Author's Note

Fatail: “I am complete!”
Readers: “Fuuuuuuuuuuuck.”

I know that apology from writers rarely interest any of y'all, because.. hey, you're here to read stuff, not to feel bad for reasons that you don't care none diddly shit about. Still, after such a hiatus, I just have an internal need of explaining myself. Call it improper diligence, chalk it up to a rather old promise, none of that is important in the long run.

So.. I'm Sorry.

There. Done. Now, back to a regular broadcast.

The commentary and critique about my own work, that is meant to be read after the chapter. Normally at the bottom, but since we had this "talk" above, they're here. Because somepony hosting the website is not allowing author notes at both top and bottom. For shame, guys.

“Huh, morbid. Somepony's parents were quite unimaginative”

-Me. That's me. I'm technically his parent. I'm unimaginative. “Surprise, surprise”, to quote "Lord Terence".

"The slippery spine slid sideways spawning sickly sounds, sportingly stretching selvages of sane spirit and slumping to the side in a staging solo spectacle as the sad support spindle that it was."

- I heard of alliteration.. but DAMN drunk me. The fuck?

"Die, just keel over and die. Croak with a popping sound made by the expiring carton of milk and perish. Just fold on herself like a fleshy oriental origami with the sound of fracturing bones and dammit DIE! Just split herself open by scratching her eyes out, pulling the eyelids so far they snap like a bloody rubber bands, drop to the ground so hard that her pelvis comes up so high it makes her a new pair of horns so the total comes up to the three, make swift on her imminent promise to rip off her own tail and use it as a hearts warming doll weaving material. Die, just let her fucking DIE!"

-........................................................................................................................................................................................................ I have bloody issues, man.

"Instantly, she started to sputter out the incoherent babble that wouldn't pass for any kind of speech even in Zebrica."

-WOW. Only now I realize how racist that appears to be. Spiciest? Whatever. It was funny. It still is...

"To think that the blood hadn't yet the time to coagulate, still more than happy to spill around with adorably little trickles."

-I'll be honest. I'm starting to feel a little.. uncomfortable with how manic I have to get while writing this. Then I remember, it's the first and rather mildest of them chapters to come.

...Yup. Better bite "The Big Bazooka" whilst I still can.

Did you notice that I went through 5 stages of grief with Twilight? No? Me neither, to be honest. I'm a better shitty writer than I thought.

Now, for all the concerned good Samaritans worried about Lill' ol' me.

First and foremost, I wanted to apologize... profusely, to anyone that may have looked forward to this update. For another lengthy delay, I mean.

I won't bore you with the details here, but needless to say I've struggled with the chapter for so long because I thought It was imperfect. And that was an aftermath of my becoming entrapped by the disease known as... dun, dun, dun.. alcoholism.

Yeah. Yeah, I know. But I'm better now, getting all the help and support I need, and though I wasn't a raging party animal quite yet, I still needed help. If anyone cares for that or just likes drama... Now you know.

A reference guide, for the people that DON'T get them:

"calm and quiet dusk","into the calm and the quiet" - Children of the Night.
"Everypony needs somepony." - Blues Brothers.
"Dark of the night"- Ink Pots Anastasia animatic.
"All alone on his own."- All aloney on my owney. You must get THAT one.

And remember. A little itty-bitty tautology is sometimes good. Not correct... but good.

Sponsored by :
Vylet pony - Kapow!
Initial D - Running in the 90's
Rammstein - Feuer Frei

P.S. - I said I don't write quick, eh?
P.P.S - Also, I never thought I would use the word -petite. Ugh. Too much pornography, I guess.

======AS ALWAY FEEL FREE TO POINT OUT ANY GRAMMAR MISTAKES IN THE COMMENTS, THAT'S WHY THEY ARE THERE.======

Anew

Why was this always happening to her, specifically?

Now worse than all the previous times combined, of course, but it mostly followed the same cursed pattern. When life is nearing perfection and encloses around idyllic tranquility as much as it possibly could, with the ongoing motion on the right track to somehow get even better... yet another ancient evil bent on conquering or enslaving them all emerges, striking once more with the ferocity of a rabid Timberwolf. Sometimes packing a force more akin to a solid pack of them.

One would think the fate itself hates her guts with an undying passion. Fate... or any kind of higher power to be honest. Yet, taking into account the knowledge that she now unfortunately possessed and considering the state of the world they live in... "Uhm. It sure checks out." Something out there definitely loves to watch her squirm and wriggle in agony once in a while, just for the kicks of it. No matter if it's a primordial force of nature or a cruel God, the truth is rather irrelevant. Same difference with similar results.

How? How do you exactly fight against that?

You don't like snow and cold? Then literally try to kill the season of winter, wise guy, see how well that turns out.

At any time in the past, if you would have asked Twilight -how hard she fought with those adversities each time?- her answer would certainly be along the lines of always giving one hundred percent out of herself, no matter what. Now, she wouldn't be so sure she'd state the same without hesitation. All those enemies and obstacles she encountered in the past had never driven her so far, only now the fear which she'd never known pushed her to be so blindingly desperate, grasping at all the straws she could. As she changed her trot into a full-on gallop, she had just about enough time to put a little thought into it all while running through and past countless orate stone pillars bathed in the unforgiving darkness which threatened to swallow them whole if she wasn't careful enough.

That only now, when the life of her and literally everypony else was not endangered but guaranteed to end if they did nothing swift and concrete about it... only now she would know the meaning of true commitment and sacrifice. All the previous challenges that she overcame while giving her "one hundred percent", will pale in comparison to what she will have to give.. or give up, to overcome her current predicament. "Almost there, I can see the entrance". Her ultimate test of resolve and tenacity at clinging to any life she holds dear. Probably the only test in existence that she wasn't looking forward to, at all. Well, maybe there was one thing about it that she anticipated. Its end.

She was planning on reaching the surface properly and then working from there on ahead, figuring out this mess one step at a time and formulating some kind of a rough plan, as much as she could plan for it. Some logical, intelligent and coherent course of action that would allow her the be the victorious one even in the worst scenario.

Yet all her determination and conviction vanished in an instant then and there, popped and gone like a fleeting soap bubble when she saw what was eagerly waiting to greet her to the brutal outside world. Knock knock, hello, it's horrible.

Instantly, she started to sputter out a string of incoherent babble that wouldn't pass for any kind of speech even in the scorching sands of expansive Zebrica. For terror, unimaginably distilled horror bestowed upon the innocent and pure was laid out plainly before her, the concepts like utter destruction or bloody violence and complete disregard for the sanctity of life visualized to their gruesome fullest.

A body... or rather various parts of multiple ones strewn about in the fashion that made them seem like a single whole.

Beings torn apart to little shreds of fresh meat and scattered all over the place willy-nilly. The ones with their eyes not gouged out had them glossed over with empty mist of whites and grays, life long since left them for an eternity. Ponies a lot of whom she saw not even a few hours ago.

