> My Little Pony: The Day Equestria Stood Still
>  by Thunderwing250
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Prologue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Equestria: a land of more myths, fantasies, and dreams, than anypony can think of. For centuries, the planet lived in harmony, under the control of two regal sisters: Princess Celestia, of the Sun, and Princess Luna, of the Moon. Together, these sisters brought peace to Equestria for their faithful subjects, seeking happiness and good.

However, there is one secret Equestria conceals... A secret that has never been told, due to the dangerous consequences that neither the Princesses nor their subjects are aware of. Equestria may have once been a dark and chaotic land, ruled by four ancient Alicorns.

The oldest Alicorn, representing Darkness, conquered Equestria along with his three younger brothers, representing the Sky, Sea, and Land. Bent on removing him from power, four other Alicorns with the powers of creation appeared.  The youngest of the four, a Queen representing Creation and the Light, fought alongside her guardians of Time, Space, and Distortion, forcefully removing the rulers of Equestria from power.

After a long battle, the oldest Alicorn of Darkness met his demise, to be buried deep within the an ancient place called the Temple of Shadows, only to disappear from existence years later. For the remaining brothers, the fourth sibling was imprisoned in Tartarus, while the third sibling was imprisoned off planet, in an Astronomical Prison within the stars. The second fled back to the sea, in exile.  

Defeating these Alicorns, primal forces of chaos, was perhaps the toughest and most destructive battle Equestria experienced, resulting with buildings in ruins and cities turned to deserts. Over the course of 1000 years, the Alicorns of creation restored the planet to its former state of peace and buried all evidence relating to the past events of its former rulers, even if that meant erasing the events from everypony's memory..."

> Chapter 1: The Phenomenon
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    It had been a long and dark winter for everypony in Equestria, but spring approached quickly.  In that early morning, Princess Twilight Sparkle awoke from her bed, excited for Winter Wrap-Up. She jumped out of her bed and rushed to the closet, gathering heavy equipment for warmth. After a few minutes, she turned to see her little assistant, still asleep from a long night.  She walked over to him and rubbed his head with her snout.  Spike turned on his side, refusing to wake up at such an early hour.  Twilight giggled.

“Oh come on, Spike. We gotta get ready for another great Winter Wrap-Up,” she said in excitement.

Spike groaned.

“Ahhh... Come on, Twilight. We do this every year... Can’t you wait until later?” he mumbled, turning on his side.

Twilight used her magic to levitate Spike out of bed and onto her back.

“Later? If we wait any longer, spring will be late and I can assure you, nopony wants to go through another cold and dark winter,” she replied, smiling.

Spike dropped his head and went back to sleep.  

Soon Twilight hurried outside, walking all of Ponyville to greet its citizens as they gathered for Winter Wrap-Up.  

---

While the ponies began their yearly Winter Wrap-Up, high above Equestria, in the deepest depths of space, a star went supernova, creating a massive explosion.  As the explosion lit up the sky, it soon amalgamated into an odd looking creature: a creature in the form of an Alicorn.  It let out a fearsome roar, so loud that it shook nearby moons. With that, a mysterious magic was released from his armor and horn as meteors flashed, firing in all directions. At intensive speed, thousands of flares showered into smaller meteors firing through space, marking the Alicorn’s next location.  

---

Back in Equestria, Twilight watched many of her fellow neighbors continue, cleaning up what remained of snow and planting seeds for flowers and vegetables to grow. Spike, still sleeping on her back, finally awoke, looking around to see what was happening. Twilight turned to him.

“About time you wake up,” she said.

Spike yawned.

“I know... I know. I’m just so tired,” he mumbled.

Walking to Sweet Apple Acres, Twilight met up with Applejack, leading a team of ponies to plow the snow out, and another team behind them, planting rows of seeds. She turned to Twilight.

“Mornin’, Twilight! How’s it going?” she asked happily.

“Hey, Applejack. It’s been great. Well, almost great... If someone can wake up.” She giggled. “How’s your progress with the snow?”

Applejack turned her head as she watched her team cleaning up what had remained on the fields.  

“Everything is going great."

She seemed satisfied.

“Hey, Big Mac, gonna need ya to push that heavy stack from the barn. Think ya can handle it?” she yelled out.

Big Macintosh, a hard working red stallion as well as Applejack’s older brother, turned his head.

“Eeyup,” he quickly replied, and went to complete his task.

“Yup, big bro Mac always there…” Applejack said, speaking quickly as she ran back to her task.  “Anywho... Gotta get back and finish up. Don’t wanna see Spring come late.”

“Okay. See you later, AJ,” Twilight replied.

Spike turned to Twilight.

“Is the day over already...? I want to go back to my warm bed,” he mumbled softy.

On the way, they traveled throughout Ponyville, still monitoring progress, until they stopped at Rarity’s house. Out in the yard Rarity, alongside her sister, Sweetie Belle, prepared small bird’s nest for the Animal Team to place in trees. However, Twilight noticed the progress was a little slow.  She turned to Rarity.

“Hey, Rarity.” She smiled. “Do you need any help?”

Rarity lifted her head.

“Oh... Good Morning, darling. Well, for the time being, we could use some help...” Rarity said.

Spike jumped up in excitement.

“Help?” he quickly responded, darting next to Rarity.

“Anything you ask, I'll get it,” he said with a grin.

Twilight smiled.

“Alright. What do you need help with, Rarity?” she asked.

“Well,” Rarity replied, looking all over the table, “I should have something for you... Ah, here it is!”

She used her blue magic to levitate a roll of fabric towards Twilight.

“Would you be so kind as to hold this for me while I'm cutting it?  It would make it easier for me to measure the right size to add for each bird nest.”

Twilight smiled and nodded, and then grabbed the fabric tight. She was happy to help.

As they worked, Fluttershy walked over with the Animal Team, taking the finished birds nest and placing them onto the trees. After two hours, Twilight, Rarity, and Sweetie Belle constructed more than five hundred nests, finishing their duties. In thanks, Rarity gave Twilight a nest as a personal souvenir and Spike, a gemstone, which left him in trance.

“Oh, Rarity...! It's beautiful. Thank you,” he said, beaming.

“Of course, Spike-Wikey,” Rarity replied.      

After they were finished, they parted ways and Twilight and Spike headed to SugarCube Corner, planning to meet up with Pinkie Pie. On the way, Twilight saw Rainbow Dash directing ponies with bringing in the birds. Twilight called out to her.

"Hi, Rainbow Dash!"

“Morning, Twilight! How’s it hanging?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Well, we just finished working with Rarity on the bird’s nests, so I gotta say we got a lot of work done. How 'bout you?” Twilight asked.

“We’re in the process of getting the southern birds up for the new season and their new home. Gonna see if--”

She was interrupted as Cloud Chaser flew up to her with a message.  Rainbow Dash smacked her face with her hoof in frustration.

“Why does that bird brain always do that?” she said under her breath.  

She turned to Twilight.

“Sorry Twilight. Derpy decided to go out west to bring the Western birds. Catch you later!” she called as she flew away.

“Later, Dash,” Twilight replied.

As they arrived at SugerCube Corner, Twilight walked in and noticed the stack of ice skates, and snowboards. She giggled.

“Pinkie, are you going skiing or something?”

Pinkie Pie hopped over the counter, carrying ice skates.  

“Silly Twilight! Just getting some extra skates, for ponies who want to break the ice. Wanna try it again?” she asked.

Twilight backed away. 

“Oh no, Pinkie.  Remember what happened last time?” she replied.

Pinkie Pie thought back that moment, Twilight's first Winter Wrap Up where, still a unicorn at the time, she had slipped knocked the pink pony over, creating a massive snowball and crashing into a tree.

“Oh yeah! I remember that! Hilarious!” she laughed. “Well, if you are not gonna help with breaking, do you mind if you can help me carry all this to the lake?”

“Of course,” Twilight responded.

Two more hours passed as Twilight watched Ponyville’s progress. It was about three quarters finished. Going through the checklist, she marked down all the completed work and skimmed down, running into the last job: to attend the Main Hall for a “Winter Wrap-Up Completion Meeting”. Feeling satisfied with the day's work, she continued patrolling Ponyville, monitoring progress.

---

However, out in space, hundreds of meteors continued traveling at such extreme speed, almost as fast as light, exploded, creating an entire cloud of meteor showers.  In sight of the explosion light years away, it marked Equestria brightly and the great Alicorn in the stars knew that was where it must head.

---

At that same moment, Ponyville witnessed the explosion in the sky and became speechless by the beauty of it.  However, that moment of fascination soon turned to panic, as the meteors came crashing down like miniature bombs, creating small craters as far as the eye could see. Everypony ran in such terror in different directions, evading and taking cover, avoiding the crashing rocks as they blasted through structures. After several minutes, the meteors had ceased, leaving everypony shaking in fear on what had just occurred.  

Twilight hurried back to her castle with Spike and quickly ran to the podium in her room.

“Spike!  Take a letter immediately,” she decreed.

Spike instantly grabbed the pen and paper.

“I’m ready, Twilight," Spike responded.

Twilight viewed the damage in Ponyville and spoke.

“Dear Princess Celestia,

I am writing to you in an emergency.  We have just experienced a catastrophic phenomenon which has apparently destroyed half of Ponyville and unfortunately has delayed our yearly Winter Wrap-Up. As of now, I am about to ask everypony to immediately assist on cleaning up the wreckage.  I fear this problem is more widespread than just Ponyville and I worry it has effected the rest of Equestria as well.  I will try my best to attend to the care of ponies here and hope you are all okay.

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle”

Once Twilight finished speaking, Spike rolled up the parchment and sent it to Princess Celestia in a burst of green fire, hoping to get a response. Just before they walked out the doorway, Spike burped up the letter and immediately opened it.  

“To my faithful student and Princess Twilight Sparkle,

I have just received your message and want to confirm that we are alright. It appears that you are correct that this unusual meteor shower crashed all over Equestria and nearly destroyed several of its cities. Canterlot had suffered some damage, but we can manage in the meantime. My sister will be assisting as well and try to figure out what caused such a disaster.  I wish you good luck, Princess.

- Princess Celestia”

Spike placed the message down on the podium. Twilight rubbed her chin, puzzled by the event, when suddenly, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie rushed in. Twilight turned.

“Girls! Are you alright?” she asked in concern

The ponies, breathing heavily from evading the meteors, looked concerned themselves.

“We’re alright. But we...” Applejack panted; tried to catch her breath.

“We were more worried about you,” Rarity continued Applejack’s sentence.

“I’m alright. I just received a letter from the Princess, herself. She said that this meteor shower has effected all of Equestria. But, she also mentioned that this was a very unusual turn of events. Let’s try to relax for a little and help the other ponies clean up the damage,” she said.

Rainbow Dash raised her eyebrow.

“What about Winter Wrap-Up?” she asked.

“Yes... and Spring is only a few days away,” Fluttershy whispered.

Twilight nodded.

“Unfortunately, we need to put Winter Wrap-Up on hold. As much as we want spring to come, I’m worried that, if another meteor shower occurs, I don’t want ponies to get hurt.  If you know what I mean,” she replied.

Applejack walked forward.

“Well... Even though we have a lot of work to do for Winter Wrap-Up, you definitely have a point. And we’re with you all the way. Just tell us what to do and we’ll get on it!” she said, smiling.  

Rainbow Dash flew around in excitement.

“You betcha, Twilight. We’ll be here every step of the way,” she said.

Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie nodded their heads in agreement. Twilight then turned to Spike, as he smiled.

“Alright! Let’s do this... TOGETHER!” Twilight said proudly.

Cheers came out from the ponies within the library as they prepared for their duties.


> Chapter 2: The Rain of Crystals
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

   In Canterlot, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna paced back and forth, trying to figure out what might have caused such a catastrophic storm, until a guard ran in.

“You Highnesses! News from the Crystal Empire! It appears Princess Cadence has reported that the Crystal Empire was... well... decimated, and some kind of an orange crystal has appeared in the middle of the city. Neither she nor Prince Shining Armor have knowledge of it, and they request orders on what to do with the object.” the guard said in a hurry.

Princess Celestia lifted her head.

“This is starting to become very strange,” she said to Princess Luna.

She turned to the guard.

“Tell Princess Cadance and Shining Armor not to touch the crystal, but to wait for further instructions.  As of now, keep it away from other ponies,” she ordered.

The guard bowed down in compliance and ran out of the throne room. The rest of the guards remained for further orders.  Confused, lacking answers, and not knowing what to do but provide a facade of calm, Princess Celestia ordered all her guards to remain on watch for the time being. They understood and proceeded with their duties, leaving Celestia and Luna alone. Concerned, Luna walked beside her older sister.

“Such a disaster like this has never occurred and it is strange it happened so suddenly. What must we do?” she asked.

Celestia remained silent for a few moments.  She then turned to her sister.

“I don’t know, little sister.  I just... don’t know. But we must get to the bottom of this,” she answered.

For that moment, both Princesses of Equestria felt a sense of hopelessness and could not even respond to the event.

Back in Ponyville, Twilight and her friends continued working alongside other ponies, repairing nearby damages to structures. One by one, each structure was put up accordingly, making the work fast and easy.

Once the last home was repaired, the ponies gathered at the Main Hall for quick congratulations and continued preparations for Winter Wrap-Up, which let them put the meteor shower behind them. After hours of work, Twilight, with her friends beside her, watched as everypony cleaned up what had remained of the snow. Everypony then gathered back at the Main Hall, waiting for Mayor Mare to step forward. Twilight and the others stood alongside the Mayor as she stepped up to the podium.

“Well, eveypony, due to today’s earlier incident, I have to say I have never seen such strong teamwork from everypony here and want to congratulate all of you on everything you did.  Not only did we complete repairs, but we also cleaned up winter in one whole day, so well done, everypony!  Winter is officially wrapped up.” She announced.

Everypony cheered in joy and in happiness, for their work was completed. Even though they were celebrating, Twilight still wondered about what had caused the meteor shower at such a strange time.

