The Doctor Whooves Chronicles Episode 1: Derpy

Chapters

Prologue: A Not-So-Close End
The Box in the Forest
Derpy and the Doctor
The Artist and the Princess
Stolen
Sacrifice
The Mare in the Moon
Message in the Painting

Prologue: A Not-So-Close End

The Doctor Whooves Chronicles: Episode 1

Derpy

Prologue: A Not-So-Close End

Earth, 2012 A.D.

The Doctor looked out upon the evening Manhattan skyline. It had been a long time since he had visited early 21st century New York. The TARDIS was currently parked in the middle of a cemetery in Queens. It was certainly an odd place to pick to think over one's thoughts, but the Doctor had been drawn to this cemetery for unknown reasons. He had already spent an hour there, thinking over what had just happened.

"Adelaide," the Doctor said under his breath as he thought of the brave space pioneer who took her own life to keep history, and the Doctor himself, in check. He quickly pushed Adelaide Brooke away from his current mindset. He didn't like looking back. He then thought of Ood Sigma. The thought of the ominous ood only made the Doctor slightly fearful. Was the end truly near? It couldn't be. After all he'd done, all he'd fought for, all of the strength he'd tirelessly wasted...it still wasn't enough. His song was ending. The tenth would fall and then...uncertainty. The Doctor stood up and was about to go back into the TARDIS when he noticed somebody walking towards him. It was a man with long dark hair, green eyes, a brown tweed jacket, a dress shirt, navy-blue trousers, and a red bow tie. He appeared to have more on his mind than the Doctor. "Evening."

"Oh yes...good evening to you," said the man. The Doctor identified the man as being English from his accent. The Doctor also could tell that the man was slightly, if not incredibly, depressed.

"Got something on your mind, I see."

"Don't we all?" The man fixed his bow tie before turning around and looking out upon the cemetery before him. "So, who have you come to see?"

"No one. I just came here to think."

"Really? Odd place for a thinking circle, if I do say so myself."

"I agree. There was just...something about this place that made me want to come here." The Doctor turned to look at the man. "Who have you come to see?"

"Some old friends that I used to travel around with. I came back here to say my final goodbyes for...I won't be returning here ever again."

"Are you going away?"

"You could say that. I'm retiring. I've had enough traveling and...I just want to be left alone."

"Don't we all, sometimes?"

"I guess so. But, before I retire away, I have to do one last favor that my friend asked of me before her...passing." The Doctor was curious but he didn't want to ask. He could tell that the favor was a personal thing between the man and his friend. "Go on, you can ask."

"What would this favor be?"

"I have to go and visit a young Pond."

"A young pond?"

"Yes, and I think that's all you need to know for now."

"For now?"

"Oh yes. I have a...feeling that we'll meet again someday, sir." The man extended his hand. "Until that day comes." The Doctor was slightly confused but he played along and shook the man's hand.

"Looking forward to it."

"I can tell that you have a lot on your proverbial plate at the moment."

"You could say that."

"Well, like I always said to my friends, chin up! There's a whole new world out there for you to explore! It's best to enjoy it...before you stop caring about it." The man nodded politely at the Doctor, turned around, and began walking away. The man came to a stop a few feet away and turned around. "One last question."

"Ask away, I guess."

"How do you feel about muffins?"

"I like them."

"Word of advice, grow to love them. Trust me, I see a fair amount of muffins in your future." Before the Doctor could ask anything, the man turned around and ran off towards the exit of the cemetery. The Doctor shrugged his shoulders before turning around and walking back into the TARDIS.

"New York certainly draws in a lot of odd folk," the Doctor said to himself as he began working the controls. Just as the TARDIS began to dematerialize, the entire ship shook violently. The Doctor nearly fell to the floor as the TARDIS proceeded to lean left and right. It felt as if something were pulling on the TARDIS. "What?! What?!" The Doctor tried to work the controls but his efforts proved fruitless. The TARDIS was out of control. A shower of sparks rained down from the ceiling and the sound of metal scraping against metal began reverberating throughout the ship. The Doctor screamed and fell to the floor as an intense pain swam through his body. The lights of the TARDIS flickered on and off as the Doctor felt his body begin to change. "Is...is this death?" The Doctor grew weak as the pain seemed to overtake him. His fingers and toes molded together, something protruded from his lower abdomen, his entire head began to morph like wet clay, and his bone structure began to be reorganized. Lights began flashing all throughout the interior of the TARDIS. The ship seemed to emanate a screaming sound as the sound of scraping metal continued. As the Doctor began to pass out from the pain in his body, a vision of Ood Sigma appeared before him.

"Your song will come to a close...but not today. The tenth is still needed," he said. Ood Sigma disappeared and the Doctor blacked out as the TARDIS continued to scream around him.

Gaia, 1002 C.E.

The stars in the night sky were brilliantly bright tonight. Derpy Hooves looked out her bedroom window with a cute smile on her face. The town of Ponyville had been quiet for some time now. It was probably because a lot of ponies were up in Canterlot celebrating the wedding of Shining Armor and Princess Cadance. Derpy would have gone but she decided to stay in Ponyville to take care of her sick roommate and best friend, Carrot Top.

"You should have gone to the wedding," said Carrot Top as she walked into the bedroom. Derpy turned away from the window and pouted.

"What are you doing out of bed?! You're still sick!" Derpy questioned.

"I'm not sick enough to the point where I can't walk."

"Still, you need your rest." Carrot Top smiled and laughed.

"I guess you're right. You're a good friend, Derpy, but you didn't have to do this for me."

"Of course I did! You're my best friend, and best friends take care of each other in times of need!"

"Sounds like some rule from the filly scouts."

"Don't diss the filly scouts! I was one when I was a filly!"

"And there's nothing wrong with that." Carrot Top suddenly fell silent. She walked over to the window and looked out at the stars in the sky. "It's a beautiful night."

"Yeah," Derpy replied. "It sure is."

"I wonder what the wedding's like," said Carrot Top with a sigh.

"Probably like any other wedding. I didn't even want to go anyway. It's not like anypony cares. I don't even know Twilight Sparkle on a personal level."

"It still would have been nice to have gone. If only I hadn't gotten sick."

"Don't blame yourself, Carrot Top! Things like this just happen."

"I know, but you of all ponies needs a little bit of fun and excitement in your life."

"Nah. I'm perfectly fine with my simple, quiet life as a mailpony in Ponyville." Suddenly, a bright flash of fiery light spread out through the sky. Something blue with a yellow tail of fire came spiraling out of the sky. "Look! A shooting star!"

"Quick! Make a wish!" The two mares clasped their hooves together and closed their eyes. Derpy made her wish and opened her eyes just in time to see the falling object crash in the middle of the Everfree Forest.

"Gee, it crashed pretty close to here," said Derpy.

"Let the animals in the Everfree Forest deal with it, then," said Carrot Top. "What'd you wish for?"

"A lifetime's supply of muffins!"

"You used your wish for that?"

"What? I really like muffins."

"Oh, Derpy."

"What'd you wish for, Carrot Top?" Carrot Top smiled at Derpy, giggled, and began walking to the door.

"Oh, I think you can guess what I wished for."

"No, I can't."

"You will. Goodnight." Carrot Top then walked through the doorway. Derpy chased after her and stuck her head out the open doorway.

"Come on, Carrot Top! You can't leave me hanging like this!" Derpy argued. Carrot Top laughed in reply as she walked into her room and closed the door behind her. Derpy smiled as she closed her own bedroom door. Before heading off to bed, she took one last look through her bedroom window. "I don't need adventure. I'm perfectly fine in quiet old Ponyville. Besides, it's not like adventure's going to come looking for me anytime soon." As the gray pegasus trudged off to bed, she was completely oblivious to how wrong she truly was.

Author's Note

So, yeah, I've decided to write another Doctor Whooves series. I'd just like to note that I have NOT stopped working on my original series. I just got an idea for another way the Doctor Whooves story could be told and I decided to go along with it. This series will be much shorter than my main series. It starts off after "The Waters of Mars" in the Doctor Who cannon and during "A Canterlot Wedding" in the MLP cannon. I hope you all enjoy this other look at the story of Doctor Whooves! As is with all of my stories, compliments and/or constructive criticism are welcomed.

The Box in the Forest

Chapter 1: The Box in the Forest

Gaia, 1002 C.E.

Derpy woke up fairly early the following morning. She looked out her bedroom window to see a thin trail of smoke rising from the Everfree Forest and into the morning sky. She rubbed her eyes and yawned before hopping out of bed. Derpy could tell that Carrot Top was still asleep due to hearing her friend's loud snores reverberate down the hallway. Derpy giggled as she passed by Carrot Top's bedroom and made her way downstairs. Her stomach growled loudly.

"Time to eat," she said with a smirk as she began looking through the cupboards for any side of food. After ten minutes of searching, all she was able to find was a bag of English muffins. "Ugh! English muffins!" Derpy was a fan of muffins but English muffins were the only exception. She didn't just dislike them. She hated them. Nothing about them said muffin. They were just tasteless pieces of yeast to her. The thing that Derpy found the most perplexing about them was their name: English muffins. What was up with that name anyway? It didn't make any sense. Yeah, English was the main language of Equestria but why name a quote-unquote muffin after it? Then again, why was English even called English? It wasn't really a word that sounded Equestrian. It sounded so odd and bland and average compared to the names of other languages like Draconese, the old language of the dragons, or Fantaisie, the main language of Prance. Equestria just had English, the sore thumb of a world of varying languages.

Derpy shook her head. Her mind had been trailing off again. She had a habit of doing that. Her stomach growled again. She sure was hungry. She looked at the English muffins and shook her head. Sure, she was hungry but she wasn't that hungry. She threw the bag of English muffins deep into the back of the pantry and closed the doors. She then grabbed a money pouch, exited the house, and began making her way towards the store. She had to do a few errands and have a proper breakfast before her mail shift started. As she made her way to the store, her eyes drifted back towards the trail of smoke rising from the Everfree Forest.

The Doctor was incredibly sore when he woke up. Everything was blurry. He tried to stand up but found that he didn't have the strength to do that yet. His insides burned like fire while his outsides were chilled to the bone. His breathing was raspy and disorganized and one of his eyes was twitching a bit. His vision began to clear up and he was at least happy to see that the interior of the TARDIS wasn't too badly damaged. It was certain that the ship needed her rest though. The Doctor then turned towards the doors to see that they were slightly open. An odd smell was drifting through the doorway. It was a smell that consisted of the odors of several bizarre plants and creatures. The Doctor tried to pick himself up but his body was still weak. However, he found that he could crawl to an extent. He began crawling his way over to the doors.

