Howl to the Future

Chapters

Absent Moon
Equilibrium
Wisdom
Star in a Bottle
Seeing Red
The Part Where They Kill Them
Loyalty
Emerging Crescent

Absent Moon

Across frozen fields of snow and ice, the figure in black made haste.

The Elements of Harmony pursued.

Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes, her wings flapping through howling winds as she flew above her friends. "Come on! He's getting away! Faster!"

Ghostly, heavy breaths of air cascaded into the winds.

Applejack's snout blew steam, her hooves making frantic tracks below. A shadow of the blue pegasus moved slightly ahead of her.

"Ugh, goin' as fast as I can without wings, sugar!" she grunted. "Can't even go on a darn' nature walk without something crazy happenin' to us?!"

"M-Maybe someone should go and warn the Crystal Empire... to get help," Fluttershy squeaked. "I'll volunteer..."

"Ugh, we don't need any help!" Rainbow growled. "It'll just be a waste of time. We'll have this guy hogtied before their soldiers get armor on!"

A confident smirk appeared on Applejack's face. "Darn straight."

"How can we be sure it's a stallion, or even a pony?" Twilight said, a hint of worry overtaking her tone. "It might female... its voice was strange; I suppose it doesn't matter, though..."

She then glanced forward. Two hundred feet away, a black cloak flickered in the wind as its owner cascaded across the tundra like a spirit of winter itself.

Rarity glanced at him as well, panting heavily.

She gave a shiver despite the warm coat wrapped firmly around her.

"Whoever he is, p-please tell me he's not going to-"

Suddenly, the figure in black disappeared in a puff of smoke, reappearing with another puff nearly two hundred feet ahead of his previous position. His relentless pace did not halt an inch.

"Ugh!" Rarity spat. "If I weren't galloping so fast I'd be freezing to death right now! The next time we go on some arctic tour I'm triple layering!"

Rainbow Dash put on a wicked grin. "Don't worry Rarity, I've got this!" She cast a spiteful glare forward. "Let's see you teleport away from this, you cardio-obsessed freak!"

Twilight squinted in thought...

As she did, Rainbow was already rocketing towards the figure. And just as she grew close, Twilight's eyes widened in horror.

"Rainbow, wait!" she gasped. "It's a-"

A black half-bubble of sorts flickered to life around the figure.

"OH CRAAAAP- ACK!"

Twilight winced. "Trap,"

Rainbow form practically bounced off it as if it were a trampoline, sending her sailing away from the figure. Her eyes rolled in random directions as a confused, disoriented expression crossed her face. And at that, her wings stopped flapping as she catapulted into the snow at the speeds made her practically untraceable to the eye.

"R-Rainbow!" Fluttershy squeaked, halting herself as she glanced back at the fallen mare. "You guys go ahead! I need to help her!"

"Rainbow's crashed into worse at higher speeds!" Applejack yelled, her tracks quickly darting away from the yellow pegasus. "Come on Fluttershy! This guy's pretty tough! We'll need all the help we can get!"

"She's right," Twilight said. "I hate to leave Rainbow but we might need someone else in the air!" She then winced at her newly received wings. "And I'm a terrible flier!"

"No!" Fluttershy snapped, her assertive side apparently showing itself in full. "I'm not leaving her-"

Suddenly, as Fluttershy gasped, Rainbow turned her head towards her, smiling slightly, before saying in a hoarse, slow tone:

"Go on ahead... Applejack's right... I've hit worse."

Fluttershy gulped. "Y-You're sure you'll be alright?"

Rainbow gave a weak nod. "P-Princess Cadence is depending on you. Go!"

At that, Fluttershy closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and only a second later, those same eyes narrowed in determination as she gave a stern nod. Then, as if seeing her friend hurt had only given her resolve... and perhaps, anger, she practically roared into the sky. Soon, she was sailing above the rest of her friends once again.

"She'll be alright, dearest!" Rarity called upward.

Fluttershy remained silent.

Applejack grunted, lowering an eyebrow. "Was it just me, or did this guy seem like he was expecting that!?"

"That's why I called out to her," Twilight said. "Remember when he deflected my attack before? It was like he knew exactly what I use whenever I get into trouble. He knows about our capabilities! It's like he's studied us..."

"Oooo, so it is a trap, huh?!" Pinkie blurted out, somehow bouncing at the speed the rest of her friends were running. "Twilight, you soooo need to meet this fish pony I know called Ackbar! You'd totally get along!"

Twilight blinked. "What?"

"THE ADMIRAL OF THE SEAS!" she squealed.

Applejack rolled her eyes. "And she's done it," she muttered to herself. "She can no longer get any more random."

"Come on girls, focus!" Twilight growled. "Start thinking. We've tried magic against him, Rainbow tried to use speed against him. What else can we possibly do?"

"I don't know!" Pinkie squeaked. "I'd have thought his shields would be no match for your kind of magic-power!"

Twilight shook her head.

"There are different types of shields and attacks you can create with arcane magic through various techniques, mainly through summoning specific emotions. I usually attack using positive emotion, a feeling of righteousness in this particular case, which is much better than anger. It can usually break through anything, and not to brag, but considering I'm an alicorn now... it should have cut right through, but it didn't. It's like he's using a different type of magic I'm not used to going up against ...but what other kinds are there besides arcane, dark, harmony and chaos?"

"Wait, so you pretty much shoot bolts of happiness?!" Pinkie beams.

"Righteousness," Twilight corrected, before continuing with, "And then how he deflected Rainbow like that. He knew it was coming and created another shield. Yet... she should have broken through as well! You really have to work to make a shield that can repel her..."

"Mmm, like the one you make every time she's doing stunt practice?" Applejack smirked.

Twilight grunted in annoyance. "The holes in my roof were getting tedious to repair."

"So, what kind of magic do you think he's using, darling?" Rarity asked.

"And we still don't know if it's a 'he'," Applejack muttered.

"I don't know... it's not dark, chaos, or harmony... I'd be able to feel it. Whatever it is... it's something else. Unknown..." Her eyes suddenly widened in realization. "Just like the crystals in the caverns..."

"S-So, what do we do to catch him i-if he's luring us somewhere..."

Rarity nodded forward.

"Mmmm, and it looks like we're getting very near..." she said. "Look!"

In the distance stretched a massive, thick forest, one of beautiful pine-like trees that shimmered with multi-colored crystals coating their trunks.

"The Shimmering Woods!" Twilight gasped. "How did we get this far?! It's over thirty miles from the Crystal City!"

"Time flies when you're runnin', I spose," Applejack shrugged, still panting heavily.

Rarity glanced at her with a look of extreme fatigue, before letting out in an exhausted sounding gasp, "And I'm afraid that running much longer may not be an option for me."

"And if this is some sort of trap..."

"We have to keep moving, anyway!" Twilight grunted. "It doesn't matter where he's taking us! We have to find out what he did to Cadance!"

One Hour Earlier

"Um, Princess, with all due respect, oh, and you too, Prince Shining... but yes... would it be possible for us to do this tour when the weather is a bit... warmer...?"

Rarity then gave a shiver, as seven ponies and one dragon made their way across frozen tundra, their destination being a large mountain looming in the distance.

"Heh, sorry Rarity, but this is how it is all the time here," Shining Armor chuckled, before throwing a warm smile Princess Cadence's way, who kept pace beside him. "Sept in the city, of course, thanks to a bit of loving magic!"

She rolled her eyes. "Sweetie, didn't we talk about pun making a week ago?"

Shining gave a sigh. "Yes, dear," he said, his ears sagging. "'If you don't stop, I'm going to write a bill to outlaw it!'"

"Pfffffft-" Rainbow barely held back a laugh.

However, Cadence then returned her husband's smile, before nuzzling his cheek slightly. "And we also talked about you always giving me the credit for everything, including charging the Menite Shards..."

Shining Armor blushed at this, as Rainbow let loose an annoyed groan.

"Menite wah?" Applejack said, lifting an eyebrow.

"Artifacts used to create the magic dome around the Crystal Throne," Twilight explained.

"Ooooooooh, I was wonderin' how that whole thing worked," Applejack said.

"Y-Yes," Rarity shivered. "And I w-would very much like to see more of it... sooner than later, perhaps?"

"Don't worry, Rarity," Twilight beamed. "We're pretty close to the Crystal Caves by now, aren't we?"

"We should be coming up on them any second," Shining Armor smiled. "Wait til you all see them! Stretching from wall to wall... a mass of crystals nopony knows the origin of. Some big, some small."

Suddenly, Rarity's eyes went from weary to literally shining with diamonds in the middle.

"Some small, you say?" she asked, a lucrative smile forming on her face. "Just hypothetically speaking, of course, would it be possible to extract a few?"

Princess Cadance shook her head. "It's illegal, I'm sorry to say. The crystals exhibit an unusual magical energy that even Princess Celestia can't identify."

"Hmmm... well, I suppose there was no hurt in asking..." Rarity mused in a disappointed tone. "But is this energy dangerous?"

"No, not really," Shining stated. "The Crystal Ponies just want to preserve what they call a 'world mystery.'"

Twilight raised an eyebrow, though an excited look soon spread across her face. "But an unknown magical energy? How is that possible?! I thought the known four were all there were... Starswirl pretty much made it a fact, not a theory."

Cadance chuckled slightly. "Perhaps he's correct. Maybe these energies are just slightly modified forms of the ones we know of. However, keep your mind open, Twilight. These caves as well as their crystals date back before Equestria was even in its infancy... before even Princess Celestia and Discord came to be."

Twilight's eyes widened in awe. "Oh my gosh, I wish I had more time to study them, then! Ugh, why didn't I bring a notebook?" She then turned to Spike, who was waddling along side of her. "And why didn't you remind me to bring a notebook?!"

Spike rolled his eyes. "Because for once, I thought you just wanted to look at something and not put it under a microscope."

"Yes, but I- we- should have been more prepared!" she stuttered out.

"Oh, quit giving Spikey Wikey a hard time," Rarity chuckled. "I'm sure you'll be able to return to these caves eventually. With me with you of course."

Twilight shot her a suspicious look.

"For science, darling!"

"Uh huh..."

Suddenly, Shining pointed a hoof forward. "Speaking of which... check it out!"

The group stared ahead in awe. The mountain was now right before them, and previously obscured by snow banks, a cavern was visible stretching from its base into a rocky home. A strange glow was emanating from it, its light twinkling off the snow before it.

"Ooooooo," Pinkie cooed. "Oh my gosh, let's go faster! It's so pretty!"

At that, she began to gallop towards the cave entrance.

"Hey, wait up!" Rainbow called, grinning, before rocketing towards her.

The rest of her friends followed suit, leaving only a bemused looking Shining and Cadance behind.

"Oh, to be young again," Cadance sighed.

"Yeah..." Shining smiled, before grinning her way. "Race you?"

She quickly returned the grin. "Did you really need to ask?"

Before Shining could take off into a gallop, she was already speeding along towards the entrance, using her wings and hooves at the same time to propel herself. She glanced back at him, sticking her tongue out.

"Hey, you cheater!" Shining called. "That's totally not fair!"

"All is fair in love and war, sweetie," Cadance smirked.

Shining's expression turned devious. "War, huh? Well, in that case..."

With a flash of light, his form teleported right next to Cadance, his well-trained legs allowing him to match her speed. With his horn, he quickly summoned a series of snow balls, before throwing them (gently, though still with speed) Cadance's way.

"EEP!" she cried, dodging one flying over her head, before narrowing her eyes and smirking yet again Shining's way. "Oh, you are so-"

Without warning, she paused as the two neared the cave entrance. A tunnel stretched down a ways before curving to the side. Indeed, jutting out of its walls were a series of jagged, glowing crystals of multiple colors, with smaller ones in-between. However, what caught her attention most was not the crystals...

"Who... is that?"

...But the figure in a black cloak standing only a small way down, the Elements of Harmony (and Spike) standing meters before him.

Screeching to a halt, her and Shining stood besides the seven, all glancing warily at the strange inhabitant.

"Uh, is anyone else's genre senses tingling?" Pinkie gulped.

Rainbow shrugged. "Cloaked figure just kind of appearing before us in an ancient cave? Nope, seems legit."

Pinkie brought a hoof to her chin. "Hmmm... I'm betting a ghost. Or an alien. Or an alien ghost. Maybe a demon?"

Rainbow chuckled. "Probably a ghost."

Cadance, who stood next to her, cleared her throat, before taking a step forward. "Um... hello there. I'm Princess Cadance, and what is your name?"

"..."

Silence came, nevermore.

"Oh, and he's silent too... ," Pinkie whispered. "Totally a bad sign..."

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Come on, maybe he or she's just shy. When whoever this is teleported, I bet they weren't expecting to see us here."

"Mmm... I've still got a bad feeling about this, though," Applejack gulped.

Rainbow huffed in annoyance. "Ugh, well we're not going to find out anything but being just as quiet as him!" She then darted forward an inch, her eyes narrowing. "Hey! If you're mute or something, can you please tell us?! We're burning daylight here!"

The group gave her a blank expression, to which she simpered at.

"Er... alright, maybe that was... a little stupid."

Applejack chuckled slightly to herself, shaking her head, as Rainbow turned back to the figure.

"But yeah, seriously! We're not here to hurt you or anything. You can take off the hood!"

Pinkie bounced merilly into the air. "Unless you can't because you're a ghost held together by your cloak or your very sight drives ponies insane! Oooo, I bet it's the latter, insn't it?! You're totally the friendliest Eldritch Abomination ever, then-"

"Errr..." Shining said, before stepping forward, a neutral expression on him. "Hey uh... are you alright? Did you over-extend yourself teleporting? Happens to me a lot... no shame in it..."

"..."

"I really think we need to get out of here," Fluttershy squeaked, backing away slightly. "I-I am not comfortable at all right now..."

"We did not come all this way for nothing!" Rainbow snapped. "If he isn't going to talk, we're just gonna trot right around him, right girls?!"

"Mmmm," Twilight said, squinting in thought. "I'm not sure..."

"Well... it's the only thing I can think of," Cadance said.

She began to inch forward.

"Woah, hang on, honey!" Shining called.

She merely stuck her tongue back at him. "Oh come on, your name is Shining Armor, not Shining Sissy! We'll be fine..."

"What if he's dangerous, though?" Twilight asked.

"Well, there is eight of us and one of him," Shining grunted. "I'll be keeping my eye on him, though."

With that, with Cadance in the lead, the rest of the group made their way forward. However, after only a few seconds, they suddenly snapped in place.

"Tel'shiar Cadance tia Crystal Empire?"

A voice emanated from the cloak, a gruff sounding, yet medium pitched one, making it hard to tell if the figure was female or male.

Cadance was the first to recover from the surprise, glancing at the figure with a hint of curiosity and unease.

