Chapter 9: Nightmare Moon’s Final Battle

A large, rectangular box stood before a set of double doors when Fluttershy reached the end of the dark hallway. She approached the box, turned, and kicked the box with a back hoof. The box, however, didn't move. Fluttershy frowned and kicked the box again, this time with both hind legs. Her kick was still too gentle, and while the box rocked back and forth, it did not open.

A stray gust of wind blew through the hallway, knocking the box over and popping the latch open. Three beams of light shot out of the open box, spiraled up in the air, and rained down on Fluttershy. The first light surrounded her entire body, and pieces of bronze armor formed around her: a crested helmet over her head, greaves around each of her legs, a peytral to protect her chest, a croupiere to protect her flanks, and a mirrored shield attached to her left foreleg.

The second beam of light fell over her wings and condensed into a magenta glow over her wing shoulders and coverts. The third beam of light shone down on Fluttershy’s right foreleg, and a large, bronze-colored longbow formed over the cannon of her foreleg, with shafts of magenta light resembling feathers extending from the bow’s limbs.

“Okay, um…” Fluttershy murmured. She looked over her new equipment, then at the two halves of the open box lying on the floor before shaking it off. “Equipped!” The portal opened next to her, and she jumped through, a yellow aura forming around her wings as she took flight. Pitch-black clouds blanketed the skies all around her, casting her surroundings in a thick darkness, except for a red glow that permeated through the cloud cover below. It looked like she was flying into the thick smoke from a raging inferno, until a bolt of lightning flashed across the clouds ahead, causing Fluttershy to flinch.

“Are you ready for the final battle, Fluttershy?” Celestia asked.

“A-As ready as I’ll ever be…” Fluttershy murmured. Monoeyes began to emerge from the surrounding clouds, some already firing at her. Fluttershy banked to avoid their blasts as they came.

“For this final battle, you’re equipped with the Three Sacred Treasures,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy aimed the Bow of Light and fired at the Monoeyes. As she aimed, her eye caught a glimpse of the aura coming off her wings. “And you activated the power of flight too?” she asked. “Isn’t that what the Alicorn Wings are for?”

“We can’t be certain that the Alicorn Wings will be reliable after a thousand years,” Celestia said. “For now, they’ve been deactivated.”

Dozens of monsters—Monoeyes, Paramushes, and Syrens—all emerged as Fluttershy dove through the clouds. Fluttershy veered as they opened fire on her, and then fired back with her bow. The Arrows of Light struck their targets. One of them turned sharply to hit another enemy behind the first one, earning a stunned look from Fluttershy. She didn't think any weapon could have such a strong homing ability. Another volley of attacks came from the approaching Underworld enemies, snapping Fluttershy out of her thoughts, and she swerved to dodge.

“There sure are a lot of Underworld enemies around here,” Fluttershy said.

“That’s no surprise, given how close we are to the Underworld,” Celestia said. “So even though the Arrows of Light are very powerful, keep your guard up.”

Before long, Fluttershy broke through the cloud cover, where she saw a deep chasm stretch across the barren, dark gray wasteland below. Miks, Gyrazors, Monoeyes, and Shrips swarmed out of the ravine, and Fluttershy angled past their shots as she tried her best to shoot them down.

“This ravine leads to the Underworld,” Celestia said. “I’m taking you in.”

Fluttershy fired at the Monoeyes and Gyrazors in her path. She flew past the spinning blades of several Shrips and dodged a tongue lash from each Mik along the way. All the while, the power of flight flared across her wings, and she dove straight toward the ground. She didn’t even look back at the enemies she rushed past as she flew into the ravine.

The yellow aura from Fluttershy’s wings cast a faint glow against the rock walls around her, her only source of light in the foreboding darkness of the ravine. She scanned the surrounding walls for any enemies lying in wait, holding down the feeling of trepidation as best as she could. Even so, not a single monster could be found ahead.

Before long, Fluttershy saw a blue skull wreathed in purple flames deeper in the chasm. Two short, curved horns jutted out of the skull’s head, and what looked like four eye sockets stared back at Fluttershy when it turned to face her. The monster let out a roar, revealing a batch of colored pony skulls that clattered within its mouth.

“Watch out for Ornes ahead,” Celestia said.

“Are you talking about that floating skull?” Fluttershy asked as she aimed the Bow of Light.

“Yes,” Celestia said. “The slightest touch from one will annihilate you.”

“That sounds as horrifying as it looks,” Fluttershy said. She fired an arrow at the Orne, striking the creature’s head and vaporizing it in a flash of light. Fluttershy blinked.

“Ornes are normally invulnerable to any weaponry,” Celestia said. “Between that and their deadly touch, they have a reputation as both a symbol and harbinger of death. Fortunately, they’re no match for the Arrows of Light.”

Two more Ornes appeared further down the chasm. Fluttershy fired another arrow, which pierced through the first Orne and struck the second behind it, destroying them both. The chasm soon led into a deep tunnel, with crystal formations lining the walls. The crystals gave off no light of their own, but reflected the light from Fluttershy’s wings as she passed, as well as the purple glow of two more Ornes further down. This time, the Ornes hovered next to each other, circling around each other as if to block the way through.

Fluttershy fired an arrow at one of the Ornes, destroying it instantly. She fired a stream of smaller arrows from her bow, shooting down the second one. Three more Ornes floated in a tight circle further ahead. Fluttershy paused, waiting for her bow to charge, and then fired another arrow. Her arrow struck two of the Ornes, wiping them out, and she fired another stream of smaller arrows to finish off the last one.

The rock walls surrounding Fluttershy disappeared behind her, leaving only the crystal formations lining the tunnel around her. Even the crystal formations began to thin out as she went, and it felt like she was flying through the “suggestion” of a tunnel running through an endless black abyss. Suddenly, a rose-colored light shone from underneath her peytral.

“Thanatos’ gem is shining!” Fluttershy said.

“That means the entrance to the Underworld is up ahead,” Celestia said. “Get ready.”

A bright, white tear opened up in the darkness at the end of the tunnel, widening into the shape of a giant eye. A black and purple circle pulsed with energy at the center of the “eye,” with a tiny white “pupil” at the center of it. Time seemed to slow down as Fluttershy approached the portal. The white light grew brighter, consuming the darkness of the abyss around her. Fluttershy shut her eyes and covered her face with her hooves, but Celestia guided her flight path through the portal all the same.

When Fluttershy opened her eyes again, she was met with the sight of a stepped wasteland as far as she could see. Barren, leafless trees dotted the landscape below, and a deep orange sky bathed everything around in its light. A dozen monsters—Miks, Monoeyes, and Gyrazors—were already nearby to meet her, and in the distance, hundreds more were scattered across the horizon.

“The Underworld,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy fired a barrage of arrows from her bow, shooting down three Monoeyes, five Gyrazors, and two Miks. Syrens and Gyrazors swarmed in to take their place, and a Vakloom hovered behind them.

“There are a lot of enemies here,” Fluttershy said.

“We’re in their domain now,” Celestia said. “Brace yourself for the worst.”

Fluttershy soared through the air, shooting as many creatures as she could. Octos, Syrens, and Paramushes descended on her, and hundreds of dots in the sky—each one an Underworld monster—began to converge on her. Fluttershy fired on them too, but was struck in the chest by a beam from a Gyrazor. A whirlwind attack from a Syren struck her right side, followed by a shot from a Paramush. She started to fall, and two Syrens dove after her. Fluttershy winced from the hits, but moved her wings to try to regain her flight rhythm. She swerved in midfall, dodging a whirlwind attack from one the Syrens.

