The battles within the Sith's castle continued to rage, though one of them had seemingly reached its apex.

Within the throne room, Flash and Shining couldn't believe what had just happened. Not only had Shining's Lightsaber pierced Sombra in the back, but Flash's broadsaber had hit its mark and stabbed the Sith Lord where his dark heart should be.

Sombra screamed, as he felt himself getting stabbed again. The two Jedi locked eyes, neither willing to allow any chance that he might somehow survive this. So, with one final roar of effort, they swung their blades through him. Doing so caused Sombra to scream again, his Lightsaber falling from his grasp as Flash and Shining moved away from him.

The Sith Lord continued to yell out in agony, as he staggered around and moved towards the throne.

Flash and Shining stared at him, as Flash noticed Sombra's Lightsaber on the ground. And as Sombra sat in it, the Padawan summoned the weapon towards him. They watched the Sith trying to breathe, but the damage to his body was making that impossible.

But before they could watch him die, the room started shaking.

"What's going on?" Flash asked, as Shining realised the damage done to the room had pushed it to its limit. The cracks in the wall were spreading and would soon cause it to break apart.

"We have to get out of here!" He cried, Flash nodding as the two began to head for the door. All the while, Sombra continued to sit there looking totally defeated.

The Sith placed his hand on his cut up body and closed his eyes, the ceiling beginning to fall down around him. "This isn't over. Not by a long shot." With that, the throne room collapsed down on him and he disappeared in the debris.

Flash and Shining kept running, as more of the castle around the throne room broke apart. The pair had to find a way out, or at least an area they could remain un-crushed. "We need to find Twilight and Celestia," Shining reminded him. "If this whole place comes down, they'll be crushed too."

"But where are they?" Flash asked, trying to activate his Gauntlet and find them. But there was no signal. "Come on, Twilight. Help us find you."

Down in the cavern, Twilight was currently being overwhelmed by the dark spirit of the evil Sith.

The dark monster continued to roar, as it tried to get past the Force Wall Twilight had created. The purple tendrils had wrapped around Twilight's arms and were beginning to coil around her body. The tips were sliding up her neck and head towards her mouth and eyes, Twilight feeling herself getting stabbed by what felt like millions of tiny needles.

She screamed, panting as her head felt like it was on fire. And as she tried to resist, she heard a voice flowing through her head.

"Give in. Allow me to take your body and I will make you the most powerful being in the galaxy."

Twilight screamed, shaking her head. "NEVER!" She tried to fight it off, but she could feel the presence burrowing into her. If she didn't stop it soon, she would likely become this monster's vessel herself.

But before she could let herself give in, she noticed movement behind the gate. Sunset was picking herself up, the former Sith injured but able to still move. And as they looked towards one another, their eyes locked and both knew what the other had to do. And knowing that Sunset was there made Twilight feel stronger, the Padawan letting out a scream as she began to push herself forward.

"RAAAAAAAAAAH!" She took a step and this pushed the wall and the spirit backwards, moving it close to the gate. She then screamed again and took another two steps, followed by another scream and another step. She kept it up, using every bit of strength she had to try and force the spirit back towards the portal.

The Sith finally seemed to realise what was happening and tried to pull away, but Twilight wasn't letting it go.

"GYAAAAAAAH!" She brought her hands together and formed a sphere with her fingers, which seemed to make the Force Wall curve to form a cage around the spirit. Twilight knew it wouldn't last, but she didn't need it to.

"Release me!" The spirit told her in her mind. 'You think this will save you? I have already taken root within you. Those roots cannot be ripped free of. You will be mine!'

"NEVER!" Twilight screamed, using all of her strength to thrust her hands forward and push the spirit backwards. And it was so power, the spirit couldn't stop itself from being thrown towards the portal. The tendrils it had around Twilight ripped and it was no longer connected to her, the remains wrapped around her remaining for a few moments before disappearing.

The spirit reached the archway and found itself getting sucked inside, despite using its tendrils to try and hold onto the edges. The spirit couldn't hold on for long and soon, almost all of it was inside the portal. 'This doesn't matter. Even if you trap me again, others will find a way to summon me again.'

"No," Twilight told it, "never again. You chose to use this portal to keep yourself from passing on. So you can stay in there forever. SUNSET! NOW!"

Suddenly, Sunset leapt up and landed on the top of the arch.

She reached down and grabbed the relic keys. And with a mighty cry, yanked them out of the holes before dropping them. The spirit could do nothing but watch them fall, as Twilight used the last of her strength to thrust her hands forward and unleash a final Force Shove that struck the keys and the spirit.

They were all pushed into the portal, the spirit losing its grip and being sucked into the vortex that was beginning to close. And the relic keys followed, disappearing into the portal only they could open. With them gone, the portal would never open again.

Twilight stood there, watching the portal swirl smaller and smaller until it closed completely. As it did, Twilight felt her body grow weak and she began to fall towards the ground.

