Come Dawn or Darkness

The ground shook as the thunder of thousands of tiny hooves cascaded down the hillside toward the clearing. Their ranks stampeded onward, driven by a renewed hope as the face of a vast harvest moon rose behind them. Their Princess was with them now, and in a few short moments she and her sister would reunite, and their armies would join together to remove the source of the fear which was suddenly spreading throughout all of Equestria.

As the neared the barren clearing where the crumbling remains of the Royal Sisters' castle stood, the scale of the battle raging ahead of them quickly became clear. The edge of the forest had begun to stretch as trees were knocked aside or incinerated by the weapons the invaders had brought with them. Fire flew through the air, explosions rocked the earth, and creatures of every shape and size imaginable swarmed the expanding battlefield.

The open area leading up to the castle was full to bursting as an all-out war unfolded between the monstrosities that were pouring out of the Void and the citizens and soldiers of Equestria who had turned up to help turn them back. The sky was alight with sparks and explosions as the two sides clashed mid-flight. Pegasi with brilliant steel blades mounted to their wings and fore-legs dove this way and that, going blow-for-blow with the winged abominations the invaders had brought with them.

On the ground the earth ponies had formed a living wall using spears and pitchforks to help funnel the weaker monsters into small groups all along the battlefield. These creatures were then picked off en mass by the horde of unicorn mages teleporting in and out of the combat zone. The tactic seemed to be working, until the enemy's heavy infantry began filing out of the castle.

It happened all at once, as a small group of purple-skinned pikemen were exitting through the main door of the Princesses' ancient home. A sudden rumbling from within the palace began to rock the entire clearing. A moment later the front of the old castle exploded outward, showering the field with chunks of fractured stonework and centuries-old mortar. As more sections began to crumble around the new opening, three massive creatures lurched out onto the battlefield. They hunched down as they moved out from under the collapsing ceiling, bricks and stone tumbling down their shoulders onto the ground almost forty feet below. As they lumbered out of the ruins they rose to their full height, rivaling that of the castle itself.

The first made it about three steps (what might have amounted to 30 for any normal-sized creature) before it was struck down. The horizon suddenly brightened as the sun rocketed passed to its climax in the night sky. It froze at its zenith, pulsed brightly, and unleashed a beam of light upon the first giant which tore through its chest and sent it tumbling backwards onto the side of the castle. The air around the blast zone reached an unspeakable temperature for a few seconds, incinerating the few pikemen who had survived the collapse of the entryway.

Only a few seconds were able to pass before the great full moon took its place in front of the sun, casting the clearing back into a seemingly unnatural state of twilight. The other two giants stepped around the body of the first, only to be plowed into the ground as a storm of meteor descended upon them from on high. The stones broke through flesh, bone, earth, and brick; reducing the front of the castle and all of its dark inhabitants to a cloud of dust and debris in more second.

"Perhaps I overdid it, sister?"

"Not at all. I would rather see a thousand of our old homes sacrificed than have these monsters take one more step upon our world."

The pair watched from high above as the rubble began to shift. Before anything could rise from the broken stones of the fallen entryway the rest of the palace began to shake. A muffled explosion rocked the field as walls of the ancient structure began to crumble in on themselves; the entire building slowly caving inward. For a brief moment all of the fighting on the field stopped as the warriors on both sides turned to watch the demolition. For a split second hope filled the hearts of the equine soldiers.

Then, all at once, the stones at the far end of the small lake of rubble began to sink. As they fell away the black outline of the portal came clearly into view. More of the rocks began to fall into the Void as its form expanded further and further, engulfing an entire quarter of what had only moments ago been a magnificent, if slightly run-down, royal palace. When it finally stopped growing its massive dome reached above the treetops and spread wide enough to let a small army through, side-by-side.

No longer would their enemies file out one at a time.

The fighting resumed moments later as one of the pegasi hovering over the field dove down and drove a standard-bearing spearman into the dirt. It took less than a second for the clearing to break back out into full-scale warfare once more; both sides brutally pounding away at each other.

More pegasi dive-bombed important targets along the ground as the unicorns marked them. The earth ponies continued to hold their lines, losing fewer and fewer of brethren as they quickly adjusted to the flow of battle. Spears, spiked shields, and crescent blades clashed against the battle-worn tools of the abyssal army. While the invaders may have had a great deal more experience on their side, the Equestrian militia finally began to gain the upper hand as the Princesses and their forces joined the fight. The presence of the portal seemed to force a few to rethink their decisions to join the battle, but most were too preoccupied with the battle to give it much thought.

More of the enemy forces continued to venture forth from the vast darkness, but their procession had diminished to little more than a trickle. Even the ones who made it through immediately found themselves stumbling over the small sea of rubble left in the wake of the castle's destruction; leaving them helpless as nearby unicorns and pegasi picked them off one by one.

