> Twilight's Corruption
>  by vx2254
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Nightmares
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight found herself here in this strange place once more; wandering the crystalline caverns of the Far North; a cold, desolate, and dreary place far from the warmth and comfort of her home in  Ponyville. It seemed she came here more and more frequently, especially after her coronation. "H-hello…?" Twilight said out loud, her mane standing up on end as she felt an all-too familiar presence creeping over her. She turned and found herself enveloped in shadow; a screaming torrent of loud sounds and brief, terrifying images assaulting her before she lost her footing, falling down into the endless darkness screaming…

The Lavender Alicorn screamed as she shot straight up in bed, breathing heavily and rapidly, her heart racing with fear, sweating and shaking uncomfortably. This was the Third night in a row she'd gone without a good night's sleep, and one could easily tell something was bothering the Princess. "Nightmare's again, Twilight?" Spike asked, having been woken up by his friend and caretaker.

Twilight calmed down some, nodding and checking outside. Princess Luna's moon was at its peak in the sky; it wouldn't be long now before Princess Celestia would raise the sun. Intent on getting at least a small amount of sleep, Twilight laid back down and shut her eyes, disturbed once again by Spike.

"Have you told any pony about this?" Spike asked, worried.

"No…" Twilight answered, exhausted. "No, Spike… I… I don't think they'd be able to help with this."

"You never know, Twilight. At the very least, it'll probably make you feel better talking with somepony about it. The others are worried about you, you know." Spike said, pushing for Twilight to seek the help of others.

For a while there was no response from the Alicorn Princess, though eventually she spoke. "Okay… Tomorrow… I'll tell them tomorrow." She said, drifting back to sleep, resting fairly well the rest of the night, save for the worried thoughts that ate away at the back of her mind.



Getting a late start on her day the next morning, Twilight found herself interrupted from her rest by a knock at the door. She reluctantly rolled out of bed, looking like a mess. Judging based on the voices she heard from downstairs, Spike had invited at least one of her friends in. Giving her mane a quick brush, Twilight made herself look at least half-decent before descending the stairs to see Spike and Applejack talking.

"… And that's when Pinkie mysteriously lost the entire batch of Muffins." Applejack said, finishing a story she'd been telling Spike.

The dragon couldn't help but laugh at that. "I'm pretty sure any pony could guess who was responsible." Spike said, noticing Twilight had finally gotten out of bed. "Oh, Twilight; I was just about to come tell you Applejack's here."

"Hey there, Twi." Applejack said, a friendly smile on her face, which soon changed to a more worried expression. "You still ain't lookin' too good, Twilight… Is something wrong?"

Twilight began to look uncomfortable. She wanted to tell Applejack everything, but… She couldn't. She had no idea why; she just couldn't bring herself to admit something was wrong. It was strange, she knew there was something terribly wrong, but no matter how badly she wanted to, she couldn't and wouldn't tell any pony. "N-no… No, I just… Didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night, that's all." Twilight said, receiving a glare from Spike who otherwise stayed silent.

"Well… If yer sure, Twi." The Earth Pony said, not wanting to push too quickly into the matter, confident that Twilight would come around on her own if something was wrong. "Me an' the others were plannin' a party for mah sister and her friends after their Graduation next week. Ah was wonderin' if you'd be free to help."

"Of course; I'd be happy to." Twilight replied, thankful for the change of subject.

"Alrighty, then; I'll see ya later." Applejack said, waving goodbye as she left the Library.

"'Gonna tell them tomorrow', huh?" Spike asked as Applejack left, annoyed with Twilight.

"I'm sorry, Spike; I… I just don't want to talk about it, okay!?" She said in an overly aggressive tone, catching Spike by surprise. Immediately regretting her sudden aggression, Twilight's ears went flat and she turned away from Spike. "I-I'm sorry… I'm not feeling too good… Would you mind running a few errands for me?" She said, trying to pick up the pieces and make this day as normal as any other.

"Sure…" Spike said, feeling guilty for pushing Twilight over the edge like that. He grabbed a list of usual errands to run during the day and left, leaving Twilight all alone in the library…



The day was very uneventful; Twilight stayed in her library, pouring over old books and maps, mostly relating to the Crystal Empire, trying to find answers, or at least clues; some indication that the place she kept dreaming about was real. Hours passed and still no luck, giving up for the day she left to meet with her friends and plan the party at Sugarcube Corner.

Her inability to resolve this problem was starting to get to her; and the lack of sleep was no help either. All the frustration and anxiety caused by these damn nightmares was starting to get to Twilight, who wasn't quite sure how much more she could take before finally snapping. That wasn't even the worst of it; it was not knowing, at least not for certain. Not knowing where these crystalline caverns were, not knowing what entity kept attacking her, even though it looked and felt vaguely familiar; to say nothing of the strange feelings she'd get in the waking realm; like somepony was there beside her, watching her every move, somepony she couldn't see or hear clearly; the answers always just barely out of reach...

"Ah, Twilight; you're just in time. We were about to discuss where we should host the event." Rarity said, beckoning for Twilight to sit next to her.

Twilight shook her head, hardly realizing she'd reached her destination, or that her friends were all present, her lack of awareness rather obvious to everypony. Still; She did so, looking around to the others, noticing concerned looks out of the corner of her eye, though nopony spoke up.

"We've already ruled out Rainbow Dash's house, and Fluttershy's too." The Fashionista continued.

"The Cakes are going to be reeeeeealy busy that weekend, so we can't party here." Pinkie Pie said, ruling out another potential place.

"I'm going to be getting the Boutique redecorated that weekend as well, so I suppose that only leaves Applejack's house and your Library, Twilight." Rarity concluded.

The Princess had only been half-listening, feeling exhausted from her lack of sleep, shaking off disorientation and focusing on the task at hand. "Uh… I guess Applejack's place would be best; if you don't mind, that is." Twilight said, making the decision quickly.

"Nah, ah don't mind. There're some projects Big Mac and ah'll have to get done before then, but there ain't many and they ain't really all that big." Applejack said, noticing Twilight's trouble staying awake.

The six talked about the party for a while after that; what decorations to put up, music to play, ponies to invite, and other little things like that. Twilight didn't catch the entire conversation and was admittedly relieved when it was all over, saying goodbye and good night to her friends before leaving for the Library. On her way back, she felt… Unsettled; almost as if something were watching her every move, whispers heard in the back of her head, making her even more nervous.



Soon, however, Twilight was back in the safety and comfort of her sanctuary; noticing a map laid out across the table that she hadn't pulled out. Perhaps Spike had done it? The snoring from upstairs, however, suggested he'd been asleep for a while, and she didn't blame him; he'd probably be just as exhausted as she was, as most every night she woke up had disrupted his sleeping patterns too. Whatever the case, whoever pulled the map out didn't matter. She glanced over it, noticing a bunch of old marks and barely-visible text scrawled onto it, one mark in particular pointing out the location of a series of old Crystal Mines near the edge of the Crystal Empire. This was progress, for sure, but Twilight was simply too tired to make anything of it. She rested and quickly fell into a deep sleep, resolving to look into it tomorrow.



She was there once more; the caverns she'd visited many nights before, save this time instead of wandering through the tunnels prior to being consumed by darkness, she found herself standing in a chamber filled with dark crystals; a pitch-black cloud forming in front of her, a figure standing within.

"Wh-who are you!?" Twilight asked, an all-too familiar feeling of dread creeping over her. Still, the Princess stood her ground; confronting this entity which had finally chosen to reveal itself to her.

The cloud parted to reveal somepony she'd never expected to see in a thousand years, one she'd assumed defeated long ago; King Sombra, staring at her with a triumphant grin on his face. Black crystals began to form from the floor, locking Twilight's hooves in place, creeping up her body slowly, keeping her held firmly in place no matter how hard she struggled. She tried magic, but not even that would work; the formation began to speed up, enveloping her legs, her body, creeping up her neck and covering her head just before she had the ability to scream…

Twilight awoke just as her vision faded to pitch-black, sweating and breathing heavily, eyes wide open. Her heart was racing at a mile a minute, it seemed, her hooves shaking as she tried to comprehend what she'd just seen… Fortunately, Spike had not been disturbed this time, her rolled over in his bed, sleeping soundly. Calming herself, new energy poured into Twilight. She knew Sombra must have been responsible for these nightmares. Perhaps he hadn't been defeated after all, and had merely retreated to those old caves? It seemed unlikely, but there was no other logical explanation for it. Sick of the dreams and the effects they were having over her life, the Princess knew what she had to do. Silently slipping out of bed, she scrawled a quick note on a piece of blank parchment, looking over the map on the table once more before leaving for the Train Station, intent on catching the next train for the Crystal Empire. These nightmares would stop, one way or another. A nagging voice at the back of her mind insisted she consult her friends for help, but then a more powerful voice told her not to, that she'd only be putting them in unnecessary danger. This same voice guided her along and kept her resolve strong, growing more and more powerful with every step towards her destination. The thought never crossed her mind that maybe she was a mere puppet on strings; being manipulated by some greater mastermind, but then again; it was impossible. She was an Alicorn Princess; these decisions were her own… Right? Snapping back to reality, Twilight found herself already buying a ticket at the station, boarding the midnight train. She sat down in a passenger car, looking outside at the countryside illuminated by Princess Luna's beautiful moon… A thousand possibilities ran through her mind as to how this scenario would play out, few of them ending well. Uncertainty ate away at Twilight, conflicting with that voice reassuring her that everything would work out fine, that it would all be over soon.
> It Begins
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hours had passed, the sun rose over the Horizon, and Twilight rested comfortably on the bunk bed of a sleeping car. Sure, it was only several hours, but she cherished every sweet moment of peaceful rest she could get. It couldn't last forever, sadly; the conductor woke her, informing her that if she wanted to leave, she had to do so now. Without hesitation, she stepped out of bed, thanking the Stallion, and heading out to the platform.

The Crystal Empire certainly was beautiful at this time of year; powerful magics preserving the flora and fauna that would otherwise have perished from the cruel, unforgiving blizzard outside the Empire's protective boundaries. That made her think about her destination and what awaited her there. Reluctant to waste any time, she spread her wings and took flight, the sun rising beside behind her as she flew. Her thoughts turned to home and how long it would be before the others would find her note, encouraging the Alicorn to resolve these issues sooner, so as not to get her friends mixed up in the middle of this issue. Part of her still questioned her inability to ask her friends for support, though at this point such doubt was all but non-existent in her mind. She flew towards the Caverns as fast as her wings would carry her, determined to put an end to this.



Applejack approached the door to Twilight's library, with the others in tow. She'd confronted the others about Twilight's obvious issues last night after their little get-together, and now the five mares stood here; ready to face their friend and help her through whatever was bothering her. Applejack knocked on the door, soon greeted by a panicking Spike.

"Hey, Spike. Is Twilight there?" She asked, noticing Spike's distress.

"N-no... She left; according to this note, she's gone North." Spike replied, handing Applejack the note, the others gathering around to read it.

My Dear Friends;

For Weeks now I've been woken up late at night by nightmares, the likes of which I can't describe. I have a feeling I know who is responsible now and where he is; I'm going to put an end to this now and forever. You can find me in the Crystal Empire when it's finished.

Twilight Sparkle

"Any clues as to where exactly she may have gone?" Applejack asked, remaining level-headed while the others took a varying amount of time to soak this all in.

"There's a map on the table... S-she told me something about Crystal Caverns in her dreams." Spike said, calming down some.

"Right, let's see it, then." Applejack responded, walking in and taking a look at the map.

"Well... What now?" Rarity asked as Applejack read over the map.

"Now? We go after her, that's what." Applejack said, grabbing the map and rolling it up, turning to the others. "Well, come on; no sense wastin' time, she might very well need us up there."

The others understood very well by now, rushing out the door and for the train station, Applejack staying behind for a brief moment to tend to Spike.

"Don't worry, Spike. We'll all be back by tomorrow; safe and sound." She said in an effort to reassure the grieving dragon.

"I-I'll try not to..." He said, on the verge of tears, wondering why Twilight would do this without telling anypony; why she didn't just turn to their friends in the first place. And most importantly; why she didn't tell him.

Feeling bad about leaving Spike like this, Applejack gave him a hug in the hopes that would help somewhat "Look; ah don't know what's come over Twilight, but ah promise we'll figure it out. D'ya think you could tell Princess Celestia everythin' you know and meet us in the Crystal Empire?" Applejack asked, giving Spike a purpose in all this.

