Full Metal Pony

Twilight was trapped in her library; the dark smoke burned her eyes and stung her lungs. She knew had to stay lot, but that wasn't easy when you're panicking to find the way out of a burning library. "Spike! Spike, where are you?" she called out. From behind her, the purple dragon, which had grown in size since Twilight had left almost a year ago, crashed through the flames and burning books to Twilight. "Don’t you worry; I'm going to get you out. Now listen, stay down and crawl to th-" the sound of steel crashing against bone and flesh stopped all voice. Twilight looked up, and there was a glint of steel protruding from Spike's throat, muted gurgle escaping from his mouth. He fell silently, and an enormous changeling stepped in his place. "You are the one known as... Twilight Sparkle..." he looked at her for confirmation, but received nothing more than a horrified stare. "Yes, so it seems. Well, you are now the highest ranking P.O.W of this army. This means you get the luxuries of daily beatings, and the releasing of information vital to the life of you, your friends, and your Queen's kingdom. What fun! Now, let us go." With that, she was blinded by a spell, the world glowing a vibrant array of colors, then fading to a startling black, the black of the void.

Luna was reading her books she had brought along to make the trip shorter, when Twilight shot up out of bed drenched in a cold sweat, gasping for air. "Twilight, what's the matter?" asked Luna, dropping her book from its magical prison. "I had a dream... a vision. Pony Ville was overrun by Changelings, and Spike... they killed Spike... And a Changeling lord of some type blinded me with a spell, and everything went black." She said, propping herself up straighter in bed. "You went into the void!?" Luna said, but Twilight could tell by her uneasy voice that this was something big to her. "If this is true, which I assume it is, then I shall inform Princess Celestia of this when we land." Luna said formally, and continued progress on one of her books. "May I know why this is such a big ordeal, Princess?" Twilight asked curiously. "Twilight, in your course for unending knowledge, there are thing best left... shall we say untouched. For you, this is one of them. You friends, the ones who were sucked into the vortex at the castle... Well, their fate will be reveled in due time, child." said Luna, dismissing any further conversation. "But Princess, my friend’s fates are something... something rather important to me, quite frankly." Said Twilight sternly, raising her tone. Then a voice came from the back of the cart. "Twilight, don’t worry. Wherever they are, I’m sure that they will be just fine." said Angel Kidd, sitting next to Twilight on her bed. "I'm sure of it" he continued, nuzzling her gently Twilight sighed, and lied down to continue her uneasy sleep.

In around 2 hours, they finally arrived at the hospital, and Celestia was rushed into intensive care, first priority. "Princess Luna?" called a nurse, with a sea foam coat and purple mane. She took a small bow and proceeded to inform her on Celestia's condition. "I am Nurse Radiant Water, and I have successfully gathered the inf-" she was interrupted by an impatient Twilight. "Yes, Nurse, could we learn of Celestia’s condition?" she spoke quickly. The nurse glared at her for a moment, continuing her talk. "We have determined that the venom from whatever snake bit her is slowly shutting her body down from the inside out. Not to mention a dented skull, she will need a small surgery there, and recovery will take a while. As for an antidote for the venom... we are working on one. No telling how long it will take." Luna ponders what was said to her for a moment, when Twilight steps in. 'Well, how long will the venom take to fully shut her body down?" she asked, confused and worried. That’s when the doors to the hospital swung open, and a Pegasus walked in wearing Equestrian Marine armor. "I was told Celestia was hospitalized here, what is her room number?" A small conversation ensued, and the grey Pegasus turned towards Twilight, her blonde mane almost the same as Applejacks. "You're Twilight Sparkle? Sorry to hear about your friends, but I want you to come with me. Something I feel that you should know. By the way, the name is Derpy, General Derpy Hooves, of the Royal Equestrian Marine Corps." She spoke softly for a mare of her stature, and they walked down the hall quietly, as not to disturb any patients. "Twilight, I’ve heard your story, and I realized something before I came here that will change how you view this war. You, as well as the other elements of harmony are being used; your power isn’t for war, it is to rebuild. Should Equestria fall into the hands of the chaotic olden days, your powers will unite to recreate order, and restore balance and peace. Using these powers in war is having the opposite effect, but you are a valuable force." She stopped and looked at Twilight, who appeared to be following with Derpy. "So what I’m saying, and this is not a requirement to choose, but I see you have two choices: Keep fighting and waste your powers; should Equestria fall into darkness, you will not be able to bring us back to the light. Or, stop the fighting and let Equestria fall, for you can rebuild it, free of the war and its horror. The choice is yours. But I must report to Celestia, good luck... in whatever you choose." she said, and walked further down the hall. Twilight looked aimlessly down the hall until Derpy was out of sight, but the thoughts raced. Her mind wa in a frenzy: figuring out what to do for both choices, and the outcome. How long would rebuilding an empire take? What if the continues with this, if we lose the war, and can't rebuild? What if..." And she stopped. She realized that she was putting too much effort into it, and went to her quarters to sleep.