The RCC Volume One: The Fall of Harmony

Chapters

Introduction
01 - The Tasking
02 - The Memory Stone
03 - The Zodiac Prince

Introduction

~History has often found that its own annals are written only by the victors. But what of the lost stories of those whom did not succeed? Those whom were not fortunate enough to receive the chance to tell their stories? Are they forever lost to time immemorial or are they merely shadows of events once believed to have happened...but now long forgotten?~

The artefact before her glowed with an intense light, brightening the darkened hallway to the point of appearing like daylight in the enclosed space. The shining luminescence of the tiny gem inside of it bathed her and her surroundings in a white light that cast away all semblance of shadows, even as she continued to stare in awe at it.

Shaped like a miniature claw, the dragon-forged gemstone set into the talisman would’ve made even Rarity swoon at the sight of it; near flawless in its crafting and perfection. Though no longer than one-quarter the length of her own horn, the finely polished gemstone held more information in it...more knowledge than anything she’d ever encountered before. Now that she was in the right location; hopefully it would deign to divulge more to her than it had in the last few choice destinations.

Once set upon the ground, the talisman flashed even brighter than before. Sooner than she could shut her eyes to keep from being blinded, the world faded out from around her as once more; it was wrenched from beneath her hooves and replaced with a memory from times long forgotten.

The air, which had been pleasantly cool before, was now stifling hot. The sounds of an overarching battle nearby echoed through the air; sword and spear on shield. Spell after spell flashing through the darkened skies above. If she hadn’t been standing in a hallway of the palace only moments ago, she’d be more than sure that the world had completely changed around her; such was the intensity of the visions.

Now standing in the halls of another very familiar castle, the caster turned tail and took in her surroundings. Castle Midnight; as it had once been called, stood tall and dark around her. The acrid smell of wooden torch-fire and dragon habitation stung her delicate nose. The sounds of battle echoed through the massive hallway, denoting her destination once more. It sounded quite intense even from a distance.

Steeling her nerves, she broke out into a gallop towards the ongoing battle. Her cloak flapped around her, smacking against her flanks as if to urge her even faster. As if she might miss one of the most historic moments ever to take place. It wouldn’t be far from the truth, but it wasn’t as if she could always just come back and watch the scene replay again if she had to. The talisman fueling the spell was more than capable of at least two more castings before the long unused magics it held faded away.

After rounding a corner, she came upon that which she’d been searching for.

There ahead standing on a parapet outside of the tower she’d arrived in; a group of ponies faced a monstrous creature riding a chariot drawn by four dragons. Four powerful, fur covered legs tipped with what looked like cloven hooves held a massive muscular body aloft above her unsuspecting equine companions. A torso like that of a minotaur extended from where a normal pony’s shoulders would be, steel plate mail stretched taut over an upper body with tendons and pectorals so thick that they looked capable of being able to rip a dragon apart, limb from limb. The arms that stretched from its shoulders were absolutely enormous and bare of fur. Covered in thick red flesh...they appeared even larger than the brutish muscles of that Iron Will fellow she’d met a year or two ago.

The head of this creature was shaped altogether differently though. A comparatively flat nose arced down from its brow where an even flatter mouth lay underneath. Two evenly shaped, golden eyes gleamed in the darkness that surrounded them. If this weren’t enough to unnerve the ponies; twin horns like that of a demon sprouted from either side of its head, curving high into the air. All of this was topped with a mane and lower body coat of a deep blue color, contrasting sharply with its skin tone.

While impressive and definitely terrifying...this beast was only half of the reason she’d come. The other stood before the monster’s retreating form in defiance on two legs, looking pound for pound to be the strangest monkey she’d ever seen.

Much like the demon, the human, as she'd learned they were called, had a face that was just as flat and very similar; instead however having a paler, whiter color flesh. A golden mane streaked down to its mid-back, and the ‘clothing’ it wore; which had Rarity ever seen...might have caused her to faint due to the color clash; appeared to be very form fitting and highly unlikely as a battle garment.

This particular human, the Meg-Han, as it’d been called in other instances before...was definitely not what one would expect to be standing up against the most dangerous foe the ponies had faced to date.

Together, the two creatures stared each other down as in a duel.

“The game is over, little ponies. The Power...Is...MINE!” The monster cried out, holding aloft a leather satchel as it drove its dragon powered chariot higher into the sky.

The Meg-Han jumped slightly as something the observer couldn’t see on its chest began to glow. Reaching down for the hidden object, it spoke up.

“We have a power of our own, Tirek. Take This!”

As she observed the scene before her, The Meg-Han held out a tiny red locket that glowed with the force of a small star. As it was drawn aloft, it opened.

From the locket, the most miniscule rainbow probably to ever exist floated out, barely a wisp of what it should have been. It somersaulted in the air a few times before coming to a halt a few hooves above the stone masonry of the castle parapet, forming into the familiar horseshoe shape it should have had.

“It’s not working! Maybe the Moochik was wrong.” All of the present ponies gathered around the tiny rainbow, looking despondent. That rainbow had likely been their last hope of succeeding.

Just as quickly as the scene had grown dark at this revelation...it suddenly became that much darker. The demonic entity known as Tirek unfurled his leather satchel and held it pointed like a weapon towards the collected ponies and the human.

“Behold! The Power of Darkness!”

With what sounded like an oncoming hurricane mixed with the explosion of a sonic rainboom, a violent gust of black mist and smoke ripped out of the satchel, magical energies whipping around it in a furious torrent. It arced down towards the tiny rainbow and engulfed it entirely. A whirling vortex of maddening hatred and bitterness infused into a very powerful spell; this could only have been the mythic Rainbow of Darkness. True, it was an ironic name, given that darkness itself was composed mainly of varying shades of grey and black. However...this did not mean that it was in anyway untrue. A nauseating feeling rushed over the observer, her horn now crying out in protest in the presence of everything that its magic stood to defend.

The noise of the magic was deafening in and of itself as the vortex arched up into the sky and over upon itself, becoming a black equivalent of the colorful moniker it had. The dark rainbow stood tall upon the parapet as Tirek laughed deep.

Until a glimmer of light appeared at either end.

With a sudden jerk, he reigned his draconic carriage around just in time to see the tiny rainbow colors creeping up the sides of his own magical weapon. Slowly but surely, the Rainbow of Darkness was being consumed by the only thing strong enough to destroy it; it’s antithesis...the Rainbow of Light.

“No!” Tirek cried out in anger, once again wheeling his chariot around to make his escape into the black of night. But the Rainbow of Light would not have this.

With the Rainbow of Darkness now consumed and feeding the Rainbow of Light’s energy, the mythical weapon roared off after Tirek like a homing spell. What came next was almost too disturbing to watch. To think that such a wonderful piece of magic...one that was meant to bring light and harmony to the world, could do what it had done to Tirek; no matter how evil or corrupt he had been...

It was almost unthinkable.

When all was still again, and the Rainbow of Light returned to the locket held by the human, Tirek; Lord of Darkness and Master of Castle Midnight...was dead. No trace remained of the evil Scimitaur sorcerer.

The scene slowly faded away, now that the victory had been won, and the hallways of Canterlot Castle returned to focus after her eyes adjusted to the darkness now surrounding her. The spell had gone silent and the amulet lay unmoving upon the cold marble floor tiles beneath her. In the still air of the enclosure, she could continue hearing the evil beast’s laughter...and the roar of the Rainbow of Light as it overpowered his screams of pain.

For the first time since first wielding the Element of Magic...Twilight felt a cold tingle run down her spine at the thought of her gift. She genuinely shivered in fright at its awe and power. For all intents and purposes...Twilight feared the power she had been trusted with.

01 - The Tasking

~Every journey must start somewhere. Whether at the end of another or out of sheer ambition and the determination to find and discover something new. Even sitting back to read a book can be a great adventure in and of its own right. The question is: are you ready to begin yours?~

If Celestia’s sun was inspiring in its majesty, Luna’s night was soothing in its tranquility. It made for the perfect time for one to hole up in a nice, quiet room by candle light and hunker down with a thick tome brimming to bursting with the epiphanies and knowledge of those who’d come and long since passed before.

Twilight settled into her chambers on just such an evening, carrying with her the intent to finally finish reading the study of time travel theorem that Star Swirl himself had written ages past. Since her coronation, the newly crowned Princess of Equestria had found herself with less and less time for her favorite hobby; a much disconcerting prospect.

Her life had become a daily routine of: wake up. Brush and style her mane for proper form. Don her regalia. Attend the morning meal to sit with Princess Celestia and Princess Luna before Celestia took charge of the day and Luna bedded down. Listen to the happenings of the Lunar Courts to gain insight into what some of the noble households were proposing to the Lunar Princess.

After that, she would attend classes for precisely four hours and thirty minutes in preparation for her coming royal duties before attending the Solar Court with Princess Celestia...once again to prepare her for that as well. She most likely would not hold a court of her own...but would be expected to sit in for either Princess should the need arise.

Once the Solar Court was ended for the day, she would attend dinner as Celestia would inform Luna of the daily activities and proposals of the visiting nobles and dignitaries whom preferred to sit in with the Princess of the Sun.

Then...and only then...could Twilight retire to her chambers to pursue her own personal activities.

Twilight removed her crown and collar, setting them on their respective pillows atop a vanity before shaking out her mane lightly. Her horn lit as its magical aura extended to a brush, running the toothed tool through her multicolored locks smoothly. One hundred precise, relaxing strokes to her mane and tail later, the brush was back down on the vanity stand within a millimeter of where it had come from, and Twilight was on her way to her favorite throw pillow; a heavy leather bound tome in tow behind her in her magical grip.

Nestling down into the pillow, the alicorn princess sparked her horn once more and rifled through the pages to where her bookmark lay buried, deep into the ancient and mystical text.

“Your Highness!” A loud rapport echoed through her room from the door as it was knocked upon.

Twilight jumped with such a start that she nearly tore one of the pages from the book before releasing her magic’s hold upon it. Mane and tail once again in shambles, having frizzed out in her surprise, Twilight stood with a quiet groan and moved slowly to her chamber doors.

Opening the door quickly, she had to duck an incoming hoof as the Night Guard on the other side of the door made to knock again.