Taking a deep breath, Spike calmed down some, knowing very well that bringing this matter to the Princess' was likely the best course of action at this point; as their help could and likely would be very valuable. "Alright; I'll get working on a letter right away. Good luck." Spike said, running back inside to inform the Princess' of recent events. Waiting patiently for him, Applejack smiled as Spike left, having finished his letter to the Princess. The two walked to the Train Station together, the train apparently a bit late today. As they waited, a rather odd phenomena occurred; Spike began to vanish completely, confused and powerless to stop.

"What in tarnation!?" Applejack exclaimed, her first instinct to try and grab the dragon and hold him in place, only to find herself grabbing at air.

"Teleportation magic; and a very powerful spell, too." Rarity said, recognizing it for what it was.

"Wh-what!? Who cast it? And why?" Applejack asked, demanding some explanation.

"I... I don't know; perhaps the Princess'? It takes a lot of effort and concentration to Teleport others; and they're the only ones we know of with the power to pull off such highly advanced spells so easily..." Rarity said, looking to the others who agreed there were likely few, if any unicorns who could pull that off.

The train arrived, finally; and it likely wouldn't be here long in an effort to get back on schedule. Applejack looked to where Spike had been standing mere moments ago; reluctant to leave without him, but if they didn't leave now; they might be too late to save Twilight. She knew what Spike would have wanted, walking up to the ticket booth and purchasing five tickets, she and the others boarding the train bound for the Crystal Empire; the ride uneventful thus far. They all collectively hoped they'd reach their friend in time, and that Spike would be alright, Applejack still lingering on her questions from earlier; why would Princess Celestia pluck him away like that? What was she planning? Whatever the case; she tried to reassure herself, telling herself Spike would be alright, that whatever it was the Princess wanted it had to be very important, not necessarily life-threatening. Still, though...



The sudden change of scenery for Spike came as a great shock; one minute he was standing on the station Platform with Applejack and his other friends, next he was here; Canterlot Castle's throne room, standing before the Princess'. "P-princess Celestia?" He said, noticing the worried expression on the beloved rulers face. "Why did you do that? ... W-with all due respect, your highness."

Princess Celestia stood up, walking towards Spike, stopping beside him. "It's... Complicated. Come; walk with me, I'll explain as best I can." The Princess said, she and the baby dragon walking through the halls of the palace, his thoughts turning to his friends; wondering where they were now and if they'd be okay, though admittedly out of all of them one stood above the rest, and for good reason.



Here she was; the mouth of the caverns... This is where it all led to, this had to be where it was coming from. Taking a deep breath, Twilight stepped into the caves, her magic illuminating the otherwise dark passageways. She walked through familiar passages, sensing a powerful magical presence here, a presence that seemed to only grow more powerful the deeper she descended, and it scared her far more in real life than any nightmare could ever hope to achieve.

She soon found herself in the intimidatingly familiar chamber where she had been in her last Nightmare, dark crystals present all over, radiating powerful magics, such potent and intoxicating power... She was glad she hadn't brought her friend here after all, Rarity especially; as no common Unicorn would be able to resist the tempting power... She was barely holding her own herself, until a voice she recognized spoke to her.

"Ah, you've finally arrived." The deep, rough voice of King Sombra said, causing Twilight to go wide-eyed with fear.

"Sombra!" She shouted, turning, her horn glowing in preparation to cast a spell, only to find... Nothing?

The voice of the corrupt Unicorn was clearly audible, yet no physical form was present; not even the shadow form he had taken during his brief attempt to reclaim his Empire. "Confused? Look back; Twilight Sparkle, look back on when you invaded my palace in search of the Crystal Heart. Did you honestly think you could use Dark Magic and not attract my attention? You opened yourself up to me so willingly, and while I wasn't able to seize your body for myself then and there, I managed to slip enough of myself in there so that you wouldn't notice; until I grew too powerful for you to be rid of, that is."

Twilight stood frozen in shock and horror; this... This couldn't be true. This had to be another nightmare, there was no way somepony wouldn't have noticed the corruption within her.

"I laid dormant for so long, waiting for the perfect opportunity to bring you here. My patience, I see, was rewarded; your new form is oh so much more powerful than your old, Princess." The King of Darkness continued. "I will admit; I was afraid you'd resist my attempts to bring you here, and run to those precious friends of yours, or the Princess' first, but fortunate smiled upon me, it seems."

Feeling powerless and angry, Twilight couldn't take anymore of Sombra's taunting words. "Enough!" She shouted, only exposing herself to more of the corrupting effects of the dark magic. "I won't let you take my body, Sombra! You have no power over me!" She exclaimed, her anger turning to confusion upon prolonged silence.

"You are correct, Twilight Sparkle. I have no power over you or your body." Sombra said, sounding resigned, as if he were beaten. "But I don't need your body; my last act in this world will be to show you the path I walked, and let fate decide what happens after."

Before she could question what he meant by that; Twilight found herself flooded with memories; of a time long before her own; an outcast driven away by society due to his ambitions, labeled as "insane" and "monster". King Sombra had indeed come to these caverns before, and gave in to the dark powers assaulting Twilight's mind and soul. She felt the same surge of power Sombra had as she gave in to the power, let it flow through him freely and twist his very being. It may have been a mere memory, but it was still a very intoxicating feeling to a magic-user such as herself, the feeling amplified by her greater powers than any mere Unicorn. Tears rolled down Twilight's cheeks as the last bastions of resistance succumbed slowly to the effects this pool of profane magic had on her. Finally accepting it; a burst of magical energy covered her entire body, black, crystalline armor forming over her, her Cutie Mark taking on a much darker appearance; the stars surrounding the central one shifting in color to black, while the center start shifted to a much brighter, blood-red. Aside from this; Twilight remained more-or-less the same in physical appearance, though the same could not be said for her mentality and morality.

Taking a deep breath and released it slowly, she looked at her reflection in a patch of clear crystal, smiling as she looked over herself. "I understand now... Sombra, you foolish mortal; you hardly recognized the potential this magic has, especially in the hooves of a goddess!" Twilight said, eager to make use of her new-found powers; casting a bolt of magic powerful enough to obliterate an entire wall, widening the already vast chamber. She could hardly wait to see what else she was capable of; with such great power at her disposal, she could overthrow the weak Princess' and rule over all Equestria! There were just a few loose ends to tie up...

"Twilight!" Familiar voices shouted from further in the cave. The Alicorn looked off towards the exit and smiled in a twisted way. How convenient they should all gather here. Once her "friends" were taken care of; nothing would stop her. She began walking towards the closest voice; soon stumbling across a Rainbow-Maned Pegasus...
> Forsaking Harmony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Twilight?" Rainbow Dash said, seeing the Alicorn approaching from the opposite end of the path she'd chosen. "What happened? Why did you leave so suddenly? Are you okay?" Rainbow Dash asked, concerned for the well-being of her friend.

Twilight couldn't help but feel amused by Rainbow Dash's worrying, the confusion and concern the Pegasus showed was admirable, but ultimately unnecessary. "Yes, Rainbow; I'm fine, but the question is; are you?" Twilight asked, her horn glowing black as she cast a spell.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Rainbow Dash asked, her eyes changing color as a physical indication Twilight's spell was effecting her, her Irises turning bright-red.

"You don't remember? You were so devastated when the Wonderbolts rejected you." Twilight said, playing on one of Rainbow Dash's greatest fears.

"What!? Why would you say that? Th-they... They didn't..." She said, her memories changing, greatly confusing Rainbow Dash.

"You honestly think that's good enough to get you into the Wonderbolts? Give up and go home already, kid; you're only embarrassing yourself with that pathetic performance." Spitfire clearly stated as Rainbow Dash tried desperately to recall the memories. It didn't seem right, but... Why did she remember it in such great detail? Tears formed in Rainbow's eyes as the dark magic twisted her memories to Twilight's will, crushing the Pegasus entirely.

"I'm so sorry, Rainbow." Twilight said, 'Comforting' her friend with a hug. "It wasn't your fault; you did your best. It was their fault for not seeing your true potential." Twilight said, moving on to the next stage to secure her hold over the emotionally unstable, athletic pony.

It worked, the hot-headed Pegasus getting angry, very angry; further empowering the corrupting influence this place had on ponies, channeled through Twilight. "Damn right it was their fault... I-I'm the best flyer in Equestria! The Wonderbolts can burn on the sun for all I care!" Rainbow Dash shouted, hitting a wall with her hoof.

Twilight smiled in satisfaction, placing a hoof on Rainbow's shoulder, drawing the attention of the enraged Pegasus. "Together we can right all the wrongs done to us. Believe it or not, Princess Celestia kept me from realizing my true potential, from becoming a greater pony than she could ever be; much like what the Wonderbolts did to you, Dash. Why would they do this? Because they're afraid; they're afraid of us. So let's give them good reason to fear us." Twilight said, casting another spell.

Rainbow Dash could feel something cold creeping up her legs, looking down to see crystal growing around her body; spreading rapidly. She panicked, fearing the sudden change, trying to struggle even. She looked to Twilight, who only watched with a satisfied smirk while Rainbow struggled in vain. "Tw-twilight! What are you doing!? Stop!" Rainbow Dash demanded, Twilight's memory-altering spell beginning to wear off, bringing Rainbow Dash to her senses.

"It's too late for that, Rainbow. You're mine now, and you will be forever." Twilight said, laughing at the Pegasus' futile attempts to struggle, plead, and bargain with the corrupted Alicorn Princess.

It was all over in mere minutes; the world went dark around Rainbow Dash as the corrupt crystals enveloped her body entirely; forming armor similar to Twilight's; save for the fact a helmet with a visor formed over her head, covering her face. The corrupting aura of the black crystals brought out the absolute worst in Rainbow Dash; the more angry she was, the tighter the Corruption's hold was on her, and the tighter the hold became, the more angry she was at her helplessness to break free of the vicious cycle she'd been stuck in.

"Now, go; help me find the others and subdue them in any way necessary." Twilight said, leaving Rainbow Dash to carry out her orders. The Rainbow-Maned Pegasus, now a living conduit for hatred, anger, and bitter resentment, left to carry out the orders given to her, some small part of her still aware of her actions and tortured by the fact she was helpless to stop herself from taking actions she knew she'd regret.



Rarity wandered through the passages, feeling an odd presence deeper within the caves. Daring to venture there, partially to search for Twilight and partially to satisfy her own curiosity; she stumbled across the same chambers Twilight had been in not too long ago. Dark Magic flowed around her like a screaming torrent of powerful profane arts lost to the centuries. The Unicorn tried desperately not to lose her head in all this, resolving to leave before...

"It's so tempting, isn't it?" Twilight said, standing behind Rarity.

The pure-white Unicorn gasped, turning and seeing Twilight, feeling powerful traces of corruption emanating from her.

"Tw-twilight! D-don't tell me you..." Rarity said, unsure how much longer she could hold out before surrendering to the desire for power herself.

"Don't tell me you can't feel the power flowing through this place. You should understand better than anypony else out there, Rarity. Why limit yourself to the confines of your special talent when instead you could be so much more? You could have so much more, you could have it all." Twilight said, approaching Rarity in an intimidating manner, forcing the Unicorn to walk backwards to avoid the corrupted Alicorn Princess, straight into the middle of the pool of dark energy she had just barely waded into.

"N-no, Twilight... Th-that's not me and you know it!" Rarity said, holding on to herself by a thread, the temptation too powerful for her to cope with much longer.

"But why not? You could be so much more than you are now. Embrace it, Rarity; this place will free you from the shackles of simplicity and make you something greater than you could ever imagine." Twilight said, luring Rarity right into the middle of it all.

No longer able to resist, Rarity gave in to the powerful energy around her, embracing the corruption, as Twilight had told her to. Power surged through her body; crystalline armor forming over her body much like Twilight's; perhaps a bit more jagged and asymmetrical than the Alicorn's, but nevertheless. The bright-blue gems that made up her Cutie Mark darkened in color, turning black like midnight. The corruption changed the very nature of her magic in ways she could only imagine, and was very eager to explore.

Twilight's magic preserved some aspects of her friend's former personality and mentality; as the last thing Twilight wanted was competition in her bid to take over Equestria. As it stood now, however, she had a subordinate capable of thinking and acting on her own, unlike the others, whom she had other plans for.

"How do you feel, Rarity?" Twilight asked as Rarity collected herself.

"Like... A whole new pony, Twilight." Rarity said, as eager to make use of her new-found powers as Twilight was.



