Then We Leave

Chapter 1: Then We Leave

“You have a lot to think about.”

That was it. That was the final proverbial nail in the coffin for Twilight Sparkle. All she was trying to do was protect her brother, Shining Armor, from ruining his life by marrying an evil mare. Cadence was her old foalsitter, so she knew how she acted, but the “Cadence” that her brother was about to marry was definitely not the real one.

And what does she get for being a good and protective little sister? Betrayal. Not only did Shining forbid her from attending the wedding and practically disown her, but her friends turned their backs to her and the princess’ cold words were like hot daggers in her heart.

Only when they had finally left the hall did Twilight finally let the dam burst. She didn’t know how long she’d been crying there, but she knew that she couldn’t stay in Canterlot any more. Focusing her thoughts just enough to make a spell, she concentrated her magic into a long-ranged teleport. When she used the spell, she was quickly confused once she noticed that she was in the throne room, and not back at her library/home in Ponyville.

She was going to try again, but stopped when she heard a faint sound. After listening in on it for a bit she concluded that it was very much like a heartbeat and coming from the direction of the throne itself. As Twilight walked closer to the throne, the sound got louder.
Finally reaching the throne of her men- no, her former mentor, she continued to follow the steady heartbeat towards a door hidden behind it. She opened the door and started her path through a long, torch-lit corridor. After hearing the door close behind her, she knew that this was the point of no return, that she couldn’t go back. Not that she’d even want to go back to them anyway.

Twilight followed down the corridor into a circular room with armored statues lining the walls. But she didn’t pay them any mind, as what caught her attention was the mirror with her cutie mark at the top in the center of the room. She couldn’t quite put her hoof on it, but Twilight felt a sense of peace and serenity emanating from the mirror, like it could take away all her problems.

She walked up to the mirror and placed her hoof against it, then almost stumbled when said hoof went straight through.

“GAH!” she yelped, falling back on her rump and staring at the now rippling mirror. Twilight continued staring dumbstruck as the reflective surface settled back to normal. Shaking her head, she stood back up and stepped in front of the mirror again. She lightly tapped the surface with her hoof, causing the ripple effect.

A sense of realisation hit Twilight as she remembered about reading a book that spoke of an enchanted mirror that could send ponies and other creatures to another world, but it was said to have been destroyed when that world grew too dangerous. It would seem that somepony lied in the history books.

Looking back to the corridor, she thought of going to her parents to talk to them, but quickly shook that thought away as she figured that her brother had already ranted to them and would be treated the same when they saw her. So with newfound resolve and determination, she looked straight at the mirror, uttered three final words, “Goodbye, cruel world”, and leaped forward into an unknown world.

=][=

Ten minutes earlier…

Rainbow Dash felt sick. Not sick physically, but emotionally. Just a few moments after they had left Twilight after her accusations of Cadence being evil, something had been gnawing at the back of Rainbow’s mind. She tried to fly it off, take a nap, and even make casual conversation with the others, but nothing worked; it wouldn’t go away and seemed to get stronger.

Trying something different, she went to the hall where the Elements of Harmony were stored to see if the instruments that brought herself and her friends together would calm her. It only made things worse.

Just as she was about three feet away from the door, a huge wave of anger washed over Rainbow Dash. She had never felt so much hatred and fury before in all her life. But what shook her to the core was when a voice came into her head, a voice she had never heard before but knew what it belonged to: the Element of Loyalty. And boy, it was pissed.

It insulted her, called her a traitorous scum; unworthy of being its bearer. Rainbow would have tried to retort, but she was suddenly shown moments in Ponyville where she only cared about herself and her pride. Helping ponies with their problems just to relish in their praise and attention, only doing what she did for the glory. What she saw next broke her heart: she watched the memory of herself, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie having a picnic when Twilight appeared and asked for their help with a friendship report, but they all said that it was nothing to worry about and brushed it off. After a spell gone wrong, the Mane 6, Spike and Princess Celestia were at Twilight’s home/workplace and were making their own report that they would listen to the worries of their friends and take them seriously.

Straight after that promise was made, the memory of the wedding rehearsal that wasn’t too long ago flashed into Rainbow’s mind. She saw the heartbroken look of absolute horror and shock on Twilight’s face as they all turned their backs to her and left the hall. The fact that she stayed there a little longer made the cyan pegasus think that this was the Elements’ memory, and so she was able to see the abandoned unicorn cry her heart out before the memory faded and she was looking at the vault door to the Elements again.

Rainbow could feel tears streaming down her face, but she didn’t stop them; she didn’t care. She hated herself for what she did to one of her closest friends. If Loyalty had a body of its own, she knew it would be glaring down at the pegasus with a curious eye and perhaps a snarl, waiting for her next move.

“Oh, Twilight… I’m so sorry…” she sobbed.

Rainbow Dash cried for about a minute when she heard a groaning sound in front of her. She looked up to see the Elements’ vault opening and the chest that contained them float down before her hooves. The chest opened and revealed the Elements enveloped in a blazing glow that made it seem that the Elements were on fire, all except one. The Element of Magic was much darker than normal and it gave Dash an uneasy feeling. She slowly raised her right hoof towards the tiara, silently praying that the raging aura doesn’t somehow burn her. Taking the fact that her fur wasn’t catching on fire as she hovered over the Element of Loyalty as a good sign, with all the care in the world, Rainbow gently pressed her hoof on Twilight’s Element and her eyes widened at what she felt.

Nothing. It was stone cold. She could only feel more anger to herself and her friends for what they had done. The Element of Magic was in a state of utter despair and loneliness, almost like the equivalent of someone who was as good as dead. Rainbow retracted her hoof from the star shaped Element in shock.

After examining her hoof for a few seconds, she looked back at the other Elements. Their glow wasn’t as intense to her, but she could still feel the anger they had towards their own bearers, which led Rainbow to believe that they decided that she was redeemable and could be forgiven. With newfound determination she wiped away any new tears that threatened to fall, gently closed the chest whilst silently thanking them for a second chance, and placed it back on their pedestal in the vault.

Taking a deep breath, Rainbow Dash turned around and flew towards Twilight’s bedroom; she has a friend to apologize to, after all. She zoomed past guards and servants through the halls, ignoring their shouts of protests, but she didn’t care; they could all go to Tartarus for all she cared. Skidding to a stop in front of Twilight’s bedroom, she took a deep breath and knocked on the door before pushing it open.

“Hey, Twilight? You in here?” Rainbow asked softly as she pushed the door further open and walked in. She was disappointed that she didn’t find the lavender unicorn, but surprised that instead she’d found a sobbing purple dragon. “Spike? Is that you?” she asked.

“Huh?” Spike turns around and sees a concerned looking rainbow-mane pegasus. “Oh. Rainbow Dash, what are doing here?” he asks.

Rainbow sighed. “I came to apologize to Twilight for being such a disloyal idiot. You?”

“*SNIFF* Same.” He says. “Guess that means that you don’t know where she is either, huh?” Rainbow slowly nodded her head, making Spike sigh. “You think any of the others know her whereabouts?”

At the mention of their other friends, the cyan mare scowled. “I really don’t feel like talking to them any time soon after what they’ve done.” She growled, and Spike couldn’t blame her.

Right after they had all left Twilight at the rehearsal, he could tell that Rainbow was not proud of it and left about five minutes afterwards. Spike had stayed with the others for just over half an hour after Rainbow had gone off, feeling guiltier by the minute, and saw no change in the behavior of the other mares. Realizing that they didn’t regret being so harsh to Twilight, he decided that he’d had enough and ran to Twilight’s room, but when she wasn’t there, he cried in the middle of the room until Rainbow Dash showed up.

They both tensed up when they heard a tapping sound coming from the window. Nighttime had already fallen so all they could see of the tapper was their silhouette, and it seemed like a large bird.

“What do you think a bird is doing here?” Spike asked.

“I don’t know, maybe it thinks this is Fluttershy’s room.” Rainbow guessed as she walked towards the window. Just as she opened the panel, a bright golden glow filled the room with light and the bird flew in, perching onto a closet. Rainbow wanted to give the pesky featherbrain a piece of her mind, but she and Spike were too shocked at what they were seeing to do anything.

It looked like some breed of eagle that seemed to be slightly larger than an adult phoenix, but its most eye-catching feature was that it had two heads, eyes of a solid golden glow and the left head was missing its right eye. The strange bird then flew down from its perch and into the hallway.

“Hay! Wait up!” Spike called out as he and Rainbow Dash regained their senses.

“Hold on tight.” Rainbow said as she used her left fore hoof to place Spike on her back. Seeing where this was going, the baby dragon did as he was told and prepared for a high-speed chase. And one second later, they were off.

Rainbow Dash flew down corridor after corridor, passing and startling many servants and guards as she gave chase to the two-headed eagle. But that was proving difficult as whenever it would round a corner, by the time the cyan pegasus and purple dragon caught up it would be at the other side of the hallway. They noticed that there’s a flash of golden light right after the eagle makes a turn, so Spike theorized that it was somehow teleporting.