Eventually he made it. He poked his head through the doorway and took in a huge breath of air. He cocked his head a bit. Everything smelled so strange. He definitely wasn't on Earth. Too many foreign smells. Not even the Earth of the distant past or future smelled this exotic. There was something new about this place. The Doctor pulled himself out of the TARDIS and onto a patch of grass. The TARDIS had parked, or in this case crashed, in the middle of a forest clearing. The TARDIS had created a small, black crater around itself. Patches of burnt grass and flowers spread out throughout the clearing. Some of the surrounding trees had been damaged slightly. A trail of smoke was rising from the TARDIS and up into the sky. The Doctor turned his head and noticed that a stream was flowing through the middle of the clearing. The water looked oddly clean but it smelled wonderfully refreshing. It was at this moment that the Doctor realized how thirsty he was. He pulled himself over to the stream and, without giving it a second thought, brought his face down into the water. It tasted divine and almost immediately brought strength back to the Doctor's body. He lifted his face out of the stream and rolled over onto his back. A feeling of warmth and comfort began spreading throughout his body.

"That feels better," said the Doctor and he proceeded to rub his temple. It was here that he realized something odd about his body. He couldn't move his fingers or toes. Come to think of it, it felt as if he didn't even have fingers or toes. The Doctor looked and his right hand and one of his hearts skipped a beat for he found himself looking at not a hand but a...hoof. A chestnut-colored hoof. He then went on to realize just how odd his face felt. His nose and mouth seemed to protrude away from his head a little bit farther than normal. His teeth felt bigger and his nostrils more open. His muscles felt slightly stronger and his skin felt much more durable. He looked at his body and realized that a chestnut coat of hair covered his entire body. It was at this moment that the Doctor gained enough strength to stand up. When he stood up, he realized that he wasn't standing on two legs but on four! He looked towards his rump to see that a long, brown tail was now sticking out of his upper rump. A picture of an hourglass seemed to be imprinted on both sides of his...flanks. The Doctor took his left...hoof and ran it through his hair. His hair felt much more lustrous and wavy. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" The Doctor ran over to the stream and looked at his reflection. To his surprise, a horse version of himself was staring back at him from the reflective water. The Doctor looked all over his body again. His brown pinstriped suit, light blue shirt, and red tie was still on but had been altered to fit his horse figure while his pants and shoes were gone. As the realization of what was happening began to set in, the Doctor shrugged his shoulders and said, "Well...this is new."

Derpy was still thinking about the trail of smoke as she began her mail route. Her shift wouldn't last that long for most of the ponies in town were still up in Canterlot. The wedding was tonight so everypony that hadn't already left was either gone or preparing to leave by this point. Only a select few were staying in Ponyville. After delivering a package to Cranky Doodle Donkey, she made her way back over to the post office to drop off her mailbag and uniform. Upon dropping off her uniform she noticed the trail of smoke again. She shook her head and began making her way back home.

"Just ignore it, Derpy. It's just smoke," she said to herself. However, she couldn't stop thinking about it. The curiosity she had about finding out where the smoke was coming from was just too much to resist. "I'm sure a quick look wouldn't hurt." Derpy fluttered her wings and began flying over towards the Everfree Forest.

It didn't take Derpy long to remember just how dark it was inside the Everfree Forest. It didn't bother her, though. She wasn't terrified of the dark. However, the creatures that lived inside the forest did scare Derpy a bit. She carefully made her way through the collection of dark trees. It seemed to grow darker and darker as she made her way deeper and deeper into the forest. Derpy wished that she could fly over the forest but she had heard many times that the forest had some sort of weird magic working on it that prevented anypony from finding a certain part of the forest by flying over it. From the sky, it would look like a large mass of trees and would block anything from view. The forest housed a lot of things like Zecora's home, an endless abyss, a river, and the Castle of the Regal Sisters. All of which could only be approached on hoof. Even though the canopy of trees above Derpy prevented her from seeing the trail of smoke, she could still smell it. This smoke smelt strange though. It was an odor that was hard to describe. The best word that Derpy could think of to describe the smell was alien. Eventually, a few specks of light appeared in the distance. Derpy broke into a run. She was anxious to get out of the dark.

She found herself in a clearing. It wasn't that big but it was at least warm and welcoming. A small stream curved its way through the clearing. The thing that immediately caught Derpy's eye was a blue box situated towards the edge of the clearing. She quickly identified it as the source of the smoke.

"That's the shooting star from last night?" Derpy asked as she made her way forward. A small, black crater encircled the box. Derpy was surprised to see that the box looked pretty intact. She looked at the words printed above the doors. "Police Public Call Box. Hmm." Derpy pressed her hooves against the doors and gave them a slight push. They were unlocked. "Hello? Is anypony in there?" Just then, Derpy heard a loud roar and a yell emanate from the trees. Birds of sorts flew from the tree tops and into the sky above the forest. Something was coming. In a moment of desperation, Derpy pushed the doors of the box open, ran inside, and closed them behind her. Her eyes widened at what she saw. A massive room was situated inside the box. "It's...it's...it's-" She could hear somepony or something approaching the exterior of the box. Derpy ran over to the center of the room and hid on the other side of the main console. Derpy watched as a strange earth stallion in a suit burst through the doors and shut them behind him. He then locked the doors just before something smashed into the exterior of the box.

"Okay! Time to get back to London!" said the stallion as he ran up to the console and began working the controls. Sparks flew down from the ceiling in response. "Come on! Don't fail me now! Not with a manticore on my tail!"

"A manticore?!" Derpy gasped as she stood up. She and the stallion froze as they locked eyes. Derpy blushed a bit and felt her eyes begin to invert from embarrassment. "Uh...hi. I'm Derpy."

The Doctor looked at the pegasus before him and what to groan in annoyance. First a manticore decides to chase him after he decided to take a quick look at the world he was in and now a pegasus had somehow gotten into the TARDIS. This just wasn't the Doctor's day.

"How did you get in here?!" asked the Doctor.

"The doors were unlocked," replied the pegasus known as Derpy. The Doctor wanted to slap himself. How could he have gone and left the TARDIS doors open?! The manticore slammed into the TARDIS again and the Doctor held onto the controls tightly.

"Oi! Stop hitting my TARDIS!"

"You're what?"

"Listen, Dreary-"

"It's Derpy."

"This isn't the best time to play twenty questions." The TARDIS groaned as the manticore slammed into it again. The Doctor continued to work the controls in vain. "Come on! Work! Work!" The Doctor pulled a nearby lever down with all his might and the TARDIS proceeded to give off its usual sound: VVRROOMMPP! VVRROOMMPP! VVRROOMMPP!

"What's happening?!" Derpy asked as the TARDIS leaned to the right.

"We're getting away from that manticore!" the Doctor replied.

"What? We're moving?!"

"Yes! What did you think this was? A random, stationary box in the middle of the forest?!"

"Actually, yes." The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Where are you taking me?!"

"Yes...well...uh...I don't know. Anywhere and anytime, I suppose."

"What do you-" The TARDIS then shot off through the time stream. Derpy screamed as the TARDIS proceeded to turn, shake, lean, and groan. The Doctor rolled his eyes again as he held tightly onto the TARDIS controls.

"Becoming a horse, ending up in another world, getting chased by a manticore, and now obtaining a hitchhiker and taking a trip off to an unknown time and place. Interesting way to start off one's day."

Derpy and the Doctor

Chapter 2: Derpy and the Doctor

Gaia, 0 C.E.

The Doctor was glad when the TARDIS finally came to a stop, for this finally gave him time to think. The pegasus named Derpy stopped screaming in panicked terror upon realizing that the ship around her had stopped moving. It was at this moment that the Doctor actually began to realize what was happening around him, though he had initially thought it impossible.

"There's a pegasus in the TARDIS...there's an actual pegasus in the TARDIS!" the Doctor said under his breath. "I was just chased by a manticore! Impossible! They don't exist...in my universe anyway. I've changed form...and yet I know I haven't regenerated, or at least I'm sure I haven't." The Doctor took in a deep breath of air and exhaled. "No dizziness in the head, no post-regeneration side effects, no regenerative energy, not really any new quirks of notice, no slight amnesia. I'm certain that I have not gone through the regeneration process. Then...why have I changed into an equine form? What is this tattoo on my rump? Fascinating! Truly fascinating and...and-"

"Um...excuse me?" said Derpy. The Doctor turned his attention back to the pegasus. "Could you tell me exactly what the hay is-"

"And brilliant!" The Doctor quickly approached Derpy with a huge smile on his face. He came to a halt right in front of her. "Hello! I'm the Doctor!"

"Uh...hello."

"Hello there! You're a pegasus I see!"

"Obviously."

"Brilliant! Just brilliant!" The Doctor pulled a magnifying glass out of one of his suit pockets but he quickly lost hold of it and it fell to the floor. He let out an excited laugh before grasping the magnifying glass between his two hooves and proceeding to examine Derpy through the glass. "Oh! You are a beauty!" Derpy blushed and covered her face with one of her wings.

"Uh...what-"

"Sorry for being a bit blunt earlier. Biological changes tend to do that to a person. I guess you could say I was going through a sense of denial; and a bit a fear for I was being chased by a manticore." The Doctor laughed again. "I was being chased by a manticore! How exciting!" He proceeded to accidentally drop the magnifying glass again. "Oh, bother! How on earth do you even hold objects with these things?" Derpy shuffled her hooves awkwardly. The Doctor turned his attention back to her. "What was your name again? Derpy, right? Funny name. Derpy. Though I can say that it isn't the weirdest-" A hoof came out of nowhere and slapped the Doctor across the face. "Oi! What was that for?!"

"I'm sorry but I'm confused...and that's the only way I could get you to stop talking for a few seconds," Derpy replied as she blushed a bit.

"You could have just asked for me to be quiet! Who told you to jump straight to a slap in the face?!" asked the Doctor as he rubbed his cheek.

"My best friend, Carrot Top."

"I think she's a bad influence on you."

"Don't talk about my friend like that! You don't even know her!"

"Hey! My reasonings are justified if she's going around teaching her friends to slap people to get them to shut up!"

"It worked, didn't it?"

"Ah...well...you see...uh...oh...hmm...shut up." The Doctor ran over to the main console and out of Derpy's reach.

"Can you please tell me what's going on?! Who are you again?"

"I'm the Doctor."

"Doctor? Doctor who?"

"Just the Doctor."

"And you think my name if funny." Derpy lowered her head a bit.

