Equestria & Beyond

Chapters

Echoes of Thunder
Messages from Afar
Harmony Reborn
The Last Angel
A Candle in the Night
The Shadow of Lightning
Twilight's Offer

Echoes of Thunder

Across a bleak and battle-scarred wilderness, a lone mare awoke suddenly; gasping for air. She cleared the dust from her lungs and then lifted her head to survey the landscape. Strewn with broken earth, discarded weapons, and the lifeless bodies of friend and foe alike, it was an unsettling sight. Even more so were the still-fresh memories of the horrific battle that had caused the scene hours before.

She shakily struggled to her hooves. Had she passed out from exhaustion or blood loss? At this point she couldn't tell, nor did she care. There were far more pressing matters to attend to.

Nor sooner had she begun to reach out across the ether to look for survivors than an ear-splitting rumble broke the solemn silence. The tremor that followed almost tossed her back onto the ground. She scrambled for stable footing among the rocks and earth that had only moments before been sure and steadfast. Huge rips of what sounded like thunder echoed from the distance, and then as soon as the noise started, it quickly dissipated.

Although she couldn't see what happened, something within her told her exactly what had. Another pang of sorrow and loss racked her with grief, like an integral piece of her soul was suddenly ripped away; the third one this fateful day. What little greenery had survived the wreckage quickly wilted, the color draining from the earth and plants around her. A few tears instinctively began to well up her vision, only to be shook away by her now even more determined spirit. It was all up to her now. If that tumult signified what she thought, she hadn't a second to lose before the fight would return to her.

She lifted a hoof and cast a quick spell, a thin shape whizzing across the battlefield at her command. She grasped her spear through the ensuing cloud of dust as it came to her, it's highly-conductive crystal head shining through the ash; crackling eagerly with energy.

She crouched and burst into the sky, her great wings carrying her far across the graveyard below. An unearthly howl of a dozen voices rang through the sky; she had even less time than she thought.

The alicorn glanced behind her, judging the distance between herself and her still-out-of-sight enemy.

She took a deep breath and let her own cry resound throughout the land with all her might, "TO ME!", both in defiance of the unseen and in calling her surviving allies to her position.

Her lithe gray frame dove through the clouds, landing among the streets and vacant buildings of her eldest daughter's city, probably one of the last strongholds remaining. High stony peaks surrounded the floating city like a bowl, acting as a shield against the wind.

Her choice of stage to face the coming darkness was soon manifest, as she watched dozens of flashes of light streak over the sharp mountains, heralding the arrival of some of the greatest warriors she had ever known; a contingent of her eldest's pure white pegasi, donning silver armor of the purest steel.

They flew to her position, kneeling respectively in their Queen's presence.

One colt inquired, "What are your orders, your Highness?"

A smaller mare piped in "Our forces are spread thin, should we rally them to Lumeria?"

"And what of the King?" asked one from the back.

The Queen bowed her head in response, looking solemnly at the ground for a second. The ponies around her quickly understood, allowing a moment of silence to pass.

"Then what shall we do? Is the Aspect of Compassion alone enough to vanquish this evil?"

The gray alicorn touched the crystal embedded in her breastplate, "I am ... afraid not. There's no telling how powerful he's grown now, and the four of us could barely handle him before- ", flashbacks from only earlier that day flooded her mind. She hadn't the time to mourn the tremendous losses now, the memories were still fresh, as was their blood.

She looked back up at the dutiful angels surrounding her, ready to carry out her every command and who'd gladly give themselves to preserve her own life. But even they were uneasy, the prolonged battle had worn their spirits and strength thin. The sight was enough to re-kindle her conviction.

The gray alicorn stood up tall once more, bringing light back into her soldiers. "We'll draw him here, bringing the fight back to where it all began..."

"At once, your Majesty, we'll evacuate the emergency shelter", one of them said as he circled to gallop down the street.

"That won't be necessary."

The colt halted, slightly confused. "And what about the citizens?"

"You are the last hope my daughters have, I need you all here for when this evil rises once more."

A small gasp escaped several ponies, "You mean?-"

The Queen nodded, "I will use what magic remains in me to seal the Nightmare Forces inside the crystal core below us. This city will be the light that pierces this darkness when it breaks free."

Another mare spoke up, "But your Highness, in your current condition you'll-"

"I have already accepted my fate. If it gives them enough time to prepare to banish this shadow once and for all, so be it."

The angels nodded and flew off to join the others in the underground vault. She stopped one of them, "Wait... I have a special request to ask of you."

"Yes, my Queen?", he answered, a unicorn colt with blue-green eyes and a short gray mane.

"Only time will tell how long this seal lasts, could be millennia, could be centuries, could be a decade... Nevertheless, when you are free I need you to continue the duty I entrusted you with all those years ago; protect them with your life. They'll need you when they must inevitably face this darkness themselves one day."

The colt could feel the trust being placed upon him once more through the gray alicorn's gaze. "Of... of course, your Highness."

Another eldritch scream split the air, much louder and closer than before. It sent shivers down her spine as she watched the last angel gallop down the street.

The Queen reared up and called a bolt down from the sky, re-charging her spear. It was time.

As if on-queue, the sky itself began to darken as colossal clouds of the blackest night reached over the tips of the floating valley, tentacles of shadow larger than buildings curling around the peaks, pulling it's true ghastly form over the mountains.

Several sets of menacing eyes and gaping maws with razor-like teeth adorned the misshapen storm of darkness. Various colors of magical lightning danced across it's hideous hide. Gigantic equine heads emerged and shrank from it's mass like a boiling hydra.

"Well hello again, ugly...", the Queen said to herself as she clashed her spear head against the ground, sending out an electrifying buzz as a challenge.

One of it's main heads whipped towards the sound, viewing the minuscule but determined alicorn in the middle of the town square. The Nightmare Forces emitted a low growl that turned into a guttural bellow as it charged over the mountains, the size of it's body rivaling the city below.

The royal mare didn't move an inch. She knew the giant crystal that kept the city afloat was directly beneath her, the only gem around big enough to contain so much dark energy. It was one of her son's most ingenious creations, and now the prison-to-be of this monster that had taken her friends and family.

It bent into the sky and came flooding down as it neared her position, going in for the kill. The writhing sea of shadow began to block out the sun as it came down on top of her.

The sun. The fleeting glimpse reassured her in what would be her final moments, a gentle but firm reminder that hope was still alive. Her daughters were still alive. And the future was now in their hooves.

Messages from Afar

Princess Twilight sighed as she signed what must've been the bajillionth piece of paper she'd seen since becoming Princess with her royal hoof stamp. One of the less appealing things about being a monarch, it seemed like no pony in the entire country could take a step without her permission. How did Celestia do this for over a thousand years?, she thought to herself. Speaking of which, what were the ex-princesses doing? Twilight hadn't heard much from either sister since she rose to the throne. Well, whatever it is, I'm sure they're enjoying their newfound freedom... I guess being the sole ruler of Equestria isn't as eventful as I thought it'd be.

The doors to the throne room burst open, revealing an out-of-breath royal guard.

"Princess Cel- I mean, Twilight!", he said, hurrying down the velvet carpet. The other two slightly startled guards stationed inside closed the door behind him.

The white pegasi knelt in front of the throne platform and caught his breath for a second,

"Urgent message from Maretonia, your Highness..."

Twilight practically tossed the stack of papers she was levitating on top of Spike napping right next to her throne. Seems like I spoke too soon!

The small purple and green dragon woke abruptly, poking his head out from underneath the mass of parchment. He spit a scroll out from his mouth and disappointingly sighed as he realized that he'd have to re-organize all those documents, again.

"Ah, finally! Something besides approving all of Cheese Sandwich's weird paten-", Twilight stopped herself, embarrassed that her boredom broke out in front of her guards. *Ah-hem* "Send them in..."

The guards by the door nodded, opening the door with a magical glow from their horns. A yellow earth-pony with a red mane entered, wearing traditional Maretonian armor with his mane in a long braid off to one side. He seemed surprised to see only Twilight.

"Princess Twilight, the Duke and Duchess of Maretonia send their regards..." the messenger said as he approached the throne, kneeling in respect "-where are Princess Celestia and Luna? I was told to give my message to them as quickly as possible."

Twilight chuckled a bit to herself, she couldn't believe that after all the planning that went into her coronation, no pony thought to tell one of their biggest allies that their leadership had changed hooves.

"Celestia and Luna have retired, leaving me as the Princess of Equestria. I'm sure whatever message was intended for them you can tell me."

"Oh... I see. Well then, Maretonia humbly asks for Equestria's aid", the messenger said as he lowered himself to the ground.

"Of course! What is it the Duke and Duchess need help with?"

"Siege has befallen Maretonia..."

Twilight could feel her mouth suddenly going dry. She had imagined herself facing all sorts of problems as ruler of Equestria, but a military conflict certainly wasn't one of them.

"I'm sure it's just a big... misunderstanding!"- she suggested, "Maybe somepony wasn't listened to and now harbors some well-intentioned but mislead anger?"

"Uh... very well, I'll give you the full report," the messenger said. " Several days ago a large host of monsters was seen approaching Maretonia. We readied our defenses but before they reached the city the enemy was intercepted by an unknown third party, a small army of white pegasi in silver armor. On recommendation from his advisor, the Duke decided not to intervene, since they could not be identified as Saddle Arabian, Equestrian, or Crystal Empire forces-"

Monsters? A whole army of them? I've never heard of them working together like that..., Twilight wondered.

"-when the monsters retreated, only one survivor was found, who has accompanied me here today.", the Maretonian messenger turned and signaled the door guards, who let yet another pony into the throne room.

It was a white unicorn colt with teal eyes and a long white mane that went down either side of his head, wearing a black suit with golden trim and buttons. The newcomer looked confused as he looked around,

"Are the Royal Sisters here? I was told this is where I'd find them", he said after bowing, still acknowledging Twilight's crown despite the unfamiliar face.

Twilight stopped herself from rolling her eyes in mild annoyance, "I really should've let more ponies know about me taking Celestia and Luna's spot, eh Spike?"

"Did something happen to them?", the unicorn worried.

"They just retired and left me in their place; Princess Twilight", she said followed by unfurling her wings into a curtsy. "And you are?..."

"Gleaming Blade of Lumeria, I'm honored to make your acquaintance, your Majesty. Forgive me for asking, but how old are they?"

Twilight couldn't help but let out a snort, "How old?? Celestia and Luna have been ruling Equestria forever! Where've you been the last couple thousand years?", she said jokingly.

"In limbo."

Twilight almost laughed before she realized the unicorn was being completely serious. "Wait... then how old were they when you last saw them?"

