> War > by Vetnern > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > I. Twilights Big Announcement > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- As we... I mean you. Gaze upon the vast land of Equestria, you suddenly think to yourself. Why is the writer not writing about war and explosions. It's because I have yet to begin my tale of 'Cool Shit' and 'Random outbursts'. As I was saying... Something about Equestria... Vast... Ponies everywhere, you know the deal here. We begin by slightly turning our head to the left... and down about 60%. Can you see it yet? "Come on, Applebloom! We're late for Twilight's big announcement," said Applejack, her sister falling behind. "Applejack...Slow...down," replied Applebloom, slowing down to catch her breath. Applejack stops and glares at her sister, "We ain't even left the house yet, and you're gaspin' for air." The clouds get blown away as a familiar blue Pegasus launches her way towards Ponyville, she is carrying Fluttershy under her right arm, who is both confused and terrified. "I told you six times already! Twilight has some sort of big announcement," said Rainbow Dash "But can't we slow down?" stuttered Fluttershy. "We can't hold her up Flutters- Whoa!" Rainbow Dash narrowly avoids flying directly into a thunder cloud. "We'll be there in no time," she added. Princess Celestia is walking through Canterlot to make her way to the announcement, she stares at the sky. "There's change in the air... Is this your doing Twilight?" she had a strange feeling that something bad was going to happen. As the ponies begin to flood the town centre, tension begins to rise.amongst them, that might have been because they were very tightly squeezed together or it was probably Twilights big announcement. Twilight steps up on a podium and begins to tell the whole town her big announcement. "Well as you may or may not have heard, I have an announcement to make," she scans the faces of her audience, many look on in anticipation. "I've been having discussions with Princess Celestia about a new library opening in Los Pegasis. They need someone to run the place and could think of no-one better than myself," the crowd of ponies begin to become concerned. "I'll be leaving Ponyville at the end of the week," the entire town square gasp in shock. they stare at Scootaloo, her balloon just popped. Rainbow Dash flies up out of the crowd and comes face to face with Twilight. "You can't just leave, you're like... the coolest friend I have," she said, giving a whimpering lip and an upset facial expression didn't count for shit when Twilight Sparkle was around. "There are plenty of people cooler than me, Rainbow Dash!" Twilight now becoming agitated with Dash's close presence. "Rainbow Dash, It's my job to keep things organized. I promise I'll come back," she said with a smile. "Fine!" replied Rainbow Dash, "But, no hugs for you!" she crossed arms and flew off leaving Twilight feeling rather upset. She stepped off the podium and walked back to her library, head hung in disappointment. She arrives at her home and opens the door, she steps inside and is greeted by the warm face of Spike. "Not right now Spike Can you take a letter?" she asked, the look of disappointment still there. "Sure can do" he replied. "Dear, Princess Celestia. You yourself told me to learn the importance of friendship. But what good is friendship when you choose to leave your friends behind.", "Uh... Twilight" said Spike, "Not now Spike, continue writing" she replied. "There's no need to write, she's right here" He rolled up his scroll and departed from the area, "Is something troubling you, Twilight?" asked Celestia, "Yeah... Kinda. I just don't want to leave all my friends behind" replied Twilight, Celestia gave her a reassuring nod. She walked over to the window and gazed up at the sky again, "You feel it too. Don't you?" she turned her head to twilight, "What do you suppose it is?" replied Twilight who was walking to the window to take a look. "Change... I hope for the best, it's the kind of change we need" said Celestia, "Me too" replied Twilight, staring at the sky. "Unfortunately, no one has the potential organizing skills to run such a big library. Las Pegasus, could really use someone like you. Have a think about it and let me know what you decide upon" Celestia said as she leaved for Canterlot, "And Twilight. You should ask your friends if they would like to join you" she added. And with that, she was gone. Twilight had come a decision, discussing this with her friends first and then deciding was the best option. She set out to Sweet Apple Acre's to talk to Applejack, when she arrived she saw Big Mac carrying apples. "Have you seen Applejack?" asked Twilight, "Yup" he replied, pointing toward the back of the farm. "Thanks", she quickly made her way to the back, she stopped at the door and knocked, Applejack peeked out through the door. "Oh hey Twilight, what can I do ya for?" Applejack