The Throne of Lions

by Diokno44

Rating: mature
Tags: Crossover, Dark, Alternate Universe, Tragedy, Adventure
Length: 5381

The Lion Throne of Equestria is being vied for by the Noble Houses

"The Lions are waking", the motto of House Sparkle, meaning harsh times are coming. For years, House Sparkle has been at war with the other Noble Houses of Equestria, each vying for control of the Lion Throne, for whomever sits on the Throne is the lawful god/goddess-emperor of the land. The cruel tyrant Lord Sombra has sat on the great Throne for as long as memory serves. But, conspiracies and plots threaten to topple the despot. The citizens are waiting, for who will win, and who shall fall?

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Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-11-13 19:46:30 UTC

1. The Lions are Waking...

Chilling winds cut through the air. Loose frost blanketed the ground around the city of Ponyfell, the capitol of House Sparkle. A lone Alicorn, dressed in a fur cloak, leaning on a polished longsword, stood, looking out over the battlements of the icy castle walls. Lady Twilight Sparkle, daughter of the former King Night Light and Queen Twilight Velvet, watched as the citizens of her town went about their lives.

Her ears perked up as hoofsteps trotted behind her. she turned and noticed a lone sentry, funnily enough named Flash Sentry, trotting up to, and kneeling before her. With a curt nod of her head, he rose to his hooves, shaking.

His lavender and emerald colored armor and helmet gleamed in the scant sunlight. "Lady Sparkle, I have a report from Fort Dawnstar. They have imprisoned a small group of Dashians. Three scouts, a guard, and a spy. What do you wish for them to do with the prisoners?" He coughed into his hoof, wintertime sickness was catching on.

Before she spoke, she brought up a hoof, which Sentry kissed, she smiled slightly, glint in her eye. "Interrogate them for any information they may have, then, I want all but the guard and two of the scouts executed, they shall work in the gem mines." She sheathed her blade. "Am I understood, Sentry?"

Flash shivered, both from the look and the cold, "Y-yes my liege." He bowed once more, before galloping downstairs, and out of the fortress. Twilight sighed, letting out her chilled breath, before descending the stone steps into the warmth of her home. Torches lit up the halls, and guards saluted as she passed. It was about noon, so she headed to the dining room for lunch.

A Pegasus guard opened the grand doors for her, as she walked inside. Her brother, Lord Shining Armor Sparkle, and his wife, her old foalsitter, Lady Cadence, sat together, chatting while they ate their fill of fried rice, Griffonhala wine, toasted hay, and a slab of steak. Most of the other races believed ponies and zebras were only vegetarian, and, while that was true for some, they did eat meat from time to time.

"Hello, brother." Twilight said, smiling, before doing the nursery song and dance with Cadence. Even though Twilight was a full-grown mare, and a ruler, that dance always reminded her she had been a filly, and brought back fond memories from her past. A servant pushed her chair aside, pushing it back into place when she sat down. The cook, a poor half-Terra (Earth) pony, half Threstral (Bat Pony), brought her meal, Prench toast, toasted celery, mutton covered in berry sauce, a goblet of aged Zebralia wine, and a few slices of cheese, which she ate slowly, savoring the delicious taste.

"So, Twilight, how has Ponyfell fared?" Cadence asked, sipping her wine. Her mane was freshly combed, a faux fox-skin cloak covered her icy white and pink armor, her gilded shortswors lay clasped at her side. Shining was dressed in his purple and gold armor, a bear-skin cape flapped in the light breeze. His children, Princess Aurora and Prince Aegis, were back at home.

"The kingdom has been well, Cadence. I have just ordered the execution and imprisonment of a group of Dashian dissadents." The Dashians were a rouge force of Dashites, the name given to members of House Dash, one of the five other allied Houses to House Sparkle. The otheres were House Pie, House Apple, House Flutters, and House Rarity, each ruled over by the other five Bearers of Harmony.

Shining nodded in contentment, taking a bite of his steak. The trio talked as they ate, and, five minutes later, their plates were being carried off, and a platter of freshly boiled creamed treats was placed in their midst. They each took some and began eating their desert, which warmed their bodies.

