> Harmony's Parallel
>  by Xutiepops
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Her Eyes Were Green
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Apple Farm was quite different. Machines took over plantations, the paint on the houses were gone, and the overall happiness was just... gone. 
Applejack looked up at the sky, sitting on the hill. The buzzing and humming of the machines sounded behind her. Though she ignored them, she simply stared up at the grey skies, trying to find some light. 
When she didn't find any, she sighed and looked down at the rest of Ponyville. The holes that tattered roofs, the potholes that littered the streets, and the same chipped paint that covered the homes. No one was out, no flowers were planted. 
Ever since the Apple business skyrocketed, every inch of Ponyville started going downhill. She never realized it. But she was content with it, because as she looked back at her own farm, she knew she was in the same poverty. Of course, she snuck away and gave apples and apple-products to the hungry ponies in the village, but there were still hungry and poor ponies everywhere. 
She heard the grass crunch around her and looked behind her to see a smiling Flim. She looked back to the village as he sat next to her. "You come up here a lot," he said. 
She sighed. "Ever since Big Mac ran off with Apple Bloom... it's been kinda boring." She instantly took back her words and swung her direction towards him with worry covering her face. "Ah don't mean y'all are boring! Y'all just have to power the machines all the time." 
He chuckled. "I understand, why are you always so worried you'll upset us?" He asked with a fatherly smile. She slouched and sighed again. 
"Y'all are the closest family I had since Granny... Ah guess ah just get scared y'all are gonna up and leave me 'ere." She said sadly. She bit her tongue in an attempt not to apologize for thinking that way. 
"We have no business anywhere else! Where would we go?" He asked. She looked at him and still felt uneasy in her heart, as if it was too good to be true. "Besides, Applejack. You're our family as well! We'd never betray our family." He smiled.
She smiled back and nodded. "Hey, you think we'll ever get outta Ponyville?" 
He sat in thought for a moment before responding. "With the competition everywhere else, it might not be ideal too. But it doesn't really matter, does it?" He smiled. She smiled back, thankful she had someone like him in her life. 
She turned back to Ponyville, knowing all the scowls she'd see from one pony to another. She quickly remembered her unease towards the parents who took food and ate it before they made sure their foals got any. Everyone would fight for food, even if they were barley able to stand. 
"I wish this world wasn't so... bad," she said quietly, her attention hooked onto Ponyville. "No one loves each other, no one even knows each other. They're all just enemies."
Flim sighed. "Well, darling. It's like that everywhere in the world." 
"But why?" She looked towards him. "Why can't we all just be friends? Why did the princess have to... screw over everypony." She looked back to Ponyville. 
"Who knows," was all Flim said in response. She knew he was giving her room to talk through everything she wished, but she didn't. He stood up, "Well, I have to get back to work. You should rest." 
"Flim?" Applejack asked. Her voice was on the edge of hopelessness and depression. 
"Hm?" 
"Thanks... for everything. You two don't know how much it means to me."
A smile formed on his face. "Of course we do. It means you love us, that's all." He trotted off, leaving her alone. 
She looked up at the sky. Silence took over, the machines humming was the only sound. She dreamed of a better life. One where she lived in a huge house, Big Mac and Apple Bloom were there. They'd be a family. She wouldn't be so alone. 
As a cold wind passed over, she hissed through her teeth, feeling the anger of not being able to have that life. All the ponies in Manehattan or Van Hoover were born into luxury. They didn't have to do anything. They didn't even have to cook. 
They'd get the ponies from the poor town, pay them a bit an hour and give them the attic if they were nice. She cursed at the unfairness of this world. She looked down at her shirt, the white and blue drew lines down her, topped off with a black bowtie. 
She tore off the bowtie and threw it down the hill. "Why'd ah get the short end of the stick?" She yelled as she looked up at the grey clouds. Birds stuck in trees flew out at the sound of her voice. "Why'd everypony I gosh darn loved had to leave!?" 
Tears fell down her face as she stared down the hill. Trees stuck up from the barren ground beside leaves, rocks, and twigs. She stood up and looked down the hill, she took a step forward, her hoof hanging over the edge. She squeezed her eyes shut in anticipation as her hoof trembled. She placed it down on the ground and threw herself forwards. 
Her eyes and mouth didn't open as she fell down the hill, clipping rocks, twigs, and trees. She sat up at the bottom of the hill, looking towards Canterlot. 
More tears fell, making the huge castle almost impossible to see. "Ah wonder how it is for those four," she sighed. "Well, anything's better than 'ere I suppose." She looked down at her coat and noticed the mud that covered it. She rolled her eyes and stood up. After a couple of failed attempts at climbing the hill, she got on a trail and followed it up a much safer route. 
She looked back to Canterlot, the castle being the center of her attention. "All diamond and gold it seems." 



The four rulers sat in their respective thrones with bored expressions. Discord sat in a throne from the ceiling, it was pink with chocolate milk swishing around like a tsunami inside the glass throne. Daybreaker's throne was literally just fire as her phoenix sat near it, tearing through a carcass of a rat. 
Nightmare Moon sat sprawled out on a black throne with white specks to resemble stars. Queen Chrysalis' throne was a twig, covered in holes, holding up a cave-like seat with holes in it. 
Discord sighed and fell from his throne in the ceiling with a bored expression. Chrysalis sunk back into her chair, an annoyed expression etched into her face as she looked outside the window. 
Nightmare Moon casted her magic to pick up Daybreakers phoenix with a smirk. She played with it as if it was a doll, the squawks were drowned out in the magical barrier around the bird. 
Daybreaker stared out the window to the throne room. The room was all it was said to be: A throne room. There was a magical map-table in the center in which their thrones surrounded. The wall opposite to their seats was completely glass. "Saying as we are all bored," Daybreaker started. Everyone rolled their eyes and groaned in agreement. "I say we finally take Equestria." 
Chrysalis was the first to respond. "We have Equestria. Do you want the Griffonlands or something? Cause I doubt the pegasi will let us have it."
"No, you utter dimwit," Nightmare Moon groaned. "What my beloved sister means is that we take the other Equestria. The one where harmony reigns over the lands." Chrysalis huffed and used her magic to make her look like Cadence. 
"Wow, you look like a pony princess who wants to do good," Discord smirked playfully. Chrysalis blushed and turned away. "Oh don't flatter yourself, you and Celestia are pitiful and so organized." He rolled his eyes and snapped his fingers, making both of their horns disappear. 
"Besides," he hissed, countering their angered expressions. "I have no interest in anything of that sort." He snapped again, making Daybreaker horn appear. 
"Why hers!?" Chrysalis scoffed, slamming down one of her hooves. 
"I like her better," Discord pointed at her like a child. 
"Shut up!" Daybreaker yelled after emitting a high pitched screech that made her flame mane rocket upwards. It slowly fell back into place as she eyed everyone in the room, who were trying to recollect their hearing... and want to hear. 
"Now, that I have your attention," Daybreaker smiled, sending everyone else to a scowl. She stood over the magic-table, she shot a magic beam of red, orange, blue, and purple. It looked like a day to night color scheme. 
The three rulers stared in confusion as Daybreaker stood defiant over the map. "Uh, sister?" Nightmare Moon asked sheepishly. "Is it supposed to be doing somethi-!"
She was cut off by the same color scheme shooting up from the table. Daybreaker maniacally started laughing as it formed an orb of mixing colors trying to surface over the others above the table. Chrysalis rolled her eyes. 
Suddenly, a cutie mark of a magenta star with white stars surrounded it left the orb and flew down over Canterlot on the map. Now, the others were interested. 
Daybreaker smirked as a cutie mark of three balloons left the orb and floated over Ponyville. One of three apples went down to cover Ponyville as well. Three diamonds sat in Manehatten. A cloud with a rainbow lightning bolt over it floated over what was now Cloudsdale. Three butterflies hovered over the Everfree Forest. And finally, a purple and green circle landed on top of the Dragon Lands.
"And what are those?" Chrysalis asked, stepping forward. She pushed one with her hoof and was shot to the wall in a blister of heat and cold. Discord started laughing at her as she fell from the wall. She was out from the pain the second it hit her. 
"Oh priceless! Celestia! Do it again!" Discord pleaded, barley making out the words between howls of laughter. Daybreaker shook her head and cast a magic bubble around him, making him inaudible to anyone but himself. She turned to her sister, "It located the most evil creatures in Equestria. They'll be teleported here soon enough." 
"How do they get teleported here?" Nightmare Moon asked. 
"When called, their cutie marks glow. All they have to do is simply touch it and they appear." Daybreaker rolled her eyes. 
"Who are they?" Nightmare Moon asked, "You should know, you could cast this spell after all." 
"The spell is even possible for the failing filly in my old school," Daybreaker turned and climbed into her now golden throne. It solidified from roaring flames to gold once the magic was activated. 
Nightmare Moon turned to hers and saw the black throne, light blue spikes shooting up from the sides and the back. Her cutie mark sat on the front of the chairs back. She stared in awe before taking a seat. 
She sighed dreamily, "Reminds me of the moon." She shook her head and turned to her sister, "Then why were we not taught the spell?" 
Daybreaker rolled her eyes, she glared over at Chrysalis and a laughing Discord. She looked to her sister, "Once we are sure of who we are sending, I will give you the spell to use whenever you like. Though, it is mainly just going to be a way to contact the-" she paused to count the number of cutie marks- "seven while they are in Equestria."
Nightmare Moon turned and saw Discords throne was placed right on the ground as it shimmered in a red colored glass. She looked and saw that Chrysalis' sparkled in a new black shine. She turned to her sister, "As I asked earlier, who are these seven we are... calling." 
"Honestly, get over your pathetic speech," Daybreaker snapped. "Common speech isn't impossible you idiot!" Her flamed mane shot up, only to cool back to place. "They are the complete opposite to the Elements of Harmony." 
She heard a flash, her and Nightmare Moon turned to face a purple alicorn in a black sweater and a golden crown. She rubbed her head and stared, appalled, at the four rulers. She had a navy blue mane with a pink and purple streak through it. 
"Twilight Sparkle... was it?" Daybreaker cooed as she circled the mare like a shark. Twilight nodded timidly, fear overriding her system. Daybreakers calm expression turned to a confident grin. "Saying as you are Celestias prized possession in Equestria," Daybreaker took Twilight under her wing, pulling her to her side. 
Daybreaker froze, recognizing the fear that was stuck inside Twilight's lavender eyes. "You were... you were the filly that failed my school?" She asked. 
The fear only grew in Twilight's eyes as she nodded. "Y-you said I was t-too good to learn magic and even use it for evil much less dark magic for your cult." 
Daybreaker was more than confused. "Then... never mind," she stood and looked at the map. "You'll be staying here... you can even replace Luna." 
"Hey!" Nightmare Moon shouted, "You are not getting rid of me again sister, besides... she is an alicorn, if you want her so badly, keep her." 
"After the mission," Daybreaker smirked. Twilight's face was just blush at this point, her confusion replaced with curiosity. 
"W-w-what mission?" Twilight asked nervously as Daybreaker returned to her throne. 
"I'd rather make one speech than two, so relax until the others arrive," Daybreaker cooed as she turned to face the map, seeing the magenta star on Canterlot move to the castle. "So you're my magic one. Wonder what the counter would be for magic." 
"I don't think they are counters," Nightmare Moon pitched. "I think they are simply their own. Our world is not a base that has been played with from the other Equestria." 
Daybreaker sat in thought. "I suppose you're right... for once." 
"Uh, P-Princess?" Twilight laughed sheepishly. She stepped out in front of Daybreakers throne. "Or whatever you go by, but... I need to get back to my studies so if you don't need me at the moment..." 
"I'll have some pony remind me to move your study here. From now on, you live in the castle with us," Daybreaker ordered and went back to ignoring Twilight. Twilight wanted to protest, but then she got an amazing thought. She beamed. 
"Does that mean I would have access to every part of the castle?!" Twilight asked cheerily. Daybreaker smirked at the adorable young alicorn. She wasn't even grown to her real height as an alicorn. 
"I suppose so, though I doubt many rooms will interest you. Other than my chambers, I only know of Discords fun that lies beyond rooms... though I do believe they are dangerous so be careful-" Even Day Breaker was confused as to why she was caring for this Twilights health. 
She shook the thought away. She turned to see the mare and found nothing. She turned to Nightmare Moon. "Where did she go?"
Nightmare Moon shrugged, "The library." 
Daybreaker groaned, "Of course the little scholar would." She sulked back into her seat, only to jump up at another flash. Then another. 
She turned to see a white mare with a deep purple mane and a cyan-blue pegasus with a rainbow mane. The white unicorn wore a regal dull-magenta dress with purples and yellows. She also had a gold crown with a deep purple diamond in it. 
The pegasus wore a suit that was recognized by Nightmare Moon. She wore a Shadowbolts suit, except the mask hung around her neck like a hood and her goggles were pushed up on her head, imprinting themselves in her mane. The two looked at each other, clearly confused. 
The unicorn huffed and turned away, "Such hideous outfits, I always thought I could make them look better. Then again..."
The pegasus rolled her eyes. "We aren't supposed to look good, we use darker colors because they match the clouds." They turned to the rulers, they could only see Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker. They occasionally could see Discord waltzing with a limp Chrysalis. 
Nightmare Moon looked at the map and saw the three diamonds and the cloud and rainbow lightning bolt appear above the castle with the magic cutie mark.
"Why am I here?" The unicorn asked politely. 
"Well, you are needed for something. But my sister has made it clear she wants to give the details once every pony is here, so just wait and don't break anything." Nightmare Moon explained dully to the two. 
"C'mon! I was in the middle of something!" The pegasus groaned. They heard another flash and turned to see a dull pink earth pony with a straight, dull hot pink mane.
She looked around angrily, "C'mon! I was in the middle of some pony!" The pegasus and unicorn were disgusted as they stared at her. She rolled her eyes. "I cooked them first!"
Nightmare moon turned to the map and saw the three balloons make their way to the castle. She turned to them and pointed at the pegasus, "Loyalty." She pointed to the unicorn, "Generosity." The two looked even more disgusted at the nick names. 	
Nightmare Moon looked at the newest one currently measuring the pegasus while she wasn't looking. "Laughter," she said, bringing Loyalty's attention to her. Loyalty growled and Laughter hid behind Generosity sheepishly. 
They heard another flash and saw an orange mare appear with a ticked expression. She looked around and her anger became confusion and awe. 
"Ah'm in the Rulers Tower!" She looked around in awe. She had a golden mane and a white and blue shirt with white sleeves topped off with a black bow tie. 
"An apple?" Generosity screeched. "Get! Stay away from me you disgusting, pitiful farmer!" She spat. "All farmers are just so uncouth and you're a lady! Have some decency!" 
"Well howdy, miss dramatic," the mare stated in response. "Seems pretty unladylike to shout, don'tcha think?" She smirked. Generosity stared and opened her mouth to defend herself, then she shut it and looked away, infuriated she lost. 
"That one's Honesty," Daybreakers voice cut in as she watched the three apples move to the castle along with the others. 
"Well, I gotta say it's an honor to be here, but why me? And why them?" She pointed at Generosity and Loyalty who stood together to out smart Laughter. 
"Peek-a-boo!" Laughter's head popped out of a cabinet near Honesty. Honesty yelped and fell backwards, only to crash into Twilight. Laughter just started snickering as she climbed out of the small cabinet with no problems. 
"Ow, sorry partner," Honesty said as she sat up and turned to see who she bumped into. She was shocked, "Y-you're an alicorn? Ah thought the princesses were the only alicorns." 
"Well, I am. I finished one of Star Swirled's spells and earned wings," Twilight stated simply. Daybreaker attention was brought back to the receivers of the map once she heard her Twilight's voice. She smirked. 
"So, how did you get one of Star Swirled's spells?" Daybreaker asked. Twilight would've answered, but another flash had appeared and revealed a teenage dragon with huge wings. 
Honesty and Twilight held each other tightly at the sight, Laughter and Loyalty did the same. The dragon growled at each of them before pinning his eyes on Daybreaker. 
The dragon was purple with green spines and sharp green eyes. "Why the hell am I here in a pony-princess castle?" 
"It isn't a 'pony princess castle'!" Discord stepped in and held out Chrysalis like a doll. "They have me and her! Though we need you for something so relax and meet your co-workers!" 
Every one was appalled by what he said. Laughter was the first to grin at the thought. Generosity was appalled as she stared at Honesty. Loyalty groaned and sat down, and Honesty huffed. Twilight had worry etched into her face. The dragon growled. 
"I'm the Dragon Lord! There is no way I'm going to do anything for ponies with ponies," he told Daybreaker.
"I'm sure you will change your mind once you figure out what you will get for working with us," she smiled confidently. "So I suppose you start getting along, besides, dragons can take care of themselves. They don't need you at the moment. We have no intention of having the murder of half our population in war." 
Spike huffed and crossed his arms. His eyes wandered over the five in the room, they landed on Generosity and a smirk formed on his face. He walked over to her, "Well, who might you be? You seem to be the only appealing one in the room." 
Generosity beamed, "Even if you are a disgusting dragon, I would have to say the same." She cut her eyes at Honesty. She looked back at Spike, "My name is Rarity." 
"That was a total shock," Loyalty rolled her eyes. Honesty walked up next to her. 
"You'd think it'd be Vanity," Honesty snickered, causing Loyalty to join along. Laughter sat in a corner, eyeing each of them. She counted them over and over again, as if she lost count one from the end. 
"There's six of us," Twilight smiled. "Though, I'm assuming there's meant to be seven due to the map." Laughter looked at her, curiosity flooded her expression.
"Oh yeah," Laughter said to herself. "You missed my arrival. I eat ponies, you know." She crouched down in the dark corner, examining a bug before crushing it with her hoof. 
"Oh I know," Twilight smiled again. "You're Pinkamena Diane Pie. After the fall of the Cakes business due to a feud with the Apples, they say the child of the two owners survived on ponies after there were a bunch of disappearances in Ponyville." 
"I'm not their child," Pinkamena said numbly. "My parents and sisters live on a rock farm, I stopped seeing them though."
"Why?" Twilight asked, watching as the two sisters sat, impatiently staring at the map. She could see a bunch of cutie marks above the castle. She saw three balloons and looked down to see Pinkamena's cutie mark was three balloons. 
"They told me I was a disgrace. I wanted to go back once they invited me for Hearts Warming," Laughter said sadly. "But I was afraid I would get too mad and eat them instead."
"At least you know they're okay," Twilight smiled, trying to cheer her up. Pinkamena smiled slightly at the purple one. Daybreaker watched, jealousy filling her veins. 
"Tell me dear sister," Daybreaker started. "How did you deal with your jealousy?" She stared numbly at the map, though Nightmare Moon was dealing with a waking Chrysalis, so she didn't hear. Though, a certain draconequus. 
"You! Asking Luna for help?" Discord asked, an amused grin spread across his face that turned back to laughter. "And all for a silly purple pony!" It was obvious that every one in the room was paying attention to them, though they were just confused. 
"Hush!" She shouted, her mane rising with it. Of course, he didn't listen and kept bothering her. 
"What are you going on about?" Chrysalis awoke and hissed. She looked at Nightmare Moon who was at her side and growled. Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes and went back to her own throne. Chrysalis looked to the map, "Why the hell isn't that one here? The others at least showed." 
Nightmare Moon looked to her, "How did you know what was going on?" Though she was ignored.
"We were just discussing Celestia's wonderful love life with this thing!" Discord snapped and made Twilight appear in his arms. He smirked as she teleported herself away from him and closer to Pinkamena. "And soon she'll be in a jealous rage over it, and oh I swear this would be an amazing story to tell the fillies." 
"You're a fool," Chrysalis brought her hoof to her face in disappointment. "Just be serious for one second and stop being such a fool! I don't know why I ever cared for the likes of you!" She shouted. 
"Oh Chrissy," he smirked. "You'll never stop caring for me! I'm Discord! Who wouldn't care about me?" 
"Us," everypony in the room other than Honesty deadpanned. He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms in defeat. A flash had appeared, along with a fit of coughing. Every pony -and the one dragon- turned to a yellow pegasus with a pink mane. 
Discord's eyes widened, "Look how adorable that thing is!" Both Chrysalis and Daybreaker felt instant hate for this pegasus as Discord snapped and made her appear in his arms like a bride. 
"Well aren't you freakish," she deadpanned and looked around at everyone. Her expression didn't change. 
"Oh I love this one!" Discord cheered. Daybreaker fought an urge to zap this new mare out of existence. "What is she supposed to be? Kindness?" This caught the pegasus' attention. Her numb expression changed to confusion. 
"Yes, it seems so," Daybreaker stated through gritted teeth. Discord smirked proudly. Loyalty and Spike stared at the new mare, declaring her a pretty one. 
"Me? Kind?" Kindness asked, clearly confused. Her blue eyes were full of hate as she directed her question towards Discord. 
"Well, it's more just a nick name for what you are in a different world, darling," Discord smiled. 
"Good! 'Cause I know I ain't honest," Honesty stated and looked at Loyalty's suit. "And yer a mafia leader, I doubt yer loyal." 
"I'm not, I just let them say that to make me look better so I could steal pretty's money," Loyalty said and pointed at Rarity. The mare huffed and turned away. 
"And I certainly am not generous, I deserve everything and the others can go squirm in their own miserable lives," she huffed again. She looked at Spike, "Certainly not you, of course." He smiled back. 
"I-I don't really have fun anyways, and fun usually means laughter, and with no fun means no laughter," Pinkamena stated as she drew circles in the floor with her hoof as she crouched down even lower under the spotlight. "Its usually only maniacal or from someone else's misery." 
"Freaky," most of the ponies in the room stated. Pinkamena cowered further into the corner and bit her lip. 
"Sorry," she muttered. 
"So, now that all of us are here," Twilight said to Daybreaker. "Are you going to tell us why we're here?" Her violet eyes showed no intentions of evil like Daybreaker had expected from her. She should've been one of the most evil, most foul creatures in the land. Why did she seem so intimidated and... nice?
Daybreaker shook away the thought, "Well, yes." Everypony stood around her, intent on hearing why they were brought to the rulers. Honesty seemed to be the only one who respected them. 
"I'm sure you know there are multiple dimensions, and if you don't, well now you do," Daybreaker started numbly, keeping her eye on her Twilight. She ignored the confused expressions of the others. 
"There is another Equestria, one where harmony, niceness, selflessness, and understanding rules over the lands." She explained with a calm smile. 
Most seemed disgusted by the sheer idea. Kindness was messing with Discord, not caring for the speech. Twilight, Honesty, and Pinkamena looked as if they liked the idea. 
"Well, my colleagues and I were bored and decided today would be the day we send some ponies to deal with the matter, and take Equestria as our own," she continued. "And so, I have called for the most evil creatures in our Equestria to do the job.
"And in return for taking over this Equestria," she smiled evilly. "You get it as your own to rule over. Though," she glanced at Discord and Kindness, "I am already seeing our flaws with the idea." 
"I'll just go with her and you can replace me with Twilight. Keeps four here and seven there," Discord said without care for the situation. Daybreaker looked to see Twilight's disappointment with the plan. 
"You can go with them, I'll decide what happens to Twilight later," Daybreaker said after some time. She hated the thought of even leaving the alicorn in another world , but seeing Twilight smile at her made it worth it. Why is she even appealing? And why do I care about what she wants? Daybreaker asked herself. 
"Though," Daybreaker smirked at Discord. "You are staying here with us until they rule over the Equestria. The map called them for this quest after all." She looked to see both Discord and Kindness pout at the command. 
"So, who're we up against?" Loyalty asked. "Cause I'm sure I could take them all on my own." 
"I'm a dragon, I don't need some ponies help," Spike growled. His wings bent against his back and looked as if they were hurt. For some reason, Rarity itched to realign them so they didn't look in pain. She shook away the thought. 
"Yourselves." Day Breakers smirk stood defiant above the sevens confused expressions.
> To Equestria
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Every non-alicorn mare and even the dragon were shocked to hear what they heard. Some were sure they could take Equestria without anything else helping them, but to fight themselves? All seven? Loyalty and Honesty looked at each other, Twilight cowered closer to Pinkamena, and Rarity hugged Spike's claw. 
"Ourselves?" Loyalty and Honesty blurted. "Excuse me, princess. But how in all of Equestria are we expected to do that, and fight the princesses there?" Honesty asked, it seemed that worry was getting to her, as her stance changed from confidence to a slouch. 
"Easy," Daybreaker smirked at the seven. Her eyes looked over each of them, of course she new her counterparts student was an alicorn, but these ponies would assume Twilight was a usual unicorn, as she was special here. Like hell she would tell them, let them handle it. 
"Well?" Rarity asked rudely, no matter how rude she seemed, it couldn't be taken seriously with her shaking hooves and scared eyes. Daybreaker rolled her eyes. 
"You have evil on your side," Daybreaker smiled. "And a big, scary dragon while the one there is still a baby." Rarity smiled in assurance now. 
"But isn't it that good triumphs over evil? How would that help us against however many powerful princesses there are and a draconequus?" Pinkamena piped, only to cower and look away at the stares she received. 
"Old mares tales," Daybreaker dismissed. "Besides, Celestia and Luna are the only princesses there, though I do believe there is a Discord fighting for good. But Queen Chrysalis won't be an immediate threat." 
"Well, it seems we have a way to beat goody-two-shoes Discord," Loyalty said bluntly and looked at Kindness who scoffed and turned away. 
"I'm not going to play lovey-dovey with some good guy, sounds repulsive!" Kindness exclaimed. "Besides, kings are muuuuuch cooler than some pony-loving-abomination." 
"You're much too perfect, my darling," Discord smirked at her. 
"Bleh!" Pinkamena said loudly. "If you want to rule Equestria, stop messing with that thing and start planning on helping us!" Every pony was surprised at her sudden outburst, saying as she had usually been cowering in a corner with stage fright of just speaking out. She went back to cowering nervously.
"Ooooh, sorry, scardy-pony," Kindness stuck out her tongue. 
"Anyways, I'm sure you will find a way to ensure victory, I mean, the only real threat of your look-alikes is magic," Daybreaker said. "Although, I'm sure they will give you mercy. Not the princesses." 
"When are we going?" Loyalty asked, glancing over at Pinkamena. She almost felt bad for her. She most definitely wasn't loyal, but she had a heart when something was as obvious as that. But, of course, with being a mafia leader, she could never act on it. 
"Now," Daybreaker announced and received a lot of protest. All were shocked and nervous, they had to take a totally different Equestria with complete strangers. 
A golden part of Daybreakers throne shaped into a circle glowed a fiery red. The same part on Nightmare Moon's throne glowed a deep purple. Orange glowed on Discords, and black shined brighter than the already black on Chrysalis'. The same part was the center of the top trim. 
Every one but Daybreaker watched in amazement. Suddenly, the red shot to each of the seven. Before they could even scream in fear or protest, the other colors shot to them with a loud noise and a bright flash. 
Once Nightmare Moon's eyes readjusted, along with every one else's, the seven were gone. Fury boiled in her as she whirled to her sister, "You didn't even tell them of the Crystal Empire! Or the Tree of Harmony! Or the four alicorns! They're going to die! Dragon Lord or not!"
"They will be fine, sister," Daybreaker deadpanned. She glared at her sister, "You really think generosity would have power over vanity? Loyalty over control? Honesty over trickery?"
Nightmare Moon's fear deepened, "You mean you knew what they represent... and didn't tell them?"  
"I saw no point to, they aren't idiots," Daybreaker rolled her eyes. She knew her sister wouldn't understand, because her sister didn't know everything she knew. Sure, she told her sister of the four alicorns, and the Crystal Empire, and the new child of Princess Cadence and her husband. But she didn't tell her sister the future, and she certainly couldn't. She had a way with secrets. 
"Star Swirled is a miracle, is he not?" Daybreaker muttered with a smirk as the same colors shot from her horn and to the magic table. The orb from before seemed much smaller and appeared over the hollow shades. 
"They'll be fine, and if true danger evokes," Daybreaker smirked. "I will take care of it, can't have my darling thief dead, now can I?"
"But you said it was their job to take over Equestria! Not ours to interfere in!" Nightmare Moon bellowed in her Canterlot voice. Fear, envy, and rage set place in her and just wouldn't leave. Now, Daybreaker was getting tired of her. 
"Discord and I are very different, he can do just about anything with his magic. Even I have limits, dear sister. I am stronger than you, but weaker than Discord. I think it's a perfect secret weapon," Daybreaker stated calmly. 



They all stared at the desolate world as fear set into each of them. The place was sandy, but there was no sun. A crescent moon shone bright above their heads, an array of pinks, magentas, and purples circled around it like clouds and even altered the edges to their own color. 
The trees were seemingly just jagged sticks with branches sticking up from the ground, shadows and darkness seemed to lie at each corner. Rocks shot up diagonally to the sky, they were huge and towered over them. A trail wound off to the horizon in a grey sand. 
Twilight seemed fixed on the skies as fear set into her and her pink companion who was shaking by her hooves. Rarity cowered closer to Spike while he just looked around in horror. Honesty and Loyalty exchanged understanding glances of a confident façade over their fear. Even Kindness seemed scared of the new place. 
"Where are we?" Loyalty finally chirped, her façade fell at her tone. Finally, she cowered closer to Honesty, her eyes shot from trees to rocks to shadows. 
"The Hollow Shades, if this Equestria is so similar to ours," Twilight said bluntly in her own examination of the place. She noticed the shadows leeching around them, as if controlled by something bigger than them. She crouched down next to Pinkamena and got a better look at them. 
She saw the black smoke, it had white speckles in it, as if the night sky. There was a dulled black, as if the edges got transparent. Twilight saw that it actually was, this wasn't fog. This was magic. She stood while every pony else was panicking. 
"Shouldn't it be day? It was day in Equestria!" Rarity piped, fear setting in as the anxiety of a new world was making their holes in her. She wanted to cry, she wanted to go home without this annoying job. She didn't want to be a queen, and if the thought did pass her mind, she certainly didn't want anything, even a king. 
"Travelling through dimensions probably took time," Pinkamena said nervously as she drew circles in the sand with her hoof. She glanced at Rarity for a response, Rarity only seemed sympathetic. Her cheeks turned pinker- though no one could notice. 
Twilight started following the direction the shadows were coming from. She noticed the fiery red specks in the shadows surround her. 
"I think you're right, then again, the moon and sun could just work differently," Kindness shrugged, finally speaking word to each of them from her arrival. 
"The sun and moon are universal, idiot," Spike growled. Twilight noticed the orange specks surround Kindness, the dark purple surrounded Rarity and Loyalty. A deeper black surrounded Pinkamena. She understood what this magic was. 
"So dimension travelling means we're in the same universe as Equestria? Right, drake," Kindness growled dominantly. Rarity, Loyalty, and Honesty looked surprised at the beauty's rudeness. Pinkamena cowered further at the sound of her voice. Twilight assumed it was a great time to step in. 
"These shadows are the rulers magic, the colors that sent us here!" Twilight exclaimed to herself once she came to the conclusion, everyone stared at her with confusion. She smiled at the spotlight. 
"Okay," she started, her eagerness making her speech must faster. "The only other creature with this type of fog with their magic is the Pony of Shadows, and to my belief, he's been encaged in limbo for one thousand years so this is impossible."
"I thought it might've been the sirens, since theirs is usually a greenish fog, maybe it could've changed," she continued, not noticing the confused faces. "But then, if you notice the specks in the shadows, they match the colors to the rulers thrones." 
"Of course, but couldn't this be some common-magical-color-scheme in this world, darling?" Rarity asked, not believing this random eggheads stories of sirens or shadow ponies.
Twilight shook her head and used her magic to disrupt the shadows around her, shooting them to eye level. "Red specks came from Daybreakers throne, I was the one she liked the most." 
Her magenta aura encased the fog around Loyalty and Rarity, she brought it up to eye level. "Deep blue, from Nightmare Moon. Of course she would like the ones with the darker colors." She did the same for the fog around Pinkamena and Honesty, "Noir Black, Queen Chrysalis took notice to Pinkamena, I'm sure she would've done the same for the one pony who seemed to respect her." 
Her aura surrounded the fog around Kindness, before she could explain, Kindness spoke. "Yeah, yeah, we get it, we're protected by the rulers. Big deal, I know we don't need them." 
"How could you say that!? We got no idea where we are," Honesty fumed at the calm pony in the mix of the panicked. 
"We have an alicorn, a dragon, a mafia leader, a cannibal, and me. We don't need some fire head and some insecure darkness rulers," Kindness explained and rolled her eyes. 
"What about me?" Rarity asked with a huff. "I'll be a much better ruler than any of you! I'll take Equestria myself and have you all exiled!" She noticed the dragon next to her staring at her, she smiled to herself. "Of course, a queen does need her king, after all." The dragon smiled back at her. Though both smiles were menacing and dominating, they were still smiles. 
"I guess we should at least introduce ourselves before moving on, I'm sure egghead could come up with a map," Loyalty said and looked at Twilight, who simply ignored the remark and nodded. "Well, I'm Rainbow Dash, mafia leader and controller of all pegasus cities." She smirked. 
The other ponies seemed dumbstruck. She rolled her eyes. "I'm Applejack! AJ, for short," Honesty smiled proudly and winked at Rarity, whom gagged in revolt. 
"I-I'm Pinkamena," Pinkamena turned bright pink as her hoof circling became faster with fear. Rarity and Rainbow Dash both wanted to help her. Rainbow Dash utterly hated seeing such a weak pony, that's what she wanted to believe, she knew she just wanted to make the mare comfortable. Rarity was simply really disgusted with the fact that she was so wimpy. 
"Rarity! Master seamstress and also, I am the mysterious Carousel Boutique!" Rarity exclaimed proudly, the astonished faces only gave power to her wicked smirk. It all clearly went to her head... and her curls. 
"T-Twilight, I'm a simple librarian at the Canterlot Library," she smiled nervously, every pony expected her to push up an imaginary pair of glasses. 
"Dragon Lord Spike, ruler of the dragon lands," Spike smirked and showed off his spiked teeth that only Rainbow Dash and Kindness seemed to take appeal too. Rarity looked away nervously, alongside Applejacks terrified and fixed gaze. 
"Fluttershy," Kindness smirked. Rainbow Dash and Rarity seemed on the brink of laughter. Her smirk widened as her eyes narrowed, "Ruler of the Everfree Forest." The shocked faces gave way to her demise-wishing stare.
"The Everfree?" Rainbow asked with horror. "No one survives the Everfree! The monsters are wicked!" Every other pony held the same expression. Spike raised an eyebrow in confusion, Rarity was the only one who took notice. 
"A terrifying dragon doesn't know of the Everfree?" Rarity asked with concern. He simply shrugged his shoulders in response, earning a few gasps from the ponies. He rolled his eyes in hate of feeling inferior. 
He growled, "If a petty pegasus can rule the place, I doubt it's that scary!" Applejack and Rarity cowered at the growl. Pinkamena jumped and Rainbow Dash leaned forward, declaring her appeal for the dragon. 
Fluttershy sat down and looked around questioningly as the three discussed the Everfree with the drake. Her tail flicked in disgust every time he spoke or growled. So, she turned to Twilight and Pinkamena to distract her. 
"So, smart one," she started rather coldly. "I'm assuming we should head to Canterlot, right?" 
Twilight stared at her blankly, clearly analyzing the question. After a bit, she gave a hesitant nod of understanding, not answering. "I suppose so. But I have no idea how our Equestria and this Equestria correlate," she scratched her head.
Pinkamena stared down at the hole she drew in the sand. Suddenly, she jumped up and stood straight, she stared, wide eyed at the two. "Canterlot is the center of Equestria here as well." 
The two stared in confusion as to how she could possibly know. Before the could ask, she continued, "The biggest difference is rotation. This Equestria is at a one hundred and eighty degrees rotation from ours." She stopped for a bit to analyze something and do some mental calculations. "Um, sooooo..." she started looking around. Suddenly, she found the north-east corner and pointed at it. "That direction is Canterlot!" 
Now, all six were staring at her in confusion. Most were skeptical, but as soon as Twilight started in the same direction, the rest followed reluctantly. 
They travelled in silence. Twilight and Pinkamena led the group while Applejack and Rainbow Dash walked side by side, sticking to the other as the other was probably their opponent in strength. Rarity stuck close to Spike, she even got him to carry her, which he happily obliged and she happily took. Fluttershy walked alone, she constantly took ahead of Twilight and Pinkamena, only to fall back. 
As Applejack started to think of the map of Equestria, she remembered how close The Hollow Shades were to Canterlot. She turned to Twilight and Pinkamena with worry. "H-hey, saying as we'd be there in a day or two... think we need a plan?" 
Pinkamena ceased her bouncing and started walking normally with a pinker face. Twilight started thinking and sighed, "I suppose we should, but... it's difficult to think of a plan without the knowledge of the enemy." She turned to Rainbow, who already had a defiant smirk. She rolled her eyes, "I'm assuming you have a plan of attack?"
"Yeah!" Rainbow flew up and hovered a few inches above the ground. Her hooves were placed on her hips. "Ransom! Works every time!" 
Applejack rolled her eyes. "We ain't need money! We need Canterlot!" Rainbow realized this and fell against the ground again and defeat, then, she shot up with a new idea. 
"We barge in there and use the dragon to kick some ass!" She said defiantly. Even Spike groaned at her ignorance. She growled at the inferiority she was feeling. "Hey! I'm not used to kingdoms, got it? At least I have ideas!" 
The seven sat in thought. Well, not really. Rarity and Spike ignored the situation, Rainbow gave up, and Pinkamena was too scared to admit any ideas. Suddenly, Applejack whirled to Fluttershy. "Hey!" She started. "You rule over the Everfree! Why not just use the method you used?" 
The others smiled, thinking it was a good idea. Fluttershy's sigh of disapproval made their smiles fall. "These are ponies with powerful, unknown magic. The Everfree had animals with magic I knew how to control." Now her words caused more confusion than clarity. 
Twilight started, "How did you control magic? You aren't a unicorn." Fluttershy rolled her eyes and growled, silencing her and leaving the question as nothing. 
More silence ensued until the dragon offered an idea. "You're smart, aren't you?" He pointed at Twilight. "Why not just cast some kind of changeling spell or something?"
Silence ensued once again, causing all participants other than Pinkamena and Twilight to groan. Pinkamena started the conversation, "It could work... if you could cast a spell for at least two of us." 
Applejack raised an eyebrow, "Only two of us?"
Pinkamena simply nodded while Twilight thought it over. "It's certainly possible for me to... but I'll have to practice the spell... and remember it." 
Rarity's face morphed to horror as her eyes widened and her body stiffened. "You mean we have to stay out here with nothing?!" She shrieked. 
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, "We have a unicorn, and you're a unicorn. Just cast a spell."
"I don't know any magic like that!" 
"I'm sure the alicorn does!" 
Applejack looked to Twilight, "You do... don't you? I haven't lived with anything below middle class in all my life! I don't even know how to start a fire!"
Spike stepped in after her stopped flying, setting himself on the ground. "You have a southern accent, how do you not know how to start a fire?"
"Flim and Flam ain't never had a need for us to!" She seemed so panicked. Her hooves shook and she looked around frantically. 
"You have a dragon and a magic alicorn," Spike started at an attempt to calm her down. "I'm sure you can survive a few nights with that." 
She started pacing around the group and ranting. "Ah never lived with anything but Flim and Flam... shucks, I just wanna go home!" She fell to the ground in a panic and put her hooves over her head. 
Spike simply stared at her. He was more confused than worried, but still worried. It was a pony who obviously worked, so why was she so scared? He almost found her idiotic, but decided that wouldn't help anyone if they succeeded. 
He walked over to her and sat down next to her. She didn't budge. He smiled slightly. He couldn't believe ponies were so much smaller than him, and he was barely a teenage dragon. He shook the thoughts away, he had to calm her down, not admire how adorable her race was. 
"Hey, at least you aren't alone out here," he suggested and was happy to see her peak out of her horror. "Besides, wouldn't you wanna grow up and not depend on whoever you were talking about?" 
Now he could see how depressed she was. She sighed. "Not really. It's easier to depend on others than it is to depend on yourself. I'd rather stay under Flim and Flam's wing for the rest of my life than take care of myself." 
"Do you never feel like a foal for it?" Spike asked, being more curious than anything. All he heard was another sigh. 
"I've tricked a lot of ponies in my days... it ain't that hard to trick myself. I don't care either way really, I like my life with Flim and Flam... it ain't that bad," she said. He could see the slight smile on her face. 
Before he could continue, Twilight popped up. "We have a plan!" All heads turned to her, Pinkamena, and Fluttershy. Twilight seemed way too giddy for her professional appearance. 
"It'll be fairly fast, as we'll be caught quite easily," Twilight started. Then she paused in thought and shook her head, "Nevermind that. If we're quiet enough, we can succeed." She looked towards Rainbow, obviously rewinding her plan and rethinking it. She smiled. "We can use blackmail to avoid suspicion. 
Rainbow smiled, knowing she'd have a part to play. Twilight finalized her plan, getting ready to explain it. 
"Pinkamena and Fluttershy will act as the Laughter and Kindness here, baiting the princesses away from their throne. Warn the princesses of a danger taking over some area in Equestria. At least one will get up and race out of the door or the window." She started her explaination.
"We'll have Rainbow and the Drake at the window," she spoke, ignoring the dragon's name. Even if she saw his dislike, she didn't care. "Applejack and Rarity will be at the door, I'll teleport in and capture the two while they're distracted," she smiled brilliantly. 
Before Rainbow could even ask, she continued. "We'll blackmail the princesses into staying quiet and acting normal in front of the guards while we learn more about the world. The rest will go accordingly and this'll be a slice of cake." 
All were dumbstruck to the plan, except for Pinkamena and Fluttershy. Applejack was the first to speak. "Seems easy enough," she croaked. 
Twilight smiled, finally letting the group see that she used her intelligence for evil, not normality. "Then, let's put the plan in motion!"
> Step One in a Multi-Step Plan: Setting the Stage
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Hollow Shades were a lot bigger than any of them imagined. Of course, none of them were used to walking on the ground for so long. All were used to an easier life. Rarity, surprisingly, lasted the longest of all of them. 
"C'mon!" She shouted at Rainbow Dash. "You run heists and... whatever you do!" She spat at the mare. Rainbow rolled her eyes, rolling on her back to lay next to Applejack, who was just as worn out as her if not more. 
"Oh stop complaining!" Fluttershy hissed at her. "We're tired. We've been walking for miles with nothing but egghead's magic light. Our bodies have been through a lot of stress through this whole ordeal. Let. Us. Rest." 
Rarity snorted and turned away with a high head. "When did you get so defensive, Mrs. I hate everything?" She narrowed her eyes at the rude mare. 
"I take care of animals for a living," Fluttershy deadpanned. "If we don't rest now, we'll drop from exhaustion at the edge of Canterlot and get caught." Rarity huffed, ignoring her and her logic. 
Twilight stood up from laying next to a sleeping Pinkamena, "I'm sorry, Rarity. But she's right. We're still ponies, even Spike is tired." She pointed Rarity's attention to the sleeping dragon who had originally ignored her spiel. Rarity smiled at how adorable he was when he was asleep. 
She rolled her eyes and nodded. "I suppose so." She sat near Spike, being in arm's length from him. She was intent on staying awake, but her plans were ignored once Spike grabbed her and hugged her like a pillow. She smiled widely and snuggled into the surprisingly warm scales on him. 
Fluttershy snorted. "You'd expect her to be the first to drop," she deadpanned. 
"I know!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed, only to get shoved onto her stomach by Applejack. She smiled at the mare. She turned her attention back to the conversation her, Twilight, and Fluttershy were apparently in. "I can't believe she nagged us like that."
"I doubt she's asleep," Twilight stepped in. Rainbow and Fluttershy quickly dismissed her comment as nothing but nonsense. 
Rainbow, of course, gave her defense. "So? Why should we care?" 
"It could hurt her feelings." Twilight defended her. She looked at Fluttershy, "She's still a pony." 
"An annoying one!" Rainbow growled, getting shoved by Applejack again. She rolled her eyes, "You'd expect farmer here to stay up the longest."
Fluttershy rolled her eyes, but didn't speak as to why she wouldn't. She didn't make it obvious when she disagreed, but made it obvious to somepony paying attention. 
She looked over at Pinkamena with a smirk. Her eyes looked up at Twilight. "So, we see you have a little pet." Her smirk was, of course, rude and made it obvious what she wanted. And in the situation, she wanted Twilight to defend the little filly. 
Twilight ignored her and looked down at Pinkamena. She seemed comfortable, despite the hard ground she was laying on, using her hooves as pillows. Her colors were so dull, Twilight could imagine them lighting up. The bright smile on her face was almost there next to sparkling blue eyes. Her laugh would be a melody to happiness, her presence would be a remedy to frowns. 
She'd be like a clown... except not, Twilight thought with a slight smile. She looked back to see Rainbow and Fluttershy both laying on the ground, attempting to sleep. Twilight sighed and laid down next to Pinkamena, expecting some sleep as well, but it wouldn't come. 
Her mind kept analyzing the situation and the plan. She was really in a different world, a different Equestria. She always knew of the place, but she never thought she'd see it in person. And... definently not in the circumstance she was in. 
She knew so much of Equestrian history. The windigos, the Everfree, the night Nightmare Moon was trapped inside the moon, the legend of the Shadow Pony, and the advancement of the rulers. She only knew very little of Harmony-Equestrian history. 
She supposed it was... similar. The windigos were a very likely place in this history, saying as friendship rained over the world. But she couldn't make many assumptions about the Everfree. And if the place held harmony, Nightmare Moon probably never happened. 
She looked back at the Hollow Shades, she also assumed they were still stuck in limbo. She looked down at her hooves. If Discord was fighting for good, then he might be a leader, but she assumed Chrysalis wasn't, as Daybreaker said she wasn't an immediate threat. 
Her eyes flashed as she remembered the wings against her back and the crown on her head. A sudden realization hit her as she frantically look around, trying and hoping the make sense of it. 
She jumped up and ran over to a patch of sand, surprisingly away from everypony. She started carving how she finished the spell, replaying her memories. B-but I stole the spell... would the Daybreaker here hand it over to this Twilight? She questioned. 
If so, that'd mean there were three princesses who'd fight, assuming they followed the rule of an alicorn a princess. So, that's Nightma-... Luna and ... Celestia? She ignored her unease at the unfamiliarity of the use of Daybreakers old name. Discord... and all of us... including a alicorn... She finished her thoughts in a wind of panic. 
Her mind ran with 'how to do this?'s and 'how to do that?'s. She looked over each of her new colleagues, trying to analyze their skills, as she did, she wrote them down. 
Applejack was close to useless, but Twilight assumed the mare could come in use for a troubled and/or worried town. Rainbow Dash, herself, and Spike were most certainly going to have to be offensive, being the main use of attack. Pinkamena could be our stealth if need be for learning about our counters, Rarity could always assist her, Twilight thought over. 
She didn't have any conclusions for Fluttershy, but the mare seemed to incorporative to depend on. She started thinking over some back up plans if the princesses powers were too strong. Rainbow could teach Pinkamena combat while she could teach Rarity some magic. Once everything was done, she scribbled it out with her hoof, her worry still overriding her system. 
Just the thought of three princesses, a draconequus, and six other threats made it seemingly impossible. That was just the first defense, of course. They still had to deal with the cities after that, dealing with making sure they would corporate and didn't rebel. And that was after dealing with guards! 
She sighed, trying to let the fear and worry go out of her system that way. It didn't work. She collapsed to the ground with a groan of annoyance. 



Daybreaker chuckled at the sight, confusing her colleagues. "They haven't even started and she's a wreck!" Daybreaker exclaimed before breaking into a set of laughter. 
Nightmare Moon felt so much sympathy for Twilight, her heart broke at the sight of the mare crying out of frustration and worry. "They'll never be able to take on all of them, Tia." Nightmare Moon said, bringing Daybreaker out of her laugh. "She's worrying over this. There's so much they have to face, they can't do it. Not without out intervention." 
Daybreaker rolled her eyes. "She's not an idiot, she'll handle it with the right... plan." She stared back at the image, noting she'd have to message the poor girl sooner or later. "Besides, of course we'll intervene."
"How do you suppose she gets this right 'plan'?" Chrysalis asked, hanging out of her throne. She zapped Discords hand as he tried to grab her webby mane and pull her out. He zapped her right back. 
Daybreaker smirked at her. "Easy, all she needs to do is remember the development of us." 
Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis both held a look of confusion as they stared at her. She rolled her eyes. "If she remembers Cadenza, she'll put a barrier around immediate Equestria and block out any interference from the Crystal Empire, one Princess postponed." 
Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis shared a stare of understanding with one another. That understanding soon faltered, "But won't the tree of harmony keep the evil out of Equestria?" 
Daybreaker sat in thought. Both could tell it was out of trying to word it, not the sequencing. "Here, the Tree of Harmony was a sort of... last resort. I suppose it is the same there. And with no harmony left, what does it have to strive on?
"No matter, having a Tree of Harmony is better than the Elements," Daybreaker explained. The three were surprised her condescending tone wasn't evident, as if she understood why they didn't understand. 
She looked back to the screen, Twilight still crying. "They'll do it. I know they will. Friendship can't save everything." 
"Friendship can obviously save the world from Chaos," Discord stated. His tone turned to serious. "You really think they can do it?" 
Daybreaker didn't respond. She simply shot a magic beam at the screen, the sound of Twilight crying much more audible. "Twilight," Daybreaker stated, her voice was surprisingly comforting. 
Twilight looked up, confusion etched into her face as she looked around for the source of the noise. "D-Daybreaker?" Twilight asked, her voice cracking from stress. 
"Plans are the best when they're spontaneous. When does an evil plan succeed when it is fully thought through?" Daybreak asked with a small smile. "We'll assist you when the time comes, so relax." 
Twilight nodded, assuming the noise was magic. She wiped her face on her hooves, stood up, and took a deep breath. Her fear and anxieties going with it. She attempted to relax, and it helped. She smiled slightly at the all-seeing eye watching over her. "Thank you," she said quietly and trotted over to lay next to Pinkamena. 
She didn't hear Daybreaker's voice the rest of the night, the sleep more comforting than she'd imagine. When she woke, the rest were still asleep. She stood up, shaking Pinkamenas hoof off of her. She looked over each of them and the closeness they built in such small time. 
Rarity and Spike clearly were going to defend the other, as they seemingly liked the other. Her eyes landed on Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the mutual bond of façades between the two surprisingly let them get along, despite Applejack's childish fears. 
Then she looked down at Pinkamena. The mare seemed so... alone. Instead of the happiness she'd imagine her bringing, all the girl brought was pity and sorrow. But she was smarter than she looked, which made Twilight smile for her. 
Rarity woke up soon enough, teleporting herself out of Spike's grip and stretching. A smile on her face as she seemed content with her sleep. Twilight stared, jealous her mane stood intact, and surprised the mare woke so early. 
She looked at everyone else and rolled her eyes in annoyance. "They should be awake by now and we should get going!" 
Twilight nodded. "Well, Spike's a dragon, he'll sleep for a while, and I'd rather them all wake up when they want too, it's better for their energy." Rarity rolled her eyes and walked over to Twilight, annoyance and pride filling her stance. 
"Fine," Rarity huffed in annoyance. A ticked-off expression covered her face as they waited. The silence became overwhelming for Rarity, but every time she looked to start conversation, Twilight seemed too intent on thinking to have conversation. 
Everyone except Pinkamena woke up with back pains and groans as they attempted to roll into a new position. The second Rarity saw eyes open, she raced over to make sure they woke up. She was lenient with Spike, saying he needed it more, taking Twilights logic. 
Pinkamena was the last to wake, bouncing to life with a stretch and a smile of comfort. The rest stared at her with envy and hate for her easy sleep.
They were back to walking in a few minutes. Most of them recognized they'd get there later in the day, but still early enough to put the simple plan to action. As the tough sand left their hooves, they stepped onto a plush grass, smiles filling their faces. 
Once they saw the greenest grass they'd ever seen, Rainbow and Applejack raced each other two it and jumped on it, ignoring the pain of impact. Pinkamena and Fluttershy shared smiles of happiness with the soft grass and the cheerier environment. Rarity tiptoed, afraid to get her hooves dirty. Once Spike noticed, he smiled and picked her up, offering to carry her. She smiled widely back. 
Twilight looked up at the trees around them. She flew up and was stunned, the world was just... beautiful. The skies were the brightest blue she'd ever seen. The sun shone bright as she could see the glistening of Canterlot in the distance. She looked down and noticed Pinkamena trying to peek through trees. 
Twilight smiled and flew down to pick up Pinkamena. Once at the tree tops, she sat the mare down and watched as awe and bliss filled the mares face. Rainbow followed suit and flew Applejack up there. 
Fluttershy flew alone, following Spike as Rarity nagged him to let her see. But both were surprisingly amazed at the sight. 
"Well darn," Applejack said bluntly. "This is just a beaut, ain't it y'all?" She smiled at the sight. The birds flying over the sparkling city. "I ain't never seen the sun so bright." 
"Neither have I," Rarity said in awe as she looked around. The warm colors of the city contrasted the sky beautifully. She couldn't help but adore it. 
Fluttershy's eyes followed the birds that flew overhead, one landing on her hoof. She smiled at it. "Well aren't you just adorable," she gushed and spoke like a child to the bird, nuzzling it after she spoke. 
Even Spike and Rainbow seemed surprised by how bright everything was. "The suns never done this before," Rainbow spoke, trying to figure out why. 
Rarity sneered, "Oh right." She growled and looked away with annoyance, "I forgot you pegasi had the sun." 
Rainbow shook her head. "Still, it's never done this! I bet the cloud cities here look like Heaven!" She smiled at the calmness of it all, staring at the clouds, wondering if there was a city up there. 
Rarity noticed Spike's blissful confusion at it all. "Is the sun not all that present in the dragon lands?" She asked, bringing him out of his trance. 
"What? Oh, uh... not really. It's usually cloudy from all the smoke, and even with the sun, it's not that pretty," he said, getting lost in the view again. 
Pinkamena smiled and spoke quietly, though everyone could hear in the blissful scene. "It's so... happy." 
Applejack smiled at her, noticing she wasn't scared. "It is, ain't it partner?" Applejack threw her hoof around Pinkamena with a smile. Though the mare tensed, she seemed less terrified and worried. 
Twilight smirked and had a condescending look in her eyes. "It'll be lovely to take as ours," she looked at each of them, letting them see how she saw it. She wasn't stuck in bliss like them. "And we will, without a doubt!" A huge smile covered her face, though maniacal, it was still a smile. 
She could feel all of them notice she was their leader. They put her in power of the group, and they were right to do so. They all seemed to have hearts, even with their own barriers, they still shined and existed. Twilight didn't seem phased by the sight, lost in the happiness of it. She wanted it. The menacing look in her eyes showed that. 
Her look softened as she looked at Pinkamena. "I can fly you around if you want." 
Pinkamena shook her head. "I can bounce from treetops." Twilight nodded, following her as she bounced, just in case the mare fell. 
"Freaky," the rest said once Twilight was out of sight. They decided to stay under the sun, the sight still captivating to each of them. 
Rainbow flew Applejack around for a bit, until she tried to do the same as Pinkamena. As Rainbow acted as a guardian angel, she jumped around, pride and accomplishment filling her. Fluttershy caught her as she slipped. 
"Uh, you probably need some help, you don't mind, do you?" Fluttershy asked surprisingly sweetly. Once she rebalanced Applejack, she waited for a response. 
Applejack tipped her head, "Thanks partner." A wide smile on her face mirrored the small one Fluttershy had. 
Spike flew past them with Rarity on his back, screaming in excitement. 
"Still hate her," the three said in unison before they continued. 
As they got closer to the city, they ducked under the trees for a little rest. Fluttershy fell asleep for a nap, Pinkamena joining her. Rarity dozed off against a tree. 
Twilight took an apple from the trees they were under and turned it into a hourglass, sand starting to fall from the top. "It'll give us an hour, don't worry. I'll stay awake," she told the three. 
Applejack eventually dozed off, leaving the three awake.
Rainbow looked over Applejack and Rarity. "It seems we have our weaknesses," she looked up at Twilight. "You sure we can do this?" 
Twilight nodded, deciding to keep Daybreaker's promise a secret. "Applejack and Rarity still have their perks. Applejack seems like a fast learner, if we're desperate, you can teach her some of your combat skills." Rainbow nodded along. 	
She glanced over at Rarity. "And about Princess?" 
"Yeah," Spike agreed. "She's useless." 
"Surprised you agree."
"I might like her, but that doesn't mean she's great at everything." 
Twilight shrugged, "I don't know the use of teaching her magic. But I think the three of us are strong enough." 
"Even with all we're against?" Rainbow Dash asked, her tone taking a turn for serious as Applejack stirred next to her. She glanced down at the mare noticing the nightmare she was experiencing. She wanted to wake her, but decided to do that after the conversation at hand. 
"What is it?" Spike asked. He pointed to his claws as he counted them off. "Two princesses, a draconequus, and seven of us?" He glanced up at Twilight for confirmation. "Sure seems like a lot for three."
"Well, one of the seven is a baby dragon, he's useless to them," she stated, lessening the numbers. She decided to keep the identity of herself in this world a secret, she could reveal it when they weren't worrying. "And the draconequus is an easy fix," she said, glancing at Fluttershy as birds pecked her pink hair.
Rainbow rolled her eyes. "A little mare isn't going to make him stop attacking us, especially when he figures it out. And who says they like each other hear?" 
Twilight nodded. "True, but at least when can keep him busy and deal with the others." She stated, noticing the attentiveness of the two. "And she's kindness here. She'd accept him while the others wouldn't."
Rainbow shook her head, trying to make sense of it. "That's still five mares and two princesses immediately." She looked at Twilight, worry etched in her expression. 
Twilight smirked. "A mafia leader being scared?" Twilight voice turned dark and gave the two shivers up their spines. She chuckled, "We got this, alright?" 
Rainbow swallowed and nodded. "Alright, egghead." Twilight smirked again. 
Twilight glanced at the hourglass, seeing it almost up. It vanished, teleported somewhere inside a tree. She stood up and stretched, collecting Pinkamena in her magic. "Wake the others up," her commanding voice ordered. She started off, holding Pinkamena in her magic to let the mare sleep. 
Rainbow waited until she left. "Should we be worried?" She asked Spike with genuine fear. He shrugged. The two woke the rest up and they all started to follow in the general direction Twilight went in. 
They soon caught up to Twilight, finding the two played through a few games of tic-tac-toe. Twilight smiled as her and Pinkamena stepped back. A magenta aura covered the bushes in front of them, the magic moved them aside the view the edge of Canterlot only a few hoof steps away. 
The sparkling city was even warmer in the soft setting sun. The orange skies blending in as they saw the dark shadows cover the sides of buildings. Rarity smiled and raced to the edge, setting her hoof down and shivering with excitement. "It almost feels like I'm made of crystals!" She gushed to herself. Spike smiled and flew next to her, admiring her. 
Fluttershy smiled herself, noticing all the flowers planted next to the edge. "How lovely," she smiled. She still gave everyone a cold shoulder, but she still had her appeal for the flora and fauna. 
Applejack and Rainbow Dash raced next to Rarity and Spike, admiring the tall buildings and the cleanliness of everything. Pinkamena and Twilight soon followed, taking in a second look at it. 
Twilight smiled once again. "Everyone remember the plan?" She asked, everyone nodded at the question. She smirked and looked up at the city. Her eyes messed with the colors, the walls turning purple, flags of magenta and navy blue covered the walls. The sky was dark with bright magenta clouds full of magic. She smirked in desire at it. She'd never wanted something so badly, but now she did. And she was determined to have it.
> Step One in a Multi-Step Plan: Execution
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rarity scowled as Rainbow Dash and Applejack left the group to bar hop. She was surprised to see even Twilight was angry at them. 
"I guess the plan will have to wait until tomorrow," Twilight said, attempting to not crack under her rage. Rarity smirked cheekily as Pinkamena tried to comfort her. 
"Uh, well... we won't get a lot of time to have fun here if we go ahead and do it," Pinkamena said nervously, scared Twilight would yell at her. Once Twilight cut her eyes at her, she cowered under her hooves. Twilight rolled her eyes and looked away. 
Suddenly, she sighed. "I suppose so," she stated, glaring at Pinkamena as she peeked through her hooves. Twilight looked around to see Fluttershy fleeing back in the woods. She sighed and looked at Rarity, "Go ahead and look at some clothes or something." 
Rarity smiled giddily and started off, forgetting Spike there. She didn't care though, she wanted to see Canterlot, especially this one. She had never been to Canterlot before, and this one sparkled and glistened in the moonlight. 
As she trotted through the streets, she saw some stores closing, but didn't mind it. She stood at windows and looked inside, the dresses and outfits were just gorgeous! She'd never seen anything like it. 
She giggled to herself and tapped her hooves against the ground. On the doors, it had names like Photo Finish, Hoity Toity, and Sapphire Shores. She assumed they were famous due to the multiple times she saw their names. 
As she walked down the streets, almost all the lights cut off, she froze and stared at a dress inside a window. A sleek black beauty with red and purple diamonds surrounding the hem and the collar. Her eyes widened at the sight, along with her smile. 
Her eyes turned purple as her horn turned a light blue. That light blue soon encased her and was gone with a flash. She was inside the store. She looked around and gagged at most of the dresses, and the basic décor of the place. She rolled her eyes and set them on the prize. 
Her blue magic engulfed the dress and her own. The black beauty appeared on her, her own dress rested on her hoof. She looked around for a decent purse, she rolled her eyes at many, but settled on a black one with purple jewels.
She smiled as she ripped the purse off the rack through many other purses. With her old dress being stuffed inside the bag, she was set. She teleported herself outside the shop, the new dress contrasting wonderfully with her coat in the moonlight. 
She giggled and tapped her hooves against the ground. As if on cue, she heard a whoosh! She smiled as she looked up at the dragon and watched as he stood next to her. She smirked at his stare, clearly speechless at the sight. She twirled, "You like?"
"Uh, yeah..." he said numbly, still admiring the dress. He shook his head, "How'd you get it? All the shops are closed." He pointed at it, ignoring her bright smirk and the window with a bland mannequin. 
"A little theft is required for such a beauty," she smirked and glanced up at the store. "And I doubt the owner of this store liked it, all the other dresses were hideous." 
Spike looked up at the store. The words 'Canterlot Carousel' looked back at him. He shrugged, "Alright then." 
"I'm assuming Applejack and Rainbow Dash still haven't returned?" She asked, looking at other stores she could take beautiful dresses from. Spike shrugged again, but she wasn't paying attention. 
"Wouldn't know," he said bluntly. "I was flying around." He watched her as she looked for another dress, and followed her as she looked into different stores. 
As she teleported inside to take whatever she pleased, Spike waited outside. As she came back, she dropped all the dresses in Spike's arms. "You don't mind, do you, dear?" She said with puppy dog eyes. She didn't wait for a reply, "Thank you, sweetie!" and she'd trot off to another store. 
He didn't mind being her bag boy, especially since she constantly gave him puppy dog eyes. The night went on like this, until sunrise where Spike flew her back to where Twilight and the others were. 
Everyone but Twilight was asleep. She was looking through a huge book that both Spike and Rarity disgusted. She didn't notice the two were there until she looked up to rest her neck. She rolled her eyes and went back to the book. "I see you had fun." 
A smirk instantly hit Rarity's face. "Well! I have to say it was fun, and all that fun came with many perks!" She gloated, her voice and stance full of pride as she stuck her chest out. 
Twilight rolled her eyes again, her face one of annoyance and disgust. She used her magic to flip the page. "Like what? Thirty-something dresses?" 
Rarity smirked again, this time more cheekily than proud. "Annnnnnd! I got to spend time with my Spikey-Wikey!" She glanced at the book again. "I see you and freak had your share of theft." 
"This book is actually useful," she snapped, catching the two off guard. She slammed the book shut, "We should... do something." She started pacing, surprising the two as it seemed she was pacing off her built up anger. 
"A-are you sure you don't need anything, darling?" Rarity offered. "You seem.... stressed," Rarity smiled nervously to hide her unease. 
Twilight sighed and stopped pacing with a sigh. "I just need time to go faster so we can get this over with." She looked up at the two with a new smile. "Just relax for a bit, you've been up all night." 
Spike and Rarity ignored lecturing her on her health and nodded, walking over to a tree to rest. The two eventually fell asleep against the tree, Spike using all Rarity's stolen dresses as a makeshift pillow. 