was now dragging hay to a pile just beyond the door. "I've been having doubts about going to Las Pegasus". Applejack quickly popped her head out of the door again, "Now, don't let us stop you from doing what you love, Twilight. If you don't like it, just come back". Twilight gave her a nod, "You know where I could find Rainbow Dash?" asked Twilight. "I ain't seen her since I was at the town centre. I'm sure Pinkie Pie knows, she's always begging Rainbow Dash to make cupcakes or something", replied Applejack. "Thanks" said Twilight, turning to leave. "Wait!" Twilight turned to Applejack. "Look. If I don't make it back to Ponyville, I wish you all-" Twilight wrapped her arms around Applejack, "I promise I'll come back AJ. And when I do... I'll never leave, you are amazing friends. I'd do anything for you guys" Twilight said her goodbyes and left the farm. On the way to Sugar Cube Corner, she came across Fluttershy. "Hey Fluttershy, have you seen Rainbow Dash?". Fluttershy just walked right by her, as if she wasn't even there. "That's weird" Twilight thought to herself. She arrived at Sugar Cube Corner and opened the door, "NO!", Poundcake flew out of the door. Immediately followed by Pinkie Pie, "Have you seen Rainbow Dash?" Twilight Asked. "Yeah, she's over at Fluttershy's place". replied Pinkie Pie, running after a mischievous Poundcake. Becoming rather frustrated with the whereabouts of Rainbow Dash, Twilight eventually arrives at Fluttershy's house. She knocks on the door, Fluttershy answers. "Oh, hi Twilight. Come inside". Twilight enters and see's Rainbow Dash sitting in a futon reading a Daring Doo book. "Rainbow Dash, I need to talk to you", Rainbow Dash looks up from her book, "What" she snapped. Twilight is rather shocked by her reply, "I don't want you to feel bad about me leaving. I will be back" she said with a smile. "Save it, Twilight." she continues to read her book, "You'll probably just forget about us" she added. "But I-...". Twilight tried to speak, Rainbow Dash closed her book and and rolled over, "Just go, Twilight" she sad. Twilight sighs and leaves Fluttershy's home, she looks up at the sky. "It's getting late, guess I better head home.". As she arrived at her house she could hear noises coming from inside, the door opens and she quickly hides around the corner. "It's not here" said a strange voice, "Make sure the blue one doesn't find out", they added. "What shall I do with the dragon?" replied a second voice, "Bring him. If we need answers we will use him". A loud bang was heard and everything fell silent. Twilight peered around the corner, she saw the coast was clear and she bolted into her home. "What in Celestia is going on?" she wondered. > II. Change > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- As twilight paced back and forth in the library, she heard a noise behind her. "Stay calm, I saw them too Twilight." Luna stepped out of the shadows, Rarity by her side. "I only came here to ask for a new book" said Rarity, she walked over to chair and sat down. "From what Rarity told me, they just suddenly appeared. We know about as much as you Twilight" said Luna, "Get rest, I will discuss what has happened with my sister. I assume she will want to speak with you and your friends tomorrow" she added. "Thank you, Luna. Goodnight Rarity" she said as they left, she closed the door and began tidying up the mess the perpetrators had left. She finds a strange note on the floor, she had never seen it before and it hadn't fell out of any of her books. It was in a strange language, yet, she could read every word of it... "The day will come, when this land suffers great loss. A pony will rise, sacrificing everything. Good pony or bad, they're going to change the world" "I'll have to show this to Celestia tomorrow. Maybe it has something to do with what happened earlier?". Twilight gathered the rest of her things and neatly ordered them together, she double checked the doors to make sure they had been locked properly. And she climbed into bed. The next morning she was awoken by a loud knocking, she answered the door to be greeted with the faces of her five friends. "Celestia wanted to see us" said Applejack, "Alright, lets head to Canterlot" replied Twilight. As they boarded the train questions started being thrown around. "Twilight, what is going on?" said Applejack, "Yeah, I cant really make sense of what Rarity said" added Pinkie Pie, "Rarity, you weren't supposed to tell them anything" Twilight snapped, giving her a look of disappointment. "Something happened last night at my home, Spike was taken. I really don't know anything more than that" said Twilight sadly, "I'm so sorry" said Applejack. "It sounds like someone had too much swag for breakfast" said Rainbow Dash from the corner of the car they were in. They arrived at Canterlot rather quickly and without hesitation and headed to see Celestia, as they approached the castle Twilight noticed the