Soon they found themselves heading straight for the throne room, Dash mentally hoping that Celestia was elsewhere; otherwise this would be awkward. They were just within reach of the large bird when its left head turned to look back at them and it was… smirking? Suddenly, its body was enveloped in similarly golden aura, just before it teleported in a flash of light… too close to the doors for Rainbow to stop.

“Horseapples!” she managed to scream as they rammed open the doors and tumbled head over heels across the marble floor, stopping when they struck the base of the throne.

“…Ow.” Rainbow and Spike moaned as they regained their senses and stood back up on shaky legs. “Okay, from now on I’m going to assume that all two-headed birds can use magic.” Spike mumbled under his breath, earning an unfamiliar sounding chuckle.

“Well now, I haven’t had that much fun in millennia, since I discovered my true nature.” An unknown voice, male by the sounds of it, mused from the direction of the throne. Looking up, the cyan pegasus and purple dragon were slightly confused to see the eagle they were chasing. “Oh how it must feel to be young.” It said.

“Wait, you’re able to teleport and you can talk?” Rainbow accused the large bird.

He chuckled again. “I can do far more than simply teleport down halls, Loyalty.” Rainbow was taken aback when he called her by her Element. “But now is not the time, your friend is in great need of you.”

“What? Twilight’s in trouble?” Spike asked in a panic. The talking eagle nodded both heads and continued.

“She has used an enchanted mirror hidden behind this throne to arrive on Terra, my home world, where I intend to soon reveal myself and unite it through conquest.”

“Why would Twilight be in danger in a place where you’re in charge if you’re so worried about her?” Rainbow Dash asked. Immediately after those words left her mouth, she face hoofed as her words could be misinterpreted as rude.

“It’s because I have yet to rule it, and it is more dangerous than you know.” He said. At their confused expressions, he elaborated. “Terra is divided by many warring ‘Techno-Barbarian nation-states’, and great levels of violence, bloodshed, misery and death are all too common for both them and the citizens of Terra who struggle to live out another day. Magic attempted to make contact with some that were near, but they would have killed or defiled her if I hadn’t slain them myself.” The two-headed eagle explained, painting a horrid picture in Rainbow and Spike’s minds before he flew off the throne and hovered in front of the door that was behind it.

The two Equestrians followed him through the door and down the torch-lit corridor until they reached a circular room with a mirror bearing Twilight’s cutie mark, enveloped in golden magic, in the center.

“This mirror is the portal to Terra, and it’s taking a strenuous amount of my power to keep our worlds connected. I must warn you though: once we go through, it is almost certain you will never see this world again.” He warned.

Rainbow Dash and Spike shared a worried glance with each other, but quickly dismissed it and with a nod, stepped towards the mirror.

“We’re already at the point of no return, so why stop now?” Spike thought out loud with a shrug. The eagle smiled at the two Equestrians.

“Then let us be off.” And with that he flew into the mirror, causing the surface to ripple, closely followed by Rainbow and Spike. As they passed through, the golden glow that surrounded the mirror disappeared, and the time stream of Terra continued its course.

The Return

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Eleven months later…

It has been nearly a year since the Canterlot wedding and the Changeling invasion. The ponies were surprised when Princess Luna had interrupted the wedding with another Cadence in toe, but then shocked when the one they were catering revealed herself to be some kind of pony/insect queen that managed to defeat Princess Celestia and commanded her army to attack the city.

About half an hour after the battle began, if it can even be called that with the lack of casualties or even injuries that weren’t more than a few days rest worth, Shining Armor and the real Princess Cadence used their love to create a shockwave that banished all Changelings to the Badlands. After a short victory celebration, the ponies immediately begun to rebuild the city and prepare for the real wedding, but when Princess Luna asked where Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash and Spike were, everything went downhill.

Cadence had called off the wedding until they were found and Celestia sent her Royal Guards to search high and low for the mares and dragon. Hours of searching turned into days, days into weeks, and weeks into months with nothing. It was bad enough that part of the nation’s defence was missing, but the princesses and other bearers had to postpone the search when the Crystal Empire had reappeared and they had to save it from King Sombra lest they have a war.

They went to every big city, every small town, and found no trace of them. So sadly by the time the sixth month ended, everypony lost hope. Night Light and Twilight Velvet mourned the loss of their daughter, unable to comprehend the situation. Celestia and Luna tried location spells but they never worked. The Solar Princess was about to lose all hope, until she made a discovery.

The hidden door behind her throne was opened. Finally making a breakthrough, Celestia herself and her entire arcane council spent two whole months studying the mirror to find a way to bring back Twilight, Rainbow and Spike without going through it without risking themselves. And after so long of searching and a few extra months for caution, they’ll finally have their friends back home.

Presently, the three princesses of Equestria stood in one of Canterlot’s tallest towers with a large and intricate runic circle in front of them, the Elements of Magic and Loyalty in the center. Also in the chamber were Shining Armor, the rest of the Mane Six, Twilight Velvet, Night Light, Rainbow Dash’s parents - Bow Hothoof and Windy Whistles - some magai and a few guards. When Velvet and Night were told what was believed to be the reason for Twilight’s disappearance, they were understandably upset. Velvet shouted so much and so loudly that she could barely speak for a week due to how sore her throat was. When Bow and Windy were told, they were of course disappointed with the ponies involved but said that they were proud of their daughter staying by someone who needed her.

“Is everything prepared?” Princess Celestia asked the magai, earning nods from all of them. “Good. Everypony in position.” She commanded.

Once the princesses, arcane council and Element Bearers got into their assigned places, Princess Celestia ignited her horn, Luna, Cadence and the magai following suit. As the runic circle began to glow, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy and Applejack thought of and focused on their friendship with Rainbow and Twilight. They felt a hot, burning sensation in their chests as the Elements around their necks started glowing, almost as though they were challenging the resolve of the mares.

Not long after repairs to Canterlot were complete, Celestia attempted to use the Elements to locate the missing mares and dragon, but like Rainbow Dash the Bearers and princesses were floored by the anger behind the Elements. Cadence had seen and settled many arguments between ponies, but even she was stumped by the raw, unfiltered fury expressed by Equestria’s first - and seemingly only - line of defence. This event only showed the Alicorn Sisters that there was more to the Elements than they’d ever thought before.

The Elements of Magic and Loyalty started glowing a bright violet and magenta respectively, now floating above the ground slightly. Everything that was using magic were now glowing even brighter as more energy was put into the spell.
After nearly two minutes of no progress, they finally felt it; a tug. They’d found them.

Princess Celestia instructed the ponies around the circle to use more power whilst she, Luna and Cadence concentrated on the spellwork that would retrieve to two mares. The Elements of Magic and Loyalty began to glow even brighter now, so much so that everypony had to close their eyes to avoid being blinded, and started forming some sort of sphere of light. Soon, after about another minute, there was a huge flash, followed by a massive shockwave that knocked all the ponies of their hooves.

Waiting a few moments for the spots in her eyes and ringing in her ears to clear up, Celestia stood back up and looked towards the circle… then blinked and tilted her head in confusion.

In the middle of the room was a very large wood four-poster bed with red velvet sheets and curtains that were open, metal plates sculpted into various designs were placed onto the bed frame with some jewels embedded around them. One of the images the sun princess more easily identified resembled the silhouette of a two-headed eagle, and the others that she could see were unusual to her: a black wolf with a crescent moon in its maw, a metallic hand, a dragon's head, a white upside-down omega symbol, a strange sun-esk symbol, a sword framed by two wings, some kind of metal skull, a horned and fanged skull with blood-red bat wings, a skull with a black sword going through its eye, and a hydra.

Celestia grew worrisome at how grim the symbols became as she saw them, though none of those seemed to be what the other Equestrians were focused on. On the posts and facing outwards from the bed were skulls, covering the posts almost entirely if it weren't for the wide gold bands dividing each 'ring', which also had many fine jewels along the edges and a floral pattern etched into them.

When she stepped closer to the bed, Celestia finally noticed that there were two oddly shaped creatures that she’s only seen once before under the sheets, soundly asleep and close together. She raised her head and saw the Elements of Magic and Loyalty resting on top of the headboard above the sleeping humans.

By this time the other ponies were on their hooves and some nervously stepping closer to what they’d summoned. Irritated that it wasn’t what they wanted, coupled with the past eleven months of stress, Shining Armor brashly says, “What the hay is this? We were trying to bring my little sister and her friend back home, not get whatever these things are.”

Cadence shot her fiance a small glare before going over to Celestia. “Auntie, what are these creatures? Why did the spell bring them here and not Twilight and Rainbow Dash?” she asks. The eldest princess was about to reply but stopped herself when Luna suddenly gasped.

“Sister, look… their manes.” She said, pointing a hoof towards their heads. Confused, Celestia and the others did so and gasped as well. One had straight-cut, midnight blue hair that had a pink and purple stripe and a lavender horn coming through from its forehead, whilst the other’s hair was messy and was in all the colors of the rainbow.

“It can’t be…” Celestia whispered, shocked at what this seemed to imply. Everypony else around the bed wanted to express their own disbelief, but the fidgeting and groaning of the rainbow haired human made them freeze.