Eyes wide at his mistake, the guard took a few paces back and quickly dipped into a respectful bow. Had he gone any further in his embarrassment...Twilight might’ve guess he’d been trying to dig a hole in the stone floor with his snout.

“Yes? What can I do for you...uh…” She fumbled about for the stallion’s name. Even though he’d been assigned to her as one of two evening guardians since her coronation, Twilight still had a minutely hard time remembering his or his companion’s name.

“Opteris, Milady.” He spoke quickly.

“Right. Opteris. Sorry.” She rubbed her head abashedly.

Opteris remained nose to the floor, only daring to look up at her quickly for a moment.

“Oh! Of course! You may stand and present yourself.”

Even though she couldn’t stand the thought of other ponies bowing to her, Twilight struggled to get used to having to excuse others for doing so. It was, as she thought, yet another one of the more distasteful parts of her new title.

“Yes my Princess.” He rose and snapped to a sharp salute. “Please do pardon the disturbance, but Her Majesty Princess Celestia respectfully requests your presence in her private study, as soon as you are able to attend, Milady.” The bat-winged pony paused momentarily; as if he wanted to say more.

“Is there something else?” Twilight asked. She watched the guard fold his ears back, trying to suppress what appeared to be an abashed smile growing on his face.

“She does however insist that you needn’t rush, and that you not worry yourself over any possible mistakes or derelictions in your actions, duties or studies throughout the day.” Opteris added the last sentence with only the barest detectable hint of amusement as he watched Twilight’s face sink into disbelief.

“She actually said that last part? Word for word?”

The Lunar Guard could only nod. To his credit, he managed to not crack a smile at Twilight’s look of bemused incredulity.

The young alicorn sighed.

“Well...at least she’s in good humor it seems.”

“Quite, Milady.”

Twilight put a hoof to her head before regaining her composure. She turned on the spot and levitated her regalia to her once more before extinguishing the candles in her room.

“Very well. Shall we go then?” She only asked out of politeness...knowing full well the guard would not let her wander anywhere alone. She might be a powerful alicorn now...but there had been those who were against the new addition to the already strained Royal Diarchy. Some who might be more inclined to use...unpleasant methods to show their distaste.

The guard snapped to and spun around quickly, taking point down the corridors of the palace.

Twilight cantered at an even pace behind Opteris, quietly pondering the meaning of the summons when another thought quickly struck her.

“Opteris...where is your other half?” She asked, knowing that the guards always worked in pairs.

“Shroud is at present...in the infirmary, Highness.” The lunar guard replied.

Twilight stopped for a moment.

“Is she alright? I hope it’s nothing too serious.”

Opteris nodded his head quickly.

“It is nothing to be concerned over. The foal simply missed her mark when attempting to land the other night after patrol duty.”

Twilight caught up again and stared down at the stallion...and then back at her own wings. They still seemed so foreign on her, as did the fact that she was being lead down a corridor of the palace by a pony who’d willingly sacrifice his own life for her if the need arose.

“I can sympathize with that.” She sighed, flexing her wings slightly.

Too many things had happened too fast. She’d concluded that the day after ascending to the crown. It seemed like one occurrence after another in rapid succession. First; the spell that had switched all of her friends Cutie Marks. Then, it had been the transformation upon the completion of her spell that had fixed all of that.

Next had been the coronation, and her first address to the citizens of Canterlot.

The ball held in her honor had come and gone without too much incident...but it had still left her head spinning.

Two months later and she seemed like she was still trying to catch her breath from the initial spell backfire that had caused it all.

Her mind was so caught up in these thoughts that she didn’t even realize they’d reached Celestia’s study. So...as one can imagine; it was much to her surprise when she went tumbling head over hooves over her escort. They both crashed to the ground with a loud clatter of armor and jewelry...a tangle of hooves, manes and metal that took a moment to untangle.

“Sorry! Sorry!” She exclaimed as she tried to extricate herself from her guardian. “That’s my fault! Are you okay?”

Opteris nodded as he slowly stood up, replacing his helm atop his head and readjusting his armor to sit snugly again.

“No damage done, Milady.”

As Twilight rose up and gathered her crown back to her head, Opteris knocked on the door to the study. Inside, a muffled chuckle was heard as though its owner had tried to hide it.

“You may enter.” Princess Celestia’s unmistakable melodic voice rang out.

Together, Twilight and Opteris pushed into the study of the ruler of all of Equestria.

“Your Majesty. Presenting Princess Twilight Sparkle.” The lunar guard bowed deeply before stepping back, allowing Twilight to enter proper.

No matter how many times one might enter the private study of the Princess of the Sun, there was always something new to discover. Floor to ceiling book shelves lined two of the enclosure's walls, towering a startling twenty two shelves above the ground. A fireplace sat behind a large ironwood desk, a mystical fire always burning brightly inside of it to keep the room at a pleasant temperature. Odds and ends sat neatly in their very own private locations throughout the room as though they belonged nowhere else in the world.

And there, with her mane blowing in a wind only she might ever possibly feel; Celestia sat behind the ironwood desk that seemed to tower with both books and paperwork. An amused grin sat daintily on her muzzle as she watched Twilight step forward past Opteris. She rose and moved around the desk to greet her former student.

“That will be all, Esteemed Guardian. You may leave us.”

Opteris snapped a sharp salute before making his exit. Once the door was closed, Celestia pulled Twilight into a hug and sat down next to her.

“Some trouble out in the corridor, Twilight?”

The younger alicorn blushed minorly, scraping at the carpeted floor with a hoof.

“Just a little lost in thought.” She replied.

Celestia gave a knowing nod before returning to the pillow behind her desk. She sat poised and elegant, graceful as the dancing morning light across the Equestrian countryside...and even though Twilight had been in her presence countless times before; she was still in awe of the refined way that the elder princess carried herself at all times.

“So…;” Twilight began as Celestia resumed what she’d been doing before they’d entered, “...you wanted to see me for something, Princess?”

“How have your studies been?” Celestia asked without so much as a glance at Twilight.

Twilight, for her part, sat down and took a deep breath.

“Well...to be honest, I’m not sure. I still feel so out of place with all of this.” She chewed her lip thoughtfully. “How do you get used to ponies who you once had coffee with, or maybe a friendly lunch...bowing down to you and looking for guidance?” She sighed. “It just feels so weird.”

Celestia spared an upwards glance at Twilight, a careful questioning look flashing across her gaze.

“You will adjust in time. However, you didn’t quite answer my question.”

Twilight nodded.

“I suppose they could be better. I feel like I spend more time learning about proper etiquette than I do about the things I should know. Like...what happened before and after the Discordian Era? What laws did they have back then, why were they put in place and did any survive to our time? And how did the royal line descend through the ages to what it is today? Were there always Alicorns like us...or was it just Unicorns in the early days? So many questions.”

Twilight sighed heavily. She paused for a moment to think before continuing.

“I do rather enjoy the historic economics lessons from Penny Pincher, though if you don’t mind my saying so: he’s a bit more…,” She fumbled momentarily, looking for the right word, “...desegregate with his opinions on the Treasury’s practices than I might have expected."

The Princess of the Sun raised her head at that, a quirked eyebrow covering for a smug smirk.

“Is he really?” She chuckled lightly. “No matter. What I’m more interested in is how well you’re adapting to all the new information being presented to you. It is quite a bit to take in; even for one as studious as yourself.”

Twilight shook her head dismissively.

“Not at all, Princess! There is a lot out there that I still need to learn, and a lot more that I want to learn. It’s only taking time to get used to it all. I wish there was a way for me to experience it first-hoof, you know?”

There was a brief moment of silence before a motion out of the corner of Twilight’s eye drew her attention as Princess Luna separated herself from a shaded corner of Celestia’s study. The Princess of the Night moved without sound, almost gliding across the floor.

“We are pleased to hear thou art taking well to thy studies, Twilight.” Luna gave a gentle smile in acknowledgement of the newest addition to the crown. “We had been meaning to check in sooner with thine progress...but sadly Our duties do not permit much in the way of leisure time.”

The dark princess settled down next to Twilight on a cushion of cloud that appeared seemingly just as mysteriously as Luna herself had, materializing out of thin air beneath its user.

“Do you have what I asked of you, sister?” Celestia tilted her head at Luna.

“But of course. It was a bit difficult to locate after Our absence as time had changed the landscape. But it still lay where We had left it, if not now a few lengths under the stone of a mountainside.”

While amused to find that Luna was still having a difficult time breaking away from the traditional Royal Pronouns at times, Twilight was now more focused on what it was that Celestia had asked Luna to find.

As she watched, a small piece of stone materialized from Luna’s mane of stars, drifting slowly to Celestia in the grip of Lunar magic. Once it was exchanged between magical fields, Celestia brought it close for inspection.

It appeared to be a minute fragment of a gemstone. What kind, Twilight couldn’t be sure without further inspecting it. It was a teal blue in color, however, and was finely polished to a glossy sheen. Had Spike gotten hold of it, it most likely would’ve been devoured instantly...or maybe after a few moments of ogling and childish giggling. Either way; the gemstone wouldn’t have had a prayer of escape.

“The reason I ask you, Twilight, is because I wonder if you might undertake a new method of study, to better and further your understanding of Equestria and how it has grown into the nation it is today.” Celestia spoke slowly and deliberately.

Twilight searched her mentor’s expression for any telling hints as to what the Solar Princess might have in mind, but could find little in the way of any clues.

“What kind of method? Won’t the classes be enough?” Twilight asked, only to quickly add: “Not to question your choices, Princess! I mean of course, if you think I could better benefit from a new means of study, then I wouldn’t have a second thought!”

Celestia’s muzzle broke into another soft grin just then as she once again stepped out from behind her desk to sit with her sister and Twilight.

“Weren’t you the one who was just saying that you weren’t learning the things you wish you could?” She asked teasingly.

“Well...yes. I mean that...I know I’ll learn them in time...but I thought it might be a good idea to learn them sooner rather than later...in case I need the knowledge for...oh…” Twilight sighed in exasperation. “I’m going in circles, aren’t I?”

Luna chuckled at that.

“Do not concern thyself Twilight. The fact that thou worriest about these things now is a good sign. It shows the real care of a ruler for her country and its ponies.”

Celestia nodded at that.

