Sins of the Fathers

by Undisturbed Grave

First published 27th of January, 2020

Can Twilight and her friends stop a threat that is ten thousand years in the making?

Long before the Windegos attack the citizens of Equestria, there was a time where the three races lived under the tyrannical rule of Majesty and her Guards. Her guards were the strongest of the land and were fear by many. But one day, Majesty's Guards disappear, follow shortly by Majesty herself. After several centuries have passed, the legends of Majesty have turned to dust. But as every pony knows, nothing stays dead.

Special Thanks to Ignited Sage for proofreading and editing.

Prologue: The Last Hunt

Many forget how the world begins, whether it be a floating turtle or the creation of light. But it would be foolish to think that any creature could remember all the history of a world. Therefore, when Equestria talks about it’s past, you can believe that it's a lie. The story that is passed down from generation to generation is one of how the three races join to take out the Wendigos. What a lot seem to forget is why they were fighting in the first place.

About a hundred years before the attack of Wendigos, the races were at an uneasy peace. They had enemies on all side and only one thing was keeping them back. Her name was Majesty and she was the most powerful unicorn on the planet. She was able to create entered buildings and wipe out armies. She also a cold-hearted and calculating monster. She showed no hesitation when she attacks. But she also didn’t like to get dirty, so she created the Majesty’s Guard.

Majesty’s Guard was a group of six ponies that were chosen for their crudity and intelligence. They were the best warriors of their kind and they were her deadliest fighters. There was Firefly, a pegasus that excelled at elemental flying and the head strategist of the army. She led several attacks on Yaks and was name the blood of the sky. Following her was a pegasus name Posey, the head interrogator and spy for the Pegasus army. She also had an eye for magic items and was an expert potion maker. She always keeps a case of several potions and her favorite tools on her.

There was two Earth pony that are the bruisers of the group and had the temper to match. One was an earth pony Surprise or Captain Surprise to his underlines. He was the strongest in the group and was known to deal with brute force. He crushed hundreds under his hooves and enjoy hearing the bones of his enemies break under them. The second was mare by the name of Bowtie. She may not be the strongest, but she was trained in several fighting styles that relied on grace. Being from a noble family, she saw the power in expanding her influence.

The last two were unicorns of immense power that was only second by Majesty. The second in command was a unicorn Sparkles. She was head of the Unicorn first strike and one of the head magic sages. She also was a sadist, with a love for burning. There was a story of the way she wiped out entire tribes of Zebra. They say the fire was so hot that the sand turn to glass.

Then there was the leader and Majesty’s most loyal soldier, A unicorn name Bright Eyes. Being raised to be an apprentice of Majesty, he was the most promising out of twenty applicants who were competing. After a few accidents that took out some of the other, Bright Eye was the only one that succeeded. After training under her for twenty years, he managed to take on almost every threat he came across and rose to become the leader of the Guard. These were Majesty first and only respond to issues in the land. Then came the fateful day…

“Bowtie, how much farther till we are at the cave?” Bright Eyes shouted over the roaring wind of the blizzard. The group had trek up the mountain for most of the day when this blizzard came upon them suddenly. They were sent by Majesty to investigate a series of attacks on the nearby village. It seems straight forward but the decrease in visibility was becoming a problem.

“A few more meters,” Bowtie shouted back. She looked up at the Pegasus hovering right behind her. “I figure you could get rid of this. Aren’t you feather brains supposed to be controlling the weather?”

“We only got a small section under control.” Firefly shouted down, trying not to get blown off course. “We’re doing it to keep you mud ponies happy while you starve us.”

“Let’s keep moving!” Bright Eyes shouted. He knew that if tension were high now and led them to a battle, it could cause some “accidents” to happen.

“There’s the cave!!!” Posey shouted. Bright Eyes look up to see the cave was about a few steps away. With a hurried shuffle, they quickly got inside, and Sparkle lit a small torch. Posey stretches and looked around the dark cavern and sighed. “Why are we here again?”

“We're here because of several caravans that were attacked on this route.” Surprise said. “If we find out what behind the attack, then we can secure the land and with it, several routes into Yakastani.”

“Is that all you think about?” Sparkles asked, playing with a small sparkler ball that bounced back and forth off her front two hooves while laying on her back. “You need to get a hobby or something to chill you out.”

“My hobby is breaking the spines of worthless unicorns.” Surprise said, standing over Sparkle. “Want me to start now?” Sparkle smiled before tossing the sparkles into her mouth. Surprise look confused at her as she started chewing. Then, with a manic grin, she spat a small fireball into his face. He stumbled backward as he cried out in shock. Sparkle giggled as he back away, summoning another small ball of sparks.

“You little piece of …” Surprise growled before Bright Eyes step in front of him.

“Would you two knock it off?” He said, put a hoof on each of them. “Keep your blood lust in check for when we find whatever’s down here. Got it?”

“Got it.” Surprise said, still glaring at Sparkles.

“Aya Aya, Bright Eyes.” She said, still giggling. “So, do you think it’s a dragon or maybe some kind of demon?”

“Or it could be a couple of timber wolves.” Posey sighed, rolling a rock to the side. “Honestly, I have never been this bored. I was promised something to play with.”

“You are one sick Pegasus, you know that?” Bowtie pointed out, before looking down a dark cavern. “I’m guessing whatever we’re looking for is down this way. How do we want to do this?”

“We go in pairs.” Bright Eyes answered. “Surprise and Sparkle will be in the front to be our heavy hitter. Posey and Bowtie will follow in case they need back up while Firefly and I will cover our exit and make sure we aren’t surprised. Got it?” The group nodded. “Alright, Sparkle. Light the way.”

With an eerie smile, Sparkle summoned a small fireball and started to lead them deep into the cave. It seems to go on for miles and with not a single living thing in the cave, the crew quickly became uneased. Finally, after what seems like an eternity, they came across a large cavern filled with broken carts and piles of gems.

“Called it.” Sparkle mutter to Surprise. “We’re dealing with a dragon. I want the head.”

“If it’s a dragon, how come I don’t smell sulfur?” Surprise said, looking around the cave. “Also, this cave is big, but I don’t think a dragon could hide in here.”

“Something not right,” Bowtie whispered back at Bright Eyes. “I see evidence of several caravans but not a single animal.”

“Maybe we got lucky and it’s hunting for its dinner right now.” Firefly said looking at the piles of gems. “This gives us a chance for us to get the drop on…” Before she could finish her sentence, a dripping noise filled the air. Firefly felt something wet slid down her shoulder. The three of them look up to see a large shadow hanging on the ceiling, emitting a low growl. Within seconds, the figure landed in front of them and reveal a large Sphinx. She stood tall, with her head almost touching the ceiling.

“Why are you in my home?” The sphinx demanded, laying on the ground. Bright Eyes look over to the rest and then step forward.

“We are Majesty’s Guard and we demanded you leave this land.” Bright Eye said, charging his magic.

“And I’m bored.” The sphinx yawed. “How much of my treasure should I give to you to get you out of my home?”

“You can’t bribe us!” Firefly shouted.

“Well, I won’t mind a couple of gems.” Posey mutter quietly.

“Alright, if gems are not your fancy, I have many items here that might interest you.” The Sphinx offered.

“Or we could just kill you and take it all for ourselves.” Surprise said, taking a step forward.

“You’re assuming that you could kill me.” The Sphinx giggled, standing up to them, towering to staggering twenty feet. “Well then, hit me with your best shot.”

“Sparkle, Now!” Bright Eyes shouted, causing the group to scatter. Sparkle summon a large fireball and hurled it right at it. The Sphinx yawn and trace a circle in the air. It created a glowing ring that as soon as it hit the fireball, causing it to disappear.

“So tiring.” It yawned, making a dramatic motion of fanning. “Surely, you can do better.”

“She might not be able to, but I can!” Surprise shouted, coming from behind the sphinx. It swiped only to stop in mid-swing by Surprise. The two struggled for a few moments before with a roar of rage, Surprise twists the paw with a defeating snap. The Sphinx growled and with its other paw, smacked Surprise across the cave into a pile of gems.

“I've drawn first blood, the battle is ours!” Surprise shouted as he jumped out of the pile. The Sphinx smiled and the group watch as it wounded paw glow for a second before cracking back into place.

“Or not.” Firefly mutter as it shook its’ paw a few times. “Looks like I’m going to have to end this.” With a determined look, she shot across the cave and started flying in a circle above the Sphinx. As she started to pick up speed, the wind whip after her until a funnel started to form. The Sphinx looked up at vortex and smiled as the funnel shot down right at her. With a predatory grin, it jumped right into the tornado, not even feeling the wind rip at it. Before Firefly could react, the Sphinx appeared right next to her and with a quick swipe, sending her crashing to the ground.

“Alright, Posey. You better do something quickly or we are going to be in serious trouble.” Bright Eyes said, running over to the stun Firefly. Posey nodded and immediately put on a neckless amulet. It shined bright as she let out a low whistle. The glow from the neckless wrap around several gems and with a sharp pitch increased from Posey, they fired out like arrows. Out of the twelve that were fired, only five managed to hit their target due to the Sphinx nimbleness. Four of the gems seem to bounce harmlessly while one left a small cut on the left side of its cheek.

The Sphinx smile and with a slight twitch, the cut quickly healed. She landed right in front of Posey and let out a large roar that blasted Posey against a wall.

“This is what you warriors have brought?” It asked. “A few spells and a couple of hits? Is this the best your races have to offer?” It turned to see Bright Eyes starting to cast his spell. “That’s it. Show me something a little better than some fire.”

“I got something better than fire!” Bright Eyes shouted, firing a large beam of magic right at it. It took the full force as it put up its paws to block the spell. It was push backed a little as the beam burn red hot. With a mighty roar, The Sphinx cast a shield that reflected the beam into the ceiling of the cave. The beam exploded, sending shards of rock hurling to the ground. With a sharp whistle, Posey reactivated her amulet to grab the falling rocks and shot them at the sphinx. It reacted with a glare that caused the rock to turn to dust.

A large cloud of dust covered the entire cave and blinding everyone in the cave. “So, you seem to be a powerful warrior.” The sphinx called out, it’s voice seeming to come to form all sides. “But you have no chance of beating me. Either you fall here or leave this place now and never return.”

“We will never back down!” Bright Eyes shouted. “For we are Majestic Guard, the strongest in the land. We will conquer all who stand in our way!”

A burst of loud laughter filled the air and a sudden wind blew the dust away, revealing the sphinx. “You think you conquer this land? You poor fools, your race will soon bow to a more powerful race. One that has control over the earth ponies, pegasi and unicorns. It is a powerful force and all kneel to it.”

“We’ll never bow to such a creature.” Bright Eyes said, gearing up for another spell. The sphinx smiled and raised its right paw.

“You shall see.” It said and with a flick of the paw, a small ball of energy shot out for it. The ball land on the floor and the ground started to shake. With a thunderous crack, the ground opened as a large red vortex manifest out of it. Bright Eye immediately felt a pull from it and started to back away. He looked to see Firefly was doing the same, flying as hard as she could but she couldn’t seem to get out of its pull. Even Surprise, who had dug his hooves into the ground, was being pulled without a struggle.

“What demon magic is this?” Sparkle shouted as she clings onto a small rock in the ground.

“This is my kind’s specialty.” The Sphinx shouted. “We are weavers of time and it’s time to show you what it to become of your kind.” Bright Eye heard a shout and look just in time to see Bowtie fall into the vortex, disappearing in the inky blackness. He realized that this fight might be too much to handle. He quickly used a telekinesis spell and pull out a small gem. A gem that with mistress told him to use if he was in trouble.

“Majesty, in my time of need.” He started but he lost the grip he had on the ground and slid into the vortex. The last thing he saw before darkness encased him was the smiling face of the Sphinx.

And like that, the Majestic Guard was never heard from again. They left their families with only their children and the stories of their battle. A few days later, Majesty herself disappear, rumor to be working on a spell to find her lost warriors but many doubted it. So the defense fell and the race went back to fighting. After a hundred years of war, they untied to fight the Wendigos and almost all the stories of these warriors were forgotten, except a few that were passed on like fables or warnings. It seemed like they would never be found, until one day.

Chapter One: Time Flies

“Professor Dust Brush, why are we here again?” A small pony by the name of Silver Coin asked. The two were in a cave that was just north of Manehatten, recording it as it was just discovered. They got separated by the main group because they found a small path that branch off from the main cave systems. Silver Coin didn’t like it but was getting a feeling that Dust Brush was a little bit of a fortune seeker. She watched as he turned a corner and with a slight gasp, gallop out of sight. She groaned in annoyance and followed him. “We should get back to the main…” She stopped when she entered the chamber to see piles of gems they had just found.

“I have been hoping to find this all my life.” Dust Brush mutter under his breath. “An actually Sphinx loot. I heard of rumors of one having to be near here but to be in one…” He quickly started looking around the cave floor. “It’s got to be… It’s got to be around here somewhere.”

“What are you looking for, Sir?” Silver Coin asked, looking at the large piles of gems. “These gems could fund hundreds of expeditions. What more could you ask for?”

“Every pony knows that Sphinxes love to collect gems but wanted to make sure nothing else got it. So, they made a portal of time. A little hole in the fabric of reality. If this is on the outside, then whatever it hid away must be worth, AH HA!” He shouted as he brushes at something on the floor. Silver Coin looked over to see a small crack with a couple of symbols around it.

“What are you going to do?” She asked but got her answer when his horn started to glow. “Are you crazy? Who knows what in there?”

“I’ll tell you what in there.” Brush said with a little laughter in his voice. “Lost spells, gold worth millions, maybe even some lost books on our history. And it’s just a spell away.” With a final chuckle, he shot a beam of magic into the ground. The symbol glowed and Silver felt the ground shake. She started to back away when it cracked open, shooting a blast of cold air into the cave.

She shielded her eyes as the wind pick up causing her to duck behind a pile of gems. There was a loud crack like lightning and a blue light lit up the cave. With that, the wind stopped, and everything seemed to calm down. She looked up from to see six ponies standing in front of Dust Brush, who was laying on the ground after being blown back by the wind.

“Is this another six-pillar thing?” Dust Brush asked out loud, brushing some dust off his coat as he got off the ground. “Because I swear, it seems more ponies get trap in some kind of magic hole than died.” One of the six ponies, a unicorn with dark blue fur, started speaking an unknown language. He shouted at the other ones, but they seem dazed.

“Great, they can’t even speak our language.” Dust Brush sighed and walked over to the six ponies. “Welcome to Equestria. My name is…” Before he could finish, the dark blue one cast a spell that wrapped around Dusk's neck and pulled him to the ground. With a straggling gasp, Dust Brush tried to pull free but was subdued when the unicorn slammed him into the ground. Silver Coin watch as he muttered something under his breath to Dust Brush in his unknown words. She saw a silver mist float from Dust’s head into the dark blue one’s mouth. It made a groaning noise and she saw a light flash on the group.

“There.” The dark blue one said. “We now speak their tongue. First question, what in the name of magic happen?”

“It seemed that Sphinx used some kind of teleportation spell and send us to a foreign land.” A red unicorn said, looking at the ground. “This looks like the cave but that pony was speaking something I never heard before.”

“This is the same cave.” A large clay red earth pony said. “I can feel the earth is still the same but it’s off because it feels older. Like we’ve been gone for over… I don’t know how long.”

“So, Bowtie.” The dark blue unicorn said, turning to a cream color earth pony. “You know how to count higher than ten, how long have we been gone?” Silver watched as the one called Bowtie center herself and closed her eyes. She seemed to go in a calm state and sway for a second. She opened her eyes suddenly and let out a gasp of shock.

“We have been gone for over ten thousand years.” She said. They all turn to her and each had a face of disbelief.

“That’s impossible.” The dark blue one mutter. “Majesty won’t let something like this happen.”

“Wake up, Bright Eyes!” The red unicorn shouted. “If we are this far in the future, that means she dead. Our families are dead, and you know what that means?” She started to laugh, almost like she just discovered Hearts Warming Eve. “We become the top of the food chain. We are the most powerful thing and the world is ours for the taking.”

“We don’t know that we’re the most powerful.” A yellowish-orange pegasus said. “Remember what the sphinx said of a creature that rules over all three races? What if that what waiting for us out of this cave? A lifetime of slavery and death?”

“All the more reason to go out there.” The one called Bright Eyes said. “ I will bring glory to Majesty and then raised the unicorn to there rightful place.” He looked over to the other ponies. “With our Earth and Pegasus by our side, of course.”

“So, Bright Eyes.” The large clay red earth pony asked. “How do you planned to establish we are the new bosses?” Silver leaned in a bit, accidentally tipping a gem down the pile she was hiding behind. The gem bounced down the pile and skated across the floor until it bounced off the back hoof of the one known as Bright Eyes. He dropped the spell on Dust Brush, who started to crawl away but was stopped when the large pony stomped on his leg with a sickly crunch. He howled in pain, but Silver wasn’t paying attention as she was trying to back away slowly out of the cave.

Bright Eyes turn around suddenly, seeing Silver and before she could react, Bright Eyes cast a spell that wrapped around her legs and pulled her to the group.

“What do we have here?” Bright Eyes said, lifting her into the air. “A little earth pony who shouldn’t be listening to other ponies conversations.”

“I could get a fire going.” The red unicorn said with a smile. “We haven’t eaten in over a thousand years and I don’t know about you but I’m starving!”

“Wait.” Bowties said. “This filly might have some info.” Bright Eyes turn Silver around to face Bowtie. “So, little filly. Who is your Queen?”

“WE don’t have a queen.” Silver said quickly, trying to wiggle out of the spell. “And I’m not a filly! I’m just a little…small.”

“Alright, so who do you report, worship, listen or all of the above to?” The red unicorn from behind Silver demanded.

“Well, answer Sparkle.” Bright Eyes said pointy.

“Wait, her name is Sparkle?” Silver asked. Both Bright Eyes and Sparkle exchange a look.

“Why does that surprise you?” Bright Eye asked.

“Well, we don’t have a queen, but we have princesses! One of them is named Twilight Sparkle!” Silver said, now looking like she was trying to not be upside down. Bright Eye sighed and drop her to the ground. She scrambled to get up and was looking around at the group that surrounded her.

“Don’t try to run away or Captain Surprise will do what he does best.” Bright Eyes said, nodding to the large pony which she assumed was Surprise. Surprise smiled and with a swift movement, he stomped down on Dust Brush. A snap echo in the room and Dust Brush went limp. Silver’s eyes widen, and Bright Eyes look down at her. “Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, please don’t hurt me.” Silver quickly looked away from Dust.

“Now, about these princesses…”

🌑

The air was warmer than the last time they were on this mountain top. Sparkle looked down at the large city that was south from them.

“So, we have four princesses and they only care about "the friendship."” Bright Eyes said as he walked out of the cave. “What I need is to find out how powerful they are.”

“Well, according to our little pony, She and her friends are visiting this city called Manehatten.” Sparkle said with an eye roll. “I swear, not ever city should be named after a part of our body.”

“Yes, but according to our new source, these six ponies save this kingdom several times.” Bright Eyes inhaled the air with a smile. “And one sounds like your kin. Don’t you want to see where your breeding ended up?”

“That is a nice thought.” Sparkle said. “A leader of a group of fighters and a unicorn that surpasses all other. If she likes to see her enemy burn before her, I might just die of pride. Too bad yours didn’t become more powerful.”

“Maybe it’s because I was gone that they’ve weakened to a point of submissive. Don’t worry, I’ll raise them to their proper place.” Bright Eyes said, his eyes seemly lost in thought.

“And the other? What do we plan to do with them?” Sparkle said as she’d stand by him.

“Like I said.” Bright Eyes said with a cruel smile. “We shall put the unicorns in their proper place.

Chapter Two: A Trip in the City.

“I know I say this every time we come here but I do enjoy this city,” Rarity said as she, Pinkie and Rainbow Dash stepped off the elevator. “And now we get to eat at one of the best restaurants.”

“Well, after the year we had, I figured we could have a break,” Dash said as they gathered around a table. “Besides, look at the view.” She gestured to the window, showing the city’s skyline. “It’ll be a nice sight while we wait for Fluttershy and Applejack to bring the crusaders. When did Twilight say she be around?”

“She mentioned stopping at a bookstore before coming here so probably a little after the rest of us get here.” Rarity said as the two sat down at the table. “I hoped they’ll get here soon. I’m dying to try out their new appetizer.”

“Not to mention the cakes.” Pinkie Pie pointed out as she bounced into the air and backflipped into her chair. “I mean, there's also pie, cupcakes, donuts, oh and those little cookies that have jelly in the center. What are those called?”

“We can’t fill up on sugar, Pinkie.” Rainbow Dash said as she picked up a menu.

“Aww, why not?” She said, going to a puppy eyes look. “They say it has the best sweets.”

“Because, if we eat nothing but sugar, we’ll have a repeat of the Bake-Off incident.” Rainbow Dash answered. “And I do not want to stay up all night to help you…”

“Dash!” Rarity cut her off. “Not a good dinner conversation.”

“Sorry but seriously,” Rainbow Dash turned to Pinkie. “Have a soup or something first.”

“Fine.” Pinkie said, dejected. “I feel like I won’t get to dessert if I don’t eat that first.”

“It’ll be fine.” Rarity said as she looked at the menu. “We’ll order something when they get here and I’m sure that the desserts will be here before we leave.”

“Can we stop by the toy store?” Sweetie Bell asked Fluttershy. “We are trying to help Miss Cheerlee and we also need to get some new things for the camp.”

“I don’t see any problem with that,” Fluttershy said, looking around the street. It was crowded but pleasant. She felt a cool wind which caused her to shudder. It seemed weird because she could feel something tickle the back of her mind. Like something was not right but she couldn’t figure it out. “We need to be quick. Your sister is waiting for us at the new place that’s opening.”

“Ah think we can spare at least ten minutes.” Applejack said and the three of them cheered while rushing into the store. Applejack looked at Fluttershy and gave a small shake of her head and then followed them. Fluttershy looked back at the crowded street and for a second, she swore she saw some pony staring back.

“Should we follow them into the store?” Posey asked Bowtie as she watched the yellow pegasus enter the store.

“No,” Bowtie said, taking a sip from her tea. The two were sitting in a café across the street, keeping an eye on the group. “I might not be as well connected to the earth as our captain, but I can still sense that they are relative.” She sighed. “I’m disappointed in mines. I tried so hard to get out of the mud and here she is practically covered in it.”

“You think that’s bad,” Posey said, draining her drink in one gulp before throwing it over her shoulder. “Mines seem to be a wuss.” There was the sound of shattering glass. An angry stallion with bits of Posey’s drink covering him approached the two.

“Which one of you threw that?” he growled.

“I did that and before you get all huffy,” Posey said, touching her necklace. The gem glowed and the stallion’s eyes turned red. “You will leave us alone and the next pony to ask for some change, you will try to strangle them.” The stallion nodded. “Now, go away.”

“Why couldn’t you use that necklace on the sphinx?” Bowtie asked, watching the stallion trot away.

“Because where the fun in that?” Posey asked and then adjusted the necklace. “Besides, the witch I got this from said it could only take on so much. She told me to use it sparingly.”

“Speaking of, are you sure you want to keep using that?” Bowtie asked. “We never trusted unicorn magic before and yet, you abuse it so willingly.”

“Please,” Posey said, waving the air. “That old bat was a hundred years old when I bought this for a week and now we are ten thousand years past due. You think if anything was going to happen, it would have happened the second I stepped out of what even the sphinx put us in. I guess I could go home and pick up my other toys. Oh wait, as far as I know, my entire town was turned to dust. Almost all the pegasi moved to the cloud city because let’s face it, we rule the skies. But I kind of like the ground so I lived it one of our first settlements which are gone now.”

“So, maybe you should find different weapons,” Bowtie said, looking a bit unnerved.

“Aww, are you worried that I will mutter a few words and suddenly you will be bending to my will?” Posey smiled. “I hate to point this out, but I have no interest in controlling you or any pony in our little group.”

“And why should I believe you? I’ve seen your… true talent.” Bowtie looked over to a family enjoying a small lunch. “You care about one thing and one thing only. How you make sure that every pony is under your hoof. Why wouldn’t you want to use that to control the Guard?”

“You see, that's what's wrong with you earth types,” Posey said, shaking her head. She didn’t notice Bowtie gritting her teeth. “You don’t see the big picture. You think if I could control our team, I’ll be able to rule the land. But you see, this necklace might have a limit or worst, it might backfire. So, I’m going to wait to make my move.”

“And what move would that be?” Bowtie asked.

“You have to realize, the second we establish that we are the strongest,” Posey said. “Then those horn head little brats will try to make us summit or most likely kill us.”

“Won’t that establish weakness?” Bowtie asked, leaning forward.

“How best to prove you were the strongest by killing those who are weak?” Posey pointed out. “And when those two decide we serve no purpose; they will dispose of us.”

“And that’s when you’ll use the necklace.”

“No, only as a last result,” Posey said, pushing her mane back. “I think we should work together, a partnership of sorts.”

“Why would I work with you? I have Captain on my side.” Bowtie said with a smile.

“Yes, ever the smartest, that one,” Posey said with an eye roll. “Despite his size, he won’t be able to beat every challenge you face and what if your companion decided to turn on you. All your fancy fighting moves will mean nothing if he breaks your neck. But if any pony can be turned by my necklace, it will be him.”

“Alright, what do you want?” Bowtie asked.

“That’s the question of the day, isn’t it?” Posey said, look back at the shop.

Twilight was usually better with time managing than this, but she forgets one little issue: she invited Trixie to come along. Well, scratch that, she invited Starlight who asked if she could bring a friend. Twilight should have guessed it was Trixie but she kind of hoped it would be Maud.

“We should go to the theater. They are showing a movie based on the life of Hoofdini and Trixie must make sure they do a faithful retelling!” Trixie shouted as they exited the train, causing several ponies to look over at the commotion. Twilight shook her head while Starlight just chuckled a little nervously.

“We can’t go to the movie,” Twilight said with a weary sigh. “I promised that I’d meet the girls at this new restaurant.

“Well, use that new trick you’ve learned,” Trixie said. “You know, make a copy of yourself or something.”

“One, that’ll be rude,” Twilight said with a glare. “Second, the illusion only works for a minute at a time and can only do about two words right now. If you want to abandon me and run off to have your fun…”

“Thanks, bye,” Trixie said before grabbing Starlight and rushed off.

“We’ll meet up with you after the film!” Starlight shouted as she disappeared into the crowd. Twilight smiled and started to head to the tower. It was a few blocks away, so she decided to just trot over. Seeing the bookstore and after seeing she had about ten more minutes, she knew she had enough time to check out the new section. What she didn’t notice was a blue unicorn following shortly after her with a small earth pony being dragged in after him.

“There are way too many ponies in this city.” Sparkle said as she and Surprise walked down the street. Due to Surprise's large frame, he did clear a nice path, but Sparkle was still a little unsettled with the number of ponies on the street. “Seriously, why are there so many of them?”

“With no wars, the population is bound to grow out of control.” Surprise said, looking at the huddle massive avoiding him. “Is there a reason why Bright Eyes wanted to separate?”

“Recon, my good friend.” Firefly said. “If we went in here as a large group, we might draw suspicion.” She looked around at the civilians. “Although, something tells me that these ponies are used to the enemy announcing their attack. If we don’t come in with our spells at the ready, I think it will be fine.”

“WHAT ARE YOU STARING AT!?!” Sparkle scream at two fillies that glance at her, causing them to run away sobbing.

“So… don’t do that.” Surprise whisper to Firefly. Firefly chuckled before Sparkle shot a look at the two.

“Captain. Getting anything from these buildings?” Sparkle asked as they turned a corner of the street.

“I can feel the different materials they used and how they change them.” Surprise said, walking up to a tall building, placing a hoof on it. He closed his eyes and pressed in a bit. “It’s not wood anymore. It’s metal and rock that’s been fortified. I don’t know if I could break this stuff.”

“Well, we are not breaking anything up right now.” Sparkle said. “We are to lay low until…”

“Wait.” Surprise said, cutting off Sparkle. “I sense three of ponies up top.”

“So?” Firefly asked, landing next to him. He squinted harder as the wall around his hoof cracked.

“One of them is your relative, Sparkle.” Surprise said, keeping his eyes closed while concentrating. “The other one mines and I can sense yours, Firefly. But there’s more…”

“What? Can you sense an inn or maybe a spa?” Sparkle asked, looking at her hoof. “Because I need to get my hooves done.”

“No, not in this building but this city.” Surprise said, moving his hoof to the ground. “I sense two strong sources of magic on the other side of the building. They are connected to our spawns. These five are connected to another source, a powerful force.”

“What so special about it?” Sparkle asked, starting to get interested.

“It seems to be a combination of all three of us.” Surprise said, a bit amused.

“What are you talking about?” Firefly asked, look at the two now with interest.

“I sense a creature that has the wings of a pegasus, the strength of my kind and the magic of a unicorn.” He said with a smile.

“They made a creature that combines all of us. How could they make that?” Firefly asked. The three shared a look, then they shouted in disgust.

“No way!” Sparkle shouted. “They had to do it with some kind of spell. I mean, how would that even work?”

“Well, I guess if one agrees to be in the middle…” Sparkle started, getting deep in thought but was interrupted by Surprise smashing the ground in front of him, causing a couple of ponies to scurry away in fright.

“Don’t you foals get it!?!” Surprise said, a weird glint in his eyes. “A creature that had control over earth, pegasus and unicorn. That what the sphinx said that all would bow to it!”

“By the bolts, he’s right.” Firefly said, a look of shock on her face.

“By the embers, he was paying attention!” Sparkle shouted, causing Surprise to glare at her. “I’m just surprised you listen. I mean, most of the time, you seem to just growl and break whatever is in your way.”

“Don’t you see?” Surprise said, ignoring Sparkle. “If I beat this creature, then I will be stronger than all.”

“Alright, so you said that our spawns are connected by some magic link?” Sparkle asked, looking up at the building. “So, that must mean they know each other in some way, right?”

“I would assume so.” Surprise answered. “But what does that matter? We are only here for recon. Remember?”

“Yes, but you see…” Sparkle said, her horn starting to glow. “I believe recon is seeing what our enemies can do. And I also think that this building is way too tall. I mean, if a fire was to start way down here, all the ponies at the top could die tragically.”

A small ball of fire grew from her horn and started to get bigger until it was as big as a hoofing ball. She threw her head up a bit and the ball of fire erupted from her horn, bouncing off the ground. It left a large black scorch mark on the ground that sizzled for a few seconds. She caught it with her front hooves and started to wind it back.

“Sparkle, what are you doing?” Firefly shouted as she stepped back from her.

“Quite simply, Firefly.” Sparkle said, looking at the base of the building. “I’m starting a fire.”

Twilight looked at the book, Monster and How They Are Made, when she heard the door of the shop swing open. She looked up from behind the shelf to see a dark blue unicorn walk in with a small earth pony. She watched from behind the stacks as the unicorn pushed the earth pony to the ground.

“You said that history books are in here.” The unicorn said, dragging the earth pony roughly forward. “These better have what I’m looking for.”

“I don’t know what to tell you!” The small earth pony said. “I’ve never heard of Majesty and I don’t know of any history book that did.”

“Lies!” The unicorn shouted. With a blast of magic, he threw the pony across the shop. Twilight reacted quickly, diving out from the stack to catch the pony before she smashed against the wall.

“Stay out of this, Pegasus.” The unicorn growled. “I will turn you to dust.”

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked the earth pony. She nodded yes and Twilight put her down in the ground.

“Are you ignoring me?” The unicorn demanded. “Is this how you treat your superiors!?!”

“Okay, first.” Twilight turned around to face him. “I rather not do this in this store but if you continue to behave this way, I will be a force to have you arrested.” The unicorn looked shocked for a moment but then smiled.

“I see, your one of the princesses I was told about.” He stepped forward. “So, are you the one for a night or is it sunlight? Please tell me it's not love.”

“I’m the princess of friendship,” Twilight said. “Now, will we step outside or do I need to call the guards?”

“You see if I’m going to fight a princess. I rather do it up close and…” The unicorn started but was cut off by a large explosion. “What in the…”

“… So, I said to Bon Bon that as much as I want to make an arrow proof suit, I just don’t think it would look good in blue.” Rarity said, putting her spoon down. “So, who wants to look at the dessert menu?”

“Yes.” Pinkie said, whipping the menu out of nowhere. “I think I will start with the…” Pinkie stopped in mid-sentence and her eyes widened.

“I think she went into a sugar coma.” Rainbow Dash whispered, causing Rarity to giggle.

“We need to move.” Pinkie said suddenly, catching them by surprise.

“What are you talking about, Pinkie?” Dash asked. Before she could answer, the whole room started to shake. The three look around and as quickly as she could, Rainbow Dash grabbed her friends and started flying to the window. Not a second later, a large fireball ripped the floor apart. The three barely made it out before the fire consumed the entire room.

“I’ll drop you girls off and go back!” Rainbow Dash shouted as she headed to the ground. “There were ponies that I could save…” Before she could even finish the sentence, a second explosion knocked her off her course, sending the three into the ground with a loud thud. Rarity looked back in time to see the whole building being consumed by flames.

“There nothing left.” Rarity mutters, her words hanging there, like the smoke that filled the air. “It’s all gone.”

“Who did this?” Rainbow Dash growled as she pushed herself off the ground. Chilling laughter filled the air. She turned to see a red unicorn with a mad look in her eye as the flames danced around her.

“They say I would eventually get bored of this, but I still enjoy the screams!” She shouted to her two companies. “You know what will make this complete? Some old-time campfire songs. Who wants to sing a round!?!”

“Murderer!!!” Rainbow Dash shouted before making a dive at them. The unicorn turned in time to see Dash, but it was the large earth stallion who stepped in to block her. She hit him and it felt like she smashed into a wall.

“Nice try, darling.” The stallion said with a smile. “But next time, hit harder.” He drew back his left front hoof and with a wide swing, knocking Rainbow Dash into the ground and sliding her back to the two on the ground.

“What have we here?” The red unicorn said, approaching the three. “Let me guess Surprise, these are our spawn.”

“Yep,” The stallion said with a sigh. “And the purple mane one is yours, Sparkle”

“WHAT!?!” Sparkle shouted, looking at Rarity who still hasn’t recovered from the burning building. “That little flower? Come on, I was hoping for a little more spice.”

“You think you're disappointed?” Surprise said. “The pink one mines and she hasn’t made a single move to fight us.”

“I take it the hothead is mine’s,” The pegasus said as she stepped forward. “You know, Bright Eyes is not going to be happy about this. We were only supposed to get intel and instead you decided to blast a building full of civilians.”

“Oh, come on Firefly.” Sparkle said, rolling her eyes. “So far, their warriors are a bit on the weak side. I’m sure Bright Eyes will be fine with this.”

“What were those idiots thinking?” Bright Eyes muttered as he blasted the shop front wall open. “I told them to wait until I gave them the signal unless they find…” A blast of magic hit in his back sending tumbling forward. He got back up to see both the princess was charging another attack and to see his slave making a run for it.

“Oh, no you don’t.” He growled and teleported in front of Silver Coin. He quickly lifted her into the air and summoned a magic knife, pressing it to her temple. “Rule one of a fight, Princess. Never let your hostage get caught up in it.”

“I know.” She said calmly. Bright Eyes was a little taken aback by that, then smiled. He pressed the knife hard, causing the illusion to shatter.

“Oh, you clever little thing.” Bight Eye said. “You know, when they said that they had a princess of friendship, I was expecting you to be the weakest. I mean, the sun is a powerful star and moon is our only light in the dark sometimes. And a pony can do crazy things for love. But friendship? What’s so special about that?”

“I know,” Twilight said. Bright Eyes cocked his head, then a low growl emitted from him.

“Okay, now I’m angry.” He said through grit teeth, and with a simple pulse spell, dismissed the illusion. If she caused those illusions to distract him, that means she was heading to... With a roar, he started heading to the tower of smoke. He’ll get his slave back but first, he needs to see what makes this one a princess.

“What in tarnation was that?” Applejack asked as the building rumbled.

“Maybe it’s a parade or something,” Fluttershy said, peeking out the window. She went wide-eyed and turned around quickly. “Everypony duck!!!”

Every pony in the store dived down in time as the windows were hit by a shock wave and glass went flying. The five went behind a large display case and watched as glasses flew across the room. Applejack was the first to jump up, followed by Fluttershy.

“We need to see if anypony was injured,” Fluttershy said to the Crusaders. “Stay here and don’t come out unless it's safe.”

“We got you. Please be safe.” Scooterloo said and the two agree in unionism. Fluttershy looked at Apple Jack and the two quickly went outside. They saw a scene of complete chaos as ponies were running from a towering inferno and several were trying to put out the flame.

“Applejack, where we were supposed to meet…” Fluttershy started before the tower swayed.

“Fluttershy, we got to get any pony we can out of there!” Applejack shouted.

