And I beheld Thunder and Lightning, and an Earthquake

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On a day as radiant and clear as this, one could be excused for thinking that the beautiful summer afternoon would reflect the general mood in the little town of Ponyville, as it typically seemed to on most days of the year. Such was not the case today. For while the sky far above Ponyville was indeed clear and sunny, it was obscured from view by low hanging clouds of black smoke that billowed out from the south end of town. Or rather, what was left of it.

Pegasi flew back and forth across the sky, trying their best to disperse the smoke clouds, but to no avail. Every time they beat frantically at the smog, their collective wings would do little but threaten to fan the few lingering flames that licked feebly at what remained of the buildings below.

“We got a fire up in this building! Get a raincloud over here!”

“Be careful with that one, it’s our last cloud!”

“Our division can’t muscle through this smog! A little help, anypony?!”

“Don’t give up now! The fires are almost under control,” shouted Rainbow Dash, as she directed the teams of Pegasi to and fro. “Flitter! You and Cloudchaser take five of your fastest ponies and hurry to Cloudsdale. Grab as many rainclouds as you can and bring them down here. We might be able to punch a hole in this smog with some heavy downpours.”

“And if that doesn’t work?” asked Flitter.

Rainbow shrugged. “Well, we can still at least use ‘em to put out some of the fires that are left. The fire teams down on the ground could use some backup. Now hurry!”

The seven pegasi saluted and Rainbow Dash watched as dozens, maybe even hundreds of Pegasi flew all across Ponyville, ripping through the smoke clouds and desperately trying to maintain some order in the chaos. Sure, there had been fires in Ponyville before, but she had never seen one as large or as fierce as this.

It had all begun a few hours earlier. As was typical for her morning routine, Rainbow Dash had slept in until nine in the morning, headed out to clear the sky for the scheduled cloudless day, and then spent a few hours flying lazily about, occasionally pulling some fancy aerial manoeuvre. And then she saw it.

A bright beam of mulberry-coloured light, shooting up somewhere in the southern district of town, like a shining purple beacon. It had pointed straight up in the sky for a few seconds, drawing many a curious onlooker from around Ponyville. But the beam of light then began to ripple and twist, until finally it collapsed down towards the ground and out of sight.

But even as Rainbow Dash had tentatively flown for a closer look at the source of what had caused this strange purple light, there was a sudden flash and a shockwave that had sent the pegasus careening through the air, eyes clamped shut against the blinding explosion. When at last the flash had died down and she could open her eyes, all Rainbow could do was hover in place, dumbstruck by the aftermath of the explosion.

At the epicentre of the blast, a smouldering heap of rubble lay where a house had once stood. Any buildings nearby were severely damaged, with gaping holes blasted in the walls, and lumps of red-hot debris embedded in rooftops, setting the thatch ablaze. All around, she could hear the screams of ponies as they fled towards the town centre for help, collapsed weeping in the street as their homes were consumed by flames, or lay trapped in the wreckage.

In a flash, the pegasus had steeled herself against the shock of the cataclysm, and had personally flown to the town square, calling for anypony fit and available to help. And with all the town’s pegasi flying by her side, and Applejack leading the earth ponies and unicorns on the ground below, Rainbow Dash had led her volunteer rescue-force against the fires and the smoke-clouds, with all the strategic skill and finesse of a military captain.

Rainbow made to fly down and check on the ground teams, when a familiar voice called out to her.

“Rainbow Dash! Wait!”

She turned and saw a grey-coloured Pegasus flying towards her, her blonde mane singed at the tips, her askew eyes a picture of anxiety and fear.

“What is it, Derpy? I’m kind of in a hurry here, shouldn’t you be with your team?” Rainbow cried impatiently. Derpy Hooves nodded.

“I know, I’m sorry. But I saw you heading into town. Are you off to talk to the other ponies?” she asked.

Rainbow nodded.

Ditzy continued, “Well, when you get there, could you find out if the children are okay?! I mean, this whole fire was really sudden, and the kids would have been walking home from school around now and the way from the schoolhouse goes down that street and-”

“You’re worried about Dinky, aren’t you?”

She nodded again. “I just can’t stand it, not knowing if my little Muffin is hurt or in danger!”

Rainbow patted the worried mother on the shoulder. “I’ll see what I can find out, but for now, concentrate on helping the others! This lousy smoke is gonna need every pegasus in town to thin it out!”

Ditzy nodded, and with one last grateful smile at the rainbow-hued Pegasus, she flew back into the fray of smoke, fire and shouting.

Rainbow Dash, meanwhile, took off with all speed, flying to the ground where teams of earth ponies and unicorns carried buckets of water from the wells and streams, hurling the water at the flames, or anywhere that could potentially catch alight. Several of the more proficient unicorns stood apart from the bucket-teams, instead summoning up streams of water to blast forth from their horns. She grinned slightly as she watched another small patch of burning thatched roof go out with a hiss of steam. Two streams of water splashed next to the burnt patch, dousing the entire roof and halting the progress of the flames.

“Hey Applejack! How’s everything going down this end?” she called as she landed by the town well, where the farmpony was busy hoisting up another full bucket. Applejack nodded back as she passed the bucket to a waiting stallion, who galloped off to the burning buildings.

“We’re still pullin’ ponies outta the rubble, but otherwise things are alright. We can stop the flames spreadin’ any further but those two houses next to the collapsed house ain’t gonna be easy! Nopony can get close enough to put ‘em out!”

Rainbow frowned. “Well, the weather teams aren’t making much of a dent in the smoke, but we’re sticking to it! I got some rainclouds on their way from Cloudsdale, and once we punch a hole in the smoke clouds we can soak the street. Once the rooftops are out, I’ll get some pegasi to go in the windows with some water.”

“Well, y’all might wanna pick it up a bit,” Applejack replied, casting an anxious eye over the rooftops. “If’n those fires pick up again, I reckon we could have a town-wide blaze on our hooves!”

The Pegasus frowned too as she heard the grim news. “Right, well… keep going. We’re doing all we can to get the smog under control. What about the others? I got Fluttershy helping the smoke team, but what about Twilight, Pinkie and Rarity?”
Applejack pointed a singed forehoof towards the centre of town. “They’ve got a whole relief effort set up in the town hall for anypony caught up in the fire.”

Rainbow Dash threw a hasty salute and flapped off in the direction she pointed.

The doors of the Ponyville Town Hall flew wide open as Rainbow Dash flew in, screeching to a halt as ponies hurried to push the doors closed behind her before the smoke could wreak havoc inside as well as out.

“Always one for dramatic entrances, eh Rainbow Dash?”

The Pegasus chuckled a bit and waved to her pink friend, who was busy watching over a gaggle of young fillies and colts. “You know it, Pinkie Pie! So Twilight, how are things going this end?”

She looked over the dozens of ponies that had taken refuge in the hall. Families huddled together, old mares sat gossiping to eachother, the unicorns among them knitting to occupy themselves. In the centre of the pavilion, an impromptu hospital wing had been set up, with beds and gurneys ready for any injured ponies. A few of them were already occupied by ponies, though their injuries seemed mostly minor. A broken wing here, scorched fur there, bruises and cuts from debris, but thankfully nothing too serious. Any available nurses, doctors or any ponies with first-aid experience were hrurying from bed to bed, applying bandages and cleaning wounds and providing medical oxygen to anypony suffering from smoke inhalation.

And in the thick of it all, ticking away at a checklist that hovered before her, was the pony Rainbow Dash had been seeking. Her normally prim pink and purple mane was ragged, and the stress of the situation was beginning to show itself in her haggard eyes. But she put on a brave smile as the Pegasus had entered, determined to be the face of calm and collected organisation.

Twilight Sparkle beckoned Rainbow over to join her. “Hi Rainbow Dash. So how’s the firefighting effort going?”

“Well we’ve stopped it from spreading any further for now, and the rainclouds from Cloudsdale should be arriving any minute now. Then we can get some water up through the higher window and put out the fires inside the buildings.”

She cast another look around the crowds of ponies in the halls, before turning back to Twilight. “Hey Twilight, I know Applejack and Fluttershy are out with their teams, but what about the rest of the girls?”

“Well, Rarity’s over with some of the older ponies, I think,” Twilight replied, waving a hoof in the general direction of the seniors. “She’s trying to pick up some tips, I believe. Apparently knitwear is ‘very in, this season’. Still, she’s at least keeping herself occupied instead of fussing and worrying about the place… She’s pretty worried about her sister, though.”

“Sweetie Belle? Yeah, actually, Derpy asked me to find out if the schoolponies were alright. Are they in here too?”

“Yes. We thought it would be a good idea to keep them here until we can stop the fire, in case it starts up again and spreads. Don’t want any of them wandering off alone and getting trapped.”

“Gotcha. So what’s Pinkie Pie up to?”

As if on cue, there came a sudden loud pop from a far corner of the hall, and a spray of colourful confetti, followed by cheers and laughter of about a dozen young fillies and colts, as well as the loud giggling of somepony significantly older. Her bubblegum-pink mane was an instant giveaway.

“She’s just keeping the children occupied,” Twilight said with a grin.

They were interrupted as the doors of the town hall swung open, and a pair of slightly singed pegasi zoomed in. Skidding to a halt in front of Rainbow Dash and Twilight, they caught their breath a moment.

“…Okay, I got good news and… well, pretty bad, too… Really, really bad, actually,” one of them panted.

“Well Cloud Kicker, we could use some good news, so let’s hear that first,” Rainbow replied.

Cloud Kicker nodded. “Well, the rainclouds arrived, and just in time too. We managed to clear the smoke enough to fit the clouds in, and we soaked the street. The fire’s out.”

The entire town hall seemed to relax as everypony present breathed a collected sigh of relief. “So… what’s the bad news?” Twilight asked.

The young pegasus hesitated a minute, her mouth opening and closing silently. The other one, an older stallion, looked around the hall. “Is there a young filly in here named Dinky Hooves?”

Among the gaggle of little fillies and colts that were playing with Pinkie, the tiny, blond-maned unicorn raised her forehoof. “I’m over here.”

Cloud Kicker fluttered over to the young filly and stood in front of her, silent for a few seconds. “You’d better come with me. Your… your mother’s asking after you…”

Dinky’s curious smile slowly faded as she read Cloud Kicker’s grief-stricken face, and heard the slight sob in her voice.

“Why? What’s happened?”

“You… you have a sister, don’t you? By the name of Sparkler?

“Well, her real name’s Amethyst Star, but yeah she’s my sister. But I thought you said mommy was…” Realisation and horror then gradually dawned on the little unicorn’s face, and on the faces of everypony listening. “…M-miss? What’s happened to Sparkley?”

Cloud Kicker said nothing, but she crouched down and pulled Dinky into a tender hug, not even trying to hold back her tears anymore. The older stallion walked past her to Twilight and Rainbow, his face solemn and grim. “We were clearing away some of the debris at the epicentre of the explosion, and we found Amethyst buried under the rubble.” He scuffed his hoof against the floor hesitantly. “But by the time we got her out, we… we were too late.”

Twilight and her friends stood near the front of the crowd that had gathered on the street of the fire. Two paramedics lifted a stretcher onto their backs, bearing a still form covered with a white cloth.

The dozens of ponies stepped back to let them through the street. A melancholy silence hung over the crowd, except for a few muffled sobs here and there. But as the stretcher was borne through the street, several ponies were buffeted out of the way as Derpy fought her way through the crowd.

“Let me through, let me through!” she cried hysterically. “That’s my daughter! My poor Sparkley, that’s my filly!”
She walked alongside the paramedics, wailing and grabbing feebly at the blanket that covered Amethyst Star’s body. “No… no, my dear filly, please! Y-you can’t be… Oh Celestia, why…?”

Dinky trotted along too, stumbling slightly as tears blurred her sight, until they came to the ambulance carriage. The stretcher was loaded in, and the medics clambered in with it.

Rainbow Dash approached the sobbing pair. “Derpy… I’m so, so sorry. I-if I’d known Amethyst was in there, I wouldn’t have asked you to-”

Before she could continue, Derpy and Dinky collapsed against her, weeping uncontrollably. Rainbow flinched as the crying ponies clung onto her, but wrapped her forelegs around them and hugged back.

“I’m sorry. There was nothing we could do,” said a voice behind the three. They turned around and saw a unicorn stallion in a white coat, with a stethoscope wrapped around his withers. “I’m not sure how this all happened ma’am, but it wasn’t the explosion or the collapse that… that killed her. I can’t make an exact diagnosis without a proper examination, but I’d guess that when the explosion occurred, she was already…” the doctor trailed off, unable to say the word. Walking past, he patted Dinky on the head. “I’m very sorry for your loss,” he said as he clambered into the ambulance carriage and closed the door. The carriage took off down the street, leaving the ponies behind.

Twilight and Pinkie Pie joined Rainbow in comforting the two grieving ponies. “Come on Derpy,” she said quietly. “Let’s get you and Dinky home. The doctors will need some time to do a proper examination, and then you can go and see her. Okay?”

Derpy sniffed and rubbed her red eyes. “’Kay… C’mon Dinky, we’re going home.”

Dinky looked up through teary eyes at her mother. “C-can we go and see Sparkley soon, mommy?”

Choking slightly, Derpy tried her best to put on a brave face for her daughter, but to no avail as she was overcome by a fresh flood of tears.

“…Mommy?”

The ponies then returned to Derpy’s house for a cup of tea and a rest, and that was when they had finally explained it to Dinky. The poor little filly took the reality of Amethyst’s death about as well as any young pony would, weeping and wailing, and eventually crying herself to sleep. Having finally calmed her rattled nerves a little with a soothing cup of tea, Derpy and the girls put Dinky to bed and headed to the hospital together, with Pinkie staying behind to watch Dinky.

The four mares waited quietly in the corridor outside the mortuary. Derpy would sniffle and sob gently every now and then, but she had calmed down considerably and Rainbow Dash was offering a comforting shoulder to cry on.

After what seemed like hours of waiting, the door opened and the coroner, a grey-furred old mare, stepped out. “You can come in and see her now.”

Derpy stood up, but Rainbow put a forehoof on her shoulder. “You sure you want to?”

The blond-haired pegasus took a deep breath. “It’s okay Rainbow. I’ll be fine… I just wanna see her. I wanna see what happened to my little girl.”

The coroner nodded. “Alright, come on in.”

The four mares followed her in. The mortuary was a small room lit only by a bright neon light, with large drawers all along one wall and a steel table in the centre of the room, where Amethyst’s body lay. Derpy gave a choked sob when she saw her lying still on the table, but she refused to back down, and slowly approached the table.

“Sh-she almost looks like she’s just s-sleeping,” Derpy muttered, as she ran a hoof down Amethyst’s cheek. Indeed, the mare’s body was mostly covered by a white blanket, with only the head and forelegs poking over the top, and her closed eyes looked remarkably peaceful. In fact, apart from her pale complexion, the only thing unusual about the unicorn’s appearance was that the tip of her horn seemed scorched and blackened. Derpy reared up on the table and cradled Amethyst’s head in her forelegs. “My poor, poor Amethyst… How could this have happened?”

“We’re still trying to figure that out, Miss Hooves,” the coroner replied. “Physically, your daughter seemed to be in perfect health, aside from a few minor scratches which were probably from the debris. Besides, she got those after she… ahem, passed away. But there weren’t any broken bones, internal bleeding, there weren’t any toxins in her bloodstream, nothing fatal. As best I can discern, her heart just gave out for some reason.”

“B-but… but why? What caused it?”

The coroner shrugged. “I can’t tell. I suppose it could have something to do with these burns on her horn.”

“Yeah, I was about to say something about that,” Twilight added. “I’ve read accounts in old journals where a sudden intense surge of magic simply puts too much strain on a unicorn’s body, and their hearts can’t keep up. That would certainly explain the explosion too…”

“Excuse me, but who’s the coroner here?” the pale coroner said in a snarky monotone.

Twilight blushed and stammered, “Oh… heh, sorry. Leave it to the professionals, right?”

The coroner nodded. “If you don’t mind. But I can’t deny that your analysis seems sound. A unicorn with no physical injuries except for a burnt horn, found dead in the centre of an explosion. I suppose a large enough magical surge could have caused it.”

Derpy gently lay Amethyst’s head back down. “Um… I think I’ll go outside for a bit.”

“You okay, Derpy?”

“Yeah, I’m fine, thanks Rainbow,” she replied, wiping her eyes. “I just need some fresh air, y’know?”

“Before you go, Miss Hooves,” the coroner called as Derpy made to leave. “There is one more thing that I thought you might want to see.”

Derpy stopped and turned around.

The old mare picked up one of Amethyst’s forelegs and held up her hoof to the light. “I noticed that on the back of her left forehoof, there was something written.”

Derpy returned to the side of the table and squinted at the forehoof. “Oh yeah, I see it! Erm… I, uh, can’t really make it out though… wonky eyes and all…”

The coroner pulled out a large magnifying glass, which was connected to a flexible arm that attached to the side of the table. Holding it over the hoof, she muttered, “Blue ink…probably a felt-tip or a gel-pen of some sort. It’s a little smudged, but I think I can make out…4, 2, 6, 6.”

Rainbow scratched her head. “That’s it?”

“As far as I can see. Do those numbers mean anything to you, Miss Hooves?”

Derpy shook her head. “I dunno… b-but if I remember anything, I’ll come right to you guys!”

The coroner smiled. “I appreciate the offer, but I’d suggest you give any information you have to the authorities. I’m no investigator, just a coroner.”

“Don’t worry, Derpy,” Rainbow said, stepping forward. “Me and Twilight can look into this a bit more.”

“Oh, you don’t need trouble yourselves with-”

The rainbow-maned pegasus would hear none of it. “Really, it’s no trouble. We might not hang out much, but you’re still one of my friends.”

“She’s right,” Twilight added. “It wouldn’t feel right to just leave this be. We’ll find out what happened to Amethyst, you’ll see.”

Derpy smiled, though the first signs of tears began welling up in the corner of her eyes. “Thank you, girls, that means a lot. I guess I’d better get home… I just… I can’t believe that my little Amethyst Star is really… It really is t-too much to… to…”
Any further words were drowned out as a fresh flood of tears streamed down her face, and she collapsed to the floor, her face buried in her forelegs.

Rainbow Dash rushed forwards and draped a comforting wing over her shoulders. “Ssh… it’s okay. C’mon, I’ll walk you home. That’s it, up ya get…” Wiping the tears from her eyes, Rainbow helped her up, and the two pegasi headed out the door and out of sight.

“Poor mare,” the coroner muttered. “No parent should have to outlive their children.”

“Yes, it is sad. I didn't know Amethyst personally, but from what I've heard around town, she was a good mare. I wonder how little Dinky will manage… Oh, by the way, do you happen to have a pen and paper I can use for a moment?” Twilight asked.

“Hmm? Oh, sure.” The coroner passed a pad of lined paper and a pencil, and the unicorn began fervently writing.

“I’m just making some notes about all this. With all this information, it shouldn’t take me too long to figure out what happened. From the looks of it, it was just a simple magical surge gone out of control.”

“There’s a bit more to it though, Miss Sparkle.”

