Apple Bloom stirred from her sleep from an echo in the distance. She yawned before standing up and stretching, the sun wasn't even out yet, but for some reason she could see bright lights coming from the direction of the farm. She heard the echo again, it sounded like somepony was screaming. The smell of smoke started to fill the air around her and her tired mind finally started putting the pieces together. Her eyes widened in fright as she charged out of the clubhouse and trotted as fast as she could back to the farm, finally arriving to a sight that made her heart sink deep into her gut. There stood her child hood home completely engulfed in flames and surrounded by ponies of all kinds dumping buckets of water on it in the hopes to bring down the fire. Finally the pegasi flew in with large storm clouds, making it rain over the burning structure. Apple Bloom got as close as the heat from the fire would allow her with tears in her eyes that were being masked by the intense amount of rain landing all around them. Once the fire was out and there was nothing left but the large charred house filled with smoke she forced her way through the crowds of towns-ponies and ran through the front door. She stopped for a moment to check her surroundings, her eyes locking onto the heavily damaged flight of stairs. After a bit of quick maneuvering and the occasional stumble as the floor literally broke apart from under her she managed to make it up the stairs, but immediately regretted the decision. The first thing to grace her sight was the burnt corpse of her older brother laying on the floor with smoke rising from the singed meat of his large body. Apple Bloom gagged, she didn't know which she was going to do first, cry or throw-up. Her thoughts as well as her actions were soon interrupted by what sounded like groaning in one of the rooms. She held her breath an averted her eyes from Big Mac's body, walking around his body so she could reach the door that belonged to the bedroom of her older sister. The knob was likely very hot from the fire so rather than grabbing it Apple Bloom kicked the door open. She found Applejack laying on the floor in the same physical manner as Big Mac, but somehow the once orange farm horse was still alive.

Apple Bloom was immediately brought to tears at the sight and ran over to her sister. "Applejack! Hold on, I'll get you out of here!" She grabbed Applejack and attempted to lift her, stopping when she heard the sound of flesh being ripped and her sister crying out in pain. Setting her back down she examined the area, just noticing that her sisters burnt flesh was fused to the floor-boards. She struggled to think of a way to free her sister, looking around the room frantically for something, anything.

She was suddenly interrupted as Applejack weakly called her name. "Apple Bloom..." She said, forcing her hoof to rise up and reach for her kin, despite the pain that came from her burnt flash tearing from the movement.

Apple Bloom's face started unleashing waves of her sadness through her eyes as she watched her sister reaching out for her. She walked over and sat down, grabbing Applejack's raised hoof. She didn't care about the burns, she just wanted this to be nothing more than some horrible nightmare.

"Apple Bloom..." She said once more, feeling the life fading out of her. "It's not...your...fault...I love you..." As she finished saying this her body went limp and she let out a long breath that almost didn't seem to end.

It took ten minutes and three stallions to pry her off of the lifeless husk once known as Applejack. Once she was off they were forced to drag her, kicking and screaming, out of that house. It took some time before she finally calmed down enough to stop attacking everypony that went near her, but once she had settled a familiar white unicorn eventually found her was over.

Rarity approached, but with caution. She had seen what kind of damage Apple Bloom was capable of when provoked lately and she did not plan to over step her boundaries. She stood next to the young earth mare, who didn't seemed to notice her, before speaking to her softly. "Good morning Apple Bloom."

Apple Bloom turned her head to face the source of the voice speaking to her; she could just barely see the sun beginning to rise behind the unicorn. She didn't say anything though, just stared at her.

Rarity would assume nothing less than silence. The poor mare had just lost her whole family, she was likely traumatized. Rarity straightened herself out before taking a seat beside her. "I'm deeply sorry, Apple Bloom. Applejack and Big Mac were like family to me and they will surely be missed." She explained, her voice cracking every so often.

