Terror Puppet

Chapters

Less Correct
Interval
Ringing Bell
Silhouette
Torn Veil
Slow Burn
That Which Is Empty
Cold As The Clay
Faltering Light
Timbred Voices
Slate
Worlds of Hurt
Wave of Pain
Stakes
Silence
Way of Pain
Horror Come Calling
Invasion
Mirror of Sadness
Battle Cry
Illusion of Solace
Awoken
Paint By Numbers
Challenge
Thresher Roll
Travails
Strings
Heart
Whispers
Drumbeat
Of Fear
Precipice
Specter
Switchflip
Celestial Providence
Simmering
Swordplay
Puppetry
Swordplay
Not Quite Right
The Grim Tail of Valorous
Battle Lines
Encroachment
Knight Fallen

Less Correct

The creeping sense of wrongness welling up from within the very stone of Canterlot seems to forebode some form of assault, not just upon the senses but causing the very air itself to take on some disconcerting demeanor. It lent to the air a feeling that perhaps even breathing was a risk on its own. What was this madness now consuming the once familiar castle? This was no haunted place. Though it stood through several assaults over the course of its existence, only once was it the scene of a truly brutal battle that was ended rapidly. There should be no ghosts of the past here. Certainly none given reason enough to trouble the living. What then? What manner of monstrosity casts it's shadow across those dwelling inside?

Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle, longtime friends and servants of the just are cautiously seeking answers in this maelstrom of terrible sensation. Answers that are not readily forthcoming. The stone walls hewn and carved exquisitely to form the grand hallways of the castle feel incorrect, out of place in their familiarity. Each as if spilling their own darkness across the floor. Every formerly familiar hoofstep echoing in a manner most chilling, as if their very strength sapped away by some unseen adversary. Both know how wrong this is. Heading towards Luna's chambers both realize the dark feeling from below is worse than ever. How does nopony else in the castle notice? They take no heed as if nothing out of place.

"Could it be because we were the Element wielders that we have some kind of immunity to whatever it is?" Twilight was puzzled. The way this was playing out did not match anything she ever experienced or read of before. Lacking a frame of reference was bad enough, having no clue at all was much worse. There was exactly no useful information at their disposal about this situation. The sheer absurdity of their predicament was not lost on either. Were it not for the pervasive feelings of everything being off kilter this would be funny, perhaps even hilarious. They were expected to attend dinner with that..thing. There were some hours before then, hopefully something useful could be determined in that time.

"That doesn't sound quite right does it? Luna and Celestia both wielded the Elements once themselves, but it was a very long time ago." Twilight glanced over as they prepared to enter the room. Would they find Luna within or some other horror?

"I may not know much about magic, but I know what I feel and it feels horrible. Ready?" She went to enter. As her forehoof went to touch the door it simply slipped open. Very odd. It felt, cold inside. Far colder than it should.

"Princess Luna? Hello?" Rainbow Dash walked in ahead of Twilight defensively. This was probably silly of her to do, but a natural response. A gentle music box tune was playing from within the chamber. A sad, reflective tune. No one was there.

"Where could she be at? I hope we don't have to wait until dinner to speak with her. She could be anywhere. I don't really want to get near that thing again if we can help it." Dash said, but noted her bed was unusually messy. That didn't seem like something she or the castle staff would normally leave as such. Both grimaced. Luna might be in need of help as well.

"I agree, but we might have to. We can't just leave or it would look strange and we have to find the real princesses. Plus, I still haven't been able to figure out why everyone else seems to see that..puppet as the real Celestia. It knows court protocols, even how she acts and thinks. I.." Some tears fell from her face. That was rare.

"What's wrong? I mean besides that.." Dash asked sincerely, worried about her well-being.

"It's just..what if one or both of them are....she.." Twilight was stumbling over words. That was a change.

"Wait wait. We don't know what's happened to them yet. I know you're worried about them, but there might be a bigger problem than just that." Rainbow could be surprisingly insightful sometimes.

"A bigger problem than both of them being replaced with something terrifying!?" Twilight snapped. Dash backed up.

"I'm sorry..please go on." Seeing the look on her longtime friends face made her realize just how tense she truly was.

"You know how much damage she..it could do? Not just here, but to the entire country? Just being on the throne gives it massive power. Maybe even more than you realize, Twilight. We couldn't act openly to fight them or anything, we'd be branded traitors, even you. Do you see what I'm saying?" This was definitely one of her more insightful moments. She had a terrifying point. Given their apparent knowledge of how things worked, this problem could go much further. It might even lend itself to crossing the great reaches of all Equestria and cause untold havoc across the land. As they pondered the implications of this the sense of rising darkness fell in all the more. The music box wound down and stopped warblingly.

"We have to keep looking. Just act casual, like we're out roaming the castle for a stroll. Let's head to the lower levels. I know you can tell as well, that feeling gets worse the farther down we go." Twilight looked out across the hallway both ways before they stepped back into it. They'd carefully worded questions to what few castle staff were encountered over the course of the day. None provided any real information. Definitely nothing concrete. Not one noticed anything unusual lately. This was after all, Canterlot. Something would have to be very strange indeed to garner real notice. Not finding Luna in her quarters was disturbing in its own right. During the day, the night princess would usually be right there.

The lack of her presence did not bode well. Was she also replaced by some abomination? What if they were both in some undiscovered prison somewhere? Dying? Dead? They must at least still be on the castle grounds. Removing them from the castle itself would surely have proven difficult, if not impossible. Unfortunately, this might not be true either. Everyone within was now suspect in some way. Did anyone present have anything to do with this? Whatever investigating they were doing had best be concluded in a hurry. The castle felt cold. Although grand and ancient, it never felt this cool before. The floor was fine as ever, but beneath their hooves felt warped in some untellable manner. Dinner hour was fast approaching.

Down the well..

Interval

Some interminable dark takes hold of Canterlot castle. Long a safe haven. Cozy. Inviting, friendly. For these two friends wandering the now desolate feeling corridors the atmosphere speaks more to something corrupt and unknowable than comfort and good memories. Invading the senses to leave one glancing in all directions for dancing shadows which are for the briefest moment seen, but a second look finds nothing out of place. Not a book in the great castle library, not a pot mislaid in the kitchen. The kitchen staff as oblivious to encroaching darkness as all others. Unspoken terror begins to take root in their spirit. Even the mighty may feel fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of the future, the past and all other manner of things may imbue this.

Heroes they may well be, but knowing nothing of what stands ahead of them allows mounting dread to build and blood run cold. The appointed hour when they must once more approach a dreadful conspiration of malice draws ever closer. The objects of their quest still nowhere to be found. Forcing themselves to take one strained hoofstep after another into an ever increasing miasma of something repugnant. This infringement against the very light pushes back as if alive. Telling them to run away. Leave before it is too late to do so, but nothing is there. It must be an imagined thing. The hallways are no darker than ever. Nothing lurks to leap out upon the unwary and drag them away to some untold fate.

"Twilight, I don't..feel so well. I almost feel like I hurt and ache all over. Every floor down its getting worse." She took a deep breath and huffed, almost wheezing. They were approaching the very lowest levels of the castle. Rarely used halls and rooms mostly. Each and all bereft of whom they sought, an unstirred layer of dust in many from disuse. Full of trinkets and old treasures gathered over a millennia. The castle was truly immense in reality. Able to house far more than were generally present.

"We must have looked into almost every room in the entire castle by now. Where could they be?" Twilight was fast becoming very dejected. Her worry was almost palpable.

"Rainbow, you remember the mines down in the mountain I told you about?" She asked quietly, almost weakly.

"How could I forget? That was the craziest wedding ever!" Dash remembered it mostly as being totally awesome.

"Focus. After all that they were just closed up, but no one really knows how far down they actually went or what else might have been down there. I think this feeling comes from further below." She spoke gravely. Dash groaned.

"Twi, I think it's obvious if I get any closer to whatever it is I'm going to collapse. I'm sorry, I can't. You being an alicorn and all must give you some resistance or something." She was clearly having trouble drawing breath. This was terrible.

"I won't drag you along to something that will hurt you. We have to cut our search short anyway. It's almost time for dinner. We should go to the dining hall. Before we do there is a spell I want to cast on us both and since we are this far down I don't think anyone will sense it if I make it quick. Hold still." Dash gave her a questioning look but did as she was asked and a quick flash of light later felt a slight bit odd.

"What was that?" Dash questioned.

"Just a little insurance policy. Don't worry about it." That was a little odd of her not to fully explain.

"If you say so. I trust you with my life, Twilight." Rainbow Dash moved at pace to get back upstairs, further away from whatever was below. Just moving back up a couple floors let her breathe easier.

"I feel better already. I have never felt like that before. Like something was squeezing the life right out of me." She took a deep breath and looked much better.

"Me either. I know it didn't seem like it, but I was feeling the same way. Just not as much I guess." This was worrisome to Twilight. If she couldn't take others along with her then it might be something she had no choice but to face alone.

This was not something she was entirely unfamiliar with, but facing off with some great unknown by herself was not a thought she relished. She was ever at her best with her friends by her side. There was perhaps one other that could come along, but she was not here and time was potentially running out. Where could Celestia and Luna possibly be? Down in the depths, captive as she once was? It had been proven before to not be impossible to best either of them. They'd even been successfully imprisoned at least twice before. It took savvy planning to take either of them down. Especially together, which alluded to their enemy being very powerful and intelligent. Whatever that enemy might actually be. It clearly intended harm.

What was it really after? There were any number of imagined horrors in the world, but far fewer real ones. This was most definitely real. A possible disaster of untold proportions may await ahead of them if they were unsuccessful in gleaning some useful information. Anything, the slightest hint would be something to go on. As it stood there was only a bad feeling. Who or what stands at the center of all this? Nothing either could recall from books or stories ever mentioned anything of this sort. Soon they would sit down to dine with a thing seeming born of some crazed mind. What machination could possibly have lead to a literal puppet sitting upon the throne? The very seat of power in the safest possible place, proven not so safe.

That soft chill taking hold within the castle walls becoming all the worse as their desperate search is halted. Perhaps dinner will be more telling. The charade of a living thing would be greeting them soon.

Out of the frying pan..

Ringing Bell

Some sinister mood has befallen Canterlot castle. As they approach the grand dining hall these two steadfast friends hear the crackling and see the flickering firelight cast forth, entreating them in some welcome way, but it is not welcoming. Even this gives no comfort, as if it throws no heat. Can a fires strength be sapped as ones spirit? The very warmth dulled as if the glowing fire somehow a shattered reflection of itself. What malignancy, what caricature of sight unseen now stalks these vaunted halls in lieu of that which is considered reason? The servants have prepared a fine meal for their guests, as they always do, for them nothing is amiss. A veritable banquet upon the lengthy table, but what of their hosts? Yes, they are there.

Much to their disheartenment there are four places set upon the table. Some abyssal thing sits in Luna's chair as well, and just as concerning to behold. Once more those thick ethereal cables dangle from the ceiling, controlling their actions. Their movements jerky, but precise enough to make those seeing the truth behind them shiver. The meaning behind these constructions clouded. The crafting of their lines unparalleled, were the situation normal they would be deserving of high praise for such unerring accuracy. Instead they present a venomous fallacy of life. Living things they can but pretend to be, yet everypony treats them as if their honored counterparts. Their eyes somehow clouded to the truth.

A melancholy descends on these two would-be heroes of the day. So far they have failed to save their beloved princesses. Many hours remain at the very least before any semblance of useful help may arrive. All the while that nagging feeling it may already be too late.

"Oh no.." Before they entered the room proper Twilight surreptitiously whispered to Dash who looked quite pale for someone who is so colorful.

"Remember, act natural. I don't think they know we can see through it." Twilight stepped in and Dash followed.

The dread that accompanies potential danger follows along into the grand dining hall. Such a well appointed and ancient room as this has its own history as if containing the memories of all those behooved that trod within it before. Such loving memories of the past would surely find themselves aghast at the nature of these aberrant pretenders to the throne. Every nook and cranny offers forth the same withering feeling of condemnation and spite that almost drips from the words and actions of these two disturbances. Every sense tinged with the feeling they should withdraw, but they cannot. Unable to go on the offensive without giving themselves away leaves little recourse, but sit down to dinner.

Luna, that which has taken her place at least, feigns interest in a salad upon the table. The twisted creation that plays at being Celestia looks up to welcome their dinner guests. Once more that higher pitch voice that heralds some impending doom speaks colloquially, as though all were well. Some castle servants bustle to and fro, oblivious to this danger in their midst. They do give an occasional furtive look, perhaps sensing something to be misplaced but brush it off as one of those passing feelings of normality. Hope is at this moment, only a fleeting memory. Telling are the painted eyes.

"Good evening, Twilight." The puppet is superb, crafted almost too well. The hanging cloth mane gives away a little.

The sound of that voice imparts something slithering across ones grave. Acting normal is made all the more difficult.

"Dinner looks lovely." Twilight and company now find themselves locked in that deadliest of games where the simplest slip of the tongue might reveal the truth on either side. The art of such deflection is subtle and rarely practiced in Equestria. Both must learn the rules quickly or be given away. That which is playing Celestia acts impeccably. Were this not so deadly it would warrant accolades of acting perfection. Twilight nor Rainbow lack for strength of spirit, but some hitherto untold menace may hold their friends captive, somewhere in the dark below the castle.

Luna seems to take a more active interest in the conversation. It is surprisingly mundane. Her voice is much the same, almost even higher in pitch. Who or what could be behind the curtain, giving rise to this danse macabre?

"This is a most fine concoction of the castle chefs, they shall be commended for such fine cookery." Luna said. The most unexpected thing of all to see in action was the puppet then plunging it's muzzle into the salad bowl before it to make sounds as though it were truly eating. Both Dash and Twilight could barely contain giggling and snrking at this most unexpected move. Something they struggled with all their might to contain. Laughing at this simple thing could mean their own undoing.

By some miracle both managed not to let something so simple as laughter give them away. To all others it would merely appear Luna was eating dinner. Though neither felt any real appetite for this particular meal, they ate. When the puppet removed it's face from the bowl it was smeared with salad dressing and whatever else was within. They were prepared this time when Celestia did the same thing. Whatever was putting on this show left little to chance. Going so far as to ensure they were seen doing something so ordinary as eating dinner showed an astonishing level of attention to detail which rivaled or surpassed all of them. The conversation drifted from one subject to another as conversations do. Nothing stood out.

After finishing dinner they bid their good evenings and stepped out, once far out of earshot both breathed heavy sighs of relief. They'd really learned nothing of import. All the two puppets really spoke of were court matters. Certainly nothing was gleaned towards the location they sought.

"Well I'm glad that's over. Felt like we were in there forever!" Rainbow Dash was looking about, for once looking a little unhinged by the whole experience.

"Calm down, we're fine but now what?" Twilight ruffled her wings a little, bristling at this impasse.

"That felt so bad just being near them and hearing them speak, and what they did with the food.. we almost gave ourselves away!" Dash was not easily moved to such hysterics.

"Look, it will still be hours at least before any of the others get here and..we have to split up now. Right now. I must go down there. This dinner appointment has delayed us too long already. We now know both of them are in serious trouble." She trembled a little. Dash rarely ever saw her like that.

"Twilight.. alright. I can come and go to the castle without suspicion now. I will meet our friends and tell them everything. We will figure something out and come after you, I promise." Unusually, Dash initiated a warm hug then trotted off.

Hot coals or melting glass?..

Silhouette

Vowed that you and I would be two silhouettes in the shade. For all our days. -

Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle, two wary travelers have found themselves entangled in a quandary most foul. Against better judgment having parted ways while menacing shadows cast themselves forth as though to impede quick passage away from this darkened abode of the light. A cautioned glance reveals nothing untoward to be present, but that prickly feeling on the back of the neck says otherwise, as though some unpardoned spirit watches ones every move. Perhaps seeking some unnamed redemption. The feeling does not lend itself well to adventurous endeavors.

"I knew it." Twilight might have patted herself on the back for finding the entrance in the wall were it not for one thing.

There in the depths of the castle a torn chunk of wall left in shambles, revealing a darkened entrance into the side and underground of the mountain. Somewhere above could be felt more than heard the rumble of a passing train heading above into Canterlot city. The engineers clever enough to have devised such a path for the tracks had not thought to look deeper, there was no need. In the dimness below lay mines long untouched save for a very brief and disturbing sojourn some time ago. Dark, lonely corridors lay untouched for nearly a millenia. A minor part of the very construction work that laid the foundation of Canterlot itself and long out of most living memory.

Her horn lit afire with a bright spell of light which somehow did little to clear the gloom as if the dark itself refused to let such an intrusion tear the shadows away from their long slumber. Every fiber of her being said this was a dead place, and should be left to the dead. There was no choice but to press on into that world below the world. A pocket of darkness so thick it may never have been cleared away. If anything could crush the spirit, this singular perception hidden beneath it all may succeed in that. Could anything really linger down here? The air still and stifling as she passed by collapsed mining tracks. The wood barely preserved against the passage of time, but the metal held up surprisingly well.

Pitted and rusted bits of the past, but giving no clue to the present. This was merely a mine, long ago walled off from the castle and since forgotten by the majority. The true scope and scale however were boggling to the mind and senses.

"This place is enormous. Celestia, Luna, hang on. I'm coming." Twilight proceeded to place a teleportation anchor before leaving sight of the entranceway, she felt a much needed precaution. Getting lost in this place could prove a deathly trap in itself. Scraping hoofmarks at lengths into walls and leaving purposeful indications of her passing not only for any who may follow, but also to prevent herself becoming lost in this maze of depths. Wandering in circles wastes valuable time.

"Oh, it's so warm down here." The princess of friendship huffed and found breathing ragged and difficult. The mines left improperly vented for who knows how long. Whatever worn and well-considered mechanisms once made for airflow having ceased most of their function ages past. Crumbling trestles and dangerously tumbling ramparts were mostly intraversible. Fortunately for her, the gift of wings was proving invaluable here. Not all of her friends could easily follow, if they should manage at all. The chilling feeling of eyes upon was everywhere and nowhere. A second look still confirmed she was completely alone. She was not fully prepared for such a journey, but time being of the essence she rushed.

Choosing a path was not so difficult as imagined, following the increasing feelings of dread and stark terror was easy enough. Just go that way. The deep had thus far not heralded any revelation or great subterranean secrets withheld from those above, but something must wait below. That feeling of inevitable confrontation is not something to be cast aside. A terrible foe lay in waiting. This was perhaps never in doubt. Something along the walls here calls itself to attention. Great scorched grooves as though a grand conflagration once roared unbounded throughout this particular tunnel. Hopefully no ponies were trapped in such a pit as the fire raged. Whatever it's cause, it could only engender regretful feelings.

Imagining this may have been the case gave her pause to halt a moment and consider. This place was dangerous. Barely thinking she had come running headlong into danger already known to be present.

"I didn't think and rushed, and now I'm here. I should have waited for my friends." Shaking her head and owning to this possible error she dared venture on ahead into the sometimes claustrophobic halls and caverns. If there was some logic present in the placement of their carving it currently escaped her eye. A map would be most useful, but such a thing likely did not exist. Loneliness is a thing quick to rise from within one so far from friends and home. She felt very alone indeed.

"Perhaps there will always be more that I do not know.." Despite all her learning and knowledge, this place held fear and uncertainty rarely felt. She'd gathered such knowledge for the sum of nearly her entire life, yet here she felt to know nothing as if taunted over it by the walls themselves. No spirit abided within them to hurl such accusations. Merely a nagging prick in back of the mind that this might be a mistake to have undertaken alone. Despite these misgivings there was no choice but to push forward and on into this vast network of tunnels. They seemed to go on forever downwards. How far out and down could they possibly have dug? Were there truly souls that greedy to have pushed this far?

"This would be a grand discovery under other circumstances. These tunnels go on for miles!" She exclaimed mostly to comfort herself, but then the echo of it only served to remind she was very much alone down here. Somewhere out in the dark, it was waiting. Something vile and terrible and ancient. It must be. She could feel her heart beat faster as though drumming in anticipation. A skipped beat as a rock fell over at random almost sending her to flight causing the realization that as powerful she might be, was at present frightened of the dark. For the briefest instant that once little filly shone through before catching herself and pressing onward into the surrounding pitch.

Mirror darkly in the wall..

Torn Veil

A weeping hour draws ever near, sowing increasing doubt and fear. Fear it is too late. This is what Twilight Sparkle fears as her hurried scurrying through this infernal underwork those above have no awareness of both drives her forth into the blank ahead and gives pause to shrink back from it. The shadows themselves almost seeming to evade what light she brings with her, scattering as if the secrets held therein might be laid bare. The air stifling increasingly, making catching breath a chore of its own. A gulp or single gasp of fresh air would be most welcome, but none is forthcoming. The dark encroaching ever more, it feels as though the light illuminates less and less. Perhaps just vivid imagination running wild.

The way ahead is narrow, almost dangerously so. Still, she slips through. The cool of the walls against her almost welcome amidst the warmth of this stagnant air.

"I feel it, that way. Something dark and wrong. I..want to go back." For an indecisive moment there stood the mighty, shivering and uncertain. Giving her head a hard shake brings reality back into sharp focus.

"No! What am I saying.. I think this place is getting to me. I can do this." Gathering her nerve to step forward once more takes an unusually great effort and force of will rarely needed. What could possibly give rise to such a feeling in her?

"Remember, good things. Happy things. Warm pancakes, syrup and butter. My brother. Cozy blankets and friendships glow." Twilight muttered of favorite things and good feelings. It helped to give strength to take further steps into the dim halls. Were this place a city, it would be magnificent. As it was the surroundings only spoke to some unheralded beastly thing or other. The feeling as if some great bulwark were holding her back dispersed as she recalled these better moments. Strength of will returning as her venture continued.

"How far? It must be..If I calculate the...yes.. nearly half a mile underground." Twilight gulped, almost panicking herself.

The thought of the immense amount of earth above that could come tumbling down were whatever supported it to give way was a great way to frighten oneself. Stop that.

"These walls must have been magically shored up somehow. How long would such a spell last without reinforcement I wonder?" Thinking of the logistics behind these things instead of immediate concerns played to her own likes and strengths. Learning and knowledge even now a driving force in her life. She looked at the bracings and hefty pillars holding up the tonnes of dirt and rock above. The physical engineering was clever and solid, though ancient and warping by now.

Whatever magics may have been applied to them as well were likely either fading or long since dead. It was likely why the entire place hadn't collapsed by this time, extending the lifespan of these structures by some good amount. Certainly, not all of the tunnels remained intact. Dead ends were apparent everywhere and digging them open once more would be far too lengthy and unsafe to engage in.

"Why is this place so big? Something about that isn't right." Twilight mused as her hoofsteps echoed. Some chambers were much worse than others for this. Bringing the entire place down via incidental sound was not an outcome she desired.

"There must be more to this. Am I missing something?" Study was one of her strongest suits. Doing so to the layout of this place lead to a most startling conclusion.

"It can't be. I must be wrong about that. It wouldn't make any sense." She shook off the idea forming in her head and dismissed it as impossible. Such dismissal was logical enough. It must be a fallacy in her thinking.

"I wish my friends were here." She wistfully announced to herself. The endless gloom did little to allow spirits to recover from moments of darker thinking. Occasionally imagining some vicious thing ahead did little to help matters.

Did something stir in the chamber up ahead? To this point encountering nothing was almost worse than engaging some monster in battle. She was no stranger to doing so. Could this really be any darker than her past portrayed?

"Don't go jumping to conclusions now. I know better." Speaking to herself for comfort still, it did work some wonders. This maze of shafts, corridors, halls and tunnels was wearing on the nerves and senses in some manner all their own. A great wearying of the soul few ever face felt as if pushing down on her, a gathering weight to hinder action. This was a tiring journey. Almost intimating boredom, save for that feeling ahead.

"How far is it? I must have been moving for a couple of hours now. That means I could be four miles from the castle. Oh my goodness." This was a revelation all its own. There was no real sense of direction down here, no familiar signposts or landmarks to truly distinguish. Where was she in relation to the world above? So far there was little to no sign of anyone having used these passages in ages. This might mean little. She was simply taking the most obvious route possible towards that dark feeling. A few missteps here and there could quite easily have resulted in serious injury. Caution was certainly the order of the day in this labyrinthine depth. Visions of monsters most terrifying danced in her head. Hard not to imagine.

There really was something ahead. An opening into a grand chamber quite unlike the rest. Her eyes went wide to see glittering hoards of all manner ensconced in the walls, these were no relics of mining. An ancient suit of pony armor in a style she'd never seen even in poring over old books stood off to the side, covered in cobwebs so thick it could just as well have been made of the moistly glistening material. She gasped at this marvel of sight and sense, were it not for that terrible feeling still being present this would be a most astonishing and glorious find. Instead the novelty wore off quickly. She was not alone here.

And behold a pale horse: and his name was....

Slow Burn

Visions softly creeping towards lamentation of restless dreams spring to mind as Twilights friends gather together, but her presence is lacking. Ideas lacking even more so. At present she braves the depths alone, all the while brief flickers of ideas fail to take shape.

"Well, we have to come up with a plan. You're a unicorn, you must know something about magic!?" Rainbow Dash, ever the second-most excitable amongst their number came just short of yelling. Rarity, currently the only unicorn in their ranks could do little to raise their hopes. Having gathered at an outdoor tea shop in the grand capital, all appeared as it always did. Normal.

"Do calm yourself, darling. Trust her, Twilight is strong indeed. I am working it out. On my own I may not rise to the power of the princesses, but I have been exposed to that power more than once before. I have seen how it works, shared how it feels. Noted what it might accomplish. What you speak of is something wholly different. We all feel that from below, even here. I'm at a loss to explain why no one else feels or sees. I need more time." Rarity explained. Dash sort of leaned on the table, looked off and harrumphed. The entire group was trying to come up with some kind of suggestion as to a plan of action. What could they possibly do against what mostly amounted to bad feelings? The puppets notwithstanding.

Those things striding about the castle were no mere illusions on their own. Solid and substantial creations marching about the grounds as though familiar and owned. To all others their true appearance concealed somehow. The shadows they cast were lengthy, perhaps more dangerous than outward looks may show. A feeling inside said merely attacking these doppelgängers within the castle walls would be to no avail, perhaps even serving to make matters worse. The closer to the castle this feeling of pressure and disturbance became to the group. As though hemmed in on all sides by something intent on squashing them like some errant insects to be brushed away. To this group the castle appeared dimmer than usual.

In the distance the great and grand storied castle loomed above the city as it had for near an entire thousand years. The city springing up about it like plants might spread from their seeds. In time to grow into a mighty force of good in the world. A force now tampered with in a manner most vile, hindered and made all the weaker for it. This strength of good in jeopardy, they must take some immediate action. That much was clear. What action this entailed was not so readily forthcoming. Marching into the castle to confront some apparent ghosts was not an option. Such apparitions were generally confined to little foals stories, something to teach a little of what fear is and how to deal with it. Nothing more. Little else than campfire tellings.

"Time is something we have little of, if there is anything at all you can come up with to help her it has to be now." Dash was correct. At this very moment Twilight could be facing excessively steep odds. The group glanced back and forth between one another. They were all here. Facing a dire situation was not totally beyond their collective experience, but this was somewhat different than anything which had come before. Rarity was deeply lost in thought. No one spoke.

"I've got it!" Rarity looked towards Spike and whacked the table with a hoof, then appeared somewhat embarrassed.

"Uh, ahem, I mean I think I have an idea." Rarity said, somewhat more restrained this time around.

"What, who me?" Spike blinked a couple of times. He was being stared at by the rest.

"Well, not you precisely. Twilight tried to send scrolls via you to the princesses like usual?" Rarity asked, a slight gleam in her eyes.

"Yeah, they never answered, but what does that have to do with anything?" He was looking quite confused by this line of questioning.

"When you send those, they go straight to either of them, correct?" He nodded in response to this, gazing at her raptly.

"Well, yeah. How does that help us?" His confusion was quite apparent, the rest wore about the same expression.

"Simply put, whatever scrolls you send go straight to their location and ignore all obstacles in doing so. If we have you send something right now, then I can trace the direction it heads off in." Having finished her explanation she waited for any comment from the others on this unusual idea. It might be of some utility at least.

"You can do that?" Fluttershy quite usually said rather quietly.

"Well, never did it before, but I think so. I'm not quite sure how useful it is. Better than nothing?" She looked around.

Rainbow Dash for once was a little slack-jawed at hearing this was possible, then spoke up.

"So we did all that searching and Twilight went off on her own to look for them when we could have located them all along anyway? Why didn't she think of that?" Dash was rather perturbed by the entire situation unfolding.

"It's not like we had any idea about all of this. There's no point getting upset about that now. We have something we can use to avoid wasting more time. That's a start." Rarity was right about the overall situation, there was precious little time to think about it or make plans and no real ideas until this moment. Strangely, Pinkie said something uncharacteristic of her.

"I don't like this feeling." She rubbed her tummy in thought.

"It's a backwards feeling, and a backwards feeling is no fun at all." It was a strange, quiet and subdued way for her to be speaking. This did not sound like her whatever. That such a bubbly and frothy personality spoke so gravely said volumes about the very real threat they were now facing. Anyone knowing anything about her at all would recognize the immediate danger this suggested. Something sinister, more than just clattering puppets was almost felt to be tempting their interference.

No funfetti this time around..

That Which Is Empty

In restless dreams I was left to wander, alone.. -

What reaches forth with cause to make these minutes fall dead? To all others heeding little more than silence, giving nothing away. Forcing the moments themselves to wither, as if waiting abated for some imminent cacophony to come crashing down. If the air itself may have become an enemy, what of all other surroundings? An inescapable feeling of helplessness comes springing forth from within, welling up to sow further terror and confusion. Ghastly mimics of life and limb roam the castle unbidden, unsummoned and certainly unwanted. To all but a rare few everything is right as soft rain. A slight tremble gives itself away towards why. The castle denizens left as if sleepwalking through their most dire predicament.

There she sits, as it has been for so many years. To most, Celestia the grand ruler still upon her throne. A dutiful caretaker of the right. Someone who has themself known deep suffering. For some, perhaps, the cause of it. Those whose lives burn so brightly may come to scorch those around them. Is this the reason? Something more? Something else? A thing so far beyond understanding it cannot be fathomed? The scales tipping towards the realms of sadness and pain bring to the fore just how urgent the reality of this situation is. Her sister has taken the long coveted position directly beside. The facade is beyond reproach, bordering on the skill of impossibility. Those passing by barely register something as wrong.

The lie of their existence so implacable the very orchestrator of it might believe in their own verisimilitude. A slightly off word here and there, so minimal it may as well divulge that one or the other is just having a bad moment. The gentle chill cast about them rising throughout the castle so slowly it may be passed off as mere imagination. The light of day and the shadows cast by moonlight reflecting it do not appear any more a menace than ever. The appeal of their presence desirable. Whatever their desire, it fails to slip. Such mastery of both role and scene betrays only effort. Night falls once again as it has since time immemorial to be followed only by an air of sadness tinged throughout. The dark seems to hide nothing more.

The silent seconds on the clock tick by slowly. Whole moments pass by in such state as to be unmoving. Some unnamed expression leans towards such silence. If time itself could be broken, this would be how it feels. Those who would stand against this increasing danger are left unable to comprehend what it is they are facing, lending to it even more power. This consumption of time and willpower draws down ever more heavily as they fumble about, pretending all the while they may have the answer if they could just puzzle out what has thrown such cold on a warm world. Expecting to just stumble over the means falls quite short of a plan. Each action taken a danger in itself. This stage is set, ripe for tragedy.

"Celestia, Luna!" Twilight cried out at the sight of them, bound upon two upright columns. She galloped across the room straight to them. Their wings spread wide and pinned so tightly by metal rings that small rivulets of their life essence flowed down from them. Their other extremities held much the same way. Wait. In the dimness she had mistaken their identities. Not alicorns, but two of the sworn royal night guards. The life had trickled from both into some unusual indented shape below them, their eyes transfixed ahead defiantly. They still wore their unmistakable armor and even in having their lives extinguished bore it proudly. Battered beyond all hope of recognition, these two did not break their oaths and looked to have fought ferociously.

The guards clearly having engaged in some tremendous battle must have done their utmost to defend Luna before falling to their bitter end. Tears welled in her eyes and she hung her head in deep sorrow. A heavy sob and she turned away. She would grieve for them later, if there was a later.

"I'm so sorry..You will not be forgotten." This was a step beyond her worst imaginings. Why would anyone or anything do something so horrifying? That indentation was of some significance and served to cause more consternation. A symbol from an ancient language no longer spoken by any. What to do now? These two died in line of service, hopefully not in vain.

"Where can they be? It feels worse than ever here. Like ice in my veins. Like it is inside my bones." Twilight scoured the room for any further clue. Save for the almost literal mountain of treasure she was at a loss just as before. Was all this traipsing about in the dark a lost cause from the beginning? All she'd learned from this sojourn was that two guards were dead. This suggested she and her friends were not the only ones able to comprehend something was amiss. What set these two apart? Their nightly proximity to Luna perhaps? Were those who stood close vigil over the princesses more unlikely to be deceived in such a manner? Did something about them throw aside the illusion of what had taken their place?

Despair nearly settled in. Whatever it was would go so far as brutality and murder. The guards did not just lay dead, they were tortured. A word practically unknown throughout Equestria in modernity, seemingly for nothing. The stakes of the game were just raised to an impossible height. Time already running thin, she must take swift action. If she could not locate her mentor or sister then what? Feeling so lost and alone she worked up her courage. This did mean one thing, they could still be alive. Did those guards stationed outside Celestia's chamber meet the same fate? A terrible thought. Once more setting a teleport anchor so the guards may be retrieved later to be honored, she pressed on into the gloom and whatever lay ahead.

Now I lay me down...

Cold As The Clay

I want you to suffer, and continue suffering.. - ͏̵ʇ̶̨͢ɹn҉ɥ́̕ ̴͘I

Twilight takes slow steps into the cold and dark surrounding, hesitant to move towards this blight upon reality. The whole of it invaded by a feeling of ill reckoning. Something forceful and painful and dire. For what could possibly be this cold in feeling but some infernal predator come calling? Could death itself possibly be present? Perhaps hunting her as she hunts for it. Not a game of cat and mouse, but more of opposing forces. Whatever is out there defying description of any coherent sort, it simply is. And what is, lay ahead. Somewhere. Hanging there amidst that which is normal and for all the while acting like it belongs. All the world seeming lacking in coherency and lunacy abound, she hopes her friends will come to aid her as always.

Is it wishful thinking in turning to hope they will indeed be there when she looks? So far this proves untrue. No pretty manes and worried faces. For the moment all there is represents ever present cold. Surely good will prove out triumphant once again? For whatever reason, she does not feel so. Wanting to know but for once afraid to learn, she wanders these puzzling hallways. Clearly more than a simple mine. An idea forming in mind suggesting all is far more out of balance than she would ever have dared imagine before. Fear is that way. Fear itself, surely not? It begs to differ. More shuffling along than walking she comes to feel as though this enclosed space is fraught with the designs of something seeming otherworldly.

She could always simply leave. Turn back and run away for once. Not in the cards. Instead a pressing need to forge ahead builds inside to gird against the oppressive cold. So very cold. As though the deepest possible chill were kept bottled to be hurtled forth at any too stubborn to give in to the lie of it. Twilight makes a fine target for this. Almost too tempting to leave be. Or maybe it is mere imagination. Is the cold truly any worse than ever before? Uncertainty plagues each calculated move forward. These abandoned tunnels signify something out of reach. What is it about their architecture, their arrangement that feels so displeasing? Mere walls should not engender such apprehension. The idea reinforces itself.

Not believing for an instant the whole of ones faculties to be entirely trusted, her wayward trip into some heretofore unknown strikes every note of revulsion. Closing in on that feeling of naught but ice and darkness tears her resistance down. Why not simply leave and come back with a whole herd of reinforcements? It was within her power and rank to do so, even were it from another source. Something about risking more lives gives pause. At least two were gone from this world already, perhaps more. The thought kept jumping to mind. Well-trained and equipped guards, loyal to a fault had failed and paid for it with their lives. Apprehension and revulsion building with near every breath made her feel almost sickly.

Twilight thinks to herself, had she ever truly faced death directly? Stared into that abyss and found it staring back? Each call to action she'd found resolve and support in the end. No. Never truly. Not alone a single time when truth is told. Now, with every shadow a potential danger, she finds so much as breathing to be difficult. Every labored step cautiously taken as though the ground beneath might itself suddenly disappear into the ether to leave her falling into some endless chasm that breaks reality all around. The depth and size of this place is striking for a mine. Why so large and spread so far? A nagging feeling inside insists there is something amiss with that, even beyond what is already known to be wrong.

For all Equestria stands for and about, it was never quite the totally peaceful place she always imagined it was when only a bit younger. Those were the hard lessons. There were even something akin to wars fought in the past. Mostly short, some not. Yet, still nothing compared to the slow moments being experienced in the now. With a heavy heart she treads along the dim hallway ahead. Where would it lead? She did not wish to discover more corpses of fellow ponies, or anything else so distressing. Having looked upon the tormented guards faces left a lasting impression. She supposed they were killed to keep them quiet about whatever was happening here. Was there even a reason? It did not appear to make sense.

She walked and thought, calculating every angle known. Both guards were clearly overpowered during a great struggle, but what good did it actually do to kill them in the first place? They would have faced much the same situation she did now, and been unable to really convince anyone there were monsters parading themselves around in place of the princesses. This was tremendously puzzling. Unable to think of any good reason whatsoever for them to have been slain and in such a vile manner was thoroughly disheartening. Whatever was ahead must be cruel, unreasonable, insane or a great deal of many other things. Her one and only goal now was to stop any further bloodshed if at all possible.

Having read a great many books on every subject imaginable and even on less pleasant subjects, she found there was nothing to draw on here. Thinking back to dinner with the two strange puppets, something became clear. Had she not known them to be false it would have been pleasant. They acted considerate and even friendly. Keeping up such a thing as a mere act would be difficult enough in itself. Twilight halts a moment and considers only to become even more worried. Via some means, whatever was behind this knew exactly how both of her friends spoke and thought, even what they liked to have for a meal. This thought causes concern and bewilderment as to the how of it. A massive chamber stands ahead at the end of the tunnel. It must be there.

A world of dark, haunted places where I traveled..alone...

Faltering Light

Be scattered like falling leaves.. -

Sadness. Sorrow. Regret. Wrath. Cold. That scratching sound you heard at night. What you thought was there outside the window that one time. Something just out of sight behind a tree, making for distrust over what the senses present to you. The sort of cold that silences the world when it falls. This is in feeling what seems to emanate from the chamber ahead which Twilight surveys, approaching with all the apprehension one about to face a rising storm head on might build inside. That sweeping chill unlike any encountered before. If cold could take manner of physical form, it would be in this place. Far from light and warmth.

All goodness in this vile breach of reality having been sucked away as if by some great confluence of malignance. Three daises stood in the center of the chamber upon which resided two cages on either side, containing both Celestia and Luna. Both appeared to be continually casting magic that placed clear strain upon even them. On the center directly between them both stood another of those horrific constructs whose origin still remained an unknown. It did not look to be representing anypony she knew, but an alicorn in aspect. More surprising to her, clearly a stallion whose height possibly overshadowed Celestia herself. Something about seeing it there unmoving set off alarm bells deep inside. Enough to make her shudder.

So far each had been an obvious imitation of someone she knew and was real. Was this pale imitation of life a copy of a stallion who actually lived now or in the past? How could it be she was unaware of such an alicorn? Her knowledge of history and royal lineage denoted nothing of anyone who looked like this. If it was a true copy as the others then she was facing something far more dangerous still. An all out fight between alicorns was enough to destroy entire buildings or easily end each others lives. He or rather it held an oddly regal air about it. Above as before, those twisting ethereal cables she was unable to trace back to whoever or whatever was controlling them. The lack of movement was somehow more concerning.

Twilight nearly gasped audibly seeing all of this. That would have been a quick giveaway. It for all intents and purposes was doing nothing whatsoever. Guarding her friends perhaps? She was unnoticed for the moment, giving time to take in the vastness of the chamber. It must be at least a couple of miles in diameter. Very unusual. The twisted looking cages appeared to be made out of some unrecognized metal and some color as if void of it. The bars translucently shimmering, they looked to be shifting around their captives. Both prisoners spells were obviously barriers consuming so much power they could do nothing else but focus on holding them up or be crushed by cruel steel. A disturbing prospect. Were they trying to kill them?

Did any alicorn ever die in such a manner? An unnerving thought. As Twilight went to step into the room she immediately fell on her side as some great pressure pushed down on her like a mountain.

"Oof! What is this?" She groaned and strained under the weight of it. The first to take note of her presence was Celestia. She'd definitely seen the motion. It did not appear the puppet or whatever gave them to motive action had. Celestia said nothing and almost looked to be trying to point, unable to so much as lift a hoof off the floor of her cage. The frustration present on her face was such that Twilight never saw a sight like it before. Everything else, but never like that. Not from her.

Luna was in no better shape. Perhaps worse. Never having been quite as powerful as her sister the strain was obvious. If either let their focus break they would stand no chance of survival. Why would anything do something this reprehensible? Surely, neither of them deserved this. They were pleasant and decent rulers, as prone to error as anypony else but admitted to any fault in the past and now. Slowly, Twilight managed to regain use of her hooves. It was not quite possible to acclimate to the strange pressure throughout the chamber. She must find a way to reach and free them from their torment. This was unthinkable. Further, even if she could get there then what about the puppet?

Did it actually have an alicorns power? Certain that the two roving about the castle like they owned the place did have such power, this one likely had just as much. It might have even more. Was it responsible for the surrounding feelings, of the weight and sense of suffering? Did anything this powerful actually exist? Enough to hold not one but two alicorns prisoner through sheer force on its own and nothing else? It defied belief. Twilight found herself wishing another alicorn were with her. On her own even she, the once representative of magic itself was struggling just to remain upright and move forward. Could she even engage in battle this way? If that thing made a move, could she really hold it off like this? This was dangerous.

Still lacking her friends, she worried over whether they were coming. Rainbow did promise after all. There was no time to wait for them, even if they were heading straight to her at this very moment. Should those faltering barriers collapse she would bear witness to her mentors horrific execution. All alone it would be only through a great deal of skill and the will to free loved ones that she might stand the slightest chance against something with perhaps more power than herself. Mentally bracing for very rarely engaged in direct combat and fighting back tears against the surrounding feelings of fear and sadness, she took those slow heavy hoofsteps into the dark of the immense chamber and towards whatever fate awaited her within.

Terror is best dressed in silence..

Timbred Voices

Why did you do it? e̘͕̞͍̪ḿ̘͚͈̣ ̣͙̝͍̣̞̝t҉͇̜̬̳̰̮̠fe͖̫̲̝̯̭̮l͕̘̯͡ ̜͓̻̟̟̕u͞ͅo̲Y̡͉̯̭͎͖ -

"What was that?" Twilight thought, practically something felt rather than heard. Was someone talking? No. Nothing. Only the terrible presence of the disturbing alicorn puppet ahead. Upon its head a crown, slightly tilted to one side. Were it not for the ethereal strings hovering above it to simply disappear into what served as the roof of the cavern there would be nothing particularly special about it besides the excellent work apparent in its features. The emotions somehow given presence surrounding it spoke only to sadness and pain. The puppet sat there motionless upon the central dais as though in contemplation of those captive beside it. This superb work almost begged for appreciation were it not steeped in death.

The shape of a heart painted where a real one would reside in a living creature nearly suggested love and light, not this terrible darkness surrounding. Something about that struck a chord as she prepared to try and destroy it. A truly terrible shame that such a finely crafted thing need be ruined. Until now the only two such things she and Dash encountered were clearly wooden clones of their real life counterparts which somehow projected themselves as legitimate to almost all others. This one was either nobody she ever heard about existing, or was a complete lie. The aspect of it carried an air of authority, admiration and quiet respect. Certainly nothing that would normally inspire fear and dread.

It's head was tilted to the right and down slightly. As she took in this sight from afar something else was noticed. A golden chain hung from it's right forehoof as if it were a prisoner itself. What was all this? It did not hold any apparent logic. A puppet can no more be a prisoner than a sack of laundry. This quandary bugged her heavily as she approached from an angle out of sight. Of course this assumption was based on it needing to be looking in her direction to notice. This might not be the case. Attempting to sneak up on this cold thing devoid of life and spirit could almost be construed as nonsensical. Closing in on it this way she felt the oddest crossing of near embarrassment and fear mixed together.

Twilight, a princess, was about to pounce on..a puppet. In any other circumstance this would be beyond absurd to her and anyone else. Albeit this puppet could likely quite easily be the cause of her demise. The pervasive feeling of sad emptiness was most troublesome. She nearly felt herself to be on the edge of tears. What sense did that make? This entire enormous chamber was an oddity in itself. The very walls and ground assumed some feeling like former grandeur had slipped from them. What kind of thoughts were these to be having now? The downward pressure was unending, somewhat akin to having somepony hanging off all four legs and refusing to let go while also being shoved down from above.

By no means weak, this was a serious strain. The intensity worsened the nearer she came to that puzzling thing sitting there on it's throne. The absurdity of this moment was almost beyond comprehension. A pretend alicorn, nothing she'd ever considered before. Never having seen anything like it either left the question arise, was there some significance to the fact it was one? The puzzling nature of it all would normally have piqued her interest, but her dear friends were in serious danger. In the now, the only real option was to act. Not one to normally spring directly into action without thinking, Twilight hurriedly tried to think of what to do. Should she simply go all out and attempt to destroy it so that they might be freed?

Apprehension steadily rising as she neared was making it tremendously difficult to continue towards the center. The sheer wrong of the feelings here were as alien a thing she could imagine. In fact, she had never imagined anything even remotely like this. Cold. A veritable wall of ice may as well be present near this ghastly haunt. Imagining and playing at spooky things on nightmare night was a playful deal, quite another to be facing what for all intents and purposes might actually be a ghost was quite another. This thing was a phantom, a wraith. That shivery feeling down the spine only grew worse. What was about to happen? No reaction to her presence so far. From her twisting cage Celestia could only look on, helpless.

It would appear neither she nor Luna could even so much as speak in their present condition, consumed as they were with the business of not only being crushed by the environ, but the instruments of their jailor as well. Close inspection from behind revealed something which only added to these confused feelings of tumult and woe. The puppet wore a cape bearing the colors of the old equestrian guard. At times over the course of a thousand years prior, Equestria did need a small standing army. These were their colors. What could this mean? Was it in any way useful information? It might be nothing more than misdirection. If misdirection even mattered was something else entirely. For now, she crept closer, near to shaking.

Not in fear, almost in anger. An emotion which she understood, but was rarely ever close to. It was almost an unnatural intrusion on her psyche in itself to feel that way, but in this case it was justified. Wasn't it? These surroundings only served to dull the mind and dampen the spirit. Desperate to free her fellow princesses the decision was made, blast it to pieces from behind. Right as she went to cast this devastating spell the most disconcerting thing she'd ever been witness to occurred. The puppets head lurched around directly towards her, accompanied by a rapid ratcheting sound which served to make it appear like it had broken its own neck to do so.

"Thou scapegrace."