Pinkie Pie bounced through the natural passages of the crystal cave, giggling at the echo every sound made. Her ears flicked upon noticing hoof-steps, however; seeing Rarity come from around the corner. "Oh, hey Rarity; nice outfit." Pinkie said, stopping to talk with the Unicorn. "So; did'ya find Twilight?" She asked, smiling warmly.

"In a way, yes." Rarity replied, casting a memory spell. "But I'd much rather hear about you, Darling. Do tell; what was life like for you on the Rock Farm?"

Taken aback by the question, and remembering the time very, very clearly now, Pinkie began to look uncomfortable, so unlike her normal self. "Well... I wasn't really all that great. We were very poor and struggling to make ends meet always... They weren't exactly happy times..." Pinkie said, her normally poofy hair starting to go flat as she looked back on those days in greater detail than she ever wanted to.

"Ah, but isn't that life? So full of sadness and gloom; you weren't the only filly who lived an impoverished childhood, Pinkie, and I doubt you'll be the last. Looking at the bleak reality of it is heartbreaking, isn't it?"

Pinkie nodded, tears forming in her eyes. "Y-yeah..." She said, on the verge of a complete breakdown, feeling so sorry for everypony who had to go through that, and worse all the time in life, with nopony there to cheer them up.

Taking advantage of this opportunity; Rarity began to encase Pinkie in the same armor used to imprison Rainbow Dash, drawing the Earth Pony's attention back to reality. "H-hey, what's going on!?" Pinkie said, trying to stop or slow the progress of the crystal's growth in any way possible.

"Don't fight it, dear; you'll only make things much worse for yourself. Trust me, this is for the best." Rarity said, keeping the spell going strong.

Pinkie tried to scream, but the sound never came; she lost her vain struggle against the corruption, held in an infinite loop of negativity by the vile influence of whatever cruel magics her friend had used. Unlike Rainbow Dash, who had become the living embodiment of rage and anger, Pinkie emulated and radiated grief, sorrow, and a more cynical outlook on life. Tears streamed out from under the visor covering her eyes, the Pink mare trembling in place.

"Yes, Pinkie this world is a horrible place full of vile ponies who do nothing but devote their lives to causing pain and sadness beyond comprehension. The sooner you learn to accept this, the better you might feel about yourself; knowing you will be the one to exercise upon those wretches the same pain they exercise upon others.

Pinkie stood there, wordless, motionless... She gave in; overwhelmed by it all. The cold, cruel truth about the world seemed so unreal, making no sense to the mare who normally did everything in her power to bring cheer and happiness to all, but now... All that made sense were Rarity's words; to act as the hoof of Justice that would bring an equal pain down upon all those guilty of causing suffering and chaos.

"Come; we still have two more to find, my dear friend." Rarity said, walking down the passage with Pinkie following close behind, a mere puppet to the dark forces rising.



Applejack walked through the caves, searching for any trace of Twilight. She was worried about the well-being of her friend, a bad feeling creeping up on her... This was made worse by the flash of black she saw out of the corner of her eye. She listened closely to hear the rapid flapping of wings, turning just in time to... She had no time to react, it had all happened so fast; one minute she was turning to confront the Pegasus sneaking up behind her, next she was pinned against the wall, the breath knocked out of her.

Struggling against the iron grip of her assailant, she looked over her, noticing the Cyan coat and Rainbow Mane where the dark crystalline armor didn't cover her. "R-Rainbow...?" She said, snapping out of her daze. With a strong kick from her powerful legs, she forced Rainbow Dash off her, collecting herself rapidly and facing her opponent.

"Rainbow, what happened to you!?" She asked, receiving nothing more than an enraged shout from the Pegasus, who charged Applejack once more, the Earth Pony mare barely dodging the powerful strike from her opponent. "By Celestia, Rainbow; snap outta this, ah'm on your side!" Applejack exclaimed, turning to face Rainbow Dash once again.

The Pegasus didn't hear her... Well, that was an outright lie; Applejack was sure Rainbow heard, but wasn't listening. Still, the Cyan Pegasus made a lunge for Applejack once more, taking note of the direction the Earth Pony prepared to jump towards, gracefully changing her direction mid-flight and catching Applejack in her grip once more.

A hoof struck Applejack's face, twice, three times, Rainbow drawing back for a fourth when a voice was heard nearby.

"That's enough." Twilight Sparkle said, ordering the Corrupted Element of Loyalty to stand down.

She slowly withdrew, Applejack's vision a bit blurry, though she could have sworn she saw tears rolling down Rainbow Dash's cheeks. She re-arranged her priorities, turning her gaze upon Twilight who approached with a smug look on her face, and an aura that made Applejack very uncomfortable.

"T-Twilight...?" Applejack asked, confused and afraid.

Twilight approached the stunned mare, ready to nurture the fear she could sense growing in power within her friend.

"Yes, Applejack; I'm here, but I may not be for long... None of us may." She said, using her corrupting magic to her advantage once more.

"What d'ya mean? What's going on?" Applejack said, standing up, feeling strange...

"You don't remember? We found this place and the secret the Princess' have kept from Equestria for so long. We're marked in their eyes, Applejack. We know too much and have tasted this power for ourselves; this power the Princess' would so selfishly deny everypony else. If we don't fight, they'll surely kill us... Or worse." Twilight 'reminded' her friend.

"H-huh? B-but... No... I-It can't be true... It just can't..." Applejack said, completely and utterly afraid. Why would the Princess' hide anything like this from them? Why would they go to such extreme lengths to keep their secret safe? And would she ever see her friends or family again?

Overjoyed by how easily her friends fell into these traps; Twilight began to seize control of Applejack's body while she was open. The crystals formed over Applejack's body, causing the orange Earth Pony to panic, only speeding up the process. "Wh-what!? No, please... Twilight, help!" She begged, looking to Twilight.

The Alicorn was smiling, her smile growing wider before she burst out into laughter, adding to Applejack's confusion. It all became clear to her in that moment; something had happened to Twilight, she had changed in some strange and horrible way and had condemned Rainbow Dash to the same horrible fate she faced herself, as far as Applejack knew. So many questions remained unanswered, though; like who or what could have done this to one of her dearest friends, now a nearly unrecognizable monster. Fear overtook the Element of Honesty; fear for what the future had in store. Fear she would become a monster like Twilight. Fear that this was all somehow her fault, for failing to act in time. 

It all lost meaning soon afterwards; there was nothing she could do to stop this now. Applejack was a mere prisoner within her own body now, like Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. She mirrored feelings of fear and the resentment for others spawned through such an emotion; standing there before Twilight and Rainbow Dash; the latest addition to the Corrupted Princess' enforcers: The ponies who would serve her and carry out her will for all eternity.

"Just one more." She said, motioning for Applejack and Rainbow Dash to follow, the group leaving for the mouth of the cave, where she could feel the last traces of purity from the only one of her former friends unaccounted for; Fluttershy.



Fluttershy had recently finished her search of the eerie upper levels, terrified by this dark and ominous place more than anypony would normally be. Still; she put her courage to the test, agreeing to split up and cover more ground, and now here she stood; back at the mouth of the cave where they agreed to meet once they had finished searching. Nopony was present, the yellow Pegasus deciding to give somepony a chance to show up before succumbing to a panic attack. She couldn't help but jump a little upon hearing hoofsteps, however, turning her gaze to see Rarity and Pinkie Pie; both dressed in a creepy manner, something about them seeming... off.

"Ah, Fluttershy; there you are." Rarity said, noticing her friend's nervousness. "Is something the matter, dear?"

"Y-yeah... You." She said, backing away slowly. "I-I mean... Something about you..." Fluttershy said, not wanting to sound rude.

Knowing very well this meant she saw through them, Rarity sighed, looking to Pinkie Pie. "Grab her." She said to the Pink Mare, who obediently rushed to grab Fluttershy.

The wide-eyed Pegasus kicked off the ground, narrowly missing Pinkie as she took flight, a projectile missing her by mere inches. She turned tail and fled; taking off into the harsh, wintery wasteland in the hoped of escaping whatever it was her friends had become. Black crystals flew all around her, missing her by sheer luck, luck which soon ran out.

Fluttershy screamed in pain as a projectile hit her in the side, drilling deep into her flesh and forcing her into free-fall. She collapsed in the snow, her side stinging, a burning pain coursing through her entire body. She looked down at the wound, expecting it to be bleeding badly, only to be met with a much more horrifying sight; the area around the wound was crystalizing, and it hurt; badly.

Driven on by her determination to escape and seek help, Fluttershy gritted her teeth, tears streaming down her cheeks as she spread her wings once more, taking flight in the direction of the Crystal Empire, the pain from her wound and the dire situation hitting her worse than she let on. Fluttershy stayed strong, pushing onwards as there was no other choice; she had to make it, otherwise... She wasn't sure, but the outcome certainly would not be good for anypony.


Meanwhile; Twilight and the other arrived in time to see Rarity standing down, uncertain as to whether or not she hit Fluttershy. "She got away." The corrupted unicorn reported to Twilight shamefully, cursing her failure to catch the Element of Kindness.

"It doesn't matter." Twilight said, looking out into the blizzard, knowing the Crystal Empire and whole of Equestria lay just beyond. "She's useless on her own; nothing can stop us now. This world will be ours soon."

Twilight stepped out into the blizzard, followed by Rarity and her Enforcers; the new Princess... Princess? What a pathetic title; the new Empress of Darkness and her entourage ready to assert their dominance over the lesser mortals and feeble excuses for Goddess' whom they once associated themselves with. A new age was on the horizon, and nothing could stop it now.
> The Final hours
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It made Princess Celestia uneasy, calling for Volunteer Militia on such short notice; but there was nothing else that could be done. She could feel the baleful influence of ancient magics she once thought destroyed spreading, and fast. It was a familiar presence; one she'd felt when Sombra had fallen to the corruption and twisted his Kingdom into a center of oppression and tyranny, save this time it was somepony very close to her, and very powerful; more so than she could deal with alone. Luna marched alongside her sister at the head of the Army; Legions of brave Stallions and Mares having signed up to face what was reportedly a great danger to all of Equestria. They boarded trains bound for the Crystal Empire; where they would confront the evil approaching to determine the fate of ponykind.

Little was said as the Legions poured into the Crystal Empire; normally a land of peace and serenity. The Army approached as guardians, to protect the people from a great evil the Princess' had not yet decided to detail, trying to use what little time they had to prepare, and a panicking population was the last thing they needed. The Crystal Ponies had apparently put together a militia of their own; Prince Shining Armor meeting the Princess' outside the palace with the Crystal Guards; saluting as they approached.

"Cadence and the War Ministry are waiting inside; as instructed." The Prince said, walking alongside Celestia and Luna.

"Good; then we can get started right away." Princess Celestia said, the gates to the Crystal Palace opening; the grand hall filled with vital government and Military officials once thought unnecessary, now present and ready for the Princess' arrival.

Celestia, Luna, and Shining Armor all gathered around a table in the center, next to Cadence and opposite an assortment of Generals and the Minister of War, who had not taken an active role in Government affairs for Centuries. The room fell silent, all eyes turning to Princess Celestia; the only one at the table who did not take a seat. She looked around at those who gathered; the Royalty and their loyal vassals and Generals. Taking a deep breath, the Princess prepared to explain the direness of their situation as best as possible.

"Fillies and Gentlecolts; you all know very well by now that I've called you all here today due to an emergency, the magnitude of which calls for such a strong response. Our land and very way of life is under threat by those who have rediscovered Profane magic I once thought purged from our land entirely. I see now I was wrong in assuming so; thus here we sit now, to confront those who have been corrupted by the evil in the hopes our power combined can put an end to this madness before it gets out of hand."

"Pardon." A General said as Celestia finished, drawing attention to her. "Your majesty, if I may; who are we up against? More importantly; where is Princess Twilight and the Elements of Harmony?"

The Princess stood there silently for a few minutes, knowing this would be brought up eventually, she wasn't expecting it to be so soon, however. She took another deep breath; the truth had to be told at some point. "That is most troubling... Princess Twilight Sparkle, as far as I know, has fallen to the taint of Dark magic, and taken the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony with her."

The room rose into an uproar; panic from the lesser Generals and their subordinates; demands to maintain order from the Knight-Vassals to the Royalty and the Higher-Ranking Generals. It was pure chaos in the room; panic that was only made worse by attempts to calm those who feared the power of a corrupted Alicorn; and with the Elements of Harmony useless now, as far as they knew, this threat was made even more dangerous.

Shining Armor was in disbelief; hearing of his Sister's fate, Cadence doing everything she could to comfort her husband while Luna looked out over the crowd; turning her gaze up to Princess Celestia, who nodded.

