Doctor Whooves Episode 5: Before the Chaos

Chapters

Prologue
The King and Queen of Equestria
Within the Castle of Equestria
The Price of Beauty
The Living Storm
Fire, Ice, and Music
Daughter of Magic
The Bad Wolf Returns
A Trivial Task

Prologue

Doctor Whooves: Episode 5
Before the Chaos

Prologue

Courtyard, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The mysterious mare continued to giggle as the TARDIS gave its usual final lurch. The Doctor and Twilight regained their balance and stood up to face the unexpected hitchhiker.

"Still falling over yourself, Doctor?" the mare asked with a seductive grin. "I do hope you grow out of that habit soon. You are the one who taught me how to stand still during travel after all."

"I don't meant to be rude here, or maybe I do, but...who the hell are you?" the Doctor asked bluntly. The mare simply giggled again and began walking around the interior of the control room.

"Hardly looks any different from the control room I know. I guess some things don't change after all."

"Excuse me but the Doctor asked you a question!" Twilight snapped. The mare looked at Twilight and approached her.

"Twilight Sparkle. You're looking good. Let's see...smallish structure, shorter hair, a look of complete confusion. I say you're Twilight Sparkle, aged nineteen, currently on her first wild series of adventures with the stallion known as the Doctor."

Twilight was taken aback by the amount of information that this mare knew about her. Her eyes then trailed up towards the hat that was perched on the mare's head. The mare noticed that Twilight was eying her hat and she gave the unicorn a polite shove.

"I see you've taken an interest in my hat," she said. Twilight then realized that she was staring and she quickly shook her head.

"Sorry," Twilight breathed. "It's just...something about your hat seems familiar to me."

"Probably just a coincidence. I know you haven't seen this hat before. I got it for my eighteenth birthday. My mother made it for me."

"Sorry to interrupt but I have a few questions to be answered," said the Doctor. The mare looked at the Doctor and patted one of his cheeks with her hoof.

"And they will all be answered in due time! What's the fun in telling you everything now? Why not let the mysteries...unfold as time progresses?"

"Something about you certainly seems familiar to me in a sense."

"Is it the hat or just me in general?"

"It's just you in general."

"No surprise there."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Let time answer the questions for you, Doctor. Right now, don't we have a new time and/or place to explore while the TARDIS heals itself?"

"How do you know-"

The mare put one of her hooves over the Doctor's mouth and shook her head.

"Now what did I just say?" she asked in a teasing tone.

"Let the mysteries unfold as time progresses," the Doctor replied with a groan.

"Exactly!"

The mare drew her hoof away from the Doctor's mouth and trotted towards the doors of the TARDIS.

"Can I at least get a name?" the Doctor asked.

"Matilda. That's my name," said the mare. The Doctor and Twilight turned to each other, shrugged their shoulders, and approached the doors. Matilda was about to open them when they flung open by themselves. A large, ugly head stuck through the threshold and examined the three ponies. The head resembled that of a horse but it definitely was no pony. It had a deer antler on the right of its head and a goat horn on the left, it had one long fang, two yellow eyes with pupils of different sizes, a snake tongue, and a goat beard. Twilight gasped at the sight of the creature and took three large steps back.

"Discord!" she shrieked with shock.

The King and Queen of Equestria

Chapter 1: The King and Queen of Equestria

Courtyard, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Twilight took long, deep breaths as she stared deep into the eyes of her old enemy, Discord the Draconequus. She noticed that there was something different about them. The eyes of the Discord she knew were wild, misleading, and deadly while these eyes were soothing, happy, and caring. His face showed the expression of a confused smile, resembling that of a filly watching two older ponies kiss for the first time. Discord then let out a mighty laugh that reminded the Doctor of the great English kings he had come across in his travels.

"Why do you look so frightened, dear unicorn?" asked Discord. His voice didn't sound manipulative or overconfident at all. It resembled that of a father trying to sooth his child who had previously woken up from a nightmare. "I admit that I may not be the most handsome of creatures but I hope you don't see me as the ugliest creature in this land."

The Doctor was confused by the whole situation. He didn't know much about Discord but, from what he had previously heard from Twilight, he still had an uneasy feeling in his stomach. Matilda simply smiled and bowed.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, King Discord. Your kindness and humility has no bounds, as I have heard," she said. Discord laughed again as he examined the interior of the TARDIS.

"I say, what a peculiar vessel. Where might you three be from?" he asked. Matilda looked back at the Doctor. The Doctor looked at Twilight to see that she was still frozen with shock.

The Doctor gave a great sight before clearing his throat and saying, "We're from a...variety of places."

Discord clapped his claws gleefully and chuckled.

"Excellent! I love exotic visitors! Please come out and enjoy the wonders of Equestria!"

Matilda bowed again and followed Discord through the TARDIS doors. The Doctor rolled his eyes as he gently led the surprised Twilight out of the TARDIS.

A brilliantly-beautiful courtyard awaited them outside. The courtyard was around the size of a warehouse and was filled to the brim with brightly-colored flowers. A single, silver fountain stood in the center of the courtyard. A jet of water spewed out of the top and reached heights of well over twenty feet. The color of the water changed from blue to gold to silver to green to violet and to several other colors in a matter of seconds. A small militia of pegasi and earth pony servants tended to the fountain water and the flowers throughout the courtyard. A massive, golden castle loomed over the courtyard, and yet there were no shadows to be found.

"It's beautiful," Twilight exclaimed.

"I'm glad that you like it, child," Discord said as he patted Twilight on the head. "It took me many years to construct this castle and I am very pleased with the final product. It's certainly better than the atrocious red brick castle that stood here almost three centuries ago."

"How long have you been the ruler of Equestria so far?" Matilda asked.

"This has been my 283rd year as King of Equestria, madame."

"It seems that you've been able to do a lot in those 283 years."

"Yes. This country was in a state of despair when I took control, but now it's eternal peace for every pony from border to border. I've even been able to help out the surrounding countries such as the Griffin Kingdom and so forth."

The Doctor felt a tap on his shoulder as Twilight drew close to him.

"This is wrong," she whispered.

"What do you mean?" he whispered back.

"This isn't the Discord I've encountered!"

"You've yet to tell me everything about Discord so I can't really relate to what you're stating."

"Discord was basically the King of Chaos. He ruled Equestria with an iron, chaotic fist."

"This doesn't seem very chaotic to me."

"Me neither. Something's wrong. I can feel it."

"What were your names again?" Discord asked as he turned to the Doctor and Twilight. Twilight instantly jumped and backed away from Discord. Discord simply cocked his head as he gave a confused expression.

"I don't believe we mentioned our names," the Doctor replied.

"Oh...why I don't believe you have!"

"Well...I'm the Doctor. This is-"

"Tara!" Twilight yelped.

"Pardon?" asked Discord and the Doctor together.

"My name's Tara!"

The Doctor was about to challenge Twilight's outburst when Matilda gave him a light shove.

"Just go along with it, sweetie," she whispered.

The Doctor looked at Matilda and asked, "Did you just call me-"

She gave him another light shove and followed it up with a seductive smile.

"Tara," said Discord. He then gave a polite bow and smiled. "What a lovely name."

"Thank you," Twilight replied awkwardly as she herself bowed.

Matilda took a step towards Discord and said, "I'm Matilda, by the way."

"The pleasure is mine, Matilda," said Discord as both he and Matilda bowed. Suddenly, a loud voice rang out from a nearby watch tower.

"My King! The Queen approaches!" yelled a unicorn guard. Discord clapped his claws with excitement.

"Excellent! Dear Doctor, Tara, and Matilda, may I introduce you all to the love of my life and Queen of the greatest country on Gaia, Queen Lily the Gorgeous!"

A nearby gate opened and in walked an alicorn mare around the size of Princess Luna. She had a mane of silver and red that moved like liquid silk, a pure white coat that gleamed in the sunlight, a cutie mark that consisted of a golden rose, a smile that made everypony, even the mares, buckle at the knees, and a pair of emerald green eyes that emanated comfort and friendliness.

"My, my, my!" exclaimed the Doctor as he examined Queen Lily from head to hoof. Twilight noticed that even she and Matilda were in awe of the Queen's indescribable beauty. Lily approached Discord and gave him a somewhat shy kiss. Discord returned the favor and they both giggled with delight.

"My Lord, am I to assume that we have guests with us today?" she asked. Her voice could only be compared to that of a harp of gold stringing notes of the purist kind.

"Yes, my Lady. This is the Doctor, Tara, and Matilda," Discord said. Lily approached the new arrivals and greeted them with a cute bow.

"Welcome to the Castle of Equestria. I hope you are finding our great home to be satisfactory to your tastes."

"Definitely," replied the Doctor as he unintentionally gawked at Lily. Matilda noticed this and gave him a quick shove.

"Don't be rude, Doctor!" she snapped teasingly. Lily giggled.

"Don't be cross with him, Ms. Matilda, he's not the first stallion to be entranced by my cur-I mean-spell."

Lily's face drooped for a second but she quickly brought it back to its smiling state. Both the Doctor and Twilight managed to pick this up but it was unclear if Matilda or Discord noticed this too.

"Understood. Oh and call me Matilda. The only mare I know who loved having the title Ms. in front of her name was my mother and I am trying my best not to follow all of her first class habits," said Matilda.

"Not a problem, Matilda," Lily giggled.

"So are you going to be staying with us tonight?" Discord asked.