Click, click, click

Slate

Sing me a song of six crows and I shall hold court with you - ̡̰̺͖͈͇̹̞͖̻͐ͯ͊̃̍ͪ͗̋ͣ͗ͬͦ̚ͅͅͅ.̘̝͎́̂̊͒̍̽ͮ͌͒̇̈́̍̀ͪͯ̓́̀̀͌͡.̶̨̧̳̘̘̪̟̀͛̃̕͜ù̢̧̗͕̯̺̐̈́͊ͭͩ̏͐̔̏̔̃ͨͤ̊̂̂o̡̯̬̰̩͇͓͈ͣ̏̊ͤ̕͞͞͝ͅý̶̛̛̺̝̹͓ͫ̃ͩ̈̎̕̚ ̸̺̫̮̞̥̲̣̪̖͍̅̊ͦͫ̄̏ͤ̈́̏̐̍͋ͩͬ͗̏͝r̷̢̥̬̹̝̝͉̹̩͔͓̼͚͕̼͊̈́ͪ̂ͨ̋̉͐̅ͫͩ̔ͨ̓ͦ͌͊͑̿͘͘͡ͅo̵͉͖̹̞̺̘͍͔͙̻̳̖̖͕̹̩̺͂ͤ̿̃͘͠͡ͅf̤͎̼̱̹̭̭̯͕͢҉̷́ͦͤͩͬͤͬ̇̈ͩ ̷̛̜̱̤̠̟̠̭̯ͩ̎̊̽̈́͆̒ͪͤ̓̆ͥ̋̍̀ͬ̊͑ţ̵͎͓̯̱͎͈̗̐̈́̓̆̂͌̏ͯͣ͋͒͌̄͢s̸̷͙̱̥̼̜͕̖̘̭͓̤͚̦̱̠̕͏̏̆́ͦͩ͂̐͊̊͗͌ͩ̋͛̚r̵̸̷̼̗̫̟͓̗̯͓ͣ̏̾͌͛ͨ͋ͮ̈́ͪ̿ͥ̀̎̓̉̏ͥ̕͞i̦̱͕̣̘̬̜͔̙̰͇̦͔͚̠͏̷̡̛̆͌͊͗̆̅͒ͦ̍ͭ̓̑̊́̿̃̕F

Caged. Tormented beyond belief. This is what Twilight sees of her friends ahead. Adding to her sadness, at distance she did not notice the fallen scrolls beyond the walls of their respective prisons. Just out of reach, absurdly close. The same she'd sent in hope of contacting them. To have a means of communication so close to hoof and unable to so much as reach out and grasp it in any way can only have added to their torture. Why was this impossible thing, or whatever created it doing all of this? Her mind raced as the horrible ratcheting sound echoed and stopped with the otherwise grand puppet staring at her, it's head now on backwards. Glaring over the short thrones back, peering between it's own wooden wings. This could otherwise be amusing. Ridiculous to the point of hilarity even. Not now. Not here, like this.

Surrounded by the damp and pitch left her shuddering in the presence of this harbinger of pain and destruction. Coming near as she might dare only to hold outside what would be a normal ponies reach. The heft of the pressure all round was ever-present. Powerful as she was, this thing nearly exuded fear. What could this be? Never in all her life and learnings was something which felt so chill and hollow of feeling mentioned. No scary story, no night terror so intense as this once plagued her or others. Something about it felt forlorn. It spoke, regally, yet again higher pitched than seemed normal. Beyond the strange statement it made no further motion for the moment. Simply sitting there in repose.

Was this some kind of trick? Lulling her into a false sense of security was not something even remotely about to happen, so why? What did it mean by that anyway? This unworldly thing merely hanging to stare at her with those dull painted eyes was almost worse than being attacked. That would be clear intention. Doing nothing at all was somehow more concerning than were it to bring the entire place crashing down around them. The dead silence left still for ages felt as though broken by it speaking those words. This was a dead place. She shouldn't be here. None should. Conflicting feelings inside pushed forth. Twilight shook her head. This was so unnatural a dread she was now shaking throughout.

Her dear teacher and friend were so close and badly in need of help. No one could possibly stand up to this forever, not even them. Sneaking about in the heavy darkness proved entirely pointless. What to do now? Speaking with it was unlikely to resolve whatever was going on here, but what other choice existed? Summoning what faint prick of courage she could muster, Twilight hoped against hope to avoid a battle and spoke.

"Who are you?" She almost regretted saying it the instant it left her muzzle. For the briefest flicker she thought there was movement. No. Just imagining things. In that oddly regal tone it responded in a weirdly slow fashion.

"No. No, that shall not do at all. Thou art asking the wrong question and thus I give you a riddle." A response at least, but to receive it felt wrong in itself. A riddle? This entire situation was becoming stranger by the moment.

"What?" Was all she could manage to say. It must have taken this as invite to continue. Oh no.

"I once lived within the light but died when it shone on me, what am I and who killed me?" The strange caricature of life posed the question. Killed him? What? Twilight dare not blink as she pondered the riddle. That last part didn't seem to fit the style of the riddle preceding it. What kind of twisted game was this now? Should she take some other action?

"Hurry thy answer or face privy of me." That voice was jarring, authoritative and powerful. Disturbing as though something brushing softly past the ears so closely but more to be sensed than felt.

"You never said anything about a time limit, let me think." Twilight retorted. It's head tilted straight up as though she'd punched it or something to leave it contemplating the far above roof of the chamber. A moment later it slowly slid back down to glare at her in seeming malevolence once more. Was that a wise thing to say? She did not want to antagonize this ghostly construct.

"Granted, thou pediculous rakefire. Show me thy wits above yon fopdoodles or abscond ye rapscallion, lest facing doom thou seekest in fortune and spade." The..king? said, almost in scorn. What kind of speech was this? It was beyond antiquated and sounded insulting in tone.

"Come on Twilight, think. I learned so many lessons. What's the answer?" She thought to herself. The puppet remained motionless this entire time, lending to the already oppressive atmosphere the sense she might be leapt upon at any second. There was something else. As she considered, thinking hard, the answer came to her and it was disturbing.

"It can't be.." Twilight lost in thought finally decided she must act.

"I know the answer to your riddle." She stated confidently.

"Proof in puddings and deeds heralded, speak it in earnest." The voice alone was enough to bring shudders to the flesh. Cool, respectful and cajoling at the same time. It almost seemed wanting to hear her answer correctly. Did that make any sense? There was so much unknown here she might as well be forthright about it all. If this thing could be dissuaded from continuing the path so far followed then any risk must be taken. What if her answer was in fact, wrong?

"What you are is a shadow, and the sun killed you." Twilight said, apprehensively as it was spoken. At this the puppet once more raised it's head skyward and let out something more akin to a saddened heartbroken yowl than anything coherent.

"What in the world?" Twilight couldn't help but say as the puppet quite suddenly flopped off the throne on the ground in a heap like the dead thing it was, the head steeply tilted off to the side like it just died there. What was happening? She glanced about in fear as the echo of that horrendous screech died off to leave them in silence once more.

Those ethereal cables were still hanging above the thing to disappear into thin air. Was this some kind of weird ruse? What was that all about? Not knowing whether to attempt stepping near the thing, she could see the two sisters barriers flickering. She must take definitive action swiftly and soon.

The king is in his counting house..

Worlds of Hurt

The weight of the world was too much to bear alone.. - ̛͈͚̯̞̘̕͝҉͡˙̶̡͔̭̘͉͖͚̞̦̮̞̥̙͏̡˙̯̲͎̯̲͕͎̤̫͉̺̯̖̜̝͍́̀̕͘͜ʇ̧̛̻̰͔͚͉͙̳͙̙̲̩̯̩͇͝l̷̹̫̯̭̠̦͔̟̜̭̱͡͠҉n̢̹̱̯̮͚̝͔̣̰̻̮̰ɐ̻̤̰̫̮͍͔̥̞̖̝͔̕͏ɟ͙̬͖̼̫̝̦̩̪ͅ͏̢́͞ ̶̛̦̹̜͎̠̫̮̜̮̲̼̣̭̹̝͍̺̬́ͅɹ̪̰͔̦̠͇̝̥̀n͓͙̲̘͍͚̯͍̰͚͈̱͕͖̬͖̜͜ǫ̸̖̮̙͚͕̣̖̭̯͉͍͉͍͢ʎ̵̨̧̮̻̭̰̟͚͙͓͜͞ ̶̨̛̫͍͚͉̘̹͝͞s̡̻̩͈̱͏̵,̛̦̺̖̜̙̟̩͕̯̲͢ʇ̵̵̸̗̺̖̮͈̞̟̼͖̺̗̲̣̞͇̀͢I

Was Celestia, crying? Sad looking tears seemed to be streaming down as though a light rain burst from within. It couldn't be. Twilight, finding herself truly fearful and barely able to take a hoofstep closer finds forcing the matter is the only way. Surely that could not be tears upon her mentor's face? How could one who had suffered a blow a thousand years long be this easily shaken? This madness engulfing them could not be that bad? If she were but loosed from her oddly twisting cage then certainly it would be found that rage was there, not sadness? Something was totally offbeat here. The puppet lay still, such a motionless state betrayed some danger of its own. It couldn't be this easy. Too much was at play.

From where she stood Twilight began cautiously dispelling whatever dark magics ensnared both Celestia and Luna. It was none too soon. Much longer and they would have perished unbeknownst to the entire populace. Somewhat before time, she would have been thrust onto the throne for a second time. That was not how the future was envisioned by her. Keeping an eye on the somehow even more creepy puppet lying there was difficult while trying to remove such powerful works as those used to surround the other princesses. What was the meaning behind that harsh guttural screech the thing let out at her answering his riddle? No. This was much too easy. Any moment now it must stand once again. Any scary story would suggest so.

Could it really be this simplistic? It would go against any feeling or sense, especially something this dark and deadly. The surrounding unusual pressure did not lessen. If anything it felt more intense than before. Nearly wheezing from the strain of putting up with it and removing the enchantments holding her friends was terrifically taxing on the mind and body. Finally, the strange metal pieces scraping their way around the two sisters barriers ceased to move and fall upon the ground. They both looked shaken, disturbed even. Much to Twilights surprise, Celestia fell flat on her face.

"Sister!" Luna went to move and nearly did the same thing, almost entirely spent from the effort of protecting herself.

Celestia's eyes snapped open as she lay there and huffed. Groaning in serious pain. Something she'd never heard.

"Twilight..run.." She coughed and gagged a moment as if dying right then. What? Luna appeared to be mouthing the same. What were they suggesting? Just leave them here? She couldn't possibly. It was unthinkable. Why were they telling her to flee? That was the last thing she would even imagine doing by this point. They must be protected from further harm.

As if in answer to that suggestion a deep thunderous sound rang out throughout the vast chamber much like a bell announcing a death knell. It came from round and about, somehow nowhere and everywhere at once. So very loud.

A keening almost pathetic sounding wail erupted from the weird alicorn puppet. Despite it all this was still making less and less sense. What was going on now? Twilight could feel her heart pounding heavily. Outside the range of her vision were imagined shadows dancing by, moving like the churning water of rapids. A harder look around revealed nothing. This was no comfort at present. Was she now simply jumping at the slightest thing, or was something really encircling them? Then, she heard it. Almost a whimper from the puppet. Celestia and Luna were both finally starting to regain their senses, but they could not be regaining any strength under this unusual downward weight. She had to get them out of here, now.

It was already too late. Slowly, the terrifying puppet began to rise. As though it were riddled with pain it lurched to it's hooves with a horrible clunking sound of wood and squeaking joints. That movement was on its own enough to nearly bedevil the senses and throw only more dark on the situation before them. Three alicorns against one at full power would likely have made this no contest. As it stood Twilight must stare it down alone. Help coming from those two at this moment was highly unlikely. If only there was more time. It's head cranked around once more in an even more disconcerting manner than before at a rate she could not imagine to stare directly at her. If it could indeed stare, with those baleful eyes.

Now so much closer, only now, despite the dim light did she notice how its features truly were. Painted jagged teeth one might find from some foals bad dreams were more smeared than drawn around what would be this things muzzle. The eyes a soulful blue, but surrounded by some kind of paint that almost appeared to dull the light directed at them. The overall effect at this much closer distance was more of some alarmingly crazed circus clown than a regal alicorn. No. It didn't look like that before. She was certain it was far less terrifying before the head spun around. That was a detail she almost missed from the intensity of the situation. Twilight took this to mean it was done playing around, if it ever really was.

This time speech that came out as more a drawled hiss once more spouted from it. Such a strange muffled voice.

"Celestia.. why did you leave me to die?" It nearly spat those words, if it could. What was it talking about? Celestia gasped and actually looked terrified a moment then very shakily stood as Luna looked up, still not quite able to join her.

"This can't be. You are dead, gone from me and the realm of the living. You cannot be here." She said weakly. What was she saying? What could be meant by that? Did she know who or what was behind this? Twilight was still expecting an attack that as yet was not forthcoming. Something else was happening. Something far stranger still. This felt pointedly dangerous.

"I couldn't stay nor save you. What you did was wrong." Celestia said, calm and confident, even so weakened as to be shaking like a leaf in the wind. This was yet some other turn which could not have been guessed at. Finally, Twilight spoke.

"Celestia, who is this and why does he seem to hold you in such contempt?" At her asking and most unexpectedly, Celestia's head drooped. The puppet spoke vehemently, and in much more modern language. That was odd.

"You never told even her about me. How disappointing. Did I mean so little to you in the end?" It sounded accusatory. Angry beyond words. The anger strung throughout its speech was something felt as though a physical blow.

What was it talking about? Mean something to her? Celestia definitely was crying softly. A soft sob escaped her muzzle. It was painful to see and hear. Twilight almost never saw a tear on her face before. It was agonizing to see.

"Twilight.. A thousand years is a very long time to spend alone. Did you think I never had a tryst in all that time?" She kind of gulped as she got those tears slightly under control. Slightly.

"A tryst. That is what you would call me? A tryst." A horrible, hollow and emotionless dry laugh echoed all about.

"You left me to misery and death!" Such terrifying anger in those words spilling forth from this thing against her.

"I told you there was no way to extend the natural ends of life, especially for non-alicorns. The only reason I was granted such longevity by the elements was so that someday I might have my happy ending with my sister returned to me. I used them in a manner they were never supposed to be used in. In doing this I made it so neither me nor Luna could ever have wielded them again, but it was with only pure intentions. You however, cannot be alive by any such means. You have turned to naught but evil." Celestia explained. The puppet shook it's head side to side slowly as if chiding her.

"I begged for your help in becoming one so that I might live longer just for you, but you refused me!" It seethed. What?

"I thought you loved me, that I meant something to you. I did mean something to you, did I not in the least?" This things anger was rising by the minute, nearly yammering. Luna finally managed to make it to her hooves again and looked over forlornly. She was very nearly in tears herself, and shaking somewhat from near-exhaustion. She looked hurt as well.

"Sister.. I am so very sorry. I didn't know. I thought there would have been far more to fill your long life than naught but anguish over me.." She said, sounding more tired than Twilight ever heard from either of them before.

"You didn't even tell your own sister about me. Why? Why did you forget and forsake me so utterly?" It harried her.

"It wasn't like that at all. I could not simply turn you into a true alicorn. It doesn't work that way, and I never forgot you. Your memory haunted me for so many hurtful years. However, when you started insisting on seeking dark magics to sustain yourself in lieu of the hard work necessary to become an alicorn that was unforgivable. You could have done it, you had everything you needed but deemed it too difficult and simply gave up to go trotting down that forbidden path. I didn't want to, I had to leave you. You..gave me no choice.." Her voice cracked and tears softly fell once more. Twilight glanced over to Luna and found her to look as mystified and saddened by hearing all off this as she was. Celestia must have hurt so tremendously to never speak of this.

"Enough! Lies lies! Nothing but lies. You speak of that which is unforgivable? I loved you with all my heart and soul, but in the end you wouldn't even lift a hoof to help me! For letting me face age and death alone. For leaving me all by myself, dreading the dark to come which I was forced to then embrace for survival. I opt to tear your life asunder as punishment for your hubris. You will suffer mightily as I have suffered through the years, and all others along with you. First, you will watch your prized student be destroyed before you. Now, cower." Uh-oh. Something felt like it was missing from that story. He never said exactly how he was still alive, or even if he actually was. Could he truly be some dead thing come haunting?

Twilight knew she was about to be attacked and prepared for the fight of her life, but as the dreadful thing went to move something else entirely unexpected occurred. A feeling of the entire area shaking took hold. This did not seem to be his doing since the puppet looked around as though confused as well. It then looked upwards once more. Of all things to see, an immense amount of dirt, rock, and whatever else might lay above was lifted and moved aside to expose daylight above. What was happening? The huge mound of material slid away to reveal Rarity wearing some odd gleaming pendant and Trixie assisting her. The rest of her friends were looking in and down from above, standing aside where the cavern roof formerly was. This was spectacular to witness. Almost unbelievable.

"Wow Rarity, I didn't think you had it in you." Twilight said. Rarity responded a little less enthusiastically, huffing and clearly having difficulty drawing breath with her horn ablaze. All that power from her could be sensed dwindling rapidly.

"I don't. Whatever you're going to do, with more alacrity please!" Rarity beseeched her to act swiftly. Twilight turned to face this blight upon reality. Perhaps he had suffered, but it sounded like much of it may have been his own doing and brought upon himself. She would press Celestia for answers later, provided they all survived this moment. Rainbow Dash was quite suddenly hovering above and dumped a can of some liquid straight down on the puppet. It screamed. What the?

What did Rarity mean by that anyway? No time to consider. The puppet was acting like it was in pain. It may only be an act, but very convincing nonetheless. It writhed and moaned as though in actual agony. What did Dash just throw on it from up there? The paint on the eyes was now running downwards across the muzzle of the thing, giving it an appearance as though blood were flowing out of them. This provided it an even more menacing countenance despite acting as if seriously injured. Surely just dousing it couldn't have inflicted any serious damage? Real pain seemed extremely unlikely.

"Get princess Luna and Celestia out of here, I will hold this thing off. Go." Twilight bade her friends and they obliged.

Despite protests they did not currently have any strength to resist as Rarity hoisted them both aloft with clearly tremendous strain, her horn looking almost burnt. They were all quickly away from the area above. Now Twilight could at least attack this thing without the worry of harming anypony. It was still muttering near incoherently and for the slightest instant she almost felt sorry for whoever was controlling it. He sounded truly sad, but his voice was tinged with a sort of hatred behind it so rarely encountered she could hardly believe it was possible. All of this must have been planned for a long time. It was executed so flawlessly it was near perfect. Another horrible thought occurred to her. There were three puppets.

This one was also so clearly different to the other two it caused great concern. It sounded like Celestia once very much cared for whoever this person was in the distant past. She'd never really considered at great length what it must have been like for her to live such a long span, always holding in back of the mind how she failed and was also forced to endure terrible consequences for endless years. Whatever happened, Celestia had a serious falling out with this pony to a point where she felt the need to abandon him to his fate. How horrible. Not a thing Twilight ever expected to hear about her.

"You can drop the act, it's getting old." Twilight said directly to the wooden thing before her. It started cackling madly.

Now what? The pony or whatever he might be now behind it all was clearly deranged. Out of his mind in every conceivable sense. Twilight assumed this was not always the case. Celestia was almost always one to try and more gently push those around her towards better paths, but would never have fed anyone's delusions. Twilight could only feel some sadness, pity perhaps towards this pony. He was sick in spirit and mind, as sharp and intelligent as that mind might be.

"Please, put a stop to this. Come out of the darkness, let us help you." She had to at least make the effort before going any further. The mad cackling arising from the puppet only grew worse hearing this suggestion, not good at all.

"Help me? Help me!? Where was that help centuries ago, when I actually needed it? Taheheheh.." The puppet very suddenly straightened itself smartly, standing quite tall. There was some intimidation there of a sort she could not name. It standing there like that could almost let it be mistaken for something among good. Coldly, it said only one thing more.

"Prepare to die, princess." Those words were laced with some icy feeling of absolute truth. He would not stop until she was dead, or him defeated somehow. Well and actually dead. Likely her friends as well. Never quite having been driven to the point where it felt like she must commit a murder, this stung inside. She must put an end to this however possible.

Twilight could sense it coming. Some gathering power of immense depth surging forth from within this infernal mockery of life as it's eyes and horn practically lit afire with flowing power. He was not going to play around, taunt or any further mess with her. No more riddles. It meant to destroy her in one gargantuan blow the nature and likes of which were never leveled at her before. Serious massive power was present within this one. He must have spent near all those years watching, planning. How long did he take to lay plans for all of this? Even more, there was an unusual spinning sensation surrounding this place. It wasn't right. She'd expected he was going to attack, but this was no spell aimed towards her.

She'd made a terrible miscalculation. Twilight knew it the second the entire surrounding chamber lit up and tracks of unnoticed runes along the floor erupted in blue fire. She leapt into the air and took wing to escape the area. Looking down confirmed it was already too late. The fire streamed off towards tunnels in multiple directions below. She felt sick to her stomach. A horrible realization dawned. An incredibly huge spell was being unleashed, right underhoof the entire time.

"How could I have been so foalish? This is a mistake. A great big mistake. I missed it." Every tunnel, every turn beneath the surface leading to this place was part of something far larger, grander, and even more disturbing than she imagined.

If she hadn't taken off almost instinctively the flames would have engulfed and immolated her for certain. While the puppet sat ringed by flames she could still hear it wildly chortling below, it's voice echoing wildly and booming.

"Do you know pain little pony? How much can you take? Let us dance." What was he talking about? The puppets horn took on a glow she recognized and immediately took to mid-air dodging. Despite all the power it just used on whatever all those runes were for it felt as though he were drawing energy from some vast ocean. How powerful was this thing in truth? It did not feel quite proper, but the alicorn aspect of the puppet was proven no lie. His strength was utterly immense.

Attempting to block any attack thrown forth by that thing would be completely suicidal. She'd fought before, but even her own great amount of magical skill felt ridiculously dwarfed by the barrage of sheer rage behind him and his assault. What kind of monster was she facing in him? A monster he surely was. Barely able to get a bead and fight back, she was only just able to keep evading him. This only seemed to be either delighting him or enraging him further. It was difficult to tell. Was it possible he was enjoying this? This undeniably crazed lunatic was someone Celestia cared for once? How far removed he must be from what he once was. This was no good. The situation had gone from terrible to untenable.

Without any aid she must retreat for now. It was time to withdraw. At this moment there was no way he could be defeated. Activating the teleportation anchor as he went to attack again, she found herself back at the castle. There was no time to waste and did so once more to find herself in front of the castle gates to plunge directly into another situation unfolding. Celestia and Luna, the legitimate royalty and her friends were standing in front of the castle doors, barred by the current captain of the guard and a large throng of heavily armed elites. Beyond them stood the two fakes. Rarities horn really looked burnt from her efforts before, and the jewelry she wore was dimmed as though drained of color. Strange.

"What's going on here?" Twilight addressed the captain.

"Princess Twilight. Thank goodness. It must be obvious. Each of these four claim to be the real thing. I don't know if I can even trust you, but at least there is only one of you.." The situation was now quite clear. There was really no time for this if her guess about those runes was correct, but neither was there a choice except to deal with it. This could be a serious problem. She looked about, deciding there was only one thing for it. Hopefully taking these two things on in battle was not as dangerous a prospect as the other. Were they anywhere near as powerful? Forthright action was required.

"Guards. Hear me. Know that I understand and blame none of you for our current predicament." The battered and real Celestia said matter-of-factly. This must be a true difficulty for the guards. Most of them would see all four as though actually themselves. Twilight spoke up. She steeled herself for whatever was about to be brought on by making a move.

"I am going to put a quick end to this. The two standing in the castle are fakes and have been for some time. Before any of you suggest otherwise, I will prove it right now by summoning princess Cadance who will surely attest to their falsehood." It was a bit of a bluff. She could do so, but to forcefully teleport a pony this huge distance would be terribly taxing for any.

"Grr. Clever clever Twilight." The false Luna said in that high-pitch voice, not even trying to hide it now. Ridiculously the two puppets looked to each other then back at the stunned guards. It must hurt them all so badly, now knowing they'd been watching over two fakes for a lengthy period of time. The guards were never easily fooled before.

"Yes sister, it seems we are had. Shall we?" The illusion dropped around them and all gasped at seeing the mimics exposed for their true selves. The real Celestia gave orders.

"Seize both, we may need to study them!" The guards immediately jumped into action only to be bounced away.

Twilight tried getting off a shot only to see a shimmering barrier absorb the impact across the whole surface.

"How trite and pathetic of you. Behold, the truth of us." The two puppets said in unison, then both looked like they simply fell apart. What was going on? That could not possibly be a good sign. There were other worries as well.

"Princess, there is a terrible danger coming from far below ground. You must evacuate the whole castle right now. Let me watch these two for the moment." Twilight urgently explained. Something far more horrible was about to happen. Celestia nodded and ran off inside to raise the alarm. Luna remained by her side. Her friends were also near.

"Twilight, pray let me assist thee." Twilight almost laughed, were the situation not so dire she would have. Because of her history, Luna did occasionally slip into using archaic language as well. She was in no condition to fight currently.

"No. You're still hurt and very weak. I can see and sense it. Please vacate for now. Go to Ponyville, take my friends and as many guards as you can with you to my castle. I will meet you there after. Do not argue." She insisted. Luna almost looked taken aback, reluctantly agreeing. Her friends did not wish to leave either. The fallen pieces of the puppets were quivering oddly within the powerful shield. To her eye the pieces were arranging themselves into some oddly specific pattern and order. What was about to happen?

"You must go. Right now none of you can help me further, and get Rarity medical attention as soon as you get there. I can tell she needs it." The grim expression on her face even managed to convince Dash it was best to withdraw. Rarity had channeled so much raw energy earlier she was lucky to still be conscious, but was clearly suffering from the strain now. Something was happening inside that barrier. All the myriad pieces of the puppets were assembling themselves together like some ridiculously complex jigsaw puzzle. Luna gathered as many guards close to her as she dared and transported all of them along with Twilights friends away from the castle, leaving only the captain and a small contingent remaining.

Celestia was making short work of clearing the castle in small bursts until it was deemed empty by her. Finally, she stood beside Twilight once more. Not a moment too soon. She was huffing and beyond spent by now herself, eyeing the strange sight. By now it was plain what was happening. The pieces of the apparently shattered puppets were combining themselves into an odd approximation of a doubly-sized alicorn. What kind of trickery was this now?

"Guards, sound the alarm in the city. We cannot possibly evacuate them all in the time remaining. At least they might have a chance with some warning. Now go, swiftly." Celestia bid, and the rest went galloping off with the captain at pace.

"Twilight. Is Canterlot, my home..about to fall before this darkness?" It was a rather blunt question from her friend and mentor, it hurt to hear her voice so distraught and tinged with regret. Canterlot, fall? How did it come to this so rapidly? It was nearly without precedent. That could not be allowed. There was genuine fear behind those words.

"Not if I can help it. You don't deserve to see that happen. I will do my best to prevent it." She said, mustering all her confidence. Any second now the monstrous puppet would emerge from that shield. Was all this really controlled by a single pony?

"Celestia, who..' Twilight wanted to know more but she held up a hoof.

"I will tell you everything later. Do what you must." She looked her straight in the eyes. So much pain and torment could be seen within them now. Wracked with guilt behind a depth that was usually overlooked.

"Save my beloved ponies, my city. Please.." That was one look she definitely never saw on her face before. Absolute dread. To hear her begging hurt inside in some manner never felt before.

"You're completely exhausted. You should go to.." Twilight went to say.

"I know. Good luck." Celestia poofed out of existence beside her just in time. The barrier protecting the puppet was falling away. It was terrifying in both look and feeling. The size alone almost seemed larger than combining both should have allowed for. A true menace strode forth, all the while odd clicking and clattering sounds coming from within the wooden hull. It began to stride forth, slowly emerging from the shield encasing it. The enormous glimmering capital city surroundings felt entirely amiss now. Something horrendous was about to engage Twilight in battle. What could she possibly do against this misery being inflicted upon the city? For now, everything was left solely up to her.

Enough energy was already spent just avoiding her previous opponent. These things were proving to be death incarnate. If such a thing could be true. Any second the huge alicorn puppet would be at her throat. She must think of a valid strategy quickly or cede victory to them. That was unacceptable. Why did this have to happen? Very often in the preceding years it seemed like things fell on her to deal with more and more, but this? During this time Twilight was continually casting spells in preperation. Was this even really anyone's fault? Was this thing as strong as the king? Worse? If it somehow possessed even more power was there even any possible means of stopping it? It was loose, and closing in.

This time at least she was slightly more prepared. It would not amount to much. Twilight intended to save the city her mentor loved so dearly, whatever it took. The large puppet spoke, gratingly this time. The voice felt painful to even hear, as though many screams were trying to escape from within the horrid thing all at once.

"Look at the little pony before us. It's so cute, thinking it can stand up to us." The puppet began chortling in a strange dual-voiced way as if some terrific joke had been told. Immediately it's horn blazed with untold arcane energies which gathered in an awful twisting ball and shot directly towards Twilight, a terrifying black beam of dazzling dissolute light.

She barely avoided the blast, mistakenly believing that was all to it. A rumbling sound beside her told otherwise. Horrified, Twilight looked on as an entire outer section of Canterlot fell away to tumble and fall, sliced from the foundations by that single beam. It was impossibly powerful. That thin wispy rope of a blast was strong enough to rend away a part of the very city itself? Hopefully nopony was still in those sections, or below when it all fell off the mountain to be crushed far below. This maniacal thing must be stopped immediately or might destroy the entire city all by itself. Twilight anticipated fighting would be damaging, but not to this degree. Perhaps a few buildings, maybe part of the castle. Not this.

The destruction from this single attack defied comprehension. Without time to think she once more fired off a random shot from her horn which by some miracle of angle struck at one of the now even thicker ethereal cables seeming to simply hang out of the open sky above it. How did that work? One side of the puppet drooped momentarily in an odd way. What was that? Having no other clue to go on she began a huge barrage of her own towards all of the cables.

"Insect, cease." It practically roared as multiple shots struck in various places. Some slamming straight through it's wooden hull and several impacts upon the cables which made the thing stumble about as if drunken. Was this working?

It was still dangerous. Her only real option was to keep it off-balance so there was no chance it might fire off another beam. Just one of those was devastating. Flying about letting off a constant stream of less powerful shots was sufficient to keep it pinned. It or whoever was in control of it was becoming quite angered. Somehow even more enraged than before.

"Thou pathetic jackaninny. Cease your pedantic idolatry. Give in to the inevitable. I have already won. Just look at the state of Celestia's miserable castle already. This eyesore of vanity shall become my plaything.' That voice was so horrible it almost made Twilight stop shooting, but her concentration was enough to keep on task. It was becoming quite irate.

Slowly she was chipping away at those cables. Each strike against them seemed to travel back up along them, reducing them in width and control. It was nowhere near enough. At this rate she would be exhausted as well, long before it fell.

"You dare? You dare!?" It bellowed as one of the cables finally was cut through and it's right foreleg fell out from under it. Cleaved straight off it's body and sent slamming into the ground.

"You shall pay dearly for this display of ignorance and deference wrongly given to..her." What did it mean by that? All of this still made very little sense. Going this far because of a little spat hundreds of years before? Why do this?

"I have known Celestia nearly my entire life, she would never have hurt another on purpose. Yes she has made mistakes, everypony makes mistakes. Everyone, I don't care who they are. I am certain even you have as well. Give this up. You can never win." Twilight retorted, yelling almost coldly herself. It was a slight gamble to speak, but she did not cease circling and taking constant wild shots at the thing. It could not be risked to allow it a chance of hitting her directly or she would surely be vaporized in an instant. For whatever reason it was not firing back now. Perhaps using all that power in one shot had disabled it? Maybe it just needed time to recover from that. Something she was not intent on giving.

"Celestia would never have wanted to hurt you either. You must know this is true." All this endless circling to avoid any possible retaliation was wearing and near dizzying, but unavoidable. Twilight was hoping to glean something useful from this back and forth. Anything of real usefulness would be an absolute boon by now.

"You know nothing about me. Nothing. Nor I think..do you know much about her." It almost sounded like it was gloating even as Twilight was disassembling it piece by piece. Was this person or thing simply insane? It stamped it's left hindleg to emphasize what it said then a huge beam shot forth from it once again straight towards her. It was strangely easily dodged.

"Thou foal. You think you are winning when you are simply delaying the inevitable." It said, oddly calm this time. She noticed too late. It was not even aimed at her. The endpoint of that horrible black beam slammed straight through the center of Celestia's academy for gifted unicorns and several buildings behind. A place she once attended, an unmatched center of magical learning. Was that on purpose? If so, it was a spiteful hateful thing to do. This motivated Twilight to continue her circling barrage with renewed vigor. Ever so slowly she was making headway as one piece after another of this horrid construction was ripped apart. So much hatred was disturbing in its own right.

Having discovered these things at least actually had some real weakness was a great motivator. This was turning out to be surprisingly easy to deconstruct. Almost too easy. By now it was missing both wings as well as the leg, giving it a very odd posture. Instead of the expected surrender it simply continued to chortle maddeningly even as it was being torn asunder.

"What's so funny you absolute nutcase?" This was nearly enraging to Twilight. She was beating it, right?

"Your struggles are hilarious. Do go on showing me how the great Twilight Sparkle does things." It stated that in a weird way, sounding condescending and just plain insulting in tone. What was it even talking about?

This was ludicrous. She was the one destroying it, not the other way around. This thing was speaking almost like it was more than one person at once. What did that mean? Anything that should be of significance felt..undervalued by these things.

"Your abject humiliation will please me almost as greatly as watching the life slip one drop at a time from Celestia, after I allow her to witness Equestrias dismemberment at my hooves." It couldn't be serious? The realization dawned. It really did not care about being destroyed. Why was that? If blowing this thing to smithereens actually meant nothing, then what?

Did this or these ponies really want to kill absolutely everything? There was no surer indicator of madness than this. It did feel as though there was more than one personality involved here. Strafing this thing from afar was still taking much too long. Any moment now it would likely be able to fire off another of those tremendous black bolts. There was no good way of approaching the fight. At best she could continue hammering on the cables. The time passing felt sluggish, so fraught with danger a knot was developing in her stomach. A battle like this was not something anypony ever expected to occur, especially not directly in front of the castle proper. Invasion perhaps, but nothing with the intent of absolute destruction.

Desiring to tear Canterlot from its moorings had to this very moment never been thought to be anyone's ambition. There was so much history here, to lose even a small portion of that was an incalculable blow of its own. Any second now. Twilight felt it once more to dive aside as that destructive force exploded out of the alicorn's horn. Once more it was not so much aimed at her as one of the magnificent towers behind. Taking only the briefest instance to cast her gaze towards the tower confirmed that was sliced diagonally away to fall atop a portion of the city. If anypony was still there the chances of survival were little. That was on purpose. It must be.

"Stop it, you're fighting me!" Twilight was becoming very angered by this point. A rising horrible feeling inside such as this was concerning even to herself. There were grand and great reasons for one powerful as herself to remain in control of their emotions. Not the least of which was potentially unleashing torrential energies at random to any possible ends.

"Fighting you?" It mocked. That was definitely mocking. It served only to deepen that strained feeling inside.

"Eighty-five." Echoed from the thing. Why would it say that? This was new.

"That is how many ponies you just failed to save. Let's make it a few hundred shall we?" Such vile malevolence.

"Murderer. How are you enjoying this?" Twilight was becoming so frustrated with her apparent lack of ability to save lives in combination with its harsh and uncaring words that she somewhat slurred her own. It was a bad sign.

"Aw, the pretty little pony is getting tired. Don't tell me we have to stop playing already?" It said. Playing? What was it goin on about this time? Everything said since the battle started sounded almost like it was bored. Was all this merely some kind of sick game? That thought was rather worrying. There were just too many things outright and patently weird about the whole of this. This thing was so powerful it could have annihilated the city long ago and without any interference.

Why wait until now? If the object was simply to smash Canterlot it could have done so. With that kind of power behind it even the powerful citywide shields, were they in place, would not have withstood that for long. Why even bother with this kind of ruse at all? All three of these strange puppets that seemed pressed into service from some other reality might have enough power on their own to crush any defenses a city might have. Finally, another cable dissipated after a severe hit and the things tail went clattering off.

"Whelp, you've gone and bobtailed my personage." There was something strange in the manner of speech.

More than just sometimes archaic. Was there a deeper meaning to the things it was saying? It could just as well have been toying with her as anything else. What could the real plan here be? This fight was dragging on far far longer than hoped. Twilight, knowing she could not keep this up forever was being forced to come to a most miserable conclusion. Right here, in this place she knew so well and wished with all her heart to defend. Even should she destroy this horrendous thing before her, something far worse was certainly coming afterwards. That was a fact. An undeniable and disheartening prospect. Its approach could be felt now. The effect of the underground runespell was getting closer each moment.

"What have you done?" Twilight practically screamed. The feeling of the encircling spell below was beyond unbearable.

"Finally, she notices. Not enjoying our little malarky?" It said. Was it even really speaking to her anymore? It spoke as though someone else was around. Whatever the case, there was even less time to bring this to an end than before. Twilight had by this time nearly chipped through all of the unusual cables. This whole time she'd been trying to discern how they were connected to elsewhere but it was proving to be something beyond even her deep knowledge of magics. Understanding them may have made this easier. Something dark and terrible was coming closer. The sky above turned ever darker.

What was it going to take? Thankfully the cables were all almost cut through by this time. Twilight was expecting it this time. The things head turned towards her once more to level pure destruction in that direction. This shot, however, she not only managed to fly out of the path but also shoot and deflect the beam away from the intended target. Throughout it was never trying to actually hit her. Merely taking opportunistic potshots to make it appear so and instead damage the city was a further horrible thing to do. A small chunk off the top of the great main gates and a small portion of the mountain was shorn away. The level of damage was so far beyond anything she'd ever been witness to before. There was so little time left.

At long last, the cables were just about shorn off. Not a moment too soon. Enough damage was inflicted across the city already. Just as the final cable was destroyed a tremendous whispering noise blared out from it. Finally, the double-height puppet fell motionless in a pile. A testament to its power of smoking shattered ruins lay all around. It was difficult to imagine this being any worse. Twilight decided it was best to go find the small group of guards and get out of Canterlot for now. This would hardly be the end of it. A slow, building roiling feeling was circling the mountain below. This was not something she could stop. This spell was a complete unknown and she had no time to create some type of counter to it.

It was going to do something irreparable in the magnitude of harm, she just knew it would. It was unmistakable, that ferocity swirling about. Better not be here when it hit. What was it going to do? Flying over the city revealed smoking charred wreckage and fires burning out of control spilling out of smashed buildings. This horror was only getting started. There were injured and dead all over, most of whom had barely any warning. The type of magic building below the mountain was seriously awful in feeling and completely beyond her. Spotting the remaining guards below she landed before them. Some of them were also injured by debris, but mostly appeared intact.

"Princess, thank goodness. Is it over?" The captain asked, he looked as devastated as the city and residents around him.

"Not by a long shot. We all have to leave, right now. There is no time." It was a terrible thing to have to say.

"But, all these ponies.." He waved sweeping across the ruins.

"I'm sorry. We..must head to my castle immediately. I am almost drained. Canterlot..is lost. We take whoever we can and get out of here, now. Those are my orders." She had rarely given orders, hurriedly telling him as she huffed. The captain went wide-eyed but gritted his teeth and saluted then ran off to gather the others and whoever else could move.

Twilight stood looking about the shattered city. It was heartrending. This was where she spent much of her time growing up. Now it looked like some desolate alien landscape and there was precious little she could do about it for the moment. Buildings could be rebuilt. Lost lives were far more difficult to deal with. So much death had struck and so rapidly it left her mind reeling in shock. Time was dwindling away so quickly. The mass of swelling power far below could surely be felt by all now. The malice and corrupted feeling of it was overpowering. Any moment that would erupt. It felt to her like overlapping waves of increasing energy were crashing into one another. It might be more than what she just faced.

Why would anypony go this far? To maim and kill were one thing. Spitefully tearing homes and lives apart on top of that was just added cruelty. There were already so many dead, and likely more ahead. That prospect was hurtful in another way. Wearing on the mind and grating on the senses. How was she going to tell Celestia what happened? So many near misses had left her singed and injured, cut and bruised in multiple places from flying debris. If it was possible, she would make whoever this pony was pay for such atrocities. Having offered to help him now felt like she'd betrayed goodness itself. A miserable feeling of helplessness enclosed around her. This was not often felt either. Such pain and suffering everywhere.

How many lives did she just fail to save all told? It was likely in the hundreds, if not higher still. More were about to be lost who could not be evacuated. That hurt the most. Aside from cries for help that now could not be rendered, the normally bustling city was so quiet and still now. Something about that made the feeling worse yet. The dismal black smoke rising from the formerly grand capital was so thick and dark it blotted out the sun here and there. How far was this sheer madness going to extend? From what little was said, his intent was nothing but to cause suffering. Twilight shuddered.

"Why?..why.." She muttered to herself. This was not something she could have prepared for. Not this level of insanity.

"Oh, what are we going to do?" Twilight took off after the guards. Once together with those few others it was possible to save she would teleport all of them out of the city. Being this dangerously close to exhaustion would make it a risky move, but abandoning anyone she actually could save was not an option. Any second now something epically bad in scale and scope was going to happen with no possible way to prevent it. Whatever horror was about to be unleashed, they must not be inside the city confines when it happened. The dreadful sensations it was instilling were already nearly too much to bear. It wasn't even begun yet. The type of spell being set loose below was such a complete unknown.

"I will take us as far as I safely can in this condition, are you ready?" She asked the captain.

"Present and accounted for, and as many as we could reach. I hate to leave the rest. Running away with tails between our legs isn't what we do." He said as the cries of others about the city could still be heard.

"There is no other choice. Hang on, this is going to be rough." Twilight summoned what focus she had left, beginning to teleport the entire group out of Canterlot. Just as she did this a massive green shimmering light engulfed the whole city and all went silent. A moment later they found themselves halfway between the capital and Ponyville.

The group landed hard on the ground. The lack of power made the entire experience quite painful for all, especially those injured among them. A huge shimmering wall of wavering green light could be seen even from this far distance. What did it mean? Whatever the intent, it was nothing good.

"Ow. I know that hurt all of you, I'm very sorry about that. Get the injured to help, then head for my castle. Bring any of our forces you encounter along under my authority. This is far from over." Twilight ordered. Now, she must deliver the news to her mentor. This instilled its own sort of dread. She was returning in failure, and lost lives.

Only having enough power left to teleport herself in short bursts toward the castle, it took a great deal of time to get there. There were no transportation hubs directly between here and there. It would not have been any faster to go out of her way to reach one. Finding tears forcing their way out as she made her way along put further pressure on a now injured psyche. That something even stronger was out there and intent on raining the same kind of destruction across the whole of the land instilled such a sickly feeling in the stomach she found herself choking and hacking repeatedly. This kind of evil was meant for books and stories, not to face in stark reality. This should not be. What did he do? What was happening back there?

The world itself if it could, felt as though trembling in fear. Could anything be so against that which is natural as to make the very world itself apprehensive? It almost felt so. At last, she arrived home. A home which she now felt ashamed to approach. Dejectedly she walked inside the doors and towards the throne room. Almost filled with as much terror over relaying her failure to Celestia as the battle itself. They were all there. The two sisters, her friends. At this moment she could barely look any of them in the eye. So hurt and lost feeling was she that she almost overlooked Celestia walking straight up to her and then pulling her into a tight hug for a long moment. Snapping out of it a bit, she looked up.

"But I.." Twilight was going to explain.

"Did your best, as promised. Just rest. You need it." Celestia and Luna looked a little better, having had some time to recover. They were still quite weakened and hurt, but had clearly cleaned up in the meantime. How much power they must have expended protecting themselves during their captivity. Twilight noticed Rarity was not here, nor Trixie. Odd.

"We felt it from here. Oceans of pain and suffering untold. I believe it is time for a proper explanation." Luna spoke gravely. Sadness was on every face. They all looked towards Celestia, who herself still appeared quite hurt.

"You know our world is quite large, and Equestria is just part. In the very early days of strife and division things were not like they are now. He came from half a world away seeking solace and peace after war tore his distant homeland apart. I and my sister were still so very new to rule when I was forced to banish her. I was left alone. So many events took place in the intervening years. He also endured so much and I felt a kinship with him." Celestia took a deep breath before continuing.

"He was very nice, proper. Spoke eloquently and with a refined air. He must've spent much time in royal courts before. I found myself a bit smitten with him. It was harmless, and he was very romantic." Everyone was hanging on her words.

War was almost an unheard-of term in modernity, eliciting a gasp from each. Even Pinkie as verbose as she generally was remained quiet throughout. All were silent, not wanting to miss a word of it.

"It was good for both of us, but we kept it secret. He didn't want to interfere with my responsibilities. Eventually, he asked if it might please me for him to become an alicorn. I was shocked, surprised that somepony would want to do that just for me. It was enamoring, but not something anyone can just do. He asked for direction, and I gave what I could." This tale was enthralling to the group, but it was becoming all too clear where it was heading.

"Year after year he studied and became quite scholarly. Someone I could talk openly to about anything. One day, I noticed his mane was ever so slightly greying and his tail. I became quite concerned. If he perished of old age I would be all alone, again. Slowly, he was getting more desperate. I tried to calm his fears, but he was becoming unhinged. I wanted to help him, but there was little I could do." It was plastered all over her face just how hard it was to talk about all this.

"I discovered quite by accident he was seeking dark magic in desperation. I begged him to stop at once or I would have no choice but to send him away or imprison him. Feeling I betrayed him, he left. I thought he would've died long ago." Celestia finished.

Her normally flowing mane and tail were nearly still, and the look on her face of sheer sadness and regret. Each looked to the other, all near tears. Their much-beloved princess had endured far more than they knew.

"Princess, ah never imagined. We should've given more thought to it, and to you." Applejack said, fully understanding what wanting a loving family is all about. This was saddening to see and hear.

"I never told anyone because I thought that was the end of it. He was quite old when I forced him to leave. I couldn't imagine him managing anything like this. I don't understand it." The forlorn expression on Celestia's face was downbringing.

"Pardon me princess, but he cannot be doing all of this alone, can he?" Rainbow brought up a good point. Something felt almost incoherent about a lot of things going on.

"If he is really alive, then he would have partaken in dark rituals and done other unspeakable things to remain so. Those sorts of methods scour one's soul bare and result in a slowly increasing loss of sanity. I know little more of it and I once stepped into that darkness." If anyone here knew the dark, it was Luna. Her saying as much was painful.

"Be that as it may, he has mastery over dark arts of which we know almost nothing. We need options." Twilight interjected.

"Yes. He may even have created new spells himself. He was skilled enough to do so, but never partook in it when I knew him. At least, that I know of." Celestia was almost shaking relaying all of this. Fluttershy was just sitting there staring dully through the whole conversation. Pinkie was biting on a pie tin, sitting on the edge of her seat transfixed by the story. Where did that even come from?

"When he took both of you did he say anything? Speak to either of you?" Twilight asked of the two sisters.

"Nothing. We were both taken by surprise. Nothing was said, we were just locked up. I didn't know it was him until you freed us. Even now, I'm not so sure it is." Celestia informed.

"What do you mean, how could it not be?" Fluttershy actually said something, quietly of course.

"He never said anything about wanting to hurt me or others, strange as that must sound. It's possible he was driven insane by dark magics over time but I am nearly certain he would not have survived the strain of even attempting such a thing. He was..old. I miss him." The sound of her voice so tinged with pain was just hurtful. Celestia sat there looking down. The sight of her like this was so unusual it was almost frightening. Her hunched over that like was just appalling to see.

"Should we try to retake Canterlot? Along with the Wonderbolts perhaps?" Dash was just raring to get into action.

"Wait. I've been meaning to ask, what happened to Rarity and Trixie? I saw them both back at the cavern? And what did you spill on that puppet?" The question sparked concern among the others.

"They're both at Ponyville hospital being treated for major horn trauma. Rarity got a bunch of her contacts to enchant a pendant for both of them with as much power as they could push into them. Said it was for a huge show she would be putting on not to arouse any suspicion." Dash quickly explained. So that was how they did it. The pair of them could be in serious condition after that kind of exertion.

"Will they be alright? From the sound of it, we sure could use their help still." Applejack asked. Dash was the one that went with them to the hospital and looked over to her.

"They'll be fine. The doc assured me, but help? Not happening. It could be days before they're out." Rainbow did look very worried for them both.

"And the can?" Twilight inquired.

"Paint thinner. Dumb idea, I know. Probably didn't do anything." Rainbow said, looking kind of embarrassed.

