Cry of the Falling Star

Interlude – At the gates of Canterlot

Luna paced back and forth inside her tent, keeping her increasing nervousness at bay. She was always a calm one, but nopony would stay cool in the existing situation. The occurrences were terrifying and stressful, even worse, she had happened to be slowly losing the ongoing competition between the Moon and the Sun, which not only showed to bring down her hope, it also made everyone tired. They’d lost two hours of sleep already and the day was still extending.

A sudden thought ran through her head, a thought that made her happy for a second. She was no longer the only bad princess in history. The selfishness of the dark insinuation granted her nothing but anger over herself and she quickly galloped out to get away from it.
From her higher position, she oversaw their camp, her eyes slowly gliding upon the great city not a dozen stades farther. The terrain was difficult and rocky, the gates of Canterlot closed, heavily fortified, and as follows, they wouldn’t win by waiting. However… They had gotten this far. She learned a lot from Kamina, the colt that appeared mysteriously and led them with glory back to her hometown. She learned to never give up, to keep up hope and most importantly, to take initiative.

He went in an hour ago. She hadn’t heard of him since. Now was the time for action. ‘I don’t know much about the chances of our survival, but let’s do this!’ Just as she was to turn around to give orders, she was blinded momentary and a loud thunder reached her ears. The explosion came from the city’s foundations and tore the east palace wing off the cliff, causing another set of rumbling as the building fell down the mountain. The buildings beneath the now non-existent sanctuary raged with a reddish and violet fire. ‘Time to attack.’ She whispered to herself.

Rarity awoke to an unusually warm morning, yet it was still a little too early. The castle may’d given out a stark, frigid impression on the outside, but the guest rooms were cozy, well-heated, and she had slept more soundly in the silken incrustation than she ever did at home. She kept thinking about her friends, especially Fluttershy, who she assumed to be harmed the most. What was happening was beyond her, but she wasn’t stupid. She listened closely and unnoticed whenever important talk went on, and emotions she read percipient as well. Still, there were a lot of questions mixing in her head, and confused, she had never gotten any answers.

About an hour spent in bed later, when the dimness outside got cleared out, endowing her with a view on the magnificently treated gardens, a servant entered her room, carrying a golden plate and a rich breakfast. The quiet gentleman treated her as a lady even the day before, and there was no time to worry about others. Rarity finished her meal, looking forward to quicken the preparations of lunch, thus getting potential explanations. Out of boredom, she also decided to try out the castle spa on the servant’s tip, to relieve the stress.

When she finished, it was already noon and strangely, the sunlight pierced shallowly through the rising fog, giving somehow misleading feelings of both cold and warm. On her way in she saw Fluttershy inside the now-empty gardens, who must had been disappointed over the lack of animals and left. With eagerness she boldly plunged in the dining hall for guests, running late for the talk she anticipated. However, the marinated hay with cloverleaves and the honey dough cake were served without the presence of their host, or her lily unicorn friend. Somewhat angry over such select of manners, she slipped away at the second course, bitter too late to leave Fluttershy alone.

She headed directly for the main hall, where she saw the entrance to baron’s office. To others the castle would probably pose an intricate maze, only Rarity had a memory and perhaps a sense for architecture as she adored beautiful housings, and the decorated chambers in Wingesburg were most impressive for a pegasi custom-built fortress. ‘The ponies of the old times certainly knew what they were doing.’ She consolidated her opinion, rushing through the rooms.

‘Most unfortunate.’ she muttered, standing at the wooden door. The Baron held his working place locked tight, and the feeling of magic, possibly a trap, discouraged her further from intruding into his privacy. She walked down and stood in the middle of the hallway, musing about her options.

“YES! Yes! Yes! By the Sun upon the sky, I found it! We did it, Light!” Sounded squeals of success merrily, coming from above. She trotted instantly to the circular staircase on her left, interested in finding whatever shenanigans the two carried out. At the top, she found herself before another doorway. Unconcerned about the German nonsense engraved on the sign overhead, the unicorn peeked inside the partly opened door.