“You could do that.” A voice said from behind. “I prefer you to stay with us.” The two turn to see a cream color earth pony and a green pegasus with a ruby necklace. “We’ve been waiting.” The earth pony said. “For our spawn to show up and here we run into them because Sparkle couldn’t help herself.”

“Who are you?” Fluttershy whispered.

“Oh, we are family.” The pegasus said with a sickening smile. She tapped the necklace and a strange glow came from it. “In fact, How about the three foals hiding in the store come out.” Fluttershy was about a little confused until she saw Scooterloo, Sweetie Bell, Apple Bloom walk out of the store.

“Girls! Stop!” Both Applejack and Fluttershy shouted.

“Oh, believe me. They wish they could listen.” The pegasus said, her smile widening. “And soon, you’ll wish...”

“Posey, can we hurry this up?” The earth pony interrupted, brushing some dust off her coat.

“Oh Bowtie, you take the fun out of everything,” Posey said, only getting a slight glare from Bowtie. “Fine. Three guards step up behind the foals.” Fluttershy saw two guards step out from an alleyway and another from across the street. “Draw your blades and put them behind their skulls.”

“Don’t you dare hurt ma sister!!!” Applejack shouted and dived at Posey. Before Fluttershy could stop her, Bowtie stepped in. She quickly swept Applejack off her hooves and threw her to the ground. Before Applejack could react, Bowtie grabbed her right front leg and pulled back. A wave of pain washed over her and Applejack bit back a scream.

“You waste your strength without any precision,” Bowtie said, holding Applejack in a pin, shaking her head. “All I need to lean back and you’ll be cripple for the rest of your short existence.”

“You two are terrible at listening,” Posey said, her smile never leaving. “Maybe I should just kill one of the children.”

“No! Don’t hurt them.” Fluttershy shouted. Posey looked right at Fluttershy.

“That's what I wanted to see!” she shouted. “Some fire in those eyes. Come on, child! We may have been pegasi, but I know there is some magic in you. Show me that fire in our soul!!!” There was a standstill as the two stared each other down as the fire grew behind Fluttershy. Suddenly, a loud pop echo from the sky. They all look up to see a large wave of water smash into the building.

“What in the..?” Bowtie started before a large bolt of purple energy blasted from the sky. She was able to dodge out of the way, but Posey was taken by surprise. The blast knocked her off her hooves. The strange glow in the crusaders and guards' eyes disappear, causing them to shake their heads out of the confusion. Applejack, now released from Bowtie’s grasp, rollover to Apple Bloom.

“Sis, what…what happened?” She asked dazed.

“That’s what I’d like to know!” Posey shouted as she got back up. “Some pony ruined my fun!”

“Pinkie, we need to do something.” Rainbow Dash groaned as she slowly pulled herself back up.

“I don’t know what to do.” Pinkie said, trying to get Rarity to stop looking at the large inferno.

“Are you three going to do anything or just sit there like weaklings?” Sparkle asked, bouncing a small fireball like a ball off her shoulder. “Because I’m starting to get…

The sentence was drowned out by a roar of something crashing in the building. They look up to see a wave of water come crashing out of the building. Sparkle's eyes went to pinpricks before she was tackled by Surprise. The water crashed down where the three strangers stood and Rainbow Dash watched as Twilight, seemingly out of nowhere, came down and landed next to them.

“We have to move,” Twilight said, grabbing Rarity. This caused Rarity to break out of her daze as the four started running around the burnt-out building. “I don’t know who’s those were, but we need to draw them out of the city before they do any more damage.” The four manage to get to the other side of the building and see both Fluttershy and Applejack. Fluttershy was still looking at an angry Posey while Applejack was trying to get her sister to get moving.

“You’re not going anywhere!!!” A voice roar from behind the four. They turn to see a large fireball heading for them. Twilight summoned a shield to block the attack, but the ball dodged to the left and avoided the four completely. It went ahead of the four, leaving a large wall of fire behind. It made a sharp turn, causing the wall to cut off any attempt to run away, being right behind Posey and Bowtie, who was brushing off the dust. The fireball floated in midair for a second before disappearing, revealing Firefly.

“Wait, how did she pull that off?” Rainbow Dash asked out loud as they stopped.

“Have you forgotten your ways, child?” Firefly said, brushing the ash off her coat. “We are the bender of elements. The very cloud should quake under us, yet I see you conversing and caring for these…mud ponies.”

“HEY! I take offense to that.” Pinkie Pie shouted, starting to stomp over to Firefly. “Rainbow Dash is my best friend and she is nine times the worth you are.”

“A dirty little dust ball dare speak to me.” Firefly said a low hum of energy started to build.

“Stand down, Firefly!” A voice called out and the wall of fire split open. They watch as Bright Eyes step in, closing the wall of fire behind him.

“Who are you?” Twilight demanded, stepping forward to him.

“So, this is what is consider the best fighters of the realm?” Bright Eyes said, looking at Twilight and the others. He seemed to neither sneer nor smile but the look itself spoke volumes. It seemed to send shivers down the groups’ spines. “I would have expected better from ones who save this kingdom several times if that small earth pony is to be believed.”

“You didn’t answer my question,” Twilight said, her voice strong as she stands. “Who are you and why did you attack innocent ponies?”

“Oh, I can answer that.” Sparkle said, stepping into the ring of fire, followed by Surprise. “I wanted to see the building burn.”

“Sparkle, be silent!” Bright Eyes shouted but it was too late. Rainbow Dash tried to dive at her, but Twilight created a shield to keep the two groups separated.

“Rainbow Dash, wait!” Twilight shouted at her. “We can do this peacefully and no other ponies need to get hurt.”

“Does it look like we care if ponies get hurt!?!” Surprise shouted, stepping forward. “There are always casualties in war.”

“I meant, that none of you will get hurt,” Twilight said, her voice hardening. “If you surrender now, I will promise that I will give you mercy.”

“Mercy?” Bowtie smirked before the rest of them started laughing. “Mercy is not in our vocabulary.

“It means you won’t get penalized as much if we fight and you guys lose.” Pinkie shouted, pulling a dictionary out of nowhere.

“I was being sarcastic!” Bowtie shouted. “By the earth, how are we related?”

“What!?!” Pinkie and Twilight shouted at the same time.

“Can you not sense it?” Surprise said, a little disappointed. “Have you disconnected yourselves from your true nature that you can feel how our blood is connected?”

“Surprise, I’m not that shocked.” Bright Eyes said, looking around the city. He watched as several pegasi flew out of the burnt-out building, holding earth and unicorns alike. “These weaklings have allowed themselves to be diluted by peace. They don’t realize the power of a pure-blooded unicorn.”

“But they should be able to feel that we are connected by blood,” Bowtie said, looking at Apple Jack and Pinkie Pie. “Are you tell me this is the result of our child, Surprise? A farmer and a ditz?”

“What is the name of tarnation are they talking about?” Applejack shouted.

“There is no way…” Twilight looked between the groups, from Applejack to Bowtie. “You’ve time travel, haven’t you?”

“Not by choice, child.” Bright Eyes said. “A dirty Sphinx sent us to this time, claiming it could defeat us. But so far, I see a land that can be easily conquered. And when I’m done with you, I’m going to take out every one of your abominations. I think I will take out the one call Celestia out first.”

Twilight eyes went wide then and anger filled her. She reared back and with a smash on the ground with a pulse of energy, the wall of fire disappeared.

“New plan, girls,” Twilight said, her face hard with determination. “We need to protect this city.”

“So, what is the plan Twi?” Pinkie asked, stepping next to her.

“We need to get back up. We don’t stand a chance if they gang up on us.” Twilight said. “Rainbow Dash, you need to get a message to Celestia.”

“On it.” Rainbow Dash said and shot into the air. Firefly shot up after her, leaving a trail of electricity behind.

“Applejack. Fluttershy. Keep any pony from getting hurt and try to clean the streets. Rarity, get the crusaders out of here.” Twilight said. The three nodded and then ran off.

“Pinkie, provide a distraction so they can get out of here,” Twilight said.

“Aye aye, Captain.” Pinkie said, stepping forward. Surprise smirked and stared her down.

"I'm not that easily distracted." Surprise stepping forward, cracking his neck. "But I guess I'll deal with you."

"Awww, won't you rather play a game of checkers?" Pinkie asked, pulling out a checkerboard.

"I'm going to enjoy crushing you." Surprise said with a growl.

“As for all of you.” Twilight flapped her wing and shot into the air. She spread her wings and a bright light shore on to the ground, causing Bright Eyes to shield his face from the glare.

“You have threatened this land and you’ve sworn to be against my princess, my friends and the creatures under my care. I've tried to offer you all mercy and kindness but you have refused to stop.” Twilight shouted, looking down on Bright Eyes. “Please, don't continue down this path.”

“Is that all you can do?” Bright Eyes shook his head. “Beg and whine till your enemies give up out of...”

Before he could finish the sentence, a blast of energy rain down onto him. He jumped back as the beam left a crater where he stood.

“I guess the fight already started." Bright Eyes said with a sigh. "Sparkle, Take out the other unicorn. Posey, do what you do best and get me some slaves. Bowtie, I want that cowgirl's head on a pike"

"Now we're talking." Sparkle said, lighting another fireball. "I'm going to roast them to the bones!" She rushed after the three with Posey and Bowtie following close behind them.

"As for you, Princess." Bright Eyes said, cracking his neck "Let's see how you earn that crown."

Chapter Three: A Battle on the Streets

The building rush passed her like a blur as Dash flew down the street. She hated running from a fight but Twilight was right, they needed help.

“You know,” A voice came from right above her. Dash looked up to see the one called Firefly was right above her, riding a bolt of lighting. “It’s not a good idea to turn your back on the enemy.”

“How!?!” Rainbow Dash shouted, quickly turning left in hopes to lose her. But she watched as Firefly seemed to steer the lightning into one of the buildings. There was a roar of thunder and the building exploded with glass flying everywhere. Rainbow Dash quickly tried to dodge the shards but a few nicked her wings. She felt the burning pain but tried to push through. She looked up to see Firefly was above her again, getting close enough that Dash could feel the heat of the lightning.

“You should have learned to ride the bolt, child.” Firefly said, lifting a hoof in the air. Her hoof lit up like a light bulb. “Now, let’s put you to bed.” She brought her hoof down and a lightning bolt shot out. It hit Rainbow Dash right in her chest. The wind was knocked out of her and she felt the bolt travel through like fire. She crashed to the ground for the second time this day. She quickly started to get up but felt another blast of lightning hit her in the back. She cried out in pain as she still attempted to stand.

“A resilient little bugger.” Firefly said, landing a few paces away from her. “That usually leaves ponies paralyze for the rest of their lives; however short that may be.”

“I guess you just are not as good as you think,” Dash said, panting slightly. The bolt took a bit more than she wanted to let on.

“I’m beginning to see how we are related.” Firefly said. “It’s a shame you couldn’t become a true warrior.”

“I’m getting the sense that is an opportunity I’m glad to miss,” Dash responded. “Now, move.”

Firefly smiled and spread her wings. “Only if you can make me.”

Rainbow Dash charged forward.

⚔⚔⚔

Pinkie was not having the best time. The first hit from Surprise sent her flying into the window of a donut shop. She quickly got up but Surprise was right on top of her. She dived out the way as he smashed into the shop like a bulldozer. She quickly grabbed a nearby frying pan and swung as hard as she could on. The pan shattered when it hit his head and he just smiled before slapping Pinkie again. She slid across the floor and crashed into a couple of chairs.

“Nice try.” Surprise said, brushing pieces of iron off his head. “Many enemies have broken their weapons on me and you thought a frying pan would do the trick? No weapon can pierce my hide!”

“Then I just have to up my ante.” Pinkie said. She quickly pulled out her party cannon, loading it with a bowling ball and lit the fuse. Surprise cocked his head to the side.

“What’s that do?” He asked, seconds before it fired. The force knocked him back, sending him into a fruit cart.

“It does that!!!” Pinkie shouted, quickly reloading the cannon, this time with some bowling pins. “And now to score a turkey!” She quickly lit another fuse but before she could aim it, Surprise charged in and smacked the cannon in the air.

“Impressive!!!” Surprise shouted before winding back a hit. He hit Pinkie right in the jaw, sending her crashing into the wall of a shop.

“Oh cool.” Pinkie said, seeing it was another book store. “I should bring Twilight here, she’ll love this place.” She felt something grip her tail and pull her out of the wall with a quick yank.

“You know, I must say I’m impressed.” Surprise said as he held Pinkie upside down. “Even though you are outmatched in every way, you still fight. Tell me, is this because of misplaced trust in winning or thinking you will be saved by that princess. Let me make one thing clear to you.” He swung her by her tail into the ground with a loud smack. Pinkie felt the world spin as he lifted her off the ground again. “No pony is coming to save you.” He flung her into the sky, watching as she crashed a couple of blocks away.

⚔⚔⚔

Rarity was pushing herself to her limit running. She had managed to grab the Crusaders but the one shooting fireballs was not letting up.

“Come back here, pretty one!!!” Sparkle shouted as she shot another one right behind Rarity. “You can’t be this scare of a fight!”

“Stop following us,” Scootloo shouted back as Rarity kept running. They were heavy and it was getting harder to keep this pace. She needed Applejack. She looked to see another fireball raining down on her. She felt a rope wrap around her and yank her out of the way. The four slid to a stop to see Applejack had to pull them away just in time.

“Y’all okay?” She asked, pulling her lasso up. “We need to get them out of here.”

“I’m trying but that one is not letting up!” Rarity shouted. “I think we should take one of each Crusader and try to get out of here.”

“That might be the best...” Before Applejack could finish, a hoof smashing into her. Bowtie did a flying kick into Applejack and backflipped in the air. She landed on all four in front of Rarity.

“Better think again, Farmer,” Bowtie said, cracking her neck. “The fouls need to learn to bow to their new master.”

Rarity started to back up but a wall of fire lit up right behind her. Sparkle landed right beside Bowtie and summoned a fire whip.

“I got this, Bowtie.” Sparkle said, cracking her whip. “Go have fun.” She snapped the whip at Rarity’s hooves, causing her to cry out as the heat increased.

“You leave them alone!” Applejack shouted, diving right at Sparkle. Bowtie jumped in between them and drove her back right leg into Applejack’s stomach. She quickly followed the attack by throwing several punches at lightning speed into Applejack’s chest. Applejack tried to throw Bowtie off but she quickly spun around and started to bring down another series of blows. Applejack tried to block them but Bowtie kept weaving around her hooves like she was made of air.

“This is where my bloodlines end,” Bowtie muttered as she brought another hoof down on Applejack, hitting her in her right shoulder. “You should be ashamed. I’ve traveled all across this land to learn how to fight and you try cattle rustling techniques with me!?!” She smacked Applejack across the face, sending her across the road. “I’ve had to wrestle many creatures to their deaths and yet I feel no joy to this. Tell me, are you finding joy from this?”

“I’m not doing this for fun.” Applejack said, spitting a wad of blood on the ground as she got back up. “I do this to save my family. I do this for my friends. And I will not let you hurt any more innocent ponies!” She threw her lasso right at Bowtie, hoping to catch her off guard. But instead of dodging the lasso, Bowtie caught it with a right front hoof. As soon as Applejack pulled back, she felt no slack. She looked to see Bowtie started wrapping the rope around her hoof, pulling Applejack closer. She tried to pull back but Bowtie kept pulling her closer.

“Guilty or innocent, their blood all looks the same on my hooves,” Bowtie said, pulling Applejack closer. “And I think yours will too.” With one hard yank, Applejack went flying towards her. Bowtie time it to the second before jumping into the air. She did a spun kick and hit Applejack right in the chest, sending her spinning in the air.

⚔⚔⚔

Fluttershy was quickly running out of breath and she didn’t see a way to stop this anytime soon. The one called Posey wasn’t needing to move that much. All she needed to do was a whistle and she could shoot any loose items at Fluttershy. Another sharp whistle and Fluttershy quickly duck as five loose bricks came flying right at her. Fluttershy could barely recover when another whistle shot five more bricks at her.

“Come on now.” Posey sighed before making a short whistle causing another brick to be ripped from the ground. “I’m going to run out of patience and you are running out of time. Just fight me already!” She made another sharp note, causing several rocks to shoot up from the ground at a rapid pace. Fluttershy managed to dodge a few of them but one smack into her wing, causing her to crash into the ground. She tried to get back up, but she felt something wrap around her throat. Before she could move, she felt it tighten around her throat. She was lifted into the air and was struggling to get another breath. She looked to see that Posey was doing a low hum that caused a rope from one of the street vendors to wrap itself around her throat and to a lamp post. She tried to get out but another sharp note caused two more rope to wrap around her limbs and pulled the ropes taut. Fluttershy cried out in pain as Posey stop right in front of her

“One little note and I could tear you limb for limb,” Posey said, getting as close as possible to Fluttershy. “Now, be a dear and stay quiet. Don’t want your friends to get distracted, do you?”

⚔⚔⚔

Twilight had been in many duels, it comes with the territory of being a student of Celestia. That being said, this wasn’t like any duel she had ever been a part of. Bright Eyes immediately opened the fight with summoning a spell that shot several spears of energy at her. She cast a deflecting shield but Bright Eyes quickly reacted, summoning a large ball of electric energy. He set it hurling at Twilight with deadly speed, forcing her to teleport out of the way.

“He doesn’t want to beat me into submission.” Twilight thought, given the moment to rest. “He is going for the kill. Which means I can use his frustration to throw him off.”

“You need to keep your head in the battle.” A voice from above her called out. “If you don’t want to lose it.” Twilight looked up just in time to see the rapidly approaching Bright Eyes armed with a halberd. She barely got out of the way, causing the blade to graze across her ribs. Twilight felt her side’s burn as she quickly turned around to face the now floating Bright Eyes.

“A simple hovering spell,” Twilight remarked, trying to heal her wound. She felt the wound burn and refuse to heal.

“Can’t heal the scratch there, princess?” Bright Eyes mocked, spinning the halbert lazily. “This is Grand Inquisiton. The blade has a spell that keeps the wound open until I allow it close. I only bring it out for special enemies. Almost regretted not using it on the Sphinx but you know what, let’s correct that mistake.” He dived in and took another swing at Twilight. She ducked and dived to the left, shooting another beam. It hit him in his chest but he didn’t seem fazed by the hit. He quickly started moving in, raising his weapon again to deliver another strike. Twilight couldn’t keep up at this pace so she summoned a shield in hopes to slow him down. The blade smashed into the shield, getting caught.

“Oh, don’t tell me you don’t have a weapon.” Bright Eyes said with a growl. “All unicorns when they reach their fighting age should have one. Did your mentor not show you how to truly be the master of this world?” He twisted the hilt of the staff, causing the shield to start to falter. “Well, I guess I get to teach you some rules about combat.” He ripped the blade out of the shield and blink out of sight. Twilight quickly kept her guard up, knowing he was going to show up at any moment. Twilight felt a small breeze from below, giving her just enough time to summon another shield. But the blade broke through, causing it to slash across her chest. Twilight cried out in pain and pulled back as she tried to put as much distance between them.

“You never leave an opening for your enemy,” Bright Eyes said, flinging the blood of his blade. “Now, onto our next lesson...”

⚔⚔⚔

Rainbow Dash was trying to keep her breath even, standing there shaking. Firefly kept producing hit after hit lightning on her, barely getting any time to counter. She looked to see that Firefly, although her hair was a little frazzled, was standing tall and only looked a little annoyed.

“I’m impressed.” Firefly said, cracking her neck. “I’m starting to see how you could be my blood. But I’m sorry to say it but it's time for me to cut this short.” She thrust out her left hoof and Rainbow Dash watch as ice wrapped around it until it became a sharp point. She flung it, causing several water droplets to spray on the ground.

“Oh, you have to be kidding me.” Dash gasped, shaking off some sweat. “How are you doing all of this?”

“Oh, you simple child.” Firefly said, moving closer to Dash. “I told you that the clouds were supposed to quake to us. Be parted by us! But it is clear to me that you all have lost your way. So I must cut out the weak from the strong. I’ll start with you!” She dived forward, her hoof raised. Rainbow Dash barely dodged as Firefly slashed the air. But she didn’t get much to recover time as Firefly flipped around and brought her hoof on a downward swing. Rainbow Dash managed to drop to the ground but not far enough. The ice blade sliced down and caught Dash’s shoulder. She felt like she dived into an icy pond during the worst winter. She cried out and kicked away, pushing Firefly back a bit. But it wasn’t enough, as Firefly brought her hoof down on Rainbow Dash’s left back leg. She howled in pain, unable to move.

“And now, time to take you back to your friends.” Firefly said, pulling the ice blade out of her leg. She grabbed Dash by the throat and pulled her up. She pulled back her hoof and plunged the ice hoof deep into Dash’s side. “But I don’t have to take you back whole.”

⚔⚔⚔

Pinkie was reaching the end of her rope. She had thrown everything she could think of at Surprise but he just kept coming. Pinkie was going for another hit but Surprise beat her to it. He charged in with another smash, sending her down the road into a cart of nuts. Pinkie tried to get back up but felt her legs give out and she crashed back down with a groan of pain.

“It is clear to me that you can not continue fighting.” Surprise said, wiping his brow. “I can end this simply or if you keep struggling, I will draw this out as long as possible.”

“Can’t I interest you... In a nice game... Of chess?” Pinkie asked, panting as she tried to get back up.

“Never played.” He said before he hit Pinkie with the back of his hoof. It sent her sliding down the road where she came to halt as she smashed into Applejack.

“Not doing too hot, Pinkie.” Applejack said, trying to stay standing. “This Bowtie is beating me at every turn.”

“Applejack... I don’t think I can keep this up.” Pinkie said, a single tear falling from her. “He’s... Just too strong.”

“It’s not just about strength,” Bowtie shouted, stepping closer to them. “It’s about the will to survive and the follow-through that goes with it. You both lack the skill to defeat us and now you shall pay with your lives.”

“So how do you want to do this, Bowtie?” Surprise asked, shaking off the dust. “I’m getting bored of this.”

“I’m thinking, the Battle of Griffinstone,” Bowtie said, taking another step closer to the two. “What we did to the general and his daughter.”

“I can get behind that.” Surprise said, stepping back for another attack.

“Pinkie, we need to move.” Applejack said, pushing Pinkie back on her hooves. “Sugercube, we need to move.”

“I... Can’t... Move.” Pinkie said before collapsing on the ground. Applejack quickly stood over Pinkie and stared at the two approaching her, not seeing any hope in escaping.

⚔⚔⚔

Fluttershy screamed as the ropes started to tighten again. Posey let out another high pitch whistle, causing the ropes to pull even harder. After holding the note for a full minute, Posey stopped. The ropes went slacked and Fluttershy collapsed onto the ground.

“This is just sad.” Posey signed, adjusting her necklace. “It’s like pulling wings off a fly... Or a griffin. They squirm and scream in pain. So even beg for me to spare them. They share such secrets with me and I bet if I pull off enough limbs, you’ll spill every secret you ever had.”

“We don’t have time for this.” A voice said right above her. Posey looked up to see Firefly holding a barely conscious Rainbow Dash. She tossed her to the ground, landing right in the front of Fluttershy. “We should finish up here and get back to Bright Eyes.”

“You know,” Posey said with an eye roll. “I’m trying to enjoy my work. Bright Eyes doesn’t need us and in a few seconds, I’m pretty sure the other will be done with their targets. Just give me five minutes and...”

“Posey!” Firefly said, with strictness. “You can play with others. Finish this now.”

“Fine!” Posey spat back. “Always ruining my fun.” She looked at the two on the ground and made a low humming noise. Two windows shattered and the shards floated towards the group. As the shards floated right in front Posey, she stopped humming and made a sharp note. The shards turn in the air with the sharp ends aiming at the two. “And now for the final touch.”

⚔⚔⚔

Twilight was trying so hard not to pass out. Her body was covered in cuts that she couldn’t even begin to heal. She tried to teleport to give some distance but Bright Eye seemed to move faster with every second the battle went on. She tried to use her shield but his weapon easily broke it every time. Every blast of magic, he simply dispelled or blocked. Twilight was beyond spent, she was reaching her breaking point. She sent a large beam of magic, hoping that by it being continuously used that she would get a hit. At first, she thought she got a direct hit. She quickly saw that he dived into the beam, using his halberd to split through. Before she could react, he swung the halbert high and with the blunt end, rammed into her rib cage. A sicking crack filled the air as Twilight felt her several ribs shatter. She dropped from the air like a stone and crashed to the ground, causing her left front leg to snap on impact. She bit back a scream and tried to get back up but was quickly pinned to the ground by Bright Eyes. He quickly pressed the blade to the back of her head.

“So, this is the Princess of Friendship?” He whispered into her ear, keeping the blade steady. “I was hoping for some pony who was able to become this powerful beast who would be able to put up a better fight. But instead, you have allowed this age of peace to weaken the unicorn race. You couldn’t even get in a single wound.” He leaned in closer and started to raise his weapon again, allowing Twilight to quickly throw her head back. She smashed into his nose, causing him to jump back. Twilight quickly rolled over and with her good leg, grabbed hold of Bright Eyes. She pulled her head back and head-butted as hard as she could. She got a lucky hit with her horn, causing a large gash above his right eye.

“Augh! You bitch!!!” He shouted, sending a magic pulse right into Twilight. It knocked her back and Twilight started to feel a weakness go over her. She tried to get back up but she couldn’t get the strength back into her legs. She felt darkness starting to come over with a calming coolness. Before she loses all sense around her, she sees Bright Eyes standing over her.

“You think I’m done with you?” He growled, the blood dripping from his face. “I’m not done with you yet. This spell will keep you asleep until I’m ready for you. While you sleep, dream of all the ways I’m going to hurt your friends.” Twilight quickly fell unconscious. Bright Eyes sighed and raised his halberd in the air. Some of the wounds on Twilight healed with ease. He cast telekinesis over Twilight and started to lift her in the air when something rolled out from behind him. He looked down to see it was a small glass ball with some kind of smoke inside.

“What in the...” He started to mutter before the ball exploded, releasing a cloud of smoke. He immediately started coughing and dropped Twilight back on the ground. He quickly tried to clear the air but another explosion of smoke caused him to continue to back away.

“The Great and Powerful Trixie!” A voice called out from behind the veil of smoke. The smoke cleared, revealing to Bright Eyes two unicorns. One was wearing a star robe and a wizard hat while the other was tending to the injury Twilight. “Would like you to step away from her friend!”

Bright Eyes look at the two in stun silence before bursting into laughter. Starlight and Trixie shared a look before turning back to him.

“Who is going to save the great princess?” Bright Eyes said, chuckling. “A bard!?! Tell me, are you planning to lull me to sleep?”

“First off,” Trixie twirls her cape, causing it to twinkle in the light. “Trixie is no mere bard. She is the greatest magician to ever grace your sight!”

“Correction,” Bright Eyes said, twirling the halberd in the air. “You’re going to be the greatest dead bard if you don’t step away from my prey.”

“Step away from Twilight?” Trixie asked, pulling out a large sheet from seemingly thin air. “And lose the chance that she’ll own me one? I think not. How about I show you a new trick?” She flung the sheet at Bright Eyes. Bright Eyes watched as the sheet drift in the air and landed right next to him softly, like a leaf, near his back left hoof. He looked at the sheet, then back at Trixie with a raised eyebrow.

“Tell me, bard.” Bright Eyes said, starting to move forward. “Do you plan to annoy me too...AUGH!” Before he could finish his sentence, he felt something grab his leg. It caused him to fall forward and smack into the ground. He looked back to see a pair of cuffs had attached itself to his leg and a lamp post nearby. He pulled against it to feel it was solid steel and attached firmly to him. “HOW!?!”

“Trixie never reveals her secrets,” Trixie said with a dramatic flair. “And now if you would kindly surrender...” Trixie had to suddenly dodge as Bright Eyes teleport right next to them. He swung his weapon wide, managing to slice Starlight across her right side and smashing the blunt end of the staff into Trixie’s shoulder. Trixie managed to roll away but Bright Eyes quickly came at her.

“So, you think you can play your little game and distract me?” Bright Eyes said, raising his halberd high above him. “I see how you might save the princess but you fail to realize that she is not the only one in danger. How do you plan to save them all?”

“Simple, you uncultured brute,” Trixie said, throwing some dust right into Bright Eyes’ face. He was caught off guard and flew backward. He wiped the dust from his face and looked to see that Trixie had gained some ground. She was floating three rings that were connecting and disconnecting with ease. “Every good magician needs a few assistants.”

Chapter Four: Much Needed Help.

Author's Notes:

A little note for all who decided to keep reading. Sorry for not updating. A lot of life stuff happened. Not all bad but distracting enough. (mostly agreeing to DMing a D&D group.) But I should be able to work on this story more. Again, sorry for the delay.

"They have ruined the great name of Hoofdini!!!" Trixie shouted the second she and Starlight step out of the theater and into the lobby. They made the mistake to not actually read the summary of the film. While Trixie thought it would be a drama biographic about how Hoofdini rose to fame, it was an action-thriller based on the conspiracy that Hoofdini never actually perform any of his stunts but was perform by high society pony trying to avoid being associated with low-class studs. This did not sit well for the magician. "He was one of greatest show pony to ever live!!! Who writes this stuff!?!"

"The same writer who wrote The Day After The Wedding and Cantorlot Down." Starlight pointed out, following the angry unicorn across the lobby. "This pony is really milking the Changelings attack. I wonder how Thorax feels about that?"

"We will deal with that odd prejudice later," Trixie said, heading straight to the front desk. "Now, Trixie getting a refund."

"Trixie, is it really important?" Starlight asked. "I've don't think it's worth the five bit..."

Before she could finish the sentence, a loud explosion cut her off. The two look out the lobby doors in time to see a loud dust cloud wipe across the street. They quickly ran out into the ensuing chaos to several ponies, Griffins, and Yaks were fleeing. Starlight quickly summoned a shield to prevent debris from hitting any more of them. Trixie grabbed one of the ponies running by and out of the way of a large piece of a building.

"What going on?" Trixie asked the startle stallion.

"A group of crazed ponies just blew up a building downtown!" He shouted, starting to run away again. "The Elements are handling it but I'm getting out of here!!!" With that, he disappeared down the street. Trixie turned around to see Starlight blocking another cloud of dust.

"This is crazy!" Trixie shouted. "Why would any pony attack this city? While Twilight was here no less!"

"That can't be on accident !" Starlight called out. "We need to see if they're okay."

"Alright," Trixie shouted over the chaos as another panic crowd stamped by. "But if they attack Twilight, they have to be the dumbest ponies around."

The two crouched behind a broken wall, as they watch a battle going on right above them. They saw the blue unicorn breakthrough Twilight's shield and deliver a slash across her chest. Starlight quickly grabbed Trixie and pull her back into the half destroy shop.

"I need to help her out." Starlight said, starting to charge a spell. "You need to get some help here immediately."

"Wait," Trixie said, stepping in front of Starlight. "Did you not see that he was holding a giant staff with a blade at the end of it? Now I'm no expert in magic duels but this isn't normal!!!"

"You're right." Starlight said. "But we can't just sit here. We need to find the others and get them here quick."

"That may be a problem," Trixie said, poking Starlight in her shoulder. Starlight looked over to see her gesturing to down the street, where she could see Applejack and Pinkie Pie both surrounded by two earth ponies. The two looked like they weren't going to last long, with the strangers starting to close in on them. "If those two are wrapped up, I don't think the others aren't doing hot either. We need to get them out of here."

"How do we help..." Starlight started to say, looked around, then a thought popped n her head. "I got an idea but Trixie, you have to trust me."

"Why does it sound like I'm going to hate this plan?" Trixie said, looking nervous.

🛡🛡🛡

Fluttershy looked around in hope that some pony could help them. She brought Dash closer to her, hugging her tightly. She looked up to see Posey had turned some glass shards towards the two of them.

"And now, for the final touch." She heard Posey said before taking a deep breath.

"Wait," Fluttershy said suddenly, catching both Posey and Firefly off guard. The two look at each other then back at Fluttershy.

"Wait?" Posey said, letting the shard fall to the ground. "You have to be kidding me. Wait for what, exactly? Your princess? She going to be dead in a minute if Bright Eyes doesn't decide to play with her for a bit. Your other friends? They're dead meat as well. If you think any pony else is going to save you, then you really haven't been paying attention. So, what are we exactly waiting for? A few more moments of you disappointing our family bloodline? A few more seconds because your so pathetic you can see it end?"

"No," Fluttershy answered. This was when Firefly noticed a weird noise coming from right above them. It was the creaking of wood, which confuse Firefly, due to all the building being made of rock and metal. She looked up just in time to see two large crates falling from the sky. The first one smashed into Firefly with its full force, knocking her out cold. Posey reacted a little quicker but not quick enough to avoid getting hit. She summoned a shield with a charm bracelet she had on her but was still pin down.

"Wait for her to drop those crates." Fluttershy finished, standing up with the unconscious Rainbow Dash in tow. "Am I glad to see you, Muffin."

"Fluttershy." The gray pegasi said, guiding down with her mail cart. "Your package has been delivered on time. Would you like for Muffin to make any other deliveries today?"

"Muffin, what about the other?" Fluttershy asked as she put Rainbow Dash in the cart. "Can we get to them?"

"Don't worry." Muffin said, pushing Fluttershy into the cart. "Magician and School Teacher came up with a plan. The other will get them. I'm supposed to get you to a safe place. A place I only know about. Now hold on tight." She flew back to the front of the cart and strap it to her back. "Whether it be rain or snow, Muffin always delivers.

🛡🛡🛡

Applejack prepared herself for another hit, seeing Bowtie winding up. She closed her eyes to brace for the impact but all she felt was a burst of wind. She opened her eyes to see another pony, Bon Bon, had blocked the hit.

"You should always have your eyes open during a fight." She said, before throwing Bowtie back. "Never know when an opportunity will show up."

"Excuse me!" Bowtie growled, a little annoyed. "We were in the middle of a duel. If you like to fight, wait for your turn."

"This is an untrained opponent." Bon Bon stated, turning her full attention to Bowtie. "That makes any duel revoked." Bowtie looked a little shocked before a small smile crept on her face.

"That's the code of the Earth Ponies' Way of the Hoof," Bowtie said, cracking her neck. "I'm impressed. I figure that would of be dead art due to how pathetic this race has become."

"I'm a regional champion of this land." Bon Bon said, getting into a fighting stance. "I've held my title for over five years. What is your ranking?"

"My ranking?" Bowtie chuckled, rolling her shoulders. "Child, I've created the order. I preceded any ranking system."

"Great..." BonBon muttered, keeping her eyes locked on Bowtie.

"Surprise, you deal with the trash," Bowtie commanded, getting into her fighting stance. "I'm going to deal with this one. She might actually be a challenge."

"Alright, have your fun then." Surprise said with an eye roll. "I'll just finish up these two and head back to Bright Eyes." He charged at Applejack and Pinkie Pie with a murderous look. He jumped into the air to deliver a final blow but something strange happened. He didn't return to the ground. Surprise look around confused as he stayed floating in the air, unable to reach anything. "What is going on!?! What magic is this?"

"Actually," A voice from the ally to the side called out. Dr. Hooves stepped out holding a weird wand-like device that was glowing green at the moment. "You are in an anti-gravity field, thought it not really a field. More like a bubble. It's going to keep you in place for a little bit."

"You damn witch, stop this!!!" Surprise shouted, swing wildly in the air.

"No, I think not," Dr. Hooves said before pushing a button on the wand. Surprise let out a yelp as he was rocketed into the sky. "Hmm, I guess I should turn down the power a bit."

"How much time do we got, Doc?" Bon Bon asked.

"I'm going to say... ten maybe fifteen minutes. It shouldn't take that long to get them to safety." Dr. Hooves answered. "Can you stall her long enough?"

Before she could answer, Bowtie went in for a hit. Bon Bon duck just in time to avoid the hit, rolling to the side before kicking up dust. The cloud allowed her to strike through, catching Bowtie off guard. Bowtie jump back and did a couple of backflips to gain some distance.

"Yeah, I think I can buy you a few minutes." Bon Bon responded.

🛡🛡🛡

Rarity was starting to blackout from exhaustion but she had to keep dodging that firey whip if only to keep the Crusaders from harm. She hardly noticed that Sparkle wasn't cracking her whip anymore but was just watching now.

"This is just sad." Sparkle said, shaking her head slowly. "I got tired of this five minutes ago. I think it's time to put you down for good." She licked her whip, sucking a bit of the flame from it. With a deep inhale, Sparkle shot a large fireball. Rarity couldn't see a way to dodge it or get out of the way. So, she quickly covered the Crusader in hopes to shield them from the blast. She felt the heat rise and for a second, she felt the flames brush up on her. But then, she felt a wave of pressure pass over her, almost like the wind. She opened her eyes to see the fireball dissipated right in front of them, causing a large wall of smoke in front of her.

