some things...I know you love me more than a sister should but I can't honestly say I was in my right mind when we started that relationship. I can't know right now if I love you or if I deceived myself into loving you to use you." Luna raised her hoof and almost punched her sister. "You were a bad princess, and you abused your power...What if I did that right now? I am in control and I can force you to obey me...Then you can't say no right?" Celestia hadn't thought of that and grew worried. "Luna you need to calm down, you're sounding like I did when I wasn't thinking clearly." Luna got menacingly close and grasped her sister's ear with her teeth. She let go of it and licked it gently before whispering into it sweetly, "I love you...I love you and I am happy loving you. Do you truly believe that you seduced me without having to in order to use me? You could have made me done what you wanted even as sisters. I wanted to be in your good graces ever since I was in control of myself. You didn't seduce me to control me and you know that. You just find our relationship repulsive because we are related." Celestia looked away and stayed silent. She had crossed a line when she was going insane and had to face the real consequences of her actions. "Luna...You're absolutely right. I enjoyed every moment of our carnal and incestuous affair and even more so I enjoyed the bliss we felt when we had laid as one. That doesn't change the fact that what I did was wrong and to continue doing it would be even more so." Luna felt too tired to argue and wanted to get some rest before she had to put the moon into the sky. "Sometimes being wrong isn't wrong, it just depends on who thinks it is." She undid Celestia's chain and got on the bed. "You can either join me and relax or request to be put in the dungeon. I will respect whichever decision you make, Tia." Celestia watched as her sister laid down and was faced the opposite direction. She should have just left and gotten the transfer since it was becoming difficult to stay in Luna's room with Luna being affectionate and needy. She didn't take the transfer and instead decided to join her sister for a small nap. She wrapped her wing around her sister's body and drifted off into sleep with the sounds of her sister's breathing being the last thing she heard. ____________________________________________________________ Steel Wall was in his office reviewing the scenario in his head while looking at some documents that were placed on his desk. He finally got the report on the substance the dragon oozed out. He looked over the tests they did and the conclusion they came to. It seemed the dragon's blood was filled with an unknown substance and it was that substance that turned the once mighty dragon into a soup-like mess on the ground. The dragon's death was only hastened by Pinkie Pie's actions and had she not been successful then even when the beast died it would have leaked out that acidic blood and melted every pony in the vicinity. It was a suicide mission from the start which means that the dragon was a disposable resource. "It didn't matter if the dragon succeeded or not since it was on a timer. The dragon was not sent to destroy Canterlot but to test it's defensive force. Which means...There will be a second attack on Canterlot. The only question is...When?" > The Royal Ball > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Royal Ball Shining Armor was getting ready to leave Canterlot and head back home to his wife. He felt ashamed for how he acted towards his sister but felt it would be too soon to apologize and mean it. Before leaving he stopped by Steel Wall's office to speak with his former teacher. When he got to Steel Wall's office he knocked on it before a gruff "Come in" came from behind the door. He opened the door and went inside, before he saluted his mentor. "Hello Steel Wall sir, I have been hoping we could have a small talk before I make my way back to the Crystal Empire." Steel Wall smiled at how big Shining Armor had grown. "Well, if it isn't my favorite pupil turned prince, of course we can talk soldier." Shining blushed at the compliment. "Well you see it's about Pinkie Pie. I heard she was in training to be a guard. Is this true? What about her relationship with my sister, don't you see anything wrong with it?" Steel Wall hated gossip more than he hated wimps, "Listen up Shining; I will not repeat what I am about to say ever. Pinkie Pie is one of the finest guards I have ever trained so far. She has tremendous potential and even more guts than I have witnessed in any guard before her. While she lacks discipline and mental stability, she aces in adapting and making an effort to do what's needed. I hated the idea of her being a guard until I saw how driven she was. As for her relationship to your sister...I wasn't too happy with it either at first, I will admit. It was hard being stern with a pony that had the princess fawning all over her. Princess Twilight has never been happier from what I've seen. If you want my advice Shining; don't make your sister upset about being happy. There is far too little in this world that can make a pony smile from the bottom of their heart and Pinkie Pie makes your sister do just that." Shining Armor couldn't believe that Steel Wall would vouch for a hyperactive baker with an addiction to sweets. If what Steel had said was true then Shining