Twilight looked to her left in a spontaneous spaz of a movement and unwillingly met the look of panicked despair till the very end, frozen in post-mortem stiffness. With the rear legs of the pony missing altogether, all the way to the abdomen, no one had to be the Shadow Spade herself to figure out that the other end of a pony viciously thrown a few meters away to the side -and conveniently missing its upper half- once made a whole with the rest of the scarlet smeared carcass.

To think that the blood hadn't yet the time to coagulate into the rather disgusting dirty-red goop mixed in with all sorts of little leaves and twigs, still more than happy to spill all around with adorably little trickles. Probably warm, too. On top of that, she knows him... she.. knew him. It was the very same pony who passed her and Deep Dig their spelunking helmets.

Was that the last thing he did? Making sure she would be safe from whatever harm could befall her? His last action being an altruistic act of kindness and generosity imposed by his job description? Would he choose that as very the last move? Was it fair?

Hell no. Hell no, twice.

She quickly became engulfed and swallowed by pure fear to the point of a disoriented daze.

Such a precarious feeling, that one. Being scared of something hard enough for it to confuse us instead. That rare state of mind in which the brain isn't willing to accept the outcome of its physical observations, so it refuses to acknowledge the true and material explanation backed up by visual evidence at all. Only to stumble upon the fact that it has not yet thought of any other reasoning, leaving itself baffled in the process.

So, baffled it was. With Twilight's brain suspended in metaphorical limbo for now, her very inner being was torn apart with various unwanted emotions. She was positively jittery, divided between her need to look for any survivors and justified urge to flee from the unsettling image as far as she possibly could. Torn between looking dead-on at dismembered ponies in front of her or looking away, only to be met by even more sacrilegious carnage.

She knew whatever her decision turned out to be, she would probably regret it all the same. The alicorn cursed it with all her might, however still submitted to the natural curiosity she was born with to take the reigns and lead the pony she was to the blood tainted water... one that she indeed wasn't keen on drinking.

To her immediate right, mere meters away, stallion petrified in endless and eternal agony. He appeared to be sitting in his final moments, with one foreleg thrown casually over a piece of wooden railing for support. The end must have met him head-on while he was taking a well-deserved break from the hardships of labor, the pony never imagining the brisk pause in work will be made quite a lasting one. Now... bifid in the middle right through his cranium, all the way to his bloated belly. Both halves of thick skull clearly visible, left out in the open to the unforgiving and chilling winds while the slippery spine slid sideways spawning sickly sounds, sportingly stretching selvages of sane spirit and slumping to the side in a staging solo spectacle as the sad support spindle that it was.

Most surprising of all.. his heart. Still beating after all, albeit sorrowfully weak.

*Thump*.. *thump*.

Fixed in its desperate attempts to keep the owner alive, yet losing the unfairly set fight with each passing second. The very last performance played In front of Twilight's eyes as it pulsated for the final time before it went to join the rest of the body, only goddess knows where.

Simply.. beyond.

That- this... abhorrence. This.. absolute violation of basic principles of decent harmonious beings, that ponies were supposedly in their very design. It was simply too much. Too much for the shambled mind clinging to its last ticket to sanity. The train left a while ago and so the metaphorical ticket was nothing more but a useless piece of paper adrift within the mindscape's imaginary winds.

Twilight started to walk ahead slowly, meticulously putting one hoof in front of the other. The two bodies have been quickly forgotten by her rather damaged mind.

Step after step. Akin to a mindless machine setting out with one purpose only, an automaton that was never gifted free will in the first place. With every emotion long forgot she shuffled along the road using simple and stiff movements, fitting into the surroundings with a well-played role of a walking corpse.

As she pushed forward, other bodies started to appear here and there like tasty mushrooms after a downpour. One, for example, was missing its whole head.. along with the rest of a spine it was previously attached to. A different one was... well, that's just it. Was. Now no more present, in body, so to speak. Only a bloody patch of dirt in the middle of an unnaturally quiet forest. She even stepped on something rather crunchy along the way. Branch.. or maybe an ashed bone. She never looked.

Countless other unfortunates appeared wherever she'd look, so she simply didn't. Bodies strewed right about everywhere, now nothing more than some blobs of color in her peripheral vision. Walking for the longest time, at some point, Twilight felt something wet marring her face and obscuring her vision. "Tears." She stopped to use her hoof, wiping some of the offending fluid away and confirming that those were indeed the droplets of liquefied emotion she was currently staring at as they soaked into the coat of her fetlock. "Huh."

With no current way for providing spacial awareness or knowledge of the time passed... or even a concept of such, Twilight's mind had no need of knowing how long she already spent in this state of detached unconsciousness and she wouldn't need it for quite some time to come, if not for one unexpected thing. A sound, to be precise. A wheezing and pitiful breath.

And what was breathing.. lived.

“H-hello?” The meekest question yet produced by the mare carried through the silent shrubbery, jerking her awake and making her look around in fright. That's when she saw it. A source of the sound... and a one that probably wouldn't answer back. A branch going through one's lungs tended to make such rather difficult to accomplish.

Being violently thrown out of near catatonia into the real world would have left anyone perturbed, let alone an individual so delicate and innocent as Twilight. "He.. He-help. Help?" The cogs of her waking mind did their very best to set her along the path to make something right in all the wrong she already experienced so far. "Have to.. he needs! I have to help!"

Twilight's legs moved on their own, quickly bringing her right beside the wounded stallion and making his state painfully apparent. Violently thrown against a tree and its sharp lower branches with such a force that he looked like somepony stuck to a natural version of a pincushion. With needles the diameter of a railroad screw. Through his throat.. and lungs and also all the rest. He looked like a porcupi- "No, no time for-"

“Don't move!” She shouted in panic, noticing the fault in her reasoning rather quickly. “No, that's dumb. You literally can't.” Unsurprisingly, when the leaf green pony only gurgled pitifully in response, Twilight skipped the whole thing she was doing altogether, going straight to action. “Then just wait- uh.. hang, I'll just-”

Just then, she heard probably the most offending sound in her whole life to date.

A quiet wheeze of the last breath leaving the lungs of the unfortunate bastard.

“NO,” Twilight demanded In a tone normally reserved only for Rainbow Dash asking about doing double loops in the castle. “Don't you just d-d.. No!” Unfortunately for both her and her's psyche, the body decided to make some use of its newly relaxed muscles and swiftly slide down the short branches. *Splat* It impacted the ground with a dull thud and splattered itself all over the immediate area.

“Ah!” Twilight jumped in fright at the sudden sound and when nothing else happened, waited a few seconds before asking a most futile question with the ears lowered, yet still clinging to the last slivers of pathetic hope. “H-hello?” When none answer came, without any hint of apprehension or disgust she lowered down and resorted to gently nudging the newest slab of flesh with her nose.

...Corpse.