Later that afternoon, after the crowd died out, Spike looked around, searching for Twilight, wondering if she was still walking around. He then returned back to the library, to find Twilight, looking through her shelves. Spike walked up to her.

“Um... Twilight...? What are you doing?” he asked out of curiosity.

Twilight remained silent. She seemed not to realize that Spike was behind her.

“Twilight?” Spike repeated.

Yet more silence. Frustrated, Spike ran around her and jumped up in her face.

“TWILIGHT!!!“ he yelled.

Twilight jumped, dropping the books she held.

“Oh, Spike. I’m... I’m sorry. It’s just... That meteor shower that is still puzzling me. And yet I can’t find a single book regarding meteor showers occurring around this time of year. I know they happened hundreds or even thousands of years ago, but this... it’s very unusual,” she replied.

“Okay. Sorry I yelled in your face, but I went looking for you thinking you want to eat something. I guess not,” Spike replied.

Twilight turned to her assistant.

“Yeah! Guess this meteor shower really got to me,” she giggled.

Twilight returned all the books to the shelf and then levitated Spike onto her back.  

“Let’s go and get something to eat,” she said.

Spike smiled as they both headed out the door.

---

In the depths of space, the Alicorn spotted a dim, blinking light of the explosion and soon took flight, heading towards Equestria.  As he flew through space, at the speed of light, he released another set of meteor flares from his armored body, only this time, the power was tripled and quickly rained towards the planet, non-stop.  

---

Continuing their course, nighttime fell over Equestria as Twilight met her friends and they enjoyed a peaceful dinner together. As everypony enjoyed their meals, Rarity noticed Twilight did not touch her food once and was curious.  

“Eat, darling. We did have a rough day and we all could use food and rest,” she said, smiling.

“Twilight’s not eating!” Pinkie Pie shouted in excitement. “There’s only one thing to do!”

Pinkie Pie, wearing a physician’s coat, and stethoscope, looked at Twilight. She opened her mouth, checked her throat, eyes, and ears. After a few seconds, she rubbed her chin.

“Well. I see nothing wrong with her,” she said, throwing off her coat and stethoscope.

Applejack stood.

“Something on your mind, Sugarcube?” she asked.

“It’s nothing,” Twilight replied.

There was silence as her friends stared at her. Twilight sighed.

“It’s just this meteor shower that just happened is bothering me, and I’m afraid it’s going to happen again. And... I don’t want anypony to get hurt, so I'd rather keep an eye out,” she said with concern.

Everypony smiled and walked over to hug her.

“Don’t worry Twilight, we'll all be at your side,” Fluttershy whispered.

“You bet. We’re with you all the way” Rainbow Dash replied.

“Oh, girls” Twilight said, tearing up.

She hugged them all in return.

Distracted, a waiter came out and stopped by the table. The waiter cleared his throat.

“You young ladies do know that we are closed, right?” he said.

The mares looked at him and laughed.

“Oh right. Guess we hugged for a while,” Twilight giggled.

The group of friends soon cleaned up their mess and went their separate ways, wishing each other a good night. Walking away, Twilight's relief from her friends comforting her was short lived, for she still feared that something was about to happen.  Once inside her castle, she went directly to bed.  As she tried to close her eyes, all she could think about was the safety of her friends.  She started to cry quietly, hiding her face against her pillow. Before she knew it, Spike walked over to her side.

“Twilight?” he whispered.

Twilight picked up her head, her eyes still watering. She quickly jumped off her bed and embraced him.

“Oh Spike... I’m scared. I don’t want to lose you or my friends.  If I did, I just don't know what I'd do,” she whimpered.

Spike smiled and couldn't help but tear up, touched by her words.

“Don’t worry Twilight. We’re all here for you. You're our family... My family,” he replied.

They cried together for a little while until Twilight managed to get a hold of herself. She felt a little better. She wiped Spike's eyes, and then her own and gently tucked him back into bed before returning to try to get some rest herself. Confident in her friends’ words, she fell asleep.

---

Up at the Crystal Empire, one of Princess Celestia's guard had successfully alerted Princess Cadance and Shining Armor the news. Even though half the city was decimated, they tried to investigate the crystal, now embedded into the ground. Surrounded by guards for protection, an electrical pulse flashed out of the crystal, knocking all of them back and away from it.  After a few seconds, Princess Cadance stood back up on her hooves and turned to the guard.

“Whatever that was, it doesn’t seem friendly” she said.

All of a sudden, an earthquake rumbled in the surrounding area when the crystal seemed to blink and shot a beam straight up into the sky. After a few seconds, the light vanished and the rock disintegrated into sand. Not knowing what it was, Princess Cadance turned to her husband.

“Shining Armor, I need you to double the defenses while I take another group and begin evacuating,” she ordered.

Everypony paused at her command.

“But, Princess? The Crystal Empire?” one of the guards said.

Princess Cadance remained silent.

“You heard the Princess. Let’s get to it,” Shining Armor commanded.

Royal guards complied and went to their duties. Shining Armor walked beside his wife, looking at the damage. He rubbed his head against her for comfort.

“No matter what happens, I will be here for you,” he replied.

Princess Cadance turned.

“Thank you, Shining Armor. I’m... I’m just worried about the Princesses, including Twilight,” she said.

“Don’t worry. I have faith in Twiley. You should too!  She’ll be fine,” he answered.

Cadance sighed, nodded, and turned away.

“I’m going to bed. Let me know if something happens,” she said, walking towards her room.

“Good night, Cadance,” Shining Armor replied.

---

Back in the peaceful, silent Ponyville, everypony was enjoying their rest. However, twisting and turning, Twilight began to sweat. In her dreams, she saw Ponyville engulfed in flames and ponies fleeing for their lives. Hurrying to rendezvous with her friends, she saw them chained up to posts as the fire got worse. Calling out to them, she raced to reach them, but in doing so, they seemed to get further and further away. Suddenly, a building tumbled down blocking her path. Seeing nowhere to go, her friends disappeared from the distance. Feeling hopeless, she fell to her knees in fear. Then, a mumbling, deep voice spoke from a short distance. She turned to it and saw a strange creature. It resembled an Alicorn, but nothing she had ever seen before. Afraid, she crawled backwards as its distorted form walked up to her. The Alicorn chuckled under his helmet.

Twilight’s eyes widened as a giant, scaly beast appeared behind the Alicorn. As the smoke cleared, Twilight's eyes began to water at the shock of what she saw.

“No... SPIKE!!!” she wailed out.

The monster roared, striking fear in Twilight and the Alicorn disappeared within the fire.  All of a sudden a whisper came to her.  

“Twilight” the voiced called, and continued, until she woke up.  

Awakening, from her nightmare, Spike shook Twilight, in a hurry.

“We gotta get out, Twilight. It’s happening again,” Spike cried.

Twilight and Spike hurried outside her castle and froze. Twilight’s nightmare was real and horrific.  Immediately, she hurried through Ponyville, dodging meteors crashing onto the planet’s surface, destroying homes, stores, statues, and even local wildlife.

Unfortunately, Ponyville was not to the only city getting slammed with rocks, but all over Equestria and even lands outside the Kingdom. Meteors came down like a rain of fire, obliterating every object in their path, creating worldwide panic and fear. Equestria was facing its apocalyptic moment with ponies fearing their minimal chance of survival.  

Not willing to give up, Twilight grabbed Spike and threw him on her back searching desperately for her friends.  On the way, she spotted Rarity and Rainbow Dash.  Before Twilight spoke, Rainbow Dash informed both of them to meet up at Sweet Apple Acres.  After continuously dodging the fiery rocks, they arrived at Sweet Apple Acres taking shelter and safety.   

On her way, she witnessed the powerful flames, created by the meteor impacts, destroying everything in their path. Arriving at Sweet Apple Acres, she ran right into Applejack's house, where her friends hid.  Frightened and tired from fleeing, Fluttershy began to cry.

“Oh... the poor creatures. And... I can’t do anything to save them” she cried.

Rainbow Dash paced back and forth, feeling impatient. Her frustration soon hit its peak.

“AAH! I can’t take it anymore. We gotta do something to put out the fire,” she yelled out.

Applejack walked forward.

“Well, I ain’t no Pegasus, but even if you tried to put out the fire, these meteors will still crash down, and the worst part is... it’s not even over,” she stated.

The friends knew for sure this meteor shower was going to happen again, but just couldn't figure out why and what was its cause. 
  
> Chapter 3: The Alicorn and the Archivist
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Twilight looked out the window, as meteors continued to crash to the ground, creating explosions and making craters in the ground. The worst part though, apple trees caught fire, burning one by one throughout the orchard.

After a few minutes, the meteor showers subsided, leaving nothing but devastation behind.  And that, unfortunately, was just the beginning.

Twilight and her friends began slowly investigated the area around the farm, as well as the sky, signaling an all clear from the front of the house. Without warning, a loud bang was heard from behind the house. Quickly, they ran to see one meteor blink as it pierced the ground. Pinkie Pie hopped over to the rock and became wide-eyed with glee as the rock crystallized itself. Turning a bright orange, Pinkie Pie made silly faces to watch her own reflection on the crystal's sides. Rarity, impressed by the crystal, walked over to it. Getting closer and closer, the crystal flashed, firing an electric pulse towards Pinkie Pie and Rarity, throwing them backwards with incredible force. Stunned by the crystal's power, a beam fired vertically up into the dark sky. Within seconds, the sky lit up brightly as a giant fireball slowly descended to the planet’s surface.   

---

In Canterlot, both Celestia and Luna witnessed the beam and saw, from a long distance, the great fireball.  The object crashed, creating a mushroom cloud and a sound so loud it shook the planet's surface. It cracked windows, shattered glass, and knocked small objects off the shelves. Princess Celestia turned to a royal guard.

“Send out an alert to all guard posts, and if any of them saw where it landed, inform them to send a regiment out to investigate it,” she commanded.

The royal guard complied and quickly ran to his duty. Luna squinted.

Why do I have this feeling that someone caused this meteor shower, she thought to herself.  

“Is there something wrong, Luna?” Celestia asked.

“Oh. It’s nothing, Celestia,” Luna quickly replied.

Celestia raised her eyebrow.

“Luna?” she responded with curiosity.

“This is very odd, sister. I just can’t figure it out. What must we do?” she said with a sigh.

“I don’t know. I fear for the worst, but we must project our subjects at all costs,” Celestia responded.

There was a long silence between the two sisters. Soon, a royal guard charged in, breathing heavily.

“Your Majesties! I have news! Guards are about to investigate the meteor, they need your permission to proceed?” he reported.

“Yes.  They may proceed,” Celestia replied.

The royal guard bowed and immediately ran to the signal tower, as the guards lit up each tower through Equestria. 

Down south, the leader of the regiment witnessed the signal and proceed towards the crash site.  As they slowly crept up towards the crash site, fire spread rapidly trapping the regiment inside. In panic, each one tried to use their magic to break free, but to no avail. As the fire got worse, smoke began to cloud their vision.

Suddenly, something passed each and every one of them, knocking them off their hooves and slamming them to the ground with incredible power. Cries and screams were heard as the mysterious object flew at indescribable speed. Nearby, several guards at the communications post, just under the signal tower, heard the commotion and began to prepare for the unexpected. Though the danger gave them pause, one guard was ordered to send out an emergency message to Canterlot, alerting about the mysterious object attacking them. 

As the sounds of terror subsided, silence fell, leaving guards shaking at the knees. Within seconds, hoof steps were heard on the roof, slow and heavy. They stopped, then bang, the mysterious figure dropped through the roof, slamming guards against walls, doors, and furniture. Scared to death, one guard flew through the door and ran as fast as he could with the letter to Canterlot. 

Lightning struck in front of him, leaving the guard surrounded in flames. Crouching down in fear, a mysterious figure walked towards him slowly. However, due to the smoke, vision was at minimal, making it difficult to identify the creature. A hoof stepped down heavily in front of the guard’s face. From what he saw, the creature had a strong and powerful armor with lining that glowed orange as bright as the sun. He also noticed that the creature was tall, taller than the Princesses themselves. He watched as it lowered its head from the thick smoke. Shocked by its appearance, he realized quickly that it was an Alicorn, but a very unusual Alicorn he had never seen before. Its bright orange eyes glared at him.

“Are you afraid?” the Alicorn asked with a deep, echoing male voice.

The guard was too frightened to respond. The Alicorn’s eyes brightened up like fire.

“Good!” he responded, before disappearing before the guard’s very eyes.

The creature's wind speed threw the guard nearly half a mile away from the site. 

Cloaked by the smoke, the Alicorn aimed for the planet’s oceans, absorbing the water and creating atmospheric clouds, covering the planet. In doing so, thunder and lightning rumbled throughout world, causing its citizens of all kinds to erupt into chaos.

As Twilight and her friends watched from below, they realized that this was no ordinary storm. Something else was coming, and he was not in a good mood.   

Smoke began to fade as did the flames, subsiding from the destroyed area. Awakening a few seconds later, the guard soon realized the creature left nothing but rubble and dirt. However, not only did he feel relieved that he survived, he felt deeply frightened. Frightened that this creature of unknown origin was on a brink of destroying everything.  Injured, limping, he slowly made his way back to Canterlot.

There, the Princesses watched as the clouds began to thicken and the sky darkened, covering the Sun and Moon. Sensing danger, Princess Celestia summoned the weather captains to maintain and disperse the clouds. 

While they attempted to remove the clouds, lightning struck uncontrollably and naturally, causing the weather captains to back away from the clouds. It was if the clouds had minds of their own and that it was only nature that was controlling it. After a few minutes of planning, the captains charged, full force towards the clouds, until a bright, reddish colored, electrical beam flashed in a bolt of lightning, striking them and causing them to fall from the sky.

Quickly, the royal guards swooped in and caught the injured captains to bring them safely to the ground.  Medics hurried to the scene. Determining the cause and after effects of the electrical shock, the doctors looked up to the royal guards.

“Let’s take them to the hospital. Quickly!” One of the doctors said.

