The cart's thick padded wheels rolled smoothly over the gray cobbled streets of Canterlot. Whitewashed buildings lined either side of the wide thoroughfare, torchlight flickering forlornly on the stone walls and road. Fog hung heavily in the air, swirling and shifting through the streets. The Night was upon the city, and though most now feared its darkness with newfound conviction, those truly passionate, desperate, or foolish, still prowled the dark before the dawn. The luxurious carriage passed several such groups, a few racketeers, some Dust-addict beggars, immediately distinguishable from the brightness of their teeth, and parties of dissenters, who carried spray paint cans and makeshift weapons, eyeing any potential servant of the "Tyrant" that they could waylay.

The carriage itself was indeed grand, but not garishly so. It was a practical luxury. Padded wheels for smoother riding, tinted glass to keep out both a blazing sun and prying eyes, and ingeniously interwoven spikes and hooks lined the outside, that would make robbery of the vehicle a near impossibility.

Inside sat Kaiscillius, in his guise of Blood Diamond, who gazed upon the darkened Canterlot with dispassionate eyes, though for every act of unkindness or indecency they passed they sparkled with momentary glints of dark humor. In the last week since he had burned Hopping Springs and framed Luna, everything had gone to hell in a hand basket. Crime, poverty, and murder rates had all at least quadrupled statistically, but since they hadn't been very high to begin with, it wasn't too hard to accomplish. But the numbers grew still, and it was due, mostly, all to Blood Diamond.

Thunder rumbled ominously overhead, and small drops of rain pattered down into the solemn since of the night. It had been considerably more rainy in Canterlot after most of the Cloudsdale Air Force had refused to lift a feather to help "Nightmare Moon" out, which suited Kaiscillius fine. The less sunlight the better

The carriage slowly trundled it's way up the large street, towards one of the many fortified gates that led into Canterlot Castle. Once, it had been a beacon of light shining with the city to which it provided safety, and security. Now, its tall structure was dark, imposing, with only a few windows lit, giving it even more of a mysterious and secretive air from a distance. In the eyes of most pony citizens, it was a sign that evil now lurked, where once good had been. The gate itself was manned by ten thestrals, five on each side. These were no happy-go-lucky average ponies either, these were warriors, bearing thick armor emblazoned proudly with the symbol of their near-deity. These fools. Did they not see how it divided them so? How much worse the situation looked when they were imposing, rather than friendly? Assigning thestral guards during the day had been one of the worst mistakes that Luna could have made, Kaiscillius knew it would be. The whole thing had been marketed as an attempt by Luna to give power to her most loyal followers and further cement her control. Thestrals had long been regarded as odd, but now all were universally despised, and thestral guards? Doubly so.

There had been unconfirmed reports of brutal acts being carried out against thestral families, everything from rape to violent daily beatings, but they bore it unrelentingly for their goddess, and in return it only further dragged her image down. What a beautiful cycle he had created.

As the carriage neared the gate, one of the hulking thestral pegassi marched to the coach and grunted in a questioning manner. Kaiscillius, in a tired fashion, placed his hand out of the carriage window, along with his invitation to the royal gala being thrown that night. The guard snatched it from his hand and eyed Kaiscillius suspiciously as he read it.

"My apologies mister ah... Blood Diamond, standard protocol you see, go on through," the guard waved him through the gate.

Standard protocol would let me walk all the way to the door of the Princess's chambers before politely asking for my identity. This is high alert protocol, and as high alert goes, this is horribly lax, Kaiscillius mused to himself as his carriage trundled along the cobbled path past gardens and fountains, towards the resplendent entrance way of Canterlot Castle. Great marble pillars and fine rugs made a grand impression on the less initiated of Canterlot society, but to the well-versed elites they were admirably modest compared to the garish opulence that many mansions possessed. The Castle held a timeless air, it had stood for longer than any could remember, and its great hallways and balconies were as much a fixture as any national landmark.

Kaiscillius's carriage parked behind the rows of others that had already been driven here. He was fashionably late, by design of course, and so all the nobles that were anypony were already in attendance by the time he stepped from the carriage. He wore a dazzling red suit, with subtle hints of black and dark gray running through it, giving him a sharp look of keen intelligence and understated power. As he made his way through the exquisite entrance hall, in which some minor functionaries and unimportant hangers-on lounged, he exuded confidence and surety, drawing all eyes irrevocably to him. Flaring his impressive wings slightly, he gave to them only amiable nods and half smiles, but the fact that such a creature as this would even acknowledge them sent them into shivers of gratitude. All bowed at his passing, one even knelt.

As he entered the main gala hall, a huge space filled with lights, wine, food, and all those who enjoyed those things a little too much, the crier announced, "Prince Blood Diamond!"

Immediately eyes snapped to him in recognition of his name, and widened as they attached his devastatingly handsome features to it. This was his first public appearance and, as such, the first time anypony here had actually lain eyes on him. The entire room went from light chatter to dead silent as he entered. Normally this would be a terribly embarrassing moment for somepony so "new" to Canterlot society as he was, but he seemed to casually and comfortably address every single pony in the room with a magnanimous half-smile, and a flawlessly smooth bow, as though he were used to, nay expected to be a show stopper.

"Greetings," he said simply to the dumbstruck crowd, and then moved unhurriedly down the stairs into the throng.

Kaiscillius was immediately swarmed by the courtesans, sycophants, and nobles nearest to him, as those in the back scrambled madly to get closer and speak, whispering violently among themselves about this audacious newcomer. Some said that he was mocking them, others thought that he was merely bluffing his air of cool confidence, but everypony agreed that what he had done was undeniably impressive.

Half an hour into the gala and things were moving perfectly. Kaiscillius had spoken with almost everypony at least once, usually just an understated greeting or polite word, and most were coming back for round two with more personal questions, when Kaiscillius froze. At the time he had been speaking with a minor Baron who specialized in the cheese industry, who had grown quite fond of the Prince because he was the only pony who appeared not entirely bored after that stunning introduction, when Kaiscillius locked up mid sentence.

No... that aura... it can't have been, he thought to himself as he cleared his throat and said, "Pardon me Baron, it seems I've become rather parched. Do you know where some refreshments might lie? Though I really hate to leave you like this."

The Baron profusely denied that Kaiscillius was in any way in the wrong and helpfully pointed out a water-bearing servant. Kaiscillius moved towards it with a quick gesture of thanks, and laughed good-naturedly as ponies continued to assail him with questions, "Peace! Peace, my friends! What must a stallion do for a glass of water? I promise I'll answer all the questions I can as soon as my dry throat is up to the task!" His jovial tone and broad smile quickly earned him a few laughs and many smiles, effectively extricating himself from the public eye as he snagged a water glass and moved to a vantage point that allowed him to observe most of the room at once.

