The Equestrian Monomyth - Book 2 - Complexs of Disharmony

Chapters

Chapter 1 - Beware the Anger
Chapter 3 - Radical Solutions
Chapter 4 - Painful Revelations
Chapter 5 - Feelings of Betrayal
Chapter 6 - The Day of the Wedding
Chapter 7 - Self Sacrifice and Forgiveness, Signs of Greatness
Chapter 8 - Patching Some Ponies Up
Chapter 9 - Too Late for Jealousy
Chapter 10 - You May Only Choose One
Chapter 11 - 180 Degrees Turning Off
Chapter 12 - Encounters of The Unkind Type
Chapter 13 - Proving Worthy
Chapter 14 - If I Change, Everything Changes With Me
Chapter 15 - What Hate Can Make
Chapter 17 - Resolve Tested to the Limit
Chapter 18 - Unexpected Solutions for Unexpected Troubles
Chapter 19 - The Least of Two Suns
Chapter 20 - Four Weddings and a Final Battle - Part 2
Epilog
Prologue
Chapter 2 - Sometimes Being Powerful is Not Enough
Chapter 16 - Dame's Gambit
Chapter 20 - Four Weddings and a Final Battle - Part 1

Chapter 1 - Beware the Anger

I've had flown for a while, when Twilight finally woke up:

"Put me down..." She meekly said.

"Huh?"

"Put me down. Put me down put me down put me down put me down!" She started to buck me repeatedly, until I hadn't other choice but to land in the middle of nowhere.

There, she quickly jumped to the ground and started to trot around:

"How could you...? How could you...? How could you...?!! AHHHHHHHHHHRRRRGGGGG!!!" She jumped and screamed of anger, and her coat turned yellow and her mane and tail red fire. Then, she fell to the ground, all bristled, and then she put a hoof in her chest: "Agh..."

"Love, are you alright?" I asked, concerned.

"Of course I'm not alright, you stupid imbecile subnormal piece of idiot!" She started to buck me with her forelegs. "Why you always have to screw everything up?! Why?!!"

"Love, I..."

"Shut up! I haven't finished!" Then, she started to trot around again: "Oh, no. This is a disaster, a disaster... A disaster! Now Celestia is gonna take reprisal with Shining Armor too, and she's gonna dishonorably retire him from the royal guard, and he and my parents are gonna die of embarrassment! I don't know how I haven't died of embarrassment already!" She angrily bucked a nearby tree, and then she sat on her haunches to cry.

I sat on a nearby log, putting a hand in my head, realizing than that can actually happen. Oh no, Twilight is right, I'm such an idiot.

"Sorry, my love. I just wanted to... you know... make a good prank. I mean, Pinkie is doing pranks all the time, and she always gets away with it."

Twilight turned to me with tearful eyes: "That's because Pinkie is crazy, but you're just stupid, stupid!" She scolded me.

"Well, at least I'm not crazy." I said mindlessly. "Just stupid."

"Yeah, you're right! Stupid and unsensitive! Did you think for a second in all those ponies, scared to death, looking to that thing on the sky, believing that they're gonna be hunted, like the awful old times when we were preys, huh?! Did you think on the ponies that could have health problems, like myself?!!" She three or four times pointed herself with a hoof.

I looked to her eyes: "Love, you have health problems?!"

Twilight's angry expresion turned to a concerned one.

"I... my love... I..."

I quickly put a hand on her chest, checking with disgust that her heartbeats were erratic, and her blood pressure a bit low, symptoms of a cardiac arrhythmia.

"But why you haven't told me about this?" I scolded her, and started to heal her heart.

"I'm sorry." She lowered her head and ears, and closed the eyes. "I didn't want to worry you, or anypony else. Please don't tell anypony else." She denied with her head.

I smiled to her: "Don't worry, love. You'll just had to tell me, and I'll heal you..."

I got surprised, because that even I was casting my most powerful healing spell, I couldn't find what was wrong with her.

"It's no use." Sadly said Twilight. "I've tried everything. Everything. Healing spells, Zecora's potions, meditation sessions... Nothing seems to work..."

"Don't worry, my love. I'll study your case and I'll find a cure. Trust me."

Twilight smiled, with that beatiful and cute smile of hers: "Of course I trust you. If anypony, or human, can solve this, it's you..."

We kissed passionately, and hugged with tenderness.

"And since when you're having this affliction?" I asked her. "Since... that time in the Everfree, fighting the monsters?"

"No. Not that long. I believe it started last week, after I returned from my trip to the Gryphoon Empire."

I looked up, recalling the event: "Yeah, I remember that the gryphoons started to call us 'Easy prey'."

"Yep. But Celestia acted fast. She didn't let the other countries to think that Equestria had been left defenseless... and I think that was what affected me. The stress of doing so much in so little time..."

