An Equestrian Fable

by Xeddrief

Chapters

The Madness Of Nightmare Moon
Birth Of A Hero
Taking Action

The Madness Of Nightmare Moon

"The Age of Industry has come to Equestria. Though some call it 'The Age of Oppression.'

When freedom is nothing but a dream…it is time to make a stand. To lead a rebellion. To be a Hero.

Welcome to the city of the downtrodden, where those who dare to speak out are punished.

Where those who dare to hope…find nothing to hope for.

But true rebels fight against all odds. True rebels never give up. If they cannot triumph…

The uprising has begun. But who will lead the revolution?"

The Canterlot Castle was as magnificent as it was imposing. Towering over the city of Canterlot like a watchful eye, it was everything the higher echelons of pony society dreamed of living in. With its fantastic spires, stained glass windows, opulent gardens, and elegant decorations, it was a beautiful sight. Throughout the day it was often packed to the brim with the nobles of the city, mingling and talking rather snootily about nothing in particular. They were mainly unicorns and pegasi— the only earth ponies on the grounds were either soldiers or staff.

Within a small, relatively unassuming tower on the east wing of the castle, a young unicorn was going about her daily business with much reluctance. Oh, it wasn't that she wasn't proud to do her job; her parents had both served the illustrious Queen Celestia before her and she was honoured to be the personal assistant to the Princess, who was a delightful pony— Smart, polite, and kind, if a bit socially inept. No, Rarity was proud to work for Twilight Sparkle (Though she would never tell it to her face, of course). The problem lay with…her.

Shivering slightly, Rarity put such thoughts out of her mind and continued ascending the tower to the Princess' room. Other staff she passed would always stare at her for a few moments before looking away again. The colts would look at her longingly, while the mares were highly envious. Rarity was one of the most beautiful unicorns in all of Equestria, though she mainly remained indifferent on the subject. She was here to work, not have whirlwind affairs. Although, that Lord Blueblood was quite handsome…

Pushing opening the doors to the princess' chambers, which was simply and sparsely decorated (though still clearly royal), she strode past the large bed, whose covers were pulled up over the body still snoring softly inside, and thrust open the curtains, letting light stream into the room.

"Oh, what a dreadfully sorry sight." She sighed. She was not exaggerating— the grounds of the castle were splendid at all times of the day, but beyond their walls lay Canterlot itself, which was not quite so pleasing to the eye. The market district was pleasant enough, its clock tower happily chiming out the beginning of a new day, but looming in the distance was Canterlot Industrial. Thick clouds of smoke belched from the factories where the young foals worked, and the ramshackle, soot-coated houses looked on the edge of falling apart. Around the very edges of Canterlot was the Old Quarter, where the housing was in even worse state, being little better than shacks. Ponies of all sorts trudged cheerlessly about their daily lives, knowing what happened to those who dared to speak out.

"Such a beautiful day to waste in bed, don't you agree?" She said loudly, opening more curtains. She was given a sleepy grumble in response.

"Hmm…what?" The head of purple unicorn popped out of the covers, with long, dark lavender hair. This was Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Equestria. Though with sleep-gunk filled eyes, hair looking like a broken bird's nest and all the attentiveness of a zombie, she didn't look so regal. "Mmm…go away Rarity."

"Now that is hardly the response of a princess." Huffed her assistant. "I'm afraid it is time to rise." Glancing down at the second lump under the covers, she smirked. "With your permission, I shall awaken your sleeping companion." Whipping back the quilt, she exposed a young, small purple dragon with green spines happily sucking its thumb. The jostling movement of the bed sheets awakened him, and with a loud yelp he leapt nearly ten feet in the air before landing in an undignified heap on the ground.

"Ow…what did you do that for, Twilight?" Spike said grumpily.

Twilight, resigned to the fact she was now awake, sat up and stretched, the muscles in her neck and back popping noisily, much to Rarity's distaste.

"Wasn't me, Spike. Ask her."

The young dragon turned and saw the beautiful unicorn standing before him. Blushing heavily, he stammered and mumbled incoherently as he pulled himself to his feet.

"Ah, Spike. One's heart soars before such, ah…regal bearing." Said Raity with a roll of her eyes. "I trust you both slept well— you have a busy day ahead."

"Come on Spike, there isn't going to be any going back to sleep now anyway." Twilight said, getting out of bed with a yawn, using a quick spell to tame her bed hair and clean up her sleepy eyes.

Spike nodded absently, his eyes still fixed on Rarity.

What a pair, thought Rarity in mock dismay. The kingdom is doomed.

"Now ma'am, if you will follow me please, I have prepared some appropriate clothing for today's agenda." In the stuffy atmosphere of the royal castle, it was an unofficial requirement that you had to be decked out in your best finery, much to Twilight's dismay and Rarity's delight.

"You know you don't have to call me ma'am, Rarity. It's Twilight."

"Certainly ma'am. If you will step this way…"

Sighing in resignation, Twilight followed her to the wardrobe, and blanched at the…thing that her assistant pulled out of it.

It was a very frilly dress, white with a single blue stripe, dainty shoes that looked far too small for her hooves, and a ridiculous looking lacy bonnet. "Master Caramel is most eager to talk to you this morning, and I'm sure you want to look your best for him…"

Twilight gave a soft smile at the mention of Caramel. He was a childhood friend, and her betrothed. For a nobleman's son, he was very sweet and not at all like some of his snobbish relatives. Twilights mother had noticed their growing closeness and encouraged the relationship, signing the betrothal contract barely months before her illness claimed her. Twilight's heart gave a small, aching throb at the thought of her mother. She had been Twilights whole world; without her the cushy and regal lifestyle she lived in was as dark and bleak as the Old Quarter.

Shaking her head of those thoughts, Twilight focused on the present. Rarity was tapping the floor impatiently, waiting for her verdict on the dress.

"It's...err...very nice Rarity, but I was thinking of something a bit more…practical?" Twilight said politely through gritted teeth. She'd never hear the end of it from Caramel if she turned up looking like that.

Rarity tutted. "I was afraid you'd say that, so I also prepared this." The next item to come out of the wardrobe was a vast improvement, in Twilight's opinion. It was a simple white blouse and skirt that were both fairly plain, though of course they were still made from the finest cloth available. The superior quality stitching was clearly apparent, but Twilight could happily pass for the average pony citizen if she wanted to.

Rarity almost seemed sickened by the idea of such a simple and unassuming garment. "If you are absolutely sure dear, but don't come running to me if he suddenly finds an excuse to leave."

Twilight however, knew that Caramel would prefer this simple, more honest outfit to the other one.

"Well, you should probably head off to him now; he is waiting in the gardens." Twilight nodded and began to leave, though stopped when Spike tried to follow her.

"Err, maybe you should stay here Spike. I'm sure you don't want to sit around while me and Caramel talk."

"Oh, sure," he replied sarcastically. "Talking. That's what the two of you will be doing…"

Twilight flushed, and pretended she didn't hear the comment. She noticed Rarity had also smirked slightly at the young dragons jibe, and a devious plan formed in her mind.

"Say Spike," she began, trying to keep a straight face. "I'm sure Rarity has lots of stuff to do today…maybe you could lend her a hand for a few hours?"

Their reactions were priceless— Spike's face lit up like Christmas had come early while Rarity looked like she'd been told fashion had been outlawed. Chuckling, Twilight dashed out of the room before Rarity could object.

Navigating the castle's maze-like hallways was almost second nature to Twilight, and she soon stepped out into the glorious sunshine. Inhaling deeply, she sighed sadly. The castle was beautiful, with everything she could ever want, and yet…

Twilight giggled as she slipped in the rain, thick mud slopping all over her previously shimmering coat. Her mother had brought her along to an official meeting in the Canterlot Trade Office so that she could see the city, but the weather had turned foul— apparently the head of the weather team had been napping all day. Bored of waiting for her mother to finish with the stuffy talks, she had sneakily slipped out into the wild streets. Most ponies were sheltering inside, so she had free reign to frolic to her heart's content.

"Princess! Oh my goodness, what are you DOING?" The young filly blanched as one of her mother's royal guards approached her, terrified. "You are getting filthy out there!"

"Oh! I, um…!" She nervously stammered. He looked mortified.

"Oh ponyfeathers, I'll lose my job if the Queen sees—"

"If I see what?" With perfect timing, Queen Celestia trotted around the corner and into view. She was almost two heads taller than the guard, and despite her amiable expression she was quite imposing.

The guard gave a small whimper unbecoming of his size and strength, and Twilight began to regret her little diversion.

"I…I can explain, Your Majesty—"

"Mom, I'm really sorry, I didn't mean to—" She surprised both of them by laughing.

"Oh Twilight, there is no need to be sorry. Your 'disappearance' gave me the perfect excuse to leave that awfully boring meeting. There is only a certain amount of time you can listen to some old stallion talk about the state of black market chicken feather dealings." She glanced kindly at the nervous guard. "What is your name?"

"Oh, err…my name is Swiftsalt…Your Majesty! I'm a new recruit…I—"

"Swiftsalt," She interrupted with a smile. "I'm sure the others at the meeting are quite worried. You should go and tell them that everything is fine. I'll be along in a minute. I need to talk to my daughter."

Twilight grinned sheepishly as the recruit scurried away.

"Mom?"

SPLAT.

Twilight spluttered as she wiped the mud off her face, looking in disbelief at her mother, who was laughing uproariously, the magical glow around her horn fading. And she couldn't help but laugh back. Within minutes anypony who chanced upon that alley would have been treated to the bizarre sight of the illustrious Queen Celestia rough and tumbling with her young daughter. Soon her once shining finery was completely caked in mud as the 'war' continued.

Ten minutes later the two of them collapsed in a heap next to each other, giggling madly. They lay there for who knows how long, the rain highly refreshing on the exhausted pair.

"You are the best mom in the world." Twilight laughed, snuggling into her parent's mane. Celestia simply smiled softly. "Mom?"

"Yes, Twilight?"

"What was dad like?" There was a moments quiet.

"He was the most amazing pony I have ever had the honour of meeting." Celestia began quietly. "I may be Queen, but it was always him who gave me strength, who kept me going when everything seemed darkest." She nuzzled Twilight's face affectionately. "And I know that he loves you, and that he is proud of you, wherever he is." Her voice broke slightly. "I haven't done anything like this in a long time…just let go and had fun. After…after he passed away, I…" She looked down in shame. "I haven't been a very good mother, Twilight. I'm so sorry. I can barely remember another day I spent so much time with you." There were tears streaking down the illustrious ruler's face…or maybe it was just the rain.

The little foal simply looked up at her mother and smiled sadly. "You are the best mom in the world." A sudden bright light blinded them momentarily, and they had to shield their eyes with their hooves.

"Twilight…look." Gazing out after her eyes had adjusted, Twilights heart skipped a beat. The weather team leader had apparently woken up and started moving clouds, revealing the glorious sun behind. The light reflected of the droplets of rain, refracting and creating a glorious multi-coloured rainbow throughout the sky.

It was the most beautiful and happy moment of Twilight's life, lying there with her mother in the mud, and a rainbow lighting up the sky.

"But there are no rainbows anymore." Said Twilight quietly, gazing out of the smoky cloud that rested over Canterlot. "Mother…why did you have to go?" She stood there quietly before shaking herself and continuing on her path.

Making her way through the gardens, Twilight noticed that there were more people milling around than usual, and none of them seemed to be nobles. They seemed anxious about something. Putting it out of her mind, she spotted Caramel leaning on a railing near to the memorial statue of Celestia. Trying not to look at said statue, she approached her betrothed stealthily and mischievously.

"Gotcha!" She giggled, leaping on his back. Or at least, she attempted to. At the last second he sidestepped, and caught her before she fell to the ground. Twilight flushed in indignation. "Hey, that's not fair!"

He laughed good-naturedly. "Well then, I guess it's good that your knight in shining armour was there to catch you as you fell!" He jested, whipping his head around dramatically.

"I can take look after myself, you know."

"Really?" he asked with a smirk. "I'm afraid I'll have to see some proof." Blushing massively, Twilight glanced around to make sure no-one was watching. Shyly, she closed the gap between them and pressed their muzzles together in a soft, inexperienced kiss. Her heart was pounding in her chest. She was kissing him! Sure, they were due to be wed, but this was the first time they had had ever done anything like this, regardless of Spike's lewd comments. And to think she was the instigator— she had barely anyone she ever talked to outside of Caramel, Spike, Rarity and Colter, and even then most of the time she was either reading or training.

It only lasted a couple of seconds, but when Twilight pulled away she felt giddy, like she could walk on air. Caramel looked shell-shocked. "How's that?" She answered coyly.

"Err— brilliant." He said shakily, coming to terms with this change in their relationship. "I'm not sure how useful it would be in a fight though…" He trailed off in an attempt at humour to diffuse the tension. It worked, to a point— Twilight's unladylike snort at the poor joke erased all embarrassment, for now at least.

"So…what was it you wanted to talk to me about?" Twilight asked curiously.

"I can't simply want to spend time with my fiancé?" She could tell he was worried about something, though. She knew him too well for him to hide it.

"If that was the case, you would have simply come to find me, not put a meeting officially on Rarity's agenda. Did...something happen?" He sighed, and the joking, sweet moment seemed to have gone.

"I'm…not sure. But everyone in the castle seems to be upset with your Aunt…more than usual, anyway."

Twilight shuddered briefly at the mention of her relative. Queen Nightmare Moon, as she called herself now, was someone she tried to avoid as much as possible. For the most part, she was successful— anytime they crossed passing through corridors, the Queen would simply glance at her dismissively for a moment before continuing on, filing her only living blood relative as a mere footnote to her day.

Not to say that she didn't take an active role in Twilight's life. Thanks to her 'regulations', Twilight was not allowed outside of the castle grounds, nor was she encouraged to speak to any of the staff other than Rarity or Colter. Had it not already been set in motion for several years, Twilight suspected she would have annulled her engagement to Caramel and forbid them from seeing each other, just because she could.

"And it's even worse down in the city," Continued Caramel, glancing at the smoky backdrop behind them. "You hear such terrible stories…" He swallowed nervously. "Listen, they say a factory worker was…executed this morning."

Twilight's heart stopped momentarily. Executed? She knew that her aunt was a harsh and sometimes unsympathetic ruler, but…surely she wouldn't execute someone? There must have been some mistake!

Seeing the horrified look on her face, her fiancé continued hurriedly. "I'm certain it's only a rumour, but you can imagine how ponies are talking. The staff in the castle are anxious, I…" He shuffled his feet guiltily. "I kind of…told them you'd speak to them. Twilight jerked her head up in surprise. Her? Give a speech? What?

"W-what?" she stammered. "I mean, I want to help, really I do, but…what good will my voice do?"

"You have more power than you think, Twilight," he replied softly. "And I don't just mean your magic or your knowledge. People may have lost faith in their Queen…but they still trust in their Princess to do the right thing. I trust in her."