"Look here," said the Doctor in a calming voice. "I didn't mean it like that. I meant that your name is...unique funny."

"Really?"

"Yeah! I mean, you are the first creature I've come across to have that name."

"I guess that makes me special then!"

"Yes you are, my little horse!"

"Pony."

"Come again?"

"It's pony. I'm a pony, not a horse." They were quiet for a moment.

"I see."

"Now, could you please tell me what the hay is going on here?!"

Derpy was ready for answers. She had already spent several minutes getting ogled over by this mysterious and odd Doctor. If Derpy was sure of anything, it was that this stallion needed some serious help. He used such strange terms like people, acted as if pegasi weren't normal, and didn't even know how to pick up objects with his own hooves! Derpy was beginning to wonder if she had accidentally run into some strange pony who had escaped a mental care facility or something.

"I guess I should explain myself...after you explain yourself!" said the Doctor as he pointed a hoof at Derpy.

"Huh? What are you talking about?!" Derpy asked

"Why did you come inside my TARDIS?"

"TARDIS? What's that?"

"It's what you're inside at the moment. Why did you come inside it?"

"I saw a smoke trail rising up from somewhere in the Everfree Forest. I went into the forest to investigate. I saw that the smoke was coming from your box. I wasn't planning on going inside but I heard the manticore roar and I just came inside to hide." Derpy looked around. "How...how does all this fit inside that tiny box?!"

"I guess I'll take that explanation, for now, and answer your questions. Well, Derpy, this is the TARDIS: Time and Relative Dimension in Space. It's my ship."

"Your ship? It doesn't look much like something somepony would sail across the ocean."

"It's not that kind of ship! It's a...wait a moment. Did you just say...somepony?"

"Yes. What about it?"

"Somepony."

"Yes." The Doctor was quiet for a moment. He then gave a huge smile and a hearty laugh.

"Aha! Somepony she says! That's brilliantly funny!"

"It really isn't. It's just normal terminology." The Doctor let out another laugh.

"Someone, somepony. Anyone, anypony. Everybody, everypony. This is going to be a very interesting world to explore!"

"Can we please get back to you explaining all of this?!" The Doctor nodded and cleared his throat.

"Yes. Sorry," he said. "This is the TARDIS. It's a ship, but not a ship that sails across the sea. It's a spaceship, as well as a time machine."

"Come again?" asked Derpy as her ears perked up.

"This ship allows me to travel anywhere throughout all of time and space. Anything that has ever happened or anything that ever will. Anywhere in the whole universe at anytime." Derpy cocked her head. It was official. She was convinced. This pony was clearly off his rocker.

"You think this box is a spaceship and a time machine?"

"I know it's a bit hard to believe."

"A bit? I can believe that it's bigger on the inside, because I've seen unicorns perform magic like that more times than I care to count, but I find it really hard to believe that this thing can travel all throughout time and space."

"I'll prove it to you."

"How?"

"Well, remember that shaking and rocking that happened just a few moments ago?"

"Yeah."

"That was the TARDIS traveling through either time, space, or both. Outside that door is anywhere in the universe at any time."

"Seriously?"

"Let's see, shall we?" Derpy nodded as she trotted over to the doors of the TARDIS. She pulled them open and her eyes widened in shock. She heard the Doctor chuckle behind her. "Told you."

The Doctor and Derpy stepped through the TARDIS doors. The blue box was no longer parked in the middle of a forest clearing. It was now situated on top of a high castle tower. The castle was constructed from gray bricks, which were all home to cracks. It was nighttime and a bright full moon hung in the center of the black sky. An endless sea of stars seemed to stretch out into beyond infinity. It was a calm and beautiful place. The Doctor couldn't help but smile at Derpy's shocked face.

"Don't worry. You're not the first being to step through those TARDIS doors and be surprised from what waits on both sides," the Doctor said. Derpy turned to look at the Doctor. She was clearly still in shock.

"So...it's true?" she asked.

"Yep!"

"It's all true? We've really traveled...through time?!"

"It appears so."

"Oh my Celestia! This...this is unbelievable!"

"Celestia? Who might that be?" Derpy looked at the Doctor with a dumbfounded expression.

"Where are you from anyway? You don't know how to use your hooves, you don't know who Princess Celestia is, and you think simple words like somepony are strange."

"Well, Derpy, I think it's obvious that I'm not from your world exactly. In fact, now that I think about it, I might not even be from your universe."

"How can you be so sure? The way you talk, it's almost as if you just became a pony."

"That's just it. I'm not just any ordinary pony with a time traveling box. I'm a Time Lord!"

"A Time Lord? Is that your job or-"

"No, it's my species. Back in my universe, I didn't look like a pony. I resembled a human."

"A human? What are those?"

"You don't know what humans are? Now I know I'm in another universe. I'm pretty sure there's not a single species in my universe that doesn't know what a human is."

"What are they?"

"A bit hard to describe in a few sentences. Tell me, do you have monkeys in this universe?"

"Yes, but they live in faraway lands."

"Well imagine a monkey with only hair on its head, above its eyes, and scattered about the body in light patches. That's a crude depiction of a human. They're also bipedal."

"Bipedal?"

"It means that they walk on two legs."

"Oh. We have plenty of bipedal creatures in Equestria already."

"Equestria? Is that the name of your planet or-"

"It's name of the country we are, or were, in. It's sort of like the head state of the entire world. Our planet's name is Gaia and the Equestrian government has some form of control over every other government on the planet."

"I'd say that it's safe to assume that your country works under a monarchy."

"Yes. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna co-rule it."

"Doesn't anybody-"

"Anypony."

"Does anypony rule over them? Is there a king or queen of sorts?"

"No. It's just them."

"Then shouldn't they be queens?"

"Uh...well-" Just then, a shower of lights appeared off in the distance. "Ooh! What's that?!" Derpy ran to the edge of the tower and looked at the lights. "Fireworks?"

"No. Those don't look like fireworks." Derpy took a closer look and nodded.

"You're right. Those aren't fireworks."

"Do you know what they are?"

"It's definitely some form of incredibly powerful magic." The Doctor thought back to Derpy mentioning unicorns earlier. His mind began to race with a desire to find out about what other sorts of creatures lived in this alternate universe. His thoughts were discontinued when he noticed a massive fireball appear out of nowhere and start hurtling towards the castle.

"Derpy! Run!" the Doctor ordered as he grabbed onto one of Derpy's wings and pulled her back into the TARDIS. Derpy quickly shut the doors behind her and the Doctor. The Doctor ran over to the main console and began working the controls. "Yep! Definitely some powerful magic at work!" The Doctor pulled the lever down but nothing happened. "Oh come on! Why now?! You get me away from a manticore but not from a ball of fire hurtling straight towards you and me?! You really need to work out your priorities you bloody box!"

"Are you talking to...the ship?" asked Derpy.

"As a matter of fact, I am, and she deserves a great big scolding right now!"

"And it's a she?"

"What's wrong with-" The sound of an explosion ripped through the air and the TARDIS proceeded to fall. The sound of scraping metal, crumbling rocks, and shattering glass pounded against the Doctor's eardrums. The TARDIS proceeded to spin around a few times, hit the ground hard, and then flip back into an upright position. The Doctor's head was spinning something fierce.

"That was fun," the Doctor said in a dazed voice. A feeling of unconsciousness began to wash over him. "Uh oh. Here I go again!"

Derpy regained her balance just in time to see the Doctor black out. She rushed over to him and proceeded to shake him like a rag doll.

"Come on, you crazy stallion! You can't black out on me now!" she cried. In a moment of desperation, she began to paintbrush the unconscious Doctor. She exhaled a word of worry with each slap. "Come! On! Wake! Up! This! Is! No! Time! For! A! Nap!" She stopped once she realized that she wasn't doing any good. She turned towards the doors. She was curious as to what had happened outside. She ran over to the doors and opened them. All she could see outside was smoke, dust, and ash. She cautiously exited the TARDIS and took a few steps forward. The ground felt hot underneath her hooves and the air was thick with dirt. "Where are we?!" Suddenly, a commanding voice spoke from the depths of the smoke.

"Stay where you are, fellow pegasus!" ordered a male voice. Derpy froze in her place. Through the smoke emerged a group of what appeared to be Canterlot guards, only they were wearing white armor rather than yellow. The one in the lead was a gray pegasus with a flowing black mane, yellow eyes, a spear cutie mark, and a scar over his right eye. "Who are you and what is your business here?" Derpy didn't know what to say. She was sure that they would think she was crazy if she claimed that she had traveled through time. Instead, she decided to play dumb.

"Uh...I don't remember," lied Derpy.

"What?"

"I don't know who or where I am. What is this place?"

"You are on the premises of the Castle of the Regal Sisters, or Regal Sister at this point."

"What do you mean?"

"Captain Iroh! Nightmare Moon has launched another attack!" called a guard from upstairs.

"We must take shelter!" said Captain Iroh as he grabbed Derpy and began pulling her away from the TARDIS. She looked back at the blue box to see that the doors had closed and locked behind her. She sighed happily with the thought that at least the guards wouldn't be able to discover the Doctor or the interior of the TARDIS for some time. She then thought back to what the guard had said. Nightmare Moon was attacking. Did they mean Luna? They couldn't mean her. Princess Luna had been returned to normal following the defeat of her Nightmare Moon persona by Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Unless...no...they couldn't have.

Captain Iroh and Derpy began walking up a flight of stairs that led towards the entrance to the castle. Derpy looked and was finally able to make out the source of the lights: Princess Celestia, surrounded in a golden glow, fighting against her corrupted sister Luna, who was surrounded by a dark blue glow.

"It is," said Derpy under her breath. Captain Iroh eyed her with confused suspicion. "This is the day Princess Luna was banished to the Moon."

The Artist and the Princess

Chapter 3: The Artist and the Princess

Gaia, 1002 C.E.

Carrot Top awoke to find the house empty. She trudged her way into the kitchen to grab herself a quick bite to eat. She wasn't surprised to find a fresh amount of muffins packaged and stuffed in the pantry. She grabbed the nearest muffin, unwrapped the plastic around it, and took a bite. It was banana nut, her favorite. She sat down at the kitchen table and looked at the clock. It read half past noon.

"I was asleep for that long? Huh. Didn't realize that I needed that much sleep," she said to herself as she took another bite of muffin. "I wonder where Derpy is. Her shift shouldn't have lasted that long today with nearly everypony in town having gone up to Canterlot for the wedding." She turned towards the window and chuckled. "Maybe she went and found herself an adventure. Hmpf...if only."