"Yeah. You might had been pushed way too hard, my love. And what did you do at the Empire? You never told me."

Twilight broke the hug: "I've already told you that's confidential, love! I can't tell you!" She denied with the head.

"But you're no longer at Celestia's Secret Service! You can tell me now!"

"No, my love. I'm sorry, but I still have a duty with Equestria. I can't tell you. Sorry. Now, let's go home, yes? I'm very tired and I want to sleep..." She concluded, hugging me again.

As every morning, Celestia wake up and raised the sun. And as every morning, she took a matinal bath, brushed her teeth and took her breakfast. And as a every morning since she has lost her eye in her battle with Luna, she sat in front of a big mirror, to see her eyepatch. By her mother's mane! That made her to look... evil! Like a pirate or something...

Celestia, using her magic, raised her eyepatch a bit, but what she saw beneath it, made her to quickly put it back on and made her body to shiver. Curses! It looks horrible! And there was no known spell or potion that could regenerate a lost eye... besides... the monkey. He had proposed her so many times to do it! But she can't accept his help. He's a destructive and dangerous being, and owing favors to him was the last thing she wanted. Who knows what he can ask in exchange...? And look what he made her to do! To disown Twilight! Twilight Sparkle, her most faithful student, her most promising hope! She almost couldn't still believe that she has done that.

And she shouldn't! How could she have done such thing!

Celestia closed her eye, regretful: What has she done?! For Twilight, being her faithful student means everything for her. EVERYTHING! And she, just driven by anger, has taken it from her... Oh, if only she could bring the time back!

Suddenly, somepony knocks the door, making Celestia to startle a bit, snapping her from her thoughts:

"Good morning, Your Highness. I'm sorry to bother you so early, but the gryphoon ambassador requests an audience with you. Are you going to receive him?" A female voice asks behind the door.

Celestia made a grimace: 'Curses, that odious gryphoon again!' She tought.

With regal pace, Celestia approached the table where was already sit the gryphoon ambassador, among two badass looking bodyguards.

"Good morning, Your Highness." The diplomatic chief greeted. "I'll assume that you already know why I'm here, no?"

"Good morning, ambassador Chad. Yes, I know. It's because that attack on your guard. I can explain it. It's..." Started to say Celestia, with an apologetic tone.

"Oh no, no, no, no, no. I'm not here for that." The gryphoon chuckled. "Sorry for the delay in informing you, but we already checked, and after a thorough investigation, we found out that gryphoon guard was actually violating the Equestrian laws. We already sent him back to the Empire, and he's waiting for trial in our prisons. We do apology for this rueful incident, and we'll put all our efforts to avoid such things to repeat in the future."

Celestia opened her muzzle wide: Oh no! This's even worse! She has accused the monkey and disowned Twilight for nothing!

"I'm here so you can fulfill the second part of our arrangement. Where is that clever purple pony? I thought she's always sticking with you." Continued the gryphoon, looking around.

Celestia's face was red of embarrasment: "She's not here at the castle at the moment. We... we had an argument and she left upset..." She stopped speaking, realizing that she shouldn't have said that, but it was too late.

"You had an argument with her? Ha ha! It seems that runs in the family, isn't boys?!" The three gryphoons laughed.

"Ha ha." Celestia 'laughed' too, and then she said: "Excuse me for a moment, I'm going to call her back."

Celestia trotted cursing herself, while thinking: 'Tartarus! Why did I told them that? I should have come out with some history instead...! Buckings, that doesn't matter anymore, as I've to focus on what I have to do...' Which means to swallow her pride and write an apology letter.

Celestia teleported to her room, and took a scroll and a plume. Oh, holy heavens, please, let Twilight forgive her! Then, Celestia sit to write: Wait, how she should head this letter? It cannot be 'My faithful student', Twilight wasn't that anymore. Celestia thought for a while, and then she wrote: 'My beloved Twilight Sp...' Wait a second... 'My beloved...?' No! That's so chichi!

Celestia crumpled the scroll, took another and, letting go a defeated sigh, wrote: 'My faithful student Twilight Sparkle...'

It was pretty late in the morning when I woke up, not seeing Twilight at my side on the bed. I stood up a bit from the bed, and smiled looking at her making the breakfast, or trying to.

"Damnation!" She swore when she found out that the bread was too burned. Nevertheless, she put everything on a platter and, carrying it with her magic, turned to come back to the bed, discovering me watching her:

"Wait, love, don't stand up! I'll get the breakfast to the bed, and we'll have it together there!" She said while trotting back to me.

She put the platter on the bed, and jumped back on the mattress. I looked to the awkwardly done breakfast.

