My Little Pony/DC: Equestrian Heroes

Chapters

Chapter 1: The Blind Pony
Chapter 2: Revelations! Celestia and Luna's Origins
Chapter 3: Everything Changes Part 1: Void's Game
Chapter 4: Everything Changes Part 2: End of Harmony

Chapter 1: The Blind Pony

-Manehattan-

The ship slowed down before coming to a stop at the dock, the sailors quickly jumping down and tying ropes around the posts to make sure it wouldn't drift away. Once the stairs had been lowered, they all began to disembark.

Among the crowd strolled a rather large unicorn stallion. As he reached the street, many passerby couldn't help but look at him strangely, mainly because of how he looked.
Most of his body was concealed by a large white cloak, which concealed everything save for his head and his tail. His tail was pure white, like freshly fallen snow. His head, however, bore no mane. All they could see was his dark black coat, and the white cloth that covered his eyes.
His horn glowed, and from within his cloak he pulled out a long black and white cane. He then began walking down the street with it.

One little filly looked to her mother and asked "Mommy, why does that pony cover his eyes?"

The mother looked down to her daughter and replied "He's blind sweetie. He can't see."

"Oh."

The Stallion continued to walk down the street, before walking up to a passerby, a Earth Pony colt in his teens, and asked "Excuse me? Would you happen to know where one might find a good meal? The food on the ship was terrible."

The colt nodded. "Yeah, there's an inn just three blocks down. I can take you there if you'd like, Mister...?"

The stranger nodded, and then smiled. "Gray. Mister Gray will do."

A few minutes later, Mister Gray was sitting in a booth at a diner, enjoying a very nice Daisy-Lentil sandwich. After thanking the waitress, he overheard two other ponies having a conversation as they were walking out the door.
"Can't believe Queen Chrysalis tried taking Ponyville again."

"You'd think she'd have learned not to mess with them. I mean, they got the Elements of Harmony living there. You'd think they've have a sign there that said 'Don't mess with us.'"

That conversation definitely got his attention. As the waitress came back with his check, he asked "Miss, what would be the fastest way to get to... Oh, what was it called? Ponyville, I believe?"

She smiled, not that he saw it, and replied "The Ponyville Express. That's the train that always makes a stop there. You board that train and you should get there within a day."

He smiled, thanked her for the food, and proceeded to give her a very large tip. Afterwards he hailed a carriage and asked to be taken to the train station.
The Elements of Harmony. Time to see just who I'll be, dealing with.

-Ponyville: The Next Day-

"We need to set up some security measures around here."

Princess Twilight Sparkle sighed, slamming her head down onto the table. "I know, Applejack."

Applejack looked at her and continued "I get that you want to keep Ponyville all nice and welcoming, but this is the fifth time this month that we've had Changelings coming in and-"

"I GET IT!"

Applejack took a step back, a bit shocked at the outburst. Fluttershy then asked "Um, Twilight? Are you alright?"

Sighing, Twilight looked at the other five, shook her head and answered "No. Not at all. Aside from having to deal with the damages caused by yet another Changeling attack, this morning I had a meeting with two members of the Canterlot Magic Society to discuss the new curriculum at Celestia's School For Gifted Unicorns. After that I had lunch scheduled with Cheerilee to discuss some renovations to the Elementary school, which I had to miss because of the recently mentioned Changeling invasion. Because of this, I now have to meet with Moondance Enterprises to see about getting Changeling Detectors and Magic Shield generators placed around Ponyville and parts of the Everfree forest. A meeting which unfortunately guarantees that I won't be at your party, Pinkie Pie."

"WHAT" Pinkie Pie screamed. "But it's the party for the three year anniversary of you coming to Ponyville. Your the guest of honor! I can't have it without you!"

"Sorry Pinkie. But that night's the only slot they have available for the rest of the month. And Queen Chrysalis has made it clear she won't stop until Ponyville's either turned into a new hive or a smoking crater. The sooner we get those defenses up and running, the better." She sighed again before slumping in her chair. "And you know what the real kicker is?"

"Tomorrow's just going to be worse, isn't it" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Fifteen Canterlot nobles complaining to me about issues I really don't care about, more trade reports I have to sort through, that's all on top of having to help with any problems that occur in Ponyville or with its citizens. And of course, the Cutie Map will more than likely have some situation for us that will no doubt throw my packed schedule into disarray and cause me another headache."

Rarity looked at her with concern and asked "Twilight, darling, when was the last time you took a vacation?"

"Yeah" Pinkie added with her own concern. "Some personal time is just what you need."

"Tried that. Took a little trip to the Crystal Empire to visit Cadance and Shining Armor. Spent most of it playing with Flurry Heart while dodging my 'adoring fans'. When I finally got home the meetings and paperwork had tripled, which took me three months to fix." She groaned before slamming her head into the desk again. "The worst part out of all of this is that the only time I get to spend with your girls is during work or when we're trying not to get annihilated by Changelings, demons, or whatever else wants a piece of us."

Rainbow quickly flew to her and put a wing around her shoulders. "We get it Twi. It's not easy being a princess."

"Understatement of the century. I don't get how Princess Celestia, Luna, or Cadance deal with this."

"Well I can't say much for Celestia or Luna," Applejack stated "but I'm pretty sure Cadance was taught to deal with this stuff, wasn't she?"

"I wasn't! Celestia taught me all about magic. That's what I wanted to learn from her. I never asked-" A knock on the door was heard, interrupting her. "Come in."

Spike walked in, holding a familiar journal that was glowing and vibrating. "You got a message from Sunset Shimmer."

A magenta glow covered the book, before it floated in front of Twilight Sparkle's face and opened to the next page. "Let's see what she wrote.

'Dear Princess Twilight,
A lot has happened since we last wrote to each other. Things have been going fine with me and my friends, no magical weirdness to speak of. Just normal human stuff mostly.
Anyway, the reason I'm writing is because my friends and I graduated last week. I know, I didn't tell you when it was, but I figured you were so busy you wouldn't be able to make it. But that's not why I'm writing.
I'm writing because, well, I can't stay here anymore.
Principal Celestia informed me that since I don't have any sort of credentials or means of identification, I can't apply for a job or a college here in the human world. It would just raise all sorts of questions that I can't answer without revealing that I'm technically, at least according to the dictionary, an alien pony from another world.
So after a lot of thought, and many, MANY, tearful good-byes, I'm making my way to the portal, and I'm coming home.
Hope to see you soon.
Your friend,
Sunset Shimmer
P.S. Since I don't have my own place in Equestria, would you mind if I crash at your castle?"

Smiling, Twilight looked at the rest of them and said "Sunset Shimmer's coming back to Equestria." Then her eyes widened. "SUNSET SHIMMER'S COMING HERE!"

She looked to Spike, but he quickly held up his hand and cut her off. "The castle is clean as can be, the guest room is ready, and I already re-stocked the fridge. Relax."

"Well at the very least-"

"We wax the floor anymore and we'll be using it as an ice skating rink."

Twilight sighed, before wrapping her forelegs around Spike. "What would I do without you?"

"Would you like the list in alphabetical or by degree of severity?"[1]

There was another knock on the door, which Twilight used her magic to open, revealing Starlight Glimmer and Trixie Lulamoon. "Sorry to bother you, Twilight" Starlight said. "But, there's a strange unicorn standing in front of the castle."

"Strange how, darling" Rarity asked.

"Yeah, Ponyville ain't exactly shy of strange ponies" Applejack added with a chuckle.