"I…you're right," Twilight said decisively as she stood up straight, her tail flicking out anxiously. "I am a Princess…maybe now it's time I start making it clear to Moon that I can make decisions, too." She smiled gratefully at him. "Thank you, Caramel."

He said nothing, but gently reached out and nuzzled her cheek. Blushing madly, Twilight half-heartedly pushed him away.

With a smirk, he slowly trotted off in the direction of the kitchens. Twilight quickly caught up, and the pair walked side by side.

After a brief silence, Caramel spoke up again. "It must be just a rumour— I can't believe your aunt, horrible as she is, would have someone executed like that." Twilight thought about for it a moment.

"I agree, but sometimes…it's more than her just being horrible. It's like there is something wrong with her. She has changed so much…" It was true: Twilight could still remember the confident and headstrong Princess Luna, her mother's sister, who held her gently after Celestia passed away from that accursed illness, barely able to hide her own tears. Twilight had been just nine when her mother left her, when Luna reluctantly took the crown in her sister's stead. But now…

Caramel glanced at her. "I told Sir Colter about the speech. He'll be there to support you— I don't know what the castle would be like without him."

Twilight nodded in agreement— Sir Colter had been her instructor since she was little, and a close friend of her mother's. He was very gruff and slightly world-weary, being an ex-soldier, but he had a big heart.

"He'll probably want to continue my training today. He seems obsessed with combat lately…" Despite appearances, Twilight was just as skilled with a blade as with spells and books, though she had many years to go before she became a master, nor had she ever used one outside of training purposes, not that she ever planned to.

The kitchens were directly underneath the throne room with a back door opening on to the east corner of the gardens, so it took little time for them to reach it. Before entering, Twilight stopped and listened at the door.

"Well, I heard all he did was stand up for one of the poor foals working in the factory…"

"Who knows where it ends? Next thing you know it's one of us that's…"

"Quit your gossiping, the princess will be here any minute!" Twilight took a deep breath. Caramel looked at her worriedly.

"You don't have to do this, you know."

"No…I want to do this. This is the least I can do." Opening the door with her magic, she stepped into the room, where the grubby kitchen ponies inclined their heads in respect. The head chef, an old unicorn with a grizzled face, stepped forward.

"Your Highness," He began cordially. "It is good to see you looking well." She nodded absently. What should she say? What if she messed up— garbled her words, or said the wrong thing, or—

No. She could do this.

"Um…good morning everypony" she began. "I understand that these are difficult times for all of us. Queen Moon is a very busy pony, and she has been too…preoccupied to properly attend to the welfare of all of Equestria's fine citizens. I can understand that this will cause a lot of upset. But please, I ask you to be cautious about any wild rumours that you hear if they have not been confirmed officially. I will be talking to my aunt about improving working and living conditions for both you and your families outside the castle later on today. Thank you for your time, and for the hard work I can see you put in every day." She ducked her sheepishly as she finished. Would that do? Her answer was a round of stamping hooves in applause. The staff seemed much more cheerful now.

"You call THAT a royal speech?" Interrupted a gruff voice from the stairwell leading to the dining room. Turning, Twilight and Caramel saw a very old, large and imposing earth pony looming on the bottom step. He was dark brown in colour, with almost comically large muscles, his body littered with scars. His mane was cropped short and a thick beard adorned his muzzle. He was garbed in an old and weatherworn military uniform— a red and black parade jacket with thick black boots on each hoof. A large broadsword was strapped to his left flank. This was Sir Colter Buck, her mentor. Despite his fearsome appearance, he had a kindly air about him and a smile on his face. "You didn't shout, you didn't threaten, and you were far too reasonable." He gave a belly laugh. "It was marvellous!" He turned to Caramel. "Good to see you boy, but I'm afraid I'll have to borrow your beloved for today's training."

"Just so long as she's still in one piece later." Said her betrothed with a grin, which caused her to roll her eyes.

"I'll see you later." She said, and gave him a quick kiss, much to his delight. Colter looked on in bemusement, but said nothing as he turned around and trotted up the stairs. Twilight hurried to catch up with him.

Walking through the dining room, Colter glanced at her, all business now. "I suppose you've heard the rumours, then. Well I'm afraid they are quite true."

"W-what?" Said Twilight nervously. "That can't be…"

"It is. Who knows what your aunt will do next…" The princess didn't want to believe it…but if there was anyone in the world she trusted above all others, it was Colter. She knew he was telling the truth. Just how far had her aunt fallen?

"In the meantime the mood in the castle is getting more uneasy by the day."

Twilight had to agree— the tension had been building for weeks, like everything was coming to some sort of a head. She hoped the results would not be too catastrophic.

"I think you have a knack for reaching out to people, you know." Startled at the sudden change in conversation, she glanced at him curiously. "They all really looked up to you back there." There was a strange glint in his eyes. "The way they look up to a leader…"

Feeling slightly unnerved, she was unprepared for the vast amount of people crowding in the entrance hall, chatting angrily to each other. There was a cordoned off section that prevented them entering the castle proper, and two of Nightmare Moon's elite guard ponies stood watch over them. Twilight shuddered; the new guards that the Queen had drafted gave her the chills. They were covered from muzzle to hoof in black cloth, their faces obscured by blank silver masks. They stood unnaturally still, watching for any law breaking eagerly. Twilight looked across the hall— the training room was on the other side; they'd have to cross in plain view of everyone to get to it…

"Sir Colter! Sir Colter! May I have a moment please?" The old solider looked startled to hear his name being called. A young unicorn was standing at the very edge of the cordon, waving a clipboard and quill with her magic wildly. The guards watched her menacingly, but took no action.

"Err, certainly." He replied stepping over, Twilight following just behind him.

"Would you care to sign my petition?" She said eagerly, indicating the clipboard. "I plan to present it to the Queen once I have enough support. We must eradicate poverty in Equestria— too many are suffering, and she does nothing! She must be made to care!" The guards seemed very agitated now, but technically she had not broken any laws so they were forced to remain still.

"Very well," began Colter. "But I'm just an old soldier. I doubt my name would mean anything." The young mare seemed to deflate sadly. "But," he continued, looking at Twilight. "Perhaps the approval of the Princess might carry a bit more weight…"

"Oh!" Exclaimed the mare in surprise, noticing Twilight for the first time. "That…that would be wonderful, Your Majesty! It would be the greatest honour!"

Feeling extremely self-conscious with so many eyes on her, Twilight mustered up what she hoped was a kindly smile.

"I'd be happy to sign!" She said, and did so quickly, adding her signature to the woefully short list. The young unicorn seemed almost giddy with delight.

"Oh, thank you Princess! Your support will make all the difference, I'm sure of it!" Colter nudged the young royal softly.

"Come on, we have a busy schedule as it is." Nodding, she quickly bent her front legs in a bow to the people gathered in the hall, who all haphazardly responded in kind, nowhere near as elegant. The guards remained standing. She quickly trotted after Colter, who was storming ahead.

"That was a courageous move, though I doubt it will make much difference." He grumbled. Twilight sighed.

"Yes…even with my support, it is ultimately Moon's decision as to whether or not anything will come of that petition. And I don't think she'll care for it much."

"Still, it serves its purpose. Perhaps now Moon will realise that you have a mind of your own." They had reached the end of yet another corridor, this one with large oak doors with a pair of crossed swords emblazoned on it. "Let's see you put it to use in the combat room, come on!"

The combat room was very spacious and less extravagantly decorated than the rest of the castle. Racks of all manner of blades and blunt instruments lined the walls, though they had all been safety-enchanted against dealing any serious injury. It was empty except for them— this room was reserved for royals, nobles and instructors only. Average guards had their own training room in their barracks on the other side of the castle.

"Now, before we start the first spar," Began Colter, moving to the centre of the room. "I want you to summarise what you learned in your last theory session, make sure you've retained it all and all that malarkey. And I'm stressing the word summarise— I know you, we'll be here for hours listening to you talk—"

"Right." Interrupted Twilight, slipping into her 'Student' mode. "Let me see…last theory session was on…Basic Fighting Styles For Earth Ponies, Unicorns and Pegasi." She cleared her throat. "There are three basic styles of fighting with a close range melee weapon- one for each type of pony. Each style is directly related to that kind of pony's innate magical ability. Normally, a sword hilt would be far too difficult to be gripped between a pony's hooves, but since an Earth Pony's innate magic is focussed on creativity and hard work, making them naturally stronger and more adaptable than other ponies, over the years they have developed more joints in the legs and their hooves themselves are slightly jointed. This allows them better access to a wide variety of tools." She took a deep breath. Colter was looking slightly drowsy.

"This enables them to use the basic style of single hoofed combat. This style is most effective when a pony is raised on his or her hind legs, which Earth Ponies can maintain for longer than most, but not indefinitely. Using three legs to move and one to wield is less flexible, but more stable.

Unicorns have a more flexible style, as they can use magic to levitate one or more weapons around them without the need to grip them, the basic style of magically assisted combat. How many weapons, how long they can levitate them for, the complexity of the manoeuvres and whether or not any other spells can be cast while fighting all depends on the magical power of the unicorn in question. There are some disadvantages to this style, however. While levitating weapons allows for great range of attack, it also means it is very difficult to defend if a pony is facing multiple opponents at close quarters— an earth pony actually gripping the sword would find it much easier to block other weapons. Unicorns using this style are advised to keep their weapons hovering close by their bodies and avoid extravagant attacks.

Pegasi, whose magic enables them to fly and physically interact with and manipulate weather, cannot properly grip a weapon or use magic to help them. For this reason, few Pegasi use conventional weapons. Instead, bladed armour plating is becoming prevalent, although this is highly expensive and difficult to master. Those who train in this basic style of aerial blade combat gain the vast advantage of being able to surround an enemy from all directions. Where earth ponies are built for strength and stamina and unicorns for precision and flexibility, Pegasi are focused on speed and power.

Normally, a unicorn such as myself would have to use the aforementioned magically assisted combat style. However, I am a rare case of the offspring of an Alicorn and an Earth Pony. Alicorns are only born as the offspring of two Alicorns, whereas the offspring of an Alicorn will be a cross between the non Alicorn and one of the three types of pony that an Alicorn is comprised of. That is, I am technically part Earth Pony from my father and part Unicorn from my Alicorn mother. This allows me to either grip the blade or levitate it. Gripping it would allow to cast more powerful spells in tandem with swordplay, since a portion of my reserves that would have been manipulating the weapons are now available—"

"…alright, that's enough." Said Colter irritably, jerking Twilight out her monologue. "I thought I told you to summarise?"

"I did!" Twilight spluttered indignantly. "I missed out a lot of detail, and I was just about to—"

"Enough with the theory. Let's spar."

Nodding, Twilight levitated a basic single hoofed sword from a nearby rack, and gripped it in her right hoof.

Colter, unable to use his broadsword as it was non safety-enchanted, opted for a large, wide blade that could be used for more powerful strikes, but sacrificed speed. "Begin. This is a no-magic spar. The first to twenty hits is the victor."

Nodding, Twilight charged forward, swinging in for an overhead strike. Colter blocked it almost casually and parried with a thrust to her chest. Undeterred, the princess rolled to the side and jabbed at his flank in one fluid motion, which he deftly blocked. They traded blows for several minutes, with Colter eventually scoring a point on Twilights left leg, which she had left exposed after an overextended lunge.

There was a brief lull in the fighting as the two circled each other, daring the other to move first and make a mistake.

"…Twilight. Do you remember the stories I'd tell you, when you were a foal?"

Twilight blinked in surprise. What did that have to do with anything? She barely had time to block as Colter swung his blade at her head. It seemed he wanted to talk and fight at the same time. "After your mother died, I would tell all those stories of her adventures before she became Queen. The stories of Celestia, the Great Hero of Equestria." He smiled sadly.

"You would never get tired of hearing those stories."

Twilight remembered. Even has she dodged a lunge and countered with a swift kick with her hind legs, earning a point, she could remember all of the fanciful stories Colter had told her. It had been exactly what she needed to cope with her mother's death- hearing all his incredible tales helped her feel like she understood her mother better, like she was still alive through the story.

"And after each one…do you remember what you would say?"

"Of course— 'teach me to be a Hero." The Heroes were an old legend of Equestria. They were seemingly ordinary ponies blessed— and cursed— with great power. They were naturally stronger, faster, smarter and deadlier than other ponies, capable of feats any normal pony would not survive. It was said they had their own kind of magic known as Will, that was different from any other. Whereas unicorn magic was more about precise manipulation of objects, Will utilised the primal forces of nature itself. It was said Heroes who specialised in Will could summon vast infernos, lightning storms, slow time and even summon the dead.

It was very interesting, but Twilight had grown up since the days when she would eagerly read such tales. Even the rumours that her mother had once been a Hero before she became Queen were just that— rumours that came about due to her huge popularity. She had been such a beloved Queen that people began attributing all kinds of otherworldly powers to her— powers Twilight had certainly never seen her use. If Heroes had ever existed, it was hundreds of years ago— there were none left now.

"Those are just stories, Colter." She said as she struck him on the flank when he didn't manage to roll away quite in time. "You know that. Why mention it now?"

He smiled, but did not say anything. Irritated, Twilight reared herself onto her hind legs and switched into a two hoofed grip. She could only maintain this stance for about five minutes or so, but it allowed her a wider range of movement and more powerful strikes.

Colter narrowed his eyes and copied her. With a jolt Twilight realised they had each racked up nineteen points each— this one would decide the spar.

Gritting her teeth, she leapt forward, their blades meeting with an almighty clang. They pushed against each other in a lock for a few moments, but Twilight was slowly losing ground against Colter's superior strength. She quickly broke the lock and sidestepped, taking advantage of his momentary imbalance when his blade was suddenly pressing against thin air by raining a powerful blow down upon his back.

Not to be outdone, he quickly dropped and rolled back, putting distance between them. Panting and sweating, Twilight paused to catch her breath for a moment. He looked at her calculatingly.

"There is no doubt that you have improved vastly these past few weeks." He began. "But is that all you really have?" His eyes narrowed in a challenge. "Is that truly the extent of your strength?"

Twilight was starting to feel slightly angry. What was he playing at?

"Come on, Princess. Show me. Show me that you are not a helpless little filly anymore. Show me what you can really do, when you put that brilliant little mind of yours to work."

Twilight sped forward. "You want to see what I can do?" She shouted. "How about this!" As she violently swung her blade towards him, which he nonchalantly raised his own to block, she felt a strange sensation run throughout her body. It was like an intense pressure against her skin, starting in her chest and swiftly travelling through her forelegs to the hooves that brandished her sword, and for a split second— at the very point of contact with Colter's blade— Twilight felt the sword become a part of her, like it was an extension of her hoof, of her very being.

The severed pieces of Colter's sword clattered against the stone floor.

"Well, would you look at that!" He laughed. "You've only gone and broke it! Ha!"