large number of increased security guards swarming the area. "Looks like Luna told Celestia" said Twilight to herself. They entered the castle hall and waited for Celestia to arrive. The double doors from the other side of the hall open and a furious Celestia walks out. She slowly walks toward the group and stops half way, "Twilight Sparkle, come here" she said in a demanding tone. Twilight walks up to Celestia, Celestia comes close and whispers in her ear, "Oh!" she said out loud, she looks at her friends. "How did I not see that before" Twilight's face was now in pure shock. "What is it? What's going on?" shouted Applejack. "Can't you see it too?" asked Twilight who began walking towards them, an angry face slowly becoming more obvious. "See what?" replied Applejack looking at her friends, "Oh!" she said backing away from the group. "That's right. What have you done with Fluttershy?" she was now standing face to face with Fluttershy. "What are you talking about, Twilight? You're scaring me" she said softly. "Your cutie mark, It has two butterflies". said Twilight, the rest of the group finally notice. "Well, yeah. I've always had that" replied Fluttershy. "No. Fluttershy has three butterflies". A smile appeared on Fluttershy's face. She jumped back, becoming very close to the door. Celestia uses her magic to make sure it is impenetrable from both sides. forcefields appear over the windows, the fake Fluttershy has no way of escaping. "We've been watching this land for a while now" said Fluttershy menacingly, "Why are you here?" Celestia shouted. "We are here to make a change" replied Fluttershy, "What have you done with Fluttershy?" Boomed Celestia in her great voice. "She is gone". The smile on Fluttershy's face became more sinister, "We tortured her for information, she was an easy speaker" she added. "You heartless bastard" screamed Rainbow Dash, she bolted towards Fluttershy."No, wait!" shouted Twilight A blinding light filled the room and a loud crack was heard. When the light faded Fluttershy had vanished, Celestia removed the forcefield around the windows and doors. "I almost had'em" Rainbow dash said while punching a wall. "There's nothing we can do for her now, we have to prepare for the worst" said Celestia, she walked out of the room. "Twilight... What do we do?" asked Applejack, [At this point ' Vida Cor Meum' starts playing as background music]. "I don't know Applejack... I don't know". Twilight replied looking at her friends in devastation. Birds fly past the trees of a town in silence The sky is calm, with a few clouds. Applejack walks up to the cross and places an apple beside it, tears in her eyes, she stands there for a moment before heading back to her friends. Rainbow Dash walks up, she sits down. "You know, I never did thank you for everything you've done for me". She pauses, looking down at a picture of Fluttershy, a single tear splashes down on it. "And now It's too late", "They're gunna pay for what they did to you, I promise", she clutched the floor, choking on her angered words. "No pony should ever have to be put through so much pain", she gets up and walks towards her friends. "Rainbo-" Applejack was interrupted by Twilight placing a hoof on her shoulder. Rainbow Dash walks right by her friends, disappearing into Ponyville. "She'll come around soon enough, lets head back to town" said Twilight. Her three friends agreed and followed. While on the way back they heard the royal voice of Princess Luna, "Everyone to the town centre, Celestia must speak with you all". They rushed into Ponyville and joined the crowd of people, Celestia flies down and everyone prepares for the worst. "Citizens of Ponyville... I have terrible news. We are at war!", the town centre goes silent. The looks of fear and disbelief are amongst almost every pony. "I would like you all to prepare for the worst, but I hope it will not come to that" she added. Celestia steps down and walks through the crowd toward Twilight. "Come with me. We're going to pay a little someone a visit". They had been walking for what seemed like hours, Twilight could see a dark eerie castle in the distance. "Why are we here, Celestia?". Twilight asked, "I'm going to punch that bitch Chrysalis. Right in the mouth" replied Celestia. Twilight had never seen the Princess so angry before. They arrived at Chrysalis's Castle of Cool Shit (CCoCS for short). Celestia stormed up to the front gate, a changeling guard jump toward her. Celestia jumped high in the air and performed one of the most beautiful roundhouse kicks in all of Equestria. She connects with the changeling, causing it's poor face to explode into a horrifying mess of blood and stuff. "And that my child, is how you show true power" Said Celestia, Twilights jaw was touching the floor. She continued on through to CCoCs, forcefully beating the shit out of any changelings that cross her path. She enters the castle and Chrysalis looks up from her throne, Celestia