"So, when are we scheduling the public beheading of my traitorous younger brother, Blueblood?" Cadence asked, a hard look in her eyes. Even though she was the Princess of Love, she could not abide traitors, family or not. Prince Blueblood had aided in the escape of Baron Harkonnen, a member of House Chrysali, and was currently being held in the White Tower, nicknamed "The Chill" by its guards, was an anti-Magister prison, guarded by fierce ice atronachs, sentient ponies created out of magic and glacial ice. The Magisters were powerful mages of all species, located at the Magister Citadel in the north-eastern part of Equestria, one of the few surviving buildings after more than half of the city fell into the Chiron Sea, after the land surronding it collapsed. The only part left unscathed of that part of the once-great city was the Citadel, and that is the reason most of the citizens of Frostfall were suspiscious of any maestors.

Twilight thought it over, chewing on her treat. "Hmm, tomorrow at dusk should do nicely. Let the sunset of the day be the last thing his eyes see as the executioner holds his severed head up. The sunset of the day, and the sunset of his life. The foal dies on the morrow." She smiled coldly.

The three finished their meals not soon after. "Well, Twilight, my wife and I shall retire to the our chambers now. Cadence has been antsy." Shining said, which brought him a blush on the face of and a rib in the side from his wife. "We'll see you later." He hugged his sister, before the two galloped out of the room.

Twilight smirked, before she placed her Element on her head, trotting out of the dining hall. She trotted through hallways, until she came upon the doors of her throne room. Two Sparkleian guards, A zebra and a Changeling, pushed open the double doors. Two groups of citizens were crowded behind barriers on either side of the room, two guards flanked the lone throne.

With a single motion, she crossed the room, cloak trailing behind her, and sat on the velvet cushion. The mare looked at the faces of the petitioners, or observers, smirking, and raised a hoof, beginning her court.

That was when a figure in a dark grey robe, darted out of the throng, serrated daggers raised, and leaped, yelling, "Death to the insurgents! Death to the Sparkles!" The guards readied their halberds in defense of not only thier lives, but the lives of their regent.

The guard on the left jabbed at the assassin with her spear, but she dodged, slicing through the minotaur's arm with the right dagger, opening a large cut, then jabbing the left through her chest. The minotaur fell, blood pooling around him.

The other guard, an Earth Pony, was received a swift buck to the chest, but was able to disarm the mare, knocking her to the ground with his halberd, placing the blade to her neck. He looked up to Lady Sparkle, scowling. "My Lady, what shall we do with this whorsespawn?" He brought the polished blade closer, nicking the assassin's skin, causing her to whimper in pain.

Twilight looked at the mare, no older than herself, with a icy glare, "Let the torture master take care of her." Pinkamena, magically created doppelganger of Lady Pinkie PIe, had been able to weasel every ounce information out of prisoners, either through pain, pleasure, or potion. The guard nodded, dragging the assailant into a side door, and downstairs, where screams could be heard.

"Court is adjourned until everypony who has had a hoof in this plot on my life has been found, and, if need be, executed." She said, as the citizens were rushed out of the throne room, leaving Twilight alone except for a nervous cadre of guards. The only sounds were the howling arctic winds outside, and the faint crackling of the braziers and torches illuminating the room. "You!" She pointed to one of the guards, a jittering reindeer named Antoine, "Stay with Pinkamena and the assassin, report everything you learn to me, my family, or any of my spymasters." Antoine nodded quickly, galloping down the dungeon.

She looked out the window, where Luna was raising the moon from the capitol of Canterlot Landing, capitol city of Equestria. The two were locked in the Fade, a pocket dimension created by Sombra, where they could only contact the waking world through dreams or avatars.

"I bid you all a good night, gentlestallions and mares." Twilight said, yawning slightly as she trotted from the throne room into her grand bedroom. Her adopted little brother, the Draconian, Spike, lay curled up in his small basket, while her daughter slept in her own bed, next to Twilight's. She kissed the two on the cheeks, before removing her cloak, and placing her sword next to her bed. Now naked like everypony, she drew the silk and velvet sheets around her, as sleep overtook her.

