Smoke on the Horizon

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3

Chapter 1

The flames out shine the moon, and the smoke blots out the sun.
I guess its time for war.
-Journal of Style Wenz, Vice-Captain of the Royal Military

Rainbow Dash was awoken by a loud knocking. She groaned as she sat up in her cloud bed, stretching her wings as she did so. The cyan-colored pegasus was brushing her rainbow mane out of her eyes when she heard the knocking again. She crawled out of bed and slowly made her way to her front door. Upon opening it she saw a gray pegasus with golden eyes and a mail bag standing outside. The gray pegasus dug around in her bag a minute and pulled out a few letters and a newspaper and handed them to Rainbow Dash.

“Here you go Dash!” she said with a smile.

Rainbow accepted the mail with a yawn. “Thanks Derpy,” she mumbled.

“No problem, Rainbow Dash, see ya tomorrow!” the pegasus called, as she flew off to make more deliveries. Rainbow sighed, Derpy was responsible for more of her early mornings than any other pony, and she wasn't sure if she should be grateful or annoyed at her for constantly interrupting her sleep. She quickly forgot about Derpy though, as she dug through her mail. Most of it turned out to be junk and Rainbow Dash simply tossed it aside before looking through her newspaper. It was her weekly issue of Ponyville Gazette and the headline was about some mysterious fires that had been sprouting up all over Equestria. Rainbow Dash sighed and set the paper on her kitchen table. That's all anypony has been talking about lately, she thought. The talk of the town for the last few weeks was nothing but how random fires had been sprouting up in Manehattan, Las Pegasus, and Fillydelphia. Some ponies believed it to be a serial arsonist; while others, like Rainbow, thought the fires were simply a coincidence. The pegasi weather teams had scheduled a hot summer and thus far they managed to deliver.

Rainbow Dash looked at the clock and decided she had enough time to take a shower before heading to Rarity's fashion boutique. Somehow, the week before, the fashonista pony had managed to convince her to be a form for one of her dresses. Rainbow sighed again; she did not like the thought of being stuck in a fancy dress for hours on end. Rainbow took a quick shower and scarfed down some breakfast before taking flight out her front door. This is what I live for, she thought to herself. She angled upwards and began to climb. She kept climbing until her wings felt like they would tear themselves off. Then she tucked them in to her sides and simply fell. She closed her eyes against the wind, and, acting on instinct, she plummeted towards the ground. At the last moment she flared her wings out to catch the air and level herself off, coming within inches of crashing into the ground. Using her momentum she lifted into several corkscrews and loops. Her speed finally spent, and her wings appropriately stretched, she looked around until she found the right size cloud and alighted upon it.

Looking out from her cloud she could see most of Ponyville. She quickly spotted the Cakes' bakery, where her friend Pinkie Pie lived and worked. She saw the tree her friend Twilight Sparkle lived in, which also doubled as the Ponyville public library. Far off in the distance she could barely make out Sweet Apple Acres, the apple farm where Applejack and her family lived. Looking out over the town she quickly spotted the building she was looking for: the Carousel Boutique. It was the fanciest building in town, with all the designer dresses and outfits in the windows. It also happened to be the same place Rarity lived and worked. For the third time that day, Rainbow Dash sighed. Well, she thought, Might as well go and get this over with. She launched herself off the cloud and took off like a rocket towards the boutique.

Once Rainbow landed she went into the boutique, careful to not knock over any of the fancily dressed mannequins all around the store. Not seeing Rarity in front, Rainbow wandered into the back where Rarity's “inspiration room” was. How anypony could work back there was a complete mystery. Bits of cloth and thread were scattered everywhere, as were, what appeared to be rejected and half-finished dress designs. It was such a stark contrast to the neat and proper pony Rarity appeared to be, and it always took Rainbow by surprise. Rainbow scanned the room and finally spotted the purple-maned unicorn working furiously at her cluttered desk. Rainbow tried to quietly walk in but she tripped over some cloth on the floor sending her crashing to the floor. The crashing sound caused Rarity stop and turn around, a look of surprise on her face.

“Rainbow, darling! I'm sorry I didn't hear you come in! I just had to put the finishing touches on several of my latest designs.”

“No problem. You know if this is a bad time I can come back later,” Rainbow replied casually.

“Oh no no no no no darling! This is the perfect time! With these designs finished I can focus entirely on fitting this dress.”

Rainbow rolled her eyes, “Great.”

Rarity went and donned her red framed glasses and, using her magic to levitated some cloth and sewing equipment. “Now Rainbow my dear, would you kindly step into my office?”

Several hours later Rainbow Dash staggered out of Carousel Boutique, her legs stiff from having stood still for so long. As she wandered into the center of town she heard a familiar voice behind her.

“Well, howdy there sugarcube.”

Rainbow turned around as an orange earth pony with a blond mane walking towards her. She carried a set of plain saddlebags and was wearing a rather worn Stetson hat.

“Hey Applejack. What are you doing here?”

“Nothin' really,” Applejack replied casually. “Ah was just pickin' some stuff up for supper. Granny Smith ran out of her special spices, so Ah had to come pick some up. What have you been up to?”

“I was roped into helping Rarity all afternoon, so you obviously know how that went,” Rainbow sighed. “The annoying part is I don't even know how she managed to convince me to help.”

Applejack chuckled, “Yeah, Ah know what'chya mean. Ah've had to help out once or twice. Ah know exactly how fussy she

can be. Hey I was going to drop by Twilight's after Ah was done here. Do ya want to come with?”

“I guess. I haven't seen her around lately. Is she still working on that project for the Princess?”

“Yeah, she is.” Applejack said, with a touch of concern in her voice. “When Ah saw Spike last, he tol' me a little bit of- why speak of the critter, there he is.” Rainbow glanced over to where Applejack was looking and sure enough, there was the little purple and green dragon. He was carrying a large bag of groceries over his shoulder, and seemed rather pleased with himself. “Howdy there sugarcube,” Applejack yelled. Spike turned, spotting Rainbow and Applejack, and waved.

“Hey guys. What are you doing here?”

Rainbow shrugged, “Nothing really, we were planning on visiting Twilight's later.”

“That's a really good idea.” Spike sighed. “She's been so into her project lately, she hasn't hardly slept, let alone left the house. It's almost like we're back in Canterlot again.”

“Well shoot. Ah guess we'll have to head over there right now. Hop on.”

Spike climbed onto Applejack's back and they started walking to the library. “So Spike, could ya tell us what Twilight's been working on so hard lately?” asked Rainbow.

“I guess so. Most of the stuff is secret to the public, what with it being an open investigation and everything,” Spike looked around then leaned in close between the two walking ponies and spoke in a hushed tone. “But I can tell you this: it's about

the fire itself. There's something strange with it.” Rainbow and Applejack looked at each other in confusion.

“What do you mean there's something weird with the fire? I thought the fires were just random occurrences, thanks to, you know, this heat wave.”

Spike just shrugged, “I don't know the specifics, just that the samples we were sent are really hard to put out. Once one of the samples fell onto one of the books Twilight was reading. It took soaking the whole thing in the tub to put it out.”

“Ah still don't see why Twilight's involved. Don't most of that investigatin' stuff need to be done by professionals?” asked Applejack.

Spike nodded. “It usually does. But everypony on the investigation is stumped on what caused the fire. If they can't determine the cause then they can't go anywhere. So they asked Princess Celestia for help and she asked Twilight. Said it was good magic training or something like that.”