But before she could hurt herself, she felt someone appear behind her and break her fall. She was laying back against the person and as she blink away her exhaustion, she looked up and saw Celestia smiling down at her. "Well done," she told her.

"Master?" Twilight groaned, "how long have you..."

"I woke up a minute ago. I saw you struggling against that spirit and was about to help, but then I saw you overpower it. You and Sunset managed to defeat it." They turned to the Sith, who had climbed down from the arch and was making her way towards them. "I'm very proud of you both." They both smiled, as Celestia helped Twilight stand. "But are you okay? That spirit had a pretty tight grip on you."

"I..." Twilight's head was pulsing and her arms were still tingling. Her heart was also beating a mile a minute, but she seemed to be okay. "Yeah. I'm fine. Now let's get out of here." They nodded and headed for the exit. But as they reached the elevator, they suddenly found the cavern beginning to shake.

"What's that?" Sunset asked, the Jedi fearing something bad was about to happen.

When part of the ceiling fell, Celestia turned to the girls. "We need to get out of here." They nodded and Sunset opened the elevator, only for the doors to stop when they were half open.

They looked inside and realised something had cut the power. They were stuck down there. "What do we do?" Twilight asked, as more of the ceiling began to fall. If they didn't escape soon, they would be buried alive.

"Get in!" Celestia pushed them inside and once she had the doors closed, she tried to lift the entire elevator up with The Force.

It was tricky, but she managed it. Sunset and Twilight watched, as they felt themselves being pushed up. They quickly closed their eyes and did the same, helping Celestia carry the weight. With her head injury, they didn't want to make her push herself too hard.

The elevator kept rising higher and higher, with Twilight's gauntlet eventually beeping. "Twilight. Are you there?" She opened the com.

"Flash. Are you okay?"

"Shining and I are fine. But the castle's coming down. We need to get out of here before it's too late. Where are you?"

"We're heading back up to the castle. We've got Sunset and we're trying to make our way up from the underground cavern. But if the castle's breaking apart, we need to get out of here." She then remembered the horde of ships waiting for them outside. If they escaped, those ships would blast them to dust in the wind. "Can you try and contract Springer? We need him to pick us up."

"I'll try. But something seems to be blocking the signal out of the castle. I've been trying to contact the others, but it's not working." Twilight frowned, fearing they might not be able to call for help. But before she could say anything, the shaft they were in suddenly shook.

They were all thrown around and lost their hold on the elevator.

It quickly started falling and the teens screamed, whilst Celestia spread her wings. The elevator was just big enough for her to fly and she quickly flew up, slamming into the top of the elevator with enough force to stop it.

She grunted before pushing upwards, but the elevator was really heavy. As such, she realized there was only one thing to do. "Grab my legs!"

The girls didn't argue and grabbed on, Celestia quickly igniting the Lightsaber Sunset had returned to her. And with a quick swing of it, she carved a hole into the elevator's top.

The girls held on tight and tried to make themselves as small as possible, as the elevator fell down around them. They all narrowly fit through the hole that was made and soon, the elevator was falling into the darkness whist they hung from Celestia's leg.

"Hold on!" She threw the top of the elevator away and flew up, using the Lightsaber to light the passageway. It was a long way up but eventually, they reached the top.

Celestia slowed down to keep from hitting the top of the shaft and as the place shook again, she used her weapon to cut through the doors of the elevator before flying through. And not a second too soon, as moments later the shaft's ceiling collapsed and began to fill it with debris.

"That was too close," Sunset sighed as she let go of Celestia's leg. Twilight did the same as they looked around, seeing the corridor was filled with debris and the bodies of changelings.

"This place really is coming down," Twilight frowned.

"Which means we can't waste time," Celestia told them. "Let's get out of here. And hopefully, Flash and Shining managed to get through."

"This way," Sunset stated. "I know the quickest way out of the castle. I just hope it hasn't been blocked off." She led them through the hallway towards the exit, though they had to climb over the piles of rubble that blocked the way.

All the while, the building shook more and more.

Flash and Shining kept running, Flash attempting to get through to someone.

"Come on." He tapped the device, but the signal was still being blocked. But then the castle shook again and suddenly, the signal was back to full power. "Huh?" He was able to connect to Springer and smiled. "Alright. Whatever that was, it must have shaken whatever was blocking the signal." Soon enough, he got through. "Springer, can you hear me?"

"Flash? You're alive!"

"Yup! And we're gonna need a lift. Can you get back to the castle?"

"No problem. But we're gonna need to be fast. I don't know if any of those Destroyers are still around the castle. But if they are, I might not have the fuel to outrun any fighters they send at us."

"We'll deal with that problem when it comes up," Shining stated as they turned a corner and found the route was almost blocked. "Try and get here as fast as you can. If you don't, we're gonna be sitting ducks once we're outside." Flash cut the call and the pair started climbing over the rubble, as more of the ceiling began to break apart.