Carrot Top finished her muffin and walked into the living room. She noticed that a book was sitting on the coffee table and it looked fairly new. She approached the book and read the title aloud, "A Guide to Equestrian History by Morgan Freecolt. Huh. When did he become a writer?" She looked around the room and back to the book. "Did Derpy get this? I can't imagine why. She's not really into history or any of that stuff. Maybe this was a package for Twilight Sparkle that got dropped off here by mistake. I wouldn't doubt that." She picked up the book and examined the cover with a close inspection. Suddenly, a small note fell out of the book and onto the floor. "Hello. What's this?" Carrot Top bent down and picked up the note. It was from Derpy.

Here's a little something that I thought you'd enjoy. Get better soon! Oh! And I recommend that you start on page 57.

-Derpy

Carrot Top tilted her head in confusion as she examined the note and then turned her attention back to the book.

"Why would Derpy get me a book on history, of all things? This is a first," she said as she opened the book. She let out a sick cough and sat down on the nearby sofa. "Well, it's not like I have anything else to do at the moment. I might as well have something to read while I wait for Derpy to come home." She looked back at the note and began flipping through the pages. "Page fifty-seven huh?" She finally came to the page and began reading out loud to herself. "Chapter five. The banishment of Princess Luna. It was only a few short years following the fall of Discord that a dark presence began to make itself known from beyond the eyes of Princess Luna. It was a presence that Princess Celestia noticed almost immediately and-" Carrot Top stopped. Her eyes fell upon the next page, which was home to a picture of an old painting created by a Sir Isaac Longhair. Carrot Top's eyes widened as she took a closer look at the picture. "No way!"

Gaia, 0 C.E.

Derpy was led into a large room somewhere deep in the castle. It was warm and cozy in the room but it was not enough to make Derpy forget about what was happening outside.

"Hello, fair mare!" said a soothing and sophisticated voice from nearby. Derpy looked to see a stallion with a brown coat, paintbrush cutie mark, and an incredibly lengthy dark-brown mane standing a few feet from her. "I am Sir Isaac Longhair of New Equestria! The presence of a radiant pegasus mare such as yourself is quite a sight for these sore eyes, if I do admit." Derpy blushed a bit. She had never been called radiant before. Then again, the Doctor had just recently called her a beauty but she still wasn't sure about what the odd time traveling stallion meant by some of his odd and emphasized word choices.

"New Equestria?" Derpy asked suddenly. She was sure that she should have started off with a thank you for his compliment, but Isaac seemed to take Derpy's question with a calm and polite ease.

"Yes. Of course, you must have heard of it. The wondrous and magnificent garden of heaven that resides in the far east of this great land!"

"Garden?"

"Yes. We grow a lot of apples there. I guess one could call New Equestria one big apple of sorts."

"Big apple? New Equestria? Oh!" It suddenly clicked. Derpy remembered back to her early history lessons in school. "I remember now! New Equestria was what Manehattan used to be called! That is, before the orchards and gardens began to be removed in order to make room for buildings, fancy apartments, and stuff like that." Derpy said this under her breath in order to prevent Isaac from hearing her.

"Have a lot on your mind, fair mare?" Derpy turned her attention back to Isaac and shook her head.

"Yes. No. Maybe. Uh...I'm fine!" Derpy and Isaac were silent for a moment. "My name's Derpy, by the way."

"Derpy. Such a unique and foreign name. Truly, you are a mare who has traveled a long way."

"You could say that."

"Where does your land of origin reside?"

"Ponyville." Derpy wanted to slap herself for saying that for she suddenly remembered that Ponyville didn't exist yet.

"Ponyville? I don't believe I've heard that name before, and I've certainly traveled far and wide, mind you. I've gone into the darkest depths of the Griffin Kingdom and have fought against countless savages in the sandy depths of the Great Desert!"

"Saddle Arabia," Derpy corrected under her breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!"

"It is clear that you have a lot on your mind. Do not feel alienated by this. We are all facing internal and external conflicts at this point." The castle shook around them and Derpy jumped. "Case and point: our tragically-lost Princess Luna." Derpy looked around the room she was in and realized that there weren't many other ponies there aside from Isaac and herself.

"Where is everypony else?"

"Yes. This used to be quite a packed abode. Now it's been emptied. Everypony's fled, my dear. They fear the wrath of Nightmare Moon."

"Why haven't you fled?"

"I trust in Celestia to bear good fruit from this conflict. I believe she shall free her sister from her evils and this land will begin to flourish under their rule once again." Derpy gulped. She knew all to well that the outcome of this battle would bear no fruit as good as what he's describing. Derpy looked and realized that Isaac was studying her face. "You harbor some doubt in Celestia? I can see it in the gleam of your eyes."

"I don't doubt her abilities in stopping Nightmare Moon...I just don't think she'll be able to save Luna as well."

"Why be so determined in such grim outcomes? Optimism is the best thing to have in times like this aside from hope."

"I guess. So, Isaac, what do you do?"

"I am a capturer of beauty. I take what I see and apply it to canvas in a barrage of colors and imagination."

"So...you're a painter?"

"Yes, if you choose to describe my profession in such simple terms." Isaac appeared to be slightly hurt by Derpy's unintentional downgrading of his apparent passion and Derpy gave a nervous smile.

"I didn't mean to hurt your feelings if I did. I love looking at art! Art is beautiful!"

"Yes. It can be very beautiful. I can only hope that some of my own creations will be remembered well into the future."

"I'm sure they will, if enough ponies like them."

"That's just it, my fair Derpy. I have yet to show my creations to anypony."

"Then how are you going to know if anypony likes your work or not? That's how you become famous: by showing your work to others and getting feedback!"

"What you say is true. If I survive this war of the Princesses, then I shall do as you say and begin my attempts to hop onto the path of remembrance!" The castle shook again and Isaac took a hold of one of Derpy's hooves. "Come. We must travel deeper into the castle for safety. I fear that the battle will be right above us incredibly soon." Derpy nodded as she proceeded to follow Isaac deeper into the depths of the castle.

The Doctor awoke and rolled his eyes in annoyance.

"Knocked out cold twice in less that twenty-four hours. This interesting day is beginning to have its share of annoyances!" the Doctor snapped as he stood up. He suddenly remembered Derpy and began looking all around him for any sign of the gray pegasus. "Derpy?! Derpy?! Ms...er...damn...she didn't even tell me her last name! Uh...Ms. Derpy?! You here?!" There was no response. The Doctor turned his attention back to the TARDIS doors. "If she's gone out then by the stars of Kasterborous so help me!" The Doctor ran over to the doors and opened them. The exterior of a damaged castle stood before him. He took a few cautious steps through the doors and made sure to close and lock them behind him. "Still need to get used to these hooves. Anyway, I best find that pegasus...I hope nothing bad has happened to her." The Doctor shook his head as he began to approach the castle. Suddenly, a bright flash of light temporarily blinded him.

"WHO ARE THEE?!" asked a commanding female voice. The Doctor regained his vision and looked forward. A tall white alicorn with a sun tattoo on her flanks and a multicolored mane stood before him. A large golden crown was perched on her head.

"I guess it's a thing in this world to have a tattoo planted on your rump. I mean an hourglass for me, bubbles for Derpy, and a sun for this alicorn and...oh! Brilliant! An alicorn!"

"WE SHALL ASK AGAIN! WHO ARE THEE?!"

"I'm the Doctor! Pleasure to meet you Ms...er...who are you?"

"YOU DO NOT KNOW OF US?! WE ARE THE RULER OF THIS LAND, PRINCESS CELESTIA!"

"Oh! So you're Princess Celestia! Pleasure to meet you, your majesty, and might I say that you have quite a pair of lungs. May I inquire about what the shouting and the use of we is about?"

"IT IS TRADITION FOR A RULER TO USE THE ROYAL WE AND TO USE THIS MUCH VOLUME WHEN SPEAKING WITH ONE'S SUBJECTS!"

"Ah. Odd tradition. I do hope you grow out of it in the future."

"WE INSIST THAT YOU GET INSIDE! MY SISTER HAS ONLY RETREATED TEMPORARILY! SHE WILL RETURN AND WILL MOST CERTAINLY BE LOOKING TO SPILL MORE BLOOD!"

"Alrighty then. I shall just make my way into the castle. Besides, I have an acquaintance who may have gotten herself lost in here." The Doctor proceeded to smile, bow, and nod at the Princess. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Princess." Princess Celestia nodded as she walked off. The Doctor quickly took note of how battered and beaten she looked. "That must be some fight going on." The Doctor suddenly thought back to what Derpy had said earlier. "Wait a moment, Derpy said that Celestia co-ruled Equestria with her sister Luna. So why are they fighting now? I best find Derpy and get my questions answered." The Doctor then took off towards the interior of the castle.

Derpy was happy to find that the explosions had stopped but she was still nervous. She was unclear about what was happening outside. Had Celestia already banished Luna, or was the fight still continuing? Derpy and Isaac eventually came to a stop in a lounge located deep within the castle. Nopony else was in the lounge aside from a few weary soldiers.

"Everypony is ready for the day to return. The night has lasted for far too long," said Isaac.

"How long has it been since Nightmare Moon started the endless night?" Derpy asked.

"Oh Celestia, how long has it been? I can't say that I can recall. Time has since faded away since the sun set for its final time."

"It'll rise again. Don't worry."

"I see that my optimism has rubbed off on you."

"I guess you could say that." Derpy was quiet for a moment until a thought popped into her head. "Tell me, has Celestia used the Elements of Harmony yet?"

"Oh no. Celestia has been prolonging her use of those elements for as long as she can. I believe she still hopes that she can reach her sister. I believe so as well."

"Maybe...maybe she will have to use them."

"But you of course were here to see what happened when they used the weapons against Discord."

"How long has it been since Discord was defeated? Sorry, I'm...experiencing a bit of memory loss."

"Oh. Got a nasty bump on the head I would guess?"

"Maybe. I can't remember." Derpy smiled and tried her best to make her lie sound as believable as possible.

"It's been a little over three years since the fall of Discord. Everypony was happy...then Princess Luna began to change. I fear that the incident in the north possibly had something to do with this." Derpy was about to ask another question when suddenly, Captain Iroh burst into the room. He was followed by a group of soldiers and was leading along a group of innocent ponies.

"You shall all stay in here until the danger has passed!" ordered Captain Iroh.

"Oi! No need to be that pushy!" snapped a familiar voice.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding," Derpy groaned. She felt her eyes invert as she spotted the Doctor in the crowd. He noticed her, smiled, frowned, and ran over to her.