“Well, that would explain why she's shut herself up. She doesn't want to disappoint the Princess. That still doesn't explain anything about the fire though.”

Spike glanced over at Rainbow, “Like I said it’s not normal fire. I can't really tell you anything more. Twilight's the one who's been experimenting with the fire samples. If you want to know more you'll have to ask her.”

“We better hurry up then.” Rainbow stopped walking and stretched her wings. “Race you there!” Suddenly she took off like a rocket into the air towards the library.

“Hey!” shouted Applejack in surprise as she started running after her friend, Spike clinging for life as she did so. “Darn pegasus. Always in a hurry.”

Twilight was sitting alone in the middle of the library's basement surrounded by several towering stacks of books. While this in itself wasn't a strange occurrence, the weird part was that the lavender unicorn was also working at a table with strange equipment covered in dials and tubes with several jars of magically sealed fire sitting next to them. The entire room was filled with strange machinery and science equipment. It looked less like a basement and more like a mad science lab. Twilight was furiously scribbling notes on one of the books when she groaned. This was the fifth book she'd gone through today that said the same thing: nothing at all. She was growing rather frustrated on the lack of progress. Princess Celestia had given her the task of determining the origin of the fire a little over a week ago and she still was no closer to finding it. She'd read and re-read all of the books around her and none of them held any clue as to what she was looking for.

Right now the only thing she knew for sure was that the fire was magical, meaning whomever caused it was committing arson, but none of the books she had were any help in finding the source at all though. They all described ways of using magic to track the spell that caused it, or at least determine what kind of fire spell it was. Twilight was shocked when she started reading at how many different fire spells there were. Spells all the way from lighting candles to burning down whole forests, but none of them were the right one. Anytime she tried to use magic to influence the samples they seemed to just devour it. Not only did this make it impossible to do a reading, according to her books, this type of flame shouldn't exist at all! There wasn't a record of any such fire spell on record in any of the books, even the ones she sent for from the Royal Library.

Twilight groaned again and set her head on the table. At this rate she'll have to send the Princess a letter telling her about her failure. She just hoped Spike would be home soon with some food. In her haste to get back to work she skipped breakfast and completely forgot about lunch. Once he got back she'd get something to eat and have him send Princess Celestia her report. She still didn't get how the fire he breathed didn't just destroy the letter instead of sending it to his desired recipient.

There must be some special magic involved, she thought, Wait a minute! She leaned up from the table. It can't be that obvious, can it?

She managed to push her way between two of the book towers without knocking either of them over as she made her way upstairs to one of the bookshelves. “Now where is it?” she murmured to herself. Suddenly she spotted what she was looking for. Channeling her magic through her horn she tried to pull the book of the shelf but it was stuck. With a grunt she managed to pull the book off the shelf and down to eye level. It was coated in a thin layer of dust and the pages kind of stuck together. She could barely read the faded title, Other Races Magic and You. Twilight quickly flipped through the book until she got to the section she was looking for. As she flipped through the book, she quickly grew both equally excited and confused at the same time. She'd found the source of the fire, but there's no way that it could have been the source, not in the middle of a crowded city. Suddenly, she was shaken out of her stupor by a loud knock on the door.

“Sorry!” she called out. “The library's closed today. You'll have to come back tomorrow.”

She was answered by more knocking, this time much louder and more insistent. Twilight started towards the door. “I'm sure whatever you need ca-” she was interrupted as the door was smashed open and three tall, cloaked ponies walked in.

Twilight immediately readied her magic, causing her horn to emit a purple aura. She looked at each figure quickly trying to figure out which one she could defeat first before the others got to her. Each of the ponies was wearing a black cloak that completely covered them from head to cutie mark. The biggest one, while being a unicorn, was wearing a black mask that looked like a dragon's face. When Twilight looked at the other two she saw they were also wearing dragon masks, only theirs were colored red and blue. The unicorn turned to the red masked pony who was trying to prop the door back up.

“Really? Was destroying the door necessary?” he said. Not even waiting for a reply he looked towards Twilight.

“You should put that magic away so we can have a nice chat.”

Twilight's horn grew brighter, “And what if I don't?”

The stallion looked at her in amusement, “Then I'm afraid we'd have to get a little... rough. I'm sure neither of us wants that. Besides, if all goes well, I'm just here to talk. Here, I'll even fix my foolish associate's mess.” His horn glowed a dark black as he focused his magic. The door slowly shifted and melded itself back together and was righted on its hinges. “There all better. Will you be civil now?”

Twilight slowly released the magic she'd been holding onto. “Alright fine,” she replied cautiously. “What do you want? And why did you break into my home and the public library.”

The masked unicorn chuckled, “My companion here got a little overzealous in his knocking. He does not really know the meaning of the word subtlety.”

“But boss, you said we had to speak with her immediately,” the red-masked pony whined.

“And you think destroying her door is the best way to introduce ourselves?” he asked angrily. “When we're through here, we are going to have a little conversation about thinking before acting.”

“You still haven't answered my question what do you want and why are you wearing masks?”

The unicorn stallion cleared his throat, “We want you to join us. We serve a master far superior to the current fools that call themselves nobility. You're a smart, powerful unicorn and you're exceptionally close to the princesses. Having you as a part of our group would make a lot of ponies really happy. Of course, joining our group does come with some benefits. He'd not expect something for nothing. You've been studying that fire for some time now, and I'd wager a guess that you've figured out what caused it. If you haven't, then look no further, for it was us.”

Twilight's eyes widened in shock, “How could you have caused those fires? That's impossible!”

He let out a blood chilling laugh that caused everypony to shift uncomfortably.

“Impossible you say? When you serve the true ruler of Equestria, nothing is impossible! His power dwarfs that of the false Princess Celestia and even surpasses that of the fool Discord. When he returns to power, he shall show the whole of Equestria his might and shall take all that is owed him.”

Twilight sat in a stunned silence. What this masked unicorn was suggesting was ludicrous. Nopony was more powerful than Celestia, let alone Discord. And when he rises again? From the sounds of it all of Equestria would suffer.

“You think I would betray the princess? Why would I or anypony for that matter want to overthrow Princess Celestia? She's been a good ruler and I would give my life to help her.”

“Are you sure?” asked the masked stallion. “This is a once in a lifetime offer- a chance to aid in the release of Equestria's true master. Turning us down will have dire consequences.”

“I am sure I will never join your group. That you would even think I would turn against my teacher is, quite frankly, insulting,” Twilight said adamantly.

The masked unicorn looked down dejectedly, “Alright. If you feel that strongly about it, then I guess I have no choice. I had hoped it wouldn't come to this, but you know too much.” His horn glowed black and he launched several bolts of magic at Twilight. She had expected this and quickly ducked off to the side barely dodging the missiles. She hastily launched a blast of magic towards the cloaked ponies but it was deflected by a black barrier.

Twilight threw up a barrier in front of herself to deflect any magic sent her way. The unicorn stallion obliged her by hurling a few bolts her way. The impact was impossibly strong, causing Twilight to wince with every impact. The red masked stallion was moving after the second spell barrage, covering the distance between them faster than Twilight thought possible. He ducked alongside the barrier and tackled Twilight, pinning her to the ground. She managed to get her back legs under the stallion and kick him in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. He fell to the side gasping for breath as Twilight rolled to her feet.

She was then blasted off her hooves and into the basement by a wave of force from the masked unicorn. As she crashed into the floor she felt one of her ribs crack. She struggled to get to her feet as the cloaked ponies calmly walked down the stairs to join her. The masked unicorn looked around a little taken aback by all the strange equipment.