"Um... I'm sorry, what was that?" she peeped.

The figure made what sounded like a huff of annoyance, before asking again:

"Tel'shiar Cadance tia Crystal Empire?"

At that, Rainbow turned to Twilight, whispering, "What language is he speaking?"

Twilight blinked in bafflement. "I... don't know."

"And neither do I, and that is very... very strange," Princess Cadance said, before glancing at the figure again. "Do you... speak Common?"

"Com - mon?" he said slowly, quirking his head.

"That means no," Shining sighed.

The figure than took a sudden step forward, causing the entire group, save for Rainbow Dash and Shining, to take a startled step backward. He paused, glancing at Princess Cadance's form, before slowly nodding his head.

"Tel'shiar Cadance..."

Cadance slowly nodded back. "Um yes... I am... Cadance."

"Tel'shiar must mean leader..." Twilight said, curiosity overtaking her fear. "Or Princess."

The figure sighed at that, and in a sorrowful tone added, "Tara Luna... soi creyal."

With care, the figure levitated a blue crystal out of its robes. It looked nearly identical to those on the cave walls, save for the fact that it was not emitting any light.

Slowly, the figure approached Cadance, who glanced at the crystal warily.

"Is this... a gift?"

The figure nodded eagerly.

"Sia! Gift!"

Cadance smiled back at him, nodding. "Yes, a gift!"

"C-Can we please just leave?" Fluttershy squeaked again.

Applejack, however, merely raised an eyebrow. "I don't know... I'm usually good at telling if someone's lying, but whoever this is is telling the truth, from what I can hear. He really thinks it's a gift."

Twilight shrugged towards Cadance. "She's never been wrong before."

"Maybe we should examine it a bit first, though, just in case," Shining said cautiously, before glancing at Cadance. "Mind if I take it?"

"No, I'll be fine sweetie," Cadance said, smiling at him. "Whoever this is must have travelled from far away to meet me. I intend to give them a warm welcome to the Empire!"

Shining narrowed his eyes at the figure. "You're sure?"

She chuckled, winking at him. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll swoop into save me if things go wrong."

"My genre savvy senses are still tingling though," Pinkie gulped.

Her ears suddenly began to twitch.

"Hey, your ears are twitching!" Rainbow Dash announced. "Doesn't that mean something weird's about to happen?"

"Usually," she squeaked.

Cadance, however, was unphased, and began walking towards the figure in black, who was still levitating the crystal before him.

"I'm sure everything will be fine," she said.

"Famous last words," Rainbow gulped.

And after a tense thirty seconds, they met in the middle, both only a few feet from each other. They stood, silent for a second, Cadance glancing at him curiously (while apparantly trying to gain a peak as to what was under the hood).

Then, the silence was broken by a sorrowful tone.

"Sara... Luna tara Lupus... sial."

A fraction of a second later, as the group gasped in shock, a flash of light nearly as bright as a star flickered to life for a brief instance, emanating from the duo.

"What the heck?!" Shining shouted.

"My eyes!"

"EEP!"

When the world came back into focus for them, the group gave another gasp. Princess Cadance was lying on the ground, the figure standing before her... and the crystal he levitated was now glowing. Within a second, he glanced back at the group, and in a neutral tone stated:

"Gift."

Shining let loose a snarl.

"Yeah, my flank!" he roared, his horn powering to life as he charged forward. "What the heck did you do to her?!"

The figure snapped its head towards him.

"..."

"ANSWER ME!"

Sparks flew from the horn.

"Shining, wait!" Twilight called.

"Screw that, I'm with him!" Rainbow Dash hissed. "I'm knocking this guy back to wherever they came from!"

At the same time, Shining was nearly right on top of his new adversary, and from his horn came a purple beam of light aimed straight for the figure's chest.

"Still not talking?! Well, then I'm sorry about this, but you're about to get a taste of your own medicine!"

"..."

As the figure stood motionless, the beam of light collided with him. However, as soon as it did, it, without warning, changed from purple to black.

Shining's eyes widened in horror. The black beam bounced back towards him, creating a small gunshot like sound near his horn.

"AAAACK!"

He roared in pain as he flew backward, landing at the entrance of the cave.

Rainbow Dash paused.

The rest of the group stood motionless, awe-struck.

"..."

The figure had no comment.

"SHINING!" Twilight cried, before snapping towards the figure. Her horn was now glowing as well.

Spike flailed his arms her way. "Twilight, hold on! He's just going to do the same thing to you!"

"Don't worry Spike, I know what I'm doing!" Though her expression was filled with spite, she managed to grunt through gritted teeth, "Positive energy, not anger... positive energy, not anger..."

The figure glanced towards her, glancing at her with a tilted head as if to say, 'What? It was nothing personal.

"Shoal Sia?"

And just as she finished, another purple beam of light ripped towards him.

Rainbow hollered in glee. "WOOO YEAH, GET HIM TWILIGHT!"

"RELO'C TEK!" he hissed, and suddenly, a black shield sprung up about him. A split-second later, the beam of light barreled into it. There was a crackling sound, and a plethora of black smoke was released from the impact sight, obscuring the figure.

"Yo, did you get him?!" Rainbow Dash called.

Twilight lowered her eyebrows. And suddenly... the smoke cleared.

The figure was gone, along with his glowing crystal.

"What the hay?! Where did he go!?" Rainbow growled.

At the same time, Fluttershy darted to Shining's side. She checked his pulse, nodded to herself, and then made her way to Cadance. Upon doing so to her as well, she sighed in relief. "They're alright."

The rest of the group sighed as well.

"Good," Twilight said, before turning towards Spike. "Spike, you stay here and make sure they're alright."

"..."

He remained motionless, his gaze transfixed on Cadance.

"Spike?!"

Suddenly, he snapped towards her, a look of bewilderment melting off his face. "Uh... yeah! Got it!"

"Wait?! What are we doing?!" Rainbow said.

"We're going after him," Twilight said, her eyes narrowing.

"But we have no clue where he went off to!" Rarity proclaimed.

"I wouldn't say that."

The group turned about, looking at Applejack, who was in turn looking at something in the distance.

A figure with a black cloak, darting across the snow.

Equilibrium

The figure in black moved into a shimmering woodland.

The Elements of Harmony pursued.

The trees were as thick as they were dangerous. Crystals, some jagged, jutted them out at all angles, glowing like the ones in the cave. While traversing the woods at a normal pace would have been easy, the four ground-bound Elements could barely avoid smacking into them, and the thick layer of snow on the ground was not helping.

In the west, the sun was beginning to fall, creating an eerie red hue that cascaded over the frozen terrain.

"He's this way!" Fluttershy called, flying above the canopy and keeping track of the figure whenever he was out of sight of the main group.

The group itself, in the meantime, was beginning to show their fatigue. Even Applejack, despite her high level of stamina, was beginning to pant like a dog under a hot sun.

"Why in the world are we here?!" she huffed. "What's in these woods that could be so darn important to em'?"

"Maybe he really is just trying to lose us," Twilight suggested, before squinting in thought. "Or... maybe there's something else..."

"Aren't these woods totally supposed to be haunted? That's what Shining said," Pinkie called, bouncing along as if they were on a casual jog. "You know, creepy voices and stuff during the night?"

"He was probably just playing around. He does that a lot. It's just a myth," Twilight grunted through panted breaths. "Though they might as well be the only thing in these woods. Animals haven't lived in here for over a thousand years, Cadance told me. They all died out due to over-population-"

She silenced herself at that, instead focusing on the figure in black. He teleported himself across a shallow gap in the ground, what was probably a frozen creek.

"Twilight, if you could..." Rarity called.

"Right!"

Her horn began to glow for a brief second, before a purple bridge of magical energy formed over the gap.

The group made their way across it, but almost immediately upon doing so, they were greeted by a massive gust of wind.

"Eeeep!"

Both Pinkie and Rarity struggled to save themselves from falling off the bridge, the latter only managing to do so by a quick push from a descended Fluttershy, who quickly took to the skies again afterward, shivering at what she heard.

It was a wind filled with whispers.

'Sara tial?'

'Toi maka sheya.'

'Maka ti'san.'

"A-Anyone else hear that?" Rarity gulped.

Twilight shook her head. "It's just the wind, nothing more! We're just anxious and letting little things get to our heads!"

"Forget about it, lookie thar!" Applejack called

Across the bridge they came upon a lonely clearing of snow and dead shrub, and on the far side of said clearing was the figure in black. He was facing away from the group, chanting a strange hymn, but as soon as they entered, he pivoted about, 'staring' at them.

"..."

"Do not move!" Twilight hissed.

"That's right! I've had enough of all this arctic running today!" Rarity snapped. "Do you know how cold it gets in Ponyville in a normal winter?! Only thirty degrees! THIRTY DEGREES!.!.! THAT'S IT!.!.!"

"And I've had enough cliches!" Pinkie moaned. "Seriously? Haunted woods? A mysterious powerful magic user in a black cloak? Been there, done that..."

At that, all four mares formed a line, the horns of the two unicorns shining brightly and casting a glow upon the snow.

"..."

The figure in black had no comment.

Slowly, he levitated the glowing crystal before him.

"Rarity, now!" Twilight yelled.

With that, a purple glow overtook the black one surrounding the crystal. As if they were yanking something out of someone's grip, the crystal began to tug towards them.

The figure gave a growl at this.

"RELO'C SEEYAL!"

The crystal began to glow black again.

"Oh no you don't!" Rarity hissed.

Their horns grew ever brighter. A tug of war of sorts began.

The crystal moved towards them.

The figure took a mighty step forward.

"RELO'C TREAC!"

The crystal was released from his magical grip. However, in place of his previous spell came a blast of ghostly, twirling black energy. It released a tremendous, howl-like sound as it roared towards Twilight.

"EEEP!"

Twilight's eyes widened as the spell moved forth.

Both her and Rarity lost their concentration. The crystal dropped to the center of the clearing.

Twilight's horn began to glow yet again, and as it did so, a shiver came about her.

"TWILIGHT!"

The spell suddenly rushed around a purple bubble shield that formed around her like a wave breaking against a rock.

She gasped as it finished. She had no time to channel any emotion when she formed it. No anger, no righteousness. She only felt what was naturally coming to her at the moment.

"Fear..." she whispered, before narrowing her eyes. "Fear generated arcane magic... it works against him."

She then turned to her friends. "Come on, let's grab that crystal before it's too late!"

At that, they gave nods, and the four rushed forward.

The figure in black did the same.

"W-Wait for me," Fluttershy squeaked, wincing as she flew downward in a diagonal angle.

As they did so, Twilight began a sort of duel with the figure. The clearing became filled with black and purple energy blasts dancing between the two. Shields blared for brief seconds to deflect spells. Teleportation became a norm to avoid attacks.

Then suddenly, both Twilight and the figure seemed to have the same idea.

With a puff of black smoke and a flash of purple energy, the alicorn and the figure appeared in the center of the clearing, two feet away from each other, and one foot away from the glowing crystal that sat between them.

The two stood off for a brief moment, recovering from their teleports, and both waiting for the other to make the first move.

"Mara... rael tok?" the figure said in curious tone, glancing at the crystal.

"Is this 'if you want it, go and take it?'" Twilight hissed. "I know you can't speak common, but why in the world did you do this?!"

"..."

"Rhetorical, of course," she groaned.

"Show," the figure said.

Twilight's eyes widened. "Show? Show me what?"

"Balance."

"Balance?! What do you mean?!"

At that, her friends caught up with her.

"Did he just speak common?!" Rarity growled.

Steam blew out of Applejack's mouth. "Bet he's been holdin' out on us."

And then came yet another whisper...

'Twilight...'

Her eyes widened. It came from the crystal.

"C-Cadance?!"

She suddenly snapped towards the figure. "What the heck did you do to her?!"

"... Show."

"THEN SHOW ME ALREADY!"

The figure took a deep breath, and suddenly, a black wave of energy emanated from him in all directions. Twilight gasped at this, summoning her shield, but soon found it wasn't needed. The wave passed by them, barely causing a tingling sensation, much to their relief.

Then, however, out of nowhere, five jagged, tombstone like crystals appeared in a circle around the group, also glowing. They appeared to be more uniform in shape than the others, as if carved. The final differentiation, however, came from the strange symbols that were upon each of them. One was of a jagged tooth. Another of a strange creature tending to what appeared to be a wound on another. Another was of an owl. Another of a Pegasus, then one of an Earth Pony. The final... had no symbol at all. Instead, it seemed to be emanating a strange, lonely song in a forgotten tongue.

Twilight shook her head in bafflement. "What... is this?"

"I have... key," he stated, pointing at one of the stones. "Time... to turn."

Twilight squinted in thought for a brief moment, before letting loose a horrified gasp.

"We need to go!"

"What, why?!" Applejack snapped. "The crystal's right there!"

"Something's happening though! I can sense an aura of his magic building up!" Twilight cried. "This is his trap! He had everything planned from the get-go!"

Indeed, the crystal began to glow brighter and brighter, and slowly, it hovered above the ground. However, no magical energies seemed to come from the figure in black.

"O-Oh no, you were right, Twilight!" Fluttershy squeaked.

"Well, grab the crystal then and let's high tail it!" Applejack whispered.

"I shall do it! Distract the figure!" Rarity said, her eyes narrowing.

Twilight nodded, and with that, an orb of energy appeared upon her sparkling horn yet again.

A purple beam of light roared from it.

Fluttershy let loose a barely audible squeak, closing her eyes.

The figure in black remained motionless.

Rarity's horn began to glow as well.

The crystal became encased in purple energy.

Still, the figure in black remained fixed in place.

At that the blast of purple energy roared around a black, summoned shield. Black smoke jetted from it, obscuring the figure yet again.

"Come on, girls! We. ARE. LEAVING!" Twilight called.

However, despite Rarity's best efforts, the crystal remained stationary, as if glued onto the world. Despite the cold, sweat dripped from her brow.

"I- I can't move the crystal!" she cried.

Finally, the smoke cleared, revealing the figure in black.

"Turned."

And suddenly, five black streams of energy ripped from the crystal, each aimed at one of the 'tombstones.' At the same time, another whirl-wind filled with whispers kicked up around the group, surrounding them with snow.

The group tried to move, but found themselves frozen in place. Fluttershy fell to the ground, her wings immobile.

"T-These woods... really do have ghosts in them, don't they?" she said, facing the figure directly.

And suddenly, the figure lowered its hood. The five mares stared in awe.

"W-What is that?!" Rarity said in a hushed tone.

Twilight took a deep breath. Her eyes were transfixed on her form. An image of something felt but never seen even in the darkest nights, unknown in form but known in spirit. A legend that should not have been alive.

"A ghost."

The figure gave her a curious look.

"Ghost?"

The whispers increased.