"You're just going to let us stay the night? You've only just met us!" Twilight exclaimed.

"We don't get visitors often. The ones we do get we greet with open arms!" Lily replied.

"If I may, but isn't that a bit dangerous? I mean, what if one of your visitors is an assassin or anarchist?" the Doctor asked.

"Both my husband and I are extremely powerful. We can tell if somepony is coming into our home with undesirable intentions."

"What do you do to ponies who do have undesirable intentions?" Matilda asked. Discord pointed one of his claws at a nearby frog. The frog instantly turned into a green teacup. The King waved his arm and the frog returned to normal.

"Let's just say that I wasn't named Discord for nothing," he chuckled. Lily giggled and kissed the King again.

"My husband, the joker. There's a reason why we have no need for a jester during our banquets," she stated happily. Discord clapped his claws and beckoned the Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda towards the castle.

"I'll just give you all a tour of the castle and show you to your rooms afterwards, where you can wait until supper. Do you want your vessel docked in any particular place?"

"No. The TARDIS is safe and sound right here," the Doctor replied. He then clapped his hooves and the doors to the TARDIS shut, locking in the process.

"My dear guests, the Castle of Equestria awaits you!"

Within the Castle of Equestria

Chapter 2: Within the Castle of Equestria

The Alastor Bedroom, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The Doctor stood next to the windowsill and watched as the multicolored, evening light enveloped the land surrounding the golden castle. His mind raced with thoughts pertaining to the events of that day. Why was Discord different from what Twilight described him as? Why was Twilight using an alias? Who exactly was this Matilda and how did she know him and Twilight so well? He shrugged his shoulders and sighed.

"I guess I'll find out soon enough," he said. He heard the door behind him open and turned around to see Twilight entering the room. She stared at the luxurious room with an envious stare. The bed was a red velvet king's bed with long golden curtains, the floor was covered in a mix of hoof-crafted royal carpets, and the ceiling and walls were made of gleaming, white marble.

"This room is amazing! I actually would have preferred this one to the room I got," she admitted. The Doctor smirked as he approached the awestruck unicorn.

"Are you enjoying yourself, Ms. Tara?"

"What? Oh...that."

"Would you mind telling me what that was about?"

"I can only assume that we're in the distant past and, since I remember Discord not knowing me prior to his reawakening in 1001, I figured that I better go by an alias rather than risking a paradox...dear Celestia I'm starting to sound like you now!"

"I know. It's getting kind of creepy."

Both the Doctor and Twilight laughed. Twilight walked past the Doctor and looked through the large window.

"This place is beautiful," she said. The Doctor nodded in agreement. It certainly was a sight to behold. Even in the dim light of the evening, the castle still emanated a bright, welcoming glow. The outlines of distant towns and villages could be seen off in the distance, beyond the castle walls. Twilight turned away from the window and faced the Doctor. It was obvious that something was on her mind.

"Is something troubling you?" the Doctor asked.

"Yeah. It's the whole nice Discord thing. I remember the Discord I came across fully and I remember everything the Princesses told me about him. He was a vile, cruel, sadistic dictator who stopped at nothing to rule Equestria with complete and total chaos. This Discord is basically the polar opposite of the Discord my friends and I fought."

"Maybe there's more to the whole Discord story than you know."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Tell me, have you heard anything about Equestria prior to Discord's reign?"

"Of course! I've read about lots of ancient Equestrians. Alastor the Enchanter is one of them."

"Alastor the Enchanter, huh? I think I recall Queen Lily telling me that this room is named after him."

"Interesting."

"Anyway, have you heard anything about how Discord became the King of Equestria?"

This is when Twilight fell silent. Her ears drooped and she began straining her brain in order to find an answer.

The Doctor sighed and asked, "You don't have an answer to that? Do you?"

Twilight sighed too and replied, "No. It's strange. I've read countless books about Equestrian and world history and have spoke to the Princess several times, and Discord has come up a fair amount of times, and yet I can't recall anything involving how Discord became the King of Equestria. All I know is that for a long time he ruled Equestria with absolute chaos. That's it."

"That's it, huh? I smell something fishy, and that's odd because this castle is cleaner than a bar of soap. Hmm...I could use something to eat right now. Maybe some apple grass."

"What are you going on about?"

"Sorry! Just thinking out loud again! I'm still getting used to this new pony body."

"So, since we're asking questions here, what do you think of Ms. Matilda?"

A devious smiled curved on Twilight's face as she giggled teasingly.

"What about her?" the Doctor asked as he blushed slightly.

"Oh come on! You were putty in her hooves!" Twilight laughed.

"I was not! I have never been putty in anyone's, or anypony's, hands, or hooves, before!"

"Really, Doctor?"

"No...well...once...well...twice...well...you know what? Let's just change the subject!"

"It's funny, isn't it? She seems to know us so well. It's almost as if we've had a long history together."

"We probably have. Remember, Twilight. Time is-"

"Complicated. I know."

"To be honest, I'm kind of looking forward to seeing just what type of odd adventures that we're going to have with that mysterious mare."

"Yeah. Speaking of complicated time, I was just working on my story for Sarah."

"Huh? Oh! Sarah Sparkle! Almost forgot about all of that. We should go back and visit them when we get the chance."

"I also worked on the note for Princess Luna."

"What note?"

"Oh, that's right! I never told you about it! Well, on the day you arrived in Ponyville-"

"Leaving me out of conversations again, Doctor?" asked a familiar, seductive voice. The Doctor gulped as he turned to see Matilda entering the room. "Would you two mind if I joined you?"

"Not really," the Doctor choked. "But-"

"We were just talking about you," said Twilight.

"Really?" asked Matilda as she approached them. "I hope they were positive statements."

"You could say so," said the Doctor as he awkwardly adjusted his tie.

"Good. Anyway, Doctor, I see that you have a few affections for the Queen."

"What?"

"Queen Lily. Come on. I saw you gaping at her. Well, to be honest, I was kind of doing it too."

"This is starting to get awkward," Twilight said with a nervous laugh.

"Is that because you were eying her too, dearie?"

"Huh? I was not! I'm into stallions, not mares!"

"Oh I know that. But, yet you were still eying her."

"Heh...I guess I was."

"Did either of you notice something peculiar about the Queen?" the Doctor asked.

"Aside from her beauty?" Matilda asked.

"Yes, aside from that. She seemed somewhat troubled about something. And there was a moment where she was about to describe her beauty as a curse rather than a spell. I'm sure of it."

"A curse? How can beauty be a curse?" Twilight asked.

"Oh you'd be surprised. Everything comes at a cost in one form or another. Beauty is no exception."

"And with her level of beauty, that cost must be pretty big," said Matilda.

"Exactly!"

"So, Doctor, is it time to look into this further?"

"I would say so."

Suddenly a loud chime rang out throughout the castle.

"But I think we should get something to eat first," said the Doctor as he pushed past them.

"Really, Doctor? Food?" Twilight asked.

"Of course! One shouldn't investigate on an empty stomach! Oh how I do hope that they have apple grass!"

The Doctor then disappeared through the doorway, leaving Twilight alone with Matilda.

"You seem to know him very well," said Twilight as she turned to face Matilda.

"Oh how I know that stallion. I know you just as well too," said the mysterious mare.

"We're going to go through a lot together, aren't we?"

"More than you realize."

"Will they be good or bad encounters?"

"A little of both. But I shouldn't go into too much detail. Wouldn't want to screw up the time stream too badly. Now, come on, I think I can smell a chocolate custard with my name on it."

Twilight chuckled as she followed Matilda through the doorway.

Discord and Lily's Chamber, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Queen Lily sat in front of a large mirror examining herself. She wasn't happy. Something was bothering her. Something nasty had been eating away at her for a very long time. She looked at the reflection in the mirror and wanted to cry. She was so beautiful, so unique, so magnificent, so...everything. It disgusted her. She wished every day that she could remove the curse from her body but she knew that this was impossible. Then she thought about the visions. The horrible, icy visions of a tormented future. They had become incredibly frequent throughout the past few months. She didn't dare tell her husband about what she had seen in those visions. It was too terrible for words. Whenever she began to feel guilty or sad about her curse, she would think about Discord and how much he cared for her and vice versa. She wanted to be with him forever, ruling over Equestria in a never-ending, peaceful reign. But, alas, something was telling her that this was a mere dream and nothing more. She thought back to the visions and a tear formed in her eye. She quickly wiped it away as the dinner chime rang out throughout the castle.

"Time for supper," she said as she turned away from the mirror. "Best go and greet the guests."

She was about to head out of the room when her body stiffened up like a plank of wood. She couldn't move. She had lost control over her body. "No! Not again!"

She then lost control over her mouth. A weird smoke began emanating from her mouth. She looked in the mirror to see that her eyes were glowing bright blue. Her innards became cold and her bones felt like glass. Then she began speaking. A mysterious voice that wasn't hers began emanating from her mouth.

The voice said, "The mistress and element arrive to play; the King prepares for his final day. The icy fiends return from the grave, and the Doctor sadly will have nopony to save."

The voice then went away and Lily fell to the ground, sputtering and coughing like mad. A unicorn guard rushed into the room.

"My Queen! Are you in need of assistance?!" he asked. Lily stood up and faced the guard. She looked back in the mirror to see that her eyes had returned to normal.

"I am quite alright, thank you," she replied quickly.

"Was somepony else in here with you? I believe that I heard talking."