"Actually, I don't know about that. Seemed to me like that actually did bother them, a bit anyway. Not sure why though." Twilight explained about the screaming.

"Well that sure is weird ain't it? But, I guess everything kinda is right now." Applejack then brought their attention back to the matter before them. What to do.

"We know these things can be defeated but it takes such a huge amount of power. Even together at full strength, I'm not sure it would be enough to stop them." Twilight was becoming more worried than ever. Pinkie spoke.

"This is one pony I can't make friends with." Such an odd statement for her to make. Flat and dull and devoid of her usual joviality in all ways.

"We do have options. We could ask..him?" Twilight was suggesting something.

"I don't know. Do we really want to involve..him? That could be dangerous in all manner of ways." Dash responded a little fearfully. It was becoming clear who they were speaking about.

"Oh come now, he's our friend. What do we have to lose?" Fluttershy interjected. She put a hoof up to her muzzle.

"Oh, Discord." As she said the word a sparkling shimmer immediately appeared before them. He was on the map of Equestria, tiny and atop a small stage which showed up along with him. What in the world?

"Well it's about time you called me. That kind of thing is extremely dangerous you know." Did he already know what was going on? It was often difficult to tell what he was speaking about.

"Can you help us put a stop to all this?" Neither Luna nor Celestia seemed surprised at all by his sudden appearance.

"No." He intoned, shaking his head and pointing to the stage. That was abrupt and unexpected.

"Huh?" They all gasped in unison.

"What ya mean..no?" Both Dash and Applejack looked a bit angry already at this.

"Oh calm down, ladies. Before you turn yourselves purple or something." Discord said, and everyone was now purple.

"Discord!" They all yelped.

"Oh, alright." Snapping his claws everything went back to normal.

"You see this piece here?" A rook rose out of the board as he talked.

"And this piece here?" A king piece appeared behind the rook in defensive positioning while Discord walked over to it and draped himself in front of it. Definitely his usual self.

"Well you see, the kindly old king here has been replaced with this." The king piece bubbled away into the board and an exact replica of the king puppet rose in place. This was extremely weird.

"What in the hay is that supposed to mean?" Applejack was getting rather perturbed by his antics.

"It means I can't help you. In fact I can't do anything at all about it. I have to sit this one out I'm afraid. I wish you all good luck, you'll need it." With that he disappeared, leaving the small replica puppet on the map where Canterlot was.

"Why, that was about as useful as a muddy apple with a sand fillin'." Applejack was highly agitated.

"You know what he's like. Besides, I think he told us something. We just have to figure out what." Twilight picked up the little puppet. How very odd.

"Why would he leave this behind?" It was a legitimate question. Though everything he did was questionable, he was on their side. Though he may have in the past, he would not purposely place them in legitimate danger nowadays. If he could do nothing, this was going to be exceedingly difficult.

In keeping your gaze upon the sun, nary a shadow will be seen..

Wave of Pain

Words have become my ghosts. -

"Princess Celestia, urgent news. Something seems wrong towards Canterlot." A guard burst into the throne room of Twilight's castle. The entire group looked toward him appearing somewhat puzzled by his statement.

"I uh, mean something more wrong. There is a very strange rumor going around saying ponies that were known to be in the city when it was attacked are now walking around randomly as if in a daze, attacking and biting anything that moves!" The guard hurriedly explained. That didn't make any sense. Why would any ponies that escaped that disaster be wandering around hurting anyone?

"This is one great big mess. What do you think we should do?" Twilight looked to Celestia, but the expression on her face did not instill any confidence. Whatever they were facing now was nearly incomprehensible. The possibility it might be some pony her mentor once cared for made it doubly problematic for several reasons. Not the least of which was what to do when they did make some kind of move. Six hours passed since the assault. A cadre of elite guards only consisting of unicorns was now assembled outside the castle doors awaiting orders. Regular forces would not engage in battle if it was avoidable. Some select powerful wizards and archivist researchers were also summoned with all haste to assist.

"At least we don't have to sneak around pretending anymore. I was getting super creeped out near those things. There is something really wrong about each of them." Rainbow Dash still looked somewhat shaken by the whole ordeal. It was no exaggeration to say everything about the puppets felt and was wrong. There was no better way to put it. They all exuded auras of some disjointed feeling like they didn't even belong to reality. What was the secret to them? Stopping only one of them was just short of impossible, but now something even stranger was happening in the countryside. Ponies roaming about biting at others? That sounded like something which could not be real. What could possibly be done?

"Without access to the Canterlot archives, we are at a disadvantage here. There is only Twilight's personal library, many smaller libraries and the great library in the Crystal Empire, but that is so far away it might prove futile to even ask. Even so, we have sent word to them about what is happening here." Luna was poring over a stack of books herself, along with some scholars. None of them were having any luck finding much of value in regards to the unusual constructs.

"At most we know they are not golems or any other type of known war magics. This is so unusual. So far we haven't found anything mentioning something even remotely like them." Twilight was pacing back and forth, thinking.

"Have the captain send a few of the regular guard to look into these rumors of biting ponies. Tell them to be extremely cautious and not get too close. Only observe and report back." Celestia informed the waiting guard and he ran off to carry out her orders. Lacking information on what was happening could prove dangerous on many levels.

"I hope it isn't really him." Celestia said unexpectedly. It was somewhat shocking to hear.

"Not ta put too fine a point on it but, how could it not be? Sounds like he knows everything about you, and acted like he was?" Applejack was not trying to be hurtful, it was just true. Celestia sighed forlornly.

"Yes, it seemed like him. Even felt like him, but I cannot believe it is him. After what happened, war and further death were the very last things he truly wanted. He lost his way and I could not sway him. However, if it is him or even someone that knows what he knew then they know all too well how to wage war. As war seems to be the intent, we should prepare defenses around the town at once. This would be his first target beyond Canterlot." Celestia finally seemed to have snapped out of her misery over it a little bit and went to oversee fortifying the area. Could she be correct? Actual warfare and the miseries it brings were nearly consigned to textbooks. Now an actual war might be bearing down on top of them?

"How can this be? War? There hasn't been a real war in Equestria in so long I'm not sure how well we will deal with it." Said one of the berobed unicorns assisting Luna in her reading. For all this time Fluttershy was huddled in a corner looking through books as well, looking a slight bit catatonic. Nothing new for her.

"Fear not. We shall put an end to this evil, whatever it takes." Luna stated somewhat coldly sounding, but it was not unusual coming from her. She'd been through a lot lately as well. Torment was on her face.

"She's right. Fear and pain are things that our enemy seems to thrive on. Let's not willingly give it to them." Twilight stopped pacing and said.

"Twi, could it really be him? Is it possible? He would hafta to be like eight hundred years old. No offense." Applejack looked at Luna but she just shrugged while continuing to read the book before her muzzle.

"Maybe. Age spells exist, but they aren't for that kind of thing and certainly not for long term use. There are other methods, but most of them are just terrible. Not things you would willingly do to yourself. What I know of them is, in the end, they all amount to torture." Twilight looked at the small wooden replica Discord left behind of the puppet king. Why did he leave it there anyway? It might mean nothing, but knowing him it could also be a useful clue. It was hard to tell.

"All ah know is we best come up with something fast, this fella has already caused a great deal of grief to lotsa ponies and that ain't fair." Applejack was obviously concerned for her family as well. If whatever happened in Canterlot might happen here as well, then they were all in trouble.

Beware the quiet calm which comes in the middle of a storm..

Stakes

"Your highness, we have captured and returned with one of the ponies that has been roaming around biting at others." An elite guard which just returned said to Celestia, prompting her to look at him in deep concern.

"Why have you disobeyed my orders? You were to observe only." Her intonation was such that his explanation better be good.

"You see uh.. would you please come with me, your majesty? I need to speak to you privately." He sounded worried. Worry was the order of the day, but this was highly unusual. She excused herself and Luna, leaving Twilight and the others still scouring for anything in the available books that might prove of value in facing this ridiculously powerful foe.

"How did we get here? Not a week ago I was just enjoying tea and reading school reports. Now there is some probably insane pony trying to kill us all. This is just.." Twilight trailed off. It was truly an extraordinary situation.

"I don't think there's anything in these books to help us Twi. We need to take action very soon." Rainbow Dash said somewhat forlornly. Everyone looked disheartened. The loss of Canterlot was a tremendous and unexpected blow. That it was simply taken with such ease was hard to swallow. The power within those terrible constructs was on par or even above anything any of them ever faced before. Twilight had not been beaten via sheer power in many years.

"I know but we barely have any idea what they are. How do you fight.." Twilight was interrupted by Celestia unexpectedly returning already. The expression she wore was intense.

"Twilight, come with me. Now." Was all she said and turned. This was strange.

"But we don't have a proper pl.." Twilight went to say.

"Now, Twilight." This was very odd of Celestia. Something must be quite wrong.

"Yes." Was all Twilight could manage to say to that and followed her to a holding cell below.

Such cells generally went unused, reserved only for the worst of transgressions.

"What's going on?" Twilight asked. Two guards standing in front of the gate appeared very disheveled.

Celestia turned to her former student and looker directly in her eyes.

"There is no easy way to break this to you. The pony behind those bars is..Moondancer. You aren't going to like what you see." Celestia was very quiet as she spoke. Twilight overheard some other guards saying there was yet another of the awful puppets just standing outside Canterlot. How many of these horrifying things could there possibly be?

"What, is she hurt? Why is she in there?" Twilight went to step towards the cell but Celestia barred her with a hoof.

"Wait. Listen, this is going to be hard for you to witness. Don't get too close." She let her pass and the guards moved aside. Much to Twilights horror as she peered into the cell a familiar face smacked into the bars.

"Moondancer what..." Twilight stopped short. Her friend was teetering and walking about randomly. Hearing her, the pony within went biting at the sound of her voice. She walked about the cell trotting into the walls and occasionally falling to slowly rise again shakily.

"No.." Twilight whispered under her breath, and cried at seeing her friend in such a disturbing state.

"One of the guards recognized she was familiar to you and decided to catch her at great risk. We don't know how to help her. I am so very sorry." Celestia hugged her student gently and stepped back.

"This is horrible. What have they done to her? This is complete madness. Can't we do anything?" Twilight found it difficult to speak at the current moment. A doctor that was summoned to inspect her spoke up.

"We don't even know what the problem is, let alone how to treat it. All we can do is try to stop her from hurting herself for the moment. Me and my team will do whatever we can." He did not sound very hopeful about the outcome.

"Thank you. Please take good care of her." Twilight couldn't look anymore and left the room. She stood there taking deep breaths.

"This must be stopped." She gritted her teeth and returned to the throne room. Her friends looked on quizzically as she entered.

"This has hurt our friends, our families. Ponies and everyone else we know. We are facing quite possibly the destruction of our entire way of life and more. This cannot be allowed to happen." Twilight spoke gravely.

"We must take desperate measures. They're going to attack us, and it will be terrible. I need all of you to do your absolute best. I am issuing a total evacuation order. Get every last citizen out of here. Instead of allowing this to drag on, we are going to throw everything we have into battle right here. Better to lose some homes than more innocent lives, and hopefully put an end to this quickly." Twilight was clearly upset.

"Twilight, is this really a good idea? I really hate to say this, but what if we lose? If we don't have any forces in reserve then Equestria will be defenseless." Dash did make a good point, but Twilight shook her head slowly.

"I get what you're saying, but it's no good. If this is allowed to spill out into the rest of the country then who knows what will happen? We know of contained conflict, but few of us know war. I can see it in their faces, Luna, Celestia.. This could be our only chance to prevent something much worse." The decision was made. Going all in was a gamble with far reaching repercussions should it fail.

"Dash, are the aerial teams prepared?" Twilight asked.

"As ready as they can be. I hope these bomb things you came up with are effective." Rainbow had expressed worries about them.

"We pulled out some weapon and equipment schematics from the old armory museum over on the other side of town. A lot of them were never used. Maybe they will give us an advantage. At the very least they should prove distracting." Twilight waved everyone out.

"I can't let you do this to anyone else, whoever you are." Walking outside she surveyed troops preparing all sorts of unusual devices and defenses. Things meant for warfare. Nothing she ever thought to see in actual use, including something she'd come up with herself, even a term. A magichanical weapon.

"I really hope we don't have to use that." She shuddered.

A stage once set..

Silence

Offer prayers for forgiveness if you will, they shall not be answered. -

A silence lays heavily upon the stone of Canterlot. Whatever ill omen walks there strides forth alone amidst the wreckage of the formerly living to take residence upon the throne in silent solitude. The sweeping quiet covers the previously busy streets as even in the days light the city is somehow drenched in darkness. None dare approach this damaged beacon bereft of the light. All hint of the city and its storied glory now dulled. The gleaming spires seeming afflicted with their own sickness of spirit. What drives forth these maledictions of frenzied destruction? The silence is pervasive, almost an entity in its own right. Not the slightest sound is heard from within or without. The great city lay dead.

At this moment for all intents and purpose little more than a monumental tomb to those whose lives ended here in the briefest instant, their much-vaunted defenders able to do little against the onslaught. A graveyard with no markers and none to heed their passing. Great portions of the city lay in ruins after that short skirmish. A short fight barely able to be called a battle in the end. If one were able to go about walking the streets, one would find nothing. No sounds. No voices. Only the undeniable quiet. Even the wind seems fearful to dare seek passage through this barren emptiness devoid of light and life. A sinister force stalks these streets and avenues as though seeking to extinguish hope itself. A lofty goal.

All those able have fled from this now dead place. Only yesterday it was full of cheer and lively conversation. Now it lay mute and injured, smashed and broken in all manner of ways. If a city could suffer indignity, this might very well be the result. No further mauling, nor a single brick has been touched since as if waiting for the perfect moment to inflict some worse insult upon the city. The empty streets should they have embodiment to do so would surely be calling for redress, to suffer this humiliation is unbearable. The grand architecture all around begging to be repaired and admired by all once more. That seeping chill so cold has intimated it may grow all the worse still as it takes hold of the city proper.

Eyes are upon the city from afar, desperate for answers. They receive none, only finding another monster standing fast before the great gate. The grand bascule bridge was never raised for no enemy approached from outside. It lay open as ever, almost inviting an attack that would certainly fail. Looking up at the city encourages fearful reactions in the viewer as though glancing upon death itself. Can it be true? Has such horror truly come to inhabit those glittering halls? All has fallen deathly silent in this shimmering capital where light fears to intrude upon the quiet streets. The sound of hoof falls and wingbeats once abound now not even an echo of past leanings. Fires raged out of control for hours.

The city has fallen to such ruin in less than a day. The grandeur of it still endures beneath the smoke and char. The sheer monstrousness of the act which brought this calamity raining down upon the poor city the most reprehensible act imaginable. The crumbling buildings attest to the power of whatever looming doom has settled here. Those dead have been left where they fell, silent as the rest of the city. More insulting still, the great flags and banners still hang in muted array. The light has fled in hopes of returning. What grotesque mockery to leave them all where they lay, some with eyes still open in shock. A shock etched upon their dead gazes. At least for most, death came calling swiftly.

A glaring aura of sufferance pervades the grand palisades and walkways throughout. A hush of indescribable depth creeping forth, reinforcing this silence all the more. Has all power of good fallen prey to lunacy? The cold creeps forth along with the silence. A chill such as the city has never known settling over all things. Not something from outside. A cold emanating from the stones themselves. The temperature of the surrounding air dropping to a point that heavy clouds begin to swirl above, granting even more darkness to the already shattered infrastructure below. A flicker from within that darkness suggests a storm is brewing to temper bad feelings yet deeper still. The root of this suffering does not reveal itself.

This city now a void of sound and living things enshrouds itself in tumultuous billowing black clouds as if to conceal the horror and mock those below. As the storm rises the howling wail of winds almost seem to give voice to the dead. Right this wrong. An affront has been committed of such magnitude it must be answered in kind. Where is the light? This was a place of hope and dreams come true, turned to nightmare and sorrow without a second thought or hint of regret. Why has this happened? What pain could justify taking away hopes and dreams? Heavy rains come to scour the city uncontrolled by any pegasi. The expected patter of water on the bricks and mortar the same as it ever was, belying the wrongs committed.

Somehow the rain is silent as the rest of the city. Lightning wreaths the towers from top to bottom as what should create a great cacophony erupts about them, yet all is silence. The castle ringed in great sheaths of emerald green fire dancing about the structure as if in celebration of enduring silence. Expanding outwards from this great conflagration it flows down the avenues and boulevards, as unstoppable as the tides. The flames lick and sputter, engulfing the whole until all is aglow. This fire burns nothing, it sets nothing ablaze. What can it portend? The puppet beyond the gate stands firmly rooted in place.

Hello darkness, my old friend.

Way of Pain

In woe beridden Canterlot this eve, where now a dead thing sleeps and icy chill climbs empty battlements, an eerie procession of shuffling shambling shadows rise to begin a grim parade lurching towards the city gate like slow decay. Creeking open doors left to hang askew beg the question, what happened here? What event at this very moment has spurred such evil to manifest itself and launch an assault against the very nature of all which stands for good? The all-consuming cold erupts throughout the vacant streets and torn sky above. Such threat as the city has never been subjected to before now holds courtyard and castle hostage in muted deadlock. Far below and away, fear instills itself in heart, mind and spirit.

This is fear of a still unknown, enshrouding itself in cloud and mist. What could possibly have been worth shredding the very bonds of reality to inflict torment and torture on the land itself? In truth, it has given nothing away. Stumbling soundless steps of assembling nameless hosts writhe snakelike, this gathering unto a tide of lifeless things. The city itself almost feels to shudder at their passing, if any unfortunate soul were near to take note of the grisly proceedings. The lone sentinel beyond the gate has been joined by three more stoic shaded figures. Swelling arcane power flows from distant abandoned mines below Canterlot. Long forgotten chambers inscribed with forbidden lore lost to memory sputter to some semblance of false light.

Some of these faded runes buried in dust fail to do so, broken by the simple passing of time. Mysterious ancient workings none remember fire anew, finally called upon to depart their eternal slumber and walk unbidden through a world of forced shadows. The strain of ages breaks some of these as well, leaving them to fall silent once more. This menagerie of gathered horrors both hunched and broken alike all heading towards a singular destination, akin to an unstoppable river consisting of venom. A poisonous charade of mockery and strife filled with hushed indistinct whispers. They come to rest as a single bell tolls, a pealing sound so loud it shatters the heavy silence explosively. All motions cease while only increasing silence exists once again.

A terrible lament unheard, and below that horrible ringing a rising wail which could for the briefest instant be mistaken for a hymn rang out along with it. Horrid corruptive flames tinged sickly emerald sink into stone and standard. Despite the activity, banners formerly held high sit unmoving. A perfected sterile state of inactivity and deafening silence settles once more. Seeded doubt and pain evermore presents itself more thoroughly. The glittering city dampened, dulled, empty. Quiet here is all-consuming. The glistening haven now in service of some terrible vision, mocking even itself. If anyone were here, the palpable air of sadness settling would be unbearable. A sort of depthy melencholy only tremendous age could muster.

These vaunted halls fill with this illness of feeling and want unfulfilled. Whatever haunts hide themselves behind corner and veil each adding their own distinct terror to this miasma of doubt and confusion. In the distance all others keep watch on the shrouded spires high and away from everything. Wondering, will this be the moment it all comes crashing down? Can they withstand the gathering scorn and reproach about to strike like a massive hammer from on high? With bated breath and furrowed brow they watch and wonder, is this how it shall be? Stricken from the world in a blink to leave none left to wonder and no more dreams to share? Who are we, and do we have the strength to stand? These things, they are left to question.

Questions. No real answers. Only the timid game of waiting to be stricken. These moments spent considering the draining sands of time. Did we do something wrong? Could it have been stopped at some point in the past? What mistake gave rise to something this terrible? Do we deserve it? The tide is rising. The increasing quiet is a wrong, an opposite of normality. It should be loud, violent and screeching, but there is nothing. Not a peep, not a further whisper. Only the cold. The waiting must surely be about to end. It is a feeling everyone comes to know at some point, any moment the sanctity of peaceful moments will be broken most painfully. A vengeful judgment given by the unknown. The evidence weighs heavily.

Unlike the quiet before a storm, this is a storm before another to add intensity and sickness. These swirling clouds prove themselves to be poison to body and soul. A few unfortunate scouts come into contact with the faintest wisp of it and become sickly within seconds to drop and heave gasping for breath. They are quickly pulled away, but it is too late. In rasping breath they give hurried goodbyes for those they love and expire within moments. More casualties of this city crying out for relief. A stream of steady tears granted to the unwary. How much torment will suffice? What amount of suffering will pay the unspecified price being asked? This question goes unanswered. The sickly clouds grow expansive.

The gathering storm above knows no pegasi masters. There are no unicorns to hold it in check and squeeze it out of existence as they may be about to in kind. War is coming. Something unknown in this land for ages since. The sentence has been given, the verdict is clear. Silent flashes of lightning within suggest tumult and lunacy. No ear catches hold of the slightest hint. The stillness unbroken as the great gate sees a host of flitting figures begin their soundless march forth from beyond, slow purposeful steps each and all. As they slip from the gathered fog a blinding flash strikes. They come pouring forth as though a tsunami in lockstep, and true horror is revealed. The gavel has fallen.

Frost sufficiently intense, burns as fire in the dark.

Horror Come Calling

Princess Twilight along with Luna and Celestia were listening to a guards report and nearly shaking in grief, sickened to her stomach by the news. A shocking sort of news that left them all highly disturbed.

"It can't be. It's sick. Twisted and disgusting. How could they!?" Twilight was aquiver with anger.

"Twilight, calm down. We're here with you." Luna patted her back gently. She groaned.

"It's just wrong. Wrong." They were all aghast at the news just received. A veritable army of puppets was streaming forth from Canterlot, but there was something else far more sinister still about it.

"Are you sure? Certain that is what the scouts saw?" Celestia asked an elite guard captain who was reporting in on the situation. He lowered his head, unusually he almost looked to be in tears himself. It must be true.

"Yes..your majesties. The puppets..all of the ponies known to have still been in Canterlot are..puppets. Strung up just like the other things. An army of our own dead are marching on us. Your highness, what do we do?" He was clearly in shock as well.

"Inform everypony about the situation, tell them what we are facing. We may encounter ponies they knew, friends, family.. Be clear, if any of them feel they may be unable to face that then they have my leave to flee." Celestia ordered.

"Are you..sure, your majesty? We may need every pony we can get.." The guard asked politely, shaking slightly.

"It will do us no good if our forces seize up in battle. It will get them killed, or perhaps worse. Go." She wasn't wrong about that. The guard saluted and hurried out of the command post they'd set up in the town square. This turn of events was completely unexpected. It might make things even harder than they already were.

"Princess Celestia, is this a mistake? Is fighting them off the right thing to do now?" Twilight asked her dear mentor.

"Setting all this up must have taken absolutely massive power and many years to prepare." She explained.

"If we destroy their army then there will only be.. him and anypony helping him to deal with. It obviously took hundreds of years to make this happen. As I am sure you are, I am very..shaken. He has broken the sanctity of death and robbed innocents of their dignity. We must do whatever it takes to win. There is no other choice now I'm afraid." Celestia was in a very bad position. If the pony behind all of this insanity was truly one she knew and cared for in life then she had even more reason than anyone else to feel betrayed and hurt in some incomprehensible fashion. A puzzling mix of feelings presented themselves throughout this whole ordeal, and it was about to get worse before it got better.

"Luna, have you ever heard of anything like this? Anything at all?" Twilight wondered if anyone ever did.

"No, not like this. This is a sort of magic no one dares practice. Even were it not forbidden, dark magic always carries a serious price. I cannot put my hoof on it but I feel something is quite amiss with everything happening. Not just the fact it is happening in the first place, but something just doesn't sit right about any of it." Luna said it, but all felt it. Some terror was loosed upon the land of a scale for which there was no real accounting. Using the bodies of poor dead ponies was abominable in itself, but why was he going this far? Surely this was not simple insanity?

If all he wanted was to hurt Celestia, he had already harmed her very deeply. Physically and emotionally. She was doing her best not to show it, but the damage was done. To both her and Luna. Why drag everypony else into it? An all out war was going to ridiculous lengths. It really made little logical sense. If he'd been the slightest bit more careful about it both of them would be dead. It was almost as if he wanted all of this to happen like it had. It even seemed like freeing the two sisters was just too easy. Everything afterwards was like some kind of joke to the enemy they now found themselves preparing to battle. He was no mere monster. Something else. Some actual horror given life and distinct purpose.

What that purpose was escaped Twilight. There might be no discernable reasoning behind any of this. The fact was battle would be joined by morning. The sun would just be raised overhead by the time it began. What awaited? To have their own loved ones conscripted into war was unthinkable to this moment. What sort of corrupt and vile soul would dare force the dead to do their bidding? Unbearable. He must be made to pay for this crime against nature and decency.

"I feel ill. The plans are set. I need to rest until just a while before dawn. Is that alright with you two?" The two sisters nodded softly. They were both kind and caring as they ever were. How could anypony wish to hurt either of them?

Many fences and magical barriers along with a multitude of long-unused devices for warfare lined street after street in Ponyville. This was like some terrible waking dream brought home to reality. None of the troops had to use any of these things in many years, if ever. All manner of machinery was pulled out of mothballs for this. If it would be their end, the ponies of Equestria would make it one worth remembering to all others. A stark reminder that hope never dies nor should be cast aside for any reason. A bitter end of their own making would still be better than one forced upon them. Twilight looked up to the night sky and found herself begging the very heavens for insight, guidance, help. Anything at all. Please.

Death come creeping, telling lies. What secrets lay behind those cold dead eyes?

Invasion

A shadowy figure stood silently at the end of her bed, frozen bloodshot eyes hovering in the dark.

"Aah!" Twilight fell out of her bed with a heavy thud.

"Oof!" She'd landed hard enough the sound brought a guard running.

"Princess Twilight, are you alright? I heard a noise." The guard saw her on the floor.

"Uh, bad dream I guess." That was embarrassing.

"Guess we are all on edge. It's almost dawn anyway." The guard informed her. The battle would start soon.

Perhaps even before morning light shone they may be in the thick of it. She headed back to the throne room, finding her friends and the other princesses there already.

"Ah, Twilight. Good. We have set up an observation platform in the center of town. It would be best for us to command from there. The castle and town have been evacuated." Twilight nodded at Luna and they all filed out. As they approached a guard command tent they were greeted by the elite guards commander.

"Is everything ready?" Celestia asked.

"Come in, I will show you where we are positioned." There was a table with a map of the town and outlying area in the center of the tent. He began pointing at various locations.

"We have fortified the entire town in case of any flanking actions, but more so in the direction of Canterlot where the enemy is approaching from. The bulk of our forces is stationed along that front. There are reinforcements in two areas northeast and southeast of the town. They should be safely out of the battle there unless we need them. These red marks are magical defensive barriers, and the black ones are deadfall fire traps." This was really happening. A war was ahead.

"I can't believe we have to do this." Twilight sighed heavily, very nervous about this. Her friends all offered support.

"Are you all sure you want to be here?" She looked at each of them in turn.

"Ponyville is our home. No way some loopy pony is driving us away." Dash said. She actually looked excited. Confidence was probably good right now.

"Yeah, and I don't like their sense of humor. They're gonna pay for this." That was totally unlike Pinkie at all.

"Absolutely, we would never let you face this alone. Not again. We're here for ya." Applejack looked ready to throw down.

"Umm..I'm just gonna stay up here if that's alright with you." Fluttershy was up on the platform already. Twilight found this unusually amusing. The princesses joined her above. It was a great vantage point.

"That's fine. Rainbow Dash, ready to go to war?" Twilight pointed above. Dash saluted in return.

"All set. Nothings gonna get past us." She spread her wings and launched into the air. Twilight took a deep breath.

"Princess Celestia, you've seen war before. Can you tell me anything useful?" She was very nervous about all this. Shaky. She found Celestia putting a hoof over her shoulder. Huh?

"It's alright to be scared this time. Just do your best. We can't ask anything more of you than that." That soft warm smile really did help. One of the scouts hurried into the tent below. Bright spotlights were emplaced all about the town, the area was well-lit. Flares were also distributed for use. Red for distress, blue for retreating, green for all clear. The apprehensive mood among the troops was very obvious.

"So, how many of the guards pulled out?" Twilight found herself quite talkative, probably from the nervousness.

"None." Luna replied. What?

"They all stayed? Every single one of them?" She was a bit shocked.

"They are brave and loyal. We are fortunate to have them." Celestia looked proud of the fact they all remained.

"That's amazing." Twilight expected at least a few would have left given the allowance to do so. Dawn was still about an hour off. It would feel like a very short time indeed. The minutes did feel to be slipping away rapidly. Far faster than usual. Of course this was not true, and merely how it felt. The town looked so different locked down like this, as though something from some unwanted dream forced into being and reality. The army of puppet corpses would be nearing much too soon.

What of those other four? Those were even more worrisome. Twilight only knew they each looked unique. The two she faced back in Canterlot had unique abilities, were these four going to be the same way? If they were as powerful or more then this could be an absolutely devastating battle they were about to engage in. Defending the town was not a priority with this. The only goal was to destroy the entire army marching their way. How many were actually coming? These thoughts swirled in her head as they waited. Once the fight was really going things would become hectic very swiftly indeed. The air itself almost seemed to quiver in anticipation of some awful occurrence. Twilight panted a bit in worry. Any moment now.

The quiet which had fallen on Ponyville was a truly strange juxtaposition. It was usually such a lively place to be. This silence was unnatural in its own way, lending a further eerie feeling to it all. She imagined waking one morning to find no other living thing in the town. That sent a chill along her spine.

"None of you get involved in any fighting unless you really have to, alright?" Twilight motioned to her friends.

"No need to worry about me, Twilight. They better wait though." Pinkie Pies response was a bit unusual.

"Are you sure?" That was a little concerning to Twilight.

"Oh yes, I'll be fine. Oh and I think I should tell you there's a zombie standing over there." Pinkie Pie said quickly. Wait, what? Pinkie pointed a hoof up towards one of the hills just outside town. How could she know that? Twilight used a pair of binoculars to look and saw a shadowed figure standing atop, black beady eyes glinting in the distance.

All the lovely flowered fields and sun-drenched grass, may yet to wither and fall at last.

Mirror of Sadness

The ponies of Equestria have found themselves facing a conundrum of depth and perplexment most foul. Stand and fight or flee from a crepuscular foe. An enemy bearing such might and some strangely genuine hatred towards them which suggests fighting may prove a form of vanity. A vast army of their own dead flows towards like a seemingly endless tide driven forth by some uniquely singular madness and desire. The form of this assault is puppetry resembling something no pony no matter how depraved of heart has ever dared practice. Necromancy. The effect and results are akin to that word. One barely ever so much as whispered among them.

What maniacal means of treachery and deceit does this represent? To order the dead about as though toys for their own personal amusement. Sacrilege. To defile the honored dead this way was an insult of the worst possible sort to them and their predecessors who must now face them in mortal combat. Something else occurs to the thoughtful. Is their enemy immortal? Not even Celestia claims to be eternal. What of him? He is near old as the sisters. This is no feat to be taken lightly. Already something in the battle feels yet more amiss than the multitude of bad feelings heaped upon those daring enough to mount a defense. The sky remains darkened as though the night has not ceased.

"Shouldn't Celestia back away and raise the sun by now?" Asked Princess Twilight of the elite guards' commander.

"I regret to inform your majesty that she raised the sun ten minutes ago!" He responded in the midst of issuing battle orders. Twilight's eyes and her friends went wide. It was still dark. This suggested some further foul sorcery being employed on a level of might disregarding the average completely and surpassing even the most powerful. Even the mighty Celestia, could not break them? Surely the enemy they now faced was in a different league. Power was expected, but to hold back the gleaming rays of the very sun above? This was true evil on the prowl if there ever was, and in the daytime no less.

"She..what!? That cannot be. Even in the midst of battle, she raised it? Luna, do you know why is it still so dark? It barely lightened up at all." Twilight hurriedly inquired of her old friend. A pegasus came close and spoke to Luna then took off.

"This is a scale of dark magic rarely seen. I am raptly sorry to say even I cannot disperse it. The cloud cover is being held in place with some sheer devilry." Luna jerked her head up quite suddenly.

"Commander.." Was all she said.

"Yes, I see it. They are trying to amass on the right flank of the third barrier and push through. Do they never end?" A couple of extra squads were sent rushing to prevent a sudden loss of control of the battlefield.

Below where the main battle raged Celestia still stood firm, surrounded by unicorn guards casting all manner of defensive spells as she kept any gaps in their lines from being taken advantage of by the hordes of enemies that were by now like a cascade flowing up against them. Her horn afire with rarified raw power. The guards surrounding were too occupied to notice even she was beginning to flag. At this moment a most unfortunate incident began to occur to the left of her position. One of the few elite night guards present started to back away from his position in alarm.

"What are you doing, soldier?" Celestia despite throwing such power about was still conscious enough of what was happening to call over to him. He did not seem to notice at first.

"F-father...T..that's my father's armor. You died ten years ago. Stay away!" He yelped, backpedaling as a formerly hefty looking bat-pony corpse for some reason attached with extras of those strange ethereal cables running to it was stepping forth slowly through the throng. This one could be bad news.

"Soldier, listen to me and me alone. Do not allow them to do this to him. Focus, that thing is not your father, now fight. In honor of his name, fight on!" Celestia was employing some level of that vocal trickery known as the royal Canterlot voice to be heard above the din of combat all about her. Hearing this from her engendered some drive into the poor soldier.

"I..I'm sorry, princess. Yes, for him." With renewed vigor and determination by her words this guard dove back into the battle headlong, severing multiple of the puppeted dead from their cables at once with hoof-mounted claws, a rarely employed weapon which he was cautious to keep from being damaged as he rolled out of range. An amazing maneuver. A multitude of decabled dead now lay still but yet a whole army still advanced upon the outskirts of Ponyville.

"That is how you do it. Keep up the pressure, hold them back." One of the captains was encouraging his squad to fight as heavily as the guard they just witnessed take so many down at once. Despite this, the battle was not going well.

Luna advised Twilight it was time for her to step in and flew down to where her sister was holding the line.

"Allow me take over a while. You must rest, I can see it." Luna said bluntly.

"I..yes. Guards, follow my sisters' lead for now. Be careful." As Celestia's horn ceased to glow it could almost be seen to be burnt somewhat from all the effort. Luna took over holding up the remaining barriers such as they were immediately. Celestia took a cautious route back away from the battle, clearly breathing heavily. She did not fly, opting to trot quickly away, this proved how weary she truly was from the massive effort.

"Princess Celestia, are you alright?" Applejack greeted her at the command tent and noted her huffing so hard it was audible and raspy. Celestia took slow heavy steps.

"Oh my, you don't look so good. Will you be okay?" Said Fluttershy, peeking down from above at hearing her name. Celestia sort of gasped and nodded gently.

"I'll be fine. I just need a moment." She rasped a bit more. Pinkie Pie was suddenly in front of her with a mug of something and offered it. It was gladly accepted. Celestia downed it rapidly and sighed.

"Oh, that was really good. What was it?" An odd time to ask such a question.

"Oh, just my spectacular special berry surprise pick-me-up for super duper special occasions!..and I guess there isn't one much more special than this." Pinkie had a strange point really. When did she even go get this stuff?

"It was delicious, thank you." That really did seem to help Celestia out. Whatever worked right now was good. An odd kind of yell from the battle lines where Luna took over attracted their attention. Looking over revealed the large puppet was engaged in combat with his son. Luna regarded the fight but remained where she was, breaking formation would be an invitation for disaster.

Flitting about and slowly whittling away at the cables controlling his father's decayed body, the soldier displayed the full potential of the elite night guards. The thing swung a mighty cleaver to slam the ground with intense force, missing him by inches. It must have been taken from the kitchens of Canterlot castle as it bore a royal emblem. It could not be seen at distance, but the guards eyes were filled with tears as he fought.

"I always wished I could show you I made it into the guard, father. Just like you, but not like this." He spoke as he dodged the terrifying thing swinging such a large blade about, missing his muzzle by mere inches in a flickering flash of metal.

It was not possible to simply fly and remain out of these things range. Many of the hanging cables somehow danging out of open air were much shorter than others for whatever reason, making it sometimes difficult to hit them at all without being directly in front or beside depending on which way presented itself to have much width.

"If only I could ask what you think of my skills, father." This particular night guard having found himself engaged in battle with his own fathers' husk had practically forgotten the rest of the battle roaring around them. This was their fight, something he never got a shot at showing off in life and he intended to win this one himself. A somewhat hollow feeling inside rose about it.

His armor had taken some dings and he'd been slightly cut in spots from close shaves with that surprisingly large cleaver. The puppet made of his dear father loomed larger than life as their weapons met and clanged against each other time and again, a foul and disgusting air all about as they fought. The scents of blood, gore, and burning wood all round. Some guardsponies were using magically fire-imbued arrows and longbows. Not practiced for real battle using them their aim was not so great on moving targets, but still somewhat effective. Not having had time to prepare properly was causing supply issues, the arrows were running out as they switched to spears or whatever else they preferred in close quarters.

"What they have done to you is unforgivable." This puppet was faster, more agile than the others. It was becoming apparent the extra cables were not just for show but real effect. This sort of enchantment and use of magics was unheard of. Thankfully none of those supporting unicorn puppets were near or not watching. If there was other magic involved with this fight it would be even worse. The enchantments on all the guards' armor and weapons were barely enough as is to give a fighting chance. Designed to disperse and deflect spells insofar as possible, it only provided a modicum of physical protection. The few select ponies wearing full armor suits were quite rare and involved only in the heaviest fighting elsewhere. Why did this have to happen? Fighting his own father this way was dreadful.

The cleaver was most definitely not his father's choice of weapon in life. It was likely randomly given to this puppet due to his size and the unusual nature of the cabling attached to him. The added mobility and agility were daunting. Being chopped up by that thing was not a very appealing fate out of all things that could befall him or others.

"Father, I hope not, but if you are in there at all. I will free you from this nightmare. Hold on." Knocking that cleaver away at angles was really the only way to get chances at inflicting damage on the cables, otherwise, they were too well protected. This puppet was so fast and flexible. It was the kind of thing that would make a bat-pony guard proud.

Their weapons were starting to damage one another. Notches in the cleaver and the claws were causing them to catch and unpredictably move when striking each other's blades. That was a problem. Did these things ever suffer fatigue? He might slowly tire until he died. This might be wrong on so many levels, but a thought came to the guard as they fought.

"This might seem weird, but I'm actually kinda enjoying myself for some reason." Ever so slowly he was managing to scrape and hit the cables, bit by bit the damage was building up. Striking them in the same position each time was a futile proposition, all he could do was keep hitting them whenever possible as that heavy cleaver swung past and away.

"I know this isn't really you, but I'm glad it's me taking you on. As wrong as this all this, something about this feels right at least." Another dodge and another leap to slice across those thick cables in retaliation. It was taking effort and time, but he could pull this off. Oddly, Luna was not sending any support his way. Perhaps she could somehow tell he wanted this to himself. Unfortunately, as he spun away once more the very tip of the heavy cleaver bounced off the shoulder of his armor, glancing across his shoulder sending blood spurting and him yowling in pain, screaming as he dove back to avoid being cut into ribbons or in half in a single blow. Another guard in the fray surrounding offered to engage, but he held up his hoof and huffed.

"No. He's mine." The cut was a wide slash, but shallow. That would surely leave a scar if he survived this encounter.

"I will bear this proudly, father, because it was given to me by you." He said as he launched into a wild frenzy of slashing with those pointed clawed weapons, making more blood flow badly whilst swinging a clawed hoof left to deflect the cleaver as he managed to detach one of the cables at last from the right foreleg of this hideous thing pretending to be somepony he once knew. This gave more openings and made it easier to get heavier and more numerous hits upon them. The cables dissipated once detached into thin air one by one until at last, it hit the ground with the clatter of heavy armor. For just one second he thought he saw a smile on his father's face before it hit the ground and he wheezed in near-exhaustion.

"I must be imagining things. I..finally got to show you what I can do, father." He panted and looked about at the battle. He had best withdraw from the position where he'd wound up or be set upon by far too many very soon and retreated to seek medical attention for his wound which was now pounding heavily. Luna looked and nodded as he passed by. Groups of enemy forces were trying to bypass the locations of the remaining two outer barriers and avoid her. Despite successes, casualties were mounting. Seriously injured guards were being forced to leave the front, thinning their defenses dangerously in spots. If any concentrated effort were allowed to strike those positions the remaining barriers would be lost immediately.

"Well, My turn my turn!" Pinkie said. What was she talking about?

"Pinkie, what are yah..Pinkie!?" Applejack went to ask but Pinkie went running off into the battle.

"Consarnit, what y'all suppose she's up to?" She swiped a hoof to accent her frustration with that. Twilight was keeping a close eye on happenings around the town and looked through her binoculars. Pinkie had saddlebaskets and was throwing what looked like water balloons at the puppets cables which was actually burning through them when they burst? None of the weapons being turned on her seemed at all able to hit her. How was she doing that?

"I don't believe it, she's taking out a whole bunch of them with..water balloons!" This information somehow still managed to surprise everyone in earshot despite knowing what she was like.

"Well..what d'ya know.." Applejack still managed to be stunned by her antics sometimes.

"That's just..amazingly incredible." Even Fluttershy managed to chime in about that. After clearing a good row of the enemy away from the weakening defensive lines worst spots Pinkie came trotting back smiling wide.

"Ah'm not even gonna ask how you did that, but what the hay was in those water balloons, Pinkie?" Applejack asked.

"Oh, they weren't really water balloons. Something a lot tougher, and I filled them with blazing hot sugar!" Pinkie bounced around a bit as she explained.

"Hot..sugar?" Twilight asked, puzzled by this really strange answer.

"Yep yep. Haven't you ever seen what sugar does when it gets really reaaally really super ridiculously enormously HOT? It burns through almost anything!" Pinkie was bouncing around an awful lot while saying this.

"But how did you..ya know what, nevermind. It worked, somehow so..great job." The commander interjected.

"Yay." Pinkie finally stopped hopping about. That display of being useful was awesome to all who witnessed it.

"Ookay, but we still have a huge problem. These things just keep coming. These can't all possibly have come from Canterlot, can they?" Twilight looked to Celestia but her mentor shook her head uncertainly. A lieutenant from the cannon and catapult squads approached. That was probably not going to be good news.

"What is it?" The guards' commander was incredible at coordinating what forces they had quite effectively on either side of the battle via fast message relay ponies. Scrolls were not really a possibility here.

"Sir, we are coming up short on cannon ammunition and running short of things to launch with the catapults. We weren't ready for an all-out war. They've even pulled an ancient trebuchet out of storage and fixed it but it is impossible to aim accurately and we're running out of things to launch with it too!" The lieutenant quickly finished his report. Celestia turned her head and looked around the town.

"Commander, we are in this for our lives. Maybe our whole world depends on the outcome of this battle. Use anything and everything. Tear down the trees in this very square if you must. House sections, whatever you need to." She looked sad as the commander was quick to send the lieutenant off with this set of orders for those groups.

The outcome of this unusual battle would be the difference between life and death rolling over the countryside. Celestia continued speaking with Twilight. With this much magic being thrown around the air itself felt charged unusually.

"They are trying very hard to pass by on the northwest of the town. Keep a close eye on that area." She looked tired still, but more animated than earlier. She would at least be able to help once more.

"I have tried to use the sun to disperse these clouds. They are dangerous and will not budge or break, and if I press anymore I could wind up frying us as well." Celestia looked up to the platform. That would be very bad indeed.

"My friend, I cannot figure out how they are doing these things. With these cables coming out of nowhere nor the clouds. With all I know this honestly makes me feel stupid. I.." Twilight faltered for a second and Celestia raised a hoof.

"There is nor ever was any doubt you are both powerful and extremely intelligent. It will do us no good to fret now. I know this runs counter to what is happening around us, but you must relax for now. Do not tire yourself out over nothing, there are far more important matters at hoof to attend to." Celestia spoke evenly if a bit raggedly, wisely and with clear past experience. She truly had lived through long torment, more so than any other. Twilight made a decision right then.

"You're right. You are absolutely right. I won't doubt myself further. That is probably something he wants, isn't it? Why he spoke so weirdly and in terms meant to instill fear and confusion. To make us doubt our decisions here. I won't fall for it. He knows we can defeat him or he wouldn't have sent all this at us. We can beat him, right?" Twilight looked more determined than ever. Celestia, her mane flowing softly as ever slowly nodded in affirmation.

"I believe it really is him now. Or..some part of him. As we all are he was not flawless. Everyone has weaknesses and doubts, even somepony claiming stolen authority over the dead." Her eyes flickered with a bit of anger and tears there.

"It may be just some part of him left from long ago, somehow. Something seems like it is missing from what he would really do in such a position. Perhaps it might be possible to get through to him, to stop this if we could find an opportunity to speak once more." Her sadness was obviously very great and keenly visible on her face. Seeing her nearly lifelong friend that way gave rise to some unknown feeling inside Twilight. A disturbed twinge deep in the mind. Tears on Celestia's countenance did not belong. It was wrong in some way she just could not name.

"I'm gonna say something, and please don't take this the wrong way. Don't cry. I need you not to cry." Twilight almost appeared to look a bit panicked saying this to her.

Much to her surprise, her dear mentors' response was much better than anticipated. The gaze returned by her was as filled with love and care as ever, but steely somehow.

"I understand." Celestia began walking back towards the battle lines to the northwest. Twilight relaxed greatly, trying to wait things out patiently. Cannon fire was sparse now. They must have nearly exhausted what ammunition there was. That would only leave slow-firing catapults that could hardly be aimed accurately. Burning trees lay about everywhere on the battlefield, this was slowing the advance of the dead hordes considerably. The most dangerous of these things still remained out of the fight. It must be intentional. Why wait? It was impossible to know their plans.

Something else of concern was apparent. Not all of these were animate bodies, but simple wooden constructs. Just puppets like those before. There could be any number of these things approaching and no way to tell. Hundreds. Thousands? It could end at any moment or go on for far longer than hoped. The worst part of this was the amount of wounded. Though their movements were jerky the puppets could still inflict deadly injuries or worse with ease. Avoiding them was just not always possible and the majority could not be allowed to enter the town from any direction. Fortunately as predicted they were coming solely from Canterlot. No more surprises over the direction they would approach.

This sort of battle was proceeding much as would anything like this, but the horrifying nature of their opponents was wearing on morale and hard to deal with. From above Rainbow Dash swooped in and landed on the platform.

"I think we may have a problem. The drop-bombs you gave us are running out. This has been going on forever and they're almost gone. We aren't causing enough damage." Dash delivered this further bad news, but still looked resolute.

"What about that thing you have?" Dash extended a wing to point at the contraption Twilight had been holding in reserve.

"No, that is an absolute last resort. I don't want to use it at all if it can be avoided." Twilight would not say what it did.

"Alright, but when the last bomb is delivered all us flyers are gonna have to join the ground forces or retreat. Speaking of retreating.." Dash was looking to where several squads had launched a retreat signal flare. That was not good.

"Princess, we are barely holding the lines. We may have to abandon the outer areas and fall back to the final barrier on that side. Luna has been putting up quite a harassment action over there but as expected we are slowly losing ground everywhere." The commander did not sound fearful or concerned, merely following the action and adjusting the actions of their own forces accordingly. He was an extremely competent strategizer working under epically difficult conditions.

"Alright, listen up soldier. At this rate, we will be engaging in urban combat shortly. Inform all pegasi to follow this plan of action. As squads bombs are exhausted re-equip with ground weaponry and form up behind the main town barrier. When full squads are assembled they are to fan out in defensive formations along the line and hold. Remind them despite their ground assault training this is not a normal engagement, do not attempt to hold positions if in danger of being overrun after the barrier goes down. Go." The commander watched Dash salute and take off. He took a deep breath and returned to the surrounding messengers and his positional map covered in unit pins. Things were not looking so good.

"I hate waiting like this. Our friends are getting seriously hurt and I can't do anything about it." Twilight said aloud.