"Wow! Talk about pulling your butt out of the fire!" Rarity heard from behind her. She looked to see DJ Scratch aka Vinyl Scratch, waltzing up behind her. "I always wanted to see if I could take out a fire with my beats but I was not thinking it be that effective."

"Vinyl!?!" Rarity asked, looking around in confusion. "What!?! How did you..."

"Aww, don't worry about it," Vinyl said, pulling a small speaker out from behind her. "But if I were you, I get underground. Like seriously, go underground. Do you get me?"

"Not really." Rarity said, starting to move behind Vinyl. "What in the world are you going on about?"

"Look, to make this short and sweet," Vinyl said, tuning the speaker. "A friend saw the trouble happening downtown and we are what you call the rescue team. Get to the sewers and Muffin will lead you to where we are planning to group up. But get there now."

"Alright but what about..." Rarity started but was cut by a roar of rage. The two look back to see Sparkle clearing away the smoke, spewing out fire like a dragon.

"HEY!" Sparkle shouted. "That's my prey! Go find your own."

"Just get them out of here." Vinyl mutter to Rarity before turning back to Sparkle, putting a soundboard on top of the speaker. "Miss Hot Pants!!! I got a question for you!!!"

"What?" Sparkle growled, cracking her whip in the air.

"Did you know the whips break the sound barrier?" Vinyl asked, flipping a few switches on her soundboard. "that why it makes that cracking sound."

"So?" Sparkle asked, annoyed as she cracked her whip again, causing it to ignite again.

"So, it gets me wondering," Vinyl said, pull her headset over her ears. "How much sound does it take to break you?"

She slammed on the soundboard, causing a loud high pitch ringing noise to blast out of the speaker. Sparkle screamed in pain, clenching her ears as she fell to the ground. Vinyl kept the sound going for a minute before turn it off. Sparkle quickly started getting back up

"YOU LITTLE WORM!!!" Sparkle shouted shaking with anger and pain. She dashed forward with her whip raised "I SWEAR, I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR LUNGS OUT!!!"

"High pitch not working," Vinyl said, quickly changing the settings. "Let's try some bass." She hit the power switch again, sending a large sound wave. It smacked into Sparkle like a hammer, sending her flying backward. "Now, let's party."

🛡🛡🛡

Trixie threw five more smoke bombs before sliding over to Twilight's side. She hoped that smoke will give us enough time to regroup with Starlight. She saw Starlight was trying to wake Twilight up but didn't get a response.

"Trixie, we have to move quickly." Starlight said, still shaking Twilight. "Just grab Twilight and get to the meeting place. I'll hold off..."

"No." Trixie cut her off. "I'll keep him entertained, you get Twilight out of here."

"Are you insane!?!" Starlight said. "He will tear you apart in a matter of seconds! I will, at least, last a few minutes."

"But I don't know how to teleport or do healing spells." Trixie pointed out quickly. "If you leave here now, they have a better of getting out of this alive. All I can do is some card tricks. But I can keep him distracted while you get out of here."

"What about you?" Starlight asked, lifting Twilight on her back. "How do you plan to get out of here?"

A roar caused the two to turn in time to see Bright Eyes swing his weapon to clear the smoke. His eyes were glowing red and Trixie thought for a second, she saw smoke billowing from his nose. He didn't see the three right away, looking around wildly. Trixie let her cape bellow, blocking his view of Starlight.

"Just go, Starlight," Trixie muttered. "I'll get out of this. I promise." She turned her attention back to Bright Eyes. "Have you had enough of Trixie's magic?"

"You call this magic!?!" Bright Eyes asked. "This is nothing but cheap tricks. Which I expected from a harlot like you."

"That is uncalled for!" Trixie gasped. "For Celestia's sake, do you kiss your mother with that mouth?"

Bright Eyes step forward, spinning his Halbert around a couple of times before slamming the blade into the ground.

"I gutted that whore in her sleep." He said, not a hint of humor. "I think it's time we end this little game." He dived forward, dragging the blade against the ground. When he brought it up, the blade was red hot. He jammed hard, only to shatter a mirror with an image of Trixie.

"Hey, that cost twenty bits!" Trixie shouted, suddenly behind him. "I needed it for my show!"

Bright Eyes fling the glass shards at Trixie, causing one of them to catch her cape. It threw her off balance, making her fall backward. Bright Eyes, not missing a beat, jump forward. He ran at her with his Halbert raised. Trixie saw him coming and started to crawl away, unable to get a good enough footing to get back up. Trixie looked around in panic and raised her hooves to shield herself from the next blow.

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold up a sec." Trixie said, still trying to get back up. Right before Bright Eyes could bring down his blade, Trixie flicked her wrist, causing two fans of playing cards. Bright Eyes stop short, looking a little confused.

"Seriously?" He asked. Trixie looked at the two sets of cards then back at Bright Eyes.

"I guess???" Trixie said with a shrug before flinging a card at him. The first card bounced off his nose, leaving a small cut. Bright Eye, a little stunned, back up a bit. Trixie took this moment to start shooting more cards at him, allowing some space. She was quickly able to get back up doing this, throwing three cards at once. One of the three struck Bright Eyes on the cut that Twilight gave him. He cried out in pain and the cut started bleeding again.

"Maybe I can handle this. Trixie thought as she threw a few more cards at his. "I got at least a few more tricks and that should buy Starlight enough time to..." There was a roar that causes Trixie to notice that Bright Eyes starting spinning his weapon, acting as a giant fan. It was sucking up the cards and it was becoming apparent really quick that the wind was picking up. Trixie was running out of cards and needed something fast. She threw another smoke bomb in hopes to give her more time. Unfortunately, Bright Eyes prepare for that. He reversed the airflow, blasting the smoke right back at her. Trixie covered her mouth, to prevent having a coughing fit but left her open. The staff end of his weapon appeared through the smoke, smashing into her side. The hit was enough to send Trixie flying across the street. She crashed to the ground with a thud, causing her to cry out in pain. She knew a few ribs were broken (Due to a stunt that went wrong.) and was going to have to get out of here quickly. She got up and was about to dash to one of the shops but before she could even move, Bright Eyes teleported beside her. He swung his weapon with a large arch, forcing Trixie to jump back.

"Are you done with your tricks or should I give you a minute to catch your breath?" Bright Eyes said.

"The Great... and Powerful Trixie... is doing just fine," Trixie said, trying to catch her breath. The stabbing pain in her chest was telling her she was on a limited amount of time.

"Well then," Bright Eyes twirl his weapon a couple more time before striking the ground again. "I guess we continue."

🛡🛡🛡

"Of course, leave dragging the 180-pound alicorn to the one with an open chest wound." Starlight groaned as she slipped down an alley. She was originally going to fight but Trixie had a point. She knew some healing spells from her village days and if any more of the girls are injury, she can help them out. She tried her teleport spell again but her horn just fizzle and her wound burned for a second. She growled in frustration and readjusted the unconscious Twilight on her back. She knew that the attacker had enchanted his weapon to prevent opponents from teleporting.

"You know," Starlight started talking to thin air, turning down into an ally. "This was supposed to be a nice little vacation. Twilight and her friends were just going to relax, take a few days off. I mean, they deserve it, don't they? I was going to enjoy that too. Hang out with my friend, go to the movies. But then you had to attack, bring all your buddies to fight her friends, and ruin our vacation. AND WHY CAN'T I TELEPORT!?!" In an act of frustration, Starlight shot a beam of magic at a trash can. "I could've been at a restaurant!!!"

"Any louder and we could be in trouble." A voice said beside Starlight, causing her to jump a little. Starlight looked over to see Muffin with her trusty cart.

"Oh Muffin." Starlight gasped. "Thank Celestia. Did you get Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy?" Muffin nodded quickly, bring her cart around.

'I'm not as fast as I use to be but I know these sewers like the back of my hoof." Muffin said, helping Starlight getting Twilight in the cart. "They are both safe with a few other ponies who want to avoid those bad ones. I'm going to see if Rarity is safe after getting you two to safety."

"No.," Starlight said, turning away. "I need to get back. Trixie needs my help." Muffin quickly grabbed her and pull her into the cart.

"We need you now!" Muffin said, already pulling the cart towards the nearest sewer entrance. "Rainbow Dash is hurt badly. There only two unicorns down there and only one of them knows how to heal. Please!!!" Muffin grabbed onto Starlight and looked her in the eyes. "Please, she needs you now. I'll go get Trixie. Just please, save Dash."

Starlight was about to argue more but saw the look of fear in Muffin's eyes. She looked back down the ally and then at Muffin. With a heavy sigh, she got on the cart and held the unconscious Twilight. Muffin quickly pulled the cart into the tunnel as Starlight started to cast some magic on Twilight. Maybe if she got Twilight back up, they could save every pony. Maybe...

🛡🛡🛡

Bon Bon was panting heavily as she wiped a trail of blood out of the corner of her mouth. It came to great pride that Bowtie was looking a little worn out, with a few cuts and a bruise forming on her right shoulder. But she wasn't kidding herself, this battle wasn't going to end with her the victory. For every move she threw at her, Bowtie quickly counter it and made her pay in blood. She tried to stay on the defense, but true to her word, it quickly became obvious that Bowtie built this fighting style from scratch.

"You done yet?" Bon Bon shouted, trying to keep her voice even and steady. "The Doc got them to safety by now and in a few minutes, there going to be a platoon of guards here to put you and your friends under arrest."

"If your guards fight as well as you did," Bowtie said, bowing slightly. "Then I would gladly go down fighting. But we both know that not the case. I must say, it's been a pleasure fighting a worthy foe. But, if you must excuse me, I must hunt down your friends and finish what I started."

"You won't find them." Bon Bon said, spitting a wad of blood on the ground. "I can't believe I'm saying this but we found the perfect hiding spot."

"Nothing stays hidden forever," Bowtie said, standing up straight, brushing dust off her hooves. "I'm pretty sure I can find them or failing that, I'm sure Bright Eyes can cast something to find them. All you did is stall the inevitable."

"Actually, that exactly what I wanted." Bon Bon said. "Come on, Doc. You said fifteen minutes."

"Exactly what are you talking about..." Bowtie started but was cut off by a loud yell coming from above. Bowtie looked up in time to see Surprise falling, right for her. Bowtie almost dodge the hit entirely but was caught by one of Surprise's flailing hooves. The impact left a large dust cloud but quickly cleared, revealing the two dazed ponies on the ground.

"Huh, I guess he did overpower that wand." Bon Bon said, a little relieved. She started to limp away, heading for a nearby sewer cover. "I hope I'm not the only one who got this far."

🛡🛡🛡

Vinyle was starting to get a little worry she wasn't going to hold this crazy unicorn off for much longer. At first, it seemed like she had the advantage. She wasn't handling the noise well. But then something strange happened; something that Vinyle wouldn't believe if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes. Sparkle was standing there, panting and spitting up all kinds of liquid, looking about half-dead when Vinyle saw she had a strange glint in her eyes.

"Is... that... the best... you can do?" She said, grinning like a mad mare. "Then... I guess... it's my turn." Her eyes lit up and let out a large blast of magic. Several shops around them burst into flames and if Vinyle was any slower with putting up a shield, she had a feeling it would be more than her equipment that would be burn. She saw the destruction and started to get the worry that she was holding back. She knew that this unicorn was holding back when her smile grew even larger. "Now, time to feel the burn."

Vinyle watched as Sparkle inhaled deeply and all the surrounding flames shoot right into her. For a second, Vinyle thought she was going have to dodge a large fireball. But instead, the flames wrapped around her like a cacoon and seemed to glow for a bit before disappearing. What emerged was a Sparkle, completely recover from all wounds. She whipped her hair back and Vinyle saw her eyes were lit like fireballs.

"Are you scare yet?" Sparkle asked, taking a step forward. "Like a raging fire, all I need is to consume what's around me and I get stronger. How much are you willing to lose to kill me? Because I will burn this entire village if I have to. Are you willing to watch it burn?"

Vinyle looked around at all the burnout buildings, hoping that every pony got out in time. She couldn't risk any more lives and needed to get out of there. She looked at one of the now burnt shells of a shop and an idea popped into her head. She started to slowly turn the speaker away from Sparkle.

"You know," Vinyle said, starting to turn up the volume. "I was going to make a pun about lit tracks but I got a better one. EAT MY DUST!!!" She hit a switch, sending a sound wave into one of the wreak buildings. The resulting blast caused a large dust cloud to blanket the street, allowing Vinyle to quickly slip into an ally. She managed to get at least a block away when she heard a roar of angry behind her. She hoped that unicorn would be too distracted to cause any more problems. She quickly slipped down a sewer hole, holding her breath. She really hopes that this safe place wasn't too far in.

🛡🛡🛡

This was not going as well as Trixie planned. She had hoped that by throwing enough smoke bombs and other tricks, she keep him as far away as possible. What she didn't count on was how quickly he got angry and that he would have an answer for almost all her moves. What was working for her, unfortunately, was he seem to want to inflict as much pain as possible on her. So, she was barely able to stand, her right eye swollen shut and her lip torn up when Bright Eyes put his staff into the ground, hard.

"Well Bard, I believe this is the end for you." Bright Eyes said, starting to twirl the halbert as he approached her. "You ran out of tricks and I don't think you can last another trashing. Before I put you into the dirt for good, any last word you would like to say?"

"Yeah... I do." Trixie said, trying to stand tall. "Do you know the point of a magician's assistance?"

"Is it to get killed after you?" Bright Eyes answered, raising the halbert into the air. "Because that what going to that other unicorn tending to the princess wounds."

"No... you idiot." Trixie said with a crooked smile. "The job of the assistance is to pull the real trick while the magician distracts the audience. Do you think I was just distracting you to let her heal Twilight? I was buying them time to get away."

Bright Eyes stopped approaching and quickly turn around. With a large swing, he blasted away the cloud of smoke that built-up, revealing that neither of the two unicorns was there.

"No, no, no, no." Bright Eyes muttered. "They can't teleport. I made sure of that. HOW DID THEY GET AWAY!?!"

"They walked, you moron," Trixie said, filing her cape into the air. "And now for the grand final, I'm going to make myself disappear!" Bright Eyes looked to see the cape slowly drift onto Trixie. It was when the cape started to deflate that he realized that she was getting away. He quickly reached the cape and with a large thrust, stabbed into the cape. He lifted it into the air to see nothing but a bit of blood on the tangled up cape. He quickly tossed it to the side and roar in frustration.

They may have run away for now. Bright Eyes thought, quickly looking around. But they won't leave this city. I'll make sure of it.

🛡🛡🛡

Firefly pushed off the heavy crate and shook off some shiny dust off of her. She didn't know how that pony got the drop on her but it wasn't going to happen again. She was going to see if Posey needed any help but got her an answer when a high pitch screech came, causing several boxes to be thrown into the air.

"Where are they!?!" Posey shouted. "I'll rip out their insides and make them dance until they bleed out!"

"First, we have to find them." Firefly said, looking around. "We can't let Bright Eyes know we screwed up."

"Too late." A voice growled. The two turn to see Bright Eyes standing behind them. "You lose your prey."

"It wasn't our fault!!!" Posey shouted, clearly enraged. "They dropped a crate on me!!! I swear to the clouds, I will rip the wings off that little worthless..."

"That's enough, Posey." Firefly cut her off. Posey looked like she was going to say more but a hard look from Firefly silence her. Firefly turned her attention back to Bright Eyes. "We failed. What are our orders now?" Bright Eyes stepped in front of the two, looking to the sky.

"I think it time we cast Fog of War." Bright Eyes said. "You think you can cover this city?"

Firefly bowed before shooting into the air. She was able to easily see the entire city in under a minute. She was amazed at the wonder of the city and for a moment, regret what she had to do. But the moment passed quickly, as she brought her hooves together. A cloud started to form, until she had a cloud ball, the size of a watermelon, in front of her. She brought the ball to her mouth and breath into it gently.

"This should work just fine." Firefly said, before chucking it into the air. "By the Winds of The East and the Storm of the West. Blind my enemy to the path they seek." The cloud quickly expanded, becoming a rolling cloud in a matter of seconds, and started slowly descending. She smiled as the spell did her work. Nothing is going to leave this town, dead or alive.

Cantorlot

Celestia was looking forward to the end of the day. It was another tiring day of keeping politicians happy and the citizens safe from any outside forces. So, being about four and nothing really big schedule, she was sitting at her throne, wondering if she should start some paperwork she been putting off when she felt a cold shiver went down her spine. Now, most ponies wouldn't put much thought to this, as if it wasn't like they could sense things. But Celestia, who ruled this land and was protecting this land, knew this wasn't a good sign. She stood up and went to one of the large windows to look out to her kingdom. While she could see most of her kingdom from her, there were a few cities that were out of her sight. With a quick casting of her all sight spell, this problem was corrected. She watched as almost all her city were shiny brightly... almost. One city, Manehatten, was starting to get cover by fog. This was strange because there wasn't a fog schedule today and usually, those are kept for around Nightmare Night (for atmosphere purpose only.) It wasn't until the fog started to turn a sickly green that Celestia let out a small gasp. She turned back to the several guards that stand guard at all times.

"Awake Luna at once!" She ordered, causing several of them to snap to attention. "Assemble the war council now. We are under attack."

Chapter Five: Hidden Ponies and Secret Plans

The first thing that Rainbow Dash notice when she started to regain consciousness was the sour smell of old cider. The second thing to hit her, like a train, was the pain. It felt like something had buried itself inside her chest and lit itself on fire. She attempted to open her eyes but only succeed slightly, as something was keeping her left eye close. In her disorder state, she saw a blurry figure starting to approach her. She couldn't make anything out but she started to hear a muffled voice.

"She's coming too." The voice shouted. "Put her back under now! "

"She lost a lot of blood!" Another voice shouted. "By Celestia, did she go through a blender?"

Before she could really get a sense of what was happening, a wave of numbness wash over her. She didn't know how long she was out or if she really was but eventually, a light seemed to bleed into her vision. She opened her eye again, her left one still covered in something. Her vision was better this time because instead of a blurry shape above her, she saw a unicorn wearing a nurse hat. Rainbow Dash started to get up but a combination of returning pain and the unicorn putting a hoof on her shoulder stopped her.

"You need to rest now." The nurse said, floating a glasses of water to her. "Most of us deal with small cuts and bruises, the occasional bar fight. We never had to heal anything as bad as what you and your friends have been through."

"My friends..." Dash said, a little confused. The memory of what happened came back to her suddenly and she tried to sit up again. This only caused her to groan and an annoyed look from the nurse.

"I just said you need to rest," She said, pulling a blanket onto Dash. "Unless you want to rip out your stitches and almost bleed out again."

"I need to see my friends..." Dash groaned, trying to move. "I need to see if they are safe..."

"Oh, they're safe." A new voice said. Dash look to see Muffin, slightly out of breath and a little worn out. "I brought them here as quickly as I can. This is the safest place I could think of. Do you like it?"

Dash looked around and really started to pay attention to where she was at. The first thing she realized that it wasn't any hospital she ever been in. The walls were at one point red bricks but by age, had turned into a dirty gray. The ceiling was made of the same brick, with some muck and grim building on it. The floor was cement and cover with dirt, with what looked like some mold. There were some beds and a table that looked hastily put together.

"Where are we?" Dash asked.

"Oh, it's an old speakeasy!" Muffin said excitedly. "I found it when I was delivering some packages a couple of years ago. They built all kinds of secret tunnels and stuff. So when Starlight asked to find a hiding place, this was the first place I thought of."

"Wait, why am I not at a hospital?" Dash asked, giving up on trying to get back up. The nurse gave Muffin a look, causing her to walk out of the small room. "Wait, where is she going?"

"She needs her rest too." The nurse answer. "She has been flying herself ragged for the last three days."

"Days!?!" Dash shouted, only to feel another spike of pain in her chest. "I was out that long?"

"Better that way." The nurse responded before putting a cold rag on her forehead. "The name's Yarrow Leaf by the way. I've figure you want to know who was changing your bandages."

"What happened?" Dash asked.

"When whoever attack that tower, mass panic spread. Most ponies manage to get somewhere safe." Yarrow explained, pulling off the old wrappings. "But some kind of fog covered the entire city causing ponies to get lost. No unicorn can dispel it and if any pony stays in it too long, they seem to get distorted and lose any sense of direction. I've never seen anything like it. Muffin and several others have been making trips up top, trying to get civilians down here where it's safe"

"A fog..." Rainbow Dash looked up to the ceiling. She knew she heard something like that before but couldn't remember where. "The princesses? Have they come yet?"

"Unfortunately, this fog has prevented any sort of teleporting or magic sending spells." She answered, pressing something wet to Dash's chest. Dash winch at a slight burning pain. "No creature has been able to reach their respective leader."

"Wait, who else is down here?" Dash asked.

"We got a couple of Yaks, some dragons, a few changelings, and a couple of Griffins," Yarrow said, tightening her dressing. "So far, we have about twenty creatures hiding in here."

"Any guards with us or any pony that able to fight?" Dash asked, trying to ignore the pain the was growing. She looked to see Yarrow's face fell, sending a pit into her stomach.

"No." She answered. "We had a few initially, but they went out on a patrol to help Muffin get ponies in. From what I heard, they ran into a large stallon and Muffin barely got away. We haven't heard back from any of them."

"What about my friends?" Dash asked, fearing the answer. "Are they okay?"

"Your friends are mostly fine," Yarrow said, removing the cloth. "Rarity was treated for exhaustion, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie had a few broken bones. Pinkie Pie also had a concussion, so we have her resting now. Fluttershy was treated for some cut and bruise so she was the easiest to treat."

"What about Twilight?" Dash asked. The nurse sighed and pulled a small stool.

"That is a different story." She said, leaning next to her. "One we'll explain tomorrow when you can see for yourself. The healing speels should get you able to move by then. But now, rest. We will talk more in the morning." Dash's eyes grew heavy and she started to drift into a dreamless sleep, one that many ponies have been dealing with since the fog. Yarrow cast the healing spell and quietly left the small room. As she expected, Fluttershy was waiting right outside. She would have bet all her bits that she try to listen through the door.

"I told you, she will be able to talk to others tomorrow. Now she needs her rest." Yarrow said, before walking down the cold tunnel.

"I know," Fluttershy said, following quickly behind her. She was limping slightly but manage to keep pace. "But we need to talk. We have no idea why They have come searching for us."

"I can't worry about that now," Yarrow said. "We keep getting new injury ponies every hour and we are soon going to run out of room. We need to figure out how to get out of here." She looked up above and a shiver went up her spine. "Who knows what horror they are doing up there?"

⏳⏳⏳

"Worthless." Bright Eyes growled as he tossed another book to a disorganized pile that had grown underneath him. After releasing the Fog of War, they were able to conquer most of the city in a matter of hours. With any guards being confused and the citizens running scared, they manage to collect a large number of slaves. They did deal with the occasional spy griffin or yak but they were dealt with swiftly. At the moment, Firefly and Bowtie were making rounds to collect any more stragglers while Surprise and Posey were collecting all items they found in this building called a bank. What Bright Eyes was doing was finding every book he could on history, looking for just one sign of what happened to his Majesty. So far, he knew about the two alicorn sisters, the so-called, "Elemental Bears." But nothing about Majesty. He opened another book and was quickly scanning it when the door to the small office he took over. Sparkle walked in, floating a few gems above her head.

"Well, Bright Eyes. I think we raided the last vault." Sparkle said, before throwing the gems to the side. "We should finish up with those so call "savers "and find bigger fish to fry."

"Not yet." Bright Eyes mutter, flipping through the pages as quickly as possible. "I need more time."

"Why?" Sparkle asked. "We got all we can and if we don't get out of here soon, we might have to face an army to get out of here."

"I wouldn't worry about that." Bright Eyes said, throwing another book to the side. "Not a single thing has penetrated the Fog of War, which means either they can't or they worry that if they break the spell, we might take it out on the citizens."

"Alright, point made." Sparkle said, holding a hoof in surrender. "But I don't think you're going to find what you're looking for in these old books."

"But it doesn't make any sense." Bright Eyes said, looking at the pile of books he has scoured already. "These books have everything about our kin, from their favorite color to what job they hold. And look," He pulled a book from the pile and flipped it over to a center page. "Here is a record of all their triumphs. How they defeated a villain called Nightmare Moon, fought back a Changling army, defeated a King Sombra and a Lord Tirek. They defeated so many enemies but couldn't even last ten minutes in a real fight. Such a sad excuse for a savior."

"You know what surprise me?" Sparkle said, grabbing the book from him. "That the Sombra family became a noble family." Bright Eyes glared at her. "What? They were crystal miners! Some ponies get lucky."

"The point being," Bright eyes continues, picking up another book. "Is these ponies have some great record-keeping right till these two alicorns show up. Before that, nothing. How could all that history be lost?"

"Not lost." Sparkle said. "Hidden. Think about it. If they knew about our history, they might be less subservient. Control the story, control the masses as Majesty said."

"So... all these are useless." Bright Eyes growled. "How am I supposed to find out what I need to know?"

"Well, if I were a smart pony." Sparkle slid up behind Bright Eyes and whisper into his ear."I'd try the mind of the apprentice."

"That..." Bright Eyes stopped and a grin grew across his face. "Is just too good. Its moments like these remind me why you were successful in getting the enemy to talk."

"I do what I can." Sparkle said. "Give me a few hours and I will set up the spells we need." Bright Eyes nodded. He left the room while Sparkle started drawing on the ground. Sparkle picked up on the history books and flipped over a couple of pages as the door closed. She noticed that the page number jump from twenty to thirty-five.

"Great record-keeping? They can't even count right." She said, before throwing the book to the side. "Now, where's some sulfur?"

⏳⏳⏳

"We haven't heard a thing from outside of the city?" Dash asked, limping beside Fluttershy as they walked down the damp, small tunnel. Dash wasn't liking the small hideaway, too cramped. But seeing several ponies running back and forth made her worry if it was going to get a lot smaller.

"No," Fluttershy answered. "All the unicorns have tried to send messages but all the spells failed. A couple of us with the ability to fly get sick if they even smell the fog. No pony can even dispel it. I have no idea what this is."

"I think I do but I need to speak to Twilight first," Dash said, moving over a couple of ponies that looked a little shell-shocked. "She'll know what we need to do."

"Rainbow Dash, that might not be possible," Fluttershy said when they arrived at a room that only had a curtain for a door. Fluttershy pulled it back, allowing her to see what was a large room filled with injured ponies. Some had a few scratches or a bruise while others had what look like a broken leg. Fluttershy leaded Dash deep into the room, passing a lot of nurses on the way. "We only got a few nurses down here but they are trying their best to keep things together. Over here."

They went down a row and Rainbow Dash gasped when she saw who was at the end of the row. The first pony was a badly wounded Trixie barely breathing. She was almost like a mummy, wrapped in so much glaze. It was unclear if she was awake or was still unconscious due to her face being covered. Two nurses were casting a couple of healing spells, seemly constantly. The only reason she knew it was Trixie was her wizard hat, a bit battle-worn, was lying next to her.

Beside her was Starlight, with a bandage on her side, casting a spell with two other nurses on an unconscious figure. It took a moment for her to recognize Twilight. She was cut and bruised everywhere, covered in bloody bandages. One of the nurses let out a gasp of pain as her horn glow a dark green.

"It's not working!" Starlight growled, limping away from her. "I've tried every mind-clearing spell and curse breaker I know. Whatever is holding her in this sleep is some really..."

"Old magic." Rainbow Dash finished. Starlight looked surprised and nodded. Rainbow grit her teeth and turn to Fluttershy. "Get the rest of the girls. We are in some deep trouble."

⏳⏳⏳

"I Demand we enter that city and end the threat where it stands!!!" A Griffin, Black Claw, shouted as he slammed his fist on the war room table. As soon as Celestia could, she summon the high generals of her military and those with citizens inside. That why Black Claw, the Head General of the Griffin, and Pharynx of the changeling. She couldn't reach anyone for the Yaks or Dragons but hope her messengers get to them yet. "My kind can't cast this spell. We have a treaty that forbids this magic and if you have forgotten this, Celestia, we could remind you on the battlefield!"

"Hold your tongue, Black Claw," Luna growled. Luna had been awakened early and it clearly showed with her less than humorous look. "We are in the dark as much as you are and if you continue to make threats..."

"Sister, please," Celestia said, holding up a hoof before turning back to Black Claw. "I understand your frustration, Black Claw, but if we go in without proper reconnaissance, we might get innocents hurt."

"I have to agree with Celestia." Pharynx said, causing Black Claw to glare dagger at him. "My kind might have taken a form to stay hidden and if we go in firing off spells and swing blades, they could get hurt."

"So we just sit and wait? Is that it!?!" Black Claw growled. "Hope that whatever did this isn't slaughtering my kind just for fun?"

"I second that thought," Spitfire said, moving closer to the war room table. It projects the city cover in the sickening green fog. "I recognize the Fog of War but we have forbidden this spell work. Heck, the last pegasi that knew how to perform the spell died over two centuries ago. We only know this because of the archive that I insist every member of the Wonderbolts look over. But all are accounted for except for..."

"Rainbow Dash." Celestia finished, looking down at the illusion city. "I don't think she or Twilight would do anything to put the citizen in danger but we can't ignore the fact that this happened while the elements were there. We have to assume that this was a planned attack. We must find out who is behind this attack... before it gets worse."

⏳⏳⏳

"Things are going to get worse," Dash said, as soon as the rest of her friends arrived by Twilight's bedside. As she suspected, they were mostly recovering from their fights. Pinkie had a bandage wrapped around her head, Applejack was cover in bruises and Fluttershy had a wing in a sling. Rarity was the least rough up but stilled look like she was going to pass out. "What's out there is a spell known as Fog of War. A very dangerous spell that was banished long ago."

"Wait, I thought pegasi couldn't perform spells like this." Rarity said, sitting next to Twilight.

"Back in the old days, pegasi use to use the weather as a weapon. It's where the Wonder Bolts got their start. But these kinds of attacks were banished years ago."

"And the one that attacked Twilight." Starlight said, limping over to them. "He was using weapons and a fighting style that I've only read in history books."

"Well, they did claim to be our ancestors. "Applejack said.

"Said yous." Pinkie said, a little wobbly. "I don't think I could be related to such a big... meanie! He threw my cannon!"

"I think it's safe to say that they're from the past," Dash said, looking at all of them. "And I think it's safe to say that they don't plan to be friendly. I do have an idea of how to get us out of the town." They all look at her and it took her a second to realize they were waiting for her to continue. "The fog works by throwing off your sense of direction. it messes up your brain and makes it hard to tell what up from down. But it only works if you breathe it in. I'm thinking I can get up high enough and try to signal for help."

"Starlight, you think you can create some kind of air bubble that can protect us?" Applejack asked. Starlight shook her head and sighed.

"Any spell liked that might get them to notice us if they can sense the magic. We are risking it with the healing spell as it is."

"Can you do one that enough for one pony?" Applejack asked. Starlight looked at her a bit confused.

"I guess but I would get worn out before we even get a fifth of the survivors out..." Starlight started but stop when Applejack started to pull out some rope.

"I figured if I can get out far enough and tied a lead, we can guide ourselves out of the fog. There has to be a sewer exit near the train line. Trains don't need a sense of direction, just ride the track until we are out of the fog and go from there."

"That might work." Rainbow Dash said. "If we can get more ponies out we might be able to send for help. We first need to.."

She was cut off by a howl of pain that suddenly erupted from Twilight. They all look to see Twilight contorted and twisting around. Starlight quickly started casting something with the other two nurses. They watch as a glow emanated from Twilight's horn.

"What is happening?" Fluttershy asked.

"WE DON"T KNOW!!!" Starlight roared over Twilight's screaming. She turned to Applejack and Dash quickly. "Get out there and get us some help. Or we won't make it till the next sunrise."

⏳⏳⏳

"This spell you're planning to perform, how will this benefit us in the battle?" Captain Surprise asked as Sparkle was putting the finishing touch for the spell circle. Bright Eyes was sitting in the center of the circle, eyes close as his horn glowed faintly. She finished the last sigil and turn quickly to look directly at the captain.

"It will benefit us with knowledge. Something I know you use so little of." She said, brushing the dust off her hooves. "He wants to know about the rulers of this land and he is literally linked to one of them. He going to do a little exploring, peek at some of her memories, and then leave her a drooling mess."

"I don't like it." He said, snorting. "It sounds cowardly. I bet I could squish this little princess in the ground faster than
any spell."

"And yet you couldn't handle a single earth pony." Sparkle said with a smirk. This earned her a low growl as the captain slammed the ground. "And don't break the circle! If this spell gets interrupted, we could cause magical feedback that would turn every ponies' brain into mush. I wouldn't normally care except I could be on that path. Why don't you go bother Bowtie or Firefly?"

"Both are patrolling right now. I guess I could talk to Posey but..." Surprise said, leaving that hang in the air. Sparkle just shrugged and sat down near the spell circle.

"I don't care if you go hang with the crazy one, I going to make sure the spell doesn't get disturbed." Sparkle said shortly. Surprise growled and exit the room in a huff. She smiled and look to see Bright Eye started to mutter under his breath. "The spell is connected. Now things will get fun.

⏳⏳⏳

Rainbow Dash looked up at the sickly green fog that lingered just outside. She gave her wing a good couple of flaps, feeling only a little sting. The nurses manage to heal the wounds she received during her fight but that doesn't mean she was fully recovering. Quick healing spells mean the bones weren't as fully healed. If she did one wrong turn or pushed too hard, she would rebreak something, which was a moment she couldn't risk. She breathed in and breathed out, looking at a small earth pony who agree to kick open the hatch that separated the fog. She wished it was Applejack but she was getting the air spell cast on her. She looked at him and gave the nod. With one last inhale, he kicked it open for her. She shot out with so much force, she was surprised she didn't create a Rainboom.

She smacked into the fog and push through, even as she felt the poison burn her eyes. But she held her breath, she was going to hit the clouds, even if she almost pass out doing it. And that's was starting to become a reality as she felt her lungs starting to burn. She started to press harder but felt her wing starting to burn. She blinked away her tears and tried to push forward. She looked forward and saw the clouds just a couple of meters away. She gave one last push and she felt herself break into the clouds. She quickly took a breath of the fresh air and almost cried. The air just felt that good.

"Please tell me you not going to cry." A cruel voice said. Rainbow Dash opened her eyes to see Firefly sitting on a cloud, drinking from a wine glass. She tosses it off a cloud and Dash watches as it fell back to earth. "I think we need to talk."

Chapter Six: Disturbing Dreams and Cold Thoughts

Twilight awoke in a cold void. She couldn't feel anything or even sense which way was up. At first, she thought she was falling but the wind seems to just be howling, not rushing past her. All she saw was darkness surround her and for a moment the darkness seems to consume her. But before she could be completely lost in it, a small light glowed in the distance. It started as a dot but in a matter of seconds, the light was beyond blinding. Twilight had to shut her eyes for a second, to prevent the light from burning into her skull. When she opened up her eyes again, she found herself standing in a large, open field.

"Where am I?" Twilight asked out loud. The wind whipped by her, sending a shiver down her spine.

"You're in a memory." A voice said behind her. Twilight turned around to see Bright Eyes. Twilight immediately try to summon a spell but nothing happened. "Relax, we are sharing a mind link. If I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't give you the chance to stop it."

"Why are we in a mind link?" Twilight asked. She kept looking around the field, hoping to see if she recognized the area.

"An unfortunate side effect from the spell I cast." Bright Eyes said, walking away from her. "I risked it because I thought you would be dead soon. Alas, I'm stuck with you wandering my memories while I sleep."

At this moment, Twilight watch as a group of young fouls rushed past her, running up the hill. They were shouting and throwing a stuffed ball around. It took a moment for her to realize that it was a group of unicorn foals. She started to follow them and as she got to the top of the hill she saw the group run into a small village. There were several stone houses but seem they were very poorly put together. She saw that the ponies were wearing simple gowns.

"This is..." Twilight started to say before Bright Eyes seem to appear right beside her.

"This is my home village. A place I never wanted to return." Bright Eyes said.

"Why are you showing me this?" Twilight asked, seeing the villagers moving about. "Is this an attempt to get me to understand why ponies should fight or something? Because showing me things in the past is kind of the opposite of progress"

"I'm not showing this for any purpose." Bright Eyes growled. "You're not actually talking to me even. This is a subconscious version of me. Believe me, I wouldn't show this willing if I had the..."

A loud cry of pain cut him off, causing Twilight to turn right back around to see the group of colts had pinned down the littlest colt and were now pushing him into the mud.

"Get off of me, Pot Holder!!!" the small one shouted before being shoved into the mud.

"Oh come on, Bright Eyes!!!" The bigger colt shouted before shoving harder. "You going to start crying now? But I thought you wanted to play." The group laugh at this as he pushed a little hard. "You think just because your mother is my dad's favorite means I should be nice to you. You're lucky I don't drown you now."