“Huh? We there already?” she grumbled tiredly in a familiar voice. She slowly started to sit up, stretching her arms and cyan wings with a yawn. After rubbing her eyes a bit to get the sleepiness out, she opened them, and in seconds the magenta orbs widened when the colorful equines surrounding her bed registered in her mind. Slowly looking around at the equally shocked faces of the ponies, she then started gently nudging the still sleeping human laying next to her. “Uh, Twi, you might want to get up. We’ve got a bit of a problem.”

The sleeping woman groaned but started getting up. “What, Rainbow? Did we run into an Ork fleet or something?” she said, doing the same as her partner did just moments ago. She her violet eyes slowly opened then quickly widened as she scanned the room and the faces of the ponies watching them. “...Oh…”

“T-Twilight? Dashie? I-Is it really you?” Pinkie asks timidly, still unnerved by all the skulls and symbols on the bed frame. The two humans were silent and shared a nervous expression. After seemingly having a mental debate between each other, they both sighed and shifted their gaze to the gathered ponies.

“Yeah, it’s us.” Twilight said at last.

“But how? Why have you become a completely different species?” Rarity quipes dramatically.

“And why were ya’ll sleeping in the same bed?” Applejack questions, truly curious of the reason for their sleeping arrangements, though she had an idea.

The returned Equestrians were about to answer their current questions, but were stopped when they were both brought into tight hugs by their parents, Twilight’s coming from her right and Rainbow’s coming from her left.

“Oh, Twilight! We’ve missed you so much!” Velvet cried, overcome by the joy she felt having her daughter back, regardless that she wasn’t a pony.

“My sweet little Dashie! We’ve been so worried about you; we thought we’d never see you again!” Windy Whistles sobbed. Night Light and Bow Hotfoot remained silent as tears of joy fell down their cheeks, their wives having already said what they felt.

Twilight and Rainbow were still for a second, but the comforting embrace from their loving parents instantly broke through the walls made from so many years of near non-stop fighting and death that they’d lived through until recently. When they finally realised that they didn’t only have each others and sometimes Spike’s shoulders to lean on, Rainbow and Twilight returned the hug and wept in happiness also. “I’ve missed you too.” They both said through their tears. After another minute the four ponies and two humans separated and wiped their faces free of any more tears. They all smiled at each other until Princess Celestia politely cleared her throat.

“Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle, it is very good to see you both home at last and in good health, but I believe that I speak for everypony when I say that an explanation would be much appreciated.” She said, the other ponies in the room nodding.

Rainbow and Twilight glanced at each other and nodded. “I think that’s only fair, but can we get some clothes first? I really don’t want to spend all day walking around the castle in nothing but my underwear. And maybe some food would be nice.” Spoke Twilight.

“I’m sure that can be arranged. Rarity could easily put together a new set of clothes that fit your new bodies, and I’ll have the kitchens prepare a large meal for all of us.” Celestia responded with a kind smile. “I’ll even have the guards take your… bed, to one of the castle guest rooms.”

“Thanks, we appreciate it.” Twilight said as she and Rainbow shuffled out of their bed at either side. They were both wearing black sports bras and matching underwear that had a print of the same two-headed eagle on the bed frame, the only difference was that they had each other’s cutie mark on the left breast.

“Alright, darlings, follow me and we’ll make you the most beautiful… uh, whatever you are, in all of Equestria!” said Rarity, already heading to the exit and having ideas swimming in her mind.

As they followed the fashionista, Rainbow Dash stepped to Twilight’s side, wrapping an arm around her waist and a wing around her shoulder, pulling them close together. “Thanks for the help Rares, but that won’t be hard as we’re the only humans on the planet!” she joked, making Twilight giggle and lean onto her shoulder. Though some of the others laughed as well, most of them had an awkward expression on their faces as they witnessed how the two acted together.

Cadence stared at the retreating forms of her old charge and her ‘friend’ before she ignited her horn. Shining Armor quickly took notice of his fiance’s actions. “Cadey, what are you doing?” he asks.

“I’m just che-” she started, but stopped herself with a barely audible gasp, her eyes widening and jaw dropping slightly.

“Honey, what’s wrong?”

Cadence shook her head and regained her senses, giving the white stallion a soft, if slightly awkward, smile. “Oh, it’s nothing. Just thought I saw something odd, but everything’s fine.” She said. Shining didn’t look entirely convinced, but let it go for now. As the two began following everypony else out of the room, however, Cadence did say to herself in her mind, ‘Though I think I need to reevaluate what I think love is.’

=][=

Twilight and Rainbow were sitting in a room lined from wall to wall and almost floor to ceiling in fabrics, accessories, jewelry and just about anything and everything that had something to do with fashion as Rarity took their measurements. On the way here they passed by many servants and guards that were of course surprised to see two humans walking around the castle and perhaps a little frightened. Though news of their presence seemed to have spread quickly, as when they’d gotten closer to the room they were in now, the looks they got ranged from mild curiosity from the servants and silent glares from the guards, and although it unnerved them the girls had a good idea what they were for.

After about a minute or two of the only sound in the room being Rarity’s humming, Rainbow Dash decided to ask Twilight a question. “Hey, Twi, do you think Senator Amidala has to deal with this often?”

Twilight blinked, caught off guard by the sudden question. “Padme? What do you mean?”
“Well, she has a different dress and hairstyle for all sorts of occasions, so I was wondering if she ever got hassled for being fitted with some new and extravagant costume. No offence Rarity.”

“Non taken, darling.” Said the fashion designer instantly, causing the two humans to laugh as she finished taking Rainbow’s measurements. “Though I am overjoyed to have you both back home, I must admit that I’m a little put off by your… ‘roughness’.” She continued, gently prodding the former pegasus’ abs.

“When you’ve seen what we’ve seen and do what we do, you’ll understand that it pays to be at your physical peak.” Twilight told Rarity. “Though it isn’t all bad; I could just barely feel it before but now I can confirm that Rainbow and have actually gained earth-pony magic, making us stronger than most even if our muscles aren’t as ‘big’ as theirs.”

“The look on Angron’s face when I beat him at our first arm wrestle was priceless!” Rainbow laughed.

Rarity lightly cleared her throat when she started taking Twilight’s measurements. “Pardon me for being rude darlings, but who are these people you’re talking about?” she asks.

“We’ll explain later, but for now, Padme and her family are friends of ours and Angron is one of Rainbow’s sons.” Responded Twilight, smirking at the expression Rarity made.

“Oh my gosh, darling! Your son!? And you have others!? Oh darling, who’s the lucky stallion? When did you meet? How many children do you have? Details, details!” she screamed excitedly, anxious to hear the whole story.

“Nuh ah ah, Rares, you’re gonna have to wait with everyone else to find out.” Rainbow teased with her own smirk as the fashionista pouted. “Besides, it’s not what you think.”

Rarity huffed and moved behind Twilight to continue working. “Fine then, but I’d expect you to-” she stopped talking and gasped when she saw large, ugly scars on the former unicorn’s back. “My goodness, Twilight! Where did you get these horrible scars?”

Twilight tensed, her breath hitching, eyes widening and heart racing. The memories of the Heresy coming back with a vengeance. “No… no, please no…” she whispered, her hands grasping the sides of her head, tears building up in her eyes. “No… Horus…”

Rainbow quickly went to Twilight’s side, pulling her into a tight embrace. “Shh~, it’s okay, Twilight. Everything’s okay; you’re alright, we’re all fine. It’s okay.” Twilight cried on Dash’s shoulder as she soothed her and rubbed her back, repeatedly muttering ‘Horus’.

“Oh, I’m so sorry darlings. Will she be okay? Is there anything I can do to make things better?” Rarity asks, fearing that she’d just brought up a horrible memory.

Rainbow idly kissed the top of Twilight’s head, rocking a little. “Nah, it’s fine Rares. Just… give us a minute, kay?”

“Of course, Rainbow darling. Twilight’s measurements are almost identical to yours, so I can work with what I have.” Getting a nod, Rarity trotted off to her workbench as her magic acquired the fabrics she’d need.

Twilight’s sobbing started to lessen and stopped shaking. “I’m sorry…” she moaned with a sniff, raising her head to look at Rainbow better.

“Hey, don’t say that. None of it’s your fault; there’s nothing you could’ve done to change anything.”

“I could’ve been there for him, I could have prevented him from falling to Chaos, but now… now he’s gone.” Twilight lowered her head as more tears began to well up in her eyes.

“Twilight, look at me.” Rainbow said sternly. Twilight did so, surprised by her tone. “It was out of your control and you couldn’t have predicted anything. Everyone was caught off guard when Magnus told us that Horus had fallen. I don’t mean to undermine your pain, but if anyone should be blaming themselves for the Heresy, it’s me. Lorgar was the first to be corrupted, and he spread it through his and Horus’ Legions. What happened in that ship was not your fault and no one blames you for anything, so please stop blaming yourself.”

Twilight was silent for a moment, but she’d calmed down a lot and rested her head on Rainbow’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Dashie, that must’ve been the twenty-thousandth time you told me that.”

“Two-thousand, three-hundred and seventy-fourth time to be exact.” Said Rainbow, causing both girls to laugh. They sat in silence for a few minutes until Twilight shifted so that she was eye to eye to Rainbow, who started leaning forward slightly. “I love you Twilight, and nothing in the universe will ever change that.” The former pegasus whispered.