"Maybe I can assist you with that." Said a familiar voice from beside. Twilight turned her head to see Starlight had levitated herself up on the platform.

"Starlight! Am I glad to see you. We could certainly use your help. Are you aware of what's been happening since you left?" Twilight queried her. Starlight's ears and tail drooped at the question and she shook her head.

"I only heard something terrible happened in Canterlot? It fell? I came here quick as I could." Starlight said dejectedly.

"There is so much to explain... I guess I have time though. I will sum it all up." Twilight explained it all as Starlight's jaw went more and more slack as the story went on until she was positively shocked in appearance.

"Oh my gosh. That was clever of Rarity, Trixie helped her too? This is all so horrible. The guards. The poor princesses. They must feel just awful." Starlight exclaimed. Twilight kind of snickered under her breath hearing all that.

"Are you..laughing? This isn't funny in the least!" Starlight chided her. Twilight raised a hoof to wave back and forth.

"It's not that. It's just, A long time ago that's the last thing I ever thought I'd hear you say." Twilight smiled at her.

Starlight couldn't help but blush before regaining her composure.

"Uh, ahem. I was never trying to kill anypony." She claimed.

"Could have proven me a foal." Twilight said in a sort of whisper.

"What was that?" Starlight wondered what she just muttered.

"Oh, nothing. Anyway, that's the whole sordid story. Things have gotten so bad. The real trouble hasn't even started yet. Those four reported at the back still haven't joined in the fighting at all." Twilight was extremely worried about them.

"What can I do to help? Should I head to the frontlines? I can hit them with everything I've got." Starlight offered. She was truly among the most powerful of unicorns, but Twilight had other plans for her now that she was here.

"No, stay with me for the moment. When it comes down to it I am going to need your help. Once those things get into town, and they will, it is going to become really hectic. I will need to keep my full attention on the really bad ones. You have to help the ground fighting. Luna and Celestia will be back here by then as well. Assist them, got it?" Twilight hoped she would follow her request this time. Starlight nodded.

"Well, okay. Twilight, are Trixie and Rarity alright? I don't see them anywhere?" Starlight finally noticed they were not among them.

"Utilizing charged magic items to channel power on a level like that hurt them both seriously. Don't worry, they'll be alright. They have been moved out of town with the rest. They're safe." Twilight assured her. Starlight relaxed visibly at those words.

"Say, how did Trixie even get involved anyway?" She asked Twilight out of curiosity.

"You know, I never got to ask. Applejack, Pinkie, how did she wind up helping us?" Twilight asked down below. Pinkie was still resting against one of the platforms supports after her incredibly fast run through the battle.

"What happened to Pinkie? She's usually so over the top and..bouncy." Starlight was quite surprised. Applejack was viewing things through a telescope which was magically enhanced to see in the dark and looked up at them.

"Why, pinks there took out a whole slew'a'them there all by herself. As fer your other question. Trixie ran into us at the train station, and she once used an artifact like that herself so we brought her along. Good thing too, yeehaw!" Applejack finished.

"She..did?" Starlight looked both amused and confused. Twilight simply had to explain that too.

"Trixie used it against me actually. She nearly went completely mad with power." Twilight said.

"Whatchya mean, almost? She wanted me ta grow apples without peels..and cores!" Applejack yelled up. Starlight had not really heard the fine particulars of a lot of such incidents before. Apples without cores?

Now Starlight really did have a look of shock on her face.

"I really need to ask Trixie some questions once this is all over. She's done more than I thought." Starlight mused.

"I have to admit something. I sort of treated Trixie a little badly way back then. Most of us kinda did, but it wasn't really intentional. So the reason she came after me then is a bit on us too." Twilight did feel a little guilty sometimes over mostly innocuous things, but they did harbor some blame for that incident and a few other things from time to time.

"Aw, shucks. Yer right, Twi. Ah never meant no actual harm to the poor gal either. But she's been decent friends with us for a while now, that makes up fer it, right?" Applejack did have a point about it. After all, she helped save Twilights life.

"Remind me to thank her later." Twilight meant that. Starlight smiled at this little conversation.

"Okay, so here is how you take these things down." Twilight gave an extremely thorough explanation of what worked against the puppets being used. It might not be true with all of them, but who knew? She'd only faced off against him, and the two powerful ones that combined into one. What weird things would these four do? It was going to be supremely dangerous for certain once they entered into the action. The picture presenting itself was just all-around negative for the defending forces. Despite fighting fiercely they were inexorably being driven back towards the town. There was no way to stop them from entering once past the outskirts. Soon enough all remaining guards and their air support would be fighting on the ground.

As was expected the bombs ran out soon thereafter as squad after squad began lining up behind the final barrier before the town itself would be exposed to getting overrun.

"Gee Twi, that is a whole heap. How many ya reckon we got here?" Applejack asked from below.

"With the waiting reinforcements and all we brought. There are about three thousand ponies total if they are called in, and they will be soon. I estimate we are facing similar to the same. No idea where they all came from. I didn't think there were that many still in Canterlot. It's gonna be close." She was stating a very unfortunate fact. Canterlot was quite large.

"If we hadn't begun evacuations at that time we would now be facing almost seven thousand for certain." Twilight looked dour explaining this. Starlight placed a hoof over her shoulder causing Twilight to glance over.

"Look at it the right way. You saved a lot of lives. None of this is on you." Starlight said, giving a look of appreciation.

"Thank you. I just wish I could have saved more." Twilight was very on edge about the ongoing battle as well. Had she done everything possible to prepare for this? There was no way to tell. Everything hurt so much lately.

"So, we are facing some steep odds. Nothing new is it?" Starlight sort of joked. It actually was almost funny.

"Starlight, there is something else I need you to do. I don't want you to exhaust yourself before the battle reaches us, but I want you to place static shields above as many streets as you can without tiring yourself out. Don't overdo it." That was an odd request from Twilight. Starlight appeared a bit dumbfounded.

"What are they for?" As she asked Twilight looked up at the strange dark clouds above with apprehension.

"An abundance of caution. Make sure pegasi can still pass through them. Better get started." Twilight told her to go.

"Aye aye." starlight gave her a mock salute and went down to street level before beginning. The commander called up.

"I see what you're doing. Good idea. Got any more? Haha." He immediately went back to whatever task he was at now.

"Alright. With Starlight here we have some more major spellpower." Twilight felt that tiny bit better now. It helped a whole lot. The battle out beyond the barrier was getting rather intense. More squads were signaling full retreat. None were advancing any further beyond. It was best they not get too far past the trapped areas anyway. The incoming waves of dead walking and puppets were finally beginning to encounter the various traps set down out there. Each was filled with a hot burning fuel of long duration and hidden. It would give a fair amount of extra time before those behind could pass by.

The traps only set off once something reached their very center section. This meant decently large groups of them had been taken by surprise and engulfed by flames. That part of the defensive plan at least was actually working. The pegasi had also set them up so soft wind gusts would fan the flames and smoke away from the town just enough and in such a way it mostly affected the enemy. While they clearly were not using a normal means of vision, it must not have taken such a situation into account. It was actually helping. A slight gamble on the defender's parts that was paying off. They were certainly not going to retreat. Neither would the enemy. That was known since the start of the engagement.

"Twilight, we..aren't killing ponies, are we? They..they aren't really still in there somewhere, right?" Pinkie Pie asked in that unusual tone of voice from her. That almost hurt just to hear. Twilight nearly felt like crying at this question from her friend.

"No, of course not. It's not like that at all. I do not detect any life of any kind from them. They are just animate atrocities. We simply must stop this madness." Twilight was confident in her assessment of them. That seemed to reassure Pinkie. Looking around the field, Twilight could see the guards in retreat were not in disarray. Skilled and following the plans well. Very good.

Starlight was emplacing shielding over and along streets at a leisurely pace.

"Well, I really must thank Trixie later. She actually helped save a lot of lives from the sound of it." She said to herself as she wandered the by now familiar streets of Ponyville. Passing by carefully chosen guard backup positions where first-aid stations and supplies were waiting. She continued to cast as she walked. They would be simple shields. The most basic possible.

"I wonder what Twilight is thinking with these? Oh well. Must be a good reason I'm sure." She finished this street.

Occasionally she would meet one of the patrol guards who would ask what she was doing. At least it was quick and easy to explain.

"Oh, really? They aren't telling us much back here. How are things going up front?" One asked her.

"From what I got, not so good. Two of the barriers went down almost instantly, but the lines were mostly holding when I left. The fighting was getting really intense out there." Starlight could only offer that much. He looked relieved.

"If we are holding those things back at all, that is good. I was in Canterlot when it all went down." He said.

"You were? I was told what happened, but only from one perspective." Starlight wondered.

"It was the most horrible thing I have ever seen. All the princesses in a panic, buildings exploding. Death all over. The city wreathed in fire." He was starting to breathe heavily.

"Whoa there, soldier. Easy. Easy now. They will pay for it. I promise." Starlight offered a friendly expression. He nodded.

"Sorry, I better continue on. I'm okay. Thanks." The guard went on down the street.

"Maybe that was even worse than I thought." She imagined it in her head from that conversation.

Over where Celestia was amidst the fighting things were getting quite dicey. The lines were slowly being pushed back as more and more puppeted dead streamed into the fight. Twilight must have been right about how many there were. Both Celestia and Luna came to the decision at nearly the same instant.

"Fall back! There are too many to hold out any longer. Launch the flares." They both gave almost an identical order at once on both sides of the battlefield. The sky was lit with so much light and so much fire that a lot of the outer battlefield could now be seen. Carnage was revealed all over. Felled puppeted dead and now deceased losses everywhere.

The elite guard was putting up the fight of their lives but still began to perform well-practiced running retreat maneuvers even while battling. Hours were slowly ticking by in this daytime darkness. This organized retreat went very well resulting in few losses. By this time all pegasi squads had reassembled. This would give the defending forces a real chance to hold out long enough to put an end to this. Rainbow Dash returned. For once she looked really frazzled.

"Commander, almost all pegasi accounted for. Must still have lost a few here and there somehow. I couldn't really tell you how." Dash was a bit shaken by those losses. In the distant past pegasi were considered great warriors.

"Any losses we take will be well-honored when this is over. Providing we are not lost ourselves. Get your ground gear on. You know which unit to join up with." He ordered. She saluted and headed for one of the supply areas to grab some armor and weaponry. There were several secondary command areas set up by now. Naturally, this was the Wonderbolt area. Tired from the endless aerial bombing runs, she was getting fatigued. There was time to rest just a bit.

"Captain Spitfire." Dash landed with the heavy clank of armor.

"Good, your back. Bet you never thought you'd be seeing active combat did ya?" She was surprisingly relaxed.

"Nothing we can't handle." Rainbow said, as though an absolute fact.

"That's right, and don't none of you forget it either." She looked at the rest.

"Yes, ma'am!" All surrounding ponies replied at once.

"We have our orders. Stay on-ground unless necessary and provide support for less experienced units. We are to protect lives and keep them in the fight. Got it?" Salutes were given in return.

"Pardon me, Captain. It feels wrong for us to be down here." Somepony said.

"Yeah, I know. This is where we are. Now, are we gonna fight and fight hard!?" She asked loudly. A rousing cheer of yes came in response.

"Good. Be ready. Glad to see you're safe, Dash. Not that I had any doubt about one of our members." She walked off.

"This is getting totally out there. I could tell she was nervous. never seen that before." Rainbow found herself wondering if any of them were really going to survive all of this craziness. They would be right in the middle of the approaching ground combat very soon.

At the main command tent, things were getting very hectic as units returned to formation. Many were missing ponies.

"How are you holding up, commander?" Twilight asked from the platform.

"I'll live, for now. To be honest I've never actually had to coordinate so many at the same time. I can only hope I am doing a good job of it." He was quite open about that. He took a swig from a canteen.

"You are doing excellent, commander. I know they made a great choice in you. Keep it up and we will win for sure." Twilight assured him. He nodded and returned to his duties. He'd been going almost 24 hours straight now.

"Twilight, is he going to be alright? Even I got some sleep. You did too." Said Pinkie Pie, very concerned for him.

"He can take it. I trust him. If he thought he wasn't up to the task he would tell us." Twilight was confident in his ability.

"There aren't too many units left to report in. After that things are going to get really bad. If any of you feel any doubt about this, you should go." Twilight particularly looked at Fluttershy on the edge of the platform. As usual, she was quiet most of the time.

"I will stay, with my friends." That was surprisingly brave of her. Twilight gave her a soft pat on the shoulder.

Celestia and Luna along with their personal guards were following up the retreat defensively. Their own shields were taking a battering from a myriad of different types of magic. They were mostly focused on taking out the enemy unicorns and made a very serious dent in their numbers. That would surely help later on. Their respective units met up on the way back to Ponyville. It was good to see so many had survived this long against such implacable foes.

"I see thou art intact." Luna stated-matter-of-factly. Her sister gave a soft smile, despite being disheveled.

"We best remain together for the duration of the battle now." Celestia suggested. She agreed.

"Looks like we're the last. This went as intended at least." Luna said as she fired off yet another beam that took out three entire sets of those whispy cables at once sending the attached dead tumbling to lay still.

"Showoff." Celestia teased, which got a smile in return.

"Some traps have not been set off either. I think this huge delaying action has done the job." Luna was rather pleased about it.

"Don't have too much fun now. This is serious business." Celestia chided softly. Luna simply nodded in return.

Seemingly out of nowhere a powerful long-distance magic blast knocked Luna to the ground making Celestia go wide-eyed for a moment, stunned.

"Luna!" She called, but her sister was already beginning to get back on her hooves. She huffed heavily.

"Hold yourself. I am alright, it was a glancing blow that sent me atumble. I got careless. That shan't happen again." She looked really angry with herself for allowing such a moment to occur.

"I'm just glad you're okay. Come, we must get back to town." Celestia felt some relief seeing her standing once more.

"The amount of power we have both expended is vast. I hope there is time to recoup some of it." Luna was concerned about that. Magic was being thrown about at all scales and levels. This was very unusual in itself.

"The main town barrier should hold for a while. Also, I believe I sense the presence of Twilights protégé. She should prove useful." Celestia was just that little bit more powerful than her sister and better at noticing things like that.

"Truly we have a grand array of forces here. A pony mainline army like this has not been needed in quite some time." Luna observed as they continued their sluggish retreat. Their personal guards were nearing exhaustion and breaking point.

"I know you are all hurting and in need of rest. We are almost there. Keep moving those legs. Move, move!" Celestia encouraged them to work through the pain and effort. They would reach the town barrier within twenty minutes if they could keep up the pace. Twilight was watching from afar as they made their slow progress back towards town, fending off attackers. They had made good enough pace to leave most of the enemy far out on the field.

"Excellent. I know this looks bad, but I think we have taken as minimal losses as possible." Twilight couldn't quite be happy about that. Many ponies and others still died. There would be more ahead.

"Not even in my worst nightmare did I ever imagine such horrible days as these, Twi." Applejack was very struck by all the violence and death. A more empathetic and compassionate sort than her would be hard to come by. So much pain.

"Me either. I don't think any of us did. They must be made to pay for their crimes, but this is going to get worse before it gets better I'm afraid." Twilight had been on the edge of tears during nearly the entire battle thus far. It wasn't fair. So many were getting injured and dying, for what? Somepony who had hurt feelings? It made no sense. There must be more to this. If there wasn't then it defied all reason and was nothing but true insanity. Something she'd never seen until recently.

The sun and moon should be shining above, instead, neither could be seen by day or night. To have gone this far was unimaginable to her. It was too much for too little. She could not wrap her mind around it. The two sisters finally stepped through the barrier and panted heavily. The guards swapped for fresh ones. The sisters, however, would be in no condition to do anything more for a while and were helped away to awaiting refreshments and a chance at resting a little.

"Whoa nelly, they looked horrible. Poor gals have been out there so long." Applejack spouted.

"They are strong, I'm sure they will be okay." Twilight said while wondering if they really would be after all of this.

Starlight was making good progress emplacing shields above the streets. She still had no idea why Twilight wanted her to do this. There must be a good motivation for it.

"I haven't had to cast this sort of thing in a while. Guess I should practice more often. Whew. Don't overdo it she said." Starlight huffed and continued on. The town did look well defended now. There were guards and pegasi units everywhere.

"I never realized we had so many guards. I should look into what they all do." She wondered what their purpose was. This was a significantly higher number than she imagined in total. It was a somewhat strange sight to see.

"Judging by how those things move it will be a while before they can regroup properly and assault the town. We should be able to hold them off. I think." Starlight had never read about or seen a large battle before, having little idea what to expect as it dragged on. The one thing obvious about it was that the longer it went on the more would be injured and even killed. Death on this scale was not something heard of these days. They were thought long placed away in history texts.

"War. An actual war. Against the undead. Well, I guess they're not zombies really. This is something else, not necromancy I'm sure. They have no life at all. Just strings." Starlight was considering what all this meant.

There were still plenty of those things heading towards the town at that shuffling pace. This situation was wildly dangerous and could easily slip out of control completely. An uncertain amount was still gathering. They would be at the only remaining barrier soon enough. How long it would hold was an unknown. The others went down almost ludicrously easily, but this one was larger and more empowered. Hopefully, it would at least allow them to keep taking potshots for a while at those on approach. Ponyville taking a central place in a real battle was not something she ever imagined before finding out what was going on and hurrying back only to find Canterlot off-limits. It was good she returned.

"This is taking forever. What good will it do anyway? Once that huge barrier goes down, and I can see it will... how is this going to help anything? I know she is very smart. I should just trust her and get this done." Starlight hoped this would not turn out to be wasted power and effort. Putting up these static barriers was an easy task for her but a time-consuming one. She had spent years studying shield and attack spells herself, uncertain of ever actually using them until...

"No, don't think about it. I really was somepony else then. I'm better now. I have real friends, and trusted ponies all around me. Ponies that trust and value me, and that is good." Starlight thought these things as she continued. At last, it was done.

"That certainly took a while. I better get back to Twilight and see how things are going up there." Starlight took off at a trot. She had covered nearly every street in Ponyville with a weak shield as instructed. It had taken all day long. The moon was nowhere to be seen. That was very disturbing. It should be above by now. Still dark. Darkness enforced by those clouds held above. It must be consuming an enormous amount of power. Starlight couldn't think of a way to break them either.

"That is so strange. I don't know what magic this is. Twilight didn't seem to know either." Starlight commented to herself as she returned to the platform. It was clear things would heat up again pretty soon.

"Twilight, I'm all done. Pretty much every street is shielded." She informed her.

"Excellent, you should go get as much rest as you can. Enemy forces will begin trying to breach the barrier within hours. Recover what power you can." Twilight suggested. A break sounded good. Only hours? The speed of the enemy was concerning. Slow as they were, they never ceased moving forward resulting in covering more ground than anticipated.

"Alright, see you in a while." Starlight really did need the downtime after all that. Celestia and Luna were also still resting. They would need to be in the best condition possible for what lay ahead.

"I don't like this. Those four we know are at the back of the battlefield did nothing this whole time. Absolutely nothing. They might be trying to have us wear ourselves out but I don't think so." Twilight considered so many angles but could come to no real conclusion on what they were up to. Something terrible no doubt. Those four certainly had special abilities. It was guaranteed. They were going to bring something awful to the fight when they finally stepped in. Thinking about it was a strain on the head. Things were bad enough already without those things waiting to spring into action. There must be some condition they were waiting for and then they would strike. What could it be? What would signal their intrusion?

"Ah dun like it either, Twilight. We know they are gonna come rushing in at some point, but we are surrounded by friends here. We can take'em." Applejack was practically raring for a fight by now after seeing all the destruction.

"I know you can take care of yourselves. Just don't get hurt, okay?" Twilight said to her friends below and beside.

"No promises, Twi. This here's a big heap'o'trouble." Applejack could not overstate that. No one could. She made sure her family was well away from Ponyville before things got started. It was much too dangerous for them to remain.

"There are so many ponies and griffons here helping us. Surely this is enough?" Fluttershy asked demurely.

"I hope so. There are even a few yaks and changelings in the reinforcements. Never thought I'd see the day. That could really prove useful. We must trust in them all. I know they can do this. I know we can do this." Twilight had gotten much better at being motivational over time.

"We better." A voice interjected. It was the commander, finally taking a short break again. He was massively overtired. It was obvious.

"Commander, please take at least a short proper rest. You need it, I am not asking." Twilight ordered.

"Aye. Alright, but If we lose here, this is everypony. Equestria would be lost. All the best fighters, flyers and unicorns are here. I really hope you are right." He sounded utterly taxed and spent.

"With ponies like you on our side, we can't lose. Now rest, we can't have you falling asleep on your hooves." Twilight waved him off and he went to to eat, drink and rest. At most he would get a few hours sleep.

"You better count griffons in that number, princess." A fast messenger griffon flying by said. They made great couriers.

"Of course we do. I count on all our friends." Twilight waved as he flew on past. It would be all too soon.

"I think we have done all we can to prepare." Twilight once more took in the situation, exactly as expected enemy groups were forming up in good orderly fashion. Those controlling them were very versed in tactics, likely highly experienced. Every group of theirs was well-supported. Elite guards facing off against the very same level of skill. That was a bit unexpected.

"I still cannot find a way to easily dispel those cables. They are surely ethereal, but not much works all that well except extreme force or chipping away at them. They're so tough." Twilight thought. She had been thinking about it this whole time. The cables deflected nearly everything physical or magical that made contact, but they did take damage. It was vexing.

"Twilight, sugar. No worries now. Nopony could have been prepared for this. It ain't right." Applejack had noticed her mood. Twilight took a deep breath. The air smelled wrong. It was never meant to be this way. The smell of death and fire surrounded and permeated the town by this point. The best that could be done was to have it fanned away as much as possible. It was a dense and terrible scent that now drifted about. It gave a terrifying further tinge to it all. Right now, this was not the Ponyville she'd known for so long. It was a terrible arena where light and dark were now almost literally vying for control and dominion. She shook a little bit at the thought. It was made more bearable with friends near.

"How many more do you think are out there?" Fluttershy actually asked. Perhaps just to say something. Twilight had kept a tally. Each side had lost a near equal amount, but she could not really count any opposing forces as injured. Many had their cables damaged enough or were otherwise effectively immobilized by whatever means. They may still be dangerous in that state. There was no real way to know without taking dangerous risks. It wasn't worth it.

"We are still facing far more than I would like, and those other things which have made no moves. Why don't they get involved? They could probably have done a lot more damage." Twilight was trying not to worry about them for now.

One of the commanders strategists from the command tent overheard them.

"I can probably tell you why." He volunteered.

"Oh? What do you think?" She was genuinely curious.

"A battle like this is similar to a board game. Both sides size up the other and try to come up with a better strategy than the other. If those things are anything like you indicated, then they are their most powerful units. It is a common tactic to hold back such units until a finishing blow can be struck. I think that's the idea." He made a valid point.

Twilight grit her teeth for a second.

"Do you think we should have made a run on them with everything we have?" She asked. He shook his head.

"No. They are just standing out there as intimidation. It might even be working a little. We won't back down, of course. It is likely they feel secure enough in their defenses which are probably formidable. Doing something like that otherwise would just be foalish." He got called over to discuss something or other with another strategist and left.

"He is right. They must have something really big in store for us." Twilight was remarkably calm overall as she mused.

"Something we haven't seen or counted on, but this is all we can do. This is the most powerful barrier I have ever seen. It should deflect nearly anything thrown at it. Despite that, somehow I know they will get through it. We can only hope it takes a lot out of them." Twilight could feel the force of magic emanating from the extremely dense barrier surrounding the town. It was even set underground so there could be no surprises from that direction. Everyone felt it was a wise precaution after what befell Canterlot and why. The guards were also instructed to remain on the solid roadways wherever possible just in case. The minutes felt like they were slipping past one into another. At least morale was still high.

The real fight was still ahead. All this was nothing more than a prelude to whatever horror would be set upon them next. Another messenger approached on hoof.

"Princess, I have a report for you." This orange-coated fellow was direct and gruff sounding.

"What is it?" This was curious.

"I am to tell you guards from different units have been reporting they felt an unusual feeling of slight downward pressure while fighting. It seems to have been random. Do you know what to make of it?" He looked very puzzled.

"Actually, I do. Kind of. The same thing happened to me when I was near the leader of this mess, but it was much more intense. Were there any more details about it?" As she asked he just shook his head.

"That is mighty strange, Twilight. What could it mean?" Applejack wondered.

"Whatever it is, it is definitely nothing good for us. We couldn't figure it out earlier and don't understand it now. There is a lot about this to dislike. We knew it would be dangerous. I have nothing to add." Twilight finished speaking. The messenger left at a gallop. This was going to get much stranger, and more deadly. A sudden yell went up. Huh?

"INCOMING!" Was being belted out along the lines behind the barrier as an immense white and black ball of whirling frizzing energies impacted against the barrier and spread out all along it causing a ripple to temporarily form along the entire surface as it dissipated the blow. The impact felt like it shook the very ground. The power behind that blast was ludicrous as expected.

"Jumpin junebugs, Twilight. How the hay are we supposed to stand up to that? The whole dang place shook from one hit!" Applejack was really shocked.

Twilight picked up a megaphone she'd kept nearby.

"Everypony remain calm. The barrier held." She said in as steady a voice as possible. The real question was, how long would it be able to take that?

"I've never seen this kind of dark magic either. That felt like something..writhing and sickly and..sad. I don't know how to describe it." Twilight held a hoof to her chest and breathed out to calm herself as well. Everyone was a bit shuddery after that. The approach to Ponyville was lit again as another massive ball of violent energies shot towards the barrier. This time it was different. How odd. The same thing, swirling the opposite way and double-hued in purple and black as it slammed into the barrier even harder than the first, making the ground tremble as though a light earthquake.

The massive barrier rippled under the amazingly hard blow. A slight flicker in it was a bit worrying.

"There is no way they are going to take that down in just three shots, right Twi?" Applejack was gravely worried now.

"No, I am certain it can take more. This just has to be wearing them down somewhat. Even a whole battalion of unicorns couldn't just waste that much magical power at once. They have to be hurting." Twilight was absolutely certain of that. She could tell the barrier took serious damage from those, but it still stood. Celestia and Luna had been roused by the commotion. They looked a lot better now. Good. They were going to be needed in very short order.

"Here they come. All guards ready for battle. Follow your orders, and live." Luna commanded. Flares were launched once more to order all stand ready. Her personal night guards looked eager to fight once more under her command.

"They will be upon us in no more than fifteen minutes or I'm a foal." Celestia said. It was finally time. So the enemy really would break through much faster than hoped. The commander returned, definitely a bit refreshed.

"Another one coming." He noted as the barrier absorbed another white and black mass of fritzing twirling energy across the whole surface. So much power.

"Any moment now." Was all he said.

Dark come seeping, all dressed in white.

Battle Cry

The retreat was signaled and units withdrew within the relative safety of the town barrier. Vestiges of hope fleeting and for some, lost completely. Remaining night guards gathered around Luna and prepared. Wounded were taken to safety.

"Night guard, hear me. You have fought to the utmost limits of your capability and none could be prouder than I. You honor your forebears legacy. A harsh battle yet remains ahead, but know this and understand the meaning. Soldiers of night and shadow, there are none finer than thou. The light of both day and night flickers ahead of us as a candle in need of care and you shall answer the call, for you are now legend." Luna held a hoof aloft to a rallying shout of the guard.

"Hidden in darkness, you are my chosen. My night guard!" She stomped and they all followed suit.

"Grab what rest you can, the greater fight lies ahead." Luna bid them and turned to find Celestia walking up behind her and smirking.

"Just what is so amusing, sister of mine?" Luna was puzzled. Celestia laughed.

"That was a rousing and invigorating speech. Been practicing?" Celestia smiled. Luna returned it.

"We have lost forces, and friends. Hope is needed until the end, right?" Her words rang true.

"And what of your troops?" She enquired.

"As well can be. Several units took heavy losses and needed reorganizing. Our foes are as implacable as expected." Celestia sighed forlornly.

"I must ask, why does he only send these puppet things at us? By all accounts, he was no coward and no stranger to battle and has many more options." Luna was extremely concerned about this.

"I could not say. He was studied, experienced and highly intelligent. There is some plan behind it all." Celestia knew no more herself was all that she could convey.

"That it should come to this. I had thought this land a safe and happy place. I see now that anything can change. Can we defeat him?" Luna asked with all gravity. Celestia nodded slowly.

"We can. It will not be easy. As you have witnessed and fought, he was never a slouch. He just..chose the wrong path." The slightest hint of being upset was worn on her muzzle. Luna reached in and hugged her. It was most appreciated. At that moment a fourth immense energy blast spread across the flickering barrier surface before dissipating.

"Sister, if he is no real alicorn how does he and his command such tremendous power?" Luna was perplexed.

"That I know not. Dark magic is something you know better than I. If you have no idea then he has truly stepped up his game. There is just something wrong here beyond that we can see and face. I know you feel that as well. Neither of us have wielded this much magic in direct combat in ages. I almost feel winded." Celestia said to her as she looked around the far different town in appearance. Twilight approached them.

"Wow, that was quite a speech you gave. I didn't know you were such an eloquent public speaker. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, Luna." Twilight was rather impressed by the night princess on multiple occasions before.

"Thank you. Pleasantries are most appreciated at a time like this." Luna indicated she would be off and walked away.

"Celestia, what are we facing? I already knew they had power but this scale is so rapid and immense. To crack away at the shielding that way would be crazy for all four of us combined.." Twilight had rarely seen such displays of outright might and shockwaves of power as those now being thrown against the townwide shield. One of her own design incorporating many special enhancements, and yet it was still failing. All too soon it would collapse under the onslaught. Some hours at best if that kept up. It did not appear to be stopping nor lowering in power.

"Something dark and terrible walks alongside this one. What he has done or committed himself to I do not know, but it is of legendary proportions. This is not a show of force or intimidation, this is an intent mind set on success in whatever foul deed is the true aim. What is certain, they have the power and that is an incredible act alone. Do not underestimate the depth of where such darkness can lead." Celestia was generally insightful, intelligent, powerful and confident. She did not sound like that right now. Tired even. It was not something one was accustomed to seeing cross her features. Speaking this way clearly asserted this was a truly dire circumstance they were close to facing.

"Are you well-rested? They will break through that clever defense much too soon." Celestia said dully.

"I am. Remaining troops should be up to par by then as well. I must admit I feel frightened by this. In a way I have never felt before. I feel sickly to the pit of my stomach. Oh, Starlight has done a great job preparing these." Twilight told Celestia as they walked about the town.

"I do not wish to fight. I had thought my share of it over and done. Can we never truly rest?" Celestia sounded so off.

"Celestia, this is none of your fault. He is the one who has done this. Perhaps we should look at it this way, whatever happens you will get your rest." Twilight said, hoping it would not hurt too much.

To her surprise her mentor burst out laughing as she went wide-eyed.

"You are right. We must not fear anything. Times come and go. Maybe ours has, and maybe it hasn't. All that can be done is our best. No one can ask more than that from any of us. You were a fine student and star pupil. You have done Equestria proud in your turn. We shall face whatever peril lies ahead together." As Celestia spoke her confidence in Twilight instilled in her an earnest desire to continue making her proud in deed and action.

The world turns, regardless.

Illusion of Solace

From where has this horror sprung forth to craft life into its own derisive joke? To send beloved family to face their own in battle? A horrid spectacle of distorted decaying forms lay splayed out on the battlefield. Such a distressing sight was unthinkable merely a couple of days ago. Ponyville is intact solely due to a rapidly failing magical barrier. All now know they face something much more than a mere memory. An adversary of cunning and discipline that may do anything at any moment. The only saving grace is that skies remain safe, for now. Thus far this seems to be the only real weakness this enemy has. This offers no succor to those who must remain on the ground. A massive battle will yet rage here.

Whatever the motive the true strength of this foe has yet to be unleashed, leaving all to wait in those tense moments before it all comes crashing down. Only the stalwart and heroic are left to fend off this madness. Each moment of silence adding a depth of fright worse than the sounds of ringing combat. Fighting their own dead and other fearful things has taken an inevitable toll on all present. What is worse, this enemy takes no real losses. No matter how many bodies and disturbingly appointed puppets destroyed they are still facing only their own and empty shells controlled from afar. A sickly affair. Was this all part of the plan? The ponies and all others wonder. What went wrong to bring this about?

The layers of this mystery cannot be solved here. The rulers of this land fret and think to themselves, did we blunder? Did we somewhere and in some manner bring this on ourselves? What could we have missed? An event so large must have had some terrible precursor to bring it about. The soldiers look around, imagining the carnage about to descend upon the poor town and themselves. This is not an honorable battle. There is no glory to be had. Survival is the only order today. The darkened sky does not bode well. The two siblings have talked up their guards to the best of their ability. Some only minorly injured have opted to stay in the fight. The injuries sustained by others were severe, despite best efforts many died today.

This is not the Equestria they knew and loved. Astounding power has been brought to bear against the very light itself. To do this someone must be very angry. Bathed in a depth of hatred unchecked and unheard of. Not even the legends of old speak to such boundless anger. Whatever precipitated this must have been truly horrific. Some nightmare left undreamed now stalking the waking world to consume its innocence. In the dark heartbeats rise as the moment draws closer. Out there in the dimness, they are being watched by someone with murderous intent and blood on the mind. Each prepares in their own way to square off with whatever lies ahead. Feeling doom descending gives fright to all.

Corruption incarnate strides towards them. Such is the feeling surrounding this once small village. Now a town on the edge of becoming a bustling city. All of it may be washed away in the approaching conflict. Everyone has been told that when it comes to warfare a running urban battle is the worst of all possible worlds. It cannot be avoided. Holding a line against such an enemy is impossible. The brave and the weary stand ready. Each imagining the terrible things to come, and all realizing they have no idea. What will really happen now? Their opponents have no demands and no words to proffer. Only silence. A swift and violent end if one is careless. Too many already lay slain and out of reach. Cut down where they lie.

The feeling of wrong about this is demeaning. Not even being able to gather up their dead is painful. These quiet moments punctuated by the occasional horrible loud popping and crackling as the barrier is assaulted made all that much more hurtful each time it lights up the world surrounding. One mixed group of solar guardsponies along with some hippogriffs and several yaks mounted a defense of retreating units worthy of legend on its own. Their bodies in the flickering light can be seen strewn about just outside the barrier. Some of them almost close enough to touch. They all fought a brilliant fallback action at great cost and now all lay still together, having saved countless others selflessly.

Each and every one went down hard. Their actions inspiring those who witnessed it. Not even the combined might of the two alicorns could protect everyone. There is little time to mourn the fallen. Already in the distance and darkness the array of deathly creations have once more begun to move. They must know the vast barrier is about to collapse. This time something else walks forth. An odd figure. One out of paintings and pictures most disturbing. One of the four has at last joined the fight. Adorned with a gold broach on the front of its black hooded cloak. It approaches. An ancient rusted wheat scythe strapped to its side. Unlike the rest, the stride is much smoother. A faster gait. It brings cold with it.

The same feeling of cold and ill that overtook the castle. Even from this distance it can be felt. Not the cold of winter or sea. A grasping cold suggesting emptiness and despair. Its approach chills bodies and minds. That flowing cloak aflutter though there is no wind to move it. It carries itself with outstretched white wings tipped in black. Color and light almost appear to fade into this new apparition. A faceless harbinger of sorrow trotting straight towards Ponyville. The pervasive chill leaving everyone pensive and distraught. The ancient scythe glinting in the dull light, it prepares to strike. In one swift smooth motion it lifts the scythe aloft and swings. These three alicorns prepare to face a reaper.

Reaper come calling, you'd best give it your all. Stumbling steps and then you will fall. Seek for me never, keep oneself true. Should I raise my scythe it is the end for you.

Awoken

Today, on the verge of utter annihilation all who remain in Ponyville stand aghast at the specter that now stands just outside the barrier. A cloaked hooded figure whose very presence is felt in the air and all around as unforgiving cold.

"Celestia, what is that thing!?" Twilight for just a brief moment lost her composure confronted by this direct feeling of dying all about and through their very being. Her dear mentor also stands agape for a second or so and drops her head. It is larger than most they have fended off this day. Something different and terrifying. Ice and fear.

"The creature before us is an ancient representation of death. The Grim Reaper, harvester of souls." She sounded sad.

Death itself? She had never heard of this.

"I don't know anything about such a thing." Twilight said, more calm again already as she took a breath.

"You wouldn't. The idea was abandoned a millennia ago. The original intention behind it was not to instill fear, but confidence that there is no loneliness in dying. A comforting presence. Once more and again a formerly good thing was turned twisted and left behind. That..thing there is not the reaper. If the represention is true, we must avoid being touched by that scythe at all costs." Celestia stood looking out defiantly as it raised that terrible weapon and swung.

As it struck the barrier a great clanging sound like a horrifyingly out of tune bell sounded and the entire barrier nearly fell.

"One strike!?" Even Luna was surprised. Getting such a response out of her was a truly rare occurrence. Another hit like that and it would be done. The commander ordered all others to avoid fighting that one. They would stand no chance against that kind of power.

"How can a physical weapon contain such immense energy?" Twilight knew of enchanted items, but nothing like this.

"There is only a single material that could." Luna knew what it was? Twilight found interest in this, even now.

"Starbless metal. The method of its construction is lost to history. Even we know little about it. They say the metal fell from the stars themselves. I have never seen anything made of it. It was rumored to be over sixty-thousand times stronger than any metal we know how to make." Luna was nervous, it could be heard in her voice.

"Sixty-thousand times!? It can't be. How would it even be forged? Where could they have got that?" Twilight was aghast to hear such an incredible piece of information. Along with the creeping cold there felt to be a terrific wall of sad feelings coming from the ghastly thing about to strike the barrier down.

"Tell me you feel that.." Twilight mumbled. Both sisters nodded in unison.

"Can it really be coming from it?" She asked aloud. It still had not raised the weapon again. Perhaps that kind of jolt needed a little time to recover from. When it did the shielding would surely be destroyed and they would face it.

"I do not know, but there is something very wrong with a few of these creations. I do not know what it is, but it is most distressing to sense." Luna was a master of understatement. They were literally facing death or a close facsimile. It could not be the real thing? No, that was impossible. It was just another of these disgusting toys he made, surely? If he did.

To now they still knew nothing of what this entity claiming to be a former lover really was, or who. Only that he was incredibly angry and savage in a way that defied words. Several hundred already lay dead on this unwanted field of battle. Ponies and their allies were strewn about like so much debris without a second thought or care. Blood-soaked and wrong as everything else. The dead sent marching against their own were stronger in general than the wooden constructs for some reason, but this thing held aloft a thing of such power it was unbelievable. Something from a dream, it should not be here. It did not belong, but the terror it brought was real as the wind and sky above.

"Do not be intimidated, Twilight Sparkle." Celestia broke the silence.

"If fear is what they want then we must not give it to them." Celestia walked close as she dared to the barrier and spoke.

"Begone from here. You are not death. How dare you pretend to own that mantle, you monster!" She nearly spat as she spoke. So rarely had anyone seen her like that. Her own sister was taken aback.

"Sister mine, come back. There is no reasoning here. Don't let them do that to you." Luna chose her words carefully.

Celestia visibly relaxed. The apparition before them slowly turned that hidden head towards her, just as slowly it raised a skeletal looking hoof and pointed it at her as if in silent accusation of some unspoken crime. For some reason this seemed to hurt her more than any words exchanged thus far. It held this position for some time. What was the meaning? The scythe glinting in the light of fire and destruction behind it gave some air of purpose and menace far beyond anything words would convey. Twilight more felt this silent accusation was meant as some form of insult.

"Celestia, come. He is playing a game which you know there is no winning." Luna asked her sister back.

Celestia gently shook her head side to side and moaned as though in pain, then returned to Luna's side. The ghastly thing lowered it's hoof and stamped the ground as though in punctuation of this accusation. It made a thunderous clap as it did. Was that just theatrics or something else? Just as slowly it once more raised that rusty ancient blade. Pulling it back to swing with such incredible force. This time when the metal made contact with the barrier a terrible screech of grinding metal could be heard for a mile and the barrier was no more.

When the Reaper comes to call, words are just too small.

Paint By Numbers

The simple announcement went out across blaring enhanced loudspeakers as Dash looked up upon hearing the alarm being given.

"Prepare for battle." It was succinct enough. All pegasi were geared up in a type of light barding suitable for maneuverability. Close-quarters ground battle training was highly unique among pegasus ponies. Rarely and almost never necessary. A type of movement and fighting system intended for quick striking individual enemies and rapid retreats designed to tire opponents quickly. For the unique enemies they were facing, however, some modification was required.

These abominations had no apparent stamina to wear down, necessitating the changes. Normally a pegasus would strike through a group of opposing troops utilizing their fast movement to traverse the battlefield in quick succession and leave mopping up to others. Not during this fight. All members of the Wonderbolt division were considered elite among elite flyers, true masters of wind and sky. Very soon it would be time to see if they could match that on the ground and uphold their warrior tribe heritage. Rainbow Dash, a pegasus of no small ego trained for years to wear this badge of honor. She had no intention of failing to live up to their reputation even in light of the horrors facing them. She adjusted her goggles.

These were not the usual eye coverings, but battle goggles of extreme durability that enhanced vision slightly, especially in dim light. While not unbreakable they were very tough. It would take some time for enemy forces to enter the town proper in numbers. In the meantime, it was possible to pick off any of them that wound up ahead of the rest. This would not significantly thin their numbers, but any removed from the fray was one less to worry about. Most of them including the unicorns only possessed an average amount of strength, making the fight surprisingly even for both sides. Their three alicorn protectors were facing off with something much worse. A construct envisioning death itself.

If they should fall there would be little hope of victory. Escape all the way to the Crystal Empire was an option, but a very poor one. All guards present had looked upwards in increasing dismay as the impressive barrier was destroyed with apparent ease. So very quickly. The savagery that must be behind such a display was disheartening.

"Ready for a real challenge?" A voice behind Rainbow made her jolt slightly. She'd been very caught up in thought.

"Captain, yes ma'am." She saluted and looked out at the approaching horde of still workable constructs, remembering what she'd seen of the fighting from above. No matter how skilled, this was going to hurt.

"There sure are a lot of them." She said as Spitfire stepped up beside her.

"Yep." The captain looked around at the assembled group, turning to address them. These were basically all their fully trained members and skilled reservists that signed on active call lists. Few had seen real combat before all this started. That could prove a serious handicap in the thick of it. Dash had seen a little bit over time automatically making her the first choice for a frontline soldier out of many. She would be heading the first squad behind Spitfire herself. A slightly paranoid feeling fell over her that this was going to get very rough.

"Alright, listen up! I expect to see every last one of you back here with your wings intact when this is over or I will personally haunt YOU as a ghost, got it? Are we gonna do this!?" Spitfire could be quite loud when she wanted to. She sounded decidedly determined at this moment. A cheer went up in response.

"altius volans!" A very old battle cry for those that roamed the clouds above.

"You know what to do. Get to it." She raised a hoof and squads took up initial positions. They were to provide backup and support only due to their high maneuverability, only to engage directly if necessary.

"What is this feeling? I can't shake it. Something about this makes me very nervous. Calm down. We are all the best of the best, that's why I'm here. Get it together. We have to protect Ponyville, our home." Rainbow Dash scolded herself for feeling that way. Being surrounded by other elites of various sorts did make her feel somewhat better. Everypony else was ready and so was she, or so she thought. This would be the ultimate test of their abilities. Some of the others had opted to use unique weapons rarely seen. A few were adorned with very light metal bars that extended with their wings into razor sharp blades. Dash decided to rely on her best attribute, speed and rapid movement. That kind of weapon would slow her down too much.

Somewhere out there waiting for her.

"Huh? What was that?" Dash looked around confused.

"I must be imagining things." Her heart was starting to race just a little bit in anticipation.

Coming for you. Sadness.

"Not again. This is not the time for wild fantasies." She shook her head hard and adjusted her barding just right. Those things were getting closer to the town in that weird shambling march of theirs. So many of them remained. More than she expected.

"Guess they had some reserves too. I shouldn't be surprised. They're actually really good at this." She took a deep breath to calm down.

Suffering. Sorrow.

"What the? Ugh. Cut that out. There is nothing there. Nothing. Just in your head." Dash turned to her assigned squad.

"Here they come. Remember your training and your orders. There are no heroes here. Well, except maybe me!" The joke got them pumped for the upcoming action right as Spitfire's squad moved out.

"Alright, don't get yourselves killed by these walking piles of kindling. We are in it to win it! Move out!" Her squad quickly positioned themselves as per their action plan.

Hurt.

"Ugh. Ignore it, Dash. Just stressed." She said to herself and took off.

Sadness flies away on the wings of time.

Challenge

There it stood. A construct fashioned to signify and embody death incarnate. Upon first sight, both Applejack and Pinkie had retreated in a near panic from that blinding feeling of cold and death which radiated from this work of art and destruction. That was very unusual for them. It was best they ran anyway. The Grim Reaper had easily dispatched the townwide barrier with that sluggish swing. Twilight thought she detected a slight weakness therein. A faint hope of success if they could take advantage. Attacking these things directly never worked to cause much damage. Those disturbing ethereal lines they hung from seemed to grant the lightest bit of shielding to all they touched, leaving only one way to harm them.

The feeling of chill and despair flowing forth was becoming nearly unbearable even for an alicorn. What crater of depravity brought such foul sorcery to be directed at them? Did anyone at all deserve to feel that kind icy writhing anger aimed straight toward?

"You two, allow me to tackle this one. I am familiar with scytheplay." Luna said coldly as the emptiness of space might. It was nearly disturbing. She was? That was a little known fact.

"Alone? Are you insane!?" Twilight was quick to ask.

"Neither of you have known this sort of freezing emptiness welling before. I have. I am insulted by its presence. Stay your hooves and I shall remove this abysmal caricature from our sight." She said then turned to assault this affront against life by herself. For the duration of battle she had opted to wear the royal regalia and reconstructed helmet of her time as Nightmare Moon to emphasize how truly serious this fight was to the lunar guards and to herself. Extra armor beyond this would be pointlessly limiting against such force as stood there. Luna had finally made peace with her past long ago and now held an air of grand power herself.

"I know not what horrid darkness consumes you, but I know what consumed me. You think you know terror and how to sow it? I offer you this single chance to flee or face a real nightmare, me." She said straight towards this thing playing at death in all deserved gravity. It became clear during the fighting their enemies could hear everything that was said in front of these constructs. Luna opted to levitate numerous empowered swords which were readied for battle to either side of herself and one above making for 16 in total. Controlling all those was a display of amazing skill. She strode toward it confidently while summoning every last ounce of magical power she possessed. Positively surging around her, it could be felt clashing with the cold sensation. The Reaper merely raised it's scythe in response. Utilizing this much power at once was so incredibly rare to see. The intensity was amazing.

"So be it then." Luna launched herself straight at the thing with all the swords swirling about her. What was she doing?

"Luna!" Celestia did not even have time to react when she did so. Her sister was going head to head with an enemy possessing a means of killing her instantly. One touch. The slightest scratch or graze from that scythe would spell her sisters end. As their weapons met the first of two swords positively exploded on impact, deflecting the scythe just enough to miss taking her head off. The mass of power behind those single strikes was absolutely beyond comprehension. If it were able to employ them any faster they would all have been mowed down already. What was Luna thinking doing this?

Simply fighting it would be useless. As these two forces met Luna sent half the remaining swords swinging at those controlling cables. These ones were thick and many, but it actually made for an easier time hitting them. Once more that scythe slowly rose. She sent two swords straight down to strike against it and they too exploded on contact with that hideous weapon seething with unworldly power. Again it was barely enough to keep it from chopping her tail off as she sailed past it. Celestia and Twilight along with any daring enough to watch at a distance were transfixed at the sight of this titanic confluence of energies smashing into each other. Each swing of the scythe brought with it that horrible sound of distuned bells. It was sinister and intimidating. How could she stand it so close?