Apple Bloom watched as Rarity's eyes started to water slightly, but this only angered her. What would she know about loss? Probably a lot actually. Apple Bloom's nerves started to settle as she remembered that rarity's sister, Sweetie Belle, one of her best friends, had vanished and was still missing to this day. "Thank you..."

Rarity was slightly shocked she had gotten a response at all, but this wasn't something to be played with. She was happy that Apple Bloom was still capable of opening up, even if it was just a little bit. "Well, and I don't mean to sound insensitive, but I suppose you will be needing a place to stay for the time being?"

Apple Bloom let out a soft sigh. She really didn't have anywhere else to go, other than the clubhouse, but she didn't want to burden Rarity. "Don't worry about it, Ah'll find somethin' eventually."

"...please..."

"Pardon?"

Rarity's eyes started to water up once more. "It's no trouble, I promise. Thing's have been kind of lonely since..." She stopped, closing her eyes tightly in an attempt to keep her emotions hidden. "I would just really appreciate the company...With Sweetie Belle gone, as well as the other, I'm just so lonely."

"Wait," Apple Bloom started, " what do you mean when you say the others?"

"You know of Twilight and Fluttershy...Now Pinkie and Rainbow have vanished as well." She explained, finding it harder to fight the tears that had been building up for so long.

Apple Bloom was awe-struck. They had both lost everything; their friends, their family, all of it was just gone. She watched as Rarity finally let go and released her emotions, she was quiet about it, but she had still finally cracked. Apple Bloom inched her way over to Rarity before wrapping her hooves around her and pulling her into a warm and comforting embrace.

After being slightly taken back by Apple Bloom's sudden actions Rarity returned the hug, letting a light smile creep across her features for the first time since Sweetie Belle's disappearance.

After holding each other for what felt like hours the two broke their embrace and started to make their way to carousel boutique. Once there Rarity showed Apple Bloom to Sweetie Belle's room. She already knew where it was, but she figured it was best to just humor Rarity for the time being.

Before heading down the stairs Rarity turned back to face Apple Bloom. "Darling, I have a few orders I need to take care of. If you feel like doing something you're always welcome to come help." She said, smiling weakly at her guest.

Apple Bloom did the same in turn before replying. "I think I'd like that Rarity."

Rarity motioned for her to follow and Apple Bloom complied. It wasn't exactly easy for her to help with the sewing aspect, being an earth pony and all, so instead Apple Bloom helped sort out materials, bring over anything Rarity might need, and package completed orders so that they could be shipped out as soon as possible. They spent hours doing this while talking back and forth, telling jokes, telling stories. Eventually they found themselves laughing every so often just by simply enjoying the presence of the other. It was nice to get all of their feelings out and let go of the pain, it didn't mean that they cared any less for those who were lost, but that they had simply braved the storm and were ready to move on, carrying the memory of the one they loved.

Apple Bloom finished packaging the last set of dresses before finally falling onto her flank and letting out a sigh of relief. She enjoyed working, but taking a break was always good too. "Rarity, Ah'm mighty thankful for you letting me stay here. Ah really wish I could do something to make it up to ya."

She shot Apple Bloom a crooked look. "What ever do you mean darling? You've just helped me complete a full weeks worth of orders! I believe you have more than earned your keep."

Apple Bloom smiled up at her friend before her attention was became caught by a dark blur running pass on of the windows. Her head shot over toward the transparent glass as her eyes started scanning for any kind of further movement.

"Are you alright?" Rarity asked, causing Apple Bloom's head to jerk back in her direction, "You seem a bit...what's the word? Jumpy, I guess?"

"What? Oh, no. Ah aint jumpy, Ah just noticed that it was getting pretty late." She said in an attempt to cover for her weird behavior.

Rarity looked at the window. "Oh my, it really has gotten late. Time sure does fly when you're hard at work with such a good friend! Com, come now. I'll see you to your room."