"He's just standing outside of the castle, looking at the door" Trixie stated. "When we went out to ask him what he was doing, he asked to see, and I quote 'The Elements of Harmony.'"

"Uh, you sure he didn't mean the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony" Fluttershy asked. "Because, um, we're not the actual Elements."

"Yeah, we're not six powerful magic gems that can blast a giant rainbow" Pinkie added.

"I told him that" Starlight replied. "He apologized and then asked to see the six ponies who the Elements have bonded to."

Everypony looked at one another, and Rainbow finally said "Yeah, that's strange even for Ponyville."

Twilight looked out the window, to see their supposed visitor. Starlight came up next to her and said "White cloak. Black coat. Has a cloth around his eyes for some reason."

"Judging by that cane he's holding, he's blind" Twilight stated.

Everypony else soon came to the window to take a look. "Why would he wear that cloak in weather like this" Rarity asked.

"He's gotta be sweatin' like a pig" Applejack stated.

Rarity rolled her eyes. "Thank you for that, oh so pleasant imagery, Applejack."

"Girls," Twilight said "focus. It doesn't look he means us any harm."

"Yeah, but for all we know he could be another Changeling" Rainbow pointed out. "And even if he wasn't one, he could still be a threat."

Pinkie Pie laughed, and then said "Come on, Dashie. He can't be that threatening."

"Just because he's blind doesn't mean he's not a threat. Or am I the only pony who's watched Maredevil on Hoof-flix?" [2]

Closing her mouth, Pinkie stated "Fair point."

"That maybe true, but if he really wanted to harm us I don't think he'd be standing in front of the castle in broad daylight. Or would have talked to Starlight and asked to see us" Twilight added.

Everypony nodded at that. "Um, maybe we should just go talk to him" Fluttershy said.

Twilight thought about it for a sec, before saying "I guess it wouldn't hurt."

A few minutes later the six of them exited the castle, walking up to the strange pony. Twilight was the first to speak. "Hello there, my name is Twilight Sparkle, the-"

"The Element of Magic" the stallion said, interrupting her.

Before anypony else could speak, he then pointed to Rainbow Dash "Loyalty", Rarity "Generosity", Applejack "Honesty", Fluttershy "Kindness", and finally Pinkie Pie "Laughter."

This surprised everypony. Not the fact that he knew which element they represented (honestly considering the stained-glass walls in Canterlot castle, it was pretty much common knowledge.) But the fact that a blind pony was able to identify who they were, without even hearing their voices or having met them previously.
Finally, Rainbow Dash found her voice. "Okay pal, who are you and how do you know us? Last I checked, we never met."

The blind pony chuckled. "I know everything about each of you. I know, for example, that if it weren't for your Sonic Rainboom, none of you would have your Cutie Marks. I know that Twilight Sparkle became a Princess of Equestria after completing Starswirl the Bearded's unfinished spell. I also know that it was mostly because of Fluttershy's efforts that Discord was reformed. I also know that on 17th of every October, Applejack-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH" Applejack yelled. Everypony could see that she was visibly distressed, Rarity even noticing that there was a small tear coming from her eye.

He turned to her and said "Sorry. I've been told I'm a little, tactless, at times."

"How do you know all that stuff" Pinkie asked. "Like Rainbow said, we've never met. And no offense, but I think we would have noticed you if you'd been there."

"Yes. No offense sir, but you don't exactly blend into the background" Rarity added.

"So again," Rainbow said "who are you?"

The stallion chuckled, before saying "Let's just say; the Elements of Harmony are my past, present, and future. Though, you should probably ask Celestia and Luna."

He turned to leave, but then he added "I never gave you my name. Call me, Void."
And in a flash of gray light, he disappeared.

Author's Note

Hey guys, Equestrian Defender here with his first fanfic.
Or is it fimfic?

So anyway, Void (or Mister Gray) is an OC of mine who will be serving as the villain of this story. Who is he? What history does he have with Celestia and Luna? Why does he seem fixated on the Elements of Harmony?

Your questions will be answered... in the next few chapters. :rainbowlaugh: Ain't I a stinker?

This is Equestrian Defender, signing off.

[1] Seriously, I don't think Twilight would be the mare she is today if not for Spike. He's like the Alfred of this series.
[2] This is a reference to the AWESOME! Daredevil series on Netflix.
By the by, can we please get some more MLP Daredevil fics? Please?

Chapter 2: Revelations! Celestia and Luna's Origins

-Twilight's Castle-

The Mane Six walked into the castle, still thinking about what Void told them. "What did he mean about Celestia and Luna" Twilight asked. "And why did he say the Elements were his 'past, present, and future?'"

Rainbow Dash shrugged. "No clue."

Pinkie Pie asked "Maybe you should ask Princess Celestia?"

"She probably knows who he is" Fluttershy added.

As the four of them continued on, Rarity noticed Applejack staring off into space, her face having seemingly lost all expression. "Applejack, are you alright" she asked.

Blinking, Applejack looked at her and replied "I-I'm fine, Rarity."

"No offense, darling, but you never were a good liar."

"I'm still a better liar than Rainbow Dash" she muttered.

Rarity giggled. "Fair enough. But I know you well enough to know when you're not okay."

Applejack sighed, and then said "It's personal, Rarity."

Rarity knew better than to try and push it when she said that. If Applejack didn't want you to know something about her, she could be as tight-lipped as Pinkie Pie when she Pinkie-Promises to keep a secret. "Very well. But if you ever need somepony to talk to, my door is always open."

A small smirk appeared on her face, and she said "Thanks Rarity."

"Anytime."

A few minutes later the six of them walked into the throne room, to see Starlight, Spike, and Trixie talking to a unicorn mare with an amber coat, a red and gold mane and tail that looked like flames, and light green eyes. The mare looked at Starlight and said "So, Time Travel, huh? You run into another me while you did that?"

Starlight shook her head. "I didn't stick around much in any timeline. And to be honest, it was stupid of me to try it. Time Travel is like a house of cards. Mess something up, the whole thing comes down."

"Which you learned firsthand, Starlight" Twilight said, as she walked up to Sunset, eagerly wrapping her forelegs around her in a hug, which Sunset eagerly returned. "Good to see you again, Sunset."

They broke away, and Sunset smiled. "Good to see you too, Twi." She then looked to the other five and added "It's nice to meet you girls too. Especially since it's under much better circumstances."

"No hard feelings" Rainbow Dash said, putting a hoof on her shoulder.

Applejack nodded. "Twi said you changed and helped save that world."

"So obviously it means you're a good pony" Fluttershy added.

While the rest of them talked, Twilight walked over to Spike and said "Hey, could you please send a letter to the princess?"

Spike nodded, pulling out a paper and a quill. Once the message was written, he breathed green fire on it, sending it directly to Princess Celestia. "And now we just wait for me to cough up the reply" he muttered. "Seriously, is there any better way to get your mail?"

Ignoring him, Twilight looked to the rest of them and asked "So, did Spike show you to the guest room?"

Sunset nodded. "Yeah. Gotta admit, it's a lot nicer than my apartment in the human world."

"How did you pay for anything over there, darling" Rarity asked. "Or do they take bits over there as well?"

Chuckling, Sunset answered "No. See, when I left I had a bag of one thousand bits I saved up over the years. I found a pawn shop, and it turns out each single bit was worth about one hundred dollars, which is there currency."

Doing the math in her head, Twilight's jaw dropped. "That means that you had-"

"-about one hundred thousand when you left the pawn shop" Pinkie finished. Everypony looked at her and she said "What? The cakes get some pretty big orders from Canterlot (Mostly from Princess Celestia.) You don't last long in that place if you don't know your math."