"Nopony else was in here. It was just me. I was...thinking aloud. I shall be heading down to supper now."

"Enjoy your supper, my Queen."

"I will. Thank you."

Lily turned away from the guard and proceeded through the door, her throat was still burning with an icy aftertaste.

The Price of Beauty

Chapter 3: The Price of Beauty

Dining Hall, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda were led through a large pair of bronze doors by a pair of pegasus guards. A massive, golden-walled, marble-floored dining hall around the size of Celestia's throne room greeted them. The floor was covered with velvet, silver-lined rugs, and, in the center of the room, there stood a table nearly as long as the room itself. There must have been at least one hundred chairs docked at the table, each seat with its own set of plates, cutlery, wine glasses, and decorations. At the head of the table were two large thrones, a golden one and a silver one. Discord sat proudly in the golden throne while Lily sat in the silver throne, continuing to emit an aura of elegance, beauty, and tranquility. Twilight found herself speechless at the sight of the dining hall.

"Brilliant!" the Doctor exclaimed. Matilda walked up to him and gave him a light shove.

"Come on, Doctor. Surely this isn't the best thing you've seen," she whispered.

"No, but it's definitely a runner-up."

The three ponies walked towards the head of the table. Discord stood up and greeted them.

"Welcome to the dining hall. I hope you're enjoying your stay in the castle so far," said the King.

"Oh, of course! It's an honor to be here!" said Matilda. The Doctor was tempted to roll his eyes again but he decided against this course of action.

"Well sit down! Supper shall be here soon."

The Doctor sat down in the seat closest to Discord's while Twilight and Matilda found seats close to Lily.

"It's lovely here," said Twilight to the Queen. Lily giggled and smiled though Twilight could sense that something was off about her.

"Thank you. I can remember my first time behind these walls. It was ten years ago, so I was nineteen at the time. My father brought me here to watch him perform for Discord and the ambassador from the Griffin Kingdom."

"I remember that night like it was yesterday," said Discord. "It was terribly cold."

"Yes. My father was a unicorn and a very powerful one at that. He could cast magic that most unicorns could only dream of. There's a rumor stating that he was descended from Star Swirl the Bearded."

"Making you his descendant as well," said Twilight.

"Don't get your hopes up. It's merely a rumor and it's simply impossible to find out the truth. You'd have to go back in time and magic like that is extremely rare."

The Doctor winked at Twilight and she giggled in return.

"Anyway," Lily continued. "My father's performance started brilliantly and, at first, everything was going as planned. Then...everything went wrong."

"What happened?" the Doctor asked.

"An old rival of her father's was there that night," Discord explained. "He used some deadly, black magic to kill Lily's father during the performance."

"I'm so sorry," said Twilight.

"Thank you," Lily said with a saddened smile.

"What happened to the killer?" Matilda asked.

"I caught up to him," Discord replied.

"And?"

"Took care of him."

"You killed him?" the Doctor asked.

"Of course not! I'm many things but I'm no killer. I simply turned him into a cockatrice and sent him off to Elmheim to be kept as a pet."

"Sucks for him," Matilda stated. Lily giggled.

"You three are so...exotic. You act and talk like no pony I've met before," she stated.

"Well, we're just a bunch of odd ponies. Just a group of travelers," said the Doctor.

"Perhaps you could tell me about your travels."

"Well-"

"Dinner is served!" announced the loud voice of the head chef. Silver bowls and plates of food floated into the room and were placed on the table. An aroma of unique deserts, vegetables, fruits, and other foods wafted into the Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda's noses.

"I guess we can discuss your travels later," said Lily.

"Yes. For now, let us eat!" said Discord as he raised one of his many forks.

Courtyard, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Queen Lily quietly strolled through the empty garden. It was nighttime now but the lights of the castle shined brightly in the dark. She walked up to the fountain of many colors and looked into the pool of water below. Her reflection looked sad and fuzzy. She sighed. Her recent prediction gave her the shivers. She hated her predictions. They always happened right before something horrible took place. She didn't want that. Everything was too perfect, to happy, and too safe. She couldn't have anything horrible happen. Not now. Not ever again.

"Your majesty?" asked a voice from the dark. Lily turned around to see Tara a.k.a. Twilight walking towards her. "Are you okay?"

"Oh. It's you, Tara. You gave me a fright," said Lily.

"I apologize. Do you want to be alone?"

"Not really. Would you walk with me?"

"It would be my pleasure."

Twilight walked up to the Queen's side and, for a few moments, they walked through the dark courtyard in silence.

"May I ask you something, Queen Lily?" Twilight asked.

"Ask away," the Queen replied.

"In the history of Kings and Queens of Equestria, you and King Discord don't talk like most of the other rulers have. What happened to the loud speaking and the royal we?"

"Oh! That old stuff? My husband thought that was a load of rot. He's changed things around in Equestria for the better. Oh how I love that draconequus!"

"How long have you been married to him?"

"Two years. After my father died, Discord let me stay in the castle. We grew close and eventually married."

"Why did you come to live in the castle? Don't you have a mother?"

"I did but she was very sick when I was born. She died when I was thirteen."

"I'm sorry. You seem to have had a rough life when it comes to your parents."

"Yes. My mother gave up everything for me to be happy, even her own health."

"She must have cared about you a lot."

"I love her...and hate her for what she did to me."

"What do you mean?"

"Tara, do you feel attracted to me?"

"Your majesty?"

"Answer me with one hundred percent truth. Do you feel attracted to me?"

Twilight blushed as she said, "Yes."

Lily sighed and looked towards the starry sky. She then said, "I'm not surprised. I saw the looks on the Doctor, Matilda, and you when I first met you."

"Your majesty, is something the matter?"

"Tara...when my mother was young, she was often teased for being ugly...and being unable to fly. For you see, my mother was a pegasus and you should know that it's extremely disgraceful to a pegasus if they are unable to fly."

"I can understand where that comes from. A pegasus who can't fly. That's sort of like a unicorn who can't perform magic."

"Exactly. My mother was born with certain disabilities. Many pegasi, unicorn, and earth ponies alike constantly bullied and used her. Then she met my father."

"Let me guess. He was the first pony to treat her with respect."

"Of course. When I was conceived, my mother was worried that I would be born ugly like her and that I would go through the same hardships that she herself went through. In order to ensure my future, she went to a shady sorcerer out in the darkest regions of Equestria. She made a blood oath to make me the most beautiful and loved pony in all of the world."

"And I can see that it worked."

"Yes, but it came at a terrible price. My mother became incredibly ill following my birth, which led to her dying a frail and weak pony thirteen years later. At first, I loved being beautiful. It was simply amazing to have everypony love and respect me. Then...I began to see the dark side of my beauty."

"What was that?"

"Everypony either was instantly attracted to or fell in love with me on sight. I couldn't escape this. Ponies hounded me to marry them and many went to unbelievable lengths to get my attention. Some even went and hid in the local toilet to wait for me. Then the predict...then I received a prediction from a seer."

"What kind of prediction?"

"The prediction stated that the first creature to see me and not fall in love with me on sight would be my true love."

"Let me take a guess and say that the King was the first one to not instantly fall in love with you."

"Obviously. He was somewhat attracted to me but not as much as the others. It wasn't until I spent a few years with him in the castle that we both gained feelings for one another. I can honestly say that these last ten years in the castle have been some of the best years of my life."

"I'm happy for you. You finally found your true love."

"Yes...but my mother's wish continues. Ponies and creatures of all sorts still find themselves attracted to or falling in love with me. I wish I could find a way to stop it, but so far there is no cure."

Lily turned to face Twilight and looked somewhat surprised, as if she were expecting the unicorn to look at her with a flirtatious look.

"It's funny. I've only just met you and yet I'm spilling my life history to you as if you were a long-lost sister of mine," said the Queen with a smirk. Twilight chuckled awkwardly and turned towards the starry sky. "Maybe I just needed to talk to somepony about it."

"Have you ever talked to the King about it?"

"I've talked about it with him multiple times. He's a wonderful listener. Maybe I just wanted somepony else to know...to understand how I feel. Are you going to spread the word?"

"I promise not to speak a word of this to anypony if you don't want me to."

"I don't mind if you tell your fellow companions about this. I can tell that your friend, the Doctor, is extremely curious about the secret behind my beauty."

"Do you want to head back to the dining hall? I'm sure the King and the others are wondering where we are."

"Of course."

Twilight and Lily began heading back when Lily suddenly became incredibly still.

"Queen Lily?" Twilight asked. The Queen's eyes turned bright blue, a strange steam began emitting from her mouth, and her body began shaking as if she were surrounded by ice. Twilight ran up to the Queen and looked straight into her eyes. "Your majesty! Are you okay?!"

Lily looked at Twilight and began speaking in a voice that wasn't her own. She said, "The mistress and the element arrive to play; the King prepares for his final day. The icy fiends return from the grave, and the Doctor sadly will have nopony to save. The cost of beauty is finally paid; the daughters of magic fight the raid. A friend will perform a trivial task, and Twilight Sparkle will return home at last!"

Lily then collapsed onto the ground as Twilight helped break her fall.

"Your majesty!" Twilight cried. "Your majesty!"

Lily's eyes shot open and Twilight was relieved to see that they had returned to normal.

"I did it again, didn't I?" she gulped.

"Huh?"

"This must have been an incredibly important message. I normally never loose consciousness during my predictions."

"Your majesty, what just happened?"