"There you are! Why the hell did you leave me alone in the TARDIS?!"

"I...uh-" Derpy choked on her words as she noticed Captain Iroh examining her closely.

"Madame, do you know this stallion?" he asked.

"Uh...no...I don't know him." Derpy turned back to the Doctor and mouthed: I'm pretending to have amnesia! Just go along with it!

The Doctor smiled and mouthed: Brilliant thinking, Ms. Derpy! He then turned to Captain Iroh and said, "It appears that my friend doesn't remember me. I accidentally caused a rock to fall on her head. Nasty accident. Caused her to lose her memory and we got separated when the Princesses began fighting. Sorry about the confusion." Captain Iroh eyed Derpy and the Doctor with intense suspicion.

"Keep out of trouble and out of harm's way. Same goes to the rest of you!" snapped the Captain as he proceeded to lead his soldiers back up towards the outside of the castle.

"So, you are the traveling companion of this fair mare?" Isaac asked as he turned to the Doctor.

"You could say that," the Doctor replied. The chestnut stallion then turned his attention to Derpy. Derpy gulped. "I can save my pointless scolding for later. Right now, I have a few questions."

"Like?" Derpy asked.

"What's caused the fight between your land's co-rulers?"

Stolen

Chapter 4: Stolen

Gaia, 0 C.E.

The Doctor listened closely as Derpy and Isaac each took turns recounting the events of what led to the fight that was occurring at that moment. Isaac did most of the talking, as Derpy was still pretending to have slight memory loss for...some reason. The Doctor assumed that she was going through the whole "acting stupid in order to not give away too much about the future" bit.

"Interesting," said the Doctor. On the outside was he was keeping cool but on the inside he was exploding with excitement. A world where the path of the sun and the Moon are controlled by magic expelled by a pair of alicorns?! Truly fascinating! Dare I say, fantastic! he thought. The Doctor didn't realize that he had a large smile on his face but he quickly shook it away when he realized that Derpy and Isaac were staring at him oddly. When they were finished talking the Doctor proceeded to scratch his chin with his hoof. "Very interesting indeed."

"Your companion believes that Celestia should use the Elements of Harmony against her sister," said Isaac. "I have to say that I humbly disagree."

"Elements of Harmony?"

"They're incredibly powerful magical artifacts," Derpy replied.

"I say, are you regaining your memories?" Isaac asked. Derpy nodded awkwardly.

"Yes. They're coming back faster now." Derpy's eyes began to invert and the Doctor tilted his head. He'd met creatures with wandering eyes before but this was just insane!

"Incredibly powerful magical artifacts, you say?" asked the Doctor.

"Yes. There's six of them: honesty, kindness, loyalty, laughter, generosity and...and...hmm...I can't remember the sixth one for some reason," Isaac replied.

Magic, Derpy mouthed to the Doctor. The Doctor nodded as he turned back to Isaac.

"I'm sure it'll come back to you. Why are you so against Celestia using them?" he asked. Isaac looked between the Doctor and Derpy with an odd expression.

"You two haven't been apart from your abodes for very long, have you?" asked Isaac.

"Derpy use to know a lot about this, but her mental loss has caused her to forget some of the details, obviously. On the other hand-er-hoof, I've been away for a long while. Never been good with keeping up to date with current events."

"I don't believe I was even able to catch your name, sir."

"I'm the Doctor."

"The Doctor? Is there any-"

"If it makes you feel better then just call me Dr. Smith."

"As you wish, Dr. Smith. It is a pleasure to finally be acquainted with you. I am Sir Isaac Longhair."

"Fitting name, I might add."

"Thank you. Same to you."

"Thank you. Now let's get back on track. Why should Celestia not use the Elements?"

"Using them would most likely not result in a good ending for Princess Luna. Discord was turned to stone when he went up against the Elements. I fear to think what would happen to Luna."

"Do you think there's a way to save her?"

"There must be. She is just confused. Envy has clouded her heart from what is truly important: the welfare of this country, this world, its citizens, and her own sister. The old Princess Luna resides somewhere behind the mask that is Nightmare Moon. Of that I am certain." The Doctor turned back to the Derpy. Derpy shook her head. The Doctor was beginning to place a few of the pieces together. Luna would be saved, but this wasn't the time. Luna had to fall as Nightmare Moon on this day, and Celestia had to use the Elements against her.

"Excuse me, Isaac, but may I talk with Derpy in private for a moment?"

"Certainly." The Doctor nodded to Isaac before walking Derpy over to a corner of the room.

Derpy made sure to keep her voice down to a whisper as she talked to the Doctor.

"She has to use the Elements! She's going to use the Elements!" Derpy stated.

"Tell me, what's going to happen to Luna?" asked the Doctor.

"Banished to the Moon for a thousand years."

"Yikes. Talk about a time out."

"Yeah."

"I assume that she's back home with her sister and is living well by your time?"

"Yes. She returned on the 1000th anniversary of her banishment. She was then defeated and returned to normal by six mares who represented the Elements of Harmony."

"How interesting. I do hope to meet these mares one day."

"Doesn't everypony?" Derpy rolled her eyes. The Doctor was silent for a moment. "Doctor, when are we going to go back? There's nothing for us to do here."

"Maybe and maybe not. If there's one thing I've learned in my travels, it's that I hardly travel anywhere without a reason, whether I know said reason or something else does."

"Are you talking about fate?"

"The universe is an odd thing, Ms. Derpy."

"It's Hooves, by the way. Derpy Hooves."

"Well, Ms. Hooves, the universe is an incredibly strange place. Even though yours is entirely different from my own, I am certain that there are several similarities between the two." Derpy could hear explosions in the distance. Nightmare Moon was returning.

"I think I want to go home, Doctor."

"Don't we all? Though some of us are lucky enough to have homes to go back to."

"Where's your home, Doctor?" The Doctor was silent again. He brushed the question off and began walking towards the exit of the room.

"Come, Ms. Hooves. I say that we have quite an upward trek ahead of us before we return to the TARDIS." Derpy nodded before turning back to Isaac. She approached him and shook his hoof.

"It was nice to meet you."

"But where are you going?" Isaac asked. Derpy turned to the Doctor and then back to Isaac.

"Home, I hope," she replied.

"But it is too dangerous to leave on hoof now." Derpy smiled.

"You can't get to my home on hoof. Only through time." And with that, Derpy turned away from Isaac and followed the Doctor through the door.

"Could you have been more obvious about where you were from?!" the Doctor scolded as he and Derpy made their way up the stairs. The castle was beginning to shake around them. Surprisingly, they didn't come across Captain Iroh or any of his guards on their way up to the ground floor.

"Sorry," Derpy said as her eyes began to invert. The Doctor looked into Derpy's golden eyes and smiled. Something about the gray pegasus just made him happy. He had no idea why, or maybe he did. That familiar fire was building up inside him. A fire that he hadn't felt it a long time. The castle suddenly shook again and pieces of debris began falling from the ceiling above.

"Come on! Move those hooves, Ms. Hooves!" The Doctor broke into a run with Derpy right behind him. The floor began to vibrate like the strings of a guitar and the walls began to sway like leaves in an autumn breeze. Needless to say, this wasn't a very fun experience for the Time Lord-turned-pony or the pegasus. They eventually found themselves in a hallway that was located on the ground floor of the castle. The floor was cracked, there were holes in the walls, and the ceiling was partially caved in. The Doctor could just make out glimpses of Celestia fighting a powerful, dark blue figure in the sky above. "Careful. We need to get back to the TARDIS without being spotted by either the fighting Princesses or the guards."

"Good plan. How are we going to do that?"

"Run like mad!" The Doctor grabbed onto one of Derpy's hooves and pulled her through a nearby hole in the wall. The Doctor grunted as his hooves hit the ash-covered ground with a loud thump. The Doctor was glad that he had gotten used to walking and running as a pony quickly for this was definitely a time that he needed to do some serious running. He also chuckled at the fact that he was holding onto Derpy's hoof with his own hoof. "I'm grabbing things with my hooves! It's impossible and yet...I'm doing it!"

"This is no time to be smiling, Doctor!"

"Aw! There's always a time to smile!" At that moment, a large ball of magical energy smashed into the ground just a few feet in front of the Doctor and Derpy. An explosion of dust, ash, and rock shot up into the air around the two ponies. "On second thought, maybe you are right, Ms. Hooves." He tightened his grip on Derpy's hoof and pulled her off in another direction. The air felt hot against his coat and the burning earth singed his hooves. It made him wish with all his might that he'd be able to get himself and Derpy back to the TARDIS in one piece. Then he saw it: that blessed blue box. "There we are! Allons-y!"

"Doctor! Look out!" Derpy came to a stop and so did the Doctor. The Doctor looked up in horror as a large, dark blue alicorn landed on top of the TARDIS. Derpy gulped. "Nightmare Moon!"

Nightmare Moon took a huge whiff of air and looked down at the blue box under her hooves with a lustful glare.

"I sense...such power! Such untapped energy! Yes! The energies within this box shall help me defeat my blasted sister!" laughed Nightmare Moon as she used her magic to levitate the TARDIS.

"Hey! Put that down! That isn't yours!" Derpy snapped as she ran forward. Nightmare Moon looked at Derpy and Derpy froze. The Doctor placed himself in between Derpy and Nightmare Moon.

"Respect your princess, pegasus! Everything that is touching Equestrian soil belongs to me!"

"Well, technically, you're levitating my TARDIS in the air, and thus it isn't touching Equestrian soil. I guess it belongs to me now," quipped the Doctor with a sly grin. Nightmare Moon's eyes glowed bright white. The Doctor pushed Derpy out of the way as a magical blast came down and nearly reduced them to ashes. The Doctor watched as Nightmare Moon proceeded to fly off into the distance, the TARDIS floating alongside her. "Great. An all-powerful alicorn princess of the night has just stolen my time/space traveling box. This day just keeps getting better."

Sacrifice

Chapter 5: Sacrifice

Gaia, 1002 C.E.

Carrot Top stared at the picture in the book with disbelief. The painting by Sir Isaac Longhair depicted Celestia banishing Nightmare Moon with the Elements of Harmony. However, there was one detail that stuck out to Carrot Top. In the lower part of the painting, there was an image of two ponies standing next to each other. One was a chestnut earth stallion with a brown mane and an hourglass cutie mark while the other was a gray pegasus mare with a blonde mane, a bubbles cutie mark, and a pair of inverted eyes.