Suddenly a golden glow appeared around Twilight, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Fluttershy. "What the-" Rainbow asked.

"I guess Princess Celestia wants to talk to us personally" Twilight said.

"You are taking this strangely calm" Applejack stated.

"Be her student for a few years, you get used to it." She then looked at Sunset and the others and said "See you when we get back."

And in a flash of gold light, they were gone.

After a few minutes, Sunset looked to Spike and asked "So, how're the Power Ponies nowadays? I used to read them all the time before I left."

"You missed out on the New 52" Spike grumbled. "Lucky for you."

"That bad?"

"Worse. Much worse."

-Canterlot: Celestia's Throne Room-

Twilight was the first to regain her bearings as her hooves touched the marble floor. She looked up to see her mentor, Princess Celestia, standing there with a look of concern. "Hello Princess Celestia" Twilight said. "What's going on?"

Celestia looked at the six of them with a look of grave importance. "We needed to talk as soon as possible. Especially because of who you just met."

Rarity looked at her with concern. "I'm taking it the stallion we met is not a nice pony?"

Shaking her head, Celestia replied "I hesitate to call him our enemy, but needless to say our history is very old. Only Tirek's is longer."

"Who is this guy" Rainbow asked.

"And how come he's got you so spooked" Applejack added.

"He's our brother."

All seven of them turned to see Princess Luna appearing in a flash of magic. She then added "But we haven't seen each other since Celestia and I banished him 2500 years ago."

"Banished him" Fluttershy asked. "B-but why?"

Celestia and Luna looked at each other, and simultaneously sighed. "Pull up a chair" Celestia muttered.

-A Chibi-Pinkie Pie appears, clears her throat, and in a deep booming voice says "TIME! FOR! BACKSTORY!"!-

"You once asked me, Twilight, why the sun and moon in the human world are able to raise and lower themselves, but they can't in this world. The truth is, I don't know the answer to that question. What I do know is that it is because of their inability to raise and lower themselves that Luna and I were brought into this world.

You see, Luna and I were not... born, as other ponies were. Before we took our roles as Princesses of the Sun and Moon, a group of fifty of the most powerful unicorns of the time were tasked with the job of raising and lowering the sun and the moon. This was not only to make sure the world would not freeze to death in eternal night, but also to make sure the land would not be burned to ashes in eternal day. [1]

'However, one day they found that it was getting harder to do so. Afraid that one day they might not be able to perform their task and Equestria would fall into chaos, they turned to Starswirl the Bearded. He realized that, something was changing within every unicorn, even himself. For some reason, their magic would no longer be able to control the celestial bodies. To save Equestria, they'd need something that was far stronger than an ordinary unicorn. It took several days, during which the unicorns turned their efforts to making sure Equestria stayed warm, but he finally found the answer.

Starswirl gathered the necessary ingredients to perform the spell: a goblet of blood from an earth pony (one who volunteered), the wing-feathers of a pegasus, a moonstone and a sunstone[2], and a crystal laden with unicorn magic. Specifically, it was his own magic.

And last but not least, he arranged the Elements of Harmony around the ingredients. He theorized that the Elements of Harmony would react with the moonstone and sunstone, and that whatever was created would have their magic synced to the sun and the moon.

So, he activated the ritual... and that's when Luna and I came into this world as foals. That's one of the reasons you never read in the history books about our parents. Because truthfully, Starswirl the Bearded is the closest thing Luna and I have to a parent.

However, Luna and I weren't the only ones the ritual created.

A third foal had been created by the ritual, an alicorn colt with dark black fur, and a mane and tail of purest white. And while Luna and I were synced to the moon and the sun, he wasn't. It was like the Elements of Harmony had just... What's the term you young ponies use today? AH! Glitched. The Elements of Harmony had just glitched, creating our brother.

We named him Eclipse. And for a time, we were the best of friends.

But something had always seemed, off about Eclipse. As we grew up he constantly studied Starswirl's notes on the Elements of Harmony, obsessed with finding out why they created him. We, Starswirl Luna and I, tried to convince him to stop, worried for him, but he wouldn't. And eventually, he found something. A reference in a book of ancient history, before Equestria was even formed. A reference to something known as The Light of Equestria, the source of all good magic in Equestria. And supposedly, it was linked to the Elements of Harmony. Thus he set out to find it.

He didn't find it. He found something much worse.

Twilight can easily tell you girls that for every positive, there is a negative. Eclipse had left searching for The Light of Equestria. What he found was its negative, the Darkness of Equestria. The source of all dark magic in Equestria, like the kind used by King Sombra.

When he came back home he was, different. He said that the Darkness of Equestria had shown him the truth.

The Light of Equestria and the Darkness of Equestria were locked in a never-ending war with one another. This created a shaky balance that could be easily swayed. Starswirl affirmed this by saying that if the Light won, Equestria would be purged of all chaos and dark magic. The problem is that as Discord once put it, chaos at its most basic is change. If the Light won, progress would come to a screeching halt, no pony would want to change anything, even themselves. You'd basically be living the same day over and over. In essence, Equestria would be plunged into a peaceful apathy that would last forever. On the other hoof, if the darkness won, well, you remember what Discord did to Ponyville.

But my brother had a different solution. Instead of allowing this war to continue forever, why not end it?

My brother suggested that by merging the Light and the Darkness together, they would be one and the same. No more conflict between light and darkness. Perfect balance. There would be peace, but just the perfect amount of chaos to ensure that the ponies of Equestria could still progress and change.

The problem with that is that Light Magic and Dark Magic are basically like Matter and Anti-Matter. If you try to force them together, they'll annihilate each other. And since both Light and Darkness are intrinsic with not only the planet but with all inhabitants of this world...

At best, the backlash from the spell could kill millions.

At worst, anywhere from half of the population to the entirety of the population of this planet would be obliterated. Assuming the planet itself wasn't destroyed.

So naturally we were all against it.

But Eclipse...

...he wouldn't listen. He was convinced he could create a perfect world. He said that millions may die but that millions more in the future would be spared. And that if we wouldn't go through with this, then we were a bunch of fools that were blind to the truth and that he would do it himself.

And thus we were forced to fight him.

One thing I forgot to mention was that Eclipse, while not connected to the sun or the moon, still had magical power equal to Luna and I. And honestly? Out of the three of us, he was the better fighter. Even with Starswirl helping the two of us, we fought him for three days and we couldn't defeat him.

Eventually we had to use the Elements of Harmony. And they worked... Sort of.

The magic from the Elements blinded him, and burned his wings off until there was nothing left but two burn marks on his back. He was severely weakened, barely able to stand.

But aside from the damage done to him, nothing had changed. He still believed that his plan could work, that he would make it work. Nothing we did would ever make him stop.

And from that moment on, Eclipse was dead. All that stood in his place, was Void."

-Present Day-

Celestia sighed. "After that, we banished him. And in two-and-a-half millenia, we haven't seen him or heard of him. If he is here now, then clearly we are in for dark days."

The Mane 6 didn't really know how to respond. On the one hoof, this wasn't the first time they'd been told of some ancient evil/ enemy of Equestria/ generic evil-doer that they'd have to fight.

On the other hoof, this wasn't just some villain. This was, for lack of a better term, an alicorn that fell to the dark side. But unlike when Princess Luna became Nightmare Moon, it didn't sound like the Elements of Harmony were going to change him back to good. Add in the fact that he was apparently stronger than Celestia, Luna, and Starswirl the Bearded combined, and it was clear that this battle would be far from easy.