Twilight just watched as this whole colossal mistake greedily claimed yet another victim for itself and she couldn't do anything about it. Another one added to the already tremendously long list, soon to transform from the once living and breathing individual and become nothing more than a sad statistic in the obituary books. Another no-name since... it was fairly possible not a single soul would recognize the mauled body. "D-dammit." All of a sudden, her ears changed position 180-degrees in an aggressive fashion. "Dammit!" The frown turned upside down, yet not into a smile but a vicious snarl none but a certain powerful individual had seen before.

“F-F-..Fuuuuckkk! Ahhh!” Twilight cursed the heavens most uncharacteristically and with an earth-shattering roar lashed out against the innocent blood-smeared tree. The splinters and small pieces of wood flew around as the rage aided alicorn obliterated the plant in one swift hook, leaving nothing but a mangled stump in its place. “Cunt!” The mare swore out of character for herself, all who knew her cringing in the distance for reasons unknown to them all the while she clutched at her mane to the point of ripping it out in a mixture of anger and angst. “Arse... crap,” With her words losing both volume and harshness she pulled on her violet bangs harder and harder, showing the first signs of hyperventilation. “D-damn...”

She had to leave. Now. Run away from this cursed place, find someone willing to help her.

With a powerful cry of misery, she bolted down the road with tears flying anew, freely and unimpeded this time. Reaching surprising speeds considering her erratic and at best uneven breath, her run was interrupted only by the irregular sniffs and whimpers of a broken mare who wanted nothing more than all of this to simply stop.

As long as she could run at all, she would run away from it all.

Ever towards the edge of the camp and into the forest proper seemed a better idea than lingering in such a wretched place even a minute longer. Running past countless tents and shelters once bustling with activity, now devoid of all joy and cast into the permanent silence, she ignored the sights and ran with the supposed hell chasing her.

The young Alicorn would ignore them till the end of time if not for her reaching the edge of what was considered safe this deep in the forest. Just when the boundary of wilderness seemed like a promise of safety from the despicable, Twilight stopped dead in her tracks utterly crushed by the sight before her.

Multiple eyes stared at the newest piece of prey emerging from the pony-made grove of deliciousness, perceived by the apex predators as nothing more than an easy opportunity for a filling snack on the chilly autumn afternoon. Now, a lone purple pony was all they focused on, all their shapes and sizes swiveling around in wait to pounce with the killing blow, malevolent observant globes of predatory hunger promised death all night round and in the most gruesome of ways for intruding upon the grounds of the ancient enchanted forest as if it was sacred to all creation. Dozens upon hundreds of pairs stalked the foliage in patience, waiting for the signal to strike and snuff out the single life before them with a ferocity of a whole forest incorporated.

Yes, confining the mare and her thrice-damned soul to the bloody fate inside the crooked misery circle of the clearing in an act of twisted revenge was what The Forest required of them all. It was what The Forest wanted.. suffering.

From that particular individual.

Pure and unadulterated punishment for all the years Twilight outright owed the mass of foliage. A debt that would be paid one way or another, sooner or later. Even if this evening proved to be yet another one which the forest lost, the time would come. Even if today was the best possible opportunity of the many following years to come. The wilderness could wait. For now, it wasn't going anywhere.

If not today.. then tomorrow... and a day after that. There will be a tomorrow, as it ever was. They always come back. They come back regularly until they eventually stay for good, even if it takes many centuries for them to succumb to the subtle whispers. All will be added to the vast legion as one of the many servants. Then, all their goals would be clear, an endless expansion forevermore, until nothing was left but The Forest and its sole existence.

It was like the will of the greenery itself was somehow at play, commanding all possible creation at its disposal to keep her inside the circle at all costs, no matter the damage to itself or its brethren. For what was the loss of some, if its name was legion and it was indeed many?

Confronting her from the depths of foliage Twilight recognized the fleeting shapes of multiple Timberwolves packs, towering Hydras, hissing Cragadiles and Cockatrices scrawling at the first rows over each other. Further down were the dangerous multi-headed Chimeras, venomous Manticores, ferocious Wyverns. Rare Harpies, elusive Wyrms and indomitable Tortugas. Far and few between, but unfortunately still present were the undisputed barons of the forest - intangible Penumbran Creatures, elusive Dream Demons, immaterial Concept Spirits.

Though most of them sans the scarce few could be immediately defeated and utterly pulverized at her current power level, the utter shock and frequent terror amputated any mind of her own, making her vulnerable even more to the unpleasant reality presented and forcibly spoon-fed to her.

So once again, she chose the lesser of two evils and... run away. Away from it all and into the slowly setting star of her beloved mentor. At this point, she was willing to give, sacrifice anything to make herself scarce and avoid the horrible machinations of the powers well beyond her that wanted nothing more than make one more beloved ivory pawn to place on their chessboard.

She had run in mostly random directions for so long that her lungs started to burn with the lack of adequate oxygen, which was an accomplishment in itself as an alicorn. By that point, she was well back into the inner camp and the utterly horrid scenery on the site only added to her prolonged suffering to come.

To any would-be observer, she was most obviously hysterical, cantering around in amok but ever closer to the center of the habitat. As much as she wanted to avoid it, she saw them. She saw them all... scattered around like trash in gruesome poses and frozen in a deranged nightmare-inducing death forms, senseless violence showing the nature and all that is good exactly what it thought about its goody-two-shoes bullshit.

A mare with a gash along the entire length of her bloodied side dangled from the impromptu sign of the campsite tavern off a noose made from her own artery. Yet with a perfect ante-mortem autopsy performed, no major vessel was heavily damaged, making the actual knot a possible cause of death by stopping the flow of oxygenated blood. She either died of strangulation or chocked, both so similar in the way to go and near equal in horribleness.

“Stop..”

A faithful Lunar Guard brutally pinned to the coarse ground with the butt of his own broken halberd, punctured straight through the belly and out the other side. Pierced in such a way as to miss any vital organs, not to kill but to trap by the way of causing excruciating pain to the body. The blade of his trusty weapon snatched and treacherously embedded in his foreleg, allowing the blood to flee freely. With no way to move and quickly get out of the ruthlessly improvised torture, the poor protector outright waited to bleed out in misery, unable to help others. Let alone himself.

“Please..”

The blacksmith she passed on her way previously, now with the smith himself used instead of a tool on a rotating grindstone. The greater part of his head missing with its only reminder being a bloody smear on the wheel itself, his teeth knocked out and scattered around on the ground like a spilled powder candy while the rest of the carcass appeared to be about well-done in the merciless fires of the blast furnace.

No matter the consequences, all repercussions be damned, she just wanted all of this to end one way or another.

At this point, even outright death would be a merciful fate, just to spare her the mental olympics her mind had gone through.

The realization was a hard-hitting one and albeit diminished by all the malignity of it all, it certainly got through. One way or the other, whichever was simply faster.

She wanted to die. She wanted to die.

And... the power surging inside her responded to her pitiful and anguished claims, fully convinced that something must be done. Though none of the other Princesses ever fully explained it to Twilight just yet, It was a simple fact that they were simply... different, from almost all creation. For their powerful magic possessed a will of its own in the direst circumstances. And took advantage of it.