"It can't be," said Carrot Top as she leaned in to get a closer look at the picture of the painting. She then noticed that the two ponies appeared to be stepping into something: a blue box.

Gaia, 0 C.E.

Derpy was in shock about what had just happened. The TARDIS, her only way home, had just been stolen by Nightmare Moon. The Doctor stood up and began pacing back and forth.

"Oh, this isn't good. This is not good!" he said.

"Obviously! Now how are we supposed to get back to the present?" Derpy asked.

"There's much more at stake here than just getting stuck in the past, Derpy. If Nightmare Moon manages to get her clutches on the energy that resides in the TARDIS then...all hope is lost."

"Why? What's inside the TARDIS?"

"The TARDIS is more than just a time/space traveling machine."

"The way you talk about the TARDIS, you act as if it's alive."

"That's because it is. The TARDIS has a soul of its own."

"How can that be?"

"Do you think a soul can just be limited to an animate object?"

"Yes."

"You'd be surprised, Ms. Hooves." Derpy sighed and rolled her eyes. She could ask the Doctor more about this later.

"Right now, we need to focus on getting the TARDIS back from Nightmare Moon."

"Exactly...and our best bet lies with Princess Celestia. We've just got to convince her to use the Elements of Harmony."

"Halt!" ordered a commanding voice. Derpy looked to see Captain Iroh approaching them. He was accompanied by a few armed guards. "What are you two doing outside?!"

"Great," said Derpy as she rolled her eyes again. "Just what we needed."

The Doctor and Derpy were led back into the castle by Captain Iroh's guards. They weren't led back to the underground room where they had left Isaac but were instead led to a room in one of the highest parts of the castle. Princess Celestia was waiting for them. She looked to be injured to extreme lengths and several nurses were working on her injuries. Captain Iroh approached the princess with caution.

"Your majesty, we found these two lurking about outside. What would you like to be done with them?" he asked. Celestia looked at the Doctor and a spark a familiarity appeared in her eyes. The Doctor gulped.

"LEAVE US!" Celestia ordered. Captain Iroh nodded before leading his men and the nurses out of the room. Celestia stretched her neck and exhaled slowly. "Is it safe to assume that the box my sister took belongs to you?"

"What happened to the whole shouting and we bit?" asked the Doctor with a grin.

"I've grown tired of such traditions. This should be a time of change, don't you agree?"

"Yes, your majesty. Of course."

"Now, the blue box belonged to you. Yes?"

"That is correct."

"It must contain quite an amount of power, for my sister would not have been interested in it otherwise."

"It does. Which is why it's crucial that we get it back from her. I can only imagine the damage somepony like her could do with that kind of power." The Doctor fell silent for a moment. His attention turned to a golden crown held in a glass case a few feet away. The crown had six multicolored gems welded into it. "Are those the Elements of Harmony?"

"Of course. If you have an interest in stealing them, I would advise you to rethink your plans. I'm not a pony who will lend over her belongings oh so easily."

"That's not it. Why have you yet to use them against your sister?"

"I still have hope for her."

"But there's no other way!" Derpy said suddenly. Celestia turned towards Derpy and the gray pegasus fell silent.

"You say it with such certainty." The Doctor felt his muscles tense up as Celestia scanned him and Derpy with her wide, old eyes. "Who are you two? An earth pony who owns a box of magic and a pegasus who seems to know more than she's letting on. You're not from around these parts, are you?"

"There are certainly a lot of questions to be answered but there is sadly little time to answer them, Princess. We need to get the box away from Nightmare Moon...and I fear that the best way to defeat her is with the Elements of Harmony," said the Doctor. Celestia stood up and walked over to the Doctor. She came to a stop right in front of him. Their eyes locked.

"Doctor was your name, wasn't it?"

"Yes."

"Where does the rest of your name reside?"

"In the past. A past that I think everypony would be happy to not learn about."

"I see much pain in your eyes, Doctor. Much sacrifice, much sadness, much anger, much...of everything I see when I look in the mirror." She turned around and began walking towards the Elements of Harmony. "Would it be safe to assume that you've seen your own share of war in your life, Doctor?"

"It would be very safe to assume that, your majesty."

"And...I'm sure that you've been forced to make your own set of tough choices."

"War does that to all of us. Sacrifices must be made in order for peace to ultimately emerge from the ashes." Celestia was silent for a moment. She stared into her reflection in the glass case and smiled sadly.

"My sister and I have sacrificed much in our lives. We had everything, lost everything, gained everything again, and have now once again lost everything. We've sacrificed much, yes, but never in my wildest of nightmares did I ever think that one day I'd have to sacrifice my beloved sister for the peace of this land." She fell silent again.

"She won't be gone forever," Derpy said suddenly. The Doctor felt one of his hearts skip a beat. "She'll come back one day." Celestia turned around to face Derpy.

"Again, you say it with such certainty." Derpy turned to face the Doctor. She had a look of sad determination on her face.

This is the only way, she mouthed to the Doctor. She then turned to face Celestia. The Doctor felt that he should stop her and yet he decided to let her continue. Derpy cleared her throat and said, "Princess Celestia, you have to use the Elements on your sister. It's the only way to save Equestria. But...don't worry. Luna won't be gone forever." Celestia's ears perked up a bit. "She'll come back one day. On the 1000th anniversary of this day, she'll return. That's when the Elements will be used again to help return Luna to you for good."

"Who...who are you two?"

"I don't know if I should say."

"We're travelers," said the Doctor with a grin. "Very unique travelers. Trust us. Everything will be fine in due time." The Doctor could feel Celestia mentally drilling into him as their eyes locked again.

"Strangely...I believe you," said Celestia. The Doctor turned his attention to the night sky outside. The night seemed to be slowly growing darker.

"We don't have much time. We must go now in order to stop Nightmare Moon."

"Yes. The time is now." Celestia walked over to the glass case and lifted it up. She then placed the crown with the Elements of Harmony on her head. She seemed to radiate a light of pure energy following the placement of the crown on her head. She spread her wings out and began making her way over to a balcony. She turned to look at the Doctor and Derpy. "I do not wish to put you two in danger but-"

"I think it would be best if we did come with you," said the Doctor. Celestia nodded though she still looked uncertain. The Doctor became weightless and smiled with glee as a magical field appeared around him. Celestia's horn shone brightly as she lifted the Doctor into the air. Derpy spread her wings and levitated herself. Celestia then took off into the night sky with the Doctor floating alongside her and Derpy flying behind her.

The Mare in the Moon

Chapter 6: The Mare in the Moon

Gaia, 0 C.E.

The night seemed peaceful and calm, but the Doctor knew otherwise. He had a feeling of what type of battle was in store for Celestia and her sister. The bright Moon glistened high in the center of the sky and the lights of villages could be seen shimmering off in the distance. It was a beautiful night. The beauty, however, made the Doctor feel even worse about the true darkness that was cloaked behind its shining wonders. The Doctor figured that it wouldn't be too hard to find Nightmare Moon. If they didn't come to her then she would come to them, and the Doctor figured that the TARDIS would be held right within the dark princess's grasp.

Not much time had passed between their departure from the castle and their arrival at Nightmare Moon's location. The castle was now a large mass off in the distance. The magical aura surrounding the Doctor disappeared and he landed on the ground softly. Derpy landed on the ground next to the Doctor. They were standing in the middle of a field of dead crops. It certainly made the Doctor think about how long it had been since the sun had last shone over Equestria. Celestia took a few steps forward and the Doctor looked to see the TARDIS standing alone in the middle of the field. He looked around for Nightmare Moon and was surprised to find that she was nowhere in sight, or at least that's how it looked.

"Where is she?" the Doctor heard Derpy whisper into his ear.

"It'd be best to assume that she's somewhere in the vicinity. Best to be on your guard as well," the Doctor replied.

"Right." The Doctor and Derpy took a few steps towards the TARDIS. Celestia was looking around, as if she were looking for a signal that would warn her of the return of her sister. The Doctor turned towards the sky to notice that a series of black clouds had appeared out of nowhere. They were gliding silently and calmly through the star-filled sky. The Doctor found himself focusing on one particular cloud in the cluster. It sparkled like diamonds and had a dark blue tint to it. He instantly came to a stop and grabbed onto one of Derpy's legs.

"Derpy," he whispered. The pegasus turned around to look at him.

"What is it?" she asked with a look of angst on her face.

"Does that one cloud in the center look off to you?" Derpy looked up at the cloud in the sky. She took a few steps back until she was standing right next to the Doctor again.

"Yeah."

"Tell me, can powerful alicorns turn themselves into clouds?"

"I think they can if they know the right spells." Celestia came to a halt and looked up at the cloud that the Doctor and Derpy were focusing on. The Princess proceeded to clear her throat and stare angrily up at the cloud.

"Come down, my sister. It is pointless to conceal yourself with such petty disguises," she said calmly. The cloud spun around in a spiral for a few seconds before turning into the frightening form of Nightmare Moon. The pearly smile of the Night Princess shone through the darkness as she landed on the ground next to the TARDIS.

"I see that you have the Elements with you, Celestia. Must you really resort to such drastic actions to try and woo me?" asked Nightmare Moon.

"I do not wish to use these on you, Luna, but for the safety of Equestria I fear I have no choice if you are to continue with this envious plan."

"Don't you dare go on talking as if you know better than I what the future of Equestria should hold!" Nightmare Moon scowled and turned away from Celestia. "And don't call me Luna. Luna has died. The sister you stood over and held tightly in your shadow has died. I am so much more than she ever was."

"I care not what you say. You are still my sister, no matter what happens on this endless day of night." Nightmare Moon then turned towards the Doctor and Derpy and snickered. The Doctor took a few steps forward to put himself in between Nightmare Moon and Derpy. The dark princess snickered again.

"You've come with a militia this time, if one can even call it that?"

"They are not here to fight you; for that is my job. They are here to reclaim the box in which you greedily stole from them."

"The box holds your undoing, Celestia. Once I open it, all of its powers will be available to me." The Elements on Celestia's crown began to glow.

"I will not let that come to pass, my sister."

"Come, Celestia. Let us finish this." For a moment, Celestia and Nightmare Moon just stared at each other. The Doctor noticed a single tear form in Celestia's eye.

"Forgive me, Luna." The two princesses then charged at each other and collided in a flash of light.

Derpy was knocked back. A wall of dust was sent out from the center of the collision. She rolled over on the ground again and again before coming to a halt. She stood up and began coughing up dust. She looked just in time to see the two princesses launch themselves into the air. Rays of multicolored light began shooting off in various directions. Nightmare Moon smashed her horn into Celestia's Elemental Crown, which caused a horrifically loud and metallic sound to reecho through the air. Derpy looked and noticed that the Doctor had broken into a run and was making his way towards the TARDIS. She charged after him.