Just then, a member of the Royal Guard burst through the doors. "Princess!"

Luna, Celestia, and Twilight looked at him and asked "Yes."

"It's Ponyville! It's... I can't describe it."

Everypony rushed to past the guard, desperate to see outside.

Once they did, their jaws dropped.

Five pillars made of what could only be described as black magic were now standing in different locations in Ponyville. Each one was roughly fifty feet tall, perfectly cylindrical, and gave everypony who looked at them a feeling of dread.

Rainbow Dash was the first to find her voice. "What in Tartarus are those?!"

-To Be Continued-

Author's Note

Bit of a long chapter, but that's because it mostly serves as an exposition dump.

Anyway, since I started making this a crossover with DC comics, Void actually will be this universe's version of a famous DC villain. Who would that be?
No spoilers, though you may get a hint in the next chapter.

[1]: Yeah, this is one of the reasons I think Nightmare Moon's idea of bringing eternal night to Equestria was kind of stupid. Eternal Night means no sunlight. Without sunlight, pretty much all plant life on Equestria will die. This means that all of their crops will die, while simultaneously the lack of trees will cause a massive shortage of oxygen that could very well make Equestria's atmosphere toxic. Meaning nopony could breathe it without dying.
So basically Nightmare Moon's plan to take over Equestria is an exercise in irony. She would rule Equestria, but give it a few years, maybe a few decades, and she'd be left with nothing to rule.

[2] I'm not sure if this is a thing in real life or not, but if it's not remember that this is a fictional story. Stuff gets made up all the time.

Chapter 3: Everything Changes Part 1: Void's Game

-Canterlot Castle-

Twilight conjured up a portal that showed images of where the black pillars were. "Applejack's house in Sweet Apple Acres. Rainbow's Cloud Home. Carousel Boutique. Zecora's Hut. And my castle" Twilight listed.

"Those are places the six of you spend a lot of time at" Luna noted. "It seems he did his research."

"So what are they" Applejack asked. "They sure don't look friendly."

"From what I can tell, they're magic" Celestia stated, her horn glowing as she scanned them. "Magic far darker than anything I've ever seen before. Not even the magic of Nightmare Moon or King Sombra was this dark."

Suddenly, the eight of them clutched their heads as immense pain shot through their heads. As the pain lessened, a familiar voice spoke to them. "Hello, my little ponies."

"Void" Celestia muttered. "How-?"

"I have learned much in my exile, dear sister. I have gained more power than you could possibly imagine. Such as being able to connect myself with several ponies at once over a great distance with telepathy. Don't worry, I can only do it once per pony."

"We know who you are, prick" Rainbow said aloud. "Your 'Perfect Equestria' doesn't seem worth it."

There was silence, before Void's voice answered. "An interesting fact, miss Dash. In Equestria, every 13 seconds a life ends. But every six seconds, a new life is born."

"What does that have to do with any of this" Rarity asked.

"This cycle has happened everyday since the dawn of existence. And yet the universe does not come to a screeching halt every time a pony dies, nor does it stop and go 'D'AW' when a new life is born. A million ponies may die when I merge the Light and the Darkness, but I consider it a worthy sacrifice to save millions of future generation from experiencing tyranny, madness, and chaos. No more Changeling Invasions, no more breakouts from Tartarus, no more-"

"We get it" Pinkie Pie. "Your whole spiel sounds like that guy in Pony Trek who says 'The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, or the needs of the one.' I hate that! If you ask me, if you can't save the one, you'll never save any."

"Regardless, much like my sisters and my mentor, the six of you are blind to the truth. My plan would purge Equestria of all evil. Good and Evil will have no place, for they shall be one and the same. And nothing, not even six mares who use the power of six magical gem to fight their battles for them, will stop me. If you intend to fight me, I will crush you like ants underneath my hoof."

"You monster" Fluttershy cried.

"That's how you see me. I see myself, as a visionary."

"So did King Sombra, Queen Chrysalis, Tirek, and Nightmare Moon" Twilight said. "Spoiler Alert: We stopped them. And we'll stop you too."

"I imagine you'll try" Void replied. "But I think you'll be a bit more preoccupied."

Images suddenly began to fly through their minds: Sweetie Belle, Applebloom, and Scootaloo tied together in the middle of Carousel Boutique. Trixie and Starlight hanging upside down from a bunch of balloons inside Rainbow's Cloud Home with magic suppressing rings around their horns. Big Macintosh and Granny Smith tied up inside the barn in Sweet Apple Acres. Zecora, and the foals Pumpkin Cake and Pound Cake tied up in Zecora's Hut. And lastly, Sunset Shimmer (also wearing a magic suppressing ring) and Spike tied to the Cutie Map in Twilight's Castle.

"In roughly ten minutes, my Black Pillars will activate. The magic they contain will shoot straight down where they stand, disintegrating everything underneath them. Including my hostages."

"YOU BASTARD" Applejack roared. "LET THEM GO!"

"Oh, don't fret. You can still free them in time. Or, you can attempt to stop me before I reach the Tree of Harmony."

"What do you intend to do with the Tree" Luna asked.

"I'll keep that to myself. Though, I commend you and Celestia. Placing a forcefield around the Tree of Harmony to prevent anypony save for the eight of you from getting to close. Not bad. Unfortunately, it won't stop me. None of you can."

And with that, the pain vanished as did his voice.

Celestia looked at everypony and said "Twilight, you and your friends go save the hostages. But hurry, I doubt Void was joking when he said what those pillars would do."

As the six of them got close together, Rarity asked "Wait, what do you intend to do?"

Celestia looked at Luna, who nodded. "We have a family reunion to attend."

"Good luck" Twilight said.

And with that, the six of them vanished in a purple light.

-Ponyville: Town Square-

As the six of them appeared, Twilight immediately issued their orders. "Rainbow, get to your house and get Trixie and Starlight."

Rainbow said "Got it" before shooting off in a rainbow streak.

"Pinkie, Fluttershy, you two know Everfree Forest better than anypony in town. Get Zecora and the Cake Twins."

The two of them nodded before running off towards the forest.

"Applejack-"

But Applejack had already left, heading off in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.

Twilight then looked to Rarity and finished "You get the Crusaders, I'll get Sunset and Spike."

Rarity nodded and replied "Good luck, darling" before running off.

-Rainbow's Cloud Home: 9 Minutes Until The Pillars Activate-

Rainbow flew straight to her cloud home, opening her door to see Trixie and Starlight. "Hey! You girls okay?"

They looked at her, and Starlight replied "No. Not really."

"Alright, let's get you out of-"

"DON'T TOUCH US!"

Confused, Rainbow asked "Why?"

Starlight motioned with her head up. Rainbow looked...

...and saw that balanced on top of the balloons was a bucket. And judging by the fumes she could see, it wasn't filled with anything good. Trixie said "It's acid. If these balloons, or us, are disturbed in any way, well..."

Rainbow cursed under her breath. "Should have known it wouldn't be that easy."

But fortunately... "I've got an idea. But you two gotta trust me."

-Sweet Apple Acres: 8 Minutes and 45 Seconds Left-

Applejack opened the door to the barn. "Granny! Big Mac! I'm-"

"STOP!"

Stopping, Applejack looked down at the ground inside the barn.

"You gotta be buckin' kidding."

Littered around the barn's floor were a series of bear traps, all of which were bolted to the ground. And were put so close together that there was barely any place she can stand.