“Well well, this is quite the lab we have going on here. It's a shame really, to have to demolish all this fancy looking equipment.”

The black-masked unicorn laughed, sending chills down Twilight's spine, his horn emitting a black aura. Twilight fired another bolt only to have it blocked by a black barrier. She jumped to the side to dodge the inevitable counterattack and smashed right into a barrier. She finally noticed the barrier wasn't surrounding the cloaked ponies, but was around her instead.

“What is this!” she cried in surprise.

“Why Twilight Sparkle my dear, it is but a simple barrier spell. The only difference is it keeps things out, things like air. I give you about another minute before you run out.”

Twilight fought the urge to panic, which would speed up her breathing, expending her dwindling air supply faster. She delved deep into her spell list and found just one spell that could help her. Unfortunately, it cost a lot of magic, and she would most likely be defenseless after casting it. Well, here goes everything, she thought to herself. She gritted her teeth and focused on her spell, drawing as much magic as she could muster, the thinning air causing her to feel light-headed. She kept focusing magic into her horn, drawing on reserves she didn't even know she had, until she thought it would burst. When she couldn't hold on any longer, she let the magic loose right into the barrier. The cloaked ponies' eyes widened in surprise as the beam kept flowing into the barrier, the stallion's horn growing brighter and brighter with each second. Twilight kept pushing magic into the barrier, her lungs feeling like they were going to collapse.

There was a huge flash and the barrier disappeared and Twilight greedily gulped air. The magic she spent suddenly took its toll on her body causing her to almost collapse. It was all she had just to keep standing. The masked unicorn looked at Twilight with something almost akin to respect.

“Well, that was impressive. You used a magic transference spell to overload my barrier. Well done. That was some pretty high level magic, why if I hadn't severed my connection with the barrier my horn might have been blown off.”

Twilight tiredly smiled, “You can't blame a mare for trying.”

“Yes well,” the stallion coughed. “That spell had to take a lot of energy. From the looks of you, it required more than you thought. Such a shame really, I was actually looking forward to a bit of a fight.”

His horn glowed as Twilight was lifted into the air. She tried to struggle, but the massive release of energy and the long nights without sleep left her too tired to do anything more than helplessly flail. When Twilight's eyes met the blue-masked pony's, she could see real pity in the gaze.

“If you ever see the princess again, tell her the true Lord of Flame shall rise again.” Then the stallion threw her into some machinery and all she saw was black.

The red masked pony walked over to Twilight's still form. “Hey boss, she's still breathing. You want me to finish her off?” he asked, pulling a wicked looking knife from his cloak.

The black masked unicorn sighed, “Put the knife away. If you kill her like that there will be another investigation. The last thing we want now is to attract even more attention to ourselves.” The red masked pony moaned as he returned the knife to its hiding place.

“We need it to look like an accident and here one is.” He levitated one of the flasks of fire off of the desk and carried it upstairs in front of himself while the two ponies followed. “Fire is such a dangerous thing,” The stallion said staring into the bottled flame. He watched the small flame dance and flicker, always burning despite not having a fuel source. “You know, inexperienced mares shouldn't play with things like this. They could get hurt.”

The stallion turned and hurled the flask into one of the several bookshelves, smashing it to pieces. The magic fire, finally having a fuel source quickly, spread to the bed and walls burning quickly across bookshelf after bookshelf.

“All right it’s time to leave.”

There was a bright flash as three ponies were magically teleported from the room, leaving the unconscious mare to her grisly fate.

Chapter 2

Nothing is sweeter than forcing the dragons out of the sky.
That's the last time they'll underestimate the Pegasi Shock Troops.

-Journal of Style Wenz, Vice-Captain of the Royal Military

Applejack had finally convinced Rainbow to walk when they spotted a familiar pink pony bouncing down the street towards them. When she saw them and she bounced over even faster.

“Heya guys! I didn't expect to see you here!” the pink pony said cheerfully.

“Oh hey Pinkie Pie. We didn't expect to see you here either,” Rainbow replied casually. “We were just on our way to see Twilight, would you like to join us?”

“Of course I would! She's been cooped up so long she might think she's a chicken!” Applejack and Spike snorted at Pinkie's pun while Rainbow just shook her head. Pinkie suddenly gasped, “We could throw a party! I just have to drop by Sugarcube corner and grab my party cannon and we cou-”

“Whoa there ,” Applejack interjected. “Don' forget know that Twilight is still in the middle of her investigation. If you try an' do somethin' like a party it could really mess everythin' up.”

Pinkie seemed to deflate a little at the idea of not having a party. “Alright. No party this time. But when she's done, I'm going to throw the biggest party ever!” Pinkie Pie suddenly stopped walking clutching at her knee in pain. Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Spike all looked at each other in confusion. Their confusion only grew as her tail grew completely straight and she started coughing over and over.

“What in tarnation was that?”

“Oh, that was my Pinkie-sense. It was also a combo-,” she stifled a cough. “I haven't felt before, so give me a moment to think on it.”

Now Rainbow was concerned. If Pinkie had to actually think about what her Pinkie-sense was telling her, there's no way it could be good. One glance towards Applejack and she could tell she was thinking the same thing.

“Well, the pinchy knee means big trouble. But what did coughing and a stiff tail mean again?” Pinkie sat down and put a hoof to her chin in thought. Rainbow turned and looked towards the library and noticed a strange cloud. It was black and rising from where the library was. Then she realized that it was no cloud.

“Hey Pinkie,” Rainbow said apprehensively. “Could it mean a fire?”

Pinkie hopped up and clapped her hooves, “That's it! It meant fire. It's been a while since I've felt that one. Last time was when I left the oven on and there was a ...” she tapered off as she looked to where Rainbow was looking. Applejack looked over and saw the smoke and immediately recognized it.

“Oh no,” Applejack whispered. Rainbow Dash immediately took off once again at top speed towards the library, leaving a multicolor streak in the air as she flew. Pinkie Pie and Applejack took off running towards their friend's abode, Spike clinging to Applejack for dear life.

When Rainbow reached the library she was welcomed by the sight of smoke and flames billowing out the windows, like dark, angry clouds. There was a small crowd gathered around watching in apprehension. Rainbow quickly looked through the crowd to try and spot Twilight amongst them. Her fears were confirmed when she did not see her anywhere.

“Hey! Has anypony seen Twilight?” she called out to the growing mass.

There was a general murmuring among them but nopony spoke up, causing Rainbow's stomach to plummet. Rainbow had just landed when her friends finally came running up.

“What- what's happenin' Rainbow?” Applejack said gasping for air.

“Twilight might still be inside. I'm gonna go in to make sure she isn't.”

“Wait a minute there. How do you know she's still in there. Ya could be runnin' right into a death trap for no reason.”

“Yeah, well nopony out here has seen Twilight come out and Spike said she was still doing tests, so she must still be inside! Now I'm going to go in and make sure she's alright.”

Rainbow turned to fly into the library when Pinkie Pie grabbed her with a crushing hug., “Please don't go in there Dashie. Its too dangerous! Let the fireponies take care of it, please?” Rainbow looked at her. Her mane seemed to have deflated, becoming flat and straight. She also seemed to have lost some color becoming darker and less vibrant. The scene reminded her of something but she couldn't quite place it.

“The fire brigade won't be here for another few minutes and by then it will be too late. If Twilight is still in there she might not last another few minutes.” Rainbow looked into her eyes and, for the first time, saw genuine fear. She managed to extricate herself from Pinkie's hug. “Don't worry Pinks. I'm the fastest pony in Equestria. If Twi is in there then I'll have her out in a flash.”