The room filled her with emotions of dread, as it was a horrible mess everywhere, books and different gadgets lying around on the floor. Different working places had been used and subsequently left, the bookshelves covering the walls made her head spin and the chaotically colored lighting flickered a ghastly weird appearance.
So it happened Rarity focused on the table in the middle, laden with many books spread open and a crystal, similar to the one she saw when she was spying in the hotel. It projected a tiny version of Canterlot in all its glory, but it was strange; as if to be touched, it filled space, and Rarity struggled to name it correctly, like Twilight used to refer to objects: ‘Three-dimensional’

“See? If we use the circle drawn on the floor in the East Wing, we should be able to teleport the crystal with the spell over there, just like we planned.” Twilight pointed around madly fast, from projection to books to projection again.

“The energy reaction is going to be enormous when we teleport, but it’ll work. It’s our best shot.” He smiled triumphantly. Rarity observed in silence.

“We really did it! I still can’t believe it.” Suddenly, she went silent, looking directly at Light. “I have something to tell you.” Twilight lowered her voice. "Light I… couldn’t do it without you.”

“Of course not!” He raised his eyebrow and laughed, even a little dismissively.

“No, I mean I…” She leaned forward, closing her eyes, and with a time stop everyone could feel, her lips pressed against his. The kiss lasted a second, maybe two, before Light broke away indecisively. The stars inside his bistre eyes faded away for her as he looked directly into hers:

“That doesn’t feel right.”

“I understand.” She realized what held him back. “I’m… I am sorry.” She blushed and shyly looked away.

“Well… I think we should go then.” He turned away as well, leading for the door out. They betook it carefully over the scattered tomes, and, possibly startled from the experience, heard not of the hoof steps escaping downstairs.

The crystals gleamed around them, set firmly in place, yet unstable. The later reminded her of two murderers chained behind her, just on reach. They decided not to waste any more time, but that was no excuse for recklessness. Twilight paid no focus to the circle, believing their preparation had been perfect. Instead, she once again checked on her friends. Rarity embraced Fluttershy tightly in a hug, comforting words flowing quietly out of her mouth.

When she reached Applejack, their looks entangled and she could see new determination warming inside the cowboy pony. Light said he had visited her the night before, but what did he say to her to bring her up this fast, she couldn’t tell. All she remembered, Light disposed of three vials afterwards, the extra one being rose pink rather than blue or green. ‘Five seconds.’ She alarmed herself, backing out of her distraction. A magical red shield formed over their heads, growing and extending to form a bubble around their bodies.

It was supposed to be quick. She gave the impulse on Light’s nod, the crystals flashed and the world collapsed, leaving utter blackness in her sight. And then, quick all the same, it reconstructed in front of her eyes. At first with blurry images, she couldn’t determine whether the spell worked or not. Her ears rang and her head ached from the magical powers about her. It was all expected, and the dissolving shielding spell washed those minor inconveniences away in a few seconds. She examined her surroundings. Apparently the spell had not worked as perfect as she’d wanted, and she established her location to be the palace sewer.

Out of sudden, Twilight gasped, looking right side at the surface of the murky water. A sloshing pony drew nearer at insane speeds, leaving a trail of white foam, just to be divided by a much bigger object following. Just as the second individual was about to catch up, Light jumped out onto the bank, spinning and splashing the water against the vigorous sunbeams from above. Rainbow appeared, giving Twilight the view of intense moments as it blinded the alligator that snatched after the noble pony. Evading masterfully and perhaps with an epic portion of luck, he landed on his back and now lay sprawling his four legs in all directions.

“Fuck yes! YOU CALL THAT SWIMMING? You ain’t got nothing on me! YOU SLOW PIECE OF SHIT!” He yelled at the top of his lungs as he pointed his hoof right in the stunned animal’s ugly mug, simultaneously hyperventilating and laughing at his success. Once he saw Twilight cocking her head to the side and throwing concerned looks however, he got up and put on a more serious face.

“We have to act swiftly. Do you sense the marking crystals anywhere?” He asked, referring to their way of finding each other they appointed.

“Twilight! Are you down there? We have a problem here!” Elegant as always, Rarity’s voice broke their new-started conversation.