“I love you too Rainbow, more than anything.” Twilight whispered back, meeting her lover halfway for a small yet passionate kiss.

The kiss was interrupted by a shocked gasp, causing the lovers to separate and look in the direction they knew Rarity was working, and saw her with two dresses floating behind her and a shocked look on her face.

“What is it, Rarity? Is something wrong?” Twilight asks.

“You were kissing!” the white unicorn screamed.

Rainbow crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, so? We do that a lot, plus we’re married.” She and Twilight proved this by raising their left hands that showed a gold ring one of the fingers.

“But you’re mares! Two mares can’t be together just like two stallions can’t be together, it’s just not natural!” Rarity continued to wail.

Rainbow Dash facepalmed with a loud groan as Twilight simply sighed. “I was afraid that’s what the glares were for.”

“Look Rares, we were gonna tell everyone, so can you please just keep it to yourself until then?” Rainbow asks, though her aggressive undertone told the seamstress that there was no room for debate. Nodding hesitantly, Rarity gave the two humans their dresses and left to wait outside, a million thoughts racing through her mind as she tried to process that two of her best friends, whom she hasn’t seen in almost a year, were married despite being the same gender.

Notice/Spoilers/Assistance Needed

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Hey everyone, MatCor1337 here, and I'd like to inform you about some of my plans for this Fic because... I'm stuck. Not stuck in that I can't continue the story, mind you; far from it! There's just some key elements that I don't know how to implement in a way that works. The first is the main subject of the chapter I'm currently writing: the Unification Wars. I want it to be so that the Emperor finds Twilight when battling the second techno-barbarian nation-state (as if they're on a list), but I don't know what order to have the conquests be in. I can't just say something like, "after Twilight became fully committed to the Emperor and the Imperium, she travelled with her new Lord across the world, conquering nation-state after nation-state over the course of several years until none remained, sealing Terra under the Emperor's rule as plans for the rebuilding of the hive-world were underway." That's just lazy and boring, and I don't want that. So I plan to have an actual list of the nation-states and number them in the order of which they'll be conquered, even if some will only be referenced. I'm mentioning this because I'd be very grateful if you could all help me figure out the order of which the Emperor conquered the nation-states (link to the Wikia page).The second is in regards to my last comment in the previous chapter. All we know is that the Emperor used a strand of his own DNA as the foundation of the Pramarch gene-stock, with the belief that he also used psychic sorcery to enhance them spiritually, but that's about it. But with Twilight and Rainbow in the picture, having done many achievements during the Unification Wars to become highly respected individuals and even become close friends to the Emperor, things would be different. What exactly happens will be revealed at the start of the "Great Crusade" chapter, but the result is that the two become the biological mothers of 10 Primarchs each. The ones that I am locking-in and sticking with are as follows:

Twilight Sparkle;
Horus
Vulkan
Roboute Guilliman
Magnus the Red
Konrad Curze
Voltaire
Rainbow Dash;
Leman Russ
Jove Procheli
Sanguinius
Lorgar
Jaghatai Khan
Angron

Those listed above were somewhat simple to place, but I'm stumped with the others. But don't worry, that's where YOU come in! I'm asking for your help to keep this story rolling by telling me which Primarch you believe fits with which mother, and maybe add why you think so. There are a few points I should mention though: 1. Primarchs with rivalries cannot have the same mother; I want to use Twilight and Rainbow's growing relationship as a conduit(?) to settle their differences and bridge whatever gaps lay between them, which I think will work better if both have someone they may look up to encouraging them to get along. 2. The Loyalist/Traitor ratio must be AS EVEN AS POSSIBLE, meaning one cannot have all Loyalists and the other all Traitors. 3. Exceptions to the previous Points may be made if the Primarch shares most/all of their mother's traits, I wasn't aware of it, or a very strong case(reason) was given.

Before I finish, I'd like to thank you all for the support and input you've given me since I've finally started posting my Fics. If you haven't already, check out my other stories (or don't, your choice) and give me your honest opinion on them. New ideas and plans for making my own spin on existing stories may come, so keep an eye out. Anyway, that's all from me, and I hope to hear from you. MatCor1337 out.

The Unification Wars - pt. I

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Princess Celestia, Luna, Cadence, the Element Bearers and the families of Twilight and Rainbow were seated at a large table in the Princess' private dining hall that was being served a multitude of foods and sweets by the maids and waiters. They sat in silence for some time until the last servant left the room, which Shining Armor took the opportunity to speak up.

“Something’s not right with them.” He said, gaining everypony’s attention. “Ignoring the obvious of them not being ponies, they were sharing the same bed together and acted strangely towards each other as they were leaving.”

“As suspicious as that is, we need to wait for Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle and hear their story before we come to any rash conclusions.” Luna commented.

Twilight Velvet looked towards her future daughter-in-law. “Cadence, you can see the love between ponies, right? Did you see anything between Twily and her friend?” she asked, catching the younger princess off guard. She knew it would’ve eventually come up, just not so soon.

“U-um… y-yeah, I did.” Cadence awkwardly said, looking nervous.

“Go on, Cadence.” Celestia encouraged her niece. Nodding thanks to her aunt, the Princess of Love took a deep breath and continued.

“It was strong. Very strong at that; the only couple I know with anywhere near that much love for each other is myself and Shining. From what I saw, they truly love each other above anything else.” The ponies were shocked by Cadence’s news for various reasons, but from the corner of his eye Night Light saw Applejack do a curt nod, as though her own suspicions had just been confirmed.

“B-but that’s i-imposible. A mare c-can’t love a mare like a stallion can’t love a stallion.” Fluttershy stuttered, the meek pegasus almost aghast that her oldest and closest friend was with another mare… technically.

Celestia remained quiet and outwardly calm, but her mind was swarming with many thoughts. She had worked hard to make Equestria the way it is now, and part of that was implementing a perception of what a true loving couple was; that being a unity between a mare and stallion, no questions asked. Anything else that deviated from this ideal was considered unnatural and something of an abomination. Having two of the nation’s greatest heroines in such a relationship would cause widespread uproar.

She was about to say something on the matter, but stopped herself when the doors to the dining hall opened. The other ponies also stopped speaking and looked towards the doors, seeing Rarity enter the room, followed shortly by Twilight and Rainbow wearing a modified version of their Gala dresses… holding hands.

“Sorry we’re late guys, hope we didn’t keep you waiting too long.” Rainbow said, idly gazing at the food on the table.

“Nah, yer alright there sugercube. C’mon and take a seat, ya must be starved.” No sooner than when Applejack said this, the rumbling of stomachs was heard from the two humans.

“Hehe, guess we’re more hungry than we thought.” Twilight comments, she and Rainbow taking seats between their families and helping themselves to the food on offer as Rarity sat next to the apple farmer.

As the transformed ponies dug into their food, the others getting treats for themselves, Princess Celestia spoke up. “Twilight, before you get started in telling us what happened to the both of you, there’s something that we need to know first.” She said. Twilight made a noise that meant she was paying attention, surprising the alicorn slightly that she didn’t finish her food first. Regardless, Celestia took a deep breath before asking seriously, “Twilight Sparkle, are you and Rainbow Dash in a relationship?”

Everypony was deathly silent as they waited for a response. Rarity shifted in her seat awkwardly, causing some curious glances to go her way. A couple more seconds passed before Twilight swallowed her food and finally answered. “Rainbow and I aren’t just in a relationship; we’re happily married and proud of it.” She said with a small smile.

While all in attendance with the exception of Rainbow Dash and Rarity were clearly shocked, their expressions were varied. The three princesses were wide-eyed and open-mouthed, Fluttershy seemed ready to faint, Pinkie Pie was ecstatic and already planning a party, Applejack had a small smile and glanced at Rarity, her expression showing that she already found out, and the parents of the couple were curious to know how they got together.

Shining Armor, however, was livid and made it known as he slammed his forehooves on the table, startling everyone. “I can’t believe this! A relationship with two mares is no different than two stallions; impossible!” he yelled.

Rainbow glared intensely at the abrasive unicorn. “Oh, and I imagine that you’re such an expert on what true love is, right? How ‘bout you shut up and listen to the one person who can actually see the love between two people before you decide to be an ass, yeah?” she asks.

“That doesn’t mean anything! It’s unnatural and goes against everything we know and stand for!” Shining argued.

“What Equestria stands for is peace, harmony, love and tolerance. If ponies all over Equestria are as homophobic as you seem to be, I might start losing all respect I still had for them if they throw the nation’s core virtues out the window just because two lovers are the same gender. Besides, if you think that the problem is that “they can’t reproduce”, then let me remind you that there are other options. There’s adoption because, let’s face it, most orphans are abandoned by scumbags that don’t deserve to breed, sperm-donating is self explanatory, they can also get an operation to have a sex-change and get the organs needed, or in the case of two mares, they can use a spell that’ll give one of them a dick and balls with fertile sperm. I’m sure someone must’ve made one or two such spells by now.” Rainbow counters calmly. “And another thing, females of just about any species can reproduce without a male by adding the genetics of the “father” to the mother’s eggs. Equestria, and likely the planet, just simply doesn’t have the technology to do so.”