After a few hours, the sun was right over them, the trees their only barrier. They soon all fumbled awake under the bright light and the heat. They awoke to a frantic Twilight huddled over a book. 
"T-Twi?" Pinkamena asked and tapped her nervously on the shoulder. Twilight jumped at the touch, whirling to Pinkamena, scaring her in the process. She shook her head and turned back to the book. Her magic slammed the book shut. 
She sighed and put on a smile, turning to all of them with confidence. "Since you're all finally awake," she cut through each of them with an expression on the edge of anger. She put on a smile, "Shall we continue? This is the first step to victory!" 
Everyone was tense under her stare, but they knew someone had to speak. Applejack put on a weak smile, "W-well, let's do it!" She swung her hoof with it. She watched as Twilight's smile turned to malicious as she turned back to Canterlot. 
As she analyzed the best method, they all exchanged knowing glances of worry. The attention snapped back to Twilight as she spoke. "Fluttershy, Pinkamena, Rarity, and Applejack can travel through the city by using alleys and back roads without many ponies," she spoke, turning back to them. 
"Spike, Rainbow, and I'll fly close by until you get closer to the castle," she said with a kind smile that only Pinkamena smiled at. "From our approaching positions, I'll find a path to avoid detection," she turned back to the castle. 
"Oki!" Pinkamena bounced next to her with a smile. "Sounds easy enough, we'll have Canterlot in no time!" She noticed Twilight's still frantic stance. "..Right?" 
Twilight turned to her. "What? Oh, right." She said numbly, looking back to the castle to find a flying route. "Let's go," she stated commandingly as she stepped onto the stone of Canterlot, ducking behind a store immediately. Pinkamena bounced next to her again. The rest hesitantly followed. 
As Twilight predicted, the back streets and alleys were that filled. And the few ponies there didn't question them, they didn't seem to care for them. 
Twilight wondered why, as she realized she was a princess in this world. As well for the huge dragon following close behind them. She assumed they were probably undiscovered felons, happy they weren't getting noticed by the princess. Or maybe they just didn't recognize her. 
It didn't matter anyways, she was disgusted with the roads. Markets set up behind buildings for obvious illegal trade. Ponies covered up in coats sat by the edge of buildings, watching their foals play roughly with one another. The streets smelled awful, like alcohol and drugs. Trash from alleys fled into the streets as well. 
She could only imagine Rarity's disgust with the place. The mare was probably shaking and on the verge of fainting. She was surprised to see even Applejack tiptoeing over most of the trash in the street. Most of them did, but Applejack seemed much more uneasy than the rest of them, excluding Rarity.   
They finally stood at the edge of an alley, the Canterlot Palace in sight. Most of them admired the way the colors sparkled in the light. 
Twilight soon ordered them to run, as if they were in a panic. "And don't talk to anyone," she said sternly. The four nodded and started off. Once Twilight was sure they would make it inside the palace, she ordered Spike and Rainbow Dash to follow her. 
The guards at the front gates stepped by letting the four through without question. Rarity smiled at the power. They raced through the halls, ignoring the want to get nosy. They saw a huge set of doors, Rarity and Applejack stopped, letting Fluttershy and Pinkamena run ahead. The two nodded and busted through the doors. 
They were surprised to see another huge set of doors down the halls, but went ahead anyways. They ignored the curiosity to look at the stained glass windows around them. 
The two froze at the approaching pegasus with a smile. He waved and flew down towards the two, he smiled at Pinkamena. "Hey, Pinkie!" He smiled, his orange coat shined as his blue mane poked through the helmet. "How's Twilight?" He said with a tilt of his head, a curious smile plastered on his face. 
"Uhh..." Pinkamena started, wondering who this 'Pinkie' was. 
The pegasus guard looked back to the doors they went through. "Where is she anyways? She always comes to see the princesses with her friends... wait... did something happen?" He asked, his casual stance changing to worried. 
Fluttershy rolled her eyes. "Sorry buster," she said rudely. She smirked. "She just sent us, she didn't want to see your ugly face," she said with a huge smirk. It grew at the sight of his confusion. 
"What?" He asked, shaking his head. "B-but.."
Fluttershy started pushing Pinkamena towards the door. "Sorry! We're kinda busy!" The two shook off the inconvenience and dashed through the doors. 
The attention of two princesses shot at them. Both were confused at the sight. A white alicorn sat there with a flowing mane of blue, green, and pink. It wasn't fire like they expected. Nightmare Moon looked just a different, her coat a deep blue with a darker mane. Neither of them wore their regular armor. 
The white alicorn stood. "What is it?" She asked, worried and concerned. But suddenly, her eyes narrowed on Pinkamena, noticing something different. 
Fluttershy decided to handle the talking. "Oh it's just awful! The Everfree! It's attacking Ponyville!" She cried at the alicorn, a hidden smirk behind her furrowed eyebrows and worried eyes. 
"Again?" The darker alicorn asked with worry. Pinkamena and Fluttershy were caught off guard, once again. Fluttershy didn't respond, she only nodded. 
As the darker alicorn raised to leave, the white one held out her hoof. "Wait, Luna..." the white alicorn stated, her eyes narrowing on the two. Her mind raced with alert as she slowly walked towards the two. She stopped before them, "Who are you two?" 
Fluttershy couldn't respond, but she didn't need to. As she looked over at Pinkamena, she noticed the mare flinch forward with a statement. "Pinkie and Fluttershy... why?" She asked, attempting to sound bubbly. 
The alicorn's expression didn't change from it's cautious one. The mares confidence threw her off, but she was certain these two weren't who they seemed to be. "You're not Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie... are you?"
Fluttershy's eyebrows furrowed in anger. "Are you done questioning us so we can get to Ponyville already?" She said angrily. She noticed the two were thrown off guard. Luna gasped in response as the white alicorn's eyes widened. 
Before the alicorn could question them, the doors were thrown open. All attention shot to the door as Rarity ran in, her horn lit up in a blue. That same blue covered the alicorns and wrapped a blue rope around them. 
Applejack soon followed, signaling Spike and Rainbow to dash in. As the white alicorns horn glowed yellow, a determined look on her face, Spike raced in front of Rarity and stood on all fours with his teeth shown. 
As Rarity stared dreamily at him, a yellow beam was shot at Applejack, throwing her across the room. Rarity was snapped out of her own head and tightened the ropes on the two, the group hearing a small snap! in response.
As the alicorns bared their teeth, Luna shot a beam of magic at the magic ropes on the white alicorn. The magic evaporated, gravitating back to Rarity's horn. The alicorn instantly shot a beam at Rainbow Dash as the pegasus flew at her. Rainbow Dash hit the wall with a slam! Now she laid next to a groaning Applejack. 
As everyone's eyes followed Rainbow's fight, the other alicorn was freed of her ropes. The rest backed up, fear set inside them as they attempted to accept defeat. 
"Where's Twi?" Pinkamena yelled at Spike, fear shaking her voice. He glared at her and paid attention to the alicorns threatening them with glowing horns. 
"I-I don't know! She ran off!" He yelled and then roared at the two alicorns. 
Rarity went over spells in her mind, trying to remember some that would be beneficial. Once she couldn't remember any, she pinned the blame on somepony else. "I knew we couldn't trust that soon-to-be-dictator!" 
Luna approached the two, her horn still lit. "Twilight Sparkle? A dictator?" Spike hissed at her. 
Pinkamena was engulfed in a bright yellow, levitating her over to the white alicorn. "Who are you six? And how do you know Twilight?" She asked, her commanding voice boomed. 
The alicorn noticed the hoof steps race away. She turned and saw Fluttershy attempting to fly out the window. As the pegasus jumped and spread her wings, a yellow light engulfed her. The magic levitated her closer to the white alicorn. 
"Answer me," she said rudely. Her magic engulfed Rainbow Dash and Applejack now. She looked over and saw Rarity and Spike engulfed in Luna's magic. 
No one spoke up, the fear seizing their throats was evident in their eyes. Pinkamena huffed as she covered her face with her hooves. "How'd they expect us to do this!?" She cried into her hooves. 
Applejack sighed with a smile. She looked up at the white alicorn. "What'cha gonna do now? We ain't tellin' ya nothin'," She said, confidence in her. A huge bruise was already setting up on her side under her fur, the other side of her burned with the magic shot at it. She was the only one who knew of the pain, but she decided to persevere. 
She looked at Pinkamena. "Don't worry nothin', y'all." 
"We're going to die!" Rarity shouted at her. "And after how great this was going! We should've known the queen of evil would ditch on us! I hope she gets the worse of it!" 
As if on cue, Twilight flew in, her magic shooting a beam at both the alicorns horns. The horns both shined with a magenta finish. The six dropped from the magic. The two tried to use magic, but nothing came.
Twilight's frantic and worn out stance alerted most of them, but the plan was complete. A magenta lock appeared on the door, the windows all slammed shut. A magenta rope appeared around the two, holding them together. 
The white alicorn instantly started her questioning. "Who are you?" She asked with a powerful voice, much different to her kind one. 
Twilight smirked down at her. "Just the sight of you makes me respect Daybreaker more," Twilight said with a smirk. Her frantic, worn out state disappeared at the sight of the two successfully captured. She was filled with a villainous power. 
Rarity growled and walked up next to her. "And where were you?! We almost got killed!" She shouted, anger making her cheeks turn red. 
"If you're members of Chrysalis' army, reveal yourselves," the alicorn stated demandingly, ignoring the feud. She noticed the tension between the few and hid a smirk. It'll be their downfall, she thought.
Twilight, once again, smiled over the two with an evil gleam in her eyes. "Of course not, Celestia," she stated, ignoring Rarity.
Pinkamena bounced up to the two, a confused stare on her face as she looked at the two. "How did you know we weren't who we said we were? I got her name right."
Celestia stared at her, questioning to answer her or not. She blinked slowly, "You got her mane wrong." 
Applejack turned to Pinkamena, grimacing due to the developing bruise and dying burn. "Name right? Her name ain't Pinkamena?" 
Pinkamena shook her head. "It was Pinkie, I'm assuming she's pretty bubbly." 
Twilight looked down at Celestia with a serious stare. Her look shifted between the two, finally setting on the two of them. "Now, you'll act normal in front of your guards, announcing you won't attend any daily meetings." She started, a grim darkness behind her voice. 
"Or what?" Celestia spat. 
Twilight's expression didn't take a turn for powering or condescending, it stayed serious. "You'll cost your sister her life," she said bluntly, scaring the two. 
Their eyes widened as they exchanged looks with one another. Celestia finally sighed and nodded. Twilight's smirk was her first response. "Good." Twilight engulfed the two in her magic and set them down on their throne. 
She looked to Rarity, and then back to them. "Now, we'll take the ropes off. If you take off, I'll kill you." She stated. "Once we're out of sight, you'll call your guards in here and tell them to cancel any meetings for the next three weeks." 
She looked into the hateful stare in their eyes and couldn't help but smile. "Alright then." She guessed her colleagues wouldn't listen to her, so she engulfed them all in her magic and set them down against the wall of the room. As they all scowled at her, she cast her magic to make them all invisible. 
The windows opened, the lock on the door vanished. The ropes evaporated slowly. 
Celestia could see the malice behind the mare's expression before it disappeared. She sighed and took a look at her sister, a terrified look in her eyes. As Celestia's mind ran with ways to contact Twilight, she yelled. "Guards!" 
Two guards ran in and saluted the two. The orange pegasus from before was one of them. "Yes, your majesties?" 	
Celestia sighed, hoping the two would notice the magenta coating on their horns. She swallowed, "Luna and I won't attend any daily presences for the next three weeks, please tell the other guards." 
The two guards were cautious but nodded anyways. The orange pegasus noticed the scared and weary looks in their eyes and knew something was wrong. As the other guard started exiting the room, his determined look mirrored Celestia's worried one. He nodded and exited the room. 
Celestia sighed. "There." The invisibility spell on the seven disappeared and Twilight stared at the two with a smirk. 
Rainbow Dash grabbed Twilight's tail and tugged on it, making the mare look at her with an annoyed look. "What happened?" Rainbow Dash asked angrily. 
Twilight rolled her eyes. "Don't you think that's... information we should be cautious about in front of the princesses?" Twilight asked. 
"How? It's not like they can do anything in that state," Rainbow growled with a confused face. 
"We've limited their magic," Twilight stated as she started towards the door. "Not their knowledge." She shot a magic bubble in the corner of the room, it mirrored the room. She looked to Celestia and Luna. 
"Now, if you two try anything, I'll kill both of you," she said bluntly. 
"Why not go ahead and kill us?" Luna asked rudely. 
Twilight rolled her eyes, her face scrunched up in anger. "Idiots, information is a key part in a success." She turned towards the group. All seemed to scowl at her except Pinkamena. "Follow me," she said sweetly. Her horn flashed and they all disappeared again. 
They could all see each other, but no one else could. As Twilight opened the door, they all reluctantly started following her, eager for an explanation. 
Once they were gone, Luna and Celestia shared a sigh of defeat.
> Princesses Have Big Mouths
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The seven were now in one of the princesses rooms. After Rarity looted everything, it was a huge mess that Twilight was momentarily trying to fix as she spoke. 
Of course, because of her late arrival, they were all curiously angry at the alicorn. She kept a bored expression as she waited for them to calm down, keeping her eye on a magic orb next to her with a real-time imagery of the princesses. 
"Where the hell were you?" Rainbow Dash yelled at her. "AJ and I got hurt! And you could care fucking less!" She growled at her. Her wing bent awkwardly against her back to accommodate the pain for it. 
"What does a bruise matter in the success?" Twilight asked angrily, tired of their complaining. 
"It doesn't matter in a fucking success! It matters cause you didn't stick to your own plan!" She was so close their muzzles were practically touching as Rainbow's hoof was pointed to Twilight chest with accusation. 
Rarity stepped in, wearing a lot of gold and purple jewelry. "Even if I didn't get hurt, I agree. You should've been there! You gave us all quite a fright!" She said with poise and confidence, as if she was above all the yelling. 
"Oh, can it, princess," Fluttershy barked at her. "You were terrified, even with your boyfriend drake their to protect you." 
Spike glared at her with a growl, "The name's Spike." She ignored him. Rarity started arguing with Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Spike joining in with the twos remarks. 
Twilight yelled over the commotion, "Shut up!" They all immediately stopped talking, waiting for a reason. She sighed, "The rulers decided it was the best time to stop and chat. They were warning me of something so I couldn't just bail." 
Fluttershy narrowed her eyes at the mare, anger fueling her entire being. The rest relatively understood, silently agreeing to stop the blaming on focus on something more important. Twilight thought all of them agreed, until Fluttershy walked up to her. 
"You mean we could talk to the rulers and you didn't tell us?" Fluttershy asked calmly. 
Twilight stared at her, preparing herself for whatever the pegasus was going to complain about. "I didn't think it was important, they can only message us, we can't do anything to contact them." Twilight stated. 
"Besides," Twilight's voice cut just as far as her eyes. "I doubt you need to worry of a draconequus, I think that's his job in this situation." 
"I don't care about some stupid king! I cared about my safety!" Fluttershy growled. "If they can see us, that means they'd protect us. And that means we would have nothing to worry about!"  
"You have an alicorn and a dragon, were you that scared?" Twilight asked with a playful smirk. "I doubt it, I'm sure you're more concerned of other things." 
Fluttershy rolled her eyes and lowered her head angrily. "Oh, just can it," she stated and looked towards the window. "I'm going to go find the gardens, have fun," she said and flew out the window. 
Twilight noticed Rarity's worried face before the mare spoke. "Are you sure that was the right thing to do? Maybe one of us should go after her." 
Rainbow sneered. "The mares fine." She turned to Twilight, "So captain, what's next?" 
"Tomorrow you can use your magic and force them to tell us about what we need," she told Rainbow Dash. Her magic glowed around a pillow, after a second, it became six straws. "For now, since I can't keep up that spell all night, we'll draw sticks to see who stays to play babysitter." She said with a smirk. 
Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes at the childishness, but agreed. She guessed it was rigged to never pick Twilight. After everyone did, Applejack was the one with the shortest straw. 
Rarity smiled, "Looks like Applejack plays babysitter! Have you done anything like it before?" 
Applejack looked confused, but answered anyways. "Uh, yeah. But that was with a filly, not two grown alicorns." 
Twilight stared at her with a serious look. Her eyebrows furrowed and her mouth was a flat line. "Just stay awake and make sure the two don't talk to any guard. Oh yeah, and stay out of sight in case a guard does walk in." 
Applejack nodded with a determined smile and started for the door. About half way down the hallway, she heard the door open and looked back to see Rarity standing there. "What's up? You want my place?"
Rarity smiled. "Oh, heavens no! I just wanted to ask you something." 
"Shoot," Applejack stated, confusing the sophisticated mare. 
"Sorry if this is invasive, but do you have a little sister? ... Or a foal of your own?" Rarity asked with a nervous smile on her face. That smile fell at the sudden laughter that came from the mare. 
"Haha! You guessed I had a foal?" Applejack said in between chuckles. Rarity blushed and looked away with a high head. 
She snorted. "I was leaning more towards little sister personally!" 
"Was not."
"Was too!" 
Applejack chuckled again. "Well, it was a little sister, yeah." 
Rarity heard the word 'was' and immediately went pale. Whether it was a mistake in words or it was correct grammar, she still felt bad. She smiled nervously with a laugh. "W-well, that was all! Goodnight!" She raced back in the room, leaving Applejack simply confused. 
But the simple mare shrugged it off and started walking towards the throne room. On her way, she admired the scenery. The bright, pastel colors of the halls that mixed with the dark skies through the windows was pleasing, even if she wasn't one for it. 
And as she approached the familiar big doors, she pushed them open. As she walked in through the doors, she saw the stained glass windows again. 
She only got a glimpse at them before, but now she could actually look at them. One was of six ponies with weird jewel things magically floating around with them. A mare that looked like Nightmare Moon was the victim of the attack. 
She guessed that Nightmare Moon did happen. But how'd they stop her? She must've had evil powers, even then, Applejack thought as she looked at it. 
She shrugged it off, mentally telling herself to tell Twilight later. Another had a similar theme, but the victim was Discord. She was still confused, especially on how they were able to beat both Nightmare Moon and Discord. As she looked further, she noticed that Twilight was a simple unicorn, which only confused her more. 
Another one had Twilight with wings, a bright light behind her. Applejack cowered at the image, as if it was really there. She ducked underneath it and moved to another one. 
She looked up at it and saw a bright blue heart. A small dragon with Spike's color scheme was holding it. Above the heart was an alicorn that looked like the old princess Cadenza her grandmother told her about. She hung her head, understanding the now four serious threats instead of two. She shook her head and slammed her hoof down angrily. That was all excluding the other five and whatever jewel things they had, and Discord! The mission was impossible!
She stomped angrily to the throne room. Her head lowered, her shoulders shifting angrily with every step. She slammed open the doors, catching the attention of the two alicorns, who seemed magic ridden. 
"What's up with y'all? The mare didn't take y'all's magic," Applejack asked, walking along the velvet carpet as she approached the two. They looked down at her with weak hate. "Guess y'all ain't gonna tell me nothin', huh?" She asked with a slight smile. 
The twos expressions didn't budge, they still looked determined and furious. Celestia spoke as Applejack turned away. "Who are you?" 
Applejack looked back at her with a new hope. The two were easy enough to apprehend. "I don't think Twilight would want me tellin' y'all, so, sorry, can't answer." 
"If that is Twilight you speak of, you should be Applejack. Correct?" Luna asked, an angry determination in her veins. Applejack smiled at the two. 
"I'll answer ya if you answer me," Applejack smiled trustingly. A hidden smirk hid behind her eyes as they turned an ugly, forest green from their bright, emerald green. The two alicorns didn't notice. "Though, I'm sure y'all don't think I trust ya. So answer a question I got first."
The two alicorns were confused by the smile and nice attitude, and their guards dropped temporarily. "Alright," Celestia stated cautiously. "Go ahead." 
Applejack smiled joyfully. She had so many questions to ask, but decided to ask the one she didn't expect Twilight to ask. She did only think of the question due to the windows down the hall, like Twilight would analyze those thoroughly. 
"What are those weird jewel things I saw in those windows in the hall?" She asked with a tilt of her head. She knew by the look in their eyes that they learned something, meaning they would more or likely answer. As well as the innocence she was putting off. 
Luna sighed. "They are the Elements of Harmony. They kept all harmony in this world, pushing out evil." 
"They still usable?" Applejack asked. 
Before Luna could reply, Celestia spoke, "A question for a question." 
Applejack chuckled. "Right, what'cha wanna know?" She looked up at them, the green getting darker and uglier as the conversation continued. Celestia noticed it, and now did Luna. Their guards were brought back up. 
"What are you all capable of?" Celestia asked hesitantly, but with determination. She sighed at the smirk brought up by the mare. 
Applejack winked with a smirk. "That's pretty personal, princess. You should take a mare out ta dinner first," she said cheekily. "Thanks for the info though, call it a... starter conversation."
"What should we have expected?" Celestia asked with a hang of her head, her mane falling with it, almost immobile. "But no matter who you are or what you can do! You will not succeed!" She said, picking up her head with a determined look as she puffed out her chest.
Applejack looked at her, her eyes fading back to emerald. "You don't know that," she shouted in the large room as she skipped off to a corner. She plopped down in the corner with a smile, feeling proud. 
Celestia's eyes attempted to bare at her, attempted to threaten her. But not even the hatred of a respectable mare such as her could penetrate Applejack's confident happiness. "Yes, yes I do. You don't know what Twilight Sparkle is capable of!" 
Applejack smirked as she rocked back and forth. She decided to mess with the mares. "Course I do! I'm her friend. She's an alicorn." She saw the immediate fright on their faces, but saw it freeze just as quickly. 
"That mare was not Twilight Sparkle!" Luna shouted in her Canterlot voice. 
"Was too!" Applejack stuck out her tongue as she rocked forward. 
Her confidence threw off the mares confidence, but she knew they didn't believe her. That was fine, she at least made them scared. She tricked a princess. Scratch that off the bucket list. 



Applejack wasn't a mare for staying up for long hours in general. Especially with nothing to do like in her situation. The late night and light sleep from the night before was hitting her as she picked up her head and shook it to keep herself awake.		
All she ended up with was a headache. Her eyes weren't open for a while, but they snapped open and swung to the door at the sound of it opening. She saw that orange pegasus from before, he'd come in there a lot. She assumed he was just dedicated. 
The princesses glared at her and then looked at the guard. "We're alright, thank you for checking in," she said with a fake smile to Applejack and a real smile to the guard. Applejack rolled her eyes and laid her head back down. Celestia mouthed some words and the guard left with a nod. 
Applejack was going to stay up, she was really determined too. But the last time she put her head down was the first moment for a while. Needless to say, she fell asleep. 
Celestia and Luna almost said nothing to one another as they eyed the door, waiting for the guard to return. Once the door creaked open with a orange coat under grey, they looked to see that Applejack didn't stir in her sleep. 
Celestia gestured for the guard to come over to them, a nod along with it. He flew over to them, setting his hooves down as quietly as he could. "What do you need?" He whispered to them. 
"Go to Ponyville, tell Princess Twilight that we're kept captive," Celestia stated. The pegasus started and spread his wings to fly away when she spoke again. "Tell them to be prepared for everything. These adversaries are like none we've experienced before." He nodded again and flew out of the room. 
As the door slammed shut due to his hasty escape, Applejack snapped awake. The princesses faked dozing off and Applejack attempted to stay awake again. She didn't last five minutes before her head was placed on her curled up hooves and her ears twitched. 
Luna sighed. "I prey the dreams of the ponies are alright." 
Celestia looked out the windows, the moon shining back at them. "What if this enemy doesn't know how to raise the sun?" 
Luna sighed again, looking at the moon as well. "They seemed well coordinated before," she stated sarcastically. "They need cover, they wouldn't not know how to raise the sun." 
"I hope so," Celestia stated, her eyes lingering on the moon. 



"What do you mean you don't know how to raise the sun?!" Rainbow Dash yelled at Twilight, waking Rarity with her shouts. 
Rarity groaned as she sat up. "Can you keep your arguments a bit quieter?" 
Rainbow Dash growled. "Well, you're sleeps are gonna get a whole lot quieter in a prison since princess here doesn't know how to raise the sun." Rainbow looked to Twilight scrounging through the drawers of the room. 
"You don't know how to raise the sun?" Rarity asked, confusion masked her voice.
"I'll figure it out, go to sleep," Twilight said, frankly ignoring the two. Rainbow and Rarity both didn't believe her. But like hell Rainbow was going to help her out of her own problem. And like hell Rarity was going to miss out on her beauty sleep. So, the both went back to sleep, despite their lives being on the line. 
Twilight, though she seemed composed, was freaking out. How could she possibly forget about the sun? They're screwed once the princess doesn't raise the sun, even if she's a second late. 
She scrounged through drawers and piles of paper in candlelight, she assumed the others would be able to sleep better if they didn't have magenta filling the room. 
After looking through almost everything, she sat down in defeat, running a hoof through her tangled mane. She winced as she slowly removed her hoof, trying to avoid the tangles by making more. She put her hoof down and sighed in even further defeat. 
Her eyes started tearing up, she felt so alone in a room full of ponies she knew. These ponies... weren't strangers, but they weren't friends either. They were like, high-level acquaintances. But still, she was alone. She couldn't possibly break down out of fear in front of them all. How could she? 
She was supposed to lead the group, she couldn't possibly let her fears flood out. They needed a leader they could trust. Not her anxieties. She couldn't even tell them the truth about why she wasn't there earlier. She couldn't even do that, how was she expected to be terrified?
She opened her eyes, seeing a pink hoof push a book in front of her. She looked up at Pinkamena, confusion masked her teary eyes, she got a smile in return. "I found it. It was in Nightmare's room." 
Twilight wiped her eyes and flipped open the book with her magic. Her page flipping stopped on a bookmarked page with the spell to raise the moon. She started there and started looking around. In less than a minute, she found the spell to raise the sun. 
She smiled at Pinkamena and jumped up to hug her. "Thank you, Pinkamena." The mare hugged her back with a smile. 
"You give me special treatment. I should be able to help you more often," Pinkamena said cautiously. She backed away and smiled. "Just call me your assistant!" 
Twilight just stared at her and chuckled. She looked down at the book to start studying the spell. "Thank you, again. This is amazing." 
Pinkamena smiled. "All you have to do is get it right the first time. You know if anything messes up that we're caught, right?" A worried look now took over her face. 
Twilight smiled weakly with a nod as she looked down at the book. "I'm not the worst at magic, it'll probably be fine." 
"Is there anything you can practice on? You do have to lower the moon, too," Pinkamena stated, still worried. Twilight nodded and stood up, taking the book and the candle in her magic as she walked over Rainbow Dash to get to the door. 
Pinkamena followed her as she exited the room and asked for Luna's room. Pinkamena showed her the way and pushed the door open, the room wasn't that different from her sisters. Once the two were inside, Pinkamena shut the door, just to turn back to Twilight levitating two pillows up and down consistently. The two stood in a wavy line as they were levitated. 
Pinkamena just stood by the door and watched attentively. But that attentiveness grew to boredom, and that boredom grew to sleepiness. As she laid her head down, she still watched, the lines were much straighter and the movement was much more consistent. 
She knew Twilight wouldn't get it perfect, but she'd get it good enough for no pony to notice. After pillows, she used the book and a lamp, the lines became shaky again. 
She guessed Twilight was using a simple levitation spell. The moon was a huge rock, so that wouldn't be so different, but the sun was a flaming ball of death. Sure, the concept was equivalent, but the sun and moon were massive compared to two pillows. 
Pinkamena smiled as she fell asleep, all her faith and belief in Twilight's abilities. 
She soon woke up with the sun in her eyes and a jumping Twilight in the corner of the room. She smiled and stood up, stretching her back in the process. "Did it go well?" 
Twilight smiled with a giggle. "Well, it was a bit difficult and shaky at first, but it got better quickly! I doubt any threats noticed." She bounced around in a circle with a huge smile on her face and a giddy sound leaving her. 
Pinkamena nodded, "Imma gonna go back to sleep. Wake me up when you want to do something with the princesses." She walked over to Luna's bed and jumped on the fabric and snuggled up. 
She looked over her shoulder and saw Twilight lying on the bed with her. "You gonna get up on time?" Pinkamena asked with a nice smile as she turned back and closed her eyes. 
"I just raised the sun and the moon! I think I can manage waking up," Twilight said as she started dozing off. 
Pinkamena smiled, feeling a new kind of happiness. She opened her eyes slightly, her hooves started to shake as she remembered all the special treatment Twilight gave her. She believed in Twilight, and everything worked out! She was so happy. Maybe being happy is a good thing? She thought.
Her eyes faded to a deep, pale blue. Her mind filled with memories of the last time she fell for someone. His smile and laugh filled her head as fear struck her. W-where did these come from? She asked herself. 
The memories of that day filled her, his screams and confused voice echoing inside her. He was worried over her, after the Cakes business fell. The store was dark, the door creaked open as she hid underneath the counter, thinking some idiot walked in wanting a cupcake. 
Make it stop... Make it stop! She cried to herself, holding her hooves to her head as she started crying. 
She pounced, she was starving, resorting to her only method after she did it with the Cakes. She grabbed a knife when she heard his voice, but it was too late, she already swung at him and the sharpened blade cut easy. Blood stained his yellow-orange fur. 
He screamed at her, yelling words like 'maniac' and 'psychopath'. She screamed and cried as she stabbed again and again. She couldn't stop. She needed him to shut up. 
Pinkamena slammed her hooves against her head over and over again, crying and wanting the memories to stop. And they eventually did, but they subconsciously played over and over again. She stared numbly at the wall ahead of her. 
Nah, happy's for babies who don't know how harmful the world is, she thought and tried to go to sleep. But the nightmares kept her awake. And she was terrified.
> Harmony Hears Word From a Little Orange Bird
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The orange guard left that morning, heading straight for Ponyville. He hoped the princesses captors didn't notice a guard suddenly leaving so early and urgently. He was lucky enough to avoid suspicion from the other guards. 
He didn't want to tell any of the guards, worried they'd do something rash and stupid while he was gone. If that were to happen, the captors would surely question a guards departure and have a defense plan. He was lucky he only ran into one other guard. 
He sighed with a slight smile as he thought about seeing Twilight during his visit. But about as quickly as it happened, he blushed and shook his head to rid himself of the thought. He picked up his speed as Cloudsdale came into sight. 
As he looked back at Canterlot, he prayed for the princesses safety while he was gone. 



Applejack woke up from her sleep for good once the doors were slammed open once again. Her head shot up as she turned to them, worried it wasn't her allies. She sighed with a smile at the sight of the huge dragon. 
As she stood up, she looked over to the princesses, seeing their determined and tired expressions. "What do you want?" Celestia asked with her Canterlot voice.
Rainbow Dash instantly flew over to her with a huge smirk. "Just for you to answer the only reason we kept you alive," she said as she crossed her hooves, a confident smile on her face. 
"Never," Celestia stated, shaping Rainbow's confidence to confusion. 
Rainbow just stared at her, an eyebrow raised in confusion. "Uh... don't you think it's a good idea to do what we say? Saying as we have a huge dragon that can char you both?" 
Luna stared right through her, feeling betrayed at the sight of Rainbow threatening her. She knew that this mare wasn't Rainbow Dash, but she looked and sounded the exact same. And the Shadowbolts uniform the mare wore only brought back awful memories for her, but she had to stay strong. "You wouldn't get rid of us without getting your information." 
"Says who?" Rainbow asked, her hooves on her hips now. 
Luna rolled her eyes, she was just as arrogant as Rainbow as well. "You'd waste time if you did." 
Before Rainbow could fight back, she was pulled to the ground by her tail. "Hey!" She yelled as she looked back and saw Applejack spitting out rainbow hair. "What was that for?"
"We ain't gonna get nowhere if you just fight," Applejack stated, staring right through Rainbow Dash. She couldn't imagine the mare as anything but a brat. A stupid one. "Y'all should know that." 
Rainbow jumped to her hooves with her eyebrows furrowed, "Yeah, I also know a lot more than you about this." She flicked her tail in anger as she walked past Applejack. Applejack huffed with anger. 
Celestia and Luna both recognized the tension and easy-disagreements among them. In less than 24 hours they've gotten angry with each other twice. They weren't confident in revealing information, but they were more okay with it now. 
Both of their attentions was turned to the purple alicorn they loved. They couldn't stand the sight of her and looked away. Twilight smirked. "So, I think you both know why we're here today," she stated as the windows were covered and the door was locked. "Though I assume you two have no interest in answering whatever questions we have." 
At the silence, her smirk grew. "Well, I guess that's too bad." The two glared at her questioningly, once they saw her smirk grow, they sighed. 
Celestia finally spoke. "And what do you intend to do when we don't answer?" 
"Oh you'll see," Twilight said with a kind smile, Rainbow Dash hovering behind her. "So, how many princesses are there?" 
The two didn't speak, determined looks on their faces as they chose not to answer. Not that they would tell the truth, they still didn't want to break so quickly. A smile hit Twilight and Rainbow's faces as the rest yawned. 
Magenta covered Luna's right wing, bringing it out. Luna winced at the lack of control as she stared at the two. "Rainbow," Twilight said sweetly. Before the two could question what she was going to do, they heard a crack. A blue hoof jammed into the bone of Luna's wing. 
Her eyes widened as she held her mouth shut. Her head lowered as her eyes filled with tears, she tried to ignore the sick feeling in her stomach or her own heavy breathing. 
Twilight and Rainbow were both pleased as they heard Celestia's cry and Luna's breathing. "Luna!" Her eyebrows furrowed with hate as she stared at Twilight, hating her very being. Magenta covered her left wing as pulled it out to full spread. Her teeth bared, "Do your worst, scoundrels. We'll never talk." 
A crack followed, leaving Celestia in the same state as her sister as both their wings bent incorrectly. Rainbow was estatic, it'd felt like forever to her since she threatened someone for words. It was one of her favorite parts of the job, second to the cash she got from ransom. 
It continued like that for a while. Twilight would ask a question and they'd refuse to answer, she'd use her magic to make a body part visible and vunreable. Rainbow would damage it and the cycle would repeat. Rarity, Spike, and Applejack all left, tired of hearing it and doing nothing. 
The two princesses were in terrible shapes. Both their wings were broke and beyond use. Their hooves and sides were covered in bruises, red dots showed through Celestia's fur underneath them all. The two were done crying from all the pain, they were just tired and close to defeat. They knew these ponies would stop until the day was over, just to come back tomorrow. 
But as they looked at the four, their hatred grew, determined to waste as much time as they could.
As Twilight's magic engulfed Celestia's one unbruised leg, she asked, "So, how many princesses are there?" 
After a moment of silence, she nodded to Rainbow. The two were surprised when Celestia spoke between pants. "Four... Luna... Twilight... Cadence and I." 
The magic evaporated. "Where's Princess Cadence?"
A moment of silence was there again. Magic took in one of Luna's hooves, already so bruised that the magic hurt it. Celestia's head shot up. "The Crystal Empire!... Please, don't hurt Luna anymore." 
Rainbow and Twilight exchanged smirks as they looked back to the two. "Where's Princess Twilight?" 
There was no silence, just hesitation. "Van Hoover." Twilight didn't believe her, but she didn't push it. It didn't really matter where Princess Twilight was, just as long as she was in immediate Equestria. 
Twilight looked to Rainbow, giving her free will to talk. "Where's Rainbow Dash?" 
Luna decided to answer, "Los Pegasus." 
"Applejack?" 
"Ponyville," Celestia answered quickly. 
"Rarity?"
"Manehatten," Luna answered. 
"Pinkamena?" 
"A rock farm," Celestia stated. "With her family."
Rainbow nodded and set herself on the ground, believing their answers entirely. She didn't expect it when Fluttershy flew in their faces. "How about me?" She asked, glaring at Luna.
Luna's face was determined, her eyebrows furrowed. "She lives in Cloudsdale." No one expected the pegasus to slap the alicorn, but she did.
"I hated Cloudsdale, there's no way I'd stay there, even in this world," Fluttershy stated, not caring what she revealed about them. Even if she noticed their understanding in their eyes, she still didn't care. What did it matter anyways? 
"Fluttershy," Twilight stated angrily, handling the situation as if the pegasus was rebelling against the order she set up. "What are you doing?" 
"They're lying," Fluttershy turned to her with an annoyed look. "We can't trust anything they say. Why would the seven of us be separate if we were a threat?" She asked, looking as if she was about to break. 
She turned back to the two, ignoring her obvious emotions. She looked at Luna. "So, baby, where are we all?" 
"We didn't lie," Luna said, confident in her answer. Twilight and Rainbow believed her, after what they went through, they believed there was no need to lie. 
"Awww," Fluttershy said cutely. An evil smirk replaced the smile. "The little baby wants to be like her big sister," she talked to Luna as if the alicorn was a foal. "Please! There's no way you'd be as useful as your sister." 
All four of them could see Luna's confidence faltering at the words. "She rules Equestria! She defends Equestria! She keeps Equestria safe! And what do you do?" Fluttershy asked, her teals eyes changing to a deeper teal, with even more green mixed in than normal. 
"You make sure everypony dreams about rainbows!" Fluttershy said, still talking to Luna as if the mare was a foal. Her expression turned to serious. "You'll never be as important or pretty as her, you'll never be as strong as her, while everyone loves her, no one loves you. And no one ever will." 
Luna shut her eyes, trying to stop the tears that fell from her eyes as she shook her head. "Stop!" She cried and hung her head. 
"The only thing you've ever loved died, and that was you. You're useless, you're as good as dead," Fluttershy said seriously. 
Luna was crying, her tears falling as she stared at her bruised hooves, the stinging on her cheek dying out. "Fine! Fine!" Her Canterlot voice boomed. 
"No, Luna! She's just trying to provoke you!" Celestia told her sister. Once Luna looked at her, she noticed there was no stopping her. 
Luna looked up at Fluttershy. "P-Ponyville. They're all in Ponyville." 
"Even the drake?" Fluttershy asked. 
Luna nodded, "H-he lives with them. He lives in the Castle of Friendship with Princess Twilight." 
Rainbow flew up next to her. "How about the draconequus? Is he working with you?" She mainly directed her question towards Luna, but saw the mare was nowhere near able to answer as she was a crying mess now. So, she looked to Celestia. 
Celestia looked numb, hatred masked her eyes, but her expression was numb. "I will tell you nothing." 
Before Twilight could make another move, Rainbow spoke. "Guess you don't need that horn anymore, huh?" She asked, her eyes fading to a violent red, almost the same as her bright magenta ones.
Everyone was caught off-guard by her statement. Twilight and Fluttershy didn't talk, knowing that threat would make the princess talk. Rainbow looked serious, but she was so excited. Just the sight of a shocked princess made her adrenaline rise. 
She had physical control over a princess, a being full of so much power. They had the magic of a unicorn, the speed and flight of a pegasus, and the strength of an earth pony, but even that fell at Rainbow hooves. Now she really couldn't wait to take over Equestria. 
She looked into the princesses eyes. "So, what's it gonna be?" 
Celestia sighed. "H-he's reformed. He uses his power for good," she said, hanging her head with the reveal.
Rainbow pushed it. "Does he only have contact with you?"
Celestia shook her head with another sigh. "He's friends with the six of you."
Before Rainbow could continue, Twilight spoke. "Thank you for your cooperation. That seems to be all for now. Good day," she bowed sarcastically as she started out the door. Fluttershy and Rainbow didn't have the chance to argue as magenta covered them and Pinkamena, forcing them out of the door and into the hallway. 
Before she exited the door, she put a magic orb in the corner of the room, one appeared right next to her with the image of the trone room. She left and was greeted by the two pegasi who clearly weren't happy. 
"We have all we need," she stated, starting down the hallway. "Think about it, location of princesses, location of us, and connection to Discord. That's all we need." 
Applejack was down the hallway, over hearing the conversation. She knocked on the wall with her hoof and said, "No it ain't." 
The four looked at her and saw the window she was under. The window showed the six of them with the colored jewels. "These the Elements of Harmony. I got the princesses to tell me 'bout 'em last night. Apparently they keep all the evil outta Equestria." 
"How do they work?" Twilight asked. Applejack just shrugged in response. 
"Don't know, a trick usually works for one question." 
Rainbow had a confused look on her face. "Tricked? How'd you do that." 
Applejack smirked, finally seeing them realize her skills. "Trust, just act all kind and asked for a question a question sorta deal. They answered and I didn't." 
"Good idea," Fluttershy said bluntly. Applejack smiled and tipped her head. 
Twilight nodded at her. "Well there, all threats. We can search up about these Elements in a library later." 
Applejack stopped her before she kept going on. "Cut off the magic partner, I'll watch 'em again." She had a sweet smile on her face. Twilight nodded and kept going to Celestia's room. As the rest followed, Applejack bounced over into the throne room. 
She gasped at the state they were left in and hid in the corner, feeling awful for them. "I-I'm sorry for what they did." 
Celestia stared daggers at her. "You aren't really sorry until you take action." Her words cut through Applejack deep, but before she defended herself, she cowered to herself, really thinking about things. 
If she really was sorry, she'd take action. She'd assumed she wasn't that sorry. 



The sun shined down on Ponyville, adding to the happy atmosphere the little town already had. As pegasi cleared the clouds in the early morning, the most famous ponies in town headed to the local café for a day out. 
The green patches of grass were the greenest they've ever been, and the flowers glistened and the colors seemed to turn neon in the bright sun. The cafe's colors sparkled in the sun as ponies started piling in for breakfast. 
Of course, Magic was the first to arrive, being her punctual self. A smile on her face as the waiter knew where she wanted to sit. As she was seated, her smile grew at the sight of Generosity and Laughter in the distance. As she waved her hoof, gesturing for them to come over, Laughter bounced up into the seat next to her. 
"Hi Twily!" Laughter smiled happily. Her head turned as Generosity sat near the two, a beautiful summer dress and white hat covered her. "Hiya, Rarity!" 
Generosity smiled kindly in response. "Well, hello darlings! Such a lovely day, is it not?" She started her usual conversation: weather.
"Booooooring!" A familiar punkish voice rang in her ear. She rolled her eyes and with an annoyed expression, she turned to look at the cyan pegasus flying next to her. 
Generosity rolled her eyes again. "Well excuse me for being civil!" She turned a happier attention to Magic and Laughter. "Where's Spike?"
"He's sleeping, he was up late last night playing board games with Starlight," Magic smiled motherly. Her eyes followed Loyalty as she flew down into her seat. She rolled her eyes playfully. "Again."
An orange hoof slammed on the table next to Loyalty. "Well howdy partners," Honesty smiled. She looked at Generosity and snorted with a laugh. The annoyed look on Generosity's face only fueled her laughter further. 
"And what's so funny?" Generosity asked with her chest puffed out as the mare laughed at her. "And don't you dare say it's my dress! It is summer this time!" 
"That's the funny thing!" Honesty laughed, her laugh was so contagious it infected Loyalty who started laughing as well. "You ain't never wore anything correctly! It's all 'bout what's cute or 'in style' with you."
The orange mare looked over the five of them, "So all we missin' is Flutters?" 
"I'm here!" A quiet voice said loudly. Well, what was loud for her, she was really talking normally. She sat at the table with pants. "I'm sorry! I had to feed all the animals and I woke up late!" 
Magic smiled at her. "Don't worry about it. You aren't that late." Her comforting smile and reassuring words brought Kindness out of her panicked state that she usually put herself in. She smiled back. 
Laughter smiled at everyone together. "Wippee! We're talking again! Sooooo...." she said ominously, a smirk on her face. It was as if the atmosphere got darker around her, like black fog surrounded them all except for her eyes as she leaned towards the table. 
She backed up and the imaginary fog disappeared. She spoke in a bubbly voice, "How's everypony been?" They all sighed in relief and started the conversation. 
The conversation went on for a bit and they got breakfast, all getting something different. Honesty and Loyalty judged Generosity and she judged them right back. 
The conversation continued for a while after until Loyalty and Honesty got antsy, so they decided to stretch their legs in the field nearby. Of course, by stretching their legs, they meant mess around. 
Laughter knew exactly what they meant and went to join them. Since Kindness was getting bored of the conversation the remaining two discussed, she politely excused herself to play around with the rest of them. 
Eventually, the three started watching Loyalty try some tricks, taking stray clouds from stray pegasi who got late to their job. The tree nearby was a perfect seat for Honesty and Laughter, as a result, the two climbed up there and sat next to each other to cheer on Loyalty. 
Kindness flew beside them with a smile as she cheered quietly. They watched as the pegasus did spins and amazing tricks. They couldn't even imagine going as fast as her, much less doing the tricks. Their eyes filled with amazement as they watched. 
Loyalty pushed past her growing exhaustion to entertain her friends. Her fur was practically covered with sweat as she pushed through another loop at high speeds, throwing her eyes off course and her head into a further migraine. 
Kindness loved watching her friend, she could never imagine herself doing it, but she'd love it if she was able to. It was amazing, and she'd imagine it took a lot more skill and practice than caring for animals all day. 
Sure, she loved her animals and her nature in general, it kept her calm and safe. But she always wished she was something cool, not something weak like herself. Of course, she still loved her weak self, her existence was made for animals, not herself. She accepted it, and it only made her love herself more. 
She appreciated herself, and that's all she needed. 
As Honesty watched the tricks, she could imagine doing them as well. And she assumed she would be able to\o if she wasn't an earth pony. She'd be a much better pegasus that Loyalty. She'd actually be responsible, like she was. But she loved her earth pony strength. Not even Loyalty could buck a tree as good as she could. 
As she watched the mare, she could only imagine her own skills. As much as she tried to be modest, she couldn't help but be overly confident. She overworked herself a lot, but she still loved it, she loved being better than something. And she felt awful that Loyalty was her source of feeling better than something. 
As she felt guilty, Laughter cheered the loudest for the tricks. She loved all her friends, but she loved Loyalty the best. She thought she was the coolest, and the most awesome of all her friends! And even with all her abilities, she managed to stay loyal to everypony. 
She put everypony before herself, but stood before them to defend them. In her opinion, Loyalty was the bestest friend she could ever have. She was always there for her and was a great friend to her. 
As the three basked in their respective emotions, Magic and Generosity enjoyed a nice conversation of politics. Of course, it was something only the two of them would be interested in. 
Magic was one for society, as a princess she was brought into the world and fell in love with it. And of course, Generosity was one for social standards and had to know everything, especially with her growing popularity. 
The two were got lost in a light discussion that turned into a deep conversation with small fueds and changes of opinions. The two were so engrossed in it that they didn't notice the obvious Canterlot guard approaching them. 
The orange pegasus stopped right in front of the table, panting at the fast pace he was just going. Magic smiled nervously and blushed at the sight of him. "Oh, Flash! What are you doing here?" 
As she thought it over, she realized this wasn't a friendly visit. There was no reason he would be there on such short notice with his guards uniform on, and by the sight of him, he was in a hurry. Panic hit her fast as her other friends started walking back. "Flash? What happened?" 
He looked up at her and stood to attention, his posture straight. "The princesses have been... well, they're still there, and safe as far as I know. But they're still in trouble." 
He looked to Loyalty, "And they said to really think about a plan. So no rushing in." 
"You know who these punks are?" Honesty asked. 
He stood there nervously. "Uh... I- I uh think they're you guys." Panic and confusion hit each of their faces as they stared back at him. Magic shook her head and nodded. 
"Alright, let's go to the castle a think of a plan," she stated, stepping out of the seat and racing to the castle. The rest followed. 
Flash sighed and chased after them.
> Hallway Peptalks
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the throne room of the Castle of Friendship held seven ponies worried out of their minds. As all the mares sat in their respective seats, Magic paced back and forth. Her eyebrows furrowed in deep concentration and she started pacing a hole in the floor. 
Spike chased her into the room, worry covered his face after she raced into the castle. He tried to follow the conversation as it happened, but he would never understand it until they had a second to explain it to him. 
She turned to Flash. "Do you know who they are?" 
He sighed in response and picked up his head. "It's kinda confusing. I think they looked like you guys, but I don't know if they're changelings or not." 
Loyalty stepped in the conversation, leaning back in the ice throne. "Probably is, nothing else can look like us." 
"How'd you know it wasn't us?" Magic asked him. As much as he wanted to reveal what Fluttershy had told him, he decided to conceal it. 
Spike's eyes followed everyone as they talked, his claws fumbling together
"Pinkie had her mane straight and Fluttershy was kinda... rude," he stated nervously. He shook his head, "They weren't you guys. I mean, unless you six were in Canterlot yesterday." Each mare shook her head. 
"They weren't in Canterlot yesterday, I would've known," Spike stepped in, hoping someone would explain it to him. Of course, he was ignored. 
"Then they're definitely changelings. Looking like us would get them close to the princesses," Magic stated and looked to each of her friends. She took a deep breath. "We've handled changelings before, this should be fine." 
Loyalty shot up from her throne, "Then why not go there now and just beat them up and save Equestria again?" 
Generosity looked up at her. "As much as I would like that to work, I think the princesses could've handle themselves with a few changelings." She looked to Magic, "Though I suppose we could do something like that." 
Honesty pulled Loyalty back down by her tail. "We sure they changelings? The princesses did tell Flash that we needed to be careful." 
"What else could they be?" Flash asked. Before Honesty could respond, Laughter jumped on the table. 
"Maybe! Maybe their from another dimension and they're us!" She smiled down at all of them. Everyone but Kindness groaned. 
"Pinkie! We don't have time to think the impossible!" Magic yelled at her. 
Laughter huffed. "So a mirror can make you two legged but a portal can't make more of you!" She plopped down in her seat angrily. 
"Maybe their just stronger changelings?" Kindness chirped. "Maybe Chrysalis made them stronger or smarter." Magic nodded. 
"That has to be it," Magic nodded as she thought it over, staring at the ground and pacing again. 
Generosity looked to the others, worry covering her face. "If they're a different kind of changeling, then we have no idea how to combat that." 
Honesty looked to her, "We just gotta have a good enough plan. They can't be that strong or that smart, there has to be limits to even changeling abilities." 
As Magic was putting a hole in the floor with her pacing, the rest were full of panic and were making rash parts of plans. Loyalty started the conversation, "I don't care how strong or how smart they are! We just need to go there and save the princesses! Simple as that!" 
"I agree, but we should have some order to the attack," Generosity stated, looking up at Loyalty as the mare flew into the sky again. 
Honesty rolled her eyes, "That ain't never gonna work!" 
"Why not?" Loyalty flew down onto the table, pushing her muzzle against Honesty's. Her eyebrows furrowed in annoyance, along with her tail flicking back and forth. 
Honesty put her hoof on Loyalty's chest and pushed the pegasus away. "Cause! They're smart and strong, what keeps them from foolin' us? Or having a stronger attack?" 
"So you have a better idea?" Generosity asked with her nose scrunched up. 
Honesty rolled her eyes again. "We should stealth it and take out one at a time. Two or three to one should be an easy match with their abilities."
As the arguing started, Spike still didn't have that great of an idea what was going on. "Uh, can someone explain this whole situation to me?" He asked, and was once again, ignored. He crossed his arms and rolled his eyes.
Laughter slammed her hoof down on the table. "We'll get caught and ambushed! It'll never work!" She looked to Loyalty. "And they'll be too strong for an attack!" 
They all stared at her for a better idea, annoyed their ideas got turned down by a mare who suggested multiple dimensions earlier. 
"W-we could always mix the two. Sneak in and go from there." Kindness stated, her voice getting quieter and quieter as she continued on. "O-or not," she whispered in the quiet room under all the eyes. 
Laughter continued her idea, "We sneak in and make sure to take out at least one without getting caught, then ambush and attack! That makes five and the jump on them!" She sat back down in her seat with a high head over her plan. "Thank you," she said simply. 
The four started fighting over the best idea and best plan of attack. As Flash watched all this unravel, he walked over to Magic who was slumped over a book, looking through it. 
"Got any ideas?" He asked. "We just need the princesses safe, you know. We don't have to defeat the enemy with our visit." 
She nodded in response and flipped the page. "Yeah, but I want to discover whatever I can about the enemy. From what I'm reading, the hive's queen can't change the type of changeling she produces." 
"So it's not a changeling?" 
"No, it could be, but it isn't stronger. It might have more skills though," she stated as she flipped another page. "I mean, she might've enhanced their abilities with something. This book is old."
The arguing in the background only grew. He turned his attention to it as she read, but as he overheard, his ears perked up with an idea. He turned to Magic. "You could use a spy to figure out more after the plan. You should hear the others ideas, Pinkie's idea sounds pretty good." 
"Huh?" She tapped out from her reading to discover the onslaught of an argument. Her ears fell at the sight of her friends fighting, as they always did. She could see the four propped up on their hooves, fighting over each idea. She could also see Kindness whimpering in her own throne with fear. 
She stood to stop the fight as she started listening in, hearing each of their ideas. She heard of Loyalty and Generosity's basic attack and Honesty's stealth one. She heard Laughter's thought out process she couldn't well explain over the other three arguing. 
As she listening, she picked out good points from each idea, formulating her own little plan inside her world of construct. As she thought over the plan, Flash tried to stop the fighting, joining in on it. 
She looked up, a determined look on her face. "Girls!" She yelled over the commotion, turning everyone's attention to her. "Look, I have a plan. But we have to hurry." 
Loyalty flew in her face, "You picked mine, right?"
"Ours!" Generosity yelled from her seat. 
Magic shook her head, dashing passed the pegasus. "I'll explain on the way, hurry and let's hope a train gets here soon." She ran out the door. Every pony looked at each other and shrugged, dashing out of their own seats to follow her. 
Magic sighed as she looked up at the sun as she ran. "Please let the princesses be okay." 
Spike ran after them. "Will someone please explain what's going on?" He yelled after them as he followed. 