----The Crimson Keep, home of Sombra----

"So, my little assassin has failed?" A demonic voice asked, reverberating around the almost empty room.

The spy, a young Changeling, lay prostate on the ground, quivering in fear, the spy next to her, a deer, was curled in the fetal position, to afraid to look.. "Y-yes mi'lord, she was only able to kill a guard, she was captured, and is being interrogated as we s-speak." she said, her tone full of fear and anxiety.

"Thank you for bringing me this news, slave." Sombra said, leaning back on the Iron Throne, constructed of hundreds of razor sharp blades, which proved only a minor annoyance to him at this point. "You shall get your reward." unsheathing his dragonbone blade, Fenrir. "A quick demise." He smiled cruely, as the Changeling try crawling away, but there was no use, as he stepped on her leg with a hoof, holding her down by magic. She let out a scream as the blade descended, leaving a large cut down her chest, she fell silent.

"What a shame." Sombra said sarcastically, as he opened a flaming portal, the body tumbling into an abyss. He turned to the deer, "You, for being oh so loyal to me, by not running away, and for giving me information on their defenses, shall service me, privately of course, in my quarters." He smirked. The deer yelped in surprise, it was everyone of Lord Sombra's servants dreams that he would find them worthy enough to take to bed, and for being alive.

"Come, my little slave, I have need of your..talents." He said, as he pulled her by magic into his bed chambers, a sadistic grin on his face.

Her screams reverberated around the castle, for he had just severed her antlers as they entered the room, before turning into screams of passion.

"No one shall stand against me." He said, staring at the sleeping form of his new conquest. "All shall bow before Sombra, or they shall perish." He stared out his window into the freezing winds, "Especially you, Sparkle...

Twilight awoke with a start, sweat dripping down her forehead. She sat up in bed, crossing the room in one movement. She shivered in the cool air. Even though she had fur, the winds still nipped at her nude body. She threw on a plain looking forest  green robe, and looked out the ice covered window. The far off Crimson Keep was illuminated only by a fire burning on top of the main tower. "He said my name." Twilight said, shuddering from fear. Ever since he found the long lost Aetherium Crown, worn by the First KIng, Grey Mane. The crown gave him vast magical power. He was able to encase all of Canteris in a magic dampening field, activating a trap, designed by a long dead enemy of the Royal Sisters, which disabled their magic. Thus, Sombra was able to imprison them in the Fade. The vampiric tyrant, with eternal youth on his side, ruled with an iron hoof. That had been only a short seven years ago.

Shaking her head, Twilight drew the heavy purple curtains over the windows, bringing the coldness in the room to a moderate level. Taking her robe off and tossing it back into her wardrobe, she once again drew her blanket around her body, and whispered one last phrase before she slept, her's family's motto,

"The Lions are Waking."

2. The Crowning Glory

"So, who are these Dashites or Dashians or whatever they're called, why does Lady Sparkle want their heads to roll? Isn't House Dash allied with us?" Thorn Wood, one of the two guards assigned to the prisoners asked, drinking a tankard of hard mead to warm himself. He looked at the cell where the prisoners were held.

His partner, Ankle Breaker sighed, taking a bite out of her cornbread. "Are you that stupid, or I you have some kinda memory issue? The Dashians are a rouge branch of Lady Dash's rouge Magister hunters. They want to eradicate ALL Magister, not just the rogue ones. Both Lady Dash and Lady Sparkle want them beheaded for several accounts of murder they've committed on Magisters. Especially Grand Magister Yce, the court Mage of House Flutters." She said, taking a swig of chilled ale.

They both turned when they heard loud thuds on the ground. The headsman, Gut Duster, was massive. He stood roughly seven hooves tall, and had fore and hind legs as thick as a tree trunk. He wore a black face concealing mask, chainmail armor, and had his large headsman's axe, affectionaly named "Steel Slice" lay strapped across his back. "Are the prisoners ready to go to the gods?" He asked in his deep voice.