Everyone stared at her in astonishment, caught off guard that she was able to remain calm during her speech as she not only showed how hypocritical they unknowingly were, but also listed valid reasons that proved that same-sex relations could work. Shining’s mouth gaped like a fish, unable to form a response to Rainbow’s logic and reasoning.

Twilight giggled at the expressions of the ponies around her and was proud of how Rainbow handled the argument with her brother. Wanting to give a small reward to her wife and show the others that they truly loved each other, Twilight leaned towards Rainbow and planted a small kiss on her cheek, catching her off guard and causing a blush to overcome her face. “That’s my girl.” She said, snapping Shining out of his stupor as he scowled.

“Regardless, I’m not just going to stand by and let my little sister waste her life and time on an arrogant, selfish attention seeker that only cares about her own petty ambitions.” He stated firmly, not intent on changing his views just because of one person’s words.

Windy Whistles and Bow Hothoof were going to make an angry retort to defend their daughter, but stopped short when Shining Armour was suddenly struck by a pulse of magic that launched him into the wall hard enough to crack it. Before anypony could move to help the stallion or wonder what happened, there was a bright flash of light. When it faded, Twilight was in front of her brother, catching him by the neck before he fell to the floor and slamming him back into the wall, cracking it further.

Shining opened his eyes so that he could see who was attacking him and demand an answer, but regretted it as his voice was caught in his throat. Gone was the sweet smile and gentle eyes, in their place were a feral snarl and furious eyes that burned with godly power and anger long thought buried.

“How DARE you insult my beloved you worthless piece of GARBAGE?!?!?!” she roared, shocking and terrifying the ponies while Rainbow Dash grimaced. “Let me make this very clear to you, dear brother; you have NO control over my life and NO right to tell me who I can and cannot love! She and I have gone through and done things that simple mortals like you cannot even begin to imagine! We took part in the founding of a GALAXY spanning empire that we’d aided the Emperor of Man rule for over 10,000 YEARS! Separately we have slain tens if not hundreds of MILLIONS of the Imperium’s enemies; threats so great that nothing on this planet could hope to hold a CANDLE to their strength! Our sons are the greatest and mightiest warriors, generals and war-heroes that the galaxy has ever seen, and they even rule their own PLANETS! In comparison to Rainbow, myself or any of them: YOU. ARE. NOTHING!!!”

The dining hall- no, the castle or perhaps even all of Canterlot trembled under the volume and strength of Twilight’s declaration as she belittled her brother. At some point during the rant, Rainbow Dash had risen from her seat and made her way to Twilight, placing a hand on her lover’s shoulder.

“Alright Twi, I think he gets it.” She said soothingly. Twilight glanced at Rainbow for a moment before looking back at the dull creature in her grasp. A few seconds passed in silence until the Psyker Queen heaved a heavy sigh and released her grip, dropping Shining to the floor with a thud. “Better?”

“Yeah, actually. Much more than I thought I’d be.” Twilight replied tiredly, giving her wife a thankful smile.

When Twilight seemed to have calmed down enough, Cadence rushed from her seat to help her fiance while everypony else kept staring at the former unicorn with their feelings conflicting between awe and shock.

“Sorry about that everyone, it seems that I still get some mood swings since I got off the Golden Throne.” Twilight apologized as she and Rainbow returned to their seats, snapping the ponies out of their stupor.

“O-oh, it’s okay dear, we understand.” Velvet assured her daughter a little warily, still slightly unnerved by her outburst and a little confused to what this ‘Golden Throne’ was.

“Well, now that we’ve witnessed how strongly you’ll defend your relationship, I believe that we should move on from the topic for now. Personally I am very interested in finding out the origin of the things you said.” Princess Luna said as Cadence helped Shining back to the table.

Celestia nodded her head. “Yes, I believe that now is the time for an explanation.”

The two ponies-turned-humans glanced at each other, Rainbow putting a hand on Twilight’s shoulder before said woman sighed and began her tale. “Well, I guess the best way to start would be when I found myself on Terra...”

Terra; Cradle of Mankind
Hive World
Sol System - Segmentum Solar
ca. ???.M29

Twilight groaned in mild pain as every inch of her body felt incredibly sore. Her muscles were cramped and stung, causing her to grit her teeth in order to bear the pain better. A few minutes passed when Twilight finally felt the soreness start to fade, replaced by a tingling/numbing sensation throughout her body. She could hear some sounds in the distance, but her mind was still too fuzzy to make them out.

When Twilight could finally move without too much discomfort, she brought her forehoof to her face to wipe her brow. Or at least, what was supposed to be her forehoof. Instead, it was a five digit hand covered by some kind of glove. Eyes widening in slight panic, Twilight pushed herself up onto her knees and looked over her body. She was wearing a greyish-purple jacket and matching pants that were under pieces of light armour that were held in place by leather straps and a pair of thick boots on her feet.

Breathing somewhat heavily now, Twilight’s mind was swarming with all kinds of thoughts and questions on how she had been turned into a completely different species, one she didn’t even know either. When she eventually calmed herself down to think more clearly, she looked around at her surroundings and gasped as she took notice of the building she was in being in a state of absolute ruin. The sounds Twilight heard earlier were much clearer and louder, possibly closer too, but she still didn’t know what they were as she’d never heard such sounds back in Equestria.

Twilight pushed herself to her feet, her legs shaking and wobbling greatly, but she used a nearby broken pipe to straighten herself up as they got used to the weight. She walked around the pipe for a minute or so before letting go, attempting to walk without any assistance. Except for when she had to tilt her upper body to remain balanced, especially when the ground shook after an explosion, Twilight thought she did very well in adapting to a new body until she froze in her tracks, something clicking in her mind. ‘Wait… explosions?!’

Indeed, there were explosions out in the distance and slowly getting closer, as well as what sounded like cracks of thunder, but they were too rapid and numerous to be so. Soon deciding to take a risk, Twilight walked towards a damaged wall that faced the direction of the sounds. She’d almost reached it when something trailing smoke flew just past her head. Before she could turn to watch it, the object hit the opposite wall and detonated, the force of the explosion throwing the Equestrian out.

Tumbling down a small hill before stopping, Twilight groaned and pushed herself back up. Raising her head, she tried to see where she was and figure out what was making these sounds…

...and immediately regretted it, gasping in horror at the scene before her.

It was a warzone. A bloody one. Two warring factions slaughtering each other, uncaring of their surroundings and personal safety. They fought with feral ferocity no better than wild animals, only caring about how they were going to kill their next victim.

Unable to watch the horrific scene before her, Twilight ran. She didn’t know where she was going, only that she chose a direction and started running. As she ran, she tried to summon her magic for a teleportation spell and barely succeeded, finding that while she still had her magic, it was much harder to use. Just wanting to get away from where ever she was, Twilight used what magic was at her disposal and made multiple teleports in quick succession, trying hard to ignore the painful headache it was giving her.

After just five minutes of this as well as running between teleports, the pony-turned-bipedal creature was exhausted physically, mentally and magically; her muscles growing sore again, her brain suffering its worst migraine yet and the center of her very being felt like it was about to be torn apart. What was worse was that the two warring factions were seemingly everywhere, fighting. Dying. Killing. While thanking the stars that she hadn’t been noticed yet, at this point all Twilight wished for above all else was to go home.

Home……… Of course! Maybe the portal that brought her to this horrid land was still open. If she turned around now and got back to that building she cou-

“GAAAH!!” she screamed, a stray projectile tearing through the right side of her lower abdomen. Twilight lost balance, tripping and tumbling down the side of a fallen wall, falling a couple of feet before landing roughly on the ground. Tears poured out of her eyes from the pain like streams as she clutched her wound, trying desperately to at least slow the bleeding. She groaned and whimpered for a few seconds until she was found out.

“What’s this? A little mouse falling into my nest?” a cruel and sadistic sounding male voice said. Fearfully, Twilight raised her head to see who had found her. He wore dirty armour that covered his entire body except for his head and most of his arms, strange gauntlets on his forearms, had long unkempt hair, pieces of parchment on his left shoulder and a sword held on his back.

“P-please… h-help me…” Twilight pleaded, the figure looking her over before grinning widely, a dark glint in his eye.

“Oh, I’ll help you alright my little flower~.” He “purred”, his grin turning all the more cruel when he shouted, “Hey boys! Get over here, I got ya a present!”

Following his call, a group of creatures that looked similar to him, but with a few differences, came to their location. Some were much more muscular than the first, others with machinery of some sort replacing lost limbs or simply had different armour or weapons. “What the hell’d you call us for?” one of them demanded.

“Check what I found.” The first figure said, gesturing to Twilight, who was growing increasingly worried about her situation.

“Ooohoo~ she’s a pretty little thing.” One with a large claw for a hand said, liking his lips.

“Figured that if we kick it today we may as well have some fun first.” The first figure informed his colleges, reaching down to pick Twilight up. The transformed unicorn knew what their intentions were, but she was losing blood from her wound and thus wouldn’t have the strength to resist them, no matter how much she’d like to. All Twilight could do was close her eyes and release the pressure on her wound, hoping that she’d lose consciousness before they could have their “fun”. She felt her hair being pulled and her head was raised from the ground. She heard the sound of shifted metal and braced herself as best she could for what was to come.