Above in the castle, Celestia and Luna watched as the weather captains were carried away. They knew now that this was no ordinary storm. Something was out there, but what?  

They took flight, hoping to pass through the clouds. Yet, that all changed as soon as another powerful beam, struck down towards them, which they dodged safely. They halted their advance as the skies continued to darken. Instead, they took a safe route by flying over Canterlot, alerting their subjects to seek shelter and avoid being outside at all costs. As they flew over, Luna began to wonder. She started to think twice about what they were doing, for it was a Royal Guards' duty to alert their subjects, not for Princesses to do it themselves, for their duty was to defend their subjects. 

By the time both Princesses returned to the castle, they were surprised to find a mysterious unicorn stood in the throne room. Guards rushed in to protect their Princesses from this mysterious figure.

“Halt! Identify yourself!” One of the guards yelled.

The unicorn walked into the light, revealing her face, with freckles on her cheeks.  Her skin was gray and pale, her hair was white, and wore glasses.  She almost looked like a Librarian, to the ponies.  

“Forgive me, Princesses for barging in.  Since your guards demand my identity, I am known as the Archivist.  I have come to you to bring news about this phenomenon, yet, I am not able to speak the whole truth, for it is against the ancient laws,” the Archivist said.

The guards felt uneasy by her sudden appearance, yet wondered about her name. Celestia and Luna began to think about this unicorn, wondering if she has a possible explanation to the strange events.  However, doubt clouded Celestia's mind. How could this unicorn be The Archivist? She had never heard of such a pony existing in real life, only in old Pony's tales.  Celestia stepped forward.

“The Archivist is nothing but fiction and this is no time to come here telling us while we are in the middle of a catastrophe, that you know the issue and yet cannot tell us the whole truth.  And if this is some sort of a treasonous act, I ask you to leave this castle,” she replied with suspicion.

The Archivist stepped forward.  At that same time, she studied Celestia and Luna, realizing something was wrong.

“You don’t know, do you?” she said.

Luna walked alongside her sister, frowning.

“Don’t know what? I command you to say what you need to say. This is no game!” she yelled out.

There was a silence. Fearing that this unicorn maybe involved in a treasonous plot, Celestia turned to her guards. 

“Arrest her, hold her on trespassing and suspected treason,” she ordered.

The guards walked to the unicorn, pointing their spears as they lead her away.  Before leaving the room, The Archivist stopped and turned to the Princesses.

“I warn you, Princesses. With your lack of knowledge will come with a heavy paid price! A price that will cost you your own throne,” she said.

Luna stomped her hoof to the floor, cracking the surrounding tiles. 

“Get this unicorn out of our throne room,” she yelled out.

Even though Princess Celestia and Princess Luna thought of this imposter as a possible traitor, they recorded her words as a warning.  The sisters looked at one another in curiosity.

“Do you think the Gryphon Kingdom is behind this?” Luna asked.

Celestia squinted to the sky.

“I don’t know, but we are going to get to the bottom of this,” she whispered.
> Chapter 4: First Strike
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Twilight browsed through the Ponyville, accompanied by her friends, and examined the damage.  Once again, all the work they did the previous day was a waste. However, even as the smoke dispersed, clouds remained in the sky, creating thunder and lightning, but it was no ordinary storm. Rainbow Dash tried to fly up and stop the storm, but was held back by the lightning bolts. She retreated to the ground, next to Twilight. 

“What we do?” she asked.

Twilight turned to Spike.

“Spi--” Twilight was interrupted when Spike burped up a roll of parchment. “A letter from the Princess?”

The six mares read the letter together, calling for an emergency from Canterlot. Twilight rolled up the letter and closed her eyes for a moment. Her friends watched her in silence-- they knew something was wrong.  Twilight opened up her eyes.

“We have to go to Canterlot. Something serious is happening and it’s our job, as the wielders of the Elements of Harmony to figure that out. What do you say, girls?” Twilight said       

Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy looked at one another and smiled.

“We’re with you all the way, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash said with a smile. 

Twilight smiled in return. Spike, standing next to her, gave her a thumb-up.  

They hurried to the Express train, only to see that the train tracks were destroyed after the meteor shower. 

“We have no choice! With the train down, we need to go through the Everfree Forest to reach Canterlot,” Twilight said.

Her friends followed her through the dark forest, quickly making their way to Canterlot.  On the way, they stopped at Zecora’s house.  They halted when they noticed that half of her house was destroyed. In panic the ponies called for her, until Zecora walked out, unharmed.

“Ponies, I fear I may need your help here,” she asked. 

Applejack came forward.

“Zecora! We were worried sick about you, once we saw your house,” she said.

"Worry not, dear friends, but I was taken by surprise. I did not expect these meteors to fall from the skies," Zecora replied.

“Do you know, what may have caused this, because I couldn’t figure it out,” Twilight said anxiously.

Zecora shook her head.

"I do not have answers, just a home quite distressed. However, after your journey, please come in and rest." she replied

The ponies walked in and sat down to relax for the time being. The ponies breathed a sigh of relief that their friend was okay and assisted her in picking up what was destroyed off the floor.  After a few minutes, the floors were clear, yet her home was still in shambles.  Twilight turned to Zecora.

“Zecora. We’re on our way to Canterlot, but if you want, you can stay in Ponyville,” she said.

Zecora raised her eyebrow.

“Me...? Truly?” she replied. 

Applejack stepped in.

“Well sure.  Your house is... well... ummmm..." She paused and looked around. “Doesn’t look safe, but it would be nice if you could stay at my place.”

Zecora smiled.

“Thank you, Applejack.  I will make my way back.” she said. 

Suddenly, Spike tapped on Twilight’s shoulder. 

“Umm... I hate to break up the talk, but shouldn’t we get moving?” he said.

Twilight nodded.

“You're right, Spike.”

She turned to her friends.

“Let’s go everypony. For all of Equestria’s sake, we need to get to Canterlot, fast!”

Her friends understood and they soon left Zecora as she went to Ponyville.

---

Back at Canterlot, Celestia remained calm on her throne, analyzing and thinking about the recent situation.   Luna, on the other hand, paced back and forth in concern.

“Sister... this is becoming frustrating.  We must take the ponies into safety shelters,” she pleaded. 

Celestia, still unable to come up with results, picked up her head.

“Very well, Luna... We’ll--" 

Suddenly, royal guards ran into the throne room, carrying an injured guard, bruised and singed. Badly hurt, he struggled to his hooves.

“Princesses! I have to... to report news,” the guard said, breathing heavily.

Princess Celestia and Luna turned to their guards.

“Quickly! Assist him!” Celestia ordered.

“Bring water, at once!” Luna called out.

The sisters walked to him with concern. Once they stood over him, the noticed severe burns on his leg and half his iron armor, melted.

“What happened?” Celestia asked.

The Royal guard lifted his head, then suddenly, a roar was heard from outside.  The roar was so loud that it rocked the inside of the castle, striking tremendous fear. One pony from the small town below screamed in terror as a dark shadow flew over it.  The injured guard shook.

“It’s him!” he said in horror. “ITS HIM!”

Celestia and Luna turned, as the creature flew across Canterlot Castle, releasing powerful supersonic waves, cracking and shattering windows.  Suddenly, the Princesses knew, this was no drill.  Something was attacking them and immediately took action. 

“Battle stations, everypony! This is not a drill!” Princess Celestia called out.

“You! This one needs medical attention. And you, alert Prince Shining Armor about the incident.” Luna ordered.

Royal guards complied and went to their duties quickly. Outside, the creature, cloaked in the dark sky shot orange lightning bolts, striking down on homes and structures, destroying everything in its path. It was like a demon from the skies, raining fire upon Equestria. The Princesses took action in attempt to track and stop the beast.

---

Down in the Dungeons of Canterlot, prisoners tried to look out the cell windows, but were unable to due to their small size. The Archivist remained silent, gazing towards her own window, watching the stone around it light up along with the orange lightning outside.  Other prisoners panicked and worried amongst themselves, wondering out loud what could be happening outside.  The Archivist, relaxed, answered them.

“It’s "Firewing Paradoxes". However, his real name is Khaoios,” she said.

One of the prisoners walked next to the Archivists’ cell.

“Khaoios?” he said in fear.

“Strange that none of us heard of him.  Yet, his name alone sounds chaotic and evil” a stallion responded.

“Indeed. Khaoios is very powerful. He's known for his intelligence and strategic thinking. He's also no ordinary Alicorn,” she said.

“Even Tirek?” the one prisoner said.

The Archivist scoffed.

“Khaoios would put Tirek out of his misery.” She replied. 

A royal guard, watching the prisoners at the time, tilted his head in curiosity.

“How do you know this?”  he said as he walked to her cell.

The Archivist shook her head.

“Khaoios is the name of that creature we are currently fighting.  Though his power has grown over three thousand years, possibly more... I am unsure of it.  However, we should all be concerned more about his exceedingly intelligence and not by his power. To outsmart him won’t be very easy. I can assure you of that,” she continued. “As long as he holds the Artifact, he can foresee our next moves.  And that, my friends, is what we should be afraid of."

The Prisoners and royal guard stared at her, curious about her knowledge of the creature.  There was a long silence, until the royal guard opened her cell and walked in.  He sat down by the door way in curiosity.

“So, are you a fortune teller who was able to predict this moment?” he asked.

“No. I am The Archivist. Keeper of the Ancient Scrolls of Equestria, sworn to keep all ancient information a secret as it was ordered to be. I cannot and will not disobey my masters,” she responded.

The stallion was puzzled, still concerned about the knowledge she held.

---

Back outside the castle, Celestia and Luna followed the shadow as it continued to strike down on buildings with its incredible power.  Soon, high in the sky, they eventually caught up with the beast, cloaked in a strong, dark fog surrounding its body.  Celestia and Luna hovered by one another, gazing upon this powerful monster.

“Speak, Demon. What brings you to Equestria with the nerve to attack my subjects?” Celestia yelled out.

The creature’s eyes narrowed, as if her words were nothing. Without answer, Celestia used her magic on the creature, only to go through him.  A rumble from the creature soon turned to fear as it charged, full force, towards the sisters. Evading the attack, the sisters separated to cut off the creature's escape route. Nonetheless, escape was not his plan. Magic, lightning bolts, thunder, and strong winds raged in the sky, creating nothing but violence. Firing and dodging bolts, the creature knew he was only wasting his time, and turned away, confronting Luna.

“Come, foul Titan! We shall send you to the never ending night of Tartarus!” she cried out.

The creature growled.

“You will try... he spoke deeply and fiercely.

Luna grinned as she used her magic until the creature, with his tremendous power, teleported away. From that point, Luna gazed at the creature, for it revealed its true form. Fear came to her and she could not move. 

Shaking in panic as she stared at the creature, she remained silent. Celestia, lost in the dark clouds, lost sight of Luna and called for her. As she called, Luna could not move nor speak. The creature, with its massive wingspan, armored body, and fearful appearance lowered itself towards her. Luna backed up, only to be protected by Celestia, flying through the dark clouds. Luna, still distracted, spoke.

“Wha...? What are you?” she said, shaking in fear.

Celestia turned, only to have her eyes widened by the appearance of the creature. The great Alicorn tilted his head.

“I am... a creature from beyond the stars. A creature embedded with the gift of intelligence. A creature of old and almighty; a creature who has watched this planet for three thousand years. You may call me Khaoios!” he said, exposing his true self. 

Celestia tried to remain calm, but was stunned along with her sister, by the alicorn. His body was dark with a dark red mane and tail; his black armor with its bright orange edges.  The edge of his wings had five orange blades, which glowed as bright as fire.  With the power unleashed by Khaoios, Celestia and Luna were tossed back into the throne room, slamming onto the floor.  Weakened, Celestia picked up her head, struggling to get up. Khaoios landed in front of them, cracking the floor as he walked towards them. 

“You may strike us down, Khaoios, but know that you are already defeated. My student and her friends will stop you,” Celestia spoke, out of breath.

Khaoios halted in place and listened.

“Together, they are more powerful than you could ever be, vile one,” Celestia continued.

Registering her words, Khaoios circled them, like a shark, seeking its prey.

“Is that so? You speak highly of your disciples, Princess. But that matters not. Even if you claim they are more powerful than I, think twice, whatever powers they possess are useless against the power of intelligence. You may blabber on about them, but worry not. When I am finished with you and your sister, I will deal with them personally and slowly.” He knelt in front of Celestia, using his magic to grip her throat. “Be aware, Princess Celestia.  I am much more intelligent than you can ever imagine. Enough to extract that crown from your head.”

Celestia choked, gasping for air, but she scowled, defiant.

“You... won’t get away... with this, Khaoios,” she whispered.

Khaoios laughed.

“Thou shall fear my wrath, Princess Celestia of Equestria,” Khaoios threatened, before smoke poured into the throne room. 

> Chapter 5: The Demand of Answers
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The royal guards knocked down the door to the throne room, only to find Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, on the ground and unconscious. However, there was no sign of Khaoios: it was as if he vanished into thin air. The guards rushed to their Princesses, assisting them to their chambers for rest. Without Celestia and Luna, a regiment of guards departed separate ways – one regiment rushed to Ponyville and the other to the Crystal Empire. 

During that time, Khaoios continued his rampage, flying and destroying everything that came into his path.  One by one, buildings, trees, homes, were either blown away or caught fire, creating total chaos throughout Equestria. As Khaoios continued, the Twilight and her friends reached Canterlot, only to realize the city was in ruins, with only a few structures still standing. The six mares were in complete shock as they looked around.  They could only imagine the worse, but knew that too much sympathy would slow down there progress.  Confident enough, they pressed on.

As Twilight and her friends walked through the city, they could only observe the chaotic aftermath, until an injury earth pony came about. 

“Princess Twilight..." he gasped.

Twilight knelt down and tried to calm him.  Fluttershy walked over to assist him.

“What happened? Was it the meteor shower?” Fluttershy asked.

The stallion shook his head.

“It was moving too fast, we couldn’t see it,”  he replied, shaking in fear.