Twilight paused in her note-taking and glanced up at the coroner. The old mare had a small folder gripped in her teeth, which she deposited on the table and opened to a page. “Whatever did cause that explosion and kill this poor unicorn, it was strong enough to level an entire two-story building and cause considerable damage to the entire street. But going by these medical records, Amethyst’s magical power couldn’t have ever generated a surge this powerful. She could have easily damaged the building, maybe caused a partial collapse, but to destroy an entire building with an explosion of that scale? Even if she did have such a powerful surge that made her heart give out, this level of destruction is practically impossible with her magical ability.”

Twilight tapped a hoof to her chin. “So what could the cause have been then?”

“Well, despite that one issue, The rest of your theory seems to fit. All the other signs definitely point to a magical surge of some kind. If I were to guess, I’d think she was using some kind of magical enhancer or amplifier, and it went awry.”

“Right. Well, first thing tomorrow, I’ll start investigating. I’m sure I’ll find something!”

“Good luck, Miss Sparkle,” the coroner said as Twilight gathered her notes up. “I have a feeling you’ll need plenty of it.”

Twilight nodded and headed back out into the corridor, shutting the door behind her.

There Fell a Great Star, Burning as if it Were a Lamp

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Even for a public library run by an adolescent unicorn and a juvenile dragon, the Golden Oaks Library was unusually cluttered this morning.

Notebooks, wads of paper and tomes of all shapes and sizes filled the main hall of the building, stacked up on desks, on the floor, against the walls, wherever there was space. All of these new additions bore the marks of having been in a fire, with several books and papers scorched and blackened, a few even on the verge of crumbling to ash if handled too roughly.
And in the middle of all these papers and books sat Twilight Sparkle. Snout firmly planted in a large, soot-covered grimoires, a subtle redness creeping around the rims of her eyes, she barely acknowledged when Spike came in bearing a tray of food an setting it down beside her.

“Find anything interesting yet?” Spike asked after clearing his throat loudly.

Twilight barely raised her head. “Hmm? Oh… Uh, not yet, actually. I was hoping there would be something in any of these books they found in the debris, but so far it’s nothing too unusual. A few spellbooks, some cookbooks, and a lot of books about the proper care of gemstones, which are really fascinating you know. I bet you’d find some helpful tidbits in those…”

“Maybe, but remember, these aren’t our books. No sneaking hem into the shelves when nopony else is around!” Spike added mock-warningly.

“Heh, I know Spike, I know,” Twilight replied, playfully shoving him. “It’s only right that Derpy has the final say in what happens to them. But that doesn’t change the fact… some of these books would make great additions to the library if they weren’t so damaged.”

Putting down a charred copy of ‘Gem-Cutting Done Easy’, Twilight indulged in the simple lunch that sat on the tray beside her. Washing down her mouthful of dandelion and daisy sandwich with a swig of lemonade, she voiced her thoughts aloud.

“But we’re still no closer to figuring out just what happened to her. None of these books exactly stick out, and I’ve checked all the spellbooks and books on magic she had. They were all just basic spellbooks, nothing powerful enough to level an entire building!”

Spike sat down beside her. “Well, maybe there’s something we just haven’t got yet. The ponies from the cleanup effort are still at it, so maybe they’ll come up with something soon.”

“Or whatever may have held the answer got burned up along with the rest of the house,” Twilight grumbled, resting her chin on the tabletop.

Spike frowned. “Aww c’mon Twilight, stay positive. You’re too smart to let something like this stop you!”
He rested a claw on the unicorn’s shoulder. She looked up at him and grinned. “Ever the flatterer, eh Spike?”

He grinned back. “You know it. But c’mon, you’ve been at this for days now, you need to take a break!”

Twilight got up, stretching her aching limbs. “Aahhh, that feels good! You know what Spike, you’re right. C’mon, let’s go out for a walk, maybe it’ll help clear my head a bit.”

“Sounds good to me,” the dragon replied. But no sooner had Spike swung open the door and stepped out into the midday sunlight, did he walk facefirst into something grey and furry.

“Oof! Oh, I’m so sorry! You alright, Spike?”

There at the door, hoof raised as if about to knock on the door, was Derpy.

“Oh, hi Derpy,” Twilight called as she recognised the grey pegasus. “Good timing, Spike and I were just on our way out.”
Derpy stepped back as Twilight and Spike joined her outside the library.

“So, uh… how have you been?”

Derpy hesitated a moment before answering, as the three of them strolled down the street into town. “I dunno, Twilight… I mean, these last few days have been pretty rough on both of us, Dinky and me. It’s funny, you don’t realise just how many things remind you of someone until they’re…y’know, gone.”

Her smile faded, giving way to a melancholic sigh. “I can’t look at anything in our house without being reminded of poor Sparkler… A lifetime of memories, I suppose.”

The three ponies came to Ponyville’s market square. As on any day of the week, the square was full of ponies going about their daily routines, shopping, selling, eating, or just strolling around town. But as Derpy came into the square, there was a subtle change in the atmosphere. Nopony would have admitted it later, but a lot of eyes were upon the poor mother. The news of Sparkler’s death had spread quickly through the town.

“Yeah…” Twilight said, unsure of what else she could really say. “So, er… how has Dinky been taking it?”

“Surprisingly enough, not too bad,” Derpy replied. “I mean, she’s still pretty sad about it all… she and Amethyst were really close. But the other fillies and colts at school have been helping her out and being really kind to her. I heard from Cherilee that even Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon have started being nice to her!”

The trio chuckled aloud. Nopony would admit it publicly, of course, but it was pretty common knowledge among the parents of Ponyville that those two young fillies had a tendency to be a bit bratty towards other young ponies.

“Well, that’s good to hear,” Spike replied. “I’ve seen her out and about sometimes, and she usually has somepony keeping her company.”

Twilight smiled as they entered the town square. “And I’m betting Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo most of the time.”

“That’s really sweet of them,” replied Derpy.

But any further small talk was cut short as Pinkie Pie came careening into the town square with the force of a freight train.

“Twilight, Derpy! Omigosh, I’ve been looking for you everywhere! I was told to find both of you, but went to the library and you weren’t there Twilight, and Derpy, you weren’t home either, so I asked around and nopony had-“

“Pinkie! Slow down,” Twilight shouted over her ramblings. Satisfied that the pink pony had calmed down somewhat, she motioned for Pinkie to continue.

“So anyways, they asked me to find you two. I was down helping the cleanup effort for the explosion, and they found something!”

Derpy and Twilight started, ears perked to full attention. “Really? What did they find? Anything useful?” Derpy asked.

But Pinkie shrugged. “Dunno. They were still digging it out when they sent me off, but whatever it was, it’s heavy! I could see about four ponies all trying to hoist it out! They might end up needing a crane for it!”

“Or a particularly powerful unicorn,” Spike replied, casting a knowing glance at Twilight.

With a wordless nod, the unicorn led the way as the three ponies, and one dragon, hurried out of the town square and down the street towards the southern district of town. Behind them, a few curious onlookers followed.

As the rapidly growing group came to a halt at the cordoned-off site, it was apparent that whatever they had exhumed, it was eve heavier than they thought. Eight of the burliest stallions in town (And a few particularly strong mares, Applejack included) were hauling away at a rope, which looped over a pulley system, terminating at a large iron hook.

From the hook was hanging a large metal box, about the size of a dresser or a small table. Looking at the strained expressions of those lifting it, it seemed that the box either contained something of immense weight, or had especially thick walls. As it was slowly lowered down towards the ground, Twilight saw a door on the front, complete with a large dial surrounded by numbers.

As she, Twilight and Spike were allowed past the barriers, Derpy voiced aloud her thoughts. “A safe?”

Twilight nodded. “Looks like it. And by the looks of things, possibly magically enchanted. Even a safe as strongly built as this wouldn’t have survived an explosion like this.”

“But why?” Derpy asked. “Why would Sparkler have a safe this secure?”

The unicorn paused a moment, muttering to herself. “For privacy’s sake, I think we need to get this safe somewhere…er, safe, before we try to open it. Who knows, whatever’s inside might be dangerous if everypony is around when we open it.”

“You mean, if we open it,” Spike muttered.

Ignoring Spike, Twilight stepped forward to talk with the cleanup crew. Derpy watched as the unicorn was apparently asking them something. After a brief discussion, they seemed to come to some agreement. One of the crew brought up a large wagon, its back reinforced with metal plates, specially designed for hauling particularly heavy loads. The safe was lowered into the back of the wagon, where a pair of large stallions were yoked and ready to haul.

“What’s your plan, Twilight?” Derpy asked, watching the scene unfold.

Twilight nodded to the two stallions, who pulled the wagon away from the wreckage and through the crowd, down the street. “It might just be a gut feeling, but something is telling me that whatever is inside this safe has to do with this explosion. C’mon, we can try and get it open at the library… a few less onlookers and all that,” she added, casting a wary eye over the small crowd that was now gathered by the wreckage site.

Derpy nodded, and the two ponies trotted off after the wagon, Spike and the others following closely behind.

Spike waved goodbye to the two stallions as they hauled the wagon back into town, leaving the safe in the capable hooves of Twilight and her friends. With their combined efforts, she and Rarity were able to levitate the heavy box through the door and lower it down inside the library. By the time it was safely indoors, the sun was just beginning to dip in its journey across the sky. The assembled ponies gathered around it, eyeing it curiously.

“So, how exactly will we open this up?” Rarity asked.

Spike shrugged. “Beats me. You wouldn’t happen to know any safecracking spells, would you?” he asked with a chuckle. Tapping the safe, however, he found that his claw stopped just short of actually touching the surface of the safe, as if stopped by some invisible forcefield.

Twilight shook her head. “Well first we need to get through that forcefield. It’s amazing how powerful this shield is! Even I would struggle to put up a forcefield spell this strong, so how did a pony like Amethyst manage it… Oh, er, no offense.”

“None taken,” Derpy replied.

Twilight cast a few small spells over the safe, bathing it in her magenta aura, with no apparent effect. “A-anyway, as far as I can tell, Amethyst did cast the spell on this safe, but I’ll bet that when she did, she had some sort of enhancer to her magic.”
Just like when she apparently caused the explosion, she added in her mind. Her horn glowed once more, this time surrounding the safe in a cuboid shield of purple energy. On the side that covered the door to the safe, was a single hole, no larger than a grain of rice, near the bottom of the shield.

“Aha! There it is!”

The others looked closely at the forcefield. “There what is?” Pinkie asked.

“Spike, I need you to take down everything I say now. This could be hugely important to my investigation.”

The dragon obediently whipped out a quill and a scroll of parchment. “Ready when you are, Twilight!”

Twilight nodded, and continued to channel her magic into the spell as she spoke. “I have revealed the forcefield spell that Amethyst cast around the safe. I was worried that I’d have to forcibly shatter the spell, which could potentially damage the safe inside. But it turns out there is a tiny hole in the shield.”

“Why would she put a hole in a shield if it’s meant to stop anypony getting through?”

“Because,” Twilight continued, “If Amethyst ever wanted to get to her safe and whatever is inside, she’d have to deactivate the shield spell and recast it every time. That kind of casting would even put a strain on my magic!”

Stepping closer to the safe, the unicorn channelled more magic into the forcefield. The tiny hole seemed to ripple and wobble, gradually opening wider and wider. “So instead, she put a tiny hole in the shield, so that anytime she wanted to get to the safe, she could just enlarge the hole and access it through there. Like… this!”

Arching her head back, Twilight let her magic flow one more time, until the hole in the shield uncovered the entire front of the safe. “Derpy… what were those numbers that she had written on her foreleg?”

“Huh? Oh, they were…” Derpy tapped her chin in thought. “Umm… oh yeah, they were four, two, six, six. But what does that…?”

Before she could answer, Twilight was telekinetically spinning the dial on the front of the safe. A bead of sweat trickled down her face as she strained to keep the shield open as well as put in the combination. Four. Two. Six. Six

CLICK!

The lock came undone and the door swung open. Twilight released the hole and the shield spell returned, covering the outer casing of the safe, but leaving the open door uncovered. The three peeked inside as Spike reached in to grab whatever may await them.

Twilight liked to think she was prepared. She knew in her heart that whatever was inside had something to do with Amethyst’s untimely death. Surely it was some sort of bizarre and dangerous magical enhancer or some strange eldritch tome of forgotten magic.

But neither Twilight, Derpy or Spike were prepared to reach in and discover neither artefact nor grimoire, but…

“A diary?” Twilight muttered as Spike held it to the light. Indeed, it was a small lilac-coloured hardback book, held shut by a simple metal clasp on the front.

Derpy gasped softly. “That’s definitely Sparkler’s diary… I’ve seen it before in her room before she moved to her own house.”

Rainbow Dash scratched her head. “Wait, I don’t get it… I know Diaries are supposed to be all private and stuff, but isn’t it a bit extreme to lock it up in a safe with a shield spell around it?”

Twilight nodded. “I’m guessing that there is something dangerous in this diary that she didn’t want anypony to know about. I’m almost certain it will give us a clue about what has happened here.”

She lifted the diary up to reading level and began undoing the clasp, before pausing and looking to Derpy. “Umm… you don’t mind if we…?”

The pegasus shook her head. “No, it’s alright. I mean, if it’ll help us find out what happened to her, then go ahead.”

“Thanks,” Twilight replied. She undid the clasp on the front of the diary and opened the diary to the first page and read aloud:

‘I’ve never really been one to keep a diary before. It always seemed like a dumb idea to me. I mean, it’s all in my head already, so why write it down as well? But Lyra suggested it to me, and it sounded like it might a neat little project to do. Who knows, maybe it’ll help when I’m working with my gemstones?’

The ponies continued flipping through the pages, reading out any entries that caught their eyes.

‘So today I got a visit from Thunderlane of all ponies! He stopped me on the street and offered me this small emerald. Apparently Rumble had found it on a field trip and didn’t know what to do with it, so Thunderlane suggested giving it to me, “Since I’m Ponyville’s expert on gemstones” as he said. That flatterer! But anyway, so he gave it to me and trotted off just like that. It wasn’t anything special, just an ordinary uncut emerald. Pretty though, I’ll have to thank him later.’
‘So I was having dinner at mom’s house when a really nasty thunderstorm came out of nowhere over Ponyville! Poor little Dinky was shaking like a leaf all night. Good thing mom was ready with some lullabies which sent her to sleep after a while. Good old mom.’

Behind her, Twilight could hear Derpy sniffling slightly. Fluttershy put a reassuring hoof around her shoulders before they coninued with a more recent entry.

‘You would not believe what I found today! I was out trawling for gemstones near the mountains when I picked up something strange with my gem-finding spell. It took me a bit up the mountainside to this tiny little bush. But under the bush there was a small wooden box, and whatever had caught my spell was inside. So I dug it up and took it back home.
Inside was a tiny ruby, cut into a kite-shape. Apart from it being already cut, there was nothing special about its appearance. But there’s something about it… I dunno why but I don’t want to display it like the other gems I collect. I better keep it out of sight in my house for now.’

‘I can’t stop thinking about that ruby! Something just keeps drawing me to it. I keep taking it out, looking at it, trying to examine it.’

The readers looked to eachother as they read more of the entries about this mysterious ruby.

‘I made an amazing discovery! It turns out that I can channel my magic through the ruby and it increases my magic power enormously! I tried it out earlier today and if I hadn’t stopped myself I could have picked up my entire house! It’s hard to explain what it felt like to use it, but the sensation was amazing. I’ll have to keep experimenting with this.’

‘Experiments continued. I estimate that the ruby increases my magical power by over 1000%! Any unicorn who used it with their own magic could become the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria!’

‘I feel awful today. I was doing more experiments with the ruby, but I was interrupted by somepony at the door. Turns out it was mom and Dinky coming by to visit and see how I was. Of course I let them in and we had lunch together, but… it was horrible, part of me wanted to kick them both out, literally if I had to, and keep working with the ruby. I’d never felt that before, I physically wanted to hurt both of them!’

Twilight gulped as she read the entry. This was all beginning to sound a little familiar. And not in a good way.

‘So after yesterday’s visit with Derpy and Dinky, I decided to stop working with the ruby for a while. But by this evening things got weird. The ruby started glowing a bit, and -I kid you not- it started talking to me!
It asked what my name was, I told it. It asked me what I wanted most in life. I tried to ask the ruby who it was and how it was talking, but it ignored me and asked again. I’d never really thought about it before, so I just told it about my aspirations, to become the leading expert in gemstones in Equestria, and to be a good daughter for my mom. And maybe someday take care of a daughter of my own.’

Derpy gave a tiny chuckle. “Humble to the very end, that’s my Sparkler.”

‘And you know what it said? It said it was disappointed. It said that I had so much potential, and if I wanted to, I could be the most powerful unicorn in all of Equestria, even more powerful than the Princesses! I kinda doubt that, but I let it continue.
It said that it had been dormant (Whatever it meant by that) for millennia now, and it had only recently awoken when another pony found it and used its power for their own gain. It sounded almost proud of this pony, whoever they were. But apparently they were forced apart and it had gone dormant again, until I found it.’

Twilight was beginning to shake with worry. It sounded eerily like… but it couldn’t be! Could it?

‘It told me again about how I could be all-powerful and the mightiest pony in Equestria, and all I had to do was to use the ruby, and obey what the voice said to me. It sounded like a total load to me, but I think another part of me actually believed it. It sounded too good to be true, and I kept feeling this strange compulsion to put it on somehow, or to hold it to myself. I really dunno what to do…’

Twilight turned to the last entry in the diary. Looking at the date, she saw that this was the entry from the day before the accident.

‘I can’t stop it anymore. It speaks comforting words to me and encourages me. I want to try it. I will try it. I have no idea what might happen when I do try it and let the voice in, but if it goes right, I can become stronger than I ever was before. I’ll show them…

Sorry, dunno what came over me there. I guess I lost my head there for a second. Anyway, I have no idea what’s gonna happen when I use this ruby. If things go wrong or something bad happens, then to whomever finds this diary I leave this message:

1. Tell my family that I love them. I may have been adopted into the Hooves family but Derpy was the best mom I could have ever asked for, and little Dinky was the greatest little sister in the history of little sisters.
2. Leave my stuff to my family. They can decide what happens to my stuff.'

Twilight could see a few tears welling up in Derpy’s eyes, and gave a gentle squeeze to her shoulders. Derpy smiled back and they continued reading.

'3. This is important, and I man really important. If you find that ruby, do NOT use it. Don’t listen to it, don’t put it on, don’t use it for magic. Put it away, bury it, drop it in a lake, just keep it away from people. I feel like I’m taking a huge risk by using it, and I don’t want anypony else getting hurt if something goes wrong.

When I agreed to use it, the ruby changed. It actually turned into some kind of necklace, with the ruby in the centre of the pendant. On the next page is a sketch of the necklace for reference. There’s no turning back now.
If things go wrong, then Faust have mercy on my soul.'

Part of her mind did not want to turn the page and see what lay before them. But Twilight steeled herself and flipped the page. Her heart sank and the colour drained from her face as her fear was realised.

The sketch showed a long band of interlocking square segments, forming the chain of the necklace. In the middle was a large pendant, made from some dark grey metal, in the shape of a large upside down triangle. The ruby was embedded in the centre. The head of a pony emerged from the top edge of the triangle, facing the side with a red eye made from a smaller ruby. And from the sides spread two iron wings, tipped with ruby edges.