The crystal began to glow brighter.

Rarity shouted something.

Pinkie shrieked.

Cadance spoke again, in a hoarse, but loud whisper.

"Vessels! They're all.. vessels!" she hissed. "I... I am their catalyst! You are their worlds!"

"What do you mean?!" Twilight called desperately. "Help me, Cadance!"

There was a brief second of 'silence' where the world might as well have stood still.

Then, Cadance finally replied.

"Fly, you fools! Run!"

A thousand ancient howls filled the air.

The 'tombstones'' symbols became alive, and their forms danced and morphed into six moons.

"But only if you still can..."

And at that moment, the long-forgotten past finally caught up to the present.

The figure narrowed her eyes.

"... Gift."

A gift without a receipt.

None could run.

Wisdom

Twilight Sparkle stood in a misty woodland. One much warmer, yet much darker than the one she was previously in. Scattered leaves strung across the ground illuminated by a ghostly moon above. The entire place felt like something out of primeval times... times long lost to everything but text books.

She immediately winced at that, a pain striking her head, a migraine that came out of nowhere, just like the figure in black.

When the pain subsided, she glanced about further.

Where am I? she thought.

"Good question."

Twilight turned about, her eyes widening. Yet they saw nothing.

She shivered slightly.

"Who's there?"

She then gave a groan.

"Ugh! Did Rainbow Dash spike my cider again?! If that's the case, why am I here? Unless this is just a dream, of course... but it's a pretty odd dream."

Her memories were a blur, though slowly coming back to her... she remembered tundra... Cadance falling... a figure in black...

Only a very distinctively female giggle came after. A shadow moved through the woods... circling her.

"Oh, how often I've heard that question. 'Who's there.' Though I usually never forget who asks it, because they never forget me... However, I'm not sure what 'cider' is, though."

"Are you sure that's not just your ego talking? Who are you?"

A hearty laugh came afterwards.

"You misunderstand me. But that's alright."

A beat. The figure continued to circle.

"So.... Twilight Sparkle, huh? Loving the name."

Twilight squinted her eyebrows.

"How do you-"

"I know a lot of things about you." Her voice lowered in tone, as if dramatically playing a menacing one. "Secrets that are mine alone to know..."

Twilight gave her a blank look. "Yeah. Uh huh. Name one!"

"You really want to go there? Alright... how about how you used to wet your bed every night before a big test?"

"I did not!" Twilight grunted.

The shadow in the woods cackled. "'Hey Twili, any waterfalls in your dreams last night'?"

Twilight's eyes widened.

"Gotcha."

Twilight quickly composed herself, a smirk slithering across her features.. "Please don't try to claim you're some sort of mind-reader. This is obviously just a dream or a hallucination. You are nothing but a string of neurons firing together to create a fictional being..."

The figure let out another giggle, this time closer.

"I'm not surprised you don't understand yet. Not that you're dumb or anything... no, I couldn't even lie about that."

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "If you really know me that well, you'll know that I'm a very curious mare..."

"Oh, we both know you're no ordinary mare," the voice chirped. "You've been granted a very special gift, just like my mother. Just like myself, in a manner of speaking."

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Long life?"

"Not even that..." she whispered. "As you said yourself, you have the need for knowledge. Wisdom. Wisdom you now have beyond my wildest dreams. You know so much... yet have lived for such a short amount of time. It's fascinating, to be honest. Trading the pursuit of knowledge for the pursuit of happiness... few would chose to do so. All those stressful nights..."

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "They weren't that stressful. Reading brings me happiness."

"No, reading brings you a greater understanding. And sometimes... it's not always best to know about how many things in a certain forest can kill you... or how your own mind works to the detail. Yet... you began to realize this, but carried on, considering it your mission to impress Princess Celestia, and to better the world around you... the only thing that makes you truly happy. Besides, perhaps, your friends, of course. Yet... it brought you great sorrow, too, didn't it? Those two things combined together...."

Twilight growled at that. "I have no regrets."

There was a slight chuckle. "Are you sure? Like you said, those wings are a... 'package deal', after all."

Twilight opened her mouth to retort, but found it to be dry of words.

The voice gave another chuckle. "You are truly noble, Twilight Sparkle. Worthy to carry the title of 'Wisdom.' You no longer have to fear Draos, the unweaver... not for a long time. Another thing we have in common..."

Twilight took a deep breath. "... Thank you, I suppose. Now, will you please answer my question?"

The shadow gave a sigh. "Yes, you wonder where you are?"

She quickly nodded. "Yes! How did I get here, who are you, and what do you have to do with that... that thing I just saw, the one hiding under her cloak?!"

The figure chuckled. "By the moon, I love you! You know that?! Seriously!"

"What?!"

"So many questions... even now, you seek knowledge... and it's not just out of fear, but curiosity."

Twilight gave a shrug. "A bit of a dramatic way of saying it... but yes."

"You're so perfect for me! Unfortunately, not in the fun, kinky way, though... But believe me, I'm sure you'll understand in time why I have to do what I have to do.... and love it."

"And what is that?!"

Suddenly, the voice was given form.

She was same as the figure in black, though transparent and almost ghost-like, unlike Twilight herself. She held white fur longer than a pony's, and though she walked on four legs, those legs where much more slim, leading to a set of four, clawed paws. But her eyes... her eyes were the thing that transfixed Twilight the most. Orbs of purple, and giving a feint glow, illuminating the sharpened teeth she flashed whenever she spoke.

Twilight let loose a gasp. "You... you're just like her!"

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, I know you know what I am..."

Twilight grunted at this. "Yes, of course I know what you are! And now I'm pretty sure I am dreaming because of it your kind... are just legends. Yet... you seem so real. How is this possible?!"

The figure's cocky, playful expression immediately fell off her face.

"It's no nightmare, and yes... we did. All but one of us. One who has waited many moonrises for this day... the day when the moon would lose its sight... And that's the unfortunate part..."

Twilight took a slow step back, shivering. "W-Why is it unfortunate?"

The figure sighed. "Because, and to finally answer your question, we no longer have any physical forms... so to speak. We can't even exist as spirits. Just... remnants."

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "What happened... why did you choose to confine yourself to those crystals? That's where you rested, right?"

"That's too much to explain," she stated. "And there's too little time." She gave a solemn frown. "We can talk about it, I suppose... but I'm not sure if you'll want to in a moment or two."

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry?"

"Let's just say... you were right about you being dreaming... in a way. And... I'm sorry, Twilight, but you're about to go through a few things I'll need to... accommodate myself."

"What are you talking about?!" Twilight yelped. "Are you trying to take over my mind?!"

The figure winced.

"Much more than that. Prepare yourself..."

"Ugh..."

Rainbow Dash slowly rose to her hooves, though the fact that every part of her body was aching didn't help. The world was a spinning blur, and seeing anything clearly was a problem.

She shook her head, bewildered at what had just happened, before glancing about. Unfortunately, what she was looking for was not there. The treks of her friends had been buried in a fresh layer of snow. To make matters worse, it was beyond dusk now, and the moon was her only light in the darkened tundra.

"Damn..." she muttered. "They could be anywhere..."

She continued to glance about, barely spotting a feint glow in the distance coming from what appeared to be a forest of pine trees.

Mph... she groaned. Well, this is just bucking great. I could spend years searching the North for them...

She then glanced back at the forest, pondering something.

I suppose I could check in there...

Before she could ready herself to move, however, her eyes caught movement in the distance. Five blackened figures were moving out of the woods... right towards her.

Or not!

"Hey!" she called, flying into the air with a beaming smile. "I'm over here! Come here you guys!"

Even from about fifty feet up, she could still barely make any details of them. They looked like five colored blurs... her friends...

Yet something seemed... off.

Every one of their eyes were glowing the color of their coat.

Wah?

She raised an eyebrow, shaking her head in disbelief.

Probably just my imagination, or the way the moon's reflecting off them.

At that, however, a new presence made itself known: one that was not her imagination.

"Tarak ri?"

She gasped, looking down. Out of nowhere stood the Figure in Black... her hood covered yet again.

"YOU!" Rainbow spat, soaring down towards her.

The last thing she saw was a blast of black energy... then the darkness hit her again.

"Tara rioletek?"

"Tria. Rainbow... Dash."

There was a laugh. A distinctively familiar laugh... yet strangely condescending.

"Taramak... Loyalty. Sia Truun daka mayo."

Rainbow could feel consciousness leaping back towards her... and a hint of anger, squelching the cold feeling on her belly coming from the snow.

Her eyes slowly opened, and the world was a blur once again. Six figures were standing around her. They were blackened by the quarter-moon behind them, but still held same strange illuminated eyes from earlier.

One quirked her head, the one with purple eyes. "She'all, tara blach. 'The Element of Loyalty.'"

This was followed by another of the orange figure's laugh. "Tara shova?"

"Bea serena... tara que..." a soft, soothing voice emanated from the one with yellow eyes.

A very familiar voice...

"F-Fluttershy?" Rainbow groaned.

The blur was beginning to fade, and now... she could see who was before her.

Her anger turned to rage.

"FLUTTERSHY!" she roared, her legs and wings failing her as she attempted to get to her hooves.

Standing before her were her five friends... but not as she knew them. All now held thick, fur coats. Their body's were slicker... more aerodynamic. Something Rainbow wished she had, though she wouldn't make the trade. Her friends were no longer ponies, innocent creatures of light, but predators of darkness she had only heard of in ghost stories. And most importantly:

They were without wings or horns.

The figure in black stood in the middle of them, and it was her who Rainbow focused her rage on.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO TO THEM!?" she hissed.

"... Gift."

Rainbow gave a sarcastic laugh. "Oh yeah, cute! A gift?! WHAT KIND OF GIFT IS THIS?!"

"Something no longer part of the world... until now," 'Twilight' suddenly said, narrowing her eyes. "And I'm afraid the time for talk is over. We were never ones to use our tongues much with ... other species."

Rainbow gasped at this.

"Y-You speak common?!"

And suddenly, she found herself forcefully flung into the air. A stream of energy had engulfed her, coming from the figure in black.

"HEY! GET YOUR WEIRDO MAGIC OFF ME!" Rainbow snarled, trying to shake with all her might, but finding herself completely immobile.

"..."

She turned to Twilight, a desperate look on her face. "T-Twilight... please don't do this! I don't know what happened to you, but I can help!"

"Enough talk from you," she hissed. "I never was that partial to her..."

"Ooooooh?" cooed 'Applejack.' "What about that one night after the Winter Blitz? You seemed very partial that night."

"What are you talking about!?" Rainbow Dash demanded. "What the hell is a Winter Blitz?!"

"It's a wolf holiday... or... at least I believe it's 'wolf' in your tongue, anyway," 'Twilight' stated. "Loosely translated from our word for it, meaning 'great hunter.'"

To Rainbow's chagrin, Twilight's tone was her usual one, though haughty in nature.

The proxy Twilight continued: "This is a strange language you have developed, though it much is strange in this new world, from what I see: the world that took us for granted."

Suddenly, it dawned on the feisty cyan mare. "You... you're not Twilight, are you? You're-you're wolves... legends... you just look like them, right?"

"Finally put two and two together, huh?" she smirked. "Though this is her body..."

"YOU STOLE HER BODY?!" Rainbow Dash roared, struggling once again.

"We all did, I'm sorry to say," 'Fluttershy' peeped.

Her look of disgust grew. "OH YOU SICK FREAKS! WHEN I GET OUT OF THIS STUPID BLACK CRAP YOU'VE GOT ME ON I'M SOOOOOO GOING TO KICK YOUR FURRY FLANKS!"

"And hurt your friends in the process?" 'Twilight' said, lifting an eyebrow. "Weird talk coming from the Element of Loyalty..."

"SHE CAN TAKE IT IF IT MEANS YOU LEAVING HER BE!"

"By the moon, her voice is hurting my ears," 'Rarity' spoke up, glancing at Twilight. "Could you be a dear and silence her for the rest of the trip?"

"Certainly," 'Twilight' smirked.

"TRIP?! WHAT TRIP?! WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?! I'M DEFINITELY NOT DOWN FOR A SPECIES MAKEOVER! I'M HAPPY BEING A PEGASUS, THANK YOU!"

"Yes, and one of the fastest... honorable, really. However, you're the last piece of the puzzle..." Twilight replied, before narrowing her eyes. "We've been waiting for you. All of you. The link you have with the world... is beautiful, to say the least."

Rainbow opened her mouth to yell something more, half-expecting the spell to be performed before she could even get a word off... yet neither the spell or the words came: a new voice had entered the scene, snarling:

"Please... let her continue. The rest of you as well. I'm all ears."

Rainbow grinned. There, standing before the group of six wolves was Shining Armor. And for once, he had something to match the name. His entire body, save for the head, was covered with silver, shimmering metal. A more pissed off expression couldn't be on his face.

The group stood still for a second, looked at each other, and than burst into laughter.

"Tara mia?!"

"Se teal! Hahaha!"

"Moi dreashi!"

"Tehe! Tre Sia!"

Shining narrowed his eyes.

"You have three seconds to vacate those bodies... and two more to turn tail like Sin'Sal herself was chasing you."

The group hushed itself at that. Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. Who's Sin'Sal?

"Hit a nerve?" Shining smirked.

"These bodies are ours," 'Twilight' growled. "Your kind has failed to keep the world in balance. We have returned for that purpose. Either join us for the sake of equilibrium or keep out of claw's reach!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about, but even if I did, I wouldn't care," Shining said. He then let loose a sigh, closing his eyes. "So... in that case... I'm sorry about this, Twili."

Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, Shining released a bright beam of purple into the sky.

A flare.

To the group's many growls and hisses, twenty flashes of purple light emanated around him, which once dimmed revealed a platoon of Crystal Empire Troopers. They were of all three pony races, the non-unicorns wielding spears, crossbows, and various other weapons.

Shining took a menacing step forward, glaring at the figure in black.

"I know you did this... and I'm willing to bet neutralizing you will undo it. Am I right?"

The five former Elements snarled at this, showing their bright, white fangs, before darting in front of the figure, who Rainbow now noticed was much taller than the rest.

"You want to hurt her, you'll have to hurt your sister, Shining Armor!" 'Twilight' snapped. "Ponies don't have the balls for that! They never had the balls for that!"

Shining chuckled, to which 'Twilight' raised an eyebrow at.

"What's so funny?"

Shining smirked. "You're right: we were never partial to hurting anyone, though this armor isn't just for show..."

He turned towards the unicorn group in his platoon.

"Lancer Squadron, prepare stunning spells. Everypony else: save your ammo for the figure in black."

"By your will, Prince of Light!"

"Don't you dare!" 'Twilight' hissed. "Harm her and your sister will never swim in light again! Your world will fester and die without our wisdom, and without the will to keep the wilderness in check!"

