The Elements of Chaos

Six hours before the siege

Shining Armor and Cadance were walking side by side to the train station when Shining heard the sound of hooves approaching from behind them. No sooner had he heard them when Twilight galloped  past him and Cadance.

"Hi Shining! Cadance! Can't talk now! Train! Bye!" she shouted at them as she passed. Spike was on her back and he waved at the couple as well, and Shining Armor and Cadance did the same.

Twilight was soon followed by another pony which Shining Armor and Cadance both recognized as the newcomer, Eldon. He remained silent as he too passed them, trying his hardest to keep up with Twilight.

"You know Shining, I find something odd about that Unicorn, but there is no denying that he is quite the stunner..." Cadance said. Shining Armor just stared at her.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" he asked, a hint of suspicion in his voice. Cadance laughed and bumped her hoof against his shoulder.

"Oh come on Shining! You don't have to be so serious all the time! Besides, I was just joking around, I would never leave you for some other pony, you're my Shining Armor after all." Shining Armor massaged his shoulder and chuckled sheepishly.

"Yeah... you're right Cadance. I am aren't I?"  Cadance leaned her head against his shoulder and Shining Armor smiled.

"It's such a beautiful day Shining... I wish you were returning with me to the Crystal Empire as well," Cadance said softly.

"I know Cadance, I wish I was too, but I have to train some recruits. It shouldn't take long though, and I promise you that I'll be back before you know it," Shining replied. The two continued down the street in silence, enjoying the comfort of each other's company. They reached the train station just as the train to Ponyville began to pull away. The train to the Crystal Empire arrived on the other set of tracks shortly after. "Well, I guess it's time you got on your train Cadance." Cadance lifted her head from his shoulder and sighed.

"Already? Well... I guess I'll see you again soon Shining, don't do anything dangerous while you're here okay?"

"I promise, but it's you that I'm more worried about," Shining replied. He moved closer to her and gave Cadance a kiss on the lips. "I love you Cadance." Cadance broke the kiss after about a minute had passed and gave him a big hug in return.

"I love you too Shining," she replied. She unwrapped her forelegs from around him and boarded the train. She turned around to see Shining Armor waving goodbye and she smiled just as the doors closed and the train pulled away. Shining Armor continued to wave until the train disappeared into the nearby tunnel.

Stay safe Cadance... he thought. He stepped off the train platform and walked back the way he and Cadance had come from. It didn't take long for him to return to the castle. Guards saluted him as he walked past them while he made his way towards the barracks. The barracks was a building that was constructed next to the castle with a large field behind it. It was the perfect place for running drills. Time to meet the fresh recruits, let me see what they got.

Shining Armor opened the doors to the barracks to see that everypony was either sleeping or fooling around. Oh Celestia... help me, he thought. He coughed loudly in an attempt to get their attention but with no luck. Shining Armor inhaled deeply before he spoke. "Everypony! Stand at attention! Now!" He had only gained the attention of a few of the close ones who immediately rushed to the front and stood before him, saluting. "You might want to cover your ears," he told them and he brought out a whistle. He inhaled deeply once more before he blew into the whistle, causing a high pitched ringing throughout the barracks. The ringing immediately woke up those in their beds and made the room fall silent as the ponies looked for the source of the noise. When their eyes fell on Shining, they immediately scrambled to the front, pushing and shoving each other until they all at last stood at attention. Shining Armor shook his head in disgust. "That was awful, just awful! I'm not using my precious time to babysit a bunch of foals am I?" The recruits remained silent and Shining Armor began to pace up and down the line. "I am General Shining Armor. You either address me as sir or general. Anything else will be ignored. Do you understand?"

"Sir yes sir!" the recruits replied.

"Good, now I apologize for the late start, but I had other important matters to attend to. Now that I'm here, we can begin our training. We'll start in the back field today and I'll be testing your endurance. Understand?" Shining Armor asked.

"Yes general!" the recruits shouted in unison and Shining Armor nodded in approval.

"Excellent, now everypony, move out!" he yelled and he exited the barracks, soon followed by the recruits. They trotted down the left side of the barracks until they reached the field. A gentle gust of wind blew across the field, causing the grass to gently sway. "Alright recruits, I want you to get into rows of eight so that I may begin the roll call. Get to it!" The recruits quickly assembled into position since none of them wanted to feel their superior's wrath. Shining Armor reached inside his military jacket and brought out a scroll that had the names of all the ponies that should be present currently. He unrolled the scroll and began to call out names. "Acorn Maples!"

"Present!" a mare Earth pony replied.

"Bronze Cloud!" Shining yelled.

"Here!" a Pegasus stallion replied. "Sir, permission to tell you something sir!" Shining Armor looked up from the scroll to see the Pegasus standing in front of him.

"Go ahead recruit, but make it quick, I have planned a short test for today." The one known as Bronze Cloud nodded, and Shining Armor noticed that his name definitely stuck true to the colour of the Pegasus' coat, which was a shimmering bronze.

"Sir, do you know my father, Iron Cloud? He is the Captain of the Cloudsdale Guard," Bronze said.

"Hmm, yes, I believe I do, he is a rather nice fellow. It's a pleasure to see his son following in his hoofsteps," Shining Armor replied. "But you must return to position, I need to finish the roll call." Bronze Cloud nodded as he returned to his position.

"Of course sir! Thank you for your time sir!" Bronze said. Shining Armor finished calling out the names and was glad to know that everypony was present before he rolled up the scroll and tucked it away.

