Shade of A Crystal Empire

by igotastewgoing

Rating: everyone
Tags: Spike, King Sombra, Adventure, Princess Celestia, Main 6, Princess Luna, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark
Length: 81140

An old foe returns, and Twilight Sparkle and her friends must find the strength to overcome seemingly impossible odds - and their greatest loss.

(ON HIATUS - SEE BLOG ENTRY FOR 3.28.14)
Twilight Sparkle's magic has gone out of control. Unearthly storms are coming out of the northern mountains to threaten the Crystal Empire. A scholar, stripped of everything by a cruel tyrant's curse, finds something terrible in the river. All of these things are pointing to something horrible on the horizon, but what is it? And can it be stopped in time?

It's a journey of unthinkable sacrifice where the unbreakable bonds of friendship are pitted against the insidious schemes of an ancient evil, across the lands of Equestria and the very fabric of time and magic itself.

Shade of A Crystal Empire is meant to be an Adventure Story in the spirit of the show. Imagine it like a feature film released in theaters that is a bit darker than a normal episode, but nothing that would be terribly out of place.

Published 2013-06-15 01:10:02 UTC
Last updated 2014-03-02 18:18:16 UTC

Prologue

PROLOGUE

Sharpsight didn't know for certain what it was that he had found. But if it was indeed what he believed it to be, it was the most important object he'd ever discovered. And the most horrible.

The crisp morning air carried with it the smell of spring and sunlight, but the chill of the river nipping at his legs clung to winter. Patches of snow still lurked to places hidden in shadow, as well as in drifts around rocks and in valleys and ditches. The runoff from the snow being melted by the sun had made the river swell and heave, roaring as much as it could given its small size.

The Crystal Empire Museum of History's small archeological expedition to the northern riverbanks had been intended to look for examples of plant life from long ago, taking advantage of the exposed layers of strata that the area was famously known for to search through hundreds of years of history in mere hours. All in all it was not one of the more exciting trips Sharpsight had led as head of the archeology department, but just being outside at this point had been a relief. As much as he was reluctant to leave his studies, the overwhelming volume of material that he had to catch up on was enough to drive a pony to the brink of insanity. This little diversion was a welcome change of pace.

But after seeing this…thing…the trip had now become something else entirely.

It had been hiding in the muck of the riverbank, barely visible save for the sharp point protruding ever so slightly from the mud under the water. Judging by the way it had been buried, Sharpsight estimated it had not sat there for more than a few months. It had most likely been washed downstream for some time before landing here. His keen vision had first noticed the small wake created by the tip as it barely crested the surface, leaving a thin line flexing in the current. Then upon closer inspection he had seen the deep crimson of the knife-like object, clashing with the brown mud and gray rocks of the riverbed. Using a small spade he had cleared away the sediment, kicking up brown clouds and muddying the water until he couldn't see it anymore. As he waited for the haze to be whisked away, the thing which sat on the bottom of the stream, now nearly fully uncovered, began to come into vision.

It was as he had suspected.

"Professor Sharpsight!" a voice called from the opposite riverbank. "We think we may have found the remains of some ferns!"

It was his assistant, Terra Ore. He wasn't sure how long he had been standing there in the hock-deep water just staring at his find, but as he was snapped from his trance he found his hooves to be numb from the cold. Not moving from the spot so as not to lose position of his find, he pivoted around and tossed her a slightly frantic looking smile.

"Ah! Yes! Ferns! Very good, Terra! That's very good! I'll be there shortly!"

Terra looked at him in puzzlement.

"Did you need help with something, Professor?" she asked.

"NO!" Sharpsight replied far too quickly. He then collected himself and lowered his voice, "No, no, no that's quite alright, Terra my dear. I've just, ah, got this confounded bit of gum stuck on my hoof and I'm trying to get it off in the water, don't you know?".

"I see," she said. "Well, we're right over there, when you're ready. We've already started the excavation."

"Wonderful. Just wonderful," Sharpsight said with a smile. The expression remained on his face unmoving until Terra turned around and started back to the rest of the group. She only looked back once, eyebrow raised, but Sharpsight didn't budge until she had rounded the turn in the river and was out of sight.

As soon as she was gone, he whipped back around and dove his hooves into the water, drawing his find out of the muck. As the mud cleaned off in the river, sending more brown clouds downstream, it was finally bare in all its horrible glory. Sharpsight felt the weight of the moon in his hooves.

He could barely stand the sight of it. Quickly taking his pack off and shoving it inside, he stuffed it beneath the books he had said he wasn't going to bring and the sleeping bag he had expected to not use. Trotting out of the water, he made a brisk pace following the shoreline south, back towards his students and home.

Terra and the others were busy with their find, a rather impressive specimen all told, but Sharpsight had little interest in plants as he made his way past them.

"Wonderful looking find, Terra," he said over his shoulder as he trotted past them in an obvious hurry. "I'm sure you're got everything well in hoof so I'll be taking my leave don't feel too well at the moment I shall see you all back at the museum great job everypony good day."

Terra and the others were too surprised to know what to make of that. Before they could say anything, Sharpsight was nearly out of range of polite conversation, and not too long after that he was beyond anything but shouting. And shouting at your professor wasn't very polite, so Sharpsight got away without having to explain one word further.

"Well, what in Equestria's gotten into him?" asked one of the interns.

Terra shook her head as she watched her boss make a line straight back to the Crystal Empire, his saddlebag bouncing heavily as he double-timed it across the shallow river, spraying droplets everywhere, sparkling as they were caught by the late morning sun.

"I have no idea."

Ms. Oldenburg was gone. Given the time she was most likely out to lunch. That was good. It wouldn't do to have her sticking her snout into things, as she always did. Not right now. He knew if she were here she'd chide him for leaving early or ask what he had in the bag or why he needed to be alone. He knew he would be unable to tolerate her irksome prying right at that moment. The last thing Sharpsight needed was another matronly lecture as if he were a foal. He was a noted scientist. Or at least he had been before fate had so cruelly taken that from him. All the same, he didn't need some old nag telling him how to be an archeologist.

Clearly he was still capable of great things. The proof was right in his bag.

He opened the door to his study. As he walked inside he took his pack off and set it on the table, then locked the door behind him. Turning around once more, his flank pressing against the cold metal knob, he stared for a moment at his pack, so innocuously sitting before him in the middle of the room.

The curtains were drawn as they had been for weeks, but the daylight peeking around the edges of the window lit the room with enough dim light so as to see. The thin rays of the sun that made it into the room stretched across the floor to highlight the dust motes floating in the stale air of the study. Sitting between two sharp beams, the table and the bag sitting on top of it seemed enveloped inside a pillar of shadow.

Or was that simply darkness coming from the bag itself?

Warily approaching the bag, Sharpsight took a deep breath. With shaking hoof, he undid the strapping on the side, and laid the contents bare. He removed the books on top. Then, with both fear in his heart and insatiable curiosity in his mind, he lifted the sleeping bag out as well.

And there it was.

Crimson red, angrily curved and wickedly sharp looking, it lay at the bottom of his bag. The shadows in the room seemed to get deeper, and a dull throbbing of wintry malice hummed in the silence of his study.

All the fear and terror and hopelessness that Sharpsight had felt for eons came rushing back. He wanted nothing more than to stop looking at it, but for some horrible reason he couldn't pry his eyes away. He wanted to smash it, to destroy it into a million pieces until it was too small to perceive.

And yet—somehow—he knew that he couldn't do that. This was the most important thing he'd ever been a part of. This could make a difference. The magic contained within must be truly staggering. The possibilities of what one could learn from it, if one were only to be brave enough to delve into it, were potentially endless. More so, this would make it so that nopony would ever question his skill or consider him useless again. He had found the most important artifact the Crystal Empire would ever know.

That was as it should be. He always knew he was meant to do great things.

Sharpsight. His name said it all. And soon everypony would know it.

He was the one who found King Sombra's horn.

A Thief In The Night?

CHAPTER ONE
A Thief In The Night?

"Spike, are you absolutely sure you haven't seen it?"

Twilight Sparkle's words were muffled through the dusty chest of scarves and cloaks that hadn't been opened in over a year. In fact, Twilight wasn't even sure that she had ever opened it since coming to Ponyville. The contents were reasonably nice as far as cloaks and scarves went, but many of them were of the "Grandma Sparkle made it for my birthday" variety, and Twilight didn't much fancy wearing a scarf with little green ducks on it, as admittedly cute as the ducks were.

There wasn't really much reason to look in that chest for the Alicorn Amulet. But desperate times occasionally call for illogical measures. Right now Twilight was buried halfway up her flank in it.

"I'm serious, Spike! It's important!"

"I know it's important, Twilight," her young dragon friend replied with an eyeroll she couldn't see. "You've been telling me that for the last forty minutes."

"Well, Spike," her stifled retort came from the chest as her tail swished back and forth, "If I've been nagging you about it, it's only because it's an object of incredible power!"

"Yeah," said the little dragon, rubbing his stomach. "The incredible power to delay meals."

Twilight popped her head out of the trunk. The duck scarf had wrapped itself around the unicorn's horn. She whipped her head around and gave Spike a look that could curdle milk.

"What?" he asked. "I'm just saying that my food clock went off half an hour ago."

Twilight raised an eyebrow.

"You have a food clock?"

He shrugged. "Well, it's really more internal." he said. "But yes, I do have an actual food clock in my bed. Just in case."

She reached up and grabbed the scarf off of her horn. Taking a deep breath and ignoring her friend's bizarre method of telling time, she started climbing out of the chest. Kicking off the random bits of cloth that had wrapped themselves around her legs, she headed straight to the kitchen to see if the amulet was hiding in that five pound bag of oats in the cupboard. It would be the third time she'd checked.

"Um, Twilight?" Spike said as she doubled-timed it past him, "I really think you should take it easy. I know the amulet is important and all, but I don't think you'll find it in there. That's not a magical amulet. That's breakfast. And anyways, it's closer to lunchtime."

The oats poured out of the bag. She had lost too much patience to be either tidy or subtle in her search. As she shoveled through the grain, throwing it over her shoulders and coating the floor behind her, the reality of her situation got more and more serious. And she was headed closer and closer to panic.

It had been a few months since the showboat who labeled herself The Great and Powerful Trixie had sauntered into Ponyville for the second time, sporting both the mysterious Alicorn Amulet around her neck and a serious grudge against Twilight. The amulet had given Trixie impossibly enhanced magic, and by using it along with some deceitful trickery she had been able to both take control of Ponyville and exile Twilight Sparkle from the town. It was only with the help of her friends and Trixie's own greed that Twilight had been able to separate the amulet from her, and she didn't want to imagine the damage Trixie could have done if she still possessed it.

What really worried Twilight was the effect it had had on Trixie. The Alicorn Amulet had changed her from being prideful and a little selfish to a pony who was wicked and crazy with power. There was still much that was unknown about the ancient and mysterious relic, but according to the only book she had that contained information on it, this seemed to be an inescapable side effect of wearing it.

It was true that Trixie was a show-off and a jerk, but she wasn't really evil at heart. All she had wanted was to be better than Twilight Sparkle and get some measure of pride back after Twilight had exposed her as a fraud that first time she had come to Ponyville. And true, as obnoxious as her brief reign as ruler of Ponyville had been, there wasn't any real danger besides having to do a lot of work - the worst of it being having to pull that absurd, wheel-less chariot of hers. And she had always chosen Snips and Snails for that duty, which suited most everypony just fine, since the common consensus was that they probably deserved it.

But what if somepony who was evil and wasn't stupid got a hold of it?

Twilight knew that the Alicorn Amulet had to be kept safe and out of hooves' reach. So she had put it in a magically locked box inside another magically locked box and had stuck it in a hidden compartment Spike had found behind some books in her library. Spike was the only other soul who knew where it was, but even he didn't know how to open it. She had been particularly proud of the magic locks she had enchanted the boxes with, as the spells had been several classes above what she should have been able to cast, and she was even able to give it a little personal touch by adding an extra step: Unless they knew the password, anypony who opened it would have their mane turned a bright green. It was only a little devious and wouldn't be much of a deterrent, but the concept had made her chuckle.

But when she went to get it after receiving the letter from Princess Celestia informing her that some high-ranking unicorns from the Magic Society of Equestria wanted very much to see and study it, the box that she had put the Alicorn Amulet in was gone. And there was no sign of it anywhere. At first she thought she had forgotten that she had taken it out, but the secret door hadn't been budged. And neither Spike or Owlowiscious had done anything with it. Of that she was positive. But that was about the only thing she was positive of.

That and the fact that it still wasn't in the oats.

Twilight felt the tears forming in her eyes. She blinked hard to clear them away, but that only served to make them bigger. One fell down her cheek and onto the oats. Hanging her head down low so Spike couldn't see her cry, she stood there in the middle of her kitchen, the contents of the bag piled up around her hooves. She didn't know what to do. And she was afraid.

"Twilight?" Spike said. Her sudden shift from manic to sullen troubled him.

She didn't say anything.

"Are you okay?" he asked her. "I was mostly joking about lunchtime."

She just stood in her oats, trying to collect her thoughts. Nothing was coming.

"I'm fine," she finally said, her voice low and unnaturally steady.

He slowly padded over to her to stand at her shoulder. Her purple hair hung over her face, the streak of pink and lavender in her bangs lay on her nose, swaying gently back and forth to brush across it. From his low vantage point, Spike could see the streaks of wet that had collected in her hair.

"Are you crying?"

She had forgotten Spike was much shorter than she was. Lowering her head wouldn't be of any use in hiding the tears. Through her haze of despair she actually managed a small chuckle as she lifted her head slightly to look around.

"I think I made a mess of breakfast," she said.

"Oh. Well, don't worry about that, Twilight. I'll clean it up."

She turned to look at him. A smile had found her way to her face, though there was little joy behind it.

"Thanks, Spike," she said. "I'm sorry that I made this mess. I'm just really worried about the amulet. I need to find it."

Spike reached up to put a small, scaly hand on her shoulder.

"I know," he said. "But don't worry. You're Twilight Sparkle! I've seen you find typos in a dictionary. If anyone can find it, it's you."

This time she did genuinely smile.

"It was crazy how they misspelled Y'Xonsfyr, wasn't it?" she said. "I mean, she was only the sixth most powerful camel in Saddle Arabia during the reign of Narn the Never-Parched."

Spike patted her shoulder. His eyes had glazed over slightly.

"Yeah," he said. "They really dropped the ball on that one."

Stepping out of the pile of oats, Twilight used a levitation spell to float a broom and dustbin over to herself and began sweeping. Spike grabbed them out of the air and started poking her in the rear with the bristles of the boom while giving her his orders.

"Oh no you don't. I've got this mess. You, on the other hoof, need to lay down or something. Take a nap."

Twilight hesitated as she considered the mess. It wasn't like her to leave the place in such disarray. But Spike was defiant, and like a little purple and green knight he thumped the bottom of the broom on the ground with a firm thud. With planted feet and pursed lips, he raised his eyebrows and jutted-out his chin to give his ultimatum.

"You. Are taking. A nap."

The broom pointed up the stairs. Spike didn't break the stare.

Twilight sighed.

"It looks like I don't have a choice," she said as she turned to go out of the kitchen.

"That's right you don't," came the reply from behind. "You'll feel better. I'll keep looking while you rest up. Maybe then we can write Princess Celestia and ask for advice or something."

"Please, Spike," she said after a groan. "Leave the Princess out of this until after my nap. I'm not in the mood to think about admitting to her that I lost something as important as the Alicorn Amulet. One freak out is all I need right now."

As she climbed her way up the stairs to the balcony that served as her bedroom, she looked around the small library that served as her house. Books were strewn about all over the place. Nearly every shelf was bare, their contents on the floor. Drawers yawned open, as did all the cupboards, closets, chests, boxes, and anything else that could be opened. The contents of those were mostly on the floor, too.

It's not here, she admitted to herself. I've looked everywhere. Someone took it. Someone took it right from under my nose.

Her stomach heaved at the thought.

She plopped down on the bed. Falling over on her side, she buried her head in the blankets with a soft thump and gave a deep sigh. She was done crying, but the tears on her face that hadn't dried began to seep into the sheets. After a short battle with her mind, trying in vain to untangle it enough to fall asleep, the blankets around her face were damp enough to be uncomfortable. She had to move.

Rolling to the other side of the bed, her hoof hit something under the covers. It was hard.

Sitting up, Twilight looked down at the foot of her bed. There was a small bump there.

It couldn't be.

Ripping off the covers, Twilight saw the same light brown oak. The same unicorn crest. The same little dent in the corner.

She removed the first lock.

She removed the second lock.

"Star Swirl" she whispered so as not to get green hair.

She opened it.

How is that possible?

* * *

"So lemme get this straight, sugar. You want us to just…what? Stand here all night?"

Applejack had no problem in keeping watch for her friend, but she would have preferred something closer to a plan.

"That's right, Applejack," Twilight said. "I need somepony to keep an eye out. Whatever is happening only happens when I sleep."

Every morning it was the same.

Every morning for the past six days, Twilight Sparkle had awoken to the box containing the Alicorn Amulet resting somewhere by her bed. Sometimes it was under the sheets, sometimes it was under the bed, sometimes it was on the nightstand next to it. Once it was balanced on the headboard. And there was never any trace of who had done it.

At first she simply tried staying up all night to catch the intruder, but that proved to be a waste of time. Nopony had shown up, and the box remained in its hiding spot. That is until the next night when, after Twilight had finally succumbed to sleep while sitting on the floor at the foot of her bed, she awoke to find the box laying on her pillow.

To say it was frustrating would be an understatement.

"Don't worry!" said Rainbow Dash. "Applejack and I have got this. Whoever's messing with you is gonna regret it!"

Twilight smiled as Dash spread her wings and flapped them in a display of moxie. The pegasus hovered slightly off the ground, barely able to contain herself from the excitement of catching the intruder.

"I'm glad to hear it," Twilight said. "But remember to be careful. I don't know who's doing this, but it possible that they possess some powerful magic."

Applejack shot her a smirk.

"Aw, horse feathers! Don't you go worryin' about that none," she said. "Ya'll picked the two toughest ponies in Ponyville! I'd like to see some rickety spell stand up to a good applebuckin'."

Applejack gave a kick with her rear legs to illustrate her point. Spike flinched as her hooves whipped past his face.

"Yeah," he said under his breath. "Just keep me out of range of either one."

Applejack's dog Winona gave a wag of her tail and a sharp bark in response to Spike's objection. They had brought her along as well, being renown as exceptionally watchful, even for a farm dog.

"That's right, little lady," her owner said. "Ain't nothing getting' past your nose, is it?"

Winona gave another bark.

"And when they realize they're hopelessly outclassed and make a break for it," Rainbow Dash added with another flourish of her wings, "There's no way anypony is gonna outrun these babies!"

"I'm sure they won't," Twilight said. "But please don't do anything rash."

Dash crinkled her nose a bit.

"Ah, fine." she grumbled. "But they're still getting a whoopin'!"

The sun was going down. The last rays of light slowly traced their way down the wall, casting orange beams across Applejack and Rainbow Dash's faces. Little motes of dust caught in the light danced wildly around them, still reeling from Dash's wings buffeting the air. The shadows around the house had taken on a deep purple hue, and the night was slowly creeping in. Twilight could feel a yawn coming. She'd hadn't slept well lately for obvious reasons, but now that her friends were here she felt a modicum of relief. As stressed as she had been lately, that little bit went a long way, and she felt her weariness catching up to her.

"Well," she said "I guess I'll leave you to it, then. I'm going to bed. It's been a rough week."

Applejack stepped forward and put a hoof around Twilight's shoulders.

"Get along then, girl," she said. "You look more tired than a sheep on a haystack!"

"I don't even know what that means," said Twilight. "But I'm going to bed. Feel free to make use of the house. And thank you both again."

She was out like a light in minutes.

"Huh," said Applejack as she scratched her head. "Is it…the sky?"

"No," said Rainbow Dash, "I said it's BIG."

"Well what in tarnation is bigger than the sky?"

"That's not a valid question! You're bad at this game."

The two of them had been sitting at the kitchen table for hours. Neither one of them knew what time it was, but it was late into the night, and attention spans were low and tempers were starting to run high. Applejack had been trying to guess Rainbow Dash's object in "Twenty Questions" for the past fifteen minutes, and the closest she had gotten had been elephant, which, according to the information she was getting, was bigger than both a breadbox and the moon.

"I'M bad at this?" the flustered pony spat out. "YOU'RE the one talkin' all kinds of nonsense!"

"What nonsense?" said Rainbow Dash. "I'll have you know I'm the reigning Twenty Questions Champion of Cloudsdale! Nopony's better at this game than I am!"

"Who were ya competin' against?" Applejack asked, eyebrows lowered. "Your pet turtle, Tank?"

Dash's wings shot up, their feathers ruffled.

"Turtles don't talk, dummy!"

Applejack sat back in her chair with arms crossed and expression sour.

"Wish you'd take after him."

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to say something that would probably have been in bad taste, but was silenced by a soft growl from under the table. Both ponies stopped their bickering and forgot about the game as Winona stared intensely at the door.

"What is it girl?" Applejack whispered. "Something outside?"

Winona slowly crept to the door. The hair on the back of her neck was bristling. She gave another low growl.

The two ponies sat in silence in the middle of the darkened tree-house. Outside the branches softly tapped against the windows, and inside the soft breathing of Twilight Sparkle and the louder light snoring of Spike could be heard. Besides that the house was dead quiet. The shadows suddenly seemed a bit deeper, the single candle on the kitchen table seemed a bit dimmer, and the high pitched ringing of the silence seemed a bit more ominous now. They would never admit it to each other, but at that moment both Applejack and Rainbow Dash felt a slight chill go up their spine.

Winona growled again. She was at the door now, and started scratching at it with her paw.

Applejack gave a small swallow.

"There's something out there," she said.

They looked at each other. Neither one of them volunteered to get up, and both had beads of sweat forming on their brow, but it wouldn't do for either one of them to admit that they were scared to the other.

Rainbow Dash gave an unconvincing smirk to her friend.

"Well," she said, "Let's go find out what it is."

Applejack gave a crisp nod.

"Yup," she said, voice slightly shaky. "Let's do it."

Neither one moved.

The seconds ticked by as Winona gave another growl and clawed at the door again. The dog looked back at her owner and whined softly.

Applejack's eyes shot back and forth between the dog and her friend sitting across the table. The inside of her hat was starting to become soaked.

Rainbow Dash kept staring at the door. As brave as she believed herself to be, and as tough as she wanted everyone to know she was, her flank remained firmly set in the chair.

"You know," she whispered, "It's probably just a squirrel or something."

Applejack raised her eyebrow.

"I mean, dogs go after squirrels all the time, right?" Her voice was raspier than usual. "She probably just smelled a squirrel. I'm pretty sure a saw a squirrel outside when we came here. It's probably the same squirrel. He looked like a squatter."

"Rainbow Dash!" Applejack hissed, "We can't just sit here doing nothin'! Now, Twilight asked us to help. Let's help her, and find out who it is that's lurkin' outside her house in the middle of the night!"

Dash kept staring at the door, her eyes wide and mouth small.

"You first."

Applejack glared at her.

"It's your dog," Dash said while pointing at Winona. "You deal with her squirrel problem."

Applejack looked at Rainbow Dash for a little bit longer, then with a grumble got up from the table and cautiously walked over to her dog. She tried to make as little noise as possible, but the wooden floor was being extra creaky that night.

Rainbow Dash gave a groan as she realized that she'd never live this one down.

"Hold on," she said. "You're too loud. I'll get the door."

Hovering slightly above the ground, she glided over to the front door. As she got there Winona looked up at her and panted, raring to go. Carefully Rainbow Dash put her ear to the wooden door. Nothing. Taking the doorknob in her hoof, she turned to look back at Applejack, who nodded and crouched down ready to charge. With a deep breath, Rainbow Dash prepared to open the door.

"NOW!"

The door flew inwards with a gust of cold night air as the pegasus pulled it open. Winona was the first outside, followed closely by Applejack as she hurled herself through the door. Dash soon followed, leaving a rainbow streak as she darted through the air. They followed the dog into the blackness.

Winona was barking fiercely at something. Zigzagging all over the place, she led the ponies on a wild chase through Twilight's front yard, around bushes and trees, doubling back on the trail three times over. Whatever the dog was chasing, neither Applejack or Rainbow Dash could see it.

"Winona!" Applejack yelled, "Where in the hay are you goin', dog?!"

The dog finally stopped at looked back at the two ponies following her. Giving a wag of her tail and another bark, it was clear that she had the scent of something.

"What is it, girl?" Applejack asked. "If you got something, go get 'em!"

Taking off again like a shot, Winona finally led the duo to a tree behind Twilight's house. Winona tried to climb it. Quickly failing, she proceeded to claw the trunk and jump up and down underneath it. Her focus was on something in the branches above.

Applejack prepared to buck the heck out of the trunk of the tree. Getting into position and preparing to use her best commanding tone, she spoke to whoever was hiding there.

"All right now," she called out. "Whoever's in there, show yerself before me 'n Winona mess you up but good!"

"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash added as the adrenaline pumped through her veins. "Stop being a wuss and come on out! What're you doing snooping around our buddy Twilight's house?!"

There was no answer.

"I'ma give you till the count of three," Applejack said. "Then I'm buckin' you out!"

Winona barked again.

"One!"

Applejack drew her hind legs back to kick.

"Two!"

Rainbow Dash hunched up in the air, wings flapping, ready to spring.

"And three!"

Suddenly, right before Applejack could kick, a small squeak came from the branches of the tree. They all froze as a small furry creature hoped out from the leaves onto a low hanging branch, its little arms held up in the air in a sign of surrender.

Winona barked and once again tried to scramble up the tree without success.

"It's a squirrel!" exclaimed Rainbow Dash.

The look she saw on Applejack's face almost made the whole ordeal worth it.

Winona gave a big smile and another bark.

They came back inside much quieter than they had left, although Rainbow Dash seemed notably smug, Applejack seemed notably irritated, and Winona seemed a little ashamed after the stern lecture she had gotten from her owner. But judging by the way she kept looking back, she was still thinking about the squirrel.

"Yeah, yeah" Applejack was muttering. "I'll deal with you later, ya lousy mutt."

Rainbow Dash went back to the kitchen. Although she would never say so, she had been so nervous during that whole ordeal that her mouth had gone bone-dry, and her throat was parched. So she hunched over the sink getting herself a drink of water. Applejack stood in the open doorway taking one last look outside.

Because of that, neither one of them saw exactly what happened. But they both heard it.

From behind them came a sharp crack in the air, a sound like a whip charged with electricity. It was gone so quick that it was almost over before it even started, as if time had reversed itself when it went off. Following it was a flash of green light that, like the sound, was gone far before they could turn around to see its source.

Behind them the house looked normal, although a magical green residue of light was slowly dimming as the darkness returned.

They ran up the stairs to check on Twilight.

They found her still asleep in bed. Spike was still snoring in his little basket next to her. Her sheets were disheveled, and she was sprawled out on the mattress in a position that didn't look comfortable. It looked like she was having quite the restless sleep.

Applejack went to gently shake Twilight awake.

"Twilight!" she softly called. "Twilight, wake up!"

She groggily opened her eyes. She blinked a few times and rubbed her face.

"Mmm, what is it?" she asked. "Is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine, sugarcube," Applejack said. "But we heard a weird sound and saw a strange light, and we needed to know you were okay. Looked like magic-type-shenanigans."

"Magic?" she repeated, still not fully awake. "What magic?"

Applejack gave an apologetic shrug.

"Couldn't tell ya, I'm afraid," she said. "Don't know much 'bout those kinda things."

Twilight started to wake up a bit more, and sat up with a start as the big question came to her.

"The amulet!" she gasped. "Is the amulet safe?"

"We haven't had a chance to check yet," Applejack said.

Rainbow Dash had been quiet up to this point, but it was then she spoke up.

"Um, about that amulet, Twilight?" she asked. "What does that box you hid it in look like again?"

Twilight looked at her friend in slight puzzlement.

"Box? The amulet box? Um, it's…it's wood. And it has a -"

"A unicorn on it?" Rainbow Dash finished her sentence.

Now Twilight was legitimately confused.

"Yes," she said. "But I don't think I've shown that to anypony. How did you know?"

Rainbow Dash gave her friend a look halfway between pity and embarrassment.

"Because," she meekly admitted as she pointed over Twilight's shoulder. "It's on your nightstand."

Twilight closed her eyes and sighed. After a moment she turned to look.

You've got to be kidding me.

* * *

"You should have called me from the start!" Pinkie Pie said with her usual bubbliness. "I love mysteries! And this time we get to have a party to solve one!"

The curly-haired pink pony was hopping around so much that she was nearly levitating off of the ground. Her enthusiasm was undeniable, but Twilight worried that Pinkie wasn't taking this as seriously as she should be. Then again, it WAS Pinkie Pie.

"I know it's exciting, Pinkie," Twilight said, "But we need to really focus here! This isn't a party, it's a trap to stop whoever's doing this."

Pinkie stopped bouncing long enough to give her a suddenly serious look.

"Uh, Twilight? Hello? There's going to be six of us in a house where we will be staying up all night—which is technically a sleepover!—and despite the fact that it won't be filled with its typical load-out, the Party Cannon IS present. Strictly speaking, this qualifies for Party Status at a rating of seventy-eight percent."

"Seventy-eight percent?" asked Twilight, tilting her head.

"I didn't bring punch," said Pinkie, her face a wall of seriousness.

Twilight had never claimed to understand the logistics of Pinkie Pie's Party Science.

At that moment another cloud of white powder poofed up near their hooves as Applejack emptied the last of the bag of flour on the floor. Walking backwards between the other two ponies, she opened her mouth to drop the empty bag on the ground.

"Well, you can call it what you want, Pinkie" she said, face, hat and hooves spotted with white, "Just as long as this plan works."

Pinkie practically beamed.

"Oh, it'll work, Applejack," she said. "This plan is foolproof!"

Applejack looked dubious.

"I hope yer right," she said. "Seems a might shaky, if'en ya ask me. 'Specially with that cannon part of it."

"Well, I certainly hope you're not referencing my stitching," came the indignant reply from the corner where Rarity was finishing the net at her sewing machine.

"This net is of the highest quality," she continued. "And apart from this quite fetching diamond pattern I was able to integrate into it, I'll have you know that you could put an angry bear in this net and he wouldn't be able to get out. A hungry angry bear."

As she helped to stretch the net out, Fluttershy took a close look.

"Um, it is a very nice net," she quietly said. "But I'm not sure it could hold a bear. Maybe it could hold a bear cub, though."

Rarity lowered her head and looked at Fluttershy over the rim of her sewing glasses.

"I was simply illustrating a point, dear," she said. "We don't need it to catch a bear now, do we? Unless you think a bear actually did it."

"Oh no!" Fluttershy gasped. "Bears don't steal like that! And the bears around here are very polite. If there was a strange one around here who was a thief, they would have told me!"

Rarity could only smile.

"Yes, of course," she said. "That's…very reassuring."

At that moment Rainbow Dash crawled out from the bookshelf where the hidden compartment was. Where Applejack was covered in flour, she was covered in dust. She gave a good shake of her wings, sending up a cloud of cobwebs and whatever it is that coats books after sitting on a shelf.

"Okay!" she announced. "The cannon is all set. I've got it good and hidden."

Twilight managed to suppress a cough as the dust cloud hit her in the face.

"Great," she said while bating the air around her. "Rarity, as soon as that net is done, give it to Pinkie so she can load it up."

"Yes, yes, naturally," the other unicorn replied.

As Spike walked past Twilight, spreading out the flour with a broom, he grumbled partly to himself, but mostly to anyone who would listen.

"I don't really get this whole thing," he said. "How is flour going to stop the thief?"

"It's not supposed to stop him, Spike" Twilight explained. "It's there as a backup plan."

"Oh good," he said. "I'm getting covered in flour 'Just in case.' That's nice."

Twilight sighed.

"The flour is important, Spike. If the cannon doesn't work, we might be able to find out something about our intruder by their hoof prints. Who knows? If they get away, maybe we'll be able to spot who it is because they've got flour all over themselves."

"That seems like a stretch," he said.

"It's all we have."

Twilight walked over to the bookshelf to inspect the job Rainbow Dash had done. It would be hard for most anypony to notice that the shelf had been moved forward, since the rest of the shelves along the wall had also been jutted out in a gradually increasing distance from the curved wall. To close up the gap by the time the last bookshelf came about, Dash had simply stuck another one from the basement into the space. Most would probably just assume that she reorganized. In the dark it would be hard to even notice anything amiss. She had to admit it was actually pretty convincing.

And behind the bookshelf with the hidden compartment where the amulet box was usually kept, there would be a little surprise waiting for the thief. That would be Pinkie's Party Cannon, which would be locked and loaded to fire Rarity's net once that secret door was opened. Meanwhile the amulet box was temporarily stored in a barrel down in the basement, where the bags of flour which were currently on the floor would normally have been. It may not have been the last place anypony would look, but it certainly wouldn’t be among the first.

"Done!" Rarity announced as she and Fluttershy removed the net from the sewing machine and gave it a good flourish.

"Once again I manage to impress even myself," she said. "It really is wonderfully understated, yet still possesses an air of sophistication."

Twilight was taken aback by the various sizes of diamonds that the material of the net created, which made it look more like a quilt made of hundreds of triangles and squares than a normal net. It was horribly over-designed, but it did look difficult to get out of.

"You didn't have to go so…detailed with it, Rarity."

Rarity gave her a look of horror.

"Well, you didn't expect me to just make a plain old NET, did you?" she asked. "Nothing that bares my name will be anything less than stunning."

Fluttershy held up a tag in one of the corners.

"She put her name on it."

"It is un original de Rarity!" Rarity said. "And you're going to shoot it out of a cannon! It's enough to make one ill."

Pinkie Pie took that moment to hop over to the net and jump in the middle of it, ripping it from the hooves of Fluttershy and Rarity. She then rolled it around herself until she was a bouncing ball of net, headed towards the cannon.

"It ain't getting shot out of the cannon if it's still out here!" she said from inside the tangle of rope.

The ball bounced over to the bookshelf, and through the open door to the secret chamber, where the Party Cannon was waiting. With a "fwoomp" the pony and the net went down the barrel together. After a little rustling and grunting from inside, Pinkie's tail, then legs, then whole self popped out of the cannon, completely free of the net, and landed on the ground, striking a pose. Pinkie stood in front of it with a big smile.

"Loaded!" she announced.

"How did you—" Rainbow Dash began.

"Trade secret!" Pinkie finished.

Sometimes Twilight thought she could take magic lessons from Pinkie Pie.

"Okay then," Twilight said, changing the subject to something that could be more easily understood. "We're all set. Applejack and Spike, you finish spreading the flour on the floor. Then you, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie, find a good hiding place for tonight. Rainbow Dash, you find a spot on the top of the house to observe from. If they run, you'll need to chase them down. I'm going to cast a spell on the secret door to fire the party cannon when it's opened."

Outside the sun was beginning to set.

"Come on, everypony," she said. "Let's catch this thief."

It turned out to be not nearly as exciting as they had imagined it would be.

And it was decidedly more uncomfortable.

They had been sitting there in silence for hours. Rarity and Twilight were hiding upstairs under the sheets of Twilight's bed, heads barely poking through the sides as they stared over the rail-less balcony to observe the main floor below. Spike was hiding in his bed, the pile of apples he had to snack on to power him through the night next to him, although to hear his occasional snoring it was clear they hadn't worked. Pinkie was somewhere in the fireplace, although how she had managed to squeeze in there, none of them could say. Applejack and Fluttershy were camped out on the steps leading down into the basement, just high enough so that they had a clear view of the front door, but low enough as not to be easily spotted.

They had both realized pretty early on into their stake-out that Twilight's basement stairs did not make for comfortable seating, and they were regretting not grabbing some pillows to sit on. But there was little to be done now, seeing as the flour on the floor had cornered them into staying put until it was over.

Applejack couldn't take much more of it.

"Sheesh," the orange pony whispered. "My hind quarters are killin' me."

She had tried about a dozen different ways to sit, stretch, and lean on those stairs - none of which could stop the cramps from forming in her legs. Even laying flat on her stomach, which was nice for spreading out as opposed to being hunched up on herself, proved to be the worst overall since she then was getting stairs digging into her body all over herself instead of just her rear end.

Finally, she had had enough.

"Come on, Fluttershy," Applejack pleaded. "Just fly up there quick like and get some pillows. This is silly to have us sittin' here all night in this fashion."

The bright yellow pegasus blushed.

"But, but Twilight said," Fluttershy said, "She said we shouldn't move. Or talk. And we're talking right now."

At that moment she realized that she had just spoken aloud the fact that they were prohibited from speaking. Her eyes went wide in a brief moment of panic, and with a tiny squeak she covered her mouth.

"Keep it down you two!" a hiss from the floor above shot at them.

"Fwrary!" Fluttershy said through her hooves.

That was the other problem—Twilight had been a little on edge all evening. At least, that was the polite way of putting it. A more accurate way of putting it was that she had gone slightly bonkers.

All night long they had had to deal with Twilight's obsessive investigation of every tiny noise that they heard coming from anywhere inside or outside of the house. She constantly got out the bed to pace. She had called in Rainbow Dash from her watch duties outside on numerous occasions to check out various noises that could have come from anywhere, always resulting in the discovery of nothing. Once she stood by the window for twenty minutes investing a branch tapping on the glass, trying to determine whether or not the branch had been enchanted to deliver coded messages. She had insisted that Applejack and Fluttershy do a complete investigation of the basement after Applejack coughed while sitting on the stairs. Applejack had explained as much Twilight, but Twilight insisted that it sounded too far away to be on the steps, having convinced herself that the basement would have been the perfect place for the thief to hide, and was not satisfied until the investigation confirmed that the thief was not there.

All this meant that she was doing a lot of ranting, pacing, and worrying. This obviously made a bit of noise. And she did it while telling anypony else who so much as breathed heavily to be quiet. It was getting to be more than her friends could take, and while they had been polite so far it was quickly approaching the point where something had to be done.

Finally, the last straw arrived.

Spike, doing his best to keep his pillow and blanket warm by dozing on them, was having a wonderful dream. While the exact details were soon lost on him after waking, given what the thing that woke him up was, he did recall a recurring theme of cupcakes and swimming pools. Whether or not it was a swimming pool full of cupcakes or a cupcake the size of a swimming pool, he couldn't remember. But either way it was very pleasant.

So, as he practiced his side-stroke in his sleep, inch by inch his hands and feet came closer and closer to that pile of apples that were still there, right between him and the ledge. And it doesn't take much imagination to guess what happened next. But the ponies did find out just how loud and startling a half dozen apples hitting the ground from the second floor can be.

Applejack and Fluttershy were the first to see them, although to them all they saw were some hoof-seized objects hit the ground with loud rapid-fire thuds and start bouncing a bit, kicking up small clouds of flour. Before they could piece together the full story, the next thing they saw flew into view. That next thing happened to be a unicorn-sized object flinging itself off the balcony with a mighty wail of "NOW!!!"

The thud produced was notably louder than the apples hitting the ground. And the cloud of flour was notably bigger.

Everypony stood in stunned silence for a moment, unsure of what just happened. The cloud not only reached Applejack and Fluttershy at the stairs, obscuring their vision, but also all the way up to the balcony, where Rarity stood looking down in shock after having flung herself out of the bed. Pinkie's head popped out of the flue of the fireplace. Spike sat up with a start, dreams of cupcakes quickly empting from his mind.

"Huh wah?" he grunted, not fully awake. "Wuz goin' on?"

Rarity was frozen at the ledge, mouth agape. Finally she found a voice and called out to her friend through the still settling white cloud.

"Twilight?!" she yelled. "Are you alright?!"

At first there was no reply, but just before the cloud fully dissipated, she heard a groan, halfway between pain and annoyance.

"Ooooooow," was all she heard.

Twilight lay face down on the ground, legs splayed out in all four directions, coated head to hoof in flour. As she rolled over onto her back, Rarity could see that she was also covered in crushed apples, which she had smashed when she had landed on them. Rarity raced down the stairs to help her up.

As her friends came to Twilight's aide, before they could reach her, she attempted to get up on her own power. She was obviously still going one hundred miles an hour despite taking a hard landing on her face.

"Don't, it's okay," she said through gritted teeth, trying to get two legs up underneath her. "I'm fine. Just…stay where you wer-"

At that point she fell down on her back as her legs gave out on her. She couldn't catch her breath, her chest was aching, and both of her back legs were throbbing. She could barely put any weight on them at all without tearing up.

Applejack was the first to put a hoof on her shoulders and stop her right where she was.

"Just fine, nothin'!" she said. "What're ya thinkin', ya silly filly? Takin' a header like that…I ain't never seen nothin' quite so ridiculous!"

Twilight could only stare up at the ceiling, the faces of her friends filling her peripheral vision.

"I just thought…" she started before having to stop to catch her breath again, "I was going to catch…the thief. Ow."

"Well, you're obviously not catching him tonight," said Rarity. "You're far too hurt, too messy, and—might I add—unreasonably difficult to work with this evening."

"Yeah," Twilight admitted. "Maybe I should have…gotten...more sleep."

"Why?" asked Pinkie Pie. "How much did you get? Eight hours? Five hours?"

"More like no hours," Twilight admitted.

The other ponies all glanced at one another. It was all starting to make sense.

"Yeah," said Applejack, "You're going to bed, missy. Somewhere else."

"But," Twilight started to object, "The amulet…we need to…watch it."

"And WE can do that too, sugar" Applejack said. "But right now you're lookin' less like a lookout and more like an apple fritter what fell off the plate!"

"Yeah," Pinkie Pie added. "A chatty, sleep deprived, freak-outy apple fritter."

Twilight looked down at the mess of smashed apples and flour covering her. Her friends were right. As much as she hated to admit it, she was no good to them right now. She would just be in the way.

"Alright," she sighed. "I'll go somewhere else. Just promise me you'll catch the thief, okay?"

"Don't you worry none," said Applejack. "They'll be sorry if'n they stick their nose in here tonight."

Pinkie Pie and Rarity gave Twilight a hoof as she shakily stood up and hobbled along to the door. Spike had been standing on the stairs the whole time, wringing his little claws in apprehension.

"Twilight, I'm so sorry," he began to say, "I didn't mean to knock those apples off! I didn't mean to fall asleep! I didn't-"

She cut him off before he could gush further.

"Don't worry about it, Spike. I'm fine, and my freaking out wasn't your fault. Just do me a favor, okay?"

"Anything!"

"Just don't fall asleep again."

"I'll…do my best" was the best he could promise.

Applejack shot him a look.

"What?" he said. "That's a tall order. You can't fit in it, but let me tell you that bed is comfy!"

As they opened the front door, Rainbow Dash was circling above, waiting for them.

"What in the name of hailstones is going on in there?" she asked as they walked outside. Then she saw Twilight limping and covered in flour and apples and was momentarily at a loss for words.

"Okay. Clearly I've missed a lot."

"They're taking me somewhere else Rainbow Dash," Twilight said. "I'm too stressed out to be of much use here."

"I'll take her to my house," said Fluttershy. "I'd be better at that than catching a thief, anyway. As long as that's okay with you, Twilight."

"That sounds great, Fluttershy" Twilight said. "Thank you. Come on, it's time for me to get out of everypony's manes. And into a bath."

The warm water felt fantastic.

In an effort to not make too big of a mess of the bathtub, Twilight's initial dosing had occurred outside, utilizing buckets of water which were ice cold. The flour had proven to be obnoxiously difficult to get out of her coat once the water mixed with it to create a thick paste, which meant that more than a few buckets had been involved. Fluttershy had nearly wept with guilt and had offered a dozen apologies for each load of water that was dumped over Twilight's head.

Fortunately Fluttershy had instructed her critters to prepare a warm bath while the unpleasantries outside were occurring, and though the animals were not very pleased with being woken in the middle of the night, Twilight was extremely grateful for their assistance.

She had been stressed, sore, tired, embarrassed, still covered in goopy paste and freezing to the point of her teeth chattering when she entered the bathtub. It had been hard for her to imagine ever feeling better, but the moment she slid a hoof into that steaming water, she felt the tension uncoil itself from her body. That initial immersion was so nice that for a moment she just stood there with one leg in the tub, eyes closed, swaying back and forth ever so slightly as her weariness started to take hold.

Eventually she dragged the rest of herself into the water, and with a body-deflating sigh she leaned back and rested her head on the edge of the tub. Holding her breath, she let herself slide down until her head was under water, and let the warmth soak in to the last bit of her that was still freezing. Her mane had been stiff with the cold and flour, but as she immersed herself she felt it loosening up, and it began to swim around her face as the gunk started to work its way out.

Wiping the water out of her eyes as she came back up, Twilight saw Fluttershy's bunny Angel standing on a small table at the other end of the bathtub. He was looking annoyed and tired, but then again Angel was notoriously fussy, so it was difficult to tell when he was genuinely upset or just being overly dramatic. But he obviously wasn't upset enough to refuse to be of assistance, as was made clear as he held up a bottle of shampoo, gestured to it, pointed to his head, then to Twilight, and then finally pointed straight down to his feet at the other end of the tub.

"Yes, thank you, Angel. That would be great."

As she laid back and enjoyed the pampering she was getting, Twilight had to admit that Angel was pretty good at shampooing a mane. As his little rabbit paws worked the last of the flour out, the massage-like effect it had was putting her on a fast track to falling asleep. The lack of rest was pounding down her door, and she knew she couldn't hold out for too much longer. But since falling asleep in a tub didn't seem to be such a good idea, she decided to stay awake until she was done with her bath.

Twilight was awoken from her sleep in the tub by a loud splash.