Flash narrowly avoided getting hit on the head, as they got over the rubble and began to head down the corridor.

But as they did, the floor suddenly started cracking and breaking apart. "Not good," Flash gulped. They ran, but the floor cracked under their feet with every step. And eventually, the floor broke apart and Flash found himself falling through a hole. "WOW!" He almost fell onto a large pile of jagged rocks, only for Shining to grab his hand.

"I gotcha!" He groaned, as the floor beneath his hooves started breaking apart as well. "RAAAAAH!" He swung Flash up and managed to get him onto the edge of the hole.

Flash then pulled him away from where he was standing and the two managed to run away from the broken floor before it gave out.

However, all this action was proving too much for Flash. The teen was still reeling from their fight with Sombra and as they got closer to the exit, his legs suddenly turned to lead. "Augh!" He fell to his knees, panting whilst Shining turned to him.

"Flash!" He grabbed his student and pulled him up. "I know you're tired. But we can't stop now. If we do, we'll be done for." He slung Flash's arm over his shoulder and began to lead them towards the exit. Flash tried his best to help, but his legs felt like they couldn't even lift a feather.

But eventually, they found themselves in the hallway they had originally come into the castle through.

Shining looked around and spotted the doorway. And as he headed towards it, he heard movement and expected to see Twilight and the others. But he didn't.

Instead, a bunch of bug troopers appeared from out of the corridor and spotted them. "Freeze!" They started firing and Shining pulled Flash behind a column, which quickly started to crumble.

"Not good." Shining tried to think of a way to get them out of this mess, but he and Flash were exhausted. "Is this the end?" He got his answer when the room started shaking and Shining heard the sound of the building breaking apart, the rubble falling upon the changelings and burying them alive.

The two looked around and saw the pile of rubble where the changelings had once been. "Huh," Flash smiled, "that was lucky." They then heard more footsteps and got ready for a fight, only to see Twilight and the others.

"Hey!" Flash waved, as Twilight smiled. But then she saw the state the pair of them were in.

"What happened to you two?" But before they could answer, the castle shook again. And this time, the shaking didn't seem to be stopping.

"Explain later," Shining stated. "We've got to get out of here." They headed for the door, as more of the walls and ceiling broke apart. "Hurry!" They picked up the base, Celestia even helping Flash move faster. And finally, they reached the doors and ran outside.

As they did, the entry way inside the castle collapsed and more of the building began to crumble on the outside.

They stood atop the bridge and when they looked around, they spotted a single Destroyer that was hovering above it. The Jedi looked up and worried they were about to be in serious trouble, as the Destroyer seemed to be moving to point its weapons at them.

"What do we do?" Sunset asked, but the others had no idea.

But before the Destroyer could fire, they all heard another engine and looked around to see a familiar ship flying towards them. "The Shooting Star!" Twilight cheered, as the freighter ship got in close. And as the Destroyer fired, the ship launched its own laser and managed to counter the blast at the last second.

The ship hovered in front of the bridge and the ramp came down, Celestia carrying Flash up onto the ship whilst the others used what strength they had left to leap up into the ship. And as the Destroyer fired at them, the ship shot straight up and everyone was almost thrown into the back wall.

They all cried out, as they held on tight and let Springer do his thing. Shining began to make his way towards the cockpit and when he got there, he saw they were getting close to the edge of the atmosphere. But the lasers from the Destroyer began to fly past them, Shining getting into the pilot's seat as one laser hit the ship.

"WOW!" He took control and started taking evasive manoeuvres. "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Springer replied. "But like I said. We're running out of fuel. If we don't get away quick, we're not gonna be able to get to Hyperspace." Shining frowned, as another laser hit the ship and made it shake.

The others soon arrived at the cockpit and after Springer vacated his spot, Flash sat down the other others and they all held on tight. And eventually, they made it into the depths of space. And when they did, the console beeped to show a bunch of ships not too far away.

"Great," Flash frowned, "more Destroyers."

"Wait," Twilight checked the console and realised something. "It's not just Sith Ships." Her eyes went wide in shock. "Some of these are...Republic Battleships." The others were just as shocked, as their comms suddenly started blaring.

Shining opened them and a holo-screen appeared with Luna on it. "Celestia!" She smiled seeing them, "I was worried Springer had left the planet without you."

"Like I'd do that," Springer told her.

"Either way, I'm glad to see that everyone is alright." She then noticed Sunset with them. "Everyone." Sunset smiled, as a laser almost hit them.

"We'll have to save the celebrations for later," Celestia explained. "We're still under fire and very vulnerable."

"Alright. Head to these coordinates. The Destroyer we took will be waiting for you there." They received the coordinates and found a bunch of Destroyers were between them and it, Shining taking a deep breath before flying towards them.

On one of the Destroyers, Chrysalis frowned as she watched another Destroyer be fired upon.