“Tell me Twilight. Do you know what this is?” She gently transferred the gemstone into Twilight’s magical grasp for further inspection.

As Twilight checked it over, she noted the uncannily polished sheen to the stone; one not capable through typical magics. The stone appeared to have been polished with dragon-fire, its precision flawless and craftsponyship unmatchable. Such stones were a rare find indeed, especially one this large. It was at least a quarter the length of her horn and just as thick as the base of the magical conduit.

“No...but I can definitely tell that it’s been dragon-forged.”

“Thou art correct, Twilight.” Luna spoke up, gently taking the stone from her. “This is what is known as a Memory Stone. The dragons of old required a way to pass on their histories and lineage by means that did not involve writings that others could read. During...darker times…”, she flinched at that, “...when they sought to remain undiscovered, they would imbue these stones with the entirety of their memories.”

“This particular stone however, is special.” Celestia interjected. “This one predates even myself. It goes back to times even before I can remember. As fate would have it, it happened upon our hooves one year shortly after the first defeat of Discord.”

“Since then, We have collected a number of these stones in order to preserve the memories of dragons who have come and gone. Typically, they’re all kept safe. Locked away in a vault deep inside Mount Canterhorn.” Luna smirked. “But this one required a very safe hiding place. One not so conspicuous...just supposing that somepony might go looking for it.”

Celestia stood and circled the room once, pacing in light thought as she kept her gaze on Twilight. The young alicorn sat in awe of the tale she was being told, raptly listening and absorbing every single detail she could.

“While I hate to task you with another assignment on top of your current load...it is the duty of a Princess to know her country, inside and out. To know its people and their traditions. To understand the very living core of a nation.” Celestia spoke once again with a set edge to her voice. “So it is with something of a rather immediate note that I hereby place the rest of your studies on hold for the time being.”

Twilight’s jaw nearly hit the floor.

“But Princess! What about the economics classes? The etiquette class? Not that I particularly enjoy that one…” she mused momentarily. “But surely you can’t mean I just drop everything at the crack of a whip?” Twilight nearly gagged on her own words the second she realized what she’d said.

Fortunately, Princess Celestia shrugged it off without so much as batting an eye, looking towards her sister for the approval she didn’t need...but wanted none the less.

Luna merely nodded.

Celestia stood tall, wings slowly rising out to their maximum extension as she spoke.

“Princess Twilight Sparkle, Adjudicator of the Day and Evening Stars, it is your royal task now to take this stone and learn to feel to the heartbeat of your nation. It calls for you to hear its pleas. To listen to its stories. To stand within its most painful memories and to guide it through them. Just as I and my sister did when we first discovered these stones.”

Luna stepped next to Celestia, a calm, serene look upon her face.

“Princess Sparkle, thy nation calls to thee. Wilt thou heed its cry for justice? To weigh its guilts and desires? Or wouldst thou leave it to flounder in its own past, doomed to be carried on by one whom wouldst not give it its due motion on the stand?”

Twilight stood, highly confused by everything that had just transpired in the last few moments. Her mind was spinning at the possibilities...but also at the yet unanswered questions.

“I don’t understand.”

That stopped the sisters in their tracks.

“What is not to understand, Twilight? Is it such a complicated task that thou, one of the brightest of my sisters long line of students, canst see what this means?”

Twilight shook her head.

“No. It’s not that, Princess Luna.”

They waited silently for Twilight to gather her thoughts, both unsure of what would come next from the former unicorn.

“For one...you said this particular stone was older than either of you. Yet you also said you’ve already done what you’re asking me to do. If that’s the case...why isn’t any of what you’ve seen recorded in the Encyclopedia Equestria? Where is all the pre-Discordian History?”

“Twilight; surely you know by now that some knowledge when shared unwisely is dangerous.” Celestia leaned down, lowering her posture as she came to meet her prized pupil face to face. “Some things are better left unspoken of until the right moment. Remember the Alicorn Amulet your friend Trixie received?”

Twilight nodded.

“Quite the evil piece of work, it was.” Luna practically spat. “But...it wasn’t always the way it is now. We understand that thine Zebrican friend, Zecora, is keeping an eye on it now?”

“Yes, Princess.”

Celestia smiled again.

“Would you believe that the Alicorn Amulet was once used for good? That it helped to conquer enemies of the state before Equestria was even a nation?” She asked.

Twilight’s eyes went wide as her former mentor chuckled, sitting down in front of her desk again.

“It is yet another artefact that is much older than we.” Luna added. “Some ponies seem to forget that we were not just created from the fabric of time and space. We were once simple ponies like they.”

“Just like you were, Twilight.” Celestia nodded.

“Well...I suppose that’s not hard to believe.” The young alicorn agreed. “I admit, I often forget that too. It seems to hard to think of you as regular ponies.”

It was Luna’s turn to laugh this time.

“Twilight...thou speakest this as if it t’were a burden. There is nothing wrong with being a simple pony. We ourselves often think of those days fondly. T’was a simpler time with problems just as great as those we face today. But they were happy times...even in their darkest hours.”

“In any case...this stone will help you understand a great many things. But it will not be the only one. There will be many others like it that will lead you to a great many discoveries for yourself.”

Twilight stared almost blankly at Celestia.

“What will they to, exactly?”

“All I will tell you is this: take this stone and follow your heart. The rest will become clear in time. You have five days to prepare for your departure. Use them wisely.” Celestia rose as she gave Twilight a comforting nuzzle to the neck. She then looked to Luna, whom passed Twilight the stone. With that, Celestia exited the study, leaving Twilight alone with Luna.

Luna studied the young Princess with a careful eye, watching her momentarily as if to see what would happen next.

Twilight, to her credit, was already mulling things over in her head. She held the stone in her magic, studying it over and over as hundreds of thoughts and theories roared through her mind like manticores on a cold, unsettling evening.

“Twobits for thine thoughts, Twilight?” Luna asked.

Twilight snapped her head up, looking ready for it to just about fly off her neck.

“Huh? Oh. Sorry…” She bit her lip. “It’s a lot to think about. Imagining learning all of the things I’ve wondered about. Getting to know how Canterlot came to be in the first place. Things like that.” She returned her gaze to the stone. “But how does this thing even work?”

“Just do as our sister hath said. Take the stone...and follow thine heart. For thou...the stone wilt do the rest.” Luna nodded. She too began to make for the door, not bothering to return to the shadows.

Twilight stood with the stone in her magic and followed, meeting with Opteris in the hall. Together, the two of them returned to her chambers.

~D.W.~

In the meanwhile, however...Celestia and Luna had retreated to the throne room.

“Do you think we’re doing this too early, sister?” Celestia asked as she sat high on the dais, gazing out the stained glass windows at the kingdom below the mountainside.

Luna shook her head.

“Nay sister. Thine student is well versed in magic and is as bright as thine sun and our moon combined. She will be fine.”

“I just pray that she’s ready for it, Luna. We at least had a few years under our regalia before we found out about the stones. We’d had time to grow into what we were becoming. Twilight’s still new to all of this; even if born to a Noble house.”

“Relax, dearest ‘Tia. It will be hard on her. But tis a lesson that must be learned for one’s self.”

Celestia cracked a small grin and chuckled.

“Speaking of lessons...I think we need to make more time in your schedule for the language tutor. You’ve relapsed into your old speaking method rather grandly this evening.”

Luna opened her mouth to reply...but shut it again after failing to find a counter-argument.

“Perhaps thou art right. We...I mean...I do find this modern speaking a bit easier on the tongue. It is less...strenuous.” She struggled to stop herself from reverting to Olde Equestrian.

Celestia rose from the dais, motioning for her sister to take her place as the doors opened to the throne room for the Evening Court to begin. Already, ponies were filing into lines outside the main entryway awaiting their turn to speak with one of the crowned sovereigns of Equestria. Eying the growing crowd, Celestia gave a quick wink to Luna

“Looks like it’s going to be a busy night.” She spoke softly before making for one of the rear exits. She never saw the smile that broke out in exuberant amounts on Luna’s muzzle.

“Indeed it does, dear sister. Indeed it does.”

02 - The Memory Stone

Twilight returned to her quarters that evening with Opteris in tow, her mind running circles around itself. The entire trip was spent in silence save for the echo of their hooves on the tiled floors, reverberating high into the polished marble walls. Or rather...it would have been silent had she not been what felt like mentally warring with herself most of the way. By the time they'd reached her bed chambers again, Twilight Sparkle was almost beside herself with both worry and excitement over the possibility of the prospect before her.

There was just so much to do in five days. She'd need to make a checklist for the checklist in and of itself to be absolutely certain that nothing had been left out.

If she was going to be traveling for this endeavor, Twilight would need to have supplies put together for not just herself, but an entire Royal Expedition of sorts. She most certainly would not be left outside the castle without a cadre of both Solar and Lunar guards. They would need provisions, tents and the like. There was her own provisions to think about as well, not to leave out any extra supplies she might need. Quills, inkwells, parchment; all of it had to be taken into account right down to the last inch of extra thread for use in emergency sewing kits.

Carriages would have to be sequestered and weather proofed if they were going into the frozen north-lands beyond the Crystal Empire, or down south into the Badlands.

"Princess? You seem troubled...is there any way I may be of assistance?"

Twilight held at the door to her chambers, a hoof upon it as though to make her way inside. She turned her head to the Lunar Guard beside her, seeing a touch of genuine worry on his face.

"No, I'm all right." She nodded, a settled smile crossing her lips at his concern.

She brushed the door to her room open and stepped inside, bidding the guard a good night. As she shut the heavy mahogany portal and levitated her regalia to its pillows once more, Twilight scanned the room; finding all of the things necessary to begin preparation in and of itself would be a challenge. Notes and textbooks were strewn everywhere an empty space could be found. Half written formulas and sections of studies lie scattered in a chaotic mess that Discord himself would've been proud of.

'Where is that dragon when I need him the most?' She frowned momentarily. She thought of her young assistant, whom was most likely on an errand at the moment; if Twilight knew the Princesses as well as she hoped.

Spike had found himself much more busy, now that they had returned to the Palace. Even though it was much the same as from before they'd moved to Ponyville, life in the Palace continued to provide daily challenges that even Twilight herself found difficult to keep up with.