"Yeah, yeah. I know what you're gonna say: 'You should let Spike do it'." Said Twilight. "But the fact is, that I wanted to do it, to show you how much I love you and, because, I don't know, I just wanted to do it."

"Well, if this is all the love you have for me, then we'll better break up." I teased her, raising the burned bread.

Twilight opened her muzzle, dumbfounded, and then she hit me in the shoulder, smiling: "Stop teasing me, you filthy ponynapper!"

We both laughed.

"Well, then try out the chocolate with milk. I'm pretty sure I did that right." She pointed to the vase.

I took the vase and tried it. It was sour as hell.

"Then, how is it?" Twilight asked, hopeful.

"Oh, it's actually good!" I smiled, taking another long sip.

Twilight smiled too, and took a long sip too:

"Pruaghffgah!" She spitted it. "Puaj! It tastes horrible! Why did you say it's good?! And how can you drink this?!"

"Because it's done with love." I smiled, she too, and we tangled in yet another passionate kiss.

There we stayed, hugging in the bed, for a while, and I was simply, like flying in heaven. Then, Twilight's voice took me back to reality:

"Love... are you sure that we should... wait for our honeymoon to...? You know."

"I've already told you, my love. I want our first time to be unforgettable, special. That's why."

Twilight hugged me even tighter: "Oh, Gus. I love you so much..."

"I love you too, my love."

Twilight stayed silent for a little while, just hugging me, and then, she spoke:

"I've sent Spike out to an errand early in the morning, and according to my calculations, it will take him all day to get it done. So we have a lot of free time, just for us..."

"We already have a lot of free time, my love, now that you haven't to do anymore chores from Celestia." I commented.

"Yeah, I know. But I mean... that we have time now... just for us... together..." She broke the hug, and she looked straight to my eyes. She was blushing and panting, and her eyes were quivering with desire. "And I don't want to wait... anymore..." She whispered.

I was trembling, as seeing her like that was forcing me to use all my willpower to not to spoil the romantic honeymoon that I had planned. Oh God! She was so beautiful! And I wanted her so badly!

"Please, my love... I need you... I want you... please make me yours..." She pleaded.

That was more that I could take, and we started kissing again, and my hand was cuddling her flank already, when Spike entered the house like a lightning, making us to make a little bump in the bed, surprised:

"Twilight!! Twilight!! You have to read this! It's an urgent message from Celestia!"

Twilight and me made an annoyed gesture with foreleg and arm, respectively.

"What does that olg hag wants now?" I protested, while Twilight, with an angry face, jumped off from the bed and trotted to Spike.

"It's a full pardom from Celestia!" Was announcing Spike while Twilight was approaching him. "You're her faithful student again! You're an element bearer again! Hoorray!" He cheered.

Skeptical, Twilight grabbed the scroll with her magic and read it, and her eyes and muzzle opened wide: "Oh, my love! It's true!" She looked at me with perplexity. "She forgave me, and she wants me back in the castle as soon as possible!"

I smiled: "Whoa, that change of heart had surprised even me! Looks you're back in the saddle, my love!"

Twilight smiled too: "Yeah, right, whatever that means to... Spike, did you do the errand I asked you to?"

Spike lowered his arms and put a claw in his mouth: "Huh... no. I was on my way when I received that message, and I just ran back here to give it to you... It says 'urgent', you know?"

Twilight scowled: "But what are you waiting for, Spike? I need that errand done! It's important research!"

"Ow... don't worry, Twilight, your trustful adjutant Spike is already on it!" And making a military salute, Spike darted out from the house again.

Twilight waited that he was far enough, and then slowly closed the door. I looked to my sleeping pajamas: "Well, I guess that if I go there dressed like this, Celestia will get pissed off again. Huh? Give me a minute to change up. Will you my love?"

Twilight slowly turned to me: "Actually, I don't think I'm going..."

I got perplexed: "What?! But the message says 'urgent'!"

"Yeah, but the reason is to attend that stupid gryphoon ambassador and his bothersome demands. I'm pretty sure that Celestia can manage that without my help."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing: Twilight was turning down Celestia!

"My love... are you serious? You're not going back? You're like, her right hand, or hoof in your case!"

"Well, I guess she'll have to find another right hoof. She doesn't need me as much if she bucked me out once. Besides, I'm not feeling well, and all that stress..." She puts a hoof in her chest. "...was literally crushing me down..."

I couldn't help but feeling guilty. Everything that was happening was mostly my fault. Twilight noticed my concern by looking to my face, and she stood in her hinder legs and jumped to hug me again:

"Please don't feel bad, my love. We'll get through this, as we always do!" She smiled cheerfully.

"Sorry, my love, but I can't help to feel... that I'm a burden in your life. You left everything behind... for my doing..." I sadly replied.