Princess Luna was located, unsurprisingly,on her throne, her eyes roamed around the room for the most part, but it was clear most of her attention was focused on Kaiscillius, no doubt wishing that she too could see what all the fuss was about. She looked undeniably resplendent in a full silver and dark blue dress, crown resting comfortably in her billowing starry mane. It made him pause as the realization came to him that this was his mother. This would be their first meeting in over a thousand years. He wanted to analyse her, as he had done so often before. He used to be so in tune with his mother's personality, that he could almost read her every thought simply by the way she walked into a room. His survival had depended on that skill more than once.

But now was not the time for such games, the presence he had felt earlier could not be ignored. If it truly was another nighdra, here of all places...

I did not just use nighdra in a sentence. Stars above I hate my mother sometimes, Kaiscillius thought as he scanned the room. Greed and pride wove thickly through every pony here, flashes of gold and red, and teal ribbons radiated off of all the jewelry in the room, forming almost a miasma of turquoise. Kaiscillius hissed to himself as he realized that if indeed another entity like himself were in the room, they would likely be doing the very same thing he was, and it's not like he had made himself hard to spot. But... that also meant they would be using the same cloaking technique he was.

Got you, Kaiscillius smiled as he disregarded all of the flash and gleam around the large hall, and focused specifically on finding a normal pony, one normal even to his eyes. After only a few seconds, he found something disturbingly ordinary in what should have been one of the flashiest ponies around. A tall and handsome stallion, with pristine snow white skin and a long blond mane, expertly groomed, made his way through the crowd, drawing many looks of jealousy and annoyance. He was clearly not very popular, but that’s not what Kaiscillius was concerned with. On the surface he appeared normal, vain, proud, and stupid. But this pony also knew advanced cloaking techniques for a school of magic that had been dead since long before he would have been born.

Blueblood, that was his name. Prince Blueblood. Apparently some relation of the royal family. Nephew to Celestia? That didn’t seem quite right, but If Kaiscillius's theory was correct, that relationship might just be "son of Luna". Kaiscillius began moving towards him, gut instinct forcing him forward. As he stalked towards the court pony, he thought frantically, How? How did one live? I killed them all, I claimed the pool, there are none left alive, how did this one manage to escape me for so long?

As he prowled nearer to the tall handsome stallion he began once more to attract attention from the crowd,and many eyes turned towards him as he strode with purpose in a singular direction. The white stallion ceased his bored and expression and assumed a look of calm for those around him, but Kaiscillius could practically smell the panic on his target as the veins on his exposed neck bulged and he swallowed reflexively.

"Ah! There you are, my dearest cousin! How have you been? Shocked to see me? My, it feels as if we haven't spoken in a millennium!" Kaiscillius flashed a charming smile to the socialites crowded around his "cousin". Now that Kaiscillius had a better view he knew for certain that this was one of his own siblings, he had had thirteen, six brothers and seven sisters, and he was 99% sure he had killed every one of them. He saw their faces often enough to count. Yet here stood an anomaly. There was, on the surface, everything Kaiscillius would expect. A layer of dirt, skin, muscle, bone, and then the outer personality ribbons of greed, vanity, a few that when combined were the equivalent of handsomeness in magical format, but when he tried to go past that, there were parts missing. Fragments remained of the first layer of inner personality, none of the fear layer or below was visible however. It was as if this stallion had had all of what made him up ripped out, and merely a hollow shell remained. Now, of course such things were possible, but Kaiscillius knew firsthand that the results of such a thing we're in no state to walk, talk, or feed themselves, much less attend court and hold condescending conversation with seven ponies at once.

"Oh yes, cousin! H-Hello, ha ha. How are you, clearly you are in need of a tailor, you must have just arrived in town judging by the state of the shirt you're wearing." "Blueblood"'s facade of oblivious offensiveness had reasserted itself, but for a moment he had slipped, and the fact that he had gone along with Kaiscillius's story at all proved he was not who he seemed, and he knew Kaiscillius wasn't either.

"Prince Blood Diamond, you are related to this stallion?" A brown pony, Filthy Rich if Kaiscillius was remembering correctly, asked hesitantly.

"Oh, we are cousins, but of distant relation. I was never a part of their family here in Canterlot proper, and it's been quite some time since I've seen my cousins here." Kaiscillius answered expertly. He both allied himself with an ancient Canterlot family, and distanced himself from the offensive oaf in one fell swoop. Filthy Rich nodded with a relieved smile, showing off his brilliantly white teeth, before returning to his conversation with an aged purple mare.

"Good ponies, I know this must be highly irregular, and I beg your great pardon, but may I borrow my cousin for a bit? As it has been so long since I have heard news of my family here, I would like to become once again acquainted in private, if your graces would allow me?" Kaiscillius finished his plea with a flawlessly executed humbling bow, which received a clap from one or two ponies, and many verbalizations of assent and well-wishes.

Kaiscillius watched as lines of fear began to break through the magical camouflage of "Blueblood" as he realized he would now have to spend an undefined amount of time with Kaiscillius, a prospect very few could honestly look forward to. Well, half the population anyway.

Gesturing for Blueblood to follow, Kaiscillius almost physically dragged him through the room towards a back hallway which led to several sectioned off balconies. The moon now shone brightly on the city of Canterlot, and the stars winked merrily in the sky, as if trying extra hard to display an inordinately large amount of whimsy. Come to think of it, the moon looked a lot softer around the edges than it normally did, saying, "Look! I'm cute and happy! Please don't rebel and murder me!"

Kaiscillius almost chuckled at the weak attempt of subconscious manipulation, but then got serious as his quarry shuffled it's on to the balcony behind him, “Blueblood’s” brow furrowed in thought.

Kill it! Tear its lungs out and eat its face! Kaiscillius's instincts screamed. This had been what had driven him to decimate his siblings as a hatchling, but he was no child now. He knew how to be patient.

"So brother, who are you, how are you here, and what plans have you set in motion to free Mother?" Kaiscillius was calm outwardly, but it was a struggle to contain the raging blood lust that roared through his veins. Why did it have to be Blueblood's that was one of his hidden siblings? He'd had plans for Blueblood.

"Ah ha ha," the fake pony laughed nervously, "Long time no see eh Kai?"

"Don't call me that," Kaiscillius spat with venom. He hadn't even meant to speak, but the raging fire in his veins made him testy, "Answer the questions."

"You probably remember me for my cowardice most of all, I was- am, Thrassimund."

Kaiscillius felt like he'd just been slapped with an iceberg. He blinked rapidly a few times, then shook his head and asked, "What?"

"My name is Thrassimund, you may not remember, you tossed me into a volcano?"