Not helping matters was that Big Mac and Granny Smith were in the exact center of the barn. There was no way she could get to them from the barn's second story. Sadly, they were also too far away from the skylight they put in the roof (Don't ask, it was Pinkie's idea.)

But then Applejack noticed a few crates of apples loaded on a wagon nearby. Smiling, she said "Don't worry, y'all. I have a plan."

-Carousel Boutique: 8 Minutes 15 Seconds Left-

Rarity had already arrived at Carousel Boutique, and had found the Cutie Mark Crusaders...

...and found that they were wearing collars that would explode if they walked outside the building. Rarity quickly explained what was going on.

"So if we don't get out of here, we'll be vaporized" Scootaloo summed up. "And if we do get out of here, our heads explode."

"Sweet Celestia on a Pogo Stick" Applebloom muttered. "We're caught between a rock and a hard place."

Sweetie Belle looked at Rarity and asked "Can you get these off, sis?"

Taking a look at the locks on the collars, Rarity nodded. "I just need a paper clip."

-Zecora's Hut: 8 Minutes Left-

Much like the rest of them, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy found Zecora and the Cake Twins in a trap. Sort of.

Zecora and the twins were tied up in her hut, but the reason they couldn't leave was actually OUTSIDE Zecora's hut. That reason?

A large Timberwolf was standing in front of the hut, glaring at Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy.

"Um, Fluttershy" Pinkie whispered. "You think you can use your Stare on this guy?"

Fluttershy shook her head. "Timberwolves don't have brains like cockatrices or manticores. My Stare won't affect it."

"Oh great."

The Timberwolf then lowered itself and snarled at them.

"Oh, my" Fluttershy whispered.

-Twilight's Castle: 7 Minutes and 45 Seconds Left-

"HOW MANY FORCEFIELDS DID HE PUT AROUND YOU TWO?"

Twilight grumbled as she focused her magic on the massive bubble of transparent magic around the tied up Spike and Sunset Shimmer. The problem was that the bubble wasn't one magic forcefield; it was several. All of which were rotating in different directions, so it was getting hard to pinpoint a weak point to destroy them.

Sunset looked at her and shrugged the best she could with her bonds. "He didn't say. He just knocked us out, and when we came to, here we were."

"Don't worry, Sunset" Spike said. "Twilight does the impossible almost everyday. She can get us out."

Twilight smirked, her horn glowing. "Let's just hope I can do this within-" She looked at the clock. "7 Minutes and 30 seconds."

"I still can't believe Celestia and Luna have an evil brother" Sunset said. "It's... hard to believe."

"Yeah. Sure, Luna became Nightmare Moon, but the Elements of Harmony fixed that." Twilight then destroyed another force field. "But from what Celestia and Luna said, they used the Elements of Harmony were used on him, but they didn't fix him."

"Probably because he had good intentions." Seeing both Sunset's and Twilight's confused looks, Spike continued "Think about it like this. Nightmare Moon was going to bring Eternal Night, no doubt killing off all plant-life and eventually all ponies, simply because she was jealous of Celestia. Her intentions were petty, selfish, and would help a grand total of nopony. Tirek wanted to take over the world because... well, he's evil. Even Sunset, no offense-"

"None taken, Spike. I was a selfish bitch who wanted power I didn't earn but felt I deserved. The Elements of Harmony blasted me back to the light."

"Exactly. And I have no doubt that if you girls used the Elements of Harmony on Queen Chrysalis, she'd get the beatdown she so richly deserves and emerge reformed. But when Celestia and Luna used them on Void-"

"He was doing all of this because he wanted to create a perfect world. One where war, murder and large-scale chaos can never happen" Twilight finished.

"Yeah. Sure, the cost would be monstrous, but it would ensure that future generations wouldn't have to go through the same stuff they did. Keep in mind, BEFORE King Sombra went cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs, there were three wars that Equestria took part in.[1] It wouldn't surprise me if Eclipse served in one of them."

Twilight looked at Spike like he was crazy. "You're not-"

Spike shook his head. "Back then he had good intentions. Something's obviously changed in the two and a half millennia he was gone. He tied us up, put us in this situation where we can die, and said if you guys tried to stop him he'd kill you. Obviously he's changed. I say you and the girls kick his butt so hard he'll have to sit on his eyes."

Sunset chuckled at that, while Twilight smiled.

-Outside Rainbow's Cloud Home: 6 Minutes Left-

The plan was simple. But whether it would work or not was the question.

Rainbow was currently standing on a cloud a good distance away from her house. She was running the scenario through her head. This has to be perfect she told herself. Otherwise...

She didn't allow herself to finish that thought.

"Get ready girls" she shouted. "'Cause here I come."

And with that, she shot off towards her house like a bullet. The world seemed to blur past her, her eyes watering. She kept pushing herself faster and faster, a Mach Cone forming around her as she did.

And eventually, the cone disappeared and her speed suddenly doubled, accompanied by a massive rainbow shockwave as she performed the legendary Sonic Rainboom. She herself was now flying at speeds few pegasi could ever reach, her usual rainbow trail now seemingly glowing like neon.

She burst through the wall of her cloud house, grabbing Trixie and Starlight, and smashed through the other side of the house. For a split-second, she turned her head and saw the bucket off acid spill its contents over the floor, but not a drop landed on the three of them.

She kept flying for a few seconds before slowing and angling herself down towards the town. "Trixie, Starlight. You girls okay?"

Starlight nodded, out of breath. "Yeah. Though I'm more than likely going to throw up when we land."

Trixie's face was a very dark shade of green. "The Great and Powerful Trixie left her breakfast back in your home."

"T.M.I." Rainbow muttered as they landed.

-Sweet Apple Acres: 5 Minutes 30 Seconds Left-

SNAP! SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!

Looking over the barn, Applejack smiled.

All of the bear traps between the front door and Granny Smith were all closed shut, the remains of several hundred apples strewn among them. Now out of danger, Applejack carefully stepped around them, until she reached Granny and Big Mac. Undoing the ropes, she said "Let's get out of here."

Putting Granny onto his back, Big Mac asked "We're gonna need to rebuild the barn again, aren't we?"

"Eeyup."

-Carousel Boutique: 4 Minutes 45 Seconds Left-

Rarity bit on her tongue, focusing her magic as she carefully moved the paper clip within the lock on Sweetie Belle's collar. "Almost done, Sweetie."

And with an audible CLICK! the collar fell to the ground.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Sweetie smiled, hugged Rarity, and said "Thanks, Big Sis."

"You're quite welcome, Sweetie Bell. Now let's get out of here."

Applebloom and Scootaloo, who refused to leave until Sweetie Belle was saved, happily embraced her before running out the door. Sweetie Belle stopped at the door, however, and asked "Aren't you gonna save anything?"

Rarity shook her head. "No Sweetie."

"But, you're dresses-"

Placing a hoof on her shoulder, Rarity said "You are the only thing in this place that is important to me. I can make a beautiful dress any day of the month. But you are something I could never replace."

Sweetie sniffed, a little tear rolling from her eye. "O-okay."

"Now let's go, Sweetie."

-Zecora's Hut: 3 Minutes Left-

"D-did I ever mention? I-I-I really don't like T-Timberwolves."

Pinkie Pie nodded. "Yeah. Three times, counting this one."

Both of them were currently hiding in the tree branches above Zecora's hut, the Timberwolf directly underneath them, looking up and licking its lips.

"You'd think since it's made of plant matter it would be an herbivore" Fluttershy whimpered.