"Love, don't blame yourself. Because, believe me, loving you has made worthwhile everything that we have passed through, and if I have to do all this again, I'll happily do it again, without even thinking. I love you that much."

I smiled, relieved. I don't know why, but she always manages to cheer me up. Maybe it's because we're so in love. "I love you too, my love. And I'll do everything again too for you." Then, looking to our bedroom, I asked impishly, tilting my head: "So, do we resume cuddling?"

"Nope, all this stuff cooled me off. I think we'll better go to visit Dashie, to see how she's doing. I'll rather leave the main event to our honeymoon. Agreed?" She smiled.

"Agreed... Love?"

"Huh?"

"Are you sure that Celestia can manage this?"

Twilight mindlessly waved her right foreleg and shrugged her shoulders "Bah. It's no big deal. She'll be alright."

"This wasn't what we agreed, Princess Celestia!" Said very upset the ambassador Chad, pointing the white alicorn with his sharp-pointed finger. "You assured us that your adjutant will help us with this matter!"

"Please, ambassador Chad, just give me some time to convince her to come back, or to get another adjutant just as good as her!" Celestia pleaded.

"Just as good as her? No, Your Highness. You have failed to fulfill our deal, so, now our requirements have been increased!" The gryphoon stated. "We want you to get somepony that has higher magickal abilities, so he or she can handle better this special lighstones, and speeds the process even further! We want our request fulfilled in the next two moons!"

Celestia was taken aback: "Only two days?! That's too little time! You're pushing this too far, Gryphoon!" She angrily protested.

"I hadn't to, if only you've managed to keep your subjects around!"

"That was a situation that escaped to my control, ambassador! You have to take that in account!"

"Oh! It looks that uncontrolled situations are a rule in your kingdom! Isn't boys?!" The gryphoon thugs laughed. "And the fact that the 'uncontrolled situation' was just a naughty puny pony hitting your face with her flank only make it worse!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The gryphoons laughed again, even louder.

Celestia's face started to turn red. How dare this pesky gryphoons to mock on her and her belov... she mean faithful student?

"Ambassador Chad... I'll ask you very politely, and just once, to take back that words..." Said Celestia, making use of all her self-control.

"Or what? What are you going to do? We have a huge army at your frontier, just waiting for you to slip your horseshoes down."

"How dare you to threaten me, ambassador?!" Roared Celestia. "I thought we had left all this behind!"

"It was until you took us for fools! How are we going to believe that you, the almighty Sun Goddess, Princess Celestia herself, can't handle a single puny pony?! That's a situation that escapes to our control!" Mocked Chad.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!" The two gryphoon thugs fell to the floor cackling, with tearful eyes from laughing too much.

Celestia was about to lose it. But she can't... no... she can't attack them... that'll be disastrous for Equestria, for everypony... please Celestia... just hold on... She has to let them to treat her as a clown, or many innocent ponies could be killed. She can't afford that.

"Three days, ambassador. Just... give me three days and I'll get a pony with higher magickal abilities than Twilight Sparkle. That's all I can do." Said Celestia, recomposing herself after a titanic willpower effort.

"And I hope you to honor our deal this time, 'Your Highness'." The ambassador Chad, emboldened, started to use a rather insulting tone. "And don't take us as fools again, 'please'. That will be 'unwise'." Then, he turned his head to his bodyguards: "Come on, boys! We're done here, as it looks that the Princess needs an extra day, to find the half of the brain that she lost along with her eye!" And he left cackling with his bodyguards.

Celestia, not merely the gryphoons made their exit, galloped back to her room with a tearful eye, locked inside, and an angered stentorian scream could be heard in all the castle, making it's walls to tremble...

Chapter 3 - Radical Solutions

It was the third day of the deadline given by the gryphoons to Celestia, and nopony from the countless atracted by the Royal Edict, had been able to even make the lighstones to shine. Celestia was sadly looking to the sky, hopes slowly fading bit to bit: What can she do? She can't make Twilight to return. The gryphoons could find out and that'll be it. Equestria will end up invaded, after a thousand years without having a single gryphoonic war. The ponies weren't ready for this. I was going to be a butchery.

But the time was running out! Oh, what can she do?! What can she do?!! Celestia walked to her wardrove and started to repeteadly hit it with her head, completely sank in despair.

Even worse, if a war gets to come open, Twilight will surely be at the front lines, and she'll be one of the first ponies to...

"AHHHHHHRRRRGGGG!!" Celestia, with an enraged and crying scream, launched a spell over the wardrove, destroying it. Then, she cooled down, and started to nervously look around: "What... what's happening to me? Why I'm feeling like this...?"