The three battleships were showing impressive firepower and thanks to their element of surprise, they had already disabled or destroyed several of her ships. "This isn't going how I'd expected." Her comms then beeped and when she answered it, she found Tirek on the other side. By the looks of things, he was on another Destroyer. And he didn't look so good. "What's wrong?"

"The Jedi saved Solara. And now she's on that freighter ship they arrived on." Chrysalis frowned. "And it gets worse."

"How much worse?"

"When they escaped the castle, the whole place was coming down. And I haven't been able to get in contact with Sombra since then." Chrysalis began to worry, as her ship was struck by a laser and rocked.

"Master Sombra could be in danger."

"He could be dead. I don't know what happened in the castle, but Celestia must have done something to him. If the castle was collapsing, he should have been able to escape with ease. If he didn't, that means something happened to prevent him from doing that. And there's only one thing I can think of that could do that."

"Death," Chrysalis frowned. Before she could say anything else, an alarm caught her attention and another holo-screen appeared. This one showed an image of The Shooting Star, which was obviously flying between the many Destroyers in an attempt to reach the ships that had arrived. "Blast them!"

The Destroyer started aiming at the ship, but The Shooting Star kept moving in a bunch of different ways to avoid them.

Chrysalis frowned, only for her own ship to shake from another blast. She couldn't afford to let her Destroyer be made dead in the water. "Fall back."

"You can't be serious?" Tirek growled. "You want to run?"

"I want to make sure we get out of this alive. The Jedi know of this planet now. We can't stay here. We'll return to the surface and collect anything from there that we can. Then we'll evacuate the planet. Hopefully, Sombra is still alive and we can find him."

"The Jedi and Republic are already here."

"Yes, but they're clearly not ready for an all out attack. Three battleships aren't enough to wage a prolonged battle. They clearly came just to help save the Jedi. If we retreat, they'll likely leave."

"What if they don't retreat? You really think the Jedi will give up this chance to wipe The Sith out?"

"All the more reason for us to leave. If they do try and follow us to the surface, we'll give up on that and just get out of here. If Sombra really is gone, it'll be up to us to carry on the Sith's mission. Do you really want to leave it in the hands of Doom Raizer and Armalum?"

"Fair point." Tirek cut the call and his Destroyer broke off its pursuit of The Shooting Star, Chrysalis doing the same as she gave the order.

As she did, she glared at The Shooting Star. "You might have won this battle, but the war is far from over. I warn you. You will pay for this."

Shining dodged another laser, only to find that the attacks had stopped.

"What's going on?" Twilight asked, as they checked the console and saw the ship that had been chasing them had stopped. And it wasn't the only one, as all the other ships around them suddenly started moving in the same direction.

Flash tilted his head. "Are they...retreating?"

Celestia smiled. "They must have realised they couldn't afford to keep this battle up. For all they know, another twenty Republic Battleships are heading this way."

Sunset sighed, "so it's over?" Celestia nodded, as the Shooting Star flew away from the retreating Destroyers and found the one triangular ship that was on their side.

The freighter flew under the Destroyer and soon found the opening into the docking bay. But with the bay being designed for fighters, The Shooting Star was too large to fit inside of it. As such, Shining flipped the ship upside down and connected to a docking port.

Once The Shooting Star was locked on, they all used the airlock to board the Destroyer.

As soon as they were on board, they found the hallways were filled with people they realised were likely the prisoners that had been rescued. And as they turned a corner, Flash heard a voice he hadn't heard in a long time. "Flash?" He looked around and gasped, when he saw a familiar round alien.

"Tubster!" He rushed over to him, his injuries all but forgotten. He hugged him, then saw the woman next to him. "Ryn."

"Flash!" She smiled, "I thought you were dead." She spotted Springer and smiled, "you both made it. Is Grand with you?" Flash shook his head, a frown on his lips at this question.

"He...didn't make it."

Ryn sighed, "I see. I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry," he told her. "I escaped but I let the rest of you get captured. You've been prisoners for over two years, because I wasn't strong enough to protecting. I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about it," Tubster smiled. "You got away and managed to grow stronger. And you brought others to help free us. I'll take that over you getting killed trying to save us early any day.

Flash smiled, nodding as he saw more and more of the people that had been on the planetoid he had been born on. People he had grown up with, including many young children whose childhoods had been stolen by the Sith.

As they made their way through the halls, Sunset saw the people staring at her and whispering. No doubt they now knew who she was and what she had been a part of. All she could do was keep her head down and try not to scare anybody, if that was even possible.

As they finally arrived at the bridge, they stepped into it and found all the Jedi there. Several holo-screens were also showing members of the Jedi Council. And as soon as they saw them, Flash and Twilight's friends rushed over to them. "Are you okay?" Applejack asked.

"What happened in the castle?" Rainbow asked, as Pinkie pulled them into the tightest hug she could give them.

The pair smiled and hugged them back, as the group turned to Sunset. Several of the Jedi looked suspicious of her, whilst others turned to Celestia as if to ask what they would be doing with her. But before anyone else could speak, Shining grabbed everyone's attention.