With that, he left the small Bright Eyes in the mud, and the group left with a laugh. Twilight watched as the small foal slowly got out of the muck and trot lowly away.

"This is the beginning." Bright Eye said as they watch his young self depart. "In my tribe, you either prove your strength or you show your submission. Of course, I was never one to submit. So every day, I went back to my mother to lick my wounds. Although, she was usually busy with other villagers. Either she was making potions or pleasing them, causing me to heal in the darkness. I would repeat this pattern till one day..."

The area shimmer for a bit and Twilight watched as the days seem to fast forward until a familiar scene started to play out again. The older fouls were again beating on a young Bright Eyes, although this time he looked at least a few years older. The older foul was using a couple of telekinetic spells to push him into the ground.

"When will you learn your place, Bright Eyes?" The head bully, Pot Holder, shouted. He now had a mark of two clay pots. "I'm the future of this tribe and unlike your slut of a mother, I see no reason to keep you." With the last magic pulse, he shoved Bright Eyes into the mud. The group turn their backs and started to walk away. But Twilight wasn't looking at them anymore, she was watching as Bright Eyes rise from the muck. His horn was glowing bright and she watched as he pulled a stone out of the mud.

"Can't be the future if you're a dead pony." The young Bright Eyes mutter before shooting the stone. It flew with ease till it hit Pot Holder in the back of the skull with a sicking smack. Pot Holder fell to the ground almost instantly while his friends jump back. One of them rush over to their fallen leader and started to lift him.

"Pot Holder!!! Come on, get up!" He shouted, shaking the pony but Twilight didn't need to be up close to see that it was pointless. The other one back away slowly and started shaking his head.

"You killed him." He said shakenly. "You... killed him."

"Damn right." The young Bright Eyes said, spitting a glob of mud on the ground. "And if you don't want the same, you better start running." The group trip over themselves getting away, leaving him smiling.

"That should have been my greatest moment." Bright Eyes said. " I bested my foe and proven I wasn't a weakling."

"You murder some pony and you didn't think there would be consequences," Twilight said bluntly.

"Oh, you think I deserve punishment." Bright Eyes said, his eyes glowing brightly. "Then, how this to your liking?"

The area started to shift again but this time the ground move away like sand and the two now seem to be in some kind of hut. The young Bright Eyes was being stared down by a group of five male stallions behind a long table. The one in the middle of the five, an older stallion that looked like a rough type. There was another unicorn that was kneeling beside him, seeming to be nodding off.

"Does the monster have any last words before the sentencing?" He said, his voice cold and showing no pity.

"Please!!!" The young Bright Eyes cried. Twilight saw as he fell to the floor weeping. "Please, mother! Don't make me go into the woods! I'll be good. I won't fight anymore!!!"

"Silence!!!" The old stallion shouted, slamming his hoof on the table. He nodded to the rest of the council and straighten up. "By the order of this tribal, you are banished into the woods. You shall be shunned by this village and for the rest of your days shall you wander, not wanted or loved."

"MOTHER, PLEASE!!!" The young Bright Eyes scream as two large unicorns appear at his side and wrap ropes around him. They started to drag him out of the hut, with him resisting the whole way. "PLEASE, I'LL BE GOOD!!!"

"Your mother is the only reason you're not being killed now." The older stallion said, putting a hoof on the mare at his side. "I could never upset the sweet fruit in our village. She might give me a new son... to replace the one you took away, monster."

Twilight watched as the two unicorns dragged out of the hut. She turned to see a seething Bright Eyes, ignoring the scene. At first, Twilight thought that he was glaring at the one who banished him. But by following the eye line, she realizes that he was glaring at the mare at his side.

"She just sat there, stone out of her mind." He said, his voice slightly uneven. "I was thrown into the woods to die and she just sat there, drinking her potions and comforting the head of the village. So, tell me young one, was this a sufficient punishment?"

"Bright Eyes, I..." Twilight started but he turned away.

"Don't worry, princess." Bright Eyes said. "I know how this story ends."

🌖🌗🌔

Applejack really hated this plan but it was kinda their only plan. She breathed slowly, allowing the spell to filter out the fog. she hated leaving Twilight in the state she was in, moaning and screaming on occasion, but Starlight said there was nothing she could do. So her making this secure line and possibly get some innocent out of this battlefield, that what she can do. She quickly tied one of the ropes to a lamp post and made sure it was still secure. She was pretty she was heading to the train station. Just a few more blocks and she'll be able to...

She slid to a stop and held her breath. Leaning on a post a few feet in front of her was Bowtie. Her eyes were closed and seem to be meditating. Applejack thought maybe she could slowly slip back and not get spotted.

"I've already sensed you," Bowtie said, cracking her neck. "I've sensed you from your little hiding place in the ground. If I wanted to end you, I would have gone down and be done with it in five minutes. Six, if your princess is awake."

"You plan to turn me over to your boss?" Applejack asked, starting to back up.

"You won't make it," Bowtie said, in a sing-song voice. "Also, again, if I could sense you in your hideout. Why would I not just go there with my "leader" in toll?"

"Well, I may not be the smartest pony." Applejack said, grabbing her rope from behind her. "But I can tell when some pony ain't really stepping in line."

"You are a lot smarter than I expected," Bowtie said, smiling coldly. "I figure now would be the best time to talk to you. My companies are all busy, doing things of their interest. They think I'm patrolling, looking for any more slaves."

"So, what do you want?" Applejack asked, keeping herself prepared. "Is this where you give a speech about joining your side and we could rule the land?"

"Not really my style," Bowtie muttered, stretching and getting up. "We, as earth ponies, already rule this land. The lesser ones have to beg for our help and yet they think they can order us around because we can't fly or float a teacup. I come back to find that not only that every pony has become a weak pathetic mess but my kind is actually being submissive to them. We are warriors that used to bathe in the blood of dragons, not toil in the dirt like some kind of rodent."

"So not only are you crazed pony but you're also a bigot." Applejack said, gritting her teeth slightly. "Now we may be related but talk like that again and I'll..."

"You'll what?" Bowtie said with a slight smirk. "I destroyed you without trying last time and you are also the only one brave enough to go out in this fog. So how about we just sit and have a nice chat? Doesn't that sound nice?"

🌖🌗🌔

The first thing Twilight noticed about this new memory was that the Bright Eyes was at least a year older. He was also covered in the muck and grim, looking underfed and a bit rabid. He had several gashes on his side and was looking a little wobbling. He was clearly on his last leg and was stalking some kind of fancy carriage. He was floating a crude knife and with a magic pulse, broke one of the wheels. It stopped with a hard lurch and Twilight watched as two unicorn guards step out of the carriage.

"Don't worry, My Lady. " One of the guards said, armed with a spear. "It's properly just a rock or..."

Before he could finish, the young Bright Eyes jump out and with a quick slash across the throat, dropped the guard. The second shouted in surprise and quickly brought up his spear.

"You little vermin shit." The guard growled. He quickly swung the butt of his spear and smack Bright Eyes in the face. Due to his weakened state, he was easily knockdown. The guard quickly pinned him down by slamming the blunt end onto him. "I'm going to make you suffer, you piece of..."

"STOP." A voice called from the carriage. Twilight felt something was off about that voice like it was deep underwater or was being muffled somehow. "BRING THE FOAL TO ME."

"Who is that?" Twilight asked as the guard dragged the small Bright Eyes.

"She is the goddess of all below and above. She is the reason for all that breath and to crawl upon this earth. She is Majesty and you are not worthy to gaze on her, even in my memories." Bright Eyes said, not taking his eye off the carriage. The guard threw the young Bright Eyes to the ground. The carriage opens up and a bright light shore out of it, causing Twilight to shield her eyes. Neither the guard nor Bright Eyes reacted to the light, so Twilight assumed that Bright Eyes was blocking out the image.

"WHY DID YOU KILL MY GUARD?" The voice asked. The small Bright Eyes looked up and glared.

"I was hungry and he looked fat enough to feed me for a week." He said with a snare. "What are you going to about it, Bitch?"

The light just chuckled and Twilight watched as the light floated down to him.

"YOU DON'T FEAR ME?" It asked.

"Why should I be?" He said, not looking away.

"I SENSE YOUR POWER. YOUR PURPOSE. YOUR BLOODLUST. DO YOU WISH TO BE BETTER?" It asked. The young Bright Eye look shocked, as did the guard.

"My Queen..." The guard said, a little scared. "This vermin is clearly going to die. Why waste our time with..." Before the guard could finish, a beam of light hit him. The guard dropped to the ground like a pile of rocks. The young Bright Eyes looked shocked and started to back away but a bright glow wrapped around him.

"FIRST LESSON, CHILD." The voice said. "NEVER DISAGREE WITH SOME PONY WHO CAN KILL YOU." The voice said.

"Who are you?" The young Bright Eyes asked, fear in his eyes.

"I AM MAJESTY. She said, the light taking a more pony form. "AND I KNOW JUST WHAT TO DO WITH YOU.

The air suddenly picked up and the scene started shifting, causing Twilight to almost fall over. When the memory settle, it looked like Bright Eyes had aged to his teenage years. He looked a little better but still underfed. He was surrounded by other teens, all of them unicorns, in some kind of classroom. There were large oak tables but also some kind of small fighting ring. In front, of the group was a unicorn with one cloudy eye.

"It's come to my attention that a rumor has been circling about what happens after graduation." The older unicorn said, starting to walk in front of the group. "That you will all get a personal army and bring terror to all who oppose the unicorn race." This brought a soft chuckle. "Let me correct one thing. Only one of you will lead Majesty's Guard. The best of you, who succeeds in tomorrow's trials, will be given the command. It will give you the ability to take our lady orders across this land. But make no mistake, this will be the trial of your lifetime. Go out and enjoy your last time as free unicorns. Because tomorrow, your asses are mine."

He left the recruit, who stayed silent until he was gone. As soon as the door close to the room, almost all of them started cheering. Twilight watch almost all of them cheer and started to celebrate in earnest

"Did you all just hear that, boys!?!" One of the largest ones shouted. "One of us is going to get our own personal hit squad!"

"What are you going to do with them if you get them, Cresent Sun?" one asked him. Twilight watched as the large one jumped onto one of the tables.

"If I become the one to lead her guards to glory, the first thing I would do is go down to the south lands and gut every one of those striped freaks!" He shouted, causing them to cheer. "And then, I'm going to make those dirt pushers worship my fucking hooves while watching the sky dancers rip each other apart for my amusement." The group cheer again and started leaving the room. But Twilight notice that not only was Bright Eyes not following but another unicorn that she thought looked familiar.

"Why aren't you following the mob, Bright Eyes?" She asked, leaning up next to him. "Don't you want to be cozy with the leader of Majesty's Guard?"

"You know, Sparkle." Bright Eyes muttered. "That jackass will probably get to lead because Teacher likes him, while I, the true disciple of Majesty will be denied my rightful place."

"Can you just lay off the Majesty worship?" Sparkle said with an eye roll. "You know that's why Teacher doesn't like you. You never show him any respect, always questioning his orders. Think you know better."

"Because I actually want to win." He said with a growl. "All he wants us to do is die in pointless blood wars. I can lead us to glory if I got the chance."

"Well, my advice is two things, Bright Eyes." She said, sliding closer to him, starting to whisper into his ear "One, get a good night's rest. Because those fools are going to drink themselves into a coma, which gives us an advantage. and the second piece of advice, which I only give to you for special reasons, is you should make friends with some of your enemies. That way they won't see the poison you slip in their drink."

The scene shifted again but more smoothly as Twilight was now in some kind of bar. She saw the one known as Cresent Sun, surrounded by all the other students. It was clear it was the same night, as they seem to chat about what they would do if they get chosen. Cresent raised a glass of some kind of mead.

"Who are we!?!" He shouted.

"WE ARE THE CHOSEN FEW!" They shouted, raising their glasses.

"And who do we answer to!?!" He cried out with his mug raised high.

"WE ANSWER TO NO PONY, ONLY TO OUR MAJESTY!!!" They answer in a roar that shook the walls.

"That's what I like to hear!" He said with a smirk. "and look who joined us." The group turned to see Bright Eyes trotting over to them.

"Bright Eyes!" One of the unicorns to Cresent Sun's side shouted, slightly drunk. "I figure you would stay in your room and you know, tug the bottom horn!"

"Don't listen to them, Bright Eyes!" Cresent Sun shouted out. He patted the stool next to him, after shoving a drunk unicorn off it. "Why don't you sit next to the soon-to-be leader of Majesty's Guard. If you do well enough at tomorrow's trial, I'm might even choose you for second-in-command. We can rid this world of all those who oppose us."

"You would like that?" Bright Eyes said, stepping over the drooling drunk. "For us to ride across the plains and make sweet love with our weapons to any that would dare oppose us? To die on the battlefield with nothing but thousands of corpses surrounding us?"

"Of course!" Cresent Sun boasted. "Is there nothing better than dying for her?"

"Yes." Bright Eyes answer. "Conquer for her. Make her enemy bend the knee and become a force that no living thing in this world has witnessed."

The whole bar went silent as every pony seen to hear what he just said. Then a small giggle filled the bar that soon turned into a tsunami of laughter. Several of them fell off stools while Cresent Sun just shook his head.

"You see, that why you will make a great second in command." He said, patting Bright Eyes on the back. "You have ambition but just need to be held back a bit. We may be powerful but those mudslingers and cloud humpers are too stubborn to see it. They will fight to the death before summiting to us. And let not even get into the Dragons, Yaks, or Griffins. There is nothing left but to wipe them off this land."

"For you maybe." Bright Eyes mutter. This was clearly the wrong thing to say because Cresent Sun responded by smacking him across the bar, much to the enjoyment of the others. A few more fell off their stools, struggling to breathe.

"Okay, I tried to be nice about this." Cresent Sun said, pushing himself away from the table. He was a little wobble but still stands tall over Bright Eyes. " You always thought you were better than us because Her Majesty pulled you out of the gutter. She gave you some food and got you a few new toys. Don't you see that you are nothing more to her than a fucking pet?"

Bright Eyes spat out a wad of blood and gave a wide bloody smile.

"You may think I'm a pet." He said, before spitting another wad of blood. "I would consider myself lucky to be given such a title by her. But you want to know something?"

"What?" Cresent Sun asked, before pinning him to the wall. "What can you possibly tell me that I don't know?"

"I'm going to be the only one to make it to the trial." Bright Eyes groaned, still smiling but struggling to breathe.

"Really?" Cresent Sun said with a smile. "How are you going to do that?"

"Like this." Bright Eyes's horn lit up briefly and a loud whoosh filled the room. A few unicorns looked around confused while others started to get their weapons out. At first, Twilight didn't think anything happened, until one dropped to the ground. He started coughing violently and a few other unicorns follow suit. Cresent Sun went from looking smug to terrified in a matter of seconds. He quickly back away and tried to pull up one of the fallen unicorns.

"WHAT DID YOU DO!?!" He screamed as another unicorn vomit blood and collapsed to the ground. Bright Eyes smirked as he pushed himself back up.

"It's simple." Bight Eyes said, stumbling a bit. "I could have just poisoned your drink but I couldn't guarantee I get you. I could just poison all of the drinks but I find that wasteful. So, I decided to do a little research, and wouldn't you know it? I found a spell that was used by old white mages to switch potions around without opening the bottle. And what is a unicorn but an unopen bottle?"

"You monster." Cresent Sun growled, and with a flash of light, summon a large battle-ax. "I'm going to gut you like the swine you are."

"Right, just one question." Bright Eyes asked. 'How much have you have to drink?"

Cresent Sun's eyes widen and raised the ax high and for a second, it looks like he was going to bring it down. But a small trail of blood dripped out of his mouth and like a great oak tree, collapsed with a mighty thud. Bright Eyes trot over and turn the dying horse's head to look up at him.

"Teacher...will...kill you." Cresent Sun coughs out as he tries to catch one last breath. Bright Eyes smiled and lean down to him till they were almost faced to face.

"I would like to see him try." Bright Eyes said, with a look of pure fire. Cresent Sun coughed out a final glob of blood onto Bright Eyes's face before finally succumbing to the poison. Bright Eyes smiled as he sat down at the head of the table and pick up a goblet. He took a long swing of wine and look at the chaos he had caused.

"I guess they didn't see the poison I slipped into them." He muttered before starting to laugh. His laughter grew in volume till it seem to echo off the walls. Twilight felt the world start to swirl as the scene changed. Everything came back in focus, with the laughter gone but the look of murderer content still on Bright Eyes's face. He was now bound in iron, with a cap on his horn and his legs in shackles.

"He murdered several of your prospects!" Teacher shouted as Twilight look around at the new scene. It looked like a very exquisite throne room, filled with art showing unicorns as some unstoppable force. She saw at least five guards holding spears on Bright Eyes at all times, despite him being bound.

"THIS IS KNOWN. said a glowing light on a throne that rivaled Celestia's throne in size. "WHAT YOU LACK TO EXPLAIN WAS WHY WE SHOULD PUNISH MY DISCIPLES FOR DOING THE SMART MOVE? HE DISPATCH OF HIS ENEMIES. ARE YOU BLAMING HIM FOR EXPLOITING THEIR WEAKNESS OR FOR YOUR LACK OF INSIGHT TO ENCOURAGE YOUR PUPAL TO WATCH WHAT HE DRINKS?"

For the first time, Twilight watch some pony stand their ground to the blinding light, as Teacher didn't even flinch when Majesty spoke.

"You are blinded by his rage, my queen." He said, starting to circle the imprisoned Bright Eyes. "You believe he will bring us honor but all he will do is lead us to ruins. He only thinks for himself and doesn't consider the larger consequences of his actions. He just eliminate several of our finest warriors, not to mention, several heirs of our allies. When this gets back to the other tribes, it won't just be me calling for his head."

A soft pop filled Twilight's ears, causing her slight discomfort. That when Majesty spoke again but instead of the booming voice that seem to fill her head, a soft voice came out.

"I see your point but not your concern." She said, with a voice barely above a whisper. "I'm not worried about the other tribes. If I were, you wouldn't have been able to recruit from them for this project. You wanted to find the strongest unicorn beside me and we have. I believe this calls for a celebration."

The bright light float down from the throne and with a slight increase of the light, the chains that bounded Bright Eyes fell with a loud clatter. He cracked his neck and turn to Teacher. Teacher looked horrified and was stepping back.

"I can't be a part of this." He muttered. "You will lead us all to the end. He's a mad pony and you can't see it."

"Then leave us." The light said, not seeming to care. "For I will build my empire with him. For he has only one purpose in his life, to serve me to the bitter end."

"She saw my purpose." Bright Eyes said, standing next to Twilight. "She saw my light and she only cared for me, for I was her chosen one. She even granted me my greatest wish." He turned towards the entryway as it became a black void. "She allowed me to go home."

🌖🌗🌔

Rainbow Dash knew how to quickly assess a situation and she knew if this turn into a brawl, she was beyond outclassed in this. There was no cover, no support and if what she read about elemental fighters was true, the clouds could easily be turned on her. So she decided to see what she had to say. She landed on a cloud that was at least a few feet away but didn't take her eyes off Firefly, who was calmly sipping her wine.

"You know," She said as Dash settled down. "If we wanted to get drunk back in my time, we had to drink this murky water that could kill you if not done right. My tribe had it as a right of passage kind of thing. I think I drank three barrels of the stuff. And now here I am, drinking something that was made thousands of years after I was born but is over three hundred years old now. Life is funny like that?" She took another long sip of wine. "Too sweet for my taste." She threw it to the side and didn't even watch as it fell to earth.

"What do you want?" Dash asked. "Because I'm not a wine drinker, more of a cider gal."

"Funny, I'm starting to see how you could be my descendent." Firefly said. "No, I'm here to make a deal."

"I'm guessing I'm going to get the whole join the dark side speech?" Dash said, trying to look relaxed but knowing she was failing horribly. "Because I got to tell you, already happen. And unlike you, they were trying to tempt me with my dream job. So unless you have an all-season pass for Las Pegasus with a special pony on the side, I'm going to have to say no."

Firefly chuckled and pull out a chunk of cloud from underneath her. She started to mold the cloud into it was a small ball. she tossed it into the air and let it drift back to her hoof.

"You know, when I lead the armies of the pegasus, I always looked out to the horizon and wonder what lands could we conquer. I mean, we could blanket the lands with snow, bake the cities with the sunlight or drown their armies in mud. And I come to find is you have perverted the process for the mud rackers and the horn heads. Could anything be more disgraceful?"

"I could think of a few things," Dash said, trying not to show any emotions. But she noticed Firefly's eyes light up a bit.

"Aww, did I touch a sore feather?" She said with a smile. "Is that special pony not like us? Did some pony spend too much time playing in the dirt?"

"Nice try. You aren't going to play any mind games with me." Dash started to steady herself. Firefly smiled and lean forward a bit.

"Now I didn't see any stallions with you when we attack the tower. So I'm going to guess maybe one of the others we fight. Was it the freak princess that Bright Eyes carved?" Firefly said with a coy smile. "No, you don't take me as a submissive one. You want a nice challenge but one you can win eventually. So that takes out the pretty unicorn. I'm guessing it's one of the mud rackers."

"I'm serious, shut up." Dash growled. She knew it was a mistake the second she said. Firefly's eyes lit up like a match.

"Oh... I see." She said with a wicked smile. "🎶Some pony got a crush on a dirt mare.🎶"

"Look, are you just here to make me angry or are you going to get to your point?"

"Simple, child." Firefly said, catching the cloud ball and drifting closer to Dash. "Help me defeat Bright Eyes and I will spare one of your "friends"."

"What?" Rainbow Dash was a little surprise. "Did you flub a landing and hit your head? Why in the name of Celestia would I help you?"

"Come on, you have to realize how helpless your situation is." Firefly said, gently floating behind her. "We cut off an entire city in a day and pretty sure we killed or subdue any real threat. It is only a matter of time, a couple of weeks tops before we rule this land and put us on the proper path to rule this realm. But I refuse to be led by some broken child whose mommy issues are getting seriously tiring." Dash watched as Firefly grinds her teeth in rage. "So, if you want your little fling to last another day, join me in overthrowing him and I will spare you and one of your choosing. Really impressed me and I might make you a general in my army. Do we have a deal?" She stuck out a hoof to shake.

Dash looked at the hoof and back up at the confident smirk of Firefly. Looking deep enough, she could almost see the face she saw in the mirror every day. But Rainbow Dash had seen this face in almost bully she had faced and knew exactly what to say.

"No thanks," Dash said, waving the hoof away. "I can tell when a pony is hedging their bets. Which means you either fear or don't trust Bright Eyes. And that is a crack in the team. If there is one thing I learned over the years and that if you don't have your teammates back, then they don't have yours. And that is where my friend and I will succeed. Because we may not be stronger than you but as long as my friends are by my side, I will always win."

The rage seemed to light up Firefly's eyes and in a second, the cloud ball shape into a dagger and was pressed against Dash's throat. She closed her eyes and waited for the feeling of life to slip away. It might have been a second or an hour but eventually, Dash felt the icy blade left of her throat.

"No, you will die after I drain the life from the mud pony you love so much." Firefly said in a growl. "For you see, there is a reason your friendship will never defeat me." Rainbow Dash was about to say something but notice a glimmer of light in the distance. Dash saw Firefly going on to monologue and realize she had a chance to get a message. But she only had one chance and she hope that whoever was watching her would understand.

🌖🌗🌔

"What do you see, Drizzle?" Scout Misty asked Drizzle who was watching the large green fog cloud with his lucky binoculars.

"What?" Drizzle asked, paying too much attention to the fog to really listen to his partner.

"I was asking you what do you see," Misty asked slightly annoyed.

"I'm getting so sick of that question." Drizzle moan with an eye roll.

"Hey, you have the binoculars. I can't see anything. I'm not going to just sit here and play with my wings..."

"Not my fault you lost yours." Drizzle said, returning to watching. "But like the last three hours, I don't see any..." He stop when he saw a small blue pegasus. "Wait. Get command on the shard."

Misty quickly pull out a crystal shard and with a quick swipe, the floating head of Spitfire appeared.

"What is it, Scout?" Spitfire asked.

"I've spotted Rainbow Dash on the northwestern side of the fog cloud, about a foot from the fog." Drizzle reported.

"Has she tried to get any further?" Spitfire asked.

"Negative, commander. Looks like she is being prevented by another pegasus." He reported, adjusting to get a clear view.

"Describe them."

"Orange coat with a red mane. It looks like wings on fire as her mark." Drizzle commented. "I don't recognize the mark or anything. Should we approach and assist Rainbow Dash with... Wait." Drizzle focus more n Dash and saw her lips were moving very deliberately and slowly. "I think she trying to contact us but I can't read lips." Misty perk up and snatch the binoculars.

"I can. My mother was deaf and taught me in case of emergency." She said as she settled on Dash. She started muttering for a moment. "She is saying: "Hostage situation. Several injuries including Starlight and Twilight. many are missing. Flash twice if understand." Misty tilted the binoculars a couple of times, hoping she saw it. It must have worked because she saw Dash start a new message.

"Now she is saying: "Trying to make a plan to get the injury and innocent out. Will try to give you a head up." Misty turns to see the floating head of Spitfire with a deeply concerned look.

"If they are holding hostages, that means it not a mindless beast. It's some pony or thing with a plan. But if that pegasus is a part of this, I feel like this is going to get complic ated quickly. Is she saying anything else?" Spitfire asked. Misty turn back but saw that Dash was slipping back into the fog. But the other one was looking right at her. She thought maybe it was a coincidence until the pegasi started to move her lips.

"I can see you. Bye Bye" Misty repeated. She was a bit confused until the pegasi lift a hoof in the air. She saw ice starting to form into a javelin. "There is no way..."

The first ice spear came flying at them, cutting Misty shoulder deep. She felt the skin freeze almost in a second and felt like she dive into the coldest lake. Drizzle cried out in shock as another one just barely miss him.

"WE ARE UNDER ATTACK!" Misty shouted, diving into the clouds in a hope of cover. "I REPEAT, WE ARE UNDER ATTACK."

"She using ice spears!" Drizzle shouted, holding the shard as he nose-dived into a cloud. "How can she do that!?! That practice has been banished for over five hundred years." Misty was going to tell him to stop talking but suddenly felt the wind starting to turn. The clouds were starting to twist and didn't take a weather mare to know what was coming next. The clouds form a funnel and she watch as a twister hook headed right for them.

"Drizzle, go to the right." She shouted over the roar of the wind. "We need to divide her attention. She can't hit both of us!" She watch as Drizzle started to turn farther left and she swing to the right. She look behind her as a large tornado funnel started to bear down on her. She pushed herself in hopes to outrun the attack but knew it was hopeless. But at least Drizzle would get out alive. She looked to see a funnel was right on his tail, making her realize too late that enemy. " The little prick was summoning a multi-funnel tornado. How can we stop this?"

The wind was starting to rip at her and she knew it was only a matter of time before she would succumb to the force and she was going to fight it to the bitter end. She felt herself falter and knew it was the end. She was about to close her eyes when a large shadow suddenly drape over her.

"Now not the time to surrender, little pony." A booming voice that seems to shake her. "Not when General Green Scale and company have arrived." She felt herself get picked up and the wind being blocked around her. She looked up to see a large green dragon with an eyepatch grinning down at her. She sighed and before she could pass out from the exhaustion and pain manage to mutter one last thing.

"About time we got some help."

🌖🌗🌔

Twilight felt the scene shift and spin until it settle on a somewhat familiar area. Although it was now dark and the ponies that were once standing in authority were now laying in what she could assume was some kind of love pile, they were back in the very hut that a young Bright Eyes was banished. It smelled of alcohol, herbs, and other things that Twilight would rather not think about it. She also saw the younger Bright Eyes sitting in the dark while her guide stood next to her, unmoved.

"Before I was going to create her Guard, I had one request." Bright Eyes said, a small smirk forming. "I wanted to visit the village that once banish me."

At this, the younger Bright Eyes step into the moonlight and stood over the mare in the pile. It took a moment for Twilight to recognize the older version of Bright Eyes's mother. She twitches and her eyes open slowly until she looks up to see her older son.

"She was shocked silent by my new present." Bright Eyes said, pridefully.

"Bright?" His mother said, getting up quickly. "Bright, my child. Is that you?" Twilight watched as the younger Bright Eyes was standing stoic and trying to not emote but she swore she saw a small twitch in his eyes.

"Or maybe she was ashamed for how she betrayed me." Bright Eyes said.

" He doesn't know that it does not match his description. Twilight thought as she look back at the scene. " Maybe his magic is failing him."

"Child, is it really you?" The mare asked, bringing a hoof to his face. The young Bright Eyes flinch as if he were hit and the mare's eyes started to water. "Please, don't be angry. I tried to stop them. I did everything I could to stop them."

"She just stood there, amongst those who banish me to die." Bright Eyes growled as he survey the scene.

"I made them pay." His mother said in a harsh whisper. "I poison them when I couldn't find you. They beg for the antidote like when you beg for mercy but I show them none. You can come back! We will welcome you with open hooves. These elders would do anything for me and I have missed you so much!" At this, his mother wrap the young stallion in a hug and started to softly sob. Twilight noticed that the face of the sleeping stallion kept shifting to the elder that banishes Bright Eyes to stranges. It seems what he remembers happening and the actual memory was clashing in his head. She looked to see the young stallion was returning the hug. She watched as he pushed her mane to the side and lean to her ear.

"You abandon me." The young Bright Eyes said, with his teeth grinding and tears streaming from his eyes. His horn glow bright and a loud thud noise awoke the entire room. Her eyes went wide and she tried to hold onto her son as something was pushing her away. It was only when she lost her grip and was pushed into the air that she realized she was impaled on her son's weapon. She looked at him with pleading eyes as she raised into the air. The first stallion to fully awaken saw this scene and reacted with a scream.

"Guards! Guards! There is a psycho in the tent!" The witness shouted. This was a mistake as young Bright Eyes quickly looked to him and with a guttural roar, toss his injured mother to the side. He swung his weapon with a speed that if Twilight hadn't witnessed herself, would have thought was another edit in his memory. As the blade slice through the stallion's throat, Twilight watched as the face of the stallion changed for a second turn into the head elder that banish Bright Eyes. As he dropped dead, it fad back to his real face. The rest of the stallions started to rush for an exit but the young Bright Eyes summon a wall of fire with a swing of his halbert. The fire blocked their exit and force them to back into a corner.

"Who are you!?!" One of the stallions shouted as they realise there was no escape.

"I am your retribution!!!" Both Bright Eyes shouted as it seem he was now reliving the night.

"WE DON'T EVEN KNOW YOU." They seem to all cry out. But it was all in vain as he dived at the and with a fury of swings and swipes, reduce them to nothing but piles of limbs. Twilight turned away, becoming sick by the violence to only see Bright Eyes's mother was dragging herself away. She had produced a potion and applied it to her wound that was slowly knitting it together but not fast enough as she was leaving a blood trail.

"Mother, where do you think you're going?" The young Bright Eyes shouted, cover in so much blood, it dripped off him as he had just stepped out of a shower. "We still go some useful pieces! I can make you a new stallion. Just tell me what parts you like and we'll go from there. What do you say?"

She continues to crawl away, causing the young Bright Eyes to leap across the room to prevent her from getting any farther.

"Now mother, I understand you are a little upset but that no reason to ruin this little reunion." He said, putting his blade to her throat. "I mean, it wasn't for your heartlessness, I won't be the pony I am today. So, any last word of mercy that you should have said that day?"

Twilight watched as the gleeful smile on Bright Eyes morphed in a tear-stricken face and rage growing as the younger Bright Eyes had clearly not enjoyed the violence.

"Say it!!!" The younger one cried in rage. "Call me the monster that you banish! Just say it!" He plunged the blade back into her and lift her in the air. She looked down as her last breath was fast approaching and Twilight saw the look of sorrow.

"I'm sorry." She said with a gasp of pain.

"What?" The young Bright Eyes asked, the fury was slowly leaking away.

"I'm sorry. I was supposed to protect you. I thought I paid for that failure when I couldn't find you." She said, her struggling to catch her breath. "But I'd never call you a monster and I never will. So, I'm sorry. You need to know that I'm sorry, Bright Eyes. I'm... so... sorry." And with that, she went limp. The bloody, young Bright Eyes drop the body and rush to her side.

"I never shed a tear for her." Bright Eyes said stone face as Twilight watch the younger cradle his mother's corpse. "I felt such joy that I had finally killed the whore."

"Mother! come back!" The young Bright Eyes cried. "Mommy, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it. Please stop playing! I swear I'll be good. Just come back!"

"And I would soon bathe in the blood of the rest of them." Bright Eyes said, turning away from the scene. "For it was the greatest day of my life." Twilight looked back at the sobbing mess that they were leaving behind and for the first time, wish she was seeing through Bright Eyes's eyes.

Chapter Seven: Awaking from a Dead Sleep

The room was silent as Celestia and Luna watch a replay of the two scouts being attacked. While most were watching in stunned silence, Black Claw was gripping the table so tightly that his claws were digging in deep furrows. The second the image was dispelled, he ripped them out and slam a fist down hard.

"You take me as a fool, Celestia." He said with a growl. "Because when my great grandfather signed the treaty of Cloudsdale, part of the agreement was to banish that kind of magic. Now you dare flaunt it in my present!?!"

"That is not one of my ponies," Celestia said, calmly. "I'm just as shocked as you are that these spells are back in the world."

"Pigeon Crap!" Black Claw shouted, drawing his sword. Several guards jump in to surround him but his two sergeants had drawn their weapons. The Yaks step back as did the dragons, trying to assess the situation. "The only one that knew of those kinds of spells' existence was you and your sister. Even Star Swirl stayed away from that magic. So either you're lying to us all or you're protecting some pony. I have my citizens being held hostage and you still refuse to act."

Celestia looked at the blade pointed at her and then back at Black Claw.

"Fine." She said with a voice of tired patience. "I will act." A flash of magic filled the room and Black Claw cried out as his sword felt like it was red hot. He raised his claws to strike but felt a violet force hit him in the chest. He flew across the room and smacked into the wall with a thud. He felt the force continue to press him into the wall and saw Celestia float over the table towards him.

"You seem to forget why your great grandfather had to sign that treaty," Celestia said, keeping a steady tone. "Because, if I remember correctly, your grandfather's soldiers had a name for me on the battlefield. What was it?" Black Claw struggled against the spell holding him but with a little more pressure, he muttered a name that was told to him in a horror whisper.

"The Burning Sun." He gasped out. He felt the spell drop and he collapsed on the floor.

"We could keep blaming each other for both of our citizens... all of our citizens being held prisoner," Celestia said, turning to the rest of the crisis council. "Or we can work together and bring the heathens who dare threaten our kind."

"Sun Queen is right." General Lowbrook of the Yaks said. "We must work together to punish those who harm Yaks."

The council all mutter agreement and resume the planning to evacuate the innocent but Luna watched her sister carefully. There were few times that she saw Celestia threaten like that and it always dealt with her pupils. Luna was worried since news reach them of Twilight's injuries. Luna herself tried to reach out to any of the ponies only in the fog cloud but something was blocking her from their dreams, which was most frustrating on its own when she tried to reach Twilight, one she knew well, it was like there was a brick wall surrounding her. As she watch her sister silently trot out of the war room, she fear that her sister might do something drastic, something she knew she will regret.

🌖🌗🌔

Twilight watched a group of fouls run by her and at first, she worried that she was repeating the same memory until she saw Bright Eyes as she knew him walking into the village with a bag of loot. She watch as he stop in front of one of the huts and was about to open the door when another unicorn open it instead. She looked like Luna if she was a unicorn and instead of the galaxy-like hair, she was deep blue. Her mark was a bright single star and had a single scar on her cheek.

"Bright Eyes!" She shouted in shock. "I thought you were going to be fighting the Southen Tribes until the next full moon."

"They surrender the second I walk on the battlefield." The memory Bright Eyes said, throwing the bag of loot on the ground. Gold bits and gems spilled out, scattering across the dirt floor. "Now, how is my little star doing?"

"I'm doing fine, Eyes." She said as she started collecting the fallen treasure. "Does this mean you will be here for the Moon Dance?"

"Unfortunately, Majesty is already sending me on another mission." Bright Eyes said, sitting down at a small table in their hut "Apparently some monster is giving traders trouble up on a mountain pass. I'm just dropping off some loot. I have to leave tonight. But these two weeks will pass by without a thought and I'll be able to celebrate the Moon Dance our way."

"I didn't know I would never see her after this." Twilight look to see her guide was sitting in the corner. "Midnight Star never knew what happen to me and probably thought I died in battle.'

"Can't you stay a little longer?" Midnight Star asked, putting a bowl of some kind of soup in front of Bright Eyes. "I have something we need to talk about."

"I'm sure it can wait till after I return." Bright Eyes said, dismissively. "These missions seem to be getting easier lately. Maybe I should remove some of the other..." There was a weird feeling as the vision seemed to warp and almost like a record skip, the way they were talking stopped for a second. Then Midnight started talking.