"Let's just say that beauty isn't the only gift that I received from my mother's magical deal."

The air suddenly grew cold and both Twilight and Lily turned towards the sky. Small white flakes of snow began falling from the sky and piling up on the ground.

"Snow?" Twilight gasped.

"Impossible! It's not scheduled to snow until early December. We're still in October!" said Lily. Twilight turned from the Queen to the sky as the ground began to become as white as marble.

The Living Storm

Chapter 4: The Living Storm

Equestrian Gardens, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda walked through the maze of multicolored roses as snow continued to fall from the sky. It was early morning now and the once-blue sky was now replaced by that of a light-gray cloud cover. The Doctor picked up a small pile of snow in his hoof and tasted it.

"It's regular snow. Nothing strange about it whatsoever," said the Doctor.

"But snow shouldn't be falling until December. That's what Queen Lily told me," said Twilight.

"It's weather. It'll do what it wants."

"No it won't. Weather is controlled and scheduled by pegasi."

"Really?! How peculiar. Weather just operates on its own in my dimension."

"Well there are some places in this dimension where weather operates on its own. The Everfree Forest is a prime example," said Matilda.

"The Everfree Forest?"

"It's a dark, dangerous forest by Ponyville. It doesn't exist yet."

"Speaking of time, have you found out what year we're in?" Twilight asked as the Doctor began examining the snow with his Sonic Screwdriver.

"Not really," he replied.

"I can answer that. Discord has been ruling for 283 years. That means that this must be 146 P.C.E. Princess Celestia won't be born for another century," Matilda replied.

"How were you able to figure all of that out?" Twilight asked.

"I've done a lot of traveling in my life. A lot of it has been with you and the Doctor."

"Right...well-"

"I know, I know. It hasn't happened yet for you."

"Matilda, who exactly are you?" the Doctor asked. Matilda chuckled as she kicked some snow around with her hooves.

"I'm a friend. Do you really need to know anything else?"

"Yes," Twilight replied sternly.

"Well, like I always say, what you don't know now you'll find out about tomorrow."

"Is it just me or is it getting extremely cold out here?" the Doctor asked.

"Doctor, it's snowing. Of course it's cold," Twilight replied.

"Yes, I know it's snowing and it's supposed to be cold but doesn't it feel a little bit too cold?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well this snow feels colder than it should be."

"Snow can be too cold?"

"Yes. This isn't normal cold...it's enforced cold."

"Enforced cold? What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that somepony or something is causing this snow. It's not pegasi, it's not unicorn magic, and it's not little pieces of wild weather. Something's out there, forcing everything to be cold," Matilda said. Twilight looked at the snow continuously falling from the sky above. A mild wind had also begun to pick up.

"This all seems familiar," she said.

"How so?" the Doctor asked.

"I've heard about enforced cold, snow, and wind somewhere before. I just can't put my hoof on it."

"Try to remember. If this turns out to be a problem, then we're gonna need all the information we can get."

Twilight nodded. It was then that she thought back to Queen Lily's prediction. She had told the Doctor and Matilda about the Queen's mother's pact in order to give her daughter never-ending beauty, but she had yet to mention the prediction.

"Something...happened to the Queen last night right before it began snowing," she said.

"What happened?" Matilda asked.

"I think she predicted something."

"You mean like predicted something from the future?" the Doctor asked.

"I think so."

"Do you remember what she said?"

"Actually, I remember it all perfectly clear. It's as if it's burned into my memory."

"Well tell us!" snapped Matilda.

"Okay. Here it is. The mistress and the element arrive to play; the King prepares for his final day. The icy fiends return from the grave, and the Doctor sadly will have nopony to save. The cost of beauty is finally paid; the daughters of magic fight the raid. A friend will perform a trivial task, and Twilight Sparkle will return home at last."

The Doctor sat down on a snow-free bench and went over the prediction in his mind.

"The mistress and the element arrive to play. What on earth could that mean?" he asked. He took a look at Matilda and then looked at Twilight. "Does that mean anything to you, Twilight?"

Twilight sighed and nodded.

"I think the mistress might be you, Matilda," she said. Matilda smiled and chuckled seductively. "The element must be me."

"How are you an element?" the Doctor asked.

"Have I told you about the Elements of Harmony?"

"I don't think so."

"Well there are six Elements of Harmony: honesty, kindness, laughter, generosity, loyalty, and magic. My friends, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and myself represent the elements respectively."

"So you represent the Element of-"

"Magic."

"Makes sense."

"Okay so we've sort of figured out the first line of the prediction. But what does it mean by arrive to play?"

"Maybe you two have arrived to play around."

"Very funny, Doctor," said Matilda. "I can only assume that it's not as simple as that."

"I'll tell you what. Some parts of that prediction are really troubling me. Like the King prepares for his final day and the icy fiends return from the grave."

"Let's also not forget about and the Doctor sadly will have nopony to save and the cost of beauty is finally paid," said Twilight.

"I've got a feeling that the beauty line has something to do with the Queen," Matilda guessed.

"The icy fiends return from the grave. Does that ring any bells, Twilight?" the Doctor asked.

"Sort of but it's very fuzzy. It's almost as if something is preventing me from remembering," Twilight replied.

"I would only assume as such."

It was then that Discord appeared from around the bend.

"Curious. I've tried all the spells in my arsenal and this snow just refuses to disappear," he said. "I might have to have a talk with the pegasi about this."

"This has nothing to do with pegasi, your majesty," said the Doctor. "Some form of magic is at work here. Really dark magic."

"I think what you say is true, Doctor, though I dearly wish it weren't."

The wind began to pick up and more snow began to fall from the sky.

"We better go inside before we become living ice sickles!" said Matilda as she walked past the Doctor and Discord.

"Right! Everypony inside!" Discord ordered.

Discord and Lily's Chamber, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Lily wanted to get out of bed but all of her strength was gone. A cold sweat covered her body and her breathing was incredibly heavy. Something was coming. She could feel it. Something was coming and it was coming for her and Discord. A pain shot through her head and she blacked out.

She found herself standing in the burning remains of the main courtyard. Discord was standing over her, his face warped and twisted with rage.

"You did this!" he yelled.

"No! No Discord no!" she screamed.

"You did this and now you must pay!"

His eyes glowed red as the fire began enveloping Lily's body. She began screaming in agony.

Then she woke up. Discord was standing over her. The Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda were standing behind him.

"Is she alright?" Twilight asked.

"Don't worry," Lily coughed. "I'm fine."

"That's hard to believe. A few seconds ago you were screaming bloody murder!" Matilda exclaimed.

"Was I? Sorry. It was just a bad dream."

"Your majesty," said the Doctor as he approached the troubled queen. "I need to ask you if you know anything about predictions."

Lily sighed and looked up at her husband. She then turned back to the Doctor and nodded.

"Yes. I know a fair amount about predictions."

"Twi...Tara told me about what you told her last night. She mentioned you reciting a prediction or prophecy of sorts. I'm guessing that cursed beauty isn't the only thing you received from your mother's magical deal."

"You're right, Doctor."

"What are you talking about, Lily? What do you know about prophecies?"

"There's something about me that I never told you. Ever since I was a little girl, there have been moments where I've uncontrollably recited predictions for future events. I never told anypony because the events were never good. I recited a prediction the day before my father died. I can only assume that the prediction I've recited now has something to do with this strange snowstorm."

Matilda walked over to the window, which was now completely white.

"It looks like it's picking up," she said.

"What did the prediction state?" Discord asked. Lily simply shook her head and sighed again.

"I don't know. I lost consciousness when I recited it. The only pony who knows what I said, is Tara," the Queen replied. Twilight felt her heart stop for a second. She couldn't tell Discord the prediction. The part about the King preparing for his final day definitely had something to do with him and it didn't sound good.

"What did my wife say?"

"I...I...I don't remember. It's all fuzzy to me now," she lied.

"Please! You must remember!"

"I can't! I was too busy worrying about the Queen's blue eyes and steaming mouth to focus on what she was saying!"

Lily suddenly grabbed Discord tightly. Her eyes turned bright blue and her mouth began steaming. She looked deep into Discord's eyes and said, "The living storm is on the way; the final stand shall be today. The traveler shall abandon a broken soul, for the Queen's love shall take its toll."

Lily's eyes returned to normal and the steam faded away.

"I'm sorry. I did it again," she said as tears began forming in her eyes. Discord proceeded to comfort his wife as the Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda grouped together.

"Anypony have any ideas about what that meant?" Matilda asked.

"The living storm is on the way. So is the storm alive?" Twilight asked.

"Possibly. It may not be as simple is that," the Doctor replied.

"Well, whatever's going on, it's going to hit its high point today," said Matilda.

"I know. We have to be ready."

Suddenly, a loud boom echoed throughout the castle. The floor shook a bit and the walls groaned as if they were in pain.

"What was that?" Discord asked.

"Something bad," Twilight said.

"And it's very close," Matilda gulped. Another boom rocked the castle and Discord stood up. The Doctor approached the window and looked outside. Ice was beginning to crystallize on the exterior of the glass. He looked closely and examined the typhoon of snow outside of the window. Then he saw them. A pair of sharp, blue eyes staring back at him from the wall of white. At first, they were small. Then they began to grow larger and closer.

"Everypony get away from the window!" the Doctor ordered. Discord wrapped himself around Lily while the Doctor, Twilight and Matilda ducked behind the bed. That's when the window shattered.