Luna stood up and cleared her throat. "Silence!" She shouted in the traditional Royal Canterlot Voice; all attention in the room diverted to the Sister Princess', the room going silent as Luna had ordered.

"This does not help us resolve the issue at hand. Please, control yourselves; remember that we gathered you here so that we may prevent another great disaster, perhaps the greatest we've face in a thousand years." The younger of the two Sisters said, sitting back down after she spoke her peace.

"Well said, sister." Celestia complimented, looking to the others in the room. "It will not be long before our enemies arrive. I do not know what to expect, but we should prepare ourselves for any and all possibilities. Generals; you will have to make due with the forces provided to you; reinforcements are being prepared in Equestria as we speak, though I doubt they will be able to help once the Tainted Elements arrive. Prepare to set up defensive perimeters in rings around the Crystal Palace. No matter what the cost; we must keep them from reaching the Crystal Heart."

A commotion was heard outside, the Princess turning her head to the door, some doing so as well while others left to prepare the defenses, as Princess Celestia ordered. The main doors were opened forcefully, several Royal Guards struggling against a horrifying sight; a yellow-coated Pegasus whose body hard partially converted to a dark crystalline substance. The mare threw the Royal Guards off her; giving everypony in the room a good view of the damage done to her body; a good portion of the Right side of her body, including her right foreleg, had turned to crystal, while her left hindleg had turned as well; the most intimidating feature being her head around her left eye, or what could be considered her eye at least; a dark socket filled by a glowing red orb, which one could only assume served as her eye.

"P-princess..." Fluttershy said, walking slowly towards Princess Celestia, tears streaming from her one remaining normal eye. "H-help me..." She begged.

"By Celestia!" A General exclaimed, ponies backing away from the unholy sight they were witnessing; some disgusted, others terrified; even Princess Celestia found the extent of the damage done intimidating...

Nevertheless; she approached Fluttershy slowly, her horn beginning to glow as she walked closer to the sobbing mare. Fluttershy found herself bathed in light and struck with indescribable pain, screaming in agony as the Princess purged her of corruption to the best of her abilities. It felt like centuries for poor Fluttershy before it finally ended; the dark, jagged crystalline substitute for flesh smoothed out and altered to fit her coat color; the red orb that served as her left eye changing color to Blue, and most importantly; the spread of the curse had stopped.

Weak from exhaustion, Fluttershy collapsed once the purification had been completed; the room still in shock and awe over the sight they'd witnessed before them. "Take her to the Guest Chambers; watch her closely and summon me once she wakes." She ordered the Royal Guard, who carried out her orders without hesitation. The Princess then turned to the others in the room who continued to stand and stare, unsure of what to do. "Time is precious; please get back to making preparations for the worst." Celestia said, watching the Ponies scramble; leaving to help organize the defenders, set up the defenses, or stay behind to further discuss their plan of actions, as well as backup plans in the event their other plans should fail or change in some way.

The Sovereign of Equestria then motioned for her Sister, Niece, and Nephew-in-Law to follow, walking with them to the much less noisy and crowded Royal Chambers of the palace. Upon arriving she looked to Shining Armor, still taking all this in, despite Cadence's best efforts to console him.

"Do we really stand a chance against them, Sister?" Luna asked, just as worried as everypony else was.

"I doubt we can put an end to this here and now..." Princess Celestia said, it being difficult for her to admit defeat; before their battle could even begin, at that. "Such advanced stages of corruption can only be purged with the Elements, and their bearers have fallen. The Elements won't answer to us anymore, sister, our time using them ended long ago. I've placed them under protection until the new bearers they've chosen are ready; all we can do now is hold out for as long as we can in the hopes those chosen can be brought to safety before the taint spreads to Equestria."

The room fell silent, the Princess' and Prince reflecting on all that was happening, and how hopeless their situation seemed. Celestia was interrupted from her thoughts by a knock on the door, opening it to see a Royal Guard standing in the hallway.

"She's awake, your Majesty." He said, bowing respectfully.

"Thank you, Guardsman." She said, following him to the Guest room Fluttershy had been taken to.

The Half-Crystal Pegasus Mare looked out the window over the Crystal Empire; a storm forming in the distance; a storm she just barely escaped. Hearing the door open and close, she turned to look at the Princess, a storm of emotions surging through Fluttershy. "Th-thank you..." She started, doing everything in her power to avoid an emotional breakdown.

"I apologize, fluttershy... I can't even begin to imagine what the pain must have been like." Celestia said, the screams of the Element of Kindness still fresh in her memory.

"It's okay..." Fluttershy said, tears forming in her eyes. She took a deep breath, staying strong and keeping herself stable, for now.

"I can't undo the Crystallization, I'm afraid... It was all I could do to purge the corruption and stop the spread." She said, feeling guily due to her inability to completely heal Fluttershy.

"It's alright... You did everything you could, Your Majesty. I-I'll learn to cope with it... Somehow." Fluttershy said, looking back out to the storm on the horizon.

The Princess looked out the window as well, then back to Fluttershy; glad to see she hadn't changed one bit, wondering if maybe... "Fluttershy," She said, getting the attention of the Pegasus mare once again. "I have no hopes that we'll win this conflict against the others... The Elements won't serve them anymore because of what's happened, as such I've placed them under the protection until the new bearers are ready to wield them."

Fluttershy listened intently carefully, wondering who these new bearers could possibly be. "A-and who are they? If you don't mind me asking, that is." Fluttershy said, curious.

"I will admit; I don't know. I saw them in a vision... Perhaps you will recognize them." Princess Celestia said, sharing her memory of the event with Fluttershy.

She saw four vaguely familiar fillies; three she recognized as Applebloom, Sweeite Belle, and Scootaloo; with one other she'd never met before personally... Babs Seed, if she remembered the name correctly? Next came a unicorn she was all too familiar with; Trixie Lulamoon, the reformed show-off who caused grief for her, her friends, and ponyville twice in the past; and then herself, fighting alongside the other five in an effort to cast off the shackles of oppression placed on the world.

She didn't even get a moment to take this all in before she noticed a strange tingling sensation; the scenery around her fading. "Wh-what!? Princess, what are you...?" She asked, interrupted by Celestia.

"Find the others, Fluttershy; the fate of Equestria is in your hooves." The Princess said, sending the Element of Kindness to safety, and not a moment too soon either; the alarm bells rang in the distance, the Guards having spotted the corrupted element-bearers approaching. This was it; the final hour...
> The World Holds Its Breath...
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

An Explosion at the forward Guard Post shook the landscape; a dozen Militia Ponies flying away from the wall, causalities ranging from those torn to shreds by the explosion to those merely stunned; not only by the sudden attack, but by the death of their comrades as well. From the black smoke, they emerged; Twilight Sparkle and her Enforcers, an intimidating sight to those who had not known war in over a Thousand Years.

"For the Princess'!" A soldier shouted, leading the charge against the corrupted Elements.

"Foolish mortals." Twilight said, grinning manically the the horde of ponies rushed forth, a battle-cry rising among their ranks.

Letting out a shockwave of dark magical Energy, Twilight had the defenders right where she wanted them. While the Equestrian Troops merely sampled the full extent of her dark powers, Crystal Ponies writhing the vicinity succumbed to agonizing pain; their bodies writhing around out of their control, darkening in color as they lost all control of their minds and bodies; souls twisted by the great power of the corrupt Princess.

Regaining stability, the Corrupted Crystal Ponies stood; much to the shock and awe of the Equestrian Troops, who did not know what to make of this sudden turn of events.

"Kill them." Twilight ordered, grinning wickedly.

It was a massacre; the Crystal Ponies butchered Equestrian Mare and Stallions mercilessly, driving the Militia back to their next line of defense, shaken by the awesome and terrible powers of the corrupted Alicorn.

"Rarity; you, Pinkie, and Applejack handle these pathetic excuses for soldiers. Rainbow Dash; with me." Twilight ordered, preparing to take flight. She and Rainbow Dash left the others behind with the small, though extremely dangerous force of Corrupted Crystal Ponies; the two mares flying overhead and facing contingents of the Royal Guards and Pegasi Militia; all of which proved inadequate against the Alicorn. Some fell to incineration; others had their wings crystalized and were left to plummet to the ground, while others still were brutally beaten by Rainbow Dash, thrown to their doom when she was done with them.

It wasn't long before Twilight had arrived at her destination; the Crystal Palace; where the Crystal Heart resided. Once she had brought the taint there; the Crystal Empire would fall under her control so easily, however it seemed one last obstacle stood in her way...

"Twilight Sparkle!" An all too familiar voice exclaimed upon landing, Several Alicorns and a Unicorn standing between Twilight and the Heart.

"Ah, joy; everypony's here!" Twilight said with a laugh, stepping closer to Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Shining Armor.

"Come no closer, Twilight Sparkle!" Luna declared, preparing herself for a fight, Celestia holding a hoof out in front of her sister, stepping forward to try and reason with her fallen student.

"Twilight, please; this isn't you. You have to remember; all your lessons, how far you've come in life. If you go any further, you'll throw it all away, and for what? True Power is not about ruling over others; it's about mastering yourself, recognizing your flaws, and working to improve yourself as the pony you are. You understand this, Twilight; I know you do. Please, try to fight whatever darkness has corrupted your heart before it's too late." The Co-Ruler of Equestria pleaded, hoping Twilight would see the wisdom in her words as she had in the past and overcome whatever had done this to her.

Celestia's hopes were dashed against the rocks when the only response she received was amused laughter, the Corrupt Princess looking her former mentor in the eye with malice and hatred. "You know nothing of true power, old fool. You cowards fear the embrace of the greater magics in this world, which is why you did everything in your power to rid such wells from Equestria, isn't that right; dear teacher?" Twilight said, the vile influence that had overtaken her slowly twisting the landscape around her. "You fear the possibilities that could be opened up if only you'd accept the power; your morality blinds you, Celestia. I have tasted true power, and I love it!"

"Enough!" Shining Armor yelled, stepping forward. "Twili; this isn't you! Snap out of it, for Celestia's Sake, Or I... I..."

"You'll what? Hurt your little sister? Can you really muster up the courage to go through with such idle threats?" Twilight mocked.

"You leave him alone!" Cadence stated defensively, stepping forward along with Shining Armor.

"Aw, how cute; the lovely couple standing by each other no matter what happens. Why don't we preserve this touching scene for all eternity?" Twilight said, her horn glowing as crystals sprouted from the ground beneath the hooves of her brother and sister-in-law; holding the two in place.

Celestia and Luna prepared to take action, a blur of rainbow hitting the elder Sister before she could counter-attack Twilight, the attacker rapidly dashing towards Luna, hitting the younger of the two Alicorn Rulers in the side, knocking the breath out of her.

Recovering from the assault, Celestia watched as Luna stumbled back a bit, then recovered; throwing magical barriers up to slow the Progress of Rainbow Dash; allowing Celestia to turn and... Watch helplessly as Twilight rapidly finished her spell; Cadence and Shining Armor struggling to escape, pleading for Twilight to stop; the Pink Alicorn trying to connect to the Crystal Heart and draw power from it, only for her horn to sprout corrupted crystals, preventing her from using magic altogether. Before Celestia could prepare a counter-spell to save them; they had already been encased; imprisoned inside a crystalline shell by Twilight.

Spreading her wings and summoning a Gold-Handled Sword, Celestia flew towards Twilight, who barely dodged the attack, summoning a weapon of her own; an Obsidian Blade radiating dark energy.

"I'll give you one last chance, Twilight; Surrender now." Celestia said, in more of a demanding tone than before, still somewhat hesitant to fight, though her corrupted protégée was forcing her hoof.

"Making demands, Teacher? Come now; we haven't even gotten to the best part yet." Twilight replied, readying her blade.

Rekindling a flame she hadn't called upon in over a Thousand Years; Celestia worked herself into a righteous fury. She charged towards Twilight; her steel meeting Twilight's blade with a loud, echoing clang; sparks flying as the two Princess' engaged in combat to determine the victor in this theatre. With Luna busy with Rainbow Dash, and the Royal Guards dealing with the other Elements and their corrupted armies further away; there would be no interference; just her, Twilight, and their respective causes struggling for supremacy and the fate of an entire nation hanging on the line.