At that, the she took a step forward, pushing through her kin.

Shining did the same, aiming his horn at her while gritting his teeth.

"W-What are you doing?" squeaked 'Fluttershy' to the figure.

"Yeah! Come back here, we'll protect you!" 'Applejack' yelped.

It merely shook its head, before turning towards 'Twilight' and whispering:

"Teya val. Ma'kial soonay Koiandress."

'Twilight' shuttered, before giving a solemn nod.The figure then turned towards Shining and nodded towards him. Perhaps out respect... or perhaps to throw him off. Rainbow couldn't tell. All she knew was that one second the figure was there, than the next: poof, gone with a puff of black smoke.

Despite this, Rainbow's temper flared to life yet again, a vein pulsing in her forehead. Released from the figure's spell, she sped over to Shining's side, glaring daggers.

"Damnit... what in the world did she just say?!"

"I'm not sure," Shining grunted, before glaring at the five wolves before him. "But the rest of you! Do. Not. Move!"

Wincing for a second, his horn began to glow again.

"This spell will prevent teleportation, so don't even try it!"

However, the five were not moving. Instead, they seemed to be frozen in time.

Rainbow shivered. Her friends... her soul mates. She had seen them in danger many times, but this was different... she had seen them taken by darkness set upon by Discord, the madness of King Sombra's spells, but their minds were always their's to control: and their bodies. Even if they could be freed of their puppet masters, what were they now? Could it be fixed? She knew wolves were predators: aggressive, territorial predators who needed meat to survive, but... would that make them outcasts? Would society accept them? They would still be the same, right?

Then, after what seemed to be an hour in a second, Rainbow's tension was relieved by a single word:

"S-Shi-ning..."

He lowered his eyebrows, his eyes changing from fury to brotherly love instantly. "T-Twili... that you in there?"

"Yeah!" Rainbow cheered. "I knew you weren't gone, Twili! Fight her off! Whoever that bitch is inside you!"

Twilight was still frozen, save her head. She blinked in shock, gazing at her paws, before looking downward at her paws.

"W-What... am I?"

She was glancing at her paws, shivering slightly.

With that, her and her four other friends collapsed.

Star in a Bottle

"Rarity, come on! They actually look pretty cool, you know."

Rarity sighed, as she busily attempted to trim down her inch long claws with a pair of scissors. So far, she had only managed to make them look all the more awkward, and doing so seemed to be quite painful.

"I'm sorry Rainbow Dash - OUCH!" She attempted to cut another. "Ugh! Scissors were made for cloth, not nails!" She then cleared her throat. "But anyway, if I must be a wolf, than I shall be at least a presentable one for Princess Celestia!"

"I'm sure she won't hold it against you, sugar," Applejack smiled.

Rarity grunted. "That's not the point dearest: I would always hold it against myself! Who knows- AGH! CURSE THESE INFERNAL SCISSORS!"

Applejack shook an incredulous head for a second, before turning towards Twilight, who was currently busy trying to levitate a piece of paper before her by squinting at it.

"Come on... levitate! Levitate! "

The paper did not comply.

Twilight furrowed her brow. "You're a piece of paper, damn you! You're not the moon!"

The piece of paper decided to become the moon.

Twilight groaned in defeat. "UGH! No magic, no wings, no food... I hope Princess Celestia is coming soon, because I'm about to go crazy!"

"You mean crazier," Spike grinned.

Suddenly, there was a flash of anger in Twilight's eyes. She quickly twirled about, snarling at Spike, her fangs showing their glory. "What did you say?!"

He gasped, his eyes widening, before he took a frightened step back.

"Woah! Take it easy, Twilight! It was just a joke!"

Suddenly, she shook her head, blinking rapidly. "O-Oh my gosh... I-I'm sorry Spike, it must just be the stress. I'm getting really hungry..."

"I'll say," he sighed, composing himself slightly.

Pinkie suddenly bounced over to her side, her new wolf status making her not the least less jubilant, apparently. "Twilight, I think your problem is that you're not saying the right magic words!"

Twilight gave her a look. "... What?"

"Repeat after me! Wingardium Leviosa!"

"Pinkie... this sounds ridiculous."

"Wouldn't hurt to try," Applejack shrugged.

Twilight raised an eyebrow, before turning back towards the paper.

"Fine... alright..." she sighed. "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The paper didn't budge... until Twilight angrily tossed it into the air with a claw.

"HAH! TAKE THAT, PAPER! I AM STILL YOUR MASTER."

The piece of paper fluttered to the ground in defiance.

Applejack rolled her eyes.

"Ugh, what am I doing?" Twilight groaned.

"Trying to levitate a piece of paper, duh!" Pinkie grinned.

Twilight sighed. "Yes Pinkie... though wait a second... that gives me an idea."

"What's that?" Pinkie said, bouncing.

Twilight's smile became a slight smirk. "Well... sometimes when that wolf performed magic, she uttered something... Shi'tara, I believe. Maybe it's her way of channeling magic..." She then sighed, closing her eyes. "Yet I have no idea what to utter afterwards."

There was a moment of silence, and Twilight appeared to clearly be pondering something. Suddenly, she turned to her friends.

"Now that I think of it... do any of you remember... a dream? A dream right before you woke up here?"

The four slowly glanced at her.

Applejack nodded. "Yeah, I remember somethin' or other. It's hazy."

"Any details?"

"Song," Pinkie suddenly uttered.

Twilight gazed at her. "What?"

"I remember... song," she whispered.

"What are you guys talking about?" Rainbow Dash asked. "What dreams?"

Twilight sighed. "It's hard to explain. I just remember... talking to someone, or somewolf, in a dream... She liked me. She said I represented Wisdom."

"Mph, so that's who I was talking to," Rainbow grunted. "When you all were possessed."

The five looked at each other uneasily.

"What, you didn't know about that?" Rainbow blinked.

They shook their heads.

"Hooo boy..." Rainbow sighed.

With that, she quickly explained what she had seen when she herself had woken up on the snowy tundra. Her capture, her release by Shining. Everything in keen detail.

"S-So you're saying that something was inside of us? A spirit?!" Fluttershy squeaked.

Rainbow shrugged. "Yeah, but whoever it was kind of left when that cloaked weirdo did."

The group sighed in relief.

"Nothing to worry about, then," Applejack smiled.

Twilight gazed blankly ahead of her. "Yeah... nothing to worry about."

With that, there was a loud knock on the door.

"Come in!" Twilight called.

Slowly, the door opened, and in stepped a crystal pegasus stallion she had never seen before. His fur was a dim red, and his long mane a brighter, shining version of the same colour, long and cascading down his face in a tangled mess. It was strangely unlike the neatness usually expected from his people. Other than that, he seemed utterly unremarkable, save for the crossbow on his back.

He smiled brightly at the group, before uttering in a serious tone that did not match it:

"So... you're the five lone wolves of this world? Save for one other, of course..."

"Only temporarily," Twilight said, glancing at him uneasily.

He gazed at her blankly, his smile dimming. "Yes." However, it soon lit up again. "Oh, sorry about that. I'm Specialist Red Shard. It's a pleasure to meet you all at last. My people owe you a great deal."

Pinkie bounced in delight at that. "Thanks! But it's totally cool! Hosting that fair was so much fun! I mean seriously, there needs to be more demon kings-"

"Ahem," Applejack coughed, smiling back. "What she means to say is: you're very welcome."

He nodded slowly, before glancing at the five: "Let's see if I have this right: your names are Pinkie Pie, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy, correct?"

"Ahem!" Rainbow coughed. "I was there, too, you know."

He gave her a slight glance, a hint of anger flashing in his eyes. "Yes... my apologies. Rainbow Dash, the Hero of the Skies."

"Heh, Hero of the Skies huh?" she grinned. "Mind spreading that around?"

"Of course, though I'm afraid a few formalities must come first."

"Formalities?" Twilight said, lifting an eyebrow.

"Yes. First off, I must apologize for your confinement. The order to have you all stay near your rooms was given by me."

"So... you're the Red Ranger, huh?" Spike said glancing him over. "Well... you're pretty red."

"And the crossbow totally makes you look rangery!" Pinkie grinned.

The Red Ranger chuckled. "Yes, I am the 'Red Ranger', though that's a title I don't like using myself. It makes me sound 'cooler' than I actually am." He then cleared his throat. "Anyway, I'm afraid a debriefing of sorts is in order."

"Sure, what do you want to know?" Rainbow Dash smiled.

He coughed. "I mean... individually."

"Why individually?" Twilight said, suspicion in her tone.

The Red Ranger smiled. "It's just easier for me to gain the whole picture gradually than all at once, if you 'catch my drift'."

"...Alright."

"I'm glad we can agree! Would you mind going first, then?"

Twilight lowered an eyebrow. "Yeah... sure."

"Then if you'll follow me, please."

With that, Twilight smiled at her worried looking friends, before following the Red Ranger into the corridor and into one of the other guest rooms.

Twilight stood still, waiting for the Red Ranger to begin questioning her.

"Please, make yourself comfortable," he quickly stated. "Would you like some tea?"

"No... I'm not thirsty, just... hungry," Twilight whispered, remaining motionless.

Her stomach then growled. And at that brief moment, she had the insatiable urge to pounce upon the Ranger.

He did look quite delicious.

"Yes, it's unfortunate that a wolf's dietary requirements don't coincide with our own," the Red Ranger nodded.

Something about the look he gave Twilight gave her the chills. It was as if he knew of whom she wished to dine on.

"It won't be a problem for much longer," Twilight snapped, shaking off her thoughts. "Now stop beating around the bush. I know an interrogation technique when I see one. What do you want from me?"

"Sharp as a fang," the Red Ranger said, a smirk crossing his face. "And filled with Wisdom, am I right?"

Twilight's eyes widened.

The Red Ranger put on a dangerous smirk. "You know who I'm talking about, don't you?"

At that, Twilight desperately tried to compose herself, but it was too late.

"Gotcha."

Suddenly, the Red Ranger was upon her like a storm, his quiet, friendly deamanor changing to an unseen ferocity.

"You talked with her, didn't you?!" he spat.

"Talked with who?!" Twilight yelped.

"Don't play dumb. An Element of Equilibrium. Wisdom! What did she say?!"

"I don't know! That she wanted to change me, that was all! To accomodate herself!"

"Did she mention complete equilibrium! Did she mention wanting to bring it back?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!"

"Why did she let you go?! Why is she not controlling you now?!"

"I. DON'T. KNOW, DAMNIT! NOW GET OUT OF MY FACE!"

Without even realizing she was doing it, Twilight flung a claw.

The Red Ranger drew his crossbow, snarling.

Wood and Claw met in parry with a terrific CLACK!

The Red Ranger pushed forward, his eyes an inch before Twilight's own. "She's not in control of you... but she's still there! Don't you feel it?! DON'T YOU SENSE IT?!"

"WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO SAY?!"

He shook his head. "This was all a trap! I should have seen it... I have to take action! I'm sorry!"

Without saying a word, he jolted few steps back and aimed his crossbow. The tip of an arrow was pointed right at Twilight.

"What the hell are you doing?!" she cried.

The Red Ranger glared at her, before bringing a hoof to the trigger. "The right thing."

Twilight froze in place, unable to speak, but before she could hear the twang of the device, a new voice took its place.

"Would you mind telling me why you have that pointed at my student?"

Twilight twirled about. Standing on the balcony was an agitated, but strangely non-furious looking Princess Celestia.

"I don't have time for this!" the Red Ranger hissed. "I'll explain later!"

Within a split-second, he pulled the trigger. Twilight gasped in horror.

The arrow flew-

"Eeep!"

-Only for a beam of solar light to strike it, disintegrating it into ashes. Princess Celestia's horn was still sparking when Twilight looked over to her.

"Put your weapon down," Princess Celestia said calmly.

"You don't understand!" he shouted. "You weren't there! You were never there! Not until it was far too late!"

"I understand completely," Celestia said, her tone remaining calm. "I understand that you're angry. You're nearly a thousand years old, even if many of those were in stasis, and your line saw the world in one of its darkest hours. You hunted for them. Destroyed their woods. It may not have been your will, but was it any surprise that they would strike back? What weapon they would use? One that should have been trusted by no one. You were all fools!"

"And yet... you turned your back on us... when the page turned into the unknown."

"I did. I am bound to fly in the random winds until treachery stenches it. Only then will I intervene. Be lucky worse hadn't happened. It certainly did to my sister!"

"RAUGH! Enough talk of the past! We're wasting time! We need to act quickly!"

"P-Princess, what is going on?!" Twilight asked.

Suddenly, before she could answer, bursting into the room came Shining Armor, Spike, and the rest of Twilight's friends.

"Hey, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Rainbow snarled, glaring at the Red Ranger's crossbow.

"None of your concern!"

Shining narrowed his eyes. "Then answer to your prince. Would you mind telling me why you're pointing that at my sister?"

"She's not your sister! Not completely... You don't know what I know, Prince of Light!"

"Then tell me!" Shining roared.

"It's too late for that! The trap is sprung! She is coming!"

Shining took a menacing step forward.

"Who's coming?!"

At that, Fluttershy gave a squeak, gazing elsewhere. "I-I think I know."

With a puff of smoke, his question was answered. The figure in black appeared out of thin air upon the balcony, and only a second later, five blackened tendrils extended from her and into the converted wolves.

"No!" Twilight cried. "He was right! This is it! She's going to- RAUUUUUUGGGGHHHH!.!.!"

Twilight's eyes began to glow a bright purple, and with that, she twirled towards Shining.

"This is impossible!" Shining snapped. "The spell I cast... how did she break through it?!"

At that, Twilight gave him a wicked grin.

"Ooooh... a little lunar magic here, a little lunar magic there. I'm not surprised you haven't heard of it... ponies were always about the arcane, and never strayed far into the night, except maybe... the one bound to it," 'Twilight' said smugly. "I am glad she's better, though. It was a mistake to place trust in an abomination." She narrowed her eyes. "Though still, 'Prince of Light', I have to ask: do you fear the night? It would be wise if you did, but either way... I will always remember your face "

Shining gave a grunt. "Like usual, I have no idea what you're saying, but hear me now: this time we play for keeps!"

However, before he could react, a shadowy tendril emerged from his 'sister', slamming Shining into the wall behind him.

'Twilight chuckled. "You never were the brightest of the two of us, 'brother'."

"Stop this!" Princess Celestia hissed.

"How about me?!" the Red Ranger spat, ignoring her. His crossbow was now reloaded. "Do you remember the face of your enemy!?"

"Vaguely," 'Applejack' chuckled. "Though all we remember about you is that you weren't even worth remembering."

Another tendril flew, and a second later, he, like Shining, found himself hurtling into the wall.

Rainbow snapped towards her, shooting a glare.