Ankle nodded nervously, almost everyone feared Gut Duster, guards included. She lifted up the mask of her helmet, revealing her amber colored fur. "Yes sir, the muderers are ready, and so is Blueblood." She got out a brass key, and opened the cell. The scout, spy, and Blueblood stepped out, quivering.

Gut turned his masked face to the two Dashians, a hidden grin forming on his face. "You two low life's first. Oh, and don't crap or bleed too much, we got other scum to execute." He dragged the two by their chains, leaving Blueblood cowering in fear.

Gut Duster was very precise, he never took too long when beheading, or botched it up, unless requested to. He would simply lop of the head, show it to the crowd for a bit, and move on, same as usual. It only took him five minutes at the most to behead the two. He came back, loud cheering bursting through the open door, a spatter of blood covering his chest.

"You next pretty boy." He smirked, pulling the Prince, who was currently making a pathetic attempt to escape, out the door. A large throng of ponies had come to watch, filling every seat in the viewing area, which could hold about fifty thousand or so, including the members of House Sparkle.

Twilight sat on a gilded throne in the center of the viewing platform, her face resting on one hoof, a smirk on her face. He looked to Cadence, his older sister, who quickly looked away, a cold look in her eyes. Lord Sparkle sat on a throne next to his sister, taking a drink from a bottle of cider imported from House Apple.

Tears formed in his eyes as he was slowly led to the chopping block, carved out of cold stone. He almost lurched when he saw the trough containing two other head, still warm. Twilight stood up from her throne, a hoof silencing the crowd, her cloak flapping in the frozen breeze of the kingdom.

"Ladies and gentlecolts of Ponyfell. You have witnessed the beheading of two rogue Dashians, but now we have the special treat. The ex-Prince Blueblood, brother of my former foalsitter Cadence, has been found guilty of the high crime of treason and subterfuge. It was he, only two months ago, who aided in the escape of the greedy Baron Harkonnen, who, as you all may know, stole several hundred of thousands worth of property and bits from the Royal Treasury of House Chrysali, and, after interrogation, it was Blueblood who ordered the attempt on my life yesterday. So, before his beheading, does the accused have anything to say?" She looked to Blueblood, venom in her tone.

Blueblood raised his head, defiance in his voice, "Yes, I am Blueblood the twenty-fifth, of the House Lunaria, adopted nephew of the former rulers of this land and brother of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. Sombra has bested the Princesses, and reigns as our new king. Long Live Sombra!" He yelled, as he was pressed firmly onto the slab by Gut's hoof. His last words sent the crowd into a fury, which was quieted by Lady Sparkle's hoof.

She looked into Blueblood's eyes, and lowered her hoof. A loud SQUELCH echoed throughout the room as his head was cleaved from his body. The executioner raised the head to the crowd, causing them to cheer loudly at his death.

Twilight smiled coldly, before dishing from her chair, and leaving. Followed by her brother and sister-in-law, back into the confines of the castle.

---Martyr Hold, House Dash---

Rainbow was in her bed chambers, a journal lay to the side on her desk. She was currently reading book of strategy when a knock sounded at her door. Sighing, she put down her book, "Enter." She turned to the door. She wore the armor of her House, cyan blue and gold, except for the dark green cape, silver circlet with amethyst, and, her Element of Harmony tied around her neck. The House, originally named House Martyr, had been named for her great-great-grandfather, Lord Tyrn Martyr, but she had changed it when she became its head. Her short sword was always within hoof's reach.

One of her guards, Lieutenant Thunderlane, rushed into her room, kneeling, out of breath, most of his armor was singed and torn. "Lady Dash, you must help us!"

Rainbow was caught off guard, she unsheathed her sword, "What is it Thunderlane? Werewolves? Lupus Minors?" She grabbed her shield, cyan blue, the insignia was was her Cutie Mark

"Two battalions of House Sombris soldiers have laid siege to the House Flutters settlement of Sallow!" He said, terror in his eyes.