The two got up from their places and walked upstairs. Rarity, after taking Apple Bloom to Sweetie Belle's older room, bid her friend a good night and went off to get some rest. As Apple Bloom climbed into the bed and got comfortable she found herself feeling genuinely calm and relaxed. She still missed her friends dearly, as well as her family, but she couldn't let the thoughts of them torment her. They wouldn't have wanted that, they would want her to move on and be happy. So for their sake, and hers, she was going to do just that. After not even a minute of laying down she found herself slipping into dream land with little effort. The darkness that was filling her sight soon became a bright and blinding light as her vision became engulfed by the sight of a full moon. She raised a hoof to shield her eyes from the immense brightness and before she had a moment to thing she saw the shadow of an alicorn appear on it.

"Apple Bloom, you must listen to me." The shadow spoke with a voice that sounded way too familiar.

"Luna?" She asked, her mind suddenly being filled with thoughts of anger. "What the hay do you want?"

"Please, Apple Bloom. You are in danger, you must awaken." Her voice held firm, but her concern could be lightly picked up from her usual tone.

Her curiosity started to grow upon hearing this, so rather than arguing she decided to pry a bit. "What do you mean? How am ah in danger?"

"There is no time to explain, he is already so close. You must run!"

The moon started to glow brighter before a set of large black claws grabbed onto it and crushed it to dust in its palms. Apple Bloom started quickly backing away as the beast from her previous nightmare reappeared, this time being giant. A tall dark creature with spines and spikes donned on its rough and twisted body, with massive blades protruding from its arms. The gargantuan beast roared wildly as it pounced, leaping at Apple Bloom with a hungry look in its black eyes. Suddenly she awoke in a cold sweat, sitting up quickly, her face wet from the intense dream. After looking around and seeing that she was okay, she managed to take a breath and let it slide off of her like dead weight. Once her mind started to clear she reached her hooves up and rubbed her tired eyes. "Sweet Celestia," she muttered to herself, "why can't ah just have one normal night?" She lowered her hooves from her face, screaming the second she did so. They were covered in a thick red liquid that she easily recognized as blood. Looking up she saw several holes in the ceiling where the blood seemed to be leaking from. Apple Bloom quickly leaped out of the bed and charged upstairs to Rarity's room. The door had been torn off of its hinges, allowing her to run straight in. The carnage that laid before her was heart-wrenching; her one and only friend left in this cruel world was laying on her bed convulsing with several holes decorating her body.

Apple Bloom ran to Rarity's side, grabbing her face and turning it to face her. She couldn't lose her, without Rarity she would be all alone. "Rarity, stay with me now...Please! You're all I have left!" She immediately froze as the sound of something large breathing right behind her started to fill shake her eardrums.

Rarity's eyes shot up to Apple Bloom's face. "Run..."

Apple Bloom hesitated at first, but once the breathing behind her turned into a bestial growl the decision was made for her. Her body forced her up onto her hooves and into a sprint out of the room, earning a loud roar from whatever was behind her. After practically flying down the stairs, and almost tripping a number of times, she finally made it the the main room. However, before she could get to the door the ceiling collapsed just in front of her and following the debris was the creature. Despite it being much smaller, it was identical to the monster that she had been seeing in her dreams. Her thoughts became interrupted as it started to walk on its hind legs towards her. Apple Bloom backed away until she found herself up against a wall. Having no where to run she simply faced the creature, before taking notice of the necklace it wore with a silver plate on it. Squinting a bit she managed to read an engraving on the plate; Oliver. The beast raised its bladed arms, ready to finish her off as it swung at her.

"Oliver, wait!" Apple Bloom shouted with her eyes sealed shut so she wouldn't have to watch herself die. Once the strike didn't come she opened her eyes, seeing the blade at a complete halt less that a centimeter from her face. "Oliver, it's me." She pleaded, the beast finally lowering its weapon. "That's right, baby. It's your mama. Come here..." She opened her hooves, holding them out wide to offer a welcoming embrace.