"Alright recruits, we will start nice and slow, by having you gallop around the field for as long as you can! Go!" Shining Armor shouted. The recruits fell into a single file line and they began to make their way around the field. Remember, it's to help build their endurance, who knows how long they'll need to last for? After about an hour had passed, Shining Armor blew his whistle. Many of the recruits had already collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. Only a select few had made it to the one hour mark, such as Bronze Cloud. "Good job recruits, especially to those who are still standing. Please return to your quarters in the barracks and rest, you have all more than earned it." The recruits who had fallen slowly stood up and they helped each other walk back to the entrance of the barracks. Shining Armor picked up his clipboard and wrote down a little note. Now that's done for today, let's see if the princesses require any assistance.  He quickly gathered up his gear and left the field.

Five hours before the siege

Shining Armor walked down the throne room, taking the time to observe the mosaics as he walked past them.

I've been in this room many times before, he thought. But I've never actually taken the time to look at these! He saw one which depicted Celestia and Luna battling Discord and sealing him in stone for the first time. Huh, he definitely deserved that, I'm still surprised that he's allowed to roam freely after all the crimes he has committed. Further down the hall he noticed a familiar face. Hey! That's Twily and her friends when they battled Nightmare Moon with the Elements of Harmony for the very first time! My little sis, who knew she would represent the Element of Magic someday? As he continued walking, he saw many more recent events, such as Spike saving the Crystal Empire and Twilight's coronation. Near the end of the mosaics, he saw one that caught his eye. The mosaic was of his sister facing against the powerful Lord Tirek, the Thief of Magic.

That was a most terrible day. If it weren't for Twilight and her friends, Equestria would have been doomed. He turned his head towards the throne and noticed that neither of the sisters were there. Huh, that's strange, usually at least one of them is here, I must have been too busy looking at the mosaics. With a shrug, he turned around and began to return to his quarters when he bumped into somepony. "Oh, excuse me, I must not have been looking where I was go-" he stopped when he realized who he had bumped into. "Princess Celestia! A thousand apologies!"

"It's quite alright Shining Armor, how fared your first day with the new recruits?" Celestia asked. Shining Armour straightened himself up to his full height.

"It, er... got off to quite the slow start your highness, but once they got moving, it was smooth sailing from there. So yes, day one was a huge success! I'm looking forward to tomorrow when I can test their ability to work together," Shining said and Celestia gave him a warm smile.

"It's good to hear that you and the recruits are enjoying themselves. After all, the future safety of Equestria depends on them! You look exhausted though Shining Armor, perhaps you should rest?" she suggested. Shining Armor knew she was right, he was exhausted. Perhaps a small nap would do him some good. He nodded in response and Celestia continued down the hall towards the throne. "Rest well general!"

Shining Armor returned to the throne room's entrance and made a sharp left, heading to the guest quarters. He entered the room that was given to him by Celestia and he took off his jacket and hung it up on the nearby coat rack. He did a few stretches, hearing some cracks before he hopped onto the bed and made himself comfortable. It wasn't long until he was fast asleep.

Three hours before the siege

Shining Armor was tossing and turning in his bed due to a nightmare that plagued his dreams. A sudden knocking was heard on his door and he woke upright with a start.

"Cadance!" Shining yelled. His whole body was covered in sweat and he was... crying? He quickly dried the tears away with his magic and went to answer the door. When he opened it, it was none other than Princess Luna herself. "Your highness! What brings you to my quarters?"

"Come with me," Luna replied and she started trotting down the hall. Shining Armor grabbed his jacket off of the coat rack and put it on. He left his room and closed the door behind him before he trotted after her. He soon realized that they were heading towards the throne room. When they entered the room, Shining Armor saw that Celestia was in a state of rage. She was stamping her hooves and blasting at the various banners placed throughout the room. Her wrath was a terrible sight to behold.

"Sister, the general is here," Luna said. She was strangely calm when she looked at how her sister was behaving. Celestia did one final blast, disintegrating the last banner that was hung. She took one deep breath and focused on Shining Armor.

"General, good, you are awake at last," she said as Shining Armor bowed before her.

"What is it that you need Celestia?" Shining asked. Celestia and Luna both looked at each other and Luna nodded.

"There's... nothing that I need Shining, but I have... I have some grim news," Celestia said. Shining Armor's ears pricked up at the mention of grim news.

"Grim news?" he asked. "What has happened? Is everything okay?" Celestia shook her head which caused Shining's heart to race.

"No Shining, while you were sleeping, we received an anonymous package... a package we quickly found out was sent by the Changelings."

"Changelings!? Why would they possibly want to send us a package? How do you even know it's from them?" Shining Armor asked.

"Because Shining Armor, they left... they left a note, along with... something else," Celestia said quietly. Her horn glowed yellow and she levitated a box that was next to the throne,along with the note that came with it towards Shining Armor. "The note was written by Queen Chrysalis herself Shining. It wasn't very pleasant to read, and her 'gift' even less so." Shining Armor levitated the note in front of him and he began to read it out loud.

"To the fools of Canterlot, you haven't forgotten about us have you? That dreadful thing you call a wedding was merely a set back. We've been preparing ourselves, growing stronger in number each day, and this time, I've decided to bring with me a very special friend. Oh yes, I almost forgot. Your dear Cadance is being held as my prisoner as well. There will be no interferences this time. Your precious Crystal Empire has already fallen and Canterlot shall be next! Ta ta for now. P.S. Enjoy the gift I sent you, I went to a lot of trouble to obtain it." Shining Armor began to shake his head in disbelief. "No... no! That's not possible! Cadance... what has happened to her!? What about the Crystal Heart!?"