She was deep on those toughts, when a royal guard knocked her door: "Princess! Are you alright?! What was that scream?! What was that noise?!"

"Ah... I'm alright! I... I just think I saw a mouse!" Replied Celestia. "A really big and mean one! So I shot him!"

"Ahh. Thanks heavens. By the way, Your Highness. Have you heard? Twilight is back in Canterlot!"

Celestia opened her eye, filled with happiness: 'She's back! She's back! She has forgiven her! Oh, thanks heavens!'

"Thank you, my little pony, thank you thank you thank you!" She thanked the guard, then quickly opened the window and flown down to the city, looking for her former faithful student.

It didn't took long until she found us. Then, she landed to Twilight and embraced her with her wings: "Twilight! Twilight... you came back. You forgave me!" She happily exclaimed.

"Your Highness, I wasn't mad with you. There's nothing to forgive at all."

"Come, come, I need to talk to you. In private." Said the white alicorn, teleporting away with Twilight and leaving Trixie and me behind.

They appeared in some hideout. Then, Celestia made sure that there weren't anyone else around, and turned back to the purple unicorn: "Twilight, my faithful student, you have to help me, look..."

"Your Highness, I..." Tried to talk Twilight.

"Shhhh, shhh, shhh!" Celestia whispered. "We haven't time for that. Look, I need you to manipulate those lightstones, but the gryphoons can't figure out that's you, so I'm going to cast this appearance changer spell on you..."

"Actually, about that..." Tried to speak Twilight again.

"Shhh! Not now! Listen, that's a temporary spell, so you'll have to excuse yourself from time to time, then you'll go to my room, and I'll renovate the spell, and you'll quickly come back to your place, like nothing has happened..."

"I've brought a replacement..." Twilight tried to speak even again.

"... and don't worry, we'll only be doing this while... What?" Celestia shooked her head.

"I've brought a replacement for me. She's brilliant! I'm sure she can perform this task as good as me, if not better!"

"What?! A replacement you say?! But Twilight, I don't want to replace you! Is that odious gryphoons the ones that want another pony!"

"And I've brought one!" Happily confirmed Twilight.

Celestia shooked rapidly her head "No. No no no no no. NO! I don't want another pony, Twilight. I want YOU!" She pointed Twilight with a foreleg.

"Me? Why me, Your Highness? I'm not that important."

"Yes you ARE!"

"Then why you bucked me out in the first place?"

Celestia hoofslapped her own face: "Twilight! I've already told you that we haven't time for this!"

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but if you don't tell me why you want me so badly, I'm afraid I can't help you."

Celestia raised a foreleg, but remained speechless: That's right. Why she wants Twilight so badly? Which could be... the reason...?

"Your Highness? Are you alright?" Asked Twilight, concerned.

"I... " Barely could say Celestia, when a bright light popped just behind them, and a form teleported there.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!" Celestia screamed, scared, putting both forelegs upside.

"Your Highness, it's me, Shining Armor!" Said Twilight's brother. "What's happening?! Are you in danger?!"

Celestia sat on her haunches with a hoof in her chest, panting: "Captain, please warn me before doing that!"

"Oh, I'm sorry for the rushed arrival, but the gryphoon delegation has just arrived, and they are requesting your presence in the contest. They said you made a 'Deal of Honor' with them. That's true?" Explained the unicorn stallion.

"Your Highness, you made a Deal of Honor with the gryphoons?! Why?!" Asked Twilight. "You can't break a Deal of Honor with a gryphoon! In the Gryphoon Empire, the ones that breaks it have to commit suicide! Is that important to them!"

Celestia put her hoof back to the ground, closed her eye and sighed. "Yes, it's true. I made a Deal of Honor with them... But it was for a good reason! I swear!"

"Your Highness, if they requested another pony than me for the contest, then you can't put me in on it. If they find out, they'll declare war to us!" Continued Twilight.

Celestia dropped her head and ears: "Oh no... I've doomed Equestria... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." She cried.

"Don't cry, Your Highness! I've told you that I've brought a replacement!" Happily announced Twilight.

The place where the contest were taking place was a big amphitheater, designed to held concerts, circus shows and such, and consisted on a central circular square, surrounded by an elevated seat zone. In the center of the circular square, there was a pedestal with the lightstones over it. With great confidence and self-assurement, Trixie walked to the pedestal where the lightstones were lying: "Ha! The great and powerful Trixie will have no problems controlling this pitiful stones! Just watch!"

She lightened her horn, and the stones shined and brighted for a moment. Trixie lightened her horn again, and the stones started to shine with different colors. Other magickal pass from Trixie, and the stones levitated and started to slowly swirl around the pedestal, exchanging colorful lightnings among them, in a quite impressive show. "Ha ha! Behold! Game of foals!" She boasted.