Withdrawing her weapon only to strike once more in rapid succession; Celestia drove Twilight back a few steps; the Tainted Princess shooting a bolt of magic at the archway above; large chunks of crystal falling down towards them. Balancing between her weapon and the largest pieces of rubble; Twilight threw the refuse towards Celestia; the Princess easily blasting the larger chunks into smaller shards; which scattered and harmlessly landed around her. Lifting off into the air; the Ancient Princess diving back down towards Twilight at near-sonic speeds. A small shockwave was sent out around the two Alicorns as impact was made; Twilight's blade barely holding Celestia's back. Throwing their balance off to the right, Twilight Managed to recover faster than Celestia; her blade grazing her ex-Mentor's cheek when she pulled back in a bid to avoid the strike.

A drop of blood traveled down Celestia's cheek; dripping onto the ground, the two Alicorns recovering from their latest stalemate for a brief moment before they charged for each other once more; swords clashing in rapid succession before they entered another deadlock. Resorting to underhanded trickery; Twilight caused a Dark Crystal formation to spring forth from the ground between them; knocking Celestia off-balance and to the ground.

"Sister!" Luna exclaimed, turning her attention away from Rainbow Dash for one second; which she soon regretted as the Corrupted Element of Loyalty dove right into her, stunning her with a furious barrage of Hoof-Strikes that she barely had time to recover from.

Not wanting to draw this out any longer; Twilight approached the Crystal Heart; her whole goal in this conflict. Celestia, meanwhile, picked her blade back up, passing Luna as she Telekinetically shoved Rainbow Dash away; ignoring them for now in the hopes of catching her student before it was too late. Her expression turned from one of anger to a more fearful expression, watching as Twilight's horn made contact with the Crystal Heart.

"No..." She said to herself; a bright flash of light blinding her temporarily as the Crystal Heart reacted to the highly-corrupted power of Princess Twilight Sparkle.

The Crystal Ponies were among the first to feel this; the same corruption that had overtaken many of their comrades at the first wall burning through them like a raging storm of evil. Crystal Ponies everywhere fell victim; twisted, dark shells of hatred and obedience; not slaves as they had been under Sombra, but an army; an Army fit for an Empress. The Landscape of the Crystal Empire changed dramatically; the Crystalline landscape reflected the dark corruption that had touched the very heart and soul of this magical land, as with its inhabitants. Twilight now commanded full control over the Environment and Citizens of the Crystal Empire; what few Equestrian Soldiers remained within either killed or captured to meet fates worse than death, likely. The tainted source of Magical Energy provided Twilight with even more power; which she gladly drew upon for her final fight.

With one fell swoop; she turned and Disarmed Celestia, who had otherwise been recovering from the flash of light before. Forsaking her blade for her armored hooves; Twilight Proceeded to tackle Celestia, her superior source of magical energy to draw upon allowing her to weaken the other Princess', at least within the boundaries of her new domain.

Holding Celestia in place with magical restraints, she turned to see Rainbow Dash finally subduing Princess Luna, dragging the beaten and bloodied Princess of the Night to her Mistress, who would then determine their fates.

"As I said, 'Teacher';" Twilight said, planning on enjoying her victory. "You know nothing of true power." She said, casting a spell.

Princess Luna felt an all-too familiar feeling overtake her; the Alicorn lifted into the air, given a moment and only a moment to look down at her sister before being shot towards the Celestial body she commanded at faster-than-light speed; exiled to the moon once more.

Tears streamed down Celestia's face, unpleasant memories resurfacing as Twilight did the unthinkable. Now it was her turn, the defeated ruler facing Twilight one last time.

"As for you; I know just where to send you; Princess of the Sun."

Celestia's eyes went wide, knowing very well where Twilight was planning on sending her. "Pl-please don't..." She said, her appeal made in a begging tone this time.

Without another word; Twilight cast the spell. The sensation enveloped the Princess; lifting her into the air briefly before shooting her off to her own respective Celestial Body. As she soared through the cosmos faster than she could recover her powers; all she could do now was prepare herself as well as she could for the terrible pain she was about to endure for... For however long she could keep her wits about her.



Back in the Crystal Empire, Twilight took deep, rapid breath; the two spells cast so soon after one-another taxing, even for one of her capabilities. Still; Rarity and the others approached with a number of Equestrian Slaves, and legions of their new Crystal Soldiers. Standing up straight with her Enforcers by her side; Twilight looked towards the multitudes of formerly free ponies; now mere puppets to the will of their dark Empress.

"Prepare yourselves!" She ordered, facing South. "Arm yourselves; tomorrow, we march on Equestria."
> The Age of Oppression
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The defeat of the Princess' and fall of the Crystal Empire certainly made Pony History; the dramatic final battle between good and evil concluding with victory for the forces of Darkness, led by none other than Twilight Sparkle; a corrupted Princess of Equestria, now Empress of Pony-Kind.

She met little resistance upon exiling Celestia and Luna; and imprisoning her Brother and the Princess Cadence in Crystal; the two standing on either side of her throne to serve as reminder to all of what she was now capable of. Her armies tore through the Equestrian Countryside; slaughtering all those who opposed her and repressing those who would have otherwise caused trouble. The Equestrian Militia proved inadequate to face the threat, and with nowhere to flee; the Citizens of Equestria bowed before Twilight, all settlements eventually falling under her control.

The Empress' rule did not go entirely unchallenged, however; small cells of Resistance formed in response to her tyranny, gathering more and more support among the populace. They waged Guerrilla Warfare and were a general nuisance, but otherwise harmless in the eyes of Empress Twilight Sparkle. Her real concern came in the form of unaccounted ponies; her return to Ponyville revealed that several Ponies were not present; chief among them being Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo; three fillies who reminded her very much of her friends; reminding her all too well of half her friends.

The Three Fillies were among the most wanted; a bounty of One Million Bits placed on each of their heads. Among them were other Ponies of interest, mostly Resistance cell Leaders such as Lyra of the Everfree Freedom Fighters, Spitfire of the Cloudsdale Wonderbolts, Braeburn of the Appleoosan Avengers, and Et Cetera... Some bounties, however, were rather odd; likely personal matters from her previous life left unresolved; one Trixie Lulamoon wanted for an impressive bounty of Five Million bits, she wasn't the most sought after, however; such an honor being reserved for one pony in particular. Fluttershy; the only Element of Harmony known to have escaped the corruption and the fall of the Crystal Empire. The Pegasus Mare was wanted for a bounty of over Ten Million Bits; such a tempting bounty making her the most sought-after pony in all of Equestria. Since the bounty had been posted; Fluttershy had become harder and harder to find, evading capture either with the help of a Resistance Cell or what few Ponies still showed kindness to strangers in this time when it was everypony for themselves.



This was all ancient history to Appleblossom; the Earth Pony Mare sitting at the bar of a tavern in Manehattan; her cousin Babs Seed sitting sext to her while her friend, Lightning Runner sat on the other side. They'd all gathered here tonight to see Melody's performance; the talented Unicorn's angelic voice sure to take their minds off the stress of life.

"Hello, everypony!" The White-coated Unicorn said, stepping out onto the stage, very upbeat considering how poor she was... Then again, every pony else in this place was probably struggling to make ends meet too. "Before I start, I'd like to give all my thanks to my friends; without their support I doubt I'd be here tonight, or that I'd have even discovered my talent in the first place. A big round of applause for Appleblossom, Lightning Runner, and Babs Seed, please!"

Everypony did so, cheering for the three mares; the old spirit of Equestria difficult to crush completely.

"Alright, Everypony; now for the show: I call this song; Requiem for the Princess'." Melody said, clearing her throat and starting her song.

Appleblossom, or rather; Applebloom as she was known before going into hiding here in Manehattan with her friends; found herself lost in the realm of thought as "Melody" sang her song. She was impressed with how far Sweetie Belle had come; all of them having earned their Cutie Marks, which further made them indistinguishable to their former friends and sisters; now symbols of oppression and tyranny.

Applebloom remembered those first days very well; moving in with Babs Seed and her Aunt while Bic Mac and Granny Smith said their goodbyes; being moved elsewhere in the country by Guards under order from Princess Celestia. She was fortunate Sweeite Belle and Scootaloo had been moved into the foster care of Celestia's agents who coincidentally lived on the same block; all the young Fillies forced to go through serious changes in appearance. Her formerly Brilliant-Red hair was regularly dyed a Dark Orange, while Scootaloo was had to grow her hair out and wear it in a rather effeminate fashion; Sweetie Belle, finally, having to cut her Hair short and dye it one color entirely.

They grew used to it over the years; acting differently for the sake of remaining unnoticed; allowed some freedom to live their lives, though the days of crusading were done for them; no more comical antics that stemmed from the rather serious business of earning their Cutie Marks. This didn't matter to them anymore, of course, though the young Mare honestly missed those days when she and her friends tried anything and everything; looking back on those better days fondly.

Then there was the matter of her sister... She'd never forget the one and only instance in which she met Applejack; then the Enforcer for the Manehattan district of the new Equestrian Empire. She was attending a party with her now ex-Coltfriend; a Stallion of rather high social standing, who grew a little too used to the life of pleasure and luxury secured for all those families that collaborated with the Empress.

That night became oh so clear to her once more; standing there in the Governor's Palace with all these other High-Class ponies; High-Class Aristocrats who kissed the Empress' Hooves, or traitors who had sold out former friends and family associated with the Resistance in the hopes of living a better life. She hid her disgust with these Ponies well, standing alongside her Coltfriend with a mixed expression on her face.

"Come on, Appleblossom; please, just do this for me." The Stallion beside her said, knowing very well what his Fillyfriend's stance on this was.

"Ah don't know why you brought me here of all places, Ruben. This isn't exactly mah idea of a romantic setting." 'Appleblossom' replied; still discontented at being brought to this gathering of the underserving "Social Elite" of the country.

"I know... I don't want to be here either, honest; but father insisted on it and you know I can't just refuse." Ruben replied, a bit frustrated by Appleblossom's continued and somewhat obvious disapproval of her environment. "Look... I'll go get us a couple drinks; all we have to do is look good for the crowd and leave after a while; I promise I'll make this up to you." The young Stallion said, leaving her alone as he went to get a couple refreshments.

Applebloom sighed, that being when she noticed her...

"Enforcer." The Crystal Guards said, bowing as an all-too familiar Orange-coated, Blonde-maned Earth Pony wearing the jagged, dark crystalline armor of an Enforcer walked through the crowd; her very presence striking fear into the hearts of all ponies around her.

Applebloom could feel this and the unnerving aura only grew worse as Applejack drew closer and closer...

"Mighty fine Dress you got there, miss." The Enforcer complimented, her tone lacking the friendliness that normally would have accompanied such kind words.

"Th-thanks... A-A friend made it for me." Appleblossom said, trying to keep her cool; her cutie mark going noticed by her sister, still unaware of the close relations between the two of them, at least as far as the younger could tell... Well, younger technically; she had no idea what dark magic allowed for it, though Applejack, along with all the other Enforcers, hadn't aged a day since the fall of the Crystal Empire; the "younger sister" rapidly catching up to her "Older" sister in terms of age.

"Y'sure this ain't Rarity's work? Ah don't know many more ponies who make dress' that fine." Applejack said, well aware of the fearful reaction she was getting from this Mare, from every pony.

"W-well... Ah don't know; could be. Sh-she said she made it, but y'know; any pony can say anything." Appleblossom said, unable to help using a slight accent.

"Ah take it yer part of the Family, too?" Applejack said, addressing the matter of her Cutie Mark.

This instantly struck a nerve with Applebloom; if her sister found out who she really was here and now, well; it might as well all be over. She figured the best thing to do now would be to bend the truth a bit.

"Y-yep; name's Appleblossom; Enforcer. I-I moved out here a while back... To get away from trouble out in Appleoosa." She replied, praying her sister didn't see through her lie. It was true; the Apple Family was just as divided as any other family; likely less balanced, however; most members openly challenging and resisting Empress Twilight's rule, and many had paid the price for it with their freedom or lives. Some chose the opposing side in the conflict, only to be chastised by the others, considered to be cast out of the large and diverse family.

"Appleblossom... Can't say I've seen you before... Then again; we were gettin' a little big to keep track of." Applejack replied, her expression unreadable, worrying Applebloom all that much more. "Well; ah have things to do and ponies t'see. Enjoy yerself." Applejack said half-heatedly, leaving her Sister alone once more.

"You know the Enforcer?" Ruben said as he approached his Fillyfriend once more, the Young Mare shaking in place, taking deep breaths to calm herself down.

"Yeah... You could say that..." She said, snatching the second glass of wine out of his hand quickly, downing its contents without a second though; needing a little something to calm herself down...