Oliver felt a pang in his mind as she did this, but something else was fighting against him. It fought harder than he ever could and his mind became that of a feral beasts once more. He roared at her holding up his blade again, this time, he wasn't going to stop. He watched as the mare her once called his mother dropped down in defeat, accepting her fate. At least this would be easier. He held the blade up high and stuck, but before the blade could connect he found himself being blasted against a wall by a bright beam of energy. He hit the wall hard, but his thick skin protected him from any damage as well as any pain that could have come from the impact. He got back to his feet, this time being on all fours so he could move quickly if need be. However, he found his body frozen at the sight before him. Beyond the large hole that now graced the carousel boutique was the alicorn princess of the night. He wanted to charge her, he wanted to attack, but something was stopping him. Some sort of strange new instinct was taking over his body. As Luna walked through the wreckage and close to him he could feel a strange warmth growing from with him.

Luna walked into the now damaged building, but just far enough to where she would be able to speak to her subject. "Apple Bloom, are you unharmed?"

Apple Bloom laid on the ground with tear streaming down her face. "Ah'm fin...I'm sorry princess...Ah'm so sorry. You were right all along...This is my fault, all of it..."

Luna hung her head slightly, "No, Apple Bloom. The burdens that have arisen shall not fall unto you, but me."

Apple Bloom lifted her head to face the night Princess with slight confusion. "What?"

Luna bowed her head, but only for a second. Her eyes focused onto Oliver, locking onto his form before she started to walk over to him. The closer she got the less aggressive he became, his stature lowered as Luna seemed to become more threatening than he. It was as if he were a dog who had misbehaved and his owner was stomping their way toward him. As Oliver seemed to cower slightly he started to slowly make his way over to Luna. Once they became close to one another Oliver lowered any and all of his defenses; his blades retracted, his spines sunk, and his hard skin became smooth and firm as he started to rub up and nuzzle against her. Luna looked down at the calm mutation before her, a tear gracing her features as she put a hoof around its neck and held him close to her

Apple Bloom stared at the two in shock as the realization finally started to dawn on her. When Luna said that Oliver wasn't her child, she said it because-

"I'm so sorry..." Luna said aloud, interrupting Apple Bloom's thoughts as she grabbed the creatures head and twisted its neck sharply, eliciting a loud crack as its neck was snapped and its spine became severed.

Oliver fell to the ground, struggling to move, to breath, the only noise he was able to make were horrible panting sounds as he attempted to suck air into lungs as his body convulsed on the floor. His bodies natural abilities eventually kicked in and his neck made another loud pop as his spine was set back in place and healed rapidly.

Luna had expected this though, in fact, it was part of her plan. As Oliver rose up onto his hind legs and prepared to take the offensive Luna charged her horn and set a powerful beam of magical energy through his chest, completely destroying his heart. She watched he started flailing around the room wildly, the pain taking complete control of his mind as he threw his body all around, trying with every last breath he took to make the hurt vanish. He started to go after Apple Bloom, but his weakened body caused him to collapse. His determinations, however, forced him to crawl at the young earth mare. Once he was close enough to reach out and touch her Luna fired again, this time severing his arm.

As Oliver's body finally went limp and fell completely flat against the floor it started to revert back to it humanoid appearance, leaving only the two mares and his naked bloody form on the ground.

The nurse checked the machines, mentally reading the vital signs that appeared. "You sure are lucky Miss Rarity. If Apple Bloom and Princess Luna hadn't found you when they did, you surely would have perished."

Rarity looked over at the the two from her hospital bed and smiled at them. "Thank you, both of you. Honestly, I didn't think I was going to make it."

Apple Bloom walked over and placed a hoof on Rarity's shoulder. "How are ya feelin?"

"A bit sore, darling. I'll be alright though." She reassured.

Luna looked over at the nurse with a questioning gaze. She quickly took notice of this and nodded. "Yes, she's in pretty rough condition, but I have no doubt in my mind that she will power through this."

Luna nodded to the nurse. "Thank you and do try to keep this quiet. The last thing Rarity needs right now is for the press to be swarming her in the state she is in."