Fire, Ice, and Music

Chapter 5: Fire, Ice, and Music

Discord and Lily's Chamber, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Snow and wind poured through the damaged window as a large, white, blue-eyed, horse-like, snow creature landed on the carpeted floor. The floor around it was instantly covered in a sheet of ice. The creature stared at Discord with an emotionless gaze. It then let out a frightening howl that sent shivers down the Doctor's spine. Twilight's eyes widened as she took a closer look at the creature. Matilda attempted to keep her large, pink hat from blowing off the top of her head.

"It can't be!" Twilight breathed. The creature lunged at them but Discord stood up and grabbed the creature. He tossed it through the air and it smashed into the opposite wall. Discord's hands began to freeze like the area around the creature but the ice quickly melted away.

"What the hell is that?!" the Doctor asked.

"It's a windigo," said Matilda.

"A what?"

"A windigo. It's a winter spirit that feeds off negative energy," Twilight replied. "They haven't been seen or heard from in Equestria since the country was founded."

The windigo stood up and looked at the Doctor. It then looked at Twilight and Lily. It's blue eyes began to burn brightly as it let out another frightening howl.

"How can we get rid of it?" the Doctor asked.

"The last, and first, ponies to ward off the windigos were Clover the Clever, Smart Cookie, and Private Pansy when they used the Fire of Friendship," said Twilight. The windigo flew towards them but Discord managed to conjure a wall of fire around the beast.

"I suggest we get out of here and plan on what to do next in another location," said the King as he picked up the still weak Lily. The Doctor, Twilight, and Matilda nodded in agreement as they followed Discord out of the room. The Doctor closed the doors to the chamber behind him and began placing various pieces of furniture in front of the doors.

"Your majesties!" said a guard as he ran down the hallway. He was joined by a small militia of various pony guards.

"There's a windigo in there! Try to hold it off as long as you can!" the Doctor ordered. The guards turned to Discord, who beckoned them to follow the Doctor's orders. The head guard pulled a pegasus guard and earth pony guard from the group.

"Clyde. Timber. Protect the King and Queen and their guests!"

"Yes, sir!" said Clyde the pegasus and Timber the earth pony. The other guards made a formation around the door as the Doctor, Twilight, Matilda, Discord, Lily, Clyde, and Timber made their way down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" Matilda asked.

"To the dungeons. That's where the last of the Fire of Friendship resides," Discord replied.

The Dungeons, Underneath the Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The dungeons were certainly different from the rest of the castle. They were dark, gloomy, and smelled of raw sewage. It was obvious that nopony had been down here in an incredibly long time. Discord produced a single flame in one of his claws to light up the darkness. Twilight helped by using a simple illumination spell. Lily tried to cast magic but was still too weak, though she was able to walk again.

"I didn't know the Fire of Friendship was still around," said Twilight.

"It's been kept down here since the beginning of my reign," said Discord. "Clover the Clever locked it away in the cave where it was created and the location of the cave was eventually forgotten with time. I discovered the cave following my coronation and I placed it down here, just in case Equestria needed its power once more."

"Good thing you did," said Matilda.

"So is this Fire of Friendship the only thing that can defeat the windigos?" the Doctor asked.

"Either that or an incredible amount of magic," said Lily. They had just made it to another turn when the castle shook violently. "I'm guessing the windigo is on its way."

"I don't understand. There were three windigos if I remember correctly. Where are the other two?" Twilight asked.

"I'm guessing that they're not too far away," said the Doctor.

"But what do they want?"

"Revenge against the Equestrians, no doubt," said Discord. "They were banished by the first Equestrians and the Fire of Friendship. It only makes sense that they return to try and reclaim the country that they failed to claim in the first place."

"The icy fiends return from the grave. At least that makes sense now," Matilda whispered to the Doctor. The Doctor gulped. There was one thought swirling around in his mind that was making him worry greatly.

"And the Doctor sadly will have nopony to save," the Doctor mumbled under his breath.

"Are you okay, Doctor?" Twilight asked. The Doctor gave a forced smile and nodded.

"I've seen better days but I'm fine!"

"There's something worrying me."

"The predictions?"

"Yeah. None of them sound good."

"Well there are a few good points. Like and Twilight Sparkle will return home at last. Doesn't that sound nice?"

"I guess...but at what cost?"

The Doctor and Twilight looked at Discord and Lily. Both of them had an idea of what the future held for the King and Queen.

"Is there any way that we could...prevent certain events from playing out?" Twilight asked. The Doctor sighed and shook his head.

"Trust me, Twilight. That thought has crossed my mind multiple times. Sometimes, history just has to run its course. Once, I had a friend named Rose. I took her back in time to meet her father, who died when she was a baby."

"How did he die?"

"He was hit by a car."

"What's a car?"

"I'll explain all of that later but, when I brought her back, she ended up saving her father's life. Sadly, this was not meant to happen. Every living creature in the universe was almost destroyed because of that action. Even I was erased at one point."

"What happened? How did everything return to normal?"

"Rose's father sacrificed himself so that the rest of the universe and his daughter could live. Once he died, the timeline returned to normal."

"That was a brave thing of him to do."

"Yes...it was."

"Have you ever tried to change history?"

The Doctor fell silent. Memories of Mars, water monsters, and Adelaide Brooke came back to him.

"Yes," he replied.

"What happened?" Twilight asked. The Doctor and Twilight made eye contact. Twilight could see the sadness and regret in his eyes.

"I'd rather not talk about it. I will say this: it almost destroyed me."

"This is it!" Discord announced. The Doctor and Twilight looked forward to see a massive, metal doorway looming over them. Discord looked at the two guards. "Keep a sharp eye out. There's no telling when that windigo will show itself."

"Yes, your majesty!" said Clyde and Timber. Discord walked towards the door and pushed it open.

The Fire Chamber, Underneath the Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Twilight expected to see a huge, heart-shaped fire waiting for them on the other side of the door. What they found, however, was a small, golden goblet emitting a tiny blue flame.

"This is the Fire of Friendship?" the Doctor asked.

"Yes. It was like this when I discovered it all those years ago. I was hoping that it would lighten up for us once more whenever our country faced great peril," the King replied.

"There has to be some way to revive it," said Lily.

"There is," said Matilda. Everypony turned to face the mysterious mare.

"How do you know?" Twilight asked. Matilda smirked and approached the goblet of fire.

"I've done a lot of traveling in my life and have heard many things. I remember learning once that the only way to revive the Fire of Friendship is to perform the first song that Clover the Clever, Smart Cookie, and Private Pansy sung following its creation."

"And where exactly did you hear this from?"

"A clever clover told me."

Matilda then winked at the Doctor and it didn't take long for him to realize what she meant.

"So how do we perform the song?" he asked.

"All we need is a lyre and a singer," Matilda replied.

"All of the lyres are upstairs," said Clyde with a hopeless groan. Matilda gave a slight chuckle as her hat began to vibrate slightly. The Doctor watched as the top of the hat opened up and spat out of green lyre. Matilda caught the instrument in her hooves as the top of her hat closed again.

"Got that taken care of."

The Doctor looked at Matilda and asked, "How did-"

"Magic hat, sweetie. It's not too hard to figure it out. Anyway, I know the song so I can play it but now we need a singer."

"I can sing!" said Timber.

"A female singer."

Timber lowered his head. Matilda smiled as she turned to Twilight and Lily.

"Can either of you sing? Your majesty?" Matilda asked. Lily tried to sing a note but found that she was still to weak to do so. "It looks like you're the one, Tara."

"But I don't even know the song!" Twilight protested.

"That's not a problem. Come over here."

Twilight cautiously approached Matilda, who placed her hooves on the left and right side of Twilight's head.

"Close your eyes and relax, dearie. This isn't going to hurt one, little bit," Matilda said as she herself closed her eyes. Twilight took a deep breath and closed her eyes. Instantly an entire stream of knowledge began flowing through her head. "Don't focus on any of that useless crap. Just focus on the song." Twilight watched as a list of song lyrics began appearing before her mentally. "There you go. Let them come to you. Get to know them." Twilight gasped as the notes flew at her. It felt as if ropes were wrapping around her brain and needles were forcing themselves through the cracks in her skull. "And...we're done."

Matilda let go of Twilight's head and the confused unicorn stumbled around for a few seconds.

"What just happened?" she asked.

"I just implanted the lyrics of the song in your mind. You should know them by heart now."

"How did you do that?" the Doctor asked.

"It's just a talent that I developed over time."

Matilda then winked at the Doctor and let Twilight over to the flaming goblet.

"Now," she said. "It's time to awaken the fire. I'm going to start strumming the lyre and you just continue on from there. Are you with me, Tara?"

"Yes...I'm with you," Twilight replied. Her brain was throbbing but, Matilda was right, she knew the song by heart. "What's the song called?"

"The Melody of the Flame. Get ready."

Twilight cleared her throat and focused on the dim Fire of Friendship. The castle above them shook again and Clyde and Timber walked towards the door to keep watch in case the windigo arrived. Matilda began strumming the lyre. It was a beautiful sound. A tear formed in Twilight's eye as she began singing.