Pinkie Pie didn't respond, but held up a glass bottle that had a rag poking out of it. She then pulled out a cigarette lighter.

Seeing this, Fluttershy asked "Is that-"

Pinkie nodded. "Molotov Cocktail. I don't like using these, but we're running out of time."

"W-will it work?"

"The thing's made of wood. Last I checked, wood burns."

And with that, she lit the bottle and chucked it at the Timberwolf, nailing it on the snout. The bottle shattered, spilling alcohol that was quickly lit aflame, setting the Timberwolf's body ablaze. Roaring in pain and agony, the Timberwolf ran off, no doubt to find a source of water to quench the flames.

Pinkie and Fluttershy then rushed into Zecora's home, quickly untying them. Fluttershy carefully picked up the Cake Twins, softly whispering a lullaby to calm them down. Pinkie Pie untied Zecora, who smiled and hugged her. "It is good that you two arrived. I feared that the twins and I would have died."

Smiling, Pinkie replied "Hey, no friend gets left behind."

Zecora quickly grabbed a few mementos, some of her rarer ingredients, and a small wicker crate filled with several potions which Pinkie noticed were glowing. "What are those" Pinkie asked.

"Potions of the strongest kind; meant for body, soul and mind."

As they got outside, Zecora looked up and noticed the storm clouds rapidly covering the sky. She whispered to herself "This storm, it feels me with fear. Are bad times coming, or are they already here?"

-Twilight's Castle: 1 Minute 30 Seconds Left-

The last Force Field was proving to be the most challenging; it was incredibly dense, rotating at super-speed, and with a weak spot the size of a keyhole.

Finally, she managed to force her magic into the weak spot, shattering it. Wiping the sweat off her brow, she undid their bonds and said "There we go."

Sunset quickly reached under the Cutie Map with her magic and pulled out a large red backpack. "Don't wanna lose this" she said, smiling.

Deciding to ask why it was important later, Twilight wrapped her wings around the two of them and teleported them out of the castle.

-Outside Twilight's Castle: Less than 30 Seconds Left-

Everypony, save for Pinkie Pie's group, were waiting outside the castle. They were all keeping their distance from the castle, as well as the Black Pillar, which was starting to glow and crackle with red lightning.

Fortunately, in a flash of purple light; Twilight, Sunset, and Spike appeared in front of them.

And just in time, for at that moment all five of the Black Pillars fired off in perfect sync. All five of the locations: Carousel Boutique, Applejack's barn, Zecora's Hut, Rainbow's Cloud home, and Twilight's Castle were enveloped in massive beams of blood red magic. Everypony averted their eyes from the harsh glow, not daring to open their eyes until the glow died down.

Once the glow faded, they opened their eyes to reveal that Twilight's Castle was completely gone. All that was left to show that it had once been there was a large crater and a few scatter crystal fragments that had miraculously survived the blast. The Pillars, having served their purpose, simply faded away into nothingness, leaving no trace to their existence.

As soon as they were gone, Twilight asked "Is everypony alright?"

Almost all of them nodded, save for one. "Looks like we're going to need to find another place to live" Spike grumbled.

Twilight turned around, and saw the gigantic crater that used to be where her castle was. Nothing was left. Sighing, Twilight said "First the Golden Oaks Library. And now my castle. Did I miss a meeting or something?! WHAT IS IT WITH EVIL MONSTERS WANTING TO BLOW UP MY HOUSE?!"

Suddenly lightning crackled throughout the sky, accompanied by booming thunder. Piercing cold rain lashed out at the group of ponies, while the sudden wind whipped at them.

Rarity was the first to find her voice. "EVERYPONY INSIDE!"

Fortunately for them, they managed to get inside Town Hall, startling several ponies who had taken shelter inside. Though whether it was from the storm or the pillars, nopony knew.

Surprisingly, Mr. and Mrs. Cake were inside as well. Once they saw them, they rushed towards Twilight and began to bombard her with questions about their two foals, which Twilight barely managed to catch.

"Look, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy went after them" she replied, doing her best to reassure them. "They'll be fine."

Once they left to sit down, Rainbow quietly asked "Where are they, anyway? Shouldn't they have gotten here already?"

"There's a couple miles between Ponyville and Everfree, sugarcube" Applejack replied. "I'm sure they're fine."

"Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Zecora maybe. But what about the Cake Twins? And this storm out there isn't like anything I've ever felt before. It's... I don't know, but it doesn't feel normal."

The doors suddenly opened, and in walked a thoroughly soaked Fluttershy. Once she stepped into the building, she opened up her wings to reveal the two Cake Twins, smiling and perfectly dry. Their parents eagerly scooped them up, Mrs. Cake almost crying in joy at seeing them again.

Afterwards Zecora came in, shaking her mane out once she was out of the rain. Rainbow flew over to her and asked "Where's Pinkie Pie?"

Zecora looked at her and replied "I dropped my potions back at the brook. She went back to take a look."

All of a sudden the ground began to shake, causing everypony to either stumble or fall. Sunset looked out a nearby window, and saw a massive beam of rainbow light shooting into the heart of the storm. "Uh, Twilight" she asked, pointing towards the light. "Is that normal?"

Twilight shook her head. "No. Definitely not."

As the rainbow beam continued to shoot into the storm, lightning of various colors began to crackle across the sky. The sky seemed to ripple, like the sky were a lake and somepony had thrown a stone into it.

"GUYS!"

The Mane 6, Zecora, the Cake family, Sunset, Trixie, Starlight, and Spike all looked out the door to see Pinkie Pie.

Her entire body was shuddering and vibrating, going through the part of her Pinkie Sense that foretold that a "doozy" was coming. But that wasn't what caught their attention.

Apparently when Zecora dropped her potions, the containers either broke or lost their lids.

And as they watched, the spilled potions began to flow through the wicker crate, rising and mixing to form a massive floating blob in front of Pinkie Pie. Even the water from the puddles began to rise, and new raindrops seemed to just hang in the air, robbed of their own momentum. [2]

"W-what's going on" Fluttershy asked.

Twilight shook her head. "I have no idea."

And in that moment... Everything changed.

The sky erupted, unleashing a massive bolt of pink lightning at Ponyville.

It shot through the floating blob of mixed potions, sending the mixture all over Pinkie Pie's body...

...while the lightning bolt struck her.

For a single moment, she hung in midair. Suspended, her forelegs spread wide as if she were flying. If one were to look closely enough, they could see small sparks of pink lightning racing around her skin. [2]

And as she fell to the ground like a limp ragdoll, all that could be heard were the screams of her friends.

"PINKIE PIE!"

TO BE CONTINUED...

Author's Note

Wow. This chapter has at least 3,724 words. Then again a lot happened in this chapter, so I had to.

Anyway, what happened to cause that storm? What was that beam of rainbow light shooting into the sky and fusing with that strange storm?

All will be answered in Chapter 4: Everything Changes Part 2: End of Harmony.

[1]: Admittedly I'm not sure how accurate this is, but I know for a fact that Equestria isn't always in peace time. There's dragons, diamond dogs, and various other races that live in Equestria. It wouldn't surprise me if a few times they had some territory disputes or disagreements with their governments that have led to war.

[2]: Since this is a DC crossover, I'm pretty sure you guys can guess which hero Pinkie Pie will parallel.

Chapter 4: Everything Changes Part 2: End of Harmony

-Ponyville General: 2 Hours Later-

The rest of the Mane 6, Sunset, Starlight, Trixie and Zecora were all sitting down outside the Emergency Room of Ponyville General, anxiously waiting for the doctors and nurses to come out and deliver the news. All of them were praying to whatever deities were out there that Pinkie Pie would be alright.