Luna and Celestia watched from high above as their army continued to suppress the invaders. While they actively assisted their soldiers with spells from the sky, they were more concerned with the sudden growth of the portal.

"Sister, I fear it may be starting..."

"Indeed. I'm almost afraid to ask but... do you have a plan for closing it, Luna?"

The Princess of the Night looked down at the great black dome with an expression of great annoyance. "There are several paths we might attempt, but I... I have no way of knowing if any will truly help at this point."

Celestia knew she been giving the matter a great deal of thought over the past week. She had lost sleep over it, forgotten to eat, and disappeared for hours each day; all in the hopes of finding some means to counteract the exact situation which was unfolding below them. The darkness was her sister's domain, yet this particular aspect of it had been nothing but a plague for her since it first surfaced. The portal she had made when they were young had hardly been big enough for one terrified, misguided alicorn to fall through; yet it had taken years to properly seal it back up. She shuddered to think what price would be required to close one of this size.

Down below the fighting continued. Twilight's friends had joined the battle prior to the Princesses' arrival and were busy holding the field now that the full assault had begun. Three of the five were making use of the cursed artifacts that Twilight's monster had gifted them with. Disgust filled the Princess' mind as she watched the two glowing blades it down the invaders one after another. This invasion is as much his fault as it is Twilight's; he should be the one stopping it! Instead he's merely setting the board and letting the pieces do as the will. Give them a few magical weapons and leave them to figure out the rest on their own; the coward...

The flow of troops coming out of the portal had ceased entirely. Down on the ground the two ponies carrying the magic swords continued to cut a visceral path through the enemy lines, fueled by an unnatural bloodlust that none of their kind was ever intended to experience. The other two, the yellow pegasus with the glowing amulet and the white unicorn who had accompanied her, were busy tending to the wounded. While the amulet worked its will in stitching up lacerated flesh and broken bones, the unicorn set about the same task using her own, far more natural magic. For that, at least, Celestia was thankful.

It was as she watched the battle unfold down below that the source of her rage finally came into view. A heavy THUD erupted from the base of the portal as a massive severed arm was flung through from the other side. The giant's body fell through seconds later with a gleaming emerald sword impaled through its skull. A few moments of silence passed as the invaders turned to face the portal; most not even attempting to fend off the spears and blades bearing down on them. As they stared into the darkness a haggard groan echoed through the portal and man cloaked in black and green stumbled backwards through it. He fell to one knee on the Equestrian side of the portal; his breathing heavy and his hands clenched tightly around a pair of short shadowy blades.

The knight attempted to rise, perhaps going for the sword he had left protruding from the back of the giant's head. But as he rose his pursuer emerged from the recesses of the Void; leaping forward and plunging down upon him with a great circular blade of pale blue energy. The knight had just enough time to cross his swords and catch the spinning disk between them; slowing its rotation enough to cause its shape to warp and bend.

He flung his arms outward, sending the wispy saw blade hurtling back into the void. Its weirder spun away as his weapon flew behind him; quickly pulling a pair of small silver devices from a hidden pocket in his cloak. They spun about his pointer fingers at blinding speeds as he let the knight regain his footing. The moment Torrent was standing once more the intruder began to let his finger brush the trigger of the twin pistols each time they rotated. Before long the wanderer was back on one knee, desperately attempting to deflect as many of the fiery blue bolts as he could while attempting to ignore the pain burst within him as more and more slipped past his blades.

The new demon said something to the Twilight's, but the Princess was too far away to hear it. What she could hear was the sudden victorious chanting coming form the invading army all across the battlefield. "Sheol! Sheol! Sheol nrah zreth mah!" The returned to the battle, their morale restored, and continued chanting as they began fighting with a new vigor that had been absent in them prior to the arrival of the new figure.

"This is bad. We mustn't let them gain their confidence back, sister, or we'll have lost our one real advantage.... Sister?" Celestia turned to where the Princess of the Night had been hovering just a moment before and found nothing but empty sky. As she switched her gaze back to field of rubble surrounding the portal she was just barely able to trace Luna's outline plunging through the darkening air as she dove toward the dueling demons.

She could not hope to catch up to Luna in time; deciding instead to ensure that her sister hit her target. Celestia's horn lit up and the sun began to pass beyond the silhouette of the moon. As rose to its new position in the sky, a pulse of radiant white light flashed across the battlefield, blinding all those who were not already under the Princess of the Sun's protection. It illuminated the forest, sending the lesser creatures who had come through the portal skittering into the undergrowth for cover. The warriors charging out of the portal found themselves helpless against the burning wave of sunlight; leaving most weaponless as they emptied their hands in order to better cover their eyes. They were promptly struck down by the militia members moving in around them.

Torrent and the newcomer were both left stunned as their vision slowly returned. For the knight it was a welcome, if mildly inconvenient, repose from the barrage of gunfire. For his opponent, it was nearly a death sentence. His vision finally cleared just in time for him to black mass hurtling toward him from above. There was no time for him to avoid it, no time to react in any way.