She had been dreaming. She didn't remember everything about the dream, but she remembered crystals. Towering crystals glowing with an oddly dark light. She felt coldness coming from them. Coldness and an overwhelming sense of despair. Then came a feeling in the pit of her stomach of great loss and something being torn from her. She felt hollow. Then that void in the pit of her stomach turned into something else: A feeling of great gravity pulling her downwards. The last thing she remembered was falling. As she looked downward and saw a great pool of black liquid, ripples rapidly moving inwards to collect in a splash which rushed up to meet her. The waves smacked her face. It was then she woke up.

She wasn't sure how long she had been asleep in the tub, but judging by the temperature of the water, it hadn't been too long. Remnants of the shampoo suds still lingered in her mane, but most of it had been washed away by the splash of water which had awoken her. She noticed Angel was no longer rubbing her hair. She turned around to see a very upset and very wet rabbit staring at her, arms crossed and foot tapping in irritation. With a toss of his head he hopped off the table and started to walk out of the room. His progress was made more difficult due to the sudsy water all over the floor. With as much dignity as he could muster, the soaking wet rabbit slipped and slid out of the room.

Twilight started working on getting the rest of the shampoo out. She was troubled by the dream, what little of it she could remember. That feeling of loss in the pit of her stomach still lingered, though she didn't know what it was that was gone. Besides still being sore and tired, she felt normal.

But the crystals were concerning, too. She had seen those before. In fact, those dark ones had looked exactly like—

Her thoughts were interrupted by Fluttershy poking her head in the doorway. She had a look of mild matronly concern on her face.

"Twilight?" she asked. "Um…do you happen to know why Angel is all wet? And getting a mop?"

She saw the state of the room, and the water on the floor, walls, and even ceiling.

"Oh my," she said, "I guess that's the reason. But what happened?"

Twilight's eyes went wide as she admitted "I…don't know!"

It hadn't even occurred to her to wonder what it was that had caused the splash that had made the mess. Mentally kicking herself, she parted the dirty, soapy water. It was too opaque to see. She blindly swept the floor of the tub and almost immediately hit something solid under the water. She tapped it again, and felt a hollow thud.

She groaned as she realized what it was.

Twilight bent over, reached into the water, and pulled out the Alicorn Amulet box.

She had fallen asleep. That was it.

Fluttershy's eyes went wide. She gave a little squeak.

"Oh no! Twilight, I swear I didn't see anypony come in here! I'm so sorry! I should have seen them! I should have posted a lookout! Angel is no good at paying attention! He's such an unobservant bunny! I didn't—"

"Don't be sorry. It wasn't your fault."

It all makes sense now.

Fluttershy stopped her gushing, but still stood in the doorway, hooves up to her mouth.

"It…wasn't?"

Twilight didn't know how it was happening, but she finally understood what was going on.

"No. Go tell the others they can go home and sleep. I'll clean up the house tomorrow."

Fluttershy lowered her hooves and tilted her head to the side.

"But what about the thief?"

"There was no thief."

It was me the whole time.

Journey In The Dark

Chapter Three
Journey In The Dark

It was unusually cold for this time of year.

The chill breeze coming down from the snow-capped slopes high above the city slinked through the streets and alleys of Canterlot, winding its way to the open air hallways of the royal palace. Wisps of frost bit at those ponies unfortunate enough to be outside, creeping around their shoulders to their necks and then sliding down their backs, chilling them from the outside before sliding into their lungs to do it from the inside as well. The fat city squirrels and birds found the smallest, coziest place they could to hide. The flowers that could bundled up on themselves, and the ones that couldn't seemed to ache as a faint shimmer of frost began to cling to them. Even the snapping of the flags and banners in the wind in the marketplace and all over the city seemed harsh as they cracked with the coldness. Despite winter having been wrapped earlier in the year, in Canterlot spring had not yet fully taken hold. At least not tonight. Tonight winter had returned to pay a visit.

The moon shone through the archways of the long passageway connecting the living quarters of the east wing of the castle to the main keep. The moonlight was only made more intense by the frozen air, leaving bright pools of pale white beams laying on the floor as they lit the way down the hall like ice columns stabbing down from the sky.

Twilight Sparkle could see her breath in the air. As it left her mouth, the faint cloud hung before her, caught by the coldness before it slowly unraveled itself and vanished. Another one soon appeared to take its place as she exhaled the frosty air. There was something odd about those little clouds. As they would fade, the twisting shapes that made it up seemed to form into something familiar. Was it a face she saw in there? A place? Or was it her imagination?

She exhaled heavily and thought she saw eyes staring into her. A shiver not entirely from the cold went down her spine. Holding her breath for a moment, she closed her eyes and composed herself. She started walking, leaving the clouds of breath behind her.

The hallway went on forever, vanishing into its own shadows. Her hoof steps ringing out on the stone and the whistle of the wind were the only sounds to be heard in the otherwise deep silence of the castle as they echoed ahead of her to be swallowed in the blackness.

As Twilight proceeded down the hall, she gazed to her right to look out the windows. Canterlot was still and dark. The mountain loomed up like a giant wall, casting a great shadow over the city as it blocked the moon, which had just recently crested the summit. She noticed that there wasn't a cloud in the sky. The stars were shining razor sharp and indifferent.

Something was strange at the peak of the mountain. She saw that there were some clouds in the sky, but they were all gathered thick and heavy around the summit, obscuring the view of the top. They slowly rotated around it, roiling and heaving but never drifting away. A soft rumble of thunder drifted down the jagged rocks to Canterlot, rolling through the empty streets.

She turned away from the eerie weather to look down the hallway again. The end was still nowhere in sight. The darkness was too overpowering outside of the spotlights the moon was sending down. She stayed in the light as much as she could. The dark spaces between beams seemed to grab at her as she walked through them.

Behind the sharp clack of her hooves, the high pitched gasps of the wind and the groan of the thunder, Twilight Sparkle thought she heard the dripping of water. She stopped. As the echoes of her walking faded, sure enough she heard the faint tapping of water on stone. It was coming from up ahead somewhere.

She started walking again. The further she got down the hall, the louder the sound got. The incessant dripping seemed to cry out with need somehow, as the water was tried to say something. But what? The sound started digging into her ears.

As she passed through one of the shafts of light, and her eyes readjusted to the darkness after the veil of brightness lifted from her vision, she saw Applejack leaning against the wall in between one of the arches. Her form was silhouetted against the next beam of moonlight behind her, but there was no mistaking that easy-going country lean, or the big hat tilted back casually on her head. Her voice rang out in the hallway, her twangy cadence bouncing around the walls to hit Twilight from all sides as they ricocheted around in the darkness.

"Whatcha doin' out here at this time of night, sugarcube?"

Twilight stopped in her tracks.

"I could ask you the same thing."

"Shoot, I'm just takin' in the sights."

The mountaintop in the distance gave another rumble.

"You should prob'ly go back to bed, I reckon," Applejack continued. "T'ain't nothin' for ya here 'cept the cold."

The dripping of the water was still pounding in her head. Somewhere inside, deep down in the bottom of her stomach, something stirred and started giving what felt like little kicks. She fidgeted and shifted, trying to work out the feeling of unease that came sliding out of it.

Applejack's shadow tilted its head at her.

"Ya'll look a might antsy," she said.

"Do you hear that?" Twilight asked, focusing back on the dripping water. "Where is that coming from? It sounds like water. It's so loud—"

"I ain't heard no water," Applejack cut in. "And furthermore, I don't reckon I know why we're even here. Or why you're so uptight, anyhow. This whole magic malfunction stuff seems a might silly thing to get upset about. It's not like it's important."

Twilight felt another round of fluttering inside.

"Gee, Applejack. Thanks for that."

"The others think so, too," Applejack continued. "And as much as we fancy bein' in Canterlot castle, did you ever reckon that maybe we had things to do ourselves? I live on a farm! I tend an orchard! Ya'll have any idea how much work that is? Course you don't. I got chores from here to next year, but do ya'll see me doin' 'em? Nope."

Were those claws she felt in her stomach? They were climbing higher.

"I ain't doin' nothin' 'cept followin' Twilight Sparkle on another one of her crazy, paranoid, uptight journeys to the Land of Overreactin'! And I don’t appreciate being dragged along every time some little thing happens, you open up an ol' dusty book, and get some confounded worst-case-scenario stuck in that over-read head of yours!"

The water kept pounding in her ears. They were anvil strikes now, each one left a high-pitched ringing floating behind it, only to get drowned out by the next one.

Twilight felt close to tears, but she was too angry at the moment to cry. Applejack had never said anything like that to her before. How dare she! She may not know anything about magic (in fact her knowledge was laughable, bordering on dangerous ignorance), but anypony with eyes to see could understand the issues at hand. The Alicorn Amulet was powerful. Therefore it was dangerous. Therefore it needed protection. Easy math!

But on the other hoof, Twilight was worried about being paranoid. She did things like this all the time, and after so many situations she'd gotten herself and her friends in, perhaps they were tired of always having to come to her aid and do all these crazy things with her. Maybe she didn't always need to go out and try and save Equestria at every turn, dragging her friends with her. After all, was that what a real friend would do?

And honesty was Applejack's strong suit. It was her element. Maybe she was telling Twilight the hard truth that she desperately needed to hear.

"Am I really that bad?" she asked.

"Yup. Pretty much."

The claws scratched again.

"And don't think I'm alone, neither," Applejack jabbed once again. "Everypony else thinks the same way, too! We've all had enough of your malarkey!"

Twilight shook her head.

"I can't believe that," she said. "You're lying!"

"Twilight, you know me. I always tell the truth."

Twilight could almost see the smirk in the shadows.

"Well, I guess next time I won't bother asking you for help, then."

She shouldered past Applejack, leaving her in the darkness to be cold by herself.

The thunder rolled again as she continued down the hall. The clawing was getting more frantic.

Twilight was still fuming over the harsh condemnation she had just received. Soon the anger would lead to tears, she was certain, but right now she was just mad. Even though she had a point, it was never an easy thing to hear that you were a terrible friend. Especially when it was coming from somepony as close and honest as Applejack.

And that water was somehow still getting louder. At this point it sounded like it had become a steady stream instead of a drip. She had to be getting close to the source.

She was so numb from the experience that it took a minute for her to notice two other shapes ahead of her, further down the hall. They were coming from the other direction, talking to each other in hushed tones. As they moved closer, the moonbeams caught the familiar poofy, dark pink mane of Pinkie Pie, and the elegant and flowing lighter pink locks of Fluttershy, injecting some sharply contrasting color with the blacks and deep blues of the castle at night.

"Oh, girls," Twilight called out, her breath still floating in front of her in the cold. "Applejack and I just had a terrible fight!"

Pinkie Pie looked down and gave the stone floor a casual kick with her front hoof. Fluttershy shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Oh, here's a change of pace," Fluttershy said with a sneer. "Twilight is upset about something. What a shock."

Twilight felt the floor fall out from underneath her.

"Fluttershy," she said. "What's…what's going on with everypony?"

"Gee, I don't know, Twilight. But right now seems that I'm freezing my tail off up in the mountains in the middle of the night because you suck at magic now. That's what's going on with me! Thanks for that. You're a great friend."

Twilight felt the claws starting to scratch at the back of her mouth. Her throat had gone dry and she could barely swallow. It was getting impossible to think straight.

"But my magic isn't…isn't," she stammered, "It's going to get better, I just…I just know it! There's no need for everypony to—"

"I'll bet that once magic is gone, it's gone for good," Pinkie Pie said, voice flat and uncaring. "I'll bet you've got a disease or something. Nopony's probably ever heard of it before, neither. What do you think the chances of finding a cure to a disease nopony's ever heard of is?

"About as good as the chances of Twilight being Celestia's star pupil anymore are," Fluttershy scoffed. "Hey, everypony I've got a great idea! Let's continue teaching magic to the unicorn who can't get her stupid horn under control! I'll bet that'll be the first thing Celestia does: Give top honors to the one who would probably end up burning down Canterlot five minutes after being taught a spell to light a match."

That was a step too far. Twilight's magic may be having issues, but she wouldn't stand here and have all the talent she had and the hard work she put into it be insulted!

"I'll have you know that low-level pyrokinesis is taught as early as the second year of magic training!" she snapped at Fluttershy. "I knew how to light a match with my magic when you were still figuring out what the ground was!"

"Better not light one anytime soon," said Pinkie Pie. "You'd probably end up causing a lava flow in the throne room at the rate you're going."

Fluttershy's face twisted into a show of rage that was so foreign on the normally serene pegasus that it didn't seem possible. As she fumed, a dimness began to creep from the shadows and spread through the rest of the hallway, taking the shafts of light and lowering their brilliance until they were merely suggestions.

"Are you looking for a fight, you little loser?!" she sneered. "You've always thought that I was a push-over but I promise that if you say one more word I'll rearrange your face!"

Thunder cracked louder than before on the peak of the mountain. The waves of sound slammed into the castle walls like a physical force, pushing back the air in the hallway and leaving the ponies swaying as the sound reverberated around them. The night sky around the summit had begun to glow slightly in hues of purple rage as the lightning crackled within the swollen clouds as they spun faster around the mountaintop. A renewed gust of wind followed the sounds, making the blackness even colder.

Twilight stood in silence as she and Fluttershy glared at each other. Looking at her friend's slightly hunched posture and twitching muscles, Twilight had no doubt that the pegasus was ready to spring at her given the slightest provocation. Fluttershy's wings flared out slightly, snapping in the freezing air as they flicked in anticipation.

It was Pinkie Pie who broke the silence of the standoff. As she walked past Twilight to go further down the hall, she paused and leaned close to mutter in her ear.

"Looks like you're running short on friends, Twilight."

She kept walking. In her wake, another stream of darkness followed, drowning the little remaining light behind her.

With a tear breaking and running down the side of her face, Twilight closed her eyes and shuddered. Whether it was from the cold or sadness, she couldn't tell. The sound of the water stream had now become a small roar, as if the walls were hollow with a river flowing through them, just out of slight. It penetrated her mind until all that was there was that sound.

She started walking. Without opening her eyes she made her way around Fluttershy, giving her a wide berth. She kept her eyes closed, not being able to bring herself to look at the one she used to call friend. After a few moments of walking, she opened her eyes again. The hallway was nearly pitch black, with only the barest hints of pillars and walls to be seen. Willing herself to, she turned around to look behind her, to see if Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were still there. But when Twilight looked, the corridor behind her was empty.

When she looked forward again, where there had been only blackness, there now stood the online of a closed door. A deep blue light behind it shone through the edges and the gap in the middle, struggling to get out. As she neared, the scratching claws in her throat found their way up to the back of her mouth, gripping at her tongue.

She was only feet away from the door when it opened by itself. The sharp creaking of the hinges snapped and split, cutting through the roar of the water that rose dramatically in volume as the great doors swung wide. A gust of moist air washed over Twilight. There was a damp chill to the breeze, but it was still notably warmer than the wintery bite coming down from the mountain.

Inside was a great cavern. The ceiling rose high above into the blackness until it was lost to sight. The walls were slick and obsidian, curving up and out to form a cylinder like the ribcage of a great beast. Interspersed throughout the walls, clinging to them like parasites were clusters of spiky, black crystals glowing with a faint purple radiance coming from within. They were everywhere, lining the walls and everything else like thorns on a bush. In the center of the cavern was a lake of swirling and frothing water. An island of hard, slick stone sat in the middle, a giant cluster of the same dark crystals rising from it, pulsing with a dark energy.

The cluster of crystals was massive—the size of a great tree. Branches of the dark gems grew from the base to rise up towards the ceiling. As Twilight looked, she could actually see the crystals getting larger as she watched. Pulses of the purple energy flowed out to the appendages, causing them to swell and grow, stretching even further out. The crystals moaned as they grew, but not in a voice that anypony could hear with their ears. It was more something that was felt.

The entire cavern was lit with a blue glow coming from the back wall, far back in the distance. There, instead of rock or crystal, stood an impossible wall of solid water. Waves lazily crept upwards from the bottom to slide towards the ceiling, splashing on the roof of the cave before falling back down to the lake below. Even from this distance Twilight could see small globs of water hovering at the base of the wall, lazily drifting upwards and growing larger as they collected the drops that fell from above.

It was this logic defying wall of water that was providing the roar that now throbbed in Twilight's ear. Once in the cave, the roar was mixed with what almost seemed like moans and screams, like the water itself was in pain. The crystal pillar in the middle only grew larger the louder the screams became.

"Magnificent, isn't it?"

A voice from behind startled Twilight into spinning around. Rarity was standing behind her, staring ahead into the vast trove of crystalline eeriness. Within her purple eyes lay the glimmer of lust. Twilight tried to speak, but stopped herself before she could. The claws were in her mouth. If she opened it to speak, she would release them. Whatever was in there was frantically struggling for her to do so.

Rarity seemed to take no notice.

"Think of all the riches in this cave! All these wonderful crystals!" she said more to herself than anypony else. Twilight wasn't even sure the other unicorn knew she was even standing there.

"Why it's more than I ever could have dreamed!"

As Rarity stood there marveling, Twilight desperately tried to fight the claws back down so she could speak. She had to say something! Rarity had to help her. She must! She tried swallowing hard, but the claws merely reached out and firmly grabbed the sides of her mouth, and stayed where they were. It was all Twilight could do to manage even a cough as her gag reflex reared up.

The sound of Twilight's coughing was enough to draw Rarity from her reverie. Snapping her head to look straight at Twilight, her eyes lost their soft dream-like haze and took on a hard, steely glare.

"What, Twilight?!" said growled. "You don't think they're mine? You don't think I deserve it, do you? Who are you to always be the one in charge? Who do you think you are?! Do you think you can boss me around and take it all for yourself?!"

As she growled her words through gritted teeth, Rarity advanced on Twilight. A dark cloud formed behind her, blocking the last light of the dark hallway behind her from view and spreading across the ground like a thick liquid. Rarity's eyes burned with rage.

And as Twilight backed up, she saw the same clouds in Rarity's eyes, swirling around to cover the beautiful purple shades of her irises and turn them black. Twilight still could not speak for fear of what was in her mouth.

"You're not going to get away with taking what's mine, you parasite!" she spat. Before Twilight could do anything else, Rarity grabbed hold of her around the front legs and spun her around with a surprising and unnatural strength before releasing her, spending her flying through the open door. As Twilight was still headed towards the ground, Rarity gave one final cry, full of venom and spite.

"IT'S MINE!!!"

Before she hit the cold stone of the hallway, the claws in Twilight's mouth finally forced themselves out. Everything moved in slow motion as a torrent of pitch black night erupted from her mouth, pouring out in great torrents as the sharp talons and claws within it whipped out to strike at the air. As the blackness grew as more was expelled from her, it began to twist around and funnel around her in a whirlwind of snapping and snarling. Soon it enveloped her surroundings completely, until all she could see nothing expect it all around her.

She hit the ground hard. Air came racing out of her lungs in a gasp at the moment of impact. Opening her mouth wide and drawing a breath back in, she found herself relieved to be rid of the invading force inside her, but as it had ripped itself from her, she felt part of herself leaving as well. She felt hollow.

The world around her had gone completely quiet. The only sound Twilight could hear was the pounding in her temples.

The sound of the door slamming behind her breaking the silence caused her to look back to where Rarity had thrown her from. There was no longer a door there. In its place was the wall of water, floating in space and still far away, but as she watched it began to move closer. At first Twilight thought it was an optical illusion, but the speed with which it was moving began to increase until it was clear that it would be on her soon. The roar of the water was slowly returning, starting from a soft hum and growing until the sound was the entire world. Twilight had never experienced such sound. She buried her head in her hooves, trying to block the sound without luck.

As the water approached with a mighty force, Twilight saw from the corner of her eyes a tableau of color that stood out like a beacon in the dreary place she had found herself. She raised her head to see Rainbow Dash sitting not ten feet away, looking at her.

"Rainbow," Twilight pleaded weakly. "Help me."

Rainbow Dash looked back at her with no expression.

The water was very close now.

"Rainbow," she said again, reaching a hoof out. "Please!"

There was still no reaction on the face of the rainbow haired pegasus. Her wings slowly unfurled themselves to their full spread before they crisply snapped open. They gave a few powerful pumps, buffeting the air around them and raising Rainbow Dash off the ground. There she hovered, looking down at Twilight.

The water was nearly upon them.

Twilight gave one last pleading look to her friend. Rainbow Dash still had nothing to say. With a final flick of her wings, she turned around and sped off into the darkness above.

"Rainbow Dash!" Twilight cried out into the night, "Please don't leave me! Don't leave me! No! Please!"

There was no response. She could feel the spray of the water approaching her.

"Rainbow Dash!!!"

The wail reverberated in her dark little world as her own words came back to beat at her as she collapsed to the ground, sobbing.

And she lay on the ground awaiting the wall of water to hit her and end her suffering, Twilight could only weep. All of her friends. All of them had turned on her. She was abandoned. She was alone.

Then, as the water should have reached her, she heard a gentle but firm voice call her name.

"Twilight Sparkle," it said. "Rise."

She looked up into the stoic face of Princess Luna, who reached her hoof out to her, and smiled.

"It is time for you to rise, Twilight," she repeated. "Rise from this darkness. And awaken."

Twilight's hoof shook as it touched it to Luna's. Strength emanated from the princess, and Twilight felt it flowing into her as the darkness around her began melting away, along with the roar of the water and the cold.

* * *

It was still pitch black outside. The spring night was cool but pleasant, and the flowery scented air wafted in through the open windows in Twilight's bedroom. Near the horizon, the moon glowed full and bright in the cloudless sky. The still forms of Spike, Rarity and Fluttershy lay in their beds, oblivious to anything except a pleasant sleep. The soft breaths and light snores of Spike were the only things that could be heard.

Twilight raised herself to sit upright in bed. Her sheets were tangled up around her and were soaking wet. Her mane was a mess, askew and matted with sweat. Her teeth were aching. She must have been gritting them in her sleep. Despite the fact that she must have been dreaming for some time given how late it was, she was sore and thoroughly unrested. She felt like she had just run a marathon. Putting a hoof up to her head to push some of her mane out of her face, she found that it was soaked with tears.

"It was a terrible nightmare that you just had, Twilight Sparkle," a soft voice whispered from her bedside. "I am sorry that you had to experience it."

Wiping the sleep from her eyes and turning her head, Twilight saw Princess Luna standing there. The princess of the moon and dreams looked upon the young unicorn with an expression of both respect and pity.

"Princess Luna," said Twilight. "It…it was so real…"

"I know. The worst of them always are."

Coming back more into consciousness, Twilight reflected on the dream. All her friends had acted as nearly opposite versions of themselves. Applejack had been spouting poisonous lies, she and Fluttershy had nearly come to blows, Pinkie Pie was nothing but downbeat, and Rarity had turned on Twilight in an instant the moment her selfish paranoia took hold of her. And Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash had just abandoned her without a word.

They had been through something like that before when they had battled Discord. He had used his chaotic magic to turn all her friends against her, and it had been one of the most difficult experiences that their friendship had ever been though. She had no intention of reliving anything close to that again. That dream had been enough for another lifetime.

Twilight felt tears forming once again. She had to walk around and sort her head out. Moving her sheets aside, she slowly slid out of bed.

"Excuse me, Princess," she said as she walked past Luna. "I need some fresh air."

"Of course."

As Twilight reached the door and opened it with her magic, Luna gently whispered once more.

"You've done very well you know. The dream has illuminated much. When you are ready, rest. In the morning we shall speak of it more."

Twilight nodded.

"Thank you, Princess."

She walked out of the room and into the hallway. It was strange to see the same passage that she had been endlessly walking down in her dream now in the real world. The soft spotlights of moonbeams that lay on the floor were a bit too familiar, although the shadows were blessedly not as dark. She walked a short ways down the hall to the room holding the rest of her friends. Stopping in front of the door, she slowly opened it.

In the dim light she could see the lumps of the forms of her friends in their beds as they slowly raised up and down, breathing softly. Applejack's hat was hanging from the bedpost, and between soft snores the pony gave a small kick in her sleep, most likely harvesting apples back home. Pinkie Pie's bed was a tangle of sheets, giving away the fact that Pinkie was a notorious toss-and-turner, not staying still even in her sleep. Despite her efforts in hiding them, her fidgeting had kicked up the candy wrappers that she had smuggled to eat in bed, with some laying on the bed and others on the floor.

But Rainbow Dash's bed was empty.

Twilight looked around the darkened room, but could see no trace of the pegasus. Her sheets had been unceremoniously tossed aside, although judging by the fresh dent in the pillow, she hadn't been gone for too long.

Walking back into the hallway, she started searching for her. Looking through the windows into the sky, she checked the clouds to see if she was sleeping on one of them.

It wasn't long before Twilight found her. Rainbow Dash was sitting in between one of the arches further down the hallway. Perched on the railing, she was absent-mindedly kicking her hooves over the edge without any kind of trepidation and heedless of the fact that just inches away was a drop of hundreds of feet. If there was one place Dash was without fear, it was among the dizzying heights. Her gaze was wistful as she stared up at the peak of the mountain.

Twilight approached her, and glanced to where Dash was looking. The mountaintop that had been so ominous in her dream now looked serene and majestic. Twilight envied her friend that she could look at it with clear eyes.

Hearing her friend approaching, Rainbow Dash turned and smiled at Twilight.

"Hey pal!" she called. "Can't sleep either, huh? Yeah, I hear ya. This place has got way too much going on for me to get any kind of rest."

Twilight smiled back.

"Doesn't seem like too much is going on now, though."

"Hmm. Maybe not," Rainbow admitted. "But soon it will. Look up there."

She pointed up to the summit. Almost imperceptible from this distance were thin, delicate golden hoops on massively tall poles strung throughout the mountainside. On top of each were pairs of small red flags flapping wildly in the breeze. Looking around, Twilight counted at least a dozen of them stretching up the peak and down. It looked to her like an obstacle course with no clear path or reason until she realized that the course was in the air.

"That's where they'll be in just a little bit," she said more to herself than Twilight. "The Wonderbolts. They'll go out for their morning flight. You gotta practice flying at all times of the day, you know. Flying at dawn here is important 'cause with the track they run here, the sun'll be right in their eyes as it comes up. But they still gotta fly perfectly! That's how good they are!"

Twilight didn't say anything. She just kept looking at her friend as Dash's thoughts drifted up to the clouds and aspirations of glory. After the loneliness of the nightmare she had just had, simply being in Rainbow's presence was soothing. And yet, she still couldn't shake that feeling of emptiness.

"I'm going to be one of them someday, Twilight," Dash said to her friend. "Someday soon. You can bet everything I will be. I just know it."

"I'm surprised they haven't taken you already, Rainbow," Twilight replied.

Dash turned again and practically glowed.

"They're just enjoying their last few moments of me not showing them all up!" She shot Twilight a toothy grin and a wink.

Twilight never wanted to lose the sight of that smile again.

"Rainbow Dash?" she asked.

"Hmm?"

"Can I ask a favor?"

"Name it!"

It was difficult to form the words. There was so much to say to try and cram into a single question or statement. Finally, after a few awkward moments of chewing on her lip, she managed to wrestle the words out of her mouth.

"Promise that you'll never leave me."

The look on Rainbow Dash's face lost its playful nature. She tilted her head to the side, as if trying to get a better read on the question by looking at her friend at a different angle. Then, seeing the sadly serious look on Twilight's face, Rainbow hoped down off her perch. Walking over, she stood in front of her, and for a moment didn't say anything. She then raised her hoof.

"You couldn't find anything on the ground or in the sky to take me from you, Twilight Sparkle. You're my friend to the end. And you're stuck with me. I promise."

A tear found its way to Twilight's face. She had shed plenty of them in her dream that night, but this time it was tear of happiness. And it was one she was glad to feel on her cheek. Lifting a hoof to Dash's, they stood there for a moment, arms locked in a sign of friendship. Then Rainbow Dash came forward to give her a hug. Twilight returned it. It was the first time in days that she had felt like she was standing on solid ground.

On the horizon, the first rays of sunlight began turning the eastern sky a subtle shade of pink.

Arrivals

Chapter Five
Arrivals

From the cold void of nothingness they heard their master's call, and through fear they willed themselves back into the realm of the living.

Twisting like snakes of smoke that flow from a smoldering ember they rose from the frozen, barren soil, reaching for the heavens as they pulled themselves up from the depths. Their misty forms hung over the ground as a fog, black as pitch and piling ever higher as more and more of the venomous smoke spewed forth. Before long they covered the floor of the shallow valley from which they rose—a newly formed lake of dark water rippling and heaving with hunger and malice.

Under the light of the pale moon, a moaning cry split the air, rising and shifting into an unearthly howl that shook the very trees ringing the lip of the valley. Like a dance, the smoke shifted and spun in time with the undulations of the cry. As the sinister call to action whipped the dark clouds around and around, bumps were soon formed. Growing larger and larger, they covered the valley by the hundreds. Before long they had begun taking shape: Long snouted heads, flowing manes, tails twice as long wrapping around themselves, powerful thick legs and hulking, train-like bodies. And upon the brow of each one, stabbing outward from the head was a long, spear-like blade—The horn of the dark unicorn legion of legend and nightmares.

They were the Morkhast.

Created millennia beyond counting ago by the dread lord for the sole purpose of conquest and terror, the great doom of King Sombra's army now stood rank and file under the cold pinpricks of the stars, soaking in their light and deepening the darkness. Nature itself recoiled around them, withering and drying out at their touch and whimpering in pain at their very presence. They stood in the valley, solidifying and taking deep gasping breaths as one living entity, shaking the thousand years of slumber from their bones. They were glorious in power and monstrous in form.

Once the howl of awakening echoed off into the distance, there was only silence. They waited in the frosty stillness for the command from their master. In the ominous quiet an arctic wind began to sweep down the gentle slopes of the hills, bringing with it large flakes of snow which imbedded themselves into the tails and manes of the massed army. As the gusts began to pick up, flurries wildly swirled about their burly legs, sending little cyclones of snow crawling up the hulking bodies. The snowfall began to get heavier, and soon drifts could be seen forming at their hooves. The white wall of wind and snow had escalated in intensity so as to become a blizzard, as if the Frozen North was desperately trying to scrub this abomination from Equestria. But Sombra's army did not budge.

Then on the wind came a voice. It was deep and thundering and clung to the air and on every flake of snow that rushed through the vale. It flowed thick and syrupy through the ears of each Morkhast, filling their vile souls with energy and the need for wanton destruction.

To me, my warriors. To me. And vengeance.

As one being, the Morkhast reared and kicked in barely contained fury, roaring out their challenge into the night sky. At the height of their frenzy a deep purple blaze emanated from the hundreds of horns, coating the ground with a sickly hue. The dark magic flowing from them spread across the rocks, snow and dirt of the valley until it was a smooth glowing sheet of violet as far as the eye could see.

Small bits of stone and flakes of ore began hovering in the air as foul wizardry drew them up from the earth. Floating like millions of bugs above a swamp, they floated towards the dark army, gathering more and more pieces as the speed with which they moved increased, until they were practically flying out of the ground like bullets. As the Morkhast were peppered with these minuscule bits of earth which stuck to their hides, eventually patterns could be seen taking shape around their bulging shoulders, necks and flanks. The tiny fragments piled thicker and thicker upon them until they began forming angular, harsh armor plates, with the minerals inside gleaming silver in the moonlight. Before long there were hundreds of huge, black unicorns fully armored, and the clanking of the layered metal and stone plates filled the night with the sound of impending terror.

Lastly, as the Morkhast swarm surged forward as one, the flecks of rock and ore encircled their massive heads until they completed their gruesome regalia with a crowning piece of bladed terror, the protruding fangs and horns of their helms fashioned so as to resemble ancient dragons of old.

Through the blizzard in the darkness of the night they charged, following the beck and call of the one who made them. Steam poured from their nostrils and slaver dripped from their mouths as they slashed their way through the valley, churning the stone underneath to rubble under their iron-like hooves. They headed south, back to where they had suffered their last disgrace. The fury of the Frozen North followed with them.

Their master's voice echoed through the air once more.

To ruin. To ruin. To ruin.

The words were a pulse to which they measured their wrath.

* * *

"Forgive me if I'm stating the obvious," Shining Armor said, "But storms come out of the Frozen North all the time. That's why it's called the Frozen North."

The pegasus kneeling before him looked up with a furled brow. His blue-tinted silver armor, the uniform of the Crystal Empire Guard, bore the frost of the deep cold that had still not left him. The crest of his helm still had flakes of snow dusting it, and some of them fell to the throne room floor as he shook his head.

"No, sir," he answered in a gravelly voice. "Not like this, they don't. This ain't any normal storm."

Still having not fully awoken from his slumber, Shining Armor wasn't really much in the mood to hear about scary blizzards. It had been a particularly good sleep, too, filled with dreams of valiantly slaying giant beasts to the swooning of his wife, Cadence, to whom he would greatly like to return to in bed. On the other hoof, he did trust the ponies under his command, and if they thought something was important enough to wake him in the middle of the night, then he should probably listen. He nodded before getting up from the throne and making his way to the pitcher of water in the corner. He was thirsty as a mule. He used a bit of magic to levitate the pitcher and pour some water into a glass, then cleared his throat and blinked hard in order to shake some of the sleep from his eyes. With his back to the guard he casually looked over his shoulder and said "Please continue, then."

"Well, sir, it's like this," the guard said with a bit of hesitation in his voice. "It came out of the north, like usual, that is. Only, there were some things off about it. The…the winds were…they…that is to say they didn't seem…it-"

Still facing the wall with the glass up to his mouth, Shining Armor rolled his eyes briefly before swallowing and turning to the guard.

"Well, for Celestia's sake, out with it," he cut him off while filtering as much irritation out of his voice as he could manage. "What was off about the winds?"

The guard paused. "It seemed," he said, "Like darkness was in 'em. Like the night itself was wrapped up inside. And we heard howls like…like nothing we never heard before. Not from animal or ponykind or…anything in Equestria."

Shining Armor still wasn't convinced, and he was starting to become irritated at the thought that his time was being wasted.

"That sounds odd, I'll grant you," he said after finishing his glass of water. "But it's hardly without explanation. Maybe it was an optical illusion or just an exceptionally dark night or the wind did weird things to sound like animals howling or—"

"Sir, that ain't everything," the guard interrupted. "We first saw this storm yesterday morning, sir. It was right on the border of the northern forest when it blew in."

"And?" Shining Armor asked.

"Well, sir," the guard finished, "It ain't moved since. Not the clouds, not the snow, it's just staying in one place. There's enough wind to knock you over on your flank, if you'll pardon me, sir, but the same storm cloud has been sitting low over the forest unmoving the whole time. Like it's anchored there."

There was a moment of silence while Shining Armor took in this new information. That was weird. Perhaps each of those factors alone would have been explainable by themselves, but all of them together made for a troubling situation.

"So let me get this straight," he asked. "There's a blizzard on our northern border that's been just sitting there? For nearly an entire day?"

"Yes, sir."

"And you say you've heard strange noises from it neither you or anypony else can identify?"

"The whole time, sir."

"And there's some kind of unnatural darkness inside?"

"Whipping about like mad, sir. It's a block of nighttime, even in the daylight."

Shining Armor filled has glass with water again, and took another drink. There wouldn't be any more sleep for him tonight.

After he finished his water, he turned to the guard and said, "Get yourself some hot food, warm up, and then wait for me outside. I'll be along shortly."

The pegasus bowed before turning sharply and heading out the door. The melting snow dripped off the back of his armor as he left.

Shining Armor stood alone in the throne room for a moment to collect his thoughts. It's likely there was some magic at work here. He was mentally kicking himself for not making it a bigger priority to get a squad of unicorns in the Crystal Empire Guard. They did have some unicorns, but none of them were magic specialists. There had been talk recently about strengthening their defenses against the arcane, an idea which Cadence had been particularly vocal in supporting, and a unit of magic users seemed a logical first step. They just hadn't made it a main concern. Shining Armor assumed their muscle would be enough to see them through whatever they came across in the meantime.

"Well," he said aloud to himself, "One more thing I might have to admit she was right about."

Shaking his head, Shining Armor magically floated his cup back down to the table to rest beside the water pitcher before turning back to his chambers to get ready.

He was going to need some coffee.

Even while she was asleep, Cadence was so graceful that she seemed to float on the mattress. The sheets moved up and down slightly every time she breathed, and somehow she made even that look like a beautifully choreographed dance routine: The raise up a pirouette, the gentle descent a elegant bow.

Shining Armor didn't know how she managed to do it. Or how he managed to end up with somepony like her. He would have chalked it up to his good looks and charm, but even his pride knew its limits. He was lucky, and he wasn't too proud to admit it.

Getting dressed in his warmest gear, Shining Armor did his best to not wake her. He knew he would have to before he left, after all she was the Princess of the Crystal Empire and needed to be told what was happening, but he always hated disturbing her sleep. Unfortunately Shining Armor was not very quiet by nature, and Cadence slept lightly. She awoke nearly the minute he started getting dressed.

"Mmm, what time is it?" She sleepily asked after rolling over to face him.

"Really, really early," he whispered.

As her eyes got adjusted, she saw what he was doing. "Where are you going?" she said as she sat up on her pillows. "What's wrong?"

"There's some kind of weird storm on the northern border," he explained. "It's got everypony there spooked. Sounded a bit odd, maybe some kind of magic going on. Something about black winds and strange howling. I thought I'd go take a look."

Cadence frowned and said, "But your sister is coming in this afternoon."

Shining Armor cringed and slapped his forehead.

"I can't believe I forgot about that," he groaned.

Cadence shook her head. He wasn't a very forgetful pony usually, but he did have a knack for forgetting things at the worst time. Delegating in her head, Cadence tried to problem solve a way out.

"Can't you send somepony else to check it out?" she asked. "At least until Twilight leaves?"

Shining Armor shook his head.

"No, they're really rattled up there," he said. "They need their commander. And who else am I going to send? We don't have a magic squad yet. Aside from you I'm the one who knows the most magic here. And I already said I'd go."

"So what are you going to do?" Cadence asked. She tactfully held back the "I told you so" she was entitled to.

Shining Armor thought for a minute. He looked at the snow goggles he was holding in one hoof. They were metal plates with a thin horizontal slit in the middle and bound with leather edges and straps, but at that moment they might as well have been Twilight Sparkle's eyes staring right into him. Angrily. He stood by the bed and considered if the wrath of his sister was worth potentially leaving the Crystal Empire open to attack. He had already told the guard he was coming. Backing out now would make him look either indecisive, or worse, a liar. He couldn't have that.

With a great sigh, he made up his mind.

"Alright," he said. "I have to go and check this thing out. I'll try to make it back as soon as I can. If I'm not here when Twilight arrives, well, just keep her here until I get back, yeah?"

Cadence give him a cold stare.

"What?" Shining Armor asked. "She's probably going to be here for more than a day anyway, right? So what's the big deal? I'll see her when I'm done with this. There's no way I'm going be there more than a day."

"Celestia made it sound like she was in a bit of trouble. She's going to want your support."

"And she'll have it totally" Shining Armor said, "WHEN I get back. But the Crystal Empire needs me, too. I am helping rule the place, you know."

"Shining Armor…"

The chill in Cadence's voice was frostier than the wind outside the palace. He held out a hoof to try and fend off the verbal lashing he was about to get.

"I know," he said before his punishment could start. "I know it's a jerk thing to do, but if my pegasi scouts saw something they don't like, I believe them. I've got to go check it out. I've got to be a leader here. I know you understand that. I would hope Twilight would, too."

"She knows you need to be a leader, Shining Armor, but you've got to be a brother to her as well."

There was a silence as they both let the words sink in. Cadence knew Shining Armor was in a hard position here, but they were talking about his sister. They didn't know what was wrong with her yet. She could be in trouble, and what would that say to her if her brother was off chasing storms when she needed him the most? She watched him as the gears in his head turned, rolling over the responsibility of ruler and brother in his mind and seeing which one would win.

Finally he lifted the snow goggles over his head and put them on his brow, securing the strap in place.

"It's the late afternoon train, right?" he asked.

Cadence closed her eyes and sighed. Her mussed up mane swayed back and forth as she shook her head, the streaks of purple, pink and pale yellow making a tangled pastel rainbow in the bed.

"Yes."

There was another moment of brief silence between them.

"Well," Shining Armor continued, "I'll try to make it back before then. Shouldn't be too hard. It's only a few hours away. Plenty of time to make it there, find out what it is and come back."

Cadence nodded. She was disappointed, but there was little she could do. It wasn't her job to make sure Shining Armor behaved like a brother should. He had to make those choices himself. She couldn’t force him to. She could only hope that for Twilight's sake, his plan worked. Otherwise there would be some significant damage control for Cadence to deal with. And if that ended up being the case, Twilight Sparkle wouldn't be the only pony he'd have to answer to.

"Okay," she said.

He wrapped his scarf around his neck and pulled on his boots. He was ready to combat the cold awaiting him outside. He leaned in close to his clearly upset wife and rubbed his horn against hers.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

"It's not me you're going to be apologizing to if you don't get back here in time."

Despite himself, he had to chuckle grimly at the thought of his sister's fury. It wasn't a pleasant image.

"I know," he said with a smirk. "It's going to be brutal."

Cadence wasn't about to give him a smile, but she wasn't quite ready to send him off mad.

"Just come back quickly, okay?" she said, swallowing some of the choicer words she could have used.

"Okay."

Shining Armor nodded and kissed her goodbye. She didn't return it completely, but she did manage to give a lukewarm effort.

Getting up from the bed and walking to the chamber door, he turned one last time to the Princess of the Crystal Empire.

"I love you."

"I love you, too. Hurry back."

With a final flourish of his trademarked charming grin as he opened the door and stepped through, he called over his shoulder, "Don't let Twilight blow the place up while I'm gone!"

* * *

With a piercing whistle the train pulled into the Crystal Empire station. The ash spewing from the smokestack added their gray and black flakes to the white ones pouring down from the sky. The moderate gusts of wind drifting across the icy plains pushed the jets of steam shooting from the pistons down the length of the train to go twirling under and around the wheels as the screeching brakes ground them to a halt. Finally it came to a full stop, giving a final lurch and wheeze as it reached its destination.

After a few moments delay the doors slid open. Standing in the exit, Twilight Sparkle's eyes went wide and then shut quickly as the coldness blew inside to smack her right in the face. She had been prepared for the coldness and was wearing plenty of warm clothes, as spring didn't mean quite the same thing in the northern regions that the Crystal Empire was located in as it did in Ponyville, but that initial shock was enough to knock the wind out of a pony's lungs.

"Oof!" she gasped. "I don't remember it being quite this cold!"

"It wasn't still nearly winter when we were here last," Spike said from the wool-padded saddle on her back. "This stinks. Can't you cast a warming spell or something?"

"Yeah," said Rainbow Dash standing beside him, "It's called a coat." She only had her high-altitude scarf and goggles on, being the pony most accustomed to the coldness. Flying high in the sky did tend to get a pony used to chilly weather. But even she gave a little shiver as the wintery air rushed in through the door.

As the ponies stepped onto the platform, they took in their surroundings. The train station seemed to be bustling despite the weather. There were ponies carrying luggage back and forth from the building to the train and vice versa, vendors selling hot drinks and refreshments, newscolts calling out headlines and trying to sell some papers, and ponies with shovels who were so bundled up that all you could see was their snouts as they pushed the accumulating snow off of the edge of the platform to add to the growing drifts that were piling up on each side.

"I don't reckon I remember hearing about a blizzard up here," Applejack said, her words muffled underneath the scarf wrapped around her face.

"I suppose that's what one should expect when they live in an icebox," Rarity remarked. "It's a travesty, really. The Crystal Empire is so marvelously lovely. Why they built it up here instead of someplace habitable I've no idea."

"It is a might cold for my liking, I'll grant ya," said Applejack. "But still, it's spring. Their blizzards should be over and done with by now."

"And that's why Ponyville is awesome," Rainbow Dash said. "The clouds here are spoiled! Back home we don't let the weather run the show. Past the Everfree Forest, there's no telling what the clouds are gonna do. Gimme a squad of pegasus ponies to whip the weather into shape any day. None of this "Whatever nature wants" malarkey!"

"It's not malarkey, Rainbow," Twilight corrected her friend. "It's just the way it is up here. There's nothing bad about it. It's simply different."

At that moment the wind fired up with a newly found energy, sending the top few inches of a nearby snowdrift into the air and smacking them in the faces. All six ponies and Spike were dusted with white powder, and any kind of warmth that had been clinging to them from the train was now officially gone.

"Although," Twilight added through chattering teeth, "At the moment I'm inclined to agree with you."

They made their way out of the station, passing between the giant twin crystal spires that marked the entrance to the city like sentinels keeping watch. Like everything else they had begun to pick up a frosting of ice and snow which dulled their usually vibrant maroon color. The subtly snaking road which led to the city was turning into an ice rink, having been relatively neglected by the ponies working to keep the streets clear, since there wasn't that much traffic coming from the train station at that time, and it was slow going. As they proceeded down the road made of the deep purple and blue crystal that made up a good deal of the infrastructure of the city, eventually it became less slushy and slippery, and the ponies were free to quickly make their way to where all the roads converged: The palace.

Under the gray overcast skies of the late afternoon, the light blue of the palace's flowing arches were dulled, blending into the low-hanging clouds and the snow that swirled around the massive needle-like tower and the four smaller ones alongside that jutted up from the city's center like a giant crystalline trident. The crown of the tower, a large diamond-shaped open-air observatory, was more of a suggestion, barely visible in the fading light and deepening storm and gathering darkness of the early nightfall.

Twilight and the others had never seen the palace without the usual brilliant flares of light shining off it as the crystals it was made of caught the sun. Normally the towers practically glowed, but in the dimness of the storm it seemed much less inviting. As they approached and saw it looming high above them in dark, oppressive gray, they realized very little of the welcoming atmosphere which usually flowed through the city remained. Once they passed beneath the palace and entered the dome-like structure created from the arches holding the structure up, it wasn't unlike stepping into the gapping maw of a colossal beast. It gave them all the jitters.