"Hush now sweet children; the horrors are gone. Live in sweet freedom and laughter. Thank thee thy fire for shining the way through the blizzard and sorrow," she sang The fire in the goblet began to stir and change color. "Thank thee thy fire for freeing our hearts. We shall always remember. Take me away to the place of no fear; a place where friends can live in peace." The fire was a dark reddish-purple now and was beginning to grow. "Forgive us thy fire, for my heart was once cold. Now it's warm and happy. We shall not fight. We shall not cry. We shall only talk by the fire." Cracks formed on the goblet as the fire began to grow and rise towards the ceiling. "Goodnight sweet children; the fire is here. This is no place for sadness or fear. This is no place for sadness or fear!"

Twilight felt the tears rolling down her face as the goblet crumbled into a pile of golden dust. The Fire of Friendship formed into a large heart and flew up towards the ceiling. An angry howl emanated from the doorway. Everypony turned around to see the windigo standing on the other side of the doorway, glaring at the Fire of Friendship with intense hatred.

"Stand back, fowl beast!" ordered Timber as he charged at the windigo. The beast lunged for Timber and wrapped its teeth around his throat.

"No!" cried Clyde. The guard threw a spear at the beast but it simply phased through. Within seconds, Timber was nothing but a frozen statue of ice. The windigo then smashed the Timber statue into little fragments. "You'll pay for that!"

Clyde tried to charge at the windigo but the Doctor grabbed him and pulled him away. The windigo tried to enter the room but found that it could not.

"Not so high and mighty when fire's in the mix, huh?!" the Doctor snapped. The windigo gave an expression that resembled that of a smile and howled again.

"Do you honestly believe that the Fire of Friendship can save you this time?" the creature asked with a hiss. "This castle shall fall, and all of its inhabitants with it!"

The Doctor approached the windigo. He stopped just beyond the boundary that the creature could reach through. He stared deep into the windigo's blue eyes and said, "If you and your brethren continue with your plans then I'll have to stop you."

"You think you're a match for us?! Just who do you think you are?!"

"I don't think I'm anything. I know what I am! I'm the Doctor. I'm a Time Lord. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm 906 years old and I'm the one who's going to send you back to the icy hell in which you came from! You don't need to fear me. You need to fear what you're about to do. Because when I say that I'm going to stop you, I mean it. Everything that happens after this point will be on your hands-er-hooves!"

"Well, Doctor, let the eternal blizzard begin!"

The windigo then let out a loud howl before running up the stairs, leaving an icy trail behind it. The Doctor turned back to the rest of the group.

"So what happens now, Doctor?" Matilda asked with a sly grin.

"Now the real fight begins," replied the Doctor.

Daughter of Magic

Chapter 6: Daughter of Magic

Battlements, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The Doctor nearly tripped as he ran down the snow-covered pathway. Snow covered the castle like a thick blanket and the air was colder than dry ice. Guards lined the castle walls and faced out into the blinding snowstorm. Discord cast a giant force field around the castle and added a little fire bonus to it, just to be safe. Matilda had managed to enclose the Fire of Friendship within a magical, glass container, which she had also pulled from her hat. Discord made sure that Lily was safe and heavily guarded inside the castle before returning to the battlements. The Doctor and Twilight looked out over the snow-covered courtyard beneath them. The blue outline of the TARDIS could be seen from where they were standing. Howls echoed around the castle as a larger group of windigos attempted to break through Discord's shields.

"I remember there being only three from the original story," said Twilight.

"Maybe they've been busy gathering followers since their first defeat," the Doctor assumed. Twilight eyed the Doctor awkwardly and he proceeded to clear his throat in response. "What's the matter? Is there something on my face?"

"Yeah. Snow. Lot's of it."

"No! Thank you, Captain Obvious! But seriously, what is it?"

"Was it true what you said down there?"

"Is what true?"

"Are you really 906 years old?"

"Yes. What? Have I not discussed my age with you recently?"

"No."

"Ah. Must have slipped my mind. I apologize. But, yes, it's true. I am 906 years old."

"How can you possibly be that old?!"

"I'm a Time Lord. It's normal for my species to live long periods of time. Whenever the time comes for us to quote-unquote die we just regenerate."

"Regenerate?"

"Yes. Whenever a Time Lord's body is fatally wounded, to an extent, or they live long enough, their current body is destroyed and we get a new one. That's what happened to me right before I arrived in Equestria. My previous body was destroyed and I got this body as a result."

"Fascinating. You're quite an interesting pony, Doctor."

"You're only noticing that now?!"

"No! There's just always something new to learn about you."

"I guess there is. By the way, why are you so shocked about me living so long? You have a princess who's over 1000 years old in your time."

"Yes, well, with Princess Celestia it's more-"

"Believable?"

"No! It's just a little bit more...complicated."

"Complicated?"

"Yeah! We only discovered that she's over 1000 years old two years ago from my time."

"What happened?"

"It's a long story."

"Yes...and I believe we don't have enough time at the moment to discuss it!"

Twilight turned to see the barrier slowly breaking apart. The windigos howled in delight as they began clawing their way through the cracks.

"Prepare yourself, Twilight," said the Doctor as he armed himself with his Sonic Screwdriver. Twilight looked around the snowy battlements and then turned back to the Doctor.

"Doctor?" she said.

"Yes?"

"Where's Matilda?"

Safe Room, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Lily was half-conscious. Her mind was burning and yet she couldn't figure out why. Her recent marathon of predictions had left her weak and battered. This was the worst time for a queen to find herself unable to help her king defend the castle. The guards had been placed all around the room and had received orders from Discord himself to keep anypony from entering. She felt so alone. The safe room was definitely nowhere near the most glamorous room in the castle. It was around the size of an average peasant's bedroom and had no windows. It had a brass door and metal walls painted orange-red. Three lanterns hung from the walls, bathing the room in a yellow light. Lily sat up and sat on the edge of the bed. She was still incredibly weak. She hardly felt awake. It was if she were in a trance. Every few seconds, something would call out to her from the silence. It wasn't a voice and it didn't remind her of the feeling she received when she gave her predictions. It was an odd, alien sound. A sound that was so indescribable that one's ears would start bleeding before they could start coming up with a description that could even come close to what it sounded like.

"What are you?" she asked weakly. "Why are you calling me? What do you want?"

It was then that the door opened and in walked not any of the guards but Matilda.

"How are you feeling, your majesty?" she asked as she approached the bed. She had a solemn smile on her face.

"I...I thought the guards weren't letting anypony inside."

"Yeah, well, I'm an expert at getting ponies to do what I want."

"Why are you here?"

"To help you but, more importantly, to help Equestria."

"How?"

"Listen, Queen Lily. Time is complicated but it is also very fragile. Sometimes, in order for things to work out for the better, some unfortunate ponies have to make sacrifices."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about what's happening right now. The windigos are going to win and the future of your country will be forever uncertain unless you do what I'm about to tell you."

Matilda sat down next to the Queen on the bed and sighed.

"I have a feeling that I'm not going to be particularly fond of what you're going to tell me to do," the Queen guessed. Matilda turned to Lily and stared at her with her glassy, blue eyes. She then smiled and let out a nervous chuckle.

"I'm sorry to say it, but you're right," replied the mysterious mare.

Battlements, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

A loud crack ripped through the air as the force field fell apart. The windigos cheered with delight as they flew towards the castle. There must have been at least twenty of them. Certainly not a fair number to match the hundreds of guards surrounding the castle but when one has the power of ice and wind on their side it tends to even the score. Windigos began tearing through and freezing guards left and right as the Doctor and Twilight watched from the battlements. Discord has taken to the skies and was now involved in a deadly brawl with the icy spirits. The Doctor looked and saw one particular windigo glare down at him. The windigo began making its way towards the duo.

"It looks like our friend from the dungeons has come back for more," said the Doctor.

"I wish Matilda hadn't disappeared with the Fire of Friendship!" Twilight exclaimed as she backed up. That's when she fell and tripped over something. The Doctor looked to see a glass jar filled with red-purple fire sitting on a patch of concrete devoid of all snow. A note was taped to the jar and it read: Don't burn yourself trying to save the world, sweetie. The Doctor smiled as he picked up the jar.

"Good old Matilda," he said as he took the note off. "I'm starting to wonder if she and River Song are related."

"Who's River Song?" Twilight asked.

"Long story. Why don't we talk about it later?"

The windigo flew towards them but Twilight managed to push the Doctor out of harm's way.

"Good idea!" the unicorn exclaimed as the windigo circled back for more. The Doctor opened up the jar and let the Fire of Friendship float up into the sky. Snow began to melt around them but it quickly froze over again. "This is wrong. How can the Fire of Friendship not be destroying the windigos?!"

"They must have been waiting a long time for this. Long enough for them to gain a type of immunity to the Fire," the Doctor replied. They watched as the windigo tried to fly away from the Fire but found itself caught in a gravitational pull. The windigo smashed into the Fire and instantly melted into a pile of slush. "Well, maybe not a complete immunity."

"So the Fire can still destroy them. But I'm sure the rest aren't going to be stupid enough to fly into it."

The Doctor tried to summon the Fire back into the jar but the Fire remained floating a few feet above the battlements.

"Why does magic have to be as stubborn as a mule sometimes?!" he groaned as he attempted to jump up and grab onto the fire.

"I really don't think that's going to work," said Twilight. The Doctor stopped jumping and took another look around the castle. The Fire was able to turn the tide of battle in the Equestrians' favor for a little bit but the windigos were still powerful enough to withstand its power. Suddenly, the slush around the Doctor's feet began to move on its own. Within a few seconds, the previously destroyed windigo was standing before them. "And they can come back from the dead. That's fair."