"I didn't like him, but that was still a bad move..."

With that, both Rainbow and Spike growled, the latter taking a deep breath, preparing his built-in flamethrower, and the former cascading towards the Figure in Black.

"STOP!" Princess Celestia roared, glaring at the group.

Rainbow and Spike froze. The six wolves snapped to her, the figure in black's sun-hot eyes piercing her behind the veil of her hood. Her cold voice then came forth:

"Princess Celestia."

She raised an eyebrow. "Do I know you?"

"Dea."

Princess Celestia squinted in thought.

"Tara Shelth reo Maya?" she asked.

"Dea."

Celestia's eyes widened. "I thought you were dead."

"Many did," 'Applejack' smirked. "But you should know very well: in a ghost story, nobody is truly dead."

Princess Celestia chuckled slightly, smirking at 'Applejack' as if to say 'you're seriously going to try to condescend to me?'

"Princess..." Rainbow Dash said nervously. "Are ya going to fix this or what?!"

She gave a hefty sigh. "I'm afraid... that's not up to me."

She winked towards Rainbow, and she could barely see her mouthing the words:

'Keep them safe.'

Rainbow blinked in confusion.

"What?!"

Without answering her, Princess Celestia turned towards the Figure in Black. "So, giving Equilibrium another try, then?"

She nodded.

Celestia narrowed her eyes, smirking. "Then hit me with your best shot."

The Figure in Black narrowed her eyes. "Sara Luna TEUN!"

"Yin and yang. Hooves and fangs. We shall sing the song of flames!" Pinkie beamed.

With that, blackened tendrils were released from all six of them. As Rainbow and Spike gasped in horror, their princess, standing stoically, was encased in a caccoon of vibrating magic, as if she was being ensnared by a group of snakes.

"Oh that's it: I've had enough of you guys and we only met yesterday!" Rainbow spat.

"Ditto," Spike grunted. "The Crystal Palace is invitation only, you know." He then smirked. "But allow me to send you a letter."

With that, Rainbow dashed forward while Spike released a roaring jet of flames.

However, before either projectile could strike, a familiar blackened shield encased them. The flames broke upon it, and Rainbow was sent flying backward before careening into the floor.

"I really... really... need to stop doing that," she moaned.

"Hundreth time's the charm, right?" Spike snarked.

The Figure in Black, satisfied they were safe, then drew a yellow, vacant crystal. Slowly, she brought it before Princess Celestia.

"Tara soon, maya deriak," she whispered.

Then, to Spike and Rainbow's horror, the tendrils unwrapped around their goddess. A goddess who immediately collapsed to the floor, her eyes blank and expressionless.

The crystal was glowing as bright as a star.

Seeing Red

"No," Rainbow whispered, gazing in utter shock at Celestia's limp body. "How is this - no!"

With that, the six wolves slowly turned towards her, and immediately, 'Pinkie' began to sing:

"Oh, child of the wind. Offspring of an ancient kin. Once again your path begins. One in all and all within. "

Neither Rainbow or Spike made a peep. Their eyes were still fixed on Celestia.

'Twilight' winced at that. "Re'lah. Your seem to be a bit rusty on the song front..."

"Yeah, seriously. What have you been doing for a thousand years?" 'Applejack' commented.

'Pinkie' stared blankly ahead, ignoring the remarks. "It's the message that matters."

"Indeed. And I believe she has it," 'Rarity' smiled.

Twilight grinned at that. "Then let's complete the pack, shall we?"

The figure in black nodded. "Dea."

With that, they began to inch closer to Rainbow Dash. Still, she stood her ground, snarling aggressively.

"I may be the last mare standing, but these hooves are going down swinging!"

The five converted wolves held steady at that, before turning to each other, smiling.

"Mph, there's no holding back for her, is there?" 'Fluttershy' grunted in annoyance. "They're so similar... she never could keep herself at bay."

"Yet she is who we need the most," 'Twilight' sighed. She then glanced out of the balcony, warily gazing at a contingent of Imperial Troopers marching their way. "We must have made a lot of noise, though... we need to tread lightly. Come quietly, Rainbow Dash."

Rainbow Dash narrowed her eyes. "None of us are going anywhere."

She who stood alone against the storm.

That was, until Spike joined her side.

"Yep, that includes me," Spike grunted, to which he received a smile from Rainbow for. He chuckled slightly at this. "Hey, Twilight may bug the crap out of me sometimes, but I can't just let her go roaming the woods." He then glanced at Rarity. "Plus, wolf or not, she's still..." A dreamy expression came upon him. "Well, you know..."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "Yuh huh. Can we talk about this later?"

"The dragon talks far too much," 'Rarity' muttered, blackened tendrils hovering about her back along with the rest of her kin. "And I'm not the only one who thinks this."

"Yeah yeah, I see what you did there," Spike said, rolling his eyes. "I think I'm going to start crying!

"But not as much as you're going to be!" Rainbow snarled.

"Couldn't have said it better myself!""

Spike then took a deep breath, fire swelling in his chest.

"Keep em busy, Spike," Rainbow Dash whispered, winking towards him.

Spike gave her a blank look. "Me versus six wolves who just took down a goddess? Sure! The Empire will probably make a statue for me at this point with the tagline: 'Spike, martyr of the war on pricks!'"

Rainbow chuckled slightly. "Just trust me."

"E'Yup..."

With that, she flapped her wings and took off again. However, this time, her flight path took her over the top of the six wolves, out the balcony, and into open skies. The wolves' tendrils swooped after her, but she was too quick. Soon, she became a speck in the distance.

"DAMNIT!" 'Applejack' roared. "So much for loyalty! This wasn't part of the plan!"

"Neither was this!" Spike snapped.

And the skirmish began.

The wolves twirled about, snarling.

Spike released a pillar of green flame.

Tendrils flew from the wolves.

Spike winced, still puffing fire...

"Oh crap..."

Yet the tendrils did not strike him. They batted against a wall of flame, neither side gaining on the other.

"Chaos magic... I should have expected it," Twilight grumbled.

"Then let's not even bother with him!" 'Rarity' growled.

Twilight shook her head. "No, keep the pup at bay, I have a fly to catch."

"What fly?!"

"You'll see..."

Twilight then turned about, and sure enough, Rainbow was hurtling back towards them at super-luminous speeds.

Twilight put on a satisfied smirk. "Bingo."

At the last second, Rainbow was entangled by a fury of tendrils.

"OH DAMNIT! LET ME OUT OF THESE FREAKY THINGS! WHAT ARE YOU GUYS, SLENDERMARES' COUSINS?!"

She was soon brought before a smiling Twilight, her body, save for her head, encased in black. "The Slendermare, hm? Haven't heard it be called that before..."

Rainbow's eyes widened in horror.

"Haha, no need to be afraid, though. You're coming with us... I know you value your independence, but eventually, none of us will have to control you. The old and the new will become each other... and equilibrium will begin."

Rainbow furiously shook her head. "UH-UH! I'M NOT SOUL MERGING OR ANY CRAZY CRA- MPH MPH MPHHHHHH!.!.!"

A tendril wrapped around her mouth, silencing her, as she struggled furiously against the magical grip.

"But... I will enjoy a bit of quiet for now."

"R-Rainbow!" Spike cried, huffing in exhaustion as his flames finally died.

Twenty tendrils of black were sitting before him, like a group of eels about to bite down upon prey.

"L-Let her go, damn it!"

"Your friend will be fine, dragon," 'Twilight' sighed.

He shook his head head, grunting in annoyance. "It's not that! It's just that she owes me five bits!"

'Twilight' gave him a blank look, before a tendril encircled him, it coming from 'Rarity'.

He quickly found himself off the ground.

"WOAH!"

With a motion, he was smashed against the ceiling, knocked unconscious, and then set gently back on the ground.

"Poor thing, always biting off more than he could chew," 'Pinkie' sighed. "The song does not flow steady for everyone."

"We can talk about it later," 'Twilight' mumbled, one of her ears perking at the sound of frantic shouts and orders echoed from the palace's lower levels. The Imperial Trooper contingent was closing in.

"They're on the third floor!"

"Hurry! I heard a crash! Someone's still fighting!"

"FOR PRINCESS CADANCE!"

Twilight nodded towards the Figure in Black. "Tara blash te dego."

She nodded back, and closed her eyes. A swirling black energy surrounded her, as a gateway into the space between spaces formed.

Yet... before she could finish... she paused.

"Tara! Seeya me?!"

'Twilight' gazed upon her with horrified eyes.

"De snara..." she whispered.

The group gasped.

Piercing the tail end of her cloak was a single arrow.

Suddenly, she collapsed.

The Red Ranger narrowed his eyes, still pointing his crossbow at her. "You shouldn't have forgotten me, because I certainly haven't forgotten you."

Twilight turned hatred-filled eyes upon him, though within a second, he relapsed back into unconsciousness... a small, satisfied smile on his face.

'Twilight' blinked in disbelief, shaking in tranquil rage... the rest of her pack doing the same. Suddenly, without saying a word, she ripped towards him like a bullet, her jaw wide, her fangs dripping.

She aimed towards his neck...

'Kill kill kill kill... vengeance... poison... kill...'

Twilight Sparkle suddenly awoke within the lonely, dark forest: one she wasn't sure she or her new master had created. A blue mist surrounded her, and was slowly growing thicker. The last thing she remembered was the Figure in Black arriving... and the first thing she noticed was that she was back in alicorn form.

"What?" she said, coughing slightly afterward. "What happened?!"

'KILL KILL KILL!.!.!'

A powerful voice rocked the forest... one sounding only slightly different from her own.

And then it was given form.

"OUT OF MY WAY!"

She twirled about. Charging forth from the forest came the wolf that was her, yet the mind that was not.

"For what?! What are you doing?!" Twilight called.

"MOVE! I'M KILLING SOMETHING! I'M SORRY IF THIS IS A BAD TIME!" she hissed.

Twilight winced in thought, before glancing behind her. A ghostly image of the Red Ranger sat on the forest floor: sleeping soundly and satisfied.

"Let her do it," a voice whispered from the side. She turned, and to her awe, there stood a ghostly, wolf version of Rainbow Dash.

"W-What?!"

"Let her kill him. Remember what he tried to do you earlier? Hunt or starve... kill or be killed. It's all the same thing: all in the name of Preservation."

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "Rainbow Dash would never say that."

"And you shouldn't listen to her, anyway," another voice called.

She raised her eyebrows, for standing on the other side of her was a wolf-like Fluttershy.

"Now that sounds more familiar," Twilight smiled.

"Preservation consists of both restraint and aggression," she whispered, apparently ignoring Twilight. "This, however, serves no one. Close that door and it can never be reopened... nothing new can come from it. No seed can grow. Give her Restraint."

Twilight closed her eyes, nodding at the statement.

"You're about to have your mind back!" Rainbow hissed. "He'll try to kill you again... and the entire Crystal Empire will think you're responsible for what just happened! And Equestria is just a message away... He's got more blood on his hooves than anyone!"

Twilight held steady at that. 'Rainbow' did have a point...

"He exists to end," Fluttershy whispered. "But some endings bring about new beginnings... the phoenix grows stronger after sinking into ash. This is not the case."

And at that, a memory came to Twilight. Princess Celestia's voice echoed in her mind.

A phoenix is a majestic and magical bird. While it appears healthy and happy most of the time, every so often it must renew itself by shedding all of its feathers and bursting into flame. Rather melodramatic, if you ask me. It then rises from the ashes, fresh as a daisy..."

And then Shining's:

I'm joining the guard for my own reason. They aren't stupid. I'm not out for glory, or fame, or because I'm paranoid about the changelings or griffins: I just want to be ready in case the real bad guys threaten Equestria. In case they threaten you. For sometimes, the best defense is the best offense.

Twilight narrowed her eyes.

"I'm no judge. I can't hand out a sentence until I know more..."

She then turned to the charging wolf, as the mists twirled and danced around her. After a second, all she could see were two, beaming purple eyes coming at her from obscurity.

"This place has always been misty, hasn't it?" Twilight stated calmly.

"HE'S DEAD! DEAD!.!.!"

Twilight sighed. "Wisdom doesn't come on a cloudy day. I know this all too well. You have quite a few things to learn."

She continued charging. "YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT ME!.!.!

Twilight fluttered her wings, sighing.

"I may be a teacher now, but I'm still willing to learn. And I hope you are too. For I have learned wisdom from the best."

At that, her horn came to life, and just as the snarling wolf came into view, a brilliant beam of light came from it. The wolf let loose a terrific snarl.

"RAUUUUUUGGGGGH!.!.!"

With the roar of thunder it struck, and the wolf was rendered unconscious. Her form slid to Twilight's hooves, breathing heavily... and falling into slumber.

With that, Twilight took a deep breath, as she, herself, fell into wake.

She gasped as she awoke, quickly glancing at her back, only to see it was still covered in fur. She was still a wolf.

"It would have been way too easy," she sighed.

Her eye then caught something, and a horrified look came to her face. The room was covered in bodies, all breathing, but all unconscious. Princess Celestia was behind her, laying on the floor with a hypnotized gaze.

"Princess..." she gulped. "I'm so... so... sorry."

Curiously, the Figure in Black lay across from her, obscured by her cloak per usual, though Twilight gave her no heed. She continued sweeping the room, and noted that Rainbow, the Red Ranger, and Shining were all scattered about as well...

However, she quickly smiled in relief at who was at his side.

"Twi!" Applejack called, checking his pulse. "Thank goodness..." She then lowered an eyebrow.

"Wait, you are Twilight, right?!"

She quickly nodded. "Yeah, it's me."

"Yeah... but how can I know? Answer a question only the real Twilight would be able to..."

Twilight gave her a blank look. "You know very well that the-the spirits already know everything I do."

Applejack winced. "Damn, you're right."

Twilight then smiled again. "Do I seem like I'm lying though?"

She glanced at her pensively for a moment, before answering: "E'Nope."

"Good. I guess I'll just have to trust you too, then, I suppose," Twilight nodded.

"Don't worry, I won't bite," she smiled.

Twilight then drew closer to Applejack, glancing at her brother. She gulped at the sight.

"Shining... no..."

In certain areas of his body, his veins were puffing out: black in color. Around his eyes were a deep shade of purple. The Prince of Light had seen better days.

"Any ideas what happened to him?" Applejack whimpered.

"I- I don't know," Twilight said, furrowing her brow in confusion.

Suddenly, her ears perked. In all her shock upon awakening, she had failed to hear the voices growing near the room:

"We're almost there! Draw weapons! If the Red Ranger is dead, kill any demons you see!"

"You hear that?" Applejack gulped.

"Yeah," Twilight said, standing stun and staring at her brother. She attempted to think, but her mind was a blur of thoughts.