Twilight tried to hold herself together, for she felt sorry for the injured pony and then saw other survivors, silent. Rainbow Dash began to lose her patience, dying to know what had occurred.

“Ah! Can’t somepony tell us what happened? Seriously? What’s with the silent treatment,” she cried out

Pinkie Pie walked forward.

“These ponies won’t tell us anything because the mood in this place is just too serious! What we need is a... PARRRRRRRTAY!” She yelled out.

Rarity bit Pinkie Pie’s tail.

“Pinkie, you know this is no time for partying!  Although, I must admit, everypony seems to be very quiet and afraid."

Twilight turned to Rarity.

“Rarity, can you, Applejack, and Fluttershy stay here and see if you can round up survivors while Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Spike and I see the Princesses?” she asked.

Applejack smiled.

“We sure can do that, Twi,” she replied

“Of course,” Rarity responded.

“Got it, Twilight,” Fluttershy answered.

Applejack turned.

“Well, we ain’t helpin’ anypony by just sitting on our rumps! Let’s get goin’ already!” she said as she began her task.

While Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy went off to find survivors, Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Spike hurried as fast as they could to investigate. At the door of Canterlot, guards knelt down, to Twilight.

“Princess! You must come quickly!” one of the guard said.

“Yes. Please take me to see the Princesses,” Twilight answered as she and her friends followed the guard inside.

Walking in, Twilight noticed damages and cracks within the castle, only to fear that the Princesses were injured. Frightened for her mentor, Twilight ran to her chambers only to find Celestia and Luna, in their beds, recovering from their battle.

“Princess Celestia! Princess Luna!” She cried out.

Celestia, still in pain from battle, turned to her former student. She looked relieved for just a moment before grabbing Twilight by the shoulder.

“Twilight.  This... creature. You must not fight him. He’s... too..."

Celestia fainted, slumping in bed.

Spike, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie walked into the Princess’ chambers.  Spike walked up to Twilight.

“Twilight..." Spike whispered.

Twilight remained silent. Spike tried to touch Twilight shoulder, and he felt a tremble. Twilight began to weep, fearing she lost her mentor, until a guard stepped forward. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie walked from behind to comfort their friend in need. 

“The Princesses are going to be okay," the guard assured her gently. "They are just knocked out from battle.”

Twilight turned to the guard, now in anger.

“Who did this?” she demanded.

“We... I...” the guard stuttered.

“I SAID WHO?” Twilight cried out in anger.

Another guard stepped in.

“I was in charge of a recent prisoner, however, she seems to know a lot about this creature.  Do you wish to see her?” he asked.

“Yes," Twilight said, "take me to her.”

“Very well,” the guard said, and walked to the dungeons, followed by Twilight, Spike, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie.

---

Outside, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy managed to gather survivors and safely escort them to the Gardens of Canterlot, where they could settle for the time being. Rarity took the lead, Fluttershy walked beside the crowd, and Applejack walked from the back of the crowd, making sure no pony fell behind. One the way, Fluttershy saw one filly remained in a corner, shaking in fear. She walked over to her.

“Are you okay, little one?” she softly asked.

The filly shook her head.

“I lost my mommy and daddy, and I’m scared!” the filly cried.

“Oh, there, there. You can stay with me, and I'll help you find your family,” Fluttershy said with a smile.

The filly sniffled and brushed her tears away and walked closely to Fluttershy as the other remaining survivors continued their course. Rarity monitored the crowd as she noticed many of them were trembling and scared. Yet she could not understand why they would be afraid, if they had all survived. Something was missing.

Strangely, Applejack, felt the same thing, at the back of the crowd. Something was truly wrong. 

“Come on, ya’ll. Canterlot Gardens should be a safe place for ya,” Applejack called out. 

The crowd continued to walk to Canterlot Castle. Applejack still felt uneasy, for she worried about her own family back in Ponyville. Their safety, in her eyes, was top priority, but she picked up her head and remained positive that they were okay.

---

Back inside the Castle, the guard continued to lead Twilight and her friends to the last cell at the end of the dungeon.  There, the pony, facing out the window, remained calm.

“Madame Archivist. You have a visitor,” the guard said.

The Archivist sighed.

“Yes. Twilight Sparkle, I presume. I was expecting you to visit,” she responded, her voice monotone, as she turned to face them.

Twilight and her friends stared at her, observing the Archivists appearance.   The Archivist raised her eyebrow.

“Is there something troubling you, Princess?”  she asked in curiosity.

Twilight snared.

“Yes. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are up in their chambers, fighting for their lives and I want to know who this creature they were talking about was!” Twilight barked in frustration.

The Archivist grinned.

“I see your frustration, for you truly care about your mentors. Don’t you?” she replied.

“Madame Archivist! Please. We all need to know what this creature is,” the guard insisted.

“Very well then.” The Archivist understood. “Twilight Sparkle, the creature that attacked your Princesses is an Alicorn, known as Firewing Paradoxes.”

Twilight tilted her head.

“Firewing Paradoxes?” Spike repeated.

“Yes. However, according to my masters, his true name is Khaoios,” The Archivist responded.

Twilight and her friend’s eyes widened.

“Khaoios?” Twilight said. “And he's coming here?”

“Ye--”

The Archivist was interrupted.

“Khaoios is coming? Ooo! When will he be here? What’s his favorite color? Doeshelike balloons? Candy? Balloonsmadeofcandy?” Pinkie Pie screamed out.

“PINKIE!!!” Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Spike out.

The Archivist remained monotone.

“I understand your optimism, Pinkie Pie. However, Khaoios would not be such a nice guest for a party.  He would literally “crash” your party, and not in a friendly way, but more of a hostile, party-pooper way.”

Twilight thought The Archivist was trying to be a smart and rude, and all it did was make her furious.

“I have no patience for this right now, Archivist. I want to know how we can stop him and he’s somewhat like Tirek,” she commanded. 

The Archivist nodded.

“Khaoios’ power is beyond anything you've encountered. However, he is more powerfully intelligently than physically. That is the most important. However, we have an advantage over him. Even though he’s intelligent, using his magic and power drains him greatly thus forcing himself to retreat. Why do you think Celestia and Luna were easily defeated?  That’s because Khaoios took the opportunity to observe his opponents, finding their weakness, then attack them. However, if he were to attack head-on, his power would drain dramatically, making him weak,” she explained.

Twilight tried to record the Archivist’s information, but another guard walked in.

“Report! The survivors have been successfully rounded up and are awaiting your orders, Princess,” the guard said.

Twilight turned.

“Understood. Thank you for the report,” she replied.

The guard bowed and left the dungeon. Rainbow Dash flew towards the cell bars.

“So, where’s this Khaoios now, Archivist?” she asked.

“I do not know. He is quite an intelligent strategist, to be honest, to a point of confusing me. If you wish to stop him, you’ll need guides to assist you,” The Archivist answered.

“Pfft... like Twilight will ever let you out,” Rainbow Dash replied bluntly.

Twilight grinned.

“Rainbow,” she tutted.

“Twilight! How can you trust her? She knows a lot about Khaoios, and she didn’t have the nerve to tell us or anypony here?” Rainbow defensively replied.

“As a matter of fact, Rainbow Dash,  I did. Unfortunately, Princess Celestia and Luna believed I might be involved, understandably, and put me here, without affording me the chance to explain who created the meteors."

Everypony jumped.

“WHAT!!!” they all said.

“Khaoios is the one who created the meteors. My master dubbed him, The Extra-Terrestrial Alicorn.  And yes, the reason why it stopped and continued again later in the day is because it drained his power.  He had to rest and recuperate until he could perform the spell again. Does that answer your question?” The Archivist replied.

Everypony remained silent, and in shock by what they heard.

“Your silence is not assisting the citizens of this planet. Better to react now than waiting for Khaoios to destroy everything you care about,” The Archivist continued.

Twilight turned to the guard.

“Release her,” she ordered.

“Princess!” the guard yelped.

“Twilight!” Rainbow Dash protested.

“If she knows about Khaoios, then we’ll take her along.  However, if you make one slip, Archivist, I promise you; you’ll be cooling your hooves in the depths of Tartarus,” Twilight replied.

“Now, you're thinking wisely, Princess. I’ll take your comment under advisement,” The Archivist retorted. 
> Chapter 6: Off-Guard
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	The guard opened the cell and the Archivist walked out. She looked at Twilight and her friends.

“Before we go off on this perilous journey, I suggest we locate somepony experienced in adventures, because I can only reveal little, for specific reasons. Perhaps somepony you assisted at the Fortress of Talacon, Miss Rainbow Dash,” The Archivist suggested.

“Daring Do?” Rainbow Dash replied.

“Yes.  She will be required for this journey. So much has changed that I cannot remember its location,” The Archivist responded.

“What do you mean “it”?” Twilight asked, but she was interrupted as another guard raced to her side.

“Princess. I bring news, the creature has provoked an attack on Cloudsdale,” he said quickly.

Rainbow Dash, fearing for her former home, flew out of the dungeon and hurried as fast as she could towards Cloudsdale.

Twilight yelled out to Rainbow, but it was too late, she was gone.   She turned to the guard. 

“Take whatever Pegasus Guard we have left and assist the ponies in Cloudsdale,” she ordered.

“Yes, Princess.”

The guard saluted and left the dungeon.

“Khaoios is continuing his attack. We must hurry now,” The Archivist said as she began walking out of the dungeon.

Pinkie Pie stopped the Archivist in her tracks. She stared at her for a few, long seconds, suspicious.

“We’re watching you. Okiedokielokie?” she said.

The Archivist frowned.

“Of course, Pinkie Pie,” she replied.

As the Archivist walked out, Spike jumped on Twilight’s back.

“Are you sure you can trust her?” he asked.

“I don’t know, Spike. We need her, so we have no choice but to trust her,” Twilight whispered back.

---

Outside, in the Gardens of Canterlot, Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy, saw Rainbow Dash fly off.

“Now where does she think she’s going?” Applejack said.

“I don’t know,” Fluttershy said.

From a distance, Twilight, The Archivist, and her friends regrouped. Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy noticed The Archivist, curious about who she was, as well as what occurred with the Princesses. After a quick discussion, Applejack asked about Rainbow Dash and Twilight gave her the news when a guard ran out.

“Princess. We’ll do our best to keep Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and the citizens of Canterlot safe. Go and save Equestria,” he said.

“Thank you. I promise, we’ll take this beast down and restore everything,” Twilight said as she left with her friends and The Archivist, racing to Cloudsdale.

---

Up in Cloudsdale, Rainbow Dash observed her former home and noticed, nothing was wrong.  It was as if nothing ever happened there, confusing her for a moment. Seeing that Cloudsdale was in its normal state, she flew down to nearby pegasi.

“Hey! Wasn’t there something happening here?” Rainbow Dash asked.

The pegasus pony tilted her head.

“I have no idea what you are talking about. All we had were strong winds but that was nothing. Why?” she asked.

Rainbow Dash stood, puzzled. Was it a lie? Did she feel that she was being tricked?  No longer worried, she flew back to regroup with her friends. 

However, at that time, Khaoios, concealed himself within the clouds, observing Rainbow Dash. Studying her “spirit of Loyalty,” he slowly planned his next move. However, it interested him on how well and quick she responded compared to a royal guard. He stood for a moment.

 Interesting. A mere pony, responding in such quick time and falling into my trap. This could be quite a challenge for me. However, I must plan this out accordingly or else defeat is foreseen. I shall not allow this, Khaoios thought to himself, slowly following Rainbow Dash.  

As he followed her, Rainbow Dash felt something was wrong, only to fly faster.  Khaoios remained behind as he foresaw where she was going, giving him the time to think.

Faster than I thought, I see. Astounding. Willing to do anything to protect her friends... Indeed, astounding.

He grinned.

The ponies eventually returned to Ponyville, to gather belongings and making sure everypony was recovering. Yet, with surprise, they found that Ponyville was slowly being rebuilt.  Regrouping with family, Applejack and Rarity embraced their siblings, happy that they were okay. Applejack, in tears, turned to Zecora, mouthing thank you to her.  Zecora smiled. Scootaloo looked around and turned to Twilight.

“Wha...? Where’s Rainbow Dash?” she asked.

Suddenly, Fluttershy looked around. Twilight quickly turned to Zecora.

“Rainbow Dash never came back?” Twilight asked.

Zecora shook her head.

“She hasn't returned.  I am getting concerned.” Zecora asked. 

Suddenly, Rainbow Dash made a landing.

“Cloudsdale is fi--" Rainbow Dash began, but was interrupted when Scootaloo embraced her.

“I thought I lost you, Rainbow Dash!  If something happened... I don’t think I could live with myself!” Scootaloo cried.

Rainbow Dash smiled and patted her shoulder.

Applejack turned.

“Well... What happened?” she asked.

“Nothing. Cloudsdale was fine.” Snarling, she turned to The Archivist. “Well?  What was that for? The guard said Khaoios was heading for Cloudsdale and instead, I was tricked. What the hay?”

The Archivist looked Rainbow Dash in the eyes as everypony watched her.

“As I told Twilight, there are some things I cannot see. Khaoios must’ve been doing something, and I am unsure what he did.”

“ARCHIVIST!” a voice thundered out, catching everpony off guard.

Suddenly, the ponies froze, in terror. Everypony looked up slowly only to see the Alicorn himself. 

“AAAH!!! RUN AWAY!!!” one pony screamed out as everypony ran back into their homes and closed windows, doors, protecting them from this unknown creature.

The Archivist snarled.

“Khaoios..." she said.

Khaoios stared back.

“So. You happened to return to Equestria because of your compassion for these pathetic ponies I call my subjects. How repulsive,” Khaoios said.

Twilight, as her horn began to light up bright with magic, stepped forward.

“YOU!!!” She growled, charging to him.  

Using her magic, she shot a beam, only to miss as Khaoios teleported effortlessly. However, it surprised Twilight that he teleported extremely fast. In a blink of an eye, in fact.

