The Great Divide

The door to the throne room stood tall and proud, in perfect contrast to how small and weak the ponies felt as they waited outside. The white marble comprising the castle walls and floor felt almost tainted, as if the events of the night had caused it to lose it's luster. Twilight paced back and forth, making the only sound in the room as she waited or the guard to give his report. It was Spike the dragon who finally broke the silence.

“Twilight,” Spike started quietly. “Please stop pacing.”

Twilight stopped and turned to look at her friend. “I can't help it, Spike,” She returned. “I'm just so...agitated.”

Fluttershy stepped towards Twilight, and looked at her.“We all are, Twilight,” She said softly. “But we have to wait until Celestia is ready. Who knows how she feels right now...”

“Ooooh, I can't believe the nerve of that guy!” Rainbow Dash piped, stomping a hoof. “He played us all for fools with that little concert of his!”

“I agree!” Rarity concurred. “What an uncouth pony, tricking everyone who came for a night of fun and celebration!”

Applejack stepped toward Rainbow Dash. “Y'know, I really don't think this is the best time to complain about being upstaged,” She scolded. “A Princess of Canterlot has been taken. I bet Celestia's gonna have a hard time keeping folks calm.”

Pinkie Pie bounced into the center of the group. “Don't worry, Applejack!” She squeaked. “I'm sure the Princess knows just what to do!”

“I hope so, Pinkie,” Twilight replied. “I really hope so.”

Spike let out an audible sigh. “I just don't get it,” He wondered aloud. “Why would he do this?” He sounded as if his heart had been broken.

Twilight faced Spike, and said, “I don't think any of us knows, Spike.”

“I guess he really is the equine of evil, huh?” Spike mused. “I feel so let down...”

Rarity walked over and lifted Spike's face with her hoof. “I'm sure you're not the only one who feels that way, Spike,” She assured. “I know its hard when someone you respect and admire turns out to be a terrorist, but try to keep your chin up. If anyone can rescue Princess Luna, its us.”

Spike looked into Rarity's eyes, his eyes starting to well up. “You think so?” Spike asked.

Rarity smiled at the little dragon. “I know so,” she replied. Spike flashed a smile back.

The mighty door opened. A solemn-looking guard stepped through, his white coat and his golden armor gleaming in the light of the hall. “The Princess will see you now,” He declared. He gestured for the ponies to enter.

The ponies all turned toward the opened door and began to step through. The enormous throne room felt like it was swallowing them up. Red carpeting and a checker-patterned marble floor gave rise to towering Corinthian columns holding the enormous domed ceiling. Princess Celestia stood at the far end of the room, overshadowed only by the enormous windows on the far wall. Her coat of pure white and her iridescent flowing mane gave her a presence of authority over the six guards flanking her. There were two other ponies in the room as well: a pink alicorn with a purple mane, and a white unicorn with a blue mane. Twilight recognized them right away as Princess Cadence and her husband, Captain Shining Armor.

Shining Armor moved towards Twilight, a gaze fraught with worry. “Twily...” he began. “Are you all right, sis?”

Twlight looked back at him. “I'd be lying if I said I was fine,” she replied. “But I'm not hurt, big bro.”

Shining Armor raised his head in response, “I'm glad. That's all a big brother can ask for.”

Twlight looked over to Shining Armor's side. Princess Celestia had advanced soundlessly over to his flank, and was staring at the group with a mixture of sorrow and anger. Twlight could hardly bear to look at her. Seeing the agony in her mentor's eyes twisted her heart in knots. All of her friends bowed before the Princess, followed by Twlight herself.

Celestia began to speak in a forlorn voice. “You all know why you're here,” she began. “So let's just get started.”

“Princess...” Twilight uttered. She could plainly see that Celestia was putting on a strong face.

“I have a task for all of you,” Celestia continued. “Find my sister, Princess Luna.”

Rainbow Dash shot up into the air. “You don't need to ask, Princess!” She declared. “We'll get right on it!” Celestia gave a small smile, clearly comforted by Rainbow Dash's determination.

“Do we have any leads on Nightshade's whereabouts?” Twilight asked.

Shining Armor stepped forward. “We don't have anything,” he replied. “He hasn't stayed at any inns, nor has he visited any shops. He has no record of criminal activity in any area, either. As far as we're concerned, he's a ghost.” Twlight's heart sank a little.

“All we know is that he has a penthouse in Manehattan,” Celestia intervened. “We've sent several members of the Canterlot guard there, but they haven't turned up anything yet.”

“So you want us to help with the investigation?” Rarity interrupted.