There were two guards to each of the four arched openings. Their pacing back and forth seemed less like diligence or military form and more like they were simply trying to keep from freezing to the spot where they stood. All around the area were servants with shovels and carts full of snow, rushing back and forth as fast as they could in an effort to keep up with the accumulation of the weather. None of them seemed particularly happy.

As they reached the checkpoint where the guards stood, one of them held out a hoof, signaling them to stop. An older looking brown pony, he wore a look of irritation and impatience under his silver-blue helmet.

"What's your business?" he asked.

"We're here to see Princess Cadence," Twilight answered as professionally as she could. "She's expecting us."

"Is that so? Well, do you have a name so I can check it or should I just let everypony who says so walk right in?"

Twilight was slightly taken aback by the rudeness.

"Um, yes sir," she answered. "It's Twilight. Twilight Sparkle. With my friends. They should be on the list as well."

With a brief harrumph the guard produced a scroll from inside his armor. He slowly started going down the list of names, eyes scrolling left to right in overly exacting detail. He was taking quite a long time with it, and the ponies were starting to get antsy in addition to freezing. It didn't seem possible for a pony to read so slowly, but this one was going at such a snail's pace in finding their names that Spike noticed that down by the guard's hooves, he had started collecting a little drift. It was bordering on ridiculous.

"You wouldn't happen to know if my brother is here, do you?" Twilight asked after a moment, hoping to speed things along. "Shining Armor?"

The guard said nothing. His muzzle stayed firmly buried in the scroll.

"Prince Shining Armor?" she added.

"I know who my prince is, young filly," the guard snapped back without looking up.

"Oh excellent," Rarity said, her eyes rolling. "Then you'll know him when you see him. Go get him and tell him we're here! My rouge is going to freeze to my face if I'm out here much longer."

"Yeah, come on," Rainbow Dash mumbled. "Priorities here."

"He's away," the guard answered without emotion, and again without his eyes leaving the scroll. "Left this morning."

"Wait, what?" Twilight asked. "He's not here? Where did he go?"

Finally the guard raised his head and looked Twilight in the eye with the same gaze of annoyance that one would give to an egg that rolled off the kitchen counter and broke when it was the last one in the house, meaning breakfast was cancelled.

"Away," he repeated. "North. Scouting mission. Something to do with the weather."

The coldness and temperamental guard was briefly pushed to the back of Twilight's mind. How could Shining Armor just leave? Did the fact that his sister needed help not mean anything to him? And to leave for a scouting mission about the weather? What was that all about? If the guard didn't even know why he had left, it couldn't have been anything that urgent. It sure was nice to see how important she was to him.

Twilight stood there fuming in the snow when suddenly, finally, blissfully the guard found her name.

"Ah. Here it is," he said, still with no emotion. "Twilight Sparkle, you said?"

"Yeah," she flatly replied. She was done with being pleasant. Her mind was already in fight mode for when she next saw her brother.

"Alright. So who're the rest of you, then?"

A loud collective groan swelled through the group.

Some time later, after all their names had been proven to be on the scroll, they were finally free to enter the palace. While the cold was still biting and actually getting worse, thankfully the wind was ever so slightly lessened underneath the arched dome. While they had nothing but harsh words to say about the guard at the first opportunity they had, they couldn't help but notice that he was not alone in his grumpiness. Now that they thought about it, not a single pony since they got there had offered as much as a slight smile or nod of welcome or even a simple "Hello." It was strange, to say the least, especially considering their status as heroes.

"Anypony else feelin' like there's somethin' off here?" Applejack asked from the rear of the group. "I ain't never seen such inhospitality."

"I didn't want to say anything, but everypony's been so mean today," Fluttershy quietly agreed.

"Maybe it has something to do with that," Spike said from his seat on Twilight's back. His little claw was pointed right where the Crystal Heart would normally have sat. Instead the spot between the two spikes where it usually hovered was empty.

"Oh my," Rarity gasped. "That's slightly troubling."

Twilight felt her stomach hit a point somewhere a few miles below the surface of Equestria. This was insane. First a blizzard, then her brother was gone and now the Crystal Heart was missing too? How was she supposed to perform the cleansing ritual without it? And what else could go wrong? Perhaps it was her imagination, but she thought she felt the same scratching inside her throat that she had felt during her nightmare. She shook her head to clear her mind of those thoughts. It wasn't worth it to dwell on it.

One thing at a time, Twilight.

"Come on, everypony," she said, sounding overwhelmed. "Let's go inside and talk to Cadence and find out where the Crystal Heart and my stupid brother are."

Their jog towards the nearest staircase leading upwards into the palace was a speedy one. And while it was certainly nice to be someplace warm, with all that had gone wrong so far as they went to see Cadence, Twilight was beginning to feel like this may have been a mistake.

"Hopefully she hasn't been turned into a rabbit or something," she muttered under her breath.

Cadence had, thankfully, not turned into a rabbit, although she was about as nervous as one as she sat upon the throne. Ever since Shining Armor had left that morning, she had been anxiously awaiting his return, or at least word of what was going on to the north. But the morning and afternoon had come and then passed, and there had been no sign of him. She wasn't worried for his safety, not at this point at least. He could handle himself, but telling Twilight her brother wasn't there to meet her was not something she was looking forward to.

And now as the unicorn, her five friends and her dragon entered the throne room of the Crystal Empire palace, the reality that time was officially up sank in, and Cadence realized that she really didn't have a good way to tell Twilight what she needed to tell her.

Based on her expression as she walked through the door, looking cold and upset with her eyes already glued to the empty spot next to Cadence where he would normally be standing, it was likely Twilight already knew. Cadence took a small amount of relief in not having to be the one to break it to her.

"Hello, Twilight," Cadence said with the warmest smile she could muster. "It's lovely to see you again."

Twilight smiled back at Cadence as best she could. But despite her best efforts the gaze of her eyes could not leave the place where her brother should have been. The smile on her face faltered and became somewhat forced.

"It's nice to see you too, Cadence" she answered with strained cheerfulness. The gloom she felt was beginning to show through.

Turning to each of the others in turn, Cadence welcomed the rest of the group.

"And of course hello to everypony else," she added. "Welcome back to the Crystal Empire. Please make yourselves at home."

"Thank you princess," Applejack said with a slightly awkward bow. "We will, but I gotta admit it's a might chillier than we expected it to be."

"That's for sure," Pinkie Pie piped in. "I think my balloons are frozen."

"Pinkie," Rarity chided, "I don't think the princess is concerned about your balloons."

"Well she should be," Pinkie replied. "I don't know what in Equestria I'm going to do in case of a party situation. And I still don't know where my Party Cannon is! This could be serious! One-hundred percent-mucho-über-serious!"

While trying to figure out where the balloons Pinkie was referring to were hidden, Cadence managed a small laugh. "Yes, we have been experiencing some bizarre weather today," she said. "This only started up late this morning. We weren't really expecting it, so it caught us all a bit off guard. Your timing was unlucky, it seems."

"Is that why my brother isn't back yet?" said Twilight with a little too much venom. "From wherever it is that he went?"

Cadence heaved a sigh and shook her head. "I'm so sorry that he isn't here right now," she began, bringing her best diplomatic voice forward but only partly succeeding, having known Twilight from a foal and finding it hard to be formal. "He wanted to be here when you arrived, but his duties required him to head to the northern border of our region to investigate some bizarre weather, which I'm guessing this storm is a byproduct of."

"He ditched me to check on the weather?!" Twilight balked with a fury.

"Your brother would not have left unless it was important," Cadence stressed.

"Gotta admit, Twi," Rainbow Dash said, "This storm is pretty gnarly. I know I'd take a look if I saw it coming towards Ponyville."

There was silence as Twilight contemplated the situation. Part of her understood why Shining Armor wasn't there to meet her, being the ruler of a kingdom and having all that responsibility, but the sister part of her still felt like being mad at him. She felt she had that right. And it wasn't like she had an evil spirit attached to her or anything. No, no reason at all to be there for her.

Then again, Princess Celestia had declined adding that little factoid in the letter, just to prevent Twilgiht any embarrassment or trouble in case anypony else saw the note. It's not like they knew. It would be unreasonable to expect them to know how important it was.

"I guess so," she said. She decided that she understood his absence, but reserved the right to call him a jerk later. That seemed fair.

"Celestia told me you were coming," said Cadence, attempting to draw the conversation to the point and away from that unpleasant topic. "She said there was something I could help you with. What can I do for you?"

Twilight looked around. The guards standing around the throne room were looking at her impassively, but she didn't feel comfortable talking about her dilemma in front of them.

"Um, perhaps we could discuss it elsewhere?" she asked. "Someplace private?"

Cadence was a little surprised, but nodded in understanding.

"Of course," she said. "Everypony, please come with me to my chambers."

The more comfortable setting of Cadence and Shining Armor's room, with a fireplace blazing in the corner, soft cushions to sit on and warm drinks to shake the chill off was a far preferable one to the throne room, which despite being beautiful was slightly unforgiving in its draftiness. Twilight felt much of the pressure and irritation from earlier melting away along with the cold as she sat on a velvet-lined couch and sipped some hot chocolate. The comparatively muggy atmosphere of the room was almost making her sleepy, but the tale that she had to tale Cadence was enough to keep her awake.

From the beginning, Twilight told Cadence everything. She told her about her teleportation spell going haywire, their attempts at catching the supposed thief, taking the Alicorn Amulet to Canterlot and the terrible dream she had, about what Celestia and Luna had discovered and what they had suggested. Her friends filled in some blanks in the story that Twilight wasn't there for, like the night Rainbow Dash and Applejack stood guard. For all of them though, this was the first time anypony other than Luna and possibly Celestia had heard about Twilight's dream, and it had affected them all to varying degrees. Applejack didn't seem overly insulted, as it was just a dream after all, and Pinkie Pie thought the idea of her not being happy was so silly that it was laughable. Rarity was taken aback by her double's selfishness and felt somewhat slighted. But poor Fluttershy was so mortified beyond belief at how mean her dream self had been to Twilight that she had felt the need to apologize profusely and often.

Rainbow Dash appeared somber as Twilight had described what she had seen in her dark vision. When she got to the part where Rainbow Dash had abandoned her, a look of sudden understanding came over her face, and she looked at Twilight with contemplative eyes. The conversation in the predawn hours of that morning about Dash never leaving suddenly took on a new meaning. As Twilight finished the story, Rainbow Dash shot her a warm smile as a reminder of her promise. The smile was returned.

Then, after what seemed like hours of talking, they came to the final part.

"So Cadence," Twilight finished, "It seems that we need the Crystal Heart to cast Sombra out of me and be rid of him, hopefully for good this time."

Cadence sat back on her cushions. There was a lot to take in, and the situation had turned out to be much more serious than she had imagined. The thought of the evil of King Sombra hiding inside an innocent sweetheart like Twilight Sparkle was enough to make her sick to her stomach. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes to collect her thoughts.

Shining Armor should be here for this. She needs him. But there's no sense waiting. I don't know what he's doing or how long he's going to take. But I can't just sit around and let that monster be inside her for one minute longer. Not him. Not in Twilight. Not my husband's little sister.

She opened her eyes and spoke to her.

"And this cleansing ritual," she asked. "You and Celestia are confident it will work?"

Twilight nodded slowly. "We don't see a reason why it wouldn't. It's really a very simple spell."

Cadence was familiar with the spell they were using. It's true that it was a simple one, and very adaptable as well. From her perspective she could find no reason to doubt both Celestia and her star pupil. She would have come to the same conclusion.

With that, her decision was made.

"The Crystal Heart is currently being studied at the museum," she explained. "It's strange, the curator came by just the other day to take it with him."

"Don't that leave ya'll defenseless?" Applejack asked between sips of hot cider.

"Maybe that's why everypony has been so rude today," Fluttershy reasoned. "The Crystal Heart affects their mood, doesn't it?"

"It's true that tempers may flare up when the Heart is gone," said Cadence, "And we may be without our greatest defense at the moment, but that's only temporary. Plus it's only a short walk away. And I made sure to guarantee that it could be easily retrieved in case of emergencies like this."

Twilight's eyes lit up.

"Does that mean…"

"Give my guards half an hour," Cadence said with a wink.

* * *

The shadows hung thick and sagging all throughout the study. Oozing up and outwards to spread across the ceiling, they pooled in a haze of darkness in the far corner where they sat and congealed, a sinister mass stretching out its fingers and roots from a heavy, swollen body. The gloom dug its legs in deep to the walls and bookcases and picture frames and greedily soaked up the light as if it were thirsty for it. All night long the faint, dusty sound of claws scraping the wallpaper flittered in the air through the locked doors and down the hallway.

All night long, Sharpsight had sat in the corner across the room and watched.

It was unmoving, but pulsed with a throbbing strength that grew ever more powerful. Whispers slithered out, speaking without using words, yet Sharpsight could understand them all the same. This was what he wanted. This was the magical power he had known the horn possessed.

Do you fear us?

He knew it was testing him to see if he was worthy of unraveling its mysteries. To see if he was smart enough to harness its might. It was trying to scare him away with magic he did not understand. And he would have been wholly lying if he had said that he wasn't afraid.
Do you fear us, earth pony?

But this is when a pony proved his worth. This was the moment for Sharpsight to show that he was more than just an unlucky clod who got thrown a thousand years forward into an unfamiliar time and was forced to sit the rest of his life out in uselessness. This was the moment where he made a difference again! This was when he would prove he was just as smart and important as anypony else! And no lack of magical power was going to stop him from fulfilling his destiny! He was smart enough to do anything!
Do you fear us, professor?

Sharpsight stood from where he had been sitting for hours, pondering his course of action and mentally preparing himself for it. Holding his head high, he walked forward on stiff legs towards the shadow until he reached the center of the room where the Crystal Heart still stood on his desk.

"My name is Sharpsight," he declared. "And I am not afraid of you."

With a condescending chuckle, the shadow rumbled in a deep, booming baritone.
What delightful arrogance.

"The mind only fears what it does not understand!" retorted Sharpsight. "I understand! I understand you are no more than a memory. A shade. A reflection of what once was terrible. And you have caused me and everypony else more pain than can be described. But now, you are nothing. You're a shadow. An illusion of danger when the lights are turned off. A monster under the bed that young colts and fillies are afraid of."
They are wise to fear.

"HA! Only fools and foals are fearful of shadows. And I am neither!"

The more he talked, the more confident he became. His old intuition, already on fire the entire night and now simmering with the clearly obvious solutions was ablaze. It was evident that all it would take to control this power, to put an end to this darkness, were a handful of words. And even without any magical training or knowledge, Sharpsight could already feel them entering his mind unbidden. And to imagine this creature thought itself worthy of fear!

Brave words for one who can do nothing to us.

"Is that so?" The thought of a bit of shade, no matter the source, mocking his ability was enough to make him laugh. "Clearly you have no idea with whom you are dealing, beast."

He allowed a slight smile to cross his face.

"What if I were to say Harrora Artu Sen?"

Although he had no knowledge of the meaning of those words, he knew they were powerful. They flowed from his tongue like old friends whose names he didn't know.

The shadow was silent.

"Nothing? You'd have nothing to say? What a shame. And after you'd been so talkative. Well, I'll say it again. Harrora Artu Sen, Livsid Tab Ort!"

He did not know from where those foreign words were coming as he spoke them, but it filled him with a sense of power. Each syllable of the strange language burned hot on his tongue, and he stood in his study spitting fire at the shade of the vanquished tyrant. With each word he said the darkness seemed to quake and fade, shrinking back into itself.
No. Stop!

He laughed. "What's wrong, Sombra? Finally met somepony smarter than yourself, eh what?!"

You know not what you say!

"Oh, I believe I do," he cackled. "I'm finally putting an end to you, and I'm using your power to cement my legacy as the greatest mind of our time! In fact, now that I think of it, I'll be the greatest mind of two, thanks to you so kindly making me lose out on a millennia! So here's my thanks!"
NO!

"HARRORA ARTU SEN, LIVSID TAB ORT!"

With that, the shadow sprawling across the ceiling and walls gave a mighty shudder and shriveled, drawing back into itself and disappearing in the blink of an eye. The only evidence it was ever there was a gust of wind as air was sucked into the corner of the room in which it had been lurking. Several loose pieces of paper whipped past Sharpsight and fluttered down to the ground in the spot the thickest shadows had been. His mane, already a mess to begin with, was now sticking out everywhere after the wind had grabbed it from behind.

He was left alone in his study. The darkness had not completely disappeared, but the specter of Sombra that had formed in the room was gone. There were still essences of his power flowing from the Crystal Heart, however, but it was weak. So weak.

It all made perfect sense. The cleansing power of the Heart had been enough to draw him out of the horn and make him weak enough to be destroyed by the incantation. So obvious. Sharpsight gave a small laugh. He was shocked that everything had gone that well. He found himself wondering why it had been that Celestia had had so much trouble vanquishing him before.

His mind had just begun questioning why it was that those strange words had come to his mind when there was an aggressive knock at the door. Sharpsight was so surprised that he nearly jumped out of his own hide.

"YES? What is it!?" he yelled.

"Royal Guard," said a voice from the other side of the door. "The Crystal Heart must come back at once."

For a brief moment he didn't move. An alert in his head fired up. Instinctively he knew the Crystal Heart couldn't leave. It wasn't safe. He had more to do. There were more words to say. Sombra's essence was still in there, as weak as it was. If the Heart were powered up now, it could be disastrous. He went to the door and opened it halfway.

Standing on the other side were three guards, all wearing their warmest gear and carrying some of the snowfall inside with them on their backs and in the crests of their helmets. They did not look to be in a very negotiable mood.

"Is the Heart ready to go?" asked the lead guard.

"I don't suppose," said Sharpsight after clearing his throat, "That there's any way to keep it here until tomorrow?"

"No," the guard answered. "There's not."

So much for that. There was no way he could tell them it was dangerous. They'd stick their noses too far into his business. Too many questions. Too much trust lost by those who didn't understand, but still maddeningly held positions of power. Best to improvise.

He opened the door the full way to let the guards in. Tracking snow in over his nice carpet, they walked over the Heart and gave it a brief look-over before nodding to each other. The two earth ponies lifted the Crystal Heart while the unicorn of the group floated the ornate wooden box over to them, after which they set it down inside and closed the lid. Hoisting it on the back of the bigger of the two earth ponies, they turned around to leave.

"Excuse me," Sharpsight called out, causing them to stop. "Would it be quite aright if I were to come with you?"

The guards exchanged looks between themselves. They weren't quite sure of what to make of this crazy looking academic with the unkempt mane and wild eyes who had been doing Celestia-knows-what to their Crystal Heart, but technically speaking, there wasn't anything they could do to stop him. They shrugged in unison.

"You're the director of the Crystal Empire Museum," said the pegasus, who was clearly the leader. "You are free to visit the palace at your leisure."

"Oh wonderful," Sharpsight said with a smile. "If you'll allow me, please let me get my hat and scarf first. It looks cold out there."

What a relief, he thought. For a moment that entire situation had nearly turned disastrous.

* * *

"Twilight, are you ready to begin?"

Cadence's voice echoed throughout the throne room, which was empty with the exception of herself and Twilight Sparkle and her friends. Thinking about Twilight's reputation, Cadence had cleared the room for the purification ceremony.

Standing in front of the Crystal Heart as it spun on one of its portable stands, Twilight steadied herself and took a step closer, lowering her head and pointing her horn towards it. A faint shimmer of purple magic started dancing around her horn.

"I am," she said.

"Will you need any assistance from me?" Cadence asked. "I'm familiar with the spell."

Twilight shook her head. "There were a few adjustments Princess Celestia and I made. It could interfere if somepony else tried helping."

"Well, if you feel you need help, stop," said Cadence. "I could help if you were to tell me what you adjusted."

"Thank you, Cadence," Twilight said. "I will. But right now I'm feeling pretty good, and I want Sombra out of me."

"Kick his flank, Twilight!" Spike yelled from the sidelines. A small round of cheering from her friends followed. Turning to them, she gave one last smile before the ritual began. Then she turned back to face the Crystal Heart. With spirit high and a grin on her face, she steeled herself, lowered her head, and began to mentally intone the spell she and Celestia had worked out.

As her healing magic connected with the Crystal Heart, a cooling, fresh breeze seemed to flow through her. It entered through every pore and surged through every vein, lifting her spirits and her soul and filling her with purity and happiness. The spell was performing flawlessly. Every bit of darkness she felt inside seemed to be breaking away and chipping off into the steams of magic pulsing through her. She felt herself being cleansed, and the claws in her throat reappeared, twitching spastically in their outrage of their sudden helplessness. They tried to find purchase in her throat, but the claws only slipped away as they scrambled, being pulled out of her and towards the cleansing power of the Heart.

It was working! She felt the shadowy darkness inside leaving her! This was it! Her mouth opened reflexively, ready to expel the pathetic evil that had burrowed into her like a common parasite.

With a final tug and a snarl of anger ripping through her mind, the shadow was gone.

As everypony held their breath, a great crack of sound splintered through the soft hum of Twilight's magic and the Crystal Heart's pulsation. A pure black shade could be seen shooting out of Twilight's mouth, whipping around the Crystal Heart like a cyclone before being sucked inside of it to dissolve into nothing. An ghostly cry of anguish could be heart coming from inside, and a gust of air being sucked towards it accompanied the sharp snap of sound like a thunderclap inside the throne room.

Then everything was quiet.

Nopony said a word at first. They waited until Twilight's magic had faded, and the echoing blast had subsided, until all that was left was a gentle beat of the Crystal Heart, still spinning on its pedestal.

"Did, did it work?" Spike asked, breaking the silence.

"It looked like it did!" said Rarity.

"That's right! I saw a shadow come out of her!" Applejack added.

"And it went into the Crystal Heart!" Fluttershy finished.

"BOOM! That's what I'm talking about! Annihilated!" cheered Rainbow Dash.

There was no reply from Twilight. She just stood where she was, breathing heavily and looking at the ground in front of the Crystal Heart. Pinkie Pie was the first to notice.

"Twilight?" she asked. "You okie-dokie?"

Cadence approached her. "Twilight?" she asked gently.

She didn't look up.

"Are you alright? Did it work?"

Almost imperceptivity, she nodded her head.

Cadence gave a sigh of relief. "Oh thank goodness," she exhaled. "For a moment I—"

Before she could finish her thoughts, an unearthly roar rose up from over the horizon, and battered the houses and streets and walls of the Crystal Empire. The palace shook with the intensity of it, and small bits of crystal broken loose from the ceiling started raining down on the ponies in the throne room.

Turning and running in horror to the window, Princes Cadence stood and gaped in wide-eyed disbelief at the sight she saw to the north, on the edge of her vision. The blizzard had nearly stopped, whether because it was done or because the great sound had blown it away, she couldn't tell. But whatever the reason, the clearing of the weather allowed her to see off in the distance the great, wide pillar of green and black flame, licking up to the sky in furious hunger. Even from this distance she could feel the intense, maddening power behind that terrible blaze. She shook her head in disbelief. It was not of Equestria. It was not of this realm. This was dark magic beyond any evil she knew. For a moment, she was frozen in fear. Then, once she allowed herself that single moment of panic, Cadence collected herself and sprang into action without further hesitation.

"GUARDS!" she bellowed at the top of her lungs. The doors flew open nearly immediately. Two guards stood ready at attention.

"Call out the troops!" she began shouting orders in military fashion that Shining Armor would have been proud of had he been there. "Send all pegasus units north with all possible speed! Earth pony and unicorn squads will form up defenses inside the city! Prepare all firefighting equipment immediately, and have them standing by! GO!"

"Yes, your majesty!" The guards snapped into action.

"And summon my personal guard!" she called after them.

The ponies all ran to the window and looked on in shock.

"What in the name of chestnuts is THAT?!" marveled Applejack.

"It's no party, that's for sure," Pinkie Pie replied dryly.

Nopony else had much else to say expect to gasp occasionally. They all stood by the window so mesmerized that they failed to notice that they weren't all there.

As Cadence's personal guard of six pegasus ponies flew past the window and made laps around the tower, she turned to those gathered at the window.

"Everypony stay here," she ordered. "You'll be safe in the castle."

"Wha?! You're leaving?!" Spike wailed.

"I have to meet whatever this is that is threatening my city," she replied. "Don't worry. The Crystal Heart is in place. You will be protected."

"Why can't we all stay here then?" squeaked Fluttershy as she shook.

Cadence looked out towards the blaze with pain on her face.

"Because that's where Shining Armor is."

As one the group looked back towards the flames with a new found sense of dread.

Turning back, Cadence noticed that Twilight had not moved from her place in front of the Crystal Heart. She was still standing there, motionless. Quickly, she trotted over to her to make sure she was alright.

"Twilight?" she asked when she got next to her. "Twilight? Twilight, sweetie? Are you alright?"

With the smoothness of gravity slowly pulling something off the edge of a table, Twilight turned her head towards Cadence. Her expression was blank and tired. She nodded once.

There was something slightly off about her eyes, Cadence thought. The spell must have taken more out of her than they anticipated. It might be a little while before she fully recovered. In fact it was likely that Twilight wasn't aware of anything that was going on at the moment. But by all outward appearances she seemed alright. She couldn't afford to waste time here.

"I have to go," Cadence said to the barely responsive unicorn. She bent over and gave her a hug, then put a hoof under her chin. "You'll be okay, alright? Okay? But I've got to go now. I've got to go get your brother. I'll be back!"

Turning sharply, she made a running dash at the window the rest were standing at. They instinctively ducked as she took flight and soared well above their heads and out into the night sky, joining her pegasus guards.

"Just stay there!" came the faint call from the princess as she flew off to the north. Before her echoes were done bouncing off the walls of the castle, she was out of sight and lost in the blackness.

They all stood in silence for a moment, watching the green inferno on the horizon. The snow had started to come down again. Flakes drifted in the window and caused the crystalline floor to become wet and slippery, and the ominous breeze coming from the north seemed even more chilling than before, as if the fire in the distance was radiating evil coldness. Unable to look upon it any longer, they turned to go back inside.

Facing them with a look of pure satisfaction on her face was Twilight Sparkle. Her eyes were wide as saucers, her mane was wild and flowing mysteriously, and a horrible, rictus grin spread ear to ear in a mask of obscene pleasure.

Everypony stopped dead their tracks.

"Twilight?" asked Spike, his little dragon voice quivering along with his knees.

The reply was booming and terrible.

"YOU WILL CALL US "YOUR MAJESTY," YOU PITIFUL WHELP!"

Departures

Chapter Six
Departures

The thunderous laugh of King Sombra shook the throne room. It was a frenzied, unhinged burst of evil glee and wicked satisfaction. It raised higher and higher in pitch, reaching a maniacal intensity as the dread tyrant reveled in his victory. So loud was his bellowing roar of laugher that the ponies gathered before him covered their ears in pain.

As they looked onward in horror, their friend Twilight had thrown her head back to cackle as Sombra's voice emanated from her mouth. Her eyes were glowing bright green, leaving trails of purple behind them like afterthoughts. Tendrils of smoky darkness flowed out from her back, whipping about and lashing the air, and a pool of blackness began forming beneath her and slithered out like spider legs across the blue crystalline floor. Her mane spread out from her head to float in the air, and her horn was ablaze with a crackling magic of deep purple. Her hooves began to leave the ground, and Twilight was soon hovering ten feet in the air. Tilting her head back and spreading her front legs wide, she embraced the power coursing through her body and whirling around her like a cyclone.

"YES!" the voice of Sombra oozed from her lips. "None can withstand us! None can defeat us! We are eternal!"

"You!" Applejack cried. Bravely she stepped forward towards the squall of magic ripping around the throne room. She struggled to find purchase on the floor in the howling arcane winds. Her trusty hat flew off of her head and up into the shadows of the vaulted ceilings above.

Standing as unyielding as she could manage, she shouted into the storm, "Git yer stinkin' hooves offa Twilight, you creep!"

Rainbow Dash was hunched over by Applejack's side in an instant. The rainbow haired pegasus' muscles were twitching in anticipation, and the veins in her neck pulsed as she bore her teeth and dug her hooves into the floor, ready to pounce.

"If you don't let her go I swear I'm gonna—" she snarled before she was cut off.

"You're what?" Twilight spat as she snapped her head forward and glared down at Rainbow Dash through pupil-less eyes. "You're going to do what exactly? Hurt your friend? Kill your friend? Be my guest, little pegasus."

Rainbow Dash snapped out of her blind rage long enough to realize she didn't know how to fight Sombra and not hurt Twilight. She didn't even truthfully know if she could do anything to him at all. But she knew she would break herself trying.

"I'm…you…YOU SHOW YOURSELF!" she sputtered.

"We happen to enjoy this form at the moment," Twilight responded with a shark-toothed grin. "It is nice to have one again. Even if it is a pitiful little cur. But she will serve. As will you all."

Behind Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the others were frozen in place. Rarity had immediately stood in front of Spike as a shield, both to protect him and to stop him in case he tried something stupid like charging forward, but right then he didn't seem able to do that even if he wanted. The little dragon's eyes were wide with terror, and his claws dug deep into Rarity's brilliant white coat as he watched from behind her leg and underneath her flowing purple hair. He was shaking.

Next to them Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were embracing each other, trying to find the courage between the two of them to stand with Applejack and Rainbow Dash. But their legs didn't seem to want to move.

"Why isn't the Crystal Heart working?!" squeaked Fluttershy. "Somepony use the Crystal Heart!"

They all turned to look and see if what Fluttershy said was true. The Crystal Heart was still as it had been before—slowly spinning on its pedestal. It was not alive with the same kind of energy that it had when it had defeated Sombra the last time. If anything, it looked lifeless and dull.

Twilight threw her head back and laughed again.

"The Crystal Heart?" she snorted. "That holds no more power over us. We ARE the Crystal Heart. Your greatest weapon is now a part of us."

Still clutching to Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie said in a wavering, shrill whisper.

"The Elements! We need the Elements of Harmony!"

"But without Twilight—" Rarity began, glancing back and forth between her friends in wide-eyed panic and terrible realization. "Without her, the Elements—"

"Are quite useless, yes."

Twilight rose even higher in the air as a renewed burst of magic pulsed out from her horn in a sphere of black wind and shot to the ends of the room, smashing all the windows with a terrible splintering roar. The ponies all instinctively ducked as the broken shards came crashing down to the floor with a mighty clamor. The wintery blasts outside came pouring in like water into a sinking ship, and the wind howling through the now empty arches was deafening. Still Sombra's voice coming from Twilight rose above the storm as she gave another wicked grin.

"As we said, we enjoy this form."

With that, Twilight's horn ignited up with sparking magic, sending purple lightning bolts up in the air where they sizzled with power and electricity. A great ball of energy formed at the tip, growing larger and shaking with force, sending more bolts outwards. It grew bigger and bigger until it was at least twenty feet wide, hovering above them like some small, violet sun. Then, sharply whipping her head to the side, Twilight snapped her horn in the direction of the throne, and the glowing orb shot towards it like a missile. With a piercing shriek it crashed into the ancient chair and blasted it to pieces, sending chunks of white marble, crystal and stone clattering and skidding across the floor. A cloud of debris began to shower the ponies, who let out a collective gasp at the destruction. As they watched, the orb pushed all the way through the throne and the crest of crystals behind it as it hurled the rubble into the air. When it hit the back wall, it exploded with a great blast of green, black and purple energy which knocked the ponies on their flanks.

A new sensation came across them as they picked themselves back up. Instead of at their backs, the cold wind was now blowing across them, and towards the wreckage of the throne. As the dust was sucked into the giant hole which was now there, the ponies felt a sudden exhalation of damp, slightly warmer air, and then saw the unbelievable sight of a gaping maw of a cavern where the wall used to be. It yawned like the mouth of an impossibly huge monster waiting outside the castle, existing far past the point of where the castle would have ended in any logical physical reality. The jagged edges that made the outline of the entrance pulsated with a sickly green glow, marking the boundaries of where Equestria ended and Sombra's dark universe spawned from his evil began.

Inside the cavern where crystals. Thousands upon thousands of them littered the moist, dark gray walls of the cylindrical cave like teeth in a giant meat grinder. They were inky black with threads of deep glowing purple running through them, and as they tasted the outside air, they began to pulse with hunger. A great lake sat in the middle of the cave, which ran all the way to the rear of the cave where, instead of stone, the wall was incredibly made of a solid wall of water slowly flowing upwards. The ceiling of the cavernous expanse was heavy with thick, oily clouds that snaked around the sharp blades of rock, dripping a sporadic drizzle of greasy rain.

Then, as the ponies watched in awe, a great bubbling and churning came from the center of the lake as the sharp points of crystal began to raise from the depths. At first they seemed random, a series of spears thrusting up from the water, but as they rose ever higher they got wider until they were less large spires and more small mountains nearly touching each other. Finally a great mass appeared beneath to connect them together, forming an island that stabbed outwards into the sky like a colossal crown of blades. On the center peak was a balcony of sorts where stood, overhanging as if it were carved from the crystal itself, a great seat that had jagged knifes of rock fanning out from the back of it.

As the ponies looked in, they knew with terrible certainty that this horrible site was Sombra's throne room.

"Ah, it's been so long since we've seen this castle as it was meant to be," Twilight said with a self satisfied sigh.

Looking around as she floated in the air, she took in the surroundings. The throne room was an utter wreck. Debris, snow and broken glass littered the ground. The walls had cracks starting to form in them from the structural damage caused by the giant hole, and the black whirlpool of magic underneath her had begun to eat away at the floor, sending larger and larger bits of marble flying through the air as it chipped away more and more.

"But still," she continued, "It lacks the proper atmosphere."

Throwing a hoof towards the open cavity, a bolt of violet shot from it into the cave, and hit the crystal nearest to the entrance. Chaining from that crystal to all the ones next to it, the spell leapt and spread all the way throughout the cave in mere moments like a shockwave. As it did, the clusters began to grow, heaving themselves up and clawing out of the cavern like great black snakes. Soon they were crawling out of the opening, attaching themselves to the walls of the castle and digging their way up, burrowing and twisting like tree roots. As they spread, bladed nubs appeared on them, which in turn grew into a spikes, which anchored the tentacle-like arms in place. Hundreds of them poured out, a kraken hungrily devouring everything it touched. Before long half of the throne room's walls were covered in the dark crystal as it worked its way up, down, and outside to conquer the rest.

"Now," she chuckled. "That's more to our liking."

Shaking off the snow and dust that had peppered her, Applejack dragged herself up on shaky legs. The country-tough pony held her head high, and with her disheveled yellow mane flying all about her face and tears streaming from the corners of her eyes, she stepped towards the spinning vortex of wind, magic and radiating power of King Sombra, who was in the body of her good friend. She knew it might be the last thing she ever did, but still she put one hoof in front of the other.

"I may not be able ta stop ya," she growled through gritted teeth, "But if ya think I'm gonna roll over and take it, buster, ya got 'nother thing comin'."

Right beside her stepped Rainbow Dash—still ready to spring forward at a moment's notice. Her mane was packed with ice and small rocks from the throne's destruction, and she looked like she had taken more fallout from the explosion than the others had, being the closest one when it had happened. Her right cheek and side were covered in scratches.

"Come on, AJ," she yelled. "Let's get this joker!"

With a snarl, Twilight considered the lowly creatures before her.

"And what, exactly," she asked, "Are you planning on doing?"

Rainbow Dash was mad enough so that fear was something she no longer considered. Flapping her wings and getting ready to strike, she sassed back at the powerful being in front of her.

"I'm going to rip you out of Twilight and pound you a mile into the ground with my bare hooves! That's what I'm planning on doing!"

The snarl turned on Twilight's face turned into a smirk.

"Is that so, little pegasus?" she asked, "What a quaint idea."

She looked back and forth between the two ponies below her, and then upwards is if in thought. It almost seemed like she was searching for something with her mind, feeling something on the wind nopony else could see. Then after a brief moment, she smiled. Another deep laugh flowed out of her, followed by a dismissive shrug.

"Very well," she said, "It no longer matters to us."

As they watched, Twilight began going into convulsions. Her face went slack, and all emotion was gone from it as her body shook violently, still floating above them. The smoky tendrils coming from her back began to spread out and lose their form, becoming a black cloud behind her that began twisting into a large shape that got more and more defined until it was vaguely unicorn shaped. The green glow left her eyes, leaving them white to reveal that they had rolled back into her head. Two green orbs came to life in the black cloud, forming into the familiar terrible eyes trailing purple in their wake. A flash of white appeared as a toothy smile materialized.

Then, as the cloud solidified, he was there.

Devoid of his armor, Sombra's muscular legs and chest were on full display, revealing his powerful black frame and hulking mass. His long black mane spread out behind him like an oil slick, whipping and snapping in the wind, and his brutal, crimson-tipped horn jutted out from his forehead with savage potency. His torso extended down into a tail of mist taking the place of his lower legs, snaking down to the ground, twisting and coiling in smooth, liquid motions. Looking like a toy next to him, Twilight was held aloft by his massive hoof by the scruff of her neck. She dangled nearly unconscious as the spasms subsided, and was finally still as the great tyrant held her at his mercy.

"Is this what you wanted?" Sombra asked the ponies beneath him as he glanced from them to the unicorn he held above his head.

Slowly Twilight opened her eyes. Her entire body felt trampled. At first she didn't know where she was or what she was seeing. All she saw was snow swirling around her, and she felt the bitter cold. Some flashes of purple wisps flew in front of her face, but she didn't understand what they were. Then, as she came around, she realized she was floating. She looked down to see her friends looking up at her, some with fear on their faces, others with grim determination.

"Twilight!" Applejack shouted up at her. "Twilight, just hold on, now!"

"What?" she replied in a daze, "Hold on?"

What was she holding on to? How was she even floating anyway? Why was it so cold? Where was Cadence? And why did everypony look so afraid?

"Let her go!" Rainbow Dash cried, her voice straining and breaking.

Then she felt heavy breathing in her ear and felt the harsh grip on her neck. She turned.

The sight was enough to paralyze her with fear. Brilliant green glowing eyes filled her vision. His eyes were the world. Beneath them were the sharp glints of fangs, and the slavering mouth that was cocked upwards in an obscene smile. His breath was death and ice.

"Hello Twilight," he said to her with mocking sincerity. "Please, allow us to make you comfortable."

With a powerful flick of his hoof he sent Twilight Sparkle flying into the mouth of the cave. She tumbled end over end, only having enough time or presence of mind to scream once. As she reached the cave, the crystal tendrils flowing out of it moved faster than what seemed possible and grabbed her in midair. Coiling around her like snakes, they pulled her up to the ceiling, at the mouth of the cavern high above where the throne used to sit. They then spun around her body and anchored her in place in a crystal cocoon. The only part that was still visible was her head.

"There!" Sombra cried out in triumph. "There you shall stay as our trophy. But, in case you get any ideas…"

With another casual gesture, a smoky whip shot from his hoof and soared through the air towards her like a bullet, leaving a trail of dark mist in its wake as it smacked her in the head and wrapped itself around her horn. With a crack of sound and tremendous jolt through her body, Twilight felt a part of her mind shatter as if a great explosion had taken place instead her skull. She gave a cry as the tendril dissipated, leaving in its wake a feeling of hollow emptiness and a cluster of small black crystals imbedded in her horn. Recognizing them from their last encounter with Sombra, she could only gasp as her breath caught in the lump in her throat.

My magic is gone.

* * *

Sharpsight couldn't see a thing besides frantic flashes of white against a black background. But he felt the coldness. It was a damp, unyielding force pushing into him, flattening as the iciness soaked the warmth out and made whether it was touching numb. As his mind began to clear the haziness caused by the flashes, he realized it was his cheek that was being pressed flat. As he shifted what he finally grasped to be his head about, he felt the hard smoothness of what he remembered to be marble. It was freezing to the touch. His center of gravity then righted itself.

I'm on the floor.

Shifting his weight and rolling over on to his back, Sharpsight felt a stabbing pain in his side. A gasp followed by a sharp cry escaped him and echoed about the room that he could not see, coming back to buffet him with noise that pounded in his head, which he then realized was aching. Still unable to see past the light show flashing before him inside of his eyes, the methodical part of his brain began subconsciously processing information.

It echoed. I'm inside a room of some kind. It must be large.

He reached towards his ribs on his left side. They pulsed with pain. Gingerly running a hoof up the injured area, he padded himself down to see if any serious wound had befallen him. While his entire side smarted terribly, everything seemed thankfully intact. He didn't feel anything out of place inside. But he was having difficulty catching his breath, as if an enormous weight had been sitting on his chest, and had just now rolled off of it. It occurred to him that he must have fallen, knocking the wind out of him.

I was climbing the staircase.

The memories came flooding back to him. He remembered the pure white marble flight of steps. He remembered climbing what seemed to be an endless spiral. And he remembered…he remembered…

He couldn't remember why he had been climbing them. It had something to do with words. Words that he had to say. For some reason it was vitally important that he say them. But the reason why couldn't find purchase in his head. The flashes of light kept them from forming.

His vision had begun to come back, but it was still a murky gray haze populated by sparkling bursts of white. In irritation he ran a hoof across his eyes, rubbing them to clear the cobwebs out. As he did so, he felt delicate, cold brushes of damp wispiness fall across his face. They melted quickly, turning into droplets of water that ran down into his mane and soaked into the scarf he felt around his neck. It was snow. Snow had collected on his legs as he was laying there, and had fallen off onto his face. In fact, as that awareness came upon him, he noticed that there was snow collecting on him even without it falling off his hoof. This was not snow from before, when he had walked through a blizzard getting here. It was snowing on him right now.

But I'm in the palace…

He was still on his back as his vision finally cleared enough to begin to make out his surroundings. The flakes of white drifted above him, fluttering wildly about in the breeze that coiled around the circular room that began appearing before him. Above the snow the cylindrical tower Sharpsight found himself inside of loomed upwards to a dizzying height, the spiraling staircase twisting around a great pillar in the middle like a screw made of solid white marble. As it reached further and further up it was lost in the shadows, with only a faint square of light to mark the exit to the open air observatory at the very top. The square glowed with a strange, sickly green color. As Sharpsight blinked hard to make sure he wasn't seeing things, he noticed that same green hue was subtly flooding in to fill the base of the room, turning the white marble a shade of emerald.

What in Equestria is going on here?

As he rose his aching body from the floor and sat up, Sharpsight turned his head towards the strong breeze flowing over him. What he saw was enough to snap him straight out of whatever daze he had previously been in.

In the side of the tower was a gaping hole. The storm outside was pouring through it, hurling in snow as it soaked the floors and made them slick with water and melting slush as the heat from inside the palace went rushing out of the yawning cavity. The crumbling edges of the castle wall still had wisps of dust streaming off them in the wind, and there was the occasional clatter as another piece dropped to join the pile of rubble on the floor. At the base of the hole was a giant, black object that, based on the direction of the debris, had punched through from the outside. It was sharp and jagged, with veins of faintly glowing dark purple running through it. As Sharpsight watched it, the angular points grew and moved further inwards, expanding and branching off to create what seemed like a series of thorns budding from the mass. He realized that it was a spire of dark crystals, and it was eating its way further into the palace.

His eyes were drawn past the spire and into the distance where the source of the green glow was burning. His jaw dropped as he struggled to comprehend what he was seeing. The great wall of flame on the horizon that stretched past the edges of the hole had to be miles long and just as high to be seen like that from this distance. He calculated that it was on the northern border of the Empire. That was some two hours away by walking. And even from that distance their pulses of power and terror could be felt as they highlighted the buildings of the city in black silhouette against their angry blaze.

What foul magic is at work here?

That's when he remembered everything. Sombra! The Crystal Heart! The words! That's what he was doing! He had been making his way up the steps to the observatory at the top of the palace. That's when the explosion had happened.

Looking upwards again to the stairs, he noticed there were additional gaping holes further up the tower. In the darkness he hadn't seen them, but as they grew larger, the purple glow of the crystalline spikes could be seen snaking across the steps. He saw a particularly large hole about eighty feet upwards, with a nasty spear of shiny blackness jutting from the outer wall and digging itself through the stairs from below. Further down towards the bottom, about twenty feet directly above him was a chunk of stairs that was completely missing. Was that where he had fallen from? His memory had placed him about as high up as that big hole. He must have tumbled down the steps from there and then fallen through that gap above. He was lucky he hadn't fallen further. Otherwise he would have had far bigger problems than aching ribs.

Those gaps in the stairs didn't bode well for him. He needed to get to the top. He knew that's where he had to go to complete his task. He didn't know why, but something inside him knew for a certainty that was the only place to go. His intuition had been correct so far. There was no reason to doubt himself now. He had to continue his mission to rid the Crystal Empire and Equestria of Sombra's evil. There was no time to lose.

Standing on unsteady legs, Sharpsight assessed the situation. There was going to be no climbing those steps to the top. Even as he watched, the crystal lances grew ever inwards to impale the staircase, breaking off steps and putting crumbling holes in the pillar they ascended. They looked ready to collapse any minute as it was. In desperation, he looked back towards the hole to his right.

Maybe…

Stepping over the still growing crystal and standing on the edge, he stuck his head out into the night sky. The wind at that dizzying height grabbed his mane and threatened to pull him off into the night sky. Bracing himself and his stomach against the vertigo, he looked down. A hundred feet below the guards of the Crystal Palace frantically ran back and forth in the snow, shouting directions and attempting to maintain order in this catastrophic situation. As he scanned left to right, Sharpsight saw that there were spikes of black crystal shooting up from the ground all over the courtyard, and up and around the colossal legs of the palace. The ones penetrating the tower he was in were merely tiny offshoots of the massive spires that ripped up the buildings and houses all around like the arms of a great tentacled sea monster rising from the depths to envelope the palace in its horrible embrace. Like vines the smaller spikes came off of them, rooting the larger masses to the castle walls like claws as they wrapped around it. The one he was standing next to came from a thick vine that ascended higher up the side of the tower.