Keeping them alive at all costs in a hopeless situation... or swiftly ending their permanence when the danger to others became more than their continued existence was worth.

Yet, as with all small reference groups, the phenomenon was poorly researched if at all. Worked ill and in horribly unpredictable ways, known only to the cruelest gods. Most often, the subjects just went completely insane from the increased stimuli, becoming even more of a danger to anything around them.

It was like submerging yourself in acid to commit suicide. Just left the acid for others to deal with.

As such, the first ridiculous instinct her overdriven body decided upon was to expire. While providing the consciousness with most pleasant of hormone-fueled thoughts, of course.

Die, just keel over and die. Croak with a popping sound made by the expiring carton of milk and perish. Just fold on herself like a fleshy oriental origami with the sound of fracturing bones and dammit DIE! Just split herself open by scratching her eyes out, pulling the eyelids so far they snap like a bloody rubber bands, drop to the ground hard enough that her pelvis comes up so high it makes her a new pair of horns so the total comes up to the three, make swift on her imminent promise to rip off her own tail and use it as a Heart's Warming doll weaving material. Die, just let her fucking DIE!

“No more!” The purple mare cried desperately into the ether, only for no one to hear the plead. Except for the fate, of course, its first notion to always trip her up.

Being violently thrown back to the ground where she apparently belonged, by a slip of a hoof of all the things, Twilight landed hard and face first in what her still conscious mind expected to be dirt. However, when she touched down, something unsettlingly wet immediately jerked her awake. The mare touched her face once more, naively expecting to see a thick layer of brown mud. Yet all she saw was ruby afterglow. Acting on pure instinct Twilight involuntarily licked her lips and tasted something she never felt in such blatantly obvious quantities. A tinge of metal, iron-like taste.

"That's- this is- oh my holy! It is... That's blood! That's all blood!" Twilight frantically noticed, immediately bestowed with an urge to return everything she ate for today's breakfast back into nature where it belonged. Though that kind of luxury was never granted to her, as she raised her eyes in a foolish attempt to find the source of all that copious fluid.

If her very being, mind and soul weren't already thoroughly raped senseless, then what she saw certainly would have delivered the rest of needed nightmarish lubricant for the fate to get behind her rather comfortably.

Young. She was so.. so very young. Barely starting to reach adulthood in fact... maybe seventeen, eighteen tops. Probably one of the numerous students of paleohistory attending one of Equestria's many schools that were involved and interwoven within the project. Now violated in the most gruesome way imaginable by somepony sane. Protruding right from the ground was a wooden spike, similar to the ones used in early earthen castle palisades and now serving as camp protection from many of Everfree's monsters. Her little petite body studded on the stake right through her abdomen all the way to the head. Its sharp tip easily knocking out her teeth and sticking outside through the mouth. With her eyes still wide open, it was clear they were wet from openly shedding tears of pain and infirmity against forces much stronger than herself. Her teal mane striped with lines of brilliant apricot now had many additional ribbons of carmine red with her surely once beautiful coat stained with her bodily fluids beyond any proper color recognition.

Twilight wasn't about to continue her crying just like that by chalking up the mare as a yet another victim. Instead, the innocent martyr of the irrational slaughter became the tipping point that the newest Alicorn needed to practically howl with grief. From all that was happening to her. From Deep Dig's "not so final" passing, through mutilated bodies of others she encountered, all the way to this very pinnacle display of ingenious cruelty. At some point in her shout cacophony, she bit her cheeks hard enough till her blood started to pour freely and mix with the foreign one already present on most of her muzzle, neck or hooves.

A beautifully encyclopedic example of ruby sunset was now in the middle of metamorphosing itself into the twilight of change and in a few brisk minutes, it was about to turn into the calmly blue and quiet dusk. Hues of orange and yellow rained down upon wild and untamed forest, elegantly composing themselves together with butchered ponies blood spilled absolutely everywhere, making the whole scenery look even more sinister. In the middle of all this sat a lone princess, covered from hooves to the head with a disgusting mix of living claret and ichor, surrounded by bodies and suffering while screaming on top of her lungs, acting as a lonely beacon of despair in an otherwise calm and quiet camp in the middle of nowhere.

Anyone willing to watch and stomach the poetically gruesome scenery would argue they found themselves on a set of some dramatically vivid horror novel movie adaptation. So that's exactly how it appeared before Thunderstroke right now.

Up until now, he laid the lowest that was possible without moving from the hiding place procured on a whim. With him being too afraid to even dare peek outside of his improvised hideaway between wooden crates that he so untiringly carried earlier this entire day, he lay dormant for the longest time. When the terror-inducing screams started he instantly recognized danger approaching and when they intensified it was a rather obvious sign for him to hide. Even when they all ceased, he wasn't about to taunt the fate and look outside in curiosity. So he waited in fear for his well-being, his surroundings soon to be shrouded by the veil of shadows that would allow him a swift escape into the embrace of the night sky. Yet when the uproar started anew, he was most confused, for it was not even in plural but a singular form. A scream.

In his eyes, it meant that somepony was still out there, still alive or in peril and that was all he needed to, albeit reluctantly, leave his convenient hideout in order to offer help to whoever needed it. Lead ahead by a belief that danger has passed or was dealt with, he crawled out slowly and into the open. As probably all currently living individuals, he too was not prepared for what greeted his eyes.

Now he stood not more than a mere meter away from his hideaway, struck by gutty sacrilege around him. Amongst all the existential dread in his proximity, a scared, frightened princess. "No. A mare." Just a plain pony stripped of all her grandiose titles in immediate need of consoling and reassurance. Thunderstroke tried his darn hardest to avoid looking directly at all the.. Urp.. gore, as he very slowly approached the distressed in question. He's no front line fighter by all means, but when he saw the misery of others "... it's just.. not right, to leave them on their own, left to fend for themselves." Be it friend or, like in this situation, almost a complete stranger whom he had unpleasant previous experiences with. To him, it made no difference. "Everypony needs somepony.. as much as they would like to deny it.".

When he finally reached the distraught mare, some slight doubts started to present themselves in a new light or rather the absence of it, the horrible imagery now tenderly washed by the gentle hues of incoming night. Yet even despite all the blood she was covered with, Thunder pushed past the invading thoughts of aversion and hugged the littlest alicorn the tightest he could without hurting her, horribly staining his own coat in doing so.

Twilight was abruptly summoned back from within her pool of misery, the very first instinct telling her to fight or flight. When she felt pony hooves around her, despite not knowing whom they belonged to, Twilight obediently stayed where she was and relaxed her muscles a bit.

As long as you're still alive, you can make a difference. Even if by positioning your near corpse in the way of incoming adversaries.

Thunderstroke sat there with her the entire time, awkwardly hugging her form from behind in silence while formulating cohesive thoughts and sentences. Trying to, at least, yet something needed to be said. “I'm not.. I am not going to pretend it's okay now. We both know that it's not. But I think... I know that it passed us for now. The danger, that is.” He considered his next words carefully. “Whatever is happening and whether it's over or not, I think we're not in its reach anymore. From this point it will all get better, you'll see,” He waited a few seconds quietly in order for her to calmly process his encouraging words... and to come up with more of those on his side.