Twilight dropped her weapon to the floor in shock, and she dropped back onto four legs. Had she really done that? She was stronger than most unicorns but there was no logical way that she would have had the raw physical power to do what she just did— definitely not against an older, more experienced pony who was also a full earth pony, especially one of Colter's size.

"But…how?" She managed to utter, shell shocked. Colter chuckled, and trotted over to her.

"You have more power than you think, Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu— Caramel had uttered those very words to her earlier, though he hadn't been talking about fighting.

"Listen…" Colter looked nervous all of a sudden, as if he were about to say something completely outrageous. "There's something—"

"Twilight! Sir Colter!" Caramel burst into the room, his mane ruffled and sweat pouring down his face. "You have to come quickly, both of you!"

"Caramel?" Said Twilight worriedly as she stepped forward to meet him, putting her strange feat and Colter's even stranger behaviour out of her mind for the time being.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?"

"Outside the castle doors," He panted. "It looks like there is some kind of demonstration or protest."

Twilight's eyes widened. A protest? It seemed things truly were getting out of hand. What would Queen Moon do? The three of them quickly rushed back into the main hall. The more peaceful citizens had vanished, and the guards were nowhere in sight. Looking out of the nearest window, Twilight could see a vast crowd of ponies brandishing signs and shouting angrily. She had never seen so many ponies in one place.

"This is not good," muttered Colter worriedly. "These ponies don't realise what Nightmare is capable of. This isn't going to end well." He turned from the window and sighed deeply. "It's been a long time since Moon listened to me…but I should find her." He glared sternly at both of the young ponies before him. "Stay here. There is something we still need to talk about."

The last part was addressed to Twilight alone. She nodded dumbly as he set off up the staircase. Oh, she hoped Rarity and Spike were alright…

When he was out of earshot, Caramel turned to her. "I don't like this…look, there are no guards in the hall or in the corridors at the moment. We can't just stand here and do nothing— we should follow Colter, see what Moon is going to do about this."

Twilight was very reluctant to disobey her mentor, but she would hate feeling helpless more. "They'll be in…" She swallowed. "The War Room. We should hurry, but be sure Colter doesn't catch us."

The two quickly followed the path Colter had travelled on not moments before. They passed the large double doors to the throne room and into a side chamber. On one side was the entrance to the War Room, its door slightly ajar. Muffled voices could be heard from within.

"We'll be able to eavesdrop through the keyholes." Caramel whispered.

Shaking, Twilight pressed an eye against the small gap, her betrothed copying her with the other.

Queen Nightmare Moon stood with her back to the door. Even facing away from them she was an intimidating sight. She held herself with the air of one who knew that within her domain, nothing could touch her. Across from her stood Colter, who, to his credit, was unfazed by her overwhelming aura.

"I implore you my Queen, think about what you are doing!" He protested.

Moon narrowed her eyes, her otherwise pretty face contorting into a scowl.

"I am protecting the interests of my people, soldier. Do not question me again." She turned away, considering the 'conversation' over, and spoke to someone outside of Twilights line of sight, presumably a guard. "You will aim to kill." Twilight had to stifle a gasp of horror— surely she couldn't be serious? "Start with the ringleaders, and continue with the crowd until the message…sinks in." Twilight began to feel physically sick. How could anyone be so cruel?

"This is wrong!" Colter yelled. "You can't do this!"

Moon idly gestured with her wing and two guards swooped in, promptly kicking the ex-soldier in his gut. Gasping for breath, he collapsed to the ground. The Queen watched apathetically, and lowered her gaze to meet his.

"Never tell me what I can and cannot do." She stated, her expression blank.

Colter! Twilight screamed mentally. I have to do something!

"We can't let her kill all those ponies, we just can't!" Panicked Caramel. He turned, grasping her head between his hooves, fixing her with a piercing stare.

"Twilight…you're her niece. She has to listen to you!"

Twilight stood up, facing the door with a furious expression on her face. Her aunt had gone too far this time. Acting far braver than she actually felt, she opened the door with her magic, and stepped into the room.

Nightmare Moon glanced at her as if she were a mere annoyance. "What are you doing here? This is no place for a child. Leave."

Twilight stood her ground, but inside she was trembling. She felt Caramel place his hoof in hers, and she relaxed slightly.

"I'm here to try and reason with you." She stated calmly. "Please— I ask you to reconsider— there must be some way to resolve this without killing anypony! If you could just—"

"Enough." The Queen cut her off sharply with a hiss. "Those who would so openly challenge my rule and organise themselves in such a fashion can only be one thing— traitors who would seek to threaten the Equestria I have tasked myself with creating. The punishment for treason is death."

She's completely insane, thought Twilight in horror.

"But, ah yes, I see…you sympathise with them, do you not?" For the first time, Nightmare Moon smiled— not a smile of happiness, but of sick, vindictive pleasure. "Perhaps you think that you should be that one making these decisions…perhaps from your very own throne? Very well…" She stomped her hoof, and two guards suddenly appeared behind Twilight and Caramel in a flash of light.

Oh, no, thought Twilight in horror. An invisibility spell! There really were guards all along the corridors after all!

"Escort my niece and her betrothed to the throne room." Ordered the ruler of Equestria. "We shall settle this dispute officially."

"No— stop!" Cried Colter, but his call went answered.

As much as she struggled, Twilight knew it would be useless to try and escape. She and Caramel were led to the throne room, wondering what was going to happen.

The throne room was huge, with tall pillars reaching up to the ceiling high above, which was adorned with a highly detailed map of the night sky. At the very end lay two large, ornate thrones, one emblazoned with the image of the full moon, the other coated in a fine layer of dust, its symbol obscured— it had not been used it some time. Behind them was a large window that took up the whole wall, opening out onto to private gardens.

"Move!" Shouted one of the guards roughly behind them.

"We're going, we're going…" Grumbled Caramel. Without warning, the guard violently shoved him, sending him sprawling to the ground. "Hey, what gives?"

"Leave him alone!" Twilight said angrily, helping him to his feet. "Don't worry," She whispered, "Whatever happens, we'll get through this together." Now she just had to convince herself…

The guard behind them narrowed his eyes behind his helmet. "Keep walking." He snarled, and the two were marched into the centre of the room.

There was a swirl of dark energy near the base of the throne, and Nightmare Moon appeared in a surge of blue light. Taking her seat, she almost lazily tapped her hoof on the ornate chair's side, smirking.

"So, here comes the saviour of the people." She mocked. "Come closer, dear niece…"

Swallowing nervously, Twilight stepped forward, reluctantly leaving Caramel standing alone with the two guards.

"Today, you have disappointed me beyond measure. I have been betrayed by my own blood…" She turned sharply, fixing her steely gaze on Caramel. "…and a filthy spy."

"What?" Said Caramel incredulously. "We did nothing wrong!"

"Punishment must be apportioned where it belongs." Said the Queen harshly, ignoring his statement and rising out of her chair.

"Punish me, then!" Said Twilight angrily. "I'm the one who challenged you, not Caramel!" She was trying her best not to tremble; she had never been so scared in her life.

The monarch was silent for a moment. "You are no longer a child, and it is time I stopped treating you like one." She slowly stepped forward, until she was towering over her young niece. "You wish to defend those who have violently gathered inside the castle grounds?" She smiled cruelly. "Very well, you shall have your chance to save them."

At that moment, the doors burst open again as more guards came through, dragging a ragged group of about five ponies with them. They wore no clothes, their faces were dirty and bruised, and they were weeping softly. They had clearly been roughed up badly.

"Here are the leaders of the angry mob." Said Nightmare Moon in disgust, as if something slimy and venomous had been dragged into her halls. "I am going to give you a choice, Twilight." She murmured in a voice that made the young unicorn's hair stand on end. "Who will be punished— these traitors, or your betrothed? The sentence…will be death!"

"WHAT?" Shouted Twilight in horror. "NO!" She turned to see Caramel be hit on the head brutally by one of the guards, and he was dragged kicking and yelling over to the group of would-be-revolutionaries. "Caramel!"

"Get off me, you can't do this! It's insane!" Caramel yelled, frantically trying to break free. Twilight felt her aunt's hoof on her shoulder.

"You are the Princess of Equestria." She pronounced. "It is your duty to decide such important matters…that's what you wanted, right?"

"No— I won't do this!" She replied, defiant. The very thought of losing Caramel…it was too much. She couldn't lose someone else so important to her, not again. But those villagers had done nothing wrong— she couldn't place the lives of five innocent people below that of another. This was madness!

The Queen's eyes narrowed. The dark aura of her mane seemed to intensify, and her wings spread imposingly. "I you do not decide, then I will. I trust you do not need me to tell you what my decision would be."

"Please," Twilight sobbed. "Don't make me do this!"

"I am giving you power over life and death!" Roared the Queen. "So tell me…what are you willing to sacrifice, to do the right thing?"

The group of villager ponies sobbed harder, certain they were about to die.

"Twilight…"

She turned and gazed across the room, straight into the eyes of her fiancé. The fear was gone from his face— it was now set in a mask of determination.

"Twilight…choose me."

Her heart stopped. "No."

"Twilight…it has to be me! You can't let these people suffer!"

"No…I can't! I can't lose you!" She wailed, falling to a heap on the floor. Nightmare Moon watched impassively, unmoving. "I love you!" She hiccupped through her tears.

"I know." Caramel smiled grimly. "And I love you. The people of Equestria love you…and its time that you made a stand. That's why…it has to be me. They trust in you to do the right thing…just as I do."

"You have five seconds, Princess." Hissed Moon.

"I…I…I choose…" Trembling, the Princess of Equestria shakily raised her hoof…and pointed at Caramel. "I'm sorry." She whispered hoarsely.

"The traitors live." The Queen stated dispassionately. "The boy dies. Guards!" The two that were grasping Caramel lifted him roughly to his feet.

"Twilight…its ok. I love you…"

"Take him to the courtyard to be executed, immediately."

"I'm sorry…I'm so sorry." Twilight stammered, reaching out to try and grab him as the guards walked past. Their hooves touched briefly, and then he was out of the chamber, the doors slamming with a resounding bang. Twilight stared at her hoof, trying to memorize the feeling of that touch, of the kiss they had shared, the years they had spent laughing with each other…

A feeling unlike any other welled up inside her. It wasn't sadness. It wasn't pain. It was hatred— pure, furious hatred for the individual who had turned her life into a living nightmare. Standing up slowly, she turned to face her aunt, the tears still streaming down her cheeks. "I will never forgive you for this." She stated coldly. Her aunt simply smiled.

"Good— then you will never forget it." The Queen turned to the remaining guards. "Half of you, take the traitors back to their families with just a warning— for now. The other half, escort my niece to her chambers. She is to remain there for the remainder of the day."

Twilight didn't even try to resist as she was dragged back up the tower staircase, or flung unceremoniously into her room. She said nothing when Rarity and Spike arrived and tried to discover what had happened, their worried questions being met with stony silence. Minutes turned into hours.

Spike helpfully bought her a cup of tea and a lettuce sandwich. They lay ignored.

Wordlessly, she stood up and moved to the window, where she had a clear view of the grounds. The mob was gone now, and a member of the cleaning staff was using his magic to clean the stonework.

Moving her gaze to the skyline, to the smoky backdrop of the Industrial Sector, Twilight watched as a flock of birds flew past overhead, oblivious to the world below. Free, without a care in the world…

"I will never forgive you." she whispered, uncertain if she was talking to Nightmare Moon…or herself.

Birth Of A Hero

Night had fallen over Canterlot, bringing a blanket of silence over the normally bustling city. Twilight was still sitting at the window, unmoving. It was this sorry sight that greeted Rarity as she entered the room, levitating a tray of herbal tea. Spike followed at her heels dejectedly, his normal enthusiasm gone.

Sighing, Rarity trotted over to Twilight and delicately placed the tray on the windowsill.

“Twilight,” she began kindly. “I can’t claim to even begin to understand what you’re going through right now…but please, you need to eat something!” The plates of food she had brought to comfort the mourning princess had gradually piled up, and were now threatening to fall off the edge of the desk.

Twilight said nothing, but slowly levitated the cup and took a small sip. Warmth spread through her body immediately, her muscles losing some of their tension. She smiled weakly at Rarity in gratitude, and turned back to the window.

“You…you mustn’t blame yourself, Twilight.” Rarity said carefully. “I don’t think any of us realised just how far into madness she had slipped.”

“…what do I do now, Rarity?” She said shakily, her voice strained. “Is that it? Does life just…carry on like before?” A single tear trailed down her face, and she furiously rubbed at her eyes.

“Shh, it’s ok dear. Let it out.” Rarity reached other to her charge, patting her on the pack in a consoling manner.

Twilight blinked, and stood up forcefully.

“No…” she choked out. “I am a Princess. I…I can’t cry now. Not when there is so much to do…”

“Twilight, it’s not healthy to bottle things up like that.” Spike commented in concern, who had been hovering awkwardly near the food for a few minutes.

“No…I have to be strong. It’s like Caramel…” she shuddered and took a deep breath, then continued. “It’s like Caramel said. The people out there that she’s oppressing…they believe in me. Look up to me. Depend on me. And all of this time I’ve sitting in the castle doing nothing…its time I started doing something for them. It’s…it’s what Caramel would have wanted.”

“But…what can you do?” Spike asked. “Moon won’t ever let you do anything that goes against her wishes.”

“I DON’T KNOW!” Twilight yelled in frustration, making the young dragon and unicorn jump. “I just…I have to do something. I can’t just stay here!”

“You’re not. We leave the castle tonight.” Came a voice from the door.

The three of them turned to see Colter standing there, a grim look on his face. “This kingdom needs nothing less than a revolution. It needs a new leader.” He looked pointedly at Twilight. “It needs…a Hero.”

“What…revolution?” Stammered Rarity in shock and more than a little fear, but Twilight was nodding in fierce agreement.

“Nightmare Moon has to be stopped. If she carries on like this…I can’t allow any more ponies to suffer because of her.” She looked nervously at Colter. “Do…do you really think I could lead a revolution?”

“You are highly intelligent, compassionate, skilled in combat and magic, have a good understanding of royal politics and society, and are charismatic enough to sway people to your cause…so long as you can get your head out your books long enough to actually talk to people.” He replied curtly.

“But…a full on revolution?” Said Spike incredulously. “How are we going to manage that? We’d need an army!”

“Lad, there are enough people angry at Moon to storm the castle a hundred times over. We just have to convince them to help us.”

“Colter, you’re an ex-soldier. You know it won’t be anywhere near as simple as that.” Chided Twilight in disapproval.

“I’m dumbing it down for the kid.”

“Hey!” Protested Spike. “I’m not stupid!”

“Well,” interrupted Rarity, “If we are leaving, then I will just need to quickly pack some essentials-“

“There isn’t any time, Rarity.” Colter irritably replied. “We take nothing.”

She looked horrified. “NOTHING?” She shrieked. “Nothing? Not even pyjamas?”