She felt herself smiling once again as she envisioned her assistant running pell-mell around the room, attempting to keep up with her while she dictated notes or a letter. Just the mental image of him began to clear her mind; bringing focus to a night that had seemed thus far to be content to leave her in a shambles.

Giving herself a mental smack to the muzzle, Twilight set about cleaning a workspace on her desk before unrolling a new piece of parchment and getting to work.

~D.W.~

Morning had already come by the time the initial checklist had been finished. Twilight, groggy though she was; stared down at it in deep thought as though it were a demon from the pits of Tartaurus, ready to jump at her and claw her already aching eyes from their sockets.

Spike had wandered in some time during the night; when, Twilight couldn't be exactly sure. The poor dragon had just about passed out the second his head had touched the lush cushion in the large basket he now called a bed. Twilight tore her gaze from the list just long enough to catch a glimpse of his sleeping form. No doubt, she thought, that there were dreams of a certain white unicorn mare swimming through that head of his.

She chuckled inwardly at the thought before moving for the door. Outside, she could hear Opteris being relieved by her Day Watch. Twilight cracked the door open to see Blu-Shift and Goldenrod taking their places on either side of the doorway.

"Good morning." She called lightly, causing the two guards to spin immediately on the spot and salute.

"Good morning, Your Highness," the replied in such unison as to be one voice alone.

Twilight dipped her head lightly; a sign that the two stallions could be at ease.

"Would you please be kind enough to inform Princess Celestia that I will not be joining her for breakfast? It has been a late night and I'm only now just heading to bed." She asked, a sheepish expression crawling across her muzzle. It wouldn't have been the first time she'd found herself making such a request since returning to the Palace.

"Of course Milady. I shall make haste at once." Goldenrod bowed curtly. In an instant, the unicorn was gone in a flash of light.

With a small smile as Blu-Shift returned his attention to the hallway before them, Twilight ducked her head back inside her room and shut the door. Outside, the sun was already beginning its climb up past the lower peaks of Mount Canterhorn. She had indeed spent much more time awake than she'd thought. At least though; much had been accomplished that night. She would have Spike send the requisition forms they'd need out when she again woke. Climbing up onto the mattress of her bed after shuttering the curtains of the windows felt like it had taken way more energy than it should have, but Twilight soon found herself nestled in the comforting warmth of the down-laden blankets that had been calling to her all night.

Only there was a problem.

Tired as she was, Twilight found she couldn't sleep. Something felt off...and it would not stop nagging the back of her mind, no matter how many times she turned or tossed on the bed. Finally, she sat up, got off the bed and took a deep breath.

Focusing her energies, Twilight began running through her mind all of the previous preparations she'd laid out that evening. The list criss-crossed her mind back and forth for a few moments before she voided that out. No...it wasn't the list. There was something else. An almost tangible feeling biting at the edges of her consciousness.

Pacing back and forth hadn't seemed to help any either...and only exacerbated a small dragon's slumbering temper when she accidentally woke Spike. With a sheepish grin, she stopped her back-and-forth motion across her room long enough to hear Spike snoring once again.

When at last she ran out of things to check and or double check...Twilight slumped to the floor in exasperation. There was nothing she had overlooked. The list was as perfect as it was going to get. The preparations would begin when she woke again. The guards that she'd chosen for the task would be well more than sufficient. She hadn't overlooked anything.

Until Twilight's eyes settled on the little stone that rested next to her regalia pillows.

Twilight stood up and walked quietly over to it, scrutinizing the little dragon-forged gemstone. Deep within it, a tiny blue spark of light could be seen flickering in and out of existence; like a fire trying to relight itself.

Checking around herself to be sure there were no other ponies present...just in case; Twilight grasped the memory stone in her magic.

There was a sound like that of a cannon that shattered the peaceful silence of the room as a bright flash, almost blinding to look at, was set off from within the stone. She dropped it immediately, rubbing her eyes to clear the spots that had just erupted.

"What in Equestria..." she pondered aloud, turning to see Spike still snoring away as if nothing had happened. Amazingly enough, the stone was still reacting though now, the small spark inside the stone was lit into what appeared to be a tiny flame. Poking it with a hoof, Twilight found it still cool to the touch. "What are you?"

The stone remained silent, its interior burning away happily in the dim light of the room.

This only raised more questions.

Twilight attempted to pick it up again with her magic. This time however, there was no blinding flash. No explosive concussion of sound. Just the light tinkling of her levitation spell and the merry flickering of the stone's light. Looking over to her somewhat cluttered desk, Twilight began moving for it to start documenting her findings...only to halt dead in her tracks when the light in the stone began to flicker and die out.

"No no no!" She cried, attempting to relight it by feeding magic into it. All that earned her was a burning sensation in her horn that pierced her skull with enough pain to split her concentration. The stone clattered to the floor and rolled across it, coming to rest not too far away. As she massaged her aching forehead, Twilight turned and caught a glimpse of the stone's fire...now burning furiously inside of its gem-encasement.

The flame had turned from a light blue to a deep violet now, and was sparking wildly, nearly filling the entire stone as if it were completely hollow. Twilight watched the rolling flame patterns for a moment longer before approaching, just to be sure that it wasn't going to shatter the stone. Lightly, she bumped it with a hoof. As it rolled away from her, the flames increased even further, growing into a white-purple inferno inside the little stone. Yet it still remained cool when she again touched it.

It was then after looking up to see where it was rolling that she realized just what was happening.

"A stone forged in dragon-fire..." She pondered aloud once more as she looked directly ahead. The stone was mere inches away from the slumbering Spike now.

Lifting it up carefully in her magical grip, Twilight continued to edge the stone further and further towards Spike, watching intently as the flames inside continued to burn with a fiercer passion than before. When it was but mere millimeters away from touching him, there was no telling the stone had originally been blue in hue by the intensity of the light washing out from inside it now.

A knock echoed from the door to her bedchamber at that moment, and her focus was lost again. The stone dropped as she turned around to open the door. But the door never opened. At least...Twilight would never see it open.

The instant the dropped artefact touched the young dragon's body, there was another resounding boom. This one however was different, as it was tangible enough to knock ornaments from her shelves. Twilight would not see this happen either though; for the second that the boom hit...Twilight's world went black.

~D.W.~

"You there, Pony!"

The mare groaned in something of a pained way.

"Do you require assistance?"

Twilight felt an odd presence press against her barrel while another was assumed to be checking one of her forelegs for injury, given the tone of the voice.

"I say...are you all right, Little Pony?"

Finally having the strength and sense of presence enough to do so, Twilight opened her eyes slowly. She immediately shut them again when the searing rays of the sun blinded her once more. With a scathing hiss, she covered her head with the fore-hoof that wasn't pinned underneath her.

"What dost thou think?"

"It appears to be one of the denizens of Dream Valley. Quickly, go and alert His Highness. She may be injured severely."

The sound of some very strange hoof beats leading away down a stone floor met Twilight's ears as she struggled to regain some form of valid consciousness amidst a heavy pulsing in her ears and the pain that seemed intent on wracking her every nerve ending.

Slowly, Twilight tried opening her shielded eyes again, finding the light to still be harsh but manageable. As she removed her hoof from in front of her eyes, the world began to gradually come into focus.

She found herself lying in a crumpled heap atop a cold stone floor. Taking in her surroundings, she was definitely in a castle of some kind, though none that she was familiar with. Red banners with odd symbols, intelligible to her, hung on either side of wide open windows in the castle walls with recently outed braziers standing at regular intervals around the room. She continued to scan around her for a moment longer before turning her attention to the odd feeling against her barrel...and the one whom was causing it.

Twilight nearly jumped out of her skin in shock at what knelt next to her.

There, in clothing that would've made Rarity drool, was some kind of simian shape. It was adorned in a bright blue tunic with a golden embroidered design that stretched across the front, with brown pants of some sort, a thick yet ornate leather belt and gloves made of some type of leather as well. A short, but well kept mane of auburn red hung down off the sides of its head and bangs, curling near the tips.

But what finally drew Twilight's attention was the gleaming hilt of a sword just barely tucked out of sight around behind its back.

Skittering back from that, Twilight found her rump soon meeting a wall, to which she continued to try and back her way into. This thing...whatever it was...had been too close for comfort. She immediately tried to erect a force field between her and the ape-creature...but found that her magic had been severely weakened. Not even the barest fraction of her previous power remained. At most...she might have enough for levitation of small objects...maybe one or two short teleports. But nothing else. She was left at the mercy of whatever it was that stood before her.

"No...no need to fear, friend. We art not thine enemy, nor wilt any harm come to thou." The creature spoke in a decidedly female voice. Surprisingly, she was able to understand it.

The strange thing reached out to touch her once more, causing Twilight to once again scoot away from it. She didn't know what the thing was, nor whether or not its words were sincere. After all, one didn't carry a sword for no reason.

"Please...calm down. Thou art safe, Little Pony."

"Who are you?" Twilight had finally managed to find her tongue. "Where am I?"

The other gave her a quizzical look with its flat-muzzled face, one eyebrow cocked. There was an obvious shock to its expression, if Twilight had ever seen one.

"Why, thou art in the Castle of Midnight. We are of the Prince's personal guard. Our name is Aries. And thou art?" It replied in what was becoming increasingly familiar as Olde Equestrian.

"I am Prin..." Twilight began, only to halt her train of thought. If these things knew she was a Princess...would that change their disposition to her? It was beginning to seem likely that they were friendly for now. If they knew they had foal-napped royalty though...but how couldn't they know? Twilight shook her head to clear it of these thoughts before thinking better of her reply. "Twilight. Twilight Sparkle."

The other actually smiled this time.

"Well met, Twilight Sparkle of Dream Valley."

Twilight hesitantly took a step forward, further examining the creature. Getting a better look provided much more detail about it, being able to note now that underneath the tunic, the thing wore a chain mail vest and metal plate guards over its shoulders. Also now visible on deeper inspection was a jeweled diadem barely hiding beneath the bangs of its mane.

"Forgive me for asking...but where did you say...?" She asked, still studying the strangeness.

"Oh...forgive us. Art thou not of Dream Valley? Tis where most Little Ponies live...we were not aware of other enclaves elsewhere." Aries frowned hesitantly.

"No no...it's all right. I'm not quite sure what's going on at the moment here, but something...Wait. What did you call me?"