“You have friends.. family too, I think. They will help, or at least try to.” "O boy. I suck at this whole cheering-up thing. No wonder .. I ... I'm not so sure myself. I heard about some kind of... shock setting in, possibly. Just maybe not quite reached me yet, dammit." “Remember, as long as you're still alive and kickin' you can make a difference or help, no matter how little.”

Once again, they sat in silence for a few more minutes full of tension. Their sullied coats lost some of their easily recognizable colors as the blood coagulated and darkened, turning into a macabre version of camouflage against the dark of the night. Thunder was fully prepared to stay there until Twilight was once more capable of at least basic functions which, to his surprise, apparently already happened as she broke the silence.

“I... thank you, Thunder,” she said with a meekness worthy of Fluttershy, surprising him a little.

“Heh. At least you didn't choose "Stroke".” He celebrated his nickname quite casually considering the circumstances and easing the atmosphere a little more. “How'd you knew it's me?”

“You have that crass edge in your voice,” she replied equally casual as if the both of them weren't covered head to hoof in bodily fluids and turned to him while being released from his grasp. “It's.. rather specific. Yes,” Twilight heeded his last words as they echoed within her, searching her vast memory for anything that could even remotely help now. “Like listening to a choking blender or a male Rainbow Dash.” Help both of them. Last.. of them. Maybe I could- well, yes. But...

That ridiculous mind of hers brought her thoughts to thinking about her closest friends and the fate that could befall them if she wasn't quick enough. If something happens because she hesitated for a few seconds--. In a blink of an eye and driven by pure impulse, the resolute mare decided. It won't do her any good in the long run, but it was the only way even remotely feasible as of now. Thunderstroke saw magical energy surround the recently elongated horn for a brief second and vanishing almost instantly, like the light of a candle snuffed out by the metal prison of an extinguisher.

"Adfectus Sera", she morbidly thought when the deed was inevitably done and over with. "And its more common name, 'Fool's Prison'. A spell with the function as obscure as its name would fully suggest. Locking the mind under a tight dome of most foul magicks and barring the way for almost all emotions, be them negative or positive. Leaving only pure analytic capabilities, turning an individual basically to an automaton akin to a calculating and unfeeling machine composed of neuron mater instead of circuitry. Of course not without a whole backlash of consequences, immediate or impending. But we can worry about this later. Now, the course of action."

Now, under any normal circumstances, Twilight wouldn't even consider using the self-harmful spell, but that Twilight took her proverbial coat and left the building a few dozen minutes ago. What was left, for a brief time anyway, could be called a perfect clone with the lovable Princess's memories. While the charming mare everypony knew was gone, it wasn't true that the spell removed the ability to differentiate right from wrong out of the affected by it. In fact, they could do so with clarity never thought before. They just weren't morally compelled to follow one or the other.

A logical thought uplifted to the heights of simplicity. Like arithmetic, it robbed the mind of its complex thoughts and forced it to be weighted by simple pluses or minuses. Multiplied or divided. Yet, the outcome was always rather simple. Positive or negative. True or False. Yes.. or No.

A truly terrifying spell, to be sure.

Someone timid and peaceful in their ways could calmly ask you to choose between the silver and gold platters. Only to deliver the severed head of a serial killer on the utensil of your choosing, just so they don't upset your taste in fine silverware. If the action saves more lives than is lost by doing it... it's just some basic mathematics. That's why they asked about the platter as well. Fondness is yes, dislike is no.

With the ability to be moved by all the horrible images around them removed from the picture and gone altogether for the foreseeable future, she thought about her original plan in the new light that stallion's words shed on it. Her friends... she had no time to lose now. She knew that better than anyone, yet... mindlessly throwing herself at the danger with the Elements in hoof not only wouldn't do her any good, it could be in fact counterproductive. Concepts of faith or hope were good and all, but there are no guarantees they would work in a situation like that.

Even with her friends, they couldn't and won't stop this madness on their own. When you have allies, you might as well use them. Their help, at least. Her best bet was to get to the capital city of Canterlot as quickly as possible and, as much as she hated the thought of it, do exactly as the Reaper said and "rally all their forces".

“Princess, what was that about?” Thunder inquired as to what she'd done just now, being in the dark with most of the unicorn sorcery. He might not be the brightest, but he was nothing if not attentive.

"Hmm.. it won't make any difference if I tell him the truth now, but it might become a fright factor. In his eyes, he has enough to worry about, not adding a husk of a princess to all that." “It's just a simple calming spell, just so I don't..hmm.. freak out on you again,” she thought on how to authenticate her quick lie even further with an efficiency of a calculator. “Would you like one too?”

“I'll pass. I'm actually way too calm about this for any of my likings,” he said quickly, not sure which one- thinking about all that has happened or refusing to do so, was in fact worse for his remaining psyche.

“Suit yourself.” Excellent. Now her altered behavior will pass as a light non-invasive spell sprinkled with a healthy dose of authority and professionalism. "Yeah, right. Professionalism after something like that. Anypony who knows me would not buy that one bit. Good thing it's just him then." “And do call me Twilight, forget the Princess bit. I think we're way past introductions by now.”

“ 'Kay. I guess you're right 'bout that. So... so what now?” Stallion asked her, not sure where to follow with any of this really.

Instead of replying to him right away, she analyzed his appearance now that the spell provided her with superb means to do so. She also wasn't and literally couldn't be angry anymore at him for the previous hiccup as they had more pressing matters now. "Let bygones be bygones,", she thought while quickly noting all his visual traits.

His coat.. or what little of it was visible from under the shroud of dirty red, an interesting shade of blue. Something between teal and turquoise with his mane almost the same shade of brown that Deep Dig... had. The only difference was a single stripe of blue going through it, a likens that his tail shared in earnest. "Now, THAT'S teal, for sure. Also, I'm surprised I just noticed that his mane and tail are stylized to look like lightning bolts. Or were.. before I kinda, sorta... soiled them with blood. His morning routine must be the most terrible affair." Lastly, his cutie mark. A black melting heart being struck by two thunderbolts from either side. "Huh, morbid. Somepony's parents were quite unimaginative. Though I won't lie to myself, I'm a little bit curious about what it means. I will have to ask.. later though. Now relay the plan."

“We need to be in Canterlot as of.. right about fifteen minutes ago.”

“Hol' up, we?” he gestured between them, already having a bad feeling about this whole plan of hers.

“Yes, we. I'm not about to leave you in the middle of the most hospitable Everfree and as I don't exactly have the time to escort you to the nearest village, you're going with me,” Twilight accentuated that she won't leave him all alone on his own, which he in fact deeply appreciated.

He nodded while preparing himself for a long flight. “If you say that and think it will be for the best.”