They've tampered with the Crystal Heart! The fools!

Sharpsight knew he was the only one who could stop this. He had to finish what he began.

He twisted his head to look up. The crystal arms had snaked their way all the way to the top of the great tower, and the observatory. They had encircled it almost completely, and it was only becoming more and more dense with the black, tentacle-like growths.

They were almost like steps carved into a mountain.

Sharpsight steeled himself and with shaking hooves walked out on the ledge of black crystal. The wind and snow tore at him, chilling him to the bone and threatening to throw him to his doom. But he held on to the slippery surface as best he could and began to climb. He had to make it to the top.

Sharpsight scrambled up the outside of the tower as the storm raged around him. In the distance, the green fire was burning.

* * *

"FALL BACK! FALL BACK TO THE CITY! RUN!"

Shining Armor felt the branches snap at his face as he galloped through the undergrowth of the forest. His soldiers had been at his side, loyally defending their commander, but as he frantically glanced to his side he couldn't see any of them anymore. He didn't know at what point he had lost them, or what had become of them. Few things had been clear during the frantic retreat he now found himself in. With a groan of anguish for both his missing pegasus troops and his screaming muscles ready to explode with the effort, he pushed himself on through the woods and back towards home.

But something told him he wasn't going to make it back.

He heard the monsters behind him. They were unrelenting in their pursuit, seemingly floating over the ground and paying no mind to the rocky, obstacle filled terrain. Branches snapped off of their armored hides as they plowed through the trees without effort, barely bothering to move out of the way of the trunks as they pursued him through the woods. He imagined he could almost feel the steam spitting from their gaping nostrils into the cold air on his back. No matter how fast he ran, they were getting closer.

As Shining Armor rounded a curve in the natural path he had been following, out of the darkness a thick tangle of bushes appeared in front of him. With no time to think of a way around them, and going anywhere but forward simply not being an option, he shut his eyes and leapt into the air, attempting to jump the worst of it and barrel through the rest.

They ended up being far more resilient than he had hoped. The bushes tore at his hide and wrapped themselves around his legs, dragging him downward even as he managed to crash through to the other side. Not able to get his hooves under him for the landing, he took a hard tumble onto the snowy ground, rolling end over end with the momentum of the long pursuit. Powered snow flew everywhere as the skid sent him sliding into a meadow littered with large rocks, one of which quickly reared up in front of him.

The fall had sent him rolling and skidding with little control over where he was going, but he had enough time to see the rock in front of him before he hit it. Instinctively he stretched his front legs out in front of him to protect himself, and it was those that took the brunt of the impact. A great flash of bright red burst before his eyes as he smashed into the rock. He thought he heard a snap. Oddly enough there wasn't really even any pain at first. There was just numbness as he lay wrapped around the boulder in the snow, the drift that had accumulated around it burying half of his body. For a strange moment, there wasn't even any fear. It was just a relief to be at rest.

The sound of voices above shook him from his stupor. They were slowly fading in from silence, like sounds from a half-remembered dream floating around his head to wake him. At first they were merely gibberish, but soon muffled words that he recognized started to form.

"Sir! Are you alright?!"

He raised his head from the pile of snow it was buried in and saw the haggard face of one of his pegasus scouts. It was the same one that had brought the message to him early that morning. He had lost his blue-crested helm. His black mane had ice and twigs embedded in it, and it was plastered to his head as the sweat had frozen in place. He looked ready to drop dead from exhaustion.

"Sir, you must get up! We must flee!"

Stirring himself to rise, Shining Armor suddenly felt the consequences of his landing. Once he moved, a horrendous pain set his left front leg ablaze. Instantly he knew it was broken. Tears of pain welled up in his eyes, and his teeth clenched so hard he would have feared they might shatter had his mind not been on his leg.

As he lay there, dazed and gasping for breath through the pain, a horribly calming realization came over him: He was done for. The beasts would surely be upon him soon, and there was no chance of him being able to raise himself to his feet and continue running. As much of a fighter as he was, and he was planning on giving whatever came out of those woods a fight before he went down, he was also not above realizing the cold, hard truth. He found it oddly tranquil.

With great effort he managed to prop himself up on the rock that had inevitably killed him. Laying with his back against it, he took the time to simply rest and consider the last few moments of his life. He removed his snow goggles and tossed them unceremoniously to his side, then looked back at the snow-covered woods he had come out of. They were oddly beautiful despite the giant wall of green flame that towered above them. This wasn't so bad, he thought. Most ponies probably don't get a chance to sit and relax beforehand, let alone do so with a spectacular view. He could think of worse places to die than a peaceful, snowy meadow. He just had to figure out what to do at the end. His troops. He should try to make sure they got out. As many as were left, that was.

It had been a long fight, too. For hours they had held a defensive position in a narrow valley against the hordes of gigantic black, ghostly unicorns that had come screaming out of the storm. The blizzard had come with them, pummeling the Crystal Empire troops and making it so no pegasus could take to the sky to warn the city. Each one that tried had been dashed against the steep cliff walls of the valley by the violent winds that seemed almost intelligent in its inconveniently timed gusts and wind directions. They had held on for so long. It had been a good fight. But they were hopelessly outnumbered against foes that clearly needed to be combated with magic instead of pegasus brawn, and eventually the lines broke. And they had to run.

And leave it to his pegasus scouts to be so brave as to stay on the ground the entire time with their wingless commander. They had all fought so bravely for him. The memory made him proud and humbled. If he could have, he would have made sure all of them got the highest honors he could bestow. If only he had made it home to the Crystal Empire. And…

…and Cadence...

With the image of his wife flashing before his eyes, he gave a shuddering gasp as his chest welled up with sorrow at the thought of never seeing her again. Did she know he wasn't coming back yet? Was the fire in the sky a give-away? What would she do? Would she cry over him? The thought of her crying was the worst part of the whole thing. He didn't mind dying that much. Now that he was there it wasn't as scary it as it was cracked up to be. But the thought of anything he did, including dying, making Cadence cry ripped him up inside. Oh, he would miss her. Her and Twilight. He smiled at the thought of his little sister.

"Should have met you at the station, huh, Twilie?" he whispered with a sad shake of his head.

The scout looked at him in confusion and shook his shoulders to try and raise him up.

"Sir, please! You must move!"

The pegasus looked terrified as he pleaded with his commander, but the sense of duty in his eyes told Shining Armor he wasn't planning on leaving him behind. The brave fool was ready to stand and die for him. It wasn't a pleasant thought, and Shining Armor didn't much want that on his conscience.

The roars of the monsters in the forest were getting louder. The crashes through the undergrowth seemed almost upon them. Above the trees, the low hanging clouds of the unnatural storm proceeded them.

"What's your name, scout?" he asked him.

"Steadfast, sir," he answered after a brief hesitation.

A fitting name if ever I heard one.

"Steadfast," he said, "Leave."

"My Prince?"

"I'm done," Shining Armor said. "My leg's busted. Go. Get out of here. All of you. Everypony who's left. You've got wings. Use them. Warn Cadence. Tell Cadence…tell her…"

With a set jaw and look of newfound determination, Steadfast turned around and bellowed into the night sky.

"PEGASUS SCOUTS! TO ME! RALLY AROUND THE PRINCE!"

Shining Armor groaned as Steadfast planted his hooves in front of him, facing the forest and the creatures that would soon be pouring out of it. He looked around the meadow for anypony else that had made it out of the woods. He didn't see a soul. He felt his heart sink. The blizzard was almost upon them again. He could see it working its way through the woods, and knew the wraithlike unicorns were right behind it. If Steadfast didn't take off soon, he wouldn't make it at all.

"Steadfast, there's nopony left to rally around me. You've got to go."

He didn't say a word. Grabbing the scout's back leg with his good front one, Shining Armor growled at him with as much force and authority as he could muster.

"Didn't you hear me, soldier?!" he cried out, "I said get out of here!"

Steadfast turned back to respond.

"I will not leave my commander behind!"

"Your commander orders you to!" Shining Armor yelled. "Somepony has to warn Cadence! You're the only one left who can! Don't you let my wife get caught unaware, Steadfast! Don't you dare!"

There was a look of doubt on Steadfast's face as he weighed his sense of duty against his sense of honor. He looked back to the woods, and then around the meadow before checking the skies. As his scan turned up nothing, the fight seemed to leak from his face and was replaced with weariness, as though he had just now realized that he and Shining Armor were alone. He understood then what his duty required—even if it meant doing something he would regret for the rest of his life, however short that might be. Kneeling down next to his wounded commander, Steadfast put a hoof on his shoulder, and looked him in the eye.

"Sir," he started, his voice breaking, "I'm sorry. I—"

"Don't be," Shining Armor cut him off with a tired grin. "You're doing me one last favor."

"For the princess," Steadfast said with finality as if it were an oath.

"For the princess."

After that, there was nothing left to say. Steadfast rose to his legs and snapped his wings open, sending bits of ice shimmering in the night sky as they caught both the light of the moon and the mountainous wall of green flame. With a few shakes they were clear of the frost that had collected on them, and stood wide open and powerful in their rough, battered strength. With a quick folding back of the wings and a crisp snap of the hooves, Steadfast saluted his prince. He held it for just slightly longer than regulation required.

"Sir."

Then, with a few more flaps, he was gone. Shining Armor heard the beat of Steadfast's wings behind him as they faded up into the sky. Then he was alone with his broken leg, the snow, the boulder, his thoughts, and the monsters.

He could see them now. They were at the edge of the forest. Even through the storm and trees that hid them, they were a blot upon the world, shining through in their utter blackness. As one they stopped at the tree line. He could see their red eyes watching him, looking down on him in his helplessness. Steam shot from the nostrils of the dragon-shaped helms they wore, and their weirdly amplified breath became a chorus that filled the soundscape of his world. Then, as one, they reared up and roared in what sounded like a cry of victory. Then they advanced on him.

"It's not so bad," he said to himself as they neared, floating over the ground like specters.

Time seemed to slow as they were almost upon him. The face of Cadence floated before his eyes, and for a moment, he thought he heard her voice calling his name. He smiled.

The night grew brighter, and soon everything around him was engulfed in a blinding white light. The giant unicorns faded from his vision, leaving only Cadence.

"It's not so bad."

* * *

"I'm coming, Twilight!"

Rainbow Dash sprang forward and rocketed up into the air, headless of the debris still being hurled about within the whirlwind she flew through as she left a rainbow streak in her wake. The winds pushed and pulled, making her charge jagged and uneven, but still she pressed on towards her friend—and the huge monster floating in front of her.

She was on him within seconds. Through squinted eyes Rainbow Dash saw Sombra turn to face her with a look of amusement spreading across his terrible visage. With teeth gritted and eyes set in fiery determination, she put all her power into a single attack, with front legs extended and aimed right at his chest. At the last second, she closed her eyes and braced herself. This was going to hurt.

At the moment of impact, Rainbow Dash felt all her insides seem like they were trying to cram themselves into her mouth as her momentum came to an abrupt halt. She felt her rear flipping over her head as she tumbled over and over, making her dizzy and temporarily losing her equilibrium. At first she figured she had given Sombra such a hit that they were both spinning through the air and out of control, but she soon noticed that her legs were perfectly fine. In fact, her body didn't hurt at all besides feeling some whiplash from the sudden stop. She had run into things (and the occasional pony) at high enough speeds enough times to know that this hit should have been a bad one. She had been expecting some things to be broken, but aside from the spinning in her head she felt all right.

She opened her eyes to see the world rotating around her as she tumbled in a haze of purple light. She realized that she was spinning end over end while hovering in place. As she came around to be right side up, the face of Sombra was there in front of her, smiling. He was only feet away. He had a single hoof extended, from which the sphere of magic Rainbow Dash found herself trapped in emanated.

Behind him, Twilight called out.

"Rainbow Dash!"

Back down on the floor, the other four gasped as they saw not one but now two of their friends helpless.

"We must do something!" cried Rarity. She had gone from simply shielding Spike to holding him close. The little dragon was speechless.

"Like what?!" asked Pinkie Pie. "What're we supposed to do?! They're up really high and Dashie's the flyer!"

Applejack was desperate for ideas. Something. Anything. Racking her brain and looking at her friends, she saw the other pegasus still embracing Pinkie Pie in fear and got an idea. It was crazy, but she'd take crazy right now, since that was about the only option they had left.

"We've got somepony else who can fly."

Fluttershy looked at Applejack and paled. Her only response was a small squeak.

"Come on, Fluttershy!" Applejack said, quickly going over to her. "Fly me up there!"

The look on the bright yellow pegasus' face was like milk curdling instantly. Her eyes wide, pupils tiny, ears down, mouth agape and complexion pale, she managed to stammer out only indecipherable noises.

"Buh…wah…uh…I…eh…you…wha…" was all she could get out.

Applejack didn't have time for this. She hauled Fluttershy out of Pinkie's grip and held her by her shoulders, firmly but gently shaking her friend as she tried to snap her out of her paralyzing fear.

"I know, Fluttershy," she said. "I know it's scary and I know it's loco, but those are our friends up there! You know they'd do the same for us!"

She wanted to be brave. She really did. All her life Fluttershy had been afraid of nearly everything that wasn't cute and fluffy. In fact, depending on the size of the teeth, even those could get a little iffy on occasion. It was just the way she was. But Twilight and Rainbow Dash were in big trouble, and if there was one thing that could make her brave, or at least not care as much about being scared, it was when her friends really needed her.

Fluttershy's face didn't lose the fear stamped on it, but with a bite down on her lips and a quick nod of her head, she closed her eyes and whimpered "Okay."

High above, Sombra considered his newest catch as she spun helpless before him.

"Admirable," he said as Rainbow Dash continued to tumble. "We do so enjoy when we meet resistance. It only makes it more satisfying when we crush it."

"Come out from hiding behind your little magic ball and I'll show you some resistance, you coward!" Rainbow Dash shouted while flailing her legs about in an effort to break free.

Sombra seemed to take offense to that. He sneered and reached out to grab her, making the magic sphere dissipate and fade away. He caught her by the mane and pulled her in close, dangling her in front of his face so close that the flames coming from his eyes brushed against her cheeks.

"You can be thankful that you're not worth my wrath, little winged vermin."

It was then that he heard an odd high pitched sound like a small whistle. It was getting louder and higher pitched as it went along. At first he couldn't place it, but then he looked below and saw the unusual sight that produced it: The brash orange pony was flying through the air while trying her best to throw up her hooves in a fighting stance, which was rendered difficult as she was being held aloft by the yellow pegasus that had been cowering in the back. Their flight was wobbly and slow, and the pegasus was crying as she emitted the piercing wail that he had heard. It was a strange enough spectacle to give him slight pause.

"C'mon, you big oaf!" Applejack called out in challenge as she saw Sombra notice them. "Let's go!" Her front hooves twirled around each other, ready to begin punching.

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE" said Fluttershy.

Rainbow Dash looked at both of them in awe. Under normal circumstances she would have laughed her ears off at the ridiculous sight of it. Despite flapping her wings as hard as she could, to the point where sweat was pouring down her face, Fluttershy could barely stay aloft while carrying Applejack. With their slow, shaky upwards path, she looked like a pink haired bumblebee trying to carry a rock. But at that moment all she could think was that it was one of the bravest things she'd ever seen. And silliest.

Sombra chuckled. "Was this what you were looking for?" he asked as he raised Rainbow Dash up higher. With a sneer, he wound up and hurled her straight towards the oncoming duo. She flew like a bullet, unable to stabilize herself enough to change her course or speed, and headed directly at them.

Surprised, Applejack just barely managed to react fast enough to catch Rainbow Dash with an "Oomph!" at the moment of impact, which had a force far greater than she had expected. That pony weighed a surprising amount. Somehow she managed to hold on even as the breath was knocked out of her, and she began to see stars. She felt Dash grab hold around her chest like a vice grip.

Miraculously, the impact did not manage to jar Applejack from Fluttershy's grasp, as in her utterly total fear she had had a death grip on her. However, the weight nearly doubling was far too much for her to handle, and like a stone with a leaky parachute they plummeted down to the ground far below. Still flapping her wings as hard as she could, Fluttershy managed to bring their spiraling descent from a crash to a tumble as they hit the marble floor. It was the only thing that saved them as they collapsed in a heap.

"Applejack! Fluttershy!" Twilight called out from high above. She saw them moving about as they were stacked atop each other, so she knew that at the very least they were still alive.

"What do you want, Sombra?" she asked. "What do you want from me to let them go?"

He rotated around to face her again. He looked contemplative.

"What do we want from you?" he wondered out loud. "Hmm, yes. It always seems to come back to you. Twilight Sparkle. The one who was such a nuisance."

"That's a funny way of saying I figured you out!" Twilight retorted.

A slight twinge of anger flashed across his face, only to be replaced by smugness.

"Ah, yes. That," Sombra chortled, floating in the air up to where Twilight was entombed. "That was inconvenient. But we really must be thanking you. You ended up being so helpful. After our last meeting, we were starting to think you didn't like us."

Twlight's legs flexed in anger as the crystal vines held her tightly in place. They weren't budging, but she kept twisting and pulling on them in faint hope. It was all she had left.

"I'd never help you!" she spat at him.

Sombra looked affronted and threw on an expression of mock confusion.

"Really?" he asked. "We find that interesting to hear. After all, it was you who so kindly looked after our spirit, yes?"

"I didn't look after it! You latched on to me!"

"Bah. A mere detail," he said. "How were we to know you weren't smart enough to know of our true strength and power? We're not surprised. None in this pitiful realm are. That is why even Celestia and her little worm of a sister have yet to stop me after thousands of years."

"I seem to recall us beating you twice!"

"Beating?" Sombra leaned back and seemed to consider that word as if it were a fine wine to be sampled. He swirled it around his tongue before passing judgment. "It is an interesting concept you have of defeat. We may have been delayed, yes. And there may have been setbacks in our ascension as ruler of this land."

He drifted in to lean close to Twilight. His giant muzzle was inches away. His eyes drilled into hers as another evil smirk spread across his face.

"And yet," he whispered, gesturing around the throne room, "Here we are."

Twilight was desperately trying to channel magic through her horn. Something. Anything. It didn't even have to even be a spell. Just a blast of energy would have been enough. He was so close. She didn't know if it would have done any good, but she had to try something. Take out an eye. Give him a nice scar to remember her by. Anything. But as she tried in vain, she realized there was nothing she could do. The black crystals in her horn were acting to completely block her powers. Her head pounded like a firework had gone off inside of it.

"It doesn't matter how many times you come back," Twilight growled. "We'll stop you. If not us, then Celestia and Luna will banish you for another thousand years! And another thousand after that! And again and again! You'll never win!"

Sombra shook his head and laughed again. This time it was a full throated guffaw.

"What…is so…funny?" Twilight had had enough of being mocked.

"Ignorance!" he roared in sudden fury and spite, his breath blowing her mane back and overpowering her with its foulness. Twilight couldn't help but flinch as the flames trailing from his eyes flared and brushed her face as he remained nearly nose-to-nose with her.

"We have been inside your mind for some time now, Twilight Sparkle." He said with molten steel in his voice, adding a mocking sneer as he said her name. "We find the fact that you consider yourself skilled in the ways of magic amusing. You know nothing—ARE NOTHING—next to us! We have the power of the ancient arcane! We have the power to raise armies from the ground! To grind cities to dust! To command all the realms of darkness! We have the power to bypass death! And now, thanks to you and your little friends, we have the greatest power of all—The power that even your precious Celestia cannot hope to stand against."

"And what is that?" Twilight asked with as much bravery as she could scrape together.

"Fate."

Sombra floated away from her, back towards the center of the demolished throne room, and came to rest hovering high above the Crystal Heart.

"When the Crystal Heart was turned against us," he said, "Our mortal form was destroyed. Mostly. But our power is far beyond the need of a body. And when we were separated from it, something magnificent happened. We ascended from this lowly plane, and saw with new eyes. We saw the strands of magic in the fabric of time itself. We saw the future affecting the distant past as they occurred at the same time. Galaxies were born and died while we watched, and every action and consequence of every living creature that ever has been or ever will be was laid out before us."

Beneath him on the floor, Applejack was pulling Fluttershy to her hooves. They were all still shaken by the fall, but as Sombra spoke they were pulled from their daze.

"What kind of nonsense is that?" Applejack shouted up at him. "What are you babblin' about!?"

With a flare of magic shooting out from him in an arrogant display of power, Sombra suddenly became radiant with purple light surrounding and swirling around him. Magic flowed around him like waves, flowing with strength. Somehow it seemed that he was even larger than before.

"What that means, young fools, is that there is nothing that you can do which we have not already seen."

The ponies looked at each other in confusion. At that moment, the magical gales churning around them stopped, and all about them the debris that had been caught up in the storm fell to the ground. The throne room was then oddly quiet, save for the blizzard howling outside and the odd pulse that came from the mouth of the cave. Even the blizzard seemed to be dying down. They could hear the shouts of ponies outside, and a deep rumbling that went through the walls of the castle.

It was then that a strange light started flooding in from outside. They turned to look through the broken windows, and saw that the night sky was glowing red, starting from the top down like a reverse sunrise. The snowflakes still falling in the wake of the storm were practically radiating crimson as they caught the light. As they watched, strange waves of energy started cascading down from above, flowing gently like the Northern Lights as they stretched to the ground.

Even with her magic being rendered useless, Twilight still felt the horrible, horrible power far above them in the sky.

"What is that?" she called to her friends below, even though in her bones she feared she already knew the answer. "What is that?!"

Rainbow Dash was the first one to look. Getting to her legs and then taking to the air, she zipped over to a window and went outside. Craning her head upwards, she looked up to a sight she had never seen before, and didn't know what to make of.

"It's…it's…" she began.

"It's what?!" Twilight cried.

"Bad."

Then, a wave of red light shot from the ground at the edge of the city, rapidly whipping around the borders to enclose it in a circle. The light shot towards the sky, and seemed to be pulling the waves down to the earth.

Twilight felt her insides turn to ice.

"Everypony," she cried out in resignation, "Run."

They all looked shocked.

"We can't just leave you!" Rarity called back.

"You must!" she replied, nearly in tears. "Please go! There's no time!"

Sombra laughed. His body had started becoming transparent, and tendrils of smoke started splitting off from him as started to dissipate. Like air being sucked upwards, he started pulling towards the ceiling bit by bit. Soon all that was left was his face, the features of which were lit by the fierce glowing eyes.

"Time, Twilight Sparkle," he said as he began to fade away, "Is something you'll find an abundance of soon enough."

Then he was gone, leaving only his laughter and last words rumbling through the air:

"Try and save her if you wish. It will make no difference."

As the booming echoes grew fainter and disappeared along with the evil king, the ponies were left alone. Calling up to Twilight, they began to form a rescue plan.

"We gotta get up to her!" Applejack said. "Rainbow Dash, get on it! Fluttershy, can you fly me up there again?!"

"NO!" Twilight screamed as forcefully as she could, stopping Applejack in mid-speech. "GO! Go now! Please! All of you get out of here as fast as you can!"

Rainbow Dash was hearing none of it. Like a shot she was up by Twilight's side in no time, and started hacking at the crystal vines with her hooves.

"I'm getting you out of there, Twilight," she said. "Don’t you worry!"

"You've got to go now!" she said, shaking her head. "It's too late!"

"Why?!" Rainbow Dash asked, stopping her work to look her in the eye with a challenging glance, as if to ask "Who's stopping me?"

"Because," she called out in anguish, "It's the curse! He's casting the curse again!"

* * *

At the peak of the Crystal Palace, standing in the observatory, Sharpsight was stunned by the scene unfolding around him. The domed roof had been ripped off by one of the larger arms of black crystal rising from the earth and twisting around the castle, and he could fully see the open sky. Directly above him shone a great, red orb like a sun in the night. An evil crimson glow snaked down from the sphere to paint the horizon, and waves of energy flowed upwards from the ground, hungrily trying to reach it.

And the whole time, Sharpsight had been chanting, calling out into the arctic air words which he did not understand, but heard in his head, and felt coming off his lips. He had been at it for the last twenty minutes. The whole time, the ball of evil which had began as no larger than a tiny red star had been getting bigger and bigger until it was a magnitude larger in the sky than the moon. He was being overpowered. He had to keep trying.

"HARRORA ARTU SEN, LIVSID TAB ORT!"

The words were hot on his tongue, and burned as he said them. But still he continued, knowing that the fate of the Crystal Empire was in his hooves. Maybe all of Equestria. It may be the last thing he did, but if it were, he would be remembered a hero. At least he could find some redemption and respect from others with that.

"HARRORA ARTU SEN, LIVSID TAB ORT! FRAN MORKE! FRAN MORKE! IPSTAR UTE SEN! JULSET SEN MORKE!"

His shouted mantra went on and on, until his voice was hoarse and he became light headed. The air around the tower was thin and biting.

"IPSTAR UTE SEN! JULSET SEN MORKE!"

He begin feeling weak in the knees. His strength was leaving him, somehow feeling that it was being drawn upwards towards the wicked thing in the sky.

"FRAN MORKE!"

He could barely speak any longer. Falling to his knees, he partially collapsed to the snow covered floor. He attempted to stay upright, with one hoof propping him up. His strength had nearly failed him.

"Harrora artu sen…" he mumbled. It was almost lost in the gusts of wind and cries of panic from below.

"Livsid tab ort. Fran morke…ipstar ute sen…"

The orb seemed ready to explode with energy and terrible power.

"Julset…sen…morke…"

He fell to the ground. He could barely breathe. Gasping as he drowned in the open air, he lay face first in the snow. The coldness began to overwhelm him, and he felt the crushing sensation of failure. That's when he heard the voice.

"We told you, professor," it said. "You were wise to fear us."

Looking up from the snow, he saw his nightmares returned in front of him. Standing there, in the flesh, was Sombra. His eyes glowed with malevolence and satisfaction, and a blasphemous smile spread across his thick lips to show his pointed fangs. His horn, the very same one he had found in the river bank, jutted from his head like a crude spear that was awash with power.

He was back. Sharpsight had failed.

"Now, what do you think you're doing up here in the snow, professor?" Sombra asked. "Surely you're not trying to do something with that, are you?"

With that last rhetorical question, Sombra gestured upwards to the red sun above. He shook his massive head.

"We told you that you could do nothing to us," he purred. "Such arrogance. We suppose it is natural, though. The useless seldom understand how pitiable they really are."

With a surge of newfound strength at the insult, Sharpsight rose on shaky legs to stand. Whatever happened, he would not have it said that he went down without his dignity. With cracked lips and raspy voice, he intoned the last three syllables from the stream of words that had been flowing into his head. Somehow he knew that this was the capstone of it all. This was the end. There was a chance that Sombra didn't know what was in store for him. Perhaps Sharpsight would prove to be a pony not to be underestimated. A slight spark of hope ignited inside him, and with a slight grin he spoke with the last remaining strength he had within himself. The words rang clear and powerful, magically amplified in the night sky:

"SAH. VAR. DETT."

With that, a catastrophic roar split the heavens as the red orb finally did erupt. A blast of force shot out from it in a ring that flew outwards to the horizon. The sphere started crusting over with a foul blackness, hardening rock on the surface of lava, and the glow emanating from it started to solidify into a unyielding, transparent sheet that began to slowly work its way down towards the ground.

It was just as Sharpsight had remembered it happening a thousand years ago.

Looking up with horror, he collapsed again.

"No," he softly said, unable to comprehend. "No, that's…that's not right. That's not right at all."

It was already hundreds of feet across, and growing rapidly.

"I was trying to stop him."

The sky over the tower was almost completely encased in the reddish dome.

"I…I didn't know."

Sombra's laugh was a blade that sliced through him, but he was too numb to notice the cut.

"Well done, servant."

Everything above him was completely red.

"I was trying to stop him."

* * *

"Please, I'm begging you," Twilight cried. "You have to go!"

Rainbow Dash was kicking and punching and clawing as best she could at the crystal vines holding Twilight in place. They were just loose and breakable enough to give her hope—a sentiment that Twilight did not share. She kept going.

"Rainbow!" she said, "Get out of here! There's nothing you can do!"

Still kicking and panting with exhaustion, Rainbow Dash grunted between strikes, "You know you talk too much, right?"

Twilight groaned. It was bad enough that she was going to be trapped in here with Sombra for a thousand years. She couldn't even contemplate that amount of time. She couldn't allow her friends to share the same fate.

Down below, the others looked up in anguish. Unable to help from down there, it was all they could do to watch. Finally, Applejack had enough.

"Fluttershy!" she yelled. "Same plan as before! Fly me up there! We'll get her down together!"

In an uncharacteristic show of gumption, Fluttershy nodded and zipped over to pick Applejack up by the shoulders. Their flight up was not as slow as before, but it was still wobbly and uneven. Meanwhile, Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Spike had gone to the window. Looking above, they saw the giant orb floating in the sky, wicked and harsh like a wound.

"Everypony," Rarity called, "I would advise haste! Much haste!"

"I know!" Rainbow Dash grunted, still smacking as hard as she could.

Twilight didn't see how they would be able to get her down in time. It seemed hopeless. But then, as Dash gave a particularly strong kick in what was obviously the right place, a chunk of black crystal split with a great crack and fell down into the mouth of the cave below. Twilight felt her right back leg feeling much more mobile all of a sudden. Then, against her best judgment, she began to feel hope.

"Good job, Rainbow!" Applejack called, still on her way up. "Go git 'em, girl! We'll be there in a jiffy!"

She kept hammering away at the weakened section of crystal. At first only small bits were flaking off, but before long larger pieces started cascading down under the assault of her frantic pounding. Finally, a huge mass shot away into the depths below, revealing Twilight's back legs, kicking and flailing as they had been trying to help from inside.

"YES!" she cried as she allowed herself a brief moment of triumph.

At that moment, an enormous explosion bellowed through the throne room as the heavens opened up in a rage. It stopped them all in their tracks, and for Rarity, Pinkie Pie and Spike outside, it turned their faces pale with fear as they looked upon the source.

"Oh no!" Rarity screamed. "The curse. THE CURSE! It's coming down! EVERYPONY, IT'S COMING DOWN!!!"

Rainbow Dash stopped and looked at Twilight. A pained understanding came across both of their faces. Rainbow Dash mouthed the words "I'm sorry."

Twilight smiled. A tear rolled down her scratched and filthy cheek. She faintly remembered asking a favor not too long ago. It was okay. She wouldn't hold Dash to it. The promise may get broken, but at least her friends could still make it out.

Then, shattering her defeated acceptance, Rainbow Dash spun around and started kicking again, harder than ever before. Her eyes were steel, and her hooves were jackhammers on her crystal cocoon, which shook as bits of it went flying everywhere.

"What are you doing?!" Twilight screamed at her stubborn friend.

"NOT! LEAVING! YOU!" came the reply between hits. She had made an oath, and it was one she was planning on never breaking. Twilight's prison, on the other hoof, was going to be shattered and on the ground if she had anything to say about it, and Twilight was going to be out of here in time if it killed Rainbow Dash in the process. That was the promise she made to herself as she continued hacking away.

From below came a cry as Applejack and Fluttershy finally arrived. The pegasus was still struggling with holding Applejack's weight, but with grim resolve she heaved and clawed ever upwards.

"Come on, Fluttershy!" Applejack called out. "Get me on the other side!"

Rainbow Dash stopped kicking long enough to notice they were there, and with a fiery passion screamed at them.

"NO! Get out of here! I've got this!" She went back to kicking.

Applejack bristled at the thought. "We're not going anywhere! We all stick together!"

Rainbow Dash stopped again, making stabbing gestures in the air to accentuate her point.

"You've got to go! I'm the only one who can save her! Take everypony else and run, Applejack!"

"But we can help!" Applejack began before Rainbow Dash cut her off.

"No you can't!" she said, voice breaking and on the edge of sobs. "You can't help me, and you need to get out of here!"

"But why—"

"Because I can't fly her and everypony else out in time, Applejack!!!"

She realized then that Dash was right. Even if they did manage to break the cocoon, everypony besides her and Fluttershy was going to have to run out of the city. Twilight couldn't use her magic, which meant no teleportation. Rainbow Dash breaking her free and flying her out really was the only possible escape for her. But the rest of them needed to leave right now if they wanted to stand any chance of making it. With a tearful swallow of her pride, Applejack turned to her good friend and gave one last order:

"You just get both your flanks back to us. Don't keep us waitin', ya hear?"

Rainbow Dash gave a determined smirk.

"You better get moving or we might beat you out of the city."

With that, Fluttershy turned around and started flying out as fast as she could. As they left, she looked over her shoulder for a last glance at her friends. She called back "Please hurry, Rainbow!"

Back down on the ground, Pinkie Pie and Rarity were getting ready to depart as soon as possible. They were watching the dome come down with alarming speed, and although they could conceivably make it out in time, it would be a hard run, and it would be close. Rarity scooped up Spike and put him on her back.

"Hang on," she whispered to him. "We're going to get out of here."

"Twilight…" was the only thing he could say as he reached out a claw, trying to reach out and touch her, so far away.

"I know, Spike" Rarity said as gently as she could. "I know. Don't worry. She'll be fine, I promise. Rainbow Dash will take care of her. But you've got to do something for me, okay?"

Breaking his gaze from his best friend, he turned to Rarity with eyes wide.

"Huh?" he asked.

"Just hold on."

He brought his claw back down. His grip around her shoulders and neck tightened as he buried his face in her mane.

The four ponies didn't miss a beat as Fluttershy touched down. As soon as they landed, Applejack shouted "Come on!" and lead the group out of the throne room and down the stairs of the palace as fast as they could run.

"Do you think they'll make it?!" asked Pinkie Pie between heavy breaths as they raced down the steps to emerge beneath the arches of the castle. The colossal crystalline towers winding around the courtyard blocked many of the paths out, but they didn't much care which direction they went. They just needed to get out from under the curse. Its glow coming down from above had turned the snow-covered world blood red.

"I don't know," Applejack replied. "But if anypony can get them out of here, it's Dash."

They attained a single-minded consciousness as they galloped, only seeing the path ahead throwing ice and snow from their hooves, moving as one through the twists and turns of the streets. There was nothing expect the run. The town flew by in a blur, and before long they could see a clearing as they rounded a bend in the road. Their escape was within reach.

Even after they had passed into that clearing, fear kept them moving, as they were afraid to look up and confirm whether or not they were safe. Finally, after they had waded far into the deep snow banks on the fields outside, to the point they were having difficultly moving faster than a slow trot, they looked up. With great relief they saw that they were finally outside the dome. They had made it, and without much time to spare. Collapsing in the snow, they panted and tried to catch their breath and ride out the pains in their sides. As they collected themselves, their eyes were fixed on the great towers in the middle of the city, now silhouetted in deep red.

They watched the sky for signs of their friends, but of Rainbow Dash and Twilight there was no sign.

The dome descended.

* * *

"Come on!"

WHACK!

"ERRGH COME ON!"

WHACK!

"YOU! DUMB! CRYSTAL!"

WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!

It was almost there. It was so close. Rainbow Dash could sense it. The prison was nearly broken. Twilight's legs were all free, and they swung about as she squirmed, trying in vain to work her way out faster. If only she could get that last bit around her torso, then the whole thing would come down. Dash had nearly kicked herself into passing out, but still she kept plowing away.

Outside, the cries of panic drifted up to float around the throne room to join the sound of grinding of Sombra's crystal arms against the walls of the palace. Then, as Dash worked to free the trapped unicorn, they both heard a new sound. It was the buzzing of a billion hornets. It was the roar of the ocean. It was the moon crashing from the sky. It reverberated through everything and shook the earth as it swelled, absorbing all other sounds.

The curse was coming down.

Twilight was looking at her with a fear in her eyes she'd never seen in her friend before. If she could have seen her own face, Rainbow Dash would have bet that the look was mutual. But at that moment, she didn't have time to be afraid. She had made two promises now, one to herself and one to Twilight, and she wasn't backing out of either one.

After pausing only for a brief moment to catch her breath for what she needed to be the final assault, she reared back with her legs, and then with everything she had left, she struck.

WHACK!

The cocoon wobbled.

"Almost."

WHACK!

A crack appeared.

"Almost!"

WHACK!

A great tear opened across where it was rooted to the ceiling.

"COME ON!!!"

Outside the sky was roaring.

WHACK!

With a sharp crack the remainder of Twilight's tomb fell far below, slowly spinning as it tumbled to the floor to land with a mighty thud. As gravity took hold, Twilight gasped with fright as she started to plummet with it. For a brief instant she was afraid that she was going to fall to her doom, but as the ground rushed up to meet her, she felt her trajectory change. Right before the moment of impact she started to pull up, and then she was soaring across the marble floor while maintaining the same devastating speed she had fallen at. In fact, she felt herself starting to go faster. The wind was blowing hard in her face, and the dust clouds and falling snow stung her eyes as she rocketed through the air, seemingly on the edge of control. At first she didn't comprehend what was happening. What this what it was like to fly? Was she dead?

Then she felt the hooves wrapped around her chest. They were gripping almost tight enough to squeeze the air out of her lungs, but as it was she could barely breathe anyway as they burst through the window and Twilight saw the decimated cityscape unfurl beneath her. Any breath left in her slowly leaked out as she gazed upon the ruination of the Crystal Empire. The giant pillars of black crystal protruded all throughout the city like the back of a massive porcupine. Fires blazed sporadically throughout, and everywhere ponies were running to and fro in a panic. Some were trying to get out. Some were trying to heroically put out the fires. Some seemed to be looking for loved ones. And some just seemed to be running out of terror.

As Twilight was looking down, a gasp came from above her. She craned her neck to look up at Rainbow Dash, who was looking ahead with dread chiseled onto her face.

"Oh no," she said.

Looking forward, Twilight could see the curse had almost descended to the ground. They were still barely halfway there. If anything there were mere seconds left.

She looked up again into her friend's eyes. They were set hard and fast—focus razor sharp on their chance ahead that was quickly disappearing. Time slowed to a crawl, and Twilight saw every beat of Dash's wings as they pumped furiously. And then suddenly, something in her eyes changed. Somewhere in there, barely noticeable except to one who knew her best, a light went out. That brash and defiant glimmer faded away. In its place there seemed to be something utterly foreign to Rainbow Dash.

The fire was gone.

In its place was defeat.

Twilight once again glanced ahead. The curse was licking at the ground. Around them, the dome started touching down until a gap directly ahead of them was the only one left. Then she grasped what Dash had finally, impossibly realized:

They weren't going to make it.

"Twilight…" Dash grunted through gritted teeth.

Twilight lifted her head. Rainbow Dash looked down at her. Their eyes met. That passing gaze lasted hours. A small smirk started from the corner of Dash's mouth. Twilight could feel an extra squeeze across her chest as Dash held her just a bit tighter—as tight as she could. Through the sweat already pouring down Dash's face, Twilight saw a tear form in the corner of her eye. Then she understood what was about to happen.

No…

All she could do to was frantically shake her head.

"Rainbow Dash!" she shouted. "Don't do it!" The wind tore the words from her mouth.

With a smile, Rainbow Dash shook her head.

"Sorry I'm breaking my promise," she whispered. The words were thunder in Twilight's ears.

With a mighty heave, the pegasus hurled her friend towards the gap.

Her flight through the air was a blur, as was landing in the deep snow drift she found herself in when she came around. She didn't know for how long she had lain there motionless in the snow, but all around her was muffled silence. There had only been the mighty crack and magical sizzle she had heard as she had hit the ground, but now there was nothing.

There was only the wind howling across the now empty plain where the Crystal Empire had once stood.

Vestiges

CHAPTER SEVEN
VESTIGES

Celestia was dreaming of white chrysanthemums. She was laying in a field of them, and they were shining bright as the reflection of sun on the water. From horizon to horizon they stretched out until they met the cloudless sky, and in rippling waves they swayed back and forth in the same gentle breeze that swept over her. She watched as their soft petals fluttered like a drop of dew jittering on the strand of a spider's web. As she looked they stared right back at her—millions of faces with a single, pale yellow eye meeting her gaze.

Then before her eyes, the flowers began to lose their features. They started to spread out like water falling on a painting, merging with each other to become a great white mass that spread out all around her as far as she could see. But she still felt their stare, and then she heard their cry. It was a gasp of hopelessness. The call built until it was a howl of fear. They were lost and afraid, with nowhere to go and nopony to turn to.

Countless voices called out to her. In their sorrow they were reaching, pleading for rescue. Celestia felt their overwhelming grief and began to stand in order to help them, but in a panic she realized that she couldn't see them anymore. Everything was a mass of colorless white before her. The sky had turned overcast, and the pale ground had merged with the sky and sent her into a blinding white void. Her world had become a blank canvas.

Help us!

Rising up, she frantically began whipping her head back and forth in an effort to see something. "Where are you?!" she cried out. "I can't see you!"

Please! Princess! Help us!

She began to run as fast as she could towards the voices that were more clear than others, but they were coming from everywhere at once. In the total whiteness she couldn't tell if she was moving or not. Her hooves didn't even feel like they were touching the ground. Still she ran forward, nearly tripping over herself in her haste.

"I will! Just tell me where you are!"

You promised! You promised you'd keep us safe!

"I will keep you safe! But I can't see you!"

Princess!

"I can't…see!"

Princess!

"I…I can't…"

She felt like she had run for hours before her knees began to give out underneath her. Slowing down from her frantic gallop to a wobbling stumble, she collapsed on the ground, or what only could pass for the ground in this weightless, infinite purgatory. Between heaving gasps of breath, Celestia craned her neck upwards to the meaningless sky. Closing her eyes in frustration and defeat, she could only softly whisper.

"I can't see you. I'm sorry. I…I just can't see where you are."

A single voice on the breeze drifted past her before fading away with all the rest.

You promised.

The words were a dagger in her heart. Finding anger in her sorrow, she screamed as loud as she could at the faceless, accusing voices.

"WHERE ARE YOU?!"

As her words echoed into the void, a roar of arctic wind blasted her with the full force of the Frozen North. The white around her had turned to snow, and the rolling hills of chrysanthemums had become drifts of ice and blizzard. The sky was dark with angry, low-hanging clouds. Shielding her eyes from the whipping frost and biting wind, Celestia tried to see where she was. As she trudged through the snow, working hard to lift her hooves in the knee-deep drifts, she heard a new voice on the air.

Sister!

Celestia's head snapped up. Was she here, too?

"Luna? I hear you!" she called into the storm. The roar of the winter wind threatened to swallow her voice.

Celestia! We must do something!

"Where are you? What's happening?"

Following the voice, she continued plowing through the snow, trying desperately to reach her sister. As she reached the top of a large hill, she saw a great red glow in the sky. It was pulsing in villainous satisfaction behind a gathering of heavy clouds that spewed snow, its glow breaking through them like fire hidden by smoke. The weather twisted and roiled around it, sending arms of black storm clouds spreading across the massive snow covered field.

Celestia! What do we do?!

Looking at the red glow smoldering in the sky, Celestia could only stare in awe, dumbstruck at the overwhelming terror and the crippling despair she felt radiating from it. She had seen this before, over a thousand years ago, and it had haunted her every day since. She tried to remember what to do, but all that came into her mind was the knowledge that she had failed utterly.

CELESTIA!

As Luna's great cry split the night, a new voice came rumbling like an earthquake, terrible and sharp with hate and venomous promise.

They will be ours.

With that a mighty crack of horrible magical power shattered the world around her. The snow was blasted away, and a crushing arctic squall slammed into her chest, knocking the air out of her lungs and sending her flying backward. Before it was lost to her sight she saw a crimson dome flashing like a second sun before it blinked out of existence.

As she fell upon the ground, the snow was gone. Instead she again landed in a meadow populated by those same white chrysanthemums. Closing her eyes, she shook her head back and forth, her body still steaming from the cold.

"I failed." The words were acid on her tongue. "They needed me. And I failed them all."

Celestia felt one of the flowers brush up against her cheek as she lay on her back. It was soft and gentle against her face. Opening her eyes, she turned her head.

It wasn't a flower. It was Twilight Sparkle's mane. She was laying on the ground next to her, but was frozen solid as if carved of ice. An emotionless expression was etched on her face. Her eyes were hard and unblinking, staring directly into Celestia's soul.

Mouth agape, Celestia stared at her favorite pupil in horror. There was no life in her except for the piercing glare of those condemning eyes. Then Twilight spoke.

"You promised."

Celestia recoiled in shock. She cried one word before she awoke, her voice merging with the wail of her sister as they cried the same as Luna had done one night a millennia ago, the same night they last had seen that red glow.

"NO!"

Snapping her eyes open, Celestia found herself back in her bed in Canterlot Castle. The fire in the hearth was still slightly burning, and the embers were casting faint shadows across the covers with their dull orange glow. Slowly rousing herself to sit up in bed, she found that she was covered in sweat. The blankets were damp and clung to her as she removed herself from the oven that was her bed.

She stood by the window and let the night air cool her overheated body until the drying sweat began to make her shiver. As she went over to one of her chairs, grabbing a dry blanket and wrapping it around herself, she turned to look outside. The moon was high in the sky. It was still some hours until daylight, but Celestia knew she'd be unable to sleep again tonight.

She wondered where Luna was. At this time of night she was always very busy. Celestia just hoped she was close by. Closing her eyes briefly, she magically called her sister to her.

After stoking the fire to a respectable blaze and placing the kettle over it, a short time later she had a cup of tea ready. Sitting in the chair which faced the window to the north, she sat and sipped her favorite lemon blend, and waited for her sister to arrive. The whole time she scanned the horizon like a hawk, but saw nothing.

Celestia didn't have to wait for very long. She was only halfway through her second cup when she heard wings flapping above the spired dome of her bedroom chambers. Landing silently, Princess Luna appeared on the balcony. The deep concern on her face made her seem even more dour than usual.