"Oh, Luna wasn't more than a filly, I foal-sat both of them for their parents."

Filly?! Parents?! And not only that, he mentioned Lumeria, an ancient kingdom that had vanished millennia ago. Her thoughts were interrupted by a light tap on her shoulder.

"Uh... Twilight?" Spike said.

"Hm?"

"They're waiting," her friendship ambassador pointed out. Twilight turned her attention back to the three ponies below her, anticipating royal decree.

"Oh... yes! Send word back to Maretonia that they'll have our full support!"

The Maretonian messenger bowed and trotted out of the throne room.

Twilight then turned to the white unicorn, "As for you, I think a reunion is in order."

As soon as the giant doors were closed behind the Marentonian, they flung open again and another royal guard came through, obviously panicked. One of the guards by the door rolled his eyes and the other snorted.

"Princess Twilight, urgent message from Saddle Arabia! An army of monsters-"

"Ugh, we know!" , Spike exclaimed.

"You know?", the surprised and confused guard replied.

"We know."

The guard turned behind him to a Saddle Arabian pony just outside the throne room, "They know."

"They know?"

"They know."

The Saddle Arabian shrugged and turned to start on the long journey back.

Twilight leaned to whisper to Spike, "We should see if Ember can station a dragon at each of the other kingdoms so we can avoid this sort of thing..."

Spike nodded in agreement.

Harmony Reborn

"I don't get it, Luna told me they'd be staying at the Silver Shoals retirement community the last time I saw them... I'm so sorry they weren't there." the purple alicorn said as the two walked down a dirt road.

"It's quite alright, the last time I saw either of them seems like only a couple days ago. It's been so long I'm afraid to-", Gleaming Blade paused and then turned to Twilight, "... you know Tia well, don't you?"

Tia? ... Oh! Twilight was a bit surprised but mostly mused that somepony else gave her mentor that nickname, she had only ever heard Luna call her sister that. "Uh, yes! Celestia hoof-picked me as her own student when I was just a filly, so we've been pretty close for most of my life," she said proudly, "-she taught me everything I know, and all the while was preparing me to take her spot one day!"

"Oh, I meant her personality and whatnot, like character..."

That's right, he only remembers them as fillies! I guess it would be pretty jarring to see them now as several-thousand-year-old adult alicorns, Twilight thought to herself.

"Well then you've come to the right mare! Most ponies only ever see the Royal Sisters giving speeches or on holidays, but not the Princess of Friendship!", Twilight cleared her throat, "Where do I even begin? I've looked up to the both of them for as long as I can remember. Celestia is so wise and caring, she's been the greatest mentor I could ask for. She's our symbol of peace and hope, everypony just adores and respects her. When I was her student she'd have this twinkle in her eye after I reported back to her like she knew exactly what I was going to learn all along and she was always so proud of me every step of the way..."

"And Luna?"

Twilight took a breath like she was going to spout another paragraph praising the Princess of the Night, but then she realized she didn't know Luna anywhere near as well as she did Celestia. "Uh... Luna's great too, I'm just not as familiar with her since she watches everyone's dreams by night and sleeps during the day, plus she was stuck in the moon for a thousand years, but that's a totally different story... I look up to and respect her just as much as her older sister, they've both come through for us so many times and have ruled Equestria themselves for centuries. I think they've done an outstanding job of passing the torch on to me and are well-deserving of retirement."

"That's good to hear... I can't wait to meet them-"

Twilight noticed that the white unicorn didn't seem as cheerful as that kind of sentence would've normally warranted. She looked ahead during the silence, the new Tree of Harmony now visible through the treetops

"And... what about you? What's Lumeria like? I've been meaning to ask you since you mentioned it, there's only so much you can learn from dusty ol' scrolls."

Gleaming Blade's head fell slightly as his gaze turned to the ground. No response.

Aw geez... hit a sore spot, didn't I? She tried to think of a distraction but a rather large one made of stone bricks came up instead. We're here!

The purple alicorn turned to her guest, "*Ahem* May I welcome you to-"

"The Castle of the Two Sisters...", he answered for her, solemnly placing a hoof on it's cold stony walls, "I can't believe it's still standing. Well, most of it anyway." the white unicorn added after glancing around.

Somehow it only just occurred to Twilight that this colt might be more acquainted with this ancient building than she was.

"But that's not all, this is also where the new Tree of-", the giant courtyard doors opening cut her short.

A pink unicorn with a purple and cyan mane stepped out, "Oh Twilight! It's so good to see you!", Starlight Glimmer exclaimed. The two old friends hugged.

"Gleaming Blade? Starlight. Starlight? Gleaming Blade.", said the princess as she introduced the two.

"Well met," the colt said as he shook her hoof.

"Uh... same. So, what brings you two here today?"

"He's an old friend of Celestia and Luna's, I was taking him to meet them but they weren't at Silver Shoals so I thought to ask you. Ocellus told me you'd be here."

"Oh really! Heh heh-", Starlight said nervously as a large grin appeared on her face.

Twilight raised her eyebrow, "Alright what's going on here? You have a terrible poker face by the way."

The head mare sighed, "Guess you were gonna find out sooner or later, come on in...", she said defeatedly as she opened the old doors.

The trio walked inside, the sparkling new Tree of Harmony taking up most of the inner courtyard. Gleaming Blade's eyes widened at the sight of the giant crystal tree.

"By Celestia! That's new."

"Well new-er, the Tree of Harmony used to be in the caverns below the castle, but now-"

"The Seed grew," Gleaming Blade said in awe.

"Excuse me?"

"Last time I saw that it was just a tiny seed, Prince Ruby gave it to Celestia before the fighting started."

"Wait wait wait... who? And you said this thing was a seed?", said Starlight taken aback.

"Oh, I forgot to mention, he's been in limbo for the past who knows how long, the last time he saw the Royal Sisters they were fillies," Twilight whispered to the pink unicorn.

"Woah... that's like, ancient ancient."

Gleaming Blade turned to the two mares, a bit confused. "Prince Ruby? Ruler of the Crystal Empire and eldest son of the King and Queen? Did Celestia never tell you?"

Starlight's jaw dropped open, Twilight was now equally confused. "Tell me what?"

"About her family."

"The Princess never told them," a new voice spoke from behind them, a tall gray unicorn with a curly white mane and star-spangled robes. "Starswirl the Bearded, at your service," the wise old mage knelt.

The white unicorn returned the honorable greeting.

"Starswirl! Wait- what are the Pillars doing here?"

The wizard smiled and turned towards the tree, "See for yourself!"

Twilight could now see each of the Pillars gathered around the base of the tree.

Starswirl nodded to them, "I think it's time."

Rockhoof stepped forwards and placed his giant hoof on the base of the tree, a magical pulse echoed through it's trunk in response. An orange glow came from somewhere among the branches, Rockhoof followed it until he was directly below. A chunk of crystal slowly opened like a blooming flower, and the orange glow fell to the earth. Rockhoof caught it with his trusty shovel as gently as he could. When the small magical aura faded, he held a square gemstone.

"Is... is that what I think it is?", Twilight said before being shushed by Starlight.

Each of the Pillars took their turn, touching the tree and then retrieving a jewel from among the crystalline leaves, the whole scene was serene yet exciting.

Starswirl then turned to Twilight, "I'm here for the final piece of the set, but I think the honor should be yours, Princess..."

Twilight then understood what was going on, and calmly approached the tree. Something within the tree called out to her, like an old friend waiting for you at home after being away. She smiled as she placed her hoof on the hard but welcoming bark of the crystal tree. A quiet yet chilling ring bounced around the courtyard as a brilliant violet glow appeared high above her. The purple alicorn flew up to catch the falling gem, a hexagon that fit in her hoof snugly like it belonged with her.

"The Elements of Harmony," she muttered to herself.

"The Pillars of Equestria," Starswirl announced.

"The Aspects of Peace," Gleaming Blade whispered.

Several heads in the courtyard turned to the white unicorn at the unfamiliar phrase, who shrank from the multitude of sudden gazes.

"I mean, it doesn't really matter what you call them...", he said sheepishly

The respectful silence was broken by a small wheezing dragon flying over the walls, "Twilight! I searched the whole School of Friendship, not an alicorn in sight."

Exhausted, he landed on one of the roots of the Tree. A bright green glow emanated from a nearby branch.

"Huh?", Spike said.

The mood in the courtyard quickly shifted from wonder to panic and then relief as Twilight stopped Spike from crunching down on what he thought was a free snack.

Starswirl stepped forwards, "By Celestia, a seventh Pillar..."

"What could it be?", Flash Magnus thought out loud.

Twilight interrupted the Pillars gathering around Spike, "I'm sure everypony is as glad as I am to have the Elements back, but what does this all have to do with Celestia and Luna?"

Starswirl turned to the Princess of Friendship, "I suppose an explanation is in order, after somepony couldn't handle the one duty they were tasked with", he said while briefly casting a sideways glance at Starlight, who smiled shyly. "In short, the former Princesses sent us to retrieve the Pillars once they were fully re-formed from the Tree of Harmony,"

"What for? My friends and I could have done the same... no offense," Twilight added.

"Celestia and Luna...", Starlight paused to breath, "they're going to use the Elements to re-seal a monster for as long as they can, she was worried you'd try to stop her."

Twilight almost laughed, "But why? We've done the same to countless baddies over the years, why is this time any different?"

"Their foe is so great, that doing so will take everything they have." Starswirl answered.

The purple alicorn then understood why everpony else was looking so grim, the sudden realization throwing her emotions for a spin. "No... no, there's gotta be another way! I'll-I'll think of something, just-"

"Twilight, even if all four alicorns took them on all at once it wouldn't be enough." Starlight said, putting a reassuring hoof on her friend's shoulder, "This is the only way."

The Princess of Friendship fought back a tear of both frustration and sadness, "So what, they're just gonna throw their lives away prolonging the inevitable?"

"They're following in their parent's hoofsteps."

"Huh?" Twilight said as she used a hoof to rub her eye.

Starswirl's horn lit up, projecting a canvas into the air that danced with colorful artwork like a storybook as his tale unfolded,

"In the beginning, there were two. The Earth and the Sky... they fell in love and established a great kingdom for their clans to live in peace, Maretonia. But they were not alone, two became four as the Ocean and Flame sprung from their respective elements. It wasn't long before four became five, then six, then seven as the love and unity of the Earth and Sky grew..."

Twilight watched as a crystal, the sun, and the moon joined the other symbols.

"...but one was not satisfied with the domain he was given, and joined forces with their greatest enemy, the living shadows of the Nightmare Forces."