"Art thou also not of the Little Ponies?"

Twilight listened in carefully to its speech, picking up on the Little part. This Aries had used it multiple times now. And where was this Dream Valley? She'd never heard of it. Come to think of it...just what was Aries...; and how did she arrive here in this...Castle of Midnight?

That would be as far as her mind allowed her to go though, before a sudden swimming in her head caught Twilight off guard as she lost her balance, tumbling forward a bit. She felt herself being caught up by the forearms of Aries as the world world around her blanked out again.

~D.W.~

When Twilight came to once more, she was lying atop what had to have been the least comfortable bed she'd ever slept in. Her neck was cramped, as were her back. She couldn't see anything anymore save the stars casting a dim light through more small, glass-less windows in the walls. Attempting to spark her horn, Twilight cast a bit of illumination to the room before finding a candle and a strange device on the bedside table next to her head. With little thought to her actions, Twilight attempted to light the candle with magic, only to have her head pulsate in pain. The light spell faded quickly as she gripped her throbbing skull in her hooves, trying to calm it down. It would definitely be some time before she attempted anything too difficult with her magic.

Reigniting her horn, Twilight picked up the small device that lay next to the candle. It was what appeared to be a flint stone and a metal wheel. The flint was pressed into the wooden holder, while the wheel hovered just above it on an axle. The two stones were made to spark off of one another it seemed. With a hoof on the wheel, Twilight held the sparker over the candle in her magic and pressed down on the wheel, swiping backward to strike sparks over the candle wick. It took a few tries, but soon, the candle caught and burned to life.

Trading the sparker for the candle in her magical aura, Twilight surveyed the room. There was little else outside of the bed and night stand; only a single wardrobe stood across the room from her, next to a decent sized mirror. A single doorway led out of the room into what was presumably, given her last location, into the rest of this Castle of Midnight.

Decidedly against staying put where she was any longer than necessary, Twilight removed herself from the bed and made to exit the room, when something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. Making for the Mirror, Twilight gasped and backpedaled away from it when she caught her reflection.

The mare that had met Twilight's gaze when she looked into the reflective surface was not Twilight. Daring to step forward again, Twilight looked into the aged glass.

Staring back at her was a pink mare with a silvery mane. She still had a horn...but lacked the wings that were supposed to be nestled carefully against her sides. Her mane itself reminded Twilight more of her mother's, that soft, pale white with a violet streak running through it from the cow-lick in her scalp in a straight line down the back of her neck...and to the tip of her bangs. Her Cutie Mark was also much different; being six five-pointed purple stars arranged in a pentagon with one in the center; instead of the seven stars she'd known almost all of her life.

"How is she?", came a muffled voice from outside the door.

"The pony is sleeping soundly, Sire. The physician is not entirely sure...but she seems to be in fair health. On another interesting note...it seems she is able to speak our tongue, even if a bit bastardized."

There was a short silence.

"Shall I wake her, My Lord?"

"Nay. We shalt do so our-self. Step aside, friend."

As Twilight turned to face the door, yet another of the strange creatures entered. This one though, was wearing the obvious trappings of royal bearing. A crown of gold and jewels sat atop his short cropped, dirty brown mane. A red cape, speckled with black dots in the white fringing hung gracefully from his powerful shoulders. What might have been a pure silken tunic wrapped his upper torso, while his legs were dressed in a fine black set of leggings, topped with oddly patterned...and even stranger; billowy shorts. His shoes were also of high note, being polished to a glossy shine.

"Ah...We see thou art awake, little one." He spoke in a strong, but soft spoken tone.

Twilight now only realized just how small she was compared to these creatures. Aries from before had been knelt down and hunched over, true. But to see one standing at full height was like looking up at Princess Celestia...but still somehow taller. By height and build alone, Twilight was vaguely reminded of Discord...a thought that gave her more than just a moments pause.

"Yes...sir." Twilight managed to get out.

The tall creature strode easily into the room. Confident, but without the pompous, powerful nature she might have expected just by looking at it.

"How dost thou feel...Twilight; We believe thy name was?" It asked...though she was unsure just by the voice if it was male or female. Considering she'd heard mention of a Prince before...Twilight assumed it would be safe to stick to male pronouns.

Twilight rubbed the sore and aching horn on her forehead for a moment, but found it didn't hurt as much as before.

"I am tired. But I am more confused as to where I am and how I got here."

The other put a hand to its chin in thought as he gazed upon her.

"That indeed is a good question, young pony. How thou came to be in Our castle is of considerable mystery. Art thou an emissary sent by the Ponies of Dream Valley?" He asked.

"No sir...er...sorry. Your Highness?" Twilight ventured, still not sure if he was nobility or strict royalty.

"Ah yes...where art Our manners? We art Prince Scorpio, of the Castle Midnight. We bid thee welcome to Our home, Twilight." He stood and introduced himself with a bow befitting the welcoming of other royalty, ironically. "But if thou art not an emissary...then thou surely art here for a reason? We do not oft receive visitors from Dream Valley."

Dream Valley. Twilight had heard that name so many times since waking in this strange world that she decided to run with it. If it would help her figure out just where she was; then she would play along.

"Tell Us...how is it that thou comest to speak Our tongue so...well?" He paused at that last word; Twilight having remembered hearing of her so-called 'bastardization' of their language.

"I've always spoken like this, Your Highness. It is common Equestrian. Everypony where I'm from knows how to speak it."

That gave the Prince pause.

"Thou sayeth this is...common in Dream Valley? When We were last made aware...the Little Ponies were not properly capable of fully speaking Our tongue."

And like that, Twilight found the first flaw in her current plan.

'Think Twilight. Improvise. You can do this. Here are two cultures obviously at some sort of odds...Put those diplomacy studies to good use!'

"We ah...have been learning over the years to...better facilitate the language so we could further open...relations with your people?" She tried. 'Come on...even Applejack could've done better than that.' She mentally scolded herself.

The Prince seemed to take her words in for a moment as if considering the lie behind them. However, much to Twilight's great relief, he seemed to accept her answer without too much more thought.

"Well, this is wonderful news indeed. Had We known of this development, We would have re-established contact sooner. But this still leaves to question...why hast thou come to Our castle, young Twilight?"

Twilight thought about this for a moment before remembering the memory stone. Panic immediately gripped her as she searched for it...but felt a small tap against her chest. There, wound in a tight corded string being worn as a necklace...was the talon shaped talisman. She gingerly put a hoof under it to raise it to eye level, staring at the silent, blue gem.

"I think it has something to do with this." She scrutinized the stone for any sign of the fire that had been raging inside of it before, but could find none.

"A piece of jewelery?"

Twilight slowly shook her head.

"Not entirely. I'm not quite sure how to explain it...but I think this stone brought me here, your Highness." Her brain could come to no other logical conclusion at that point.

"It is possessed of magic powers then, We would presume?" The Prince knelt down and eyed it carefully, casting Twilight a questioning gaze.

"It is...though of what kind, I've been told little." Twilight replied before catching herself. She couldn't be telling these strange creatures about the stone. What if they weren't as benevolent as they were appearing? Too many risky factors. But...enough information had already been let loose. There was no changing that now. Just damage control.

Prince Scorpio stood up and backed away from the stone slowly, clasping his hands behind his back as he turned and began to pace the room. Twilight could almost feel what he was thinking now, though she could still only guess. What came next was of something of a shock, considering the weight of her previous revelation.

"Well then, Lady Twilight. If thou art not here as an emissary of thy Ponies, but as a researcher of strange artefacts...We wouldst still welcome thee to stay until thou art fully recovered from thine ordeal. It is obvious to Our eyes that thou hast suffered for thine pursuit of knowledge...a feeling We art all too familiar with." A dark look crossed his features for the barest of moments as he stopped to stare out one of the windows. It was quickly replaced however, with one of a jovial nature. "Thou art indeed familiar with Captain Aries, yes?"

Twilight nodded.

"She was the one who found me, right?"

The Prince smiled in return.

"It is good to see thy memory is in fact intact and not shattered. Yes...twas the Captain whom discovered thee. She wilt be thy personal guardian while thou recovers. If thou shouldst need anything...thou may makest her aware of thine needs and they shalt be attended to, as a guest of Our castle." He extended his arms. "Emissary or no, We welcome you into Our castle with open arms in a sign of trust and good faith...so that the Little Ponies wouldst come to know of Us as friends."

~D.W.~

The next few days were spent resting and recuperating in newly assigned quarters. They were much more comfortable than those she'd first awoken in, no doubt. But regardless of how well she was fed or how much sleep she attained...her magic was only being restored in minor amounts. Levitation and teleportation once again came with relative ease, considering their typical drain on her powers. It was becoming less and less straining just to be able to regularly use her magic; and all though she was most concerned about the lack of her full capabilities being restored...at least the partial restoration was a good sign. It meant she would hopefully recover all of her lost talents in time.

She had also been able to learn a great deal about the creatures that had taken her in during her convalescence. They called themselves Human, and had a naming system similar to that of the Ponies. They boasted quite the long and rich history...if a violent one. Compared to Equestrian civilization as Twilight knew it, the Humans were a race bathed in bloody conflict over such trivial things as land, wealth and power. While Equestria had seen similar conflict in the past, there had never been anything so brutal as some of the stories that Captain Aries had described.

When she at last felt ready to explore, Twilight was given a tour of the castle by Aries, with whom she was beginning to build a very upstanding rapport. Things about the castle...and the surrounding countryside, however, began to stand out to her attention, when closer attention was paid to the details.

"And you say this is the highest mountain peak in the area?" Twilight asked as they stood atop one of the castle's tower battlements. She

"Aye, aside from the Purple Mountains, which are currently obstructed from view in the north. Tis from this point that one can look out and see all of the Shire's lands and estates for a great many leagues. Tis also why it makes for the perfect location for the Prince's castle. From here, His Highness has the ability to not only see incoming invaders; but he can also keep a watchful eye on all of his peoples. The Prince is a very caring soul, there canst be any doubt on this matter." Aries smiled down at the unicorn.

"Then may I ask..." Twilight pointed to a tall mountain in the western horizon, covered in smoke. "...what do you call that mountain there?"

Aries' face took on a grim look of despondency.