Applejack slid off her saddlebags and looked at Rainbow, “If you think you're gonna go it alone you got another thing comin.”

“We don't have time for this,” Rainbow Dash cried in exasperation. “Twilight needs help fast and no offense but you'll just slow me down.”

“Yeah, except with two of us we can search the place faster. You may be fast but smoke can take ya down faster than a rattlesnake on a sunny day. Now Ah'm going in with you whether ya like it or not.”
Rainbow looked over at her friend and saw the determination in her eyes. Rainbow knew from experience there would be no swaying the stubborn cowpony once her mind was made up.

“Alright fine! Whatever! We have to hurry.” Recognition struck Rainbow like a hammer. Pinkie's hair looked just like it had when she thought her friends had abandoned her. “Pinkie I need you to do something for me alright?”

Pinkie Pie looked at her with the saddest eyes Rainbow had ever seen.

“What is that Dashie?” her voice quivered as though she was on the verge of breaking into tears.

“I need you to go get Fluttershy and Rarity. They need to know what's going on. Can you do that?”

Pinkie Pie just nodded sadly. “Hey, don't worry. We'll be just fine, alright? In fact, we'll be out before you get back.” Pinkie Pie didn't say a word, she just turned and ran towards Carousel Boutique as quickly as she could.

“Well, alright then,” said Applejack. “Let's do this.” She ran up to the door stopping at the last second, pivoting on her front hooves to send her back legs smashing into the door and knocking it off it's hinges. She turned and ran straight in, with Rainbow Dash close behind.

The one thing Rainbow wasn't ready for, was the heat. It was like she was trying to fly into the sun itself. The very air seemed to burn, scorching her lungs with every breath. The flames themselves leaped at them, as if to try and consume them along with the library. The smoke billowed around her burning her eyes and agitating her throat. Through it Rainbow could see the whole interior was ablaze, all of Twilight's meticulous categorizing quickly being burned away.

“Rainbow,” Applejack coughed. “You check those rooms and Ah'll check these.”

“Got it!” Rainbow called back as she took off towards Twilight's room. She moved forward through the heat, keeping as low to the floor as she could. She pushed her way into the bedroom, looking desperately around for Twilight.

“Twilight!” Rainbow called out through the smoke. A quick search of each room showed no signs of the lavender mare, so Rainbow went back to the main room. When she returned, she nearly ran into Applejack because of the smoke.

“Did ya find her?” the pegasus yelled.

“Nope. Ah sure didn't. Maybe she isn't here!”

Rainbow shook her head, “She has to be here! Pinkie Pie's sense wouldn't have gone off if she wasn't.” Rainbow was struck by inspiration. “Her lab!” The two ponies quickly ran to the basement where they found Twilight's still form.

“Is she okay?” called Rainbow.

“Ah don't know,” Applejack called back. Applejack hoisted Twilight onto her back. “We have to get out of here! This whole place could-” she was interrupted by a loud groaning coming from the ceiling. A look of horror formed on Applejack's face. “RUN!” The cowpony barreled past Rainbow, who quickly followed. As they crested the stairs, the loud groaning sounded through the building once again. They sprinted to the entrance, a bright beacon of safety shining through the black smoke. They practically flew out the front door. No sooner had they escaped the building than a huge crashing sound emanated for the library. Rainbow inhaled deeply, the fresh air filling her lungs. She looked over to see the look of fear slowly leave her friends face, as she too reveled in the fresh air. Neither pony had much time to relax as they, were quickly accosted by several ponies in white uniforms. Too relieved to finally be away from the infernal heat, Rainbow limply let them half-carry her over to a stretcher. The pegasus had barely laid down upon it before passing out.

A short ways away in the shadow of a nearby building, a cloaked pony watched the scene. He saw the two ponies run inside. It had been a few minutes and a crowd was starting to gather, increasing the odds of discovery. He was about to leave when the two ponies emerged from the smoke carrying Twilight Sparkle. It was all he could do to cry out in frustration. Twilight was alive and the master must be informed. He walked down the alley and faded into the shadows. Nopony even knew he was there.

Rainbow Dash awoke in a brightly lit room with white walls and the distinct smell of disinfectant. She immediately recognized the room, as it was one she had visited many times. She sat up and looked around and saw a familiar pink pony sleeping in one of the chairs in the corner. Rainbow watched as Pinkie Pie stirred. The party pony sat up and looked over in Rainbow's direction as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. The party pony shot into the air in surprise.

“Dashie you're awake!” she squealed in delight. There was a pink blur as she shot across the room to deliver a spin crushing hug to the bedridden pegasus.

“Hey, Pinkie, you're kind of crushing me.”

Pinkie Pie immediately backed off. “I'm just glad you're okay. I was so worried. When you first got here they wouldn't let anypony see any of you guys. The others are out in the waiting room.”

“Not anymore dearie,” a familiar voice said from the doorway. Both ponies looked up in surprise as Rarity and Applejack walked into the room. “I think half of the hospital heard you.”

“Hey there. Ya sure did give us quite a scare when ya passed out like that.”

“Yeah about that, how long was I out?”

“Only a day or so,” piped up Pinkie. “I haven't even had time to make get well cupcakes yet.”

“Oh don't you fret darling, I'm sure you can think of another reason to make your delightful cupcakes,” said Rarity.

Rainbow Dash looked up in surprise. “I completely forgot Twilight! Is she alright? Did we get to her in time? Is she-”

“Whoa there sugarcube. Calm down,” Applejack said as she put a calming hoof on the cyan pegasus. “She's okay. Well sorta. Accordin' to Nurse Redheart she's got some bad breathin' problems 'cause of the smoke and she has a few burns. Its the strangest thing, it seems like she was put though the wringer before we found her with some broken bones an' a couple a large bruises.” A depressed look appeared on her face. “The docs have done all they can, but she still hasn't woken up. Fluttershy and Spike are with her now.”

“Well what are we doing here? Let's go see her.” Rainbow Dash threw off the blanket covering her and moved to get out of bed. When a loud authoritative voice chimed in the room.

“Oh no you don't!” Everypony turned to see Nurse Redheart walking into the room. “You aren't getting out of that bed before I clear you.”

“But-” Rainbow started to stammer.

“No butts. I need to run some tests to make sure you haven't suffered any permanent damage from the smoke. Now once I'm done, if there isn't any damage, then not only can you visit your friend, you can leave the hospital altogether.”

The cyan pegasus sighed in defeat, “Alright fine. You guys go on ahead. I'll catch up once their done.”

“Alright then dearie, see in a little while.” said Rarity. “Don't give them to hard a time alright?” She departed gracefully from the room, Applejack close behind. Pinkie Pie soon followed, but not before giving Rainbow one more spine crushing hug.

“Alright you guys, let's get this over with.”

“Don't worry,” said Nurse Redheart. “This shouldn't take too long.”

After what seemed like an eternity, Rainbow was finally given clearance to leave. She quickly thanked them and asked them where Twilight's room was. No sooner had they told her the room number than she was off like a rocket, with a chorus of “don't fly in the hallways!” echoing behind her. She slowed as she neared her destination, not wanting to crash into something and be forced to spend more time as a patient. She carefully opened the door and stepped inside. The room appeared to be just like the one Rainbow was kept in, only there was a bunch of brightly colored balloons tied to the end of the bed. She looked over and saw Twilight laying on the bed, a clear oxygen mask strapped across her face. Everypony was gathered around her, but what caught Rainbow's eye was a butter yellow pegasus with a bubblegum pink mane seated next to the bed, facing away from the door. The pegasus looked up in surprise at the sound of the door and turned to face the newcomer. Rainbow smiled at the stunned look on one of her oldest friend's face.