The flame symbol turned black, and slowly grew to fill the globe on which they resided.

"Unable to best the beast themselves, the Earth and Sky bravely gave their lives preserving the future, but not before the darkness selfishly took the Ocean and Crystal from them."

Everypony could only watch in shock as five of the symbols disappeared, leaving only the Sun and Moon. Something towards the top of the globe caught the purple alicorn's eye. Is that... a heart?

"The Sun and Moon were joyous to find another had survived... Love. Taking to the throne on her own after banishing the Moon when she turned against her, the Sun sought for an heir to one day take her place when the dreadful day came that she would have to do the same. After many centuries of looking, she found one... and Magic ascended."

As her familiar six-pointed star joined the symbolic display, several ponies turned to look at Twilight, who never knew until now that she was a key part of this grand plan.

"And that, brings us to today", Starswirl said as his magical display faded.

Although the bookworm inside her was eager for all the details of this ancient tale, one question still stood out in her mind,

"Why? Why did she never tell me? About her family, about what training me to take her spot was all for, about any of this?"

Starswirl eventually broke the somber silence, "She was afraid that you would reject the future she was planning for you, especially if you knew the reasons behind it all."

Twilight held back a sniffle, "And yet she told all of you?"

Several ponies nodded slowly, others simply looked elsewhere to avoid eye contact.

"Only to protect you, Twilight. Celestia gave me a scroll explaining everything to give to you after the fact, but it looks like I won't need it anymore.", Starlight said with a smile.

"So, what now?" Twilight asked.

As if to to answer her question, the doors to the castle opened, and two alicorns adorned with sets of golden and silver armor came into the courtyard.

"You're just lucky you haven't grown in the past thousand years sister, I haven't worn this in centuries.", the taller of the two said.

"Hmm, I wonder who I have to thank for that?", the smaller one said.

They both had a good chuckle before noticing the third set of horn and wings in the courtyard.

"T-Twilight! We were, umm... trying these on just for fun! I-", Luna stammered.

"It's okay, I know."

"Come again?"

"I know now, about your family, about what happened, about everything...", Twilight said as she slowly approached the two.

Former mentor and student embraced in reunion and what could be a final farewell.

Celestia sighed, "And now what are you going to do? Say this is a foolish plan and try to handle it all on your own? All my life has been building up to this day, Twilight. Your conviction alone is not enough to sway me."

Much to the surprise of everypony in attendance, the Princess of Friendship shook her head.

"No, I agree. You and Luna need to do this."

Several of the Pillars and Starlight gasped. Celestia blinked several times before smiling. She had imagined dozens of outcomes to this conversation, but she had never imagined that Twilight would actually agree with her once the time came.

The tender moment was pulled to a full stop by a small winged dragon landing in-between the two alicorns.

"Okay, just hold your horses everypony, " Spike said while waving his claws, "no pun intended, but am I really the only one that has a problem with this?"

"They've already made up their minds, Spike. This is why she took me on as her student, and after all these years I trust her judgement."

"C'mon Twilight, its Celestia and Luna, you can't just let them... y'know... can't we just use that rainbow magic stuff to turn the bad guys into stone like we always do?"

Luna shook her head, "Four alicorns wielding all six of the Elements were not enough back then, and so it isn't enough now."

"But...but what about this?" Spike said as he showed them a green gem. "You know what this is?"

Luna raised an eyebrow, "Your afternoon snack?"

"Heh-I wish... But no, its a new Element, the Tree just gave it to me when I touched it!", Spike said cheerfully.

The Royal Sisters looked at the gem in amazement,

"I didn't know there were more than..." Celestia said. A new sense of hope began to creep into the two sisters' eyes.

Luna smiled, "Maybe we can-", she stopped suddenly as her eyes went over the group of ponies, and tapped her sister on the shoulder.

"Hmm?"

Her sister only pointed with a slight nod of her head. Celestia looked out over the crowd until her gaze locked on what had captured Luna's attention.

"Oh my..." she said putting a hoof to her mouth.

The two sisters removed their helmets and walked into the middle of the group, who parted the way for their ex-rulers. They stopped just before a white unicorn who had been standing near the back. Neither of the white ponies knew what to say.

"Geebee?", Luna asked giddily.

Geebee?, Twilight wondered to herself.

The two sisters practically picked the poor colt up in a tight hug, "I can't believe it's you!" Luna said excitedly.

"I thought I'd lost you all back then...", Celestia said as a rare tear fell from her eye.

Gleaming Blade's eyes widened, "*Hrk!* It's great to see you too! But about that..."

The three old friends released their embrace as Celestia laughed to herself.

Starswirl made a motion to the others, who left the courtyard to the alicorns and their old friend.

"Twilight, this is simply wonderful! Have you two already met?", she took an excited breath, "now I can take you to see the city my brother and I built... oh! Do you know if that one cake shop still open?"

"Um... Tia?", Gleaming Blade said shyly.

"*gasp* It's been so long since anyponys called me that!", bringing out another round of gleeful chuckling from the white alicorn.

"I'm... the last one."

Celestia's laughter stopped abruptedly, "What?"

"Your mother sealed Nightmare Forces in the city's core, when the seal broke we stopped an army of monsters from reaching Maretonia, but at a tremendous loss. Then he came back for Lumeria... I was one of the last knights in the whole city. I tried Tia, but no one else survived..."

The Last Angel

Before her older sister was even done processing the grave news, Luna's voice split the air.

"You...coward!", she accused, "you ran away didn't you?!"

The white unicorn stepped back, "No! I-"

"Ugh! I can't believe this. And I here I thought-", she turned away in frustration and took to the air.

Celestia placed a hoof on Gleaming Blade's shoulder, "I'll go to her, don't worry. But... is it true?" she asked, concerned.

The otherwise joyous reunion was quickly shattered by his message, so the white unicorn simply turned to avoid looking her in the eye, and perhaps to hide tears of his own.

"It's not... I-", Gleaming Blade sighed, "-I wish I could show you..."

The white alicorn knelt down to his level.

"You can.", she said reassuringly, "If you let me."

He looked back up and nodded through guilty eyes.

Celestia's horn lit as she cast a spell, a circle of runes appearing around the group as a magical white glow replaced their surroundings.

Twilight had seen this spell before, sometimes to imagine the future and others to view the past. This instance happened to be the latter.

When the light faded they found themselves in the middle of a city of some sort. The tall buildings made of white marble separated by cobble streets. Sharp stone peaks scraped the sky in the distance no matter which way you turned. The sheer amount of bright materials made Twilight squint for a couple seconds as her eyes adjusted. This must be Lumeria, she thought to herself, it somewhat reminded her of Mt. Aris, the home of the hippogriffs.

In the middle of the town square was a giant crater, filled with broken earth and rubble. A somewhat steady spout of water came from somewhere in the wreckage. Beneath the wreckage, the purple alicorn thought she could see a golden glow of sorts.

Despite the gaping hole, dozens of white ponies bustled around the city, the only other color in their countenance being their eyes and cutie marks. A cart was selling flowers. A young fillie held her mother's hoof through the market.

Celestia gently stepped through the debris in the center of town, coming right to a long metal staff sticking out in the middle. She reached out to grasp it, but as this was only a memory, her hoof passed right through. She pulled back, breaking out of her stupor. The white alicorn looked wistfully around the city, laying eyes on every familiar face and structure. This was her city. It was all so close and so alive, and yet she knew it was all long gone, far from her reach.

Almost all at once, a multitude of bells began ringing from somewhere in the distance, everypony's ears perked up before they hurried inside or down the path home.

One of them stopped a friend, "What's going on?"

"The city's under attack!", she responded.

"But none of the pegasi are back yet!"

"Hence the emergency, let's go!"

Twilight watched the two gallop into the distance before heading in the opposite direction of the fleeing citizens. She joined the brave few on top of the wall, looking down the stone steps that winded up the mountainside.

Once the bells stopped ringing, it was eerily quiet for an attack. Twilight could only pick out two sounds from among the anxious silence.

One, the occasional jittery clinking of metal on metal. Two, hoofsteps. Far enough away to echo and just slower than walking pace, but getting closer.

The purple alicorn looked over the edge of the wall, finding the source of the first noise in a lone unicorn dressed in silver armor standing in front of the gate. Twilight hadn't been in too many battles in her lifetime, but she could tell when somepony was afraid.

Although his mane was in a bun sticking out from the back of his helmet and his armor covered his cutie mark, she could also tell who the single defender was. Twilight looked around for the present version of Gleaming Blade, but she couldn't see him atop the ramparts.

Several gasps and somepony shouting 'there!' turned Twilight's attention back to the cobblestone path, a new shape rising from behind a ridge.

The first things she saw were the tips of wings and a unicorn's horn, the markings of an alicorn.

Twilight knew this was only a memory so she was in no danger, but knowing that these events happened only last week was quite unsettling.

The newcomer only became more intimidating as his full body came into view, a tall blood-red stallion adorned with golden armor. The feathers of his wings, his slit eyes, and mane were colored like a roaring fire, and equally as mesmerizing. Upon seeing the city gates he slowly grinned, revealing razor sharp teeth. Between his frightful appearance and his wicked demeanor, Twilight felt like she was facing Nightmare Moon all over again.

The red alicorn looked around, his eyes landing on the lone unicorn before him, "You? Are you seriously the only one left?", he paused to laugh mockingly, "Priceless...", he said before continuing his slow advance. His voice was deep and regal, yet haunted like a multitude of ponies speaking at once.

Frightened but nevertheless determined, the old version of Gleaming Blade charged at his foe. He jumped forward into a large slash, which was easily side-stepped. Now behind the red alicorn, he pushed off as soon as his front hooves hit the ground for a rear buck.

Strike two.

The white unicorn twisted his body around mid-air, going for another slice at his neck. Another miss. It was unbelievable how the red alicorn danced around his attacks, as if he had eyes in the back of his head.

It wasn't magic, simply an obvious gap in actual combat experience. The pony before him, if he could still be called that, had sundered entire armies and laid cities to rubble. He knew he had no chance of beating this alicorn, this fight was as good as over long before it started. All he could do was try to delay the inevitable.

His opponent knew this as well, he was enjoying his futile attempts to save those behind the city walls. An easy target in the air, he sent the unicorn flying into a nearby rock with a kick of his own.

Gleaming Blade struggled to his hooves and shook his head to regain his senses, then saw the red alicorn nearing the gate. His horn glowed with white magic.

In a burst of light, the white unicorn teleported before him, still determined to face this foe that could annihilate him without a second thought. The fact that he hadn't yet could mean two things. Either he wasn't worth even using the magic on, or he was just toying with him. Probably both. Still, he had one trick up his sleeve.