"Sister," she said, "You seem troubled."

Celestia smiled grimly.

"I don't even have to tell you why, do I?" she stated more than asked. "You've already seen it."

Luna stepped forward into the bedroom.

"Yes," she said. "I have."

Celestia took another sip of tea. "Having a sister who can see everypony's dreams can be useful."

"It can," Luna replied. "Especially when those dreams involve thousand year old curses. And ponies who hadn't been there when it happened."

There was a moment of anxious silence between them. Celestia was staring into her teacup with an intensity that threatened to boil the water inside of it. She said nothing.

"Celestia," Luna asked as she knelt down by her sister's side, "What's happening?"

With a turn of her head, Celestia looked at her. Her voice cracked and slightly trembled.

"Luna," she said, "I think I've made a terrible mistake."

* * *

The wind was cracking against her face as she flew against the storm howling out the north, but still Cadence pushed on, heedless of the stinging pain in her eyes or the numbness of her body. Above and behind her, the royal guard surrounded their princess, watchful for the dangers they were all undoubtedly heading into. The frostbitten gleam of their silver helmets caught the sickly green blaze of the unholy wall of fire as it heaved its hulking mass far into the night sky. Ever larger it loomed as they raced forward, pumping their wings as fast as they could as they slammed into the leading edge of the blizzard that proceeded it. The dark magic radiating out was nearly choking.

Looking down and to her sides, Cadence saw her pegasus troops below her, spread out in a series of Vs. The heavy winds shook them, but they remained in formation as they disappeared into the first of the snow-heaving clouds. Seconds later Cadence and her guard followed them into the storm. As the clouds enveloped them, the temperature plummeted even lower than it had already been before. It was a twisted coldness, devoid of nature—less a presence of winter and more a lack of anything except for harsh, uncaring nothingness.

Shivering from mane to tail, Cadence put her head down and raised a hoof to her face, doing her best to shield her eyes from the ice and snow that was pummeling her. Her blindness in the blizzard was close to total, and her world became a bleak canvas of angry, rolling clouds touched by the menacing emerald glow of the fire. Angling her flight downwards, she brought herself closer to the ground, hoping that the clouds would thin out as she got lower.

She had to be able to see the ground. That's where he would be.

But the weather was not clearing. The clouds remained thick and heavy, and the snow continued to buffet her about like water breaking on rocks. Lower and lower she went, but still she could see nothing but white and grey. Based on her intuition she guessed she was getting fairly low to the ground, a concern put into sharp focus when suddenly, like spears, the tops of trees shot out at her from the icy miasma. Gasping in surprise as they threatened to skewer her, Cadence quickly began to pull up as she spread her wings as far out as they could go and furiously pumped them backwards to slow herself. Her descent had been quicker than she had thought, however, and the branches of the tree tops grabbed at her legs to scratch them as she soared above them. Looking behind her, she noted that her pegasus guards had been more cautious in their descent, and had gauged their altitude and the distance to the trees more accurately than she had done as they pulled up comfortably clear of the danger of the branches. She normally would have felt slightly foolish, but she had never claimed to be an overly skilled flyer, and the matters at hoof were far more important than trivial matters such as caution. She didn't have the time to be careful.

The head of her royal guard, a light grey pegasus with deep blue, wizened eyes named Vigil, caught up to her as she maneuvered left and right around the taller trees sticking out of the canopy.

"Princess," he shouted over the howling of the storm, "Let us lead! It's too dangerous!"

Tears began forming at the corners of Cadence's eyes. Vigil was right. It was insane to even enter this foul storm, let alone go rocketing through it as haphazardly as she was. She was just as likely to smash herself against something than to find what she was looking for. But she couldn't stop. She couldn't even let somepony else lead. He was out there somewhere, and she had to find him.

She shook her head violently as a brief gasp of sorrow found its way out of her throat. Her tears were quickly freezing to the side of her face.

"No!" she cried out as she put her head down and carried onwards with renewed strength. Vigil gave a resigned grunt as she pulled ahead of him once more. Turning to signal the other five royal guard, he sped up to catch his princess, and took his place protecting her rear. She may be putting herself in harm's way, but Vigil would not let harm find Cadence without going through him and his men first. Falling into formation, the squad joined her in whipping around the trees in the roaring blizzard as they searched for the prince. Barely visible, the other pegasus troops could occasionally be seen higher above them when the clouds briefly parted.

They were nearing the wall of flame. Even in the storm they were aware of it looming right in front of them—a towering barrier marking the end of the world. He had to be close. Cadence wouldn't allow any other possibility to enter her mind. She was almost there. He'd be right in front of her. Only a few more seconds and she'd find him.

Almost there.

Cadence offered a brief prayer to anypony who might be listening.

Somepony. Please. Tell me he's going to be right there.

It was at that very moment that a disheveled, haggard looking pegasus soaring through the air nearly crashed into her. His helmet was gone, but the light armor he wore designated him as a scout of the Crystal Empire. It was dented and torn, filthy and caked with the mud, leaves and twigs which coated him from head to hoof. He had ice crystals forming in his mane and on his nose from when the sweat and other fluids leaking from his face had frozen. He looked as if he had been running for hours. His eyes went wide as he swerved at the last second to avoid crashing into Cadence.

Briefly going on high alert, Vigil and his troops charged forwards towards the beleaguered pegasus and quickly surrounded him. Then, recognizing the uniform, they eased off. Vigil, who had immediately positioned himself between the stranger and Cadence, barked a quick series of questions at him as they hovered in place.

"Name and outfit, soldier! What are you doing?!"

After taking a brief moment to clear the surprise from his mind, he mechanically answered with a crisp but breathless shout of "Sir! Steadfast! Pegasi Scouts, 1st Company, sir!"

"1st Company?" Vigil answered. "You were with the prince? Where is he? Where's the rest of your company? Where do you think you're going, Steadfast?"

"Sir! I was headed back to the Empire, sir! We must—"

At that moment Steadfast glanced behind Vigil and saw Cadence. He had not registered that it was his princess whom he had nearly bowled over and out of the sky. He gave a quick shout of surprise and shot towards her. She instinctively recoiled at the movement, and Vigil went into an aggressive posture and was ready to attack before Steadfast stopped before her and bowed in reverence as best he could while in the air.

"Princess Cadence!" he said with head lowered. "There's no time! Prince Shining Armor needs you! He needs all of us!"

Cadence felt a new found hope along with fear. He was alive! But what about now? Were they too late?

Steadfast raised his head and shouted with frantic urgency.

"Now! We must go! Follow me!"

Then he spun around and flew back the way he came. His disappearance in the clouds was nearly instant. Cadence charged after him with all the speed she could muster. Vigil and the rest were close behind her. Steadfast's faint figure could barely be made out ahead of them as he moved like a pony possessed.

As they followed him through the blizzard, after a few minutes the clouds suddenly parted. Cadence found herself at the edge of the forest, and in the eye of the storm. In the little bubble of calm was a snow-covered meadow, drifts flowing over it like sand dunes. Small mounds jutted up sporadically, the result of boulders and rocks spread throughout the field being buried in the snowfall. The opposite tree-line held three things:

The first was the wall of green flame, sitting no more than fifty meters behind the trees and seething skyward in uncontrolled rage. It was creeping forward—a sluggish but unstoppable juggernaut stretching across the horizon.

The second was a horde of creatures of solid black and shadow, dull grey armor faintly reflecting the glow of the fire. They lined the border of the meadow from end to end: Hundreds of pairs of glowing red eyes shining from underneath their vicious, dragon-head shaped helmets. Like the wall of flame, they too were slowly and deliberately making their way forward.

The third was a lone, prostrate figure sprawled out next to one of the boulders by the tree-line. Cadence saw with both relief and dread his old blue overcoat poking out through the mound of snow it was half buried in. With a stone falling into her stomach, she saw the creatures were converging on him. He was making no move to escape. Steadfast, floating a short distance in front of them, turned around and pointed towards his fallen leader.

"There he is!" he bellowed. "The beasts are upon him!"

With that he was off, rocketing towards the wall of flame and line of vile creatures. Cadence was right behind him. As they passed by him, Vigil took a brief instant to register the situation and assess it strategically. There was little room or time for intricacies. It was going to be messy, and probably very short-lived. It was eight against hundreds. He put their chances at next to nothing, even with Cadence's magic. Still he prepared himself to dive after and protect his princess as best he could.

It was then, after hearing a series of hails from above, he looked around to see the formations of pegasi magnificently break through the clouds and enter the clearing all around them on their side. Their timing could not have been better, and Vigil's spirits were raised. Now with nearly the entirety of the pegasi force of the Crystal Empire joining the fight, their odds had just improved. It looked to be a glorious battle. With a smirk of fervor and determination, he signaled the charge and roared into the green-tinted night sky.

"FOR THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE!!!"

They joined their princess in her charge as she streaked through the night like a shooting star, her magic bursting at the seams as a brilliant glow radiated from her, beating back the darkness and momentarily making the field as bright as daylight. As she rocketed across the field towards where the gathered monsters were thickest, Steadfast and her guard in tow, she screamed her husband's name—a battle cry to both bolster her own courage, and to hopefully assure him, if he could still hear, that help had arrived. As she reached the enemy lines her magic detonated around her like a solar flare, sending her foes reeling as the spearhead of her attack smashed open the way for the forces behind her.

Like arrows falling from the heavens, the pegasi slammed into the lines of dark unicorns, filling the air with howling war cries, peeling metal clangs, heavy thuds and deafening crashes as colliding bodies went spinning, twirling and tumbling through the forest and meadow. Cadence shined like a meteor as she blasted the giant black unicorns before her with bolts of magic and sent them hurtling through the air as they dissipated in gouts of smoke and shade, leaving their armor to disintegrate in the clouds of snow that kicked up as they hit the ground.

The battle raged around Cadence, Vigil and Steadfast as they threw themselves at the enemy in dire desperation. The initial charge had given momentum to the pegasi forces at first, but as it continued the fight started slowly shifting in the enemy's favor. Their unending waves of forces combined with their shear mountainous strength and bulk began to wear on the army of the Crystal Empire. As the pegasus forces began losing ground, the line of battle shifted from where it had been punched back to inside the tree-line to back out in the meadow. They simply did not have the physical strength to combat these brutes in this fashion, and it was beginning to become clear they would not win this fight.

In the midst of the battle, Vigil stepped back from clashing with a particularly big foe as two other pegasi flew in to fight in his stead after seeing their commander struggling. Taking the brief moment to catch his breath, he saw at the edge of the clearing a black mass surging out of the trees. It was another enemy force, and they were making their way behind them. Vigil knew that soon they would be flanked with no cover to be had whatsoever. At that point he knew that soon one of two things would happen: Either it would be a route, and they would be forced to retreat before rescuing the prince, or it would become a slaughter. Neither option was acceptable. But they had to leave now.

"Princess!" he called out to Cadence, who was slightly ahead of him, slogging her way through the hoards of enemies in an effort to reach where Shining Armor lay. "We have to fall back! We'll be overrun soon!"

Cadence turned and shot him a look full of anger and disbelief. Then, following his hoof as he pointed out the new threat, she looked to their sides and saw that he was right. With a cry of anguish she fired off another magical bolt from her horn, vaporizing another monster that was rushing her. Looking ahead through the rapidly clearing black mist that the creature left behind as his final howl and the clattering of his falling armor echoed off into the darkness, Cadence saw the motionless form of Shining Armor still laying against the boulder. In between them was about thirty yards and a dozen enemies.

It was then she saw, coming out of the trees, a massive unicorn that stood a head above any of the rest. Additional dagger-like horns flared out from the giant dragon helmet to make the beast even taller, and extended to his tail in a row of spikes which protruded from its spine all the way down the armor. A great black beard flowed from underneath the helmet, swaying in the wind and spotted with the snow that had caught in it. With thunderous and menacing footsteps it made its way towards where Shining Armor lay. They had mere moments before it was upon him.

A rage unlike anything she'd ever known surged through Cadence's veins, and another burst of bright light flared out from her as she channeled all the magic she had left to spare, knocking back any creatures nearby. Spreading across the battlefield and drowning it in pure shimmering white, the radiance temporarily stunned both pegasi and aberrant unicorn alike. With a scream of fury Cadence charged, knocking aside the giants who blocked her path with righteous fury and heedless determination. Her blast of magic had removed all but a few of the enemy from her path, and within moments she had covered half the distance.

She was very close now. There was only ten meters left. Only three unicorns remained. She darted around the first as it lunged at her with snapping jaws and wicked fangs. As she smoothly passed by it, she heard the distinctive crunch of a pair of hoofs breaking hard stone, followed by a mighty crash and piercing shriek, and she knew that Vigil was close behind her, watching her back and delivering finishing blows to the monsters who stumbled in her wake.

The second unicorn she dispatched with another blast of her magic as it dared to stand before her. It was a fleeting but satisfying pleasure to watch it evaporate. The armor didn't even have time to hit the ground before she smashed through it. Like its owner before it, it soon too became nothing more than dust in the breeze.

The final creature did not wait to let her make the first move. It had seen her coming, and using its ill-fated companion in front to block it from Cadence's vision, the monster was waiting to meet her as she passed through the falling armor. So it was that it had the element of surprise on Cadence as it met her with slathering mouth and lowered spear-like horn, ready to impale her as it grinned manically. She did not have time to stop, and could only gasp in surprise once as it cackled in morbid satisfaction, ready to deliver the deadly blow.

Fortunately for Cadence, since it had been preoccupied with ambushing her, the creature had not been paying attention to its own surroundings. That meant that Steadfast, who had been covering their charge from the side, likewise had the element of surprise over it as he leapt into the air to deliver two hooves to the monster's face. With a yelp it collapsed to the ground, Steadfast tumbling over its rapidly dissolving carcass as he rolled end over end with the momentum of his impressive hit. He came to a stop at the foot of another creature whose legs were taken out from underneath it by the impact, and Steadfast immediately recovered from the crash and proceeded to lay into the prone enemy. Cadence gave a brief sigh of relief, and made a mental note that if they managed to get out of this, Steadfast was going to be bestowed the highest honors she could give.

The path was clear. Shining Armor was only feet away from her now, the towering figure of the massive black unicorn nearly as close as it gazed at her in wrath. Those red eyes threatened to drill holes in her as she approached its prize, but she would not be frightened by them. She was leaving here with her husband.

Digging down deep, she realized that she didn't have much power remaining. She had used nearly all of her magic energy earlier, and she knew she was incapable at that moment of casting another blast able to obliterate an enemy, especially one as clearly powerful as the one before her. But she didn't need to destroy it. She just needed to delay it. Drawing on all her hope and all the reserves of magic power she had left, she sent a single blast at those terrible eyes.

Her aim was as sharp as her magical talents. The beam of radiant energy that shot from her horn seared its way through the left eye-slot of the massive dragon helmet. The great brute reeled backwards as it roared in outrage and agony as smoke poured from the wound. Its huge head violently shook back and forth as it tried to clear away the pain.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Cadence rushed over to Shining Armor. He was unconscious, looking pale and battered as he lay half buried in snow. Lifting a hoof to his dirty and beaten face, Cadence leaned in close and gently whispered to him.

"It's alright, darling," she said. "I'm here. We're going home. I'm here."

Perhaps it was her deepest desires making her see things, but just then she could have sworn she saw him grin. Either way, he was still breathing. She would take that for now.

A flurry of movement from the other side of the boulder startled her before she recognized Vigil, who immediately began preparing Shining Armor to be moved.

"He's really hurt," she said as Vigil gave him a quick look-over.

"Looks like it's broken," he said, noting the troubling angle of his front left leg. He glanced over his shoulder to look for the rest of the guard and then, seeing them approaching, started to heave Shining Armor up out of the snow, being careful to avoid jostling the injury. Cadence took his other side, and together they brought him up to stand on his back hooves.

Hearing a roar from behind, Cadence turned to see that the titanic unicorn had fought through enough of its pain to regain some of its senses. With teeth bared and its single remaining eye ablaze with hate, it looked down on Cadence from its immense height and snarled.

Staring back with equal amounts of spite, Cadence spat back at it.

"You can't have him!"

The monster roared again and charged forward.

"We go," said Vigil dryly. "Now."

Spreading their wings and then flapping with all their might, Cadence and Vigil lifted Shining Armor off of the ground and away from the raging beast. Even as they quickly ascended, the immense brute was nearly upon them as they floated above the heads of the others. Leaping on top of Shining Armor's boulder and jumping towards them, the giant snapped its massive jaws at their hooves, missing by inches before it came crashing back down to the ground, crushing some of its smaller underlings beneath its bulk. Staring up at them with one eye alight with evil glowing red, it roared one last time in defeat as Cadence and Vigil made off with its trophy.

Around the battlefield the pegasi gave the order to retreat. Taking to the sky, they abandoned their hopeless battle. It had ended not a moment too soon, as the wave of enemies that had worked around the flanks poured into the fray just then, attempting in vain to catch the pegasi with gnashing teeth as they soared away. While it would have been inaccurate for anypony to call this situation a victory, as they flew away from the hordes of monsters and the giant wall of fire, they couldn't help but feel that had pulled off a miracle given the circumstances.

Cadence and Vigil carried the unresponsive prince into the storm that they had passed through. This time the wind was at their backs, and they were through before they knew it. As Cadence began to finally catch her breath and regain her wits, she looked around. Most of the pegasi seemed to be accounted for. With a sigh of relief she also saw all of her guard still surrounding her, as well as Steadfast, the lone scout who had no doubt helped save the day. He was flying by Shining Armor's side as the prince hung between Cadence and Vigil, desperately trying to gauge the condition of his commander. Cadence smiled, relieved that he had made it.

They would need good ponies before this was over. After all, this could only get worse from here. She didn't quite know how, but she was fairly certain those beasts would think of something.

After they had been flying for only a short time, the wind oddly began to die down. Looking back, they saw that the storm had begun to weaken. It slowed in its advance, the clouds began to fade, and the snow lessened in intensity. And then it simply stopped and dissipated into nothingness. A strange quiet came over the world, with the only sound remaining the distant roar of the wall of green fire.

Then with a groan, that too began to fade. The base of the fire started growing thinner and wispier. Then it went out completely from the bottom up, hissing in dark menace as it was swallowed up by the air, the last of the green flames whisking at the sky in a final swipe before everything was again plunged into the darkness of the night. The moon's pale white light seemed alien to everypony's eyes, and they all had to take a moment to adjust from the green tinted nightmare they had been living in for the past few hours.

The calm that lay over the northern forest of the Crystal Empire was not reassuring. Something was horribly, impossibly wrong.

They were still half an hour's flight out of the city. Shining Armor's condition was slowing them down, otherwise they probably would have already been approaching the gates. Cadence needed to get him back as soon as possible, but as she watched the fire go out she realized with dread certainty that she needed to know what was going on back there. Deciding that knowledge superseded caution at the moment, she called for a halt.

"Vigil," she said after everypony was stopped, hovering in the air, "Let's set Shining Armor down here. We need to take a look at him."

Vigil obeyed, gently taking him from her hooves and lowering him to the ground, where he found a relatively soft spot to lay him down. A medic followed him down and immediately began examining his broken leg.

Steadfast stayed at his place by Cadence, but his stare couldn't be moved from the prince. With a smile, she placed a hoof on his shoulder and said "Steadfast, I want you to stay with Shining Armor."

"Princess?" He asked as he tore his gaze away from him and looked at her.

"You've served the Empire well," she said. "And you helped save my husband. We're both forever in your debt. I may not be able to stay with him, though. So I need somepony I can trust looking after him. He could use a good friend right now."

He smiled back as his chest literally swelled with pride. Snapping a salute, he joined Vigil and the medic down below.

Turning then to her pegasi soldiers, Cadence called out "Who has command?"

An older, tan pegasus with a white and blue striped crest on his helm flew forwards and bowed vaguely over his considerable paunch.

"I do."

"Oh thank goodness, Colonel Stormbreaker," she said, recognizing his heavyset figure even when it was mostly in moonlit silhouette. "I'm very pleased to see you're still with us." The chaos of the scramble out of the city had made it so Cadence had had no idea who was leading the troops. She was very relieved to see the old veteran still around and kicking. They might be needing his leadership again before the night was done.

"Your Royal Highness," Stormbreaker said with another minuscule bow. His face was grim. "Forgive me," he asked, "But shouldn't we keep moving?"

Cadence shook her head. "Something's not right, Colonel," she said. "That fire wasn't looking to die out anytime soon. Something made it, and I need to know what. We need to know what we're facing."

Stormbreaker nodded in reluctant agreement.

"Allow me to investigate, Highness," he said, "But at least remove yourself back to the safety of the city."

Again Cadence shook her head.

"I will not sit in the castle waiting to hear news from somepony else about what's happening in my kingdom. I've done enough of that today," she said. "I will stay right here with my husband. Take as many pegasi as you deem necessary and form a scouting party. Head back to where the wall of fire used to be. Find out what in Equestria is going on, and get back here as soon as you can."

Begrudgingly, Stormbreaker bowed and accepted her order.

"As you will. I shall return without delay," he said.

He barked some orders and pointed a bit before forming up two squads and taking the lead at the head of one of them. Giving a salute to Cadence, he prepared to leave on his mission.

"Be careful, Colonel," she said. "Please. We've had too much tragedy tonight."

Then with a crisp "Your Highness!" he was off. The two squads of pegasi followed close behind, soaring high over the trees. It wasn't long before they were little black specks in the night sky, and then were lost between the spaces between the stars.

The ranking officer remaining, a rather young-looking Lieutenant whose name escaped her, approached Cadence and gave a quick, time-conscious salute before asking, "Princess, what will you have of me? What are your orders?"

"Post scouts to our rear," she said as she examined her remaining forces. "I want to know if those beasts come anywhere near us. We must be ready to leave at a moment's notice. If they come, don't bother fighting. Just fall back. In the meantime, we wait for Stormbreaker to return from his mission."

"Yes, princess."

"Send a squad back to the city," she added. "Inform them of everything that happened, and tell them to prepare the defenses. Give special consideration to the northern area of the city."

"As you command."

He was off like a shot the moment she dismissed him, obviously wound very tightly and ready for more action. Cadence knew that she was doing everything she could given the circumstances, but it still didn't feel like enough. She was doubtful that the city's defenses could hold against the monsters. Perhaps if it they had a wall or if it was perched on a mountain somewhere it would be different, but being out in the open on a plane the Crystal Empire had essentially no fortifications or natural defenses. Strategically it was a nightmare to defend, but that had seldom mattered because of the Crystal Heart. That would normally give them a great advantage over any attackers.

But something was not sitting right with Cadence about the Crystal Heart. The moment after Twilight cast that spell was when the wall of flame had erupted in the distance. And while that may have been a coincidence, it did seem rather suspect. She didn't know exactly what Twilight had done, even though nothing overly unusual had been attempted, but perhaps a terrible mistake had been made somehow. The more she thought about it the worse of a feeling she got, until she wasn't sure she'd even use the Crystal Heart if the need arose.

This was bad. Really bad. She needed help.

She gently floated down next to Vigil, Steadfast and the medic, who were all attending to Shining Armor as they prepared to set his leg. Steadfast already had a crude splint started, the two thick branches needing only one more strip of fabric before it was ready. The other two were checking him for other smaller injuries he may have sustained.

While the medic continued his work, Cadence stepped in to briefly pull Vigil aside and quietly asked him "Who in my guard in the fastest flyer? Besides yourself, I mean."

Vigil shook his head. "I don't factor into it, your Highness. Whipcrack is the fastest by far. Makes the rest of us look bad."

"Good," she said. "I need to borrow him and his speed."

"He'll be delighted to show off," Vigil smirked. Looking up and over Cadence's shoulder, he called out to a lithe pegasus who seemed to dance on the air as he descended. The jet-black pony had an ivory muzzle and a pair of bone-white streaks on either side of his mane shooting out from his temples. Cadence had briefly talked to him on occasion, and while he had struck her as a pony of relatively few words, with most of them bordering on arrogance when he chose to speak, she had little reason to doubt his skill.

Landing softly next to them, Whipcrack stood at attention.

"Sir!" he barked.

"Whipcrack," Vigil said, "Our princess has need of you."

He turned to her and gave a quick bow. "What would you have of me?"'

"I need you to fly to Canterlot," Cadence said. "As fast as possible. Inform Princess Celestia of what has been happening. Tell her we need unicorn support. We need as many as she can spare. I doubt the Empire can hold against this enemy unless we have magic to combat them."

Whipcrack nodded. "I understand, your Highness," he said. "Is there anything else?"

"Yes," she said. After a slight pause, she said "Tell Celestia I…have reason to believe this is somehow connected to Twilight Sparkle."

She had ended her sentence, but the silence afterwards was heavy with thoughts left unsaid. Whipcrack raised his eyebrows in anticipation of hearing their conclusion, and remained silent. Finally Cadence took a deep breath and, regretfully forcing it out, finished in a whisper:

"I believe it's connected to Twilight Sparkle…and King Sombra."

Whipcrack's eyes went wide as saucers. He remained rigidly at attention, but his face had gone pallid as he worked it out in his thunderstruck mind.

"Do you understand?" she asked him.

Taking a last moment to compose himself, Whipcrack vigorously nodded and grunted "Yes, I do."

"Good," said Cadence. "Then go. Quickly. You may hold our best hope in your hooves, Whipcrack."

He bowed low, saying "I shall not let you down, your Highness!"

As another pegasus shot off into the night sky, this time headed southeast, Cadence stopped to wonder if she was making the right choices. Was she being a fool for staying here? Had she sent Stormbreaker and two whole squads of pegasi to their doom? Was she doing more harm than good to Shining Armor? Had she adequately prepared the city? Were her defenses here good enough if they had to fight? Was she overlooking anything?

What should I do?

She let those fears wash over her like water as she sat down by her unconscious husband. They threatened to drown her, but Cadence refused to let that happen. Instead she held her breath and focused all her thoughts on him, finding her center in the one thing she cared about most in all the world. No matter what happened, right now he was with her and relatively safe. That at least kept her head above water.

They had prepared the splint for his leg, and Vigil and the medic were getting ready to set the broken bone. Steadfast was holding Shining Armor's shoulders down on the chance that he would wake up from the shock and pain. Resting a hoof on top of his good one, Cadence gripped tight. A tear had begun to find its way to her eye, but she blinked it away. Now wasn't the time for that. She had to be strong.

Strong for both of them.

The bit of forest they were in was just a stone-throw's south of a small river at the northern border of the Crystal Empire. The waters had swelled recently during the spring thaw, but the past day's cold snap had caused them to slightly freeze over. Large chunks of ice made their way down the river, smashing into the banks where, less than a week ago, an expedition from the museum had found both fossils of interesting fern life as well as an object of more sinister origin.

The pegasi had set down by it without much thought as to its nearness to the city. But had they arrived there a few minutes earlier, they would have been close enough to see an ominous red glow not far to the south. But they had arrived too late, and now it was gone. And the night was very black and very quiet.

* * *

It left the hoofprints, Twilight Sparkle observed.

That was all there was left of the Crystal Empire. The great castle was gone, as was the stadium, the vast library, the roads, all the houses, and all of Sombra's giant crystalline spires. Even the twin crystal pillars that sat outside the train station were missing. But the hoofprints were still there. Some of them suggested frantic running to no particular place, but most of them were headed out from the center.

And the hoofprints all suddenly stopped at the place their creators had been when they had vanished into thin air. As the wind blew the snow across the plain, the only evidence that they were ever there was being erased, gust by gust.

She didn't leave any tracks, though.

Twilight had searched the snow all around for places Rainbow Dash could have landed, digging until she couldn't feel her hooves. She had screamed her name into the night over and over until her voice was gravel and broken glass. After what seemed like days, when nopony had answered her call, and every inch of snow around her that she had searched had turned up empty, Twilight found herself numb with both shock and cold. Gasping for breath as her lungs burned with excursion and the winter frost, she sat down at the place she had landed and waited, gazing into the sky. A gentle snowfall began, coating the world with a new layer of white.

Even though the results had been the same for the hour that she had been sitting in the snow, Twilight could not tear her eyes away from the clouds. Perhaps if she stared enough, looked close enough for long enough, she would see that familiar streak of colors soaring overhead. If she willed it hard enough, maybe fate would reverse its cruelty. Maybe that would be enough. But the sky above remained empty as Twilight sat motionless in the gathering snow.

It wasn't until she heard a soft rustling to her side that she finally moved, turning her head to see what it was as her heart leapt into her mouth. But as quickly as her hopes raised, they were quickly dashed as she saw a rabbit bouncing through the snow drifts. It stopped and looked back at her with quizzical eyes before hopping away in a huff, off-put by the pained and disappointed expression directed towards it that was etched upon Twilight's face. As she turned back, the snow that had been building up on her head and shoulders fell to the ground with a soft, wet thump. Feeling the weight she hadn't noticed before suddenly lessen, and seeing the large pile that had collected on top of her, she realized how long she had been sitting there, and how long ago the point of reasonable denial had passed. With a crippling wave of nausea, Twilight finally acknowledged what she did not want to accept.

She's not coming back.

Raising herself up, Twilight started walking. Where she was walking to, she didn't know. She didn't have anywhere in particular to go. There didn't seem to be much point in that. Where was she supposed to go when nothing was left? She supposed "over there" was just as good as anyplace else. There was nopony to be seen anywhere in the snowy darkness. For all she knew, nopony else had made it out of there. For all she knew, all of her friends were gone. Part of her didn't even want to know. One heartbreak was bad enough. To lose everypony…

No. Don't even think about that.

With a painful swallow of her sorrow, she decided what she had to do. She had to find out what happened to the rest of her friends. There had to have been somepony who made it out of there in time. Somepony had to know something, and she would find them.

After that…I have no idea what I'm going to do.

It wasn't long before her hoof banged against something in the snow with a metallic ting. She had found two parallel ridges in the middle of the field. She brushed it off to uncover train tracks. Being the only remaining identifiable landmarks she could find, Twilight followed them back towards the Crystal Empire's vestiges.

As she walked down the middle of the tracks, she came to where the station had once been. The tracks only remained up to a point, suddenly disappearing when they hit the circular zone that the dome had cut into the ground as it had descended, taking the station with it. The tracks came back into existence further on down the way as they continued east. As she stood at the edge of the gap in the tracks, Twilight gazed upon the bizarre aftereffects of the curse. Piles of snow that had been shoveled off the platform still stood there by themselves out in the middle of nowhere, outlining the place where the station used to be. The edges of the piles still stood at straight angles, the wet snow retaining the shape it had when it had leaned against the walls of the station. The building seemed to still be there, only invisible, and Twilight had to walk over to it and cautiously put a hoof against what should have been a wall. The only thing she touched was air. She could still see it in her mind.

That's where we'd get off the train. About right there was where the newscolts were. There's where the ticket booth was.

The early morning train would be arriving in a few hours, assuming that it was on time. She had the passing thought that somepony should really stand watch for it further on down the tracks to warn them so that it didn't derail. But who was left to do so? Maybe she would have to do it herself, since the train was likely going to be her only way out of here.

As she began walking further across the gap in the tracks, she found that she could begin to make out faint specks in the distance, huddled together and slowly massing towards each other. It had been difficult to spot them in the dark at first, but the clouds had begun to part, and the vast snow-covered field was starting to glow and brighten it as it caught the moonlight. As the dark abated, she saw them on all sides, ringing the borders of the field that contained the place they had once called home.

Her spirits raised at the knowledge that she wasn't alone. Perhaps there was still hope that the rest of her friends would be among them. She began heading towards the closest group, who seemed to have the same idea as her as they followed the tracks. Finding a new reserve of strength she began trotting through the building snow, daring to hope to see familiar faces.

Before she got too close, however, she realized that these were not her friends. Even from a distance she noticed a lack of color in the group. They were made up of mostly tan and black ponies, with no flash of pink or orange or yellow or flowing purple locks, and there was certainly no little dragon to be seen among them. Even though it was the first collection of survivors she had come across, and there were many more that she could see off in the distance, Twilight couldn't help but feel crushed.

The ragged gathering of ponies approached her, looking shell-shocked and lost. There were about a dozen of them, all of them shivering and covered in snow, and a couple were coated in soot. The most filthy of those was an earth pony wearing the uniform of the City Watch. His helmet was missing and his face was streaked with ash and frozen sweat—marks of his exertion during the catastrophe. Being the one in a uniform, he seemed to be leading the group, but the bewildered and dazed expression on his face suggested he was just as lost as everypony else.

"Do you…know what happened?" he asked her as they met at a bend in the tracks. His voice was quiet, as if he didn't dare speak too loudly least something else terrible happened because of it.

"It…" Twilight began before the words cracked and caught in her mouth. Her voice was still raw from shouting earlier, and it pained her to speak. Taking a deep breath, she tried again.

"It was the curse," she said.

He grimaced as she spoke, feeling the answer to be true but wishing that she had been wrong. The rest of the group shared fearful glances among themselves. A row of yells immediately fired up, and a few in the rear broke down and started sobbing.

"I told you it was Sombra!" one cried out. "I told you!"

"We don't know that!" somepony else replied.

"Who else could it be?"

"She's a liar!"

"How could this happen?" another asked through their tears. "He was gone. We were free from him."

"It's not possible! It has to be a trick!"

"What kind of trick, you fool?!"

"How did he come back?"

"Who is she, anyway? How does she know all that?"

"Not again. Please not again."

Twilight watched in silence as they yelled at each other in fear and confusion, some angrily insisting that it was Sombra, others denying it just as viciously. It had quickly devolved into a shouting match, and all semblance of orderly discussion was lost until the uniformed pony turned around and spoke to the others in the most calm and commanding voice that he could manage.

"It's alright," he said. "We're alright. The important thing right now is that we're safe. We made it."

"But the others didn't!" a frazzled looking unicorn shot back at him. "A thousand years with Sombra! They're all trapped with him! Do you understand that?!"

The guard's face turned grave, and he turned his back on the unicorn. After a moment he looked back over his shoulder slightly to give him a stare that could melt ice.

"I understand," he spat back. "I was there the first time, same as you. I remember."

He looked back at Twilight, his expression still severe but now more contemplative than angry.

"Only this time we're not trapped with him," he continued. "I'll take that for now. It's better than the alternative. We should be grateful that we escaped."

An uneasy quiet came over them all as each took a moment to consider their new reality, soft sobbing the only sound that remained as it floated gently on the cold winter breeze. As they stood in silent contemplation, Twilight drifted off into a daze, thinking about her friends. Though she was relieved to find survivors, she was getting antsy and started looking towards the specks off in the distance. She thought see saw a pink mane. Maybe that was them over there.

"Are you hurt?" A voice snapped her out of her thoughts. The uniformed pony was looking her up and down with concern in his eyes.

"What?" she asked, not understanding the question.

"Are you hurt? You look pretty banged up."

Glancing down at herself, she realized for the first time how frightful of a mess she must be. Over her various cuts and scrapes, of which she had plenty, she was covered in all manner of filth. And while the snow had cleaned some of it off, the foulness of Sombra's cocoon still lingered. Bringing a hoof up to her mane, she found hardened slime that turned her hair into a clump of tangled disaster that tugged painfully at her scalp as she touched it. She'd probably end up having to cut a bunch of it off, she realized.

Then with a sudden flash of panicked remembrance she touched her horn. To her utmost relief the small black crystals that had embedded themselves in it were gone. With the slightest bit of trepidation, she focused her power and felt that familiar tingle flowing through her as her magic pooled in her horn—an old friend returning to give her comfort. She couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"Oh thank goodness," she said to nopony in particular. "My horn. Thank goodness."

The uniformed pony was puzzled by the strange outburst that had not answered his question. He followed her gaze to where she had been looking previously, out to where the rest of the survivors where gathering, and after a small shiver he gestured for Twilight to follow.

"Come on," he said. "It's better if we're all together."

Following the railroad, they trudged through the snow towards where everypony seemed to be converging, nestled up next to a grove of trees on the eastern side of the field. Twilight walked near the front of the group, the light she was casting from her horn serving as a beacon for those who may have still been lost. They picked up more refugees along the way as they traveled. Some had been hiding in the woods, while others had gotten turned about in the dark of the great expanse of the now featureless plain before seeing Twilight's spell. By the time they had gotten close enough to hear the various sounds of the main mass of survivors, their troupe consisted of nearly forty ponies.

One survivor who had come out of the woods, a modestly pretty looking earth pony with a dark brown mane and light tan coat, had taken a spot right next to Twilight. She stayed quiet, but remained slightly behind but very close to her, as if she were afraid to step back into the darkness.

After they had been walking for some time without saying anything, she moved up to walk next to Twilight and spoke to her in a weary whisper.

"Thank you," she said.

"For what?" Twilight asked.

"For the light. I was so afraid. I wouldn't have moved from under that tree if I hadn't seen your light. I probably would have froze. So thank you."

Twilight managed a small smile.

"You're welcome," she said.

They walked side by side for a bit longer before she spoke again. This time her voice was a little less timid.

"What's your name?"

"Twilight," she answered. "Twilight Sparkle."

"I thought so," she said with a grin. "I recognized you. You did a great thing for the Crystal Empire."

"Once," Twilight replied. "I don't know if I deserve any more praise."

"Why? Did you do this?"

Twilight's words struggled to come out. She was a bit surprised by her bluntness.

"No," she said, "But I...couldn't stop it."

The other pony paused to consider that.

"Could you have stopped it?" she asked.

Twilight thought back on everything that had happened. Sombra's spirit inside her. The Crystal Heart being corrupted. Her being imprisoned and her magic taken from her. And they hadn't known a thing until it was too late to do anything about it.

"Probably not," she answered. "But I'd like to think that I could have."

"We all like to think we can do everything," the other pony said. "But that's not always true."

Twilight turned to look at her. Her mane was cropped close and worn up in the back, the longest part being the bangs that brushed across her eyes. She had a cutie mark in the shape of a mineral vein running through a rock. Her multi-pocketed vest was well-worn, the brown fabric having been faded to a pale green by the sun.

"I didn’t catch your name," Twilight said.

"Didn't say it," she answered. "Terra Ore. Pleased to meet you, Twilight."

"Were you…trapped here the first time, Terra?"

"No," she said. "I'm from Mustangia. I was an intern at the museum. Archeology department. Guess I'll need to find another job. Although I don't know how I'm going to get a reference. I'm pretty sure my boss is gone."

Twilight turned to look at Terra in shock. She certainly was being cavalier about the whole situation. Seeing the expression of surprise she getting, Terra lowered her head in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry," she said. "I get sarcastic when I'm upset. I keep thinking that I'll wake up tomorrow and it'll all be back to normal. But it won't be. Tomorrow it'll still be gone. And a lot of ponies I know still aren't going to be here."

She let that sit for a minute.

"Did you lose anypony?" Terra asked.

Sorry I'm breaking my promise.

"Yeah," Twilight answered after a moment. "I did."

They were almost upon the gathering of survivors. The swelling crowd was filthy and ragged. Sobs and shouts filled the air, but most ponies were quietly sitting by their crudely constructed fires, doing what they could to remain warm and try to come to terms with what had happened. A great bonfire had been built in the center, which now overpowered the light that Twilight had provided. At this point anypony could see the fire as long as they were on the plain. She decided she didn't need it anymore and extinguished her horn.

They were still barely within shouting distance from the site when, as the magic around her horn faded away, she saw a group of four ponies headed towards them. The familiar curls of Pinkie's deep pink mane stood out as she bounced in excitement, and Twilight could make out Fluttershy, Applejack and Rarity struggling to keep up with her as she seemed to glide over the snow. Spike was there, too, clamped onto Rarity's back with his stubby arms wrapped around her neck—barely visible behind her hair. Even from this distance she could hear him calling out her name.

"Your friends?" Terra asked.

Twilight's face brightened with a huge smile as her world got a little less empty.

Breaking into a run, Twilight bounded across the tracks to meet them halfway. Her sorrow was temporarily put aside as she ran into the embrace of her friends. Pinkie Pie was the first to reach her, bellowing out "TWILIIIIIIIIGHT!" and nearly knocking her over with the enthusiasm of her hug. The others were close behind, and soon Twilight was surrounded by them as they all held each other close. At first the only sounds were their soft sniffles and sighs of relief. Then, when the lump in her throat had gone away a little, Twilight found her voice.

"I'm so glad to see you all," she whispered into Pinkie's mane.

"Me too!" Pinkie sobbed with joy. "And three! And four! All the numbers!"

"We didn't know what happened to you!" said Fluttershy from her other shoulder. "I was so scared!"

"When we didn't see you two flying out, we feared the worst!" said Rarity.

Spike was clinging to Twilight's leg, burying his face into her chest.

"I tried calling for you," he said with his voice muffled, "But you didn't answer! I didn't think I'd see either one of you again!"

"I knew you'd make it," Applejack said from behind, giving Twilight a bear-hug that threatened to steal her breath. "I knew Rainbow Dash wouldn't let us down."

"Where is she?" asked Pinkie Pie. "I owe the fastest flier in all Equestria the biggest, bestestest hug ever! She has no idea what she's in for!"

In midst of that group hug, Twilight Sparkle suddenly felt alone and empty as reality came crashing back. The cold wind blew through her body, leaving a chill that sank deeper than anything the Frozen North could produce.

"Twilight," asked Rarity after a moment when Pinkie hadn't gotten a response, "Where is Rainbow Dash? Isn't she with you?"

She still couldn't answer. One by one, everypony released their hug and took a step back, gazing at Twilight with growing apprehension on their faces. Only Spike remained firmly attached to her leg, looking up with eyes wide with dread. Twilight's head bowed and her eyes closed.

"Where is she, Twilight?" Applejack asked. "What happened to Rainbow Dash?"

"She's…not here."

Silence washed over them. Applejack pursed her lips and furled her brows. Snow had begun to fall once again, and it was collecting in her blonde mane, giving her hatless head a fine dusting of white powder, some of which fell off her head as she shook it slightly, trying to comprehend what she was hearing.

"What did she do?" she asked.

Twilight raised her eyes.

"She saved me."

Promises

Chapter Eight
Promises

The sound of water smashing against the walls above her head was deafening. Spray drifted down from the four small windows at the very top of the deep pit she had found herself in, which let in not only the mist of the dark, oily water that broke against the gray stone, but also the only light that allowed her to see her prison. Shallow puddles littered the hard floor all around her where the dripping water from the ceiling was most consistent, and the incessant tapping of the drops falling on the stone floor was enough to drive one to madness as they echoed madly around the tiny circular chamber. This was a place that would never be dry, pleasant, or allowing of anything other than despair. At the bottom of the prison in which she found herself, she knew that this was where hope went to die.

Twilight stared upwards as she had for what seemed like the past few days. It was impossible to tell how long it had been, as time seemed to ebb and flow around her with no pattern or reason to be found. There was no change in light to mark the passing of the sun, if the sun even existed anymore. Much like time, the sun could be a long misremembered memory or a forgotten dream down here. The only light was the sickly glow from that narrow ring of slits that quartered the walls high above.

As she gazed up at the ceiling, cold drops falling on her head and rolling back into her mane, the windows seemed to pull away as if she were sinking. Or perhaps the walls were getting taller. Vertigo clutched her stomach and threatened to make her collapse. The slices of light got smaller and smaller as they slid further away, and soon they were lost to sight completely, leaving her alone in the pit without anything to remind her of what the daylight once looked like. There was only the darkness and the eternal sound of the pounding of water all around her.

At that she finally did collapse. Laying on the cold, wet stone floor with her head in her hooves, Twilight wept. Two words kept falling from her mouth, though she did not mean to say them. With the sounds of dripping water, they echoed around her prison like bugs caught in a jar.

I'm here.

I'm here.

I'm here.

How long it was before she opened her eyes again, she couldn't say. By the time she did, her legs were stiff with the cold and the damp, and the tears from her eyes had chilled on her coat, leaving a frosty bite far more bitter than any weather.

Then from behind came a new sound. This one was familiar. It was a sound of another pony's voice, almost alien to her ears after the endless barrage of dripping water. It sounded odd. It sounded happy and full of life. Such shocking contrast scared her, but still Twilight felt compelled to seek it out.

Raising herself from the floor and turning around, she saw the wall behind her had been replaced by a barrier of solid blackness—the floor falling away into nothing beneath an arched doorway that yawned with hunger. No light pierced within that inky dead space, but still sounds came from it. They beckoned her to come towards them. They told her that it would be alright. And they promised her that they were her friends.

Whether or not they were speaking the truth, Twilight was drawn to the voices. She inched forward towards the empty void beyond that door and turned her head to listen. She felt a cool wind blowing out from it, harsh and arctic, and reeking of the stink of uncaring chaos. Afraid, she took a step backwards. It was then she thought she heard a voice on the wind, just on the edge of perception.

"Where are you?"

She couldn't place the face, but she knew that voice was familiar.

"Hello? Where are you?"

The voice overflowed with longing. And somehow Twilight knew that it was herself that the voice needed. It was looking for her. And it wanted to save her.

"I'm…here," Twilight said. Her voice was barely a whisper.

There was a pause. Then, just a little louder than before, she heard it again.

"Where are you?"

"Here," Twilight answered, her voice louder and stronger. "Here, here! I'm here!"

Through the black emptiness of the portal, a ripple in reality began forming into a blotch of faint colors. A small glob of purple in the center of the portal grew larger and larger as the voice continued calling out, all the time getting stronger.

"Where are you?!"

Twilight stepped closer towards the portal as the image before her began forming into the shape of another pony. She could make out the mane, the legs, the tail and everything else as the image cleared. The other pony was facing away from her, running in place as they floated in the blackness, yet still they drifted closer and closer.

"Here! I'm here!" she shouted. "I'm here!"

The other pony was so close. She could make out the dark purple mane and tail along with the lighter purple of her coat. And while the face was obscured by the moderately short mane, Twilight saw from the horn peeking out from it that the other pony was a unicorn.