“Now, now. Hold on.” She flexed her hoof in front of the stallion, causing him to cut all preparations short. “We could fly, but I think that my solution will be a lot faster,” She said while starting to build up a huge amount of magic, easily among the biggest ones in her life excluding the whole 'fighting Tirek with godly combined power' case. It's not a time to be modest or careful.

“What are you- o. . . no.. no, no, no. No. You're not just suggesting outrigh' teleporting there. That's like a- that's like.. sixty miles and a shit ton more! There's no way in hell I'm doing any of that!” He said with fear plainly written into both his voice and face as he involuntarily backed a little bit away from her while she was still in the process of building up the required magic. Yet, after a few seconds of tense silence and exchanging vastly diverse stares, Twilight replied coldly.

“I never said it was an optional suggestion.”

“You-... you don't understand, I usually take teleports really ba-” a message that he tried to get across never really managed to do so since his molecules were abruptly displaced within the spacetime.

==================================================================================================

“Aaaaaand, that would conclude my report for the day, Your Majesty.” The firm yet gentle voice echoed around the expansive throne room of Canterlot Castle. “In short, not as turbulent as it once was.”

“Sigh...” The melodious yet sturdy and caressing voice of Princess Celestia filled the void of the expansive chamber with smilingly humorous notes as she smirked her way into the hearts of those of the more mortal variety. Picking up upon the subtle undertones, she replied. “You've taken to diminishing your predecessor accomplishments too much.”

“I've said 'turbulent', not 'bad',” The armed stallion noted the pure technicality. “So, no real animosity there. Just plain disapproval,” He replied with a smirk of his own creeping the way forward. The aura of comfort he spread over the Solar Guards present in the hall seemed to be working wonders, as they were visibly more relaxed after nearly completing their twelve-hour workday.

Chalking it all up to yet another one of his many eccentricities, the Princess chose to move on. “Pressing ever forward.. do you have anything to add before the shift is transferred, Lumia?” She addressed the barely visible silhouette pressing against the shadow made by one of many pillars. “Also, you are not required to be on guard even when you technically haven't started work yet.”

“With all due respect Your Highness, I'll stick to my work ethic, if you allow. For now,” The mare replied with respect necessary when addressing a royal, all the while getting her point across with crystal clarity. She made almost all lower-ranks on duty slightly uneasy, her mere existence making the impression on the night itself, seemingly bending the emotions of those around her just by being in the near vicinity. Not that she cared for the little feelings of her counterpart's recruits.

Suddenly, when the great doors to the grand hall of the throne room opened at exactly one hour after moon-rise, it was enough for Celestia to recognize the concealed and subdued arrival of her beloved sister.

While entering the chamber of her soon to be opening night court, Princess Luna only needed to send an approving look into the near shadows for the gesture to be recognized. Acknowledging the clear command with a devoted nod, the contour of a pony retreated, merging with the shadows for the night to come once more.

“As such, you can retire for the night Captain.” The Day ruler tried to send her subordinate off on his merry way, fully knowing that he would politely agree with her and then completely disobey when he was beyond her watchful sight. She could swear, he worked 24/7 and just like the celestial bodies never really took a break.

The two Captains were fully deserving of each other. She could swear, each another generation was even better at what they do.. but by outright disobeying her orders. Was it finally the time when her little ponies developed faster than she could follow? One could hope.

“Of course. Rest easy as well my liege.” He jokingly made a show by performing an exaggerated bow with his chin almost touching the ground in reverence. Though he opted to exit the throne room properly through the front door, he was no worse in swiftness than his night counterpart. That, they both had in common. Soldiers on duty since crossing the doorstep of their homes.. both ways.

“Though do remember the task I gave you, please. No pressure, just make it happen.. eventually.” She reminded him before he fully left for the evening.

The smile graced his bright visage once more, though this one was completely different from the previous one. More amused than anything else. “As if I could ever forget. Understood, none the less.” The door clicked with finality as he left both crowned heads behind, the one towering over the night realm finally drawing near the throne.

“Oh, hello Luna! How are you doing this fine evening?” Princess Celestia started the usual greeting exchange, while ignoring the previous presence in the hall as if it didn't happen at all. The other demigod calmly trotted ahead whilst her starry mane joyously danced around as she walked up to her solar counterpart sitting on their -very comfortable, mind you- throne.

“Verily, 'tis.. "ekhm" I mean, yes, it is a very nice evening indeed,” Princess Luna replied, pretending that nothing out of the ordinary has happened. Truly, she has no idea what thou couldst insinuate.

“Still?” ..giggle.. The older sister tried to hide her amusement and kept failing horribly. “You know, it's slightly charming you're having those little throwbacks every now and then.” She shifted to a more familiar and homely patter of speech for her usual formality of a Day Court. If anyone knew her well, they knew grandiose and imposing weren't her thing outside of the mask.

In turn, Luna's expression took a more sour pout note. “Oh, like you don't have any personality quirks Missus Perfect Pony Picture. I bet you're positively busting in anticipation of when you can retire for the eve, only to go to the royal pantry and eat some cake.*Cough* Fatty. *Cough*”

“Hey! I heard that!” Celestia's face now displayed the anger with a truly Discord worthy fake.. ness. “And I have you know that yes, actually, I would like some cake.”

“Of course you would,” Luna countered with rolling her eyes the slowest she possibly could in her current form. “So you'll be quite happy then If I point out you can do all of that and more. All you have to do is to make haste, remove your way too big posterior from thine spot and make way for the better sibling.” Luna smiled and attempted to ultimately win their sisterly squabble centuries in the making while climbing the ornate steps leading straight to the ornate throne.

"Oh, so we're playing dirty now? Fine and dandy." Celestia smirked during the process of stepping down from her usual place of residence for the last thousand years. “You. The better one? Ha! Let's agree to disagree, dearie. The popularity polls would suggest a different outcome and I'll lose those to you only under one condition. You're free to take the first place, as long as you somehow make pigs fl-” The Sun's Princess retort, which in her hindsight would grant her deliciously sweet imminent victory, was cut short by literal thunder and sparkle of a violet stroboscope light. Temporarily blinding both sisters and the pair of personal guards who till now stood a quiet vigil, only to throw themselves into battle stances, ready for everything despite their collective blindness.

“-dddddddddddddd-” *CRASH* “OW! 'Fookin hell!”

Alright, almost everything.

“Apologies. Are you well enough?” As soon as both guards and princesses heard a familiar voice they relaxed a great deal, though still remained wary of the second one of the pair. “I never used that spell to travel such great distances in pairs before. So while teleporting two ponies instead of one, as usual, I guess something was bound to go a little awry.”

“Wait... what? You KNEW something Is gunna go wrong? And what do you mean 'I never used'- *urp*.. wait, hold that thought, excuse me for a moment...”

All that was registered by the temporally vision-less ponies of the throne room were sounds of frantic running towards one of the expansive walls and emptying one's stomach. “Well, not only I fell like punctured weather balloon now, but from that fall... my ass hurts. Almost like I was eight again and raided the pantry for the cookies. Which is a great deal, by the way... If anypony cares for any of that...”