Celestia’s magic flowed through Fluttershy’s wings, and with a few wingbeats, Fluttershy was flying again. A Monoeye fired a blast at her, but Fluttershy raised her left foreleg. The attack struck her Mirror Shield and bounced off, almost hitting one of the Syrens. She aimed her bow and fired back, shooting down Monoeyes, Paramushes, Syrens, and Gyrazors. The horde of monsters retaliated with their own attacks. Fluttershy banked, dodging several blasts from the creatures. Another volley of enemy attacks followed, and Fluttershy raised the Mirror Shield. Her shield caught their projectiles and reflected them back, striking several enemies in the process. She raised her bow again and fired, her arrow piercing through several creatures at once. With their numbers thinned, Fluttershy flew on.

Three Underworld enemies descended in front of Fluttershy’s path, each one bearing a thick black metal plate with red markings that obscured their entire bodies. Fluttershy fired at one of them, but her arrow splashed against its metal plate without so much as a scratch. The three monsters floated in a circle ahead of her, and three Gyrazors and a Gloomerang soared in from behind them.

“The metal backs on Boogities resist everything,” Celestia said. “Even the Arrows of Light.”

A multicolored streak briefly traced across the sky to Fluttershy’s left, but she barely noticed it as she turned her attention away from the Boogities and fired at the Gyrazors. The Gloomerang spun its head, hurling its crescent-shaped mask at her. Fluttershy swerved to the side, dodging the sharp metal mask. One of the Boogities turned around, revealing a masklike face with sharp, pointy teeth, two oversized green hands, and two stunted legs—all embedded in the back of the protective metal plate. Fluttershy aimed at the Boogity, but Celestia’s magic yanked her to the side as the Gloomerang’s mask changed course and nearly hit her from behind on the return trip.

The Boogity spat a missile from its mouth. Fluttershy shot the missile with her bow, but the Boogity had turned back around by the time she shot the missile down. The second Boogity turned around, and Fluttershy shot it down before it could launch a missile of its own. A blast of purple energy flew at her, and she barely saw it in time to dodge. Monoeyes and Gyrazors swarmed in from behind the Boogities and opened fire on her. Fluttershy banked left and soared over the oncoming barrage, then fired back with the Bow of Light.

The third Boogity turned around and spat a missile at Fluttershy. Fluttershy shot the missile down, then dodged a whirlwind blast from a Syren. Several more Syrens began to circle around her. She began to aim her bow at them, but caught sight of the Gloomerang hurling its mask at her and swerved out of its way. She fired her bow, first at the Syrens, then at the Monoeyes and Gyrazors.

All the while, her eyes darted frantically from one group of enemies to the next, then to the Boogities and the Gloomerang. There were too many of them. It was all she could do to keep her weapon leg from shaking as she aimed her bow, and a slew of questions ran through her mind. Why was she doing this? Didn’t Princess Celestia have an army of ponies she could send to fight this battle. She was the Goddess of Light, an alicorn. Couldn’t she fight this battle instead. Why was Fluttershy fighting this whole army by herself?

Suddenly, a rainbow shockwave erupted in the sky above the Boogities and the Gloomerang. The force of the shockwave tossed enemy troops about, including the Gloomerang and Boogities, while the shockwave itself expanded above Fluttershy’s head for almost a mile. Electric currents of all colors raced across the sky for a moment, and then came down as bolts of lightning, frying every single Underworld enemy nearby. In the aftermath of the shockwave and its resulting lightning storm, a rainbow streak raced by Fluttershy, and an all too familiar blue pegasus flew alongside her. She no longer wore her black tunic, revealing a cutie mark in the form of a cloud and a tri-colored lightning bolt, but she flashed a cocky smirk at Fluttershy all the same.

“Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy said.

That cocky smirk vanished in an instant. “What did you just call me?” Rainbow scowled.

“Oh, um…” Fluttershy said nervously. “What are you doing here?”

“Same thing you’re doing,” Rainbow said. “Fighting Underworld baddies.” A grin spread across her face as she glanced at three Syrens and two Monoeyes approaching. Without taking her eyes off Fluttershy, she aimed her black First Blade and shot them down. “I’m just way better at it than you.” She flew off and slashed through two Komaytos with her blade, while Fluttershy fired at a group of Miks with her bow.

“Maybe you also sensed that Fluttershy could use your help,” Celestia said.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Please, I could take these guys myself if I wanted!” she said. “In fact, the way you panicked back there, I bet I could swipe the Three Sacred Treasures off you and go after Nightmare Moon on my own.”

“Please don’t,” Fluttershy muttered flatly.

“Yeah, yeah,” Rainbow said. “I’ll let you have your win.” She flew off, rushing to meet another group of Underworld creatures moving toward them.

“Nice of you to show up,” Fluttershy muttered with a scowl. “But I can handle this on my own… I think.”

“You’re not on your own, Fluttershy,” Celestia said. “You have me.”

“Oh, of course,” Fluttershy said, a tinge of rose forming on her cheeks. “What would I do without you?” Her flight path dipped as she approached a river and a group of Monoeyes floating above it. She shot down several of them with her bow, and then swung her weapon at the remaining Monoeyes as she flew past.

A cliffside loomed over the other side of the river. Her flight path climbed up, and she ascended up the rock wall. As she soared, the sounds of battle became muffled in the distance, and then died down. The flapping of her wings became more audible, and the light around her became more and more faint. At first, she thought that the cliffside was blocking the deep orange light of the Underworld sky, but when she finally rose above the cliffside, she found herself in total darkness. She began to look around for any sign of the Underworld landscape, its troops, or Rainbow Dash, until a giant, glowing pair of cyan eyes opened in front of her.

“So, you’ve made it this far.”

Above the pair of eyes, a bright cyan glow came alight around a long, spiraling near-black horn. The glow illuminated much more of Nightmare Moon’s body, revealing the pale blue helm that covered most of her head, the peytral that covered her chest, and silhouettes of her legs and wings. A starry blue and purple mane seemed to billow behind her head, almost threatening to reach out and engulf everything around it.

For a moment, Fluttershy was taken aback by Nightmare Moon’s size. Then she remembered why she was here, the things that Nightmare Moon had done to innocent ponies, and she glared right back. This wasn’t the real Goddess of Darkness; just a projection created by the real thing’s magic. A lot of gods and goddesses could project much larger versions of their forms to the rest of the world. She’d seen Princess Celestia do it before, and she’d seen Princess Celestia at her real height. This wouldn’t scare her, and even if it did, it didn’t matter.

“It’s over, Nightmare Moon,” Fluttershy said, raising her weapon hoof.

“Isn’t that just precious,” Nightmare Moon said. Her catlike eyes narrowed as she peered down at Fluttershy. “It must be all that hot air that keeps you flying, just like that evil twin of yours. You are darling, but you’ll need more than bluster to defeat me!”

“This isn’t bluster, Nightmare Moon,” Fluttershy said. “In the name of the Goddess of Light and all the ponies she protects, I will defeat you.”

Nightmare Moon’s form faded away, as did the darkness that surrounded them. When the aura of Nightmare Moon’s magic faded, the Underworld came into view again, and ahead of Fluttershy, Nightmare Moon’s castle. Giant rib bones lined either side of the roads that led to and around the castle structures. Spiked fences made of wrought iron stood in between the guard towers and along the ledges of each level of the hill that the castle stood on. And looming over it all was the central keep, a twisted, shell-like structure with spikes protruding from its sides like curved horns.