The white unicorn raised his shield, a large glowing rune appearing on it's surface. It grew incomprehensibly bright in a fraction of a second, designed to stun opponents as their eyes frantically tried to adjust. Hopefully it would buy him just enough time to land a single strike.

As he swung his sword he felt it stop abruptly in the air. When the light faded he saw it's hilt glow not only with his own magic, but a dark maroon aura.

"But... how-", he couldn't help the words escape his lips.

The red alicorn chuckled to himself, "I helped create the sun, did you think a simple bright-burst rune would faze me?"

Gleaming Blade fell to the ground with a cheap kick to the barrel.

"You are nothing compared to me-" the fiery pony turned his gaze to the worried faces above, "Such faith in one so frail. Honestly, Celestia knighting you was more an act of courtesy than anything else..."

"You leave her out of this!", the white unicorn shouted between gasps, "... being a knight isn't about how well I can swing a sword around-" he pushed himself back up with a shaky hoof- "it's about facing evil wherever it stands, protecting those who cannot protect themselves, and not giving up, no matter the odds!"

As the ponies watching from above began cheering him on, Gleaming Blade unleashed a battle cry as he raised his sword, golden magic swirling around him.

The red alicorn raised an eyebrow, "Quaint..."

Sensing a huge surge in magic, Twilight lept from the ramparts and instinctively dodged flying chunks of brick as everything behind her exploded into a fiery inferno.

Back in the town square, two white ponies sat at the edge of the crater silently. The shorter one without wings spoke to the other.

"We... held a funeral, but there wasn't anything left to bury..."

"And her spear?", Celestia inquired, solemnly looking at the spot of her mother's last stand.

"It's still there... no one can move it an inch. She must have enchanted it somehow."

"I see..."

"..."

As fiery destruction gradually overcame each of the buildings around them, Celestia cast a spell to block out the screams and explosions. Time seemed to slow down as she looked around at the terrifyingly brilliant display.

"This is all my fault, I should have been here."

Gleaming Blade turned to his Princess, "Nay, the fault is mine. I wasn't strong enough to save anyone, let alone myself. I failed you as a knight."

"You stood up for what was right, and despite having no chance you got back up to protect them; that is what's important here. Courage is not the lack of fear, it is facing it."

"...they're still gone. I couldn't do anything to stop him.", the white unicorn said as his head drooped.

Celestia put a comforting hoof on the back of her last knight, "I don't blame you for trying, my parents couldn't either."

"..."

"Why did you call yourself Princess all these years? The throne your mother left behind rightfully belongs to you, not the Duke and Duchess."

The white alicorn sighed, "I never thought I could live up to the legacy she left behind. Or any of the others for that matter.
That is why I never claimed the title of Queen. I've tried to rule as they did all my life, if they could see me now I hope they'd be proud. "

"I'm sure they are, you've ruled this land for over a thousand years, mostly by yourself. Princess Twilight told me of all the great things you've done, I would be honored to call to Queen."

"Thank you... but I think my ruling days are over. I already left my crown to another. And if it comes down to it, it'll be up to me and Luna to stay the beast for awhile longer."

"I made your mother a promise Tia, you know I'll be dead long before that happens."

Celestia smiled, then returned her gaze to the consuming flames around them, "... All these years I've been dreading his return, knowing that I might have to make that same sacrifice. But seeing the Element the Tree of Harmony gave to Spike... it made me feel something I haven't in a long time. "

"And what was that?"

"Hope", the white alicorn said with a reassuring grin.

The courtyard flashed as the memory spell ended.

Twilight turned to Gleaming Blade as they walked out of the courtyard with Starlight and Spike, "It's been bugging me... how did you survive?"

The white unicorn took a necklace out from his coat, "This..." he said, it was a small silver chain that held a bright yellow gem.

"All I remember is, a voice. It sounded like my own, but it wasn't my thoughts. When I awoke my wounds were gone, as was everypony else. I looked for survivors for days... in vain", he said as he clutched the brilliant jewel, "It's a shard of Lumeria's core, a giant gemstone that kept the whole mountain floating; powered by the spirit of every pony that lived there. But now, it's a reminder of home and a tool to exact justice upon the one who destroyed it."

"It's another Element..." Twilight said in wonder.

"I remember you calling them that earlier, when the Royal Sisters were fillies they were the Aspects of Peace; Integrity, Compassion, Devotion, Optimism, and Charity."

Starlight piped up from beside them, "That's only five, which one's missing?"

"Missing? Well, I guess you could this one; Perseverance, and the Crystal Heart; Love. Charity was a recent addition on account of Celestia, but-"

"Wait wait wait, the Crystal Heart is one too?", Twilight asked in surprise.

"Of course! It's empowered by the strength of it's virtue in those around it. Then they synergize with each other depending on the bond of their wielders to grow even more powerful."

"Wow... my friends and I have been using them for years, they just... worked when we needed it. Guess I never thought about them like that."

"They are the exact opposite of the Nightmare Forces; magical beings made from the darkest shadow that feed on evil and chaos, knowing only to wreak havoc." Gleaming Blade added.

"Does... that mean the Elements are sentient too?", Twilight said.

"I've heard rumors of them manifesting form and speech similar to their bearer, so perhaps."

Hmm... that would explain Sandbar and the others' stories about a sparkly version of me talking to them when they're around the Tree of Harmony, the purple alicorn thought.

"What about the Tantabus? Is that one of the Nightmare Forces?", Starlight asked.

"You know the old tongue? That's just the term for the Nightmare Forces, plural or singular."

Twilight turned her head to either side, seeing Gleaming Blade's silver necklace on one and the green gem Spike held gently in his claws on the other. He seemed deep in thought, but the purple alicorn hoped he wasn't contemplating eating it again. We started off today with zero Elements, but now we have nine!, Twilight hopefully pondered, boosting her confidence that they could indeed face what was coming.

A Candle in the Night

Back at the Castle of the Two Sisters, the two sisters sat in an upper chamber as the eldest finished recounting a tale of sorrow.

The moon alicorn couldn't help but shed a tear or two of her own, "I'm so sorry sister... I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions like that. I've just been so anxious these past couple days..."

"As have I, Luna. We were both were looking forward to being back there, seeing old friends, visiting some of the places of our filliehood... But now Lumeria is one more thing that monster has taken from us." Celestia spitefully spat.

"Do you remember playing in the castle there?", Luna piped up to brighten the mood.

The white alicorn smirked, "Indeed... you threw tantrums because everything was 'too bright'."

"And then that one time I eclipsed the sun just to make it darker!", Luna said amid giggles.

Celestia let out a hearty laugh, "Everpony thought it was the end of the world! It took me and Iggy plus mother and father threatening to ground you just to put the sun back in front!"

Speaking of celestial movements, Luna noticed noticed the moon rising through the window. It was strange seeing something she had done every night for centuries passed on to another. That was when she and Celestia had accepted their presumed fate. If I survive this, I'll never grumble about raising that thing ever again, Luna promised herself.

Her older sister rose to her hooves, "Well, I'm turning in for the night dear sister, are you going to watch dreams this night?"

Oh, that's right, Luna thought. She and Twilight still hadn't agreed whose job it was to watch over the dreams of Equestria's citizens. It was much easier managing things when one watched the day and one watched the night. Twilight had tried fulfilling both duties on her own before, with disastrous yet hilarious results. I suppose it wouldn't hurt if I stood sentinel this night, Luna said to herself as she stood. After all, she found something comforting in still doing one of the duties she had shouldered for so long.

Her horn glowed with blue magic as she entered the dream realm, a starry landscape where clouds and mists of ponies dreams floated about like a dancing nebula.

She was about to start her nightly journey at Canterlot like she always did when a thought came to her mind. He still has to sleep, right? I wonder if...

The spacial scene around her blurred as she scanned far and wide, over mountains and oceans, across canyons and through valleys. There. A single mind floated alone in an expanse almost devoid of light and others' dreams, vibrant with a magic menacing yet familiar.

Luna gulped as she approached the dream, terrible images of burning and destruction flashing across it's surface. She grimaced viewing the awful imaginations. What kind of pony would dream about this? Unless of course, they were... memories?

She entered the dream and almost immediately everything around her turned to black, the pained screams and consuming flames vanished. Even asleep, he must've realized her presence. Although usually at home in the darkness, this void was different. She could feel eyes everywhere despite seeing nothing no matter which way she turned. This shadow was not simply the absence of light, it was alive with a dreadful, crushing aura. The alicorn of the night couldn't help the instinctual fear that gripped her.

Like waving a piece of flesh before hungry wolves, a pair of eyes appeared in the darkness. These were not normal eyes. They glowed with white energy, void of pupil or iris. They belonged to a black feminine equine head with a curved horn, tears streaming down it's face, a blue mane waving in an unseen air behind it. It's muzzle opened, sharp edges forming teeth from the inky mass.

Luna cowered as it reared back to strike, she was about to break the dream spell before... it stopped.

She curiously opened one eye, the shadow pony struggling against the sparkling glow of yellow magic. Had Celestia followed her? No, this magic was a darker shade than her sister's.

Luna turned as the dark body around her parted ways, revealing a scrawny and tired-looking orange alicorn with a short red mane that was noticeably older and taller than herself, but both qualities just behind Celestia.

He cocked his head as he squinted,

"Luna?"

She couldn't believe her eyes, not knowing whether to jump for joy or cry.

"Iggy?!?", Luna said in disbelief. She leapt on the orange alicorn, who returned the warm embrace.

"I can't believe it's you!", he said, "You've all grown up without me!" the orange alicorn noted. His smile quickly turned back to neutral, "How long was I out?"

"Over two thousand years- I think. It's hard to keep track when you're sealed away for one of those millennia."

"Wait- what happened?", he asked concernedly.

"What happened to me? I should be the one asking that question!", Luna half-heartedly chuckled.

The orange alicorn looked away and took several steps backwards

"Ignius?", Luna said.

"You were young, so there's no way you could've understood everything that was going on. But-", he said looking back towards Luna, "You have every right to blame me for what happened."

Luna had seen these eyes before. She had seen them in the mirror. She hated living carrying that guilt with her, but it was even worse seeing the same happen to somepony else.

The moon alicorn approached her old friend, carefully placing a hoof on his cheek. He still refused to maintain eye contact.

"I know I do... but I refuse to. I've heard the legends and I don't believe them. All those horrible things... the others, that wasn't you. I've been stuck with questions all this time- please... will you tell me?"

Ignius remained silent.