Khaoios, tempted to attack her, roared, knocking Twilight out of the sky. Spike yelled, telling her to regain her balance, but the force from Khaoios, knocked her silly. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew up quickly to break her fall, while Khaoios stood, observing that moment. In silence, he continued to observe the surrounding area, for a few moments and turned back to The Archivist.

“Are you willing to risk you miserable life to save these ponies?” Khaoios asked.

The Archivist grinned, knowing that Khaoios is testing her. Yet, she noticed Khaoios using his magic to levitate a Golden Torch, lit with an undying blue flame.  

“Yes. Is there a problem with that?” she asked.

Khaoios exhaled slowly, absorbing The Archivist’s response.

“Yes, there is. In fact, I find it foolish, because I could’ve done more. Instead she scrapped me, and that wretched fool imprisoned me.  And for that, you shall pay dearly,” Khaoios responded harshly.

The Archivist then caught on to his weak spot.  

“Oh yes. Paguseus. I do remember that pleasant moment,” she replied sarcastically.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY, WITCH?" Khaoios' anger grew.

"You heard me, well, Khaoios." the Archivist replied.

Khaoios body began to glow, when suddenly, magic fired from his horn, but in the appearance of a lightning bolt.   Dodging that fast, he continued to use his magic, only to pause and look around.  Yet at that moment, The Archivist, hidden in a corner with Twilight, noticed something. Khaoios was breathing heavily.  

“It seems he put physical magic over his power of intelligence,” Archivist whispered.

"REVEAL YOURSELF, ARCHIVIST!" Khaoios shouted. "FACE ME!"

Twilight looked up to The Archivist.

“What do you mean?” she asked.

“Remember what I told you. Khaoios is intelligent, thus the only way he can defeat his enemies is by observing them. If he attacked head-on, it would weaken him, because he’s not meant for brute force. Unless he becomes truly enraged, then we have a problem, yet it would be a problem for him as well,” The Archivist answered.

Twilight thought for a moment, and teleported to her friends, hoping to use the Rainbow Power they used to defeat Tirek.  After a few moments, the Mane Six stood out into the open and slowly absorbed power from the Star above Twilight’s Castle. The Archivist, for the first time was stunned by the incredible power, something that she had not foreseen. Khaoios, on the other hand, stood confused, but held his ground, observing the power source.  

Twilight and her friends looked directly at him.

“You may be powerful intelligently, but there’s one thing you can’t stop,”  Twilight asserted.

Everypony, concealed in their homes walked out, and watched, thinking the Elements of Harmony would put an end to the Alicorn. Khaoios, grinned.

“Is that your resolve, ponies?” he said.

In an instance, they fired the Rainbow Power at Khaoios.  However, as the beam continued to shoot, it began to slowly decrease. Everypony was in shock at that moment. Khaoios was slowly using his magic to deflect the beam.   Noticing the trouble, the Archivist ran out and used her magic, firing a powerful beam, knocking Khaoios into the Everfree forest, creating an explosion.

Exhausted from the Rainbow Power, the Twilight and her friends collapsed on their knees from the incredible power. Yet, it was continued shock, for they, nor the Archivist, expected Khaoios to withstand its power.

From a distance, Khaoios blasted away nearby rocks, and stood up, as if he were impervious to their magic.  Breathing heavily from that previous moment, the six mares felt helpless, thinking that they had failed.

Khaoios tried to use his magic again, but due to their magic, his own power was fully drained, forcing him to retreat. However, he wasn’t going alone. With whatever power he had left, levitated Spike, and dragged him towards himself, standing on a cloud.

At that moment, The Archivist knew, he reached his point of drainage, yet could not risk Princess Twilight or her friends, nor herself, to retrieve Spike.

Twilight, as she struggled to get back on her hooves, cried out fore Spike, but could do nothing. 

Khaoios looked down at the Archivist.

“And these are supposed to be the Spirits of Friendship? How amusing that they could... withstand my strategic thinking," he said. “Yet, I tend to be reasonable. I’ll give you 5 days to find a way to defeat me, even if that means going to the darkest depths to understand my power. Once time is up... This planet of yours will be reduced to a burnt out cinder.”

He flew away, taking Spike with him.


> Chapter 7: Anticipation
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Furious, attempting to reach him, Twilight tried to fly up, chasing Khaoios and Spike, but was held by the tail. The Archivist pulled her back. Angry and weak, Twilight collapsed onto the ground.

"How could you?!" Twilight cried, tears welling up in her eyes. "You knew about him! You know everything about him, and you didn't tell anypony!!! There was no way we could stop him in time, and you knew! And now Spike is gone!!!"

She began to sob, and her friends watched her hopelessly before limping to her side and cuddling to her sides. For the first time, The Archivist felt sorry for Twilight. 

“I understand now,” she said softly.

Twilight frowned, confused, at her though her tears, and her friends looked at her.

“Your compassion with one another is somewhat... touching. Yet, I must admit, you are right about me. I should be blamed for my mistakes.  Even if that means going against my masters.”

There was a silence, then she picked her head up.

“We have five days to find a weak spot for Khaoios, and we must move now,” The Archivist replied.

For the first time, Twilight noticed a smile on her face, as if she have been enlightened. Knowing their time was running out, Twilight and her friends got back up on their hooves, ready to perform the challenging task. Before leaving, The Archivist turned to them.

“You must locate the one they call Daring Do, and bring her along, for she will be required for your task,” she said.

“And what exactly are you gonna do?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I will locate two others that will be needed. Once we recruit them, meet us at San Palamino Desert.  However, you have to wait for us, because the sands can be brutal,” The Archivist responded.

“San Palamino Desert?” Twilight repeated.

“Don’t worry. Now go. We have no time to waste,” The Archivist replied, leaving.

Twilight didn’t understand, however, she knew time was of the essence, thus preparing for her journey was of the utmost importance.  

“Come on, girls,” she said, and her friends followed.

One by one, they gathered their belongings.  For Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash, they knew that leaving Ponyville would make it an easy target if Khaoios wished to attack again. Rarity and Rainbow Dash arrived at Sweet Apple Acres, where Zecora had stayed with the family.  There, Rarity spoke to Sweetie Bell, who was crying.  

“Oh what’s wrong, darling?” Rarity asked.

Sweetie Bell choked.

“Please, come back safely,” She cried.

Rarity shed a tear, for she knew this would perhaps be their hardest task.

Rainbow Dash stood in front of Scootaloo, trying to hold her tears in. Smiling, she embraced her tightly.

“Don’t worry, lil’ sis, I’ll come back. You can count on it,” Rainbow Dash said.

Scootaloo smiled.

“I know... big sis,” she whispered.

Upstairs, Applejack gather the last of her belongings, only to turn and watch as Applebloom began to cry. Big Mac, on the other hoof, held his sadness in.  Granny Smith walked up.

“Now listen here, you. You better come back. Ya hear?” she said, only to cry a few seconds later.  

Applejack walked up and embraced her family, shedding a tear as well.

“We’ll be back. I promise,” she said.

After a few minutes, the group arrived downstairs, and Zecora stood by.

“Do not fret.  I will stay and protect them from any threat.” She said. 

“Thank you, Zecora,” Applejack and Rarity said, smiling.

“My dearest friends, I did not know true friendship until I met all of you. Of all things that I know, this above all is true. Though this quest will be a terrible crucible, as long as you believe in yourselves and each other, anything is possible.” Zecora spoke just before Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash left. 

Rainbow Dash smiled.

“Don’t worry. We’ll be back in one piece,” she replied, taking off as Applejack and Rarity followed.

The family waved before disappearing.  

Twilight, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy stood at the northern path to Galloping Gorge, waiting for the rest of their friends. Within minutes, they regrouped and soon made their journey to visit Daring Do.

The Archivist, going in a different direction, passed by a Doctor's home. Looking around, she knocked on the door in a specific way. When the door opened, Doctor Hooves stood there. He had a brown mane and tail, with a light brown fur and an hourglass for a cutie mark.  Once he saw the Archivist he was silent.

“We have a task, Doctor. I assume you received his message?” the Archivist said.

The Doctor nodded.

“Of course. I was expecting you.” He replied.

The Archivist walked inside, quietly when Derpy came down the stairs in curiosity.

“What’s happening?” she asked.

Doctor Hooves looked up.

“Nothing at all, Derpy. Just an old friend,” he replied.

Derpy returned upstairs, while the Archivist and the Doctor sat for a short conversation.

“When did you hear about Khaoios?” asked the Doctor.

“Two days ago.  Apparently, he broke out of his prison hold and created the meteors, but at separate times,” The Archivist said.

“Hmmmm... That explains his Power Drains. Yet, it is strange this was quite unsuspecting of him,” The Doctor responded.

“Believe me, Doctor.  Khaoios is incredibly intelligent.  He caught me off guard just before, and now he has the Princess’ assistant, and she will do anything to stop him,” The Archivist continued.

The Doctor exhaled.

“You did tell her what he’s capable of... did you?”

The Archivist was silent for a moment.

“I didn’t, unfortunately. She didn’t trust me in the beginning, however, she does now, because I told her the truth about him.”

Hooves became suspicious.

“So... you lied to her?”

“Yes. It is I who doesn’t trust her. Her thirst for knowledge will only make matters worse. I’m afraid that Khaoios is here, not to unleash his vengeance, but for something else,” The Archivist replied.

The Doctor tilted his head.

“So. Khaoios came back because he was afraid that Twilight was going steal his title of Master of Intelligence?”

“Unfortunately, yes. That’s why he took her assistant.”

The Doctor then realized Khaoios unusual behavior from before and began to think.  He turned.

“The other Princesses? Celestia? Luna? Cadance?” he asked.

“Celestia and Luna threw me in the dungeon, so I was unable to tell them what was happening. However, they could not sense him until he stormed across Canterlot.  As for Cadance... I can assure you, she is doing exactly what she was taught,” The Archivist replied.

“Of course... How can I ever forget that?” Doctor Hooves said. “Where’s Khaoios now?”

The Archivist shook her head.

“Khaoios is smarter than that to reveal his location,” she answered.

“Understood. Where’s Twilight now?” the Doctor asked.

“She is heading to Galloping Gorge to retrieve Daring Do. She’ll be there guide her through the desert since she’s the one who almost excavated the Caves.”

The Doctor jumped.

“San Palamino? But... Archivist, you know the rule.”

“We have no choice. Once we finish going through the Temple and defeat Khaoios, everypony's minds will be wiped clean, excluding ours. It is the only way to conceal the secrets,” The Archivist retorted.  

For a few minutes, Doctor Hooves knew the problem was complicated and, indeed, challenging. Fully understanding the problem, he stood up.

“Very well, then. Let’s go and assist. Should we alert Cabaleron as well?” Doctor Hooves said.

“That is our next stop. The three of us are the only ones who know of the existence of the Temple and it is our duty to see that the laws aren’t broken. That is why we will regroup with them and follow them,” The Archivist replied.

The Doctor nodded in satisfaction and called, Derpy.

“My dear. I will be gone for a few days, so please don’t cause any trouble nor make a mess in the laboratory,” he said calmly.

Derpy winked.

“Okay,” She said.

The Archivist and Doctor Hooves soon walked out of the house and proceeded to White-Tail Woods.

---

Over in Canterlot, Cadance and Shining Armor had arrived, while Princess Celestia and Princess Luna began to walk around, slowly regaining their strength. While Shining Armor stood guard outside, Cadance went into Celestia and Luna’s room and turned to the guards.

“Please leave us,” she ordered.

The guards left the room silently, as they shut the door behind them.

“What happened?” she asked.

Celestia turned, still weak.

“I am not sure, but he calls himself, Khaoios,” she replied.

“His origin is unknown to us, including his power,” Luna responded.

“However... there was this one unicorn who called herself The Archivist and seemed to have known about Khaoios. And yet..." Celestia paused.

“And what?” Cadance asked curiously.

“It was foolish of us to imprison her without giving her a chance to speak, due to our fear of ponies spying.  We merely acted on instinct instead of analyzing, and for that, we take the blame for what has happened,” Luna calmly added.

Cadance exhaled.

“Where is this “Archivist” now?” she asked.

“She has gone off with Twilight and her friends to stop Khaoios. Though I told her that this is a difficult task in which I cannot afford to lose her.  If anything were to happen to her... I don’t think I can live with that mistake.”

Celestia's eyes welled up with tears. Luna stumbled, for she felt a sense of guilt too.  Both sisters, for the first time, felt helpless, upset that they failed to defend their subjects against an unknown beast. Suddenly, a guard ran in.

“Forgive me, Princesses. We have received word from Ponyville. It appears Khaoios attacked Ponyville, but he retreated due to his lack of power. Yet, he has also taken Princess Twilight’s assistant as prisoner. The other report I have is from Manehattan, that he has ceased his attack and now has taken refuge in the city. In addition, reports say he now has taken the city hostage, but states he will bring no harm to ponies until a five day period is up,” he reported.

The Princesses breathed a sigh of relief.  

“What five day period?” Cadance asked.

The guard shook his head.

“He says only the Spirits of Friendship know and thus it is their task to meet his demands. Some of us believe it is a trick, while an unknown general states he is testing us,” he continued.

Celestia and Luna walked up.

“What Unknown General?” they asked.

> Chapter 8: Incarceration
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

     The guard, unfortunately, didn't have the full details on the "unknown general."

“I don’t know. He does seem to know a lot about Khaoios, as well. What would you have us do?” the guard asked.

The Princesses looked at one another, for they were puzzled. The Royal Sisters turned to Cadance. Understanding their facial expression, Cadance looked at the guard.

“Tell my husband to take whatever guards we have and surround the city. I do not know his motives, however, if we monitor him, it will give Twilight and her friends’ time to stop him. We will meet you there in 2 days,” she ordered.

The guard saluted them and left the room. Silence fell over the Alicorns.

“Once this problem is dealt with, I want these ponies brought to us. For it seems information has been kept from us and thus it must be revealed,” Celestia said.

Luna nodded.

“Indeed. These ponies have committed espionage and should be in prison for it!” she said.

“When that time comes, they will pay for their crimes. But, in the meantime, we must know Twilight’s location. I will send her a letter,” Celestia continued.