uses her Amazingly Powerful Psycho Spells (Apps for short) to pick Chrysalis up and launch her into a wall. She storms toward her foe and lifts her up against the wall with her bare hooves. "Celestia, what are you doing?" choked Chrysalis. "You know exactly why I'm here" shouted Celestia" Chrysalis was now struggling for life, "I assure you, i have no idea what you're talking about" she said. Celestia lets go of Chrysalis and she drops to the floor, gasping for air. "A few of my changelings have gone missing, they have been spreading rumors of an upcoming war". Celestia looks at Twilight. And then looks at the painting of Pony Lisa on the wall above Chrysalis. "I will ask you this just once. To join us and help us fight to protect this land" she boomed at Chrysalis, "If i refuse are you going to beat me up" Chrysalis asks nervously, "No, but i reserve the right to change my mind about that later. Do we have a temporary truce?" said Celestia, extending her arm out to Chrysalis. She grabs on and hoists herself up, "As friends we fight" said Chrysalis, "I'm not your friend... You're a total bitch" Celestia snapped. The look on Chrysalis's face was priceless... To be continued... [My computer broke, more will come soon I promise.] > III. The Army Rises (New) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The clouds rise as an army of changelings slowly ascend from nowhere, the night was dark and gloomy. Every step they took caused the animals to shudder in disgust, Chrysalis let out a deep slow roar causing the trees in the surrounding area to cry like little bitches. Princess Celestia and Twilight follow briskly, making sure they kept close watch on the changelings. "We are almost there, young Skywalker." Said Celestia, causing Twilight to raise an eyebrow in concern. "Skywalker?" Replied Twilight, laughing at Celestia's sudden outburst of nonsense. "I'm sorry, my student. I really do need to stop watching those damn Hoof Wars movies" Celestia chuckled as her thoughts trailed to the time she watched that porno where that one guy had a lightsaber dild- you get the picture. "I don't mean to interrupt you, but we are walking in the wrong direction" Chrysalis quickly pointed out the obvious by pointing her hoof in a north westerly direction. "No shit, I was planning this the whole time. It was going to be a surprise but you ruined it for everyone." Boomed Celestia Chrysalis said nothing and simply cowered in fear. After a long time of pointlessly backtracking, the group of mares found the right way to go. Hours of walking later and quite a lot of Changelings down due to sheer laziness, they arrived at there set destination. "So you really think he will help us, after all the pain and neglect you put him through?" Asked Twilight as they walked up to the lone house in the middle of nowhere. "If he refuses, I shall have to force him. We need all the help we can help" Replied Celestia. Celestia gave three loud knocks on the door, after a moment of standing there waiting for an answer she tried again. "Discord, we know you are in there" She shouted "Leave me in peace Celestia, I want nothing more to do with your sick obsession" Discord shouted back, a small grin appeared on her face at these words. "This matter is of far greater importance, Discord." She said trying to peer though the window of the house, a small spider landed on her nose. "Oh fuck, get it off, get it off!" she screamed, waving her hooves around frantically. A small click was heard and the door creaked open, Discord slowly appeared from the dusty shadows. "What is it you wish to speak to me about?" He asked, chuckling at Celestia who was now in panic searching for the spider which was just on her nose. "Ehehe- Anyways. We would like you to join our army, Discord. Ponyville has been attacked and we are now at the brink of war" She asked rubbing the back of her neck, still trying to find that spider. "War you say?" He questioned with a smirk on his face. "And who might you be at war with?" He added, snapping his fingers to summon a kettle filled with tea. "We don't know, but they killed Fluttershy" She replied, giving the others a concerned look Discord's face dropped, he dropped his cup and it collided with the floor, spilling tea all over his lovely dust ridden flowers. He clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, a fury of rage could be seen in his eyes. "They killed my only friend, I'll never let them get away with this. You have me as your ally Celestia, we will make them pay for everything." He stuttered, trying to hide his depressive tears. "Thank you Discord, we could use all the help we can get" Celestia's face content with glee right now. "Your very welcome Celestia, but can I ask why Chrysalis is here?" He asked, leaning slightly to the left to look at Chrysalis who was gazing at the floor scuffing at the ground with her hoof. "Like I said, we can use all the help we can get" She replied