"I know we have a lot to talk about with her, but we have something more important to discuss." This made everyone raise an eyebrow, as Shining turned to Flash. The pair nodded and the three that had been in the castle with them, realised something must have happened. And Celestia had a feeling she knew what. "Sombra is dead."

"WHAT!?" Everyone screamed, unable to believe what they were hearing. "He's dead?" Luna asked. "Really dead? You're sure."

"Pretty sure," Flash replied. "Shining stabbed him, then I stabbed him. Then we both swung our Lightsabers and pretty much cut him in half. And even if he somehow survived that, the throne room slammed down on top of him."

The Jedi could hardly believe what they were hearing, whilst Sunset just stood there in absolute shock. Twilight noticed this and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"I...I don't know." The others watched her carefully. "I know I should be happy he's gone. He tried to sacrifice me to that evil spirit. But...it's hard to believe he's gone. After all, he was my father." Again, shock covered everyone's faces as Celestia frowned.

"So he really did use his DNA to make you?" Sunset nodded. "And you didn't know?"

"Not until Twilight told me." She explained everything that had happened since returning from Naboo, including how she had uncovered the truth about where she had come from. The news of the many clones that had preceded her, made several of the Jedi there look like they were about to throw up. The others looked sorry, clearly feeling pity for the clones that had lost their lives before they ever got to actually live.

Celestia's face was stoic, but those that really knew her could tell that she was holding back her rage. Any parent would probably be just as angry, learning what had happened to their children.

After a few moments, Celestia took a deep breath and let the anger wash over her and fade away. "This just proves how far Sombra had fallen. The galaxy will be a safer place, now that he is gone for good." She turned to Flash and Shining. "You've done the universe a great service on this day. Be proud of your accomplishment."

Flash smiled, as Shining patted him on the shoulder. "Honestly, I just managed to get Sombra when he was distracted. Flash was the one who really beat him. He managed to outmanoeuvre Sombra enough for me to get a clean hit, then dealt the final blow." Flash blushed, as the others smiled at him. As they did, the other ships signalled they were going to be entering hyperspace.

"So what happens now?" Twilight asked Celestia, "Sombra's gone but the others are still out there."

"I wish we could go after them," Celestia stated. "But we have to get the prisoners someplace safe. I doubt the Sith will give up, but we should have given ourselves a little breathing room. Until they can recover, they'll be on the run and unable to cause too many problems." Everyone agreed, knowing that the Sith had taken some serious hits on that day.

Not only had they lost their master and their home base, but they had lost their slaves, Tirek lost a hand and their plan to restore the evil spirit had been foiled. Though they knew they wouldn't stay down forever, this was just what the Jedi needed to prepare for the next confrontation. No matter what it was.

Chrysalis stared down at the remains of the castle, as the remaining ships floated above the building.

A bunch of droids were down there, using their scanners to try and locate any sign of Sombra. But there was nothing. "Damn it." She sighed, admitting to herself that Sombra was gone. "This isn't good." They had nothing now. No master to command them. No prisoners to work for them and not even an ancient evil spirit to replace Sombra.

Chrysalis turned to a changeling. "Send a message to Pharynx. Tell him to gather the clones and evacuate the planet." The changelings turned to her in shock. "Solara knows where that planet is. We can't risk the Jedi attacking it. Have him evacuate the planet and set up operations somewhere else."

"Yes my queen," the changeling nodded before getting to work. Chrysalis then activated a bunch of screens, showing the rest of her cohorts.

Tirek was in the medical bay of his ship, a droid currently working to treat the injury he had received. He would need a replacement hand and arm, but they would have to wait until they were more settled.

Doom was still in his bacta tank, a rebreather mask on his face. His healing would also take a little more time to complete. But once it was done, he should be back to almost one hundred percent. Though he would need special equipment to breathe properly.

Finally, Armalum was in the middle of his repairs and upgrades. Luckily, only he and Sombra knew the location of his robot factory. Solara wouldn't be able to blab about it, which meant it was likely the only base the Sith could go to that they would be safe at.

"Armalum," she stated, "transfer the coordinates of your factory. The rest of us will regroup there and decide what our next move is."

"Who made you the boss?" Armalum growled, clearly not happy about his secret spot being made public domain.

"Someone has to be in charge and since I'm the only one here who hasn't gotten themselves blown up, or chopped into a smaller piece. Clearly, I'm the logical choice to take charge. When you three are finished getting yourselves fixed up, we can decide who will replace Master Sombra. Until then, I'm running the show and you'd better do as I say. Now transfer the coordinates or else."

Armalum growled, "fine." His holo-screen vanished, the others following as Chrysalis frowned. She didn't know what the future held for The Sith, but it wasn't looking good. Without Sombra to keep them in line, it was only a matter of time before the four all turned on one another. All of them would attempt to claim the title of Sith Lord and Chrysalis doubted that would end without casualty.