“He’s right, Rarity.” Twilight added. “The moment she realises we’ve gone, she’ll send soldiers after us. We need to travel as light as possible.”

She began pacing nervously. “But…how will we escape? I’m under strict orders not to leave the tower for the rest of the day. There are at least two guards at the entrance and who knows how many more between there and the main gate.”

“Those two change their shift in about ten minutes.” Replied Colter. “We can slip by fairly easily at that point.” He glanced at Rarity. “Or a least, we can assuming we aren’t carrying any suitcases….”

“Oh, just leave it.” She huffed. “But I’m telling you now that you’ll regret not taking anything.”

“And the gate?” Asked Spike. “Something tells me that casually strolling out of the castle grounds won’t go down too well.”

“You leave that to me.” Said Colter gruffly.

“What have you got planned?” Twilight asked in suspicion. He simply smirked knowingly.

Before they knew it, it was time to make their daring escape. The journey down the tower was simple enough- the only others around were members of the cleaning staff, who pointedly ignored them.

Stepping into the small antechamber, Colter halted and cautiously extended his right foreleg, which Twilight promptly smacked her face into.

“Ow!”

“Shh, not so loud!” I need to check if the coast is clear. You three wait here.” He carefully inched his way closer to the doorframe, surprisingly stealthy for one so large.

“Eugh, so bossy.” Rarity said bossily.

He nudged the door slightly ajar with his nose, peering out with one eye. “It’s clear. Let’s go.”

Sighing in relief, they quickly re-joined him and slipped outside. The gardens were just as beautiful in the soft moonlight as they were in the sun, the moon’s soft rays gently giving each flower an ethereal glow.

“Oh my, I am going to miss that.” Rarity sighed wistfully, gazing upon the scene.

“Hurry!” Urged Colter, and they swiftly made their way across the grounds. There were no guards in sight, but at any moment one could come round the corner, or pop out from behind a bush…

“Wait a minute.” Twilight spoke up, breaking the tense silence. “This isn’t the way to the gate. I thought we were leaving the castle?”

“We are. There’s just one thing we need to do first…”

With a jolt Twilight realised where the old stallion had lead them. At the very back of the gardens a set a stairs led down stopping at a pair of grand ornate doors laid into the rock of the very mountain on which Canterlot Castle was built.

This was her mother’s tomb.

She had never been inside. The funeral had taken place just outside, and the coffin was moved there shortly after. Her father’s had also been relocated, to be placed alongside his wife. After the service, she had spent weeks inside her room, refusing to speak to anyone. Even long after she had come to terms with the situation, she had never mustered up the courage to enter, even once.

And to think, poor Caramel probably wouldn’t even get as much as a headstone. Traitors are given no such privileges…

“It’s time to pay our respects,” Whispered Colter softly. “To Equestria’s last Hero.”

Twilight felt her anger growing. Just what was Colter’s game? “Again with that Hero nonsense?” She spat, making the other three jump in alarm. “They’re just stories, Colter! Why bring it up now?”

“Twilight?” Asked Spike fearfully. She ignored him.

“Well?”

Colter didn’t answer for a moment. He inclined his head forward slightly, his eyes closed.

“I was there for some of it, you know.”

Twilight blinked. What was he talking about?

“Not the major part, not what the stories are about. But I fought alongside your mother, Twilight. I saw the raw power she wielded, the things her Will could do. She told me the real stories- the truth behind the legends was beyond anything I could have dreamed of.” He turned and fixed her with a long, piercing stare.

“There is no doubt in my mind that Celestia had Hero blood running through her veins. And I am equally certain it also runs through yours. If we are going to lead a revolution, we need more than just a leader. We need someone who can shape the world in their image. Someone who truly cares for what is right and just. We need someone like you, Twilight.”

Twilight’s head was spinning. Could it really be true? All those tales…surely they had to fake? They were simply urban legends formulated by an adoring populace who raised Celestia onto an unbreakable pedestal.

The defeat of the bandit pony Thag Furhide at Ponyville Lake, becoming the undisputed Champion of the Crucible at Neighcliffe, fighting off hordes of Hollow Ponies…could it all have really happened?

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. “Look Colter…let’s pretend for some crazy moment that you’re right, and my mother secretly used to be an almost omnipotent member of a long dead order who travelled Equestria performing incredible and noble acts before becoming Queen, and that I also have the potential to do similar things.”

She looked at him wryly. “How does that help us escape the Castle?”

The ex-soldier said nothing, and simply continued on down the steps.

“He’s trying to be mysterious again.” Griped Spike as they followed.

“Oh I don’t know…I find it quite attractive myself.” Whispered Rarity to him conspiratorially, before letting out a small giggle.

If looks could kill, then Colter’s back would be quite a mess giving how hard Spike was glaring at it.

The tomb was remarkably clean considering no one had entered it for several years. The walls of the chamber were adorned with various arcane symbols and runes, which all glowed faintly. Twilight knew they were a highly advanced ward system, though she couldn’t say what it did without a proper analysis.

At the far end of the room an enormous statue of a pony stood, keeping watch over the two sarcophagi in front of it.

Her breath catching in her throat, Twilight slowly walked over to them.

Rarity, Spike and Colter followed, their heads bowed respectfully.

Gingerly, Twilight traced her hoof over the lid of the left coffin, wiping away the layer of fine dust and revealing the inscription beneath:

Here Lies Her Majesty, Queen Celestia Of Equestria

Beloved Ruler, Wife, Sister and Mother

May she find peace in the Afterworld

“Mother…” She sniffled. “I…” She sighed and stepped away. “Please, look after Caramel for me.” Sadly, she turned away, now facing the feet of the giant statue.

Looking more closely at it, she saw it was female, and garbed in some kind of old-fashioned robe, a unicorn’s horn just visible underneath its hood. It had no eyes or mouth- its face was blank. Frankly, it was rather creepy.

“I know it’s here somewhere…” Came a mutter from off to the side. Turning, she saw Colter was scrabbling about near the base of the statue, impatiently stomping his hooves on the stone tiles in succession.

“What on earth are you doing?”

He didn’t reply, but instead let out a gruff laugh as one of the tiles sunk beneath his hoof with a resounding click. “Got it!”

There was a deep rumble, and with a jolt Twilight realised that the statue was moving, some ancient mechanism triggering when Colter had stepped on the tile. It was bending its head forward and folding its legs, slowly lowering itself toward the ground.

Rarity screamed and reared back in shock, while Spike just stared dumbly.

The statue was now in a lying down position, as if it were about to sleep. Its blank face was directly in front of Twilight, and she resisted the urge not to bolt. It was obviously some kind of construct, but what purpose did it serve?

With a whirring noise, a panel that previously had blended in with the stonework slid open, approximately where the nose would have been.

Inside was a small compartment containing a large metal disk. It had the symbol of what appeared to be some kind of hourglass on it, with two spiral patterns on either side.

Even without touching it, Twilight could feel a faint magical throbbing from it.

“Ok, I’m officially lost.” Said Spike.

Colter proudly walked over to Twilight. “This was your mother’s most treasured possession, lass.” He paused dramatically.
“It’s the Hero’s Guild Seal!”

“What does it do?” Twilight asked, genuinely curious. If the legends of the Heroes had any truth to them, then at the very least that meant there was a lot of new material to potentially be researched.

“I have absolutely no idea.” They all groaned in exasperation.

“But I do know that not long before she passed away, she told me to bring you here and give it to you, Twilight, when I thought you were ready.” He sighed deeply. “But it doesn’t matter what I think anymore. This may be our last chance- whatever that thing is- it is a part of your legacy. Take it.”

Shakily, Twilight focussed and gently levitated it out of the compartment, which promptly close shut. She caught it in her mouth as she let go of the spell. For such a large object, it was surprisingly light.

“So…is something supposed to happen? My hooves are getting filthy.” Asked Rarity impatiently.

Twilight was about spit out the Seal and reply, but before she could an incredible pain lanced throughout her body, freezing her muscles rigid. Her vision turned white and she collapsed to the floor, unconscious.

Groaning, Twilight gingerly opened her eyes, and promptly shut them again as a fierce white light pierced them. Trying again as her eyes adjusted, she forced herself to stand, her body protesting angrily by giving her aches all over. She could feel her mane was a mess, and she doubted her tail was much better.

Just where am I?

She seemed to be standing on a stone path, which was suspended in mid-air. Past the edge she could only see an endless white void. Just up ahead was a large gate, with a large, complicated-looking lock sealing it shut.

Peering through the bars, she could see that the path continued through the gate into another more open area, which had yet another gate at the far end. Looking past that, she saw that the pattern repeated itself, a seemingly never-ending path filled with gates. In each interval between them, there seemed to be what looked like…chests?

“Ok, Twilight.” She muttered to herself. “This is officially the weirdest dream you have ever had.”

“Oh believe me, this is no dream.” Came a voice from behind her.

With a yelp of surprise, Twilight turned to see who else was here with her in this mysterious place.

Standing of few feet away from her was a unicorn decked out in a long, flowing cape covered with star patterns, and was wearing a rather dramatic wizard’s hat of the same style.

“Although, I can certainly understand why you would believe this to be all but a dream.” The mysterious mare continued with a smirk. “After all, most can only dream of being in the presence of…The Great and Powerful Trixie!”

Twilight blinked. “Who?”

“Psh, haven’t heard of me? I suppose it’s to be expected- it has been at least 30 years since I last graced Equestria with my power.” Trixie grinned and walked over to Twilight. “You’re very lucky you know- you’re only the second pony in history to receive this honour!”

“Err…thanks?” Said Twilight awkwardly, completely confused. “Um…where exactly are we? The last thing I remember-“

“You were touching the Guild Seal, correct?” Trixie interrupted.

“…yes? How did you-“

“”When you did so, it reacted to the power lying dormant within you, and brought you to this place.” She smiled smugly.
“One of my more ingenious enchantments, if I do say so myself!”

“Wait…you brought me here?” Retorted Twilight angrily. “Look, I don’t care who you are, you have to send me back! My friends-“

“Are fretting over your unconscious body right now. Don’t worry, I’ll return you after we’re done.” She hesitated for a moment. “Ah yes, I forgot to mention- right now we are inside a metaphysical representation of you mind.” Trixie smiled sheepishly. “Probably should have mentioned that earlier.”

Twilight was loathe to admit it to this obnoxious and full of herself unicorn, but that was some seriously impressive magic. Mind magic was one of the most difficult branches to work with, not least because so little was known about how the mind functioned.

“So…is there a reason why my mind is so weird-looking?” Her eyes narrowed. “And more to the point, why are you in my mind? Haven’t you heard of personal space?”

“I am here to guide you on your journey, Twilight Sparkle…just as I guided your mother through hers.”

Twilight blinked, even more confused than ever. “My…mother’s journey?”

“That’s correct, Twilight Sparkle.” Trixie sighed and looked away. “All those years ago, when Equestria was divided…when those with power lorded it over those less fortunate, when everyday life was just a struggle to survive, by any means necessary…there was one pony who was destined to change all that. To fight against injustice and evil, and unite Equestria into the peaceful, happy place it was meant to be. To achieve her revenge...”

Wait…revenge? Thought Twilight. That doesn’t sound like my mother at all…

“All those stories your friend told you? They’re all true, and more. Your mother was a Hero, all right.” Trixie smirked smugly. “And it was with my guidance that she was able to achieve her ambitions. So you should be quite honoured I’m doing the same for you.”

“Ok, by this point I’m starting to think that there might be some truth to this whole Hero thing.” Twilight began slowly. “But there is simply no way you guided my mother on anything- if this ‘journey’ took place before Equestria became a Kingdom, then it was at least thirty years ago- but you can’t be any older than twenty or so.”

“Appearances can be deceptive, Sparkle.” Countered Trixie confidently. “In more ways than one. You would do well to remember that.” She stepped past Twilight and eyed the gate critically.

“As to your other question, this particular part of your mind is a representation of your Will.” She explained. “There are other parts to which I could have brought you- your memories, your natural unicorn magic, your emotions- but these are all familiar to you.”

She gestured at the lock on the door. “These symbolise that you have very little familiarity with Will. Each of those chests you see behind the gates contains the instinctual knowledge of how to use it- it’s already there, in your blood. All you have to do is unlock it.”

She turned to Twilight again. “You remember your little fight in the training room? That spark you felt as you made the final blow? That was Will. A small taste of the power at your disposal…look closer.”

Still sceptic, Twilight inched close to the gate. Peering intently at it, she saw that where the other gates were sleek and shiny, this one had become rusted, its locks almost falling apart. Reaching out tentatively, she gave the central lock a firm push with her hoof.

With a protesting groan, it disintegrated into a fine dust, and the doors swung open. Trixie smirked.

“Go on, Princess. Claim your prize.”

“Yeah, I’d worked that out already.” Twilight snarked. “You don’t have to comment just before I do everything, you know.”
Trixie huffed, but said nothing further.

The chest had a simple latch mechanism, and was easily opening with Twilight’s magic. She peered inside eagerly to find…a metal tube?

“Um…” She deadpanned. “Is this my ‘instinctual knowledge? Because it’s not looking too impressive right now.”

“Fool,” hissed Trixie. “That is a very ancient and powerful magical artefact. It is what will allow you to channel your Will into a physical form!”

“…What is it?”

“It’s a gauntlet, for goodness sake! It straps onto your foreleg!”

“Oh…” Muttered Twilight, feeling rather stupid. Levitating it out of the chest, she put it on her right foreleg. It was comfortable, and surprisingly warm. “I don’t feel any different. How exactly does this help?”

“You’ll find out soon enough.” Trixie stated unhelpfully. “Now, it is time for you to leave.”

Twilight jumped. “Already? That was quite quick.”

“As you use your Will and adapt to it, more of these gates will open, and you will acquire new powers-“

“But I haven’t even got one power yet!”

“When you do,” Trixie continued. “You must return here and unlock them.”

“And how do I do that?” Twilight yelled in frustration. For somepony supposedly dedicated to ‘guiding’ her, she was being incredibly vague.

Trixie did not respond, but vanished in a swirl of silver energy. Almost immediately Twilight felt the same painful sensation as before, and she found herself collapsing unconscious for the second time in about five minutes.

“Twilight? Wake up!” Spike yelled in a panic, frantically fanning her face as she lay in a heap on the floor, unmoving. “What the hay is wrong with her?”

“Oh my…” wailed Rarity. “Of all the terrible things that could happen- this is THE. WORST. POSSIBLE. THING!” With a dramatic sigh she swooned backwards, and immediately regretted it as her back collided with the stone floor.

“Ah! Make that the second worst possible thing!”

“Quiet, both of you!” Shouted Colter grumpily as he paced around. “Look, I don’t know what happened either, but whatever that device did it was Celestia’s intention for it to happen. I’m sure everything will be fine, just give Twilight a minute.”

