The Fall of the Sun

by Widow Peak

Rating: teen
Tags: Nightmare Moon, Adventure, Violence, Princess Celestia, Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Death, Alternate Universe
Length: 104307

Sunset Shimmer, the prized student of Princess Celestia, is sent to Ponyville to prepare the Summer Sun Celebration. Unknowingly to her, her actual mission is to stop Nightmare Moon. However, she was never meant to be the Element of Magic.

CURRENTLY GOING THROUGHT A REWRITE

Sunset Shimmer, the prized student of Princess Celestia, is sent to Ponyville to prepare the Summer Sun Celebration. Unknowingly to her, her actual mission is to stop Nightmare Moon. However, she was never meant to be the Element of Magic.

With Celestia gone, Equestria is left unprotected against the mad alicorn. Twilight Sparkle, the faithful student of Princess Celestia, is determined to avenge her master and save the kingdom.

IMPORTANT: While this story was being written, some things in canon changed. That means a few things here are going to conflict with canon. Please bear with me on this.

For example, here Maud is the older sister, with Limestone and Marble being middle twins, and Pinkie being the youngest. Also, the friends Twilight had in Canterlot are not the same ponies that live/visit Ponyville frequently. Because silly canon is silly.

Published 2015-03-04 22:10:02 UTC
Last updated 2018-11-21 23:52:00 UTC

III - The Hermit

Hide from the monster

A metallic shriek woke Twilight up. She blinked sleepily, and looked through the window. There was a train platform outside. Confused, the unicorn shook her head and looked down. Spike was sleeping on her lap. Then Twilight noticed the mint-coated unicorn sitting before her, and the memories came back. Sighing, Twilight shook the little dragon to wake him up.

The two mares and dragon parted from the conductor, who was still in a bad mood. Twilight hoped they hadn’t put him in a very bad situation by, technically, kidnapping him.

After fastening their saddlebags around their bodies, the two ponies crossed the station and entered the town itself. Twilight wasn’t used to be surrounded by such small houses. In Canterlot, space was precious, and such the buildings towered over the streets. Here, the cobblestone or dirt streets were broad and ample. It wouldn’t have been unnerving if it wasn’t for the complete lack of ponies on the streets.

Indeed, Twilight hadn’t seen a single pony since they had stepped out of the train station. After what had happened with the Sun, it would have surprised her to see ponies celebrating anything. However, the complete absence of them was even more abnormal. Where were the panicking ponies, the ground guards trying to keep them under control, the authorities assuring that they had everything under control and they had nothing to worry about?

‘Where is everypony?’

Twilight almost jumped at the sound of Spike yawning on her back. With her heart racing inside her chest, the unicorn stopped a second to take a deep breath and try to relax. She was being ridiculous. Lyra didn’t seem bothered by the absolute lack of ponies, so why should she? There was nothing lurking from the shadows between the buildings. Definitely.

Still on edge, Twilight improvised a couple of protective spells as she followed the other unicorn through the streets. Luckily for her, she saw Lyra turn left and head towards a very specific house. Twilight sighed in relief as Lyra extracted a key from one of her saddlebags and slid it into the lock.

“Bonnie! I’m home!” she called out.

Twilight winced, but a quick glance around confirmed that they were still alone. Lyra was motioning her to come inside, and the unicorn complied, perhaps faster than strictly necessary. Then Lyra locked the door behind them, and Twilight finally allowed herself to relax.

“Bonnie, are you home?” called out Lyra, lighting her horn and disappearing into a corridor. Twilight took a moment to regain her breath before following her. There was a kitchen on the right and a sitting room at the far end of the house, and then a set of stairs to the second floor. Twilight caught the green glow of Lyra’s magic upstairs, and headed there, carefully balancing Spike to make sure he didn’t fall off. She had barely reached the last step, when Lyra suddenly appeared a few centimeters from her face. “Bonnie isn’t home!” she shrieked, terrified.

Twilight grimaced at the undeserved punishment of her ears. “W-well, where can she be?” she stammered.

“I don’t know!” replied Lyra, pulling her mane. “There’s nopony outside, and Bon Bon is not home? Maybe everypony is in the Town Hall? But we walked past it and there was nopony there either. Where can she-” The mare went quiet immediately when she hears the sound of somepony knocking the door. Lyra looked at Twilight for an instant, before barraging downstairs, screaming the name of her mate.

Twilight blinked and flicked her ears, slightly annoyed.

She galloped downstairs, securing Spike with her telekinesis, and arrived at the foyer just in time to see Lyra violently opening the door. On the other side there was a mare of curly orange mane and yellow coat, with a pair of bulging saddlebags on her back, looking at Lyra in surprise. She, for a brief instant, looked like was about to tackle-hug the other mare, but then processes that the mare before her is not who she was expecting to see, and her shoulders sink. “Oh. Hello, Carrot Top,” she says, clearly disappointed.

“Uh…hello. Are you alright, Lyra?” asked the other mare, worried.

“I thought you were Bon Bon,” muttered Lyra, leaning into the frame of the door and slowly sliding down until she was lying on the floor. Twilight couldn’t help by roll her eyes at the drama.

“I was actually going to tell you where she is,” said Carrot Top with a small smile. That immediately caught Lyra’s attention, who sprung to her hooves. It was then when she noticed Twilight. “Who’s that?”

Lyra opened her mouth to answer, but Twilight was faster. “I am Twilight Sparkle. I am looking for a …uh, friend who came here this morning. She arrived in a royal sky chariot.”

Carrot Top blinked. “Well, there was a mare from Canterlot that came to check on the preparations for the Celebration.”

Twilight grinned. That could only be Sunset Shimmer. Perhaps she could help her understand what was going on. “Where is she?” she asked.

“Where is Bonnie?” asked Lyra, a split second later. Carrot looked at Lyra, then at Twilight, undecided on what question had priority. A bit reluctantly, Twilight motioned to her companion. Carrot Top opened her mouth to answer, but then changed her mind and shook her head.

“I think you should just come with me. I’ll explain everything on the way.”

The company of three ponies walked through the streets of Ponyville, led by the yellow mare. In every movement she made there was uncertainty and insecurity, which got Twilight anxious again. Apparently, her initial uneasiness wasn’t unfounded. After a few minutes of walking, Carrot stopped and glanced down a street. Twilight followed her eyes and saw a tree with windows and a door. She gave the pony a questioning look, and she finally explained.

Nightmare Moon had been in Ponyville, not once, but twice. The first, to present herself to the village, much like she later did in Canterlot. The second, to say she’d stay in the town until she found a place that pleased her more. Namely, in the tree building Twilight saw before, the library. Then, it parted once again.

Deciding that they wanted to have as much distance as possible between them and Nightmare Moon, the ponyvillians decided to hide in a nearby forest, the Whitetail Woods. That was where Carrot Top was leading Lyra and Twilight. The student had many questions about Sunset’s endeavors, but decided to wait until they were at the Woods. She did notice, however, that Lyra had a happy spring on her step.

A few minutes later, the company arrived to the edge of the forest. After a short walk through the trees, Twilight saw a clearing opening in front of them. She noted many ponies standing in small or large groups. There were perhaps a few hundreds, and they all seemed worried and agitated. One mare stood on a small knoll, speaking up to a large gathering of ponies. Twilight assumed she was the mayor of some other politician.

Before Twilight could react, Lyra was already gone to find her lover. She and Carrot looked at each other and rolled their eyes, then laughed at the unplanned synchronicity. “So, about my friend?” asked Twilight.

Carrot Top’s smile dropped. “W-well, uh…I don’t really know where she is.” she said, pawing the ground. “She had a small face-off with Nightmare Moon at the Town Hall, but I haven’t seen her since.”

Twilight clicked her tongue at that. She hadn’t seen Sunset either, and the bright yellow mare was hard to miss. “Was there a filly with her? White coat, pink mane?”

“Ah…yes! Cheerilee took care of her.” Carrot Top pointed with her hoof to a small herd of foals, with a single adult mare standing right in the middle. Every single foal seemed to be trying to get the attention of the mauve pony at the same time, but Twilight was more interested on the tiny white unicorn resting on her back, apparently sleeping.

Twilight thanked Carrot for her help, and headed towards the swarm of little ponies. As she came closer, the mauve mare noticed her, and trotted in her direction, which Twilight appreciated. “Hello, can I help you?” she asked.

“Hi, my name is Twilight Sparkle, and you must be Cheerilee,” she began. She figured it would be better to fully explain her intentions, instead of just ask her to leave the filly under her care. “This morning, a mare arrived to Ponyville to check the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. I require her help, but I am unable to find her. This filly, however, may know where she is.”

Cheerilee raised an eyebrow. Twilight smiled nervously, hoping what she had just said didn’t sound too absurd. It seemed far-fetched, but it was the truth! Finally, after a pause that felt too long, the mare gave her hips a wiggle. The little unicorn blinked awake. “Sweetie, do you know this pony?”

The filly turned her head and eyed her for a second, then opened her eyes wide in recognition. Even if Sweetie Belle rarely saw Twilight, she had been Sunset’s assistant for two years, and knew both Twilight and Spike well. “Twilight!” she squeaked with her diminutive voice. The filly tried to hop from the back of the earth mare, but ended faceplanting instead. This didn’t seem to affect her at all, as she took a moment to shake the dust off her mane, before hugging Twilight’s foreleg. “What are you doing here, Twilight?”

“I’m looking for Sunset,” replied Twilight , giving the filly a little squeeze. “I figured you might be able to help me.”

“Who is this, Sweetie?” asked Cheerilee, clearly surprised by how familiar the filly was.

“This is Twilight Sparkle,” she cheerfully proclaimed. “She’s Princess Celestia’s other prote…protet…”

“Protégé.”

“That! She’s super smart, like Sunset! And that’s Spike, the dragon. She hatched him herself when she entered the School for Gifted Unicorns!”

Cheerilee eyed the unicorn with curiosity, causing her to blush. “I am very sorry,” she said. “I didn’t know you were…well-”

“No, no, it’s fine,” replied Twilight. “I am very thankful you looked after Sweetie Belle. I’ll take care of her now.”

Cheerilee smiled and bowed her head, before returning with the foals. Twilight let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, and gave Sweetie a look. “Sweetie, please don’t go saying that.”

“Why not?” she asked, tilting her head in confusion.

“I don’t like boasting about my skills,” replied Twilight. She shook her head and smiled at Sweetie. “I am glad to see you are okay. Do you know where Sunset is?”

Sweetie shook her head. “Nu-hu. After that mean black alicorn showed up, she, my sister and four other ponies went to the forest for…uh,” the filly furrowed her brow. “Something about finding elements.”

“Elements? As in fire, water, wind and earth?”

“No, it was something else,” Sweetie scrunched her muzzle in frustration. “They said they were powerful artifacts that could defeat Nightmare Moon, or something like that.”

“And later, she came back to the village, and ponies decided to flee,” guessed Twilight, to which Sweetie nodded. “Any idea where exactly they are?”

“In a castle,” replied Sweetie. Twilight stared her, expecting some more information, but the filly just shrugged. “Sorry, Twilight. They said something about a castle in the Everfree, and then they were off.”

“The Everfree Forest?!” asked Twilight in disbelief. She had read hundreds of times that the Everfree was a wild place, escaping the careful control over the weather and the nature that ponies could do almost anywhere else. Obviously, Twilight wanted to find Sunset, but going into such a dangerous place with no idea where to go was suicidal. ‘I could cast a tracking spell’, though Twilight. But that would require something to track. Something with traces from Sunset’s aura would be ideal, like a comb or some piece of clothing. But, of couse, Sunset’s belongings were all back in Canterlot.

Twilight’s eyes fell upon the tiny saddlebags that Sweetie Belle had on her back, and a spark of hope light up. “What do you have there?” she asked, pointing to them.

“Oh. Wait,” Not wasting a moment, the filly took off the saddlebags and turned them upside down with her telekinesis, giving them a couple of shakes for good measure. A small assortment of items fell to the ground. A book and a notebook. Some pencils. A pair of small metal boxes. A few colorful beads. A bottle of soda, a piece of cake and many, many sweets. “Oh no! I forgot about the cake!” she lamented.

“Is this it?” asked Twilight, scanning the scattered items. Everything seemed to belong to Sweetie, who was currently trying to salvage the cake, with little prospects of success. She enveloped the entire thing on her magic, but her telekinesis wasn’t steady enough, and strawberries and pieces of frosting fell thought it, not to mention that she was accidentally mixing all the layers together. The cake was looking less and less appetizing by the second, but Twilight was somehow fascinated by the slow-motion deconstruction of the baked good.

Twilight noticed something on the ground. Below the vortex of cake, and being rained upon by bits of frosting, was a crumpled and dirty piece of parchment. “What is that?” asked Twilight, pointing at it. Sweetie Belle stared at it for a few second, thoughtful.

“Oh! That’s the letter that Princess Celestia sent to Sunset!” she replied. “I forgot about it!”

Twilight grinned triumphantly. The letter was already enchanted to go to Sunset’s location, and it could be easily tracked, perhaps even by eye, if it was like Spike’s enchanted flame. Almost giddy, Twilight lighted up her horn and prepared her spell.

***

The trip through the Everfree was surprisingly tranquil. Even if following the trail of purple magic from the scroll gave Twilight a lot of security, she had been expecting to find some sort of obstacle. That’s why she had left both Spike and Sweetie Belle under Cheerilee’s care, much to the little dragon’s displeasure.

At first, Twilight advanced with care, jumping from one shadow to the next, and trying to stay hidden. But despite the towering trees, which branches and leaves almost completely obscured the moonlight, at no point she faced any danger. The rustle of the branches, shaken by the breeze, and the gentle crunch of her hooves on the dry leaves were the only sounds. Soon, the unicorn calmed down and advanced much faster, although she always kept on guard, a defensive spell on the tip of her horn at all points.

After about two hours and a half of walking, Twilight arrived to her destination.

Like Sweetie Belle had said, the scroll was heading straight for a castle. The building, perhaps once an architectonic marvel, was now little more than an aggregate of half-destroyed walls surrounding piles of rubble. Twilight’s eyes followed the tracking spell, which ascended on the air and entered a half-demolished keep through a window.

It took the unicorn a few minutes to locate the entrance to that particular tower, as the spell she had used told her the exact path of whatever it was tracking, but not how to get to it. She had to climb and then descend two sets of stairs before finding the right one.

Twilight reached the top of the stairs, and two smells hit her at the same time. One was the acrid smell of burnt hair. Worried, Twilight increased the intensity of the light poured from her horn, although it wasn’t really necessary. The light of the Moon and the stars was enough to see the five bodies lying around the room. A quick glance was enough to know none of them was Sunset.

Twilight trotted to the first pony, and let out a sigh of relief. The mare, a large and muscular earth pony with a blonde mane, was simply unconscious. She had a couple of minor bruises and the tips of her mane were singed,

The second smell was more disconcerting. Magic. The place was soaked in a strange, powerful magic. Twilight deduced that was where Nightmare Moon appeared for the first time. ‘And Sunset came here to…fight her? Just like that? I must be missing something’.

Putting that question aside, Twilight made her way to the next pony. It was a white unicorn mare, with a long mane done in twirls. She had the same minor injuries as the previous pony, plus a cropped tail. That was obviously an accident, given how carefully made her mane was.

The third, yet another mare, was a pale yellow pegasus, with an exceedingly long mane and tail. Like the others, she had no major injuries. Twilight surprised herself studying the beautiful features of her face. Shaking her head, she moved to the next one.

At that point, Twilight had already guessed all five ponies were mares, and this one confirmed it. She had a vibrant rainbow mane and cerulean blue coat. She has also quite muscular, but different to the earth pony. This pony was thin and wiry.

Lastly, the fifth pony was a completely pink mare. Twilight raised an eyebrow at the peaceful expression on her face. She looked like she was sleeping comfortably in her bed, completed with a thin string of drool falling from her half-open mouth. Twilight blinked. She could swear that pony smelled like cotton candy, but it was surely the magic in the room, messing with her sense of smell.

Twilight deduced these must have been the five ponies that accompanied Sunset to this castle. ‘But, where is she?’ wondered Twilight, scanning the room once again. But apart from a plinth near the back wall, it was completely empty. The scroll was over there, in the middle of the room, but there was no trace of Sunset. That didn’t made sense. The scroll was enchanted to appear near the current location of the pony it was directed to. Twilight didn’t know the exact mechanics of the spell, but she was pretty certain that, even if the addressee were dead, it would still appear near their corpse.

Sunset was, simply, gone.

Twilight stared at the scroll for a few minutes, pondering her options. The five mares seemed to be alright, so there was no urgency. She couldn’t go back to the camp, not without Sunset. ‘Perhaps this magic is interfering with the spell?’ guessed the unicorn. It was perfectly reasonable. In that case, her only choice was to track Sunset herself.

Every pony has magic. And every being with magic has an aura, with a unique pattern for each creature. Much like a dog could track a pony with just their body smell, so could a trained unicorn track a pony with the remains of their aura. And Twilight knew Sunset’s aura, even if she couldn’t replicate it.

Some unicorns can ‘see’ the aura with the help a spell. Others can close their eyes and feel through their horns. Twilight, on the other hoof…

She let out a sigh and looked around. All the ponies were still asleep. Feeling extremely ridiculous, Twilight separated her forelegs and brought down her head until her snout was almost touching the floor. She swung her tail, annoyed. Much to her displeasure, sniffing was for her the most efficient way to perceive auras.

Twilight inhaled hard and immediately realized her mistake. The foreign magic ascended through her nose and tickled her brain, causing her to sneeze. Twilight sat up, rubbing her muzzle. ‘I should have seen that coming…’ though Twilight. She obviously wasn’t going to get anywhere with all that magic floating around. And by the time it dispelled, so would Sunset’s aura.

Strangely enough, Twilight could swear the magic felt familiar. It wasn’t her magic, not from anypony on her family, but she somehow felt like she knew that energy.

The unicorn bit her lip. She had no idea what to do now. She didn’t know where Sunset was, and she couldn’t track her either. Twilight turned around and looked at the five sleeping ponies. She had to bring them to the camp. Maybe after that, she would figure out what her next move should be.

Twilight trotted to the last mare she had checked and stood there for a minute, awkwardly staring at her. Finally, she took in a deep breath, and gently poked her on the shoulder with a hoof. “Hey, wake up,” she uttered.

The pink mare let out a loud giggle and flailed her legs, nearly missing Twilight. “Te-hee-hee! Noo, let me sleep a little more! Sun’s still down…”

Twilight froze at the unintentional truth of her words. She let out a sigh, before giving the mare a more decisive shake.

***

A grim caravan descended through the side of Mount Canterlot. At the head walked Prince Blueblood. He kept his head high and a proud stance, but the grief was obvious in his expression and the way he walked, almost dragging his hooves. He felt he should be an example for everypony else. After all, if there was something nobles could do well, it was pretending.

Behind him, a small group of guards advanced in silence. None of them had any desire to talk, especially after a novice royal guard had dived into the collapsing city to save a mare, and hadn’t come back.

Closing the retinue, Night Light and Shining Armor walked with a heavy heart.

A pony stood out in the middle of the guards. Taller than any of them, and covered with a brown cloak that failed to obscure the bright pink horn that poked from under the hood; Princess Cadance tried to camouflage between the others.

Her lilac eyes never stopped scanning the sky. More than once, she had sworn to see a dark silhouette cut against the starry sky. Every time, Cadance quickly looked away and pressed her wings against her body, praying for Nightmare Moon to not notice she was an alicorn. But every time had just been a false alarm.

The Princess let out a sigh and looked back. That’s where she should be, trying to comfort Night and Shining. But she was too afraid. Every time she accidentally ended at the edge of the group she, felt exposed and vulnerable, as if a pair of eyes with slit pupils pierced a hole through her.

For an instant, a shadow crossed the group.

Everypony stopped on their tracks. Cadance ducked between the others, while her heart raced inside her chest. For a minute, she scanned the sky, searching for a black shadow cut in the tapestry of the night. This time it hadn’t been her imagination, everybody had seen it. There were nervous murmurs between the guards, that couldn’t decide if they should keep going or stay still.

Another minute went by, and the ponies slowly calmed down. Then the sound of a sword being drawn out of it sheath made everypony look to the front in unison. Nightmare Moon was standing in front of the group. Even through the other ponies, her eyes were fixed on Cadance’s.

“Step aside.” said Prince Blueblood with all the aplomb he could gather, barely able to control the tremble in his voice. He would have held his broadsword in his telekinesis, but considering how much his legs were shaking, it wasn’t likely he would be able to keep the weapon steady. Nightmare Moon gave him a questioning look. “S-step aside.” repeated the prince, swallowing nervously.

“This does not concern you or the others.” replied Nightmare after a pause. Her tone wasn’t menacing, but curtly. It was more than enough to make the prince sweat. “Stay low, and you won’t be harmed.”

Blueblood threw a nervous glance to the ponies behind him. “I am afraid that is not going to be po-”

Quick like a flash, Nightmare Moon dashed forward. She toppled aside Blueblood with a single blow of her hoof, plowed through the guards and slammed into Cadance like a battering ram, throwing her a few meters backwards.

There was a quiet pause, cut only by the steps of Nightmare Moon as she advanced towards the mare.

“Did you think you would fool us?” asked the black alicorn. “Did you think we would not realize Celestia had ascended another alicorn? We won’t allo-” Her words stopped short when Shining Armor stood in her way.

For a moment, Nightmare studied the white stallion is silence. “Move aside.” she ordered. Seeing Shining was not going to obey, she tilted her head forward and lit up her horn. “Move aside, we said!” she yelled. The echo resounded on the mountain for a few seconds.

Shining not only didn’t move, but also light up his horn and raised a barrier between him and Nightmare Moon. The face of the mare twisted into an expression of fury such that made the stallion take a step back in fear.

“Shining,” muttered a delicate voice. All the eyes turned to Princess Cadance, who slowly got on all four. She gave Nightmare a long, serene look before speaking again. “I will deal with her.”

Nightmare Moon threw her head back and emitted a long cackle. “Do you think you can defeat us? Or is it that desperation has clouded your reason?” she mocked. Cadance ignored her words, and looked to her partner. Shining was frowning, trying to find a way to tell her to run away, that he would face Nightmare Moon.

Cadance guessed what Shining was thinking, and shook her head slightly. “It’s the only way.” she whispered, giving him a sad smile. She took a step and tilted her head forward to steal a kiss from her lover. Shining’s shield fell apart.

Nightmare Moon looked at them with a predatory grin. “Ah, we understand.” she muttered dryly. “Only a lover would be so foolish.” Cadance ignored the jab and took a step to her, ready to make Nightmare pay for her life.

Shining observed the two mares staring each other as if he was in a dream. His brain needed a moment to catch up with what was happening. By pure instinct, he raised the shield again and shot an energy blast to Nightmare Moon.

The attack hit the mare on the chest, causing her to recoil slightly. Nightmare Moon flicked a furious glare at him, her eyes overflowing with magic. Shining instantly realized of his mistake. He took a step back, eyes wide open from fear. Nightmare Moon grabbed him in her telekinesis and tossed him aside like a ragdoll.

This time it was Cadance the one to lunge into Nightmare, but the strike barely moved the mare back a few centimeters. The princess cringed, her shoulder hurting from the hit. She unfurled her wings and took off just in time to dodge the magic retaliation of her opponent.

Nightmare Moon chased her, laughing. Cadance was aware she couldn’t face her just with her magic, so she opted to use her speed and flight experience to try to gain an advantage. She pumped her wings until she reached the first clouds. From there she could attack Nightmare from an unexpected direction.

Still flapping, Cadance looked back, but the black alicorn was nowhere to be seen. The princess stopped mid-air, frowning. ‘Where is she?’ she wondered, carefully scanning the landscape below.

The cloud to the right of Cadance exploded into wisps. Nightmare Moon emerged from it, her horn glowing with blue magic. Cadance tilted her body in the last instant, and the beam of magic rasped her mane. However, she couldn’t avoid the charge of the mare, who managed to close her jaws around her foreleg.

Cadance let out a scream of pain when the sharp fangs of Nightmare Moon penetrated to the bone. She tried to shake her off, to no avail. Desperate, she shot a spasmodic pulse of magic. Nightmare Moon let go, and disappeared in the clouds again.

The princess clenched her teeth and examined her leg. The wound was very deep and the shaking had only made it worse. It was bleeding profusely. One of the fangs of Nightmare Moon had reached the metacarpal bone. Cadance could see the bloodied white through a tear in her flesh. She made a small testing movement, but the sharp pain convinced her that it was not a good idea. Blinking off the tears on her eyes, she tried to locate Nightmare.

Cadance could hear her heartbeats inside her head. The adrenaline that flowed through her body caused time to slow down. Through the fog of the pain, Cadance could feel how the muscles of her wings stretched and relaxed, keeping her amid of the air. She could feel how the air went inside and outside her lungs through her mouth. She could feel the pain on her leg, but it didn’t hurt anymore. She could feel how the blood flowed off the wound, streamed down her leg, and dripped from the tip of her hoof.

Nightmare Moon had turned her stratagem against her. She could have done so much damage with her previous attack. She was just playing with her.

Cadance closed her eyes, and let her mind expand.

A being as massively powerful as Nightmare Moon would have an equally powerful aura. Finding it proved to be easy, as the black alicorn hadn’t bothered to conceal it. The cloud of the left contained a surge of energy that would make a hurricane envious. Smiling slightly, Cadance tilted her head a casted a beam of pink magic that cleanly sliced the nimbus in two.

Nightmare Moon emerged from one of the halves and charged to Cadance. She replied with a new barrage of magical attacks, forcing the mare to stop her charge and dodge. One of the projectiles went through her ethereal mane, leaving behind a burnt hole. Another touched the tip of her wings and charred the tip of her feathers. And a third impacted the blue metal chest plate. The crescent-shaped gem exploded in a rain of shards.

Her rapacious grin turned into a hateful scowl. The princess saw in the eyes of her opponent a promise of death. A promise that she was more than willing to make her pay for.

Nightmare Moon lunged into her prey, slithering through the air like an angered snake. Cadance tried to land another attack, but the black mare was too fast. The black alicorn reached Cadance and gave her an uppercut that threw the princess several meters in the air. Her tiara got loose and plummeted to the ground.

Nightmare allowed herself a satisfied grin at the sound of a bone snapping. But Cadance recovered almost instantly, and replied with a slap like the black mare had not felt in millennia.

Nightmare Moon blinked in surprise, a pause which Cadance used to deliver a blow that would have made the previous one proud.

Nightmare Moon shook her head and spitted out a fang. It had been a long time since anypony had dared to hit her like that. Flapping her wings to propel herself, he thrust her head forward and nearly missed Cadance’s neck, snapping instead on her mane. Nightmare easily blocked the frantic attacks of her opponent, and responded with another strike to the face of the princess.

The mare of the night let go of the mane of her opponent, turned around and delivered a brutal buck against the chest of Cadance. The princess lost her breath and gasped in a desperate attempt to regain it. A new strike to her head blurred her vision. Then came a second, a third, a fourth…Nightmare Moon struck her one time after the other, eager to finish the fight there and then.

Cadance couldn’t do anything. Her attacks were weak and slow compared with her opponent’s. With each strike she took, she staggered. Almost blindly, she shot a deflagration of pink flames from the tip of her horn. Nightmare Moon teleported over her, slid a foreleg under her neck and pressed, while locking her rear legs over her flanks. Cadance tried to shake her off her back, to fight against the strangling.

But Nightmare’s intent was another. She tilted her head back, looking for the right wing shoulder of the other pony, and closed her jaws on the joint. Cadance emitted a cry of pain when the sharp teeth penetrated in her flesh. Nightmare shook then her head, shredding apart muscle and tendons, and letting the blood run free. She didn’t stop until the wing stopped flapping and fell lifeless to a side.

Cadance’s consciousness was slipping. The fear, the pain, the adrenaline and the blood loss fogged her mind. That wasn’t happening to her. That was happening to a mare very similar to her, but different. She was barely aware of the feeling of vertigo that came when Nightmare Moon began to drop, flapping her leathery wings to increase their speed.

The wind howled in her ears. Somewhere, somepony screamed her name.

‘Shining’ though Cadance, an instant before the impact.

***

“…and then the pendants lighted up, and magic began to pour from them. They lifted you in the air…”

“Yes.”

“…and just like that, the magic went out of control?”

“Correct,” replied the while unicorn, who Twilight now knew was called Rarity. “I am sorry I can’t be of any more help, but Sunset seemed to be the one in control of the entire spellwork.”

Twilight frowned as she carefully avoided a root that stuck out. She had woken up all five ponies, and after letting them rest for a bit, they had taken the path back to Ponyville. Now Twilight was trying to piece together Sunset’s day with the information provided by the other five mares. “Nopony else remembers anything?” she asked, looking around. All five ponies shook their heads.

“Ah’m sorry, Twilight.” drawled the large earth mare, Applejack. “Ah blacked out after that. No idea what happened to Sunset.”

“Nightmare Moon must have kidnapped her,” grumbled Twilight. “I don’t know why yet, but it can’t be for a good cause.” The student was honestly concerned about Sunset. She had run several possible scenarios of why would Nightmare need Sunset, and none of them bode too well for her.

“I hope she is okay,” said Fluttershy, who Twilight had quickly learned to be a very proper name for the meek pegasus. The six ponies continued walking forward for a while, each lost in their thoughts. Twilight had updated them on Nightmare Moon’s latest endeavors, and it was obvious they were still mulling over it.

“On a side note,” said Rainbow Dash, the mare of colorful mane and tail. “any clue when this headache is going to recede? I have had my share of bruises when training, but this is new to me.”

“Magic-induced headache usually disappears after one hour or so,” replied Twilight. “But I could be wrong. I have never heard of earth ponies or pegasi having a magic backlash, but the symptoms are exactly the same: Headache, sometimes accompanied with muscular pain, if there was a big magic exertion.” Rainbow huffed in annoyance. “Technically, you shouldn’t be capable of suffering these symptoms. Perhaps a pegasus, under extreme conditions, could suffer a backlash. Earth ponies have a more passive magic, so I don’t see how-”

“Maybe it’s because the Elements of Harmony used our energy like an unicorn would.” chirped Pinkie Pie as she bounced past Twilight for the fifth time. Even though she was probably as sore as the others, the pink earth pony was in an excellent mood, which Twilight found strange but also was willing to accept.

The student actually paused at Pinkie’s words. It could be that the Elements functioned like the horn from an unicorn, focusing and shaping the energy inside the pony to cast a spell. The five ponies had first heard of those artifacts from Sunset, and later found a reference in a book from Ponyville’s library. Twilight herself could swear she had heard or read that name before, but she had no memory of what they actually were. And the only information the other five ponies were able to give her is that they were six; they found them as stone orbs, but later became a set of bejeweled necklaces and a tiara; and that using them made them feel very, very powerful.

‘And then the Elements failed, and bearers fell unconscious.’ though Twilight. The lavender unicorn frowned. She had counted on Sunset to clear things up for her, but she was gone. And even though the five ponies had given her valuable information, it was obvious that Sunset had figured out more than she had told them.

The unicorn bit her lip. She was starting to question if going to Ponyville was the right idea. Her decision to go there had been hasty and stupid. She was so unprepared, and being here would probably make no difference. Sunset was gone, Celestia was gone too, and these ponies clearly didn’t need rescuing. They were fine. She should have stayed in Canterlot, with her family.

Twilight’s musings were roughly interrupted when her hoof got stuck on a root, and the pony fell face-first into the ground. “Oh my! Are you alright, darling?” said Rarity. Twilight let out an affirmative grunt and noticed the white hoof right in front of her. Muttering a ‘thank you’, the mare got on all four and dusted herself off. “What is wrong, Twilight?” asked Rarity. “You seem lost in your thoughts.”

The pony shook her head and continued walking in silence for a while. Twilight knew Rarity was still expecting an answer, but she didn’t want to mention her mother. She didn’t want to think of her. She didn’t want to talk about her. “There are too many things happening at the same time,” she quietly said, after a few minutes. “Canterlot, the Princess, Sunset. It seems like the world is falling apart around me, and I am unable to prevent it, even though I am supposed to have the ability.” That was only part of what was troubling her mind.

Rarity pressed her lips together. “Well, darling, I am sure you’ve done the best you can.” she said with uncertainty.

Twilight shook her head. “But the best was not enough, not even close. All this…it is too much for me. It’s overwhelming. I have to find the way to stop Nightmare Moon, but I don’t have the slightest idea where should I begin. Usually, it is the Princess who gives advices me.” she tried to gulp the knot on her throat. She still didn’t know of the Princess’ fate.

The group continued walking in silence. Rarity seemed to be trying to think of something comforting to say, but she remained quiet, as the other four ponies did. Pinkie was somewhere ahead, probably still bouncing. Twilight let her head hang and tried to blink the tears away. ‘I should have stayed with my family…’

“Mah granny always says,” started a voice on her right. Twilight looked up and saw the orange mare walking beside her. “when you have too many problems, take a step back and think small.” The unicorn stared, confused. “That’s it, don’t put yerself to such high stakes.” explained Applejack. “Decide something small to do tomorrow, and do it. And the same the next day. And then the next. And soon, ya’ll be done before you even notice.”

Twilight opened her mouth to reply, but closed it a moment later. It sounded easy, too easy. But somehow, the unicorn found Applejack’s gentle smile incredibly encouraging. She felt a fire light up in her chest. Sunset was missing, but that didn’t mean she had to give up. She had come to Ponyville with one mission. And even if she had failed to find the other student, she could still pursue her initial goal. The unicorn furrowed her brown and nodded, a determined expression on her face.

Applejack noticed the change on Twilight’s expression, and her smile widened. “Glad to be helpful, sugarcube.”

A pink mass crowned with a very puffy mane popped from a hollow trunk, a few meters ahead of the group. “Hey!” said Pinkie Pie with her high-pitched voice. “We’ve arrived!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Don’t be ridiculous, Pinkie Pie,” she replied, shaking her head. “It took me a couple of hours to arrive to the castle. It’s impossible we could-” Twilight’s voice fell short when she heard voices. She turned her ears in every direction, but they were unmistakably coming from ahead of them. “No way!” The unicorn galloped up the next hill and indeed saw the refugee camp, just a hundred meters away. Twilight looked back and saw five mares giving her puzzled looks.

Twilight wracked her mind trying to come up with a reasonable explanation. The enchanted scroll should have followed the shortest route, and yet, the return trip had been shorter, despite the slower pace. ‘How…’

“Pinkie Pie?” she cautiously asked the mare, who was bouncing up the hill. “D-did you take us through a shortcut?”

“Nope!” she replied as she jumped past Twilight. “I was just following you!”

Twilight watched Pinkie descend the slope, loss for words. ‘M-maybe the forest’s magic affected the scroll?’ she though, as Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy reached the top of the hill. The unicorn shook her head, and descended with them.

***

The camp was bursting with activity. Ponies were running around, and arguing and shouting to each other. In the middle of the chaos, a few of them were trying to regain control of the situation, with little success. The six newcomers were completely ignored, as they stared in disbelief to the scene before them.

“Twilight! You’re back!” came the voice of Spike. Twilight turned her head and saw the tiny dragon running towards her to give her leg a hug. Twilight smiled slightly and nuzzled him. “And you’ve found them! That’s great!” said Spike as he broke the hug. “But where’s Sunset?”

Twilight grimaced a bit. “I’ll tell you later. What is going on here?” she asked, waving a hoof towards the commotion.

“Oh. Yeah, well. While you were gone, Lyra told everypony about what has happened in Canterlot, and uh…” Spike shrugged. “Some ponies want to leave for good, because they’re scared. And some others want to stay because they don’t want to leave their village. It started quiet, but it quickly went out of hoof.”

“Ah ain’t gonna let some eldritch alicorn scare me off. Mah farm is here, and Ah ain’t leaving it behind,” said Applejack, scanning the crowd with her green eyes. “Ah’m gonna see if I can find mah family.” she added, before trotting off.

“I should find Sweetie Belle,” said Rarity. “She must be worried about me, and it has been so long since I saw her. Again, thanks for your assistance, Twilight.” she gave the purple unicorn a gentle smile, and then headed for the crowd.

“I…have to check on my animals.” muttered Fluttershy, her voice almost drowned by the uproar. Twilight noticed that she carefully walked around the crowd, instead of through it.

The unicorn realized Pinkie had vanished at some point, and Rainbow Dash was the only mare that was still with her. “What about you?” she asked, stiffing a yawn. She was exhausted, which wasn’t entirely surprising. Even if she had slept in the train, she had been walking for hours. All she wanted to do was hit the hay somewhere.

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I don’t really have anypony that is gonna worry too much about me here. Family lives in Cloudsdale, y’know?” The blue mare sat on her haunches and yawned. “They’re probably gonna argue for hours now. They’re too busy shouting to really consider what the others are saying.”

Twilight stared at the chaotic display in front of her. She could hear bits of the shouts, but her tired brain couldn’t keep up. It was like Canterlot, a few hours ago, but in a smaller scale. The unicorn blinked slowly. She wasn’t going to be able to sleep with that racket. She thought for a half a second of the most appropriate way to make them quiet, but she settled for the simplest, most direct solution. She charged a bit of magic on her horn, and shot a purple flare to the sky.

Everypony went quiet, and a hundred pairs of eyes focused on her. In any other circumstance, Twilight would have felt awkward, but right now she was too tired to care. “Hello,” she muttered weakly. “I got your neighbors back. Please rejoice. Now, if you all wouldn’t mind, I’d really appreciate if all of you lowered the volume. It’s been a terrible day, and I need to sleep. And besides, screaming to each other is not going to do anything productive.” Twilight made a pause and blinked, amazed that she had managed to say that whole sentence in a single go. For a moment, she glanced over the crowd, before walking away to find a patch of grass to sleep on.

“Wait!” said a pony behind her. Twilight looked back, annoyed and found the source of the voice: a light mauve mare with blonde mane. “Lyra says you come from Canterlot too. What can you tell us of Nightmare Moon?”

Twilight considered the answer for a moment. She could put it mildly, to prevent them from panicking, but she didn’t think that would have the effect it should. “Nightmare Moon is crazy,” she replied dryly. “If you face her and try to stop her, she will kill you. If you keep a low profile, she won’t pay any attention to you. Hopefully. If I were you, I would say out of her way.” Having voiced her opinion, the mare walked away, stumbling. She finds a patch of fresh grass behind a tree, and dropped her whole self haphazardly. The pony closed her eyes and fell asleep almost immediately.

***

Nightmare Moon observed each of the Guards that stared her. Despite there being almost twenty, the black alicorn didn’t waver. She knew anything they could try to harm her would be in vain, and so did they.

At her hooves laid the inert bodies of Night Light and Shining Armor. The two stallions had charged against her as soon as she had landed. For a brief instant, the Guards considered going to help them. That idea disappeared a second later, when Nightmare knocked both ponies out with a single swing.

“Anypony else?” she asked with contempt. The ponies glared daggers at her, but none of them said anything. “Very wise. We are glad to see that it finally entered your hard skulls who is in charge now. Unlike these imbeciles!” she said, emphasizing that last word with a kick to the ribs of Shining Armor. Some of the Royal Guards clenched their teeth and cursed under their breaths, but none moved. Satisfied, Nightmare Moon turned around. “Now, if you will excuse us, there is a certain alicorn that is still breat-”

The word died on her lips when she turned and found a metal blade hovering an inch away from her snout. The broad edge extended for several centimeters, ending in a golden guard and grip decorated with filigrees, enveloped in a pale blue telekinetic field. Behind the sword stood, proud, a pony clad in a heavy armor, also golden.

“I won’t let you put a hoof on her…again!” said Blueblood, barely keeping his voice steady. He felt his throat dry and his muscles were tense like wires. He was aware to be making a huge mistake, but sometimes a prince had to do what he had to do.

Nightmare Moon gave him a toothy smile. “And who may you be, if we may know?” she asked, both amused and annoyed.

The Prince Blueblood swallowed nervously. “I am prince Blue, firstborn of the noble house of the Blood, clan of warriors and strategists, to the service of Equestria since before your banishment.” At the mention of her punishment, the face of Nightmare twisted in hate. Blueblood took a step back.

“A noble!” barked Nightmare. “You are nothing but a parasite of society, a good-for-nothing! We are surprised our sister had not abolished aristocracy already! That shall be a matter that we address as soon as possible! Now, move! We don’t have the patience to bear with a fool like you!” The alicorn made an impatient gesture with her hoof, but Blueblood didn’t flinch.

The alicorn slapped away Blueblood’s sword, but the prince quickly put it back up against his opponent. However, he miscalculated the distance, and instead of holding it near the face of the alicorn, he drew a cut from one side to the other of her snout.

The mare recoiled. Even before she touched her nose and saw the blood staining her hoof, Blueblood was aware he had just signed his death sentence. Deciding that things couldn’t get worse, he tried to strike again, this time with an actual intent to cause damage. However, Nightmare Moon lighted her horn and enveloped his clumsy attack in a telekinetic field. The magic of the mare extended across the sword, enveloping the prince’s. For an instant, they crossed sights, one full of hate and contempt, and the other of the deepest dread. Then, the face of Blueblood contorted in a suffering grimace.

He had barely let out a whine of pain when his sword and horn exploded in a rain of shards of metal and bone. The prince fell, his eyes blank.

Nightmare Moon contemptuously stared Blueblood. Then she walked over the inert body of Cadance, making sure to step on the prince’s face when she walked over him. She then lit her horn. A fraction of her magic stretched and coalesced into an obsidian-blue spear. The weapon hovered for an instant, before violently driving itself into Cadance’s chest.

Nightmare Moon turned her head to the ponies that watched paralyzed by sheer fear. “May this teach you what shall happen to whoever stands in our way.” she stated dryly. Then she unfurled her wings and took off to the nocturnal sky.

V - The Devil

An evil such as the world has never seen

Somepony knocked the door. “Come in.” said Cadance from inside. Shining Armor carefully opened the door and made his way to the chair.

Much to his surprise, the princess had taken the notice of her amputation very well. At first she had reacted with a gloomy acceptance, but when Shining woke up the next morning, he found her cheerfully chatting with a nurse that was bringing them the breakfast. For the rest of the morning, Shining avoided the topic, confused yet happy to see her marefriend in such a good mood.

But then, while they were having lunch together, he started to suspect that maybe Cadance was just hiding her sadness behind a radiant smile. He was aware the princess made a good actress, and could fake emotions without much trouble.

His uneasiness only increased in the subsequent reunion with his father, the mayor of Manehattan and some other politicians, to try to cope with the sudden flow of refugees from Canterlot. Shining barely paid any attention to the meeting, until Night Light noticed it and told him to go back to the hospital if he wished.

Now Shining Armor was in front of his princess, fidgeting with his hooves, trying to find the right words. After a few seconds, he decided going straight to the point would be for the best.

“Cadance, are you alright?” he gently asked.

The alicorn raised an eyebrow. “Well, apart from the several dozen injuries of different degrees, I would say I am rather good.” she said with an amused smile.

“Yeah, it’s about that,” muttered Shining, scratching the back of his head with a hoof. “You’re not like...suppressing feelings or anything like that. Right?”

Cadance’s smile faded. She let out a sigh and stared at her bandaged body. She could see a lump of dressings and bandages right over her shoulder. Under it was what little remained of her wing.

“I can’t say I am fine, Shining,” muttered the mare. “But when Nightmare Moon found us, I thought my death was a certainty. During the fight, any hope I had left to survive faded like a candle under water. Even after she left, I was so scared I would bled to death on our way to the hospital.” A faint smile crossed her lips as she glanced at Shining. “At the end of the day, it’s just a wing. I’m still here, with you. Alive. That’s what matters.” she finished, leaning forward for a kiss, which Shining gratefully provided her.

“Well, I am glad you’re coping with it so well,” said Shining, still not entirely convinced. “I don’t think I’d be able to do the same if I lost a leg. Just, uh, remember I am here. For anything.” he said, giving her a nuzzle.

“I’ll be fine.” replied Cadance, with another of those beautiful smiles. Silence fell for a moment in the room. The captain was content with being next to the mare he loved, so it was her who broke the silence.

“Any news of Twilight?”

Shining let out a heavy sigh and leaned back on his chair. “Nothing. That filly has vanished from Equestria. Dad has sent messages to every other city we sent refugees, but so far nopony has been able to locate her.” The stallion shook his head, worried. “Where in Tartarus did she go?”

“Don’t worry,” said Cadance. “She’ll be fine.”

Shining Armor huffed. “I wish I could agree, but Twilight…Well. I think you can agree she is not the most self-sufficient mare.” Cadance smiled and nodded. “So I can’t help being a bit concerned.”

“I am sure she can manage by herself for a few days.” gently said the princess. “After all, this is Equestria. She will be safe, no matter where she is.”

***

Twilight dropped on the grass. It was the same place where she had gone to sleep the other night, and it was the closest thing she had to a home right them. She definitely should have made some preparations. Then again, she wasn’t expecting everypony to have fled from Ponyville because Nightmare Moon had decided to live there. It wasn’t something she could have predicted. If it wasn’t for that, she would be sleeping in an inn or something similar.

The unicorn opened one of the saddlebags and extracted an apple. It was the penultimate apple from the bunch Apple Bloom had brought her yesterday, or what felt like yesterday. The perpetual night was ruining her perfectly calibrated circadian cycle, and she wasn’t sure how long it had been since she had left Canterlot. Over a day, for sure, but by how much? Two days? Three?

Twilight took a bite of the apple, and just then two hooves covered her eyes.

“Hi Twilight!” said the chirpy voice of Pinkie Pie. “Guess who I am?”

Twilight smiled. Her voice was unmistakable. “You’re Pinkie,” she said after chewing the apple.

“Close!” she replied, removing her hooves from her face. Twilight rolled her eyes and looked back, staring into a pony that was not Pinkie Pie.

“Uh…”

“Hello Twilight,” muttered the pony, with an incredibly monotonous voice. The unicorn blinked, confused ‘She knows me?’ she wondered, trying to remember. The mare was wearing a dull purple cloak, under which peeked the armor of the Ground Guard, but she couldn’t quite place her.

“Uh…hi. I…don’t think we have met?”

“We haven’t,” confirmed the mare. “But your father told me about you.”

Twilight needed a moment to connect the dots. “You are…his successor in the Ground Guard, aren’t you?” Maud nodded. “Pleased to meet you, Captain! I’m afraid I don’t know your name.” She said, extending a hoof, which Maud tapped with hers.

“She’s Maud Pie, and she is my sister!” chirped Pinkie Pie from above. Twilight looked up and crooked and eyebrow. The bubblegum mare was perched atop of a large branch, in a precarious balance, despite the fact that she had clearly heard her voice right behind her.

“How did you find me, Captain?” asked Twilight, guessing that Maud had been sent by her father to retrieve her.

“I’m here to visit my little sister,” replied Maud. “And please, no ‘captain’. Canterlot is gone, so there is no need for a Canterlot Ground Guard.” she said in the same lifeless, plain tone. Twilight now understood what Night Light meant when he said his successor was very ‘stoic’. She had seen bricks show more emotion.

“I am so sorry,” said Twilight, her ears folding back. “I wish I could have…wait, sister?” She couldn’t possibly be referring to…

Maud nodded, silently. Pinkie, on the other hoof, leaped down from the tree, giggling, and hugged her sister. “Of course! Maud is my older sister! The oldest of four. Don’t you see the family resemblance?”

Twilight’s eyes darted between the passive expression of Maud and the massive grin of Pinkie; the flat mane and unsaturated colors of one; and the extremely curly mane and bright, unsubtle pink of the other. “…s-sure!” stammered Twilight.

“Twilight, your family is looking for you,” muttered Maud.

“What do you mean?” asked the unicorn.

“Your family doesn’t know where you are, and wants to know where you are.”

“No…but…I l-left a letter,” she replied, shaking her head. She clearly remembered asking Spike to send a letter home, so Shining and her father knew where she was going.

“Then they never received it. They are worried. It has been four days.”

“W-what?” Twilight blinked, confused. “No, it’s been like, what? Two days, at much. It hasn’t been that long!”

“No,” repeated Maud, dead serious. “It has been exactly four days and nine hours since the midnight when Nightmare Moon appeared in Canterlot.”

Twilight felt a pit open in her stomach. How was it possible? She certainly hadn’t been awake for that long. She knew she had been sleeping more than usual, but…could she have really slept for that long? The possibility was somewhat terrifying, but there wasn’t any other explanation. “So you’re here just by sheer luck,” muttered Twilight, displeased. “Hadn’t been for that, I would have no clue.” The unicorn fetched the saddlebags with her magic, which Applejack had let her keep, and extracted ink, a quill and some papers, which Lyra had gifted her. Twilight was incredibly thankful to everypony. They had all been so nice, despite being a complete stranger.

“I have to send a letter to my father,” said Twilight, unscrewing the lid of the inkwell. “Pinkie, do you know where is Spike?” She would have to reconfigure Spike’s charm. As it was right now, she could only send letters to Princess Celestia and her house. That had always been enough.

“She’s with Rarity,” replied the pink mare, still clamped to Maud.

Twilight crooked an eyebrow at that. Rarity again. With everything that had been going on, she hadn’t asked Spike. No matter, she would have the chance while she reworked the spell. “Could you please fetch him while I write a letter, please?” she asked, flattening the paper on her magic. When she got no answer, Twilight looked up and saw that Pinkie was gone, leaving Maud alone. ‘Has she even moved since she arrived?’ wondered Twilight. ‘Has she even blinked?’

“There is something you should know.”

“Go ahead,” said Twilight, making an inviting gesture with the quill. ‘How can I express how sorry I am to have left, and sound reasonable?’

“You want first the bad or good news?”

“Bad news,” instantly replied Twilight. She preferred to tackle many things that way. For example, she ate the broccoli first and then the rest; or did her homework before reading a book.

“Nightmare Moon almost killed Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.”

The quill stopped. “…who?”

“Cadence?”

The quill went through the paper. “W-w-what?” stammered Twilight, her heart skipping a beat.

“She located her while they were descending from Canterlot, and tried to kill her. Cadance is now in the hospital of Manehattan.”

Twilight dropped the quill and the parchment, grabbed Maud by the shoulders and shook her, though the mare barely budged. “How is she? How is Cadance?! Tell me!” she screams.

“She was hit very hard,” replied Maud. “But she will recover. Her life is not at danger.”

Twilight let go of Maud and sat down, breathing heavily. She raised a hoof and wiped away a tear. “Oh thank goodness,” she whimpered, shuddering. “I-I should have been there,” she muttered, her voice breaking.

“You wouldn’t have been able to do anything,” pointed out the earth mare.

Twilight ignored Maud and just sat on the grass until she managed to calm down. She took a deep breath and looked at the other pony. “And what is the good news? That she is alive?” she asked with bitterness.

“No,” said Maud. “Your mother is alive.”

Yet again, Twilight’s heart skipped a beat. She looked at Maud, dumbfounded. “W-what?” she whimpered.

“Twilight Velvet is alive,” repeated Maud, more slowly. “She wasn’t in the School when Nightmare Moon destroyed it.”

Twilight stared at Maud, unable to believe what she was saying. She looked for some sign of deception, of mockery in her eyes, but Maud was smiling, a tiny, honest smile. An indescribable feeling of relief washed over Twilight like cold water, and the realization that she had been in distress for nothing. “Thanks heavens,” she muttered, rubbing her tearful eyes. “Thank you, Maud. I…” a sob caught on her throat. “I am such an idiot. I was so…shocked, I didn’t stop to think she may not have been in the School anymore!”

“It’s okay.” said Maud. Despite herself, the stoic voice of the earth pony made Twilight let out a choked laugh.

Then, came Pinkie Pie bouncing and ruined the moment. “Maud!” she said, even more excited than normal. “You have to see this! We have visit!” Without waiting for an answer, Pinkie pushed Maud towards the center of the camp. The lead gray mare didn’t even flinch when Pinkie dragged her, leaving a groove behind her. Confused by the sudden change of mood, Twilight blinked her tears away, and followed the two sisters.

Everypony had gathered in the center of the clearing, and were looking at something Twilight couldn’t make out. Stretching her neck, she caught a glimpse of a small group of new ponies, but then somepony moved and blocked her line of sight. Flicking her tail in annoyance, the unicorn walked around the wall of ponies, trying to find an opening. In her preoccupation, she almost didn’t notice the large white pony she nearly collided with.

“Oh, I am sorry!” said Twilight immediately, still gazing at the center of the group.

“Twil-uh-apologies, miss!”

The slip didn’t go unnoticed by Twilight. The unicorn slowly turned her head, eyebrow crooked, and found herself in front of no other than Prince Blueblood.

The unicorn stared at the stallion for a second before gritting her teeth. “What are you doing here?” hissed Twilight, letting her magic flow into her horn. “Didn’t you make my life hard enough back at the Academy?” The large unicorn stallion looked awful, with bags under his eyes, a mess of a mane, and a terrified grimace on his face, but it was definitely the same pony.

“Wait no, Twilight!” begged Blueblood, eyeing her sparkling horn with worry. “This is just a coincidence! I had no idea you were here!”

Twilight blinked and her angry grimace faded when she realized the stallion was missing a very obvious feature. “Where is your horn?” she muttered with sincere worry. Blueblood dipped his head and morosely tapped his forehead with a hoof. “What…happened to you?” whispered Twilight.

Blueblood let out a sigh and motioned a hoof to a nearby campfire, away from the large crowd of ponies. Twilight hesitated at first, but then followed him, surprised and conflicted.

***

The door swung open, and Shining Armor crossed the threshold, looked around, and then directed his attention to the patient on the bed. “You won’t haven happened to see a large, white stallion with blonde mane, right?”

“You mean Gleaming Lance, sir?” replied the other pony, looking up from the outdated magazine he was reading.

“No, somepony else.”

“Then no. Sorry, Captain,” replied Flash Sentry, crossing his forelegs. “Who are you looking for?”

Shining Armor let out a sigh and dragged himself to the chair, where he haphazardly dropped. “Just…a friend. He has been kind of depressed after an injury, and I am afraid he will do something stupid.” Shining paused, rubbing his temples with his hooves. “Anyways, how is the wing going?”

Sentry grimaced and glanced at the wounded wing, covered in bandages. “Pretty bad, sir. The doctor said I won’t have any permanent damage, but I am going to be here for a while, and even longer grounded.” The pony then shrugged and cracked a grin. “On the plus side, I got a pretty awesome story to tell the grandkids. Uh, sir,” he quickly added.

“Drop the formalities, Sentry,” requested Shining, waving a hoof. “But you’re right. Less than a month in the Royal Guard, and you’ve already been through a near-death experience. Not bad for a rookie.”

“Thank you, sir…uh, sorry,” he added with a sheepish smile. “But it is why I joined the Guard, after all. I was afraid that, after being promoted into the Royal Guard, I wouldn’t get the chance to actually help ponies, but it seems I was mistaken. Though next time, I’d rather do something a bit safer.”

“I hear you,” agreed Shining, nodding. “This is probably the biggest crisis Equestria has faced in years.”

“How is Trixie, by the way?”

“That mare you saved?” asked Shining. “She’s still in the hospital, somewhere. She is unscratched, for the most part. I’m actually surprised she isn’t sleeping by your bedside.”

Flash Sentry frowned. “What do you mean?”

The captain tilted his head and grinned. “What could I mean? Ponies tend to stay with the ones they care for when they are in the hospital.”

“I literally saw her for the first time the other day,”

“True,” agreed Shining. “Perhaps even your intervention in Canterlot was actually irrelevant, and she would have survived and been spotted after she shot that magic flare.” Shining raised a hoof to stop the pegasus’ protest. “That being said, in her eyes, you saved her. I’d be surprised if this was the last time you saw her.” With his word said, Shining Armor got on his hooves and walked to the door. “I’ll let you rest now, soldier.”

And with that, the captain of the royal guard left, leaving the wounded guard feeling confused and slightly concerned.

***

“…and that’s it,” finished Blueblood. He and Twilight Sparkle were sitting on the opposite sides of a campfire, afar from everypony else. The lavender mare considered what Blueblood had just said. She was glad somepony else could tell her the details about Canterlot, since Maud had been rather sparse with details.

Blood lifted up a hoof and absently-minded rubbed his forehead. Twilight bit her lip. She did not like Blue Blood, but she couldn’t imagine how crippling it would be to lose the horn. They did grow back, but until then, there were so many everyday things you couldn’t do anymore.

“I am very sorry about your horn,” she muttered.

He sighed and looked at her. “Why? This wasn’t your fault.”

“I know, but-”

The mutilated unicorn raised a hoof. “Forget it,” he muttered. “This was a consequence of my acts, you have nothing to do with it.” Blue Blood went quiet for a long time, with his eyes fixed on the fire. “I, uh…” he begins, hesitant. “I suppose this is as good of a chance as any to say…well, I am sorry. About everything.”

Twilight stared at Blue Blood, crooking an eyebrow. She knew exactly what he was talking about, but she wanted to hear it from his mouth. “About what?”

He made a vague gesture with his hoof. “You know…everything. Everything in the School. I know I made things pretty bad for you…”

“Pretty bad?” she repeated. “Blue Blood, you made yourself my personal nightmare for all the years I was in the School!” she grunted. “And it didn’t matter how much you were reprimanded, punished or whatever else; the next day you would slid into the gardens of the School, where by the way you were forbidden to go, and you’d pull my mane, break my stuff, tear my homework…”

“I know, I know!” admitted Blue Blood, covering his face with his hooves. “I was just a foal, and I didn’t know what I was doing. I just…just wanted to hurt you and I don’t really know why.” The stallion huffed. “Well, I do know why. But…the question is…well. I never had the chance to apologize. And I am very sorry, truly. I am not even sure Shining Armor is aware that I used to be the personal bully of his little sister.”

Twilight frowned. “You know Shining?”

“Yes…” he muttered. “We met shortly after he was promoted to Captain. I never told him about my past.”

“You lied to him,” said Twilight, glaring him down.

“No, no!” replied Blue, shaking his head. “I have changed. Really. All this happened many years ago and…well, I am not especially proud of it. I am not proud at all. I didn’t want that getting in the way of making a friend. I didn’t learn you were his little sister until much later.”

Twilight let out a sigh and rubbed her temples. She wasn’t willing to forgive Blue Blood that fast. He had made her life Tartarus. At least, until the day he decided to steal a book from her in front of Sunset Shimmer. Blue Blood managed to escape with just half of his mane singed. Of course, he did return the next day, but that time Twilight had learned from Sunset. That was the last time Blueblood bothered her.

“You know?” said Twilight, smirking despite herself, as she remembered the expression of dread on his face when the magic blast flew right past his ear. “You tried to steal a book from me that last day, and you managed to scurry away with it. You never gave it back.”

Blue Blood frowned, trying to recall what she was talking about. “Yes, well,” he said, nodding. “After that, I wasn’t so willing to go near you-”

“Very wise.”

“-but…well,” Blue Blood rubbed the back of his neck. “Actually, I ended reading the damn book, and that is how I got interested into historical novels. Honestly, Twilight, I have changed a lot since-”

There was a buzz. Both unicorns turned to the sound, and saw one of the newcomers falling face first into the ground. Maud Pie advanced purposefully towards the mare, who desperately tried to untie the bolas wrapped around her back hooves. When the captain reached her, she dug into her saddlebags and extracted a knife which, after a pause, drove into her head.

***

Four ponies glanced nervously at the crowd of ponies that had formed around her. They were a stallion, two mares and a little filly. All the adults with a pair of saddlebags on their back, and appeared to have just escaped from a war zone. The filly was unharmed, but the rest was covered in small wounds and scrapes.

“What on Equestria are you doing?” said the Major Mare, pushing her way through the crowd until she reached the newcomers. “Can’t you see the state they are in? Somepony bring some food and water! Right now!” There was a brief pause, in which everypony looked at each other but nopony moved. The mayor let out an exasperated huff. “Rainbow Dash, Cloudchaser, bring water from the river! Applejack, Carrot Top, food! Everypony else, step back! No need to be a nuisance to the newcomers!”

A few minutes later, the four outsiders were sitting around a campfire. Most ponies had scattered after the mayor insisted they should satisfy their hunger and quench their thirst before explaining what had happened to them, but there were still a good fifty ponies whose curiosity was greater than their patience.

Among them were Pinkie and Maud Pie. The two sisters patiently waited for Limestone Pie to finish eating. The light gray mare had seen Pinkie, and the two had actually exchanged a few words, but she hadn’t noticed Maud yet, who hadn’t made any effort to be seen.

The first to be done was a mature pegasus mare with pale yellow coat, barely a few minutes after starting. The pony ran her shaky hooves over her mane before speaking. “We have been attacked.”

A mutter of dismay raised from the ponies gathered. “Wir…we come from Gravelpit, a mining town. Some of you may know it.” said the mare in sotto voice. She had a strong waldian accent. “I was working in my shop, as always, when I heard screaming outside. When I looked out, there were mehrere…several…”

“Monsters,” finished another pony, a stallion with dark red coat and ash mane, wiping his nuzzle with his hoof. His eyes were unfocused and absent, as if his mind was still wandering over his memories. “They came from the south, from the mountains, and descended through the valley. I was in town with my brothers, when they arrived.”

“It was horrible!” whimpered Limestone Pie, rubbing her eyes. Pinkie Pie reached over and clamped her forelegs around her sister’s barrel. “They were like…ponies, but black and with bug wings.”

The mutters turned more intense and worried. Ponies exchanged concerned and panicked looks. “I don’t know w-what they were, but they attacked everypony they came across,” stammered the pegasus, her voice breaking. The filly that had arrived with them let out a choked sob and hugged her leg. The mare took her into her forelegs and sat the filly on her lap. “Keine Sorge, kleine Jungstute. You are safe now,” she muttered, giving her a nuzzle.

There was a horrified silence that lasted for a long, tense minute, until a voice broke it. “What about mom and dad?” whispered Pinkie Pie, tears brimming from her eyes. “They are fine, right Limestone? Right?”

The gray mare blinked and frowned slightly, then gave her sister a tiny smile and nodded. “Yes, Pinkie. By sheer luck, they were on the town and got away in a train.”

Pinkie Pie let out a relieved sigh and let go of Limestone, though an instant later she sprung back to embrace her. “I have missed you so much, Blinkie.”

Nopony said anything, although there was a slight sense of relief upon seeing the display of fraternal love. And nopony noticed the surprised look that the stallion and the other mare shared.

Then Maud, who had been in complete silence during the entire tale, spoke up. “Limestone, would you mind turning a bit?”

The pearl gray mare let out a yelp. “Maud! Oh my goodness, I didn’t see you!” Limestone made an attempt to get up, but Pinkie was still firmly clamped to her. “I am truly sorry! Let me just-”

“It’s fine.” assured Maud. “Could you just-”

“Certainly!” replied Limestone. “But I don’t know why…” The pony turned her body, exposing her side to Maud. A perfectly circular gold ore decorated her flank.

“I just wanted to check something,” replied Maud, making a dismissive gesture with her hoof. “Don’t mind me.”

“O-okay then…” muttered Limestone, visibly nervous. Pinkie took the chance to sink her face into her mane.

“Sie sind a Ground Guard, right?” asked the yellow mare, pointing at Maud. “Shouldn’t you do something?”

“I am doing something,” replied Maud, her eyes fixed on something.

“…what do you mean?” Confused, the pony followed her gaze and discovered it was anchored on Limestone herself. The gray mare had her eyes closed, completely focused on enjoying the embrace of her little sister. “What ist los?”

“Tell me, Limestone,” said Maud, louder than before. The pony opened her eyes and looked at her, head tilted in confusion. “Has your mark always been like that?”

“Obviously,” replied Limestone, looking down at her flank. “A gold ore. I got it after I moved to Canterlot.”

“I remembered it different.”

Limestone let out a nervous giggle. “Well, we haven’t seen each other since I left from Gravelpit. So of course you-”

“Yes we did. Don’t you remember?” interrupted Maud. “Why do you lie to me?” she added after a short pause.