“I will go to the dungeon and speak with the guards who had held The Archivist and see what information we can get,” Luna said.

“Very well. I’ll inform Shining Armor of the issue,” Cadance said, leaving the room.

While Celestia began writing a letter, and Luna walking to the dungeon, Cadance heard a whisper.  

“The Temple...” the voice echoed.

Cadance looked around.

“The Temple...” the voice echoed again. “Go to the Temple...”

“Who’s there?” Cadance yelled out, desperately looking around.

“The Temple of Inception...” the voice echoed.

Cadance, annoyed with the unknown sound, continued to look around, until the voice finally stopped.

Wondering what it was, she turned back to the Royal Sisters' room, where Celestia was writing the letter, then suddenly, the voice returned.

“No,” the voice echoed.

Cadance, felt extremely annoyed to a point, where her unihorn began to light up blue.

“Go to the Temple, Mi Amore Cadenza,” the voice said.

Cadance's annoyance dropped to shock. It was as if something knew her, and she paused and left her aunt's company.

Walking through the halls, she felt something was watching her.

“Who are you?” she said.

The voice ceased and Cadance did not hear it for the rest of the day. However, she accepted the voice in not telling the Princesses  about the Temple, and continued with her personal task. 

---

In Manehattan, Khaoios stood on top of the tallest tower in the city, holding his Golden Torch with his magic.  Observing the city and its inhabitants, Spike yelling and screaming as he tried to break free from the chains imprisoning him.  Khaoios, flew down.

“You are one stubborn dragon, aren’t you?” he snarled.

Spike tried to bite him, but turned.

“You're not gonna win, Khaoios. Twilight and everypony will stop you without a doubt,” he talked back.

“Indeed, together they are powerful, my little purple friend, but be warned, time is not on their side, and is running out... Just like yours,” Khaoios threatened.

Spike remained silent.

Khaoios looked across the river and saw the sun setting.  Grinning, he looked into his torch.

“Reveal to me, the location of Twilight and her friends,” Khaoios said.

The torch fire grew, showing Twilight and her friends continuing their journey to Galloping Gorge.  He smiled, while Spike slowly analyzed what Khaoios was doing.  

“So. You are able to see and predict their moves, I’m guessing?” Spike asked.

Khaoios slowly turned his head.

“Yes. I did say I am the Master of Intelligence. Did I not?” he replied.

"If you're so smart, why do you need a stupid torch to make your predictions for you?" Spike asked.

"The Artifact is my weapon against my enemies.  Magicians have their staffs, Knights have their swords and spears, and I...have my relic." Khaoios growled.  “That goes to show you that I am known by many names; Khaoios the Brilliance, Khaoios the Strategist, Khaoios the Magnificence, and Khaoios... the Intelligence. I am one of the brightest creatures you and your friends will ever meet,”.

“Oh yeah.  What’s gonna happen now?” Spike asked.

“I told your pony friends that in order to defeat me, they would need to dig deep to understand the “truth” and “past” of my existence. It’s like a chess game, my little dragon.  I can predict every move they make, 5 pieces ahead from their current point. Which means, I plan 5 steps ahead, while you have to work step by step. That is how intelligent I am. And to answer your question... the Wonderbolts are coming straight to the city of Manehattan to “spy” and “report” to the Royal Captain. Tell me, was that what you were thinking of?” Khaoios said.

“No. I didn’t” Spike quickly replied.

“My predictions seem to have reacted to your sense of fear. Good. That is what I expect from a little dragon like you,” Khaoios replied, flying away and passing large skyscrapers.  

“Please hurry, Twilight and be careful” Spike said to himself.

---

By Nightfall, Twilight and her friends eventually made it to the house of Daring Do. Inside, Daring do was just finishing her latest novel when she heard a knock on the door.  Thinking it was a trap, Daring hid above the door, ready to jump any intruder.  Once opened, Rainbow Dash walked in, and Daring jumped on her and they fell to the ground. Realizing who it was, Daring got off of Rainbow.

“Sorry about that, Rainbow Dash,” Daring Do said.

“Hey, no problem,” Rainbow Dash said with a smile.

Twilight and her friends walked in. Daring was puzzled.

“What are you all doing here, if I may ask?” she said.

Twilight explained the issue to Daring Do as briefly as she could, but Daring Do shook her head.

“I can’t. I know I’ve been through crazy adventures, but this one, it’s just... I don’t know,” Daring said sadly.

“But you gotta.  Equestria needs to be saved and in order for us to save it, we need and adventurous pony like you to take us through some ancient fortress or something,” Rainbow Dash pleaded.

"I'm sorry. The answer is no."

Rainbow Dash frowned, frustrated, but then seemed to get an idea. She turned to Twilight and lowered her voice.

"Would you guys mind waiting outside for a minute?" she asked.

Knowing what she was going to do, Twilight nodded, turned and walked out, with the rest following. Rainbow walked to Daring Do, sitting on her chair.  

“Daring Do. I know this is hard for me to explain, but we need your help... I need your help. There’s this Alicorn that threatened Equestria and even hurt my friends and I cannot allow that. He is not only threatening my friends, but our families, and if anything were to happen, I don’t know if I can live with myself. My loyalty towards them is strong and I want to keep it that way. I will never give in, but this time, I need you.  I’m asking you, as a loyal fan, as a loyal friend, please help us stop this creature, before Equestria is destroyed,” Rainbow Dashed insisted.

Daring Do was silent for a few moments. Rainbow Dash, knowing her words weren’t helping, turned to the doorway.  

“You know, I thought you were my hero, and instead you chicken out. I’ve been a fan and always loved your adventures, but now when I need you, you back away. Some adventurer you are,” Rainbow said, shedding a tear as she walked out.

As the door closed behind Rainbow Dash, Daring Do began to think. She never had such a loyal fan come up to her asking for her help and to deny it really upset her.  Registering her words, she remained seated. 

Outside Rainbow Dash walked slowly towards her friends.  They knew something was wrong, but Rainbow shook her head.  Saddened, they left Daring Do as they headed south. 

By the time they reached Unicorn Range, they suddenly heard a voice echo. Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and the rest turned and saw Daring Do flying towards them.  Breathing heavily, she landed.

“You know. I may be somewhat of a loner, but if you need me for something, I could use another adventure with my loyal fan,” Daring Do said with a smile.

Rainbow Dash tackled Daring Do in a giant hug.  

“Thank you, Daring Do!” she cried.

Daring Do exhaled.

“No problem, Rainbow Dash,” she replied.


> Chapter 9: A Perilious Journey
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Everypony was set for their journey to Palamino Desert, but as the moon showed, they decided to camp for the night.  As they were sleeping, The Archivist and Doctor Hooves eventually made it to Doctor Cabaleron’s home. There, Cabaleron opened his door and immediately caught onto their expression.

“Please come in. You seem to have had a long walk so, we’ll rest here for the night,” he said, letting The Archivist and Hooves in.

Once inside, The Archivist turned, her right eyebrow raised.

“Do not worry, the master informed me of the situation,” Cabaleron chuckled. “How do we plan to proceed?”

Doctor Hooves sat down.

“Well, on the way here, we heard Khaoios has taken refuge in Manehattan, and is holding the city hostage until the ponies defeat him. That’s all we know for now,” he said.

Cabaleron laughed.

“Ha. Silly Khaoios still complaining over his teaching. That never ends.”

“Don’t underestimate Khaoios, Cabaleron. He’s quite intelligent,” she replied.

“Of course. Forgive me. It’s just amusing that he held a grudge against the Masters for so many centuries and wouldn’t let go,” Cabaleron apologized.

“Khaoios is a Bronco Titan and we all know about them. Do we not?” The Archivist said.

Doctor Hooves sighed.

“If the ponies plan on defeating Khaoios, we need to make sure they do so, however, we must limit the information we tell them,” he said.

Cabaleron tilted his head.

“Wait... We’re going to the Temple?”

The Doctor and The Archivist confirmed.

“What about the halls? The Library? Everything in there is vital! There’s a reason why it’s hidden from the ponies,” Cabaleron pleaded.

“We know. However, the Princesses were brutally defeated by Khaoios and no living soul on Equestria, other than us and a few others know how to defeat him. Yet, these six ponies are the “hope” of Equestria,” The Archivist said.

“Says who?” Cabaleron asked.

“The Architect said it,” Doctor Hooves replied.

Cabaleron sighed.

“Then we must prepare ourselves,” he stated. “I expect we leave at dawn?”

The Archivist nodded.

“Very well.  Let’s get some shut eye and be ready in the morning,” Cabaleron said.

The three went immediately to sleep. 

---

As the night continued, Khaoios counted down the days.

“My moment of triumph is slowly approaching and soon, the Architect will see what grand vision I had, proving that I am worthy enough to carry this burden,” he said to himself.

Spike, exhausted from before, remained asleep, not realizing the situation until sounds were heard from across the river. Lifting his head, he noticed the royal guards stationed themselves, watching Khaoios, standing on the city’s tallest tower. 

Recognizing one of them, Khaoios snarled.

“So... you too? This is just getting better and better, every minute,” he whispered.

Down below, a grand-stallion, pegasus pony stood. He had a hunter green jacket, with a green drill-sergeant hat, and grinned. The royal guards, who had never seen him, called him General StoneColt.  

“Hello, old friend,” he said, staring at Khaoios from a distance.

Their eyes were locked on each other, like a pistol duel, until a group of pegasi ponies flew down towards the base. However, three pegasus ponies landed and walked towards a guard.

“Excuse me, but who’s in charge here?” the pegasus pony asked.

The guard looked down and realized it was the Captain of the Wonderbolts, Spitfire.  He cleared his throat.

“He is new to us, however, he seems to understand the situation. Please come in.”

The guard turned, escorting Spitfire and her two other members, Soarin and Fleetfoot.

Inside, Soarin and Fleetfoot were observing the tent; watching not royal guards, but ponies who were considered military material.  As they approached the table, the General walked in. Observing the Wonderbolt members, he stood silent and raised his right eyebrow.

“It’s gonna take more than three to take this one down,” the General said.

Spitfire returned with a fiery expression.

“I can assure you, we are prepared for this,” she replied.

The General scoffed.

“You are young ponies, and I am not interested in babysitting you while we fight this Alicorn, so take your leave,” he replied rudely.

“Are you serious?  This? Pffft, this is nothing compared to when Soarin’ got caught behind enemy lines during the Boar War,” Spitfire countered. 

Soarin stepped in.

“They made me dance! Said they would keep reading their poetry if I didn’t!” he replied.

Fleetfoot turned.

“You’d rather be humiliated and dance for your captors then listen to poetry?” she asked.

“You don’t know suffering until you’ve heard boargan poetry.”

He shuddered. The General shook his head.

“Well... never met such crazy Pegasus ponies, willing to do something like that. Especially during the Boar War. Very well then. However, there’s one thing I want to mention to the three of you. I AM IN CHARGE.  YOU WILL ADDRESS ME AS “SIR”, OR GENERAL STONECOLT!  NO IFS, ANDS, OR BUTS. GET IT? GOT IT? GOOD!” he yelled out.

Spitfire, Soarin, and Fleetfoot saluted.

“Sir! Yes, SIR!” the three said.

At that moment, General StoneColt gave them their orders and they left the tent to accomplish them.  As they proceeded to their positions, the general walked outside the tent and watched the city from across the river.  He remained silent for a while, observing the situation and began to think to himself.

    This is gonna be a real pain in the rear, Master.  I can assure you of that, he thought. 

---

Two days passed until the ponies regrouped at the starting point of the Palamino Desert. Surprised, Rainbow Dash and Daring Do snarled.

“Doctor Cabaleron,” they said.

Cabaleron grinned.

“Well. No need to worry, Daring Do. I heard the news, however. Let’s put our differences aside and worry about reaching the area of interest, shall we?” he replied.

Daring Do couldn’t trust Cabaleron’s words, however, Twilight stepped forward.

“Believe me! Rainbow and I know about the issues, from before, but we need to work together if we plan to defeat Khaoios,” she pleaded.

Putting their differences aside, they agreed to the situation and proceeded through the hot and scorching desert. 

Hours passed as the group struggled to find the entrance.  Exhausted, they collapsed onto the hot sand.  Twilight, tired and sweaty from the sun, struggled back onto her hooves. After a few moments, Twilight couldn’t regain her strength and looked around to see her, friends, The Archivist, and the rest, trying to fight the heat.  Her eyes watering, she felt that she failed and thought she would die,  but a voice came to her. A soft, gentle voice, and she looked around, trying to see who it was.  

“Twilight... Twilight..." the voice called out.

Twilight then looked straight, and she saw a shadow, hard to identify. She struggled to get up, but again, she dropped. The voice continued.

“Get Up. Equestria depends on you and your friends. Bringing peace to Equestria is what you were meant for.”

The voice faded.

Twilight, determined and confident, took the voices words as a “push” to accomplish her mission.  As she got up, she felt renewed and refreshed. Understanding her duty, she used her magic to hydrate the group and soon, they looked up to her and noticed her eyes sparkling.

“Before I made friends, I felt it would be a waste of time, however, now I understand what I... no, “we”, must do. As the Spirits of Friendship, we must defeat Khaoios. We will never give up... We will never give in... for we are the Wielders of Friendship!  We will finish what we started!” Twilight said with confidence.

Understanding her words, everypony got back on their hooves and continued on, until Twilight noticed a small whirlwind. It was as if it was trying to lead them somewhere until it stopped just before a small cliff. Below, they noticed it lead into a large, dark cave.  

“Come on, everypony,” Twilight said as she walked down the small path.  

As the six mares and Daring Do went down the path, The Archivist, Doctor Hooves, and Doctor Cabaleron watched.

“The Temple is in the Cave. Once we go in, be prepared,” The Archivist whispered.

“Of course,” both Doctors replied, making their way down the path. 
> Chapter 10: The Temple of Inception
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

   In Manehattan, Khaoios meditated patiently, and picked up his head.

“They finally made it to the Temple.  It appears I have clearly underestimated their chances,” Khaoios said.