Rainbow growled, "Ready as many troops as you can Lieutenant. We ride to Sallow!" She galloped out the door.

3. Fight or Die

Rainbow and two hundred of her soldiers galloped towards Saltpans. Even at this distance, they could see the night sky tinged orange by the flames, and black smoke billowing upwards, bloodcurdling screams that pierced the air spurred them onward.

"Ice Brain, two on your right!" Guard Captain Daylen yelled, as he fired a bolt into the face of a Sombrien stallion-at-arms, his battleaxe and tower shield dropping to the charred ground with a CLANK. The grizzled Earth Pony reached into his satchel, ready to load another bolt into his crossbow, but came up empty-hoofed. Cursing, he holstered his crossbow and drew his steel shortsword and buckler, emblazoned with the three butterflies that were the sigil of House Flutters. He roared as he charged at the group of arbalists who were setting fire to the Temple of the Old Gods.

He staggered back as a stray bolt hit his shield, lodging itself within. He galloped into the three arbalists, who all drew their own blades. He raised his shield to block, thrusting it into the face of the besiegers, confounding him.

"Die Flutteri!" The arbalist yelled, swinging his sword to the right, which was parried by Daylen. The poor sod was repaid by a sword jutting through his gullet, he shuddered, and fell still. Daylen stabbed downward at the confounded arbalist, when he heard the final one creep up on him. He saw her sword rise-

-Then watched as an arrow sprouted from her neck. The leopardess raised a paw to the wound, watching as blood stained her neck. She gurgled, before falling to the ground, the arrow snapping in half.

"Need any help soldier?" Rainbow Dash asked, a cocky grin on her face, as she loaded another arrow into her yew longbow. "How many more are there?"

Daylen wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead, getting to his hooves. "Thank you for the assistance, Lady Dash. Before you arrived, we had already fended off a number of them. The last report I got, there were maybe thirty or so remaining invaders, aside from these three." He motioned to the three bodies laying around them.

"Lady Dash!" A voice yelled, Daylen, Rainbow, and her two guards turned. Knight-Commander Grey Joy trotted towards them, a bloodied and bruised giraffe archer limping behind him.

"Mi'lady, we've managed to kill a number of the Sombrien scum, and the rest have ran, their tails tucked in between their legs!" Grey saluted, raising a loud cheer from the men. The Pegasus motioned to the giraffe behind him. "We managed to capture this milk-drinker. What shall we do with him?"

Dash smiled icily, unsheathing her sword. She trotted to the archer, grabbing him by the scruff of his neck, and pressed him to side of a blackened building, sword at the ready. "Well then archer. Tell me, why did Lord Sombra launch an assault on a hamlet owned by my fair marefriend?!" She growled, bring the blade closer, nicking his chin.

The giraffe whimpered, he was young, a calf, sixteen at best. "Lord Sombra decreed that a meeting of dissadents against the Iron Throne was being held in this town. We were ordered to plunder the town of riches and slaughter any conspirators." He flinched as the tip brought a small cut in his chin, "Please, that's all I know"

Rainbow's grip loosened, the calf dropped to the ground, breathing hard. "Alright then." She sheathed her sword, "I will let you have your freedom and your life, if you agree to fight against Sombra. What is your answer?"

The archer prostrated on the ground, kissing Rainbow Dash's hooves, tears streaming down his face, "I will do anything my lady, the only reason I served him is because my family is being held in one of his prisons."

Lady Dash smirked, "Very well then, I accept, what is your name, archer?" She fixed her cape, which had come undone.

"My name, is Dresden, I live to serve House Dash, but, when we DO topple Sombra from the Iron Throne, I only ask we free my family." Dresden said, rising to his hooves, picking up his recurve bow and setting it on his back, smiling in thanks.

"We shall do that, not for just your family Dresden, but for all those who have loved ones imprisoned by The Iron Tyrant." She said, placing a hoof on his shoulder. "Grey Joy, bring Dresden back to the keep. Get him patched up, a meal, and rest, he" She turned to her soldiers, who stood waiting, their armor glowing the light of the fires. "I need fifty of you to clean up the damage, bury any bodies, and look for survivors, is that clear?" Fifty of the guards nodded, trotting off to do their duty.