would just have to accept it. "Yeah, I guess that is true. We all deserve happiness or at least to find something that can make us less miserable." Steel Wall chuckled, "That's the spirit, now if you will excuse me I have some things I need to do. I will see you at the Royal Ball right?" Shining Armor nodded, "Alright then I shall be going, it was nice talking to you." "To you as well," Steel Wall replied before getting back to his duties. ____________________________________________________________ Life in Canterlot returned to normal for the most part. Time seemed to have fly by due to the lack of problems and invasions. Pinkie Pie had been a diligent student and even cut down on her antics by just a bit. Princess Luna was learning that being the sole heir to a throne wasn't as fun as she had once believed it to be so long ago. Spike had been volunteering to watch over Celestia because Discord had an assignment from Luna to investigate the origins of the dragon. Discord was more than happy to do so since he believed that Celestia isn't innocent and wanted to make sure he was wrong before he stopped being suspicious. Celestia was still on lock down during the day until she had her naps with her sister. They were still working on their relationship as both sisters and lovers. Twilight had been accompanying Luna and learning about what it truly meant to be a princess. She found that it was boring but she also imagined how it would be with Pinkie at her side. Princess Pinkie Pie had a nice ring to it, and Twilight also found it humorous. Still, life in Canterlot was going back to being alright. Soon it was already time for the Royal Ball. With the threat of possible invasion still in the midst Luna decided to up the security detail for the event. She wanted the event to still go on to keep the facade of everything being alright going. It would be the first time that Celestia could be free from her shackles and the room. She also knew it would be a grand night because she wouldn't allow anything to mess it up. ____________________________________________________________ It was the day of the Royal Ball and everypony who was anypony was going. Twilight had invited her friends to come back to Canterlot and join her tonight. Rarity had been dying to go to the event so she and Applejack were going. Fluttershy had found a decent pony to watch her animal friends and decided she would go too which meant Rainbow Dash was going to attend. Shining Armor and Princess Cadence were due to arrive which made Twilight nervous. She was hoping her brother wouldn't still be a jerk like last time. She hadn't spoken to him since their argument all those days ago. She was also nervous about announcing her engagement to Pinkie Pie. She had vowed to marry Pinkie after she became a royal guard. She wasn't sure how it would go since it would be the first time in history a princess married a pony of the same gender. She decided to forget all her worries and just get ready for the occasion while helping Pinkie get in a fancy tux. "Honey, why don't you wear a dress?" Pinkie Pie was getting used to Twilight trying out pet names...But it made her hungry being called honey. "Well, it just doesn't suit me now that I am a tough warrior," she said with a giggle. Twilight laughed and nuzzled her fiance, "Well as long as your my warrior I guess you can wear whatever you want." Pinkie Pie kissed Twilight with passion and smiled, "I would rather be dead than be without you, Twilight. Tonight you will be treated like the princess you are." Twilight's heart melted and also her shame as she and Pinkie Pie proceeded to make love and cause them to not get ready as soon as intended. ____________________________________________________________ Luna was freaking out about what to wear, "Why do we even wear clothing? I don't normally dress in cloth...You don't either at least not during the grand galloping Gala, you went in the buff and no one batted an eye." Celestia was amused, "Well why don't you go naked? You look good in your birthday suit." Luna looked over and narrowed her eyes, "You find this funny? I'm trying to make a good impression and you wish to mock me?" Celestia mulled it over for a second, "Yes! I do, and I do think you look fabulous without clothing on my dear sister." Luna wasn't sure if Celestia was hitting on her or just being kind, "Well then why don't you prove it?" Celestia blushed when her sister winked, "But tonight is the party don't you want to make sure you're ready?" Luna went over to her sister and whispered, "We can be a little late, my love." Thanks to their passionate love making they too were not ready as soon as they wanted to be. ____________________________________________________________ It was later in the evening when all the ponies had finally arrived. Luna was wearing a dress that Rarity had fashioned for her long ago. It was a black dress embroidered with moon symbols and it fit her body just right to show off her mare-ish figure. She wow'ed the crowed with it. Twilight was wearing a dress that was cosmic inspired like the Gala, but it was more elegant than the previous attire. She had a special sewn in pink star in her cosmic dress just to make it perfect. Rarity was not one to be out shined and worn something she had created just for this event. It was a white dress that had layers and it almost touched the floor on it's ends. It was frumpy on the flank and tail sides but it was tight when it came to her abdomen area. Celestia wore nothing and looked fabulous doing so. She had never felt a desire to wear clothing and she shouldn't have to when she looked so amazing without it. Luna wasn't pleased but Celestia was giddy until she decided to stop torturing her sister and put on something matching Luna's outfit. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie wore tuxedos and didn't care what others thought. Rainbow Dash wasn't into frou frou stuff and hated wearing a dress and since she wore a tux at her wedding she felt it would be cool to wear one at the ball. Pinkie Pie wore it because she felt her femininity was lost becoming a rough and bold guard, despite Twilight assuring her of that not being the case. Fluttershy wore a dress, similar to her gala one as well, that Rarity made for her. Rarity liked seeing Fluttershy dressed up since she was an excellent model. Fluttershy just didn't want too much attention and hoped the dress she wore wasn't going to bring any unwanted advances. Shining Armor was wearing a suit of armor. It worked as both a fashionable attire and emergency battle gear. Princess Cadence wore a dress made from the Crystal Empire that shined and had the crystal heart symbol embroidered on it. She felt amazing being able to light up a room. Spike was hanging out with Steel Wall and didn't attend the party. He didn't want to be in the room with Rarity while she looked amazing and wasn't his for the taking. He decided he could be more useful scouting the perimeter than he would be pining over a mare he could never have. Steel Wall was in the outer edge of Canterlot making his rounds. He usually attended the party as Celestia's escort but with the looming threat he decided to opt out and be on guard. He also knew that Luna wouldn't appreciate having a stallion be his sister's escort since she was infatuated with her. He dodged two bullets in one bold move by risking his life against whatever came to mess up Canterlot. ____________________________________________________________ Discord had been flying around Equestria searching for clues or any trail of magic that would lead to who or whatever was responsible for that dragon. Black dragons don't just come from no where and if anypony had the nerve to release and use one it would have to be somepony with intense magic. The only other idea was that it wasn't a pony that made the dragon attack, but another dragon, which could mean that the dragons want to wage war. Discord knew that it wasn't impossible for those giant winged gem eating scaled beasts to take over a pony infested continent. Still the idea would be ridiculous since Equestria had dragons with no issues about sharing the land. "Those beasts are fine being in volcanic regions and wouldn't want a castle for a home, so what in Tartarus caused that dragon to attack?" Just as Discord was ready to end his search and return empty handed a dark influx of energy had been detected by him. It was something so evil that even he was a saint compared to it. He decided to track down the source of the malicious energy and get his answers. ____________________________________________________________ Inside a dark and empty cave lied an entity so foul and evil that it fed off hatred and possessed powerful creatures to do it's bidding. The evil entity had felt something entering her temporary lair and knew it would only be a matter of time before she was found. When the draconquus entered her lair she smiled and knew she had found her latest victim. "Hello there Discord, I see you have found me." Discord couldn't put a face to the voice but knew it sounded familiar. "So you're what's causing all this problem...Show yourself I want to make this quick." The entity laughed, "Please don't insult me by thinking you could stop me. I am the true ruler of the night and the keeper of dreams." Discord wasn't in the mood for shenanigans, "Alright look before I end you, wherever you are, I need to know; Did you have anything to do with Celestia being a major pain in the ass?" The entity shrieked at that name, "I did and I wish I had succeeded. I was going to become the primal entity of all Equestria. I would then spread my evil to all the lands." Discord now wanted to kill that creature sooner for making him wrong. "Alright, look I don't have all day so come on out will ya?" The entity giggled, "Sure but do be a dear and stay still for me I want your body." Discord looked over to a pure black fog-like being that looked like a pony. "Nightmare Moon?" The entity laughed, "Just Nightmare, the moon was added by those insignificant ponies." "So then, you aren't a pony?" "No! I'm an ancient entity that was born of the hatred and evil of this land. I'm the Nightmare and I posses those whose hearts are impure and spread my evil until the world gets tainted. I messed up by possessing Luna long ago and got banished to the moon where my power weakened." "So you're just a pushover now eh?" "Never! I tried taking Celestia over but her mental will broke me off thanks to those meddling ponies. I had to flee to the nearest mindless beast and took over it's body. I became a Nightmare Dragon but the body couldn't hold my evil and that pink haired one damaged it internally." "So you're quest for revenge has ended? So you have come here to fade away?" "No I am biding my time