“Hey Fluttershy. How's it going?” The rainbow-maned pegasus said nonchalantly.

“Oh Rainbow! Are you okay?” Fluttershy said. “I'm sorry I didn't come and visit you. I thought somepony should stay with Twilight, you know in case she woke up. I hope that's okay.”

Rainbow smiled, “Don't worry Flutters, it's fine. Don't worry about it.”

A loud yawn drew everypony's attention to the corner of the room, where a tired looking Spike was just waking up.
“Hey guys, any changes?” he said sleepily.

Rarity walked over and put a comforting hoof on the baby dragon's shoulder. “Not yet dearie. She's still asleep.”

“Now don't you worry,” Applejack said confidently. “Twi is one of the toughest ponies Ah know. She's going to be just fine.”

Rainbow was looking around the room when a thought occurred to her. “Hey, did anypony tell Twilight's parents she was in the hospital?”

“Oh my no!” exclaimed Fluttershy.

Rarity looked down, slightly ashamed, “I didn't really think about it. I was more concerned with her health than who knew about it. Well, I shall have to rectify this situation.” Rarity stood up and left the room. She soon returned levitating some paper and a pencil. She sat down and started writing. She finished writing, only to set the letter aside and start writing another.

“Who's that letter for?” Rainbow asked in confusion.

Rarity looked at the pegasus with shock, “Why it's for Princess Celestia of course. If anypony needs to know about Twilight, it's her.”

Now it was Rainbow Dash's turn to look down in shame as Rarity finished writing. The alabaster unicorn was soon finished, neatly folding both letters and writing the names of the recipients on the front. Rarity turned back to Spike, “Would you please send these dearie?”

The little dragon looked at her sullenly. “Sure, I guess,” he said sullenly. He grabbed the letters , and one at a time he blew a puff of green flame burning the letters. The black smoke drifted out the window, carrying the letters to their destinations.

“Thank you Spike,” said Rarity as she gave him a hug. Spike blushed in embarrassment.

“It was no big deal. I do it all the time.” Spike said bashfully.

“Don't sell yourself short there partner,” said Applejack. “What you do is pretty darn amazing.”

“Yeah it is!” exclaimed Pinkie Pie.

The purple dragon's face nearly turned completely red from embarrassment. “Okay, you guys are right, I am pretty awesome.” No sooner had he said that then he belched out a plume of flame, dropping a letter on the floor. “Oh, man. I forgot how uncomfortable that is.” Rarity picked up the letter and started reading it.

“Well? Who's it from?” Rainbow asked impatiently.

Rarity's eyes quickly filled with excitement. “Why, it's from the princess. She says she's going to come here as soon as possible. My goodness!” she exclaimed. “We're going to be meeting with royalty and I haven't even done my mane yet today!”

Applejack and Rainbow Dash just rolled their eyes. “Ah'm sure the princess is going to have other things to think about than your mane.”

“Nevertheless, we all could do with some clean-up. Especially you two,” she said eyeing them with disdain. “No offense you two, but you smell as though you rolled around in a fireplace for a while.”

Rainbow quickly sniffed herself, only to pull back in disgust. “Yeah, you might be right,” she said sheepishly. “We do kind of smell.” As she spoke, her stomach let out an audible grumble. “I'm also kinda hungry,” she said.

Pinkie Pie practically jumped in the air, “Oh, I have an idea! Why don't you all come to Sugarcube Corner! You can use the shower and I can whip you guys up something tasty too!”

Rarity clapped her hooves together, “It's decided then. Let's go.”

Everypony left the room, Fluttershy the last to leave reluctant to leave Twilight alone. Spike assured her he would watch the unicorn and let them know of any changes or if Princess Celestia arrived before they returned. The walk to Sugarcube Corner was uneventful. Rainbow tried to liven it up by turning the whole ordeal into a race, but nopony was willing to participate. Upon their arrival, Rarity immediately claimed the shower first, and Pinkie Pie dashed back to the kitchen to make something for them all to eat. The others just sat in the dining area listening to the clatter Pinkie Pie was making in the kitchen.

It wasn't long before Rainbow could smell cupcakes baking, making her mouth water in anticipation. Pinkie Pie popped her head into the dining room, drawing a smile from everypony in the room. Somehow, in the short time she was in the kitchen, she managed to cover herself in flour.

“Alrighty guys,” she said cheerily. “The cupcakes are in the oven and should be done sometime soon. Now on to make the muffins!” She ducked back into the kitchen as Rarity was coming down the stairs. Though she had just bathed, her mane looked as perfectly styled as it had before she went upstairs.

“I'm obviously done now. Whichever one of you wants to go next should do so.”

Applejack stood up. “Ah' guess Ah'll go next. Ah' don't want to go after all y'all use up the hot water.” She quickly trotted up the stairs for her turn as Rarity sat down in the now vacant spot.

“Well, I feel divine. I really needed that, considering we missed our spa appointment yesterday, didn't we Fluttershy?”

“Yeah,” replied the yellow pegasus. “Though, what came up was really important.”

Rarity nodded her head, “You are most certainly right. Besides, we can always reschedule it for another day.” The white unicorn looked over at Rainbow. “You know Rainbow Dash, you could join us anytime. That is, if it's okay with Fluttershy.”

“Oh, of course,” she said with a smile. “I would love for you to come with.”

“I don't know,” Rainbow said nervously.

“I must insist,” replied Rarity. “I mean, imagine what we could do with your mane.”

“What! I like my mane!” Rainbow replied indignantly.

“I know dear, but imagine what Lotus and Aloe can do. Their hooves are like magic.”

Fluttershy smiled, “She's right you know. It's really nice. You really should come next time.”

She started listing all the things that they could do, causing Rainbow to grow anxious and look around for a way to escape the conversation. Once Fluttershy got insistent it was almost impossible to say no, and there was no way Rainbow wanted to go to a spa. Applejack chose that moment to come down the stairs, her mane still wet from her shower.

“Well, would you look at that, Applejack's done. That was fast,” laughed Rainbow uncomfortably. “I better go take my turn.” She stood up and quickly went upstairs. She got into the shower, relishing the hot water flowing over her. She grabbed the least flowery shampoo and quickly cleaned herself, rinsing and repeating to hopefully wash out the smell of smoke. After the third repeat she decided she was finished, and stepped out of the tub. She dried herself off and ran a brush through her mane, if only to placate Rarity, who would have a fit if she didn't. Done in the bathroom she wandered down the stairs to see Applejack wearing a desperate expression. Rainbow smiled to herself, imagining the conversation they were having before her arrival.

“Alright Fluttershy, I'm done,” she called out. “You can go on up.”

The yellow pegasus looked up, “Okay, I'll be down in a few minutes, okay?”

“Don't you worry dear,” said Rarity. “Take all the time you need.”

Fluttershy disappeared upstairs, causing Applejack to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Thanks for the save,” the orange cowpony said gratefully. “Ah' wasn't sure if Ah' was goin' to be able to get outta that one”

Rainbow smiled, “No problem AJ. Anytime.”

Rarity put on an indignant air, “I really wish you girls would consider coming with us sometime.”

Applejack shook her head, “No thanks. Ah'll leave that stuff to you two.”