Oh, Kaiscillius remembered. The struggle of brute strength in the sulfuric fumes, dust and ash clouding his vision, his lungs crying out for fresh air as he shoved his brother over the lip and into the pit of magma. But even these haunting memories were but a light breeze to the deep disturbance he felt at the very sibling that had survived his wrath was the one whose name he'd use to deceive Twilight Sparkle.

By all the moons and stars, I pray this is not providence.

"Go on," Kaiscillius croaked weakly, clearing his throat.

The white stallion scratched idly at his head, a nervous tick, "Ah, yes, well I was able to catch onto the underside of the ledge, and so desperate were you to be away that you never noticed I'd escaped."

Kaiscillius blinked his confusion, "But... why did you not try to kill me? To claim the pool?"

Blueblood- Thrassimund, waved him off as if it were no big deal, "The pool, brother? I never had an interest in it in the first place. What was the word Mother used? Defective? I cared for one thing and one thing only, my survival. Which, I still care about, which is why I am acquiescing so nicely to your requests."

Kaiscillius grunted in acknowledgment, and was deep in thought as he asked, "And what plans have you already set in place to free Mother? We may be able to integrate them into mine," though it made Kaiscillius's blood boil to even consider the possibility of allying with one of his mortal enemies, if it would help free Mother...

"Mother? Why in all of Equestria would I want to free her?" Thrassimund asked, alarmed, "I still can't even fathom what might make you, her "favorite", attempt it, much less me!"

Kaiscillius stood, dumbfounded. For the first time in a long time.

"Because... be-because it's our duty!" He sputtered incredulously. How could Thrassimund not have attempted to free Mother? It was just... unthinkable!

"Our duty? Kaiscillius-"

"Do not use that name, Blueblood, not here!"

"Fine, Blood Diamond, she was the worst pony in all of Equestria, period. Well, perhaps besides a few that have popped up recently. She killed and tortured, and brutalized... everypony! Us most of all! Her "children" were nothing more than lab rats that she spat out, and set scurrying to work for her!"

"Do not dare speak ill of her!" Kaiscillius whispered so hard it was almost a roar, spittle flew from his mouth and he almost impaled his younger brother on a decorative fence post then and there.

"Why not? She can't punish me. Now that I know you are the one who has orchestrated these events, I'm working out a deal with you and getting as far away from this place as I can! I spent decades worming my way into the royal family, switching bodies, playing different insufferable roles! If your plans are already in action, I'm happy to do all of that again to be as far away from them as possible."

Kaiscillius narrowed his eyes at his yellow-bellied sibling, "What do you mean 'working out a deal with me'? You think I can afford to let a security risk like you just skip merrily off into the sunset? What can you possibly offer me that guarantees that I can't kill you to end the possible leak?"

Thrassimund blanched slightly, but continued on with a modicum of confidence, "You won't kill me because it's too much too soon for the royals. You may have the peasantry rioting in the streets, but the nobles aren't ready for war yet, that's why you were here tonight wasn't it? To mingle and make merry? I can give you my word that I'll never tell a soul of what I know, I could hardly do that anyway without blowing my own cover, and I will also play the part of any minor scheme you may need me in. That's something isn't it?"

It was indeed something, Thrassimund had made the one offer that reminded Kaiscillius why he couldn't kill him yet. He still would in the future, but not just yet.

"I still don't understand why you want to free her, she'll just betray you," Thrassimund said casually.

Kaiscillius whipped his head around and answered, aghast, "She would never! I was her chosen!"

Thrassimund shrugged, "So what? You being chosen got you tortured more than any of us. Constant "lessons", conditioning, experiments, that spell that gives you nigh-"

Kaiscillius blinked, a little dazed, and wondered what had just happened. He was sure Thrassimund had been talking, but now he wasn't, and he was smiling.

"Ah, but I suppose she won't let you know about that. Do you not see her evil Kaiscillius? What a cruel beast she has made you into?"

"I was born this way," Kaiscillius muttered, still a little foggy.

"No. No you weren't. You were different once, you just don't remember. Or can't. But I'll bet you do remember one thing, one thing she’d never let you forget. "Your greatest failure"?"

Kaiscillius eyes bulged as his heart was pierced by a flaming lance, cracking it open in a way he hadn't felt since...

"Do you remember Kaiscillius, when you made that fatal mistake, so innocent, yet so terrible for her plans?"

His pulse pounded in his ears, red clouded his vision. He heard the laughter, felt the warmth of the smile, knew the tears over a broken corpse.

"You dare..." he mumbled, his eyes focusing straight into Thrassimund's, but either his brother had not heard, or had suddenly developed a death wish.

"Lilac?"

A roar tore itself from Kaiscillius's very beating heart, "YOU DARE?!"

Kaiscillius lunged upwards, wrapping a hand around his brother's throat in a vice grip three times as strong as steel, and in the other hand the shards of black and grey in his suit ran down his arms in rivulets and melded together into a single, terrifyingly familiar broadsword. Kaiscillius slammed Thrassimund backwards into the stone wall, splitting the very mortar, luckily he had cast a bubble of silence before stepping onto the terrace, so no sound escaped a ten foot radius.

Thrassimund screeched as New Moon glinted wickedly in the pale light of its sister, and burned a hole through the front of his shirt as Kaiscillius pressed the point against his abdomen.

Kaiscillius breathed hard, fighting down his resurging past, and the natural call for him to gut any rival who lived like a fish, "You...will...NEVER... speak that name again. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!"

Thrassimund nodded readily, tears leaking from his eyes as he choked, and a new stain appearing down the leg of his trousers.

"Secondly, two days from now, you will announce a surprise visit to Ponyville, and demand only the finest and highest quality of celebration, and no matter what they do, you must hate it. Understood?"

Again, a frantic nod.

"Good... now leave my sight before I TEAR YOUR SOUL FROM THE MEASLY HUSK IT OCCUPIES!" With one last roar of rage, Kaiscillius sent Thrassimund scurrying away about his new work. He then melded his sword back into his suit, adjusted it as well as his mane, and resumed the party where he had left off.

Two days later, Sugarcube Corner, Ponyville -

Applejack breathed deeply in and out, calming her nerves before taking a swig of the tea in her hand, and said with a wide smile, "Well, welcome everypony. Glad y'all could make it. Been a while since we could be together all at the same time."

Around her, sat in different fluffy pink lounge chairs and sofas, were Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Pinkie Pie. They currently occupied the downstairs portion of Sugarcube Corner, Pinkie having been granted permission by Mr. and Ms. Cake to close up shop early. Fluttershy... well, nopony really expected her to be there, but that didn't make it hurt any less to Applejack, who'd gone through all the trouble of arranging the meeting.

"So, Rares, how's er, Spike doin'?" She asked rather awkwardly.