Rainbow Dash was the most distraught, flying back and forth (the pegasus version of pacing), the worry almost permanently etched into her face.

Twilight finally asked "Rainbow, could you please-?"

"No, I can't calm down" she snapped. "How can I calm down when one of my best friends got dosed in a potions mixture while getting struck by lightning, and is currently getting looked over by doctors to see if she'll live?" She then looked right into Twilight's eyes and asked "How can I calm down when there's a chance that-"

"She'll be fine" Fluttershy cut in.

"Yeah, she's been through worse" Applejack added.

At that moment the doctor walked through the door, seeing the nine of them looking at him. He sighed and said "She's comatose. As far as we can tell she's stable, but..."

"But what" Sunset asked.

"Well, she IS breathing. But our monitors can't pick up her heart rate."

That got a collective "HUH?!" from the group, so the doctor led them into the room.

Pinkie Pie had been put in a hospital gown with one of the sheets thrown over her, her head the only thing they saw. A breathing mask had been placed over her muzzle, and they could tell from how the mask fogged that she was breathing.

But her heart monitor was showing a flat green line, which would only happen if the pony in question had passed on into the next life.

Applejack looked at the doctor and asked "You sure this fancy gizmo ain't busted?"

"That 'fancy gizmo' was installed a week ago, and it's been working fine since then."

Fluttershy immediately put her ear to Pinkie's chest. She then said "H-her heart is beating. B-but it's... abnormally fast."

"So, her heart is beating so fast that the monitor can't pick it up" Rarity stated. "Is such a thing even possible?"

Twilight looked at Pinkie, then to the others, and said "Honestly, after I went through the mirror to the Human World, impossible became a very loose term."

Zecora sighed and slumped against the wall. "This is all my fault."

Everypony immediately assured her it wasn't, that Pinkie Pie would have likely gone back regardless.

Rainbow was the first to ask an obvious question. "Why aren't you rhyming?"

Chuckling, Zecora replied "I like poetry. A bit too much if you ask my family. But that doesn't mean I always rhyme. Indeed, it's only half the time."

"And, she's back."

Twilight then looked at her and asked "What potions were in that crate?"

"Most were potions designed to enhance the body and the mind. I made them after Chrysalis swarmed Ponyville, in case we'd need an edge. But one potion, was the one you took when the Plundervines came."

"The one that let me see all the way back to when Celestia and Luna turned Discord to stone."

"Indeed. But... The strangest thing; when the bolt struck the potion, I swear parts of it started to glow."

That got everypony's attention. "I thought that potion could only glow and work it you added Alicorn magic to it" Applejack asked.

"That's true" Zecora replied. "Because only an alicorn could contain the necessary amount of magic to activate it. But that bolt of lightning did, so perhaps within it magic hid."

Twilight's face immediately turned white as a ghost. "Oh no" she muttered.

Being a former student of Princess Celestia, Sunset Shimmer came to the same conclusion. "Twilight, you don't really think-" Sunset began, only for Twilight to cut her off.

"Let's just wait until Princess Celestia and Princess Luna get back. Hopefully, they'll have the answers for what happened."

"Where are they anyway" Starlight asked.

As if to answer her question, a bright flash of golden light appeared before them, momentarily blinding them.

Once it died down, it revealed none other than a battered and bruised Princess Celestia...

...who was carrying the unconscious form of her sister, Princess Luna.

And to the shock and horror of all who saw, Princess Luna now bore two horrifying black burn marks where her wings were.

Or rather, where her wings USED to be.

Fortunately the doctor overcame his shock first, calling in a bunch of his coworkers. "Get her to the ER, stat! Lock down the entire wing, nopony allowed in except those who the Princess OKs is allowed."

Once she was wheeled away, Princess Celestia looked to Twilight. "Is everypony okay?"

Twilight briefly explained what happened, ending at what happened to Pinkie Pie. "That bolt of lightning contained magic equal to that of an Alicorn" she finished. "Otherwise the potion wouldn't have worked. The only thing I can think of that could possible cause that, along with the massive rainbow lightshow we had, could only suggest one thing." She then looked up at Celestia with a pleading look and whispered "Please, tell me it's not true."

For several moments, Celestia stood there, silent as the grave. Her face refused to reveal any emotion, until finally she spoke.

"The Tree of Harmony was destroyed."

The silence that permeated the room was as thick as a fog. Finally Twilight found her voice. "How" she asked.

Celestia sighed as she looked at the doors of the ER. "It seems our brother is far stronger than he was back then. We were outmatched, and he nearly killed Luna."

"And..." Rarity couldn't find the words to form the sentence.

"He didn't destroy it" Celestia said, looking down.

"Then who destroyed the tree" Rainbow asked.

Sighing, Celestia began "After you left, we teleported to the Cave..."

-Earlier that Day: Cave of the Tree of Harmony-

Celestia and Luna appeared outside of the cave in a flash of light. Luna looked to her sister and asked "Sister, why not teleport us straight inside?"

"For all we know, Void could have set up a trap that would activate if we teleported straight inside" Celestia replied. "Rushing into a situation headfirst-"

"-is rushing in brains last" Luna finished. "One of Starswirl's favorite sayings."

Nodding, Celestia led the way inside.

Once they were inside, they immediately found Void standing in front of the Tree of Harmony, gazing up at the crystal structure. Without turning around, he said "I knew you two would be the ones to face me." He turned around to face them, and began undoing the straps of his cloak. "Just as I planned."

"You truly have fallen, brother" Luna stated.

"This coming from the one who became a dark alicorn bent on bringing forth eternal night?"

Glaring, Celestia said "I had hoped you would have learned the error of your ways in 2500 years. It seems I was too optimistic."

Void chuckled. "No, you're just incredibly naïve. Glad to see some things haven't changed." His horn glowed black and his cloak floated off of him, revealing dark blue armor on his chest and shoulders, as well as armored greaves on all four legs. "But I have." His horn glowed, magic surrounding the blindfold around eye, as it began to rise from his face...

...and both of them could see that his eyes were now bright red within red, and seemed to glow with dark magic.

Both Luna and Celestia looked at each other with surprise. "What magic helped you see again" Celestia asked.

Void laughed, before replying with "The kind that allows me to do... THIS!"

And with that, beams of crimson energy shot out of his eyes towards them. Celestia immediately stepped in front of Luna, projecting a shield of golden magic. The beams struck the shield, which immediately cracked and shattered, though it served its purposed in stopping the beams. Void smirked and said "Dear sister, when was the last time you used your magic in a fight? You're clearly out of practice." He chuckled, then added "Then again, you never were much of a fight-."

His sentence was cut off by a blast of white magic slamming into his chest, not hurting him but interrupting his sentence. He looked to see Luna hovering in midair, her horn glowing. "And yet, you still seem to be quite the fighter, little Luna."

"I'm not little anymore, Void" Luna replied.

"True." Void smirked. "But still, even with both of you working together, you are no match for me. As it was then, so it is now. And this time, neither of you can use the Elements of Harmony."

"Be that as it may, we are still the Princesses of Equestria" Celestia stated, her voice unwavering. "It is our duty to protect all who call this place home from the dark, the chaotic, and the fallen."

"You can try. But in 2500 years, I have not been idle."

THWACK!