Limestone opened her mouth to answer, but closed it immediately. Her breath turned shaky and shallow, and her eyes were wide open, fixed on Maud. Pinkie wasn’t hugging her anymore, and instead alternately looked to one sister and the other, clearly confused. She could feel her sister shaking on her forelegs. “Blinkie?” cautiously whispered Pinkie. “What is going o-AH!”

Limestone shoved her sister away and sprung on her hooves. She pushed the pony behind her, heading for the edge of the forest at full gallop. There was a buzz, and the mare fell face first into the ground when a set of bolas wrapped around her hind legs. Maud Pie, already on all four, purposefully made her way to her. Limestone grabbed the linen straps and desperately attempted to untie herself. Realizing she wouldn’t make it in time, she rolled and tried to drag herself away, with no success. Maud reached for a knife that the mare had tucked under one belt. Then she grabbed her mane and pulled to make her look into her face. For a second, the two ponies held each other’s gaze, one severe and unyielding, and the other desperate and begging.

“M-maud, please,” whimpered the defenseless mare. “I am your sister.”

The stone gray mare seemed to hesitate for an instant. She then blinked and her features turned adamant. “No,” she said, an instant before raising the knife and driving in into the eye of the fallen pony. The body tensed up, twitched, and then went still.

A cry raised from the ponies. One of them stood out, louder and more pained above the rest, from Pinkie Pie. Everypony else was too surprised, confused and scared to do anything, but Pinkie got on all four, tripped and fell into the dirt, with a veil of tears blinding her eyes. “Maud, M-maud, w-what have you d-d-done?” she whimpered pitifully, dragging herself towards the dead pony, her legs too shaky to hold her.

Twilight observed the scene, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Then Maud turned around and tossed the knife in front of her. Even from where she was standing, the unicorn could see it wasn’t stained with blood.

The blade was soaked in a semitransparent green liquid.

Pinkie Pie stopped on her tracks and looked at the knife. Her expression dashed through pain, surprise, bewilderment, disgust and disbelief. The clearing was in such silence when Maud spoke again, that her sotto voice was clearly heard by everypony.

“Pinkie Pie; that was not Limestone Pie, and never was. That was a changeling, mimicking her looks and voice. And if we assume everything she said was a lie, that means the only survivors from Gravelpit are those three.” Maud points to the three newcomers that were still alive, their horrified eyes fixed on the corpse.

Maud rubbed her forehead and casted a long glance over the clearing. When she located the mayor, she gestured her to come over. The two ponies exchange words for a few moments, and when the mayor turned back, she was visibly nervous. “L-listen up! I require everypony’s full attention.”

The ponies that were near the edge of the forest walked towards her, but the rest didn’t move. They were still too stunned from what had just happened to follow orders, Twilight and Blueblood included. The Mayor climbed to a trunk. She gazed upon the ponyvillians that were still present, and swallowed nervously. “C-citizens of Ponyville. As you all know, a short time ago a group of ponies arrived to the camp. They told us a village south from the Everfree Forest has been attacked by hostile creatures, and they were survivors from the attack. Maud Pie, captain of the Ground Guard of Canterlot, has discovered that one of them is actually one of the creatures that attacked the village, and has…dealt with it. Therefore, and in preparation for a possible attack, I immediately declare the state of emergency. Please, all Ground Guards step forwards and form a rank in front of the captain.”

There was a pause, before one pony left the group that had been listening to the newcomers, and made his way to Maud Pie, who he then saluted. “Captain Glinting Steel, of the Ponyville Ground Guard.” He then frowned and gave each of his subordinates a glance. After a minute, the full force was gathered: less than twenty ponies, including the captain.

Maud Pie studied the faces of the Guards for a minute, before turning her head to the larger group of ponies and speaking up. “I call forth the reservists.” She took a step forward and watched the ponies, waiting. For a few seconds, nopony moved, and Twilight began to wonder if perhaps there were no reservists in Ponyville. But then, a block of muscle covered in white fur made his way through the rest. He stopped before Maud, raised his left forehoof to his forehead, and gave a sharp nod. “Bulk Biceps, at your service.” he muttered. It was then when Twilight noticed his tiny wings.

A second stallion, very thin and with blue coat, walked forward too and saluted, this time with the proper hoof. Then a pink mare, with yellow mane and a lily behind her ear. Twilight didn’t know who she was, but a small choir of surprised voices was heard when stood up. A second later, the murmurs intensified when a mauve mare joined the rest of the reservists. Twilight blinked and rubbed her eyes with her hoof. ‘Cheerilee? The town’s teacher is a reservist? Go figure.’

Then a fifth pony joined the group with elegant steps. She gave her long, purple mane a toss and stood in attention. Twilight hadn’t known Rarity for very long, but it had been enough to forge an idea of her character. If she had to make a list of ponies that were likely to have military training, she would be the last. And, judging by the hushed voices, she wasn’t the only one with that opinion. Rarity ignored the commotion she had caused, attentive to the words of the captain.

Maud Pie took a few minutes to study the reservist. Twilight couldn’t see any change in her expression, but she doubted the earth mare would be satisfied. Just three mares and two stallions, plus the small garrison of the Ground Guard. “Right. Follow me. All.”

Twilight watched the ponies leave the clearing, before turning her head to Pinkie Pie. The poor mare was still silently sobbing on the same spot, her body shaking slightly every few seconds. Besides her two ponies Twilight didn’t know, plus Fluttershy. With some effort, they managed to get Pinkie on her hooves and take her to the edge of the clearing, so she could cry herself out in private.

Twilight let go of a breath she had not realized to be holding. She blinked and looked at Blueblood for an explanation, but he shrugged, just as clueless as she was. The unicorn stared into the fire, recalling and processing the words of the Major. ‘A village attacked, survivors, from somewhere south. Dodge Junction? Hostile creatures. Griffins? Tauros? No, the major would have mentioned them. One has infiltrated here, and Maud discovered it. What creature can infíltrate? Any skilled unicorn, but wrong answer, obviously. What else can morph, transform, mimic, change…’ Twilight’s heart skipped a beat as a name from a mythology book bloomed into her mind. “But they are a legend…” she whispered, her eyes wide open.

“Whut?” grumbled Blueblood.

“A changeling…” weakly said Twilight. Blueblood barely had any time to crook an eyebrow when the ponies screamed, and both unicorns turned around in time to see the last wisps of green-purple fire fade away from the body of the gray mare. But it wasn’t a mare anymore…

Twilight jumped into her hooves and cautiously made her way to the black creature, unable to believe her own eyes. It was like a pony, but its body was covered in shiny black chitin. From its back sprouted two translucent wings, like those from an insect, which in this individual were of a honey color. Its face was completely alien. A horn, short and swept upwards, two bleached fangs; and an eye, completely yellow and with no pupil, that stared into the infinite. The other eye socket is empty, and from it poured a greenish liquid; its blood.

The unicorn felt a nausea, but she managed to prevent throwing up. ‘It’s okay, Twilight,’ she assured herself. ‘First time seeing a dead body. Grandma’s doesn’t count. It’s okay to be a bit…overwhelmed.’ She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before taking another look to the creature. She studied with fascination the joints on its natural armor and the shine of the chitin. She was so lost in her observations that she failed to notice the Mayor walking towards her.

“You!” she snapped. Twilight looked up, surprised, and took a step back. There was something sinister in those eyes. Desperation and fear. “What do you know of these creatures?”

“W-what?” stammered Twilight. “Why me?”

“Because you are the student of Princess Celestia, and if there is somepony that knows about them, it is you!” replied the Mayor.

Twilights stepped back. She had read about changelings in books, but she had many blanks in her knowledge. “Well, I…uh…wait, how do you know that?” asked the unicorn. She had only mentioned that to Lyra, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. ‘Actually, that is a lot of ponies.’ she realized.

“Pinkie Pie told everypony yesterday,” replied the Mayor. Twilight grimaced a bit. There was no sense on trying to hide it anymore, then. The unicorn swallowed nervously and shuffled on her hooves. She looked around, feeling very exposed. She had never liked being in the spotlight, and now she had several dozen scared ponies listening to her words.

“T-t-that creature is a changeling,” she started, failing to control her voice. She licked her lips, trying to recall what she had read. “They are a highly evolved and specialized specie of reptiles, though they resemble insects, since their skin is covered in chitin plates. They are capable of flying and using rudimentary magic. Their more striking characteristic is…their…their capability of changing their appearance to match any pony they wish; pegasus, unicorn or earth pony.” Twilight’s eyes fell on the dead changeling and her voice shattered. “T-they take the place of p-ponies for reasons that are not entirely known, though…I had always assumed those claims were…untrue. There is a particular narration about a pony that discovers his wife had been supplanted and…” Twilight blinked and shook her head. She had found the manuscript while digging in the archives, and she had always assumed it was just meant to be a scary story. It would do nothing to calm down the already terrified ponies. “S-some authors also attribute them other powers, like spitting acid or toxins, mind contr-”

“How are we supposed to fight that!?” screamed a stallion. Almost instantly, everypony lost their focus on Twilight and began talking loudly. Twilight facehooved. She could guess that instant panic was exactly the reason why the existence of changelings wasn’t common knowledge. If everypony in Equestria knew there were alien shapeshifters living among them, the executions of suspicious ponies would be very frequent.

To avoid it, the only ones that openly knew about changelings were the Royal Guard, the high officers of all military organizations, and very few civilians. Even Twilight herself wouldn’t have known about them if she hadn’t found a passage about the creatures in a book, then asked Princess Celestia about them.

And apparently, Ground Guard officers were aware too. Twilight wondered if her father was informed of it. It was very likely, given how Maud had been able to recognize a hidden changeling. The unicorn huffed a strand of mane off her face while she watched the fruitless attempts of the Mayor to regain control of the situation. ‘Why would they make an open attack?’ she though. She hadn’t heard of any incidents regarding changelings in her entire life, and she was certain she would have heard of it.

Regardless, that was not important. Now, Twilight needed the ponies to listen to her. She lighted up her horn and shot a magic flare to the air. Like the last time, this caused everypony to stand quiet, and Twilight quickly took the chance to speak up. ‘I should measure my words better from now on,’ though Twilight, taking a deep breath.

“Listen,” she said gently but loud enough for everypony to hear. “the changelings have never been at war with Equestria. They have always remained hidden, using their abilities to avoid a direct confrontation. Obviously they are no rival to a pony in singular combat,” she said, cringing internally as all she was saying was fully improvised and not supported in any way with the information she had about changelings. Their motifs to remain hidden could be –and probably were– completely different, but she had to make the ponies feel at least somewhat safe. Thus, she completely omitted the fact that they were very few ponies, and the changelings had already destroyed, at least, one village.

Her speech seemed to work. Some ponies looked a bit more relaxed and less terrified.

“We should go back to Ponyville. It would be the best course of action, don’t you think?” suggested the Major.

Twilight considered that option for a moment, before shaking her head. “No. Here we can watch over each other,” muttered Twilight. “In this clearing, the changelings will have a very difficult time capturing and substituting anypony, if only because we are very exposed.” The unicorn felt a chill go down her spine at the thought of Rarity, Pinkie, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack or Lyra being substituted without her noticing.

“And what if we are attacked?” asked a mare from behind of Twilight. The unicorn turned around and hesitated.

“I can’t leave yet, but I would heavily recommend everypony to leave Ponyville and head for a larger city. Manehattan, Trottingham, Cloudsdale, anywhere is safer than here.” Twilight raised a hoof to stop the pegasus from protesting. “I know many won’t be willing to go. Those, along with myself, will face whatever comes with hooves and teeth.”

The Major glanced over the inhabitants of her village, concern plain on her face. Twilight could guess what was going through her head. On one hoof, she wanted to tell everypony that they would be safe. On the other logic dictated Twilight’s course of action was the best.

“Anything else we should know?” weakly asked the Mayor.

Twilight gave a helpless shrug. “Suspect of anypony who behaves abnormally, but be absolutely certain they are a changeling,” The last thing Twilight wanted was to be the indirect cause of the death of any ponyvillain. Twilight hesitated a moment, before adding more in a sotto voice. “I have read a tale of a guard officer who shared his home with a changeling who had substituted his wife. I don’t know how useful this information is going to be, but...he noticed he had a harder time getting up every morning. This got worse as weeks passed, and he spent whole days almost exhausted. Then he began to have headaches and migraines that would recede when he spent time with his ‘wife’. Afterwards, he suffered from memory loss. He just couldn’t remember some chunks of the day, like he could recall entering the retrieve his armor, and leaving with it; but not actually putting it on. Nightmares occurred often, but he was unable to remember what they were about. All he could remember was a feeling of helplessness, of being devoured by something much, much larger than him. And in the morning, she would be there to comfort him,” Twilight paused and bit her lip. “In the last page, he stated he couldn’t bear with it anymore, and he was going to tell the changeling he knew what it was. T-there are no more entries after that.” Twilight looked away. “I did not know it was something that had really happened at the time.”

The unicorn fixed her eyes on the knife that Maud had used to kill the drone. The layer of dry blood shimmered under the moonlight. An idea sparkled on Twilight’s mind. “Their blood is different…” she muttered, turning to the three newcomers that were still alive. The stallion, mare and filly were sitting awkwardly by the fire pit. “You three, come here,” Twilight asked, waving a hoof, while she lighted up her horn. The stallion hesitated, but the mare shoved him forwards and the small group stopped before Twilight, uncertain. “I a-am so sorry about this, but we have to be sure,” said Twilight, unable to prevent her voice from quaking. ‘I can’t believe I am going to do this.’ She split a portion of her magic, and coalesced it into a small blade, about the size of a scalpel. It was her first time doing that kind of spell, and it was somewhat difficult. “A small cut that draws blood, to make sure you are a real pony.”

“It’s okay, meine Liebe,” replied the mare. She extended one of her wings, bent it in a strange angle, and rummaged inside one of her saddlebags. She then extracted a sewing needle, holding it between her feathers as if they were the fingers of a hand. Before Twilight could react, she lifted one of her forelegs and drove the needle into her flesh. A droplet of crimson blood descended towards her hoof, and when she removed the needle, Twilight could see it soaked in red.

Suddenly, Twilight felt a huge respect for that mare, who had not hesitated an instant before injuring herself with a needle.

Then the mare grabbed the stallion with her other wing, who let out a ‘hey!’ and tried to get himself loose. Quick as lightning, the needle drew a cut on his foreleg. Red blood again, though Twilight made the mental note of never messing with that pony.

“Ginger Snap too?” asked the mare, pointing to the filly. Twilight looked at her. It was a tiny earth pony filly with yellow coat and two-hued orange mane. She was clamped to the mare’s foreleg, looking around in terror. Twilight felt a knot on her throat, but nodded anyways. ‘I am sorry, little one…’

A few seconds later, the old mare was taking the crying filly away, muttering in waldian under her breath. Twilight watched them go, feeling awful, but glad there were no more changelings among them.

The unicorn let out a sigh and wiped her brow with a hoof. “Uh…a-also,” she said out loud, trying to get once again the attention of everypony. “It would be for the best if you avoided going anywhere alone. Move in couples or groups of three. It would be far harder to substitute several ponies than just one.” It would also be harder to knock them our kill them, but Twilight decided it was better if she didn’t mention that.

With nothing else to say, Twilight made her way to her usual sleeping spot, and slumped down. It suddenly struck her how much the situation had shifted. If before she was looking forwards to meet with her family, now she had an even bigger reason to get to a large city as soon as possible. But first, she had to warm Zecora. There was no way she was leaving the zebra alone in the Everfree.

Then there was Pinkie Pie. The earth mare was curled around herself, off to a side, accompanied by Fluttershy and several other ponies Twilight didn’t know. The unicorn wished she could do something to help her, but she felt like she would be intruding where she wasn’t needed.

A while later, the guards and reservists returned. Most of them, at least. Twilight noticed the massive pegasus was nowhere to be seen, and she could swear some of the professional guards were not at the clearing either. Maud and Rarity made their way straight to her. The gray mare leaned into Twilight and whispered in her ear. “Did you check the rest?”

“Yes,” whispered back Twilight.

Maud nodded and left. Twilight’s eyes followed her until she kneeled down next to Pinkie Pie, who then hugged her older sister, weeping on her shoulder. Twilight couldn’t help but feel a pang of guilt. She had believed her mother had died, and it had turned out the only thing separating them had been her own stupidity. Meanwhile, Maud and Pinkie had actually lost their parents and sister in a single, brutal sweep. Twilight couldn’t conceive losing most of her family like that.

“Twilight, darling?”

Twilight turned her head and looked at Rarity. She looked very different. She had her long, smooth mane done into a tail, and the eye shadow was gone. Her body was covered with a linen-padded shirt, a gambeson. On her shoulder rested a spear, and under one of the belts of the gambeson, there was a kitchen knife. Twilight shuddered at bit.

“Are you busy?” she asked. Twilight shook her head, unable to take her eyes off Rarity. It was like a completely different pony. Her visage seemed severe and strict. “Good. Would you kindly follow me into town? There is something you should see.”

“W-what is it?” asked Twilight, getting on all four.

“It’s…better if you see it with your own eyes, darling.” insisted Rarity, uneasy. That got Twilight’s attention. What could possible cause that reaction on Rarity? Figuring she had given all her information about changelings to the Mayor, and thus having no reason to stay, Twilight motioned Rarity to lead the way.

Rarity headed straight to the village, and Twilight took a moment to check the magic beacon was still in the same place. Even if the Whitetails Woods didn’t seem to re-arrange themselves, the unicorn hadn’t memorized the path to the clearing yet, and would rather be safe than sorry.

While the two mares walked, Twilight’s eyes fell upon Rarity’s figure, who was a bit ahead of her. ‘She doesn’t have a warrior body.’ Twilight mused. There were mares in the Ground Guard or even the Royal Guard, and all of them had a body that was closer to Applejack’s or Rainbow Dash’s. Maud was a perfect example. Rarity, on the over hoof, was thin, graceful and curvaceous.

Very curvaceous…and the gambeson wasn’t helping. Since it was padded, it made the rear half of her body stand out even more. Her tail swayed left and right with her hips on every step she took.

Rarity turned her head slightly, and Twilight looked away hastily.

“Darling, are you alright?”

“Y-yes!” she stammered.

Rarity smiled, understandingly. “First time seeing a dead body, I presume?” she gently asked. It wasn’t why Twilight was nervous, but it worked for her, so she nodded.

“Yes, it has been rather…striking,” muttered the white mare. “That pony didn’t hesitate an instant, despite being disguised as her sister. Poor Pinkie.”

Twilight nodded again, having nothing to add. The two ponies walked in silence for a few minutes. Despite having only been in that area once, more, Twilight recognized a few landmarks, like a particularly twisted oak tree.

“Hey Rarity,” muttered Twilight. “You knew about changelings, right?”

The mare shook her head, causing her long mane to bob up and down. “Not even remotely. But you did, right? And that mare too.”

“That’s right,” confirmed Twilight. “It seems it is a reality that is kept hidden to most ponies, to prevent some to take justice on their own hooves.” Rarity’s grimace told Twilight that she understood the reason, though she didn’t like it.

“The Princess knew it, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then why are they still-”

“-haven’t been purged?” interrupted Twilight, correctly guessing her train of thought. “No idea. I can’t see any way ponies would benefit from sharing their lives with changelings.” The lavender pony frowned at herself, for doubting her mentor. “I must be missing something…”

For the next minutes, Twilight explained Rarity everything she had told the Mayor, trying to recall any other useful detail. It was frustrating, to say the least. Twilight was used to have at least some knowledge on most matters, but the amount of information she had about changelings was…inadequate, to say the least.

Rarity told Twilight that some Guards and reservists were still on the village, trying to get hold of anything that could serve as a weapon, to distribute it among the civilians. In fact, the kitchen knife she had under the belt was from her own house. Twilight swallowed nervously. Was all that really necessary? The changelings were still far away. There was plenty of time for everypony to move somewhere safer.

When the two mares reached the edge of the forest, they walked past three stallions. Two of them were the reservists, and the third was a large red pony. Twilight only needed a second to guess that was Big Macintosh. The family resemblance with his sisters was obvious, unlike Pinkie and Maud.

The three ponies were carrying a varied assortment of weapons. A dozen spears, a set of shod hammers and wingblades, and several more kitchen knives poking from a saddlebag. Rarity and the stallions exchanged a salute, and each went on their way. Once again, Twilight was reconsidering her options. Staying, or leaving? The choice wasn’t as obvious as after drinking Zecora’s brew.

Her train of thoughts came to a halt when Rarity stopped, and Twilight walked into her. “Ah! I am sorry, Rarity!”

“No worries,” she muttered.

Twilight looked up. They were atop of a smooth, green hill, from which they could see all Ponyville. It was still a ghostly town, exactly the same as when she had arrived…four days ago? She wasn’t sure anymore. Twilight overlooked the village for a minute, and was about to ask Rarity what she was supposed to see, when she noticed something that wasn’t the same.

It was the tree, the town’s library. It was already large before, but now it dwarfed the houses around it. The roots had expanded, sundering the cobblestone streets and even some of the nearer buildings. The trunk had grown longer and wider, and from it sprouted many twisted branches in a thick tangle. The leaves had turned completely white, as if they were albino, and shimmered under the moonlight.

Twilight shuddered. Much like the crater, the transfigured tree was beautiful to behold; but also a reminder of a terrible, unbound power. Had the tree mutated from the Nightmare living inside it, or had she actively reshaped it? In any case, it was an amazing feat.

***

Twilight sat on the grass and let out a sigh.

The campsite was at chaos, once again. Like with Nightmare Moon’s arrival, the ponies were arguing if they should leave or stay. Twilight, with a headache that grew more intense with each passing second, decided she needed to get away from all that screaming and shouting. Perhaps in a few minutes, the ponies would have calmed down enough to see reason, and leave.

The unicorn wasn’t far from the clearing, but no voice reached her. The fresh air and the rustle of the leaves was exactly what she needed. Her headache was fading already. After thinking for a minute, she came to the conclusion that she couldn’t leave yet. If she did, she would feel like a traitor. Celestia was still alive, somewhere, and it was up to her to find her mentor.

Twilight sighed once again and opened her eyes. She was at the top of a small hill, completely bare of trees. Surrounding the slope there was a ring of all kinds of wild plants. There were some blue flowers that emanated a curious smell, sweet and bitter at the same time. ‘I think I saw them before, when I found Sweetie Belle in the forest.’

Following that line of though, Twilight remembered she had wanted to ask Sweetie what exactly was her problem with Spike. She couldn’t think of anything her assistant could have done to upset Sweetie to the point that she left the campsite.

Twilight’s ears spun when she heard hoofsteps. From the bushes emerged a brown stallion with glasses and a spear on his shoulder. He hadn’t seen Twilight yet. The pony leaned into the bushes, his head re-appearing an instant later, chewing an equisetum. The plant disappeared a in a few seconds, the pony tore another one, turned his head to the top of the hill and saw Twilight. It was obvious he didn’t expect to see anypony, because he gave a jump, lost his balance and fell into the bushes.

Twilight giggled, being reminded of a similar reaction she had not too long ago. “Y-you are not supposed to be here, you know?” he asked, getting on all four and walking up the slope.

Twilight nodded. “I know.”

He gave a nervous glance to the general direction of the camp. “Well then, what are you doing here?”

“I just needed some time away,” replied Twilight. “I was getting a headache, and I didn’t think I would add much to the ‘discussion’.”

The pony climbed all the way up the hill, and sat next to Twilight, looking up to the sky. Twilight followed his eyes and glanced at the heavens for the first time since the return of Nightmare. The Moon was on the center of the celestial sphere, far larger and brighter than she had ever seen it. And the stars as well. They were more numerous and clear than before, shimmering under a tapestry of indigos, blacks and purples. ‘That must be another of Nightmare’s changes,’ though Twilight, marveling at the picture before her. In any other circumstances, she would have enjoyed it, but now it only made her temper spike up.

“You know,” muttered the other pony. “I do not think Nightmare Moon is as bad on the head as most think. She made the Moon shinier, so the plants won’t die,” he added, pointing to the white shimmering orb above them.

Twilight turned her head and glared daggers at him. ”I-I am not defending her!” he quickly added. “I am just saying she is aware that a perpetual night was a bad idea, and she is not trying to get us all killed!”

Twilight huffed. ‘Celestia didn’t let us starve to death either,’ she fumed, looking back up. “At this rate, though, it will be the changelings what kill us,” muttered the unicorn, resting on the grass. At least the headache was completely gone.

“Yeah, that is true…” he replied with a nervous chuckle.

For a few minutes, silence reigned. A gentle breeze picked up, bringing the smell of burned wood from the campsite. Still no voice reached them. Twilight wondered if they had managed to reach an agreement in such a short time, though she doubted it, as even she alone couldn’t take a firm decision.

Twilight caught something on the corner of her eye, and turned her head. The stallion was wearing a large golden pendant, which he had opened. He looked inside for a second, then closed it and left it hanging from his neck. “What’s that?” she asked, unable to resist her curiosity.

The pony smiled, took off the pendant and offered it to her. Twilight took it in her magic, and opened the lid. It was a wind-up watch. The center was transparent, allowing her to see the complex system of cogs and gears that made it work. Now that it was open, she could hear the ‘tic-tic-tic’ of the mechanism. It even has a seconds hand. It was a very expensive piece. “Very nice.”

“Is it not? It even tells the day of the month.”

Twilight blinked and studied the watch closely. Indeed, there were two tiny windows through which she could see the current day and month. ‘I didn’t know you could do that!’ she thought, ‘I wish I had a watch like this’. Perhaps then she could adjust her sleeping hours to the old day-night cycle, and stop having the feeling of being awake at the wrong hours. “Was it a gift from somepony, or-” Twilight fell quiet when she saw the stallion was looking to the forest, with the brow furrowed and his ears shifting in attention. Twilight turned to where he was looking at, and tried to listen, but couldn’t hear anything out of the ordinary. “What’s wrong?”

The pony got on all hooves and gripped his spear. “Can’t you hear it?” he whispered.

Twilight stood up too. ‘There is a very faint hum…’ though Twilight. ‘Like the sound of those airships Canterlot nobility uses to travel, but it is more high-pitched and…’

It was coming closer. And there were more than once. Twilight looked up, and saw back shapes against the stars.

“Run,” muttered the stallion.

“W-what?”

“RUN! he screamed, turning around and running towards the camp. Twilight followed a second later. She had seen them. Between the trees. Many amber eyes, followed by the rest of the changelings.

Their hooves hammered rhythmically against the wet soil. The trees dashed past Twilight. She lighted up her horn to illuminate the way. ‘Don’t trip, don’t trip, don’t trip.’ she repeated like a mantra. Her heart beat wildly inside her chest. Her muscles began to hurt, but she kept pushing them. ‘Keep going, keep going’ she repeated, clenching her teeth. “If they catch you, it’s all over.’

She saw a pony through the trees. A second later, Twilight stormed into the clearing at full gallop. She dug her hooves into the dirt, and braked too hard and fell, tumbling a few times before coming to a halt. Despite the pain and the confusion, she didn’t waste a heartbeat before taking a deep breath and screaming.

“We are under attack!”

There was a pause. An instant of bewilderment. All eyes fixed on her, both confused and surprised. Twilight sat up and looked back. Everything was tranquil at the forest. For a moment, she felt both dread and relief, at the possibility that she had merely hallucinated it.

Then the changelings arrived and that hope vanished. At least a dozen of them jumped from the trees, falling onto the ponies nearby. Time seemed to slow down as Twilight watched a changeling close its jaws around the neck of an old mare. The creature stood up and turned to Twilight. Blood dripped from its maw. Paralyzed with fear, the unicorn did nothing as the changeling took a step on her direction and snarled, baring its fangs.

A gray stain slammed into the changeling, and sent it crashing into a tree. The creature collapsed on the ground and didn’t move anymore. Maud Pie gave Twilight a brief but intense look, before charging to the next changeling. She had ditched her cloak, and on her forelegs wore a set of shod hammers.

Twilight blinked. Maud had just saved her life from a changeling. But there were more. There were at least twenty changelings buzzing around the clearing. Most civilians had gathered in a single group the guards were defending, but there were still some isolated, harassed by the creatures. Over there, Applejack was struggling to keep a changeling at bay, its teeth snapping an inch from her muzzle. That sprung Twilight into action. She channeled a blast of purple flame that hit the changeling and knocked it off Applejack. The farmer took the chance to grip a fallen spear, and drive it through its neck.

Twilight didn’t have time to consider that she had just participated on killing a changeling, when she spotted another swooping towards Applejack. She tilted her head, and let loose her magic, hitting the creature on the face. It fell in a pile of limbs, emitting smoke from its mouth. The unicorn turned, and saw the guards dispatching the last changelings, with Maud dueling two at the same time. Twilight’s horn flashed, and a web of purple strings wrapped around its legs, making Maud’s task easier. Over there, Lyra struggled against another one, but was saved by Big Macintosh. Rarity took down another one and soon enough, all changelings were dead.

Unfortunately, they were not the only corpses.

The fear and confusion was still clinging to the ponies. They had defeated their enemy, but it didn’t feel like a victory. There were too many ponies fallen, both dead and injured. There was a pause before the unscathed realized they were no longer in danger, and hurried to assist those who hadn’t been so lucky. Twilight watched as if it were a dream. A medic kneeled next to a pony, and pressed a cloth against the bloody gash on her barrel. A gabble of voices, ordering and suffering filled Twilight’s ears.

The pony over there didn’t move. Her eyes were wide open in an expression of absolute terror and pain. The bite on her neck was too large. The efforts of the pony tending her were fruitless, as the mare had bled out already. It took Twilight a moment to realize that was no other than the Mayor.

“Granny?! GRANNY!”

Applejack’s torn scream raised above the rest. She was kneeling next to an old mare, the one that had been attacked first. Twilight’s heart fell, remembering Apple Bloom’s words. Big Macintosh came galloping, and tried to stop the hemorrhage with a bandage. The eldest of the apples was breathing heavily and her eyes were focusing somewhere far away. “T-this is the end of the line for m-me,” she said through ragged breaths. “I-I’ll say…hello…to pa and ma from y-you…”

The old pony closed her eyes, and her troubled breathing came to a halt. Applejack covered her mouth with her hooves, and tears brimmed on the edge of her eyes. Big Macintosh gritted his teeth and hugged his sister, while shuddering with sobs. Behind both of them, there was Apple Bloom, unable to believe or understand what she was seeing.

“Hey! Watch out!” called out a voice.

Twilight turned around. The changeling she had struck down was moving. It blinked and shook its head, then snarled at the unicorn…and was stopped by the purple magic ropes that wrapped around its legs. Twilight congratulated herself at her quick thinking. The creature tried to break loose, but Twilight had spent a lot of power in the spell, and made sure to tangle it through the holes on its legs. The changeling wasn’t going anywhere.

“Hold it still,” ordered Maud Pie, walking towards the changeling and standing just before its reach. Twilight nodded and tightened the spell, causing the changeling to fall down. It still hissed at the captain, and attempted to bite her hooves.

Maud Pie stared blankly at the changeling for a moment. “Relay this to your queen,” she muttered. The changeling stopped thrashing and looked straight at the captain. “Hello. I am captain Magnetite Maud Pie. You killed my parents. Prepare to die.”

The face of the changeling went blank for an instant, and then it formed a jarringly equine expression; a small smile, pleased and amused. When it spoke, it did it with a slick and sweet voice, that didn’t match the monster emitting it. “A challenger. How entertaining~” she cooed.

Maud’s mouth turned into an angry snarl. “I will mount your head on a pike.”

“I’ll be looking forward to you trying,” whispered the changeling, before bursting into an unnerving giggle, which Maud put to an end with her shod hammers.

***

Twilight was back on the forest. She had no memory of leaving the clearing, but she was no longer there. She had let her hooves follow the opposite path she had taken when escaping from the changelings, without actually being aware of it.

She hadn’t seen that stallion since their encounter at the hill. ‘Where is he?’ she wondered. Perhaps the changelings had taken him?

The unicorn was afraid, more than ever in her entire life. Not for what may happen in the immediate future, but for the insecurity of what could come next. The Nightmare, the changelings, the disappearance of Celestia…the future was grim. Every time she went to sleep, it could be the last. Who could say she would never wake up, killed by a changeling when she was the most vulnerable?

No, she couldn’t stay here. She hadn’t find Celestia, and she was well aware this would be preying on her forever; but the forest wasn’t safe anymore…

There he was. The ponies had torn him apart. He had several bite marks on his legs, and a large irregular wound from the base of his neck to the jaw line, as if somepony had dragged a stake through his flesh. The blood, pooled underneath him, was already dry. He was very clearly dead.

Twilight’s eyes fell on the watch. It was still hanging from his neck, though the lid was missing and the glass was cracked. But it did work. Tic-tic-tic.

‘I wish I had a watch like this.’

Not stopping to think about what she was doing, she wrapped the watch on her telekinesis and carefully slid the chain out of his neck. After an instant of hesitation, she put it on. The unicorn stuck for a second more, then turned around and returned to the clearing.

***

“Maud?”

“Humn?”

“Maud, I am scared.”

“We all are,” muttered the gray pony, nuzzling the top of her sister’s head. The two ponies had been locked in a mutual embrace since shortly after the end of the battle. Maud’s initial intention was to be there for her sister, but she hadn’t realized how much she had needed a hug herself. Together, they had cried until they ran out of tears. Then they sat there, letting each other’s company ease their pain.

A long minute of silence passed, before Pinkie spoke up again. “Maud?” she muttered. “Why did this happen?”

The captain remained quiet for a while, gently running her hoof on Pinkie’s long curtain of straight mane. “I don’t know, Pinkie. Sometimes life strikes you down. But, we have to keep going.” she muttered. “Reminds me a song we used to sing when we were fillies. Remember it?”

“M-hm,” nodded Pinkie, as she huddled against her sister’s chest. Maud tightened her embrace, and began to softly sing the tune.

When you're rife with devastation

There's a simple explanation:

You're a toymaker's creation

Trapped inside a crystal ball

And whichever way he tilts it

Know that we must be resilient

We won't let them break our spirits

As we sing our silly song

VI - The Stars

All is not lost

Twilight Sparkle made her way through the Everfree. Her steps were hasty and clumsy, tripping on the roots and running into branches, but she paid no attention to those annoyances. “They want me to take the major’s place!” she said to nopony in particular. “Why? I don’t know…I can’t…I wouldn’t be able to…do what she does. I am not a politician! Or a leader! I am just Celestia’s student!”

Her rant continued for several minutes. Even if her mind seemed to be somewhere else, Twilight was actually going in a very precise direction. She reached Zecora’s hut, a bit faster than she had expected, although that had come to be expected from the Everfree. The forest had decided to be kind this time, for whatever reason.

Twilight was reminded of her reason to visit Zecora the moment her home came into view. The zebra was outside, pushing away from her doorway two dead changelings with mild annoyance. “Zecora!” she called out, trotting to the other equine. “Are you hurt?”

“Ah, it is you,” said the zebra, smiling upon seeing Twilight. “Perhaps you can tell what are these two?”

“They are changelings,” said Twilight, walking in a circle around Zecora and seeing no injuries. “Long story short, they have attacked us, and they might be back at some point in the near future. You are not safe here, Zecora. You ought to go somewhere secure, like Trottingham or Manehattan.”

Zecora crooked an eyebrow, believing Twilight to be exaggerating. “How grave is it? It took me months to get established here, and I do not wish to move in a whim.”

“Well, they have basically killed an entire village, and about an hour ago they attacked the camp where the ponyvillains have hidden from Nightmare,” replied Twilight. A more delicate exposition could have led to more arguing, so she decided to be blunt. “There are four or five ponies dead, plus several injured.” Zecora’s jaw dropped, and Twilight waved her hoof to the two dead changelings. “You may have killed those, but they probably were stragglers.”

Zecora looked at the changelings, and for a moment the dregs of sickness crossed her face. She then took a deep breath, which she held for a few seconds. “I will pack up what I need the most,” said Zecora. “I will meet you when I am done.”

Twilight nodded, satisfied. “I am glad you are alright, Zecora,” she said, glancing at the corpses. Both of them seemed to be in perfect state, except for a single, blunt strike to the top of their heads. Their chitin armor was cracked and a small amount of blood flowed from the injury. When Twilight looked up, she noticed a long wooden staff leaning against Zecora’s hut.

The zebra gave Twilight a small, proud smile. “I might be a shaman, but I am not harmless. We have our own traditional fighting styles that let us protect ourselves.” Zecora’s expression turned grave. “Maybe it is just my feel, but it seems to me things keep going downhill.”

Twilight’s ears folded back. “Yes. I hate to admit it, but it seems like we are making a sizeable serie of unfortunate events.” She turned around, and tried to crack a small smile. “Let’s hope we get a strike of good luck, to compensate. I’ll be back in a few hours and help you to move your things.”

Zecora nodded and waved her hoof in a single, broad arc. “Farewell.”

Satisfied to see Zecora had not only survived, but was also unharmed, Twilight took the path back to the campsite, where hopefully things would have calmed down already. She wasn’t exactly proud of leaving the ponies in that state, but she was tired of dealing with angry, scared ponies. She just wasn’t suited for it. In her honest opinion, Maud would do a far better job. Being the former Captain of the Canterlot Ground Guard, she had experience keeping order.

When Twilight arrived to the campsite, after a walk that was just fairly longer than it should have, she discovered her suspicions were absolutely correct. She hadn’t been gone for very long, but the place was completely changed. The whole area had been cleared of shrubs and small trees. In the center, there was a large stack of barrel, boxes and burlap sacks. Around it, there were several camping tents already set up, and some being built. Off to the side, there was a large pile of sheets and pillows. Twilight consulted her newly acquired watch. No more than three hours had passed.

More surprising were the ponies. The camp was bursting with activity. Productive activity, in contrast with the chaotic hustle of before. Around the edge of the clearing there were ponies armed, on guarding duty. Over there, some others were chopping wood or bringing dry twigs from the forest itself. Tents were being set up, supplies distributed, weapons sharpened, and a ditch around the edge dug out.

Twilight was in the process of comprehending what was going on before her, when Rainbow Dash came flying and hovered in front of her. “Oh hey Twilight. Look what we’ve been up while you were gone. Pretty awesome, huh?” she asked, looking back.

“Where is everypony?” asked Twilight, noting the absence of about half of the ponies.

“Oh, that,” Rainbow landed next to Twilight. “Maud send them their way. She forced everypony to choose if they wanted to stay or leave. Many ponies weren’t happy about leaving friends behind, but…” Rainbow shrugged. “It’s not like they were gonna reach an agreement anyways. ‘s for the best, I think.”

Twilight realized her jaw was hanging open and put an end to the issue. “This is amazing! Did Maud organize all this?” She was honestly impressed.

“Oh yeah. She got some help from a retired Far Watch soldier, but it was mostly her.” replied Rainbow Dash.

Twilight observed the busy campsite, having a hard time picturing Maud Pie giving orders that consisted on more than two words. Then again, perhaps that was enough. “So all these ponies are determined to stay here?” she asked.

“Yup!” said Rainbow with an eager smile. “I know you’re gonna say it’s a bad idea, but I am not going anywhere for those bugs. They don’t scare me.”

“They have killed ponies, Rainbow Dash,” muttered Twilight, grim.

“They caught us off-guard,” said Rainbow Dash, shrugging her wings nonchalantly. “That’s not gonna happen next time. I am going to move my cloud house over the clearing. Maud said it would be useful to have a watchtower, and I own the only cloud house in town.” Rainbow Dash paused, before adding. “Speaking of which, Maud said she wanted to talk to you about stuff. Good luck! She’s probably a bit pissed you left.” the pegasus gave Twilight a bump on the shoulder, before taking off and gliding to the other edge of the clearing.

Twilight rubbed her shoulder, surprised at the sudden display of camaraderie. She stood at the edge of the treeline for a moment, before descending the gentle slope. She was slightly worried she would find the former captain angry…or as close to angry as she could muster. Maud Pie was quick enough to locate. She was splitting logs in smaller chunks with an axe. The mare had taken off both her cloak and armor, and now Twilight could see her actual body shape. Despite being shorter than Applejack, the captain could surely rival her in raw muscle power. The earth pony held the axe with her forelegs, raised it above her head, and brought it down, splitting the log with apparent ease. ‘No wonder she had no trouble dealing with the changelings.’ thought Twilight, her eyes fixed on how the muscles of the mare tensed and bulged with each movement.

Twilight coughed politely to catch Maud’s attention. She turned her head and gave Twilight an acknowledging nod. One piece of wood split later, Maud left the axe on the ground and motioned Twilight to follow her, picking up her cloak with a swift movement.

“Rainbow Dash said you wanted to talk to me,” began Twilight.

“You left when ponies were in need of your guidance,” said Maud as she put on her cloak. Her voice or expression were not accusing or displeased. She was merely stating a fact. Perhaps.

Twilight’s ears dropped. “I am sorry,” she whispered. “I-I just…I don’t know. I am not good at dealing with ponies. Magic is my special talent. Standing in front of a mob of ponies and telling them that everything is going to be alright…that is more my father’s thing.”

Maud nodded, understanding. Maybe. Twilight didn’t perceive any change on her expression, but the mare didn’t berate her, which was probably a good sign. “Next time, please refrain from doing that. The ponies are scared already. If you disappear without a trace, they may panic.” Maud observed Twilight for a second, before turning her head ahead. Twilight realized they were heading to a set of camping tents that were already set up and occupied.

However, Maud stopped short of a few meters and sat next to a tree stump. On it were a few papers and a small pebble, and next to it laid a set of shod hammers and armor. Confused, Twilight sat on the opposite side of the stump and watched Maud rummage through the papers. “I need you to send this to the barracks of the Manehattan Ground Guard,” said Maud, tapping a piece of paper that was filled with a tiny, dense mouthwriting. “It’s for your father. I explain the threat of the changelings, and give all the additional information you have offered us. He will take care of relying the warning to every other Ground Guard detachment and army garrison. The high command will take the matter on their hooves.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat when she realized she could have sent the warning far earlier, if she hadn’t left. Now, the letter would arrive a couple of hours later than intended. What if her inability to control her impulses cost the lives of innocent ponies? Mentally slapping herself, Twilight neatly folded the letter in three with her magic and stood up. “Right,” she said, trying to sound calm. “I will need a few minutes to perform the spell.”

Maud nodded.

Twilight waited, expecting some other reaction from the earth pony. When none came, she let out a sigh and prepared herself mentally to perform the spell under Maud’s piercing glare.

Six minutes later, the magic on Twilight’s horn faded and she opened her eyes. The letter was gone, as expected. If everything had gone right – and she had no reason to believe the opposite – it would have appeared on the planned target. Looking up, Twilight grimaced when she discovered that Maud was sitting in the same spot, exactly with the same dull expression.

‘Maybe it’s just me and everypony else can read her expression just fine?’ wondered Twilight. “I-it’s done,” she said, stating the obvious. Maud simply nodded. Twilight gulped, and decided to prod the captain a bit more. “S-so what exactly have I missed?”

“I sent away the ponies that wanted to leave,” replied Maud. “I assigned tasks to everypony else. Guarding, gathering resources, building a palisade, taking care of the wounded,” The earth pony paused and licked her lips. “I am trying to decide what you would be useful for.”

“Me? Uh, well…” Twilight fidgeted with her hooves. “How are we doing with resources?”

“There is a river nearby, so water is not an issue,” said Maud. “We have some food reserves, which we can supplement by picking berries and other edibles form the forest. Fishing, perhaps. We have taken enough sleeping bag, sheets and similar from the houses for everypony, but not tents. We are reserving those for the wounded. The biggest issue was weapons.”

“Are you planning to arm everypony?” asked Twilight, crooking an eyebrow.

“No. Just most. Even if you have no training, having a spear can increase your chances of survival.” replied Maud. “The armory of the Ponyville Ground Guard was small, but some civilians owned weapons. And the owner of Crossbows and Bowling Balls generously donated his stock.”

“Crossbows and Bowling Balls?” repeated Twilight, confused.

“It’s a store in Ponyville,” replied Maud. “So I have a lot of ponies with crossbows and no training. Can you train them?”

“W-what, me?” stammered Twilight. “N-no! I’ve never held a weapon! I am Princess Celestia’s student, I don’t need to fight.”

Maud cocked her head. “That is why you should know how to fight. What about combat magic?”

“Er…” Twilight bit her lip. “I can cast the basic offensive spells. Blaze, beam, and conjured flame. I have very large mana pool, so I can put a lot of power in my spells – even if I have never tried. Oh! And I can put up a rather decent magic shield.” Twilight blushed and smiled sheepishly. “I mean, I am not my big brother. He can cast a really mean shield. Or several. Simultaneously.”

Maud nodded. If she was approving or merely acknowledging her words, Twilight didn’t know. “Can you cast healing spells?”

Twilight bobbed her head side to side. “I can cast healing magic, but I have never attempted to actually heal anypony. But I could learn!” she quickly added.

Maud’s stare ran down her body, and then up again. “How well do you resist fatigue?”

Here, Twilight couldn’t help but giggle. “Sorry! I just…well, I have sometimes spent entire nights studying. So I can stay awake for very long, though later I still need to sleep.”

Maud regarded Twilight for a long minute, to the point that the unicorn started to feel awkward. When she was about to ask the captain if there was anything wrong, she spoke up. “You are useless as a worker, but you have potential,” Maud pointed to the tents. “The doctors are there, tending the wounded. Learn as much as you can from them. You could also do guarding duty. I will assign you somepony to teach you personally how to fight. You will figure out what weapon suits you better, but you shall learn how to shoot a crossbow too.”

Twilight nodded, taken aback by the unexpected flow of words. “O-okay,” she said, adding a salute for good measure. Maud got on all four, and motioned her to follow. Twilight obliged, and was led to the small area behind the tents. There, she found another surprise.

Around a dozen dead changelings, aligned in two rows and facing the same direction. It was grotesque, and Twilight had to fight both the urge to turn around and flee, and a strong nausea. Breathing heavily, the unicorn looked away and took a minute to regain control over her guts and steel herself.

“What are these doing here?” she asked weakly, looking back to the dead bodies. Each and every single one of them sported a distinct injury that had caused their death. A notable amount of them had bunt traumas on their heads, no doubt from Maud’s shod hammers. There were also two ponies kneeled next to the furthest body.

“Doctor Stable said he wanted to study them, as he believed he could get some useful information,” drawled Maud. “If you wish, you can use them too.”

Twilight nodded, a bit uncertain of what kind of knowledge she could extract from several dead bodies. She did have a very extensive education that covered many realms. Biology had always fascinated her more than anything (Except magic, of course), but she was aware that what she knew was still very basic. Looking over the ponies, she saw one was an orange stallion wearing a labcoat, and the second was no other than…Fluttershy?

Something downed upon Twilight. “Why are there so few changelings? I am fairly certain there were more when they attacked.” she asked, looking at Maud.

The gray mare gave a single nod. “I wonder the same. My best guess is that we were not a primary target, but something they passed on their way.”

A chill went down Twilight’s spine. “They weren’t even trying…” she whispered. What if they had? Could they have wiped out the entire campsite, just like they had done with Gravelpit? The unicorn stood there for a minute, watching the two ponies work undisturbed. She turned to the side and realized Maud had left. Steeling herself for the second time on that day, Twilight made her way to the ponies, and cleared her throat.

Both ponies turned their heads. “Oh, hello Twilight,” said Fluttershy with a small smile. Without their heads to obscure the view, Twilight had an excellent picture of the open underside of the changeling, with its entrails sprawled on a metal tray.

Twilight’s stomach twisted violently, and she wondered if she was making a huge mistake.

***

A burst of black flame burned the floor. Sunset took a step back and reformed her shield. That had been a warning shot, but the next one would be a direct hit. When it came, the fire licked the surface of her green barrier, but stopped there. The next charm collapsed her shield, forcing her to dodge. With the adrenaline running through her body, Sunset ducked, jumped and dodged, cleanly avoiding every attack.

The magic on Nightmare Moon’s horn faded, and Sunset allowed herself to relax. She took deep breaths and let her horn rest, but stood on all four. Even if her new master hadn’t tried to catch her off guard, she was far from trusting her. After all, Celestia probably had a good reason to banish her into the Moon.

“And you say you have not gone through any military training?” asked Nightmare Moon with her silky voice. Her tone was always neutral, almost impossible to read.

“Yeah,” said Sunset. “I have been in a few –huff– magic duels, but I never had any –huff– actual training.”

“Impressive,” said the Nightmare. Sunset looked up. Celestia was a mare that gave compliments with relative frequency, but Nightmare didn’t strike her as the kind of pony that would use that adjective loosely. “You have a huge potential. Your magic is strong and firm, and you are skilled and do not hesitate. Not only that, but you also move with agility and precision, and do not rely entirely on your magic. That is a rarity, and a trait of a great magus.”

Despite herself, Sunset couldn’t help but beam at the compliments. She had to remind herself that she wasn’t bound to this pony in any way, and could turn her back to her at any point. “Celestia always mentioned she expected a lot from me,” she replied, frowning. “Though it seems what she expected and what I did were completely different,” she added, remembering the night she almost broke all contact with Celestia.

Nightmare nodded, and turned around majestically. “You may return to your quarters. Eat and rest. We shall continue tomorrow. We wish to see what new magic arts have been composed during our absence.” And with that, the alicorn took the larger staircase that was at the end of the room and left Sunset alone.

Once she was gone, the young unicorn let out a sigh and slid apart her legs until she was lying on the floor. The wood was cool and eased her overheated body. She was quite fit for a magic student, but practicing with Nightmare was exhausting. She had been particularly harsh today, often shattering her shields and forcing her to make a new one every few seconds.

Sunset opened her eyes and looked around the room. The chamber was about ten meters in diameter, entirely made of wood and with no windows, though there was always light coming from an unknown source that the pony couldn’t locate. They had been using it for the past days to test her magic prowess, and Nightmare so far seemed satisfied with her performance.

But despite this strange harmony, Sunset was aware of the wide power difference. Nightmare Moon had no trouble taking down her shields, and the sorry state of the room was a testimony of a small fraction of her power. There were charred sports and large burned areas everywhere, which caused Sunset a twinge of fear when she thought she could have been hit by any of those. By the next day, the damage on the room would have healed, and so would her scratches and bruises, but Sunset doubt her new master could resurrect her from the dead.

Sunset let out a sigh and got on all four, slightly annoyed with herself for following that train of thought. There was little point of thinking of what ‘could have been’. The ‘is’ was far more important. The unicorn climbed the smaller staircase, and found herself in her room.

Like the training chamber, it was made on wood, excavated on the frame of a tree that had sprouted from Celestia-knew-where. It was about the same size as her room back in Canterlot, and similarly furnished too. A very comfortable bed, a night stand, a cupboard, a table and several shelves full of books. These included all sorts of topics: from novels and foal’s stories to arts and philosophy. There was, however, a notable absence of any book related to magic, science and history. Sunset had found this odd at first, but had quickly dismissed that observation.

Like every other night, there was a hot dinner already served on her table, completed with drink and cutely. This time, it has a steaming pot of spicy black beans, followed by some pasta with carrots and a small chocolate cake; plus a very nice apple juice and sesame bread. Surprisingly, there was also a small vase with water and a lovely red rose.

Sunset ate eagerly, devouring the entire meal in a few minutes. As usual, the quantity was greater than she was used to, but the training sessions with Nightmare always left her starving. Sunset leaned back o her chair, patting her belly with notable satisfaction, and looked through the window.

Of course, it was nighttime outside. The silver moonlight bathed a valley and a river that Sunset did not recognize. Nightmare had mentioned the eternal night business, but making changes so it wouldn’t drive Equestria into extinction. Sunset hadn’t been given permission to go outside –she didn’t even know if there was a proper exit out of the tree– but she didn’t feel the need to anyways. She was content with her current situation. She was certain that Nightmare would allow her to leave if she wished. And if she didn’t…well, trees were highly flammable.

Sunset’s eyes fell on the rose. It was a beautiful exemplar. Blood red, and with all its petals perfectly arranged. The unicorn eyed the flower for a long second, before licking her lips and levitating it into her mouth. The slightly bitter taste of the flower was a nice contrast with the meal she just had.

The door swung open. “Sunset Shimmer!” called out Nightmare Moon from the door. The unicorn turned with a jump, and the two ponies held each other’s gaze. A petal fell from Sunset’s mouth. “…are you eating the rose?” asked the alicorn, tilting her head in confusion. “It was not for eating. We intended to use it tomorrow.”

Sunset spat the rose, raining petals across a good part of the floor. Smiling sheepishly, she levitated the half-chewed flower back into the vase, and straightened it with a hoof.

Nightmare Moon shook her head in amusement, and crouched to get inside the room. “Sunset Shimmer, we must leave. We afraid something evil has come loose, and is free to ravage Equestria as it pleases. We shan’t be gone for very long, but you must protect this place in our absence.”

Sunset Shimmer was taken aback by the sudden turn of events, but nodded nonetheless. “What kind of threat are you talking about?”

“We are uncertain yet,” replied Nightmare with suppressed annoyance. “But we intent to put an end to it,” The alicorn seemed to consider something for a second, and added. “You are allowed to access our chamber after we leave. Hidden beneath a stealth spell, there is a small chest containing the shards of the Elements of Harmony. You are to protect them, no matter what.” Sunset’s eyes went wide, unable to believe she was placing that kind of trust on her. “We will weave protecting charms around the Heart of Shadows before we leave, but stay on guard. Is everything clear?”

Sunset stared for a second, quickly going through everything Nightmare had said. “I will not fail you!” she said with confidence, giving the alicorn a brisk salute.

‘Everything is going to go just fine!’

***

Twilight’s stomach just wouldn’t stay still.

As it turned out, dissecting a changeling had been a horrible experience. There were way too many squishy bits and fouls-smelling fluids for her. And it wasn’t like she hadn’t put effort on the dissection. In fact, it had only been after throwing up for the third time that’s he had decided it just wasn’t for her.

Much to her surprise –and slight shame– Fluttershy had handled everything far better than her. In the end, Twilight had decided to leave both for her own sake and for Fluttershy’s. One of the doctors had offered to teach her basic healing magic, and Twilight had eagerly accepted. Unfortunately, her focus was continuously broken by the memories of the dissection, until Twilight decided she needed some fresh air, and left the campsite in the direction of Zecora’s hut.

‘Urp!’ Twilight’s stomach gave another twist. ‘I think I prefer to learn anatomy from books. Much less sticky and smelly. Speaking of which…’ The unicorn sniffed hard, and grimaced at her own stench. She hadn’t taken a bath in days, and her body was starting to show the consequences. Twilight briefly wondered how her she looked like, and made a mental note to find a pool or water where she could see her reflection.

She carefully treaded over some twisted roots. She remembered that area. It was the exact spot where she had found Sweetie Belle wandering around through the Everfree, alone. She was angry at Spike for a reason she had, once again, forgotten to ask. When she had found her, she was staring intensely at…Twilight looked to her right…that bush over there.

Twilight stopped on her tracks and her heart gave a leap inside her chest when she detected a faint aura inside the bush.

She was being observed. By a changeling, no doubt.

Twilight lighted up her horn, carefully watching the bush for any sign of movement or alarm. There was a single aura. A lone changeling wouldn’t be an issue for her. ‘There could be more,’ she realized with a knot on her throat. She raised a dome-shaped shield around herself, and scouted her surroundings.

Several minutes passed, with no sign of movement or magical activity. Biting her lip, Twilight made an opening on her shield and sent out a diminutive probe, to be absolutely certain she was safe. It came back a bit later, sporting only two colors. She hesitated for a moment, and brought down the shield.

Still with her horn ready for casting, Twilight scampered closer to the bush, almost tripping on the forsaken roots. Trembling, she reached over with her foreleg, and pushed the branches aside. She stood there; eyes wide open at the equine wreck that lied inside.

“Celestia help me,” she uttered, horrified.

***

“Is she going to be alright?” asked Twilight, wiping off the sweat from her brow. It had been a long time since she had suffered from magic exertion. Her expertise on healing spells only covered small scrapes and bruises. For her, she had needed to improvise and overcharge her spellwork.

Zecora pulled the curtain shut, and sat opposite to Twilight. While the zebra had packed a good amount of her reagents, her furniture was completely untouched. She had had to hastily unpack a good amount of her supplies, and the ground was littered with wasted components. That was mostly Twilight’s fault, as she had flung about Zecora’s carefully enveloped reagents while looking for particular ones.

The zebra regarded Twilight for a long minute, resting her chin on her forehooves. The grave expression on her face boded no good news. “We have done all we could with our power and skills,” she replied, neutral. “If she survives or not, that is fate’s will.”

Twilight’s ears fell flat against her skull. “There is really nothing else we can do for her?”

Zecora shrugged helplessly. “I am very sorry to say this, my friend,” she said. “Her wounds are healed, so all we can do is nursing her back to health.”

Twilight nodded, bitter. A shudder went down her spine when an image of the mare flashed in front of her eyes. Her entire body was covered in burn scars, drawing a horrible pattern across her skin. The unicorn had seen that kind of scars before, but never to such extent. She was also missing her right hind leg, a stump right below her thigh was all that remained. And if that wasn’t bad enough, her horn was also grievously cracked, and she was so gaunt her skin was tightly stretched over her bones.

And yet, her fur was growing back. A fine layer of thin, almost invisible hair covered her whole body, including the scars. Twilight couldn’t wrap her head around the state of the injured unicorn. No matter how much she though, she couldn’t figure out what had happened to her, and how she had ended inside a bush on the middle of the Everfree Forest.

Twilight let out a long sigh and ran her hooves over her mane, annoyed at the unanswered questions. She cast an intense glare to the curtain that separated Zecora’s bed from the rest of the hut, as if she could somehow stare the secrets out of that pony. “I forgot to mention,” she said after her glaring proved to be unfruitful. “They are reinforcing the campsite. Building a palisade, assigning ponies to guard turns. They’re pretty much turning it into a military area. So you could stay there, instead of going all the way to Manehattan.”

Zecora gave her a small smile. “While I appreciate the proposition, I must stay here to take care of the ill.” Her furrow deepened. “I fear if we move her, her delicate health will worsen still.”

Twilight tried to object, but she couldn’t find any reasonable retort. She sat still for a long minute, chewing her lip as she watched the curtain yet again. “Fine,” she finally said. “But I am going to plant some charms around your hut, just in case.” Without waiting for an answer, Twilight got up and began weaving her spells.

***

The smell.

The wet, putrid smell of the dog’s tunnels was revolting. It twisted her stomach, and gave her nauseas, but the tunnels were too good of a chance to pass. She would have to endure it.

Besides, it would have been a waste to leave her new nest, after having so much trouble to exterminate its former owners. It wasn’t that the diamond dogs had proven to be a big challenge, oh no. But commanding the hive through the thick stone walls had been a bizarre and displeasing experience that she wouldn’t be looking forwards to repeat. Her conscience had resonated in strange ways inside the cramped corridors. Thankfully, her drones were already working to revamp the area, smearing the walls with the slime that would house both hosts and eggs.

The queen grinned and glanced over to the pile of unconscious diamond dogs that she had gathered. Less than ten, from a brood of perhaps fifty. Now, maybe even less, if any had died from their injuries since they had been carelessly piled up. Who knew? Who cared? She was doing all this out of habit. There was no need for more drones. Four hives was more than enough. Hers just happened to be the smallest.

Queen Lacera grimaced at that, running her tongue at the empty socket where her right fang once was. Yes, she was old. The most ancient queen, barring The Forgotten. She was weak and frail, at least for a queen’s standard. But she hadn’t outlived many rivals out of sheer luck. She was smart and crafty, and a more skilled sorceress than any other living queen. Lacera grinned. Yes, she would show those runts what meant to be a true changeling queen.

Something was approaching.

Lacera blinked with her healthy eye. The other bore a large scar, and had been clouded and blind for very long. The queen snarled quietly, annoyed at the strange insulation of the stone. She had always lived underground. What was so special about that particular cave that made it hard for her hard to keep contact with her drones? She could feel something was heading in her general direction, but couldn’t quite indentify what.

Thankfully, she was at no risk. She had made sure to perfectly camouflage all the entrances to the tunnels. There was no chance-

A changeling died.

Lacera got on all four with a jump. It had been so sudden, so quick that she hadn’t had the chance to see the attacker. Growling, the queen put all the drones in alert mode. She directed them to the entrance and, after a moment of hesitation, to the chamber she was in. She didn’t know what she was dealing with. Squinting her eye, Lacera dived deeper into the hive mind, seeing through the eyes of the changeling that was further on the tunnel.

The clattering of the chitinous hooves was deafening. Lacera reduced the pace to a quiet walk, and flicked her ears. Forwards, the tunnel went upwards in a spiral. The ground was polished and slippery, no doubt intended to be descended sliding. Lacera and the changeling grimaced. The situation was less than ideal. The tunnel was too narrow to fly, and the floor was too smooth to be safe. One of the changelings lost balance and the queen quickly took over it and corrected his stance, to prevent it from pushing the rest down the spiral. If only she could-

Lacera retracted from the changelings, wincing in pain. Checking the hive mind, she realized finding the intruder had cost her seven changelings. Eight. Nine. Ten, eleven-

The queen snapped her jaws in annoyance, giving the order to withdraw. An alicorn! She had been found by the Nightmare herself! Why? How? Had she made some mistake, or just a strike of bad luck? Deciding the answer was rather irrelevant at the current moment, Lacera dove once again into the hive mind. She had an approximate knowledge of the layout of the tunnels, and it didn’t take her long to find a good spot for an ambush. Grinning to herself, Lacera gathered a couple dozen changelings in a cave, and purposefully hid them behind the numerous rock formations and dead diamond dogs. Licking her lips in anticipation, Lacera waited. Any second now, the Nightmare would find herself in the middle of an onslaught of magic and fangs. She took control of a drone perched atop of the tunnel where the Nightmare would come from. She wanted to sink her teeth into her flesh, even if it wasn’t personally.

Five seconds later, the Nightmare reached the chamber. A barrage of magic darts shot against her, then the changelings charged. The alicorn screamed in pain and shot a wave of magic, scattering the drones. Most stood up a second later, and resumed the attack. Magic and shod hooves took a toll on the drones. Lacera felt a pang of pain with each changeling mind that fizzled out, but it didn’t matter. Thankfully, most of Nightmare’s attacks were instantly lethal, so she wasn’t being bombarded with pain signals. It let her focus in her personal changeling. With a howl of triumph on both her body and the drone’s, she took hold of one of the Nightmare’s hind legs, and chomped down hard, reaching the bone. The satisfaction only lasted a second, when the alicorn bucked and the drone went mute forever.

Lacera grimaced and shook her head. No matter how many times it happened, dying would always be displeasing. Most queens would need several minutes to recover from the shock, before being able to take over a drone again. But she wasn’t most queens. She chose a random drone, and rushed forwards, baring her fangs-

Only to find no alicorn. Just many mangled changelings, and a few injured.

“Where did she go?!” she screamed in both bodies. She inspected the memories of the changeling. She had left! Which tunnel was that one? She swapped bodies and saw the same exit from a different angle. “Come here and fight me, you whorse!” she howled, sending all the survivors into that tunnel, and funneling as many as she could in there. The drones galloped in the tunnel, trampling and pushing each other in their frenzy. Lacera wanted them to destroy the Nightmare.

“Oh, hello there,” said a smooth voice. Lacera sprung out of the hive mind and opened her eyes. There she was. Standing slightly taller than herself, and bearing a midnight blue armor, the black alicorn stood grinning menacingly, with her ethereal mane waving around her, and her bat-like wings fully opened.

Lacera held her gaze and snarled. Nightmare lighted up her horn, and a barrier covered the entrance of the tunnel. A second later, a stampede of changelings crashed into it with a dull ‘thudd’ which resounded in the hive mind. Lacera didn’t flinch. Doing so would imply weakness.

‘She is unharmed,” though Lacera, carefully studying the alicorn. ‘Why is she unharmed? I drove my teeth into her leg!’ The queen noticed the ornate greaves her opponent was wearing, and her lips quipped in annoyance. ‘Lucky crone. But luck won’t cut it against me.’