But it didn’t.

She heard the swinging of a sword, followed by screams of pain. Her head plummeting to the ground, Twilight took a risk and opened her eyes to see three of her would-be rapists dead, the others backing away. Between her and them was another, much larger figure wearing dark coloured clothing beneath thick plates of armour and wielding a flaming sword. After a few seconds past in silence, what remained of the group glared and snarled at the newcomer.

“YOU BASTARD!” one of them roared. Before he or his compatriots could make a move though, the newcomer raised its left hand and unleashed a surge of golden lightning that only gave them a split second to scream before they were completely incinerated.

Twilight’s vision began to blur, only giving her enough time to see her savior turn around and crouch down, a golden glow covering what she thinks was his hand coming towards her before she blacked out.

Numb. That’s all that Twilight could feel over her entire body. Numbness. She had yet to open her eyes, but as feeling started to come back to her senses, she felt as though she was being carried. She tried to open her eyes but they still felt heavy, so she gave up after a few seconds.

Twilight then felt herself being lowered onto some sort of flat surface, perhaps a table. As hearing started to come back to her, she heard the opening of a heavy and metallic door, followed by footsteps and the tapping of a cane or staff as the door closed. Their was some silence until the new figure got closer, stopping just a small distance from her, and spoke to who she hoped was she savior.

“My Lord, may I ask why you have brought this woman here? I sense something… off about her.”

“Your concern is duly noted, Malcador, but do not fear. I have plans for this woman.”

“What could you possibly have already planned for this woman, my Lord? If she has come from that spike in Warp energy, than she could be a threat to your campaign.”

“True, my faithful servant, but I have gazed into her mind and soul, and have found no taint of corruption. She is as pure as I could ever hope for my people to be. Besides, from what I saw in her most recent memories, she has been betrayed by those she held most dear, and I could use that to give her a new purpose. A new destiny.”

“...Very well, my Lord, I shall respect your decision.”

“Good. I shall be taking my leave to investigate the site of her arrival to our world, as I can feel that although it has weakened, the breach has yet to close. I also request that you or the medicss treat and clean her wound, as well as get her something for nourishment. I foresee great things to come from her, and I will not let that potential be wasted.”

“As you command, my Lord. It shall be done.”

Twilight heard the sound of heavy footsteps and the hissing of the door opening and closing. She tried to open her eyes again and somewhat succeeded, but she could only make out the blurred image of what she believed to be a hooded figure with a staff before she lost consciousness once more.

After what felt like several hours passed, Twilight was finally able to regain full consciousness. She opened her eyes slowly and saw a relatively high metal ceiling with several lights illuminating the room. She made an effort to sit up but stopped when she hissed in pain, clutching her side where she was wounded. Looking over herself, Twilight found that her armour had been removed and her shirt had been rolled up, revealing that her abdomen was wrapped in bandages. Before she could ponder on this further, someone made themselves known.

“You have awakened.” He said. Twilight recognised it as one of the voices she heard earlier - Malcador, if she wasn’t mistaken - and turned to face the direction it came from. Standing about ten paces away from her was a figure wearing dark robes that covered his entire body except his face and hands, holding a staff that possessed an eagle icon engulfed in flames. There also seemed to be tubes in his neck for some reason.

“Umm… h-hello.” Twilight awkwardly started.

Malcador narrowed his eyes slightly. “Who and what are you, xeno? Where did you come from and why are you here?” he questioned.

Twilight blinked, a little startled at the seriousness of the tone. “M-my name is Twilight Sparkle. I was a unicorn from Equestria and I found a mirror portal that brought me here when I was running away from the ponies that turned on me.”

His expression deepened and was silent for a moment. “That is perhaps the most ludicrous thing I have ever heard.” He stated bluntly. Twilight was growing worried that he’d think she was insane. “However, I believe I have seen what my Lord saw in you; a purity like no other and potential for greatness. There’s also the fact that I read your mind while you were comatose, so I know that you tell truth.”

“Hey! You can’t do that!” Twilight screamed, angered that someone invaded her personal space and privacy in such a way.

“When knowledge is power, and only the powerful rule, you do what must be done to acquire and keep that power.” Was his simple reply.

Before Twilight could argue with him further, the room’s only door opened and three figures walked in. The smallest of them was young male with spiky green hair and emerald-green eyes, wearing a dark purple suit with small bits of metal on his shoulders, chest and knees. The second was what she assumed to be a female due to their similar body shape, wearing a pale blue suit under some armour like herself, with magenta eyes and hair in all the colors of the rainbow. The largest one, standing about twice the full height of the boy, was who Twilight guessed was her savior, possessing a well muscular build noticeable even beneath clothes and long, raven-black hair that reached his mid-chest/back.

Suddenly, the woman spoke. “Twilight? Is that you?” she asks. Twilight was startled that a stranger knew her name, but when she took a longer look at the boy and woman and recognised the latter’s voice, it clicked.

“R-Rainbow Dash? S-Spike? What are you doing here?” A good question, considering what happened the last time she saw either of them. How, or why for that matter, did they follow her? Instead of answering immediately, the former pegasus and dragon rushed to the former unicorn and embraced her tightly.

“I’m so sorry Twilight! I didn’t mean to abandon you like that, I was afraid that they were going to kick me out of the wedding too. I was selfish, I should’ve stayed with you! I’m so sorry!” Spike wailed, gripping his caregiver tighter, causing her to wince slightly from the added pressure on her injury.

“I’m sorry too, Twilight. I should’ve been the loyal friend I’m meant to be and give you the benefit of the doubt. You told us about the things you saw Cadance do behind our backs for heaven’s sake. We should have listened to you, and I’m so sorry that I didn’t.” Rainbow cried.

Twilight was confused, unable to fully wrap her head around what was going on. After a moment of silence, she finally spoke. “Why?” she asks, Rainbow and Spike looking at her quizzically, some tears in the latter’s eyes. “Why are you here? Why did you follow me?”

The two glanced at each other before releasing Twilight, Spike speaking up first. “We came because we wanted to apologise for what we did, Twilight. We felt horrible for abandoning you and couldn’t forgive ourselves. We tried to apologize to you but you weren’t in your room and I thought that you ran away.”

“Ever since we left you at the wedding rehearsal, I felt sick to my stomach and nothing I did made it any better. I tried to see if seeing the Elements of Harmony would help me, but it didn’t go as I thought. They yelled at me, insulted me, and finally showed me what happened to you right after we left. Seeing you so sad, so hurt because of us tore me apart and I realised the mistake I made. Spike and I know what we did was wrong, and we want to do whatever it takes for you to forgive us and earn back your trust. So please, Twilight, give us another chance.” Rainbow continued.

Twilight was taken aback by their confessions, but a small part of her mind was still skeptical, still untrusting. Before she could say anything on the matter though, her savior spoke up. “Twilight,” He started, gaining everyone’s attention, “the portal that brought you here has closed, sealing the three of you here. They had willingly followed you to the unknown, to earn back your trust, without care of those close to them. What purpose do they have being trapped in a harsh world only to lie to you.”

The former unicorn’s eyes widened in shocked at his words. The part of her mind that didn’t believe them was immediately silenced. Rainbow Dash and Spike willingly abandoned Equestria, their friends and family, and risked their lives coming to a dangerous world just to apologise and win back her trust. Tears now threatening to fall, Twilight looked back to the former pegasus and dragon and asked simply, “R-really?”

Rainbow stepped forward, tears brimming her eyes as well. “Yes, Twilight, it’s true. I understand now that loyalty isn’t easy to make or keep, and someone can change their loyalties in an instant just to save their own skins.” She than gave a blance to Spike. “But if I’ve learnt one thing recently, it’s that true loyalty is not so easily broken and can last for a lifetime, no matter what the struggles that come.”

Twilight stared at the two before her for a moment before bringing her assistant and friend into a tight embrace, one which they happily returned. The Equestrians remained that way for about a minute before separating, wiping the stray tears from their eyes. Twilight then turned her attention to Malcador and her savior who were having their own discussion, one that she had an inkling was about them. When they seemed to be done talking, Twilight asks, “So, what happens to us now?”

The two men turned to face the three (technically) non-humans, staring intently at them. They turned back to each other and seemed to have a mental conversation for a few moments before facing the Equestrian’s again.

“As my Lord had told you, the ‘portal’ that brought the three of you to our world is gone, as are any chances of you returning.” Said Malcador. “However, there is a way that you can aid us in our cause, but there will be many risks involved in it, and will not come lightly.”

The larger man spoke next. “You have witnessed firsthand the state of this world. The people of Terra have devolved into a state of constant conflict and hatred, killing those they deem weaker and always wanting to expand their rule. But I wish to bring an end to this cycle of war and death. I seek to unify the human race once more, to lead mankind unto a new Golden Age where superstitious beliefs and primitive, dogmatic ideals with be cast aside to make way for science, logic and reason to dictate how the people will live their lives. To see this through, I plan to rule this new empire, the Imperium of Man, as its Emperor. Then, I shall conquer the many human worlds lost to the Age of Strife and claim humanities dominance over the galaxy.”