happily, Chrysalis looked up at these words and smiled. "Even if she is a total bitch" Her face dropped yet again as Celestia laughed at these words. "There is one more stop on our list, Princess." Said twilight unrolling a small scroll. "Sombra!" Said Celestia, her voice quivered in fear at that name. With that, Discord snapped his fingers yet again to summon a portal. "Let us travel first class, Princess" He gestured with a bow. The Princess chuckled as they all stepped into the portal and were transported to the outskirts of The Crystal Empire. Everypony's jaw dropped as they came face to face with a giant cube, it was sitting just outside of the city. There were strange symbols scatter all over the cube. As they looked beyond it the could see the flames and smoke coming from the wasteland known as The Crystal Empire. "Look's like they hit The Empire pretty hard" Sighed Discord, he quickly vanished and appeared on top of the cube. "Look's the same up here as it does on any other side" He added. "I'm guessing the cube has to be opened manually" Asked Twilight, also examining the giant cube. "My thoughts exactly, my dear Twilight" Replied Celestia with a sigh of despair. At that moment Celestia's horn began glowing bright, a letter suddenly appeared before her eyes. As she scanned through it's contents she gave a long deep sigh. "What's wrong Princess?" asked Twilight, walking over to her mentor. "What I feared the most has happened, Spike has gave me notice of several cubes appearing all over Equestria. They don't appear to be doing anything at the moment, just staying idle as if they were waiting for something" Celestia was sharply interrupted by Chrysalis. "Or someone" She said with a frown. Celestia raised a hoof and quickly slapped Chrysalis across the face. "Bitch, do not interrupt me while I am giving the reader information about whatever the fuck is going on here." She shouted. The blow was so powerful it caused Chrysalis to collapse to the floor. "You didn't have to hit me, Celestia" She screamed in pain, rubbing her cheek furiously, The act of violence was quickly halted by a deep voice. "What is the meaning of this" Shouted Sombra, black flames covering his entire body. His horn gave a sinister black shine as he stepped toward the group from the snowy fog. "Please, let me explain Ex- King Sombra" Discord said with a snigger, Sombra giving him an evil glare. "A new crisis is threatening all of Equestria and we honestly don't have a clue what it is" He added while shrugging his shoulders. "We need your help in defeating this threat to restore balance to this world" Celestia gave Sombra the scroll in which she had been sent. He scanned through it quickly and then averted his gaze back to Celestia. "Have their been any casualties thus far?" He asked, causing discord to begin checking the cube again. "Only one, The Element of Kindness was brutally tortured to extract information about us" She replied with sorrow. "Then I shall join your cause and we will win this war in which we know nothing about. But I have one question to ask first" He said, his eyes narrowing with a serious look on his face. "Ask away, Sombra." She replied "If I am to help, I will need you to release the spell your loyal Elements placed upon me to stop me using my powers" His hoof extended, a neutral look still present on his face. "Do we have a deal?" He added. Celestia thought about this decision before turning to Twilight. "Princess, I think it's safe to say we can trust him And like you said, we need all the help we can get" Twilight reassured her by placing a hoof on her shoulder. "Alright Sombra, you can have full use of your powers" Celestia's horn glowed with a bright white aura, a beam of light enveloped itself around Sombra and moments later, faded away. "Thank you, Celestia" He said, still holding that damn neutral expression. (Seriously, this guy doesn't even blink... Creeps me out.) "Let's just get back to Ponyville. We have much to plan if we are to win this and Chrysalis, I need you to take your Changelings to the Pool of Mirrors. This is going to be our only advantage" Celestia said as Discord conjured up another portal for Ponyville. "Changelings, roll out" Commanded Chrysalis, she was painfully slapped by Celestia again. "For christ's sake, do you know what would happen if Hasbro caught you saying shit like that" She shouted. "I'm sorry" Groaned Chrysalis, delicately rubbing her cheek. > IV. A New Hope > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "This place brings back fond memories which I remember well." Celestia said as the newly created army marched down the ramp towards the Pool of Mirrors, "Take the changelings to the pool Chrysalis. I have gone over the procedure with you so there shouldn't be any fuck ups. Now if you'll excuse me, I have something to discuss with my student." Celestia trotted over to Twilight and laid a hoof on her shoulder. "How are you holding up