As if on cue, Twilight groaned and clumsily rose to her hooves. “Oh, horseapples…anyone get the name of the manticore that hit me?”

“Her terrible humour is still there.” Observed Spike. “She’s fine.”

“Oh thank goodness,” gushed Rarity, walking over to inspect the young princess for any damage. “You gave us quite a scare! But what happened?”

“I’m…not entirely sure.” Twilight admitted. “I was transported to some weird place in my own head by an even weirder unicorn who started prattling on about ‘guiding me on my journey’ and ‘unlocking my instinctual knowledge’.” She sighed and raised her hoof. “And all I got was this crummy gauntlet-“

She paused, in shock. There, strapped to her foreleg, was the same gauntlet from her trip into her own mind. How in Equestria had it manifested itself into the physical world? Even as she pondered, she could feel an energy within it, not dissimilar to the power she had felt in the Seal (Which lay to the side, temporarily forgotten.)

“I’ve seen one of those before,” Colter trotted over to inspect the device, his eyes wide. “Your mother had one- never took it off outside the castle grounds, if I remember rightly.”

“That mare told me it was to focus my Will.” Twilight said uncertainly.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Spike asked eagerly. “Try casting a spell with it!”

“Well…ok. You might want to stand back, though- I have no idea what effect it will have.”

“Oh! Um…” Rarity was looking nervous. “Twilight, are you sure this is a good idea?”

Twilight paid her no heed. Her eyes were closed tightly shut, her brow furrowed in concentration. I have to search within myself…if this power exists, it can’t be that dissimilar to how I use my unicorn magic. She had to resist the urge to channel her energy into her horn like normal. That wasn’t what she was aiming for here.

There! A small spark, alien and strange within her own body, resting just behind her sternum. Gently, she coaxed it out, driving it towards her hoof. The gauntlet is just an outlet for the power- the true conduit is me. I have to let it become an extension of myself…

Rarity, Spike and Colter looked on in amazement as Twilight suddenly slammed her hoof down on the floor involuntarily, a surge of red, wild flames bursting forth from the gauntlet. Shocked, Twilight released her hold on the spell, but it had done its job.

The flames seemed to have a mind and purpose of their own, and they flowed into the cracks of the stonework beneath Twilight’s hooves like liquid, forming an image of the same symbol that had been on the Guild Seals. Strangely, Twilight did not feel any burning- only a mild and rather comfortable warmth.

The arcane symbols on the walls brightened in approval. With a mighty rumble, the floor between the two sarcophagi slid away, revealing a stairwell beneath.

“Marvellous!” Chuckled Colter heartily. “A secret passageway! This will lead us out undetected for sure!”

Rarity narrowed her eyes suspiciously at him. “Did you know this was here?”

“No, I didn’t.” He stated honestly. “All I knew was that it was important Twilight get her hooves on that Seal. But this is an excellent bonus.”

“Then…wait a minute.” Spike spoke up. “What was your plan for getting out of the castle originally? The one you acted all mysterious and knowing about?”

“I have to say,” Colter said rather loudly, ignoring Spike’s question pointedly. “That was some very impressive magic there, Twilight!”

“Yeah…” She was still in shock from the sheer power she had felt when she had unleashed her energy. And this was just the basics of Will magic? She started to feel uneasy. Can I…can anyone be trusted to wield such power?

“Well, I don’t know about you three,” Rarity huffed as she peered critically down the newly opened secret stairway. “But wherever this will take us, it looks to be extremely grimy so I’d rather we got it over with as quickly as possible, thank you.”

Twilight sighed. “Yes, let’s get going.” She could worry about the technicalities of what she had unleashed later. Her mother had wielded this power, and she had been a remarkable person. Everything would be fine.

Colter placed the Seal inside a pouch strapped to his uniform, and the four quickly made their way down the steps. The finely carved walls and stone floor quickly gave way to a mossy, natural tunnel. The rock beneath their hooves was damp, and cobwebs cluttered the ceiling above them.

“Oh, wonderful, absolutely wonderful…” Muttered Rarity. “I can just imagine what sort of horrible things live down here.” Her eyes darted from side to side nervously. She swallowed and turned to Colter. “What…what if there are…” She paused dramatically. “Balverines down here!”

“What…what are Balverines?” Asked Spike fearfully. Twilight looked back to him critically.

“They are an extremely deadly type of wolf that can infect other species, turning them into Balverines as well.” She explained clinically. “Most people believe them to be an urban legend, but numerous studies and reports from adventurers suggest that-“

“There are no Balverines down here, Rarity.” Colter cut Twilight off mid-sentence.

Twilight frowned, but said nothing else.

“How can you be certain?” Rarity fretted, worriedly peering around the next corner, as if a pack of Balverines was lying in wait. “You’ve never been down here before!”

“Any exits to this tunnel must be somewhere within a few miles of Canterlot at the most. If there were Balverines making this place their home, we’d know about it. The worse you’ll get down here is bats.”

“Oh, just bats. Good.” Rarity said calmly. Then, her eyes widened in horror. “Bats? BATS? That’s just as bad! No- it’s even worse!”

“How is it worse?” Retorted Twilight. “They’re kind of creepy but they aren’t dangerous.”

“Yes, but they are absolutely filthy! And…what if they come at us in a big swarm, or-“

“You don’t have to fear, Dear Lady.” Spike said pompously, puffing out his little chest. “I shall make it more solemn task- no, my solemn duty- to defend you from such foul beasts!”

“-you’ll protect me, won’t you Sir Colter?”

Spike deflated as Rarity stepped closer to the old soldier. “Can’t blame a guy for trying.” He muttered morosely.

Rarity would have to be disappointed however, as Colter was staying oddly silent. He was keeping his eyes focussed on the path ahead, pointedly not looking at any of his companions. He seemed quite perturbed.

Twilight frowned. “Colter?” She called softly. “Everything okay?”

“I don’t like caves.” Was his curt reply.

Twilight blinked in surprise. She never would have expected Colter of all people to be freaked out by a cave- she knew that he’d been in plenty of grim situations far worse than contending with a few bats. Why was he having such a difficult time with it?

She was cut off from her train of thought as the tunnel abruptly opened out into an expansive underground cavern. The ceiling must have been nearly 50 hooves high, the only source of light coming from a wide crack into the roof through which the soft moonlight creeped in. From what she could see, there were rock archways and platforms rising haphazardly from the cavern floor and sides. In the dim light, she could see a vague natural pathway winding its way through them, though were it lead she couldn’t say. The faint sound of running water could be heard somewhere deeper within.

“Oh my,” Rarity gushed. “It’s beautiful. But where on earth are we? I’ve never heard of anywhere like this near Canterlot.”

Spike, eager to prove himself a match for Colter, decided to put his many, many study sessions with Twilight to good use. “I think we are in the Everfree cavern,” he explained. “It’s a fairly recently discovered underground system not far from the outskirts of Canterlot. There was going to be a team of field researchers sent here to take a look at it, but the Queen said she couldn’t spare the funds that needed to go to the guard force. Bet she’d be mad if she found out she’d missed a secret passage.”

“I don’t get it,” Colter spoke up. “Why is it called the Everfree cavern? The Everfree forest and river are by Ponyville, and that’s halfway across Equestria.”

“The river flows from the Griffon Border Mountains and seems to stop at the forest,” Twilight elaborated. “But it actually continues on much further underground. Come on, we need to keep going.”

Without a pony-made path to guide them, navigating through the rocky formations was tricky but they seemed to be making good time. More than once Rarity had to stifle a scream as what appeared to be a glowing pair of yellow eyes in the darkness turned out to be little more than a nest of glow-worms.

“So, once we eventually get through this god-awful place,” Rarity broke the silence as she flinched away from yet another
group of the luminescent bugs. “What exactly is our plan? Where are we going to go? ‘Lead a rebellion’ is all well and good I suppose, but I think we need a few more details than that.”

Twilight’s eyes shifted to Colter on reflex. He shook his head.

“You’re in charge, Princess.”

“Right…” Twilight stalled, trying to collect her thoughts and avoid stepping on a rather nasty jagged rock on the ground at the same time. “Well, before we do anything else we need to have some kind of base of operations- somewhere secure, that Nightmare Moon doesn’t know about or is highly unlikely to check.”

“Any suggestions?” Spike inquired hopefully.

“I’m afraid not. Until we find one we’ll just have to keep on the move constantly.”

“Oh, joy.” Rarity grumbled.

“Considering our primary goal right now is to begin recruiting others to the cause,” Twilight continued, pretending she hadn’t heard the interruption. “It stands to reason that earning the favour of a group already on the verge of rebellion itself will allow us to use their headquarters, at least temporarily. We just need an idea of who we are potentially recruiting.”

“I can think of a good place to start,” Colter added. “The Dweller camp near Ponyville.”

“Ponyville? That’s quite a way to walk. “Twilight said with a frown. “And I don’t think I’ve heard of these ‘Dwellers’ before.”

“I have,” interrupted Rarity. “Due to increased bandit activity and higher taxes, a lot of ponies were left homeless, and from what I’ve heard they’ve all flocked to some ramshackle village deep in the Everfree forest.” She frowned. “Don’t get me wrong, I think that’s horrible they were forced into doing that, and I can certainty see why’d they willing to help us…”

“But?”

“Well to be quite honest dears, they are little more than farmers. Most of them probably can’t even read! Hardly a vast and almighty army.”

Colter scowled at her. “I’ve met their leader,” He countered. “A stronger and more stubborn mare you’d be hard pressed to find. What her people lack in skill or intellect, they make up for tenfold with spirit and courage.”

“It’s settled then,” Twilight said authoritatively. “We head for Ponyville, and the Everfree forest. We’ll have to walk to a town far enough from Canterlot that I won’t be recognised and catch a carriage from there.”

“Yeah, that’s one good thing about you being such a bookworm, Twi.” Spike snorted. “No one outside the castle has any idea what you look like!”

Twilight gritted her teeth and swivelled around. “I am not a bookworm!” She hissed at him.

“You kind of are.” He smirked.

“It is true darling.” Rarity supplied helpfully.

Frustrated, Twilight glared at Colter, daring him to agree.

“No comment.” He said carefully, much to her annoyance.

She huffed and stormed off down the path. “Let’s just keep going.”

Soon enough the other side of the cavern came into view. The path gradually descended and seemed to stop at what must have been the remnants of the Everfree River Twilight had mentioned. It flowed in from a crevice far off to their right and cut right across the path they had intended to take. That wasn’t the biggest problem, however.

Directly across from them was a wide archway, whose floor also contained running water, but of a sickly greenish brown colour. The walls were made of smooth concrete, and broken pipes and pieces of steel girders stuck out of the archway like teeth in a shark’s mouth. The foul liquid intercepted the pure water of the river at this junction, from way it carried the burden the rest of the way downstream.

“Oh, no!” Whispered Rarity hoarsely, looking rather green.

“Seems this is the real reason Her Majesty didn’t fund any excavation team,” Colter said with a hint of amusement. “She didn’t want them to find out this is where she’d been pumping all of Canterlot’s sewage.

“Urgh…this is disgusting.” Twilight retched. “We…we don’t have to walk through that, do we?”

“I’m afraid so.”

“Oh, no no no no no no NO.” Rarity wailed. “I can’t do this, I can’t!”

“Um, guys?” Spike intervened. “Can’t Twilight just do a levitation spell?”

She looked thoughtful. “I could probably sustain myself, you and Rarity for a good half an hour or so, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to lift you, Colter.”

“And you won’t have to,” He snorted. “Bunch of pansies. You’re going to have to contend with worse than this, you know.”

“Perhaps,” She acknowledged. “But there is no point in going through a challenge for the sake of it when there is a simpler solution.”

He shrugged. “You’re the boss.” With that, he casually stepped into the water and began wading across.

Twilight turned to the almost hyperventilating unicorn. “Now, hold still Rarity. I need to have as little interference as possible.”

“Alright dear…” She swallowed nervously. “But…is there anything you can do about the smell, too?”

“No.”

She sighed. “I was afraid you’d say that.”

Twilight’s horn lit up in a flare of magic, and a reddish purple glow formed around the three of them. Silently and swiftly, they rose off the ground by several hooves.

“Oh man, this is cool!” Spike uttered gleefully, flailing his stumpy arms and tail about.

“Stay still, Spike!” Twilight muttered. “I need to focus.”

“Is this what a Pegasus feels like on a cloud?” Rarity mused. “I can see the appeal, it’s quite relaxing.”

“Are you three still mucking about back there?” Came Colter’s voice from within the pipe. “I think I’ve found something.”

“Coming!” Twilight answered, and with a short spark from her horn the three of them glided over the water and into the tunnel.

“Urgh…” Spike sniffed the air distastefully. “You sure you can’t do anything about the smell, Twilight?”

“I can replace it with the smell of singed dragon, if you like.” She snapped.

“…never mind.”

It didn’t take them long to find Colter. On one side of the pipe was a raised platform he’d managed to haul himself onto, dripping with the slimy water.

Twilight guided them over to him and gently set the group down on the cool metal, careful to avoid the puddles of sewage which Rarity was eyeing warily, as if they might suddenly come alive and attack her.

“Here,” Colter gestured, tapping the wall of the pipe with his hoof. “It’s the same symbol.” Sure enough, the hourglass-like shape of the Guild Seal was emblazoned on the wall, partially obscured by grime.

“There must another passageway behind this one!” Spike exclaimed in realisation.

Nodding, Twilight reached inside herself again for the power she had channelled before. It was easier now that she knew what to look for, and she was able to cut down the amount of power she withdrew.

This time, her gauntlet did not realise a torrent of fire, but inside glowed white, a small ball of flame gathering an inch or so in front of her hoof. Carefully, she pressed it to the symbol. Once again the flames seeped into the pattern, and with a grinding complaint the wall slid away to reveal the area beyond.

“It’s…a dead end!” Rarity said in shock. There was no tunnel or passageway behind the wall, but a tiny room that was almost completely bare. There was just enough room to fit all of them into it.

“Not quite!” Twilight exclaimed almost gleefully, gesturing happily at the corner. “Look at that!”

The item in question appeared to be a circular stone plinth, which was emitting a faint blue glow. Its edges were covered in arcane symbols.

“It’s a cullis gate! And an active one!” Twilight sounded almost giddy. “Oh, researchers have been looking for an active cullis gate for years! And to think there was one right under our noses the whole time!” She paused and sniffed the air with a grimace. “Literally under our noses.”

“But…what does it do?” Rarity asked, curious.

“From the inactive ones we’ve found dotted about Equestria they are some kind of long distance teleportation system.” Twilight explained, stepping over to it. “Though scientists have never been able to get them to work before- we don’t who built them or much about how they function.” She turned to them. “It was hidden behind a carving of the Guild Seal…which means it’s related to Will and Heroes somehow.” She looked thoughtful tapping her hoof with her chin.

“I think I get it,” Spike said. “They’ve never reacted to any kind of unicorn spell before. But what about Twilight’s new magic?”