Applejack's tone became serious. "Twilight, we gotta go."

She continued to stare.

"Twilight!" Applejack called, grabbing her to get her attention. "Look... I know you don't want to leave anypony, but they're gonna think we did all this! They'll take care of Shining, I swear!"

"What about the Princess?! What about Spike and Rainbow!" she cried.

And for the first time since the beginning of the ordeal, her eyes were watering.

"There's nothing we can do for the Princess, and Spike's just unconscious."

"But what about the wolf in black! We need to make sure she's brought to justice!"

A sigh came from behind her.

"She's right, Twilight. Time to go."

Twilight turned about. Rainbow was slowly getting to her feet, her body bruised and battered, and one of her wings clearly strained. The rest of her friends stood behind her, now apparently themselves again. They were as equally taken aback at the sight as she was.

"Princess!" Fluttershy squeaked, loping to her side. "W-What happened?! Did w-we do that?!"

Applejack shook her head. "No time to worry about it sugar: she's the same as Princess Cadance at the moment. Ain't nothin' we can do for her."

The group's ears perked again. The shouting was now on their floor.

"I'm going to put their heads on pikes if they hurt anyone! We shouldn't have trusted the Prince of Light! He was clearly influenced by emotion!"

"Damned straight. We aren't having another Sombra! MOVE MOVE MOVE!"

"And we'll be worse than her if we don't go..." Applejack gulped. "As in... you know."

Twilight suddenly nodded at that. "R-Right... right, we need to leave... but where to?"

"O-Out of the Empire, that's for sure!" Rarity shrieked.

"How though?! We're trapped in here!" Applejack exclaimed.

"Easy, I could fly you guys down to the ground!" Rainbow grinned.

Twilight shook her head. "Look at your wing! It's crooked!"

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "I'm sure it's fine. Don't you remember who your talking to here- OUCH OUCH OUCH OUCH BUUUUUUUCKKKKK!.!.! SON OF A BIT- I MEAN COW!.!.! COW! BUUUUUUCKKKKK!.!.!"

A flutter of her wings proved otherwise.

"Alright, Plan B!" Pinkie declared, an unusually worried look taking over her features.

"There was never a Plan A!" Twilight cried.

"Then Plan A!" Applejack called.

"Oooo, can we call it Plan X?" Pinkie said, her excited tone making a comeback. "Plan X sounds so much cooler!"

"CAN WE PLEASE STOP UNNECESSARILY LABELING THE PLANS!" Twilight shouted.

The others took a step back from her.

"Yes, ma'm," Pinkie squeaked.

Twilight began to take deep breaths, calming herself. A moment later, as if it had been injected with caffeine, her brain came to life again.

Suddenly, Twilight grinned. "Wait a second: BRAIN BLAST!"

"A superpowered mind," Pinkie sang, bouncing. "A trustworthy canine!"

Twilight blinked, giving her a blank look. "Er... right."

The shouts in the hallway were now right on top of them.

"Second guest room on the right! Remember your orders, storm troopers! If it's bad: don't ask for any identification!"

FOR THE EMPIRE! HOORAH!

Twilight then cleared her throat. "Alright, plan of action!"

Pinkie put on a pleading look.

Twilight sighed. "Plan... X."

Pinkie put on a wide grin, as Twilight shook an incredulous head.

"Come on, Twi, quit horsin' around, they'll be in here any second!" Applejack shouted.

"Right!" Twilight nodded, before turning to Rainbow. "Rainbow, you go out there and distract the guards. Keep them as busy as you can... mislead them if possible."

"You mean I get to trick people?!" she grinned. "Awwwweeesooome!"

With that, she dashed into the hallway, as Twilight turned to Rarity. "As for you, Rarity, I hope you can get used to those claws very quickly..."

Rarity raised an eyebrow, though a second later, a smile began to form.

A platoon of nearly thirty Imperial Troopers clanked down the hallway, as rapidly as they could with the heavy armor they wore.

"For the first time in a thousand years, we're taking control of our own damned destiny!" one proclaimed.

Another nodded. "We'll prove that the Crystal Empire needs no damned babysitter, not even Equestria!"

"Oh hell yeah-"

A chuckle interrupted him.

"Woah! Talk about a bruised pride!"

At that, they halted, gawking at the blue pegasus who had just burst out of a room before them.

"You!" the squad leader, distinguished by his glistening, red armor shouted. "Where are they?! Are they still in there, or have they fled?!"

Rainbow cocked her head. "You talking about my friends?"

The squad leader snapped forward, glaring at her. "Do NOT trifle with me. WHERE ARE THE WOLVES?!"

Saliva flew from his mouth, nearly landing on Rainbow.

She winced, waving a hoof in front of her face. "Ew, dude... and I thought they had bad breath."

Rainbow then smirked. "But yeah, if you're looking for Twilight, then I'm afraid your princess is in another castle. Well... floor, that is."

The leader gazed at her pensively. "You're sure of this? And what happened to your wing?"

Rainbow put on a sheepish grin. "Er... flying accident. But yeah, I'm sure!"

There was a moment of silence as the squad leader seemed to weigh his options. Finally, he smiled slightly.

"Hmph, I figured. Your reputation proceeds you, Hero of the Skies. We'll sweep another floor." He glanced at his troops. "About-face! Make haste to the fourth level!"

"By your will, squad leader!"

They then began a ferocious march out of the corridor.

Rainbow took a deep breath, a prideful smile on her face. "Woah... that's gotta be my best prank yet. Gotta love reverse-psychology." She faked a wave at the soldiers. "Seeya, suckers."

"EEEEEEP!"

A distinctively Fluttershiish squeak came from the room.

Rainbow closed her eyes. "Oh crap..."

With that, the squad leader chuckled, turning back to her... though surprisingly with a respectful smile. The rest of the soldiers did the same.

"Ohohoho, well played. You aren't as stupid as they say."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Reverse-reverse psychology," he explained. "Fake that your friends aren't in that room, so that I'll think they are, but make it obvious enough that I'll think you're actually using reverse-psychology in order to trick me into thinking they're not there, but somewhere else!"

Rainbow's became slackjawed. "You're... you're pretty smart for a storm trooper, you know that?"

"Yeah, but he can't shoot for shit," another soldier mumbled.

"I heard that!" the squad leader snapped, before turning back to Rainbow, his eyes narrowed. "But yeah, play time and mind games are over, kid. It's time for the Empire to strike back. MOVE IN!"

"BY THE LIGHT OF CADANCE!.!.!

With that, the soldiers charged forth, though Rainbow held her ground.

"WAIT, THEY REALLY AREN'T IN THERE- OOF!"

A soldier shoved her aside. The door flung open. Archers stuck their bows into the room.

"NO!" Rainbow shouted.

They fired. The rest of the soldiers advanced... Rainbow fell to her flank.

"What?! Where the hell are they?!"

At that, Rainbow's eyes widened. A massive grin folded over her face as she glanced into the bedroom. Every sheet, every curtain, every tablecloth was gone... and a needle and thread was on the floor.

The squad leader marched over to the balcony. Hanging down from it was a ladder made of hastily stitched together cloth. In the distance, he could barely see five figures making haste down the streets of the Crystal Empire.

"Oldest trick in the book..." the soldier said, his eyes narrowing. "Well played, though we can still catch one fish..."

With that, he began to twirl about. "Alright, Rainbow Dash of Equestria, you are under arrest for impeding-"

He paused, his mouth hanging open. She was already gone.

With a defeated sigh, he fell to his flank, shaking his head in disbelief. "That pony... she's going to drive me to drink."

"Same here, sir!"

"Not with you, Darth Ruby, you sing when you get drunk."

"Dawww..."

As he stood up, however, a voice came from behind him.

"Mph, don't break the keg yet, soldier."

The squad leader slowly turned, gazing in awe at the Red Ranger as he rose to his hooves. He quickly snapped a salute. "Sir!"

"Call me Red Shard," he grunted, before glaring at the rope ladder. "And I don't care where those wolves are heading... we're going to find them, and let justice be done upon them." At that, he took a deep breath. "AND THEN, WE SHALL DRINK TO THE FALLEN!.!.!"

"HOOOORAH!.!.!

"Woah, who's in the cloak, though?" a soldier asked.

"And what's wrong with Prince Armour?!"

"And is that... is that Princess Celestia?!"

"Concerns, though only for a few of you," the Red Ranger nodded.

With one quick motion, he snatched an arrow from his quiver, one surrounded by a strange, black mist. Like a machine, he immediately snapped it onto his crossbow and locked it with a satisfying CLICK!

"But not all of us," he said. He then pointed towards two soldiers, and then at the Figure in Black. "You two, drag this meatbag out of here. You know where to take her."

"Yes, sir!"

He pointed to a unicorn. "You!"

"Sir?"

"Take the Prince of Light to the House of Healing. If he dies, I'm holding you responsible. After you're done, do the same for Princess Celestia. Do not buck up your teleports."

The soldier gulped. "Yes, sir."

He then turned, gazing over the rest of the soldiers.

"And as for the rest of you..."

He slung his crossbow on his back, his eyes narrowing.

"Let's hunt some demon."

The Part Where They Kill Them

Five wolves sped down the streets of the Crystal Empire, spreading panic wherever they roamed. Why they were so perturbed was beyond Twilight, yet her history on the Empire was still vague.

Whatever the reason, it wasn't doing them any good in trying to be stealthy.

"GUARDS! GUARDS! HELP!"

"Where did they come from?! Is it another invasion?!"

"It can't be... they were wiped out..."

"Obviously not!"

Twilight winced at their cries. Crystal ponies were running every which way. Some into houses. Some in the opposite direction. And some just stood there, stunned in fear.

"Uh.... nothing to worry about!" Twilight called. "Just your friendly neighborhood Elements of Harmony passing through!"

Their panic didn't seem to cease.

"It's no good!" Applejack huffed, loping as fast as possible towards the edge of the city. "These ponies are as paranoid as we were during the whole Changeling panic!"

"I-I just hope Rainbow's alright," Fluttershy eeped. "We shouldn't have left her behind like that..."

"She'll be fine, sugarcube! We gotta worry about ourselves for the moment!"

"You're right about that! Look!"

In the blink of an eye, a squadron of ten troopers appeared before them, a flash of blue light accompanying them, led by the same squad leader as earlier. Four unicorns shook their heads in a daze.

The quintet of wolves came to a screeching halt.

"HALT!" the leader cried, before taking a deep breath. "Please... you've earned my respect, you're smarter than I remember the wolves being... so I'm willing to you one chance! Surrender now and you'll be treated decently!"

"How can we know you're intentions are honorable?!" Rarity shouted.

"You have my word."

Twilight and the group glanced at each other.

"When Shining wakes up..." Applejack whispered. "He does seem sincere..."

"You're right," Twilight nodded, before glancing back at the squad leader. "Alright... what are you terms-"

A very familiar (and now annoying) voice interrupted them:

"Belay that! Close in on them before they escape!"

Pinkie sighed at that. "Oh great... gogo crystal rangers..."

Surely enough, speeding up behind them was the Red Ranger and a quintet of green-cloaked soldiers. In strict unison, they drew crossbows.

"Ooooo, it's like a Hearth's Warming Eve squad!" Pinkie bounced.

"Sir, with all due respect, are you sure of this?! They speak like the Elements of Harmony... and they aren't using their magic," the Squad Leader noted.

"They aren't them!" the Red Ranger snapped. "Do you remember what Sombra made us do? What they did in return?! We are not letting our return be ruined by them and their Eldrich Abomination for a god! Let the dead lie! And the living dead die! Therefore, I'm giving you a direct order: CLOSE IN! NOW!"

The squad leader paused for a second, before throwing a salute.. "Sir, yes sir!"

Both sides moved forward, the archers on both prepping to fire.

"Ooooo nelly," Applejack gulped. "This is it... I love you, girls..."

Pinkie raised an eyebrow. "Like... Rainbow Dash type of love, or..."

Applejack gave her a blank look. "Really? We're about to die, Pinkie!"

Pinkie grinned. "Always wanted to go out smiling!":

However, before the first arrow flew, a wailing cry came from an adjacent street, one high-pitched, as if coming from a child.

"HELP! HELP! WOLF!"

The Red Ranger gasped, his hoof on the trigger. "There's another one?!"

"Apparently!"

"Must be that Rainbow Dash... she was probably already a wolf using illusionary magic!"

Another soldier raised an armored hoof. "Uh... I'm not so sure... they never used that type of magic bef-"

"RANGERS! ON ME!" Red Shard ordered, before snapping towards the squad leader. "The rest of you: guard these bitches!"

Rarity's eyes widened in shock. "Oh, now that's just - YOU CAN TRY TO KILL US, BUT THAT'S CROSSING THE LINE!"

The Red Ranger was already gone, the others in green following him.

Twilight glanced at her friends.

Her friends glanced at her.

They nodded.

"BREAK!"

With that, they literally launched themselves towards a series of houses on the right side of the street. Arrows flew by them, but did not strike. Twilight was the first in, nearly clawing down the door of it.

"EEEEEP! GET OUT! GET OUT, DEMONS! THE POWER OF LIGHT COMPELS YOU!"

Running out of a nearby kitchen came an older female Crystal Pony carrying a strange looking cross... and levitating a rolling pin...

"Uhhhh. sorry!" Twilight squeaked, before darting through the remainder of the first floor, the Crystal Pony chasing them all the way. Out the back door they went, into a small garden area.

"AND STAY OUT OF MY GARDEN!" she snarled after then.

"Sweet Celestia... is anypony NOT trying to kill us?!" Applejack gasped.

Her answer came via a single statement:

"Yo! How you guys doin'?!"

The group's eyes widened. Standing on the adjacent street was none other than Rainbow, who strangely, did not seem exhausted what so ever, and even more strangely, no longer had a crooked wing.

"Come on!" she called, signalling them to follow. "Let's get the buck out this nutty Empire!"

They eagerly complied.

"Rainbow... how the heck did you get here so quickly?!"

"Easy!" Rainbow smirked. "I flew!"

"With a strained wing?" Applejack asked skeptically. "Yuh-huh..."

"No pain, no game!" Rainbow said, her smirk turning to a grin.

Applejack's skeptical glance became fiercer.

Rainbow sighed. "Alright, alright... I might have stopped at a potion shop... but man do the Crystal Ponies know how to make healing stuff! Fixed my wing right up! Cost me a ton of bits though..."

Twilight threw her a wide smile. "Thanks, Rainbow."

"Heh, you're welcome. But yeah, that wasn't the only awesome thing I did!"

"What else did you do?" Fluttershy asked.

Rainbow Dash smirked. "Let's just say... I'm good with kids."

Only a minute earlier, two streets away, Rainbow Dash landed in front of a young filly, her eyes widening in delight.

"Woah! Are you Rainbow Dash?!"