"I'm here!" she repeated again at the top of her lungs. "I'm he—"

She stopped as a flash of pink caught her eye as the vision drew close enough to make out clearly. With a sudden chill in her veins, Twilight recognized the matching pink and lavender streaks in the other pony's tail and mane. The bobbed manecut with the pronounced bangs. The six-sided star of the cutie mark.

It's…me…

As Twilight stood frozen in shock, the image drew close enough to her to almost be able to touch. Her mirror image had stopped running, and was tilting its head to the side as if trying to hear her call. Besides the obvious, something about it just seemed wrong, and the chill wind creeping off of the portal had gotten deeper. As it stood at the entrance to the blackness, its back still to her, Twilight heard whatever it was ask her question one more time.

"Where are you?" it asked in Twilight's voice.

Swallowing hard and mustering her courage, Twilight managed a whisper.

"I'm here."

Her doppelganger's head spun around to look straight at her. To Twilight's horror, she saw that it had no face.

She gave a cry and stumbled backwards, only to find her movement violently stopped by shackles around her legs. Raising her front hooves to her face to gape in confusion at the rusty manacles that held her, she looked down to see an even stranger sight: Her coat was now a light blue, and she recognized the markings of lightweight designer horseshoes, specifically made for flying. Whipping her head around to look at her sides, she saw and then felt the wings that were shooting out from her back as they fluttered in panic. Her mane brushed past her face, a tableau of bright colors that stood out in the dull gloom like a supernova.

"I'm…I'm…"

All around her, tendrils of black crystals burst from the damp stone in a great explosion, climbing upwards towards the dim light with incredible speed. Violently they twisted around each other and the chamber like vines, grinding the walls to powdered ruin as an abyssal, hideous roar thundered in obscene rage.

The faceless Twilight in the portal leaped out to grab her with a piercing scream that shattered the collapsing world around her.

"RAINBOW DASH!!!"

* * *

Twilight Sparkle awoke with a soft gasp. The side of her face was hot and damp with having had her hoof pressed against it, and she could feel the mark that it had left. Rubbing her cheek as she caught her breath and slowed the pounding of her rapidly beating heart, she tried to pull her mind back into the real world from the realm of dreams.

The gentle swaying of the room reminded her that she was in one of the passenger cars of the train. It was very early in the morning, and the setting moon was shining bright and strong through the windows that had not had their curtains drawn. The sighs and coughs of the pistons merged with the clatter of the wheels on the tracks, along with the gentle snores of her injured brother laying on the seats that had been repurposed into a makeshift bed. It seemed like it had only been a minute since she had laid her head down at the foot of it to rest her eyes for a moment. She had been so tired, but now as the nightmare solidified in her mind, any weariness she felt before was quickly expunged.

But was it a dream?

She felt it deep in her soul. It was the same sense of dread certainty that she had felt after her dream she had seen in Canterlot before setting out on her ill-fated journey. She had seen Sombra's throne room. She had seen Rainbow Dash leave her, and had felt the lingering emptiness the vision had left. At the time she had chalked that sense of dread up to nerves and stress, but now as she sat in the darkness of the train car with the ache of her friend's vanishing still writhing inside, she understood that it had been more than a mere dream before. It had been an omen.

She had seen through Dash's eyes.

Could it be possible that…

She began unconsciously running a hoof through her mane. Soft mutterings came from under her breath as she started turning the vision over and over in her head. Pieces of a giant puzzle flew through her mind as they tried to find ways to fit together, but there were too many of them, and the edges were too blurred to make sense of. Somehow the air inside the train had become stifling, and it was getting harder and harder to breathe. Feeling an attack of panic setting in, she abruptly stood up and shook her head in an attempt to clear it.

Shining Armor stirred briefly as Twilight pushed down on his cot to raise herself, but he was too far under the effects of the painkilling medicines to awaken so easily. He winced slightly as his leg, bound tight and thick with fresh wrappings, jostled with his movement. The moonlight picked up the bright white of the linen bandages around his front leg, his head, both back knees and the numerous cuts and smaller wounds he had collected during his fight, highlighting them almost to the point of glowing in the darkness of the cabin. His face was still haggard and pale, but despite his grim appearance he still looked a magnitude better than when Twilight had first seen him.

Twilight looked down at him and felt another surge of anxiety rising in her stomach. The anger she had felt towards him earlier flooded back through her mind, and her heart ached with the shame of having said and thought those nasty things now that she saw him in his broken and beaten state. As all the loss and worry and guilt of the past few days made her head swim, Twilight found herself gasping for breath as she unconsciously swayed back and forth, rooted to the floor. The puzzle pieces swam around her mind like a shaken-up bottle of soda that was straining at the cap, ready to burst.

Sombra

What does it mean

The Crystal Empire

I couldn't stop him

Rainbow Dash

They were counting on me

His poor leg

The dream

Shining Armor

I couldn't

Was it a prison

Cadence

How did I miss it

She's trapped

I called him a jerk

The dream

How did we all miss it

The dream

The dream

Twilight was pulled from her daze by the sudden movement of Cadence stirring from the cot next to Shining Armor, and realized that she was loudly approaching hyperventilation. Rolling over and quietly muttering to herself, Cadence reached out her hoof to the empty space next to her where under normal, better circumstances, her husband would be laying. Finding nothing, she gave a soft whimper and curled up on herself, fidgeting as her body refused to wind down. She seemed to have aged decades in this short period of time, and though this was the first rest she'd gotten since awakening that morning to see Shining Armor off more than two days ago at this point, even while she was sleeping she still seemed frenzied.

Cadence's movement snapped Twilight from her trance like a slap, sending a burst of fireflies through her head as it floated in a crystal clear fog. A sharp ringing on the edge of perception cut through the night and tolled in her ears, putting every breath and snore and thump and rattle and clack and clink and peal of metal on the tracks into razor sharp focus and making them grow in strength as they surrounded her and attempted to crawl inside her mind until it was fit to burst.

Stumbling back from the foot of Shining Armor's cot, Twilight made her way on unsteadily legs to the door, running from the choking thickness of the atmosphere. Quickly she weaved through the rows of soldiers sleeping on the floor, oblivious to the noise her deep gasps were making in the quiet of the compartment, and headed for the exit. Magically yanking the handle, she shouldered the door open and stumbled into the chill of the open air between the cars and then closed it behind her.

She stood leaning against the guardrail, venting the episode of claustrophobia from her lungs, gasping and heaving along with the churning of the wheels and pistons. The crushing depths of the cabin slowly fell off her back, layer by layer, until she finally felt light enough to lift her head from its place hanging over the rail, and looked up into the sky. As the frosty night washed over her, she found some small solace in the gentle pinpricks of distant stars, oddly calming in their indifference.

As her mind emptied of its tangled jumble of thoughts, Twilight's eyes were drawn towards the moon, casting down light bright and eternal. It stood vast and full in the sky, looking down in apathetic permanence. Her practiced eyes traced the various crags and craters that were visible on this cloudless night, even without a telescope. Every feature was as it always was. It was a familiar friend—always there, never wavering.

Unchanging.

Constant.

Unable to tear her gaze away from the moon, she felt her heart surge up into her throat. How could she live when such a terrible sacrifice had been made for her? She hadn't asked for it. If she had had a choice, she wouldn't have agreed. What made her so worthy? Why was she here and not Rainbow Dash?

Friend in the sky.

Forever.

Loyalty.

Loyalty to the promise. Loyalty to her friends. The essence of Rainbow Dash. Even though the act of loyalty itself forced her to break her oath, in a way breaking that promise had been the most pure act of loyalty she could have done. And now she was gone.

But that vision. Could it mean more than being just a dream? And could Twilight stand by idly if that was the case? Could she live with herself if she did anything other than assume that her friend was still there, somewhere? Would she have done anything less?

"You couldn't find anything on the ground or in the sky to take me away from you, Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight felt warmness breaking and running down her cheeks. All around her the night was blurred from the tears in her eyes, but somehow the moon stayed perfectly in focus as she looked on unblinking. It was there, standing on that cold, windy platform on the train as it crested a rise bringing into sight the distant mountains where upon the great city of Canterlot was perched, that Twilight Sparkle made a promise on the moon, the sun, herself, her friends, all of Equestria, and everything that lived and breathed underneath the light of those distant stars.

"I swear to you," she whispered into the sky. "No matter what I have to do. No matter where I have to go. No matter the cost. I will find you."

The weakening beams of moonlight swelled as they bore witness. In the east, behind the wall of climbing mountains on the horizon, the first rays of the approaching sun caught the clouds around the summits. The distant spires of Canterlot faintly glimmered golden against the reddening sky and violet peaks.

"I will bring you back."

* * *

The city of Canterlot was a flurry of frantic activity. Celestia's Royal guards, resplendent but haggard in their golden armor, were briskly hurrying to and fro as they led various refugees to their respective assigned lodgings in an endless cycle of faces and slapdash orders, directions and negotiations. There was only the barest hint of structure to be found, as the sudden influx of hundreds of outcasts was not something anypony had anticipated having to deal with. Given the limited amount of horsepower available, seeing as many had yet to return from their deployment to the North, it was a minor miracle that this admitted disaster wasn't going worse than it was already. At least not yet.

But it wouldn't be long until whatever miracle had occurred was all used up. Canterlot, despite being the seat of royal power and the shining jewel of Equestria, had never been intended to be a majorly populated city. There simply wasn't enough room on the cliff-side to accommodate this many ponies, and most of its infrastructure was for aesthetic value as opposed to housing or shelter purposes. But it was the first stop for the train on the only direction it could now travel, which meant that everypony was going to wind up there before they were going anywhere else.

From the castle spires, they looked like a landslide of bodies running through the city. They were packing the streets until nothing could get through the cobblestone pathways even if they wanted to. Carts had been abandoned were they had stopped, and many had been repurposed as an impromptu shelter. The marketplace around the station was stuffed so fully that only brief hints of the beautiful stone mosaics decorating the ground could be seen. Tents and lean-tos had sprung up all around the square like mushrooms, and all of the stands had been crudely transformed into a sad mockery of housing. Fifteen ponies had crammed themselves into what remained of "Colonel Candy's Sweets and Puppet Show" stand, using the inside of its tall, pointed roof to make quadruple bunk-beds for some of the young ones. Colonel Candy himself was nowhere to be seen. There were ponies huddled underneath blankets on the curbs, ponies carving out niches in the doorways of shops, and ponies resting while they used a mailbox for a pillow. Those that were unlucky enough to not be able to find a place to lay down or sit simply tried sleeping while they stood. Their weariness had taken the fight out of some of their number, but the deteriorating situation was beginning to make tensions run high, and tempers were growing short.

It quickly had reached the point where for every pony that gratefully accepted the meager accommodations, there were three others that balked at the crowded conditions and lack of definitive answers to the growing problems. The food was diminishing rapidly, there wasn't enough shelter to be found, an official headcount had still not been completed, the question of Sombra still remained hanging over their heads, medical supplies for the injured were running low, and nopony, let alone the over-burdened guards had the solutions to any of it. Even they had been booted out of their own barracks to make way for the wounded pegasi from Cadence's battle with the monsters of shadow they had reported fighting, another issue that kept being brought up as unresolved. Most of the soldiers slept in the halls of the castle, but some were forced outside among the throng of refugees. Those unlucky ones were made to suffer the constant barrage of questions that they had no answers for, and were often the direct receivers of any complaints leveled at the monarchy.

Despite the unfairness of blaming the guards, common consensus considered the refugees well within their rights to be concerned. The masses making quick work of filling the city to bursting were only the ponies who had been lucky or important enough to be on the first train ride out. There were still hundreds back at the field where the Crystal Empire had once been, waiting in their make-shift shelters for the next train and hoping their number would get called so that they could leave the cold wasteland which used to be their home. Every day the crowd got bigger. And by the time they all arrived, things were going to have become much, much more desperate.

It only took three days for the first open display of mutiny to occur. In a one of the corners of the square, right by the spot where the produce stands used to be before they had been scraped to make tent supports, a teenaged stallion was attracting a crowd with his rants declaring inequality of lodgings and ineptitude of leadership, condemning the disaster that had befallen their home again and reinforcing the fear of Sombra's continued reign of terror. He was attempting to whip them into a frenzy with chants of "No more Crystal Empires!" but was finding his support lacking, although a hoof-full of ponies were nodding in agreement, a few taking up his mantra. Most were watching with weary curiosity.

There wasn't an overly large reaction from the situation at all until a squad of guards approached him, at which point the young protester began adding allegations of subjugation to his list of grievances. They attempted to quiet him down, and when that didn't work they tried to lead him away somewhere else, at which point the firebrand found himself flanked by supporters coming to his aid. A shouting match quickly swelled up over the din of the square, and the eyes of every pony there were drawn to the confrontation. A hoof on the shoulder turned into a shove which in turn became a small scuffle, and like the snap of a twig the situation threatened to become violent.

It was then that another squad of guards arrived, led by a large, muscular pony wearing the blue and white plumed helm of a captain. The commander stepped in between the protestor and the guard he was tussling with, and with practiced diplomatic skill and physical presence was able to calm him down enough to exchange some quiet words. Eventually the demonstrator was led away towards the castle without further struggle, looking reasonably validated but a bit nervous all the same.

Twilight had watched the entire thing transpire from a second story window of the hospital. She gave a sigh of relief as the protestor and his escort passed underneath the arched doorway into the barracks, and shook her head as she returned to the book she had been reading before the shouting had started. Garbage like that was the last thing they needed. Canterlot was in bad enough shape without a rebellion being stirred up right outside the castle.

Ever since she had gotten off the train, Twilight had felt like a piece of paper to be processed and filed away. She was a face in an vast ocean of faces, and nopony had paid her much mind after her name had been checked off the list of survivors. She and her friends had been placed in the same suite as they had been before they had left, only now instead of two rooms they were sharing a single one with a dozen other ponies, who were mostly relocated palace servants. And while the accommodations for many of those ponies was a step up from their normal quarters, none seemed too pleased with the arrangement, and were unwelcomingly frosty. The room's atmosphere of perpetual annoyed silence fit right alongside the tone of the rest of the castle.

For that reason, she spent as little time as possible there. She would walk the covered bridges between the towers and look down on the streets as they overflowed with the homeless. She read books in the vast castle library when she found the energy. Every once in a great while she found her way to the kitchens to get something to eat when she remembered to. Sometimes she would find the rare empty corner and have a quick cry when nopony was looking.

But most of the time she stayed in the hospital with her brother and Cadence. Shining Armor had been in and out of consciousness since their arrival, but it was common consensus that the worst was behind him. While his leg was the main thing that kept him in a perpetual haze of pain-killing medicines, the cause of most of his irritation was his jaw, which had taken a rather hard hit and had yet to see the swelling go down. This made talking painful, relegating his spoken conversations to fragmented two or three word sentences. Sometimes he chose to write using a quill and his magic, but often the medicine would overwhelm him and he'd be unable to write for long before drifting off to sleep again, the quill usually adding to the growing collection of ink stains on his sheets as it fell.

That's how Twilight had left him a few hours ago. Cadence had been relaying the current situation to him as best as she could, and Shining Armor had tried his best to focus, but she had only gotten as far as the latest updates from the scouts still searching for traces of Sombra's mysteriously disappeared army before his eyes rolled back in his head and he was again passed out. Cadence had heaved a deep sigh and sat back down at his bedside, gently brushing his disheveled mane out of his eyes. Twilight had left them alone and went back to her book.

Reading was proving difficult. Her perch in the corner of a small kitchen on the second floor was cozy and relatively neglected by everypony else, but the constant noise coming from outside the window overlooking the square teeming with refugees was making it impossible for her to concentrate. That was without taking the smell into consideration, a factor that demanded the window always be shut.

It was a boring, ponderous tome in any case. On her best day she'd be hard pressed to easily digest it, but with everything that had happened, her approaching meeting with Celestia, and that incessant racket outside, it was impossible for her to bring herself to care about A Thoroughly Thorough Treatise on Trances, Volume IX: Dreams (Nighttime). She had thought that perhaps the book could have offered some insight into the nightmare she had on the train, but the language was surprisingly technical and seemed to have been written with the intention of needing a decoder key to understand the lengthy, overly-dense language. It was like reading a philosophy book written by an exceptionally boring rocket scientist who had a tendency to ramble.

After reading the same paragraph-long sentence for the sixth time and still not comprehending what it meant, she grunted and brusquely flipped the book closed with her hoof. She had had quite enough. Any more would just make her frustrated, and she didn't want to be in a foul mood before seeing Celestia.

Twilight hadn't spoken with the princess since leaving the former site of the Crystal Empire. It had been late in the afternoon the next day by the time everypony had seen the brilliant golden armor of her pegasi soldiers as they caught the light of the low hanging sun, heralding her arrival. Cadence had been back some time by then, having heard the unfathomable news her scouts had brought back to her, and was overseeing the sheltering of her subjects as best she could given the shock. When Celestia had gotten there, she had pulled Cadence into the vast snowfield to speak to her away from everypony else. They had been far enough away so that Twilight had not been privy to their conversation, but even from that distance its frantic and heated nature had been clear. Celestia had stormed away at the end, leaving Cadence silently fuming in the field of snow that used to be her kingdom. Their relationship after that had been icy.

Celestia had been livid from then on, and had not spoken much. Being the regal presence that she was, she never allowed her anger to manifest itself to the point of screaming or rudeness. All the same there was a fierce conflagration in her eyes that would not leave. Oftentimes she could be found looking out over the desolation left by Sombra's curse, her face a mask of untainted loathing. One would think that her old nemesis would be the subject of her rage, but her slumped, defeated posture suggested to everypony else that it wasn't just him who was the focus of her disgust. She seemed repulsed by her own skin.

During that time the only words she had exchanged with Twilight was a customary "Are you alright" followed by cursory questions about what had happened. When told of Rainbow Dash's fate, she had flinched somewhat and then shook her head. Looking up at her, Twilight had seen the twinge of pain racking her face, threatening to split it asunder.

"I am so sorry, Twilight," she had said.

For minutes they had stood unmoving in silence. There had been nothing else to say. After that Twilight had only seen her a hoofful of times more, and it had always been in passing from a distance. Celestia had been doing a admirable job of organizing the recovery efforts, but she never stayed in one place for more than a few minutes. She seemed to teleport around the camp, always appearing when something had gone wrong, but never there unless there was a problem. Even at night she had been nowhere to be found, and nopony ever knew where it was that she had gone. Her makeshift bed remained unused for the duration of her stay.

When the train arrived in the late morning of the second day, Celestia had overseen the process of magically levitating and flipping the train around on the tracks to go back south, which was a necessity since the turn-around was further on down the tracks, past the newly made gap. Once that was done she had again disappeared. That afternoon as the train began its first of many trips back to Canterlot, Celestia had not been aboard. As the train started rolling, Twilight had glanced out the window for one last look at the scene of the disaster. Way off in the distance, near the tree line on the opposite side and barely visible against the snow, Twilight had seen a lone figure gazing out at the empty field, radiating sorrow even from that distance. Before she was lost to sight as the train rounded a bend, she spread her great white wings and taken flight. Twilight had followed her until she had been lost in the blinding rays of the sinking sun.

That had been a week ago, and the last she'd seen of Celestia. But today she had an appointment to see her mentor again for the first time since arriving in Canterlot. Oddly enough it had been Celestia herself who had summoned Twilight, although the purpose of the meeting was still a mystery. Twilight was a tad apprehensive considering their last abbreviated conversation, but never the less she was glad to be seeing her. Her brainstorming had approached something of an impasse, and Celestia's insight would be unquestionably useful. A collaboration with the princess might be just the thing she needed to figure out this riddle. That and she could certainly stand to see a friendly face. There had been so few of those around lately.

At least she hoped it was friendly.

Looking at the clock on the wall, she realized that the afternoon had slipped away from her, and that it was almost time. Getting to her hooves and stretching the stiffness out of her limbs, Twilight took a deep breath, steeling herself and saying "I'm ready" to nopony in particular before heading out the door towards the main hub of the castle. She left the book behind on the table, and didn't even bother to mark her place. That was a lost cause.

She was in the middle of contemplating her dream again and had just had the notion to ask Princess Luna about the vision when she noticed that she was already at the doorway at the foot of Celestia's tower. She had been so lost in her thoughts that she had gone on autopilot the whole way there. One of the guards checked a list he had in front of him and nodded to the other one who proceeded to open the door for her.

"There's one party ahead of you," the guard with the list said as she passed. "Just go up the stairs and take a seat. Princess Celestia will see you when she's ready."

Twilight walked up the winding staircase and through the light of the sun filtering through the stained glass windows that encased the tower, throwing brilliant beams of colors all around as they ricocheted off the gleaming white marble. Craning her neck up to look at the great light from above, Twilight marveled at the great crystalline sun that graced the ceiling. Shaped like a three dimensional representation of Celestia's cutie mark, It almost shone like the real thing as carefully placed windows and mirrors from all around the tower funneled light to it from outside, lighting it and the rest of the tower up at all times of the day no matter where the sun was in the sky. Celestia's Tower of the Sun was truly worthy of its title.

Passing the breathtaking crystal star, Twilight reached the hallway to Celestia's suite at the top of the tower. There the motif changed to a more modest design of dark wooden paneling, its many carvings depicting great deeds of the past, and the ancient history of Equestria. Twisting columns of black and white were interspaced throughout, all of them baring images of the sun in the white and the moon in black. The entire wall at the end of the hallway was a great stained glass window: a mosaic depicting a map of the entirety of Equestria in countless thousands of tiny shards of brightly colored glass, so intricately put together that until one approached closely, it appeared as a glowing painting. Twilight couldn't help but be overwhelmed by the beauty.

She took a seat on a cushioned bench outside the great double doors that led to Celestia's chambers. It was comfortable but oddly rigid and monarchical, and she couldn't feel at ease sitting there. It was as if it had been made with the intention of making sure that whoever was sitting there knew they were in trouble, and about to deal with the consequences. Of course she could have been imagining that, but still she found herself unable to sit, and instead stood up to began slowly pacing back and forth.

Twilight hadn't been waiting for long when the doors opened. Immediately a raised voice burst through the open doorway, echoing past Twilight and down the hall. Two of Celestia's personal guard flanked a young stallion as they led him out of Celestia's chambers, and he was making quite the scene. Twilight recognized him as the protester from the square she had seen earlier. As the guards firmly guided him away with hooves on his shoulders, he shouted back over his shoulder at the open door.

"You can't keep us here forever!" he yelled. "You don't have the right! Your reign is over! We're sick of it! No more Crystal Empires! No more Crystal Empires! Tyrant!"

His cries of dissent faded away as he was led down the stairs until they were meaningless noise. She caught the echoes coming up from below until the doors at the foot of the tower closed with a faint boom. Then there was only silence until a gentle voice from inside the room called out to her.

"Twilight?" it said. "Come in, please."

Stepping through the door, Twilight walked into Celestia's study. The princess was sitting on a cushioned daybed beside the balcony, overlooking the vast landscape sprawled out below. A gentle breeze was drifting through the open space, along with the buzz from the crowded city outside the window. Papers were strewn throughout the room, a large pile of them on the table in the corner. Most of them bore the seal of royal correspondence, and judging by the numerous spent quills littering the table and the empty jars of ink, it was clear that Celestia had been writing a tremendous amount of letters.

Sitting by the window, the ruler of Equestria looked much older than she normally appeared. Lines of sorrow had been etched deep into her lovely face, there were heavy bags under her eyes, and her mane was unkempt and limp, lacking the inner radiance that made it gently float as if caught in a magical draft. Celestia was thousands of years old, kept ostensibly immortal by alicorn magic, which was common knowledge, but this was the first time Twilight had ever seen her start to look her age.

With a tired smile, Celestia turned and beckoned her inside. Twilight returned the smile and gave a bow of respect. As she rose, she gestured with her head over her shoulder.

"What was that all about?" she asked.

Celestia's small smile faded, replaced with an exhausted frown. She turned to face out the window again.

"There are some who believe," she said softly, "That they would be better off if I was not their ruler anymore."

"Oh," Twilight said. For an awkwardly long moment that's all she could bring herself to say. Finally she managed to follow it up with "Well, they seem pretty stupid."

Celestia lightly scoffed. "They may be right," she said. "But that's not the point. I'm trying to take care of hundreds of refugees. I won't allow open rebellion. Not now. They can wait until I've relocated everypony. Then they can protest all they want. I can't say as I'd blame them."

Twilight did not know how to respond to that. Celestia had never said such debasing things about herself in front of her before. This was side of the princess that Twilight didn't even know existed. After sitting some more in silence, listening to the droning murmurs of the ponies below, Celestia turned back to her prodigy.

"Hello, Twilight," she said.

"Princess Celestia," Twilight replied with another bow.

Celestia drew herself up to sit higher on the couch. Gesturing with her hoof, she motioned for her to take a seat across from her on a comfortable looking chair.

"I called you here because I wanted to apologize," she said. "I've been ignoring you."

"I understand," said Twilight as she sat down. "You've been busy."

"Yes," Celestia replied, a small smirk crossing her face. "That's very true."

Silence again. The smirk left Celestia's face.

"How are you?" she eventually asked.

"I'm…fine."

Celesita shook her head. "I'm sorry," she said. "That's an absurd question. Of course you're not fine. None of us are."

"It's been…hard," Twilight said. "A big part of me just wants to go home."

Celestia nodded. "Soon enough," she said. "We have to wait for the train to finish bringing ponies back from up north. Then we'll be clear to start moving them around. Ponyville will be one of the first stops. You'll probably be the first ones home."

"I don't know what I'm going to say to everypony back home," Twilight said, chewing her lip. "How am I going to face them? After what happened?"

"There's nothing for you to feel responsible for, Twilight," Celestia replied, her voice balanced on the edge of gentle and firm. "You couldn't have guessed Sombra's plan. If anything, I blame myself. I should have realized it was more than it seemed. But Sombra's power once again confounded me. It's so insidious that I couldn't even comprehend it. I feel blind upon looking at his wickedness."

"You mean you can't understand him?"

"It comes from living in the light," Celestia said, each word carefully weighed. "My powers are of the realm of creation and love. Not darkness and destruction. It is…difficult for me to predict the powers of evil."

"I never knew that," Twilight said. "Why can't you predict them?"

"It's like going from outside on a sunny day into a basement with the lights off," she explained. "It takes some time for eyes to adjust. I can fight it as best I can after it has attacked, and once I delve into the darkness it is easier for me to understand it. And the powers of love are always stronger than those of hate. So that is on our side. But I don't live in the darkness, so it is difficult for me to see what it's doing, just as I'm sure a creature such as Sombra would find the light of day blinding after emerging from his pit. He would not be able to easily comprehend kindness nor selflessness. We are at an equal disadvantage in that. However, the powers of darkness are conniving and are quick to exploit weakness."

"I see. I had no idea."

"It is not something I like to admit," Celestia said. "But you deserve to know."

"I understand," said Twilight. "That could be a useful bit of information. Hopefully it will help."

"Help?" Celestia asked. "With what?"

Twilight took a deep breath and sat up straight. Exhaling, she steadied herself, ready to commit fully to the path she had laid out before herself.

"I want you to know that I'm ready," she said. "Whatever you need me to do. I'll do it."

Celestia stared at Twilight as if seeing her for the first time.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well, I've been thinking a lot," Twilight began. "There's two ways I see of going about this. The first is to try and find the Crystal Empire. If it still exists on this plane of reality, then maybe a locating spell would be a good start. But that's pretty unlikely. If it was in fact relocated it was probably to another dimension or the like. If that's the case then we need to start working on something to travel between those realms."

"Twilight…"

"I know," she interrupted. "That's way beyond my skill level at this point. That's mostly theoretical anyway. I read about some experiments supposedly done in Fillydelphia, but there's no concrete evidence that even happened. It's mostly conspiracy theories. So that may be a dead end. Anyway, I'm not convinced that method would be the best choice."

"Twilight, I don't—"

"What I do think the better choice is," Twilight said before pausing for a deep breath as if she were diving off a cliff, "Is to go back in time and stop this whole thing before it ever happened."

She let those last words hang in the air. At first there was only the sound of the papers on the desk rustling in the breeze. Celestia did nothing except to sit in stunned silence, blinking while shaking her head minutely. She swallowed hard once before speaking.

"What?"

"Go back in time," Twilight repeated. "I know it's really extreme, but there's got to be a way to do it, right?"

"Time travel." It was more of a statement than a question.

"I mean, I've done it before," Twilight went on, getting louder and more excited as she spoke. "There's that spell in the Star Swirl the Bearded section of the library. I'm not sure if I ever told you about that, actually. That was that one Tuesday morning when you found me in the library with the weird mane-cut and an eye-patch. Anyway, it only sent me back a few days, and only for a few seconds, and I couldn't actually change anything because myself from the past was stupid and wouldn't let myself from the future talk when I tried to tell myself from the past what to do, well, technically what not to do, but you probably already guessed that. It doesn't last long enough to do much, and it's unclear whether or not it could actually work anyway because of the whole looping paradox thing, and it doesn't really even matter because it only works once, so I can't do it again. But still that validates the concept, right? That particular spell might not work but it might be possible for a more powerful one to do so. And if we were to harness some kind of really—"

"Twilight, stop. You need to listen to me." Celestia's voice had become harder.

"I know, I know! It's crazy, but I swear I can figure this out! I just need a chance!"

"It can't be done," she said. "It's not a matter of me giving you a chance." Her tone dripped with finality.

Twilight felt the floor go out from under her. "What are you saying?" she asked.

Celestia's face twinged. She looked like she was fiercely holding back a sob. She raised herself off the couch to walk over to the window and faced north, gazing out to the distant horizon. In a hushed whisper that broke with emotion, she spoke again, barely able to force the words out.

"You have to understand, Twilight," she said. "I am very sorry for everything that has happened. More than you know. Rainbow Dash can never be replaced. Nor can everypony else who was lost. And I blame myself for that. I can only beg forgiveness for what I've done to you and your friends. I was responsible. I should have seen through Sombra's plot, but I failed. But they're gone now, and there's nothing we can do to change that."

Twilight was shell-shocked. The princess giving up was such an absurd concept that she couldn't wrap her head around it. This was the same princess who had seen them through countless troubles. Who had told them to believe in themselves. To never give up. To be loyal and true to their friends. She had taught Twilight that the magic of friendship could see them through any obstacle. Was this same teacher now telling her to abandon one of her best friends?

"Do you mean to tell me you're giving up?" Twilight asked, voice on the verge of insubordinate incredulity.

"Twilight," Celestia said, turning back around, her eyes pregnant with sorrow, "I've already seen the lives of hundreds of my subjects destroyed. Subjects for whom I was responsible. That weight is forever on my shoulders, and I'll have to live with that. But please, don't ask me to watch you go down this path. Not you."

"What path is that?"

"The one of false hope. I can't do it, Twilight. I won't do it. You're too precious to me. I won't watch you become consumed by obsession over this. In other matters, your tenacity is a virtue, but in this…you must trust me. It will only lead to sorrow."

Her tears finally broke and ran down her regal visage. Her strength poured out from her eyes. She seemed barely able to stand—little more than a withered flower dried out from the sun and battered from the wind, ready to crumble and fly off into nothingness. Twilight couldn't stand to look at the pathetic sight. Betrayal boiled down deep inside her stomach, and anger rose into her throat and out of her mouth.

"So that's it, then?" Twilight said, staring at the floor. "Just give up? Let Rainbow Dash sit in there with King Sombra for a thousand years? And when she gets out, if she gets out, she'll be alone. Everything and everypony she knows will be gone. Maybe she'll get a good view of Sombra's army as he takes over Equestria. Maybe he'll make her his pet. Or maybe he'll just kill her. Is that what you want me to do? Let all that happen?!"

"That's not a choice for you to make. It's the way it is."

"You don't care!" she screamed, her words ricocheting around the marble walls and buffeting Celestia with their venom. "You don't care at all! You're too scared to go up against him, aren't you?! You'd rather just leave all of them to rot! ALL of the Crystal Empire AND my friend! Maybe they're right about you! Maybe we do need a new ruler! YOU DON'T CARE!!!"

Her final piercing denigration rang out down the hallway, echoing with the accusations of a hundred Twilights. As they faded into nothingness, Celestia stood stock still on the balcony, her face a fortress of steel with all gentleness gone. A twitch in the corner of her mouth betrayed her calm exterior. Her eyes were razors. Twilight had never seen Celestia give that look before. Even in her red hot rage, she could tell that she had crossed a line, and felt the chill of the looming consequence of her words crawling up her spine.

"Do you know what a thousand years feels like, Twilight?" Celestia spoke, voice as cold as her expression. "Of course you don't. You are young. And right now you feel sorrow. And you may very well carry that for the rest of your life. And it will hurt. But it will never approach the pain of a thousand years of guilt. A thousand years of knowing you failed as a ruler. A thousand years of broken promises hanging over your head like the weight of the ocean. Time does not heal all wounds, Twilight, but you only have one lifetime to suffer that pain. I've felt it for longer than your mind can fathom. And now I have to do it all over again."

Twilight had the good graces to lower her eyes to the floor, the shame of her undue cruelty quickly taking the fight out of her. Still Celestia continued, walking closer as she did until see was hovering over her student, voice raising up to the high arched ceiling until she was nearly yelling through the choking tears that were threatening a return.

"So do not speak to me of caring!" she cried. "You've spent a few days brainstorming and reading books. I spent hundreds of years trying to bring the Crystal Empire back! I tried everything in my power and beyond, and it always failed. For hundreds of years, Twilight! It took me that long to finally understand that there was nothing I could do. But I suffered every day that I tried. And there was nopony there to tell me that I had to move on. To accept what reality was. To tell me that I needed to forgive myself for what had happened. There was nopony there to tell me, and so that impossible task consumed my life until the day I realized the truth! It can't be done!"

Twilight kept her head bowed as she took her punishment. She felt the overwhelming presence of Celestia directly above her, powerful and terrible in its majesty and fury. She dared not look up for fear of combusting under the fire of her eyes.

Then her posture softened, and the cloud of anger around her abated as she gave a deflating sigh. Twilight felt a hoof on her shoulder. It was a gentle touch that was free of anger, but firm and matronly. When Celestia spoke again, it was with tenderness and the tone of a mentor and friend.

"I have many years to waste being miserable, Twilight, if I so choose. But you have only one life. And I'm not going to watch you throw it away doing the same. You're too important to me and everypony else. So I'm going to tell you what nopony told me, and I hope that you will listen: You can't bring them back. Not from this thing. And you need to let them go."

Twilight had never openly defied Celestia before. But this time she felt something different. For the first time since meeting her and becoming her prize student, she felt that Celestia was absolutely wrong. With her heart threatening to lodge itself in her throat, Twilight made her choice, and prepared herself to truly go it alone for the first time.

"She wouldn't," she said.

She craned her neck up to look her princess in the eye. Celestia did not move her hoof from Twilight's shoulder, but something in her expression died, leaving an emptiness that couldn't be seen, but all the same was palpable.

"She made a promise to me, not too long ago," Twilight continued. "She said she'd never leave me, no matter what. I believed her, because that's what kind of a friend she is. She's the kind of friend who would always be there, and do anything for you, even if it meant something bad happening to herself. For all I know she died for me. But I don't think that's true. I think she's still alive. I saw it in a vision, but more importantly I feel it in my heart. She's out there. She's waiting to be rescued. And if she were here right now instead of me, I know to the very depths of my soul that even if it is stupid, even if it is impossible, even if it couldn't be figured out in a thousand years, there's nothing in Equestria that would stop her from bringing me back, even if it took another millennia. That's who Rainbow Dash is. And I'm going to save her, with or without your help."

Celestia lowered her hoof. Moments passed in bitter silence before she slowly turned around to walk back to the balcony. Staring out to the north again, she stood unmoving, a silent sentinel guarding what was left of her broken heart.

"I think you should leave, Twilight," she finally said.

Twilight left quietly without another word. By the time she was past the doors and outside the Tower of The Sun once again, Celestia had still not moved or looked back.

The trip back to the hospital was a quick one. She had to be fast about it, lest she break down in the middle of the palace hallways. She passed guards, all of whom were so familiar with her presence that they didn't even stop her when she climbed the stairs up to the second floor where Shining Armor was. Passing his room, she headed straight to the kitchen where she had been reading earlier. Entering and quickly closing the door behind her, she saw her book was still there, undisturbed.

She threw herself down in the corner between the sink and the table. There she stayed until long after it had turned dark outside. She didn't know for how long she sat there.

The time wasn't important. What was important were the puzzle pieces flying around in her head. She saw them start to form into recognizable shapes, and her mind furiously worked on fitting them together.

Soon she starting seeing a picture. It wasn't much—a mere smudge of paint on an empty canvas—but even little smudges were the beginnings of something.

* * *

It was the middle of the night. High above Canterlot, perched atop the spired monoliths of marble and crystal, they overlooked the sleeping city. Their lowered voices were oddly dead among the heights, dropping off the edge to dissipate in the windless air. They had been up there most of the night, and had watched the moon rise. It was full but hidden behind weighty clouds, only letting occasional beams through like searchlights in the darkness.

"I can't do it. I can't watch her destroy herself. I know her too well."

"You're too much alike, you mean."

"That's what scares me."

There was a pause as the smaller one mused on an idea.

"Perhaps…"

"What?"

"Perhaps it doesn't have to be a bad thing."

"What are you saying?"

"You said she has the most potential of anypony you've ever seen."

"Yes."

"'Took to magic quicker than Star Swirl himself,' I believe were your exact words."

"Yes."

"Able to see things in spells in a way nopony else could. Even yourself."

"Yes."

"So, maybe she's just what you didn't have before."

"What's that? Talent?"

"A fresh perspective."

The larger one now took a turn to ponder for a moment. Her voice was full of cautious hope.

"You're saying she could figure it out?"

"I'm saying there's not much choice. The Elements of Harmony are useless now. The Crystal Heart is gone. We are without our greatest defenses. What harm could letting her try do?"

"It could consume her life."

"You know she'll do it anyway."

"Yes."

"So let's give her the best chance of succeeding."

A great sigh was followed by a thoughtful nod.

"You're saying give her the book?"

"You spent hundreds of years staring at that thing. Maybe it's time that somepony else took a look at it."

There was a soft chuckle as the bigger one shook her head.

"You know, one of these days we're going to have to just go ahead and make her official."

"Well, if she manages to pull this off, I don't think we'd have much of an excuse not to."

"If she succeeds, we'll never know about it."

"We can only hope."

The clouds had broken up. Down below them, the city was awash with pale radiance of the lunar light. Far into the night they sat unmoving, two dark silhouettes keeping watch.

Memoirs

Chapter Nine
Memoirs

"Twilight, is "Worm Hole" filed under W or is it filed under H?"

Rarity called out her question from the top of the ladder propped against one of the numerous bookshelves filling the library which functioned as Twilight's house. It was the third time she had asked for help as to where the books on that subject were located, and she was beginning to come to the conclusion that this particular volume she had been sent to fetch fifteen minutes ago simply could not exist in this realm of reality. Nothing could be this bothersome to find. Then again, she had no idea what Twilight even wanted with books on that subject. It was another thing that, like Twilight's plan in general, was quite beyond her grasp.

Twilight's head didn't raise from her desk as she furiously scribbled away with the quill magically levitating before her. She had zeroed in on a possible lead in an old book by noted physicist Niels Burro, and she didn't want to lose her train of thought. It had been a week since she had returned to her home in Ponyville, and in that time this was the most promising sign she had found. Her eyes were a blur as they darted back and forth between Burro's book and another giant tome of magic she had spread out before her.

"Twilight?" Rarity's voice again rang out from across the room. "W or H?"

With only the briefest grunts of annoyance she curtly answered "W."

At her hooves, Spike walked past the desk, looking more like a walking stack of scrolls than a baby dragon. The only thing visible were his stubby arms wrapped around the pile of papers he carried over to the mountain that was already built up behind Twilight's desk. Dropping them with a small "Oomph," he dusted his hands off and craned his neck upwards to Rarity.

"Hold on," he called. "I'll help you find it."

"No, Spike," Twilight said without looking up. "I need all the scrolls on sensory enhancement you can find. Keep working on that."

"ALL of them?" Spike whined. "Seriously? There's like a thousand."

"NO!" she snapped. "Just the ones that are registered Class Five and above." Her voice had gotten sharp, but her head remained inflexibly downwards as she continued. "Anything less most likely wouldn't hold up when subjected to an event horizon. I already told you that."

Distinctly recalling that several papers in the stack he had just spent the last half hour collecting were Class Three or less, Spike gazed upon the massive pile with dread. It was so tall that it reached over Twilight's head, and he did not enjoy the thought of having to dig through the entire thing all over again to sort out his mistakes. Desperately looking for any reprieve, he wrung his claws and tried his best to avoid having to look at one more dusty scroll.

"You've got plenty to go through right now," he said. "There's no way you'll get through all of them in the time it'll take me to help Rarity. Why don’t I go help her and then when I'm done—"

Twilight didn't have time for Spike's nonsense. She was making music in her mind: The merging of magic and theoretical science. The scrape of the quill was the wave of her baton as she conducted the mad choir in her head as it clawed and scraped together what she hoped would be her grand symphony. And all of the whining was making it impossible for her to concentrate on it.

"Spike!" Twilight spat. "Don't argue with me. Please."

Spike dejectedly hung his head and waddled back to the mound of papers that had consumed his life for the last few hours, and now promised to devour several more. His soft grumbles of protest drifted to the curved corners of the room to be lost among the dust motes and emptied out shelves.

Twilight went back to work. If the curve of space-time was, as Burro's theory stated, something able to be physically felt with the right equipment, perhaps if she used a highly concentrated enough pocket of sensory enhancing magic in keeping with Star Swirl the Bearded's basic Laws of Spellcasting, then maybe—

"Twilight, you know I hate to be a bother," Rarity called out once more, "But I really could use Spike's help. I just don't think it's here, darling."

Her concentration was shattered again. Twilight's head whipped around, sending her mane that was already tussled with both lack of sleep and grooming flying over her shoulder and across her eyes, which momentarily burned with red-hot irritation.

"W, Rarity! It's W! Always W!" she snapped. "W. O. R. M. H. O. L. E. S! WORM HOLES!"

Rarity bristled at the condescension. She lifted her nose in the air and gave a indignant huff.

"I know how to spell, dear," she said. "But I'm trying to tell you: It's. Simply. Not. Here."

Twilight's eyes rolled. "That's not possible," she said through gritted teeth. "It's there."

"Well, unless you or Spike knows something that I don't," Rarity retorted, "I can only tell you what my eyes tell me. And they're telling me that books on Worm Holes aren't here. I've been over the name of every single book in this section at least five times."

Groaning, Twilight got up from the desk and walked across the room and over to the ladder to stand underneath her well-meaning but somewhat burdensome friend. Her aggressive steps sent loud clacks echoing around the circular house filled with stacks of books organized with her own mode of chaos. Looking up, Twilight quickly realized what the issue was. For a moment that was not the first since Rarity had dropped in to offer help, she had second thoughts over accepting her assistance.

With a hoof to her forehead, Twilight shook her head back and forth in exasperation.

"It's not there," she said, "Because you're in the Nature section. Worm Holes are in the Science section. Under W."

"Well, why would Worm Holes be there?" asked Rarity, perplexed. "I suppose it could fall under Science, but it would seem to me to make more sense having Worm Holes listed under Nature."

"Because they're not proven yet," she explained. "It's a theory. A scientific one. Hence the Science section."

At that Rarity scoffed. "Well, I happen to know for a fact that's untrue. They're most certainly proven. I may not be as book-smart as you, and I don't enjoy dirt, but I am not a simpleton. That's where they live."

Now it was Twilight's turn to be bewildered.

"What in Equestria are you talking about?"

"Worms," Rarity said. "Dirty, icky worms. They make holes in the dirt. That's where they live, the filthy things."

"NOT EARTH WORMS," said Twilight, clenching her teeth and mentally counting to ten. "It's a theoretical tunnel in the geometry of space-time that could connect different parts of the universe!"

"Well, I don't even know what all that means," Rarity said, "So how would I know where it's filed?"

"Uggh!" Twilight groaned. "Why would I even being looking for books about worms, Rarity?! Why?!"

"Don't ask me," she answered, "It's your plan. I'm just doing what I'm told, and you told me to find all your books on Worm Holes. It wasn't my place to question you. The last time I did so, you become rather cross and said, and I quote, 'Rarity, just find the book and stop asking me a hundred questions about it.' So here you are. I found you a book. It's about birds. There's probably something about worms and their holes in there somewhere."

With that, she tossed Twilight's first edition of "Ornithology Equestria" down from the shelf to land on the wooden floor below with a mighty whoomp and a plume of dust. For a moment they didn't say anything. Rarity remained on the ladder, chin thrust out and defiant. Twilight stared at the cover of the thick book on the ground, its hardcover exterior faded and grimy with age and little use. A rather chipper looking little bird was on the cover, mockingly beaming its happy smile.

The corners of Twilight's eyes started twitching involuntarily. She was about to say something that would probably have been crass and uncalled for, but Spike managed to step in before she had the opportunity. Putting one claw on Twilight's shoulder and deliberately gesturing with his other, he started negotiating.

"Alright," he said with as much professionalism as he could manage. "Clearly there's been some miscommunication. Rarity's found plenty of books before now, Twilight was doing her usual really smart stuff, I was doing an awesome job, it was all good. Rarity just didn't know as much about science-y stuff as Twilight does, so she missed one. Honest mistake that could happen to anypony. Agreed?"

"Yeah, but—" Twilight began.

"SO," he continued before she could, "How about we all take a break, yeah? Twilight, you've been going pretty hard. Maybe it's time you reset that big brain of yours? Those books'll still be there later. Rarity, you've been helpful as well as unfairly lovely as always. Let's give those beautiful blue eyes a rest. Me? I've stacked scrolls to the ceiling, having in no way made any mistakes during the sorting process because I'm awesome. For that I think I deserve a break, as does everypony."