“Is that…? It can’t be…” Spike stammered as he saw the sketch.

Twilight nodded fearfully. “It is… The Alicorn Amulet.”

Outside the library, darkness had fallen over Ponyville. A few streetlamps glowed gently in the moonlight, shining the way home for anypony out and about this time of night. But though the streets and houses, all seemed quiet.

In the southern district of town, the wreckage of the late Amethyst Star’s house lay cordoned off and still. But deep under the rubble, something stirred.

A single, faint pulse of red, somewhere far below. It slowly grew in intensity, as the source of this glow rose up from among the wreckage. Finally, a tiny ball of crimson light emerged, hovering a few feet off the ground.

A low voice emanated from the red ball of light, whispering ethereally in the darkness. “Disappointing,” it said. “How disappointing. I must find another.”

The light rose up into the sky, hovering in place hundreds of feet above Ponyville, before gliding through the air towards the eastern mountains, and the city of Canterlot.

“One more suitable.”

“Out, out out!”

Prince Blueblood’s voice echoed through the corridors of Canterlot Castle, awakening everypony within hearing range. An ornately decorated door swung open and a young stallion found himself careening through the door and slamming face-first into the opposite wall. He was followed shortly by a silver platter and a ceramic tea-set, which showered the poor stallion in scalding hot tea.

Blueblood appeared in the doorway, dressed in a silvery dressing-gown and slippers. He frowned at the hapless bellhop, pointing an accusing hoof. “How many times must I tell you! I only take brown sugar in my tea, you useless whelp!”

“I-I’m sorry s-sir… I won’t m-make that mistake again, I p-promise…” he stuttered back, picking pieces of shattered china from his mane.

“You’d better not, or so help me, you’ll find yourself on the streets with the lowlife of Canterlot, where you belong!” The white-furred unicorn shouted. “Consider yourself lucky!”

The bellhop bowed frantically as he began backing down the corridors “I will sir, thank you sir. W-wil that be all, sir?”

Blueblood sighed, and ran a hoof through his mane melodramatically. “Yes, yes that will be all, thank you. Now just… Just go!”

The young stallion galloped away, and Blueblood slammed his door shut after him with another angry sigh. Stomping through his private chambers, he flopped down on his bed, gazing up at the ceiling.

“Honestly, when one is made to serve his superiors, the least one can do it get their superior’s orders correct! Brown sugar, is that really so hard?!” he said aloud to nopony in particular.

Rolling over on his side, he was silent for a moment. I bet they wouldn’t have gotten it wrong if one of the Princesses had made the order. Just because they’re the rulers of the country, they get all the special treatment. But what about me? Am I not royalty as well?! And yet that foppish Fancypants holds more sway in Canterlot than myself!

Blueblood grumbled to himself. “No respect at all… Why if I had the power, I’d show them all. I’d make them show me the respect I deserve! The commoners, the nobles, the Princesses, everypony…”

“That can be arranged.”

The prince shot upright with a start. His wide eyes scanned his room deftly. “Who said that? Is there somepony in here?!”

In the low light, Blueblood could see nothing out of the ordinary. But something caught his attention, just out of the corner of his eye. Over on his desk, lying by his antique money chest, was a single, solitary ruby.

“Huh, that wasn’t there before…” he said to himself, getting up and approaching the desk. But as he sat down and examined the gem, it began to glow.

“Prince Blueblood, I presume.” Said the voice again, as the rub puled with a red light. Blueblood stumbled back in shock.

“How… how do you know my name? And what are you?!”

“All in good time,” the voice replied. “I heard what you were saying.”

“About what?” Blueblood asked, an eyebrow raised.

The ruby glowed again. “About your desire to be recognised as royalty, and your wish for power. I was especially intrigued by what you said about the Princesses.”

“Oh no…” The unicorn gulped. “You’re some kind of spell they’re using to watch me, aren’t you! I didn’t mean it, Auntie Celestia! I was just kidding!” he shouted aloud, hoping they hadn’t taken it the wrong way.

“Blueblood, I have no such connection to the Princess, don’t worry,” the voice replied. “And besides, we both know that that isn’t true, is it?”

Blueblood sat down again, pushing his mane out of his face tiredly. “Yes, I suppose you’re right… I do resent the Princesses for their power. I mean, I’m royalty as well, aren’t I? Don’t I deserve some shred of respect? And who gets all the respect and power?!”

He dramatically pointed a hoof at a portrait that hung from his wall. It was a beautiful painting of the royal family, with the Princesses stood in the centre. On their right stood Cadance, Princess of the Crystal Empire, and her husband, the unicorn Shining Armour. And on their left, handsomest of the bunch, was himself.

“Them. The Princesses, with all the control of Equestria and all the power. The Princesses get all the power and control, and I, the Crown Prince, am the one who stands by and just looks pretty.” He grinned a moment. “I do the job well, but still! I just wish I could show them that… I dunno, that I’m capable of ruling as well.”

Blueblood slumped forward, resting his chin on the desk, eyes closed. Through his eyelids, he could see the ruby glowing again.

“I could make that happen.”

He opened a single eye. “How? What can you do?”

“I can give you all that,” the voice from the ruby replied “All the strength, all the glory, I can help you gain all that. Money, fame, power, mares, everything your heart desires.”

The prince chuckled. “How can you do that? You’re just a… a talking ruby!” Never thought I’d say that, he thought.

“I have my ways. So, what say you?”

Silence reigned in the dimly-lit bedroom as Blueblood pondered the ruby’s proposition. It promised power, but at what cost?

“What’s the catch?”

“There is only one,” it replied. “If I am to help you, I need you to help me. There are others I wish to find, and give my gifts to.”

“Others? Wait, you mean you’re helping other ponies gain this sort of power, not just me?”

“Yes, but yours is still the strongest among them. I will make all of Equestria kneel at your hooves. And all you have to do, is kneel at mine.” The voice said.

Blueblood paused once more. “But why? Why do you want to help me gain so much power?”

The voice was silent a moment before replying. “Because I too have suffered injustice from those Princesses. I was once a powerful king, many eons ago. I ruled by people justly and truly. But those Princesses, Celestia and Luna, betrayed me. They challenged my rule and overthrew me. And now I want to see justice done. Together, you, me and the others can show all of Equestria just what the Princesses really are like. So, do we have a deal?”

The unicorn prince got to his hooves, only to ceremoniously bow down before the ruby. As tendrils of light emerged from the ruby, turning into iron bands that wrapped gently around him, fastening the Alicorn Amulet around his neck, he opened his eyes, and saw his face in the mirror. His eyes had taken on a subtle red glow, as well as his magic aura, which now glowed crimson. Maybe it was a trick of the light, but it almost seemed as if misty tendrils of red energy were streaming out from his eyes.

“Deal.”

The Star Opened the Abyss, and Smoke Poured Out of It.

View Online

“Prince Blueblood! This is unexpected!”

Summer Mane did not even notice as her spectacles dropped from her snout as she stared in surprise at the stallion who just walked in. Of all the ponies to visit the Canterlot Library, the royal archivist thought to herself, I never thought I’d see the day when that blonde blowhard Blueblood would come to visit!

Prince Blueblood nodded slightly to the middle-aged mare, gazing around at the many chambers and hallways of the Canterlot Library. The last time he had been here he was no more than seven years old. In the fifteen years since his last visit, the old place had not changed a bit.

“Well, don’t get used to it. I’m just here to pick some books up and then I’ll be on my way. Tell me, which way is it to the Starswirl the Bearded wing?”

Summer raised an eyebrow as she put her glasses back on her snout. “The Starswirl the Bearded wing? What’s your interest in those kinds of books, may I ask?”

“None of your business!” The stallion responded with a glare.

“Not the way I see it,” she replied. “Being the Royal Archivist for this library, when somepony wants access to a restricted section it becomes my business.”

A restricted section, eh? Sounds promising, Blueblood thought to himself. He sighed, rubbing his temples. “Well, if you must know, I’m doing a little private study of my own. I’ve heard that that this particular wing has some rather interesting documents hidden away inside.”

Summer Mane was sceptical, however. “And I trust that this is all purely academic study, correct?”

“But of course.”

Still not quite convinced, the old librarian pointed down a hallway on the left. “Straight down there, third door on the right. Here’s a key.” Her horn glowed, and behind her a single key on a hook began to glow, and levitated to Blueblood, who took it in his own magical grip. “And the documents in there are reference only!”

With a silent nod, the prince headed down the hallway, Summer Mane watching from behind her desk.

“Huh, I never pictured him to have a red magical aura…”

Locking the bars behind him, Blueblood glanced out into the corridors. Certain that he was alone, he tapped a forehoof on the red jewel in the centre of the Alicorn Amulet, which sat hidden under his starched shirt-front and bowtie. “Okay, we’re here. So what are we looking for?”

The ruby glowed as the voice replied, “Eons ago, I hid some of my most prized research on magic in this wing of the archives. With any luck they should still be in here.”

“Well whatever they are, can we please hurry up? This dusty air is going to wreak havoc on my mane!” Blueblood muttered as he began searching.

“Very well. Hold still a moment, please.” The ruby pendant began to glow brighter, a similar red glow surrounding a pencil and blank sheet of parchment tat sat on a nearby desk. The pencil rose up on its point, and began sketching out a crude pentagram shape, point facing downwards, with a small circle at each point, and a larger circle in the centre. “I need you to find any documents that have this symbol on them. Don’t bother with the bound books, just look among the scrolls and loose sheets.”

Blueblood gaped at the dozens of shelves, filled to overflowing with papers, scrolls and tomes. “But that could take hours! Isn’t there an easier way?”

The voice replied, “Remember, with me around your neck, your magical power is near limitless. Did you never learn something as simple as a seeking spell?”

The unicorn sniffed. “With my royal duties, how would I ever find the time for something to trivial?”

The ruby glowed faintly as the voice muttered something that may have been “Insufferable little…”, before continuing. “I guess it’s up to me then. Do me a favour and look at that symbol for me, would you?”

Blueblood shrugged, and stared intently at the five-pointed glyph. The Amulet began to glow bright again, and for a few seconds nothing happened. Then, a dozen small globes of red light emerged from the centre of the ruby, and fly out throughout the room, hovering through the air before coming to a stop in front of various shelves and scrolls.

“There they are! Still hidden well away,” the voice said. “Fetch them for me, Blueblood.”

“You seem to be able to do these things yourself, why don’t you do it?” he said, tapping the ruby.

“Because if we are to work together, we need to share the workload. I’ve done my part for now, so get searching!” the Amulet replied.

Blueblood groaned, but begrudgingly went to work. He went to each glowing red light, which floated above certain scrolls and sheets of paper, and pulled the document out and put it on the table in the middle of the room. When he had extracted it, the globe of light hovering over it extinguished itself and vanished.

About fifteen minutes later, a heap of twelve scrolls lay on the table, each of them bearing the mysterious symbol somewhere upon it. “That seems to be all of them. So anyways, exactly what is it we’re looking to study here?” Blueblood asked.

“Tell me, Prince Blueblood, what do you know about the Elements of Harmony?”

The prince raised an eyebrow, unsure where this was going. “Well, only what the Princesses tell me. That they’re some sort of ancient magical artefacts, each worn by a designated bearer. And when they’re all together, they can harness the inherent Harmony within each bearer or something like that. Why?”

The Amulet paused before answering. “Well, at one point back when I was alive, I too had studied the so-called Magic of Friendship, and its power. But in doing so, I discovered a far greater power.”

Blueblood suddenly came to attention. More powerful than the Elements of Harmony? Was such a thing possible?!

“While it is true that feelings of love and friendship can be used to tap into extremely powerful magic,” the voice continued, “it is but one end of the Emotional Spectrum, from which we unicorns draw our power. In the centre of the Spectrum is the simple Willpower that can be used to manifest desired outcomes in the form of basic unicorn magic. Further to one end are the magicks of Friendship and Love, which are harnessed by those with particularly strong ties to them.”

“Like the Elements of Harmony,” Blueblood interjected. “They can harness the different aspects of Friendship as a power source. And as for Love, I’ve seen that magic in action before as well,” he added, thinking back to the royal wedding that had occurred not long ago.

“Correct, you catch on pretty quickly,” the voice said, earning a proud smirk from Blueblood. “But the other end of the spectrum is where my greater studies lay. In the harnessing of the magic of Dissonance, the antithesis of Harmony.”

“Dissonance? I can’t say I’ve heard of that magic before…”

“You wouldn’t have. When they overthrew me, the Princesses in their ‘infinite wisdom’ attempted to destroy all my writings on the subject. All that remains are these scrolls that lie before us now.”

The unicorn frowned as he opened up one of the scrolls and skimmed through it. “… Are you sure these are the right scrolls? This one is nothing but gibberish, it’s like whoever wrote these was just writing random sentences!”
The ruby flickered as the voice actually chuckled. “A most effective method of encoding my research. The spell we need is in these scrolls, you just need the key to crack the code.”

“Yes, and what, pray tell, is the key then?” Blueblood asked impatiently.

“It’s quite simple if I do say so myself: the only things you need bother yourself about are the first, third and fifth words of every other sentence. The rest is just filler.”

Blueblood rolled his eyes. This is gonna take a while.

And so Prince Blueblood set to writing. Carefully reading through each of the scrolls, jotting down each of the specific words as indicated by the voice’s code. Slowly, word by word, he found that a coherent essay was beginning to form. It seemed to detail the individual Elements of Dissonance, which could each be tapped into by someone especially in tune with said Element. Each Element was an antithesis to one of the Elements of Harmony, acting as a counterbalance to its magic. It did not take him long at all to figure out that not only was he a bearer of such an Element, but that it was the antithesis of the Element of Generosity: The Element of Greed.

The more he thought about it, the more Blueblood found that, as horrible as it may sound, he really was greedy. And why shouldn’t I be?! I’m royal, handsome, and a unicorn no less! Why shouldn’t I have access to the finer things in life? I was born into it, destined to live in luxury! It’s my right! So why not indulge myself?

The more he thought about it, the more the Element of Greed seemed to suit him. And the more he liked the sound of it.

“There… Done!”

Blueblood dropped the pencil on the table with a small clattering sound. His head flopped forwards to join it, resting his chin on the cold wooden surface. The twelve scrolls lay opened and read beside him, and before him laid a small collection of sheets, each covered with hastily-scrawled text, detailing the natures of Dissonance, the Elements, and how to summon them.

“Very good, Blueblood,” the voice said from within the pendant. “Now, we can put our plan into motion, and soon enough the other Bearers will join us.”

“But… who are the others?” he asked.

The voice replied, “I don’t know. That’s what this ritual does: it will create the other Elements, and summon their bearers to us. But who these Bearers are is a mystery to me.”

Blueblood stood up, stretching his aching limbs. As his joints crackled and popped, he lifted up the sheets of writing, folded them up, and slipped them into a small pocket on his shirt-front. “So, the next step is performing this ritual, then?”

“Indeed,” the voice said. “And when they are gathered, we begin the next phase of my plan.”

“And when that’s done, you’ll keep your side of the bargain? You’ll grant me that power and glory that you promised me?” The unicorn asked, his voice high with excitement.

“More power than you could dream of. The Princesses will kneel at our… I mean, at your hooves.”

Blueblood rubbed his hooves together gleefully. “Then let’s not waste any more time! What’s the first step?”
He scanned over one of the sheets of paper listing the tools and ingredients to fuel the ritual. Two ingots of iron… A silver dagger… One clear cut diamond for each Element... “First stop, the jewellers.”

That afternoon, any of the ponies wandering through the streets of Canterlot would have come across a rather unusual sight. For Prince Blueblood was seen out and about, not only without an escort of guards, but actually shopping! It was a rare sight indeed to see royalty actually shopping for themselves! And his rather unusual purchases only added to the mystery. Six diamonds from a jeweller, a dagger with a silver blade and two ingots of iron from a blacksmith, a bag of table-salt from the market, and various other odd materials. But nopony dared question the noble prince or his purchases, just letting him go about his rather bizarre business. And in typical Blueblood fashion, the young prince did not shy from the odd glances he got from the public. Rather, he relished in it.

Finally, Blueblood had collected all his items that, according to the papers, he would require for the ritual. Most of what the papers described, he did not understand much himself. On the agendas of an important young royal like himself, learning the ways of magic were not exactly top priority. He knew the basics of spells and magic, but he had never gone out of his way to learn the ways of magic.

And rituals were the most alien of all for him. Most spells performed by unicorns could be accomplished just by learning the spell and casting it with one’s horn. But when it came to more complex and dangerous spells, certain rituals and procedures were involved. Many required certain ingredients to contain the magic, or the use of certain items, or incantations and ritual circles. However, with advances in the research and development of unicorn magic in recent years, the use of rituals was a practice on its way to becoming obsolete.

So it is easy to imagine Blueblood’s confusion as he followed the instructions on the papers. In a sheltered grove of trees just outside the walls of Canterlot, he set up the ritual. Using the silver dagger, he traced a circle in the dirt, the same symbol that marked each of the hidden scrolls, the pentagram and six circles. At each point of the pentagram, he would dig a shallow hole with the dagger, and bury one of the diamonds, after pouring a mix of salt and wine into each hole. The two iron ingots were placed on the left and right of the middle circle.

With all the ingredients in place, Blueblood stood in the central circle of the ritual. It was just coming to sunset, the time that the ritual was supposed to take place. “Are you ready?” the voice asked from within the Amulet.

The unicorn took a deep breath. Now or never, then. He nodded.

“Then begin to focus your mind. Dwell upon every lie you’ve ever told, and every betrayal of trust. Remember every time you have sought only your own gain above others. Remember every moment of cruelty and suffering. Remember every moment when your heart ached so much that all you wanted to do was die, just so you would not feel so heartbroken again.”

Blueblood focused. Heeding the voice’s words, he dug through his memories, seeking out anything that would conjure up such emotions. In his mind he saw flickers, distant and more recent memories. He remembered the first time he had ever told a lie. It was a simple thing, he had broken a valued vase and when his parents found out, he blamed one of the servants. The price of the vase was docked from the servant’s pay, and he got away scott-free.

He remembered the first mare to ever reject his advances. In his school he had somewhat of a reputation as a heartthrob. A simple suggestive waggle of his eyebrows and a winning smile, and the fillies were swooning and fawning over him. So used to this attention was he, that when a filly said no to a date, he had felt crushed, cheated, rejected.

He remembered when a schoolfriend of his had entrusted him with a rather embarrassing secret, and at an opportune time, he had let slip this secret to his other friends. The guilt he felt was horrendous, and even the memory of it made him feel uncomfortable.

He remembered every indulgent purchase, every courtesan, every extravagant present he had ever bought himself. And why not? He could afford it.

He remembered every time he had lashed out at others, simply because he did not get his way. Every servant who got his order wrong, every pony who spoke ill of him. Every pony who did not give him the respect he deserved.

He found that, the more he dwelt upon these memories, the less they haunted his mind. Indeed, as each memory reared its ugly head, he found himself feeling oddly stronger. At the base of his horn, he felt something odd, like a swelling, growing feeling, as if some unseen balloon was being inflated with each new memory.

He liked it.