"That be the Volcano of Gloom. Tis the home of peoples most vile. Those that would use their evil black sorceries for the most heinous of crimes."

"You mean that there are humans like you who can perform magic?"

Aries looked down at Twilight with a softened expression...but it was attempting to hide one of revulsion.

"While thy Unicorn powers are what one would deem true magic, these foul people use conjuration and spells that bring about the most horrid of atrocities." Aries crossed her arms and spat on the ground before returning her gaze to the smoking mountain. "Sorcerers. Spell Weavers. Witches all; and be they damned, I say."

Twilight cringed at the expletive, but did not miss the connotations of the Captain's words.

"I'm sorry if I've brought up anything...bad."

"Nay, Lady Twilight. Thou may hast reminded me of some old wounds. But tis their memory that lives to serve as my shield against them." The Captain's eyes lingered on the mountain for a moment longer before she tore them away.

"So then..." Twilight fumbled, looking for a way to change the topic when she spied something out across the valley to the south of the castle. There, nestled at the edge of an expansive forest on the opposite side of a river, sitting atop one of the larger hills in the valley; Twilight caught sight of a smaller fortress-like structure. In the fading light of day, she could just make out colorful shapes running all across the nearby landscape.

"Art thou missing thy home, Milady?" Aries spoke up.

A bit startled by the question, Twilight looked up to Aries for a moment. The human's face held one of tender sympathy. For a moment, Twilight did think of Canterlot. Of Ponyville and her friends. But this would be a time to gather valuable information, if a forming theory in her head was correct. She sighed, returning her gaze to the fortress in the distance. "Tell me, Captain. What do you know of Dream Valley?"

Aries crossed her arms and leaned on one of the crenelations of the turret, also looking down at the valley fortress.

"Thy Little Ponies are something of a mystery to me. I have oft wanted to visit...but being unable to properly commune with thine people has left us little choice in the matter. Twas quite a shock when thou began speaking English. We had feared that we might never hear the language spoken by another race again after our arrival here."

"That's right...you mentioned something about your people not originally being from this world." Twilight put a hoof to her chin in thought. That would definitely require some further investigation if the answers were not forth coming.

"Tis believed that we came to this pristine paradise through a large and ornate golden gateway in the high mountains, from lands beyond this place. The location of the fabled door and the name of our homeland is lost now; it has been some time since any have thought about such things. But that...I do know." Aries paused for a moment. "Tell me, Lady Twilight; dost thou believe that thy pony brethren hold enough competence in our language that such a visit would be soon possible?"

Twilight cringed at that inside, keeping her exterior as calm as possible.

"Being of the more...academic mind, I'm probably the most well spoken there is. But I might say that it may be possible...soon?" She had no idea on how to confirm this...or whether it was even possible or not. However; Twilight also did not either need to accidentally crush her own fabrication, nor the Captain's hopes. These seemed like genuinely good people and she believed that had they ever visited Equestria; they would be welcomed as friends much the way the Humans had so willingly welcomed Twilight.

"Tis good to hear." She smiled. "My only other concern of thy ponies is one that I'm sure is well known to thyself."

"What is that?" Twilight asked.

"To be frank; one thing that has always puzzled me..." Aries began, "...is how such delicate creatures like thyself, meaning no offense Milady, manage to survive and thrive beside such an ill-foreboding place as the dark forest."

That definitely caught Twilight's attention.

"How do you mean?"

Aries gave a look that was almost one of complete disbelief as she spun to face Twilight, an accusing finger pointing in the direction of the valley below.

"Surely thou dost not jest? The forest there, just beyond Dream Valley. Tis such a wicked place full of as many atrocities as the Volcano of Gloom!"

Twilight propped her forelegs up and over the parapets of the tower they stood upon, staring down at where the captain had designated. There, beyond the regular looking oaks and pines of the treeline surrounding the small fortress...there existed another line where the trees themselves seemed to grow more sinister and dark.

As if tainted by evil.

Twilight gulped.

'Okay Twilight. I know what this looks like. But this isn't Equestria. There's no way that could be the same place...'

There would be no way to know without further exploring into it. For the time being, regardless of whether or not it truly was...it was the last place Twilight wanted to go. Especially with her magic not up to par.

"Yes...it's a horrible place. Fortunately though...the things that live there tend to stay there." Twilight wiped at her forehead, thankful that what she spoke was true enough; at least where she came from.

"Thou dost not suffer under its foreboding will?"

"No. Things that reside in the dark like to stay in the dark. Coming into the light is a lot harder for them than getting by where they're more at home."

Hopping back down to all fours, Twilight turned tail on the despicable sight and cantered uneasily to the center of the tower where she stood for a moment or two, trying to collect herself. A light chilled breeze kicked up as she stared down at the wooden floor beneath her, almost enough to distract her from the hand that was carefully placed on her shoulder.

"I would guess that thou hast had some experience with such things?" Aries asked.

Twilight nodded, trying to quell the memory of her encounter with a cockatrice and her subsequent temporary petrification.

'If Fluttershy hadn't dealt with it...I might still be there...'

"There are things in the world beyond imagination. Creatures frightening and powerful enough to put even the bravest pony in their place. Things that can end you with a single glare."

Twilight felt the hand on her shoulder shudder as she spoke.

Aries stepped forward, kneeling down to unlatch the doorway back into the tower. "Shall we retire for the night, Lady Twilight? The hour grows late and the sun sinks quickly. It will be cold before long."

Twilight nodded.

"Yes. Let's get inside and have something warm for dinner. It will help to take our minds off of these things." She moved forward, gingerly setting hoof down upon the first step. Together, Twilight and the Captain made their way back inside the castle to the dining hall.

The whole trip back though, Twilight's mind had begun churning. A lot of things were beginning to add up...just from geographic locations. The Volcano of Gloom, this dark forest, the fortress in Dream Valley. And Castle Midnight itself, settled upon the highest mountain in the valley.

As impossible as the likelihood of it being the same was...It was beginning to remind her a lot of home.

03 - The Zodiac Prince

Dinner had been extravagant, as always in the castle. Twilight had become accustomed to such feasts long ago, but now she was tasting of things that she had never known existed. Rare strawberries that actually glowed a hint of red in the dark. Fresh leaves of lettuce that could apparently only be found in the frozen wastes beyond the Purple Mountains. She had been expecting strange new foods the first night she'd stayed in the castle...but to be continually surprised by just what she found on the table before her; Twilight was very impressed.

"Pray thee tell, Lady Twilight. How art thou enjoying thy stay in Our castle home of Midnight?" The Prince gave a raise of his decorative flagon as he watched the dinner unfolding merrily from his seat at the head of the table.

Twilight, for her part, had all but forgotten the mannerisms of her station, and was busily dissecting one of the glowing strawberries, attempting to find its method of producing light. When she finally realized she was being spoken to, her fork clattered to the plate, her muzzle beneath the fur turning nearly as red as the fruit.

"It's been amazing, Your Highness. I feel I could spend years here just studying all of the amazing things I've seen...and it's only been about a week!" She exclaimed.

"Wonderful! Tis most excellent to hear thou hath been well entertained. We trust thy quarters art warm and comforting as well?" He asked.

Twilight nodded.

"It could use more books. But that aside, the bed is one of the most comfortable I've ever slept in. It's incredible; how many things I never knew could be possible. Back home, we never would've thought to use bird feathers for cushioning. It always seemed like such a bad idea, asking the birds for their feathers. We just use cotton and hay to stuff our mattresses and pillows."

"Thou mentions books, Lady Twilight. Is there anything in particular thou wouldst wish to read of?" Scorpio raised a curious eyebrow.

"Anything really. There's a lot about this place that I don't know yet." She shrugged in return.

"You seem to be of the studious sort." Aries chuckled from her position next to the Prince. She had finished her meal long ago and was preparing to leave for her rounds on the castle guard.

"Well...I've spent most of my life studying and learning. To the exclusion of a lot of other things, truthfully." Twilight's ears folded back as another sheepish expression crossed her muzzle. "I've always loved to read and learn. After all, there's no problem that can't be solved with the proper knowledge."

The Prince nodded sagely at this, while Aries paused for a moment, looking down to Scorpio. A strange look flashed between the two momentarily before Aries' eyes went wide.

"Surely you can't think, Sire..."

"But We do, Captain. We do."

Twilight looked between the two, confused as all around the table, the conversation between the other attending members dulled down as all attention was turned to the Prince.

"Lady Twilight...We wouldst like to request thine assistance on a matter of some importance...if thou wouldst be willing to hear Us out?" Scorpio leaned forward over the table, head resting behind closed hands propped upon elbows.

The unicorn could only tilt her head in interest, waiting for him to continue.

"You see...We hath had undue troubles as of late regarding thine field of expertise."

"You're having trouble with magic, Your Highness?" She asked.

The Prince nodded.

"There hath been many disturbing reports as of late from Our western provinces. Tales of black magics and despicable creatures capable of razing many a home to the ground on a mere gesture of the hand."

Twilight's mind clicked, remembering Aries' stories of magical humans from earlier before dinner that day.

"That be the Volcano of Gloom. Tis the home of peoples most vile. Those that would use their evil black sorceries for the most heinous of crimes...Sorcerers. Spell Weavers. Witches all; and be they damned, I say."

"A dark cloud gathers over yon Volcano...and be it not natural. Our people art suffering in these lands...all due to a magic with which We hath no experience in how to combat. Had We been in our homelands...surely there wouldst be a holy mage capable of levying a counter-spell to this darkness. But alas...We find ourselves severely lacking in the ability to properly deal with this dilemma. We wouldst ask...if thou were't willing...that thou wouldst investigate this issue for Us."

Twilight slowly rose from her chair, standing beside the table. Part of her was screaming at her to avoid the situation. There was no telling just what magic she would find out there. With her own power still slowly recovering, there was no way of gauging if she could defend herself if it came down to it.

Then again...these people had been nothing but friendly thus far. They had not only provided her a place to recover from whatever it was that had sapped her of her strength; but they had also fed her, provided her shelter and even entertained her curiosity.