"Spike, once again you're the voice of wisdom," said Rarity as she daintily hopped down the ladder. "I think that sounds like a marvelous idea. I've been holding my neck like this for so long that I think I'm getting a cramp!"

To illustrate her plight she tilted her head to the side as if reading the spines of books and gave a tiny yelp while she did so, rubbing her neck and pouting slightly. Twilight took a deep breath and prepared to have a word about that, most likely to say something about priorities, but Spike once again interjected before she could do so. With an arm draped around her neck he escorted Rarity past Twilight and around the piles of books littering the floor.

"Well then let's break for lunch!" he said, leading her to the door. "Rarity, get a heat pack on that, get some grub, some coffee, a pamphlet on science to brush up on your knowledge, or whatever else you need. Take your time, don't feel rushed. Let's all just relax and meet back here in an hour or so, okay?"

He had gently shoved her halfway out the door by the time he was done talking, giving her barely enough time to say more than "Yes, that sounds fine" before he politely but firmly closed the door behind her. As he turned back around he saw Twilight staring at him, radiating suspicion.

"So we're breaking for lunch, are we?" she asked him with more than mild irritation in her voice.

"Hey I'm sorry," he said, arms extended before him as if to brace himself against the oncoming impact. "I know you were on a roll. But you've got to take it easy on yourself. And us!"

"What do you mean take it easy?!" she shouted, looming over Spike and on the edge of her hooves. "I am taking it easy! Nopony has ever taken it easier than I am taking whatever it is I'm taking right now!!"

"Yeah, you're a ocean of calmness."

The glare coming from her eyes could have melted ice as she processed Spike's sarcasm. Then, after realizing the clash between what she had just claimed and the intensity with which she had claimed it, she stopped as a moment of clarity rang in her head. She wasn't behaving much like a friend should, let alone a friend who was receiving help. In fact, she realized, Rarity had been the only friend she had seen since getting back home. Had she driven the others off? It wouldn't have been the first time she'd gone over the edge. Had she done it again?

The anger faded from her face, along with the tension that had been building up in her shoulders until they had been shaking. Like a rope unraveling, her body loosened up until it she couldn't hold herself up and plopped her flank down on the floor. Sheepishly she frowned and said "Sorry."

"Listen to me," said Spike, "We're all with you, and we want to help. But you know how you get when you're really focused on something. Sometimes you get a little extreme. Right?"

Twilight lifted her eyes upwards and started rapidly scanning the ceiling. She nodded begrudgingly.

"I guess so."

"And that can make it difficult to work with you. You know that, too, right?"

"Uh huh."

"And sometimes when you ask us to do stuff it's less like asking and more like—"

"Alright, alright," she said. "I get it. I'll…try to be less intense."

Pleased with his diplomatic skills, Spike nodded to himself and walked past Twilight and to the side nook that served as the kitchen.

"Good," he called over his shoulder. "We'll continue after our break. Then you and Rarity can make up and it'll be a fresh start! In fact, when we do, I'm just going to go ahead and redo that stack of scrolls. Not that there's anything wrong with them, of course. I sorted them fine. In fact they're perfect. But they were sorted under bad juju. Wouldn't want that rubbing off on anything else."

"What are you talking about?" she called back. As she glanced behind her at the pile, she noticed that it seemed taller than she had expected it to be.

"Nothing!" came his reply from the kitchen. "Absolutely nothing! I'm just a perfectionist! Now come on, it's time to get our grub on!"

* * *

Rarity was taking her time getting back. Neither Twilight or Spike wanted to continue while being short-hoofed, but if she kept them waiting much longer they were probably going to have to do so anyway. Twilight had already begun to sneak her way back to work as she and Spike sat at the kitchen table. Her spoon was in her bowl of oatmeal but her nose was buried in a book of physics as she distractedly stirred her lunch, not having bothered to take a bite since pouring it. It had gotten quite cold but it was extremely well mixed.

"Huh," said Spike around the mouthful of bagel he had shoved in his mouth. "Looks like they're finally starting on making those houses."

He was reading from the local newspaper. As had been the case for the last week, that morning's edition of The Ponyville Express had the front page dedicated to the new arrivals in town, and what was going to be done with them. The headline splashed across the top read "HERE TO STAY! PONYVILLE BECOMES PONYTROPOLIS?" In smaller print below was the secondary header "Population more than doubles as outcasts settle in." The middle of the page was taken up with a picture of a young filly with dirt-caked hooves sitting outside a tent, caught in the middle of biting a carrot. She had a strange, glassy look on her dirty face that made her look either exhausted or dim. It was a terrible picture of her. Behind her were a trio of other equally grubby ponies, presumably her family, all sitting around a meager campfire they had made in the middle of what had once been the road out of town, but was now a field of mud littered with tents. Over that small fire was a tin can. The photographer had actually managed to find ponies boiling something in a tin can. The top of the father's hat was even torn and flapping like an open mouth. If they had tried they couldn't have found more destitute looking inhabitants of the newly erected shelters.

"Which houses?" asked Twilight. She was barely listening.

"The houses for our new friends," Spike answered as he continued chewing. "Although you wouldn't know they were friends based on this. She's a jerk."

"Who's a jerk?" Twilight asked. She still wasn't paying attention.

"Ah, the mare who wrote this article," he said. "That Anna-whatever-her-name-is."

Twilight looked up from her book and blinked at him.

"Who?" she repeated.

"You know," he said, making little circles in the air with his bagel while trying to think of the name. "That one who said they should all find somewhere else to go. Says all those mean things about Princess Celestia all the time. She wrote that big article about how all those stupid protesters that left Equestria were totally right and that Celestia should be fired."

"Ann Canter?"

"That's the jerk," he said, swallowing loudly before taking another mighty bite of his bagel.

"She says it's not Ponyville's responsibility to care for those ponies," he continued. "Makes 'em out to be some kind of freeloading moochers. I mean, have you seen this picture here? Talk about getting your bad side."

Twilight had no choice but to get a good look as Spike shoved the paper in her face from across the table. He was certainly right about it being an unflattering image. The filly's lips were raised in a half-sneer around the carrot as she bit down, with her eyes half closed in mid-blink and tongue protruding ever so slightly. It was like one of those pictures that is taken right before the subject sneezes which makes them look utterly ridiculous. But the paper had slapped it on their front page right underneath the header that included that negative word "outcasts." They could have used "survivors" or "refugees," but Twilight had the feeling that, based on Ann Canter's track record, the word choice had been very intentional.

She gently pushed the paper out of her face. "Yeah," she said. "Not the best picture she's had taken of her, I'm sure."

"You know what she says?" Spike yelled as crumbs flew out of his mouth. "She says if the ponies of the Crystal Empire didn't want their city to disappear, they should have thought of that before they let Sombra cast the curse! Can you believe that? I mean, hello?! It's not like they wanted their home taken from them. Again! But then again, we're talking about the same pony who said that she would have left with those protesters if they hadn't kept where they went a secret."

"Really? She said that?" Twilight was surprised. Even for somepony as terribly biased against Celestia as Ann Canter was, she couldn't imagine leaving Equestria, even if they were really mad at its ruler.

"She wrote a whole article on it," Spike said. "Where do you think they went, anyway?"

Twilight shrugged. "I have no idea. Somewhere to the far south, I think. There's some rumors that they went across the sea.

"I heard they followed the dragon migration paths," Spike added. "They wish they were awesome enough to hang with dragons. Whatever, though. My kind wouldn't have anything to do with them. We don't like deserters. Even if Ann Canter seems to."

"Since when do you care about what Ann Canter says, anyway?" asked Twilight. She took a bite of her oatmeal and frowned at its coldness.

Spike rolled his eyes. "Ah, I don't. She just takes me there. At least the Mayor isn't listening to her. Looks like those houses are going up pretty quick. It says they're going to be all along the whole river bank."

Twilight abandoned her breakfast and returned to her reading. The book was a bit advanced for her current understanding of physics, and there was a lot that she didn't totally get. But still she plowed ahead, hoping that eventually it would all make sense.

"You know," Spike said as Twilight buried her nose back into the pages, "I'll bet Pinkie Pie could teach her a thing or two about those ponies. It seems like she's been over there a lot since they got here."

"She has," Twilight absentmindedly replied. "She's been staying in the camp the whole time."

"Is that where she's been? How do you know that? You haven't left the house."

"Rarity told me."

"Oh." Spike perked up slightly. "She's due back soon isn't she? What time is it?"

"She's already running late."

"You know," he said, putting down the paper and rubbing his chin, "Now that I think about it, I haven't seen Applejack lately either."

Twilight shook her head. "She's busy at Sweet Apple Acres, apparently." There was a note of cynicism in her voice.

"Uh huh. Have you seen Fluttershy?"

"Spike, do we have to go down a list or something?" Twilight asked as she pulled her face out of the book. "You know I haven't seen anypony."

"Okay, okay," he said before raising his eyebrow. "You know you had me make a list of all your friends once. We could go down it."

"Don't be a smart-aleck," Twilight mumbled. Her nose had returned to the pages.

Spike tossed the rest of the bagel in his mouth and plopped down from his chair, taking the paper with him. "I'm throwing this garbage out," he called over his shoulder as he walked to the trashcan.

"I'm just saying," he continued, "It might be good to, you know, see them or something. Considering everything that's happened."

"I can't control where they go. If they want to see me they're welcome to. But I'm busy. I can't go out and track them down."

Underneath the forced indifference, Spike could hear the tension in her voice.

"Uh, excuse me?" he said. "What did we just talk about? About you getting super intense and weird? I think seeing your friends would do you a lot of good."

She didn't reply. He couldn't tell if she'd even heard him. She just remained staring at her book with her brow furled intensely.

"You know it usually happens when you're by yourself."

She still didn't say anything. Spike had known Twilight for a long time, and he had survived enough occasions where she had gone over the edge to spot when another freak-out was coming. And while the situation they had found themselves in was by far more the most serious they'd faced, and Spike couldn't blame her for doing so, the last thing anypony needed was her losing her grip on reality again. But he could sense it coming, and his diplomatic skills could only take them so far. She had been on the verge of flipping out since their return, and Spike wasn't looking forward to another episode.

"How is that, anyway?" he asked, pointing at it. "Anything useful?"

Twilight groaned and leaned back in her chair, resting her head on the back of it as she stared upwards.

"Nothing that tells me how to travel through time, if that's what you're asking," she said. "I don't know. I just can't get my head wrapped around what to do. I'd need to study for decades to get anywhere with this. And even then I still don't know if it would work. It's all so incredibly advanced."

Spike tossed the newspaper in the trash. With a shrug of his shoulders he said "Well, you are trying to figure out time travel. I'd imagine it'd be tough. It's not like you're making a delicious sandwich or something."

He paused in deep thought, rubbing his chubby dragon belly.

"I'm gonna make a sandwich," he decided.

Twilight paid him no mind as he waddled past her and began raiding the refrigerator.

"I just…" she said dismally, still looking at the ceiling, "I wasn't prepared for this at all."

"Well, you'll just have to keep working at it," Spike said from the crisper drawer. "But maybe you should take a day off and see your friends. Maybe it'll help you relax. Being super stressed can't be useful."

"That's not going to get Rainbow Dash back any quicker," she sighed. "I need to keep studying. It's not like the answers are just going to be given to me."

A knock on the door drew her from her melancholy haze. Spike stopped in the middle of spreading peanut butter on the tomatoes of his already formidable sandwich and went to answer it with a spring in his step. Working his way through the center of the hollowed-out tree house, he dodged and darted in between the numerous piles of paper and pillars of books stacked high to the ceiling. He passed by Twilight's giant chalkboard, filled edge to edge with equations of both mathematical and magical persuasions. He had to duck under the mass of strings as he passed by Twilight's wall of index cards, with its dozens of lengths of multicolored yarn connecting all the different theories and connections and ideas that she was trying to make sense of in her jumbled mind. The room was a messy, breathing manifestation of the organized chaos within Twilight's head, but Spike nimbly guided himself through like a thread through a needle.

"I'll bet I know who that is!" he sang out as he made it to the end of the small labyrinth. After smoothing the crest on his head back to be at its most dapper for his hopeless crush, Rarity, he turned the knob and answered the door with a flourish and the deepest, most mature voice he could manage.

"Why if it isn't the loveliest pony in Ponyville!"

But it wasn't Rarity.

"Good afternoon, Spike," Princess Celestia answered with a wink. "Thank you. You're looking quite handsome today, too."

Spike was caught in between a bow, a backwards stumble and a blush as he scrambled to recover from the embarrassment of inadvertently flirting with his Sovereign. In the end he wasn't able to say much, but he did manage to stammer out most of the syllables of her name.

Poking her head inside, Celestia craned her neck over to look at Twilight, still sitting at her kitchen table.

"Hello, Twilight," she called. "Do you mind if I come in for a minute?"

Twilight rushed to get to her hooves, knocking the chair back with a sharp screech as its legs rubbed against the floor. The shock of Celestia's appearance overrode the memory of their less than friendly parting a week ago, and Twilight suddenly felt ashamed of the state of her house.

"Yes, of course!" she replied. "Please come in!"

As she stepped inside, Celestia took stock of the place. Upon seeing the madness within, concern briefly glided over her face before being replaced with a warming smile. Or at least, it was as warm as she could make it given the uncomfortable tension between the two of them that had yet to be addressed.

Stepping over a pile of scrolls closest to the door, Celestia carefully made her way over to the kitchen. On her back was a small, leather-bound saddlebag. It looked old beyond reason, and even from across the room it looked incredibly soft. It was so faded from the sun and time that whatever color it had started off as had turned to a dull grey. Embossed upon it was Celestia's cutie mark. Twilight noted that despite it clearly being Celestia's personal bag, oddly, it did not bare her royal sigil.

After traversing the hazardous minefield that was Twilight's living room, Celestia stepped into the kitchen. Spike was at her heels, scrambling to pull out a chair for her. With a bow, Twilight greeted her princess.

"Please sit down," she said as kindly as she could. She felt the same nerves she had during their last meeting returning to sit in the pit of her stomach like a ball of ice.

"Thank you," Celestia said as she took a seat across the table. Spike was still at her side.

"Can I get you anything?" he asked. "Coffee? Tea? Water? Sandwich?" At that last offer he half-glanced over to his half-made monstrosity still sitting on the counter, fearful that she'd say "Yes."

"No, thank you, Spike," she replied.

"Well, I'll just get back to making mine then, if you don't mind," he said, returning to the fridge and proceeding to assault his creation with the contents of his bottle of Astral Blaze Hot Mustard. There was only half the container left, Twilight having used some of it some weeks earlier to dissolve the grout from the bathroom tiles when she had been remodeling. Even from across the room the smell was apocalyptic.

"Just let me know if you want some!" Spike called out before putting on the topping of bite sized sapphires and chocolate syrup.

"Will do!" Celestia called back with a smile. As she took her seat at the table again, Twilight tried to get a read on her. She couldn't tell if Celestia was genuinely in a good mood or if she was simply trying really hard to appear as such. She didn't seem to be forcing it too much, but there was an underlying sense of apprehension in her mannerisms.

"So Princess," she asked, "What brings you out to Ponyville?"

"I was checking on the situation here," Celestia answered, still looking around. "Making sure the Mayor has everything she needs. Making sure everypony has food and a roof of some kind to sleep under. And making sure my good friends were doing alright. Which brought me here."

"I've been…busy," Twilight said.

Glancing back at the main room, Celestia nodded. "You certainly have," she said, almost to herself. There was a note of admiration in her voice, as if she were quite impressed by the madness. For a time she remained silent as she regarded the house, full to bursting with the works of a pony on the verge of obsession. Then she turned to Twilight and, with a smirk escaping despite her best efforts, came right out and asked:

"Time travel, huh?"

Twilight was momentarily flustered. Was Celestia mocking her? Was she still hard-set on making sure she didn't go through with her plan?

"Yeah," she said quietly. "It seemed the most…"

"Most what?"

Twilight cast her eyes downwards towards the table. "Logical," she finished.

"Most ponies wouldn't exactly call that logical."

"Most ponies haven't ever run into themselves from the future," Twilight retorted with a shrug, raising her head to look Celestia in the eye.

"Touché," she said with a small chuckle. "At what point did you come up with that idea?"

"I'd say…I don't know. Maybe the day after it happened?"

Celestia shook her head and smiled again. "It took me years before I gave time travel any serious consideration," she said. "I always thought it was too outlandish."

"Well, it is," Twilight agreed. "It's absurd."

"But you made a case for it all the same."

Twilight lowered her head again. "It was silly," she said. "It is silly."

"And yet, you convinced me."

Twilight blinked rapidly, certain that she had misheard.

"What?"

With a heavy exhale, Celestia asked, "Twilight, there's nothing I could ever say that could make you change your mind about this, is there?"

Twilight shook her head. "I'm sorry. No, there's not."

Celestia nodded knowingly, having clearly expected that answer. "Well, in that case I have something for you," she said. Using her magic, she levitated the saddlebag off of her back and placed it on the table.

"What's that?" Twilight asked.

Celestia smiled. "It's my old saddlebag from when I was just a filly," she said. "I've had this for quite some time."

"It's big for a filly's bag," Twilight remarked.

"I was tall for my age," Celestia said with a slight blush. "But it's what's inside the bag that is a bit more important." After unlatching the well-worn straps, she opened the flap and reached inside. The musky smell seeping out from the bag was of ancient tomes, wet soil and oiled leather.

She pulled out a heavy book almost as thick as Twilight's leg. The pages ran the gamut of colors from faded cream to deep plaque-like yellow, interlaced with bookmarks and other small pieces of paper of every color and style attached to them in numerous, somewhat inelegant ways: Tape, glue, dog-ears, even sewn with heavy string. The simple black leather cover, flayed with use and stained with dust and grime was plainly adorned with an embossed outline of a castle with five towers. Even on the cover of an old book its profile was unmistakable.

"The Crystal Empire," Twilight whispered as the book was placed in front of her. "Princess…what…what is this?"

"A few hundred years," she sadly answered. "It's pretty full, but it's a big book, and there's still a lot left to fill in."

As she opened the book, Twilight felt the age of it creaking in her hooves. It was still solid, but it seemed delicate—an ancient suit of armor that was so old you dare not wear it. Inside the pages were filled with Celestia's elegant script as it flowed in tightly packed clusters from edge to edge and top to bottom, with barely a wasted inch. Turning the pages she saw sketches and charts along with the occasional mathematical equation and magical incantation interspaced throughout, all of which were clearly and dutifully footnoted whenever further reference had been needed. Every entry was dated, the earliest being roughly a thousand years ago. The pages and scraps added to the book seemed to be additional information attached after space had run out. Skipping ahead, Twilight saw the pages got less and less filled with writing as it went on. The scraps in the back of the book were dated as far back as seven hundred years. The last few dozen pages of the massive book were blank.

"This is your work, isn't it?" Twilight mumbled in awe. "Your work from when you were trying to get them back!"

"Yes," said Celestia. "It is the complete record of my investigation into rescuing the Crystal Empire. Every thought I ever had to lift the curse is in there. Every silly notion, no matter how ridiculous or impossible. Every answer I found. Every question with no solution. Every dead end. Every spell that could have helped. And every single bit of research I poured into it all. There are nearly countless hours of study inside. It would give anypony a good couple centuries worth of a head start. And now I'm giving it to you. I trust I'll see some answers written down in there before too long."

"Are you saying…" Twilight's eyes were gleaming wet moons, wide and bright as she clutched the book to her chest.

"I'm saying go for it," Celestia said, breaking into a smile as she beamed with pride, "You are the most intelligent, most wonderful student I've ever had the privilege to teach. And I can't think of anypony else I'd want working on getting Rainbow Dash and everypony else back. You have a gift, Twilight. Maybe you'll see something in here that I couldn't."

Twilight's smile couldn't be controlled. It threatened to tear her mouth away from her face. Vigorously nodding her head and squeezing the book hard enough to make the binding creak, she promised as solemnly as she could around her tears of happiness.

"I'll do my best!"

"I know you will," Celestia said. "I want you to understand that I will be with you every step of the way. Anything you need from me, any time you need help, any time you have questions, I will be there. All you have to do is say so. And together we can bring your friend home."

"Thank you, Princess Celestia. Thank you."

The princess stood and walked around to Twilight's side of the table. Kneeling down, she lowered her horn to her student's and gently rubbed it up and down. Twilight pulled back, then threw her hooves around Celestia's shoulders and hugged her. As they embraced, she felt the glowing aura that radiated off of the alicorn monarch. It filled her soul with light until it was fit to burst, and she felt her spirit lift high above her mess of a house. Even the smell of her mane, sunlight and spring, filled her heart with hope. And for the first time since making that promise on the train, she felt that maybe, just maybe, she'd be able to keep it.

Celestia whispered in her ear. "I have faith in you, Twilight. I just need you to do one more thing."

"What's that?"

"Show me up, okay?"

Twilight couldn't answer. She just laughed silently and nodded into Celestia's shoulder, embracing her a little bit tighter.

"Now I must leave you to it," Celestia said with a wink. "I am needed elsewhere, and you've got a lot of work to do."

* * *

By the time she arrived back at Twilight's house, Rarity was running very late. Even if the initial meeting time had been slightly ambiguous, she estimated that she was probably forty-five minutes past when she could have reasonably been expected. While not being punctual was quite unbecoming of her, there was little hurry in her step as she approached the front door. She and Twilight's parting had only been civil thanks to the intervention of Spike, and she had no intention of returning to an atmosphere of such abuse. It was almost more than a pony could be expected to take.

"Soooo, what exactly am I gonna be doing here?" asked Sweetie Belle from her side as they neared the house.

"You are going to be helping me with Twilight," Rarity explained. "We're researching, and I need somepony to keep her rational so that she doesn't fly off the handle."

Sweetie Belle crinkled her nose.

"How am I gonna to do that?"

"You know," Rarity said. "Use your charisma and politesse to keep her in good spirits."

Sweetie Belle thought for a brief moment before saying, "But I don't have any of those things. I don't think."

"Perhaps not," agreed Rarity, "But I doubt that she would yell in front of children."

"Wait a minute," Sweetie Belle balked, "I'm here just because I'm a kid?"

"It's a calculated risk. Try not to blow it."

Sweetie Belle was still bristling and mumbling under her breath as Rarity knocked. They heard scuffling from inside, followed by soft footsteps shuffling quickly to the door. As it opened, Spike was on the other side, covered with dust and out of breath. Rarity had been expecting to be greeted with his typical bad flirting, but the young dragon seemed to have little interest in that at the moment. He looked both exhausted and excited.

"Hey, Rarity!" he said, slightly panting. "Thought you'd never make it back. Hey, Sweetie Belle. You here to help, too? We sure could use it."

Looking behind him, Rarity saw that the room was completely changed. It was still a terrible, chaotic mess, but everything was different. The chalkboard had been erased. The notes on the wall with the strings connecting them had been taken down. The piles of books were on the other side of the room, and from the looks of it about half of them had been put back, replaced with others. The giant stack of scrolls was in the process of being totally reorganized, which, based on the dust covering him, was what Spike had been in the process of doing. The house pulsed with the energy of the creative process at work.

Sweetie Belle saw the towering stacks before her and paled. All she was able to get out was "Uh, I was here to, um, pol…politesse 'n stuff, I guess?" before Spike grabbed her by the hoof.

"Great!" he said with a sigh of relief. "Hope that means "sorting books" in fancy speak!" He dragged her into the house without another word.

Rarity followed them inside. She saw that Twilight Sparkle was sitting at the same desk she had been at earlier that day. The piles of books that had surrounded her before as if they had been the towers of a castle were gone. Instead, she had only one book in front of her. It was quite large, bound in black leather, and packed with various other pieces of paper and bookmarks all throughout its heavy, ancient looking pages. As she read it, she was using her magic to levitate books past her in the air. Then, after giving them a quick glance, she sent them soaring off to a shelf. It seemed as if she were cross-referencing them. There were still mountains to go through.

Seeing Rarity coming inside, Twilight perked up.

"Rarity!" she said with a smile. "Great news! We're starting over!"

The blood rushed from Rarity's face.

"Wha...wha…what do you," she stuttered, uncomprehending. "That work. All that work. Days of it! You mean we're starting again from scratch?!"

Grinning from ear to ear, Twilight held up the book to show Rarity. She could see Twilight's eyes peeping up over the top, closed in sly satisfaction.

"Not at all," she said from behind the book. "In fact, we just got a thousand year head start!"

Train Rides and Tough Choices

CHAPTER TWO

Train Rides and Tough Choices

The train ride to Canterlot had been fairly quiet. There had been a brief burst of energy when Pinkie Pie had discovered that the dining car complete with dessert bar was open for business, and had issued an open challenge to anypony who wanted to try and best her in a cupcake eating contest. Rainbow Dash had accepted initially out of pure competitive spirit, but soon found that she wasn't able to match Pinkie Pie's prodigious capacity to consume sweets at an alarming rate. Realizing quickly that she was in over her head once Pinkie's eating outpaced her own at a ratio of three to one, Rainbow Dash quietly bowed out after two cupcakes. Not being a pony to let good sweets go to waste, Pinkie had proceeded to finish the rest of the dozen she had in front of her. This had all been over two hours ago, and the attendant in the dining car was still in cold sweats over the thought of Pinkie returning to clean out the rest of his stock.

Fortunately for him, he had little to worry about. Pinkie was currently experiencing a Category Four Sugar Crash, and was doing little more than sitting motionless in her seat, eyes glued unblinking to the ceiling and mouth slightly agape in an expression that bordered both sleepy and ill. Occasionally a burble could be heard coming from her stomach, to which she would wearily respond "I know. But they were so good."

Fluttershy and Applejack were on the far end of the car, having an in-depth discussion about the merits of having a designated nap time for cows. Fluttershy had apparently done research into the subject, which somehow did not surprise Applejack, but she remained skeptical despite Fluttershy's polite assertiveness.

Rainbow Dash was snoring, spread out on all three seats in the row across the aisle.

In the corner, Spike sat by the window. He was reading the magazine that came tucked in the back of the seat. It was all bridle gossip, but there wasn't anything else to do. Rarity was sitting next to him, doing her best to engage in conversation with Twilight, who had been very quiet.

Even though Twilight Sparkle was staring out the window, she could feel Rarity's eyes. She didn't know why she had chosen to sit in one of the seats where the next row faced inwards, so that everypony was facing one another. She really hadn't felt much like talking. After a bit, she turned her head to face her friend sitting across from her. Rarity looked concerned. Twilight wasn't surprised. She could tell her face probably looked grim.

"Twilight, my dear?" Rarity asked, "You seem very, well, how best to put it? Vexed."

Vexed was certainly one way to put it. Her nerves had been going back and forth between shot and frayed all yesterday. She was so worked up over the implications of the Alicorn Amulet holding some sway over her powers that it was nearly enough to make her forget how bone-tired she was. The past two days had not seen her getting much sleep.

She had left Fluttershy's house early yesterday in the faint growing light of the predawn, and had returned home to find the cleanup that she had instructed her friends not to bother with already in progress. Applejack had insisted on it, balking at the thought of leaving Twilight's house "as dirty as a pig on a Tuesday," as she had put it—however dirty that was. They had stayed up the remainder of the night cleaning the mess, and by mid-morning the place had reverted back to being halfway inhabitable again. The bookshelves still needed to be moved back to their original position, the basement needed straightening, she had to replace the flour, seeing as she used up all that she had, and there was one last thing to take care of that she couldn't for the life of her remember for some reason.

But all that could wait until later. It didn't really matter much what state her house was in when there were far more pressing matters to attend to.

She had explained to her friends the hard, surprising truth that she had finally realized: That there had been no thief at all, and it was Twilight herself who had been unknowingly and uncontrollably teleporting the Alicorn Amulet out of its hiding place every night when she went to sleep. Twilight had instructed Spike to take down a letter to Princess Celestia, in which she explained her situation and how nervous she was. She had asked the Princess for a meeting to discuss what it all meant, and how to stop it. Within an hour after Spike had sent it with his magical fire breath they had a reply, which had simply read:

My dearest student, Twilight Sparkle—

Come to Canterlot on tomorrow's morning train. I shall be awaiting your arrival. Bring the amulet and your friends. Try not to worry.

Princess Celestia

The rapid reply had been appreciated, but the curtness of the letter left Twilight with an additional sense of unease. It had seemed so serious in tone, despite the advice to not worry at the end. This only made Twilight assume that by Celestia telling her to try and not worry, that meant that effort would be required to not worry because there actually was something worth worrying about! Otherwise why would she say it? So worrying was a perfectly valid and smarter alternative for all she knew!

She had voiced such concerns to her friends, who had then told her to not worry so much. It was enough to drive a pony to madness.

It was clear that the only hope they had in unraveling this mystery was the Princess, because try as she might (and she did try), Twilight had been unable to find anything in any of her books about spontaneous development of unconscious nocturnal teleportation of specific objects over the course of multiple days and events. Granted that was a very specific criteria, but it seemed to her that she had a very specific condition. And woefully her books were of no help. And that certainly didn't help her worrying one little bit.

But whether or not the worrying that she could not physically stop was warranted, there she sat on the train to Canterlot. The Alicorn Amulet sat in its box by her side, the box getting its lacquer coating slowly worn down by Twilight's habitual soft tapping of her hoof on the lid. Somepony on the other end of the car might have thought a woodpecker had gotten trapped inside, and was politely but determinedly doing what it did best. Twilight was only partially aware of it. But all that worrying had to come out somehow, and it was either that or start screaming.

And she still had the nagging feeling that she was forgetting about something back home.

Realizing that she had left Rarity awaiting a reply for some time, Twilight finally managed a small smile and turned to face her friend.

"I'm okay, Rarity. I'm just…thinking."

Rarity raised a skeptical eyebrow as the smile faded soon after appearing.

"Obviously it's your magic that's worrying you," she said. "I can relate, you know. I would be mortified if my magic started misbehaving on me as well."

Twilight held back a scoff. Rarity, being a unicorn, did possess some magical talents. But her abilities were mostly used to hold fabric in place or grab a pair of scissors from across the room. They weren't anywhere close to what Twilight was capable of. Before this debacle she had been working on a spell to give ponies fins and gills for swimming. It was in another class altogether, and she couldn't help but feel a slight sting to her ego.

"But all this malaise is simply unwarranted, my dear," Rarity continued. "After all, that's why we're seeing Princess Celestia, yes? Who else would you possibly want but her to help you with your problem?"

"She's right," Spike said from the seat next to her. "Princess Celestia can do anything. She makes the sun rise. I think she can handle your teleportation spell going all bonkers."

Twilight shook her head.

"It's not just my spell that's the problem!" she said a little too loudly. "It's what the implications of it going haywire are!"

At the other end of the car, Applejack and Fluttershy had stopped their conversation and were now staring back at Twilight. Even Pinkie Pie had pulled herself out of her sugar coma to listen in.

"Well," Rarity said, straining the depths of her knowledge. "If you aren't in control of what you're teleporting, and you do it when you sleep, then I would assume that it would be like sleepwalking, yes? That sounds like an easy fix. I believe I once had an uncle who did that, and—"

"NO!" Twilight exclaimed. This time she most definitely said it too loudly.

Rainbow Dash jolted awake with a gasp of "HUH BUH DA WAH?! Wassat?! What's No?"

Twilight realized she had shifted forward to the edge of her seat during the conversation. The combination of the events of the last few days and Rarity's unintentional downplaying of Twilight's skills was starting to get the better of her. Taking a deep breath, she scooted back and leaned against the headrest, lowering her hooves to her sides, where they began softly tapping, sounding out her lingering nervousness. She continued in measured tones.

"The important thing is WHAT is being teleported. I don't think it's a coincidence that the Alicorn Amulet is the only thing I'm bringing to me in my sleep. It's like it wants to be near me! Magical objects don't DO that. They don't think. They don't have an intelligence. At least none that I've ever heard of. Maybe if I was wearing it then maybe it could influence me, but it couldn't do it from across the room while locked in a box, at any rate. If it did, it would have to be something of incredible, unthinkable power."

"Yes," Rarity admitted, "I suppose that does make sense."

"So," Twilight continued, "If it is that powerful, and it is capable of thought and desires, what does it want with me?"

"I'd imagine because it knows you're the most powerful magic user in Ponyville."

"Perhaps. But why would an evil object think that I could help it? Maybe it senses badness in me."

"Perish the thought!" Rarity balked. "That is absurd, Twilight Sparkle. Simply absurd! And I for one won't hear of it!"

"Or maybe the amulet is using me, even though I'm not evil, to serve its own ends. Maybe it's toying with me, and making me do things that help it, even though I would normally go against its evil inclinations."

"Yes, that's a much better explanation!" Rarity said.

"That's not exactly something to be happy about," Twilight deadpanned as she shook her head.

"Oh. I suppose that wouldn't be very reassuring, would it?"

"Especially when I am clearly outmatched by its power," Twilight said. "I don't think I could stop it if I tried."

Her head fell back on the chair as she stared at the ceiling.

"And now I have to go to Princess Celestia and tell her I can't look after it anymore," she said as she studied the storage compartments above her. "It can't stay with me."

"Well, that's probably for the best until we figure everything out," said Spike.

Twilight remained gazing upwards.

"I've never failed like this before," she said as if realizing it for the first time. "My magic has always been enough to see me through anything. But now, I'm not good enough. I'm just not good enough. I just…"

She lost herself in her own thoughts.

Spike got up and walked across to her. He climbed up on the seat, and put a small claw on her leg. He gave a gentle squeeze to try and reassure his best friend.

"I believe in you, Twilight" he said. "I'd trust you with it."

Her head shifted slightly, just enough to look down at him.

"Why would you?" she asked. "I can't even control when I take it out of its hiding place."

Spike started to say something, but then paused as he realized that he didn't have a response to that.

The dream she had in the tub returned to Twilight's mind. She had been pondering that vision, and she was sure that's what it was, ever since the mess two nights ago. She was sure she knew those dark crystals. The coldness coming off of them was unmistakable.

"And if my suspicions are correct, the powers within this amulet are far too dangerous for a screw-up like me to have."

* * *

The train pulled into Canterlot station as it did several times every day. Steam shot from the pistons, the whistle sounded, and the breaks screamed with effort as the train slowed itself, rolling to a stop after giving one final small lurch that was bound to jolt anypony on the train impatient enough to already be standing. The attendants hopped on board to grab the luggage, collect tickets and assist the passengers disembarking.

The station and all of Canterlot was in the throes of spring. Flowers adorned columns and windowsills alike, and from every balcony and streetlamp hung the forked, bisected pale yellow and green flags signifying the season. The smell of blooming fauna and pollen mixed with rich dirt and dark tree leaves was sweet and heavy in the air, along with the subtle hint of wet cobblestones still damp with the morning shower. A heady aroma of fresh baked bread, cut wood, old garbage and newly picked fruit wafted around the market set up outside the station, and the sounds of the city rose up above the train as the engines cooled and quieted to give way to the pulsing heartbeat of the city's shouts and laughs and bangs and thumps and buying and selling and traveling to and fro.

In the midst of the hustle and bustle of the station of Canterlot, which was carrying passengers from throughout Equestria - Ponies from as far away as Hoofington, Fillydelphia, Baltimare, Las Pegasus and even Mustangia had boarded the train that morning - the six ponies and one little dragon from Ponyville stepped out of the door and onto the platform. All but one of them were instantly taken in by the sights and sounds of the buzzing city.

Rainbow Dash's gaze was immediately drawn upwards to the summit of the mountain Canterlot was built into the side of. Soaring in between and around the clouds ringing the peak were new recruits for The Wonderbolts - Equestria's elite pegasus fliers and "Best of The Best." Resplendent in their blue and gold flight suits, they zipped and spun in twirling, ever shifting and evolving formations that lived and breathed like a creature in the sky. The turns and loops and dives were so seamless and coordinated that the pegasi seemed to share one consciousness. There was beauty in their flying for anypony who had eyes to see, but for a flyer like Rainbow Dash, she saw beyond mere tricks and patterns. She saw skill. She saw genius. She saw poetry. And these were the rookies.

Rainbow Dash naturally knew The Wonderbolts were in Canterlot to welcome the Magic Society of Equestria with a show. Indeed, the rainbow-haired pegasus was so obsessed with The Wonderbolts that she had every appearance marked on her calendar so that she never missed a demonstration, whenever possible. She knew their routines by heart - every position, every formation, forwards and backwards, slow and fast - and she practiced them on a daily basis. She bet she knew them better than an average recruit. After all, it was her lifelong dream to become a Wonderbolt, and when the day came to prove herself she wanted to amaze them the minute her wings started flapping.

Hopefully that day would come very soon. Her application was probably still in the mail, headed to their offices. She had applied several times already, and while she had been rejected up to this point, and had been disappointed each time they said "No," she had honestly expected it. She had been far too young before. But this time she was older, and she couldn't see any reason why they wouldn't take her. The anticipation was maddening.

As Rainbow Dash walked with her eyes firmly fixed upwards, she was inadvertently heading straight towards a cart selling pies. Noticing this, Applejack gently put a hoof on her shoulder and pulled her a few steps out of the way. Rainbow Dash didn't even break her pace or unglue her eyes from the recruits in the clouds. The only reaction she gave was to shout out to nopony in particular "No, you amateur! It's an 'Eights on Pylons' after the dive! Not an 'Eights around Pylons!' Geez! I could give that guy lessons, and I'm standing here and he's wearing the uniform!"

"With all that fancy talk I reckon you could," Applejack said, not knowing what any of that tirade meant. "Though it seems to me a Wonderbolt woulda seen that there pie cart."

Rainbow Dash snapped out of her trance long enough to look at Applejack.

"Huh?" she asked. "What pies?"

She then immediately turned her attention back to the clouds.

"Ugh," she called out. "You call that a Split S?! Amatuers!"

As she passed by the cart full of pies which had narrowly avoided decorating Rainbow Dash with its contents, Applejack was amazed at the variety of produce and baked goods in the marketplace. It was here, at the hub of Equestria that all the tastes and cultures from around the kingdom where on display for ponies to try. There were gooseberry and almond streusels from Manehatten, guava and cheese turnovers (a specialty of the port city of Baltimare which received the tropical fruits and gave them an Equestrian twist), fig jam from Saddle Arabia, pumpkin soup with chili cran-apple relish from Trottingham, cherry cheesecake muffins from Dodge Junction, and Hollow Shade's famous blackberry cobbler among countless other confections which filled the air with enough delicious scents as to make a pony's head spin.

Normally one to scoff at fanciness, Applejack had to admit to being impressed with the culinary prowess and diversity on display. When given a basket of apples and told to make something to eat with them, she and the Apple family were beyond compare, but she wasn't entirely sure that she even knew what a guava fruit was or what to do with it. It smelled good, but even the word sounded strange to her ears.

She felt a bit intimidated, but comforted herself in the knowledge that at least nopony in that town could make an apple turnover like she could. It was a talent that could only be cultivated on an apple farm under the tutelage of somepony like Granny Smith. And seeing as Apple Acres was the best apple farm in Equestria, and Granny Smith was the best apple chef, Applejack figured it only seemed

logical that nopony could out-apple the Apples when it came to apples.

As she bounced past Applejack, Pinkie Pie seemed to be enjoying the food selection in the market place as well, but her gaze was directed more towards the cotton candy stand next to the big fountain in the center of the marketplace. Brightly colored balloons floated from the wooden sign above the machine that spun the pink clouds of sugar into the delectable treats, with big bold letters reading "COLONEL CANDY'S SWEETS & PUPPET SHOW." A group of foals gathered around the small stage next to the candy machine, laughing as a hoof-puppet clearly meant to be Princess Celestia bonked another puppet that resembled Queen Chrysalis on the head with a paddle that said "DUMB." A shrill voice from behind the stage could be heard wailing in a wobbly falsetto "Ooooh no, Princess! Please not the Dumb Paddle! My face is too dumb already!"

"Cotton candy AND a puppet show?!" Pinkie Pie marveled. "This is the greatest thing ever!"

She giggled and rushed over to the stage, grabbed a cotton candy, shoved it in her mouth, and joined the fun. Puppet Celestia was getting ready to inflict another round of Dumb Paddle punishment.

"Bonk her on her dumb head again!" she called out through a mouth full of pink clouds.

Rarity was nearly bowled over by Pinkie Pie rushing past her, and was momentarily flustered at her friend's utter disregard for politesse. After all, they were in the most high-class place in all of Equestria, and you never knew who was watching. Doing her best to maintain her dignity in spite of Pinkie's gaucheness, Rarity continued to saunter onwards in as refined a fashion as she could manage, her head held high, aloof and confident.

As they continued into the market, threatening to leave Pinkie behind, they reached the merchants selling clothes and exotic jewelry from the furthest regions of the kingdom. Rarity had noted that the style of the south had been beyond reproach as of late, particularly when it came to necklaces and other accessories. The latest trend there had been weaving gems throughout thin strings of gold like fabric, which when done correctly, as these currently on display most certainly were, created an effect not unlike hair spun from gold and braided with shining jewels that was simply transcendent. It was one of Rarity's favorite current styles.

"Oh my, Rarity," said Fluttershy. "Look at all those lovely pieces of jewelry. They're so pretty."

Turning to look, as if she hadn't noticed already, Rarity did her best to not gawk. But her eyes did bug out slightly, and if anypony could see inside her mouth they would likely notice an increase in salivation. However it was naturally best to not come across as overly impressed, least anypony think her to not be avant-garde. After all, it was poor-form to gush over anything, let alone something that was more than a few weeks old. And that style had been popular for nearly a month!

"Hmm? Oh yes, those," she said. "They're acceptable for somepony on a budget, but they seem a tad quaint at this point, don't you think?"

The stallion wearing a turban behind the booth snapped his head up to give her a rude look. Fluttershy seemed confused.

"Budget?" she echoed. "That costs more than I've seen you make in—"

"A whole day!" Rarity laughed as loud as she could as she cut off her friend. "I know! I might have to save for a weekend to get it. Ah ha ha! Yes, quite right, Fluttershy, my dear! Definitely two days. Two at most! If I wanted it!"

Her laugh was decent, but the delivery reeked slightly of desperation and "Be quiet, Fluttershy."

Fluttershy did just that. Unlike the others, Fluttershy found city life to be too loud and overwhelming. Ponies here shoved and yelled and rushed too much for her, and there wasn't a meadow or forest in sight. The waterfalls were very pretty, but they were far too high up for her to enjoy. She didn't like heights very much, and just looking at them made her dizzy. So she did her best to disappear behind her friends, keep her head down and get this over with so she could go back to her critter friends in Ponyville. Here there were no critters of any kind to be found besides birds, but they were the greedy city birds that only wanted to be fed.

And there weren't even any fish in the river to have a nice, quiet, one-way conversation with. True, there were some goldfish in the fountains in the cul-de-sacs and parks throughout Canterlot, but Fluttershy had always found goldfish to be poor conversationalists at best. You always had to remind them what you were just talking about, and while it must have been constantly exciting and new for them, for anypony talking to them it got boring very quickly.

So Fluttershy was quite happy to stay as inconspicuous and hidden as she could, and followed the group as they wound through the streets, passing through the market, eventually picking up Pinkie Pie again as she hopped back from the puppet show after Chrysalis had been crowned "The Dumbest Face in Equestria." The thought still had Pinkie giggling. Such were the sights of the marketplace that they were all talking about them afterwards, except for Fluttershy, who remained relatively silent except to politely smile and say something like "That's wonderful" on occasion.

The only pony quieter than Fluttershy was Twilight Sparkle.

At the head of the group, she walked like a pony headed to the edge of a cliff. All through the market her head had been down, and now she made her way down the streets which she was well familiar with, barely having to gaze up at all except to dodge the occasional carriage or fruit stand. Each hoof she lifted felt a little heavier than the one before, and the weariness of the last week's debacles were pilling on to take their toll.

The cobblestone pathway twisted and turned around the brightly colored pastel alleys and streets of Canterlot. Twilight followed them by memory. Left, right, right, left at the cul-de-sac, right again. She was doing her best to not look up at her destination in dread of what awaited her once she got there. Then, as she took that last right onto the largest boulevard, the early afternoon sun that had been beating down on her head was suddenly darkened as she stepped into the shadow of something massive. Out of pure instinct she looked up. As she opened her eyes, the green tint that the sunlight had thrown over her eyes began fading, and she made out the familiar outline towering over her, reaching into the sky.

There stood Canterlot Castle.

The spiraling ivory towers and elegant marble bridges connecting them positively shined in the sun. Domes capped with gold and deep royal purple shot heavenwards, lifted up on columns and arches that seemed far too delicate and artistic to be strong enough to hold them. Stained glass windows adorned nearly every surface able to contain them, sending prisms of rainbow colored beams of light cascading all around the towers, making the entire castle gleam with brilliance. Eventually the lights made their way down to the base of the castle to meet the great waterfall, helping to create a virtual storm of rainbows as it plummeted down the mountain into the side of which Canterlot nestled.

No matter how often she saw it, Twilight was never quite able to fully take in the beauty of the castle at first glance. It usually required a bit of staring to process all of it. But those were on normal days when she wasn't afraid of going there. Right then it was unlikely that the castle could appear beautiful no matter how long she looked. As awe inspiring of a sight as it was, it was the second last thing she wanted to see at that moment.

The first last thing was the Princess who, in addition to being her mentor, was also one of her oldest friends.

"There it is," said Applejack. "Hoo-ee! Ever' time I see that place it nearly knocks my hat off."

The ponies were busy taking in the awe-inspiring sight of the castle when Spike, who had been at his familiar place sitting astride Twilight's back, suddenly spoke up.

"Looks like we've got company."