Appleblossom came back to the realm of reality only to find she missed her friend's song; Melody already bowing and leaving the stage to make way for other performers. She honestly felt guilty about this, noticing Babs and Lightning standing, rising with them and leaving the Tavern to the nearby Back Alley where they met with their friend.

"That was a beautiful song, Melody." Lightning Runner said, not admitting she had teared up a bit.

"You got a good voice; it'll get you far here." Babs Seed said, giving Sweeite Belle a soft punch on the shoulder.

"Thanks, guys. What did you think, Appleblossom?" She asked, turning her attention to the Fourth Mare, who struggled to find an excuse.

"It was great, really." She said, reluctant to admit she'd zoned out for the duration of her performance.

Before Sweetie Belle could reply; Babs drew their attention to a rather rough-looking Mare approaching them; the thug pulling out an envelope. "Any of you Babs Seed?" She asked, getting straight to the point.

"Yeah, what's it to ya?" Babs asked, ready for a fight, it seemed.

The other Mare held out the envelope, leaving without explanation as soon as Babs took it. She watched the thug retreat from the Alleyway; slowly opening the letter, pulling out... A bunch of train tickets, some bits, and a letter.

Meet me at the Clubhouse in Ponyville, Cutie Mark Crusaders.

- A friend

The letter read, short and to the point... Something else fell out of the envelope was well; a well-drawn design of three butterflies in a pattern the girls vaguely recognized.

"Should we go...?" Applebloom said, she and her friends conflicted on what they should do.

"Could it really be...?" Scootaloo asked, wondering if it really was Fluttershy that had gone through the trouble of contacting them.

"Seems legit." Babs said; normally the most cautious of the group. "I guess it's up to you guys to decide."

"I'm going." Sweetie Belle answered, drawing the attention of the others. "If Fluttershy really is waiting for us there, we have to see her."

"But what if this is a fake? I think we should stay here, guys..." Scootaloo said, hesitant to trust a strange note with no other discernible evidence it was Fluttershy than the drawing of her Cutie Mark.

The choice was left up to Applebloom now; the Earth Pony thinking long and hard on this... "Ah... Ah say we go." She said, siding with Sweetie Belle, the decision leaning in favor of going, as Babs had abstained from voting.

"Right, then; let's pack what we need and head there tomorrow." Babs Seed said, looking as uncertain about the decision as Scootaloo about their decision, though no further objections were made from either of them.
> Great and Powerful?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Caravan wandered through the woods of Eastern Equestria; coming out of Baltimare. Sitting at nthe front of the Caravan was a blue-coated, silver-maned Unicorn; Trixie Lulamoon, or the Great and Powerful Trixie, as she liked to refer to herself. Great and Powerful? Yeah right. She took swig of Cider; wiping her mouth as she reminisced on better times; how life had looked so promising for her after her second encounter with Twilight, who had now fallen to corruption arguably worse than what she herself had succumbed to when using the Alicorn Amulet.

Here she sat now; wandering the woods like a common criminal to avoid a repressive new regime that had placed a massive bounty on her head. How was she supposed to make a living now? Every Settlement she entered eventually found out who she was, forcing her to flee from Civilization, thanking Celestia her Illusion Magic had improved after all this time, making it much easier to avoid those ruffians dispatched to capture her, to say nothing of those low-life bounty hunters on her tail every five minutes, it seemed.

She downed another mouthful of Cider, her ear twitching at the sound of hoof steps. She stopped the Caravan, setting her mug down and jumping down to the ground, glaring at the Underbrush around her. "The Great and Powerful Trixie demands you show yourself!" She exclaimed, seeing the bush move this time around, a Mare stepping out into the light.

"H-hey; I don't want any trouble..." She said, the brown-coated Earth Pony said; clad in leather armor, with a map and Crossbow slung over her back.

"Hmm..." Trixie said, dropping her fighting stance, looking over the Mare, who apparently seemed to know who she was.

"Trixie Lulamoon, right? I remember seeing one of your shows back in Baltimare before... Well, you know. I'm Potshot; a pleasure to finally meet you." She said, extending a hoof.

Cautiously, Trixie shook Potshot's hoof, reluctant to trust strangers, especially in this day and age... However, nothing seemed wrong; for now, anyway.

"Say; some friends and I were heading up to this old ruin up a ways, hoping we can find something worthwhile there. Maybe you'd like to come along? We really need a Unicorn  and I wouldn't mind splitting the profits an extra way." The Earth Pony said, seeming friendly enough.

"Oh? And where are these 'friends' you speak of?" Trixie asked, still hesitant to trust this mare.

"They're up the trail; they took off as soon as we heard you coming, though you were an Imperial patrol. I admit; I kinda panicked and jumped into the bush last minute and, well; here we are." Potshot replied, blushing a little. "Well; you comin' or not?"

The Unicorn Mare thought on this for a moment, bringing her caravan to the side of the road; casting a spell to make it seemingly blend in to its environment; difficult for any pony who wasn't a Unicorn to find. "Yes, Trixie is interested. Let's go." She said, following the Mare.

True to her word; this place wasn't that far away; up the trail a bit and into the wilderness a ways. At the site, she noticed Two Pegasi; a Mare and a Stallion, with another earth Pony mare waiting for them at the entrance to the ruins.

"Potshot; who's that?" One of the Pegasi asked, the group's attention turned to Trixie.

"Don't worry; she's a friend. She wants in on the job; so let's get going." Potshot said, not bothering with formal introductions. Not that Trixie cared, far from it; these ponies made her uncomfortable; especially the Stallion eying her, whom she ignored for now.

Potshot and her entourage; including Trixie, for the time being, descended into the dark depths of the Ruins. Trixie's magic illuminated their path, making this so much easier for them. She had no idea how to describe it, but she felt... Odd; as though she were far more empowered here. The others could feel it too, to an extent, an extent that meant little to them, but then; any pony without magical capabilities simply couldn't understand the feeling Trixie felt as she walked among these ponies, deeper and deeper; drawing closer and closer to the source of this power she felt upon entering this ancient citadel.

They arrived in a room, seemingly empty; nothing but a series of carved scenes on the walls; detailing the history of this place. While the others only seemed to care about treasure, searching for any hidden passage, button, or indication there was something more to this tower; Trixie took an interest in this place and its history. She looked over the Carvings on the wall; reading them carefully.

Two Unicorn's traversing a cave; one painted dark like the night while the other was painted a faded white. The two stumbled across what Trixie assumed was a well of magical Energy, and a powerful one at that; the two Sisters, as she inferred these were likely the previous rulers; Celestia and Luna, absorbed a great amount of Energy from this well; resulting in their transformation into the immortal beings known by Ponykind today.

"Where's the bloody gold!?" The Pegasus Mare exclaimed, kicking the wall out of frustration.

"You there; you've been abnormally quiet. Is there something you know that we don't?" Potshot said, pointing to Trixie.

Frustrated with the close-mindedness of her companions, Trixie turned; looking to the center of the room and the vague outline of something... "Of course! How could Trixie not see this before!?" She exclaimed suddenly; casting a spell at the object she'd seen in the center.

The Illusion disappeared; revealing the treasure greater than all the gold in Equestria; a Sun-and-Moon amulet. Not at all like the ones they'd sell as good luck charms or religious symbols, no; this one was very different. According to the drawings on the wall; the well of magic they now stood in had apparently been spent by the Princess' transformation into immortal beings; what little magic remained, by comparison to its former amount of power, was later condensed into this single amulet by the Princess' themselves; a powerful object that could do much good in the right hooves...

The click of a Crossbow being drawn back was the first hint that she was obviously in the company of those who would do no good with this object; who likely couldn't even comprehend the true value or nature of the treasure before them.

"Wonderful, Trixie; I knew you'd come in handy. After we sell this and collect the bounty on your head; we'll all live like Kings! Well, 'cept you, of course, but your usefulness t'me is at an end, anyway." Potshot said, keeping her Crossbow aimed at Trixie while the others drew their respective weapons, surrounding the Unicorn and the Amulet.

"How clever of you; bringing me down here where there's nowhere for me to run. How unfortunate for you that here, I don't need to run." Trixie said, one of those rare moments she Spoke in the first person; casting a spell with the aid of the excess Magical Energy radiated by the Amulet.

To the others; it seemed as though an army of spirits had risen from Tartarus itself; all armed to the teeth and twice as bloodthirsty. The others might have been fooled into a desperate struggle against thin air, but their leader saw straight through the illusion; firing a bolt at Trixie.

Casting a second spell simultaneously for the first time in her life; Trixie blocked the would-be instrument of her demise with a magical barrier; grabbing the Amulet as Potshot charged towards her. The Unicorn nearly slipped the magical artifact around her neck, to augment her natural abilities when she was pinned to the floor by the Earth Pony, who struck her several times, the Amulet rolling a fair distance away.

Recovering in the midst of the brutal assault; Trixie cast a spell she had never tried before; an advanced illusion spell she barely dabbled in and found difficult to maintain; Potshot's eyes glowing a faint, pale-blue as she turned her attention to a voice only she could hear, her aggression turning to shock and disbelief.

"F-father...?" She asked, tears forming in her eyes. She seemingly forgot about Trixie as she approached the nonexistent entity, who seemed so real to her; happy memories for the Renegade re-surfacing and drawing her away from the matter at hand.

Wiping a trickle of blood off her nose, Trixie stood up and approached the Amulet; the strain of using such a spell alleviated by her proximity to the Amulet, though it would be much easier to maintain were she wearing it; her illusion distracting the others starting to wear off.

As the group of rogues came to their senses, Trixie slipped the Sun-and-Moon Amulet on; the power surging through her indescribable; power unlike anything she'd ever known before. Cheap parlor tricks suddenly became so meaningless to her, in her hooves she held true power now, so different from that which had twisted Twilight Sparkle and so many others... And with this power came a sense of purpose and understanding; that she was meant to do great things for Ponykind, to do anything and everything in her power to see them through this age of tyranny and into a new a bright new future.

First thing was first, however; dealing with the bandits, who had now recovered and were turning their attention on her. With unexpected ease; she did unto them what she had done to their leader; distracting them all with memories of happier times that, to each of them respectively, seemed so enticingly real. All had fallen for it and all were dedicated to their respective memories; of family, loved ones, and so on and so forth.

"I... I'm sorry, I truly am." Trixie said quietly, imagining how they'd react once the spells wore off, bringing them from such pleasant illusions back down to this cold, cruel reality they endured day after day. They couldn't stay like this forever; it would only be even more cruel to keep them trapped in a lie forever.

Taking advantage of her opportunity; Trixie left, making haste back to her Caravan. She dispelled and entered her mobile residence; using magic to drive it forward, keeping a watchful eye on the roads while the sun set in the distance. Making good time, and a fair distance away from those other ponies; she directed the Caravan to a rather flat clearing; settling down there for the night. She laid back on her bed, reflecting on the day and all that had come of it.

"So this is what it feels like..." She said, holding the Amulet in her hoof, understanding what it was like to possess limitless potential to do great things, for good or ill; that decision was up to her now. She looked back on all she had learned from Twilight Sparkle, who now seemed the greatest hypocrite, technically speaking... Could she really be blamed for her actions? Whatever dark force had twisted her in such a way, it pained Trixie to see a friend, her first and only friend for years... She wiped tears away from her eyes; covering up, casting the Chameleon Spell once more, holding onto it very easily with her augmented powers.

Ready to sleep after a long day, Trixie closed her eyes, only to have them shoot wide open once more when she heard a gentle knocking from the back door to her Caravan. She panicked; how could any pony see her!? Were there more bandits that she didn't know of? The possibilities were limitless and she took a moment to calm herself, the gentle knocking heard once more. Slowly, she edged to the door, opening it to see a cloaked and hooded Pegasus standing there before her.

"Trixie Lulamoon?" A familiar voice asked, a blue glow faintly illuminating the face under the hood. "I've been looking for you..."
> The Clouds Gather
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Canterlot Castle was abnormally busy for this time of day; servants running to and fro, seeming far more frightened than usual. Rarity; the Mistress of the Castle and Provincial Governor of all Equestria, knew this could only mean one thing. She walked through the halls in her regalia; the Nobles simultaneously enchanted and intimidated by the sight of the Unicorn, who still retained her beauty and passion for Dressmaking, her craving for great power fitting in among those traits already present, and maintained by the Empress herself; in a bid to keep Rarity from becoming too ambitious.