“Same here,” Rainbow put in. “I'm sure it's fun and all, but that kinda thing is for you two.”

“Alright,” sighed Rarity. “I'll drop it for now, but be sure I'll bring it up later.”

“Thank you,” Rainbow said triumphantly. They sat in relative silence for a while, before a thought came to Rainbow.
“Hey AJ, how did you know the floor was going to collapse?'

The cowpony smiled, “That would be thanks to Big Macintosh. A few years back he became a member of the volunteer fire department. He lectured everypony in the house on fire safety and what to watch out for if we ever got caught in one. So Ah' know a little bit about house fires.”

“Well, okay then. I didn't know Big Mac was a firepony,” the blue pegasus replied casually.

“Neither did I,” said Rarity as she gazed off into the distance. “That does paint him a different light, now doesn't it?”

Applejack blushed profusely, “Now don't go gettin' any funny ideas. He hasn't been a part of the brigade in quite some time, what with all the work to be done on the farm, so you can just stop what you're thinkin' right now.”

Rarity sighed, “All right, all right, just relax.” A strange smile came over the white unicorn. She met Rainbow's gaze and nodded her head. Rainbow smiled back, nodding her understanding of what was to come. “You do have to admit though, he is quite the stallion. Any mare to catch his eye would be quite lucky.”

“Why of course,” Rainbow said nonchalantly. “I mean, look at the way he's built. All those rippling muscles, glistening with sweat from a hard day's work. Why he must be great in the-”

“Okay that's enough!” Applejack yelled out, her face almost as red as the apples on her flank. “Ah've had enough of you two dreamin' about mah brother.”

Rarity and Rainbow Dash burst into laughter, causing the cowpony to blush even more. Pinkie Pie popped into the room with a tray of fresh cupcakes on her head and a tray of muffins in her hooves.

“What's everypony laughing about? Was it a joke? I bet it was a joke! You guys should tell me! Please?” Pinkie Pie begged.

Rainbow wiped a tear out of her eye, “It wasn't a joke Pinkie. We were just talking about Applejack's-”

“Trees!” AJ blurted. “We were just talkin' about mah trees.”

Pinkie Pie looked at them incredulously, “Trees? What's so funny about trees?”

Applejack, never being a good liar, shifted uncomfortably in her seat, “It's kinda an inside joke. Ya really had to be here to get it.”

“Okay,” Pinkie said suspiciously. “If you say so. Anyhoo, the food is done.”

“Alright!” Rainbow cried out as she reached for a muffin. Her hoof was immediately slapped away by Rarity, who gave the pegasus a stern look.

“Don't you think we should wait for Fluttershy to come join us before eating?”

“I'm done,” a quiet voice said from the stairs. Fluttershy quickly came down the stairs and sat at the table. Rainbow quickly grabbed a muffin before Rarity could object and took a bite.

“It's so good!” she said, prompting everypony to grab one of the baked goods.

“I don't say this very often, but Rainbow Dash is right. These muffins are fantastic,” Rarity admitted.

Fluttershy nodded, “Oh yes, they are really good.”

Everypony sat and ate while Pinkie Pie went back into the kitchen and cleaned up. Rainbow smiled, somehow Pinkie's food always made her feel like everything was going to be alright. Looking around, she could see the smiles on everypony's face and knew they were thinking the same thing. A few minutes later Pinkie Pie returned holding a basket full of baked goods.

“Is everypony ready? We don't want to keep Twilight waiting,” the party pony said with a smile.

Rainbow finished the last bite of one of her cupcakes before answering, “I am now. I bet Twilight's gonna take one whiff of these cupcakes and wake right up.”

“Rainbow's right. Nopony can resist your cupcakes sugarcube,” Applejack said with a smile.

Pinkie Pie clapped her hooves together, “Then let's get going!” Everypony got up and followed her out the door and over to the hospital. When they got to her room, Spike was still sleeping next to the bed where they had left him, and Twilight hadn't moved. Pinkie Pie set the cupcakes and muffins on the bedside table. Suddenly, there was a bright light coming from the center of the room, blinding everypony. When the light faded, there was a tall, white alicorn standing in the room. She stood at least a head taller than anypony else, her wings tucked tightly to her side. Her horn was half-again the length of a normal unicorn's horn, and her mane billowed and flowed, as if it was being moved by an ethereal wind. What stood out the most about the alicorn, was the warmth and authority she radiated. It was as though everypony in the room was standing before the sun itself. Everypony instinctively bowed their heads in respect to their monarch.

Princess Celestia smiled, “Arise, my little ponies. Now, would somepony please tell me what happened to my student?”

Chapter 3

Only two kinds of pony stand directly in front of a dragon, the unfortunate or the stupid.
Dragon zealots are unfortunately stupid.
- Journal of Style Wenz, Vice-Captain of the Royal Military

“She's not doing very well milady,” Rarity said respectfully. “The fire caused some internal damage, and she hasn't woken up since she was rescued. We're all very worried.”

Celestia walked over and sat next to Twilight, a concerned expression on her face. She said nothing as she looked down at her unconscious student. The princess' horn started to glow as her spell enveloped the lavender unicorn in a cocoon of white light. The light steadily grew in intensity until Rainbow had to turn her head to keep from getting blinded. Then, as quickly as it it came, the light faded away. Rainbow looked over to the bed and saw nothing really changed. Twilight was in the same position as she was before.

“What was that all about?” she blurted out.

“That was a healing spell,” Rarity replied. “And, while magic isn't really my area of expertise, even I could tell that was an exceptionally powerful one.”

Celestia nodded her head, “Indeed it was. I was able to heal most of the damage and she should wake up soon.” She looked at Applejack and Rainbow Dash with a smile, “So until then, why don't you two tell me how you saved my student.”

“Oh man a story!” Pinkie Pie practically yelled. “It's been forever since I've heard a good story and I bet this one's going to be a doozy!”

Rainbow looked over at Applejack, with a huge grin on her face, “So do you want to tell it or should I?”

“You go ahead,” Applejack sighed. “Ah'll just make sure ya don't go completely overboard.”

“All right, suit yourself.” And with that Rainbow Dash dove into telling their tale. She started with the meeting with Pinkie Pie, and quickly moved into the blaze. She added her own flourishes here and there of course, and true to her word, whenever she started to exaggerate, Applejack would step in and set her straight. Somehow, Pinkie Pie managed to get a bag of popcorn, which she happily split with Celestia. Rainbow was soon finished, and everypony stared at them.

“Well, that was interesting,” Rarity said.

Pinkie Pie hopped to her feet, “Interesting? That was super-duper amazing!”

“Yeah, I am kind of amazing,” Rainbow Dash said with a smile.

Before Rainbow could say anything more, a dull moaning came from the bed. Everypony turned their heads in surprise as Twilight sat up, rubbing her head with her hoof.

“Oh man, my head,” she moaned. Twilight looked around in confusion, “Where am I? And why is everypony smiling like that?”

Pinkie Pie was the first pony to react. “Twilight, you're okay!” she exclaimed as she practically smothered the lavender unicorn in a massive hug.

“Pinkie Pie,” gasped Twilight. “You're kind of choking me!”

Applejack looked at Pinkie Pie and shook her head in amazement. “You should kinda let go now. We don' want Twilight to slip back into a coma now do we?”

Pinkie Pie released Twilight with an embarrassed look on her face. “Sorry, Twilight. I was really worried though.”

Rarity put a hoof on Pinkie Pie's shoulder. “We all were, darling. However, she is awake now, so we don't have to worry anymore.”