“I don’t know about any of that,” Colter grumbled. “But if it gets us away from Canterlot, I’ll take it.”

“Yes, the sooner we get away from this awful sewer, the better.” Rarity agreed.

The four of them quickly squished themselves as tightly onto the plinth as they could, with Twilight checking to make sure no-one was outside the circle. No complications like body parts being left behind would be helpful here. Spike seemed quite pleased about the chance to be in a confined space with Rarity, and Rarity seemed quite content to be in a confined space with Colter.

“I don’t like confined spaces.” Colter mumbled.

“Oh, be quiet.” Twilight chided, activating her gauntlet and pushing her Will into the device.

There was a flash a bright blue light, and Twilight felt the unnerving sensation of being teleported. She’d done it many times before, but it still felt as weird as always- like every particle in your body was being disassembled and reconstructed someplace else. Which was basically how it worked.

Once she was sure she had been transferred properly, she opened her eyes to see where the gate had taken them. It appeared to be a circular room fashioned with high quality marble walls and a tiled floor, but it appeared to have fallen into severe disrepair. Assorted junk like book, scraps of paper and inkwells littered the mucky floor, and the low ceiling was covered in cobwebs.

The centrepiece of the room was a round table with what appeared to be a highly detailed map of Equestria engraved into it. Various doors encircled the room, with symbols above them. There was a door with a pair of crossed blades, one with a coat-hanger, a gold coin, a bed, and finally a fire. Five in total.

There was a groan behind her. Turning, she her companions in a heap against the wall. She giggled lightly.

“First time any of you have teleported?”

“Urgh…” Colter protested as he stood up, shoving the other two aside. “And to think, I thought those carriages were bad…” He looked around in confusion. “Where the hay are we?”

“I don’t know,” she admitted. “But I don’t think anyone else has been here several years, by the look of things. We should be safe for now, at least.”

Spike and Rarity clambered to their feet groggily. “I think next time I’ll walk.” Rarity said, looking even greener than she had in the sewer. “I need to work on my figure, anyway.” She looked critically around the room. “Well, whoever was here last certainly didn’t bother to clean up after themselves. Honestly.”

“Maybe it shows where we are on that map?” Spike suggested, pointing a stubby floor to the table in the centre of the room.

Twilight investigated it, but while the map had all sorts of towns, cities, villages and natural landmarks noted down, there was no information on this room. Curiously, each location seemed to have a small node next to it, all but two of them dull and lifeless. The two nodes located by ‘Everfree Caverns’ and ‘Everfree Forest’ were lit up, emitting a pale blue light.

That wasn’t what drew Twilight’s attention, though. Lying on the table was a small book, no bigger than her hoof. The title made her breath catch in her throat.

A Guide To The Heroes Sanctuary And How To Work It

By Queen Celestia

For the eyes of Twilight Sparkle and those she deems trustworthy

“Mom…” She whispered in shock, lightly brushing the cover with her hoof.

“Found something?” Colter asked curiously, walking over to her.

She said nothing, but instead opened the book with a small push of her magic, and began to read to the others.

“To my dearest Twilight,

It is my greatest hope that you never have reason to gaze upon these words, or to seek out this place. If you are, then my worst fears have come to pass.

In mine and Luna’s youth, the world was a very different place from what it is now. No doubt you know that our family is not royal by blood, but by deed; it was the people who chose me to lead them. Before that, Equestria was a dark, bloody place. I have worked for years to improve life for everyone, and I’d like to think that I have for the most part succeeded.

Even as I write this, I can feel my bones ache in protest, my heart wearily pounding. I am not long for this world. You are asleep, curled up in front of the fireplace with a dog-eared book open before you. I would like nothing more than to embrace you with my wings, and shield you from the world forever. But I know this cannot happen.

My dearest sister Luna, your aunt, is just as precious to me. She is as headstrong and stubborn now as she was when we grew up together on the streets of Canterlot. But I fear for how well she will cope with both my impending passing, and her new mantle as my successor. I pray she remains strong.

The blood of Heroes flows through your veins, my daughter. And if there is one thing I have learnt in my life, it is that a Hero is destined to accomplish great triumphs…and suffer terrible hardships. I wish that you will never have to experience the same kind of trials that I did growing up. I wish the Equestria I have worked hard to save will remain safe.

If you are reading this, then this is not the case.

The place you are in now is known as the Sanctuary. Many hundreds of years ago when there were dozens of Heroes at any one time across the land, it was the Heroes Guild. I found it when I was just 16, in all its decrepit and ancient splendour. After I became Queen, and my adventures were over, I made some alterations to it- though it may require some cleaning.

The physical location of the Sanctuary is deep under a complex network of tunnels beneath Canter Reservoir. The construction of the Reservoir has sealed the original entrance, so the only way in or out is through the cullis gates. When the Guild was in its prime, these devices served as a quick and easy way for Heroes to travel about Equestria, with the Sanctuary acting as a ‘Hub’. The nodes you see on the map represent these gates. Channelling Will into one will transport you and anyone in physical contact with you to that location.

Many, if not all, of the gates are inactive- channelling Will into them will serve to re-establish the connection. During my travels I located and opened a fair number of gates, but by the time you are reading this they may have fallen into disuse once again.

Once again I must state that I hope this information is never of any relevance to you. If you are in such a situation, then I pray that you are not alone. It breaks my heart to see such a lonely child; your dear friendship with Caramel and your affection for the newly hatched dragon Spike are endearing, but your closest friends have always been your books. Only with the help of your friends will you be able to get through the days to come.”

Twilight sniffed and rubbed at her eyes with her hoof. “I’m sorry, I can’t read any more.” She choked.

“Shh, it’s ok dear.” Rarity cooed, gently closing the book and rubbing Twilight’s back soothingly. “I know this must be hard for you.”

“Thank you, Rarity.” Twilight snuffled through her tears. “You’re a good friend.”

“We’re all your friends, Twilight.” Spike said reassuringly. “And we’ll always be there to help you.”

“It’s just like your mother says,” Colter said softly. “With us by your side, you can get through this.”

Feeling much better in herself, Twilight gave her eyes one last rub before her face settled into her ‘thinking’ expression, and she began to pace as she often did when she was in thought.

“All of that aside, this really is a stroke of luck. A secret chamber only we know about, that can only be accessed by me or someone with me, and is accessible from almost any location in Equestria, provided we activate the gate there first.” She tapped the map with her hoof. “What’s more, we can use this to visit all of those locations almost instantly.” She grinned enthusiastically. “This is the perfect base of operations!”

“It needs a bit of…sprucing up though.” Rarity said disdainfully. “Although I’m very curious to find out what’s behind all these doors.”

“And to top it off, the other place we can go to on here is right where we want to go: Everfree Forest!” Spike grinned.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, lad.” Colter warned. “The forest is a big place, with all sorts of creatures within. The Dweller Camp will likely be right in the very centre.”

“Still, it is an opportunity we cannot waste.” Twilight countered. “We should leave as soon as possible.”

“Hmm…” Rarity mused. “You know, I think I’ll stay here and tidy this place up a bit while you three our out making peace with the locals.” She looked curiously at the book left behind by Celestia. “And I’ll skim through the rest of that while I’m at it- it might contain a lot of other useful information.”

Twilight nodded to show her agreement- she knew that trekking through a forest and talking to farmers were the last thing on Rarity’s mind after crawling through a cave and a sewer.

“Alright then. Spike, Colter, grab hold of me.” Spike plopped himself on Twilight’s back, while Colter opted to simply place his hoof on her side.

Drawing out her Will, an act that was becoming progressively more natural to her, Twilight tapped the node labelled ‘Everfree Forest’. With a swirl of magic, the three of them vanished from the room, leaving Rarity alone with a book and a lot of Rarity.

“Oh, Rarity.” She huffed. “I sure hope you know what you’ve let yourself into…” Reluctantly she conjured up a feather duster, a broom, dustpan and brush, and various other assorted cleaning devices. Her brow sweated from the exertion of casting the spells: she didn’t have the same magical stamina that someone like Twilight did, after all.

“You three had better appreciate this when you get back.” She grumbled, and began the long arduous war against her eternal enemy- dirt.

Taking Action

The cullis gate materialised Twilight, Colter and Spike in the centre of a small grove. The trees grew so closely together that barely any moonlight was able to reach the forest floor, forcing Twilight to channel some magic to her horn and create some light to see by. They appeared to be quite deep within the forest already, though there were no signs of the Dweller camp.

“We should tread lightly,” Colter warned. “There are all manner of deadly creatures in this forest. The Dweller’s kicked the worst of them out, but there are a fair number still lurking in the shadows.”

Nodding, Twilight quickly formed a plan of action. “Ok, judging by the moss on the trees, north is…this way.” She pointed with her hoof deeper into the woods. “Spike, I need you to keep an eye on the ground for any worn paths or hoofprints that will lead us to the camp. Colter, you’re in charge of watching for any dangerous critters, since you are the only one here with a weapon.”

Colter nodded, shifting the weight of the sword strapped to his back unconsciously.

“I’ll double in both of those tasks, as well as light the way. Now let’s go.” The trio set off swiftly, the sound of their breathing and leaves parting beneath their hooves (Or claws, in Spike’s case) breaking the eerie silence of the forest.

Despite the creepy surroundings, Twilight found the experience oddly relaxing. The gardens in the castle had been beautiful, but there was just something calming about this wild, untameable growth far beyond the walls of civilisation.

Twilight idly noted that the trees to east seemed to gradually thin and become more spread out allowing more light through their branches, while to the west they became even more closely huddled. She subtly guided her steps to take them to what, logically, was deeper into the heart of the woods.

“Twilight, look!” Spike exclaimed suddenly.

She inclined her head to see what he had spotted. Sure enough, the tell-tale marks of a set of hooves were imprinted into the ground, winding through the trees.

“Perfect!” She said with a smile. “Good job, Spike.” Her dragon assistant blushed at the praise.

With newfound purpose, they followed the trail. As they approached their goal the tracks were joined by other hoofprints, until the grassy carpet gave way to a dirt path formed by constant trampling.

“We must be getting close.” Colter commented. “Be prepared- I don’t know what they’ll make of trespassers.”

Without warning, the thick trees seemed to disappear from view entirely. Blinking, Twilight gaped at the sight in front of her. They had entered an enormous pony-made clearing, the roughly sawn stumps of trees still littering the ground. The entire place was crammed with tiny log caravans, each one barely large enough for a single pony. There was no order to their placement; the dwellings were chaotically strewn about the place, as if a passing giant had emptied his pockets and scattered them on the floor.

But what drew Twilight’s attention was the ponies. There were literally hundreds of them milling about listlessly, barely even registering the presence of strangers in their midst. None of them wore clothing, and they all looked glumly out at the world.
The lucky ones huddled in their caravans in groups of up to about four, all sharing the cramped space, drinking out of bowls filled with a sickly green soup. The unlucky ones shivered in the cold with nothing but the earth itself to warm themselves with.

At the very centre of the ramshackle town was what appeared to be some kind of community centre. It was a rather large log cabin, with several teams of ponies working on various tasks. A makeshift kitchen had been set up one side, with a team of chefs frantically trying to supply food to the starving residents. With no proper fields or farms to speak of, their only resources were various local plants- berries, fruit, leaves and the like. This seemed to be the main recipe for the green slop.
They were cooking non-stop, but they were clearly struggling to keep up with the demand.

There were other projects assembled around the building as well: Two twin elderly mares were knitting scarves, socks and hats to keep ponies warm. A group of burly stallions were marching to and from the forest edge to chop down trees, and piled up the logs for constructing more houses.

“This…this is…” Twilight couldn’t sum up any words apt enough to describe it. How could Moon sit idly in her throne while her subjects wasted away like this?

“Aye.” Colter stated grimly. There was little more to be said- what could you say, when presented with such suffering? “Come on. Their leader will be in that cabin.” Wordlessly, the trio approached, weaving through the dwellings. No one seemed to pay them any heed.

Twilight cautiously stepped toward the cabin door, and knocked once. There was the sound of shuffling hooves, and then it opened, revealing the biggest stallion Twilight had ever seen- even Colter was dwarfed by him.

“Um…hello.” She began lamely, feeling far less confident than she had when they had set off. “I…request an audience with the leader of this camp.”

The stallion regarded her critically, his face a blank mask.

“Nope.” He stated simply.

“Oh for pete’s sakes, Big Mac.” Came a voice from inside the building. “Let ‘em in. When Ah set up this place Ah said I wouldn’t turn nopony away, and Ah meant it.”

“Eeyup.” Big Mac reluctantly agreed, and stepped aside to let them pass.

“Thank you.” Twilight said politely as she passed. He made no response. Spike and Colter quickly shuffled in after her.

The interior of the cabin was just as bare as the rest of the camp, with only two simple beds on opposite corners of the room and a desk decorating it. A small log fire crackled away in the hearth, the only source of heat or light. There were no windows.

Standing at the desk with her back to them was who Twilight assumed to be the appointed leader of the camp. She wore a large ten gallon hat and appeared to be pouring over notes of some kind.

She turned to appraise the newcomers. When she spoke, she had a distinct country twang. “Ah don’t mean no offense now, but this place is meant to provide for those who don’t have anythin’ or anywhere left.” She looked over Twilight’s expertly tailored clothes. “Them duds alone could probably fetch enough bits to feed this place for a day or two.”

“I’m not here to seek refuge.” Twilight stated formally. “I’m here to make a proposal to you.”

“That so?” The mare asked, raising her brow. “Well then, where are mah manners? Names Applejack, formerly the owner of Sweet Apple Acres. That big lug over there is mah brother Big Macintosh.” Her eyes slid to Colter, and narrowed. “You seem mighty familiar…do Ah know you from somewhere?”

“Sir Colter, former soldier.” He rumbled. “I helped you defend your farm from a bandit attack many years ago, remember.”

“That Ah do, now that you mention it.” Applejack confirmed with a nod. “You were a big help to the Apple family then.” She sighed bitterly. “Not that it did us much good in the long run.” She looked back at Twilight. “You were sayin’, Miss…?” She paused. “Ah didn’t catch your name.”

“Twilight Sparkle.” She stated, trying to stay calm.

Applejack’s eyes bulged in shock, and Big Mac seemed to be overcome by a coughing fit. Spike scuffed his feet on the floor nervously.

“Is that right?” Applejack growled rather angrily. “And what would Her High an’ Mighty Majesty need from us that she’d deem to dirty her hooves out here?”

Twilight had been afraid that she’d be shown such hostility. “As I said, I’m here to make a proposal.” She said nervously.
“Look, Applejack…you and I can both see that these people are suffering. You and your brother are trying your best to help them, but there is only so much you can do.”

“No thanks to you. Get to the point, missy.”

“And that’s only one of many problems wrong with Equestria under my Aunt’s rule. Things need to change.” Twilight bravely looked Applejack dead in the eye. “It needs a revolution.”