Fluttershy didn't expect everypony to get used to the castle as soon as they did. Once she returned to Celestia's room from the gardens, she was shocked to find no one. She assumed they were all in Luna's room and was surprised nopony was in there either.
So, she decided to go hunting for her colleagues. She had an idea where some would be, like Twilight in a library or Spike in a gem room. But she had no idea where those rooms were, and was disappointed to find there were no signs in the entire castle. 
As she walked down halls, opening doors and shutting them, she got more annoyed with the whole situation. Her eyebrows furrowed as she pushed open a door, seeing nothing in there, she'd slam it shut. 
She rolled her eyes at every empty room, not even taking anytime to admire the work that went into them. She didn't care for the fancy chandeliers, or the nice painted walls, or the nice drawing rooms. 
What she took from every room, was the atmosphere each held. Some rooms were cozy with warm colors, carpets, and drawn curtains. Some rooms were cold with tiled floors and no windows, just a light fixture. The rooms she liked the most, even for their two second reveal, were the earthy ones. 
Green walls with hardwood floors, curtains drawn so that light shined in and bounced off the chandelier. It was her favorite, it lightened her mood a bit and put a smile on her face, but she was still annoyed. 
Her eyes lit up as she saw a tall set of doors. She pushed open the doors and was relieved at the tall shelves full of books. She had never been happier to see a piece of literature. And she hated literature. 
She raced through the shelves, her hooves touching the cold floors as she raced. Candle holders sat above labels on the sides of the shelves. On the far side of the room, there were huge windows for the main light source. As she looked down rows of shelves hurriedly, she became annoyed all over again. 
But when she finally looked down a row next to the wall, she saw three mares. She rolled her eyes and looked at the label. "Equestrian history," Fluttershy deadpanned. She looked to the three to discover that it was Twilight, Pinkamena, and Applejack. "Of course." 
She trotted over to the three and cleared her throat, turning the attentions of them from books to her. Her eyebrows raised, as if she was a very disappointed parent. Pinkamena, for some reason, hid behind Twilight as Twilight went back to reading. 
Applejack stood up with a smile. "Howdy, partner! How ya doin'?" 
Fluttershy just stared at her. "What are you three doing?" She looked past Applejack to try and get a look at the words on the page. 
Applejack smiled widely. "Well, we're just lookin' up on those Elements of Harmony thingamobobers," she looked to the books. She looked back at Fluttershy. "Wanna help?"
Fluttershy looked at the books on the floor with a disgusted look. She looked back up at Applejack. "Never really liked books. What more do you need to learn anyway?" 
Twilight's voice cut into the conversation as she looked through the books. "If their still functioning or not." 
Pinkamena bounced up, shoving a book in Fluttershy's face. Once Fluttershy didn't take it from Pinkamena's hooves, it fell to the ground with a loud noise followed by the echo. The earth pony talked anyway, "Apparently they're only used if all the elements are wielded by the true elements of harmony. The ponies that control and represent them!"
"And those happen to be?" Fluttershy asked rudely, pushing the book to the side. 
Pinkamena noticed the rude attitude and backed slightly away from the mare. A nervous anxiety took over her pink colors. It was as if a cloud covered the bit of sun she was getting. The new bright pink changed back to the ugly, dull pink. 
"Well!" She started nervously, a nervous smile and giggle with it. "Us! I think. I mean, I was Laughter, and Twily was Magic!" 
"I was kindness, what were the rest of us?" Fluttershy asked, a slight blush on her face as she obviously and abruptly remembered something. She noticed Twilight's smirk towards her and looked away. "Oh can it, princess." 
Twilight's ear drooped with a childish smirk. "But you make it so easy!" 
"Uh, can't really remember the rest of 'em," Applejack smiled nervously. "I'm sure Rainbow and them remember!" 
"Speaking of which," Twilight said as she flipped a page with her magic. "Why don't you go searching and figure them out, saying as you don't want to be useful." 
Fluttershy growled at her. "I don't want any of this, so why should I help?" 
Twilight just glared at her, a serious look overtook her face as her words cut through the air. "Well, if your king ever wants to see you again, you might want to get a move on." Her voice gave chills to everyone in the room. Even Fluttershy gave a worried look to the mare. 
Fluttershy laughed nervously. "Fine, and this isn't cause of the stupid draconequus. It's cause I'd rather not die!" Fluttershy puffed out her chest and walked away, attempting to act above it all. As she walked off, Applejack and Pinkamena's eyes followed her. 
"It's totally that amalgamation of things," Twilight smirked as she turned a page again. 



Fluttershy went stomping through the halls, anger fueling every step once again. She got used to her favorite emotion, but now, she hated it. 
She loved being angry, it got her adrenaline going and terrified every thing around her. She felt on top of the world, and everyone else thought they would break if they stared at her. 
But Twilight made her madder than anything. The mare was obviously intent on being the leader, which Fluttershy didn't mind, Twilight could handle herself. And it seemed herself, Twilight, and Rainbow were some of the highest in command so she didn't care. But that was at the beginning. 
Now, now the mare was just annoying! Acting as if one thing she did out of order was a stage ten rebellion! And when Fluttershy got homesick, she spent time in the gardens, of course it wasn't the same as the vicious creatures in the Everfree, but it helped. But her portrayal of handling herself, was her way of getting out of doing things to Twilight. 
And ever since a little feud, Twilight just loved playing with her. And sure, her emotions would be easy to read after living alone since she was a foal!
As Fluttershy stomped the through the halls, she thought further about things, no matter if she didn't want to. And most of those thoughts were about how much she hated 'new' Twilight.
She's so stupid! She thinks she knows everything! Fluttershy thought angrily. She knows nothing! Just cause she thinks I care about Discord she thinks she can toy with me!
Her anger riled up as her hoof stomps became louder. I don't give a flying fuck about that thing! Just cause he's chaotic, and interesting, and sweet!
She stopped in her tracks, the anger disappearing for confusion. She stared at the wall in front of her and shook her head. "You barley know the thing. First impressions mean nothing." She told herself, continuing on her way calmly. Well, her attempt at being calm. 
Her mind tried to forget how he held her and how much he wanted her. He was so fun to mess with. It's like he was her chaotic opposite. He played around just like she did, he just seemed so sweet. It was like he knew her forever and just was trying to be blunt about saying he liked her.
She sighed as her thoughts ran. She didn't understand anything. She was around him for five minutes and she felt like she never wanted to leave his side. She chuckled, smiling as she thought she'd hate him when he started talking to her. She wondered if he even cared anymore. 
It was pretty obvious something was bothering her, and he wasn't an idiot, she didn't think. But he was probably sitting in a throne, watching over the three in the library, thinking about some other mare with pink hair. 
She sighed and rolled her eyes, her anger draining as she slid her feet across the floor. He seemed like the type, she thought. 
She shook her head as she heard a rattling noise. She looked to the door next to her and just stared at it, hearing more and more rattling. She eventually heard a thud! as she crept closer. She jumped away from the door at the sudden noise. 
She heard a muffled 'dammit!' and crept back towards the door. As she peeked through a small opening, she saw a cyan hoof next to a rainbow mane. She rolled her eyes and stood up straight, pushing open the door to see a mess of a room. 
The few pieces of furniture in there was a desk, two shelves, and a sofa. The hardwood floors matched the shelf and desk, the red curtains matched the velvet, red cushions, which Rainbow Dash was sat on. 
The drawers of the desk were strewn out, one near the wall which Fluttershy assumed was just thrown at the wall. As Rainbow Dash was too busy looking through papers to notice Fluttershy, the yellow mare cleared her throat to get her attention. 
Rainbow Dash's eyes snapped up to her, her angry look melting into an approachable one. "Uh, hey Fluttershy, what'cha want?" 
Once again, Fluttershy didn't answer. She looked over the room, the floors barley noticeable from the papers covering it. Fluttershy picked up a paper and looked over it, the first word she noticed being 'insurance'. So she did the most logical thing and asked about it. "Insurance? What are you looking for?"
Rainbow rolled her eyes angrily, being reminded of the situation. She groaned. "Ugh, looking for the castle's insurance, revenue, political history, that type of thing." Fluttershy was more than confused. 
"So, what's the problem? I'm assuming this rooms purpose is holding those kind of papers." Fluttershy asked, stepping over some papers to sit in the chair pushed in the corner. She assumed it went to the desk. 
Rainbow fell back into the sofa, placing a paper on her face to block the sun. "All these are for years ago! There must've been some political mayor garbage or other country garbage since then! Plus revenue had to go up or down, it doesn't stay close for that many years." 
"Why do you need these? I never knew dictators needed to worry about the politics of the ponies," Fluttershy stated, crossing her front hooves and raising an eyebrow. She could easily see Rainbow's frustration with her. 
Rainbow shook her head. "I shouldn't be mad, you lived in the Everfree for Daybreaker's sake!" She looked through some of the papers again, just so she didn't have to stare at the yellow and pink combo ruined by such an annoyed look. 
"That's how chaos breaks loose and dictators lose control. Ponies are either going to function normally with their day to day lives, or they're going to be held captive." Rainbow's eyes narrowed on the paper she was holding. "I like just getting whatever I want while ruling over something." 
"Sounds like the better option," Fluttershy said, confusing Rainbow. 
"You agree with me?" The cyan pegasus asked. 
"Why wouldn't I?"
"I don't know, you just seem uncooperative."
"You know more about ruling beings with consciousness than I do. I'll trust you with it." 
"Okay then," Rainbow said rubbing the back of her neck. Feeling the awkwardness of silence, she decided to talk again. "So, why'd you come in here?"
Fluttershy stepped out of the chair. "Twilight wanted to know what the rulers called you before we learned your name."
"What? Why?" Rainbow asked, her attention turned back to the mysterious beauty.
"Those Elements of Harmony things are what they called us. So we wanted to know what they were," Fluttershy stated calmly. Of course, all this did was make Rainbow even more curious of her. She didn't know to feel bad for her or to care at all. 
As Rainbow finally comprehended what she said, she shook her head and thought it over. "Uh," she started, too flustered to think. She quickly got Fluttershy out of her mind and started thinking, but she was coming up blank. 
"Uh, can't remember," she said, looking at anything but Fluttershy. She started looking through papers again, though she couldn't focus on them. 
Fluttershy sighed. "Alright, maybe Applejack knows it." The mare trotted out of the room. And of course, all Rainbow stared at was the mares hips and her tail. She quickly shook her head and went back to work.
Fluttershy left the room, happy to be out of a political atmosphere. Though she didn't understand politics, as she had lived in the Everfree for most her life, she hated them. The whole atmosphere was condescending, the ponies in the situation never helped. It was all disagreement and lies. 
As her mind ran with why she hated politics, she turned down a hallway she didn't recognize. The crystal floor got colder, the air was freezing, and all the doors were cracked. A chill went down her spine as she crouched through the hall. 
She already hated the new environment she was in. As she walked through the halls, she froze, her posture straightening with fear. She heard a giggle, or it was a laugh. Whatever it was, it sounded like whoever made it was having fun. She sighed in relief at that realization. 
"Ahhh!" A mare screamed. She turned behind her, her eyes widened and her heart was beating out of her chest. Did they just get caught? Did Rainbow just threaten the Princesses for more information and broke one of their horns? Or was a murderous guard employed? 
As she stared at a door, another scream was heard. She was terrified, but crept towards the door, hearing more giggles and small screams. As she was a hoofstep from looking inside, the door creaked open further. She froze and just stared at the door, terrified out of her mind.  
She swallowed. What was the possibility of a murderous guard? And wouldn't Daybreaker protect her if she was in danger? She nodded, though her body didn't believe what her mind did. She held her breath and threw open the door, rattling and clinging ensued as gold fell at her hooves. 
She looked up and saw Spike and Rarity staring at her, laying on top of a comically large amount of gold. Even Fluttershy was amazed by it. Spike ignored her and went digging through it, returning to the surface with a green gem. He devoured it instantly. 
Rarity climbed over the gold and closer to Fluttershy with a smile. "Hi, deary! How are you?" 
As Fluttershy ignored her, she watched the drake scrounge through the gold for what she assumed was gems. She looked back at Rarity, "Do you remember what the rulers called you before they learned your name?" 
Rarity tilted her head in confusion. "No, I can't say I do. Why?" She ignored the massive ringing of gold hitting gold. 
Fluttershy rolled her eyes at having to explain it again. She sighed, then spoke with a boredom like no other, "Well, those names were what control the Elements of Harmony so we kinda need them for ..." she just realized she had no idea why Twilight needed them. She shrugged it off. "For something, can't remember." 
Rarity smiled at her, a very condescending atmosphere around her. Fluttershy attempted to ignore it. "Well, can't remember the name!" She shooed the mare away and started climbing over the gold again with a wicked look in her eyes. "I can't believe this is all mine now!" 
"I get the gems," Spike said bluntly. 
Rarity smirked. "Of course, they're barley worth anything anyway!"
Fluttershy rolled her eyes at the two jerks. The two were obviously selfish as all hell. Fluttershy was selfish when it came to ponies, but even she had empathy for the ponies she knew. More for animals, but she could still have empathy for ponies. 
She wasn't selfish and rude like those two were. They only cared for each other and nothing else it the world. And it really made Fluttershy sick. She guessed that's why they were some of the most evil creatures in the land. The drake was naïve to Rarity, and she was so full of herself only a dragon could be worthy of her. 
She could actually pin why all her colleagues were chosen for this. Applejack was so trusting, you couldn't trust her. Pinkamena was so depressing, she brought the mood down even when she was happy. And she didn't even need a reason for Twilight. The mare was just evil. 
Rainbow had rules to being a dictator. She knew how to be one and she knew how to stay in control. And there was obviously a thrill the mare got from being in control. That was obvious enough by her eyes. 
But Fluttershy couldn't pin point herself. Sure, she was cruel and somewhat selfish, but she still had the ability of empathy. Then again, she smirked as she realized it. Evil can't function if there's mercy, then it's just temporary and pathetic. 
She smirked proudly. She could even call herself the most important part. She'd give no mercy.
> Well, Hello There: Part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Fluttershy walked back to wherever the library was to report back her findings, she didn't get very far. As she turned a corner, she bumped into the almighty queen herself. And this new queen of evil was Twilight Sparkle. 
Fluttershy's mood took a turn for the worst as she saw Twilight, her new lackeys behind her. "No one remembered theirs," she deadpanned at an attempt to not show her hatred. Twilight simply smirked at her. 
As Twilight walked passed her, she said, "Don't worry, we figured them out." Fluttershy's jaw dropped as Pinkamena chased after the alicorn. 
Applejack stayed back and smiled at her. "Well, we gotta round up everypony. So what'cha did didn't do nothin'," Applejack attempted to comfort her. 
Fluttershy tried to not take out her anger on a mare who was trying to be nice to her. She sighed, "Well, what's the plan now?" 
"Talk to the princesses 'bout it. Twilight wants to figure out the history of this Equestria anyhow," Applejack said with a smile and started trotting after the two. 
As soon as Fluttershy looked back to Twilight, she saw Rainbow fly over to the mare with a bunch of papers falling out of her hooves. Fluttershy was infuriated, she just hoped Twilight wouldn't care. "Great!" She heard Twilight say and she bared her teeth. 
She wasn't okay with it, but she was more okay with it without Rarity and The Dragon Lord there. Of course, as soon as she mentally declared that, the two showed up coated in jewelry and smiles. Rarity even had a yellow tint to her fur, but none of it was on her dress. 
"It was marvelous! It was exactly what I expected it to be!" Rarity cheered loudly with a jump, the gold jewelry clanking with it. 
Twilight looked at the Dragon Lord decked out in gold necklaces and bracelets, he even had a crown. He rolled his eyes, "I'm a Lord, I'm used to this kind of luxury." Twilight just smiled sweetly at him. 
"Or you're just doing it to impress your lady friend," Twilight trotted off with a smirk. As much as Fluttershy was happy she wasn't the only one Twilight messed with, she hated the reason she picked on the two. 
Fluttershy's anger just grew all over again, scaring Applejack closer to Rainbow Dash than her. She didn't even notice, and if she did, she wouldn't smile with a power rush like before. She was just genuinely pissed off. 
With all of them grouped together now, they all headed over to the throne room once again. Everyone was surprised at the lack of guards, but without the need to escort princesses or watch over meetings, they didn't really have a job. 
So Pinkamena and Applejack assumed they were in a break room playing poker or something. The trip down the halls was quick, all were more than confused as to how Twilight knew the place so well, but they didn't push. 
They came across the huge doors once again, feeling a sense of fear and pride, Twilight pushed open the door. It was nothing special, just a hallway of colors due to the windows. She had tried to analyze them, but gave up on it. 
The echo of hoofsteps filled her ears with a higher degree of fear. She loved the feeling, just the anxiety spiking was lovely to her. She'd stolen things she needed or wanted before, but when she wanted this feeling, she'd steal things she threw away once she was behind closed doors!
It came with being stealthy, just to be caught and run away. She always thought the combination was better than a whole stealth mission. But walking through those tall corridors with images of justice staring down at her reminded her of her filly days. 
It felt like she was in prison, being escorted to a nuthouse. Sadly, as soon as the feeling grew, she pushed open the second set of doors and it was gone. The sight of the two sleepy princesses made her body take on a new feeling. 
Complete and ultimate power. 	
Her eyes turned to the murky purple-red as she saw the two, ridden of their freedom and magic. They were useless now and she did that. It was all her, and she immobilized two beings of power. She was just as giddy as when she was a filly. Who wouldn't be?
She walked towards the two with a smirk, their heads slowly rising with faces of pure disgust and hatred. "Did you miss us?" She asked, stopping before the two. 
Her playful question didn't get a response, just eyes of pure hatred. Of course, she felt a bit guilty, well, she felt a lot of guilt. Almost guilty enough to walk out of the room and use her magic to fix their wings. But the power she felt blocked out those rising thoughts. 
Rainbow flew in their faces, as was expected. "The threat still stands. If you don't answer a question, we break your horns." She could barley see the fear in their eyes, she only saw the immense hate standing at the front lines. 
Celestia spoke slowly and rudely, "Well, what more do you wish to know? We guessed your were smart enough to answer them on your own." 
Before Rainbow could even raise her hoof, Twilight's magic contained it and pulled her back down to the ground. "Do the Elements of Harmony still work?" Twilight asked, already guessing the answer. 
There was no hesitation, and definitely no silence. Celestia sighed, "Yes." 
"How do they work?" Twilight asked, questioning their honesty. 
Celestia's eyes stared daggers at her. "The bearers of those elements come together and the elements will vanquish any evil present." 
Twilight smirked, knowing the answer to be correct. "What are the elements?" 
Luna answered, knowing Celestia would've lied. "Magic, Laughter, Honesty, Kindness, Loyalty, and Generosity," she answered quickly.
Applejack stood in front of Twilight and asked the two a question that she knew they'd tell the truth to. "Was Nightmare Moon a thing?" She asked, her emerald eyes begging they'd tell the truth so they didn't get hurt anymore. She wanted to let them go, she wanted to go home. Just the sight of them made her wish the whole thing was a dream. 
Luna could see the regret in her eyes, and actually thought the mare was sorry for them. "Yes," she sighed. As she glanced at her sister, she could see the mare trying to formulate a plan to get Applejack to set them free. 
"And the elements turned you back?" Applejack asked. Everypony started at her, even Twilight didn't expect that correlation from the mare. She thought the earth pony was just an idiot. 
Luna sighed again, but nodded anyway. 
"Same with Discord?" 
Luna sighed, ashamed she was not as talented of a liar as her sister. She guessed her sister would make up some story to fear the seven out of completing the plan. Like saying the elements turned him to stone without the six bearers.
"No, the elements turned him to stone. Once we released him, one of the elements got him to fight for the good of Equestria," she answered.  
But she was thankful to tell the truth before her sister could lie. At least then she'd ensure her sisters safety for a question or two. 
"Which one of us? Twilight, right?" Fluttershy asked rudely. "Only magic could do that sorta thing." 
"Oh shut it, you know good and well which one of us did it," Twilight groaned. Fluttershy ignored her, just staring at the two intently. 
Luna and Celestia looked to each other and sighed. "Yes," Luna spoke. 
"Ha!" Fluttershy stuck her tongue out at Twilight. "Told ya! There's no way showing kindness to something can take away its evil!" 
Twilight just groaned. "Fine, but you're more than disappointed." 
"Why would I be? I was right and you were wrong!" Fluttershy gloated. "Guess you gotta take care of the thing!" 
As the two argued, Rainbow flew in front of the princesses, ready to ask for something about the most recent informational papers on the castle and the city. But before the words could leave her mouth, her head whipped to the doors as they were slammed open. 
The rest of them were scared at the sight, but Twilight couldn't help but smile. "Well, well, well," she said, taking a few steps in front of them. "We finally get to see you! And I thought Daybreaker was a liar!" 
Her playful attitude wasn't enough to take the attention from the eight. 
It was like they were staring into a mirror. A purple alicorn, white unicorn, yellow and blue pegasi, and pink and orange earth ponies. They all stared at each other with horror and more confusion than imaginable. But the harmonized ponies eyes were glued onto the princesses conditions. Before Flash could think, he dashed towards the two, his loyal subconscious taking over. Of course, he was shot with a beam of magenta magic, slamming him to the wall. 
Kindness's wings stood over her mouth as her eyes watered. Laughter's eyes watered along with Generosity's. Loyalty immediately barked at the captors. "What did you do to them?!" Her anger took over as she yelled, she didn't even notice the tears falling down her face. "You're gonna pay! Big time!" 
Of course, Twilight twitched at the sight of such faithfulness. Just seeing their princesses in pain struck their hearts personally. She felt awful for them, she agreed to herself that she was mean, but she was nowhere near evil. 	
But instead of listening to her heart, she listened to her mind. And her mind told her they were too far in this to give up now, so she kept up the act. "I'm sure we are," she said sarcastically as she saw Loyalty's tail be pulled by Honesty. 
Of course, no one expected Rarity to burst out in laughter. Twilight rolled her eyes, "What's so funny?" 
Rarity couldn't speak, she fell on her back as she attempted to point at whatever she was laughing at. She failed and just kept laughing. But even that couldn't keep their enemy from staring worriedly at the princesses. Once the enemy finally focused on her she was able to speak. 
She stood up and wiped her eyes on her hoof. "Ready to tell us yet, princess?" Applejack asked rudely. She nodded and kept chuckling. 
She finally pointed at a mess of purple and green scales hiding behind Magic's hind leg. "T-t-that's S-Spike!" She said and fell back into howls of laughter. Once everypony finally realized it, they covered their mouths with hooves and wings. The Dragon Lord just stared at his younger self. 
Soon enough, everypony but Twilight was laughing at the baby dragon. Rainbow looked towards the Dragon Lord, "Did you actually look like that?"
The dragon just looked confused, "Uh yeah..." 
Rarity stood up beside him, still giggling to herself. "Well, you look much better now," she nuzzled him. 
As they all laughed at the baby dragon, everypony from the harmonized Equestria stared in horror at the tall, teenage dragon. Spike stared up at his older self and smiled momentarily. "Cool.." he mumbled to himself. 
"He's huge," Honesty muttered, cowered into herself. Her eyes couldn't move away from the sharp teeth complimented by the gold he was wearing. The scales that followed his spine were much sharper and much more rigid. His wings had sharp ends, like bats with the webbing in-between was extremely torn and looked barley functional. 
The scales on his body were darker colors due to the amount of soot and ash that covered them. His whole being was covered in scratches, the gold and gems being the cleanest thing on him. 
None of them could stand the idea of their dear friend turning into that thing. Generosity swallowed nervously. She looked towards Spike, "Please don't ever become that nasty, viscious thing!"
Magic's eyes locked on him. The dragon she'd raised from birth was going to become a monster, and that thing was only a teenager. Suddenly, she remember how they deducted that they were all changelings. She sighed in relief. She looked up at the dangerous thing, "He's a changeling, remember?"	
Everypony from the harmonized Equestria sighed in relief with a smile. But Magic was more than concerned by the confused looks on the enemies faces.	
Twilight took another step towards Magic, but Rainbow Dash looked to her allies. "What's a changeling?" The pegasus asked, unnerving everyone on the opposing side. 
As Pinkamena thought about it, Applejack tapped her hoof on the ground. "Chrysalis's old army! They can take the form of anythin'!" She stated happily. But before Rainbow could ask how she knew it, the group was questioned. 
"Are you stupid? Why keep up the act? We figured you out!" Loyalty accused the seven. She flew closer to them, but not close enough to be a threat to Twilight. 
The purple alicorn looked annoyed. "This is what we're against?" She asked, disappointment filled her voice. She rolled her eyes, "How comical." Of course, her statement got her a face full of cyan anger. 
"And what's that mean!? 'Cause we're a lot stronger than we seem!" Loyalty shouted at her. "And there's no way you can beat us, we've dealt with changelings before!" And, of course, Loyalty got a face full of magenta magic as she was slammed to the other side of the room. 	
"Ever heard of personal space?" Twilight asked the mare, but her attention quickly drifted up to Magic. As she stared at herself, she could see everypony else position themselves, ready for battle. But she could finally see and take in her other self, her opposite. "Magic," she muttered, taking in the mare. 
The alicorn mirrored her. The lavender coat with the same streaked mane, and the wings were the exact same, down to the feather. There was just one difference, this mare in front of her was terrified. The mare was a mix of faltering confidence, determination, fear, and worry. 
Twilight almost felt obligated to help her out of the situation, pick herself back up from the mix of everything. But when she went to comfort herself, Pinkamena jumped in front of her.
As a result of this action, Laughter jumped out in front of Magic, crouched in a pouncing position as she stared at herself. The two tilted their heads, raised their hooves, and moved their ears just to see if the other would copy them. They did the same things in the same order, but they couldn't be more off-sync. 
The silly action made Twilight shake her head. She told herself the her in front of her wasn't really her. But even the way the her looked scared was so similar to Twilight's. She hated it. She couldn't imagine how it was for the rest of them. Especially the Dragon Lord, having to see his younger self again. She mentally gagged at the idea. 
Pinkamena's bubbly action took a turn for sadness as her ear tilted down along with a slouch. She smiled and looked at herself, "You don't happen to know a Cheese Sandwich, d-do you?" She sounded so scared, even her blue eyes looked like they sparkled with invisible tears. 
She didn't even care about how intently Twilight was staring at her, she stopped caring. She just looked at herself as if she was staring into a mirror. She begged that this new her had no idea who he was. She had no idea what she'd do if she did. 
Laughter smiled back at her and nodded, "Yep! The party pony made for parties! He's great at throwing parties!" 
As she stared at herself, she noticed who she resembled. The mare looked like her younger self never saw a rainboom, like she grew up without ever liking parties. She smiled once she saw the mare crouch down on her stomach, her eyes blanker than white. "Why?" She tilted her head. 
Pinkamena didn't reply, she simply stared at herself. She was furious, that happy mare would've made Cheese happier than anything. And Laughter didn't deserve him. He didn't deserve anyone but her, not even if she was in a different world. 
While the two pink mares stared at each other, the others took in their counterparts. Rainbow saw Loyalty on the floor, as if the mare was beneath her. She was disgusted, the cyan pegasus was so much like her. And she hated seeing herself in that position, but she could smile at the idea that she was a better her.
Applejack and Honesty matched each others stares, well at least the eye contact. Honesty was furious, ready to pounce the second Magic gave word, while Applejack was curious. Honesty looked so independent, Applejack could never imagine herself like that. She was so confused, was this her raised by Flim and Flam?
Generosity couldn't appreciate the state her other self was in, coated in jewelry. She didn't even realize she had made that dress that Sally Saddles reported was missing. She was just concerned with how close her other self was standing next to the Dragon Lord. It was like the mare was gravitated to the horror. 
Sure, she loved her Spikey Wikey, but she couldn't imagine being close to him like those two obviously were. And Rarity just didn't care, she wanted the whole fight to be over with so she could get back to taking over Equestria. 
Fluttershy was disgusted with her terrified self. The mare was just pitiful. Never in her life had she been so... pathetic. She wanted to end the girls misery, and she couldn't wait to do it. She saw it as a way to cut out her own bad habits. The mare was herself. And Kindness was too terrified to notice herself and get an impression. 
Magic decided to not get to know her changeling self. Her eyebrows furrowed. "You'll regret messing with the Elements of Harmony, no matter how much stronger you are, we'll still defeat you!" She ignored the happy smiles from her mentors and locked eyes with herself. 
Twilight looked more than bored. "Sweetie, Chrysalis' army vanquished a millennial ago!" She smiled wickedly at herself, ignoring every itch she got to stop herself from staring at her like that. 
The look was either infuriated like she hated her, or it was scared like when she was a filly. She couldn't help but see herself in the alicorn, and she hated it. 
Magic didn't look bugged or unnerved at all. "I don't care what you are!" Magic yelled at them, turning everyone's attention to her. "I don't care what you're here for!" She took a step towards Twilight, infuriation and hatred fueling her steps. 
"I don't care what you plan to do," she shouted, getting closer and closer to Twilight. Once she was muzzle to muzzle with herself, she spoke. "You won't take Equestria, and you most definitely won't get away with what you did to our princesses," she spat. 
Twilight would've shot her away like she did Loyalty, but her magic wouldn't charge up. Her mind wanted to blow the alicorn to smithereens. But her heart just couldn't do it. She tried to keep the fear out of her eyes, but she couldn't. 
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Pinkamena's scheme unravel. The mare quickly threw her mane into tangles and knots until it poofed up just like her other self. She stuck her tongue out at herself and fell to the floor. "Ooow! Twilight!" The mare cried in a bubbly voice. 
Magic's attention shot to the mare, only for her eyes to hit light blue as an orb of the color was shot at her. "Ah!" Magic screamed as she hit the wall. Rarity looked over at the harmonized versions of themselves with a smirk, meeting their angry stares. 
Pinkamena bounced up, her hair falling back to it's straight glory. "Hey! I was gonna confuse her!" 
Rarity rolled her eyes, "Sweetie... She has a whole group of friends who saw your plan!" Once she was done yelling at the mare, she smiled happily. "Besides, I doubt Twilight needs your weak attempt when she could just have my magic!" 
The seven harmonized Equestrians ran over to Magic, worry filling them. Loyalty picked herself up when she heard Magic's scream. "Twilight!" Honesty yelled. Once she got at her friends side and saw that she was okay, she turned to the other seven. Her eyes narrowed with hate as she turned away from her friend. "I think we've done enough talkin'." Her friends got at her side. "Don't y'all agree?" 
All her friends nodded, Loyalty ignoring the idea that no one cared for her. She wasn't going to let someone get away with hurting one of her friends, especially Magic. She pushed her hooves together angrily. 
Twilight and her colleagues couldn't help but feel a power rush at the sight. Of course, Applejack and Pinkamena were scared, but they still felt on top of the world by the threat. 
Twilight smiled with a smirk as the magenta around her horn seemingly electrified. She smiled wickedly with more malice than all of the rulers. "Let the best side win!" She chanted with a wicked power.
> Well, Hello There: Part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

As much as Elements of Harmony wanted to get the first blow, their immediate move was to grab Magic and duck out of the way. Laughter and Honesty grabbed the mare as fast as light and ran. All three were thrown to the ground as the electrified magic was shot at the wall. 
Honesty stared at the hole in the wall, magenta electricity resonating around it. She looked to the source of the explosion and saw a wicked grin. She thought of the state of the princesses, and how devastating the blow was. And she was furious. 
She jumped up to her hooves and dashed towards the alicorn. She seemed just a step away when she was tackled by somepony else. Her side stung as she looked up and saw her pink friend, except it wasn't her friend. The second she saw straight hair, her hoof slammed into the mares face. 
Pinkamena laid on her back, her hoof holding her cheek. She looked to see Honesty jumping to her hooves. Her eyes widened and she pushed her hind leg out, tripping the earth pony. The pony looked back at her and growled, holding her hat on her head. 
Pinkamena giggled nervously, "Uh... Hiya?" Honesty pounced on her with a punch, sitting on her stomach as she delivered punch after punch. Pinkamena quickly put Honesty in the same situation, but she had much weaker hits. She always liked knifes better. 
Just as that happened, Loyalty dashed at Fluttershy, expecting her to be an easy foe. Her wings hurt, but she didn't care. She needed to keep as many of the changelings busy as possible. 
Rainbow noticed her own descent on Fluttershy and decided to interfere. She dashed towards the mare, colliding with her and tossing the two a ways away from Fluttershy. Of course, Fluttershy didn't care about the heroic act. 
Rainbow pushed Loyalty into the wall, hoping to hear a snap!, she didn't. She raised her hoof to hit the mare with a power ridden grin on her face. Loyalty kicked Rainbow off of her, sending the mare flying a bit away. 
"So I'm strong here too, huh?" Rainbow asked herself, she couldn't wait to fight further. Loyalty, however, didn't feel like talking. She flew at the pegasus, her hoof colliding with her side. 
Once Rainbow Dash recovered, she grinned wider and put her hooves up. "Oh, you're on!" She flew at the mare, throwing her at the wall again. Then she lunged at the mare with her hind leg, using the mares body as a surface to bounce off of the wall. 
A magenta orb exploded next to Loyalty, she followed the blast back to Twilight staring up at her. Her horn charged with a magenta as she smirked, Loyalty flew out of the way, bumping into Rainbow Dash. 
The pegasi fought at a closer range, going back and forth with punches and kicks, never really flying away for defense. The only difference in the two was that Rainbow wore her Shadowbolts uniform. 
Twilight tried to follow the fight, her horn still glowing magenta. "Dammit," she muttered and looked over to Pinkamena and Honesty. She wanted to zap Honesty, saying as the mare was just hitting Pinkamena's hooves as she hid her face. 
But just as she had her aim locked on Honesty, Pinkamena threw her over, sitting on her waist to deal weak punches. Twilight tried to follow that fight, but couldn't either, so she just hit the wall or the floor or clipped either of her targets. 
As Twilight's head was being led around by the two fights, Kindness, Laughter, and Spike sat next to Magic. The three followed the fight, hoping their friends were safe. They were too engrossed in the fight to see that Magic had sat up, groaning. 
Her hazy vision locked on Rarity. She was more confused than anything. The mare just stood there, admiring herself in the gold necklace she wore. She quickly recognized that as the mare who shot at her. She growled as she sent her own magenta orb flying at the mare. 
She expected to hit the mare straight on, but her magic hit the wall. She became petrified as she saw the mare's savoir walking towards them with his teeth bared. She put a shield up around her and her friends, wondering if even her magic could defend against his claws. 
Spike guessed it wouldn't, he was terrified, but he told himself he was brave. He walked out in front of the shield and spread his arms, staring up at the horrendous version of him. 
"Beat it, pony-lover," the Dragon Lord growled at him, not too keen on tearing through a small dragon. Spike stood there, shaking in his scales. He mustered up all the courage he had and blew fire on the dragons leg. It was barley anything. 
He smiled nervously as he stared up at the tall creature. "Uh..." he said, fumbling with his claws under the dragons horrific stare. He knew if he didn't move that he'd be burnt to a crisp. So, he ran. 
Just as he zoomed away, a huge green fire hit a magenta shield. The Dragon Lord smirked down at the scared looks. He looked to his younger self to see that Spike ran towards the door, hoping and not hoping the dragon wasn't following him.
"So not cool... So not cool!" He yelled as he ran, racing past Honesty's tumble with Pinkamena. He dodged Rainbow Dash as Loyalty threw her to the ground. Then he managed to jump over a magenta beam, hoping Magic just missed the huge dragon. He assumed that wasn't very likely. 
As he pushed open the doors, he looked back to see if the monster was following him. Sure enough, all he saw was sharpened teeth flying at him. He screamed and ran through the doors, shutting them back. 
He wasn't even a third down the hallway when the door was bashed down. He looked back and regretted it the second he did. The dragon was much closer than before, he ran faster than he had ever ran. 
He turned corners, terrified out of his mind, hoping it was all just a nightmare. But when he could feel the swoosh! of air from the monsters claw, he knew he wasn't dreaming. 
Rarity and Generosity seemingly had the same ideas. Without the Dragon Lord to protect her, Rarity was defenseless. She constantly tried to shoot whoever she could with her magic, but failed miserably. The one shot she hit was at Loyalty who came rushing at her. 
Rainbow had, once again, collided with the mare after she was shot by Rarity. Loyalty backed up and rubbed her eyes, as if someone took a picture of her with the flash on. Then, she was thrown away from her target. Rarity screamed and put a bubble around herself. 
Once she realized it was safe, she relaxed and took the bubble down. The bubble swiftly came back up as Pinkamena was lunged at her. Pinkamena was bruised head to toe, her face looked awful with a black eye. But her condition didn't put her out of commission, she went lunging back at Honesty as the mare was running towards Twilight. 
Generosity tried to hit somepony, and it worked some of the time, but she never had enough damage to her attack. It did put whoever it hit out of commission for a second so their opponent could get a hit in. 
She eventually aimed at Twilight, as the mare stood stationary in the middle of the room. But her shot collided with Applejack, and she saw a new target. 
Applejack was scared, she had no idea how to handle the situation. She guessed she could use her time to occupy someone else's. Once she saw Generosity pitifully aiming at people, she decided to be a moving target. 
She'd duck, lunge to the side, jump, and just run around. She was more than satisfied with her results as there was always a light blue orb right at her tail and a light blue beam that followed her. 
Rainbow's hooves collided with Loyalty just as much as Loyalty's collided with her. The two were messes, covered in bruises and aches, but they kept fighting. Of course, Rainbow was fighting for the idea to be a better her, and Loyalty was fighting for her friends. 
As they had their foreheads together, seeing who could knock the other away, one of Rarity's blue orbs hit Loyalty, knocking her a bit away. She shook her head and looked up to see Rainbows grin flying at her. 
Rainbow head-butted herself, throwing the mare downwards from their high up positioning. Just as she made sense of things again, Rainbow's hooves jabbed into her stomach. 
She was thrown to the ground, staring up at herself the whole way down. She hit the floor, hearing cracks from the it. As she saw herself gloating, taking her fall as a victory, it became personal. 
She bared her teeth and she sat up, her wings stung and ached as she flew up to Rainbow. Tears from the pain sprung to her eyes and she slammed herself into the roof. Parts of the roof fell away around them as they stared at each other. 
Loyalty was more surprised than shocked when she heard Rainbow cough, the rest of her body falling from the roof. Loyalty jammed her hooves into Rainbow's chest to keep her there. 
Loyalty spoke as she elbowed the mare. "You're... never... gonna... win," she spat. She flew away from her, letting her fall to the floor. Rainbow fell, the floor hurting stomach and face just as much as the roof hurt her wings and back. 
She watched Loyalty, hoping the mare would come down and kick and punch her further. But she didn't. All she saw was a disgusted look and she watched the pegasus fly out of the room. She was more than curious, so she flew out after her. 
Once she caught up to her, they had different forms of attack. Loyalty would hit and fly further away while Rainbow would hit and pin the mare there until Loyalty could find a way out. They were both thrown into walls, punched and kicked at more and more. Both were far beyond healthy functioning, but they kept going. 
Once Fluttershy saw Rainbow zoom out of the room, she saw her chance. She smirked and flew out after her. But once the doors were shut, she smirked. If Twilight's so 'high and mighty', then she can surley handle a simple and pathetic ambush on her own! Fluttershy thought to herself. She rolled her eyes, besides, I'm so useless, right?
While the commotion happened, Magic stood up and started defending herself, Honesty, and Generosity from being shot at by Twilight. Twilight did the same thing for her colleagues, focusing more on protecting Pinkamena than Rarity and Applejack. Of course, she was yelled at but she couldn't care less. 
Laughter and Kindness watched from the sidelines. They were horrified by all the magic being used, they were worried for their friends, but they had no idea how to help. They had their part of the plan to fulfill, and they needed Flash to go along with it. 
The two stared down at the orange pegasus. He looked safe enough, even if he wasn't awake. They looked back to the fight, ready to jump in whenever to protect their friends. 
They watched as magenta magic was shot at a magenta shield. The only way they could tell which Twilight was which was the ponies she was protecting. They took notice of Rarity's weaker attempts at aim, but the stronger magic. They also noticed the black beauty tight around her with gold clanking with every movement. 
They saw the stronger light blue aim at something, and end up hitting the wall or the floor, or a shield and evaporate. They could almost feel the air get denser with all the magic that evaporated within it. 
They saw Generosity's weaker blue with a better aim. The mare wasn't the best, but when she hit, she was spot on. Her stuns often hit Applejack and Twilight, Pinkamena being under Twilight's magical supervision. Every time she stunned Twilight, her magic wavered, taking down all shields. Magic always thought she could get a hit in, but magenta just hit magenta. 
They were more than confident in Honesty's abilities. The mare seemed to get a lot of hits in before Pinkamena could even throw a weak one. Pinkamena was constantly underneath Honesty, her face was so swollen they didn't think she could see. Her fur was bent and stiff, her straight hair was poofy and knotted up. 
While Honesty had a few scratches and bruises on her face, she constantly hit the mare, only for her hooves to put cracks in a magenta body shield around her. She hit over and over again, hating the very pony underneath her. She was furious, and put all she had into every punch, even if it did nothing. Pinkamena was beyond movement, even breathing hurt for her. 
Laughter and Kindness couldn't stand to stare at the state she was in, even if she was the enemy. Laughter felt like she took every punch and Kindness just felt so bad for her. 
So the two mainly followed Applejack when it came to the enemy team. As of how much she moved around, she was barley hurt, and all that was shooting at her was Generosity's stun ray. They couldn't help but notice the Flim and Flam shirt. 
They guessed a changeling could've gotten a dress, or some gold jewelry, but they never guessed a changeling could have something that didn't exist. They thought the same thing once they saw Rainbow Dash. 
They were, once again, too engrossed in the fight to notice that Flash had woken up. He rubbed his head as he sat up, hissing through his teeth at the pain he felt all over. 
He crept his eyes open and became a witness to everything. His eyes locked on the two purple alicorns. They shot at each other, only for their magic to evaporate due to hitting a magenta shield. 
They were identical, they both had determined looks, and one didn't have stronger magic than the other. He had no idea how anyone could tell them apart. But he looked to one of them in particular, being sure in his heart that whoever he was looking at was the mare he liked. 
He watched her like a hawk, taking notice of every feature of hers all over again. He told himself it wasn't the time to admire her, but he was hypnotized by her. Her violet eyes seemed like they roared with magic, it looked electrical. 
Her magic constantly activated, but nothing offensive was shot out. He assumed she was taking care of their friends. He smiled at her, noticing her swift movements and how everything followed when she was shot at. Her mane, her tail, even her feathers and fur followed. 
She was gorgeous, which was how he knew it was his Twilight. Just because the other one looked bland to him. The mare was shot at and he jumped up to help her, only to see a magenta beam tore apart the windows. He saw the chariot out broken windows. His body straightened, realizing the plan. 
The alicorn he was staring at wasn't his Twilight. It was a changeling. He was frozen with guilt and regret. But he wasn't frozen for long once Laughter bounced up in front of him. "Uh, you okay, Flashy?" She asked with a tilt of her head. 
He looked to the ground and shook his head. He walked past her, "Fine, hurry up." Laughter and Kindness exchanged worried glances as they flew and bounced respectively after him. He tried to ignore it, tried putting the princesses at the front of his mind, but it couldn't. He got a permanent chill down his spine. 
As they escorted the princesses off of their thrones and to the chariot, they didn't expect to be spotted through all the commotion. But Applejack saw them lift the princesses off the thrones. Her mouth wanted to shout, but she shut it up. Due to her attention being taken, she was zapped by Generosity, a simple stun. 
"Pay attention!" Twilight yelled at her, glancing back at her as she shot a magic beam on the other side of the room. Applejack nodded and watched as the three ponies took the princesses, taking them away from Twilight's reign. 
Before they escorted Princess Celestia, the alicorn stared at her, her wicked look of hate seemed to lighten a bit as she nodded. Applejack shook her head and jumped over another one of Generosity's stuns. 
She smiled to herself. Guess the lack of action can mean I'm sorry too, huh?, she thought to herself. 
The fight continued for a few more minutes. Blues hit nothing, magenta, or stunned ponies, while magenta always hit magenta or the surroundings. Twilight was so focused on Magic that she started to just focus on protecting Pinkamena, leaving the other two to fend for themselves. The rate of blue stuns hitting ponies went up. 
She kept trying to pin Magic, just to get her to focus on herself. But Magic did nothing but protect her friends. And she didn't stop, not even when she realized she was being targeted. Twilight didn't necessarily care when magenta suddenly hit a white mare. 
Not even the scream, or the slam processed through her mind as one of her allies. Her violet eyes followed Magic's every move. She didn't let the mare out of her sight. 
And the one time she looked back at Rarity, she noticed the unicorn took to grudges quite quickly. Light blue charged and shot out at Magic. Twilight looked to Magic and saw the mare caring about Honesty too much to notice her own safety. 
Twilight didn't think about anything. She saw what Rarity's magic had done before, and she became so... scared? She didn't think, she simply lunged in front of the mare. And for once, strong light blue hit something. Twilight screamed in pain and all time seemed to stop. 
All eyes were on her, everypony just stopped. Generosity and Honesty stared for their friend. But once they realized she was okay, they were shocked by the sight. Pinkamena's hoof reached out towards Twilight. "Twily...?"
Twilight's body convulsed, electric strings of magenta around her. She looked up at Magic, tears forming at the corners of her eyes. Her eyes shook as electricity burned inside the violet. 
Magic looked horrified, worried, and most of all, confused. But her eyes seemed to mirror Twilight's with the electric strings. Their eyes stayed locked for what seemed like forever when suddenly, the soft violet of Magic's eyes were taken from Twilight. 
Her heart stung, as if something stabbed through it. Her head whipped to Magic, seeing the mare being led away by the orange guard she knocked away earlier. She was so happy to see Magic still staring at her, she felt like something was there, like she wasn't alone. 
But Magic's head soon turned away as she flew out the window with Flash. The electricity stopped, everything stopped for Twilight. It felt like the world just ended. She didn't even look around to see Generosity and Honesty run away. The two ran for the doors, slamming through them. 
Rarity was too cowardly to go after them, Applejack feigned cowardice, and Pinkamena was in no condition to go after them. So they were just left to leave. 
Twilight's pain didn't stop, even if her world just fell apart, reality built it back up. She looked to the throne, her eyes widened with fear and anger as she stood to her hooves. "What..." she murmured with her head hung. She picked her head up to reveal her fury. "The hell!?" 
Everypony in the room took notice to the empty thrones. There was no reaction, there was no sound for a minute or two. The newest sound was the doors slamming open, Rainbow Dash flew in with The Dragon Lord at her side. Both were just as shocked at the reveal of the missing princesses. Fluttershy snuck in after them, not really caring. 	
As Twilight just stared at the thrones, she didn't see Rarity out of the corner of her eye. "Why'd you protect her?" Rarity yelled furiously. "We would've had her!" Twilight whirled to her, angered confusion covering her face. 
Rarity raised her hoof to hit Twilight, but before she could swing, claws wrapped around her hoof. She looked back to the Dragon Lord. "Whoa, what happened?" He asked. Rarity swung towards him. 
"I'll tell you what happened!" She yelled at him. Her hoof pointed to Twilight, "She protected that Magic wielder from a shot that would've knocked her out! We could've gotten all of them! We could've won!"
Rainbow Dash flew in front of Twilight. "Is she telling the truth? Did you really defend the enemy?" She got her answer once Twilight looked away without a word. 
"What the hell is wrong with you?" The Dragon Lord yelled at her. "What happened to being the evil one, huh?" 
Fluttershy smirked at the sight, Twilight getting belittled for her stupid mistake. She couldn't help but feel a sense of pride. She loved the sight of it. 
"Whatever," Twilight finally answered. "It would've have changed that they took the princesses. They would've grabbed her body anyway." She never looked at them, she just stared at the ground. 
"But the other two bimbos wouldn't have been protected anymore!" Rarity yelled at her. "We could've kept one of them as a hostage!" Rarity looked to Rainbow and the Dragon Lord. "Where are the two idiots you went after?"
Rainbow Dash answered first, "She flew off, out the window. I thought it was better idea to come back instead of go after her." After her answer, she guessed it was fine as Rarity didn't push. Rarity looked to the Dragon Lord. 
"Lost him," he said cautiously. Rarity's eye twitched in her frustration. 
"What do you mean 'lost him'?" She asked furiously, she shook her head. "Why'd you even go after him? He wasn't a threat whatsoever!"
Applejack felt awful as the whole ordeal transpired. She could've stopped it, but she didn't, cause she thought she was doing the good thing. But wouldn't it have been good for everyone here to fess up?
"I had too! Otherwise you'd yell at me anyway!" He yelled at Rarity, already annoyed at her trying to be leader in Twilight's place. 
"I would not!" She yelled back. She didn't even feel scared off him. She knew he'd do whatever she wanted, so why would she be scared? 
"If I didn't go after that stupid alicorn for even trying to hit you, you'd yell at me! And if I didn't go after him you'd call me a baby for not tearing the thing to shreds!" He yelled at her, his teeth seemed to get sharper in everyone else's eyes, but Rarity only saw a pathetic dragon. 
"Would not of!" She yelled.
"Yeah you would've!"
"Don't act like you know me! We've been acquaintances for a few days!" She yelled back, her heart hurting with every word. Even she regretted it the second she said it. And she had even more reason when his claws wrapped around her throat and pulled her up off of the ground.
Her hooves clawed at his arms as he growled at her. "That's all I was to you? A fucking acquaintance?" He asked with a hurt smile. "And I thought I fucking mattered to the bitch that cared about nothing. But I was wrong." 
"Hey dude! Let go of her," Rainbow flew at him. 
He threw her to the ground, Rainbow Dash and Applejack running at her side as she coughed. She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. He just stared daggers at her. "You're just a self-centered bitch." He said as he started out of the room. 
Once the doors slammed shut, she jumped, startled. Rarity's hooves hit her eyes. Her shoulders shook as she cried, "Why am I so stupid and formal?" 
Fluttershy was more than amused at the scene. Rainbow looked at her and was more than disgusted. "What's wrong with you? He could've hurt her!" 
Fluttershy smirked. "I thought we each figured out what we represent from evil. Besides, you can't trust big, scary things with claws and teeth not to attack." Rainbow didn't even see how pretty she was anymore, she just saw something ugly. She looked back to comforting Rarity as Fluttershy left the room. 
Twilight just stared at the ground, jumping at every sound. She could hear voices, but she couldn't hear what they said, all she heard was static. She saw two pink hooves in front of her and looked up happily at Pinkamena, like she was the only mare in the world. "Pinkie!" She smiled. 
"Pinkamena," she corrected. Twilight's shoulders fell, still seeing the happy, clear face. Even when in reality, it was bruised and swollen. "I trusted you Twily-.... Twilight."
Twilight shook her head with a stupid smile on her face. "W-what do you mean?"
"I trusted that you were evil in enough departments that'd make up for all of us!" Pinkamena shouted. The mare was furious, but her expression was so disfigured by her face. "I took... I-I took all of this for you and it was all a loss!"
Twilight went to speak, but Pinkamena shook her head as tears fell down her face. "And I thought you liked me! Like, like-liked me...." 
Twilight shook her head again. "I do, Pinkie--!"
"It's Pinkamena, Twilight!" She yelled. "And no, no you don't. Cause you seemed too in love with yourself to even protect me!" Tears mixed with the blood stained on her fur, turning every one pink as it fell. 
"I don't ... understand," Twilight said.
Pinkamena's cold stare wasn't loss underneath all her swollen skin, and all it did was terrify and hurt Twilight more. "You're the smart one," Pinkamena said as she started towards the door. "Figure it out." 
Twilight sat there, too overwhelmed with emotion to even express any. "Looks like we both screwed up," Rarity said, making Twilight stare at her as tears fell down her face. "Huh?" Rarity smiled as she collapsed in a sob again. 
"Everything fell apart," Twilight muttered to herself, watching her tears join together on the ground as they fell. "And it's all my fault."
> Weary Soldier Just Have To Talk Or Think Sometimes
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The chariot ride back to Ponyville was mostly silent. The princesses sat in the chariot with Laughter, Honesty, Spike, and Generosity. Flash and Loyalty flew the chariot while Magic and Kindness flew beside it. All of them had too much on their minds to formulate any conversation. 
Magic was more than confused, she was concerned, and worried? She didn't know. She tried to make sense of things but she just couldn't. Loyalty was confused by the whole situation. They didn't win, and she was covered in bruises and aches. They were just changelings, right?
Honesty and Flash had their respective reasons for guilt. Everyone tried to make sense of anything, tried to even think properly over the situation. Everyone was also paranoid, terrified the seven would come after them after they discovered the princesses absence. 
But as they tiredly landed in Ponyville, they assumed they were safe for at least the night. As Flash and Loyalty unhooked themselves, Magic spoke, "Let's get the princesses to the castle and go from there." She sounded so tired. The four on the chariot hopped off as Loyalty and Flash re-hooked themselves and ran the princesses over to the castle. 
"Thank you for saving us. All of you," Celestia spoke, her voice sounded just as tired as she looked. No one responded, still unable to say anything properly. But at least they could think now. 
And by the time they got inside the castle, they decided they could speak properly. Perfect timing. 
They let the princesses sit in the thrones, along with Loyalty, Spike, Honesty, and Generosity. Spike was the first to talk, deciding his comedic-like attitude could work as a great starter. He held one of his feet in his claws. "Ow! I can't believe I ran that much!" 
Generosity smiled weakly at him. "You helped us tremendously Spike! I don't know how we would've faired with that dragon still available." He felt on top of the world. 
"Yeah!" Laughter said happily. "There's no way we could've gotten the princesses out with a dragon on the loose! So, what'd ya do? Just run him around?" She seemed so curious, she really wasn't. She was extremely tired, but she knew it made him feel better about himself, so she played along. 
He smiled back at her, feeling like he was a really useful part of the plan. It was a different feeling for him, he was never really useful before. "Yeah! Then I ran out of the castle like we planned!" He had a huge grin on his face, his teeth showing through. Some of them couldn't even look at him, seeing the monstrous teenager instead. 
Kindness' face took a look of worry. She pointed at the princesses, "Are you two okay? You look... hurt..." She seemed so worried, and the two couldn't help but smile at her. 
Celestia nodded. "It hurt. A lot. But the initial pain is over, now all we have to do it wait for it all to heal." She smiled sweetly and reassuringly at the group. Loyalty flew over to the two, looking at their state. 
She was completely mortified and furious. "What happened to your wings!?" She exclaimed. She didn't even need an answer when she started for the door. Light blue magic slammed them shut. Loyalty looked to Generosity with a look of pure fury. "What'd you do that for?"
"To stop you from doing something rash!" Generosity yelled at her, slamming a hoof on the table. "We all want to... do something to those jerks for hurting the princesses like this!" 
Loyalty flew in her face, as she often did when she was angry. "So why not go there now when they're weak?" 
"We'll be killed!" She yelled, seemingly even more furious than the pegasus in her face. Everyone went silent at her outburst. Loyalty just backed away slightly, horrified. She accepted defeat and flew down into her throne. They all waited for Generosity to continue. 
"D-do you see what they did to the princesses?" Generosity asked, voice shaking with anger. "Did you see what they did to Flash, you? Or Twilight!?"
Loyalty opened her mouth to speak, but Generosity cut her off. "Imagine what they'll do with a dragon and they're probably furious with the princesses taken!" 
"Do you think they'd...k-kill us?" Fluttershy asked timidly, hoping they'd stop arguing. Generosity sighed. 
"With what they did to the princesses... yes I actually think they would," she spoke quietly. Generosity looked to Magic and saw the mare with her head hung. "Do you think they would?" 
Magic looked up at all of them, her cold stare giving all of them a chill down their spines. She seemed void of anything, like she couldn't feel a thing. "They're monsters," she said bluntly. "Of course they would. And with magic like that... who knows what they could do." 
Laughter bounced in front of her. "Yeah! What kinda magic was that?" She sat down on her hind legs and moved her hooves up and down, in a motion meant to be spooky. "It seemed all... electrified!" 
"It was a simple high charge of magic," Luna stated, putting all attention on her. "Magic is a chemical reaction, so, too much of it would bother the particles in the air enough to make it seem electric. It's an effect, it isn't actually electrified." 
Honesty pointed at Magic. "Well, Twi's ain't never done nothin' like that before. Why'd it work for her?" She stared intently at the princesses, hoping she could make sense of it all.
"Twilight has not had her own magic reach such an emotional push to force that much of it," Celestia explained. 
Laughter bounced up on the table standing at the center of it. "What about when she fought Tirek and had all that magic? It wasn't electric then!" She was leaning so far forward she fell on her face, but she still looked up at the Princesses. 
"Emotion makes magic stronger. Besides, her own magic wasn't a large portion of the magic at the time," Luna answered, finding some comfort in the adorable silliness of Laughter.
Luna looked to Loyalty and took in the state she was in, her whole midsection was covered in bruises. Her cheek was swollen, her mane was ruffled, and her wings seemed much smaller, as if she lost some feathers. She seemed a lot quieter, as if she was thinking intently. "You got pretty hurt yourself in that fight, are you all right?"
Loyalty nodded. "Oh yeah, hurts a bit more now than then, but I'm gonna blame adrenaline for that," she smiled childishly. Luna was sure it hurt a lot more than she made it out to be, but she decided to let her look strong. She also assumed the mare needed a good nights rest- and she meant a good nights rest.
Luna smiled up at them all, "Thank you all again for helping us. I'm very grateful for it." She put her hoof to her chest, as if she meant it from the heart. She looked up at all of them with a smile, extremely grateful to have not just subjects, but friends like them all. She looked back to Loyalty, "How was your battle with yourself? If you don't mind me asking." 
Loyalty smiled brashly. "Don't mind. It was more annoying than challenging. She was easy enough to lead on at least," she leaned back in the seat. Her eyes shut as she hooves went behind her head. "She wouldn't leave me alone, she just wanted to keep fighting. What a weirdo." Luna just chuckled at her conclusion. 
Kindness smiled at her friend sweetly. Her hoof on her chest, taking every word from the heart. "Thank you for everything. She almost seemed just as dangerous as the d-dragon." She visually swallowed at just the thought of the dragon.
Laughter laid on her back on the table, her limbs spread out. "Yeah! Guess we guessed right with priority, huh?" 
Kindness giggled with her hoof to her mouth. "Hehe, I guess we did. It really helped." The two exchanged smiles of pride. Even if they didn't do a lot, they helped the princesses, and that was enough for them to feel a success. 
"Yes, even if we didn't stop them, we got what's important," Generosity spoke happily. She looked to the princesses and smiled, she was reassured and prideful. Even if she didn't do a lot, they won. And they got the princesses to safety, that was all that mattered. That was the plan if the enemy was too strong. Nothing went awry, it all worked out. And she was more than grateful. 
Magic and Flash still weren't able to speak. They could only think. And they couldn't stop thinking. They couldn't help it, too much was on their minds to help it. 
Flash thought the first time was just a mistake, a mix up. He tried to tell himself it wasn't his fault. But when he took Magic away from Twilight, he still only saw Twilight. She looked like she was in so much pain, and he just wanted to help her. Even if Magic looked the exact same, he wanted to help Twilight. Not the mare he needed to help.
He tried to think of an excuse, a reason to make him believe it wasn't his fault. The only idea he got was a love spell, like the one Chrysalis pulled on Shining. But that didn't make any sense. He had never ran into Magic before and she would've been obvious about it. So it was all him. And he hated it. 
He couldn't make any sense of it. How could he suddenly like the enemy's Twilight? And for what reason? They looked the same, they... were the same. And Twilight had a worse attitude than Magic, so why like the former? He just felt guilty. More guilty than he had ever been in his entire life. 
He tried to mentally repair some of the damage by looking at Magic and admiring her instead. But like before, she just looked bland. Then he tried to blame it on the blank stare, but even when she smiled slightly, he still only saw something bland. 
While Flash was having a mental breakdown and a mental war at the same time, Magic was trying to make sense of her emotions, then she had her thoughts to work on. She was confused, confused as to why the enemy took a shot for her, confused as to why the electric strings showed up around the mare when she was hit. From Celestia's description, that shouldn't have worked that way. 
But every time she tried to make sense of it, those eyes would appear at the front of her mind. Those violet eyes that shook in those few seconds, it seemingly went on for forever. They looked so sad, so scared, so regretful. She felt so bad for her, that's why she couldn't look away. 
That's what she told herself, she knew the reason she couldn't look away was because of how mortified she was. The mare reminded her so much of her, just a scared, confused girl put into power that she couldn't handle. She couldn't handle it, and she didn't have friends to pick her back up. So she depended on herself, Magic figured that out. 
She was concerned, worried, and she had so many questions. She could've thought them over further, but Honesty's voice just cut through her thoughts. "Hey! You two are kinda quiet. We should celebrate... sorta," Honesty said with a wavering smile. 
"Uh.. j-just thinking... that's all. It's nothing," Flash said nervously, hating all the eyes on him. It felt like they all knew, and he was so scared. He could even see Magic staring at him out of the corner of his eye, his spine was as straight as a board. 
Magic raised an eyebrow in curiousity. Why is he so anxious? She thought. "What about you, Twi?" Honesty asked, taking her from her thoughts again. Magic's head whirled to her. 
"Huh? Oh..." Magic started... wondering if she should tell them. She hung her head, deciding. She sighed and picked up her head, a determined confusion on her face. "Uh. I'm just thinking. That mare... she protected me. I was just trying to figure out how I feel about it." 
"Yeah that was strange," Honesty said, leaning back in her throne. 
"What happened?" Loyalty asked. 
"Their Twilight jumped in front of our Twi and took a magic orby thing for her," Honesty explained quickly. Loyalty nodded. 
Generosity leaned forward, placing a hoof on the table, she looked to Magic. "So... you know why she did it?" 
Magic thought it over and looked to the ground in a realization. Her eyebrows turned up and she slowly looked up at each of them, shaking her head. She looked back at the floor, "No. I have no idea why she did it." 
"Well, it's still a good thing she did, right?" Kindness asked timidly. Magic simply smiled at her and nodded.
Laughter smiled happily again, clapping her hooves together and sitting on her hind legs. "Well, we all got lucky. I don't know how none of them noticed us!" 
"One of them did," Celestia said bluntly, startling everyone in the room. She just stared down at the table, too ashamed to look them in the eyes. 
"They did!?" Fluttershy exclaimed, putting her hoof to her chest. She exchanged terrified looks with everypony else. They all looked back to the princess, their eyebrows turned up in worry. Frowns sat on each of their faces, she sighed. 
She pointed at Honesty, "Their Applejack noticed, but she didn't say anything. I don't think she plans to either." Luna nodded. 
"She was the kindest of them, she wouldn't be a serious threat. Do not worry, you've done enough today," Luna smiled sweetly. 
Everyone visually relaxed with a sigh and a fall of their shoulders. Their mouths formed up into smiles of comfort. Celestia didn't like the mare at all, but she liked her better than the rest of them. 
Honesty stated what everyone in the room was questioning. "So... they're not changelings, huh?" Her question got more silence than it did response. 
Loyalty looked to the princesses, "Did you two ever see them... ya know... change back?" The two shook their heads. That just put everyone back to thinking. "They kept saying stuff like they lived in a different world, right?"
Laughter slammed her hooves on the table. "Yeah! They said 'Daybreaker', and that Chrissy's army died! They genuinely had no idea what a changeling was." 
Generosity rolled her eyes and crossed her hooves, "It must've been an act!" 
Loyalty rubbed the back of her neck, "Uh... Their me did kinda say something about me being strong in this world. Maybe Pinkie's right."
"But there's no way, right?" Generosity asked with a nervous smile. 
Laughter jumped up from her laid down position. "A mirror made Twilight have two legs! Who knows what other kinds of worlds there are!"
"That wasn't an act for just you all, they always seemed like they weren't from here," Luna said, her head hung in a determined thought. "They even asked us questions like how many princesses there are and what the Elements of Harmony are."
Kindness tapped her hooves together. "A-and changelings can't take form of things that don't exist, right?" she chirped. Once all the attention was on her, she looked away nervously. "J-just cause their Rainbow had a-a Shadowbolts suit, and their Applejack had a, uh, a shirt like Flim and Flams." 
"And Spike hasn't grown up yet, they couldn't change the colors of a dragons scales," Celestia thought out loud. Everyone thought in silence for a while. 
"So... they're from a different world? That still doesn't make any sense," Honesty said to cut through the silence. 
"How so?" Magic asked. 
"Why're they here if they're from a different world?" Honesty said bluntly. Everyone just fell into a silence of thought again. Loyalty leaned back in her throne, a pounding behind her eyes as she squeezed them shut. She just wished everything was done like how it usually was. 
She didn't want to think. So, she didn't. She crossed her hooves and tried to relax the migraine in her skull. She guessed thinking about it would cause stress, and she didn't think stress was good for body aches, or migraines.
"They aren't that nice," Spike started, fumbling with his claws as he stared at them. "Uh, their Twilight did seem kinda... crazy." 
Laughter dragged herself across the table until she was in front of Spike. "So? They all seemed loco!" 
Loyalty rolled her eyes and groaned. "Tell me about it! That Rainbow was psycho! It's like she wanted to get hurt or something." She sunk back into her throne and shut her eyes again. "We'll never understand those weirdos." 
"Like how our world runs on, uh, harmony and peace... what if their world doesn't?" Spike asked, leaving everyone to think again, but Laughter still stared at Spike, creeping him out. He was going to say something, but she bounced up with a thought.
"We should have names for them!" She stood on the table and turned in a circle as she spoke. All she got back were annoyed glances. She pouted angrily. "What's the point to understand why their here!? That doesn't tell us anything. We need to figure out their abilities! And that could help us name them!" 
Generosity stared up at her with a thoughtful smile, even if Laughter was turned the other way. "Yes, sounds like a splendid idea. And it makes conversing about them easier!" Laughter turned to her with a bounce. The pink mare crouched down with a giddy smile. Generosity smiled back. 
Honesty raised an eyebrow, "So, uh, where do ya wanna start?"
Laughter turned to her with a bounce, once again. She smiled. "I have no idea!" 
"Twilight is Electricity," Magic deadpanned, everyone staring at her. "It just seemed like the obvious option." 
"It's good!" Laughter smiled with a bounce. "So Electricity! Ooooh! It sounds great!" She plopped down on the table with her hoof to her chin in thought. "I guess we should come up with our own names, huh?" 
"I think you and Fluttershy should," Generosity stated elegantly. She smiled, "I mean, all of us know a different one better than we know ourselves." 
Laughter bounced up with a smile. "Oki! So.... Their Pinkie is gonna be Sadness! She looked so sad." 
"Maybe Pity would work better?" Luna suggested with a smile. Laughter and Generosity smiled at her. Laughter nodded in agreement, Luna's smile mirroring her own. 	
"Their Applejack is Tricks. That scum of a mare deserves such a word," Celestia stepped in just as Magic did, coldly and bluntly. Her powering voice meant that no one would go against it. Even if everyone was concerned, Honesty smiled and leaned back. 
"Controlling," Loyalty stated bluntly, her punkish tone the brightest part of her. She seemed so tried, but no one else noticed. Of course they wouldn't, but that's how she learned to push through it. 
"Vanity, that mare did nothing but worry about herself!" Generosity huffed rudely. "I can't believe I would ever be like that!" She grouched. Honesty just chuckled at her.
They all stared at Kindness, saying as she was the only one who hasn't answered. She cowered behind her mane under the spotlight. "H-how about C-Cruel? She didn't h-help at all... and she just l-looked mean." 
Laughter bounced down next to her and wrapped her front leg around her with a smile. "Cool! So we have Electricity, Tricks, Cruel, Pity, Vanity, Controlling, and the big, scary dragon! Wow! They all sound pretty evil, huh?" She giggled.
Everyone sat in silence, just processing everything. The silence lasted a bit, almost as if everyone forgot what they were doing. The first noise in a bit was Spike's snoring. 
Magic looked down at her baby dragon with a comforted smile. She sighed in relief and contained Spike in her magic. "I think we should all get some rest. Flash and the princesses can stay here. All of you can too if you want." Flash jumped at hearing her say his name. 
All her friends nodded with a smile. Loyalty smirked happily, "You got enough room for all of us?" Every pony in the room laughed, a new relaxed atmosphere taking over. Everyone smiled weakly. 
Magic walked out of the room with Spike in hand. Every one followed silently. They were all a bit more relaxed, but they were still slightly on edge. 
And they knew that wouldn't go away until they safely had Canterlot back and their new enemy gone.
> The Capital of a New Equestria
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight sat in her new throne, the room was rebuilt around her. She was immensely bored and numb. Her mind could only replay the events of the last few days. 
She leaned forward, staring at the ground, the room was cold. She looked up and only saw the magenta banners with her cutie mark on them hanging beside the doors. 
The whole room was a lot more purple than before. It fit her, it was cozy for her, it reminded her of her. But she didn't want to be reminded of her. Everything felt so far away, and she was terrified. Numbly terrified. 
All her colleagues had changed since the fight with the Elements of Harmony ten days ago. A lot had changed. Applejack and Rainbow Dash relatively stayed the same, but no one else did. Not even she was. 
The whole castle was a lot darker in colors. Blues, purples, reds, and magentas covered every corner. It felt like her own kingdom, red spikes shooting up from the light purple balconies, every floor shined in a new purple. It was her in a kingdom form. Well, of course it was, she made it.
As she tried to revel in her new life, she was reminded once again of the ponies she felt like she knew. But she didn't know them at all. 
She expected Rarity to be fine, but the mare locked herself in a room with all the fabric in the whole castle. She hadn't seen the mare in days. Not since the day after the invasion. She looked like a wreck, mascara stained her cheeks. Then, she was never saw again. Rainbow Dash tried to help her, but Rarity just wouldn't cooperate. So, they left her alone. 
The Dragon Lord was no where around. He'd be there in the morning, pissed as all hell. Then, he'd just fly off. No one had no idea where he went, but he was always there in the morning. He didn't say anything, he didn't even look anywhere. He'd just walk around a bit and then fly off. He terrified everyone, so no one stopped him. 
She expected Fluttershy to just hang around, like she did before. But now she had no idea where the pegasus was, no one could find her. It was like she went missing, Twilight actually considered that the mare just up and left the operation. She did say she wanted nothing out of it. But she knew the scaredy-pony wasn't that stupid. 
And she couldn't even bring herself to think about Pinkamena. Every time she thought of the mare, she felt like she wanted to puke, she was guilt ridden. Just the idea of her happy made her think of all her mistakes. And she even nitpicked through her actions, thinking about every wrong word that just made her sick. 
So of course, she tried to keep the mare out of her mind, but it didn't help that she just hung around like a ghost. She just stared at anything but Twilight. 
And just as Twilight got reminded of her, she looked up and stepped up off the glass, magenta throne. She looked around frantically, just trying to think of something else. She became surrounded by those images of justice as the doors behind her slammed shut. 
"Think... think," she bashed the sides of her head with her hooves. She told herself to replay the events of her world domination. She tried to think, she tried to remember the power she felt. So, she just walked back into her throne room, taking in the dark purple walls, the windows shining in an orange light of the sunset. 
She sighed as she stepped onto the throne again, just trying to think about the events of a few days ago and nothing else. 
"Okay," she told herself as she shut her eyes. "I-it was right after everything fell a-apart," she said quietly. Her whispers echoed throughout the room. 