"You must calm down Shining, your wife is being held captive by the Changelings," Celestia replied. "If they didn't have any use for her, they would have disposed of her already." Shining Armor closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He felt very shaken about what he had just read. When he opened his eyes again, he opened the box on the ground, only to be met with a gruesome sight. A single ear, torn off from one of the many guards that pledged their lives to defend the Crystal Empire. Shining Armor quickly looked away and closed the box, suddenly feeling queasy.

"Those... those monsters!" he exclaimed and Celestia sadly nodded her head.

"Yes... this is indeed a tragic blow to Equestria. I shall write a letter to Twilight informing her of these events immediately, she has the right to know," Celestia said. Luna levitated a bottle of ink along with a quill and some parchment over to Celestia, having conjured it out of thin air. "Thank you Luna, I'll take it from here." Luna ceased levitating the items, only to have Celestia catch them with her own magic barely a second later. "Let's see here... dear Twilight..." She began to write out the rest of the letter quickly, giving Twilight a brief summary of what had transpired. When she was content with it, she rolled it up and sent it off. The letter glowed brightly before it vanished without a trace. "There, now hopefully Twilight will receive it immediately." But Celestia was wrong. Little did she know that a disturbance had appeared within the realm of magic, preventing the letter from arriving to Twilight for another three hours. Fortunately, the letter that Twilight had sent was able to make it through in time, and it appeared with a burst of sparks at Celestia's hooves. "A response already? That was rather fast of her."

"Sister, don't waste any time, open it!" Luna exclaimed. Celestia opened the scroll and quickly scanned it, her eyes widening as she did so.

"Sister, you have to see this," Celestia whispered. The letter floated over to Luna where she could read it. Her eyes also widened at the words that were written on it.

"Celestia... she hasn't received your letter yet it looks like, but she has believed she made a break through with Eldon! Do you know what this means if she is right?"

"Yes Luna, I do. It means that he might be ready to learn more. But first..." Celestia paused before she turned to face Shining Armor. "First, Shining Armor, you must ready the Royal Guard and prepare the city's defenses. We don't know when the Changelings will strike, but when they do, we shall be ready for it." Shining Armor gave Celestia a calm salute.

"As you wish your highness," he replied. He levitated the box on his way out, intending to give the ear a proper burial first and quickly left to prepare the guards and the city.

"Sister, we must ascend to the hidden room," Celestia said. "We have an item of importance that Eldon will require if he does prove to be the One, we have to take the chance, just like Twilight did." Luna nodded and they too left the throne room, turning right down the hall and making their way towards the staircase that led to the upper reaches of the castle.

One hour before the siege

Shining Armor was back at the field behind the barracks. He had given the order to a couple of guards to gather up every able bodied member of the military and to meet him there. The order spread like wild fire and within an hour, Canterlot's Royal Guard was gathered all in one place, talking amongst themselves to pass the time. Shining Armor estimated that he had around two thousand of them at his disposal. Deciding that they were ready, he blew into his whistle which immediately gained their attention.

"Thank you everypony for coming on such short notice. Recently, Canterlot has been threatened by an old enemy of ours," he said and paused for effect. "The Changelings." Multiple gasps came from the gathered group and they began to talk again, but Shining Armor quickly silenced them by raising his hoof. "Yes everypony, my words are true. I don't know when the Changelings will strike, but we must prepare ourselves in case a siege occurs. I'll need four groups to spread throughout the city, one group for each cardinal direction. Where is the E.U.P Guard? May I have them come up here please?" A group of about fifty ponies, consisting of Unicorns, Pegasi, and Earth ponies alike made their way to the front. "Everypony, the E.U.P Guard will be with me to defend the castle. As for the rest of you, make sure the civilians stay inside their homes and have them barricade their windows and doors. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes general!" the group said in unison and they saluted. Shining Armor returned the salute to them.

"Then move out to your positions! We must not fail this city!" Shining shouted. He then turned to the members of the E.U.P Guard. "As for the rest of you, follow me to the castle, there are some fortifications I have to put up still." One of the ponies in the group nodded.

"Of course sir, lead the way," the mare said. Shining Armor quickly left the field and trotted to the castle entrance and went inside, shortly followed by the E.U.P Guard.

"Alright everypony, I want you to all spread out in groups of four. If you see anything suspicious, either fight it or get some assistance from the others, understand?" he said. The E.U.P members nodded. "Good, I'll be in the throne room channelling the shield spell, if anything happens, report to me immediately."

The E.U.P Guard quickly formed into groups and left for various sections of the castle. Shining Armor left for the throne room, leaving four of the guards to protect the main doorway. In the throne room, Shining Armor closed his eyes and began to concentrate his magical energy. His horn began to spark and he projected a beam straight up that went through the ceiling and into the sky above. Shining Armor looked out one of the windows that hadn't been converted to a mosaic to see his magenta coloured shield spell envelop the city. Content with his creation, he slowly began to charge it, increasing its durability.

Present

An E.U.P Guard suddenly barged into the throne room.

"General! Canterlot is under attack!" the guard shouted. Shining Armor had just finished checking that the shield spell was running at maximum power before he turned to face the guard.

"So soon? Blast! Make sure that the princesses are safe. Tell the other groups to guard them with your lives!" Shining Armor commanded and the guard saluted.