"This..this is working. Can she actually do this?" Twilight commented, gasping each time they met each others blows. This kind of fight was unheard of. Luna still hadn't inflicted enough damage to seriously hamper its movement. The scythe at least appeared to be the only weapon it held. That was still more than enough. Luna threw herself and flipped aside as it galloped straight at her sidelong, swinging the scythe into the ground with such force a vast expulsion of dust and dirt was thrown upwards by that simple action, obscuring vision all around. It missed her left forehoof by a mere half-inch. No one could see what was happening now. There was no possible way to see what was happening in there.

Only the sound of several more of her swords being destroyed. Silence fell for a moment, lending fear she had failed. Then out she came tumbling from that cloud of debris. The Reaper was slightly staggering. She'd at last inflicted significant enough injury above to slow it somewhat. As long as it held that scythe it still represented an unparalleled threat. Luna had only four swords left. Stuck in a position where she could not possibly dodge in time, Luna took a desperate gamble and hurtled all four swords directly at the handle of the scythe instead of the blade as it was raised. Two struck home. One missed utterly and the last lodged itself in the center of the things head beneath that cloak.

As that rusty ancient weapon of unbelievable might was separated a huge blastwave of energy threw Luna tumbling a full eight meters backward resulting in the hardest of rolling landings. The Grim Reaper was completely encapsulated in a well of undirected energy and disappeared in a blinding flash. Was it destroyed? All went still and quiet. Luna lay unmoving.

Bitter tears are to be shed over shattered graves for words left unsaid and lofty deeds left undone.

Thresher Roll

Nightmarish figures continue to take strides towards Ponyville now. Despite having suffered what could be interpreted as an immense loss of battle power, there is no way to tell if it has actually affected them in any real way. In return the town has lost something of equal value. This has perhaps equated to an equivalent exchange of damages. Luna at great risk managed to avert a nearly immediate and complete rout of their desperate defenders. Her survival against a foe this powerful has raised morale across the entire army, instilling a deep sense of determination to avert this ghoulish assault on sanity and reason. The ponies know something murderous is now stepping closer by the moment.

Despite this victory in skirmish, Luna is very badly hurt, given over to limping steeply. There is no time for proper healing at this moment. The field medics warn her they will have to break her leg and reset it in the future if she does not take the time now. She says it is a necessary evil. It is almost funny to hear such a thing right now. That feeling growing ever closer tells it all. Right behind the steadily marching corpses and puppets strung along in fighting units, it is there. A new evil preparing to strike. Everyone of any skill level senses that. There is no missing it. Something raging and dangerous in an as-yet-unnamed way. A shudder of sensation and fear shoots across these valiant warriors before reasserting their will.

The opposition coming at them this time is different. In their positioning and tactics, this disturbing army of constructs and the dead has more than doubled their effectiveness, inflicting much heavier losses each time they clash against the defiant elites. The commander finally orders their first reinforcements to be pulled into the battle. There is no longer any choice. Losses are simply mounting too rapidly. Into Ponyville they will soon be streaming en masse. The single trebuchet and few catapults will only be of any real use for a short while longer. The moment these terrifying horrors step into town they will be of no further value. Not worth defending with life and limb. As expected Wonderbolt units are taking few losses.

Unfortunately, they are also inevitably taking up more and more slack of other units taking losses. Once again injured and dead are piling up much too quickly. Twilight counts to have lost almost seven hundred out of a mere three thousand already. The deepening dreadful feeling closing in is of utmost concern. It is clear that must be coming from one of the four terrible figures. The first of which was nearly enough by itself to tear through their defense. Why did they not all attack at once? Twilight imagines there must be a reason. Perhaps those puppets are just too powerful to control all at the same time. It is only a wild guess. In truth, she nor any other has the slightest idea. Evil is trudging closer endlessly.

This many injured is nearly overwhelming to deal with. Most hospital staff and any others that could be spared with any medical knowledge or experience whatsoever have been kept in the east of town which has been converted into a triage area. Wounded keep pouring in forcing them to make the worst of decisions. Who to let slip away and die while they save someone else? Medical supplies are being used up at an unprecedented pace. This is a disaster that is far from ended. None are experienced with war wounded. Injuries unheard of in centuries requiring every ounce of skill to treat and mend magically or physically. Whichever is more appropriate. There are not enough unicorns who can heal to go around.

Crashing raining rocks and cracking trees will soon be the only defense left to the besieged region. The traps and fires having nearly been exhausted. There are mere moments before it begins in earnest. This has been a dress rehearsal in prep. Nothing more. Pegasi are not yet facing the true bulk of the enemy force. That test is yet to come. In the hours ahead they know it is going to come crashing over them like a great ocean wave of incalculable power. Everyone knows this is going to hurt. No matter how well they do, a wall of pain and searing agony will soon be striking them with all intent to destroy and sweep them aside like so much dust.

Such sorrow is present out there. A thing of wild uncontrolled dreams comes trotting at leisure behind the columns of walking slashing slicing doom. There is no hurry to their step. As though out for a midnight stroll comes this newest horror to sap willpower and spread disillusionment. Turning their hard-won and recent victory to hopelessness and defeat. This construct is different. Strapped upon it's back is a quiver aglimmer. Full of beautiful topaz colored arrows. In it's muzzle is held a most magnificent longbow gleaming in the darkness. A squalid light seeping out of it as a soft dark mist flows from the ends, the bow pulsing with power. The bowstring a solid black. A most intimidating figure to be sure. It moves with purpose and solidity.

It closes range slowly. Hesitantly maybe. Most likely some other reason. Hesitance does not seem to befit the array of mysterious terrors unleashed thus far. It takes stock of the town at distance. It is well-defended. In any other circumstance an attacking army would not risk such a frontal assault on a position so heavily fortified, but for a dead army it is of no concern or consequence. A glinting flash in the dim light gives the slightest indication an action has been taken. A course chosen. A river of suffering snakes its way towards the embattled town. The feeling builds and builds inside. For some reason one of the few changelings in the first wave of reinforcements quite suddenly collapses and shakes wildly. The puppet takes aim.

The battle for Ponyville has begun.

Travails

Keeping the ever nearing monster puppets at bay has become far more deadly as the heroic Ponyville defenders struggle to fend them off. Once in the town proper, fighting them will certainly become increasingly difficult. A running urban battle is well-known to be one of the most terrible forms of warfare even long past the last recorded incident. Approaching horrors grind down the wills of wearied fighters. The addition of pegasi to ground forces has added some much needed power to the defenses. Defenses which could very easily be overwhelmed with a solid push. A push the enemy will attempt.

The dead minutes continue to fall off the clock, one by one. Leading to those minutes never passing. Feeling like they are entombed in this instant. The ponies harried defensive line holds, just barely. The stubborn defenders refuse to collapse in the face of this onslaught. No matter the horrors which make themselves known, they continue to fight and resist. This is a battle of multiple dimensions, of thoughts, feelings. That which is physical is almost an afterthought to the devastation being wrought. Some imagined slight or real reasoning behind it all? It doesn't matter. What matters is the reality of it. The battle is here and it is no bad dream to dispel. It is indeed, here. There is no escape from it.

These defenses were not weak or hastily erected. The invaders army is merely in control of enough power to keep pressing forward. Costs are of no consequence to the bestringed puppet throngs encroaching ever closer step by clattering step. They do not talk, they do not scream as the living. They only attack and keep on doing so until unable to continue. An assault of dead flesh and carved wood imbued with some semblance of unlife. No, they do not live. There are no souls encased within. Nothing more than puppets that somehow carry enough force to slay those in front. A few even deadlier than the rest, these nailed and sanded mimics of the living. Their intent clouded but somehow clear. Destroy.

Spitfire currently leads a roaming defensive action, but ground is slowly being lost as the seemingly endless horde of demented constructions marches ever closer. Mere moments from invading long-held territory never fought over before. Some new infernal thing has breached the front line in secret, but its presence is felt by all. Any moment now some terrifically awful thing will reveal itself. Every single soldier and support knows it is so. That feeling is beyond awful. Not the same as before. This is not death, but some equal in terror. A sinking sensation that cannot be quelled. There is no shield that can hold emotions and feelings in check, no mirror of truth to turn the horror on itself as in some fairy story.

A passing shudder goes through everyone present within the town confines. One of their grand alicorn rulers is injured, but still standing. Luna survived once. It may be enough for now. So long as even one remains there is that spark of a chance. Chance that things will turn out alright. That fortune may allow good to stand in triumph one more time over now blood-soaked fields, stained with the very life of so many. So much sacrifice already is hard to see and bear. A flowing feeling of guilt pervades the locale. A strong motivator to make things right somehow. Massive hurt and anger come from within that flowing feeling of pain and horror flooding past. Desperate actions are usually not the best course to take.

They are reactive and unsound in their very nature. For the moment such desperation has not taken hold despite mounting losses. It is so close. Strong and dangerous simply in existing. An existence unimagined to this very moment. Dark and horrible. Stark in relief to the light. Light that stands ready to fight until last breaths are taken. What quirk of fate has lead to this most disturbing moment? Why now? Is their enemy truly so intractable it may not be reasoned with in any capacity? Such anger and ferocity is unrivaled. To bring this about must only be true madness. A sort of absolute insanity has to stand behind this. What distantly alien logic would make sense of this otherwise?

To levy this much towards vengeance is far beyond the realms of most understanding. Such immeasurable depth of anger was heretofore unthinkable. To quench this kind of thirst may well be an impossibility. Whoever truly stands pressing for this capitulation of sanity and reason takes steps none other has ever dared. Be they standing upon hooves or otherwise, this can only end badly for all involved. This conclusion is clear. Outrageous fortune has dealt a horribly unfair blow to those who believe in righteous justice. There is in truth little hope to be found here. Hope which has been fleeting for far too long already. Victory now would still bring further pain and suffering. Is it all by design? This much despair?

Rainbow Dash is finding her squad under increasing pressure from all sides. Soon there will be no choice but to let slashing horrors enter the beleaguered town unchecked. Never in her life did she nor any other imagine being forced into such a battle with unending mysterious foes. They give little away and what is given only makes for more frustration. Whatever they face in truth is awful and hidden behind many layered destruction apparently pushed without reason. Does good and evil really face off here? That reasoning feels flawed. There is no doubt this is evil. What else could let loose such a horrendous blight to intrude on a mostly peaceful reality? A reality all felt was at last secured until mere days before now.

Forced to combat the remains of formerly living creatures is a vile act indeed. Unforgivable in severity. One immense danger is being followed so closely by another. Time is winding down towards some undefined moment, when some small decision or other will either save all or bring a swift end. The true battle here is one of willpower. The back and forth of false life, the dead and still living striking at each other. Whoever did this must be stopped here or all the world is lost. Agonizingly, there is no way to put an end to this right now. No one knows the how or why of it. Only that hope is slipping away with each near miss. Near a full thousand ponies and allies now lay dead or injured, withdrawn from the battle.

Far too often hurt guards are dragged from the battlefield by pegasi units. Despite an excess of caution, these losses are mounting by the hour. Some units have lost so many they must link up with others to remain capable of fighting in any capacity. This confusion of combat is taking a huge toll. Mentally. Physically. Still they push back. A fight with no clear conclusion in sight. Only horror. Out on the very brink of towns northwest outskirts this battle skims the very razors edge of untenable. Once within town combating this evil would take on entirely new dimensions. Their enemies know tactics and how to employ them as well. Such an even battle cannot be called. It is too close to hazard a guess. What is coming?

Something close. So close it can be felt. Nearing. Ready to bring something new and deadly into the fray. Even with all the death surrounding them, none can afford to let up the pressure or the town itself could be wiped out in some fraction of the time a second thought might be given. This battles every move is decisive. Enemy forces are now much too close to utilize the old siege weapons scrounged up. Their accuracy is simply not up to that task. A tremor in the air. This feeling of impending doom grows closer still. Creeping. Something big is once more about to occur. A feeling which only grows heavier and worse. As if time is slowing down around the would-be heroes of the hour, dragging by even more slowly.

If the intention of it is to make ponies flee in abject terror it fails to succeed. If anything it brings them and their honored friends to fight all the harder, seeking relief from this oppressive atmosphere imposed against their will and spirit. Soon it must break. A ghost is here, whatever is coming has grown steadily nearer with each slowly passing second. With it shall come more pain and death, surely. An inescapable certainty. A haunting, deadly thing is present. It is not like before, this feels somehow larger if not more powerful. Could anything even be more powerful than that horrible thing mimicking death? There can be no surety it was destroyed. It simply vanished in a cloud of combating powers.

It could not be counted as defeated. A clear victory would help morale. The intensity of battle is only increasing as guards engage in an ever more brutal fight. The momentary intent of their opposition is clear. Destroy everything in their path no matter how trivial it may be or seem. There is no other goal to achieve with this sort of action. Why they would want to level the town itself is just another question in an increasing pile of too few answers. What little information is at their disposal has mostly brought forth more of the same. Why and how? The scale of this simply has no precedent. The overview reveals this to be the very reverse of how such a battle would normally head. Something is wrong with it.

Without a desire for resources the only thing that can be possibly gained is submission, but this is not being sought. Only the complete annihilation of anything standing in front. This will to visit destruction on the far reaches of the countryside has no parallel in all recorded or distantly mumbled about history. To no recollection has there ever solely been the intent to crush everything to dust. What would be the point in doing so? This is a source of consternation to those facing these unforgiving odds. Why? Why do this? No mere battle, this is nothing other than a wave of insanity raining down upon them. Sheer and ever present pain. To go this far must have something more behind it?

The strain on the wearied guards is clear. Exhausted forces clash again and again with the increasing number of puppets. Keeping the constructs from flooding into the town will very soon be completely impossible. The lurching terrors just keep marching forward, and killing. All delaying tactics having been exhausted by what would otherwise be dawn of the fourth day approaches. If only it could be seen. Those delightful rays of first morning light are nowhere to be seen now. They grant no hope, hidden behind an impenetrable wall of clouds no pegasi can move nor even touch for fear of courting an agonizing end. Better to take their chances under the cloud cover. At least their enemies can be seen and fought here.

The deep hurt behind all of this has to be a special case. A yawning chasm measuring so vast it is nameless and untellable, clouded to perception itself. Clever defenses make for little when the opponent has no feelings to be hurt. Denting numbers does little more. These dead things have no remorse to stir nor guilt to stay them. All they do is march and march, and kill what does not destroy them in turn. In dark and emptiness only the screams portray what is truly out there. Not invulnerable nor invincible, these attackers are well-armed, acting as a very disciplined force. Many of the weapons came from the very capital of Canterlot itself. Terrible irony to add just that further layer of pain and disjointment.

Long hung as trophies and other bric-à-brac along the great castle walls. Now turned once more to the business of pain and terror instead of remaining hanging there like they should always have as a reminder of what lay far behind. Things that should have been left where they lay for all to see and not touch. Close and closer it is creeping. As though the very dark itself could keep secrets from the living. This seizing fear in the chest and heart tries to turn the tides without so much as a glimpse of the very real fact it is actually there. Present among the throng. So barely pressing the attack to keep them at bay, everyone wonders. Is this the moment? Is this the instant when that thin barrier of glass shatters and rains down?

Something else unexpected breaks the warm night air. Not the howl of some wayward banshee or other monster. A wailing scream of a far different sort. No, this is not some new horror come to gobble everybody up whole. It is a scream of hope and defiance. Somewhere out there in the dark a lonely whistle once more intrudes upon the scene. What is this? What can this be? Something good for once. Twilight looks up from her command platform to see off in the distance the source of this. The commander is informed. For the moment, hope returns once more.

"A Crystal Empire train!? Messenger, inform two pegasi squads to defend the station!" He orders and they fly like the wind itself to make this happen.

The train comes to a screeching squealing halt as fast as imaginable just short flying off the tracks, coming to offer salvation perhaps. Much to their surprise Twilight's brother himself steps forth, followed by a throng of heavily armed and armored crystal guards from every car. He issues a single command down the line of emerging ponies.

"Crystal Paladins! Hold bravery in your hearts. We are not here to be heroes. We are not here to win the day. We are here to uphold the value of life itself! Form up and reinforce any flagging squads, move out!" The order is given with a quick salute, conviction and an air of the absolute as though unstoppable.

The pegasi quickly count some five hundred added to their numbers. There is still hope after all. Quickly as possible he rushes to meet his beloved sister. Adorned in full battle gear leaves him as quite the sight. He and his guards in all purple armor gilded in gold and stars in relief. A large buckler shield strapped to their left forelegs and a multitude of preferred weapons over the other shoulder at the ready. They were ready to jump into the thick of battle.

"Shining Armor!?" Twilight could not help but spout. He looked grave.

"Twilight, I'm Sorry we took so long. I wanted to bring everypony I could outfit and ready." He was then quickly briefed.

"So that's the situation huh? So many dead. If I may offer, we have medical and combat supplies. Offload that and get the most seriously wounded on the train. They've done their part." Her brother was a most welcome sight.

"Shiny you.,.you shouldn't be here. What about Cadance? You have a wife, a family.." Twilight went to go on but he interrupted.

"As do many of these fine friends of ours laying out on the fields. I spoke to her about it at length as we prepared. She knows I may not return and accepts that. She knows." He huffed. Getting a bit teary-eyed.

He quickly wiped that away and turned to the commander.

"I can't say we aren't glad to see ya. Things are not exactly going the greatest here. We've been holding our own but it's getting close." He returned to conferring with advisers and strategists. This looked very bad.

"Where are the others? I thought they would likely all be around you." Shining asked. Her tense expression prompted a clearly pained Luna to speak, holding one of her legs up a bit awkwardly. It was easy to tell she'd seen some intense combat herself. He nearly winced at realizing that an alicorn had taken such injury.

"Rarity and Trixie were moved to a safe location having been taxed well beyond their limits. The use of magical items at such a high level was so far above their normal skill and power they were hurt greatly by the effort. Rarity the worst. The rest are engaged in battle in some capacity or other. All of them." Luna explained succinctly. He looked surprised.

"Trixie? I thought she was just.." This time it was his sisters turn to interrupt.

"Long story, she helped save my life. I'll explain later. If there is a later." She finished.

"Well, wonders never cease." He looked deep in thought. Out on the front lines the battle for Ponyville raged anew across the field, reinvigorated with the crystal paladins support. Rapidly informed how to attack these enemies, fresh new unicorns firing off spells at pace were a most welcome addition. The clang of metal on metal as weapons met shields and the crackling sizzle of blasting magic lent new urgency and vigor to the defenses. They may not be able to go on the offensive, but there was once again a the tiniest chance of victory here. The heavy armor was a most happy addition. Full crested enchanted chestplates offered much more protection than most others. They could still be pierced.

For the moment that feeling of impending doom subsided. Perhaps it was only imagined this whole time. These forces sudden appearance on the battlefield was likely unexpected this late into the fray and may have thrown the enemies plans into muddled disarray. It could be hoped. If this was the case it did not show much or at all. They fought as ever, slowly adjusting tactics to deal with the presence of more heavily armored ponies. Whatever happened, they still stood up to the elites. There must be great experience behind them. That was clear from the start, made far more stark now. The real will behind this knows how to inflict damage of every sort.

Fending off an enemy of equal power often hinges more on intelligence than simple numbers and battle power alone, but given that was also equal leads only towards greatly extending the fight. A situation not to be wished for. There was now little choice but to carry on and try to reach some tipping point. Some moment of incident or accident. To make a lunge for some minute crack in strategy that would grant reprieve and a stab at true victory. A moment like this had not revealed itself as no moment like this ever makes itself apparent lightly. This was truly becoming a battle of epic proportions. The slightest miscalculation could lead straight to disaster.

"You have this under control so far. I will go lend aid to the weakest part of the line." Shining prepared as best he could. Celestia and Twilight both gave him a rundown of what worked so far. It was all they could offer.

"Be ever on your guard. We know there are still more and worse things out there in the dark. One of my night guards will escort you there. Stay alive." Luna chimed in and bid. It was the most odd feeling to hear that from her of all ponies.

"I will. Good luck." He galloped off behind the lone night guard to join the rest of his forces, looking back to the three with an odd sensation in his heart and gut. He shook it off.

The constant din, the clash of steel and magic of all sorts flying every direction could at best be described as disorienting. A maelstrom of sensory overload. Battle in the truest sense of the term. Only a supremely concentrated effort to keep squads fighting coherently in some semblance of organization was holding them together. It would be too much asking for a break in the action now. The great shield was long gone. Emplacing another was out of the question. It would take far too much time and power only to be destroyed again anyway, despite the relief that might provide it could not be done. Repeating the same tactic might also prove useless anyway.

Hours slip past as strength wanes and stamina drops. Exhausted ponies being forced inexorably backwards. For some there is no other option but to retreat far away and rest. No further relief or aid will be coming. The interminable darkness is certainly no help. The flashing flicker of magics all around serves only to highlight how disturbing the things they face really are. Twisted caricatures of animals, ponies, griffons and others strung up in that sickening way. The more recent corpses are the worst of all to face. Some were reporting becoming ill facing and fighting them. The real bodies mostly hit harder in every way. Their weapons strike heavier, hurt more.

Add another new layer of misery to top it all. Some wounds are grievous, far beyond terrible and seemingly resistant at varying degrees to nearly all forms of healing whether magical or not. There appears to be no limit to the travesties being visited upon them. A menace this unhinged would stop at nothing. Nothing is too squalid or disgusting for them to sink towards doing. Is there really no end to their depravity? Once more the fight has become too even. Almost a stalemate, but that cannot last. The pegasi also need rest periodically, no matter how well trained or disciplined, how steeled the will. One has to rest. Then something new walks to the fore. Something unusual. Something bad. A hulking figure.

"Now what? Lieutenant, is that what I think it is out in that direction?" One of the defending captains asked as he helped knock down yet another puppets strings.

"I'm afraid so, sir. That's a minotaur alright. No mistaking" His superior sighed heavily hearing that, perking his ears and gave orders to the others in the group.

"Great. Just wonderful! Listen up! Focus on that thing. Swarm it. We have to bring that one down right now or it will mean serious trouble for all of us." They all went straight for it. Some of them were immediately bashed away.

It swung an enormous club past the rest. Nearly a whole tree in comparison to the ponies. Two of the guards may have been killed by that one swipe alone. They lay upon the ground unmoving.

"Squad, get it together! This isn't the time to be making errors like that. Now get firing!" The captain gruffly stated. The rest started taking quick circling magical potshots at it. Getting too close to that one could easily lead to a quick death. It was slow, ponderous even, but it was dangerous. Without warning it picked up one of the other puppets and threw the wicked thing directly at the circling fighters.

"Look o.." Another was gone in that instant. He hit the ground and was silent. The shock was almost too much.

"Take care of that and keep firing!" The captain once more urged. It could almost be imagined this lumbering thing was angered by its inability to strike them directly. That did not make any sense of course. Puppets have no emotions to hurt. It was only doing what it was bidden to do.

"What is it trying to do now?" One of them yelled out as it took hold of the club by both ends, immediately sending it sailing into another circling guards helmet. Her helmet landed with a terrible clang. She landed at an odd angle, eyes agape.

She was gone. Other puppets were moving in to support it now, forcing them to circle closer. Too close.

"Sir, this thing is picking us apart!" The lieutenant was correct in his assessment.

"We have to stop it now. Got to s..gahg" As the captain went to say something the puppeted minotaur picked up a large rock and sent it flying through the air straight into the captains face, making him crumple to the ground. The aim was perfect. They'd been taking losses here and there all day long. These added much more hurt and sorrow to that number.

"Capt.." The minotaur swung widely, knocking yet another pony to the ground. Likely dead. The whole squad was gone.

The lieutenant was all that remained. He was sure of it. It was all so fast. How could he stop this thing by himself? He fired off a flare calling for immediate aid. This section of the front line was a shambles. He could only hope someone would come. He was just out of range for now. It was not going to be enough.

"You killed my captain, my squad. Bring it!" For the slightest instant he imagined there was some reaction to that. It must only be imagination. The true reality, this thing designed for murder would end his life next and set about doing exactly that. Giving it the faintest opening was enough with this one. A little faster, stronger than the rest.

"Come on. I just need to stall it long enough. Somepony will come. Someone will come." He thought to himself as he backed away, firing off wild shots from his horn at the puppets strings. He was being unnerved as it relentlessly strode towards him. Each shot went wide doing no damage. Engaging in close combat with that thing would mean certain death. A shocking incident happened at this instant. The captain he'd thought certainly dead leaped from behind and wrapped his forehooves around the strings, making it stumble about like an out of control bull. His one eye was gone, bleeding profusely. The guard was stunned.

"Now what did I tell you? Ya aren't going to give up that easily are you? Now be quick and accurate lieutenant. I can't hold this for long. Go for it!" This would be the captains final order.

"Yes, sir." The lieutenant summoned up every last ounce of power he could muster and blasted away at those strings granting motion to this horror. They were severed. As it slumped to the ground the captain fell back hard. It was obvious he was dead. Somehow he'd forced himself to live just long enough to help take this puppet out. The lieutenant teared up and gave a quick salute.

"Thank you, captain. Thanks, all of you." He turned and ran seeking anything living. A few moments later he found a squad heading straight for his location. Someone was coming after all. Seeing his armor patch their captain asked.

"Where is the rest of squad 12, soldier?" They already knew something was wrong from the flare. He hung his head.

"I..am squad 12, sir." He coughed heavily as he spoke and started crying despite his best efforts not to.

"I see. I'm sorry. I won't ask you to pull yourself together. Run for medical and get checked out, ya hear?" He put a hoof on his shoulder and looked him square in the eye.

"I know you did a fine job, whatever it was. Now go." He ordered. The lieutenant sprinted for town in a haze of regret and sorrow. Their entire squad lasted until today, just to be cut down like so much grass? This hurt so badly in every conceivable way. He was the last one. It was sinking in they were all gone. Every last one. All but him.

"We were supposed to be some of the best, weren't we!?" He scoffed at himself. The best? What a joke.

"We got killed by a few pieces of wood and a rock!" He kicked the ground angrily, almost tripping himself in the process. coming to a halt he sobbed heavily a few times. Somepony was walking out of the medical area. A soft calm voice called.

"Oh my..you don't look so good. Are you hurt?" A yellow-coated pegasus wearing a nurses hat and with a bunny on her back asked. The tears subsided a bit.

"I think I'm..broken." He managed to stammer out.

"There there, come with me alright? We'll get you all cleaned up." She gave a gentle smile. That sounded good.

"Yes, okay." With his mind reeling from the shock of it all he let her lead him to a treatment area where she began to remove his light armor. He just stood there blankly as she started brushing out his mane and coat gently.

"I've seen more like you here ya know." She said quietly. What was that? He turned his head.

"What, like me?" He blinked, feeling confused.

"Relax. It's okay. It's just that expression on your muzzle. Everyone is trying so hard. It's too much. I couldn't even stay with my friends because of it. I wanted to help, but I'm back here instead. I feel like such a coward." She was so gentle about everything. He finally noticed her cutie mark and it struck who she was.

"Fluttershy? But, you've been right there at the front of so many things. You must be a brave one." He managed to say.

"Brave? I don't know. I just can't let my friends down. I have to be there for them in some way, but this time I just.." Did she just squeak?

"Listen, that sounds pretty brave to me. I just ran off crying like a little foal. Me. A royal guard. What am I doing? Stupid, stupid.." He trailed off. Fluttershy reached out, bringing him into a tight hug and he gasped.

"Shh now. I'm sure you did your best or you wouldn't be here, right?" Such a gentle caring mare.

"I..thank you." He trembled and held to her tightly for a long moment before letting go.

"We need to get you into a bed immediately. You need rest. We've been told to use any house or building around here so there is definitely somewhere you can sleep." She looked very concerned for him as she spoke.

"I don't think I can sleep." He really was uncertain about that.

"Of course you can. Sleep is always good for you. Try for me?" She really did act so gentle.

"Alright. Where should I go?" Somehow, he was feeling a slight bit better now.

"I think there's some free beds in that one. If not just come check with me, okay? Get a good rest." She returned to her duties.

Running ragged, mistakes are inevitably made. Few at first. More as time progresses. Exhausted troops are ineffective, even becoming dangerous towards each other and must fall back. The truth is this beloved town shall be enveloped into the fighting much too soon. Within nine hours or less at best estimate. As this is realized so is something else. That feeling has returned, strong as before. Worse. Heavier yet. Whatever stalking thing is out there has come back, to turn hope to despair and potential victory to defeat. It is closing in. That feeling on all sides is foreboding. It makes everyone nervous and jittery. Save for a particular lieutenant now sleeping quite soundly in a warm bed.

This will be the moment it springs some deadly trap envisioned by lunacy and some crazed desire to pour on the pain. An aberration about to pounce and inflict massive harm. Once again, something that deadly is gazing squarely upon the emboldened but wearied forces daring enough to stand before it. How dare they resist their inevitable end? It is a foregone conclusion they will die today. Why fight it? Give in. It is inevitable. Your end draws near. This feeling spreads far and wide. A sensation of hackles raised and some immediate danger spring like wildfire among the determined troops. They know. All that have feelings could never overlook this spiraling drill of warning. Run. Gallop, fly away. Flee now.

The battle has unfortunately begun to drift into the roads directly at the northwest edge of town. Roads long felt to be safe and familiar to so many now begin to become stained red and damaged by the comings and goings of warfare. Like a malignant cancer the battle strains and grows against the impeding defenders bent on holding the line. A line which is inexorably bending inwards until it must snap under the constant pressure. A pressure increasing by the moment. Soon the very core of the town itself will begin to see the horrors of such brutality and combat. It was never meant to happen here. Anywhere but here. Not this town. This should not be.

As they swore to do, everyone continues to stand their ground. All the while knowing they may die at any moment. Any second now. Horror has once more risen to confront them and now is the moment of truth behind it. The dreadful thing in the dark takes aim skywards and lets loose the first of it's horrific arrows. Not a usual thing in any way. Jagged and odd on the tips. First one arrow, just one. A single flash blacker than pitch itself streaks through the air with a horrendous whistling noise as if some errant banshee has taken flight. Behind follows a trail of just barely visible mist flowing out along the path it takes. Rainbow Dash, fighting alongside Soarins squad hears the sound and looks up just in time.

"Whoa!" She manages to dodge it, this time. Soarin, does not. It is only a mere scratch. Not even an injury. Nothing that should stop... He hits the ground and stumbles a little before swiping at the nearest movement as though a creature possessed. It takes six other guards to hold him down as he frantically struggles while frothing at the mouth. Dash finds herself forced to dive out of the way of a veritable hail of similar arrows now in sets of three. Three each time at once? Always three. She takes note that several others exposed too closely to them have also gained this strange affliction, causing them to lash out wildly in every direction towards movement.

Some kind of poison must have been employed. A new awful feeling takes hold.

"Get him out of here. Tell as many as you can these incoming arrows are poisonous and leave some kind of fog behind them or something. Stay out of it whatever you do. Go." She orders. The group obeys as best they are able with Soarin struggling so violently. A fifth set of incoming arrows once more necessitates diving for ground cover. Cover that is almost not enough. These arrows smash through buildings as though they were made of mere butter. The force behind them is incredible and terrifying.

There is one slight positive. Things they hit do deflect the arrows from their trajectory, and the shields Twilight ordered set up earlier above the streets now provide protection from the sky, sending many of them careening off course to some degree. Unfortunately, this also has the effect of spreading the mist flowing along behind them further. Thin, wispy trails barely visible, just enough to note and avoid. Breathing that in would surely result in the same madness. Was this what happened to some of the ponies from Canterlot? Possibly. Something did not feel the same about that. It did not look quite the same.

Whatever is firing them off is no slouch, quickly adjusting to aim beneath the roadway shields. This at least reduces their effective range, but only amplifies the massive force of their impacts. Whole buildings are now being shredded as arrows poke through everywhere. How many could it possibly have? Somewhere out there, it was taking aim specifically at her. It was clear now. Rainbow finds herself racing through the bleak streets of Ponyville as a streak of color herself, desperate to avoid being skewered. That distinctive rainbow behind her. This thing seems vaguely aware of her position via some unknown means. The enemies capacity to cause damage was huge. Impossible to predict in action.

This edge of town was practically being destroyed by the volume of incoming arrows. So many. If she were any slower a pony Dash would be a veritable pincushion by now. Only her speed and reflexes were a saving grace for now. Whatever was doing this has one obvious objective, to kill her specifically. There was no choice but head straight for where the princesses all stood and gain their assistance. She could not possibly keep up this pace for long no matter how well-trained and honed her skills and stamina were. Already wheezing and gasping for breath as she dives and weaves her way towards them, she was rapidly becoming exhausted.

As she approached, Celestia caught sight of the blue blur heading for them. Instantly realizing there would be little reason for her to be directly on the ground, all prepared to tackle this new threat. Finding herself being enfolded in a protective shield provided by Twilight finally allowed her to catch a breath and fall to the ground heaving, gasping for air heavily. The arrows simply stopped coming. What could this be? Why? Now what? This was not making sense. Their enemy always had some plan or other in motion at all times. This would not be any different. It was wearying trying to fend off so many threats at once. Rainbow lay there out of breath, chest heaving.

There were no clear limits to what their opponents would attempt or what capabilities they truly held. This made any kind of forward planning tenuous at best. Commonly held belief is that defending forces always hold the advantage. This is proving somewhat untrue as it has never been tested against a force willing to march forward at any cost to itself without the slightest care whatsoever. Again they were at a serious handicap facing off with such unknowable foes. Like fighting against a fog of misconception there was little to be seen or strike back at. Layers of subterfuge and lack of information twisted perceptions towards incorrect paths. Decisions were fraught with danger.

Only the puppets they faced now presented any kind of tangible target to be destroyed. The powers behind them were nearly unheard of until now. The only real option was to destroy all of them before moving on to dealing with the real problem. If they could make it further was becoming less and less certain with each strange switch in the flow of battle. There must be one of the immensely powerful puppets just outside their visual range right now. Twilight focused intensely while Starlight stood down behind. Despite several previous misadventures, both were very little experienced in actual combat. It would have to be enough.

The tense nervousness in the air was obvious as they tried to formulate some move to make. Would it be them or the horrendous stealthy puppet out there who would take the first shot? Dash, now able to move again, dragged herself away behind them. That was all the protection that would be afforded her. Perhaps only a paper-thin sheet of defense in reality against this monstrous construct. It chose to act first. A sound in the distance and then a veritable hail of arrows sails through the air whistling. The shrill shrieking noise they made in such high volume was nearly enough to hurt the ears and make even the most steadfast shake to hear it. Starlight chose to act immediately as well.

The three alicorns found themselves pinned under the massive amount of incoming fire. All of their shields absorbed and deflected impacts like like some deadly rain from above. Completely unable to move they could take no offensive actions whatsoever. Only Starlight was able to back away, galloping past Rainbow who was slowly standing. She was shaky on her hooves from exerting herself so heavily to survive. She would be unable to fly for quite some time. The only thing Starlight could possibly do was sneak around and through buildings to try and locate their unseen enemy. There was no other way to help at this moment. If Starlight did not decide to do so immediately she would have been trapped.

The command tent itself was in danger from this mass of arrows and misty trails flying every which direction. If the three meager shields they held up failed then the entire command staff would be rendered useless or worse. This was certainly part of the plan. Pinned like this gave no options but to hold up the shields. Starlight must hurry. It was unlikely she could fully take on this archer alone. At best make a distraction to allow the alicorns a shot at retaliation. The arrows direction kept changing. This one was extremely skilled. It must be swapping positions on the move yet remaining on target. It was extremely difficult to avoid this ceaseless hail of arrows bouncing every which way. Too close.

The amount of flinging arrows was dangerous to anything in front of the three. Starlight herself was having trouble staying out of their nearly random paths. Getting hit by one of those things directly must be a terrible experience if not fatal on contact. This was definitely intricately planned. Forcing Dash to to run straight for them revealed the exact position of the main command area. Were they ever really trying to hit her? Rainbow realized this too late to do anything about it and felt positively crushed inside. What else could have been done anyway? Losing her would be a great hindrance to their chances either way.

As yet, Rainbow did not have the chance to even explain what happened to drive her here. Wanting desperately to assist her beloved friends but unable to act was such a frustration. Dash looked at the wail of death sailing through the streets punching holes in everything the arrows touched. If not for the shields they would all naught but be utterly destroyed. Some few guards in the area and the command staff themselves were lending power to the shielding. There was nothing else they could do either. True escape was impossible. Starlight got lucky with quick thinking. Anyone approaching or leaving the area now would be struck immediately. No aid was coming here. All the power was needed for the shields.

From above a pegasus trio broke from a squad, attempting to affect a rescue from the air. This was proving fruitless. The moment they approached arrows would also careen up at them. The shooter was a true expert with the bow. Fast and accurate, able to calculate angles the arrows might bounce off the shields. There was just no way to pull any of them out of there at this moment. The sheer amount of arrows was ridiculous. Could there be more than one shooter out there? Only one enormously empowered presence was being sensed. The aim of this thing was so rapid and accurate it almost seemed impossible.

"Celestia, Luna. We can't do anything like this. The army can't even be given messages this way. We can't just keep standing here, can we?" Twilight yelled over the wailing horrors flying along the roads and through walls. How did they have so much power behind them? Each punch of them against the shields was enough to nearly feel.

"We can only keep the shields up. If we move everypony here will die. Trust your student and the skills you have nurtured, Twilight. We have to keep the enemies attention on us. Rainbow Dash, are you alright?" Celestia finally was able to call over to her.

"I'm alright but I can't move either, if I do they will start shooting at me again. This was a trap, I'm so sorry!" That at least clarified what was happening a little bit. It was not of any value otherwise to know. Her coming here helped them aim the arrows straight at them, that was all.

"You are at no fault. Our opponents are shrewd and taciturn. This was well timed. The execution was almost perfect. Hold your position for now. We can only wait." Luna said in a matter of fact way. This was an exercise in absolute frustration for everyone.

"You don't understand. All those other ponies were hurt because they were coming after me. I should have seen it and done something else." Rainbow felt very poorly over this turn of events. She'd let herself be herded right to where they wanted her to be. Feeling stupid like this hurt inside.

"Rainbow, no. You could not have known. It's not like that at all. This is these things fault, not yours." Twilight spoke gentle words despite holding up her own shield. The effort of fending off so many strikes was extremely tiring. This did raise her spirits somewhat.

"I..alright. Thanks, Twi." Dash was very grateful for such good friends as these. She took a deep breath. This was left to Starlight to deal with. All present could only wait and see. She was still trying to find a path to the edge of town without getting herself killed. At least the shields she put above the roads actually were proving useful already. Twilight could not have known this would happen, but the precaution was greatly appreciated at this time. This was not the benefit of foresight, just a good decision on her part. Probably not at all what Twilight was expecting when ordering her student to emplace them. It was nonetheless proving useful, just not in any imagined way.

The deadly archer was out there, somewhere. The paths and trajectories of the arrows kept changing constantly. What was it doing? Following them back to their source would not be a simple matter. This must also be part of the plan. Pin the alicorns and prevent allied forces from moving in to assist any of them or the command staff. This was a master stroke on their enemies end. It was also causing communication with the commander to be nearly impossible due to the noise. The army was left to its own devices for the moment. They could not be left rudderless for long, but if he were to attempt moving out of the shields he would be targeted immediately as well. This one was a true adept.

Their hopes were solely contingent on Starlight successfully locating the would-be assassin. No one else besides perhaps Shining Armor would stand so much as a chance of success in this. He was too far away and could not be notified of the situation quickly enough for it to matter anyway. His presence would not be determining this one.

"Oh these blasted things, where are they coming from?" Starlight thought as she searched desperately for a way to determine their origin. It was certain to be close by now. A glint, the slightest shimmer in the corner of her eye over there in the dark. Did she actually see that? It was very little to go on.

Slipping close as she dared in dim light it was beheld. An ominous armored puppet. Much larger than the usual. That has to be it. Yes, it flipped not one but three large black arrows from a quiver into orientation with the bowstring so quickly and fired, then moved. An equally black colored bow almost unnoticeable against the dull backdrop. So skilled. So that was this ones game. After every shot it moved so fast to a new position and shot once more. This was a speed Starlight could keep up with using magic, but it would not be enough. She would have to find a moment to take a shot herself. Just blasting away at this thing would not work according to what she was told. This was going to be extremely dangerous, possibly deadly for her. There was no time to get help.

Then she noticed it. Each time the quiver neared empty more of the strange arrows were teleported into it. Someone must be watching out there somewhere. She almost walked right into that. Naturally it had support. If she'd revealed herself whoever was assisting would have been at her throat instantly. Somewhere within range. You had to be able to see to do that with it constantly moving. Her decision was to find and take them out first. That would put an end to the arrow barrage for a while at least. Whatever it was would be much easier to deal with than the large monster before her.

"Sneaking around in the dark isn't my style. Never was. Come on, where are ya?" She thought to herself as she searched.

One thing she did know of war so far, supplies were important. Running out of one thing after another made that abundantly clear. Cutting this easy supply of arrows would be a great hindrance to something like that. It would have to do. She must find it without attracting the big ones attention. Taking two on at once alone would be far from ideal, especially that thing. Whatever it may be did hold awesome power, she could feel it radiating from the terrible puppet. What horror to feel. Being near it felt wrong in all possible manners. These things were far too strong. Everything taking place across the entire battlefield should be consuming an amount of energy that was unsustainable, but nonetheless they kept moving.

By her own estimation the amount of magical energy to bring down the barrier shield should have been just short of impossible to achieve without inside help. A single expertly trained mage should have had no trouble holding it up alone once emplaced, but despite this the empowerment of an entire section of them was not enough to fend off whatever struck it down. That amount of power was insane. Attempting to wield that much energy at once would destroy an entire battalion of unicorns. How was this possible? No time to consider this further right now. Somewhere very close was a thing she must succeed in destroying very shortly or her friends would die. This was all such a miserable thing to happen. Why?

Starlight must take care of this quickly, the instant she took action the large one could spin about and very easily dispatch her. She was confident in her own shields, but this was something different. Three alicorns were having difficulty fending it off. Without aid she would not last. This darkness providing cover for the enemy, provided it for her as well. It was easy to tell those arrows were exceedingly special and dangerous. Longer than the norm, surprisingly heavy and emitting some kind of mist as they were fired off. Better steer clear of that. She could tell by the volume of fire this thing meant business now. It was nothing other than a stroke of luck she managed to slip away before it got too bad for her to leave.

The supplier must be in visual range of the armored thing, which would mean if timed incorrectly the moment she took it on would give mere seconds before the hefty thing would destroy her outright. These invaders meant to do only one thing. Kill. Conflicting emotions rise inside as she prepares to risk her own life. Having made terrible mistakes in the past was one thing, but she'd never truly intended to kill anyone. That was not once her true desire. These things in front were something else. They must be stopped whatever it might cost. If that meant sacrificing herself she was fully prepared to do so. Many others were doing the same right now. Many already paid that ultimate price, without regret. She spotted it.

It was another unusual looking thing. This was once some poor unicorn now being made to serve the purpose of teleporting a stream of arrows into the quiver of the other from a huge supply wagon. It must have been hauled here in secret. There could be thousands of arrows in there. More than enough to keep shooting until it brought down the alicorns shields. Far more than enough to keep that mist spraying off of each. A horrible thought occurred to her. Were that wagon itself to be rolled into town it could cause immense trouble as well. A veritable fog of the stuff steamed into the air above and around it. That could not be allowed. Her best bet was to attack just as it went to teleport more arrows.

Now was the time to take this kind of risk. There would be no clearer moment and no better instant to make a move. Starlight needed no weapons, she was a powerful unicorn with the backing of royalty. Whatever happens next lay on her. Taking a deep breath, she struck down the supplying puppet a half second before it could resupply the large puppet. As it clattered to the ground the archer twisted in the most terrifying way straight towards her. This was it. Her death was upon her. So fast, it was nearly at her immediately. Starlight raised her most powerful shield as it struck. That single blow from a raised hoof sent her slamming into the ground. Were it not for the shield she would be dead already. It fell as she did.

Knocked unconscious in a single motion. The archer approached. It was going to crush her to death with one further stomp. Before it could, Celestia and Twilight both appeared close to her. The short break in the streams of arrows gave them just enough time to teleport themselves here. Both stood shocked by the sight of this horrendous puppet and Starlight laying there bloodied. She'd gone down so quickly. Now they could see their opponent. It wore white gilded armor. In relief were griffons. A bronze colored helm they could not see within, holes everywhere about it. Full plate mail of an unrecognized sort. Such heavy all white armor, fully trimmed in golden art suggesting good, but that black quiver and bow did not match at all. It turned to face them and paused for some reason.

"It can't be." Celestia sounded taken aback for the second time.

"Celestia, what is it? Do you know what this thing is?" Twilight dare not remove her gaze from this thing bringing so much damage along with it. Twilight realized the puppet wanted to reach the wagon there. They stood between it.

"I do. A little." Her voice was strained. This thing disturbed Celestia deeply enough to halt her a moment as well.

"You continue to claim mantles that do not belong to you? You dare pretend to be the ancient suneighrian war priest, Conflict!?" She trembled. Twilight did not know this history. It was unusual for her not to know something like this.

"Conflict? You know who this is supposed to be?" Twilight questioned.

"I do. This depicts a war monger from long ago. His ideal was totalitarianism and border expansion. He could fight, but tricked many into doing the same to each other through lies and deception instead. He was the direct cause of many wars. Always in secret. Twilight, leave this one to me. Go." She was going to take this one on alone? That was crazy.

"But.." Twilight was silenced by her.

"Your student needs medical attention, take her." Celestia faced this thing taken from mostly forgotten history.

Twilight levitated Starlight onto her back.

"Be careful." Twilight said to her dear mentor and friend. Twilight hurriedly teleported away with her protégé in tow. For a long moment the two merely stood in silence. Appraising the other perhaps. Celestia was hardly powerless. Certainly a match for any normal unicorn, but what was this thing? Everything they faced thus far contained just that little bit too much strength, or raw power it should not have. This one would be no different. Was he really in there somewhere? Could he be? A decision made now could not be retracted. Her death may be standing right there in this moment.

"I know you can hear me. Please, stop this? So many have died. You know none of them deserved to fall like this. There is no need for more. If you want me to suffer, I have! If it will end this I offer myself to you. If you ever loved me, make it end. Kill me if you want, I will not resist. Just stop this!" She pleaded towards this truly well-crafted puppet before her, tears in her eyes. She had to try. The behemoth of a puppet turned to face her straight on. Surprisingly, the voice of the king puppet rang from within. It was terrifying to see and hear. She actually felt herself tremble. Something not felt in ages. Did that mean she was overconfident? This was not the time to be second guessing herself.

"My dearest Celestia. You once again fail to miss the point. I don't need to kill you. You only need to wish you were dead." It intoned darkly. Why was he so cruel? This was not like she remembered him in any way. Why was he pretending to be the king he once served under as well?

"Why are you doing this!? Make it stop. Please stop! I cared for you, I did, I swear it." Celestia begged, but it was likely no use. She knew this, but must make the effort one more time. Was her pain being enjoyed?

"My beloved subjects are dying right now. You know this hurts me. Please..I'll do anything." She could only plead.

"Anything you say? You swear? Cared for me? What about when you swore it was possible for us to be together? What about that? I thought you loved me. Your word is worthless, as you are. I see little reason to treat with dirt. However, I give you leave to walk away from this one. You may die last, if you stand and watch your subjects be slaughtered you may see how this chapter ends before I end you." He said nothing more. Just walk away and watch them all die? How could he ask such a thing of her? No. Never. That could never happen. He would know this. Was this really just some kind of sick game to him now? There could only be one response.

"The one in the wrong here is you. I will not allow you to do this. No matter how many you take. No matter what you do to hurt me, they nor I will break. We will defeat you. Prepare for battle." She was finished talking as well. It was beyond clear now there would be no reasoning with him. Whatever his motivation or intentions, they left no room for negotiating. What could possibly have brought him to this? Was it really him? What would happen now? Taking a direct injury from this thing could be dangerous even to her. Whatever method of attack she chose, this was potentially deadly. This carried so much pain. It hurt so bad to see and hear someone that once cared for her to act this way. If it was truly him. It felt like him.