The windigo lunged at Twilight but she dodged it. She summoned a fireball and launched it at the ice spirit. The fireball hit its mark but the windigo quickly recovered. The Doctor turned and watched as two windigos plowed through a group of soldiers, including Clyde, while successfully freezing them in the process. The Doctor then turned back to his own windigo. The windigo jumped at him and the Doctor aimed his Sonic Screwdriver. As the Screwdriver went off, some of the Fire flew down and smashed into the windigo, reverting it back into slush.

"How did you do that?!" Twilight asked.

"I don't know! I guess the Fire is forming some type of connection with my Sonic Screwdriver!" the Doctor replied. A loud yell emanated from above them. They looked up to see Discord surrounded by at least seven windigos. The largest of them, the leader, jumped at Discord and wrapped its icy body around his head. Discord shot several fire and lightning blasts from his claws but the other windigos managed to subdue him.

"This doesn't look good!" Twilight exclaimed as a massive explosion of ice erupted over the castle. When the snowy debris cleared, Discord was floating above the castle surrounded in a blue aura. The other windigos cheered in delight. A smirk appeared on Discord's face which reminded Twilight of her first encounter with the King of Chaos. Discord looked down at the castle and laughed. It certainly wasn't a laugh resembling that of the Discord they had come to know nor was it a laugh resembling that of the Discord Twilight knew. It was a cold, heartless, terrifying laugh. "What's happened?!"

"Isn't it obvious?" the Doctor asked. "The leader has managed to possess Discord."

The possessed Discord looked down at the castle, his claws turning into sharp, icy knives.

"I shall freeze this world ten times over!" cried the possessed Discord. "The era of the windigos has begun!" The ice king then looked down towards the Doctor and eyed him darkly. He then descended towards the battlements. The Doctor and Twilight backed up as the possessed Discord eyed them with his new, glassy, blue eyes. "Doctor of Gallifrey. Why do I know that name?"

"I'm sorry, have we met?" the Doctor asked.

"No. One of my brethren told me about your little dispute with him and I remember hearing tales of a Doctor from Gallifrey through the stories of my ancestors."

"Wait...so you're not the same windigos from the old tales?" Twilight asked. The possessed Discord turned to Twilight and stomped his foot on the ground. Ice appeared around Twilight's hooves, locking her in place.

"I may be sketchy about the Doctor of Gallifrey but I know you quite well, Daughter of Magic!"

"What?!"

"There's no doubt in my mind that it's you. You're the descendant of the wretched unicorn who banished my ancestors away to the cursed lands!"

"Clover the Clever?"

"Yes. I was born with knowledge of her scent. Her scent still dwells on you, Daughter of Magic. Today, I shall end my enemy's bloodline, once and for all!"

The possessed Discord attempted to freeze Twilight completely but the Doctor used the Fire to melt the ice away.

"Sorry! Can't let you do that! I need to get this unicorn home and I'd prefer to return her home alive, thank you very much!" said the Doctor. The possessed Discord roared as he took to the skies. He tried to destroy the Fire but it simply dodged the attacks and sealed itself back into Matilda's jar. "Great! Now you go and seal yourself back inside!"

"The Doctor of Gallifrey and a Daughter of Magic. Together to witness my frozen Armageddon!" the King announced as he shot an blast of icy lightning into the sky. The Doctor grabbed the jarred Fire and watched as the gray sky began to turn into a deep, frozen blue. The Fire became hot in the Doctor's arms, as if yelling at him to do something. Meanwhile, Twilight looked down into the courtyard to see two figures running towards the blue outline of the TARDIS.

"Matilda? Queen Lily?" she asked as the world around her began to freeze to death.

The Bad Wolf Returns

Chapter 7: The Bad Wolf Returns

Courtyard, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Queen Lily's mind was racing with thoughts. She couldn't believe what she was about to do. Most of what Matilda had told her sounded utterly impossible. She was incredibly scared and was fearing the worst about the action she was about to commit. However, if it meant saving Equestria and keeping the peace that she and her husband had fought for then it was worth it.

The icy snow burned against her skin as she ran across the white courtyard. Her dress billowed in the fierce wind and all she could hear was the sound of the wind piercing her eardrums. She could hear yelling and fighting in the distance but she didn't want to think about it. Matilda was a few feet in front of her. The mare ran calmly but Lily could tell that she felt as uneasy as she did. Lily looked as the blue outline of the TARDIS greeted her from the white oblivion. The two mares came to a stop at the front door.

"How are we to get inside?!" Lily asked frantically. "There's no key!"

"Don't worry!" Matilda replied as a key popped out of the top of her peculiar hat. "I've got it covered!"

Matilda quickly shoved the key into the slot and pushed the door open. Lily followed Matilda into the TARDIS and Matilda quickly shut the door behind Lily as she entered. Lily sighed happily as warm air encased her body. She looked in awe at the massive control room that greeted her.

"Incredible!" she exclaimed as she followed Matilda towards the main control console. Matilda smiled at the Queen as she began examining the various knobs, levers, buttons, and switches.

"Looks like she's almost completely healed. I think she's healed enough to open herself up to you," said Matilda. Matilda turned to see that Lily was looking at her sadly. "I know this is a difficult sacrifice for you and King Discord. Trust me, if things could work out another way then the Doctor and I would use every last bit of our power to make sure that you two got a happy ending. But, sadly, the universe is against you on this one."

"Is it true?"

"Hmm?"

"Is what you told me true? Involving the fate of my husband? Will he really go on to become such a despicable creature?"

Matilda approached Lily and placed one of her hooves on the Queen's shoulder.

"It won't last forever. Trust me, I know what the future holds for this land. Even a little bit more than the Doctor. But I guess he'll catch up with me eventually."

"Is the future of Equestria bright?"

"Yes. Sure it'll have its rough moments but, in the long run, Equestria and all of the worlds connected to it will be peaceful and happy in the end. You were a wonderful queen, Lily. I've read all about you and have even observed you and Discord before."

"Ah yes. You're mysterious time traveling technologies. I'm still finding that particular concept incredibly difficult to grasp."

"You're not the first and your certainly not the last to feel that way. It looks like the TARDIS is ready."

"I guess this is farewell then, Matilda."

"I guess it is."

"Promise me to help spread happiness and peace throughout this land in my absence."

"I already have been but, from now on, I will do so in your honor."

"I hope you, the Doctor, and Tar-I mean-Twilight Sparkle find happiness in your respective futures."

"I promise that we will."

"Thank you. May we meet again on the other side."

"Good luck, Queen Lily."

Matilda tapped a few buttons and a part of the control console moved aside. A bright, golden light emanated from the hole. Matilda turned away and closed her eyes as Lily approached the opening. The Queen took one last look at Matilda and at the interior of the TARDIS, took one, final, deep breath, and stared deep into the Time Vortex.

Battlements, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

Twilight rushed to the Doctor's side as the possessed Discord continued to freeze the world around them.

"This can't be it, Doctor! This can't be the end!" she cried. The Doctor felt a sudden pulse of energy rush through his body. He recognized this energy.

"Yes, Twilight Sparkle. This is the end...but not for us," he replied. Just then, a golden light brighter than the sun shone through the white storm. The possessed Discord and the windigos turned to face the light. The Doctor and Twilight also towards the light source.

"Is that the TARDIS?"

They watched as a figure enveloped in golden light emerged from the TARDIS down in the courtyard. The figure took flight and sped towards the possessed Discord and the windigos. The figure came to a halt just a few yards away from the windigo family.

Twilight examined the figure and gasped, "Is that Queen Lily?!"

The Doctor looked at the radiant alicorn in horror. Her eyes were emanating a light of complete power and ribbons of light particles were spreading out away from her body. The storm around her seemed to dissolve, as if she existed in a completely different plane of reality.

"What is this?!" asked the possessed Discord. Queen Lily looked at her opponents with a cold stare. Then she spoke.

"I am the Bad Wolf. I create myself," she replied. The Doctor nearly fell back into the snow when he heard the Queen's voice, for out of her mouth came not the voice of Queen Lily the Gorgeous but the voice of somepony else. Actually, it was the voice of someone the Doctor had been incredibly close to.

"Rose Tyler," the Doctor breathed. Twilight turned to look at the stunned stallion.

"What? Doctor, what's happening?!" Twilight asked.

"Rose. She was...she is the Bad Wolf. The Bad Wolf has extended herself here, to this very moment. Rose, the Bad Wolf, exists throughout all time and space. She's inside Lily right now!"

"Doctor! I don't understand!"

"You dare challenge me?!" the possessed Discord snapped as he raced towards Lily. Lily raised one of her hooves and Discord froze in his place.

"I am sorry to do this, King Discord of Equestria, but you leave me no choice," said the Bad Wolf. The windigo leader began to phase out of Discord's body. Discord looked in shock at his glowing wife.

"Lily?!" asked the stunned king. The windigo leader tried to force himself back into Discord's body but the Bad Wolf was preventing him from doing so. The Bad Wolf spoke again, but this time both the voices of Rose and Queen Lily were heard.

"I am sorry, my love. Some things are more important than happy endings for a king and his beautiful wife. I love you, have always loved you, and will continue to love you throughout all of time and space. Rose Tyler is the Bad Wolf. I am the Bad Wolf. We are the Bad Wolf, and you, sadly, have a harsh future ahead of you. Everything becomes dust. Everything dies but from death a new world is born. The death of our reign together marks the beginning of a new dawn. I will wait for you, my love, at the edge of existence. I will wait for you throughout all of time and space. I will wait for you. I will love you. I will love and wait for you for all of eternity."