Before Fluttershy could approach the castle, a purple dome of electrified energy surrounded it, and a sleek, white, mechanical figure rose in front of her path. The figure’s sides opened, revealing two pairs of wings, one white and one black. Three golden triangles, arranged to form a larger triangle, were on each wing, and the heavy white wings were equipped with bright orange gunports.

“What is that?” Fluttershy asked.

“The last line of defense for Nightmare Moon’s castle,” Celestia said.

A barrage of fireballs issued from the cannons on the Underworld Gatekeeper’s white wings. Fluttershy swerved to the side to dodge them. “Can’t we just fly past it and enter the castle?” she asked.

“Not with that barrier in place,” Celestia said. She pulled Fluttershy out of the way as two missiles were fired from the heavy wings. “And I don’t think we can outmaneuver this machine so easily.”

Fluttershy aimed at the gunport on her right first. The triangle patterns on the Underworld Gatekeeper’s wings fired at her in pairs, but Fluttershy easily maneuvered past the blue shots. She fired back, first with one arrow, then with a stream of smaller arrows. Smoke erupted from the gunport as it took damage, and Fluttershy turned her attention to the other one. All the while, a red jewel in the center of the machine’s head began to glow.

A pair of circular green screens issued from the Underworld Gatekeeper and hovered toward Fluttershy. Fluttershy fired, but the screen on her left took the arrow and shattered. Undettered, she hovered out of the other screen’s path, kept her aim, and fired at the remaining gunport.

The glow from the Gatekeeper’s center jewel grew brighter, and Fluttershy felt the power of flight yank her out of the way as the jewel fired a powerful laser at her. Led by Celestia’s magic, she circled around the Underworld Castle and the barrier that surrounded it. The machine followed her with equal speed, tracking her with its laser as it went, and Fluttershy dove and soared to evade the attack. She aimed her bow again, trying to line up a shot in mid-pursuit, and fired. The laser stopped before her arrow struck the second gunport, and Fluttershy stopped to see both gunports damaged beyond use.

A ring of fiery white light launched from the Gatekeeper’s lower body. Fluttershy braced herself, only to realize that the ring was large enough for her to simply pass through. She flew into place, letting the ring pass around her as she fired on and damaged the two triangle patterns on the machine’s white wings. She turned her attention to the two remaining triangles, but before she could aim for either one, the machine’s wings folded, and the Gatekeeper flew up. Fluttershy watched the skies above, trying to track the machine as it flew overhead. In the blink of an eye, the machine angled itself and dove straight down. Fluttershy veered to the side, barely dodging the Gatekeeper as it rushed past and then flew back to its position in front of the castle’s barrier.

The Gatekeeper unfolded itself again, and the red jewel in its head began to glow. Fluttershy aimed and fired, shooting an arrow at the jewel. Fire and smoke erupted from the Gatekeeper’s head when her arrow hit. A diaphragm closed over the smoldering jewel, concealing it behind a bronze mask. The two remaining triangle patterns fired at Fluttershy. Fluttershy dodged, aimed for the mask, and fired a stream of arrows, but her shots didn’t leave so much as a crack or dent in the mask. She adjusted her aim, firing at other parts of the body, but the Bow of Light’s arrows did little damage to the Underworld Gatekeeper.

“Why isn’t this working?” Fluttershy asked. “The Three Sacred Treasures should be strong enough.”

“I’m not sure,” Celestia said. “The Three Sacred Treasures were made to defeat Nightmare Moon and the gods of the underworld. They should have vanquished a boss like this by now.”

“It’s not even a boss,” Fluttershy said. “It’s a miniboss.”

Two more screens issued from the body of the Underworld Gatekeeper. Fluttershy fired, shattering the screens with the Arrows of Light. She turned her attention to the two remaining triangles, but before she could shoot another arrow…

“Hi-yah!”

Rainbow Dash dove at the Gatekeeper from its left side, turned around, and kicked the side of its head with both hind legs.

“Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy said. She watched as Rainbow’s kick threw the Gatekeeper into its own barrier. The barrier’s energy surged across its body in arcs of purple electricity, ripping through its metal and leaving flames behind as it went. An explosion tore through the back of the machine, followed by a second explosion in its head, before the Gatekeeper fell away from the barrier, its burning body coming apart as it hit the ground.

Fluttershy looked up from the wreckage to the castle, its barrier fading away into nothing, and then to Rainbow Dash, who hovered between them. “And that’s how you take out a boss!” Rainbow said, her eyes closed and her hooves crossed in front of her chest.

“Miniboss,” Fluttershy corrected.

Rainbow opened her eyes and gave Fluttershy a smug grin. “Sure,” she said, “a miniboss you were having trouble with. You sure you don’t want me taking the Treasures and doing this for you?”

Fluttershy could only glare at Rainbow Dash. Then Rainbow’s expression shifted, and she seemed to glance at something off in the distance behind Fluttershy. Fluttershy could hear it, the sounds of the Underworld Army rushing toward them.

“Fine,” Rainbow said, rolling her eyes. “You get in the castle and finish off Nightmare Moon. I’ll make sure her troops don’t bother you while you’re in there.”

“There’s just one thing before you go,” Celestia said. “How exactly did you make it into the Underworld?”

“I just followed you in here through that portal,” Rainbow said with a shrug.

“A portal that we needed Thanatos’ key to open,” Celestia said. “And one that has no doubt closed by now.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened. “Hold on,” she said. “Are you saying I’m stuck here?”

Fluttershy could hear Celestia sigh. “Because of Fluttershy’s presence here, my magic now has a toehold in the Underworld,” Celestia said. “I can send her in and out without the aid of Thanatos’ key. Fluttershy, if you would?”

Fluttershy reached into her peytral and took out Thanatos’ key. She tossed the pink gem to Rainbow Dash, who caught it in her left hoof.

“Consider this a thank you for your help today,” Celestia said.

Rainbow looked the gem over in her hoof, then tightened her grip around it. “No problem,” she said. “Now get in the castle before I change my mind about letting you get the win.”

Rainbow turned to face the oncoming horde of Underworld enemies, while Celestia’s magic led Fluttershy toward Nightmare Moon’s castle. “Thanks for your help, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said.

“Stop calling me that!” Rainbow called out behind her.

Celestia’s magic guided Fluttershy toward the castle. A long, sloping path stretched below her, lined on either side by giant rib bones and split down the middle by what looked like a long spinal column, before finally reaching the central keep. The look in Fluttershy’s eyes hardened, and she steeled herself as she approached the castle’s front doors.

* * * * * * * * * *

The front doors of Nightmare Moon’s castle slammed shut behind Fluttershy as she landed on the floor of the main hall, her wings folding at her sides and the yellow aura around them vanishing. The room was dimly lit, with only a few torches lining the walls at eye level. A set of double doors stood on each side of the hall, a torch at either side of the doors. But the most striking feature of the main hall was a trio of stone statues that stood in a circle around the center, each one before one of the doorways.

Fluttershy stepped toward the statues and examined them. On her right was a statue of a three-headed dog, while the one on her left depicted the head and neck of a serpentine creature. Fluttershy walked past these two and stopped at the third one, which showed a tall equine figure with a gnarled horn, insect wings, and holes in her hooves.

“Chrysalis,” she said. “And the other two are Cerberus and Hewdraw.”

“Three statues,” Celestia said, “each with a corresponding doorway.”