Great topic to start on AJ, you're really great at this, she berated herself mentally.

Rarity, nevertheless, smiled and said a little meekly, "Oh he's doing well, better than I could have hoped after... well, after what happened."

The room descended into an uncomfortable silence, broken again by Rarity, as she added, "He tells me he's going to set off for the dragon lands soon. Says he wants to learn more about where he came from."

Several "Hmm"s and "Ah"s sounded from the other three ponies, before silence claimed the room once more.

All of the sudden, Pinkie asked, "Speaking of which, has anypony seen Starlight at all? She hasn't been in here for her favorite cupcake in weeks! And it's really starting to smell funny..."

Everypony looked back and forth, but it appeared that none of them had seen Starlight at all after the... incident a few weeks ago.

"Pinkie dear," Rarity said, sounding slightly disturbed, "You don't mean that you... kept the same cupcake for her, do you?"

Universe J42-068, Timeline Variant 346-Z, Equestria, Outskirts of Ponyville -

"Starlight, the Great and Powerful Trixie believes that this might be a bad idea."

Trixie glanced anxiously over Starlight's shoulder as Starlight grimaced in concentration, holding aloft with telekinesis a softly glowing yellow orb, about the size of a marble. It was suspended in the air over a bubbling blue beaker which rested on green grass.

"Quiet Trixie, I have to do this just righ- oops," Starlight accidentally dropped the marble sized orb, and it landed gently on the lip of the glass beaker. And then promptly exploded.

With a huge BOOM! the pair of magic loving ponies were vaporized instantly, as was everything in a twenty foot span of the contact point between orb and beaker. Every animal in a thousand foot radius either bolted or dived for cover, and the entire world seemed to go dead still for a moment.

And then, a gentle hum filled the air. Soft at first, it grew in strength, building and building until it shook the trees 50 feet away with the force of the vibrations. White runes appeared floating over the blackened crater in circular patterns, moving rhythmically up and down. A teal colored portal ripped itself open in the sky over the center of the crater, and with a slight pop, two familiar looking ponies dropped out of it, yelping as they fell farther than expected into the center of the pit.

Starlight Glimmer eagerly picked herself up off of the ground and said to her compatriot, "Alright Trixie, here we are! If my calculations were correct, and they were since you yourself checked them as well, we are now in a timeline in which Twilight Sparkle did not die, and we perished mere moments ago! So, all that's left to do now is resume our normal lives, and tell everypony we accidentally cast a spell that erased our memory of the last three weeks."

Trixie, a little shakily, also stood up and asked, "So, everything's back to normal?"

"Yep!" Starlight answered cheerfully, "Twilight never died, Celestia didn't ever go dark, Luna never took power, and... well, let's just say that I caught a glimpse of the future during the timeline shift, and we would have been totally screwed. More literally than you might think."

Trixie furrowed her brow, “But... does that not mean that you have condemned all those lesser ponies to a horrible fate? By which of course, the Great and Powerful Trixie refers to your personal friends, and not every brainless half-wit on Equestria.”

Starlight rubbed the back of her head with a forehoof and glanced at the ground, “Yeah, sorta. I was pressed for time okay? Did you expect me to find a timeline in which everything happened exactly as it did in ours, except that you, me, and all of the Elements of Harmony died except Twilight Sparkle, and she didn’t know about it? Besides, you know they would never leave, even if it was for their own good. Which it would have been.”

“The Great and Powerful Trixie sees your point,” she said magnanimously, “they are all very dumb, and the Great and Powerful Trixie is incredibly intelligent!”

Starlight rolled her eyes and said, “Come on Trixie, we’ve apparently got a blast crater to fill.”

Trixie shivered, “Well thank Celestia that it incinerated everything, could you imagine having to bury your own dead body? How horrid!”

Meanwhile, in our universe -

"Look girls, that's not what we're here to talk about," Applejack said sternly, bringing the girls' attention away from the moldy cupcake.

"Ah called y'all here today about this business with Luna. Now, y'all got your letters right?" Yesterday, every (living) Element of Harmony had received a letter from Luna, begging them to travel to Canterlot and speak to the people in her defense.

"Do we need those letters? I may have baked mine into a cookie," Pinkie said, scratching her head in remembrance.

"I don't think so Pinkie. Still, what are we gonna' do about it?"

"Well I would have thought the answer perfectly obvious dear," Rarity said, "we need to board a train as soon as we can and get our flanks to Canterlot!"

Applejack was a little surprised by her answer, "Really Rares? Are ya' sure that it won't hurt your fancy business bein' seen endorsin' somethin' like that?"

Rarity gasped, "Why, Applejack, you can't possibly see me as so heartless that I would choose success and acclaim over the needs of a friend!"

"Yeah, can't imagine that at all..." Applejack muttered under her breath, "Pinkie, Rainbow, what do you think?"

"Weeeeelll, I mean she was Nightmare Moon..." Dash said lazily as she lounged on one of the sofas,"I hate to say it, but, I wouldn't put it past Nightmare Moon to set up some sort of elaborate after-death thing. Not sayin' she's guilty, but I'm not sure."

"You can't judge somepony by who they used to be, silly!" Pinkie said as she fiddled with a balloon, "You can only go on who you know them to be now!"

All the mares stared at their normally oblivious pink friend in shock, "Wow, Pinkie, that was... surprisingly cool of you. I-I guess you're right, maybe we need to give Luna a third chance," Dash admitted.

"Applejack, what do you think dear?" Rarity asked, noticing that her friend had been a little quiet.

"Don't matter none, it's the right thing to do, so we're gonna' do it," she answered confidently. With what she hope was confidence anyway. She felt a little squeamish that she hadn't technically lied, but she had avoided the question.

"Right, we should get on the first train to Canterlot and support her as soon as we can!" Rarity announced.

"Hold your haystacks there Rares, we ain't got no idea what we're actually talkin' about when we get there. From the letter, it sounded like a real big to-do, like a speech."

"Oh, poppycock, Applejack, I've written enough grand speeches to the citizens of Canterlot to know exactly what they want to hear! Never fear, dear, as long as I, Rarity, am here."

Applejack glanced at Rainbow Dash, who also looked skeptical (Pinkie was trying to see if she could fit an entire cookie into a single nostril) and said, "Uh, sure Rarity, whatever you say. Just get that speech written in her defense and we'll-"

"Oh I can't wait to get started!" Rarity said as she bolted from the room in excitement.

"- look it over together. Horseapples."

Applejack impatiently tapped a foot against the metal walkway of the train station, as the old steamer slowly trundled into view over the horizon. They'd all gone home to pack, and Discord had assured Applejack that Fluttershy's every need would be tended to while they were away. “As they always are!” he’d added in an annoyed tone. Now She, Pinkie, and Dash all stood waiting for their fashionista friend to arrive.