"We need to find some way to keep the peace. The future of my race depends on it."

Canterlot was abuzz with news about the Jedi's recent endeavours.

How Celestia and several masters, knights and Padawans had stormed the Sith base and managed to completely destroy their operations. Free the slaves the Sith had captured, destroyed several ships and slayed the big bad leader. Many believed this would mean the end of the Sith, but the Jedi released a statement that they would still need to capture the rest of the Sith.

As soon as they were back, Celestia, Luna and Skybreaker were forced to face the ire of the other members of the council. Even if Celestia was the grandmaster, she wasn't immune to a scolding from the others.

Once everyone had calmed down, the three explained what had happened. Cadance and Shining Armor had also been summoned, to give a report about what had happened on their ends of the mission. The biggest news, of course, was Shining explaining how they had managed to kill Sombra.

"You stabbed him in the back?" One master asked, Shining saying nothing to defend himself. "I understand you were in a life or death situation, but to do something so dishonourable..."

"It might have been dishonourable," Shining stated. "But I would rather have my honour stripped than risk losing my Padawan. Flash was pinned down by Sombra and if I hadn't struck him like that, Flash might have died. I don't take pride in what I did, but I won't be ashamed of it either."

Celestia nodded. "Thank you both for what you've done. Your actions have helped save many lives." Shining and Cadance nodded, as the Masters allowed them to leave.

Once they were gone, Luna let out a sigh. "I agree with Shining. As much as it pains me to hear a Jedi striking in such a dishonourable manner, I very well may have done the same thing had Trixie been in that situation. Protecting the future of our Padawans is more important than our own sense of justice."

"Agreed. And thanks to them, Sombra is no more."

"Did they actually see a body?" One of the masters asked. "If not, how can we be sure Sombra is dead? You thought he was dead last time but that was clearly not the case."

Celestia frowned, but knew he was right. "Even if Sombra is alive, the state he was apparently left in isn't something one can just recover from. Two Lightsaber wounds almost cutting him in half can't simply be repaired. Even if he survives, he won't be the same threat he was this time."

"Alright," Skybreaker nodded, "but the other Sith still remain. If we don't find them soon, there's no telling how much trouble they might cause." They all nodded, thinking the same thing. "But before that, we have another issue to deal with." He turned to Celestia, "Solara."

Celestia flinched, having clearly been dreading this. "Sunset turned against Sombra in the end. She might have taken time, but she chose to stand against him in the end."

"Are we sure about that?" Another master asked. "We don't know for sure that she turned against Sombra. What if that's just something she's saying to trick us again? We allowed her into our home before and she used it to betray us."

"Sombra planned to sacrifice her," Celestia pointed out. "He wouldn't have done that if she was still working for him."

"Let's calm down," Luna told everyone. "I know Sunset has made mistakes. But she's been through a lot in her life. She was created to be a weapon, tricked into thinking she was abandoned, trained by Sombra and made to do things that she never would have done if she hadn't been practically brainwashed."

"Indeed," Celestia nodded. "We have to take into account what she wants. She was forced to become a Sith and now that she's free, she deserves to choose whether she wants to be a Jedi or not."

"And what if she does?" One of the masters asked. "What do we do if she chooses to join our Order? Do we actually allow her in? She's been trained by evil. You really think you can make a Jedi out of her after all that?"

Celestia frowned. She didn't know how much of Sombra's teachings she could undo. Sunset's entire life had been about mastering her control over the Dark Side of The Force. Could those lesson ever be forgotten?

"We have another issue," Luna stated. "Allowing her into the order will require a vote from the council. But after the recent attack on Canterlot, we're down a member of the council. We won't be able to decide anything until a new member is chosen."

"About that," one of the master replied. "Whilst you were gone, we on the council came up with a candidate. The rest of us are in agreement about his appointment. We just need the agreement of the members that weren't here."

"Who?" Skybreaker asked, as the others gave the statement. "Oh," he chuckled, "I think he's a good choice. It'll also allow us to keep a closer eye on him." The other two nodded, Celestia and Luna smiling as they thought about how he would take it. Probably not well.

In another part of the temple, Sunset was inside the room she had stayed in the last time she was there.

Only this time, the doors were locked and a Temple Guard was stationed outside. Sunset couldn't blame the Jedi for this, given how untrustworthy she had proven herself to be. All she could do was pray the council would spare her.

Soon, a knock caught her attention before the door opened. Twilight was on the other side, the Temple Guard next to her. "Hey. The Council are ready to make their decision. They asked me to bring you to them." Sunset nodded, as she got up and made sure the robes she had been given looked presentable.

They made their way through the temple, Sunset making sure to keep her head down whenever they passed a knight or master that obviously knew who she really was.

Twilight had explained that the only ones who didn't know about her were the younglings and a few Padawans, which didn't make Sunset feel any better. "Don't worry," her friend told her. "I'm sure the Council will be lenient."