It didn't take long for Nightmare Moon to notice the Doctor running towards the TARDIS. Derpy watched as the Princess of the Night sent a black fireball sailing towards the chestnut stallion.

"DOCTOR!" she cried. The Doctor jumped back and barely missed the fireball by only a few feet. A geyser of dirt and dead crops flew up into the air as the fireball crashed into the ground. The following shockwave sent the Doctor flying back a few more feet. Derpy noticed something shiny and silver fly from one of the Doctor's pockets and land a couple feet away from where she was standing. She ran over to and picked up the item. It was a simple key. "I wonder what this is for." Derpy turned to see that the Doctor had gotten up and was beginning to make his way towards the TARDIS again. Nightmare Moon sent a blast of magical energy at Celestia before turning and sending another fireball at the Doctor. The Doctor pulled an odd object out of one of his suit pockets and pointed it at the fireball. It gave off a blue light and a peculiar sound. The fireball then exploded in the air into a shower of multicolored sparks. The Doctor stashed the object back into his pocket and continued making his way towards the box. Nightmare Moon persisted. She wasn't keen on letting the Doctor get near the TARDIS. Derpy looked at the key in her hoof again and then looked at the TARDIS. "Is...is this a key to the TARDIS?" She thought back and remembered that the TARDIS did in fact have a keyhole in its door. She wasn't entirely sure if she was right about this but she figured that there was no harm in taking a shot. Well...there could potentially be a lot of harm but not if she was careful.

She began edging her way towards the TARDIS. Nightmare Moon was paying no attention to her as she currently had Celestia and the Doctor to deal with. Derpy's walking speed grew faster with each step she took. Soon she had broken into a run and Nightmare Moon had still yet to see her. The Doctor had stopped attempting to approach to the TARDIS for he was busy shooting away Nightmare Moon's attacks with the strange, metallic device in his hoof. Derpy decided that she would ask the Doctor more about the device later. Now she was only a few steps away from the TARDIS, only ten seconds away.

"Almost there!" she said under her breath. She was a few steps from the doors when she saw that Nightmare Moon had spotted her. Derpy couldn't turn back now. She was too close. She used her wings to give her a quick burst of speed. She slammed into the TARDIS doors, slid the key into the lock, turned the key, and pushed the doors inward. The interior of the TARDIS opened up to her, looking as magnificent and powerful as ever.

"DERPY!" she heard the Doctor call suddenly. Derpy looked up to see Nightmare Moon rushing towards her. Derpy's heart began to race as she realized what she had just done. She had opened the TARDIS and now Nightmare Moon could get in. She had only seconds to react. She pulled the key out of the lock, ran through the doors, slammed the doors shut behind her, and managed to lock the doors just as Nightmare Moon landed right on the other side of the doors. Nightmare Moon slammed her hooves into the TARDIS doors. Derpy felt the TARDIS lean back due to the force from Nightmare Moon's attack. She fell back onto the console and held on tightly as the TARDIS began to sway left and right. Nothing felt stable anymore. The ship was leaning back and forth, side to side. Derpy was beginning to grow dizzy. She had no idea what was happening. Then...she smelt it. It was an odd smell. The smell of rustic spices and ashes. Derpy looked and noticed a series of cracks beginning to form in the walls of the TARDIS. Black, smoky tentacles were worming their way through the cracks and into the ship. Nightmare Moon was breaking in.

The Doctor looked up from the ground as Nightmare Moon levitated the TARDIS high into the sky. She produced a series of black, smoky tentacles of magic which proceeded to wrap themselves around the TARDIS and begin stabbing their way through the wooden exterior. He knew the TARDIS could withhold its own but Nightmare Moon was obviously incredibly powerful and the Doctor figured that it was only a matter of time before she was able to force her way inside. The Doctor also found himself worrying about Derpy. Poor Derpy. She was trapped inside and probably had no idea about what the hell was happening. He needed to stop this. Celestia needed to stop this. Celestia needed to use the Elements.

Celestia was already on it. Her eyes burnt with white fire and the crown glimmered with energy as she flew up towards her sister. Nightmare Moon tried to dodge Celestia's attack but found that her elder sister was just too quick. The sisters collided and the TARDIS fell out of Nightmare Moon's grasp and towards the ground below. The Doctor winced as the blue box smashed into the ground. Once the disturbed dust had settled, the Doctor saw that the TARDIS had left a nicely-sized crater in its wake. The blue box looked to be intact and the cracks had appeared to heal themselves.

Celestia fired a stream of multicolored energy at Nightmare Moon. The dark princess deflected the attack but it obviously caused some damage. The two sisters were beginning to weaken.

"Shall we once again take a respite, Celestia? How many fights shall we endure before you ultimately decline?" asked Nightmare Moon. Celestia looked at her sister, her eyes still emanating white fire.

"No. This ends here! I am sorry, my sister, but it must be done. For Equestria...and for us," Celestia replied. Nightmare Moon screamed as she charged at her sister again. Celestia's Elemental Crown glowed as the two princesses once again collided. It was a deadly struggle for survival. The Doctor could hardly make out who was who within the cloud of white gas and magical residue. He ran over to the TARDIS and pressed his ear against the doors.

"Derpy! Can you hear me?!" he asked. A weak grown emanated from inside. At least she was alive. That made the Doctor happy. But he needed to make sure that she was okay. He would have opened the doors then and there with a simple clap of his hooves (which he figured would open the doors as he no longer had fingers to snap) but he didn't want to take a chance with Nightmare Moon being so close. A beam of red energy shot away from the fighting sisters and smashed into a spot of earth close to the TARDIS. The Doctor nearly jumped out of his skin. He looked up and noticed that the Moon was beginning to shine brighter than normal. "This is it. It's happening now." The two sisters broke apart from each other. Celestia fell towards the ground but managed to land safely on her hooves. Cracks were appearing in Celestia's crown now and the Elements were giving off streams of steam. Nightmare Moon tried to fly down and attack her sister but a powerful aura of magic was surrounding her body.

"What...what is this?!" she asked. She then let out a loud scream. It was apparent that the magic surrounding her was causing her pain. The Doctor looked and saw a mixture of tears and sweat rolling down Celestia's face. The crown was causing her pain as well. A tunnel of white light shot out of the crown, connected with the aura surrounding Nightmare Moon, and then shot off and connected with the Moon itself. Nightmare Moon screamed again as her body began to slowly vaporize.

"I am sorry, Luna. I wish that it never had to come to this," said Celestia as the Elemental Crown burned at her mane and coat. Nightmare Moon screamed with a mixture of anger, sadness, fear, and hatred.

"I WILL RETURN!" she shrieked. "YOU WILL NEVER BE RID OF ME, CELESTIA! I WILL RETURN AND MAY ALL THE FORCES OF THE UNIVERSE HAVE MERCY ON YOUR SOUL WHEN THAT DAY ARRIVES!"

"I know, my sister. I will forever await your return. Until then, goodbye. I love you, Luna." There was a final burst of white energy and Nightmare Moon completely disappeared. The crown on Celestia's head shattered and the six elements fell to the ground. They were all steaming something fierce. Celestia proceeded to fall to the ground, weakened to the core by her actions. The Doctor ran to her aid.

"Your majesty!" he said. Celestia took long, heavy breaths as she looked up at the Doctor. Their eyes met again. The Doctor could see a new layer of sadness appear in Celestia's eyes. The Princess looked up at the Moon and sighed with saddened relief.

"It is done...it is done." The Doctor looked up at the Moon to see that the image of Nightmare Moon's mug shot was now engraved in the Moon's surface. The Doctor looked back at Celestia. Her horn began to glow again. "I think it is time...for the sun to rise again." The Doctor turned towards the sky and watched as the Moon disappeared into thin air. For a few seconds, the night sky remained with its endless amounts of stars. Then...a familiar yellow circle began rising from the edge of the horizon. The sky turned from black to a light orange with hints of pink and indigo. Dawn had come to Equestria at last. Celestia then gave a smile a triumph before blacking out. The Doctor rested the Princess's head on the ground as he watched the sun rise over the horizon. He then turned his attention back to the TARDIS.

"Derpy." By the time the Doctor had reached the TARDIS doors, the sun had completely risen up from over the horizon.

Message in the Painting

Chapter 7: Message in the Painting

Gaia, 0 C.E.

Derpy's head was still spinning when the Doctor stepped through the TARDIS doors. Her eyes felt like they were spinning around in their sockets but she realized that they were just inverting again and she relaxed herself in order to allow her eyes to go back into place. She looked up as the Doctor knelt down next to her. Derpy found herself staring deep into the Doctor's eyes. They looked young and new but also incredibly old. Derpy could tell that a long and incredibly complicated life hid behind those dark pupils. She wanted to know what that life held but she also afraid to even begin to try and comprehend what the Doctor might have experienced earlier in his life.

"Derpy?" he asked, a kind and comforting tone in his voice. "Are you okay?" Derpy nodded as she sat up and stretched her wings. Her ears were ringing a bit and certain parts of her body were sore but she was feeling mostly fine. At least nothing was broken.

"Where is she? Where's Nightmare Moon?" Derpy asked. The Doctor sighed and turned back towards the doorway. Derpy smiled at the sight of sunlight pouring in through the open TARDIS doors.

"She's gone." Derpy looked back at the Doctor. He looked genuinely sad. Derpy rested one of her hooves on one of the Doctor's hooves. He gasped at the unexpected touch and looked down at her. Derpy smiled up at him.

"Don't be sad. She'll return one day, and when that day comes she'll finally be saved." The Doctor smiled and nodded. He then looked at the doors before turning back to Derpy.

"So how did you get into the TARDIS in the first place?" Derpy looked around until she found it. She grabbed the key off the ground and presented it to the Doctor.

"It fell out of one of your pockets while you were fighting Nightmare Moon. I used it to unlock the door." She gripped it tightly before shoving it in the Doctor's direction. "I guess you want it back now."

"Yes...that would be nice." The Doctor extended his hoof and Derpy proceeded to give him the key. The Doctor smiled and giggled as she held the key with his hoof. He was such a strange pony...but that didn't stop Derpy from beginning to like his quirkiness. The Doctor dropped the key into one of his suit pockets before looking back at Derpy. "Thank you."