Applejack huffed in annoyance, checking her watch again, as finally a highly dignified bouncing object rocketed through the streets to the train station and arrived panting and gasping in a flurry of suitcases and paper.

"I...(gasp)... just managed to... (heave)... finish... the... speech," Rarity collapsed on to the platform with a thump, her twelve-odd suitcases splayed around her, each packed nearly to bursting with clothes, jewelry, and parasols.

"Rarity, we're only gonna' be there three days tops, and it ain't even gonna' rain!" Applejack said, gesturing to her own, barely filled, single suitcase.

"Well," Rarity huffed, "I had to be prepared! As the pony giving the speech, I must be ready for any fashion trends that may occur while we're there to maintain maximum chic! There's even a duck suit in one of these things!"

What, in all of Tarnation, is a duck suit? And do ah really want to know? Applejack glanced up from the fabric pile as the train pulled up, and was very shocked to see none other than Mayor Mare and her secretary frantically waving for Applejack to wait as they hurried through the busy station.

"Is that... Mayor Mare?" Applejack asked the others, pointing to the scrambling ponies.

"Why yes, I believe it is, darling," Rarity said, still slightly dazed.

"Wonder what she could want?" Rainbow asked.

"Man, that was the slowest train ever to arrive in Ponyville Station! It's almost like fate that they caught us in time!" Pinkie said in a chipper tone as the Mayor reached them.

"Oh, girls, oh thank goodness we caught you. There's a crisis happening and Ponyville needs your help!" The Mayor cried as she reached them.

"We'll be happy to help Mayor Mare, what seems to be the problem?" Applejack answered immediately.

"Oh it's just terrible! Apparently there was a book keeping mishap," she gave an angry glance at her secretary, who wilted slightly and gave an apologetic smile with her pristine teeth, "and one of the highest ranking nobles of Canterlot is coming here! Today! Prince Blueblood could arrive any minute and-"

A very loud squee sounded from the floor of the train platform, and Rarity lept to her feet, "Prince Blueblood is coming here? To Ponyville? Right now?" With each question Rarity's voice rose in pitch, until she was practically squeaking at the mare in front of her.

Applejack tapped Rarity on the shoulder, "Um, ain't that the same pony y'all nearly had a meltdown about at that first gala we went to? Didn't you say that he was one of the most horrible ponies y'all had ever met?"

Rarity waved a hand dismissively in her friend's direction, "Oh please darling, that's old news. Ponies change, we all know that!" Applejack didn't like the hopeful airiness of Rarity's voice, and shook her head at her friend's fickle nature.

"Regardless girls, if the Prince comes here and doesn't have a fantastic experience, it'll spell the end of tourism here for a long time! And you all have met him, you know how high his standards are..." The Mayor tapered off, wringing her hands nervously.

"Well, we really want to help Miss, but we already agreed to help out-" Applejack stopped herself from saying "Luna" and instead finished, "a-another pony. In Canterlot."

"Well, girls, I'd hate for you to break a previous engagement but this is the entire town we're talking about here! Can't a single pony wait?" The Mayor asked helplessly.

"It's fine Applejack," Rarity said decisively, "Pinkie Pie and I will stay here, and plan a grand banquet, the likes of which will surely make the Prince fall in lo- I mean... have a wonderful time! I'll give you the speech, and you and Rainbow will deliver it in Canterlot!"

"But Rarity I-"

"Now, now, now, no buts! We must be strong and resolved to face the task ahead! Oh, I can only imagine the toll planning such a grand affair will have on me, but my trials with be worth it to save our beloved home! Come Mayor Mare! We haven't a moment to loose!" So saying, Rarity left all of her bags on the train platform and nearly dragged the Mayor and Pinkie Pie with her back into town, heedless of the gaping Applejack behind her.

"You ladies gettin' on or what?" said the bushily-mustached train conductor, who now stood directly behind them, tapping a hoof impatiently.

"Dash, ah ain't got the slightest idea what half of these daggum words mean, and the other half just sound like puffed-up nonsense!" Applejack and Rainbow Dash occupied a train car alone together, one of whom flew around in lazy circles, as the other frantically tried to piece together the stacks of hastily written speech.

"Are ya' sure ya' can't read it instead of me? I'm no good with this sort of schmoozing stuff, you know that!"

Rainbow continued to backstroke her way around the room and replied, "Nope, can't do it. I've uh... got a fear of public speaking!" She smiled cheesily at Applejack's entirely unconvinced expression.

"You, the most attention obsessed pony this world has ever known, have a fear... of public speaking."

"Yup!" Rainbow responded cheerfully, before settling down and saying, "You'll do fine AJ, you're way better at this than you think! And besides, you've got a whole day to practice, what could possibly go wrong?"

A cold sweat broke out in the back of Applejack's neck, and for some reason, she felt like she should memorize the speech as fast as she could.

The rest of the train journey passed in almost complete silence, save for a yawn or two from Rainbow as she napped on one of the chairs. Applejack, meanwhile, felt like she was more nervous than she had ever been in her life. She wished desperately for an orchard to plant, a field to till, a hay to bale! But all she could do was stare at words she didn't understand, and try to force her brain to accept them as rational, sense-making arguments. She thought about all that hinged on her getting this right, Luna's future, the future of Equestria itself even. This only made the feeling worse, and it didn't help that somewhere in the back of her mind, she felt the Element of Honesty grumbling like a workpony’s stomach at high noon.

When the train finally came to a halt, Applejack took a deep breath and tried to calm her nerves. She had a full day in one of the palace suites to-

The door slammed open as what seemed like a battalion of thestral Royal Guards stormed into the cabin, immediately flattening themselves against the walls and snapping to attention. Applejack sat slack-jawed in both amazement and terror as Luna, dressed in full regal regalia strode into the room, her turquoise eyes coldly sweeping the whole chamber in one glance.

"Good, you're here. There isn't much time. A demonstration in one of the public squares went bad, two of the protesters were injured somehow, and now they've all come out of the woodwork demanding blood. There's no time to waste, whatever you're going to do, I beg you, do it now."

"Uhhhhhh..." Applejack was having a hard time right then. She wanted to be reassuring, calming, confident, but she was really just trying mostly to not pee her pants.

Luna glanced around the train car again as if just noticing her actual audience, "This is it? Where are the rest of you?" She sounded... upset, hurt even.

"They had to stay behind to prepare for a visit from Prince Bluedouche, but don't sound so elated that the most awesome ponies in Equestria showed up to help or anything" Rainbow said, irritated.