If Applejack was surprised by the traitorous speech, she hid it well. “Well that’s all fine and dandy, Princess. Let me guess, you want to recruit us to your cause? We ‘aint in any shape to be helping anybody right now.” She stomped her hoof in frustration. “And who’s gonna run Equestria when Old Moon’s been chased off her throne? You?” She snorted sceptically. “How do we know you’ll do any better?”

“I can understand why you are quick to distrust me.” Twilight said diplomatically. “But I promise, I will do all in my power to help these people, and the people of Equestria, if you will stand by me against the Queen’s tyranny.”

“Promises are easy to make, and just as easy to break.” The orange mare countered. She sunk into deep thought for a moment, and then let out a sly smile. “All right Princess, I’ll give you a chance to prove yourself to us. You promise to help us? Then I have a few things you can start off with.”

She stepped over to Spike and prodded him. “Hey, dragon boy. You might wanna take a note.”

“You don’t have to be so rude.” Spike grumbled, reluctantly swiping a quill and parchment from Colter’s pouch. Applejack ignored him.

“Before me and Big Mac set up this place, we owned Sweet Apple Acres, like Ah said. It’s a huge apple orchard just west of Ponyville, been in the Apple family for generations.” She sighed sadly. “Or at least it was, until we had one of the biggest bandit raids ever a couple of months back. Before, the local soldiers on patrol at Ponyville would lend a hoof and drive ‘em off, like your buddy here did years ago.” She nodded at Colter. “But now of course there aint any guards there anymore, they’ve all been dispatched to some place called ‘Mourningwood’, Queen’s Orders.”

A sour look overtook her face. “We didn’t have a chance. Sweet Apple Acres is now the residence of one of the ugliest band of varmints you ever did see, led by some feller called Saker.” She gave Twilight a piercing look. “Ah want you to get rid of them.”

“And how do you expect me to do that?” Twilight asked wearily.

“Your feller there has a sword. You’ve got your fancy unicorn magic. I’m sure you can figure it out.”

“Is that all? Fight an entire troupe of bandits?” Twilight asked with gritted teeth. Applejack simply smirked in response.

“There’s just one other thing. I’m sure you’ve heard of the Royal Ponyville Library.”

“Of course I have.” Twilight replied, not sure where this was going. Her mother had personally overseen the construction of the library, and it was the single largest collection of knowledge in Equestria. Nightmare Moon saw no reason why the average commoner should be allowed access to higher education, and cut its funding. As far as she knew, only a single librarian dutifully maintained the place, which was now closed to the general public.

“Then I’m sure you’ve also heard of the secret underground chamber that Celestia built beneath it, housin’ a rare and powerful magical artefact?”

…Okay, that was new.

Colter didn’t seem too impressed, either. “First I’ve heard of it. What exactly is the source of this information?”

“You callin’ me a liar? It’s written on the bloody door.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Not long before we got kicked off the farm, the librarian found some secret room or somethin’. It caused a huge fuss- there was some big fancy stone door of some kind with a poem on it, signed with Celestia’s signature. Says the artefact can only be retrieved by a true hero or some such nonsense. I was never good with riddles.”

The trio shared a look. A true hero? Could it have been yet another ‘gift’ left behind by Celestia to Twilight?

“The point I’m trying to make, is that this doohickey is apparently a pretty damn good judge of character, not to mention it’s probably handy in a fight...or even better, it will fetch enough bits to get all these folks back on their feet. You bring me that artefact, and get rid of those bandits…then we’ll talk some more.”

~~~

“Well…it could have gone worse.” Spike offered optimistically as the three made their way out of the camp.

“And it could have gone better, too.” Twilight said glumly. “I can understand why she is so reluctant to trust me, though.” She ducked under a low hanging tree branch before continuing. “Still, we learned something valuable at any rate. This artefact, whatever it is, is sure to be useful in more ways than one. And yet…” She chewed her bottom lip nervously.

Colter glanced at her worriedly. “It’s the bandit thing, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” She sighed. “I already know now there is practically zero chance of negotiating with them. As such, the only other approach is violence.” She stopped and pawed the ground nervously. “I mean…I can fight. I have probably the most powerful magic in Equestria, even without counting these new powers. But…I’ve never been in a real fight before.” She refused to meet the other’s eyes. “Could…could I really kill someone? Even knowing it’s the only way?”

“Twilight,” Colter tried to reason. “You have to remember who these guys are. They’ve murdered, stolen from and raped countless innocent travellers. The only ponies they care about are themselves. Equestria is better off without them.”

“I know that. But still…”

“We’ll worry about that later. First, we should get to Ponyville, and get some rest. I’m sure there is an inn or something we can stay at, and we’ll use tomorrow to plan our next course of action.”

It took them nearly a full hour to exit the forest- even retracing their steps to the cullis gate, they were still quite deep within it. It was with relief that the three of them finally found themselves on a dirt path leading away from the dark trees, with the moonlight shining down on them. The town lights of Ponyville were a beacon in the distance, promising warmth, food and shelter.

As they made their way towards the town, Twilight noticed that part of the path branched off. Following it with her eyes, she saw it lead to a small cottage. It might have once been considered homely, but it appeared to have been unoccupied for some time. The front door hung loosely of its hinges, and through the opening she could see the interior was dusty and unkempt; furniture had been knocked over and cobwebs were arching across the ceiling.

Shivering and trying not to think too hard about what may have happened there, she starting walking a little faster. If her companions noticed her uneasiness, they didn’t comment.

After that, it didn’t take much longer to reach the town. There were small cabins set up at regular intervals around it, presumably guard posts. They were all empty however, just as Applejack had said. If the bandits currently residing in the old farm ever grew bored and tried to attack the town, there would be nothing to stop them.

“Have you got any money on you, Colter?” Twilight asked as they made their way into town. “It’s very late, so we’ll need to rent some rooms somewhere.”

Colter checked his pouch. “I have about 200 bits on me, the Guild Seal, and the clothes on my back. That’s all.”

“That should be enough, for now.” Twilight mused, though inwardly she was a bit worried. They’d need some form of income to sustain themselves- 200 bits wouldn’t fund an army.

The local inn, The Cow and Corset, was very busy. Twilight had no idea what time it was, but it seemed a good number of residents were still awake and drinking away their troubles. She couldn’t believe how much she had missed the warmth of the indoors.

Thankfully, there was a room available- most of the patrons had their own homes, after all. Not feeling ready for sleep just yet, the trio brought a few drinks and took a table by the window. Colter went with a Classic Equestrian Cider; Twilight settled for a small glass of wine. Spike, being underage, had to make do with a glass of water.

Their party received some curious glances, but Twilight wasn’t worried. It was most likely because of the young dragon in their group. Looking around, she could see some other species apart from ponies- donkeys, mules, cows and even a surly looking griffon- but no dragons.

Spike’s eyes were drooping, so the three decided to call it a night. Their room wasn’t much, but it had three beds and basic facilities, so Twilight was thankful. Few words were exchanged as the exhausted trio laid their heads down to rest.

~~~

Darkness. Everywhere she looked, there was darkness.

“The light you bring will die. The light inside you will die. All that you are will die.”

She couldn’t move or breathe. She could not see. The darkness was more than just a lack of light: it was alive, constricting against her, choking her.

“Do you feel the darkness swarming around you? Do you feel it creep through your mouth, your eyes, until it eats away inside you? Tell me how it feels.”

Suddenly, something appeared in her vision, and Twilight wished she was blind again. It was a monstrous face, covered in black, bulbous eyes, with a gaping maw of jagged teeth. The creature chuckled in malice.

“Close your eyes. Those orbs of light…offend us.”