"Yeah," Sunset joked, "I'm sure they'll cut my prison sentence in half and only lock me up for two centuries." She might have been joking, but Sunset was terrified that would actually be her fate. If it was, she didn't know what she would do.

They eventually reached the elevator heading up to the Council and when Sunset stepped forward, Twilight and the guards stayed where they were. And when Sunset looked around, she saw Twilight looking apologetic. "I can't go any further. I wish I could, but I have to stay here."

"I understand," Sunset nodded. She turned back to the elevator and stepped into it, being carried up into the council chambers. And when she arrived, fear and anxiety gripped her soul. She took a deep breath and stepped out into the council chambers, spotting Celestia, Luna, Skybreaker and the rest of the Master.

One such master didn't look happy to be there, this one appearing to be a tanned human with red porcupine quills on his head and a robotic arm. He was slumped in his chair, looking upset whilst the others shot him a look that just screamed 'be presentable.

Celestia cleared her throat and turned her attention back to the girl. "Sunset. The Council and I have discussed your situation and have come to a decision." Sunset nodded, ready to accept any punishment. "But before we tell you that decision, we wish to hear what you want."

"What...what I want?"

"Yes. It is clear you have had no choice in your life up until now. Sombra created you and made you learn to be a Sith before you were old enough to realise you had a choice. And by the time you could choose what you wanted your life to be, you were practically brainwashed into thinking it's what you wanted."

Sunset nodded. That was true, being something Sunset realised during her time in captivity.

"But now you've broken away from Sombra. He's gone and he can't make you do anything any more. So now, you must decide what you wish to do with your life. Do you wish to turn away from The Force? To live a normal life and never pick up a Lightsaber again? Or do you wish to continue your journey on the right path of The Force. To be a Jedi?"

Sunset could barely believe what she was saying. "What does it matter? Even if I wanted to walk away or become a Jedi, you wouldn't let me. I'm a dangerous criminal."

"No, you're not." Sunset looked up at Luna, who gave her a reassuring smile. "You have made some terrible decisions. But those decisions were fuelled by the brainwashing you have been unfairly subjected to your entire life. You are as much a victim as you are a criminal. If you are a criminal, then so am I. After all, I was tricked by Sombra a long time ago. If Celestia had turned her back on me, I never would have become the Jedi I am today."

"So," Celestia continued, "we ask you this. What do you want, Sunset? Now that Sombra is no longer a part of your life, what do you want for that life?"

"I...I..." Sunset rubbed her arm, as tears formed in her eyes. "I want to make up for the mistakes I made. I want to do what's right." She gave them a pleading look. "I don't know if I can ever be a Jedi, but I want to try. I want to see if I have what it takes to be someone worthy of that title. So please, please teach me the true ways of The Force."

Celestia smiled, some of the other Jedi nodding. "Then we accept you into our Order." Sunset looked shocked by this, as Celestia chuckled. "I admit, it was a difficult decision. Many Masters believed you were too dangerous to be allowed back into the Temple. But holding a grudge is not the Jedi way. We all agreed that you deserve a second chance."

Sunset could hardly believe this, "you mean it?"

"Yes," Celestia nodded. "It's time you learned what it truly means to be a wielder of The Force. However, don't expect this to mean your former transactions are simply in the past. What you did is forgiven, but not forgotten." Sunset frowned, "you will need to earn our trust. Until we all agree that you are worthy of that trust, your access to the Temple will be limited. You will have a Knight or Master accompany you at all times. Work hard, do your best and help when you can and these limitations will be lifted. Is that understood?"

Sunset nodded, happy to accept the stipulations if it meant she could be a part of the Order.

"I understand. And I promise, I won't let you down. I'll work hard to be the best Jedi I can be." Celestia nodded and allowed Sunset to leave, the girl heading back into the elevator and leaving the council chambers.

Once she was gone, one of the Masters spoke up. "Are we sure this is a good idea?"

"Yes," Celestia nodded. "I could feel she was being truthful in her words. And with her help, we will be able to stop the Sith once and for all. She will make a fine Jedi one day."

"I hope you're right," another Master stated. "I really do."

Sunset rode the elevator down until she was back in the passageway leading out of council chambers.

And when the doors of the lift opened, she saw not just Twilight was waiting for her. Flash was also there, along with Shining, Cadance, Thorax, Pinkie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Rainbow, Applejack and Trixie. They all stood there, staring at her expectantly. Even Springer was there, waiting to see what she said.

She stepped forward and smiled, rubbing her arm as she got close. "So?" Twilight asked.

"I'm...they're going to let me stay and train to be a Jedi." Everyone smiled and Twilight rushed over to hug her, Sunset hugging her back. She had expected this from Twilight.

What she didn't expect, was for Pinkie to hug her. "YAY!" The squishy smoke haired girl cheered, holding her tightly as the others nodded. "Welcome to the family."