Twilight?" she asked, "You must be taking Fluttershy's death pretty hard." "I'm fine Princess." Twilight replied as she lowered her head in despair, "But I just don't know who could hurt such an innocent and defenceless pony. It breaks my heart because she didn't do anything to deserve what happened to her." Celestia pulled Twilight under her wing only to be interrupted by Discord. "I'm terribly sorry to interrupt you," he said, "but I found some random junk which I think you may be interested in." He snapped his fingers and a pile of miscellaneous items appeared on the ground in front of Celestia. "Well let's see what we have here." she mumbled, "I'm pretty sure we can find something of use." She began digging through the random pile of shit Discord had spawned. "Wires, screws, a Frisbee, a Spectral Tiger... wait, what's this?" Celestia mused as she began looking through what looked to be the pages of a story, "To Friend is Human?" "Eeek!" Twilight squealed as she quickly snatched the pages from Celestia's grasp before rubbing the back of her head nervously, her cheeks turning several shades of red. "That's uhh... private stuff." she said as she quickly used her magic to hide the story thirteen stories above a multi-story carriage park. "I see." Celestia replied with a bold smile, "Well here is something I could certainly use." she added with a giggle to herself as she picked up a small tin with a green leaf painted on the lid. "Hey Chrysalis you bitch! Are you done with the cloning yet? Some of us have shit to do you know!" she shouted as she rolled a blunt. "Princess, no!" Twilight snapped as she used a spell to banish the drug which Celestia held. Celestia's face turned sour. "If you do that again," she said coldly, "I'll call Nick Fury." She slowly walked up to Chrysalis, who was not aware of her close presence. Grinning, Celestia took a deep breath and placed her muzzle next to Chrysalis' ear. "HEY!" Chrysalis jumped about 20 hooves into the air and hit the floor with a thump before cowering in the foal position. "Oh God," she cried, "please don't kill me!" "I was just going to ask if you were done yet! There's no need to fucking freak out about it" Celestia snapped as she threw the Frisbee, which bounced off Chrysalis' face and made her cry out in fear again. "Maybe you're being too hard on her?" Discord giggled as he picked up Chrysalis and dangled her by the horn, "Just look at this innocent face!" He added as turned her head toward the group. Celestia crossed her forelegs and gave Chrysalis a disapproving look. "It's not my fault that the Queen Of All Bitches tried to ruin Cadence's wedding." she said. Discord dropped Chrysalis, who landed right on her face with another cry of fear. "I honestly don't know why I am even helping you guys," she snapped as she pulled herself up from the floor, "you are all being so mean to me." "Quit being such a pansy!" Twilight snarled, "We are doing this because the person reading it finds it hilarious!" She looked at Discord who was looking at you. He gives you a dominant wink which you take as a sign he wants you to be his bitch. You follow him to the gay bath house and begin a night of passionate sex like you've never had in your life. Discord cracks open a bottle of champagne and pours it over your chest while he breathes heavily on your neck and strokes your delicate hair— Now back to the story! As everyone arrives back in Ponyville, Twilight is greeted by her remaining friends. (Dear reader, it would seem I forgot to mention the sad fact that Pinkie Pie and the Cakes perished in a terrible fire. The children managed to escape, but unfortunately they were crushed by falling debris upon escaping the burning building. "Where is Pinkie Pie?" asked Twilight as she waved farewell to Celestia, who was setting off to make further preparations for the upcoming war. "I'm sorry Twilight," replied Rainbow Dash, "but that little bundle of fun accidentally burned down Sugarcube Corner, killing herself and the Cakes." "Oh my God!" Twilight screamed as she put her hooves to her face in horror, "Shit, I guess having too much fun really can kill you." Rainbow Dash immediately burst into tears of laughter. "That's funny Twilight," she chuckled as she wiped tears from her eyes, "you're really a hoot!" "Whats so fucking funny?!" Twilight snapped as she suddenly grabbed Dash by the mane, "Is this some kind of fucking joke to you? Our good friend has died in a horrible accident, and you're laughing about it!" With a scream, Twilight threw Rainbow Dash into a wall using her magic. The mare was knocked out by the resulting blow to the head. Twilight gasped and ran over to her. "Oh God," she cried as she held her close, "I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, I didn't mean to use so much force!" "Let's get her to the hospital." Rarity said as she pulled the two apart and used her magic to settle Dash on her back. "Wait, I think I know a