and I will spread my evil to a flock of dragons and transform them all into Nightmare Dragons and end Celestia's reign. Well that was my plan but I have an even better one." "What is that, may I ask?" "Sure since it involves me doing this!" The Nightmare entered Discord's body while he was distracted and spread it's evil throughout his form. She reached his brain and heart and slowly took over both. It was only a matter of minutes before she had taken over Discord completely. Discord's body began transforming as he screamed in pain and agony. "Noooo! Help me!" he cried out in vain since there was no pony around. Soon his mind was losing control and his body had already become darker than the night. When it was all said and done there was no more Discord but Nightmare Anarchy that was in the cave. "Now I shall go to Canterlot and destroy it with my new found power. My evil shall spread across the lands and with nothing capable of stopping me I will force Celestia to kneel before the Nightmare." > The Elements of Harmony Vs The Ultimate Villain > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Elements of Harmony Vs The Ultimate Villain Steel Wall and Spike were still searching the perimeter and there had been no signs of any threats. The night was getting colder and darker which meant that conditions were worse for the pony and dragon duo. "Alright, it seems we can head back inside, nothing is going to be attacking unless it's a wendigo." Spike was inclined to agree until something intensely wrong was felt. Steel Wall could feel it too. Something so evil it was literally making his body shiver. "I have never felt anything like this. Spike get inside now and warn the others whatever this thing is I will try and hold it off." Spike was worried about Steel Wall's safety but decided to follow his instructions. ____________________________________________________________ Nightmare Anarchy was floating through the night and gingerly made it's way to Canterlot. When it arrived it saw a useless magic barrier that could easily be eaten like last time at the cost of degenerating the body it possessed sooner. "Well it isn't my body, I couldn't care less what happens to this vessel." It began eating the magical energy and was doing so until something had the courage to tackle it. It looked around to see what stupid creature wanted to die. "You! the failure teacher who let his students die," Anarchy taunted. Steel Wall wasn't going to take that nonsense from Discord, "I thought you were a good guy Discord, I guess reforming didn't work did it." Anarchy cackled loudly, "I'm not Discord, I am Anarchy...I will show you a true nightmare, fall into the infinite darkness..." Anarchy held it's hand up and evil magical energy poured out from it surrounding Steel Wall and engulfing him in a nightmare that he couldn't wake from. That was the plan at least until Anarchy noticed Steel Wall was unaffected. "What is this madness? Your mind isn't broken?" Steel Wall chuckled, "Two things you need to know about the royal guards; one is that our armor is enchanted to protect us from magic, the second thing is that we are mentally toughened so your silly mind tricks won't work." Anarchy grew angry and enlarged one of it's arm and swatted the pony away. The recoil was minimal but Nightmare realized that Discord's body isn't physically strong. "Well that sure wasn't fun, are you going to get up or can I continue to my main target?" Steel Wall laughed, "You think that is enough to take me out? My grandmother hit harder than that and she had soft hooves." Nightmare had enough of his insolence, "Fine you shall suffer." Nightmare's body began shifting and he ripped off some scales and turned them into monsters for Steel Wall to fight. "I hope this will suffice as I have no moment to spare before this body starts to fail me." The scales transformed into shadow beasts that resembled lions. Each beast had sharp claws and fangs with a luscious mane that made them appear aesthetically pleasing. They wasted no time and started attacking Steel Wall, and with those many numbers it wasn't going to be a cakewalk. ____________________________________________________________ The Royal Ball was in full swing. Ponies were dancing and others were talking, all were enjoying the night. It was just an all around good time. It was just about time for Twilight to address the people and finally reveal her plans as the new princess. She wasn't sure how she was going to deal with the reactions but she felt it was best to finally get it off her chest. She was still dancing with Pinkie Pie who had looks of jealousy from stallions that wanted to dance with Twilight. Some stallions were hoping to become a prince by woo'ing the new princess. It seemed their plans would be put on hold since the royal guard was hogging her. "Twilight!" a voice called out in desperation. Everypony stopped what they were doing to see what was the source of the noise. Spike ran towards Twilight, and Pinkie, and blabbered until he could get his bearings. He finally spat out, "Danger is coming. Something evil and just unnatural. I don't know what it is but Steel Wall is fighting it alone." Pinkie Pie looked at them both, "I will need my armo-" Twilight cut her off, "No! I will get the elements of harmony. I had them brought to the castle just in case something happened. I almost lost you last time Pinkie... I