"Ohhh! She's good! Pretty big pretentius, but she's definitively better than the other." Said Chad.

"See?. You should not underestimate us, ambassador." Said Celestia, smiling but still sweating cold.

"Bravo, Trixie, Bravo! That's how's done! Woooooooooo!" Cheered Twilight among the spectators, applauding.

Celestia looked to her, and, featuring a wide open smile, she started to applaud too, soon followed for all the ponies spectators around. Trixie's eyes quivered with a happiness beyond description: They're cheering her! Everypony, even Celestia herself where acclaiming her! Oh, sweet Celestia, this is the happiest happier day in her life!! Ohhhh, she could float right to the heavens right now!

Trixie couldn't resist, and standing on her hinder legs, she even threw some fireworks...

The gryphoons just gave a blank stare to the alicorn, and then they started to whisper among them.

Once the applauses were ended, the ambassador Chad turned to Celestia again: "Congratulations, Your Highness, we sincerely didn't think you'll make it on time. Heh heh heh. Alright then, let's retire the audience, so we can pass to the main part of the show."

Celestia made an agreeing gesture with her head to Shining Armor, who proceeded to clean the building from all the excess ponies.

Once the amphitheater was emptied, with the exception of Trixie, the gryphoon delegation, Celestia and her guards, the ambassador stood up:

"Alright, blue pony. Now, your next assignment will be to make an exact copy of Princess Celestia, using the lightstones. Your Highness, make us the honors." He extended his claw, indicating to Celestia to come down near the pedestal.

Now it was Trixie who was sweating cold: To make an... an exact copy of Princess Celestia?! Twilight didn't told her nothing about this! She gulped and looked around: There was no escape, as it was a large and flat circular square with not even a hole where to put a hoof in. And she doesn't even know how to teleport. She was doomed...

Celestia flown down near Trixie, and looked to her sternly: "What's happening, miss Trixie?"

Trixie gulped again "I'm sorry, Your Highness, but the great an powerful Trixie... doesn't know how to make a copy of an alicorn goddess..."

"Ah! Don't worry, miss Trixie, I'm pretty sure it's something like an appearance changer spell." Laughed Celestia. "And it turns that I've found a very practical one recently. Let me taught it to you." She said joyfully, lightning her horn.

Trixie looked up, relieved: Ooof! Heavens! Looks it isn't that hard. Then, she turned to the lightstones again, and lightened her own horn. The stones levitated and started to join together, forming first a formless mass of changing bubbles, but slowly receeding until they took the rough shape of an alicorn. Then, Celestia applied her own magic, and the roughly looking alicorn brighted for a moment, then the bright faded, and there was, standing, an exact copy of Princess Celestia.

Celestia herself was perplexed. She started to walk around the newly appeared alicorn, until she stopped in front of her copy's face. "Amazing... it looks exactly like me..." She commented. Then, shrugging her eye, she used her magic to raise the copy's eyepatch...

Celestia gasped and made a small jump backwards, standing in a defensive posture and with trembling legs: "... up to the last detaaaaaiiiiiil..." She said, scared.

"Perfect! Everything is going according to the plan!" Chad stood up, satisfied. "Now, put this magic dampener on the copy!" He demanded, throwing a roughly done bridle to them.

Celestia stared to the bridle: "What's this for? It's a statue! It's not like it's going to escape or anything!"

But right then, like it was meant to belie her, the 'statue' started to move.

"Hurry up, put that on it, put that on it!" Exclaimed Chad, pointing with his claw.

Startled, Celestia took the bridle with her magic and put it on the copy's muzzle, and the 'statue' stopped moving.

"It's safe now?" Asked Chad to other gryphoon that looked like his magickal advisor. The other gryphoon nodded, and then the entire delegation flown down where the two mares, and the copy, were.

"Alright, seems that you've driven our request to good endpoint. You've honored our Deal of Honor. We're satisfied with the results." Said Chad.

"Then, this is all that was about? Make a copy of me?" Asked Celestia, perplexed.

"Oh, Princess, this isn't just a 'copy' of you. This is like... your twin sister, if I may say so. It thinks like you, behaves like you, and the most important thing... it can do the same things that you do... like raising suns and moons..." Explained Chad.

Celestia opened her eye and muzzle wide:

"Then... do you mean... what... that thing can raise the sun and the moon?!"

"That's right. You know, that lightstones are actually called 'seeds of life', and they can be magickally manipulated to mimic any living thing, so we come out with the idea, after you were nearly killed in your kingdom's recent conflit, that we needed a backup sunkeeper in the case that... How I can say it politely...? you kick the bucket."

The gryphoons laughed.

Celestia shrugged her eye: "That wasn't funny, ambassador."