“Now, as you feel the Dissonance flow through you, ready to be released, speak the incantation.” The voice said, bringing him back to reality. Clearing his throat, he levitated the sheet before him, reading the strange words loud and clear:

“From one mind to many,
From many to one.
By the power of these words,
The spell is begun.
Elements gather to me this day,
To form the jewels of Dissonance’s way.
In the jewel of the Alicorn, plant the seed,
Of the powers of one whose nature is Greed.
In the jewel of the fearsome venomous snake,
Let the venom of Deception awake.
In the jewel of the vulture, dull and blue,
Shall the sounds of Despair ring clear and true.
In the jewel of the fox, may the power never stray,
To the one who has the will to Betray.
And between all the rest and the jewel of the spider,
May the mark of Cruelty be the divider.
Fill these jewels with thine ancient power,
In this most right and ready hour…”

The energy was swelling to bursting point within his horn. He could hold it back no longer. Forcing his eyes open, he felt the energy flow forth in torrents from the tip of his horn, black and thick like smoke. The energy flowed through the entire ritual circle, tracing the lines of power and flowing into the earth where each jewel had been buried. Slowly, inch by inch, each jewel rose out of the ground, hovering at eye level, each changing from a clear diamond, to jewels of many dark colours. Earthy brown, dark orange, navy blue, murky yellow, four of the jewels arose, the fifth remaining buried in the far end of the circle.

Blueblood watched in amazement as the iron ingots beside him dissolved into powder, which flowed and floated around him in wisps and clouds. These clouds split up, tendrils of iron dust surrounding each jewel, and then being absorbed into them.

Maintaining his focus, Blueblood strained and gritted his teeth to control the flow of magic. As e said the final words of the incantation, he could hear the voice of the Amulet chanting along with him:

“When the Bearers are gathered on this hallowed ground,
Shall the final Element of Dissonance be found!
Now go forth to your bearers, fly and be free,
As I have willed it, so shall it be!”

And with that final word, a flash of light consumed the grove, blinding the prince for a moment. The buzz of the magic in the air dissipated, and the blinding light dimmed.

Blueblood looked around. The grove of trees was silent and still once more. Around him the ritual circle had vanished, as had the floating gemstones. Over the spot of the fifth stone, the only diamond that had not risen out of the ground, there now sprouted before his eyes a sprig of hemlock, its tiny white flowers glinting slightly in the sunset.

“And now,” the Amulet said, “We wait.”

Far south of Equestria’s borders, beyond the Macintoh Hills and the Appleoosan mountains, beyond the Badlands and the Forest of Leota, there sat a castle, built from black stone, offset only by the eerie glow of the green ooze that coated it in places, like some eldritch cement.

Down in the lowermost depths of the castle basements, a young changeling drone pulled the door to the upper floors aja ever so slightly and chanced a peek outside.

He was met by an enormous pair of glass blue eyes, a gormless stitched-on grin and a mess of bubblegum-pink hair.

“Hiya there! I’ll let you out when you answer me this question: What word rhymes with orange? While you think about it, let me sing you a song…”

The changeling swiftly slammed the door shut before the animated pony costume could begin her ‘Song that Never Ends’, and stomped back downstairs to the cellars with a grumble.

“I told you, that thing’s not going anywhere!” called a deep, feminine voice from the other side of the cellar. Sprawled out on a tattered, chintzy couch, thin green hair pulled over her eyes, was Chrysalis, Queen of the Changelings.

Raising her head gloomily, she looked around at the Changelings who sat around in the cellars of the Changeling Castle. Most were lying around sleeping, conserving what little energy they had left, a few meandered through the corridors of the cellars, desperate for something to do. An armoured changeling soldier strolled past, idly draining the love from one of the few remaining luvcats, before tossing its limp lifeless husk into a bin.

Needless to say, ever since that incident with the Secretariat Comet, and those blasted ponies had stolen their prey from them, wrecked their throne-room and trapped them in the bowels of their own castle, spirits in the Chrysalis Hive were at an all-time low.

Since then, Chrysalis did whatever she could to stave off madness born of boredom. Chatted with her changelings, explored the depths of the castle, slept, even broke out some of the old games and toys she and her parents used to play when they were around. But most of her time was spent brooding and plotting her revenge. Revenge against Twilight Sparkle.

Precious little Twilight. So very powerful, so very obnoxious. Twice now, she’s interfered with my plans, she said in her head. Twice now, she’s ruined everything. First the Wedding, then the Comet… Just you wait, Twilight Sparkle. Once myself and my beloved changelings can find a way out of this blasted dungeon…

But her inner monologue was interrupted as the dungeon was suddenly bathed in a bright yellow light. The changelings present scuttled into cover and watched, as the light coalesced into a single point, forming the shape of a large yellow jewel, about the size of an apple, carved in the shape of a snake’s head.

The jewel floated through the air towards Chrysalis, who scurried backwards, eyes wide with fear. But as she backed into the wall, the jewel came to a stop, mere inches from the Changeling Queen’s face. Breaking the startled silence, a deep voice spoke out.

“Queen Chrysalis of the Changeling Hive. Your ability to deceive and fool your enemies by changing your form and image is beyond compare.”

Without warning, a flash of yellow light burst from the jewel, trapping Chrysalis in a strange bubble of the yellow energy. With one final bemused look at her changelings, she, the stone and the bubble of energy vanished, with the voice’s words still echoing through the basements.

“The Elements of Dissonance require your skills.”

Bearer of the Element of Deception: Found.

And I Beheld a Beast Coming Out of the Sea. Upon Its Head was a Crown

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The grove was bathed in a low light as the Alicorn Amulet glowed around Blueblood’s neck. The unicorn looked about as the air began to ripple and shimmer like a gas.

“Now what are you doing?”

The Voice from inside the amulet replied, “Just a simple cloaking spell. We don’t want to go attracting attention to our little gathering, now do we?”

“I suppose not,” Blueblood replied with a shrug. “But how long is this gonna take? I’d rather not be out here all night waiting for these other bearers to show up.”

“Patience,” said the Voice, “the Amulets have to seek out their most appropriate bearers in all of Equestria and beyond. Depending on who they find, that could take hours.”

Blueblood groaned quietly, but said nothing in reply. He paced back and forth as time passed.

Five minutes.

Ten minutes.

Thirty minutes.

Finally, after forty minutes of waiting, an orb of blinding yellow light appeared in the grove, growing larger and larger until Blueblood could have comfortably stood inside it. Or somepony larger…

“So who’s this?” Blueblood asked, walking around the translucent bubble.

“The potential Bearer of the Element of Deception,” the Voice replied. “The Element has chosen them, but now they must accept it.”

The unicorn sat down outside the bubble, staring at the tall, silhouetted figure inside. So, who’s it gonna be?

When she opened her eyes, Queen Chrysalis found herself engulfed in blackness. Above, below, and on all sides was nothing but a dark void. She could not even feel any surface beneath her gnarled hooves.

“Where am I?” she shouted, “Who did this?! Who dares imprison the Queen of the Chrysalis Hive?!”

“Not a prison. An invitation.”

The changeling queen wheeled around on the spot as she heard the voice echo through the void. “Who’s there?! Answer me!”

Right on cue, a tiny prick of light appeared in the far distance of the blackness. As it approached, Chrysalis covered her eyes with a forehoof against the sudden glare.

“Turn down that light, you glow-worm!” Chrysalis growled at the light. The light obeyed, dimming until the changeling could look safely at it.

Hovering before her was a tiny yellow jewel, no bigger than an apple. It was carved in the shape of a snakes head, mouth open in a vicious snarl.

“Queen Chrysalis of the Changeling Kingdom,” the voice spoke again, “You have been chosen.”

“Chosen?” Chrysalis echoed, a curious eyebrow raised, “For what, exactly?”

“You are the queen of the Chrysalis Hive, correct?”

She smirked. “Hmm, yes indeed. I am the Queen and mother of the Changelings.”

“And as a changeling, your powers of deception and disguise are unparalleled, correct?” the voice asked.

“There is no changeling of the Chrysalis Hive, or any other changeling hive, greater than I!” she replied. “But then again, you seem to already know that. Just who, or what, are you?”

The yellow jewel floated around her in a slow circled. “That is not important now. What matters is that your particular skills are required. Your ability to trick anypony to obeying your will is of great value.”

Chrysalis turned away from the jewel with a disdainful chuckle. “Oh? And just why do you think I would help you? I don’t even know who or what you are!”

“Because I can make it worth your while.”

She looked over her shoulder at the jewel with a frown. Where is this speck of light going with this?

“Speak, Queen Chrysalis, what is it you desire the most?”

Chrysalis hesitated before answering. Just what was it that I want above all else? Power? Feh, I already have that, I have a whole kingdom of me own, with thousands of fiercely loyal subjects. And in terms of magic I was already powerful beyond compare. Under the right conditions, even the Equestrian Princesses themselves would…

That was it. That was what she wanted most.

“I see,” The Voice said, breaking the silence. “You desire revenge against those who have wronged you.”

“I do,” she replied. Head lowered, she muttered aloud, the hatred audible in her every word. “Twice now, those precious little ponies of Equestria have foiled me. And always present, that blasted Twilight Sparkle.”

She spat out the unicorn’s name like it was a bad fruit. “I always like to say that I want Equestria for my own, but truth be told, taking over that blight of a nation is more trouble than it’s worth! What I truly want is much simpler.”

“And that would be what, exactly?”

“I want to see Twilight Sparkle pay. The unicorn who has foiled my plans twice too many times already. Whatever my plans to expand my kingdom, she always interferes. I would give anything to see her suffer for what she has done to me!” Her angry words echoed through the black voice, leaving nothing but her angry growls and hisses as Chrysalis fought to keep her rage in check.

“That can be arranged.”

She raised her head to stare at the jewel again. “And just how? You’re nothing but a floating gemstone!”

“Maybe,” it replied. “But there are many others who seek revenge against Equestria, against the Elements of Harmony. Against Twilight Sparkle.”

A light gleamed in Chrysalis’ eye. A faint glimmer of hope and malicious glee. “Oh really? And just who might these be?”

“That is not certain right now. But if you claim your place among them, and become one of the Elements of Dissonance, you will have your wish. Equestria will fall. And Twilight Sparkle will suffer mightily at your hoof.”

“You can promise me this?” she asked, with all the eagerness of a schoolfilly.

“Yes. When the time comes, Twilight Sparkle will suffer greater than anypony else.”

For the first time since she and her changelings had been imprisoned in their own castle, Chrysalis smiled. “Well, how can I say no to that? Count me in.”

The yellow bubble of light faded away into nothingness, leaving Blueblood to stare in shock at the creature that appeared before him.

Queen Chrysalis turned around to face him, her confused look turning into a wry grin. “Well well, I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“YOU!" Blueblood all but shrieked. “You’re that… that monster from the royal wedding a few months ago! What are you doing here?!”

“I could ask you the same thing. Clearly, we’re here for the same reason,” she replied, tapping the iron band that wrapped around the base of her neck, the yellow snakes-head jewel fixed into the centre as a pendant.

The Alicorn Amulet glowed around Blueblood’s neck. “Prince Blueblood, allow me to introduce Queen Chrysalis of the Changeling Hives. The Element of Deception. Queen Chrysalis, this young unicorn is the Element of Greed, Prince Blueblood.”

Chrysalis eyed Blueblood’s amulet with curiosity. “I suppose the whole talking-amulet thing takes some getting used to, eh?”
Blueblood nervously nodded. “Erm… yes, rather.”

“So, do tell, exactly who is the disembodied voice then?”

“You’ll find out soon enough, Chrysalis,” the voice replied. “Once all the Elements of Dissonance are gathered, I can be free once more.”

“Um, excuse me…. Uh, Amulet. Can we talk for a moment?”

“Certainly.”

Blueblood gave a quick grin at Chrysalis’ direction before hurrying over to the far end of the grove.

“Is there something wrong, Blueblood?”

“Too right there is!” The prince snapped. “In case you haven’t noticed, that… thing is the queen of the Changelings!”

“And unparalleled in the art of deception, I know. Why, is that a problem?”

“Yes, it is! I don’t know if you’re aware, but not too long ago Equestria was practically at war with the Changelings! And now you want me to work alongside their queen?! Are you out of your mind?!!”

The Voice chuckled a moment before answering. “I thought you wanted to see the Princesses put in their place. To see them humbled and brought down low.”

“Well… yes, I do, but…”

“Well, so does she,” the Voice interrupted. “She said so to me herself, she does not want to take over Equestria anymore, she simply wants to see the Princesses, and in particular the Elements of Harmony, suffer.”

Blueblood cast a wary eye in her direction. “Yes, well… can we trust her? You said yourself, she’s a master at deception.”

The Voice responded, “Well you must remember, with me around your neck you yourself hold magical power to rival even the Princesses. If she ever betrays us, you can always… get rid of her.”

“Hmm, I suppose that’s true,” The unicorn smirked evilly. “Alright, I suppose if she and I are working to the same ends, I can trust her for now.”

He turned back around and re-entered the circle, a cheerful smile plastered on his face. “Well then, Queen Chrysalis, if you and I are to be working together, then I suppose a bit of common courtesy is in order. Hello, and welcome to our little group!”

He extended a forehoof out, and Chrysalis took it in a brisk hoofshake. Both unicorn and changeling smiled at eachother, neither taking all that much effort to hide their true feelings for the other.

“Well, I’m glad that’s settled,” the Voice said. “Because I sense that our next ally is about to… Oh, now this is interesting…”

Blueblood looked quizzically at the Amulet. “What? What’s wrong?

“Well, we have good news and bad news concerning this new member of our group,” it replied. “The bad news is that this particular person is, quite literally, but a fragment of his former power. Blueblood, if you don’t mind, could I use your magic to help him along a bit?”

He shrugged. “I suppose so… So what’s the good news?”

“Well, as it turns out, this new Bearer will almost certainly join us without question. It is somepony I knew a long time ago. An old student of mine, in fact, and one of the few alive today who still remembers how things used to be.”

“What do you mean, used to be?” Chrysalis asked.

“Well, it’s a long story, one for another less busy time, but let us just say that there is a time long ago that has been all but erased from all knowledge.”

“Erased? But how?”

“By force, my dear Blueblood,” the Voice said, a hint of anger in its tone. “By the blessed Princesses.”

Far, far away, in the frozen lands north of Equestria, there stood the now proud and mighty Crystal Empire. The massive metropolis stood as a beacon of warmth and hope in the icy wastelands beyond the Crystal Mountains. But east of this bustling city was the continental coastline, where the land met the vast waters of Eternity’s Crossing.

About a mile or so from this coastline, an orb of strange brownish light flew out over the windswept waters. Seabirds swooped out of the orb’s way as it zoomed through the sky, until coming to an abrupt halt just above the sea. Floating in place for a moment, it then zoomed straight downwards into the waters.

Down, down, down it went, into the deep darkness of the sea, leaving a trail of bubbles in its wake. All manner of marine animals rushed to get out of its way as it sped towards the sea floor.

Finally, it stopped just inches above the floor of the ocean, hovering in place. Below it, embedded inbetween two rocks, was a single solitary horn. Black at its base, it curved wickedly upwards like the blade of a knife to its blood-red point. The brown orb lowered down until the horn was inside of it. A small brown jewel flickered into reality as the orb expanded to fit the entire horn inside of it. The jewel was carved in the shape of a spider, poised to strike.

As the jewel touched the tip of the horn, threads of light began to emanate from inside the jewel, travelling down the horn to the base. They wrapped around the horn like a great cocoon of shimmering lights. Gradually, bit by bit, the cocoon expanded as a body formed inside. From the base of the horn grew a skull, from which a spine extended. Limbs formed and were joined together by ligaments and stretches of muscle. Pink flesh grew outwards and covered the bones, and dark grey fur sprouted up all over it. A mane and tail of long black hair emerged. Long pointed fans grew inside the mouth, as large eyeballs filled the sockets in the skull. As they formed, and eyelids formed over them, the sclera darkened into a vivid electric green, and the irises turned red as blood.

Bands of iron grew from the sides of the spider-shaped gemstone, which wrapped themselves around the unicorn’s neck. As they fastened at the back, there was a jolt of energy from the jewel that coursed through the stallion’s entire body.
Slowly, slowly, he opened his eyes again, and a cruel, malicious smile grew upon his lips as he heard a voice he had not heard for thousands of years.

“King Sombra, mightiest of all tyrants, true ruler of the Crystal Empire… My most faithful student. Time to get up. There is work to be done.”

Bearer of the Element of Cruelty: Found

And I saw the Fourth Living Creature, Like an eagle in Flight

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The grove on the outskirts of Canterlot was bathed in the dim yellow light of the morning sun as the next coloured bubble materialised before the creatures assembled there. A murky brown colour, the bubble swelled and burst almost as soon as it appeared.

“Huh, didn’t seem to take long to persuade whoever this is,” Blueblood wondered aloud.

The amulet around his neck glowed as it replied, “Given who it is, I wouldn’t think they would need much persuasion to join our little team.”

Right on cue, the brownish mist dissipated, revealing the bubble’s occupant. Grey-furred, with a flowing black mane and tail, green and red eyes almost glowing in the low light, Sombra glanced up as he noticed Blueblood staring at him.

“Wha… who are you?” Sombra rumbled in his low, guttural voice. “What is this all about?”

“Sombra, my old apprentice,” the Voice said. “It has been too long.”

As he heard that familiar voice emanating from the amulet, Sombra’s eyes grew wide with shock. Without another word, the unicorn threw himself to the ground, prostrating himself before a very confused Blueblood.

“M-master! Forgive me, I did not know it was you!” he sputtered, “It seems you have taken on another form since we last met.”

Blueblood coughed nervously. “Erm… Not that I don’t enjoy having somepony bowing down before but… I’ve never seen you before in my life.”

Sombra opened his eyes and looked up at the white unicorn. “…What do you mean? Master, don’t you recognise me?”

“I recognise you just fine, Sombra. This unicorn, however, is not me,” said the Voice. Sombra gaped at the jewel around Blueblood’s neck. The Voice chuckled. “Yes Sombra, I am speaking to you from the Amulet.”

Sombra got up from the ground and approached Blueblood. Paying no heed to the now very confused unicorn, Sombra peered closely at the jewel in the centre of the pendant. Sniffing lightly, recognition glimmered in his eyes. “I recognise that magic… So, master, you transferred your soul into the jewel then?”

The voice replied, “Indeed. I’m not sure if you remember the War, but after you were imprisoned in the Frozen North, things did not go well for us. I am lucky that I had the foresight to hide part of myself away in this jewel, or neither of us would be here now.”

The grey unicorn snarled, baring savage, pointed teeth. “Oh, I remember the War alright.”

“Excuse me, but what in Tartarus’ name are you two talking about?!”

Sombra stepped back as he noticed Blueblood staring at him as if he had just sprouted a second head. He snorted derisively, “Why, the Great War of course. Surely even a pathetic foal like yourself knows your ancient history?”

“Pathetic foal?! Now see here you…you… whatever you are!” Blueblood spat, pressing his snout right up against Sombra’s. “I’ll have you know that I am a crown prince of Equestria!”

Sombra pushed back just as hard as he snapped, “And I am a king! The rightful king of the Crystal Empire!”