“Hey, nopony's answered my questions yet,” Twilight said. “Would somepony please tell me what's going on?”

“You were in a huge fire!” exclaimed Pinkie Pie. “I had a combo, then we saw your house was on fire, then Applejack and Rainbow Dash ran in and saved you! Now we're in the hospital, and I made muffins and cupcakes for when you got better, which you now are!”

“Well, that answers both my questions. Thank you Pinkie Pie.”

“No problemo!” Pinkie said, her smile as big as could be.

“I'm glad to see you're okay Twilight,” Princess Celestia said kindly.

“Thank you very much. I'm sorry to worry you all,” Twilight said as her expression darkened. “There is something I have to tell you though Princess.”

“And what is that my student,” replied Celestia, a touch of concern edging her voice.

The lavender unicorn took a deep breath, “It's about the fire. It wasn't an accident.”

At those words, every smile in the room disappeared in an instant. The tension in the room grew so thick, they could have cut it with a knife.

“What do you mean it wasn't an accident?” Rainbow cried out.

“I mean I was attacked and the fire was meant to finish me off,” Twilight said flatly. “The ponies who attacked me gave me a message for you princess. He said “The true Lord of Flame shall rise again. Does that mean anything to you princess?”

Celestia turned and stared out the window for a few moments before replying, “Unfortunately it does.” She turned back towards the group. “Have any of you heard of Crom?”

Celestia smiled as five pairs of eyes immediately turned to the unicorn on the bed.

“What?” Twilight said. “Why are you all looking at me?”

“Well, sugarcube, whenever somethin' like this happens you're usually the only pony to know a darn thing about it,” said Applejack.

“You are the biggest egghead around,” quipped Rainbow Dash.

“Yeah, well, it doesn't mean I know everything,” sputtered Twilight. “I've seen the name in footnotes, but never anywhere important. I just thought he was some assistant. Why, is he important?”

Celestia nodded, “More important than anypony knows.”

Pinkie Pie clapped her hooves together, “I smell an origins story!”

Rainbow opened her mouth to say something, but immediately thought better of it. Sometimes, Pinkie Pie's answers only raise more questions, she thought to herself.

Celestia looked at them, letting out a small sigh before continuing, “A long time ago, centuries even before the attack by Nightmare Moon, Equestria was a very different place. There were three main races that traversed the lands. They were the ponies of course, the gryphons, and the dragons.”

Fluttershy let out a meep at the word dragon. Celestia ignored her and kept going, “The ponies were led by myself and Luna. We did our best to keep the peace between the gryphons and dragons, as well as provide goods, like food and tools, for everypony.”

“So wait ah' minute, if ya'll made all the goods, what could have ya possibly gotten in return?” asked Applejack.

“We were given knowledge and safety,” Princess Celestia replied. “You see, the gryphons were great scholars. Most of them traveled the world gathering knowledge.” Celestia smiled, “Their leader, Timus the Sage, took all of that information and cataloged it in their great library. Over the years, the number of books in that library grew to exceed even the Canterlot Royal Library.”

“They have a place like that?” Twilight said excitedly. “Why did you never tell me? Imagine all the spells gathered, all the history, all the--”

“All the ashes,” Celestia said quietly. “The library was destroyed immediately before the fall of the Gryphon Kingdom.”

“Oh,” Twilight said. “I'm sorry Princess, I didn't know.”

Celestia gave Twilight a sad look, “It's alright Twilight, I didn't expect you to know.”

“Oh my,” Fluttershy said quietly. “What happened?”

Celestia looked at her, “Crom happened.”

“I'm going to ask you to stop right there.”

Rainbow whipped her head around to see the source of the voice. Rainbow's eyes widened when she saw a unicorn stallion wearing a black dragon mask and a black cloak emerge from the corner. Rainbow's surprise only grew when Twilight said through gritted teeth, “That's him. He's the pony who attacked me at the library.”

“Ya' got a lot a nerve coming here,” growled Applejack.

“Indeed,” Celestia said. “Though I do thank you for saving me the trouble of having to track you down.” As Celestia spoke, her horn started glowing bright white. “I take it you have come to surrender yourself?”

The masked stallion chuckled, “Hardly. I have simply come here to keep you from spreading lies about Lord Crom.”

Rainbow couldn't believe her ears. Here was a regular pony actually challenging Princess Celestia!

“I guess I'll have to use force then won't I?”

He just spread his arms, baring his chest to Celestia, “Fire at will.”

Celestia complied immediately, loosing a bright white bolt at the stallion. Rainbow cringed in anticipation of the impact, but it never came! The bolt passed harmlessly through him, obliterating the chair behind him. The stallion lowered his arms and shook his head.

“It's a real shame when our great and powerful leader cannot even tell when somepony is using a basic projection spell.”

“What do you want?” asked Celestia through gritted teeth.

“I already told you, I'm here to prevent you from spreading your lies.”

“Crom was a monster that ruined the Gryphon Kingdom and nearly destroyed Equestria,” spat Celestia.

“He is the greatest dragon to ever draw breath and he is entitled to take what's his,” he shot back

“His demands were outrageous!” cried Celestia exasperatedly. “We could never accept them!”

“They were completely fair!” the stallion practically shouted back. “He was Equestria's defender! He made those who would do us harm think twice! You should have given him anything he wanted!”

“He wanted ponies for food!”

“We would have gone willingly!” the stallion roared, shooting little plumes of flame from his mouth as he spoke. “We would give our lives to please him!”

The entire room went silent, save for Spike's snoring. Rainbow Dash couldn't believe what this mysterious stallion was saying. This stallion is completely insane! Rainbow thought to herself. Who would want to be eaten by a dragon?

“You have got to be kidding me!” Rarity finally cried. “Why would anypony want to give themselves over to such a brutish creature?”

“A brute? That's what you think he is?” the stallion said quietly. “Such a description does not fit him. He was a king; a god! Do you know what he did for Equestria? He and his flight of dragons were our sole defenders. They kept the dark denizens of the world away from our little country.”

The stallion's eyes narrowed and his voice filled with malice, “That is, until he was betrayed by those he swore to protect. His demands were simple, easy to meet.” He turned to face Celestia, “All you had to do was let him have a few ponies. But no, you defied your defender, snubbing centuries of servitude.”

“He had no right to ask for ponies,” Celestia said calmly.

“He had every right! Do you know how many of his dragons fell to defend us?”

Celestia glared at him, “I am well aware of what the dragons had to do to keep us safe. Don't you ever say that I don't know what they sacrificed.”

“Then why,” roared the stallion. “Why did you not sacrifice a few ponies in return?”

Celestia looked him in the eyes for what seemed like an eternity before replying, “Those dragons died to protect the ponies and gryphons. To sacrifice them in such a needless way would have dishonored their memories.”

The masked stallion laughed loudly, the sound chilling Rainbow to the bone. “It would have dishonored them? That was your reason? You were a fool. When you denied to give our lord his do, that would have caused them more pain than a useless death.”

“Which your lord seemed determined to give them,” Celestia said coldly.

“Well, when a foal misbehaves you punish it, so our lord did the same.”

Celestia looked away from the stallion, unable to bear the sight of him, “So if my reasons for leaving him were foolish, then what are the reasons for your joining him?”

The stallion immediately clammed up. For the first time since he appeared, the stallion seemed at a loss for words. “My reasons for joining him?” he spun around, facing away from the group. “I think I'm going to take my leave. I'm sure we'll speak again in the future.”