"I won't let you down general!" the guard replied and galloped away to alert everypony else. Shining Armor trotted over to one of the castle's windows to get a clear view of the situation. He didn't like what he saw. Changelings swarmed all over his shield, looking for a way to slip through its defenses.

It was only a matter of time before they showed their ugly faces again! But how were they able to get so close to the city without being detected? I sense something wrong he- His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a faint boom coming from outside the castle. All of a sudden, he noticed that his shield spell was flickering and did his best to recharge it. BOOM! The sound was louder now, and the vibration that followed caused Shining Armor to fall and break his concentration.

As he struggled to regain his composure, another loud BOOM shook Canterlot's foundations. The shield spell was flickering dangerously at this point and the castle windows and walls were beginning to crack. Shining Armor managed to steady himself. He was ready for another boom if there was one. Suddenly, one giant BOOM came, causing the shield to finally disappear and shatter the throne room's entrance.

"In Celestia's name!" Shining Armor exclaimed. "Who goes there!?" His ears pricked up as he heard wicked laughter coming from the entrance. When the smoke cleared, it revealed the perpetrator of this whole fiasco. It was none other than Chrysalis, the Queen of the Changelings.

"Hello Shining Armor, did you miss me?" she asked.

Twilight's Palace

"Cosmic! Where's Cosmic!?" Twilight yelled. Her friends looked over to see Twilight in a state of panic. "First the Crystal Empire, Canterlot is under siege, and now this! Ugh!"

"There is only one thing we can do Twilight, we gotta help 'em!" Applejack exclaimed. "Ah will start roundin up the townsfolk, who wants to help?"

"We all will!" the others except for Twilight shouted in unison. This caused Twilight to stomp her hoof on the ground.

"No! It's far too dangerous! We'd be putting too many pony lives at stake and we would never make it there in time," she said. "Only we should go and help, but first we have to find El- Cosmic."

"Oh I can answer that question!" Pinkie exclaimed while balancing two books on her nose. "I saw him leave while you were looking through the window!"

"And ya couldn't have told us this before Twilight began to panic?" Applejack asked.

"I think it's funny when Twilight panics!" Pinkie exclaimed. "But you're right, he just went outside to the balcony I believe indeedy!" The group galloped to the door and opened it to find that Eldon was directly across from them on the balcony, watching the city from where he was. "Hey, wait for me everypony!"

My dream... it's happening for real...  I never believed it would actually be true, Eldon thought as the others gathered around him.

"Hey Cosmic, we gotta hoof it over there now if we want to help!" Applejack exclaimed. Eldon nodded his head and continued to stare at the chaotic spectacle before him. Something inside him began to stir, something that had laid dormant for many years...

Canterlot Castle

"It's been a rather long time Shining, how are you doing?" Chrysalis asked sarcastically.

"Chrysalis! Why are you here in Canterlot!? Why are you doing this!?" Shining Armor shouted. "What have you done with Cadance you monster!?" Chrysalis simply threw her head back and laughed.

"Don't worry Shining Armor, Cadance is safe with us... as for why I'm here, Canterlot has something I require, something that'll help bring the master into this cursed world! Now if you'll excuse me, I have some catching up to do with your precious princesses!" Chrysalis said mockingly.

"You won't lay one hoof on them you fiend!" Shining Armor shouted angrily as he snorted and stamped his hooves.

"Very well then, I had wanted to do this the easy way, but you leave me no choice. I hope you are ready to face your worst fears!" Chrysalis exclaimed with evil glee. "Oh King Sombra!"

King Sombra? But he was defeated! Destroyed! Oh no… this is bad! Shining Armor thought. Darkness began to form behind Chrysalis, revealing the shadowy face of the evil king. Shining Armour rose to his full height, his horn blazing magenta with magical energy. The shadowy king laughed at the sight.

"A bold Unicorn you are, but I'm afraid that you'll be no match against me!" King Sombra roared.

"We'll see about that!" Shining Armor shouted and began blasting Sombra with beams of magical energy. The King laughed as he dodged each shot with ease.

"Such a weak Unicorn! And to think we had actually thought this was going to be somewhat difficult! Now it's my turn, prepare to meet your end pony, you won't escape like last time," Sombra stated as shadows erupted from his mouth and raced towards Shining.

Shining Armour threw up a shield in time just as the shadows washed over and enveloped the shield. It took every ounce of his strength to keep the shield up, but he began to weaken as Sombra's shadows increased the pressure against the shield. His horn's glow began to flicker as Sombra's dark magic slowly began to creep through his shield's defenses. At last when Shining Armor was about to collapse, Celestia and Luna came crashing through one of the windows. They both emitted a yellow and blue light from their horns towards Shining Armor which caused the shadows to disperse. Shining Armor witnessed the two sisters preparing to battle and he collapsed, having fallen unconscious from withstanding the dark magic. Celestia quickly levitated him out of harms way and onto her back.

"Ah, so the two princesses finally decide to appear, how convenient," Chrysalis said. "But no matter, as soon as we deal with you, we shall take what we require!" Celestia and Luna planted their hooves firmly on the ground.

"What you are seeking is far away from here!" Celestia shouted, "You'll never lay your hooves on him, I won't let you!"

"Oh, but you will Celestia, it has been a long time," Sombra rumbled.

"Sombra...? But that's impossible! You were destroyed!" Celestia exclaimed.

"No, you can never destroy me! For I, Sombra, am eternal!" he shouted. "I will continue to live forever, and I shall laugh as I force both of you to watch your precious city burn to the ground, with both of you as fuel for the fire!"