Fluttershy looked past the statue of Chrysalis to the door behind it, then turned to look at the other two doors. With a look of determination, she stepped past the statue of Chrysalis and made her way toward the doors behind it. The doors swung open, leading her into a large octagonal room. Unlike the entrance hall, this room was very well lit, with lilac-colored walls and floors. A pink stripe ran along the boundary between the walls and the floor, and three of the walls had sharp, pyramidal spikes jutting out of them.

“The Labyrinth of Deceit,” Celestia said.

“I wish I could forget this place,” Fluttershy said. She looked around the room, but there didn’t seem to be anywhere she could go. She turned around, only to find that the doors she had entered through had disappeared. With no way to turn back, she studied the room again. The two spiked walls on her left and right were both orange, but the one at the other end of the room had yellow spikes. She approached the third spiked wall, raised her bow, and fired. Her arrow passed through the spikes and disappeared. She then drew closer to the wall and raised her hoof. It too passed through the spikes, and with her suspicions confirmed, she stepped through the false wall. A doorway stood at the end of the new room, and Fluttershy crossed the room and through the doorway.

Several platforms extended from the walls of the next room, hanging over a large chasm. The platforms were too far apart to even try to jump between, and the only other thing on the platform Fluttershy stood on was a circle of light at the other end. She approached the circle, and after a moment of hesitation, stepped onto it. A bright flash illuminated the entire room for a moment. When Fluttershy could see again, she furrowed her eyebrows. The platform she stood on was larger now, wrapping around one side of the room like a horseshoe instead of just a corner of it. She looked further down and saw that the entire room was different as well.

“Where am I?” Fluttershy asked.

“You are still in the same room,” Celestia said. “Check your surroundings.”

As Fluttershy surveyed the room, she spotted several misshapen blocks positioned above the platforms. The blocks were the closest thing the room had to a ceiling. Apart from them, the walls stretched as far up as the chasm went down. On Fluttershy’s left, the closest block had a doorway at the other end, one that looked just like the doorway she’d entered through. She followed the block and saw that it led directly above her head.

“Am I upside down?” Fluttershy asked.

“In a manner of speaking, yes,” Celestia said. “You seem to be alternating between the floor and the ceiling.”

Fluttershy made her way down the platform. She found another circle of light at the end of it and stepped into it. Another flash of light engulfed the room, and Fluttershy found herself standing on another platform. A door stood at the end of this platform, and she made her way through it.

The next room was much smaller, octagonal in shape, with another door on the opposite side. A Cherubot sat inactive near the center of the room. Fluttershy climbed into the mech’s cockpit, sat down, and placed her hooves on the orb in front of her. The Cherubot came to life, rising to its legs and hovering above the ground.

With her hooves at the controls, Fluttershy piloted the mech into the next room. Gyrazors and Shrips descended into the room, and a third enemy—a bulbous, pink, one-eyed slug with fins—dropped down from above. Fluttershy aimed the Cherubot’s gun arm, shooting down the Shrips one at a time, while piloting the mech toward the Gyrazors. Working the mech’s right arm, she punched the closest Gyrazor, then turned the gun arm on the other Gyrazors in the room.

With the other monsters slain, she aimed at the slug creature. But when she fired, the creature—a Nettler—flattened its body against the ground. Fluttershy aimed down with the Cherubot’s gun and fired again, killing the creature. A second Nettler dropped down next to Fluttershy. This time, Fluttershy brought the mech’s right arm around and punched the Nettler. She fired with the gun arm, finishing off the monster.

With the room now clear, Fluttershy piloted the Cherubot toward the next door, only to find that it was only large enough for a pony to fit through. She lifted her hooves from the controls and hopped out of the Cherubot, the mech collapsing and coming to rest as she landed on the ground. With the Bow of Light in hoof, Fluttershy made her way through the door.

Two things stood out to Fluttershy as she set hoof in the next chamber, a room she remembered all too well. The first was a large but simple mirror that stood on an altar at the far end. The second, and more pressing concern, was the buglike equine figure that stood in front of it.

“Chrysalis!” Fluttershy said.

Chrysalis lowered her horn, which lit with a green aura as she launched a volley of green fireballs at Fluttershy. Fluttershy sidestepped in between the fireballs, raised her bow, and fired back with several arrows. The arrows struck Chrysalis, who barely reacted to them. Chrysalis raised her head, her horn still aglow with magic, and three spherical black bombs appeared around the chamber.

“She’s not as responsive as the real thing was,” Celestia said.

“What do you mean?” Fluttershy asked as she galloped toward one of the bombs.

“I mean that is not Chrysalis,” Celestia said. “That’s just a soul made to resemble her.”

“How clever of you, oh Goddess of Light,” Nightmare Moon’s voice echoed.

“I can’t believe you would stoop to exploiting souls like this,” Celestia said. “Is nothing sacred to you?”

Fluttershy leapt behind one of the bombs and kicked with both hinds legs, catapulting it toward Chrysalis. Not stopping to check the damage, she ran toward the second bomb. Taking just a second to check where Chrysalis was, she gripped the Bow of Light with her hoof, leapt at the bomb, and swung, batting the bomb at Chrysalis with the side of her bow. The bomb exploded on contact, tossing Chrysalis back and spreading cracks throughout her black exoskeleton.

Not giving Chrysalis a chance to recover, Fluttershy raised her bow and fired. Her arrow shattered Chrysalis’ body, and an explosion of white light emanated from where she had stood, spreading across the entire room. Fluttershy raised the Mirror Shield in front of her, instinctively shutting her eyes as the blinding white light filled the chamber.

When Fluttershy opened her eyes, she was standing in the castle’s entrance hall. Three sets of double doors stood before her, each with a statue in front of it. Except no, only the two doorways on either side of her had statues. The third statue had crumbled to pieces on its pedestal.

“Back here again,” Fluttershy said.

“Which means two more to go,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy looked between the two remaining statues, Hewdraw on her left and Cerberus on her right. She let out a sharp breath and headed left, passing through the doors as they swung open. A stone pathway lay before her on the other side of the doors, and beyond them, the defensive walls of the fortified town she now stood in. A white haze hung over the stone, rectangular houses that stood underneath the pathway on either side, and ash gray clouds drifted through the green skies above. It all gave the town a bleak, ghostly look. Even so, she recognized the town.

“I remember this place,” Fluttershy said.

“This is where we fought the Hewdraw,” Celestia said.

“Oh right, That Burning Town,” Fluttershy said. She aimed her bow and fired at three Miks that had descended from the sky. “But this isn’t the real town. It’s just an illusion, right?”

“It’s as real as I am,” Nightmare Moon interjected. “I built it myself using your and the Hewdraw’s memories.”

“She can do that?” Fluttershy asked.

“Nightmare Moon may very well have the power to enter a pony’s dreams,” Celestia said. “It’s not far off to assume that she can bridge a connection to their thoughts and memories.”

Fluttershy all but shuddered at the thought. She looked across the town and spotted groups of monsters waiting for her in the streets and alleys. She then turned her gaze toward the walls surrounding the town, and a thought occurred to her. “We fought Hewdraw outside the town, didn’t we?” she said. “Down by the lake. So wouldn’t the Hewdraw be in the same place, outside the town gates?”

“That would make sense,” Celestia said.

“Then can’t we just leave through the gates and fight it now?” Fluttershy asked. “We don’t have to make our way through the town and fight Nightmare Moon’s forces, do we?”