She stood in the Grand Hall with her Crystal Guards as the great doors opened; revealing none other than the undisputed Empress Twilight Sparkle, adorned in ceremonial armor, a red cape covering her back and a jagged crystal crown resting atop her head. The infamous Alicorn had been responsible for the downfall of beloved rulers Celestia and Luna; her new regime's steel grip on Equestria and pony-kind causing much pain and suffering over the years. It was true; resistance movements had forced in a bid to overthrow the totalitarian regime, initially considered too scattered and disorganized to be considered a threat. Recent reports had been concerning indeed; a series of Bombings in Fillydelphia; increasingly bold and successful raids on the frontier railways, especially around Appleoosa; and worst of all: Those responsible evaded capture time and time again, striking blow after blow; which loosened the Empress' grip on Equestria, and brought more support to the foolish cause of the upstart rebels.

"Ah, Twilight, dear; to what occasion do we owe the pleasure?" Rarity said, acting as though little was wrong; allowing the Enforcers to deal with the commoners while she enjoyed the regal splendors and high-life that was Canterlot.

The Empress did not seem amused at all; having paid close attention to events going on throughout her domain with growing frustration, which she might very well have taken out on Rarity; had the Unicorn Mare not been a long-time friend. Besides; with the strong anger and resentment she could feel coming from one among the otherwise cowardly and powerless crowd; she would soon have somepony to take her own frustrations out on.

Pretending to listen to Rarity drone on about how it was an honor she was here, and the arrangements for a celebration; Twilight bided her time until it happened; one of the maids; a Pegasus, kicked off into the air, avoiding the Crystal Guards on the ground and diving downwards towards Twilight Sparkle; a butcher's knife in hoof.

"Die, you merciless Witch!" The Pegasus shouted as she rapidly approached Twilight.

The young Mare found herself thrown across the room by a strong Telekinetic push; hitting the wall and crashing back down to the floor, stunned but otherwise alive. The Guards took advantage of this and grabbed hold of her; the Nobles and Servants clearing a path and gathering around to watch as the Empress approached the Mare who had just tried to assassinate her; a smug grin on her face as she approached the restrained mare.

"Go on, monster; kill me now and get it over with!" The Pegasus shouted, putting on a brave face, though in reality she was absolutely and utterly terrified; Twilight could feel it.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?" Twilight said, looking down on the subdued Pegasus. She picked up the knife her assailant had been holding; looking over the sharpened instrument before handing it over to a guard. "No; I have other plans for you."

With that being said; Twilight summoned a black crystal shard, an object rarely used, though feared for good reason. The Empress could tell this upstart had heard of this before; watching her squirm and struggle; shouting for her to get away and spewing idle threats; all in vain. With her free hoof; Twilight grabbed the Rebellious maid's face; forcefully holding it straight before impaling her right eye with the crystal.

The Pegasus Mare's scream of pain echoed throughout the Great Hall; some sickened by this, others terrified, while others still were enraged, though powerless to stop what was going to happen at this point. Twilight released the Crystal, which had now sunken into the victim's wound, beginning to crystalize her body. The aforementioned Pegasus wasn't dead, no; she was beyond the comparably sweet embrace as things stood, her body going limp as she lost consciousness from the pain.

"Take her to the dungeons; keep her there until she's ready." She ordered, turning to those who had witnessed the vile event take place. "Let this be a lesson to you, to all of you; you are mine, all of you! If you don't like it; then you're welcome to resist, and if you resist; you'll be lucky if I decide to end your meaningless lives then and there."

Confident her message had gotten through; the Guards cleared a path for her as she motioned for Rarity to follow. There was still much to discuss, and her patience had been worn thin.



The Train ride from Manehattan to Ponyville seemed to last an eternity; from the forests surrounding the urban community to the mountainous regions around Canterlot, and finally to the flat fields and rolling hills of the Equestrian Breadbasket. Eventually; they arrived in Ponyville; the small town that Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Applebloom had once called home. Little had changed about it; which was an amazing feat considering most other communities had decayed into large slums surrounding much smaller, prosperous districts reserved for collaborators with the regime.

Perhaps the Empress still had some respect left for this community and the few ponies fortunate enough to still live here? The answers would never be clear, but that didn't matter; that wasn't what any of these Mares were here for. Stepping out onto the platform; "Melody", "Lightning Runner", and "Appleblossom" gathered to take one good look at the town they had grown up in and remembered so fondly...

"No sense standin' around; we better get going." Babs Seed said after giving them a moment to reminisce.

Applebloom nodded, she and the others following without a word. They walked through the streets of Ponyville; past Sugarcube Corner and the desolate Library that was home to Twilight Sparkle initially; now simply abandoned. This place wasn't their goal, however; the four pushed on towards Sweet Apple Acres, or what was left of it.

When the War had come to Ponyville; Applebloom, Granny Smith, and Big Mac had been long gone; hearing nothing about the farm or its fate. She saw now that the house proper had been burned; the other buildings having fallen into disrepair and disuse. The Orchard was overgrown; no longer cultivated or cared for by any pony; despite the fact plenty still took food, as the obvious lack of Apples on many of the trees showed them.

It pained Applebloom to see her childhood home reduced to ashes while the surrounding land she had worked on and cared for with her siblings had hardly seen proper care for all these long years. Still; there was little that could be done about it considering the situation they found themselves in.

"Right... So which way to the Clubhouse?" Babs Seed asked, having only been there a few times in the past.

"I think... It's this way." Scootaloo said, pointing a hoof down a trail just barely visible in all the grass that had grown since it was last used.

Without hesitation; the four began walking down the path. The fresh, country air and familiar feel of this place gave Applebloom time to reflect once more. She wished things didn't turn out like this; she wished that they could all go back to the way they were before; when the Princess' ruled over everything with a steady, even hand; when Nopony had to struggle just to live in slums that were just a step above living in the garbage that many homeless ponies lived in, simply to survive.

The more Applebloom looked back on it; the angrier she got. What right did Twilight have, to twist her sister in such a way; to murder or arrest half her family and hunt the other half down like dogs? Likely the most important question in the raging storm of anger and confusion that blew through her mind was; how? How did it all come to this? A tear traveled down her cheek, which she wiped away; taking deep breaths to calm herself, feeling a hoof come over her shoulders, her cousin pulling her into a hug.

"It'll be alright..." Babs Seed said, having noticed Applebloom on the verge of losing her cool.

Applebloom returned the hug, trying hard to calm herself. She looked to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo who had stopped and turned, and were now walking back over to the two cousins, taking note of Applebloom's apparent grief.

"Don't cry, Applebloom..." Sweetie Belle said, trying to hide the fact she was close to that point herself, reminiscing over better times as well.

"Yeah... I... I know it hurts... We know how you feel." Scootaloo said, thinking about Rainbow Dash; how she idolized her as a role model and spiritual sister before, only to see her as a heartless monster now.

It was inevitable it would happen; Sweetie Belle couldn't hold back any longer, admitting she missed Rarity before she and Applebloom both broke down into sobbing, the latter clinging tightly to her Cousin while the other embraced Scootaloo with a hug, the Pegasus Mare staying strong and keeping it bottled up through all this as best she could; angry at the pony responsible for all their pain, and the pain so many other ponies felt. Twilight would pay for this; no questions about it.

The four Mares stopped for a bit, resting under the shade of an Apple tree to calm down and collect themselves. They discussed times long gone, laughed over their silly antics all in the name of getting their Cutie Marks and reminisced over loved ones lost, and all the times they shared with them before; good and bad.

As they talked, Scootaloo drifted off; needing an outlet for the anger she felt. Her stomach growling gave her the perfect idea of how to go about this in a manner that would hardly seem suspicious, as she walked over to a second Apple Tree, a quick and powerful kick with her hind legs causing a bunch of Apples to fall from the tree. Not only did she feel somewhat relieved, but she had an excuse as well.

"So... You guys hungry, too?" She asked, picking up some Apples.

"Yeah." Applebloom said, while Sweetie Belle and Babs nodded, every pony feeling somewhat better after releasing the emotional tension that had built up for so long.

The four mares sat in the shade for a while longer, enjoying a snack out of the Apples, which still tasted like the best apples in all Equestria; relaxing just a moment longer before Applebloom stood up again.

"Well, I guess we better get goin'." She said, the others standing and following her through the Orchard a ways before they came upon a very familiar sight; their Clubhouse; which hadn't changed a single bit since that last day... The retractable ramp was raised, though the four of them were tall enough to easily bring it back down... It seemed they didn't need to, however; a blue aura gently pushing it down.

Sweetie Belle's ears perked, shivers sent down her spine as she felt magic unlike anything she sensed before...

"What is it?" Scootaloo said, noticing her friend's reaction to the obvious presence of another Unicorn.

"Magic... Powerful magic, too." Sweetie Belle replied, looking up to the Clubhouse.

"Can you tell if they're friends or enemies?" Babs Seed asked, clearly not having a grasp on the concept of Magic. Nopony there did, really; besides Sweetie Belle, of course.

"It doesn't work like that." The white-coated Unicorn said, understanding it would take another unicorn to truly understand what it was like. "I can only tell how powerful any source of magic is, and this one... It's powerful, but... Different... I really can't explain it."

"Hmm... Well; we ain't gonna get any answers just standin' around; so come on." Applebloom said, walking towards the old clubhouse, the others following close behind.

They had all gathered around the door, which Applebloom opened slowly, peeking inside to see a Unicorn Mare she knew well enough. "Trixie!?" She asked, in shock and awe; noticing another pony in there too; cloaked and hooded.

The four mares stepped in, seeing Trixie Lulamoon sitting in the room alongside the mysterious other pony. "Hello." Trixie said, standing to introduce herself. "I'm sure you might already know me... You know; 'The Great and Powerful Trixie'!" She said, mimicking her own formerly boastful and egotistical personality, getting a slight smile out of the group; who remembered her well, perhaps not in the fondest manner, but none of that mattered anymore.

"And you'll definitely remember me." The stranger said; removing her hood to reveal a very familiar yellow-coated Pegasus; albeit her eye seemed a bit odd, but there was no mistaking the pink mane and gentle voice.

"Fluttershy!" Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo all exclaimed excitedly, rushing over to her without hesitation, pulling her into a group-hug.

"It's good to finally see a friendly face..."

"Where have you been? How have you been?"

"We missed you."

Babs Seed walked over to and sat near Trixie as the other three bombarded Fluttershy with comments and questions; eventually settling down at the request of their friend, whom they'd honestly never expected to see again. They all sat; swapping stories of their lives; Trixie's travels around Equestria, Fluttershy's roles in the formation of Resistance Movements, whether intentionally or not; and finally, the lives of the Cutie Mark Crusaders after their relocation to Manehattan; how they finally earned their Cutie Marks, and so on and so forth.

"So... Why'd you bring us here?" Applebloom asked eventually, curious.

Fluttershy stared at Applebloom for a moment, thinking o a way to explain it. "Well... It started just before the fall of the Crystal Empire. Princess Celestia showed me a vision of six ponies who would wiled the Elements of Harmony, as the others... Well, you know. Anyway; I saw you three, Miss Babs Seed, and Miss Trixie as the new bearers of the Elements of Harmony."

"But that's only five." Applebloom said, remembering well enough that there were Six elements. "So... Who's the Sixth?"

"I can still use Kindness; the Princess managed to purge the corruption within me before it could consume my body... Even still; it left it's mark." Fluttershy answered; her hoof touching the crystalized portion of her flesh around her blue orb that served as her eye.

"And where are the Elements?" Scootaloo asked.

"Well... They were't easy to find. Princess Celestia never told me, and there were only a select few others she trusted enough to tell. Most of them are gone now, but I managed to find out from one pony who used to Guard the Palace and Princess'; he told me that before the march to the Crystal Empire; Celestia took the Elements to a Dragon's lair at Rambling Rock Ridge. I was skeptical at first, and then my travels brought me to Rambling Rock Ridge once; there is a dragon living up there. I don't know if it has the Elements, but it ties in with the Royal Guard's story, so that would be the most likely place to look."

"Well, wheat are we waitin' for, then? Let's go steal ourselves some dragon's treasure!" Applebloom said, standing up, ready to leave for the Ridge.

"Wait!" Fluttershy said, looking troubled. "Th-there's something you should know... The dragon I saw... It had purple scales and green spines."

The adventurous attitude Applebloom had before disappeared almost entirely, as she knew of only one dragon that looked like what Fluttershy had just described. "A-are ya sure...?" Applebloom asked, torn on the issue now.