Celestia stared at this mocking thing. If it did not intend to kill her, perhaps that could be used to some advantage. At present the how of that was not apparent. If there was the slightest possibility present she must not squander it. Any second it would attack. Despite this carefully engineered monster standing before her, the wagon filled to brimming with those horrific arrows was the true danger. It must be eliminated now. This was no one prone to taking anything for granted. If she realized this, so did the enemy standing there. This time there really was no alternative. Hit it with everything she could. Prevent it from seizing the moment even if it did wind up killing her in the end. Take action. She ran forward.

An arrow went seeking only to return, wreathed about in fire and flame

Strings

The battle now close to going on for a sixth straight day has wearied the defiant protectors of the right to near breaking point. A mere few hours stands between them and Ponyville being overrun by the marching horrors that fight in the stead of their unseen masters. With them they bring terrors yet untold. Hurtling forth both insult and injury. Now poison and disease. Being struck down dead by these stalking monsters with their coated or rusted weapons is almost preferable to being wounded. Hidden in the dim distance, Celestia makes ready to stand against yet another nightmare made real. Given over to the reality that is, and should not be. This reality is his for the moment. Their true tormentors concealed in shadow with him.

Such shadows fall where light should be. Their hoofsteps tread where only dread dreams belong. This sort of power has always demanded a hefty price. How much did they pay? What deal could possibly have made all this worthwhile? The irrationality of it defies any logic applied. The bestringed bodies and constructs ranging in all manner of size and capabilities prove a stark contrast to the veritable wall of those determined in action and will to stop them. A fiery demand in the blood that this of all things, is worth dying for. A call to meet the challenge with steel and magic alike. Often together. The slightest of inaccuracies in their foes assaults giving only the tiniest hint of actual weakness. There are no heroes here.

Only soldiers and those doing what is right by throwing themselves on the line in whatever way, meager as it might be. The mightiest of blows right down to the most insignificant may tip the balance. The amount of magic being wielded has the very air nearly seeming to boil. The small skirmishes have long since ended, rising once again to a sheer onslaught of unyielding cutting murder akin to some some disturbing song played ever so slightly off-key. Something has been wrong here since the beginning and it only continues to worsen. Could all the dark in the whole world have been summoned to this singular place? This is a thought some come to ponder. What confluence of events brought this hammer down?

The overall silence of their enemy is in high contrast to the battle cries of the living. The shuffling unbroken silence of these creaking wooden constructs is beyond unnerving. At least they can be imagined to be mere machines run amok. Those whose bodies have been stolen to use in this vile manner cannot be ignored. Surely, no one actually deserved that? To be treated as mere playthings by another. If nothing else, this brings the living to a fevered anger. Someone daring to commit this kind of atrocity must be stopped. Every so often something good, grand, great and terrible happens upon this battlefield. Time refuses to tick by any faster, seeming to lock those within these moments into eternities of struggle and torment.

The intensity of battle reaches a pitch and ebbs yet again. The front line in reality only a mere defiant act. The longer their enemy is kept from this prize the more emboldened pony and allied forces feel. A distant rumbling dampens this increase in morale. What more is yet to come striking at them? The real enemy is not here. What is the real enemy? Time itself, perhaps. Each and every tiring second spent keeping this wall of destruction at bay is one more they may use to unleash something worse than all which has come before. The real nature of their foe so unknown it is baffling. The worst thought of all, what if they lose? All the death and dying may well be for naught should that fate befall them.

Twilight has found herself standing by the bedside of her own student who has been seriously injured, her head bandaged heavily and held carefully in place by bracing. She shakes her head in some form of disbelief.

"Doctor, will she be alright?" Twilight asked, very worried about her condition. He looked over charts and notes, then slightly nodded. Not the most positive reaction to receive in such a moment.

"Starlight has a very serious concussion and heavy bruising all over. From what you told me if she hadn't of been shielded her neck would've been snapped. She got extremely lucky. I don't think she'll wake for some time." He explained.

"Will she be alright?" Twilight asked a second time.

"Will any of us be?...I'm sorry..I.." He shook bodily a little.

"Doctor." Twilight said authoritatively. He looked like he snapped out of a bad dream or something.

She gave him a tight hug for a moment at which he nearly blanched, then sagged against her.

"You and everyone are doing wonderfully. Don't give up on us now. Okay?" She looked him in the eye. He coughed.

"Uh. Yes. You're right. I apologize. There's just so many.." He swallowed hard and huffed heavily.

"It's not on you to save them all, doctor. Just do your best, so the others can rest in peace. That's all I ask." She smiled at him broadly. That seemed to give him a much needed jolt of confidence. He nodded several times.

"I know I'm leaving them in good hooves." Twilight said as she turned to exit. She took a long moment looking out into the dim suffocating the entire town in false night. It was not supposed to be this way. Never ever this way. Pulling herself out of her own ill reverie she almost trotted back to where command formerly was positioned. No. Wrong way. They were forced to reposition after being nearly lost in that last attack. Somewhere out there, Twilight could feel Celestia calling on all the power she possessed. All of it.

"That can't be good." She muttered to herself, readying for whatever calamitous sequence of events was about to befall them yet again. For whatever reason, Celestia wanted to face this one alone. Did she know something about it, as Luna had with the last? Over and over this happened.

"Here we go again. Be careful, Celestia." Twilight looked in on the commander. He looked as though older than when he arrived a mere half-week ago. The poor fellow was so worn. She knew the feeling. Twilight gazed off in the direction where her former mentor was.

All around the mulberry bush..

Heart

Surrounded by stark terror in the dark, Celestia finds herself facing a once dreaded figure. Once again from myth and legend. This one a pony nearly completely forgotten to time, yet here stands his representation. Not truly him, a mere copy but probably equally if not more dangerous than the original. She thinks back to what this terrible construct represents. Is there some meaning to these choices or just picked for the sheer intimidation they carry with their names and histories? Celestia does not know the answer to these perplexing riddles. His real name of course, was not Conflict. A title picked up through the mysts of history. An armored behemoth of a pony who was a dishonorable warrior.

This did not mean he was unable to fight, quite the contrary. One did not garner a following by being unable. Master of bow and mace. A liar, backstabber, expert manipulator. A superb archer almost unmatched. Eloquent speaker. All these things he was. Surprisingly, he was not a soulless murderer. As many deaths as he caused it was always in service of his own. Celestia knew it did not make his actions forgivable, only understandable. What this entity claiming to be a once-beloved suitor had done was already leagues beyond anything the war priest had done. Spreading this kind of fear and terror was purely unbelievably vile. What she nor any other could fathom was the why of it. Did he really hate her so much?

If this was in any way her fault, it would be unbearable. There must be others working with him. This was not in doubt. Even had he the power alone, this was simply too much to manage alone. Some equal or greater evil was at work here. To what purpose was nothing to guess at. Only confronting them directly might yield those answers. In this instant, mired in doubt and stifled silence the great Celestia felt only two things. Fear, an emotion hardly ever known and disgust. A tinged feeling of regret and perhaps pity for wherever he wound up in the end. That was nothing she would ever have wished upon another. Twilight said it, that kind of immortality would be a vile prison made of torment and torture. How did he end there?

In what few words were exchanged she felt there was something there, of who she once knew. The most hurtful thought of all, could she have done anything to prevent this? Some simple thing that would have stopped this from ever blossoming into this horror surrounding her? Some means by which she could have helped him? He very clearly found something disturbing and evil in nature that granted some portion of that which he sought in life. Was there any other equivalent amongst good? Right now she could think of none. She'd done what was necessary. What she never had any choice but to do. Those decisions were made for her as surely as night falls. There was no other action to take. Destruction stood there.

A mighty construct of steeled magic and perplexingly accurate carving. No, this thing was not the archer who came to be known only as Conflict. A mere shadow of the real thing. There was no question, he would have been as insulted by this mockery as she was to see it standing there. To face that which is real would mean there was some modicum of honor there. From this there was none. This thing powerful as it might be was a pale imitation, a fraud most well perpetrated. Each of these hefty stringed monstrosities carried with it some all-consuming darkness. The cold that emanated from it was palpable and wretched feeling. Whatever pact and writ he agreed to, these things stood for all that is cold and wrong.

Celestia, detested this creation. That was the feeling. It stood there unmoving, silent as the still air. It made not one move. She knew what this was. Intimidation, and to some degree it was working. Whatever purpose this one was about, it was waiting for her to make the first move. The moment she took action. The very instant she made a move the fight would begin in earnest. Were they allowing her to prepare? It could have jumped her at any time now. Yes, for some reason it was being held back. Was this more of that sick and twisted game being played? They must want to defeat her at full power and capability. It would for them as well be a serious boost if she should fall under those circumstances.

Whoever they were, it was desired she be brought down hard as was possible. Truly demented. This was part of their plan from the beginning. While being held captive it was likely they could have killed her at any time. Luna was probably only accidentally allowed to live through that. If not for Twilight and her friends interference would her sister already lay dead? The puppet twisted it's head down to pull forth a heavy steel line connected to a bit-attached chain. A morning star. Conflict's second favorite weapon. The heavy ball slammed into the ground. It was obviously heavily enchanted and weighed a ridiculous amount. These things strength could not be denied. It was time to tackle this maddening false thing.

"I am Celestia, a princess of Equestria. I have lived through many many dreadful years. Every single time I raised the moon alone my heart felt like it was being crushed to see that reminder of what I had to do. Endlessly, over and over every year I did that, for her. Know that I would have done the same for you as well. A million times over if I had to. If it would but put an end to this madness." Celestia took a deep breathe and readied herself to attack this apparition of murder and despair incarnate. Right now at least, there would be no more words spoken.

For all a lonely life waiting, only to have love taken away

Whispers

"Everyone knows what you did." A slight feeling of a whisper went through her ears. Spitfire looked around at her squad.

"What was that?" She asked as one finished taking out yet another puppet.

"What was what?" Another responded.

"Nothing. I suppose we are all strung out and running on empty. These things never end." She said loudly enough to be heard over the din of ongoing combat. This area was one of the roughest, but that was exactly where they needed to be right now.

"All going to abandon you." She looked around nervously and held a hoof to her head. What was that?

"You alright, boss?" A junior grade lieutenant passing asked her. She shook her head a little.

"I'm fine. No worries. Have somepony go give the commander a sitrep, and get someone to take my place for a bit! I've been fighting for eighteen hours straight." She ordered. He gave her a look that did not seem to indicate good news.

"I don't know if there IS anyone that can take over, captain. I'll try." He said forlernly. This was not good.

"You see? No one cares about you." Huh? What was going on? She groaned.

"Just, get to it. Find someone, anyone. As long as they can give orders without getting anypony killed I don't care who it is." She told him.

"Yes, ma'am." He saluted. She groaned again, her head hurting a bit from such a long period of activity and battle. How long were they expected to keep going? These mockeries on the battlefield never tired. Did those controlling them never need to rest either?

"They've already given up on you." She whirled about, looking around in frustration.

"If there's someone there, come out and face me!" She watched the area intently, nothing. She held a hoof over her face.

"Ohh. My everything hurts. Especially my head. This is nonsense. Don't lose it now, Spitfire." She chided herself. It must just be the constant ring of battle and pain getting to her. Otherwise, her own personal squad was doing well. Barely a casualty in days, and they were only injured just enough to take them off the field. They'd be back. As expected of their division.

"Well, we are the best after all." She muttered. A voice startled her from the side.

"We sure are." She jumped, then looked to find Fleetfoot standing right beside her.

"Darn it all, Fleetfoot. Didn't anyone ever tell you not to sneak up on ponies? Ya almost got a buck to the muzzle!" She reprimanded.

"Hey, I know it's in my name but I wasn't that quiet. You really need a break." Fleetfoot stated flatly.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. How is the left flank holding up anyway?" Spitfire asked, curious about that section of the line.

"Not well. Did you hear about what happened with command?" Was asked in return. She knew it was bad.

"I did. At least they survived the assault. I don't know who would replace our field commander, and I really like this one. He is really good." Spitfire was very impressed with how well he'd handled things so far.

"He doesn't care about you. No one does." Spitfire thought she heard something again.

"This is gonna sound really strange, Fleetfoot. Did you..hear anything lately? Like someone whispering or something?" She had to ask. Fleetfoot looked a bit taken aback.

"You sure you're feeling okay, captain?" Fleetfoot's battle gear was seriously damaged. So she hadn't.

"How many times am I gonna be asked that today? I'm fine. Shouldn't you be going and rekitting or something?" Spitfire was getting a bit unnerved and she did not like that at all.

"Yeah, I'm off. Took a pretty hard knock back there, and I think..one of my leg joints might be injured. I can't tell." She did look pretty beat up. That could be bad for them.

"Get over to the docs and have that checked out, but get back here double-quick! I dont care if you have to take a cartload of painkillers! I can't be without some of my best flyers." She ordered. Spitfire really was confident, but worried.

"Again." Fleetfoot said.

"What?" Spitfire thought she heard her say something.

"Nothing. I just haven't been this beat up since the academy trials! I'm off." Fleetfoot could still fly right at least.

"Ohh. My head." Spitfire held both forehooves up to her temples.

"Captain." Somepony called.

"Oh, what now? And where is that replacement!?" She'd never been this jittery before in her life, and huffed heavily.

"What is it? No one better have got killed on my watch!" She called back to the crystal paladin approaching her.

"No, we're okay..for the moment. Shining Armor thought it would be best to update you on the situation." Oh, goody.

"Alright, out with it already." Spitfire felt herself getting rather perturbed as she tried to calm herself down.

"All crystal paladins were deployed along the front line. Some ground squads were nearly and in one case completely wiped out by the time we arrived I'm afraid. I'm sorry." He explained. She couldn't help but think this was one hefty pony before her. He was one of the few crystal paladins wearing a somewhat lighter set of armor. Probably didn't have time to get fitted properly.

"They did what they had to do, soldier. Like we all have to." She said as he nodded in agreement.

"Our situation is grim, and we are fighting an enemy that has no feelings. They can't be injured, only slowed and stopped. Unless the princesses come up with something, this is a losing battle. I can see it." Spitfire stated factually. He looked upset.

"Honestly, I agree but could you be a little more upbeat? We need optimism here." He said authoritatively. She was impressed.

"Soldier, I apologize. I've been run ragged for almost a full day now. You're right. We can't give up. Get back to it." They saluted each other and he took off at as fast a pace as his armor would allow.

"They don't care." Gah! She bopped herself in the head. Stop it. Stop it! The lieutenant was finally coming back with another in tow.

"Found somebody fresh!" He called. She instantly felt better. Huh?

"Oh, thank goodness." She gave the new captain a quick rundown on how things were going and the situation, leaving the field feeling better already.

What shadows tell be truth or lie,

What lay behind to make do or die?

Drumbeat

Hearts pounding in their chests as the fight drags on leaves the ponies battling for their very world right on the brink of the abyss. The addition of crystal paladin reinforcements came at a most opportune moment, but will it be enough to stave off their ultimate destruction? Each royal guard and everyone else in battle knows this is when it counts. When every living thing may succumb to the encroaching darkness should they fall here. Each new surprise riddled with horror makes for disheartening moments. Despite battling furiously many lay dead amid this enforced catastrophe. Applejack looked around.

"Pinks, this is awful. Never in all my days did I ever dream of something so bad." She said sorrowfully and huffed.

"Things are bad right now, but we have to keep fighting right? They're counting on us." Pinkie waved a hoof at the squads fighting all about, engaged with these wooden and walking menaces.

"Puppets are supposed to be toys, things of fun and merriment, not weapons. This is disgusting. How could they do this to anypony?" Applejack was near the edge of tears and had a large scratch down her left side that still ached. Pinkie somehow remained unwounded despite being in the middle of an absolute barrage of swinging deadly steel earlier that day. The strung up corpses slashing and killing were the worst of all to see and take on. Those were ponies or other living things once.

"Are you alright? You look hurt." Pinkie Pie said dully, not sounding at all like her usual self.

"It's just a scratch." Applejack got lucky earlier. A misplaced hoofstep actually saved her from being hit by an obviously poisoned blade.

"Only hurt mah pride." Applejack winced thinking about what almost happened.

"You should be more careful. Everyone is getting worn down and not in the good way." Pinkie really sounded off.

"Ah'm not sure what's worse. Seeing these things or fightin'em. It really makes ma'h blood boil." Applejack hated this.

It could be heard in her voice. She knew she was just a farmer who'd slowly wound up taking on many smaller and even very large evils in the world alongside her friends, but this was something different. Painful in all sorts of ways.

"This is all wrong, Pinkie. We've gotta stop'em. We've just gotta." Applejack let slip a few tears.

"Boiling blood sounds terribly painful, you should take a break!" Pinkie quipped. Applejack snorted and laughed heavily.

"Pinks..you...nevermind. Haha. Never change, ya hear?" Applejack prepared to take on no less than her seventh opponent in the last hour. This particular puppet got separated by other squads and was alone. It would be no match.

It did not take very long to cut those strings and down it went, smashed to pieces.

"Why ya think some'o'these are so weak? Not a lot of them sure..but it just seems weird ya know?" Applejack mentioned. It did seem a bit of an oddity with them surrounded by so many much stronger constructs of wood and even some with metal plating in places.

"Who knows? This is all crazytastical." Pinkie Pie did not even look like herself lately. Highly focused, using all that inherent earth pony strength to great advantage where possible.

"Ya know that's not a word, right?" Applejack said, breathing heavily after smashing yet another of these creaking terrors. Wherever they'd gone to assist so far the guards met them with appreciation of their presence and fought all the harder.

"Can you think of a better word to describe..this?" Pinkie asked of her. She thought a long moment, rubbing a hoof under her chin.

"Ah..no, no ah can not Pinks. I think these fellas can take care of it here for now. Let's move on." Applejack suggested. Pinkie nodded.

"Sure hope the others are doin' alright. Heard it got pretty bad for a bit there." Even Applejack was starting to feel tired.

"I ain't been run this ragged in years." She passingly mentioned. Suddenly she started crying in earnest.

"A.J.!?" Pinkie helped steady her from stumbling.

"Sorry, Pinkie. I just started thinking about all those poor ponies in Canterlot and what's been done to them and if that had happened to my own kin.." It took a few moments to compose herself. It was just too much. All the death surrounding them and the ongoing battle with no end in sight. So much pain and sorrow. A lot of ponies fell here.

"Applejack. You must take a break. We can't help anypony if we're falling apart ourselves, right?" Pinkie sounded super serious now.

"I guess yer right, Pinks. Been at it too long. Just hate to leave these good ponies alone. No one should die like this, not all by themselves. Not alone." Applejack inhaled deeply. One of the passing guards overheard this and paused.

"Miss, I sure do appreciate that. We are royal guards, and will do our duty to the last. That is what I vowed, and that is what I will do. I promise you that every one of us feels the same. I'll tell the others what you said. I know they'll appreciate it too. Go get rested up." The guard saluted them and hurried on.

"Pinkie, we aren't soldiers. Why do they all trust us so much to do the right thing by them? What if we mess up? We could get them all killed, but they fight so hard in our names." Applejack could hardly believe where she was right now or all the terrible things happening. It was like a surreal dream brought forth into stark reality somehow.

"Twilight has always tried to do the right thing, and messed up too. So have Celestia, and Luna. We can only try, Applejack. You know that. Come on, let's go get you some downtime. I could use some myself." Pinkie helped her friend along. There could be any amount of fighting left to do. Even the strongest needed rest from time to time.

"Glad to know ya, Pinks." Applejack walked slowly. Both really were exhausted.

In defense of hearth and home, are not all as soldiers

Of Fear

Look to the left or right in this spectacularly silent battle and you will definitely find one thing etched on all living combatants faces. Fear of pain, of injury, of death. Here they fight for their very lives along with every other. The other definite fact displayed in their emotions, determination to see this through no matter how it will end. To the very last breath and drop of life many have already fought and given everything in their effort to halt this unparalleled plague unleashed upon them. From limbs to life they fight and fall, some never to move again. Those haunting disconcerted visions of the formerly living somehow worse still as they scramble about to bring only murder with them.

"Captain, for every puppet we destroy three more seem to take its place. We have already lost twenty-three crystal paladins and thirty-four are critically injured. This is hopeless." Shining Armors own lieutenant was reporting.

"No." Was his only response. The lieutenant shook his head.

"Sir?" He did not understand what he meant by that at all.

"We will fight them down every inch of every road in Ponyville if we have to, lieutenant. I will not give this evil the satisfaction of an easy victory even if I must hold off their entire army by myself." He said oddly confidently.

The lieutenant looked to him in awe as he spoke those words.

"Sir, I wish I was so sure of myself." He said as Shining looked over to him. The lieutenant knew he was a very powerful unicorn and knew he would be no match for him by any stretch.

"Don't waste wishes lieutenant. You are under my command, which means you earned your way here. Never forget how far you've already come. If you must wish for something, wish for all this death to end." Shining returned to surveying the battlefield. Monsters were on the very verge of entering Ponyville. One slip now and they would be engaged in the streets.

"Yes, sir. I am worried about princess Celestia though, can she really survive taking on one of those things alone? I don't doubt she is strong, but those ones are real monsters. According to reports princess Luna almost died engaging the last one." He was clearly very concerned for her safety. Shining Armor nodded.

"A real war against a truly powerful enemy is something I never expected. I just wanted to live out the rest of my life in peace after everything. This is simply cruel. I do not understand why anypony would want to torment either of them like this." Shining could only guess how this all made the other royals feel, but it must be worse than anything he could imagine.

"Besides the obvious, how are the main forces faring?" Shining requested an overall update.

"Since we arrived casualties have been reduced, but they were nearing exhaustion long before we got here. Overall battle power is up but things are not looking good. The enemy adapted strategies for heavy armor very rapidly. If we hadn't spent time enchanting the suits I think we would have lost a full third of the force already." This statement drew a thin sigh from Shining.

"Then it was the right decision to delay. We serve no further good dead." He was right about that.

"On a brighter note, Rainbow Dash is back in the fight and her presence is definitely encouraging morale to remain up. Losing near half of Soarin's squad and him was a really bad blow. Word on their condition is no improvement so they will not be back in this. The others were reassigned to complimenting units." The lieutenant took a deep breath and continued to view the battlefield as well through specialized binoculars. He gasped deeply, prompting Shining Armor to look over in the same direction quickly.

"Lieutenant, where?"

"Oh no no, no no no no...." The lieutenant sounded horrified as he stumbled back a couple steps. Shining slapped him on the flank of his armor making a clanking sound.

"Lieutenant, get hold of yourself. Where?" He said more deeply.

"Sir, y..yes, squad fours position." The lieutenant was shocked back to reality.

"They never said..this is no good. Lieutenant, inform the messenger. Go, quickly." They saluted each other and the lieutenant galloped off. This was a truly unexpected development the entire front line needed to be made aware of.

He looked on in disbelief through his own set of enhanced binoculars. There in the distance, topping a rise came a most distressing and disconcerting sight to behold. Slowly, almost agonizingly sluggishly a huge puppeted draconic skeleton was clattering along. It was only just now coming into vision range. In mere moments it would be engaging squad four and likely swipe them aside like one might tear through tissue paper. Even if it brought no skills at all to the fight, this was a terrible opponent to suddenly be set upon them. The thought came to him that this was likely purposely timed. One of the three alicorns was already beset by some deadly thing and now this. It was likely not coincidental. He quivered a little bit.

Pony and allied forces had little left to combat this thing with, save sheer willpower to do so. Twilight was ordered to stay out of the battle until there was absolutely no choice but for her to enter it. Luna was soon made aware of the dragons approach and made her decision.

"I shall assist our forces." She turned to leave as Twilight halted her a moment.

"I won't try to stop you, but you're hurt. I know you're strong and skilled. I know that. Please be careful." Twilight could barely stand any of this situation. Luna swished her tail.

"Your concern is most appreciated." Luna said as she prepared to take off, looking to her personal guards.

"Come, my night guards. It is time for us to join battle once more and away." She launched herself into the air, heading straight for Shining Armor followed in quick procession by them.

A pitiless beast takes center stage, solely to bring carnage and rage.

Precipice

In the diluted light of Equestria, the sun unable to break through as ponies fight for their very right to exist there lies only one certainty; those abominable constructions heretofore unknown are about to smash into them once more with a great ferocity never before seen. A draconic puppet bearing down on them inexorably as if slow doom itself was awakened and provoked into some violently wild action. Its approach is felt so much as seen. It must once have been a huge dragon. Perhaps, the largest ever recorded. Silent as they all are, it is so heavy the landings of its striding along cause the very ground to tremor as though in disbelief itself what is walking upon it. It's expression forever frozen into a wicked betoothed grimace.

"My heavens, we have to take on that thing?" One of the many unicorns serving in the ranks under Shining Armor commented among the many standing gathered around a squad captain.

"I believe there was a name for such a thing once. A story. I think it was..Lich. Never thought I would see one in my entire life." Another responded. There were so many fighting, few knew the others names alongside them.

"Where magic is concerned so many things are possible, but this is..I don't know what to make of all this." The captain of squad four was nervous about this, as they all would be. This was going to be an epic challenge to overcome alive.

"Messenger tells me as many squads as can be pulled will be backing us up for dealing with that monster over there, and that a prince will be fighting with us! Now, if that thing enters the town there really will be nothing left of it. Should this happen, we will not cease fighting. There is no point in retreating. I want you all to know I am honored to fight alongside you, and would be equally honored to fall with any one of you. Prepare yourselves as best you can. We have a little while before it arrives. Fight hard, fight well. I hope to see you all again." The captain waved them all off with a salute that was returned.

"Private, you're new to the guard yes? And open that helm." He asked of a decently heavy unicorn mare assigned to his squad to cover for a casualty.

"Sorry, sir. Yes, sir. Only been serving the court a week when Canterlot got hit." The slightly shaky looking mare replied as she opened the helmet. She was wearing some of the better armor. This was surprising.

"Try and relax a little. Trust your training, your equipment and yourself. I know you will do well, got it?" He said as though it were an indisputable fact.

"Sir, thank you sir. I won't let you down." She looked more ready to tackle this now.

"You bet you won't or I will never let you live it down. We are royal guards and you will not disappoint me. That is an order." He commanded. Couldn't let them off too easy.

"Never, sir." She replied. That sounded more like it. Ready to fight and confident in their ability to win even with the odds stacked as they were at the moment.

"What level of magic training did you make it to? I know they don't give out those heavy sets to just anypony." The captain was curious about their new addition. That was some of the heaviest armor that existed.

"Level..seven, sir." She said, sounding much less nervous now.

"Seven? I am sufficiently impressed, private. Most of the recruits pass out trying to make that rating. How many times?" He really wanted to know now. This was a great addition to the squad.

"Four times. Almost got a record I'm told." This unicorn was an unusual specimen. Strong enough to wear heavier armor and mentally disciplined to the degree of having a very high magic rating. Like himself.

"You passed after only four? Took me eight tries. You really better do us proud, soldier. Haha. All joking aside, you'd best be ready to use all of that. We can all see there is a mountain of pain heading our way and have to play it to the hilt. There is a dragon coming straight at us, and we are going to take it down. Right?" The captain was very encouraging. The private nodded. Good.

"Yes, sir. Just, we are really going up against a dragon. Well, something that looks like one anyway. This is going to be really bad isn't it?" She was correct about that. Every single step of it could be felt getting closer to their location. Any moment now they would be engaged in the fight of their lives against an enormous opponent. In the distance what counted as the things eyes glowed an eerie emerald green on high. It was truly frightening to contemplate.

"You're dang right it is. We don't know if this thing has any special powers or is just huge. I won't lie to you, private. A bunch of us are likely going to die here. Try not to be one of them, alright?" The captain hated putting young lives in mortal danger, but would do what was necessary.

"Whatever you say, sir." The mare looked off to the approaching threat. This puppet was truly immense. It could probably flatten the entirety of Ponyville in mere moments if given the chance.

"Big, isn't it?" The captain half-joked.

"I've wanted to meet a dragon for a long time, but not like this." The mare mentioned.

"Well, we can't always get what we want, private. Tell you what, if we survive this I will personally make sure you meet a friendly one. How's that sound?" He offered.

"Really, sir, you mean that?" She was surprised.

"Consider it a prize for living through this. Get ready, there goes the signal. It has begun." Squad fours captain took a deep breath.

Respect for all the dragon's teeth and treat, lest pierce and pain you shall quickly meet

Specter

The looming draconic puppet silhouetted on the dark horizon almost inches closer. The enormous bulk of this skeletal abomination makes the very ground tremble as though in fear of it with each lurching step forward. A motion most disturbing. Such adornment, a mass of ethereal cables holding it aloft. The remains of wings spread wide adding to the considerable size of the monster before them. Royal guards look on in terror as it nears. Fear is wielded as if a weapon itself by their as yet unseen adversaries. There must be more than the strange king puppet alone. There is far too much in action and vastly more power employed than any single creature could ever possibly control. Luna approaches from afar.

"Princess Luna, we weren't expecting you to be joining us for the attack. Can't say I'm not glad you're here. Look at the size of that thing. Do we stand a chance?" One of the squad captains welcomed her with a bow.

"There is no need for formalities right now, loyal subject. In this we are all equals. Pray tell, what is thy plan of action?" She inquired of him. He took her to a hastily scrawled planning map being studied by numerous squads.

"Are you certain about this, is there no other way?" Her night guard captain questioned. This looked suicidal.

"There isn't. As expected, it is not a normal puppet. A few test spells cast at it confirm this." Was the response.

"It proves more resistant than the others. We will just have to hit it harder. Captain, we shall all be risking our lives. I assume you are up to the task." Luna made it sound simple. The night guards captain merely saluted confidently.

"Very well. All of you, I am honored to head into battle alongside such brave souls. I see Shining Armor has apportioned his forces expertly. Remember what you are fighting for, and most of all who. As well, the legacy of your ancestors who have stood before you. The world is entrusted to us and we will defend it to our last breaths if need be. If pain is visited upon you then turn it back upon the enemy with all your might. I bid you not hold anything back." Luna exuded power and confidence.

Her presence lent much needed steeling to willpower worn thin from this brutality and endless din of echoing combat. The amount of puppets seeming nearly unlimited. Did they truly never end?

"Estimations given by Twilight suggest we must hold out a whole two more days. That is, if we can destroy that thing out there without losing too many. This seems impossible. Even if we were at full strength I'm not sure we can last that long. We just don't have that many guards." Shining Armor came up behind Luna and said this calmly.

"Ah, there you are. They will have to suffice, but there is something wrong. I sense something else is here." She said darkly.

"Something else? We could really do with no more surprises right now." Shining looked tired, but not exhausted. He must have gotten at least some rest.

"Odd reports have been filtering in off and on from a lot of squads about whispering voices trying to convince them to either turn on each other, that they are bad ponies, or far worse." One of Lunas tactical advisers explained. Shining Armor looked very concerned by this new.

"We have mixed forces of all sorts here. Having them turn on themselves would doom us." The worry in his voice was evident.

"Fear not. We must not give into that for any reason. I am certain each and everyone here knows we are just barely standing up to this withering siege. Keep your wits and bravery about you for we are supported by good friends all round. Make it be enough." Luna was very good at being motivational and uplifting when she wanted to be. Her standing there in that restored regalia glinting and gleaming even in the dull light was most impressive. Somewhere out amongst the battle a massive flash of light split the darkness for a half-moment. Almost lost in the chaotic scene unfolding everywhere. Luna stumbled slightly. Something that he barely registered.

"Are you going to be okay, Luna?" Shining Armor only knew something just happened. Luna turned her head to look off into the distance a moment before replying.

"We are quite well. Legs are not required for flying. You best take up your position. That behemoth will soon be upon us." She bid him go. He headed off with several squads trailing.

"Sister.." She whispered to herself. Several of the night guard were lining up behind her, expectantly awaiting the order.

"Your majesty, all night guard not otherwise engaged have arrived. They make for two full squads." A lieutenant informed her.

Very good. Surprisingly more than expected still survived. Something to be quite proud of. She turned to address them.

"You have done well. Now, a true challenge lay right in front of us. As you all can see our enemies believe merely being much larger than us will prove our undoing. That great bulk of a former dragon is no consequence for us. Let us prove the direct opposite of what they believe. Your princess stands with you, and calls on you to stand with her." She finished her little speech as an attack signal flare was launched. The fight with the dragon was about to begin. All night guard present raised their wings as she raised a hoof and motioned forward. A truly impressive sight as they took off in waves.

All heading straight for that massive skeleton in concert with supporting ground forces. This would surely be a turning point in the battle. No less than two major engagements were happening at once. The thought bothered Luna that perhaps there was actually a third occurring, somewhere. She could not afford to be distracted by such thoughts at the moment and set it aside as she flew into the air.

Flicker and whicker, hither and yon, all to be left wondering what is going on

Switchflip

"Something isn't right about this." Luna was saying to Shining Armor, surveying the chaotic scene of both ground and pegasi forces attempting to surround and destroy the gigantic draconic figure before them.

"Nothing has been right since this started." Shining retorted, to which Luna replied coldly;

"Don't you see it?" She stated like something should be immediately obvious. What it was eluded him, but the wording made him feel cold inside as he looked over to her for an explanation.

"It's eyes." She motioned a hoof for him to watch the actions of the draconic skeleton for a moment. His expression darkened.

"No. You're telling me that thing is not just being controlled but can act of its own volition!? How? Oh no, this plan won't work. We have to pull our troops back!" He started yelling out commands to be relayed.

"We realized too late." Luna spoke calmly as she tried to shield as many she could handle while one of the immense skeletal wings suddenly swept to the side in an arc and smashed into numerous flyers sending many crashing hard to the ground as well as multiple engaging unicorns flinging off in every direction. A great deal of them did not move again. At least one quarter of a full squad was killed in that single movement. This thing was even more devastating than expected.

"Lieutenant, launch retreat and regroup flares now!" Shining ordered. It was immediately obeyed. Squads in every direction were in disarray except for those surrounding to keep other puppeted dead from supporting the massive creature. Their battle plans were rendered useless instantly by the revelation this was not a mere puppet but something more. Somehow, this one held a dire intelligence. What did this mean? Luna could see his confusion.

"Pity this poor thing, prince." She intimated. What? Pity this killing machine? Had Luna gone totally mad?

"What are you talking about? It is murder incarnate!" He was so very angry. She shook her head solemnly.

"It is a prisoner bound to the will of another for who knows how long before it was unleashed upon us. This soul must be tormented beyond our comprehension. This former lover of our dear sister has made some grave pact and forced the true dead to his bidding here. It is no mere puppet, but the undead which stands in front of us." Luna could be heard to be far more angry than him about this fact. A revelation that made his mind reel. This dragon was an actual lich, but imprisoned? How much more insanity was going to be set loose here? He gritted his teeth as it slowly strode ever closer. Now what?

"Princess, what..can we do against such power?" Shining Armor nearly cried as he spoke of this prisoner.

"The only thing we can do, summon every unicorn in the ranks with any kind of healing spell no matter how insignificant. All of them, they will be needed to finish this." Luna bid him.

"How is that going to help us?" The prince of the crystal empire was extremely uncertain about this course of action.

"We shall set things aright with this one and free the soul trapped within that unworldly abomination. I suspect the fact it is a lich was not of their own doing either. Few to none would make such a decision knowing what awaited them." The expression she wore on her muzzle was a mix of anger and deep sadness difficult to copy or fathom.

"Have two squads break off and continue harassing the cables while we prepare." Luna commanded and he listened. She was certainly no slouch to have noticed so soon and not one to ever take lightly if her intent was serious.

"That blow to our forces should have been much more powerful. It is resisting. We may have occasion for turning this to our further advantage and we must not squander it. Messenger!" She called over to a personal night guard.

"We are still likely to take heavy losses by this action. Relay the situation to the field commander with all haste. They may have to make do with less of us." It was said in a simple matter-of-fact way, but the guard hesitated momentarily.

"My princess, should you fall my place is beside you." It was understandable she did not want to abandon Luna to her fate. Luna placed a hoof on her shoulder, she could tell it was needed.

"Princess, you honor me." The guard stammered out.

"Listen well. Legends are predicated on the actions of all, not one. Your service to me is already writ upon the sands of time. Fear nothing, and carry this legend aloft on swift wings. Whatever happens, we shall meet again. Now, show me the true resolve of my night guard." Luna removed her hoof from the guard as she turned and bolted at speed to leap into the air.

Luna watched a moment as the mare flew out of sight at great pace, hopefully to return and find all well.

"Impressive, as it should be." She returned her attention to the battle. The skirting units were holding off other puppets quite expertly. The bulk of the crystal paladins were elites, relying on the rest for support. Keeping the other puppets away from the enormous hulking figure was a priority. They could not afford to be swarmed while at the same time dealing with such a powerful opponent. The power on display was impressive. The mass of ethereal cables holding this one were in huge array. Clearly meant to keep it under control. There may even be more than one other controlling something this strong.

"It has cast no spells. It may prove it cannot be made to do so. A slight bit of fortune to us. Captain, to me." She looked to her night guard captain and he stood forth.

"Ready for orders, princess." He saluted.

"In a random pattern, focus all efforts on destroying the cables attached to the head. I feel the bulk of it's power resides in the body. If we can diminish their control over the entombed soul.." Luna trailed off a little.

"I understand. We fly." He saluted once more. The entire group followed Lunas lead and took off.

An aberrant soul strides forth upon the soil, placed there to tarnish and spoil

Celestial Providence

The sound of battle still resounds across the outskirts of Ponyville, a terrible punctuation to the screams occasionally joining the clang of ringing weapons striking at the seemingly countless amount of constructs still marching on the slowly weakening defensive forces. Across the distance communication is only facilitated by messengers speeding along with all their might to and fro. At this moment, Twilight stands in awe of the message given her by the rapidly departing lunar guard. Her brother taking on a dragon of old stories, a nightmarish creation forcibly made of a once living thing. She could but hope he would survive such a battle, or any of his contingent. Out there somewhere, Celestia chose to face another horror alone.

She can sense and feel the immense energies being wielded by both. It must be terribly intense. That level of spells and magic is rarely if ever needed or used. Only on the rarest of occasions would it be called for. The tempestuous nature of this absurd battle is evident in every major skirmish thus far. Every strand of fur on her neck stands on end just sensing it all. There are so many unicorns on both sides wielding magic it is actually making it difficult to tell either side apart at a distance. For the slightest moment she notes from reports that pegasi ranger forces have been put under increasing pressure to assist other units across the entire diminishing front. Much of the fighting now mere hoofsteps outside the town. She could only hope her mentor was having better luck.

There he stood before her, Conflict. Harbinger of war and malice. No, not Conflict. No, a deceiver himself being played by another. Celestia could only ponder on this cruel irony a moment. That weapon it wielded was definitely no joke. Where the heavily enchanted flails head landed was smoldering from mere contact. Not from heat, the weapon emitted an extreme icy chill. What was this thing? Likely not as powerful as the scythe from before, but still more dangerous than almost anything she ever faced before. A strike against the shield she surrounded herself with would likely still be dangerous to encounter. It was obvious as she chose to remain that this time he would do his utmost to destroy her. One final gesture then.

"I have something to say before this goes any further; I don't know what drove you to this, but I never stopped loving you. And, I want you to know..I forgive you." Celestia stood facing this deranged creation. Was that the slightest shudder that went through it just now? It was very difficult to tell in what little light could seep through the oppressive gloom all about.

"You forgive me!? Hypocritical harlot. Have you no notion of your own faults, the miseries you happily inflict on your own subjects!? Die!" The voice ringing out from within it sounded enraged beyond measure. This made little sense, and was certainly far from what she could have expected from him. If it well and truly was him at all. It swung that massive weapon.

Barely stepping back in an instant the morning star smashed into the ground with such tremendous force she could feel it exert some force against the shield. From that far away? The ground upended around it, frozen? Frost fell off?

"It's fast!" She just registered and was forced to dodge once more. Whoever or whatever controlled it was clearly practiced and knew how to use this type of weapon effectively. Even as it was jerked away by the thing turning its muzzle upward the spikes passed by her a little too closely despite her shields. It was smooth and effortless in action.

"He wastes no effort on pointless attacks." Celestia noted while firing off an energy bolt from her horn straight on.

That did not work as anticipated. This insane simulacra or whatever they truly were matched her move with the weapon itself, the shaft attached to the chain absorbed the beam? Almost as quickly it was shot back out of the tip of the spikes in her direction. She let herself hit the ground to avoid being struck and rolled rapidly to the side as that wicked spiked ball just flew past her head, slightly deflected by her shield. It hurt even at that. It left a scratch down her right cheek. That was too close already. So easily it could reach through her defenses? What power these things bore with them. If not greater, at least equal to anything she could imagine. That cut stung a little more than it should, not a good sign. Poisoned? No, something else.

Already back on her hooves she now knew better than to take any action that would result in her own energy being redirected at her. Was that his strategy with this? It was a strong defense. Attacking it could result in killing herself, a satisfaction she held no desire to grant. The illusion of the pony called Conflict before her may have been a cruel purveyor of lies, but he just as the one behind this thing was honorable in battle. He would never resort to something so crude as poison in a duel, it was not his way in life and surely not in this unlife he seemed to be master of? Already that awful steel ball of cold and destruction flung at her again, forcing a retreat. Keeping distance from this thing would not offer safety for long.

Celestia knew just as her opponent they were probing each other for weaknesses. So far it presented little to none. Fast to react and clearly well trained in the art of melee combat. Every time it moved was calculated and swift, leaving little opening to cause any real damage to those horrid cables hovering above it. The wagon full of those horrendous arrows emitted a haze just above it. It must not be allowed to fire off any more of those, or worse perhaps push the entire thing into the town. No other troops were near enough to assist, nor likely able to even if they were. This was far too powerful for most. What willful insanity brought all this down upon the once peaceful countryside? She must act quickly against this madness.

Simply flying away from this thing would provide no opening. It was too fast to react and too quick to attack at distance. Preparing herself for what might very well be the battle to end her life she sized up her enemy. She wanted to end this quickly as she might. Giving too much time might allow the thing to destroy her much too easily. Moving back just far enough to way to have a precious few seconds to think up a plan was all she would be afforded. One thing that could not be allowed was letting that thing reach the wagon and use arrows. As an archer it was known to be vastly destructive. She knew what must be done and drew a deep breath.

"I have no choice, I must protect them from this no matter the cost. There is only one way." Celestia thought to herself, then using her horn formed a two-ended axe made of pure energy which glowed a piercing bright white. If she could not attack indirectly then she must fight in true close combat fashion. As she could not possibly bring her full true power to bear on this thing it really was the only method. It was unlikely it could absorb her energy this way, at least if she avoided contact with the main body of that terrible weapon. Hopefully before it could plan a new strategy to deal with her she went on the offensive, trying to match its swing. So fast and powerful. The axe contacted with the spiked ball and both hissed wildly.

If the flail was icy, the axe was the hottest of fire. Both ends flickered with a majestic blue flame suggesting the most powerful fire imaginable. Celestia was taking a terrific gamble stepping into a melee with such a powerful creation. The puppet was prepared already. He must have guessed her approach. Not a good start to her plan. No matter. Following through with what she set in motion was too important. Losing here would almost certainly ensure the deaths of hundreds then thousands more to who knew what end? This string of madness must be brought to account, whatever it took to achieve that. If this was truly who she once loved there was little to nothing left of him or his attitude towards life.

Their fight began in earnest as Celestia chose to strike again and again. This vile puppet despite being heavily armored was more then capable of unusually agile and smooth movement. Was the armor less heavy than it looked or something else? For all she knew it might be nothing more than decoration. Something to add a more intimidating air perhaps. Even were that so, it moved fluidly as it clicked and clattered. The only sounds heard thereon were of their battle. A distressingly silent affair as with the rest except when their respective weapons struck one another. This was not going as hoped. It was too deft. The one behind it must know the intricacies of fighting in heavy armor as well. This was maddening.

Forming chunks of ice fell off as it steamed against the striking hot axe, sending the spiked ball almost right back at the heavy puppet. At the last moment it moved just slightly enough to regain control of the spinning ball of death and reversed the trajectory around behind above its own head straight back at her. So he knew how to handle even that. Sidestepping that wheeling engine of destruction while controlling it she spun the axe in an attempt to throw the morning star from its muzzle but failed as it spun itself around in turn to avoid losing grip. This melee was getting more and more intense as each struck and swung only to be deflected in turn until what one might view as some disturbing dance was taking place between them.

On they fought. Any other viewing this would see a most perplexing sight of Celestia and a large armored puppet waltzing about hammering at each other in some timeless moment of devastation. They wheeled and parried, knocking away each others heaviest blows as one might brush some hapless insect off. Such a sight could only instill both fear and respect. The increasingly jarring confrontation between them reaching a level and height very few could ever hope to master or survive. Celestia chose this course of action and was now thoroughly committed to it. She could not flee even if she wanted to, it would result only in her death. The puppet fought back in single-minded fashion.

Were anypony near they would have fled in terror, not just from the puppet but Celestia as well. A wild look was starting to reveal itself in her eyes the longer they clashed. Right now she looked less like the beloved princess everyone knew and more like some slashing wild lunatic brandishing that flaming axe ahead of her. Only skill and determination to live were keeping her on task. The true weight of this battle was becoming apparent. The energies of their weapons sparking and throwing off waves from the opposing enchantments. It was relentless, so she must be as well to stand a chance. Making any real mistake would be enough to send her flying now. How strong could these things actually be? The flail was so heavy.

Rarely had Celestia ever fought like this and in such close proximity, but she knew her guards well and watched them training often. A few times having a trainer instruct her on the finer points of dueling. On her own she would at rare times occasionally engage in mock battles just such as this to test herself. Never on this level or near to such intensity. By now adrenaline and sheer will to stop this thing were keeping her motions sharp and reflexes keen to avoid being skewered or flattened. There was an awful power in that flail that could be sensed this close. Dark and cold, nearly a black chasm of emptiness in how it felt. Freezing cold. This was a cold she never felt, not even the icy north compared in depth.

Every countered attack sent puffs of hissing cold pellets flinging about them. At first she worried those may prove to be some sort of weapon themselves, but seemed only to be a byproduct of their battle. Being impaled on one of those cruel spikes would be a fate most terrifying. They were matched so evenly none could have guessed the outcome of what lay ahead. She was remaining calm and collected throughout. So far at least. Caving in to panic would prove to be an instant loss. Both continued this death-defying whirlwind of a tussle. Celestia thus far could not land a single strike on the puppet itself or the eerie control cables above. Even now she could not gather how they actually worked.

Steam and forming icy pellets flew off the flail each time it contacted her blazing axe. How strange to be fighting what was nothing more than an empty shell controlled from afar, but it still felt personal. Whatever grudge her once beloved bore against her, it drove him to commit unspeakably horrible acts. How could he go this far? Again and again they clashed as energies rippled between their respective weapons. She absolutely must not contact the shaft of that thing with her axe or perhaps have its blade turned on herself. Circling in this horrid dance of death gave precious little time to think or maneuver, but something was giving. No one fights to perfection forever, its swings were becoming more aggressive and wild.

Despite the frenetic action, this was painfully slow going for Celestia. Any hope of ending this rapidly was long gone after it showed just how deftly it could handle her attacks. If anything they were nearly at a stalemate in terms of destroying each other. Though both were fighting ferociously neither appeared to be gaining any advantage to this point. If only there were some other way of dealing with it, but there was nothing. She could only continue risking life and limb in an effort to finally find some real weakness. There must be something. Anything. As both continued to hammer at each other their weapons were throwing up an increasing miasma of steam and ice. Perhaps she could set the puppet on fire if a hit could land.

Possibly becoming impatient to land a serious blow it was taking slightly more risks as it swung and whipped the deadly weapon about. She'd already been cut once. All this exertion was making blood run down and drip off her muzzle as she fought, desperate to destroy this menace. Finally, an opening, but not what it was likely expecting. Step by precious step while risking herself this way she'd been able to position herself almost immediately in front of the arrow wagon. At last, a chance came as it attempted to land a killing blow upon her, her opponent did not realize the error until too late for prevention. Celestia chose to knock the dangerous ball into the ground as she fired a bolt from her horn at the same time.