"Bright Eyes," Midnight cut him off. "I'm with child."

Bright Eyes seem to not notice what she said and started to eat a loaf of bread that was on the table. Midnight walk over and looked directly at Bright Eyes

"Maybe get rid of Bowtie." Bright Eyes said, with a bored tone. "She has been too much of an up stuck bitch."

"Did you hear me?" Midnight said, with a hint of impatience. "I'm carrying your spawn!!! Despite Majesty's orders, I'm carrying a sweet foul inside of me. You never knew. You died before I could tell you. "

"Maybe the Captian should be given an early retirement," Bright Eyes said with a little thought while chewing the bread. "He has been compiling too much about Sparkle and I like the smell of burnt bodies more than the screams of broken bones"

"I wish I could have told you the future I got about our child." Midnight said with a sly smile. "The elder's partner is the oracle. Oh, you should have seen it. The way she talked about them." Midnight's eyes seem to go into a trance as thoughts back to the memory. "She said that our bloodline would end all threats to our kind, unite the tribes and bring peace to our world. She saw how the stars will align to beckon such a power that it will shake the very soul of the earth."

"But then interrogation will take too long" Bright Eyes moaned. "I mean, that's the only reason I keep him. I swear, he would drown if he looked up during a rainstorm."

"But you were too attached to Majesty!" Midnight shouted, smashing the table, without Bright Eyes even flinching "I sacrifice everything to Majesty. I lost my tribe, my father, and all my cousins to her blood lust. I was made your bride and forced to smile every time you came back from killing another. You know what I did when I learn what was inside me! I cried to the magic for protection. I wanted this foul, just to love it, to care for it but most of all, I wanted it to kill Majesty." She screamed at the stoic Bright Eyes. "By the magic, how I wish I said this to you when you were alive. It could have been my last victory but you had to get yourself killed. She disappears before my little Orian came into this world. Maybe she fled or maybe she went hunting for you. I didn't care. I had his love and that was enough."

The world fuzzed a bit and Bright Eyes seem to snap out of his boring conversation and turn to Midnight.

"What are thinking about, Midnight?" He asked as he got up from the unbroken table. Midnight smiled and turn to him.

"Not much, dear." She said. "Just the future," Twilight swore it was through gritted teeth.

"I believe I learned enough." Twilight heard from behind. She looked to see that Bright Eyes had cast a spell. The whole scene froze and seem to turn grey. "I can't believe it was this easy."

"What are you talking about?" Twilight was suddenly on guard. He seem not to have heard his wife's inner thoughts because he was smiling wickedly.

"You thought this was a misfired spell." Bright Eyes said with a wider grin. "While you were looking at useless memories of my past, I found what I was looking for. I found memories of your teacher, your mentor, your ruler."

"No." Twilight moaned.

"YES!" He said with a manic grin. "I now know where your precious Celestia is. And I have to say. what a joke of a leader. She constantly needs You. I mean, I thought I was going to get a better challenge but instead, they are weaker than you. I going to enjoy ripping her to shreds."
"stop."

"I'm going to rid both her and her pathic sister. Then I will find my Majesty and we will remake this land in our image!"
"Stop!"

"And after all is said and done, I think I'm going to find one of your friends to be my new pet. How about that yellow Pega..."

"I SAID STOP!" A voice suddenly filled the room, taking Twilight and Bright Eyes by surprise. They turned to see that Midnight was moving, storming up to Bright Eyes. Her eyes seem to be on fire as she came upon him. Before he could react, she straight slap him across the face.

"What!?!" Bright Eyes said, stunned. "This is impossible. You're a memory, a figment of my mind. You can't hurt me anymore than a cave drawling can!"

"Really?" Midnight seemed to be getting bolder to him. "Then this shouldn't do anything." She sidestep him and swiftly kicked him in his crouch. Bright Eyes made a high pitch whine and drop to the floor. Twilight was both confused and relieved. Whatever was causing this means he wasn't unstoppable. Maybe she could ask this memory for help.

"You know, Bright Eyes," Midnight said as she started to circle him. "You are pathic. You awaken to a time of freedom, lack of war, and killing. And you see that as a problem. You know, if you just came into town and be friendly, you would have been shown such sights. I mean, did you think that your warring ways were the only way?"

"We...are...the...superior ones." Bright Eyes groaned, trying to get back up. "This land...NEEDS to be conquered !"

"Wow, I would ask if you were dropped on your head as a foul but we did just see your tragic life in glorious 3D!" Midnight said with a shake of her head before jumping into the air and elbow dropping on his back. He cried out in shock and fell back to the ground in pain. Midnight got up and put a hoof onto Bright Eyes's head "And I'm truly sorry for what you went through. You were brainwashed by that psycho and the world you grew up in was horrible. But you got a second chance and you decided to bring the horror to this peaceful place. That was your choice, not any pony else. You think that being this monster makes you superior. No. Superior doesn't come from inflicting violence, it comes from willing to protect those who need it. It is not inherent by blood or creed, it comes with actions of goodwill and kindness. By seeing the pain you saw in your life and saying, "I will not allow this to happen to another."

"Thank you," Twilight said, walking toward the two. Midnight look up at Twilight and got off of Bright Eyes with a moan of pain coming from him.

"Ohh, your not innocent either, miss "princess of friendship." She said, starting to encroach on Twilight's personal space. "Going on a trip to the city and not taking all your friends."

"What!?!" Twilight said, a little thrown off. "I took all my friends with me."

"Nope." Midnight said, almost on top of her at this point. "You forgot your best friend. The one who is cool, funny, and above all else," She leaned into Twilight's face and for a split second, Twilight saw her eyes turn yellow with red pupils. "The most handsome."

Twilight's face just dropped and she sighed. "Of course, this is when he decided to show up.

"Do you have something to say?" Midnight said with a big smile. Twilight was going to say something probably consider rude when a loud slicing noise filled the air. Midnight still had the grin when her head shot off her body with a thick fountain of blood shot out of the stump. The blood was still shooting out but Twilight now saw an extremely pissed-off Bright Eyes, floating his weapon with murder in his eyes.

"Demented little freak!" He growled. The head decided to flip in midair to look directly at Bright Eyes.

"Hello, I'm Discord." The head said as to mismatch horns grew out of its head. "And I won't be judging you on your mental state tonight." The blood quickly turned into a solid shape as Discord popped his arms out while kicking a now poorly put-together pony costume off his legs. "I was getting to like that character. Very rarely do I play the strong, female character who is trapped in a relationship of pain and misery."

"You dare disrespect me by pretending to be my mate!?!" Bright Eyes shouted, aiming his blade right at Discord.

"Oh, honey." Discord suddenly was dressed as a tailor "You disrespect yourself every time you go out looking like that. What is this? Crazy warrior of the past. Nope, I got a better crazy look for you." He snapped his claw and a bright flash encased Bright Eyes. When Twilight was able to see again, Bright Eyes was suddenly wearing a red jacket, a flannel shirt with some jeans. His weapon was now an ax and his hair was askew. Discord now had big round glasses with a bushy black beard.

"Now, the line is: "All worship and no thinking makes Brighty a very dull pony" Say it about a hundred twenty-seven times and we should be good." Discord said. Bright Eyes looked at what he was wearing and then in a roar of anger, dived at Discord with the ax. Discord simply snap his claw again and in another blinding light, dressed Bright Eyes in a tattered green jacket with a hockey mask. He missed Discord completely and crashed into his fake home's wall.

"I can't see in this thing!" He shouted as he was struggling to get the mask off.

"You know, I always wonder." Discord said with an amused smile. "Well, while you deal with that wardrobe malfunction, I'm going to talk to dear Twilight for a second." He snapped again and a door appeared right next to Twilight and she didn't need to be told twice to go through it. She ran in to see that she was now in some kind of meadow She look back to see Discord slither into the area before slamming the door shut and covering it with chains and locks.

"Now, dear princess. We need to talk."

🌖🌗🌔

Applejack slipped into the hideout feeling defeated. Although she got a path to the train, she couldn't think that it only delay the inevitable. That she was going to have to fight those monsters again. And this time might not end with her escaping. She was about to open the secret door when she hear hoofbeats approaching. She felt her fur stand at the end, wondering if maybe Bowtie decided to not wait on her answer. She turned to see that it was Rainbow Dash, almost lost in thought.

"Dash!" Applejack called out. "Did you get past the fog?"

"Kinda." She answered. "But Firefly waiting for me. Decided to threaten to kill all of us unless I help her take out Bright Eyes."

"Same here." Applejack said with a sigh. "I guess that's some good news. If they are looking to betray each other, it ain't going to be hard to turn them on each other."

"But that just means we have to fight whoever wins. And I don't know about you but I don't think we can defeat Firefly easily. She uses the weather as a weapon!" Rainbow Dash sat on the ground, feeling depressed. " And we all saw how bad Trixie and Starlight looked after they fought Bright Eyes. How are we supposed to beat ponies who can do this much damage in only a couple of days!?!" Tears started to run down her face. "You know what Firefly offered? If I help her, she would spare one of you girls. And for a second, I consider it. I mean, she destroy me in a matter of minutes and I couldn't get one hit on her. not one! And the fact I even thought it for a second, that I would betray every pony if it means I could save..." She look up at Applejack and felt her words fail her. "one of you girls. I couldn't live with it! Why couldn't I at least get one hit!?! Just a small sign that she can bleed!!!"

She didn't realize she was smacking the ground until she felt the warm embrace of Applejack. She immediately collapse into her and let loose the sobs she had been holding since she woke up.

"There, there sugercube." Applejack said softly. "I getcha. I thought the same when Bowtie offer it to me. We just need to stay strong. As soon as we get Twilight up, she'll come up with a plan that will get us out of this. If not, then Celestia or Luna will come. I believe we will make it. You know why?" She left Dash's head and look right into her eyes. "Because I believe in us. We have been through so much, this isn't where we stop now. Now, wipe away those tears. Can't let them start to worry, now can we?"

"Thanks." Rainbow Dash said with a sniff. Then a small chuckle escaped her lips. "Why couldn't we go back to the day when I beat you at Fall runs?"

"Now I know you are messing with me." Applejack said with a small smile. "Because I had you beat by at least a feather last time we raced."

"Please," Rainbow Dash said with a sly smile. "You couldn't beat me on your best day."

"Girl, you know all I have to do is tie your wings and you're as helpless as a foul." Applejack said with a small poke.

"Is that an offer..." Rainbow Dash started to say but then stopped. "You're right. I'm helpless without my wings, just like any pegasus."

"What are you going on about?" Applejack asked before Rainbow opened the door.

"I think I know how to take them out. Get the rest of the girls." Rainbow Dash said. "And get your thinking caps on. We're about to get creative."

🌖🌗🌔

Twilight looked at Discord, clearly annoyed. After he close the door, he decided to start to fish in the small pond that was in this imagery mellow.

"Are you going to fish or just stand there glaring?" Discord asked as he chew on a small grass stalk.

"We don't have time for this, Discord" Twilight said, gritting her teeth in frustration. "I need to get out of this spell and warn Celestia about that psycho. He going to kill her!"

"Correction." Discord said, adjusting his fishing hat. "Try to kill her. You don't know Tia as I do. You see her as this lovely but stern mentor who never raised a hoof in violence. Let me ask you, Twilight. Have you ever questioned why all the other species, the dragons, the Griffins, or the Yaks; all who value strength over kindness, haven't decided to invade your country once?"

"Because of the treaties," Twilight said, annoyed. "Every pony knows that if any of the other species were to invade, the equestrian army would stop them."

"That's cute you buy that bunk." Discord said, slowly pulling on the fishing rod that was made of balloons. "But after every time You save Equestria, how many times have the army actually saved the day? I'm mean, they couldn't even stop Spike when he had that growth spurt. No, a treaty is only as strong as the one enforcing it. And believe me, they're only there because Celestia had to make rules for her to follow. Which is why we need to talk."

"Okay, let's talk."Twilight started to walk away from the pond. "Just pop up where we are at. Help us get rid of Bright Eyes and we can take all you want."

"Yeah, I can't exactly pop up to you girls right now." Discord said, scratching the back of his head. "As in at all."

"What!?!" Twilight shouted. "What do you mean you can't?"

"Well, it's like this," Discord got up from under the tree he was laying and moved to the small pond. With a wave of his claw, the pond suddenly had an image of Ponyville. Twilight couldn't tell when it was but the sun was shining and looked peaceful. "When I usually visit you girls, jumping into your dimension is as easy as jumping into this pond. A little splash and maybe cause the little fishes a stir but nothing more. But due to your little visitors.." He snapped his claw.

The pond suddenly started to bubble and froth. Almost as if the ground itself turned into a mixer as the pond look like a raging sea. Twilight could also see the image change into a collage of images. Some remind Twilight of the memories Bright Eyes had shown but others were things she couldn't recognize. There was scarred Rainbow Dash looking villainous over a factory and another showed a strange being dreaming of flying across Equestria.

"The time stream, as some would call it, is in flux. If I were to try to jump into your dimension now, there is a strong chance I will be quite literally ripped to shreds across millions of worlds. Take me centuries to put myself together, if I could. Happens every time something time travels. I hate paradoxes."

"So, you can't help us," Twilight said, disappointed. "Then how are you here now?"

"Dreams were never a part of one dimension. They almost float in their own bubbles." Discord said, with a sigh. "And even though he showed you memories, this is still a dream. If Luna knew my tricks, she could be here too." Discord made a small gesture and the pond went calm. "But you are the only one I can reach, so I must tell you this in hopes you can stop it."

"I'm trying to stop Bright Eyes!" Twilight snapped. "But I was never to fight magic like this..."

"Not Bright Eyes." Discord cut her off. "He and his gang's time is limited. Time doesn't like to be cheated and neither does death. They disrupt the flow too much not to be noticed. They will fall and hard. BUT what I need you to do is to make sure Celestia doesn't cross the line. You need to stop her from killing Bright Eyes."

"WHAT!?!" Twilight stepped backed shocked. "She would never do that. Celestia has given you a second chance and has shown nothing but kindness to her..." A loud pop filled her ears and she wasn't the mellow anymore. She was standing in some kind of valley, surrounded by Griffins in full sets of armor. Her history knowledge came in handy because she recognize that this was fifth century period armor, about over nine hundred years old. She looked around and notice all the Griffins were looking in one direction. She turn to see standing on a hill was Celestia as she had never seen her before.

She was dressed from her horn to her hooves in this white and red armor, covered in symbolic suns. She was younger, with a look Twilight had never seen before on her face, of pure determination. Floating beside her right was a large broad sword that was twice as long as Twilight. On her left side was a shield that was decorated with a large sun. It was a little bigger than the size of a wagon wheel, shining in the late morning sun. Twilight realize that Celestia was surrounded by this raging Griffin army, all of them clanging their weapons in bloodlust.

"This is your last warning," Celestia shouted across the valley. "If you do not retreat, you will not be spared." The valley filled with laughter as the army didn't seem phased.

"You outnumber, princess!" One of the griffins, a general from the armor they were wearing, shouted. "We have five hundred soldiers and all you have is one sword and a shield. Throw down your weapons and we will give you a quick death."

"That is where your wrong, Blue Claw," Celestia said, bringing her sword across her shield, causing sparks to fly and the sword itself to burst into flames. "You only have five hundred soldiers, I have the whole day."

"ATTACK!' One of the Griffins shouted and a loud war-cry filled the air. Twilight watched as they rushed forward and fearing she was going to see the worst, almost cover her eyes before a flash of light blasted from Celestia's sword. It look like pure sunlight as it cut through the field and with one swing, half of the army dropped to the ground with screams of agony. Twilight watched as limbs were sliced off like they were paper as Celestia dived into the fury. She swung her sword with ease, cutting griffins without a struggle or a thought it seem. She wasn't even really using the shield to block but more as a blunt force as she beat down several griffins, breaking bones and skulls. But the most disturbing thing was Celestia's face. It didn't show fear, anger, or rage. It just was a face of focus.

"After Luna's banishment, things got hard." Discord suddenly appeared next to Twilight. "Every general thought they could prove they were the best if they could take out Celestia in what they saw as a moment of weakness. They couldn't have been more wrong." As if to prove his point, Twilight watched as the general that tried to get Celestia to surrender got disarmed. He let out a roar of rage and dive at Celestia in a bid to hit her. She simply duck under him and shoved her shield deep into his rib cage with a sickening crack. He collapsed on the ground with a painful cry and was flipped around with Celesta standing over him. Her sword started spinning rapidly and was circling the two, creating a pause in the fighting unless a Griffen risked being turned into mulch.

"Surrender, Blue Claw.' Celestia said, plainly as if she was ordering a drink. "Call off your army or fall here."

"I will never..." He started to say but Celestia didn't let him finish. She raised her shield into the air and brought it down on his front arm with a crunch. He scream in pain but was cut off quickly when Celestia shoved the shield into his beak.

"Surrender," Celestia repeated, without even a hint of emotion. There was a moment when it seem like no one moved. Twilight could see nothing but coldness in her eyes and fear in the griffin. Finally, he made a strangling cry that cause Celestia to remove the shield of his beck.

"WE SURRENDER!" He cried out. Celestia simply nodded and trotted away, with her sword and shield returning to her side. The remaining griffins parted to allow Celestia to walk away from the fallen general. Not one of them looked her in the eye.

"So you see," Discord said, snapping away the images, allowing them to return to the mellow. "I do not doubt that Celestia will be able to handle herself. But if she allows herself to become that pony again, then fear will grow amongst the other species. With fear, comes stupid decisions and even Celestia would not be able to stop the tide of war that could happen. "

Twilight just stood there, still trying to process what she had just witnessed. She had known Celestia all her life, been taught by her, and did her duty to serve her. Was she working under some pony she knew nothing about? Some pony like Bright Eyes, who had been able to take out bystander like it was nothing. She shook her head at that line of thinking. Celestia did what she had to do for her citizens, nothing more. A loud thud caused Twilight to jump. She look to see the door that supposedly held Bright Eyes was shaking and starting to break.

"Looks like our time is up.' Discord said, floating over to Twilight. "I tried to show you some of the truth that he hid from himself. Maybe it will help you or maybe it won't. He doesn't know who I am. I kinda pull a prank on this city before this happened. Remove me from the history book and yet no pony caught it. Sometimes my genius is frightening."

"How do I wake up?" Twilight asked, watching the door start to splinter.

"That's the part that going to suck for me." Discord said as he cracked his neck. "The spell he cast is only powerful enough to focus on one target. Only so much strain a ponies mind can take. I'm going to kind of switch places with you." He snapped his claw again and with a flash, Twilight saw a copy of herself brushing off some dust. This only would have been shocking enough if it wasn't for the fact that she was suddenly taller. She look down to see she was now in Discord's body. "Relax, it just looks like you are me. Hopefully, I angry him enough that he just cast you out..."

The door exploded in a shower of splinters, revealing an extremely angry Bright Eyes.

"You think your so cute, don't you?" He growled, almost foaming at the mouth. "You made me have to cut through a group of ponies that were singing! I don't care if the hill were alive, they are dead now! And you are OUT!" A blast of magic shot out of his horn and hit Twilight straight in the chest. She felt the world slip away, with the last thing she saw was Discord pretending to be her scared as Bright Eyes approach him.

🌖🌗🌔

"This is possibly the worst plan we could have come up with." Rarity said from the makeshift bed. The five had gathered around the unconscious Twilight when Rainbow Dash had laid out a counterattack idea.

"That's not true." Pinkie said, sitting up from her little cot. She was fixing her cannon while listening and was covered in oils. "We could cover ourselves in honey and hope a swarm of killer bees take them out." Every pony turned to her with a confused look. "I'm just saying, we could come up with worst plans."

"I know it's not the best idea but it might be the only good one we got," Dash said, getting the group back on track. "But we are outmatched by our ancestors. They are trained in fighting in ways we couldn't imagine. But they seem to only really know how to beat their side. I think if we fight not on our own but against another ancestor, we might have a better chance. I think I can get Captain Surprise. He seemed to be physically strong but that's pretty useless if I never give him the chance to hit."

"I'll take on that Sparkle," Applejack said. "She seems to be obsessive with fire and I put out a few forest fires in my day."

"That's all good for you two." Rarity said sternly. "But what about Pinkie, Fluttershy, and me? We are not exactly fighters and unless you want me to sew up some capes, I don't see us being much help."

"Well," Pinkie slammed a panel of her cannon shut. "If I do a couple of tweaks on my party cannon, I think I have a way to deal with Firefly. Rainbow Dash knows how determined I can be and if I'm right, she won't be flying for long."

"And I've dealt with angry animals like wolves and bears, I think I can handle Bowtie," Fluttershy spoke up. "I mean if she a physical fighter, I just need to wear her out. The trick is to just keep out of reach."

"I guess I'm going have to deal with that Posey." Rarity said with a dramatic sigh. "Any hint from when she fought you, Fluttershy?"

"She had this amulet," Fluttershy pointed out. "Every time she sang and started flinging things at me, it would light up."

"Maybe I can deal with her but we are forgetting the biggest problem." Rarity said. "Who going to deal with Bright Eyes? I mean, e was able to fight both Starlight, Twilight, and Trixie! None of the citizens here could help nor should they. WE need to get rid of him because even if we luck out and take out the rest, he will easily take us."

"My best suggestion is we have Celestia deal with him." Rainbow Dash stated. It was at this moment, that Twilight shot up from her bed.

"NOOO!" Twilight shouted, causing all those around her to jump up in shock, resulting in Pinkie smacking her head against her cannon. "We can't have Celestia deal with it."

"Twilight! You're awake!?!" They all shouted except for Pinkie, who was rubbing her head in pain.

"We should have tried that earlier," Pinkie muttered. "Say Celestia's name can awaken a sleeping Twilight."

"What are you talking about, Twi?" Rainbow Dash asked, ignoring Pinkie's comment. "Why shouldn't we get Celestia involved?"

"Because..." Twilight stop for a second. "Because I just talked to Discord."

"Discord!?!" Applejack shouted, causing the few nearby to turn their heads. "Why isn't he here? We could use his power right about now."

"Because whatever cause Bright Eyes to show up here is blocking him," Twilight said hoarsely, starting to realize how dehydrated she was. She saw a cup of water on the table next to her and with an almost insane amount of speed, drank it down. "But he was able to get to me through my dream for some reason. We need to stop all this before Celestia gets involved or things could get a lot worst."

"Well, we were just discussing how we might be able to stop his friends." Rainbow Dash said, moving closer to Twilight. "We just need to get them separated for it to work."

"Tell me everything." Twilight sat back in her small cot. "Because I don't think Discord will be able to distract him forever."

🌖🌗🌔

"And after I burn that village down, I'm going to hunt every living thing that fled into the forest!" Bright Eyes shouted, madness in his eye."

"Even the bunnies?" The whimpering Twilight in front of him asked. His grin grew wider and he project more flames to surround her.

"YES, EVEN THE BUN..." Bright Eyes stop ranting and look back at theTwilight in front of him.

"I don't get it. Bright Eyes thought as she burst into a new set of tears.. She was showing strength before, acting like I wasn't going to win. Now she wailing like a widow of a soldier. What could have changed? Unless... That thing disappeared with her for a bit and he didn't even try to resist me banishing him. He has been able to create illusions with a snap of his claws and seemed to be able to pretend to be my memories. Which means... WHICH MEANS!!!"

The Twilight was suddenly beside him and lean close to his ear to whisper to him.

"I got her out." She said with a pair of glowing yellow eyes. Bright Eyes felt like something broke in him as he let out a roar of rage and swipe at the illusion. She jumps back and turns into the strange creature he saw before. "Now before you get too angry, I have to say as an ex villain, your monologuing was spot on. Maybe work on your improv and anger issues and you might beat Sombra. Not Nightmare Moon level but definitely in the middle."

"SHUT UP!!!" Bright Eyes roared as plunged his blade into its chest. "I will leave this dream and then I'm going to rip every single one of them apart until there is nothing left but shreds."

"Well, you could try." It said with a sinister smile.

🌖🌗🌔

Sparkle was reading a BBQ magazine and got to an interesting article about brazing when Bright Eyes shot up from his sleep.

"Good morning, did you find out anything interesting..." She started to say before she felt magic wrap around her throat and start to squeeze. She let a startled cry before being slammed to the ground. She was dazed but quickly recover when she saw the craze Bright Eyes standing above her.

"You were supposed to block ALL intruders from entering the mind link." He growled, putting more force on his spell, causing Sparkle to squeal in pain.

"I...did." She barely got it out. But it was enough to lessen the pressure. She took a large gasp of air and coughed violently to continue. "The entire fog cloud has a basic dream walker protecting but I put extra on this spell. Nothing on this plane of existence can break past my wards."

"Well something did." Bright Eyes mutter before letting Sparkle go completely. "But it doesn't matter, I know where her precious mentor is. Alert the other. We leave in two hours for the place called Canterlot."

"There might be a problem with that." Sparkle said, rubbing her neck. "Firefly reported that dragons are helping these ponies. She saw them attempt to enter the fog when she was on patrol. Which explains the younging we dealt with when we got here. And by that logic, that means we got Yaks, Changelings, and Griffins to deal with. Plue some weird ponies that can turn into fish. They might have this city surrounded with only the fog to hold them back. We can't move the fog and the second those hiding from us make a run for it, they just burn this city to ash and be done with it. We need to think of a better plan than just run in and..."

"Oh, now you want to plan!?!" Bright Eyes shouted. "If you had listened to me earlier, we wouldn't be in this mess. But you had to blow up that building and alert them to our existence. So the only plan we got is to take out their figurehead and make them question if fighting us is even worth it."

"Then we need to take out those six we fought before." Sparkle counter. "They seem to be seen as heroes and idols to most here. If we butcher them and present the head to any army outside, they might disband right there. We read their "history" books and they are symbols of unity. We almost had them and only by the skin of their teeth did they escape. Let's hunt them down then go after the one's mentor."

Bright Eyes look around at the loot they collected already and then back at Sparkle. He looked down at the charm on his chest and felt almost an impulse come from it.

"I have a better idea." Bright Eyes said, approaching Sparkle. "Kill them all if you must but leave the princess alive. But do it together and don't get cocky. But I need you to do something for me first..."

Chapter Eight: Fate can never be cheated

Bowtie sat at the end of the rope, her eyes close and humming softly. Firefly was hovering next to her with an annoyed looked.

"You telling me, you knew where they were hiding and you decided to keep it a secret." Firefly said, clearly angry at the perceived betrayal.

"Yes, Firefly." She said, not breaking her concentration nor her tone as she continued to meditate. "I had a nice chat with my blood. She seems to be stubborn but I know ways to break such habits."

"If Bright Eyes knew you were talking to that filth..." Firefly started but Bowtie cut her off quickly.

'If he knew about my chat, then he would know about yours." Bowtie said, with a calm tone. " If you knew what was good for you, you wouldn't pull on that thread."

"How did you...?" Firefly looked aghast, causing a small smile on Bowtie's face to form.

"You think the air can keep secrets from the earth?" Bowtie said as she started to stand up. "I sense All movement on this world. Everything is so loud that they see no reason to hide. I can barely stand the noise. Now, get ready. I sense them moving their survives to here."

"What so special about this place?' Firefly looked around at the strange building."You think this "Train" is some kind of escape cart or something?"

"Doesn't matter," Bowtie said, stretching herself out. "We kill them before they set a single hoof in whatever that thing is. Is Sparkle set?"

"Yep." Firefly said with a short nod. "She going to cut them off from behind and it should make a nice little kill zone. We should be able to get this done in about six minutes, seven if we have fun with it. Posey got a nice spot over that shop over there, in case we get a couple of stragglers."

"The Captain should be here in a few seconds..." Bowtie paused for a second. "Something is wrong."

Before Firefly could ask what, a lone figure stepped out of the fog she created. It was the yellow pegasi, Fluttershy, meekly getting close to Bowtie

"Where is the rest?" Bowtie asked, peeved. "I can sense them, you know? Did they think I would show mercy if they send their weakest one to die first!?!"

"No," Fluttershy said, trying not to shake too much. "They are behind me. But most of these ponies have done you no harm. Please let the innocent go." There was a small silence before Bowtie rolled her eyes and started to trot closer to Fluttershy.

"When will you whelps learn?' Bowtie said with a smirk. "There is no such thing as innocent. There is only the predator and the prey. You either fight to survive or you lay down to let the animals eat you. Now, they can face their death like honorable ponies or I can go back there and rip them to shreds... after I play with you first."

"You could do that. "Fluttershy said, backing up a bit. "But there is one problem with that."

"What would that be, Feather brain?" Bowtie asked, stepping closer to Fluttershy. She was hoping to catch her off guard and close the distance.

"They're not behind me anymore," Fluttershy said. Bowtie looked confused until she notice that she couldn't sense the survivors on the ground. They were right... She quickly looked up to see a large bubble of ponies just barely glide above her. The bubble popped and they all hit the ground in a scatter. The sudden dropped and all of them hitting the ground in different places threw Bowtie off, she couldn't get a good lock on one of them.

"Head for the train!" A voice shouted, causing all chaos to erupt. There was a mad dash as they all ran to the building. Bowtie was about to get her bearing when a dust clot smack her in the face, Blinding her only temporarily. Firefly started searching for her target and saw a flash of a rainbow. She gritted her teeth a dived after the blur, breaking the formation.

"Wait, Firefly! Stop!" Bowtie shouted as she tried to clean her eyes. "Bright Eyes said we have to take them out together! Don't break formation!"

Firefly ignore the cries as she watched the blur disappear inside the strange cart. She flew above it and was going to summon a lightning bolt to crack open the shell but a large plume of smoke shot out of the tube, causing her to collapse on the roof, coughing and blinded as well. She felt the whole thing surge forward, causing her to roll off the roof. She let a startled cry as she hit the grounds the wheels of the cart started to turn.

"Sparkle!!!" Bowtie shouted. "Get out here! Stop that cart and get Firefly back here!"

Sparkle ran out from the alley she was hiding behind to see that everything was madness. Bowtie was about to clear her eyes when Fluttershy kicked up another dust cloud, Bowtie roared in rage and started to chase after her. Sparkle was going to call out to her when she notice a familiar mane of purple dive in the farthest back part of this so-called train.

"We have some unfinished business, brat!" Sparkle shouted before rushing toward the train. It had at this point, started to pick up speed. Survivors were having trouble getting on and Sparkle was soon chasing after it. She thought she wasn't going to be able to get on when a shadow cast itself on her.

"Need a lift?" Firefly shouted as she grab Sparkle from behind. "I bet I'll kill my blood before you get yours."

"It's a bet." Sparkle growled before being airdropped on the back of the caboose. She started beating the door down as Firefly flew to the front. Back at the plaza, Captain Surprise was watching the chaos and trying to decide if he want to do straight-up slaughter or find his annoying blood. He got an answer when he felt something smack him aside his head. He brushed it off and looked around to see who would be stupid enough when he looked up to see the rainbow one with a bunch of apples.

"Hey! Pea brain!" She shouted before throwing another apple right at his snout. It annoyed him but he wasn't going to be tempted so easily. "I bet this isn't the first time you had seeds and juice hitting you in the face!

"Come here, you little vermin!!!" Surprise shouted, starting to chase after her. Rainbow Dash blew a raspberry and flew in the opposite direction of Fluttershy's path. Posey watched as the two seem;y speed off and gave an annoyed sigh. She realise that she should probably help Bowtie deal with her blood but decided to take a bit. Maybe she would check out this shop for anything fun.

⚡⚡⚡

Firefly was fuming as she beat against the metal door of the front cart. She was going to kill this one on her own, show her she shouldn't have turned down her offer. She flew to be above it when she saw that the pink one was on the roof of the moving cart. She was standing beside something covered in a sheet and was smiling broadly up at her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Firefly shouted over the roar of the wind as now the cart picked up a good amount of speed. She smiled and ripped the sheet off to reveal the thing used against Surprise but it looked different. The end was a lot smaller, thinner with a small opening.

"Trying out my new cannon!" She shouted before she jump behind it and started aiming it at Firefly. "Let it RIIIP!"

Firefly was barely out of the way before it started spitting out pellets of multi-color balls at her. She didn't think it was anything dangerous and as a few smacked against her front hooves and not feeling any pain, decided this was just a distraction. She would just summon an ice spear and rid of this pest. She started to will one when she noticed something was off. The ice wasn't forming fast enough like something was blocking her ability to create it. She look down to her hooves see that whatever hit her was some sort of sticky gunk that was blocking her magic!

"What is this madness!?!" Firefly shouted, trying to free her hooves by chewing on the strange substance. "And why does it taste like blueberry!?!"

"That's my own personal recipe for Saltwater Taffy!" Pinkie shouted as she craked her new weapon. "Loaded into my brand new turret party gun, it s able to fulfill all your taffy needs. Now, let's see how well you fly after being caked in it!"

At the back of the train, Sparkle managed to rip open the door and storm into the cart. Hoping she caught a couple of stragglers, all she found was a mostly empty cart with one exception. The earth pony with the hat was standing at the far end.

"Move, dirt clod." Sparkle growled, starting to summon a couple of fireballs. "I need to burn the failure that is my bloodline.'

'She ain't here.' Applejack said sternly. "And you will go no further."

"Do you have any idea who you are talking to?" Sparkle said, letting her magic build. 'I AM SPARKLE! The burning scourge on this land! The cremator of the weak! My very name made dragons weep and I will not be talked down to by some meddling, weak earth scum who is not fit to lick my hooves!"

"If your so high and mighty, then get past me." Applejack said, steadying herself. "Because all I'm hearing is hot air."

Sparkle's eyes narrowed as she looked a deep breath. With a loud screech, she shot out a large column of fire that came racing towards Applejack. She watched as the fire seem to turn into the heads of wild beasts, consuming everything in its path. Applejack waited till she could feel the roaring heat, then she brought her hooves up and slammed them on the floor. She had learned in her many years of apple harvesting that she sends her force, her strength through the wood and into where it needed to hit. In most cases, she aimed for a branch or the stems of the apples. In this case, she focuses her output on the windows. They shatter in a sea of explosions and with the help of the wind, both the fire and glass came racing backward, toward Sparkle.

Being unaware, she barely had time to summon a shield to block most of the shards that came at her. A few did hit her, causing a few cuts and gashes on her front legs and face. She shook off the pain and started to gear up for another attack but realise the wind had neutralized her range attack.

"Look like you got a few tricks of your own." Sparkle said with a smirk. She licked some of the blood that was oozing off her wounds. "It has been a while since an earth pony made me bleed. But you already use one trick, so what are you going to do now? All you have left is your rope and your hat while I have fire!" She stomped her right front hoof and a fireball incased. "And now, I'm going to have to do this up close and personal."

"Ready when you are, hotcakes." Applejack said, readying her lasso. Sparkle let out a roar and dived at Applejack.

⚡⚡⚡

"This looks nice," Posey said, looking at the gems on one of the dresses in the shop she decided to check out. She figure Bowtie would kill the little runt and she can mop up whatever was left. She started to see if the dress worked with her gem when she notice something out of the corner of her eye. She made a sharp whistle note, causing one of the mannequins to be pushed in the path of the object. With a loud thud, a pair of shears stuck out of the mannequin. Posey rolled her eyes and hummed, causing several items to float around her.

"You know," Posey said, walking towards whatever threw the weapon at her. "It's very cowardly to hide in the shadows while you attack some pony. Why don't you show some guts and come out to play? Or do I need to make you come out?" She heard a couple of steps and turn to see it was Sparkle's blood, looking a little scared. "Awww, did you think you could take me out so easily?"

"I was trying to get that necklace off you." Rarity said, putting on a brave face. "There is no need for us to fight. I don't want to hurt you."

"Hurt me?" Posey said, raising a hoof to her chest and faking offense. 'My dear, I don't want you to hurt me. In fact, why don't I spare you the trouble and have you hurt yourself?" She let out a low hum and shot her gems magic right into Rarity's mind. Her eyes glazed and Posey smiled. "Now I want to take those shears and stick them into your throat. Make a nice gusher for me."

"I...I..."Rarity said in a slow mutter. She picked up the shears with her magic and with a hard tug, pull them out of the mannequin. She float them right to her neck as Posey nodded slowly.

"That's right, get it in there deep." Posey said, enjoying the small amount it took to control this pony. Rarity raised them high in the air.

"I... I... I'm not going to do that." Rarity said before flinging the shears again at Posey. She quickly let out a sharp note that stop the blades a mere centimeter from cutting her necklace.

"How?" Posey said, in complete shock. "Nothing has been able to resist my charms control spell."

"Darling, I was once minded control by an evil book." Rarity said, trying to put more force into the shears but having no such luck. " I've taken a few steps to make sure that never happens again."