Celestia watched as her sister plowed the demon into the rubble of their ancient home. The blow connected with his skull, leaving her amazed that his head had not simply flown off in the process. Instead he was knocked off his feet and smashed headlong into the large stone slab they had been standing on. His guns flew from his hands, sliding off the stone and into the gaps between the ruined chunks of castle. Celestia moved to join her sister, Luna continued stomping on the intruder's face and arms and chest, and Torrent slowly got to his feet. All the while the battle raged around them as the warriors of both sides fought on, almost oblivious to what had just happened.

She was only a few years away when the captain arrived; haggard and out of breath as he charged as hard as he could through the confusion of the battle. Celestia suddenly realized the implication his presence would have and, already regretting the decision, changed course at the last moment. Luna can handle herself, and if not her demon is there to protect her. I'll return the moment this is straightened out. They'll be fine... Her heart mind begged to differ, but her heart had already made its decision on the matter.

She flew to the ground, landing a short distance away from where the hard-worn white unicorn was running. As she touched down amongst the crowd of invaders a shockwave rolled forth from the ground beneath her, sending them to their knees. They remained in that position for a second or two, genuflecting involuntarily before the might of the Solar Princess. Then, all at once, their flesh began to darken as they started to catch fire from within. By the time Shining Armor reached her the group of outworldly warriors had been reduce due to little more than piles of plate-mail and ash.

"Princess! I-I... I did.... I couldn't...." The young Prince's words came in harsh, shuttering bursts in between his long-drawn breaths. Before he could say any more the miniature suit of armor seated upon his back began to translate for him.

"Your Highness," spoke the little dragon from beneath his gray metallic plates, "we know you said not to leave the library, but we didn't know what else to do!"

Her mind was hardly able to process what tiny knight was saying. As he spoke she scanned the battlefield, her eyes drifting left to right with growing concern. She had assumed that the presence of Twilight's guardians meant that her little student had become well enough to join the fight. Yet no matter where she looked the clearing was conspicuously devoid of the purple unicorn or her unique brand of magic. "Spike... Where is she?"

"P-Princess? I don't... I don't know how to..."

Her eyes fell to the panting Prince and his diminutive rider. "Where is Twilight?"

"That just it. We thought she'd be here! I don't know how else to say it, she SAID she would be here! Shining got us here as fast as he could, but it still shouldn't have been nearly fast enough for us to have beaten here to the battle!"

They were supposed to watch her, to protect her! They've abandoned her. They ignored your orders, betrayed your trust... Betrayed you! She could feel the tendrils of rage taking hold of her senses. Throughout the entirety of the battle her mind had been elsewhere; with Twilight.

She could have done so much more to change the course of their struggle against these invaders, yet she had been too preoccupied with the fear that something may have been happening to Twilight while she was so far away. Now that that fear seemed to be confirmed, the reality of the carnage unfolding around her suddenly came into focus. All at once, her mind was drawn to the shear scale of what was happening. They want the world... All of Equestria. All of MY world. "Where, exactly, did she go?"

This time it was the Prince who answered, having caught some of his breath and regained a bit of his composure. "The mirror. She said she had to get here, fast. That you needed her, that she had to be here when the fighting started."

The little armor-bound dragon broke in. "So she tried teleporting... It was this spell we had been practicing, something Torrent was teaching her. But she never actually tried it with anything bigger than a otter plant! She cast before we could stop her and it... well, it sort of... It didn't teleport her the way it did the plants, but sent her through the mirror. Not dragging her in, just sort of using it... Like a door."

"We were sure she'd be here when we arrived but... Princess, you haven't seen ANY sing of her yet?"

She would have liked to have told him she had. Perhaps she could have at least acknowledged his question; given him some answer, or even told him she was not sure. But there was no time. By then the anger growing within her had reached its boiling point. Any more words left in her were going to manifest as questions or demands, not answers.

Before the pair could say another word, she turned away from them. Her wings unfolded with a SNAP as galloped away form them; the field of heat following her as she burned through several more lines of foot soldiers before she took off. Her mind was a raging torrent of emotions, yet all that showed on upon her face was a mask of absolute hatred as she propelled herself forward.

Her thoughts spun as the new information the two guardians had brought to her expanded within her mind. She could barely comprehend the words as they all began to run together in her head. Yet one factor the little dragon had brought up stuck in her mind and spurred her onward as she picked up speed. "This spell we had been practicing, something that Torrent had been teaching her." "...Something Torrent had been teaching her..." "...Torrent had been teaching her..."

The demon and his opponent were just beginning to get back to their feet, one attempting to regain his sight while the other desperately warded off the iron-clad blows being delivered by the hooves of the Princess of the Moon. Neither one took note of the sizable living meteor that was hurtling toward them from across the battlefield. Neither one had time to avoid it as she bared down upon their position. Luna, if you know what's good for you, you'll move...