Twilight screamed as it reached its cruel talons to her face…

~~~

Twilight woke with a yell, feeling ill. Almost immediately Colter sprung out of bed, reaching for his sword.

“Twilight?” He asked concernedly, confused when he saw no enemies. “What’s wrong?”

She shook her head, trying to clear her mind. “I…I’m sorry Colter, I just had a bad dream.” Even as she said it, she could feel the memory of it slipping away, like water through a sieve. Try as she might, she could not recall what her nightmare was about. She had a feeling she’d be happier not knowing.

Relaxing, but still concerned, Colter checked the clock on the wall. “Well, it’s just coming up to seven o’ clock. We should probably get going.”

Twilight nodded. Shaking Spike awake (It seemed he could sleep through nearly anything), the group headed out into the town. It was much livelier during the day.

“Okay, so what are we doing first?” Spike asked. “Checking out the library, or getting rid of the bandits?”

“Um…the library” Twilight answered. She wanted to postpone any violence as long as possible. “But first, I think we should head back to the Sanctuary. If I remember correctly, one of the Cullis Gates that scholars have been studying is located in the town. We should probably activate as many of those as possible- it will make navigating much easier.”

“So, if Celestia knew how they worked, why do you think she never let on?” Spike mused curiously.

“I don’t know, Spike. Probably because it didn’t really matter- she would be the only one who could use them even if they did work it out.”

After asking some quick directions, they found the gate in what appeared to be a secluded public park. Checking that no one was watching, Twilight activated it with a few sparks from her gauntlet, and the three of them vanished in a swirl of light.

They reappeared with a flash back in the Sanctuary. After getting their bearings, they saw that Rarity had done an excellent job. All the detritus and grime that had previously been obscuring the place was gone, the walls and floors had been scrubbed and polished, and the cobwebs cleared from the ceiling.

“Rarity certainly did a good job,” Twilight admired. “Where is she, anyway!”

“Through here, darlings!” The three of them turned to face where her voice had called from- the door with the symbol of a flame above it. Shrugging, they all entered into the room beyond.

What greeted them was a large and spacious lounge area, with plush sofas and armchairs, a roaring fire in the hearth (Which Twilight assumed was magical, since it would make no sense to have a chimney under a lake), and a thick, fluffy carpet beneath their hooves. On the far side of the room lay another door, with the symbol of a knife and fork above it- presumably leading to the kitchen area.

Sprawled out lazily on one the sofas was Rarity, who looked exhausted but quite pleased with herself. “Ah, good morning dears!” She greeted them cheerfully. “I must say, it was a nightmare cleaning this place but it was definitely worth it. These rooms are incredible!”

“Well, we all appreciate your hard work Rarity.” Colter replied. “Sorry we were gone the whole night, but after meeting with Applejack I think we all wanted to get away from that forest as soon as possible, so we headed to Ponyville.”

“Is that so?” Rarity asked, her ears pricking up at the mention of the town. “How did things go? Did she agree to lend aid?”

“Not exactly…” Huffed Spike. “She’s agreed to lend aid IF we fight off all the bandits that have taken over her farm, and retrieve a magical artefact from under Ponyville for her.”

“That…seems a bit of a high price for a bunch of farmers, don’t you think?” She responded, bewildered.

Twilight sighed. “It might seem that way, but this is more than just recruiting soldiers to the cause. The people don’t trust me, and to be honest, I can’t really blame them. This is a way of proving to my subjects that I care about their needs, and that I am willing to help them. Even if these ponies aren’t very much help in the war effort in the long run, they will spread word to others who will be. I think Applejack knows that, which is why she made such a deal.”

“Besides,” She continued wistfully. “I really do want to help them. By the sounds of things, these bandits have been a terror to this area for years now, and its time somewhat put a stop to them. And that artefact could be useful in more ways than one. No, this is definitely a step in the right direction.”

“We’re going to go after this artefact first,” Spike explained to Rarity as the group took their comfy seats next to the warm fire. “That way if it turns out to be useful in a fight, we can use it with the bandits.”

Rarity frowned slightly, obviously uncomfortable with the casual discussion of violence. “Yes, about that. I took the liberty of exploring all of these different rooms. Most are fairly straightforward- through that door is a kitchen; through the coin door, storage space for various items and large sums of money; through the bed door, some dormitories; through the coat hanger door…” She took a moment to grin happily “An entire room dedicated to all things clothing! Mannequins, walk in closets, a hair styling station, and SO MANY MIRRORS-“

“And the final door?” Interrupted Colter, unimpressed.

“Ahem, sorry about that.” Rarity blushed, composing herself. “Through the sword door, an armoury. I suppose you’ll be needing something from that Twilight, since you are currently unarmed.”

Twilight nodded. “I’ll be sure to check it out. We have a lot to do today, so we had better make get started as soon as possible. Are you coming with us to Ponyville?”

“Why yes, darling. I have some business there that I need to attend to anyway.”

“Really?” Colter inquired curiously. “Whatever for?”

“Well, my parents and my sister moved to Ponyville after I took over as the Head Maid. I don’t get to see them that often, and this might be my only chance for quite some time.”

“I didn’t know you had a sister.” Spike said forlornly, disappointed that he did not such a basic fact about his crush. If she picked up on his dejectedness, she did not show it.

“You never asked, dear.” She said nonchalantly. “Her name is Sweetie Belle- she’s still just a foal really, the dear hasn’t even got her cutie mark yet! About the same age as you Spike.” She sighed sadly. “I haven’t seen her in so long…will she even recognise me?”

“I’m sure everything will be fine,” Twilight said in what she hoped was a soothing tone. “I’ll quickly grab something from the armoury and we can be off.”

Rarity snorted in an attempt to supress a laugh. “Oh Twilight, I think you’ll find you won’t be ‘quickly grabbing’ anything.”

“Oh come, on.” Spike scoffed. “How much choice could there be?”

As it turned out, there was a lot of choice.

Twilight gaped as she viewed row upon row of weapon racks encircling the walls, reaching all the way up to the high ceiling above. Every manner of blade or blunt object was there- from simple one handed swords to huge claymores, battle-axes, war hammers, katanas of all sizes, maces, battle staves, throwing axes, daggers, dirks, nunchucks…

“Well,” Colter began dryly. “When we DO have an army, we don’t have to worry about equipping them.”

“Not entirely true, Colter.” Rarity countered, clearly amused by Twilight’s shock. “There is still armour, after all.”

“H-how am I supposed to choose?” Twilight stammered. “How do I know which one is best suited to me?”

“Don’t overthink it so much,” huffed Colter. “Just go with the same kind of sword you’ve been using in training, and you’ll do fine.”

Twilight suppressed the urge to analyse in detail the benefits and downsides of each type of weapon and levitated a plain looking, medium length sword from the bottom row. It was large enough to pack a powerful swing, but its true strength lay in precision and control, which was more Twilight’s style. Let Colter be the heavy hitter.

“All right, I’m ready. Let’s go.” She said as she strapped its sheathe to her side.

The foursome rematerialised in the Ponyville park just as they had left it. Twilight cringed as she saw an elderly pony couple were sitting on a bench directly opposite them, with a clear view of the arcane transportation. Her fears were unfounded though, when she realised the two were snoring heavily.

“Now then you three.” Rarity said primly, with a swish of her mane. “I wish you luck on your treasure hunt for this item, but I don’t think crawling around in a tomb is really for me.” She laughed nervously.

“That’s ok Rarity, we understand.” Twilight said with a smile. “Good luck finding Sweet-“

“GANGWAY” Came a strangled yell from behind them. Before any of them could react, a trio of young fillies bowled into them, each one wearing a set of roller-skates that they clearly had no idea how to operate. Twilight was knocked clean off her feet, and landed on the dirt with a disgruntled wheeze. The three fillies all rebounded in different directions, spinning madly before crumpling to the ground. Spike and Rarity could only look on in horror, whereas Colter simply looked amused.

“Ow…” One of the fillies, a unicorn, moaned, rubbing her sore rump in annoyance. “Scootaloo, something tells me we aren’t going to get roller-skating cutie marks.” The filly had a white coat the same shade as Rarity’s, and looked just like a miniature version of her, except her hair was coloured light purple and pink.

Rarity gazed at her in astonishment. “Sweetie Belle?!” She yelled.

“Huh?” The filly looked up in surprise. “Rarity?!

“A dragon?!” The orange and purple one, a pegasus (presumably Scootaloo), exclaimed with surprise and some mild excitement at a bewildered Spike.

“Princess Sparkle?!” The third pony shouted, who was light cream with red hair tied up in a ribbon.

“Sshh!” Twilight hissed frantically, covering the girl’s mouth with her hooves. Thankfully, the only other ponies around were the elderly pair, who were miraculously still asleep. “Do you want me to get caught?” The filly shook her head quickly. “Then please, don’t tell anyone that you recognise me. Please. Can you do that for me?” She nodded yes. “Ok. Good.” She released her hold on the earth pony’s ability to speak, who simply looked up at her fearfully.

Rarity was looking oddly at her sister. “You know, this being the first opportunity I’ve had to see you in years…that wasn’t what I was expecting. Just what on earth were you all doing?”

“Oh! Um…we were trying to get our cutie marks!” Sweetie Belle explained. “We’ve been trying all sorts of things to get them. We are….” She looked down glumly at her hooves. “The only ones in our class who haven’t got them yet.”

“Oh, Sweetie.” Rarity cooed. "I can understand that not knowing your special talent can be hard, but you have to let it come naturally to you. You can’t force it.”

“Hey, we aren’t ‘forcing’ anything!” Scootaloo objected. “We’re just trying out all the different things it could be, because we’re the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and we’re gonna keep on trying until we get our marks!” She said all of this while becoming increasingly enthusiastic towards the end, finishing it with a triumphant punch of her hoof into the air.

“Err, yeah, what she said.” Sweetie concluded. “Oh, um…“ She waved a hoof between the two groups. “Introductions! Rarity, these are my two best friends, Scootaloo and Applebloom! Scootaloo, Applebloom, this is my sister Rarity.” She turned to the other three members of the posse, who had been observing the scene silently. “And this is, um…a big guy with a sword, a dragon, and the Princess of Equestria? Who also has a sword?”

“It’s a long and kind of depressing story.” Spike deadpanned.

“Sweetie, how about you and your friends come with me to visit mom and dad, hmm?” Rarity asked her sister. “I’ll explain things to you there, but please, don’t tell anyone that the princess is here!” She said last part in a hissed whisper.

“Err, ok.” Sweetie replied, looking even more confused than before.

“Fine,” huffed Scootaloo. “But only if we get to go crusading after.”

“So, um…the princess isn’t here to punish us for ‘causin a ruckus?” Applebloom asked hopefully.

Twilight sighed sadly in response. “No, I’m not. Please, I don’t know what kind of stories you may have heard about me, but I would never punish someone unless they really deserved it.” The young filly looked much more relieved to hear this. “Again, please don’t tell anyone I’m here.” She turned and nodded to Spike and Colter, then glanced at Rarity. “We’ll see you later then?”

She nodded. “Yes. Good luck on your little quest.” She proceeded to frogmarch the lively trio of youngsters in the direction of her parent’s house. The twisted remains of the rollerblades found a new home in a nearby trashcan.

It wasn’t difficult to find the library. Unlike the other buildings in town which were constructed in the traditional manner, this one had been built into an enormous oak tree near the town square. The lights were on, but a sign on the front door read:

“NO ENTRY PERMITTED TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC. ONLY THOSE WITH A ROYAL EDUCATION GRANT MAY USE THESE FACILITIES. FOR MORE INFORMATION, SPEAK WITH CHEERILEE.”

Twilight’s stomach clenched unpleasantly at the fought of such knowledge being restricted from the general public. Nightmare Moon kept making all these budget cuts, but just what was she putting the money saved towards? Was it worth the slow degradation of the country?

The door was not locked. Pushing it open, she saw the main room was stuffed full of bookshelves, towering up to the ceiling. The only wall that was not completely covered had a desk against from which a purple earth pony with a cutie mark of three flowers sat glumly, filing paperwork. Twilight was pleased to note that at least the place was well kept, though it seems no one was using it.

“This is not a bar. We do not serve food or drinks. We most certainly do NOT sell chicken feed. If you don’t have a grant, then you shouldn’t be here, and as far as I know no one in this town has one. Hell, I don’t have one, and I’m managing the place.” The earth pony spoke out to them as they entered. She looked up from her work, then frowned. “You look…familiar. Have we met?”

“Definitely not,” Twilight said hastily. “Cheerilee, right? I’m not here to take out a book. I’m here for the door.”

“Oh?” The librarian said curiously, getting up from behind her desk. “You’re the third this week who thinks they’ve found a way to crack it. Well, don’t let me stop you, but I doubt you’ll be any more successful than the others.” She walked over to the staircase and gestured at the floor behind it. “My predecessor must have been blind- there’s a trap door here, see? It leads to a cellar.” Just as she said, there was a thin square on the ground that indicated another room, with a small latch.

“There is a corridor leading off from the cellar- the door is at the end of that.” She smiled wryly. “Good luck.”

“Thank you.” Twilight answered politely. Opening the trapdoor with her magic, she descended carefully down the rackety wooden steps, Spike and Colter following behind her. It groaned in protest as Colter stepped on it, but otherwise held.

The cellar they were in was nothing special- little more than four stone and dirt walls with various cardboard boxes piled up. Twilight could even see one of the tree’s roots arching through one wall like a vein. The corridor Cheerilee had mentioned was on the north side.

It barely had enough room for them all to fit side by side, a fact Colter clearly wasn’t pleased about. It didn’t take long for them to reach the door they had heard so much about it. It was a complete contrast to everything else in the building- it was made of sleek polished marble, and instead of having a handle, the entire frame was filled with a complex network of gears and cogs. The very centre contained a large circular depression- one of the pieces was missing. At the top, a plaque had been inscribed with cursive handwriting:

My dear subjects,

The chamber that lies beyond this door, I built for the express purpose of hiding one of my greatest weapons…

And one of my greatest fears.

It is defended by a system of dangerous traps and puzzles. During construction, I accidently disturbed an ancient burial site.

I quickly closed up the connecting tunnel, but it was too late.

The place is now home to many Hollow Ponies. In the end, this serves as yet another layer of protection.

This artefact cannot fall into the wrong hooves. Only those with Heroic virtue and wisdom are safe to be trusted with it.

The final puzzle is this door. There is only one who could have the missing piece to solve it.

If that person is reading this, it brings me sorrow that you have the need for this item.

Be careful what you wish for.

Your Queen, Celestia.

“I’m not so sure we should go in anymore,” Spike said nervously.

“It’s definitely dangerous,” Colter surmised. “But we have little choice. That item is our bargaining chip with Applejack.”

Twilight turned to Spike. “Spike, I think you should go to Rarity’s.” She stated firmly.

“What?!” He shouted indignantly. “Why?”

“Because, it is dangerous in there. There will be fighting. You’re just a kid.”

“So are you.” He pouted, crossing his arms.

“Maybe. But I’m a kid that can fight.”

“All right, Twilight.” The little dragon relented. “But I expect you to be out of there as quickly as possible.”

Colter scratched his hoof on the floor impatiently. “Aren’t we getting ahead of ourselves? We still haven’t figured out the door yet.”

Twilight, to his surprise, giggled. “Oh, Colter. It’s lucky you have me here- the answer is obvious. See this depression here?” She gestured to the aforementioned circle. “It’s simple- it’s the exact same size as the Guild Seal.”

“Oh.” Colter deadpanned, feeling stupid.

Feeling pleased with herself for solving the supposedly unsolvable door so quickly, Twilight hummed cheerfully as she levitated the seal out of Colter’s pouch, and placed it into the door. Almost immediately there was a whir as the Seal started glowing bright blue, and dusty mechanism slowly begin to move. The entire frame moved upwards, disappearing into the ceiling above, revealing a dark passageway in front of them. There were few seconds of silence, then another whir and the sound of metal scraping along stone. A thin compartment slid out of the side of the frame, which the Guild Seal was promptly deposited into. Twilight picked it up and placed it in her own pouch.

“Woah…” Spike whispered. “Who knew Celestia was a good mechanic?”

“Ok Spike, Colter and I are going in. I don’t know how long we will be, so just wait at Rarity’s, ok?” She smiled slyly. “I’m sure you won’t have a problem with that.” He scowled, but did not respond.

“We need to keep our wits about us, Twilight.” Colter warned as the two of them stepped forward. “Hollow Ponies are especially deadly, so I want you to be aware of yourself at all times. The bandits will be a cakewalk after them.”

Twilight accepted his advice stoically. “I’m sure that the two of us will be able to-“ As she was speaking, she passed over the threshold of the door, which responded but slamming shut immediately, separating her from the old soldier and young dragon. “Colter! Spike!” She shouted in a panic, swivelling round and pounding on the door. It did not budge, and all she good hear were muffled shouts on the other side. There was no indentation for the seal.

Shakily, she turned and started plodding through the passageway. “Guess I’m going it alone.” She said nervously. As she walked, torches along the path lit up with a pale blue fire, illuminating the chamber. The walls and ceiling were decorated with the same runic patterns that her parent’s tomb had been, only these were covered in several decades worth of grime and degradation. The path sloped rapidly downward, deep under Ponyville.

After nearly ten minutes, the narrow passage opened out onto a huge chamber, almost as large as the Everfree Cavern. But where that was a natural formation, this has been forcibly carved out, and some of the original rock and soil could be seen. The path brought her out near the very top of the cavern, and then simply stopped. In the very centre of the chamber, a large pony made platform rose out of the earth. The ceiling was covered in a swirling mass of luminescent orbs that flitting about randomly. For some reason, they made Twilight feel uneasy and she couldn’t explain why.

I’ll have to levitate across, Twilight reasoned. She tried channelling magic to her horn, but to her dismay it fizzled and died as she attempted to cast the spell. Damn, there must be an anti-magic field on this cavern, possibly the entire structure. Think Twilight, this is obviously another puzzle…

Cautiously stepping to peer over the edge, Twilight jumped as she heard a clicking noise beneath her hoof, the floor depressing slightly. A pressure plate! Bracing herself to dodge flaming arrows or spikes, she was surprised to find instead that far below a part of the cavern floor was moving. A large pillar of stone rose up until it was level with where she standing, the top portion having been hewn into a staircase descending downwards, but the staircase wasn’t complete.

Looking closer at the cavern floor, Twilight saw it was divided into a system of squares. I see. Each one forms another part of the path. She stepped onto the stairs, expecting another set to rise. Instead, she saw that two small blue arrows lit up at the base of the stairs, one pointing forwards, the other to the left. Confused, she placed a hoof on the one going forward.

Instead of another staircase, about five of the orbs above angrily shot towards her. Leaping backwards with a yell, she watched as they hit the ground and burst into bright. To her horror, the light faded to reveal the most sickening sight she had ever seen.

The ponies standing in front of her had clearly been dead for some time now. Their skin was pale and stretched thinly over their bones, which were clearly visible. In some places entire chunks of skin were missing, revealing cracked and dusty ribcages. They had no mane, tail or eyes, and their expression was stretched into a permanent snarl. They all wore some form of ceremonial armour, though most of that had rusted away into little more than random strips of metal fused to their bodies. They were all armed clenching axes and swords in mouths and hooves, moving towards her alarmingly fast in a sort of shuffling run.

Suppressing the urge to vomit, Twilight drew her sword with her mouth, and lifted the hoof with her gauntlet slightly.
I may not be able to use unicorn magic here, she thought. But I’m far from defenceless.

The first Hollow Pony, a huge earth pony, came barrelling towards her with a guttural roar, swinging two axes wildly. The fact that he was on his hind legs didn’t seem to slow him at all. Right as he was about to take her head clean off, she blasted him with a torrent of fire from her gauntlet. It was hurled back, gurgling in flames as it went over the edge, landing below with a sickening crunch.

The others did not slow for the loss of their comrade. Twilight deftly parried a strike from one pony with her blade, causing it to drop its sword and stagger backwards. She swiftly impaled it through the chest and lifted it into the air. It didn’t seem to register the pain, still attempting to swipe at her with its bare hooves. She swung her sword and slammed it into another which had been attempting to flank her, the two crumpling to the ground in a jumbled heap. She blasted them both with another fireball, and they both smouldered before bursting into a cloud of dust.

She suddenly heard an unearthly screeching of metal. The final two Hollow Ponies were pegasi, and they were equipped with bladed wing armour. It was rusty, and protested greatly as they unfurled their skeletal appendages, but Twilight was willing to testify that they were still razor sharp.

The two leaped into the air and dive-bombed her with their wings outstretched, seeking her out with pin-point accuracy.

Twilight managed to dodge one and cut open its belly as it flew overhead, but the other managed to catch her side as it zoomed past. She yelled in pain, stumbling as her vision was filled with spots for a moment. Grimacing, she looked at her wound. Three bleeding, ugly gashes greeted her, but thankfully they were shallow cuts- the Hollow Pegasus had only narrowly hit her.

The two flew out into the cavern and banked around, making another pass. Gasping, Twilight flung two fireballs in rapid succession out into the void. Her aim was true, and the two monstrosities plummeted to the floor in balls of flame.
They were all dead. Twilight sunk to the floor, pain still lancing across her side. This is nothing like training with Colter. And there are even more of these things in here?

Luckily, she had some bandages in her pouch. It was a quick-fix solution, but it would have to do. She could see a doctor later, or use a healing spell once she got out of this anti-magic zone.

After applying and tightening her bandages (Which was much more difficult to do with her teeth than her horn), she pondered the puzzle in front of her. The arrow she had stepped on which triggered the Hollow Ponies to attack had faded, only the one going to the left remained. Cautiously, she activated it.

This time, the square on the floor below rose up, forming another staircase leading down, though it also twisted to the side, facing into the cavern. At its base lay another set of arrows- one going forward, one to the right.

I understand. Twilight thought glumly. Choose right, and the path will open for me. Choose wrong, and I’ll be in for another fight.

Taking a deep breath, she stepped on the arrow pointing forward. It was going to be a long day.