"I don't think so Sombra," Luna said. "Let's end this intrusion. Now Sis?" Celestia closed her eyes and nodded.

"Now!" Celestia exclaimed and opened her eyes. The two sisters merged their beams into one and fired at Sombra, but he dodged it with ease and it hit an unsuspecting Chrysalis instead.

"Agh..." Chrysalis said weakly, their magic having burned a hole into her shoulder. She struggled to stay up, but the princesses wasted no time in firing another beam, this time striking her in the  leg and causing her to fall onto the ground. "Sombra! Don't just float there! Kill them!" Chrysalis hissed through clenched teeth. Sombra moved towards them, causing the sisters to slowly back up. They continued to fire beams but they just passed through Sombra harmlessly.

"Sister! Our regular magic isn't connecting! How is this possible!?" Luna exclaimed.

"It is because he is made of shadow!" Celestia replied and she launched a flaming orb at Sombra. The orb surprisingly connected, causing Sombra to reel back and roar in pain.

"Ugh! Get your filthy hooves off of me! Chrysalis yelled. Sombra turned around to find that the E.U.P Guards had arrived and they were holding Chrysalis captive.

"It's over Sombra! You may have taken the Crystal Empire, but you nor your army aren't powerful enough to defeat us!" Celestia shouted, but Sombra simply began to laugh at them.

"Oh no Celestia, you haven't even seen our true power, but if you won't give us what we desire, then watch as your pathetic city smashes into the ground below!" Sombra then spun around, spraying shadows as he did so and hovered over to Chrysalis. "Goodbye princesses, it was a pleasure being here." Suddenly the shadows vanished, leaving no sign of Sombra or Chrysalis anywhere, just a few E.U.P Guards strangling each other until they realized they weren't holding Chrysalis anymore.

"Sister, we did it! We beat them back!" Luna exclaimed. Suddenly, they heard a loud cracking sound which caused the ground to shift and the sisters to stumble about.

"No, we are not finished yet, Sombra thinks he can destroy Canterlot's foundations!" Celestia exclaimed. "It's unfortunate for him that an enchantment resides in the foundations that even he can't break. We should evict the city of any remaining Change-" she was interrupted by another loud crack. All of a sudden, the entire building and Canterlot itself began to tilt. "Impossible... he broke the enchantment!"

"Sister, what do we do?" Luna asked. Celestia gently lowered Shining Armor onto the ground and unfurled her wings.

"We must stop the city's descent before it collides with the ground!" Luna nodded in agreement with her sister and unfurled her wings as well. They flew through the shattered castle window and used whatever energy they had left to slow the city's fall, but it just wasn't enough. The E.U.P Guards rushed over to their general to find that he was slowly waking up.

"Wh- what happened? Where is Chrysalis? Where is Sombra!?" Shining shouted as an orange Earth pony approached him.

"Sir, they have fled, although there are still Changelings remaining in the city," the pony replied. Shining Armor suddenly heard a loud grinding sound. It felt as if the whole castle was moving.

"What's happening to the castle!?" Shining exclaimed with surprise.

"Not just the castle sir, all of Canterlot. With all due respect, we need to fight whatever Changelings remain." Shining Armor nodded in agreement.

"Of course, you are absolutely right. Falling city or not, let's buck the scum back to where they came from!"

Twilight's Palace

"Come on y'all, we've stayed here fer too long! We gotta get our behinds over there before it's too late!" Applejack shouted. All of a sudden, they saw bright colours flashing from inside the castle.

"That's Celestia's and Luna's magic!" Twilight exclaimed. "I recognize the colours, they are fighting whoever is there!" They then heard a loud crack that emitted from Canterlot, followed shortly after by another one. Everypony gasped at what they saw next. Canterlot had begun to slide down the side of the mountain. They saw two tiny figures shoot their magic to try and stop the city's descent, but it was providing little use.

"Holy hay fries in a needle stack!" Applejack exclaimed. "The city is falling!" They stared at the sight, watching as one of their most beloved cities slowly descended to its doom. Twilight couldn't turn her gaze away from the sight until she felt something tap her from behind. She turned around and saw Eldon there who was struggling to remove his necklace.

"Wait, weren't you just standing in front of us Eldon?" Twilight asked.

"Twi- Twilight! Help me! This necklace is pulling on me and the orb is brighter than I've ever seen it!" Eldon shouted as he gasped for breath.

"Okay, okay, just hang on Cosmic, let me see what happens if I try to touch it..." As soon as Twilight touched the orb, it began to pulse rapidly and it lifted Eldon up and over the side of the balcony and onto the ground below.

"Twilight!" Eldon shouted. "You must help the other princesses! Ahhhhgghh..." His voice faded in the distance as the necklace began to pull him towards the falling city, leaving a blue and white trail in his wake.

"What in the hay is happening to him!" Applejack exclaimed.

"I don't know, but that sure looked like fun!" Pinkie said as Twilight began to flap her wings until she hovered off of the ground.

"Twilight dear! Where are you going!?" Rarity asked and Twilight looked at her friends.

"To help save Canterlot, you all can come too, but you must hurry," Twilight answered. Rarity opened her mouth to respond, but thought better of it and nodded.

"I'm going with you Twilight, even if I can't stop the city with magic, I can still protect you and the other princesses," Rainbow Dash said.

"Fine, let's go then, Celestia and Luna need us!" Twilight shouted and she launched herself off the balcony and flew towards the falling city with Rainbow Dash close behind.