“It would seem manners have worsened since the last time we were in Equestria,” said the alicorn with obvious amusement, much to Lacera’s irritation. “Back in our days, it was considered polite to introduce oneself.”

Lacera grinned at the irony. “I bet it was also considered polite to not barge uninvited into other’s homes. But fine, I will humor you,” The changeling stood proudly, aided by the height advantage she had over the Nightmare. “I am Lacera, queen of this hive! Eldest of my kind! I have predated on your kin for longer than you can imagine. And I shall continue to do so, after I am done with you.”

The Nightmare rolled her eyes. “So much useless bravado,” she muttered, casually walking to Lacera’s left. The queen turned her head to follow her, glaring poisoned daggers. “We are Nightmare Moon, ruler of this land. And, as you probably guessed already, we are here to kill you.”

“HAH! That’s rich, coming from an overgrown hodgepodge of ponies. You think I haven’t fought before? I know your kin. I can take you on my own, without my hive. I know your tricks and your limits,” Lacera spat a bit of poison that had pooled on her mouth off to the side. “And I know how-”

In the blink of an eye, Nightmare covered the distance that separated them, and slammed her hoof against the queen’s head. Lacera recoiled, struggling to stay on her hooves. Then came another hit, like a sledgehammer, that threw her to the opposite side. An uppercut hit her on the jaw and launched her into the air, where Lacera buzzed her wings and managed to land upright.

Nightmare Moon didn’t go after her. She just stood there, grinning. So proud of herself. She had caught her off-guard. By walking to the queen’s left, she had gone into the area that was one covered by her blind eye. But Lacera wouldn’t be fooled twice by the same cheap trick. Lighting up her horn, she casted a gout of lavender flame, forcing the Nightmare to lift a barrier. Grinning to herself, Lacera pushed a large amount of energy into her horn, and from it flowed a portion of raw magic, which coalesced into a rapier made of pure light. With a cry of victory, Lacera charged forwards and thrusted her weapon.

The Nightmare’s eyes went wide. She ducked in time, but the blade cleanly cut a large portion of her mane. The piece of hair lost its ethereal quality and fluttered to the ground while the alicorn flew backwards and the queen chased her. “We are very impressed,” she said nonchalantly, dodging her opponent’s lunges with insulting ease. “Casting a vorpal blade is very taxing, both mentally and physically. We would not have expected a creature like you to be able to create one, lest after taking so many hits to the head.”

Lacera growled. “Stop moving you whorse!” she shrieked. “Stop moving so I can mount your head on a pike!”

“There is, however, a disadvantage of vorpal blades against physical weapons,” continued Nightmare, ignoring how the attacks were a bit closer to her each time. “You need perfect focus. Any distraction can shatter the spell. Like pain,” The alicorn spun on her front hooves and delivered a buck straight to the changeling’s chest. Lacera recoiled, gritting her teeth and the blade flickered out. Looking down, she could see two hoof-shaped dents on her armor, which had also sunk noticeably. She could tell the hit had broken her sternum and some ribs. Breathing was painful, but she wasn’t done. Lacera lunged forwards, fangs bared and aiming for the neck.

Nightmare Moon stepped sideways, slid a foreleg under the changeling’s neck and threw her into the ground. Before the queen could move, she jumped on her and pressed her forehoof against her throat, pushing with her whole weight. Lacera gasped for air, struggling to reduce the pressure on her windpipe.

“Shame. We would love to enjoy ourselves longer, but we are not willing to be actually hurt by that vorpal blade of yours.” Nightmare Moon grinned, leaning forwards until her muzzle has almost touching the changeling’s. “You are a plague, and should be treated as such.” The alicorn lifted her hindlegs, and stomped down on the changeling’s soft belly. Lacera shrieked in pain and convulsed violently, causing the alicorn to lose her balance. Lacera jumped to her hooves and backed up.

“What have you done?” croaked Lacera, touching her belly with a hoof. It was stained with a light purple goop. “What have YOU DONE?!” Hissing, the changeling smacked the Nightmare on the face with a hoof. She only recoiled slightly. Lacera’s blood boiled. “WHAT. HAVE. YOU. DONE! STERILE! YOU. HAVE. KILLED. ME!!” She screamed, punctuating every word with a new strike.

Nightmare Moon recoiled and gave her a toothy grin. “You are mistaken. We have not killed you. Yet,” She snapped her jaws on the changeling’s still-stretched foreleg. The thick chitin armor didn’t budge. Lacera let out a nervous, almost maniac, laugh.

“Hopeless! You can’t bite through my armo- aaAAAHHUGH!” Her words turned into a howl when the Nightmare bit harder and cracked the armor, taking a large chunk of flesh with her. Lacera stepped back wobbly, cradling her injured leg. “No, no, no, nOOoooo…” she wailed, gritting her teeth. “You are no pony! You are a monster!”

Nightmare Moon spat the piece of flesh and let out a chuckle. “Ah, you flatter us, changeling,” she cooed. The shadows of the chamber were growing darker. “But remember, you brought this onto yourself,” she said, casually taking a step forwards. Lacera backed up more, and her rump hit something. The queen gasped and looked behind her. She was cornered. There was an exit, a few meters away. Too far. Why was the chamber so dark? Had the light gems lost their magic?

“Go for it,” Lacera looked at the Nightmare. “Go for it,” she repeated. The shadows around her were darker, more defined. Longer. “What is the worst that could happen? You are already doomed.” The last word echoed in the deadly silence. You are already doomed. Lacera hesitated. She is playing with you. Yes, that was it. She would shoot her down the instant she took a step towards the corridor, just to mock her once more. The air was oppressive, damp with magic. She was hyperventilating, and breathing was hard and painful. No chance to escape. No hope. The shadows were sharp, almost solid. They stretched outwards from the alicorn, like black roots.

“Fear is a funny thing, isn’t it?” said the Nightmare. Her blue eyes gleamed like beacons on the solid darkness that surrounded her. “It is meant to keep you out of harm’s way, and yet here you are. Paralyzed. Helpless. Unable to do anything but tremble and quake.” The air quivered with her words.

At least give us the pleasure of a good chase.

Lacera gasped. The Nightmare grinned. Her eyes and fangs stood out in the solid black of the cave. The shadows were sharper, like dark razors. They slithered between the stone, reaching for Lacera’s hooves and retracting again. You thought that was your conscience speaking? “No, that was us. Sowing dread. How many minds have you invaded in your life?” How many souls have you torn apart? Lacera screamed and covered her ears with her hooves. Pointless. You can’t hush us away. “NOW HURRY! AMUSE US SOME MORE! TURN TAIL AND RUN!” TRY TO GIVE YOUR WORTHLESS LIFE A FEW MORE SECONDS! “Hurry!” HURRY! The shadows whipped violently, scraping on the stone and severing the few dogs that hadn’t been engulfed yet. HURRY! The darkness towered over the queen, cackling maniacally. The blackness trembled with her laughter, and threw itself towards the changeling.

Through her cluttered mind, Lacera found the will to dodge. She landed on her bitten leg. The burst of pain cleared her mind. Pushing away the dregs of Nightmare’s presence, the queen gave the hive mind one order, and it answered with a single howl. Seeing her intentions, the Nightmare shot a beam, which severed the queen’s leg before she slipped through the hole, limping.

Dozens of changelings flooded the chamber, snapping their jaws and stepping on each other. They attacked the shadows with fangs and magic while the queen escaped. The darkness tore them apart with exasperation, slowed down by the sheer number of attackers. Nightmare Moon chased Lacera upwards, flooding the tunnel with her magic and turning to ashes the changelings that came to face her. She was livid beyond measure. She couldn’t let that blight to equinity leave alive. Specially after not having killed her outright.

Nightmare Moon emerged into the night and dug her hooves into the soil. The crown of midnight blue fire receded back into her mane when it downed upon her what she had done. She had lost the queen. She had Lacera under her hooves, and she had missed the chance to end her. Nightmare Moon sat down, and let out a heavy sigh. Looking up, she could see her Moon, white and pristine. Perfect. Beautiful. A lone sky chariot crossed the sky, heading for the Everfree Forest. Nightmare Moon followed it with her eyes, curious. Ponies usually avoided flying above the Everfree, for good reasons.

As Nightmare Moon watched the chariot go into the distance, it crossed a faint trail of an aura. Cocking an eyebrow, the alicorn followed the trail all the way to the exit she was next to. A grin slowly spread on her face. That was the changeling’s aura, no doubt. It had her same rotten, tainted smell to it. The Nightmare jumped to her hooves. She could track the monster, and fix her mistake! The alicorn chuckled and spread her wings, but closed them again a second later.

There were more than one trail leaving the cave. Four, namely. And they all seemed to be an exact copy of one another. Nightmare Moon quipped her lip in annoyance. Decoys. Even in her desperation to escape, the changeling had enough time to play a last trick. The Nightmare didn’t have the time to carefully examine each track. The mare gave each trail a short glance, decided the one on the right seemed to be slightly stronger, and resumed her pursue.

***

Twilight Sparkle climbed the hill, panting. Right behind the slope was the campsite. It had been a very eventful day, and the unicorn was looking forwards to have some well-deserved rest. She was enormously thankful to Maud for taking care of everything while she was gone. She could see why Night Light had chosen her to be his replacement, even if she seemed a bit eccentric at first glance.

The unicorn reached the top of the hill and stopped to wipe the sweat off her brow. She blinked and her ears swiveled at the sudden noise to her left. There, pinned to the trunk of a tree, was a quarrel. Twilight stared at the projectile, puzzled. “Oh heavens, Twilight!” called out a voice below. Twilight turned her head and saw Cheerilee, Lyra, Bon Bon and a few other ponies; all of them displaying various degrees of surprise, relief and concern. “I almost made you a new nostril! Come here, you are on the shooting range.”

“Shooting range?” repeated Twilight, looking back at the quarrel. Indeed, there was a bullseye burned into the bark. “Oh…r-right,” she stammered, descending the slope and doing her best to ignore the fact that Cheerilee had almost accidentally killed her with a crossbow. The weapon itself was still on her mauve hooves. The other ponies all carried similar weapons. “You are target practicing? Why? And where did you get all those crossbows?”

“Oh, Maud suggested it and I offered,” she replied, shrugging. “It would be useful if we get attacked again, and it is a good skill to have overall.” Cheerilee turned to the other ponies. “I want you to take turns loosing at the target. Three shots per pony. And remember: hooves off the crossbow when somepony else is retrieving the bolts.” There were sounds of agreement and Cheerilee turned back to Twilight. “As for your next question, there is a shop in Ponyville called Crossbows and Bowling Balls-”

“Oh, right! Maud mentioned it.” interrupted Twilight. “Kind of strange, if you ask me.”

Cheerilee giggled. “You tell me! There are a bunch of shops like that all around Ponyville, like Sofas and Quills. You learn to not question it. Anyways, the owner gracefully donated what he had in stock. So now we have a lot of crossbows. And…bowling balls. I think somepony is trying to weaponize them.” Cheerilee looked to the side and chuckled. “Lyra, that is not going to work. Use your hooves.”

“Awww, come on!” Lyra sat on the dirt and pouted. Several of her mint-colored hands were grasping at her crossbow, unsuccessfully trying to pull the string. The hands just partially dissolved under the stress, reforming shortly after.

“Try making the magic denser,” suggested Twilight.

Lyra looked at her with a crooked smile. “This is as dense as I can cast anything,” she confessed. The unicorn rested the crossbow on the dirt and slid her hoof on the loop. “I can cast light and use my hands. That’s it.” She pulled the string and, with some effort, managed to latch the string. With one of her mint-colored hands, she grabbed a bolt, placed it on the slot and aimed. “But hey, at least I’m a pretty great shooter.” Lyra pulled the trigger. The bolt flew and hit the target exactly on the bullseye. The ponies cheered and thundered their hooves. Cheerilee’s eyebrows went so high they almost disappeared under her mane. Lyra stared at the target for several seconds, and then turned around, bewildered. “That was an accident!” she said with a tone of guilt. “I sweat that was pure luck, no skill involved whatsoever.” The ponies burst into laughter, with Lyra and Cheerilee following a second later.

Twilight wiped a tear off the edge of her eye. She hadn’t realized until then, but it had been a while since she had last laughed. The tension and worries of the last days didn’t seem all that important for a short moment as she shared a simple, carefree instant with a few ponies she barely knew.

“Heads up!”

A split second after the warning, something crashed into the tree, startling all the ponies. A large, marbled red sphere lazily rolled down the slope, gaining speed little by little as it went. The still on-edge ponies watched it roll past them, until it was caught by a set of blue hooves. “Aaaand, right on the bullseye! Toldja I could do it, kiddo.” Rainbow Dash was standing next to an orange filly, brushing her hoof against her chest. “That is called ‘dive-bombing’. Brought to you by Rainbow Dash.”

“That was awesome!” said the filly, with her eyes positively sparkling.

“Though next time, perhaps you could find a moment when we are not on the trajectory of the ball,” suggested a very annoyed Cheerilee. “Somepony could have been hurt.”

Rainbow Dash seemed taken aback by the teacher’s reaction. “Come on now, you weren’t on any danger. I just swooped and dropped the ball. Easy-peasy.”

“Right, but I would very much appreciate if you gave me a warning before throwing heavy objects on my general direction!”

“I did warm you!”

“Before, Rainbow Dash,” repeated Cheerilee. “I can hardly move out of the way in zero-point-one second!”

“She is right, Rainbow Dash. I don’t know why are you arguing with her,” interfered Twilight. “Somepony could have been hurt.”

Rainbow let out a huff. “Fine. I’ll be more careful next time.” The pegasus blinked, and her sourness seemed to fade just a bit. “Oh, right! I was supposed to tell you Rarity is looking for you, Twilight.”

“Rarity? What does she need?”

“No idea,” replied the mare, shrugging. “Something about her mane. She probably wants you to give her a manecut, I dunno.”

Twilight crooked an eyebrow and gave the orange filly a questioning look, but she replied with a hopeless shrug. Peaked by curiosity, Twilight left the shooting range. It took her a few minutes to find the white unicorn. She was sitting next to one of the tents, and seemed to be in the middle of a mild crisis, if the mane-pulling was any indication. Nevertheless, Twilight approached with caution. “Rarity? What is wrong?”

“Twilight!” The mare whipped around so fast Twilight took a step back. “It’s horrible! You have to help me!”

“S-sure thing, Rarity,” One quick glance determined that Rarity’s mane was fine. Frazzled, but fine. “What do you need?”

“It’s not what I need, darling. It’s what she needs!” she replied, pointing inside the tent.

“But I don’t need anything! This is fine!” squeaked a voice inside. Twilight didn’t need to see her to know that was Sweetie Belle. Curious beyond words, she peeked around the flap of the tent, and her jaw dropped.

Inside, was Sweetie Belle, lying on what seemed to be a pink and lavender carpet. It took Twilight a moment to realize it wasn’t a carpet at all, but her own overgrown mane, completed with tiny curls. Half of her face was obscured behind the waterfall of hair; and her tail was merged with her mane. “W…what happened?!” she asked, finally managing to close her mouth.

“I was hoping you could tell me, darling,” replied Rarity. “She told me about her unauthorized walk through the Everfree,” she gave the small unicorn a hard glare. “but she insists that she didn’t see or feel anything strange. But this is, clearly, rather extraordinary.”

“How long has she been like that?”

“No more than a couple of hours, and look how long it is already!” sighed Rarity. “And that’s not all! I already tried trimming it, but it’s no use. See?” She lighted up her horn, and a small turf of cut hair rose from the carpet. Rarity pouted and let it flutter down.

“Can’t you just let it grow?” squeaked Sweetie Belle. “I kinda like it like this.”

“Absolutely not, Sweetie! It’s far too long, and that’s the end of it,” replied Rarity, punctuating the sentence with her hoof.

“But-”

“The end of it!” repeated Rarity. Sweetie Belle scrunched her muzzle and sank her face in the sea of mane, with her ears folded back. Twilight couldn’t help but smile. She could be Sunset’s apprentice, but she was still, in the end, a child. She wondered how often had had Sunset to deal with similar situations. Next to her, Rarity let out a quiet sigh. “Listen, Sweetie. Your mane is simply too long. You’ll tangle your hooves with it and fall. Would you want that?” The only answer was a muffled grunt. “How about, after Twilight gets rid of the continuous growth, I trim it longer than you had it before?”

That got Sweetie’s attention, who lifted her head and glanced at her sister with disbelief. “You promise?”

“I promise,” replied Rarity, drawing a cross with her hoof over her chest. “But only if you stay still and let Twilight do her thing. Will you do that?” Sweetie Belle nodded and, with some effort, sat up straight. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, which she held for a few seconds, before letting go. Twilight recognized the relaxation technique that Sunset sometimes used before casting a particularly difficult spell.

Unfortunately, Twilight’s efforts to solve the problem were a failure. Twenty minutes later, Sweetie’s mane was still growing, and Twilight had accepted that she wasn’t going to succeed, much to her annoyance. Under Sweetie’s latent but solid aura, there was something foreign, but it felt so different from Twilight’s magic that she couldn’t remove it without harming Sweetie. It wasn’t unicorn magic. Or perhaps, it belonged to an unicorn so talented they could make their magic seem extremely alien.

Given that the most powerful and skilled unicorns in Equestria had all recently deceased, and that Sweetie Belle had been in the Everfree just a few hours ago, the first option seemed the most likely. And, whether she liked it or not, Twilight didn’t know much about the Everfree. Zecora was her best option.

“Alright, this is going to sound a bit strange,” said Twilight, turning her head towards Rarity. “But I can’t figure out what is wrong with her. I suspect something in the Everfree might have charmed her in some way, but I don’t know how to undo it. I do know somepony that might, though.”

“That’s wonderful, darling! Who is it? Doctor Stable?”

“Well, no. She is a zebra.”

“A zebra? I don’t believe I have seen any zebra on the campsite.”

“She…is not here.”

“Oh?”

“She lives on the Everfree Forest,” said Twilight with a sheepish smile.

“Oh…that’s...unusual. Shall we go fetch her?”

Twilight folded her ears back. “She can’t really…go anywhere. She is taking care of an injured pony.”

“Oh! You should have said that first, darling! I’ll ask for help to the doctors,” Rarity looked at her younger sister. “I’m afraid you’ll have to endure this a bit longer, Sweetie.”

“Yay!”

Both unicorn mares chuckled at Sweetie’s tiny squeak of joy.

“Twilight Sparkle!”

The lavender unicorn felt her blood freeze in her veins. She knew that voice. “It…seems somepony is looking for you, darling,” said Rarity, crooking an eyebrow.

“Yep! That’s my mom.” she replied with slight dread.

“Your mo- wait, didn’t you say she had recently, uh, deceased?”

“I was mistaken.”

Before Rarity could ask another question, a light gray unicorn mare with two-hued mane turned the corner at full gallop and dug her hooves on the dirt, barely stopping in time to avoid colliding with Rarity. “There you are! You’re in big trouble, young lady!” cried Twilight Velvet.

“Uh. Hi mom!” said Twilight with a tiny, sheepish smile.

“Don’t you ‘hi mom’ me now! You had us worried to death!”

“I’m… very sorry, mom. Really.”

“What were you thinking!? Leaving alone in the middle of an emergency! What if you got hurt! We wouldn’t have been able to help you!”

“I wasn’t thinking straight…”

“No, obviously you weren’t,” Twilight Velvet let out a heavy sigh and rubbed her eyes. “I was so worried. I am so glad you’re alright.” she muttered. Twilight Sparkle got on her hooves and walked around a very bewildered Rarity to give her mother a hug, which she gladly returned.

“Where is Spike?” asked Velvet, still embracing her daughter.

“I haven’t seen him in a while. He is probably doing something of use.”

“He is such a dutiful little dragon…”

“Yes, he is.”

The two ponies broke their embrace, and Twilight Velvet looked at Rarity for the first time. “And, who is your friend?”

“Oh, she is Rarity. She lives here in Ponyville, and is a reservist,” said Twilight, smiling at Rarity. “She is Sweetie Belle’s older sister.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, madam,” said Rarity, bowing her head.

Twilight Velvet scrutinized the alabaster unicorn for a long moment. “She seems very nice! If I were you, I wouldn’t miss this chance to get hitched!”

“M-mom!” stammered Twilight, her cheeks turning crimson.

***

Everything hurts

Only living creatures can feel pain

Therefore, I am alive

Alive?

…how strange. I thought I was done for.

Where am I, anyways? I hear hoofsteps. I should try to catch their attention.

“….h-hggk…”

That was pathetic. And painful. There is not an inch of my body that doesn’t hurt.

…except for my right hind leg, and my wings.

That…does not bode well.

I have been heard. They are getting closer. A single pony, if I am not mistaken. Am I on their bed?

…

Sugared water. I hadn’t noticed how much I needed to quench my thirst. She is speaking in zebrican. How did I end here? Does she even know? I should ask.

…

…oh, I am still in Equestria. Wonderful news! That means I can’t waste a second more. I have squandered enough time alrea-

The pony tried to get up, but she was held down by a gentle, but firm hoof. “Let me go,” said the mare with a slight hint of panic on her voice. Why did she feel so weak? “I must go, right now.”

“You are in no condition of going anywhere,” replied the zebra. “Now when your health is so feeble.”

The mare lighted up her horn to tear the wet cloth that covered her eyes, but instead got a very painful jolt. Blinking away the tears, she raised a shaky hoof and took the parchment away. In front of her was a zebra mare of teal eyes, with golden earrings hanging from her ears and a concerned expression on her face. “W-what has happened to me?” whimpered Celestia.

VII - The Wheel of Fortune

Encounters

“Are you entirely certain this is a good idea?”

“Mom, I told you we will be fine,” replied Twilight Sparkle, looking back at her mother. “I’ve done this trip a few times already.”

“So I have!” squeaked Sweetie Belle, beaming from Twilight’s back.

“Yes, and it was a very poor decision on your part,” Twilight chided her. “You could have been hurt.”

Twilight Velvet let out a chuckle. “Oh look, the pot’s calling the kettle black.”

Twilight Sparkle let out a small huff and glanced back ahead. It had taken a bit of coaxing, but she had managed to persuade Rarity to let her take her sister to Zecora. The white unicorn had hesitated at first, but both Twilights had assured her that Sweetie Belle would be in no danger, accompanied by Celestia’s personal student, and a failed aspirant for a seat on the archmage council. After having a meager ration of oatmeals, the three unicorns parted.

“So, uh…what have you been up to?” asked Twilight after several minutes of silence. The Everfree was quiet.

“Not much, really,” replied Velvet. “There is a lot of work to do, but there are many ponies better suited for it than me. You know, the story of my life,” She smiled drily. “Shining and Night are trying to keep everything under control. There was already a lot of guardsponies on the streets , but they have called in the reservists. It’s not hard for civilians to figure out something big is going on. Something more dangerous than Nightmare Moon.”

“Twilight, are we going to die?” asked Sweetie Belle.

Both mares stopped on their tracks. “N-no,” stammered the youngest, looking back to the filly riding her back. With her telekinesis, she pushed away a pink lock of her mane. “What makes you think that?”

“They’ve killed ponies!” she squeaked. “Like Apple Bloom’s grandma! I saw her and her family come from Ponyville after burying her! They were…uh…what is more than sad?”

“Miserable?” offered Twilight Sparkle.

“For instance,” conceded Sweetie. “And I’ve seen a lot of ponies hurt. I don’t want that to happen to you. Or Sunset. W-where is Sunset? I want her back…”

Mother and daughter shared an uncertain look. Seeing that her daughter seemed far more lost and helpless than her, Twilight Velvet was the one to speak up. “Sweetie, you don’t have to worry about that.”

The tiny unicorn blew a lock of mane off her face. “Velvet, I may be a filly, but I am not dumb. I was there when the changelings attacked. And I know Apple Bloom is not going to see her granny again.” she stated.

Once again, both mares shared a look. This time, it was Twilight Sparkle the one to speak. “Sweetie, would you like to…talk about it? Sometimes, it helps a lot to get something out of your chest.”

“…maybe later.” she muttered. Twilight waited a moment to see if the filly decided to say anything else, and then resumed the march. The group walked in silence for several minutes, paying attention to any strange sounds around them, though up to that point, the only noises had been the crinkling of the leaves under their hooves.

“How did you get here so quickly, anyways?” asked Twilight, tired of the silence.

“Oh, I took a sky chariot,” replied her mother. “Ponyville isn’t very far from Manehattan if you can fly.”

“And you managed to convince a pegasus to pull you here?”

Velvet smiled mischievously. “I may be a Jane Doe to most ponies, but your brother and father are rather influential. Night Light decided he could spare a pegasus guard to make sure her careless daughter was safe.”

Twilight smiled sheepishly, but the words of her mother got her thinking. She had never considered how well situated her family was. How influential exactly were Night Light and Twilight Velvet? How much had it played on Shining Armor’s success? Or her own, for that matter? Twilight Velvet was a rather powerful unicorn, even if she failed to become a professional sorceress.

“What happened after you went to the School of High Magic?” asked Twilight.

Velvet let out a sigh. “The council wanted my help. Before Nightmare Moon made appearance, there were…signs. There were disturbances on the Celestial Sphere. The archmages felt them, and wanted to know my opinion. You probably perceived it too.”

Twilight tilted her head, trying to remember. “I…had a headache. Was it caused those disturbances?”

“Yes,” confirmed Velvet after a short pause. “Though most ponies didn’t feel a thing. The archmages were quite alarmed, of course. The Celestial Sphere is extremely stable, and only something very big would cause it to quake so much.”

“And since your special talent is, precisely, celestial magic, they thought you’d know more,” guessed Twilight.

“Precisely,” nodded Velvet, allowing herself a proud smile, which faded a second later. “Unfortunately, I was as lost as they were. I could perceive there was something off with the Moon, but I couldn’t know what. And the Mare in the Moon only disappeared after I left the school. Still, even if that had changed before meeting with the council, I doubt I would have been able to guess a mad alicorn had just escaped from the Moon.” The older unicorn went quiet for a minute, before adding with sotto voice. “What a waste of lives…”

“I thought you hated the Council,” muttered Twilight

Velvet shook her head side to side. “It’s true that I usually talk poorly of them, but that is quite unfair. Most are absolutely full of themselves, and a fair bit is absurdly ambitious; but some were alright. In fact, I can name four that are…were genuinely good ponies. Had the circumstances been different, perhaps I would count them among my friends.”

Twilight grinned slightly. “So it was just Adonis the only bad one.”

Velvet grimaced. “Ugh! Don’t let me start ranting about Adonis, I may not stop. I can’t say I am happy he is dead, but…” The unicorn paused a moment. “Let me put it this way: Equestria is probably a better place without him than with him.”

“Was he really that bad?” asked Twilight, crooking an eyebrow.

Velvet huffed. “Adonis was a moronic imbecile that was too busy trying to go up on the Council’s ladder to realize he wasn’t going anywhere. I do not celebrate his death, but I am not particularly sad either.”

“You may also be a tad biased against him, as he played a big part on you not getting a seat on the council,” pointed Twilight with a smirk.

“…maybe,” admitted Velvet. “Who told you that, anyways? You were too young to remember that.”

“Dad,” replied Twilight. After she became the Princess’ student, Night Light had filled Twilight with the usual behavior of upper class mages, fearing she may suffer the same fate his wife did. Thankfully for Twilight, the Princess’ protection meant that only foals like Sunset or Blueblood dared to mess with her.

“I thought so,” muttered Velvet. “Then again, perhaps my failure was for the best. Who can say where the road goes? It’s alright to wonder what could have been, but it makes no sense to long for something that will never happen. It’s not going to get you…” Velvet fell quiet and her ears swiveled. “Do you hear that?”

Twilight blinked and focused on her hearing. The sounds of the forest were the same as the other times. Only the ruffle of the leaves could be heard. It was unnaturally quiet. Twilight had yet to figure out why was that. The Whitetail Woods were far more noisy and full of life than the Everfree, a forest known for how dangerous it was.

“Yes, it sounds like somepony is screaming!” exclaimed Twilight, finally catching the sound. She and her mother shared a brief look, and then Twilight started a gallop, making sure to hold Sweetie Belle with her telekinesis. Velvet followed suit a second later. “Zecora’s is up ahead! Something must have happened to her.”

As they ran, the screams became clearer. It was a single voice, perhaps higher-pitched than Zecora’s. Twilight bit her lip. If something had happened to the zebra or that mysterious mare, she would never forgive herself. When the hut came into view, she sprinted and stormed inside, with her horn light up and ready.

Twilight had to double-take at what she found inside. Zecora was standing in the middle of the room, on a low stance that could only be understood as defensive. Opposite to her was the mutilated unicorn Twilight had found in the forest, standing on her hooves and looking strangely vivid. Both pony and zebra turned their heads when Twilight barged in, and a confused silence reigned for a second.

The injured pony was the first to talk. “Twilight! Thanks goodness you are here! Could you please tell this zebra who I am?” she said, pointing a Zecora. Her voice was rough and coarse. “She claims to know you; perhaps she will believe your word.”

“I…uh-w-what?” blubbered Twilight. “I-no…who-”

Zecora spoke up, rhyming in zebrican at an amazing speed. The injured pony frowned and swiftly replied in the same language, though she skipped the rhyme. Dazed, Twilight watched the two equines argue with each other, gradually escalating in volume and temper. The unicorn took a step to the door, but Zecora stood on her way; which only further angered the mare. Zecora pointed at her missing leg. The pony shook her head and said something in zebrican.

“What is going on in here?” asked Velvet, peeking through the door. Both Twilight and Sweetie turned to look at her, and gave a simultaneous, helpless shrug. “Huh, is that the mare you mentioned? She seems livelier than you said.”

“I-I know!” stammered Twilight. “She shouldn’t be up yet! I am amazed she is awake at all!” She bit her lip, uncertain of what to do. The pony was fighting with Zecora. Even if she couldn’t understand the language, it was easy to imagine what the dispute was about. But what could she say or do that would have a greater effect than whatever Zecora had tried before? ‘Hold on,’ Twilight blinked when her train of thought came into a halt. ‘She said my name, didn’t she? When did she-’

“Excuse me?” called out Velvet. The two equines went quiet and looked at her. The alabaster pony crossed the threshold and stood in front of the injured unicorn. “Look miss, I…did not understand a word of what you were discussing with Zecora here, but I can guess what it was about,” she said, with a gentle but strict tone. “You have to understand your health situation is dire, and you should let her take care of you until you recover. Please. You might disagree, but it’s for the best.”

At first, the unicorn’s eyebrows went so high up; they almost disappeared under her mane. A second later, her surprise transformed into a calm, mildly amused, smile. “Twilight Velvet, while I appreciate your concern, this is way too important. I must leave this cottage at once.”

Twilight Velvet blinked and gave her daughter a short glance. “How…do you know my name?”

“A-and mine, for that matter.” added Twilight Sparkle.

The unicorn’s eyes went wide, as if she had been asked how many wings a cat has. “W-well, Twilight,” she stammered after a long pause. “I think I should know the name of my younger student.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat. She stood there, gawking at the unicorn for a long moment. “P-princess Celestia?” she stammered, as tears began to pour from her eyes. The unicorn smiled and nodded her head. Twilight let out a choked sob and trotted into the inviting forelegs of the Princess.

***

Queen Lacera descended, making sure to land on her two uninjured legs. She grimaced when the slight shock transferred into the large bite of the foreleg and gave her a pang of pain. She looked back and scanned the sky. Nothing. She had made it. She had lost the Nightmare. But she was still in danger. She was weak, wounded and hungry. Flying was out of the question. Her wing muscles hurt to the point of being unable to fold them, hanging lamely on each side of her body.

Lacera pondered her options. The grassy field she was currently standing on was a poor place to be. It was exposed. To the north, she could see a small village, of no more than a hundred inhabitants. There she could find nourishment, but she was so exhausted she doubted she could transform. To the west, there was a solitary grove atop a hill. Lacera decided to make her way there first. Her injures needed to be tended.

Walking was a herculean struggle. It couldn’t even be called walking. It was more like dragging her two intact legs while avoiding to put any weight on her other foreleg. It was pathetic, and she realized that. She was lucky her two working legs were on opposing sides of her body. How low had she fallen to be thankful for that?!

The queen spat a blob of poison and coagulated blood to the side. In the course of a few hours, she had suffered an amputation, an injury that would leave her permanently lame, several fractures, and a straight-up evisceration. Lacera grimaced at that last one. That dammed alicorn had squashed her reproductive gear. However many drones she had left, it was all she would ever have. Squeezing her eyes shut, she reluctantly dove into the hive mind.

Cries of pain and calls for aid welcomed her. The decoys she had sent had died of exhaustion at some point, or perhaps the Nightmare had found and killed them. One by one, Lacera severed the connection of those drones that were damaged beyond repair. They were so few...most of her swarm was already gone. The queen hung her head in sorrow when the countdown reached ten and continued shrinking.

‘Two,’ she though, feeling her chest heavy like lead. That was it. Two drones was all she had left, now and forever. Her days of clashing against the other queens for dominance were gone. Pathetic! What kind of queen would she be from then on? Lacera opened her eyes, and bitterly ordered the two drones to meet her at the grove as quickly as possible. A second later, she corrected the order so they met her as safely as possible. They were valuable. Unique. Precious.

As she threaded towards the woods, Lacera realized something. While the pain on her right foreleg had mostly faded – except when she accidentally put any weight on it - her left hindleg still hurt as much. The changelings stopped and looked back at the stump. She didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. It looked exactly like a stump should look. Frightened by what she could find, she light up her horn and proceeded to peel the armor off her skin. The pitch-black plates came off with a slight yet pleasant itch, revealing the smooth lilac skin beneath.

Lacera’s heart skipped a beat. While her leg had been amputated at the lower gaskin, she was now missing up to her knee. A small flake of blackened flesh detached and fluttered down like a dead leaf. Her flesh was decaying at an alarming speed. The changeling queen gritted her teeth. “What kind of sick, twisted, wrenched crone would do this?!” she cried, stomping down in frustration with her only good front hoof. She looked back at the cursed stump, and shuddered when she considered what could have happened if she hadn’t checked out why it still hurt. The witchcraft was slow on what it did, thankfully, but Lacera wasn’t confident she would be able to figure out the spellwork before it had withered away her entire leg…or more. A more decisive solution would be more appropriate.

Lacera sat down, taking great care to avoid touching any body part with the stump. She closed her eyes and attempted to relax as much as possible, controlling her breathing and heartbeat. Two tortuous minutes later, she lighted up her horn, and a fraction of her magic took the shape of a misshapen rapier. Lacera glared at the mangled weapon for a split second…before it vanished into a lilac puff of arcane smoke. Lacera blinked, perplexed. “Fine, I’ll try something simpler,” she grumbled to herself. With some effort, she managed to cast something that resembled a kitchen knife. Disappointing, and not very appropriate for someone like her, but it would do the job. However, the knife lost its shape as soon as she moved it.

The changeling queen let out a hiss. The third and fourth attempts were no better than the previous ones. The fifth time, she settled for a small, pathetic scalpel. She inched it closer to her leg and steeled herself for the incoming pain. ‘One…two…three!’ But as soon as it touched her flesh, the instrument vanished into a rain of purple sparkles. Lacera screamed in frustration.

“Fine! Be that way!” she shouted to herself, jumping to her hooves. “If you can’t handle a bit of a sting, we can do it later! But you’re not getting away! No chance!” Lacera resumed her slow transit towards the forest, grumbling under her breath, cursing her back luck, her lack of guts, the Nightmare herself, and basically everything else that was in the world.

So focused she was on her rant that she failed to hear a buzz of wings until the newcomer landed to her very right. Lacera whipped her head around, baring her fangs. There stood another changeling queen, with violet mane, magenta eyes, and an impish smile on her lips. The two queens held each other’s gaze, one amused, and the other displeased. “Hello mother,” said the newcomer.

Lacera broke the eye contact and limped forward, pointedly ignoring the other queen. She clenched her teeth when she heard a sickish laugh. “Oh my! We are in quite a rush, aren’t we?” Lacera sped up, but the voice followed her, accompanied by the buzzing of her wings. “What happened to you, anyways? I could swear you escaped in a slightly better shape after our last encounter.”

“Miasma,” Lacera spat the word as if they were a disgusting maggot. “I really don’t have time for you, so why don’t you bugger off?”

“Tsk! You are as irritable and displeasing as I remember,” grumbled Miasma, hovering around Lacera. “Wait, is that a bite on your leg?” Lacera snarled and continued waking. “Did you have a face-off with a pack of timberwolves?”

“No!” hissed Lacera, glaring daggers at Miasma. “What kind of weakling do you think I am? The Nightmare herself found me! She did this to me! Not some stupid wooden dogs!”

Miasma was taken aback by the sudden outburst, but then smirked. “Huh! Impressive, you are so awful at hiding you managed to be found before that featherbrain of Ambrosia. Congratulations!” Lacera began to tremble in anger. She needed all her self control to not smack Miasma into the dirt. “Look how low you have fallen. I doubt you’ll be able to grow back that leg. The bite, perhaps. And where are your drones?” Lacera didn’t reply, but her stubborn silence was enough of an answer for Miasma. “You lost your hive? How did you even…You know? I don’t care. All I care about is that you are permanently out of the game.”

“I haven’t died yet, Miasma,” snarled Lacera “And I plan to be around for much, much longer! This is but a minor setback!”

“I bet you do,” cooed the other queen. “Sadly, plans don’t always come to fruition.”

Something on Miasma’s voice made Lacera pause. She hadn’t turned around when a telekinetic grip wrapped around her neck and lifted her off the ground, crushing her windpipe. The ancient queen let out a choked grunt, gasping for air. Miasma giggled as she calmly moved in front of her mother. “You have no idea how long I have been waiting for this,” she cooed, ignoring the baleful glare of Lacera. The two queens held each other’s gaze for a long moment.

“How dare you?!” snarled Lacera, unintentionally spitting poison. Miasma grimaced and wiped her face with a hoof. “How dare you! I am the reason you exist! You are nothing but an overgrown, discarded egg!” Lacera slid her good hoof under the magic ring and pushed outwards. The grip budged, and Miasma crooked an eyebrow.

Then, Miasma smirked deviously as a dense ring of magic appeared around Lacera’s neck, spinning expectantly. “How dare I? Because you are worthless. You have lost your small hive, and fragile health. Honestly, I don’t know why Chrysalis bothered to contact you. Even that airhead of Ambrosia is a better queen.” The face of the doomed queen was warped by the hate and anger, with her jaws gritted and a trickle of poison flowing from the edge of her mouth. Miasma stared intently, taking in the last moments of the life of her mother and rival. “Goodnight, mother,” she whispered.

“Y-YOU FILTHY MAGG-” Lacera began, but her outcry was cut short when the ring contracted violently. Her head hit the ground just a second later.

***

Celestia let out a ragged breath. She was contemplating her reflection on the reflective spell casted by Twilight Velvet. The Princess ran a hoof down her cheek, feeling the warped skin. It wasn’t painful, but the scarring was still jarring to look at. Turning her head, she studied her left eye. It was swollen and remained half closed despite her best attempts. Celestia raised a hoof and carefully touched her horn, biting her lip at the slight pain. The crack ran from the very tip to the middle, so there was a very minor risk of more severe damage. The crack would heal, with time; even the little missing piece of ivory in the center of the horn would grow back.

More worrying was her body. Celestia looked down, feeling her shoulders, torso, waist and hips with her hooves. Breathing was still painful, but nowhere as much as much as when she had woken up. And the ache on her body had been reduced to a numb discomfort. The scarring got worse as she descended down her body, until her skin was warped like a nightmarish map at her hips.

Celestia didn’t know what to make of her three missing limbs. Looking down, she could see the awful stump where her hindleg now ended. She had suffered similar wounds before, so she wasn’t as concerned as a mortal pony would be. Her wings, however, were a different issue. They were completely gone. Her back was smooth, as if she had never had an extra set of limbs sprouting from her shoulders.

“Well,” muttered Celestia, attempting to crack a small smile. “It could have been worse.”

“Princess?” said Twilight, sitting next to her. She raised her hoof to place it comfortingly on the Princess’ shoulder, but she hesitated. She didn’t want to hurt Celestia.

“I’m okay, I’m okay,” said Celestia, closing her eyes. It was the closest thing to a lie Twilight had heard her say. “It’s just…there is so much to take in at the same time. I…” The mare inspired and expired deeply for several seconds. When she opened her eyes again, she looked slightly less miserable, and more determined. “I am afraid I have just caused the greatest crisis in Equestria’s recent story. And this time, I am powerless.” Celestia shook her head and leaned forwards with a grunt. Twilight hurried to hold her, but Celestia landed on her three hooves and straightened her neck. “Let’s go. All of us.”

“I am afraid must interfere,” said Zecora, who had been quietly preparing a potion for Sweetie Belle’s ailment up to that point. “You must rest, or else your health will deteriorate.”

“Zecora, there are far more important things at stake than my healt-” Celestia stopped short when she felt a hoof on her shoulder. Looking back, she saw Twilight Sparkle’s pleading eyes. Her determination quivered. “…fine,” she sighed. “We will go to the encampment, and I will sleep for the whole night. Is that acceptable?”

The zebra grinned widely. “You may if that is what you wish, though personally I find it unnecessary.”

***

Sunset Shimmer woke up with a start. She let out a groan and sat up straight on her bed, rubbing her eyes. Her ears swiveled around. It was quiet in the palace at the moment, but something had waked her up. The unicorn grouchily stretched her body, delaying just a bit more.

There was a loud crash. Alarmed, Sunset jumped off the bed and dashed downstairs, barely touching the steps. She skidded on the training chamber when she did a sharp turn and headed up the staircase that led to Nightmare Moon’s living quarters. Sunset climbed the steep steps as fast as she could, cursing under her breath. Why was Nightmare’s bedroom so much higher than hers?

Finally, she reached an intricately decorated door, which she flung open. Behind it was what seemed to be a combination of bedroom, living room and library, several times larger than her own. Every single piece of furniture was made of the same dark wood as the palace itself. Most of the walls were covered by bookshelves, cupboards and cabinets containing ceramic vases and jars. Filling the space were a few elegant tables with chairs, and many sofas and couches; often grouped together and accompanied with pillows. In the center sat a massive, alicorn-sized bed with curtains; and upon it, was the alicorn that owner that room. Nightmare Moon turned her head to Sunset and furrowed her brow. “What are you doing here?!” she snapped.

“I...uh. I heard a noise, and decided to investigate,” meekly replied Sunset. “In case somepony had broken in.”

Nightmare’s gaze softened a bit. “You followed our instructions; there is no need to apologize. Come forth, Sunset,” she said, making an inviting gesture with her foreleg. Sunset hesitated, but her curiosity was stronger. She trotted forwards, careful not to touch anything. Sunset noticed the furniture was around her size, too small for the large alicorn; with the bed being the notable exception. She reached her goal and glanced at Nightmare, uncertain. ‘What does she want?’

The alicorn smiled and tapped a spot next to her with a hoof. Sunset’s heart was pumping heavily, but she obeyed and sat on the bed. Nightmare Moon dwarfed her. “We fear something terrible has befallen to Equestria,” she said. Sunset tilted her head. It wasn’t what she had been expecting. ‘What was I expecting, actually?’

Nightmare Moon seemed different. Had her fetlocks always been that long? Had her chest fluff always been that dense? Had her fangs always been that sharp? When had her missing tooth grown back? And finally, when had she molted most of the feathers of her wings, and grown a bat-like patagium? She looked more intimidating, more menacing. Like a predator.

The alicorn didn’t seem to notice Sunset’s concern, and continued speaking. “Have you ever heard of changelings?”

Sunset crooked an eyebrow. “I don’t think I have, no.”

“They are unholy creatures that feed from the positive feelings of ponies,” explained Nightmare Moon, her lips stretching into a thin line. “They resemble ponies, but are not like us. Most are mindless drones that do their queen’s bidding without hesitation. The queens themselves are powerful beings, but vile and heartless. They exist solely to feed from us like leeches.” The alicorn paused, and furrowed her brow. “We wonder why our sister has failed to cleanse Equestria of their existence.”

“Are the changelings the evil you mentioned before leaving?” guessed Sunset.

Nightmare Moon nodded. “Indeed. We sensed a strange presence, and found a changeling nest not far from here.” The alicorn paused and bared her fangs. “We destroyed the hive and severely injured the queen, but the dammed bug managed to get away!” she snarled.

Sunset fidgeted with her hooves. “W-well, I am sure you did the best you could,” she said, trying to be supportive.

Nightmare Moon whipped her head around. “Are you insinuating we are not powerful enough to end that creature?!” she hissed, glaring the poor unicorn, who suddenly felt much smaller and weaker. The room temperature seemed to drop a few degrees.

“N-no! I-I didn’t mean it like that!” stammered Sunset, scooting backwards on the bed. ‘What have I said?!’

Nightmare’s gaze softened. Her anger faded as fast as it had appeared. The temperature rose to its former value and Sunset let go of a breath she hadn’t realized to be holding. “Hmn. Mayhaps you are right. We are just a single pony, after all.”

The young unicorn was breathing heavily. It had only been a moment, but the aura of the other pony had left her with a tight chest. Strong emotions of powerful unicorns could affect other ponies, but that wasn’t it. It was the sheer might of the alicorn, left unbound for a second, what was heaving on her like a slab of stone. “W-what do you mean?” weakly asked Sunset. Her eyes felt moist.

Nightmare Moon didn’t answer right away. Her eyes were fixed on the opposite wall, but her mind was elsewhere. Sunset could almost hear the cogs turning inside her head. The silence stretched for a minute, but Sunset didn’t dare to interrupt her. ‘It’s the first time somepony’s aura has affected me,’ though the unicorn. ‘Why? I am powerful unicorn. And it’s not the first time I have angered an alicorn. Why has it affected me today, and not that night when Celestia caught me? It doesn’t make sense. I am much stronger now-’

Sunset’s train of thoughts was interrupted when Nightmare Moon stood up and jumped off the bed. The bed suddenly sprung upwards and threw the unicorn off balance. “We have made a decision,” said the alicorn, moving through the room with agility and grace. “What we intent to do is fairly unorthodox, but it is necessary.”

Sunset sat up on the bed. “What do you mean?” she asked, watching the alicorn rummage inside a cupboard.

Nightmare Moon turned around, smirking and holding several crystals on her telekinesis. Sunset shuddered. They weren’t just any crystals. They were the shattered fragments of the Elements of Harmony. “It’s time for us to unshackle your potential!”

***

Twilight stirred awake. For the first time in days, she had had a quiet sleep, with no nightmares or bad dreams. It was nice for a change. She stretched her limbs, letting out a satisfied groan when her joints produced a satisfying ‘pop’. She pondered getting up immediately or delaying it a bit more. The mattress was comfortable. The campsite seemed quiet. Celestia was probably still asleep. Much to her surprise, the ponies hadn’t asked as many questions about the Princess as she had expected. They had accepted their explanations, and turned their curiosity to Zecora. ‘How is a zebra more unusual than a mangled unicorn?’ wondered Twilight, and instantly grimaced. It was painful, physically painful, to see Celestia like that. She looked as weak and fragile as Gatling, the century-old and recently-deceased archmage.

Then again, Commander Gatling was not a pony to be underestimated. From what she could recall, there were two young archmages below her in terms of power. Twilight could only hope Celestia would only appear frail.

Twilight opened her eyes and found herself face-to-face with the baby blue eyes of Pinkie Pie. “Uh…h-hi,” whispered the unicorn.

Pinkie Pie looked miserable. She had bag under her eyes, her mane was a limp, lifeless curtain and, before Twilight spoke, her eyes were lost in the infinite. Upon hearing Twilight’s voice, Pinkie focused her sight on the lavender pony, and her lips curved in a tiny, sad smile. “Hi Twilight.”

Twilight felt her heart sink further. Her voice was weak, fragile. It didn’t match the bubbly mare she had seen not too long ago. “Hi Pinkie.” whispered back the unicorn. “H-how are you holding up?”

Pinkie’s weak smile faded entirely, and she let out a heavy sigh. In a sudden urge, Twilight scooted closer and wrapped the pink mare in a tight hug. Pinkie seemed to tense up for a moment, but relaxed a second later, embracing Twilight back, and burrowing her face into her chest. The unicorn let out a sigh. Her intent was to comfort Pinkie, but honestly, she could use the hug too. In a few minutes, both ponies were fast asleep.

Twilight woke up again sometime later, and instantly realized Pinkie Pie had left already. She sat up and stretched her limbs, groaning. The campsite seemed to have awoken not too long ago, as there were several ponies still sleeping, and the few working were only half-awake. Twilight opened the lid of the watch and frowned. Late morning. And yet, it was cold. Not the kind of cold that would require a coat to be outside, but certainly colder than it should be in summer.

After getting a couple of rations from one of the guards managing the food, Twilight made her way to the medical tents. After the initial surprise of seeing a severely-injured pony walk into the camp, they had assigned Celestia a tent to sleep in, and a doctor had given her a quick check-up, before letting her rest.

So when Twiligh opened the flap of the tent, she almost dropped the food when she found Celestia chatting amicably with a nurse. “Pri-er…why are you awake already?”

The princess smiled. It was the same calm, warm smile she had seen so many times, but it looked out of place on that gaunt body. “I was restless. I tried to leave, but Nurse Redheart here was adamant about me staying. She didn’t trust me to comply,” she pointed a hoof to the while mare, who smiled bashfully. “so she sat here with me, and a conversation sparked up. Did you need anything, Twilight?”

“I-I’ll be going,” said the nurse, getting on all four. “I’m sorry, I didn’t intent to stay for so long.” She stepped out of the tent, and turned to wave a hoof at Princess Celestia. “It’s been nice talking to you, Quill. It’s not too often that a patient is so, uh, talkative.” With that, Redheart left, leaving a very confused Twilight behind.

“Quill?” asked the unicorn when she finally regained her voice.

“I certainly can’t introduce myself as Celestia,” replied the Princess. She waved Twilight to come in, which the unicorn complied without hesitation. The tent was large enough to fit four ponies comfortably, and somepony had taken the trouble to put a mattress inside, and cover the rest with blankets to make sure whoever patient was stuck inside would be comfortable. Even in such a meager setup, the Princess had a certain semblance of royalty. Or perhaps Twilight was trying too hard to see her beloved mentor in that unicorn…

“Twilight, my dear, I see you brought me food, but I won’t be able to eat unless you let go,” came the gentle voice of Celestia. Twilight shook her head and realized she had been staring. Smiling sheepishly, she lowered one of the dishes and loosened her telekinetic grip, allowing Celestia to hold it on her hooves. It was a generous ration of diced carrots, peas and green beans. The Princess licked her lips. “Thank you Twilight. I am starving. Please, sit with me,” she asked, patting the empty space where the nurse had been sitting.

Twilight complied. It wasn’t the first time she had shared a meal with the Princess, but it was possibly the strangest. She levitated her fork and poked one of her carrots. She eyed it critically for a few seconds, remembering the sweet apples that Apple Bloom had gifted her. Her contemplation was interrupted when Celestia let out a yelp. “Princess! What’s wrong?” she asked, getting on all four.

The Princess was rubbing her horn with a hoof. Her face was contorted with pain. “I’m sorry, Twilight,” she whispered “I forgot I can’t use magic at the moment,” Celestia opened her eyes and gave Twilight an imploring look. “Please, sit down. There is no need for alarm.”

“A-are you sure?” squeaked Twilight, opening the flap of the tent. “I can call a nurse in a moment! It’s fine!”

“Twilight, look at me,” said Celestia. Her adamant tone made Twilight stop. She let go of the flap and turned her head, surprised by the sudden change on her mood. “I know you are used to see me as the monarch I have become, but I haven’t always been a princess,” She smiled, and her voice softened. “In the palace, I am okay with being pampered. It’s comfortable and it gives a good image to the emissaries from other nations. But now the castle is gone, and we are here. There is no need to pull a one of the doctors form tending another patient just so they can tell me not to use magic until my horn has healed.”

Twilight didn’t say anything. She remained on her hooves, shifting her weight from one side to the other, uncertain of what to make of Celestia’s words. The Princess let out a sigh and patted the spot next to her. “Please, eat with me, Twilight.”

Once again, Twilight complied, idly eating her vegetables while she watched Celestia do the same on the corner of her eye. Since Twilight had brought an unicorn fork, all the Princess could do was awkwardly hold the tool on her hoof, and use it to push the food closer to the edge of the dish, where she ate it like an earth pony would.

“I can tell there is something bothering you, Twilight,” said Celestia, setting down the dish and fork. It was empty, while Twilight was only halfway finished.

The lavender unicorn dipped her head and let out a sigh. “I’m sorry, Princess. I just hate to see you like this. I feel…responsible.”

“Twilight, no part of my current state is your responsibility,” gently said Celestia.

“Maybe if I had found you earlier-” began Twilight, but was interrupted by Celestia, who put a hoof on her lips.

“I would still be scarred, and both magically and physically crippled,” she said, shaking her head gravely. “What you are responsible of is finding me. You saved me, Twilight. Who knows what could have happened to me otherwise? The Everfree is a dangerous place.”

Twilight felt a chill descending her spine. She could have missed Celestia, and then she could have died inside that bush! It was a terrifying prospect, not just from the emotional attachment, but for how important Celestia was to Equestria as a whole. “You’re right,” she muttered. “Although I have been in the forest a few times now, and it hasn’t struck me as dangerous at all.”

No answer came. Twilight looked up, and saw Celestia completely still, with a shocked expression on her face. “Uh…princess?”

“You haven’t…no,” Celestia covered her mouth with a hoof, shaking her head restlessly and rocking back and forth.

Twilight was bewildered by Celestia’s reaction. When the Princess kept doing the same for several seconds, she panicked. “Princess!” Twilight repeated, grabbing the other pony by the shoulders. That snapped Celestia out of her trance. She came to a rest, and Twilight could feel her slumping on her grip. The princess blinked twice, before locking her pink eyes into Twilight’s.

“How many times have you treaded the Everfree?” she whispered.

“Uh…four times, I believe?” replied Twilight. She was still holding Celestia.

The white mare dipped her head. “Then I fear my sister might have harmed Equestria even more than I though.”

Twilight’s own shoulders slumped. “What kind of damage…” What Celestia had just said clicked, and Twilight froze for a moment. “W-wait, wait, hold on a second!” she stammered, waving her hooves. “Sister?! You mean Nightmare Moon is your sister?!”

Celestia recoiled as if she had been slapped. She took a deep breath, and remained quiet for a minute, before finally answering. “Yes, Twilight. Nightmare Moon is indeed my sister,” her voice calm and steady, but Twilight could see her fidgeting with her hooves. “I didn’t intent to say it so soon, but I suppose I can’t take it back now.” The princess looked away for a second. “You…probably have questions,” she said, hesitant. “Ask away, and I will do my best to answer them.”

Twilight was still shocked by the sudden revelation. It was hard to wrap her head around the fact that her loving, fair mentor was related to the madpony that had plundered Equestria into darkness. Her mind was buzzing with dozen of questions, but there was one that required to be answered first. “You said Nigthtmare Moon has harmed Equestria more than you though. What could possibly be worse than the eternal night, destroying the Sun, and the changelings? Or your own wounds, for that matter!” she said, pointing at Celestia’s missing leg. Once again, she felt a pang of pain at the Princess’ mutilation.

The former alicorn was quiet for a moment. “A full explanation would take very long, and there are some personal matters involved that I would rather not speak of,” confessed Celestia. Twilight blinked, surprised. Celestia very rarely outright refused to deliver information. The Princess caught her student’s confusion, and smiled “What I can say is that the Everfree Forest does not welcome visitors, and the fact that you’ve been undisturbed is unusual, to say the least.” Celestia stared at her half-empty dish for a moment, before shrugging and finishing off the rest of her food. “We’ll tackle that matter later. Right now, I would like to meet the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony.”

***

“Uh….hi?”

Apple Bloom’s ears swiveled around. That greeting was likely directed at her, but she chose to ignore it. She wanted to be alone.

“Hey, I am talking to you. Yellow filly with a bow on her mane. Helloooo?” insisted the squeaky voice, breaking at the very end of the last word. It would have made her giggle, in other circumstances.

“That’s a great bow, by the way. I should ask my sister to tie my mane on a tail,” there was a pause. Apple Bloom heard the sound of tiny hooves coming closer. “Hey, are you asleep?” she asked, giving her a nudge. Apple Bloom couldn’t ignore that anymore, and let out a grunt while she pulled herself deeper into the lump of sheets that served as her improvised bed. Even without the Sun, it was way too warm to be bundled up, but she wanted the comforting contact anyways.

“Oh, you are awake!” squeaked the voice. “Could you do me a favor?”

Apple Bloom raised her head, just enough to give the other pony a baleful glare. She was a white unicorn filly, about her age. Once she had made her point, she pushed her face back into the sheets.

“Good!” she said. Apple Bloom let out an exasperated sigh. “Look, you’re using my saddlebags as a pillow, and I kinda need to get them back? So I you could-”

The yellow filly sat up and looked downwards. Indeed, there was a pair of saddlebags bundled right below her head. She sighed, and carelessly tossed them in front of the white foal, hoping to be left alone once and for all.

“Thank you!” she happily squeaked. “You know, you seem kind of mopey, let me give you something!” That got Apple Bloom’s attention, who raised her head an inch and peeked through her mane with a single eye. She saw the filly turning the saddlebags upside down in her telekinesis. A small assortment of items fell to the ground. She shook the bag a few times, and a sticky mess splattered over everything else.

The two small ponies stared at the haphazard mixture of strawberries, frosting and biscuit. “Right,” muttered Sweetie Belle, still holding her saddlebags up in the air. “The cake…”

Apple Bloom stared at her in disbelief. “You put a cake on your saddlebags?”

“Well…yeah!” said Sweetie, dropping the bags and trying to, once again savage the cake with her telekinesis. At that point it would be a stretch calling it anything other than a sweet vortex. All the components were slowly being mixed into a homogenous paste. “Where else would I put it? I had this happen yesterday too, and I saved it! Well, mostly. I got rid of all the dirt and rocks and leaves and…” Sweetie furrowed her brow and shook the vortex. A small rain of non-edible objects fell, along with an alarming amount of edible portions.

Apple Bloom couldn’t help but smile. “Y’all are determined to save yer cake, huh?”

“Of course! Sunset always told me to never give up! Watch this!” Sticking her tongue, Sweetie began casting a spell. The contents of her vortex accelerated within her telekinesis, slowly separating by color and –presumably-composition. Apple Bloom’s jaw dropped. She didn’t know much about magic, but what Sweetie Belle was doing seemed quite advanced. And somewhat mesmerizing.

And then it caught fire.

Sweetie Belle yelped and lost concentration. What little remained of the cake splattered on the dirt, burning with emerald flames. Both fillies stared in bewilderment at the definitive death of the baked good. It burned for a minute, before the flames dies out, leaving behind a pile of ash. Apple Bloom looked up and met Sweetie Belle’s eyes. They held each other’s gaze for a moment, and then burst into laughter at the same time.

“O-ow!” said Apple Bloom, chucking her belly after a few minutes of uninterrupted mirth. Her sides hurt and her face ached from grinning, but she hadn’t felt so good in days. “Ah can’t believe you set fire to a cake!”

“Well, I mean,” squeaked Sweetie Belle, rolling onto her belly. She had yet to get on her hooves. “you can burn a cake when you bake it. Right?”

Apple Bloom giggled. “Yeah, but not after it’s done! It’s the first time ah hear of that happening.”

“It’s happened to me more than once,” admitted Sweetie Belle. She light up her horn and levitated a wrapped candy that had survived the fire. “Here, have one,” she said to Apple Bloom. The yellow filly took it on her hooves and muttered a ‘thank you’. “I am Sweetie Belle, by the way.”

“Ah’m Apple Bloom,” she replied, unwrapping the candy and tossing it onto her mouth. It was orange-flavored.

***

Celestia carefully studied each of the seven ponies gathered in front of her. It was a very diverse assortment of individuals. All mares, but amazingly different. She knew both Twilight Sparkle and Twilight Velvet already, but the only information she had about the other ones was mostly based on assumptions. Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Rainbow Dash. Elements of Kindness, Generosity, Laughter, Honesty and Loyalty; respectively.

Applejack was sitting on a stone, looking at Celestia with curiosity. Next to her was Fluttershy, unsuccessfully trying to stare at Celestia without being too obvious. The way she hid behind her mane made the Princess smile. Rarity was standing behind both of them, wearing a gambeson and with a spear propped against her shoulder. Her attention was somewhere else, her eyes fixed on the edge of the forest. Pinkie Pie was leaning on a tree, idly cleaning her hooves with a kitchen knife. Rainbow Dash was lying lazily on one of the branches of the tree, looking at Celestia with a mixture of curiosity and mistrust.

“Pinkie Pie, darling, could you please stop that?” asked Rarity. “You’re making me nervous.”

“…fine,” grumbled the pink pony. She twirled the knife around her hoof, and then drove it into the bark of the tree, leaving it there.

“Thank you,” said Rarity, nodding approvingly.

Celestia blinked. The new generation of Bearers were an interesting group, no doubt. The Princess folded her legs and sat down. Managing to convince the medical team to let her leave the tent to ‘stretch her legs’ had been a challenge on itself. Hopefully, the reunion would be short enough that they wouldn’t start looking for her. The privacy spell that Velvet had cast around them would be rendered useless if any pony purposefully looked for her.

“It’s a pleasure to meet the Elements of Harmony, even if the situation is not optimal,” she said, bowing her head.

“Shucks…” muttered Applejack, rubbing the back of her head. “It doesn’t feel right to see you like that, uh…Princess.”

Celestia nodded. “I am afraid I had a short but intense confrontation against Nightmare Moon. Though what left me in this state was my own attempt to free myself from the Sun, where she had sealed me.”

“Is that why you look so awful then?” asked Rainbow Dash.

Seven sets of eyes turned to her, with expressions that varied from Celestia’s daze to Twilight Sparkle’s poisoned daggers. Applejack was the first to break the silence. “Are y’all sure there isn’t an ‘Element of Lack of Tact? ‘coz I think Rainbow Dash would match that pretty well.”

“Or perhaps, ‘Rainbow Dash, the Element of Disrespect’ ” muttered Rarity, tapping her chin. “It has a certain ring to it.”

The sky blue mare rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah whatever. At least I match my Element. Speaking of which, Pinkie here is usually in a very bubbly mood,” she said, pointing to the pink mare. Twilight blinked. She could swear she was even skinnier than that very morning. Her skin was tightly stretched over her ribs. “She’s just been through some rough times.”

Celestia opened her mouth, but Pinkie spoke first. “The Element of Laughter is linked to optimism, more than being in a permanent good mood,” she grumbled, crossing her forelegs over her chest. “Life has ups and downs. The important thing is to look to the future with hope and trust.” A hint of a smile appeared on her lips, only to fade a second later.

Now it was Pinkie’s turn to be the focus of all the stares. Even Celestia was dumbfounded. “Y-yes,” she stammered after a long silence. “What Pinkie said is correct. The meaning of the Elements is not completely literal, much like a pony’s cutiemark might have a different meaning than what it could be suggested by its shape.”

“Wait, how do you know that?” asked Rainbow Dash, turning on her perch to look at Pinkie from above.

Pinkie shrugged. “There was a book on the Elements in the library.” Rainbow raised an eyebrow, decided there was no point on trying to understand, and turned back to her previous position.

“Speaking of library,” interjected Rarity, cracking a smile at Rainbow’s reaction. “We still have no clue what that surge from yesterday was.”

“Surge? What surge?” asked Twilight.

“Oh! That’s right, you weren’t here,” muttered Rarity. She rested her spear on the opposite shoulder. “Yesterday, I felt a faint wave of magic wash over me. It came from the general direction of Ponyville, and I suspect its root was what used to be our library.”

“I still think you’re making it up!” muttered Rainbow Dash up on her branch.