Twilight, Spike and Rainbow could only stare in awe upon hearing His plans for the human race. They were shocked to hear that mankind had colonised other worlds, meaning that their advancement in technology was far beyond anything Equestria - no, their world possessed. The three looked amongst each other, silently debating over their limited options. This man - this immensely powerful being - was offering them the chance to have a place in His empire, to bring peace to a war-torn world and unite a divided species. They had the opportunity to do something that no great Equestrian hero - that none of the Princesses - have ever done. But more than that, He was offering them a purpose, a reason to live and fight for what they believed in, to prove if they had what it takes to survive in a harsh and unforgiving world.

Another moment passed before they gave each other a firm nod, coming to a decision. Turning back around, Twilight stared deeply into the large ma- the Emperor’s eyes; eyes that possessed such knowledge, wisdom and power that she’d never seen before, not even from Celestia. After swallowing the drool that had gathered in her mouth, Twilight stared at the Emperor once more before bowing deeply, an action Rainbow and Spike repeated.

“It would be an honour to serve you… my Lord.” She said.

Satisfied with their answer, the Emperor gave a nod that they didn’t see and instructed them to rise. When they did, He gave them a single command to follow Him before making His way out of the room. They did as told and followed the Emperor down several corridors for about half an hour until they stopped at a set of large doors. The Emperor waved His hand over some sort of lens and the doors opened to a small room before He walked inside. When Malcador and the Equestrians entered as well, the doors closed with a hiss before they felt themselves start descending, revealing the “small room” to be and elevator.

After over five minutes passed they came to a stop and the Emperor walked out once the doors opened. The group traveled through another series of corridors another half-hour before they came to a large, ornate metal door with a multitude of locks and keypads around its frame. The Emperor raised His hand towards the door and the former began to glow, causing the keypads to input a series of numbers too fast for the others to see and the locks to start turning. After a moment some lights turned green and the door began opening with a hiss. When fully open, the Emperor walked into the room, followed by Malcador and His newest followers, the latter gasping at the sight.

Inside was what they could only describe as a laboratory filled to the brim with the most advanced technology and scientific equipment that they’d ever seen. None of the three could fathom what anything in the large laboratory did or what purpose they had, which made Twilight wonder if this is what her frie- old friends and Rainbow felt whenever they came to her own lab when she was occupied with something. As they walked deeper into the laboratory, gazing in awe and wonder at the various devices and equipment around them, they passed something that caught Twilight’s attention.

At the far end of the laboratory was an enormous vault-like door, with over a dozen different locks and seals. The locks looked similar to the ones that were built into the door to the lab, but larger and much more advanced and sophisticated. Whatever was behind that door was obviously something that the Emperor wanted protected at all costs.

Deciding to ignore it for now, Twilight and her friends continued to follow the Emperor until they came to a stop at a large table roughly the size of a king-sized bed about a minute later. The Emperor turned to face His followers and gestured to the two women. “Strip yourselves of your clothing and lay upon the table.” He commanded.

Now, ponies don’t necessarily need to wear clothes depending on where you lived or for special occasions , examples being Ponyville compared to most of Canterlot and the Grand Galloping Gala. Because of this, the transformed Equestrians figured that (from what they’d seen) humans wore clothes almost constantly for modesty, that to wear something to cover their bodies was more of an ethical requirement than anything else. As such, Twilight and Rainbow’s reaction was understandable and expected.

“What?!” they cried, their arms covering their chests and crotches on instinct, deep blushes covering their faces, the latter action copied by Spike, though he didn’t quite know why.

Malcador stared blankly at them. “What my Lord and I are to do to make you useful to our cause requires the absence of any materials that could interfere, and lead to irreparable damage.” He told them.

The two women looked to each other nervously, somewhat skeptical if this was really necessary, before giving in with a sigh and began to remove their armour (with some difficulty since they’d never done so before). After all her armour was off and she moved to her clothing, Rainbow asked a question that’d been bugging her for a bit. “Hey, how come Spike doesn’t have to do this?”

“He doesn’t require these enhancements yet, as I have other plans for him.” Was the Emperor’s vague answer. Figuring that that was all the answer they were going to get, for now at least, Twilight and Rainbow continued to strip, Spike doing his best not to look.

Once done, they somewhat awkwardly made their way to the large table and laid side-by-side with about a foot or two between them. They shivered as their bare skin made contact with the cold metal table. They were nervous about what the Emperor was going to do to them that would make them “useful” as Malcador oh-so-kindly put it. Glancing around as best they could, Twilight and Rainbow noted that the Emperor had taken a position at the edge closest to their heads and Malcador standing towards their feet, the robed man having left his staff somewhere.

The two men raised their arms up and their hands started to glow and crackle with energy, suspending them in the air as they gathered all the energy that they needed. When they had what they deemed to be enough, they unleashed it upon the two women.

Twilight and Rainbow screamed as the (to them) strange magic arced across and into their bodies. Their muscles twitched and spasmed as the foreign energies filled every fibre of their beings, making them feel as though they were on fire. They gasped as their minds were suddenly filled with knowledge. The first was of human history and its various Eras: the Age of Terra; when humanity first expanded and spread throughout the galaxy. The Dark Age of Technology; when the human race was at its peak in technological advancement until the rebellion of the Men of Iron and a cataclysmic event. And finally, the Age of Strife; mankind is scattered and divided, Terra itself becoming a scarred shadow of its former majesty. This is what the Emperor wanted to end, the reason why He wished to unite humanity once more.

In time the pain faded away, and by then the transformed ponies could practically feel each individual cell being imbued with the “magic” that the Emperor and Malcador filled their bodies with. As Twilight and Rainbow underwent the most bizarre experience of their lives, their muscles and bones strengthening to insane levels and grow, they felt something; something that they only ever felt when using the Elements of Harmony and never thought they would feel otherwise.

Power.

A decade had passed since Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash and Spike the Dragon had first come to Terra and allied themselves with the Emperor, and there had been some unforeseen developments that were… interesting, to say the least.

The first had involved Spike. As he waited for the Emperor and Malcador to finish what they were doing to Twilight and Rainbow, he’d found some parchment and writing utensils and occupied himself with drawing random sketches as he waited. After they were finished and the girls lost consciousness - the combination of having every cell in their bodies enhanced to superhuman levels and having just about all of human history implanted into their minds taking its toll - Malcador had asked Spike of what he had drawn, surprising the former dragon that he was even interested. When he showed the elder man what he’d done, he noticed a clear look of surprise on his features before Malcador asked what brought him to make the drawings. Confused, Spike said that he just started drawing about better times in Equestria before his mind began to wonder as his hand continued drawing. This caused Malcador to rise an eyebrow as he showed the sketches to the Emperor.

The Emperor seemed intrigued with what Spike had drawn before giving it back to its creator, allowing the young pre-teen to see what impressed them so. Spike’s eyes nearly popped out of his skull when he finally saw the highly detailed schematics of various weapons, armours and other types of wargear. As he tried (and failed) to wrap his head around how he could’ve done something like this without ever having done it before while muttering his disbelief, the Emperor thought that His plan for Spike might go smoother than previously anticipated.

The second had occurred in the immediate aftermath of Twilight and Rainbow awakening from undergoing the augmentation process that the Emperor would have otherwise strictly reserved for His personal guard - the Legio Custodes - if the two were not more important than they thought. When they awoke they immediately took note of their physical changes. Not the obvious increase in height and muscle mass, but that Twilight and Rainbow had somehow regained their horn and wings respectively. While surprised at the unforeseen development, the Emperor quickly thought of a logical solution.

Rainbow was simple enough as He could claim that she were an angel under His command, a believable claim since the people of Terra had regressed to a state of superstitious beliefs. The people of Ursh still refer to their psychic powers as “magic” after all. Twilight required more planning, but eventually He came up with the plan to have her wear a specially designed diadem with a gap where a jewel would be placed so that an observer would think the horn were a part of it. He even gave them permission to use the image of a unicorn and pegasus as their personal icons.

Afterwards, the Emperor had given the two now metahumans some simple clothes and led them to an incredibly large chamber after about three quarters of an hour’s travel. He then instructed them to do various exercises to get used to their new bodies and learn how to keep it in peak condition, as He took Spike elsewhere to discuss his designs. They spent the first few weeks familiarizing themselves with their bodies and what they could do with them. In that time they had learned more about human history in greater detail from Malcador and the Emperor whenever He returned from whatever He was doing with Spike.

After a month, Twilight and Rainbow decided that it was time that they learnt how to fight and use the weapons of Man. Upon finding instructors from the Emperor’s other followers by Malcador’s orders, they were able to train with every weapon that they possessed for months on each, mastering all and their techniques in record time, though Twilight showed preference for the halberd and Rainbow for dual-wielding swords. Malcador had also aided Twilight in controlling and mastering her psychic powers, teaching her every ability he knew, and the Emperor had allowed Rainbow to leave the confines of His base within the mountains of Himalazia so that she could properly learn to fly with her new body.