“Nevermind,” he noded. They both flew upside through the bath of sunlight coming from the huge crack in the ceiling. Twilight instantly recognized the courtyard of the East Palace, unfortunately beyond that point, the palace itself was gone. Where the doors were was now a straight cutting and after it a certain fall to death on top of Sun wing that crashed down the mountain. And on it, as if on a cliff, now stood three, no, four Twilights forcing their friends down the missing section.

“I have waited for this, you damned fillies. You gave me and my pals a solid beating some weeks ago, and now we’re in for some revenge.” The leading Twilight said in an aggressive tone.

“It’s always the changelings, isn’t it,” Light mumbled to himself and continued to listen to the main one, though somewhat aggravated as well.

“So we oughta hash out some terms then.” The changeling raised its voice even further. Rarity and Applejack sent Twilight some signals of disapproval, while Fluttershy stayed curled up at Pinkamena’s hooves, too confused to apprehend danger. Oddly enough, Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be found.

“Listen, violet. You can either surrender and walk with us to the main palace, or you can watch your friends fall to their deaths one by one.”

It tried to scold her with a tough regard, but she looked elsewhere. By her side, Light started building up insane amount of magic energy again and she was curious as to what might happen.

“Hey! I’m talking to you!” The changeling leader snapped out, not taking being ignored too kindly.

“Yes, you are, and we would all be glad if you’d just stop.” Light smiled warmly.

“What the hell did you just say to me, you punk?”

“Just shut up.” He said, releasing a wave of invisible power from his horn, putting down the magical fires on the trees nearby, but more importantly, knocking all the changelings over the edge. The other elements left their roles of hostage unaffected and came running towards the lightly duo.

Twilight gazed upon him, visibly startled: “You… you knocked them…”

“Hey, you’re not seriously worrying about those creatures, are you? And if you are, don’t be. The last time I checked, those things had wings.”

“Ya ‘now he’s right, Twilight. They ain’t our problem, and from what Ah ‘now, we’ve gotta push on now.” Applejack intervened, hitting Twilight with another surprise. ‘What does she know?!’

“Urgh, have it your way then. But that doesn’t mean I’m okay with this.” She responded after a while of thinking, not able to think of conclusive argument. She returned back to drag Pinkamena with her, catching up with Rarity and Fluttershy.

“Listen Twilight, we still have a problem. Rainbow Dash escaped and I saw her headed for the palace too. We’ve got to be careful.” Rarity brought up a talk.

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.” Answered Twilight half-aloof, tending to her thoughts and focusing on the couple in front. Applejack seemed to carry gratitude in her voice when she talked with Light, and giggled whenever he replied. Also, she tended to lean suspiciously close toward him and Twilight did not know whether he feels completely comfortable with it. ‘Bah, what does she have to offer anyway? Apples? Ha!’ She mused to satisfy her jealousy with latent contempt.

Their way to the main palace was short and quiet, in terms of not being harassed by any more changelings. From the walls, battle cries echoed across the city, slowly closing in to the throne itself. Since her last time there, Twilight recognized the gate to the palace to be withered, worn out, and so were the guards. Their golden armor lost its color, the state of their minds assessed easily with the circling madness in their tiny irises. Much of the former glory and training went away too, making it ridiculously effortless to knock their heads together and senseless.

They would stand before the throne room in a few moments, as Light lead the group and tossed any guards in their way face-first to the walls. The castle bathed in a dark atmosphere, falling apart worse than if left without care for thousand years. Holes in the ceiling let in the sunlight, whose heat intensified exponentially the last few days and was soon to come to a breaking point. Even as it was, the stained walls, fallen pillars and the mood thickened the air, kept the sun at bay. Last corridor, she noticed the art on both sides had disappeared and the magical mirror was also nowhere to be found. They turned around the corner.

“Empress Celestia and Queen Chrysalis are not to be disturbed in their intimate hours!” A cyan hoof showed a tenth of a second aiming between her eyes before she closed them reflexively. Twilight Sparkle was then deeply puzzled that the painful punch never once came to break her muzzle. To solve the mystery, she opened her eyes again and cleared her view. The pegasus stretched her foreleg out for a deathly blow, but it was already stopped by another, muscular limb of a swimmer.

“You know what? Fuck your rules.” A speed of a flying falcon and its elegance the blow carried, and blood flew out of Rainbow Dash’s nose, altogether with her consciousness leaving the body as well. Light magically brushed off the color from his hoof, making it shine clean again.