Rarity turned her muzzle up. “Ump! Excuse me, but I am absolutely certain that what I felt was as real as the spear I am holding. If you took the time to ask any other of the several unicorns who are currently stuck here, you’d find they can confirm what I said.” She paused, and gave Rainbow a baleful glare. “Also, I fail to see why I would make that up!”

“Ah’m pretty sure she is saying the truth,” interjected Applejack. “Why wouldn’t she? Besides, I did fell a very weird…thing just yesterday. A sudden shiver, outta nowhere.”

Rainbow Dash spun so fast she almost lost balance. “Wait, me too!”

“So did I,” muttered Pinkie Pie, giving her mane a toss.

All eyes turned to Fluttershy, who let out a faint ‘eeep!', hid behind her mane and nodded, apprehensive.

“It seems to me,” said Celestia after a moment. “that Nightmare Moon has used the Elements of Harmony. All five of you have bonded already with your Elements, and thus felt when they were being tampered with.”

“But I though the Elements could only be used by its bearer. Isn’t that why Sunset Shimmer couldn’t use them to stop Nightmare Moon?” asked Twilight.

Celestia nodded. “Indeed. You can’t use the Elements of Harmony unless you have been chosen to bear them. And while Nightmare Moon used to be a bearer, I am fairly certain that connection was severed long ago. Not to mention they can only be activated if all six of them are being worn by their respective bearers,” explained the former alicorn. Her frown deepened before continuing. “However, like any other artifact that contains magic, the energy inside can be used be taken and used for any purpose.”

“Such as?” asked Twilight Velvet. “I saw what Nightmare Moon did to the School of High Magic. I question whether all thirteen archmages combined could have had that output. With that kind of power, what could she possibly be doing that required more?”

“She must be trying to destroy the Elements, then,” muttered Rarity, somber. “Siphoning the magic out of an artifact is a very effective way to destroy the charm inside. She knows they are our best chance against her.”

Celestia shook her head. “Good observation, but thankfully you can’t destroy the Elements that way; their power doesn’t come from within, but from another source. I actually doubt they can be destroyed at all.”

“Nightmare Moon did shatter them, but they reformed later, when Sunset was getting ready to use them,” pointed out Rarity.

“And then they broke again when she couldn’t,” added Applejack. “Maybe we need all six ponies at the same time?”

“Well then what are we waiting for?” asked Twilight, jumping to her hooves. “We have to find the pony that will carry the Element of Magic!” The lavender mare tilted her head and smiled at Celestia “Do you think Shining Armor could be a good candidate? He is a very capable spellcaster!”

“Actually, my faithful student,” cooed Celestia, with a smile gracing her lips. “I already have a pony in mind.” Her eyes were fixed on Twilight.

“You do? Who is it? It has to be an unicorn, right? Is it Minuette? Lemon Hearts? Shoeshine? Libra? Moondancer?” Celestia didn’t answer. Twilight crooked an eyebrow. Having run out of close acquaintances, she began to name classmates from the School for Gifted Unicorns. “Blazing Heart? Thunder Clap? Hopeful Light? Blossoming Flower? Black Ribbon? Envy Apple? Glowing Stone? Er…Moon Dancer, as opposed to Moondancer?”

Celestia’s eyes flickered to the right, where Twilight Velvet was. Twilight Sparkle caught it, and her eyebrows went to high up that they disappeared behind her mane. “Is it mom?!” she asked, pointing with her hoof.

There was a pause, as Twilight waited for an answer. “I…hum. I think the Princess means…that you are the Element of Magic,” meeked Fluttershy. “I-I think.”

The lavender unicorn shook her head. “No, that’s not…” She fell quiet when she noticed Celestia was nodding. Twilight staggered as if she had just received a physical blow. She sat down, staring at the ground with a bewildered expression on her face. Twilight Velvet rested a supportive hoof on her shoulder, causing her to whip her head up. Mother and daughter looked at each other, one confused, the other concerned.

“Twilight?” came the gentle voice of Celestia. Twilight turned her head to the former alicorn and uttered a single word.

“Why?”

The smile faded from Celestia’s face. “I beg your pardon?”

“Why?” repeated Twilight. She was looking at her mentor with a rare intensity. There was none of the usual adoration on her eyes, just confusion. “If I am the Element of Magic, why did you send Sunset here, instead of me?”

Celestia lowered her head. Before she could say anything, Twilight Velvet interjected. “That’s what I would like to know too. What kind of twisted logic made you take that choice?”

The former alicorn let out a heavy sigh. “I couldn’t have known. The Elements do not present me with a picture of whoever they choose to wield their power. The best I can do is try to find a pony that would be a good candidate, and present him or her to the judgment of the Elements themselves.” Celestia ran a hoof over her non-existent mane. “You and Sunset, my faithful students, are not the first ponies I consider as bearers of Magic. Of course, there have been singular unicorns before, but only those that were close to my sister’s return made sense as candidates.”

Celestia closed her eyes, reminiscing on past memories. “The first was a stallion with a rather unfortunate name, who died many years ago. He would have been around seventy now. In hindsight, perhaps I was foolish to consider him. The next is…was Solar Eruption, the late Prime Archmage of Canterlot. Even if my sister hadn’t killed her, she was no longer suitable to wield the Elements, as greed and ambition nested on her heart. I feared she would use the power of the Elements to her own benefit.”

“She probably would,” agreed Velvet, still eyeing Celestia with hostility.

“Sunset Shimmer was the next one,” continued Celestia. “She isn’t all that different from how Solar Eruption used to be. I wondered if the Elements had somehow given me a second chance with that same pony, so I did my best to prevent her from striding away from me,” Celestia paused. A troubled look crossed her eyes from an instant, but it faded just as quick. She fixed her eyes on Twilight, and she smiled. “And then, just a few years later, you appeared. So wondrous. So full of curiosity, just for the sake of learning, the journey of discovery. You were perfect! Even your cutie mark seemed to hint at your fate!” Celestia’s expression turned somber. “But as years passed, the choice between Sunset and you didn’t get any clearer. You seemed better suited, but the Elements require a bond between the bearers to work! And in that regard, Sunset seemed to be a better choice.”

“What do you mean with that?” asked Twilight, honestly confused. “What kind of bond?”

Celestia hesitated. “I can’t prove or disprove if it is completely necessary, but from my past experiences, it is more than safe to assume the bearers must have bonded somehow before using the Elements. Trust, friendship, love, blood ties…any of them.”

“B-but…why would that disqualify me?” asked the purple unicorn. “I have plenty of friend.”

“No, Twilight. I am afraid you have two friends: Shining Armor and Spike,” countered Celestia. “The five unicorns you usually hang with are little more than acquaintances.” Twilight tried to protest, but Celestia raised a hoof. “You know their names and birthdates, but that is about it. I’m sorry. For instance, just a few days ago, you rejected the invitation to Moondancer’s birthday party, despite the fact that you had free time, and the obvious interest that mare has on you.”

“W-what?!”

“Sunset, she doesn’t have anypony she can actually call a friend, but she is far more sociable,” continued Celestia, ignoring Twilight’s fluster. “In the end, I had to make a choice, so I sent here the pony with the biggest chance to make friends with the other five future bearers,” Celestia paused, staring to the ground below her hooves. “Alas, I made the wrong choice.”

The small group fell quiet. Twilight observed Celestia. The usual calmness of the Princess was gone. Instead, the eyes of the mutilated mare darted back and forth while she chewed her lower lip. Once again, Twilight felt a pressure on her chest at the Princess’ fragility.

“What about us?” asked a voice. All heads turned to Pinkie, who was still leaning against the tree, with her forelegs crossed and cynical frown. “You keep talking about Twilight, but there are other Elements.”

Celestia hesitated. “The Element of Magic…chooses its bearer. There is only one pony who can wield them. However the other five, Generosity, Kindness, Laughter, Honesty and Loyalty,” the mare pointed a hoof to each of the bearers. “Are not bound to a determinate pony.”

The answer lingered in the air for a second, until Pinkie again made the question everypony was thinking. “So that means we can walk away from this and let somepony else do it?” she concluded, giving her mane a flick. Celestia didn’t voice an answer, and just nodded sagely. Twilight looked around, suddenly aware that she didn’t have any bond with those five mares. Perhaps Sunset had, somehow, made friends with them in the single evening they had shared before the return of Nightmare Moon. But she hadn’t. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack and Rainbow Dash, all the deference they had to the Elements was through Sunset Shimmer herself. Now that she was the real bearer of the Element of Magic, they no longer had any commitment to stop Nightmare Moon.

Rainbow Dash spoke up almost immediately. “I don’t see how that changes anything,” she said nonchalantly. “C’me on! I would be a pretty awful Loyalty if I flew off now, wouldn’t I?”

“Rainbow Dash is right,” agreed Rarity. “We wouldn’t deserve to wield such ancient artifacts if we turned tails at the first sign of hardship.”

“Ah’m in for the rest of the ride,” drawled Applejack, nodding with determination.

“I’ve already lost as much as I can lose,” muttered Pinkie Pie. “No point on fleeing now.”

“I…um…I’d rather stay,” whispered Fluttershy, so gently she would have been unheard if it wasn’t for the absolute silence under the privacy spell. “U-unless you’d prefer to have somepony else.”

Twilight looked at the ponies that surrounded her. She had barely known then for a couple of days, and yet, they were willing to give her their support. Her lip quivered. “T-thank you girls,” she quaked, suddenly feeling much more optimistic about the future. “So what should be our next step?” she asked Celestia.

“Stealing the Elements of Harmony, if I am not mistaken,” interjected Twilight Velvet.

Celestia got on her hooves with some effort. Twilight moved to assist her, but the former alicorn raised a hoof and gently shook her head. “I am fine, Twilight,” said the Princess. “Now, as your mother correctly said, we need the shards of the Elements. Just like last time, they will repair themselves when their bearers call upon their power. And this time, they shall stay together.”

“I am concerned of how we are going to be able to use them on Nightmare Moon herself,” said Rarity glumly. “I don’t think the lights show from last time will work.”

“Absolutely,” agreed Celestia. “She will notice the Elements are no longer in her power, and will be expecting us. That is why, somepony has to…, well, force her into submission.”

Celestia’s words were met with incredulous looks. “Sooo…we just have to beat an alicorn in a fight,” said Rainbow Dash, voicing everypony’s concerns. “Awesome! Any volunteers?” she sneered, throwing her hooves on the air.

“Actually,” interrupted Celestia with a calm smile. “Twilight would be the perfect candidate for that task.”

A tense silence stretched for several seconds. It was broken by Twilight’s semi-hysterical laugh. “V-very funny, Princess!” she stammered. “Me, fighting an alicorn! What is next? A flying earth pony? Because both instances seem about as likely to me!”

“Twilight please, I need you to calm down so I can explain,” said Celestia, but Twilight was enumerating increasingly unlikely scenarios and making a rough estimate of the odds of success. It wasn’t the first time Celestia had seen it. Under pressure, Twilight seemed to enter overdrive mode, and her brain worked at full capacity. However, she also lost focus and rambled, so all that burst of intellect went mostly to waste. The Princess glanced at Twilight Velvet for assistance, but the white mare was staring at her with a mixture of confusion and hostility. Celestia decided she could have handled the revelation far better.

Help came from Applejack. The orange mare grasped Twilight by the shoulders. “Hey Twilight. Twi, listen to me,” She gently pushed Twilight’s cheek so they were looking at each other’s eyes. Applejack held her until her breathing slowed down and the tension on her body dwindled. “Take a deep breath, and hold it,” she muttered. Twilight did so, closing her eyes. “Now release it,” whispered Applejack three seconds later. Both ponies repeated the same pattern a few more times, until Applejack felt Twilight had calmed down. She let go of her, and the unicorn sat down, rubbing her eyes.

Twilight took a deep breath. “S-sorry about that,” she muttered. She kept her eyes stuck on her hooves even as she motioned Celestia to keep talking. “I am listening, Princess.”

Celestia let out a sigh. “I apologize, Twilight. I worded that terribly. You wouldn’t have to defeat Nightmare Moon. You would just have to stand your ground until the rest of the Bearers can come forth and activate the Elements. I would never put you in a situation I didn’t think you wouldn’t be able to handle.”

Twilight tilted her head. “I…still think you are asking for the impossible.”

“I…” Celestia looked away, chewing her lower lip. “…didn’t intent you to go against Nightmare Moon as you are right now. I can use the Elements of Harmony to…empower you.”

“And how would that help?” said Twilight, throwing her hooves up. “How much can the Elements do, that I would put up a better fight that Cadance? She is an alicorn and she almost got killed!”

“Well, for alicorn standards, Cadance is fairly weak so-”

“Celestia,” rang the chilled voice of Twilight Velvet. Celestia looked at the white unicorn, and found her two blue eye piercing on her like drill bits. “We have to talk in private. Right now.”

Celestia opened her mouth to argue, but decided against it a second later. “I am right behind you,” she muttered, lowering her head. Velvet abandoned the privacy bubble with the defeated Celestia in tow, leaving the six younger ponies behind.

“…wow,” muttered Rainbow Dash after a long pause. “Does anypony else think that’s an awful plan?”

“Perhaps, but as it stands right now, it is probably the best one we have,” replied Rarity. “Either Twilight challenges Nightmare Moon, or we have to find some other diversion.”

Applejack glanced at Twilight and smirked. “Ah think you can do this.”

Twilight had her eyes fixed on her mother and Celestia. The two mares had moved away several meters, and were now under an independent privacy spell. There was no way of knowing what they were saying, as Twilight could not read lips, but Velvet was furious, while Celestia had regained her royal poise and composure to a certain extent. “Well, you are mistaken,” muttered Twilight. She turned to look at her five companions, a mixture of fear and doubt clear on her expression. “I am not a battle mage! I wouldn’t last a second against Nightmare Moon!”

“Let me disagree with you there, darling,” said Rarity. “Perhaps you haven’t gone though any formal training, but I refuse to believe Celestia’s star student hasn’t done at least some amicable magical sparring.”

Twilight couldn’t help but crack a half smile at that. Those were actually fond memories. “Yes, Sunset and I did have magical duels every now and then. Well, I’d say they hardly qualified as duels. It was mostly just us throwing blazes as each other until somepony’s shield began to crack. Nothing as impressive as what the Archmages did.”

Applejack tilted her head. “Ah think y’all are comparing yerself with the wrong ponies,” she said. “Ah mean, if yer good at something, but y’all compare yer achievements with literally the best ponies at that, y’ll always going to feel like yer not good enough.”

“Especially now that those ponies are dead,” added Pinkie Pie before Twilight could answer.

“Pinkie Pie is right, even if I would have worded that differently.” Rarity added. “With all that has happened, you are probably among the mightiest unicorns alive.” Twilight blinked. She hadn’t considered that. Even back at the School for Talented Unicorns, she stood out. “I have an idea. Why don’t we have a little magic duel, you and I? It doesn’t have to be right now, of course. Just so you can measure you against a more average unicorn.”

Twilight opened her mouth to turn her down, but stopped herself. “You know?” she began, smiling to her own surprise. “I’d like that.”

***

“You cannot be serious!”

“Twilight, please if you let me expla-”

“Oh, sure! Go ahead! Try to explain to me why you want to have my daughter fight Nightmare Moon!”

Celestia glanced at the pony in front of her. Twilight Velvet was furious, and was showing it by trying to glare a hole though her head. She had all the reasons to be angry. Celestia hadn’t revealed her plans for Twilight as delicately as she should. “I admit the circumstances are not ideal. Trust me, if I had a better alternative to Twilight, I would draw upon it.”

“You said the Elements are enough to defeat Nightmare Moon!” grumbled Twilight. “What happened to that?”

“Like Rarity correctly pointed out, Nightmare Moon won’t fall for the same trick twice. Somepony has to defeat her before we can use the Elements.”

“Then what is the point of the Elements?!”

“They will cleanse her of the darkness that nested within her,” replied Celestia. “It’s the only way she will turn back into the pony she once was. However-” She stopped short, and looked away.

Twilight waited for her to continue. Celestia remained quiet “However what?” she prodded her after a few seconds.

Celestia hesitated. “It has to be done…as soon as possible. She is not as she used to be. Her captivity in the Moon has left her weakened, but she is growing stronger. I fear this will not only make it more difficult for Twilight to fight her, but also cause the Elements to throw her back into the Moon.”

“Yes, and we wouldn’t want that to happen to your sister, would we?” said Velvet dryly. Celestia’s eyes widened. “Your tongue slipped a while ago, while talking about Solar Eruption’s death. The girls heard it too.” Velvet smirked. “That is what this is all about, isn’t it? You and she are fighting over this kingdom like two kids fight over a cookie.”

Celestia recoiled as if she had been hit, but only for an instant. The mutilated unicorn’s eyes sparkled with anger as she stepped forwards, cornering Twilight Velvet against the edge of the privacy spell. “Velvet, I would appreciate if you didn’t joke about my sister’s condition.” Her voice was still calm and smooth, but it carried a threatening undertone. Despite being the same height, Velvet felt like Celestia was towering over her. “If it is not abundantly clear, Nightmare Moon has tried to get rid of me twice now. Once by murder, the second by permanent confinement. Not to mention the current state of Equestria. So please, refrain from mocking of the situation.” Celestia took a step back and Twilight Velvet released a breath she didn’t know she had been holding. It was hot under the privacy bubble. “Now, could we go back to Twilight?”

Velvet nodded. “Yes,” she took a second to clear her dry throat. “Why my daughter?” She was still glaring at Celestia, but nowhere as bellicose as before.

“Because she is the best option,” simply replied Celestia.

“She is no warrior!” exclaimed Velvet. “Even if she is a fairly powerful unicorn, there has to be somepony better suited for this! Somepony from the army, one of the chivalry orders, or the militant magi!” Velvet ran a hoof through her bangs. “Does it even have to be an unicorn? The Wonderbolts are experienced soldiers! Heavens, how many Royal Guards do you have?” Velvet’s voice had slowly degraded into a choked plea.

“You know as well as I do that Twilight is not a ‘fairly powerful’ unicorn. She is an outlier, even for the high standards of the School for Talented Unicorns. You were there when she gained her Cutie Mark.” Celestia glanced to the group of young ponies. “I treasure Twilight highly, Velvet. I wish there was another way, but the way I see it, Twilight is the best.”

Twilight gritted her teeth. “She is my child,” she muttered, dipping her head.

Celestia let out a sigh. “It’s always somepony’s child,” she said in a faint whisper. “Or sibling, or parent, for that matter. I am sorry it has to be this way, Velvet. But Twilight will be fine.”

Twilight Velvet was quiet for a minute. “Can you promise me that?” She looked up, and both ponies held each other’s gazes. “Can you promise me Twilight will be safe?”

“I can’t make that promise, Velvet,” softly said the former alicorn. Celestia shook her head and a spark of fire appeared on her eyes. She raised her head and gently lifted Velvet’s chin with a hoof. “But this is an oath I can make: I swear I will make everything within my reach to keep Twilight safe.” She traced a cross over her heart with a hoof.

Velvet narrowed her eyes. “I hope that promise holds true.” She let out a huff and looked at her daughter. She was talking to the other five ponies, and seemed more shocked and confused than afraid. “It’s her decision, anyways.” she muttered grimly. “Twilight has always been happy to give assistance to whoever needs it. She has you in a pedestal. She will gladly fight your battle, and there isn’t much I can do to stop her. But answer me this one question…” Velvet closed her azure eyes. “The Elements can heal you, can’t they? Why don’t you do it?”

“W-well, my health is quite fragile right now,” awkwardly explained Celestia, running a hoof through her non-existent mane. “I f-fear putting me in such a stress would kill me.”

“Is that so?” muttered Velvet. “Or you just don’t want to fight her?” She gave Celestia a piercing glare, which the Princess quickly avoided. She didn’t reply. It was all the answer Velvet needed. “I see. Twilight will help you because that is the way she is. But if something happens to her, you will regret.” Having said her part, Velvet whirled around and walked off, nearly smacking Celestia on the face with her tail. The privacy field collapsed with a gentle ‘pop’ as soon as she left it. The Princess watched her go, with a knot on her throat.

“At least we agree on that,” she whispered.

***

“I can’t believe Celestia slipped her tongue again,” muttered Twilight.

“Me neither,” replied Rarity from behind her. “I mean, I don’t know her personally, but she strikes me as the kind of pony that wouldn’t reveal that kind of secrets lightly. Her mind must be a mess.”

Twilight attempted to nod, but it was prevented by Rarity’s gentle telekinetic grip on her mane. “I think so, yes. I can’t even imagine what she must be feeling right now. If I were immortal, and had been separated from my brother for a millennia, only to have him return and to kill me…” Twilight made a helpless gesture with her forelegs and tried, unsuccessfully again, to shake her head. “I can’t even begin to imagine it.”

“Darling please, you are making this difficult.”

“I’m sorry,” apologized Twilight. “Do you do this very often? Doing ponies’ mane?”

“A good look is composed of several things,” replied Rarity, running the brush down Twilight’s mane. “I am a seamstress, but to make a pony look fabulous, everything must be perfect. The coat and the mane are as important as what you are wearing. That’s why I learned to peigner manes. I am no professional, but I think I am quite passable.”

“I think you could do this for a living,” quietly said Fluttershy, looking up from the wing she was preening. “You do the most wonderful dos.”

“Thank you, Fluttershy,” Rarity smiled at the pegasus. “Don’t forget that I am doing your mane after I am done with Twilight’s.”

Twilight leg out a chuckle. “Are you going to everypony’s mane now, or something?”

Rarity smiled. “No. I just figured we could use this moment to do something useful. Watching over the tower is rather boring, if nothing happens. Perhaps I could do Pinkie’s. She has got such a gorgeous curtain of pink mane. And the poor dear could use something nice happening to her.”

Twilight looked to her right while keeping her head still. There, on the corner of her eye, was the tower where Nightmare Moon now lived. The ponies had established turns to watch over the palace and try to make out a pattern on the alicorn’s absences. In the last day, she had left a single time, and returned an hour later. Enough time to break in and get the Elements, but they couldn’t give it a try until they were absolutely certain there was no risk of getting caught.

Twilight turned her eyes to Fluttershy. In theory, it was Rarity’s and Twilight’s turn to watch, but the pegasus had offered to keep them company. The yellow pegasus was busy preening her wings, with her nuzzle buried in the soft down feathers of her left shoulder. Twilight briefly wondered how having wings would be. She idly moved one of her shoulders. She couldn’t wrap her mind around having an extra set of limbs sprouting from her shoulders.

‘By the way, she is adorable,’ she though, smiling at how the pegasus slowly made her way down her wing, straightening the individual feathers with her mouth and plucking out the weak ones. One of Fluttershy’s eyes turned in her general direction, and suddenly the pegasus stopped her preening and raised her wings to hide her face. “Eeep!” she yelped as her feathers fluffed up.

“I know it is interesting to watch, darling,” whispered Rarity on her ear while she clutched her shoulder. Twilight felt a shiver go down her spine. “But you are not supposed to stare pegasi doing their wings.”

“What! Oh no, I am so sorry Fluttershy!” quickly apologized Twilight, sheepish. “I’ve grown up almost only with unicorns, I have don’t know anything of pegasi customs and proper manners.”

“It’s a-alright Twilight,” replied Fluttershy, opening her wings. The unicorn could see her cheeks were tinted red. Rarity continued working on her mane, but the pegasus didn’t resume her preening, and instead fixed her attention on the tower. Several minutes passed. Twilight felt Rarity sliding a few hairpins into her mane. ‘Did she have a complete grooming set with her?’ she wondered.

“Um, girls?” muttered Fluttershy, pointing with her hoof at the tower. Both unicorns turned their heads. Indeed, the alicorn was standing on the balcony of the tree, with her large bat wings unfurled. With a few majestic flaps, Nightmare Moon took off and flew west, leaving behind a trail of specks of light.

Twilight stared at the alicorn until she was out of view. She opened the neck watch and levitated paper and quill. “Hmm…it is five-fifteen in the evening,” she said as she wrote. “It’s been eighteen hours since the last time she left. If this is anything to go by, she will be leaving the tower fairly regularly. That is good.” Twilight put down the paper and let out a sigh. “Sadly, right now the sample size is too small to draw any relevant information.”

“We’re not in a hurry,” said Rarity. “We can keep doing this until we get the pattern.”

“If she has any pattern at all!” countered Twilight. “That is what frustrates me. What if in three days, she stays in the tower for a week? We would be stuck staring at a mutated tree for…” The unicorn fell quiet and her eyes widened. “Who is that?!” she hissed, pointing at the tower.

Rarity and Fluttershy turned her heads to the tower. There was a yellow pony on the balcony of the tower. Rarity and Twilight squinted to try to get a clear picture. “I think it’s an unicorn, darling.”

“I think so too, yes.” agreed Twilight.

“Oh dear…” muttered Fluttershy, covering her muzzle with her hooves. “That’s Sunset Shimmer.”

“No, that’s impossible,” stated Twilight.

“Twilight, um…we pegasi have better eyesight than ground ponies,” she explained. “That pony is most certainly Sunset.”

“But w-why…why would Sunset Shimmer be in the castle of Nightmare Moon?!” shrieked Twilight, causing the pegasus to cower behind her mane, and regretting it instantly. “I-I’m sorry Fluttershy. Just….it makes no sense!” She stared at the distant figure. There was red on her mane and tail, but Twilight refused to believe it. “Wait, let me try to make a magnifying sp-” All three ponies gasped at the same time when the distant pony spread two golden wings and took flight. It wasn’t the polished flight of an adult pegasus, but the clumsy and awkward glide of somepony who had barely flown before. She ascended in a lazy, broad spiral; then paused for a few seconds above Ponyville, and threw herself into a dive, howling in bliss as she fell.

“…okay,” muttered Twilight, watching the pony open her wings and fly upwards. “That’s Sunset alright"

VIII - The Emperor

Your fate is chosen

Rainbow Dash stiffed a huge yawn. Ten hours of sleep hadn’t fully erased the exhaustion from the last day, for some reason. Some other pony might blame it on the fact that she had fallen asleep half-curled on a particularly twisted branch, but Rainbow was a pegasus that prided herself on sleeping in the most improbable places.

The mare hovered towards the edge of the forest, almost dragging her hooves on the dirt. She wasn’t looking forwards to her watching turn. Perhaps her buddy would let her take a quick nap, or just skip the turn entirely. The pegasus furrowed her brow when she realized Fluttershy was the only pony likely to allow that.

Any hope she could have had left vanished when she spotted Twilight standing on the usual spot. It had been a week since they had starting watching the tower, trying to find some pattern, but Nightmare Moon’s departures seemed to be completely random. To make things worse, Sunset Shimmer never accompanied her. She would take short flights above Ponyville, but always staying within earshot of the tower. It soon became clear they would have to find away to raid Nightmare’s quarters with the young pony around.

“Hey Twilight,” muttered Rainbow Dash, landing next to the purple unicorn. She acknowledged her presence with a faint ‘Hi’. Her eyes were fixed on a piece of parchment, held on her telekinesis. A quill danced smoothly on its surface, also surrounded by a lavender glow. “What’ya working on?”

Twilight looked up. “Oh, this? I am trying to figure out my exact location.” She turned the page, and Rainbow saw a fairly accurate map of Equestria. There were annotations for several cities, like Manehattan, Cloudsdale and Canterlot. The word ‘Ponyville’ had several crossed-out arrows coming out of it, pointing to at least six different, but quite similar, locations.

“Uh…you’re in Ponyville?” confirmed Rainbow Dash, utterly confused. None of the locations was correct. Ponyville was more to the north.

Twilight giggled. “I know that, Rainbow Dash. I am just trying to triangulate my position relative to Manehattan.”

“Manehattan?” repeated Rainbow. “That’s easy, it’s over there.” she said, pointing with her hoof to the horizon.

Twilight got on all four and fixed her eyes on the spot Rainbow was pointing at. “Are you sure?” she asked. Her ears swiveled back and forth.

“Yeah, of course!” confirmed Rainbow Dash, a bit offended. “I don’t go to Manehattan very much, but I see it every time I fly to Cloudsdale.”

“Perfect!” chirped Twilight, flipping over the paper and drawing a perfect circle with a single, smooth movement of the quill. Rainbow let out a whistle of appreciation, which caused Twilight to giggle again. “Most scholars can do this. Either that, or they always carry a compass or a circular object with them.” Twilight her attention to the paper. She licked her lips, and began drawing symbols, all of which were completely alien to Dash. “Could you please go fetch Spike? He will be angry if I don’t bring him with me.”

“Uh….wait, where are you going?!” Rainbow sprung on all four. “We’re supposed to be keeping an eye on the tower!”

Twilight winced slightly. “I know Rainbow, but I need to talk to somepony who isn’t as involved in this whole mess.” She studied the paper while biting the tip of the quill. “Actually,” she said, turning her head to Dash. “why don’t you come? He was kind of a big deal in Cloudsdale, back in his days.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened. The chance to skip her watch duties was all she needed to be convinced. “I’ll go grab Spike!”

“Wait, tell him we’re going to visit grandpa Thunderst…” Twilight fell quiet when she noticed Rainbow was already gone. All that was left was a multicolored trail that zigzagged between the trees. The mare reached with a hoof, and touched the ethereal pigments, that were already dissipating. The colors fluttered like dust under a beam of light, and she felt a tingle on her foreleg. Twilight made a note to investigate the phenomenon further in the future, and turned her attention back to the parchment.

Rainbow Dash returned just as Twilight was done with her arcane circle. Or, more accurately, Rainbow Dash zoomed past Twilight, did two loops above her, descended in a corkscrew, and landed next to Twilight, striking a rampant pose. Spike then descended from Rainbow’s back, with wobbly knees and a vacant expression on his face.

“Rainbow Dash!” shouted Twilight. “You can’t do that with a baby dragon on your back! He could have been hurt!”

The sky blue mare rolled her eyes. “Gee, Twi. You’re talking to Rainbow Dash herself!”

“I don’t care who I am talking to! What if he slipped and got hurt?” insisted Twilight, stomping her hoof on the dirt.

“That was awesome!” cheered Spike, clapping his claws in delight. Both mares looked down at him, with different degrees of surprise. “Can we do that again some other time? Pretty please?” Rainbow looked at Twilight and gave her a cocky smile.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Anyways, let’s do this,” she muttered, retrieving the fallen parchment.

“Where are we going?” asked Spike, running up to Twilight. He stared at the paper and frowned. “We’re going to Manehattan?”

“How in Tartarus do you know that?” asked Rainbow Dash, who was also studying the paper. Every centimeter inside the circle was covered with small symbols that resembled letters. “What language is that?”

“That’s not any language,” explained Spike while Twilight placed the paper on the dirt off to a side. “Over the years, Twilight has placed several magical beacons around Equestria. There’s one in Manehattan, one new in Ponyville, and three more…well, there were three more in Canterlot.” Twilight light up her horn and let her magic flow into the paper. The circle and runes within began to shine with their own light. “She uses them for long-range teleportation, though she usually doesn’t do the whole arcane circle thing.”

“It is necessary because this time I am taking passengers,” added Twilight, still feeding magic into the paper. Her brow was furrowed and her mane fluttered around her head, moved by the flow of raw energy. Suddenly, the paper burst into flames and turned to ashes in the blink of an eye. The circle was left behind, shimmering under the moonlight. “Are you ready?” Twilight asked. A split second later, the circle expanded, enclosing all three within.

“Whoah, what the fu-” began Rainbow, but she was interrupted when the light engulfed them, and they blinked out of existence.

***

“-ck!”

“Please don’t say swears, Dash,” politely asked Twilight, trotting off. Rainbow Dash hurried after her. They were in a city with massive, towering buildings that loomed above them menacingly. There were scarcely any ponies walking on the streets or flying on the air, in a dire contrast from the other times Rainbow Dash had visited the city.

“Refresh my memory,” asked Rainbow Dash, hovering after Twilight while she tried to figure out her exact location. “What are we doing here again?”

“We’re visiting my grandfather, Thunderstruck.” replied the unicorn. She had a happy spring on her step. “Have you heard of him?”

Rainbow shrugged. “Uh…maybe? There a lot of ponies called Thunder-whatever. Weather events are a common theme for names in Cloudsdale.”

Twilight turned a corner and Rainbow followed suit. She did not know this part of the city. The buildings around her were mostly apartment towers. Most of the lights were on, which was understandable, since it should be daytime at that point. “Do you always teleport to wherever you need to go?” she asked.

“Oh, no. Very hardly ever, actually. I prefer to take the train. It’s not as fast, but I like to have that dead time to read,” explained Twilight.

Rainbow Dash crooked an eyebrow. “Really? Come on, if I had any way to get faster to places, I would do so, every single time.”

“Would you now?” asked Twilight, looking at her without stopping. “You wouldn’t be flying anymore.”

Rainbow tilted her head. “Okay, that’s a good point. But if I could fly faster, I would. Not that I am slow or anything, you’re talking to the fastest pony alive here. Maybe even the fastest pony that has ever existed.” Twilight rolled her eyes at that, but made no comment. “Yeah, I am pretty awesome all round. And I wasn’t just born with it. I mean, I was born with this awesome mane color, some good wings and all that. But they see me, and think ‘oh, she was born with it’. And yeah, I was born with a good body shape for…well, for speed. But that’s not enough! I have been training every day, since I was a little filly. That’s how you become the best. Having a special talent or being taller, smaller, whatever; helps but if you don’t work hard, it’s not gonna anywhere. Did you know I have fangs?”

“Fangs?”

“Yeah! Take a peek!” Rainbow hovered closer and pulled down her lip while gritting her teeth. “See? Right there.” She pointed with her free hoof. Indeed, the pegasus had a four small canines in the interdental space. “Cool, huh?”

“That’s…interesting.” replied Twilight, uncertain of what the pegasus wanted her to say.

“You call those fangs?” chuckled Spike. “Have you seen these?” He tapped his large canines with his claw. “These are the real deal. They can chew gemstones!”

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to reply, but since she couldn’t really make any good counter, she switched the topic. “How much are we going to have to walk, anyways? Why didn’t we just teleport directly to…whoever we came to see.”

“Because it is rude to teleport directly on anypony’s house. It’s like…” Twilight tapped her chin. “…flying into somepony’s house, unannounced. You wouldn’t like that, would you?”

Dash shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t see the issue? If it’s somepony you know, what’s the problem?”

Twilight looked back at the pegasus and realized she wasn’t joking. ‘…I better ignore that. A full explanation would take several hours.’ she decided. “Anyways, we are heading to my maternal grandparent’s house. We’re almost there.”

A few minutes later, Twilight stopped at the main entrance of a perfectly average block of apartments. Rainbow Dash looked up, scanning each window. “You are not flying though the window!” said Twilight, correctly guessing the pegasus’ intentions. “We are knocking at the door like civilized ponies.” Twilight crossed the threshold, with an annoyed Rainbow in tow. “And please, do walk while indoors.”

“Why?! Really Twilight, if I knew you were going to whine about everything I do, I would have stayed in Pon-” Rainbow Dash had her rant interrupted when she smacked herself against a hanging lamp. When Spike finally stopped laughing, the small group climbed to the fourth floor on the paternoster and stopped in front of a door. Twilight rang the brass knocker with her telekinesis. Rainbow Dash didn’t have time to read the etched plate decorating the door when it swung open.

There stood an old stallion. His light blue coat still retained most of its color, but his thin mane had become all but gray. Perched on his muzzle was a pair of half-moon glasses. His green eyes instantly light up at the sight of Twilight. “Little Sparkle! And Spike!” he beamed, embracing his granddaughter, which she happily returned. Spike hopped off the back of the unicorn, and wrapped his tiny limbs around one of the stallion’s forelegs. The group hug lasted for just enough that Rainbow Dash didn’t complain about all the ‘sappy stuff’ happening. “What do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” asked the pony. “And who is your friend here?” he asked, turning his attention to Dash.

It was then when the pegasus noticed the set of webbed wings sprouting from the shoulders of the stallion, and the long, pointed fangs that poked from his smiling lips. “Are you serious! Your grandpa is a batpony?! But your mom is an unicorn!” she exclaimed.

Both ponies smirked. “I have a very diverse family,” said Twilight. Rainbow Dash spied two tiny canines, similar to her own. “I also have two hippogriffin cousins.”

“To be fair, we were also very surprised when our two daughters turned out to be both unicorns,” said the stallion. “Why don’t you introduce me to your friend?”

“Right,” agreed Twilight, and cleared her throat. “Rainbow Dash, this is my grandfather Thunderstruck, former officer at the Weather Factory of Cloudsdale. Grandpa, this is Rainbow Dash, current Captain of the weather team of Ponyville.”

“Ah, a fellow weather pony,” Thunderstruck gave a sharp salute, which Rainbow promptly returned. “Pleased to meet you. Please, come inside.”

The door opened directly to a small yet spacious living room. Two worn armchairs sat opposite to a far newer, two-pony couch. Between the armchairs there was a gas stove with a framed picture atop of it and a book next to it. The corner was occupied by a beautifully decorated gramophone and block of shelves containing hundreds of discs. On the wall hanged several paintings, most of them depicting the sunset above the clouds; a frame containing several medals, and a rapier on a brass rack. To the left and right, two doors led to the rest of the rooms of the apartment.

“Please make yourselves at home. I’ll make some tea,” said Thunderstruck, disappearing through a door.

“I’ll help you!” cheered Spike, scampering after the old pony.

Twilight and Rainbow Dash glanced at each other. “You didn’t tell me your grandpa was a batpony,” she smirked after a pause. “Is that why you were so unimpressed when I said I have fangs?”

Twilight nodded with a smirk of her own. “Guilty as charged! Mom and Shining Armor have them too. I didn’t realize they were unusual until I went to the School of Gifted Unicorns,” she explained as she took a seat on the couch.

“I wish I had actual fangs, like your grandfather does. I don’t know if I would trade these for bat wings, though,” she said, spreading her wings. They were short, and angular, made for speed. A single claw sprout from the wrist area. Rainbow nodded to it. “You are an egghead, aren’t you? Does this come from my batpony grandma, or is it common on pegasi? Because I’ve seen a lot of ponies with them,” The pegasus closed her wings and made her way to one of the armchairs.

“Rainbow Dash, please don’t sit there!” called out Twilight. Rainbow stopped short and gave her a questioning look. “That’s my grandmother’s armchair.”

“Well, she isn’t here right now.”

“My late grandmother.”

Rainbow Dash froze. “Oh…I am so sorry,” she muttered, sitting next to Twilight.

The unicorn dismissed the apology with a gesture. “It’s fine. She died, what? Ten years ago, perhaps? It was shortly before I entered the School for Gifted Unicorns.”

Rainbow Dash reclined on her seat. “That place is like…what’s it called? An infection point for you, right?”

“I think you mean an ‘inflection point’.” giggled Twilight. “But yes, it is. I can’t imagine what would have been of my life if I hadn’t made it in. For starters, I wouldn’t have Spike with me.”

“Oh? How come?” asked Rainbow, leaning forwards in attention.

“Well, as part of the entry exam, we were asked to use our magic to hatch a dragon egg,” explained Twilight, adopting her exposition tone and demeanor. “Despite my best attempts, I failed and started to get nervous. The judges didn’t help; they were piercing me with their eyes. But then I got startled by some distant explosion and I went into a surge. I don’t really remember what happened then, but when I opened my eyes again, the egg was gone and instead was a tiny, purple dragon.” Twilight’s lips turned into a small smile at the memories. “Later I found out we were meant to attempt to hatch the egg, not actually do it. The exam was suspended afterwards, since they had no more dragon eggs.”

“I still think that was a rubbish way to do that Celestia-forsaken exam!” snapped Thunderstruck. Twilight yelped and looked up. The old stallion was sitting on his armchair opposite to the two mares. “They could have missed my granddaughter’s amazing talent entirely!”

“Granpaaaa!” whined Twilight, blushing visibly. “Don’t be like that…”

Thunderstruck grinned. “Nonsense,” he said, crossing his forelegs over his chest. “I have all the right to be proud of you, and I will boast whenever I have the chance.”

Spike chose that moment to open the door to the kitchen, carrying on his claws a dish full of pastries. He placed offered the dish to Thunderstruck, who picked one cookie, and then to the two mares, who took one each. The dragon then grabbed a handful of them and went to sit on the floor next to Thunderstruck. “Curious, I could have sworn I put a few more cookies on that plate,” muttered Thunderstruck, grinning at Spike. The baby shrugged his shoulders sheepishly. “Anyways, what do I owe the pleasure of this visit to?”

“Can’t I just be visiting?” asked Twilight, smiling.

“Yes, but you usually don’t bring unknown ponies into my humble house,” he stated, matter-of-factly. “I assume Rainbow Dash is your friend? Or perhaps-”

“S-she is just a friend!” interrupted Twilight, blushing yet again. “I brought her just because I thought she’d like to meet you.”

Thunderstruck nodded. “It’s always a pleasure to make acquaintance of a fellow weatherpony,” he said. “And the Captain of the whole Ponyville team, no less! That puts you well above the average pegasus.”

Rainbow Dash’s visibly puffed up at the praises. “You bet I am! I also happen to be the fastest pegasus alive! Maybe the fastest pegasus that ever existed!” Next to her, Twilight rolled her eyes.

“Oh, is that so?” asked Thunderstruck, crooking an eyebrow. It wasn’t the first time he had heard a pegasus make that claim. “Are you aiming to become a Wonderbolt?”

“Of course I am!” she replied, batting her wings a few times and accidentally slapping Twilight on the face. “Whooops, sorry Twi!”

Thunderstruck chuckled. “I figured. Well, I never tried to enter on the Wonderbolts myself, but my big brother did. He went in directly, not by escalating the ladder of the army, so it was his contact with military life. And something that came up very often was that it wasn’t what he expected. He actually quit after a couple years.”

Rainbow’s enthusiasm seemed to falter a bit. “Y-yeah, I know that,” she said with an awkward smile. “The Wonderbolts are the elite of the aerial branch of the army, not civilians. I know it will be rough at first…but I still want to get in! It’s what I have been training every day for the last…uh…many years!” she finished, having regained her confidence.

“Well said!” cheered Thunderstruck. “That’s the kind of determination that will take you far.”

The teapot chose that moment to whistle, startling everypony and breaking the conversation. “I’ll go get it!” said Spike, jumping to his feet and waddling to the kitchen.

Thunderstruck scratched his neck. “Right. Where were we before we took this detour? I think I was asking about your reasons to visit me.”

Twilight nodded. “Yes. A lot of things have happened, and I think I need to talk to somepony who isn’t involved.” Thunderstruck frowned and rested his chin on his hoof. He made an inviting gesture to Twilight as Spike came back from the kitchen, carrying a smoking teapot and three cups on a tray.

For the next minutes, Twilight explained the events of the last days, leaving out the most gruesome details. Thunderstruck’s expression didn’t change at any point, except his already wrinkled forehead frowned even further. After she was done, the stallion remained quiet for a while, staring at the contents of his empty cup. Then, unexpectedly, he began to chuckle. Twilight and Rainbow Dash shared a surprised look.

“You know, I always said your mother got all the stubbornness and fighting spirit of Estoc, and your aunt Little Star got none.” said the stallion, grinning with pride. “I always thought it had happened something similar with you and your brother, but it seems I was mistaken.”

Twilight smiled awkwardly. “I haven’t really decided what I am going to do, grandpa…”

“Nonsense!” said the pony, taking his cup to take a sip of his tea, only to find it empty. “Celestia has chosen you not one, but twice; and I trust her criteria. By Tartarus, I would question her sanity if she hadn’t seen your potential.” Twilight managed give her grandfather a look that conveyed both flatter and disapproval at his words. “What? It’s the truth. You’re sitting by a pony who claims to be the fastest pegasus that has ever existed, though honestly I don’t have any reason to believe her words,” Dash opened her mouth to protest, but Thunderstruck continued speaking. “Now, you? You’re the daughter of my daughter. And by Heavens, I am well aware of what your mother could have accomplished, if she hadn’t…well, you know the whole story. Point being: you’ve got this.”

Twilight shuffled on her seat. “Well, I am glad you think that, but…I still have doubts.”

“That’s fine!” said Thunderstruck. “Barring your grandmother, all ponies have doubts! Me, you, Dash, the Princess. All! But that shouldn’t prevent you from trying!”

Twilight bit her lip. She had left unmentioned all of Nightmare Moon’s attempted or successful murders, and her blood bond with Celestia. Her grandfather was under the impression that the alicorn was no more dangerous than Cadance, which was enormously inaccurate. After a few seconds of inner deliberations, she decided to leave him on the blue. “This might be the biggest challenge I have faced so far.” she muttered.

“Challenges are good, they keep us sharp,” countered the old pony. “That being said, I trust you won’t do anything stupid. I wouldn’t want my favorite granddaughter to be hurt.”

“You say that to all of us!” giggled Twilight.

“All my grandchildren are my favorite,” replied Thunderstruck, grinning yet again. “Including Spike,” he added, pointing at the tiny dragon, who was currently busy picking the last remaining crumbs of the cookies.

There was a brief pause in which all three ponies watched in amusement how Spike licked the dish clean, completely oblivious to the fact that he was in the spotlight.

“There’s something I’ve been thinking about,” started Rainbow Dash, leaning forwards on her seat. “You said you worked in the weather factory?”

“Well, I believe it was Twilight who said it,” replied Thunderstruck with a smirk. “But yes, I worked there for many years. We had to move, of course, when our first daughter turned out to be an unicorn, but I technically still was part of the Cloudsdale team.”

“What did you do?” asked Dash. “Twilight said you were a big deal.”

Thunderstruck threw his head back in a loud, long cackle, which lasted for several seconds until the old stallion was interrupted bit a fit of cough. Twilight made a point of getting up, but Thunderstruck raised a hoof. “I’m fine, I’m fine. Sorry about that,” he paused for a second to recover his breath. “Anyways, Twilight has a rather…biased opinion of me. In all her grandparents, actually. Anyways, I was the lieutenant of my weather team. We were specialized on a single, but fundamental, task.”

“You are a lightning collector,” guessed Rainbow Dash. She had already noticed the crossed lightning bolts that decorated Thuderstruck’s flank. Cutie Marks were always somewhat vague on their meaning – her own was a rather misleading mark – but in this case, the stallion nodded.

“Precisely,” he said, leaning forwards on his chair. “Now, what are the two methods of obtaining electric energy to make storm engines?”

“Uh…” Rainbow Dash blinked, not expecting a question in return. “Well, the most common method is using the rogue clouds that are naturally created under the celestial sphere. They can appear anywhere, but are most common above the Everfree Forest. Taking energy from them is both a way of getting the electricity needed to craft the engines, and a method of preventing uncontrolled storms. Diving into a fully-fledged storm is a dangerous, yet necessary task,” Twilight turned her head, eyes wide open. Dash was using the same voice she used when she was lecturing somepony on a matter she fully dominated. “The other is capturing static charge directly from the celestial sphere. This can only be done at the top of the dome. They only real dangers are capturing an excess of energy, and…well, flying into the Sun, if you’re particularly dumb,” Rainbow Dash huffed and dropped back to her usual voice. “I mean, I get that the Sun is dangerous and all that, but I think most ponies are not stupid enough to fly into the Sun. Except Icarus. Anyways, to get the static from the dome, you need some big-ass wings,” Rainbow spread her wings and eyed them critically. “And none of us got ‘em.”

Thunderstruck grinned widely. Rainbow made a face. His expression was unnerving. “Oh, oh! Show them off, Thunder!” cheered Spike, jumping to his feet and waddling over to the two mares, where he bounced in place, excited.

The old pony got on his hooves, and snapped his wings open. Rainbow Dash jumped on her seat. The webbed limbs reached all the way to the ceiling, blotting out most of the light of the lamp. Twilight giggled at Rainbow’s expression of pure awe. The pegasus was completely frozen, save for some random shudders of her wings.

“Hum. I think I broke your friend,” muttered Thunderstruck, partially closing his wings and walking over to the pegasus mare. “Hey, you okay kid?” he asked, waving his hoof in front of Dash’s face.

“You’re a high sky flier! That is so awesome!” squeaked Rainbow, pressing her hooves to her cheeks while her wings fluttered. “They didn’t look so huge when folded!”

“Webbed wings are a bit more flexible than feathered,” replied Thunderstruck, closing his left wing. He first folded each finger individually, and then did the same with the wing as a whole. The folded limb only looked slightly larger than average. “Unfortunately, they are also a tad more fragile…” he muttered, frowning at his right wing. Rainbow followed his eyes and discovered many small scars through the whole patagium, along with a few small holes here and there. Particularly eye-watering was the long, ridged mark that ran from his hand to the edge of the skin. Rainbow couldn’t help but shudder, and decided to push away any train of thought going in the direction of what could have caused such injury. “I flew into a tree,” said Thunderstruck, correctly guessing what she was thinking. “A branch perforated my patagium and sliced it when I fell,” the stallion shrugged. “All in all, I was pretty lucky. That could have left me grounded forever. Instead, I got away with just a slightly more tattered wing.”

“D-don’t say that!” stammered Rainbow Dash, jumping to her hooves. “I am sure you can fly just fine. More than fine! Great! What do you say to a lil’ race, you and me?” she asked, with her eyes practically sparkling. Next to her, Twilight winced and gestured her to stop.

The corner of Thunderstruck’s mouth twitched. “N-no, I don’t think-”

“Come on! It will be fun.” insisted Dash, taking a step forwards. The tense smile on Thunderstruck’s face vanished entirely. “When has been the last time you used those, huh?”

Thunderstruck bared his fangs in an angry grimace. “That is enough, Rainbow,” he said, deliberately pronouncing each syllable.

“Dash, I think-”

“Come on, Thunder,” said Rainbow, raising an eyebrow, oblivious to the very clear warnings of danger. “Are you afraid?” she mocked.

“SHUP UP!” barked Thunderstruck. Rainbow jumped on her seat and her cocky attitude vanished like a flame underwater. The stallion towered above her, his wings obscuring the light and his longs fangs bared in anger. Thunderstruck had his eyes fixed on her, his whole body trembled. Dash hadn’t felt so fragile in a long time.

And then it was over just as quick. Thunderstruck closed his wings, turned around and dropped his old body on his armchair. He looked just as fragile as a minute ago, as if the outburst hadn’t ever happened. He let out a long sigh and cast his eyes to the empty chair next to him. “I’m sorry,” he muttered after a long, tense, pause. “I think…I think you should leave…”

Rainbow Dash looked at Twilight for help, utterly confused; but the unicorn was giving her a disappointed stare. And below, sitting next on the floor next to Twilight, Spike had his hand firmly planted against his face. Just what had she done? “Uh…o-okay,” she shuffled to her hooves, with her head hanging and ears flat against her skull. She turned to the door, but she stopped on hooves, and suddenly perked up. “Oh, there was something I wanted to ask you!”

Thunderstruck glared daggers at her. Twilight bit her lip, expecting the pegasus to go over the line again.

“Do you happen to know a stallion called Bïfrost?”

Unexpectedly, Thunderstruck perked up. “Bïfrost? Of course I do. He is my nephew. He worked under my orders for a few months.”

Had it not been attached to her face, Rainbow Dash’s jaw would have made a hole through the floor. “Y…you are Bïfrost’s uncle?” she stammered. Twilight looked at her, surprised ‘What’s gotten into her?’

“Yes,” muttered Thunderstruck, wondering why the filly was suddenly so interested in his family. “He is the son of my sister. Why? You know him?”

“Know him?!” positively squeaked Rainbow Dash as she buzzed her wings in a blue blur, though later she would never admit her outburst of excitement. “He’s my dad!”

Thunderstruck’s eyebrows disappeared under his mane. “You are Thunderclap’s granddaughter?!” asked the stallion, with similar enthusiasm.

“Yeah! And you are her little brother?!” practically shouted Dash.

“Yes!” answered Thunderstruck, even louder. “So that means you are my grand niece!”

“YeAh!” screamed Rainbow, breaking her voice right at the end. There was a choir of laughter at expenses of the embarrassed pegasus.

“Heehee…let me get this straight,” said Twilight after the laughter had died out. “You…” she pointed to Rainbow Dash. “You are my second cousin.”

“Uuuuh…”

“Our grandparents are brothers.”

“Yeah!”

***

“Goodbye grandpa Thunderstruck!”

“Bye grunkle Thunder!”

“Bye Thunderstruck!”

Ponies and dragon all waved their respective forelimbs, as they climbed on the paternoster one by one and disappeared from Thunderstruck’s view. Only then the stallion closed the door, still split between being elated or worried about his newfound family member. Rainbow Dash was very much like his older brother. Unfortunately, Thunderstruck never really got along with his older brother. Shrugging his wings, the stallion headed for his couch, to continue with his book.

Outside, Rainbow Dash was hovering from the moment they had crossed the main door of the block of apartments. Twilight carried Spike on her back, with a happy spring on her step. “I can’t believe we are related!” said Dash from above.

“I know, right?” replied Twilight. “I have always been aware that I had relatives I didn’t know. Grandparents, and first-degree cousins, that is as far as I know them. And each of my grandparents comes from a different place of Equestria, so I never met any siblings they might have had. But randomly meeting you, and then finding out? What are the odds of that?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty awesome.” agreed Rainbow. “Speaking of awesome, how does it feel to know you’re related to me, huh?”

“Exactly the same as yesterday.”

“Huh? What?”

Twilight made a vague gesture with her hoof. “Well, I already knew you from before; learning you are a distant relative doesn’t change anything. Besides, I have always been fascinated with genealogy. I have investigated a lot on Estoc’s, and I have found out that I am related to several of my classmates from the School of Gifted Unicorns. But that didn’t suddenly made us better friends or anything. It just means we have common ascendency.”

“I…think I get what you mean,” muttered Dash. “Kinda like Spike, right? Just, Spike is the opposite.”

“Heehee, yep!” said Twilight. “To be honest, I am glad you brought up your father. The visit could have been far worse.”

“Yeah, I’ve been meaning to ask about that.” said Rainbow Dash. “What was it all about?”

Twilight bit her lip. “Well, I guess it doesn’t matter if I tell you,” she finally said, shrugging her shoulders. “Remember how you were challenging him to a race? My grandmother, Estoc, died when she crashed during a race with one of her students.”

Twilight stopped on her tracks when she noticed Rainbow Dash wasn’t following her anymore. She looked back and saw the pegasus standing on her hooves, with her eyes fixed on the pavement. “So that is why you were interrupting me,” she muttered. “You think your grandpa is still mad at me?”

“Mad?” said Twilight, smiling. “He was delighted to meet you! You just…hit a sore spot, by accident.” Rainbow didn’t seem entirely convinced. “It’s fine, really. Thunderstruck knows he is a bit too touchy when it comes to Estoc. I guess it comes with missing somepony who has been part of your life for so long.”

Rainbow tilted her head from side to side. “If you think so…let’s return to Ponyville.”

***

There was a flash of light, and Twilight, Spike and Rainbow Dash appeared, exactly at the same spot they had left, over an hour earlier.

“I can’t believe Thunderstruck never told me his older brother was a Wonderbolt!”

Rainbow Dash blinked. “Uhh?” Since this time the teleportation hadn’t caught her by surprise, she had fully experienced the magical displacement. And while her body was undoubtedly present at Ponyville, her mind hadn’t caught up, and was suffering from the effects. Her eyes were fixed somewhere very, very far.

“Hey, who’s that?” asked Spike from her back.

Twilight followed his arm, and saw a blue unicorn mare, a few meters away from them. She was wearing a tattered purple cape decorated with stars, and her face displayed the expression typical of a filly caught with her hoof inside the cookie jar.

“Uh…who are you?” asked Twilight. She then spied the piece of charred parchment that she was holding in her telekinesis. “Wait, is that my spell? Are you trying to reverse-engineer it?”

“Of course not!” replied the unicorn. The burn paper disappeared in a puff of smoke, though Spike did notice its remains fall to the ground. “The great and powerful Trixie is more than capable of casting any spell, if she sets her mind on it.”

Twilight and Spike shared a look. Rainbow Dash, who had just woken up from her drift, was just looking at the new pony, dumbfounded.

“Are…you Trixie?” cautiously asked Twilight. She got a proud nod as an answer. “Well, what are you doing here, then?”

“The great and powerful Trixie is looking for a certain pony,” said the mare, giving her mane a grand toss. Twilight crooked an eyebrow, uncertain of what to make of that pony. “A mare, in fact. Her coat is of marble white, and her mane is striped with the colors of alabaster and lavender.” Trixie gestured her to get closer, and Twilight obliged without realizing. “It is a little known fact, but she is one of the thirteen archmages of the Council…and the only one who survived Nightmare Moon’s coup.”

Twilight blinked. Trixie’s muzzle was just a few inches from her. The blue unicorn was looking at her with the pride and sufficiency of somepony who had just shared a very secret piece of information. The corners of Twilight’s lips quivered upwards. “This mare…won’t happen to be called Twilight Velvet, right?”

Trixie gasped dramatically and recoiled a few steps. “Precisely! How do you know?”

Twilight couldn’t hold it back anymore. She burst into laughter, and a second later was followed by Spike, who had heard the whole exchange. Then, the mirth spread to Rainbow Dash, who didn’t really understood what the joke was, but couldn’t resists Trixie’s aggravated scrunched muzzle and red cheeks.

***

Twilight waved her hoof. Her mother caught sight of her and headed in her direction after closing the notebook she was writing on and stuffing it on her saddlebags. Twilight looked back. Trixie was still following her, with a neutral expression on her face. The mare had insisted on being introduced to ‘Twilight Velvet of the Stars’, though she refused to say why.

In her short meeting with Trixie, Twilight had drawn two conclusions about her. First, Trixie was overly dramatic and full of herself. Even though she believed Velvet to be an archmage, she described herself as having a level of skill that could eventually rival Velvet’s. She also spoke of herself in third person; something Twilight had only seen doing the most pretentious of ponies.

Second, Trixie was poorly informed of Twilight Velvet’s status, but she firmly believed the opposite.

“Hey mom,” said Twilight, “This pony is looking for you. Her name is Trix-” Twilight looked back. The blue mare wasn’t behind her anymore. She looked back ahead, and facehooved. Trixie was bowing to a very confused Velvet.

“She’s done it,” muttered Spike from her back. His voice was slightly muffled, and Twilight could only guess he had done exactly the same gesture as her. He hopped from her back. “I’m gonna go find Sweetie Belle. Good luck!” he said, giving her a pat on the leg. Twilight groaned a small ‘goodbye’.

“Twilight, sweetie,” said the voice of Velvet. Twilight looked up. Trixie was still with her muzzle almost touching the dirt. “What have you told this mare?”

“I haven’t-”

“You assistant has followed your instructions perfectly,” Trixie got up, gave her cape a flick and pointed her nose upwards. Twilight saw one of her mother’s eyebrows climb an inch up. “She has tried to keep your identity a secret, but such a simple deception can’t hide the truth from Trixie. Trixie knows who you are, Twilight Velvet of the Stars. You are an archmage!” Trixie finished the sentence by raising on her hindlegs and pointing a hoof to Velvet.

There was a pause. Then Velvet burst into laughter. Trixie scrunched her muzzle and puffed her cheeks.

“I really don’t know where you got that idea, but I think I should clear up some things,” said Velvet after a minute. She made a gesture to the tree she had been sitting under. “First, the pony that took you here is not my assistant, but my daughter.”

Trixie spared a short glance to Twilight, who smiled in return. “Oh. It is a pleasure for Trixie to make you acquaintance then, miss?”

“Twilight Sparkle.”

“It’s a pleasure,” she said.

Velvet sat on the dirt, and Twilight did the same. Trixie stayed on all four until Velvet motioned her to sit. “Second, I am not an archmage. Who told you that?” Her eyes were piercing.

“Trixie saw you with her very own eyes, strolling through the halls of the High School of Magic,” said Trixie with a proud smile. “Only the archmages, their assistants, and the support crew are allowed in there, and obviously you belonged to the first category. Trixie understands you may want to anonymity. Not everypony is made to live with fame-”

“Enough of that,” snapped Twilight Velvet. “I never got a seat on the Council. It’s a sore spot for me, and honesty it feels like you are poking fun at me. I have been in the School a few times, but never as anything more than a visitor. How many times did you see me, anyways? It can’t have been that often.”

“It wasn’t,” admitted Trixie. Velvet squinted her eyes. The azure mare averted her gaze. “…fine. Just once. Trixie got admitted as the assistant of Adonis, but was fired the next day.” Both Twilights snickered a bit at that. “Trixie didn’t make any mistakes! Adonis was simply…he made a mistake by firing me!”

“I’m sure he did,” deadpanned Velvet. “In any case, what is your business with me?”

Trixie shrugged. “Trixie saw you leaving Manehattan on a sky chariot, and decided she could be of some assistance. She suspected you’d have a plan to oppose Nightmare Moon. Avenge your colleagues, all that.” Mother and daughter shared a look. “What?”

“I’ve been working on a plan to make precisely that,” said Vevet. She extracted a notebook and a pencil from her saddlebags. “Maybe you’ll be the last piece we need,” she muttered, chewing the end of the pencil. “By the way Twilight, your white friend was looking for you.”

***

“Hey girls!”

Three fillies looked up from the playing cards they were holding on their hooves. There was an orange pegasus filly grinning at them. “You wanna see a dead body?”

Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Twist shared a look that was between confused and disgusted. “Sure, why not?” said the unicorn filly.

“W-what?”

“What?!”

“WHAT!”

“What?” said Sweetie Belle, blinking her large green eyes. “I’m kind of bored. I want to do something else. Besides, this game is dumb.” She got on her hooves, neatly putting her cards on the deck and shuffling it before neatly placing it down. “Alright, let’s go,” she said to the orange filly, who had her eyes wide open.

“Honestly, I didn’t expect…” she shook her head and grinned. “Nevermind, let’s go!” She and Sweetie Belle headed to the woods at a light trot.

Apple Bloom and Twist glanced at each other. “Well, this is a three-player game anyways,” muttered Twist, putting down her cards.

“Yeah. This ain’t fun with just two ponies.” agreed Apple Bloom. The two fillies placed the cards on the deck and followed the other two.

Behind them, unnoticed by anypony else, the deck of cards was smoking.

Less than a minute later, the orange filly triumphantly onto a small mound. “See?” she said cheerfully.

The other three looked around. “There ain’t anything here,” pointed Apple Bloom.

“No, look!” the filly stomped her hooves on the dirt below her. “Right here!” She jumped off the mound and stood next to the other ponies.

“Hang on,” muttered Sweetie Belle, noticing the semicircular structure behind the mound. It had an inscription carved on it. “Is that a tombstone? Oh my gosh, I though you meant a dead animal!” she whimpered, covering her mouth with a hoof and trembling like a leaf.

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. “C’me on Sweetie, it’s just a tomb.” She trotted forwards and squinted at the tombstone. “Here it says ‘Window’.”

“That’sh a really weird name,” muttered Twist. There was a small chorus of agreements. “Who you think it wahs?”

“Well, whoever it was, they died recently. The dirt has no grass on it,” reasoned Scootaloo. “Maybe somepony who died in the attack from a few days ago?”

Sweetie Belle glanced at Apple Bloom. The yellow filly had a blank look in her eyes, fixed on the dirt of the tomb.

“What in Tartarus do you think you are all doing here?!!”

The sudden scream had variable effects on the fillies, but they all involved some degree of surprised squeaks, uncoordinated flailing and sudden fits of running. When they looked at the source of the sound, they saw a tiny purple and green dragon, with his arms crossed firmly against his chest and a deep frown on his face, while he tapped the ground with his foot.

“Oh. Hey Spike! You scared us!” said Sweetie Belle. “What’s up?”

“What’s up?” repeated Spike, crooking an eyebrow. “Oh, not much. I just found four fillies alone on the forest, with a bunch of shape-changing bugs loose around. Not much.”

“Oh…” muttered the white filly. “W-we’re sorry, Spike…”

“No sorries!” Spike stomped his foot on the dirt. “You’re all going back to the camp, right now! And Twilight will probably want to check you for changeling…ness.” The dragon motioned his hand. He followed the crestfallen fillies to the camp, muttering under his breath.