Her, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack were the only ones in the room. It was silent. Rarity and Twilight sat in silence, trying to make sense of what just happened. It didn't make sense. They both screwed up, but why did it hold such big conseuences?
Just as Twilight stood to leave the room, guards slammed the doors opened and stared at the mares. And the room. The walls and floor were covered in burn-like marks, and everything just had a dent in it from Rainbows duel. The windows were just empty holes in the ground, the glass shining in the bright sun that flooded in. 
"Where are the princesses?" A guard walked towards Twilight, asking her. She was in no condition to deal with it, but she did. She decided it was better than then never. She smirked. 
"Gone, they're safe though," she said bluntly. All the guards let out a breath of relief. "But they won't be coming back." She got a lot of looks of confusion, after the guards exchanged their own looks of confusion. 
"You report to me now, Princess Twilight Sparkle," she deadpanned, the power rush not kicking in quiet yet. She was tired more than anything. "And when Day-... Celestia and Luna return, you report to me as the highest in command. Actually, just capture the two." 
"Princess? Are you feeling alright?" One guard asked worriedly. 
"Yeah, you're acting kinda strange. We'll report to you... but why above Princess Celestia and Princess Luna? And why would we capture them?" Another asked. The doors behind them slammed shut. 
"Listen up," she stated loudly. "We are your new rulers. And if you don't like the idea of that..." she smirked, it finally getting to her. She grinned maliciously as her horn electrified with emitting a large sphere of magenta. "You'll be what this thing shoots at! And that's for any disobeyed rule."
The guards just stared at her, terrified. "Any objections?" She asked. One of the guards looked furious, he flew as fast as he could over to the windows. He was shot down and fell to the ground. Twilight looked to all the remaining guards in front of her, "Any more objections?" They all shook their heads rapidly. 
Rainbow Dash flew next to her, standing beside her with a grin just as twisted. Twilight smirked down at her. She looked up at them, "That, or a personal visit with Mrs. Dash. And you don't want that, trust me."
The guards stood still, sweat rolling down their faces underneath their masks. "Tell that to all the other guards, and don't think about leaving. There's already a barrier around the castle, and if you touch it, you get electrocuted!" They all saluted with shaky hooves and ran off. 
Rainbow looked up at her, "Is there actually a barrier around the castle?" 
Twilight turned back to Rarity and Applejack, her horn turning magenta and returning to its original purple. "There is now. I'll put one up around the city tomorrow, once everypony thinks its electrocuted." 
"So it ain't?" Applejack asked and Twilight simply nodded. Twilight walked towards the blankets and pillows that was the old throne. Her magic took hold of all the fabric and she threw it on the floor. Her magic built up a new throne, seemingly made of glass. Of course, the color was magenta.
"Hey! We're still rulers here too!" Rainbow yelled at her. The pegasus flew in her face, "and we're more probable leaders than you."
Twilight rolled her eyes. She used her magic to build three thrones on either side of the room. Each one color coated to the pony they belonged too. "Better?" She asked Rainbow and trotted past her. "Besides, you're doing more work than me." 
Rainbow flew over to her throne, being one of the ones next to Twilight. As she sunk into it, she loved the cold feeling. She shot up, staring up at Twilight. "Hey! What's that mean!? Cause I'm not gonna be a maid!" 
"Aww!" Twilight sunk back into her own throne. "You'd be precious walking around in a maid outfit! But no, I meant you get to do more ordering around than any of us. You know this stuff." 
Rainbow flew up into her face with a smile. "Really!?" 
Twilight rolled her eyes. "Maybe you'd be a better maid." Rainbow shook her head and flew down into her seat, a red lightning bolt forming on the back. 
"Aw yeah! This is so cool!" She gloated with a smile. She heard the doors slam shut and looked to see that Rarity was no longer in the room. She didn't really care, she just sunk back in to the icy throne.
"I didn't think ruling a country would be this cool!" She looked to her right and saw the throne next to hers was orange, she looked over to Applejack. 
She saw the orange mare just sitting there, staring at the ground. She rolled her eyes. "Hey AJ! Come over here and check out the cool thrones Twilight gave us!" 
Once Applejack didn't respond, she was a bit concerned, but she didn't care that much. She hopped up off the throne and flew next to Applejack, waving her hoof in front of her face. "Uhhh, hellloooo? Anyone in there?" She asked. 
Applejack jumped away from her, staring at her as if she scared her. "Whoa dude, you okay? You kinda spaced there, didn't mean to scare ya. 
"Uh, yeah," Applejack said, her eyes frantically staring at anything else. "Uh, what did y'all want?"
"Uh... did you not hear me? Come check out these thrones! They're freezing!" The mare bounced with a smile. She hovered a bit from the ground with a childish smile on her face. She flew out of Applejacks sight. 
Applejack just smiled motherly, she followed the mare and looked up at the throne. She felt icy, as if the room got colder. She even thought she could see her breath. She sat in and it felt like she was falling through a hole, just sinking into something warm and cozy, it felt like inviting hooves had wrapped around her. 
She heard a flash and looked up at the back of the throne, an apple sitting there. She smiled and tried not to cry. "Reminds me of home." 
"How?" Rainbow asked, laying on her back, staring at Applejack intently. Applejack just sighed with comfort as she sunk into it. 
"For one, it feels warm," she smiled. "And a full apple just means a lot to me. Well, symbolized, I mean." 
"Tell me about it," Rainbow said, ignoring the idea that Twilight was in the room. Applejack just stared at the alicorn, up on a high chair with a broken stare. She guessed Twilight couldn't eavesdrop, even if she tried. 
"Alright," Applejack started, prompting Rainbow to sit up in her seat, faced towards Applejack. She smiled, "Flim and Flam, the ponies who take care of me, have cutie marks of part of apples.
"They always completed each other, they knew that's why that was their cutie marks, and cause they liked apples." She just smiled sadly at the thought of them. She didn't even get to say goodbye and now she's off ruining a peaceful civilization. She wished they could see her now. 
"They said mom had a full red apple as a cutie mark. I can't remember, but they said they were friends with her. They came to her and dads funeral, Granny didn't like 'em, but she knew mom would want them there." She kept her sad smile, but she liked talking about it, it took off the pain. She didn't care what Rainbow thought. She tried not to.
"They didn't know her and dad had kids. So once they saw the three of us, they wanted to know us. Granny was against it, but she let them come over some times. They never stayed long. 
"But once Granny passed, they shipped us off to the orphanage, of course. We were there just an hour before the they came and took us back home. They gave her a proper funeral and everything. Even when she didn't like 'em one bit.
"Anyway, the point it, I have three full apples, so they say I remind them of mom," she stated, remembering what happened to her sister and brother. She looked confused for a second, it felt so long ago for her. She shook her head and turned to Rainbow, who was just staring intently. 
"Wow, that must suck, losing your parents early," Rainbow said. It seemed like all she had to say. 
Applejack chuckled. "Yeah, but we were lucky. We got another chance to feel safe, we got another chance to be kids. So, it's fine."
They sat in a nice, comforting silence for a bit. Applejack looked to her. "Your folks still alive?"
Before she could answer, their heads whipped to the door as a black stallion walked through the doors in his guard uniform. He bowed before the three. "What do you want?" Twilight asked rudely. 
He smirked up at her. "Waiting for your next orders, your highnesses."
Rainbow shot up from her throne. "Wait, really?"
He smirked at her, he found the three of them simply adorable. "Of course, guards are only used for rulers orders, after all." 
"Gather all of the ponies in Canterlot for an announcement tomorrow, and don't worry about the barrier. It's just a shield." Twilight stated loudly, turning his attention back to her. He smiled at her. 
He bowed again. "Alright ma'am. Consider it done." 
They all sunk into their thrones with a knew feeling of power. Maybe ruling a country wasn't that bad.



The next events included Pinkamena, so she tried to skip to the announcement. She bashed her temples with her hooves again, desperately trying not to include her pink 'friend' any more than she had too. 
"Announcement.., announcement... announcement," she muttered quietly to herself, fighting her pink friend mentally. 



The announcement had most or all of Canterlot in it. The seven stayed distant from each other, but they were amazed by the amount of ponies that were there, all conversing amongst themselves. They felt such a rush, as if they had control of all of it. And they fell in love, forgetting the failure of the previous day. 
Of course, the stallion from before cleared his throat, interrupting their marvel and making them take notice of who exactly they were next too. Most of them backed away, but Fluttershy sat near the edge, placing her hind legs through the bars and laying her chin on the top of them. She stared down at all of them, her marvel never-ending. 
Twilight stared down at everyone and used her magic to fabricate a microphone. "Hello, dear Canterlot!" Just her voice got praise from all of Canterlot. Shouts and cheers were thrown up at her. She couldn't wait to tear it down. 
"The seven of us has quiet the thing to reveal to you all!" She said happily, taking in all the cheers. She felt so important, she didn't even care that she felt Pinkamena's eyes on her. It all went to her head. She couldn't help it. None of them really could.
She smirked evilly with malice as a magenta shield surrounded Canterlot, causing panic and quiet confusion from the crowd. She grinned down at them, she was basically going psycho with all the power of thousands of ponies. 
She controlled their fates, she had the choice. She was like a god. And that's how she saw it. "You're under our control! Gaze upon your rulers for the rest of your days!" She chanted loudly, screams and gasps followed and she couldn't help but laugh maniacally. 
Ponies ran towards the edges of town. "Don't even try!" She yelled, the sky seemingly got darker as she stomped, the ground shining under a purple sheen. "You die the second you touch it!" They heard many screams of pain that followed screams of fear, Rainbow laughing above them all, rubbing her hooves together. "It's electric!" Twilight yelled. 
Even the Dragon Lord looked over them all with an evil in his eye. He laughed at them all, he turned to Rarity to tell her by instinct. Once he saw her staring at him with hurt eyes, he turned back to the crowd coldly. He felt so stupid, but the confused ponies running around like ants helped. It reminded him of home. 
"This is great!" Rainbow smiled to them all maliciously. "I've never had this much control!" 
"It was like Ponyville when the banks crashed," Pinkamena said sadly as she looked down at all of them. "Just running around without a clue." She smiled down at them and licked her lips. "And they thought they could find food in the abandoned Cupcake shop." 
She didn't even notice the freaked out faces of everyone. Applejack stood next to her, "It is like Ponyville, huh? Well, I guess without the magic overlord." Pinkamena didn't respond. 
The magic shield put an overcast over the city, as if the skies were cloudy. The screams didn't stop. Twilight smirked down, her horn glowing magenta as everything around the seven changed. The floor of the balcony beneath them turned a light purple, stone cold. Red spikes shot up once the bars disappear. Fluttershy's chin sat right above one, any lower and it'd impale her. 
The six looked behind them and saw the whole castle change. Deep purple shined all the way down, all the flowers turned to violets or roses, all the windows glistened with a magenta border. The roofs turned to a light purple as the flags turned to deep purple with Twilight's cutie mark sitting on it. She looked back at all the amazed gazes. She smiled. 
"Just ask me if you want a change to it. I don't mind," she told them all and turned back to the crowds. 
She grinned maliciously, staring down at her own dystopia. And it was all 'her' themed. She guessed none of them would have any objections, other than Rainbow, but not even she minded. 
All of them were little hers. Being stared down by injustices. And all of that her reminded her of yesterday. The day she'd forever curse. But it did come second place. 
She walked back inside, staring up at the throne room with it's original colors. Of course, she wanted them changed. As with the rest of the castle. Fluttershy trotted past her. "Play decorate. But keep the gardens and whatever room you have me in the same, kay?" Twilight just nodded, letting the girl go off on her own. 
Everypony but Applejack and Rainbow Dash walked out of the room. Even the guard was dismissed. Of course, he was the captain of the guards, at Rainbows decree. And Twilight messed with her magic. 
The walls became a deep purple, the windows bars turned magenta as all the plants became violets and roses. The banners on the walls were mostly hers, but any above her colleagues thrones, she designed to her taste. Of course, Rainbow got a torn light blue one with a lightning bolt imprinted in it. Applejack just got a cozy little orange with an apple pattern. 
She made the floors sparkle with a light purple sheen, the carpet down the middle a blood red. The doors became a much darker brown, like chocolate. She turned to the two behind her. "Wanna change the rest of the castle to our liking?" She asked sweetly. 
"Hell yeah!" Rainbow threw her hoof up, flying with it. Applejack walked over to her throne and sat down in it, immediately sinking into it. 
"I think I'll stay here. I ain't know nothin' 'bout decoratin' anyhow." She shooed them off and the two had their fun. 
Most of the halls were the same, the floors turning to a bright white, the walls turning a dull blue. She made the windows taller and wider, the bars a black. The two thought it was a great late night type thing. Chandeliers sat at the middle of corridors, but many hallways were lit by candles. 
A whole wing of the tower became Rainbows. All the walls were a light blue while the floors were checkered from light blue and white. Another wing of the castle was left untouched, Twilight got too lazy. She walked into Celestia's old room, leaving Rainbow to her wing. She stared at the empty room, no one in it. 
She guessed Pinkamena was in Luna's. She also assumed Fluttershy got a different room. She proposed Applejack fell asleep on her throne, and she thought of the idea that Rarity was off organizing everything she found. She fixed the room up like she did the throne room, just making it a mix of purples and reds. 
She fell asleep quickly, the magic taking it all out of her. But all she saw were those violet eyes staring back at her. 
And she didn't feel safe anymore. 



And in the end, she ended up remembering Pinkamena and she had no way out of it. She was left crying to herself in her throne, tearing her mind apart. She couldn't believe all the sorrow the simple mare could cause.
> The Rules to Dictatorship and Negative Emotions
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

While everypony else was busy being distant and emotional, Rainbow just sat on the balcony, staring down at the city. It was a ghost town, no one left their houses. And when they did, they crept around, hoping not to be seen. 
She loved and hated it. She loved the feeling of fear she put into everypony, so much that they couldn't even walk outside. But she knew the consequences of their fear. If everypony was stuck inside, then there was no pony working. 
She intently stared down at them as she tried to think of a solution. She was so lost in thought that she didn't hear the hoofsteps behind her. 
"Boo," the black stallion guard whispered in her ear. They learned his name was Thunder Smoke, which was expected. She jumped away and just stared at him as he laughed at her. 
She sneered. "You should respect me a hell of a lot more than you do, buster!" She growled at him. She'd never been startled before, and the only thing that sided with them did it. He reminded her a lot of somepony, but like she would tell him. He was too close for being a guard. 
He just smiled at her. "Trust me, I respect you a lot. I apologize if I'm stepping over boundaries," he said as she turned away from him. He crept up next to her. "I can't help it, you interest me." 
"God, you can't be buddies with your commanders! It doesn't work that way!" She barked at him, of course he just stayed like his cocky self, another thing they learned about him. He was so annoying, she hated it. Even if he was a good guard, he was more than insufferable. 
"Well," he said with a cocky attitude, one that got on her nerves more than loads of times. "With so many of you, I'm bound to know one better than the other." 
She rolled her eyes and looked away. "You can't just use charm to act like you're worth more than everypony down there," she pointed down at the city. And just as she expected, he took the least important thing and questioned her for that. 
"So, I'm charming?" He asked and she just growled at him. 
"Look, if you want something go to Fluttershy or Rarity, jerk," she sneered rudely. "They're pretty... or something!" 
"Sure," he said with a smirk and just watched her reaction. She didn't budge, which only disappointed him. So he messed with her some more. "Aren't you gonna get jealous or something?" 
She turned to him, anger covered her face. "Why would I? You're annoying and way too close." She turned back to the city, watching a stallion sneak around and walk into a different house. He could've been doing so many things, so she thought about each one, just hoping to space out like she did before. 
"Are you just going to let them hide out like that?" He asked, she didn't answer. She tried ignoring him, it was what her mother always told her when someone annoyed her. 
The silence just stayed for a while. He didn't mind, and she tried to forget he existed, it even worked. Until he started talking again. "Why don't we go scare them outside? Treat this like you actually have control over them?" He asked, trying to get her to talk. 
She turned to him again," And why aren't you gone yet?" She was even more annoyed when she looked at him. His coat was so dark you could barley see his features. The only thing she could see was his green eyes, and she'd curse those things forever. Just the sight of him made her wish everything was for nothing so she could go home. 
"The princesses were always so boring! It was just watch over this and watch over that, and it seems the same with all your friends," he said bluntly. 
"So you think I'll actually let you help cause I'm a power freak?" She asked bluntly. He was almost worried about her, which was surprisingly evident on his face. 
He smiled nervously. "Pretty much, you haven't stepped off the balcony all day." 
She rolled her eyes. "Alright, fine," she started for the door. "You can help. Just consider yourself lucky. Even back home I didn't let anypony help." He giddily followed her out of the castle. 
She was more than annoyed as she travelled down the halls with him following her. He was like a pet, and the happy look on his face was just gross. And she was confused, why was he even interested in her? If he guessed he had liberty to be her buddy, she expected him to guess he had the liberty to do whatever he wanted. 
So she knew whatever he was doing was about her. But she had no idea what. It most definitely wasn't her looks, Rarity and Fluttershy were way prettier than her, even Twilight faired better. And of course Applejack was one of the cutest, she was a big southern baby. 
And if he didn't go to everypony else for their personality, he wouldn't like hers. She was being so difficult. And she kept calling him names. She tried to remember why Soarin hung around her, then she realized he never answered her. 
She sighed and kept walking until the passed through the barrier around the castle. She shivered, passing through magic was so weird to her. Just magic was weird to her. "So, what's your plan?" He asked with an adorable look on his face that she portrayed as ugly. 
"Uh, just ask them to come outside. And if not, we go in and throw them out," she stated bluntly and walked over to a bush. 
"And how are we going to ask? Just go up to every door?" He asked, noticing she was digging in the bush. "What are you doing?" He asked, tilting his head with it. She pulled out a megaphone. "Oh." 
"Found it out here a few days ago," she stated and tucked it under her wing. "Dunno who would leave a perfectly good megaphone here, but it makes good use for a dictator." She started for the neighborhoods. He followed her with a chuckle and a smile. She groaned. 



Applejack was one of the nicest of the seven, surprisingly. But her and Rainbow seemed to be the only ones still fine. Everyone else was distant and cold and she kinda felt bad for some of them. 
She woke up in her throne, it didn't even hurt her back to sleep in it, but she still told herself she needed to get somewhere else to sleep. 
As she walked through the throne room, she looked to the balcony and just saw Rainbow sitting there, she ignored the mare and kept walking. Applejack had walked through most of the castle numerous times. She knew where what was, as she didn't sleep very much. She was just raised that way, she didn't mind. 
So she knew where the princesses rooms were, she guessed Twilight kept in Celestia's room. But she had no idea who took Luna's room, so she decided to investigate. Luna's room wasn't that far from Celestia, which just confused her when she saw who was held up in it. 
She pushed the door open and just saw a dark heaven. Well, it was ruined, but it was still pretty. While Celestia's room used to have pastels, Luna's was full of blues, purples, and blacks. The blue walls were covered in writings, all the font was scratchy, seemingly done by a quill. Words like 'Knives', 'cupcakes', and 'ponies' covered the wall. She looked to the middle of the room and saw a pink mare rocking back and forth, shivering. 
"Alright, Pinkamena," Applejack walked towards her, terrifying her. The mare jumped up, pinning her back against the wall with wide eyes. Applejack didn't advance any further. She'd seen the behavior before, but most definently not from someone as young as Pinkamena. "C'mon, let's get you outta here." 
Pinkamena huffed and looked away with a pout. "If Twilight wants me, I'm not doing it!" As Applejack got closer to her, she pinned herself further and further into the wall, trying to seem confident with her chest puffed out. 
"Twi ain't said nothin' 'bout you. She doesn't talk much," Applejack admitted shyly. She looked up at Pinkamena with a comforting smile. "I just, uh, kinda wanna help ya," she looked around the room. "This don't look very healthy. I thought gettin' ya outta this room would help." 
She watched as Pinkamena slowly lowered herself to all four legs, she just stared at Applejack, extremely confused. "Why do you want to help me? You don't know me." She almost seemed disgusted when she talked about herself. Applejack smiled. 
"I was thinkin' of bringin' Rarity with us. And no pony likes her," Applejack said sweetly as she pushed her shoulders up. "I ain't need ta know somepony to help 'em. I tried to help y'all in Ponyville, but I, uh, heh, got kinda scared of ya." 
"Why aren't you scared of me now? Just cause I'm your ally? I still ate a bunch of ponies!" Pinkamena yelled at her, she was just confused and scared, Applejack knew that. So, she didn't give up. 
Applejack chuckled, just confusing Pinkamena more. "You ain't nothin' to be scared of pardner, y'all are just scared yerself."
They just stared at each other, Pinkamena tried to understand everything while Applejack's smile just reassured her. "You ain't gotta understand it now, alright? Just trust me." She extended her hoof out towards the mare with the biggest smile. 
Pinkamena's blue eyes sparkled as she put her hoof in Applejacks. "Wanna hug?" Applejack asked. "You don't got to if y'all don't want to." She didn't get an answer, she just got pink hooves wrapped around her. She smiled and wrapped her hooves around the mare. She felt motherly, but she guessed the mare needed it. And she thought she couldn't do one thing right on her own. 
"T-thanks," Pinkamena pulled out of the hug reluctantly and wiped her eyes on her hooves. She hung her head in embarrassment, but she glanced up at Applejack and saw the biggest smile. "W-wanna go get Rarity?" 
"Sure!" Applejack smiled happily and started trotting out of the room, Pinkamena walking behind her. She hoped that Pinkamena wouldn't bounce on the entire trek they would go on. She wanted Twilight to be the mare to make Pinkamena the most comfortable. She just wanted to be a helpful push. 
The two walked in a nice silence, hoofsteps echoing in their ears. But Pinkamena didn't mind, she was happy Applejack helped her, even if she wanted it to be somepony else. But she was happy it was Applejack, just cause Applejack didn't know her. It was like a new face coming out of the dark with a smile. Just a friendly pony. And Pinkamena could smile at that. 
Of course, she felt like a baby for how dependent she was acting. She thought she was a bother, but she never saw that smile leave Applejack's face, and she never looked away. She shook her head to rid herself of just thinking in general. "Hey, you know where Rarity is holed up?" 
Applejack nodded as she turned a corner and saw a purple curtain hanging there, three light blue gems on it. She went underneath it to a dark hallway full of the same design. She walked down the dark hallway and stood by a door. 
The trimming around the door was dark blue, gems of any color covering it. The door was dark purple, a line of three blue diamonds on the door. Pinkamena hung her head. "Oh." Applejack chuckled at her and knocked on the door. 
"Go away!" Rarity yelled through the door, clearly on the other side of it. 
"C'mon Rare! Ya can't stay in there forever! It ain't healthy!" Applejack yelled. Once she got silence as a response, she turned and bucked the door. She heard a scream as she door opened. She smirked to herself as she walked through the entrance before Rarity could shut it. 
Rarity was sitting in front of a purple vanity. The whole room was a mess. Fabric and gems of whatever color she could find around the castle where strewn around everywhere. The furniture was all dark purples and light blues. The floor was barley visible, but Rarity seemed to mirror the room. 
Mascara stained the fur on her cheeks, her eye shadow was rubbed off poorly, some remnants of it still visible. The mares mane was a mess, it wasn't even curled that well anymore and it was riddled with tangles and knots. She hissed at them. "It's perfectly healthy to stay locked in a room! How do you think ponies get over things!?" 
She crossed her hooves and just stared at the two, feeling immense hate for Pinkamena. She looked to Applejack for a fight. Applejack just rolled her eyes, already tired of the mare. "Look Rarity, ponies get over things by talking about 'em. Or fixing them." 
"How am I supposed to fix this?!" Rarity shot up to her feet as she yelled rudely. "I screwed up! Big time! I don't deserve for it to be fixed." She fell to the ground again and put her hooves to her eyes. "Look. I don't feel like letting anyone see me. Just leave, okay?" She asked nicely as her voice shook.
As Applejack went to talk, Pinkamena bounced in front of her and started talking. "You're full of yourself. Why not waste our time with your mistakes to make you feel better?" 
"Cause I hate being ugly and gross and caring," Rarity mumbled. 
"Spike liked you from the start, even after he figured out you were selfish!" Pinkamena said in a bubbly, determined attitude. 
Rarity rolled her eyes. "Wow. Thanks," she said sarcastically.	
"Don't mention it!" Pinkamena said loudly. "But why not start feeling better! So you can start thinking properly so you can find a way to fix it!" 
Rarity growled and looked up at Pinkamena rudely. "I thought I said I don't deserve to fix it!" 
Pinkamena sat down in front of her and grabbed her face. "Then tell us why! Trust me, it makes everything feel okay when you're not so alone." Applejack just stared at her, wondering who was ever there for her. But she was so proud. She comforted a child and watched the foal grow up so fast. She felt like a real mother as she smiled. 
Rarity stared down at the ground. "What did you have in mind?" 
Pinkamena smiled as she clapped her hooves together. Applejack smiled at her. "Well, I just thought we'd all walk around town and just talk whenever y'all want to. And if not today, then it's fine."
Rarity just looked up at her, an eyebrow raised. "Uh, alright. Sounds easy enough. I guess getting outside the castle would help." 
"It sure would!" Pinkamena bounced up with a smile as she raced for the door. Applejack smiled after her and turned to Rarity as the unicorn stood up. 
"You think you'll tell us?" Applejack smiled. 
Rarity raised and eyebrow and smirked. As he walked past Applejack, she spoke. "Like Pinkamena said, I'm too full of myself not to waste your time with my problems. But maybe."
The two walked down the hallway, following Pinkamena as she bounced in front of them. "Did ya ever tell Spike?" 
Rarity nodded. "He asked me to tell him something about me. So I told him the most important thing." 
"Was it that you have the capacity to care 'bout somethin'?" Applejack smiled at her and leaned towards her. She suddenly backed away. "Sorry. Forget it, tell us whenever your ready." 
"Oh don't treat me like a child. I have my tantrums but that's it. I guess everypony's very up and down some days," Rarity explained bluntly as she watched Pinkemena bounce as the mares humming echoed in her head. "But yes. Something like that." 
"Alrighty then." Applejack smiled and the group walked -and bounced- in silence until someone talked. 
Rarity looked over at Applejack, taking in the mares features. She had emerald green eyes, a nice smile, and golden hair. But the best thing about her is that she was nice. She was kind, she had a heart. It just made Rarity more depressed. 
What keeps Spike from loving her? She thought as she drooped her ears and hung her head. She's nice! She's sweet! She can actually care about him. I did too... but I should've done a better job of it.
She looked to Applejack and just saw that nice smile. And she was infuriated with jealousy. She took her mind off of it, asking the mare something. "So. What was your little sister like?" 
Applejack smiled in the memory. "Rebellious, sweet, adorable, stubborn. Like any good ole apple." She wore a sad smiled as she spoke, but she enjoyed reminiscing in her family. "I hope she's alright." 
"But doesn't she have your caretakers taking care of her?" Rarity asked, the anger dissolving into curiosity. "They seem like the best to me." 
Applejack smiled at her. "Her and my big brother left the farm a few weeks before we left for here. I don't know where she is." 
Rarity just felt guilty as she bit her lip and looked away. "Oh. I'm so sorry." 
"She's got my brother. He'd find somethin' out. It was their choice anyhow," Applejack stated bluntly. "I just think she didn't wanna end up like me." 
"I'd love to end up like you," Pinkamena and Rarity both said with a smile. They looked to each other and giggled happily. Rarity smiled at Pinkamena. "Got any siblings?" 
Pinkamena smiled as she started walking backwards, taking Applejack's head movements as directions. "Yep! Had three sisters! Maud, Limestone, and Marble! I kinda left the rock farm, so, but I know they're okay! I don't think that part of Equestria got hit by anything dangerous." 
"Really?!" Rarity gasped. "I don't believe it! Everypony got something!" 
Pinkamena smiled happily. "I don't know! They never wrote about anything! But once I got to Ponyville, I lived with the Cakes, learning to bake and such.
"They had twins. Pound and Pumpkin Cake! I helped raise those little suckers!" Pinkamena bounced happily. 
"What happened to them?" Applejack asked quickly, knowing Rarity had no idea what happened to Ponyville. Pinkamena just smiled sadly at her.  
"Orphanage. Like lots of other fillies," she stated bluntly, trying to sound okay with it. She failed. "I tried to adopt them, but I wasn't old enough. And once I was, they were gone. But I didn't trust myself with them anyway.
"I think somepony from Van Hoover adopted them, so they're okay. I think they'd love the snow up there," Pinkamena said sadly. But she smiled, and she didn't curl up. She was sorta okay with talking about it, and even if no one else saw it as an accomplishment, she did.
By the time the stories were done, they were at the castle doors. Two guards let them through the doors, and the second they were outside, they wanted back in. It was freezing, and they kept hearing yelling. Pinkamena and Rarity hugged each other in fear.
They reluctantly followed Applejack as she started walking. But they all crept around corners and walked slowly. The yelling suddenly became recognizable. They heard Rainbow yelling cruel things harshly. "Jeez. I'm not that mean, am I?" Rarity looked to Pinkamena. 
"Uh, nah, you're just mean in the sense that you don't care," Pinkamena shrugged. Rarity sighed in relief. The were confused when they saw Applejack walk towards the noise. She was horrified. Rarity and Pinkamena were curious, so they crept up behind her and screamed, hugging each other again. 
They just saw a crowd of quivering and shaking ponies as Rainbow Dash flew over them with a megaphone. Her little guard friend made sure everyone stayed attended. Rainbow Dash had a wicked grin on her face as she yelled into the megaphone. "Just go back to your normal lives! But your world isn't gonna be ruled by Harmony and Friendship anymore!" 
She set herself down on the ground, her guard friend sharing her same evil stare. "Got it?!" She yelled into the megaphone, everypony in the crowd nodded their heads, terrified as some started crying. 
"I can't heeeeeear you!" Rainbow yelled, sticking her ear out to the crowd and holding her hoof up to it. "I said, 'Got it'?!" 
"Y-yes!" The crowd cried in unison, staring back at Rainbow. Applejack rammed Rainbow out of the way and grabbed the megaphone. 
"Hey!" Thunder yelled at her. "What're you doing!?" He just got a cold stare from Applejack.
"She isn't the only one bossin' you 'round. Go help her up already and don't talk back," Applejack said coldly. He just backed away from her and trotted over to Rainbow Dash. 
Rainbow pushed herself up, her eyebrows furrowed. The two just stared at Applejack, waiting. The whole crowd did as well. Suddenly, Applejack smiled as sweet as she could at all of them. "I'm sorry for all this, y'all! She's just in a bad mood, I'm so sorry y'all were all a victim of it."
The crowd conversed amongst themselves, whispering and mumbling to one another. "But like she said, go back to y'alls normal lives. We ain't gonna hurt y'all." 
She smiled reassuringly at the crowd, hoping to calm the down and not scare them. She didn't know how Twilight or Rainbow were gonna do things, so she at least wanted to get the town back to normal. "Just see all this as new management. And try to live with the changes, please." 
"Where are Celestia and Luna?" Someone from the crowd yelled. 
Applejack smiled, "They're okay. I believe they're in Ponyville. But they aren't coming back. But I promise we'll be -or try to be- just as good leaders as they were." 
The ponies in the crowd started smiling and nodding. Rainbow and Thunder just started at her in confusion, questioning how she calmed down the entire city. Of course, her eyes were their new murky green. 
"Y'all can go home now and get a good night's sleep. But please start working again tomorrow," Applejack asked sweetly. She turned away from the crowd and threw the megaphone at Rainbow with an annoyed look. 
The crowd walked away, more of a safe confused than a terrified worry. Applejack trotted back over to Pinkamena and Rarity who seemed amazed. She smirked as she walked past the two towards the shops, just so they could walk around. 
The two followed, their jaws dragging on the ground. "How'd you do that?" Rarity asked. "Is what you said even true?"
"Nope," Applejack said bluntly. "But we don't need a scared panic this early. Rainbow can decide what happens once we get all of Equestria." 
Pinkamena and Rarity smiled at each other. "You're amazing," the both said to her with a smile. Applejack rolled her eyes with a chuckle.
"We're out here for you two, 'member? So stop complimentin' me," Applejack said with a sweet blunt. "So, either one of ya want to talk?" 
The two just stared at each other, their eyebrows turned up in worry.
> Evil Brings for More Positive Emotions, Right?
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The three sat down at an empty café to talk about whatever, deciding they weren't ready to talk yet. Of course, Pinkamena and Rarity directed their questions to Applejack, hoping to keep the spotlight off of themselves.
"Where'd you learn to lie so well?" Rarity asked, amazed by Applejack's abilities. Sure, she lied, but she made it obvious, no matter who she spoke to. Sadly, half of the time it worked. 
Applejack smiled at the two, they always wore smiles and their eyes sparkled. They seemed as if they were in a better place than before. "Flim and Flam started, well, they still are con artists. Before they started takin' care of us, they taught me and my brother some things. Big Mac never had any interest in it." 
Rarity continued her sad smile. "What's your siblings names?"
"Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom."
"They're cute names," Rarity smiled sweetly, hoping to comfort her. She didn't think she was doing a great job. "Are you okay? About them?"
"Oh yeah," Applejack smiled. "They never really liked me that much. Big Mac took care of me, protected me and such, but I don't think he liked me that much. Same for Apple Bloom," she explained sadly. "My biggest wish is that they would like me one day." 
Rarity and Pinkamena felt bad, they wanted to let her vent about it, but the mare got up out of her seat and looked at the two. "Let's go walkin' 'round. Last day we'll have the whole city to ourselves."
The idea of Applejack's tragedy left Rarity's mind as she remembered the night she stole a dress from that one shop. She gasped and smiled as she trotted alongside Applejack giddily. "Oh yeah! I didn't get the chance to check all the shops that one night anyhow!" 
Pinkamena just watched the two walked off and followed with a roll of her eyes and a hang of her head. She didn't like the idea of just following Rarity around, especially if she was trying to talk about what was on her mind. Once the three turned a corner, Rarity dragged the three inside a shop and started critizing every thing in it. 
Pinkamena sighed and looked away, mentally calling Rarity a selfish brat. She told herself this day was for Rarity, so she started questioning why she was even there. 
Rarity looked at the two happily, seeing their respective emotions. Applejack was smiling, seemingly supportive while Pinkamena seemed tired already. She didn't even bring Applejack to notice Pinkamena, she deserved the attention right now. It was Pinkamena who hurt Twilight, what could the mare possibly be sad about anyways?
Her eyes turned a dirty blue as she turned back to the racks, her magic throwing clothes across the bar. She'd pick out her favorites and throw them on Applejack, just like she did with the Dragon Lord. She didn't care, she just acted like it was him. 
She'd lead the two over to another shop, see Applejack's support fade into annoyance and Pinkamena's irritability go through the roof. She loved the sight, they were so upset and it was cause of her! And did she care? Of course not! That was how she could tell somepony mattered to her. She felt guilty when she inconvenienced them. And she felt guiltier than anything when the Dragon Lord seemed tired. That's why she didn't see all the stores. 
She stopped thinking emotionally about him and went back to clothes. It took most of the day before she was done, and Applejack and Pinkamena ended up with stacks of clothes, plus the ones in Rarity's magic. 
"You two ready to talk yet?" Applejack asked as she shook under the amount of clothes on her back. 
"Nope!" Rarity smiled as she walked into another store, hearing a familiar bell ring. She rushed over to a rack of clothes, seemingly in the same style of her gothic dress from before. She wondered if it was the same store, but was happy to see it wasn't. 
Pinkamena blew her mane out of her face as she looked bored and irritable. "No," she said harshly. 
Applejack just stared at the two, she felt used and useless. She was starting to regret the whole day. "Well, why not?" She threw the clothes on her back off, Rarity gasped and turned to her. Pinkamena did the same and it seemingly tore Rarity apart, especially when her magic failed to keep up and dropped the dresses she was carrying. 
Rarity huffed. "Well, I just don't think I'm ready yet," she was obviously lying as she went back to looking through clothes. 
"I just don't feel like it. I want to go back home," Pinkamena deadpanned. Her hair seemed even straighter as a frown sat on her face. 
Applejack huffed loudly, pulling Rarity's attention from clothes to her. "Then why'd we come out here? Why'd we waste a whole day if you two ain't gonna talk so y'all could feel better?" 
Rarity smiled. "You took us out to make us feel better, darling," she smiled sweetly, hoping to keep the mare so she didn't have to carry everything back. 
"Wouldn't talking just help?" Applejack asked rudely, stomping her hoof on the ground. "It's just how you feel about somepony you barley know! How hard is that?"
Pinkamena and Rarity gasped at what she said. Their faces instantly retorted into anger. "You don't get it!" Pinkamena stated. "The fact that we barley know them is part of the problem!"
"Yes!" Rarity huffed. "Besides, it was somepony we cared about. If not more than a friend than at least as a friend!" 
Applejack just stared at the two as they teamed up against her. She didn't even feel bad. She just couldn't believe her time was wasted on these two. Pinkamena looked like she hated her attempt to help her, and Rarity didn't even care. She was furious. 
"I'm still tryin' to help! You two could at least look like you care!" Applejack shouted at them. Rarity and Pinkamena were appalled. 
"I'm sorry our situations are so sensitive that we don't want to talk!" Pinkamena shouted back. 
Rarity nodded. "Yes! We have had to come to terms with our mistakes-"
"What?" Pinkamena cut her off, a confused look on her face. "You mean your mistake. Right?" The two just looked at each other with confusion. 
Rarity shook her head. "No, I misspoke and you broke up with Twilight. Both were our mistakes, what do you mean only mine?" Her hoof was to her chest in sheer confusion as she tried to understand. 
"Uh, Twilight ruined everything, she seemed in love with herself, of course I wouldn't want to like her anymore," Pinkamena explained, almost offended at what Rarity was saying. "That's not my mistake, it was Twilight's. I'm just coping." 
Rarity was more than confused. "Well, you had a choice to stay with her, so why be sad at your own choice?" The two had completely forgotten that Applejack was there. She shook her head and walked out, declaring she could save some of her day. 
"Cause she seemed like she liked herself more than she liked me! Why would I try and stay with her if that was the case?" Pinkamena asked, raising her voice as she spoke. She was so offended. "Of course I'd be sad that she seemingly liked somepony else."
Rarity gasped. "You didn't have to break up with her! You could've talked about it! How inconsiderate are you? You didn't even care about her feelings!?" Rarity's voice raised along with Pinkamena's as the two shouted at each other. 
"Says miss selfish!" Pinkamena shouted back, their foreheads touching in anger as they fought. "And she didn't deserve a conversation! It was her fault!"
Rarity couldn't understand anything about the mare. "You didn't even give her a chance to fix it!"
"I will! When she wants to fix it! But until she shows me she likes me, then I'm gonna have nothing to do with her!"
"Then why are you do sad about her?"
"Cause I still like her!"
"Then why not fix it yourself?!" Rarity yelled at her, getting fed up with her. Rarity might've been selfish, but she knew when to fix things that were obviously her fault. 
"Cause she needs to show me she cares!" Pinkamena yelled as loud as she could. She backed away from Rarity. "I'm done talking," her face just looked hurt as she ran off, her eyes a dark blue as they intended to guilt trip Rarity. Of course, it didn't work. 
Rarity looked at all the dresses and clothes and jewelry on the floor and looked around for Applejack. "Applejack?" She asked as she looked all around. She plopped down in despair in the middle of the piles of clothes. She looked up at the ceiling. "How will I ever get these all back?" She asked pitifully.



Rainbow Dash watched as all those ponies walked back to their houses. She was infuriated, she wanted fear, she wanted control, she wanted them to be scared to even look at her or take a wrong a step! She didn't want them to feel okay under 'new management'. 
She growled as she stood up and watched them all leave, her tail flicking in anger. She ignored the guard as he stared at her with a curious look on his face. The violent red color left her eyes for the bright magenta, but there was still a fire behind them. 
"Maybe it's better this way," the stallion said bluntly, scared to put emotion behind it. And he was right to be scared, Rainbow whirled to him with her eyebrows furrowed and her mouth formed in disgust and anger. 
"And how's that?" She asked rudely, growling behind it. He just stared at her with a nervous smile. He was really wrong to think she was more than adorable. 
"Uh, well," he stepped away from her. "Just let them get, you know, comfortable and happy and take it all away!" He laughed nervously as she just stared at him. He cowered into himself. "Or not." 
She just kept staring with that infuriated look on her face. His coat turned light blue, his mane and tail a dark blue. But his eyes stayed the same. She sighed and plopped down on the ground. 
"Maybe you're right for once, Soarin," she said quietly. 
"Who's Soarin?" He asked curiously and crept up behind her. "A boyfriend?" 
She laughed and rolled her eyes. "No way! Soarin's a dweeb," she chuckled. That chuckling soon turned into actual laughter as she thought about it. "But you remind me of him, he was better though." 
"I'd imagine, you knew him longer," Thunder said bluntly. "You like him?" 
She didn't feel like dealing with him. And she most definitely didn't feel like talking  about Soarin, especially with an up-close and personal guard like him. She sneered. "Just leave it. He was nothing, reminds me of you."
She stomped off. 