"I'm not supposed to be 'funny', Princess. I'm supposed to be trustful and loyal to my wings, which is much more than I could say about your previous adjutant." Replied Chad.

The gryphoons laughed again.

"Well, I think this ends our business. Please, return now to the Empire. We're done." Demanded Celestia.

"How's that? You're going to let us take your little twin sister nice and easy?" Mocked Chad, and the gryphoons laughed even again. "If that is the case, we're taking that blue pony with us too." He pointed Trixie, who looked to Celestia, scared.

"What?!" Celestia blurted. "NO! You can't take her, ambassador! This wasn't what we agreed!"

"We're 'deeply' sorry, Your Highness, but we need a magic user to control this thing. It could explode or something. And we'll hate to lose our feathers! We need them for... you know... fly." The ambassador made a flying motion with his wings.

"No. No! No!! NO!!! You're not taking that mare, ambassador! Now leave before I lose my temper!" Exclaimed Celestia, very upset.

"She definitively lost that half of the brain." Said Chad, pointing Celestia and turning his head to the rest of the gryphoons. Then, he turned his head to the alicorn: "It seems that you haven't figured out, but with this copy we don't need you anymore. Listen, little princess, the only reason because we haven't crushed your cute little kingdom was because not only us, but all Equus needed of you. But not anymore! We have power over the moon and the sun now! So we can wipe out Equestria from existence... anytime we want!"

Celestia froze in place. Oh Tartarus! He's right!

"So, listen, and listen well 'Your Highness', you have two choices, or you give us that mare, or we'll send our almighty army over Equestria and we'll take thousands. The life of one in exchange of many. I think it isn't a hard choice to make!" He opened his claws. "Is it boys?!"

"Yeah!"

"It isn't!"

"Easy as pony meat!"

The gryphoons laughed.

Celestia looked to them, then to Trixie, then to them:

"Please, Your Highness, don't let them take Trixie! Don't turn Trixie to them! Trixie begs you!" Pleaded Trixie with her forelegs together, scared to death.

"So well?" Asked the ambassador Chad. "I'm waiting."

"Can... can she at least say goodbye to her family?" Sadly asked Celestia. Of course, that was a trick so she can take her out of danger and hide her somewhere later.

"Nooooo! No, Your Highness, noooo! Don't let them take Trixie! Don't let them take Trixie! I beg you!" Trixie pleaded, drooping to the floor, unaware of the deception.

"Ohhh, Ho ho ho ho!" Laughed Chad. "Old trick, old trick! Are you trying to take us as fools again, Princess? I told you that will be unwise."

Celestia bristled, realizing that she won't be able to save Trixie using side moves: "And that means exactly... WHAT?!!" She screamed, lightening her horn, and adopting a fighting stance. Her pony guards quickly came, with spears at the ready, and surrounded their liege to protect her.

"Ohhh, it isn't what you're thinking, Your Highness. Just more demands." Said Chad with a mocking tone, while handling another scroll to the alicorn.

"More demands, huh? Hmpft!" Huffed Celestia, turning off her horn and getting back to her previous stance. Then, she took the scroll with her magic and opened it to read. Her angry expresion soon turned into a shocked one: "But what's this?! Restoration of the gryphoon's hunting rights?!! This is outrageous!!" She wrapped the scroll and angrily waved it. "NEVER!! I'll never allow you gryphoons to hunt down my ponies again, like the ancient times! And that is out the question!" She asseverated, violently tossing the scroll to the ground.

"Really? Are you going to go to war with us for just..." Chad looked to Trixie and pointed her. "... a single puny pony?"

Celestia was about to say 'yes', but suddenly, the horrors of all the previous conflicts and wars she has seen, came back to her mind. There she stood, hesitative, with a foreleg half way up.

"Hard decision, huh? Really? Are you going to tell me that you're not bored after all those peaceful centuries? Even the strongest warrior gets rusted, if he doesn't pick a fight from time to time." Said Chad.

Celestia was sweating cold. She looked to Trixie, then to the gryphoons.

"And what could you be thinking? Let me guess... Oh, yes! The deafening neighing of the cavalry, relentlessly galloping to their doom, the wrecked bodies of the pegasi, falling from the sky like rain..." Continued Chad.

Celestia was sweating cold and trembling. She looked to Trixie, then to the gryphoons once again.

"... and the bloodshed, the butchery, the stinking corpses. The screams of agony and sorrow." And then, Chad shrugged an eye, did a taunting movement of his right claw and added with a crooning mocking voice: "I bet you miiiiiiiiss iiiiiiiiit!"

Celestia was sweating cold, trembling and hyperventilating. She looked to Trixie, then to the gryphoons even once again.