Before they could even react Void had somehow moved faster than either of them could track, and slammed his right hoof into Celestia's chest. The force of his punch was so hard that Celestia was knocked back to the far wall of the cave, slamming into it, hard. Void then shot a magic blast from his horn, which struck the ceiling and buried Celestia under some rather large boulders. Angered by this, Luna sent a magic blast at him that struck him hard on the chest. But to her shock, it did next to nothing. He simply smirked and sent a blast of black magic of her, which she dodged before shooting a flurry of blasts in retaliation. Void simply allowed them to strike him, again doing nothing. "Oh Luna, is that the best you have" he asked mockingly.

Luna glared and her horn glowed, and a magical aura surrounded the rocks and stalagmites on the ground. They then rose and surrounded Void, before slamming into him simultaneously...

...just as Luna unleashed a massive beam of magic the purest white. It slammed Void into the ground, kicking up a massive cloud of dust and a huge flash. Panting, Luna landed on the ground, never taking her eyes off the spot where Void had been standing. The dust cloud began to settle...

...and Void walked out of it without a single scratch. Even his armor didn't have a speck of dust on it. Luna was in shock at this. The only word she could utter was "How?"

Void suddenly appeared in front of her. "Because I have transcended the limits of mortal ponies." He then punched her in the face, knocking her to the ground, before lifting her up in a telekinetic grip. "In doing so, I was reborn, as a god." He then held up his right hoof, which began to glow black. "And none shall stand against god."

He pressed his glowing hoof on Luna's forehead, and immediately she screamed in pain, streams of white magic flowing into his hoof and his eyes glowing the same color. Luna tried to summon up the magic for a blast, but she quickly realized what he was doing. "My magic-!"

"-is now mine, dear sister" Void finished. "And I must say, the magic of the Moon? A little warmer than I imagined." He then looked at Luna's wings, and his mouth curled into a sadistic smile. "I don't believe you'll be needing these anymore." His eyes glowed, and twin beams shot from his eyes again. But somehow, they bent at perfect 90 degree angles and shot above Luna's head. They then moved, bending at curving, until they finally hit home.

As they struck the part where Luna's wings connected to her back the area was filled with a blinding blood-red glow; and all that could be heard were the horrendous, ear-splitting screams of Princess Luna.

Once it was done Void dropped the now wingless Luna to the ground, the remains of her wings nothing but ash around her. Void then turned to Celestia, who had dug herself out from the boulders just in time to see her little sister fall to the ground, and sneered. "A pity. But I suppose you can't make an omelet without breaking a few eggs."

Deep within Celestia, something snapped. Her eyes began glowing bright blue-white, while her body began to glow and overflow with golden light. The light began to grow so bright that Void found himself having to shield his eyes.

"VOOOOOIIIIDDDDDD!!!!!"

Before he could move he was immediately knocked off of his hooves by Celestia, who hit him with a high-speed flying tackle. She then followed up with a right hook across his face, followed by a left jab into the unarmored portion of his torso, right in his stomach. Her whole body glowed with magic and power, and Void could feel the strength and power behind each strike. "You've finally stopped holding back, sister" he commented. However with practiced ease he blocked her next punch with his hoof, before slamming his forehead into hers and stunning her. He then followed up by lifting her by her throat and socking her in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her, and throwing her to the ground.

Rising to her hooves Celestia growled and shot a powerful beam of golden magic, but again Void simply tanked it and emerged unscathed. But then she noticed he was smiling. "How can you smile" she asked.

Void's reply was simple. "Because, dear sister, I've just won."

Lines of red magic began appearing around the area, surrounding and then crawling up through the branches of the Tree of Harmony, surrounding the Elements themselves. Void smiled and asked "Did you really think I spent all my time simply discovering new magic to fight with? That I spent 2 and a half millennia ONLY training to beat you and Luna? In those years, I have studied the Tree of Harmony, the Elements, and the Light and Darkness of Equestria extensively." He smiled as the ground began to shake.

Two streams of magic began flowing into the tree; one was white and gold and the other was the darkest black. "What is this, Void" Celestia asked.

Void turned to look at the Tree, and replied "Making my vision of the future to a reality. The Tree of Harmony is now a magnet, drawing the Light and the Dark together. Soon enough the old world will die, and a new world of True Harmony shall be born."

The ground shaking began to grow into a full-on earthquake; outside the sky began to darken, with thunder and lightning striking through the sky. Knowing that if she didn't stop this that Equestria would be destroyed, Celestia realized there was only one thing to do. "Starswirl" she muttered under her breath. "Forgive me."

Focusing as much magic as she could into one attack, she fired it into the Tree, striking the Element of Magic dead-center. Seeing this, Void growled and asked "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"

"Stopping you, brother."

The cave lit up with rainbow light. And with arguably the loudest BOOM ever heard, the Tree of Harmony shattered, a massive column of rainbow light shooting up into the sky and merging with the storm. As Void watched as his masterpiece became a massive lightshow, Celestia charged.

And as Void turned to face her, Celestia struck with her right hoof, smashing him in the face and knocking him into the rainbow light. As the magic seemingly began to tear him apart, he bellowed "THIS IS NOT THE END, CELESTIA! I WILL RETURN! EVERYTHING YOU'VE BUILT WILL FALL! AND FROM IT'S ASHES, I SHALL BUILD A BETTER ONEEEEEE!!!!"

Finally, he disappeared, as did the rainbow light. All that was left were a few small shards of crystal, and the two princesses. The Tree, the Elements, it was all gone.

Slinging Luna over her shoulders and whispered "Please be alright, Luna."

And she teleported away...

-Present Time-

"...and here we are."

Nopony said anything for a long time. Finally, Fluttershy asked "So, what do we do now?"

Celestia sighed. "I... don't know."

Author's Note

Hey guys, sorry it took so long to get this chapter done. It's hard writing action scenes for Celestia and Luna is kinda hard since we don't see them fight that much. Save for Celestia getting curb-stomped by Queen Chrysalis.

Also, if you haven't figured it out yet by his use of the famous Omega Beams, my OC-Pony Void is this story's version of the greatest evil in the DC Universe: DARKSEID!

Now, some people may ask why I didn't use Tirek for this.
A) He's being used to portray another villain. Who? That's a secret.
B) He didn't really strike me as the same level of evil as Darkseid. Darkseid wants to conquer all that lives by using the Anti-Life equation to rid the universe of free will, using the equation to control the thoughts and emotions of all living things.
Tirek, on the other hoof, wanted to take over Equestria by absorbing all the magic in Equestria because... Ummm... :rainbowhuh:
Somebody want to explain that part to me? I didn't get it and I watched the episode.

Also, for all the talk about him, and as much as I like him and his design, at the end of the day he's just another monster.
Celestia built Tirek up as this ancient demon, this monster that could destroy all of Equestria, an apocalyptic juggernaut...!
And he was evenly matched by a newly minted Alicorn Princess who borrowed magic from three Alicorns with more experience, and was then defeated by six ponies using the power from the Equestrian version of the Infinity Stones.
IN TWO EPISODES.
Darkseid on the other hand?
He is the leader of the planet Apokolips. Has entire legions of monsters and alien horrors at his disposal. And while he rarely takes part in a battle, when he does he is a force to be reckoned with, able to stand against the entirety of the Justice League and bring Kryptonians like Superman to their knees.
Villains claim to be gods, but usually fall flat in the long run. Darkseid, he can back up those claims.
That being said, he's not invincible. Which is why in the final part of their fight Celestia managed to get the drop on him.

Void's powers and abilities are mostly the same as Darkseid's, as I was constantly checking the Wikipedia page for Darkseid while writing this. Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darkseid