"We'll get there as soon as we can Twi!" Applejack shouted after them.

"Um, perhaps we can use the trail that Cosmic made?" Fluttershy suggested. "It looks like he accidentally made a short-cut for us."

"Then follow him we will, ah am also curious about what's going on with him right now though, that was all very sudden," Applejack said. The others nodded in agreement and they began to make their way down the stairs. They hoped that they would be able to arrive in time to help save Canterlot. Spike was still staring at the chaotic spectacle before him when he realized that he was alone.

"Hey! Where did everypony go? Wait for me guys!" he shouted and ran down the stairs, desperate to catch up to them in time.

Canterlot

Shining Armor and the rest of the E.U.P Guard galloped through the city, dodging open flames and climbing over the fallen bodies of friend and foe alike.

The Changelings have never been this vicious before. I hope the civilians are doing okay, Shining thought. So much destruction and death... this is a dark chapter in Equestria's history for sure. He levitated to him a polearm from one of the fallen guards and they continued their search of the city.

It wasn't long until they heard the sounds of a major battle happening between the two forces. Their side had set up various wagons to stall the Changeling onslaught, but it only impaired the ones that they were able to ground, since most if not all Changelings could fly. One of the guards noticed them and he rushed over.

"General! The Changelings have us pinned down! Thank Celestia you're here though, and with the E.U.P Guard too!" the guard exclaimed.

Shining armor noticed that the guard was covered in green blood stains and he had open wounds of his own. Shining Armor placed a hoof on the guard's shoulder.

"Let's show these vermin that they've infested the wrong city!" Shining shouted. "Everypony! To me! Charge!" Shining Armor rallied whatever guards were left and they made their way through the wagons, only to clash with the Changelings who were waiting on the other side. "Pegasus ponies! To the sky! Protect our heads!" The sky was quickly filled with those who could fly, leaving those on the ground feeling less exposed. With one quick thrust of his polearm, Shining Armor impaled a Changeling though the gut before quickly shaking it off and dodging a swipe from another one's razor sharp hooves... or what looked like hooves anyways.

"This is for Canterlot!" Shining Armor shouted, bucking a Changeling that had charged at him and sent it flying into the swinging blade of another guard, effectively slicing through its exoskeleton and cutting it in half. "This is for the lives you stole!" He knocked one over with his polearm, only to watch it be crushed afterwards. "And this..." He spun around while swinging his polearm, "...is for taking my wife!" He felt his swing crunch through the neck of a Changeling and he watched as it crumpled to the ground, but for every Changeling they killed, only another one took its place.  "Keep pushing everypony! We can beat them back!" An armored Changeling suddenly made its way past the Pegasi in the sky and dived at Shining Armor, slicing his shoulder before crashing to the ground. Shining Armor grunted in pain and the Changeling laughed at him.

"Well... if it isssn't Shining Armor, Equessstria'sss general. How do you like that wound on your shoulder?" Shining Armor looked at the wound only to find it that it bled a little bit, staining his jacket.

"Tis but a flesh wound Changeling scum! You'll have to do better than that!" Shining Armor shouted and the Changeling hissed angrily at him.

"With pleasure... let it be known that Ssslyclaw, the Queen's second-in-command, killed the great Shining Armor!" The Changeling charged at him and Shining Armor barely dodged Slyclaw's attack, when suddenly a high pitched wailing was heard across the whole city. Shining noticed that the Changelings had immediately stopped what they were doing and began to fly towards the source. Even Slyclaw acted as if Shining wasn't there anymore, although he noticed that Slyclaw tried to resist it.

"They're... they're retreating! The day is ours everypony!" Shining shouted, causing whatever guards left alive to cheer. Blood was splattered everywhere and the cut Slyclaw had given him had cut through his uniform. Great, now I'll have to get it patched up, right after I see a doctor of course. He watched as the Changelings vanished into the clouds when something tapped him from behind. He turned around to see a guard standing there. "Yes soldier? What is it?"

"Sir! The city is still falling! What shall we do?" the guard asked and Shining Armor sighed.

"The only thing we can do soldier. Hope the princesses will be able to save those who can't escape."

Canterlot Fields

The necklace continued to drag him across the ground until Eldon at last arrived at the Canterlot Fields, which was a reasonable size of land just located at the base of the mountain underneath the city itself. Eldon slowly got up from the ground and brushed away the dirt he had accumulated. He looked at the orb and he held it with his hoof.

"Alright, just what the heck is going on with this thing!" he yelled. He looked up and saw the city slowly getting closer to the ground, although it was gaining speed and becoming increasingly louder as rock grinded against rock. The princesses were throwing all the slowing spells they had at it, but were quickly becoming very exhausted. Eldon sat down on the ground and stared at the orb. I wish I could be of some help... I feel so useless! I'm not the One... just a regular guy that got caught up in this mess... Eldon sighed as he looked up at the falling city. "Merlin believes I'm the One... Twilight believes I'm the One... but how? Come on you stupid orb, show me!" He grabbed at the orb and it felt warm to his touch. It was a rather pleasant feeling when Eldon suddenly recalled Merlin's words.

You have a strong magic in you Eldon and it is located right... Eldon remembered and pressed his hoof to his heart. Perhaps... if I believed too... yes, I know what must be done... He stood up, still holding his hoof against where he felt his heart beating and inhaled deeply before he shouted to the world. "I'm Eldon Field! And I won't let this city FALL!" The orb in his necklace suddenly changed from a white to a bright blue, and sparks began to pour from it, spreading out all over his body. When the sparks reached his heart, Eldon felt a sudden change, as if someone had just unblocked a dam after years worth of build-up. He closed his eyes as he let the new sensation wash over him... and it felt amazing.

