The sky burned as the alicorn sisters did battle with the lord and master of Equestria. Discord would not give up his claim to it so easily, and it was clear to all that the duo's magic, though strong beyond comprehension, was not enough to defeat the Draconequus. They would need something stronger if they wished to defeat him.

And as they did battle, the subjects of the creature that called himself king could do nothing but hide, avoiding stray blasts of magic.

One such subject, a Pegasus mare called Lightning Dancer, had not been quite quick enough to seek shelter when the battle started. She'd been struck with a bolt of lightning. Thrown by Discord and deflected by the Luna, the bolt had sheared off one of Lightning Dancer's wings, and left terrible burns all along the right side of her body. She lay in her sickbed for days, inching ever closer to death.

She would never see the sun rise on an Equestria free of Discord. She would never see the moon rise on a world where the alicorns were queens of the newly liberated land.

As the battle raged on, Lightning Dancer's worries and regrets suddenly began to fade away. She looked up, scanning the area. Her friend Soprano Petal sat asleep beside her. The unicorn mare had been awake for days tending to the wounded, using what rudimentary healing magic she'd scraped together over the years. She was a musician, not a medic, but she had done her best.

Finally, her eyes found what she was looking for. A large grey Pegasus mare, maybe the size of Celestia, walked towards her, radiating calm.

"Be at peace, Lightning Dancer." she said.

"Do I know you?" Lightning Dancer asked.

"No." The grey mare said. "But I know you."

Old stories her grandmother had taught her flooded into her mind. "Enbarr."

"Yes." The grey mare said.

"I didn't expect I would die this way." Lightning Dancer said.

"Very few ponies die in the time and place of their choosing." Enbarr said. "It is one of the great blessings of life that you not know what will come next."

"I was gonna join the Royal Guard. Be like Commander Hurricane and lead a squad of pegasus for the glory of Equestria, and Queen Celestia and Queen Luna."

"Yes, I know." Enbarr said.

"I don't suppose they'll have much need for a royal guard in the afterlife."

"I'm afraid I wouldn't know. It is my purpose to guide you to the next step. What awaits you beyond that is a question that only you can know the answer to."

"Can you at least tell me that it was worth it? That Discord will lose?" Lightning Dancer asked hopefully.

Enbarr was silent long enough for Lightning Dancer to realize that she didn't know, but finally she said, "Yes. Discord will fall and Celestia and Luna will rule over Equestria for time immemorial."

It was a lie, but it was a lie that Lightning Dancer was happy to pretend was truth. "Then I'm glad to have at least been here to see it start." She lay down her head and closed her eyes.

She opened them again, then climbed to her hooves and stretched her wings. "I'm ready."

Enbarr nodded. She turned and walked away without saying anything further. Lightning Dancer took one last look at the sky from her window, where the battle raged on. Queen Celestia and Queen Luna. That didn't quite have the right ring to it, she thought. Maybe something a bit less grandiose was in order.

Lightning Dancer shrugged and followed after Enbarr of the Flowing Mane.

==========================

"I was once a powerful wizard, you know."

Star Swirl the Bearded was dying. This was nothing new, Star Swirl had been dying for some time now. He was a very old pony. He'd extended his life with magic as best he could, but after a certain point a pony realizes the futility of staving off death and submits to the vagaries of time.

"Listen to your master when he speaks, Clover the Clever!" Star Swirl said sternly to Princess Platinum the fifth. The great-great-granddaughter of the princess of the unicorns had volunteered to perform the deathwatch for Star Swirl. He was a very learned pony. He and his student, Clover the Clever, had done a lot for the three kingdoms after they united, and she was nothing if not a dutiful princess, always willing to sacrifice for her subjects.

"I'm listening, Sir Star Swirl." said Platinum.

"Good, that's good. Now, you mustn't tell the princess that I'm dying, Clover. She'd only worry. Sweet little filly. Was just at her cute-ceañera, you know."

Star Swirl's powerful mind, legendary in its time, had become erratic in his dotage.

"Yes, Sir Star Swirl, I know." said Platinum.

"You weren't there, of course. You were away with her mother looking for the new land at the time. Gotta keep that foal Hurricane in his place. Callin' himself Commander like he's so high and mighty. I knew his sire, you know."

"Yes, Sir Star Swirl, I know." said Platinum.

"I was a powerful wizard in my time." Star Swirl said again. "Stood beside giants. Fought me a Draconequus. And that Ahuizotl creature. Called himself Ahuizotl. How you like that? Be like me calling myself Pony. "

Star Swirl sighed heavily. "Your master is a very old pony, Clover the Clever. He's not long for this world. Not long now before Enbarr of the Flowing Mane comes for me. You remember what I taught you about him?"

Platinum had heard the name before, but as a princess, she'd not been given texts on such morbid things as death. Such things would come later, her teachers had said. "Tell me again, Sir Star Swirl."

Star Swirl chuckled. "Foolish apprentice. If I had the energy I'd lay one upside your head for not payin' attention. Enbarr is the name of a pony. But also not. He's death, you see. He'll come and take me when I die. And he'll guide me to the next step. He knows my name, you see. He knows everypony's name. He won't be bothering with the Bearded this or Sir that. I'll just be Star Swirl again, like I was when I was just a colt."

"Where will your spirit go after Enbarr comes for you?" Platinum asked.