***

“I am afraid out plan has caught a bit more attention than I expected.”

“Y-yes, it did,” replied Twilight, shifting nervously on her hooves. She and Rarity were standing on the middle of a clearing. Rarity had chosen that spot for her magic duel because it was out of view from the main camp, but still relatively close. Unfortunately, it appeared somepony had spread the news of the event, since there were about two dozen ponies waiting for the show.

“Nervous?” asked Rarity, as she undid the clasp that held her gambeson in place.

“N-no, not really,” said Twilight, looking back at Rarity. She was taking off her padded clothing to stretch, and Twilight needed a second to tear her eyes from her body. “I-It’s just that I don’t like ponies watching.”

Rarity stopped her exercises to study Twilight’s expression for a long second. “I understand. If you are not comfortable, we can call it off and try another day.”

“N-no, it’s fine!” assured Twilight. “It’s silly, really. Let’s do this now.”

Rarity smiled. “In that case, darling, may I suggest you to imitate me? We wouldn’t want to get an injury, would we?”

“R-right!” Twilight quickly followed Rarity in her exercises, thought with a little less grace.

Not too far away from the two unicorns, Rainbow, Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy waited for the duel to begin.

“Ten bits for Twilight,” suddenly said Rainbow Dash.

“What?” said Applejack, shifting the stalk of wheat to the other side of her mouth. “Hehehe. No way, yer betting for Twi? I though you said she is an egghead.”

“…I…well, she is gonna beat Rarity into the ground!” said Dash. “Rarity said it herself! Twilight is a stronger unicorn!”

Applejack watched the two unicorns stretch for a moment. “Mh-hmmm. But ah think Rares has a plan. Ah don’t think she would drop a challenge just to have her plot hoofed to her.”

“Y-you think they are going to be fine?” muttered Fluttershy. “I don’t want anypony to be hurt.”

“They’ll be fine, sugarcube,” replied Applejack, giving the pegasus a reassuring smile. “Ah don’t know much about unicorns, but ah reckon this is like sparring with wooden weapons.”

“Exactly! Just with a lot more fire involved!” added Rainbow Dash. “By the way, you haven’t said anything about my bet.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Applejack chewed the rest of her stalk before continuing. “I accept your bet…and ah’ll raise it to twenty-five bits! Deal?” she asked, offering her hoof.

“Deal!” said Rainbow, bumping it with her own. “Oh, I am so excited!”

“You should be! Like ah said, this ain’t gonna be one sided like…you dueling Pinkie’s sister.” Both ponies turned their attention back to the two unicorns, who where gesturing to the crowd to group together to minimize the chances of being hit by a stray spell.

“Hold on, what did you just say?” objected Rainbow Dash, crooking an eyebrow an Applejack. “Are you implying Pinkie’s sister is stronger than me?”

“Ah am not implying anything,” retorted Applejack with an impish smile. “Ah am sayin’ it clear and loud,” she cleared her throat and added, with as much diction as her strong accent allowed. “Maud Pie would kick your sorry flank into the dirt in ten. Seconds. Flat.”

“She really would,” stated Pinkie Pie behind them. “If I were you, I wouldn’t try to measure up against her. Even if you were Applejack, I still wouldn’t do it.”

“Oh! Oh, it is on!” howled Rainbow Dash, increasingly aggravated. “I’ll show you. You’re gonna see what I am capable of! I. Will. Show. You.” she said, poking Applejack on the chest with each word. Having said her word, she turned to watch the unicorns, who were pacing away from each other. Applejack reached back with her hoof, which Pinkie happily smacked.

A little to the side, Sweetie Belle was cheering for her sister, while Spike was having trouble deciding which mare he should support.

Meanwhile, the two unicorns faced each other. Both had focused looks on their faces, but Twilight found Rarity more calm than she should be, facing a pony who might be ‘among the mightiest unicorns alive’, as she had said herself. ‘She must have a plan. But what?. Rarity didn’t have her spear or armor, and Twilight couldn’t perceive any passive spells cast on her.

Rarity light up her horn and cast a glistering blue blaze. The ball of flames struck harmlessly Twilight’s shield. She then dropped it and cast her own fireball. Rarity gracefully skipped to a side to dodge it, and replied with a beam. It was a stronger attack, but Twilight’s shield didn’t waver.

Having exchanged the first barrage of magical attacks, the two unicorns paused, visually measuring their opponents. Rarity was still bearing that calm expression. Twilight had no way of knowing how much of her power had put Rarity on that single attack. She seemed confident, but how much of that was actual confidence and how much bluff?

Rarity stepped sideways, and Twilight made her next move. She light up her horn and flicked her head in a broad arc, sending a loose cluster of flames. Rarity’s eyes opened wide. She dodged under a magic flame, and another one nearly missed her foreleg. Smiling, Twilight cast a simple binding spell. The blob of purple energy landed next to Rarity’s hoof, and wrapped around her leg, up to her knee. Rarity’s face contorted in disgust when she pulled and the slimy substance kept her hoof in place.

“Heehee! I’ve got you now!”

“I must admit, darling,” muttered Rarity, grimacing at the goo stuck to her hoof. “This is the most revolting thing I have ever stepped on.”

“I am glad you think so,” answered Twilight. “It’s a rather basic binding spell, but it isn’t easy to get the right balance of-” Twilight’s explanation was interrupted when a blue fireball exploded in front of her. If she hadn’t raised her shield, Rarity’s blaze would have hit her. The purple unicorn smirked. “Nice try.”

“Thank you, darling,” cooed Rarity, before unleashing another blaze. And another. The onslaught of blue magic struck Twilight’s shield with all the might of glass marbles hitting the stone walls of a castle. Azure mist covered the clearing as Rarity threw more and more spells into the shield. Stray flames burned on the grass. Twilight squinted. She couldn’t see Rarity anymore, but she was obviously spending her strength. As a precaution, she cast an extra layer to her shield.

An instant later, something hit her shield. It was a dark red gemstone with a square cut. It was all the information Twilight was able to gather before it detonated with a blinding flash.

Twilight recoiled, blinking. Her vision had turned into a blurry, painful mess. Her arcane perception alerted her of a spell being cast, so she turned her attention to her shield…which wasn’t there anymore. She felt heat on her shoulder as the spell flew past her. Blinded and under bombardment, Twilight teleported.

She re-appeared behind where she assumed Rarity to be, spun on her back legs, and fired a sweeping blaze. Twilight smiled when she heard Rarity yelp. Her vision was coming back, blurry and full of spots. She could see the stripe of purple flames she had just cast, interrupted only where Rarity stood. Thankfully for her, the alabaster mare wasn’t paying her any attention, as she was busy stomping the lilac flame that burned on her tail. It was a perfect opportunity to end the duel, which Twilight wasted by giggling uncontrollably.

“Hmp!” Rarity turned her muzzle upwards as she stomped off the last flame. “I hope you are proud of yourself, Twilight. You have managed to ruin my fine coiffure.”

“I’m sorry!” said Twilight between giggles.

“You will regret this, ruffian!” muttered Rarity, extracting something from her mane, and holding it for Twilight to see. It was a heart-shaped pink gemstone. Twilight’s laughter died out. She could perceive the magic boiling inside it. With a smooth movement, Rarity tossed the gem up in the air. “Rose Firestorm!” she called out grandiosely.

Twilight looked up. The crowd looked up. The gemstone reached the peak of its ascent, paused for an instant, and began to descent. And then Twilight’s legs were violently sweeped from underneath her and she hit the dirt with a gasp. A hoof was pressed into her face. Gently, but firm enough to prevent her to raise her head. The gemstone hit the dirt an instant later.

“Please signal your surrender,” requested Rarity.

“O-okay. Uh…I surrender?”

Rarity giggled. “Not what I had in mind, but it will work,” She helped her opponent to get back on her hooves, and graciously bowed to the crowd. Spike and Sweetie Belle cheered loudly, and then some ponies clapped their hooves after a second of hesitance.

“Oh come on!” shouted Rainbow Dash. “You cheated!”

“Now, now Rainbow Dash,” said Rarity, with a paused, steady voice that led Twilight to believe she had prepared the speech beforehand. “I have followed the usual rules and limitations allowed in the last draft of the official manual for military and sports magical dueling; Body contact is allowed, but no physical weapons or vorpal blades can be used.” Twilight looked down. Rarity still had her binding spell attached to her hoof, along with a very large chunk of dirt and grass. ‘So that is how she got loose’, though Twilight. “I am sorry if we didn’t perform as you expected,” Rarity looked around. The arcane mist was still floating in the air, and several blue and purple fires were still burning. “Though I don’t know what else you expected.”

“That was amazing!” squeaked Sweetie Belle, making a run for a tackle-hug, which Rarity happily accepted. “I told Spike you could do it!”

Spike came lagging behind. “I…uh…” The baby dragon hesitated. He glanced at Twilight, then at Rarity. “Good work. B-both of you,” he awkwardly muttered. Twilight let out a chuckle and levitated him into a forced hug. Spike only squirmed the first few seconds. “H-hey, stop!”

Twilight let go of Spike. “Let’s make sure we don’t cause a wildfire,” She trotted to one of the purple fires that was still burning, and stomped it with her hooves. Rarity mimicked her, taking care of the several blue blazes scattered across the area. Spike did the same, though he showed no preference on the color.

“How come you don’t get burnt?” asked Sweetie Belle, frowning. She wasn’t used to see her sister do anything close to manual labor.

“Same reason why you don’t get burn when you light up your horn,” explained Twilight. She pointed to a small lilac fire at her hooves. “This is my magic. It might look like fire, but it isn’t actual fire. It won’t burn me, but it can burn you or Rarity.” Twilight paused and tilted her head. “Well, not exactly. A lot of my own magic could hurt me, but this isn’t the case.”

“What do you mean, it’s not real fire?” said Sweetie. “I mean, look at it.”

“Hum….how could I explain it?” Twilight tapped her chin. “You know fire has to burn something, right?” The tiny unicorn nodded. “Well, a blaze doesn’t have to. It burns as long as it has magic. You could cast a blaze on a stone slab, and it would still burn.” Twilight stepped on the flame next to her, and it died out. “See? The grass isn’t burn.”

Sweetie Belle scooted closer. Indeed, the grass where the flame had just been was yellow and dead, but not charred as it should have been. “That is so cool!” squeaked the filly. “Will you teach me?”

Twilight giggled. “I am surprised Sunset never taught you, considering her affinity to fire. But I don’t see why n-” She interrupted herself when she saw Rarity shaking her head emphatically. “-uh…m-maybe someday.”

“Yay!” squeaked Sweetie Belle, breaking into a gallop in the general direction of the campsite. Spike called out an ‘hey wait!’ before following her. Both adult mares shared a laugh. They were alone.

“We should do this more often,” said Rarity, stepping on the last flame, which went out with a hiss. “I had forgotten how well it feels to push one’s limits.”

“We should,” agreed Twilight. An impish smile spread on her face. “By the way…you mentioned the official manual for magic dueling, but I don’t think pre-enchanted items are allowed.”

“Oh! Well, ahem…” Rarity averted Twilight’s eyes. “It can be done for instructional purposes. As the higher-ranked soldier of the two, I decided it would be appropriate.”

A crooked eyebrow added to the smile. “You’re not even a private, Rarity. You are a reservist.”

“Yes, but you don’t have any proper military training. So technically…I outrank you,” said Rarity smoothly. Twilight suspected she had prepared her reasoning beforehand.

“Actually, being the Princess’ apprentice does come attached with a military rank,” countered Twilight, grinning when Rarity lost her poise and slumped visibly as her argument was destroyed with a single sentence. “It’s something we inherited from old Pegasopolis; even mailponies count as military personnel.”

Rarity was speechless. Twilight giggled. “I am just joking, Rarity,” She began walking towards the campsite, and other mare followed her. “You were very clever. An anti-shield charm? You predicted perfectly what I would use!”

“Thank you, darling. It took a few tries to get a decent charm. I didn’t know what kind of shield you would pick, so I had to do something universal, while still strong enough to take down a shield of your caliber.”

“Speaking of charms. How was it? Rose Firestorm?” a smile creeped into Twilight’s lips.

Rarity let out a laugh. “Granted, it wasn’t my most inspired name. But I needed to give the impression it was some sort of offensive spell. Otherwise, it would make a poor decoy.”

“Was the gem actually enchanted?”

“No, it was not,” admitted Rarity with a smile. “I just put some magic on it, enough to make it feel enchanted, but no spellwork to speak of. To be honest, I was uncertain of what else I could make that would be helpful. In any case, I had fun today. Perhaps we could try this some other day?”

“I’d like that,” replied Twilight.

***

Sunset hesitated. Nightmare Moon had told her to be more open with her, but she was still an alicorn. An immortal being. The stuff of legends. Knocking on the door of her bedroom just to share some silly paranoia seemed inappropiate.

But what if it weren’t some silly paranoias? She was in Ponyville. Why did the small window on her room show some place entirely different? With what purpose could Nightmare Moon have enchanted it? As much as she tried, she couldn’t find any explanation that didn’t involve deception.

‘I’ve got to know’, though Sunset, raising her hoof and knocking on the door.

“Come in,” came the silky voice of the alicorn.

Sunset took a deep breath, steeled herself, and pushed the door open. The bedroom looked exactly the same as the last time she had seen it. Similarly, Nightmare Moon was lying on the bed, with her regalia sitting on a midnight blue cushion near the headboard. She was reading a book. “What do you want?” she asked, her eyes never leaving the written words. Sunset briefly wondered what she was reading.

“I need to ask you something,” Sunset replied, making her way once again through the maze that was the furniture of the bedroom. Nightmare Moon looked up. Her expression was unreadable. Much like Celestia, Sunset had quickly learned that it wasn’t always possible to know what was going though the mind of the alicorn. Sunset reached the bed, and chose to stand on the floor. She hadn’t been given permission to step on the bed; and she didn’t want to feel smaller than necessary. She and Nightmare looked into each other’s eyes for a second. “You enchanted the window on my bedroom. Why?”

There was a reaction on Nightmare Moon’s face. Slight surprise? Realization? ‘She must have realized that, as an alicorn, I can tell very easily what I was seeing was just an illusion,’ reasoned Sunset. ‘No regret or shame, or maybe she is just has a great poker face.’ She decided to press on. “We’ve always been in Ponyville, haven’t we? I saw it when I went for a flight.”

“You left the castle,” stated Nightmare. It wasn’t a question. “Why?”

“A few times, actually. I just wanted to test my wings in real life,” shrugged Sunset. “Don’t worry, I left a shield around the castle that would let me know if anypony tried to breach it, the Elements were well protected,” she assured. She shook her head. “In any case, you didn’t answer my question.”

The book slammed shut. ‘Advanced Arcane Theory for Dummies?’ read Sunset. “We were afraid you could get the wrong impression.”

“The wrong impression?” repeated Sunset, confused. She then remembered the other thing she wanted to ask about. “Oh, you mean from the fact that every single pony is gone? Yeah, I meant to ask. What’s up with that?”

“They fled,” replied the alicorn, frowning at the floor. “Our guess is that they heard of the changeling attack, and they moved to one of the larger cities, for safety.”

“Oh. Is it that bad?”

Nightmare Moon gave a sagely nod. “It is. Nopony is safe until each and every one of those vermin are dead. But they are good at hiding; they’ve been doing it for centuries. As we speak, we are combing the whole kingdom from the Sphere; trying to find where they are skulking.” The alicorn’s eyes narrowed. “And when we do, we will take care of them, personally.”

Sunset fell quiet for a moment. “Alright then. Is that it? That’s the whole reason you had an illusion on my window?” Nightmare Moon nodded. “Huh. I though…well…” She let out a nervous chuckle. “I thought maybe you were deceiving me…for some reason.”

Nightmare Moon gave her a kind smile. “You have all the right to be wary, Sunset. We understand it is easy to mistake why we kept you in the dark. Still, we are glad you asked us directly, instead of jumping into conclusions, and doing something you might regret.”

Sunset looked up at her mentor. “Yeah. Me too. I’ll…uh…I’ll be going back into my room. I am glad we talked.”

“Anytime, young one.”

Sunset made her way back to the door and opened it with her telekinesis. “Oh, Sunset?” came the smooth voice of the large alicorn. “In the future, I would be thankful if you didn’t leave the castle at all. We can induce you more dreams if you wish to fly, we can assure you they are as real as reality itself. You have been careful in your little excursions, and nothing has happened. But, should the Elements be misplaced…” the sentenced hanged in the air for a second, like a noose from a tree branch. “…well, we would be extremely displeased.”

Sunset cracked a tense smile. “Of course, Princess,” she said, before scurrying through the door and closing it in silence. The moment the lock clicked shut, she let out a sigh of relief. The tension she hadn’t realized to be carrying left her shoulders. She clumsily descended the stairs, her mind boiling and her limbs shaking. Nightmare Moon had casually thrown her a death threat, if she ever left the castle without her permission. She hadn’t stated it directly, but the delivery of the line and the tone…it left her no doubt.

Then there was also the fact that Nightmare Moon had lied to her. ‘Wrong impression?’ That was her explanation? It was reasonable, and Nightmare’s voice hadn’t betrayed her at any point. She seemed perfectly honest and sincere. However, the timing was strange. The illusion was in place long before Nightmare Moon had made any mention of changelings.

Sunset reached her room and jumped into the bed, burying the face in the pillow. “I need to get myself away of this place.”

Author's Note

Remember: Comments are fuel for a writer.

IX - The Tower

The fortress of your enemy

The night was cool in Manehattan. A gentle breeze blew through the buildings, causing the few ponies that wandered the streets to wish they had brought something to wear. Haruspex, mayor of the city, was sitting on the balcony of his apartment, along with Spearhead, the captain of the city Ground Guard.

Haruspex glanced at his guest. Spearhead had demanded to see him as soon as possible, but so far she hadn’t said anything out of the ordinary. Having run out of the usual banal banter, the two ponies had fallen quiet, sipping on their respective drinks.

The mayor brought the cup to his lips and frowned when he discovered he had run out of tea. “Curses. Excuse me for a second, I’ll make more tea.” He made an attempt to get up, but was held down by the white glow of Spearhead’s telekinesis.
“Please wait,” she said, still gazing into the distance. “We have matters to discuss.”

Haruspex crooked an eyebrow and dropped himself back into the chair. A full minute passed, and no other word came from the captain. “Well?” grumbled the mayor, crossing his forelegs in annoyance. “What is it, Spearhead?”

The mare turned her head to look at him and gave him a vacant look. “Spearhead?” cautiously muttered the Haruspex. “What is wrong?”

Something flew across the Moon. Both ponies looked up, missing the figure that hovered towards them by the side. Two hooves clad in blue metal made contact with the railing. “Y-your majesty!” yelped Haruspex as the large alicorn landed on the balcony. “W-w-we weren’t expecting a visit! I would have prepared a p-proper reception!” The stallion quickly bowed, his nose nearly touching the floor.

Behind him, Spearhead had also gotten on all four…but she was heading for the door, trying to go unnoticed by the monarch. A midnight blue glow locked the door. Spearhead grimaced and gave it a little, useless push. A shiver ran down her spine. When she looked back, she discovered the alicorn looming above her, piercing her very soul with those sharp blue eyes.

“T-that is Spearhead,” stammered Haruspex. “S-she is the captain of the Guard. I could have s-sworn you met her when-” Nightmare Moon threw her head forwards and closed her jaws around the neck of the mare. “Sweet Celestia!” He shouted, only realizing a second later of what he had just said. “Oh no please no!” He looked over the railing. The street was four floors below. No wings, no magic. Earth ponies were tougher than the other races. There was a chance. Haruspex planted his left hind hoof on the railing. He gave one last look back before jumping.

Nightmare Moon was standing behind him. She still carried the body in her teeth…but it wasn’t a pony anymore. Haruspex shuddered. The alicorn opened her jaws and the dead changeling fell in a haphazard mess. Haruspex looked at the corpse, then at the alicorn, then at the corpse again. “I-I don’t understand,” he stuttered.

“There is a hive of changelings beneath your city,” stated Nightmare Moon. She ran her tongue over her fangs. “We will kill the queen. Rally the guard. You will deal with the survivors.”

Haruspex gave a weak nod, more as an acknowledgement than an agreement. Satisfied, Nightmare Moon unfurled her wings and took off into the night.

The mayor stood in place for several minutes, trembling and with his eyes fixed in the body. Finally, he recovered enough to walk on his wobbly knees, and forced himself to go back inside, to follow the alicorn’s orders. He stopped short at the door, staring at the lock on the other side.

“She left the latch on…” he sighed.

***

Miasma?

What?

Lacera is dead.

Yes, Ambrosia. I am well aware.

I can’t believe she is gone. She was the oldest of us, Miasma. And just like that, she is gone.

…

Are you okay, Miasma?

…why wouldn’t I be okay?

Miasma, your mother is dead.

…

Miasma?

…

How can you be so calm, Miasma? Your mother just died and you don’t even mention it!

Will you stop with your pointless rattle, Ambrosia?! So what if Lacera is dead?! Good riddance! We are better off without her!

I know you didn’t get along with her, but…what if one of us had died?! Would you still be so cold? Would you be glad we’re gone, Miasma?

Ambrosia, if you don’t shut up, I swear next time I see you, I will slap you so hard I will liquefy that stupid goop you call mane!

Enough!

…

…

You are so annoying. Both of you. I wish I didn’t need your help for this, just so I didn’thave to deal with your stupid bickering. Lacera’s death was unfortunate, but her loss is rather minor. We hold the largest hives. The plan can continue undisturbed. Understood?

Yes…

Yes!

Good. Again, I must emphasize that any deviation will be personally punished. I have been waiting for this for decades, and I won’t have any of you ruin it! No excuses. No second chances. I don’t think I am being unreasonable. I have assigned each of you very doable tasks. Agreed?

Uh-hu!

…

Miasma?

Yeah, yeah. All is fine and dandy.

…I will contact you tomorrow. Keep me updated on anything relevant.

Queen Chrysalis blinked. Coming back from a telepathic conference was always a strange sensation. It felt like disconnecting from a small hive mind with souls similar to her own; to connect to a much larger hive, but far weaker individually. The mighty queen played momentarily with the idea of mentally subduing the other queens, much like the drones were chained to her will, but quickly discarded it. If it were that easy, the changeling race would have united long, long ago.

While she got used to the familiar sensation of the thousand of drones relaying information back and forth, Chrysalis took the chance to stretch her limbs. She hadn’t moved as much as she would have wanted in the last few days. The sewers were a great hiding spot, but there was little to do in them apart from remotely shepherding her drones.

Chrysalis studied her surroundings. She had made her personal chamber at the largest available room in the convoluted maze that was the Manehattan sewers. She had made her drones cover the walls with thick goop, isolating it as much as possible from the disgusting smells that permeated every tunnel. In that last regard, they had been mildly successful, at best. At least she wasn’t anymore ankle-deep in literal liquid excrements.

The changeling queen furrowed her brow. Her mind felt less cluttered than usual. She didn’t remember spawning any lieutenant changeling recently. Suspicious, she dove into the hive mind.

She was welcome by a whirlwind of sensations and emotions. The smell of burned chitin, the heat of blue flames, the crunching of bones and the pain that came with them. Dread. The swarm was being trampled by something so mighty than their efforts to fight back were futile. Hissing between her fangs, the queen organized the defense. She hadn’t expected her to find them so quickly.

Several minutes later, the wall that covered one of the piles that led into her chamber exploded. Nightmare Moon charged inside in a cloud of dust, blue fire and charred organic remains. She slammed her hooves in the place where Chrysalis had been standing, shattering the tiling. The alicorn gave the changing a vitriolic leer. Midnight blue fire poured from her eyes, and her body was covered in scrapes and bite marks. Chrysalis smirked. There was a quiet pause.

Then the ground below Nightmare Moon exploded. Chrysalis threw her head back and cackled. But she wasn’t stupid enough to think that had been enough. She light up her horn and prepared for the confrontation.

***

“Sunset Shimmer!”

Ten seconds passed. Nothing happened. Twilight pouted, inhaled and tried to scream a bit louder. Ponyville was empty, but there was no echo. The branches of the towering black tree swayed back and forth under the gentle breeze. Nightmare Moon had abandoned her palace half an hour ago. Sunset was nowhere to be seen.

Far away, at the edge of the Everfree Forest, six ponies stood in a close group, with a seventh one sitting a bit further away. A second Twilight Sparkle glanced back at Trixie and shuffled nervously on her hooves. “Okay…I should get going. How is the spell?” she asked her.

“It’s perfect,” replied the blue unicorn in a monotonous voice. Trixie had taken off her cloak and was sitting on the center of an arcane circle, slowly rocking her head as she fed magic into her spell. “Don’t worry; your mother is completely indistinguishable from you."

“Right, right,” Twilight flexed her legs. “Let’s do this!” She broke into a fast trot, only to stop and look back to her friends. “The five of you should go back to the campsite.”

“What?!” shouted Rainbow Dash. “You’ve got to be kidding! We’ve got first row seats here! No way we’re going to miss this!”

Twilight gave her an annoyed look. “What Dash means,” interfered Applejack, draping a foreleg over Rainbow’s back. “Is that we’ll stay until we know you made it there alrigh’. Then we will leave. Right, Rainbow?” She gave the pegasus a squeeze.
Dash flickered her ears. “Hgn. Fine, fine!” she reluctantly grumbled, pouting.

“Can…can I go now?” whispered Fluttershy. “I don’t really want to watch.”

“Yeah, me neither,” muttered Pinkie Pie. “Let’s go.”

Twilight watched Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy go. “Right. You two,” she pointed to Dash and Applejack. “I want you gone as soon as possible. Same goes for you, Trixie.” There was a grunt of acknowledgement from the unicorn. Satisfied, Twilight took a deep breath and headed to Ponyville in a light trot. Just as she reached the edge of the village, she saw an equine figure on the balcony. Gritting her teeth, she hurried behind a house. She had to remain obscured from then on.

***

A faint creak and the sound of hoofsteps announced the presence of a pony on the balcony. Twilight Velvet took a deep breath and flicked her tail. Her deception had to be perfect. She squared her shoulders, raised her horn and generally tried to look as imposing and determined as possible. Perhaps too much, she though, frowning. Shining Armor would be the one doing that. Twilight would probably just be miffed. Velvet tried to look less proud and more miffed.

On the edge of the balcony, a figure peeked. It was an irritated and tired Sunset Shimmer. She saw Twilight glaring at her and did a double take. “Twilight? Is that you?”

Velvet’s stare intensified. “Yes, it’s me.”

Sunset perked up visibly. “Twilight! I am so glad to see you!” She planted her hind hooves on the railing and threw herself in the air, spreading her yellow wings just enough to transform the fall into a smooth glide. Her hooves contacted the ground just in front of Twilight. Sunset’s smile was bright for a fraction of a second, then turned awkward and faltered entirely. She looked down at Twilight, aware of the great height difference since the last time they had met. “So…uh…hey.”

“Hey?” Velvet deadpanned. “That’s all you’ve got to say?”

Sunset avoided her eyes. “Look, I…you might the wrong idea, but truth be told I am…I don’t-”

“Don’t try to justify yourself!” snapped Velvet. Sunset took a step back, shock plain on her face. “You are a traitor! You turned your back to the rightful monarch of this kingdom and joined forces with…with…with that!” She pointed her hoof to the tower. The alicorn looked back at the tower and missed Velvet’s flinch. She could have compromised the whole plan with that single mistake. When Sunset looked back at her, her temper had burn out. Sunset, however, was notably more upset.

“Is this what you came for, Twilight?” she grumbled. “This is so unlike you. So what if I turned my back to Celestia? She did the same to me. She never told you that, did she?”

Velvet hesitated for a brief instant. Perhaps, her daughter would have investigated; but she didn’t know Sunset well enough. Instead, she drew upon to her original plan. “Sunset Shimmer, I can’t let this affront against Celestia go unpunished,” she said with the most presumptuous voice she could muster. She knew Twilight wasn’t like that, but she was aiming to get Sunset furious. “I challenge you to a magic duel.”

Sunset’s eyes went wide. “What?”

“You heard me, Sunset,” snapped Velvet. “I will make you regret your treason!”

There was a tense silence that stretched for several seconds. And then, Sunset began to laugh.

“Really, Twilight?” she managed to say. “I don’t think you realize,” she spread both wings and alternately pointed to each with a hoof. “See these? You’re not dealing with the average unicorn anymore. I am an alicorn! I’ve risen beyond the limits of a normal unicorn, and into the realm of legends!”

Twilight Velvet began to back away.

“You have no idea what it feels like!” continued Sunset. She wasn’t looking at Velvet anymore. “It’s electrifying! There is just so much power I can put behind everything I do! I feel like I could reach the celestial sphere with a single leap! It’s like Nightmare Moon took away the chains that had been burdening me my whole life!”

Twilight Velvet tilted her head forwards.

“And it’s not just my body!” Sunset began pacing back and forth. “I have looked at some of the books she keeps in her palace! They speak of things I wouldn’t have dreamed! I can’t understand half of what they say, and I was Celestia’s pupil! How much has Celestia kept hidden from me? Nightmare Moon doesn’t limit my curiosity, she feeds it, allows me to learn. How…” Sunset blinked, as if remembering something. She turned her head and saw the petite figure of Twilight almost hidden behind the rolling ball of white-hot flame that hovered right above her horn. “…oh.”

Velvet let go of her magic. The blaze hit Sunset square-on and exploded into a whirl of smoke that sprouted into a mushroom shape high above the roofs of the houses. The unicorn grinned while she squinted at the dust lifted. Not bad.
Something shot up from the cloud. Of course, Velvet wasn’t expecting Sunset to be defeated so easily. But at least, she had expected her attack to injure her. Or anger her, at the bare minimum. But, when Sunset spread her wings and started circling above her, she was smiling joyfully.

***

“Whoah! Did you see that!”

Rainbow Dash turned and saw neither Applejack nor Rarity shared her excitement. Both had their eyes wide open and the jaws hanging. “Twi’s mom is there…” whimpered the earth pony.

“I-I think that was her spell, darling,” muttered Rarity. “Yes, look! The duel has just begun!” Next to her, Applejack let out a sigh of relief. Sunset batted her wings, dodging a white beam that pierced the night and answering with a wave of flames that set alight some the roof of a house. Rarity bit her lip. “I am starting to have second thoughts about Velvet’s plan. She might have underestimated Sunset’s-” The violent hum of another white-hot spell drowned her words. Rarity grimaced. “All this magic being tossed about is going to give me a headache. If you’d excuse me, I will return to the camp.”

“Yeah, Ah’m with you, Rares,” drawled Applejack, getting on her hooves.

“You guys aren’t fun! When are we ever gonna get the chance to-” There was a white flash. Rainbow turned her head in time to see Sunset being engulfed by hallowed flames. “Ack! You can do whatever you want! I am gonna get a better view!” The pegasus dashed off, ignoring the voices of the other two ponies. She ascended to the top of the castle, using the discolored leaves as cover.

Rainbow Dash was having a blast. The duel was on its apogee. The alicorn and the unicorn danced in circles, casting shimmering teal magic the first, and divine fire the other. The cobblestone of the street was scorched, molten and outright exploded in several places. There was so much magic in the air that Rainbow felt a tingle on her wings.

It was out of sheer luck that Rainbow Dash decided to tear her eyes away from the fight and look downwards. If she hadn’t, she would have missed Twilight Sparkle pacing back and forth next to the base of the tree. ‘Wasn’t she supposed to be inside already?’ she though. Fighting her urge to continue spectating, she spread her wings and descended.

“Hey Twilight, what’s up?”

Twilight stopped on her tracks and whipped around. “What’s up?!” she hissed. Dash instinctively recoiled. Her mane was notably more frazzled than just a few minutes ago and her expression was a mixture of desperation and madness. “There’s a field!”

“…uh…wha-”

“A teleportation barrier!” Twilight paused, expectantly. Rainbow held her gaze for a few seconds, trying to understand what the unicorn was trying to say. “It’s teleportation-proooooof!” Her voice degenerated into a whimper as she pulled her mane.

The confused pegasus watched Twilight curl into a ball, rocking back and forth and running her hoof over her tail. Her lips moved but no sound came out. Rainbow’s confusion was caused less by the unicorn’s reaction than by how simple the solution was.

“What if I…fly you there?” she dared to suggest.

The rocking stopped immediately. Very slowly, Twilight turned her head and locked her tear-stained eyes into Rainbow’s. “W-what?”

“Yeah. I can just slid my hooves under your forelegs, take off, and drop you there,” She shrugged her wings. “No biggie.”

The unicorn uncurled herself and let out a little hiccup. “I…uh…well…” Twilight got on her hooves. “I might have overreacted.”

“A little, yeah.”

The flight to the balcony was short but frantic. Twilight had flown before, riding a sky chariot; but the void under her hooves while being hoisted upwards by Rainbow Dash was completely different. She kept a cushioning spell prepared until her hooves brushed the tiles of the balcony. “A-alright,” she stammered, glad to feel something solid under all four hooves. “You go back to the camp; I’ll find the Elements,” Rainbow Dash bit her lip and looked back at the raging duel. “No!” hissed the unicorn, guessing the train of thought of the pegasus. “If Sunset sees you, the whole plan will fall apart.” Rainbow opened her mouth to argue, but raised her hooves in defeat when she met Twilight’s icy glare. The unicorn only delayed enough to see Rainbow Dash bolting off towards the forest.

It was warmer inside the tree. The living quarters were illuminated by a bluish light that seemed to emanate from everywhere. Unsurprisingly, the air was shimmering with magic. More surprisingly was the ludicrous degree of furnishing. Most of the space was occupied by tables, night stands, chairs and shelves; with only a few slender paths allowing movement. Hundreds of books littered the place. Twilight crooked an eyebrow. Did Nightmare Moon like hoarding furniture? Or perhaps they were some sort of trophies?

The unicorn walked up to the closest cabinet and opened it. Unsurprisingly, it was empty. Twilight weighted her options. Manually checking every single spot would take hours. And the place was so coated in residual magic that detecting the aura of the Elements by normal means would take far too long. The best solution was…tracking their arcane scent. Twilight took a look around, just in case; before lowering her nuzzle to the floor and taking a deep sniff.

***

Twilight Velvet was running out of energy. Mana was not an issue; yet. And while she was fairly fit for a mare of her age, she was still a pony well into her forties. Dodging a continuous stream of spells for a few minutes had left her gasping for breath and sweating profusely.

“You know, I am a bit divided,” said Sunset. Velvet glared at the alicorn. She had landed and was looking at her with her head tilted. She didn’t seem tired. In fact, she looked fresh. Velvet blew a bang off her face. “On one hoof, you’re casting starfire! That’s amazing!”

Velvet allowed herself a grin. Starfire, the same magic that made up the very Moon and Stars up in the firmament. Hers was a talent that gave her control over what would usually be only within an alicorn’s reach. Granted, being able to summon literal stars didn’t have many uses in her daily life; but the simple fact of knowing she could was thrilling.
“On the other hoof, you’re fighting like an old lady.”

Velvet deflated like a balloon and slumped. “I am glad you are getting that impression,” she deadpanned.

Sunset smiled sheepishly. “Too direct? Sorry, it just feels like there is less ‘oomph’ behind your spells today.” The mare glanced back at her wings as flapped them once. “Or maybe it is just that I am now and al…i…oh.” Sunset fell dead quiet. Her eyes darted left and right across the cobblestone.

“…uh…Sunset?”

Sunset let out something between a nervous laugh and a choked gasp. “Oh Celestia, she is not going to be happy!” She locked her wide-open eyes on Velvet’s. “Twilight, you’ve got to help me!”

“I-”

“Please!” Sunset run up to Velvet and took her hoof on hers. “You’re got to get me out of here! You have to hide me!”

“But-”

“Not in Canterlot! Too obvious!”

Velvet opened and closed her mouth several times, at lost for words. She turned her head and Sunset followed her eyes. Far in the distance, the Mount Canterlot sat in the horizon like a tear on the tapestry of the night. “What?” asked Sunset, squinting at the mountain.

“You mean you don’t know?” said Velvet. “Canterlot is gone.”

A beat. Sunset let go of her hoof. “What do you mean, gone?”

“Gone,” repeated the unicorn.

“Yes, I heard you the first time. What do you mean with ‘gone’ ?”

“Literally that!” shouted Velvet “Your beloved new alicorn tore it off the mountain!”

Sunset looked at the peak again. The marble buildings of Canterlot were nowhere to be seen. She had noticed it before, of course. Some part of her mind screamed there was something wrong about that; but the other part, more sensible, argued that Ponyville was facing the opposite side of the mountain. A pit opened on the bottom of her stomach. Twilight was telling the truth. She recalled her flight to Ponyville in the sky chariot, she had been able to see the village since they took off from the royal palace. There was a direct line of sight from Ponyville to Canterlot. She should be able to see the capital.

Velvet looked at the young alicorn with a mixture of pity and disapproval. She was having a hard time understanding what was going through Sunset’s head. Just a few minutes ago, she was having a… friendly spar against her. Now, something seemed to have broken inside her. The older mare let out a heavy sigh and rested her hoof on Sunset’s shoulder. Her head turned to her violently. She had tears on her eyes. Velvet’s anger dissipated like a flame underwater. “Let’s go,” she whispered.

And then, a loud wave of arcane energy washed past them.

***

Twilight glanced over the railing. A good fifty meters of fall looked back at her. Her first instinct was, of course, to teleport directly to the ground; but the solid, dull magic of the teleportation shield prevented it. Perhaps she could force her way through it, but that would give up her position to Sunset instantly.

Speaking of which, where was she?

Twilight cautiously walked across the perimeter of the balcony. Both Sunset and her mother were nowhere to be seen. The night was quiet and still, and even the residual magic was beginning to fade. From her position, the unicorn could see the collateral devastation brought by the two combatants. The chimney of a house collapsed when the fire weakened the wooden frame that held it. Twilight rolled her eyes. ‘Show-offs.’

The unicorn placed her hind hooves on the railing. A flare? The forest was nearby. Rainbow Dash could see it and fly her down. But it would be slower than forcing a teleportation, and just as noticeable.

‘The shield doesn’t extend all the way down the tree,’ thought Twilight. It was a stupid idea. But it was probably her only way down. ‘I estimate I have about 50 meters to the ground.’ She trotted to the center of the balcony, faced the railing and kicked the tiles. ‘Let’s see…given a uniform acceleration, the elapsed time from S0 to SN is…uh…oh, screw it! Chaaaaaaarge!’

Very few ponies learn how to teleport, so it is not surprising that the subtler mechanics are unknown to the grand majority of equinity. For instance, many ponies don’t know that modern teleportation spells keep the momentum of the user. Even less ponies know that it is entirely possible to change your angling, simply because most ponies like to have their hooves on the ground when they re-appear.

Twilight teleported as soon as the pressure of the field disappeared. Her entrails swayed violently at the sudden 90-degree change of gravity. For a brief, blissful instant, the unicorn experimented an innocent displacement in the direction she was moving. Then, her back legs touched ground. Twilight rolled over the cobblestone for several meters, crashed into a building and collapsed in a heap.

The unicorn waited for the world around her to stop spinning and her stomach to settle. Her posture was far from comfortable, but it was hard to tell apart which discomfort was caused by it, and which by the tumbling on the stones. When the urge to throw up faded, Twilight dared to cautiously untangle her limbs. She sat up, grimacing at the dozen of minor scrapes all over her body. “Right. That wasn’t so bad,” she muttered.

Twilight repressed a scream of pain when she tried to get on her hooves. She tried again, keeping the weight off her left hind leg. A small contraction of the calf confirmed she had hurt her ankle. And now that the adrenaline was beginning to fade, gritting her teeth and endure it was all she could do. She hobbled into a small alley to catch her breath and consider her next movement. A yellow and red blur flew into the castle, leaving behind a golden trail. An instant later, a horrid shriek escaped the open doors of the balcony that caused Twilight’s hair to stand on end.

“Twilight?”

The unicorn yelped and turned around. A perfect clone of herself stood on the shadows of the alley. It took her a moment to recall the situation and find a good explanation for this. “…oh right. Hi mom.” More noises came from the tree. It was as if somepony was tearing apart some wooden furniture and then banging the remains against more furniture. “Uuuuh…what happened?”

“I think she just discovered the Elements are gone,” replied Velvet, wincing at a particularly loud crash. She spoke in whispers, though the racket made it unnecessary. “You have them, yes?” Twilight wiggled her barrel and the shards rattled lightly inside her saddlebags. “Good. Now, get out of here, I’ll see you back in the Woods.”

“I love you Mom,” uttered Twilight as she embraced her mother. “Stay safe.”

The hug lingered for just a moment, as both ponies were aware of the urgent for the situation. Velvet watched her daughter hobble up the street with her leg hanging. When she turned a corner and disappeared from her field of view, Velvet turned her attention back to the tower. The racket had stopped, but Velvet decided to be cautious and retracted into the shadows.
A minute passed. It was impossible to be certain, but Velvet could have sworn to hear a mantra of uttered words coming from the still-open doors of the balcony; but they were ushered by the sound of the breeze. She could have very well imagined it.

And then, suddenly, another scream. An explosion, a surge of flames sprouted through the doors. Sunset came out of the fire, leaving behind a burning trail. She ascended in a corkscrew, unfurled her wings and hovered above Ponyville.
“TWILIGHT!”

Velvet cautiously retracted back into the alley. Sunset circled the castle, watching the streets below while a halo of flames burned around her. Even from that distance, Velvet noticed her flaps were violent and uncoordinated, closer to swatting flies than actual flight; and her face was twisted into an expression of pure fury. Suddenly, she light up her horn and poured her magic into a nearby building, which collapsed almost instantly. She hovered above the carousel-shaped spire, inspecting the wreckage, before flying up once again.

“TWILIGHT!”

“She has devolved into saying a single word,” muttered Velvet, watching Sunset set fire to another house. It didn’t take a genius to guess who Sunset was after, or what she would do when she found her. Her options were limited, and so was her time. With her limp, Twilight couldn’t have gotten very far. There was only one way she could escape before Sunset found her…a decoy.

Velvet took a deep breath, held it…and released it. She was fully aware she was about to do something very stupid. The mare smirked. She couldn’t help to feel strangely excited. She hadn’t had a chance to use her talent at its fullest in years. And who knew, perhaps she could beat Sunset if she really strived for it.

***

“Do you have to do that right now?”

The mare blinked and looked at the stallion sitting at her left. “What?”

He nodded to the cigarette floating on her telekinetic grasp. “You shouldn’t be smoking when you’re on duty.”

The mare smirked. “You call this being on duty?” she said, though she did douse the cigarette on a nearby pool of water. “The Major rang the alarm and summoned everypony here…and…” she made a broad gesture, encompassing the hundreds of bored guards gathered at the main square of Manehattan. They were all donning their armor, while their spears rested on their shoulders. The captain was nowhere to be seen. Very few ponies were even pretending to be on guard anymore, most were chatting idly, resting, or even playing cards. “well, this doesn’t look like an emergency to me, does it?”

The stallion grunted an agreement. He wasn’t in the situation to question the summon; but he could definitely question why they weren’t getting any orders.

“And where’s Spearhead, anyways?” continued the mare, extracting a beaten package of cigarettes from underneath her armor. The stallion gave her a glare, which she ignored entirely. “It’s not like she’s our Captain or anything. I mean, she kinda falls under the Mayor’s command, but he is a civilian and we are the military. He has no right to summon us, unless…unless…” She looked up. The stallion was staring down to the floor, with a grim expression on his face. He had reached the same conclusion.

“Oh, ponyfeathers!” She grabbed him by the shoulders. “Do you think they got her!?”

The stallion furrowed his brow. “How should I know?” he muttered. “I am as lost as you are; but freaking out is not going to help. Just stay put and await orders.”

The mare let go of him and sat down. The arrival of Nightmare Moon, disappearance of Celestia, destruction of Canterlot, and inability for the government to take care of the chaos had meant that the Ministry of the Army had activated the martial law. The army had been mobilized and the reservists called to arms. The existence of the changelings was now a widespread fact across all soldiers, not just officials; and magically-skilled unicorns had been taught detection spells by high-ranged militant magi. Equestria was prepared for a military conflict.

Unfortunately, the very nature of the changelings meant that all this effort had largely gone to waste. There was no army to fight. Only a large number of infiltrators to seek and destroy. They only thing the soldiers could do was to stay alert for anything that might seem unusual or suspicious.

‘…such as a congregation of literally every Guard in a major city, in an exposed area.’ though the guardspony. She raised her head as the realization sank in. Every single Ground Guard had been called to the place. The narrow streets and tall buildings made escaping difficult, even through the air. It was a perfect place for a mass ambush. She turned to speak with her companion, but stopped short when she saw him staring intensely to the floor. “What’s wrong?”

He furrowed his brow. “The ground is shaking,” he muttered. “Do you think it’s just an earthquake, or-”

The ground convulsed violently. The fountain in the middle of the place exploded. Midnight blue fire rose from the crater. Cobblestone, broken marble and magic flames rained down at the terrified guards. Two equine figures shot up into the sky, hovering high above the buildings. They circled each other, exchanging blows, bites and magic. Finally, one managed to hit the other, splitting her in two with a blinding flash. The top half stayed aloft just for a second longer than the bottom.

The ponies on the ground scrambled out of the way. The mare stepped on her tail, tripped and had the body fall just a meter away from her. A gasp got caught on her throat when she saw the changeling queen was still alive. The monster bared her fangs and hissed. She crawled towards her with her two remaining legs, paying no mind to the mortal wound, just a murderous intent on her sickly green eyes. The mare shrieked and kicked her legs, but the queen ignored her thrashing and climbed on her chest, pinning her down with her weight. The pony covered her face with her hooves as the queen loomed over her. The nauseating smell of her breath filled her nostrils. She winced when droplets of drool fell on her face.

When the strike didn’t come, she dared to open her eyes. The gaping maw of the changeling hovered right above her eyes. There was a dark blue stake protruding from the roof of her mouth, with the tip stuck on the cobblestone next to her ear. It hummed gently. She felt somepony grabbing her hoof and pulling her from under the body of the changeling.

Trembling like a leaf, the mare took a look at the changeling queen. The lance of magic had gone cleanly through her head, killing her instantly. Her face was still contorted in the same expression of anger.

The sound of hoofsteps made her turn around. A light blue chestpiece decorated with a silver crescent was at her eyes’ height. Gulping noisily, she craned her neck and saw the piercing turquoise eyes of Nightmare Moon, focused on hers. She smiled sheepishly and stood very still, hoping the alicorn would ignore her.

“Mount her head on a pike,” ordered Nightmare, carefully pronouncing each word. “Let it be a warning for any changeling that may still be alive. So we have said, so it shall be done.” She stepped forwards, forcing the pony to jump out of the way. For a few seconds, she studied the dead body of the queen, before lighting up her horn. The lance faded out of existence and the corpse fell with a splattering sound that made a few ponies gag. Without speaking a single more word, she spread her wings and took flight.

A few minutes later, the emergency services arrived.

***

Breathing heavily, Twilight finally reached the edge of the village. She had never been a fit pony, and trying to run on only three legs was far more tiresome than she would have expected. She headed for a large shed on the outskirts of Ponyville, a warehouse owned by the town hall. Inside, just as planned, was Big Macintosh rigged to a cart. The huge stallion looked up from the oatmeal he was eating and shoot Twilight and inquisitive look.

The unicorn wiggled her hips. “I have them,” she confirmed. She folded her ears back when a particularly large explosion shook the ground. Big Macintosh raised an eyebrow. “Sunset is looking for me. Let’s get out of here before she does.” She hopped on the back of the cart. It contained a complete camping kit, plus some rations and water; intended to be used in case they had to rest before reaching their objective. Applejack had insisted her big brother could make it there in a single go, and then some; but Twilight preferred to be safe. It also provided cover for a more important item.

It was a small tin that seemed perfectly mundane. Twilight and Trixie had spent a whole evening weaving layer after layer of concealing charms, until it was completely opaque to magic. The unicorn carefully levitated the shards of the Elements into the can, shut the lid, and hid it from view under a sleeping bag. She then jumped into the seat and nodded to Big Macintosh.

As they ascended a hill, Twilight looked back at the town. Sunset was still flying in circles above it, bombarding the houses with fire while she screamed her name. She bit her lip, aware of the destruction she was indirectly causing to the homes of so many ponies. Then they began descending the hill, and Ponyville disappeared from her sight. Soon, the dense silence, the sway of the cart, and her own exhaustion caused her to fall asleep.

The unicorn jolted awake when the cart stopped. She stretched her limbs one by one, and was quickly reminded of her injury when she tried to stretch her hindlegs. They were in an entirely different town. While the buildings didn’t have the strange shapes that some of those in Ponyville had, it was more than compensated by the seven-hued flags that hung on the front or the roof of almost every house. A colorful streak flowed under a bridge. They had reached the Rainbow Falls.

After retrieving the shards of the Elements, Twilight dismounted and let Big Macintosh retire to a nearby inn; Then headed down the street, making sure to walk only on three legs. She didn’t know how long she had been asleep. She hadn’t taken note of how high was the Moon on the sky when they had departed, and the watch wasn’t useful either, for the exact same reason. She could only hope her mother had made it out of Ponyville safely.

Down the path, past the last houses of the village, was a large lake of liquified rainbow. Next to it, pacing back and forth, was a familiar three-legged figure. Twilight increased her pace to a trot. Celestia looked up at the sound of her hooves, her concerned expression instantly changed to one of joy. She broke into a gallop and tackle-hugged Twilight, who barely stayed upright. “Oh, Twilight! I am so glad you are okay!”

The unicorn went stiff, unused to such outbursts of emotion from the Princess. “Y-yes, everything went just as planned,” She remembered why she had injured her leg in the first place and chuckled. “Well, almost.”

“I was so worried!” Celestia looked her in the eyes. “Velvet was supposed to send me a letter confirming the success; but I haven’t heard from her since!”

Twilight went stiff. A frigid chill descended down her spine. Very slowly, she lowered her limbs and stared blankly at the Princess. She averted her gaze. “W-we shouldn’t jump into conclusions, Twilight. She might have simply forgotten.” She whispered, though the unicorn could tell she herself didn’t believe her words.

“Let’s just get this over with,” muttered Twilight. She levitated the saddlebags off her back and hoofed them to Celestia, a bit rougher than she had intended. The Princess watched the blank expression of her student for a few more seconds, before turning her attention to the saddlebags. Inside, glittering like stars in the night sky were the shards of the Elements. She let out a heavy sigh and motioned Twilight to follow her, which she did without comment.

“I purposefully chose this place,” muttered Celestia as the two ponies walked around the edge of the lake. “The ritual I intended to perform is very magically loud. I counted on the rainbow falls to muffle the noise, but unfortunately, due to the current crisis, it seems Cloudsdale-”

“Princess?”

“Yes?” Celestia stopped on her tracks and turned to her student.

“I don’t care.” said Twilight with a dulled voice. Celestia remained quiet. “J-just cut the c-chaste and do whatever w-we have come here to do.”

Celestia let out a ragged breath. “Right.”

When they reached the opposite edge of the rainbow lake, Twilight saw what preparations Celestia had a made. A hexagram with one circle on each point, plus a smaller one within the central hexagon. Connected to it by a serpentine line was an additional circle. It was drawn on the ground using white sand, possibly ground quartz. Next to it was a decorated wooden chest. The Princess stepped on the external circle and tilted her head to the other one. Obedient, Twilight sat inside the hexagram while her mentor did the preparations.

Out of habit, Twilight narrowed her eyes and shifted into arcane vision. The magic fabric that was the spellwork appeared around her like a dim ghost. It wasn’t Celestia’s doing. This magic was an unpleasant purple color with hints of pink. In another situation, Twilight would have asked Celestia about this.

The spellwork itself was incredibly simple. It siphoned magic from the six smaller circles around the hexagram, but didn’t alter the energy in any way, it merely caused it to flow to the center, where she was. Celestia was telekinetically placing the shards of the Elements on each circle, separating them by color. Purple and orange behind her. Red and blue to her left and right, respectively. Two distinctive hues of pink ahead. Twilight was beginning to wonder if Celestia was going to weave more to the spell live, when she noticed the small object floating in front of her nose.

“Take it,” spoke Celestia. “You’ll need it.”

Twilight took the object in her telekinesis. It was a small cylinder of tightly-woven linen. A bit. She put it on her mouth without considering the implications. She didn’t care.

The Princess watched Twilight for a few moments, hoping to see some emotion, some reaction other than the dull detachment she had sunk into. “Right,” she whispered, turning her attention to the crystal shards while she stepped into the last empty circle. “Let us begin.” She lighted up her horn, bathing the surroundings in the familiar yellow glow. She first lifted a small dome above them, a privacy spell that she reinforced a few times to make it as impermeable as possible.

Next she began siphoning power from the Elements. There was no fancy spellwork. She simply pulled, and the shards produced a steady and luminescent flow of magic. They coiled and twirled around Twilight, coalescing into a mass of raw magic in front of her. A miniature galaxy, speckled with colorful stars, which slowly spun and pulsated. The young mare stared it, mesmerized by the shifting lights. Because of this, she missed Celestia’s grimace.

A single string of magic reached from the miniature galaxy and flowed into Twilight’s sternum. It blended with her aura, causing it to ripple like a stone thrown in a lake. A warm sensation began to spread across her chest, steadily increasing in intensity. She let it happen, accepting the strange but familiar energy. It felt nice, as if the magic was warming her from inside, fighting the slight chill of the night and healing her aches and exhaustion. When the wave reached her hindlegs, she attempted to move her ankle, with no resulting pain. She smiled in awe at the amazing power of the Elements.

It was then when the heat in her chest started to be uncomfortable. Her smile dipped a bit, but Twilight trusted her mentor. She looked at her for support and saw Celestia’s pained expression. “P-princess?” she muttered through the bit. “What is ha-urk!” It changed in an instant. The heat turned painful, going up and down her spine. It seared the base of her horn. Her vision went blurry. She fell on her knees, and then flat on her belly as her very joins screamed in pain. The essence of the Elements streamed through her body like a furious torrent. Every inch of her body burned and convulsed from inside as the energy forced her to change. Bone, muscle and ligaments stretched. Her horn elongated and spiraled tighter. Raw magic poured from her eyes while lighting arcs sparkled around the tip of her horn. She arched her back upwards and tried to scream through the bit when the muscles on her shoulders were split open and something sprout from them violently, reaching out and falling limp.

And then it was over. The galaxy was exhausted and the spell dissipated. The pain receded just as quick as it had begun, leaving behind only an unwelcome warmth. Panting for air, and with her mind still buzzing from the previous moment, Twilight lost her balance and fell into Celestia’s open arms. She needed the comforting touch of her mentor, of her family. Her mother. All the suffering she had endured recently came out. She broke down crying, unaware of the comforting words of Celestia. She wrapped her legs around the Princess and let her cradle like a helpless child, until she fell unconscious a few minutes later.

***

Twilight Velvet quickly concluded no amount of wit was going to let her take down Sunset. The flames of the young alicorn simply consumed her own attacks and burnt through her carefully woven shields like gold held in front of a blowtorch. In this situation, she did what she perhaps should have done before: She turned tail and fled, purposefully choosing the opposite direction in which Twilight was meant to go.

Velvet zig-zagged through the buildings of Ponyville, taking cover from the blazes Sunset constantly casted on her and occasionally countering with attacks of her own starfire. A good portion of the town was set ablaze, but the mare was more concerned with her own safety.

When she reached the outskirts of the village, trouble started. She was already panting for breath, and she no longer had the cover provided by the houses. A large extension of open terrain was all there was between her and the safety of the Everfree Forest, where it would be plenty of hiding spots. She didn’t have time to weigh her options. Sunset screamed her daughter’s name yet again and cast a massive ball of flame. Velvet light up her horn and shot a fireball of her own, just large enough to deflect the attack. She then took a deep breath and broke into a full gallop.

“TWILIGHT! THE ELEMENTS!”

Velvet ignored the alicorn. She focused on her legs, to cover the maximum possible distance. Her joints protested, she hadn’t run this much since…ever, possibly. But fear drove her forwards. She jumped over the uneven ground, dodging the stones and holes that threatened to trip her. Her hooves hammered the dirt and mud while her chest plowed through the tall grass. The edge of the Everfree inched closer.

Her horn tingled. She turned her head and saw Sunset priming an attack. She raised a shield, but felt the blood run off her face when the alicorn just kept gathering more and more magic. She was a sitting duck. When Sunset fired, she brought out her last ace.

It had been years since the last time she had attempted to teleport. It was nowhere as polished and precise as Twilight Sparkle’s, but it was functional. It displaced her a good hundred meters forwards, far more than enough to get away from Sunset’s attack. Velvet fell flat on her face when she re-appeared, but she forced herself on her hooves. Her teleportation was incredibly magically noisy, so Sunset knew straight away where she had teleported. Indeed, just a second later she had to jump off the way of another blaze and rolled on her back. She noticed with horror her singed tail. Too close. She teleported. Sunset had taken noticed of where she was heading. Her attacks turned less powerful but more constant, gunning down the unicorn and forcing her to teleport every few strides. Velvet no longer could make precise choices on where to appear. Every time, a chunk of her dwindling stamina was lost. Her knees buckled under her. Pulling strength from weakness, she cast her spell once more. Her horn went numb, her vision blurred. Once more. Her body refused to sit up straight. She collapsed like a ragdoll, panting weakly. From the corner of her eye, she saw the sky change from a deep blue to a fiery orange. Once more. Further. The sky was now pitch black, with splotches of midnight blue. She lied there, enjoying the precious seconds of rest before the next attack came. Every breath was to sweet, so full of life. It took her exhausted mind a few seconds to comprehend that she had made it to the Everfree.

Velvet rolled on her back. Her vision was clearing. She saw the thick canopy of the forest looming above her protectively. She smiled, blissful despite the strain on her whole body. She needed to hide, but her body refused to move. She accepted her need to rest. Not too much, just enough to drag herself into cover. She was still too exposed.

A flare crossed one of the few patches of sky she could see. It re-appeared a split second later and stayed there, turning smaller and smaller as it climbed in height. Then it did a u-turn and dove, increasing in size and brightness. Velvet clenched her teeth and sparkled her horn, but nothing happened. She ordered her legs to move, but all she could muster was a pathetic twitch. Her lips curved in a small, sarcastic smirk. In novels, she had often read of ponies at the brink of death to be very accepting of their demise, and a tendency to notice small details, as if to distract themselves of what was about to happen. In her case, the former was true, and perhaps the latter would be if she wasn’t completely drained. Instead, she opted to extend her shaky forelegs and fold them into a rude gesture, a second before the flames crashed into the trees.

X - Strength

Born from grief and determination

Twilight Sparkle woke up with a start, after a dreamless sleep. She was warm and comfortable, obviously in a bed and not draped on the ground, like she had slept for the last week. She idly pawed the soft sheets, appreciating their warmth, the cobwebs of her brain slowly vanishing as she gained awareness of her body. Her head, plopped against a pillow; her forelegs, folded over her chest and…something else. Her whole body twitched when the unfamiliar feathers brushed her back legs. Twilight raised the sheets with her magic, and saw the two new feathery limbs attached to each side of her body. Suddenly, the memories of the last night came crashing into her mind.

Twilight let go of the sheets and covered her eyes with her hooves. A sense of void took over her. She felt hollow, broken and defeated beyond tears. No whimper escaped her throat, as the knot there blocked any sound from coming out. She briefly played with the idea of the last night being a dream, but her two wings quickly discarded that possibility. Perhaps, during her sleep, Celestia could have received a message from her mother?

‘No, Celestia would wake me up to tell me,’ grimly reasoned Twilight.

The mare closed her eyes and hugged herself tightly. The only thing she wanted was going back to sleep, and wake up by the voice of the Princess, telling her that everything was alright, that Twilight Velvet was safe and sound, that there was nothing to worry about.

Twilight nuzzled the pillow and frowned. Something didn’t feel right about it. She was strangely aware of the texture of the cloth, being able to feel the individual strings. Plus, when she rested her head, she could hear the faint crinkling that could only be the stuffing being flattened under the weight. Somepony upstairs was walking, and their hoofsteps resounded like hammer strikes. She could hear two distinctive breathing patterns. One on the other side of the wall. The other, in her same room as she was.

Very slowly, she sat up straight and turned her head to the right. There was a white unicorn sitting on the lone chair, smirking. She was a slim, elegant mare, with pale violet mane, that curled at the tips. She gave off an air of noblesse and grace, but that alone didn’t earn Twilight’s trust. If anything, it made her more suspicious.

The two ponies held each other’s glance for a whole minute. “What are you?” finally asked Twilight.

The smirk of the other mare widened. “Je m’appelle Fleur de Lis,” she replied with her silky voice. “I am here by request of Princess Celestia, to-”

“No,” interrupted Twilight, glaring daggers at her. “Not who. What. You are not a pony.”

She could perceive her aura with the same clarity she could see the sheets on the bed, far more intensely than any aura she had seen before. It radiated from her body like sunrays; the same light pink her eyes were. But underneath it was a layer of sickening magenta magic; and below it, a completely different magic, alien and unnatural for any pony.

The smile on the mare’s face vanished, only to return a moment later, amused. “My, my,” she muttered, shaking her head. “I am amazed. I didn’t expect to be discovered for at least a few more minutes. I must be rustier than I thought.” There was a flash of pink, and Twilight suddenly found herself sharing the room with a changeling queen. The newborn alicorn jumped on all four and charged her horn, aiming directly at the changeling’s head.

While her smile dissapeared, the creature didn’t do anything to ensure her safety. “You should turn that down, Twilight; you may hurt yourself. In any case, I am here on your behalf. Celestia asked me to come and check on you.”

“Why would Celestia tell a changeling to come here?” asked Twilight, still aiming at her head. She squinted. The light from her horn was hurting her eyes badly. A kaleidoscopic flurry of colors twirled around its length, adding to the nuisance.

“I’ve been serving Celestia for a very long time. She wanted me to check if your transformation has gone by smoothly.” replied the changeling queen. Twilight flinched. The spot under her horn was starting to hurt. She let the magic fade, just for now. She studied the aura of the creature. It seemed to be perfectly still and undisturbed. Twilight recalled reading that things like lying could disturb one’s aura. Her heartbeat was also steady, but there was no way to be certain, changelings were masters of deception.

‘Her heartbeat?’ Twilight swiveled hear ears. There was no doubt, she could hear her heart pumping. First the atrioventricular, then the semilunar valves. And now that she was aware of that, she began to hear her own heart too, noticeably faster. Her eyes widened.

The smile of the changeling queen returned, this time kind instead of mocking. “Amazing, isn’t it? You’ll discover there is even more to come.”

Twilight grimaced and closed her eyes. The body of the mare was emanating a reddish-brown light, particularly around her chest and face. A dark purple light was filtering through the curtains. To her nose reached the odor of the dust and sweat that covered her fur, the scent of the wooden floor and walls and the cotton of the bed sheets, the smell of the chitin armor of the changeling queen. From the next room came the slow heartbeats of the sleeping pony. Then, faster, the ones from the pony upstairs. The creaking of the floor planks. The noise of the air entering and coming out of her lungs, the gurgling of her stomach and intestines. She clenched her teeth and covered her ears with her hooves. Her head was throbbing painfully from the overwhelming sensations she was getting.

“Twilight!” said the changeling queen. The alicorn opened and eye. The creature had risen from her seat and was looking at her with concern. “I can help you, if you allow me.”

“How?” she hissed.

The horn of the changeling flared, and the room was coated in a simple privacy spell, except it was casted backwards. Twilight let out a sigh of relief. The magic had effectively isolated the room from the rest of the inn, blocking the sensations of everything beyond. The paint receded. “Thank you.”

“That’s step one,” said the changeling. She light up her horn and extracted something from a saddlebag. “Step two is this.” She held the item for Twilight to see.