"Fine." Posey said, making a couple more sharp notes. Rarity quickly put up a shield as a couple of the shop items came flying at her. But not being trained in shield spells that well, the cash register easily broke her shield. She jump back in time but lost her magic grip on the shears. Posey immediately pushed forward. "I guess I'm going to have to skin you myself." She belted out a loud note, causing several items in the shop to rise. Rarity knew she was going to hate this plan but had to press forward. It was the only way...

⚡⚡⚡

"I said get back here!!!" Surprise shouted at the speeding blur. It had led him to some kind of park in the city, as he felt for the first time since entering this city soft soil. It was here when the blur shot straight into the air and disappear in the fog. "Blasted Firefly." He muttered before hitting the ground, causing it to crack. "Now my prey is going to starve before I can find it. I should go back to help the other..." A single raindrop hit him on the nose, causing him to stop. He looked up in time to see the wave of water crashing down on him. It didn't phase him, in fact, it cooled him off a bit. But before he could enjoy it too much, he felt something fly right under him. The speed it was going cause brought so much wind that it knocked him on his back. He smacked the ground hard, resulting in him getting cake in mud.

He started to get back up when another burst of speed happen right above him. It was fast enough to cause the sound barrier to break. He felt the sound wave smack him hard and his ears started to ring. He fell back into the mud with a splat and was starting to get angry.

"FIGHT ME, COWARD!" He shouted, pushing himself back only for another sound wave to smack him down. He started to crawl away but the mud was too slick for him to make any real progress before the next wave hit him. Rainbow Dash was starting to feel the effect of constantly speeding and slowing down. But she hoped if she could weaken him enough for him to surrender. She was about to do another dive bomb when she saw a chunk of the earth come flying up to her. She dodged out of the way and look to see the Surprise was back of his hooves and looking pissed!

"If you won't fight me ON the earth." He growled, smashing a hoof into the ground. He pulled a large chunk of ground and with a mighty throw, chucked it right a Dash. "Then I will fight you WITH the earth!" She dived and weaved around the incoming pieces and flew back into the sky. She would have to make it rain harder in hopes of softening the earth more. She hope the others were doing better or at least succeeding.

⚡⚡⚡

"Stop hitting me with this shit!!!" Firefly shouted, trying to dodge the next ballet of the taffy bullets. She let her ignorance get the best of her, causing her to get hit one too many times. With every hit, the weight of the taffy made it harder to fly, to move quickly. And now she was struggling to dodge the onslaught of color candy. She tried to psych the pony out but every time she started to nosedive on her target, it result in getting caked in the stuff. It felt like she was wearing a heavy fur coat. She was going to try one more dive-bomb in the hope to catch her off guard. It seem to be working because the little dizz wasn't paying attention. Firefly manage to slip away at the last second and was right above her target. Using the sun, she went in quickly and with great force. She was aiming for the brat's head, hoping to take it clean off as she did to one zebra many years ago. But almost without warning, the brat ducked, causing her to miss. She tried to correct herself but due to the extra weight, she tumbled right into the roof of the train. She expect to bounce off but instead, she made a loud splat and stay in place. She tried to get up but whatever taffy was, it was extremely sticky.

"Well, I would make a joke about you being like a fly on flypaper but... I think I'm above that." Pinkie said, leaning on her now smoking turret.

"You think this can stop me!?!" Firefly shouted, trying to pull herself up. The taffy stretched and then snap, causing a string of it to smack into her face. She bit into the stuff and was meant with a sweet taste. After swallowing the piece and not feeling any ill effect, she quickly started biting into the gunk covering her wings.

"You really shouldn't eat that much." Pinkie said, looking concerned. "I'm pretty sure you're not used to this sugar intake."

"Oh, I'm not going to eat all of it!" Firefly shouted before spitting out a wad of taffy "Because you couldn't go for the kill, I'm going to free myself and I'm going to tear you apart. Because you still think you are above the fight, that you can win with smiles and sunshine. Well, I'm going to show you what smiles give you." She ripped out another chuck of taffy off her wing. It stings for a second and she might have tasted something iron. "It just allows me to kick your teeth in!"

Before Pinkie could respond, a large boom filled the air. They both looked back to see that the last cart was now covered in flames.

"Applejack..." Pinkie said, hoping her friend wasn't in danger. The mad cackling of Firefly snapped her back to her fight. She saw that Firefly had ripped another piece of taffy off her wing. She also ripped some feathers and enough skin to cause an open wound that was now weeping blood. She show no signs of caring as she chewed on it with a deliberate smile.

"And it looks like one of your other friends is going up against Sparkle." Firefly said, chewing slowly on the piece. A small river of blood leaked from a corner of her mouth. "And I can't wait to see how she cooks that corpse."

⚡⚡⚡

"Why...won't you...stay still?" Sparkle said between pants. Although the entire cart was wrapped in flames, Sparkle was starting to get annoyed. Somehow, this farmer was beating her. The damn wind kept her fire spells from reaching her and every time she got closer, the damn lowlife either dodge or tried to kick her. She has been trying to absorb the flames to heal herself but the wind kept it from truly restoring her. She wasn't too wounded but she was running out of energy. This was new to her, due to most of her foes succumbing to her flames.

"What? You ain't use to a real challenge?" Applejack said with a smirk. She was covering up for the fact she was starting to get tired. But she also knew she could keep going for a long time. It look like she was fairing better than Sparkle was. By the rate she was panting, her plan was working. Ponies who burn too brightly burn out quickly and at this rate, she'll keep her from burning the rest of the train and get her restrained. Before Applejack could start on her next move, Sparkle suddenly shot a bolt of fire right at her. She duck just in time, as the bolt smashed into the door behind her. She started to feel the heat coming from behind her, letting her know the door was starting to burn.

"You may have stalled your fate." Sparkle said, her eyes starting to burn with rage. "But everything burns eventually. You are on a large cart that may be able to go fast but the wind still feeds my flames. You will eventually not be able to stand as the smoke collapse your lungs and the heat burns your skin. I've seen better warriors die trying to fight this. You just give in and let my flame consume you."

"You think you can get into my head that easily?" Applejack said, rolling her eyes. "Honey, I fought things that could at least control minds. You are just a bully that needs a lesson in humility." Sparkle's eye twitch slightly and she'd breathe in deeply.

"Fine." Sparkle said, cracking her neck. "I guess I'm going to slow roast you so you understand real pain!" She shot another bolt of fire at her. Applejack decided to jump instead of duck, allowing her to enact her next move. She pulls out another length of rope and with a quick flick, managed to get it wrapped around Sparkle's left back leg. Before she could react, Applejack dived behind the wall of flame behind Sparkle and anchor the other end of the rope to one of the metal frames of the seats.

"You really are a moron!" Sparkle shouted, looking at the rope wrapped around her leg. "You think you can tie me up with rope!?! I burn mountains to cinder and wash my hooves with the blood of the villagers. This will take only a few seconds and then you wil..." She blasted fire from her back hoof but the rope was still there as tight as ever. "What is this magic? Why hasn't it burned!?!"

"Not magic." Applejack said with a smirk. She held up a few more bundles of rope for her to "This is something my friend Rarity helped made. I figured you want to burn it off, so I asked her to see if she had a suggestion. So, this is what I call my fire rope. It's made with fiberglass, which I have to tell you is almost impossible to burn."

Sparkle grit her teeth and started to pull against the rope, feeling it burning against her skin. She never felt something like this, something that she couldn't burn away. She didn't like it, not one bit. But there was something she should burn right in front. She took a deep breath and summon one of her strongest spells. Applejack notice a bit of bright light inside Sparkle's mouth, giving her a brief moment to realize she needed to move. She dived to the side as Sparkle shot a beam of bright white fire. It ripped the cart apart, eating away the metal and the framework. Applejack felt the entire cart shift she saw some of the floorboards falling off.

"IF I CAN'T BURN THE ROPE!" Sparkle said, her voice booming. "THEN I WILL BURN EVERYTHING AROUND IT!" She fired another beam, causing Applejack roll to dodge. She looked to see the back half of the cart was in ruins, the roof gone with the floor slowly breaking away. She needed to move faster...

⚡⚡⚡

Rarity was trying to catch her breath but Posey wasn't letting up. She was currently behind a display shelf while Posey was humming, causing three shears to float next to her. Rarity thought she got a second to rest before hearing a shape note interrupt the humming.

"Oh for the love of..." Rarity muttered before diving quickly away as the shears came flying through the shelf and impaling in the wall. She rolled in hope of diving behind some cover but with another sharp note, she fell a rug suddenly wrap around her like a cocoon. She felt herself get lifted into the air and was thrown across the store. The wrapped-up Rarity crashed into a pile of discarded cloths and rags.

"You know, I think I figure it out," Posey said, brushing some dust off her shoulder. "I figure if your friends wanted to get rid of me, they would have sent the stronger unicorn. But they saw a golden opportunity, didn't they? I mean, you're not the strongest, the brightest, and clearly not the most talented unicorn. It's clear how they see you." She made a sharp whistle note, causing a large dresser to float right above her. "They are probably laughing about how they finally got rid of the weight that was dragging them down. Just a weak waste of a unicorn."

She let out a low note and brought the dresser down on the pile. She smirk as she heard a satisfying crunch and turn away. She got a few steps away before she felt something wrap around her back hoof, causing her to almost trip over. She looked over to see a scarf from the pile must be tangled around her. She tried to shake it off but it was caught on tight. She was about to use her amulet when another scarf shot out and wrap around her left wing.

"What is this madness!?!" Posey shouted, now actively struggling against the make-shift rope.

"Did...you call me... WEAK!?!" Rarity shouted as she rose out of the pile, her horn ablaze. "Let me tell you something, Sweetheart." Posey felt the bounds tighten. "I had to scrap up enough bits to open my first shop. After that, I had to work myself to the bone to make sure every pony got the dress they wanted, to look their very best. I pushed myself to the breaking point sometimes to not only run my shop but to raise my sister because my parent rather travels than stay at home. I have always been with my friend and sure, I could be a little bit overdramatic, a bit high maintenance but I have never been nor will I ever be WEAK!"

Posey pulled against the binds as Rarity closed in on her, her eye glowing deep with rage. "Now, let's see how that pendant works." Rarity said, floating a pair of shears.

"You stay away from me!" Posey scream, trying to get a bite out of Rarity. Rarity was surprised and flinched, causing the shears to shoot out. Posey dodge away from the blades but her necklace got caught and with a swift cut, it broke and fell to the ground. The gem hit the ground and shattered with the sound of glass breaking. Posey's eyes went wide and let out a blood-curling scream that caused Rarity to snap out of her rage and let her go. She dive to the ground and started in vain to try to put it back together.

"It's okay." Rarity said, trying to calm down the panicking pony. "It was a nice necklace but nothing to worry..."

"Do you realize what you've done!?!" Posey shouted. "Do you know what going to happen to me!?!"

Before Rarity could say anything, a cold wind seem to manifest out of nowhere. She was assaulted by a strong scent of sulfur and heard something crash in the back of the store. She didn't see anything but when she looked back at Posey, she saw that she was horrified. Posey was slowly backing away and her eyes were wide in fear.

"Not my fault!" She shouted. "I didn't break it! She did! You can't hunt me! I did everything right!!!"

Posey shot into the air like she was on fire and dived out a nearby window. Rarity was about to chase after her when she felt something hot run right by her, knocking her down. When she got up, she notice a bunch of claw marks around her.

⚡⚡⚡

Firefly had finally chewed off enough of the taffy off her wings that allowed her to fly again. There was a lot that still stuck her to the roof but she figure she can pull hard enough against it to get it off. With a mighty thrust, she launched herself into the air. The taffy hold, causing her to use most of her strength to stay above the train. She looked down to see Pinkie was starting to reload her weapon.

"You might as well give up!" Firefly shouted, riding the currents. "We will win and you will soon be choking on your blood!"

"You really need to stop being so graphic." Pinkie shouted. "Just because we are fighting, on top of a train which I think is kind of cool, doesn't mean we have to be mean to each other." She slammed the taffy gun hard on the side, hoping to speed up the process. The machine made a buzz and started to kick back into motion. Pinkie looked up at the flying Firefly, seeing her struggling against the taffy. Pinkie was about to cover Firefly again when she noticed how far up she was. "Firefly, come down!"

"Ha, I see you have realized your fate." Firefly shouted. "Once I reach the sky, I will destroy this fast carriage and then I will mount your head on a pike!"

"Firefly, seriously! Get down now!" Pinkie shouted, starting to panic. "We are clearing the fog!! If you look behind you..."

"I'll see hoards of dragons, Griffins, and Yaks, right? Because you seem to forget, I fought them all!!!" Firefly shouted, ripping more taffy off her. "I slaughter them by the dozen, their spawn wept my name in rage and you know why!?!"

"Firefly!" Pinkie tried to cut in, begging at this moment.

"Because I'm stronger than all of you. I'm faster than all of you! And I am...!" Firefly shouted as she ripped another string of taffy.

"Behind you is..." Pinkie cried out, tears starting to flow.

"Smarter than all of you!!! So what can you possibly do to defeat me!?!" Firefly shouted at the top of her lungs, her face ablaze with murderous glee.

"THE TUNNEL!!!" Pinkie screamed with all her might. Firefly turn to see that there was a tunnel the train was heading into. And if she was on the roof like Pinkie, she would be fine. But by flying up as high, she won't be able to clear the ceiling. She had about five seconds before her face was going to smash into the tunnel roof. There was a moment before the collision, her eyes growing wide in surprise and she only had a second to respond.

"Oh..." Firefly said, with a surprised look. She hit the wall with a loud crack, her face caving in almost instantly like she was rotten fruit. She hit the tunnel just right so it caught only her head, acting like a blade as it cut it clean off. The taffy yanked the body back to the train with a smack. Pinkie watched as the headless body bounce back and forth before sinking into the taffy, spraying her with blood. Pinkie looked at the scene in shock and took a few steps back before vomiting off the side of the cart.

⚡⚡⚡

"Are you done yet?" Sparkle growled, pulling against the several ropes that contain her. Applejack had tied her to several of the seats of the now damaged train cart. Sparkle had used her major spell in hopes of destroying the pest but the damn farmer kept dodging, causing her to only damage the cart. She gave another tug on the rope but it seem to get tighter.

"Struggle all you want." Applejack said, wiping her hat. "I got a few ribbons in hog tying. You ain't leaving until you calm down and.." A loud crack cut her off and cause the whole cart to shudder. Applejack stumbled and was trying to get her standing when she notice what was wrong. The cart had suffered too much damage and looked like it was about to collapse at any moment. Another crack almost cause her to fall, revealing what was happening. The cart was breaking in half, with only one thing going to soon keep them together. The tied-up Sparkle.

"Oh no!" Applejack cried out. She quickly started working on trying to get the rope undone but due to her hard knot tying, that was easier said than done.

"What are you babbling about?" Sparkle growled. She felt a sudden shot of pain in her side alert her to what was happening. She was starting to be stretched by the two sides and she didn't see this ending well. "Okay! I surrender! Get me out of here!!!"

"I'm trying!" Applejack shouted back. "Why did I double knot it!?!

Another crack filled the air, and the two pieces of the caboose started to drift apart. Applejack abandon trying to undo the knot and was trying to cut the rope. She was halfway through one rope when Sparkle started to scream. Applejack looked over to see that Sparkle was being stretched to her limit.

"Make it stop! Make it stop!" She screamed in pain. "I'm not supposed to die like this! I'm a warrior! I'm supposed to die on the battlefield surrounded by fallen foes! I'm not going to die in such a ..." A loud ripping noise cut her off as she let lose another scream of pain. Both Applejack and Sparkle looked to see that her flesh was starting to tear. It sounded like a thick dress ripping at the seams. "I take it back!!! I'll be good! I'll help ponies! I'll rebuild everything I burned down! I'll do anything just DON'T LET ME DIE THIS WAY!!!

Applejack quickly abandon cutting the rope and resorted to trying to kick loose one of the chairs she use to anchor the rope. The cart suffer enough damage that she hope she could break it loose. She hit it with all her force, causing a loud ringing but it didn't move an inch. She was readying another hit when she heard the sickening ripping noise getting louder. She looked to see that wound was getting worst, exposing musal and bone. Sparkle let out a new round of screams as she started to feel her limbs start to be pulled out of their sockets. With a stomach-turning popped, all of them became dislocated in a second.

"MAKE IT STOP! MAKE IT STOPPPP!" Sparkle screamed, trying to pull out of the rope with all her might. "I CAN'T DIE THIS..." A loud crack stopped her and Applejack cold. Applejack didn't want to look as she felt a sense of dread go over her. She slowly turn and gagged at the scene before her. The cart had finally separated but at a horrifying price. Sparkle had been ripped in half by the two sides, her horrified face frozen as her front half was dragged behind them. Applejack fell backward and just watch in silent horror at what had transpired. And she had a feeling that something worst was coming.

⚡⚡⚡

"Not flying so high and mighty now, are you!?!" Captain Surprise shouted as he tossed another boulder into the raining sky. He hasn't seen the little bug in a bit but maybe she was winged by one of his boulders and if he kept throwing them, he might squash or bring them down at least. He shook off some mud off his hooves and started searching the ground for another piece of rock to throw when he felt another downpour on top of him. "I knew you will sip up, scum!"

He threw a large rock from underneath him straight into the clouds, punching a hole in the fog. All it caused was more rain to fall onto him. He shake the access water off and was going to continue his assault on the sky when he notice something odd. The sky seem to be slowly getting higher as if he was getting smaller.

"By the core of the earth! She found a way to shrink me!!!" Surprise shouted in panic.

"You're sinking in the mud, you idiot!!!" Rainbow Dash shouted from the clouds. "Just stay still, I'll get you out!"

"I don't need your help." He shouted, pulling his front leg out of the muck, causing him to sink a little more. He threw it at the sky aimlessly. "I'm an Earth Pony! The ruler of the earth and the strongest of the land! You think I fear something as a little mud!"

"It's not a little mud!" Rainbow Dash shouted again, trying to get closer. "You tore up a lot of the ground throwing those boulders at me! You are standing on a potential sinkhole! So stop moving or you're going to..." She ducked just in time to avoid another sling of mud.

"Shut up, scum!" Surprise shouted. "I don't need your help! I'm the leader of the five earth pony tribes' army! I made the world shake in fear and you think I will ever submit to you!?!" He chucked another glob of mud at the sky, not even getting close to Dash. "So fight me like a true warrior or I will..." He looked around in the pool of mud for something else to throw, not realizing the mud was almost up to his shoulders.

"You need to get out of there!" Rainbow Dash got a bit closer, seeing the trouble that Surprise was in. "The ground is too unstable! You could drown, just let me help you!"

"Never!!!" Surprise shouted before a sudden drop cause him to sink even further. "I rather drown than accept help from a featherback mule!" He attempted to throw more mud but even with all his strength, he didn't have the leverage to achieve the action. The mud was starting to take him in quicker, now that it's reached his neck. Rainbow Dash dive out of her cover and started to race towards Surprise.

"Stay calm!" She shouted. "I can pull you out! Just stay calm!" She was about to grab him by his mane but Surprise tried to bite as she got closer.

"I said stay away from me!!!" He said between snaps. "I don't need your..." There was another drop and he sank completely under the mud, drowning out his last words. Rainbow Dash was shocked for a second before she started digging in the mud.

"No, don't do this!" Rainbow Dash shouted as she dug into the mud. She didn't land in the hope of not sinking into the mud. "You stupid fool, why didn't you listen to me!?! I was trying to save you!!!!" She dug faster into the mud but couldn't find a single tuff of hair. It looked as if the earth had swallowed him whole. Rainbow Dash dug at the mud for a full two minutes before realizing that it was far too late for him. She hovered there for a moment and let out a loud scream of sorrow. She didn't want to kill any pony and not like this, drowning them in the earth. She let out another wail of anguish into the sky, watching the clouds open up before her. At first, she thought she was seeing things but as the clouds of fog seem to fade away, she realizes the spell has been lifted. Which could mean only one thing...

"Oh Pinkie..." Rainbow Dash moaned as she wipe away some tears. "Please tell me you didn't have to."

⚡⚡⚡

"Will you... slow down?" Bowtie shouted for the fifth time as she ran after the one known as Fluttershy. She was starting to get annoyed because of her but Bright Eyes put her in charge of killing the rest of the lot. She haven't failed a job yet and she wasn't going to start now. She jump over a wall and saw the yellow coward dive into a small shop. And due to the fog, she wasn't going anywhere fast. But as soon as she thought this, the fog started to lift.

"What in the name of the earth are you doing, Firefly!?!" Bowtie shouted. "I need that fog, you good for nothing feather brain! How else am I supposed to have the element of..." She was cut off by a bolt of energy hitting her in the chest. "Surprise."

She felt an icy cold feeling spread across her body and didn't take long for her to realize that she was being encased in a block of ice. She tried to get out of it but whatever unicorn was casting this spell was quite strong. In a matter of seconds, she was in a block that was up to her neck. She struggle against it but there was no give. She kept struggling until she saw Fluttershy come out of the shop with the alicorn.

"I should have expected you would play dirty," Bowtie growled. "You couldn't take me in a fair fight so you went running to your pittful little princess. Have you no hon..." She felt some force grab her tongue and pull to keep her from talking.

"I'm on a time limit," Twilight said, limping a bit forward. "The fog is lifting, which is meaning the army will be on us in a matter of moments. I want to prevent any more harm. Just tell me where Bright Eyes is and how I can convince him to surrender peacefully."

Bowtie looked at the two with a confused looked until Twilight released her tongue to allow her to talk. Then she just started laughing like a mad pony. She did this for a full minute, making both Fluttershy and Twilight looked at each other with concern. When she finally stop laughing, she let out a sigh and look at the two with amusement.

"I don't know what is funnier," Bowtie said, shaking her head. "That you think Bright Eyes would ever consider surrendering or that you think he still here."

"What are you talking about?" Twilight demanded, getting closer.

"You see, as soon as he found out about your mentor," Bowtie said, with a cruel grin. "He thought it was time for a proper challenge. He figured we could handle you and your friends, so he had Sparkle create a teleport gate. I guess we aren't playing fair either."

"Where did he go!?!" Twilight shouted, starting to panic.

⚡⚡⚡

Clover was sitting in the castle, cleaning his staff when he felt the wind starting to pick up. It wasn't unusual for this to happen, he was guarding the royal teleporting room. So he smooth his mane back and started the welcome speech.

"Hello and welcome to the Royal Cantorlot Castle." He said in a bored tone. "Would you like a tour of our lovely..."

The sound of a blade cutting across the air was followed by pain spreading across his chest. He looked down to see a large gash across his chest plate. It took his brain a full second to realize what had happened. He tried to scream but another swing of the blade silenced him forever. Bright Eyes watch the head hit the floor with a soft thud and breath in the smell of iron that was fresh in the air.

"I never tire of that smell." He said before breathing out. He looked at the well dress room and rolled his eyes at all the bright colors in the room. Not a single sign of fallen enemies or conquered land. He flings the blood off his blade. "Now, where are those princesses?

Chapter Nine: Eyes Blinded by the Raging Sun

"Luna, I get you are trying to help but I feel this is going a little too far" Celestia muttered as she sat across from Luna at a small tea table. It wasn't a fancy one in the ballroom but Celestia recognize it. It made be smaller and had been the site of many spills, but it was the one the two owned when they were small fillies. She was surprised that Luna was able to find it usable.

"Sister, I know the last few days have been stressful and you made it more than clear how it's been affecting your duty. Celestia open her mouth to retort but Luna didn't give her a chance. "You threaten the head of the military for the Griffins in front of several other military leaders. You have been getting closer to the Celestia that ponies wrote horror stories about, not the caring leader that you spent over ten thousand years building. I think that calls for a little bit of tea. They will alert us if anything changes. But you need to take a breath. Remember what father said?"

"That the best time to take out your enemy is when they are too worried to see the knife," Celestia said with a slightly annoyed voice. "You're right. If I want to make the right choice, I need to relax a bit." She took a small sip from her cup. "You know, if dad was here, he said that it was the monster of the magic that was causing all this."

"Oh please," Luna said with an eye roll. "He thought that we would have to fight that to claim this land. But what did we get instead?"

"A whole group of ponies that were almost broken by windigos and lost," Celestia said with a slight sigh. "All the weapon training and what we could use a couple of diplomated ones... and maybe a lesson in friendship."

"But we did use that fighting a couple of times." Luna pointed out. "We defeated both Sombra and Tirek using those skills. If we didn't, we might of need to use the elements of harmony more often..." Luna realized the mistake of mentioning the element as soon as Celestia's small smile drift away. "Look, we know Twilight is your best student and she has her friends with her. Add her trusting student, they will have this solved soon."

"But what if the reports we heard were right?" Celestia asked, her cup slowly drifting down. "What if these enemies are trained in the old way of conflict? It took us years to not always resort to the ways of the blade but I never trained Twilight because I thought she won't have to. But if these villains are around, then I must reconsider this."

"You know the risk of this," Luna said, setting her cup down. "If she learns the way of violence, it will become a tempting voice. We saw where that led for both of us. Mine's Nightmare Moon, do we want to create Twilight's?"

"Do we want to leave her defenseless?" Celestia countered. "The villain won't always be trying to get to us."

✴✴✴

"He trying to get the Princesses!!!" A general shouted before a barrage of arrows fired at Bright Eyes. He cast a simple spell that reflected the arrows, causing a large number of archers to drop, either wounded or dead. The general turn to a small scout, Post Haste. "Go to them! Warn them of the invader. Make sure they reach shel..." Post was covered in blood as the blade of Bright Eyes's weapon easily went through his skull.

"You heard your commander." Bright Eyes said with a small smile. "Run."

Post knew this was a trap, that he be leading the enemy directly to his princesses. But it was also the last order of his commander and he has yet to disobey an order. He also knew how to alert every living being to this monster present. He cast a small spell to amplify his voice and shot down the hallway as if Tartarus itself was chasing him.

"Enemy in the castle!" He shouted as he ran, almost outrunning the echo. "To arms! To arms! An enemy in the castle!"

Bright Eyes was loving this. So far, every guard he ran into has been laughable in their fighting style. It was like slaughtering children, scared and barely able to fight back. As the scout round a corner, Bright Eyes was considering that maybe he should just kill the scout because the hunt is probably the only fun he was going to have when something big and black came out of nowhere. He barely ducked as several claws tear across the air, yellow bird-like claws. Bright Eyes knew a griffin's lousy tactics anywhere, sliding to a stop as the large beast landed.

"I take it your the reason my citizens are being held?" Black Claw said with a growl as he flex his claws.

"Are you what passes for strength in the Griffin lands now?" Bright Eyes shot back with a snare. "I guess everything got soft when I was away."

"Believe me, scum. I'm not weak nor soft." Black Claw said, gearing up for another strike.

"Really?" Bright Eyes chucked. "Because in my day, you would have got a hit off with that surprise attack."

"Who said I didn't?"

Bright Eyes was confused until he heard a slight hissing sound. He looked to see a small stick on his back with a tail on fire. As the tail got smaller, Bright Eyes recognize it as those blasted smoke bombs. He quickly rip it off and threw it to the side but not fast enough. A dark plum of smoke spew out of the stick and blanketed the hallway. Bright Eyes quickly summon a spell to filter the air but quickly realize that it wasn't poisonous. He brought his weapon up, knowing the purpose of this cheap tactic.

"You really think such a ploy could catch me off guard!?!" Bright Eyes shouted. "I would expect better from..." A pair of claws shot out of the clouds only giving him a second to block it. The sound of claws on steel rang out as the two stared deep into each other eyes, each looking for a sign of strain. Black Claw's talons weren't finding any purchase in Bright Eyes's weapon. He decided that he couldn't break the weapon, maybe he could use that. With a strong flap of his wings, Black Claw started to push Bright Eyes backward. If he could get him against a wall, his enemy movement would be limited. But just as he was sure his plan would work, Bright Eyes teleported.

"Curses!" Black Claw shouted, quickly going on guard. "Where did the little pest go to?"

The air was still but still had that sense of danger. He looked around the area, hoping he can catch a hint of where the next attack was coming from. He didn't have to wait long when he felt a change in the air above him. He quickly dodge to the side as Bright Eyes came down like a force of nature from above. Even when his first strike missed, Bright Eyes rapidly followed with a fury of strikes. Black Claw was blocking most of them but a lucky one struck his shoulder, leaving a large gash and blood running down his arm.

"You're not my target." Bright Eyes said coldly to the wounded griffin. "So, I'll make this quick."

He dived at Black Claw, who tried to block the next wave of attack but Bright Eyes kept his word by combining his strikes with his teleporting. With a couple of flashes, Black Claw collapsed to the ground, covered in wounds. He tried to get back up but Bright Eyes thrust his blade into his spine, causing him to suppress a cry of pain. While his glaive blade was deep in Black Claw's back, Bright Eyes lean down to look his foe in the eye.

"Tell me, beast." He asked as started to twist his weapon, his eyes alight with pleasure. "Why did you choose to die here? This is not your fight or land. You could have gone back to your pathetic pile of twigs you call home and live to die another day?" With a surprise burst of speed, Black Claw's talon shot out and grabbed Bright Eyes by his shoulder. They dug in deep but Bright Eyes showed no sign of pain.

"I fight against any threat to the Griffin Kingdom and their subject." Black Claw said, blood dripping from his beak. "I fight for my wife, for my children, and for all those I love. My only regret is I won't see that smirk get wiped off your face."

"So far, this world has shown me nothing but filth and dust." Bright Eyes said, his sadistic grin only growing. "So, you can die knowing you would only be filled with disappointment." With that, he pulled the blade out and without any effort, pull the talons out of his shoulder.

"No, I go knowing when Celestia sees what you have done." Black Claw said as he struggled to hang on for a few moments longer. "You will feel the full wrath of the burning sun."

✴✴✴

"Princess! We need to get you to a doctor!" One of the medics of the army pleaded as Twilight pushed past them.

"I need to get to Canterlot!" Twilight order. "Go to my friends and help them! They are facing villains that have no issues with using deadly force..." Twilight stopped when she noticed the look that cross the medic's face. "What happened?"

"The villains have... been dealt with." He said, looking like he was trying not to be sick. "None of them we found have survived their encounter."

"What are you talking about?" Twilight asked confused. "We plan to just capture them. Like this one." She gestured to Bowtie, still in her block of ice.

"I don't have all the details." The medic said. "But I believe this one is the only one left that alive...or in one piece." Bowtie started laughing with a hit of disbelief.

"You can't possibly be this stupid," Bowtie said. "If you think I'm going to believe not one, not two but all four of my comrades fell to such..." The door to the bank, where Twilight and Fluttershy had dragged the trapped Bowtie, had blown open and the other four entered. Bowtie saw the looks of horror, disgust, and pain on their faces, preventing her from continuing. Twilight saw these faces too and quickly approach them.

"What happened?" She asked. "Please tell me that the medic is exaggerating."

"I wish I could, sugar cube." Applejack said with a haunting tone. "I ain't seen anything like it. It was... so..."

"The blood..." Pinkie muttered, looking beyond shell-shocked. "I've never seen so much blood."

The four just looked at the ground and even a few muttered words of shock. Twilight was stunned and was going to say something when she heard a small chuckle come behind her. The chuckle turned to full-on laughter when Twilight looked over to see Bowtie howling with laughter, not unlike a crazy pony. She kept on laughing when the whole group looked at her and only stop when, almost with the speed of lightning, Rainbow Dash rushed over and back hoofed her quite.

"What...can possibly be funny?" Dash asked with clenched teeth. "All your friends are dead. Not defeated, not turn to stone. Dead. As in they can't be brought and you will never see them again. How can you possibly laugh about that?"

"Simple," Bowtie said, with a little blood leaking at the corner of her mouth. "Like that. Do you think this is the first time I lost warriors on the battlefield? By the dirt, I didn't even like these ones. Surprise was a moron who couldn't water a garden even if you put the direction on the bottom of a pale. The rest were monsters in pony skins if you can even call it that. You all want to know how I got recruited?" Bowtie looked over Rainbow Dash's shoulder and with a couple of bunny hops, move the ice block so she could see the rest.

"I was one of the strongest of my clan," Bowtie said proudly. "I had led them to victory after victory and was about to plan an attack that would have crippled the pegasus. But then Bright Eyes showed up. He walked into my camp like he was just entering his home. My first captain, a pony by the name of Clover Hitch, was the first to try to stop him. This resulted in him telekinetic ripping out even one of Hitch's rib bones and using said bone to impale the rest of my squad. Didn't even kill them, just left them broken to die a slow death. He then approach me and said I either fight him or I will experience death a thousand times." Bowtie, for the first time since this began, looked wounded. "I said no the first five times. He wasn't bluffing. He took me to the edge and even when I beg him to finish me, he use his forsaken magic to repair me. And you want to know the worst thing about all of it?"

Bowtie looked directly at Twilight. "He is only a fraction as powerful as Majesty. So I hope you are right. I hope that your Princess of the sun can kill him. Because if she can't, he will do whatever he can to bring Majesty here. At that point, I will gladly kill you all to spare you the horrors that come."

✴✴✴

Post Haste slid to a stop as he round the corner, seeing the door to the tea room. He was under no illusion that the threat was over. Black Claw was an experienced warrior but this beast seem to be on another level of insanity. He just had to get to the door and alert the princesses. But something was wrong. The sounds of battle were gone. Not muted, not faded but gone completely. He studies his surroundings and started to move quickly but cautiously down the hallway. Maybe one of the castle traps had triggered or maybe he lost him. He was only about five feet away from the door when he felt a rush of wind, followed by a searing pain in his side. Before he could cry out in pain, a force wrapped around his mouth. He was lifted in the air, left dangling when he finally saw Bright Eyes standing in front of him.

"As fun as it is to play, I want a real challenge." Bright Eyes said, with an annoyed tone. "So, tell me where your princesses are and I will give you a quicker death. But lie and I will show you a game I like to call: How far can it bend?"

Post looked behind his attacker and almost pleaded for it to open. Hope that he'd be saved. But instead, he looked back at Bright Eyes and wait for him to be released from the spell. But instead, Bright Eyes seem to cast another spell. The magic seeped into Post's head and after a few seconds, Bright Eyes turned around to the tearoom's door and a small smile grew on his face.

"This is too perfect." He said and Post fell him starting to float away from the door. For a second, Post thought that maybe he was being spared. But he wasn't going down, so why was he pushing him back? The realization of what was going to happen became all too clear when Bright Eyes said with a sadistic smile. "I promise you a quick death and I'm pretty sure you won't live after being a battering ram."

✴✴✴

"I swore I heard something." Celestia said, pushing herself away from the table.

"If it's important, I'm sure the guards wouldn't just sneak up to the door," Luna responded as she also got up from the table. "When have they ever kno..."

BAM

She was cut off when something hit the door with enough force to cause the door to splinter slightly.

"What in the name of..." Celestia started, about to pull open the door. She was a second too late when the second crash hit the door, causing the door to explode into splinter. The body of one of the guards, one she knew called Post Haste, flew through the air and crashed on top of the table. The sound of porcelain smashing and glasses breaking filled the air as Celestia flew over to the guard. "Haste!"

She started to cast a healing spell but as soon as her magic touch the body, she knew it was too late. His neck was broken and his life was extinguished. Luna reacted by jumping in front of the two to face the invader.

"WHO DARES ATTACK?" Luna called, not waiting for the dust to settle. "SHOW THYSELF, VILLAIN!"

"Even the doors are weaker." Bright Eyes said as he walked into the room. He looked at the room and almost felt ill at the sight. All the pink and frilly, it was a disgusting sight and one he plan to fix in a matter of moments. He looked to see Luna and Celestia, the leaders of this so call land, and prepare for the speech that he had been waiting to give since he came to this time. He straighten up and brought his glaive to his side, hitting the ground like he was planting his flag.

"I am Bright Eyes." He said with pride. "The leader of Majesty's Guard, the butcher of her enemies, and her most loyal subject. I have come back to claim this land in her name and put every single creature of this land in their rightful place. Under her honor. Now surrender to her will and I will be merciful." There was a silence that filled the air like smog and for a minute, no pony said anything. Then Luna broke the silence.

"Who is Majesty?" She said with a confused look. At that moment, the small amount of joy Bright Eyes felt was washed away by a sea of rage. He couldn't take another creature ignoring his Majesty's glory. He started charging one of the most powerful spells, which was a large fire spell that could melt the very bones of his enemies. He let out a roar of rage and fired directly at Luna. The fireball raced right at her and Celestia reacted before she could.

"LUNA!" Celestia shouted as she dived forward. There was a split second before the spell ignited when both of them try to shield the other. But the spell exploded.

✴✴✴

A crack of energy flashed at the Cantorlot's train station and in a blink of an eye, Twilight and her friends were in the middle of the deserted station. Plue one prisoner, who didn't want to be there.

"Alright, girls. We are going to split up." Twilight said, moving to the entrance quickly. "We need to find Bright Eyes before he gets to Celestia. When you find him, do not try to fight him. Just alert nearby guards and set off the flares we got."