Star Swirl shook his head. "Read alot on the subject. Nopony really knows of course. Some of them religious types, they'll tell you if you're good you go to a place with clouds and what not. How you like that? Gotta spend my time afterwards with Pegasi? I don't think so! Mindless brutes, the lot of them. That Hurricane is the worst of the bunch. Silly foal. I knew his sire, you know."

Platinum nodded. "Yes, Sir Star Swirl, I know." She said again.

"I'm a bit tired, Clover the Clever. Be a good lass and watch over your master while he sleeps. Wake me when Enbarr comes." Star Swirl said as he closed his eyes for the last time.

"Of course, Sir Star Swirl."

Platinum sat and watched over Star Swirl as she had promised. Long hours passed and she was just about to nod off herself when she heard the sound of hooves in the corridor outside. She got up from her seat and walked to the door. She was just about to reach out with her magic to open it when the pony on the other side opened it for her.

A very large unicorn stallion with a grey coat entered the room ducking his head slightly so as to avoid the door frame. He focused on Star Swirl at first, but quickly became aware of Platinum's presence. He turned his head head and looked at her. His eyes were an extremely vivid blue.

"Princess Platinum." The stallion said.

Platinum, only slightly intimidated by his size, drew herself up as she stepped closer to the bed. "Are you Lord Enbarr of the Flowing Mane?"

The stallion, Enbarr, dipped his head in confirmation. "I am lord of no pony, but I am Enbarr."

Platinum looked from Enbarr to Star Swirl. "He wanted me to wake him when you came."

"Let him sleep." Enbarr said. "It will just be a little while longer."

Platinum returned to her seat. "Do you know what happens after we die?" She asked.

Enbarr shook his head. "It is my role to guide you to the next step. What lies beyond is a question that only you can know the answer to."

"Will he be happy, at least? He's been good to my people. Strong and valiant. I think he deserves that much."

"It is not my place to say what a pony deserves or doesn't." Enbarr said. "I am merely a guide."

"Do you know when you will come for me?" Platinum asked in a sudden spur of morbid curiosity.

Enbarr nodded. "I do, but I will not tell you if you ask. It is a great gift to not know the future. Treat it with the proper respect." He turned his head to Star Swirl. "It is time. Now sleep, Princess Platinum."

As Platinum fell into a deep slumber, Star Swirl awoke. With an energy he hadn't had since the first day he'd been apprenticed to his own master, he sprang out of bed and laughed. Then he scowled up at the massive unicorn. "About bucking time, you great lummox!" Old habits died much harder than old ponies, and Star Swirl had ever been a grumpy individual.

Enbarr smiled. "Forgive me my tardiness, Star Swirl. This is always a busy time of year for me."

"Well, let's not just sit around chatting, youngster." Star Swirl said, though he knew that Enbarr was far far older than he. "Do your duty and take me to what awaits."

"Of course, Star Swirl. Follow me."

As Enbarr left, Star Swirl lingered, regarding the sleeping Princess Platinum wth fondness. Now recognizing her as the fifth Platinum instead of his own long dead student, he marveled at how she looked just like her granddams. Family resemblance ran strong in that line. He placed an intangible kiss on her cheek, then turned and followed Enbarr out the door.

==========================

King Sombra, former ruler of the Crystal Empire, was dead. He knew this as surely as he knew the large grey unicorn stallion sitting across from him was Enbarr of the Flowing Mane.

"Our meeting is long in coming, Sombra." Enbarr said. "Have you anything to say before I guide you to the next step?"

Sombra grumbled. "It was my right to rule my country as I saw fit."

Enbarr shook his head. "Look to others for your moral validation, Sombra. I am merely a guide."

"Did I at least take that blasted pink princess with me?" Sombra asked.

"You did not. Your return was thwarted in its entirety. You came close to succeeding, but you failed to account for a mere dragonling named Spike."

Sombra sighed. "To be defeated by so mere a creature. Got sloppy. Left that shadow to its own devices. Thought I didn't need it."

Enbarr said nothing.

"Was the strongest unicorn there ever was." Sombra said wistfully. "Boosted by the Crystal Heart, I fought two alicorns. Two! Can you believe that? Star Swirl the Bearded couldn't say the same."

Enbarr dipped his head in confirmation. He had been there when Sombra fought the alicorn sisters. He was at every great battle.

"Pair of missionaries came by one time." Sombra said after a long pause. "I threw them in the dungeons, of course, but I kept one of them alive. He said something about a lake of fire. Gonna burn for eternity, am I?"

Enbarr shook his head. Most ponies asked him what awaited on the other side. His answer was always the same. "I don't know. It is my role to guide you to the next step. Nothing more. What awaits you is for you to discover."

Sombra thought about this for awhile. Enbarr waited patiently. This was going better than he thought it would. Sombra had been a raging egomaniac in life, but he was taking his death in stride.

"All right then." Sombra said finally. "Let's go."

Enbarr climbed to his hooves without saying a word and led Sombra away. Sombra did not tary, as many ponies did. He had nothing left worth remembering, anyway.

Author's Note

So there you have it. Lightning Dancer and Soprano Petal are OCs I created for the purposes of this story. Enbarr is also an OC.

As I'm sure you're well aware, Star Swirl and Sombra are not OCs. :)