Standing in front of the puppet she fired directly at the shaft, knowing what would happen she leaped aside as it struck, the huge reversed blast coming directly out of the spikes struck straight through the wagon in its entirety, reducing it to little more than smoldering wreckage. For a slight moment, it did not react. The controller likely in shocked realization of what just occurred by their own action. At that moment a tremendous screech issued from within the armored thing as though pure rage itself had come to rest inside, ready to burst forth and bring with it absolute pain. Now what? Ever so slowly the puppet turned towards her. A chill never known seemed to erupt from within the deathly thing. It began to glow.

For that moment Celestia knew a true feeling of frozen fear. The cold emanating from within the puppet and the weapon it held deepened to some heretofore unknown threshold. The very air near to it seeming to pale. Something terrible was about to happen, she just knew from the sense of it. The arrow wagons destruction must have pushed them over some undefined edge and into another sort of madness. The feeling of their fight changed significantly in that moment. A howling sound as though wind were being pulled into the construct could be heard. Taking advantage of the momentary break in action Celestia stepped back to take a heavy breath. She stood watching in awestruck surprise at the sight.

A sickly blue aura erupted through the many small holes in the helm it bore, a blue smoke winding its way around the whole thing like some demented snake having a fit as it wreathed about. Celestia could feel an oddity in the air around her. Downward pressure again. Not so powerful as before, but it would surely prove to be a hindrance. It pointed an accusatory hoof at her as it was enveloped completely, the armor somehow losing all coloration. The crests vanishing to ashen grey.

"Thou art a foalish knave. You deceitful witch hag!" Though it intoned as one might scold a small child. How insulting and odd at this time. What was going on? There was no time to consider as the puppet reared up and charged immediately.

"Have at you!" Was heard while it galloped right at her full speed. She could only spin the energy axe rapidly to deflect the crazily swinging ball. It seemed all caution were abandoned by the enemy in their attempt to bring her down. Time and again their weapons crashed against one another, icy emptiness and glowing warmth fighting to determine which would prevail here. She noted it was not taking any defensive actions but there was no way to turn this into advantage while she was pinned defending herself. Their deathly dance intensified further. Celestia could have sworn she heard ragged panting during their duel. That would not make any sense, though she was being pressed so hard herself just to survive.

Puppets do not breathe, was he being condescending to her even now as well? This was no laughing matter, but it felt all the while like their enemies were treating it as such no matter how awful things became. Such madness riddled throughout everything happening. How any could deem all this little more than a joke was outright disgusting.

"It's hitting even heavier than before. I think it got faster again as well." Celestia considered while they batted each others weapons about. A solid strike against flesh from that thing would turn her into a living pincushion for a very short amount of time. There must be something more effective against it, there is always a weakness somewhere.

Celestia wheeled about on her hooves to avoid that very skewering while attempting to find some opening that just was not coming. What would give her such a chance was fleeting at best. Every move was equal in strength and far beyond her ferocity. She may have to resort to something truly drastic to bring this obscene copy of the past to a final end.

"It's too powerful. How is it this strong!?" She was barely able to keep her footing dodging the now much quicker puppet. What did he do to it? The cold and pressure was slowly deepening. How far did that go? At some point it would render her unable to move if she could not take decisive action. There is a weakness. Always. She reminded herself of this immutable fact.

Finding this imagined weakness was proving more difficult. Each attempted attack and swing of her twirling axe was being deftly countered just well enough to leave no real opening for more as ice and flame competed for control over the other. The same could be said of this wildly swinging puppet. The most it had accomplished was a single minor cut so far. The contact had been minor, but it felt brutal. Her face hurt very badly as she was forced to exert more and more physical and mental power to keep up with this. This may have been a mistake. This puppet almost felt designed to compete with her specifically. Could that be the case? Celestia dismissed this idea. All of these four things were insanely strong.

This one would be no exception to that. Whoever fought it could've had just as much trouble. There was also no way the enemy could have known she would choose to fight this one in particular. The endless pushing down from atop was not helping matters any. It was taking advantage of this fact to make each strike of the flail hit harder. It was worth noticing the pressure affected the puppet just as much even if it was still faster than before. Something about that felt off as well. Celestia as powerful she might be was being inexorably forced backwards, only able to defend. This felt intolerable to her. If the intention was to make her feel weak, it was working to some degree. That was probably only imagination.

Celestia felt something rising inside rarely felt. Was that, anger? Ferocious unyielding anger directed at this abhorrence. Guilt over her inability to slow or stop the mounting deaths all around her was beginning to take its toll. She knew ponies and allied forces were being killed all around by monstrosities just such as this, but it stood directly in front of her. The feeling was so rare for her it almost felt like an alien emotion. Something intrusive and wrong, not even her. Yet, it was building past the point where she would give into such real and directed anger. A direction for so many years she held herself away from heading. Celestia knew the kind of damage outright rage could cause with her kind of power. Her will held.

The fight here was as much willpower as strength. Shaking her head as they fought she dug in deep and focused as intensely as she ever had before. Still bashing the flail away she yelled at it, each smashing with increasing force.

"Equestria. Is. My. Home! Begone foul dweomerlak and trouble us no more!" Celestia was becoming just short of truly enraged as blazing flames began to envelope both her mane and tail, her eyes gleaming. This sudden change in demeanor must have surprised her opponent enough to cause the slightest slip in accuracy, causing one of the spikes to graze its own armor on the backswing. There! An opening. Her axe dug furiously enough to carve some of the peytral off.

Not a win but finally a chance to go on the offensive. Celestia was returning blows so heavily now that spikes on the morning star were being shorn off in a blast of magical contact when each struck the other. The maniacal construction was forced to defend and sidestep but she was becoming increasingly brutal herself. Less and less of the spikes were left until only one remained. If only she could keep this up it would be defeated. Ever more power flowing into the axe caused it glow so brightly the very air around it was being heated to the point her opponent was billowing smoke from the helm, looking more and more like some wraith from stories from ancient times. Its actions were becoming erratic, desperate to halt her assault.

Such power, to be able to stand up even against this. So much energy being employed was causing the weapons to spark and crackle as flying stinging embers of flame and ice sloughed off. The flames now almost fully engulfing Celestia and the eerily glowing puppet resisting her efforts were as ludicrous a sight to see as could be imagined. The glowing light from them both was now being noted across the entire front line. This had gone far beyond all reason. While she'd expected a harsh battle it was much more. They were testing each others mettle to a point almost never seen as their clash erupted into such a massively violent maelstrom of whipping energies almost looking like a tornado of blows upon each other.

"Celestia, no." She scolded herself hard as they fought.

"If I use any more power I will kill the very ponies I am trying to protect. Focus!" She chided herself as the flames ringing her and the melting pall of ice continued to fall all about from their exertion. The ground was both scorched and coated in water as the empowered flames actually fused some of the ground into glass shards. She spread her wings and dove at it with the axe pointed forward, using a pulse of magic to force herself ahead with more speed. It was an unexpected move on her part. It was an extremely dangerous gamble to attempt a maneuver like this. This was it. The moment seemed to slow.

It leapt back to avoid being destroyed as she turned the axe upwards, just missing a bunch of the control cables. So close. Some of the puppets insides could be seen by now. It would be a truly exquisitely crafted marvel otherwise if it was not intent on trying to murder her. It was dented from her immensely powerful blows but barely slowed whatsoever. It could still be counted as minor success. It was the puppets turn to be driven back as Celestia seemingly lost herself to a frenzied flurry of attacks, emboldened by those precious few hits. It was only just managing to keep her from completely overwhelming its defenses for a short period before the inevitable happened as it was unable to deter the entire onslaught. The flail went sailing from its muzzle as the axe spun.

Time felt as if slowing while the flail was sent spinning from the puppets muzzle, careening through the air wildly as though comprised of serpentine despair and death. The gaze of the puppet fixated on that loss. It reached a hoof up to pull forth the bow on its back and block her attacks. A bow would not last very long under this kind of strain. It was only vying to buy time and move for the morning star. Without arrows that was its only chance to stop her. The bow snapped with a horrendous sound like screaming terror itself was contained within. It went into a full gallop to avoid her, an act of desperation. It sailed through the air in a jump. Celestia followed, just short of completely enraged. Now for it.

Sheets of ice fell all around the morning star as the puppet leapt to retrieve it. Too late. Sensing her only real opportunity to end this she magically empowered her axe to the absolute limit, sending it sailing into the ethereal cables as if an out of control saw blade which sliced through them like butter causing a horrible noise. The puppet being so empowered itself fell atop the flail and exploded on contact with the final spike, destroying both it and the morning star with such force Celestia fell to the ground hard and painfully. Exhausted, the flames still dissipating around her found she could not move for a while. Steam filled the area leaving a creepy haze over a large section of the battlefield there which could be seen for a mile.

Huffing and wheezing heavily she lay there for longer than was wise, but could not bring herself to stand just yet. Fortunately nothing else was close enough to present a threat currently. Completely exhausted she got to her hooves and stumbled back towards town in short bursts. She needed rest very badly. If anything did attack her now there would be no contest. It took everything she could muster to defeat the puppet. An attack now would mean dying.

"Don't collapse. Not here!" Celestia moaned to herself as she hurried along. An alert town guard spotted her at last.

"Your majesty!" He ran to her aid, letting her lean heavily on him. Her vision blurred in and out.

A short while later a few more guards joined to help her along towards the medical area. As they were approaching she closed her eyes and fully collapsed, causing doctors and nurses to rush over and get her inside.

"Will she be okay?" A guard asked of one of the nurses as she was wheeled into a room.

"I believe so. That cut is deep but I don't think it is too bad." She replied. That was reassuring. The fight with that one was over, but they knew one yet remained somewhere out there in the dimly lit landscape. Waiting for something. Who know what that could be? Celestia survived this encounter, but what about the next one? This was extremely worrisome.

"Is it just me or are there less doctors and nurses here than there should be?" Another guard asked. The nurse he questioned looked gravely at him.

"Some of them have succumbed to exhaustion themselves. A few..have been awake 42 hours, trying to help. There are more and more sick with infected wounds, serious injuries. There are no minor ones." She looked in need of rest as well.

"You should get some rest yourself, before you wind up collapsing too." A guard suggested. She nodded slowly.

"I know. I know I should, but every time somepony rests more hurt come in.." She said quietly.

"Miss, get some rest. You must. It does no one any good if you cannot move either." He insisted.

"Al..alright..you're right.." Her eyes looked glazed as she walked off weakly.

And all voices lifted in praise and song, spirits brightened as by a setting sun.

Simmering

Those walking torments still haunt any that must engage them in direct combat. Even the two royals feel sick to their insides upon viewing them for any length of time. On the defenders must battle regardless, or the world itself may be lost to an unending decay and complete madness which will storm across it until nothing living remains. From the beginning of this sweeping cruelty it has proven to be no idle threat descended upon them from the mists of the past. The cloak of history has been dire and ever so cruel within these stilted moments brought forth by some unrelenting hidden will. As they fight the heroic defenders have given limb and life to staunch this wound upon reality and suffer for it mightily. It hurts in all ways.

Where did the hope go? It was practically siphoned away when the real terrors were unleashed upon them. Something has felt wrong about the entire battle thus far to all and every pony and assorted force arrayed here against a definite and most vile evil. A threat so unprecedented there is nothing with which to compare. The wooden waltzing terrors are bad enough. Those incorporating metals and corpses are ever so much more disturbing to see. The fight itself is an assault on the sensibilities of all living that encounter them. Worse still, some of their weapons are rusted and so unclean as to possibly inflict further pain on any unfortunate enough to be run through with them and live. Would-be healers weep to treat them.

Worst of all this myriad vileness, their real enemies lay elsewhere. Not in the slightest danger from the rigors of deadly combat. For the now they can but endure the seemingly endless onslaught pouring onto the field in heavy numbers. Whoever is truly in command of this army is no mere combatant, but someone who has clearly endured many battles before. Their tactics and approaches match any. A true testament to the ponies chosen field commander that his orders and battle lines have stood up to the constant probing and skirmishes ongoing at this very moment. Lists of casualties pass his eyes in mere seconds and he adjusts as their opponents do. The fight of their lives has come knocking at their doorsteps.

"There is little more we can do that has not been done. Recall all remaining forces to the final defense line." The commander stated, clearly upset as Twilight looked on. The relatively new alicorn still not fully adjusted to her responsibilities and role in things was studious as ever. She could see the haunted look in his eyes and knew she must take an action.

"Commander, listen to me. You have done more and succeeded more than we could have hoped. So well in fact that should we survive whatever happens next I will instate a new honor rank, that of Commander Ascendant. None could have done better. No one. It is alright to bear pride in this." She placed her hoof on his shoulder a moment, he nodded slowly in amazement.

A moment later Celestia approached as the commander went about some necessary outfitting.

"That was a very nice thing you did, Twilight. I hope it may come true." Celestia said, almost distantly. It was hard to see her so saddened and upset over events. Who would not be? To have friends destroyed and even family long gone retrieved from their places of rest and thrown at them in vicious array was unbearable. Insulting as well on the deepest and most profound level. A deep level of hurt so wide in breadth it defies any possible description. Those who have found themselves fighting the remains of their own fathers, mothers, brothers and kin have been hard-pressed not to shudder and fail in the face of them.

"How many more must fall to this scourge? My heart hurts so. And Moondancer..." Twilight said to Celestia, sounding quite weak of voice a moment. Her friend and mentor of so long placed a wing over her warmly.

"That which is good and right will always win out, Twilight. No matter how much it hurts, no matter how harsh and devastating the blow. We must believe in that single truth. Always." Her words felt to warm the heart and raise spirits. She was always good at oratory, if perhaps lacking in some other areas. A slight indictment on Celestia as a leader. Very slight. She was after all well over a thousand years of age and still powerful. Something Twilight could not as yet even approach imagining living through.

"Please forgive me for asking, Celestia, but if he truly loved you so much how could he bring these horrors to bear upon us and especially you? How could he do this?" Twilight almost teared up and was a little frightened to broach this subject once more, but Celestia smiled in response? It was confusing.

"He did. As much as any can love another. I suspect this may not be him. At least, not all of him. But he is not entirely gone either, and I almost missed it, I noticed in our last encounter he called me dear.." Celestia went silent. It wasn't much, but it might be more than nothing. If there was any chance whatsoever of reasoning with this, it likely lay only there.

A griffon messenger of very dark feathering, almost unseen in the dimness approached quickly in a huff.

"Forgive the interruption, princess, your presence is requested in the rear triage area at once. I am to tell you it is urgent." She looked at Twilight and bowed their head slightly before taking off immediately. Celestia and Twilight, one of the few hopes in this battle looked to each other, and over to the commander. Both he and the entire command staff were donning the most ornate gleaming armor and dangerous looking weapons of all sorts. Even in the dimmed light they looked glorious. They would have to join in the fray when it reached the town. It would not be long now.

"Go quickly, Twilight. It is about to get very bad indeed." Celestia waved her off. She was correct about that. Once engaged in the very town streets their struggles would only get so much more difficult. Twilight quickly made her way over the now somewhat unfamiliar streets. Making sure to stay below the shielding emplaced by her personal protege. Something she never anticipated having. Students, powers, duties, responsibilities. Right now the only one of import: protecting as much and as many as she could manage. In some way she was almost disappointed to have been held back by the others, but knew they were right. Wasting power and effort now could cost them the entirety. Everything, gone. It hurt to even imagine.

She found Fluttershy standing in the doorway of a building set aside for treating the injured. Far as possible from the ever shifting battle lines skirting so close to town. Soon it may not matter where anyone was.

"Twilight, come in quick!" She hurried followed inside towards a separate room to find her brother in a bed beside Starlight, who was surprisingly awake and a doctor hovering over them both.

"Shining!" Twilight could not help but wince at how terrible he looked, but he opened his eyes and turned his head towards her. He was battered and injured severely, but not dead.

"How is he?" She asked the brightly teal coated pegasus doctor with a shock of mane drooped over his face which he blew out of the way. He was clearly tired and moved slowly, but was obviously laboring to do everything he could for those who were gravely wounded. He looked up at her question.

"He's lucky to be alive. Three broken ribs, multiple fractures, several abrasions and multiple contusions. Two lacerations. There were numerous unicorn healers near when it happened or..well luckily he's mostly alright. Please excuse me." He began tending to a pony out in the hallway on a stretcher in such dire condition she could very well die soon.

Judging by her injuries she had fought hard, as expected of a royal guard. It felt so bad to look upon her.

"Excuse me a moment." Twilight stepped out of the room and went towards her and doctor. Her eyes widened to see a princess approaching.

"Princess." The guard almost went to get up.

"No no, don't move. Dear soul, I see you have defended us bravely and with conviction. I am so sorry it demanded you be hurt so, please forgive us for asking so much of you." Twilight placed a hoof on the bed beside her, looking into her face and smiled.

She was younger than expected, her life maybe cut short by all of this. Her breathing was heavy and ragged, difficultly drawn. It was wrong. Like everything else happening. Why?

"Thank you so much for your service." Twilight bowed to her. The guard responded quietly.

"Princess, you don't have to.." The guard said but Twilight hushed her. Other very injured patients looked on in a quiet awe of her doing such an unheard of thing.

"Yes, I do. You are one our subjects, and we care for you greatly. All of you. Thank you." Twilight looked around the room, saddened by the sight of so many injured. She hoped this may brighten their spirits a little. She returned her gaze to the poor girl.

She was fading in and out of consciousness, her eyes fixated on Twilight who sat and held her hoof.

"It's..alright.." She sort of wheezed and ceased speaking as her eyes flickered shut. The doctor stepped in and listened to her chest then shook his head.

"I'm sorry, she's gone." He softly pulled a sheet up over her and had an assistant wheel her out. The doctor looked heartbroken as Twilight let go.

"I did my best..I couldn't.." So many were weeping or in pain here. The doctor teared up and wiped them away,

"I have to get back to.." He went to say. Twilight stood to her full height, wings outstretched regally.

"I ask only that you continue to do so. I know it hurts, but she is free of this pain now. For the moment focus on those who yet live. We can grieve for the departed later in true monument to their lives. I promise we will honor every last one of them in grand fashion and praise them all their sacrifice." A promise she hoped rang true to those around her.

"I will do my utmost to ensure no such sacrifice here is in vain, I swear it on all their names and deeds." Twilight bowed towards the other patients and returned to the room, closing the door. Inside she found a shock.

"That was wonderful, darling." Rarity and Trixie had slipped in through another door unseen during that display.

"Trixie, Rarity!? What are you doing here? Are you alright?" Twilight stammered out, their horns did look okay now. Certainly better than before when they were blackened on the surface from so much strain and overburn.

"Yes yes, we are alright. We came back because this is too important." Rarity responded. Trixie then interjected.

"Also, can't have you showing me up again can we? No way would I be anywhere else." She said sincerely.

"Are you kidding? Even I could barely have done what you did." It was a true complement from the princess.

For once Trixie was taken aback for a second.

"I..well thank you, princess." It was unusual for her to address Twilight in quite that way. Everyone knew how serious the situation was becoming. She went back to her brother.

"And you ya foalish pony, you almost got yourself bashed to death! Be careful you dope!" She admonished him. He smirked back at her impishly.

"Hi to you too sis. Good to see you're still intact." He grunted, and slowly rose to his hooves, heading towards his heavy plate in the corner. He was veritably wrapped in bandaging.

"And just what do you think you're you doing?" She intoned, confused as the others looked on.

"What do you think? Getting back out there." He began to don his armor.

"Wait, you're hurt so badly." Twilight cringed a bit as he pulled and strained to get it on properly.

"I can hurt later or rest when I'm dead like the rest of us. Right now we have a job to do, don't we?" He gave a wide smile to them as he said it, obviously in pain he was suppressing.

"I guess you're right. Not just a captain of the guard anymore are you, brother of mine?" She said half-jokingly.

"Oh ha ha. You ever notice we both made it to being royalty? Our paths just diverged a little in getting there. You think it's destiny perhaps?" He said and finished putting on the armor. It was so heavy and enchanted so much to give a fighting chance. He was strong despite being wounded. It was a clear strain for him to wear it now, but he must.

"No way. We have earned our way several times over already. Rarity, Trixie. Stick with me for the rest of this. You are both unicorns and will be needed during whatever is coming at us next." Twilight motioned.

"Hold it! You aren't going anywhere without me!" Starlight had quietly slipped out of bed.

"But.." The princess went to say but Starlight hushed her in turn and groaned but was moving.

"I don't want to hear it. Besides, I seem to recall saving you last time around first. I think that makes us even." Starlight gloated just a little. It evoked a bit of laughter from them all.

"You..you are all stubborn as mules!..and I would not have it any other way. Let's get ready. This is surely going to be terrible." Twilight smiled, a heavy smile weighted down by responsibility but sincerity.

"Back to it then." Her brother stated simply and they walked out to be greeted by an odd stirring in the town guards.

"What is going on?" Twilight asked of a pegasi messenger that happened to be flying past who landed and saluted. She was still not used to that salute being given to her. She never imagined her path in life reaching princesshood before it happened.

"Princess, all of the..three dragons have joined us and the things are pulling back!" She saluted and rushed off.

"What trickery is this now, Twi?" Rarity said in a bit of a huff at the news. Dragons? So some got here in time to aid.

"Let's get over to Celestia and see." She intoned and they all headed to her location. Their own forces were gathering in the town in numbers. More were left than she anticipated. That was good. They held up well under this onslaught.

Both the royals were there. The town air was veritably crackling with magic as those of any persuasion towards magic incanted and intoned minor wards and spells of protection and proficiency of all levels up and down on soldiery and armor alike. Strengthening and preparing what little they could to aid in their survivability and combat ability. It would have to do.

"Sister, could we possibly have them on the gallop?" Luna wondered aloud. Celestia shook her head slowly.

"Ah, Twilight. I see you and most of your retinue are here once more..good. Tell me, what do you see?" She asked.

Twilight took up a position above on the command platform with a telescope and looked afar, then gasped.

"Now who is this one supposed to be? That is no one I recognize or have heard of. There is even a flag bearer with them? What is this?" Twilight asked, feeling a slight shiver having looked upon them suddenly take her. Luna spoke.

"You feel it now. That cold, worse than before. Dark and empty as a void of nothing. Sister, what new sickness of the heart is this? That one appears as the very ponification of Justice incarnate? That is senseless." Her speech was very grave.

"Look closer my sister. Their armor. The flag, their banner, their livery. Who is with them. Do you not see the cruel joke? Not them. Not her! Anyone but them..." Celestia looked down forlornly and moaned as though in severe pain.

Squinting and using the same telescope Luna nearly choked after a moment, her eyes having gone wide in shock.

"What? Who is that? What's wrong?" Twilight wanted so badly to help her friend and mentor. Applejack and Pinkie stood by silently as well. The only one not present here was Fluttershy. That was expected. Her skills served better elsewhere.

"I'm surprised you missed it, Twilight. That immaculate uniform. Such cruelty. This is bitter, a terrible hurt for my sister. Beside that gleaming figure of mockery stands the original general of the E.U.P. made a twisted sickness herself. General Firefly herself is held aloft there! How could they?" Luna choked back tears herself and continued.

"The other dressed as Justice externally, is in truth..a representation of War itself. So disgusting. It sickens me. This is beyond depraved!" Luna sounded truly irate. How unusual for her. Usually collected like the night itself as befit her.

"A final battle to decide our absolute fate. Where else would she be? But she should be standing at our side, not theirs. Not this." Celestia took a very deep ragged breath and steadied herself.

"No, it is not her. This is an attempt to intimidate and dishearten and I will not fall for it. Firefly departed us long ago and should have been left to peace. This affront will not go unanswered." Celestia raised her head and the enhanced speakers scattered throughout Ponyville rang with her voice to address all. Everypony ceased any action and listened intently.

"Friends and kin, my dear subjects. No..our loyal subjects. Our dutiful guards. Hear our words now." She spoke regally and with purpose.

"The army before us has sought to break our spirits and failed. They have sought to break our bodies, and failed. Have sought to shatter our minds, and failed. Now they seek to taint, to stain the very honor and history of the wonderbolts themselves! An earth pony may well wonder, what does this matter to them? I will tell you. There was once an earth pony wonderbolt who soared the skies on a glider as a full and valued member! What of us unicorns you might ask? From the very beginning the E.U.P. welcomed all and found a role for any who wished to serve in their ranks in some capacity. This affronts all of your honor! Before us stands a slight to general Firefly herself! To this I say, let us show her spirit the full might, the honor, ability, and legacy of what she wrought so long ago and make her proud once more!" Celestia stood silent.

A massive distant cheer went up throughout the whole town and quieted down once more. Luna spoke as well.

"Yes, cheer. Be alive in the coming fight. Harry them and wield all the power we possess! Strike at them like never before! Let us not forget our allies forged in fire and flame with us who have hit them hard thrice over. I also inform you a small contingent of dragons have managed to join the fight with us and lend their strength! As they join, join me and stomp. Stomp your hooves, rake them with your claws and talons! Griffons, yaks, changelings and more. Dragons spout and spew gouts of flames so the very heavens may reverberate with our defiance, our battle cry!" A mass thudding was heard throughout in response to her and there were indeed a few geysers of flames upwards to spread hope throughout. She nodded her approval. They were ready.

"Wow, Luna.. that speech was absolutely inspiring. You've been practicing your modern equestrian. I can tell. Did you read those books I gave you?" Twilight sounded excited herself.

"Uh er..ah...ahem. Yes, I did. They were quite informative." Luna sort of stepped from hoof to hoof, blushing. Dash stood off to the side, looking to be in a huff.

"Why, Dashie, whatever is the matter girl?" Rarity questioned.

"General Firely is what's the matter. This is so insulting! She was the one Celestia there first chose to found the E.U.P. and I can't stand it!" Dash grumbled deeply.

"Dash, I didn't know you took such pride in anything." Rarity joked, looking pleased.

"Oh hah. Hmph." Dash crossed her forelegs, sitting as they awaited the next move. She looked quite different in that pegasus battle armor. It would surely not be long in coming. Their enemies generally wasted precious little time.

"Something still bothers me. One pony alone could not possibly control so many puppets at once could he? All of this would take more power than all of us have together. Even adding Starlight and my brother. They must be using some relic or more than one?" Twilight mused. The royals agreed. There must be something more to it. Pinkie piped up.

"I don't know what relish has to do with this." She said and the rest found themselves snickering.

"Ahem. Pinkie, relic. Not relish." Twilight got hold of herself and explained.

"Ohhh. That makes a lot more sense." She looked amazed. Pinkie would always be Pinkie no matter what. That felt kind of good to know. It was a good thing under this mountain of terror that was heaped upon them all.

"We have been out of the loop for a good long while. Fill us in dears?" Rarity asked. Both her and Trixie went wide-eyed to hear the full extent of what was actually happening here in their absence.

"Vile villainous and disgusting. He has betrayed pony kind this badly? I feel faint." Rarity was so disturbed she was not even speaking like her usual self.

"They could also really use a fresh coat of paint.." Rarity would always be herself too it seemed.

"Twilight, shouldn't we attack while they are gathering?" Rainbow Dash was eager to join in the fray again now.

"No, they would not leave themselves open to a counterattack now. We would lose far more than gained in such an assault." Celestia though upset was still viewing things from a tactical and strategic level. Luna voiced her agreement of the assessment.

The commander and his staff were outfitted now fully and looked to be a force to be reckoned with. They lined up in shimmering array and readied themselves. Surely it would be soon and the enemy would return in full force.

"How many do you think we have left, and the enemies disposition?" The commander would likely not have time for a full count to be taken and asked for an estimation. For the moment pony forces held up exceedingly well.

"Half each or a little more of what we started with. It has been a nearly even battle except for those..terrifying things." Twilight indicated. Those monstrosities of puppets with massive power and odd abilities. Only one more was felt to be present.

"It will come after us again presently, won't it dear sister mine?" Luna already knew the answer but asked anyway.

"It will. This one feels much different. You sense it right, Twilight? Starlight?" Celestia looked towards them.

"I don't know about you but everything surrounding this entire battle has felt wrong. I don't think anypony in a hundred miles could avoid feeling this however. This just feels even MORE wrong!" Starlight shuddered a little. She was also still ragged from that hard smash she took earlier and looked terrible.

"Are you sure about this, Starlight? You could flee to the crystal empire with Sunburst and assist in its defense if we fail.." Twilight suggested.

"No. I will not run away with my tail between my legs. This has become a second home to me and I will protect it to my dying breath even if it is flattened and must be rebuilt. It is the least I can do for you and yours. You helped pull me from such a dark place. I won't abandon the ponies I have come to love and care for." Starlight glanced towards Trixie who blushed slightly at the look.

"Trixie..will not run either. She will stand and fight." Trixie stepped forward, and somewhat jokingly spoke in her stage persona.

"I don't know how much I can help, but whatever I can do I will. I'm just an illusionist." She said demurely.

"Do not belittle yourself, especially now. Illusions can be supremely powerful as this war thrust upon us has proven. If only you were in Canterlot when it started. With your knowledge of illusions you may have seen through their trickery sooner and been able to provide us warning." Celestia extolled. Trixie bowed a little, almost shocked at the compliment.

"I don't know what to say, princess. Trixie is humbled you believe in her." She looked a bit melancholy now.

"We all deserve respect for our accomplishments. Big or small." Celestia and Luna stood together and beamed.

"He will be coming soon with whatever is left of that joke resembling an army. Have we a plan?" The commander said.

"Only one. When they come, throw everything that's left at them. Don't hold back. Weapons and equipment reserves mean nothing now. Tactics win battles, strategies win wars, but in this I think we are at the end of both.." Celestia trailed off.

"I dunno bout y'all but my hooves are itchin' to start hittin'" Applejack was rested up and ready for a brawl.

"Good, we're gonna need the heavy-hitters too." Twilight said as she gave a nervous glance backwards.

"I do have a question. How did those three fully grown dragons even get here?" Twilight asked, quite curious.

"When we sent out missives explaining to everyone equestria might fall and endanger them all some came flying." Luna began to explain.

"Only that small group could make it. They found the very cloud cover above rebuffed them and even wounded some with some mystically empowered lightning so for many many miles they..walked. It seemed geared specifically to halt dragons. Only three managed to tread their way here. The rest could not get through. They are true allies to our cause. Powerful warriors to have with us. It is good you gained their trust and respect, Twilight. A question then, where is Spike in all this? I have not seen him on the field during any action as yet." Luna looked impressed by their sheer will to join the fight.

"They could die here and came to our aid anyway. I know dragons are renowned for strength, courage, ferocity and endurance, but having had to walk all that way... As for Spike, he has been ensuring something for me. He is present." Was all Twilight would say about that for now.

"I hope it has been worth his absence throughout all the fighting." Luna said in her usual cool demeanor.

"It..might well be.." Twilight said a little distantly.

"However things may be, we are about to face a powerful foe indeed. Stay alert. I know everypony is tired, hurting or much worse. I have informed those being treated for injuries that if they can so much as stand then they must fight. It is such an awful thing to demand of them." Celestia was truly dismayed by it all despite her outward appearance of control and calm. An art learned over centuries of leadership. Portraying oneself thus always kept those around her more focused.

"Belief is a truly powerful thing, Twilight. We believe we can win. Perhaps we can. If any of us thought otherwise we all would have fled by now. We must keep our wits about us. Since this entire battle has been one huge delaying action on our part it must be made to count. Their final attack will be brutal, Pinkie, Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity. Starlight. You know by now the horrors that have been sent in mannered array against us. Are you prepared to face this doom with us? I would not hold it against any of you if not. You have done more than it is our right to ever have called upon you for." Celestia looked to each in turn. The entire group slowly nodded their heads. Pinkie was unusually quiet and subdued. That hurt a lot.

"None of you deserved to see such suffering. You are brave and strong examples of pony kind. Since we have some time as enemy battle orders are set. Twilight, if they would accept though it means little and is a trifle I wish to now bestow upon each of your friends the title, Dame. Also your absent friend. Each a true and ardent defender of equestria and all it stands for. Step forward if you will accept this honor." Luna intoned in her particular regal fashion. They all glanced at Twilight.

"What's'at mean Twi?" Pinkie whispered loudly with a hoof up the opposite side of her face.

"It means you are being knighted, Pinkie. All of you, this is a great honor." Twilight looked actually happy for a moment.

"I hope you do not feel it vain of me to bestow this now, but we may not see the morrow. I offer this as the only thanks I may yet offer thee." Luna looked at each of them with a proud gleam in her eyes.

"Aw shucks, princess Luna. Ya'll know ah ain't one for fancy titles and all that, but considerin'.. I humbly accept." Applejack stepped forward and bowed, followed by the rest beside her.

"Then I hereby decree each of you guardians of equestria with all such title entails." Luna rested her horn on each of their shoulders in turn and with it aglow adorned each of them a crosswise sash displaying a medal of rank then stood back.

"I will attend the same to Fluttershy later if it proves possible. I hope I may. Good fortune to you all in the moments ahead of us." Luna gave a rare smile that warmed the heart and emboldened the soul of all that beheld it.

"Are these magical!? I feel all giddy!" Pinkie bounced up and down like a schoolfilly.

"Pinkie Pie you're aaalways giddy!" Rainbow Dash joked waving her forehooves about and they all laughed together in a needed moment of levity which brought smiles even to the surrounding personal guards, hostilities would resume soon. enough

"Though yes, these intricate badges of honor have minor protections inscribed upon and into their very makeup." Celestia said after the laughter subsided.

"May they serve you well. You best prepare yourselves as you are able. I am certain their next assault will come within the next two hours and will be intended to break us entirely. The presence of three dragons will only bolster us so much and perhaps even enrage the enemy." The commander trotted over to them in his finery and looked very impressed as he spoke.

"It amazes me what little things can mean in dire moments. Rainbow Dash. I have only one real further order to give you and yours for the duration. Survive if you are able. If this does not come to pass, well..I will see you beyond the veil. Inform your squad and give Spitfire my commendation on spectacular combat flying." He saluted and they all returned it then went about their business.

"Luna..do you not feel that other..presence? I think it might be..one of those..." Celestia spoke oddly haltingly.

"You don't mean..it can't be such a thing." Her sisters expression became truly shocked for a moment.

"Yes, it is there. All this overwhelming power has kept it masked underneath. There is a named weapon on the field." Celestia responded. Twilight leaned forward a little at the unusual phrasing.

"Forgive me but, what is a 'named weapon'? I don't recall ever reading anything about that?" Twilight was always curious.

"An ensorcelled weapon of old used in the ages of strife. Like the scythe from before.." Luna glanced at her injured leg.

"Perhaps worse. They were imbued with terrifying maledictions of destruction and mayhem the likes of which we have never seen in our time. Much like the medals your friends now bear, but a thousand times over more powerful than even us combined. I imagined them all destroyed many ages ago. They are things that do not belong in this world. Any evil we have faced is as nothing before this one approaching. Whatever it costs, it must be sent back whence it came. It would seem he was not lying about his ability to leave our world bereft of all life." Celestia looked truly shaken by this.

"Don't worry, my friend. We will put an end to this madness. We will." Twilight patted her gently on the side in comfort.

"This here stallion is gettin mah hackles up a mite bad Twi." Applejack sounded quite upset by this point.

"This is getting us all mad A.J." Rainbow had a look of sheer rage cross her muzzle.

"Wait a minute!" Pinkie Pie suddenly said loudly making them all jump a little.

"Oops, sorry. If we all get super angry doesn't that mean they've done what we don't want him to do to us and we already lost?" Pinkie was super serious about this as was apparent by her demeanor. They all went slack-jawed for a second.

"She is right. Losing ourselves will not avail us here." Luna nodded her approval of the thought.

"True anger does not become us or represent the real truth we have fought so hard for all our lives. Falling to it would shatter our resolve. We fight for love and peace, bear that in mind." Celestia had regained her composure proper.

"Get a little rest if you can. It will not be so very long." The royals waved them off for the moment but bid Twilight stay a moment.

"Yes?" She asked.

"If you have any plans for this one, it is time to share them." Luna fixed her gaze straight at her. Even as a princess herself that was disconcerting.

"Not a plan, exactly. There is the weapon I have been holding in reserve. I.. truly do not wish to use it. If there is any way to avoid it whatsoever.." She went to continue but Luna raised her hoof.

"That is all we need to hear. If you have kept it this long then you have great reason." Luna looked over to her sister.

"Yes. If there was ever a time to keep something for, it is soon to be upon us. Why we have been beset by such horrors we may never know, but they are here. This may very well be the end of us. Should we be found wanting, let us make the truest effort of it nonetheless." Celestia said grimly. How unusual for her.

"Aye, dear sister. I feel it necessary to apologize once more. I allowed myself to slip into some of that same terrible darkness once and for that I am sorry.." Luna nodded to her curtly.

"No need, sister. You suffered more than enough for it as well. Let us go put on our finest." They strolled off to waiting guards. Twilight sat there pondering a moment before heading off for a little rest herself. She checked in on Fluttershy.

"Hey. How are you doing?" The question was probably silly.

"I'm..okay. I just never thought..." Fluttershy teared up a little.

Twilight looked at her and tears flowed forth as well, giving each other a tight hug.

"You didn't deserve to witness this. None of us did. I'm so sorry." Twilight wiped them away.

"Are you staying? You don't have to be here.." Twilight asked. Fluttershy slowly nodded.

"If I'm going to lose my friends I wouldn't be anywhere else." Fluttershy said quietly as she tended to yet another injured guard who seemed to have lost an eye as his head was wrapped in thick bandaging. Despite this he was insisting to be allowed back out onto the field. Such proud warriors were here.

"My you're a tough one, aren't you?" Fluttershy said to him.

"I will not sit idly while others fight for me." He was as true to the guards code as could be.

"I won't stand in your way. I bid you give us your absolute best, as one of the best is watching us in spirit." Twilight told him. He nodded and trotted out.

"What did you mean by that?" Fluttershy asked. She hadn't heard, busy in the treatment area as she was. Other patients ears pricked at the question as well. She and they went a bit wide-eyed as Twilight explained what they were facing.

"So that's what that noise outside was. How could anypony in all the world be this evil, Twi?" Fluttershy swallowed hard as she spoke. There were few who could be more stressed than her after all. That was so painful to see.

"I don't know. I don't want to know. I just want to put a stop to this horror. Like we all do." Twilight said and excused herself to gain a few moments much needed respite. She barely managed to find any sleep for going on a week now and it was finally starting to catch up to her. This would be a most inopportune time to do precisely as she instructed the commander not to. Succumb to fatigue. She informed a solar guard to fetch her the moment any puppets approached again.

Nearly immediately she fell slumped into a half-dazed rest upon a cot in the tent she currently occupied. It would not last nearly long enough. Protected as she was surrounded by hundreds of resolute guards and loyal servants, mages of the highest standing and all manner of magic practitioner and potions maker alike she was not safe here. Nor would anywhere in the entire world be safe if this was not ended conclusively here, now. It would drag on for who knows how many years until it all fell with none who could stop it. It was clear, they did have the power to cleanse the world of all who would fight for it and their right to go on and would use it without remorse or pity. No mere army of any caliber could contend with this kind of onslaught. Her thoughts waxed and waned, mulling over the past days. Their short-lived triumphs and rapid losses.

There with her eyes half-lidded Twilight beheld a short daydream wherein a yawning bottomless precipice opened out wide before her winged figure. A dark and endless well bereft of life and care, but it was somehow alive with activity which gazed into her very soul. There was disdain for her there, little more than empty tracts of vile mountainous hatred made manifest somehow. Twilight shuddered in the dark before this mighty entity composed of little more than anger itself. She awoke with a start and groaned. She held a hoof to the side of her head as if she'd taken a great slam there, moaning.

"This has gone on too long. It has to be ended. I may have no choice but.." She glanced outside where an odd sound was rising.

Twilight rose and stepped outside to find the guard she'd instructed to wake her.

"Princess Twilight, do you hear something? It sounds like, singing?" The guard tilted his head. It did sound like that. She made her way to the royals, finding her brother and the commander there.

"Rainbow Dash, are all the pegasi.. singing something?" Twilight asked of her longtime friend and now battle hardened warrior as well. She looked ragged and worn as they all did, but ready to pick up the fight at any time. Luna nodded.

"It is an old pegasi battle hymn, Twilight. Rarely used. A little bit modified. They have earned the right to sing it, I think. Yes, sister?" Luna looked over to Celestia.

"Anything which keeps them going at this point." Celestia said curtly. She looked more tired and weary than anypony Twilight had ever laid eyes on in her entire life. That point may hurt most of all. There she stood in all her glory, glinting polished regalia barely lending its light to her features. Diminished somehow. Lesser feeling, looking. Strained and tired for centuries woes, trials and tribulations. Yet still she stood there, monumental as the very rock of Canterlot Mountain itself. Alongside her the only thing Twilight wished was for this to be over, to stand with her mentor once more on the great battlements of Canterlot castle and watch the bustle of the ponies living below. That felt a distant dream from long ago.

Did she ever really stand on those lofty heights? It felt like this battle was dragging on for ages and eons. The horror, brutality and mystery of it all vexed her mightily. Slain families that deserved no such fate, father and foal alike were not spared this indignity. The utter humiliation of being turned into weapons of war dug at the psyche of all who faced them down. All this Twilight witnessed in the past days. Mothers corpses strung aloft like playthings only to march and maim and kill their own. Even a rare few hippogriff skeletons stalked the battlefield. However they wound up in the enemy cohort could only be guessed at. They must be ancient as well. How old were some of these she wondered? Some must be thousands in age.

The dracolich was of an age untellable. What new horror awaited across from them? Preparing to step forth and bring carnage with it once more. Dash looked less annoyed now and more like a tornado of emotions made flesh.

"My dear teacher, I am so sorry this happened to you. To all of us. If anypony did not deserve this, neither of you.." Twilight said to the royals.

"It is alright. I have made my peace with it. What has happened is over, what comes next is up to us. Listen to them." Celestia waved out over the throng of pegasi singing their age old battle chant, carried through the air far and wide.

"Hoof to hoof we stand together

Basking under gracious light

Marching forth to sound like thunder

Heralding the faithful night

Side by side we fear no sorrow

Soaring skies of black or grey

Victory calls us to tomorrow

Our enemies shall not win the day"

"Never thought ah would see such a sight, Twi." Applejack still very keenly felt she did not belong here and it could be seen in her face. Her eyes though angered were also haunted by all which had transpired over the last week.

"We've all been through a lot, but it is almost over. Either way. I intend to make it our way." Twilight said with conviction and determination. Pinkie Pie held up of all things a tray of truly delicious looking cupcakes, all frosted and sprinkled. The finest any had ever seen. She looked expectant, though not her usual self she was still Pinkie.

"Wanna cupcake? They're superliciously extravagantly scrumptious!" Pinkie held out the tray. Twilight felt like laughing.

She barely managed to hold down the urge to do so.

"I..those look lovely, Pinkie. Sure, why not?" Twilight and each took one which proved to most definitely be one of the bakers finest creations to date. It tasted sublime.

"When did you find time to make these, miss Pie?" Luna asked as she also partook, Celestia and Twilights brother as well. Utterly delicious. Mouthwatering. Eating them felt like something from an age long gone and nearly forgotten already. The commander took one as well, earning a look of surprised delight from her.

"These gotta be the best durned cupcakes I ever tasted, Pinkie!" Applejack could not help but blurt out. Pinkie smiled wide a moment. Something which had been missing for far too long already amongst this misery.

"I wanted to do something for my friends. My best friends. Just..just in case.." She was almost aquiver on the edge of tears.

"It's alright, Pinks. We're all here together right?" Rainbow Dash smiled at her.

"Right, we gonna show them what fer?" Applejack said to Dash.

"Oh yeah." Rainbow said as they smacked their hooves together.

"They are coming. You all better be ready for this." The commander indicated towards the enemy lines where the amassed horde of distressing puppets lurched in formation towards the town. They seemed countless in number.

"We could be no more prepared than we are now. Sound the alert." Shining Armor ordered as he took lead of what remained of crystal empire forces. The towns staunch defenders sprang to life as they readied for an all out assault. The three dragons that managed to make it here arranged themselves abreast to cover both corners and the center of town. Despite their impressive power and size they alone would not be anywhere near enough to turn this. Enemy forces carried powerful weapons to match.

"That was good. Unfortunately this is going to be extremely bloody. Even if we could match them hoof for hoof we cannot hope to contend with them by weapons alone. The presence of dragons at our aid warms my heart, but this is like no battle ever recorded. Be on your guard, everyone, and keep your wits about you. They have doubtless kept the worst of it for last. I would." The commander in his impressive gleaming gilded armor stated more as matters of fact than anything else. everypony nodded in agreement. There was never any doubt about the enemies intentions to absolutely crush all remaining resistance here. The gathering puppeted horde was difficult to gauge in number, but likely about as expected.

The heavy puppet was actually leading from the front. It lurched as it walked like the rest, but this one was far more detailed. It wore the heaviest full armor any had ever seen. It was ornate and intricately detailed. It seemed every last inch of it coated in gilding and runes whose purpose could only be guessed at. It was all black and gold, the helm had obvious glowing runes above each eye gleaming blue so intensely it seemed to form horns above the horn which already protruded from it. Strapped to the right hoof it wore a gold buckler shield emblazoned with of all things a sun in fine relief, covered in wicked looking spiky protrusions to deter any attacker. In its muzzle it carried a sword of clear pony make.

The ebony black hilt and golden blade was etched throughout with runes so thoroughly it was made difficult to so much as look upon. The glowing blade was obviously beyond deadly. Anything unfortunate enough to be struck down by such an obviously evil blade would surely be completely destroyed. This was a weapon made for nothing other than total annihilation. A complete anathema to pony ways and thinking. All who looked upon it could not help but shudder.

"Why..why would anypony have crafted such a despicable thing? It is ugliness incarnate. Beautiful work, but I can tell it is disgusting underneath. Such fine work, but why Twilight? Why?.." Rarity stumbled over her words even as she took in the craftwork.

"There have been a few ponies throughout our history that did not understand or care for the truth. That kind of evil always costs more than it gives. Always. There is no doubt." Twilight said resolutely and sure of her words. Luna nodded.

"Twilight is right. This is a sickness on the world brought about by wicked machinations and a complete lack of anything beyond hate. That kind of power demands a price so high it is idiocy to even consider paying." She said, unusually bluntly for the princess of night. Beside the slowly approaching terror was the skeleton of general Firefly. This must hurt Celestia so badly inside, they all thought though more attention was being paid to the awful puppet and that horrific blade it carried.

What new manner of terror did this represent? Each attack presented some new misery and this would surely prove the same.

"My poor friend. To be so desecrated this way is reprehensible and unforgivable. The perpetrators of these heinous acts must face justice for their actions." Celestia was unusually quiet, staring at the lurching puppets heading for the town. The golden hoofboots the large one wore were practically wreathed in little arcs of what looked like lightning, and similarly absolutely covered in dark runes of vile power that could be felt so much as seen. horrifying in all aspects.

"So, this is the representation of..War?" Twilight asked of her mentor.

"It is. I never thought to see such an apparition astride a battlefield. It embodies all the horrors of war indeed. The black cloak it wears over that armor is soaked in pony blood.." Celestia pointed out. Rarity held a hoof to her head and almost fainted for real at the suggestion of such a thing. This almost seemed beyond things ponies could or would ever do.

"This is sick. Cloaks coated in blood now? I have never heard of these magics or tactics." Starlight could not help but interject. It was truly a horrifying thing to behold, and the feelings it elicited only getting worse on approach.

"Shock value, little more. Pay it no mind and let it not affect your judgments or actions as that is their wish and want." Luna bid. She looked out across the wantonly inflicted field of pain and dead, shaking her head.