"The one and only! Love to chat, but yeah... I'm kind of in a hurry... but could you do me a huge favor!? I'll uh... do a sonic rainboom or something later for you!"

The filly glanced to the side. "Ehhh... I've kind of already seen one."

"How about an autograph?!"

"You don't have a pen..."

Rainbow Dash furrowed her brow, before sighing. "How about five bits?"

The filly grinned. "Deal!"

Rainbow grinned back. "Alright... this is really important: I need you to cry wolf!"

The filly raised her eyebrows, before glancing to the side, a lucrative smile on her face. "Er... I dunno... I could get into big trouble for that..."

Rainbow Dash closed her eyes.

"Ugh, alright, how many bits do you want?"

The filly's smile widened.

In the present, the group loped and flew nearly twice the speed of an average earth pony.

"But yeah! Kids love me! All I had to do was ask and she was like: 'Yeah, totally, Rainbow Dash! I can't wait to tell my friends about helping you later! I'll be the coolest filly in school!'"

"That's so cuuuute!" Fluttershy peeped, apparently forgetting the current circumstance.

"Eh, it was no biggie," Rainbow shrugged. "Who else is going to look out for you guys?! Seems like everypony is trying to kill you!"

"Everypony is trying to kill us!" Applejack growled.

Suddenly, Rarity gulped, pointing ahead. She shivered at the sight.

"Quite correct... A-And I think this is the part where they kill us..."

The ground shook. A heavy pounding sound could be heard.

"Y-Yes, this is the part where they kill us," Fluttershy squeaked.

Marching into the end of the street before them, and blocking the way between the city and the snowy tundra beyond, came a massive entity. It seemed to be made of crystals, and was nearly two stories tall. The only visible features that could be seen on it were a pair of glowing dots for eyes: both fixed upon the quintet.

"Golem!" Twilight shrieked, and the group halted in their treks.

Then, to make matters worse, the squadron of soldiers from the street over lined up before the beast, spears and bows at the ready. None said a word, save for a single soldier:

"Hey, demons! Guess what?!" he snarled. "This is the part where we kill you!"

And the column began to march forward... silent as a mouse save for the golem's footfalls.

Loyalty

Two unicorns dressed in medical garbs glanced down at Shining Armor, his form nearly lifeless as it lay upon a bed. His veins pulsed with unknown, blue liquids, and his entire face was becoming a web of them.

"I've seen a lot of crazy crap in my day, Dr. Esuoh, but even during the war, I've never seen this kind of thing."

"A new wolf magic? Developed by the seemingly 'immortal' wolf encountered?"

"It isn't Lupis, I can say that for sure..."

Esuose chuckled. "And this is why I like you, Dr. Xoc."

"Seriously though, I can't believe I'm saying this, but either the Prince has been eating too many blueberries, or we're dealing with some sort of modern curse. Maybe we should contact someone in Equestria. Maybe they'd know about it?"

Dr. Esuose shook his head. "I'm not too sure we can-"

"RAUUUUGH!.!.!"

The two doctor's eyes widened. The prince's eyes had flung open, completely covered in blue veins.

"P-Prince Shining?"

"What's going on?! Where is she!"

The two doctor's blinked. "Y-You mean your sister?"

"Is she well?!"

They glanced at each other. "Uh... do you want to tell him?" Dr. Esuohe grunted.

"You friggin' wuss... fine!" Dr. Xoc said, shooting him a glare. "Your sister... is currently being pursued."

"By who?"

Dr. Xoc took a deep breath. "Your army."

Across the city, the golem rocked forward, his hardened feet crumbling the cobblestones lacing the street as it moved. Its 'gaze' was set upon the six, as were the eyes of a multitude of soldiers.

As they spoke, a half-moon slowly moved upward on the horizon. Luna was in control now.

"OK, here's the plan!" Rainbow cried. "I'll grab one of you, fly out of the Empire, and then come back. Sound good?"

Twilight shook her head, gulping. "I don't think that's going to work. There's not enough time to get all of us and they're bound to have pegasi on air patrol by now."

"Then what do we do?!" Rarity shouted. "I love gems, but not when they're marching towards me!"

"We figure out how to take it down, then!" Rainbow Dash called.

"With what?! Our teeth?!" Applejack grunted. "I ain't biting into that!"

"Archers, knock arrows!" called the squad leader. "Lancers, move in!"

With that, Twilight turned towards Rainbow, her eyes drowning in sorrow. "Rainbow... you've helped us out so much already... but don't make it all for nothing."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

The archers knocked arrows as six ponies armed with swords and spears sped forward.

"Fly out of here. Head towards Equestria and save yourself."

"What?!"

"Archers, take aim!"

"You heard me."

"I'm sorry then, I must have mistaken 'run away' for 'stick with my friends until the very end.'"

The lancers let loose a battle cry as they sped around the marching golem.

Twilight winced. "Rainbow, don't do this to us... FLY!"

"Fly?" Rainbow smirked. "I can do that."

The archers pulled the strings back of their bows...

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "Don't you dare."

"Who dares? I dare! Story of my life! And of yours, in a way," she sighed. "This isn't the part where they kill you, Twilight. I'll make sure of it."

With one final wink, she sped off towards the column of soldiers, now flying a good thirty feet in the air, her wings flapping fiercely in the winds.

"RAINBOW!"

The archers suddenly switched aim to her, and fired, but Rainbow was prepared. With agility she could barely muster, she suddenly flung herself downward, and the arrows flew past her before harmlessly smashing into the street. However, in the meantime, the lancers closed in, the squad leader among them.

"Nononono!" Fluttershy screeched. "I don't want her to die for us!"

The sergeant narrowed his eyes. "Unicorns! Blind her!"

"Understood!"

Four narrow beams of light extended from their horns. Rainbow winced at it, though continued to blindly move in.

"I can't beat them!" Rainbow shouted behind her. "But I can buy you time! Get out of here, now!"

"We're not leaving without you!" Pinkie shouted.

Rainbow let loose a growl. "You're not stupid, Pinkie. Don't start acting like you are! GO!"

Rainbow then landed on her hooves. Swords and spears grew near.

"DON'T KILL HER!" the squad leader shouted. "She's not who we're after! Take her with non-lethal force! Unicorns, relieve suppression!"

"By your will, sir!"

Suddenly, the unicorns' beams of light were extinguished, though Rainbow's eyes were now adjusting to the darkness.

Her ears were all she had.

She heard something swinging, and felt three wooshes coming from a low point. Acting on instinct, she surged upward in response, just as the world came into focus... as well as a brilliant half-moon on the horizon as the sun completed its descent. A growling sergeant glanced up at her as well...

"Loyalty!" the sergeant snapped. "Loyalty to your friends! Isn't that what you represent?! Do you really want to die for them when they wish for you to live?! Is THAT being loyal?!"

Rainbow Dash let loose a growl, soared downward, and slammed her frontal hooves into the sergeant, knocking him backwards, right in the path of the golem. His sword was flung from his teeth.

"You don't know a damned thing about loyalty!" she shouted. "You obey orders like a mindless drone. How about you have a little loyalty to your conscience?! HUH?!

As she shouted, the golem literally marched over the two. It made strange, glass-breaking sort of noise, before a series of crystal shards shot forth from its 'arms.'

The five wolves shrieked as the shards barelled for them, only missing them by an inch as they dashed to both sides of the street.

"Forget this!" Applejack howled. "How about we show a little loyalty ourselves?! If we die, we go out fighting with Rainbow."

"She's right," Rarity nodded. "I'm no warrior, but this is what I'd prefer."

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes. "Nobody messes with my friends... I'm with you."

"To the great Eternal Dream!" Pinkie bounced.

Twilight nodded, taking a deep breath. "For 'equillibrium.'

"ATTACK PATTERN ALPHA!" Pinkie squealed.

With that, the five wolves charged forth, directly towards the golem. It let loose another strange, glass-like noise, before bringing down two massive fists towards them.

"BREEEEAK!" Twilight shouted.

The five broke into two groups, cicling around the beast. Its fists dived forward, smashing into the cobblestone road and creating two, massive craters.

The golem let loose a hiss, quickly turning towards Twilight and Applejack. The beast let loose a hiss, before raising its arms to prepare for another crystal blast.

"In there! Go!" Applejack shouted, pointing towards a nearby alleyway.

They sped down it... only to realize that there was a brick wall at the end of it. The began thumping to the entrance, its massive figure shadowing the two mare-turned-wolves.

In the meantime, the remaining three circled about the back of it, only to meet the remainder of the lancers. They charged at them, hissing, with spears and swords.

"COME AT ME, MEAT!" Fluttershy roared, startling even the soldiers.

Pinkie and Rarity became slackjawed.

Fluttershy blinked. "Did... I just say- EEP!"

She barely ducked, a spear grazing her mane.

CLACK!.!.!

An iron-covered hoof collided into Rainbow, sending her reeling back. She spat out blood, hissing at the sergeant.

"Damnit, don't make me do this!" the sergeant snarled.

"Conscience starting to kick in?!"

"No, I don't want Prince Shining to torture me before I die!"

"What? For fighting us all?! He wouldn't kill you for following orders. He's not like that! You all have been under Sombra's hoof for too long. You're so damned angry you're becoming what you hate! Paranoid... vicious!"

"Sombra WAS what we hated!" the sergeant snarled. "He was a hybrid: an abomination! Do you know what he made us do to his own kind?! It was the reason they retaliated in the first place! Yet they had no sympathy for our plight..."

"What are you even talking about?!"

"And I believe you! Equestria doesn't even care to inform their populace about us! They have no idea what we've been through!"

"It doesn't matter what you've been through: get over it! You're just trying to justify your bullshit by whining about your past!"

The sergeant grunted. "You spoiled brat! Just 'get over it', huh?! Oh how I wish I had grown up in Equestria... maybe I'd have the same sentiments, too! RAUUUUGHHHH!.!.!"

With that, he blew steam out of his snout and charged forth towards the Hero of the Skies.

Down the street, the golem prepared to fire its shards. Applejack and Twilight hugged each other, shivering.

"The Eternal Dream... I wonder if it's real," Applejack whispered. "I just hope... it doesn't hurt to get there."

Twilight smiled at her. "Guess we'll find out together, huh? I was never fond of having to live forever, anyway... and you... you'll be able to-"

Applejack smiled back at her. "Hopefully."

However, just as the golem's shard began jutting out of it, it suddenly halted... before going limp.

Twilight blinked. "W-What in the world?"

Rarity side-stepped a spear, her new legs giving her surprising agility... and combined with her strangely enhanced eyesight, she found combat to be strangely easier than in her pony form.

However, another soldier was closing in on her... his sword shimmering in the moonlight.

"Go for the neck!" Pinkie shouted, busy battling another soldier.

"W-What?!"

"JUST DO IT! It's the only way we can win this!"

"Are you insane?! I'm not-"

"ALL FORCES! STAND DOWN, NOW!"

The group gasped, wide-eyed, as a black-cloaked figure walked down the street. Its face was mostly obscured, save for the

"That voice..." Rarity blinked. "Shining Armor."

"P-Prince Shining?" the sergeant gulped. "P-Pleasure to see you."

"Yes, it is!" the Red Ranger snarled, him and his squad of four finally arriving upon the scene. "He can help us take out these damned things!"

"W-What of the extra wolf?!"

He narrowed his eyes. "There was no extra wolf..."

With that, Shining twirled towards him, and with a strangely cold, placid voice, uttered: "You will not touch them."

The Red Ranger held a betrayed expression. "You can't be serious. These wolves just made a joke out of Princess Celestia. If I didn't kill the prime wolf-"

"Enough! Tell me... did they use magic at all during the battle?"

The Red Ranger blinked, turning towards the sergeant, who shook his head.

"Can you provide me a reasonable explanation as to why they wouldn't?"

"I... I cannot."

"Then I can only assume that your judgement has been... tainted by the past."

"P-Prince!"

"You are one of the Empire's honored soldiers... so I will not relieve you of duty... but for now, you are ordered to take a leave of absence."

The ranger's soldiers gave cries of protest, though the Red Ranger quickly silenced them.

"I beg you to reconsider, my prince."

"My choice is made. Leave now or be forced to..."

The Red Ranger took a deep breath. "Very well..." He narrowed an eyebrow. "Though I must ask... your cloak? A new fashion statement, perhaps?"

"You wish to know? Very well."

Suddenly, he his hood off, revealing his blue-vein-colored face. The group stared at him, dumbfounded.

"Shining! What happened to you?!" Twilight squealed, finally gathering the nerve to dash towards him. The rest of her friends did as well.

Shining gazed at her with cold eyes. "A... condition I've acquired."

The Red Ranger slowly nodded. "Indeed... very well then, my Prince. I shall take my leave."

"And so will we," one of his squadmates grunted.

"Good, I'm glad you're not wasting any more of my time..."

The Red Ranger shot him a glare, before him and his squad galloped off.

"Shining... are you OK?" Twilight said, glancing at him with a concerned expression. "I would be angry too, but... you seem..."

He took a deep breath. "Out of it? I am... really. I'm having trouble thinking. But I know that I'm making the right call." He then turned towards the sergeant and his squad. "I will be escorting the six of them to Canterlot and ask for Princess Luna's assistance in the matter, Sergeant Magma."

"By your... will, sir," he gulped.

"What about Spike?! Is he alright?!" Twilight gasped.

"He's still unconscious," Shining spoke. "He seems to be in a temporary coma, or so the doctors say. Without him, we can't contact Canterlot as easily as we did with Princess Celestia."

"So... nature hike?" Applejack smirked.

Shining nodded towards her, forcing a smile. "One to remember."

Emerging Crescent

A dreamless sleep had overtaken Twilight, one that had lasted until this moment. She had no idea how long she was out, though she did notice a sudden change in temperature.

"Hey, Twilight... you up yet?"

"Mmmph..." she grumbled.

At that, however, she winced slightly. Something was wrong with her voice. It was its usual self, but more gruff... almost growl-like.

"Come on wolf-girl!"

At that, her eyes widened. And soon, it was all coming back to her. The forest, the figure in black, the being in her mind... though nothing beyond that. However, memories weren't the only thing coming into her vision:

Rainbow Dash and Spike were before her, both looking perplexed and relieved. They stood before a large, ornate bed, in a room she had slept in before: one of the Crystal Palace's guest rooms. Fancy and extravagant... and filled with crystal furniture.

"Ugh.... did you just call me wolf-girl?" Twilight groaned.

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash said, with a telling false, beaming smile.

Twilight shook her head, cringing. "What? What are you talking about?"

"Rainbow... this is not a good idea," Spike groaned.

"Er.... yeah..." Rainbow coughed.

Twilight took a deep breath. "What in the world happened? Is there something wrong with me? My voice sounds weird..."