Gain their trust... unlock your power... a voice in his mind whispered, but Eldon was too busy with himself to notice. Eldon could feel his body changing, morphing, expanding, and shrinking. When he opened his eyes, he noticed that his arms and legs were stretched out and that he was still on the ground, but the important thing he noticed was that he wasn't an equine anymore. He shouted with joy as he clenched and unclenched his hands, bending each and every finger joint he could. He felt like his old self again, but in a more... fresh and rejuvenated way. His eyes had developed a light blue glow and he felt something strange at his fingertips, but some mental force was holding it back. Eldon relaxed only for a second when white sparks suddenly shot from his fingertips and he quickly put the block back up.

I don't believe my eyes! I think... I think I might have just performed magic! he thought. Merlin's warning suddenly crossed his mind. As the One, you are free to do as you please, but corruption can take over with ease. Light or dark, your path awaits, and only you, can change Equestria's fate... Alright, let's try that again, except this time, do not lose control. He lowered the block once again, except this time instead of coming from his fingertips, the magic came from his feet. "Oh sh-" Eldon began to say, but he was interrupted as the magic launched him towards the mountain side, causing him to repeatedly slam against it. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" He repeated those words over and over until he finally put the block back up and fell backwards. Oh my god, I'm the crappiest thing to ever wield magic, it's not even funny.

He suddenly heard Twilight's voice in his thoughts.

Eldon...? Is that you? What in the hay happened!? You look... different, but what are you doing there!? The city will crush you! she exclaimed in his mind. Eldon still had not gotten used to telepathic communication. It felt weird having something else in his thoughts, especially something that tended to be loud.

Uh, I hope that doesn't come to pass, Eldon replied with his own thoughts. As the princesses above braced themselves for the city's impact with the ground, Eldon looked up to see the city was about to land on him. He stood up and raised his hands, activating his power at the same time. Not sure if stupid or idiotic, probably both... it was a good life. Eldon closed his eyes and braced himself for the impact. He and the land that the city was on collided which caused a shockwave to occur, flattening nearby trees and shaking the very ground itself.Damn this thing is heavy! Wait... I'm still alive? Eldon opened his eyes and looked above him, only to see that his arms trembled like crazy and his legs were carving trenches into the mountain side. He watched as he slowly felt the ground beneath him crack when his feet touched the bottom, but this gave him the perfect opportunity to begin pushing back. He let more of his magic low through him, engulfing him in a blue and white flame. Something different had taken over his mind, letting the magic flow at an unstable level. The princesses couldn't believe their eyes. Eldon slowly but surely began to ascend the mountain, step by step as Luna flew over to her sister.

"Celestia, tell me I'm not dreaming is that... another one of them?" she asked and Celestia nodded.

"Yes... I had only believed there to be one... it all makes sense now," Celestia whispered to her. "We must help him!" The princesses then doubled their efforts, assisting Eldon on his ascension to where the city once resided. Many ponies had gathered to look over the edge and saw the amazing feat before them. Three princesses of Equestria and something underneath them was pushing them back up.

"Come on strange thing! You can do it!" Rainbow Dash yelled, still in the air with the princesses. The ponies in Canterlot began to cheer and stamp their hooves, urging them on, but it wasn't done yet. As Eldon continued to climb, the orb in his necklace began to change shape. It had moulded itself into that of a shield with a sword pointed straight downwards behind the shield. This sudden change renewed Eldon's strength and he began to climb even faster. As soon as they reached Canterlot's original location. Eldon channelled a great amount of magical energy through the bottom of the city, causing a white glow to spread and envelop it.

"I... won't... FAIL!" Eldon yelled. Down on the ground, Twilight's friends arrived just in time to witness one of the most spectacular feats of magic in the history of Equestria. Eldon poured so much energy into the city that it caused an explosion so loud that enveloped Canterlot and re-sealed its foundations, making them even stronger than ever before. The city had been returned to where it once was, but the explosion had sent Eldon flying and for a couple of seconds, he was suspended in the air. Eldon's eyes began to return to normal and he suddenly felt tired and weak. He looked at the city before him and closed his eyes, having regained control of his mind again.

"Would you look at that..." Eldon whispered as the rest of his magic faded away and returned within him once more. He began to plummet towards the ground at a frightening speed. Fortunately, the princesses used the last of their energy to dive down and they caught him in the nick of time before they gently lowered him onto the ground.

"This creature... Eldon helped save Canterlot and risked his own life to do so," Celestia said.

"He... he isn't dead is he?" Twilight asked and Celestia smiled warmly at Twilight.

"No young one, he is merely resting," Celestia replied. "He used so much raw and uncontained energy... just to save Canterlot." Suddenly, a cloud of smoke appeared behind her and when it cleared, it was none other than Discord. He wore a shower cap and was holding a bar of soap as water dripped off of him.

"Honestly, don't any of you know how hard it is to have a nice shower when you are constantly shaking due to magical disturbances?" Discord asked. "You should try it sometime, it's quite interesting." Fluttershy gasped as she galloped over and hugged Discord.

"Discord! You should have seen it! Canterlot was falling, but this strange... thing helped the princesses save it!" she exclaimed. Discord looked at Eldon and a grin came across his face.