"Look, if anyone understands how you feel... it's me, I-"

"How!? How could you possibly understand what I've been through?", the fire alicorn snapped.

Luna tapped his horn with hers, flooding his mind with her own memories. Growing jealous of her sister's adoration, turning into Nightmare Moon, watching herself fight her own sister and then enduring a thousand years of banishment on the very aspect of nature she embodied. But it wasn't over there. Her guilt continued to eat away at her until the Tantabus she held became strong enough to infect others through her own dream magic. The night that she finally renounced that guilt and prevented the Nightmare from entering reality.

The orange alicorn was speechless as his eyes began to moisten. The rush of images and memories quickly changed his tone.

"Luna...I- I'm so sorry, I had no idea... That's exactly what I was trying to prevent from happening."

The night alicorn lifted a brow, curious and concerned at the same time. She empathized with him since she didn't have to imagine how he felt at this moment; but as bitter as her own memories were she knew this alicorn had been through something far worse. They took a seat as he began telling his story, it was going to be a long night.

The dark expanse fell silent once again as the last word was spoken. The two alicorns sat somberly for a while before the dark blue one spoke up.

"I understand now", Luna said as she came to her hooves, "but what do the Nightmare Forces want with Equestria?"

"Celestia's sun magic more than likely. I gave up all control I had to her when she got her cutie mark. That, and..."

"The Nightmare I hold...", Luna said, holding a hoof to her chest, "I've been calling it 'Tantabus' all this time, but I must've heard you or one of the others use that term and it's all I remembered," she chuckled.

"It is still a Nightmare, but since it feeds on guilt and fear it's name would be... 'Nox' in old ponish. If Inferno assimilates it I can't imagine-"

Luna looked around at the swirling darkness, "What about this one?"

"You're lucky, it used to be much more crowded in here. This is 'Maeror', embodiment of grief and despair."

"Did it begin with you?"

"No, just from looking at it I think you can guess. It's all I have left of her now, just a shadow... However, I was the one that made it this strong."

"I'm sorry for your loss... I miss her as well."

"It's entirely my fault they're gone..." the orange alicorn said, watching the Nightmare shift back and forth above.

Luna looked down back at the fiery alicorn, "You were only trying to help, we both know from experience that holding on to the things we regret only makes them more painful."

Ignius sighed, "Even if I forgave myself, could you and Celestia forgive me?", he returned.

Luna paused, she knew breaking the vicious cycle of revenge through complete forgiveness was the right thing to do, and yet the pony responsible for her parent's death was right in front of her.

Before she could respond, Luna realized the dawn was breaking, and hurriedly said goodbye before the morning came, ending the dream spell. The alicorn of the night promised herself she would return, refusing to leave her old friend to fight through this alone. She had been there as well, as was not going to lose any more family.

The Shadow of Lightning

Rainbow Dash zipped through the air, she was about to bulldoze through her Daring Do collection once again to beat her record when a scroll magically appeared with Twilight's seal; something about an urgent gathering... monsters, someponies in danger... blah blah blah, the usual gig. Just another baddie we need to beat, she thought to herself.

The clouds parted to reveal the Castle of the Two Sisters below. The rainbow-maned pegasus smiled as she saw an open window which she'd have to turn ninety degrees at the last second to fit through.

"Nailed it!", she triumphantly said upon making the tricky landing. She looked left and right down the corridors. Huh, doesn't look like anypony else is here yet. Rainbow decided to do some exploring before her friends showed up.

Looking around she was reminded of the one night they ran amuck through the ancient structure, believing somepony was haunting them. This time around, she knew where all the pressure plates and booby traps were.

The raised voices of two ponies coming from one of the rooms caught her attention. She put an ear up to the old wood.

"I know what I saw, Tia! He needs our help!"

"Dark magic is not to be taken lightly, dear sister... I thought after all this time you of all ponies would understand that! He could've manifested anything in his mind, we can't trust him-"

A frustrated snort came from the first voice.

The second sighed, "Luna, I want to believe you but it's too risky!... Not as a Princess, but as your elder sister I forbid you from going back there!"

"Why?!", the alicorn of the night snapped, "You don't understand what he's going through, I do! Even if I can't do anything to help I can still be there for him! That thousand years I spent sealed away- it was so dark and so... alone, no pony should have to face that by themselves..."

There was a brief silence before anypony spoke up, Rainbow couldn't help but feel like she was eavesdropping but her curiosity kept her at the door.

"Alright," the eldest ex-princess said "just be careful. I don't want to lose you too."

"I will..." Luna said as the two alicorns embraced, "-between him and Cadence it's almost like we have our family back."

Rainbow Dash left the two sisters to have their moment and flew through the main hall to join her friends gathering in the courtyard.

Twilight glided down from the Tree of Harmony to join the colorful ponies around the roots.

"What is it, Twi?- Manticores? Chimeras?", an orange earth-pony eagerly said as she stamped her hooves together.

"Honestly Applejack, it's been almost two weeks since we last saw her and all you can think about is roughhousing with some ghastly creature? Perhaps it's something that will take a bit more... finesse" Rarity said with a twirl of her mane.

The purple alicorn cleared her throat, "Today marks the first gathering of the Council of Friendship-"

"The Whoo-da-wooja?" Rainbow Dash blurted out.

"The Council of Friendship! It's a monthly meetup where we can all consult and plan with one another about Equestria's problems! I figured it'd be a good way to delegate as Princess and as an excuse to see you guys every once in a while."

"Oh, Twilight that sounds splendid!"

"Eee!", Pinkie Pie said excitedly as she bounced, "I'll bring the cupcakes!"

Fluttershy blew bits of confetti out of her mane, they just seemed to exude from the pink pony wherever she went. "I agree, that sounds great Twilight... Um, so what are we here for today?"

"Glad you asked Fluttershy, I trust you've all read the message I sent?"

"Pfft, duh. Did Tirek or Chrysalis break out again? Or worse... Cozy Glow" Rainbow Dash shuddered just thinking about the unsettling filly.

Several of the others simply stared at the rainbow-maned pony.

"What?", she shrugged.

"Rainbow Dash did you even read the backside?" Starlight asked.

The blue pegasus flipped over the parchment she'd brought with her, "Oh..." she said, embarrassed.

Twilight let out an annoyed sigh, "In short, Celestia and Luna were planning on using all of their magic in tandem with the newly-reformed Elements to seal away a collection of dark magic called the Nightmare Forces again for as long as they could."

"So? Aren't they like, retired? Why not just let us handle the bad guys?"

"Celestia chose me as her student and prepared me to replace her one day for this very reason. She was afraid we'd interfere and try to take them on ourselves, so she didn't tell any of us except Starlight and the Pillars, and even that was pretty recently."

"But... as for now that's been moved to Plan 'B'", Starlight added.

"So... what is the plan?" Applejack inquired.

Twilight's horn flashed as a group of gemstones appeared in the air, "You're all going to need these again."

Several excited 'oohs' and gasps came from several of the mares as their respective Elements floated to them.

"We all need to get better wielding these things, both individually and as a group. I'm going to have new pendants forged for them since the old ones don't fit them anymore. In the meantime keep them safe; preferably with you at all times."

"Twilight dear you know I could easily whip up some couth necklaces for these. Hmm... sterling silver perhaps?"

"Thanks, Rarity. but I have a... specific contractor in mind already."

"Oh! Very well," the white unicorn said.

Later that night, across a dark and bleak landscape, a small ghost town lay in-between sharp rocky outcroppings. From an aerial view, the Hollow Shades didn't appear very large. But if you delved deep into the crater in the center of town, another two or three levels of the city lay hidden underground, not to mention numerous buildings carved right into the surrounding mountains. Once a growing metropolis, every stone building, and straw-roofed hut now lay empty, wearily echoing the sounds of the wind.

But this night, lantern-light and the clamoring voices of several ponies emanated from the depths.

They were all unicorns, scholars, and researches; many from Celestia's School of Magic in Canterlot. They talked amongst themselves as a newcomer in a rain-soaked cloak approached them.

One of the unicorns, a rusty-red colt with a purple mane, approached the most recent addition to the underground rendezvous.

"We're all in agreement, not only is this incredibly dangerous, but also quite illegal. If Princess Cel- I mean Twilight finds out about this-"

The hooded figure dropped a heavy bag of bits, several spilling out of the top of the bag and clattering against the stone floor.

"You wanna get paid, right?"

The colt frowned slightly as he looked to the others for reassurance. Sadly, bits spoke a bit louder than reason to these ponies; especially with tuition on the line. He sighed and made a motion to the others,

"Alright everypony! Let's make this happen-" he leaned over to whisper to the hooded pony as the others began making a large ring, "If anypony gets hurt, I'm holding you personally responsible and will be turning you in to the Royal Guard."

"Just do it!", they barked.

The ring of unicorns lit their horns, a slight hum audible due to the sheer amount of magic. They all focused their efforts and minds at once, their horns glowing brighter and brighter.

A glowing white crack appeared above them, spreading through the air as if it was glass. Several of the unicorn's knees started shaking as beads of sweat splashed against the ground.

An unearthly howl echoed from within as a black substance grabbed at the edges of the portal, eager to escape.

Three or four unicorns fainted, out of magic; forcing the others still standing to burn through their supply even faster.

A large black equine head poked through, rending the air with a chilling bellow.

The rusty red colt looked around, seeing several of his colleagues about to faint and more having already done so; fear creeping into his mind upon viewing the dark creature. What in Celestia's name is that!? If she'd told us what was sealed here I never would have accepted her offer! He looked back at his employer, the wind forcing back her hood. Instead of cowering in fear, she almost looked excited, was releasing this monstrosity her plan from the beginning?

He had no time left to wonder as the portal was forced open all the way, sending out a magical shockwave that knocked the rest of the unicorns out or threw them backward. The purple-maned colt saw the pegasus who had paid them approaching the shadowy entity as everything went as black as the blade-like wings that sprouted from its chest.

The Pony of Shadows twisted its neck and shoulders, "Feels so good to be out of there..." he looked around at the collapsed ponies, laying eyes on the one still standing, "There is great envy in your heart-" he leaned down to the mare that barely came up to his chest "-who might you be?"

She only grinned.

Applebloom shivered as she looked over the edge of the hot balloon's basket, never felt right without at least one hoof touching the ground.

"Remind me again why we're doin' this?", she gulped.

Scootaloo buzzed her wings in the breeze, it almost felt like flying.