The castle was cold, especially if you lived in it alone. The cold colors gave to the atmosphere that was enhanced with the freezing crystal floors. But loneliness and negative emotions made ponies shiver in its own. And feeling alone with so many ponies around you was the worse. 
Twilight was seemingly the coldest of them all, even harsher than Fluttershy. She was commonly found in Celestia's old room or her throne, but this morning, she decided to go walking around to find a certain someone. 
She didn't really try, expecting everything to just work out in at least one way. Her head was hung low as she just looked irritated, which she was. She was paranoid, guilt-ridden, sorrowful, and sleep deprived. She couldn't even walk in a straight line. 
She sighed as she picked up her head, just for it to fall again with a groan. She shook her head and picked her head up, puffing out her chest at an attempt to keep it up. "C'mon! You've survived on one hour naps and staying up for twenty four hours before!" She yelled at herself. 
Her head fell and she sighed again. "Yeah, but then you were busy. Now you're just waiting around. Jeez, this is impossible. I'll never find either of those bozos." 
She turned a corner and smirked at a yellow pegasus walking around aimlessly. The mare seemed away from any reality. But surely being engulfed in magenta would wake anypony up, and it did. Fluttershy looked down at the mare that kept her in a bubble and growled. "Hey! What do you want!" 
Twilight just groaned, having forgotten how annoying the disobedient mutt with a voice was. She couldn't even bring herself to answer as she kept walking. Fluttershy just growled and started banging on the edges of the magic, giving Twilight an even bigger migraine than the one she already had. 
"Spike!" She yelled loudly, hurting her head. She hung her head again and sighed, "Ow," she rubbed her head and looked up to see light green skin. She smiled up at the tall dragon growling down at her. 
"Good, follow me or you'll end up like the mutt here," Twilight nodded her head towards Fluttershy who just huffed and crossed her hooves. 
The Dragon Lord towered over her and drew his claws out. "What do you want?"
Twilight rolled her eyes, guessing she'd be safe if he'd attack. But Fluttershy's nagging voice made her not even want to converse. "Oh yeah, disturb the feral thing with teeth!" Fluttershy yelled at her. "You're really smart for an egghead." 
"I know what I'm doing," Twilight mumbled. She whirled her head to Fluttershy and yelled, "So just shut the hell up! Cause I'm sure I'm a hell of a lot smarter than you! I wasn't raised by animals!" Fluttershy huffed again and looked away rudely, after sticking her tongue out at the mare. 
Twilight sighed in relief and looked up to see the Dragon Lord with his teeth bared. "Look, you need to stop leaving every day. So you'll stay in the castle today!" 
"Why should I? Cause you'll put me in a magic bubble?" He growled angrily like an animal. The response to his question was being engulfed in magenta. He was completely thrown off guard. Twilight started walking with her pets on their leashes. 
"Yes. And you need to be here more often in case of an attack! No one even has any idea where you go!" She yelled at him and continued walking.
Fluttershy rolled her eyes and blew her mane out of her face. "So why am I here? Everypony knows I go to the gardens." 
Twilight groaned at just hearing her voice. "We'll have a lot of time to talk once we get to the throne room, so please shut up so no one has to hear your awful voice!" Twilight growled at her and kept walking, almost happy at the silence that followed. 
But once she got to the throne room doors, she dreaded everything that would follow. She used to love the hallway, now she hated it. She pushed open the doors and just dragged her hooves across the floor with dread. Those pictures of justice stared down at her, laughing at her for her mistake, taking her weakness as a way to win. 
She could just imagine evaporating, losing while everyone else got free, leaving her to die. And she couldn't help but laugh at herself, thinking it out to the last detail. 
But every thought that enters her once she pushes opens the door, leaves her as she closes them. Her magic dropped the two birds to the ground and put a huge, comical lock on the door. The Dragon Lord flew for the windows, slamming into them as Twilight's magic locked those too. 
Fluttershy dashed for the balcony, she stuck her tongue out at Twilight as she thought she was free, but she just hit magenta as Twilight put a wall up. Fluttershy growled and turned to Twilight. "Gonna answer me yet, egg head?!" 
"I can't have somepony go track you down and take two away from the fight once those Elements show up!" Twilight yelled at her, already infuriated with the mare. 	
Twilight looked to both of them. "So you've had your days of freedom, from now on you to stay in the castle." Twilight saw both of the annoyed looks. She looked to Fluttershy, "I don't care about whatever you do." She looked to the Dragon Lord, "and I don't care about your emotional isolation. You two stay here." 
"You don't get it," the Dragon Lord growled at her. 
"Sure I do, you miss your fucking girlfriend so you're isolating yourself. Well emotion is evil's biggest downfall so get over it!" Twilight yelled at him. She looked to both of them, ignoring the growling. "And I'll trap you both here every day until that attack comes! Even if it takes a year!"
The two were furious with her. They couldn't even stand the look of her, she made them lose everything and they had to listen to her? They couldn't stand it. She got off free, but they didn't even have a choice anymore. They just stared daggers at those violent violet eyes of hers. They both wouldn't mind ripping them out of their sockets.
"You're real ballsy, Twilight Sparkle," Fluttershy announced rudely. She couldn't help but get even more infuriated as the mare rolled her eyes. She didn't understand anything, and she was pulling Fluttershy down with her. "Don't drag me down your hole of fuck ups, Sparkle." 
Twilight stopped caring. All she had to do was secure them in a room all day and that's what she did. She'd keep them there for every second until the attack if she had to. The two weren't going to ruin what she built up. The two hadn't been very useful thus far, but she'd rather deal with it and not need them than lose. 
"Some princess you are, brat," The Dragon Lord spat as he crossed his arms. He couldn't stand it, she seemed to infatuated with power that she couldn't even understand the situation. He'd thrown away everything without having control of it, certainly the egghead could comprehend that. And the longer she looked like she didn't care, the more furious he got. 
His claws dug into his arms as he watched her listen to Fluttershy's shouting. The two just looked like Rarity separated, and he hated it. Rarity didn't care, but she got mad as all hell really fast. He shook his head, he kept telling himself he didn't even know her at all. 
Twilight's mind went blank as she stared at Fluttershy's angry face. The mare was all bark and no bite, but she stopped caring. Her voice was just annoying her, and she wouldn't shut up. She tried to act like she didn't care, but she was furious. 
"You're just a failure! You've failed us twice, Sparkle!" Fluttershy shouted rudely, her face almost red with anger. 
Something snapped inside Twilight at just hearing that. Her eyebrows furrowed, but Fluttershy didn't notice, she was still rambling with her huge mouth. 
"Just let me out of here! She's getting annoying," the Dragon Lord yelled at her to try and sound louder than Fluttershy. Twilight couldn't take it. 
Her horn glowed magenta which shut the two up. "Shut up!" She yelled as she put a shield around herself. Once she looked back to them and how they were finally quiet. She sighed and the shield evaporated around her hooves. She looked up at the two. "Look, what happens when they attack and we have to go fetch the dragon? That's a weak start that could ruin everything! I don't know about you, but I don't want to lose." 
"Well I don't want this stupid Equestria anymore! I already have a kingdom!" The Dragon Lord yelled at her with his teeth bared, hissing at her with his claws drawn. 
"So did I!" Fluttershy yelled again. "I'm fine with staying inside, by why lock us up! It's pointless instead of just being civil!" She stomped her hooves on the ground. Twilight couldn't see anything but a baby in both of them. 
"So after everything you're gonna give it up for all of us!?" Twilight yelled at them. She looked to the Dragon Lord. "Looks like you kept some qualities of your little girlfriend." 
He just growled at her and took a step forward. "You're really smart, aren't you?" He asked and showed off his claws and teeth. She just groaned. 
"Stop being selfish just cause you lost something!" Twilight yelled at him, ignoring the threatening pose. She looked to Fluttershy, angrier than ever. "And just shut the hell up! I should just kill you outright since you're so fucking useless!" 
"At least ponies can trust me to not defend the enemy!" Fluttershy shouted back, seeing Twilight flinch with a spark of fear in her eyes. Fluttershy's frown turned into a twisted grin as her eyes turned a murky, dark blue. "Aww!" She said loudly. "The baby doesn't take well to her fuck-ups!"
The Dragon Lord growled at her, "Oh don't act like you're better than her. At least she's worth something." 
Fluttershy didn't think. She didn't think she would care if she did. "Says the thing that thought he was special!" She gushed like a child and then laughed, ignoring the red in his vision. "Rarity wouldn't care about you ever! And she doesn't now! She just misses her hench-dog!"  
She stuck his tongue out at her, ignoring the obvious signs. "I wonder what lies she told you just to keep you around! Or maybe you're just that gulliable and niave! Makes sense coming from a brain made of colored rocks!" 
She turned to Twilight with a wicked grin, twisted in all the ways that showed she got way more out of this than healthy. She started towards the mare who just seemed to cower away. "And you! Way to ruin everything! You know, we wouldn't need to be here if you didn't save miss Magic! You are way more selfish than all of us combined and we have to suffer?!" 
She just laughed maniacally. She didn't see a purple alicorn, she saw a cowering cockatrice, backing into a cowering timber wolf. "You're just useless! Who needs you around? Pathetic!" She spat rudely. She couldn't think, she just loved the sight of it, so whatever fell out of her mouth didn't matter as long as it hurt. 
"Maybe Spikey-Wikey wouldn't have lost his bitch if you didn't mess up!" Fluttershy yelled, saying 'Spikey-Wikey' in a posh voice to mock Rarity. 
The two heard a loud hiss and looked to see the Dragon Lord growling loudly at them. His claws seemed sharper, just like his teeth. Everything seemed sharper, even the skin on his stomach. The scales that followed his spine, his pupils, his teeth. Everything. 
Fluttershy and Twilight froze at the sight as his tail swished back and forth behind him. "W-what's that mean?" Twilight asked as she watched it, mortified. 
"That the second we move he pounces on us and claws out our stomachs or throats, "Fluttershy said with blunt worry. The three sat in silence for what seemed like hours, when it was really just a few seconds. "Okay. On three, jump out of the way." 
Twilight nodded slightly. "One," Fluttershy said quietly, the dragons claws sparkled in the light as he growled loudly. "T-two," she whispered even quieter than last time. He hissed at them. "Three!" She yelled loudly as the dragon pounced on them. Twilight and Fluttershy both jumped out of the way, the ends of their tails charred with green fire. 
The Dragon Lords head snapped to Fluttershy's direction as she stared at them. Her eyes shook with fear as he slowly walked towards her, his growling getting louder the closer he got. She was trembling, she tried to push herself away, but she soon was pinned against the wall. 
She just watched as he got closer and closer, a sob leaving her throat. She couldn't comprehend it, she was going to die to her own mistake with the things she knew about the most. She just couldn't shut up, and now she was going to die and leave everything she'd ever love behind. 
She shook as he stood over her, his claws draw and placed at her throat as she glued herself to the wall. Her shaking made the claw touch her fur and it was freezing, she was terrified as tears left her eyes. She tried to look past the dragon to see if Twilight would help, but she just crept towards her throne. 
Fluttershy looked back up at the dragon, his low growl the only thing she could hear. His eyes seemed red, and she knew he had no control over what he was doing. She was dead, and it just took forever. 
Twilight just watched. Fluttershy was a baby, her biggest skill was her big mouth. She was actually fine with the Dragon Lord killing her, she didn't mind. But she doubted he would just kill her and be fine, so she started creeping towards her throne to prepare a fort of safety until she let him go.
She looked towards her throne, it was so close and she was more than happy with the turn of events. She didn't expect to hear a flash and a thud instead of a scream and a cry for help. She dashed for her throne and put a shield around herself, as she finally looked at the situation. And she was horrified. 
Fluttershy was alive, trembling with her hooves over her head. And the Dragon Lord was on the ground on the other side of the room, growling as his eyes shined with red. 
She didn't expect that, but she also didn't expect an amalgamation of things called a draconequus to be standing in front of Fluttershy. 
The Dragon Lord growled loudly and pushed himself off the wall, dashing straight for the draconequus. Discord rolled his eyes and groaned as he snapped his fingers, the dragon slammed into the floor with a groan. Discord crossed his arms and looked at Twilight. 
"You'd just let her die? You do realize you need all seven of you to win, correct?" He asked her, his snake tongue making his voice scratchy and a big hiss, it wasn't that noticeable, but it just bugged Twilight. 
She just sneered. "You could've told us that. Like I knew," she said bluntly. "She wasn't doing anything. I was just letting a nuisance disappear." 
"Well, now you can't," he said rudely to her. He snapped his fingers again and Twilight looked to see the red fading from the Dragon Lords eyes. "And stop fighting. You'll never be successful if all you do is bicker!" 
The Dragon Lord just looked up at Discord with an annoyed look on his face. "Guess we know why she liked you. You're just as annoying as her." The dragon looked behind Discord and saw Fluttershy still trembling under her hooves. He smirked up at the draconequus. "Maybe you should help her," he stood up. "You're her prince charming, after all." 
Discord just snorted. "I'm just here cause we need all of you alive, and princess over there didn't seem like a trustworthy pony." He just glared at the Dragon Lord rudely. "The rest of the rulers were just too lazy! So they had to send Discord!" He bowed to the dragon with a paw to his chest and a claw extended to the world.
Twilight rolled her eyes, propping her head up on her hoof as she laid in her throne. "Doubt it!"
Fluttershy stood up as the three bickered processing the whole situation. Now she understood why the Dragon Lord was so angry with Rarity. She still didn't feel bad about what she did, she was happy she said it all. But she watched Discord's tail and smirked as she stepped on it. 
He jumped and turned to look at her with a growl. "You almost got eaten by a dragon. Stop messing with animals, would you?"
She just smirked happily at the sight of him. He was adorably silly looking. Two different horns and a tooth sticking out, she couldn't even be mad at him. She was extremely sad, but she tried not to care. She was more terrified than anything. "Y-you wouldn't have saved me t-to hurt me," her voice shook, just as an aftermath of what the Dragon Lord did to her. "But if you aren't n-needed here anymore. Then you should just g-go."
He just looked away from her at the Dragon Lord and Twilight. "Stop fighting. They'll use that to their advantage." He snapped his fingers and disappeared. Fluttershy just shook in place as she stared at where he stood. 
"Aww!" Twilight said loudly. "You should've kissed him goodbye!"
Fluttershy just stared at her with hate in her eyes. "You should've kissed Pinkamena goodbye! Or maybe you would've preferred Magic!" She stuck her tongue out at the mare. 
"You sad he didn't save you cause you're you?" The Dragon Lord asked her and she huffed. 
"He barley knows me!" Fluttershy looked away with a high head. 
The Dragon Lord flew around her with a smirk. "That's what I thought about Rarity! And look what happened!" 
"You miss him already!" Twilight yelled and started laughing, the Dragon Lord joined her. Fluttershy just stared at the two rudely and huffed. 
She stared for the door. "Open it! I'll stay around! I don't want that whole scene to replay again!" 
The Dragon Lord flew up next to her again and picked her up in one of his arms, "Of course you do! Then he'll save you again!" He just laughed at her some more, along with Twilight. 
"Let me leave!" Fluttershy yelled at the two. "I don't like him! Okay? He's a dirty, rotten animal!" 
"Sounds like where you live, course you'd love him," Twilight grinned childishly as she opened the door for the two. "Stay inside the castle Spike! Otherwise I will make that barrier electric!" She yelled after them as Fluttershy ran as fast as she could. 
He saluted her with a smirk. Once the doors shut, Twilight was left all alone. She laid on her back in her throne with a smile. "Oh that's hilarious," she said as she relaxed.
> Plans Have Multiple Steps to Them
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back in a disharmonized Equestria, the rulers now had a common pastime. Watching the most evil of all of their Equestria fight and mope around for the last eleven days. And none of them were very pleased with the sight. 
Daybreakers eye twitched as Twilight just sat on her throne all day. Her hooves dug into the arms of her throne as she bared her teeth. 
Nightmare Moon sighed at the sight of everypony separating themselves from the others. Chrysalis was more than bored while Discord seemed too focused to have an opinion. Chrysalis rolled her eyes and sunk into her throne, "This was our most evil? Please, we could've gotten poor ponies to do better!" 
Nightmare Moon sighed. "As much as I'd hate to say so, I have to agree." She hung her head, "I'd never expect evil mares to care about boyfriends at a time like this." 
Chrysalis smiled slightly. "Yeah, they have to rule together! They'd get over it, but they're too stupid to realize it!" She just started laughing at the group of ponies. 
Daybreaker stared at the screen, her eyebrows furrowed as she growled under Nightmare Moon and Chysalis' laughter. "They're free to do whatever they want until an attack. They surely won't let their emotions get in the way of that." 
"You sure, sister?" Nightmare Moon asked, trying not to laugh. "Cause just the sight of Pinkamena makes Twilight sob! We should just put them out of their misery and bring them back!" Her and Chyrsalis fell into fits of laughter. 
Daybreaker stood up off her throne and set the two on fire. The two screamed and jumped off their thrones, looking to see the fire extinguished. They turned to Daybreaker with frowns. She just hissed at them, her mane rocketing up with it. The two backed away with nervous smiles, they backed onto their thrones with smiles. 
Daybreaker huffed and looked away. She walked towards the huge window and looked down at her Canterlot, the sun setting casting an orange overlay to the whole sight. "Twilight will get to see this. It's heaven. And she's evil enough to obtain it, she won't let emotions get in the way of the most important thing to her."
"What says this Equestria is the most important thing to her?" Chrysalis asked, hanging half way out of her throne. 
"The map told me a little more about her," Daybreaker stated bluntly. All she heard was a thud! and she looked back to see Chrysalis had fallen out of her throne. Chrysalis stood up and shook her head. 
"What!? How!?" Chrysalis asked, Nightmare Moon behind her in interest. Daybreaker looked at the two and couldn't help but find them adorable. They were so much younger than she was, but they always acted like sisters. But she ignored her minds want to reminisce. 
Daybreaker rolled her eyes and her head followed it. She sighed as she waltzed back to her throne. "Their tree of harmony is what keeps evil out." She deadpanned, her horn shot an orange beam at the table in front of them. The terrain on it slid into the table to create a flat surface. She shot another beam at the table, a diamond appearing on the surface of it. 
Chrysalis and Nightmare Moon stood side by side and waited for the whole thing to unravel. They thought the diamond was the end, but as Nightmare Moon went to talk, a hologram appeared. She watched as the magic from the table built up Rarity in front of them. She held a smug look on her face as she puffed out her chest. She seemingly stared down at Nightmare Moon. 
Daybreaker walked up to it and stared up at the hologram. "This table is our tree of harmony. It's the strongest piece of magic the original Equestria had. Now, it knows everypony in its radius, especially the evil ones." 
"Cooooool," Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis stated in unison as they looked at the table. Nightmare Moon had only seen it as a hoofrest before. Chrysalis turned to Daybreaker. "How do you know about this?" 
"My mother taught me how to use it before she passed," Daybreaker stated, her voice was void of any emotion. Nightmare Moon almost felt bad. Except she didn't. 
Chrysalis admired every part of the table, but she couldn't help to notice something off. She looked up at the hologram as the thing stared back down at her. She was surprised a chicken hadn't attacked the hologram yet. Actually, she was surprised that everything was normal.
She looked to Discord and saw him just staring out the window from his throne. He didn't seem like himself, not ever since yesterday. He looked bored and just thoughtful. And thinking wasn't something Discord did. 
Daybreaker noticed it too, and where Chrysalis was too embarrassed to say anything, she wasn't. "You aren't going to tamper with it?" She asked, he just glared at her. He looked even more bored. 
He snapped his fingers, a snake slithering through the hologram. The fake Rarity even reacted, she screamed and cursed at the snake as she ran from it. She was quickly just running on the table in circles as snake followed. 
Daybreaker grinned smugly at the sight. But she wasn't too happy with Discord's constant stare at the sunset. She rolled her eyes. "You know, ever since you saved Flutterbrat or whatever it is, you've seen lost in thought." 
She walked towards him, happy to see that Nightmare Moon and Chrysalis had pulled out a deck of cards and had started creating the rules for it, ignoring their conversation. 
"We could make it like a lucky tic-tac-toe! Just put down a grid of nine and make whatever card is on the top of our deck is our move!" Chrysalis suggested happily, creating a deck of cards with a blue web on the back of them. 
Nightmare moon nodded and created her own deck, a blue crescent moon on the back. She drew a grid of nine as the two used their magic to play a form of rock-paper-scissors.
"And?" Discord asked rudely. Daybreaker just smiled as she looked to the sunset as well. It was pretty, but if Discord thought it was pretty he would've made it purple. 
"You see no correlation?" She asked happily as she saw Chrysalis gloat as she won against Nightmare Moon. The two instantly started again. "The mare you were interested in almost dies, you ignore my orders and save her, and you're quiet afterwards? You could've said you were there for her, you know."
Discord shooed her away with his claw and his tail. "Oh please! Like I'd ever lie! It's pointless, and we don't need more confused emotions to get in the way. Do we?"
"So you didn't save her because it was her?" Daybreaker asked, Nightmare Moon now gloating as she won. Chrysalis pounced on her, the two changing the game to a childish game of tag as they ran out of the room. 
Discord just rolled his eyes, he was more than annoyed with Daybreaker. "Of course not! She's a wimpy baby! Besides, I had to save her, you weren't going to."
Daybreaker smiled. "I didn't cause I thought you'd enjoy seeing her, and vice-versa." 
Discord whirled to her. "You thought she'd enjoy seeing me?" He seemed just curious as he stared intently at Daybreakers smug look. He obviously cared, he was such a liar. 
"I almost thought she'd did it on purpose just to see you!" Daybreaker said happily. She could tell the mare liked him, she was too big of a baby not to, and if Daybreaker could play match-maker, like hell she would!
He narrowed his eyes at her and hissed, "You're lying." She shook her head with a smile. 
Daybreaker looked to the hologram, she shot a beam of magic at it and it resorted back to its original state. Twilight was still there, sitting on her own. Daybreaker rolled her eyes and made it switch to someone else, she went through all of them and was more than disappointed. 
They each just sat on their own, all gloomy as depressed. She groaned and rolled her head back, "I'd even agree that we could get poor ponies to be more fun!" 
Discord seemed happier, well at least more interactive. He snapped his fingers and appeared in Daybreakers throne, "If we asked the mappy-thingy to contact the next most evil ponies in all of Equestria, do you think it would send different ponies?" 
Daybreaker nodded, "I've already tried, I did the second Twilight screwed everything up." She turned to the table. "But they aren't all in Equestria. They're griffons, yaks, hippogriffs, changelings, and there's another dragon. Only one of them is a pony." 
"Well isn't that trustworthy," Discord rolled his eyes, laying on his back in her throne. "Like we'd ever get them to actually cooperate. These idiots better figure it out." He looked to the screen and saw Daybreaker flicking through them lazily. Of course, Fluttershy was sneaking out to the gardens. He couldn't help but smile at her. 
But he laid on his back and shut his eyes at an attempt to relax. He felt someone else's presence and opened his eyes too see Daybreaker standing over him. "What? Jealous, Celestia?"
He was engulfed in orange magic and was thrown across the room next to his own throne. He looked to her and her smug look. "No, I just wanted my throne back." 
Chrysalis ran through the room, Nightmare moon chasing after her. Daybreaker smiled as she watched the two. They were like children, but she liked little sisters better. 



The elements and their princesses weren't for much sleep the night before. They hadn't been able to sleep that well, and their bodies continued to sting and ache, even days after the battle. 
They all had different reactions. Some were cold, some were lost in thought, some were always scared, but they all were quiet. They had never experienced something like their battle before, and their minds couldn't even begin to function, much less comprehend. 
They'd usually all just wake up at their own times and walk into the throne room. They'd just wait until the others would arrive, and once they were all there, they rarely spoke. And all they did was wait until someone else spoke. 
No pony ever would, so they all would leave one by one. 
But early this morning, Celestia and Magic were the only ones present, like usual. But they never expected a conversation. "What do you wish to do, Princess Twilight?" Celestia asked. Magic's eyes rolled up to look at her, their color dulled due to her exhaustion. 
Magic sighed and looked down. "Why are you asking me?" 
"Luna and I already failed. You're the next princess in command. You do understand that, correct?" Celestia asked coldly. Magic had never heard her sound like that, but there was more on her mind. 
"I can't do anything. I don't even know what to do! If we couldn't win, and we had no chances, then what more could we do?" Magic asked, emotion flooded her once void voice as she spoke. "Now, all we know is what they are. And we already accounted for them to be stronger."
Celestia didn't respond for a while, leaving the air heavier than ever. But she suddenly responded, "You will figure out something. This time you have Luna and I-"
"You are not fighting!" Magic yelled at her, slamming her hooves on the table. She ignored Celestia's intent stare. "Not in your condition. And you won't be fit to for a while. So it all comes down to us." 
"They hurt our wings. Not our horns," Celestia stated coldly. 
Magic just looked up at her, her eyes cutting through Celestia with cold emotion, close to hate. "No. You said I'm the one in charge and I say no. And that's final," Magic said coldly. 
"I'm shocked." Celestia stated.
"Why?"
"And proud. You're accepting that you want to do this yourself," Celestia smiled at her motherly. Magic just looked away, but soon looked back with a smile. 
She stood up off her throne and started pacing. "You're right. I need to come up with something. We need to stop waiting around." 
Celestia smiled at her and stood up. She trotted over to Magic and put a hoof on her shoulder to stop her in place. She stared back into violet eyes. "Wait for your friends. All of you are in this together." Magic just nodded and smiled back at her. 
It didn't take long for all her friends to tiredly flood into the room. Generosity and Honesty walked in together, shoving and giving the other mean looks. Of course, they showed Celestia and Magic nicer faces. Laughter bounced in and slammed her head on the table. 
But with the pegasi walking in, along with Flash, Magic stood up and stared at each of their tired faces. She smiled, knowing they didn't want to talk about their enemy, but she knew she had too. She cleared her throat with a smile, all her friends looked at her with void smiles and annoyed eyes. 
"I think it's time we start thinking about our disharmonized selves," she spoke loud and clearly. All she got were groans and scared stares. Kindness and Flash's eyes widened while everypony else rolled their heads and groaned. 
Magic just smiled at all of them. "We can't let them have control for too long. We need to do something. And soon." 
Loyalty sat her chin on the table and rolled her eyes. "What can we do Twi? Make it an even match with you learning electric magic or something? They're weirdos."
Generosity sighed and looked to Magic. "I agree with Rainbow. What are we to do?" 
The rest stayed silent, Laughter looking away, Kindness hiding behind her mane, and Honesty hiding under her hat. Before Magic could speak, Celestia did. "You all will find a way. You always have." 
"We always had something before," Loyalty told her. "Now we don't have the princesses, friendship, or the elements. We're boned!" 
Celestia just stared at each of them as they hesitantly agreed. And this time, Magic spoke before she could. "Look girls, we have each other, and we know for sure what we're against this time." 
"And what's that gonna do Twi?" Loyalty yelled at her. "We know they have a lot more magic, a dragon, and me. What do we have against that?"
Magic just smiled at her, as she had done a lot that day. "Look, I understand why you're skeptical, but just think, we know there's a huge dragon, and we know who's... I guess threatening!" 
"So what do we do with that?" Honesty asked, sinking into her throne with her hat as low as it could go. "Why not just lock 'em up in magic and lock 'em in a jail cell 'till we figure out howta send 'em back?" 
"If we do capture them, I ensure you they won't be sent back," Luna stated coldly as she walked in. She loved the feeling as everyone stared at her, but knew not to think about it. "My sister and I have talked about it, and we'll execute them for their crimes."
Everypony just stared at her, their hearts felt as if they were pierced by arrows. "No!" Flash shouted desperately. "You can't!" 
Celestia and Luna still handled him as a guard, coldly and sternly. "And why not?" Celestia asked rudely. "We cannot trust them to sit still in Tartarus, and what happens when we open a portal to their world? Every bit of scum from theirs floods into Equestria." 
Flash didn't realize he went against the princesses, and for a mare he was supposed to despise! He couldn't believe himself, he thought everything with Twilight was a fluke, but risking his job for her couldn't be a fluke, could it? He shook his head. "I-Its just... that's not what we do in Equestria. We've never done it before." 
"Not while you were alive Flash," Magic said quietly. He just stared at her, appalled. He was more horrified and disgusted with his alicorn than the enemy's. He was horrified and couldn't stand to be there. 
He shook his head and started towards the door of the room. "Where're you going?" Laughter asked, glancing at the princesses as they ignored him. 
"Uh... just away for a bit... I'll be back soon," he stuttered nervously as he left the room. Everypony sat in silence, but Magic couldn't be more worried. She had only felt closer to him since the fight, and now it seemed he didn't think so.
But she ignored it, going back to the conversation at hand. "I agree with the princesses. They get executed. We can't trust to send them back anyway." 
Everypony nodded silently, Kindness hid behind her hooves and her mane, terrified out of her mind. Laughter suddenly jumped up onto the table. "Wait! What about Cadence!? We can get her help!"
Honesty sat up with a smile, pushing her hat back. "Oh yeah! We can get Shining to help too!"
"No." Twilight stated bluntly. Everypony looked to her, confusion morphing their expressions. "I'd rather have Cadence and Shining as back up. I'd rather not lose everypony."
Honesty fell back into her throne, Laughter bouncing into hers. "Then what do we got, princess?" Honesty asked rudely with a huff.
Magic just stared as everypony looked at her. She finally felt ready to be in charge. "We have each other, we have a plan, and we have their emotions to our benefit." 
"What do you mean by emotions, dear?" Generosity asked as she tilted her head, trying to see Magic at a new angle. Magic just smiled at her, feeling motivated to do something. 
Magic puffed out her chest with confidence as she straightened her posture. "Electricity saved me. She might not do it again, but that means she'd be hesitant to fight against me." 
Loyalty rolled her eyes and propped herself up on her hoof. "There's still a dragon and the Controlling weirdo. What do you think we should do with that?" 
Magic smiled. "Trap them of course! And if they get free, just trap them again! It shouldn't be that hard, especially at the beginning." She paced back and forth with a smile as she tried to think of something else. "Plus they're probably paranoid."
"And if we can't capture them?" Generosity asked rudely, close to sneering at Magic. "We just die to green fire or something?" 
"We'll die!?" Kindness asked before Magic could debunk it. She cowered into everything she could cower in, her hooves, her mane, herself, and her throne.
Loyalty flew up out of her seat. "Of course they can kill us! And if we make one mistake, we're done." She turned to Magic and flew in her face. "And it doesn't matter if they don't want to kill you cause that doesn't mean you can talk her outta hurting us." 
Magic stared up at her, her heart sinking along with her confidence. Generosity noticed and she just felt awful. "I'm sorry sweetie, but we can't do this. There's too much at risk." 
Magic shook her head. "Our lives are not a huge risk for the safety of Equestria!" They all gasped, they were all appalled. 
"How could you say that!?" Laughter bounced in front of her. "We can't just give ourselves up! They aren't the last threat Equestria will see!" 
Magic sighed and looked up at all the scared faces, even the princesses looked worried. She just looked away, not able to look at them. "The princess' can find more. But if we don't make it out, we just have to make sure they don't win. That's the only goal!
"Equestria has always needed us!" She said proudly, confidence and motivation rising in her throat. "And they always will, but even you girls won't be around forever, so somepony has to take our places." 
"And you're saying that might be this time?" Generosity asked quietly. 
Magic didn't answer. "It might not be. But that's not what matters, what matters is that our only goal is getting out with the princesses on their throne. Not those monsters." She finally looked up at everypony's worried expressions as they now understood. 
"We will make it through this. We always have and we always will. We will succeed, and we will get out," Twilight tried to embed some hope into them all. "We get rid of the dragon and Control, let me deal with Electricity, and we don't have that many left." 
They all hesitantly nodded. Magic sighed in relief and sat down on the floor, trying to catch her breath. The silence in the room was full of motivation, fear, and high stakes. 
But a flash can cut through silence very easily, especially if that flash leads to a bored draconequus. He was more than puzzled as everypony ignored him, and as the atmosphere was heavier than chocolate milk rain. 
He put his claw and paw on his waist. "Okay. What's going on here and why wasn't I invited?" 
Celestia rolled her eyes. She looked to the draconequus. "Discord, this doesn't involve you. Go away." 
He huffed and snapped his claws, appearing behind Magic and Loyalty. He pulled the two under his arms and whispered to them as he stared at Celestia. "Alright, what's going on?" 
Loyalty pushed herself out of his grasp as Celestia groaned, looking down at the table. Laughter jumped on the table. "Some of us's appeared in Canterlot and took the princess captive! They're from a different dimension, by the way. But then Flash told us and we went there and fought!"
The three just stared at her as she explained. "Then! Then we got the princesses back here so we're figuring out a plan to go back and take back the castle!" 
Discord seemed interested until it ended. Then he rolled his eyes and pushed Magic away. He groaned and snapped his claws, appearing in mid air. "Oh how boring. Just go there now and take the castle or something! Send them back to their dimension so I can have tea with Fluttershy already!" 	
"It's... um... a lot more difficult than it sounds," Kindness stammered as nopony else wanted to explain it to him. 
"How so?" 
"It's just... we were only able to get the princesses last time. W-we... um.. couldn't kick them out..." she tried explaining, seeing that he didn't get it, she gave up. 
"The girls lives are on the line this time, Discord," Celestia explained bluntly. "So let us deal with it. You aren't needed." No one had any clue why she was being so short with him, but they didn't care, he was more annoying than help anyhow.
He huffed and crossed his arms. "Well. I guess I'll just go!" Kindness felt bad for him, but she didn't fight it. Everyone sighed in relief, but soon realized he didn't leave. 
"Uh, aren't you gonna go?" Laughter asked and bounced on the table in front of him. He just seemed more annoyed. "We kinda gotta think this out so we don't get hurt." 
Honesty rolled her eyes. "Oh for Celestias sake, what do you want? Cause if it's tea then it's gonna have to wait." She propped herself up on the table, seeming more annoyed than Celestia. 
He sneered at her. "Well! Don't you think I could help! I'm the lord of Chaos!" He pointed at himself. "Maybe I could help you all so you don't die!" 
Laughter smiled at him. "Oh yeah!" 
"No, you'll be more of a liability than a help," Celestia stated bluntly. "You'd play with them. You do not understand how serious this is Discord." 
He just raised an eyebrow at her. "Anything that threatens tea time with Fluttershy is serious to me, Celestia. Besides, as I heard it, you put Princess Twilight in charge." 
Honesty slammed her hoof on the table. "So you knew what was goin' on you eavesdropping' jerk!?" 
"Not exactly, Applejack," he mocked her accent and stuck his snake tongue out at her.
"This is an exact representation as to why we can't trust you," Celestia stated coldly and rudely. But she still looked to Magic for the final decision. 
Magic just looked between the two, trying to think of the right solution. Kindness' voice interrupted her thoughts, "I think we should. What's the harm in him messing with them? They'd just try and deal with him." 
Discord smiled at the only mare who seemed to be on his side, as always. "Thank you Fluttershy," he bowed, causing her to smile and blush. Of course, he didn't notice. He turned to Magic. "Well, it is your choice, Princess."
Magic smiled and nodded. "It would help, I suppose." She ignored his pride over Celestia and continued to think forward. "Alright. So are we ready to come up with a plan?" 
Everypony nodded as she started pacing.
> Hope in the Smallest Hooves
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

After many plans are finalized, a lot of things are brought up. Especially if that finalized plan was made on a whim after a different, almost traumatizing event. 
Sadly, all the mares and Flash were terrified of executing the plan, which came next. But Magic couldn't stop going over every step, it was even worse when she walked through the halls of her new castle. One she might never see again. 
She tried to not believe Rarity's fear of their death, but she knew they could die, well her friends could. Their Twilight would never hurt her, and she just wanted to know why. But she didn't even had the time to theorize. 
Her mind was zipping back and forth slowly between events from her short lived life. As if her foreboding feelings caused a slow relapse of her life to play, as if her mind and body knew her death was up next for her. 
Her time in Celestia's magic school, her Canterlot friends, Spike. They all replayed, and she could only thing about how much she missed her home and her family. Then her head would flash to Ponyville, she'd start crying. All the wonderful, wonderful memories of her childhood couldn't even come close to beating the memories she had made in Ponyville. 
She transformed a Princess back to a Princess all with meeting her best friends in the whole world. She became an alicorn, she transformed a wicked monster into a friend, all of that wouldn't have been possible without her friends. And they were going to be right there in this upcoming battle for Equestria. 
She desperately wanted to believe that a higher power would ensure that the bright light of Harmony would come out on top. But her biggest friend, Science, wouldn't have it. So she left it be. 
But as her hooves clicked against the frozen floor, she couldn't help but try to perfect her plan, paranoid of the smallest mishap. She wished she wasn't. It wasn't going to help anything, especially when she needed to focus and relax. She didn't need to use all her brainpower right now, but she was. 
She turned down a hall and saw Spike standing in the foyer of the castle, smiling up at the pictures on the wall. She shook her head. "No, absolutely not."
He flinched at the sound of her voice and turned to her. "What?" 
She furrowed her eyebrows with a frown on her face. She shook her head again. "You are not going with us. You stay here with Starlight and the Princesses." 
His eyes widened and his body faced her. "Why!?" Her stern look didn't shift. 
"Like Rarity had said, we could die. You aren't going with us," she said sternly, ignoring his terrified look. "Starlight would need help running the castle and Equestria in my place if I happen to ... you know." 
He shook his head, disbelief covering his face. He crossed his arms in the form of an 'x'. "No way Twi!" His claws balled into fists by his side. "There's no way I'd let you go alone!" He ran towards her and stood in front of her. "I'm going with you! You need all the help you can get!" 
She lowered her head until her muzzle was touching his nose. "No, Spike. I can't let you get hurt. You've never fought with us against Discord or Tirek. You aren't going to this time."
She picked up her head and walked past him towards the door, accepting her fate. And her decision. "Twi!" He yelled as he ran after her, hugging her leg. She just glanced down at him. 
He didn't look at her as tears rolled down his scales. "If you don't let me I will find a way onto the train. I won't go without you and let you and the girls get hurt while i'm here teaching Starlight how to be a princess. I won't do it. You're like my sister, so are the rest of you." 
He finally looked up at her with red eyes and a frown. "I-I can't! I know I'm not much, but I can still help. I don't want to lose any of you and live with it." 
His crying face broke her. She turned away to try and stop herself from crying. She sighed. "Go say goodbye to Starlight and whatever else you want. Meet us at Applejack's farm." She stated bluntly and shook his happy face off her leg. 
She heard his claws scurry down the halls as she walked through the door. She started crying, thinking that might've been the last time she'd ever hear them scratch against the floor.
The walk to Honesty's farm was the worst of all her time spent alone. Simply because she couldn't cry, she'd worry the town that didn't need to worry yet if at all. She had all these thoughts flooding her mind and she couldn't let anything out through any means effective. 
Her only method was breathing, and as much as it calmed her down, it just let the tears build up in her eyes. She almost hated seeing the happy colors everywhere. All she felt was a burden of knowing what lied underneath Canterlot's walls. Not even the mares and stallions of Canterlot knew why their princesses made a sudden departure. 
She'd smile back at smiles, nod to waves, but she was terrified for every step forward. She tried to not mind how inconsiderate they all were, she couldn't blame them, they didn't know. But she wished they knew, she wished they stood inside so her walk could be silent and uncomfortable.
She came along to the edge of the town, grass  started to stretch and a dirt road started up. Magic sighed, knowing this was the first step to goodbyes.  
The farm looked drearier than normal, so did the whole town. It was as if everypony knew Canterlot had secret overlords inside the walls. But of course, they didn't. 
The leaves on the trees almost looked rotten, they all looked brittle and like the smallest breeze could tear them. The apples looked weeks old, their shine gone and the sun didn't seem to want to nourish them anymore.
The barns paint seemed to be peeling and wearing away. Even the sky turned an ugly light blue, as if a storm was going to fall over the town for the loss of it's harmony. 
Magic walked towards the farm, seeing the Apple family's sad faces as Honesty's sat on the porch. A serious look on her face, as if she didn't want anyone to see how terrified she was. 
Magic assumed it was because of the Cutie Mark Crusaders running around happily, unaware of the serious, heavy atmosphere. Their hooves were covered in mud from the last nights rain that so badly wanted to come back and wash away happy smiles. 
The alicorn turned at the sound of cracking grass. She looked back and saw all the worried expressions stare back at her, Laughter's weak smile tried to take away from the sadness blooming in her blue eyes. It didn't help. 
She took a deep breath and looked back towards the deteriorating farm, one hoofstep forward seemed to be a taxing job. She understood why, because with every step forward, she was accepting how happy of a life she was throwing away. And she was terrified. 
The girls soon made their way to the front of the barn, all seeing the walls tearing apart while they really shined in new paint. 
Kindness looked to Generosity while Laughter looked to Loyalty. The six understanding what needed to be said to the giggles running around. "Girls," Honesty said coldly and rudely. "Come here for a second," she stated gently to ease their fear. 
The three looked to each other, in fear they were in trouble. They slowly made their way to the seven, each bumping on one of the others before them. They all looked to Honesty with wide, nervous smiles. 
Before Honesty's sad eyes could even look at them, Celestia's voice cut in. "Hello girls." 
The group looked behind them, seeing two princesses and an orange stallion staring at the ground. All the bruises had healed enough to not be as visible, and their wings had only started, but the crusaders couldn't tell anything was wrong. The smiles on their faces took away from the heavy atmosphere that was there. 
"I thought we already said goodbye," Honesty said rudely too the two princesses. "What'cha y'all doin' here?" She stood up from her seat on the porch. 
"Applejack," Magic hissed through her teeth. 
"Don't worry, Twilight. We completely understand." Celestia stated tenderly. 
"Then what'cha y'all doin' here?!" Honesty shouted at them, scaring the crusaders. "These girls ain't need the princesses to tell 'em nothin'! We know how to talk to our sisters and we know how to say the right things you don't know how to!" 
Magic was mortified by how Honesty was lashing out. "Where did this come from?" 
Honesty's head whipped to her. "Celestia's been furious at those mares ever since we got back. She ain't in the right mindset to tell our girls what we up to." 
"AJ... what's goin' on?" Apple Bloom asked cautiously, trying to fight through her apprehension. "Is everything okay?" 
And in response to her question. Granny Smith who was sitting at the end of the porch ran in crying. Big Mac looked at the group of ponies and sighed, walking inside after her to console her. This only worried the three further. 
Celestia's judemental eyes stared down at Honesty as her emerald ones stared back. "I just wanted to ensure you girls are safe. And that Discord would actually show. Which he doesn't seem to be," she stated. And of course, her condescending tone stepped in, angering another on of the six. 
"He will!" Kindness said loudly. "He wouldn't have been so insistent for him not too. He's good now." Celestia just ignored her. 
"Princesses," Honesty said kindly. "Please leave. We're safe and we will be." 
"Yes, because having to battle mares made from evil is going to leave you 'safe'," she stated, being reminded of the psychopaths who hurt her sister. The crusaders looked at their sisters with terrified expressions. 
"Don't worry!" Laughter bounced in front of them as Honesty was close to strangling Celestia. "We're just going to Canterlot to fight another danger to Equestria! No big deal! Except that this enemy comes from a different dimension with a big scary dragon and an electrified alicorn!" 
Her happy smile and bouncy voice didn't change the effect her words had on the girls. By the time she stopped speaking they were huddled together as tight as could be. The princesses and the mane six couldn't have said it any worse. 
Loyalty threw Laughter to the side. "It's not a bad as it sounds! Trust me! We'll have Discord to take care of the dragon!" She smiled at Scootaloo, who slightly smiled back. 
Generosity bounced in next to her. "Yes! We'll be fine. The electrified alicorn is a wimp! She'll be an easy foe!" Her sparkling eyes and extravagant motions allowed Sweetie Belle to giggle in comfort, just for Generosity to giggle back. 
"They ain't that tough, we got this. Besides when have we ever lost?" Honesty stepped in beside them. Smiling at their reassuring words. She smirked at Apple Bloom. "I'll take ya to Canterlot soon after we get back. Promise, kiddo." 
"We wanna go to Canterlot!" Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle yelled at their sisters, standing on the edge of their hooves. Loyalty and Generosity smiled with a laugh and nodded at the two. 
The three screamed in delight at the promise. They all hugged each other and started bouncing in a circle, chanting "We're going to Canterlot!"
Magic couldn't help but watch the scene with a smile and teary eyes. Just a few words could change someone's view on something, and that it did. They were going to win. They were going to take back Canterlot and they were going to take the girls there once they get back. 
They had so many advantages, how could they lose? Plus they had each other! And they could do anything together. Sure, they were against tough foes, but they had the greatest power ever, their friendship. 
She smiled up at the sky and saw the sun peak out from behind the clouds. All she saw and felt was hope. They were going to be okay. And as Spike stood by her leg upon his arrival with a determined smile, she was sure of that. 
He looked up at her and saluted. She nodded. She turned back to the sisters and saw they all exchange goodbyes. Honesty looked to the front door and saw Granny Smith and Big Mac with reassured smiles. Honesty smiled back and ran up to hug them. 
As they all soon turned to leave, the princesses staying with the crusaders for a bit, they all were ready to get on the train with a new sense of hope and determination. They were ready for this fight, and they were going to come out on top. Of course, as Magic walked forward with easy steps, she bumped into a set of fur. 
She looked up at the amalgamation with annoyance as he smirked down at her. "You didn't forget me, princess?-" he flicked her horn "- did you?" 
"Of course not, Discord!" Kindness smiled up at him. He smiled back and teleported beside her as Magic picked herself up. She glared at him, more annoyed that he did it and noticed him glancing at Kindness as she almost skipped with an okay feeling. She shook her head and looked away with a smile, just another nice thing to think about. 
But the nicest thing was knowing that all her friends were right there beside her, her mentors behind her smiling and sending them off. It didn't feel like they were getting on a train to their might-be-death. It felt like they were stepping out of their childhood into the real world, leaving behind a past life into a nicer one. And she couldn't be happier with the feeling. 
The group of nine waited at the train stop by themselves, which confused them, but they ignored it. What confused them even further was that when the Canterlot train showed, one, it was late, and two, nopony got off of it. While the rest tried to question it, Laughter bounced on saying to look on the bright side. 
"At least we'll be the only ones on it," Generosity smiled motherly as she stepped on. The rest shrugged it off and stepped on. 
They were lucky the train ride to Canterlot from Ponyville was short, because their happy faces definitely didn't last forever, no matter their wants for it too. They tried to smile, tried not to think about it. 
They listened to Discord and Laughter's jokes, they all listened to Generosity's explanations after one of Laughter's jokes. But once they passed what they knew was the halfway mark from Ponyville to Canterlot, the conversation took a turn for the worse. 
"I think we need to go over the plan again," Magic stated bluntly through everyone's laughter. They heard a flash while Discord appeared next to her. 
"Don't be a buzzkill! I doubt any of us need any help jogging our memories. What happened to we got this?" He asked light-heartedly. 
"That façade was for the girls," Generosity stated bluntly, remembering why only Kindness enjoyed his company. "We still understand the risks that stand." 
Flash ignored the situation, in fear they'd notice what was going on inside his head. He ignored Discords annoying voice, he ignored Generosity's annoying voice, but he couldn't cut out Magic's voice. His mind replaced what she said with a wicked twist, a psychotic noise to it, and it just sounded a lot better. 
He tried to replace it with his nice version of hers voice. Her nice laugh over a mad mares laugh, a quirky intelligent statement instead of a threat of death. He missed loving his Twilight. He missed daydreaming of her and her nice ... just pony! He didn't understand everything, so of course, he heard nothing of the rerun of the plan. 
The train stopped a lot earlier than needed. The nine stepped off a ways away from Canterlot. But they all saw that creeping of magenta over the trees and were more than terrified. 
The closer they got, the more and more the nature seemed to just be... gone. Trees had less leaves as they got closer, the sky looked less bright from the sun, the grass got more scarce the closer they got. 
But they finally saw it, the tall magenta wall in front of them, shining with electric strings. The trees around were just rotting branches, there was no grass surrounding the wall, and there was no blue above the tip of the magenta where it might've ended. 
The eight were more than concerned with it, too terrified to touch it as the wall had electric strings swimming around in the color. 
Magic engulfed a rock in her magenta and threw it at the wall, it was surrounded in electricity. The rock floated against the wall for a few seconds before flying at them, they all ducked just in time. 
Magic just stared up at the wall, anger fueling her expression. She turned around, cutting through the crowd of her friends. "Time for Plan B."
> Soft Hooves, Lots of Ponies, and Long Corridors
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The new throne room had a few adjustments. For one, the air was much heavier, as if it could hold a mare in the air heavy. The magenta light that had came to be the sun didn't flood in through the windows, curtains hung over every open crack in the room. 
But the biggest adjustment were the lifeforms. Six thrones were full of bored and agitated mares and a dragon. But the alicorn in the throne on top was a paranoid mess. 
She tried to think of a plan for the enemy side, she didn't want to lose Canterlot like how she lost everything else. So, of course, after how many days had passed, she forced every one of them to sit in the throne room. Of course, the fights they had all gotten in made that one of the worst ideas. 
Each of them could think of one valid reason why'd they let the other die. Rarity smiled up at Twilight, of course it was fake, but she needed to smile. "Twilight, darling," she started. "What are you so scared for? You have a dragon as a pet." 
Twilight didn't look at her, her hind leg bounced with anxiety. She took a deep breath and looked to Rarity, seeing the fake smile. She remembered her reason for Rarity. The mare was useless. "And what's so agonizing about sitting in a room all day? The fact that your dragon's right next to you?" 
"Shut up!" The dragon lord yelled at them. "All you mares do is fuss. So shut the hell up."
"Says the problem with scales," Fluttershy hissed. He started growling at her. The end of his wings were caked in magenta as Twilight pulled him away from his pouncing position. He just groaned. 
"He's right though. We can deal with our fueds once we for sure got Canterlot," Applejack stated bluntly. She narrowed her eyes at Rarity with disgust. "Though I wouldn't mind beating some of y'all into the ground." 
Pinkamena bounced out of her throne and started pacing. "As if you could do anything. You'd just cry and ball when she lands a shot." 	
"You couldn't do any better!" Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. She held her eyes shut at the sound of Pinkamena's annoying gasp. She almost wished the mare was still a ball on the floor they called a freak. 
Twilight bit down on the end of her hoof, the background noise dying out as she stared at her own cutie mark on a deep magenta banner.
The banner flashed to white, a flaming sun sitting in the middle of it. "	Princess please! I promise I'll pass this next test! Promise!" A small purple unicorn yelled up at Daybreakers annoyed expression. 
The filly was shot into the doors, one of the banners falling on her. "Fine," Daybreaker smirked. "Only if you can get that off of yourself, will I give you another chance."
The unicorn smiled happily. Of course she could do that, she already stood up underneath it. "Using only magic," Daybreakers voice boom, sending the unicorn back on her stomach. 
Tears instantly sprung to the young mares eyes. The rod weighed enough on its own, minus the fabric. How could she even get her magic all the way around the thing? But that didn't stop her from even trying to try. 
Her magic finally covered the banner, the vapor splitting and regrouping from the amount of surface area, but it held together. She stood up, trying to lift up the banner with her, it didn't work. 
She was there for hours, trying and trying to pick up the simple banner. Her hooves ached, her horn felt swollen and she couldn't breathe. When she couldn't do anymore, she fell and just fell to sleep. Not caring what happened to her, not thinking of her eternity under a banner, she just thought of relaxing and rest. 
She awoke to the princesses room. That was obvious by the size and glamour the room had. She couldn't think, her horn still felt swollen, even when nothing was wrong with it. She sat in the huge bed for a while, not able to comprehend where she was. 
When Daybreaker waltz into the room, she shook her head and smiled up at the mare, thinking of her as her savior. But she couldn't see Daybreakers disappointed stare. 
To her, the burning feathers for wings shone with a bright white. Her frown was a motherly smile, along with soft green eyes instead of a piercing orange. Her armor was a pure white coat. All Twilight saw was an angel. Not the fire driven demon they all called a princess
A sound snapped her out of her daydream. A crash. While everyone else in the room was at each others throats, she leapt up off her throne and ran over to a window. She pushed back the curtains and stared at the shield. It was fine, no signs of new life, meaning nothing teleported in or out. 
The room was silent and all they heard was a door bursting open. It was a lot closer than the crash. Twilight tried to be brave, but all she felt was fear. She had no idea what she'd do to herself if she failed. Disappoint her childhood angel again and she'd be done. 
But she glanced at Pinkamena, and felt her bravery grow. She needed to be brave, so Pinkamena didn't have to suffer anymore. Twilight turned to the group of ponies, they all looked bored. 
"Alright, we split up and find one of these rats. Whether its a guard, civilian, or one of those pests, kill it in any means possible," Twilight stated loudly, taking everyone's lazy attention. 
Rainbow Dash flew in front of her. "Isn't, uh, splitting up a bad idea usually?" She rubbed the back of her mane. 
"Not if you put something useless with something useful. The useless distracts enough for the useful to work," Twilight explained bluntly with a lot of attitude. Rainbow rolled her eyes. 
Magenta covered Pinkamena. "Pinkamena comes with me, Rarity, tag along with us. Applejack goes with Rainbow, Spike with Fluttershy." Magenta covered Rarity as well, dropping the two by her side. "Try not to kill each other," she stated and turned towards the door.
Once she was out of the room, they all glanced at each other. Of course, Fluttershy hopped back into her throne and lounged about. Of course, the three were pissed. "Uh, what're you doin'? We gotta job to do." Applejack stated.
Fluttershy rolled onto her stomach. "I can't do anything by myself since nothing's an animal, and I'll get the drake to kill me. So I'm safest here." She explained it bluntly. Having agreed with her, but mostly hoping something would teleport in and murder her, the Dragon Lord started for the door by himself. 
Stomping towards the door, his claws scraped against the ground as his wings expanded. The three could just watch in amazement, a wide wingspan and a vicious stomp just made him seem terrifying, and they had been living with him. Of course, the three also thought it was majestic. 
"Whatever, we don't need her. Come on," Rainbow trotted past the two with a snarky attitude, also hoping something would murder her. Applejack stared at the lazy pegasus as she trotted out after Rainbow. She almost felt bad, but that almost wasn't close enough to make her feel something. She snorted and turned her head away, agreeing with the hope of her murder. 
Twilight trekked off with the two tension carrying mares following her. She went in the instinctive direction of the crash, hoping to find something. Especially a harmonized rat. 
Rarity hated the two she was with, so of course, she fled away. She didn't want to fight with Pinkamena, and she most definently did not want to be ordered around by Twilight, so she turned a corner when the two weren't looking. She walked as fast as she could without making much noise, which worked lovely with the carpeted-floors. 
As she turned another corner, she heard Twilight yell her name and all she could do was giggle. She trotted down an open corridor with a proud smirk, not looking to her sides. She was too self-absorbed to look. Of course, she missed two ponies hiding behind the curtain in the corner. 
The two were dangerously close. Which was fine and terrible for both. Magic and Flash had conflicting feelings about the other, but the two were generally awkward no matter what, so being shoved in a corner was nice and awful.
Once they heard Rarity trot by, they went as stiff as boards, not even breathing. Once she turned a corner away, Flash was the first to get away from Magic. 
"Flash?" Magic asked quietly, worry smothered her face, including her voice. He put on a nervous smile and turned to her, his spine as straight as could be. 
"Y-yeah, Twi?" He asked nervously, his cracking voice made it difficult to keep control of it, but it was generally quiet. She took a step towards him, eyebrows curled up and her eyes full of worry. She looked as if she was about to cry. She looked away, at the ground. "Twi?" He asked again, genuinely worried for her. 
She shook her head. "I just wanted to tell you something. But I don't know if I should," her voice broke, understanding the idea of their death even further. He knew what she wanted to say, and he didn't want to hear it. Just because he didn't feel the same. 
He looked behind him worriedly as she tried to muster the courage to say it. He got the peak of a black stallion turning the corner. Of course, green eyes pierced him as Magic spoke. "I love you." 
Flash whirled to her shoving her away from him. She looked terrified, not understanding. "Just go, find Pinkie or something!" He turned away while she stood there. And once he started running, her world fell apart. She thought she got rejected, but of course, she quickly noticed the black stallion as the two started fighting. 
She shook her head and cried, understanding now. He didn't love her, and she couldn't question why. She turned away and started running, her world falling apart around her. The floor started falling away behind her in chunks created by cracks. 
The roof was lifted off the castle and was consumed by a white light as she ran towards the end of an endless hall. She just left her love to a fight and could do nothing but sob at her emotions. She blinked the tears away as the world started building itself back up. 
She had different loves she could protect: her friends. And that was her mission, he could handle himself, they couldn't. She ran even faster, turning to protect someone she loved dearly who needed it. 