spell to get us there faster than walking!" Twilight said gleefully as she shot up, her horn glowing brightly and a tense expression on her face. "Darling, you really don—" Rarity's words were cut off by a blinding flash of light. She screamed as Rainbow Dash fell off her back. As the light faded they began falling. A few seconds later they both crashed into a tree, with Rainbow Dash nowhere in sight. Twilight rubbed her head softly. "I really gotta practice this shit more often." She sighed as she turned to Rarity. "Well next time maybe you can write some instructions." Rarity spat sarcastically, "... where the fuck are we anyway?" The two of them looked down and saw Rainbow Dash sprawled out on the ground. They gasped as a strange bipedal creature ran over and kneeled down next to her. "Holy shit Dash," he said as he prodded her side, "are you all right? You look like you took quite a bea— hey wait a minute, aren't you supposed to be at the lake with Spark Plug?" Twilight gasped in shock. The noise caught the creature's attention and he looked up at them. Upon seeing Twilight, he raised an eyebrow. "Hey babe," he said, "what are you doing up there... with Rarity? And what the fuck happened to Dash?" "Oh my fucking God," Twilight screamed, "I sent us to another dimension!" She grabbed Rarity and climbed down the tree. Avoiding eye contact with the creature, she picked up Rainbow Dash and squinted her face again before being surrounded by another blinding light. The library door opened, causing the creature to turn around. He froze on the spot at the sight of Twilight. "Uh, Geo?" she asked quizically, "What's wrong?" Instead of replying, Geo simply passed out like a bitch. *** Once the light had faded, Twilight and her companions found themselves in the hospital. Rarity quickly found a nearby doctor and began explaining the situation. When she returned she picked up Rainbow Dash and gave Twilight and evil glare. "You do know," she snapped, "that you really need to get that crap under control." "I guess you're right." Twilight lowering her head to the floor as Rarity walked away. Her brief moment of sadness was shortly interrupted by a loud bang. She shot around to find herself face to face with somepony she thought she would never see again. "Twilight, there's no time to explain... but the future of Equestria lies with you. We have to go now!" Fluttershy was gasping for air as she said those words. > V. The Truth > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Fluttershy..." Twilight trembled, "we all thought you were dead!" "I'm sorry Twilight," Fluttershy replied, "but we really don't have time. They're going to realize that I'm gone any moment now." Fluttershy was rummaging through her saddlebag when she felt warm hooves wrap around her body. "I'm so glad you're back" Twilight sniffled as tears ran down her face. Fluttershy quickly broke away from the hug and continued rifling through her saddlebag. "Oh where is it," she flustered as she pulled out an object from the bag, "I knew I put it here somewhere." "What's that?" Twilight asked quizzically while wiping a few tears from her eyes. She got up for a closer look at the device Fluttershy had acquired. "It's a kinetic synthesiser." Fluttershy muttered, "I've seen what's inside those cubes. I know what they are capable of... just hit this one when it's time." She pointed at a big red button on the device. "When it's time?" Twilight replied with a puzzled look on her face, "Time for what?" "You'll know when that time comes." Fluttershy replied as she zipped up her saddlebag. "Fluttershy, I cant do this." Twilight mumbled. "What do you mean by—" "I just can't do this! I-I can't do anything! My best friends are dying all around me and I feel like it's all my fault. There has to be somepony else who ca—" Fluttershy raised a hoof up to Twilight's mouth, cutting off the rest of her speech. "You know my mother used to tell me great things while I was growing up. She said 'If you can treat everypony else the way you treat those animals of yours, then you're gonna grow up to be a hero'." She said, a tear rolling down her cheek, "Now pull yourself together Twilight... Your future isn't written in stone." She added, causing Twilight to give her a concerned look. "What do you mean written in stone? You are coming with me, right?" Twilight demanded. "I know what I have to do Twilight, you just have to trust me..." Fluttershy soothed, "I need you to press that button and use your magic to teleport me to these co-ordinates when the time comes." "Of course i can trust you," Twilight sighed in despair, "but I just don't see the others warming up to you so easily. After all, one of those things was impersonating you." A shadow quickly loomed over them as they were surrounded by Sombra, Discord and Chrysalis. "Uhh Twilight," Fluttershy whimpered as she backed away from the trio of towering bad guys, "maybe we should run." She screamed as