---

Across the river, General StoneColt also sensed the Princesss' arrival at the Temple. Immediately, he called in some of the royal guards, as well as Captain Spitfire.

“Captain. Change in plans. We are going to keep him occupied for the time being. I need you to lure him out of the city, which is where you guards will come in. While she leads her teams as a distraction, you will move in and slowly evacuate the ponies out. Do you understand me?” he ordered.

One guard stepped forward.

“But sir? We were told he is very intelligent and that he is very strategic!” he said.

“Which is why we are going to confuse him. He cannot be at both places at once so were are going to outsmart him in a way. Now let’s get started until the Princesses arrive,” General StoneColt replied.

“Yes sir!” they all responded and quickly gathered up their equipment.

Within minutes, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Cadance walked into the tent and confronted the General.

“I see you are feeling much better, my Princesses?” he said.

Celestia and Luna stared.

“We have very little information about you and thus we demand answers.  What is your purpose here?” Celestia asked.

"Yes.  In addition, what is your connection with the one called, The Archivist?" Luna demanded.

The General knew what they were talking about and lifted his head.

“Well, first of all, it is your own fault for throwing The Archivist into the dungeon without having her explain to you the issue. So I might as well tell you. We are hidden from public because of our duties. In this type of situation, like it or not, we are dealing with a Bronco Titan. You may not know it because of the destruction of historical records, so I hope you learn something from this,” he said harshly.

Annoyed, Luna tried to get back at him using her magic, but Celestia put her leg out.

“No Luna,” she said, and then turned her attention on the General. “Why would you keep this concealed from us?"

“Princess. We are not at liberty to speak such info, however, we can only give you the minor parts. That’s because, what you see out there... He’s not the only one who roamed this planet.  Many others had far worse than the enemies you have seen,” the General said.

Princess Celestia and Luna couldn’t answer, for they understood he nor the Archivist weren’t the enemy, however, they continued to be suspicious of him. Having no other choice, but to trust him, they remained in the tent, alongside him. Cadance stood by them silently as they discussed the plan on outsmarting Khaoios.

Proceeding with the plan, it commenced, and Khaoios, roaring, watched as the Wonderbolts flew towards him. Dodging them, he took flight, evading them through every tight space there was to lose them. However, one thing he left behind, that Spike noticed, was the Artifact, sealed inside a powerful barrier. Down below, the royal guards, slowly gathering ponies out of the city, raced across the bridge to safety.  

---

As the plan continued in Manehattan, Twilight and the rest walked through the dark and misty cave, only to have bats fly out.  At that moment, Twilight felt an unusual disturbance within the cave.  Once they reached the end of the cave, they came face to face with an enormous opening. It was like they were in another world. In awe, they witnessed the largest castle they have ever seen. Possibly three times the size of Canterlot, and four towers as large as the skyscrapers in Manehattan. The Archivist walked forward and overlooked the area.  

“What is this place?” Rarity asked.

“The Temple of Inception. The oldest ruins on Equestria. Hidden from the surface to remain protected and sealed from ancient enemies,” The Archivist replied.

“This is incredible. As an adventurer, I've never seen a place as ancient as this,” Daring Do commented.

“That’s because the secrets here are hidden and must not leave the Temple.” Cabaleron replied.

“If it does, the wrath of the ancients would lay waste to Equestria,” Doctor Hooves commented.

Twilight remained stunned for a moment, which caught the Archivist's attention. For what she told the Doctor back in Ponyville is true, and thus she stood by her.  

“This is... incredible. But, I thought Equestria was a peaceful land. Other than the three tribes... How bad could it have gotten? From what I read, Equestria was light and friendly. How could I have not known this?” Twilight asked.

“Hasn’t anypony ever told you? Most origins have dark beginnings,” The Archivist said.

Twilight shook her head. Rainbow Dash, Daring Do, and Applejack, ready to go down to the Temple, turned and hurried down the stairs. Rarity followed behind them, followed by Pinkie Pie hopping her way down the stairs. Fluttershy, shaking in fear, remained at the top. Twilight walking beside her, stopped, and picked her up.

“Don’t worry, Fluttershy. We’re all in this together and we’ll all get out together,” she assured her with a smile.

“Oh... I don’t know, Twilight. But, if you say so, then okay,” Fluttershy whispered.

Soon everypony went down the stairs and eventually came at the large doorway to the Temple.  Stopping, they noticed the writings on the doors were of an unknown language. Twilight and Daring Do flew up to read it, but shook their heads, for they could not translate it.

“If I may comment on something, the language you are reading there is extinct. Nopony speaks it,” Cabaleron commented.

The Archivist then walked to the door and noticed one particular image.

"Princess Twilight, look at this," she said.

She pointed out a circle on the ground. For a few moments, Twilight read the image and noticed the six circles on the floor as well.  Standing on each one, Twilight and her five friends glowed as a beam shot out at the door. Suddenly, a loud clank sound was heard, and the doors slowly opened.

Inside, the halls were massive with statues, stained-glass windows, and wall carvings that were strange to them. Daring Do observed the wall carvings closely.

“This seems to be a carving of our ancestors. Look at the bulbous head and beady eyes! You’ll also notice the carving seems to show them having a tea party while the adjacent image has demons hiding nearby. Really shows you where their priorities were, don’t it?” she said.

“Yeah, yet they go by events from the earliest times,” Rainbow Dash said, walking beside her.

Twilight then looked around and noticed something strange. They were definitely going by events. Even recent ones. From behind, The Archivist, Doctor Hooves, and Doctor Cabaleron stood silently, and watched the ponies like children playing. Twilight turned.  

“Why doesn’t Equestria know about this?” she asked them.

They turned to the wall carvings and stained-glass windows, and noticed four Alicorns.  Immediately, Twilight realized there were four towers. Gathering her thoughts together, she identified a clue.

“So, there are four towers. The largest is the Creator and the other three are the formulas of creations, but what are they...” she said.

“Space,” Doctor Hooves replied.

“Time,” Doctor Cabaleron said

“And Distortion,” The Archivist finished.

Immediately, the group continued to follow the events and heard a clicking sound.  Twilight turned and looked down the hall to their left leading to the Tower of Time.  And surprisingly, they saw a statue of an Alicorn, wearing a armor plate with the image of a Time Capsule.

Pinkie Pie looked down the hall.

“Ooooo! Who is that?” she asked.

“That is the statue of the Master of Time. Timaeus, the spirit of Judgment,” Doctor Hooves replied.

The six mares absorbed the info and continued reading the events, and came across one that had them wondering.  

“Um... there are four Alicorns, right?  Why are there an additional four?” Applejack asked.

“Yeah. It seems they're fighting each other or something,” Rainbow Dash continued.

Daring Do became curious as well, for she had not seeing anything as interesting as that. The Archivist tried to limit the info, but stepped forward.

“To make a long story short--” the Archivist was interrupted.

“No, Archivist. We mustn’t,” Doctor Cabaleron whispered.

“Don’t worry” the Archivist replied, and then gestured to the images. “The four alicorns on the left are the Alicorns of Creation. The other four are the Bronco Titans. They are the oldest and most ruthless ones. Centuries ago, there was a war between the Alicorns and was considered to be one of the most chaotic wars this world has ever seen.  Though the Bronco Titans lost with the death of the eldest, the Alicorns of Creation sentenced the remaining three to Tartarus for life. However, Khaoios was released because he was more of an intellectual type, and the Creator felt he could be useful. When he eventually went against her, she ordered him to be imprisoned out in the Astronomical Prison. Now with his return, he has come back to get back at the Creator for imprisoning him."

Twilight was amazed.

“Wow. That is really something. However, who are these Bronco Titans?” she asked.

“From oldest to youngest, you have Tyrannus, who was considered to be the most powerful and evil alicorn that ever walked Equestria.  In addition, his threat against the Creator was taken so seriously that it lead to his defeat and death. Yet, I cannot go into that,” Doctor Hooves stated.

“The rest are Titannus, Khaoios, of course, and lastly, Xenxus. Both Princess Celestia and Luna do not know of this, and we even ordered Cerberus to keep them at the deepest part of Tartarus,” Doctor Cabaleron concluded.

"The Bronco-Titans are also known by another name." Doctor Hooves commented.

"What?" The seven young ponies asked.  

"The Masters of Conquer, Pestilence, War, and Death." The Archivist concluded.

Twilight and her friends gasped for those names sounded extreme to them.  In all of their travels, they have never heard such enemies representing an apocalyptic name.  As they continued observing the other carvings, they noticed the two other halls.  One had a Solar System-Like appearance, showing planets, moons, asteroids, and comets all levitating in the room.  Something like a planetarium. The other had distorted orbs floating around the room.  

“Who are those other two alicorns?” Rarity asked, looking at both Alicorn Statues.

“The one with the planets is the Master of Space. Ironwing Interstellar Paguseus, the spirit of Wonder. The middle aged one. The other is the Master of Distortion. Alteros, the spirit of Alteration. You could say he’s like your friend, Discord, however he’s much more powerful,” Doctor Cabaleron replied to Rarity.

“Discord? Then he should know this right?” Fluttershy asked.

“No. Discord does not know of Alteros, and he will not,” The Archivist said.

Twilight then looked at the Archivist.

“I understand that this is quite interesting, however, I need to know about Khaoios and if there is a way to beat him?” she asked.

The Archivist nodded and turned to lead the way.

“Come. Perhaps this room will provide you with the knowledge, however, you cannot take any of them out. They are kept here for a reason.” The Archivist said.

They walked in the middle of the hall, and noticed, something below their hooves.  When they backed off, they noticed an invisible statue, until it was de-spelled revealing a statue of the Creator herself. Twilight observed it in amazement.

“So this is the Architect? The Queen of Equestria?” she asked.

“Yes,” The Archivist and both Doctors replied.

Behind the statue had a stairway leading into the lower part of the Temple, only to realize it was a colossal Library. However, The Archivist noticed that about three quarters of the documents were missing. She did not worry about that at the moment and instead focused on what was needed.  Assisting everypony, The Archivist looked for the manuscripts of Khaoios.  Very delicate, Twilight found the book lying in the back corner of the shelf.  Gently levitating the book, she placed it on a table and began reading it.  Unfortunately, it was written in an old language which slowed her progress.  

“There has to be something in this book that we could use against Khaoios! I... just can’t seem to understand the writing.” Twilight said.

Suddenly, Twilight’s eyes glowed and she was able to translate the language, for a few moments, until the book levitated itself and put itself back on the shelf.   For a few minutes, everypony found it to be quite spooky, however they turned to Twilight.

“What happened, Twilight?” Rainbow Dash asked.

Breathing heavily, she turned and looked at the ponies.

“I know how to beat Khaoios. But we need to hurry now,” she replied.

“What?” her friends asked.

Twilight turned to The Archivist.

“We’ve got what we came for and now I know what we can do,” she said, hurrying out of the room.

Her friends quickly ran after her. Daring Do, Cabaleron, and Doctor Hooves followed, yet The Archivist remained behind for a few moments.

“Please forgive me, my masters,” she whispered, running out of the room.

As the group hurried out of the Temple a mysterious portal opened. Twilight heard a very calm and gentle voice.

“Go through the portal,” the voice told her.

Taking a few seconds, thinking, she felt it was safe and ran through it. Her friends, not worrying where the portal came from ran right through it. 
> Chapter 11: Outmaneuver
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	As they went through the portal, chaos continued as Khaoios chased the Wonderbolts in every direction they were flying.  Evading though tight spaces, Khaoios recognized he was wasting time, until his tolerance turned to no mercy. Reaching the point of exhaustion, he crashed into the Wonderbolt fliers, like a hurricane hitting a flock of birds. One by one, each member fell out of the sky, only to be caught by nearby pegasus ponies. Captain Spitfire, falling fast, was caught by a pegasus pony, with a cyan colored mane and tail, and a black body.  

“Gotcha!” he said, catching her.

Spitfire, dizzy at the moment, turned her head and looked at the pegasus.

“Thanks,” Spitfire said, trying to regain her strength.

“You’re injured! Just hang on,” the pegasus said as Khaoios spotted him.

The pegasus squinted and Khaoios soon backed off, realizing it wasn’t worth it.  He then turned only to realize the last group of ponies escaped the city via the suspension bridge.  Accepting his mistake, he looked and saw General StoneColt across the river.

“Well played. General. Well played, indeed,” Khaoios thought to himself and returned to his post on top of the tower.

The General looked and scoffed.  Princess Celestia and Princess Luna waited behind him.

“Personally, I have never expected such a... suicide plan, but turned out to be quite interesting,” Luna commented.

General StoneColt grinned.

“Believe me, Princess. In order to defeat your enemy, you must observe them. That’s exactly why he defeated the both of you. However, he cannot be in two places at once, which is why the Wonderbolts were the bait, while the guards evacuated the ponies from the city,” he replied.

“Not all were evacuated,” Celestia said. “Spike is Khaoios hostage... and--”

"And yes, Twilight Sparkle and her friends will go and rescue him,” StoneColt said.

The Princesses worried for a moment, but had to agree with StoneColt.

---

A few miles away, a portal opened, and Twilight, along with her companions hopped out.  

“Some shortcut that was.” Applejack commented.

“No time.  We gotta go now and rescue Spike,” Twilight said as she ran towards the base.  

There, Shining Armor stood only to realize it was Twilight coming in quickly.  Hurriedly ordering his troops to stand down, the group came to him.

“Twiley. You’re here.” Shining Armor spoke with relief. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

He hugged her tightly.

“We’re fine, Shining Armor. How are the Princesses?” Twilight replied.

In that instant, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, and StoneColt stood behind Shining Armor. In tears, Twilight grabbed her mentor in a tight hug, happy that she was okay. However, with the small conversations on their adventure, they moved inside the tent, discussing the plan.  The Archivist lifted head and locked her eyes on StoneColt. Knowing the facial expression, StoneColt recognized the response and turned to Twilight.

“I understand you took a stroll looking for a way to defeat Khaoios. What is your plan, if I may ask?” StoneColt asked.