Luna immediately blushed,"Oh no! I didn't mean it like that, I'm so sorry! It's just... wait, Bluedouche? Oh you mean... Blue... Blood," Luna's face went slack for a moment, before it came alive with realization and rage, "That's why he was ordered to go there! Damn that crafty-" Luna struggled to get herself under control, "Forces move against me in this city. Everywhere apparently. I can tell you more after the riot is calmed down, but you must come immediately! I fear that this day may be the one I've dreaded for a long time."

Applejack sat with chattering teeth on a wooden platform, hands clutching the papers she held with white-knuckled terror. In front of her stood a hastily constructed podium, but it was what lay beyond that truly terrified her. A sea of outraged, grief-stricken, and mad as all hell ponies shuffled and grumbled like a low earthquake as they waited for her. The plaza they occupied was usually quite nice, white marble bricks and bustling wooden shop buildings lined each side of the road, and a tall statue of Celestia stood proudly in the center, raising the sun in one hand. Mere moments ago this plaza had nearly become a blood-soaked battleground, with the raging ponies just barely calmed by being told that the Elements of Harmony were on their way to sort out the matter. And now all eyes were on Applejack as she quivered silently at the back of the wooden dais, feeling sweat run down her forehead and the back of her neck, cold shivers running up and down her spine.

Tell the truth.

She heard her Element hammering the back of her skull, the dull whispers now rising to a crescendo as the hour of the speech drew upon her. She struggled with herself as she took baby steps toward the speaker's podium, and glanced back at her friends for support. What she saw did not reassure her. Luna looked almost as afraid as Applejack felt, and even though Rainbow flashed a cocky smile, Applejack could still see the worry in her eyes.

Oh Sweet Celestia help me, I ain't ready for this!

TELL THE TRUTH.

Applejack gulped down the bile rising in her throat one last time before she arrived at the microphone, and gazed out over the sea of hatred and pain. She cleared her throat weakly, and stared straight at the shaking papers she clutched in her hand.

"My fellow p-ponies," she started, doing her best to suppress her accent, and talk more like Rarity would, "these are troubled times. A ruler has been lost-"

Suddenly a loud blaring shattered the silence of the plaza and Applejack saw a white and orange pegasus hefting a similarly colored megaphone yell, "YOU'RE ONE OF THE ELEMENTS OF HARMONY! THE TYRANT KILLED TWILIGHT SPARKLE, CAN YOU DENY THE EVIDENCE OF THAT? AND OF THE MASSACRE OF HOPPING SPRINGS? WE DON'T WANT A PREPARED SPEECH, WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE?"

The crowed roared assent with the pegasus's statement, chanting, "WE WANT THE TRUTH, WE WANT THE TRUTH!" Applejack's head throbbed with the same message that they screamed to her, she couldn't help it, she couldn't lie. It was why she was what she was.

Megaphone girl yelled, "IS LUNA INNOCENT?" and Applejack snapped.

"AH DON'T KNOW!" The square went dead silent, as they all regarded her in shock. Applejack didn't have to turn around to feel the same expression coming from behind her. But this was the truth, and she would speak it.

"Ah don't know if Luna's innocent or not. Twilight's death... and, as you said, that horrible atrocity committed on those ponies in that poor town... it's hurt us all. Badly. Now ah can't prove to you that Luna didn't do it, but y'all, is this how ponies act? Do we turn on one another, hate each other, kill each other, at any time? Not in the long history of the Apple family has somethin' like the fracturing of ponies today occurred. Now I don't know if Luna's guilty, but this ain't the way a true pony would deal with it. Y'all are actin' childish and completely out a' line! You don't like how things are, so you throw a tantrum about it, but do nothin'? That's not how a pony should act and y'all know it. We work together, build together, love together, to create a stronger future for ourselves, rulers and tragedies be darned! Now are y'all gonna' keep actin like spoiled children, or are y'all willin' to work for a better future, and not just for yourselves, but for all the races of our world?" Applejack finished her impromptu speech with a glare that would have stopped a stampede in its tracks. She was a little out of breath, and felt fiercely proud that she had spoken her mind through her own words. And best of all, it was the truth.

"YOU'RE RIGHT APPLEJACK, WE SHOULD WORK TOGETHER FOR A BETTER FUTURE!" Called out megaphone girl, and Applejack's heart swelled, "ALL THIS TIME, WE'VE BEEN COMPLAINING, AND NOT DOING. WELL THAT ENDS RIGHT NOW! COME ON PONIES, YOU HEARD HONESTY HERSELF SPEAK THE TRUTH, IF WE WANT OUT FROM UNDER A MURDEROUS TYRANT, WE GOTTA DO IT OURSELVES!"

Parts of the crowed roared their assent, brandishing their makeshift weapons and torches, and Applejack's heart plummeted again as she saw a domino effect ripple through the crowd as it riled itself up, just as fervent as before.

"No, that's... that's not what ah meant..." Applejack said softly, but her words were drowned out by at least three different megaphone bearers as they cried havoc and let slip the ponies of war.

Almost all of it was noise, angry, but hesitant, not wanting to make the first move. A small stallion, probably only a teenager stormed at a guard on the left hand side of the barricade that had been set up to contain the protesters, a roll of paper in his hand. The guard mistook it for a club, and struck in self defense.

With a thud and cry of agony that seemed to echo around the whole city, the boy slumped over the sword, blood flowing freely down the impalement, dead. Silence once again descended, as the body slowly fell to the ground. And all hell broke loose.

The massive crowd split in four different directions, with the largest contingent surging straight for the wooden platform, and the smallest of about ten ponies were fleeing the way they came. Guards immediately began dragging Luna away from the scene, despite her protests, which left one pony between a bloodthirsty mob and their target, and who could that lucky pony be?

Applejack's whole body went slack as a wave of rage and weapons roared towards her, she particularly fixated on one mare, who was dressed like some sort of accountant. She wondered briefly what her story was. Why was she here? So hurt, so angry? There was no pity in the mare's eyes, not even a glint of remorse for the helpless pony that stood in her way.

She's got beautiful teeth, Applejack thought, before she was pummeled to the ground. Nopony actually hit her, that was something she noticed, most even did their best to avoid the fallen mare. To Applejack, it seemed as if she were submerged in a sea of thundering limbs, occasional flashes of blue sky pierced the dark and flailing tide. Distantly, almost as if she were merely imagining it, she heard the raspy voice of Rainbow Dash calling her name. An accidental kick to the rib cage punched the breath out of Applejack's lungs, and her head spun as two more landed on her shoulders and face. Applejack curled into the fetal position, and shrank to one basic instinct, survive.

Applejack woke slowly, her eyes blinked unfocused at a grey sky, as the world seemed to rock back and forth. No, someone was shaking her. What was that in the air? It smelled like smoke. She could hear crackling, and... something else...

"...jack, Applejack, AJ! Come on we gotta get out of here like yesterday!"