“Are you positive you're still in one piece?” Twilight said with a mostly flat undertone, barely rising above the background noise of the almost vacant throne hall. Which normally would go unnoticed by most of the normal ponies, yet.. the ever keen and eternally perceptive Celestia was anything but a normal individual. Blessed -or cursed, as some rather vocal would argue- with the abilities putting even most recently developed electric devices to shame, she was able to pinpoint and catch the smallest possible nuances. What she found, was not what she wanted. Not, at, all.

"What is she... is that really m- our Twilight? I know for a fact that she just asked for the sake of it, her tone showing absolutely zero genuine concern." A quick basic magical scan of the Alicorn's immediate surroundings told her that it was indeed Twilight's aura and no one was attempting to impersonate the young mare. "But, there is... a thing, for the lack of a better term. Something... more. Or less...? The lack of that something?" The Ever-kind Princess felt more troubled by the second, not able to identify the strange readings she got. For all the countless years she spent on studying ponies inside and out, both mind and body, she couldn't get a clear reading. For the first time in quite a long time. Why? Why was that?

“Yes, yes right of course.” The queasy male voice bubbled from a comfortable distance. “You carry right on. I'll just be here... coughing up my guts... into this potted plant... here...”

Finally, when the merciful Goddess allowed the shroud unwillingly pulled on their eyes by the sudden light show to be lifted, the Royals were expecting a somewhat unpleasant view considering the given conversation, but not... THAT. Both of the sudden visitors had their coats matted and manes disheveled in the most gruesome of ways, resembling animate corpses more than any live beings. Stained all over with dried blood and even pieces of gore, if not for the voices, the two would appear as rare intruders to the castle security perimeter.

They wouldn't even be in need of disguises if that was true, for if someone was not familiar with the crimson of blood, they would think the red of the stranger's coats a natural design.

"By the merciful creator..." Celestia thought with dread drilling into her cranium like a really bad dream she couldn't just wake up from. Yet, considering her very sister ruled over the dream realm.. traces of fear kept creeping upside her forelegs like a pair of unwelcome millipedes. Countless thoughts like a myriad of tiny legs wormed their way forward step by step, never stopping, never yielding.

With all previous state issues immediately forgotten in favor of the one she cared for, white monarch shifted into worry and quickly came towards disheveled Twilight. “My- what happened? Are you hurt in any way?” She balanced at the precipice of shouting, yet restricted herself to mostly simple questions for now.

Initially, the Sovereign of Night expected a reaction out of herself very similar to her sibling, with instantaneous concern over the first friend she made after her millennium long banishment. The one who had the key role in saving the moon mistress damned soul out of its well of self-depreciation.

Instead, she felt the Sun master scan the area for any traces of foreign magic, indicating that Celestia already felt something out of the ordinary shenanigans. After all, the star blessed alicorn never did anything of the sort without a solid reason or firm suspicion.

Right after collecting her jumbled thoughts and assigning them to her returning vision, worry became inadequate of a word for Luna to describe her own emotional state. Now? She became plain uneasy.

Seeing the current sorry state of the next astral mare for herself was all she really needed in order to understand. Twilight's appearance was at least concerning, that was crystal clear for everypony with a gift of vision present. Yet for Luna that wasn't the biggest unpleasant surprise of the evening, not by a long-shot.

"Her eyes." She noted with a sudden dramatic decline in a state of mind for the worse, though staying the ever strong pillar her loved subjects needed her to be, as little of them were present here at the current time. "Her innocent, beautiful eyes." The purple irises left forever tarnished with the hint of a mistake, never to be the same as they once were. "Those.. nay..."

Luna feared.. no, anticipated in horror the day that sompo- someone, anyone, would dig out her most vile secrets that ought to be buried till the day Sun inevitability expands and consumes this planet along with them. Ones that should stay in the mostly forgotten age of Nightmare and the victims it claimed.

She knew, for all that is holy and sacred, she knew this day would come sooner or later, despite all her efforts to weave the strings of time otherwise. She cursed fate itself for making her reach the time at all in which she found the vile eyes somewhere else than in the evening mirror.

And to find them attached to one of the dearest companions she would come to enjoy on the journey they call life?

A normal, lesser mare would be utterly crushed for life. Not that the frailty of mortals made it any easier for her, for she would be living for a very long time. Along with a very narrow circle. A circle that was about to diminish once again if she did nothing to prevent it.

Heavens above, she will do anything in her power to cheat the future and conscript the time to her advantage, bending the fate itself to her very will.

"I would recognize that defiling gaze no matter how many centuries passed and no matter where I looked. Devoid of any joy of present or worry of the future, washed of all emotion that any living being should express. Uncaring and empty like a daffodil sandwich plate on Fridays." Just like hers was, once upon a nearly forgotten time. A quick magical scan of her own revealed everything she absolutely needed to know. Not wanted.

"Adfectus Sera." The ancient words barely crossed through her thoughts and she already felt the resentment flowing freely. After all, It's not so hard to recognize the spell that one has conceived in anger so many moons ago and feel the disdain for ever bringing it upon the face of beloved Equus. "One such innocent as Twilight shouldn't even know these vile remnants of our past existed in the first place. Let alone speaking of actually casting any of that... self-mutilation."

The spell was, as one of her- Nightmare Moon's lieutenants once described it - 'a little suicide.'

Luna heavily weighted her available options and decided to stand by for now despite all her senses telling her to go in 'for the kill'. If the purple equine and her companion were in fact injured, Celestia would be more than adequate to help them... and if she wasn't struck with harm... well, then they had some precious time yet. As such, it will surely resolve itself through simple conversation. One way or the other, it will end in hugs... or in shackles.

“No. No, I am not,” The newest arrival hastily responded to Celestia's worried inquire, ending the necessarily prolonged inner monologue of the stellar guardian. “Not that any of it is important right now.”

Though in her very design resistant to the hottest flames the universe could produce, Celestia, The Princess of the Day Star itself, recoiled like she was burned by the core of the very fire she has kindled thorough centuries. “Are you kidd- not important? Let me look you over!” she ignored the rather irrational response, insisting on having it her way.

“Listen Celestia, we don't have time for any of this sweet talk!” Princess hesitated for a moment when met by her own name of all things. “When you're dealing with the things none of us understand, you listen!”

It was true that she often requested of the newest Princess to be called just that, simply Celestia. Not Princess, not Your Majesty, no Grace's or other Prima Donna's. Yet, to actually hear it out loud willingly and without any complain or protest from her former student... even the atmosphere itself was tense enough to be her enemy in this, whole matter only enlarged by the tone in which Twilight addressed her. She knew that type of barely hidden emphasis better than anypony else alive. Luna might be almost as old as her, but she didn't spend that time governing their kin for the last millennium. The simple type that said roughly - "I don't require your attention, I require your attention. So, be quiet and listen."

Celestia figured that's exactly what she's going to do when met with such a request form her former student, all the while counting that as being verbally overwhelmed by someone for the third or fourth time in literal millennia of her life.