“Oh will you two pipe down? You’re giving me a migraine!”

Both unicorns stopped and turned to see Chrysalis lounging against a nearby tree, watching the argument with boredom as she idly picked at her hooves.

“And just who do we have here?”

The voice sighed. “Yes, I suppose introductions are in order. Prince Blueblood, Queen Chrysalis, may I introduce you to King Sombra, the rightful king of the Crystal Empire, and my most faithful apprentice.”

Sombra nodded politely to both of them before the Voice continued. “And Sombra, may I introduce you to Queen Chrysalis, ruler of the Changeling Hive, and Blueblood, Prince Regent and rightful heir to the throne of Equestria.”

Chrysalis and Blueblood both bowed back. “But why does he get to bear your Element, Master?” Sombra asked. “He's not my replacement, is he?”

“No, Sombra. He simply bears the Element of Dissonance that I hid myself away in. And just as he bears an Element of Dissonance, so do you.”

A tiny beam of crimson light shot out from the centre of the Alicorn Amulet, pointing straight at Sombra’s chest. He looked down and saw that around his neck, he wore a similar amulet. But in place of the head and wings of the alicorn and the bright red jewel, his amulet bore a darker, brownish-red jewel, which formed the body of a scuttling spider on the front of his amulet.

“The Elements of Dissonance…” Sombra echoed. “So you finally managed to create them?”

“Indeed. It took some assistance from Blueblood here, but now they are formed and seeking out bearers. The time has finally come to put dear Celestia and Luna in their rightful places.” Replied the Voice, barely able to hide its glee.
Sombra grinned. A terrifying, toothy, pointy grin. “Time to make those two pay for what those two classmates of mine did to us, and to our people during the War.”

Blueblood raised a forehoof as he interrupted. ”You two keep mentioning this war like it was something big and important, but I’m sorry, I have never heard of any such thing! Equestria has… well okay, there has been the occasional skirmish, but as far as I know there’s never been a full blown war!”

“Oh this goes back long before Equestria ever even existed, Blueblood,” the Voice said. “Tell me, have Celestia and Luna ever told you about their childhoods? About what they did before they became princesses?”

Blueblood tapped his chin in thought. “Hmm… Not that I know of, no.”

“Well then, you wouldn’t have known about it then,” It said. “As I said, the Princesses have gone well out of their way to ensure that nopony ever finds out what happened in those… dark days.”

“But no longer. “ Sombra glared daggers at the gleaming white towers of Canterlot that stood less than a mile away. “It is time we show the world what they were willing to do to their own subjects, all in the name of their precious peace.”

“But where do Twilight Sparkle and her friends fit into all this?” Chrysalis asked. “You promised me revenge against those ponies!”

“And you will get it, I promise,” replied the Voice. “When we begin our little operation, they will suffer greatly, along with anypony else who stands in our way.”

The Changeling brushed a loose hair out of her face. “Hmph, well you can do what you want with the Princesses. Equestria is yours for all I care… But when the time comes, you all leave Twilight Sparkle to me. She is all mine.”

As they saw her face, neither Sombra nor Blueblood felt like refusing her demand. The vengeful look in her eyes and the snarl on her lips showed that she clearly meant business.

“Ah, it seems we have found our next member,” the Voice said, interrupting the silence.

“Get back here, you!”

The sounds of a dozen hooves clattering on cobblestone echoed through the streets, as a trio of stallions, all dressed in the greyish blue uniform of the Town Watch, chased a young griffon down an alleyway. She tried with all her might to spread her wings and take to the air, but her scuffle with the Watchponies had left her wings in rather bad shape and in no condition to fly. A sack of stolen food and silverware in one clawed hand, she ran as fast as her other three limbs could carry her, through the alleyway and around a corner onto the main street. She bowled over a few ponies who were strolling the streets early that morning, but paid them no heed and carried on. For anypony who was new to the town, this sort of flagrant street crime would no doubt be shocking and disgusting.

For Gilda, however, it was just another morning in Baltimare.

As she sprinted down the streets of the city, the Town Watch closing ever closer, she could not help but think back on the chain of events that had led her life to spiral so out of control.

It had all started, that day when she had gone to visit Rainbow Dash. The two of them had been apart for years after they graduated from Flight Camp. Rainbow Dash had pursued her career as a weatherpony, resulting in her transfer to Ponyville, and the two had not seen eachother since. It should have been a warm reunion of two close friends after years apart.
Should have been.

Instead, it ended up as one humiliation after another. And all because of that damned pony, Pinkie Pie. Pinkie Pie! Even saying the name in her head made her furious!

All I wanted was to see Dash again, catch up on old times, maybe hang out for a while. Was that seriously too much to ask for that pink, airheaded dweeb?! Just one freaking week with Dash without her pestering us?!!
And instead what does she do? She turns Dash against me! How did she turn from the coolest pegasus around to such a softie?!

Even in her fury as she ran, Gilda could not prevent herself from sniffling a bit. Why did she have to take my only friend from me?

Ever since then, the griffon had travelled from town to town, doing jobs wherever she could to get by. But she had fallen in with the wrong crowds. Ended up doing some bad dealings with even worse compeers. Made plenty of enemies. That was when she bailed.

But crowds as bad as those don’t let anyone bail that easily. They had sent ponies after her. And so, she had been on the run since then, always looking out for number one, seizing any opportunity that came her way, regardless of whose hooves she had to step on to get there. She needed nopony else. She trusted nopony else.

But as Gilda rounded another corner, her inner monologue came to an end as she found herself face to face with a dead end.

“Nowhere to run now, you little thief!”

She whipped around and saw the three Watchponies standing before her, blocking her escape route. The middle one, a unicorn, levitated a scroll before her and unfurled it.

“Gilda the Griffon, this is a warrant for your immediate capture. By order of the Mayor of Baltimare, I’m placing you under arrest!” he barked in a no-nonsense voice.

Gilda sneered at them, defiantly shouting “I’ll be back on the streets in a week! You can’t keep me locked up for long!”

The Watchpony on the right stepped forward, opening his jacket to reveal that, next to his badge was a strange brooch, detailed with arcane symbols surrounding a stylised image of a circle flanked by crescent moons pointing outwards on either side. Following suit, the other Watchponies opened their jacket to reveal similar brooches pinned to the lining. “Tell that to the Grandmaster of the Order of the Triple Moon. Really Gilda, it’s bad enough you try to bail on the Order without telling anyone, but then you come back and steal our things. Not your wisest decision, griffon!”

“The town judge is a fifth degree member of our Order, Gilda. You can bet he’s gonna send you away from a long…”

But even as he spoke, a strange light appeared in the sky, floating down into the dead-end street. It bathed the street in an orange pool of light as it came to a stop hovering just in front of Gilda’s face. The three Watchponies staggered back, unsure exactly of how to react.

“Gilda the Griffon, you look out for nopony but yourself, and you care not for whom you have to use in order to reach your ends.”

The strange, disembodied voice spoke loudly and clearly, seeming to emanate from the orange light, which now revealed itself as a single jewel, carved in the image of a fox’s head. The light expanded into a giant orange bubble, encasing Gilda who could only stare in shock at what was going on around her. Even as the bubble vanished in a bright flash of light, Gilda along with it, the mysterious voice echoed through the street.

“The Elements of Dissonance require you.”

Bearer of the Element of Treachery: Found

The grove was once again graced by a globe of coloured light suddenly appearing in its midst. Sombra, Blueblood and Chrysalis all stood back, watching curiously to see who their next ally would turn out to be.

The bubble burst and the smoke, sickly orange this time, cleared. Gilda hacked and coughed as she batted the smoke clouds away, before opening her eyes and peering around at her surroundings.

“So… I take it you guys are the Elements of Dissonance or whatever that voice was saying… Any of you mind tellin’ me just what the heck’s going on?!” she asked dazedly, staring at the odd trio of equinoids facing her.

Their eyes turned to the Alicorn Amulet, which glowed again as the Voice spoke “I take it you heard the proposition made by the Amulet then?”

“What Amulet? You mean that glowing thing?”

“I mean the one around your neck.”

Gilda looked down and saw that, sure enough, the orange fox-shaped stone that had confronted her, was now attached to a pendant wrapped around her neck. She angrily tugged at the amulet. “What the-? When did this happen?!”

“Do not take off the Amulet, Gilda, until you have heard our proposal,” the Voice said impatiently. “Now then, care to answer my question?”

Gilda stopped struggling a moment. “Yeah I heard it. After it came outta nowhere, whisked me away into some black void and told me that I was needed or somethin’. But what for, what’s this all about? And just who the heck are you anyway?”

“We are a slowly growing group, called the Elements of Dissonance. I have summoned you together, because I have need of your particular… natures,” the Voice replied. “Each of you has the potential to hold the power of an Elemental power, which serves as a sort of antithesis against the Princesses’ precious Elements of Harmony.”

“And where do I fit in?” Gilda asked, a sceptical eyebrow raised. “It sounds kinda like you wanna take down the Princesses or something, but I’m not really the revolutionary type, y’know. I don’t take sides.”

The Voice responded, “And that is exactly where you fit in. Your Amulet, the Fox Amulet, is the opposite of the Element of Loyalty: Treachery. You serve only yourself and seek only your own gains, regardless of who gets in your way.”

Gilda grinned. “You know me all too well, whoever… or whatever, you are.”

“You’ll find out both those facts soon enough. But until then, do you accept this calling? Will you join us?”

“I dunno…” The griffon scratched the back of her neck as she pondered. “What’s in it for me? I don’t really care one way or the other about what your plan is, but if I do join ya, what do I get?”

The Amulet glowed as the Voice replied, “Well, each of you have been chosen not only because of your particular natures, but also because each and every one of you has a certain connection with the current bearers of the Elements of Harmony. It could sense it in each of you. What is your connection to them?”

Gilda glowered as she realised her connection. “Oh, I’ve dealt with those ponies before… One of them used to be my best friend… my only friend, really…”

“’Used to’?”

“Then Pinkie Pie…” She snarled, her face contorting with anger as the memory came flooding back once more. “She had to go and ruin it all! That one pony who drove her away from me… I’d like to take her down a peg or two if I ever go the chance…”

“I can give you that chance.”

Gilda looked up from her brooding. “Huh?

“I’m not sure if you’re aware, but Pinkie Pie is an Element Bearer as well,” Chrysalis added. “I’m guessing we’ll no doubt end up going against the Bearers themselves at some point, in which case you will be free to… exact your revenge, as it were.”
Gilda ‘s eyes widened at the prospect. These people were promising her a chance to get back at not only Pinkie Pie, but Rainbow Dash as well!

But Rainbow Dash is your friend, a tiny voice in her head seemed to say.

Not anymore. Rainbow Dash had lost that honour the day she rejected me for that pink freak. I look out for myself now, nobody else!

And besides, she thought with a grin, I’ve been wanting to get back at Dash for a while now too.

“Alright, she finally said, nodding in satisfaction. “I’ll join your little super-team if you leave Pinkie Pie to me… And Rainbow Dash too, if she’s still going spare.”

“Excellent!” The Voice said curtly. “Welcome to the Elements of Dissonance, Gilda. Might I introduce your fellow Bearers: Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings, Prince Blueblood of Canterlot, and King Sombra of the Crystal Empire.”

Each pony (And changeling) nodded as they were announced. Gilda grimaced “Wow, and I’m the only one here who ain’t royalty…”

“Not necessarily. We still have one more Bearer to find,” the Voice countered. “But strangely, the Element has not gone to seek a candidate.”

“Maybe we did the ritual wrong?” Blueblood suggested.

The Voice said, “No, no, that was all fine, we did the ritual perfectly. Nicely done on that, by the way,” It added, prompting a proud smirk from the prince. “Yet for some reason, the last one, the Element of Despair, has not been launched.”

Chrysalis tapped her chin in thought before speaking up. “Well, my kind are emotion-eaters, so we can tap into the emotional energies of our surroundings and sense them. It’s how we discover who our victims have emotional ties to, so we know whom to mimic.”

“Huh, the more you know, I guess,” Gilda muttered.

“And I will say this about Equestria: it is one of the happiest and most loving lands I’ve ever encountered. Each time I’ve been here, I have never been able to feel any extreme feelings of sadness or despair or even anything beyond glumness! In terms of emotion, Equestria is practically a utopia!”

“So, perhaps the Element of Despair did not launch, because it could not sense anypony to latch onto?” Sombra suggested.

“Really? Now that is interesting,” the Voice replied. “Good thinking you two. But this does rather set us back… I cannot resume my original form unless we have all the Elements together to activate mine. Indeed, this is bad…”

“Maybe not.”

All eyes turned to Chrysalis. The Changeling stood in front of them, an evil grin forming on her face. “Now this is just a suggestion, but hear me out. Despair is a little different from the other Elements, like treachery, deception, cruelty and such. Despair is an intense emotion that cannot be performed like the others, but it can be induced. And I know just such a candidate.”

“Oh?” the Voice asked.

“Yes. You see, not long ago I tried to lure Twilight Sparkle and her fellow Bearers to my kingdom, so I could drain her magic and make her my apprentice, and feed her friends to my dear children. During that time, I noticed one young pony in particular who had some of the strongest emotional ties to her friends I had ever felt. It wasn't quite the same as romanic love, but it was still amazing to behold. So imagine the despair and loss they would feel if, say, something were to happen to one of their friends..."

Sombra mirrored her malicious grin, matching hers fang for fang. “I knew there was something I liked about you. So, where can we find this pony?”

Chrysalis chuckled and took to the treetops, her wings buzzing in the cool morning air. Perching atop a jutting branch, she peered out from the mountain of Canterlot, towards a little town not too far away.

“Ponyville of course. Where else?”

And I Beheld and Heard an Angel, Crying in a Loud Voice, "Woe, Woe Unto the Inhabitors of the Earth!"

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The beautiful red glow of the sunset over Ponyville was partially obscured as the local pegasi shipped in the fresh supply of rainclouds for the evening’s scheduled shower. Beams of pinkish light shone through the few gaps in the cloud layer, illuminating the town below, as well as the forest surrounding it.

But the beauty of the sunset was lost on Sombra, who squinted as he followed Blueblood and Chrysalis through the woods. “Rrgh… why could we not have travelled during the night? My eyes aren’t used to such bright light,” he growled.

The Voice replied from ahead “If we were to wait for nightfall, we would waste valuable time. And I grow impatient of not having a body of my own.”

“Besides,” Chrysalis added. “With the ponies I have in mind, it’s necessary we find them before sundown, before they get called inside.”

Blueblood glanced at her. “Would you mind actually telling us who this pony is that you have in mind?”

The changeling queen grinned. “Oh, you’ll see soon enough. We’re almost there…“

The quartet of ponies continued on in silence, through the darkening trees of the forest. Chrysalis led the way, with Blueblood walking behind, carrying their Master in the red amulet around his neck. Sombra and Gilda followed up at the rear.

Gilda stepped slightly closer to Sombra, speaking in hushed tones, “Hey, buddy.”

The unicorn glared at her through green and red eyes. “I am not your ‘buddy’, griffon.”

“Okay whatever,” Gilda muttered, rolling her eyes. “Look, I’ll level with ya: I don’t have much of a clue what this is all about, and honestly I don’t really care. As long as I get what that talking ruby promised me, I’ll go along with it, but I do like to know who I’m working with on… whatever it is we’re about to do.”

Sombra continued to stare at the griffon, his face betraying no emotion. “So you wish to know more about me?”

She nodded. “Yeah, like who you are, how you’re involved in all this… speaking of which, it sounds like you know who that Voice is, like you met him before. Just who is he? And what’s this war he keeps muttering about?”

The unicorn thought for a moment before answering. “I am King Sombra, the rightful ruler of the once mighty Crystal Empire. The Voice belongs to my master, a powerful unicorn who was once a great king of these lands.” He paused briefly, his face darkening and his voice turning into a low growl. “Until we were both betrayed, by the very same ponies who now rule as the Princesses.”

“Celestia and Luna? What’d they do?” Gilda asked.

“They resented the power we held, my master and I. So they sought to claim by force what they could not claim by right. They banished me to the Arctic Wastes, overthrew my empire and murdered my master in cold blood.”

Gilda raised a brow. “Really? Huh, that doesn’t really sound like the Princesses to me… Aren’t they supposed to be all peaceful and benevolent and all that stuff?”

The dark-furred unicorn looked away. “There is much about the Princesses that you don’t know. My master and I know them better than anypony.”

When he turned his face back to the griffon, Gilda saw that his frown had softened ever so slightly, and his eyes had a faraway look to them, as if reminiscing on a long-forgotten memory of better times. But before she could enquire further, Chrysalis’ voice rang out from ahead.

“Here we are!”

The four of them gathered at the fringe of the trees, ducking behind a low bush. A simple wooden fence stretched along the edge of the woods, beyond which lay acres of fields filled with corn, wheat and all manner of vegetables. And beyond those in the distance could be seen endless groves of apple trees, all surrounding a large farmstead. And beyond that, the outskirts of Ponyville could be seen.

“Hmm, the town seems to have recovered well since the last time I was here,” the Voice said with some interest.

Blueblood glanced down at the amulet. “What do you mean?”

“Well, by some strange coincidence, I have wound up in Ponyville several times before. The first time, I was taken and used by a travelling magician who sought to use the Amulet’s power for her own gain. She was an ambitious little unicorn with delusions of grandeur, but ultimately pathetic and easily undone. The second time, a curious jeweller found me and studied me. But when she tried to use my power, she could not control it. The magic surge levelled her house and killed her.”

“And then you found me,” Blueblood replied. “Third time’s the charm, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Indeed. So then Chrysalis, what is your plan?” the Voice asked. “Where is this pony?”

Chrysalis peeked her head over the buses, peering out at the farmstead. “Oh, she’s close… she’s very close indeed, I can almost smell her… She’s over at the farmhouse.”

“How can we get over there without being seen?”

Sombra stepped forward. “I can take care of that.”

As his horn erupted into life, crackling and glowing with dark magic, the other three backed away in surprise as Sombra’s body began to lose shape. First his hooves and tail, then his body, and finally his head, all dissolved into a mass of inky blackness, until only his eyes remained, glowing in the middle of the darkness.

“…Huh, so that’s where he gets his name,” Bluelood deadpanned.

Quick as a whip, long black tendrils of shadow reached out from the shadowy mass that was King Sombra. They snaked along the floor, like shadows cast by some unseen monster, until they came into contact with the shadows of his three cohorts. The tendrils yanked back and their shadows came with them, pulled into the dark mass. But as they were pulled along, so were the shadows’ owners. First Blueblood, then Gilda and finally Chrysalis, were yanked forwards through the air and swallowed up by Sombra’s darkness.

The black mass then sunk down into the ground until it was nothing but a literal shadow. To the unsuspecting eye, it could be the shadow of a cloud in the sky. The shadow slid along the ground at breakneck pace, through the fields and into one of the many apple orchards that surrounded the Sweet Apple Acres farmstead.

Taking cover behind another bush, the black mass rose up from the ground again and expelled its occupants on the ground. As they shook their heads or rubbed their dazed eyes, Sombra shrank down and reverted back to his equine form.

“Woah… what a ride,” Gilda muttered feebly, her feathers very much ruffled.