It was a ring made of a dull green metal, engraved in runes and with a thin band of ceramic around the center. A limiter, a rather low-gauge one. She had worn a similar one before, back when she had joined Celestia’s School for Talented Unicorns. Nowhere enough to actually contain her, even before she had been turned into an alicorn.

“…fine,” she finally said, dipping her head. The queen nodded and levitated the tungsten ring into her horn. The effect was immediate: she was unable to see both the aura of the queen and the spellwork around the room. The pain disappeared entirely. “Thank you,” she said, smiling with relief.

The changeling smiled charmingly. Twilight took the chance to study her more closely. It was the first time she had seen a queen, and she was much more imposing than she had imagined. She stood as tall as Celestia, but was extremely thin, almost frail, if it wasn’t for the shiny black chitin that covered her entire body. Her carapace and wings were pink, and so was the membrane that hanged from her head and rump and played the role of mane and tail. On her head, a fang-shaped horn sprouted from her forehead. Four mauve eyes decorated her face, two larger at the bottom; and two smaller just below the horn. Those had yet to blink since she had revealed her true appearance. Despite her alien features, there was a certain beauty on the creature, mirrored closely in the pony disguise she had been wearing.

The creature then gave her mane a toss and moved on her chair, and Twilight saw cracks on her chitin, thin lines that radiated from a spot on her barrel. She then noticed a few more, on her leg, on her cheek, and a couple on her horn. “Let’s start from the beginning, shall we?” started the changeling queen, looking up to Twilight and snapping her from her thoughts. “My name is Vatia, and I have been serving Princess Celestia for the past…” Vatia paused and blinked her four eyes in quick succession. “…nine hundred and thirty-seven years, I believe.”

“Why would a changeling queen serve Princess Celestia?” questioned Twilight.

Vatia’s smile widened. “How we met, you’ll have to ask Celestia herself. It’s a bit, ah, personal for her. I will gladly tell you more about myself once she does.” She tilted her head. “But my motives are very simple: I have come to love this land, its inhabitants and its monarch. I am sure you can relate.”

Twilight nodded. Her loyalty to Princess Celestia was the reason she had agreed on the ritual that had turned her into an alicorn, even if she had never stated that was the objective. “You mentioned something about a smooth transformation.”

Vatia nodded her head. “Indeed. Ascension comes from several side effects. Your senses have been honed and sharpened, as you might have noticed. Sight, hearing, touch, smell, taste and arcane reception. My task is to help you get used to them as quickly as possible, otherwise you’ll have to endure the pain.”

“Why does that happen?”

“It simply does. Your brain suddenly has a much, much bigger flow of information, and can’t keep up. That is what was causing you that headache. Cadence had it much worse; with her horn, she suddenly gained an entirely new sense, her migraine lasted for a few days. You, on the other hoof, will have to get used to those.” she daintily motioned with her hoof.

Twilight looked down. Her wings were haphazardly draped over the bed. Making an effort, she managed to fold them against her body, even though she had to consciously hold them closed. “You’re going to teach me how to fly?”

Vatia laughed. It was a beautiful, delicate sound, like wind chimes. “With these?” She flapped her membranous wings. “I am afraid not. You’ll have to rely on some other pegasus to teach you how to fly and care for your wings.”

Twilight gave a little, uncoordinated flap with her wings. That actually sounded exciting. She wasn’t sure if Rainbow Dash would be the best flight teacher. Perhaps the sweet and timid Fluttershy would be a better choice to aid her through the very basics of flying. “So what now?”

The changeling rested her chin on her hooves. “How do you feel, Twilight?”

“Pretty normal,” she replied. “Other than the sense of smell, touch…and hearing, I can hear your heart. And sigh too, I believe. You are glowing,” Twilight blinked. “That doesn’t sound normal at all, does it?”

“It is rather normal for an alicorn,” Vatia got on her hooves and walked up to Twilight. “What we are going to do is magically block all your senses but one, and let you get used to it. Then we’ll slowly make our way up. Sounds good?” The alicorn nodded. “Good! In that case…” The light up her horn and levitated a second limiter from her saddlebags.

Twilight frowned. This new one was at least ten times heavier-duty than the one she was wearing, going well into military usage. “You didn’t mention your arcane reception when you were listing what senses aren’t normal. The limiter you are wearing is only preventing you from directly seeing my aura…but you can still feel magic with your horn.” Twilight begrudgingly nodded and motioned her to proceed.

Suddenly, the whole world went darker. Twilight fought against the urge of snapping the limiter. She had never realized how much information of her surroundings she got with her horn, nor how permeable were the lighter limiters she had worn.

“I’m sorry it has to be this way, Twilight. Shall we proceed?” The newborn alicorn looked at the changeling queen in the eye for a long moment. She sent a small amount of magic up her horn and pushed, just enough that she could feel the limiter budging under the pressure. ‘I can still break free as soon as I want.’ Satisfied with the test, she nodded to the changeling.

For the next hours, Vatia systematically went over each of Twilight’s senses, letting her get used to her new capabilities before moving on to the next. She made a mention of Twilight’s keen sense of arcane reception, which was expected for an alicorn born unicorn; and her excellent sense of smell, which was not. Twilight blushed and explained how she had always been able to track a pony’s aura by sniffing the air.

“Fascinating. Usually unicorns report to ‘see’ auras, not ‘smell’ then. I do wonder if there is somepony out there that ‘hears’ them instead,” Twilight felt the bed shift under her and knew Vatia had changed position. “Do now be worried if this happens with other senses as well. Synesthesia is rather common on alicorns. I know Celestia gets mild hallucinations when we…” The changeling let out a delicate cough. “Anyway, let’s move on.”

“Wait, when y-ack!” Vatia took down the spells that were containing Twilight’s senses, the privacy spell on the room, and removed both limiters from her horn. The newborn alicorn blinked and flicked her ears, assaulted once again by the barrage of sensations…and held up.

Twilight sat very still, watching the thousands of hues of red of the dancing flame inside the lamp. It was hypnotizing. The world had so much to it, so many more colors, sounds and hues than she would have ever imagined or dreamed, and there was so much to experience beyond that humble inn room. She was both excited and afraid to go out and experience this new Equestria.

Twilight wondered if this is how Celestia always perceived the world around her. Then, with a pang of guilt, she realized that was not the case anymore. Along with her wings and power, the Princess had probably lost a lot of intensity on what she felt.

Vatia’s hoof cupped her chin and turned her face to look her in the eyes. “Are you alright? You went quiet.” Twilight stared into the four pink eyes of the changeling…and much to her chagrin, she felt her cheeks heat.

“Y-yeah, I am fine,” she broke the eye contact and gave her wings a little flap. She could only hope the changeling hadn’t felt that, though the odds were against her in that.

“Perfect. There is something else Celestia wanted me to check,” Vatia made her way behind Twilight and placed her hooves on her shoulders. “It’s a mere part of the procedure, I think it is rather unnecessary, but Celestia insisted. Would you kindly spread them?”

“I...wait, w-what?” stammered Twilight.

“Your wings, sweetie,” replied Vatia, tapping her back joints with a hoof. “Mind spreading them?”

“Oh! Uh, yeah, sure,” replied the young mare, ignoring the heat that had once again made its appearance. She obediently spread her wings and took the chance to study them for the first time. They mostly looked like regular pegasus wings, covered in lavender coverts and slightly lighter flight feathers. A single digit sprouted from her wrist.

More unusual, however, was the purple flap of skin that extended from her elbow to her side. Twilight stretched the wing further. It didn’t seem to jeopardize her movement at all, but it was strange. Pony wings differed enormously in shape, size and feather coloration; and on top of that there were the wings of the chiroequus or batponies. Of course, Twilight’s grandfather was a batpony, but that should not affect the shape of her wings in any way.

‘It shouldn’t, should it?’

Her train of thought was derailed when Vatia ran a hoof over the skin, sending a shiver down her spine. She was extremely ticklish there. The mare went rigid and felt her face heat up further. Twilight heard the queen chuckle and barely resisted the urge to cover herself with her hooves. “They seem to have developed well,” stated the queen, purposefully palpating across the length of the whole limb “I don’t see any alteration out of the norm, except for that patagium. It doesn’t hurt when you stretch it, does it?”

“I-It doesn’t.” replied Twilight, closing and opening her wings a few times. Her movements were uncoordinated and jerky, but she was certain she’d learn what muscles moved what joints soon enough. “Say, Vatia,” muttered Twilight, running a hoof over the edge of her wing. It was strange, to think that foreign limb was actually her own. “Has anypony ever ascended with…uh…alterations?”

Vatia grinned. “Never. But Celestia likes to make a check-up, just in case. There hadn’t been many ascensions in history, so there is always the chance those were just lucky tries.” Vatia’s smile faltered. “Especially given how you have ascended, sweetie. That’s an experience I don’t wish to anyone.”

Twilight crooked an eyebrow, following with her with her eyes as the changeling got up from the bed and sat back on the chair. “What do you know of it?”

Vatia shrugged her shoulders. “You have been magically reconstructed from the inside out, while being conscious the whole time. I had to go though a similar procedure once, but nowhere as extensive,” the creature ran a hoof across the light scar on her belly. When she noticed Twilight’s inquisitive stare, she smiled slightly and shook her head. “Ask Celestia.”

Twilight remained quiet for a few minutes, slowly getting used to the sensation of her wings. She was starting to be fully aware of where exactly they were positioned, instead of some strange ghost sensation. “What can you tell me about the changeling queens?”

Vatia blinked at the question. “Can you be a bit more specific, darling?”

“Well, uh…” Twilight, shrugged with both her wings and her shoulders. “I don’t know much, so anything you can tell me is new to me.”

The queen studied Twilight for a moment. “I assume Celestia already told you a bit about us.” The mare nodded, and the changeling bit her lip and then shrugged. “I suppose there is no harm I share the intel I have collected with you too. Celestia will probably brief you, anyways.” Vatia took a few seconds to gather her thoughts and clear her throat. “Before Nightmare Moon returned to Equestria, there were nine changeling queens, me included,” Vatia allowed herself a proud smile when she saw Twilight’s panicked expression. “We have been living among ponies for millennia, Twilight. We are very good at being secretive. Anyway, out of them, one is an unsubtle brute who is usually ignored by the rest of the queens, and a second one is too deep inside her insanity to be of any worth considering. Furthermore, two more queens declined the invitation to participate in this war. That leaves us with only four hives trying to destroy Equestria.” Vatia made a pause, her voice growing lower as she continued. “Unfortunately, they also control the bigger hives. Granted, two of them are already down, but it is hard to quantify the damage they may have done already, or what the two remaining may do-”

“Wait, wait,” interrupted Twilight, holding up a hoof. “What do you mean with ‘two of them are already down’?”

“Exactly what I said,” replied Vatia with an impish smile. “Queen Lacera and Queen Chrysalis are both dead.”

“But who-”

“Nightmare Moon,” interrupted the changeling. “Probably the only good thing she has done since she returned. Chrysalis was killed in Manehattan. From what I could gather, they held a battle in the sewers of the city, that culminated rather spectacularly with both contenders shooting up through the ground.” The queen’s expression hardened. “Several ponies died. I don’t know the exact number, since some are still hospitalized. Nightmare Moon…” Vatia took a deep breath. “I think Celestia is too wishful. She believes there’s still a way to save her sister. But after all she has done…” She locked her pink eyes into the alicorn’s “Twilight, this…how she interacts with mortal ponies, is not how a sane pony acts. This is how a changeling queen treats her drones: they are expendable, replaceable. Each drone is just a fragment of a Hive Mind that each queen controls, individually they don’t matter. The fact that she has killed so many ponies without care…” Twilight actually backed off from her when Vatia bared her fangs. “It’s sickening. This is why it’s so important you stop her.”

Twilight dipped her head. “But how could I? Even with these,” she motioned to her wings with a hoof. “I’m still…well, me.”

The queen chuckled. “I think you’re selling yourself short, Twilight.” She raised her hoof and poked her in the muzzle, causing the alicorn to look up. “I’ve never had the pleasure to met you personally. Everything I know about you, which is a lot, truth be told; was through Celestia herself. And, granted, she probably severely biased in your favor…and I’ve just spoken how I don’t think she is always right,” She waved her hoof dismissably. “But in this regard, I have yet to see anything that contradicts Celestia’s words.”

Twilight blinked.

“That means I think you’ve got this.”

“I-I know what you mean!” hissed Twilight, clenching her hooves. “I just don’t see how I can overpower Nightmare Moon if Cadance was this this close to death!” She held her hooves in front of her face, so close together that she could only see one of Vatia’s lesser eyes.

Much to her surprise, Vatia’s first reaction was to giggle. Not chuckle, but a high-pitched melodic giggle. Twilight lowered her hooves and glowered at the changeling. “Cadance is a pampered princess. I love her dearly, but she has never had to do anything close to training or even exercise. What she has, she got it via ascension. What you have, is an extensive knowledge of advanced thaumatology, practical and theoretical, plus a mana reservoir that I can envy…and then, you were ascended!” Vatia grasped her shoulders. “Don’t you see?”

“But she’s so…she is in a completely different level!” shouted Twilight, pulling her mane with her hooves, “And I am just a unicorn! Well, an alicorn. But I’ve been like this for less than a day! And Nightmare Moon is at least a millennium old! How can I compete with that?!”

“Twilight, listen to me. Baby steps. You should take this one step at a time,” came the calm voice of Vatia. It managed to sooth Twilight enough to stop her anxious outburst and cause her to flop on the bed instead. “There is no sense in worrying about Nightmare Moon if you can’t even fly yet,” Twilight let out a huff at that, which prompted a giggle from Vatia. “Oh, don’t worry. It’s rather easy, once you get the hoof of it. And I can tell you, Equestria looks spectacular from above.”

“I know,” muttered Twilight.

“I beg your pardon?”

“I’ve flown before,” explained Twilight, looking at the queen. “Not by myself, of course; but I have flown in a sky chariot.” The young alicorn smiled at the memories. “It was wonderful.”

“It really is,” agreed Vatia. “And soaring the sky in your own wings, feeling the wind under your feathers, is even better..” A calm silence reigned over the room for a couple of seconds, until Vatia cleared her throat delicately and spoke up. “Anyway, we are not done yet. I don’t see anything out of the norm with you, so we may move on. Celestia asked me to teach you a spell.”

That got Twilight’s attention, who sat up like a spring. “A spell? What kind of spell?”

Vatia smiled at Twilight’s enthusiasm. She had always heard the princess spoke very highly of her younger student, and she could see why. In the short time she had spent with her, she had come to appreciate the young mare’s curiosity. She could feel grief and sadness in her, but it was buried under the awareness of the present. She had pushed those feelings aside to focus on the task at hoof. Vatia considered it a sign of mental strength, but also decided to mention it to Celestia later. Hiding or suppressing one’s feelings could ultimately cause issues to everypony involved. Luna’s treason, after all, had been mainly caused by the bitterness of the former Princess. Had she been more open about her feelings…

The changeling blinked and turned her attention back to the present. She glanced at Twilight and got on all four. “I am going to teach you what we do the best,” A gout of pink flames engulfed the queen, disappearing before Twilight had time to yelp in alarm. In place of the dark chitinous creature now sat the same mare Twilight had seen after waking up.

“You…are going to teach me how to transform?” asked Twilight, visibly surprised. Vatia gave a small nod. A grin slowly spread across Twilight’s face. “Oh yes please! I’d love to learn that!” cheered the alicorn, clapping her hooves in delight.

A few hours later, Twilight had finally learned how to alter her appearance at will. Understanding and dominating the spell itself had been the easy part. Much to her surprise, the transfiguration spell changelings drones used was nothing more than a very exotic and advanced illusion charm, completed with small mass-altering spells so their insectoid wings would feel like pony wings to anypony touching them. Vatia also explained queens had a more advanced spell that allowed them to widely change their apparent size, and promised to teach it to Twilight, the next time they saw each other.

However, deciding how she wanted to look was a completely different matter. She quickly discovered trying to change her whole appearance was an overwhelming task. She had to focus at the same time on her new coat color, size, mane style, color and texture; eye color, and presence or absence of horn and/or wings. And if she decided to have wings, she’d also have to keep in mind how she wanted her wings to be.

In the end, Twilight was happy to make her horn disappear without freaking out. It was really strange to have that void space on her peripheral vision. A burst of purple flames and her horn was back, but longer and curved upwards. Another, and her horn was now foal-sized, completed with a rounded tip. Twilight smiled and turned her attention to her wings. A lilac flash, and she now had a pair of buzzing foal wings. While a full transformation was currently impossible for her, perhaps she could alter her appearance a bit each time.

Somepony gently knocked the door. It opened with a creak, and the head of Celestia poked in. She had bags under her eyes and her barren mane was somehow even more disheveled than usual. The unicorn smiled tiredly at Twilight’s half-way transformation. “Ah, I see you’ve made progress.” she muttered as she strode into the room. Or more accurately, lost her balance and fell into the room. Queen Vatia was quicker and caught her on her forelegs before she hit the floor.

“Celestia, your highness!” she hissed. She picked up the former alicorn and turned to the chair, but Twilight jumped off the bed and gestured it with a hoof. The Queen nodded and carefully placed Celestia on the sheets. “What do you think you are doing?” she chided the Princess, while she telekinetically closed the door. “You should be resting!”

Much to their surprise, Celestia was chuckling. “It’s been a while since somepony carried me like that…” Twilight and Vatia shared a look. “Anyway, I will have plenty of time to rest later.” Her voice came like a weak whisper. Her head hanged from her neck, and her eyelids were heavy. The unicorn was clearly exhausted, only staying awake by sheer force of will. “Now, Twilight…” she took a deep breath. “I haven’t…I have not heard from Twilight Velvet. I don’t think she made it.”

Twilight let out a breath she didn’t know she’d been holding and dipped her head. Vatia had helped her keep her mind away from that matter, but now she had to face the fact that her mother was…was probably dead. There were a myriad explanations of why she hadn’t gotten in contact with them, and she desperately held to that thread of hope.

None of this permeated to Celestia. All she saw was the mare steeling herself after the news, wiping a tear from her eye with her hoof, and giving her a faint nod. “I-I’m alright,” she muttered. Vatia, of course, noticed her actual feelings, but made no comment nor shifted her expression.

Celestia studied Twilight for a few more seconds, before turning her attention to the changeling queen. She light up her horn and from the saddlebags extracted the tin containing the shards of the Elements. Twilight grimaced. Even with the concealing spells, the can glowed as if it were red-hot. They had severely underestimated the sensitivity of an alicorn. Celestia light up her horn, but nothing happened. “…right. Vatia, if you please?”

The changeling nodded and extracted by hoof a dull green metal box from the saddlebags. She unlocked the paddock and opened the lid, again with her hooves. Celestia hovered the can inside and Vatia shut the box, locking it once more. The tungsten box hid the shimmer of the Elements entirely, much to Twilight’s relief. She had been concerned not even the magic-proof metal could stand against the shards. “Vatia, I want you to take these and keep them safe. My sister mustn’t get hold of them.”

The changeling nodded, stern. “I will protect the shards of the Elements with my life.” she said, bowing deeply.

Celestia let out a snort. “Certainly, let’s go with that.” The two shared a chuckle. Twilight blinked, confused. ‘Is this an inside joke?’ she wondered, remembering the two went far, far back, if the changeling’s words were true. “Please don’t, though.” Celestia’s voice came as a whisper. “Enough good ponies have died already. Find somewhere safe to hide the Elements, and leave them there.” The princess narrowed her eyes and stared at the box. “I can’t tell how well the tungsten is concealing its aura.”

“It’s doing its job perfectly,” assured Vatia. Twilight nodded in agreement. The queen took the box in her hooves and slid it into the saddlebags. “I already know a good hiding spot.”

“Hold on,” interjected Twilight. “Are you just going to hand her the Elements?”

Celestia crooked an eyebrow. “Twilight, I know she is a changeling, but Vatia has served me well for centuries, and she has never given me a single-”

“No, not what I mean,” interrupted Twilight. “Aren’t we going to need them for anything else? Like dealing with the remaining queens? Or even turn you back into an alicorn!”

Celestia shook her head. “Being ascended is a huge stress, both to the body and mind,” muttered Celestia, more to herself than to anypony else. “I would have to teach you the spellwork. It is very complex, but I am certain you can handle it. However…” She trailed off and went quiet, idly running a hoof through her mane.

“However?” asked Twilight.

Celestia snapped out of it. “Oh! Yes….um. Well, Luna and I have ascended about a dozen ponies throughout history. But they were always healthy ponies. In my current state…I don’t know. It may be risky-”

“We are not taking any chances.” growled Vatia.

“Vatia, please,” soothed Celestia, raising a hoof. “I don’t intent to follow this course of action. Like I said, it’s unsafe. But, should the need arise-”

“No!” insisted Vatia. “We are not ascending you until we are absolutely certain you will be fine afterwards!”

“Vatia…”

“Don’t ‘Vatia’ me, Celestia,” The queen brusquely sat on the chair. “No ascensions until you have recovered, and that is final!”

“She is right, Princess,” interjected Twilight with a severe frown. “The risks outweigh the benefits by far. If you die, there won’t be any Princesses left to rule the kingdom. We will need your leadership to come out of this crisis. You’re one of the major reasons we enjoy peace in Equestria. Some of the neighboring countries may try to invade. We have a strong military, but an open war would be terrible.” Twilight’s expression softened. “And if that isn’t enough, I don’t know what I would do if you died. You said it yourself: Enough good ponies have died already. Let’s not increase that count anymore, I beg you.”

Celestia alternately looked at each mare, then sighed in defeat. “Fine. Since testing is impossible, I will leave it on your hooves. I rely very often on others to do what must be done. But this time, I really wish I could solve all this myself. It was my mistake what started it, and it should be me who solves it.” Celestia glanced through the window. The pearl-white Moon was almost setting, and it would soon rise from the other side of the celestial dome. The pony shook her head and spoke again: “Nevermind that. Now, Vatia?” The changeling perked her ears up. “Do you think Twilight has learned the transformation spell properly?”

“Oh, absolutely!” cheerfully answered the queen, happy to have left the ascension topic behind. “She hasn’t fully mastered it, but practice will lead to perfection. But I am proud to say she second best student I ever had.” Twilight blushed and looked away at this.

“Excellent. Well done, Twilight. I knew you could do it,” said Celestia with a proud smile. “Transformation is a truly difficult magic to master. And once you do, you will find it gives you an enormous freedom.” The princess turned to the door. “That matter solved, I believe we all should go. Twilight and I will head for the Whitetail Woods. Meet us when you’ve hidden the Elements.”

“As you wish, Celestia,” said Vatia, bowing yet again. A ring of flames surrounded her, transforming the unicorn into a pegasus. “I know in the end you’re going to do what you want,” she stated as she put on the saddlebags. “But I have to insist: don’t force yourself.” Then she walked to the window, opened it, and took flight with elegance.

***

“Princess?” whispered Twilight.

“Humm?”

“Sorry,” Twilight bit her lip. “Did I wake you up?”

“Don’t worry, my faithful student,” muttered Celestia. She stretched her neck and attempted to suppress a yawn, with little success. “What do you need?” she asked, sitting up straight.

Big Macintosh was already awake when the newborn and former alicorn went to his room. A few minutes later, he was hitched to the cart, ready to take both mares back to the Whitetail Woods. Twilight spent the first hour of the trip rediscovering the landscape, marveling at her overly acute senses. Beyond the noise of the wheels trampling the dirt and weeds, she could hear the wind blowing through the grass, the gentle creaks of the trees, and the friction of the harness against Macintosh’s coat. The setting Moon bathed the countryside in a beautiful silver glow.

However, all this beauty was unnatural and ghostly. No bird chirped under the Sun, no rabbit hopped between the bushes. Even the crickets, naturally nocturnal, were quiet. The land seemed dead.

Celestia, on the other hoof, had decided to get comfortable and lied on a blanket. She quickly fell asleep, cradled by the gentle sway of the cart and the monotonous noises.

“Can you tell me about Vatia?” asked Twilight.

Celestia blinked. “She showed you what she is.” Twilight nodded. “Then you already know more about her than the vast majority of Equestria. There are exactly four ponies that know she is a changeling queen, including you.” The princess paused, and smiled. “Five, in fact, as I am certain Big Macintosh is very interested in our conversation.”

Twilight turned her head just in time to catch Big Macintosh looking away. Celestia chuckled graciously. “She is a friend, Big Macintosh,” said Celestia. The large stallion slowly turned his head to glance at her. “Queen Vatia has served me well for over nine hundred years. You don’t have to fear her or her drones, for she has none. What happened to your grandmother is terrible, but Vatia had nothing to do with it.”

Big Mac looked at the Princess for a few more seconds before huffing and turning his attention back to the road. Celestia let out a sigh and rubbed her injured eye. “What exactly did you want to know about Vatia, Twilight?”

“Well,” started Twilight, awkwardly shuffling her wings. “for one, why isn’t she…uh, doing what the other queens are doing?”

Celestia sat down and telekinetically draped the sheet over her body. She cleared her throat and craned her neck, like she always did when she was going into loving teacher mode. Twilight, on the other hoof, lied on her belly and waggled her tail, like she always did when she was going into adoring pupil mode. “First of all, you must understand that changelings have been the bane of Equestria for thousands of years. They live all over the world, but they are extremely common here. Vatia was born in our kingdom, so she doesn’t know the reason behind this, but I suspect that we ponies, being naturally magically inclined, are better to feed from.”

“But if they’ve been around for so long,” whispered Twilight. “why haven’t you gotten rid of them.”

Celestia bit her lip. “With the benefit of hindsight, that probably should have been my course of action. But I was scared of starting exactly this, an open war against them. You see, changelings have always been among us. By the time Equestria was no longer threatened by enemies from outside, they had already rooted in our society. They are parasites, Twilight. They gain nothing from killing ponies. Do you know what a taenia is?” The lavender alicorn nodded. “It feeds at your expense, but it doesn’t really hurt you. And if you want to remove it, you have to go into surgery and come out with a scar. I wanted to prevent that last part. Of course, now it seems obvious I should have removed the parasite before it became a blight, but I can’t predict the future. And meeting Vatia gave me hope that changelings and ponies could live in peace.”

Twilight looked down to her hooves. She had always been vaguely aware of the existence of changelings, but she had never given them a second thought. They were very real, and had been around since the foundation of Equestria. She also understood why she’d keep them hidden from most ponies. After the changeling outbreak, everypony was suspicious and jumpy. Still, Twilight couldn’t help but feel resented about being kept in the blue for so long, even if it was for a good reason. “So how does Vatia fit in all this?”

“She was once a major queen,” started Celestia. “Lacera, Umbra, Andinas and Vatia were the dominant queens back then, plus several minor ones. Chrysalis was one of them, in fact.” Celestia blinked. “She’s been around for a long time, hasn’t she? In any case, back then my posture about changelings was the same as today: leave them alone, and they won’t harm you. But then, Vatia made an unfortunate mistake. She captured…somepony very precious to me. So I searched for her hideout, determined to bring an end to her existence.” Celestia closed her eyes and let out a sigh. “Her drones made no difference. The stench of charred chitin and the dying wails of the burned are cauterized into my memories. I had never let myself loose like that before, and I promised myself not to do it ever again.” Twilight folded her ears back and shuddered in horror. After a pause, Celestia opened her eyes and continued. “Vatia was different. I didn’t want to incinerate her, as that would have been too quick and unsatisfactory. Have you seen her scars?” Twilight nodded slightly. “Like alicorns, changeling queens can regenerate almost any injury. But those scars, those will never fully heal. They were caused by a magic too intense for that.”

Celestia closed her eyes and rested her head against the side of the cart. “I am not proud of this. But luckily, I stopped in time. I didn’t deliver the killing blow on the broken, pleading creature lying before me. Instead, I offered her mercy. I had wiped out her entire hive, and permanently crippled her ability to spawn eggs. She deserved another chance.” Celestia’s lips turned into a small smile. “And she has made sure I didn’t regret it. She has been a good servant. I appreciate her presence, and she appreciates mine. And most importantly, she is happy. She has a life in Canterlot. A job. Friends. And a husband that loves her, even knowing what she really is.” The princess opened her pink eyes and looked at Twilight. “Everypony deserves a second chance, an opportunity to amend their wrongs and fix their mistakes.” Celestia looked to the eastern horizon, where the Moon was rising.

Twilight followed the gaze of her master. Her expression remained the same, but her mind boiled. She wasn’t as kind as the Princess. Perhaps Sunset Shimmer deserved a second chance, but she wasn’t willing to give it to her. Her death wouldn’t be an act of revenge, but of justice. As for Nightmare Moon, Twilight still couldn’t see herself defeating the black alicorn. But she was certain she would only be spared as a favor to Princess, Celestia, and nothing more.

***

A scream of pain cut through the howl of the blizzard. The ground shook and a small amount of loose snow plunged down the mountain. The small opening of a cave poured some golden light into the otherwise dark mountainside. It was a beacon inside the furious storm.

The ground shook once again when Sunset Shimmer crashed into the wall, then proceeded to drag her body against the harsh surface, leaving behind a trail of blood and broken feathers.

“What have you DONE?!” screamed the alicorn, slamming her head into the wall. She stopped, panting and her legs shaking. “What have you done what have you done what….what…have you…done…” she whispered, oblivious to the trail of blood that dripped from her muzzle and into the stone below. “You’ve killed her. You’ve killed her, you’ve killed her. She didn’t deserve to die and now she’s dead. All because of you. You, you, YOU!” Sunset turned around, whipping her forelegs against and invisible attacker, and accidentally hit her left hoof against the opposite wall. The alicorn let out a cry of pain and dropped to the floor, clutching her injured hoof and gently swaying back and forth. Tears of pain and grief mixed with the blood and pooled underneath her head.

“Oh Celestia, what have I done?” muttered Sunset. She opened her eyes and looked to the miniature Sun that floated in the center of the cave. “This is what you meant when you said I didn’t deserve to be an alicorn, isn’t it? Your sister conceded me that power, and look what I’ve done with it! You were right. You are always right…” The illumination spell, of course, remained quiet. Sunset hadn’t bothered to give it any resemblance of intelligence when she casted it. It merely floated there. Staring at her. Judging her. “Heavens, when did I turn into this?” whispered the mare, looking down. “When did I decide I had the authority to decide to take a life? W-when did I turn into a m-murderer?”

Sunset closed her emerald eyes. The pain on her hoof and side slowly receded, and her breathing and hear rate went back to her normal levels. Exhaustion caught up with her and she fell in a dreamless doze.

When she snapped awake, the blood had clotted and the miniature Sun had shrunk to half of its original size. The mare lighted up her horn, and pulled the spell downwards. When it was at hoof range, she extended her forelegs and wrapped the light orb in a hug. It was too hot, but she didn’t care. She needed to feel something warm.

What should her next move be? A part of her wished to die from cold and starvation right where she was, on the northern mountains of Equestria. But she was aware that, being able to fly, her survival instinct would kick off and force her to leave. What, then? She couldn’t return with Nightmare Moon, of course. The black alicorn would kill her for losing the Elements.

And she couldn’t go back to her previous life either. She had literally lost or destroyed everything she had. Celestia was dead. All her belongings were in Canterlot, which was indeed no longer hanging on the side of the mountain, but destroyed at its bottom. She also was a traitor, for siding with Nightmare Moon; and a murderer. Not only that, but she had killed Twilight Sparkle, one of the very few ponies that had ever considered her equal…

And it was all her fault.

Sunset flicked her tail, which brushed against her flank. Her lips turned into a sardonic smile as she considered what her CutieMark was. She had always assumed her fire was meant to bring comfort and warmth, like the Sun. But it was obvious she was better at causing harm and grief. The alicorn turned her eyes upwards. There, filling more of her peripheral vision than before she was ascended, was her horn. She couldn’t undo the damage her magic had done.

But she could certainly prevent it from happening again.

Pushing the diminutive Sun aside, Sunset reached up and wrapped her forelegs around her horn. She gave it a tug, but it remained on the same place. The pony almost laughed at her own idiocy. Had she expected her horn to just pop out? No, it was solidly attached to her skull. But she had seen her alicorn strength snapping a wooden beam with a single blow. Breaking a bone would be a walk in the park compared with it.

She took in a deep breath and clenched her teeth, steeling herself for the incoming agony.

One.

T-two…

“There you are.”

The voice sounded gentle and calm, but it caused Sunset to get on all four like a spring. Nightmare Moon was standing inside the cave, the tip of her horn almost touching the ceiling. The young mare frantically shook her head, tears building up on her eyes and muttering incomprehensibly. “Aren’t you going to greet us?” the midnight alicorn asked.

The utter terror prevented Sunset from answering immediately. “H-h-h-hello, y-your hi-ighness!” she stammered.

“It’s been an eventful day,” calmly muttered Nightmare. She took in the pitiful state of the small alicorn, the stains of blood splattered on several places of the cave, and the numerous feathers over the floor. “We fly to a city named Manehattan to find a changeling queen living in its sewers. We alone walk into its lair and slay the monster, taking down every single drone she throws against us. Then we fly back to our castle…” Nightmare’s small smile twisted into a snarl, and her eyes turned to Sunset, a cold fire burning in them. “And find the furniture wrecked, the shards of the Elements missing, and our apprentice…vanished.” Sunset stammered incomprehensibly. “Would you kindly explain?”

“S-she’s d-dead,” managed to croak out Sunset, still frozen on the spot. “I-I killed her. I k-killed her! She a-are no more. She’s g-gone.”

“Who?” snapped Nightmare, showing her needle-sharp fangs.

“The thief!” cried out Sunset, her voice degrading into a wail “Twilight Sparkle! She’s dead, dead, dead…” The alicorn dropped to the floor and began to cry, shaking uncontrollably.

Nightmare lost what little patience she had. She wrapped the neck of the smaller pony on her magic and forced her on all four. “Where. Are. The. Elements?” she snarled, his mane billowing around her like blue fire.

Sunset stared into those sapphire eyes that burned with more fury than she had ever seen. “I don’t know,” she choked out. The expression of shock on the black alicorn face lasted for a fraction of a second. Then she slapped Sunset, who landed on the other side of the cave. Sunset cried in pain when one of the hooves of the large alicorn stomped on her foreleg. “You have lost the Elements,” growled Nightmare, her voice tinted with wrath. “We gave you a simple task, and you have failed. You, unworthy, pathetic, useless, miserable, puny wrench of an alicorn.” The black mare punctuated each word with more of pressure to her victim’s foreleg.

“Please don’t kill me,” whispered Sunset, almost inaudibly.

However, the Nightmare’s fine hearing caught it. She raised her foreleg and lied on the floor. Carefully, almost daintily, she took Sunset on her forelegs and rested her head against her chest. “Kill you? No. We are not going to kill you.” Surprised by the sudden tenderness, Sunset blinked away the tears and looked up. The pitch-black mare was looking at her with a small, loving smile. The same she had seen Celestia bear so many times during their private lessons. But her eyes betrayed her. Her eyes were harsh and hateful, not kind and forgiving. “We are just going to hurt you really, really bad.”

The soft embrace turned into an iron grip. The horn of the alicorn light up. The miniature Sun extinguished and sunk the cave in darkness. A fountain of flesh-pink magic flowed from her eyes and flickered around her face, framing her terrifying grimace. Sunset fought against the grip, but she was too weak.

A scream of pain cut through the howl of the blizzard.

Author's Note

Here, a picture of Vatia I made some time ago:

XI - The Fool

Love and desperation

“What do you mean Trixie is also gone?!”

Applejack recoiled, taken aback by the outburst. “J-just that. Trixie didn’t make it back,” she muttered, looking away. “We found her hat and cloak and...well, since we didn’t found the…uh, her; we buried her clothes instead.”

Twilight sat on her haunches, stunned. Two ponies had died to grant her alicornhood. She hadn’t known Trixie for very long, but her death still weighted on her. “Are you sure she is…gone?”

“We are,” said Rarity. She looked the worst of the bunch, even worse than Fluttershy or Pinkie. She seemed to be in a state of catatonia, which surprised Twilight. She wondered if she had some personal connection with the magician. “There had been an intense magic exchange where we left her casting the illusion. We have scouted the surroundings, but haven’t found a trace of her.”

Twilight ran a hoof through her mane. ‘Please let this be the last pony to die.’ She took a deep breath and got on all four. “Right, there is much to do. I am sure you’re wondering why we needed the Elements in the first place. I though they would be the ace on our sleeve to take on Nightmare Moon, but this wasn’t the case.” She lights up her horn and casted a privacy spell that encompassed the small group.

After one last look around to be absolutely certain there was nopony else around, Twilight reverted the transformation spell and unfurled her wings. She almost didn’t slap herself in the chin with them.

All ponies sans Celestia gasped. “You’ve got wings!” said Rainbow Dash, definitely not squeaking in excitement as she took hold of one of them and stretched it to its full length. “Come check it out, Flutters!”

The ponies gathered around Twilight, taking in her new appendages. “Golly Twi! Ye’ve also gotten bigger!” drawled Applejack, who was now eye-to-eye with Twilight. She let out a chuckle. “Ya’ll’d have made a scene if ye’ve appeared like this back in tha camp!”

“I would, and I wanted to keep this as secret as possible; less chance Nightmare Moon picks on it,” Twilight looked to the side, where Rainbow and Fluttershy were comparing wing sizes, the latter with some encouragement by the cerulean mare. “I…don’t know much about pegasi culture, but it is considered rude among unicorns to outright compare your horn sizes.”

“She is right. T-this is very inappropriate, Rainbow Dash,” whispered Fluttershy.

“Eh, who cares. No harm, no fool.”

“That’s not how-”

“You’ve got pretty big wings,” Rainbow pointed at them They were a fair bit longer than Fluttershy’s; and far bigger than Rainbow’s own short ones. Twilight was uncertain if she should be offended or elated. “What do you think, Fluttershy? Nocturnal?”

“I think so, yes.”

“N-nocturnal?”

“Yeah,” replied Rainbow Dash. “It’s your type of wing. Every pegasus has slightly different wings, but they are usually classified in a few groups.” Dash extended her own wing next to Twilight’s. “See? I have predatory wings, like some griffons. They are small, they are pointy, they are very streamlined, and they are awesome. These bad girls are made for pure, unbound speed. Like myself! We’re a team of three here. Every part needs the other, but each on their own is awesome already.” Rainbow Dash paused and cleared her throat awkwardly. “So! Fluttershy there,” the other pegasus shyly extended one of her wings. “has something in-between sylvan and soaring wing. That means she has a good maneuverability and can soar pretty well. These are the most common for pegasi. ‘shy in particular leans a bit more towards agility. Finally, yours-” Rainbow looked back at Twilight, who had her jaw hanging open. “What?”

“You do know a lot about wings!”

Rainbow Dash shrugged her wings. “I mean, flying is my passion, so I know a lot about flying. Just like magic is yours, or apples is Applejack’s.”

“Hey!”

Everypony shared a chuckle at Applejack’s expense when the mare failed to come up with an appropriate response.

“What will be our next step?” asked Rarity after the mirth died out. “Twilight is an alicorn, how does that change things?”

“It gives us a chance,” said Princess Celestia weakly. “Sunset confronted my sister directly, and it would have worked if she were the one meant to bear the Element of Magic. We can’t expect that course of action to work anymore. My intention is that Twilight will weaken my sister enough so that the rest of you can get close and use the Elements on her.”

“I still don’t think I can beat her into submission,” grumbled Twilight.

“Oh my,” came the voice of Fluttershy. “Did you say ‘beat’? I don’t think it’s necessary to be so violent.”

Princess Celestia clenched her jaw, her expression flicking between discomfort, regret and insecurity. She opened her mouth to reply to the pegasus, but Twilight chimed in first. “Fluttershy, the very first thing that mare did was to kill ten ponies,” she stated flatly. “A few bruises is rather meager, if you ask me.”

Everypony fell quiet. Twilight slowly turned her head to look at the Princess, questioning herself for saying such a thing. The former alicorn had her jaw hanging open. For a few seconds, the movement of her eyebrows was the only motion on her face. She then got onto her shaky hooves. “I…I need to rest. If you excuse me.” She said before leaving the privacy spell and striding away.

After she disappeared behind the bushes, all eyes turned to Twilight. “While I don’t think you’re wrong, the wording could have used some work.” Pointed Rarity.

“I…didn’t think before I spoke,” agreed Twilight, rubbing her forehead. “Maybe I should do something to take my mind out of…everything for a while.”

“You’re right, thought!” interjected Rainbow Dash, flapping her wings furiously. “Ten is a load of ponies! She can’t get away with it just because she is the Princess’s sister!”

“I don’t disagree, but she has to stand trial like anypony else!” said Rarity. “Equestria as a society is way past corporal punishment.”

“Yeah, cuz jail is a great way to punish an immortal!”

Rarity raised a hoof, frowned, and lowered it when she was unable to find a proper counter-argument.

“Anyway, as blunt as it was, ah think it’s a good thing you gave her a piece of your mind,” said Applejack after the pause. “You can’t be pretending forever that all is fine and dandy. Mahbe it’ll make her realize her sis is…well, not what she remembers.”

Despite herself, Twilight let out a chuckle. “Honesty first and foremost, huh?”

“Always.”

***

Twilight stomped her hooves. “This is pointless!”

The newborn alicorn was beginning to regret her choice. Determined to take her mind away from her life crumbling away around her, she had requested Applejack to instruct her in the most vague and ethereal magic in all equinity: earth pony magic.

Earth pony magic was poorly understood due to its passive and instinctive nature. It usually got a very brief chapter, if any, in any kind of arcane study. Most of the information actually originated from a single source: The founder of the Apple clan, Apple Tree herself. Unfortunately, the earth mare had lived long time ago, when thaumatology was far more basic. Thus, the knowledge she had written down was too, outdated.

It really put things into perspective that it didn’t even have a proper name, like pyrokinesis, necromancy or illusionism. Even pegasi had tempestomancy, even if the term was somewhat vague and it included everything that pegasi could do.

Today, Twilight was discovering first-hoof why that was. She had read some of Apple Tree’s work and had found them fascinating. The fact that she had been able to cast some very rudimentary spells by directly willing her aura into shape was unbeliable, but of course she had never attempted to attempt it herself. Her horn was more than adequate for any spellcasting.

“You just ain’t doing it right,” drawled Applejack. “You’ve to put more of you into it.”

“More of me.” repeated Twilight. She had always been fully aware of the existence of her aura, but she had always though of it as some residual magic that emanated from her body. Trying to control it directly was as strange as…trying to consciously make her hair stand on end. She looked up to the crooked tree that she had been trying to climb for the last fifteen minutes. Applejack had insisted that she should be able to walk up the 45-degree tilted trunk without wrapping her hooves around it.

So far, it hadn’t worked.

The alicorn took a deep breath. She pulsated her aura once, twice. That was as much as she could do with it, the arcane equivalent of flexing. Frowning with determination, she carefully planted her forehooves on the trunk, then one of her hind hooves. Then very carefully, she lifted her fourth hoof off the ground…and instantly had to set it back down. She gave another try, making a pulse with her aura. It had no effect whatsoever. She them attempted to shake her aura a bit more, though it still didn’t work. “Was that different at all?” she asked Rarity.

“I don’t think so, darling,” she answered. She had asked to stay, due to her curiosity. Pinkie Pie had brought her older sister, claiming that perhaps she could offer some help. So far, the grey mare had stayed completely quiet, with her perfectly neutral facial expression.

Twilight glared at the tree. She bashed her hooves into the trunk and gave a small jump, planting all four limbs on the tree, and tensing all muscles in an attempt to get as much friction as possible. She light up her horn and attempted to take control over her aura directly. For a split second, she smiled triumphally…before gravity send her back to the dirt.

“Oh, this is horseapples!” she cried out, slamming her hoof straight into the wood. “I can’t do it!” She swiveled her ears when she heard a chuckle and a giggle behind her. She ignored the mirth and looked at her hoof, blinking in surprise. It didn’t hurt at all, despite having it the tree quite hard. When she moved her limb, she found a large dent.

“Ya okay there?” she hard Applejack ask, before she could consider what she had just done.

“Yes, I am fine,” she replied, getting on all four and dusting herself off. “I just can’t figure this out.”

“If I may, why don’t you try mimicking the earth pony magic with your own?” suggested Rarity. “Perhaps you could, shall we say, reverse engineer it?”

“That’s…a great suggestion!” agreed Twilight. “But first…it’s not that I don’t believe you Applejack, but I can’t imagine you casually walking up that tree,” She made a vague gesture. “Sorry if this comes out as rude, but…maybe if you did it I could follow your steps. Literally, I suppose.”

“No offense taken sugarcube. Ah probably wouldn’t believe pegasi control the weather if Ah didn’t see them doing it every day.” Applejack got up and ate the stalk she had been chewing on. She then walked up to the tree and up the tree, stopped when she reached the first branch, turned on the stop, and walked back down. Everything just as naturally as if she had walked in a level surface.

Twilight blinked. “Right, so you are doing something with your aura, but it is very, very subtle. I may need to see it more than once. I also noticed you always keep at least three hooves on the surface.”

“Did Ah now?” The farmer looked down at her own hooves. “Ah never really noticed.”

“In the Guard, we are taught how to turn that to eleven,” said Maud. Seeing Twilight’s inquisitive expression, she went to the closest vertical tree and crawled upwards without breaking a sweat. She then sat on a high branch and folded her legs. Twilight could have sworn she was being smug.

“And if you really, really, really go for it, you can do this!” said Pinkie Pie. She raised a forehoof a bit, held it still, then the second one a bit higher up and forwards. Then she raised the opposite hind leg next to the first forehoof. And finally, she raised her last leg and walked up a non-existent flight of stairs.

Twilight dropped her jaw. “Is…isn’t anypony going to question this?”

“Eh. She’s Pinkie Pie alright.” Muttered Applejack, shrugging. The pink pony casually strode up to where her sister was, trotted in a circle a good five meters above ground, and made her way back down.

“Wait a second!” screamed Twilight. Pinkie withdrew her hoof, startled when she galloped to her side. The alicorn ducked and closely inspected Pinkie’s hooves from every possible angle. She tapped them with her own. She closed her eyes for several seconds, and even poked them with her horn. Finally, she let out a sigh and sat down. “I can’t figure it out.”

“I don’t think anyone can,” agreed Rarity.

“No, not Pinkie,” Twilight looked down at her hooves and clapped them together. “I can see something is happening with her aura, but I can’t figure out how to mimic it. It’s like watching mud flow when you’re used to look at clear water.” She winced at her unfortunate metaphor. “I mean that your magic is thicker and opaquer. It also doesn’t help that it’s mostly passive. It’s like I am trying to juggle with a limb that is not only new, but also I can’t perceive in any way.” She let out a sigh and got on all four. “Right, let’s move on! Since I can’t grip, why don’t we try with something different?”

“Y’all want to keep trying?”

“Of course I do! This is fascinating!” Twilight smiled and gave her wings an uncoordinated flap. “I don’t have to master everything today, but I would like to give it a shot.”

Applejack stared at her for a second. “Alright then!” She turned around and headed to a random tree. She walked around the trunk, looked up, and nodded to herself. “There are two more things we can do. Well, actually four, but Ah dun think we can teach ‘em all.” She gestured Twilight to come closer.

Twilight stood up, paused, and turned her head. “Pinkie Pie, could you please finally land?” she asked with a smile that was all too wide. The bubblegum mare obliged, placing all four hooves on the dirt. “Thank you. Now, what is special about this tree?” she asked, looking up at the branches.

“It’s got fruits,” said Applejack, pointing at some dull blue lumpy fruits that hanged from high up. “And yer gonna harvest them.”

“Alright, but we’re not eating them. They seem dubious.”

That got a chuckle out of Applejack. “Sure thing sugarcube.” The farmer turned her back to the tree. “Now, Ah am sure y’all know we earth ponies can hit a tad harder than we should with our muscle mass.” Twilight nodded. “It’s pretty much what y’all were trying to do to climb the tree, but now you have to push, not pull. Ah figure it should be easier. Ya get me?”

“I am not sure how this is going to be any easier.”

Applejack shrugged. “Just give it a try. As far as Ah’m aware, this is about all what earth pony magic can do. Well, we also make stuff grow better and we’re tougher, but Ah don’t see how we could teach that. Hum…Ah’m not forgetting anything, right?” she asked the other two earth ponies after a thoughtful pause.

Maud shook her head, still perfectly happy perched atop of her tree. Pinkie Pie, however, raised a hoof a stood on the tips of her hooves. Applejack and Twilight exchanged a glance. “Uh…yes, Pinkie?”

“Applejack is forgetting about prognostication and telemancy.”

“Earth ponies ain’t lazy!”

“Prognostication, not procrastination,” chuckled Twilight. “Which is the ability to foresee the future. Pinkie is pulling our leg, heh.”

“Uuuh…s-sure.”

“Right!” Twilight clapped her hooves. “So, what do I have to do?”

“This!” Applejack firmly planted her forehooves in the dirt, then spun around and gave a stout buck to the base of the trees. Twilight raised her eyebrows when half a dozen blue fruits simply fell. “See? Now you try. It’s easier, Ah promise.”

“If you say so…” Twilight turned her back to the tree and stretched on her of her hind legs. She corrected her position and prepared herself mentally. She settled on hitting the trunk as hard as possible, so that she could get at least a fraction of what Applejack had accomplished. Twilight propped her forelegs for the recoil, raised her hind legs and bucked.

One second later, Twilight was enjoying a face full of dirt. The other ponies were exclaiming something, but she was too busy being displeased to pay attention to them. She only moved when a white hoof hovered in front of her eyes. Sighing internally, Twilight accepted Rarity’s help and got on all four. “I didn’t brace enough.” She grumbled, dusting herself off.

“Ah don’t think you could have braced more, sugarcube!”

Twilight looked down. There were two deep parallel grooves dug into the dirt, exactly where her hooves had been. It took the alicorn a couple of seconds to connect the dots and slowly look back, concerned of what she might find.

The tree had been torn off the ground, exposing its roots to the air. There were two large crater-shaped gashes, the spots were Twilight’s hooves had connected, tearing off a chunk of wood and compressing it into a distinctive shape.

“And all the fruit is on the ground! Does that mean she did it?” asked Pinkie Pie, trotting up the trunk while avoiding the branches with surprising poise.

“Either that, or it’s her alicorn-ness doing its thing!” muttered Applejack, scratching her neck. “Poor thing’s a goner. If Ah had known, Ah would’ve asked ya to kick something bigger!” She waited for an answer, but when it didn’t come, she turned her head and found Twilight still with her jaw hanging. The farmer let out a chuckle and gently closed the alicorn’s mouth with her hoof. “Ya okay there?”

“…y-yes,” she blinked. “I’m just….” She gestured to the fallen tree while shaking her head. “How?”

“Don’t worry, Big Mac does the same from time to time,” reassured Applejack, giving her a pat on the shoulder. “He’s got to be careful with the younger trees in the orchard; he uproots or breaks ‘bout one every year.” Twilight glanced at Applejack, alarmed at how casually she spoke of such a feat. “How are yer hooves?”

“My hooves?” Twilight carefully tested the joints of her back legs, grimacing pre-emptively at the pain she expected to feel. “Huh…” She frowned, stretching and contracting all four legs. “Funny, nothing hurts. At all. Is that normal?”

“It pretty much means you got it right.”

Twilight turned to Maud. “Did I?”

“Yes.” Much to her surprise, Twilight spotted the smallest upwards curl of her lips.

Twilight took a deep breath. “Right!” she grinned and spun on her hooves. “What’s next?”

***

Twilight bit down. Too hard, if the wince of all three ponies present was anything to go by. The alicorn furrowed her brow and ran her muzzle down her wing, combing the little feathers with her lips and teeth, like she had seen Fluttershy do a minute ago. When she detected a misshaped feather next to her shoulder, she clamped her teeth on it and plucked it clean.

“Oh jeez…”

Twilight stopped short her attempt at preening. “Wh’t?” she mumbled with the feather still on her teeth.

“You’re…um…you’re being a tad too…” Fluttershy tilted her head and waved a hoof, trying to find the right word. “Effusive.”

“ ‘ffus’v’?“ repeated Twilight. She spat the feather and grimaced. “I’ll I felt it more than I expected.”

“Yeah, no kidding. You just plucked a perfectly fine feather!” Rainbow crossed her forelegs. “When it hurt, didn’t you think ‘hey maybe I should stop doing this’?”

“Oh, give her a rest. It is her first time doing this, she is bound to make mistakes.”

Rainbow Dash glowered at the stallion for a moment, before turning her attention back to Twilight. “You’ve got to be more careful, wings are delicate! And, what is he doing her, anyway?”

“ ‘He’ can very well reply his own questions, thank you very much,” replied Blueblood, sitting up. “As for your answer, I can teach Twilight how to preen herself as much as you two can; thus, I can say my presence here is perfectly adequate.”

“You’re for real?” deadpanned Dash. “An earth pony teaching an alicorn how to preen her wings?”

“Unicorn, if you don’t mind!” he croaked, lifting with his hoof the blonde bangs that obscured his broken horn. The prince had seen better days. His white coat was dirty and matted to an off gray and his beautiful mane had been reduced to a filthy mop of yellow hair, framing his blue eyes and the bags under them. Even his proud pose had gone all the way down to ‘absolutely miserable’, completed with slumped shoulders and hung heads. “And I’ll let you know during the years I have acquired quite some skill in the fine art of preening.” He gave Rainbow a half smile and a wink.

The pegasus grimaced and made a dismissive gesture. “Yeah, sure. Why don’t you give us a demonstration, then?”

Blueblood glanced at Twilight, who in turn gave him a pointed glare. “I’d rather…not.”

“Good,” muttered Twilight. Blueblood was still something of a sore spot for her. He had mostly disappeared from her life ever since that one time she fought back. And in the years that had passed since, the unicorn was no longer the same. On the other hoof, he was a noble, born into luxury and comfort; and with a strong pride that he kept even after his current situation. She hadn’t seen enough to figure him out yet. “Now, I think you mentioned something of having work to do?”

Blueblood let out a dramatic sigh. “Give this poor stallion a rest! She makes me work too much, my shoulders are sore!” Twilight rolled her eyes. That wasn’t giving her any liking to the stallion. ‘Then again, I am rather unfit myself. I probably wouldn’t appreciate being forced to do manual labor.’ she though. “I am sorry I found out about your wings, I simply wanted to get away from that brick-faced mare.”

“It’s not nice to give ponies rude nicknames,” said Fluttershy.

Blueblood let out a chuckle. “My dear, I think every pony in the Canterlot Ground Guard calls her that. I am sure Twilight herself heard her father refer to her that way.” The alicorn gave a little nod. “See? I think she herself has fully embraced it.”

“Why don’t you say that to her face?” smirked Rainbow Dash. “I would love to see her whooping your sorry flank.” Blueblood gave her a flat look. He seemed to try to think of a retort of a second, before shrugging and letting the barb slide.

“So what are you doing, anyway?” asked Blueblood, pointedly ignoring Dash’s irritated gesture.

“Well, I wanted them to teach me how to fly, but Fluttershy insisted I should first learn how to take care of my wings,” explained Twilight. She bit her lip. “Can you please keep this as a secret?” The unicorn gave a solemn nod, though it didn’t really ease Twilight’s worry. Blueblood could very well let it slip accidentally. The less ponies knew of her ascension, the less likely Nightmare Moon was to hear about it. So far, only a hooful of ponies knew about it, only those that were directly involved in Celestia’s plans.

And Maud. But Maud was safe bet for secrecy.

Twilight let out a sigh and turned to Fluttershy. “Could we leave the whole caring for my wings for later? Right now, I would rather learn how to actually use them.”

“Oh, um…that’s fine, I understand flying is more exciting.” The pegasus gave a little nod. “Rainbow can take it from here.”

“Yes!” Dash pumped her foreleg and swooped down from her perch. “Come on, you’re going to love this!” Without asking for permission, she slipped her hooves under Twilight’s legs and hoisted her up. It happened so fast Twilight only managed to react when Rainbow placed her atop a very tall branch. She wrapped her legs around the tree, while Dash casually landed ahead of her and motioned her to stand up. ‘Like Tartarus I am going to stand up’. She took a deep breath and dared to look down. Back on the ground, two spots, one yellow and the other white, curiously looked up to her. ‘Perhaps this wasn’t my brightest idea.’

Back on the ground, Blueblood looked at the pegasus sitting next to her. “Twenty bits that she will end up with a bloody muzzle.”

“Please don’t say that,” replied Fluttershy. “I trust Rainbow Dash. She knows what she is doing.”

“No, I meant her.”

***

Despite Twilight and Blueblood’s concern, Rainbow proved to be a competent teacher. Unorthodox, but competent. It only took Twilight three rough landings to get the hang of gliding. She wanted to continue practicing until she was at least capable of powered flight, but Rainbow Dash refused on account of being tired. That surprised the alicorn; she expected Dash to be more excited about the prospect of teaching a complete newbie the secrets of flight, but didn’t disagree. After all, she could still practice with Applejack her earth magic.

She returned to the camp with a spring on her step, while everypony else lagged behind. Why shouldn’t she? She was stepping on the bounds between the magic of the tribes! It was exciting and intriguing, the joy of discovery that had been a constant passion through her life. And this time, she wasn’t merely reading what others had discovered, she was doing it on her own.

Twilight reached the top of a slope and looked down at the camp. Maud had done at amazing work at turning the clear into a small fortified position. It was surrounded by a low palisade, with ponies standing on guard every few meters, crossbow on their hooves. An assortment of tents and makeshift buildings took up most of the space, but wasn’t overly crowded. There was still room to maneuver and haul supplies. She raised a hoof to continue down the hill, but stopped short when she realized her wings were still exposed. A flash of her horn, and problem solved! She was looking forwards to see Queen Vatia again.

Her cheerful mood quickly dissipated as she descended as was hit with the reality of the situation. Even with the sense-dampener spell Princess Celestia had casted on her, she could still smell the misery coming from the camp. Sweat, dust, wood and iron. It smelled like a war.

She crossed the gate dragging her hooves, nodding in acknowledgement at the salute of the guard. It was Applejack’s brother, Big Macintosh. It reminded her of their grandmother, who died in the changeling attack. This, in turn, reminded her of her mother. She gritted her teeth and continued forwards, without an exact direction. There were very few ponies around, most were already sleeping inside their tents. ‘Have I lost track of time? How long have I been practicing?’ she wondered. She stretched her legs and cracked her neck. ‘I am not tired at all…’

Deciding going to sleep now would be a waste of time, she wandered about for a while, enjoying the relative quietness. She walked past an exhausted Rarity heading to her tent. Even drained as she was, she kept her grace and poise. Eventually, Twilight came across Maud Pie. She was leaning on a tree, idly chewing some corn. When she noticed her, she tossed her another cob, which the alicorn caught in her magic. She gave it a sniff. The scent of warm corn, seasoned with garlic and pepper overwhelmed her nostrils. She licked her lips and wolfed in, taking a frenzied bite. Maud watched her stuff her mouth, raising an eyebrow ever so slightly.

Twilight noticed her stare. “Whut?”

Maud took a deep breath before answering. “Have you contacted your family?”

Twilight froze mid-bite. She let out a sigh and leaned back, avoiding the green eyes of the earth pony. “I haven’t,” she confessed. “Just…what am I going to tell them? That she died so we could get some stupid ancient artifacts? I should have opposed to her plan. It was stupid.”

Both ponies fell quiet for a minute. Maud played with the bare corn core, while Twilight held hers in her hoof, not hungry anymore. The earth mare sat down with her legs crossed and rested her head on the tree. “I can’t pretend to know Twilight Velvet, but she struck as a strong-willed mare. I don’t think she regretted her choice.”

Twilight let out a half-hearted chuckle. “Yes, she got that from her mother. Come to think of it, she died in some s-stupid way too,” Her voice cracked. “Recklessness r-runs in the family, I suppose.” Twilight let out a hiccup and sat down next to Maud. Tears began to pour from her eyes. She cried quietly, in silence, with the earth pony as the only witness. When she felt the foreleg of the mare around her shoulder, she leaned in her for a much-needed embrace.

“I must look so stupid,” she croaked. “Here I am, crying my eyes out while you’ve suffered a far bigger loss.”

Maud broke the hug and looked at Twilight in the eyes. “Each deal with loss differently. Nothing wrong with letting it out.”

Twilight let out a sniff and wiped her tears. “I don’t how you manage to be this strong,” she muttered, resting back on the tree. “I regret not spending more time with her.”

“You didn’t get along?”

Twilight shook her head. “None of that. But after I moved to the castle…well, I spent less time with my family. Not just mom, I too saw dad and Shiny less often.” She let out a half-hearted chuckle. “She was so happy when I told her I wanted to be a magician. After her first child decided to take on his father’s steps, she was joyful than her second decided to follow hers.” Twilight noticed Maud raising an eyebrow, and correctly guessed what she was thinking. “No, she didn’t try to live her dreams off me. She encouraged and supported me, but at the end of the day, I turned into a very different magician. Kind of like how Shining is a Royal Guard while dad was law enforcement, right?”

Maud nodded. Twilight waited patiently for a few minutes before it because obvious that the gray mare would not speak unless prodded. So, she did. “What about you? How were your parents?”

The earth pony looked up to the starry sky before answering. “Hard as topaz, but rough as basalt. Specially my father. Life in the rock farm was tough, and Father didn’t make it any easier,” Twilight looked at the earth pony, but her expression was as unreadable as always. “He didn’t make a great dad for any us four.”

Twilight bit her lip. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

Maud shrugged her broad shoulders. “For better or for worse, it made me the pony I am today. I am content with that.” She closed her eyes and let out a long breath. Twilight looked up and light up her horn to deactivate the dampening spell she was under. The night sky turned into a vivid tapestry of many hues of blue and purple, specked with thousands of stars. “Night Light is a good stallion. I miss working under his command. “

Twilight looked at Maud, and was surprised to see a tiny smile on her lips. The alicorn couldn’t help but grin too. “You’re awfully vocal tonight. Dad always said you were the quiet type.”

The earth pony nodded. “I am told that I as taciturn as granite.”

The two ponies remained quiet for some minutes, enjoying the quietness. Twilight though about her situation. She had accepted to help Princess Celestia, but why? Loyalty? Duty? Simply because she was the best choice? Or more likely, a combination of all three? The Princess had faith in her, and believed her to be the fittest pony to face her sister. But, if she had been chosen by a different pony, would she still have agreed? What if Night Light had asked? Would she have agreed to be ascended?

‘Yes.’

There were many other ponies that could do what she was doing…but they weren’t there. Who knew where Minuette, Libra or Moondancer could be? She was the best choice because she was at the right place, at the right moment. Nopony else had hurried to investigate the crater, hoping to locate the Princess.

But what happened if she…when she won? The Princess said the Elements of Harmony would cleanse and purify Nightmare Moon. As far as Twilight understood, that would restore her to how she was before she turned into what she was now. But what then? Would she given back her crown and Equestria would turn into a diarchy? With one of its rulers having recently murdered the thirteen Archmages, plus an attempt of regicide, plunging Equestria into darkness; and probably several more that Twilight didn’t know about?

Twilight was trying to decide how to question the Princess about this when Maud spoke up again. “Look at those two, so blissful.”

The alicorn looked up and her heart skipped a beat. Lyra Heartstrings was walking around the edge of the camp, locked in a half-hug with…

Twilight closed her eyes tightly and did a double-take, but there was no mistake. There were a distinct pair of auras hidden beneath Bon Bon’s light blue own.”M-maud,” she muttered. “That’s a changeling.”

The earth pony narrowed her eyes and reached for something with her hooves. It was a set of bolas. “Which one?”

“The beige one,” Maud got on two hooves and spun the bolas. “Wait! You can’t-“ Lyra heard the exclamation and turned her head as Maud threw the bolas. She shoved Bon Bon out of the path of the weapons and got herself ensnared instead. The changeling looked at the unicorn, confused. Then she noticed Maud galloping towards her, with a worried Twilight in tow. Her expression twisted into one of sheer terror and she scampered up the makeshift wall. Maud reached Lyra and expertly retrieved her weapon. She climbed the wall, frowned a for a second, then whirled up the bolas.