“You need to assemble THE ENTIRETY, and I mean all of it, of The Royal Guard, EUP or even paramilitary forces. Are we crystal clear on that?” The outright commanding tone carried over with the subtlety of a wrecking ball, the stunned alabaster alicorn too... intimidated, for the lack of a better word.. to negate any of the orders given. Twilight Sparkle, The Unicorn turned Alicorn giving unrestrained commands to Princess Celestia, Sovereign of the Day, Radiant Mistress, Omnia Vi, Lux Omnipotens, Sol Invicta, etc. etc. ad infinitum.

Somepony other than her sister giving her outright orders for the first time in history would be simply exhilarating if not for the gravity of the given situation. She would literally jump in anticipation like a filly in the light of a new experience... if it wasn't her virtuous and innocuous Twilight providing it to her.

“Call upon every ally that we have made abroad and send somepony to retrieve my friends, bring them here with a necessary escort, if need be. Gather every resource or asset available to us as of now. Both Captains of the Guard, Chief of Intelligence, Generals, great mages, magical prodigies, everyone! We need to.. nee... to-” Twilight's head suddenly felt heavy as a thousand bricks stacked upon one another. It was difficult to even think of straight sentences and her eyesight was getting worse by the second.

As expected, that was it. Her signal to step-in had come and Luna started to trot closer to take place along her sister, closer to friend afflicted with the ultimate curse.

“What, why? Twil- Twilight!” Celestia suddenly found herself to be on the verge of a panic attack. A reaction she got very rarely. Something she thought was now beyond her after the last time.. with... Yet, there she was, once again about to be proven wrong and made mockery by the fates. In front of her eyes, one of the most precious former students was covered in blood and starting to stagger, resembling clear symptoms of some serious internal injury or even outright serious blood depletion. Which was never good, ever for an alicorn. "No, no ,no, no! This can't be happening yet again! I need to-"

“Step aside, sister dearest. I need to question her post-haste.” Luna's sudden involvement and slight reversion to the more formal speech interrupted Celestia's train of thought for a brief moment, before making it all the more rapid and hostile towards anyone but Twilight herself.

Hostile would be a recorded understatement for the centuries to come -on account of the one Royal Scribe Ms. Raven being present-, as well as the Solar Guards attending the site slipped some of the juicy tidbits outside to the masses, yet with even more of a dramatic depiction of what they perceived as the wrath of the heavens ponyfied. Now, some may say they were a little biased... but when you're met with the acrimony of a demi-god in all their right? Not omnipresent, not all-knowing, but still powerful enough to vaporize you in seven entirely different and equally painful ways?

You tremble. You shiver. You question? You question.

How could a beloved epitome of righteous equinity turn into a ponyfication of the searing flames consuming both your flesh and soul in a split second... in a split second. Question. To think that such a short sentence, a single word really, was the sole reason behind releasing hundreds of years worth of pent up frustration. With overwhelming power unleashed in a single moment, the heavens themselves trembled before the weight and might of 2 octillion tons of white-hot plasma compressed into a frame of a single equine.

“WHAT?” Sun Demi-God belated her outrage while unleashing a devastating sample of her imposing Royal Canterlot Voice, shattering each and every single one of the deeply cherished stained glass windows which composed the long throne room hall in a split second, making them seem as if they exploded all at once, filling the place with cacophonous thunder that would terrify even the bravest of warriors in an instant.

Adding more of an insult to the bravery of her devoted guardians, she terrified them even further by outright igniting. If spontaneous self-combustion was indeed a thing that truly existed... that, would be it. Her ethereal mane full of color gone in a second and replaced by the blindingly foreign and monochrome flames of anger, coat visibly distorting the air around with the heat it gave off, glimmers of blazing light licking her form all around, making the entirety a whole new level of disturbing.

The guards, be it her own or Luna's, cowered under the unknown tone, which continued in all its terrifying glory. “You want to talk with her when it's crystal clear something's gone horribly wrong and she requires medical attention? What we need, is to get her to the hosp-” she tried to explain in her explosion of genuine and righteously perceived anger before being once again rudely interrupted by the younger sibling.

“She'll be perfectly fine.” Both Luna's eyes and voice spoke the most sincere of statements, singing of nothing but the truth. “I promise you that, but this is of utmost importance,” Luna replied trying to calm her sister's ire, if only for a little bit. “Trust me.” A little bit more was all they had, in fact.

Despite not having any clue whatsoever what game her sister was playing at, surprisingly and against all odds, Celestia chose to give up her king and hope that it was chess they were playing after all. Handing over the proverbial reins and resigning was one of the toughest things to do for her, but whom to trust if not her own sister? Along with a thousand different colliding thoughts, hesitation flashed in Celestia's eyes in the shape of a single photon despite it not carrying any real information. On the verge of tears brought on by all the conflicting emotions she felt, all the fear of what would happen if she resisted even more, she looked upon Luna and recurrently nodded in agreement before she could start questioning and doubting her own decision.

With the decision made, all of the previously undergone changes evaporated like they were never truly there. Not that any of her "little ponies" cared at this point beyond their collective fear.

“Thank you,” Luna expressed her eternal gratitude for the faith put in her, pigeonholing the thought of future repayment. And now..

“Leave.”

The word was a rather simple and straightforward one. As such, anypony with any semblance of preservation was immediately aware that Princess of the Night aimed it at them. Not wishing or risking the ire of the Alicorn, everypony came to their senses and left post haste by any exit available. Be them maid, servant or Guard, all obeyed the order without question and soon enough, only a select few were present within the throne room.

Switching her full attention to the twilight of the certain mare's consciousness, she mentally prepared for the harrowing days to come. “Now, Twilight, what is the most urgent message you possess?” She asked quickly and to the point, not wishing to complicate the deed even more than it needed to be.

“I.. d- da- de- dead,” Twilight managed to mumble under her muzzle quietly, with each passing second losing her motor functions, with them even the ability to speak properly. “A..all d-dead.”

“Dead? Who's dead? Is that their blood then?” Luna asked as prudently as her voice allowed her without shouting, knowing well she had little time left to do so. "Wait.. I remember now. Today is the day she's supposed to supervise on that archaeological excavation. The one that- I.. told her about..." “Twilight, focus!” The Night Princess futilely tried to regain the last pieces of her friend's consciousness in growing panic, before it goes away for quite some time. “It is paramount. Whose blood it this? To whom it belongs?” The very last bits of the question were practically screamed by Luna in Twilight's face, more from hurry and stress than any actual anger.

Little did the Diarch know that she wouldn't get anything from her friend anymore. The reason behind that being poor mare's hearing shared her sights fate a short while ago, rendering her the victim of magical coma which in essence made her mostly unresponsive to all but the most drastic of incentives.

All the while Princesses worried and distressed over her sorry state, Twilight's world was starting to get dimmer and overly dark all of a sudden, shrouding her in the unpleasant veil of darkness before she plummeted to the floor like a sack of potatoes.

All the while a retching sound echoed in the centuries-old hall of the Diarchy once more.