There was that against her conscience, but her mind was another story. Her innate curiosity would not allow this to go without investigation. Even as she stood there in the stone halls of the castle, debating the best way to gently ease herself out of the situation; her mind was already swimming with possibilities as to what kind of magic was at work...and whether or not the usage of it was actually meant for good or evil. It spun over the idea that she might actually have a chance to first-hoof learn new magic. After all, nothing about this world so far had been normal. Why would the magic be any different?

Twilight swallowed the lump in her throat, knowing that she would likely regret her decision as it was finally made.

"All right, Your Highness. I'll help you with this problem." She nodded stiffly, even though every fiber of her rational intelligence was warring with itself.

There was the thunderous sound of applause from all around her as the humans gathered in the room began clapping and cheering. The sound startled Twilight at first before she realized just what was making it; and then as to why it was being made. Apparently, the issue at hand was both more well known than she might have thought, and more troublesome.

That thought made her gut sink even further.

"Well then! With this matter settled, let Us convene for the evening in Our private study where We shalt attempt to inform thee of Our plight in greater detail." Scorpio rose from his chair, prompting all present humans to do the same and illicit a bow to their Prince.

Aries was the only one whom did not mimic the gesture, Twilight noticed, as the Guard Captain merely slunk out of the room wearing a rather troubled frown. As Prince Scorpio led the way out, Twilight's eyes followed Aries for a moment. She shook her head slowly, resigning herself to ask the Captain in person later.

~D.W.~

Together, the Prince and Twilight settled into their respective seats before a large, roaring fire in Scorpio's personal study. Stone walls stacked high with books on shelves end to end in a large circular pattern around the room told of Twilight's hosts' propensity for reading and knowledge; one she was grateful to find was just as excessive as her own in some respects. As the Prince threw another log onto the fire to stoke the growing flames, he sat back in his armchair whilst Twilight nestled into a large plush cushion that had been fashioned for her during her stay.

"Tell Us Twilight..." Scorpio asked, all formality now dropped outside of common ears, "...what dost thou know of the stars?"

Twilight's gaze leaped from the fire to the nearby window where already, tiny motes of light were beginning to dot the nearing evening sky.

"Well, Your Highness..." She began.

"Please. We art no longer amongst the nobility. Thou may address Us by Our name."

"All right, Scorpio." Twilight nodded, adjusting her position on the pillow to avoid a light bump in the floor. "The stars; from what I know, are small gaseous pockets that burn with an intense heat. They don't travel through the sky by way of magic; like the sun or moon...but are placed in their respective spots each night."

Scorpio looked amused by this.

"Is that what thou hast been taught?"

Twilight nodded again.

"Everypony knows in this day and age that Princess Luna controls the night sky. There was a time when Princess Celestia had to do it, but those days are over now that Luna has returned."

"And this...Princess Luna; she is a pony as well?"

"Well, yes. She is an Alicorn of great magical power and influence. You're saying you've never heard of her?"

Scorpio shook his head, a hand on his chin in thought while he gazed into the flames.

"Nay. We hath not much familiarity with thine people, Twilight; as has been said before." He sighed, a pregnant pause passing between the two. "If thine Princess Luna be in control of the stars; tell Us this then. How doth she know where to place each one every night so as to keep an orderly sky?"

Twilight opened her mouth to reply; but found she had no real intelligent answer.

"I've always assumed she made charts and graphs...or just knew some how."

Scorpio smiled her way, standing up to retrieve a particular scroll from his shelves. Gingerly, he unrolled the ancient looking parchment across the desk on the opposite side of the room, lighting a candle in a brazier overhead to cast illumination upon it. With that done, he beckoned Twilight closer to investigate.

When Twilight approached, she saw a detailed sphere of data scrawled across the parchment. Points, lines, names and notes all neatly organized into a chart much like she'd just mentioned of the stars in the night sky. Some of them were connected by lines, while others were not. But upon closer inspections of the connections, Twilight noted a few names that she was well familiar with.

"This is Ursa Major...and Minor. I know these shapes." She murmured.

"We wouldst expect one as well learned as thou to know such things as astrology."

"No...I mean...these are living creatures."

The Prince's brow quirked at this revelation; a knowing grin crossing his face.

"And what dost thou knowest of these others?"

Twilight scanned the chart with a more delicately trained eye this time, noting again more names she was becoming familiar with.

"Aries. Taurus. Scorpio. Leo...is there some kind of connection here?" She turned and looked up at the Prince to see his eyes focused on her intently, almost passionately as she searched for answers.

"Thou art catching on, little pony." He smirked.

"You're not saying that humans are the same as the Celestial Star Animals...are you?"

The Prince shook his head, but his smirk never left.

"Nay, Twilight. We art indeed named after these stars however." He began to point to further constellations. "Saggitarius. Pisces. Libra. Gemini. Virgo. Aquarius. Capricorn and Cancer. These art the names of Our family. Brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces and cousins. Together were we brought from our land into this through the golden gateway yonder to the North. Along with others from throughout many shires and villages."

Rolling up the scroll again, Scorpio replaced it on the shelf and brought down a tome this time; not a very thick one but bound with obvious care and well worn with age and use. He flipped it open, giving Twilight a brief glimpse into his people's background as each page was turned carefully to safe-guard against its own age before stopping on a page with images.

"Once we had arrived in this strange and new world...Our family quickly separated to avoid conflict. Thou must understand: divided, we art in balance. But together; while our numbers increase...anarchy reigns as power is fought for. It hath been said by elders of old that all good things in the world wouldst be lost if Our family were ever to fight amongst itself. Thus...we took heed and went our separate ways to keep such things from becoming truth."

Twilight only nodded as the Prince continued.

"Aries and Ourself stayed here and rallied Our peoples to construct this castle. Though she be Our niece and still young to the ways of the world; Aries is an accomplished warrior and a well learned keeper of estate. Brother Taurus and his son, Sagittarius, went north into the mountains to search out a way home. We hath not heard from them since. Sister Aquarius presides over the peoples by the sea with brother Pisces. Cousin Virgo and her daughters; the twins Gemini, retreated to the west. Last We hath heard from them...they strayed near the Volcano." Scorpio shook his head. "They hath also gone silent."

"What about the others? You know where they are, right?" Twilight asked.

"Cousin Leo resides not far from Dream Valley. She hath sequestered herself in a mountainous maze of sorts. Leo hath always been a might touched in the head. The rest though...We hath little to no idea where they may have happened to find their journey's end."

The Prince set the book down and reclined into the chair behind the desk, a hand to his forehead. He removed his crown for but a moment, wiping his brow free of some imagined moisture. Twilight gazed at the human and the book in turn, wondering just how such things were possible. As she was about to ask, the stone about her neck flashed once in a bright radiance, causing both in the room to flinch back instinctively.

"What is this light, Twilight? Some sort of spell?"

"I don't know! It's only happened once before, and that's how I got here!" She replied, holding it up to inspect it. Inside, the dormant flames had once again lit and were slowly growing in intensity.

Just as she was about to speak again, there came a knock on the door to the study.

"Your Highness! Are you in there?" Called a strange, scratchy sort of voice.

Twilight eyed the door as Scorpio moved to open it. As he did, Twilight jumped back in shock at what stood on the other side.

There, upon two legs with scales colored somewhere between pink and purple depending on how the light hit them, complete with green dorsal spikes running from the top of his head to the tip of his tail...was a baby dragon.

"Spike?" Twilight asked out of sheer incredulity.

Both the dragon and the Prince turned to Twilight, before Scorpio looked down at the dragon.

"Thou art acquainted, young friend?"

"No sir." The dragon shook his head. "I've never met a pony in my life."

"Then how dost thou know young Spike's name, Twilight?" Scorpio once again turned to Twilight, whom looked herself to be both awestruck and dumbstruck in concert.

"I...but you...he...this doesn't make any sense!" Composure now gone, Twilight rushed up to the dragonette, lifting his tail, checking under his arms, running a hoof down his spines...all to make sure she wasn't dreaming. "There's no way you could be..."

"Be what, Twilight? We thinkest thou dost hath some explanations to divvy out." The Prince, for all intents and purposes, was more than intrigued now. His expression was no longer one of interest; his face now bore a deep concern.

For a few moments, the three stood in the Prince's study in silence; the only sounds breaking the calm coming from the snap and pop of the wood on the fire. Before the uncanny tranquility could last much longer though, Twilight shook her head to clear the daze she'd found herself in, attempting to put things together while trying to figure a way out of her latest predicament.

"We await thine explanation, little pony." An impatient foot began tapping as Scorpio crossed his arms.

"Well...you see, that's going to be a bit hard to explain..." Twilight shuffled backwards towards the room's center a bit, unease beginning to conquer her incredible doubt of the situation.

"Thou must attempt. Do not try Our patience. How didst thou come to know of Our young servant's name? Be out with the truth, Twilight."

For her part, Twilight could think of no way out of the situation, other than the truth. How much truth, though...was a different question all together. Quickly picking choice pieces she could reveal with certainty, the unicorn gave a sigh.

"You see, Your Highness...when I was first given this stone pendant around my neck, I was told it was dragon-forged. I didn't think too much of it at the time...but here's going to be the strange part. Back home, I have a dragon assistant who helps me with my tasks. When the stone got near him, it activated somehow...and that's how I got here. The thing is...my assistant looks much like your friend, and apparently even has the same name."

"Art thou telling Us that thy dragon and young Spike here are the same?" Scorpio's expression soured further.

"No! Not at all! There's just a lot of striking similarities. Scale color, fin arrangement, name...My Spike is shorter and well...not as stocky as this Spike. He's also got a much rounder head with a shorter snout. But the resemblance is still uncanny."

"Not to butt in, Your Highness...but it's kind of urgent." Spike stepped up to Scorpio and gave a tug on his cloak.

Scorpio returned his attention momentarily to Spike, then shot a rather unsettling glare at Twilight.

"We will have further words of this, young pony. Do not think Our questions hath been properly satisfied." With that, he knelt down to Spike. "What is it, friend?"

"We've just received word from the mountains! Lord Taurus is on his way here!" Spike held out a scroll to Scorpio.

The Prince's expression shifted from scorn to shock as he accepted the scroll from the dragon, opening it to begin reading. As he scanned the document, disbelief at what he was reading became further engraved on his brow. He stood up, rolling the scroll back up and began pacing.

"This must be a jest. Surely he wouldst not think..."

"Is something wrong, Prince Scorpio?" Twilight ventured to ask.