"Yes," Rarity nodded. "If the Order has decided to trust you, then so will we."

"Thank you," Sunset nodded. "I know I have a lot to make up for. So I hope you'll be willing to let me prove I want to change for the better." They all nodded, as they started walking through the temple halls.

As they did, Sunset explained the stipulations being placed upon her until she earned everyone's trust. This made them nod, as they came across a large group of younglings. Spike, Scootaloo, Applebloom and Sweetie were there along with a bunch of other kids, Flash suddenly chuckling.

"Doesn't this mean you're officially a youngling?" Sunset frowned, as the others laughed. As they did, Flash accidentally knocked into one of the younglings. "Oops. Sorry."

"It's okay." The girl appeared rather short for her age, being an equestrian avian with pink skin and curly blue hair. She quickly moved to catch up with the rest of the younglings, whilst Spike and the girls stuck with this group.

"Alright," Rainbow cheered, "Sunset's officially part of the Order. And we took down Sombra and freed a bunch of slaves. I say we celebrate." The others nodded, all of them heading off to the cafeteria to get something tasty.

As they went together, they considered what the future would hold for them. The Sith might have been crippled, but they weren't defeated yet. And until then, the galaxy wasn't safe. The Jedi would have to keep working to defeat them and prepared themselves for whatever obstacles presented themselves.

But no matter what challenges they faced, they would overcome them together.

On the desert planet of Shikoya, in an abandoned section of the planet, a ship was flying towards a rocky area.

It was an IG 2000 ship, mostly greyish white in colour but having purple streaks running along it. The ship moved at an incredible speed before finding the area it was looking for, a bunch of rocks with a castle built onto it. And the only entrance was built into the side of the mountain.

The ship began to slow down and eventually hover above the sand. And as it flew down, the wings on the side rotated down until the ship landed on them. As soon as it did, the front of the ship opened up and a chair extended downwards on a retractable arm. And in that chair was a figure dressed in almost all black.

They were clearly an equestrian, given their hoof feet. They also wore a hood over their head, hiding their face. They had a pair of blasters strapped to their legs and metal gauntlets on both arms, which looked like they had a bunch of weapons hidden within them.

The figure made their way towards the rock, as the entryway began to open.

The gate lowered to reveal an alien that was only about two feet tall. He appeared to be a humanoid hedgehog with a pug-face, with a mohawk of white hair sticking up on his head and running down his back and under his clothes.

As the figure reached him, he smiled. "Right on time. You live up to your reputation. My master will be happy to hear that."

The figure spoke up, their voice muffled by something covering their mouth. "Your master went to a lot of trouble to contact me. I hope you don't intend to insult me, by giving me a target any old hunter could track down."

"Hardly," the hedgehog replied. "Your target is supposed to be someone that only the best of the best can ever hope of getting close to. And even if he wasn't, my master would pay you handsomely to make sure he's brought to him." He held out a file and the hunter took it.

They opened it up and read through it, eventually looking up. "A Jedi? You want me to bring you a Jedi?"

"Yes," the hedgehog nodded. "Don't tell me the greatest bounty hunter in the galaxy is-" He didn't get to finish that sentence, as he suddenly found a blaster pointed in his face. "Forget what I said. But you can understand why we wanted the best for this."

The bounty hunter kept their blaster trained on him for a moment, then pulled away before reaching up and removing their hood. Doing so revealed a large mop of streaked up pink hair, whilst the figure's face was partly covered by a mask covering their mouth, nose and eyes. On their head was the remains of a horn, which had been broken off.

The figure removed their mask to reveal themselves as a female equestrian, allowing her to read the text on the page easier. "So why exactly does you master wish for this one to be brought to him? I've heard he isn't one to collect trophies. Usually, he's just happy with their deaths."

"Normally, yes." The hedgehog nodded. "But this one committed a rather dastardly sin. He took the life of my master's son and for that, death is too quick and simple of a punishment. He wishes to make him suffer."

"I see. Very well. I will bring him to you. Alive. But you'd better have the money ready for me when I return."

"We will," he nodded. "But be warned. If you don't bring him back, my master will make you suffer in his place. I know you're the best bounty hunter in the galaxy, but you won't like what happens when you fail the Storm King." The woman nodded and replaced her mask before heading out, taking a photo of the one that she had been sent after.

It was blurry, but she could make out the features enough to know who she was looking for. "Shining Armor. You'd better enjoy life whilst you can. Because I never fail to claim my target."

THE END!

Author's Note

And with that, this story comes to a close. This was an interesting one, to say the least. I've been a somewhat interested fan of this series, despite its ups and downs, and wanted to see how well I do at making my own version of it. Hope it lived up to expectations.

Thanks to Ragnarok17 for proof reading and sharing ideas with me. You were a big help.

This series will continue, though I don't know when. Hopefully, you'll enjoy that one as much as you enjoyed this one. Until then, I'll see you next time.