Applejack stared in confusion at the cerulean pegasus hunched over her, until it all came crashing back.

"Applejack! Oh Celestia, you're okay right? Oh man! I couldn't get to you fast enough before the- I tried to- I'm so sorry..." Rainbow cradled her friend in her arms, who gave a weak hug back in response.

"AJ! You're alive!" Rainbow's face exploded with relief and joy, and she hugged her companion even tighter, causing Applejack to wince as she pressed down on something that wold probably leave a nasty bruise.

"Yeah, I'm fine... did Luna..."

Rainbow nodded her head vigorously, "Yeah, she made it into the castle. But AJ... this place has gone insane! They're makin' battering rams right now to bring down the outer gates, and there aren't enough guards or soldiers left to detain them all. And there are... other things happening. Stuff that... that you can't unsee." Rainbow's eyes held a haunted look for a moment, before she shook her head, "But first things first, we need to get you out of her, back to Ponyville, and warn the other-"

"Well boys, what do we have here?" Slow, clanking steps sounded from behind Rainbow Dash, who jumped a bit, before whipping around, allowing Applejack a better view.

Advancing slowly across the grey cobbled square, was a gang of about eight ponies, each dressed in similar garb. Most wore boots, with long leather coats, and wicked smiles. The one who had spoken, and the leader by the look of him, wore a wide-brimmed stetson, and held a long brown pipe in his mouth. Each of the males carried professional equipment, meaning these were no desperate victims of the latest riot. Long chains with metal balls on either end wrapped around their waists, and each lugged some sort of quad-pronged harpoon launcher. They spread slowly in a semicircle around the two mares, pinning them against the front of a large marble building, some sort of museum it seemed.

Desperate, and recognizing an attack pattern when she saw one, Applejack cried out, "Now look here fella's, we ain't got no money, and we ain't got no jewelry, me and my friend here just want to move along, we ain't worth whatever trouble you're about to cause."

The crew of stallions grumbled to one another, their eyes still fixated on the two mares, until the leader snapped his fingers, and they went dead silent.

"No valuables you say?" His voice was gravelly, and had a drawl similar to Applejack's, but not quite the same. She was having a hard time making him out, but then she realized that it was because his skin was completely grey, the same shade as the sky, the same shade as the ground. He practically belonged here.

"That's right, sir, no valuables here."

"Well, shoot, that's too bad. But... hang on a minute now," Applejack quivered in fear as the menacing stallion took one or two steps closer, and Rainbow Dash hunched protectively over her injured friend.

"You two got good taste! Who made them clothes of yours, if I might ask?" The bandit's tone had completely changed, rather than intimidating, it sounded genuinely curious, even pleasant! Applejack was a little thrown off by the shift. She glanced at Rainbow Dash, who was wearing hand tailored jeans and a Wonderbolts t-shirt that Rarity had made in honor of Rainbow making the team. Applejack was wearing her usual red plaid shirt, but she had also gotten it from her friend as a birthday gift.

"Er, my friend Rarity, sir."

"Rarity.... Rarity, Rarity, Rarity... but surely not... the Rarity? The one who owns the Canterlot Carousel, that Rarity?"

"Oh, you know her," Applejack's mood brightened considerably, if this stallion knew her friend then he might let them-

"My, my. Original, unique clothing, designed and hand crafted by one of Canterlot's most famous tailors!" the stallion stalked forward another pace, looking both of them up and down with a strange glint in his eye, and leaned down on one knee, growling, "Sounds to me like you two got somethin' real valuable. Ain't that right boys?" The gang howled and shouted in agreement, one cocked his harpoon.

The grey stallion gave a rough chuckle, and said with dead seriousness, "Strip."

Rainbow Dash and Applejack's jaws dropped, and they looked at each other in disbelief.

"Come again?" Applejack said, desperately searching for an opening in the defensive ring they were trapped in.

"Well, here's the deal, we take anything value that you own, which we have already determined is your clothing, and you get to live. And we can't very well have your clothing, if you don't take 'em off. Strip. Now. Or my boys’ll happily strip you themselves" He made a hand gesture, and all of the stallions yelled in agreement, and leveled their harpoons at the two.

"W-wait! Please, my friend is hurt. Can... can't you please just let us go? Maybe, I don't know, rob us on the way out of the hospital?" Rainbow asked, not sounding overly hopeful.

The gang leader actually chuckled, and replied, "No can do sweet cheeks. Now, take it off, or your friends gonna' be more than injured."

With a gulp, Rainbow Dash looked at all of the weapons pointed at her, and sighed. She bent down to unlace her shoes first.

"AJ, you thinking you're strong enough for an airlift?" She whispered quietly.

"I'm thinking that even if I ain't, it's better than this," Applejack glanced at the harpoons, "but what if you get hurt?"

Rainbow smiled at her, "Oh, please, if I can't outrun a harpoon, then my name isn't Rainbow Dash, the fastest flier in all of-"

"Yeah, yeah, save it for later okay?" Rainbow blushed slightly, then grabbed Applejack's arm and bolted straight up, accelerating from 0-60 in about half a second. For a brief moment Applejack both lost her stomach, and saw out over the rooftops of Canterlot. It was horrible. Huge columns of smoke billowed from almost every section of the city, thousands of tiny shapes stormed up the streets to the gates of Canterlot Castle, where a huge shimmering blue dome of magic was assailed by armaments both physical and ethereal.

Behind Applejack, the was a loud SNAP and Rainbow Dash screamed in pain as they both plummeted from the sky. Applejack twisted around in mid-air to see that Rainbow's wings had been forced shut by the same long ball and chain contraption that she had seen around the gang's waists earlier. As she watched, she could actually see it tighten itself more around the poor pegasus's ribcage, crushing her wings against her body. As it did, runes glowed along both the ball and chain, a magic bola.

Sorry Rainbow, but even you can’t outrun magic, Applejack thought with a strange detachedness from the whole situation.

Applejack heard a THUNK, and her velocity abruptly switched from downwards to sideways, as a large net wrapped itself around her, automatically tightening. She slammed hard into the side of a building, and was almost knocked unconscious from the force. She saw that she was about ten feet off the ground, and that they hadn't even been able to clear the square before being captured.

Gently, her net detached itself from the building, and floated gently over to the waiting smirks of the bandits. She glanced to her left, and noticed that rainbow Dash was similarly bound, and looked dramatically less happy about it. Her cyan companion ranted and cursed at their captors, threatening to do horrible things to their mothers if they didn't let her go. When Applejack and Rainbow touched down, the leader paced towards Rainbow, laughing, "Well, this one's got some spirit, " and then in a darker tone, "can't wait to break it."