Coming towards them down the boulevard, the ponies saw two members of the Royal Guard approaching. They were an earth pony of brilliant white and a pegasus of dark gray, looking regal in sun-drenched golden armor adorned with the bright blue crest of their helmets. They were headed straight for them. They moved at a brisk trot, but slowed down once they neared.

"Twilight Sparkle," the pegasus said. It's wasn't a question but a statement.

"Yes, that's me."

"Welcome back to Canterlot. Princess Celestia has instructed us to show you all to your rooms. You are scheduled to meet with her in an hour, although she said she would understand if you wanted to rest first."

"Thank you sirs," Twilight said. "But I think I'd like to get this over with as soon as possible."

The guards exchanged a glance.

"As you wish."

The guards then turned to walk back towards the castle. The group fell in line behind them. The others seemed to be enjoying the royal reception, but Twilight still felt like there was a cloud hanging over her that she couldn't shake.

She could only hope that if there was one good thing to come out of what was about to happen - and she wasn't expecting much good - maybe, just maybe she'd be able to sleep afterwards.

There would be that at least. She was so very tired.

The hour passed like minutes.

There was seemingly no time at all for the ponies to even get themselves unpacked and situated before they were summoned to Princess Celestia's throne room. Some of that had been due to Rarity's packing of nearly every conceivable form of attire that may or may not have been likely to be required to look as fabulous as possible, which naturally caused a delay in everypony else being ready. They had all felt quite bad for the poor bellhop who had been forced to carry her bags up to her room, piled on his back as high as the arched doorways, especially when it was clear by the look of fear and recognition in his eyes that it was not the first time that he had dealt with Rarity or her luggage. An ever bigger delay occurred when they had been forced to search for Pinkie Pie after she had bounced off by herself to take in the sights of the castle, having never been in this particular wing of it.

Eventually she had been found in the bakery, sampling the dessert tray for that evening's meal under the authority of an Official Cupcake Inspector. The young stallion preparing the food had been dubious as to the authenticity of her badge, which she had polished and readily available, but Pinkie had been so knowledgeable and discerning that he had found himself seriously considering that the Cupcakers Guild might actually exist, despite having never heard of it before.

It had been difficult to pry Pinkie Pie away from the kitchen, as she was in the middle of a rant after being particularly appalled by the lack of cinnamon in the pumpkin spice cupcakes. Applejack and Rainbow Dash had to drag her out as she screamed "The Cupcakers will be notified of this!"

The stallion in the kitchen stared at her with slight amusement, but at the same time found himself sweating a bit, and as soon as they left he headed straight out to find more information on the Cupcakers Guild and how much power they held.

After calming Pinkie down, they climbed the spiraling staircases back to their rooms. They had been given two suites to split amongst themselves. Twilight, Spike, Rarity and Fluttershy were in the room with a window gazing over the waterfalls, the waters still sparkling rainbows through the stained glass with Equestria spread out below. Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Pinkie Pie were staying across the hall, where the windows were filled with the majestic panorama of the mountain, and an aerial view of Canterlot in all its hustling and bustling glory.

Waiting for them outside their rooms were the same two Royal Guards whom had greeted them earlier. The pegasus addressed them after a respectful nod.

"The princess awaits you," his deep voice boomed down the hallway, bouncing off the high walls and vaulted ceiling.

Twilight found herself unwilling to move. The butterflies in her stomach that had been gathering their strength throughout nearly the past two days had finally taken off, and were mounting a full assault. It was all she could do to just stand there and swallow hard so that none of them found their way out of her mouth. After a moment of her staring blankly ahead at the guards without saying anything, her friends took notice.

"Well, sure" Applejack said, hoping to break the obvious tension and prod Twilight along. "Just lead the way! Always a pleasure to see good ol' Princess Celestia!"

When Twilight still didn't budge, the guard spoke up gruffly.

"Is there a problem?" he asked.

A poke in the rear from Spike prodded Twilight to finally speak up.

"No, of course not," she said. The smile she slapped on her face wasn't very convincing. "Best not to keep the Princess waiting."

So they began the long walk to the throne room where their monarch awaited.

The vaulted, arched ceilings rose high above, reaching ever upwards until it seemed that the sky was made of marble, tapestries and stained glass. The gleaming floor was wet with reflection, and caught the pink and yellow tinted sunlight flowing in from the windows and gently threw it against the smooth stone of the throne room with a soft glow. Banners and flags and all manner of decorations adorned the walls with the same bright green and yellow as the rest of the city had had. Hundreds of bouquets of brilliant flowers in full bloom lined the red carpet leading from the grand double door at the entrance to the far end of the great hall, where two massive banners displayed the royal heraldry in glorious green. On the right-hand side tapestry was a representation of the sun, Celestia beneath with wings spread to the corners of the sky, raising the fiery orb up with her magic. On the left was Luna, soaring above the moon as she lifted it from a violent, turning ocean swelling with tide.

And nestled between those two grand portraits, at the end of the red carpet, overhanging a fountain fed by a ornately carved horn which gently poured a steadily tricking stream, underneath a rose-tinted circular stained-glass window containing delicate images of stars, moons, and planets twirling around each other in cloud-floored heavens, sat the golden throne of Canterlot.

Seated upon the throne was Princess Celestia.

The alicorn glowed with an interior light that poured out of her at all times. The throne, already polished and gleaming by itself, seemed to practically radiate while she was seated there. Her mane and tail which were colored in bright pastels floated about her as if in a slight breeze, even when the air was dead still. Her horn had magic swirling about it in a sparkling, soft green haze as she levitated a scroll in front of her, a floating quill rapidly scribbling something down on it. Her pure white wings were catching the light from the windows, turning them slightly pink and reflecting it back to add to the dizzying variety of light sources in the room.

The only thing that glowed more than the light was Princess Celestia's face when she looked up from her scroll and saw Twilight Sparkle and her friends come through the door.

"Twilight," she said. "It is so good to see you."

Despite all her fears, for a moment Twilight smiled, and there wasn't any part of it she had to force. A small bit of her sadness chipped away, and was replaced with hope.

"Thank you, Princess," she said, making her way down the carpet towards her teacher. As the line reached the foot of the throne, the six ponies spread out to stand next to each other. Spike hopped off Twilight's back and stood next to her, the Alicorn Amulet box in his hands. The two guards that led them in took their places next to the other pair of royal guards that were guarding the princess. Once in position, the group bowed.

"I'm grateful you agreed to see me on such short notice," Twilight said after coming up from the bow.

"I only wish I could have sent for you sooner," said Celestia, still magically writing away with her quill. "Then perhaps we may have spared you some trouble. I understand there were some issues concerning flour?"

Twilight blushed.

"Spike!" she hissed as she turned to him, "You didn't have to mention THAT part of it in the letter!"

"What?" he asked. "You didn't say NOT to include it."

"It's quite alright," Celestia said with a chuckle. "I appreciated the creativity. But perhaps next time you should only put the flour at the entrances of your house."

That was such an obvious improvement to the plan that Twilight had to physically step on her front hoof with her other front hoof to stop from smacking herself in the face.

"Ha ha," she weakly laughed as she chewed her lip. "Why didn't I think of that?" She could have rolled over and died from shame.

Celestia finished writing on the parchment floating in front of her, and with a flick of her horn sent it away in a flash of bright green fire as it magically sped off to its destination. Her quill floated down to the small table beside the throne, and the magic haze around her horn faded away. She turned to her visitors.

"Now," she said after a deep breath, "What do we do with this troublesome thing?"

Her eyes had gone to the box containing the amulet. Spike opened it up for her to see.

The amulet lay on a cushion of deep red velvet. It took the shape of an upside-down triangle, and was made from a black onyx which shined with a slick, oily sheen. In the center was a crimson gemstone that eerily gave no reflection despite its shine. It seemed to pulse with a dull power almost on the edge of perception—nearly invisible. A whisper. Perhaps only an idea or just imagination. Cresting the centerpiece was a carving of an alicorn made of the same jet black stone, its eyes and half of each wing the same deep red as the gem. It was a beautifully ominous looking relic.

Celestia simply stared at the amulet at first, not saying anything.

"Hmm," she said after a moment, almost to herself, "This is the first time I've actually seen this amulet. I had heard of it some time ago, but it was more of a curiosity back then."

"What do you mean, Princess?" Twilight asked.

"Well," Celestia used her magic to levitate the amulet in the air, bringing it closer to herself. "Back when I first heard of it, it was really just a legend. I'm actually surprised it really exists, if it truly is the same amulet as in the old tales. Nopony knows exactly where it came from, but as the stories went, a very long time ago a powerful sorcerer created it using his great magic and the pure evil in his soul. Nopony knows who he was, but it was said that he used it to enact a reign of terror. Somehow he was defeated, nopony knows by whom, and the sorcerer and amulet both were lost to time, but not to legend and tall tales. The amulet became the subject of many scary stories, especially in the northern part of Equestria. It was rumored to corrupt any who touched it, and turn them into beings of pure darkness."

Spike gulped. His hands started flailing as he frantically looked to Celestia and Twilight for answers.

"W-w-wha?" he stammered. "I'm the one who put it in the box! Am I going to turn evil?!"

Celestia laughed again.

"No, Spike," she reassured him. "I promise you won't turn evil. I think most of the rumors about the Alicorn Amulet have been greatly exaggerated."

"But how do you know?!" he wailed, sweat beads forming on his brow.

"Because," she said, "The stories also claim that anypony who gazed upon it without the proper enchantments instantly turned to stone. And clearly, that has yet to happen to any of us."

Spike checked himself to make sure he was still scaly instead of stony.

"Yeah," he admitted. "That makes sense."

"So does that mean it's safe?" Twilight asked. "It did seem to corrupt Trixie when she wore it."

"That's right," Applejack added. "She was downright loco! She was always a might unpleasant, but last time she was evil on top of that!"

Celestia's expression turned more serious.

"I do not personally believe that any of you are in danger," she replied. "That is, as long as you don't wear the amulet. I do, however, believe that the Alicorn Amulet contains a dark force. And as long as we don't fully understand it, we should be cautious, and keep it locked away. Twilight, you were quite correct in asking that it be stored here in Canterlot under my protection."

Twilight bowed her head.

"Thank you, Princess," she said. "I only hope that I haven't disappointed you too much. If there's a demotion in my future, I understand. But in the meantime, if it's alright with you, and you decide to not send me away to some magic remedial school, I should probably make arrangements for my things to be brought back here to Canterlot."

Celestia raised an eyebrow.

"I don't believe I understand what you mean, Twilight," she said.

This was the big moment Twilight had been dreading.

"Well," Twilight hesitantly continued, "I'm incapable of controlling my magic. We don't even know if keeping the amulet in Canterlot will stop me from simply teleporting it again back to Ponyville when I return. If I can't stop this potentially dangerous object from affecting me, and I'm letting loose something that might contain evil magic, then what business do I even have being around innocent ponies?"

Her friends were all looking her in disbelief. She hadn't mentioned anything like this on the trip over.

"But Twilight," Applejack said, "Does that mean you're not fixin' on comin' back home?"

"There's no way!" said Rainbow Dash. "She's not going anywhere!"

Twilight shook her head.

"I could be a danger to you all," she said. "The last thing I want to see is any of you hurt because of me. I can't go back."

Rarity gasped and put her hoof to her mouth. Fluttershy was chewing on her lip, about to weep. Spike dropped the amulet box in shock. Pinkie Pie was nearly jumping out of her own hide she was so worked up.

"But-but-but-but," Pinkie gushed, "If you aren't there then that means there isn't going to be six of us and if there isn't six of us that means we can't have a full party roster and if we can't have a full roster for a party that means that there won't be any party at all which also means that on top of not having a party we can't be having a gathering or bash or blowout or function or social or occasion or shindig OR EVEN A HOOTNANNY EITHER! Do you understand me, Twilight?! NOT EVEN A SINGLE, STINKIN' HOOTNANNY WILL BE HAPPENING WITHOUT YOU THERE AND WE CAN'T HAVE THAT!!!"

Pinkie finished merely inches away from Twilight's face, breathing heavily with eyes wide as the balloons that she would have undoubtedly decorated all those events she described with.

Twilight gazed down at the floor. She couldn't bring herself to look at her friends.

"I'm…sorry."

As the choruses of dissent flared up around her, Princess Celestia began to speak.

"Everypony, please…" she began.

Nopony was listening. They were all panicking over potentially losing their friend.

"Yer no quitter!"

"The thought is simply dreadful"!

"Please don't leave us, Twilight!"

"Think of the parties!"

"Where will I stay?"

"You gonna let that punk amulet send you into exile!?"

"MY LITTLE PONIES! SILENCE!"

Celestia's voice echoed through the throne room. They all stopped their talking and turned to face their princess. There was not a set of dry eyes among the group standing before her.

Celestia rose from her throne to tower above them. She slowly walked down the curved ramp that led up to her seat, and stood in front of Twilight Sparkle. Even with her horn, the young unicorn barely came up to Celestia's shoulders. She looked so small and fragile in her defeated and lonely state. Celestia found herself wishing that Twilight would stop being so hard on herself. It was one of her biggest strengths, always driving her to improve, but too often it would come back and bite her, driving her into these spirals of self-doubt and despair.

Lowering her head, Celestia rubbed her long horn against Twilight's. Using her most soothing voice (and adding a little calming spell on top of it, since as a ruler who was also a magic user, she had learned a thing or two about using her powers for more effective public speaking), she addressed her favorite student.

"Twilight," she said, "First of all, there's no reason for me to send you to a remedial magic school. You are the most talented student I've ever had, and I couldn't be more proud of you."

"But the amulet is controlling my spells…"

"And if it is indeed as powerful as you think," Celestia said, "Then it would be rather unfair to hold you to that high of a standard. I won't punish you for not being as powerful as that ancient sorcerer who made that amulet. You are still a student, yes?"

"I am," Twilight admitted.

"And I don't expect you to be able to fight magic capable of conquering entire realms by yourself. At least not yet."

At that she gave Twilight a little wink. Twilight did grin despite herself.

"And as for the second part," Celestia said as she looked at the rest of the ponies, "I didn't send you down to Ponyville to make all of these wonderful friends who care so very much about you, only to have you leave them. I simply can't allow for that to happen."

Smiles spread throughout the group, but Twilight was still unconvinced.

"I don't want to leave either," she blurted out, "But they might be in danger! I have to leave them because they're my friends! I can't stand the thought of seeing them hurt!"

"Which is why," Celestia cut her off, "They will be allowed to stay in Canterlot WITH you. You will all be honored guests, and shall want for nothing. And in the meantime, we will get to the bottom of this. And we do it together."

Twilight was numb with relief. She allowed the feeling to roll over her like water. She closed her eyes and sank into it. She was only vaguely aware of the arms around her as her friends all hugged her at once. Coming out of it, she opened her eyes and smiled along with her friends.

She still had so many questions, though. There was so much left unexplained.

Princess Celestia seemed to read her mind.

"Before we go any further," she said, "I think it would be best for us to call it a day. You've had a long trip and clearly not much rest. Take the rest of the afternoon to relax and take in the sights and festivities of Canterlot. But be back by the evening. You shall all be my guests at dinner tonight. Six o'clock sharp. Don't be late!"

"That sounds lovely," Twilight said, "But if you don't mind me asking, when will we begin our investigation?"

"Tonight," came a voice from behind them.

Princess Luna stood in the open doorway. Her blue mane and tail floated in the air independent of any wind just like Celestia's did, but whereas her big sister's spotless white coat radiated warmth and light, Luna's coat of deep navy seemed to drink up the sun beams. Surrounding her was that ever-present aura of dimness that carried over into the day from her domain as the ruler of the night and moon.

Her regal voice echoed throughout the hall.

"Have faith, young Twilight Sparkle. The night can tell us much of what we need to know."

To The Heart of The Matter

CHAPTER FOUR
To The Heart of The Matter

Celestia wasn't sure how to best go about the conversation she was about to have with her favorite pupil. Honesty was probably the most logical course, but on the other hoof it was a bit tricky when one considered how panicky Twilight could get, particularly when her magic was involved. And in this case it was quite likely that there would be some potentially explosive panic once she found out what Luna had ascertained.

Truthfully, Celestia wouldn't hold that against her. She would be rattled as well.

Perhaps it would be best to hold certain things back.

No. That wouldn't do. Twilight was grown enough to be told the truth. Celestia owed her that much after all she'd done for not only Ponyville, but Equestria as a whole. She and her friends had done more for the realm and its inhabitants than nearly anypony else Celestia had seen in hundreds of years, and they were made of sterner stuff than their outward appearances suggested. They'd been able to handle anything thrown at them, including a being of pure chaos, a Changeling army and their queen, and even Luna herself when she had returned as Nightmare Moon after her long banishment.

And of course, there had also been King Sombra.

Sombra. Even the name brought sorrow to Celestia's heart. All these centuries later, her kingdom was still suffering the fallout of his brief but terrible reign, and she couldn't help but blame herself for what had happened. And while his recent return had been stopped by Twilight and her friends, even with Sombra in his weakened state, it had not been an easy task. One of the most difficult things Celestia had ever done was to throw her favorite student head-first into that particular fray, but it was crucial for her to display what she was capable of. After all, Celestia had great plans for Twilight, and her protégé had continuously proven herself time and time again.

Still, it was probably best to have a calming spell ready to go before they were brought in.

The day was a pleasant one, and the throne room was especially bright this morning. When Celestia had raised the sun earlier it had been a beautiful dawn, heralded by the Wonderbolts zipping around the peaks on their obstacle course. As was their little custom whenever they were visiting Canterlot, they had performed a flyby, buzzing Celestia in formation just as she completed her daily ritual from the highest spire in the castle, the Tower of The Dawn. Spitfire and her Wonderbolts did enjoy any excuse to fly very fast and very low over somepony's head, as the whirling celebratory barrel rolls they always fired off afterwards displayed.

As the sunbeams warmed the chamber, Celestia took the opportunity to sit back and collect her thoughts one last time before she summoned Twilight and the rest in. She had ordered the windows to be opened so that the spring breeze could drift through, bringing with it the sounds of the birds singing in the courtyards. She closed her eyes, listened to the melodies, and smiled. It appeared that they had learned a few new melodies. Fluttershy must have been teaching them yesterday afternoon while everypony else was exploring the castle. She made a mental note to thank her later. Canterlot birds were notorious for only knowing a handful of songs and endlessly repeating them. It was lovely to listen to, but begged for a bit of variety.

After listening for a minute and centering herself, with a deep breath Celestia was ready. Channeling a small bit of magic and mentally intoning the enchantment, she prepared her spell of calming, and shoved it to the side of her mind. Just in case.

"Sister?" she asked. "Shall we bring them in?"

Princess Luna nodded. Standing next to the radiance of Celestia, Luna was a black hole of light, a stark, almost alarming contrast between the two siblings. The physical differences were not the only things that made them stand apart from one another. Whereas Celestia was as warm and affectionate as the sun's embrace, Luna was as cool and somewhat aloof as the moon she presided over. That wasn't to say Luna was incapable of compassion or kindness. Not at all. She just had a different way of going about it, and you had to get past a shell to truly understand her—a byproduct of the realm she was the ruler of. Nothing was easily seen in the dark. One had to search for it, for the shadows did not easily give up their secrets.

Celestia turned to the guard to her left and said "We are ready." The golden armored pegasus puffed out his chest and, in a booming voice, gave the order.

"Send for the unicorn, Twilight Sparkle!"

The herald at the other end of the throne room bowed, opened one of the massive double doors and stepped through the entrance and out of sight. Celestia heard him addressing the ponies that had been waiting outside in a little speech which was merely a series of barely audible mumbles from where she was sitting. Shortly afterwards he appeared again at the entrance, where he stepped to the side to reveal Twilight and her friends standing behind him.

"Princess Celestia," he called, his voice echoing in the chamber, "May I present Twilight Sparkle, and her companions?"

The six ponies entered the throne room, their little dragon Spike in tow. Twilight was at the head of the group, still looking tired but also decidedly less frazzled than earlier. Her smile told Celestia that her mood had improved. That was a good start.

Her friends walked side by side behind her. Rarity was as always resplendent, looking so natural in Canterlot that she could pass for royalty herself. Next to her Fluttershy had her head hung bashfully low causing her long flowing locks of pink hair to gently brush the ground. Pinkie Pie was the exact opposite, practically bouncing towards the throne with a huge beaming smile on her face and eyes wide with excitement. Applejack was clearly doing her best to be proper, and was walking with an unnatural, exaggerated gait to her usual country swagger. It wasn't working very well. Rainbow Dash actually looked a bit sweaty, and judging by her mussed up mane it was clear that she had been out for a morning flight, most certainly to get as close to the Wonderbolts as she could.

Bringing up the rear was Spike. His little legs were having a bit of trouble keeping up with the ponies without going halfway to running, so he stayed behind them until they reached the foot of Celestia's throne, at which point he took his place next to Twilight. There he stood like a little purple sentry, puffing out his chest in pride at being part of royal proceedings.

"Good morning, Princess Celestia," Twilight said with a bow.

"Good morning, Twilight," Celestia replied. "I trust you all had a restful night?"

"Er, somewhat," Twilight said. "Not really, to be perfectly honest. The bed was just fine but…"

Celestia nodded.

"I understand," she said. "Luna has informed me of what she saw in your dream last night."

"It was more of a nightmare," said Twilight. "But what does it all mean?"

She still got upset just thinking about that horrific vision. And she still felt oddly uncomfortable afterwards, as if she knew something was going to happen, but what it would be wasn't clear. It was like she knew she was about to have déjà vu, but she didn't know when or about what. She just had a bad feeling about things.

"I dreamt of giraffes made of donuts! They were delicious!" Pinkie Pie whispered to Applejack, who shushed her immediately.

Celestia grinned at Pinkie Pie, then turned to her sister.

"Luna? I believe this is your department."

Stepping forward, the princess of the night began, her commanding, regal voice slightly clashing against Celestia's more gentle tenor.

"First, Twilight Sparkle, I must offer you my sincerest apologies."

Twilight was confused.

"Apologies?" she asked. "For what?"

"There were elements at work last night, magical elements, that you were not made aware of. They contributed to the strength and usefulness of the dream, but at the same time made it far more vicious."

Twilight looked at Celestia and saw the troubled expression on her face.

"What magic?" she inquired.

"To be more accurate, it was actually a lack of magic," Luna explained. "Last night as you slept, Celestia cast a barrier around you which functioned as a sort of negative zone for any manner of magical spells, enchantments, or curses."

That last word held a great deal of gravity as Luna said it, as if it stuck in her mouth. Twilight's eyes went wider.

"Inside that zone, as you dreamed," she continued, "Your magic was not allowed to work. That is why the Alicorn Amulet was not teleported to you last night."

Twilight had been so preoccupied with the dream that she had totally neglected that fact.

"That's right!" she exclaimed, not being able to help herself. "It wasn't! Did we find out what's causing it to happen? You mentioned curses earlier! Am I cursed?!"

Luna exchanged uneasy glances with Celestia. Taking a deep breath, she went on.

"No," she said, "What afflicts you is not specifically a curse. But you have been touched by something which is just as bad. It resides inside of you. And within the walls of the barrier last night, unable to act as it desired, it instead lashed out at your mind in anger. That is why your dream was so unpleasant—It was fighting Celestia's spell."

Twilight remembered the claws she had felt in her throat during the nightmare. They had been tearing and scratching, trying to get out. When they finally had, it had been a pure black torrent of hate.

Her mouth had gone dry.

"So what is it?" she asked.

Luna shook her head.

"That," she said, "I cannot say for certain. However, it is my belief that it is the remnant of a dark power which you must have had some contact with. And it has attached itself to you."

Rainbow Dash couldn't help herself, and came to her friend's defense.

"Whoa there now," she said. "Twilight doesn't go paling around with the forces of evil and all that mess. Since when would she have come across something like that?"

"To be sure," Luna continued, "It is not something Twilight would have actively sought out. But nevertheless, it has taken up residence inside her. And it wants to go home."

"How do you know that?" asked Applejack.

"During the dream I saw into its mind," Luna replied. "Inside there was anger and malice. It is trapped inside you, and it wants to escape. It's working as hard as it can to free itself by using your own magic to draw powerful objects to it. This is especially true of things that have a streak of wickedness embedded in them to begin with. That is why the Alicorn Amulet was such an irresistible target. It was drawing it closer, trying to get you to wear it. Then it could feed on its power and grow strong enough to break your will. It would have taken you over, and used you to bring it back home. Then, Twilight, it could do whatever it wanted."

"You know what it is, don't you?" asked Twilight with a note of fear in her voice. "What is it? Where did it come from?"

At that point Luna paused. The moments passed by, and it was clear there was a fierce debate going on in her head. Finally she answered.

"It came from the Crystal Empire."

The pieces of the horrible puzzle began to fit together in Twilight's head.

"A dark force from the Crystal Empire?" she said. "But…that would mean…"

Stumbling over her tongue, she fought to get the words out of her mouth.

"It…it…couldn't be," she half-whispered. "He's gone…we saw him destroyed…"

Luna closed her eyes and shook her head.

"Indeed, you did defeat him," she said. "But the evil of King Sombra is not so easily broken."

There was a gasp from the rest of the group. Rarity's hoof went up to her mouth in shock.

"That ugly fiend?" she balked. "Inside Twilight?! It's unthinkable!"

Spike recoiled at the thought.

"Huh-wha?!" he stammered. "Is he going to come out of you? Are you possessed?!"

"How does he even fit in there? He was way bigger than you." Pinkie wondered aloud.

"No!" Twilight turned to them and snapped. "I am not possessed!"

With a look of uncertainty she looked back at Luna.

"Am I?"

"I would not call what afflicts you possession," Luna said. "But a piece of Sombra's spirit does reside inside of you."

"Well how in tarnation did that happen?" Applejack asked.

"I believe I may have an idea on how that came to be," Celestia said. "When you all defeated Sombra using the power of the Crystal Heart, there surely would have been an immense outpouring of magical energy. He was, after all, a highly powerful sorcerer in addition to being a formidable warrior. It's possible that within this burst, a remnant of his spirit remained behind, either because of a spell he cast on himself or out of sheer power. It has been known to happen to powerful magical users in the past. And this spirit would have naturally gravitated towards the strongest source of magic at the time. And that, Twilight Sparkle, would have been yourself."

"What about Cadence?" Twilight asked. "She's a more powerful magic user than I am."

"Under normal circumstances, perhaps," Celestia replied. "But remember, Cadence was weakened greatly by the strain of keeping the barrier up for so long. Her power would have been dwarfed next to your own at that moment. It would have seen you, and your strength, and would have latched on to you like a parasite to keep itself alive."

"Eeewww," Rainbow Dash said with a cringe. "That's gross!"

"So how do we get rid of him?" Applejack asked.

"OH! OH! OH!" Pinkie Pie yelled. "Would a piñata help in any way?"

"A piñata?" Rarity asked. "What in Equestria would we want with that?"

"Well," Pinkie continued, "Maybe it's like candy! We could knock him out of there!"

"I don't think Twilight wants to get beaten with sticks," said Spike.

"Huh," Pinkie replied, crinkling her brow. "I hadn't thought of that. Well, um…maybe the Party Cannon could be useful somehow…"

"I don't suppose asking him nicely to leave would be of any help?" asked Fluttershy.

"Where did I put that Party Cannon, anyway?"

Twilight shot all of them the dirtiest look she could muster.

"Ex-CUSE me, everypony?" she said with a glare. "Can we please stay on topic here?"

"Well, it WOULD be on topic if you were a piñata," Pinkie retorted. "You don't have a spell that turns you into a piñata, do you?"

"NO PINKIE PIE I DON'T HAVE A SPELL THAT WOULD TURN ME INTO A PIÑATA!"

"Awww, that's no fun."

Celestia cleared her throat.

"Everypony?" she asked. "Focus, please?"

Calming down, the group's eyes were once again on Celestia, with the exception of Pinkie, who was searching some pockets she mysteriously had for some unknowable reason for signs of the missing Party Cannon.

"So what do we do?" Twilight asked her mentor.

Celestia managed to smile for the first time in the conversation.

"Fortunately, Twilight," she said, "I don't believe the situation to be as dire as it sounds."

"Really?"

"Really," Celestia replied. "I believe that the thing which defeated him the first time will be able to drive his spirit from you now. I believe that the power of the Crystal Heart will be the thing that cures you."

"Of course!" Twilight cried. It all seemed so simple to her now. "The Crystal Heart! Sombra couldn't stand up to it once it was fully powered. There's no way a small fragment of his soul could! It's so obvious. There's no way it couldn't work!"

Celestia chuckled.

"I'm glad you are feeling optimistic. That's important," she said. "The power of the Crystal Heart will only be stronger the more positive feelings surround it. But I must remind you that there is still much that we do not know. The process might be dangerous. You must be prepared for that."

Twilight held her head up high.

"I am," she replied.

Once again Celestia smiled.

"I knew you wouldn't let me down," she said as she beamed. "Then I shall recommend that you leave for the Crystal Empire as soon as you are able. I'm sure you don't want that thing inside you for longer than you have to."

"All right!" Spike cried out. "We get to see Cadence and Shining Armor again! AND we get to kick Sombra's flank a second time! This is going to be awesome!"

Twilight was feeling tremendously relived, but she still had questions.

"But how will I know what to do?" she asked. "Has the Crystal Heart ever been used like this before?"

"Not to my knowledge," Celestia answered. "However, the idea is not unheard of at all. And I believe there is a scroll or two in the library here which mentions how to perform a cleansing ritual with objects much like the Crystal Heart. It may not be exactly tailored to it, but it should be similar enough to work with a few minor adjustments. I shall gladly assist you in doing so."

"That would be wonderful!"

Celestia got up from her throne.

"I am so glad you are handling this as well as I had hoped," she said with pride. "I didn't even have to use my calming spell."

As she said that, a faint light from her horn gave a tiny flash and then flickered out.

"Calming spell?" Twilight asked.

"Ahem. Yes," the monarch replied with a slightly embarrassed look before composing herself back to her usual regal demeanor. "I shall send word to Princess Cadence of your coming. I'm sure she and your brother will be quite happy to hear of it. And there is a train for the Crystal Empire leaving tomorrow afternoon. That should give us plenty of time to look over those scrolls, yes?"

"That sounds wonderful," Twilight said.

"But first!" Celestia announced as if making a royal decree, "We shall eat lunch!"

"HOORAY!" cried Spike.

"To the pudding vats!" bellowed Pinkie Pie.

"Er…pudding vats?" Rarity warily said.

"Do I even want to know?" asked Rainbow Dash.

Spike's eyes had gone wide and glazed over in wonderment.

"They have it in vats now?"

The drool from his mouth practically dripped onto the floor.

Twilight couldn't help but smile. She was finally feeling good. Surrounded by her friends, she felt that nothing could stand in her way. She would overcome Sombra and the stupid bit of his soul that had attached itself to her. They had beaten him before, and they'd do it again. He didn't stand a chance. With friends like these, there was nothing to worry about as long as they were all together.

Everything would be just fine.

* * *

Sharpsight hadn't had a proper night's rest in a week.

This was nothing new for him, to be sure. He had been running himself ragged previous to the expedition that had led him to the discovery of Sombra's horn, a secret he had kept fanatically under wraps, but that was when his sleepless nights had been spent pouring through book after book. This time it was different. There was something nagging at his mind that would not allow him to sleep. He couldn't focus on the books that before had consumed his every waking hour. The words on the page blended into each other until they lost their meaning. He would spend hours with a book only to look back and realize that he had no memory of anything he just read.

His mind would always go back to the horn. Whenever he tried to sleep it was all he saw when he closed his eyes. No matter what else he tried to occupy himself with, it seemed unimportant. Anything not having to do with the horn seemed useless.

But what exactly to do with it was a question that constantly burned in his brain. That it needed study was clear. But who could he take it to? Who could he tell? Should he tell anypony about it at all? That there was powerful magic in it was indisputable. Naturally, cautions would have to be taken because of that. But Sharpsight was a pony, not a unicorn. His knowledge extended to academics and archeology, not the realms of magic. Was there a magic user he could trust with this? It seemed like a risk he'd have to take.

But then there was always a little voice that reminded him that this was his find. This was his claim to redemption. As the discoverer of King Sombra's horn and its secrets and power, he would once again be respected as a scientist and an explorer to be reckoned with, if only he could manage to do it himself. Having another around to take some of the credit would only diminish his own accomplishments. And he couldn't have that. Even if he had to deal with magic, he knew he could manage. It would only make what he did it all the more impressive.

That's what he would do. Once he knew what he had to do in order to unlock its secrets, he would present the horn in all its glory to all of Equestria. They would all know him then. They would welcome him back.

And the more the voice in his head whispered those thoughts, the more he knew it was a certainty. This would work. He could do this. He was smart enough to figure out the key to whatever secrets the horn could provide. The longer he pondered the issue, the less the need for a magic user seemed necessary. Somehow in his gut he knew that there was only one way to unlock the power of the horn: The Crystal Heart.

It had to be the answer. The Crystal Heart would undoubtedly be the key. He instinctively knew that, and didn't need any magic caster to tell him what his intuition already provided. They may have horns to cast spells, but that alone couldn't compete with the quick, learned mind of an academic like Sharpsight. It would take more than a growth on somepony's forehead and some hocus pocus to best him, even if he were a thousand years out of date. Knowledge may be outpaced, but intelligence could never be dulled by any amount of time.

He just didn't know how it was going to work. But that wasn't important. All he had to do was to get his hooves on it and he knew he would figure it out. It didn't matter much how he got it, although that was a question that needed a good answer before he tried. Night and day he racked his brain to figure out a way. For a brief time he considered breaking into the palace and stealing it, but quickly disposed of that idea once he realized he was laughably unequipped to do any kind of burglary. He couldn't even sneak out of his own office without Ms. Oldenburg spotting him and nagging him once again about needing to get out more. The thought of him getting past trained guards was absurd.

After days of fretful pondering, the solution presented itself, as it always did when one thought enough about it. He would take it in plain sight. After all, somepony in his position had the capacity to do just that.

The walk over to the castle had been strangely harsh on his nerves. He didn't feel particularly anxious, but the closer he got to both the castle and the Crystal Heart, the more a distinct feeling of unease came over him. It was a feeling not unlike wanting to jump out of one's own hide. His pace was quick and his movements were jerky. His eyes twitched back and forth, and he had broken out in a cold sweat. The reason for this he could not explain, but the feeling became more pronounced the closer he got.

As he rounded the last corner and entered the massive square in the center of town which held the towering castle in the middle, its massive pearly spike atop the four arching legs shining in the midday sun, Sharpsight had the sudden and overwhelming urge to turn around and go back to the museum.

But then that voice came back and wordlessly pushed him onwards, solidifying in his mind the fact that he had no choice. This was what he was meant to do.

With legs shaking he continued on. Past the guards he walked, nodding to them as they nodded back. His face was known to them. He would have no trouble getting inside. The more difficult task lay ahead of him.

Walking underneath the archways which formed the dome-shaped base of the castle, Sharpsight saw the Crystal Heart floating between the two spikes which held it in place, one from the ground and one jutting down from the ceiling. A wave of excitement came over him, and he had to avert his eyes so as not to become nauseous from the sudden burst of adrenaline and his fluttering heart. That feeling of wanting to jump of his hide was back. Steadying himself the best he could, he continued to the nearest arch and ascended the steps inside.

As he entered the castle, his hearing was overcome by a distinct high-pitched hum. It started low and climbed higher and higher until his head ached and he couldn't see straight anymore. His vision started to fill with a deep red haze creeping in from the corners of his eyes. Soon the world was a crimson fog, and it was all he could do to stumble through it. Before long he could hear whispering, although he did not know what the whispers said. He proceeded through the castle as if in a daze. Vaguely he was aware of speaking to the herald at the door to the throne room. Soon he realized he must have been inside as he faintly heard his voice being said through the murkiness that was his mind. Suddenly, as his voice was said again, the hum and the whispers fell silent and his vision snapped back into clarity.

"Professor Sharpsight?" a gentle voice asked. "Are you alright?"

Shaking his head to clear it, Sharpsight regained his composure in front of his leader.

"Ah, yes, Princess Cadence," he said with only the smallest amount of jitteriness. "I'm quite fine, but I've been burning the candle a bit too much at both ends, if you take my meaning. My apologies."

Celestia smiled. "Not at all," she said. "It's good to see you again. I understand you've been hard at work catching the academy up with all the knowledge of the past thousand years. That must be quite the undertaking."

Sharpsight politely nodded his head, but he was gritting his teeth in resentment. That little silent voice in his head saw right through her words at their true meaning. He knew a condescending remark when he heard it. This little fool of a princess with all her magic that made her life so easy was loving the fact that the intellectual who actually had to work for his knowledge and skill was now at a drastic disadvantage in this new world. Quite the undertaking, indeed!

"It most certainly is, your Highness," Sharpsight said with forced sincerity.

"Well, Professor," Cadence asked, "What can I do for you today?"

He steadied himself and began the well rehearsed lie.

"Princess Cadence," he said, "I believe that I may have found information in the books that we received from Canterlot which may provide us with a greater understanding of the Crystal Heart."

Cadence raised her eyebrows. "Is that right? What kind of information?"

"It appears to be an account of the expedition which lead to the discovery of the crystal that was used to create it" he answered.

"How fascinating," Cadence replied. "If I remember correctly, that's a mystery that's never been solved. The records as to where the crystal was found or what gives it its unique powers has been lost to history. All they know is that it was from somewhere to the far north. Isn't that correct, Professor?"

Sharpsight was surprised. "Ah yes," he said after a pause. "I wasn't aware you knew that much about it."

"Exploration and ancient artifacts have always held a passing interest for me" she responded with a shy grin. "I remembered that from when I was just filly. It's not much, but it's about as much as anypony else knows, if I'm not mistaken. What does the account say?"

Sharpsight had not anticipated this question, but he continued on without missing a beat.

"According to what I've read, the expedition seems to have found the crystal in the mountains of the Frozen North. The descriptions of the area and the cave it was inside suggests to me that it was part of an ancient dragon burial ground, most likely used for ceremonial purposes as a kind of centerpiece."

"I didn't know that dragons behaved in that way," Cadence said. "I've never heard of such a thing."

"Well, perhaps not now they don't," Sharpsight casually dismissed. "But these are ancient dragons we're talking about. Much different society, you know."

"I see," said Cadence. "I must find the time to attend one of your lectures. Do you give talks on ancient dragons?"

"Er, well, sometimes." Sharpsight was getting antsy. He needed to move this along while he had her on a string. "Princess Cadence," he said before she could ask him when his next talk was, "I have also come to ask a favor of you."

"Please do."

Now it came down to it.

"In order for me to confirm these reports, I shall need to closely study the Crystal Heart."

"Well, by all means, Professor," Cadence said with a smile. "As the head of the museum, you are naturally entitled to study it whenever you need. It's not required that you clear it through me."

Of course I know what I'm entitled to, you dolt! The thought ripped through Sharpsight's head in another sudden outburst of wounded pride. He kept his smiling demeanor, though. He couldn't afford to drop the act when he was so close.

"I'm afraid that it becomes a little more involved than simply looking at it here," he said with as much charm as he could muster. "For these particular studies, I shall need to take the Crystal Heart back to the museum. There are tools there that I cannot bring with me."

There was a moment of silence while Cadence leaned back on her throne. She began to speak, then stopped as she was clearly processing the request and weighing the consequences of it. The Crystal Heart was what protected the Empire, and as Sharpsight had anticipated, Cadence was reluctant to see it be taken away for any period of time.

Seizing the opportunity to calm her fears, Sharpsight continued. "It will not be for long, I promise you. A day or two at the absolute most. Granted, that's the worst case scenario. It will likely be back tomorrow."

Cadence nonetheless wore a look of concern.

"It would still leave us without our greatest defense as long as it was away," she carefully spoke, as if she were accusing him. Sharpsight could swear that her eyes were looking through him, trying to see the deception. He had to play this smartly and quickly.

"If you have concerns, I would happily agree to have some of your guards accompany it while it is at the museum."

After a moment Cadence finally shook her head and gave a halfway sincere grin.

"No, that won't be necessary, Professor," she said. "You may of course bring the Crystal Heart back with you to the museum, and I look forward to hearing about your findings. Please keep in touch, and I only ask that you make it so that it could be returned at once should the need arise."

Sharpsight smirked on the inside. Of course she would agree after that. She wouldn't want to appear like a paranoid tyrant and send guards to watch over an old professor. The fact that he had volunteered for the subjugation only made it more impossible for her to do it. The easily manipulated fool!

He bowed in thanks.

"Thank you, princess," he said. "You can count on me. The Crystal Heart shall return before you notice it's gone."

A single guard had come with him, carrying the Crystal Heart on his back in a special case made from fine dark wood, trimmed with gold and lined on the inside with deep, plush velvet. Entering through the side entrance of the museum so as not to attract more attention than he needed to, Sharpsight led the guard through the vaulted ceilings and wooden archways of the wing holding his office. Once inside, he opened the doors for the guard, smiled, said "Sir" often and offered him a beverage which was declined. The guard was polite but all business, clearly not liking the thought of the Crystal Heart leaving the castle grounds, and eyed Sharpsight with a hint of suspicion.

Luckily Ms. Oldenburg had already left for the evening by the time they arrived, so there was nopony to question what a royal guard was doing in Sharpsight's study as they passed through the room outside of it. The professor opened the door and gestured over to the table in the middle of the room. With a final uneasy glance, the guard walked over and set the Crystal Heart's case down on it.

Afterwards, he made no attempt to move. He simply stood there and looked at the Crystal Empire's lifeline, out of its proper place and sitting in the study of some egghead.

Sharpsight saw that the guard was uncomfortable leaving, and realized that he had to do his best to make him change his mind.

"Thank you, sir" he said. Then, bringing out his very best droning lecture voice, he began his assault. "It's really quite fascinating, you know. The dragons that lived in the mountains that the accounts talk about were typically of the Draconus Secondus genus. Those were, naturally, the more common variety, however there arises something of a sticking point when you also consider that Draconus Supernus was also a species common in that region, albeit to far lesser extent. Now, where that gets interesting is when you consider the different appendages of those genus's. While Draoncus Secondus had longer arms and claws, Draconus Supernus was possessing of a pronounced dewclaw which gave them superior dexterity when it came to handling objects. Naturally this meant that it was far more likely that Supernus was the likely constructor of the shrine which housed the crystal, although it's not inconceivable that Secondus would have been able to as well. Determining which species is responsible for the construction becomes a bit more difficult when we consider the mysterious properties of those caves. For reasons as of yet unknown to us, the crystals appear to have a unique ability to hold creatures within them in some sort of magical status for quite some time, seemingly without any ill effects that we can ascertain. How long those subjects can be held safely or how it's accomplished is still a bit of mystery, but I don't claim to know the answers when magic is involved. Not my particular forte, although several of my assistants have been oddly insistent on investigating that property of the crystals further. What I can tell you about for certain is the fossil records, which if you ask me are far more interesting. Now, they indicate that Supernus came down from the northern lands in the latter half of the Damsirian period, and that Secondus had been native to the area since the Gallowaian, which would naturally make Secondus the far more likely candidate again until we also look at Volatilis Turris, which wasn't a dragon at all, of course but what we call a drake, although there are marked similarities and it's often mislabeled as such. Now Volatilis Turris had an interesting habit of—"

At that point the guard, who had been inching towards the exit ever so slightly the entire time, cleared his throat and opened the door.

"Yes," he interrupted, "Well, I hate to be rude, but I am expected back at the palace."

Sharpsight feigned disappointment. "Oh, that's too bad. Well, don't let me hold you up, good sir. Duty and all that, yes?"

The guard gave the chest one last look before turning around and heading out the door. Pausing one last time, he turned and added "Princess Cadence instructed me to return daily for progress updates. I trust there will be no problem with that?"

"Of course not," Sharpsight answered. Her caution and likely suspicion was no matter.

The guard nodded once again and left, closing the door behind him.

Sharpsight waited a few moments until he heard the outside doors shut as well. Then he threw himself at the box. Wildly flinging up the latch, he nearly ripped off the lid and gazed at the beauty laying on the velvet cushions.

It was so clear. The answer was right there. His intuition screamed and the voice in his head was kicking him for not seeing this clearly from the very beginning: The Crystal Heart was most certainly the key to unlocking the power of Sombra's horn. There was no question.

Unlock the power. Cleanse it of the evil inside. Harness it for good.

Become respected again.

A hero of Equestria.

The pony who took the evil of Sombra and turned it into a new age of enlightenment. All that power used to advance the Equestrian race.

He would get a knighthood for this.

All his hopes. All his dreams. All he ever wanted to be and all he wanted in life.

It hinged on such a simple thing. Such a little thing. Such a little act.

The voice in his head told him exactly what to do. There was no hesitation.

He walked over to his desk and opened the bottom drawer on the left side. Slid open the false bottom. Slowly and reverently lifted the horn from its hiding place. It burned hot with anticipation.

He approached the Crystal Heart. A pulse ran through the hard bit of magic in his hooves. Lifting it above his head, he paused for only a moment. The Crystal Heart seemed to ripple in surprise.

Sharpsight jabbed down with all his might. The horn struck the Heart with a dull throbbing boom and stayed motionless as it lay jutting out from it like a thorn.

Then it began to shake. The tip began to dissipate inside, spreading out its crimson to color the crystal. Slowly it began to sink further in. The Crystal Heart swallowed it up, its hardness melting away to accept the horn. Once it was inside, the Heart was fully red, and pulsed with a newfound energy, the horn floating inside the new source.

Then suddenly, the horn completely disintegrated. The Heart's crimson hue faded back to the bluish tint it possessed before. Apart from the slight hum it gave off from the new vibrations, it seemed as if nothing had changed.

Sharpsight was confused, but the voice inside his head was pleased.

He could tell because he heard it laughing.