"Really? I think it sounds pretty cool to be honest," Rainbow smiled.

Spike nodded in agreement. "Actually, yeah, it kind of does."

"Ugh! Will somepony please just tell me what's going on?!" Twilight grumbled.

With that, Spike and Rainbow Dash glanced at each other, their expressions stern.

"Mirror?" Spike asked.

"Definitely."

With that, Rainbow trotted over to a nearby nightstand, before retrieving a mirror for Twilight. She then approached the bed.

"I can just levitate it," Twilight sighed.

Rainbow Dash gulped. "Uhhh.... that could be a-"

"What the hay?! Why isn't my magic working!"

"Hoooo boy," Spike sighed.

With that, Twilight brought two paws up to her forehead, feeling around for a horn that was no longer there.

Her eyes widened. "MY HORN IS MISSING?!" She then gasped, glancing at the paws she had failed to notice. "Oh my... gosh. Why do I have paws?!"

Rainbow Dash winced again, smiling sheepishly, before finally holding up the mirror before her.

Twilight blinked, stunned. "This is... this is impossible. I must be dream-"

Spike pinched her.

"OUCH!"

"Sorry, knew that was coming," he chuckled.

"UGH, WHY ARE YOU TWO NOT TAKING THIS SERIOUSLY?!" Twilight roared, finally throwing the covers off her and getting on her feet.

"Woah!" Rainbow cried. "You might want to take it-"

Twilight's jaw nearly fell. "I feel so... light. Where are my hooves?!"

Suddenly, she darted in front of a mirror, nearly freezing in shock.

"Easy..." Rainbow sighed.

There was nearly a minute of awkward silence, before Twilight finally managed to stutter out:

"I'm... I'm a wolf?"

"Yeah..." Rainbow said. "But it's cool! Seriously. Even if Princess Celestia can't manage to fix this-"

Twilight twisted about, panic striking her face. "W-What?! You mean she's coming here?! To the Crystal Empire?!"

"She is," Rainbow nodded. "But uh... what's the big deal?"

Spike gave her a look. "You're sure you know her?"

"BIG DEAL?! I can't let her see me like this! She'll think I might have made a mistake with my magic! She'll never trust me as an alicorn again if that's the deal! Heck, maybe she won't even trust me as a unicor-"

"Deep breaths, Twilight," Spike said. "Remember what the princess told you."

Twilight shuttered, before doing just that.

"Look, nopony knows what happened to you and the others," Spike explained.

"T-The others are like this too?!"

"Er... yeah," Rainbow said.

"But- I don't think Princess Celestia is going to think it's you're fault. If anyone, it was that weird guy with the cloak."

Twilight's pupils dilated.

"It was a she," she said softly. "And she was just like me..."

Twilight was in the center of a tornado of snow

She struggled. She gasped.

The figure in black flung off her hood. Two white eyes were there to greet her, situated above a pointed snout.

"Either way it's no big deal," Spike shrugged. "Princess Celestia will know what to do."

Twilight nodded. "Yes... you're probably right..." She then gave him a suspicious look. "She did say she would be able to, right?"

Spike glanced away from her. "The letter we got said that we should uh... keep you comfortable, and that she'll be there soon."

"Ugh, why does she always have to be so... vague?!" Rainbow grunted.

"Uh huh..." Twilight narrowed her eyes. "What did the letter really say, Spike? What's missing?"

His right foot twitched ever so slightly: Twilight's cue that he was lying.

"Uh..."

Suddenly, he smiled brightly.

"Oh, and she said we should uh... keep you out of moon light! Yeah!"

"She wants me confined to the Crystal Palace, doesn't she?" Twilight groaned.

"Er... yeah," Rainbow said, scratching the back of her head. "It's uh... nothing serious. It's just that wolves have always been considered... you know... horror stories, and that goes double for the Crystal Ponies. Imagine if wolf-girls started to walk around town: even if they looked like you."

Twilight sighed. "I suppose that's a decent reason..." She then lifted an eyebrow. "Are the others awake, yet?"

Rainbow shook her head. "Still out. Sorry, Twi."

A rumble could then be heard coming from Twilight's direction. "Mph... I'm really hungry. Is there any food around here?"

"Er, yeah! Nearly forgot about him!"

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Who?

"Oh uh.. Shining... Shining brought a few apples over earlier. He was really worried about you... but I think he's dealing with something at the moment."

Twilight's eyes widened.

"Cadance!" she suddenly blurted out. "What happened to her? Is she alright?!"

Rainbow and Spike glanced at each other, before looking back at Twilight.

"She's... not feeling too well at the moment. She hasn't spoken a word since we brought her back... she just kind of... stares. Princess Celestia said she'd take a look at her."

"Then it's all my fault," Twilight said softly.

Rainbow Dash shot her a stunned expression. "How is it your fault?!"

"Because I was there! I had that crystal in my grasp! The one the wolf had... it must have been the source of what happened to Cadance!"

Spike shook his head. "Don't beat yourself up, Twilight, especially it was no more your fault than it was Shining's or Cadance herself."

"You make it sound so easy. 'Don't beat yourself up.' I'm sorry, but I just can't do that!"

Spike sighed slightly. "Look, Twilight. There's no reason to assume Princess Celestia won't know how to make her better. Just take it easy..."

"TAKE IT EASY?!" Twilight snapped. "The five of us were nearly mind-controlled, turned into wolves, and Cadance is in some weird coma! And you're telling me to take it easy?!"

Spike nodded with a sarcastic frown. "Yeah, pretty much."

"UGH!" Twilight groaned. "I need a damned apple... or maybe a tranquilizer dart..."

She winced in concentration, glancing at the basket of apples sitting on her nightstand, before nearly face-clawing herself.

"Oh, that's right, no magic..." she sighed.

She then grudgingly trotted over to them stand. Awkwardly, she reached her claws out and lifted one to her mouth, or snout as it was now. With two fanged teeth, she bit down.

She lowered her eyebrows.

"Why does this feel so weird?" she groaned.

"It's uh... your fangs," Spike noted.

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Oh, great, I have fangs now, too?! Well, I hope wolves were omnivores then..."

With a bit of effort, she carved off a piece of the apple, before wincing in disgust.

"If I eat this, I'm sure I'm going to puke..." she winced.

"At least try it," Rainbow Dash said hopefully.

Twilight thought for a second, than nodded. "Alright... I'll try."

She swallowed hard... and waited. A minute of silent apprehension followed.

"So... all good?" Rainbow asked.

"No... all bad," she said in a disgusted tone, as her cheeks began to puff out green.

"Yeah... you're not looking too good," Spike noted.

Twilight groaned in pain, before making headway to the adjacent bedroom. "I'll uh... be right back."

Spike and Rainbow winced a second later.

"Alright, so you have to eat meat!" Rainbow said, smiling as she held a plate of imported elk meat up to a bed-bound Twilight. "It's no big deal. Lots of people eat meat. The griffins... the dragons - well, they like gems the most, but they can. I remember the first time I saw Gilda do it... it was kind of nasty, but I got used to it."

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "You're asking me to eat another animal."

"Hey, elk aren't exactly sentient..." Rainbow shrugged.

"Yes, but they do feel emotion. They live, breath, and die just like us. I've never been a fan of the griffin's habit of farming them. Imagine what the brother of this elk must have felt like when he was slaughtered? His mother?"

"Twilight..."

"No, I can't do it. I'll fast until Princess Celestia gets here. And there's no way the others would eat this, either. Fluttershy would resent anypony who did!"

"You mean anywolf, right?" Spike asked. "You are kind of-"

Rainbow elbowed him.

"Sorry, sorry!"

At that, Twilight took a deep breath, and then lifted herself out of bed again.

"But yes, Fluttershy would never-"

Suddenly, a distinct shriek could be heard echoing from somewhere else in the castle.

"Oh shoot!" Rainbow gasped, before darting towards the door. Before she exited, she turned towards Twilight. "I'll be back soon, Twilight. Take it easy, alright?"

With a few more flaps of her wings, she was gone.

Twilight then made her way to the door.

"Where are you going?" Spike asked.

"Where Rainbow is. I want to see what's wrong!"

Spike lifted a claw. "Uh... I'm not sure if you'd want to-"

Before he could finish, she was gone.

Spike groaned in annoyance. "Oh, son of a bitch."

He winced.

"Er... I mean... son of a..." He thought for a second, then shrugged. "Meh, screw it."

Twilight galloped down a red-carpetted, crystal laced corridor. The lack of the ability to teleport annoyed her, though she did notice a drastic increase in her galloping speed. And luckily, the corridors were completely vacant for the most part, save until she turned a corner towards the guest rooms.

"Hault!" A armored, crystal guard shouted, him and his partner blocking the way.

They quickly drew two shimmering swords, holding them in their teeth.

"What's the meaning of this?!" Twilight snapped. "Didn't Shining tell you I grew a little fur?"

"He did," the second guard grunted. "But we've received new orders from the Red Ranger. You are not to wander too far from your room."

"The Red Who?" Twilight said, lifting an eyebrow.

"The leader of the Empire's special operations."

Twilight let loose a sarcastic laugh. "This is ridiculous! Shining would never approve of that!"

The first guard narrowed his eyes. "He hasn't heard of it yet. He's... busy." He then took a menacing step forward, though Twilight held her ground. "You see, The Prince of Light is new to this world. We, however, are a thousand years behind the times. It's sad, but that gives us certain... advantages, in a way."

"Like what?!" Twilight snapped.

His partner snarled. "Because we know not to trust you, demon scum!"

"What did you just say?!"

The two guard's eyes widened. Twilight twirled about. Spike stood behind her, glaring at the guards.

"What are your names?" Spike grunted.

There was a moment of silence, before one of the guards shivered. "Uh... Private Sapphire."

He was quickly elbowed by the other. "Don't tell him your name, you idiot!"

"Too late," Spike smirked. "And unless you want your name spread about town by the Crystal Empire's number one dragon, I'd let my friend here pass. You do remember how she helped save your flanks, right? How badly do you want to keep your jobs?"

"Uh... yeah!" Sapphire quickly nodded. "Now that you mention it, I totally remember!"

"There's no indication that the real Twilight is still alive," the second snarled. "She's probably an impostor sent to infiltrate us... and then Equestria. You do at least care about them, don't you?"

"Yeah... totally doesn't sound like paranoia to me," Spike groaned, ignoring the comment. "Now, are you going to let us pass or not?"

At that, the first guard glanced at the other with a pleading expression on his face, nearly sweating bullets. The second sighed upon that.

"Fine, but if there's any indication she's a threat to the Empire-"

"Blah blah blah vague threat, blah blah blah stuff you won't carry out," Spike groaned, before signalling for Twilight to follow him. "Come on, Twilight. Wolf or not, you deserve to be with your friends."

Twilight gave him the first warm smile she could muster in days, before nuzzling him with her snout. "Thank you, Spike."

Spike merely smiled back, not even flinching. "Eh, I do what I can. Like saving an Empire, keeping you sane, and generally being awe-"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "You've been hanging around Rainbow for too long: come on!"

They darted passed the two guards, Twilight giving them a dirty look as she did, before arriving at the first of the guest rooms. A frantic voice could be heard from within.

"Nononono! I can't expected to be seen like this! What will ponies think?!"

"Oh come on, Fluttershy... it won't be so bad..."

"Never! NEVER!"

With that, Spike and Twilight nodded to each other before slowly entering her room. However, upon doing so, they immediately sweat-dropped.

"I'm sorry Rainbow, but this dress... I just can't wear it in public."

Standing before a mirror was a clearly wolf version of Fluttershy... in an overly sunny, girly dress.

"Ugh, sorry about this," Rainbow groaned, turning towards the newcomers. "I thought making her wear a dress would make her look a little less... imposing the stupid guards around here."

Twilight's jaw nearly dropped. "Wait... that's what that scream was about?"

"Oh no," Fluttershy said, smiling towards Twilight. "I uh... was a little startled about my new... image, but... it's alright, really."

Spike blinked, baffled. "So... you don't mind being a wolf?"

Fluttershy gave a chuckle. "Oh, of course not! What kind of hypocrite would I be to judge it? That would imply I was judging another creature as 'bad,' or 'frightening', when I try my hardest never to do that."

"B-But... b-but... wolves are feared on every corner of the continent!" Twilight gasped. "You don't care about that at all?!"

"Well... I do a little," Fluttershy squeaked. "But with my friends by my side... I won't worry too much about it. I just don't want my animal friends to be afraid of me, that's all. But they don't mind Barry the Bear..."

"Mmm... what about the eating meat part, though, Fluttershy?" Rainbow said skeptically.

Fluttershy winced. "That... I still don't know what to think about. But Princess Celestia will be here soon. I don't think I'll have to debate it much longer. I mean... I don't mind when other animals do it: they need to to survive. But me? I'm not sure..."

Rainbow gave a chuckle. "You are always full of surprises, you know that? And maybe being a wolf will help you with your assertiveness!"

Fluttershy shrugged. "I suppose, though I don't want to scare anypony." She then turned towards Twilight, smiling. "I'm being so selfish, though. How are you feeling, Twilight?"

Twilight gave a sarcastic chuckle. "Right now? Very confused. But... I'm glad you're alright. How are you feeling about not having wings, though?"

Fluttershy shrugged. "I was never good with them, anyway."

"Hah! Bullcrap!" Rainbow said, sticking her tongue out. "You were a master with them in a pinch."

Fluttershy blushed slightly. "Well... maybe I'll miss them a little. What about you, Twilight?"

She sighed. "I didn't have them for long. And I never liked flying, anyway... I prefer teleporting..." She winced slightly. "I hope I can somehow still do magic... but that... that white-eyed wolf was using a kind I've never seen. Who knows how long it could take to learn? If I can learn it at all..."

Fluttershy gave her a sympathetic look, before a knock suddenly came to the door.

"Come in!" she called.

She was met a slightly more gruff version of Applejack's voice. "Er, yeah... just don't be too shocked, Fluttershy."

"Yes, dearest. I assure you that we desire no harm."

"It's alright..." Fluttershy sighed.

"Okey doki lokey, we're comin' in then!" Pinkie called.

With that, a wolf version of Pinkie, Rarity, and Applejack entered. Upon seeing Twilight and Fluttershy, they immediately gasped.

"You're furballs now, too?!" Applejack said.

At that, Twilight smiled awkardly."H-Heh, guess so."

The group stood still for a second, gazing at each other warily. Though Twilight knew of their status beforehand... seeing them in the flesh was a shock to say the least. On one, very guilty paw she was relieved they were in the same boat as her, though on the other... what were they feeling about it? Would they hate it?

It was Applejack who answered the question, though Twilight wondered, if for once, she wasn't being truthful.

"Well, life was starting to get boring, anyway."