Applejack and Rainbow Dash found nothing, and they were more than bored. They could hear yells and they couldn't run after since there was more than a few of them. 
And they couldn't stand the idea of being with anyone of their 'colleagues'. Even the other. They remembered being friends, but just the idea of the others annoyed them away from being friends. 
Despite being 'friends', they still began to hate each other and the others obvious views on something, like their 'friends'. They didn't even speak to the other, understanding the dislike. But the annoyance of not finding something and the annoyance of being around somepony tipped them over the edge. 
They heard a bunch of hoofsteps and clanking metal nearby. Two sets of hoofsteps told them not to interfere, knowing the guards were taking care of it. Rainbow rolled her eyes, "Good Daybreaker! How long till we find one of those ponies? There can't be that many hiding spots." 
"Shut up and stop complainin'. It ain't gonna help nopony," Applejack groaned, having heard Rainbow complain more than once now. 
Rainbow just snarled and looked away with a pout. "Sorry I'm trying to make conversation. Plus I'm bored! I can actually handle myself and I'm sure Rarity split off and found someone all by herself." 
"Well we ain't need much talkin'. If they hear us nearby they ain't gonna wanna come round here," Applejack stated rudely. 
"When did you get so bossy?" Rainbow asked suspiciously, narrowing her eyes and leaning forward. "Our Applejack's a big baby who can't handle herself." 
Applejack simply rolled her eyes. "I ain't one of them! Just dealin' with all this random drama between you, Rarity, Pinkamena... just everypony is making me speak my mind more I guess!" 
"Flim and Flam ever teach you that?" Rainbow asked, sticking out her tongue. 
Applejack bumped her away with her hip. "Shut. Up." she said rudely, staring Rainbow down. Rainbow rolled her eyes, as usual, and got back into her position, she stopped talking while mocking Applejack in her head. 
The two continued on silently, mentally mocking every move the other made. Of course, they were too engrossed in their own hatred and dislike that they didn't notice their copies on a different hall. 
The two were actually smart and didn't speak, or go after the two. Loyalty noticed Rainbow and was immediately disgusted with just the thought of the psychotic mare as the two continued past them. Honesty tugged on the pegasus' wing, "Stop lollygaggin'." She noticed the turmoil between the two and moved on towards the throne room. 
They were following Magic's plan perfectly, not getting caught by anyone, they only hoped the others were faring better as they crept along. Every corner they'd turn from they'd peak around it and hide back behind their wall and peak again. 
Surprisingly, the method worked from the back entrance of the castle to the midway halls. They'd stand on the tip of their hooves as they walked, holding their breaths until they'd stop. The closer they got to the throne room, the more worried they had become. 
All they had heard since they entered was hoofsteps and something else. That wasn't the best thing, especially since they were all heading to the same place. 
They crept past many corners, terrified they'd get caught and ruin everything. But the second Loyalty saw the huge, chocolate doors she smiled and dashed towards them. Honesty was quick to chase after her, holding back a yell. 
The two hid behind the doors, understanding that they just ran through plain sight. Loyalty looked to Honesty and saw the annoyed, angered face. She smiled nervously and crept off of the door, walking silently down the open hall. 
The floors were covered in magenta, the sun that crept through didn't listen to the glass paintings. Honesty wondered why Twilight hadn't changed those as well, but soon forgot it as they made it to the end of the hall. 
Loyalty pushed on the huge door, hearing a loud creak. The two winched as she pushed it open further. The two stepped in the room, captivated by the difference. Instead of a light, warm room, it was now dark and horrifying. They felt as if they lived somewhere else, it didn't even feel like the Canterlot Palace. 
The walls were coated in a deep violet, the floor held a long, straight carpet towards the top throne, a checker between magenta and purple. The floor themselves were a dull grey. The ceiling held a tall, large chandelier of yellow candles admitting pink light. 
The thrones shined in their own lights, the coats of the owners made up the color. Behind the thrones were large banners of their cutie marks. They almost couldn't remember what their Canterlot looked like. They barley remembered the bright colors of pink, yellow, and white. 
"Did you two not find anything?" Fluttershy asked bluntly, laying on her stomach on her yellow throne. The two froze and slowly looked over at her. She raised an eyebrow. "What? I thought you two wanted to listen to the 'queen'."
Honesty kicked Loyalty's back hoof. Loyalty's head whirled to Honesty with an annoyed look. She rolled her eyes and looked back to Fluttershy. "Uh... yeah! Just couldn't find anything." 
Fluttershy groaned and moved to lay on her back. "I know you two are the enemy. So just kidnap me or get the hell out." 
"You aren't gonna try to kidnap us?" Honesty asked, actually curious. She guessed the mare wasn't a threat, she wasn't before, so she guessed it was okay. Though she noticed that Loyalty started to slowly back up as the mare was faced away from them. 
Fluttershy just yawned. "Nah. I wanna go home. So failing lets me go home," she looked back at the two and jumped off of her throne. She sat on her hind legs and put her front hooves in the air. "So capture me or go find your friends. I'll tell you that Queen-can't-can-it is serious this time. Saving your princess fucked her up, so she won't do it again." 
Loyalty kept her guard up as she slowly backed away, consistently analyzing the girl. She was nothing like her Fluttershy, it made her wonder how much an evil trait did to someone. Her answer was a lot. 
Honesty turned and started towards the door, trusting the lazy mare. Loyalty spread her wings instinctively, just to make herself look more frightening as she backed away. 
The pegasus was still in her hooves raised position once the doors closed. Loyalty looked to Honesty, closing her wings. Honesty sighed, "Guess that's a problem we won't have, lets just find Twi." Loyalty nodded and the two started out of the door to start their creeping trek back. 
They turned corners they had turned many times before, but they didn't recognize them. The castle seemed like every wall and floor was magenta, the sun shining through the shields changed every color. They felt as if they were brought into the world of evil their counterparts were from. It didn't feel like their Canterlot at all. 
The only direction they could go was a straight-shot hallway they really didn't want to go down, saying as of how open it was. But every other direction back would loop around and it would take ages to get to Magic. So, they took a deep breath and slowly made their way down the hallway. 
They heard a mumbling growl and loud stomps. Their eyes widened as they ran backwards as fast as they could. They constantly looked back as they ran and eventually turned a corner, they hid underneath a deep purple curtain with light blue gems on it. They peaked out from underneath it to see what was there, even if they had a good idea of who it was. 
Once the monster turned the corner, they held their breaths, even if he was far away from them. They couldn't look away as he growled consistently. His wings were spread, somewhat bent so they wouldn't scratch the walls. His claws were drawn as he blew smoke out of his nostrils. 
Once he got nearby, they hid behind the curtain. Honesty looked behind her and noticed a dim hallway with purple doors, light blue gems on each door. Her eyes widened in fear as her head whirled to Loyalty to watched the curtain. 
She grabbed the pegasus' hoof and started running down the hallway, ignoring the noise it might've made. As confused as Loyalty was, she still ran with her. Honesty looked to the curtain as they ran, seeing the outline of the dragon. She looked ahead of her and kept running, she saw a peak of magenta light show underneath her hooves and looked behind her. 
As a purple claw started to pull open the curtain, she noticed a crouched body at the end of the hall. She guessed it was Pinkamena and looked to the doors around them. She bit onto a feather of Loyalty's wing and threw the pegasus in front of her as she watched the curtain pull open further. She pushed the pegasus into a door and fell in afterwards.



Twilight and Pinkamena walked in silence as they searched for the rats that invaded their empire. Of course, Pinkamena was apprehensive about being around Twilight, but she loved how protected Twilight was being over her. 
But she'd always tell herself that Twilight didn't deserve her. Twilight betrayed her and barley knew her, she didn't deserve to be hurt after everything that happened to her, so she wasn't going to let it bother her. 
Twilight was being way too protective. She told herself she was just doing it because she wanted too, but she knew it was just to impress Pinkamena. But she forgot about trying to impress Pinkamena with every noise she heard, she instantly stood in front of Pinkamena, never looking at the mare and always looking ahead. 
She glanced back at the earth pony, noticing the mare spaced out, staring at the wall. But once the mare would notice her staring, she'd blush and look away, acting as if she was still mad. Of course, Twilight would simply smirk and look away, forgetting that Pinkamena actually didn't want to like her anymore. 
And as being confident would give herself lee-way to talk to the mare. So, she poked out her chest and spoke with a high head. "If we run into trouble, go off and find Rarity-the-Bimbo." 
Magic watched from underneath a purple curtain as a pair of lavender and dull pink hooves trotted by, hearing the confident voice pierced her eyes and seized her heart with fear. She held her breath and watched as the two walked past. She peaked out from underneath the curtain, ready to run in the direction they came from. 
"Can't I just go look for her now then?" The pink mare snarled, leaving Twilight to lose her confidence. Magic just watched as the two mares separated, their likeness towards the other faded into the atmosphere. 
She wanted to wait for them to turn the corner, but a loud set of hooves hitting the ground hit her ears. She looked behind her, seeing the shadows of two ponies. She held her breath and saw as the two that walked past stared at the curtain she was under. 
She took a deep breath and dashed out from underneath it, the snap of the fabric adding to the noise. She heard a shout and another loud set of hooves dash after her. She couldn't bring herself to look behind her, she just turned as many wrong and weird corners as she could. 
She dashed into a room with an open door and shut it as quick and silently as she could. She looked around through her tears to find something to hide underneath or behind. 
She looked towards the door, hearing hoofsteps become louder. She held back her shaky breaths as she slid underneath a table. A loud wham! followed. Her hooves covered her mouth as she shivered, her wide eyes watched the ground in front of her. 
Every nerve shook in its place, the top of her skin tingling. She heard loud hoofsteps as she silently held back everything that wanted to escape her. She couldn't hold back one loud, shaky breath. 
In response, she heard loud, consecutive hoofsteps. They got louder and louder until she saw a lavender hoof. She backed up as far as she could, shaking eyes watching as more hooves passed by. She sucked in her gut, her shoulders and back were as straight as they could be against the back of the desk.
She saw the mare stop in place, and she slowly saw a blue mane show through. "Hey Twi!" She heard a punkish voice say, the blue mane retreated, and the lavender hooves walked away. She breathed as quietly as she could when they spoke. "Did you find anyone? We can't find nothin'." 
"Found their me. Lost her though. You two keep looking down this hall, she ran somewhere down here," she heard her own voice repeat demandingly. 
"And what're you gonna do?" She heard a southern voice demand curiously. 
"Look for somepony else. Gives you two some fun with that bitch," her own voice stated bluntly. "Though make sure not to kill her. You leave that to me." 
She heard some 'mhm's and some hoofsteps fade away. The door slammed shut and her hooves fell to her sides as she let out a deep breath. She hunched over herself, her hooves covered her eyes as she started to silently cry. She was terrified. She thought this would've worked out better, but she was so, so wrong. 
She hoped and begged that her friends were okay. She was happy to hear that three, well four, hadn't found anything yet. But that didn't tell her anything about the other three. 
Once her panic attack had faded away, she climbed out from underneath the desk. She took another few deep breaths and crept towards the door. She sighed with her safety that she had had, understanding that now it would fade away again. And she also knew she wouldn't be as lucky next time. 
She crept open the door and looked to her left, down the long end of the hall. She sighed and stepped out of the door and looked to the other end of the hall. 
She screamed and turned the other way running as fast as she could. The two chased after her, one with a sick smile and the other with an annoyed look. 
She never looked back, just staring at the mix of magenta and grey as she ran. The two mixed together, they swirled into one as she started feeling sick. But her aching hooves reminded her of reality. And so did the endless noise of racing hooves. She practically slid past the corner, almost hitting the wall. 
She looked on the wall and saw a picture of Celestia and tears hit her eyes. A shout from the two confirmed where she was. "End of the road, deary!" 
She looked up at two large doors, the word 'library' posted at the top on a gold plate. She shoved her hooves on the ground as she stared up at the chocolate color. The tip of her hooves slightly touched the door as her muzzle was just a centimeter away. She quickly turned to look at the two hyenas who slowly approached her. A twisted smile on Rainbow was imprinted in her brain. 
She was terrified. She looked all around, even after understanding she was at a dead end. She tried to push backwards through the doors to wrap around, but she knew she'd only get cornered even further. So she did the only thing she knew to do in her time of danger. 
"GIRLS!"



Loyalty and Honesty held their breaths as they heard a cacophony of horror. Hoofsteps running, and loud stomps were the only things behind the door. Their minds worked in overtime as they tried to find something to hide under.
They wanted to help whoever was getting chased, but they couldn't. They had a five-foot tall dragon behind the door searching for them. 
The room was an utter mess. Fabrics and gems covered the floor as the vanity, mirrors, and shelves were covered in junk. Their eyes were glued to the doors as the stomps got louder and louder. They swallowed and lunged underneath pieces of fabric in the corners of the room. 
As Loyalty pulled her tail from the open, the door slammed open with irritation. She tried to peak through the fabrics to see where Honesty was hidden, but she was terrified he'd notice. 
So she prayed Honesty was okay, hoping the mare would scream if he found her. And as Honesty prayed the same thing for Loyalty, the two hid in a silenced fear as he stomped around the room. 
The Dragon Lord growled at finding nothing. He knew he heard something, but maybe it was just hid excuse at seeing what Rarity had fixed up for herself. "Damn that mare's messy," he mumbled at the sight of the room. None of the others were any better. Especially the one he guessed she slept in, though it seemed she could sleep anywhere with the amount of fabric she had everywhere. 
"Where did she even find this stuff?" He asked looking around. He always thought the castle was empty rooms and a throne room. That's how his was. So was Embers actually. He sighed and turned back towards the door. Maybe dragons just sucked. 
As he pulled the door open, he heard a loud scream. "GIRLS!" He guessed it was the rats, Twilight wouldn't have screamed. She would've teleported away. He wondered why the mare didn't do that actually, maybe fear. 
In a shocking response to the scream, two ponies dashed underneath his arms and out of the door. He was too confused to even chase after them. He looked back at the room and saw the two piles of fabric disrupted in a different way than before. 
He sighed at his own stupidity and walked out the door, shutting it behind him. He was too bored to go after them, what did he need here anyway? He had his kingdom and a Princess he was gonna marry. Why did he even agree to go here?
He put his back against the door and he looked up at the door in front of him in the darkness. "Oh yeah," he snarled. The purple door with light blue gems. The colors were normal, the curtains didn't allow any magenta to seep through. He just smiled at it. Rarity was too self-centered to even let Twilight's color in on her little cave of herself. 
He almost liked her little cave, it felt like an actual castle. He wouldn't have minded staying in her little home inside a castle of Twilight's. He ripped one of the scales off his arm and growled at himself. He was being stupid, like she liked him. She just used him. 
And she's just making herself think she liked him, to make her feel like a pony or something. Ember was similar, he knew how it played out. And he barley knew her! How stupid was he?! He sighed and headed towards the curtains, contemplating just flying away and finding this worlds Dragonlands. 
But of course, once he opened the curtains, he got a glimpse of Rarity as she trotted away with a smirk of defiance. He just growled to himself and turned back behind the curtain. He put his back to the wall and slid down it. 
He looked down the hallway. "Why not just stay here until we lose?" He asked himself and hugged himself. "God you're stupid."



Honesty and Loyalty dashed underneath the dragon and down the dark corridor. They didn't look back as they ran, they went as fast as they could, their hooves ached against the ground, but they didn't care. 
They turned a corner, the curtains snap echoing down the hall. They knew anypony nearby could hear, but they didn't care. They slid down the hall, turning the corner, and almost running into the wall, but that didn't stop them. Their adrenaline peaked as they saw two ponies of their colors. 
"Get away from her!" Loyalty shouted down the hall. The two didn't slow down as the two at the end of the hall looked at them, giving them a glimpse of the terrified Twilight. 
She pushed her hooves on the ground, stopping right in front of herself as her anger rose above the castle. Her pink eyes locked with her own as she saw the bored, twisted spark in them. Air blew out of her nostrils as her chest rose and fell violently. 
"Stay... the hell.... away from her... you... monsters..." Loyalty spoke rudely between pants, not moving a centimeter away from herself. 
Honesty just stared at herself. Watching every move the orange mare made. The mare crouched down in a pouncing position, clearly having learnt more independent skills since their last visit. 
"Make me," Rainbow said as she backed away from Loyalty with a smirk. 
The four had a staring contest, not noticing who was approaching the scene. But Magic saw as herself slowly walked forward, the magenta shining from the window made her look as if she was glowing. It was like looking at an angel, one that would turn on you any second. 
Twilight didn't see the same thing. She saw Magic curled up on the floor, her own shadow standing over her, creating a darkness that surrounded the mare. And all she saw was that, a lavender mare crying on the floor in the dark. And she didn't want to see it. 
She hid underneath a stand, staring up at the apples on the stand next to the one she was under. She licked her lips as her stomach growled. She bit the inside of her mouth as her mind played out the scene.
All she had to do was take it and run. The pony behind the stand was too fat to run after her for a while, and no one else would care. 
She nodded and took a deep breath. She dashed up from underneath the stand and grabbed an apple. She heard shouts and gasps as she instantly turned to run. Her ears cut out the noise as her mind raced with adrenaline. 
After a while of running, she turned down an alley on the outskirts of town and bit into the juicy apple. She tried to savor the taste, but her stomach took over and she devoured it. She smiled down at what was left, hungry for more. She looked back outside, ready to go again, her adrenaline didn't seem to go down. 
As she ran out, she was pulled back in by her tail. She looked at whatever had a hold on her tail and she saw a phoenix. It glowed in the dark and looked at her sternly. She pouted. "Hey! Leave me alone stupid bird! I'm starving! I need it!" 
It tilted its head, still looking sternly at her. She rolled her eyes. "Please! Like a stupid bird can make me question what's growling right now!" 
She puffed out her cheeks and just stared at the bird. "Look. I know where Shining is! I didn't lose him!" 
It tilted it's head in the other direction, more curious this time. "I know he's okay! So are my parents!" Twilight shouted at the bird. "So I have to make sure I'm okay. So I can be healthy when I see them. They'd worry if I was a stick."
The bird hopped towards her and nuzzled against her hoof. She shoved the bird away. "Yeah, they're dead. Daybreaker killed them, it might've been her sister. I stopped caring." 
The bird nuzzled again. "I know. I shouldn't. I should just ask someone to let me in, right?" The bird nodded. Twilight sighed and sat against the wall. "What's the point in that? They'll just say no. They'll know I was in Daybreaker's cult." 
Twilight looked down at her cutie mark, a bright sun sat in its place. Everypony hated Daybreaker, they wouldn't let her in if she had her cutie mark. 
She leaned into the wall, the phoenix nuzzling her. She suddenly jumped up off the wall with an idea. She whirled to the bird with a smile. "I just have to get a different cutie mark! Then they'll let me in!" The bird smiled up at her. She stood up on her hooves. "And I know just where to get it!"
She started to run, the bird following her. The closer she got to her destination, the more apprehensive the bird got. The bird eventually stared up at the back of the Canterlot Castle. Twilight smiled and snuck in through the back entrance. 
She quickly snuck towards the library. She looked through every scroll, trying to find a cutie mark spell. Every book on Cutie Marks was trying to answer the why of them. Every scroll did nothing. 
She rolled her eyes and looked up at a whole extra wing of the castle. She stood up, leaving all the books and scrolls on the floor. "I never saw this before." She told the bird, reading the gold plat above the wing. 'Starswirled the Bearded'.
She shrugged and walked through, not noticing the golden material that she walked through. The bird tried to warn her as she looked through every scroll. But even they didn't have what she needed. 
"Ugh!" she groaned and fell on her back, only to look up at a smirking, white mare. Her eyes widened as she rushed to her hooves, quick to back up against the wall. She instantly started crying as Daybreaker smiled down at her. 
Daybreakers shadow covered her in a darkness. But she knew this wasn't it. It wasn't even close. She looked to her bird friend, leading Daybreaker to notice the bird. Twilight yelled, "Fly!" The bird didn't even get off the ground before it was consumed by a gold. 
Twilight winced as she heard a snap. "You make my job the funnest it could be, Twilight Sparkle." Twilight heard a magic spell and glanced at the bird, seeing as a gold rebuilt its insides. Tears fell down her face as she lunged towards the bird, not noticing the difference. 
The bird bit and hissed at her, she backed up against the wall again, feeling even smaller. She looked up at Daybreaker, not able to see through the blurry lines. "The guards will be here soon. So just wait here. And thanks for the new pet. It's immortally mine now." 
"Twilight," Twilight spoke quietly, but everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at her. Her face contorted into anger as she frowned, her eyebrows furrowed. She stood straight as she could be, her chest poked out. "I'm not going to protect you this time." 
Magic saw the bright violet eyes stare at her with the fury of a million stallions. And she was terrified, but all she saw behind those eyes was a crying filly who wanted to scream.
> You Make My Job the Most Fun it Could Be
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

At the sight of Twilight, Loyalty and Honesty dashed by their opposites to defend Magic. Rainbow and Applejack would've stayed where they were, if Twilight hadn't dragged them next to her with a bored look.
Everypony's skin itched with a want to fight and an urge to be done. But as Twilight made every decision, a conversation seemed like the more appealing option. 
She looked bored, her violet eyes changing from shine to dull. And her expression just seemed numb, but only Magic noticed these features. "How do you like the castle?" A void voice asked loudly as the magenta around her got brighter, just due to a cloud moving out of the sun's way. 
Magic shook the tears out of her eyes and stood on all fours, ready to pounce as she frowned and furrowed her eyebrows at Twilight. "It's ugly." Of course, Rainbow howled with laughter. Twilight rolled her eyes and kicked the mare into the wall. 
"Let me guess, you're splitting us up?" Twilight asked, getting her answer from the shocked looks on the three's faces. "I'll tell you this, it won't work. I don't think you realize the benefits to being evil." She spoke as she slowly walked towards them, cornering the three, staring only at Magic. Sadly, she was getting lost in herself again and she couldn't see past it. 
She shook her head and furrowed her eyebrows at the mares once again. She knew that if she kept it up, Pinkamena wasn't going to be the only thing she'd lose. And this time, it wouldn't be temporary. "You already got cornered. And we have a pyscho mafia leader on our side. So, wanna give up?" She asked, taking note of Loyalty and Honesty.
All four stayed in a pounce-like position, ready to fight whenever Twilight or Magic gave the go too. Rainbow and Applejack were just pissed. They'd been walking around and once they find something they had to wait? Oh, they were furious.
Magic quickly took steps toward Twilight, allowing Rainbow and Applejack to smile with anticipation. The alicorn shoved her forehead on her own, shoving Twilight to the ground. Twilight still looked bored once she looked up and saw furious eyes staring down at her. She flinched and just watched as Magic yelled at her. 
"I promise you, good and harmony is a lot stronger than whatever you monsters stand for!" Magic yelled loudly and furiously, Loyalty and Honesty standing behind her with their chests poked out. "And I promise you, you won't win! This little joke you tried to pull will be the last thing you ever do!" 
She stomped towards Twilight until she stood over the mare. "You've ruined my hope and that's the biggest regret you'll ever make!" She didn't care for Twilight's fear that grew in her eyes, she didn't care for the mare she stood over, cause that mare ruined the last three weeks of her life. She didn't deserve her empathy. 
Twilight crawled away from Magic, horrified by how similar something so pure was to something so evil. But she'd look at those eyes and everything would just flood back to her mixture of emotions she couldn't express. She sighed and stood to her hooves, "Thank Daybreaker you don't have yellow eyes," Twilight chuckled. 
She looked up at Magic with a smile, a genuine smile. There was no malice behind it, there was nothing, just a pure, genuine smile. "I think I've let my dogs wait too long." 
"Shut it already and let us get this over with!" Rainbow barked at her. Twilight rolled her eyes and slammed her hoof on the ground, a seismic wave of magic cracked the floor they were standing on, caving underneath the weight of them. 
The three elements screamed and lunged towards the others as the floor finally gave out, sending them to the darkness of the underneath of the Canterlot Castle.
Just as the three stood up, two were knocked down again. Loyalty and Honesty looked up to see the other on top of them. "Dammit, it's dark," Rainbow growled and hopped off of Honesty. Applejack did the same, majorly annoyed with her 'friends' voice. 
"Just shut it already!" Applejack barked at her rudely, ignoring the three who just watched them argue. "You don't have to comment on everything with your annoying-ass voice. You wouldn't have had to complain if it weren't for your psycho want to fight y'all self."
Rainbow shoved her forehead against the earth pony, Applejack did the same to avoid being knocked down. "You think your so good don't you?" Rainbow asked. "Cause all I see when at look at you is a big baby who misses her daddy." 
"Being irritated out of yer mind does a lot to somepony," Applejack snarled. "And I all see when I look at you is a stuck up wanna-be. You ain't ever gonna be a leader again and you know it, so stop actin' like it!" 
As the two argued, the three had a conversation through movement. Honesty looked at the hole in the roof, watching as the debris around the hole fell around them. Honesty looked towards Magic and tilted her head past the two arguing. 
Magic looked at the two worriedly, wondering if the two would be okay. The two smiled and nodded, noticing the two's argument getting less and less interesting. They violently swung their heads at the mares, telling her to sneak by. Magic smiled hopefully at the two and walked to the side, getting out of the small amount of light from the floor up above. 
She snuck past the arguing dogs, wondering if everypony on the enemy side was the same way. Well, she'd figure out once she gets out and can talk to her friends all about it. She smiled as she looked back at the two, seeing them ready to fight once the two fillies were done. 
She slid past the two silently, it wasn't that hard, the falling rocks and their echoing yelling made it quiet easy. She still hugged the walls until she was far away, knowing she'd need it as she couldn't see anything. 
Once she was far enough away, she dimly lit her horn, only able to see a hoof in front of herself. And she did it at just the right time as she saw a table in front of her. She smiled at her luck and moved over to the middle of the path, knowing there wouldn't be much in her way. 
She couldn't hear anything from her friends now, she hoped the two were still arguing. She still moved slowly, but she felt safe, even if she had no idea where she was. 
But she would soon figure out as light started flashing to life far in front of her. Her eyes widened as she started running the other way, back to the start where she fell in. But she couldn't out run the bright fire of the candles. 
The end of the hall finally lit up just as she started to approach it, seeing the four paused in soon-to-hit positions as they wondered at what was happening. 
The four stared at Magic as she watched what was happening between them. Loyalty underneath Rainbow, fixing to get a hoof to the side of her face. And Honesty in the same position except she was on top of Applejack with a cut on her face. 
She shook her head at the sight of her friends hurt again. She didn't want to see them hurt ever, and now she couldn't move. But at the upcoming hoofsteps, she whirled around and saw Twilight walking towards her bored. And to her horror, she saw the longest corridor she had ever seen, and all she saw were prison cells. 
"Where are we!?" She shouted violently at Twilight, on the verge of tears as she knew exactly where she was. 
"The Celestial Catacombs. You are aware of how executions were held by the virtuous Queens and Kings of Canterlot, correct?" Twilight asked her, standing a few meters ahead of her.
Magic shook her head as she fell from her hooves, screaming at the top of her lungs. She felt so much, pain, fear, terror, depression. She tried to get rid of some of it, she couldn't handle all of it. She was so scared by everything and she couldn't take it.
Of course, Twilight felt compassion for her, but not enough to make her feel better. She felt so much power, she almost wish she could take the girls pet and snap it's neck, only to make it immortal. "They were so virtuous that they didn't allow themselves to kill their victims. So they let them die of dehydration. That was before they discovered Tartarus, correct?" 
"How do you know this stuff?" Rainbow asked, just to get kicked off of Loyalty. Before Loyalty could get caught by Rainbow again, she dashed over to Magic and just hugged her. Honesty spat in Applejack's face and hopped off the mare just to do the same. The two consoled her as she sobbed loudly. 
"Twilight Sparkle," Twilight said compassionately, hoping to fool the mare. She won, seeing Magic pick her head up, leaving her red eyes open for anyone to see. She smiled wickedly. "Get the hell up already." 
Magic was horrified at how cruel the mare was being. She had stolen everything from her, including her will to live through this hell. She never expected herself to be her biggest enemy for her to ever be against, but she wasn't not prepared. 
She weakly stood up, watching Twilight's violet eyes fade into a bright, yet murky red. She guessed she embraced what she did best, and that was stealing something so precious she'd tear something apart from the inside out. She was a parasite, and the longer she lived, the worse and stronger she got. 
She slowly stomped towards herself, finally standing closer to herself than she had ever before. She weakly hit Twilight's horn with her own. Magic looked up, seeing that bright red. And she really almost wanted it to be the last thing she saw. 
But she'd look back at her friends and saw Applejack and Rainbow creep up on the two and she knew it couldn't end. She knew she couldn't let the parasites override their systems. She had to be stronger, just like Celestia always was, just like how everypony she'd ever loved always was. 
She turned back to Twilight violently, slamming her horn on hers. Her bright violet eyes sparkled with electric strings as did her horn. She spat, "I'll see you on the other side, you parasitic witch." 
Before anyone could question what she meant, her horn glowed brighter as a magenta ball around it grew and grew, electricity sparkling more violent than it ever would. She didn't lighten up as she stared into those murky red eyes as she finally realized this wasn't her. She wasn't this. And she couldn't have been happier. 
She didn't expect the electricity to grow in that red, but she didn't back away. Twilight smiled and whispered, "You make my job the funnest it could be, Sparkle. Let's go together." Her smile turned to a malice-filled wicked smile as the large ball of magenta collided with a red. 
You could hear the electricity buzzing as the light got brighter and brighter. Eventually it started to roar loudly as the magic tried to beat the other. Orbs of the magic broke out, slamming into the wall, crashing through it until it'd tried to evaporate, just to gravitate back into it's mother ball. 
The ball cut through the floor above them flooding the room they were in with the strongest magic in Equestria as the two magic's collided and repelled the other at the same time. Honesty and Loyalty couldn't see past the light, but they couldn't look away as the two defied science. 
And they didn't realize their screams would be the most catastrophic thing they could do. Hooves wrapped around their necks, scaring the two as the oxygen stopped hitting their lungs. 
They didn't have time to react to it any further as the huge amount of magic slammed towards the ground, breaking through it as it bounced towards the ceiling, throwing everypony with it as they all slammed through it. 
The magic didn't stop there as they kept breaking through the floors, inside the magic as it travelled faster than them. Soon, they all stared down at all of Canterlot as the two magenta shields broke, they finally felt the sun on them. It was heavenly, but that didn't last long as the magic evaporated into the open air, leaving them to the air as they all fell. 
Magic couldn't hear her friends screams anymore. She just watched as Twilight smiled at her, disappearing into another ball of red. She quickly dove after her as the magic started closing.



The crashes and roaring could've been heard all the way from the outskirts of Equestria. It was almost deafening to those inside the castle. 
Fluttershy folded her ears and held them there as she heard it, worried and scared out of her mind from how violent it sounded. It sounded louder than any animal she had ever heard, and she had spied on a dragons roaring contest before!
She held her eyes shut as she begged it wasn't chasing after her.  Even after all the noise stopped, she didn't move from her curled up position. She didn't let her ears up, ignoring how bad they hurt. She didn't open her eyes as they wanted to see what had happened. All she did was shiver as she constantly held her breath. 
She finally opened her eyes as she heard the doors creak open. She stood entirely still as she silently cried. She had never felt so alone, so isolated. She felt like she was out in space, destined to die to the biggest spaceship that wouldn't have seen her. 
She had never been close to anything that dangerous. And she had no idea what to do, and now it was in the room with her, ready to eat her and leave all of her animals alone forever. 
She jumped away into the back of the throne as she felt something cold and sharp touch her shoulder. She looked up and she saw the Dragon Lord staring at her with the most confusion she had ever seen. 
She pushed his claw away. "Get the hell away from me!" 
"What's wrong with you? It was just a surge of magic," he said, ignoring her red face and her wishes. He couldn't tell if she was embarrassed or genuinely scared. 
"Then why was it roaring!?" She yelled at him, almost louder than the magic surge in his opinion. She was still shivering and he had no idea why. She was never this scared before. But of course, he decided to be an idiot. 
"Probably Twilight's or something. Broke through the floors of half the castle. You alright?" He asked her, actually worried about her, she hadn't made fun of him yet, so he was still up with staying with her. 
She didn't look at him. "I'm fine, just go fuck Rarity in your spare time why don't you?" She asked rudely. He just sighed, trying to ignore her stupid comment. He didn't know why he didn't expect her too be too stuck up to tell him. 
"Well you don't seem okay. I can stay with you if you want," he said, hoping she wouldn't be as mean. 
She stood up off the throne, really wanting to say yes. She really wanted a huge, caring dragon to stick by her and protect her. But she was too stuck up to say yes. But she could at least be nice. "I'm not who you like Spike. Go save Rarity, it'll make her happy. You know she regrets what she did." 
He stiffened up, his back as straight as a board. He sighed, falling into a slouch and he rubbed the back of his neck. "This has nothing to do with that. You just seemed really scared. And if they already broke half the castle, what do you think they could do to you?"
She turned to him and smiled weakly. "I promise I'm okay if that makes you feel better." He couldn't stand it, why did he find bitches appealing as all hell? He ignored it, he knew she was just cute on her own. "Look, I live in a forest. I know how to hide!" 
He just ignored her and walked past her, hoping she wouldn't say anything. He was going to go investigate whatever happened with the magic earlier. "Hey drake, gonna go get a piece of Rarity?" She asked smugly. 
He just turned red and growled at her, swiping his tail in anger, hoping she was behind him. "Shut up already, Fluttershy." He left the room again, leaving her to an empty kingdom. And she couldn't have been more proud of herself. 
Once she heard the second set of doors she threw one of her hooves in the air, along with herself. She smirked proudly as she hovered alone with her hooves on her hips. 
But not every pony was as lucky as she was. She didn't get a front row seat to the roaring monster made of magic that smashed through the floors. And Sadly, Pinkamena was the biggest victim. 
She had caught up to Rarity, the two walked together in silence a distance away from the other. Rarity constantly switched between being in the front and in the back, she didn't want to be the prime victim in one place for so long. 
The two would gladly let the other get murdered, but they wouldn't do it themselves, sadly. 
But Rarity got the chance of a lifetime once the magic broke through the floor. The two heard the roaring prematurely, stopping in place and wondering where it was coming from. They didn't have to question for that long. 
The roaring and buzzing got louder and louder, until it broke through the floor. The bright light blinded the two, the loud noise deafening their ears. But they couldn't look away from sciences abomination. 
White sparkles sat and swam inside the red and purple as they joint together and repelled constantly. But the most terrifying thing was seeing ponies inside the horror. 
Rarity was appalled as she saw two versions of Twilight, Applejack, and Rainbow as they screamed through the magic's noise. But she was more worried about her own life as she moved backwards away from it, as far as she could be before she hit a wall. 
Pinkamena however, looked into the magic as it streamed upwards. And she got her glimpse of Twilight before she met her height. And all Twilight seemed to do was stare at her and her alone. Pinkamena felt like she was on clouds as time slowed down. 
She took a step towards it, hoping to grab Twilight out of the monstrosity. But time went to fast and she was gone like that. "Twilight!" Pinkamena yelled up as the magic started to end, the floor around it crumbling. But Pinkamena was too lost in the idea of her second best friend as the floor felt non-existant. 
She fell, but quickly grabbed onto a solid piece of the floor. Her eyes flashed to Rarity as fear consumed her, letting that light, heart-warming feeling leave her. "Rarity!" She yelled at the horrified mare. 
But she knew once she saw those light blue eyes go to a murky color, that she was screwed. "Help me!" She still begged. Rarity just snorted. 
"No one calls me wrong and gets help," she smirked. "Except my Spikey-Wikey of course! But he'll never love me again," she looked sad again. But she picked up her head and smiled at Pinkamena. "Sorry honey, you weren't a real big contribution anyways."
She snorted again, giggling with it as she started to trot away, leaving Pinkamena to her demise. Pinkamena watched Rarity trot off with her mouth hanging open as her hooves started slipping. She closed her eyes and just tried to breathe. Cheese always told her to do that, but this time, she didn't know how helpful it would be. 
She kicked her back hooves, feeling nothing beneath them. She knew it was stupid to look down, so she simply tried to pull herself up. But as the floor underneath her hooves was cracking at just her attempt, she knew it was useless. 
She looked back, it wasn't that far down. She'd survive, it'd just hurt a lot. She looked ahead of her and sighed, knowing it was the only option. She took a deep breath and threw herself off of the floor, hoping to not cut her hooves on the rock, it didn't work. 
As her cuts started to burn, she just stared up at the sky, almost dreaming that Twilight's magic would catch her. But she saw the magic evaporate, and it was one of the prettiest sights. But her admiring didn't last that long when dark black mist wrapped around her. 
She smiled as she closed her eyes, sinking into the warm feeling of what she wanted to be Twilight's magic. The mist slowly let her down, and them evaporated into the air. She still smiled, hoping she was in Celestia's room getting cuddled by Twilight. 
She was being petty, but she was so happy she was. Cause she never dreamed of Twilight like this before, and without the mare around, she was already hooked on her now. And they were gonna be okay! At the end of all this, she'd get her first kiss from Twilight. She promised herself it. 
She opened her eyes and looked up at the sky, seeing as colored dots in the sky got closer. She stopped caring. But she closed her eyes dreamily, hearing the swoosh! of the air as they got closer and closer. But magenta covered her before they hit. 



Twilight used a trick Magic had seen before. Going in between different places, seeing different things all at the same time. Twilight was obviously hoping to lose Magic by teleporting from and to different places in the castle. But Magic always followed right behind her. 
Magic saw the destruction her surge of magic left behind as Twilight teleported through opening in the air, not by flashes of magic. She would've questioned why she teleported through openings, but her thoughts ended at the sight of their catastrophic damage.
Walls were crumbled at the bottom of the mess, floors had huge holes and were still falling apart. And when they'd teleport above all of Canterlot, she saw ponies flooding out of the city, as if running for their lives. 
The magic that had changed the castle had died, leaving everything back to its original pastel colors. But that didn't make the sight any prettier. Parts of walls sat on the floors, cracking them and everything seemed to tear from the surge. 
But it was so weird to her, she'd travel through parts of the castle that were torn down and ruined. But then she was teleported over to halls of the castle that were simply pastel. She'd even teleport through the gardens, just seeing the fauna and flora. But as she ran through the gardens, she looked up at the castle. 
She gasped, she saw the magic start to die as the walls faded back to their original color a lot slower than the rest of the castle. But even the material the walls were made of started to crack and wear down. As if the magic in the air started to ruin it.
But once she was inside the castle, she'd teleport past her friends, but they had no time to see each other or to even say a word. No matter what, she knew she had to stay on track. She couldn't ever let the opening die out before she could fit through. 
It seemed as if they did it for hours on end, Magic just watching as an opening of red would flash as a navy blue tail would pass through it into another part of the castle.
After getting over what she had done to her teachers castle, she started to analyze why. And she was more than confused. She saw the mares horn flash more than once, and only one opened a portal. And she tried to understand why the mare was opening portals instead of teleporting, its like she wanted to be followed. Which wouldn't be that crazy sounding, saying as Magic was following her. 
But soon, the two stopped above the castle. Magic waited for Twilight to open another portal but it didn't happen. Twilight slowly turned towards Magic. "How?" She asked curiously.
"How what?" Magic flew a step back as Twilight leaned forwards. "Why are you opening portals? You know there is a better way to teleporting. And don't lie to me. I know you know so answer me!" She asked rudely, yelling at the horrendous, curious being in front of her. 
"How are you so filled with hope and determination?" Twilight asked, already seeing Magic's apprehension to answer the question. She flew towards the mare and grabbed her hooves intently, mad curiosity on her face. Her grip was tight on Magic, but that didn't stop her from teleporting out of it. 
Magic teleported behind her and crossed her hooves, staring at Twilight like a stern mother. "Answer me. I'm not playing your games anymore, you parasite." 	
Twilight just stared at her, seeing her mother in the mare. Of course, she hadn't known her mother that well, but she knew her well enough from the many times she compared her to Daybreaker. "I'm not playing a game. But I won't answer yours if you don't answer mine." 
"Answer mine first," Magic demanded, crossing her hooves further and furrowing her eyebrows as far as they could go. Her cold, motherly frown didn't give Twilight much of a choice. And she understood it, Twilight's question wasn't as revealing of a master plan as Magic's was. 
Twilight sighed and left their flapping wings as the only noise. She looked up at Magic, seeing her violent violet eyes pierce through her. Twilight's eyes didn't change, but Magic wouldn't have let that effect her words. But she definitely didn't see a pattern, even after understanding what prime part of evil Twilight was. 
Twilight was thievery, Magic understood that. Just as Pinkamena was sorrow and Applejack was trickery. But maybe she didn't understand what type of thievery Twilight was. Twilight wanted to steal everything from herself, including every last emotion. 
And stealing her trust was next after the mares will to live. But sadly, she had to start working backwards as Magic fought through Twilight's hopeless push. She was so curious as to why. So she knew she had to lie, she couldn't reveal what she was doing. Her eyes even seemed to get darker and murkier. 
"I think it's evident I love you, Twilight," Twilight spoke with a smile, and her smile grew at the sight of red on Magic's face. "Like I would ever want you to be separate from me throughout this endeavor.
"As you probably don't want to join my side, I want to get the most out of your time before we have to separate from this in whatever way we will," Twilight said bluntly and happily, fooling Magic majorly. She was so proud of herself, but she couldn't let it seep through. 
Magic couldn't think, she was so confused. It seemed too fake to be true, too good to be true. It couldn't be that simple, there needed to be a master plan Twilight was evolving to, she was Twilight Sparkle after all. It couldn't be out of simple love. It just couldn't be. 
But Twilight's voice pierced through her confusion, once again. "Your turn, my love." Her face shot with red as she held her breath, looking up at the mare. Twilight even looked lovesick and she couldn't stand it. 
Magic didn't hide the disgust from her face. "Uh yeah, well, it's just a plus to being good." She started to ignore the look on the mares face, understanding herself why she'd never lose hope. "When you have so many ponies to win for, you never lose hope, you're always determined to fight for what's right. And that's why we have to win against you." 
"I'm sorry, Twi," Twilight spoke lowly, actually sorry for the mare. She hopped she was smart enough not to get herself killed, she did feel like she was in love with her, but she didn't want it to get in the way. 
Magic was more than confused at the quick words, but she didn't mind them. She genuinely seemed sorry and in love, so she could certainly use the mare to her advantage. But her thoughts were cut off by her voice, "But I have to succeed. Daybreaker taught me from to much pain to let you win." 
"What happened to you? Why aren't you good!? You're me! The most good thing in Equestria?" Magic asked instinctively. She felt so bad as she saw tears fall from the mares eyes and into the air. She knew who Daybreaker was, but what would Celestia have done to her there that she didn't do here?
Twilight smiled up at herself. "Walking through hallways of correctional facilities is the most fun thing ever. Just seeing such justices stand so high above you, laughing at your wicked and messed up mind." She looked to the ground, feeling her memories flood back made her want to stop flying. 
"I was a filly, Twilight. I wanted to turn my life around for good, but I didn't know how," Twilight explained sadly, watching her life replay, trying to make sense of the scenes. Her hooves hit the sides of her head. "I tried to change my cutie mark, so I snuck inside Daybreakers Castle. I tried to steal something from the library with a friend."
She looked up at Magic, her murky red fading back to the bright purple. They looked frozen, as if she was being forced to live through these things again. "Daybreaker caught me and sent me to a nuthouse, they only made it worse.
"But once I turned eighteen, I kept stealing things to live. I even stole someone's home!" She looked up weakly at Magic and smiled. "I'm so happy not every version of me had to live through that." She looked down at the sky below her, seeing the massive hole in the roof of the castle. 
She glanced up at Magic with a smirk, wondering something. Her eyes turned a murky red, all she had to do was secure her trust. She put back on her façade, looking weak and pathetic. Her wings started flapping slower and slower. 
She looked up at Magic. "Actually, I don't need to be here. I can't hurt you, I can just let my life of pain go to waste, can't I?" She could already hear Daybreaker yelling at her for her stupidity. "I'll go now." Her wings snapped to her back as she fell quickly. 
She let her hooves fall in front of her, staring at the sun as her tears fell from her face. And all she could do was smile as she watched her own death get further and further lost under the sun. 
She didn't even see when Magic lunged for her, catching her right before she hit the ground of the catacombs. They just stared at the other, their eyes locked. All Twilight could hear were their breaths as she watched her own face in Magic's violet eyes. She killed her urge with a realization. 
Twilight looked away, guilt-ridden. "Twi, I'm sorry." 
"For what?" Magic asked, feeling her heart grow with fear as she just declared her care for this mare. And she knew it wasn't empathy or compassion she felt. She knew it was genuine likeness. She shook her head. "Don't trick me, Twilight." 
Twilight smiled weakly, her hoof gently touched Magic's cheek. "I'm sorry, I would kiss you if I didn't like someone more. But if I did, would you run?" Magic shook her head and placed it against the mares chest, knowing what was happening. 
"Don't do this to me, Twilight, please," she shook her head as her shoulders bounced with her sobs. "Please! Don't steal everything from me! Don't hurt me like this!" 
Twilight picked up her head with her hooves, feeling cold tears hit her skin, not wanting to hit her fur, as if every part of Magic appreciated her. "Look, I promise I won't kill you or your friends, okay? You and them are safe in my hooves." 
"That doesn't change that you're going to reveal you lied to me, your lie lead to feelings, so now you're going to reveal your master plan," Magic said quietly, feeling safe in Twilight's hooves as long as she could before they were going to inevitably leave her. "Please tell me I'm wrong." 
She felt the motherly lips of the mare beneath her on her forehead. "Twilight, I love you. Just know that. If things were different, we'd be happy together." And Magic's hooves instantly hugged herself at the sound of the flash and the absence of a mare in her hooves. 
She heard the flapping of wings above her, but she didn't have to look up to know who it was. She simply sobbed to herself. "Twilight, promise me we loved each other in a different set of worlds. And I'll reveal the safety of everypony to you." 
"I promise I loved you somewhere else!" Magic yelled as loudly as she could and as soon as Twilight stopped talking. Her heart finally fell apart as she sobbed louder, hearing flashes around her. She finally looked up a few seconds after the last one. 
And she saw each of her friends and her enemies in Magenta orbs, all of her friends trying to break through. Her enemy all bored and kicking the orb, hoping to give the mare a headache. 
"Twilight!" Pinkamena shouted up at her Twilight, happy as could be. She felt on top of the world, taking in the sobbing Magic. Her Twilight did that. And Magic could tell who Twilight loved, saying as Pinkamena was the only one who screamed her name. Magic felt incredible hate for this mare. 
Magic couldn't even care for her friends, she just felt so much hate for the dull pink mare. She could scream for hours at the mare who took away her everything for just a few moments. But the sight of her friends finally mixed in more emotions. 
She saw Spike, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, Laughter, Kindness, and Discord all sitting inside the orbs, trying to slam through them. She wondered how big of a headache Twilight must've had, but she quickly ignored it, jumping to her hooves and running towards them just as quick. 
She looked towards Twilight's flying body numbly, seeing an angel as the light of the sun lit up her edges. She ignored her feelings. "So, what're you going to do to us?" 
"A challenge of evil and good. A split-up, just like you and your friends planned," Twilight explained bluntly, feeling hurt at the angry look Magic had on her face. "There's no limits, so if you manage to team up against one of us, it's cool. No games, Twi... Twilight." She ignored her want to give herself a nickname in the presences of Pinkamena, feeling so happy the mare yelled for her. 
"Fine," Magic spoke, raising her hooves and spreading her wings. "Game on, Twilight." 
Twilight smiled down at herself, feeling that immense power, feeling so controlling as she had stolen everything from Magic that she didn't even fight her. She was so in love with the mare, but her eyes locked onto Pinkamena, seeing the mare smile blissfully. 
As magenta engulfed Magic, Pinkamena floated towards Twilight giddily. "Hi," Twilight smiled at her, just for Pinkamena to smile happily back. Rarity scoffed at the sight of her. She looked towards them all. "We'll all be separate, so enjoy finding and battling whoever you find in the ruins of the castle."
They all teleported above the castle, watching as mist started to circle around the castle. The mist shined a bright orange and red circle along with the blue and black. The circling mist got faster and faster, all the colors bleeding into the other. But the circle got closer to the castle, starting to slowly crushing the walls. 
The crushing was loud, just as the roaring of the mist was. But a catastrophic noise was suddenly made as the mist shot into the walls, tearing them from the inside out. And Magic could only see Twilight's magenta as the mist. 
The walls fell loudly, even heard from their height. Once the dust and mist lightened up, they were all able to see the ruining of the castle. But they didn't have that sight for long as they all vanished from the sky, all but Pinkamena. 
"Pinkamena I-," Twilight turned to her, just to feel her hoof on her lips. Pinkamena smiled at her. 
"It's okay. We'll fix it once we're done. Let's not let it get in the way," Pinkamena smiled. 
Twilight smiled back, but that smile faded at the sight of cuts on the mares hooves. She instantly grabbed them to examine. "Who did this?" She asked roughly, examining the really minor cuts. 
Pinkamena shifted nervously at the thought of ratting someone out during one of the happiest moments in her life. "Uh. Can I tell you later? I don't want it to... you know... ruin... anything." Twilight smiled at Pinkamena, seeing nothing but her mare in front of her smiling back. 	
And the two vanished from the sky.
> Magic Inside Canterlot: The End part 1
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once the magenta disappeared around Magic, she didn't give herself the time to think about whatever the hell just happened to her.
Her hooves moved on their own as bits and pieces of the castle still fell around her. Her head kept flashing through images of her friends, smiling and happy. Just to see this new enemy of her tear it all away, and she couldn't say it still felt new. 
Her mind kept track of her surroundings, the beige and yellow colors of the castle floors and walls building up. The indents for design didn't line up into squares of checkers anymore, they were all separated and looked like simple cuts in the material. 
The sun shined down on everything brighter than before, but the air was even heavier than the sun was bright. The mist that broke the castle surrounded her in an orange that seemed to slow her movements. Her mind involuntarily took in her surroundings as she walked away from the castle. 
She saw large pieces of wall or floor jammed into the ground, standing over her like a statue. Once she passed by it, it fell to the ground loudly, but not even that snapped her out of her determination to save her friends. 
The pieces made a path for her, like a yellow brick road, the flat ground shined in a bright yellow sheen. Walls stood high over her, falling after she passed by. It felt like magic, she knew it must've been magic. But there was no magenta. 
But not even that mystery kept her from her thoughts. Her friends smiled at her, all of them laughing on a normal day. Nothing went wrong, and then these beasts stepped through their portal with wicked smiles, standing over Canterlot. The skies turned to dark clouds as lighting and thunder started playing. Ponies ran away for their lives as her and her friends were forced to stay, just to take all the pain for all of Equestria. 
She wanted to save them, to keep her friends from hurting any more. They didn't deserve it, their lives weren't built to take everything for Equestria. They were friends. 
She even saw them at the end of her path as the yellow started ending, leading to the tiled floors of the city. They smiled at her, calling her over for the end of the fight. They won, and they could finally celebrate and feel harmonious again. 
But once she went to hug them, they disappeared in her hooves, the image fading as she scrounged around for them. She breathed heavily as she stared down at her hooves, her body creating a shadow on them. Rage ran through her veins as she picked herself up quickly, whirling around violently. 
Her breathing didn't calm when she stared at the horror Twilight had made of her childhood home. The sun shined bright over the ruins. Yellow upon yellow, she could only wonder how it looked at night. 
Her veins felt like they were exploding in anger as adrenaline started pooling into her system. Tall walls stood against the ground, leaning against more torn down parts of the wall. Everything was broken, sparkling in their new horrific and mortifying formation.
Parts of the walls were torn apart, ruining the painted design or mural that sat across them. Bits of purple, blue, and pink stood out against all the yellow as glass windows were either intact or shattered against the pieces below them. Most none of them were intact. The sun might've caused for the brightest shine, but it made for the darkest shadows.
But at the center, stood the biggest piece of even ground. But that piece of ground stood on top of maybe hundreds of pieces of ground and wall, balancing at a tilt that pointed away from Magic. But she saw the glass stained windows of her friends levitating around the huge rock. 
One of her transforming into an alicorn was shone down on the road and track she had just ran from. She never noticed it before, she didn't know how. But before, she could imagine it stretched across the path beautifully. Now, it stood, upside down to her and stretched and ruined by the fallen pieces. 
She stared up at the huge rock, already sensing that Twilight was there. The mare that did the worse thing ever to her. She stole her friends happiness and that wouldn't stand. She wouldn't let the mare get away with taking away all the Harmony from Equestria. It was already bad enough that she got this far trying.  
Magic looked down at her hooves, her friends horrified faces flashing through her mind. She gave one quick pray that they were safe and looked up at the huge rock. She would've screamed, by there wasn't a point. Twilight already knew she was coming. 
Her hooves went as fast as they could, running across one quick surface just to jump on another. She knew climbing that monstrosity would take forever, but she couldn't just teleport up there, she'd need all the magic her horn had left to offer. 
But she was ready to fight. She was ready to be Harmony's last stand. 