"Buck you, you assblasting piece of shi- MMMMFFM!" The bandit leader roughly shoved a strip of grey cloth into Rainbow's mouth, and held her down with his boot as he tied it around the back of her head.

"Hey! Don't you dare touch her! You lay finger on her, and you answer to me!" Applejack roared defiantly at the dark figure, who jut smiled and stood up, keeping Rainbow's face in the dirt as he pulled out a small purple pouch from one of his coat pockets.

"Oh don't worry, she won't be hurt. Well, not for long. You're going first," Applejack blanched and started to tremble as the entire gang rushed towards her, pinning her onto the ground, hollering and jeering eagerly.

"Hey, get off! W-What is it you think you're doin'?" Her chattering teeth betrayed her brave intentions, as the bandit leader gently stepped onto her stomach and said,

"Tell me, girl, have you ever had Dust?"

Applejack blinked, "Dust? What's... Dust?"

She flinched back as the stallions around her howled in excitement.

"A first timer, a damn hot one!"

"Can't believe we're that lucky!"

"One of the Elements of Harmony to boot!"

"What, what is it?" The stallion above her did not respond, but simply took out a spoon and dipped it into the bag, raising out many finely crushed red crystals. Applejack squirmed against both the net and the bandits around her as the leader slowly lowered the spoon to her face, and those who held her down chanted,

"Dust, Dust, Dust, Dust, Dust-"

KRAKOOOM!

A huge wave of rippling blood-red energy viciously blasted the gang around her, sending them flying backwards and sprawling them at varying distances all over the brickwork of the street. They all groaned and rolled around as Applejack silently wept tears of relief, and behold the most beautiful pony she'd ever seen.

He was tall, and dressed in a slim grey outfit that was dazzlingly sharp. His toned muscles rippled visibly through it as he stalked forward, power and certainty radiated from him like rays from the sun. She got the same feeling from watching him that she did Celestia, a sense of both the powerful need to obey the orders of an obvious superior, and a deep feeling of awe. His skin was a light black, or a deep grey depending on how you looked at it, and his magnificent wings, splayed heroically behind him, were beautiful to behold. His eyes and mane were deep red, as was the immense fiery glow that shrouded his horn. Applejack was instantly smitten, and her first thought was,

I really hope he likes farm girls.

With another blinding red pulse, the restraints binding Applejack and Rainbow Dash fell away, reduced to ash, even healing the bruises and fractured bones that Applejack was sure she'd had. A lavish carriage raced into the square, the puller of which, a hugely bulky blue earth pony, yelled, "Master, don't do that! We need to get you out of here! This city has gone mad!"

For a second Applejack was scared the heavenly alicorn would leave, but then he locked eyes with her and her heart melted.

Oh sweet merciful Celestia, we’re saved.

"There are ponies in need Jaw, I'm not about to abandon them," His voice was like melted chocolate, and Applejack instantly felt warm and hopeful just from hearing it.

He walked toward the fallen mares, picking them both up in a gentle aura of red magic as the gang behind them slowly regained consciousness, and said soothingly, "Everything will be alright, go wait in the carriage, while I deal with these thugs. You will never have to think of this day ever again. Go."

The leader of the gang growled, “Nightmare Moon will have your head for this!”

Applejack started as she heard that, So it’s true! What a foal I’ve been...

Her alicorn savoir snorted, “I doubt it,” and shielded the two mares with his wings as he released another wave of power, blasting the gang over like bowling pins.

“You two should go, after what you’ve been through, you shouldn’t half to see more of this,” the alicorn spoke softly.

He was so kind, so considerate, it made Applejack want to kiss him on the spot. And the fact that he was drop-dead gorgeous.

"Uhhhhh... thanks. I'm uhhh... I'll um... I'll go wait in the- in the carriage, yup," Applejack walked in shock next to Rainbow Dash, who hadn't said a word, to the extraordinarily nice carriage that waited for them.

THAT?! THAT WAS YOUR FIRST IMPRESSION? Stupid Applejack, stupid, stupid, stupid.... She and Rainbow climbed into the carriage, Rainbow violently slamming the door closed, and curling up into a ball in the corner of one of the plush seats, wiping away dirt and... were those tears? Applejack moved to comfort her friend, stroking her hair, and waiting for their gracious host to join them.

Kaiscillius smirked and Grey Shade and his gang, "Well done gentlemen."

Grey Shade, who had just picked himself up off the smoking ground, bowed, and said, "For you sir? Anything."

Kaiscillius hefted an enormous bag of bits, and tossed it one-handed to a henchmen, who caught it in both arms with a grunt.

"Um, sir, a favor? If I may have one?"

Kaiscillius raised an eyebrow, it was unusual for Grey to ask for favors, "And what might that be?"

"Well it's just er, that pegasus was really cute sir, and I'd- well, me and the boys you know, after you've broken her..."

Kaiscillius smiled at the weakness of ponies. It gave him hope.

"Of course, come to my estate in four hours time, and you and your men will receive proper entertainment."

The gang of thugs kneeled to him, and Grey said humbly, "Thank you, Your Majesty."

Kaiscillius teleported them all to a safe house he had arranged for them, and then turned back to his carriage, seeing straight through the camouflage of the golem pulling it.

“Status report?” He asked.

The golem bowed it’s head, “Confirmation of Thrassimund betrayal,”

“Called it.”

“Thrassimund warned Luna in advance that he was heading to Ponyville, though they were unclear why. Communications between Canterlot and Ponyville are down, as per your orders, it is unlikely he has heard the news of what occurred here today. Estimated arrival time in five hours. Celestia still out of commission. Distraction of the Crystal Empire using false changeling sightings successful. Project “Ultimatum” remains stable, though levels of playfulness have risen significantly since Zero Day. Castle shield strength at 82%. Guard to Rebel ratio somewhere around 1 to 100. Without intervention, the Castle will be taken in roughly 8 hours. This outcome is unlikely,” Kaiscillius climbed the stairs and opened the carriage door after the golem finished it’s report. It was nothing short of what he’d expected.

"To the manor," he said, stepping up into the carriage, seeing his orange prey look at him with unabashed adoration in her eyes.

I wonder how hard it'll be to get her to be honest with herself? He thought to himself with a mental chuckle, as the carriage pulled away.

Author's Note

100 years, Starlight and Trixie! This one was a doozy to write. For those of you who didn’t see the blog, I will be traveling a lot in the coming months, so updates may be delayed depending on when I have the time to work on them. Again, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, and don’t worry, the next one’ll be plenty of fun for you guys too.

Kaiscillius has played his hand, and his enemies reel from the blows he has dealt. But, a specter from his past has arisen, and the heroes have gained a powerful, and unlikely ally. But with two more of the Elements to stand trial by fu- er, fire before him, what hope could they have? Find out, next time.