Blueblood brushed his limbs and body off, even though there was very little dirt to be seen. “Yes, well, that was an… interesting experience.”

Sombra gave a rare smile. “Having been turned to shadow by the Princesses has its benefits. So Chrysalis, lead on, where is this pony?”

Before she could answer though, the four ducked down behind the bush as the sound of laughter came from nearby. Peeking her snout through the leaves, Chrysalis pointed to the three fillies who trotted past. “There she is! The one in the middle!”

Blueblood snorted. “A filly?! You brought us all the way out here, and the pony you have in mind was just some little brat from some backwater town?!”

“Quiet, Blueblood!” the Voice whispered frantically. “They’ll hear us! And it matters not who the bearer is at the moment. All that matters is that the wear the Element, and that is all I would need to tap into their magic and regain my body.”

“I dunno,” Gilda muttered, shuffling her claws in the grass. “This does’t really feel… I mean, does it really have to be a kid?”

Chrysalis giggled in a way unbefitting of a creature her size. “Really, Gilda? Foalnapping is where you draw the line? You’re part of a conspiracy to bring down this country’s rulers, it’s not like we can get much worse!”

“Besides, the Amulet will ask her if she accepts the Element. It’s not foalnapping if she comes willingly,” the Voice added.

Blueblood raised a hoof. “Well actually, according to Equestran law-”

“Silence.” Sombra growled. “So, what next?”

Chrysalis beckoned, and the four of them scooted closer together into a huddle. In hushed whispers the Changeling Queen explained her plan. As the huddle broke, the other three could only stare at her in horror.

“So, what do you think?” Chrysalis asked with a faux-innocent grin.

Blueblood gaped at her, his jaw flapping as he struggled to find the words. Gilda’s beak hung open, speechless. Only Sombra wore a face impassive and emotionless.

“It will suffice,” the Voice answered.

“Excellent,” Chrysalis said. “You three can stay here. Sombra, you come with me.”

Sombra nodded, and the pair snuck after the three fillies. Gilda and Blueblood watched them go from behind the bush.
Sombra and Chrysalis hurried across the open yard towards the side of the barn. Hugging the wall, the two followed after the three little fillies, until they reached an old discarded plough and ducked down behind it. Silent and still, they listened to the voices on the other side of the plough.

“Hey Big Mac, can ya help us with these here boards?” called a young voice with a strong country accent.

“Yeah, we got some repairs to do at the clubhouse.” added another voice, much higher and squeakier than the previous.

“Eeyup,” replied an extremely deep voice.

Peering between the steel bars of the massive plough, Sombra could see the three fillies, just on the other side of the yard barely fifteen metres away, by a small shed next to the farmhouse. They seemed to be loading up a small red wagon with wooden planks, paints and all manner of tools. A large red stallion, larger than any he had seen before, was trotting over, apparently lending a helping hoof.

“I can’t get a clear shot from here. That stallion is in the way.” He growled.

Chrysalis tapped a hoof to her chin in thought, before grinning again. “I know just what to do. You wait here, and be ready with that spell. When you hear the words ‘we’re over here, y’all’, do it!”

Sombra nodded silently, and Chrysalis hurried off. As she went round the corner, Sombra could just hear the familiar swishing noise as she teleported. He turned his attention back to the four ponies that were loading up the wagon before him and waited.

With another flash of green magic, Chrysalis found herself once again among the familiar surroundings of the farmstead. She was behind a large building, the farmhouse. As she peeked her head around the corner, she saw the same sight of the three fillies and the stallion loading the wagon, but from the other side. And over by the barn on the other side of the yard, she could see the abandoned plough where her unicorn companion hid.

Showtime, said the little voice in her head. Clearing her throat, she remembered back to her last encounter with Twilight Sparkle and her friends. All she needed was a voice, a little sound-bite of a memory. That was all it took.

“Yep, let’s go! You, big guy, come at me!”

There she is. That mellow, slightly deep country-mare voice. Easy enough to imitate… Just one other…

“Sweetie Belle! We’re here for you!”

And there’s the other one. Delicate, refined, a little bit prissy. Just what I need.

Coughing once more, Chrysalis licked her lips and called out, in a perfect impersonation of Applejack’s southern drawl, “Hey, Big Mac! Rarity’s here, could ya help us out with somethin’?”

She suppressed a giggle as she watched Big Macintosh raise his head as he heard his name, almost like a dog hearing his master’s call.

Quickly putting on Rarity’s refined tones, she called out in a sing-song voice, “Oh Sweetie-Belle, time to go home!”

She could hear the young filly groaning as she heard. “Sorry girls, I guess I gotta go. I’ll see you here, same time tomorrow!”
Sweetie Belle waved as she trotted after Big Macintosh, her friends saying their goodbyes. Chrysalis waited until they were almost around the corner, and then sprinted along the farmhouse wall, ducking behind a rain barrel, just next to the back door of the house.

Sweetie Belle and Big Macintosh came around the corner. “Rarity? Hey Rarity, where’d you go?”

And here we go. “We’re over here, y’all!” Chrysalis shouted in her Applejack voice, as loud as she could. The filly and stallion looked to eachother, a little confused about where exactly their respective sisters were, but shrugged and followed the voice. Chrysalis pulled the door open and rushed inside and out of sight, before teleporting away, to where Blueblood and Gilda waited in the orchard.

“So, did you do it?” Gilda asked.

“Sshh,” Chrysalis shushed her, “Just wait, and listen for the sounds of screaming.”

“We’re over here, y’all!”

A voice thick with a southern drawl called out those words, which echoed through the farm to where Sombra was listening with eager ears.

Hearing the signal, he sprung into action. His horn aglow with purple, green and black bolts of dark magic, he peeked over the top of the plough and took aim at the filly.

“A shame Sweetie Belle had to leave. I was really hopin’ we could get the clubhouse all fixed up fer tomorrow,” Applebloom said as she watched Sweetie Belle and her brother rounding the corner. “How are we supposed to get our cutie-marks in squaredancin’ if we don’t have somewhere to practise?”

Scootaloo shrugged. “It’s no big deal. We can fix up the clubhouse tomorrow morning, and we’ll still have all afternoon to-“

“Ow! Hey, watch where you’re putting that board, Scootaloo!” Applebloom interrupted. “You just jabbed me in the shoulder with that thing.”

Scootaloo frowned as she slid the last board onto the wagon, resting against the wagon. “What are you talking about? I didn’t even touch you with it! Anyways, it was starting to get a bit dark, and to be honest, the woods around the clubhouse can get kinda, y’know, creepy when it’s-”

“AAAGH! Wha-what’s happenin’ to my leg?!”

Scootaloo’s ears pricked up as Applebloom cried out. Leaping over the wagon, her eyes grew wide as she saw Applebloom.

Right at the base of her left foreleg, her yellow fur was fading to a dull yellowish-grey colour. The blotchy grey marks were spreading down right to the hoof, until her entire foreleg was grey. Even as the strange effect began to spread all over her body, the colour of her fur and her mane fading almost to grey, Applebloom raised a forehoof to her horrified eyes. “Scoot! Applebloom wailed. “What’s happenin’?! What is this?!”

“I-I dunno! Just try to stay calm… lemme see what it-“

But as Scootaloo reached out and tried to touch Applebloom’s leg, it cracked and crumbled under the pegasus’ touch.
The young pony screamed in pain as her leg fell to a pile of sand beneath her, and she stumbled to the ground, more of her body crumbling as she hit the ground.

“Applebloom! Oh no, Applebloom, what did I do?!” Scootaloo cried, frantically running back and forth in a panic. “HELP! PLEASE, SOMEPONY HEELLP!”

“Scoo…Scootaloo! Please, oww, it hurts! Please, make it stop!!” Applebloom screamed as her back legs and her tail fell into piles of dust.

“J-just hold on, Applebloom! I’m here, I’m here!” Scootaloo crouched down by her friend, not bothering to hide the tears now streaming down her face. “SOMEPONY HELP US! PLEASE!!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.

“Scoota…loo… I can’t see you!”

The pegasus looked helplessly on as she saw the filly’s eyes slowly fading, turning to fragile balls of orange and white sand. As Applebloom tried to blink, she screamed again as the clumps of sand that were once her eyeballs crumbled and streamed out of her eye sockets in a cloud of dust. Scootaloo fought the urge to vomit as the sand poured around her forehooves.

“P-please Applebloom! I don’t… I don’t know what to do…I don’t know what I did! But I’m sorry, what ever I did I’m sorry! Please, don’t give in!” Scootaloo whimpered, holding onto Applebloom’s remaining forehoof in desperation. “SOMEPONY PLEASE HEEELLLP!!!” she screamed skywards again and again.

“Scoot…”

Scootaloo looked back down asshe heard that faint voice. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she saw Applebloom lying before her, her entire face now faded and cracking. “I’m here Applebloom… I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”

“Scoot…aloo… I-it’s... It’s alr-iuughhh…” But Applebloom could say no more as her voice was choked by pinkish sand that had once been her tongue. Her mouth collapsed. Her ears crumbled. Her cheeks caved in. And last of all, the hoof Scootaloo held crumbled and slipped through her grip.

The little pony stared with eyes wide with shock, pupils shrunk to the size of pinpricks, at what remained.

A vaguely pony-shaped pile of sand. And a little pink hair-ribbon.

“N-no…” she whispered. “No… This… this isn’t possible…” She desperately scooped and scrabbled at the heap of sand before her. “What happened? Wha-what did I do?! No, please, come back…”

But it was no use. The sand simply poured between her hooves, mingling on the ground before her and blowing away in wisps on the wind.

So she did the only thing she could think of.

She screamed.

She screamed long and loud, a scream born of pure anguish and despair. It echoed through the entire Sweet Apple Acres, all the way to Ponyville, where every heart skipped a beat as the heard it. She screamed until her lungs gave out and her throat was sore, before devolving into silent sobbing.

Even as she wept, she failed to notice the tiny, shimmering blue light hovering in the air before her. It was only when it expanded into a bubble surrounding her did she open her eyes. The last thing she saw was Sweetie Belle and Big Macintosh rounding the corner and skidding to a halt as they took in the scene before them. Then, a blinding flash and everything went black.

For what seemed like an eternity, the little filly floated in the darkness, alone, scared and distraught. Then, lighting up the darkness, was that same blue light again. Emerging from the darkness below her, its source was a tiny sapphire, carved in the shape of a vulture.

“Scootaloo.”

She opened her eyes as she heard a voice say her name. It was a voice wholly unfamiliar to the little pegasus. And yet, for some reason, she took some strange comfort in its voice. It seemed soothing, protecting, almost motherly.

“Scootaloo. You have fallen into grief and despair. Despair beyond measure.”

Scootaloo tried to say something, but she was still in shock. Nothing came to mind, and even if she could think of something, her throat was hoarse and painful from her screaming.

“Now now, dry your tears, I am a friend,” the Voice said. “I know your pain. I can sense your sorrow. Your love for your friend ran deeper than even you knew.”

She gaped dumbly at the jewel as it hovered before her.

“Share your grief with me. I can make the hurting stop.”

Sniffling, she wiped her tearstreaked cheeks with a forehoof. “…Really?”

“Yes, I can,” the Voice replied. “Accept me, and I can help make the pain go away.”

“Y-you can?”

“No more hurting. No more pain. No more sorrow,” it said, as it hovered ever closer to Scootaloo. “Will you accept my offer?”

Swallowing painfully, Scootaloo nodded, still very much dazed by her experience. Reaching out to the sapphire, it moved closer in, until it touched her outstretched hoof. It felt warm.

It passed by her hoof, until it touched her chest. Bands of iron expanded from the jewel, wrapping around her neck like a gentle embrace. They connected at the back with a clasp, and the jewel began to glow stronger and stronger, until the blue light was blinding.

Bearer of the Element of Despair: Found.

As the light dimmed, Scootaloo opened her eyes once more, to find herself in an unfamiliar grove of trees. She looked around and saw the high walls and white towers of Canterlot not too far away. And all around her, among the trees, were others. A few she recognised, but may she did not. Even as one of them stepped out of the shadows, revealing herself as the Queen of the Changelings, the very one who kidnapped her and her friends, she could not bring herself to react. Somehow, all emotion or thought seemed… exhausting.

“Who… who are you?” Scootaloo asked, her voice still hoarse.

Chrysalis smiled what was most likely an attempt at a warm, motherly smile. Any of the others in the grove at the time would attest that it was even more terrifying than her malicious, evil grin. “We’re your new friends, little one. Don’t be afraid.”

“It is time,” said the Voice, Blueblood’s amulet glowing stronger than ever. The amulets of all five present began to glow fiercely in response. “Everypony take a place around the circle, each of you at one point.”

They obeyed, each standing at a point of the pentagram, facing inwards. “Do you know why I chose this spot for this ritual, Blublood?” the Voice asked.

The unicorn pondered the question for a moment, then shrugged. “I dunno … because it was out of the way, well hidden?”

“Not quite,” the Voice replied. “Though it has that added bonus, there is more to it.”

Suddenly before them, the ground in the centre of the circle began to darken, almost as if it was, paradoxically, glowing black. Rather than a lack of light, this seemed to be genuinely emanating solid darkness. Threads of light sprouted from the dark spot on the ground, wriggling through the air like snakes, until each one whipped out and latched onto the jewel in the centre of the amulets. Each of the Bearers felt a tugging sensation from these threads, as they began to bulge and gleam with the colours of their amulets. And from the red jewel around Blueblood’s neck, a white globe of energy emerged, travelling down the thread of light into the centre of the circle, where it was swallowed by the darkness.

Then, as quickly as the glowing lights had appeared, they vanished, snaking back down into the ground. The grove fell silent and dark once more, save for a sound near inaudible. A faint scuffing, scrabbling sound, from the centre of the circle where the darkness had appeared.

“It is where my body lies.”

Then, the ground in the centre gave way as a limb emerged. A bony white hoof, followed by the bones of a forehoof, emerged from the ground, as flesh and skin seemed to grow and spread across it. A second hoof, now fully fleshed out with skin stretching across it, pushed up from the dirt, followed by a head and finally, an entire pony emerged.

It was a grotesque thing. A twisted, curved horn sprouted from his forehead, yellowish-grey like the rest of his body. Or at least, what little of his body could be seen under the tattered faded robes and plates of iron barding that encased his torso. A hood was pulled up over his head, shrouding his head in darkness, save for long locks of thin, grey hair that fell down past his withers and hung before his chest. In lieu of a necklace, he wore a silver crown atop his hood, with a jewel of black obsidian displayed at the front, in the shape of a scorpion, stinger curled low and ready to lash out. From around his eyes, strange wisps of purple shimmered in the night air, not quite flames, not quite smoke, but exactly like those that surrounded Sombra’s eyes.

He opened his eyes, revealing red irises and grey sclera, and grinned.

Sombra bowed low before him, saying in a voice that was nothing short of worship. "Master."

"It is good to be back, my faithful student," the Fallen King replied.

Bearer of the Element of Death: Arisen.

‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high.’

View Online

Even as the moon rose over the magnificent white and gold spires of Canterlot, the city refused to fall silent. As most of the shops locked up for the evening, the city's nightlife sprung into action, with bars, clubs and theatres opening their doors to their public.

However, in the mighty castle that towered above the city, the night seemed far calmer. Only a scattering of night guards patrolled the corridors, as the servants bade eachother goodnight and headed for their quarters for a well-deserved rest. And joining the in their rest was the princess of the sun herself, Celestia.

Placing her golden crown and collar on her table, Celestia slipped out of her horseshoes and picked up a silver comb in her magical grip. As she stood and brushed, she reflected upon the day she had just had.

Nothing too out of the ordinary, it seemed. The usual clients at the Royal Court, forms to sign, receptions with the aristocracy, the usual. Although, she admitted in her head, I don't recall seeing Blueblood at dinner tonight.

She chuckled to herself. Probably out with some friends tearing up some club in the city. But otherwise, a rather dull day. Ah well, perhaps tomorrow will be a bit more amusing. If I have some spare time, perhaps I might even...

Arisen.

Her train of thought came to a crashing halt as she heard it. The comb clattered to the floor as the glow of her horn was extinguished. Not only the word, spoken in some deep, eldritch voice, but the feeling that came with it. As if her very heart had stopped for a brief moment, and her mind and body had frozen along with it. Her lungs felt like they were being squeezed by some icy, unseen grip, and a disgusting taste arose in her throat.

And then the scream. The shrill, primordial screech that echoed through her mind. And deep in her mind's eye, she felt a tiny jolt of pain as the scream was suddenly silenced.

After what seemed like an eternity frozen, Celestia's legs gave way and she slumped down onto the floor, seated on the rug. The strange feeling faded as suddenly as it had appeared, leaving only a feeling of dread in Celestia's mind.

"... What on earth was that?" She muttered aloud. "That voice... And that aura, that... sickening aura!"

There came a knock at the door as she voiced her thoughts. Looking up, she got up and brushed herself off as quickly as she could. Clearing her throat, she called, "Come in."

The door creaked open, to reveal Luna standing in the doorway. Celestia was quick to notice that she looked slightly paler than usual, and her fur and mane seemed haggard and mussed. "G-good evening, sister."

"Ah, Luna, do come in," Celestia said, pulling open the door all the way. "Might I guess that you felt it too?"

"Indeed," Luna replied. "And heard it as well. An ear-splitting scream that was suddenly silenced, and that hideous deep voice, saying something..."

"'Arisen'. It said 'Arisen'."

Luna looked anxiously to her sister. "But what does it mean, Celestia? What, or who, has arisen?"

Celestia shrugged. "I'm not sure. Have you heard any reports of our old foes returning?"

"None, sister. "Luna shook her head. "The Changelings are still locked away in their own kingdom, Discord remains loyal to us, Tartarus is still locked and guarded, and King Sombra remains destroyed. Who else could it be?"

"We have had many enemies, Luna, not all of them confined to Tartarus," Celestia replied. "Tirek, Grogar the Necromancer, the Coven of Hydia, and who knows who else..."

"But sister, they are all defeated long ago! What manner of magic could resurrect them?"

The white alicorn shrugged again. "I'm not sure. But what disturbs me more is the aura I felt as I heard those words."

"I felt it as well," Luna agreed. "It nearly made me nauseous!"

"Indeed. I fear something terrible has happened," Celestia said, sitting down on the ground once again. "But what could it have been? And why did it feel so familiar?"

"It did feel familiar, did it not," Luna said, tapping a hoof to her chin. "I know not where from, but I am sure I have felt such an aura in the past... But where?"

The sisters sat together in silence as they pondered this peculiar incident. "I think, for now, we should not alert the ponies."

"Agreed. No sense in causing a panic if no threat actually exists," Luna said.

Celestia got back up, standing at the window. "But I think also, we should be vigilant. If something is coming, we must be ready for it."

"Very well," Luna replied as she headed back through the door. "I must attend to my nightly duties for now, sister. Try to get some rest."

She nodded in reply. "I will, thank you Luna. Goodnight."

Luna nodded back and with that, she was gone. Celestia remained by the open window, peering out over the dark mass that was her domain, scattered with specks of light wherever towns and villages sat.