“That was the cool’st move Ah evah seen, actual offense there, Rainbow.”

“I don’t think she can hear you, Applejack.” Twilight shook the shock off her to begin with frustration in her voice.

“Well, I’m no Kamina and you haven’t seen a Giga Drill Breaker yet, so hold it until then.” He added calmly. “Thanks anyways.”

“Whatever. Are we ready to go in?” Twilight changed the topic, holding onto the door knobs. Everyone went silent, so Light took it over and confirmed with a nod.

The room was, no surprise, absolute disaster. While the rest of the palace was just left to rot, this chamber had a little extra; all furniture had been moved out and replaced with various cages, chains by the walls and even long-forgotten torture devices from the cellar, of whose existence Twilight had no clue.

Some of them had held prisoners inside. Six ponies she counted, six disgraced souls that seemed ashamed of their existence and shyly stared at the ground. The horrors they survived siphoned their very spirit. One cage also hanged down from the cracking ceiling, and the pony within arose once they entered, like a sleeping dog whose owner returned home.

“Hey, long time no see, guys. How was the castle?” Kamina waved, grinning again.

A loud bang the door screamed against the wall sideways of the throne, two royal ladies returned from bed to play with the broken innocent this time. They were not too fond of their new guests.

“What the fuck are you doin’ here?” Celestia’s once magnificent tone degenerated, now bearing a heaviness akin to a drug addict.

“Don’t be like that, my love! It’s never too late for them to join the party!” Chrysalis laughed, expressing effectively the current levels of her sanity.

Applejack still casted her eyes in different ways, glaring in horror: “But what were they… Why are the-… Were they… abusing these ponies?” Twilight couldn’t believe it either.

“Yeah, and there were about thirty when they started an hour ago. Quite nasty if you ask me!” Kamina shouted his opinion down, his smile never fading. That did Twilight in.

“YOU FUCKING JERK!” She yelled, releasing a fireball out of a sudden burst of anger. It blasted the sound barrier and deafened the other ponies, while Twilight levitated back down, her mane still burning. From the debris of the cage, Kamina stood up and dusted off his precious cloak, like nothing had happened.

“Not bad.” He stated, wearing an impressed sturgeon face.

“Enough. It’s time to get started!” Molestia broke from her observing state, as her horn began to glow.

“We believe it is!” A dark sphere absorbed the sun beam, saving Twilight’s life and coercing her to sense danger again. Never losing the talent for royal voice, Luna walked through the group as they made way for her. She stood beside Light and, ignoring her sister scrunching her teeth, whispered towards Twilight: “Thou shall better get out of here.”

She handed out no reaction whatsoever, because somepony dragged her out before she could. The doors shot close fast behind them, with Kamina pressing firmly against it as the castle began to tremble. Rescued and thrown back by telekinesis, the captive ponies now melancholically lay opposite the entrance, unmoving.

“We need to brace this door with something!” Kamina ordered, losing against the magical storm bombarding it from the other side.

“No! We need to help! Neither Luna nor Light can win against them!” Twilight argued.

“They can’t. The Elements of Harmony can. Seal the door!” He shouted, asking for trust by his look.

She concentrated and cast the first shield she could think of. Luckily, it was one of the stronger ones. The tremors grew into an earthquake and she could hear the ceiling collapse inside. Kamina sighed of relief. She gazed at him confusedly.

“Listen, we’ve got a plan. It’s time to consecrate you all in. “

“What is it?” She asked in vain.

He sighed again: “Okay, here it goes: There are six Elements of Harmony, but also two Elements of Order. What we need is to get the Element of Sun off Celestia’s hooves. That way, she’ll lose for sure.”

“Elements of Order? What kind of lame parody is that?” Applejack replied, still breathing heavily.

“Have you been told to work fast before? Now we’ll need to be extra fast! No stupid questions, I need you all to trust me.” He sputtered soundly, plaster falling on his head from the shaking walls. He pulled Twilight closer to himself.

“I can rely on you. To successfully defeat that bitch, we have to utilize devastating offensive. And to defeat Chrysalis… Royal dungeons, cell number four and five. Run faster than the wind, Twilight Sparkle. I’ll take care of Rainbow Dash.” He unfolded to her.