“It’s a sound idea,” Celestia said. “No sense fighting through her forces when we don’t have to. And if the last chapter’s boss fight is any indication, the author will make any excuse to cut corners.”

“You forget where you are,” Nightmare Moon said. “You’re in my domain now, and you’ll play by my rules!”

Fluttershy raised an eyebrow. She glanced once more at the Underworld troops roving the town’s streets. None of them made a move toward her, at least not yet. Then she looked at the defensive walls, and the town gate awaiting her. Her mind made up, she stepped toward the town gate. She winced as Nightmare Moon’s voice boomed in her ear in protest, but ignored it as she pushed the gate open with her hooves and stepped out of town.

Beyond the dirt road that led from the town, through the sparse trees, Fluttershy made her way to the foot of the lake. The Hewdraw, thankfully with only a single head, rose out of the water to meet her. Hewdraw spat several fireballs at Fluttershy. Fluttershy rolled to the side to dodge, then fired back with an arrow from her bow. The arrow struck Hewdraw’s jaw, but the creature barely reacted to it as it dove into the lake.

Two orange spheres of light formed above the lake’s surface and began to drift back and forth. Fluttershy shot at one of the spheres, dislodging it and sending it into the water. An explosion erupted beneath the lake’s surface, followed by a column of water that launched the Hewdraw into the air. The creature’s body hit the ground and sprawled out along the shore. Fluttershy wasted no time, firing a stream of arrows at the beached Hewdraw’s body.

Before long, Hewdraw’s body writhed, and the creature slithered back into the lake. Fluttershy raised her bow and waited. When Hewdraw’s head breached the surface of the water again, Fluttershy fired. The creature’s head flung back, but froze in place before it could fall back into the water. A harsh white light began to envelop the lake and the skies above. The Hewdraw’s body vanished, while Fluttershy held up the Mirror Shield to protect her eyes as the white light spread across the lakeshore and consumed the trees and town behind her.

When the light faded, Fluttershy was once again standing at the castle entrance. Across the entrance hall, the Hewdraw statue had crumbled into a pile of rubble on its pedestal, leaving only the statue of Cerberus standing.

“Two down,” Fluttershy muttered to herself.

“Only one remains before you face Nightmare Moon,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy made her way to the right side of the castle’s entrance hall. She passed the statue of Cerberus, and when the last set of double doors flung open, she stepped through the doorway. Wide cobblestone streets and houses lay before her on the other side of the doorway. Many of the houses bore distinct features, from the shapes of their roofs and second stories to the color of their brickwork. Some even had a tree or two growing between them and the neighboring houses. It was a stark contrast from That Burning Town, where all of the houses had the same sand-colored brickwork and nearly the same blocky shape. Up above, the skies had turned a deep red, with dark clouds drifting overhead.

“This was the town where I had my first mission, right?” Fluttershy asked.

“You’ve come a long way since then,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy began to make her way through the streets. Rubble was strewn about from the remains of several demolished houses, blocking off some of the roads. Fluttershy continued on, and came to a stop in front of a dried up fountain in the center of one of the town’s main streets. To the left of the fountain, a gaping fissure had torn through one of the nearby roads. The remnants of several houses stood near the chasm, some half destroyed, some teetering over the edge of it. For a moment, Fluttershy had forgotten that this “town” was a recreation by Nightmare Moon and wondered how many houses might be at the bottom of the fissure.

Fluttershy continued past the fountain, and up a massive set of stairs that led up to a coliseum. In the original town, this was where she encountered Cerberus. ‘Encountered,’ not ‘fought,’ she realized, when she remembered how her encounter with the Underworld beast played out. A feeling of unease set in as she made her way up the stairs. Not the weight in the pit of her stomach, or a sense of trepidation that would normally make her balk or shy away, but a feeling of unease that she couldn’t quite describe.

A group of four Skuttlers waddled their way down the steps, pulling her out of her thoughts. She shot an arrow at the first Skuttler, then turned her aim to the next one and fired several smaller arrows. The third one lunged at her with its bone club, but she parried the blow and slashed at the enemy with her bow’s bladed limbs. She then turned her bow and fired at the fourth Skuttler, shooting it down as well.

Shemums began to slither down the steps toward Fluttershy, as well as up the sides of the staircase around her. Fluttershy shot down one of the snake creatures as it came down the steps, and then another. She turned her aim toward another Shemum that crawled up the side of the stairs and fired, and then kept climbing up the stairs, shooting down Shemums as she went. By the time Fluttershy had killed the last of the Shemums, she had reached the top of the stairs and was facing the entrance of the coliseum. With the Bow of Light in hoof, she entered through the coliseum’s main archway.

Fluttershy passed through the tunnels of the coliseum and stepped out into the arena, where Cerberus was waiting for her. All three of Cerberus’ heads growled at her as she approached. Fluttershy just smiled at him. She reached into her tunic and pulled out three dog treats.

“Here, boy!” she called out, tossing the treats toward the giant, three-headed dog. “Ready to learn some new tricks? If you’re good, I’ll take you for a walk!”

Cerberus snarled at Fluttershy again. He stepped toward her, heads lowered, crushing the treats under one of his paws.

“Um, and I’ll give you a bath?” Fluttershy stammered. She kept an uneasy smile on her face, even as she backed away from Cerberus. “I’ll even give you some more treats.”

Cerberus lunged at Fluttershy, swiping at her with his claw. Fluttershy eeped as she leapt out of the way.

“I don’t think you and Cerberus will be racking up any Nintendogs trainer points together,” Celestia said.

“I don’t even play Nintendogs!” Fluttershy said, frantically shooting an arrow from her bow. Her arrow pierced one of Cerberus’ heads, but the head shook off the hit as he rose back onto his paws.

“Really?” Celestia said. “That’s surprising.”

Cerberus spat several fireballs at Fluttershy from two of his heads. Fluttershy stumbled back for a second, then raised her shield foreleg in front of her face. Her eyes squeezed shut as the fireballs struck the Mirror Shield, each fireball jolting her from the force of impact but leaving her unscathed. “I have real animals to take care of!” she screamed. “I don’t need a sim!”

Fluttershy raised her other hoof and shot another arrow from her bow, piercing another of Cerberus’ heads. The head recoiled, but Cerberus breathed in with his center head and blew a stream of fire at Fluttershy. Fluttershy galloped around the edge of the arena, dodging as Cerberus followed her with his fire breath. She leapt forward, flipping in the air as she quickly aimed her bow and fired back. The Arrow of Light struck Cerberus’ center head, throwing his head back and interrupting his fire breath. He stumbled back and slipped on his back paws, collapsing to the ground as Fluttershy hit the ground and rolled on her side. Fluttershy was the first to recover, rising to her knees and aiming the Bow of Light again. She paused, waiting for her bow to charge, and shot another arrow at Cerberus.

Cerberus’ head jerked for a second when Fluttershy’s arrow struck, but then the arrow’s light grew brighter and began to spread. The light consumed Cerberus’ body in a matter of seconds, and spread through the arena, the coliseum’s empty stands, and the red skies above. Still kneeling, Fluttershy raised up her shield leg, shutting her eyes and hiding behind the Mirror Shield as the explosion of light made its way toward her.

When the light subsided, Fluttershy opened her eyes again. She was in the castle’s front entrance. Her heart still racing, she took a moment to catch her breath before rising to her hooves. “I was hoping I wouldn’t have to fight him this time either,” she panted. “Do you think he was mad after the first time?”