Twilight cleared her throat as her friends and allies gathered around the table.  

“From what I read, that Torch he calls “The Artifact” is his most important weapon. It’s capability is to predict the future.” She paused. “He’s a strategist, however, what StoneColt planned out from what you told us, that’s one thing Khaoios cannot do.  When he’s focused on one problem, he'd rather deal with that problem first. However, the evacuation he didn’t predict because he only predicted what was coming at him.”

“Basically moves that involve him, he can predict.  Anything that he’s not a victim to, he can’t. The Artifact can only do so much,” StoneColt commented.

“If we can steal the Artifact, Khaoios is weak and thus vulnerable. However, with his power and intelligence, we must proceed cautiously,” The Architect added.

Shining Armor sighed.

“So how do you plan on getting this torch?” he asked.

The Archivist turned.

“Twilight Sparkle along with the Wielders of Harmony, will do so. They are the only ones who are capable of defeating him and rescuing Spike,” she said.

The Princesses’ felt their hearts sink in fear. Shining Armor shook his head.  

“No more, Twily! You’ve saved the world enough times already!  You and your friends are the only ponies that could unite Equestria again with Friendship. Without you, I don’t know how I can live with myself. Please, leave the rest of this to me and my guards, that’s an order!”

Twilight put her head down.

“I have no choice, Shiny. I have to do this. Please. Believe in me and my friends,” Twilight pleaded.

Recording her words, StoneColt was quite surprised. He turned to the Archivist silently. The Archivist lifted her chin.

“It’s the only way.”

Twilight turned to the Princesses. They worried for their young Princess. Having no choice, they agreed, and Twilight smiled.

“Thank you, Princesses.  I promise. I will bring back Spike and defeat Khaoios. If we beat Tirek.  We can beat Khaoios,” Twilight said.

After the Princesses and Shining Armor agreed with Twilight’s decision, StoneColt stepped forward and turned to everypony.

“Now. Once that is commenced, we need to keep Khaoios in one place, so we can use our magic and possibly, big buckets of water to drop on him”. He said.

“Water?” Luna asked.

“Since Khaoios magic are fire based, he’s vulnerable when he gets wet. If we can drop water on him and have Twilight and her friends use their Rainbow Power, they can stop him. Problem is... it will be difficult to lure him, but what would be a good spot,” StoneColt said.

Everypony absorbed the info.  Cadance lifted her head.

“The bridge? It has cables right?” she asked.

“Yes... the southern suspension bridge. If we could lure him to the bridge, Shining Armor and his guards can shoot the wires, snapping and hooking onto Khaoios securing him in place,” StoneColt responded.

“What about the buckets of water?” Shining Armor asked.

“I will lead the raid with the Wonderbolts by dropping water on him making him weak,” StoneColt replied.  

He turned to address Twilight.

“Princess.  I need you to listen carefully. Once you retrieve your friend and the Artifact, fly as fast as you can to the bridge,” he ordered.

Twilight proudly stood up.

“Of course,” she replied as she turned and walked out of the tent.  


> Chapter 12: The Titan Falls
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Once the mission was fully discussed, everypony went to their positions. Twilight and her friends soon crossed the foggy bridge and into the dark cloud-covered city. Walking through the streets as if it were a post-apocalyptic event, Khaoios sensed their presence and flew down with the Artifact.  He created a small crater as he landed, and Spike was dropped to the ground.

“We meet again, Princess. You visited the Temple, I see, just by the look on your eyes. Tell me... How was it?” he asked.

“Enough with your games, Khaoios. Now we know how to defeat you so once I tell you, you WILL hand my friend over,” Twilight spoke with anger.

“Really?  And whoever said, I was going to hand him over when you told me the answer. Because... you already did,” Khaoios replied, as his eyes glowed.

He used his magic to lock down Twilight’s friends, and levitated Twilight towards him. Looking into her eyes, he horn began to glow as her power was draining into Khaoios’ body. Her friends screamed for her. Twilight lifted her head slowly.

“But... I thought you wanted my answer, and instead you steal my magic,” Twilight struggled to say.

“You fool.  I didn’t steal your magic. I stole what you saw after reading that book. I wanted all THE KNOWLEDGE OF EQUESTRIA. That was my plan.  Since I am one of the Bronco Titans, I was unable to get into the Temple, so once I saw you, it struck me that you were worthy enough to enter, which a surprise to me. Then again, The Architect had that idea as well. But, know, at this very moment, I am now in possession of all the knowledge and thus, I shall take this planet, by FORCE!  So I thank you for what you had brought me,” Khaoios said.

“You... tricked us.” Twilight choked.

“Brilliant Strategy.  Wasn’t it?  Remember that I AM the Master of Intelligence.  I had this plan since I first arrived and now, I shall get rid of you and your friends,” Khaoios boasted as his unihorn glowed.  

Flying high, to make sure he destroyed them, the ponies looked at one another.  

“No! I’m too young to die!" Rarity wailed. "By Celestia I’m still a.--"

Applejack smiled as she looked at her.

“Rarity, you may be the most needy, high maintenance, repressed mare I've ever called my friend...  but you are my friend, when it comes down to it, you’ve got real heart. And I AIN’T GIVIN’ UP ON YOU YET!” she said.

“Applejack...”

Rarity shed a tear. Rainbow turned, continuing to struggle through the magic, and fell flat. She looked at her friends.

“Guys...  I... I don’t know how to say this but... if this is really how we bite it.... I love you all,” she told them.

Pinkie Pie rocked back an forth.

“Am I alright? ...Sure, I’ll just be over here doing... something. Happy place. Happy place. Happy place. Happy place. Happy place. Happy place!” she said.

Twilight, struggling to get up looked up as Khaoios charged his power. Not knowing what to do, and no intention to abandon her friends, she charged her magic, willing to give her life to save her friends.  

“Say good-bye to your creation, Architect,” Khaoios said.

With Khaoios distracted, Spike used his fire to melt the chains, making them easier to break.  Free from them, he turned and saw Khaoios charging downward, and quickly jumped on his back covering Khaoios’ eyes.  As the two were falling, Spike snatched the Artifact from Khaoios grasp. 

“NO!! GET OFF ME, YOU FILTH!” Khaoios yelled.

Hitting the windows on the way down, Twilight and her friends were released and watched as Khaoios came crashing down. Spreading out, Twilight noticed Spike was thrown off when Khaoios, shot out his magic at him, knocking him unconscious.  Quickly, she flew up and caught him when Khaoios crashed landed on to the ground, creating dust. Running to a corner with her friends, Twilight tried to revive Spike. Unable to do so, Twilight trembled.

“Spike!” she called out.

There was no response.  She repeated herself several times, until Applejack put her hoof out.

“No... this... can’t be happening. This... isn’t how it’s supposed to be!” Twilight cried.

Suddenly, Spike twitched.  

“Uh... what happened?” Spike whispered.

Twilight and her friends wept there tears and embraced him, happy he was okay.  With surprise, Spike had The Artifact in hand.

“You got it?” Rarity asked.

“Yup,” Spike laughed.

Suddenly, Khaoios broke out of the crater creating dark smoke from the debris.  Breathing heavily, they noticed he was weakening and it them the chance to commence the plan.

To outsmart him, Twilight gathered up a plan to get Khaoios attention. Knowing what to do, they spread out and Twilight ran out into the open, with Spike on her back.

“Oh Khaoios.” Spike and Twilight taunted. “Looking for something?”

Khaoios’ eyes widened.

“Give me the Artifact, you miserable welps.  I WANT IT!” he yelled.

“Oooooh... some pony sounds mad,” Twilight said.

“Come on and get us,” Spike said as they ran.

Khaoios, now without the Artifact, became vulnerable. Even with his strong intellect, he did not see what was going to occur next, for his focus was mostly on Twilight, Spike, and the Artifact.

Passing by a street, Applejack and Rarity bit on a rope on each side of the street, while Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy stood above with a large tarp. Pinkie Pie was unfortunately eating a banana at that moment until she yelled in excitement as Twilight and Spike charged out, with Khaoios, running after them like a raging bull. At that moment, Pinkie Pie dropped a banana peel in the middle, where Khaoios slipped and tripped over the rope, and the tarp was dropped on his head, knocking him into a nearby building.  Now fully enraged, he got up and soon began the chase as he roared out in anger.

Across the river, the roar was heard.

“Khaoios is mad now. Prepare everything,” StoneColt ordered.

All the ponies got to their positions as Twilight and her friends raced towards the bridge. Catapults loaded with balloons filled with water took aim. Unicorns prepared their magic, and the Wonderbolts readied their buckets of water. Suddenly, everypony watched as Twilight and her friends reached the bridge and Khaoios, running closer and closer to them, jumped on the first tower.  At that point, Khaoios then dropped back down and continued his chase, when suddenly, due to nearly destroying the bridge earlier, the wires snapped, tripping Khaoios and knocking him against the second tower.  

“We got him!” Twilight yelled.

Khaoios, now trapped, roared out in anger.  Shining Armor the order.

“Fire!!!” they ordered, as the catapults flung the buckets of water, hitting Khaoios on his broad side. 

Khaoios roared out in pain as they noticed he was still holding his ground. Above, the Wonderbolts with the assistance of other pegasus ponies, including the one that saved Captain Spitfire, passed over and dropped buckets of water on Khaoios.  Struggling to free himself, Khaoios used his magic to shoot the pegasus ponies out of the sky, but due to the water, his aim was off, weakening him greatly.

“That’s it. He’s weak,” the Archivist said.

As the six mares and the dragon made it three quarters of the way, one of the cables on the other side snapped.  Exploding, it rocked the bridge like an earthquake, knocking the ponies down.  Below the bridge, one of the holders exploded, tilting slightly on its side.  From there, the ponies knew, they had to get off the bridge fast.   

"No!  The bridge is about to go."  Doctor Hooves yelled.  

The Archivist turned and noticed the bridge tilted.  She ran to the edge of the bridge as it continued to crack.  Yelling to them to run, the bridge cracked and fell one level, knocking the ponies down again.  Hurrying on, they made it to the edge of the bridge, but couldn't reach for the top.  Too weak to carrying them, Twilight called for a rope.  Without a word, a rope was immediately tossed down, but in doing so, the bridge dropped again.  As Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity climbed up, Khaoios continued to be distracted, still trying to free himself.  Making it safely up, Twilight flew up with Spike until another cable snapped, knocking into the asphalt of the bridge and hitting Twilight.  Knocked out, temporarily, the Archivist jumped down and carried the unconscious princess.  Carrying Spike as well, the Archivist struggled as she climbed up.  After a suspenseful moment, that area of the bridge collapsed, landing in the river and the Archivist managed to hold on tighter.  Finally reaching the top, Twilight awoke and immediately gathered her friends  This time, they were confident enough to put an end to Khaoios with the use of their Rainbow Power. Khaoios, looking straight at them, charged with whatever power he had left to defeat them quickly. The ponies watched as six mare's Rainbow Power fired and Khaoios blocked it again. Princess Celestia and Luna noticed it was weak and tried to assist until suddenly, a powerful blue colored lighting shot with such incredible power, hit Khaoios on the back. With the combined force, the bridge crumbled and plummeted into the river, dragging Khaoios with it. As the bridge went down, powerful waves crashed onto nearby docks, destroying small shacks and homes.  It was intense for everypony as they watched the powerful Alicorn get dragged down into the river.

Thunder and lightning rolled in, as Twilight and her friends ran to the edge and saw nothing but bubbles for minutes. StoneColt, The Archivist, the Princesses and everypony else watched as the bubbles soon died out. The bridge was gone and so was Khaoios. The terror was over. From all over, ponies cheered out and word soon spread all over Equestria. The Alicorn was defeated, and disappeared without a trace under the waves.  

Twilight, happy that she and her friends defeated Khaoios, hurried back to the base. There, they heard ponies, young and old, stomping on the ground. They were clapping their hooves, celebrating the bravery of defeating the Alicorn. Slowly walking past them, embracing their accomplishment, they faced the Princesses.  

“Princess Twilight Sparkle. What you have done is one of the most memorable things we shall cherish. We give our true thanks to you and your friends for defeating the great Alicorn,” Celestia announced, as everypony stomped their hooves.  

The Architect, Doctor Hooves, Doctor Cabaleron, and StoneColt watched silently as the Artifact was handed over to Shining Armor. Knowing its capabilities, they ignored that moment and expressed their thanks towards Twilight and her friends on their accomplishments.

Later that day, ponies assisted one another with recovering from the damage and rebuilding what was destroyed on Equestria.  Journeying back to Canterlot, Celestia and Luna gave there thanks to them, and soon, celebration rang out in Canterlot and in Ponyville. Once night came, Twilight was back in her home ready to go to sleep.

“Whew. What a wild adventure,” she giggled.

“You said it,” Spike replied, falling asleep.  

Twilight, feeling proud of her accomplishment, fell asleep too.

> Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Temple of Inception lay quiet, excluding the clicks from the Tower of Time.  There, the Archivist walked through the temple and into the Architect's room. Unwrapping a blanket, she held the Artifact. She had mysteriously gone into Canterlot and took it out, to prevent its secrets from getting revealed. As she was in the Library, there was a lower whisper, creating a small draft.  She lifted her head.

“You know, it does get kind of annoying when you sneak up behind me,” she said.

“I want to make sure the Artifact is securely sealed. No pony must know of the incident. Once they wake up, they will remember nothing of Khaoios," the voice said behind her.  

The Archivist turned and saw the Master of Time, Timaeus, as he walked out from the shadows.

“What about the master? Because I’m afraid what just occurred is going to happen again,”  The Archivist replied.

“Of course it’s going to happen again, my apprentice,” Another voice said.  

Looking next to Timaeus, another alicorn stepped out. She was a white alicorn, with a red-colored mane and tail. Her appearance was of beauty and creativity.  

“What do you mean, your Majesty?” the Archivist asked.

The mare lifted her head.

“Because those who interfered with my creativity, will do everything in their power to destroy it,” the Architect said.