"But why is she here?" Rainbow Dash asked, glaring at the ice block Bowtie, who just rolled her eyes. "She will help him the second she gets a chance."

"One, she will not cause any trouble stuck in there," Twilight answered. "It will take dragon fire to melt it but I don't want to risk it. Until I know Bright Eyes is dealt with, she staying with us. Two, maybe she will help us with a chance at a reduced sentence."

"Oh no, stuck in one of your prisons," Bowtie said, dripping with sarcasm. 'What are you going to do? Hit me with pillows all day?"

"I don't think she is threatened by us." Pinkie said, a little weakly. She was starting to recover from her shell shock but it was still in the back of her mind.

"That's for later, right now we need to..." Twilight started to say but was cut off by a loud boom cut across the city. The group ran outside to see a large column of smoke rising from a part of Cantorlot's Castle.

"Oh look, I'm guessing Bright Eyes is there," Bowtie said, almost board. "If you hurry, you might be able to catch the end of the fight and see him gut one of your princesses."

"We need to get there now!" Twilight shouted, grabbing the ice block. She just hope she wasn't too late.

✴✴✴

Standing there, looking at the large creator he just created and surrounded by smoke, Bright Eyes started to laugh.

"I can't believe it." He shouted at the smoldering pile. "This is just too easy! The Griffin put up a better fight and he didn't scratch me! You were supposed to be the protectors and you died so easily. Your whelp of a pupil at least landed a hit! Is there any pony that can actually fight!?! Any creature who can make this at all entertaining!?!"

"You hear that, Luna?" A voice suddenly filled the area, catching Bright Eyes off guard. He looked around for the source but all he saw was smoke and fire. "He wants a fight and he thinks no pony can fight him."

"I heard him, sister." Another voice responded, seemly coming from the walls. "Yet he thinks killing innocent guards somehow proves he's a great warrior. I think we should correct this line of thought."

"Show yourselves!" Bright Eyes shouted. "Is this how you defend your citizens? By hiding away and taunting the enemy? Looked what that brought you! Dead ponies who were loyal to you. You disappoint them even in death!" He looked around, hoping one would rush him in rage but instead was met with silence.

"I think I remember Majesty now." The first voice said, this time with coldness it didn't have before. "When I came here with my sister, we were told a pathetic unicorn had convinced the ponies of this land that they were a god. So our father sent us to remove the little pest. And you want to know what she did?"

"Shut up.' Bright Eyes growled, still trying to find the voices.

"She fled, with her tail between her legs." The voice mocked. "Just abandon her castle and left the tribes to deal with windigos. She was not just a weakling but a coward."

"Shut UP!" Bright Eyes shouted, jabbing into the smoke with his glaive. "You don't get to talk about her!!!! She was ten times the leader you appear to be! She trained me to be the best warrior and I carry her will to this time. I am her SWORD!!!"

"You're her sword, huh?" The voice responded. "Then let's see how well she forge you."

The first thing Bright Eyes noticed was a rush of wind coming from his right and left. Almost like they teleported, both of the sisters were at his side. Before he could even react to their presence, both of them hit him at the same time with the back of their hooves. The force was beyond anything Bright Eyes had ever felt as he was sent flying through the air and back down the hallway he came in. He skid across the floor and only came to a stop when he hit the wall with enough force that the stone cracked. He brushed it off and got back up to his hooves, holding his weapon up in defiance.

"Did the rest of the guards get out?" Celestia asked as the two turned to face their opponent.

"I sent the order," Luna said. "They will make sure no more innocent will be harmed by this insect. So, how should we deal with him? He is armed with a magic weapon that has a pretty nasty spell cast on it."

"Then I guess it's time to bring out Corona and old Photosphere." Celestia said, cracking her neck. "You still have Crescent?"

"As I would ever get rid of her," Luna said before the sisters close their eyes, and their horns glowed a dark red. Bright Eyes was a little confused and consider attacking when he heard a small noise coming from behind him. It sounded like glass breaking and something was whistling. He ducked just as three objects came flying from both sides of him. The object in question was a sword covered in deep red flames and a shield that had been forged to look like a large star. The third object was a scythe that was pitch black except for its blade which looked like a small sliver of the moon. The item floated to a stop in front of their owner, the flame sword and shield to Celestia. The scythe to Luna, which she twirled before smacking the ground.

"Alright, what formation should we use?" Luna asked, dragging the blade across the ground.

"I think we should do what we did to those Sombra guards," Celestia responded. "Remember that?"

Luna nodded and started charging a spell. The two dashed forward with speed that most would think was faster than sound. But Bright Eyes was more prepared now, he wasn't holding back. He blocked a strike from Luna and dodge the side swipe from Celestia. They were not prepared for this and thus left open for him to ram the hilt of his glaive into Celestia's face. He missed her eye but caused a gashed right above her right eyebrow. She hissed in pain and pull back her shield to bring it down on his weapon, hoping to break it. But he cast a spell and seem to turn into a ghost. He faze between the two fighters and quickly became solid behind them. He swung his sword right for Luna but Celestia was quicker, blocking the blow. This allowed Luna an opening to swing her weapon under both the shield and his weapon. She only got a small nick because he disengage quickly.

He recovered and threw himself backward, creating a distance between the two. He looked at the small cut and quickly heal it.

"No poison?" He shouted, amused. "I expected more from the ruler of the night!!!"

"You think I would resort to such honorless tactics," Luna said calmly. "I am the walker of dreams and the protector of the night. You have no idea what power I POSSESS!!!"

Her weapon glowed an unearthly glow before several images shot out. The area was filled with images of Bright Eyes and events.

"What is this!?!" Bright Eyes shouted, putting his glaive in a defensive position.

"How long do you think it will take?" Celestia asked, smacking her sword on the shield.

"About five minutes," Luna responded. "I should be able to know most of his tactics by then. Think you can handle him until then?"

"As you said," Celestia said with a roll of her shoulders. "I've been stressed lately, it's time to get some of that aggression out."

✴✴✴

"Why didn't the spell get us closer?" Twilight said with panic when the group ran through the panicking crowd.

"I think it's because of THAT!" Applejack shouted, pointing at the castle. Twilight saw a large golden shield dome covering the area. It was an anti-teleport shield, one that Celestia had made after the wedding attack. She was hoping to get there faster but with how many ponies were fleeing away and guards were leading them away, it was clear this was going to be difficult. She wanted to fly but if she lose her friends, she'd be stuck looking around the castle by herself and waste time. She rushed forward but one of the guards blocked the path.

"Princess Twilight! You can not go any further." He said, spreading his wings to block the way. "Orders from Celestia. No pony, no matter their rank, may enter the castle grounds."

"She needs me," Twilight said, hoping she didn't have to push forward. "I need to help her capture Bright Eyes. If I don't get to her, she might do something she'll regret."

"Good." He said, not moving an inch. "That monster killed five of my friends! I hope she rips him to sherds."

"We don't have time for this!" Rainbow Dash rushed forward and before any pony could react, cold-cocked him. He dropped to the ground like a bag of bricks.

"Dash..." Pinkie started but stopped herself.

"You said we need to get there, we need to get there." Rainbow Dash said, with a distant look. "We can't waste time convincing every guard on the way. Not when another pony could..." She didn't finish and she didn't need to. Twilight was on the same thought pattern. They needed to prevent any more loss of life, even of the one who cause so much of it.

✴✴✴

Bright Eyes started a rain of jabs at Celestia but not a single one pass her shield. She blocked them easily and was able to keep Bright Eyes away from Luna. Most ponies who would attempt this spell would be completely useless in a fight since scanning a life of fighting took time. But what is the life of a unicorn to that of one that lived thousands of years? She will be done with his memories soon and then they will brake this pest and punish him accordingly. Bright Eyes, at the moment, was starting to lose patience.

He had been trying to get a hit on either of them but the sun bitch was preventing every hit. He could do this for at least a while but he knew if he start to lose energy, these two could overpower him. He needs to get them to make a mistake, a misstep. But all he knew about these "alicorns" was how they loved peace, friendship, and their sickening care for their pon... It struck him like lightning. He knew what to say.

"You are an experienced fighter!" Bright Eyes paused his attacks and started pacing. Looking like he was looking for a weakness. But he believes he already found one. "I was quite surprised by this. I figured you for just a figurehead or something." Celestia just kept her shield up, betraying nothing. He expected this and decided to test the waters. "With such skills, I'm surprised these skills didn't pass down to your soldiers... or your student."

A flash of something in her eye and Bright Eyes knew he had his opening.

"I guess you didn't see it important. A shame really." He said a cruel smile spread on his face. "She could have been a great fighter if only she survived."

"You are lying," Celestia growled, her magic gripped tightly on her sword.

"She didn't even put up a fight!" He said, a manic look in his eyes. "She just begged and cried for mercy in the end. All her friends did. Why did you think it took so long for me to get here? I had to get information somehow. She held out giving up anything until the end. You want to know what the last things she said?"

"Tia! He's trying to anger you!!!" Luna shouted, debating if she stopped the spell. "Don't listen to him!"

"She looked me in the eye, covered in blood and vile," He said, drawing out each word. "And she said, "Celestia will save me." and then I gutted her like a fish. Just another one of your subjects you fail..."

A beam of magic shot from her horn and Bright Eyes brought his glaive up to block the hit. It went through the staff without pausing and went right into his shoulder. The pain was beyond horrific; like a red hot poker was jabbed into him. But the pain was second to another thought that cross his mind. His weapon, the tool he used to end all his enemies in the name of Majesty and was forged to take the full force of the dragon's tail coming down on him, now laid broken in front of him. And it didn't even slow down the magic beam.

He looked at the shattered weapon and was expecting a swift end by her blade. But instead, he heard the clatter of weapons on the ground. He looked to see she had dropped her weapons. But not out of knowing her opponent was beaten because she was charging at him with her eyes glowing a deep red. For the first time in a long time of dealing with pain and misery, he was about to be on the receiving end.

"Wait!" Luna shouted, diving forward in hopes to stop her sister. But her rage made her blind to friends. Luna was pushed back by Celestia's magic and could only watch as she use her magic to grip Bright Eyes by the throat and throw him to the ceiling. He crashed through the material like paper but felt several ribs snap from the impact. He didn't even have a chance to catch his breath as she flew up, forcing him into the ceiling of the floor above them. She pushed him through several floors until they broke onto the roof, which seemed to be a tower when she threw him to the side. He landed on the slightly broken roof and quickly heal his wounds.

But as soon as he recovers, he felt the magic wrapped around him again. This time it was around his left front leg and before he could react, a sickening crack filled the air as she snap it like twine. She moved to his right leg and repeated the process until all his limbs were shattered. He lay on the roof, painting in pain. He looked up at his tormentor and saw not the look of fear or panic he had witnessed since he got her, but the look of pure rage. He was expecting the killing blow but she just hovered there, looking down on him like he was nothing more than a peasant. He cast his healing spell but as soon the mending on his first leg was done, she quickly rebroke it. He cried out in pain and throw his head back, trying not to black out from the pain.

"She waiting for me to heal." He thought as he lay there. "She waiting for me to heal so she can inflict as much pain as possible."

He shook it off and with a burst of magic, teleported to one of the smaller rooms, a small guest room, a floor or two lower than the roof of the tower he was just shot through. He quickly reheals and took in his situation. He lost his weapon and clearly outmatch by power. But he could regroup, summon his team and they can take out this beast together. That's what he will do. He steadies himself and casts the mind link he had for Firefly.

"Firefly. The princesses are warriors. I need you all to finish your work and get here as soon as possible."

The silence was deafening and mocking him. He was beginning to think maybe these princesses were able to block this spell. But that was impossible, these spells were direct links to each other. The only way his subordinates couldn't answer was if they were... That's impossible. They were trained fighters. They would not lose to these weak beings. He had to contact the others. He tried the spell again, this time to Sparkle. Again, the silence was the answer. He was now active in a panic. Once was a mistake but twice?

He gear up for one more try, this time to Bowtie when the wall behind him exploded. He dived across the room but as he flew over the bed, the blanket sprung up and wrap around him.

"Hiding like a rat?" A voice similar to the princess but without any mercy or kindness said. "Then let me show you how we put those down."

She swung the wrapped Bright Eyes in the air before bringing it down hard on the carpet floor. There was a soft thud but the pain shot across his body as she repeated the process several times. Eventually, she stop when blood started dripping from the makeshift sack. She unfurled the blanket and watch as the broken body rolled across the floor. Bright Eyes started to crawl away but Celestia simply trot over and raised her front right hoof and brought it down hard on his front left leg. This did not break it, it remove it completely. The hoof shot across the floor and Bright Eyes shrike in horror at the sight of his bloody stump.

"I don't think that will heal." She said coldly. Bright Eyes looked at his tormentor with anger and rage.

"You are going to regret this!" He scream in pain and if he was being honest, fear. "I'm going to rip your horn off your head and..."

He was cut off when her magic gripped him by the throat and lift him from the ground. He felt himself being pinned to the window, the glass starting to give and crack.

"Oh come on, Bright Eyes." A cruel look spread across Celestia's face. "You going to start crying? I thought you wanted to play!" With a final thrust, the window shattered and Bright Eye could only watch as he fell from the tenth floor of the castle.

✴✴✴

The group managed to get to the front of the castle with ease. The guards seem to thin out after a few blocks, seemly clearing away the innocent from this battlefield. That had left the normally busy area in an eerie quiet, almost ghost-like. But Twilight wasn't putting much thought into this, she had a job to get done. They enter the courtyard and still didn't hear a lot of noise, which led to some concern.

"Where are they?" Twilight muttered, straining her ears in the hope to catch the sound of fighting. "It can't be over. Not this quickly."

"Fights aren't like the stories," Bowtie said, almost mockingly. "Ponies that never fight think there all these cool moves and moments of cool lines. In the real battlefield, you want to end your opponent as quickly as possible. We will probably find Bright Eyes standing over the body or maybe..."

"Twilight!" A voice shouted from above. They all looked up to Luna descend in a panic. "Thank the stars, he was lying. I need you to come with me quickly!"

"Luna!" Twilight shouted, not caring for ranking at the moment. "Where is Celestia!?! I need to find her before..."

"She kills the invader." Luna finished. "I fear that may have already happened. He attack us and we were planning on wearing him down but he started taunting her. Claiming to have... killed you. A common tactic but a mistake on his part because she was already worried about you."

"Where are they?" Twilight asked, hoping she could stop the impossible. "Maybe we can still prevent it."

"This blasted anti-teleport made it hard to find them," Luna said. "But I heard them somewhere on the roofs when I sense your presence. We should be able to find if we just listen for..."

A loud crash cut her off and every pony looked up to see a figure falling from the window of one of the towers. Luna saw it was Bright Eyes falling towards them before Twilight, giving her a chance to shove them back.

"Wait!" Rainbow Dash shouted, gearing to dive into the falling villain. "I can catch him before he hits the ground."

"Stop!" Luna shouted. "The fall is the least of our worries because if I know what coming next, I need you to stay here."

"What do you mean coming next?" Rarity asked, not hiding her concern. Luna didn't get a chance to answer as Celestia appeared above. Her eyes were a ruby burning fire and Luna only had a split second to do what she need to.

"COVER THY EYES!" She order before she cased a shield spell over the group. Above, Celestia had the sun behind her back and the enemy in front. She spread her wings as a high-pitched sound filled the air. Her horn turn from a golden to almost white-hot fire before she threw her head back and then unleashed a spell she only cast once before.

"Scorned Earth." She said without any emotion. The beam wasn't just magic but took heat from the sun itself. Celestia was only using three percent, to prevent instant kill and possible damage to the area. That still made it three hundred degrees of pure heat, hitting Bright Eyes dead center. The beam cut through him like he was paper, continuing to melt the ground around him. He felt the feeling leave his back legs and the pain was almost numbing, not realizing it was because the heat destroy all nerves in its path. He smashed the ground and was feeling the magic drain from him. Even if she spared him now, he would be dead in an hour. Two at the most. He closed his eyes, taking the warrior death that he had earned. The ground shooked when Celestia landed, standing over him. He knew she was about to deliver the finishing blow.

"Celestia! Stop!" A voice cried out, snapping both out of the battle. Celestia and Bright Eyes look to see Twilight running across the courtyard to them.

"No..." Bright Eyes groan. "Don't take this from me."

"Twilight..." Celestia said, her voice catching in her throat. She step away from the fallen foe and a single tear started to fall. "I thought... I haven't heard from..."

Twilight ran to her and jump up to hold her. The two seem to freeze for a second before the event of the few days seems to hit them like a storm that finally releases. The two dissolved into tears, both trying to comfort the other.

"I never wanted you to see me..."

"I was hoping to stop..."

The two continue this while the rest join in, believing that the worst is over. The threat was beaten and lay broken behind them. But Bright Eyes was looking directed up in the sky, feeling his magic trying desperately to keep him going. He felt broken and weak, a feeling he thought he carved out of his soul long ago. As he saw a few clouds and a ringing in his ear that was slowly getting stronger, he was going to close his eyes and let his life end. He would accept this defeat, he had failed his queen and deserved nothing but scorn for this. He should of hold his ponies back, he should have killed the brat when he had the chance, he should of, he should of, HE SHOULD OF!

He rammed the back of his head on the cobblestone and heard a small ping near him. He looked down at his broken body, with only one hoof able to do anything and a hole the size of an apple that had been punched through him. He was waiting for the pain to put him out of his misery when he saw what made the noise. His charm necklace. He has forgotten about it because he never thought he need it. He hold it in his only good hoof and saw the swirl of magic in it. He saw them all hugging each other and comforting each other. Rage filled him, a rage that only had one outlet.

"Majesty, in my time of need." Bright Eyes said, pulling all his strength to finish what need to be done. "I call to you, my goddess. I need your guidance and your power."

Most of the group was not looking at the fallen foe but there was one who took a glance. Fluttershy was happy that this nightmare was coming to an end but she notice Bright Eyes with the amulet.

"Um, girls." Fluttershy started to say.

"I call out, oh holy vessel of magic."

"Girls."

"To bring your might..." Bright Eyes raised the amulet as high as he could.

"Girls!" Fluttershy shouted, causing every pony to be startled. Luna looked over to see the manic face of Bright Eyes and the raised hoof. She realize what he was doing a second too late.

"So you may smite my enemy!!!" He cried out before he brought it down as hard as he could on the ground. The glass shattered and blasted out sickly green magic. Celestia went to cover the group, hoping to take most of this attack. But the green magic instead of rushing to them, seem to slink away until it pooled into a swirling vortex. A loud pop came out of it and a rush of wind started to come from it.

"What is that!?!" Applejack shouted as the wind started to howl.

"It's an old summoning spell!" Luna cried over the noise. " A way to bring allies before we mastered teleportation. But there is no way it could still work!"

A bolt of green lighting shot out and struck the ground with a loud clapping noise. Bowtie had a paled face and was shaking her head in panic.

"Get me out of here! Get me out of here!" Bowtie was shouting in the chaos. She watches as a bolt of energy smashed the wall, leaving a large chuck missing. This double her panic and she started to actively tried to wiggle the ice block away. "No, no, no ,no, no, no, no!"

Another bolt shot out and this one was heading right for Bowtie. She knew she was helpless and was about to be killed when she felt something push her out of the way at the last second.

"Watch out!" Pinkie shouted before kicking the ice. It sent Bowtie skidding out of the way and into a small marble post. The ice cracked but didn't shatter. But Bowtie was still trying to get away. "You're safe! I can make sure you don't get hit by the lightning!"

"That's not the problem!" Bowtie shouted. "I would rather be killed by that than..." A loud clap filled the air and Bowtie looked back at the event. "It's too late."

Every pony looked to see the wounded Bright Eyes, having managed to hold themself up on their good hoof, grinning with a blood-soak smile. He was cackling like a mad pony and watched as the magic turned into a portal.

"You all lived in ignorance of the fear that should haunt every waking moment!" He cried out as a form started to come out of the magic. "And now, you will witness my queen, my goddess, my..."

A loud pop followed by a blast of light filled the courtyard. Every pony shields their eyes before an eerie light brought their attention back to the center of the blast to see something floating in the air.

"Majesty."

Chapter Ten: Shattered Stars

SIX DAYS AFTER THE LAST HUNT

The scared unicorn did not want to deliver the message to...her. He only took this job because he hope to get his family into better social standing with his service. But he was quickly learning why there was an opening in the first place. Any pony that brings bad news tends to not return for the evening meal. So far, he stayed on her good side. But the news he was carrying today could be his last. As he steps gingerly into the throne room, he already felt dread come over him. The room was filled with previous ponies who anger her. Unicorns who were begging for their lives, Earth ponies who tried to look defiant in their last seconds, and pegasi trying to get away. All of them turn to stone.

He slip between two statues of what looked like crystal ponies that had tried to bring a peace treaty to prevent an attack on their land. Her answer was to kill the ambassadors and look at the northern territory as a possible expansion. That, of course, had to wait till the Guard came from their mission. This was why this was going to be difficult and he prays to the stars that he wouldn't end up like the rest. He side step a couple of fillies that were stuck holding their parents in permanent horror when he felt her eyes. A bored sigh filled the room, causing him to freeze like he just jumped into a lake of frozen water.

"What news do you bring me?" She said, in a tone he has never heard before. He turn to see that she had the looked of... melancholy. The look of sadness and boredom was clear, as she was pushing a small gem on the arm of her throne lazily. He didn't know if increased or decrease his chance of survival but maybe if he show some concern, he might get away without punishment.

"My Queen, the ruler of the land and sea, the true master of our fates, is something wrong?" He asked, bowing and keeping his head low. He hopes this is respectful enough. He didn't dare look up, even when he heard his Queen sit up.

"Strange, you are the first scout to ask me that." She said. "You can look up now."

He looked to see she was almost right in front of him, her glow hurting his eye. He looked to see the strange look gone but replace with her well-known look of serious business.

"Why do you ask if something is wrong?" She asked. "I'm the Queen of this world. Nothing can be wrong for I see all danger and threats around me. Do you doubt this?"

"No, my queen!" He quickly tried to recover from this. "I was just concerned because you looked sad... NOT that I'm saying you are sad." He knew he was dead. He knew it was only a matter of seconds before he join this collection of statutes and he'll never see his wife, his brother, or... He felt something lean on his side and he saw that she was leaning on him, not looking at him but at one of the statutes.

"It's just... Every pony is so selfish." She said with a small huff. "I ensure they are well cared for, keep enemies away, and have united the three tribes. Has any pony really done that? But what do I get for doing all this great work?" She moved to the statute and with some magic, started playing with it like a doll. "Oh, your taxes are so harsh. Why are you asking our children to fight in far-off lands for you? Blab blab blab..."

She tossed the statute to the side, causing it to shatter. The piece that held the eye slid to a stop right in front of him, looking up at him, pleading. He tried to ignore it as he watched his Queen trot back to her throne and sit with another huff.

"I mean, answer me honestly, is there any way I can be doing this better?" She asked, looking up at him. His brain decided to vacate at this moment because he didn't know how to answer. He saw this as a trap but his mouth decided to spring it.

"Well, my Queen, maybe ponies would be more grateful if dealt with the Guards'...um... discretions?" He said, with a hint of hopefulness. Before he could blink, a blade was pointing at him. It was her favorite weapon, the Icy Stare. He could feel the magic just dripping from it and he was hoping he doesn't mess himself at this moment.

"What... discretion?" She said, calmly in tone but this didn't fool him. She was enraged. He needed to find a way to fix this. He needed to send this white-hot rage in a different direction. A thought hit him at this moment. Something that happened once in a while. It was part of the reason he took this job in the first place. A small voice that just pushes him in the right direction.

"Tell her the truth."

"There has been talked, my queen." He said, trying to keep his voice steady. "That some of your guards have been plotting. The one with the gems consorting with otherworld beings, the earth ponies planning to sneak in at night and deal with you quietly. They even said they will kill Bright Eyes to make it easier to take you out."

"You think this scares me?" She said with a laugh, pulling the sword away. "I can handle them all without even trying."

"Well, one of the rumors is that you're too old." He said. "That Sparkle has been asking others if you look tired."

This set her off. He had to duck as she threw one of the petrified ponies across the room. She started ranting for a good minute, shattering as many of her victims in her path. When she was done, a clear circle of destruction was left around her. He hope that maybe he could just slip away but she straightened up and brushed the dust off her shoulder.

"So, did you have something else to tell me, scout?" She said as if she didn't just throw a tantrum. He took a deep breath and decided he just have to bite the arrow and hope he would survive.

"Two messages for you, my queen." He said with a small bow. "The first one comes from Emperor Sirius. He demands that you halt the attacks on peaceful nations like the Crystal ponies and that you release your control on the three tribes."

"Such demands." She said with a bit of amusement. "And if I refuse such demand?"

"He said he will send two envoys to liberate the innocent and bring you to trial." He bowed his head again. She rolled her eyes and kick a stone leg to the side.

"He thinks he can send demands to me!?!" She said, offended. "I am the morning star and the last light of night. This world is mine to bend! He thinks he can send letters to this kingdom and tell ME what to do. Do we know who he is?"

"Well the letter said, Emperor..." He started but was quickly cut off.

"Not his name. I mean, is he a unicorn, earth pony, or pegasi?" She said, with an annoyed tone. "Has any pony seen this Sirius or are we just getting vague threats from the shadows?"

"No pony had reported seeing them, My Queen." He answered. "We believe that some of our citizens migrated to their land. They might be spreading lies about you, My holiness."

"Of course they are!" She shouted, stabbing the ground impatiently. "Increase soldiers at the border and then when Bright Eyes returns, I will have them go deal with this Emperor Sirius. Be killing two birds with one stab. Hopefully, I'll rid myself of the traitors and some annoying pest."

He took a deep breath and knew this following message was going to get him killed but a worse fate if she found out he hid the news.

"My Queen, the second message is that Bright Eyes and his crew are missing." He said, trying to keep the tremor out of his voice. "They went to a mountain pass that was rumor to hold a monster prying on travelers and hasn't been seen since."

There was a pause, almost like the two turned to stone themself. He watched as she looked at one of the petrified earth ponies that looks forward in rage and for a second, he saw a look of concern in her eyes. It quickly hardens and she turns back to him.

"Send some scouts to see if they were truly lost. If that's the case, I will make a new guard and ask for volunteers from the tribes." She said, not even looking saddened by the loss. She went back to the throne and sat down with a determined look. "I will deal with this Sirius myself. It's been a while since I bloody my sword on an enemy. You may leave now."

He quickly bow and started to make his way out of the disturbing maze when he heard her clear her throat.

"Actually, I shall delivery the message." She said, getting up from the throne. Her sword was floating beside her and she started wiring. "You brought me bad news and I have a rule. Only bring me good news. So... I need to discourage such acts" She started approaching him with her sword at the ready. He realized that he need to get out of there quickly.

"My Queen..." He said, backing away as quickly as possible. "Surely, if I were to hold back such news, it would be considered treasonous. I only want to serve you to the best of my ability. Please, how can I do that you if I'm a statue!?!"

"Entertainment." She answered quickly, raising her sword for a strike. He decided to abandon all chance to grovel and just run for it. He duck as the thin blade sing through the air, striking a unicorn behind him. The edge slice the horn off, which hit the ground with a small thud and started to bounce away.

"Stay still so I can deliver punishment!" She shouted, started to get annoyed. She jabbed at him furiously, his only saving grace being that he had plenty of objects to shield himself. He dived under a giant ox that seem to be in the middle of a charge. He felt the air of one of her slices right next to his back leg and knew he needed to get to the exit now if he wanted to not be a permanent fixture. He crawled out from the ox and was about to side under another victim when SHE seem to appear right in front of him.

"Tooo bad." She said in a sing-song voice. "I guess you will be my new goblet holder." She raised her blade and he knew he could not get away in time. He close his eyes and waited for the inevitable strike. Instead, a loud POP filled the air and he felt like something kicked him in the chest. He felt himself go flying backward and was sent tumbling over the ox statute. He tumbled until he smack his head against a pillar, sending a throbbing pain across his skull. He felt the world sway and open his eye to a sight of pure madness.

What had caused the noise and the force the save him was some kind of portal had opened. Except open was not the right word, more like one had ripped open behind his Queen. Although it had thrown him across the room, she was unaffected... at first. While it didn't throw her, now it seem to be pulling her to it. Something she was trying to prevent with all her might. She was dragging herself towards him, almost like she was desperately swimming away from a whirlpool. She reached out to him.

"Grab me!" She ordered. "Grab me, you worthless fool! Your queen demands it."

He reach out for a second when he saw the horn that she sliced off earlier roll beside her. He picked it up and study what was happening in front of him. Some pony was attempting to do something to her, whatever it was didn't matter, all that mattered is he held her safety in his hoof. or her damnation. He looked back at the outstretched hoof and the large portal that seem to be getting larger.

"What are you waiting for!?!" She shouted, clearly struggling against the force. "I AM YOU QUEEN! You must do what I say or I will have you hang by your entrails for days! Just for my..!"

"Entertainment?" He said, with a new tone of coldness. He lift the stone horn and threw it directly at her face. It bounce off her almost harmlessly but it had the desired effect. She swat at it and not realizing her mistake until she started to slide backward. She tried to correct it but the pull was too much. She was lifted into the air and started to fray helplessly.

"I'll make you pay for this!!!" She screeched as she started spinning towards the vortex. "I curse your bloodline! May you always seek power and have it snatched from your grasp. May it eat at your SOUL!"

Right before she hit the portal, she shot a bolt of energy right at him. The blackest energy hit him in the chest and he felt a surge of anger race inside of him. He watched as the portal engulf her and with a loud POP, the portal disappear without a trace. He sat there for a few moments, in the dark throne room before getting himself back up. He looked at the statues and headed for the exit. As he exit, he saw two guards flanking the doors with confused faces.

"The queen let you leave?" One of them asked, clearly nervous.

"Yes. she did." He responded. "She is sending me to help deal with a problem with one of our fronts."

"Oh really?" The older of the two said, with half disbelief, half annoyed. "And how does the great Scout Sombra suppose they are going to solve the problems?"

"Oh, you'll see," Sombra said, a smile growing on his face. "You will all see."

⚡⚡⚡

The first thing Twilight noticed about the new arrival was that she was pure white. But not pure white, but seem to glow like a star. It was then Twilight realize that she didn't have white fur but seemed to be covered with bright white fire or her coat was made to look like that. The unicorn seem to be dazed for a second before she shook her head, causing her blue mane to whip the air. She saw sparks fly in the air as her hair settled down, causing an almost otherworldly look. Twilight watched as she looked around and started saying something but she couldn't understand it. There was a harsh tone, making it clear that she was demanding something.

"My queen!" Bright Eyes called out, crawling forward. Twilight watch as what she could assume was Majesty, look over at the wounded pony. She didn't even try to cover her look of disgust before she seem to recognize him. He cast a small spell, that sent a small ball of light to her. It wrapped around her mouth and she coughed a few times before clearing her throat. "This is their tongue, my queen. It's a little harsher but..."

"What is this, Bright Eyes?" She asked, cutting him off. "You pulled me away from my throne for..." She looked around and it seemed like something was off. "Where are your fighters?"

"They have fallen." He said, with a pleading look. "We were sent here by some dark magic and we set out to reconquer this land in your name but..."

"Reconqured? What madness are you talking about?" She said, clearly confused. "Why would I need it RE-conquered?"

"Because you don't rule this land anymore," Celestia said, with a strong voice. Twilight realized that she had stepped to block her view of Majesty.

"And who are you?" She demanded. "Are you the cause of this treachery?"

"I am not the cause for your fighters being here." Celestia answer. "But I am the reason that your pet is broken. So I suggest you choose your words carefully."

"Choose my words!?!" Majesty seemed to be insulted by this. "Have you any idea who you are speaking to? I will not be insulted by some inbred freak. I will have you begging for my mercy before the sunset!"

"Yes, my queen!" Bright Eyes shouted, pulling himself closer to her. "Heal me and we can rid this place of these fools!"

Twilight notice the look of annoyance on her face and felt like something was going to go wrong. This feeling increases when Majesty slipped into a smile that could be mistaken for kindness. She lifted Bright Eyes's face and hold him in a small embrace.

"My sweet Bright Eyes, my most loyal warrior." She said in a voice that could be mistaken for motherly love. "These beasts did this to you, didn't they?"

"I fought with honor." He said, trying to sound strong. Twilight noticed a trail of blood dripping from his mouth. "But the fools I was put in charge of failed us. They died to ponies that never drawn blood and left me to fight these... freaks." He spat the words at Celestia and Luna. "But together we can defeat them and take back what is ours!"

"Of course, we can." She said with a soft voice. She started petting the back of his head while saying soothing words to him. Twilight was beyond confused and she couldn't shake the idea this was wrong. That's when she noticed a silver shine coming from behind Bright Eyes. "You always were willing to do what I asked, Bright Eyes. I couldn't ask for a better fighter... or a better son."

Twilight felt a coldness encase her and the silver gleam became clear. It was a fencing sword, with a very sharp point. It suddenly became clear what was going to happen.

"But there's something you're forgetting, Bright Eyes." She said, not changing her tone or inflection. Bright Eyes looked up confused. "You are nothing but a broken pest now. And I do not need you anymore." The sword pulled back slightly.

Before any pony could react, she brought the sword down hard. He gasped in pain and a small cry leaked out before she pull it out. He slowly looked down to see the pinhole in his chest and almost seem not to trust his eyes. Like his dying eyes were deceiving him. But as he pulled his hoof away from the small wound, he watch as the drops of blood had turned to solid stone, like a ruby. He gave a loud cough, shooting to several pearls of blood. They bounce across the ground and rolled to a stop in front of Luna.

Twilight watched as he collapsed on the ground, with a sound similar to cracking glass filling the air. She watched in horror as his skin painfully turned to stone. He turned his head toward Twilight as the magic crawled up his neck, the light fading in his eyes fast.

"I... just wanted... to..." He gasped out before the magic turn him into a statue, his horror permanently on his face. There was a stunned silence as the group watched in horror, except Luna and Celestia, who only looked at the scene with a mixture of contempt and barely hidden rage.

"Well, that is dealt with," Majesty said like she just got done with an unimportant task. She threw the statue to the side, letting it smash into the ground beside her. She looked up at Twilight and her friends with a creepy smile on her face.

"So, you defeated my guards in combat?" She said, starting to approach the group in combat. "That is quite a feat. How would you all like to..."

The sentence was cut off by the swing of Celestia's sword striking the ground in front of Majesty. Majesty looked up with annoyance like she was rudely interrupted while giving a speech.

"Walk. Away." Celestia said, not hiding the fury in her voice. "This is not your time nor palace anymore. I am allowing you one chance to leave my kingdom. You can live in exile, away from any creature you wish to harm to. If you decided to become a monster, then I will personally put you down. Am I understood?"

Majesty looked at the blade in the ground and then back up at Celestia, looking peeved more than anything. She sighed and with a hovering spell, she brought her weapon to her side.

"I understand." She said, bowing a little. "That you are under the impression," Her sword turned up slightly, almost in a subtle way. "That I would surrender so QUICKLY!"

She struck out with lightning speed, hoping to catch Celestia by surprise. But Celestia wasn't caught off guard so easily, quickly bringing up her shield to block the attack. A spray of sparks flew through the air followed by several other strikes as Majesty unleashed a fury of blows on her. Celestia easily blocked them, using her shield to push her back and away from Twilight. She didn't even have to swing her sword because Majesty seem to be focused on her shield. Majesty, herself, was a bit confused. Her sword should have reduced the shield to dust but it hasn't made a dent.

"Getting tired?" Celestia taunted, pushing her even further back. "Did you think we couldn't make weapons that resist the old magic? Pertfacation is a cheap trick."

"You won't be saying that when I use your statue body as a THRONE!" Majesty shouted before she jabbed furiously. With one last jab, she jumped into the air and using gravity and some magic, came screeching down with a massive amount of force. she stabbed into the shield and felt the metal give slightly. She smiled a sadistic smile, believing she had gotten the advantage. But as she tried to pull it back, it stuck fast. She expected Celestia to start swinging her sword but she just stared at her. "What are you waiting for?"

"Her." Celestia said.

Majesty was confused before she realize that she didn't keep an eye on the other one. She barely had time to create a bubble shield before something smashed into her side. Pain shot through her ribs as she skidded across the marble floor. She quickly turned to face the two now standing in defense pose. Luna had changed her scythe into a large war hammer with her face looking like a full moon. Celestia flings her shield, sending Majesty's weapon out of her reach. Majesty gasped sharply as she cast a healing spell to fix her broken ribs.

"Where you holding back?" Celestia asked with a harsh whisper.

"No," Luna answered with concern. "That should of paralyze her. She is just walking it off."

"I guess we have to go back to some old tactics. Solar or lunar?" Celestia asked as she brought her sword. Luna rolled her eyes and raised the hammer.

"I've always hated Eclipse. Let's start with Solar."