“Yes, that's exactly what I want you to do,” Celestia replied. Her eyes became simultaneously sullen and piercing. “I ask this from the bottom of my heart: if you find anything, anything at all that could lead to either my sister or Nightshade, please let me know immediately.”

“Of course, Princess!” Applejack affirmed. “You can count on us!”

Celestia smiled in response. “Good,” she stated. “We have a carriage prepared. Please hurry. There's no telling what Nightshade is planning.”

“If I may, Princess Celestia,” spoke a voice from behind the princess. Everyone turned to see who it was. One of the guards from the group of six had dispersed, and was taking a position behind Celestia.

“Yes, Sergeant Frost Fletcher?” Celestia asked.

“I was going to suggest that Princess Twilight Sparkle and her friends take the Elements of Harmony with them,” Frost Fletcher replied. “Nightshade has proven to be a dangerous foe. The Princess should have all the means at her disposal to defeat him should he show his face.”

“I agree!” Shining Armor declared. “He managed to kidnap a princess. There's no telling what he's capable of.”

Cadence stepped towards Shining Armor, and shook her head in disapproval. “But, dear, without the elements of Harmony here, someone might try to attack Canterlot!” she resisted. “We can't risk the safety of our capital for a chance of capturing one pony!”

Shining Armor sighed. “I know the risks, Cadence,” He started. “But as long as we keep everything under wraps, there shouldn't be a problem.”

“The important thing is that Princess Twilight and her friends be safe,” Celestia interjected. “I will allow the use of the Elements of Harmony.”

A pang of worry shivered down Twilight's spine. “Is it really that serious?” She asked.

“Yes, it's that serious,” Celestia answered. “We know next to nothing about our enemy. All precautions should be taken.” Princess Celestia turned toward Shining Armor. “The populace still doesn't know what's going on. As much as I'd love to tell them, it would be best to keep the situation in the dark. If anyone from the press asks about Luna, tell them that she is safe and sound in the castle.”

“Of course, Princess,” Shining Armor complied.

Celestia turned back toward Twilight. “And as for you, go to Nightshade's penthouse,” she ordered. “Find anything and everything that would lead to Luna's whereabouts.”

“Yes, Princess!” Twilight acknowledged. She turned to the door. “All right, girls, let's go get the Elements of Harmony and head for Manehattan! Celestia's counting on us!”

The room filled with the cheers and acknowledgments of the other ponies.

5 hours later...

In the pitch-black of early morning, Twilight's carriage came to a complete stop on top of the penthouse. Manehattan was as bustling as ever, even during the wee hours of the morning. From her vantage point, Twilight could see bright lights and trotting ponies across the city. But Twilight was in no mood for sightseeing; she had a job to do, and she aimed to complete it.

Twilight and her friends were greeted by a trio of guards keeping watch on the roof. One of them advanced to the carriage, and began to speak. “Welcome, Princess. It's an honor.”

Twilight stepped off of the carriage, and addressed the guard. “Thank you,” She replied. “Tell me what you've found so far.”

The guard shook his head. “From our initial investigations, we haven't turned up a whole lot,” He reported. “The place was dusty when we got here. It seems like Nightshade hasn't been here for weeks.”

“That's odd,” Rarity piped up, stepping off the carriage towards Twilight. “If I had something as magnificent as a Manehattan penthouse, I would do my best to keep it in tip-top shape.”

“You'd think,” The guard replied. “The only thing that wasn't covered in dust was an alicorn statue.”

Twilight looked at the guard, puzzled. “An...alicorn statue?” She inquired.

“Yeah, a life-size statue,” The guard continued. “Really odd-looking, too. Here, I'll show you.” The guard maneuvered over toward a stairwell on the far side of the roof. He gestured for Twilight and the others to follow him.

The ponies all marched toward the stairwell. Descending into the depths of Nightshade's penthouse, the ponies entered a large foyer. Sure enough, the room was filled with a musty air that crinkled Twilight's nose. A thin film of dust covered the floor, which would have perfectly coated it, were it not for the footprints left by the guards.

“Ugh! What a pigsty!” Rarity exclaimed.

“Yeah, seriously,” Spike agreed.

Except for the dust, the room itself was of impeccable taste. A hardwood floor extended across for most of the room, save for the black and white tile that gave way to a kitchenette and counter-top. A small chandelier dangled from the center of the room, brightly lighting up the entire space. Paintings by various artists covered the walls, and mahogany bookshelves took up a solitary corner of the room. Finally, sticking out like a sore thumb, was the alicorn statue the guard had described.

