Cataclysm: The Dark Below

Twilight peered into the telescope with her tongue pointed out from her mouth as she leaned into it. She carefully adjusted the instruments by her hooves to move the range of her vision across the sky. Everywhere she looked, she could see the great stars that Luna had carefully placed in the night sky, like a canvas of majestic lights.

"Do you see them, Twilight?"

The unicorn looked behind her to see the familiar blue alicorn, staring up at the night sky with a dark look on her face.

"The stars, Princess?" Twilight asked.

"Please, call me Luna, and yes. Do you think that some parts of the sky look... empty, tonight?"

The way Luna phrased that made Twilight nervous, as if she were giving her a test of her own.

"Umm... I, don't think so?" Twilight replied nervously.

"Twilight, you now that I only make a majority of those stars, right?" Luna asked, now looking at Twilight. "Do you know how some of those stars are seen in our night sky?"

Twilight blinked a few times, having not anticipated such a direct question out of nowhere, but pressed on to answer none the less.

"Well, they're supposed to be large balls of plasma, too far away for anypony to hope to find. The light we see from them in our sky is actually light from years before we noticed them. What astronomers normally see when they study them is actually an image from a long time ago. The stars you make are actually small spheres of magic that you use to protect Equestria from-"

"You needn't strain yourself, Twilight, I am aware of why I keep my stars in the sky. But, have you noticed that a number of stars have disappeared... at the same time?"

Twilight looked up at the night sky, trying to remember the constellations that she had studied a while ago, and found that a few were indeed missing.

"What's going on?" Twilight asked nervously.

"We think that it may be nothing, my sister and I. For all we know, it's just the passage of time, finally catching up with us. It may very well be the natural end for those specific stars, and nothing more."

Twilight nodded before she heard Luna speak up again.

"But, there was a tale told some time ago, that once, there was a great Darkness that would envelope everything that could be seen, and no life could exist within it. They told Tia and I that, should it return, we would know by the stars, the moon, and then through the power of Harmony itself. But I have yet to feel any disturbance from my... old prison," Luna visibly cringed at those words as she spoke them. "Do not assume that this Darkness is what is to blame, Twilight. My sister and I have seen what powers that dark forces hold, and even in the worst of times, we could always find a light of hope."

"Well, I'll be sure to keep a horn close to the ground, in case there's a magical disturbance somewhere near Ponyville," Twilight spoke.

Luna smiled at her and leaned down to give Twilight a light nuzzle.

"Thank you, Twilight. Please stay safe."

The alicorn backed up and teleported out of the Library as Twilight looked back up to the sky.

'She's right. We've faced dark forces before, and won. I know we could take on anything that might try to harm Equestria.'

\\\//////

A dark force slowly creeps towards an immobile form, trapped inside of an upright figure. The hazy mist begins to wrap itself around the large column of what looked like stone, as several hundred sets of eyes began to watch in anticipation. As time went on, the dark mist seeped into the dull, colorless husk that lay within the column, as thousands of whispers and prayers reached the inside, and began to echo. All around, yellow, glowing orbs began to converge before the place of worship, offering dead pieces of metal and flesh to the altar of an unknown ruler. After waiting for what seemed like hundreds of years, a sound was heard from the place of rest. Before those that watched, a massive, clawed hand began to slowly move out towards them, and when it opened, the offerings were lifted into the air, and were converted into a dark purple light that flew into the hand. Growls began to emit from the form, and beneath it, a rip in space and time began to form. As it sunk into the black void, several different figures merged into the portal as well, and began to call out to the others that seemed to bow before the center figure. Before the figure sunk into the darkness, three blue eyes opened and watched as its followers began to listen to its cries of war. With the last of its power, it brought the portal open to its absolute largest, and used its will to bring its resting grounds outside of the Light's influence.

\\\//////

"What?" gasped the Speaker.

When he asked the question, a voice of unparalleled majesty, incomprehensible by any other, spoke in his mind.

"More than Earth? But, where?"

Again, the voice spoke to him. He could hear the pain in its voice, and gazed at the damage across its body that rested above the Last City. It stood still, watching over the last of the Light left on Earth. To any other, it would be a symbol of hope, simply a sphere, a God, or the very essence of Light itself, but the Speaker knew more than any other would. He had heard its words, and since, he has spoken for it. Now it speaks again, and give warning, not for Earth or Humanity, but for another source of Light.

"I... see... I'll bring them as soon as I can."

The Speaker turned away from his balcony that looked out towards the Traveler, and walked alongside his Ghost.

"I swear, I never knew about any of that," it spoke to the Speaker.

"I believe you, just as the Traveler does in the Guardians. Just as he did with you, as well. Send the message to them. The Darkness will not wait while we do."