"Oh ho ho! Now what do we have here?" he asked.

"Be careful Discord, he might be dangerous," Fluttershy warned.

"Dangerous? Pfft, don't be silly Fluttershy! What can an unconscious, er... thing do to someone like me?" Discord said. His eyes fell upon the gem that had changed in Eldon's necklace and he reeled back in surprise. "Oh my, I do believe you all have a rather curious situation on your hooves here, but I'll leave it up to the rest of you to figure it out. Au revoir!" The soap in Discord's hand then turned into a business card which he placed between Eldon's teeth.

"Uh, Discord? What do you think you're doing?" Rarity asked.

"Just leaving your little friend here a little something, that's all," Discord replied. "He has such a wonderful necklace, oh and Fluttershy? Please return home soon. Angel is being... quite the grumpy pants." He pulled his shower cap down over his body which caused him to vanish shortly after. Luna levitated the card out of Eldon's mouth and tossed it to the side.

"Sister, Discord is talking about the orb in Eldon's necklace... it has changed!" Luna exclaimed. Celestia took a closer look and saw that her sister was telling the truth.

"It looks like a... a shield and there is also a sword behind it," she said. "Twilight, is there anything else you know about this orb before you sent it away?" Twilight shook her head as she began to pace back and forth.

"I never really noticed anything at the time because I was far too busy developing the spell, but when I touched it recently, before all this happened, it pulsed rapidly," Twilight replied.

"Perhaps you should touch it again Twilight," Celestia suggested. Twilight cautiously approached the unconscious creature and touched the white gem, which caused it to turn into a magenta colour, the colour of her element. She removed her hoof and it quickly reverted back to its normal colour.

"Hey Applejack, how about you try it?" Twilight asked.

"Alright, but this is all so very strange..." Applejack said and touched the gem as well. It turned into an orange colour before it once again returned to its normal state.

"I don't believe it..." Twilight whispered. "Could that gem be... the seventh element?"

"Woah woah woah, hold up now!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed. "Twilight, did you just say that there might be a seventh element? As in, an element that's a part of the Elements of Harmony?" Celestia looked up at Rainbow Dash before she began to pace back and forth.

"I had only heard about it in legends, an element that was able to enhance the strength of the others, but I never assumed it to be true. Twilight happened to had mentioned it a couple of weeks ago, but I still wasn't sure..." Celestia said. "The Tree of Harmony never depicted this symbol... but the tree also works in mysterious ways. Perhaps a trip to the tree is due soon, don't you agree everypony?" They all nodded in agreement. "Then it is settled, tomorrow you will leave as soon as Eldon has recovered."

"Woah there your highness, ah don't mean to be rude, but ain't his name Cosmic Firefall?" Applejack asked and Celestia chuckled lightly.

"So that was the name you gave him Twilight? It fits him to be honest in a way."

"Oh it was really nothing," Twilight replied as she blushed. "And as for you my friends, I'm sorry I gave you a fake name, but I felt the need to protect his identity."

"It's okay Twilight, we understand your reasons, and we forgive you like always," Fluttershy said.

"Okay everypony, we've had quite the eventful night, would you like to stay at the castle this evening?" Celestia asked. "I promise that it won't fall!"

Everypony started laughing lightly at her joke and Eldon smiled softly as he slept.

Back at the castle, Celestia and Luna were in a room only known by a select few, the hidden room.

"Sister... what are we going to do with this... human?" Luna asked. "We haven't had another one in Equestria for centuries, this is definitely not a coincidence." Celestia paced back and forth in the room as she pondered on their next course of action.

"They'll be visiting the Tree of Harmony tomorrow sister and hopefully they'll find some answers there. It won't be long now until Twilight and her friends discover on their own that Star Swirl, well, Merlin as he also called himself... he is also a human," Celestia replied and Luna nodded in agreement.

"I was there as well all those years ago when we sealed him away for safety, the map piece will be their first step on this journey." There was a brief moment of silence before Luna continued. "But what worries me is Eldon's lack of control over his power. If that power was to be used against us, I fear that we might not be able to counter it, even with the Elements of Harmony on our side." Celestia trotted over to the nearby window and sighed.

"For now, we have to put our trust in him like we did with Star Swirl. Eldon has been selected as the One after all. What we can do now is to help guide them as best as we can, because I believe the attack on the city was not an attempt to control it, but a distraction to capture him and that gem, but unfortunately for them, Eldon wasn't here." Luna looked at her in confusion.

"Eldon I understand them wanting, but why would they want the gem?" Luna asked. "Even if they did obtain it, what could they possibly do with it?" Celestia just shook her head.

"I don't know Luna. If it is the seventh element like Twilight said, it wouldn't be able to work for Sombra or Chrysalis. What I do know is that Eldon needs to be kept under watch."

"But what about the Crystal Empire sister? Surely we can't just leave it under the control of Sombra and the Changelings?" Celestia looked at Luna and Luna saw the anger in her eyes.

"I swear to you Luna, the Crystal Empire, along with Cadance and its citizens, will be freed, it'll just take some more time until we are fully prepared to march on the city," Celestia said. She returned to looking out the window and watched as the stars sparkled up above.

"I... I trust you sister," Luna said. "But we must rescue Cadance and her people before we make any type of attack on the city. They are currently pieces that could be used against us to allow the enemy to gain the upper hoof."

"Do not worry Luna, I'll make sure Cadance and her people are a safe distance away from the city before our eventual assault," Celestia replied. "We just need a plan... and soon."