“Wow!” Twilight exclaimed, catching a glimpse of it. The statue was almost stark white, save for some black elevations around the joints and neck, and some black lines and numbers on the statue's side. Its horn was curved and smooth, rising proudly from it's base, and its wings were fully extended. It would have looked magnificent, save for some odd features. The mane and tail were gray and shaggy, and it wore a chain necklace and anklet. The final defining feature was a dark blue blindfold covering its eyes.

“Well, that certainly is...odd,” Rarity commented. “Gaudy, if I do say so myself.”

Twilight advanced to the statue, entranced by it's peculiarity. “This looks like one of the Automatons!”

“Uh, one of the what, Twilight?” Applejack commented.

Twilight turned back to Applejack. “It's from a novel I read once,” Twilight explained. “A mad scientist created an army of mechanical ponies called Automatons to take over the world, and this statue looks a lot like how they were described in the book.” She turned back toward the statue. “Look! It's even got a six-pronged gear as the Cutie Mark.”

“Well, that's nice and all,” Rainbow Dash began. “But it still doesn't get us any closer to Luna.”

Twilight ignored her. “I think I'm going to take a closer look,” she declared. She trotted over to the statue, and gave it a brief tap with her hoof. A soft metallic clang rang out, otherwise, nothing happened.

Rainbow Dash groaned. “Are you done yet, Twilight?” she complained. Just as she finished her sentence, a bright blue glow began to shine at the statue's horn.

Twilight was the first to notice. “Wait, is that statue's horn...glowing?” The other ponies looked at the horn, and sure enough, what they saw confirmed Twilight's suspicions. They started to murmur among themselves.

“Twilight, I think we need to leave...” Fluttershy meekly suggested. Twilight continued to stare at the horn, as it grew brighter and brighter until finally, Twilight could see nothing but white.

Panic began to spread through Twilight's body. Her thoughts began to race. Was it a trap? What was happening to her? What about her friends? Her mind raced faster and faster, until finally, her vision slowly began to return. It was fuzzy at first, but from the details she could make out, she could see the tops of trees and the starry sky. The scenery grew clearer and clearer, until finally, her vision returned to normal. They had come to a forest clearing, shrouded by the early morning darkness.

As she took in the new environment, her thoughts suddenly turned to her friends. She quickly spun around. “Is everyone alright?” She sputtered. Her eyes in the dim morning moonlight caught all of the ponies and Spike looking around the wilderness, confused.

Fluttershy finally responded, “Yeah, we're OK, Twilight.” Twilight let out a sigh of relief.

Rainbow Dash flew over towards Twilight, an angry look in her eyes.“Well, look what you've gotten us into, Twilight!” She roared.

“Me?” Twilight protested. “How is this my fault?”

“You touched that stupid alicorn statue, and it warped us here!” Rainbow Dash explained. “It was a trap! And you fell for it!”

“Well, excuse me, she of profound observational skills!” Twilight retorted. “If you knew it was a trap, then why didn't you say something?”

Rainbow Dash stared into Twilight's eyes with malice. “Oooh, why I oughta!”

“Quiet!” Pinkie Pie screamed. Rainbow Dash and Twilight stopped and turned to face her. She had an exasperated look on her face. “It doesn't matter whose fault it is! Arguing isn't gonna get us any closer to Luna!”

Applejack stepped towards the two fighting mares. “Pinkie's right!” She yelled. “We need to figure out where we are!”

“Now really!” Rarity piped up. “You know you need to calm down if Pinkie is being the level-headed one!” Pinkie turned to Rarity with a stare that betrayed her disapproval with Rarity's assessment of her character. Rarity saw it and immediately blushed in embarrassment. “Um, no offense, Pinkie dear,” she added. Pinkie's face returned to normal.

Twilight sighed. “All right. I'm sorry, girls,” She apologized.

“I'm sorry, too,” Rainbow Dash admitted, embarrassed.

Pinkie Pie let out a bubbly laugh. “Oh, it's OK, girls!” She assured. “I think we're all a little on edge.”

Rarity let out a sigh of relief. “Well, now that that's over, what are we going to do now?” She asked. “I don't recognize this place at all.”

“Um, it looks like there's a road heading north,” Fluttershy pointed out, extending a hoof towards the road. “We might be able to get to a town if we follow it.”

“Well then, let's go! We'll ask someone in the next town over where we are!” Spike exclaimed. He began to walk down the road. The other ponies nodded in agreement, and began to follow him, completely unfazed by any danger the woods may hold.