Lyra let out a yelp and tackled Maud, causing her to drop the bolas. The earth pony picked up Lyra and slammed her against the dirt. “Lyra!” shouted Twilight, rushing to aid the unicorn. Maud picked up the bolas, but was interrupted when Lyra jumped on her, desperately swatting the larger mare with her hooves. Maud let out a furious roar and punched Lyra square in the face, sending her back to the ground. Then sat on her chest and bashed her hoof across the unicorn’s face. Then again. Twilight reacted in time to prevent a fourth hit, grabbing her foreleg as she raised her hoof to strike. Maud turned and struck Twilight with all her might. She fell on her back and cast a barrier by instinct. Maud punched the shield, causing it to crack. “You!” Maud screamed, gritting her teeth. “You. Let. Her. Escape!” She punctuated each word with a new blow. Twilight backed up in the safety of her shield. Maud drilled a hole through her with a maniac wide-eyed stare. “Why?” she screeched. “They destroyed my village!” She raised both hooves and slammed the barrier. “They killed my parents!” The surface of the shield was covered in cracks. “They killed my sisters!” The barrier began to collapse. “And you let her escape!” Maud punched a hole through the shield. Twilight raised her hooves defensively, but when no attack came, she opened her eyes. Maud was hanging weakly off the hole. “Why did you let her escape…” she whimpered, looking at Twilight with turquoise eyes pooled in tears.

The alicorn let the shield fade and caught Maud as her legs collapsed. She let her nest her muzzle on her shoulder, staining her coat with bitter tears. Maud wrapped her hooves around her and she responded to the embrace, feeling her ragged breaths. Twilight didn’t spoke, letting the former captain empty from what she had been bottling for far too long. When Pinkie Pie approached, Maud more than gladly replaced Twilight with her one surviving sister.

Twilight watched the embraced siblings. It was strange to see the stoic captain broken into tears, while the seemingly more distraught sister soothed her. She couldn’t let the same happen to her. She decided to go fetch her family and visit the grave of her mother, that very night. It was time to face the facts.

It was then that Twilight noticed Lyra was gone.

***

It didn’t take Twilight very long to locate Lyra. The unicorn was screaming the name of her loved one at the top of her lungs. When Twilight found her, she was pacing back and forth between the trees, sobbing uncontrollably. She didn’t notice Twilight until she touched he shoulder, causing her to whip around violently.

Twilight grimaced. The unicorn had a black eye, a broken nasal bridge and an ugly bruise on her forehead. ‘I probably don’t look that great either’, she though, remembering Maud had hit her too. “Come, I am going to take you to a hospital,” she said, reaching over with a hoof. Her original plan was to simply bring back Lyra to the camp, but injuries were more severe than she had expected.

Lyra blinked at her and looked back at the forest. “But…Bon Bon,” she said weakly, as if she didn’t understand her concern. She seemed completely unaware of her injuries, and her situation. She hadn’t stopped to think of what it could happen if she ventured alone into the woods. Bon Bon was more important. When she raised a hoof to continue her search, Twilight gently but firmly held her in place. “Let go.”

“Lyra…Lyra, please. No, don’t-don’t move. Listen-”

“I have to find Bonnie!”

“You can’t. You’ve got to-”

“I’ve got to! She’s alone!”

“No-”

“She needs me!”

“Lyra, look at me!” Twilight took the face of the unicorn on her hooves and forced her to look her in the eyes. “You can’t go alone in the forest. If the changelings got Bon Bon, chances are she’s…” The word got stuck on her throat. “She’s being held captive,” she said, and immediately regretted. She had no right to give Lyra any false hope, but she couldn’t bring herself to tell her the truth either.

The minty unicorn seemed to hesitate. “You’re hurt,” added Twilight, letting go of her. “Come, I’ll take you to the hospital.”

Lyra had her eyes fixed on the ground. “No, I am fine,” she finally decided, turning around. Before Twilight could say anything, she took a shaky step, lost her balance and fell haphazardly. The alicorn reacted just in time to cushion her fall with telekinesis.

“Lyra?” There was no answer. She carefully placed Lyra and listened carefully. Her heartbeat was quick but steady, and so was her breathing. The mare was simply unconscious. Letting out a sigh of relief, Twilight levitated the mare onto her back, and then teleported away.

***

“I am staying.”

“No, you aren’t. I am taking you to the hospital, along with Lyra.”

“I am not hurt.”

“And I am the guardian of Tartarus. You hurt your foreleg!”

“My foreleg is fine.”

“Really? Is it why you’re not putting any weight on it?”

“I-”

“And you also smell of cold sweat. You’re scared, in tension or suffering. Either there’s something big to worry about, or the latter is true.” Said Twilight in a stride. Maud raised her eyebrows, so taken by surprise that she couldn’t muster an answer. “Well? Are you coming?” said Twilight, lighting up her horn.

“F-fine,” reluctantly agreed Maud. The alicorn flashed her horn and disappeared from the camp.

When she returned, an hour later; she wasn’t alone, but her companions were neither Lyra nor Maud. It was small assortment of ponies, led by two unicorns and an old batpony with large wings. They followed Twilight out the boundaries of the campsite, to the place where lied the tombs of Twilight Velvet and Trixie.

***

“Twilight?”

The alicorn blinked. She peeked around the branch she was sitting on, and saw Spike down below, looking up at her while he wringed his hands. “Spike! Give me a second!” Twilight stood on the branch and took a hesitant step. Suddenly she realized that she didn’t know how to get down without gliding far away. She batted her wings a few times as a test and nodded approvingly. She could fly down, no problem.

Spike hurried to help Twilight as soon as the dust from the impact settled, but was surprised to find her more concerned about wiping the dirt off her coat than the fact that she had just fallen flat into her face. “Twilight! You…you okay?”

“I’m fine, Spike.” Twilight took the confused little dragon on her hooves and gave him a little squeeze. “A little fall isn’t going to hurt me now.”

Spike looked up. The branch where Twilight had been perched was a good ten meters above ground. “…right.”

Twilight gave him a small smile and sat down, letting Spike curl against his side. She could feel his heartbeat, and his body temperature raising and lowering with every breath, like a tiny furnace. “This time she isn’t coming back, is she?”

Twilight let out a sigh. “No, she isn’t.” She had taken her family back home not too long ago. Thunderstruck in particular was a wreck; he had survived his wife and one of his children. Seeing her loved ones suffer like that, she couldn’t help but question her decision to help Princess Celestia. A sarcastic smile made it to her lips. ‘Too late now, don’t you think?’

It was as if she had never returned. It felt like Velvet had died the day of the return of Nightmare Moon, and the past days had been but a delusion, a twisted way of coping with the loss. Perhaps it would have been better if she had never returned to begin with. Perhaps now, she wouldn’t feel so hollow.

Twilight’s train of though was interrupted when Spike huddled tighter against her. She let out a sigh, as she petted the back of the little dragon. ‘Why did she have to die? Why did she have to expose herself? She should have retreated. I would have been fine, and she would still be alive.”

“Twilight?”

The mare jumped on her hooves, catapulting Spike into the dirt. She spun, horn ablaze and ready to face…Rarity. “Oh dear! I didn’t intent to startle you!” she said, taking a step back. Something moved next to her, almost causing the tense alicorn to attack. Twilight recognized Sweetie Belle just in time, as she hurried to help Spike to get back on his feet.

Twilight let out a deep breath. ‘They’re real’, she had to repeat herself a few times. The beating of her heart was deafening on her ears. How didn’t that drive Princess Celestia mad? Was it why she was always so collected? So she didn’t have her heart hammering on her ears? She shook her head lightly, tossing aside that strange line of thought. “Sorry about that, Rarity,” she said with a sheepish smile. “I just didn’t expect anypony to come by.”

The unicorn nodded. “Apology accepted, darling. I can’t blame you for needing some time to introspect.” Rarity stood still for a moment, before sitting down. “That being said, Twilight…we’re here if you want to talk about what has happened. Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Fluttershy, me…anypony.” The pristine white unicorn paused. “Rainbow Dash is not a bad pony, but I don’t think she has the right…attitude.”

Twilight let out a sigh. “There’s not much to say, really. I am just…frustrated. Angry.” Sweetie Belle and Spike ran past them in an improvised game of tag. “I understand the logic behind her actions. She was trying to get Sunset off my back, and she was willing to risk her life to do so. But…” Twilight let out a huff. “Feelings aren’t always logical, are they?”

“The best and the worst never are,” agreed Rarity. “But I am glad you decided to let your family know as soon as possible.”

The alicorn shook her head. “It was Maud snapping what made me decide to tell them right away. If it hadn’t been for that…I don’t know for how long I would have ignored them. I guess…I guess I was afraid they would blame me.” she said. ‘Just like I am blaming myself.’

“I highly doubt they will, darling. If anything, their opinion of your mother will improve even further.”

Twilight gave her a dull sideways glance. She wanted to make a sarcastic remark on how her family would rather have Twilight Velvet well and alive, but she bit her tongue. The white unicorn wasn’t trying to twist the knife. “What are you doing here, by the way?”

“While I was getting ready to end my guard, I ran into Pri…Quill. She was franticly looking for you, and I offered to fetch you,” Rarity paused to yawn, covering her mouth with a hoof. ‘She is always so dainty.’ though Twilight. “Sweetie Belle insisted to tag along so…here we are.”

Twilight frowned. “That wasn’t a good idea.”

“You’re right,” she admitted, dipping her head. “I was just…what happened before with Lyra…you can see them, cann’t you?”

Twilight nodded. It took her a moment to connect the dots and understand why Rarity had allowed her little sister to venture with her in the woods. “You wanted to be sure she hadn’t been abducted.” She said, looking at the unicorn.

Rarity smiled sheepishly. “Perhaps I should have stated my concerns directly, but I wasn’t sure how to…word it.”

Twilight smirked. “Well yeah, what would you say? ‘Hey Twilight, has my sister been substituted by a feelings-eating being?’.” Her smiled died out an instant later when she recalled what had happened not too long ago. “That was inappropriate.”

“A little, yes.”

“In any case, I hadn’t thought about it. I can detect changelings. I can take a walk around the camp and figure out if there are any more changelings, easily.” Twilight tapped her chin. She hadn’t considered just how easily she could ensure the safety of the ponies living at the camp. She got on her hooves and nodded to Rarity. “Let’s head back, there is much to do.”

***

A quick tour inside the barricade was enough to convince Twilight that every of its inhabitants was an actual pony. Just to be certain, she did a second lap, double checking each of the guards posted around the perimeter. She even stopped to chat with Applejack’s big brother, though the amount of conversation he provided was scarce at best.

When she was about to do a third and final check of the camp, she was spotted by Princess Celestia, who nodded to the tent she had been using. Twilight let out a sigh. No point on delaying it any more, she was going to do something she had considered impossible before.

She was going to question Princess Celestia.

When Twilight entered the tent, she stopped short when she saw the Princess up close. The former alicorn was…healed. While she was still missing a hindleg, the scars that covered a good portion of her body were gone, covered now by pinkish white fur. Her injured eye was now as perfect and pristine as the other one, both half-hidden by the pink bangs that hanged over them. Princess Celestia smiled at her, radiant and beautiful. “What is it, my faithful student? It seems you have seen a ghost.” Even her voice sounded as sweet as always, instead of the raspy growl she had been forced to mutter.

“You…you look perfect, Princess.” whispered Twilight without thinking. She flustered an instant later, when her brain caught up with her mouth.

The monarch chuckled. “Thank you, Twilight. This is a new look for me, you know? I used to be thin as a twig before I was ascended. It didn’t feel right to go back to that, so I settled with a middle point between my real appearance and my ascended one.” She gestured Twilight to come inside. Her horn flashed and the tent was lined with a privacy spell. Twilight mentally reeled down the dampening effect she was under…and found that the Princess was under no illusion. She had actually restored her body.

“How did you do it?” She studied the other pony, trying to notice some inconsistency in her appearance.

“Just some superficial flesh splicing and some enhanced regeneration.” she said nonchalantly. Twilight’s jaw dropped. Flesh splicing was a very aggressive gray healing magic that literally liquified living tissue to re-arrange it, tiptoeing the limit between white and black magic. It was under very heavy regulation, due to how easily it could be used to cause harm. There were licenses to use it, as a skilled user could quickly re-attach limbs. Celestia smiled at Twilight’s bewilderment. “What? I decide what magic is gray. Is it that surprising that I gave myself the permits?”

“It….it is said to be very painful…”

“Agonizing,” agreed Celestia, nonchalant. Her lack of concern made Twilight guess she had used some other spell to nullify the pain entirely. “But it was worth it, it feels nice to finally have fur instead of burn skin. The leg…I am afraid will require more work,” she added with a sigh.

“…but you could do it.”

“I could, but I ran into another problem.” Celestia tapped the tip of her horn, and Twilight noticed it was still cracked. “I don’t dare to perform it and risk a miscast.”

Twilight nodded. “Does the doctor know about this?” The former alicorn shook her head, smirking. “He is not going to be happy when he finds out.” she said with a smile of her own. The remained in a comfortable silence until Twilight took a breath and spoke up. “Princess, I wanted to speak about your sister.”

“Convenient, since I wanted to touch the same topic.” The Princess let out a sigh. “This…uh, morning, I believe, you pointed out that the first thing my sister had after her return was to kill all thirteen members in the Council, and that a few injuries were a scant punishment. Your spoke with such hatred and bitterness that…well, I left. I wanted to apologize for this.”

“Princess…there is no need to apologize. If anything, I should be-”

“No.” stated Princess Celestia, stern. “You have no reason to, you were right. When I went to bed, I started thinking…what has my sister done to deserve anything but hatred and disgust? Why should she reap anything but what she has sown?” She shook her head and looked down. “This is not how I planned everything to go. My intention was that we would rule the kingdom side by side…like we used to...”

Twilight saw the opportunity speak her mind. “I don’t think she should be given any responsibility.” She blinked, surprised by her own boldness. ‘Perhaps too bold’, she decided, and amended her words. “At least, not for now. Not until she proves she can be trusted.”

Much to her surprise, Princess Celestia didn’t immediately disagree with her. “To be a commoner. I would like…I think it would be for the best. Equestria isn’t going to forget or forgive her crimes any time soon…”

“Do you think she will agree?”

The eyes of the Princess hardened. “She is in no position to demand anything, I am afraid. When the time of her return came, I was wishful. I hoped her confinement gave her time to think of what she did, and to come into terms with how she was viewed by everypony. She could have embraced it, become…become what I can’t.” Celestia looked up. “She wanted to be like me, but failed to notice she could have been much more.”

Twilight tilted her head. “I…don’t think I follow.”

The Princess ran a hoof through her pink mane while she gathered her thoughts. “Luna was never appreciated as an actual monarch…well, coruler. She hid the Sun and raised the Moon, bringing the day to an end. They were more dangerous times, and the ponies back then saw the night more as a nuisance and a peril than as something necessary. While technically my sister and I had the same power, I was the one ponies asked for advice. I was the one they requested to arbitrate in arguments and disputes. I was the one they turned to when they though justice hadn’t been applied properly. I didn’t mind, of course. Ruling is a burden, and I was more than happy for free my sister of it.”

“I guess she didn’t see it that way.”

Celestia shook her head. “She didn’t. She spoke her mind several times, and I always tried to make her understand my point of view. She probably saw me as dismissive. Over time, it got worse. We barely saw each other in the month before her rebellion. If I had, maybe I would have seen the signs…or maybe I would have still failed her.” She dipper her head. “The thing is, she had something I didn’t. Ponies saw me as this…goddess.” She grimaced at the word. “Impossibly perfect, sacred…and thus, unapproachable. She had friends, actual friends, not simply ponies obsessed with pleasing her.” Celestia gave Twilight a pointed look. The alicorn smiled sheepishly. “And while I was a passable ruler, she made for an excellent leader.” A small smile spread into her lips. “There was passion in everything she did, and it spread to those around her. Specially when it came to anything related to art. I am a rather dull pony, Twilight. But Luna…was bold and inventive. Who do you think had the idea of building our capital on the side of a mountain?” There was a pause, and the joy completely left her expression. “I suppose that is yet another of her accomplishments she saw as mine.”

“So what happened next?” asked Twilight after a few seconds.

“Next? She turned into Nightmare Moon and tried to take over Equestria.”

Twilight blinked. “…aaand?” She gestured Celestia to give her more details.

“That’s it.”

“Didn’t she try to kill you?”

“…indeed. But what does-”

“But…did ponies obey her?”

“Well, yes they did, but-”

“Hold on, let me get this straight.” Twilight took a deep breath. “Your sister tried to kill you, and shroud Equestria into an eternal darkness…because ponies didn’t pay her enough attention. Not even due to ambition, because she did have power. She wanted attention.”

Celestia’s voice remained the same, but Twilight could tell her heart rate had increased, and so had the temperature of the air. “You are oversimplifying.”

“And, when given the chance to fix her attempted regicide…she doubled down on it!” continued Twilight. It was taking her a lot of effort to keep her voice even. She was grateful the privacy spell worked both ways.

“You clearly have no idea what you’re speaking about, Twilight.” Her voice was cold, but the temperature of the air kept raising. “She didn’t try to kill me, she simply locked me in the Sun. She didn’t intent to harm me.”

“Oh, did she?” Twilight’s voice exuded sarcasm. “I guess you’re right. It was very touching, seeing her run to your aid when you were burned into a crisp!”

Celestia inhaled sharply. Twilight feared she might have pressed too hard, but when the Princess hanged her head, she knew she had done the right thing. She didn’t like hurting the former alicorn…but she had to make her understand. Every time Celestia defended her sister, she had to twist the knife a little more, point the horrible things she had done. Otherwise, the Princess may delude herself into thinking Nightmare Moon was the same mare she had known and love.

“Why do you always have to be right, Twilight?” whispered Celestia. “This would be so much easier if you weren’t.”

Twilight shrugged helplessly. “Things aren’t always easy.”

“They aren’t, are they?” The Princess straightened her shoulders. Twilight studied her. She was a good actress. Any sign of distress was gone from her face. “I had plans, you know? Backup plans.” Twilight’s ears perked up. “My original plan was to face my sister myself…but when the moment came, I couldn’t bring myself to it. The Elements of Harmony were the next line of defense…and to be honest, I trusted them more than I did myself. I even enchanted the checklist I gave Sunset so that the text would lead her to the old castle.” The Princess frowned. “It was written as a poem, you wouldn’t guess how long it took me to get the rhymes to work.”

Twilight let out a giggle, and she was happy to see the ghost of one appear on her teacher too.

“I had prepared something similar for the archmages, a separate scroll for each of them, explaining what had happened to me. They may not be the best of ponies, but I knew they would come to my aid…even if it was only for their own self gain. And then…” The Princess frowned. “Heavens, how did everything fall apart so quickly? I though I had everything planned.”

“There’s…something that I still don’t understand.” Twilight tapped her hooves together and furrowed her brow. “From what you have told me, the Element of Magic is usually represented as a light purple gem shaped like a six-pointed star.” Celestia nodded. “Just…like the one on my flank?”

The former alicorn chuckled. “The physical form of the Elements, all six of them, is that of a very simple hexagonal asscher. They look the same, except for their colors. Magic often got pictured as a star because it’s primus inter pares, the first among equals. The bearer is chosen directly.” She tilted her head. “Besides, six-pointed stars are not uncommon. Your brother has the very same star you have.”

Twilight conceded the point with a gesture. “Fair enough. It just…with the benefit of retrospective, it’s irritating.”

“I agree. Though, I must admit I am rather surprised you were chosen.” Twilight tilted her head. “I think you’re more than capable of representing Magic, mind you. But each Element has a second theme to it. For Laughter, it is optimism. For Honesty, it is trust. For Magic, it is harmony. It represents our four tribes coming together. All the previous bearers of Magic have shared one trait: Having the blood of all the ancestral tribes running through their veins.” Twilight frowned, but not for the reason Celestia believed. “It’s true, I have a grandparent from each of the tribes. And since Sunset is an orphan, I thought perhaps she would too.”

“But…I do too.”

Celestia froze. “…n-no, you don’t.” she stated matter-of-factly.

“Yes, I do. An earth pony, a unicorn, a pegasus and a batpony; one of each.”

The former alicorn stared at her pupil for a moment. “Your mother was a Canterlot Noble.”

“Y-yes. A marchioness, in fact.” Twilight wondered where the Princess was going.

“I created Canterlot titles as a source of income.” Celestia spoke in an even voice, but Twilight could tell she was getting increasingly nervous. “They can be purchased by any unicorn residing in Canterlot, and can only be passed to their elder children.”

“…yes. So?”

“Your mother…was a marchioness. I know Thundestruck, your maternal grandfather. He is a batpony.” Twilight shrugged all four forelimbs, completely lost. “So, your other maternal grandparent must be, obviously, a unicorn.” Celestia’s voice sounded desperate, hoping Twilight would confirm what she had said as true.

“But…she wasn’t.” muttered the alicorn. “Estoc was a pegasus. She got her title because she was the bastard child of a unicorn marquess. He never sired any other pony, so shortly before his death, he decided to reach out to her…he paid a fortune in compensations.” Feeling uneasy at the Princess’s desperate expression, she added. “I-I’m sorry.”

“I….I knew Estoc. How…why didn’t I ever see her with you?” weakly said Celestia.

“She died a month before my entry exam.” explained Twilight indifferently. She recalled how nonchalant Apple Bloom had mentioned her dead parents. ‘I suppose you can’t miss somepony if you never had the chance to actually know them.’ “A flying accident, she was too stubborn to recognize she wasn’t fit for it anymore.”

Celestia’s shoulders sank. In the blink of an eye, she looked just as fragile as she had looked the previous days. “I…I’ve made a huge mistake.” She whispered.

“Princess!” Twilight reached over, but stopped when Celestia raised a hoof. She ran both hooves through her mane and down her neck, until they came to a rest above her heart. She took a deep breath, tensed her body…and then relaxed, letting go of all the tension. When her eyes met Twilight’s, she saw in them determination.

“With the benefit of hindsight, it’s easy to say I should have investigated more about you, Twilight. But even with the full picture, perhaps I would have still made the wrong choice. What matters now is solving the problem, which leads me to my next point.” Celestia took a deep breath. “Twilight, I have been thinking how you could win a fight against my sister. And no matter how I think about it, there is one thing you can never match.”

“Uh…power?”

The Princess let out a dry chuckle. “Perhaps, but no. It’s age. My sister was a more skilled fighter than I was, and…well, the difference in combat experience between you two is staggering.” Celestia’s eyes darted to the floor. “To even the odds, I have been thinking of giving you a…tool.”

“A…tool?” Twilight crooked and eyebrow. “You mean, beyond turning me into an alicorn? What else is there?”

The former alicorn didn’t answer immediately. “What experience do you have with dark magic?”

Twilight went stiff like plank. “Uh…n-none at all. Why?” She had heard rumors that Sunset Shimmer and Princess Celestia almost had a permanent break after the first was caught investigating a restricted section of the Royal Library. ‘Does she suspect I did the same?’

“Then this is your chance,” smoothly said Celestia, though her eyes still didn’t meet Twilight’s. “I have decided…to teach you one path of dark magic. You name it. Anything, really.”

Twilight’s jaw dropped. “B-but Princess, I couldn’t – why would I ever want to do such thing?”

Celestia let out a sigh. “Because it’s a necessary evil. I don’t like it…but I would rather have you known one trick of questionable morality, than a deceased student and a ruined kingdom.”

Twilight looked away, running a hoof down her foreleg. “I don’t think I would be comfortable with it…”

“I am not happy with it either, Twilight.” She spoke softly. “But you are a good mare, and…I can’t fathom how you could ever be any more damaging to Equestria than my sister already has. Just, please…” Twilight felt her chin cupped by the hoof of the Princess, and looked her in the eye. “Please…promise me you won’t turn into what she has.”

Twilight looked into those regal, beautiful eyes. How could she ever refuse? “I promise.”

Celestia smiled. It was a small, but sincere and hopeful, smile. Twilight let out a tiny gasp when the Princess reached over to embrace her, and it took her a few seconds to return the gesture. She still felt frail in her arms. Her body temperature was higher than hers, but she still felt cold compared to how she used to be.

Dark magic…her promise opened so many possibilities. Due to their nature, there was very little written on dark magic, but there was no way to keep such an exciting topic away from young, powerful unicorns. She was vaguely aware of a lot of amoral things that could be done with magic, just like any earth pony was vaguely aware of all the nasty things that a kitchen knife could do.

But she was limited to one.

Celestia broke the embrace and let out a little sigh. She then noticed Twilight’s thoughtful expression. “You don’t have to make your mind right now. In fact, I would rather rest a bit now. Flesh splicing…has been more taxing to me than I anticipated.”

‘But I want to make up my mind now,’ though Twilight, pondering her options. Did she want to compensate for her weaknesses, or improve her strengths? After a moment, she decided she knew the latter better than the first. After all, all her past shortcomings could or could not have been improved by her ascension. But the things she excelled at before, would still be her strongest points.

Twilight looked back at the past days. What was what she had in abundance? She knew her ability to copy spells had no equal…but how useful could that be against Nightmare Moon? She needed something more…direct.

After a minute of consideration, she looked up and studied the Princess. “Nocikinesis.” She stated, trying to keep her voice as even and emotionless as possible.

The reaction of the Princess wasn’t unexpected. Or rather, the lack of reaction. Her expression stayed the same, a perfect mask of honesty. Even her heart rate only spiked up slightly. Twilight could have very well missed it if she weren’t expecting it. She could have believed the Princess if it weren’t for the longer-than-normal pause before speaking. “There is no such thing.”

“Of course there is,” Twilight tilted her head. Celestia was better at omitting information than outright lying. “You said anything. I believe nocikinesis could give me an edge over Nightmare Moon.”

Celestia stared at her pupil, eyes wide. Then she narrowed her eyes and nodded. “Very well. I just hope you know what you asked. I must know, though…where in Equestria did you hear that word?”

“I made it up,” Twilight smiled sheepishly. “I just stuck together two old words pegasolian words that matched what I wanted.”

“Ingenious. I apologize for lying. Nocikinesis wasn’t the answer I was expecting. I though you would go for something more obscure than ‘mind control’ or ‘necromancy’, just not that. But…I said anything. So…” Celestia closed an eye, and the one that remained open gleamed in magenta. “Let’s teach you about pain.”

Author's Note

I feel like this chapter was more fast-paced than it should. And yet, it is not short, exactly.

And remember...comments are food for the author

I - The Moon

The old one returns

The firework rocket shot into the sky with a whistle. There was an instant of expectant silence, and then it detonated into a rain of golden sparks that drifted downwards. The crowd gathered in the square cheered and clapped their hooves. Then the sound of conversations, laughter, and music filled the place once again as the Summer Sun Celebration continued. Every single pony in Canterlot was celebrating to honor their Princess.

Off to a side, leaning on the steel balustrade that delimitated the edge of the square, was Twilight Sparkle. The lavender unicorn flicked her ears in annoyance at the racket and let out a sigh. Her eyes glanced over the edge of the Everfree Forest. There, right next to the treeline, was Ponyville. That was where Princess Celestia had chosen to raise the Sun this year.

It had been Sunset Shimmer, Celestia’s older pupil, the one selected watch over the preparations. Twilight had felt divided about this decision. On one hoof, she would have loved to be there for the Princess. On the other, by staying in Canterlot, she would spend the evening and night with her family. Plus, it was Spike’s first Summer Sun Celebration, and she wanted to make sure he would enjoy it as much as possible.

However, as the day went on, the prospect slowly lost its charm. First, Shining Armor was called for guarding duty early in the evening, much to Twilight’s disappointment. Then, an hour into the celebration, Twilight Velvet received a letter in an emerald flame. After reading it, she headed to the School of High Magic of Canterlot in a hurry, to attend a council with the archmages. The scroll didn’t state the reason, but it had the seal of the High School of Magic, so it had to be important.

And now, Twilight was starting to develop a mild headache, for no apparent reason. The mare rubbed her temples with her hooves and let out an annoyed sigh. It was just midnight, and the celebration was pretty much ruined for her. Whenever her father returned from buying hay fries, she would tell him she was going home to sleep.

The unicorn’s mind drifted back to the letter. The archmages usually had a council every Sunday, but today was Monday; not to mention a national holiday. There must have been an imperative reason to call a meeting today. Then there was the fact they had requested her mother to go. Twilight Velvet was a brilliant sorceress, but nowhere near an archmage. Why they would need her presence was beyond Twilight’s imagination. But it was certainly worrying.

“Twilight?” The pony felt Spike putting his claw on her shoulder. “Uh…are you alright?” he asked, worry plain in his voice.

Twilight turned her head and gave him a small smile. “I’m okay,” she said. Spike always managed to cheer her up with his presence alone. She raised a hoof and petted the scales of his head. “I just have a small headache.”

“Oh,” muttered Spike, looking down. “Are you gonna be alright?”

“Yeah, I think so,” mumbled Twilight. When she noticed Spike was looking at her with concern, she let out a sigh and rested her chin on the balustrade. “I am a bit worried, though,” she admitted.

“Why?” asked Spike. “Velvet?”

Despite Twilight Velvet being his legal adoptive mother, Spike never referred to her as ‘mom’ or ‘mother’. Instead, he had called her ‘Velvet’ since the first day he learned to talk. Twilight often wondered if Spike considered Princess Celestia to be his mother.

“Yes,” muttered Twilight, looking at the horizon. “Mom has never been in good terms with the Council of Archmages, and if they require her presence…it can’t be anything good.”

Spike frowned at that. “I thought she’d like to know that the Archmages count on her.”

“And she does,” said Twilight, nodding slightly. “But nothing that urgent is ever good. No matter how positive something is, it can wait until tomorrow, when it’s not the Summer Sun Celebration. But, if the reason why she was called is something bad, waiting may be a terrible choice.”

Spike tapped his chin, following the unicorn’s reasoning. Then he shrugged and climbed to the bottom bar of the balustrade. He was just tall enough to poke his head over it. The little dragon followed her adoptive sister’s eyes and found Ponyville. “That’s where the Princess is?” Twilight made an affirmative noise. “Seems to be a nice place, don’t you think? Why don’t we go there someday?”

Twilight let out a chuckle and drew the little dragon into a hug, thankful for his obvious attempt at distracting her troubled mind. As usual, Spike struggled a bit and played tough, but ended returning the embrace anyways. Dragon and unicorn sat there for a minute, the pony finding comfort on the simple touch of a loved one.

“The Moon is sure clear tonight,” muttered Spike, after they parted.

Twilight blinked and looked up. Since its foundation, Equestria had been covered in a magic dome that protected it from outside. Inside this Celestial Sphere, the Sun, Moon and stars were not the actual celestial object, but eternal orbs of magic fire. And since the Princess Celestia was in control of them, she could also alter their appearance, although she hardly ever did so. Some ponies claimed it was possible to know her mood by studying the subtle changes in the patterns of the Moon or the position of certain minor stars.

Twilight had always considered those affirmations to be ludicrous. But now, she couldn’t help but wonder if they could perhaps hold a spark of truth. The Moon tonight was as clear as a pearl, and the Mare in the Moon was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps it was something that happened every Summer Sun Celebration, and she had just failed to notice it?

Suddenly, Twilight felt a sharp pain in the base of her horn. The pony clenched her teeth and grimaced. The surge lasted for a few seconds, before slowly receding into a slight ache under her skull. “Twilight! Are you okay?” asked Spike in alarm. The mare pressed a hoof into her forehead and gave a half-hearted nod, but the little dragon noticed her strained expression. “Wait here, I’ll go fetch some ice!”

“No,” interrupted Twilight, raising up a hoof. “It’s just some sort of magic backlash. I just need a minute.” The mare gave Spike a small smile, and the dragon hesitantly stopped on his tracks and returned to her side. Backfiring magic was a fairly common injury for powerful unicorns, and Twilight knew well how they felt. The pain would fade in just a couple of minutes.

It was quite strange, since magic backlashes happened just and only when the unicorn in question was wielding a considerable amount of magic. But Twilight hadn’t even been using her telekinesis. Once the ache receded, the unicorn started to ponder a possible explanation for the sudden pain. But before she could figure out the enigma, a voice boomed through the air.

“Citizens of Canterlot!” The roar drowned the noises of the party and the fireworks. Everypony went quiet and looked upwards, where the silhouette of a large alicorn cut against the Moon. Twilight frowned at the low pitch of the voice. It wasn’t Celestia’s or Cadance’s. Indeed, when the figure slowly descended, flapping its large wings, the light of the Moon revealed a pitch black alicorn, with a shining blue armor and an ethereal mane and tail, sprinkled with stars. “Citizens of Canterlot, your queen has returned!” she announced, a bit more quiet, but still unnaturally loud.

There were confused murmurs on the square, everypony wondering if they were in presence of some kind of joke. The alicorn noticed it and her grin slowly turned into an annoyed scowl. “Here as well?! Not even the capital of Equestria knows of my return?” She paused, as if expecting an answer that never came. The alicorn let out a sigh and descended, landing on the balcony next to Twilight, who quickly took a step back. The pony stood as tall as the Princess Celestia herself, towering over the intimidated ponies.

“Disappointing,” she muttered. “No doubt our sister must have done everything on her hooves to keep our existence in secret.” she said, walking forward. The ponies moved out of her way, and some even turned tail and tried to put as much distance between them as possible. She noticed this, and smiled. Unfortunately, the rows of fangs that decorated her mouth made her gesture more unsettling than calming. “There is no need to be afraid, our little ponies. None at all…” She glanced over the crowd for a moment, before turning around and walking back to the edge of the square.

“Our name is Nightmare Moon, and we are the legitimate ruler of Equestria,” she began. “A long time ago, we ruled this kingdom along our older sister, the Queen Celestia. For centuries, we gave stability and progress to Equestria, that flourished more than it could ever have without us. But then, avarice nested in the heart of our sister, and she tried to avert us from power. When we resisted, she got rid of us and banished us into the Moon.” The alicorn raised a hoof towards the satellite and for a moment seemed lost in her memories.

Twilight blinked, confused. Nightmare Moon was a legendary malevolent spirit. The whole celebration of Nightmare Night spun around her, and trying to placate her hunger for foal’s with sweets. But Nightmare Moon wasn’t real, and-

Suddenly, the alicorn opened her wings and took flight, once again hovering over the city. “But now we have returned! And we have taken by force what our sister stole from us, what belonged to us by right!” she yelled, raising her voice much more than before, loud enough for all Canterlot to hear her. “And we will crush anypony who stands against us!”

Three words resonated in Twilight’s mind. Taken by force. The Princess. Where was Princess Celestia? She wouldn’t let this happen, and there was no way this alicorn could have defeated her. ‘Perhaps she just doesn’t know of this Nightmare Moon?’ wondered Twilight. She glanced down at Ponyville. She could send her a message. All she needed was some parchment, a quill, and Spike.

“And don’t think you have the least chance against me,” continued Nightmare Moon. “For we have defeated Celestia, and granted her a fitting punishment.” The alicorn lifted her hoof and pointed upwards. “She will spend the rest of her days trapped in the Sun.” Twilight’s heart skipped a beat and her jaw dropped. The alicorn continued speaking. “But you have nothing to fear, our little subjects.” she continued after a brief pause. “This is none of your business; it’s nothing more than a mere fight among sisters. A battle I have been victorious. By the power that was taken from me, I hereby reclaim the throne of Equestria and declare the eternal night!” The alicorn beat her wings and lifted to the sky, leaving a blue trail behind her. Once she was over the city, her horn emitted a magic glow. Around Twilight, the ponies muttered in disbelief.

Twilight slowly shook her head, unable to believe what was happening. Her claims couldn’t be true. It was a bluff, it had to be. Celestia wouldn’t go down without a fight. And this eternal night she was talking about…life was impossible without the Sun. Surely, she couldn’t be serious, right?

‘Right?’

“Hear me, Canterlot!” Everypony let out a startled yelp when the voice of the alicorn came from the very stones under their hooves. “We have nothing against the ponies that live here, but this city represents an age that has come to an end. It represents the dominion of Queen Celestia. And, now that she is gone, her city must disappear with her.”

Nightmare Moon lighted her horn again, this time channeling far more energy, to the point that Twilight had to shield her eyes with her hoof. Suddenly, the floor under her hooves shook slightly and her heat skipped a beat. The ponies in the square screamed in fear and galloped away, but everypony stopped when Nightmare Moon spoke up again.

“In exactly one day, the city of Canterlot will fall to the void below,” said the alicorn. “You have more than enough time to gather your belongings and leave. And finally, to be certain that my spell won’t be countered, we are dissolving the Conclave or Archmagi. We do not want anypony to get airs of greatness and try to force a return to the old status quo,” bellowed the alicorn, lighting up her horn for the third time.

Twilight crooked an eyebrow and looked over to the High School of Magic, proudly standing next to the palace. Then, confusion became dread as she felt the overwhelming presence of a spell and understood what the alicorn was implying.

A slight sting extended from the tip of her horn to her body, making every single hair stand on end; and in the entire city resounded a distant hum.

An instant later, the lighting fell. A cascade of electricity plunged from the sky into the School, infinitely larger and more terrible than any natural lighting. The impact engulfed the building in an explosion of light so intense that it stung her eyes, even after closing them. Then came the thunder, that sweeped across the square and knocked all the ponies off their hooves.

Twilight opened her eyes and saw dozens of colorful, shapeless blobs and specks of light that danced on her vision. She heard nothing but a high-pitched ring on her right ear. Dizzied, she could only lie there and grunt in pain when somepony stepped on her foreleg.

A purple stain stopped in front of her and reached over, giving her a gentle push. The unicorn blinked and her vision focused. A small dragon kneeled before her, eyeing her with worry. It took her stunned brain a second to remember his name.

‘Spike.’

“Spike,” she said. The ringing dissipated and was substituted by a gibberish of panicked screams and cries, the sounds of hooves against cobblestone, and the beating of her own heart, echoing in her ears.

“Twilight? Twilight, can you hear me? Are you okay?” said Spike. The unicorn let out a grunt and forced herself to sit up, despite the general dizziness. Spike lets out a relieved sigh and hugs Twilight. The mare appreciated the support, as she feels terribly sick, and not just from the physical discomfort. Taking in a ragged breath, the unicorn looked up with a knot on her throat.

The School of High Magic of Canterlot was no more. Instead of the proud and elegant building of white marble, next to the palace there was just a charred husk, dead and broken.

***

Chaos.

The capital of Equestria was sunken in chaos.

Ponies galloped disorderly, pushing and stepping on each other, in a desperate attempt to find their loved ones, lost in the crowd. The Ground Guards strived to establish order, but their efforts were fruitless. The ponies were too scared to pay attention to a Guard that is telling them to stay calm.

Night Light looked over the ruins of the School of High Magic, trying to comprehend what had just happened. A black alicorn had appeared, announced being the sister of Celestia and banished her into the Sun. Then she had destroyed the School, to eliminate the archmages.

The School, where Twilight Velvet was.

His wife.

She was gone.

Night Light felt a sudden sickness, and had to lean onto a streetlamp to not fall to the floor. His wife, the mare he had spent the last twenty-five years of his life, was dead. He wouldn’t see her anymore.

Suddenly, the stallion let out a grunt of pain and reached to his horn with a hoof as he felt a slight itch on the tip. He looked to a side and noticed a few unicorns in his field of view had done the same gesture.

Then he saw something in the sky. The celestial sphere was as dark as any night, but in the south there was something strange, an area much more clear and bright. It was as if something was trying to push through the fabric of the night. The spot slowly got brighter and brighter until it was painful to still look at it directly.

Night Light had just enought time to look away before the fabric completely tore. The stallion, along with every unicorn in the city, felt a pang of pain on the horn when the magic disturbance reached them. Night squinted and forced himself to look to the south.

An immense ball of white-yellow fire plunged to the ground, so radiant that the stallion felt his eyes hurt immediately. The orb fell slowly, as if it was too massive for gravity to affect it normally. The whole city went silent, staring in terror as the sphere precipitated.

The fireball fell in the center of a huge forest, and exploded in a burst of light. For an instant, the night turned day and everypony had to cover their eyes. Then the flames fizzled out, and the night was dark again. Where the orb had fallen there was a massive black crater, and a ring of charred trees.

Night Light managed to recover faster than the rest of the ponies, and took the chance to use the deadly silence that reigned on the square.

“Ponies of Canterlot!” he firmly called out. Everypony on the square turned and saw Night Light on the pedestal of a statue, with the helmet of the Captain of the Ground Guard on his head and a determined expression on his face. “You can't let fear take you over. A day is more than enough time for everypony to get to their houses, gather the indispensable, and leave Canterlot.” The stallion makes a pause and looked over the ponies that closely listen to him. “The Ground Guard will help you in the evacuation, but I want everything to be done calmly. Is that clear?” Night Light waited a moment, but when nopony said anything, hopped down from the pedestal.

Next to it waited a mare of gray coat that looked at him with an impassible expression. Night Light took off the helmet and hoofed it back to her. “Have you decided to come back to the Guard, Captain?” asked the mare.

Night Light gave her a tired smile. “Thanks, but no.”

“Then I would be thankful if you stopped doing my job, Captain.” replied the mare, not changing her tone.

“I don’t mean to offend you, Maud, but I don’t see you climbing the pedestal and shouting to keep order,” replied Night. “It’s not your style.”

Maud nodded. “True. It’s a shame, Captain. I had hoped to be under your command again, just for a while.”

Night Light looked at the mare for a long moment. Maud was a strange pony. Her face was always an impassible mask that never let her feelings be seen. But that didn’t mean she didn’t have them. Night was the only pony in the Ground Guard of Canterlot that had learned to read the imperceptible facial tics and slight changes of tone in her voice. For everypony else, Maud was as expressive as a brick.

Thanks to that knowledge, Night Light knew Maud was asking him to get in charge. For a moment, he felt tempted to accept, but quickly discarded the idea and shook his head. “I’m sorry, but no, Maud. I have…I have to find my daughter.”

“And where is your wife?” asked Maud.

Night Light grimaced and looked away. He took a deep breath and tried to push off his mind the memories of Twilight Velvet. He would have plenty of time to mourn her later. There were more important things to do. “She was in the School of Magic.”

Even somepony who didn’t know Maud would have seen the flash of grief that crossed her face, before returning to the same expressionless mask. “My condolences, Captain.” Maud responded, bowing her head. She seemed to think of something for a moment, before speaking again. “Captain, I invite you to join the Guard for this night and help us with the evacuation. As a Guard, mind you. Maybe you would like to have something to keep yourself busy after what has happened.”

Night Light pondered the suggestion for a few seconds and eventually nodded, a bit reluctantly. “It’ll be the best.” muttered the stallion. “Now, let’s go!”

***

Once the flaming trail had faded, Twilight Sparkle turned her head and stared at the destroyed building for several minutes, trying to comprehend the succession of events that had lead to this outcome. There was a new alicorn in Equestria. A pony who, in her brief presence in Equestria, had already caused more damage than many natural disasters. The eternal night, the archmages and the High School of Magic; and her own mother.

And now the Sun itself.

And with it, Princess Celestia, is her words were anything to go by.

Twilight turned around, made her way to the edge of the square and glanced over the Everfree. The edge of the forest was lost in the dark horizon, but she could still make out the crater, a charred scar on the woods.

Twilight considered what she knew. There was always the chance Celestia had survived. Perhaps she had broken free from her banishment before the Sun crashed. Perhaps, that was exactly the reason why the Sun had fallen from the celestial sphere. Yes, it made sense. Why else would the Sun be torn off from its proper place? The Princess was definitely alive. Twilight just needed to find her, and she would make things right. She would defeat Nightmare Moon.

The unicorn was torn from her thoughts when Spike put a claw on her foreleg. Twilight looked down and saw Spike, barely holding back the tears. The dragon bit his lip and looked down. “Velvet is…” he croaked, his voice breaking.

“Yes,” muttered Twilight, sitting down and embracing the little dragon. Up to that point, the pony hadn’t fully assumed what the destruction of the School of Magic meant. But when she voiced it, she felt her heart shatter and a tear fell from her right eye. She and Spike just sat there for a few minutes, finding comfort on each other.

Finally, after giving her adoptive brother a little squeeze, Twilight got on all four and nodded to her back. “Let’s go,” she said, wiping away the tears.

“Where are we going?” he asked weakly.

“We are going to Ponyville,” replied Twilight, her tone firm and determined. “We are going to find Princess Celestia. She can defeat Nightmare Moon, just like she did in the past.” Spike hesitated for a moment, but then nodded weakly and climbed to her back. Twilight then headed straight to the train station.

Getting there was surprisingly easy. While Twilight walked past many ponies, most of them were going to the residential areas, to gather as many personal objects as they could. But the unicorn didn’t have the time for that. The sooner she found Celestia, the sooner everything would go back to normal. Despite this, she couldn’t help but feel a pang of regret at the thought of abandoning her belongings. ‘I am so sorry, Smarty Pants.’

The station was practically deserted. Nopony stopped Twilight from accessing the areas reserved for the staff. She trotted through the train garage, past several locomotives and cars, looking for somepony that could take her to Ponyville immediately. She got a few curious looks from the mechanics, but the unicorn ignored them. What she needed was a conductor.

After a few minutes, Twilight noticed a fat stallion with a conductor cap, and walked over him. He was crouching, rummaging in a toolbox. “Excuse me, sir,” said Twilight. When she got no reaction, she coughed and tried again, a bit louder. The stallion tensed up and tilted his ears to her. Very slowly, he turned around and looked at Twilight. It turned out that, what Twilight had assumed to be a toolbox, was in fact a lunchbox. From it, the stallion had extracted a massive sandwich, which he was now holding tightly against his chest. Twilight crooked an eyebrow at the pony.

He let out a sigh and relaxed. “By Tartarus, you gave me a good scare, miss!” he said with a chuckle, carelessly tossing the sandwich back into the lunchbox. “You’re not from the station are you? You should be waiting on one of the platforms, we’re not done preparing the trains.”

“You are a conductor, right?” asked Twilight.

“Uh-hu,” nodded the stallion.

“Perfect!” grinned Twilight. “You need to take me to Ponyville as soon as possible!”

The stallion frowned and clicked his tongue. “That’s not how it works, miss. You’ve got to buy a ticket, then wait ‘till the train leaves the station. You don’t get to choose when it leaves. Er...what am I saying! Have you just arrived? The Captain of the Ground Guard has requisited all the trains to evacuate Mount Canterlot! You should go home and grab your stuff!”

Twilight was already expecting that objection, so she had an answer ready. “I understand, but it’s of the most importance that I get to Ponyville immediately. The fate of Equestria depends on-”

The stallion huffed. “Yeah, yeah. We all have things to do. But look, whatever you need to get done so fast, it’s not as important as getting everypony outta here, get it? Now, if you excuse me, I am busy,” said the stallion, turning around.

Twilight lighted up her horn and raised a magic barrier in front of the stallion. He glanced at her, clearly annoyed. “I am Twilight Sparkle, personal protégé of Princess Celestia,” said the mare. She didn’t like mentioning her position to persuade ponies to do what she wanted, but it was too important. “and I have to be in Ponyville urgently. It is an official matter,” she added, for good measure. “Please.”

The stallion seemed to hesitate. “Uh…is it really that urgent?” he muttered. “We have to get everypony out of the city in less than a day, and there is no way of getting around that. Couldn’t you just…uh…teleport, or something? You’re good with magic, right?” he suggested with a weak smile.

“No,” replied Twilight. “Such a long range teleportation requires more skill than I have. And even if I did, it would leave me exhausted, which could be potentially dangerous.”

“A…a flying chariot?” muttered the pony.

Twilight opened her mouth to discard the suggestion, but she closed it an instant later. It was actually a possibility she hadn’t considered. A flying chariot, like the one Sunset had used that morning to get to Ponyville would probably be faster than the train. She would just need to find a pegasus guardspony willing to pull the chariot.

“Uh…excuse me?” said a voice. Mare and stallion turned their heads and saw a mint-coated unicorn with a small, awkward smile on her face. “Hello. You see, I’m in the same situation as my friend here, although the reason why is somewhat different.” She walked to the stallion and draped a foreleg over his shoulders. “But I am not gonna be so diplomatic. So I understand your absence may have some impact, and it will take a bit longer to get everypony out of the city, but…” She smirked and gave him a poke on the muzzle. “If you don’t take us to Ponyville, the impact you are going to get on your teeth will be pretty permanent.”

‘Unorthodox, but efficient.’ though Twilight. The stallion swallowed and nodded nervously. Very carefully, he freed himself from the lock and backed away. Never losing eye contact from the green mare, the conductor motioned them to follow him.

Half an hour later, they were on their way. The conductor prepared a small locomotive, and attached a single cart to it. The whole process was fairly quickly, but every lost minute was a torture for Twilight. She was agitated and nervous, and didn’t relax until the other mare, Spike and her were sitting on the cart.

Through the window, she could see Canterlot getting smaller and smaller as they descended on the mountainside. The train entered a tunnel and the capital disappeared from her view. By the time the city was on sight again, they were on the plains and it was nothing more than an illuminated speck on top of Mount Canterlot.

Twilight let out a sigh and looked down to Spike, who was placidly sleeping on her lap. The pony wished she could do the same. Falling asleep and waking up in Canterlot, only to discover all that hadn’t been anything but a nightmare, a terrible nightmare. Her mother was alive, the Princess was fine, and Canterlot wasn’t threatened by any ancient evil alicorn. Sadly, such thing wasn’t going to happen.

Strangely, Twilight didn’t feel sad, but more like melancholic. She had only lost her grandmother before, but she was too young to fully grasp the concept of death. So she wasn’t sure how she was supposed to feel. Perhaps her brain hadn’t fully processed that she was never going to see her mother again. Until it did, the lump in her throat was the only sign of the loss.

The mare realized her father was probably sick worried. In her haste, she hadn’t considered telling him where she was going, and had instead made a beeline for the train station. Thankfully, Spike’s fire was enchanted to send letters both to Celestia and her home. She just needed something to write, but of course there was nothing useful in the cart.

‘In hindsight, I should have prepared myself a little better,’ though Twilight, mentally smacking herself for her mistake. Something as simple as a pair of saddlebags, some food and water, or even a first-aid kit would be immensely useful if she planned to explore the Everfree.

“Um…” said a voice. Startled, Twilight looked up to the mare in front of her. She had completely forgotten she wasn’t alone. The mint pony gave her a small smile and waved a hoof. “Hi! I’m Lyra!”

Twilight blinked. “Oh….um. I a-am Twilight Sparkle,” she stammered. She extended a hoof, which the other pony bumped with hers.

“So, what is it that you have to do in Ponyville that can’t wait?” she asked, shuffling on her seat. Twilight couldn’t help but crook an eyebrow at the unusual way of sitting down.

“Well, um…I s-suppose I am kind of in an official mission,” said Twilight, shrugging.

“Hold on,” interrupted Lyra, raising a hoof. “You mean to tell me what you told the conductor wasn’t a bunch of horseapples?”

Twilight blinked, confused. “N-no. Why should it?”

There was a pause, and Lyra’s expression of surprise turned into glee. “Oh my goodness! You mean you really are Celestia’s student?!” she almost shrieked.

Twilight was taken aback by the sudden outburst of the mare. “Uh…y-yes? I mean, she has two students, but-”

“I can’t believe I am sitting with you!” said Lyra, bouncing on her seat and clapping her hooves together. “Quickly! Do something cool!” Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted. “Wait, no, nevermind! That’s rude to ask. I’m sorry,” she said with a bashful smile. “I just didn’t expect to be sharing a seat with one of Princess Celestia’s pupils.”

Twilight gave her companion a sheepish smile. “I am not that big of a deal, really,” she said, awkwardly shifting on her chair. “I am sure you are a talented unicorn yourself.”

Lyra waved her hoof and huffed. “Nah, I am just a simple unicorn with a simple talent. Not that I am complaining. I am happy, and that’s what counts, right?” she said, with a small smile.

“Right,” agreed Twilight, nodding. “Mind if I ask what is your reason for being so…um, adamant about getting to Ponyville as soon as possible?”

The mare smiled broadly. “I live there with my special somepony! Name’s Bon Bon, and that pony is the sweetest thing has ever happened to me.” Twilight couldn’t help but smile at the way she spoke of her lover. “Bonnie makes sweets and jellies, and takes the job very seriously, to the point of being kind of grumpy. But when the day is over, Bons relaxes and it’s like a completely different pony. Too bad most ponies only know one of the sides, the grouchy one.” she said with a chuckle.

Twilight shared the laugh with her, and silence reigned for a moment. Then she remembered the letter she had to send, and her smile disappeared. “Lyra? You won’t have by any chance paper and pencil?”

“Sure I do.” she said, opening her saddlebags with her telekinesis. “What for?”

“I have to send a message to somepony.” replied Twilight. The other mare offered her a notebook and a pencil. Upon opening it, Twilight found the sheets covered in staves, filled with musical notations. The unicorn ripped off one of the blank pages and began writing the message, using her telekinesis to keep the paper flat.

Once finished, she folded the paper and gently touched Spike with a hoof to wake him up. The little dragon let out a displeased grumble and slowly peeled his eyes open, stretching himself awake. “Umh? What’s up?” he muttered, half asleep.

“Spike, I need you to send this home,” said Twilight, hoofing him the paper. The dragon studied it thoughtfully for a second, then held the paper over his head and exhaled a gout of emerald green flames that consumed the page. A flow of magic swirled above their heads for a moment, before slipping under the window, in the direction to Canterlot.

“An'thin’ else?” asked Spike. Twilight shook her head, and the tiny dragon yawned and rested his head on Twilight’s lap. A few seconds later, he was fast asleep.

Twilight sighed. The baby dragon was gloomy, which was understandable. Still, it caused the mare a pang of pain for the loss of her mother. Twilight gently ran a hoof over the soft scales of Spike’s back, more to comfort herself than the dragon. She wanted to hug somepony close to her, she really did; but finding Princess Celestia was a priority. She would make things right again.

“So, are you a composer?” asked Twilight, hoofing Lyra back her stuff. Noticing the other unicorn was taking very long to grab it, she looked up and saw Lyra staring at her with wide-open eyes. “Uh…Lyra? Is everything okay?”

A smile slowly spread over her face. “That was amazing!” she exclaimed, excited. “Is that something dragons can do?”

Twilight blushed. “Actually, no. Dragon fire is very magically powerful, but it certainly can’t send messages. It’s actually the same spellwork used on pre-enchanted message scrolls, but adapted to work with Spike’s fire.” she explained. “It was one of my first custom spells.”

“Do you think you can teach me?”

“Uh…maybe,” replied Twilight. “The spellwork itself is relatively simple. Figuring out and setting the coordinates is a bit trickier, but it’s more a matter of having time to spare than skill.”

Lyra continued asking questions, and Twilight replied, eager. While the musician had a rather basic knowledge on magic, it was just enough to allow her to follow her explanation and ask further inquiries. Soon, the two ponies were submerged in a lively conversation about thaumatology and charms. Twilight discovered that Lyra was an ingenious mare that liked to experiment with her telekinesis, and used an exotic variant of if to play her lire. At some point, the musician offered to play a short piece for her. However, the fatigue caught up to Twilight, and the lavender pony fell asleep, soothed by the slow melody.

***

“Are you sure you can do this?” asked Night Light, still not convinced.

“No doubt.” responded the mare, giving her mane a toss.

“It is very important it works.” insisted the stallion, frowning. “I know you are an illusionist, but we’re talking about a huge illusion, which has to be visible from any place of Canterlot.”

The mare let out an annoyed huff. “Please! The great and powerful Trixie is perfectly capable of carrying out what you have asked, and much more!” she said, tossing her cape over her back in a way that was intended to be majestic.

The other pony let out a sigh of resignation and nodded. “Very well. Go on.” If he had more options, this mare would have been the last he would have asked for help. But right now there were no more options, and this was urgent. Trixie was, literally, a pony that happened to walk by and had responded when Night Light was asking for help.

Trixie Lulamoon huffed and walked away a few steps, muttering under her breath. “Trixie needs space to work.” she said out loud, speaking to the many curious ponies that had gathered around her. “So shoo! Everypony take two steps back.” Once satisfied with the space she had available, the cerulean mare extracted a piece of white chalk from the brim of her hat and delineated a perfect circle on the cobblestone. After a pause, she began drawing a number of different symbols inside it. A few minutes later, the magic circle was finished. Careful not to step on the lines, Trixie positioned herself on the center. “Ladies and gentlecolts!” called out the mare, addressing the ponies. “Come closer and behold the amazing magic of the great and powerful Trixie!”

The unicorn lit up her horn and from the circle emanated a blinding blue glow. The hum of the magic grew as the spell weaved and amplified itself thanks to the runes that Trixie had drawn. In the center, the mare fed the spell with more and more energy, much more than she was used to. Droplets of sweat pearled her forehead and her legs shook.

A flow of magic shot upwards from her horn and lighted the roofs of Canterlot with blue. A massive hourglass appeared hovering over the city. The upper half was practically full, but the bottom had already a small amount of sand.

On the floor, there were mutters of approval and amazement among the congregated ponies. Even Night Light’s jaw dropped. Trixie smiled and allowed herself to enjoy for a moment the effect she had on her audience, but quickly turned her attention back to the spell. “Night Light?” she said, eyes closed.

“Yes?” The stallion made his way through the ponies and stood next to the illusionist.

“I have to stay here to keep the illusion up.” explained Trixie in a mutter. She spoke very slowly, as if it was hard for her to articulate the words. “The glass with precisely show how much time is left until the city collapses. When there is an hour left, a bell will toll. Mare sure everypony is safe before that.”

Night Light nodded, even though Trixie couldn’t see him. “Are you sure you will be okay?” he asked, worried. There were still many hours until the time was out.

The mare didn’t answer, just nodded with her head. The other pony looks up to the hourglass that hovered above Canterlot. About an eighth part of the sand was already on the bottom half, which meant they still had twenty-one hours to empty the city. ‘It will be enough.’ though the stallion. He delayed one more minute, contemplating how the grains of sand fell, before trotting away to help with the evacuation.

The crowd that had gathered around Trixie dispeled in a few minutes, but the mare didn't notice. She was completely focused on the spell, barely moving, and breathing in a controlled and slow manner. She didn't notice the ponies that walked by her, on their way to the train station or their homes.

Hours passed. After the initial chaos, the Ground Guard managed to keep control of the situation at all times, except for a few minor incidents. Most ponies were too scared by the imminent destruction of the city and the return of Nightmare Moon to even try to loot anything.

The great noble families lamented the inevitable loss of their centenary houses. They took long to leave, carrying with them all the family relics they could.

Small flocks of pegasi flew away from the city every few minutes, most in the direction to Cloudsdale. Thanks to their flight, they were the first race to completely abandon Canterlot. In a few hours, only those that are part of the Ground and Royal Guard remained.

A group of earth ponies walked by Trixie, each carrying or pulling a case. A mare of gray mane and coat stopped on her tracks, and looked around, giving one last glance to her city. With a sigh, she dropped the case from her back and carefully put it on the floor. She unlocked the bolts and opened the lid. Under it there was a dark wooden cello, which the mare took on her hooves and held against her left shoulder. With her right hoof, she took the bow and put it on the strings. There was a moment of silence, and then the pony began playing, closing her eyes to lose herself on the melody.

Her companions stopped on their tracks and stared at her in disbelief. They looked to each other, uncertain. Then a second mare turned around, pulled her own instrument from its case, and joined the music. One by one, all the components of the band started playing, weaving a melancholic melody that sounded across the whole square, in consonance with the sad mood that reigned over the city.

Some ponies stopped to listen, but most continued on their way. They had no time to lose. Trixie, still with her eyes closed, sank on the melody and fell in a serene trance. Her body relaxed and her breathing turned slower, unaware of the world that surrounded her, lost in the depths of her spell.

***

Shining Armor wandered about in the corridors of the palace. The echo of his hooves resounded like hammer strikes in the silent building. Everypony that worked and lived there had left many hours ago. Now the only thing left was loneliness.

The stallion looked over for the last time at his second home, so full of experiences and memories. Since he was a foal, his dream had been joining the Royal Guard, but he had never dreamed he would become captain. Some veterans saw his ascension with suspicion, because of his lack of experience. Honestly, Shining had wished for something, anything, to prove his worth as a captain. Now that moment had come, but it was very far from his skills.

“And what’s the use now, without a Princess to protect?” sighed the stallion. Now his position seemed redundant. Captain of the Royal Guard. Of what royalty? If what Nightmare Moon said was true – and there was nothing pointing to the opposite – Shining wouldn’t see the Princess again.

His hooves took him to the throne room, the last place where he had seen the Princess, giving instructions for the Summer Sun Celebration in her absence. Had it really been less than a day since then? Shining rested his hoof on the heavy door, hesitated for a moment, and the pushed it open.

The small spark of hope that had flourished in his chest immediately faded when he saw the empty throne. Shining shook his head in disapproval. Had he really hoped to see the Princess in her throne, as solemn as always? How foolish.

The captain made his way to the staircase on top of which sat the throne, and puts a hoof on the first step. What he was about to do seemed like a grievance to the Princess, but…heck, the city was going to fall, and he would never have the chance to do it. With an impish smile, Shining climbed the stars, ready to sit on the throne.

However, he stopped. He turned his head back and realized how absurdly large the throne room is. The wall where the door was almost lost in the distance, and the steps raise the throne almost one and a half meters. That, together with the already impressive height of Celestia, made Shining wonder why the Princess had decided to keep the old throne, which dated from before the unification of the three tribes.

“Taking one last stroll, my friend?” echoed a voice on the room. Surprised, Shining Armor toppled and ends sitting next to the throne. There was a chuckle, and a pony crossed the doors. It was a tall and strong stallion, covered from head to tail with a shining and baroque golden armor. Over the back he carried a large sword on its sheath, as rich as the armor itself. The only visible thing of the pony was the white horn that poked through the helm.

Despite his best effort, Shining Armor bursted in laughter. The other pony let out a huff and trotted to the throne. “Blueblood? Did you loot the royal treasure and made yourself an armor with the gold?” asked Shining, wiping a tear.

“For your information,” responded the prince, unamused. “this armor is a family relic. It has belonged to my family for centuries. I wasn’t going to let it go to waste with the rest of Canterlot. Besides, it was about time the damn thing was used for what it was created.” he added under his breath.

“What do you mean?” asked Shining, getting on all four.

“Look at it, it’s perfectly immaculate. What kind of great warrior would wear a pristine armor?” responds Blueblood with disdain, opening the visor and turning to show the shining plates. “I grew up hearing epic tales about my ancestors, but it wasn’t until a few years ago when I realized they were just that, tales. Perhaps my family did produce some of the finest warriors of Equestria, but that was a long ago. Too long.” Blueblood shrugged. “Who knows, perhaps it’s my chance to forge my own name.”

Shining shook his head, but couldn’t help but smile. “I think you’ve been reading too many books, Blue.”

“Oh! How dare you!” replied the Prince, faking injury. “I’ll let you know that I am Prince Blue Blood, bearer of the most useless nobility title that has ever existed!” he said as he climbed the last steps, staring Shining. “I’ve saved damsels, killed dragons, conquered fortresses and jammed toilets. And that’s nothing but a mere fraction of my achievements! Remember my name, commoner!” The stallion sat on the throne, pulled out his sword with a flourish and screamed at the top of his lungs. “I am Blue Blood, and you will bow down under my command!”

There is an instant of silence, and the two ponies bursted into laughter at the same time. For an instant, the drama of the situation was forgotten and the two stallions shared a moment of bliss. However, it lasts little, and when the echo of their laughter faded, the expression of the prince turned grim. “She really is gone, huh?” he muttered, resting the sword against the side of the throne.

“Yes.” confirmed Shining, looking down.

Blueblood sighed and closed his eyes. “What are we going do to, Shining?” he asked in a whisper. “I admit I’ve always dreamed to sit here, in this throne, instead of Celestia. Being the one that gives orders and all that.” The stallion tapped the stone hoofrest. “But not like this. Not like this…For the first time in my life, I’ve got the chance to do something useful, but I feel lost. I am not ready for this, Shining. I don’t know what do to.”