Scorpio did not deign to respond directly to her; instead making for his desk where he began to scrawl out something on another piece of parchment. When finished, he handed it to Spike.

"Take this to Aries. See to it that the Castle is prepared for Our brother's arrival. There is much work to be done, and solace to be granted upon his return. Dark times have indeed befallen us, young friend."

"Yes sir, Prince Scorpio." Spike accepted the scroll as the Prince stood back, shifting slowly past Twilight and back to his armchair before the fire. The dragon was gone almost as quickly has he had come before Twilight had even realized he'd vanished; her attention was too focused on the human.

By the sound of it, something terrible had happened. Twilight swallowed past the growing lump in her throat, daring to approach the slumped figure bathed in firelight.

"Is there anything I can do, Your Highness?" She asked, her voice barely more audible than Fluttershy's.

With a wave of the hand, the Prince sunk even further into his chair.

"Nay, pony. Unless thou canst revive those who hath departed to the stars."

Twilight cocked her head in confusion, taking a few minutes before coming to the realization of the truth behind Scorpio's words.

"Oh...oh no. What's happened?"

Scorpio shifted uncomfortably, leaning his head down to rest his face in an open palm, gently.

"Young Sagittarius. He hath been taken from us. He hath given his life in pursuit of finding a way home for us all."

"Did the letter say how?"

The room was once more silent for a moment.

"Please...leave Us. We will speak with thee again at a later time. For now; it is a time of grieving."

Twilight stepped forward to ask just what had happened; but the second her hoof contacted the stone floor, Scorpio's hand flew up in a way she was well aware of. 'Come no closer'. Resigning herself to that reply, Twilight turned around slowly, ears laid low and tail hanging similarly as she left the room, feeling almost as dreadful as she might've guessed the Prince to be feeling.

It was a long, quiet and lonely walk back to her quarters. Not a sound was to be heard throughout the castle halls, even though there were supposed to be preparations being made for Taurus' return. Then again, she couldn't imagine she'd want to move too quickly either; after being delivered such dreadful news. It wasn't until after she'd laid down upon the bed she'd been provided that her thoughts turned to home and the friends she'd left behind.

What must they be doing at that point, she wondered? Were they trying to find her? Had Princess Celestia known this would happen? There were a lot of unanswered questions on that front. Mostly; concern for her friends and what they would be thinking crossed her mind, back and forth. Her brain tried to interject that no; Princess Celestia would not let them worry over her disappearance. Surely this had been part of the plan, right?

Twilight shook her head as she tried to clear her thoughts and focus on the issues presented to her.

Not for the first time since she arrived, the once-again unicorn mulled over the situation she was in. It had been a topic of much debate between the neurons in her head as she tried to wrap her thought patterns around the seeming impossibility of her arrival.

First; there was the stone amulet around her neck. That; she was sure, had been the cause of her transportation. How and why were yet still a mystery. Where, also, had yet to be decided. There had been mention of places like Dream Valley and Ponyland...but neither of these had ever come up in her studies of recent or even ancient Equestrian history. Or anywhere in the world, for that matter.

Then there were the humans. Yet another creature that had no place in her canonical knowledge of the world at large. Sure; there had been some speculation by nut-job ponies back in Equestria about bipedal apes mentioned in ancient writings. But these had merely been myth and legend; not science fact. A few extremist groups had even sprung up dedicated to xenobiological and crytozoological creatures theorized of...but never proven to exist. Creatures like the Headless Horse or BigHoof.

Some even claimed that the name of the city in western Equestria; Tall Tale, originated around myths surrounding a mysterious creature that lived in the nearby forests. Supposedly, it would come after fillies and colts in the night who told lies and drag them away to some purgatorial world where they were punished over and over for their bad habits and misdeeds. But that's all it was. Wild theories, unfounded speculation...and campfire stories told to frighten little foals into learning good behaviors.

Twilight sighed, burying her head in the soft, downy pillow beneath it.

She couldn't think straight. Too many mysteries without any answers. With an indignant snort at the seemingly unsolvable puzzles staring her in the face, the unicorn rolled over and attempted to fall asleep. Perhaps things would be clearer come the morning light.

~D.W.~

The castle resounded with an earth-shaking boom.

Twilight found herself with a muzzle full of carpeted stone floor before she knew what had happened. As she struggled to rise, feeling the entire structure beneath her swaying back and forth, she stumbled to her hooves before covering her eyes with one shaky forelimb; for being the middle of the night...it was really bright outside of her window.

As she made her way to the window to find out just what was going on, the castle gave another mighty heave...and with the sound of cracking stone and a rush of air; the unicorn suddenly found herself airborne. The entire side of her chambers were gone. Straight below her loomed a breath-taking plummet of well over three-hundred lengths.

Focusing her concentration, Twilight channeled her thoughts into an image of the dining hall where she'd been only hours earlier before letting her magic fly. The moment the teleportation spell cleared though, she was hit by another strong gust of wind. This one carried smoke on it. As she opened her eyes and felt the intense heat about her, her heart sank. Teleporting into a location was always a bit tricky when you couldn't see it. This was why.

The unicorn had just whisked herself out of the frying pan...and into a quite literal fire. Her magic felt extremely drained after such a wild teleport...and there was little she could do to escape what she saw next.

About her, an inferno raged beyond control. There were no chamber maids or servants attempting to put it out. Only panicked screams and pained cries reached her ears. Seeing an exit through the thick, suffocating smoke; Twilight burst forward on a renewed sense of urgency. Adrenaline pounded in her ears as she dashed out of the golden orange glow of the flames and into one of the receiving halls outside the main dining quarters with the wind pounding her face. She had a clear view through what was left of the ceiling to a blackened sky full to the brim with roiling, angry storm clouds.

Knowing of only one good vantage point from which to get her bearings, the unicorn made her way to the parapet tower that looked out over the valley. Twisting through debris and rubble, rushing past unmoving bodies of her human companions, Twilight raced as fast as her four legs would carry her to the wooden staircase that lead up into the top of the stone battlement. Circling round and round the tower stairs until she threw open the hatch at the top, she stepped out onto the crenelated structure and turned around to survey the damage.

Castle Midnight was in ruins. Broken spires, damaged walkways between equally destroyed halls and chambers; the palace itself looked beyond repair.

Just as she was about to head back inside to search for survivors, or even the cause of the turmoil; a bright flash of lightning and a peal of thunder rang out through the air. Her horn tingled with the arrival of dark energies as her fur stood on end from the feeling. Following the currents of raw, untamed, and woefully intimidating magic, her eyes locked on two figures standing atop the drawbridge to the gatehouse below.

There stood the Prince Scorpio with sword in hand. His crown was gone and his robes were tattered. Blood flowed slowly from lacerations all about his form, soaking into the wooden bridge beneath him. But across from him...that was what really had Twilight's attention.

There, posed like some mythical monster from legend and lore itself...was a monster. Four powerful, fur covered legs tipped with what looked like cloven hooves held a massive muscular body aloft. A torso like that of a minotaur extended from where a normal pony’s shoulders would be; steel plate mail stretching taut over an upper body wrought with tendons and thick muscular pectorals. The arms that stretched from its shoulders were absolutely enormous and bare of fur and covered in a layer of thick, crimson flesh. They worked an absolutely enormous broadsword that cleft the air between the two combatants.

The head of this creature was shaped altogether differently though. A comparatively flat nose arced down from its brow where an even flatter mouth lay underneath with fangs seemingly as long as Twilight's horn sprouting from the thin crease of its lips. Two evenly shaped, golden eyes gleamed in the darkness that surrounded them. Twin horns like that of a demon sprouted from either side of its head, curving high into the air. All of this was topped with a mane and lower body coat of a deep blue color, contrasting sharply with its skin tone.

Over the droning of the wind and the now frequent peals of thunder, Twilight could just make out the voice of the Prince, calling in anguish at the beast.

"What hast thou done, fool?! Thou wilt destroy us all!" He cried up at the monster as sword met sword.

The other creature laughed heartily; though it did anything but amuse anyone who could hear it.

"I have finally realized why the elders sought to keep us apart! And in doing so, I will reign supreme over this land and all others that I see fit!" The creature brought its forehooves down on the drawbridge heavily. Wooden splinters flew in every direction from the impact as the gate moaned ominously after a resounding crack from the impact. "Saggitarius knew too! Now he assists me! Will you not do the same, brother?!"

"We would never lower Ourselves to such baser instincts! Such tripe is nothing but the madness of a tyrant!" Scorpio spit back at his opponent.

"Madness?" the other halted momentarily. As if to double-take, it shook its head in what appeared to be disbelief. "Madness you say?"

"Indeed! Now, have at thee, foul demon! Begone from Our brother Taurus immediately lest thou be smote down with all the righteous wrath of the stars above!"

Twilight backpedaled. Taurus? Surely not...things were becoming more and more interesting by the moment. And just as terrifying in threefold.

"You think you can best me? Fool! For your insolence; you will become my personal slave, brother Scorpio!"

Twilight couldn't see exactly what happened next...but from the creature's waist belt, it withdrew a small object. Holding it aloft, it shouted something that was lost to the winds.

Immediately, the air grew still for all but a second.

All Tartaurus broke loose in the next as before she was thrown from the tower by a massive gust of wind; Twilight caught a glimpse of a large black column of energy erupt from whatever object the creature had held aloft.

"Taurus! What foul trickery is this?" She heard Scorpio cry.

"My name is no longer Taurus, pitiful knave. The world will know that my name is Tirek! Behold and tremble at the power of Darkness!"

As Twilight fell, still partially drained from her emergency teleport earlier, she heard the monster bellow out his war-cry of dominance. Slowly, as the mountainside raced past her in flashes...she could feel herself losing consciousness once more as the world around her started to grow darker and darker.

'So...this is how it ends then?' She thought, unable to do much more than shut her eyes and await the abrupt stop at the bottom of the incline.

When it came...Twilight found that it didn't hurt anywhere near as much as she might have expected. In fact; it hadn't hurt at all. She could feel a familiar plush fabric beneath her barrel and hindquarters. All of her limbs were still feeling and functional as well. Daring to open her eyes; Twilight was greeted with the welcome sight of her bedchambers in Canterlot Palace.