“I think Nightmare Moon had your gift with animals in mind when she created this imposter Cerberus,” Celestia said. “But now that you’ve slain him, the last of the statues has crumbled.”

Fluttershy looked across the entrance hall to find a pile of rubble standing on each of the three pedestals. “Then it’s time to go after Nightmare Moon, right?”

“Yes,” Celestia said. “The path to her is right behind you, through the castle’s front doors.”

Fluttershy blinked. “What?” she asked. She spun around and walked over to the pair of front doors. The doors swung open on her approach, but instead of the deep, bright orange skies and the bleak, dead landscape of the Underworld, she was met with a dimly lit, circular room. A series of lit braziers around the edges of the room provided the room’s only source of light. Skuttlers and Shemums stood together in the center of the room, surrounding a Skuttler-shaped suit of armor.

Fluttershy raised her weapon leg almost on reflex, the question of how the castle’s exit doors took her deeper into the castle having vanished from her mind. She shot an arrow at one of the Skuttlers, followed by a stream of smaller arrows at the snakelike Shemums. One of the Skuttlers lunged at her, but she dodged and slashed it with her bow’s bladed limb. She hopped back from an approaching Skuttler and fired an arrow at it, followed by a stream of smaller arrows at the next two Skuttlers.

The suit of armor hopped once toward Fluttershy, startling her as it hit the ground with a heavy crash. She eyed the armor, watching it for movement. She noticed a large red eye behind the slits of the armor’s visor.

“It looks like one of the Skuttlers crawled into a suit of armor,” Celestia said. “Its back is still exposed, so move around it and attack from behind.”

The Suit of Skuttler hopped toward Fluttershy again. Fluttershy galloped past the creature, leapt, flipped in midair, and quickly aimed and fired at its back. The Skuttler itself faded into purple mist, while the suit of armor fell forward and collapsed on the floor. Fluttershy rolled when she hit the floor and rose back onto her hooves. With the room clear of enemies, she turned and headed for the next door.

An underground tunnel met Fluttershy on the other side of the door. Torches lined the walls, providing the only illumination as she made her way down the passage.

“I find it ironic that you would call yourself the Goddess of Light,” Nightmare Moon’s voice echoed bitterly in Fluttershy’s ear. “After all, it was you who turned me into a monster. It was you who hunted me down.”

“You shouldn’t blame me for that,” Celestia said. “I only reflected in your appearance what I saw in your heart.”

Fluttershy listened in on their conversation as she explored the underground passage. The two goddesses had once worked together in the distant past, that much she knew. That ended with their falling out roughly a thousand years ago, and though she wasn’t sure how Celestia felt about it, Nightmare Moon was clearly still resentful.

“And what about your heart?” Nightmare Moon asked. “I can only imagine what resides there.”

“Why just imagine it?” Celestia taunted. “Don’t you have the power to make it a reality?”

“There’s no point,” Nightmare Moon said. “We all know it would be some sort of hideous creature.”

“You shut your mouth, Nightmare Moon!” Fluttershy snapped. “Princess Celestia is nothing like you! Who poisons the rivers and reduces cities to rubble? Who condemns earth ponies to total darkness? And who’s leading the Underworld destruction of the land and heavens? Not Princess Celestia. You’re the one responsible for all this. But what I don’t get is how you managed to resurrect yourself in the first place!”

“I suppose…” Nightmare Moon trailed off. “I don’t really understand how that happened either.”

“What do you mean?”

“I… I don’t remember what happened,” Nightmare Moon said. “My memories aren’t what they were.”

“You’re slipping, Nightmare Moon,” Celestia said. “Your mind isn’t all there anymore, and I can sense that your life force is weaker than it used to be. Cerberus, Hewdraw, Chrysalis, and Thanatos have all been defeated, but if you withdraw your army and promise to stay in this castle, I will spare you.”

Nightmare Moon laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous,” she scoffed. “It hardly matters how I returned. What matters is why: to exact revenge on you! I think I’ll start by turning your little pegasus to stone. Then I’ll set my sights on you.”

“Threaten all you want,” Fluttershy seethed. “You don’t scare me. I will defeat you. I’ll return to Skyworld victorious!”

Nightmare Moon’s laughter echoed in Fluttershy’s ears, but Fluttershy continued on. She shot an arrow, piercing through one Skuttler and hitting a second one behind it, and fired several smaller arrows at a third Skuttler. She then galloped forward, rushing past a Suit of Skuttler and shooting it down with the same flipping maneuver she had used on the first one. The tunnel soon led her to an enormous cavern, as well as a great chasm that spanned much of its length. A pair of rails formed in front of her hooves and extended over the chasm.

“I set up a grind rail, but I had to get creative,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy jumped onto the rails and allowed them to carry her along. The rails circled around a rock pillar several times as they rose into the air and looped around the remains of a bridge. Fluttershy almost stepped back as the grind rails approached the first loop, but their magic kept her hooves in place. Along the way, she fired her bow at several Monoeyes, Shrips, and Octos as they pursued her.

“I can sense you getting closer, Fluttershy,” Nightmare Moon said. “I’m very much looking forward to your arrival. I almost feel like a damsel in distress waiting for her knight in shining armor.”

“I hate to break it to you, but you’re not exactly getting a happily ever after,” Fluttershy said.

“And you’re not exactly a brave hero,” Nightmare Moon shot back. “Yet somehow, the thought of our confrontation fills me with anticipation. So hurry to me, Fluttershy. I’ll strip you of your wings and sever you from the heavens forever! Or maybe I’ll let you live long enough for you and Celestia to see each other one last time before killing you in front of her?”

“Are you done?” Fluttershy said. “I already told you. You don’t scare me.” She hopped off the grind rails and landed on a platform. Three Monoeyes hovered at the other end of the platform, and she fired at them with her bow. When the last Monoeye fell, a rose colored path of light appeared at the other end of the platform and stretched further across the chasm. The path was wide but thin, with ornate patterns like a carpet, and twisted and undulated above the chasm as it went.

Fluttershy stepped onto the path of light and walked along. She glanced over the side of the path and paused for a moment. Trying not to think about how far down the fall would be, she pressed on. The path of light brought her to another platform, where two Miks and a Gyrazor waited for her. She fired an arrow at one Mik, shooting it down. The second Mik lashed its tongue at her, but she hopped over it and fired a volley of smaller arrows, shooting down the two remaining enemies. A second carpet of hard light extended from the platform across the chasm when the last enemy fell, and Fluttershy stepped onto it.

The path led Fluttershy to a third platform, where three Shrips hovered down from above. She shot down one Shrip with her bow, then leapt to the side as the second Shrip flew at her, its head and bladed beak spinning like a circular saw. She fired an arrow at the Shrip, then turned her bow to the third Shrip as it began to spin its head and shot it down with a few smaller arrows.

Another hard light path formed at the end of the platform. Fluttershy made her way along the path, which brought her to the other end of the chasm. A set of stairs led up to a pair of doors that bore an image of the moon and an alicorn’s head. Fluttershy headed up the set of stairs and reached the doors at the top. The doors swung open before her, and she made her way through.

* * * * * * * * * *

Laughter echoed through the darkness in one of the largest chambers deep beneath the Underworld castle. A set of doors lay open at the very foot of the chamber, the dim torchlight from the previous room barely casting any light through the doorway. Hit by the sheer size of the chamber, the vast darkness before her, and the thunderous echo of the laughter, Fluttershy trepidatiously set hoof inside, stepping only as far as the torchlight would illuminate. She made it as far as a balcony with a low-hanging sandstone wall before a light began to shine high above her.