"Of course Princess." The nurse said with a small bow and exited the room and closing the door, leaving them to be among themselves.

Apple Bloom nuzzled Rarity happily. "Ah'm so glad that you're gonna be okay. I don't know what I would have done without you."

Rarity returned the affection and pulled Apple Bloom into a loving embrace. "Come on, darling. Did you really thing a few puncture wound were going to keep me down? I would never leave you like that."

Luna smiled at the two before exiting, not giving them a chance to say goodbye as she teleported out of the hospital and next to a carriage. Within the carriage was her dear sister Celestia and atop of it a body bag with the remains of the beast that once terrorized this town and killed five out of the six elements of harmony, as well as two innocent mares. She sighed and entered the vehicle, closing the door with her magic before the pegasi took flight and carried them back toward the castle. Luna leaned against the window, staring down at the small town.

"I'm proud of you, Luna." Celestia stated, earning her sister's attention. "You overcame the feeling you had for the good of our subjects. I understand it must have been difficult, but you've done a great thing." Luna just huffed at her sister and continued to stare out the window. "He wasn't your responsibility sister. You need not feel responsible for his actions."

Luna's head shot toward Celestia with an angered expression. "Of course he was. He may not have come directly from me, but he was still-"

"Luna, he belonged to Nightmare Moon. He was not your creation, he was hers." Celestia argued, trying to convince her sister that none of this was her fault.

"Sister, I AM Nightmare Moon!" She snapped, "It doesn't matter how you look at it. Our minds may not have been the same but we share the same body that birthed him. On top of that he was turned to stone after I was banished. He needed my magic to fuel him and because of that connection he was released upon my arrival!" Luna leaned back into her seat, slightly sinking into the plush of it. "This is my fault two time over..."

Celestia knew arguing with her sister would get her no where, the only option she had was to just drop the subject completely. The rest of the trip to Canterlot was silent, aside from the occasional strong winds. When they landed they waited patiently for the carriage to come to a complete stop before exiting, Luna levitating the body bag off of the vehicle and placing it on her back. "Luna, what are you doing?"

"I've already told you, sister. He is my responsibility, I will take care of it." This caused Celestia to roll her eyes, but again she decided not to argue. Luna marched through the castle, making her way to her quarters. After demanding privacy from the guards she entered her bedroom and locked the door behind her as well as casting a soundproofing spell around the room. Once done she laid the body bag on the floor and unzipped it with her magic just enough to see Oliver's bare face and torso. His skin was extremely pale and his eyes had been closed before they wrapped him up. Other than that it looked like he was just sleeping peacefully. Luna put a hoof to his cheek and closed her eyes, her body turning pitch black as she focused her magic. Her teeth suddenly became razor sharp and when she opened her eyes they worked themselves into slits. She smiled, looking back down at Oliver's cold corpse, still rubbing her hoof against the skin on his face. "Oliver, my special little boy..." She laid down on the floor and leaned her head down to the hole in his chest. A small wave of magic began leaking out from her horn and into the wound, surrounding it completely. Once the wave stopped and the magic dissipated the wound was gone. She smiled at this before moving her head up to his and planting a light kiss on his temple. "It's time to wake up." Her ear flicked as the sound of something ripping to her side caught her attention. Hey eyes wandered to the source of the noise and what she found was a thick metal blade that had stabbed through the leather sack and seemed to be extending further.

Oliver opened his eyes, looking up into the face of a mare that he had not seen in so many long years. "Mother..."

Author's Note

Holy fuck guys, this has been one hell of a ride, but sadly it has to end here. Thanks to all of you who have been keeping up with this story from the beginning and to those who just happened to find it and check it out. It's been fun, I really enjoyed writing this despite how annoying it would get sometimes, but still. I had a great time and this story has had it's time in the light for a good while. Thanks again and I hope you stick around to see more of my work. As for the cliffhanger...We'll just have to see where that goes.