Twilight thought it would be fun to through the Dragon Lord into a dungeon. As funny as he found it that he found a harmonica, he still didn't think he'd need to be in a dark dungeon in the undergrounds of the castle. 
Since he doubted that anyone was down there, he picked up the harmonica and started playing it terribly. He was incredibly bored playing it in the cell. So he stood up, still playing it, a kicked open the door for the cell. 
He didn't expect the barred door to hit the wall on the other side of the room, the harmonica's tune taking a turn for confusion as he watched. He shrugged and continued on, the tune taking for a bubbly attitude as he assumed the hinges were rusty. 
He kept playing it numbly, just taking in the surroundings. Dark bricks covered the floor, his claws scratching the surface of them.  The grey, stone walls were covered in cracks that seemed more for design than from age. He passed by cells among cells, only imaging a lot of dragon skeletons.
Candle holders sat in the middle of the cells on the wall. Candles still sat in them, which made him wonder what ever happened to these catacombs. Especially if they never used up the candles they replaced. Or maybe Twilight just replaced them earlier. He honestly didn't care anymore. 
The harmonica echoed loudly, filling his ears as he walked like a four year old, just being outright silly. He didn't know why Twilight would throw him in the catacombs alone, of if she did a randomization spell or something, he never understood magic anyway.
The sound of his harmonica actually got decent, still awful, but not ear-bleeding awful anymore. It still would make you grit your teeth and yell at him to stop. But he assumed he was tone-deaf, so he didn't care.
The long corridor of horrible cells was only lit by holes in the ceiling. He passed under one huge one, but lots of rocks stood on top of it, only letting in cracks of the light.
But many of the holes in the ceiling were small and or covered by rocks, so it was pretty dark, but there was still a slight light, he didn't know if it was his eyes as a dragon or just the weird light. He wanted to believe the former, then he could call himself half cat. 
But he was brought away from his thoughts as the happy tone of his harmonica fell to a somber curiosity. He didn't hear anything, the harmonica still filling his ears, but there was shadow running towards him at the end of the corridor, getting closer and closer. 
As he was lost in that, the lights around him flamed alive, light blue light casting an icy look on the whole cove. He watched as they came alive, like in an old Dracula movie. His harmonica's noise was finally out played as hoofsteps got louder and louder, slamming against the bricked grounds. 
He whirled around and stared down as a mare got close to running into him. Her white fur shined icy in the light, her mane looked duller as she breathed heavily, not bringing herself to look up at him. But when she did, she looked beautiful. Her eyes sparkled with fear as her features were enhanced by the terrible light. His harmonica stopped as well as all of him, his heart and mind froze, his muscles were unable to move. 
But that soon ended when she turned. Her eyes widened as she scurried behind the Dragon Lord. He followed her with confused eyes until he looked up and saw the enemy stopped in front of him, breathing just as heavily and looking just as scared. 
"Hah! Live with dragon breath! Punks!" Rarity shouted confidently, sticking her tongue out at them as she stood close to the Dragon Lord. 
"We can outplay a dragon!" Spike yelled, his thumb pointing at him as his eyebrows furrowed. "I've done it before." The Dragon Lord growled loudly at him until he hid behind Generosity. 
Laughter stuck her chest out and shut her eyes with a cocky voice. "Yeah! It's still Spike!" 
"Hey!" Spike yelled at her. 
The Dragon Lord forgot about Rarity, honestly knowing just his presence would keep her safe, so he didn't have to try. So he stomped towards the three with fury until he stood over them, his claws drawn and his shadow covering them from the blue light. His eyes were the brightest thing they could see as he stood over them. "Really?" 
He didn't give them a chance to answer as he blew a huge stream of fire where they stood. They all jumped away as fast as possible, only the end of Generosity and Laughter's tails getting charred. 
He watched with curiosity as his fire stuck to the floor, climbing up the wall at an attempt to find something to attach to. The green fire fell to take over the candle, the candles color changing to green instead of completely melting the candle. 
The fire reached over to the harmonica as he dropped it, trying to burn and fuel itself from the material. All it did was melt the material of the harmonica, the colors oozing together as the fire gagged at the material and ran away to the ceiling, lighting another candle on it's way. 
Other than lighting that and melting the harmonica, it stuck to the ceiling until it died out, accepting its fate. As he was busy watching it, Laughter came out of nowhere behind him and jabbed her hind legs into his spine, knocking him to the ground. His face almost slammed right into the material of the harmonica, he could see the heat radiate off of it and quickly sat up and backed away. 
His tail swung in anger to his demise as Laughter bounced on it. He jumped to his feet, holding his tail as it throbbed with pain. He looked around for those mongrels and only found Rarity. 
"You couldn't help any?" He growled at her, forgetting who he was talking to. But he didn't care, he was too annoyed with the situation. He was a lord, couldn't he just fry those dweebs? And he was promised a relaxing, boring harmonica trip, not an adventure to save a brat. 
She didn't answer, she just cowered into herself. She didn't move, but she didn't look at him. She just stood in the middle of the pathway, her red, embarrassed face wasn't noticeable under the light. 
The Dragon Lord rolled his eyes and started walking. Once she didn't come with him he growled. "Come on. I don't need to run all the way back here to save you." He heard her swallow as she apprehensively stood away from him, still walking with him. 
They walked for a few minutes, only letting the pain in his back grow into a stinging ache. He could've swore that mare broke one of his scales. But his tail didn't hurt as bad anymore, thankfully. He'd have the worse back pain in the world over a stinging tail any day. He didn't know why, every other dragon didn't care for their tails, but he did. 
Instead of the harmonica filling the air, it was instead his scratchy claws and her loud hooves. It annoyed him more, especially since he guessed it just helped the enemy brats plan. He knew they had to be planning something. They just had to be. And just as he thought that, they revealed their master plan. 
His eyes were glued to the floor in anger-fueled thought. Allowing him to see the string that sat across the floor made to trip him. He froze, staring down at it. Rarity quickly screamed as more hoofsteps were added to the floor. 
He whirled to her and froze as Generosity had her horn pointed towards him, it glowed light blue. He had no idea what that stupid mare was made of. She was useless before, right? Daybreaker, he couldn't remember! He wasn't there!
So he knew he had to be cautious as Laughter's hooves covered Rarity's waist. The mare tried to break free and not call out for the Dragon Lord. She didn't want to be anymore of a burden, but the mares hooves only got tighter around her. She held her breath, almost imaging hearing the snap! of her ribs or spine, as gruesome as that sounds, it seemed believable.
The Dragon Lord had to act fast, and Generosity's warning and threat speech helped him think of what to do. His main priority was getting Rarity out unscathed, even if his tail was ripped off his body. 
"So! You'll surrender to us, or we'll just take her. You're choice, sleaze ball," Generosity spoke confidently. 
His breathing was the only thing he heard as time slowed down to the icy lighting. He lunged at Generosity, not caring what happened to him. Her horn fired, hitting his chest with a strong sting as his claws dug into her hooves. The pain hit him once time sped up to normal, it stung and ached and it covered his entire body. It felt like paralysis as he jumped off of the mare. 
He stared down at his claws, determining his hate for magic. How could that do so much? His entire body ached as sweat started falling over his scales. He didn't get time to think as a smaller him rammed into him, elbowing hit gut and pushing him to the ground. 
A smirk spread across Spike's face. "Yeah! And stay down!" 
"SPIKE!" Rarity cried as she hung her head, the mare behind her unaware of how tight she was crushing her. She looked up and saw him against the wall, a small dragon gloating in front of him. Tears started rolling down her face, even if she was aware he was still alive. She gritted her teeth and fought against whoever was holding her. "Leave him alone, you little runt! He's ten times the dragon you'll ever be! Let me go!" Laughter's hooves covered Rarity's now, holding them against her waist. 
Spike just smiled, amazed and confused by how easy it was. He got his answer when Generosity and Laughter stared, horrified by what was behind him. He started at them, extremely confused as he slowly turned around, staring up at the tall dragon with red eyes. A huge hand slammed him to the ground as they were at a corner of the entire catacombs. 
He stomped towards Generosity with his wings spread as she tried to hit him, her magic did nothing as his claw inevitably wrapped around her throat. "Go find your little dragon friend and then we'll play cat and mouse, got it?" 
She nodded frantically as she tried to fight his grip. He threw her down to the ground and looked to Laughter and Rarity. All he saw was Rarity crouched and curled up to herself on the ground, her shoulders shaking with fear. 
He looked around numbly for Laughter, hoping to not let her get advantage of her again. He failed as the jumpy mare flew out of a cell, bouncing up to his height as slamming her front hooves against his chest knocking him down to the ground. She pushed as hard as she could, attempting to hurt his head on the rocks below. 
As he was dazed, she punched his tough scales, hoping she was doing something. Her hooves ached and trembled with fear as her heart raced. Her chest fell and rose violently as her hooves kept jabbing and pushing roughly into his scales. She felt a few cracks under her punches, scratching her hooves and staining the other scales on his face with blood. 
He was too dazed to think, all he felt was an overwhelming pain in his skull as she hit him. The back of his head throbbed with heat as his face stung and was numbed with pain. The cracking of his scales sent his nerves on fire as blood made them sting even further. 
He was furious, he wanted to get up and bite her head clean off. But his body couldn't move, is this what a concussion felt like? He wondered as the pink blur above him stopped, horrified. A far away scream left her mouth as she was hit off of the Dragon Lord. Light blue stung and spread across her body as she cowered against the wall. 
With that pink blur gone, he sat up and held his head as a migraine sat inside it. He looked to his left and saw Rarity standing there, her chest puffed out as her eyebrows furrowed. Even if he could see her trembling, she still acted strong. 
A new fire erupted inside him at the sight. He had no idea what it was, but his closest guess was magic. Even if he hated magic. He stood up, ignoring the other fire he felt on his face's nerves. He ignored Rarity, not wanting to think of her. 
His tail swung heavily as his eyes narrowed at the three who huddled together worriedly. His claws seemed sharper than before, he seemed taller than before, and his wings seemed larger as he spread them, even holding them at an angle to keep them from scraping the walls. 
They didn't get the time to run, or the benefit of a conversation. All they got were bleeding ears and extreme heat as he roared thunderously. You could see the sound waves in the air as a huge fire escaped his throat. The sound boomed, never leaving any volume on the walls.
The sound echoed for what seemed like hours as the fire blinded their vision of the others. The fire reacted the same as before, as if it was alive and looking for something to burn. But this time it was different, and this time it made it evident it was magic that controlled it. 
The fire flew past the Dragon Lord once it found nothing in front of him. The green fire with a now purple center confused him, but his haze of conjuring that up made him numb. But the idea of Rarity made his mind click as it flew past him. 
He looked to her, worried out of his mind, just to see her standing there. The fire surrounded the wall and jumped on her fur, but it didn't burn her. It lit her in a green glow, her shadows becoming purple. Her blue eyes sparkled in the light as it danced on and around her. 
His claw reached out for her, but he couldn't move. All he saw was an angel standing in a green fire, the purple gravitating around her and making her the center of something he created. It followed her as she looked around and tried to walk through it, as if she was made of it. Ember burned and died against her skin, but it abruptly ended, ruining everything. 
It all just vanished, leaving a slight amount of smoke against the roof of the ceiling, looking to rise higher and out of that hell. He instantly looked away once her eyes stopped sparkling, wanting to desperately forget her for one second. 
She didn't speak, she just followed him quietly, fearing to make to much noise. It didn't take very long for the three to make themselves present again, as they guessed he wouldn't be able to breathe fire again. 		
Light blue shots hit his arm, leaving the limb to sting. But too many nerves were sending to much to his brain for it to do anything. He looked for Generosity, but was quickly sidetracked as a pink mare started bouncing around the hall. He ran for her, trying to swipe to grab her, determined to bite her head off this time. 
She bounced off the walls and the ceiling even, moving further and further away from the dragon. Spike came out of a cell and burnt the scales on his leg, distracting him. They charred and stung as his head throbbed with all the pain recently. He wondered how lava did nothing and why this dragons fire did. 
But he didn't have time to contemplate as his body stung to paralyze him. Laughter finally stopped bouncing and attempted to jump at him, light blue collided with her side as Rarity jumped to his side. Laughter hit the wall and fell to the ground, coughing up blood in to the wall. The lighting really did make blood look blue. 
As Rarity's smirk widened with pride, light green fire hit her leg. It didn't click with her that it was burning until all of it manifested around her leg. She held her mouth shut and kicked her leg to try and get rid of it. 
Her magic eventually wrapped around her leg and constricted the fire to nothingness once her mind started working again. She glanced up at the Dragon Lord and was happy to see he didn't notice. Laughter pounced on her, shoving her to the ground and sitting on her waist. 
Rarity covered her face, Laughter hitting her hooves, turning her fur in gross directions and scraping against her skin roughly. Her blood ridden hooves covered Rarity's in a light blue blood as the punches opened up her cuts. 
The Dragon Lord went to save her, but light blue grabbed his claws and pulled him off his balance. He quickly sat up, trying to cut out his curiosity towards Rarity. He heard magic and looked above him, watching as the rocks above him started shaking, white glitter like specks falling from it. 
His eyes widened as the noise of cracking and shifting rocks filled the cave. He jumped away, more smoke filling the cave and his lungs as dust was added to the mix. As the dust finally let up and the smoke teemed out he watched as the sun shined down on the small part of the catacombs from the huge hole in the ground, rocks built up a stair case that looked impossible to climb. 
Shades of yellow were added to the once cool cave. Light blue shots numbly hit his other arm and his being, scratching his scales. He would've noticed, he would've cared, he would've felt it if the sun didn't consume his vision. He'd never been happier to see something bright. Especially when he was so used to smoke stacks in the Dragon Lands. 
Laughter bounced out of the hole, Generosity soon followed. He didn't get up after them, but seeing them wait for a struggling little runt version of himself made him furious once again. He wings spread with a loud snap! as he lunged towards the opening. 
Light blue quickly covered the stair case, sending them flying upwards. The Dragon Lord flew at the opening as it closed, his claws caught underneath the rocks as he stood stuck to the ceiling, his feet scratching to stay against the roof. He growled loudly as he pulled his claws free, them snapping partially. He scratched against the roof, desperate to murder whoever was on the other side of it.
He breathed heavily, his chest rising and falling roughly. His claws eventually snapped completely and painfully, ridding his arms of their numb heaven as he fell against the ground roughly, pebbles falling against broken scales and scratching full ones. 
He breathed heavily as he stared up at the opening, unable to process anything. He missed the sun, he missed the warm glow, he missed his harmonica. And he barley knew it. 
He eyes looked a little bit back and he saw Rarity staring down at him, scratches and scuffs covered her face as her cheeks almost shined with blue blood. A new sun stood above him. And he barley knew her. 
He groaned and his joints popped as he sat up, he growled in pain as he imagined he'd never walk again. But Rarity quickly jumped to his side, she didn't speak, she just wanted him to be aware she was there. 
He stood up, his knees popped loudly and he growled as his legs felt woozy and not there. He knew he had to do something, no matter how loud his body screamed at him to sit down. He didn't need to be standing, and they had gone a long ways away from where he saw that other large hole in the ceiling. 
The sound of magic filled his ears as he was shoved to the ground. Rarity stood in front of him with her chest poked out. "Stay here. I'll go find some other hole in the ceiling or I'll make one. I'll come back to get you, you don't need to be walking." 
He didn't argue, how could he? His body sighed with relief as he laid against the wall, finally letting his adrenaline die and his muscle relax. It felt like forever since he did. He had no idea how long he was chasing around those idiots, he knew it wasn't long, it was just three nuisances and a huge target. 
But as he cut his brain off and just lie there, he felt better. The stinging turned to aching and throbbing. His muscles screamed at how much they had just been through. His scales wept at their conditions and were shoved into a different alignment, digging into his skin so they didn't fall off. It hurt like hell, but it felt relaxing. A five minute fight ruined his bodies want to function, but damn was it easy to relax afterwards. 
He fell asleep waiting for Rarity, and he knew it would be the best five second sleep of his life. It felt like hours before Rarity shook him awake. He groaned, his bodies pain becoming alive again. "We can wait here longer if you need to." 
"No," he growled, knowing he had to get up. He got up, his legs feeling more capable than before which was all he needed. He still didn't look at Rarity as he numbly followed her to wherever she was taking him. 
They quickly came upon a huge hole in the ceiling, the sun flooding into the dark hole. His hands grabbed Rarity's waist quickly and his wings spread even faster. He dashed out of the cave at the speed of light. 
Once they were on the surface, he dropped Rarity and fell face first into the ground. The suns ray on his body felt like honey as it warmed him.
He rolled onto his back and looked to stare up at the sky, but all he saw was Rarity smiling at him. It still felt like the sun as magic-filled fire boiled inside him.



Discord's serpent-like body crawled across a rotting grass. His side brushed against a crippling wall made of shrubs. His tail flicked against small budding pink flowers that were wilting before fully budding. 
The wall of shrubs made up a huge maze, two yellow mares supposedly sitting at the center. But the maze wasn't made for the puzzle, and it certainly wasn't made for tall creatures either. His body was kept low to the ground, his horns hopefully not visible, even if he guessed they were. 
But he was completely aware of his surroundings, his mind only thinking of Kindness's safety. His surroundings were horrific. His mind flashed back to when that monster appeared, it matched the scenery horrifically. 
Discord was close to taking Fluttershy out of the world, his claws sharpened. As much as Kindness and him didn't want to do or see it, they knew it'd make everything a lot easier. They knew it had to be done. And Discord was surprisingly ready to do it. 
His claws got inches, maybe centimeters away from her throat. But a snap took him away from the execution. It was distant, but evident. Pieces of ground quickly picked themselves up from next to Fluttershy's hooves. Even she was scared as they flew up to her height. They quickly left her vision and smashed into Discord's gut, slamming him to the ground. 
He opened his eyes and saw his own self standing above him, an angry snarl on his face. It was horrific to see himself stand over him. But he got a sick feeling just staring at the beast, watching as the scenery seemingly died faster. 
The branches on the trees started to sag as the bark started tearing away, peeling over and curling up. Leaves started to fall more rapidly, swaying the ground effortlessly, giving them one last moment of spotlight. They all turned brown and shrunk into themselves as they touched the rotting ground. 
The grass turned brittle, breaking at a simple burst of wind. The grass deepened it colors, losing its bright, saturated shine. The soon-to-be roses and flowers on the shrubs next to him started wilting, the petals becoming thin as paper and getting holes in them. They didn't even fully bloom as their colors started to dull and their petals started wilting. 
And the sun shined down on all of the garden, the plants died to the magic in the atmosphere, it was overwhelming the pressure of the life as it did with the castle's paint.
But the beast strangely matched the death that surrounded them. A loud flash echoed in his ear and he looked to his side, seeing Kindness was gone he sat up and whirled to Chaos, seeing the mares long hair caught in his paw.
Discord growled and saw red, flying blindly at the draconequus, he hit the tree, three loud flashes snapped before his horns got stuck in the tree. He quickly pulled them loosely and he swung his weight to the other direction, seeing the three standing there. 
Kindness squirmed, her scalp hurt as her hind legs tried to pull themselves higher to kick out of his grip. She pawed at Chaos' paw, feeling nothing but fur. Every time she got on his nerves, he swung her, giving her a bigger migraine. 
Discord hated seeing her that way. He should've hid her or something, he shouldn't had brought her along. But he tried to forget that as his tail swung heavily, waiting for the male to do something. 
"Let's play a game," Chaos stated, Discord could feel the wicked evil in the air once he spoke. He was more than disgusted, and he was almost proud of that. But this was no time to be proud of his progress towards good!
"No," he quickly responded. "Let go of Fluttershy, or I get a golem to crush you." He responded as he usually would, but this time he was aware this was him he was talking to. He guessed chaos against chaos would be stupid, so he forced it out of his mind. They'd tear the whole of Equestria apart.
Chaos smiled at his response, but an evil sparkle in his eye shined. "You're Discord. We love games!" He smiled, ignoring Discord's feelings. 
The four of them disappeared and appeared above the garden. Chaos' snap echoed loudly, resonating into the ground. The three watched with amazement as the ground caved in like a sink hole, sucking in whatever what there. It quickly formed together, creating a flat plain. 
But another snap changed that. Another loud snap sank into the ground, growing a maze of shrubs in perfect condition. Discord rolled his eyes. The maze was simple, close enough to a straight path of right angles. And he was aware of how mazes worked. 
But once he thought the shrubs were finalized in place, they shifted and started moving frantically, they eventually moved too fast to keep track of. Discords mouth fell open as they fixed to the most difficult puzzle in history. But it was fine, they were all the height of a filly. 
But even that changed with another snap. The shrubs got smaller at the edges, almost a few inches in elevation as they slowly got taller towards the center. So tall that even slightly flying wouldn't allow you to see over it. 
And that wasn't the last snap, one more and the girls were gone. Discord snapped back into reality. He growled at Chaos. "Where did she go?"
"The rules of the game are," Chaos started, ignoring his emotions. "We'll start at opposite ends of the maze, the two maidens at the center. The objective is to either make it though the maze to the mare, or find the other and duel to the death."
Discord was horrified by the game, not trusting his friend in the claws of this monster. But he had no choice as he appeared at one end of the maze. He sighed and snapped his fingers, intending to teleport to the center with ease, but he just appeared where he already stood. He tried again and again, until he gave up. He didn't even know how that was possible. 
But even his first step was into a sink hole. Falling into an eternity of black until he fell through the darkness, the darkness ended and the light shined as he fell from the sky of the maze, landing right back in place. "Oh, boy this is gonna be fun."  
But he didn't have time to think anymore as a tree sprouted up in front of him, a smiley face drawn on the front of it. He quickly jumped up and away as a smaller tree appeared in the trees... branch. The smaller tree had a smiley face on it too, the two's movements were automated as the bigger tree swung at nothing, throwing the smaller tree away as it cried for its father. 
Discord snarled at the tree. He grabbed at the fur around his neck, adjusting it like a collar as he spoke. "This other me might be more chaotic than me." He walked by the tree, digging his claws across the trees face. "But that doesn't mean he's the better Discord." But he didn't see as the tree turned towards him creepily with an angry face drew on him with permanent marker. 
He didn't have time for crawling slowly against the ground. He wanted to either face this other him or find his way to the center as fast as possible, his nerves on edge from anticipation. He honestly hoped it was the former, then he'd be done with this silly game of pranks. 
As he heard grass rustling he smiled, ready to finally fight, but as he whirled around, his mind stopped functioning as his face fell. The tree grew three times in size and ran towards him wildly. A huge mouth drawn on the monster opened and closed violently and rapidly, giving sight to the fiery hell placed inside it. 
His mind didn't think to counter it with anything as all it did was tell his feet to run as fast as possible. The only living thing in the whole garden was actually alive! The huge mouth on the thing created a loud shriek, girlish and ear-bleeding. It's huge bush of a head shook along with the things waving body as it ran. The leaves of that and its branches fell as it ran, shaking wildly as its huge stomps toppled over everything in its path. The pathway it followed was covered in leaves. 
Discord ran as fast as he could, jumping over hedges and making as many weird and confusing turns to try and lose it. It seemed to get slower as its leaves fell, by it just built the fire in its throat. His brain started to function, running as fast as he was. 
He had to think of something. If he ran it out, it'd burn down the garden, Kindness along with it. But if he stopped he'd get eaten. He quickly remembered his magic and quickly cursed himself. He snapped his fingers, a bored expression on his face.
He sighed as he was allowed the stop. The sound of liquid hitting leaves was indeed one of the best noises. He turned with a sly look as the tree just looked confused, now covered in a chocolate milk. The trees face took a turn for sad as it started losing more leaves and fire at the same time. The chocolate milk seemingly transformed the tree back to normal, but a snap! told him that wasn't true. He snarled and rolled his eyes. 
Chaos waved his paw with a smirk as he stepped out from behind the tree. A glass of chocolate milk in his claw as he quickly summoned an upside down umbrella. "Took you long enough, Discord."
"Get chased by a ten-foot tree and see how fast your reflexes are," Discord stated, his adrenaline peaking at just the sight of Chaos. Chaos smiled. 
"Still angry I hurt your mare? I apologize that I kidnapped her to make our battle more for my advantage," Chaos said bluntly, he soon broke into a howl of laughter. 
Discord wasn't amused as Chaos laughed for a good minute, slouched over himself. He eventually wiped a fake tear from his eye and waited for Discord the laugh. Once he didn't, Chaos pouted and stood up straight, throwing away the chocolate mile and the umbrella,  clearing his throat. 
"How long did you know where I was?" Discord asked rudely, not wanting to reveal why he was so angry at this beastly version of him. He was more angry that he kidnapped Kindness and lied, stating Fluttershy was in the center of the maze with her. He knew any version of him wouldn't let their yellow pegasus get even close to danger. 
Chaos smiled, seeing the anger blunt on his face. He wanted to know why, but was more curious in ending the fool and leaving Kindness to weep over him. "Oh! I've been tailing you the whole time."
"I guessed that. Now where's Fluttershy?" Discord asked impatiently, earning another howl of loud laughter. He growled and stomped towards the laughing king. His claw wrapped around the males throat, seizing his laughter. "Where is she? She better be safe, you beast." 
Chaos held his hands up as his breath started disappearing. Only after a few seconds of Discord not letting go did he remember he could teleport away. His fingers fumbled to snap, and they eventually did. 
He appeared a few feet away beside the tree. Chaos rubbed his neck. "Now I understand what you mean about the reflexes," he stated emotionlessly. He turned to see Discords reaction, but a fist slammed into his face, throwing him to the ground. 
"What Discord hits!?" Chaos cried, now holding his cheek. Discord was done with talking, he lunged towards the monster. Chaos' fingers moved on their own, snapping him out of harms way and into the sky. He watched as Discord whirled to him angrily. "You're actually doing this?" 
Chaos snapped his fingers again, vines climbing around Discord. The draconequus tried to fly away, but the vines quickly wrapped around his legs and his hands, climbing over his shoulders. Discords teeth bared at Chaos as the male spoke. 
"You know, I have to say I'm amazed. I never thought any version of me would actually physically hit. Ugh, it's disgusting to even think about," Chaos spoke, sticking his tongue out and looking away. "And yes! I'm still on this! Though I should really move to something else." He was turned away, like a cat asking to be chased after, but of course he was just taunting the draconequus, knowing he couldn't break through those vines. 
He heard snaps and his mind clicked. He turned towards the draconequus and saw him flying towards him, dashing towards him once again. Chaos snapped again, leaving Discord to punch a cloud. 
Chaos spoke as Discord shook the cloud off his hand. "Please! I expected a fellow Discord to have a battle. You know, like a chaos-off."
"Listen you rat!" Discord snapped, hissing through his teeth. His claws seemed sharper as he flew up to Chaos' height. "I'm not going to play your game! Who would?! Besides, I already know you're more chaotic than me cause you're more psychotic along with it!"
Chaos just stared at Discord as the male was almost touching his muzzle, wide eyed and bored. He sighed and teleported away again, always a few feet higher. He grabbed the fur of his paw a pulled it off like a glove, his paw seeming fluffier than ever. He did the same with his claw, seemingly more sharp and scaly than before. 
"I suppose we'll have to duel like actual animals. My word, I thought we'd be more dignified than that," Chaos stated, yawning at just the idea. Like someone who only tried to take Equestria twice could beat him. As much as Chaos wanted a villain monologue and interesting conversation, Discord obviously did not as he teleported above Chaos and kicked his shoulder, slamming him into a tall tree. 
Chaos growled as he sat in the tree, staring up at Discord. The draconequus didn't move, not falling for Chaos' juke this time. Chaos was even more ticked. So he decided to add his own little touch to the scenery. It needed to be as comic-book epic as possible. He snapped his fingers with a smirk and started laughing maniacally. 
Discord just looked around cautiously, wondering what he did. He looked back to the tree and saw the indent of a draconequus and not the draconequus. 
Then everything kicked in. The skies were covered in dark clouds, blocking out the sun from the garden. Lightning sat between the cracks, hitting the trees and catching the dead leaves on fire. He heard squawking and whirled around, huge birds with vicious teeth flew at him. Discord ducked, the geese ignoring him and flying their path. The rain started falling as thunder started roaring. 
He heard that maniacal laughter again as the geese lunged at him once again. He dodged them once again, looking around desperately to find that laughing abomination. The geese tried to get him another two times as all the noises filled his ears, then Chaos finally showed himself. Two yellow pegasi by his side trapped inside stereotypical barred cages. 
Kindness stared at him, huge bug eyes sat on her face as she scratched at her cage for him. "DISCORD!" She cried desperately. His eyes went red as he lunged for Chaos. He stopped right in front of the freak. "Let go of her!" 
Rain coated his coat, dragging down every part of him and blurring his vision. He shoved his forearm against the draconequus's throat. He growled loudly. "You heard me you monster!" 
Chaos smiled wickedly at him. "Oh how I've missed being this chaotic!" He cheered, teleporting away. "You'll get your duel, Mr. Discord. I just wanted to make you more of a challenge. Now you have an evident reason." He snapped again, the two mares disappearing. The cages fell to the ground, knocking down a tree or two. 
Discord shoved himself against the tough rain and wind to grab and rip the males throat. But Chaos waved his finger back and forth, the fluff on his tail snapping, freezing Discord in place. He smirked and flicked the males forehead, shooting him a ways away. Discord was more than annoyed with this version of him. 
The thunder roared around them as smoke started stacking around, the garden below had strived with a fire, but the rain quickly extinguished it. Discord was coated in rain, his anger taking over his muscles and action as his body started tiring from flying and swinging at nothing. Chaos was squeaky clean, free of the rain.
Discord was finally ready to slam the males face in, but as he leapt towards him, geese jabbed at his side. Their teeth dug into his flesh as they snapped. He growled and shoved them off of him, snapping his fingers and lighting the white devils on fire. He felt his side bleed with small cuts. He guessed the rain would do just fine for now. 
But now it seemed Chaos was ready to fight him as the male flew at him. Discord used his own trick against him as he snapped his fingers and disappeared. Chaos punched the air, he quickly turned around but was too late as a fist slammed into his face. 
Discord watched as Chaos fell down a few feet. He saw the center of the maze underneath the monster, seeing two yellow dots sit in the center of the maze. He growled and jammed towards the draconequus, wrapping his claws around his throat. 
He growled loudly as he slammed his hooved foot into the males leg. Chaos winced as he scratched against Discords hands, drawing even more blood. Discord hoped he broke his leg, even if he guessed he didn't. Chaos quickly teleported away, taking enough damage from Discord. 
Discord whirled around, breathing heavily as he stared up at Chaos. The draconequus smiled and flew up higher, baiting Discord. He knew it was bait, but he still followed, too instinctively running to think correctly. He soon lost Chaos and himself inside the clouds. 
It was honestly horrifying. Thunder rolled louder, the rain roared against the other clouds as they tried to flood out of them. Lighting was bright and in strings like electricity, waiting to funnel out and burn something. He thought the draconequus was crazy to fight in these conditions. Then he realized it made sense. 
Though he thought of an easy way to get the advantage, he needed the animal present, so he just waited, acting as if he was looking for Chaos. Bingo, Discord thought as he heard a flash, Chaos appearing behind him. He flew over the monster as he swung at him. He smirked down at Chaos as flew above the clouds, seeing the bright sun already start to warm him fur. 
Chaos broke through the clouds, lunging at Discord desperately. Discord's smirk grew as he allowed Chaos a swing at him, but all Chaos hit was cloud colored like a draconequus. He stared, confused at what just happened, but a sharp pain hit his back as a hoof jammed into it. He flew into another cloud and quickly teleported himself away to get an advantage, but the male knew where he was as he was once again hit, pain entered his side, all it did was spread as a paw scratched at his serpent like stomach. 
Cuts burned under the bright sun as his side and back's pain mixed into something larger. He teleported away again, hoping it was done, but he was once again caught as something grabbed his tail, picking him up and swinging him down. It threw his already hurt stomach for a loop as his body hurt with the momentum. He wanted it to end, but everything he did seemed to fail. When did chaos ever fail him? 
He would've tried to answer it, but two sets of claws jabbed into their own side, piercing at his flesh and cutting through the thin layer. He gritted his teeth as his eyes lowly opened to see a raging animal in front of him. 
That wasn't it, Discord kept going, pushing him down and down and down. 
Through the bright sunny day and into the roaring, magical clouds of bouncing lightning and roaring noise. And through the clouds held a terrible garden on the verge of caving into the earth. 
Rain coated them again, both of them now. Thunder rolled over the hills, ramming into his ears and fueling his migraine. Lightning zoomed past them, slamming into the ground at a desperate chance of burning something. 
Chaos knew nothing could save him. He'd die this late into his immortal life. His body would hit the ground at a hundred miles per hour, all his bones will shatter on impact. He couldn't believe chaos failed him. 
But it didn't seem to yet. The oldest form of chaos saved him, random-ass chance. A lightning beam started coming from the clouds as Discord just happened to let go of him, hoping to cut and tear through another part of his body. 
Lightning struck the draconequus, a roar escaping his throat at the sudden pain. Chaos flew as far away as he could as he watched the male freeze and start to fall. "DISCORD!" He heard shouted loudly. Chaos looked down and saw Kindness standing there, her tears mixed in with the rain. 
Chaos snapped, the rain stopping, everything stopped as he allowed the sunny day to befall them again. Kindness flew up to his height, catching Discord in her hooves as she cried against his shoulder. 
"He's alive," Chaos said bluntly, scaring Kindness. 
"I know! But he's hurt!" She cried. 
"He'll be fine, just take him out of the garden. We'll finish this fight good against evil. It's going to happen anyway." 
"Why are you being... nice?" She asked curiously. Finally! He thought, someone who wants an evil villain dialogue! Too late, sadly. 
"He would've killed me if that lightning didn't strike him, I don't want to run my luck dry," he stated bluntly. She didn't do anything, she simply started flying away from him. 
Chaos sighed, wondering the scientific statistics of what just happened. There was no way that was just luck. There had to be something else. Then he felt that something else. 
A strong magic radiated around him, he looked around for it, expecting Daybreaker to be behind it. But she wasn't, this was a different magic. He finally found the source once he looked down at the center of the maze. 
All around Fluttershy was destruction, all around him was a beautiful sky. All around her was dead, dying, rotting, or burnt foliage. Tall trees stood burnt to a crisp, small shrubs had crippled as the leaves and flowers started falling. Brown leaves covered the murky-colored grass. 
Everything was coated in a wet sheen that wanted to cover the ugly death of the garden. Fluttershy couldn't be prettier, she shined against the dark colors, a warm magic inside her. He was surrounded by a bright sun, the rain on him drying his fur into a new fluff. Bright clouds filled the sky around him, yet he couldn't be something more out of place with his evil and chaotic intentions. 
And she couldn't have thought her king was more handsome. And he couldn't have thought his princess was more beautiful.
> Magic Inside Canterlot: The End Part 2
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Honesty was never perfect or even good at combat, but she assumed instincts, earth pony will, and basic common sense would save her. But she hadn't even hit a pony yet and she was already tired out of her skin. 
Loyalty wasn't kidding when she said Rainbow was psycho with a inferiority complex. The mare was completely crazy, and it seemed she was used to it as she kept trying to hit Honesty, never landing a shot. Honesty was thankful her experience as an Element gave her an idea of how to dodge. 
A twisted and malicious smirk never left the cyan freaks face. She almost seemed automated and fixated on clockwork with her punches. She swung even when Honesty wasn't close. 
But the two had left their magenta nearby to the other. Honesty noticed Rainbow, but Rainbow didn't notice her, so Honesty tailed the mare around, watching the psycho get so on edge that she'd pick up rocks and punch through them. The pegasus had the strength of an earth pony, and Honesty was terrified. 
But it was weird how similar they were, the two Rainbows. They both had the glistening strength in their eyes, those pink reds tore through anything they looked at. And the hair in their manes even seemed to fall over the other colors the same. And as expected, Honesty was too lost in Rainbow that she didn't take in her movements. She was instantly caught and jetted in the other direction, not giving the mare any time to comprehend what just happened. 
But Rainbow quickly flew over head, swiping at her side, but Honesty turned a corner to evade it. They kept up like that for what felt like forever, so long that Rainbow physically stopped flying. 
Or maybe she just had a better idea, and it seemed she did as she bit on the end of Honesty's tail and pushed her hooves into the ground, attempting to stop them.
Honesty didn't have time to think as she was swung into a yellow wall, the sun adding to the sweat on her body. But as she tried to recover from that, Rainbow slammed her hoof into the wall next to her head. "Howdy harmony scum." 
Honesty was terrified, but that didn't freeze how fast her mind could work. She slid out from underneath the mare, and a punkish laugh followed, as if she wanted Honesty to run away. This ponies crazy! Honesty thought as she ran away, her back stung under the warm sun but she couldn't stop. 
The ruins were horrifically real, but like she could pay attention to them, it felt like one mishap and she'd fall into Tartarus. Rainbow kept trying to get her down, and she did, shoving Honesty down with her side, tripping the mare, and slowing her down. But she never acted on them, she simply allowed Honesty to get up and she'd laugh slightly and do it again. 
It was like a game to her, and Honesty knew that, but her mind couldn't think of a way to get away from it. She guessed the only way was to lose the mare, but how could she? If this kept up, Rainbow would run her dead of her stamina before even starting a real fight. Honesty couldn't say it wasn't smart. 
But now, Honesty thought of a way to change things, and it worked! Sort of. Once she got up, she didn't start running, she simply started backing up, letting herself control Rainbow pace for as long as she could. 
And she made sure she didn't get hit as she could see all of Rainbow's moves. It was weird, the mare was predictable with a bunch of punches and then she'd run at you. Once again, Honesty couldn't say the mare wasn't smart. 
But yellow started ending as they soon entered a dark neighborhood of Canterlot. 
The houses were huge, but made of dark colors like deep purple bricks and rusty, murky orange paint. All the roofs had black shingles, and then there were a few light colored houses. Light blue paint shined in the sun with pinks and yellows. It seemed the fashion hotspot of Equestria couldn't even keep up with it's design. 
Houses circled around the area, like it was a courtyard or a park. Light grey tiles made up the floor, everything sparkled in a Canterlot shine. And the courtyard held a grey fountain in the middle, layers upon layers of water. 
And Honesty was more than happy to see a fountain, the sun creating a light rainbow in the water. She smiled at it and heard other hoofsteps. She didn't have to wonder who it was as it was answered. "Oh Daybreaker! Why can't you stay the hell away from me?!" A southern voice cursed. Rainbow's face contorted into disgust. 
"Yeah right! Like I would follow a weakling like you around!" Rainbow shouted. She pointed to herself, ignoring Honesty. "I can actually handle myself."
Honesty felt something against her tail and looked down to her leg, seeing rainbow hairs. She smiled widely and turned around, smiling at the cornered Loyalty. She grabbed the mares hoof and pulled them away from the two, they stood near the fountain as they watched the two argue, once again. 
Loyalty didn't speak, she just smiled at Honesty with a nod. Honesty nodded back and the two crouched down, wanting to end the hyenas bickering. Rainbow and Applejack didn't even get to argue more than a few insults before the two were pushed to the ground. 
Applejack was even more annoyed as Honesty jumped off of her. Loyalty smirked as she flew up off of Rainbow, her hooves spread in the sky. "You gonna come get me or what? Psycho!" She made fun of the mare. It didn't last very long as Rainbow flew up to her height as fast as light, she jammed her hind leg into the mares gut, slamming her into a house. 
Loyalty's back took all the pain as she held her wings in front of her. Breaking through the shingles and the structure of the ceiling was good enough for her as she hit the attic floor roughly. But even that started to crack under the impact and allowed her to fall through to the next floor. 
She heard her own brutish laugh take a turn for malevolent and her blood boiled. She ignored the obvious pain that started to spread as she shot up from the ground, slamming her hoof into the pegasus' face. Rainbow's laughing stopped abruptly as she landed on a cloud, it spinning at the momentum. 
She held her head, but then she remembered that this opponent of hers didn't gloat. She quickly fell through the cloud, Loyalty followed her and slammed her into the ground, breaking through the tiled floors of Canterlot. 
The two shot up into the sky again, anger fueling them. But anger fueled the earth ponies even further as they were covered in even more scuffs. They didn't have time to waste with flying away, so everything they did was then and there and consecutive. 
Both mares were covered in undeveloped bruises under their fur. As Honesty expected, Applejack wasn't that tough of a fight. The mare got tired easily and she wasn't nearly as smart at positioning or even dodging. The mare was probably covered head to hoof with bruises at this point, the tiled floors were much more broken where they fought. 
Honesty rammed her head into Applejacks side, shoving the mare into the wall of a house nearby. She sat there dazed, Honesty, as anticipated, was smart enough to take advantage of that. She jumped over the standing part of the wall and slammed her hooves into the ground, hoping it hit the mare, but they landed on either side of her. 
She didn't get a time to hit as Applejack's forehead jammed into hers, throwing the mare off of her. Applejack jumped up and out of the house, thinking she got away. But hooves pinned into her back and shoving her into the ground, the strength of the earth pony shattered the ground, shoving her face in the dirt underneath. 
Honesty pushed her hoof roughly into Applejack's neck, and then jumped off the mare, waiting for a challenge almost. Maybe that Rainbow was rubbing off on her. 
An orange hoof quickly tried to hit her face, but Honesty dodged and slid underneath the mare, throwing her over and landing Applejack on her back. The mare winced as the ground cracked under her enemy.
A hoof quickly grabbed her hind leg to run her confidence to nothing. She was picked up and slammed into the ground on the other side of Applejack. Tiles cracked and cut her back, her mouth opened and took in a sharp breath at the sudden pain. 
Her whole back ached as she stared up at the two cyan mares fighting. A hoof rammed into her side and she jumped up, ignoring her friends safety and paying attention to her own. 
Now the cyan pegasi were the ones covered in scuffs and premature bruises. Their feathers had fallen into the fountain, the sun ran sweat down them that matted their fur. And heavy breaths left them as they fought. 
Hooves jabbed into sides and faces, Rainbows cheek already started to swell. Loyalty was surprised she made it this face, her hind legs stung and ached under everything, her wings wished to shut and her body wished to stay still. 
But as she leapt towards Rainbow, her momentum wanted to kill her as her stomach rolled over twice and threatened to rise in her throat. Her hooves latched onto the sides of the mare as she took the both of them higher in the air. 
She heard Rainbow growl at the pain but she still pushed the mare higher. She flew away a few inches and then pushed her hind legs into her stomach, smashing her through clouds. Rainbow came flying right back through the clouds, her eyes were seemingly on fire as her teeth bared. Her hooves collided with Loyalty's face, she almost wished she was an earth pony so she could break the mares jaw. 
Loyalty went flying into a cloud, taking her time to recover, as she guessed Rainbow would gloat once again. But she was running on too much lost-filled rage. Her body shook as the cloud started getting higher and higher in the sky, Rainbow pushing it as far as she saw fit. 
Suddenly she started slowing down, she tried to move but an elbow to her waist stopped her. The cloud was taken from underneath her as she started falling rapidly. She spread her wings to slow down, saving the impact from doing too much damage, but she still rammed through another roof of a house, through three floors and a basement. 
She felt six feet under as her wings wanted to snap. Her teeth bared as tears wanted to leave her eyes. Her back ached and throbbed under the pain. Her breaths were heavy, trying to manage it. Her body froze with pain, her senses numbing. She could've swore she was dying, she could've swore blood was pooling out around her, ready to allow her to sink into it and through the world. 
But a bratty cyan pegasus in the sky brought her back to life. It felt like lightning hit her nerves, shocking them all to life. All the pain started fading as her breathing got faster. She got one last chance at life, and all she wanted was to tear that monstrosity of her to shreds. Even if it cost her life. 
Adrenaline woke up her veins, pumping as much of it in her as it could. Her nerves died, leaving nothing but a sense of not there. She stood up, staring up at that horror in the sky. She didn't belong there. She belonged in Tartarus or worse. 
Loyalty took a deep breath and flew upwards at rocketing speeds. She was up to Rainbows height in no time. She didn't stop there, her hooves pierced into the mare, sending her flying even higher in the sky. Loyalty followed with bared teeth, watching as Rainbow's mind failed to function. 
She dashed past the mare, twisting her over so that she faced her. Loyalty wanted to see her face as she gave her the most detrimental pain she'd ever felt. She shoot up and her hind legs slammed into the mares waist once again.
A short breath left Rainbow before Loyalty's hooves collided with her stomach again. She started sending the two flying downwards. Go as fast as possible. And she smiled as she felt the same tensions. 
She could see their mass tear through the air, white lines followed them. The air got heavier and heavier, wanting to slow them down, but it only made them go faster. Rainbow's eyes widened. "Are you crazy!? You'll kill us!" She shouted at herself, her rainbow mane flying past her. 
Loyalty's smiled widened as the ground got closer and closer. And suddenly, a lot of cracks and snaps followed a huge boom. 
Rainbow screamed as her cushion was the fountain. The weight tore through it, Loyalty's eyes were filled with crushed stone being thrown to the side of her vision as Rainbows screaming filled her ears. 
But once Rainbow stopped crushing through everything, her back hitting the end of the metal, a huge boom! filled their ears. Colors erupted around them as the vibrations knocked down everything nearby. 
Houses fell, flying away and into one another, colors shot out of Rainbow. Reds, oranges, yellows, greens, blues, and purples and filled the air and climbed to the sky. They soon fell into place like an aurora. 
The ground cracked around them, the tiles coming up from the ground to slam back down into new pieces. The sky became a shining rainbow of a nebulous aurora. 
The rainbow slowly faded up into the sky, circling them in an angelic ray of colors. Reds bleed into oranges and on they went, mixing and sparkling under the bright sun. White sparkles sat inside it, they slowly followed the air upwards, wanting to fit at the top. 
It seemed to take forever before the colors left the atmosphere, but once they did, they flooded together even further, becoming like a cloud in the sky as they stood in place, slowly forming and moving like a lava lamp.
"I'm the only pony who can pull of a Sonic Rainboom," Loyalty spoke, stepping off of Rainbow. The mare went flying into the sky, the water gushing out its metal pipe. Loyalty sat in a puddle of water numbly, watching the water reflect and make yet another rainbow. 
Time stopped, but it played back when Rainbow slammed back into the ground, falling through the tiles. Her chest still moved weakly, but Loyalty couldn't care less. 
"Damn," Rainbow winced, picking herself up from her floor-ridden position. Loyalty's eyes went wide as she stood, even if her wings snapped against her back, her feathers still falling off. "Never thought I'd break 'em." 
"I see my southern's rubbin' off on ya, partner," Applejack spoke with a smirk, even if she avoided looking at Rainbow's grotesque wings. Rainbow just sighed and stretched, her wings popping horribly. They didn't move, but they felt the stretch still. 
Loyalty shook her head. How!? How could she possibly be that okay!? This version of hers was a nightmare creation! A demon from Tartarus! The stream of the water started falling down on them, they almost made it look like she was crying. She couldn't believe it. "What the hell!? What the hell are you!?"
Rainbow just looked at her numbly. She smiled. "You're a good Rainbow, harmony scum. But if you must know, I'm hurting like hell, so I'm not fine."
"That doesn't matter! How can you stand!?" Loyalty shot to her hooves. 
Rainbow started laughing, her wings started magically snapping back in place. It seemed she couldn't feel it or hear it. "Oh, I don't fucking know. I should be ten different types of dead." 
Her eyes went red, her wings spreading rightfully, as if she was aware of the magic that fixed everything and saved her. She didn't know what the magic was, but she knew it was there. She smirked maliciously, "Guess I get a second chance to run you into the ground. Maybe then I'll die."
Loyalty was frozen, she couldn't move. Her second chance got screwed as her opponent got one. She was out of chances, out of lives. And this monster wasn't going to go easy on her. She just watched horrifically as cyan feathers started floating up and attaching themselves to Rainbows wings. 
"You an alicorn, partner?" Applejack walked up next to her and asked her, Rainbow just laughed. 
"Nah, just a fraken-pony," Rainbow responded light-heartedly. 
Applejack would've kept up the banter, if she wasn't pounced on. Honesty shoved her into the ground, having gained momentum before having pounced. Her hooves shoved deeper and deeper, her momentum kept pushing and pushing. 
Applejack broke through the tiles, Honesty even stood up and ran away while the mare was dazed. She dashed back on her once Applejack sat up, pushing her through the ground until they heard a loud ring!.
Applejack's spine rang against the metal pipe, water started flooding onto her back, adding to her belief that she was bleeding. Water started pooling into the ground around her. As she once again tried to recover at her own time, Honesty shoved her further, sending her spine to ring further against the metal. 
Mud started to cover her back, her mane, and her tail as Honesty was pushed off of her. She saw two cyan hooves started to pick her up out of all of it. She rubbed her head as she looked at Rainbow, seeing a smirk on her face. 
"Ignore how you feel, and fight back. It's the easiest way to not let yourself get cornered," Rainbow told her. Applejack nodded woozily as she was picked up and flew over to the other side of the fountain, the water stopped flooding out of there and from the pipe Applejack was just shoved into. 
Loyalty ran over to Honesty and picked her up, the two more determined than ever. They weren't scared, they were ready to be brave. They were ready to get rid of these smirking mongrels from their Equestria. 
And Rainbow and Applejack looked to the other with a smirk, ready to finally get rid of these nuisances. They were all equally drained, but their new adrenaline and eagerness got rid of it.
No one was going to fall, and if they did, it'd all be at the same time. They weren't going to let the other win, even if it cost them their lives. Even if they didn't get anymore second chances. 
Water started to sprinkle and rush off of their coats, the ground was now uneven, the fountain was torn apart, and a rainbow aurora sat in the sky. But their biggest imprint on this time in place was their pride and their determination. 
They'll never let the other get past, even if they'd have to stand off forever, no one would win. No amount of magic or extra lives could give one the advantage over the other. 
Then hooves started hitting ground and others, under the rainbow nebula in the light of day. 