Nightmare Moon’s form loomed high above Fluttershy and the balcony she stood on, her horn aglow with a cyan aura, her starry mane billowing behind her, and even her eyes alight with a harsh glow. Even the pieces of barding on her legs, chest, and head gave off a harsh light, though whether they were casting their own light or reflecting the glow from her horn Fluttershy wasn’t sure. “We finally meet face to face, Fluttershy!” Nightmare Moon said.

Nightmare Moon took a step toward the balcony, her hoof shaking the ground as it landed. The light coming off her barding flashed across the ground as she moved, cutting through the darkness around Fluttershy with its harsh, almost searing glow. “S-She’s huge!” Fluttershy stammered, taking a few steps back from the balcony.

“What’s wrong, my little pony?” Nightmare Moon said. “I thought I didn’t scare you.”

Fluttershy stopped backing away. Sure, she wasn’t expecting Nightmare Moon to actually be this size. But Nightmare Moon’s remark hit her with a flash of realization. She thought back on all of Nightmare Moon’s atrocities, the two towns she had attacked and the ponies she had terrorized, including Applejack and Pinkamena, and the war she had started against Celestia. No, she wasn’t scared. She was angry, and she glared up at Nightmare Moon.

“No, you don’t scare me, Nightmare Moon,” Fluttershy said. “In the name of Princess Celestia, the Goddess of Light, and everypony she defends, those who hide in the darkness will be made to face the light!”

“Activating the Alicorn Wings,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy spread her wings to their full extent. The magenta glow that had emanated from her wing shoulders and coverts ever since she was equipped with the Three Sacred Treasures now flared out, emitting a sound like howling wind as it extended several times past the tips of her wings. The light flexed and almost formed into the shape of wings larger than Fluttershy’s own body, but then receded and condensed, concentrating around her wings in a brilliant, blazing aura of magic.

“Go now, Fluttershy,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy soared into the air and flew toward Nightmare Moon, her bow ready. Nightmare Moon eyed her as she approached. The aura around her horn flared, and Fluttershy was flung far across the other size of the chamber. Fluttershy’s body tumbled, bouncing across a body of water and skidding along the water’s surface before the magic in her wings regained control. With a few powerful wingbeats, her wings regained control, and she flew back the way she’d come, toward the platform at the water’s edge where Nightmare Moon stood.

Several rifts tore in the air ahead of Fluttershy, each with an eye in the center of them. Each one opened fire on her, but the Alicorn Wings pulled her out of their way as they carried her along.

“I’m going to try to get you closer,” Celestia said. Fluttershy grunted as her body was yanked out of the way of a spray of projectiles from one of the rifts. “I know it’s tough, but don’t give up.”

Fluttershy raised her bow and fired back at one of the rifts. The eye within the rift snapped shut, the rift disappeared, and Fluttershy flew onward, guided by the Alicorn Wings’ magic. She climbed upward as she approached the platform, rising above Nightmare Moon. Nightmare Moon eyed her as she circled high above the edge of the platform.

“You’re still too far away,” Celestia said.

Fluttershy banked toward the center of the platform. Nightmare Moon spread her wings, and two of her feathers popped out and launched themselves at Fluttershy. Fluttershy swerved left, then dove to dodge the feathers, and fired an arrow back. A flash of cyan light consumed Nightmare Moon’s body, and she vanished before the Arrow of Light could get close to her. Another flash of light glared from across the other side of the platform, and a second later, Nightmare Moon’s body flickered back into existence.

“It must take a lot to teleport that huge body like that,” Fluttershy said as Celestia guided her toward Nightmare Moon again.

“Who are you calling huge, you insignificant little thing?!” Nightmare Moon bellowed.

“Eep!”

Two more feathers launched at Fluttershy from Nightmare Moon’s wings, followed by a blast of magic from her horn.

“Fluttershy,” Celestia said. “Once you get close enough, aim for Nightmare Moon’s helmet. Destroy that first.”

Fluttershy banked right to dodge the blast of magic, then maneuvered past the two feathers as they homed in on her. She fired another arrow from the Bow of Light, striking the left side of Nightmare Moon’s helmet and putting a crack in it. Nightmare Moon teleported in another flash of light, reappearing across the platform. She fired a blast of magic from her horn and disappeared again, teleporting to the center of the platform. Another blast of magic, and then Nightmare Moon teleported a third time, appearing on the opposite end of the platform and firing a third blast from her horn.

Fluttershy dove under the first blast of magic, angled to the side of the second, and soared to sail over the third. She aimed her bow, but a stray feather from Nightmare Moon’s wings caught her flank, exploding on impact. Fluttershy jerked forward and grunted in pain, but the Alicorn Wings kept her aloft. Gritting her teeth, she raised her bow again, while Celestia’s magic guided her.

Nightmare Moon’s starry mane rose and fanned out around her helm. Locks of shimmering hair clumped together, taking the form of serpents, and lunged at Fluttershy. Fluttershy swerved up and down, dodging each serpent as she circled around Nightmare Moon. She aimed and fired an arrow at the back of Nightmare Moon’s helmet, putting another crack in it. She followed with a stream of smaller arrows.

“Enough!” Nightmare Moon shouted. Fluttershy froze in place as a cyan aura wrapped around every inch of her body. Forcefully, her body was flung around Nightmare Moon’s head, coming to a stop in front of her face. She squirmed against the Underworld goddess’ magical grasp, trying to move any part of her body. Her neck had some range of motion, but her legs were held in place, preventing her from aiming her bow. Not even the Alicorn Wings could break loose, as her wings were frozen in place as well. “Are you still watching, Goddess of Light? Because everything I do to her, I will soon do to you!”

Almost at once, a magenta glow radiated from the armor pieces on Fluttershy’s body. The light spread across her, snuffing out the blue aura of Nightmare Moon’s magic. Fluttershy’s wings began to flap again, and she lifted her front hooves up in front of her, looking on in wonder as the magenta light faded from every part of her except her wings.

“What?!” Nightmare Moon said. “How?!”

“Fluttershy is protected from your magic by the Three Sacred Treasures,” Celestia said. “As small and insignificant as you think she is, you can’t harm her so easily. But I’m not so restricted.”

Chains burst forth from the ground around Nightmare Moon. One chain wrapped around Nightmare Moon’s left hind leg, holding it in place. Another chain wrapped around her left foreleg and pulled back. A third pierced through the cannon on her right hind leg, bursting out the other side and wrapping around. The fourth chain wrapped around her right foreleg and yanked it to her right, and she collapsed to her knees.

“Fluttershy,” Celestia said. “I’ve chained Nightmare Moon’s legs in place for you. Now you can get close to her and attack.”

“You’ll pay for that!” Nightmare Moon shouted.

Fluttershy shot another arrow at Nightmare Moon’s helmet, putting a crack in it above her eye. Nightmare Moon snarled and fired back at her with her horn. Fluttershy rolled out of the way and fired a stream of smaller arrows at the helmet. Nightmare Moon’s mane whipped around, taking on the form of a giant snake, opened its maw, and spat venom at Fluttershy. Fluttershy grimaced as she swerved to dodge the venom spray. She fired an arrow at the snake construct, breaking it apart and throwing Nightmare Moon’s mane back. She then aimed at the helmet again and fired a few smaller arrows.