"This race only happens once every couple of years! It's where teams of pegasi from all around Equestria come to prove who's the fastest of them all!", she excitedly answered, "My aunts were busy last time, so I couldn't go-"

"Lucky for you guys you have the most awesome and responsible chaperone this side of Equestria! They don't take solo entries so I could never compete; one reason why I joined the Wonderbolts!", their rainbow-maned guide/sitter for the day said as she casually flew next to the balloon, her team jacket and saddlebag flapping in the wind.

"But... don't they have flying competitions at the Equestria Games? Ocellus wondered aloud.

"Well, yeah; but those are just for show. Today is purely about speed. Dragons do stuff like this all the time so I wanna see how ponies compare", Smolder confidently said.

"Just you wait! Rainbow Dash is gonna out-fly them all!", Scootaloo boasted.

"And what do you win? A free grab at your opponent's hordes? A pile of gems?"

"No,you just... win. And then that title's yours until the next race," Sweetie Belle answered.

Smolder crossed her arms, "Well that's lame."

"Yona no think it lame! Yona want to see all the pretty uniforms!", the young yak said as she bustled with excitement, making the already-cramped basket even more unpleasant.

Rainbow Dash leaned over to whisper to Ocellus, "No offense, but why did Yona have to come along? Not because I think she's annoying or anything, but wouldn't um... weight be kinda-sorta-maybe... a problem?"

"Headmare Starlight just warned us that the cloud-walking spell might not be as effective, making it harder to get around."

"Gotcha," Rainbow Dash noticed Applebloom looking over a sheet of some kind and flew close, "So.... who does the forecast say is gonna win this year? None other than yours truly, am I right?"

"Actually, no." Sweetie Belle answered.

"One of the other Wonderbolts?"

The filly shook her head, "The Shadowbolts."

"What?!?", Rainbow Dash exclaimed, snatching the sheet for a closer inspection. "There's no way that can be right! The Shadowbolts have always come in 2nd place!"

"Not this year apparently, they won the preliminaries and qualifying rounds by a landslide. If the Wonderbolts competed in the same division as them I don't think you'd be racing today at all," Sweetie Belle said.

Rainbow Dash poured over the document, something wasn't right, she could feel it. But what?

A joyful gasp escaped from Scootaloo as they broke through a cloud, the floating city coming into view, "We're here!"

As those with wings landed on the soft misty surface, the CMC's desperately tried to squeeze past the yak, tumbling onto the cloudy ground.

Yona hesitated to take her first step, and after a reassuring glance from the others, her hoof sunk a couple of inches into the cushy substance.

Every creature looked a bit worried before Yona burst out, "Clouds not scary! Just like snow in Yak-yakistan!"

The yak triumphantly began romping around, feeling quite at home in the one place yak's didn't belong; the sky. The others laughed at Yona rolling around in the clouds as if it was just a snow-pile.

"Well, I gotta head off to the locker room and meet up with the other Wonderbolts. Um... Smolder! You're in charge." Rainbow Dash declared.

"Aww, yes!", Smolder exclaimed as she pumped her fist.

"What?", Ocellus said in surprise, "Wasn't she supposed to lead us around?"

"Uh, duh, she can't do that if she's one of the ones competing."

"So... where are we going then?", Sweetie Belle asked.

Smolder rubbed her claws together, "To find some real seats for this thing."

Ocellus gulped, she didn't like it when Smolder got 'good' ideas.

Rainbow Dash closed her locker, all suited up for the big race. They've gotta be around here somewhere, she said to herself as she walked around.

Spotting somepony donning the purple-and-black uniforms with tiny lightning bolts, she trotted up to them. Another pony with an identical blue mane wasn't too far away.

"So..." she said as she approached the two Shadowbolt twins, "you guys're predicted to take home 1st place today, and where's your number three? You never split up."

"Oh~ Nightshade's out sick today," one of the brothers answered.

"Yeah, but we'll win anyway with our new captain!", the other sneered.

"New captain?"

Rainbow Dash looked down the aisle to see another pony in Shadowbolt attire approaching them, she could've sworn she recognized that mane. Her suspicions were confirmed when the pony took off their goggles.

The blue pegasus practically spat out her lunch, "Lightning Dust?!?"

"Surprised to see me, Dash?", she waited for her self-proclaimed lifelong rival to respond, but continued when the only thing she could do was leave her jaw open. "When the Washouts disbanded due to legal reasons over putting that filly 'in danger', I didn't know what to do with myself. And hey whaddya know the perfect opportunity opened up for me! I'm gonna break every record the Wonderbolts have ever set on this track Dash... and just to rub it in your snout, I'll be taking the trophy too."

"You mean we'll be taking the trophy?", one of the Shadowbolt twins asked.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever...", Lightning Dust said with a dismissing hoof.

Rainbow Dash finally snapped out of it, "Oh yeah? Well, the Shadowbolts have never beaten the Wonderbolts at anything, and I'm gonna keep that record straight!", she retaliated.

"Hmph," Lightning Dust said with a smug grin, "We'll see..."

The cloudspeaker system rang out over the clamor, "Will all teams make their way to their starting positions, please..."

Lightning Dust affixed her goggles, "Showtime."

Rainbow Dash snorted angrily.

Rainbow Dash just didn't get it. Nopony was that fast. Lightning Dust had easily won the 25, 50, and 100-meter dashes by a couple-second lead. High-speed cameras were covering every angle at the finish line, used to determine the winner when most races came down to tenths or even hundredths of a second. But today even the ponies in the back row could tell who won by a clear gap.

"I can't believe it!, you were our best bet for all three of those sprints Dash! Feelin' a little under the weather or something?", Spitfire asked as she walked up to the panting pegasus.

Rainbow Dash threw her goggles off, "No- I've been giving it my all this whole time!", she said between breaths.

"Hey, 2nd place isn't bad-" Soren suggested.

"The Wonderbolts never take second, especially to the Shadowbolts!", Rainbow shouted.

"We were all surprised to see Lightning Dust too Dash, but if they win it's just good training on their part, even I can't be mad at that," Spitfire said.

"If she was winning by a fraction of a second I'd agree with you, but look at that lead!", Rainbow said as she pointed at one of the replay screens, "There hasn't been a pegasus in history that fast!"

"Listen here Dash," Spitfire said as she grabbed her by the shoulders, "up next is the relay race, Lightning may be faster than anypony here, but on an average per-pegasus basis, we've got them beat. Just keep your cool and we can start earning that trophy back, alright?" the fiery-maned pegasus said.

Rainbow Dash took a moment to think, She's right..., the other two Shadowbolts were simply average flyers, there's no way she could make up for them in a team relay!

"Now if I were the Shadowbolts, I'd put Lightning right out of the gate to get as much of a lead as I could before having to pass the baton on..." Spitfire strategized, "Alright here's the plan; I'll take the first charge, Soren you take the middle, and Rainbow Dash... you finish out strong and win us this thing, capeesh?"

The blue pegasus nodded to her captain, they put their hooves together in a team huddle and chanted 'Wonderbolts!' before heading off to their places along the relay track.

"Woohoo! Go Shady-colts!", the orange and magenta dragon cheered from atop the cloud stadium.

"It's Shadowbolts, Smolder-" Ocellus corrected, "-plus, shouldn't we be cheering for Professor Dash?"

"It's not that I don't enjoy the view from up here, but um...", Sweetie Belle wondered aloud as she looked over the ledge.

"Meh," Smolder said, "they're clouds, I'm pretty sure you'll be fine even if you fell... Hey, where's Yona?", the dragon said as she swiveled her head, the yak was sitting right next to her just a minute ago.

"Yona right here."

Smolder looked down, the yak's head the only thing above the cloud-line now.

"Uh... are you okay?"

Yona nodded, "Clouds just deep here..."

Smolder grabbed the lip of the stadium and looked under, Yona's hooves poking out from the bottom. She shrugged and looked back at the racing track.

Rainbow Dash re-adjusted her goggles, ready to bolt as soon as Soarin passed her the baton.

"Spitfire's trusting you with the last charge?", came a mocking voice from her side, "Given your track record today I'd say you deserve the bench."

The rainbow-maned pegasus whipped her head around, Lightning Dust was finishing the relay, not starting it! She looked frantically to Spitfire across the track at the starting line, seeing if her team captain wanted to make any last-minute adjustments. She only nodded and gave her a wings-up, seeing the confidence she put in her bolstered Rainbow Dash's resolve to win. Not for herself or some petty rivalry, but for the Wonderbolts. It was up to her to keep her team's decades-long legacy of never having lost to the Shadowbolts.

The starting bell rang out across the cloud stadium, the pegasi at the starting line taking off in the blink of an eye.

Rainbow Dash watched in anxious anticipation as Spitfire flew with all her might, cheering her on in her mind. She reached Soarin with just a slight edge over the other teams, who started his charge with the same gusto. Rainbow Dash assumed her takeoff stance as Soarin neared her position.

"C'mon, c'mon you dolts!" Lightning Dust steamed beside her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the first of the Shadowbolt twins hadn't even passed his baton to his brother yet.

Rainbow Dash smiled as she took the baton from Soarin, giving Lightning a sarcastic salute as she zoomed past her.

Despite a semi-comfortable lead, the blue pegasus flew with every ounce of speed her wings could muster, she was not losing this thing.

"Ugh, finally!" Lightning Dust exclaimed as her team's baton reached her, Rainbow Dash already halfway to the finish line.

The green and yellow pegasus mustered everything she had, and took off with a single flap of her wings, breaking the sound barrier from a standstill.

The loud snap ringing through her ears, Rainbow Dash glanced behind her as a black streak with yellow lightning whisked past. The ribbon over the finish line broke in two just as Rainbow Dash was about to touch it with her snout.

The crowd erupted, head-over-hoof for the underdog team beating the reigning champions.

Lightning Dust basked in the applause, as much as she enjoyed the adoration it wasn't what she was here for.

"Are you kidding me!?!", Rainbow Dash yelled from behind her, tossing her goggles on the ground once again.

That's more like it, Lightning Dust thought to herself.

"We had that one in the bag! I get the whole 'rivals-for-life' thing but this is just, just!-"

Lightning Dust shrugged, "Looks like all that training finally paid off- eh, Dash?", she patted the blue pegasus on the back before heading to the locker room with her team for the intermission.

"C'mon, if we hurry we can catch her before the next race!", Scootaloo said as she led the group through the rows of lockers, almost passing Rainbow Dash sitting alone.

"Oh, hey Scoots..."

"Weren't you still gonna race?" Apple Bloom asked.

"There's no point, after losing that relay we have a better chance of growing another pair of wings than taking first place."

"Heh! I'll say, your team was getting so-", Smolder started to exclaim before a quick jab from Ocellus shut her mouth.