"For what? All I did was catch your key and unlock the TARDIS. I basically spent the rest of the time getting tossed around by Nightmare Moon, or at least that's what I think happened. I'm still slightly dizzy and am a bit confused about what happened several minutes ago." The Doctor laughed again.

"Thank you for just being brilliant." Derpy blushed a bit.

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are! You're...you're-" The Doctor fell silent. He looked like he was remembering something. Derpy was unsure of what this memory was but she could tell that it wasn't happy.

"Doctor?" The Doctor snapped out of his trance and his smile returned with haste. He stood up and extended one of his hooves. Derpy took the Doctor's hoof and allowed him to help her up. Derpy turned towards the open doors and gasped. "What about Celestia?" The Doctor looked like he just swallowed something sour. He turned away from Derpy and made a mad dash for the doors. Derpy followed in hot pursuit.

How could he have been so stupid? How could he have just left Celestia lying out there on the ground unprotected? He had been worried about Derpy. He had to make sure that she was okay. Something familiar was beginning to rise in him.

"Don't let me go back! Don't make me go back!" echoed the voice of a lost friend from deep within the Doctor's memories. The Doctor shook the voice away as he ran towards the unconscious Princess Celestia. The sunlight reflected off her white coat and made her look heavenly in nature and appearance. She stirred and slowly began to come to.

"Your majesty?" Derpy asked. The Doctor's attention was suddenly drawn to the Elements of Harmony, which were scattered on the ground around the Princess. Steam stopped emitting from the surface of the gems. Suddenly, a rocky substance began wrapping itself around each gem. Within seconds, each Element of Harmony was concealed within a perfect sphere of rock.

"Magic sure is different from technology," said the Doctor with a bit of wonder. His attention was drawn back to the Princess, who was now pulling herself up. "I must say, your majesty, you sure recovered quickly."

"The sun is my spiritual and magical ally, Doctor. Its presence allowed me to heal quicker than I normally would if it were still night," Celestia replied. The Doctor looked up at the clear blue sky.

"So, where have you sent the Moon?" Celestia was silent for a moment. The Doctor examined her face and saw that it was filled with an incredible sadness. The Princess took in a deep breath and exhaled slowly. When she turned to look at the Doctor, all emotion had gone from her face.

"With Luna gone, I now have control over both the sun and the Moon. I have temporarily made the Moon invisible and have spread the sun's light all across the planet. In a few hours I will send the sun to the other side of the planet, bring the Moon back into view, and allow the sun and the Moon to continue on their original cycles." The Doctor smiled.

"Brilliant. A planet in which the sun revolves around it under the influence of magic. I'm looking forward to learning more about this world," said the Doctor under his breath. He looked at the Elements and asked, "What of the Elements?" Celestia examined the Elements and sighed.

"They have gone into hibernation. Banishing Luna to the Moon stole much energy from them. It will be a long time before they awaken."

"What will you do with them?" Celestia looked back at the castle in the distance and exhaled deeply.

"I will seal them away in the castle and leave the castle behind. It is time for a new landmark to be built in Equestria. I want a city that can stand proudly and present what Equestria should be: a peaceful and wondrous place." Celestia suddenly turned to look at a mountain situated off in the distance. It was incredibly tall and seemed to stretch into the sky. "There is where it shall stand!" The Doctor looked off at the mountain. It certainly looked like the perfect place to build the magical capital of a land.

"What shall you call it?" Derpy asked suddenly.

"It shall have a name that will resonate well with ponies of all kinds. A name that will inspire hope, ambition, and happiness into everypony that hears it. Soon that lot of land shall be as well known, if not more so than the Canterbury Tales of old," said Celestia in response. The Doctor couldn't help but smile. It seemed there were more similarities between the Equestrian universe and his universe than he originally thought. Celestia suddenly began to ponder. She rubbed her temple slightly as an idea sparked in her eyes. "Lot of land. Canterbury. Lot. Canterbury. Canter. Yes. It shall be called Canterlot and it shall be the new establishment of holiness, justice, and law in this land!"

"Perfect name! I couldn't have picked anything better myself!" Derpy said happily. Celestia turned to look at the Doctor and Derpy. She then looked at the TARDIS for a moment and stared at it before returning her gaze to the odd travelers.

"I feel that our paths will cross again one day."

"I wouldn't doubt it for a second," said the Doctor.

"I still have many questions of where you come from."

"When our paths cross again, Princess, I'm sure that'll be the time for you to find out exactly who we are."

"Well...until then...and thank you."

"Farewell."

"Bye!" said Derpy with a sad yet happy smile. Celestia nodded as her horn began to glow and the Elements began floating around her. The Doctor and Derpy stepped back and watched as Celestia took off into the sky and headed back towards the castle.

The Doctor stared up at the blue sky for a moment before turning back to the TARDIS. He took a few steps forward and looked back at Derpy.

"Well," he said. "Ready to head back to your present?" Derpy looked like she was about to respond when something caught her eye. She looked past the Doctor and her eyes proceeded to widen in surprise.

"Is that...no...it can't be," she said. The Doctor followed Derpy's gaze towards a pony who was running at them as fast as his legs could carry him.

"The painter?"

"Sir Isaac Longhair."

Derpy still couldn't believe that Isaac was running towards her and the Doctor. Last time she had seen him, he had been hiding out in a room underneath the castle. How in the name of Celestia did he get all the way out here? He was an earth pony after all so he couldn't have flown or teleported there. It didn't make any sense. He came to a halt a few feet before them.

"Hello again, Doctor and fair Derpy! It is a pleasure to be in your presence once again," he said.

"But...how...why...who?" Derpy mumbled.

"What my dear companion is trying to ask is how the hell did you get out here so quickly?" asked the Doctor.

"I ran," Isaac replied. Derpy wasn't buying it. He was so obviously lying.

"You're lying," said Derpy. "We must be at least a few miles from the castle. There's no way you could have gotten here that quickly."

"But I did. I was even able to watch our dear Princess Luna fade away into the Moon."

"Are you saying that you saw the whole fight?!"

"I am saying exactly that."

"But that's impossible!"

"It is not. I am here, aren't I?"

"Well yes but...how?!"

"I told you. I ran."

"I agree with Derpy. You're lying, Isaac. There's more to this than what you're letting on," said the Doctor. Isaac gave a smile that resembled that of a child keeping a secret for one of his friends.

"Alright, you have figured me out. I didn't run here. I received aid from a helping hoof."

"Who?" Isaac smiled again.

"That is for me to know and for you to find out sooner than you think." Derpy and the Doctor were silent for a moment. Isaac turned to look at the TARDIS. "Forget of this for now. I came to simply see you two off."

"Wait...you know about-"

"All in due time, Doctor. I'm still trying to put all of the pieces together myself. I'm sure you'll be able to put them all together when the time is right." Derpy looked past Isaac and for a second could swear that she saw a pair of ponies disappearing into the distance. She rubbed her eyes and shook her head.

"Isaac, I'm sorry about Princess Luna. But it had to be done," Derpy said suddenly as she thought back to her past conversation with Isaac.

"Do not worry yourself about me, fair Derpy. I know that everything will be alright in the end. Everything heals in the end." He looked at the Doctor and smiled. "Even you, Doctor." The Doctor turned away from Isaac as if the stallion could peer into his memories.

"Farewell, Isaac. May you have a good future," said the Doctor as he quickly shook Isaac's hoof.

"Farewell to you as well, Doctor," Isaac replied. Isaac then turned to Derpy and Derpy gave him a quick hug.

"It was nice meeting you, Isaac," she said.

"And vice versa. I wish you the best of luck." Derpy broke her hug and began walking to the TARDIS when Isaac suddenly grabbed one of her legs. "I have one last thing to say before you go."

"Yes?" Isaac pulled Derpy close until his muzzle was right next to her ear.

"I would be careful around mirrors if I were you, Derpy Hooves. The monster lies behind the glass." He then backed away, smiled, and began walking back off in the direction of the castle.

"What was that all about?" asked the Doctor. Derpy felt like telling the Doctor but pushed Isaac's message aside as an odd comment.

"Just some advice about mirrors. Nothing more," she said with a smile. The Doctor shrugged his shoulders in response. Derpy began humming a happy tune as she walked back through the TARDIS doors.

The Doctor was quite happy to be leaving the Equestria of the past behind. Now he was ready to get Derpy back to her time...though he definitely had an interest in exploring the Equestrian universe some more before attempting to get back to his own. The Doctor closed the TARDIS doors and made his way over to the main console. Derpy was still humming her tune.

"The present?" she asked.

"The present," the Doctor replied with a smile. He flicked a switched and began working some of the controls. The TARDIS began giving off its signature departing sound: VVRROOMMPP! VVRROOMMPP! VVRROOMMPP! Suddenly, a series of sparks rained down from the ceiling and the TARDIS began to shake violently.

"Is that supposed to happen?"

"No. It appears that the TARDIS is still getting over its passage between the void."

"Which means?"

"We might not be returning to your time just yet, Ms. Hooves." The TARDIS gave off a loud screech as it leaned to the right and shot off through the time stream.

Gaia, 1002 C.E.

Carrot Top was still staring at the picture of the painting in the book.

"I wonder what that blue box is," she said as she examined the painting closer. Just then, she noticed a series of words painted next to the the box and the two ponies. "Now what's this?" It was hard to read at first but Carrot Top was able to make out the words once she squinted her eyes. They read: Follow the smoke, CT. Carrot Top scratched her head. "What?" Carrot Top looked up and stared out the window. Her eyes widened at the sight of a trail of smoke rising from the Everfree Forest. Her eyes darted back to the picture, the message, Derpy's note, and then back to the smoke. "This can't be happening." She was hesitant at first, but she soon convinced herself to check it out.

"I shouldn't be out here," she said to herself as she walked through the cluster of trees that made up the Everfree Forest. "I really shouldn't be out here." She could no longer see the smoke trail but the smell was hard not to identify. She soon found herself in a clearing. A black crater in the ground was situated off to the side. She approached the crater and looked, expecting to see something significant look back at her. To her disappointment, there was nothing there. She laughed, coughed, and rubbed her eyes. "I must be going crazy or something."

"Don't worry. You're not," giggled a familiar voice from nearby. Carrot Top looked up to see Derpy emerge from the trees. "I see that you got my message. Good thing because you will not believe how hard it was for me to get it to you!"

"Derpy? What's going-"

"I'll explain everything, Carrot Top. You can ask questions later but right now I need to tell you something." Carrot Top's ears stood up. "Something's coming, Carrot Top. Something evil is coming, the Doctor and I are going to need your help, and you have only a week to prepare yourself."

To be continued...