won't risk your life needlessly when we have the means to be safe." ____________________________________________________________ Nightmare Anarchy was ready to make a grand entrance, it had Discord's body and with his magical prowess and its combined it had become unstoppable. "Now all of Equestria shall fall and I will take my rightful place as it's ruler." It took the nearly lifeless body of Steel Wing and threw it through the window but didn't hear the shocked screams it wanted. The reaction was silence and not just any silence it was deafening, It decided to fly into the window and see why nopony was scared or reacting only to come face to face with the Elements of Harmony. "I see, so the little dragon whelp had made it in time. You're all ready to take me on with those silly little jewels. This time, I don't think the results will be the same." Anarchy tried intimidating them by turning the statue into a monstrous golem and started distorting the castle's appearance to a dark and dilapidated dungeon. ____________________________________________________________ Luna and Celestia were with the guests making sure they were evacuating properly while the Elements of Harmony fought off the evil being. Shining Armor was also there helping but he felt he couldn't just leave things the way they were. "Princess Celestia, and princess Luna, I need to help my sister, I can't let anything happen to Twiley." Luna frowned at him, "I'm afraid you can't do anything to help her in there. You can help her by keeping my sister and your wife safe. If anything happens to my sister than the opponent wins and thus if you truly want to help then keep Celestia safe." Shining Armor looked at her quizzically, "If I'm protecting her then what are you going to be doing?" Luna smirked at Shining, "I will be helping them out. I'm an alicorn and I have felt this evil before. If anything is going to want to kill my sister it will have to get through me. I will make sure that if it gets past the Elements of Harmony that it won't get past me." Celestia was going to protest but she could tell her sister was doing this for Equestria's sake rather than her own selfish ambitions. She was still upset but knew that much greater things were at stake than just her relationship. ____________________________________________________________ Twilight was watching everything go down with a calm face, "Your cheap parlour tricks don't scare me, and if you think we can be defeated try again." "Yeah!" Pinkie Pie yelled in agreement. Rainbow Dash had her wings flared and was ready to throw down. Rarity was standing strong while internally being immensely scared. Applejack had been staring daggers at the foe. Fluttershy was trying to be brave for the group, it was an alright attempt. Nightmare Anarchy wasn't a fan of ponies being brave in the face of danger, "Alright then how about I just get this thing started? I will crush your sou-" It couldn't finish speaking because a blast of party had made it's way to her face. "You dare attack me when spea-" Another blast had ended her question while answering it at the same time. Pinkie Pie was laughing at the bestial entity and couldn't help but launch another attack with the cannon which was both distracting to it and annoying. Nightmare Anarchy became enraged and used it's magic to destroy the party cannon, "You're next Pinkie," It was ready to attack; when Twilight's eyes lit up and all the energy of the Elements bonded together and shot the prismatic energy beam at it. The hit didn't kill or expel it but it injured it greatly. The effects of the blast did manage to weaken Anarchy's magic but Anarchy was still able to retaliate. "Say goodbye to those annoying stones," Anarchy yelled before sending a volley of magical energy at the intended targets. Rainbow Dash used her speed to keep her necklace safe. Pinkie Pie used her Pinkie Sense to avoid the attacks. Applejack used her rodeo skills to avoid being hit. Twilight used her teleportation skills to avoid the attacks. Rarity wasn't fortunate enough and her element got hit and knocked off. Fluttershy was unfortunate as well. With their elements not attached they couldn't use the spell again to permanently stop Nightmare. Anarchy used the situation to her advantage and magically grabbed the two stray elemental gems and ate them. "No more harmony, This world will now plunge into darkness." ____________________________________________________________ Luna and The Royal Guards had made their way from the escorting site to the area in which the battle was taking place. They arrived just in time to see the two elements being eaten. They surveyed the scene and noticed a giant golem holding Steel Wall in it's grasp preventing him from helping and the rest of the ponies trying to dodge a magical assault. Luna decided as the guardian of the night and the temporary ruler of Equestria to do something brave. She rushed into the battle field and with magic blazing she shattered the golem and freed the severely injured captain. "You dare attack this castle with no fear of repercussions?" Luna had her horn lit and eyes glowing intensely. She was being backed up by the trained guards that were on security detail. Nightmare Anarchy turned its attention away from the Elements of Harmony since they were two down and unable to use that spell. "Luna, my former host, we had a thousand years together and