The sky-blue changeling stepped forward, "Professor Dash, what's wrong?"

Rainbow Dash sighed, "I dunno, all my life being the fastest was just my thing, you know? I even got into the Wonderbolts, set some new records, and now what? I'm just another short-lived rookie..."

Ocellus was about to pipe up before Smolder surprisingly cut in,

"Short-lived rookie? You're Rainbow Dash, the coolest professor at school! You've saved Equestria what, like a couple dozen times over? You're in a mural in the Canterlot Throne Room! Doesn't any of that mean anything? And so what, if you're not the fastest pony around anymore, being loved and looked up to by every creature around is worth a lot more than your name on a plaque!"

Rainbow Dash looked up, "You think every creature... looks up to me?"

"Well," Smolder said as she gestured to the others, "at least we do."

"Thanks." Rainbow said as she wiped the moisture from her eyes "-ugh, must be an eyelash or something..." she added after noticing all the eyes on her.

Scootaloo rushed forward and hugged the rainbow-maned pegasus, "I still think you're the coolest pony ever..."

The cloudspeakers echoed over them, announcing the three winning teams.

"Eh, I guess second isn't all that bad," Rainbow Dash commented.

Lightning Dust came around the corner not too much later, removing her headpiece and goggles, carrying something large and gold.

"Whew, what a race Dash. I even gave Spitfire a headstart, you should have seen the look on her face when I flew past her!", the green pegasus laughed, "Guess this'll be the start of my own trophy collection," she said, tapping the golden cup as Rainbow Dash stood up. Lightning Dust waited for Dash to say something, "I bet you're absolutely furious about losing the lime-light to your lifelong rival, right? C'mon, lemme hear it. What do you think of me getting everypony's cheers and adoration for once, huh?"

Rainbow Dash sighed before taking Lightning Dust's leg in a respectful hoof-shake, "Good job, I bet you trained hard for this."

"What?", Lightning Dust said, raising an eyebrow.

"Looks like you've finally beaten me good and honest, Dusty. What's your new workout routine? I bet it's brutal if it made you that wicked fast, I'd love to try it sometime!", she said before turning around to head out with the creatures behind her.

"Oh no no no no, this is NOT how you react Dash."

The blue pegasus turned around, "Well, what did you expect?"

"I don't know; lashing out, getting angry, blaming me for cheating, challenging me to a rematch... that's what you do! Not... whatever that was!"

"And why is that a problem? It's just good sportsponyship. Enjoy your trophy," the rainbow-maned mare said, attempting to leave again.

Lightning Dust grabbed Rainbow Dash by the shoulder, who turned around to look her square in the eyes.

"No, you're going to pay..."

"Pay? for what?"

"For what? For what?! Joining the Wonderbolts was my dream too! And sure I was being a little reckless, but you ruined my chances of joining the team I looked up to ever since I was a filly! How do you think that made me feel... I was devastated!", Lightning Dust ranted, "But then I found others like me and made my own team... I thought I finally had something going for myself! And who turns up to bring everything I worked hard for crashing down again? You.", the green pegasus pointed.

Rainbow Dash could tell this might get ugly.

"Smolder? Take every creature back to the balloon, I'll meet you guys there."

"And you!", Lightning Dust said upon noticing Scootaloo in their midst, and began walking towards her "You're the reason why I had to disband the Washouts! If it wasn't for you then I'd-", she said before being stopped by Rainbow's hoof.

"Hey, leave her out of this... pick on somepony your own size."

The two pegasi's eyes locked onto each other, stern and protective meeting an envious rage that grew with every passing second.

"Oh, I plan on it..."

Rainbow was about to try and talk her down to avoid a hoof-fight, when she got the feeling that something was wrong, very wrong and very dangerous. The suspicion was confirmed as Lightning Dust's eyes filled up with a black substance than began streaming down her face like macabre tears.

"Go!, get out of here!", she shouted to the creatures behind her.

"You're going to pay, for RUINING... MY.... LIFE!!!", Lightning Dust yelled as a pillar of black magic exploded around her, making a gaping hole that went through the stadium seats above.

Rainbow Dash was knocked to the ground, she looked frantically around for her locker, seeing a trademarked Wonderbolt merchandise jacket sticking out from among the wreckage.

"Ah-hah!" she yelled triumphantly, reaching into one of the pockets, "You're so done now that I have... this!"

Lightning Dust cocked her head, raising an eyebrow sarcastically as her eyes turned pure white, a pair of shadowy wings growing from her chest and a curved, black horn now adorning her forehead.

Rainbow Dash looked at her hoof, revealing a couple of crumpled-up tickets to today's race, "Oh come on! Where'd I put that thing?"

The vengeful pony was done messing around, shooting a beam of dark magic at the blue pegasus, who jumped out of the way.

Must've left it in my saddle bag... Rainbow Dash thought to herself.

"Come on out Dash! We have some... unfinished business.", Lightning Dust hissed as she searched through the rows of lockers.

Knowing there was no way she could out-fly her now, Rainbow Dash rapidly tried to think of some way out of this.

"Hey! Over here you slowpoke!" her own voice shouted from down the hall.

Lightning Dust whipped towards the sound, taking off in a flash of black lightning. Rainbow Dash just barely caught a glimpse of... herself? as they rounded the corner and out of sight.

"Ocellus?", Rainbow Dash thought out loud.

"Yup! She's the distraction. What's going on with that pegasus?", Smolder said as she landed on the edge of the gaping hole in the ceiling.

"I have an idea, but it's not good; I need to get to my saddlebag from the balloon. Where are the others?"

Smolder waved her claws dismissively, "They're fine, probably already waiting for us there!"

"Alright, then let's go! Ocellus can only dupe her for so long!", Rainbow said as they took to the sky.

Another beam of dark energy ripped through the hallway, sending chunks of cloud and brick in every which way.

Around the corner, a small insect crawled out from under a door, turning back into a light-blue changeling in a flash of green magic.

Ocellus panted, both from exhaustion and from narrowly avoiding dying several times. She looked around for options of escape, laying eyes on a pair of double-doors with an exit sign above them not too far away. She morphed back into Rainbow Dash, looking both ways down the hall before making a break for it.

Upon reaching the outside, she scanned her surroundings again. Not a dark-magic-enhanced pegasus in sight.

Ocellus exhaled, "Must've lost her..."

"There you are!", Ocellus jumped as Lightning Dust's voice came from above her.

The changeling flew as fast as she could, hoping to distance herself as she thought through a dozen possibilities of what to transform into to hide.

Lightning Dust landed with a thunderous smashing sound into the pavement, springing into flight as soon as her hooves hit the ground.

As she closed the gap she suddenly tripped and ate clouds as she tumbled over herself a couple of times.

"What the?-", Lightning Dust said as she looked behind her; all she could see were two green horns poking through the ground.

"Sorry! Yona can't see where Yona going...", said a muffled voice from within.

Lightning Dust stared for a couple of seconds in confusion before snapping her head back to Rainbow Dash, who was now far, far down the street.

The green pegasus grunted angrily as she took off again.

"Ha! Got it!", Rainbow Dash said as she held aloft a diamond-shaped red jewel.

Sweetie Belle gasped, "Is that one of the Elements?"

"You bet it is, now we just have to wait for-" a cry for help cut her short, Rainbow turned to see Lightning Dust cornering Ocellus, obviously infuriated that she had been chasing a double.

The darkness around the green pegasus had grown, now rivaling the nearby buildings. Amidst thrashing tentacles of shadow, an equine head surveyed the chaos it was causing, watching ponies flee and structures crumble as it's power grew. The Pony of Shadows laughed maliciously.

The fear in the young changeling's eyes made Lightning Dust come to her senses. She looked around at the destruction this dark creature, no... she had caused.

"Thi-this isn't what I wanted! I just wanted to get revenge on Rainbow Dash, not hurt everypony!", she said, flinching as a nearby building was crushed, "The deal's off! You're going back where you came from!", Lightning Dust commanded the darkness.

Foolish pony... you belong to ME now, it's voice echoed in her mind as the black substance enveloped her.

"Hey!" Rainbow Dash shouted, "You let her go!"

The Pony of Shadows turned it's attention to the defiant pegasus, shooting a beam of dark energy. While it was distracted, Ocellus managed to slip by.

Rainbow Dash dodged it easily, "Hah!, you missed!", she taunted.

Sputters of smoke from behind alerted her to what it hadn't missed, the engine of the hot-air balloon that kept it afloat with constant heat.

Yona, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo screamed as the airborne vehicle began plummeting to the ground below.

"Uh-oh!", Rainbow said as she dived to catch them.

Ocellus and Smolder flew to the side of the basket.

"We got this! Go beat that thing!", Smolder shouted over the frantic occupants.

Rainbow Dash nodded and left the two students to save their friends, flying straight for the large writhing creature. When she made eye contact with the Pony of Shadows, she suddenly felt like she was being pulled forward.

Rainbow Dash covered her face with her wings, bracing for some sort of impact. When nothing happened, she opened her eyes.

She wasn't in Cloudsdale anymore, or anywhere for that matter. It was all black no matter which way she looked.

Somepony was crying not too far away, Rainbow decided to walk towards the sound.

Through the inky darkness, she made out the shape of somepony curled up sitting on the ground. Was it...

"Lightning Dust?"

The green and yellow pegasus glanced at her, tears dripping from her face.

"Rainbow Dash? How are you even here? It doesn't matter, just go away...", she said.

The blue pegasus silently sat down beside her.

"I've fought this thing before, pretty nasty guy, huh?"

Lightning Dust remained quiet.

"The first time he got this strong it was because somepony was jealous of his friends... are you... jealous of me?"

"Oh, now you figure it out! Of course, why wouldn't I be?", the green pegasus snapped, "You got to join the Wonderbolts while I got kicked out! And just when I started to make the best of a bad situation you showed up and only made it worse!"

"I-I'm sorry," Rainbow Dash said as she put a comforting wing on her shoulder, "I was so focused on myself that I never thought about how you felt..."

Lightning Dust sniffed, "We're not that different, you and me."

"Heh, besides a complete disregard for safety regulations, that is."

The green pegasus half-heartedly chuckled.

Rainbow Dash thought for a minute, "Hey, whaddya say I convince Spitfire to let you re-apply at the academy?"

Lightning Dust perked up, "Really?"

"Why not? I'm sure you'd pay close attention to all the rules and warnings from now on, or else you'll end up-"

"-in a full-body wing and hoof cast, drinkin' through a straw!", the two mares jokingly said in unison in their best impression of the fiery pegasi officer. The two of them had a good laugh as they wiped tears of sadness and laughter from their eyes.