“Wait!” Twilight called out. “What's your name?”

Everypony stared at Twilight in shock. The stallion chuckled, “You think I'm going to just tell you my name? You really are foolish.”

Twilight shook her head, “I didn't think you would. So what should we call you then?”

The stallion paused, “Hmmmm. How about Acre? I am the avatar of Lord Crom, so why not?.”

With that, the illusionary Acre disappeared, leaving the room once again in silence. Rainbow glanced over to her friends to try and see what they were thinking. Applejack's mouth was twisted into a scowl, her eyes seething with anger. Fluttershy was curled in a ball, trembling, while Rarity patted her on the shoulder, trying to calm the shy pegasus. Pinkie Pie's hair had lost its color, but had yet to lose its bounce, her eyes starting to tear up. The look on Twilight's face was one of pure concentration. Rainbow could see the wheels in her head turning as she put every bit of new information into place. Rainbow felt anger welling up inside her at the sight.

“Who does he think he is?” she said. “He attacks Twilight, then he comes in here and tries to convince us he's the good guy? If I could've gotten a hold of him, I would have taught him a lesson.”

Applejack gave Rainbow a fierce grin, “Yeah. And Ah' would've been there with the next one.”

“Princess,” Twilight Sparkle said quietly. “Could you please finish your tale. I want to get all of the facts.”

Princess Celestia smiled inwardly at her student, “Of course. In return for protection, the ponies provided Crom and his dragons with great living quarters, the architecture of each rivaling even that of Canterlot Castle, and took decades to build. The gryphons provided them with rare and strange gems they discovered on their travels.”

Rarity's eyes brightened at the mention of rare gems, but she respectfully kept silent, making a mental note to ask the Princess about it later.

“After decades of meeting his demands,” continued the Princess, “Crom started demanding more and more. It grew to the point that we could barely finish one project before having to start on the next one. His greed knew no bounds till finally he demanded the ponies and gryphons to give them foals and hatchlings.”

Applejack wrinkled her nose in disgust, “What in tarnation would a bunch a dragons do with foals and hatchlings?”

“Applejack, when dragons get bigger they need more than just gems to sustain themselves,” Twilight said flatly. “They become carnivorous, hunting other creatures for food.”

Fluttershy started trembling and it looked to Rainbow like she was going to burst into tears. “Okay, I'm pretty sure we can guess what they wanted them for, can we move on please?” Rainbow nodded her head towards the terrified pegasus.

Celestia nodded her head, “When Crom gave us this demand, Timus and myself both immediately refused. We could not meaninglessly throw away the lives that so many dragons had died to protect. When Crom heard of our refusal, he became enraged and declared war upon us.”

Celestia turned away from the group and stepped over to the window. She took a deep breath before continuing, “The destruction he wrought was unimaginable. Entire towns gone, with no warning or fighting chance. The gryphons were the first to strike back, halting his advance temporarily. Crom turned his entire force on the Gryphon Kingdom, and wiped it out. Crom personally led the flight against the great library reducing the whole place to ash. Timus lost his life defending that library, choosing to fight Crom face to face to buy time. His sacrifice saved dozens of lives.”

Celestia paused again, struggling to maintain her calm. When she resumed speaking her voice was flat and even, “The surviving gryphons regrouped and joined up with our troops. Our combined forces were able to hold back the dragons for a time. But my sister and I knew it was not to last, so we came up with a plan. Alone, a pony is no match for a mid-size, let alone a full size dragon, and when they attacked in numbers, we lost most of our advantages over them.”

“What we needed were ponies that could, on their own, defeat a dragon. We ended up getting so much more.”

Twilight furled her brow, “What do you mean?”

“It was Luna's idea actually. We used an old magic syphon spell to transfer magic from one pony to another, only on much larger scale.”

“How big of a scale?” asked Twilight with wide eyes.

“The whole pony race,” said Celestia.

Rainbow watched in amusement as Twilight's jaw dropped.

“Wh-wh-what do you mean the whole race?” sputtered the unicorn.

“I mean the entire Pony race. Princess Luna and myself labored for days on the spell, checking every tiny detail to make sure it was perfect. The actual casting of the spell lasted but an instant, drawing magic in from every pony and storing it in six crystals. Those crystals were actually a precursor to something you ponies know a lot about.”

“The Elements of Harmony!” Twilight practically shouted.

“Correct. The elements were created using a similar spell. With our spell now complete, Princess Luna chose six ponies to wield them. They donned the crystals and went out to face the dragons on their own. The power they wielded was beyond even my expectations. They tore through the dragons, scattering the army to the four winds.”

“Alright!” Rainbow cried triumphantly, a huge grin on her face . “I'm glad somepony gave those overgrown lizards a good beat down.”

“Indeed they did Rainbow Dash. But the victory was short lived.”

Rainbow's grin immediately disappeared. “I thought they were kicking all kinds of flank! What could stop them?”

“Crom,” Celestia stated flatly. “Crom himself took the battlefield. The ensuing fight lasted for hours, neither side willing to give up. In the end the six warriors were victorious, but they were unable to destroy Crom. They managed to seal him away, where he could do nopony harm ever again.”

Everypony in the room breathed a collective sigh of relief, the tension that had been building in the room finally released.

“But all was not well. While Crom was being sealed away, one of the warriors was fatally wounded, the magic of the crystal being useless for healing him. His tomb eventually became the resting place of the other five, each choosing to be with their comrade, and it is where the crystals were hidden.”

“Ya' mean ta tell me, that the greatest weapon known ta ponykind is just sitting in a tomb in the Everfree Forest?” Applejack asked skeptically.

Princess Celestia shook her head, “Of course not. There are powerful enchantments and fail safes around them, along with the wildness of the forest, they are completely safe.”

“So, what does this have to do with us?” asked Rainbow.

Celestia took a deep breath, “I need you six to venture into the forest and retrieve them. If Crom is indeed returning, then it is going to take more than the Elements of Harmony to stop him.”

Everypony exchanged looks, each knowing what had to be done.

Rainbow Dash stood up, “I'm in. Any dragon that thinks he can mess with me is in for a big surprise.”

“Ah'm in to. Ah've got to keep an eye on this hot head.”

“Hey!” cried Rainbow indignantly.

“Well,” Rarity interjected before Rainbow could reply. “It would be very uncouth of me if I just allowed some ruffian to have his way, so I'm in too.”

“Well I'm going,” said Twilight. “This is the opportunity of a lifetime. All the magic and history there. Who knows what we could find?”

“I'm all for an adventure!” said Pinkie Pie with a huge smile. “Adventures have all sorts of fun stuff like treasure and pirates and huge parties and-”

“I think we get it,” Twilight said.

“I don't know,” Fluttershy said quietly. “The Everfree Forest is full of awful stuff. And won't those ponies from the cult try and stop us?”

Rainbow put a hoof on her shoulder. “Don't you worry about that. Anypony that tries to mess with us will get a lot more than they bargained for. Besides you faced down a dragon before, so this is exactly the same.”

“I guess so. I'll just have to find somepony to take care of the animals while I'm gone.”

Princess Celestia smiled, “I'm sure that can be arranged. The crytals are only a back-up plan. Since the dragon cult has shown their faces, then the royal guard can track them down, hopefully before they break Crom's seal. You shouldn't even have to face Crom.”

“Alright then,” Twilight said matter-of-factly. “We'll leave in two days. That should give everypony enough time to prepare and make arrangements. Is that alright?”

Everypony in the room nodded, “Well okay then let's do this!”