"The rest of you, we return home!" The guards cheered as they galloped swiftly back to Marsterly Rock. The harsh winds of the north whipped at their back as they rode home.

----Storm's End, Ancestral Home of House Flutters, formerly House Maretheon---

Fluttershy sat in her personal gardens, her most faithful bodyguard, Angel Bunny, stood nearby, miniature lance at the ready. She was dressed in a vibrant summer green gown, her Element of Harmony hung around her neck, and a laurel rested on her head. She tossed another hoofull of bird feed on the ground, watching the doves peck at them.

She heard hoofbeats echo across the finely carved stone floor. "How has Saltpans fared?" She asked in her voice, as soft as spring breeze. She turned her head slightly, hoping it was good news.

The courier bowed slightly, before speaking, "Lady Fluttershy, the attack has been stopped, though many did not survive." He noticed her shoulders sag. "But, all was not lost. Lady Dash and her soldiers were able to drive the rest of the invaders off, alongside your own guards."

Fluttershy beamed, "That's my mare. Is there anything else?" She got up from the alabaster bench, looking at the courier with a smile, her pink mane blowing gently.

"Yes, Lady Dash will be visiting for a few days." The courier replied, fixed his cap, bowing once more.

"Very good, it has been too long. Angel, would you kindly pay this nice stallion?" She looked to her protector, who begrudgingly pawed a small sack of bits to the stallion, frowning.

"Thank you, my Lady." He said, placing the currency in his delivery satchel, bowing once more, before trotting from the room, smiling brightly.

"Well Angel Bunny, we best get everything ready." She said, galloping out of the room, Angel Bunny hopping beside her. She politely ordered the servants to tidy the castle, which had been owned by her great-aunt, Loft Wind Maretheon, which, like many of the Great Houses of Equestria, changed their name to fit their current Lord or Lady.

She trotted upstairs to speak to her Captain of the Guard, Cloud Chaser, to tighten security during Lady Dash's stay. Chaser left to round up the guards.

Fluttershy smiled, before trotting through the busy halls to her bedchambers, where she decided to get some rest.

---The Crimson Kee---

"And so another pawn falls." Sombra said, magically flicking one of his own pawns down. "But, I still hold all the pieces Sparkle, and you have nothing." He chuckled darkly, reclining in his throne, his red and green eyes glowing in the darkened throne room, illuminating the shadows.

4. Wandering Shadows

"Baron Typhon, how are you?" An Apple guard asked, nodding at the baron as he patrolled the streets of Wayrest, a small farming town in the south. The stallion's orange and brown armor gleamed in the warm sunlight.

"Very well, mother asked me to investigate some ruins to the east." He said, smiling in return as he trotted away. Typhon was the son of Lady Blossomforth of the Green Vale, a flourishing kingdom nestled on the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. Reports of Weepers, undead beings brought back by powerful dark magics, had been delivered from the area surrounding Wayrest.

Typhon fixed his polished silver short sword, sheathing it. He wore the gold, green, and orange highlighted armor of House Blossom, a white cape flowing behind him. His frosty blue mane and tail clung to his maroon coat. His pet dire wolf, Cannabis, ran along him, tongue hanging out.

They arrived at the ancient fort not long after. Most of the walls of Fort Fellglow were either crumbled stone or moss covered. He withdrew his blade from its scabbard, a light spell in his other hoof. "Lets go Cannabis." The wolf barked, following her master into the dank ruins.

Concentrating, he raised his hoof, a small ball of light flying into the air, illuminating the room, nothing but some dusty tomes and a few benches in this room. He moved on, searching through every room, placing bits or gear into his pack.

As he was about to enter a large set of double doors, Cannabis' ears perked up. Low groaning could be heard from the other side of the door, and the creaking of ancient bones, Weepers. He nodded to Cannabis, before shoving the door open.