“Get everypony to a safe place,” immediately answered the captain.

Blueblood emitted something between a chuckle and a huff. “And then what, my friend? Shall we kneel before Nightmare Moon and beg her to return our Sun?” The prince shook his head with a grave expression. “Right now I see no way out of our situation. The most I can think of…I suppose Cadance could not...?” said the pony, leaving the question in the air.

Shining didn’t need to hear the rest to know what he meant. “No.” he replied, shaking his head. “Cadance says it would be completely hopeless. If she won against the Princess, she has no chance.” he replied. Next to him, the prince gave a slow nod and sank further in the throne.

“S-she is terrified, Blueblood.” whispered Shining after a minute of silence. The prince looked at his friend, who was staring him with his eyes wide open in anguish. “You saw what she did with the School of High Magic. What do you think she will do to Cadance if she discovers there is another alicorn?”

Blueblood felt his blood run off his face at the implication of Shining’s words. “By the heavens above…” he muttered, looking away to the throne room.

A grim and cold silence reigned over the chamber. None of the two ponies spoke each lost in their thoughts and worries. In the end, it was Blueblood the one to break the quietness. “You should go. Your princess needs you.”

Shining gave him a sad smile and got on his hooves. Blueblood mimicked him, emitting a grunt of pain when he stretched. “I expected the throne to be more comfortable!” he complained under his breath.

The two ponies descended the staircase and crossed the throne room. This brief rest did well for both of them, but now they had to return to their respective responsibilities. However, none of them couldn't help but stop at the doors, and give the throne of Canterlot one last look.

***

The last grain of the hourglass that hovered above the city fell.

Despite being the capital of the kingdom, Canterlot was not a big city, because being located on the peak of a mountain didn’t allow much room for expansion. As so, when the time was over, the twelve thousand ponies of the capital had been completely evacuated. A good part of them had been taken to the closest cities by train, but as the time ran out, it was obvious that the rest were going to have to descend the mountain by hoof.

Only a small group of ponies stayed until the very last moments. The garrison of the Ground Guard, the Royal Guard, and a hooful of civilians, among whom was Night Light.

After a night of non-stop activity, the stallion felt completely exhausted, physically and mentally. Until that point, he had managed to keep himself busy enough to not think of what had happened to Twilight Velvet, but now that all the fuss was over, there was nothing he could do to stop the feelings to take over his mind. The loss and grief gripped his chest.

Next to him, Shining Armor tried to give his father all the support and comfort he could, even though from inside the same sadness and loss is eating him too.

A deadly silence reigned over the group of ponies.

Suddenly, echoed the snap of breaking stone. A crack opened a few meters in front of the ponies, exactly where the cobblestone of the city began. There was a rumble that was felt on the whole mountain, and the entire city sank a few centimeters.

There a brief pause, in which everypony held their breath, aware they are about to witness the death of an entire city. Then it began.

A rumble of shattering stone was heard. Between buildings could be seen how the spires of the farthest towers sank behind the city, disappearing from the view. The hundreds of old manors and shops from Canterlot fall to the void one by one, like a cataclysmic castle of cards. An alarming roar rose from the valley every time a building shattered against the base of the mountain. From the crowd emanated a wail when the palace of Canterlot was ripped off the mountainside and fell down the slope. Shining Armor and Night Light feel a stab of pain when, an instant later, the School of High Magic followed the palace. The destruction advanced faster and faster, collapsing buildings at a terrifying rate. Nopony can’t help but think of what would have happened if Nightmare Moon hadn’t given them time to evacuate the city.

Suddenly, a shriek of terror cut through the roar of the stone shattering. The ponies needed a moment to realize the scream was coming from the city. Some ponies take a step forward, but stopped when a dozen pegasi took flight and dashed to the rescue.

The pegasi flew above Canterlot, desperately trying to locate the trapped pony, but the narrow of the streets and the thick clouds of dust caused by the devastation make it almost impossible. The platoon of Wonderbols of Canterlot, leaded by Spitfire herself, dove into the streets, dodging the falling rubble with skill. The others continued searching from above the buildings.

A new scream caught the attention of a pegasus Royal Guard. He turned his head and located his target. A light blue mare that galloped as fast as her legs could carry her. Not hesitating for an instant, the guard tilted his wings and dove to her.

But it was too late. With a deafening crack, the section of the city where she was shook and sank a meter. The mare stopped on her tracks, raised her head, and gave the pegasus a pleading look. Then the street collapsed for good, and the pony fell with it.

II - The Sun

Mistakes and Regrets

Princess Celestia let out a sigh and closed her eyes. She was a smart and experienced mare that could put together plans that would begin to flourish decades after they started. But even she could admit that this hadn’t been her brightest idea.

After a thousand years, the time had finally come. The banishment of her sister had come to an end, and the spell that had kept her trapped within the Moon had broken. Celestia, eager to finally meet Luna after so long, had flown to the Castle of the Two Sisters.

Celestia had had hoped that, during her banishment, her sister would have realized her misdoing. She wanted to find an alicorn full of remorse and desire for redemption, to whom the Princess was more than willing to forgive.

Instead, in the castle of the Everfree she had found a mare just as furious as the day she had been banished. Celestia attempted to speak to her, but just like that fateful night, Nightmare Moon wasn’t willing to listen. Not wanting to fight against her sister, the Princess tried to flee, but was captured and sent to the Sun.

Fortunately for Equestria, Celestia had thought of that possibility. She had sent Sunset Shimmer, her student, to Ponyville. There, she would find a clue that would lead her to the Everfree castle, where she would find the Elements and use them to purify Nightmare Moon. Celestia trusted her weakened sister wouldn’t stand a chance against the power of the Element of Magic.

Until then, the only thing Celestia could do was to wait.

Much to her surprise, being banished inside the Sun was rather comfortable. The alicorn found herself in her most pure form: a spirit, unrestrained by her body, but by the binding spell instead. She felt strangely free. Larger, more powerful than she had ever been in her physical body, even if the Sun was set and dispelled into the dome. She felt one with it, looming over Equestria like a vigilant goddess. The fire of the Sun didn’t burn. Instead, it was warm and welcoming, as if it was trying to comfort her mistress.

Despite all this, she was still trapped. She could not cast nor weave any sort of spell, as the magic that wrapped around her like barbed chains would tighten and gash her painfully. She could still extend her consciousness outwards, but even such a small magic expenditure was extremely unpleasant.

Celestia wondered if the magic prison that had held her sister had been so harsh. It was unlikely, since this binding spell carried a scent of cruelty and bitterness with it. The Elements of Harmony would have certainly been kinder. Or at least, that is what Celestia hoped.

Out of pure curiosity, the alicorn tried to probe the binding spell to study its structure, but it was expertly hidden under several layers of obscuring magic. Breaking through them would be agonic, so Celestia abandoned this path and decided to contemplate the beauty of her kingdom instead.

Equestria was a land blessed with beauty. From the frozen north to the southern desert, with Canterlot on the very center and the deep green of the Everfree Forest off to the west. The dome covered it all, giving Celestia an amazing view of her kingdom. The moonlight covered Equestria in a lovely silver shroud. From time to time, she could see the fireworks above the major cities.

Celestia shifted inside her prison. Should she still have a body, she would have yawned and tried to preen her now non-existent wings. She could still feel the phantom of her golden shoes, which she mentally flung away. She felt the fatigue crawling on her mind. The mare briefly wondered if it had to do with the Sun setting, or she was simply worn after her encounter with Luna.

The princess tried to fight the sleepiness. She should stay awake, alert until her sister was purified.

Another ghostly yawn.

Then again, it’s not like she could do anything but wait, right? And there was plenty of time until Sunset discovered she was missing. A couple of hours, at least. Surely, she could allow herself a little rest. The Elements would wake her up when they freed her, anyways.

With a happy hum, the Princess curled around and imagined a soft blanket draped over her. In the Sun’s warm embrace, she fell asleep.

***

Celestia strode back and forth in the ruined throne room. For the hundredth time since she had arrived to the old castle, she looked up to the collapsed back wall. It was already nighttime, but the Moon still had the figure of an alicorn printed upon its face.

Huffing in frustration, the princess turned around and kicked a brick with her hoof. She had waited a whole millennia before this moment, and now impatience was eating her. Just a bit more, and her sister would be back.

Celestia let out a sigh and made her way to her former throne. As she climbed up the flight of stairs, she felt guilt gripping her heart. Two twin thrones, intended to put both alicorn sisters at the same level, as equals. They should have reigned Equestria together, evenly splitting the power and responsibility. And yet, she had completely failed to see the darkness nesting in her sister’s heart.

As she carefully sat on the Solar Throne, the Princess glanced over what remained of the once magnificent castle. Rubble and debris was scattered across the room. Vines had grown, swirling around the pillars or climbing on the walls. Shrubs and colorful flowers sprouted between the eroded tiles. Everything was bathed in the silver moonlight, elongating the shadows and giving everything a ghostly appearance. It filled the princess with sadness, to see her antique home in such disrepair.

It was yet another consequence of her mistakes.

Celestia allowed herself a faint, sad smile as she reached over and put her hoof on the other throne’s hoofrest. It would be over soon…

The Moon pulsated.

Celestia gasped. She jumped from her throne and looked at the satellite yet again, just in time to see the Mare in the Moon fading. Her heart sped up in anticipation and a shiver ran down her back when she felt the presence of her sister abandon the Moon. With barely contained tears, the alicorn turned around and descended the stairs, a skip on her step.

The mare looked back and saw a string of midnight blue mist slide through the hole between the thrones. “It’s you,” she whispered. The mist paused for a second, and then began to coalesce into the shape of a large pony, with two large wings sprouting from her sides and a long horn crowning her head. The shape turned solid and softly touched the floor.

Then, it changed in a heartbeat. The dark blue coat turned pitch black, the feathered wings turned webbed; and the eyes became slitted and cold. The newcomer alicorn glanced down at Celestia and ginned widely, showing her many fangs. Then she threw her head backwards and let out a long, cruel laugh.

Celestia stood there in shock. A single tear ran down her cheek as she shook her head, unable to believe her eyes. “It’s you,” she repeated in a whimper.

“Yes,” replied the black alicorn. She unfurled her wings and glided downwards, landing right in front of Celestia. “It’s me. Were you expecting somepony else?” she asked, giving her a wicked grin.

The princess shook her head. “N-no…this is not how it should…” The black alicorn began pacing around her as she tried to fight the knot on her throat. “Please, Luna-”

“Don’t you dare to pronounce that name!” snapped the other. “The pony you called Luna is long dead! I am Nightmare Moon!” When Celestia didn’t answer, but just gave her a long and sad look, she slapped her. The princess fell tumbling to the floor.

“I can’t believe I was once defeated by such equine waste,” grumbled Nightmare, her voice dripping hate. Celestia sat up. “You are pathetic, sister. Where are your Elements now?! You can’t wield them anymore, can you? Serves you right! Maybe now we can finally see how deserves to rule Equestria!” She punctuated her sentence by slamming her hoof into Celestia’s jaw.

“It’s a beautiful night outside,” continued Nightmare Moon, turning her back to Celestia and climbing the stairs that led to the thrones. “Do you recall, sister? It was right here, in this very spot, when I found my true self.” She lighted up her horn, and a shining midnight-blue armor appeared from thin air and wrapped around her body. “It’s time now that you get your fair punishment for what you did to me. Justice, if you will.”

Celestia sat up, blood dripping from her muzzle. “I am sorry,” she whispered.

Nightmare’s ears swiveled forward. “What did you say?”

“I am sorry,” repeated Celestia. She wiped her mouth and got on all four. “I am so, so sorry.” she said, looking at her sister.

“What for?” she said, smirking.

“For everything,” hoarsely said Celestia. “For not giving you the attention you deserved. For ignoring you when you needed me the most. For being too focused in my duties and sparing no time to help my little sister. For hurting you. For such a terrible, unfair punishment,” Once again, tears began to flow. “I-I am so s-sorry.”

Nightmare’s grin widened. “Ah, and you think mere words may solve it, right? You are more stupid than I thought.”

“I d-don’t want to fight you, Luna.” said Celestia, shaking her head. “I did once. Nevermore.”

“Worry not, sister. You won’t have the chance to fight.”

Nightmare Moon lighted up her horn, and Celestia turned around when she felt a huge surge of power behind her. On the opposite side of the room, on the arc that led to the rest of the castle, were now two large golden doors. There was a metallic sound, and gate started to open, bathing the room with the blinding light of the Sun. A dozen purple chains appeared and threw themselves to Celestia, wrapping around her limbs before she could react. Then, they began to retract, pulling the princess into the opening.

Celestia managed to get a hold on the tiles with her front hooves. Feeling with her back legs, she drove one of her hooves into a crack. The chains’ pull was strong, but she could hold herself. “Sister! You don’t have to do this! Please!”

“You are right,” said Nightmare Moon. Celestia looked up and saw her standing right in front of her, barely out of her hoof’s reach and wearing a cruel smile. “But I wish to.”

The pull form the chains grew stronger with each passing second. A new set of bindings tied around her unsecured back leg and Celestia let out a grunt of pain. One full minute passed, and sweat started to pearl her forehead. “Sister, p-please,” she said, gritting her teeth. Her muscles and joints hurt terribly, and she could have sworn to have heard a very unhealthy crack somewhere on her body. “Please, reconsider this.”

“There is nothing to reconsider!” shouted Nightmare Moon. “Just give up or I will make you regret your stubbornness!”

“So be it,” grumbled Celestia. She lighted up her horn, and the chains exploded into thousands of shards. Unfurling her wings, she took flight, dodging Nightmare’s magic attack, and headed for the hole in the wall. She would not fight her sister, not again. She had to escape. Sunset, with the help of the Elements, would be able to cleanse Luna of her darkness with ease.

Just as Celestia reached the hole, a tendril of darkness wrapped around her neck, and flung her back into the room. The princess crashed into a pillar and collapsed, gasping for air. Nightmare Moon lighted up her horn, and a swarm of chains armed with barbs emerged from the doors, throwing themselves towards the white alicorn. Celestia pushed herself out of the way, and the chains slithered after her. She dodged and swatted them aside, but there were too many. Her wings and legs tied, and the spikes digging painfully into her skin, the princess was dragged to the bright hole.

The princess struggled, but it was to no avail. “Sister! Please! Stop this madness!” she pleaded, but her only answer as a mocking, cruel smile. As she was pulled into the opening, the essence of the Sun empowered her, and she managed to snap a chain and get a hold on the frame of the door with a single hoof. She grunted in pain and clenched her teeth as the chains tightened and the barbs drew blood, but she refused to let go. She couldn’t let her sister make the same mistake twice.

“You are persistent, sister.” said Nightmare Moon. Celestia opened her eyes and saw her standing once again in front of her, visibly annoyed. The two ponies held each other’s gazes for a minute, contemptuous one, and pleading the other.

“Luna...sister...help me.”

Nightmare Moon sighed and glanced back at the throne room. She lighted up her horn and enveloped the Solar Throne in her magic, tearing it off the platform. With a smooth movement, she hurled it to Celestia, hitting her directly and sending her into the depths of the portal, screaming her name.

***

Celestia woke up with a start, and was welcomed by a surge of pain. Grimacing, Celestia looked over Equestria and wondered how long she had been asleep. It couldn’t have been more than a few hours, since the Summer Sun Celebration was still going. Unfortunately, the princess couldn’t judged the time based on the position of the Moon, since she could only look to the inside of the dome.

‘What shall be your next move, my dear sister?’ wondered Celestia, scanning the land. Canterlot was oblivious to her fate, and so were Manehattan, Trottingham, and all others major cities.

Swinging her tail impatiently, Celestia sighed.

Then, she felt it.

One sensation ran over her essence, like a shudder. A hunch. Paying no attention to the sting of the binding spell, the Princess turned her attention to the ruins that sat on the middle of the Everfree Forest. Even from that distance, she was able to catch a glimpse of a black spot that shot off towards Canterlot.

‘No.’

Gritting her teeth, Celestia pushed through the spell and extended her consciousness outwards, peering into the castle. The Vault of the Elements was soaked in harmonic energy, but she could still perceive five unique magic signatures. Celestia’s heart skipped a beat when she realized Sunset Shimmer’s was not among them.

‘No, no, no, no.’

Sunset was gone. Celestia felt a knot on her throat. She had sent her student to her demise. And if it wasn’t bad enough, now her sister ran rampant on Equestria, free to do whatever she pleased. All because of her. All because she hadn’t faced her sister when she should have. Desperation and chagrin took over Celestia. For a minute, the Princess sat on the Sun, regretting the mistakes she had made.

‘It wasn’t supposed to end this way.’

…

‘It will NOT end this wait.’

Celestia gathered her substance, pulling together the Sun despite the resistance of the dome and the pain caused by the binding spell. She was going to need all her power and focus for what she was about to do, the same untamable power that in her youth had allowed her to defeat Tirek and Discord.

The princess focused all her magic in a single spot, and the pushed against the tether. The chains of dark magic yielded for a moment, but then redoubled its efforts to contain Celestia. She felt like a thousand red-hot needles dug into ever centimeter of her being. However, she didn’t back away, but forced the bindings even further.

Bit by bit, she made progress. The princess grinned despite the agonic surges of pain that shook her entire being. The binding spell creaked as it struggled to contain her might, which burned and eroded the entire spellwork.

Finally, Celestia felt it reach its limit. With a triumphant cry, tainted with suffering, she charged against the bindings and felt how the Sun itself gave a tumble. Smiling in victory, Celestia unfurled her wings and prepared to escape her prison. The pain was still there, but Celestia ignored it and dove downwards.

And downwards…

Her mind clouded by the suffering, it took Celestia a moment to realize she wasn’t free. She no longer in the dome, but she wasn’t free from the Sun. She was falling with it. She had torn the Sun from the celestial sphere.

A new feeling appeared, that quickly surpassed the pain.

Vertigo.

Downfall.

Fear.

Determination turned into anguish and dread. For the first time in her long life, the Princess was utterly defenseless. Completely ignoring the lashes of pain, she squirmed inside her prison, desperately trying to escape. Run away. Survive.

But it was hopeless. The bindings didn’t give in. The cage didn’t break. Celestia couldn’t do anything but helplessly watch how the tops of the trees came closer and closer.

Then there was a blinding light.

And the excruciating pain that was the last thing Celestia felt.

IV - The Traitor

Fueled by bitter memories

Shining Armor stirred and opened his eyes. He felt a stabbing pain on his jaw, and his vision was blurry. He could hear voices far away, too weak to make out the words. His mind needed a few seconds to recall what had just happened.

The captain got on all four with a jump. He lost his balance and almost fell flat again, but managed to regain it on time. He shook his head and pushed his way through the pony-shaped blurs that were trying to stop him. He shoved away a yellow blob, who shouted in protest.

Shining didn’t stop until reaching the motionless body of Cadance. The ponies gathered around quickly backed away, except one. Shining slowly shook his head, unable to believe what he was seeing. Cadance was lying on a pool of her own blood, in an unnatural position, with her body covered in wounds, her eyes rolled inside her skull, and the blue spear still driven into her chest. The captain muttered a curse to Nightmare Moon, and slipped down to the ground, miserable. The Guard officer started to cry, his whole body trembling with each sob.

“I am sorry.” muttered a voice next to him. Shining looked up and saw the surgeon of the Royal Guard, Sawbones. The ash grey unicorn stared the body with a defeated expression, which was only seen in the rare situations when he lost a patient. “She is still alive, but her heartbeat is very weak, and she has lost a lot of blood. I-I don’t think she will survive.” he added, his voice breaking.

Shining Armor choked out a whimper and nodded. Perhaps if Sawbones had had his tools, or if they could take her to the Canterlot Hospital or some other city, perhaps they would have been able to save her. Shaking, the stallion slowly leaned forward, and daintily put a kiss on her cheek. He closed his eyes and clenched his teeth, swearing revenge for Cadance and Twilight Velvet.

“I beg to disagree.”

Shining blinked. One of the eyes of Cadance had turned inside its socket and was now looking at him directly. “Cadance?” whispered the stallion.

The head of the mare nodded slightly, and she closed her eyes.

Shining Armor watched in disbelief how princess Cadance got on her hooves. Her movements were slow, careful and quivering from the pain, but firm at the same time. The mare turned her head until her neck let out a snap and she emitted a satisfied sigh. A pink wisp circled around the shaft of the spear, which fell to the ground with a metallic sound. She grabbed with her mouth her right foreleg, twisted in an impossible angle, and pulled until it was back to its right place with a sickening creak. She held her left hind leg against the stone, and used it as a support point to reposition the tarsus joint. Then she took a deep breath, leaned forward, and spat a gush of blood.

Cadance opened her eyes and gave her coltfriend a tired smile. Shining closed his jaw, wiped off the tears from his eyes, and took a step forward to kiss Cadance’s lips. A few seconds later, Shining broke the contact, feeling more relieved than ever. “You’re alive.” he muttered.

The princess nodded. “Barely, but yes.”

“How is it possible?” wondered Sawbones out loud, scratching his chin muzzle while he glared the pool of blood Cadance had left behind. “The blood loss should have killed her. And that is without taking into account the rest of her injuries.”

“It seems you need a lot to kill an alicorn.” replied the mare, looking at the medic. “But I still need medical attention.” Cadance took a ragged breath and looked down to her right wing. The destroyed limb lamely hung from her shoulder by a few strings of muscle and tendons. “I also need a sling, or that may fall off completely.”

Sawbones took a few instants to cut a few of the belts that held together his armor and Shining’s and improvise with them an harness to hold Cadance’s wings closed against her side. Satisfied, the mare began walking down the path, but stopped when Sawbones stood in front of her, frowning. “Where do you think you are going, missy?” he grumbled. “You’re not going anywhere until I say so.”

Cadance glared daggers at the smaller unicorn. “I have to go to a hospital.” she said, walking around Sawbones, who blocked her way again. The princess huffed in annoyance. “Move!”

“You have a spearhead embedded in your ribcage and half of your blood is coating the path. Alicorn or not, trying to go anywhere by yourself will significantly lower your chances of survival. I don’t even know how you’re standing!”

Cadance’s determination wavered. She looked at Shining Armor for support, but the stallion shook his head. Sighing, the mare carefully lied on the ground. “Fine,” she muttered. Shining sat next to her and she nuzzled his neck.

The surgeon contemplated the couple for an instant. “Spitfire!” he barked out. The yellow mare stood next to him an instant later, saluting.

“Sir?”

“Go to the closest city and request an aerial medical patrol.” ordered the stallion with sotto voice. “Now that we know the princess is alive, I don’t want to take the risk of her bleeding to death.” He glanced the pool of blood, that was starting to dry already. “Make sure to insist that they take with them blood bags to spare. Now go!”

“Sir, yes sir!” replied Spitfire, delaying just enough to salute again. Then she opened her wings and took off to the night sky, leaving behind a trail of flames.

The few Royal Guards watched the pegasus fly away. “So, uh…” said Shining, glancing at the fallen Blueblood. “What happened to him?”

All eyes turned to the hornless unicorn. “Ah, the big idiot tried to fence off Nightmare Moon, and she broke his horn.” said Sawbones nonchalantly. “He is just unconscious. Shame, we would have one less idiot in this world. Now,” the doctor looked at Cadance and completely missed the daggers Shining Armor was glaring at him. “I am going to run an exam on you so I can give the medical patrol a list of injuries…” Sawbones trailed off when the alicorn’s head dipped alarmingly.

“Cadance? Cadance!” screamed Shining. The princess collapsed abruptly, her eyes closed. There was a burst of activity. An amalgamation of voices, very far away, as Cadance fell into the darkness, her life slipping out of her body.

***

Twilight woke up breathing heavily and soaked in sweat. The last dregs of her dreams faded away, full of suns that fell, lightning that struck, and cities that collapsed. And in every nightmare was her mother, always too far away to save.

The unicorn sat up and rubbed her eyes with a hoof. She wanted nothing more than lie down again and sleep her problems away, but that was not an option. Even if she was still mentally tired, there were things to do. She got on her hooves, and stretched her legs one by one, until she heard a satisfying pop, and let out a grunt.

Twilight turned around and saw two fillies, a tiny dragon, and a pile of apples. “Good night, Twilight!” the three of them said at the same time.

She blinked, confused. “Spike? Sweetie? And…uh.”

“Ah’m Apple Bloom!” replied the yellow filly. She had her red mane pulled into a tail with a bow almost as large as her. “Ah brought ya this,” she pointed at the apples, “to thank ya for saving mah sister.”

Twilight instantly guessed who she was talking about. The accept was a clear giveaway. “You are Applejack’s little sister, right?” she asked, eyeing the apples. They were just harvested, still covered in fresh dew. Twilight licked her lips. She was starving. She levitated one of the fruits towards her and took a big bite, not even considering to peel them. ‘Mmmh, apple.’

“How is she doing, by the way?” she asked after swallowing. She was immensely thankful to the filly for the gift.

Apple Bloom shrugged. “She’s alright’. She and Big Macintosh are at the farm, trying’ to convince Granny Smith to come here.”

Twilight guessed Big Macintosh was their father and Granny Smith…well, their grandmother. She finished the apple and took another one, red and shiny. “Shouldn’t you be with your mother?” she asked.

“Ah have no mother,” simply replied Apple Bloom. “Ah didn’t meet mah parents.”

Twilight froze. “Isn’t Big Macintosh your father?”

“What? No!” she giggled, as if the sole idea was ridiculous. “Big Mac is mah big brother!”

Twilight opened and closed her mouth, uncertain. ‘I better not mention this if I speak to Applejack.’ she though. If Apple Bloom was a baby when they died, it was normal that she didn’t mind speaking about it, but Applejack herself was probably a different matter. Twilight sighed sadly, feeling somewhat connected to the farmer. The unicorn chewed the rest of the apple, avoiding Apple Bloom’s eyes. ‘I wonder how she coped with it…’

After a long silence, Sweetie Belle spoke up. “Where is Sunset?”

Twilight swallowed and sighed yet again. “She wasn’t in the castle with the others,” she muttered. “I think Nightmare Moon kidnapped her.”

Sweetie Belle dipped her head and stared to the ground, dumbfounded. “But why?” asked Spike. “Why would she want Sunset?”

Twilight shook her head. She wondered exactly the same. “I don’t know,” she replied, although she had some suspicions, none of which fated anything good for Sunset. The student has stood against Nightmare Moon, so the obvious conclusion is that she wanted to punish her. But then, why didn’t she take all six mares with her? Obviously, there was something she wasn’t seeing. “I hope she is alright,” said Twilight, grabbing a third apple.

“I thought you and Sunset didn’t get along,” muttered Sweetie Belle.

Twilight let out a small chuckle. “It’s true we have never really been friends, but that doesn’t mean I wish her any ill.” That was an understatement, and Twilight knew it. Sunset had been the student of Princess Celestia since before she applied for the School of Gifted Unicorns. From that point onwards, the Princess split her attention between the two unicorns. Twilight had always suspected that was the main reason for Sunset’s general hostility against her; even if that animosity seemed to have receded a lot in the last years, to the point of being able to hold a perfectly normal conversation.

Before, however, almost every encounter ended with some yelling in the best cases; or in an open fight, in the worst. Sunset daily seeked confrontations with Twilight whenever she was alone in the palace’s garden. And it didn’t matter how much Celestia scolded her, after a few days, Sunset was back to her old ways. Twilight was immensely thankful of her change of attitude. The skirmishes with throwable objects weren’t something she missed from her foalhood.

A voice interrupted Twilight’s thoughts. “What are you doing to do now?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Investigate,” replied Twilight. “Apple Bloom, may I keep these apples?” The yellow filly nodded, and Twilight began putting the fruits on her saddlebags. “I want to go to the crater.”

“What for?” asked Spike.

Twilight locked the pin of the flap and draped the saddlebags over her back. “Princess Celestia can’t be gone. She must be somewhere, and the crater is the first clue I have.” she replied, adjusting the belt. Applejack’s barrel was far larger than hers.

The two fillies and baby dragon shared a look. “Ya leaving now?” asked Apple Bloom.

Twilight nodded. “Yes, sorry. I won’t be gone for long, a few hours at much.” Satisfied with the fit of the saddlebags, Twilight turned around. “Are you coming, Spike?”

Spike opened his mouth to say yes, but he stopped, looked to the campsite and bit his lip. “Y-you better go alone. I don’t want to slow you down.” he nervously replied.

“Are you sure? I wouldn’t mind carrying you.” Twilight insisted. The extra weigh would be worth it for having somebody to talk to.

“No, no, really!” replied Spike, shaking his head. “I gotta go. Bye!”

Twilight watched Spike hurry away, crooking an eyebrow. He would never reject the chance to go somewhere interesting with her. “What is up with him?” she asked the two fillies, who shared a look and shrugged at the same time. Twilight glanced at the camp for a second more, before pushing that out of her mind and heading for the edge of the forest.

The unicorn had never had a very good sense of direction, but she was confident on being able to locate the crater just with the residual magic. Returning to the camp, however, would be a different matter. Last night, she had taken a huge risk by going deep into the forest with no mean to find her way back to the camp. ‘I should be able to plant a beacon on one of these trees-’

“Twilight!”

Twilight gave a bounce, startled by the sudden voice. She looked behind, and saw Lyra trotting towards her with another mare. “H-hi Lyra,” she stammered.

“Sorry I startled you,” she said with a sheepish smile. “It’s just that I saw you leaving, and I wanted to introduce you to Bonnie.”

Twilight remembered Lyra talking about her couple back in the train. She looked at the other pony, a beige earth mare with curly blue and pink mane. The unicorn’s brain came to a halt as she connected the dots and realized she had made a mistake. “Y-you are Bon Bon, aren’t you?” She nodded, smiling. Twilight let out a nervous giggle. “I am so sorry! Lyra told me about you, but she never mentioned you were…well,” The unicorn waved a hoof. “a mare.”

Bon Bon crooked an eyebrow and looked at Lyra. “You didn’t?”

Lyra shook her head, surprised. “I did…didn’t I?”

Twilight quickly went over the conversation in the train. It didn’t matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t recall a single moment when the gender of her marefriend was implied. “I believe,” she said, unable to hold back a smile. “that you accidentally used non-gender-specific words.”

Lyra stared her in disbelief for a moment, and then exploded into laughter. “For real? I can’t decide if that means I am incredibly talented or dumb! Anyways, this is Bon Bon, by marefrieeeeeend.” said Lyra, grinning.

Twilight smiled nervously and offered her hoof to Bon Bon. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Likewise.” she replied, grinning as well.

“And…uh. Sorry for thinking you were a stallion.”

Bon Bon tilted her head back and laughed. Twilight let out a sigh, relieved. She had never felt so ridiculous. Thankfully, the misunderstanding had ended amusingly for everypony involved.

***

Twilight smiled when the tracking spell gave her the same direction as last time. The magic beacon she had placed at the edge of the clearing was still in the same relative position to her. That meant she had not deviated from her path, and the forest was not playing with her again.

The explosion of the Sun, as she had expected, had spread an immense amount of magic everywhere. Even from the campsite there was a faint smell of solar magic, which reminded her of the dawn. But as she came closer, the sensation grew more intense.

Little by little the forest around her changed. Looking upwards, she could see the tops of the tallest trees were at first devoid of leaves, and then also burned. The more she walked, the lower were the area where the trees had been damaged. The ground was covered in charred leaves and broken twigs that snapped with every step she took. The forest was in absolute silence, and the scent of burned wood filled the air. Through her hoof, she could feel an unusual warmth on the ground. It felt nice, welcoming.

Several minutes later, the trees around her were completely burned. In some of them she could still see embers, glowing like stars in the night. In the ground there was a mixture of twigs and a thick layer of ashes. There was not a single leaf anymore. ‘The magic must have turned them to dust instantly,’ thought Twilight, suppressing a shudder. The smell in the air didn’t remind her of a warm stove anymore. It was choking and nasty and it spoke of dead animals.

The torn branches on the ground grew larger and larger. Twilight stopped a minute to eat one of the apples, thankful for its juicy flesh, and noticed how easy it was to know in which direction they had been struck by the wave of magic. One of the sides of the branches was completely charred. The other, where the blast had hit directly, was several centimeters thinner and was covered in a light layer of ash. Once again, Twilight shuddered at the thought of what could have happened if a pony had been standing there. The unicorn tossed the core to the ground and continued her way, increasingly wary.

A bit later, she started to find whole trees fallen, ripped off their roots and eroded by the blast. The ash was thicker, and her hooves sunk completely with each step she took. The heat stored inside it was no longer nice, it was slightly painful. Nevertheless, this didn’t stop Twilight.

After what seemed like an eternity of dragging her hooves through the ash, Twilight climbed atop of a large fallen trunk. She wiped the sweat off her brow, and rested for a minute. She turned her head to her destination, and her jaw dropped.

The last rows of trees were all fallen, brutally uprooted by the blast. Each and every single one of them was little more than a miserable trunk, dead and withered, and almost submerged in its own remains. Then there was a streak of gray ash specked with shining embers, from which twirled small columns of smoke.

And then, there was the crater.

It was a perfectly circular depression of about three hundred meters of diameter that smoothly descended. The whole surface was covered in a shining dark crust that reflected the moonlight. Twilight needed a moment to understand what she was seeing. The contact with the Sun had melted the dirt, creating a uniform layer of black obsidian.

Twilight stared at the crater for a minute. It was strangely beautiful. It had been born from the destruction of both the Sun and a large area of the forest, but the way the silver light of the Moon reflected on it was fascinating to behold.

The unicorn was so absorbed that she didn’t realize there was somepony behind her until it was too late.

“Who may you be, and what do you expect to find here?”

For the second time in the same day, Twilight let out a yelp and took a hop, losing her balance. She fell from the trunk she was perched on and ended ungracefully sitting on the hot ash. Wincing at the heat, Twilight got up with a jump and tried to shake her rump clean.

A laugh sounded behind her. Carefully, the unicorn peeked over the trunk and saw a figure covered with a cloak, with a hood that obscured its face. “Who are you?” she asked, lighting up her horn as a precaution.

The figure stared Twilight for a moment, and the slowly raised a hoof and pulled back the hood. The moonlight illuminated an angular face covered in white and black stripes. Two golden earrings hanged from her ears. ‘A zebra! What is she doing in the Everfree?’

“My name is Zecora, and I apologize for startling you,” she said, smiling. “I did not mean to be a spook.”

Twilight let the magic fade from her horn. “No, no, I am sorry!” she apologized. “I thought you were…some dangerous creature.”

She let out a chuckle. Her laugh was deep and low, like the beating of a drum. “You have nothing to fear from me,” she said. “for I am the least dangerous thing in here.”

“What is a zebra doing in the Everfree Forest?” Twilight asked, hoping she wouldn’t sound rude. The zebra had all the right to be there, even if it was unusual.

“I am the shaman of my village,” she said, walking towards the crater. “I am here to learn from Equestria, and all it has to offer.”

Twilight followed the zebra, who stopped at the edge and tapped her hoof against the glassy surface. “I need information. What has caused this unusual situation?” she asked, looking back at Twilight.

The unicorn told Zecora all she knew. Even if there were holes in her knowledge, she had a rather good idea of all that Nightmare Moon had done since she had returned, thanks to the five mares. Sunset Shimmer had the rest of the answers. Zecora’s expression darkened as Twilight spoke. She asked a few questions, but mostly remained silent.

When Twilight finished, the zebra remained quiet for a minute, lost in her thoughts. “It’s much worse than I expected,” she muttered, shaking her head. “The solution in my hooves never rested.”

Twilight nodded. She hadn’t been expecting Zecora to have any answer for her, but there was a certain halo of wisdom around her and she found herself trusting her quickly. She could smell her aura, even dulled by the cloak she was wearing over her body. It was exotic and powerful, completely unknown to her. Twilight wondered if all zebras had an aura like that.

“There must be something in charge now,” said Zecora. “Who may be the heir of the crown?”

Twilight opened her mouth to answer, but realized she had no real answer. She had never considered if Princess Celestia had ever officially named anypony as her heir. Simply, the possibility of something happening to the Princes had always been…unthinkable. Perhaps the Prime Minister was the one ruling Equestria at the moment. Perhaps, somepony from the high nobility.

‘Unless…’

Cadance was the only other alicorn in Equestria. Twilight frowned at the possibility of her old foalsitter being Celestia’s heir. It made sense, but Twilight couldn’t picture the carefree alicorn ruling a country. Then again, Cadance had always been an alicorn. Maybe the Princess had been training her in secret to take over the throne, should something happen to her. ‘

“Well…there is another alicorn,” she began to say, uncertain. “But I am not sure Princess Celestia instructed anypony to be her heir.”

“And what about you?” Zecora asked. “Who better to succeed her than her apprentice?”

Twilight blinked, surprised. “W-who, me?” she stammered. “No! No way, I am not prepared for that. I mean, look at me!” She made a vague gesture around her. “I am stumbling around the Everfree, instead of helping with the evacuation of Canterlot or…or…I don’t know! Something more useful.” Twilight let out a sigh and sat on the ashes, paying no mind to the heat. The unicorn wondered where her family would have gone. ‘Maybe Manehattan, with my grandfather,” she though. ‘I wonder how he will react to the news about her daughter…’

The unicorn shook her head. Lost in her thoughts, she had missed Zecora’s words. “Sorry, what did you say?” she asked. It was the second time she had zoned off in the same day.

“I was asking what are you here to do,” replied the mare. “Our conversation must have distracted you.”

“Right! Give me a moment.” the unicorn got on all four. Indeed, she hadn’t come here just to see the crater. Looking around, Twilight located a somewhat clean area, a few meters from the edge. She walked over it and climbed to a nearby log, to avoid disturbing the ash. Using her telekinesis, she got rid of a few scattered branches and flattened the surface. The ash was smooth and fine, like beach sand. It would be unorthodox, but it would work.

Using her magic, she traced two concentric circles. They were much bigger than what was usually necessary for an arcane circle, but the ash prevented her from making small drawings. It took her a few minutes to finish the pattern, and for the whole process Zecora watched interested, sitting on the same log as her.

The spell she was going to use was not complicated, but she wanted to be completely certain she did it right. Twilight double checked all the commands and bindings were properly done, and then triple checked. She gave a satisfied nod, and licked her lips in expectancy.

She lighted up her horn and fed the circle with magic. After a few seconds, a small transparent orb coalesced in its center, hovered in the air for a moment, before flying over to the center of the crater. Once there, it stopped for an instant, and then began orbiting around the center, moving further away with each lap.

“It’s an arcane probe.” she explained Zecora, who was unsuccessfully trying to follow the sphere with her eyes. Twilight had made its speed is as high as possible without hindering the final outcome. “It is going to scan the crater and its surroundings, taking samples of all the magic it finds. Then it will return to me so I can analyze it.” she said, smiling. She had had to improvise the spell a bit, and was rather proud of it.

The zebra looked away from the orb, which was starting to glow by itself. “And what are you trying to achieve with this?”

Twilight let out a sigh. “I am sure Princess Celestia hasn’t have died from the fall of the Sun.” she muttered. “If she is here, that orb will allow us to find her.” She furrowed her brow, determined. Celestia was an alicorn. Just like she was far more powerful than any unicorn, Twilight believed she was also far more resilient than earth ponies.

While they waited for the spell to finish the scan, Zecora asked Twilight a few technical questions about how it worked. The zebra pleasantly surprised her. It was unusual for her to talk to somepony who was at her same knowledge level, somepony she could talk with about magic without stopping every few seconds to explain whatever she was saying.

‘I wonder how she learned so much.’

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat when the orb came to a halt in front of her. Its surface emitted a light that was almost blinding from that close. She didn’t need to sample the orb to know those were the remains of the solar magic. But there was more. The surface was not even. She could see tiny streaks of other colors.

Unable to hold back her glee, she lighted up her horn to begin sampling.

‘I am going to find the Princess!’

***

“Ugh”

“You woke up.”

“What…what happened? The last thing I remember is…falling.”

“Don’t worry. You are safe now.”

“Who are you? Why can’t I see!?”

“A little bit of light would make things easier, yes.”

There was a brief silence. Then, a blue shine filled the darkness, along with the gentle hum of magic.

The light was faint, but enough to allow the mare to see a masculine face a few centimeters over hers. It was a young face, attractive, crowned by a messy blue mane. His orange wings extended over to the sides like a protecting embrace. Much to her dismal, the mare felt her cheeks go red. The only thing she could do was to beg the blue light would obscure it.

“W-what happened?” stammered Trixie.

“The city collapsed. You were still there. The pegasi that were left behind tried to rescue you. I was almost too late. Now we’re trapped under the rubble of some building.” quickly explained the pony.

Trixie blinked. The memories of those moments were diffuse and confusing. She remembered the sheer terror she felt as she fled from the devastation of Canterlot, and then the vertigo on her stomach when she fell to the void. The unicorn pushed a bit more of magic into her horn and looked around. Indeed, they were trapped underneath a fallen wall. By sheer luck, the corner of a building had managed to resist the fall, and had sheltered them. The mare was lying on a mixture of broken bricks, debris and shattered beams. A light mist of dust still floated in the air.

Two questions popped in the mare’s mind. The first was more urgent. “How long have I been unconscious?” she asked, with a panicked tone on her voice.

The orange pony though for a second. “About two hours, I believe. Maybe less.” he replied.

Trixie let out a relieved sigh. It wasn’t like she had anywhere to go, but she would rather be out for as little time as possible. “Good, Trixie is glad it wasn’t too long.” With that question answered, it was the moment to move to the second. The mare smiled tensely. “Now, why are you lying on top of the great and powerful Trixie?”

“I honestly can’t move much.” replied the pony.

The mare huffed. “Trixie thinks you have plenty of space to get off Trixie.”

“That’s not the issue.” replied the stallion between gritted teeth, looking to a side. Trixie followed his eyes, and found that his right wing was trapped under a beam at the metacarpals. The feathers were stained with dry blood.

“Oh heavens!” shrieked Trixie, covering her mouth with her hooves. “That must hurt like Tartarus!”

“It’s not so bad.” replied the stallion, with a tired smile. “After an hour, I stopped feeling the wing.”

Trixie grimaced. “Let me help you.” The unicorn enveloped the beam on a telekinetic field and pushed upwards. At first it didn’t move, but with a little more of effort, she managed to raise it enough for the stallion to slip the wing from underneath. Very carefully, the guard closed his wings and crawled to his right. Trixie let out a relieved sigh when the pressure over her disappeared. She stretched her legs and back like a cat to get rid of the numbness. Apart from a few scratches, she didn’t feel any other wound. It was obvious she had been luckier than her companion.

Trixie lay on the ground and studied the stallion. He was still wearing his plate armor, although he must have lost his helmet at some point. He had a heavier body constitution than the average pegasus, maybe because of some earth pony ancestor. Even through the armor, Trixie could imagine his muscles, tensing with each movement.

“Is there anything wrong?” asked the stallion, with a bloody feather in his mouth, just plucked from his wing.

Trixie felt herself blushing again. “Oh, nothing!” quickly replies the mare, looking away. “Trixie is…thankful you saved her.” she said after a short pause.

The guard smiled and turned his attention back to his wing. “No worries. I joined the guard to protect ponies, though I admit I never expected this particular scenario.” He grunted as he plucked another stained broken feather, which he promptly spat. “We’ve been crazy lucky. You are not hurt, are you?”

“N-no, I am fine.” Trixie looked at the pegasus through the corner of her eye. She could get lost on those blue eyes. “W-what is y-your name?” stammered the mare.

“Flash Sentry.” quietly said the stallion, not looking up. He pulled out one last broken feather from his wing and got on all for with a small grunt. “Let’s go,” he said, nodding. “we have to find a way to get out of here.”

Trixie reacted a moment later. She got on her hooves and hurried to stand next to Flash Sentry to help him walk, with maybe a little more of body contact that was absolutely necessary.

***

Twilight heard the sound of wood touching wood and looked up from the table. Zecora had placed a wooden glass from which raised steam, and sat in front of her. The tears distorted her vision, and she couldn’t make out her expression. The smell of the drink was nice and inviting, but she didn’t want it. Twilight rested her head back on the table.

Zecora let out a heavy sigh. “I beg you sap out of your sorrow,” she said. “Please, in your sadness do not wallow.”

Twilight let out a huff. “That’s very easy to say,” she muttered, suppressing a hiccup.

She had probed the orb. Indeed, there was other magic in it. Namely, the aura of Zecora and herself. There was nothing else alive on the crater or its surroundings. There was no sign of the Princess.

‘Celestia is gone.’

At some point while she followed Zecora to her home, she broke down. The angst from the loss of both her mother and Celestia finally caught up to her. She began crying, gently at first, but eventually requiring Zecora for guidance, as she couldn’t see through the tears. When they arrived to the hut, the zebra held the unicorn, so she could let it all out.

Twilight didn’t know how long she had been crying, but at some point she let Zecora sit her at the table, where she waited morosely. She felt hollow, as if a massive pit had opened at the bottom of her stomach. She absently-minded studied the interior of the house, with a numb sense of curiosity.

Zecora’s hut was built inside a hollow tree. The interior was decorated exactly how she would have expected. Colorful masks, pumpkins and glass vials; and a large cauldron in the middle. The air was filled with a spicy and slightly acrid smell.

Twilight cleaned her eyes and muzzle with a hoof. She noticed the glass, still smoking, and took it in her hooves. The unicorn took a sip, even if just so Zecora didn’t feel dejected. It tasted spicy, with a strange sweet aftertaste. When the hot liquid went down her throat, she felt a warm tickle inside her. She blinked and took another gulp. The heat extended inside her with every beat of her heart. It was comforting and invigorating. She didn’t feel tired anymore, nor helpless. A new determination flourished inside her. She frowned, and carefully placed the empty glass on the table.

“Thank you,” she whispered, wondering what sort of potion had Zecora just served her. She looked up and saw the zebra with an amused smile on her face. “What was that?”

“A potion often used to heal those with a broken heart,” she replied. “I knew it would help you recover your will and sharp. If you are who you claim to be, I see nopony more fitted for this.”

Twilight stared at the glass. It still hurted to think about her mother and Princess Celestia, but it didn’t clench her heart anymore. “I have to find Cadance.” she muttered, tapping the table with a hoof. “Right now, I think she is the most powerful mare in Equestria. Maybe then we will find out a way to bring down Nightmare Moon. I doubt any nation will be willing to assist us, so everything depends on us.”

The pony looked at Zecora, who gave her a satisfied smile. Despite everything, she couldn’t help but smile as well. “It’s time to strike back.” she said as she got up, heading for the door and closing it after her.

***

Shining Armor entered the room and carefully closed the door. Trying to make the least possible noise, he tiptoed towards the bed.

Cadance slept placidly. Most of her barrel was covered on bandages and dressings, that extended to her upper half of her limbs. Her right foreleg hanged from a small splint. On the left, an IV injected blood and healing potion directly into her veins. A small machine pumped air into her lungs through a flexible tube.

The captain watched her marefriend for a long while. Seeing her in such a terrible state saddened him, but at the same time he was glad that she was alive. The medical patrol that Sawbones had requested had taken her directly to the Manehattan hospital, where the medics immediately started working to save the life of the princess.

Shining Armor arrived to the hospital several hours later, along with his father. Exhausted by the walk, the stallion crossed the doors dragging his hooves and called out Cadance. When the nurse refused to tell him in which room was the princess, he panicked. Even though the nurse insisted that Cadance was safe, Shining could only see somepony preventing him to know the real state of her marefriend. It took the help of several orderlies and Night Light to get him to calm down. In the end, they allowed him to sleep on Cadance’s room, under condition that he didn’t try to wake her up.

The captain hadn’t left the room at any point, except for a very necessary visit to the bathroom. He wanted to be there when she woke up. He sat on one of the chairs and tried to get comfortable with a pillow. He didn’t know how long it had been since they had left Canterlot, but it felt like eternity. Exhausted, the pony closed his eyes and let out a sigh. Just a few seconds. Enough for his mind to clear, and then he would continue watching over Cadance.

Shining Armor woke up with a start. He blinked and licked his dry lips. He had fallen asleep, but outside it was still dark, so it couldn’t have been for very long. An instant later, the pony realized how absurd his observation was. Without the day and night cycle there was no easy way to measure the passing of time without a clock, and there was none in the room. He could have accidentally slept hours. Cadance could have woken up, and he wouldn’t have been there for her. A quick look confirmed him that, however, the princess was still asleep.

Determined to not fall asleep again, Shining got on his hooves and opened the window. The city was quite calm. Just like in Canterlot, panic had reigned after the fall of the Sun, but they had managed to restore order quickly enough. There were very few civilian on the streets. Most ponies that wandered the streets were Ground Guards, to keep order and inform everypony of the situation.

Shining turned around to sit back on the chair, but stopped mid-way and looked at Cadance. There was something different in her. The last time he had looked, her face was calm, but now she had a strange grimace. Her lips were tense, turned upwards. Worried, Shining walked over to the princess. “Cadance?” he whispered.

The face of the princess contracted and her body started shaking, as she emitted choking noises. Shining Armor froze. His legs wouldn’t move, wouldn’t carry him to alert a nurse.

Then Cadance’s horn lighted up. A telekinetic field grabbed the air tube and completely pulled it off. Then the choked noises turned into a laugh clear like the song of a bird. Shining stared with his jaw open as Cadance cracked up loudly.

When she finally stopped laughing, the princess let out a long sigh and looked at her coltfriend, with a small smile on her face.

“Anything wrong?” she asked, grinning at Shining’s utterly confused expression.

The stallion relaxed and let out a chuckle. “You scared me,” he confessed. “I thought you were having a seizure.” he muttered, as he leaned forward and kissed the princess on the lips.

“Don’t worry.” whispered Cadance, kissing him back. “You are not going to get rid of me so easily.”

“I’d never want to get rid of you.” replied the captain, nuzzling her neck. With his magic, he pulled his chair closer so he could sit next to the bed. “How do you feel?”

Cadance paused before answering. “Surprisingly good. Nothing hurts, although I suspect I am under heavy anesthesia.”

Shining Armor nodded. “That’s right. The doctors told me you have enough anesthesias to knock out four ponies.”

“…oh.” said the princess, surprised. She had never considered that her unnatural resistance would also apply to non-dangerous chemicals. “And tell me, how am I overall?” she asked, nodding to her bandaged body.

“…t-the doctors say you’ll heal.” replied Shining, rubbing the back of his neck. The hesitation didn’t go unnoticed by the princess.

“Shining? Please, tell me everything.” said Cadance. “I can cope with it. I would rather know now than be kept in the dark.”

Shining Armor bit his lip. “Are…are you sure?”

Much to his surprise, Cadance let out a chuckle. “Look Shining, I just battled an eldritch alicorn and got away in one piece.” The captain grimaced at that. “It doesn’t matter what that whorse has done me, I am sure it beats being dead.”

Despite her words, Shining still hesitated. He didn’t want Cadance to worry too much about her health, since that could difficulty her recovery. At the same time, maybe it would be good for her to know. Still not completely sure, Shining leaned back on his chair and tapped his hooves together.

“Well, the doctors haven’t given me a full list of all your injuries, but it looked pretty bad. They said even a strong earth pony would have struggled to survive that after being immediately taken to the hospital, which wasn’t your case. The blood loss looked particularly bad, since you had a pierced heart and internal bleeding.” Shining made a pause to wipe a tear off his eye. “Still, you answered very well to the healing magic, so…you are pretty much out of danger. You are just going to have many, many scars.”

Cadance nodded slightly. “I see. Well, I honestly expected worse.” Shining didn’t reply and looked down. “…that is not it, is it?” asked Cadance, with a tone of panic in her voice.

“…it isn’t.” muttered the unicorn.

Cadance waited patiently to continue, but Shining remained quiet. She princess shuddered in fear, and reached over to touch his cheek. “Shining…please…”

“I-I’m sorry, Cadace…you…” Shining swallowed and looked at Cadance on the eyes. “You have lost the wing.”

***

“Dumb Spike!”

A little filly walked through the forest. With each step she took, she made sure to purposefully stomp the unlucky plants that stood on her path, and sometimes kicked an innocent pebble. It was obvious she wasn’t in a good mood.

“Take that!” said Sweetie Belle, sending the pebble a few meters on the air before continuing her path of destruction. “What is up with Spike?” she asked, to nopony in particular. “Spike, I have candy. You want some? ‘I can’t now, I have to help Rarity.’ ” she said, mimicking the voice of the small dragon. “ ‘Rarity, you need something?’ ‘Rarity, how can I help you?’ ‘Rarity, would you like me to bring you a pillow’ Rarity, Rarity, Rarity!” shrieked Sweetie, trampling some blue flowers.

“Since he came back from the castle, Spike has been behind her all the time!” complained Sweetie. “He doesn’t listen to me anymore! And I don’t know why! Rarity is a grown-up. She’s boring, she doesn’t like playing! Why does Spike want to be her friend?”

A high-piched cry startled the filly, who screamed and tried to hide inside a bush. Very carefully, she poked out her head and localized the source of the sound, a few trees further. “An owl!” she muttered, coming out from the bush. “You leave me alone!”

“Hoo?” said the animal, curiously looking at the filly from the branch it was perched on.

“I told you to leave me alone!” repeated Sweetie, taking a stone on her telekinesis and tossing it towards the bird of prey. The pebble missed the owl from more than a meter. Avian and equine followed the trajectory of the stone with their eyes, which ended inside a large bush.

Sweetie Belle felt her blood run cold when, instead of the hit against the ground of the stone, she head a faint moan of pain.

The filly silently stared the bush, trying to decide what to do. She was scared of what could be hidden in there, but she also wanted to know what it was. The necessity to satisfy her curiosity was too strong to turn around and run, but she was too terrified to investigate.

The owl hooted again and took flight, making no noise.

Sweetie Belle scanned the bush with her eyes. It was still the same. The only thing that had emerged from inside was that moan. And it wasn’t an animal. Animals didn’t sound like that. It was the voice of a pony. If it was a bad pony, he would have attacked her already. Or maybe it would have escaped, after losing his surprise advantage. If it was a good pony, why hadn’t it shown himself yet?”

Very cautiously, Sweetie Belle took a step forward, not taking her eyes off the bush for an instant.

“Sweetie Belle!”

The filly let out a yelp and lost her balance, awkwardly falling to the ground. She looked up and saw Twilight Sparkle a few meters to her left, trotting towards her through the bushes. Sweetie felt an immediate relief, a feeling that a second later was substituted by the fear of punishment. Twilight would probably not be happy to see her strolling around in the forest.

“Twilight? What are you doing here?” asked the filly.

“That is what I’d like to know!” said Twilight, frowning and putting her on all four with her telekinesis. “What are you doing, wandering in the Everfree by yourself? Don’t you know it’s very dangerous? Are you injured?” she asked, studying the filly from every angle.

“I’m okay!” said Sweetie. “Really, I am fine. And what do you mean ‘the Everfree’?”

Twilight stomped her hoof. “The Whitetail Woods and the Everfree Forest are connected! Don’t you see how different this looks from the camp?”

The little filly crooked and eyebrow and looked around for the first time. Indeed, the forest was far more dense and intimidating than the area where they were camped. “…whoops.”

“Whoops, indeed,” agreed Twilight, letting out a relieved sigh when she didn’t see any wound on the filly. “Sweetie,” she said, more calm. “Tell me, what are you doing here?”

Sweetie looked down to the ground. “I…um…I got angry with Spike.”

Twilight blinked. She opened her mouth to ask the cause, but decided getting back to the campsite was more important. “We better go back. Let’s go,” she said, gently pushing Sweetie with a hoof. The little filly hesitated for a moment, glancing at the bushes; then followed Twilight back into the campsite.

***

‘Rise’

The order didn’t sound in her ears, but inside her head and echoes in her mind. She didn’t want to rise. There was something terrible out there, something that wanted to hurt her. She resisted, and tried to fall into unconsciousness. She would be safe there. It wouldn’t hurt her there.

‘Rise!’

This time she couldn’t resist. Against her will, her eyes snapped open and her mind cleared up. She got on all four, gasping for breath. She was in the void. It didn’t matter where she looked, all she saw is the most infinite blackness, darker than a night with no stars. She couldn’t even see the solid surface her hooves are touching, but she could see her own body. It’s cold, very cold, but she didn’t see any puff of mist every time she breathed out. She felt clumsy, as if her muscles didn’t respond properly to the orders her brain addressed.

‘Am I dead?’

She reached forward with a hoof, and tried to touch the floor. She didn’t feel touching anything, but her hoof stopped, as if it had collided with an invisible surface. She took a shaky step forward, and let out a sigh of relief when she didn’t fall into the emptiness.

‘Where am I?’

‘You are in the shadowscape.’

Once again, the voice rang inside her head. She looked around, but she was still alone. Her heart was beating hard inside her chest. She knew that voice. It was Nightmare Moon. “S-show yourself!” she said, trying to sound calm, but her fear still tinted her voice.

Nightmare Moon appeared right in front of her, towering above her like a massive statue. She tried to stay firm, but when the alicorn loomed closer, she couldn’t help but cower and take a step back.

“Say your name, commoner.” ordered Nightmare Moon.

“S-s-sunset Shimmer.” she stammered. Her heart raced. ‘Celestia, help me.’

“Sunset Shimmer,” repeated Nightmare Moon, moving closer to her face. Sunset took another step back. “Do you know why we have taken you here?”

Sunset blinked and a tear slipped down her cheek. “Y-you are going to kill me.” she whimpered, feeling her mouth dry.

Much to her surprise, Nightmare Moon smiled. It was not a cruel or aggressive smile, but merely amused instead. “If we had wanted to end you,” she said after a moment. “We would not have bothered to bring you here. If we did not want you alive, you would have already taken your last breath.”

“T-then what?” she said, wiping her tears with a hoof.

Nightmare Moon sat down. Her helmet, armor and shoes faded into a whirl of blue mist, leaving her naked. Her black coat acquired a bluish hue against the absolute blackness that surrounds them. Her indigo mane sprinkled with stars danced around her. Now that she was not trying to kill Sunset, but calm and serene, she didn’t look so threatening. If it weren’t because of the fangs, right then she would look as regal and solemn as Celestia. “We have an offer to make you.”

Sunset blinked and shook her head, bewildered “What do you mean?” she asked, cautious.

“We have the intent to reign over Equestria, like our sister has been doing for the last thousand years.” said Nightmare Moon. “We are aware that our arrival to Equestria has been…perhaps not very fortunate. We have taken Celestia off the throne in a brutal and harsh way, but our intentions are noble. We want the best for Equestria.”

Sunset studied her for a moment. She wasn’t able to find on her face any of the usual sighs that appeared when somepony is lying, so either she was telling her the truth, or she was an excellent liar. “Why should I believe you?” Sunset asked, frowning. “Equestria loved Celestia, and you…” She stopped when she realized she didn’t know what had happened to the Princess. “…she is gone.”

Nightmare Moon nodded. “We admit that it may seem our intentions are mischievous, but that is not correct. We have always been the most honest of the two sisters. Celestia likes of having secrets and hide everything that is of no use for her to everypony, including those closer to her. Believe us when we say this change is for the best. We only need somepony, somepony like you, to assist us to show it to the rest of Equestria.”

The unicorn shook her head. “No way! I am loyal to Celestia, and completely trust her. The Princess is my master, and I wouldn’t turn my back to her for anything!” She got on all four and stretched her neck. “Celestia is a better monarch that you will ever be!”

Nightmare Moon smiled again. She didn’t seem irked at all by Sunset’s refusal, which unnerved the unicorn. She remained silent for a minute, holding Sunset’s stare. “Are you certain? You would be a fantastic candidate for my right hoof.”

“Why me?” she asked. “I am sure you can find plenty of madcap ponies more than willing to serve you.”

“Because you have an amazing talent!” replied Nightmare Moon, making an ample gesture with her hoof. “You managed to harness the power of the Elements of Harmony even though you where not the Element of Magic! You activated them, and controlled their power briefly, even if thou should not have the lesser domain over them. We feel your aura. It’s strong, burning with a fiery inner flame. But you are so terribly wasted by Celestia.”

Sunset was taken aback by that. “What are you saying?”

“There is power inside you! An immense power, like the greatest magi of our time! Celestia fears you, she is afraid that a mortal may become too powerful and starts questioning her reign. That is why she keeps you close to her. To control you, and make sure you never reach your fullest potential!”

“T…that is a lie!” Sunset shouted immediately. “That’s a lie! Celestia loves me! I am important for her! She takes care of me, and wishes the best for me!”

“You know as well as we do, that is not true.” said Nightmare Moon with a toothy smile.

“It is!”

“Ah, and we are certain you can remember plenty of moments in which Celestia refused to grant you knowledge or power. She offers you small presents from time to time, to quench your thirst of knowledge; and so you stop searching and learning by yoursef!” Nightmare Moon opened her wings and rose on her back legs. “All Celestia wants from you is your submission and servility!”

“No! Enough! That’s a lie!” Sunset dropped herself to the floor and covered her ears with her hooves. ‘It’s false, false, false. It’s not true. Celestia loves me. Celestia wants the best for me. Celestia takes care of me. Celestia is like a mother to me. Celestia wouldn’t let me get hurt.’ she repeated to herself, like a litany, rocking back and forth with each word.

‘Celestia refused to give you power or knowledge’

A memory, trapped and forgotten after so many years, flourished again. A night with no Moon, in the library. A little filly slips in the reserved section, for which it’s usually needed a written permit from the Princess. She knew there were books in there that Celestia didn’t want her to read. In a few hours, the little filly took dozens of books from their places, reading as fast as possible the knowledge she had been forbidden. Necromancy, nocikinesis, tanathokinesis, time bindings, arcane regression, time travel. The filly didn’t understand many of the procedures there explained, but she did know enough to understand what she was seeing. Power. So much more power than she could have ever imagined.

While she was distracted reading books larger than her, Celestia discovered her and harshly reprimanded her. The filly had never seen Celestia so displeased.

‘I deserve to stand beside you and be your equal…if not your better. Make me a princess!”

‘No. Being a princess must be earned…I have been trying to teach you everything you need to know, but you’ve turned from it. Every time you say you say you deserve to get something without the effort just proves that you are not ready.’

That night almost caused an insurmountable abyss between the two ponies. But it didn’t. The next morning, a tearful filly entered the room of the Princess and begged for her forgiveness.

She did.

Sunset opened her eyes and blinked to get rid of the tears. Nightmare Moon was sitting again, looking at her with attention.

That was the biggest incident she had had with Celestia, but not the only one. There were dozens of moments in which Celestia refused to give Sunset an explanation, arguing that she ‘didn’t need to know that’. Little details she had never considered, but after the words of Nightmare Moon, now saw with another light. ‘I could be different, had I had all that knowledge. Better. More capable.’

The resentment and rancor she felt that night came back. How many times had Celestia cut her wings, how many times had she decided that if she learned more she would become less obedient, less useful?

She wouldn’t be no more than a pawn to her. A disposable piece in the huge chess game Equestria is. Why else would Celestia send her against Nightmare Moon with no instruction or information of what she was going to find? Why else would she have ignored her warnings?

Celestia hadn’t sent her to Ponyville to defeat Nightmare Moon, but to buy herself some more time.

‘I am Celestia’s pawn.’ Sunset closed her eyes shut to fight the tears. ‘Somepony to use only once, and whose loss is not important. Who sits next to Celestia on the board is not me, and never was.’

‘It is Twilight Sparkle.’

Sunset got on her hooves and looked at Nightmare Moon on the eyes. ‘Nevermore. I am never going to be anypony’s pawn.’ she thought, determined. It was time for a change, but of course she wasn’t going to change one master for another. if Nightmare Moon refused her any answer, she would be the one to turn her back to her. She would leave, and she would find the way to destroy her. ‘’If Nightmare Moon doesn’t treat me as an equal, I will make sure she will regret it.’

Sunset bowed to the alicorn. “Tell me what you wish…master.” She said, more resolved than she have ever been.