Discord suddenly lunged at her. "Oh, Fluttershy. Is that really you?!" He cried in delight as he hugged the life out of her. "I forgot to mention that we made a truce and gained a lot of allies to help us fight." Twilight giggled as she watched Discord bounce around in joy. Celestia quickly appeared behind them, her jaw dropping upon seeing Fluttershy. Her hooves trembled and she quickly hid the small bag of shrooms she had tried with Luna a few moments earlier. "What the fuck is going on? Is it really her, if so we need to question you on how you escaped and more importantly, how you survived." she demanded. "I guess I could do that, I mean... it's not like I have an Equestria to save or anything." Fluttershy said sarcastically. "Thank you, we'll get right on this." Celestia said, "Twilight my dear, report to the town center. Applejack is giving the tactics to the soldiers and changelings we recruited. Go and give her a helping hoof, would you?" "I'll go there now. Oh, and Fluttershy..." Twilight gave her a soft warm hug which she kindly returned, "... welcome home" Twilight departed toward the center of town,the shouts of the soldiers as AJ gave her orders reaching her ears. I guess you could say that she was born to lead. A smile crept upon Twilight's face when it occurred to her. Everypony needed a leader they could rely on, a leader they could trust. Celestia couldn't have gave this job to anypony else but Twilight. As she arrived on the scene AJ called her up to the platform she was standing on. "Ah reckon these folks could use some words o' encouragement, Twilight." she said, giving her a nod of approval. Twilight looked around at the mass of beings before her, all waiting eagerly on what she had to say. "I remember standing here telling you that I would be moving away from Ponyville and that I would not be returning. I'm sad to say that this is still true, for I have a great task ahead of me that will require all of your strength and dedication. I know I've done some pretty bad things in the past, even going so far as to badly hurt a lot of my friends, but I can't change that." Twilight sighed and looked at Applejack. "No matter what happens, we will see this through to the end. We will fight for what we love and cherish and for what we can't live without. That is what friendship means to me, and I'll be damned sure to seek revenge on anypony who hurts my friends, even if that pony was me..." Twilight stepped down from the platform and grabbed a sword in her magical aura, the large crowd applauding in encouragement. "FOR EQUESTRIA!" Twilight roared. "For Equestria!" The crowd shouted back in hype. "Ya did good Twilight." Applejack smiled, "Looks ta me like Celestia really did put her hopes into ya being a leader after all." "A leader..." muttered Twilight, slowly looking at the crowd of happy ponies all raring to fight. She could see many familiar faces among the crowd, including faces that she wished were not there. The Cutie Mark Crusaders, Snips and Snails and the rest of the fillies and colts from the school were there. It broke Twilight's heart to see soliders fighting at such a young age — but now was not the time for remorse. "Miss Sparkle," screamed a Royal Guardspony, "come quick!" "What is it?" Twilight asked frantically, "What's wrong?" "It's the cubes ma'am! The cubes are opening!" the Guard replied before rushing back to the entrance of Ponyville. A thought suddenly dawned on Twilight. Why are all the cubes outside the cities and towns? Why not inside... As Twilight approached the group in front of the cube she could see the the gears and metal pieces slowly unlocking, like it was following a set timer. "Twilight," Celestia cried as she ran around in a panic, "Fluttershy has told me that we should evacuate the area, that we need to call off the war." "What's inside the cube?" Twilight said sternly, "Surely we can kill it?" "We can't kill it Twilight," replied the still panicking Celestia, "because it isn't even alive." "Celestia," Twilight drawled, "what is inside the cube?" "Darkness, Twilight." Celestia shuddered, "There's nothing but darkness in there. If you touch it, you will simply disappear." "Disappear?" Twilight repeated with a confused look on her face, "Disappear to where?" "From existence Twilight!" Celestia snapped as she grabbed the unicorn and pulled her away, "If that darkness touches even the slightest hair on your mane then you will disappear and the world will act like you were never even born!" "How long before the cube opens?" Sombra asked. "I don't know," Celestia replied, "but let's head back to Ponyville and prepare for the worst." "I'll stay here and keep an eye on the cube," Fluttershy chimed as everyone began to leave, "because I know what to do when it finally does open." "Alright," Twilight replied, "we'll be in Ponyville if you need us." Giving Fluttershy one last hug Twilight ran back to Ponyville, leaving the pegasus to her vigil.