And with that, there was a massive explosion of light. The windigos instantly dissolved into nothing but blue ash. The Doctor managed to see one windigo fly off towards the horizon. Whether it had managed to escape or the Bad Wolf had simply let it live was beyond his knowledge. The storm instantly stopped and all of the ice disappeared. The Doctor and Twilight watched as Lily's body dissolved into golden dust and Discord's weakened body fell to the ground below.

A Trivial Task

Chapter 8: A Trivial Task

Courtyard, Castle of Equestria, Equestria, Gaia, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The Doctor and Twilight ran towards Discord, who was kneeling in what remained of his loving wife. His eyes were emanating golden light and were producing little strands of steam. Tears were rolling profusely down his face. Twilight tried to approach him but the Doctor held her back.

"Be alert, Twilight. He's not the same Discord that we've gotten to know," he said. Discord turned towards the Doctor and Twilight and gave a tear-filled smile.

"Everything fades to dust. There is no order. There is only chaos," he uttered. He picked up a pile of golden dust and let it glide through his claws. His face then suddenly changed to that of a raging monster. "You did this!"

"What?!" Twilight croaked.

"You killed my Lily with your box! Something inside it killed her! It must be destroyed! You must be destroyed!"

Discord charged towards them but the Doctor stood his ground. Just before he was about to reach them, the King stopped and knelt back down on the ground.

"Everything's okay, your majesty," said the Doctor as he looked straight into Discord's eyes. "You just need to take a nice, long rest."

"Why am I sad? I feel sad and yet...I don't know why," said the King. His eyes were still glowing and burnt tears were rolling down his cheeks. "What were your names again? I remember a Tara but the rest is-"

"Just forget about us. Forget about us and move on, King Discord."

Suddenly, a group of guards appeared from a nearby tunnel.

"Your majesty!" cried Clyde. Discord's face became full of rage once again as he chucked a fireball at the guards. They proceeded to scatter as Discord charged towards them.

"You did this! You did the action that has angered me! You will pay!" Discord yelled. He shot several fireballs into the courtyard, setting fire to the rosebushes. Twilight turned around to see Matilda approaching them.

"You two go ahead," she said. The Doctor turned to face the mysterious mare. "The TARDIS is in working condition once again. Meet me by the star known as Castor. I've got a couple things to take care of here before I head off."

"How will you meet us by a star?" Twilight asked.

"You'll find out soon enough."

Matilda gave both the Doctor and Twilight a sad smile before heading off towards the Castle of Equestria, which was now being burned by the mad Discord.

The Doctor and Twilight quickly made their way back into the TARDIS. The Doctor examined the controls and gave a sigh of relief, happy that the TARDIS had finally healed itself.

"She said to meet her by the star known as Castor right?" he asked.

"Yeah," Twilight replied.

"Then off to Castor we go!"

The Doctor tweaked with some of the console's controls and the TARDIS emanated its usual sound as it took off towards the stars.

Orbit of Castor, Equinox Collection, Twin Galaxy, Space, Autumn, 146 P.C.E.

The TARDIS gave one last groan as it came to a bumpy stop. The Doctor opened up the doors of the TARDIS and what Twilight saw outside amazed her. Outside the TARDIS was a massive, purple star. It sparkled like glitter and emanated an aura of power that made Twilight's horn tickle with glee. Multicolored stars and an endless void of space stretched beyond the star known as Castor.

"Space. The final frontier," said the Doctor with a saddened smile. Twilight turned to face the stallion and patted one of his hooves.

"Is...is everything alright, Doctor?" she asked. The Doctor sighed and shook his head.

"It looks like Queen Lily's predictions came true."

"What exactly happened?"

"Queen Lily sacrificed herself so that the timeline could flow as planned. She defeated the windigos but at the cost of her life and her husband's sanity."

"So...given enough time, Discord will eventually become the chaotic dictator that my friends and I fought?"

"Sadly, yes."

"Why did it have to happen this way? Discord and Lily could have been happy and-"

"Sometimes, the universe doesn't exactly have a bright future planned out for us."

"Doctor, you mentioned a Rose Tyler. Could this, by any chance, be the same Rose that you mentioned earlier?"

"Yes."

"Another past companion of yours? Like Donna Noble?"

"Yes."

"What happened to Rose? Did she die like Lily?"

"No. She, like Lily, once looked deep into the Time Vortex. I sacrificed one of my past bodies to save her life. We traveled around for a while but then...some things happened and Rose ended up trapped in a parallel universe."

"Did you ever see her again?"

"Once. Right before I had to part ways with Donna. She helped save all of reality."

"Where is she now?"

"Back in her parallel reality with a human version of me."

"How was a human version of you created?"

"It's another one of those long stories that I'll save for a rainy day but I will say that his creation had everything to do with Donna gaining Time Lord knowledge."

"Which resulted in you erasing memories of you from her mind."

"Exactly."

"Anyway, weren't we supposed to meet Matilda here?"

"Yes. But I don't see how she's-"

Suddenly, there was a flash of light from behind them and they turned to see Matilda standing in the middle of the TARDIS.

"Hello, you two. I hope I didn't keep you waiting," she said.

"How did you get here?" Twilight asked. Matilda raised one of her hooves and presented a leather device wrapped around it. "What is that?"

"A vortex manipulator," said the Doctor.

"Very good, Doctor," said Matilda with a smile.

"How the hell did you get your hooves on one of those?"

"I borrowed it from the Time Agency in your dimension."

"Dimensional travel is practically impossible."

"And yet here you are, Doctor, in a universe completely different from your own. Times are changing. Soon, everything, everypony, and everyone is going to come together. But, first things first."

Matilda tapped her hat and four objects popped out of it. One was the jar containing the Fire of Friendship, one was a jar containing the golden remains of Queen Lily, one was a simple piece of paper, and the last object, or objects, was a small stack of papers.

"What are those for?" the Doctor asked.

"Gifts. I'd keep the Fire and the ashes if I were you. You never know when they might come in handy. Twilight, I suggest that you finish your story for Sarah by December 1," the mare replied.

"How did...never mind," said Twilight. Twilight suddenly noticed that the single piece of paper was her note to Princess Luna. "What about the note?"

"The note to Luna? I'll just deliver it myself."

"You know when and where to deliver it?"

"Of course!"

"Are you sure you want to deliver that?" the Doctor asked, who was still a little uninformed over the topic of Twilight's note for Princess Luna.

"Well I don't want to go against Lily's prediction."

"How so?"

"A friend will perform a trivial task. I think this counts as a trivial task."

"Not by much since refusing to deliver that note would create a massive hole in the time stream," said Twilight.

"Yeah. Little things like that."

Twilight giggled and the Doctor smirked. Matilda grabbed the note and stuffed it away in her hat.

"So I guess this is where we part ways for now, Doctor and Twilight Sparkle," she said.

"I have a feeling that we're going to cross paths again pretty soon," said the Doctor.

"You'd be right about that Doctor. You have a lot of meetings to look forward to."

"Could you maybe tell us about some of those meetings?" Twilight asked.

"Spoilers, dearie. Don't want to ruin your part of the story."

"What is it with you?" the Doctor asked. "You act a lot like-"

"River Song?"

"How did you-"

"I've run into her enough times to pick up some of her habits. Well, both versions of her to be more specific."

"Both versions? What are you going on about?"

"Remember what I said? Spoilers, Doctor. Anyway, I best be off. Notes to deliver, ponies and people to meet, and adventures to be had. So long, Doctor and Twilight Sparkle!"

Matilda then activated the vortex manipulator and disappeared in a quick flash of light. The Doctor and Twilight stood in silence for a moment. The Doctor then closed the doors to the TARDIS and approached the main console.

"So, Ms. Sparkle. Let's say we get you back home," he said.

"Sounds good," Twilight sighed. The Doctor fiddled with the TARDIS controls and Twilight held on as the TARDIS sped off towards 1002 C.E.

Canterlot Castle, Canterlot, Equestria, Gaia, Spring, 1002 C.E.

The halls of the castle were quiet as a pegasus guard named Phillip and his brother, Dallas, stood in front of the mail room door.

"Almost time for the end of our shift," said Phillip.

"Thank Celestia! My eyes are heavier than sacks of flour!" Dallas groaned. Suddenly, a soft crack emanated from the other side of the door and was followed by a flash of light. The two pegasi opened the door and entered to see a strange earth pony mare dropping a note into Princess Luna's mail slot. "Hold it!"

The mare turned around and giggled happily.

"No need to fear me, gentlecolts. I am Matilda," said the mare.

"Okay, Matilda, what are you doing here at this hour?" Phillip asked.

"Nothing much. Just performing a trivial task for a friend. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to wipe your memories and be on my way."

Before the guards could react, Matilda jumped through the air and grabbed hold of both of their heads. They instantly felt a peculiar drowsiness overcome them and, within seconds, were fast asleep on the ground. Matilda pushed the guards out into the hallway and carefully closed the mail room door. She then activated her vortex manipulator and disappeared.

Phillip and Dallas awoke moments later with a strange sound ringing through their ears.

"What just happened?" Dallas asked.

"I don't know...but I think that sound has something to do with it," Phillip groaned.

"I think I really need a vacation."

"Yeah. I do too."

To be continued...