Somewhere out there, something had happened. She might not have understood the aura and the first voice, but the scream and the jolt of pain, she knew well. Being attuned to all magic, Celestia had inherited the inherent ability to feel and detect the magical auras in each and every one of her subjects. And such a jolt could only mean that somewhere out there, in her kingdom, somepony had just lost their life by magical means.

Was it an accident? A tragic magical mishap? Or worse still, was it murder? She had felt it only a few days ago, when that poor unicorn had been killed in that mysterious accident in Ponyville, but what was this?

She sighed. "Well, whomever it was, and however it happened, I pray that you are at least at rest now. Your soul goes to join the flow of Harmony, where you may only know peace."

As she finished her eulogy, Celestia closed the window and clambered into her enormous bed, her mind still abuzz over this mysterious feeling.

Ponyville was quiet this morning.

Even for a village as small and quaint as Ponyville, the town was quiet. A general atmosphere of melancholia and emptiness hung over the village, as if something had been stripped from the very spirit of the town, leaving a hollow, empty feeling.
But the ponies went about their day to day business, trying to pay the feeling no heed. The shops remained open, the market-day went on. But even Sugarcube Corner, with its bubblegum-pink colour scheme, seemed somehow less than it was before.

"There you go," Mrs. Cake said in a forced cheerful voice, handing over a bag of cakes to an eager customer. "Thanks for stopping by!"

The pony nodded, depositing a small pile of coins on the counter and heading out the door. Just before the door could swing shut, a forehoof held it open and five young mares entered.

"Ah, good morning girls," Mrs Cake called to the ponies.

"Morning, Mrs. Cake," replied Twilight. "How's business?"

The dumpy mare's smile slipped a notch. "Not too good today. I guess ponies aren't really in the mood for sweets, now that news has gotten around town about... You know, Applebloom."

Twilight sighed. "Yeah, the whole town seems gloomy today. Not hard to see why."

The five mares nodded silently as they sat around a table, each ordering a milkshake.

"So, how's Sweetie Belle doing?" Rainbow Dash asked, breaking the silence.

"Not too well," Rarity replied. "The poor dear was practically in shock when I came to pick her up from Sweet Apple Acres yesterday. I nearly joined her when she explained what happened. It wasn't until I got her home that she started crying, and then she didn't stop until she finally fell asleep. She hasn't come out of her room all morning."

"Poor Sweetie Belle," Twilight said to nopony in particular. "Losing both of her closest friends in one evening... What does that do to a filly?"

"So they still haven't found what happened to Scootaloo?" Rainbow asked, taking a sip of her shake.

Twilight shook her head. "Nopony's seen her. How are you holding up about it, Rainbow? You look exhausted."

Rainbow rubbed her eyelids with a forehoof. "I couldn't sleep last night. First hearing about Applebloom, then Scootaloo goes missing... I guess it was just alot to take in, y'know?"

"And ontop of all that, there's still the whole mystery about Amethyst Star," Twilight added. "Just what is going on in this town?!"

The other mares nodded. It was not as if nopony ever died in Ponyville. Old age, disease and accidents were as common as anywhere else in Equestria. But two mysterious and violent deaths, one caused by some sort of magical surge that the victim should not have been able to create, the other completely unknown, and happening to a child no less. And ontop of that, Scootaloo's disappearance from the scene of Applebloom's death, it was unheard of.

The rest of their time in the sweet shop passed in silence, until Mrs Cake came back to take away their empty glasses.

"So, where's Applejack?" Mrs Cake asked.

"Where do you think? Back at the farm," Rainbow replied.

Pinkie Pie stood up. "Do you think we should pay her a visit, maybe it'll cheer her up a bit."

"That might be a good idea," Rarity replied, dusting herself off. "I'd imagine Applejack would want some companionship now more than ever."

Deathly silence hung over Sweet Apple Acres. No sounds of industrious ponies, hard at work in the orchards. No sounds of the farm animals going about their daily lives. The air seemed quiet and still, as if even the summer winds themselves were in mourning.

Inside the farmhouse was just as silent and still. In the living room, Granny Smith sat in her rocking chair, deep in an exhausted slumber after a sleepless night of grief. On the dining room table sat a single picture frame with a photograph of Applebloom, a carefree smile upon he lips, leaning against a small ceramic pot. A tiny urn for a tiny filly.

Granny's eyelids fluttered in her sleep as there was a knocking at the door, but she stayed asleep. After a few seconds of silence, there was another knocking, slightly louder. This stirred Granny Smith from her sleep, as she awoke with a start. Slipping out of her chair, she hobbled slowly to the door and feebly pulled it open.

"Oh, um... Good morning, Granny Smith," Twilight said with a solemn nod.

The old mare returned the nod. "Mornin' young'uns. I'll wager y'all wanna see Applejack?"

Fluttershy nodded. "If that's alright with you. I mean, we thought that she might want somepony to talk to or something."
Granny gestured with her head in the direction of the stairs. "She's up in her room. Poor child's bin cryin' all night. Heck, we all have, 'cept for Big Macintosh."

Her limbs creaking with age, she pointed a forehoof out a window on the side. Twilight trotted over and peered through the glass. Out in the yard by the shed, she could see Big Macintosh. He was sitting on the ground, head hunched over, right at the same spot where the horrible act took place. His glazed eyes stared downwards, at the pink hair ribbon that he held in his forehooves.

"He's bin like that since yesterday. Just sittin' there, starin' down at that hair ribbon. Can't get him to move, can't get him to speak, I guess he's just sorta gone into shock over it all." The old mare explained. With a sigh, she continued, "I still can't quite get it in my brain that... that she's gone."

As Granny Smith wiped a tear from her eye, Pinkie Pie quietly approached her. Placing a comforting forehoof on her shoulder, she gently eased Granny into a hug. Pinkie Pie was barely able to hold back her own tears as she felt the old mare weeping silently against her.

"Do you... do you think you're going to be alright?" Twilight asked.

Breaking from the hug, Granny Smith cleared her throat, wiping her eyes again. "Heh, I doubt I'll be 'alright' fer quite some time, young 'un. But I'll get by fer now. Y'all best head upstairs and see Applejack now."

The five mares nodded and bade Granny Smith goodbye, heading up the stairs. They stopped outside one of the doors, knocking gently.

"Applejack?" Twilight said in a gentle voice. "Are you in there?"

On the other side of the door, they could hear the faint sounds of muffled sobbing. Twilight knocked again. "We understand if you want to be alone right now. We just want to say, if you need somepony to talk to or something, we're all here for you.
The sobbing stopped. After a few seconds of silence, the door creaked open. There stood Applejack, her hair untied and hanging loose around her shoulders, eyes red from crying all through the night.

"Come on in, gals," she said in a hoarse voice.

Silently, the five mares entered, each nodding to Applejack as they entered. Closing the door behind them, she sat down upon the edge of her bed where her friends joined her.

"... Why?" she said in a near-inaudible voice. "Why did this have to happen?"

Pinkie offered her forelegs to her, and Applejack let herself be hugged by the pink pony. "Ssh, it's okay Applejack," Pinkie Pie whispered reassuringly. "We're here for you."

And this time, she could not stop the tears rolling from her cheeks as she felt Applejack's shaking body in her arms, and heard her muffled sobbing against her chest.

"Sh-she was so yo-young..." Applejack wept. "After Ma and Pa passed on, Big Mac and I pretty much raised her ourselves. Sh-she was like a d-d-daughter to me..."

She raised her head, tears streaming in small rivulets down her face. "N-nopony should have to outlive their own child."

The mares sat in silence once again, save for Applejack's quiet sobbing and the occasional sniffling from somepony else. Everypony was at a loss for words. Sure, they had all experienced death before, be it an older relative, a friend or a little animal friend. But never of one so young.

After what may have been hours of weeping, Applejack finally rose up, rubbing her eyes and taking a deep breath. "Thanks, gals... I guess I jus' needed a shoulder to cry on, and neither Granny nor Big Mac are in much of a state to be that shoulder."

"Well, if you need another shoulder, you know where to find us," Rainbow Dash said with a smile.

With a weak smile, Applejack nodded. "But still, I wish we had some idea of how exactly it happened..."

"Well, from what I could get out of Sweetie Belle," Rarity replied, "She and Big Macintosh apparently heard you and I calling for them, so they went to the gate, but there was nopony there. And then, they heard Scootaloo and Applebloom screaming and ran back to the shed where they were."

Applejack frowned. "Hold on. Ya say they heard us callin' for them? How does that work, we were all in town when it happened."

"It gets even more mysterious, trust me. According to Sweetie Belle, when she and Big Macintosh returned to the shed after hearing them screaming, they found Scootaloo sitting on the ground in front of a pile of dust that... that looked like Applebloom. The same colour as her, vaguely in her shape, complete with the hair ribbon lying ontop. And then, Scootaloo apparently vanished in a flash of light, right before their eyes," Rarity said. "Heavens, you don't think... you don't think Scootaloo had something to do with-"

"Woah woah, hold up Rarity! Are you seriously suggesting that Scootaloo did this?!" Rainbow asked incredulously.

"Well, she was at the scene when it happened," Rarity said. "I don't like the thought of it any more than you, but it could be the case."

Twilight chimed in. "But how? Scootaloo hasn't got any magic, so how else could she have done it? Besides, I've never heard of any spell or potion or anything that does... that."

As her horn lit up, the clasps on a small bag she carried popped open and a small notebook and quill floated out. She started fervently scribbling down notes on a fresh page.

"What'cha got there?" Applejack asked, peering over her shoulder.

"I've been keeping a journal ever since what happened to Amethyst Star," Twilight explained. "Since then, I've been doing alot of investigation around Ponyville. And going by what we know, I don't think it would be too far-fetched to say that what happened to Amethyst and what happened to Applebloom may be connected."

"Connected how, exactly?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight passed her notepad around, letting everypony see it. "Well think about it; in Ponyville, crime levels are almost negligible, and there are virtually no recorded cases of violent crimes. And yet, in the space of less than a week, we have two violent deaths, both by unexplained means. One of them involved an enormous surge of magic, possibly caused by some external artefact, likely the Alicorn Amulet. And the other is even more mysterious, and definitely magical in nature. I don't know of any natural phenomenon where somepony would just crumble into dust."

"Hmm..." Pinkie Pie tapped a hoof to her chin. "I guess... there could be some sorta connection. But what? And who? And why, for that matter?!"

Twilight slipped the notebook back into her bags. "That's what we're going to find out, Pinkie Pie. Applejack... I know this may be asking a bit much of you, given what's happened, but... would you be willing to help?"

The farmpony stood up, her eyes dry of tears. "As if ya even have to ask, Twilight. I wanna find out more than anypony just what the hay happened to my sister, where her friend is and just what is goin' on. Y'all can count me in. But... Maybe not right now, y'know?"

"I understand," Twilight said with a nod. "Just come and find me when you're ready."

"Well, I've bin thinkin', and if Granny and Big Mac are alright with it, we'll probably be doin' Applebloom's funeral in a few days. Once we've had a chance to lay her to rest, I think I'll be ready to help y'all out. And... Well, if y'all can make it, I'd sure appreciate it if ya could show up."

Rainbow nodded. "We'll be there."

"Of course, Applejack," Fluttershy added.

"I'll certainly be there," Rarity said. "And Sweetie Belle too, of course."

Applejack smiled again. "Thanks gals. It'd sure mean alot to her, and it'll sure mean alot to me."

And with that, and one last group hug, the five mares departed, leaving Applejack alone in her room, to ponder the events of the last few days.

"Does anybody know exactly where we are going?"

Six figures trudged through the thick trees of the Everfree Forest. The Fallen King and Sombra led the way side by side, followed closely by Blueblood, Chrysalis, Gilda and, trailing at the back, Scootaloo.

Sombra grunted in frustration. "For the last time, yes! Keep your mouth shut, little prince, and just follow us!"

"Little Prince?!" Blueblood sputtered. "Excuse me, but I am crown-prince of Equestria, and I demand that you address me as such!"

"Hah! Your rank is rather irrelevant given what we plan to do, don't you think?" Sombra retorted with a toothy grin.

The Fallen King placed a hoof on Sombra's shoulder. "Now now, my faithful apprentice. Do not be too harsh upon Blueblood. He is to be one of your working partners, after all."

"Hah! Thank you sir. Hear that, Sombra?" Blueblood sneered, "You're going to have to learn to play nice."

Sombra growled, "The day you and I will 'play nice' together will be the day that Tartarus itself freezes over, you pompous blowhard."

"Anyway," The Fallen King said as he came to a halt, "We can save the banter for later. For now, we have arrived.

Brushing aside a frond of broad leaves, The six found themselves at the edge of a massive gorge. Gloomy mist swirled and wafted from the crevice that stretched across the earth before them, the sides connected only by a rickety wooden bridge. And on the other side of the gorge, there stood the crumbling ruins of a castle, now little more than a pile of stone blocks.

"So... that is where we're going to be staying?" Chrysalis said uncertainly. "My my, it's so...rustic."

"Maybe it is now," the Fallen King replied, "But in my time, it was my home. And a mighty stronghold it was."

"Your home? I read about this place, back when you were making me search for your notes. The records said this was the original palace of the Princesses."

Sombra nodded "And so it was. But they were merely guests, and so was I. Our master was the one who truly ruled this castle."

"You lived here too?!" Blueblood said, eyes wide with surprise. But before he could demand any explanation, Gilda swooped overhead, teasingly swiping at his head with her claws.

"Hey, enough chit-chat! Let's just get in there already," she said as she flew across the crevice. Blueblood, the Fallen King and Sombra followed behind.

Chrysalis stopped, however, as she saw Scootaloo, sitting on the ground behind her, staring into space. She rolled her eyes. "Come along, you."

But Scootaloo remained seated, eyes planted on the sky. "... I did it," she muttered. "I killed her... I killed Applebloom..."

"Scootaloo, you can mope and mourn later, but right now, you need to move," Chrysalis said, more firmly this time. Scootaloo seemed not to listen, still staring at the morning sky above.

"Hey! What's taking you two?" Blueblood shouted from across the gorge as the rest of the group pushed the rotting wooden doors open and entering the ruin.

Chrysalis looked from across the bridge, and back to Scootaloo. But the filly seemed to have no interest in moving anywhere.

The changeling sighed. "I guess I'm going to have to play foalsitter for the time," she said. As her horn glowed green, Scootaloo was engulfed in the same light, and lifted into the air, landing on Chrysalis' back.

"Hold on tight," she said, as she took to the air and flew across the gorge. As she landed, Scootaloo slid off her chitinous back. "Now then, in you go."

The little filly looked up at Chrysalis with mournful eyes. "Will it make the whispers stop?"

The Changeling rolled her eyes. "I- Ugh, yes, I'm sure it will, now let's go!" she said before following the others inside. Slowly, Scootaloo lifted herself off the ground and staggered in.

Inside the ruins was just as bare and crumbling as the outside. The doors opened to a short corridor that opened up to a much larger hall, a ragged old carpet leading from the doorway to the far end where two thrones stood, tattered banners of the sun and moon hanging behind them and a massive hole in the wall inbetween them. Doorways on either side led to further passages and corridors into the rest of the castle.

"Man, what a dump," Gilda said bluntly, her voice echoing off the stone walls.

Sombra rounded upon her. "Show some respect, griffon! That is my master's house you are insulting, and mine as well."

"Actually, I must agree with her," the Fallen King replied as he looked around. "It would seem that since they built that eyesore of a capital city on the mountainside, this castle has lain abandoned."

Blueblood lounged against the steps leading to the thrones. "Honestly, how are we supposed to operate from inside such a dilapidated place? We don't even have so much as a roof over our heads," he said, waving his hooves skyward.

The Fallen King brushed him aside with a forehoof as he climbed up the steps, standing on the small bridge that connected the two platforms that the thrones stood upon. "Well, that can easily be remedied. Now, don't... don't move..."

He closed his eyes and took a deep breath as the Fallen King's horn glowed with a sickly yellow light. The same glow emanated from the jet-black scorpion jewel on his crown. All around the throne room things began to move. Fallen stones and crumbling bricks levitated into the air, swirling around the room and setting themselves back in the walls. Cracks that snaked up the sides of pillars vanished. On the back wall, the massive hole evened out into an upside-down shield shape, and from the dust and grit that coated every surface, a great sheet of glass formed and fitted itself into the hole. The tattered banners fell from the walls and burst into multicoloured flames, burning away into nothingness. And the shrubs and vines that grew along the walls and sprouted from cracks began to grow, their tendrils and branches reaching out over the empty space that was once a ceiling. The branches intertwined above the astonished host in the throne room, until coming to a halt as they formed a roof.

Finally, the Fallen King ceased his spell as his horns glow faded. Breathing heavily, he wiped the sweat from his brown and looked about at his handiwork. The throne room was still looking very dusty and bare, but otherwise sturdy and suitable for living in.

"... Woah," was all that Gilda could utter.

"Indeed," he replied. "And that is just the start. We need to have this entire castle repaired, rebuilt and ready for habitation. This is going to be our new home now, and the base of our operations. Once we have it ship-shape, we can begin our plan."

"My my, you certainly are serious about this, aren't you?" Chrysalis said with a wry grin. "Now come on, you've been giving us nothing but vague hints for a while now, so spill it: Why exactly do you want to take over Equestria? What is it the Princesses did to you that is so bad?"

Sombra stepped forward to stand beside his master, as he noticed a shadow cross the Fallen King's hooded and veiled face. "There, you see it? There's anger in you both, I can practically taste it," Chrysalis continued. "You've seen things, haven't you? Just what happened?"

The Fallen King looked down at the floor, then up to the ceiling. But when he looked down, he was grinning. It was not a pleasant sight. "Very well, Chrysalis. Gather around, everypony -and griffon-, and I will tell you my story."

The six gathered on the steps surrounding the throne, all looking up at their leader except for Scootaloo, who still stared mournfully into space. Sombra joined them as the Fallen King recounted his story.

"Thousands of years ago, before the reign of Celestia and Luna, before even the founding of Equestria as we know it, this castle you now stand in was a mighty fortress, a palace fit for a king. And that king was me.

There was no overgrown forest surrounding it back then, but instead there was a vast kingdom of rolling plains and sprawling towns. And here in its centre was its capital city. Now, in that city, there lived three young unicorns; three talented, brilliant unicorns. They were named Celestia, Luna and Sombra."

All eyes turned to the black-furred unicorn, who glared right back. "Indeed, he was the very Sombra who sits among us now," he continued. "And the same Celestia and Luna who now sit upon their thrones in Canterlot. And so brilliant were these three that I personally oversaw their magical tutoring.

And I could not have asked for better students. Smart, quick learning, ambitious and incredibly powerful. With them at my side, my kingdom became stronger than ever before..."

Gilda raised a claw. "Woah, hold up... So, you were the Princesses'... master?!"

"That I was, Gilda," the Fallen King replied. "They were loyal apprentices, and I loved them almost like my own children. And then there came the day that they betrayed my trust and love for them.

The three unicorns were nearly in their adult years when Sombra and I stumbled upon a strange new magic. You see, before this, the only magic taught to unicorns was based on the idea of Harmony, tapping into positive emotions, which was powerful in its own way. But the magic Sombra and I discovered, this was something else entirely. It tapped into the negative emotions, where the real power lay. Together, we learned to control and harness this magic for our own uses, and with it, rose to become the most powerful unicorns in all the world... Then, enter Celestia and Luna to ruin everything.