Rainbow Dash helped her stand up, "You ready to do this?"

Lightning Dust nodded.

As if nothing had happened, the rainbow-maned mare's vision snapped back to her flying straight at the Pony of Shadows.

With renewed conviction and now two ponies to save, she clenched the gem in her right hoof, which glowed hot with pure energy.

Rainbow Dash reared back and then rocketed forward in a bolt of scarlet lightning, sending out a sonic rain-boom.

She punched through the chest of the dark creature, creating a large rift that quickly expanded with ruby flames, consuming its mass in a matter of seconds.

Everypony watched in awe as the Pony of Shadows disintegrated with cries of agony.

Smolder and Ocellus flapped with all their might as they tugged on the basket, doing little to slow its descent.

"Too much... yak!", the orange dragon grunted.

The light blue changeling started inspecting the heating element, seeing if there was some way they could turn it back on. If only we had some other way of generating heat... she wondered before looking to Smolder.

"Fire! We need fire! Make the air inside it hot!" Ocellus shouted.

After smacking her forehead with an 'oh, duh!' expression, Smolder clambered over to the opening in the canvas. She blew and blew, but no flames came out.

"What's wrong?", Ocellus asked.

"I can't breathe fire under pressure like this!", Smolder said.

Ocellus looked at the ground quickly approaching, "Well how else can you produce flames?"

"Uh...laughing? Tell me a funny joke!"

"...", Ocellus blinked.

"Okay... sometimes I breathe fire on accident when I'm scared, or I stub my claws, or-"

Not needing any further details, Ocellus shape-shifted into a crab and clamped down on Smolder's tail.

The orange dragon yelped, a bright blaze shooting from her mouth. The sudden stream of heat providing the force needed to slow the balloon down enough to land them safely on top of a tree.

Rainbow Dash and Lightning Dust landed among the cloudy streets, joining the crowd looking at the wreckage.

"You two better have a darn good explanation for all this!", Spitfire grumbled as she approached them.

"Oh, hey Spitfire! I know now might not be the best time, but can Lightning Dust have another go at the training academy?"

"What?" the Wonderbolt captain said, taken aback.

"Please?....", Rainbow Dash said.

Spitfire sighed, "Fine, but only because without you we wouldn't have taken second today either. But... I'm expecting a full-report from each of you regarding this entire disaster, in triplicate!", she added after the two mares started to celebrate.

"Wait.... me too?" Lightning Dust asked.

Spitfire got real close and pointed a hoof at her chest, "in....triplicate!", she threatened.

Twilight's Offer

The sound of a hammer and anvil echoed methodically through the cobbled square of a small town. Twilight followed the sound, wearing a rugged but effective brown cloak. Going out in public had only gotten harder, she now understood why Celestia and Luna barely left Canterlot, let alone their castle.

She came upon the source of the sound, a coal-fired forge adjacent to a cozy straw-roofed house. A unicorn mare with a tall dark pink mane, an even darker purple coat to match. Not that the specific color palette was common, but when she turned around there was no mistaking who it was due to several distinct features on her face.

Tempest Shadow briefly looked up as Twilight approached before turning back to her work.

"Figured you had something to do with this," she sighed. "No pony else would order seven custom gorgets with gem sockets... You know you could have asked any number of other smiths in Canterlot."

Twilight shrugged, "It's something friends do, we rely on each other."

Tempest smirked, "Anything else you came all this way for? If it's about the last piece being three sizes smaller than the others I just assumed it was a typo..."

"Oh, no-that one's for Spike."

Tempest leaned over her workbench, "Where is the little guy? He usually follows you around everywhere."

"I... gave him some things to get done at the castle while I'm gone, it's just us today."

The sound of a straw attempting to suck up the last dregs of a cup made Twilight turn her head, laying eyes on a dark-gray hedgehog with white quills coming around the corner.

"Oh hey, Twilight! How's it goin'?", Grubber asked.

"Make that the three of us," Twilight smiled.

Tempest squinted at the empty cup.

"Uh, were you saving this for later? My bad...", he said as he wiped whipped cream from his paws on the Storm King logo of the oversized hoodie he was wearing.

Grubber hopped up on a stool behind the counter, popping off the plastic lid to lick the inside.

"Well, I can see you two are getting along nicely," Twilight said.

"Hmph, he's just lucky I feel sorry enough to let him hang around."

"Ah, come on Tempest! I'm all sorts of useful, aren't I?"

"Like a spatula serving soup."

"Exactly! Wait..."

The two mares chuckled a little.

"You know, besides the metalwork, I do have a... proposition for you...", Twilight said.

"And what would that be?", Tempest replied as she pumped the bellows.

"Since my brother left for the Crystal Empire there's been a vacancy for Captain of the Royal Guard, and with Celestia and Luna retiring it's the perfect opportunity for a changing of the guard; both figuratively and literally."

Tempest put down her hammer, "Why me?" she asked.

"To be honest, you're one of the only ponies in the entire country with a decent amount of combat and leadership experience."

"But why I have those skills should be enough for you to pick somepony else. I was the Storm King's right-hand mare for years. I've done... terrible things, not to mention helping him nearly take over Equestria! Remember that time I literally colt-napped you?"

"We all make mistakes," Twilight said. "Some... more serious than others," she added when Tempest rolled her eyes. "Besides, that's all behind you! You even showed up to help us defeat Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow! That's gotta mean something deep down."

"Because you saved my life, that's all. I'm happy here, I found a way to use some of the skills I learned in the Storm King's army to help ponies. The last thing I want is to get wrapped up in military conflict again. I'm sorry Twilight, but I'm not that kind of mare, not anymore...", Tempest said as she turned her back.

Twilight sighed, "There's a war coming Tempest, regardless of what either of us wants. Bigger than the Storm King's reign, bigger than anything in recorded history. Equestria's gonna need everypony she can get. And there's no-pony else I'd rather have leading the front."

Tempest was silent for a while, "...Okay, I'll do it," she looked up, "if you can find a way to fix my horn."

"Alright," Twilight blinked and turned to walk away.

"Wait- that was a joke!" Tempest stopped her, "There's no actual way to repair a broken horn... right?"

"Not that I know of... but if that's what you want I'll gladly look into it."

"Why? Because 'we're friends'?"

Twilight nodded, "And so what's important to you is important to me. I'll see you in Canterlot!", she said as she flipped her hood back on, leaving Tempest alone to her thoughts, the slow crackle of her forge, and a certain annoying hedgehog.

"What's with that grumpy ol' mug? She's tryna be nice!", Grubber said.

Tempest sighed, "I've had "friends" before, Grubber. They'll be there when it's convenient and then turn saddle at the first sign of trouble. I can't trust anypony anymore. Between that and being the Storm King's lackey, I can't even trust myself. That's why I never hang around anypony for too long."

"But... Twilight trusts you."

"I don't know what she sees in me; a unicorn broken in more ways than one. She should've let go..."

Grubber put down his cup, "Tempest?", he asked.

"What?", she barked.

"I could've gone anywhere in Equestria after the Storm King, you know... But I chose to stick with you, wanna know why? Because you're one of the coolest, most talented ponies I know."

"I'm the only pony you know."

"I mean, yeah... but listen, you got some serious skills my mare. No creature can hold a candle to you when it comes to making smoothies, let alone in a fight. I mean, talk about a diverse profile. The whole broken horn thing with the eye scar? Totally bad-apple. And I dunno about you, but being captain of the guard for an alicorn sounds pretty sick. You got places you can go, things you can do, ponies who value you for who you are! Me? Well, I've got nothin..."

Tempest walked over to the hedgehog slumped on the barstool, "You have me, at least."

Grubber perked up, "Hey! Now we're talking! And we got each other, right?", he said while holding a paw out for a fist-bump.

Tempest left him hanging and doused her forge, then packed up the finished set of gorgets and walked out of the forge.

"Uh, where you going?", Grubber asked.

"Canterlot- you coming or what?", Tempest added behind her.

"I think gold looks good on you," Twilight said as they walked down the corridor.

"Speak for yourself, it's a bit big-" Tempest shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, it's not every day that there's a mare in the Royal Guard, especially as captain."

They came to a wooden set of double doors that led out into the courtyard.

"So... what do you want me to do?"

Twilight shrugged, "Just do whatever comes naturally! Ponies are probably a lot easier to keep in line than those storm-beasts."

Tempest collected herself and then pushed the doors open, coming into the field right before the city gate. A couple of dozen Royal Guards stood in rows. She cleared her throat as she approached them.

"Attention!", she shouted, the Guards instinctively straightening their lines out and holding their spears at the ready. "My name is Tempest Shadow, and starting today I'll be your new captain.", she said as she began pacing in front of them. "There'll be no lollygagging or slacking off on my watch. If I catch any of you staring at my flank you get yours beaten into the pavement, understood?"

"Yes... ma'am!", the Guards collective voices rang out, many of them having to stop themselves from saying 'sir'.

Tempest eyed one of the more nervous-looking pegasi. "Private! How many drills do the Guard run through every week?"

"Uh, two... Two ma'am!", he corrected himself as Tempest glared at his informality.

"Double it."

"What? There's no way we can-", a gray unicorn said in protest.

"Triple it!", Tempest interrupted him, "Do I hear quadruple?", as she eyed him down in close-quarters.

The unicorn broke eye contact and remained silent. A small snort followed by a chuckle came from further down the line.

"Excuse me?", Tempest said as she marched towards the outburst.

"With all due respect captain, how is a unicorn whose lacking what makes a unicorn a unicorn going to maintain order around Equestria?", a white unicorn wondered aloud.

Well that was slower than I expected, Tempest thought to herself, time to establish the pecking order.

She walked over to a nearby weapons rack and grabbed a spear. "Alright then, if you beat me one-on-one, I'll promote you to captain and immediately resign."

"You serious?"

"If you look at me you'll see that I just love to joke around," Tempest said, equipped with a stone-cold poker face Maud Pie would approve of.

The unicorn looked around at his fellow guards before stepping forwards to face Tempest.

They circled each other for a bit before the unicorn levitated his spear forward in a clumsy lunge. Tempest easily dodged it, going in close and knocking him to the ground with her shoulder. She rolled over him and brought her spear up to his neck while pinning his back with her knee, effectively locking him in a chokehold.

"Anypony else?", she asked the other guards who'd gathered around them.

Dead silence.

"Good. Now get back in line!", she snapped.

"She's perfect!", Spike gasped from the sidelines while he and Twilight watched the scene unfold.

"I know, right?", a popcorn-munching Grubber said from beside him.

Spiked almost jumped, "How long have you been here?"