“Bitch? That’s my mentor you’re talking about! And what does it mean to take care of-“

“RUN YOU GODDAMN SCHOOLGIRL!”

And that she did. In Wingesburg, she barely escaped from the ghost chasing her, but this was her territory; she knew Canterlot inside out and all the running for the past week did her some good too. It was not in two minutes she reached the dungeons, and leaping forward, opened the cell door number four. She stopped to catch breath and to adjust her view.

“Twilight? For the love of Harmony, Twilight!” A most familiar voice reached her before she could see its originator.

“And I thought all this would avoid you two. I’m sorry, Cadence.” She responded, her voice strangely dimmed.

“Twilight. What’s- what’s going on? Do you know why they brought us here?”

“You don’t know?” She halted. “That’s probably for the best. The truth bites most painfully I suppose. Let’s say we need your help against Chrysalis again.” She continued in her dramatical demenaor.

“So… Celestia needs help?” Cadence’s face looked visibly puzzled, not understanding her own presence in the dungeons.

Before she could defend against it, a little giggle escaped Twilight’s mouth along with a thought. “Yes, professional help.” She punched herself in the cheek quicker than Cadence could hear it and she cursed herself in her mind for carrying out such a stupid, insensitive joke. The days behind really changed her.

She watched Cadence taking the keys from her and opening the second door, ignoring Cadence’s seemingly distant words and reminiscing. They didn’t even know. Molestia dragged them in here without showing a hint of what was to happen. She wanted to destroy their love in full innocence. It started to turn over into some kind of evil competition amongst the wicked, where the most terrible act would win. ‘I don’t get it at all.’

“Twily! I am so relieved to see you’re okay!” Whereas Shining was cheerful as usual, Twilight felt detached, seeing a pony more than a brother she loved so dearly. She managed to force a smile out. “We have to go.”

Walking back in utter silence, Twilight dodged the sunrays instinctively, and the newlyweds did the same, not really sure what it meant. Their pace was slower, returning to the throne in five minutes.

What she found there was yet another surprise. Kamina stood over Rainbow Dash, whose body took upon a grey color and now lay lifelessly by the wall. Pinkie was right beside him, her mane again curled and bubbly as the careless days before. Not only that, her face now bore a grin similar to Kamina’s. Behind them, the gentle sight of the elegant alicorn whispered its own song. Nia’s mane flowed as warmly as before.

“What is going-?”

“Tough to explain. We need to act fast. Do you trust me, Twilight Sparkle?” Kamina interrupted her.

“Ugh-“ She fell silent for a while. “I do. What’s the plan?”

“We’re storming the place. We’ve got the Elements of Harmony gathered, as I took the role of Loyalty upon myself for the time being. Pinkie is on our side again, we battled some of her demons together.” Twilight felt relieved for at least some explanation. Kamina glanced over to the confused pair of newly married. “You two. Chrysalis is inside too. Just… do your thing. So, are we ready?”

Twilight took a few seconds to throw on a determined expression, and then nodded. Shining Armor and Cadence trotted beside her, radiating an old known kind of pinkish color.

“I don’t know exactly what’s happening, but we can do this together right?” Shining smiled. Twilight sensed the presence of love growing around her and when it enveloped her entire body, she released the spell shield on the door. They exploded instantly.
The same moment a surge of magenta power expanded through the hall and to the room itself, clearing the view of dust. Chrysalis and the other changeling within flew off to the air in no time.

“Looks like we’re blasting off again!” They echoed, until they disappeared as a tiny sparkle on the blue noon sky.

Where originally stood the throne room was now just a devastated platform, with some wrecked ruin-like walls and no ceiling to cover it. Sun seemed bigger than ever, its searing rays immediately forcing the drops of sweat off everyone in the group. Molestia sat in front of the throne, taken aback by the sudden trip her love had undergone. Before her floated a giant symbol comprised of many others, gleaming with gold and the force of the sun. Unable to break through the magical barrier, Light and Luna, relying on the promise of help to come, had had hard time dodging or blocking the Empress’ attacks, and it showed on them.