"Of course, princess. They want to devalue us, make us sloppy or careless in our reaction to their outrages. Everything they do has been hideous and purposeful. Every last action intended to cause pain on all possible levels, but they face us." The commander was right as he spoke, confident and sure of their righteousness. His retinue agreed. Soon enough battle would be joined again and this would determine the final result of all their efforts to stymie the enemy in their tracks.

"Well Twi, looks we're in for the big game now so ta speak. We can win this if we just hold it together, right?" Applejack said with that distinctive twang to her speech. Twilights expression naturally showed deep thought and concern with a measured intensity. She grit her teeth.

"Yes." Her terse response did sound assured of this despite the gravity of the situation before them. The lurching horde of puppets and slung corpses appeared almost like an immense mass of insects trudging towards their beloved town.

"I spent so much time here. I do not want to see Ponyville destroyed even in its own defense." Rainbow waved over the town.

"We all have a lot of good memories here. Mostly good anyway. Everyone encounters a few rough patches along the way, but this.. there is no excuse or reason to take away life like this. It is wrong." Twilight blinked a few times as she spoke. She was clearly fatigued simply from seeing it all unfold. Applejack pat her on the back.

"Y'all know how ah feel bout this town. If they tear down every brick of every last home we swear it will be rebuilt to the last detail. Every single one. Right Dashie?" Applejack certainly loved the town and was known throughout as they all were by now. No one could live there for long without coming to see and know each of them in their turn. She nodded.

Somewhere out there was a pony who had fallen so low he would without pause or care threaten the entire world. Not just ponies but everyone everywhere. It seemed to speak only to madness. All throughout Twilight found herself thinking about him. What could drive anyone to take any measure so drastic as to inflict merciless destruction on every single living thing? His intention was stated to do so with no ambiguity. Inflict pain and kill. The concept alone tore at her mind, the very antithesis of all she stood for and attempted with all her being to embody and live up to. Occasionally she'd failed in this and knew that was so. Such failures did not come close to driving her to a feverish madness or want to brutally harm others.

Twilight also knew there was no possible way somepony in the grips of utter madness could have arranged for such an errand. She'd faced off against evil forces before. This felt different. Manic, raging. Hatred was there for certain, but why?

"I can't understand. This goes against everything I know. Everything I feel. Why is there such anger out there?" Twilight muttered loudly enough for the others to hear.

"It doesn't matter anymore. It is here and coming for us. Why is of no concern until we win the battle, Twilight." Celestia said, sounding more in the moment. The throng of puppets was closing with the defenders, slow as it was. Steadily writhing.

This was surely another display meant to intimidate and dishearten, sicken even. To some degree it worked. The approaching chill was so much worse than ever. That puppet held immense power as the others, but also some weapon heretofore not unleashed against them for whatever reason. Each was worse than the last. How long could anyone endure this? The odd downwards pressure was back along with it. Not so strong as with the king puppet, but enough to hinder movement and make each action require focused planning if it was to be survived. This was truly intended to break them at last. The commander strode about commending and offering appreciation for all the guards hard fight so far. They deserved it.

So many dead. How many would it take? This thought ran throughout each and everyone present. Could they stand up to this after so much? The answer would be forthcoming soon.

"It approaches. Shall we go greet our guests, dear sister?" Luna spoke gravely though it sounded as if a joke to be made.

"We shall. There is no chance of negotiation or surrender even if we were so inclined. We may as well hear whatever further depravity it has to spill before the coming bloodshed. Anything to give these brave souls a few more precious moments of life." Celestia stood still a moment before taking the lead beside her sister. The contrast between was always striking.

Celestia was always warm. Luna mostly distant and aloof, cool. Both were always approachable and friendly since their being reunited after a full millennia spent apart. Between them all they did hold significant power. Arrayed behind them were remaining mages and scurrying guardsponies taking up whatever position might afford a chance of survival or at least taking out as many of the roaming horrors as they possibly could before the inevitable end. Pegasi squads arranged themselves accordingly. Still could be heard the resounding battle hymn floating upon the air. They would put up a good fight whatever happened. The commander and retinue stood to the front. Normally this would be folly. Here it did not matter.

"Everypony else, engage any chosen target at will when the signal is given." He took a deep breath and continued.

"Listen to me, friends. None of us are alone. Don't get caught in a position you cannot hold. Move about. Switch it up. Fight hard. Hit hard. Pile them up in droves for every pony and every friend taken from us, for every inch forward. This land is our home and our duty to defend it with all our might. Show them equestria will not fall now or ever. Fight well and we will see it through to the day for we are the royal guard, and we stand in unison!" The commander announced throughout the enhanced speakers about the town to a raucous cheer resounding in return. If these might be his final words he meant them to uplift and inspire insofar as he was able. It was working.

He looked down and sighed.

"I don't make speeches. Never liked it. I prefer action." He said, a little ruffled from public speaking.

"Speaking of action, time for me to get ready for some." Rainbow Dash headed off to her squad. Twilight, Starlight and Trixie along with Rarity remained behind the royals as instructed. For whatever it might be worth they were present. Pinkie Pie and Applejack chose to assist the next closest squad. Most would likely be swamped with many anyhow so decided to try and keep any they could alive.

"Well this isn't quite how I thought I would be spending my last moments." Starlight said.

"You mean their last moments, right Starlight?" Trixie said encouragingly and smirked.

"You're right. How silly of me." She smiled at her a moment.

"Oh, curse it all." Trixie hugged Starlight, tightly squeezing.

"Don't get yourself killed, alright?" Trixie almost sounded like she was begging.

"Same goes for you. Do what you can. Anything. You too, Rarity." Starlight said as they separated.

"Oh I have something in mind, darlings." Rarity said in her usual manner. Starlight was curious but there was little time for much else. The puppets were getting ever closer. Easily within yelling distance now. The awful puppet with its own retinue continued ahead of the rest and they stopped in lockstep. Celestia and Luna walked forth as if this were a normal parlay of some fashion. Celestia spoke first before it even had the chance to do so.

"Invaders. We demand your surrender. That your leader immediately step forth, be judged for their crimes and atone for them in all their severity." It was delivered most seriously. The puppet slowly turned its head from side to side.

That gaze delivered its own chill feeling as though piercing straight through and looking behind them. At first a slow sound almost akin rose to a quick cackling wail from within it. Luna almost looked amused by this obvious antic. The voice from this one was different. As though a hundred voices spoke as one, almost echoing. Cold and empty laughter. Emotionless. Wrong. It abruptly ceased.

"You demand? Do you not know what stands before you? There is nothing you can do to stop this, beloved." It was definitely him speaking but something about it felt incorrect somehow.

"The only thing that is in front of us is a bad joke which must be repelled as it is abhorrent. You will face justice!" Luna said darkly herself, magic almost flaring up around her at the words.

"Beloved? You would say such a thing to me after doing all this? You have taken life after life!" Celestia responded to it angrily. Such a rare emotion to witness cross her muzzle. Generally so refined and regal. Never easily prone to anger at all.

"And soon I shall take all life. I offered to let you live yet you have chosen pain over a quick death. You may arrange yourselves as you see fit. It will do you no good. Your doom faces you." Such a cold and unfeeling sound it registered as.

"You have defiled the dead and murdered without the slightest bit of mercy! What kind of monster are you?" Celestia practically quivered in front of this perversion standing right there. The lofted skeleton of general Firefly off to the side and behind a little. This had to be particularly difficult for Celestia to see and remain so unyielding as she was. Once again that horrible cackling erupted but seeming to come from many puppets at once this time as she looked around at the menacing mass of them. Every last one ready to inflict even more pain amid magnifying horror.

"And what mercy did I ever receive? Your choice was made. I never had one." It turned with its small group and went back to the rest.

War has come.

Swordplay

Many ages past:

The puppets danced about the stage as they had many times before. The grand spectacle of this somewhat rare event always bemused the townsfolk. Something felt different with this show in some manner, but none paid the feeling any mind. It was after all just a show to while away an afternoon. There were always more important matters needing attention than a traveling stage play. This time, however, the play seemed imbued with some spreading energy. A vitality not usually associated with mere puppetry. The passion and emotions on display were not the usual affair at all. A different story was being told. One meant for more than just foals eyes. The puppets bobbed and weaved about the stage with a strangely deft ease of motion.

So easily by matter that some felt a welling within from some base corner of the soul usually reserved for dire fears. It passed so quickly this went mostly unnoticed save for an instant of unease and nervous glances to one another, but the show went on unabated. The setting was a golden palace. A place of such decadent heraldry and size one could be forgiven thinking it the abode of some glacially proportioned giant or god of old legends. It proved to be little more than a facade. Those dwelling within scurrying in a frantic haste none would deem normal. The glittering halls were merely painted metals far below anything valuable like they bespoke themselves to be crafted from. An outward lie of beauty and grace.

"My lord, you must not, I beg you part from this path before it is too late!" The servant, loyal to a fault beseeched his master not lay so much as a hoof upon the glass of the large gilded box before him. An ornate case covered in all manner of obscura to prevent directly setting eyes upon the dark blade held within which emanated a harsh power even contained as it was inside the protective coverings. His lifelong lord stood motionless in gilded robes of office and spoke in regal tone.

"Our people are dying, more with every moment I delay. There is no choice left to us. Begin the ritual." He bid.

With grim purpose the servant set about removing the arcane locks and seals placed upon the case as the lord supervised. It was slow, painfully so. With each clasp opened could be felt more the malign nature of the weapon within. As the final seal was released and the case opened a flare of power erupted into the air then calmed once more, the blade flickering more by itself than by any light within the chamber. Both felt a shivering cold, gazing a moment on such a horrific trinket. As his lord went to step forward the ever-loyal servant stepped in front of him abruptly.

"My lord, if it must be then let me wield it in your stead! I will bear it with pride in your name." The servant spoke hurriedly. The lords eyes went wide momentarily then teared up as his gaze softened, looking down on him kindly.

"You have served my family without pause or question for so many years and followed any order given without complaint, but this I cannot order. You would bear this burden for me? Do you understand what it is you offer?" His lord questioned. The servant bowed his head sullenly and low. Keenly aware of the suffering waiting ahead.

"You alone and this keening blade of sorrow are the only chances our people have left. My family has served yours for generations, but as I am the last of my line please allow me this great honor, my lord." The servant swept into a deep forward bow. Slowly, the lord nodded. The weight of this decision already heavy on his heart and brow as though the very act of saying yes was a pain unheard of.

"Very well. You shall be fitted with the finest of my armor. I can grant only time for that, then you must take up your weapon and all that comes with it. The battle must be joined. I am sorry. May the winds have mercy on us for our transgressions. Go." Unusually the normally solid voice of the stallion cracked with emotion as he spoke. His lord waved him towards the armory. After he left the chamber the grand lord turned towards the now open case, eyeing it warily.

"Why it befell my family to bear this cursed blade is painful beyond measure. For once, you may be of use but I am no foal and know far better. I do not trust far as I could throw you!" He near growled at the glowing sword then choked back tears.

"This is a bitter peril instilled in me and mine. Heavens above, why us?" He lamented soulfully the plight now before them. The walls of the false golden trap all about him feeling as though closing in from every angle. This display of such emotion by little more than a carved stack of wood and wire was getting to the crowd, old and young alike could nearly feel the depth of sadness those voicing the play behind the concealing curtains were wishing to impart. Yet, surely this was only a moments puppets play? Nothing more than a distraction from more daily interests. It still felt powerful, emotional. Pained, as the lords servant later returned in finely crafted armor. A hefty suit of full plate mail glinting most eerily in the confines.

The servant peered out from beneath the open helm.

"I never thought to see you in such attire. It looks quite grand on you." The lord complimented, trying to imbue confidence in his servant.

"Thank you, my lord. I suppose it is time?" He warily glanced at the wickedly gleaming sword, eliciting the lord to swallow and sigh forlornly. The sword was clearly of pony make, but wrong in some manner unspoken.

"It is.. Thank you." He said sadly. As he looked on, the servant took the swords grip in his muzzle. The curtains slowly closed.

It is said some swords have two edges.

Puppetry

"Sister dear, why does that one stay back from the fighting even now?" Luna asked Celestia. It was obvious which one she meant. That abomination claiming to be War itself. So far It made no move to enter the now frantic battle, and kept the silhouette of her once dear friend just within viewing distance. Toying with her perhaps? It was an abysmal thing to do. Great lengths must have been taken to exhume her remains, but to dress her in the once proud garb of the E.U.P. was a step so vile it defied any type of reasoning. Were the masterminds behind all of this ever truly ponies at all? It almost did not seem possible. Celestia felt her heart sink as their allies fought desperately at pace to keep the puppeted dead at bay.

The pain of this was unbearable and she shuddered visibly, startling Luna somewhat.

"Sister.." Luna offered her support.

"No..I am alright.." Celestia sounded calm, but that belied such inner turmoil it could only be a front.

"They seek to hurt me, and they hurt me over and over again. This is nothing but pointless cruelty at this point. Whatever is driving it lay far from this battlefield. See how they keep her just within sight but give no real opportunity for me to end this?" It became abundantly clear suffering was their prize in this. Her pain was desired. Luna shook her head sadly.

Pain for those dying around her. Pain for the past and now present. Where did she go so wrong? To want for love and companionship like any other and it came to this in the end? She wanted nothing more than to lay down and cry, but now was not the time. Those who relied on her for a millennia were looking to her for aid and leadership as always.

"They have made mockery and abomination of dear friends and those held in esteem. This is a sickness of the soul. What else could it be? To hold heroes and idols of value as little more than toys disgusts me." Luna was truly angered by this state of affairs. To the northeast of the town one of the dragons was being swarmed by puppets even as it clawed and swiped away.

"I must go to their aid." Luna looked to her sister who only nodded. She took to the air rapidly. Celestia found herself almost seeing the battle playing out in slow motion. Despite the noise and ferocious din of combat for a moment it was nearly soundless to her. Her eyes could not help but wander to that sick construct made of somepony she once appointed personally. A distant view, just enough to distress and concern. Celestia took several deep breaths. As the enemy held back, so did they. That one was unique, and behind it something more powerful still. Where that power stemmed from no longer mattered. It was here and sooner or later it would have to be dealt with in a fight to determine the future of all.

Twilight spoke from above on another raised command platform, Starlight standing aside her. Binoculars at the ready.

"I realize you know this, but I feel it must be said. That thing is not War, no matter what claim it lays. Nor is that puppet your friend. She is surely at rest as she ever was. You are Princess Celestia, and we need you here.. I need you here and in the moment my friend." Twilight spoke calmly and assuringly to her dear mentor. Celestia almost seemed struck by this display of emotion.

"I..of course. I can deal with the pain later. Trust me, I am aware." Celestia replied with a bit more confidence that was lacking lately.

"They seem to be fighting twice harder than before.. focusing on the dragons of course. How many puppets can possibly be left? By my best estimate they must also be near breaking point. If we can just outlast them and.. find a way to defeat that thing out there." Twilight glanced at Starlight and around to different areas. Naturally the heaviest fighting was centering around the largest of the three dragons. Silly as it might seem they almost appeared to need protection. The best pony forces could do was try to funnel the puppeted dead in a line so the dragons could rain truly punishing blows down on them. The overall battle was a mess of running fights spilling into the streets as the best was done to stop them from advancing.

"Starlight, how you holding up? Are you going to be alright?" Twilight asked her protege. Starlight looked pained and battered from before and perhaps a little shaky.

"Like Celestia said. I'll deal with the pain later. Right now there is a war to be fought and won." It was a bold statement.

"Darn right there is!" Rainbow Dash said from the side. She was taking a quick breather along with her own squad and happened to be nearest to here. A place of relative safety for the moment.

"Good to see you're still with us. How are you holding up?" Celestia asked Dash.

"Fighting is really bad all along the line. They just keep coming and it feels like every time we take one out two more step in. All heading for those dragons. The dragons are actually getting hurt. They must really want them out of the picture!" Dash explained and her squad all murmured their agreement that was the case.

"This is getting totally insane." Starlight did her best to put on a brave face, but it was very difficult with things getting so horrible. Magic of any and every nature was being thrown every which direction from both sides. This situation by itself presented dangers almost never encountered before. The intensity could be felt.

"Maybe.." Celestia's voice cracked a little.

"Maybe we should have taught more battle magic to the guard..maybe.." She stumbled over her words a little. Twilight looked at her with concern.

"Celestia, that is not who we are. We are all fighting because we have to. Not because we desire war or death, but peace. I am certain every one of the royal guard would agree if they were not needed at all it would be fine by them. They love you. We all do." Twilight smiled at her.

"Thank you, Twilight." Celestia coughed a little and looked at the solar guards arrayed behind her, ready to jump into action at any time by her command.

"Guards, hear me. If by my life or death I can stop this madness I will do so without delay. This I promise to you on my own soul. As you are with me, I am with you. I give you my thanks for being here with me today. You are truly the best of us. Let us march forward to victory, together!" The guards cheered as Celestia raised her hoof and motioned to follow her. Celestia must have some plan in mind.

"Good luck." Twilight mouthed as she watched them heading directly for where War was standing in wait outside of the battle. They were going to fight their way there. Maybe a distraction? A Feint? Twilight did not know. It was coming down to the wire now.

A soul of rage that grows and builds, it takes not on a life its own when yours is what it wants

Swordplay

Pain is all he brought back with him. Entering Celestia's life once more out of the darkness as he had. Nothing but pain and death. He was supposed to be dead, to rest in peace. Instead he was supposedly here, bringing nothing but ruin and destruction along with him. Why did the dead torment her so? She loved him in life, supported his efforts. Instead he rebuffed her attempts to help him out of pride and went down a dark path. One which forced her to eject him from not only Canterlot but from Equestria itself or be scorned by all those beloved ponies around her. A place he fled to escape from tyranny all those years ago. A safe haven from pain and insecurity. He did it to himself. Celestia was certain of that.

The loyal solar guards, supported by a full three platoons of each type of pony and formerly reserve allies fought a path straight towards the ridiculously powerful puppet ahead. They made no secret of their objective. She did not hope to approach undetected. The enemy puppets in the way were among the more powerful. This made sense, considering what they were approaching. Likely the absolute strongest of all faced so far. The pony make sword it wielded was a true relic. An artifact of a time long since forgotten by all. A weapon imbued with a deathly fire which wreathed the blade in destructive energy not seen in literal ages. It was an evil thing not meant to be here, yet there it was. Not even slightly damaged.

The concerted effort of driving straight for him would surely come as a surprise even to a brilliant tactician such as he. She knew he understood war. This move would hopefully throw him off guard. This many fighting their way across the battlefield were slaying puppets left and right, ensuring putting them down and out of action permanently. Not knowing how many puppets were truly left did not instill any confidence, but they were definitely putting a heavy dent in their numbers despite taking some losses on this path. Two of the large dragons, both now seriously injured in many places saw this action from afar and considered leaping to their aid but found themselves unable to get extricated from the sheer amount of puppets assaulting their location without endangering the other defenders surrounding unnecessarily. This was perhaps good as it was drawing large numbers their way.

All eyes were slowly turning towards the unfolding battle line heading directly for the puppet. Celestia let her guards plow the road towards them. She would need every ounce of power she could muster. If this was to be her death she would ensure it counted. Celestia took in the battle. Mourning fallen guards as they were stripped from her defense. How dare he do this of all things? His hatred towards her was senseless. She only ever helped him, spoke to him, calmed his fears and kindled his hope to stay by her side. Celestia did nothing wrong, she was absolutely assured of this. Whatever drove him now was strange and warped. A desire with no apparent starting point. She could feel that blazing vile sword ahead.

Where did a pony come by the horrible will to craft such a weapon? Why a sword? They were not the most wieldy weapons for ponies either, even with some modifications for muzzle handling. It must have taken strength and time. To make something with such wicked intent and that kind of power contained within was a task even she would consider a tremendous risk to undertake. The fact it was forged and twisted to such a degree showed an immeasurable patience was behind the production thereof. One pushed by absolute hatred alone. How could a pony have come to that? What was worse, how did its creator manage to bend such a thing to serve their desire? Imagining it was horrifying to Celestia.

Now it served a new master. One entirely willing to use it and the full force following behind. This was not made for conquering, only destroying. The puppet itself was making no move as yet. He must know by now she was heading directly for it. Somewhere ahead in the dim light she could see it flaring. Sloughing off waves of unsettling energies. Far worse than anything else as yet gracing the field of battle. Celestia even dared imagine enemy numbers were dropping as they were cleaved and cleared aside into piles of shattered creepily painted mounds of wood and dead bodies. Unicorns blasting ahead with all their might to forge a path for her. She felt so bad asking this of her guards and allies. So many were being hurt or worse.

There it was. Encircled by the more massive of the available puppets. The head slowly tilted up and turned towards those so daring as to bring the fight this way. For this Celestia had opted to don something she never expected a need for. Full battle regalia. It was once relegated to a display stand in a nearby museum. Even in this dulled land of smoke, ash and death her golden armor gleamed and shimmered with an inner light. The ponies which crafted it had done so with true passion. It was after all, for her. Long since gone from the world, they would be proud to see her wear their finest work. Princess Celestia strode forth across the acrid and withered dirt. The smell of decay and death in her nostrils and the sounds thereof ringing in her ears. One good fight. She only needed to win. Surviving was irrelevant.

Those ringing that thing falsely calling itself nothing other than War incarnate spread apart and backed away. Wearing a representation of Justice was mocking in itself. Her gaze locked with the puppet now turning towards her. Coming here was a silent challenge. This would be a duel he had to accept. Celestia bore a sword with her as well. All lit and flowing with light inside the blade. Two could play this game and she was well prepared to do so.

Battle brothers and sisters through it all, while they live or where they fall

Not Quite Right

"Luna nor Celestia respond to my scrolls or other attempts to reach them. Something is definitely wrong. I'm very worried something bad has happened or is happening." Twilight and Rainbow Dash were sitting in one of the finely appointed coach cars on the train to Canterlot. It was decided to take the train instead of flying or teleport hopping to their destination so they would both be well rested and at full strength when venturing into the magnificent castle that awaited atop the mountain. A structure so vast and cleverly engineered to appear as if hanging off the very mountainside in mid-air. Whatever craftsponies and whoever else built it so long ago had created a true gem of architecture renowned the world over.

"Don't worry so much, Twilight. They can both take care of themselves. Besides, if there is trouble they've got us!" Dash was her usual exuberant and confident self, sometimes a bit too confident.

"Rainbow, this is serious!" Twilight went to say but saw the smirk on her friends face and looked down shyly.

"Alright, alright. I admit it. I get jumpy too easily. We will both just calmly go investigate and make sure everything is alright, okay?" Even long after becoming a princess herself which was no easy feat to accomplish, Twilight was still occasionally prone to over-thinking things and sometimes a little uncomfortable in her own wings.

Everything seemed normal in the city proper upon arrival. A little too normal.

"Absolutely everything looks alright out here." But Twilight was frowning deeply when she said it.

"Yeah. I feel it, too. It looks right, but it feels wrong. We better hurry to the castle." Dash went to fly but Twilight held up a hoof and she landed again, looking at her quizzically.

"Wait. We don't know what we're in for. I sent a message to all our friends before we left, just in case. I think we should go in the main gates instead of the castle flyway entrances. If anything really is wrong maybe we should give the impression we aren't aware." She finished saying, looking really concerned.

"Oh, alright. There might be some adventure to be had here after all." She half-folded her wings almost in impatience, but Rainbow was always seeking excitement despite her position as a Wonderbolt amongst many other major lifetime accomplishments. She pushed hard for them. Each honor earned through sheer effort and will. Once bearing one of the Elements granted no particular clarity besides anything related to its existence at the time. She was also actually trained in some manner of combat now. They strolled to the main entrance of the castle and halted abruptly. A feeling as if some great oppressive weight fell in upon them, it felt so dark.

"Do you FEEL that? It's almost overpowering in how bad it is, what can it be?" Twilight said. Dash nodded in response.

"I would suggest getting help but it seems like there's no time." She pointed a hoof inside and they both walked in, trying to act normal and restrain themselves from rushing. This was not a petition day so only the court regulars and castle staff would be within. They approached the throne room together apprehensively. The feeling of something ill surrounded them, seeming to pervade the very walls themselves as if some token of sickness lived within them. The feeling pressed in from all sides. Something was very wrong here. Not just here, something dark emanating from the entire structure of the castle and grounds. The disconcerting feeling of wrongness did not let up as they approached the room. It was a little too quiet.

"I don't suppose Starlight is anywhere around here? I heard she was supposed to be coming here for a visit?" Rainbow inquired. Twilight shook her head. There would be no immediate assistance coming.

"She had to go home for some kind of family emergency or something. She didn't quite have time to explain and left in a big hurry so she won't be around to help us either." Twilight stretched her wings slightly as they approached the door to the throne room, mentally preparing herself for what might be within.

"Brace yourself and try to act normal no matter what, we don't know what we are going to find in there." She pushed.

As they passed the two door guards who looked perfectly normal, both almost audibly gasped. There, upon the throne sat Celestia. At least it looked like Celestia. In the way a well-crafted puppet with clearly visible cables dangling from the ceiling and controlling her could look like Celestia. This made little sense. There was no hint of anypony controlling the weird and obvious life-sized puppet. Startlingly, it spoke. A strange higher-pitched voice that somehow conveyed some evil intent while being utterly civil. For whatever reason, no one seemed to be acting like anything was wrong and continuing to speak with her like the princess was just fine. It raised it's head, the thick odd ethereal looking cables moving it about from above.

"Ah, hello Twilight, my faithful student. How are you? What brings you to Canterlot on this fine day?" It asked politely, its mannerisms were exactly like the real princess. What was this? If not for the horrible feeling surrounding and seeming to come from everywhere within the castle, this would be utterly ridiculous. Twilight found the words caught in her throat for a second. It was extremely difficult not to stutter trying to speak with this..thing in the place of her dear friend and mentor.

"I..we uh, just happened to be in the area and thought making a more formal visit than usual to the city might be a nice change of pace. If you don't mind we will go to our quarters now." Twilight steadied her voice surprisingly well.

Once more in that somehow awful yet serene high voice that came from within the puppet it spoke again.

"Very well Twilight, Dash, we will see you at dinner tonight?" It spoke so..normally, just like her yet not.

"That sounds wonderful, see you then." Dash gave her little bow then they departed the room together, heading to the permanently assigned quarters given to them ever since obtaining the Elements. Even after their loss, all six of them did remain national heroes. If only the rest were here right now. Both felt rather lost about what to do next. What was that apparition sitting on Celestia's throne? Perhaps her sister Luna might be of help. Both thought it, and worried mightily.

"We should find Luna, but what if.." Twilight stopped Dash mid-sentence.

"I know, what if it's the same thing with her? This is really bad." Twilight said sullenly. Rainbow Dash looked around, nervous. Despite the surroundings being familiar, everything was wrong. Everyone was wrong as well. Why was everypony acting so normal? Even the few griffons and rare others in the castle today had acted like nothing at all was amiss with the royalty. Could no one else actually see what was upon the throne? Was everyone enchanted in some manner?

"I even tried subtly casting an illusion dispersing spell, it did nothing!" Twilight looked fearful for a change.

"Buck up Twi, we will figure this out. We have to. Let's go find her sister, if it's not too late." They both readied themselves for whatever danger or horror might lay ahead.

Into the rabbit hole we go..

Author's Note

And remember:

Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo is grammatically correct. But wouldn't the sentence 'I want to put a hyphen between the words Fish and And and And and Chips in my Fish-And-Chips sign' have been clearer if quotation marks had been placed before Fish, and between Fish and and, and and and And, and And and and, and and and And, and And and and, and and and Chips, as well as after Chips?

The Grim Tail of Valorous

Flowers whose names lay long forgot, dusted, broken where they lay.

Stricken wings tears cannot heal, flight forever denied to them.

Prayers unheeded in moments grasp, for no gods listen there.

Avarice of the departed come knocking, their souls caged in malice.

Scarlet and crimson in rows laid low, bloodied bows whose strings lay all in twain.

Stifled cry and hope departed, his golden shield dimmed. -

Uncounted years ago:

"Come, see the puppets play. Hear the grand story! The sad downfall of the ˈglôrēəs Faris." A pony cryer purveyed the price of admission to be discounted by the king himself for all the kingdom this one day of the year. An important story for all to know and cherish. Something not only to while the day away, but teach important lessons as well. Most of the town fillies and colts would be present as it represented a rare reprieve from the relatively difficult life endured by the those residing there. It was not a particularly prosperous or storied town, barely large enough to qualify as such. Its existence mostly justified by an abundance of blacksmiths and the machinery of metalworking which needs a great deal of space.

"Mommy, mommy, can we go see the puppet show?" The little colt asked and tugged on her foreleg, almost sounding desperate. His mother looked down at him, appearing to be weighing this question heavily. He'd never seen it before. Seeing his expression she relented.

"I..of course, dear." She smiled down at him. He practically beamed ear to ear. After this it became his favorite thing to watch the travelling show when it came to their little town. The silly jokes and odd stories of far off fantastical places a fascination. Most in jest and amusement. The way they moved and danced about the little stage as though alive. He would learn to make and use these things through long practice, swearing to himself he would do so. There was little else to occupy his time besides hard work anyway.

Each time he saw such a show he'd taken something away from it. Speaking to the performers afterward about the workings. How they were made, moved. The various tricks to be employed in their construction and motions. Soon enough his knowledge of puppetry was an equal to theirs. Perhaps more so. His life was conducted as little else but perfecting these creations of his. He took to amusing himself in his room with little plays he concocted. His storytelling was not a match for his peers, but his puppeteering second to none. Something for which he gained quite a reputation among the other fillies and colts who sometimes begged him to put on a show. One day a crashing sound came from below out in the sleepy little town.

The somewhat older colt, now almost a stallion ran outside to find his mother agape and the town in shambles as some unknown enemy assailed it. Ponies fled in droves and fires burned out of control, consuming anything unfortunate enough to be in their path. This included the residents, screaming and ablaze. Catapults sent sailing tremendous debris down atop the town, and his father nowhere to be seen. A tree hurtled by one of the catapults landed directly in the abode which he had just exited from, mostly destroying it. He went to run into the ruin. His mother grabbed him.

"What are you doing? We have to go!" She strained to stop him.

"No, no." He simply kept repeating, but she dragged him away until he finally started walking of his own accord. His prized creations were gone. The kingdom was now at war, with an enemy that didn't seem to care who got hurt. The survivors scattered every which way. A week later as they struggled to find respite and shelter they were approached by none other than one of the kings cryers. He recognized this one, the very same that announced the shows arrival so many years before.

"By decree of the king all stallions able to carry a weapon are to head for the capital immediately.. to be outfitted and armed for battle." He said this with a somber attitude and looked nearly to be tearful in the telling.

"Cryer, he is but a boy.." His mother interjected.

"I..am sorry. The king believes if we are to defend ourselves we must call upon all, and I believe him." Was all he said and galloped off.

"It's alright, mother. They've already taken everything from us. I want to fight for our kingdom. They show us no mercy and destroy everything in their path. We will all die if we don't do something. Besides, remember our laws. If I fight under the kings banner, they must take care of you." He was angry inside. Nearly seething to the point of shaking with rage at what was done to his home, but this was a practical decision. With his father gone there was no one else to help or be there for his mother. He'd never thought about it before, but suddenly having it taken away made clear just how much home actually meant. It made him feel sickly inside. They'd also destroyed his treasured puppets. They were to pay for that insult.

The horrors of war were already deeply engraved into his spirit, as his father likely did not survive their town being razed. Trampled to dust. What he did not know about war, was how long it could go on. And go on it did. On, and on. Their enemy was relentless. During his first skirmish he was very nearly killed. Somehow he survived, thereafter earning a reputation for bravery and earnest desire to defend their kingdom over the next several years. Eventually to be granted the rank of knight commander and a full suit of the very best armor reserved for such high status. The overall war however, did not go as well.

Even having learned to fight and lay plans for battle, eventually the outlying country would fall to ruin under the advance of such unyielding opponents who never once gave quarter. On this day the king himself addressed him solemnly.

"Most loyal of kindred, you have stood for my kingdom time and again. I would dare ask it of you one last time, for today it falls." He explained as those gathered gasped, but in truth they'd only been hoping for victory in vain. He raised an armored hoof. The kings armor was formidable looking, adorned here and there with crest and jewel.

"Those who would flee to seek whatever fate may amend you, go now or prepare thyself for battle and to die. I will not ask you to forsake your lives in further pursuit of a hopeless cause." He then turned and spoke solely to this unusual knight.

"You have served me well. I ask you make safe my daughters, whilst I give our enemies a lesson most earned." He'd never heard the king speak this way before. It must be true and this hammered it home. All those he had striven to protect, the kingdom itself was now just about gone in its entirety. He would do his best to protect at least someone. He saluted one last time and ran off as the king turned away. He would never see the beloved king or those who stood with him again. Overheard rumors much later suggested the king and small steadfast cadre put up such a tremendous battle the enemy army nearly sagged in facing his fury alone by the end.

As he ran to gather his mother and carry out the kings final bidding, thoughts of the many plays he'd seen as a child drifted into mind for whatever reason. One in particular. Upon the stage the puppets danced.

"We are routed and overrun. Flee this place. I will abate them substantially if I may." Said Valorous Dimfeather to his charges, the dangling strings moving him about the stage. The few remaining kings knights scattered throughout the surrounding area would fall in short order as the considerable sounds of a great battle subsided further, to be replaced by something quieter and eerie in comparison. As though some subtle chant of ill omen come calling. The remainder of the ˈglôrēəs Faris were now given to glancing furtively about, but bravely prepared to face their impending doom with all their might.

Whilst he, Valorous, pondered his own almost certain death there could be only thoughts on what might have been. What should have been.

But that's just a little foals story..

Battle Lines

"Princess Luna, what is happening? Two of the heavy magic barriers fell in less than twenty seconds!" Twilight looked over to where Luna was surveying the situation. Celestia had leaped into action to uphold the outer barriers herself the instant they fell, her horn could be seen sheerly aglow in the distance. This was already going wrong.

"This should not be happening. Those barriers are the most powerful we could emplace. Our enemy is even more powerful than imagined. What I assume are the main puppets are hanging far back." Luna looked extremely worried.

Luna reached over and launched an attack flare to signal the pegasi above to begin a run on the approaching throng of ponies. It would be best to keep any fighting off the ground if at all possible. Each carried a small metal cylinder which they dropped between the approaching forces and flew off before they could be attacked themselves. When they landed the metal bombs shot off sparks which tore through the puppets made of the formerly living, sending some flying and scattering in pieces as the odd ethereal cables that still seemed to come from nowhere were cut asunder. The pegasi were told not to get near the four behind the rest. Those ones were likely the most dangerous of all. One did fly a little too close.

No one even saw what happened to them. They simply did not return. Things were not proceeding at all as anticipated. Several of the elite unicorn guards had been forced to engage already at the edges of the barrier walls and finding it far more difficult to tear the cables apart than expected either. Some had taken serious injury and were slowly being driven backwards even with their generally heavier armor. The veritable wall of dead ponies approaching seemed to be much more than were thought to be in Canterlot when it was taken. Some were completely skeletal. Walking husks of themselves.

"I sense vastly more dark magic at work here than before." Luna said, sounding a bit taken aback herself.

"How can they be controlling so many of these all at once? This doesn't seem possible." Twilight, already nervous about this was getting the worst feeling in her stomach and was on the edge of jumping in to fight herself. Luna placed a hoof over her shoulder.

"Stand fast. You must save yourself as long as possible before getting into the thick of it." Her touch was reassuring.

"But, Celestia.." Twilight looked over to her holding up four separate barriers now, and encouraging the guards to fight off their attackers with all their might. Why should she hold back?

"Let us take the brunt of it first. I hate to admit this but in reality, both of us are..very old. It took a lot out of us earlier as well. You must hold off." Luna explained her reasoning.

"I guess that makes sense, but I feel so useless just sitting here." Twilight shook her head. In the dark of night ponies below the command platform were fighting, being hurt. Dying to protect their leaders, their country and others lives. Some night guards were in the fray, fighting absolutely viciously to hold hordes off the unicorns as magic blasts flew everywhere. A second wave of pegasi was dropping their bombs below. An unfortunate amount were proving to be duds.

"Shoot. Looks like a whole heap of those things aren't working Twi. As much as ah hate to see any ponies bein torn up like this, that ain't good at all." Applejack called up. It certainly wasn't. Everything from old museum piece weapons and catapults sending rocks crashing down were being employed to hold off this tide of walking dead things from getting into the town proper. Retrofitted cannons were being reloaded and firing continually at high angles. The accuracy of most of these was abysmal. The best they could do was not hit their own forces and delay the advancing menace before them. Among the deathly puppets there were some griffons who in death were proving to be still quite lethal fighters.

Those amongst them that were unicorns in life still wielded whatever magical skill they had in their lifetime. This was making things more difficult still. Some of these skills were not necessarily useful in direct combat, but were proving to be a surprisingly good support to the puppets being marched ahead of the rest. None were displaying tremendous power as yet. Those four in the back were becoming ever more worrisome. Why were they not joining in the attack?

"I..don't like this. I just can't look." Fluttershy said off to the side on the platform.

"You don't have to be here. Flee to somewhere safe." Twilight told her quite clearly.

"This..this is my home too. I'll stay with you, to the end." She sort of squeaked out, and remained. Twilight felt to be on the edge of tears hearing this. The battle was just beginning to really intensify as already dead and living alike were falling. Celestia had been forced to abandon one of the barriers already, this was allowing more of the things to get closer at a more rapid pace. They looked slow, but the steady and sickening way they moved forward in a bobbing kind of ceaseless march was enough to keep a steady flow of them walking into battle no matter how many were destroyed. At this pace, they would be overrun far more quickly than hoped. The reinforcements held back might need to be called in to assist.

"Purposely putting more ponies and our allies in harms way is the last thing I ever thought I would have to do." Twilight lamented.

"None of that now yea hear, we've got a job to do right and we're gonna do it ain't we?" Applejack was oddly confident-sounding about this, standing under the raised platform. That actually helped. Dash trailed past overhead once more.

"You're right. We have to win this. We are going to win this. Whatever it takes." Twilight looked on, more determined than ever to put an end to this insanity overtaking the world.

Sometimes it takes more than just strength to hold on when facing things stepping out of the darkness.

Encroachment

Surrounding the once sleepy town of Ponyville some terrific evil has risen to smash hopes and dreams as if against the shores of the eternal. Diminishing hope as horrifying animate constructs imbued with a false life approach. From some unbidden dream, they seem to come. In unmeasured weights and unknown frames, they rise and kill endlessly until destroyed. The wearied defenders of the light barely fending them off. Denting their numbers too little. The only direct defense is now gone, all pony forces and allies prepare to do the formerly unthinkable. Engage in running combat throughout the streets, perhaps to let them run red with their own lifeblood in their defense. One of their grand protectors has perhaps fallen.

The news does not spread through the ranks quickly. They are otherwise occupied preparing for this latest test of their mettle. Those that do hear it are shocked. Princess Luna might be dead, perhaps dying. Having taken a truly mighty blow on behalf of those she represents. Those rare night guard units present appear undaunted by this revelation. Possibly more motivated than ever to carry out her orders to their own dying breath, and seething with anger over the possibility. Stars above do not shine or offer solace tonight. Death may have succeeded in taking at least one from their number. Rumors spread. Could she really have been defeated? Everyone felt that clash of energies swirling about out there on the battlefield, but there is no time to dwell on it. Surrounding forces approach.

This time their battle array is different in some noticeable way. An odd reordering of their troops. What has changed? Whoever or what commands this insanity is not easily deceived or outmaneuvered. It is noticed all those that took damage but remain mobile are in front. The ponies field commander realizes the fact rapidly. There is a purpose in every move and motion. Directly behind this sacrificial line of constructs stand what remains of animate bodies. Each has paired up in a specific way. They face no slouches here. Ordered as though a well-tested army they begin that shambling shuffling march. Disturbing in all possible ways. Something more is wrong with this. It is easy enough to feel approaching.

Something enormously bad will take the field. This feeling is much different. It suggests sorrow has just begun here. Was Death itself somehow not enough? An enormous danger stands behind this wall of stumbling horror. Patient. Determined. Set on blood and destruction as yet untold. If not stopped here it will sweep across the whole of the world and leave it void of life. What is this tumultuous impression of circling doom? The very air feels as if trembling in apprehension before this. Can a world feel fear? Perhaps only a fleeting impression. In the now, one must not become distracted by such wandering thoughts. It will get you torn apart in short order. There is no mercy offered by these infernal devices.

Some have faced family. Long lost loves and worse. No stop has been withheld here. No punches are being pulled. There is only one intention. Kill everything in their way. Even this grand equestrian army thrown together in hurried fashion is beginning to flag under such an assault on the senses and sensibilities. Looking to the site of their first great test can be seen a medic has managed to revive the beloved princess of the night. She is seriously injured, helped to limp back to her sister. The very fact she yet stands brings a loud cheer from the guards. There is still a slim chance of victory. With iron will and thoughts set only on winning the day, the battle begins to rage once more. Still, the sun does not warm and the moon is not seen.

What slinking demented vision comes stalking now? For the moment catapults and a single trebuchet still fires. It does not amount to much. Cannons have long since run dry and been abandoned where they lay. At best it all helps delay the inevitable that tiny bit longer. One other thing of note has been caught by the strategists surrounding the commander. Any sufficiently damaged puppet not fully destroyed, wooden or otherwise is never assisted by another or retrieved. The enemy is ruthless. Abandoning numbers seems a bit off. They certainly have the capacity to recover them. How strange. Something to keep an eye on. Applejack and Pinkie have both taken an active role now. Earth ponies' innate strength is of immeasurable use in a melee. Opportune strikes from practiced hooves that strong will damage almost anything.

Caution is the one and only option for them. They are not soldiers, but national heroes nonetheless. Just those caught up defending lives, their home, and the world. Their very presence here uplifts spirits wherever they are seen no matter how low. That pairing of puppet types is something else. Added to their ranks is something not seen until now. Their reserves. Befanged animal corpses puppeted in the same way as the others, adding another layer of danger to the fighting. Fluttershy cannot bear to so much as look out upon them and joins the field medics in tending to the wounded. Now infection and disease from ragged wounds are more worry added to the increasing pile. They will be battling for their lives within town inside half an hour.

That is when things will become most dire. Familiar places will offer no protection. The lovely little shops and cafes left silent in perpetuity if they should somehow remain standing afterward. The worst still lay ahead. All know this is the case. There are no expectations to be grasped. The waiting is near over. Whatever happens next might be wholly nothing more than a roll of dice. Taking a wrong gamble will spell only the most painful end for all. The most intense and horrible feeling that all which has transpired thus far has been a mere fraction of such ill intent falls over many. Could this really only have been a taste of what is to come?

Once the fighting reaches the very first house things will start getting extremely difficult. Harsh as reality is at this moment, that feeling draws closer. Why do they want this destruction? Wild anger and hatred are nearly palpably felt out there now. The air still, then broken by the sounds of ringing steel as it begins in earnest. Worst of all throughout has been the screams of those injured and dying. Somehow even this is not enough of a price to pay? What more do they want? Only one thing is apparent. They are cold killers with no remorse for these actions. This kind of pain is far deeper than a slicing-edge can inflict. Upon that edge, a new horror creeps closer.

Those who bring you to anger along with them have already completed their conquest.

Knight Fallen

"Prince Armor, All available unicorns with healing spells of any level have arrived making for eight highly skilled and ten support." The lieutenant Informed Shining who scowled in return and swished his tail a bit indignantly while examining the ponies in a row. They all looked nervous. Not too far away a large number of pegasi were strafing and avoiding the gigantic dracolich now plowing ahead on the field of battle while a myriad of spells were flying every which way in an effort to slow and damage the huge bulk of the things cables. There were so many that cutting three was the equal of one on the rest.

"Please lieutenant, save the formalities until later. Now for it." He took a deep breath.

"We are about to ask a lot of you all. Hear me. I have no doubts you can pull this off, so listen well. Luna here is going to tell you exactly what to do." He moved aside. She'd broken off from the desperately fighting night guard to come explain the plan as they continued to mostly assault the cables along the neck and head area of the lich.

"That thing you see ahead of us is no monster. Understand this, it is a prisoner we must succeed in freeing. A tormented soul forced to do the bidding of others given no free will or agency. Forced to kill and maim. Once my night guards have rent those miserable ethereal cables from it, heal the head with all you've got. Understand?" She looked over the ponies present.

At least twenty of the fighters in the fray had been killed or injured since the first swipe making for a full forty-three casualties so far in a mere half hour since. It took time to round up what healers were present. Five mares, three stallions in the front. The ten supporting unicorns consisted of weaker healers. Four mares and six stallions all now fitted with magic-enhancing armor given over from the crystal paladins who opted to very bravely ditch their protection in favor of helping this plan succeed. At last the night guard succeeded in severing the second of three very thick cables to the head of the poor thing. There was little time for sympathy right now. It must be stopped here or the battle would grind on until it killed them all.

"Once we are close enough I will cast a city level shield spell over us, I estimate it could take maybe eight direct hits given what we are facing. I will be powerless for some time afterwards so Luna will take full command here for the duration. Trust me as I trust all of you to succeed. Prepare to move out, looks like they've almost got it at last." Shining armor spoke, intending to instill confidence in their chances of success. They all saluted in readiness. In truth this was a gamble hinging on Luna being entirely correct about this course of action. Something she was not absolutely certain of herself. This was going to be incredibly dangerous to attempt.

"At a trot, forward!" He commanded and lead the way ahead. They were required to get close as they could so they would not be wasting effort needlessly. All followed in formation. An otherwise impressive display if this wasn't such a desperate action. As more pegasus and batponies were taken down they finally fully cut the cable and the things head hung loose from the rest, This in no way immobilized the creature. It was dangerous as ever. Shining Armor began casting his spell as the rest began to cast their healing spells, their supports adding what power they could to the better healers. The head was enveloped in an intense healing aura eliciting an unexpected great screeching horrifying scream of pain from within.

Whether ordered to, or by an action of its own just as he was about to finish emplacing the shield the immense dragon puppet surprisingly quickly swung a wicked steel spiked paw directly towards him striking a glancing blow across his barding sending him flying out from under the shield just before it was fully completed. The shield was complete as the aura from his horn faded, but he lay still and silent. Luna yelled in horror.

"No!" She sprang into action like a lightning bolt despite her injured leg to hoist him onto her back and fly him to a safer location.

"Medic!" Luna shouted as a weary looking earth pony galloped over with a medical pack.

"Help him! I cannot stay." She took off once more to pass into the shield he barely managed to erect.

The great bulk of the lich shuddered and crackled violently as the healers continued their bid to remove it from the fight. Immediately Luna added her own power to the healing being directed at the grand beast struggling in agony. It spoke in a strange raspy voice that floated across the field.

"Stop. It hurts. I cannot bear it!" It growled and strained wildly in such pain, writhing every which way against the strings holding it.

Luna teared up a little.

"Forgive us. It shall not hurt much longer, I promise thee. More. More!" Her horn practically lit afire with the amount of power she was pouring into the numerous healing spells surrounding the screaming creatures head. All manner of arcane symbols, runes and otherwise jittering in and out of reality as the magics which gave to this thing a false life were stripped from it at last. Likely by some action not its own it reared back and actually slammed it's entire body into the shield, causing it to almost collapse. It barely held up. All other ponies in the area scattered before it fell forward.

"We must finish this now or we are lost. I am sorry to ask this of you all, give it everything you have now!" She commanded, and they obeyed to the point several of the healers fell unconscious from the supreme effort. At last, by some miracle the massive creature lay still atop the crumbling shield. Just in time.

"Thank you." A wispy but powerful and regal draconic voice echoed out from within as the now completely uncontrolled power within set it alight, incinerating to ashes within seconds while sending out a shockwave of such force it blew over several ponies and puppets alike at a great distance. Giving some a chance to finish off more of the things before they could recover balance.

"To the prince, with all haste!" Luna ordered the conscious healers and had some night guards lift the rest to safety as she assumed direct command in the area.

On and together we shall fight, I am your shield, your knight all dressed in gilded white.