Twilight sat on the top of the ruins, a huge surface of the castle balanced on a huge mountain of bits and pieces of the castle. When she and Pinkamena landed there, Pinkamena couldn't have been happier and more amazed, she could see the whole of Equestria from their height. 
As happy as Twilight was to see her so happy, she couldn't have been more pissed as Daybreaker continued to play with her. The glass stained paintings surrounded the rough circle, a throne made of the ruins at the other end. 
Of course she sat in the throne, Pinkamena standing on a surface piled up next to it, smiling the widest she had ever smiled. But as Twilight waited for Magic, she couldn't help but make conversation with the pink mare, wanting to prove to herself she loved her more. 
Twilight smiled slightly. "Why are you smiling so much? I've never seen you smile this much before." Pinkamena's head snapped to her and she smiled bashfully. 
She looked out to Canterlot, looking over everything. "I've never felt like I've mattered a lot before, especially since Cheese. But being on top of Canterlot like this is so... cool." 
"I like your smile," Twilight looked out at Canterlot too. "You should do it more." It looked like a distant land, as if they went back years into the past. 
The ruins covered more land than the castle originally did, and everything seemed so old. The neighborhoods and streets had became abandoned, everything seemed broken and completely consumed by disharmony. She smiled, it couldn't have been a better final frontier.
She flew up off the throne and over to sit next to Pinkamena. "Makes you feel like a princess, huh?" Pinkamena didn't answer, she simply nodded. Twilight smiled down at her as she laid her head on Twilight's shoulder. Twilight was inches away from kissing her forehead. "Well you are one. Get used to it." 
She sensed something and looked to the opposite side of her throne, Magic stood there, breathing heavily and looking numbly at the sight. Twilight teleported away as she rolled her eyes, appearing back on her throne. 
Pinkamena looked for her mare and saw Magic, she instantly felt disgust and looked away angrily. She couldn't stand the mare, it wasn't Twilight's fault she liked her before, it was all her! That Magic ruined everything! Too bad she couldn't keep it that way. 
"Are you here to ruin everything again?!" Pinkamena shouted at her, jumping off of the set of rubble and walking towards Magic angrily. "Cause I'm not gonna let you!" 
Magic was more than confused as the mare stepped towards her, even if she had a mutual hate for her. Pinkamena stood inches in front of her, furiously staring at her. "What are you talking about?" 
"You made her like you! And that ruined everything for the last two weeks!" Pinkamena yelled, wanting to physically cry at just the memory. She disappeared and appeared back on her rubble-made throne. Twilight sighed, not wanting the two to converse in any way. 
Magic huffed. "What a mare to love, Twilight," she rolled her eyes, thinking only of her friends. Though she couldn't say she wasn't happy to hear that her life wasn't the only hurt one for the past two weeks. 
Twilight didn't respond, not wanting to fall for the mare any further. Her magic engulfed one of the glass stained windows, the one of Nightmare Moon. It was lunged at Magic. But the mare was smart, she jumped on the glass, standing on it as Twilight slammed it into the ground, Magic flying off of it before it hurt her as well. 
"You won't win," Magic spoke, her magic taking up a rock and chucking it at Twilight. The mare teleported away, the rock tearing through the back of her throne. "Harmony will reign over Equestria. You monsters can't take that away." 
Twilight just smiled at her, happy at her determination, but that's not the emotion she wanted. She wanted pain, she wanted hurt to brutalize. But maybe tearing her courage down would be even better. 
The sun shined down on the two, their mentors power running through them. They stood still, thinking of their own things. Magic was determined and ready to save Equestria. She was ready to rid her home of these horrors. They've already done enough damage, and she wasn't going to let them win anymore. 
Twilight could only think of what and how she could make Magic vulnerable. She guessed a magic battle would go on forever, or until their horns fell off. She knew the two of them were smart, she knew the two of them were powerful, and she had no idea how'd they even get close to beating one another. 
But then hell broke loose as Magic flew into the sky, shooting small beams of magenta at Twilight like bullets. Twilight flew after her, trying to consume her in magenta but Magic disappeared. She appeared behind Twilight as shot a magenta bullet at her. 
Once it hit its pain exploded, ache and stinging spread across all of her body as it seemed to overheat her. She froze, falling to the surface. Pinkamena ran to catch her but it wasn't needed as Twilight's wings shot her back into the sky, magenta wanted to slam against Magic, but once again she teleported out of sight and that magenta shot into a cloud instead. 
Twilight dodged as Magic lunged at her, she watched as the mares eyes were still filled with bravery. She was almost disgusted, she had never felt anything like that before. How could harmony give somepony that much?
But she didn't have much time to think as Magic dove for her, she flew away and shot the mare in the back with her magic. Magic hit the ground with all her hooves, shooting off of it and back up at Twilight. 
Her adrenaline grew as all she wanted to do was be done. She wanted her friends to smile, she wanted her and Flash to get coffee, she wanted Canterlot back. Her hoof rammed itself into Twilight's cheek, sending her flying. 
She wanted to be rid of disharmony, she wanted friendship to reign over everything again. She wanted her pain to be done, she just wanted to smile again! With all of her friends next to her. 
Her punches hit ten times harder than what they would've, her magic had ten times more push than it would've, her drive was ten times stronger than it had ever been. And she couldn't stand it. Twilight had done so much to her, that wasn't love, it couldn't have even been a like. It was pain and torture, and she hated Twilight's lies. 
She wanted everypony to be honest as she shot magic at Twilight, hitting her and stunning her into a frozen state. She wanted everypony to be kind again, she wished as she hit Twilight out of her stunned state, her hoof smashing into the mares cheek. 
She growled as she flew upwards, Twilight rocketing up after her, anger evident on her face. She wanted everypony to laugh again, she begged as Twilight pushed into her, getting extremely close. She saw that twisted desperation in Twilight's eyes, and she was sick. 
She snarled as she pushed Twilight's sick mind off of her, shoving her into a cloud. She dove down quickly, pinning the mare below her, she just wanted everypony to be blindly generous again. Her hooves started to sting as her wings started to slow, she pushed her hooves all over the mare. Tearing her mane, punching her hooves away, slamming them into her face, and finally smashing her forehead into hers. 
She flew away, seeing Twilight's rage fly at her horrifically. The mare's hind legs shoved into her leg, throwing off her balance and causing her to lose her height. She just prayed that everypony could be loyal again, a sharp breath left her throat as Twilight took advantage of her position, shoving herself against the mare, hurting her sides as she jammed her hooves into them. 
A creepy smile was left on Twilight's face. "You love me yet?" 
Magic's rage boiled over her determination. Now it was revenge as Twilight violated everything she wanted and stood for. The mare lied, the mare was cruel, the mare made her cry, the mare took everything away, and the mare made her like her and then said she loved another. Magic couldn't have been more sick. 
She kicked the alicorn off of her, piercing her stomach with her hind hooves. Twilight's breath left her throat as Magic shoved her front hoof into her gut as well. "I will never... love you... You're the worst kind of sick, Twilight Sparkle."
Magic sent the mare flying into the sun, her wings and her silhouette turned black, she looked like a dying angel. But Magic couldn't wait for that angel to die. She was no longer heavenly, she was a new form of corrupt. Anything less was a compliment compared to her evil. 
Twilight fell back onto Magic with a smirk, ceasing her limbs in her magic until she was done. "But I'm still you, Twily. You're me. We're that bitch that tore ourselves apart. And now I'll leave you for someone else." 
Magic flew up as soon as her limbs were free. But Twilight still held onto her hooves with a wicked, twisted smile. Magic's face contorted, her eyebrows furrowed as her mouth curled into disgust. She shook the mare off of her, "You and I will never be the same." 
Twilight's wicked smirk didn't change. "Oh really!?" She threw her hooves over, sending Magic underneath her and causing her to fall a few feet. "Our wings!? Our love for science! Our princess status!?" 
"You know what I mean, that doesn't make up what we stand for," Magic spoke, flying up at her and grabbing her hooves, slamming her down into a cloud to try and confuse her. But all she got was a face full of Twilight. 
"You know if Pinkamena didn't exist I'd give you Equestria, correct?" Twilight asked seriously, and Magic couldn't have that she was more disgustingly beautiful. 
Purple fur matted by sweat, bright violet eyes, a gorgeous voice and graceful actions. Sadly the hugest downfall to her was how psycho she was. She was an angel made to kill and ruin. She was like one of the four horsemen, made to hold all of Equestria's evil. 
And Magic held all of Equestria's good. The two couldn't be more opposing of the other. But they did say opposites attract. Magic nodded at Twilight's question, trying to not get caught up in her feelings towards her. 
"Would you let me die?" Twilight asked seriously. She almost seemed hurt as Magic's expression didn't change. "Even if I let you win? Even if I stood for evil?" 
"No," Magic spoke against her will. She cursed herself as Twilight smiled her lovesick smile. "But you aren't going to do that, and you've already done enough, Sparkle." 
Twilight pouted, pushing herself off of Magic. "So it's just because of Equestria? That's all that matters to you? Your harmony! I'd sacrifice everything for you! I'd sacrifice my sins for you! Even in the end of this I am!" 
She seemed physically hurt, her eye widend with pain. "And who's the evil one?" She asked cruelly and painfully. Magic's heart stung, her brain shot with realization, but she could see the malice behind her devilish angel. She gritted her teeth through her emotions. 
"No! I'm not going to let you trick me!" Magic yelled at her, attempting to swing and smash that beautiful face in, but all her hoof hit was another lavender one. 
Twilight looked bored, borderline pissed. But she was more hurt, and as much as she tried to hide it, it showed through like a sore thumb, especially to Magic. "So you wouldn't allow me to take you over?"
"No!" Magic screamed. "Who would!?"
"Anyone would if they loved someone. Maybe you're the one who lied to me," Twilight said rudely, jumping at Magic. She was inches away from smashing their faces together, but Pinkamena bounced at the back of her mind. She loved both of them to pieces, but she made her choice. And Magic wasn't helping her side. 
Magic shook her head, not wanting to let the mare get inside her head. She didn't want to believe the mare was pretty, she didn't want to trust the mare, she didn't want the let the parasite strive. "Maybe you're the one that wasn't nice to me."
Twilight shoved her muzzle against hers, they were centimeters from kissing, but she was too angry to think, Pinkamena filled her mind. "No wonder I wanted to take everything from you! No wonder I love Pinkamena more than you!"
Magic backed away, not trusting herself that close. But all she could think about was her friends, her smiling, nice, kind, sweet friends. Not this monstrous scumbag in front of her that she cared for so much. She picked up her hoof and swung, smashing it right into the mares nose. 
Twilight held her muzzle with both hooves as she stared at Magic horrifically. She took a deep breath and lowered her hooves, giving Magic a front seat to the bloody horror underneath. Magic forced herself to not think of how gorgeous it looked on her. 
"Okay, so I see that's done," Twilight stated. Her horn glowed as it grabbed Magic's wings, it sent her spiraling into the ground. She went down too fast for her to get out of the magenta. She slammed into the surface, cracking it. 
She quickly stood up to fight back but was frozen in horror. The sun stopped shining as books stacked up separately, all held with a shade of magenta. The circled the surface and above the books were scrolls and the source of it all was Twilight. 
Magic's heart leapt into her throat as she watched, horrified as the Canterlot library stood around her and locked her inside it like a hurricane. Tears sprung to her eyes as her childhood was in the hooves of a monster, and that monster wouldn't shut the hell up. 
"We got these wings under Daybreaker and Celestia's watch, right!?" Twilight yelled violently, anger fueled her veins. Clouds started flooding into the library as it started to slowly spin. "Stars Swirled the Bearded's unfinished spell, right!?"
They started going faster and faster, and Magic saw just as much horror outside the books. To one side there was a huge storm, roaring dark clouds with lightning and thunder. To another side their was a horrific boom!, and to another there was a huge stream of green fire with a purple center. She had no idea what was happening and she was terrified. 
The books and scroll started spinning to fast to see outside when she heard a crippling noise, it sounded like a lighter and paper crumbling weakly. Her eyes widened as she looked to the bottom of the stack, a fire started growing. More tears started to her eyes as she turned to Twilight seeing her laugh maniacally. 
The fire grew quickly, rising and rising in height, blazing into the sky. Bright orange filled her vision as she watched those glass stained paintings with teary eyes. The heat wrapped around them, shattered them around her and her hooves. All her memories, broken. All her accomplishments, all the ways she saved Equestria burnt away just like that. As if they never existed. Her blood boiled in a new heat.
She growled and pushed off of the ground, lunging towards Twilight with all her strength. She flew faster than the fire, but the fire only grew as her wings added more to them. They roared up the books and scrolls, climbing and climbing up the library. 
She didn't want a conversation, she wanted to inflict as much pain as she possibly could on this monster. Her hooves instantly went for her throat, wanting to constrict as much air as possible. Twilight's hooves clawed at hers, but she didn't stop until the mare was barely still awake. 
As Twilight tried to recover, Magic's hind legs threw her into a storm cloud nearby. Magic pinned her there and jammed her hoof into her face. Another hoof to the other side of her face. Magic started slow and got faster, getting lost in what was happening and what she was doing. 
She finally stopped once blood started pooling out of Twilight's mouth, spilling from her lip. Magic looked at her horrified, seeing that she ruined that lovely face.
She just stared at the horror of her own face as smoke started to file into her lungs. She looked around, the fires blazing just beneath her height. Her chest heaved as she stared at the horror, completely mortified. 
Twilight picked herself up, her face was on fire as heat rushed to it. Her skin throbbed and her nerves screamed at her to run away. Her tongue revolted at the metallic taste of her own blood. But she was furious, Magic was ruining her winning queen face. And her blood boiled in a new heat. 
She shoved the mare off of her, Magic stared at her, confusion and guilt covered her face. But Twilight didn't care whatsoever. She flew at the mare rapidly, ramming her head into her waist and throwing her over her head like a real earth pony. 
She whirled towards the mare, the smoke filling her lungs. The fire roared behind her, bright oranges surrounded the two as smoke stacked up overhead. The sight couldn't have been prettier. But the more times Twilight hit Magic, the more the guilt faded away. 
Now she was just as angry. Her feelings were set aside as rage overrode her system. She didn't need common sense to let out her rage towards the mare. She didn't need thoughts to express herself. 
The two dove at each other, Magic getting the first hit. Twilight instantly jabbed her hoof into her hind leg, taking advantage of her pain. As Twilight's hoof went to hit Magic's side, Magic grabbed it and threw the mare over her, slamming her into a cloud. Twilight pushed off of it, shoving the cloud into the fire and fueling it further. 
The two fought relentlessly in the sky, wanting to inflict as much damage as possible. Hooves hit every part of them, their horns were forgotten as they fought. They kicked and punched, head butted and rammed into the other. 
There was no more cute talk, there was no more questioning emotions, there was no more admiring the other. There was simple pain and the violent flames around them. 
Smoke clogged their throats, blood covered their faces, sweat smothered their fur, their manes were riddled with tangles. The fire tore through the library, eventually dying out at the top. But all the clouds and every piece of parchment was burned, leaving the smoke in the already ruined atmosphere. 
They didn't think, they couldn't as rage pumped through their veins, adrenaline running to their brains, smoke flooding into their lungs, their nerves overflowing with the amount of pain they had to process. 
Their bodies ran off of vengeance and responsibility. Their feelings might've been a tragedy, but that was only because they were the queens on opposing sides. They stopped caring for their responsibilities, their crowns already slipping off their heads as they fought for vengeance. 
The fires finally died, burning the last part of the Canterlot Palace's library. But the embers started to float down, flowing around them like magic as they fought. A punch would be swung, ten bits of orange would follow and die on their fur. The embers stayed around them, burning their fight into an orange, ruining their fur even further. 
The smoke stacks were all that surrounded them as many things ruined them. But that didn't stop them from swinging and punching and kicking. That didn't stop them from diving and dodging and grabbing. That didn't stop them from hoping the other cried out in pain after a loud snap!.
They wanted to keep going, they wanted to continue to tear the other down along with themselves. The end of this fight would be one breathing with their eyes open and the others were closed. Then, she'd get up and leave, like nothing ever happened. And they were so ready to see the other done for just so they could walk away. 
But adrenaline alone couldn't keep up their movement. Their bodies ached and stung all over, those aches and stings sat up on throbs as throbs sat up on more stings and aches. And all that had a thin coating of skin that had blood rushing to every bit, even pooling over at some. 
And their movements slowly got left swift, their breathing got heavier and less sharp. Their flying started to slow, but their drive was higher than ever as they continued weakly. Their punches lost their punch, their kicks lost their kick and so forth. They wanted to continue so bad, but their slowing moves terrified them. 		
And as desperately as Magic wanted the fight to end, she wanted to ensure her victory. And she knew one way to slow down Twilight and to get her under her control. Magic watched Twilight's moves, waiting for the mare to dive at her and send her flying towards the mountain. 
She dodged and didn't fight back, all her body had for her was the ability to watch. And Twilight didn't think, taking advantage of Magic, seeing it as her final hurrah. She smiled widely as red filled her eyes, she flew upwards and send herself falling down, her front hooves felt the pressure of the air before she hit. 
Her mind played it's own crack! as she pushed, her hooves felt as if they broke something, even if they didn't. She sent the mare spiraling downwards, finally happy to see everything end.
As she took heavy breaths, letting the oxygen fill her lungs rightfully, she relaxed. Her muscles stopped straining themselves and accepted the small break. Her heart filled with happiness as the adrenaline pooled out with the blood. She took a deep breath, feeling herself become enwrapped with evil as she finally won. She was a queen now. 
Or so she thought. Her eyes opened and they widened with rage as it froze her. Magic was sitting on Pinkamena's waist, getting her hooves beat by Pinkamena's measly attempt to save Twilight the trouble. And Twilight just watched, guessing this was Magic's last try. She almost liked the idea of the two mares she loved on top of each other. 
But she heard the slap! as Magic hit her. Her teeth bared as her muscles seized, constricting inside themselves. Her eyebrows furrowed as her breathing got heavier and colder. Her wings snapped to her back ad she started falling. Another shot of adrenaline teemed into her as her wings shot out, bending so that she'd run right into Magic. But of course, the mare disappeared before she could get her. 
Twilight stopped, angrier than ever. "Where the hell are you, Sparkle?!" She asked, yelling at the pit of her lungs.  She didn't even give Twilight the benefit of a name. Her heart ached as she saw Pinkamena's shocked face. She was furious but the sight of Pinkamena calmed her body, sadly enough for Pinkamena to get lost in the sight of her too. 
Magic pinned Pinkamena, using her body to tear through part of the wall as the impact started cracking it. Magic stopped her as her back and body sat over the edge. She looked under her, seeing the hell that was the mountain that made up what they stood on. Her eyes widened as she looked at Magic desperately. 
"Please!" She begged, constantly looking back underneath her. The idea of death filled her head as tears sprung to her eyes. 
"Shut up," Magic cursed, slapping the mare again. Pinkamena didn't have to suffer much longer as Twilight's hooves collided with Magic's side, slamming her into the ground. 
Twilight was furious, a new form of adrenaline taking over. Her teeth bared as she sat on top of Magic. "Don't... you... ever... hurt... her."
Magic was disgusted. "And what if she hurt me, huh?" Magic asked numbly, wanting to draw out her end as long as possible. Maybe the tree of harmony would finally kick in and turn this witch to stone. 
"I thought I said this," Twilight stated rudely, her hoof slammed into Magic's cheek, a huge drive behind it. She ignored what she knew Magic was trying to do. Her fury blinded her. "I chose her over you and I will every damn time." 
She rammed her head against Magic's in hope to break her horn. "Makes it easy to choose when you're evil. You stop caring about others." Her hoof smashed the ground next to her, taking her feathers with it, tearing them off. 
Magic breathed in sharply, hoping to keep herself awake and talking. 
"If this was a different set of worlds, we'd be in love, correct?" Magic asked, Twilight didn't answer. "That isn't a different set of worlds. This is our set of worlds and our feelings just became a romantic tragedy." 
Magic smiled up weakly at Twilight. "And I'll be damned if I don't ruin you as much as you've ruined me." Twilight's panic caused her to swing, her hoof hit the ground as her eyes widened. Her heart froze as she turned, tears streamed out of her eyes. 
Pinkamena was once again underneath Magic, crying in pain as Magic's horn tried to pierce the skin above her heart. Electric stings covered and circled her horn, getting tighter and closer over time. "Get away from her!" Twilight teleported behind her, but she was too late. 
Pinkamena screamed out, tears teeming from her eyes as magenta shot into her, her body pulsated as if she was really strung by electricity. The electricity manifested around her heart, pulsing out and around her body every few seconds. Magenta covered the mare like it always had before, but this time it was different. 
Her body stung and itched as the magic spread across it slowly. It felt like every pore was being pulled open as it passed over, the pain overall paralyzed her, keeping her from moving to shift it. And her heart sped up, her breaths started getting lesser and lesser. 
Twilight shoved Magic into the ground. After pushing her off of Pinkamena, her horn scraped against the ground, causing an electrified indent in the material. She quickly swung Magic on her back so she could pummel her face in. 
She pushed further and further, the two slid into the throne, hearing a huge amount of cracks and shifting that followed. Twilight kept hitting and hitting Magic's face, hoping to ruin as much of her as she could. She hoped she was killing the mare as rocks fell from the mountain, the surface shifting as she constantly pushed their weight to one side. 
Her eyes widened as they eventually fell over, the noise of falling rocks and mineral hitting mineral filled her ears as they fell, the surface bounced and flew down the mountain, Twilight and Magic holding on for dear life. They'd look forward and it'd be the ground, their inevitable death as they'd crash.
But if they looked back they'd see rocks upon rocks tumbling towards them, ready to crush them horrifically. They were screwed, but Twilight and Magic's wings wouldn't open.
> Magic Inside Canterlot: The End Part 3
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Twilight's wings didn't spread as she stared down at the end of the mountain numbly. Her body would've loved to have a reason to crash. But she had too many reasons to stay alive. She finally wanted to be alive. And she wasn't going to let that go to waste.
The red mist from before sat in front of the surface, slowing it down so it wouldn't crash into smitherines. The rocks behind them started to slide down the side of the wall they sat on, not aiming for them anymore. It turned into a slow attraction rather than a death trap. 
As she got closer down the mountain, simply riding a smooth ride, she saw colors. She was almost happy to see everypony, even the enemy. But as it cooled to a stop, landing on the ground, fear cosumed her. 
She looked over and saw Pinkamena in Rainbow's hooves. "Daybreaker, what happened to her?" Applejack asked, watching her pained face against a cyan chest. Twilight threw her aside and sat in front of Rainbow, watching Pinkamena breathe. 
Tears fell out of her eyes and she laid her head on the mares side. "Thank that witch you're okay," she whispered into her pink fur. Her heart started to slow, it's adrenaline finally dying. Rarity stepped next to her and pulled her face off of the mare. She looked horrified and dropped her head, fearing she'd get some of it on her hooves. 
Twilight's face was a mess, blood covered her muzzle as her cheeks started to swell. Rarity thought it was disgusting as she stared at it. 
"What happened to you? Are you sure you should be worrying about her?" She asked, the Dragon Lord standing behind her, just as worried. 
Twilight didn't answer, she looked over to the harmonized group, seeing them bombard Magic with questions. She growled and stood up, stomping over to the mare. She ripped Magic away from all her friends, disgust covering her face as she raised her hoof, the other holding the mare there. 
"Drop her!" Loyalty yelled, stepping beside her. Then came up Honesty and Generosity, then Laughter and Kindness, all there to protect their friend. Twilight just stood still, staring at all of them, wondering what to do. 
She just stared at the mare, admiring how hurt she was. She decided not to reveal their feelings to her friends, wanting to give her some form of kindness. She saw Magic wince as she expected some cute question filled with malice. 
But Twilight didn't speak. She continued to stare at them numbly, debating her options. She looked at Magic and smirked, throwing her to the ground roughly. The elements sighed in relief, but Twilight took their security as she jammed her hoof into Magic's leg. 
"Why wait when we're so close to the end?" Twilight asked, staring at each of the angry and battered faces. She honestly wondered if her friends faired better, but one look at them told her that some did and others didn't. 
Honesty stepped towards her coldly. "You sure you want to do this, partner? This is your one chance to get up and leave here." Her green eyes shined in their emerald light, and Twilight wanted to laugh at them. The mare gave off an ominous tone, hoping to scare them out of doing it. 
"No," Magic said weakly, standing up and stomping in front of her, pushing Honesty aside. "She's done too much to get off scott-free." Her eyes glowed with fury as she stared at Twilight, void of any emotion or care once again. 
Twilight smirked, flying into the air. She expected Magic to follow her, but she didn't as her horn started to glow in a magenta light. The sun shined as magenta stretched across the surface they were on. The pebbles on it and the beings shook as the huge mass of the wall was lifted up off the ground. 
Twilight just stared at her, a confused anger on her face. Why didn't Magic have a personal vendetta against her? She looked around Magic as she landed on the surface, rising up with everyone else along with her. 
Then she understood. Before Magic was so keen on her because nothing mattered more to her than Twilight. But now, she had her friends, her best friends right next to her, constantly reminding her of Equestria and harmony. 
She instantly hated these friends of hers, missing Magic's rage directed at her and only her and not evil as a whole.  But she wouldn't play that game, she wouldn't let Magic forget her. That mare would be cursed with the idea of her forever, and she couldn't wait as she felt the magic around them grow. 
The harmonized elements looked ready to brawl, a harmonious and graceful magic resonated from the group as they stood their ground together. They seemed like virtuous angels made to be so real. Like they were made to be normal mares, but they weren't. So what was the point to pretend?
She never answered that question, because of herself. At the start of all of this, she seemed so kind and sweet, now she was a monster desperate to tear apart the harmony that stood inside the enemy. But now she thought she understood. And she didn't realize how much it affected her. 
The surface finally stopped in the air, standing higher than the mountain. Magenta seemed to fill the sky as everypony else imagined the fight already happening, the magic taking form and fighting itself while they didn't have to lift a hoof. Well, that was too fantasy for them so they thought of a different way. 
The two sides would dash at each other like a war as the sun started to set quickly, even if no pony was there to set it. Magic would leave everypony and go into the sky, joining together until harmony and disharmony had their own huge magic made horse in the sky. 
Harmony's would be made up of pinks and bright, pastel colors as they fought ruthlessly, keeping true to their virtues. And Disharmony's would be made up of sickly, murky colors, their horse much thinner and sicker looking. But they'd still fight relentlessly into the night as the magic inside them fought as well. 
The storm clouds from the garden would be in the sky, the smoke from the catacombs would mix in and the rainbow aurora would stand in the sky, they'd all mix together and surround the two horses as they fought above the two sides. 
And as epic as that was, they knew it wasn't going to happen, but both sides were confident. They had the beings they cared for right next to them, they had a want to give Equestria to whoever they wanted to, and they were an always there reminder. 
But of course, Twilight's big mouth took them away from their legendary image of what was to come. 
"What are the six things harmony stands for?" She asked Magic bluntly, a small smirk on her face. 
The harmonized ponies were apprehensive about answering her for anything, but Magic wasn't going to let that apprehension show, she puffed out her chest and took a step forward, in front of all her friends. She spread her wings to protect them, her wingspan even looked larger. 
"Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness, Laughter, and Generosity," Magic stated rudely, tired of Twilight's games. She was tired of the mare and was terrified she'd do what she did to Magic to all her friends. 
"That's not six," Twilight chimed playfully, watching Magic's anger. "You're the princess of friendship, yes? So isn't that the sixth one?" 
Magic now let her apprehension seep through, she didn't know what she stood for. But her logical thinking told her which one. "No, it's magic. But we all make up friendship. And that's why you're going to lose."
She dropped her wings slowly, allowing each of her friends determined faces be shown one by one. They all stood together, and they honestly did look terrifying. Their confidence and strength stood taller than the highest mountain. And they wore their pride and bravery over their hearts, their friendship and love for one another within their hearts that pumped that friendship and love to every part of their body. 
Twilight's mind started falling apart. Her pride didn't shine brighter, her confidence didn't stand taller, and her sick and twisted form of love wasn't even close to strong enough. She was horrified as she thought they'd all die, Magic wouldn't even think twice.
She hung her head in a supposed defeat, she could feel the smirks on their faces as they would've saw it as a defeat. "We're here to take this Equestria so don't hang your head!" Rainbow yelled in her ear. She flinched and stared at her, her pride grew an inch. 
"They're nuisances, Twi," the Dragon Lord stated bluntly. Rarity just laughed at his attempt to encourage her. He swatted at her and she just laughed further. 
Chaos rolled his eyes, knowing what was happening before anyone else did. He read way too many comic books for his own good. Fluttershy stepped on his tail and whistled. He growled at her and she just stuck her tongue out at him. He then rolled his eyes with a smile this time. 
"We can't not try, Princess," Applejack mentioned with a smile, thinking she said the most encouraging thing out of all of them. But then Pinkamena stepped in and took her spotlight. 
Pinkamena grabbed Twilight's face and stared at her. "We can do this, what can all of them do against all of us? We're evil! We're technically stronger in the situation. Plus, I know you can do this. You're like the queen of evil." She smiled happily as Twilight's starry eyes stared back at her. 
Twilight finally smiled again, a true smile. She pushed Pinkamena off of her and turned to Magic, she spread her wings with a sly smile as she mimicked what Magic did, closing her wings slowly. "Well, it seems we got friendship too. So what advantage do you have now?"
Her words sent chills down the spines of the beings on the harmonized side. But they didn't let it show, the more fear they showed, the more those evil beasts could feed off of. 
They readied themselves as the sky got darker in their minds, even if no one was able to set the sun so it stayed up in the sky. They were ready to rid their precious Equestria of these monsters. They could feel the venom seeping off of them. But Magic didn't move, she just stared at Twilight with fear in her eyes. 
Twilight smiled at her genuinely, as if it would be the last time she'd smile at her. "Ready for the final war to set Equestria's life for the rest of eternity?" 
Magic's blood boiled at the thought. Her feelings died, she got her final smile from the mare and that's all she needed. Their tragedy wouldn't change how much her friends mattered to her. "To set Equestria's life back to normal," Magic stated. 
There was no more talking, they were done. 
Magic shot into the air with Loyalty and Discord. Rainbow and Twilight shot up after them, already cursing themselves for letting them get the advantage. Fluttershy stepped on Chaos' tail again until he tiredly flew after them. After a minute in the air and he was chasing Discord around with a huge smile on his face. 
Applejack and Honesty ran into each other, their heads collided but neither were knocked back as they attempted to beat the other. They shifted weight, one time Applejack would have the control and then it'd change over to Honesty. 
Fluttershy dove for Kindness with a smirk, ready to eat the mare alive and bully her to death. But the mare was swiped up into the arms of a kind-hearted draconequus. Fluttershy growled and flew after the two angrily, ready to finally do something to advance their time in Equestria. 
Generosity zapped at the baby dragon as the Dragon Lord tried to char Generosity and Laughter, flying at them and swiping for them. 
Rainbow shoved her hind legs into Loyalty's waist, the mare grabbed her hooves and threw her over into a cloud. She flew over quickly and started to spin it before Rainbow could get up. The pegasus fell out of the cloud a dizzy mess, just for Applejack to catch her. "Ignore how you feel and you don't get cornered, right partner?" Applejack asked slyly. Rainbow rolled her eyes and smirked, standing on Applejacks back and shooting off of it, back into the sky. 
She flew for Loyalty, her want to be the better Dash stuck in her head as the Rainboom from earlier shouted at her. She smirked, licking her lips as she flew upwards, missing Loyalty on purpose. The mare chased after her, falling into her trap. 
Rainbow smirked as Loyalty grabbed her tail, pulling her down to her height. Rainbow smiled at her, making her realize her mistake as Rainbow placed her hooves on her shoulders, shoving her downwards and dropping after her. Luckily for Loyalty, she understood what Rainbow was doing and open her wings to slow herself down and to give herself control. Rainbows wicked face was inches away from her as her hind legs shoved into her, throwing off her momentum and sending her upwards. 
Loyalty watched with a smirk as she flew downwards, thanking her time training for the Wonderbolts as she took a sharp dive right underneath the surface. She sat under it, waiting for Rainbow to chase after her, she hearing the cracking and stomping overhead, but she couldn't focus on that. 
Rainbow didn't stop for the turn to Loyalty's luck. The mare dashed at her, her hooves ramming into her side, Rainbow breathed in sharply at the sudden impact, she dove to get away from it, her side stinging harder as she stretched to get farther away from Loyalty who was tailing her. 
The two shot up from under the surface, a rainbow path shooting up into the sky. They were a rainbow blur to Applejack, but she didn't care. She knew Rainbow could handle herself. So she had to care for her own skin cause she knew she couldn't. 
Her eyes widened as she stopped hearing hoofsteps. She slid against the ground, seeing Honesty had jumped over her. The mare summersaulted back onto her hooves as she whirled back to Applejack, hoping to get one hit on the mare. The mare was surprisingly well at dodging now, which just annoyed her. 
Honesty continued to chase her, trying to trip her or to slow her down so she could pin her. Applejack was running out of ground as she neared the edge. She would've simply turned, but Laughter was bouncing up on her path. The pink bubble decided to stop and help Honesty while currently being chased herself. 
As the Dragon Lord started approaching on her, she jumped over Applejack, hoping to land on the mares back, but Applejack swept to the side and jumped off the platform onto a cloud as Laughter ran straight into Honesty. 
Honesty gasped at the mares stupidity, then she noticed the orange hooves balancing at the edge of the surface. She would've raced towards her and throw her back on, but a huge dragon stood in front of the two. He didn't give them a chance to run before swatting at them, tearing through pink fur. Laughter fell to the ground, Honesty chased after to her check on her, checking behind them to see where the dragon was. 
His teeth bared as his back arched at the sudden blue bullet that hit it. The stinging spread across his body once again after it hit. He whirled around and looked for her, finding a smaller dragon in her place. The Dragon Lord smiled, showing off his pointy teeth as he dove for the dragon. 
Of course, the dragon ran away, leaving the Dragon Lord to fall off the edge of the surface. He growled at the nuisance and shot up, not noticing the struggling Applejack. 
Applejack took a deep breath as her hooves started slipping. She tried to pull herself up or to throw herself over, but her hooves weren't that strong. 
She saw Rainbow being chased by Loyalty at her height, she'd surely see her. Applejack took another deep breath and slipped off, falling through a cloud. Her eyes were squeezed shut as she held her breath. She slowly peaked one eye open and saw a bird fly by. She looked up and saw Rainbows hooves wrapped around hers. A smile appeared on her face. She was flying! 
But her flying didn't last very long as she was dropped in the center of the surface, she watched as Loyalty caught up to Rainbow, shoving a hoof into her side. Loyalty got a hoof to the hind leg. 
Applejack looked around, taking inventory as quickly as she could. She noticed Rarity pinned against the ground by Honesty, Laughter sitting close by as her side bled. The Dragon Lord dashed after them, but Spike and Generosity were planning something as her horn glowed light blue. 
Applejack dashed towards them, her face to the floor as her eyes tried to look past her mane to see who she was hitting. Just as Generosity's horn shot, she was rammed off the side of the surface with a scream, her shot firing into a cloud. 
Spike quickly ran to the edge to care for her, but she was picked up by Loyalty with a charging horn aimed at Applejack. The mare shot, it was dead on as it knocked Applejack off of her hooves. She was rammed into the ground, Pinkamena grabbed her hoof before she fell off. She smiled as she threw Applejack over her head, the mare slamming on the ground right in front of the baby dragon and Generosity.
The Dragon Lord tore up Honesty's hat, the remnants of it flying off into the sky. He chased her, she ran over to Rarity with a smirk, the mare missing a shot at her. She shoved the mare off of the side of the surface, screaming at the top of her lungs. The Dragon Lord dove under her and caught her, holding her as they stood underneath the shade of the surface. 
She smiled up at him happily, admiring his care for her. She could only imagine how sad she'd be if he died, and if he got the chance to die, she didn't want to not tell him something. Her face turned red as he watched her. She looked up at him, her eyebrows furrowed and her cheeks puffed out. "I love you!" She said quickly and abruptly. 
He stared at her blankly for a few seconds, but soon he chuckled and smiled at her. "I love you too." He said, her face turned a deeper shade of red as her eyes sparkled. He couldn't help but get caught in her beauty. 
As Rainbow flew by with a determined look they were reminded of the fight up above. They nodded at one another and he flew her up to the top, they now fought side by side. Even if it was mostly one-sided. 
Chaos became the King of Chaos and the Lord of Terror as he terrorized Discord and Kindness to no end. He didn't hurt them, he didn't even come close to hurting them as he messed with them. 
Spawning huge brick walls that would just fall to the ground, stopping their momentum. Chaos didn't even advance on it as he laughed at them, snapping his fingers and spawning more random birds to annoy the two. 
Of course, Discord wasn't that stupid and actually inflicted pain on him. While Fluttershy chased down Kindness with the same silly intent, Discord would catch Chaos in a laughing fit and punch the laugh out of him. 
Chaos would disappear and reappear behind his back, throwing a huge rock at his back or a stuff animal. Discord didn't understand this draconequus, but he guessed it was a good thing that he wasn't serious. 
So stuff animals and brick walls covered the ground as the two fought. As if the ruins could become even more ruined. But as silly as Discord realized Chaos was being, he didn't know why. Why would the idiot not care? This was the fight that determined whether or not his mane six got Equestria. He always played around Chaos as if he was fighting for real, he always got a serious feeling from him. And sadly his mare was just as psycho and mean as he was. 
She messed with Kindness, popping out of a cloud and dashing past the mare. She never caught Kindness, or took advantage of her, she just toyed with her. Discord more often than not would try to dash out after her and get her to stop, but Chaos would make sure of her safety and keep him from hurting her with another distraction. 
Discord dashed at Chaos, his paw and claw ready to choke the draconequus to death. And he actually got his hands around the males throat, but a snap and a huge squawk stopped him as a shadow was cast over the two. 
He slowly looked behind him and his face fell at the huge... bird thing with bright red eyes stared down at the two. Discord glanced at Chaos and saw his smirk. He rolled his eyes and threw Chaos at the thing, flying away as fast as he could.
The bird went after Chaos, but before it could gnaw down on his head, Fluttershy soothed the bird into a sense of security. But Discord snapped and a cotton candy cloud appeared above the three, the bird's security died at it screeched, looking at the two with an even brighter red. The two flew away for their lives, being chased by the thing until Chaos remembered he could make it disappear. 
Once the thing was gone the two bickered playfully, forgetting their situation. Discord felt so bad for the two of them as he drug his hand down his face, flying out and pinning Chaos to a cloud, piercing his claws into his sides once again. 
Fluttershy flew to save him, but Kindness filled her vision. The mare nervously tried to think of something obviously, she then thought of something with a light bulb above her head as she stuck her tongue out at the mare and flew off slowly, which was as fast as she went. 
Fluttershy sighed and chased after her, looking over to see Chaos just getting the shit beaten out of him. She smirked and flew after Kindness faster. Discord was being ruthless, his spine still stinging with lightning as he kept punching Chaos over and over again. He was ready to send the demon back to Tartarus from whence he came, but a shot of magenta burned his hand. 
He looked down at the stinging electricity and saw Twilight watching the fight while she fought her own battle. The mare then checked on the surface the rest stood on and shot magenta at it. Only then did she continue to focus on her own wars. 
Discord almost felt proud of somepony before the alicorn shoved his precious Magic into the depths of the sky. He snarled and looked away, watching as a punch would've hit him before he disappeared. 
He checked on Kindness for a split second and saw that Fluttershy was picking on her again. He would've helped her if Chaos wasn't intent on getting one punch in. Chaos swung at him angrily, missing as Discord disappeared and reappeared behind him. His hoof collided with the males back and sent him spiraling down to the ground of the ruins. Discord smiled in his selfish pride until Chaos came back up and got one punch in, smashing his claw into his face as hard as he could with a growl. 
He drug his fingers through his skin, leaving bright cuts in their wake. Then he was back to playing games until the whole sequence continued like clockwork. It honestly wasn't that exhaustion inducing, or maybe that was just a perk of being an immortal combination of things. 
The alicorns weren't doing the worst of all of them surprisingly. They were too busy focusing on their friends and focusing on avoiding the other that they overall barely fought. A few punches were swung and a few kicks but overall that was it. They really were like angels as they just got higher into the sky. 
But then something changed as Magic stared at Twilight too long, watching the mare care for others. Her blood boiled, jealous she got the sick love instead of the real love. All her evil colleagues she called friends got more love than her when she could've sworn they had a stronger connection than any of them did. 
She was furious, her responsibility faded as she felt a vengeance for the mare. She knew she was going to screw herself by doing this, but she needed to, someone needed to start a fight between the two anyhow. 
So her hoof hit Twilight's swollen cheek, she was almost afraid all the blood underneath it would come gushing out at the impact, but the mare just whirled to her and jammed her hind leg into the mares stomach, as if she was ready for this. 
Twilight's face shared the same rage-filled jealousy as the two brawled, not flying away from the other as they fought. Twilight would punch Magic, Magic would return it with ramming into her waist and then jabbing her side with her elbow, just to get an elbow to her nose. Their noses had already stared bleeding slightly as Twilight's lip opened up again. The blood rushing to their faces and sides and legs couldn't keep up their stamina as they got tired quickly.
They were both aware of their slowing movements and dying reactions, and they both understood that everything from before and now had started to pile up, their bodies were more likely to shut down completely than to simply stop working for a second at this rate. 
And they could feel and hear their friends get hit, wanting to check on them so badly. But they couldn't, they had to stay focused on their own fight. 
But abruptly, Magic froze in shock. Her heart plummeted as her stomach seemed to take the blow one of her friends did. She had no idea who it was, and she had no time to look around as magic flooded to her horn without her command. 
A wave of magic surged out of it, the roaring in her head only adding to the migraine. But once she opened her eyes, everything was quiet.
Her pain stopped, her headache stopped, her bleeding stopped, freezing on her face. She could feel the liquid in her veins stop, unable to flood to the parts of her that were still damaged. 
Her horn stood glowing from the surge, the glow didn't fade. The magic froze onto her horn. She couldn't believe it as she looked around, seeing a cloud nearby stuck in the sky. It didn't move, and then she looked to her friends, understanding what she did.
Her hooves flew to her muzzle as she stared at them, Loyalty motionless in the air with Rainbow Dash frozen at her tail. The Dragon Lords huge claw hanging in the air, having just swiped at an attempt to catch Spike as the small dragon jumped to evade it. 
She froze time and had no idea how she did it, or why. Her horn did it on her own from what she remember, but she didn't know the spell. She didn't know a spell to freeze time existed! She thought it was one of those things Starswirled never discovered.
But eventually, the shock teemed out of her, leaving very little of it as her adrenaline finally died, all of it gone. Her muscles relaxed, her wings stopped moving, her heart stopped beating as she simply laid there, floating in mid-air. She smiled widely, the overwhelming relief after all the pain and suffering. 
She didn't care how bad it seemed, and she didn't think about what happened afterwards, she just wanted to sit and stay still for once, floating among the frozen air in the clouds place.
A relief spread through her veins, overwhelming her dying senses with a final moment of peace as her latest dose of adrenaline died. But as she shut her eyes, feeling her systems start to slow, her mind didn't hear the cracking in the distance or the vibrations that surrounded her. She didn't even fight when hooves wrapped around her waist.
"Difficult day?" A mare quietly asked, as if she was her wife she just walked home to from a bad day at work. Magic didn't respond, she couldn't bring herself to force herself out of her comfort, especially when the hooves around her didn't help. "Freezing time is a way to relax, but isn't it scary? You feel your bodily functions fall apart within you as you continue to breathe."
Magic opened her eyes and looked as Twilight stared into the fur on her chest, as if the frozen time wasn't what comforted her. Magic didn't care, she just looked up at the sky, staring at the sun that beamed down on them, letting Twilight ramble. "One moment of silence in the storm. It's felt like we haven't slowed down for days."
Celestia's power shined on them, making Magic realize her violation of her virtues. How could she? She had known Celestia far longer than she had Twilight, yet why did she let Twilight wrap her hooves around her instead of the sun? She blamed it on her slowing senses. But Twilight's spiels echoed in her ears, vibrating through her as the mare spoke into her chest, it seemed to be the only thing keeping her alive.
Twilight's grip got tighter as she looked away from Magic's chest, looking at her surroundings instead. "I am not sad I met you or Pinkamena. Simply disappointed I met you both at the same time. I didn't know how I'd have the heart to choose."
"It's fine," Magic finally spoke. She shut her eyes to avoid letting Twilight see them. "We both understand. We'd want the other to be happy with whomever they are with. We'll always mean something to each other, won't we?" Twilight's reply was just a tighter grip. 
The two sat in silence for a while, letting Magic's words set in. It was nice to feel this close to the other before they'd be forced to fight again. Neither of them knew how'd they be able to do it. 
"We must end this soon, Twi," Twilight spoke coldly, pushing herself off of Magic, just staring into her cold eyes as a thick layer of betrayal sat behind them again. "Let's just get it over with." 
Magic smiled wickedly, anger building up and replenishing her dead functions. Even in what seemed like their final moments the mare was a fucking jerk. How did Magic ever get the clue the mare was kind and sweet? "Why do I care for a monster like you?" She asked rudely, spitting on Twilight's name.
Twilight smiled truly. "Maybe it's the so-called monstrous part of me you adore so much. You've always been in control, who wouldn't enjoy a liberation?" 
Magic sneered. "What you've done isn't liberation. It's a prison. Do you not understand what you've done to my friends and I?"
"I'll always love you more than they do," Twilight stated bluntly. "I will only let you and they live because of you. Without you, we'd torture them for years before allowing them final starvation."
Magic wasn't fazed, to which Twilight pouted playfully. "It must be the psychotic parts, cause there's nothing else about you."
"I must say I've enjoyed our time, love," Twilight spoke, a new giddy feeling inside her as she got to play with Magic once more. It hit her that this wasn't what Magic loved, she knew Magic loved the sweet her, but she didn't like the sweet her. The sweet her was the tired her. And the tired her was Canterlot's Queens her. She smiled wickedly. "But I must ask you take us back so I can celebrate with my Queen. Not you." 
Images of the pink mare flashed in both their minds as Magic cursed her, her horn glowing on its own. Eventually, the world around them cracked. A thin layer of something shattered around the clouds. They started moving slowly, as if breaking out of ice. Eventually, everything else did, even if they didn't feel the slowness. Everypony was still chasing and running, some got the advantages and so did others. 
But it was nothing of either side. It was the skill of the certain ponies that gave them the advantage, but that meant they'd just wipe themselves out until Twilight and Magic were left. And then there would be no winner. 
A no winner meant Harmony won when the princesses got there to kill them. Twilight sighed as she watched, her slow mind trying to think of something to give them the win. She couldn't be killed, she had to prove Daybreaker wrong at this point. She was sure the alicorn was laughing in her throne, betting with her sister on the way they'd all die. 
Her horn throbbed as she thought of spells, she had to be fast before Magic got the courage to punch her. Or the will power to. The mare was just as tired as she was. One spell flashed to the front of her mind, she had never known of the spells existence before, and she wondered how she knew of it, but that didn't matter as she looked to see that Harmony was somewhat more skilled than they were.
She looked over and saw that the two draconequus' were stuck in a stand off as Disharmony's one was being a brat. Loyalty had stuck Rainbow to a cloud and was smashing her face in. 
Honesty had slammed Applejack into the ground and was doing the same. Generosity and Spike kept the Dragon Lord and Rarity from helping her, not that Rarity would've anyway.
Laughter was terrorizing Pinkamena similar to the way Chaos was doing to Discord. Simply messing with the mare to keep her busy. Twilight wondered what was happening, why Harmony was winning, how could they? They were good-doing rats against a murderer, gang leader, and a huge dragon. Then again, he was a teenager. She couldn't understand it. 
But she glanced over to Magic, seeing her watch the fight with a motherly smile on her face and Twilight's skin itched. She stared at the ground and snarled. She wanted to wipe that smile off her face. She wanted to take it, throw it away, and watch it burn in the ashes of Harmony all while the mare watched. 
Twilight sighed. She was sick, wasn't she? A sick, twisted mare. She wondered how it had happened. What did a crazy house do to her? Well, she stopped caring as she dove for the ground. She could think it over later amongst the rubble of Canterlot when she won.
Magic quickly dove after her, making sure she didn't ruin anything for her friends. She was relieved to see that the mare didn't hit the floating surface they were all standing on, but then a sinking feeling fell inside her floating gut as she flew downwards after her. 
She prayed for her friends as she knew she couldn't get closer to the mare to stop her without teleporting, and her mind was too tired to focus on that sort of spell. She might've just screwed her friends, and she was terrified as Twilight's hooves hit the ground with a loud boom!.
She winced as she stopped above the mare. She opened her eyes and saw magenta floating upwards around her. Her eyes widened in horror as she looked down at Twilight. The mare grinned maliciously and smugly as magenta sunk into the ground around her. 
Magic sighed, wondering what Twilight had just done and just how detrimental it was. The mare dashed upwards past her and she hesitantly followed, not wanting to see what she could prevent. They passed the floating surface just as magenta sank into the cracks. Magic felt tears well up in her eyes at just the many thoughts of what Twilight had done. 
Twilight stopped up at their point in the sky, staring down with a proud smile, fatigue out of her mind as a new, heavy dose of adrenaline must've seeped in. Magic winced and looked away as she held her place next to the mare, only a few feet away. She opened her eyes slightly and her lungs failed to intake air as her eyes shook. 
It was much easier to tell everypony apart as magenta encased those of Disharmony. Magic shook her head and stared down as the tables turned. Harmony was winning, they were okay. They were going to survive this! And her mistake ruined that. 
Tears fell from her eyes and into the now magic dense air. She looked over at Twilight and saw that the mare didn't even care for her. The mare just smiled wickedly down at the crowd of ponies as Disharmony now had a new sense of power in them.
The Dragon Lord's teeth seemed to sharped as he swiped up the smaller dragon in his huge hand, his claws digging at the scales on the smaller one's neck. A shot of light blue hit his hand, causing him to drop the smaller dragon and let the baby scurry away. 
The Dragon Lord flexed his hand as he stared at it painlessly, very different to how he took Generosity's magic before. The mares magic used to paralyze and shock his hand, which no one knew why. Her magic was weak, but it affected him greatly. But know it did what it did to everypony else, annoy them. 
He glared maliciously at Generosity with a huge smirk and a want to injure in his eyes. He stomped towards Generosity and Spike loudly, his teeth shining in the sun as his claws gleamed. The two shook in their hooves as he got closer and closer, they winced, holding the other and accepting their end. 
They felt a shadow over them, but opened their eyes to a pink, fluffy tail as Laughter had stepped out in front of them. "You're a big meany! Leave them alone!" The mare yelled at him in her bubbly tail. Despite how strong she looked, she was shaking just as badly as the two she stood in front of. 
A red sheen shined in his green eyes as fire seemed to shine behind them. He smirked. "That's the point of being a dragon, pony princess lover." A huge roar escaped his throat as fire shot at the three. They sped away, barley dodging the fire as the end of their tails were charred. 
He continued to smile wickedly at them as fire continued to burn on the non-flammable surface. A bright green shined with a purple center. They each looked to the other and mentally knew what they had to do. They could run a huge dragon out of stamina, right? There was no way they could get close to him now. And there was no way he could burn the entire surface, not with Rarity standing on it. 
They nodded and instantly shot to their hooves as he began running after them, picking the smaller dragon as his first prey. As the huge dragon chased the smaller one, Laughter and Generosity assumed the only way to distract him was to mess with his mare. But they were shoved to the ground by Applejack as they stood still in thought. She smiled just as wide, a new magenta shining on her hard worked fur. 
Generosity growled as the mares dirty hooves touched her chest. Her horn glowed a light blue and she shot the mare right between the eyes, allowing her and Laughter to get up and continue to run, trying to think of something to do to Rarity. 
As Laughter looked back to check that Applejack wasn't chasing them, she saw the orange mare be slammed into the ground by another orange mare. The two brawled equally, something that had never happened before. But a white mare stopped her in her place. 
She looked up at smiled as the unicorn looked like Generosity, but a new shine of magenta told her it wasn't. Her stomach caved in as she watched Generosity scream in fear as Pinkamena bounced around her with an evil and honestly psychotic laugh. 
"Leave her alone!" Laughter yelled at Pinkamena, trying to slam past Rarity. But the mare's hoof blocked her path as Rarity smirked at her. She was so confused as the magenta sparkled in the sun. What kind of magic could make the laziest mare she'd ever encountered actually fight?
All four of them tried to reach the other, feeling scared on their own. But a magenta covered monster cornered them. And instead of just ending it, the four monstrous versions of themselves messed with them, as if they all knew what the other was thinking. 
Rarity glanced over at the Dragon Lord as he messed with the baby dragon like a lion playing with it's food. She smiled at the dangerous look about him. A red shined in his eyes as he messed with the baby ruthlessly. As if the smaller dragon was already dead. She simply giggled to herself. "And what's the bitch laughing at now? How not even magic could improve how bad she is at everything?" He growled lowly in her direction. 
She smiled as she once again stopped Laughter from helping Generosity. "No, I was laughing at how handsome a dangerous reptile could look," She smirked evilly as a red spread across his face. He growled and looked away. A huge smile on her face. "Though now I could say I could laugh at how magic can't even make you a real monster around me." 
"Stop chattin'. Knowin' this bunch we'll fuck something up. Just keep 'em away from each other, got it?" Applejack yelled at them. Of course, the other three around gave zero fucks as they rolled their eyes with smirks.
The four harmonized versions of them felt their stomachs drop. What were they planning? A total annihilation of all of them together? They were horrified and tried harder to get out of the grips of the monsters, now seeing the gravity of the situation.
Honesty wondered if Loyalty faired any better as she looked up at the sky as she tried to break out of Applejack's new grip around her. Her breath stopped as she stared up at the two cyan pegasi. She fought harder to get out of Applejack's grip, wanting to desperately help her friend in whatever way she could. 
Once she realized the futileness of it, she hung her head and accepted her fate. This is where harmony ended, right? None of them could win, Magic couldn't defeat all of them on her own, the mare was already torn apart against herself. 
How could a little magic let Harmony lose?
Loyalty was in one of the worst situations. She wasn't just held down and separated like the others, she was being injured without mercy as a cyan monster sat atop of her on a cloud. 
A cyan hoof hit her cheek, then it would try to smash her face in, just for Rainbows hoof to be caught on a rainbow mane, pulling hairs out with her intensity. She ignored whatever the magenta did to her, she was simply using it as an intimidation factor, well, that's what she told herself. 
The magic actually just did whatever it did, Twilight had no idea and neither did anypony else. Apparently it lessened the pain nerves felt and increased stamina. But Rainbow didn't feel any of it as she smashed her pain throbbing hooves into the mare beneath her. 
Blood already started pooling slowly from the mares muzzle, the fur there stained ruthlessly as the rest of her face was. Despite her tomboy tendencies, including no care for being dirty, she couldn't say she didn't hate the feeling on her face. Just everything piled up and felt like a mud-mask. 
Thinking about a shower, even a bath, and the mud-mask on her face distracted her as she awaited someone's help. Her hooves couldn't move, despite her best attempts. She couldn't stand it, she already felt as if she was going to die, the immense pain already started to numb as her breaths got heavier. Her heart beat should've been rocketing, but she couldn't feel it beat. 
She could just stare up at the rage on her own face, cuts and scraps covering her face as her eyes shined with a violent color. Loyalty almost wanted to cry, well, she would've if she could've. But she physically couldn't do anything. She was stuck, and she was done for. 
She shut her eyes, finally accepting her fate. Accepting her death was quite easy, nothing around her told her anything else but her position and her situation. And the cyan abomination above her told her it was her time. 
"RAINBOW!" She heard a southern voice echo in the sky. Her mind shot to life as she stared up at the pegasus, seeing her look down to the ground in response to the voice as well. 
Anger flooded into her as her nerves woke up, her senses setting the pain in her face on fire. That didn't help any. Force pushed against her limbs, her own want to get them to move succeeded as her front hooves appeared in front of her. They slammed into the mare in front of her, throbbing and swelling with pain as the mare fell off of her. 
She allowed herself some time to get up, assuming the mare would take her time. And that she did as she allowed Loyalty the liberty to actually stand up. Loyalty's wings spread, popping echoed in her ears as she stretched her back. 
Her oversensitive senses felt the air change, a stronger wind behind her. She quickly shot herself into the sky as Rainbow passed underneath her with a snarl. 
Rainbow didn't care for comic book banter as she shot up towards Loyalty, fury covering her features as she dove for the mare. Of course, she got stupid when she got mad, something Loyalty quickly learned to overcome herself as she fought with the pegasus. 
Loyalty glanced behind her and saw a cloud, she dashed for it, spinning around it in hopes to get the small amount of water in it moving. And that she did as the cloud quickly took a turn for a dark grey. She shot away from it, sending the dark storm cloud into Rainbows face. 
The mare escaped the cloud, drenched in water as she looked around persistently for the little runt version of herself. She eventually saw a small part of a rainbow mane sitting on the other side of a cloud, probably resting as the pain fully hit her. 
Rainbow smirked as she quietly flew closer to her, surprisingly, the mare noticed her and shot off of the cloud, sending Rainbow after her once again. 
But their chasing didn't last very long as Rainbow caught up with the slow mare, the heightened stamina showing through to her and she grabbed the mares tail with a smirk, Loyalty glanced at her with a growl as she tried to fly out of the grip. 
It didn't work as Rainbow slung her up into the sky above her, throwing her into the air with a smile. She intended on playing with her prey, now that she was on top of their situation. 
But Loyalty wasn't going to let her win as she noticed Kindness cornered into a cloud by Fluttershy. The mare raised her hoof and Loyalty saw red. Her wings and hooves shot her in the direction of the yellow monstrosity. 
She zoomed past clouds, watching that yellow hoof get closer and closer.
Loyalty's hooves jammed into the side of the mare, quickly keeping her from actually hitting Kindness as her hoof hit the edge of the cloud. Fluttershy gasped at the impact and fell from Loyalty's push. The pegasus shot up after her, smashing her hooves into the mares abdomen. She was almost sad the mare didn't start coughing up blood. 
Rainbow quickly flew after the two, hoping Fluttershy hadn't done that much damage to Loyalty. But just before she could grip the cyan mares hoof, something wrapped around her own tail. 
She looked back and saw Kindness weakly trying to keep hold of her tail as tears streamed out of her eyes. Rainbow rolled her eyes and attempted to tug her tail out of the weak grip, but the mare just held on tighter, eyes shut with fear as she tried to keep hold of the mare.
"Keep outta this, princess," Fluttershy said rudely and grabbed the end of Kindness's hoof, slamming her into a cloud. The mare screamed weakly as she let go of Rainbow, allowing the mare to fly off at Loyalty. Kindness's hooves hit her mouth as more tears blurred her vision. 
But she was thankful that Loyalty could handle herself, a hoof slammed into Rainbow's face. Rainbow growled and turned back, seeing Loyalty had started flying away from her. 
Like hell she was going to play her game, Rainbow finally started learning things. Her power-leveled head finally cooled down to think of how to deal with an equal foe. Of course, they weren't that equal. 
She smiled as she looked to Kindness, seeing that Fluttershy had already started chasing after Loyalty. Kindness was curled up on a cloud, her hooves to her eyes as she cried quietly. 
Rainbow looked over to see that Discord hadn't even noticed the threats to his precious mare. That only made her smile wider as she flew beneath the cloud the pegasus was curled up on.
It all happened it the width of two seconds. A loud, high-pitched scream stopped everypony as it echoed throughout the air. Kindness couldn't think to fly as Rainbow had shot the cloud to the ground. 
She just looked up as the wicked smile stared down at her, she couldn't bring herself to look below her. More tears left her eyes as she shut her eyes, holding onto the cloud tightly as she begged and prayed for something to save her. 
Discord immediately left Chaos's charades to catch her, knowing she wouldn't be able to fly. But his mind didn't comprehend the idea of teleporting as he watched her fall too fast for him to catch up to her. 
He could hear her sob as the ground got closer and closer. His heart dropped as everything slowed down for him. She was going to die, and he couldn't save her. 
How could he?
But magenta encased her when she was just inches from the ground. When she felt that she was still alive, she peaked her eyes open. She felt the cloud leave her as a draconequus hugged her tightly. Emotion overwhelmed her and she hugged him back, crying into his fur. 
He looked up and saw Magic on the surface, talking to everypony. He couldn't have been more thankful she was actually smart. He felt as if he owed his life to her as he stared down at Kindness. 
Like hell he would throw her back in that environment. He started to stomp away from the entire city as magenta covered them, the two appeared on the surface. He instantly flew off of it, but still stood close. Kindness still hugged him, but she had stopped crying. 
Loyalty flew near them, watching the surface as he did. Chaos, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash flew on the other side of the surface. And the ponies from the respective sides stood in front of them. 
Generosity, Laughter, Honesty, and Spike were set free with Magic's magenta, covering them in a protective case of it as they were teleported in front of Loyalty, Discord, and Kindness. The four looked horrified as Magic stood in front of them, her body was a mess in many ways. 
They, thankfully, could not see the condition of her face, they assumed it was worse than before. But her fur was matted in many different directions, showing the bruises that already started to show on her skin partially. Her mane was tangled in too many places to be even comfortable, and her horn sparked with magenta at the end, as if she was short on magic. 
The enemy was, sadly, in a much better position. Rainbow, Applejack, the Dragon Lord, and Twilight looked ready to fight. Chaos and Fluttershy looked bored as Pinkamena and Rarity stood near their respective partners. They looked much more ready for a final brawl than anypony on the harmony side was. They were screwed.
Magic took in the situation and was terrified. Her mind mixed with worry and disappointment. She didn't understand. How could they have lost that quickly? Did Harmony just forget they exist? Or did the powers of the real world step in and change the game? She assumed the less idealistic one was the right one. 
Her blood cooled as she stared at the enemy, the shine in their eyes finalized their success. Her heart ached as tears threatened to leave her eyes. The look in Twilight's eyes told her the mare forgot their deal. The mare was going to slaughter them without a second thought. 
She opened the gate to Disharmony's success. It was all her fault, and now she was either going to be apart of Harmony's fall, or she was going to watch Harmony's fall. She didn't know which one was worse. But all she knew is that her friends were going to die with her. They'd die right then and there. Celestia and Luna would have a sinking feeling and they'd cry inside the castle, knowing they had all lost.
They'd know that Harmony lost to a monstrous turn on it. 
She looked around her, seeing Spike curled up around Generosity's leg. The two shook in fear, their eyes darting from one enemy to another. Her heart ached at the situation she allowed the two in. Generosity could handle it to an extent, but Spike? The baby would be scarred for years. 
And she allowed that to happen. 
Laughter didn't bounce, her mane started to flatten with dread as she looked to the ground. She couldn't bring herself to look at them. She couldn't face her demise, and no matter how hard she tried to smile, her mouth simply wouldn't turn. 
Honesty just panted, staring at the ground and occasionally looking up at them. She tried her hardest, her condition showing that. But she was more disappointed, the future hadn't kicked in yet. She couldn't comprehend that their death was the next step. 
Loyalty was similar, just horrified at their defeat, not wanting to believe it. She couldn't believe it and Magic knew she would never believe it. Even in her last moments, she'd think Harmony would rise from the ground, taking them with it and reviving them. They'd watch angelically as the monsters would be banished in some way. 
But Magic knew there was nothing else Harmony could do for them. They had to fight for themselves now. They couldn't depend on a tree, the elements, or even the princesses to save them. They weren't children of Harmony's power, they were all that was of Harmony. They were stuck, finally lost. Equestria would lose it's hope and fall into a terrible history with these monsters. 
And they could do nothing to save that. 
Tears pricked at Magic's eyes as she prayed once again. She had no idea what she was praying too, but she stopped caring. She prayed for her friends safety as she stared into the eyes of Twilight, begging she'd simply kill Magic and leave her friends to live. But the mares voice made her mind a reality. 
"Any last words, Twilight?" Twilight asked maliciously, a huge smile on her face as her eyes glowed with a murky purple-red.
Tears finally fell from Magic's eyes as she took a final breath. She looked up at Twilight proudly, tears pooling from her eyes. Twilight didn't think the mare could get any prettier.
"Yes," Magic said quietly, not bringing herself to look at Twilight. But eventually she did and her eyes sparkled with a shining purple. "Harmony will reign over Equestria." 
Her horn erupted with a final wave of magenta. An ear-bleeding noise accompanied it as it blinded everypony present. Twilight hid her eyes with her hoof, her mind tried to cut the noise out of her mind. 
But when it all died out, a feeling of falling overtook her. Her eyes opened as she dropped her hoof, the ponies that were supposed to be in front of her were gone. And the magic that allowed the surface to float died, allowing it to freefall to the rubble of Canterlot. 
Her world froze as she stared at the place Magic was meant to be standing, screams echoed in her ears as the air sent her mane flying into the sky. Everything was smooth, until the surface hit the remaining mountain of rubble, a huge bump threatened to throw them off of it, like a speed bump hit too hard. 
She just stood still. Her mind couldn't process what had just happened as her body wanted to fly off of the surface. It eventually came to an even slope, allowing them all once again another moment of tranquility until it slid to a stop.
And there was silence. Just silence. The only noise could've been a piece of rubble falling if that even wanted to happen. But it didn't. A bird didn't croak, a rock didn't move, a noise wasn't made as they all attempted to comprehend what just happened through the haze of their minds. 
Their bodies throbbed, ached, swelled, and stung with a side of fatigue as they stood still. The magenta spell that empowered them before faded as their adrenaline started to die once again. Their minds were lost in a haze. 
The first movement after what felt like an hour had been Twilight walking away numbly. The first movement, especially by Twilight, seemingly allowed the others to move. 
Twilight walked numbly, having no destination and having no thoughts as she walked. But a pink hoof wrapping around her front hoof stopped her. She turned to the mare and her body lit on fire. 
Two pink hoofs held her face in place, she couldn't even feel the pain as pink was pressed against her face. Her mind couldn't function as she kissed the mare back passionately. She couldn't have been happier as Pinkamena's soft hooves held her face. 
Her mind moved to cloud nine as she took dominance of the kiss with a smirk. Her hooves grabbed Pinkamena's and pulled the mare closer to her, the two practically pushed against one another, well, they were. 
Twilight could feel the heat resonate off of Pinkamena's face as her kiss took a turn for soft. One hoof held Pinkamena in place as the other wrapped itself in the mares sleek mane. Her heart was beating out of her chest as she felt Pinkamena's curves against her, taking the most note of the ones on her lips. 
The pain flooded away at the kiss, but it sadly didn't last that long as she let go of Pinkamena, allowing the mare to move away. The mare practically jumped off of her with a red face as her blue eyes hit the ground. 
She didn't think of how they failed at the sight of her, taking in every part of her. The mares small body surrounded by a pink sleek. The curve of her hips as she was sat down, the way her hot pink tail wrapped around her defensively, the way her bright blue eyes shined against the warm pink. 
Big wide eyes stared down at the ground, shaking with fear as red covered her face. And that mare was all hers, nothing of that mare wasn't her. That adorable little mare was hers.
It felt like the biggest victory. 
She smiled widely, tears welling in her eyes from her happiness. She smiled wider. 
"We stole Equestria," she whispered.
She started laughing hysterically into the sky, the pain flooding into it as she desperately tried to get rid of it. She could've imagined everyone else's confusion as she laughed. 
She looked at all of them with a wide smile, feeling happy for once in her life. Tears rushed to her eyes. "We stole Equestria!" She shouted into the sky happily. And all that followed was soft laughs of tired and weary soldiers as she stared up at the sun. She had won, she had finally won against so many things. 
She won Equestria, she won against Daybreaker, she won against her emotions, and she got a mare as a plus. She couldn't have been happier as pink was once again pressed against her face.
> An Aftermath
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It didn't take very long for Equestria to change completely. After a few days, the castle of Canterlot was completely rebuilt by rearranging the rubble of the old castle. 
The new castle was much more symmetrical, and the lovely queen inside it declared it be a nice shade of purple. The throne room sat at the very back of the castle, the thrones similarly placed to how Twilight made the ones in the old castle. 
And after that, many of the rooms weren't used. Mostly because they hadn't been there very long. A few wings of the castle were taken in custody of some of the rulers. The Dragon Lord shared a heavily decorated wing with Rarity, the two mended their relationship quite easily, surprisingly. The two declared they were just brats and became playful brats towards the other instead. 
A wing was given over to Rainbow. As she mostly resided in it, Applejack visited often. Though the wing was just a huge open space with a cloud home. They all assumed Rainbow missed her home. The mare even got a rainbow pool in her cloud home, they all had no idea how, but they didn't question it. 
Applejack was like a nomad, never picking one room to make her own and never picking one room to stay in too often. As she was majorly criticized, she didn't mind. She enjoyed wandering in the castle that stood for her trickery. Something that appreciated her skill instead of bashing it. 
Fluttershy shockingly didn't want a huge wing to herself, much to Chaos's annoyance, but he didn't go against her. She simply took a big room that seemed to be a simple master bedroom. Chaos made it quite obvious that her choices annoyed him, but he still didn't go against her. He then understood as she almost never walked inside the castle, sticking outside to the gardens to be alone. Her wish wasn't granted as he constantly annoyed her. 
The biggest wing in the castle was held by Pinkamena and Twilight, surprisingly, no one else was allowed inside. But Twilight decorated almost more than Rarity did hers. The biggest thing that stood out to Pinkamena was the long hall with the stained glass paintings of Harmony on the walls. She mostly ignored it though. 
After the castle came the city. Twilight ordered some unicorn guards to fix up the place under Rarity's orders. She spent days without sleep fixing up the place similar to the way it was before. But there was a sick twist to it. Everything was too perfect.
And with the city fixed in a new shine, ponies started venturing back inside, curiously. They were mostly single stallions who seemed to work in mines with the way they dressed. And they fell under Rarity's spell as she was still ordering some guards around. 
They told others about how they were rebuilding the town and more families waltzed back in. Twilight couldn't have been happier. She sent Rainbow and Applejack to spread the word of their new ruling to the other cities in Equestria. The two quickly left, deciding to work together. Two minds work alike, they said.
She then used herself and Pinkamena as the spokesponies for Canterlot. And with her announcement, many ponies tried to run out of the city, heading to the nearest train. But all their hopes of leaving the country were struck down by the huge magenta barrier that covered the city. The barrier changed colors a lot, which only told the ponies that this new Twilight had a guard system. 
Ponies headed home, Applejack and Rainbows guards leading them back to their respective cities. They were all horrified as the sun continued to rise and set, meaning this new mare either had Celestia or had her own magic to do so. All the signs pointed to the new rulers being legit. And the growing sign was the military built under Rainbows eye.
The new government had its changes as everyone prayed for Harmony to return. 
Curfews were thrown in, except if a guard deemed their reasoning okay. The only good reasoning, was domestic violence, medical emergencies, or if the ponies wanted to go out clubbing. 
Most cities were left to their own governing, as Twilight threw in an United Cities organization. But Rainbow had overall control of the cloud cities, Rarity had control of Manehatten, and Applejack had control of Ponyville. 
But whoever lived in Canterlot was utterly screwed. Many jobs were thrown out the window, most stallions and colts being thrown into the growing military for work. Many mares started to teach at schools and were asked to preform much more mundane tasks. 
If you were lucky, the stallions worked under Rarity's line of work, fashion design. They got the most money and could support their families the most. That allowed Canterlot to be the hotspot of Equestria's beauty.
Not much changed overall, but to the mares and stallions of Equestria, everything had changed. Their precious princesses were gone, their lovely elements from Ponyville were gone, their order was gone. Their Harmony was gone.
Nothing worked as it should've. Social Hierarchy didn't take too long to build as unemployment rates skyrocketed. But did the rulers care? No! They couldn't care less about the economical stability of their new country. It's not like it would fall apart without it, and they certainly weren't being affected. 
But a kind heart out of the few of them tried her hardest to fix it. Once the others ignored her, she decided to take care of it herself. Applejack was one of the biggest victims of her Equestria's poverty. She saw what it did to ponies, and whenever she visited this new Ponyville, it pulled at her heart strings.
So of course, she helped Ponyville become one of the more stable cities. Everypony there saw her as a prophecy, saying that one element remained. She, of course, coldly told them they were wrong. She was still evil, she didn't want to hide that. She didn't want to continue to hide what she was. 
They didn't listen.  They continued to spread the rumor that one last element of Harmony remained. It gave hope to the otherwise hopeless ponies of New Equestria. She didn't mind, only said it pushed what she was even more. A trickster, and one day, it'd fall down on all of them.
But some ponies did listen to her however. They didn't trust her, they didn't take whatever she had to offer to the village. But they did go to the Everfree Forest, and deep inside by the old sisters castle, they would sit by the Tree of Harmony for what seemed like hours. 
They wouldn't pray, they'd simply sit by it, hoping for their elements to return with their princesses. They'd get an icy feeling, everyone of them thinking different things. Many assumed they were dead, others assumed they were just never gonna come back. 
But a small filly with an orange coat, small wings, and a purple, spiky mane would puff her chest out in pride. She felt like she had the right answer. And she would cut her wings off to prove it. 
And her guess lied in the middle of the Crystal Empire.