“Right on, Twilight Sparkle. This is your show.” Kamina encouraged her from somewhere far away behind her. They’d done this before, yet it did not feel like the times before. However, deep in her heart, she knew this had to be done, no matter the fact this wasn’t Nightmare Moon or Discord, but her trusted teacher. She amounted the familiar spell, and her eyes began to glow.

“I’m sorry.” She whispered. The necklaces manifested their elements, which in turn combined to form a single beam. The rainbow blasted through the barrier with ease and covered the insane Empress, her screams resounding far and wide. Her own tiara fell to the ground and a symbol of the sun shot in the direction of the group. Twilight stole only a glimpse of the rosy pinions as Nia jumped ahead of the blazing bullet. A flash blinded her and the world submerged into whiteness, leaving a loud ringing in her ears.

The sound lingered a bit longer when she came to her senses. The dust already started to settle and she shivered from the sudden cold the air caught. She looked up to see the sun shining warmly again, with no spite in its wake.

“LET ME SEE YOU GRIT THOSE TEETH!” She turned her gaze back down quickly to witness Kamina in mid-air over Celestia, his hoof stretched forward towards her muzzle. The impact tossed her upside down and she cried, her face growing steadily a red bruise.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!” She whimpered as the realization struck in.

“Goddammit Tia! You come to your senses yet?” He surmounted over her, concern audible in his voice. “Where the hell is it?” He pushed on her, Light joining him by his side.

Sniveling, she pointed behind the garnished throne. Kamina grabbed his crystal and his magic ripped it from the ground. He threw it away like it was nothing, and Light came closer to its site. His horn illuminated the space behind with red, revealing something that made Twilight gasp.

It was a vortex warping the air around it, swirling slowly and chaotically. On direct sight it led seemingly nowhere and the same red data that used to stuck to her own body now bursted out of the warp in complex strands, filling the already full space in the room.

“Holy shit.” Light stated dryly. “This is the third time I see this thing, but you can never get quite used to it. Twilight trotted over, while others remained behind by Celestia.

“What are we gonna do?” She asked, her mouth still opened in wonder.

“I think I’ll be able to open it to its… other end.” He said, his look never leaving the abyss. “Kamina, use the crystal to stabilize the edges, like last time. We’re going to end this once and for all.”

The green magic forcibly spread the portal wider, then stayed glistening on its ends to stop the faineant whirling. Light focused another mass of energy at the tip of his horn and shot it straight to the middle of the abomination. It made a bubbly sound, shivered a little and then stood still, the harmful data no longer flowing. A startled scream came out of it.

“What the hell are you screaming for?” An annoyed girl’s voice said.

“Bu-t look at this… thing.” A more innocent, highly pitched girl answered.

“What the hell is this?! Are you okay?” Resounded a voice, most probably of a young lad in his best years.

Twilight exchanged quizzical looks with Kamina and Light, and they stayed silent, listening to the conversation from the other side.

“I’m fine.” The girl replied, but trembling nonetheless.

“Wooooooooow. It’s like a black hole. What if I-?” The first girl closed in, until a batch of blue data spurted out, and a hoof popped out the gateway.

“You idiot! Don’t go shoving your hands into random… whatever that thing is! What do you think?” The originator turned to someone else.

“Relax it’s totally fine!” She chuckled, until Kamina grabbed her hoof and pulled.

“What the hell?!! Something is pulling me in!” She yelled, astonished. “Come help me goddammit!”

Twilight, grasping the context of the situation, rushed to help Kamina, as the shuffling sounds from the other side indicated the same on their part. Even with Light’s help, the trio couldn’t force the perpetrator in, and the ponies reached a stalemate full of growling and tugging. Once Applejack grasped Light to a final pull though, the other side went loose and with their bodies came a lot more blue data storming.

“Dammit!” Kamina lifted himself off the ground. “Who the hell are you people?!”

A party of four ponies and, to Twilight’s amazement, one human lay in front of them, coughing and dusting off. The two colts seemed rather busy cleaning their shoulders, while the two mares sat in a mix of bewilderment and astonishment from the sight. The alicorn, clearly the leader type, rose up and looked around.

“Oh my god, Kyon, this is totally aweso-!!” Before she could finish her girly squeal, the unicorn colt hit her with a piece of rubble and knocked her down.