The helmet broke into several pieces. Nightmare Moon’s head fell and she shut her eyes, the broken pieces of her helmet dropping to the ground. A dark aura emanated from her face. The strands of her mane morphed into snakes once again. The dark aura faded and Nightmare Moon raised her head, revealing a single giant, slitted eye with red sclera where her two cyan eyes and her snout used to be. Fluttershy looked on in bewilderment.

“Now this is the Nightmare Moon I remember,” Celestia said.

“Sh-She hideous!” Fluttershy said.

Nightmare Moon’s head twisted off of the rest of her neck. Leaving the rest of her body chained to the platform, it rushed at Fluttershy in the air. The aura around Fluttershy’s wings flared, and she darted out of the way.

“This whole time, she’s been using part of her magic to hide her true self with that helmet,” Celestia said, guiding Fluttershy as Nightmare Moon’s head pursued her around the chamber. “Now that she’s fighting at full strength, this is a battle we cannot lose.”

Fluttershy flipped around in midair, allowing her wings to propel her as she stared at Nightmare Moon face to face. Several snakes leapt from Nightmare Moon’s head and lunged at her one by one. Fluttershy swerved to dodge each one and returned fire with her bow. The aura around Nightmare Moon’s horn intensified, and Fluttershy flipped back around, her eyes facing the flight path ahead of her with the occasional stolen glance back at Nightmare Moon. She banked hard to avoid the beam of magic that shot from Nightmare Moon’s horn, then swerved as the beam followed her through the air. She craned her head back, aimed the Bow of Light behind her, and fired.

Nightmare Moon’s head tumbled back for a moment and let out a sound between a gurgle and a gasp. Abandoning its pursuit of Fluttershy, it flew back to its body and landed on its neck. The chains around Nightmare Moon’s legs broke, and she spread her wings and began to rise back to her hooves.

“Now, Fluttershy, the eye!” Celestia said. “Before she escapes!”

Fluttershy rushed forward, the Alicorn Wings flinging her through the air toward Nightmare Moon. Her eyes furrowed, she raised her weapon leg, aimed as best as she could for Nightmare Moon’s eye, and fired.

The Arrow of Light pierced its target, and Nightmare Moon’s head flung back. Fluttershy hovered in the air, her bow still trained, and watched as Nightmare Moon stood frozen in place. The ground below started to shake, as well as the entire chamber around them. A ray of yellow light shone down on Fluttershy, and after a moment, she vanished. Nightmare Moon’s body began to disintegrate, turning into dust and spilling down to the ground, starting from the tip of her horn and ending at her hooves.

Outside the castle, an earthquake shook throughout the Underworld. Not a single Underworld soldier remained in the skies, and even Rainbow Dash was gone. Piece by piece, the Underworld castle began to break apart. Walls, gates, and towers crumbled away to nothing, and before long, the entire castle was reduced to rubble.

Fluttershy reappeared at the threshold of Celestia’s temple back in Skyworld. Her hooves touching the ground again, she looked to the temple entrance, where the Goddess of Light stood smiling at her. Elated, she galloped toward her, barely noticing as the Three Sacred Treasures transformed into bits of light and shot deeper into the temple, leaving her wearing just her tunic. For her part, Celestia walked toward Fluttershy at a more relaxed pace.

“We did it!” Fluttershy said, wrapping her hooves around Celestia’s neck in a tight hug. “We really did it!”

“Well done, Fluttershy,” Celestia said, placing a gentle hoof on Fluttershy’s withers. “I know it wasn’t easy.”

“But it was so worth it,” Fluttershy said. She broke off the embrace and trotted back outside the entrance, coming to a stop where the sunlight could wash over her. “It’s finally over. The Underworld’s been defeated, the Earth ponies are safe, and the world’s at peace. Even the sun feels warmer now.”

Celestia let out a chuckle as Fluttershy closed her eyes, spread out her wings, and took in the sun’s rays. She approached Fluttershy, placing her hoof on her withers again as she looked up at the sky.

“Now wait just a second.”

Fluttershy opened her eyes again. Her smile faded and her wings folded at her sides as she scanned the area around her. “Did you hear something?” she asked.

“I said wait just a second,” the voice repeated.

Celestia continued to gaze up at the sky, but a look of concern had made its way onto her face as well. “No,” she said. “That can’t be…”

Suddenly, a giant lion’s paw appeared in the sky out of thin air. Its claws literally dug into the air and slashed through it, tearing the sky asunder. What remained was a fiery backdrop, and a massive figure loomed over them, one with a slender, snakelike body with brown fur and several mismatched body parts: a lion’s paw and eagle’s talon for forelimbs, hind legs from a lizard and a goat, one wing each from a bat and a pegasus, and a scaly brick red tail with a tuft of white hair at the end. Its head was more horselike, but with gray fur, a goat horn and a deer antler, and sporting a goatee.

“Discord?!” Celestia said.

“Who’s Discord?” Fluttershy asked, taking a step back.

“The true master of the Underworld,” Celestia said. She stepped forward and spread her wings. One wing was extended in front of Fluttershy, firmly putting herself in between the pegasus and the Lord of the Underworld.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” Discord said. “But now that I’m here, let’s get this party started! Welcome to my Underworld, Flutterbutt. You too, silly Celestia.”

“I’m… honored you know who I am,” Celestia said, keeping a hardened expression on her face.

“So this little pegasus took down big, bad Nightmare Moon all by herself,” Discord said. “What an accomplishment! Goodness, you should put this on your résumé! But before you do, you should know that I whipped up that Nightmare Moon especially for you.”

“Wh-What?!” Fluttershy stammered. “B-But how?”

A blender popped into existence in front of Discord. “Add a pinch of memories to a ton of souls,” he said, sprinkling something granular into the blender with his talon while dumping a sack of potatoes into it with his paw, “put them in a blender and hit frappé!”

Without placing a lid on, Discord pressed a button on the blender. A coarse grinding sound emanated from the blender and smoke rose from inside. Discord raised an eyebrow, then reached in with his talon, pulling out a pony-sized ceramic Nightmare Moon.

“Huh, so that's what was wrong with the blade,” he said.

“Explain yourself!” Celestia said, glaring at Discord.

“Her thirst for revenge was so great, it seemed a shame to let it go to waste,” he said as he petted the ceramic figure, getting soot on his paw. He then licked the soot off his paw and gave a delighted smile. “Oh, silly Celestia. You must have done a real number on her.”

“I did what I had to,” Celestia said sternly.

“But she’s old news, and old news bores me,” Discord said, tossing the ceramic figure away while the blender dropped like a stone. “We must look to the future, and that future is me, the true leader of the Underworld! Next to me, little Miss Nightmare Moon is going to look like a sweet, cuddly bunny.”

“What are you planning, Discord?” Celestia said, her eyes narrowed.

“I must bid you adieu,” Discord said, taking a bow. He snapped his talons, and vanished with a pop. The tear in the sky steadily shrunk, as if mending itself, before it finally closed up.

But even as all traces of Discord’s appearance faded away, neither Fluttershy nor Celestia moved. Fluttershy looked up at Celestia with frightened, pleading eyes. Celestia looked down to give an assuring look, but her eyes betrayed the feeling of worry she had, and she gazed back up at the sky.

Author's Note

Well, this isn't the first time Fluttershy has had to deal with a sweet, cuddly bunny. There, I said it.

Also, the boss rush actually does make you go in a circle before fighting Hewdraw. I’m not kidding. Play the chapter and see for yourself. And yeah, if Thanatos’ gem is the only key to the Underworld, then how did Dark Pit get in? And how does he leave? Did Pit leave the door open on his way in or something?