They attacked Sombra and I for daring to tap into this magic, and why? Because some archaic magical lore forbade the use of such forces!"

The Fallen King's voice rose angrily as he told his tale, until he caught himself as he began to shout. Pausing to regain his composure, he continued. "Sombra and I tried to reason with them, telling them that we only wished to harness this magic for the greater good of our kingdom, but they stubbornly refused to listen. Our feud finally came to a head when they rose up against us and staged a rebellion!

"It started small; protests in the street, posters on very building calling for our unjust removal. But slowly, protests turned to riots, their little gangs turned into militias and finally, they had an army. And so, the First War started.

"This war lasted for years, battles raging all across the kingdom, ravaging the land and causing untold suffering and death to my people. But the Princesses weren't satisfied with only turning my subjects against me, they even sent for aid from neighbouring kingdoms and tribes! Well, two could play at that game, and I happened to have many allies of my own, including a recently discovered land that I had sent Sombra to colonise, which called itself the Crystal Empire."

"The Crystal Empire was on your side?!" Blueblood asked incredulously.

Sombra managed a tight smile. "They were rather easy to control. And when they heard of my masters plight, they were all too willing to help."

"So, the First War raged on for another year, until finally the Princesses overran our capital and drove us to our castle. Sombra was lost in the battle, banished to the Frozen North along with the rest of the Crystal Empire, where they mysteriously vanished. The siege lasted three days, until they finally broke down our gates and stormed the castle.

"Luckily, I had a failsafe. In the event of my demise, I had crafted that." the Fallen King pointed to the Alicorn Amulet, which hung around Blueblood's neck. "It was designed to hold a small portion of my being should I be slain, and then hide itself somewhere safe. My body was eventually killed in battle by Celestia herself, but part of me lived on in that little gemstone.

"So Celestia and Luna were victorious, but at a great cost. The land that was now little more than a barren wasteland of scorched earth and lifeless corpses, and everypony was suffering because of their stubbornness. And do you know what they did, when they saw what they had done?"

The five, now listening with rapt attention, shook their heads.

"They hid it," he coldly replied. "They herded everypony who had lived in those lands away to a new land, where they then did the unthinkable: They erased the war from history.

"Every memory, every written record, every possible reference to the First War, and they destroyed them all. They hid the memory of their despicable revolution and the horrors of what they started. And there were horrors, do not doubt it. I saw things during that war that would curl your horns and shrivel your wings... The Destruction of the Eternity's Crossing, the fall of Windsoar and Vaporia, the Opening of Abaddon's Fury... And they wiped it all from the memories of those who survived, in a vain attempt to hide their mistakes."

The Fallen King could no longer hide the chilling fury in his voice. Slamming a hoof onto the rail of the bridge, he glared out across the throne room. "And that is why I am going to make them pay. They have disgraced the names of those who perished because of them, by claiming that they did not even exist! And I ask you, my friends, does that sound fair to you?!"

"Absolutely not!" Blueblood shouted.

"It's disgraceful! And they call themselves royalty!" Chrysalis agreed.

Gilda joined in. "Somebody needs to take those two Princesses down a peg!"

"And so we shall, my friends," The Fallen King said, hushing them all with a wave of his forehoof. "So let us get to work building this old ruin into our new stronghold. And then, the great work can truly commence!"

And The Beast Opened his Mouth to Blaspheme Against God, and Them That Dwelleth in Heaven

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"Before we begin, first of all I would like to say thank y'all to everypony, for attendin' today."

Wiping a tear from her eye, Twilight Sparkle looked around herself. On a small hill, overlooking the trees that gave Sweet Apple Acres its namesake, a small crowd of ponies had gathered for a solemn ceremony. At the top of the hill was dug a small hole. Beside it sat the urn that contained Applebloom's remains, next to a small gravestone.

Apple Family members from all over Equestria had turned up for Applebloom's funeral. Braeburn from Appleoosa, the Oranges from Manehattan, Apples from Phillydelphia, Vanhoover, Hollow Shades, and countless other towns and cities across the land. Even Babs Seed had made the trip to Ponyville, and now stood weeping silently alongside Sweetie Belle, both wearing their Cutie Mark Crusader capes. Beside them stood Rarity, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy and Twilight. Black suits, mourning bands and veils were in abundance among the crowd.

Before them all stood Applejack, her hat removed and a simple black jacket on her shoulders. "I'm sure Applebloom is lookin' down from somewhere, happy that so many of her friends and family came to say goodbye, one last time.

I gotta say, this ain't somethin' I ever expected to be havin' to do... Applebloom always seemed so full of life, so energetic. I suppose the same can be said for all fillies her age... She lived a short life, sure, and she was taken from us all far too early. But as short as her life was, it was one full of love, friendship, and always plenty of adventure. She loved her hometown, she loved the outdoors, and she always loved her home, here among the apple orchards. She was loved by all of Ponyville, by her school friends, in particular her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders. And especially, she was loved by her family. And wherever she is now, I reckon she's lookin' down on us all and smilin' that so many of her friends and family turned out to say goodbye."

Applejack paused a moment as her voice quavered slightly. Taking a deep breath, she continued. "Now, I dunno how it happened, and I dunno if we'll ever find out for sure. But as sure as I'm a member of the Apple Family, fer her sake, I know I'll do everythin' in my power to find out. If nothin' else, at least we can put this mystery to rest."

She silently nodded to Twilight, who nodded wordlessly back. Her horn lighting up, the urn was levitated into the air, hovering before the crowd.

"And so, Applebloom of the Apple Family, in accordance with what you probably would've wished for, we commit your final... mortal remains... to this hill overlooking the apple orchards... which you l-loved so... s-so much," Applejack said, no longer able to hide her sobbing. Stepping aside, she allowed Twilight to lower the urn into the hole, as Pinkie's comforting forehoof wrapped around her shaking shoulders.

Sweetie Belle and Babs stepped forward next, carrying between them Applebloom's Cutie Mark Crusader cape. But next to the patch of the Crusader's symbol, there was another patch, crudely stitched onto the cape. A simple white patch, with written upon it, the words 'Once a Cutie Mark Crusader, always a Cutie Mark Crusader'. Together they gently lowered the folded cape into the grave next to the urn, before scurrying aside to let the other ponies make their final goodbyes. Some spoke quiet words of farewell, some left a simple offering: a colourful flower, a bag of sweets, a perfectly shiny red apple.

Applejack watched each pony as they stopped by the headstone, counting in her head. Well over forty ponies, Apple Family members, schoolchildren, and residents of Ponyville, were in attendance. Even those two brats, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon had showed up, neither looking like they were particularly comfortable being here. But there was one pony missing. One pony who should have been here. She would have to deal with him afterwards.

When everypony had said their goodbyes, Twilight and Rarity raised their horns. A small pile of earth beside the headstone rose into the air and fell neatly upon the grave, forming a tiny mound of dirt. And upon the headstone were the few words:

APPLEBOOM
CRUSADER. SISTER. FRIEND

The day drew on, and Applejack found herself sitting alone on the hill, by the freshly-dug grave of her sister. As the sun began to sink, she watched as the last rays of light played across the trees, glinting off the apples' shiny skins.

"Hope you like yer final gift, Applebloom" Applejack muttered under her breath as she got up and plopped her hat back on. Sighing, she looked down the other side of the hill at the farmhouse below. "Well, no gettin' around it now. I may as well go talk to him."
Giving the headstone one last affectionate pat, she started down the hill, through the orchard, to the gate of the farm. Past the farmhouse and the barn, she headed towards the yard out back next to the shed. And there he was.

Looking exhausted, all light gone from his bleary eyes, sat Big Macintosh. For the past two days, since Appleblooms death, he had sat there, on the spot where it all happened. In his forehoof, he still held the pink hair ribbon, now beginning to fade from exposure.

"Hello, Big Mac," Applebloom said, a frown starting to appear on her face. "I had a feeling I'd find you here."

He said nothing.

"I didn't see you at her funeral today, big brother," she continued. "I gotta say, I'm a might disappointed in you. It's pretty obvious yer still in shock over this whole ordeal, but the least you could've done was show up and pay yer final respects."

Still no response. He just stayed seated on the ground.

"Come on, Big Mac! I know how you feel! I miss her too... but we gotta keep goin'! We need you, Granny Smith and I. The farm needs you," Applejack said.

"My fault."

Applejack batted at one of her ears with a forehoof. Surely she was hearing things? It almost sounded like...

"It's my fault," Big Macintosh muttered, in a voice so quiet and hoarse it was almost inaudible.

Applejack sat down beside him. "Wha d'ya mean? What was yer fault?"

He held up the hair ribbon. "This... Applebloom... It was my fault. I should've been there. I should've been watchin' her... But I wasn't and now... now..."

"Sshh, I know," Applejack said softly. "I know. And I don't wanna hear any of that kinda talk. Nothin' was yer fault, Big Macintosh."

"But... I could've done somethin'... I could've saved her..."

"How, exactly? We don't even know what happened to her, what could you have done?" Applejack asked.

Big Macintosh shrugged. "I dunno... But I wouldn't have let her die... not like that... There must be somethin' we can do..."

"To do what? Bring her back?"

He looked up at his sister, tears finally streaming down his face after days of holding them in. "...M-maybe... I mean, y'all know the Princesses personally and..."

Applejack just shook her head and sighed. "Big brother, if there was some magic that could bring her back, don't ya think we'd have used it by now? Don't ya think we'd have found somepony to bring Ma and Pa back?"

Big Macintosh looked like he was about to respond, but he hesitated and simply nodded.

"I'm not gonna pretend to be any kinda expert on magic, Big Mac," Applejack continued. "But I'm willin' to bet there ain't no magic that can bring back the dead. Now, at the funeral, I made a promise that I'd figure out just what happened to her, and I'm not one to make promises lightly. But we've just gotta face the facts... Applebloom's gone."

Wiping the tearstains from his eyes, Big Macintosh got up and nodded. Applejack clapped him on the back with a forehoof. "Now c'mon, big brother. You've been out here for days now. The nights are gettin' colder, and I don't want ya freezin' yer tail out here. High time you came back in and had a good long rest."

He sniffed deep and, for the first time in days, actually smiled. "Thanks, sis. A good night's sleep ought to do me good."

Side by side, the two went back into the house, where Granny Smith was waiting to welcome them back home with a tender hug. The rest of the evening they spent together, dining in silence. It was a simple meal, some mashed potatoes, baked beans, corn on the cob, and a freshly-baked apple-cinnamon crumble for dessert. Comfort food of the best kind.

After dinner, the three ponies took to their rooms, dwelling in thought about their loss, until the merciful veil of sleep finally overcame them.

For a short time, at least. For as the moon reached its peak in the sky, Big Macintosh started awake.

No matter what he did, he could not stay asleep. The events of the past few days kept replaying over and over in his head. Hearing what sounded like Applejack calling his name. Following the voice and finding nothing. Hearing Scootaloo's blood-curdling scream and sprinting back to find her knelt before what was left of Applebloom...

He shook his head, beads of sweat and tears flying to and fro. He could see where Applejack was coming from, but she just did not understand. How could she? How could she know what it could be like to leave the child you were meant to be watching over for a matter of seconds, only to return to find them dead at your hooves?!

His sister's words still rang in his ears. "There ain't no magic that can bring back the dead." But what if there was? He had seen wonders of magic before that he still could not understand. Heck, he saw it every morning as the sun rose! Before the Princesses were around, the sun was raised up by scores of unicorns working together.

But the rising sun is a completely natural process, a voice in his head said. That is something that is supposed to happen. Raising the dead ain't natural.

But why not? Why couldn't death be reversed? Nopony, not even the Princesses in all their wisdom, know what lies beyond the veil. Maybe there is some way to bring ponies back, bring life back to their bodies.

"One thing's fer sure," he whispered to himself. "I sure as hay won't find it here."

Tossing the bedspread aside, he silently snuck over to the dresser on the other side of his room. Grabbing a sheet of paper and a pencil in mouth, he scribbled a quick note that he would leave in his absence. Once he was done, he slipped it into a small envelope and left it on his bed.

He took a small saddlebag from under his bed and began packing. He would need to be well underway as soon as possible.

While Ponyville was still reeling from its losses, life went on in Canterlot city the next morning. Shops opened, cafes served fancy teas and tiny cakes for extortionate prices, and, as always, the Palace was open for the Royal Court.

Hundreds of ponies lined up through the main hall of the palace, leading to the throne room where Celestia sat and listened to everypony who came to request an audience with the Princess. Some had requests that the Princesses would take into account, some had disputes they wanted solved, and some simply wished to greet the Princess and offer their praise to her for everything she did for them.

And right in the middle of the queue stood four figures with rather different motives.

"This is ridiculous," Gilda muttered. "I thought you were supposed to be some super-powerful wizard or something, why are we just waiting in line?"

The Fallen King, his face still concealed by his tattered hood, replied, "Gilda, just because our intents are... shall we say, revolutionary, doesn't mean we have to behave like thugs. We are here to seek a diplomatic solution and request that the Princesses stand down as rulers of this land."

"And if they refuse, we try a more direct approach?" asked Chrysalis, now disguised as a middle-aged pegasus.

"Indeed. And kindly leave the talking to me," he continued.

"If you're doing all the talking, then why are we here?" Blueblood asked.

"For my protection," the Fallen King replied. "Should matters turn sour. And it is likely they will. However, that said, the Princesses have a right to know who stands against them."

"But won't they end up coming after you after they find out?" Chrysalis asked as the line moved forward a few paces.

"Perhaps. But by the time they find me, it will be far too late. They will be too preoccupied with keeping their own kingdom under control to have time to worry about me," he said with a grin.

As the day wore on, the line slowly inched forwards, bit by bit, pony by pony. Around mid-afternoon, the quartet of conspirators finally found themselves at the front, before the doors of the throne room.

"You four are together then?" a burly guardspony by the doorway asked. The four of them nodded. "Alright then, the Princess will see you now."

The four entered the throne room and stood behind the velvet rope where all appeals were made from. The Fallen King glanced about and took note of every guard that was in the room. Fourteen of them in total: two by the doorway, two outside, three along each side of the throne room, and two on either side of the throne. And elevated above them one her golden throne, sat Princess Celestia herself. The slight look of boredom on the Princess's face was slightly alleviated as she noticed her nephew among the four of her subjects entering.

"Blueblood? This is unexpected," Celestia said, sitting up in her throne. "Where have you been these past few days?"

"Good afternoon, auntie Celestia," the prince replied. "I've been with some new friends of mine. And one of them here, has something he would like to say to you."

He stepped aside, and Celestia at last got a good look at the cloaked figure who stood behind them all. As he came into view, she had a sudden feeling of unease. For one thing, this cloaked pony had a rather unnerving look about him. A tattered cloak, stained and dusty, with some sort of iron barding visible underneath. A band of silver around his head, set with a large jewel of obsidian carved in the shape of a scorpion. And most disturbing of all, a horn that curved wickedly up from his forehead. Still, Celestia liked to think she was not one to judge somepony purely on appearances.

Just her luck then, that this stranger gave her whole new reasons to find him disturbing. For she felt it again, that strangely familiar, nauseating magical aura she had sensed recently. There was no mistaking it, this pony was the source of that aura. But why was it so familiar?

"And what would this request be, sir?" she asked, maintaining a professional demeanour.

The Fallen King stepped up to the rope. "Well, Princess, that is simple. You can surrender your position as ruler."

A chilly silence descended on the throne room as his words echoed off the walls. Celestia blinked. "Um... Excuse me?"

"You heard me," he responded, his voice unnervingly cheery. "You can step down from that throne of yours, give up your rule over Equestria, and hand it back to its rightful owner."

The guards surrounding them tensed up, but did not advance, as Celestia stood up from her throne. "And... who would this rightful owner be, exactly?"

The Fallen King smiled. "You know full well who, Celestia. You just don't want to think about it. The pony who you and your sister overthrew all those millennia ago, taking his land and his kingdom as your own."

"I... I don't know what you're talking about," the Princess said, becoming very worried now. The guards around her throne now held their spears firmly, ready to spring into action at the word of their ruler.

"Oh, but you do, Celestia," he continued, ignoring the spears that were now pointed at him and his entourage. "Deep down, you remember how it all happened. How you brought down your own king, proclaiming him to be a tyrant merely for having ambition. How you fought him on the battlefield and destroyed his kingdom. Well, that king stands before you now, and he is not impressed. Indeed, I am quite ashamed of you. My dear student."

Celestia's eyes widened as she heard those words. Surely not... How could it be?! "What did you call me?!"

"Oh cut the charade, 'Tia. You know very well who I am. You thought you were done with me, didn't you?"

"It... it can't be... You can't be...!" the Princess could only sputter. Her guards looked up to her in confusion. They rarely saw her so unnerved.

The Fallen King chuckled, a low, wheezy chuckle. "Oh yes, my not-so-faithful student. Your dear old teacher is back in town."

He lifted his silver crown off of his head and tossed back his hood. What was hidden beneath that hood made the blood of everypony who saw it, run cold.

He was a unicorn stallion with pale yellow fur, clashing with his electric-blue eyes. His face was heavily lined with age, and patches of his skin seemed scaly and pockmarked, decayed like a corpse. From his eyes emanated wisps of a strange purple energy, like fire and smoke combined, casting strange shadows on his face. Under his cloak, his torso was encased in dull metal armour, and his hooves were concealed in iron boots made in a similar design. And around his shoulders and chest fell a long mane and beard of silvery grey hair, reaching almost past his chest.

His horn glowed a sickly yellow colour, hissing and bubbling with black and purple flashes, and a large wide-brimmed pointed hat appeared above him. It landed firmly atop his head, the bells that were stitched around the brim and to the point of the hat jingling. As he places the silver crown around the base of his hat, he grinned an evil grin up at the Princess. "Well, 'Tia, recognise me now, hahah!!"

Celestia reeled back, stumbling a few steps before sitting back down hard upon her throne. Her eyes were wide with disbelief and terror, and her mouth felt dry. "...I...Impossible...It is you...!"

"Indeed," The Fallen King replied. With a swirl of his cape and a jangling of his hat, he turned to face the dozens of observing guards, court-officials, his entourage and whatever ponies outside could see through the doorway. "I am King Starswirl the Bearded, Sorcerer Supreme and King of the Unicorn Kingdom."

He turned again, pointing an accusing hoof at Celestia, who could only watch in slack-jawed shock.

"And I have returned to take back that which is rightfully mine!"

Kingdom Come

by Redback Spino

And I beheld Thunder and Lightning, and an Earthquake

There Fell a Great Star, Burning as if it Were a Lamp

The Star Opened the Abyss, and Smoke Poured Out of It.

And I Beheld a Beast Coming Out of the Sea. Upon Its Head was a Crown

And I saw the Fourth Living Creature, Like an eagle in Flight

And I Beheld and Heard an Angel, Crying in a Loud Voice, "Woe, Woe Unto the Inhabitors of the Earth!"

‘I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high.’

And The Beast Opened his Mouth to Blaspheme Against God, and Them That Dwelleth in Heaven