Majesty finished healing in time to see both of them charging forward. She summons another magic shield but was caught off guard when Luna dived in first, swinging the hammer with an incredible amount of force. The ground under her splintered, sending chunks of marble in the air. This was followed by another hit as Luna drew her hammer back up and brought it down in two seconds. This became a pattern as Luna brought hit after hit down on Majesty. The shield didn't falter but the ground was starting to falter. Majesty was straining to keep the magic up but it was nothing she couldn't handle. She will wait until the fool tires herself out and then strike her. She has to be close to wearing out because she could see sweat dropping around her. Actually, it seem to have started to rain, as the hole Majesty was currently in was slowly filling with water.

With a loud war cry, Luna brought her hammer down on Majesty's shield with a mighty hit. The shield held but the ground collapsed, sending Majesty into a six-foot pit. Majesty looked up in annoyance and dismissed the shield. She looked at the rainwater she was standing in and decided it was to go back on offense. She cast a spell on the water, causing it to wrap around her and move almost animal-like. Luna was approaching her target when she noticed the rainwater was collecting around the hole.

"Strange." Luna thought as she ready her weapon. "We only summon the rain to throw Majesty off. What is she trying to do?"

A blast of water shot up into the air, twisting and turning that at first, Luna thought it was a twister until she saw a serpent head on the top. It made a loud hiss before the creature strike forward. Luna jump back as the creature took a bite out of the marble ground.

"Tia!" Luna shouted. "What's taking so long!?!"

"This spell takes a bit. You can handle a small unicorn!" Celestia shouted from a distance, as she had shot into the sky to cause the rain storm.

"Not so small anymore!" Luna shouted as she rolled to avoid a tail smash from the summoned creature. "She using the rain to create a sea serpent!"

"We dealt with one before!" Celestia called back from the sky. "Just do what we did before!"

"It's made of water! I can't style its hair!" Luna cried out before sending her war hammer flying at the serpent's head. Instead of dodging, the hammer flew right through the water creature. Luna looked a little disappointed that her attack failed. "Well... dang."

"What the matter, Princess?" Majesty gleefully shouted, her voice amplified to seem to come from the serpent. "Not used to dealing with something so... COLD BLOODED!"

With a flick of the water creature's tail, several icicles shot out at rapid speed with razor-sharp tips. Luna teleported out of the way but the attack found another target.

"Every pony, move!" Twilight shouted before teleporting the two closest to her, Rarity and Fluttershy, away. Rainbow Dash dived behind a pillar, dragging Pinkie behind her. But Applejack realized that Bowtie was right in the path of the three icicles. She was desperately trying to move her prison but there was no way she made it. Applejack knew what needed to
be done. She bucked as hard as she could and kicked the block out of the way of the attack. The ice block slid across the courtyard and smashed apart on a pillar. Bowtie was sent flying and crashed into some shrubs nearby. Applejack lucked out and only received a slash across her leg from one of the projectiles.

"Luna! I need a clear shot!" Celestia shouted from the clouds, with a strange glow starting to pulse.

"Working on it!" Luna called back, appearing a few feet away from the water beast. She saw where Majesty was controlling the creature, in the middle of the serpent. Majesty saw Luna and sent the head of the monster down onto her. With a loud crunch, Luna was swallowed whole. But it couldn't crush her due to her summoning a bubble shield, resulting in it acting like a dog with a bone. It shook Luna back and forth while Majesty laughed like a mad pony.

"For a second there, you had me worried." Majesty cackled. "But your sister left you and you lost your weapon. Got any other ideas you want to try?"

"Celestia!" Luna shouted as the monster shook her side from side. "CAN! YOU! CAST! THE! SPELL! ALREADY!?!"

The sky rumbled like an angry beast and the clouds parted to reveal Celestia had created a large creature of her own. It was a large bird of prey made from clouds and wind. The beak opened wide and it was here when Majesty had a millisecond to realize the mistake of surrounding herself in water. A large bolt of lightning shot forth and came screaming down on her with the fury of thousands of suns. The crash of thunder and blinding light filled the courtyard, causing every pony to temporarily lose sight.

A few seconds later, those who lost their sight returned to see the water beast was gone and so was Majesty. All that remained was a burning hole with a trail of smoke and the beast the Celestia created. Applejack was the first to respond, having limped over to the stunned Bowtie. She was stumbling out of the shrubs and shaking off some of the freezes off the ice block. She saw the wound on Applejack's leg and looked at her confused.

"Why?" Bowtie asked. "Why did you risk your life for me?"

"Because we ain't like you," Applejack said, trying not to let the pain show. "I'm not going to let some pony get hurt when I can stop it. No matter who they are."

"You shouldn't have done that." Bowtie said, looking away.

"Why? You deserve to try to redeem yourself." Applejack said.

"Won't get the chance," Bowtie said, looking at the smoldering crater. "Majesty is going to skin us all alive."

"I don't think any pony could..." Applejack started but stop when she felt a pulse of energy. She slowly looked back at the hole and watched in horror as a slightly burnt hoof grab the side of the hole. Majesty lifted herself out of the hole and stood up. She brushed some soot off her coat and looked up at the sky in annoyance.

"Alright, I guess you two can fight!" She shouted. "But I'm done playing GAMES!"

A crackling noise filled the air as she floated her sword toward her. But instead of rearming herself, she floated in front of her and with a loud cry, snap it in half. A jet of energy shot out and into Majesty, causing a bright white aura to engulf her. She cracked her neck and flick her mane back, causing a whirlwind to spread across the courtyard.

"Now, who up first?" Majesty said, with a smile. Celestia's bird let an ear-splitting screech and dive down toward Majesty with ferrous speed. The beak snapped down hard, engulfing her. For a few seconds, it seems to contain her. Then, a loud pop caused the head to explode and the summoning to disappear. Majesty looked smug at the floating piece of clouds that collapsed around her. Had she paid attention, she would have spotted both Luna and Celestia using the clouds as cover. "Come on! That can't be the best you have to offer. After that last attack, I thought you all had a little more..."

She was cut off when Celestia dived out from the mist and drove her sword deep into Majesty's chest. She looked down, shocked, as Celestia twisted the sword. She looked up to see Celestia's face with coldness in her eyes as she brought her shield down on her face as hard as possible. There was a series of loud smacks as Celestia almost brought it up and down at lightning speed.

"WHY! DIDN'T! YOU! TAKE! THE! DEAL!?!" Celestia shouted with each hit, her fury growing. She let out a loud roar as she brought it down once more time. But instead of taking the hit, Majesty grabbed the shield with her mouth. Celestia was stunned by this move as she tried to pull it out. "Give me my shield, you little..."

There was a crunch as Celestia pulled it back and was going to use it again when notice a piece missing from her shield. She looked to see Majesty spit out the chuck she managed to bite off.

"Should have tried this earlier." She said with a smirk. "With the magic of sword now infused with me, I'm practically invincible now. You can stab me, behead me, put me on another planet and I will ALWAYS come back. So, go ahead, stab me as much as you want. All you are doing is pissing me off. Because I am no mere Princess. I AM A GOD!"

"IF you're a god, then tell me..." Celestia said, throwing away her shield. "Are you omnipotent?"

"Of course." Majesty taunted, using her magic to pull out Celestia's sword. "I know you are all going to die and soon. What else is there to know?" She threw the sword to the side, with enough force that it impaled in a pile that Rainbow Dash was hiding behind.

"There are a couple of things you should know if you're going to claim to be a god." Celestia said, starting to move to the side.

"Oh... and what is that?" Majesty said with a bit of mocking fear. "That love and kindness will win the day? That I should just open up my heart?"

"No. That I actually did send my sister to the moon." Celestia said, keeping her tone steady. "She spent a thousand years there with nothing but an evil spirit and time."

"Is this leading to something or do you don't fight that offend?" Majesty said, a bit bored. "Because there is usually a lot more blood in a fight to the death."

"Time to study the way planets move in space, their effects on each other, and how much they truly weigh." Celestia stop moving and locked her eyes with her opponent. "But she never learned that the best way to keep her enemy distracted was to get them to talk. But she did learn that the moon is pretty heavy."

The sound of the rushing wind filled the air as Luna came out of the fog and uppercut Majesty into her chest. She shot into the air and several sonic booms followed as she disappeared into the sky.

"Alright, we have a few minutes." Celestia quickly said. "She a bit too powerful to take her in a fair fight, any ideas?"

"I'd suggest the moon banishment but she might be able to teleport back. Tartarus?" Luna said, a little out of breath.

"And find out what happens if Terek absorbs her?" Celestia sighed. "I think our best bet is to hit her with all our magic. We can overwhelm her and force her to surrender when she's out of energy. You ready?"

"Sure," Luna said, tossing the hammer to the side. "I always hated this melee fighting anyway. Think we got time to charge before she starts..." A deafening boom from above answered her. She looked up to see a small dot coming in fast. "Alright, on the count of three."

"One." Celestia started to charge her magic

"Two" Luna steady herself, aiming for the enemy.

"Three!" They fired into the air two massive magic beams, each as wide as a redwood, toward the target. Majesty saw the incoming beams and a wild smile grew on her face.

"This is going to be fun." She said before smashing into the beams. The beams seem to burn her but she wasn't stopping. Every pony watched as she cut through, only slowing down a bit. There was a moment when it seem to push back but Majesty blasted out in front of Celestia and Luna. "Surprise!!!" She shouted as she kicked Celestia in the face while punching Luna. The hit was strong enough that it send Celestia flying into a pillar while Luna skidded across the plaza.

"You are beyond helpless," Majesty said, almost with joy. She trots over to Celestia and kicked her in the stomach. Celestia cried out in pain and cough out some blood. "You two are the ruler of this country and you couldn't really hurt me."

"Technically, there are four of us." Celestia muttered. Majesty grabbed her by her mane and slammed her face into the ground.

"This is getting sad," Majesty said with a shake of her head. "I expected a little more blood from the two that were able to have warriors that took out my followers. Well, I guess I'm just going to have to..." A loud splat cut her off when a cupcake hit her in the face. She wiped off the frosting and gave it a small lick. It tasted like lemon and lime. "Who threw a cupcake at me?"

She was answered when two more came flying out of the darkness and smacked her in the face, covering her eyes. She didn't react in pain but an annoyed look cross her face.

"Pinkie, this is not a smart idea." Rarity whispered as the two sneaked to the edge of the courtyard. "We should be trying to get guards here, not annoying the insane unicorn."

"Like the guards can do anything at this point." Pinkie snapped back. "WE always end up fixing things. So we might as well jump ahead to that point?"

"So what does throwing bake goods get us?" Rarity hissed as she watched Pinkie pull out a cinnamon apple cupcake.

"I don't know. Maybe she has an allergy or something." She said as she chuck the cupcake like it was a baseball. This one was blown to pieces by one of Majesty''s magic bolts. She had wiped off the other ones and was starting to approach.

"Tell me, baker," Majesty said, charging another bolt. "Did you just want to die first or did you hope I would just be taken out by pastry?"

"Technically, it's a cak..." Pinkie started before she was lifted into the air by magic. She felt the magic tighten around her throat and cut off her oxygen. She gasped and tried to wiggle free but the spell held tight. Rarity looked in horror and realized she couldn't stop Pinkie from dying right before her.

"Now, here is something I always wanted to know," Majesty said with a smirk as she increase the pressure. "What hurts more? Seeing your comrade die in front of you and can't stop it? Or Dying and watching as they can do nothing to stop this?" She shook Pinkie like a rattle and brought her closer till they were almost touching her noses. "What do you think, baker?"

She loosens the spell enough for Pinkie to gasp loudly and let out a few coughs. Pinkie looked into Majesty's eyes and could only see coldness behind them.

"I think..." Pinkie started before coughing again, cutting herself off. Majesty looked annoyed and motioned for her to continue. "I think I rather have my friends than be like you."

"And why is that, baker?" Majesty mocked. "So you have the comfort of knowing that you are going back to the mud, not alone, but with friends?"

"No," Pinkie said, trying to wiggle out of the spells grasp. "Because I'm never alone and they will always have my back!"

While she was trying to get out of Majesty's spell, she slip some chili powder out of her hair. When she shouted, she toss it with all her force. She made a direct hit, right in Majesty's snout and eyes. She cried out in shock and her spell was dismissed. Pinkie took the opportunity as soon as she hit the ground to flip around and buck as hard as she could. Her left hoof missed but the right one made contact with her jaw. A sticking crack filled the air as the jaw bone was knocked off its socket. Majesty's cry was gargled but clear, she was pissed. After she shook it backed in place and saw both Pinkie and Rarity make a run for it.

"Not so fast!" She shouted as she shot another bolt of magic at the two, hoping to critically injure them both. But a blur of blue and rainbow pushed them both out of the way. The blast left a scorch mark on the marble. She followed the blur and started to fire rapid bolts of energy. The magic blast chucks off walls, and pillars, and even destroyed a couple of hedges but she couldn't hit the fast blur, causing her to get angrier. "Stay still! I'm trying to kill you!"

"Then work on your aim!" The blur shouted before making a loop and heading right for her. "Let me make it easier for you!"

"Your mistake!" Majesty shouted before firing a beam right at her. Before the beam made contact, Dash pivoted right out of the way but still headed for her. Majesty was confused for a moment but continued to fire her magic. For a second, Majesty thought this crazy bird brain was going to crash right into her. But at the very last second, she shot upward. The speed created some kind of force that hit her directly in the face, almost knocking her off her hoofs. The resulting dust cloud blinded her but she cast a spell to grab Rainbow Dash by her tail. She yank her down hard and smashed her into the ground.

"Okay, what was YOUR plan?" Majesty growled as she used her magic to push Dash into the marble floor. "Hoping you can keep hitting me with whatever that was?"

"No, I was hoping to distract you." Rainbow Dash said with a groan. Majesty didn't get a chance to react, as a dark figure appeared behind her.

"You forgot about me." Luna said before she cast a spell that engulf Majesty. Luna lifted her into the air and slammed her as hard as she could. She lifted her back up and drove her head first into the ground. Luna was going to do it one more time but Majesty blasted out of the magic grasp. She dove into Luna, tackling her to the ground. They rolled around, biting and kicking each other. With another blast of magic, Majesty sends Luna into one of the pillars surrounding the courtyard. This one had been weakened by the fight, causing it to collapse onto Luna. Majesty shook off her wounds and saw the pinned Luna. She chuckled as she lifted one of the other pillars out of the ground and floated it above her prey.

"Alright, I won't forget this time." She said with a bit of insanity leaking through. She lifted it high and was about to bring it down when a bolt of magic hit it. It was changed into a bunch of snakes that rain down on Luna. Majesty swirled around to see Twilight and Fluttershy standing about a few feet away. "Will you just let me kill one of you already!?! This is getting tedious!!!"

"We will never stop," Twilight said definitely. "We will keep our world safe from monsters like you and your minions. My friends and I have been here to protect our citizens. You will never understand why we do this but we will because it is our sworn duty to do so."

"I can see Bright Eyes in you, child," Majesty said, starting to turn the screws. "You think your teacher will care about you when you outlive your usefulness? You will be tossed away the second you fail her. At least I made him into something useful afterward. He will make a great goblet holder. Now, since you lead this group of idiotic scum, I figure you can tell them to stand down. Do that for me and you'll be my new right-hoof pony, sounds good, princess?"

"I have a better offer." Twilight countered. "How about you stay right there?"

A loud hiss from below made Majesty looked down to see the snakes had slithered underneath her. She smirked and raised her hoof.

"This is your trick? A bunch of snakes?" Majesty said with a sigh. "Bright Eyes would at least make them a trap." She smashed the head of one of the snakes.

"Who said I didn't?" Twilight said before teleporting her and Fluttershy. Majesty blinked and heard the hissing continue. She looked down to see the snakes were made out of rocks, glowing and starting to swell. With several loud pops, they exploded under her, sending large chuck of rocks into her chest and stomach. She gasped as the air was knocked out of her, causing her to kneel down. She took in a few deep breaths but her rage was building.

"This can't be happening." She thought, a growl building in her throat. "I am Majesty. I killed legions of griffins, yaks, and dragons. How is a bunch of lowly warriors and three freaks giving me so much trouble? Well if they want to keep this up, let's see how they handle my favorite spell." She started charging it, feeling the world warp around her. She looked at her enemies, all in different states of distress. She saw Bowtie was near one of them and knew that was her target. She cast the spell and a large orb shot across the sky.

Applejack saw the ball heading right for them and reacted quickly. She grabbed Bowtie and yank him out of the bushes before doing a tuck and roll. They just got out of the way as the magic bubble smashed into the hedge. She watched as the plant twisted and warped until the bubble faded, leaving a twisted form behind.

"By the earth, she used that spell!" Bowtie cried out, her eyes wide in terror. "She's angry and she going to kill us all."

"Then help us!" Applejack shouted, trying to hide the pain from the wound in her leg. "Dose she has a weakness or something? Anything that helps us stop her!"

"There is nothing that can kill her," Bowtie said, her eyes never leaving the mutated plant. "She is a being of pure magic, collected from the fallen foes of hundreds. I once watched her wipe out entire villages, just to absorb their energy. She is going to make sure that your princesses are unable to fight back, then she going to drain you all one by one in front of them. Just to make sure they know they were never going to win. Do you want to survive? Run."

"You do that," Applejack muttered, turning her back on her. "You can run if you want but I'm staying. You all let that monster rule over your time but I have too many counting on me to keep them safe. So run away and be a coward. But I never back down from a threat."

She looked back to see the Bowtie wasn't there anymore, had run off while she was talking. Applejack sighed and picked up her lasso. She looked up to see Majesty shooting across the sky toward Rainbow Dash. Dash manage to dodge the first attack but she quickly was tackled and dragged to the ground. The two crashed to the ground, causing a shock wave to rip across the ground. Applejack watched as a chuck of pillar fell in front of her, the size of a beach ball, and slid to a stop.

"You know, it's only been a day for me," Majesty said, pinning Rainbow Dash to the ground by placing a hoof on the back of her head while using a spell to hold her limbs outstretched. "But I'm getting hungry and pegasi's wings are extremely tasty. I wonder if I have enough time to cook one? Let's find out!"

Dash started to feel the heat as Majesty summon a fireball and started to lower it toward her back. She started to scream but Majesty pushed down to muffle her with the ground. Her wings were starting to burn and she could hear Majesty laughing but couldn't do anything to stop the attack.

"Roasting on the battlefield. I bet the fear makes the meat taste great!" Majesty laughed, bringing the fire closer. "I can just smell the flesh sizzling. I wonder... Does your kind die if you lose your wings? I mean, you're just useless without your wings. Do you curl up and die like a bug? Let's find out!"

She was about to press the fireball into Rainbow Dash's back but a noise caught her off guard. It sounded like a wooshing noise from behind her and getting louder. She turned just in time for a chuck of rock to come crashing into her face. It knocked her off Rainbow Dash and dispel the spells. She stumbled backward but couldn't recover before the same rock smashed into her again, this time into her shoulder. She managed to look up in time to see Applejack stumbling forward, swinging a hunk of rock like a mace.

"You little mud humper," Majesty growled, stepping backward. "You dare strike your better!"

"And I'll do it again," Applejack mumbled with the rope in her mouth. "Next time, I'll crack your skull like a walnut."

"No. Next time, I'll squeeze the life out of you!" Majesty shouted before firing a spell off. It hit the rope, causing a green glow to engulf it. The rope suddenly sprang to life and wrapped around Applejack like a snake. Before she could react, it tighten, quickly rending her trapped. She struggled against the rope as Majesty approached. She watched as Majesty summon a magical spear, dragging the point to the ground. She raised it into the air and stabbed it right next to Applejack's head.

"I'm going to rip you from limb from..." She stopped mid-sentence and looked around the battlefield. "You know, this is the point where one of your friends try to hit me. I wonder who going to give it another shot. I really hope it's that baker. I'm going to need some salt pretty soon."

The air was still with a lack of noise. She was waiting for the next attack, for one of them to make a move. They seemed to be frozen in fear, something she was used to. But this was different somehow; like they weren't even breathing. It was at this moment she noticed a small piece of rubble that was falling from a pillar. It was drifting slowly to the ground like it was a snowflake. She realizes that a time spell was cast and chuckled.

"Come to play some more?" Majesty taunt as Celestia started to approach. She was limping but Majesty wasn't buying it. "I figured you would just crawl away and lick your wounds. But looks like you have a few tricks. I can sense the power you and others have connected to this world. The dark one is connected to the night sun and you're connected to the sun itself. The third one is connected to the annoying scum that has been a real thorn in my side. But what's maddening is the fact that you could be the true ruler of this world. With that power, you could wipe out every griffin, dragon, and all who stand in our way."

"Who said I haven't?" Celestia said, starting to limp forward.

"DON'T lie to me." Majesty demand, causing a few sparks to fly off her coat. "I can feel every living thing on this planet. All the filth and leeches, draining this planet of MY precious magic. I was close to completing my task, my vision." An image of the planet appeared in front of her, floating and turning slightly. "I could always feel them, eating away at what was mine. I was going to control it all but then that fool had to drag me here. But no matter, I'll just have to rebuild my kingdom from the ground. Using your bones as the foundation is just a bonus."

A blast of energy pierced the globe image, causing Majesty to dodge just out of the way. Celestia was quick to follow, sending bolts of energy after her. She managed to duck and roll to avoid the attack but didn't manage to get a spell off herself.

"Very rude!" Majesty shouted as she dodge another volley of magic bolts. "I see some things have changed since my time. We used to let our opponents finish our speeches. It was a sign of respect, you degenerated filth!!!" She looked to see the blasting had stopped but her opponent had disappeared. She searched the area but could not find her among the smoke caused by the attack. She knew what was going to happen but didn't know where it was coming from. She started to prepare her shield when the wind shifted slightly.

Celestia appeared behind with her sword raised high and brought it down with a crack. It impaled Majesty, nailing her into the ground. She responds by twisting her head around and opening her jaw impossibly large. With an otherworldly scream, a sonic blast shot out and slammed into Celestia's chest. She was sent flying into another pile of rubble, leaving her coughing up some blood. Majesty right herself and try to fly up but the sword kept her in the ground.

"You are all very annoying." She mutter as she tried to pull out of the ground. She didn't notice a small rumbling from the earth beneath as she kept tugging. "Most see my display and run screaming for the hills. Or worship me like the goddess I am. Yet you continue to fight me. I swear, if one more thing happens to me, I might just..."

With one more tug, she freed the sword from the ground. A roar filled the air as the sewer pipe that Celestia hit sprayed out of its contents onto Majesty. The smell was beyond the worst and the muck cover her from hoof to horn. The spray lasted for about thirty seconds but when it ended, she stood there with a look of complete anger. With a roar of pure rage, she shot into the air, and a blast of light erupted from her body. The sword shot out of her as a bright light was pouring out of her eyes and mouth.

"I AM DONE!" She screams. "I WILL RAZE THIS ENTIRE WORLD! SPARE NO STALLION, NO MARE, NOR FOAL. ALL WILL FEEL MY RAGE AND KNOW IT WAS YOUR FAULT! THEY WILL KNOW THAT THEIR LEADERS HAVE FAILED THEM."

"Stop."

Majesty cocked her head and whipped around.

"WHO DARED TRIED TO..." She turns to see Twilight standing by herself in the courtyard. She started to chuckle until she was full-on laughing. "You!?! The student thinks she can beat what her teachers couldn't scratch. What makes you think you can stop my judgment?" She started to lower herself to the ground to face off her opponent.

"Because I'm the princess of friendship," Twilight said, steadying herself as she watch Majesty landed about twenty feet away. "Which is something you don't understand. I stand not just for pony kind, but for all who seek my protection. I WILL fight until I can no more. For I am the protector of ALL who I consider my friend."

"So noble... yet so foolish," Majesty said with a small smile. "You know what, this is how it will end for you. The spell I'm about to cast will rip apart this land. If you stand for this filth, then your ashes shall be a part of their last breath. So, princess, are you ready to die?"

A stillness set in the air as the two stare each other down. They each started to charge their spells, the sound filling the world as it reached its peak. With a small twitch, they both fired their magic bolt at the same moment. They smashed with a crack and a lightning bolt of magic cracked the ground around where the two beams met. A flash of light filled the courtyard as every pony watch in terror at what was transpiring. Twilight grits her teeth as she felt what felt like a mountain crushing down on her.

"I can't let them down." Twilight thought as tears form in her eyes from the pressure. "I have to beat her but how? She is too strong.

"Twilight. Listen to me." A voice she recognizes as Princess Celestia rang in her head. "You can do this. You will have to give it all you got. Don't hold back and release all you got."

"I don't think I can." Twilight thought as desperation fill her head. "I can't feel my legs and it's so heavy. I'm failing every pony."

"TWILIGHT!" Celestia shouted, stirring Twilight. Her beam push back a bit against Majesty's beam. "Are you the element of failure or are you the element of magic!?!"

A spark awoke in Twilight and she felt of surge raise up in her chest. She felt not only the power from her friends, and her teachers but from every living thing on this planet. She felt a pair of griffins meet for the first time and a group of ponies in a nation she never knew had a birthday party. But she felt something deep in the planet touch her back. The force was old and unknown, like something from her studies. With this, she blasted forth with a force she never dreamed of having.

The force of her beam started to push Majesty back but only by a bit. Majesty started to cackle with a mad look in her eyes.

"You have been holding back!" She shouted, looking mad with pleasure. "Tapping into the earth for some extra power. But that won't save you, child! I've been collecting magic for years and souls from my fallen foes. Nothing short of a miracle will spare you from death!"

"Don't listen to her." Luna's voice cut into Twilight's thoughts. "I'm trying to sneak up on her. Hit her with all you have when I say to."

"Luna, NO!" Celestia shouted. "You'll be killed by this magic. She'll be overrun, I'm sure of it!"

"We don't have time to... Luna stops when something happens at the other end of the battlefield.

"I think the earth ponies will be the first to go." Majesty taunted as she pushed forward. "Then the feather brains, then the yaks probably. I'm going to enjoy taking everything out you ever had joy in." What she didn't notice was something sneaking up behind her. "Maybe I should try raising you from the dead just so I can keep you as my last pe..."

Something wrapped around her throat and started to pull her back. She couldn't turn her head but she didn't need to as she heard a voice roar in her ear.

"Do you know how long I dream about doing this!?!" Bowtie screamed as she put Majesty in a headlock. "All those you made me kill in your name. All those times you mocked my kind and belittled me."

"Bowtie, stop this," Majesty said with a growl, trying to ignore that it was getting hard to breathe. "I order you to stop!"

"Order all you want!" Bowtie said with glee. "But I realize why this world feels wrong to me. I never should have been here. None of us should have come here. But I can fix this. So make your choice, goddess. Kill me and died to this weak spawn of Bright Eyes or keep fighting and I get to be the one who took the last breath of the great Majesty. What is your choice? Unicorn or Mud humper?"

Majesty's eyes widen in panic as she felt the pressure increase around her throat. But even looking away caused her magic bolt to waver, causing Twilight's bolt to advance a bit. She refocused but couldn't regain the ground she lost. She realized at that moment how much trouble she was in. She looked at Twilight and for a second, she felt fear. But she grits her teeth and lets out a roar. She was MAJESTY and she bow to no mortal! She threw her head back and was about to blast Bowtie off her back.

"NOW TWILIGHT!" Both Luna's and Celestia's shouted all at once. Twilight roared with them and let loose all the magic she was now attuned to. The beam enlarges to the size of a redwood trunk and engulfed Majesty's bolt. Majesty manages to blast Bowtie off her, sending the fighter flying to the side. She turned to resume the battle with Twilight only to see the wall of magic barreling toward her. She didn't have time to react, being blinded by the light. The world seem to disappear in light before a loud explosion deafened all who were around.

After a few seconds of pushing herself, Twilight felt the magic waver. She stopped and collapsed on the ground, panting with exhaustion. She looked up to see that her spell drilled a path forward, scorching the marble to a large cloud of smoke and damaging several collums. But she smiled to herself as she tried to steady herself. She did it, the threat is over. But as she watch the smoke clear, she saw a shadow.

"Nooo..." Twilight moans as the smoke clears, revealing a very injured Majesty. Her fur was scorched away, revealing bright red flesh burn to a crisp. Patched of her skin was burned away, leaving muscle exposed. Her mane was gone and half her face on her left side was gone, revealing a snarling skull behind. Her left eye had melted completely, leaving a gaping hole in its place. She took a shaking step forward, showing her limbs didn't fair any better. A sickling crack filled the air as she collapsed forward due to one of her limbs breaking.

"I lived, child." She hissed, sounding like she was dragging her vocal cords across the gravel. "I lived and I will always live... as a god. Do you think you can kill me? I!AM!MAJESTY! The master of all magic!" A column crumbed behind her and fell right on top of her. It smashed on her back legs, shattering them. She let out a cry and started to crawl forward with her only good limb forward.

"It's over," Luna said, dragging herself out of the rumble she was pinned in. "You lost. Just die and fade away." A mad cackling filled the air as Majesty rolled onto her back. Blood and vile spew out of her mouth as she started to die. Luna limp over as she kept coughing and cackling.

"Fade away?" She said, blood puddling around her. "I'm eternal, I'm forever, and I've ensured that I will always be remembered! Look around you! I've brought my wrath to this world. I will be in your nightmare for decades to come and be the thing your descendants will whisper in fear for decades to come!

"That may be true... except for one thing," Luna said as she raised a hoof right over Majesty's head. "I'm a guardian of dreams and I will ensure that nothing is remembered of you. Well, maybe just this." With that, she brought her hoof down and smashed her skull. After that, Luna limped away to her sister and collapse beside her.

"Hey, Luna?" Celestia said, trying not to move too much.

"Yeah?"

"Next time, let's wait to have tea."

Author's Notes:

There will be an epilogue.

Epilogue: Wounds in the earth.

The world change after the villains of the past invaded the world. The princesses of the sun and moon had to be put on bed rest, forcing several of Celestia's students to have to raise the sun and moon. The city of Manehatten had suffered damage and losses in the hundreds, leaving a mark on the land for years to come. The griffins, yaks, and dragons morn the dead, and now tension between the races has grown. Those who fell during Bright Eyes's assault were given the highest honor and a statue was made on the spot Majesty had fallen.

No pony knew what happen to the one called Posey after she fled that day. But a rumor spread that a small inn ten miles from the city had a tired and scared pegasi stay for three days. She seemed to stay in the room, only pulling food in once in a while. But on the third day, a scream awoke the innkeeper in the dead of night. They open the small room to see it covered in blood and pieces of the stranger thrown about. They also found claw marks and the stench of sulfur filled the room. The innkeeper sold the place quickly afterward and it quickly became known as the haunted inn.

Starlight and Trixie were able to recover after two weeks of rest. Starlight quickly started to study time magic in hopes to prevent another threat like this from happening. It was intense work and didn't produce any results in the first few months. Trixie tried to get a refund from the theater for the movie the two witnessed before the event. She did not get the refund and she was banned from the theater for life.

The five elements holder all recover physically from their wounds but mental wounds were deep. Pinkie fell into a depression and didn't leave her room for two months, only eating what was needed to survive. Rainbow Dash started training late into the night, not sleeping for long periods. Fluttershy seemed to fall into a sort of denial, only recognizing the events as mostly a haze memory. Most experts believe her pushing to stay awake caused her to blackout for some moments. Applejack fell into a similar fashion to Rainbow Dash, falling into her harvest and working long in the night. With the exception that she kept an extremely close eye on Applebloom, making sure she didn't go too far from her eyesight. Rarity tried to fall into her work but it was hard as she developed a fear about scissors. She swore every time she looked at the reflection in the blade, she saw something looking back.

Twilight, however, would be plagued with nightmares for about a week before something happen. Twilight was expecting the same nightmare about the events when instead she found herself in a field filled with large flower shape like bananas and bubbles the size of whales floating by. Twilight let out a sigh and sat down on a bench made out of bubble wrap as she waited for the architect of this dream. It didn't take long before one of the clouds turn into a postcard of the beach and folded into an airplane with Discord in some sort of captain outfit. It made a whooping noise until a loud screech as it stop right next to her.

"Ahh, princess," Discord said as he hop off the plane and with a snap, turned the plane into a group of turtles that dance away. "I was thinking you want a little vacation from that mind of yours."

"Careful, Discord." Twilight said with a small smile. "Luna will get angry if you horn in on her job."

"Well, if she cared then she should of stop..." He stop short and noticed the sad look in Twilight's eyes. "She is still recovering from the battle?"

"She is getting back to watching the dreams tomorrow." Twilight said, with a bit of sorrow." I couldn't stop it, Discord. I had one job and instead, Bright Eyes died. My friends watch ponies die in front of them and then they watch as I almost kill Majesty. All the allies we tried to keep together and now they are strained because of this. I failed."

"Far from it, princess." Discord said as he summon a large cloud and turn it into blue cotton candy. He handed it to Twilight and pet her on the head. "Celestia didn't kill any pony. Although the leaders are angry now, since you didn't deliver the final blow, they see you as a protector instead of a killer. This will work to your advantage in the future."

"How can this help?" Twilight said, pushing the cotton candy away. "I never kill any pony and now, I'm responsible for a least six death. I thought I could end it peacefully..."

"That was never possible." A voice said behind them. Twilight turned to see a tired Luna, holding her scythe at her side. Before she could question why she was there, Luna brought her weapon up and aimed it at Discord.

"Luna, what are you..?" Twilight started to shout.

"That is not Discord." Luna said with gritted teeth. "Discord is not allowed in this realm and he knows this. The real Discord can only deal with chaos magic, not the dream realm. Identify yourself, villain!"

"That is something I don't miss about you, Luna." Discord said as he raised from the bench. "You always tend to rush to conclusions." Twilight moved away from him and looked over to Luna. She turned back to Discord with a confused face.

"What going on? Who are you?" Twilight asked, hoping she wasn't in danger.

"I'm who I claimed to be." He said with a tired voice and that's when Twilight notice that this Discord looked tired and his face was covered in scars and wrinkles. "Just not at the same time as your Discord." Luna lower her weapon a bit while Twilight watch as Discord moved slowly to look at the horizon in the distance. "I come from a time when the events that happen last week happen fifty years ago for me. Time magic is tricky, dear princesses. My events, however, ended much differently. In my event, Celestia killed Bright Eyes after he claimed to kill you. You let it happen because two of your friends
had fallen to his pack. Their deaths fuel a rage in both you and Celestia that carry over to when you started to rule Equestria. Because of this, Luna retired from being the protector of dreams due to seeing visions of death and pain. Last I heard, a sort of cult worshiped her. I believe I have saved the future by giving you that warning, Twilight."

"Don't you risk death by doing this?" Luna asked, putting her weapon down. "You are erasing an entire world by preventing the events that created it?"

"Unfortunately, dear princess," Discord said with a sigh. "The Dark Sun and her disciple will live. Things that happen here don't affect my world. We are streams that only pass by each other once in a while. I hope by saving this world, I save some pony I lost in my world."

"Fluttershy didn't make it, did she?" Twilight asked. Discord let out a bark of a laugh.

"No, Fluttershy did not make it." He said, looking a little angry. "They made a mockery of her and use her to push there..." He let out a sharp gasp and collapse to the ground. Twilight rushed to his side and tried to lift him. Instead, her hoof pass through him like he was made of dust. "As I said, our worlds only briefly touch. I only have a few more minutes. You must listen to me!" He grabbed Twilight by her shoulder and she felt like it was sand was holding her. "By touching the earth and using its magic, you awaken something. Something was asleep for a long time. You must be prepared for it. It saw all that happened and could not..." Discord started to fade, cutting off his message. "Watch for... It's been... for centuries. It wants to... all ponies by... their destiny. It lives in your..."

He faded away completely, leaving a very confused Twilight and Luna in a scene of bubbles and turtles. Twilight looked at Luna with one question on her mind. What was coming?

✨✨✨

Discord cried in frustration as he punch his cell wall. He was so close to getting his message out. He was starting to cast another spell when he heard the door to the prison open up.

"Did you succeed, my pet?" A cold voice asked.

"I could not, my master." He said mournfully. "The worlds separated before I could get it out. I can try again in two days."

"Don't bother." The voice said, the tone seemly neutral. "If they die, they weren't the right ones. And we will find the ones we need." The figure walked away but before it left, something is tossed into the cell. Discord looked to see a bloody cat-o-nine. "You know what to do, my pet."

✨✨✨

I tasted it. One of the six has touched me. Has awoken me. I can feel the wind now. I haven't felt this in so long. They trapped me in this prison because I could have saved the world. And they all died while I...

I'm now free.

Author's Notes:

It took me a while to finish this story. I do have a sequel in mind but also have another story that was inspired by one I read a while ago. So I don't know which one will be published first but I do have a planned sequel. This was inspired by a panel about the first Gen My Little Pony and how they had technically been darker and more violent than Gen 4. So I decided to write what I think would happen if these two generations met. And no, I will not do that with the other generations.
The next story: The Outline of the Enemy.