Fluttershy nodded. "No mistake; I'm fairly certain the dragon I saw was Spike. He's gotten bigger; much bigger. I don't know if he's aggressive or not... I never let him see me, but the fact remains that Princess Celestia may very well have left the Elements of Harmony with him, and no matter what; we'll have to face him if we want to save Equestria."

Everypony in the room looked very worried; for Babs and Trixie; it was simply the principle that there was a dragon; a creature most Ponies avoided and for good reason. For the others, however; it was deeper than that. They all took a moment to collect their thoughts and make a plan of action; part of each of them praying to Celestia the dragon would remember them, and hopefully hand over the elements without incident.



Twilight paced, obviously irritated. She and Rarity both had retreated to the private chambers of Canterlot Castle in the aftermath of that little episode downstairs and now the Empress stood here, before the one and only pony she had entrusted governorship of Equestria to.

"So explain to me, Rarity; why my enforcers are dealing with repeated incidents involving the 'common rabble' you claim you can take care of so easily?" The Empress said, obviously annoyed with her friend.

"Oh... W-well... I guess towards the frontier it gets a tad more difficult to keep the populace in line, though rest assured; the situation is well under control." Rarity said, admittedly very intimidated by Twilight.

"Yes; so well under control, I'd say. If you consider the recent bombing of the Barracks in Fillydelphia and the Train Raid near Appleoosa 'under control'." Twilight said, turning to the Balcony, standing outside and watching as she brought the sun down below the horizon. "You've disappointed me, Rarity; you sit in this castle enjoying your earthly pleasures with the cowardly 'nobles' below. I thought I could trust you to deal with the people, but you've proven to me that you're far too lenient on these rebels. I will be taking change here, Rarity; you'll be reassigned to duty as an Enforcer until such a time as I deem the situation under control and return to the Crystal Empire. Understood?"

"B-but..." Rarity said, receiving a glare from Twilight before she could finish her objection, a surge of fear tearing through the Unicorn. "Y-yes, Majesty. I understand." Rarity said, likely the most reluctant in the palace to oppose Twilight; having witnessed first-hand many of the brutal acts she was capable of.

"Good; you're dismissed." Twilight replied, turning to look out over the Balcony once more, this time to the city illuminated by moon and torch light, and beyond to the greater part of Equestria. She could feel a storm brewing in the distance; Rarity's incapability of dealing with the Rebellion, allowing it to grow as much as it had, may have given ponies all the encouragement they'd need to stand united against her. Fear was her greatest weapon beforehand, and she still believed that with it she could keep the populace in line. Examples would have to be made, however; the Rebels and their charming little bid for freedom had to be put down swiftly, and their leaders... Well; that would be for her to decide once she had them in her hooves. For now; she watched the clouds gather, as the Pegasi prepared a nighttime storm. Somewhere in Equestria, she felt the faint presence of a familiar magic... Could it be possible? No; there was no way. She had sent the Princess' to their respective Celestial Bodies; Cadence and Shining Armor had been put up on display beside her throne, and there were no other known Alicorns besides her... That didn't mean the Princess' hadn't left behind artifacts, however; some of their influence could very well linger on this world. She heard a knock at the door; opening the door herself.

"Your Majesty; it's finished." A Crystal Guard said, standing alongside a Pegasus Pony made entirely of Dark Crystal; one glowing red orb serving as her eye while the other socket remained empty; proof enough for Twilight this was the same mare as earlier.

"Perfect." Twilight said, turning and inspecting this latest addition to her small, lethal force of personal bodyguards. "I have an assignment for you."
> Five Trials of Harmony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The journey into the Rambling Rock Ridge was, at best; a rough one, and at worst near-impossible. The rocky, mountainous terrain had only grown worse in the days since Twilight's ascension to power; the land becoming twisted and jagged, old paths destroyed or blocked up by landslides, entirely new paths left unmapped and unexplored, as the risk was much greater than it had been before. Many a time, the six mares traveling narrowly avoiding being buried under an avalanche or stumbling off the dangerously thin patches of ground between them and certain doom. True; Fluttershy did help on many instances, and Scootaloo... Her lack of ability to fly was a curse that had been placed upon her since fillyhood, and even though her wings had grown much since those day; they were simply not powerful enough to lift her more than a few feet off the ground for a few minutes, the best she could get out of the appendages being a glide, which in and of itself had plenty of ups and downs.

Still; they persevered; carrying on through the rough environment and to the cave Fluttershy had visited once before. A puff of smoke from within carried with it a foul air, like the breath of a creature that didn't know how to brush, or in this instance; was too big to brush.

"Phew, for a big guy that eats gems, his breath sure smells awful." Babs commented as they approached, Sweetie Belle giggling at that little matter of fact, while Applebloom and Fluttershy cracked a smile.

"Right, then... This is it... So... Who wants to wake him up?" Scootaloo asked, shifting nervously.

"I will. Hopefully he'll recognize me, even after all the time that's passed." Fluttershy said, bravely stepping forward to the mouth of the cave, clearing her throat and standing firmly. "Hello... Spike?" She asked, her semi-whisper slightly louder in an effort to gain the attention of the creature within, a sudden and abrupt end to the infrequent puffs of smoke emerging from the cave and an awkward silence creating a shroud of tension.

Then he emerged from his resting place; a mighty serpent, a dragon so majestic and terrifying, yet as Spike rose from his slumber and brought himself out into the daylight for the first time in years; they could see in his eyes that some semblance of his old self still existed. To what extent, they couldn't be sure; for now all marveled at the dragon's impressive and a tad terrifying length and size; no longer the short and cute baby dragon, but rather; a proper, fully grown and proper addition to the reclusive species ponies had feared for generations.

The dragon turned his gaze down on the group that had gathered, stretching a little to work out the stiffness caused by inactivity. He then lowered his head to be more level with the ponies, looking them all over sternly initially, in a bid to appear more intimidating, though upon recognizing the group... "Finally, you're here! Celestia told me you'd come eventually... Her word was the only thing that kept me here for so long. You all look so... different." Spike said, happy to see friendly faces again after all the years of isolation in this old dragon's nest the Elements had visited so many years ago, evicting the previous tenant.

"You're one to talk, big guy." Scootaloo replied with a smirk, she and the others calming down some, satisfied that the mighty dragon still seemed to be the same spike they knew and loved back in Ponyville.

"Heh, well; Celestia did a good job making me as fierce and dragon-like as possible; even gave me wings! I didn't have wings last time, did I?" He asked, still not quite remembering what transpired during that instance where he had gone through a natural dragon-growth spurt rather than a magically induced one.

"No, I don't believe so." Fluttershy answered, drawing Spike's attention to her above all ponies.

"Fluttershy...?" Spike asked in disbelief, scooping the Pegasus up gently with a massive clawed hand, holding her level with his head. "Fluttershy; you were there with Twilight when... You know. Did she suffer? Is she in pain? I-is she still aware...?" Spike asked, knowing very well what had happened to his long-time friend and caretaker, at least according to what Celestia had told and shown him. It was difficult enough staying here to guard the elements and not take action to help bring such a close pony to her senses, and not knowing these things only made it that much harder, as he could draw his own conclusions, and even then he dreaded certain answered even more than the lack of an answer itself.

Fluttershy broke eye contact, not at all looking back on that day fondly, and she trembled with a mix of anger and frustration at her inability to do anything more than flee, and lament for her friends who had fallen to whatever dark energy had consumed Twilight in that cave. "Spike... I don't know if there's anything left of our Twilight in there. As far as I know, which isn't saying much; she seems to be doing this of her own free will... I can't honestly say, I wasn't there with her when..."

Spike set Fluttershy down, his eyes glazed with tears now. Holding a hand up signaling Fluttershy to stop, he wiped the offending liquid out of his eyes, taking a deep breath in and letting it out slowly, having come to terms that might get such undesirable answers. Still; the hope that his friends and acquaintances gathered here would pass the trials and become the new bearers of the Elements of Harmony, just as Celestia had foretold, drove him onward. Focusing once more on the matters at hand; he looked over the others, aware that they had all lost somepony, or something, important to them as well during this time of troubles. Today would mark the beginning of the end of such a time, however; the great serpent retreated into his cave, leaving the others standing outside feeling varying degrees of confusion and sympathy for the dragon. "You can come in if you'd like..." He called out from within the cave, the six ponies making their way into the cavern one-by-one.

Spike had certainly done a lot with the place; carving tunnels and chambers into the mountainside, stockpiling mountains of gems he had recovered during his digging, and... Well, little more than that, really. It was still impressive to Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, Babs, and Scootaloo; all of whom had never seen how a dragon lived before, at least not a proper dragon. Trixie, meanwhile, remembered a time she stumbled upon on old dragons horde; shuddering at the unpleasant memory of the place, which wasn't quite as abandoned as she'd thought. Still; she outsmarted the brute and fled with her life and a singed stub that was her tail, which took forever to grow back, it seemed. She never suspected she'd ever find herself in the lair of a dragon again, especially a friendly and familiar dragon.

Fluttershy, meanwhile, remembered this place; how she and her friends had forced the previous dragon that resided within this cave to leave, lest Equestria find itself covered by dragon smoke, which wasn't bound to end well for anypony. She smiled, looking back on Pinkie's attempt to make friends with the dragon through laughter; Rainbow Dash's hot-headed, full-frontal assault on the beast; and how she'd finally been the one to persuade the beast to leave using her "stare". Better times, for sure; though her thoughts were brought back to the here-and-now as they arrived in a chamber with six pillars, each of which contained one of the Elements of Harmony.

"Right; it's time to end this once and fer all!" Applebloom declared as she and the others approached the Elements, Spike suddenly positioning himself between them and the elements.

"I'm sorry, everypony; but I can't just hand you the elements." Spike said and five sets of stairs descended into the pillars containing five of the elements. "Well, except Fluttershy, of course; she's still the Element of Kindness, after all." Spike added, picking Kindness up off its pillar and handing the necklace to Fluttershy, turning back to the others. "Each of you have to face your own trial before the elements will become yours to control. According to Celestia; these trials will put you to the ultimate test, to determine whether or not you are worthy of bearing the Elements of Harmony. She never told me who gets which element, exactly; though she left a vague hint that the element you'll inherit used to belong to the pony who had the greatest impact on your life."

The five mares thought about this for a moment, some figuring out what this meant almost right off the bat. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom figured it was their sisters respectively; the two descending the stairs beneath Generosity and Honesty. Scootaloo determined Rainbow Dash not long after, standing above the stairs beneath Loyalty for a moment, before taking a deep breath and holding it for a few seconds as she descended into the darkness beneath the pillar, not knowing what challenges she'd face in her attempt to prove herself worthy, though her resolve to obtain Loyalty drove her forward, the young Mare disappearing into the darkness as her two friends before had.

Trixie, meanwhile, had an easy time determining her element through the process of elimination. Few ponies had ever really had greater impact on her than Twilight Sparkle; and her search being limited to an Element of Harmony made it so much easier for her to guess between Magic and Laughter. Standing on the verge of darkness, Trixie looked back once, and only once, before returning to the task at hand and making her way down to face the test that would determine whether or not she was worthy of inheriting Magic.

Babs, on the other hand, was left alone with the last element; laughter. "Wait... What? I don't even know the last pony who owned that! How could I..." She questioned, stopping for a moment and looking up at Spike, who shrugged; just as confused by the matter as she was.

"You never know; sometimes the most unlikely ponies are the greatest heroes. I admit; I never thought I'd be one to help save Princess Luna from her own demons, or help defeat and later befriend an ancient god of chaos who used evil and underhanded tricks to turn my friends and I against each other. Give it a shot, Babs; you might discover something about yourself you didn't know before." Fluttershy encouraged, leaving the final decision up to the young Earth Pony.

Babs thought about this for a while, wondering if she could ever possibly be a hero of the same magnitude... It was a ridiculous idea and the normally down-to-earth Mare knew she should have refused and walked away now, her cynicism urging her to turn away now rather than pursue some fantasy she knew might very well not be reality... But she had taken a chance on Fluttershy's letter back in Manehattan, why should this instance be any different? Her mind made up; she descended the stairs beneath Laughter, ready and waiting for what fate had in store for her as she made her way through the dark and, in all honesty, rather eerie hallways, dimly illuminated by a bright light on the opposite end, which she slowly walked towards, ears pinned flat against her head, torn between turning back and pressing on... But no; she'd come this far; best to see it through to the end... Right? If she had time to consider before, there was no more now; as the light began rushing towards her, consuming Babs and blinding her temporarily in an experience that was both frightening and odd at the same time, certain her friends and comrades were experiencing a similar phenomena as they pursued their own elements.