Presently, the Emperor stood alone in the barron, open plains that made the lands of Himalazia. He wore gleaming golden armour that held icons of a two-headed eagle in numerous places, as well as detailed engravings shaped as flames framing the edges. On His left knee and right pauldron was an open-mouthed face that one could only speculate if it were meant to be His own. His left pauldron had an eagle icon that showed off its left side and held a small shield, which had the image of an eagle’s head, in its talons. On His left hand He wore a large gauntlet with the “fingers” ending in curved, razor-sharp talons. His right hand rested on the pommel of a master-crafted sword that was completely gold save for the crimson blade. Upon His back was a flowing royal-red cape and behind His head was an icon of a perched eagle looking over Him with its wings slightly open.

Soon He hears the sound of marching feet draw towards Him. Thousands of them. He turns to face the mountains that His base was built into to see His massive army of Thunder Warriors, heavily augmented superhumans made to fulfil a single purpose: conquer Terra. As the massive army comes to a halt about a yard away from Him, three figures continue to march towards Him. One was Malcador the Sigillite, His most loyal and trusted follower. The other two caused Him to form a ghost of a smile.

Walking a couple of steps behind Malcador were Twilight and Rainbow, wearing what could only be described as female versions of the Emperor’s armour, but with the primary colors matching their coats as ponies, lavender-purple and cyan-blue respectively, with only the trim and icons being gold. Held in Twilight’s right hand was a uniquely designed and crafted halberd, looking somewhat akin to a Guardian Spear - one of the weapons that Spike designed - but with an extra axe blade. Attached to Rainbow’s sides were a pair of swords with small bolters built into the guard called Sentinel Blades, with a lightning bolt stretching along the blade.

Ever since they had been told that their names would not fit in human society as they would’ve in Equestria, the girls agreed that they would need new names to call themselves - or at least to have written in the history records. After quite some time of careful thought, they came up with their new names. No longer were they Twilight Sparkle, personal student of Princess Celestia, and Rainbow Dash, Wonderbolt dreamer.

Now, they were Tara Astrum and Ashleigh Arcus; the Brides of the Emperor.

Upon reaching the Emperor, they stopped and gave Him a short bow. When they stood straight again, Ashleigh gave Him a confident grin. “So, should we go and get this show on the road, my Lord?”

His smile growing just a tiny fraction larger before returning neutral, the Emperor gave His loyal followers a firm nod. Grasping the handle of His sword, He raised it to the sky, the blade suddenly engulfing itself in flames. “For the Imperium of Man!” He proclaimed, His voice booming across the expanse. He turned away from His army and thrust His sword forward. “Onward to victory!” He commanded, marching forward in stride, followed by Malcador, Tara, Ashleigh and His vast army, their heavy footsteps thundering across the land. This moment would be remembered for millennia in the history of Man, for this was the moment...

… that the Unification Wars begun…

The Unification Wars - pt. II (unfinished)

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Their first destination was the Achaemenid Empire, as it was the closest. It was a nation-state comprised of several “wealthy tribes” that coexisted with each other with little issue. The Emperor and His army encountered no resistance as they marched through the streets of whatever tribe they came across before reaching what could’ve been described as their capital as it was used for meetings by the tribe leaders. When the Emperor told them of His plans for humanity, they were very quick to join Him and proclaimed that all their resources were His. As a form of thanks for their loyalty, the Emperor promised them a seat of power within the Imperium once the War of Unification was over, but didn’t mention that it was only if they survived until then.

Since the Achaemenid Empire wasn’t conquered through force and was perhaps the most peaceful place on Terra at the time, they were spared from the horrors of atomic war and invasion from the Emperor’s superior army of genetically-engineered soldiers had they resisted. In addition, the genomes of the nation-state’s citizens were uncontaminated with any inherent flaws and genetic defects that plagued near all other nation-states over Terra from lingering radiation and biological warfare vectors. This made them good candidates for recruitment into the Space Marine Legions, specifically the XV Legion, named the Thousand Sons by the Emperor Himself.

The next destination was Albia. Sometimes referred to as Old Albia, it was a nation-state that bordered Northern Atlan and was known for its ancient warlike clans, the regions of Albia consisting of towering, soot-blackened castram-cities. Under the rule of the Unspeakable King, Albia frequently clashed with the Pan-Pacific Empire until they were aided by the Emperor and His forces, among them the Stormbird from the Yndonesic Bloc after its people rebelled against their ruler -- Cardinal Tang, the “Ethnarch” -- and joined the Emperor at the promise of a better, kinder regime. Taking direct command of His army, the Emperor decided to test the skills of Tara and Ashleigh by sending them ahead to face the Pan-Pacific Empire’s leader. Somewhat hesitant at first, the two transhuman women obeyed their Lord and set about the task He’d given them.
After days of carving through droves of enemies, the two former ponies finally confronted Narthan Dume, the Tyrant of the Pan-Pacific Empire, a man regarded as being a “half-mad/half-genius” and the most infamous of all the tyrannical rulers that dominated Terra. Outsmarting whatever traps or tricks he attempted and outmatching him in combat through their teamwork, skill and determination, Tara and Ashleigh were able to defeat Narthan Dume and remove him from power. Dume’s defeat resulted in the combined forces of Albia and the Emperor’s army in dominating the Pan-Pacific Empire’s own army and its absorption into the Imperium of Man. The people of the Empire celebrated their freedom from Dume’s oppression, the tyrant himself set to be imprisoned within Khangba Marwu - also known as The Vault - but urging by Constantin Valdor, the Captain-General of the Legio Custodes, had the tyrant executed and his lieutenants being incarcerated in The Vault in his stead.

Afterwards, however, the Albians refused to kneel to the Emperor despite Him aiding them, and so met His army of Thunder Warriors with their own proto-Dreadnaughts and armoured soldiers from their Ironside Clan. Battle after battle, the Albians managed to hold off the Emperor’s forces, but at a staggering cost to their own. Although this presented a considerable challenge for the Emperor and His forces, He was nonetheless impressed with their determined and brutal resistance, and sought to end the fighting and take Albia through diplomatic means. He admitted to the martial temper and indomitable spirit of His foe and called for a cease-fire. When the Albian Clan Lords agreed to the cease-fire, the Emperor, Tara and Ashleigh came before them unarmed wearing white and crimson robes. The Emperor spoke of His vision for a unified Humanity, and offered them glory amongst the stars and redemption for the past conflict. After discussion amongst themselves, the warlords of Albia shocked many of their people when they agreed to the Emperor’s terms, declaring that He was different from past tyrants, and became some of His most zealous followers throughout the rest of the Unification Wars.

With Albia now under His sovereignty, the Emperor saw the Albians as suitable recruits for the XIV Legion, who would name themselves the Dusk Raiders. So suitable were the warriors of Albia for induction into Space Marines, recruits drawn from the various castram-cities and Ironside Clans were also incorporated into the VIII and X Legions, though they did not use them as much as the XIV Legion.

Boeotia was a nation-state that fought against full Unification for a considerable amount of time. Despite the government of Boeotia tactically recognising the Emperor’s dominance over the rest of Terra, the ruling monarchy used all manner of diplomacy to avoid losing power. In a show of patience and benevolence, the Emperor allowed the ruling dynasty of Boeotia -- the Yeselti -- to carry on in a semi-autonomous state with the intention that they would eventually integrate into the Imperial Terran government at their own speeds, and with as much dignity as possible.

Instead, however, the Yeselti tightly clung to their independence for over 150 standard years until the Emperor seemingly grew tired of waiting and ordered the Imperial Army and Thousand Sons to invade the province and crush the rebellious state, under the command of Tara Astrum. Boeotia was known for possessing a relatively large concentration of industry within its borders and for the existence of an ancient yet buried shrine from a previous age. And it is in this shrine where they made a discovery.

The Emperor’s forces were not idle during this century and a half and continued the Unification Wars, conquering more and more nation-states. Those conquered and absorbed into the Imperium of Man during this time were either small or had nothing unique that made them more than a footnote, such as Britonnica, Europa, Gyptus and Jermani. Albyon only stood out for being ruled by the tyrant Uilleam the Red, who was defeated and imprisoned within the dungeons of Khangba Marwu, The Vault. Merica was a large nation-state located on the Nord Merican continent and was mostly comprised of hive cities. The Skandians were nothing more than a sizable band of raiders that repeatedly attacked Europa in pursuit of plunder, and were exterminated at the Emperor’s command when they refused to accept Unification.

The nation-state of Franc was initially conquered at some time just before Boeotia, but its last independent ruler, Havuleq D’agross, lead a rebellion against Imperial rule and killed the Emperor’s appointed territorial governor. He began his rebellion in the city of Avelroi, his influence rapidly spreading until he could amass a force of 50,000 rebels due to the fact that the Frank, the name the people were known by, did not take kindly to invaders even before the Unification, though they were largely unskilled militia. They eventually fought against the Emperor’s at what would be called the Battle of Gaduare, a line of high hills by the ruins of the Guaduare Bastion, only to be wiped out by a force of no less than 5,000 Imperial troops led by Ashleigh Arcus, including Space Marines from an early generation of the Dusk Raiders Legion.

The TwiDash Imperium

by MatCor1337

Then We Leave

The Return

Notice/Spoilers/Assistance Needed

The Unification Wars - pt. I

The Unification Wars - pt. II (unfinished)