you’re still clingy... Pathetic." Nightmare Anarchy sent a black ball of energy at Luna's direction and was stopped by Luna's own magic. "I guess you're not as strong as you once thought Nightmare," Luna said with pride. Nightmare knew that Discord's body wouldn't last long after being hit by the initial attack it took from the other ponies. That magical blast had been too strong for the body to sustain itself after. Anarchy also knew that if Luna was in its precense then no one was protecting Celestia and it could finally have revenge. It was going to fly past Luna and go straight for Celestia. ____________________________________________________________ The magical volley of energy that had been chasing the ponies who still had their necklaces had ceased and that meant the ponies could regroup and make a plan. They had just lost Generosity and Kindness which meant they couldn't use the bond between them to hurt Nightmare. "Fluttershy, are you okay?" Rainbow Dash asked in concern. Fluttershy nodded but cried on Rainbow Dash's neck with her face buried. Applejack checked Rarity out to make sure she wasn't hurt as well, "Learn to dodge next time, will ya, Sugar Cube." Rarity was offended at how Applejack was being with her, "It's not my fault that magical blasts wanted to hit me, not fair," Applejack kissed Rarity and sighed in relief, "Jus' glad you're okay, I was scared for a moment." Twilight looked for Pinkie Pie who was gone and she noticed that Nightmare Anarchy and Luna was gone as well. "Pinkie..." ____________________________________________________________ Celestia had just secured the last of the guests escape and against the orders of the Royal Guard she stayed behind. She knew she was in danger but so was everypony else and she couldn't be protected any longer. She had to fight even if it meant being destroyed in the process. She could feel the haunting presence of something dark lurking beyond the corner and knew it was only seconds before she was attacked. She couldn't anticipate where and when the attack would happen but knew it was imminent. "Enough games, I know I'm the target, let's get this over quickly shall we?" Celestia didn't see it coming a magical black orb of death was about to impact her and before she could react a flash of Pink was all she saw before an explosion rung out... ____________________________________________________________ Twilight and the others heard the explosion and rushed to the source of it. Twilight was picturing many scenarios in her head and none of them were optimistic. She was hoping she didn't lose the love of her life, especially when Pinkie was so close to graduating. They were going to be married soon and nothing was going to make that change. When she and the others arrived to the scene they noticed the damage caused by Nightmare, and that Luna was furiously battling Nightmare with all her might. While the other ponies tried helping Luna, Twilight searched for Pinkie and Celestia. When she saw a pile of debris that could possibly be covering the ponies she started digging. She was hoping that they were there and alive because she was on the verge of losing it. She kept removing the debris and saw a pink hoof covering a pale white body. She rushed in her attempts at excavating them and found them in one piece, which temporarily felt like a blessing. She quickly put her head to Pinkie's chest in order to hear a beat and waited. Time felt infinitely slower in that split second it took for the heartbeat to be heard. When she heard it she was crying in joy and more determined to help put Nightmare down. She turned towards Nightmare and her eyes became blank as her horn lit up with all the magic energy ready to burst. "Nightmare, your time here is at an end!" Nightmare turned to Twilight and chuckled, "Your magic won't do anything to me. If you destroy my body you destroy Discord along with it. You're not going to kill Discord are you?" Twilight kept focusing her energy and didn't reply. The atmosphere darkened and suddenly the realization that Twilight might be willing to sacrifice Discord became apparent. All the other ponies were too stunned to try and stop Twilight. They never seen Twilight this determined before and they knew their words would fall on deaf ears. Twilight was ready and smirked, "Now perish!" Twilight's magical beam was about to hit Discord's body when Nightmare decided to bail out. When the beam hit it did nothing to Discord but allow him to cough up the elements of harmony that his body had swallowed while possessed. Nightmare wasn't upset that she bailed for she had reached the limits of her power with Discord as a host. She was going to dump his body once Celestia was dealt with anyways. "You have achieved nothing Twilight, even with the elements of harmony you can't defeat me." Twilight felt a hoof on her and smiled, "While the magic of friendship can't defeat you, there is one form of magic stronger than that." Nightmare chuckled, "Doesn't matter, I'm going to destroy this place!" Nightmare gathered up all the evil energy it had attained and the powers it stole from Discord to begin creating a giant orb of pure tainted energy. Twilight called out, "The magic of love!" before she and Pinkie's energy combined and a magical power like no other shot out of Twilight's horn and expelled the evil energy from the kingdom and ending the nightmare once and for all.