The Weepers were grotesque beings. Rotted flesh covered only by rusted pieces of armor or burial rags. Their weapons were dull and worn over the centuries. An eerie green glow was all that remained in their empty eye sockets.

"Shelloth Grez Hok!" The apparent leader ordered in Ancient Equish, as his comrades advanced on Typhon. Swirling his blade, he cleaved the right Weepers' head off, its body crumpiling into dust, its voice said one thing, "Hellio Van." Its friend growled, raising its axe in anger.

Typhon barely managed to sidestep the downward swing, the Weeper trying to pull her axe out of the ground, tugging at it with whatever magic the long dead Unicorn possessed. Taking the initiative, Typhon drove his blade through the undead's chest, it crumbled into dust before it hit the ground, he smirked at the last remaining one.

While the first two had been a zebra and a Unicorn, this last one was a Minotaur, and a faint red tint could be seen in the eye socket, a grey fluid poured out of the sockets like tears, hence the nickname Weepers, that fluid was embalming fluid.

Noticing a hanging battering ram, and a pressure plate of some kind by his hoof, an idea formed in his head, alongside mental calculations. Once the zombie stepped forward far enough, Typhon pressed a hoof to the pad, and ducked.

He smirked as he noticed a look of surprise come on the things face. One second it was standing over him, the next a large wooden beam smashed it into the wall, crushing it. Dusting himself of, Typhon continued on.

---House Sparkle Training Grounds----

THWACK! The arrow hit to the right of the center. THWACK! This arrow hit the edge of the straw, another inch and it would hit the stone wall.

"Urgh, why can't I hit the target?!" Spike groaned, his shoulders sagging. A hoof was placed on his shoulder.

"Ha, it's all in the arm holding the string, Prince Spike." Crop Duster, a young Earth Pony' the guard trainer, said, smiling. He patted Spike's back, "Try once more."

"If you say so Master Duster." Spike said, taking in a deep breath. Taking a deep breath, he shut one eye, pulling back the string. He steadied his aim, aiming at the center of the straw target, at the red paper pasted to the center. He pulled the string back and-

THWACK! An arrow lodged itself into the center, tearing a hole into the paper, but it wasn't Spike's. The two turned around to find a giggiling black Alicorn filly, Princess Nyx. "Got you Spike." She laughed as Spike playfully chased after her.

It had been several months since she had regained her memories as Nightmare Moon, but was regressed into a filly once more by Luna while she was dreaming. Now, she could enioy life and have fun.

"Well, it looks like they're having fun." Spell Nexus, court Magister of House Sparkle and one of Twilight's advisors said, chuckling as he stood next to Lady Sparkle on a long platform overlooking the training grounds.

Twilight smiled slightly, opening her mouth to speak, but, just then, a messenger, her clothes torn galloped into the room, a message in her mouth.

"Lady Sparkle, Lady Sparkle!" The filly knelt, panting, but looked up when she felt a hoof touch her shoulder.

"Hold you breath child, and rise, I'm not holding court now, so you may dismiss the formalities. And, please, you may just call me Twilight." Twilight said, smiling as the cold winds blew her cloak here and there. "Now, what message do you have for me?"

The filly, Midnight Flare, took in a deep breath, before hoofing the message over. "Baron Typhon's disappeared. His page sent word he was going to check on some kinda haunted burrow to the east of his family's lands. His squire was sent to investigate, but only found his sword embedded in a wall. His family's asked for the aid of the other Great Houses. There were Weeper corpses littering the room. Do you believe he could have become one of....them? Or one of their Thralls?"

Twilight rubbed his chin with a hoof, before turning a nearby guard, "Knight-Commander Flash Sentry, ready a small force of soldiers, I have to get my armor ready."

Flash cocked an eyebrow, "But, milady why-" But he was shushed by Spell Nexus.

"Typhon is a close friend of my brother, and his House is a relative of House Apple, whose current Lady is my friend and one of the Elements of Harmony, for the sake of peace, we must find him." Twilight said, trotting to her bedchambers, her cloak trailing behind.