"Still no answer? Well, then we'll make this even easier for you: Due your majesty's unfulfillment of our rightful demands, I, the ambassador Chad of the Gryphoon Empire, making use of the authorization given to me by our almighty liege, King Gryphanus himself, declare from this moment that the kingdom of Equestria and the Gryphoon Empire are at...!"

I was at the Canterlot library, looking for a spell to heal Twilight's health issue, when she arrived there:

"Love! I'm baaaaaack!" She happily exclaimed. "Everything went just magnificent! Trixie perfomed amazingly well! Even Celestia applauded, you should have been there to watch!"

"Nah, you know than Celestia and me don't get along. So, I decided to make better use of my time here. And know what?! I found a spell to heal you!" I happily informed my marefriend.

"Really?! No way!" She happily exclaimed and galloped to me, but her happy face quickly turned in a concerned one when she read the book I was holding. "No. No no no no no. No. Love, that's a life-force powered spell! You could die if you cast it wrong!"

"Love, you're worth the try. So stand still while I..." I said, kneeling to put myself at her level.

"No! No, love, no. Please, don't risk yourself that much for me, please! I won't take it if I lose you!" She pleaded with crying voice and tearful eyes, putting her forelegs on my chest.

"Love. listen to me." I took her head with both hands, and looked her straight to the eyes, caresing her mane. "I won't take it if I lose you either. So let me do this. I'll be fine. You know that I'm a tough guy."

"And a stubborn and stupid one too!" Twilight still refused with concern. "Love, this illnes is not too serious! I could live 100 years with it!" She assured, pointing her chest with a foreleg.

"Yeah, sure. And I can wake up the next morning, finding you dead in the bed. That's why you were trying to 'put your stuff in order', isn't?" I sternly told her.

Twilight closed her beatiful dark purple eyes, lowered her head and ears, and sadly nodded. Then, I put my fingers on the lower part of her muzzle, and gently raised her head, and she looked at me again.

"Love, you have no reason to be afraid. The reaper and me had an argument, and he doesn't want me back there for a loooooong while." I made a black joke.

We both laughed and gave each other a passionate kiss.

"So, are you gonna be a good girl, and stand still while I'm saving you?" I asked her with a soothing smile.

Twilight looked to a side, focusing in a sharp sword hanging from a shield of arms. Well, if anything goes wrong, at least she'll have a quick death.

"Alright. Go ahead..." She reluctantly agreed.

Relieved, I put both hands in her chest, and a hexadic lightning formed inbetween. After a minute that made me sweat like I was running a marathon, the spell was done. Then, I put my hand on her chest again, checking with joy that her vitals were back to normal.

"Ta-chaaaaan!" I opened my arms, smiling. "As good as new, and I'm still alive!"

"AHHHHHHHHHH!" Twilight screamed of happiness and hugged me, kissed me, cuddled me, mad of happiness and relief. "You had me so scared, you bucking stuuuuuupiiiiiid!" She joyfully exclaimed with tearful eyes.

"Shhhhh!" Warned the book keeper. "Keep silence in the library, please, or I'll have to ask you to leave!"

"Don't worry, ma'am. We were leaving anyway." I replied back.

Chapter 4 - Painful Revelations

"WAAAAAAAAIIIIIIT!!" Screamed Celestia, raising a foreleg, interrupting Chad before he could say the word 'war'. "Wait". Then, she turned her head to her guards: "Guards, put your weapons down!"

"But, Your Highness...!" The guards tried to reply.

"Haven't you heard?! Put your weapons down, I said!" Repeated Celestia, and the guards obeyed. Then, Celestia added: "Now, go back to the castle, and wait for further orders there."

"But, Your Highness, how we're going to leave you alone with all those gryphoons?! There are a dozen of them!" Protested Shining Armor, pointing the avians with a foreleg.

"Do as I say, Captain! No replies!" Commanded the alicorn Princess.

The guards did a respectful reverence, and they made their leave, the pegasi by taking off, and the unicorns by teleporting away. Shining Armor, however, teleported to a nearby hidden room in the amphitheater, to watch for his liege.

Once all the guards are off sight, Celestia turned her head to Chad: "Alright... you... you win, gryphoon... Let that mare go. I'll go with you... instead..."

Trixie opened her eyes and muzzle wide, perplexed.

"Really? Then you'll do as we say and you won't try to escape. Will you honor that deal?" Asked Chad.

"Yes, I will..." Confirmed Celestia, looking down, with her ears drooped and tearful eye.

"HA! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Laughed Chad, turning to his fellows gryphoons. "This is simply glorious! This day wild be remembered for the centuries to come! The day when the almighty Sun Goddess surrendered to us gryphooons, without even losing a feather! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Then, he turned back to Celestia and tried to grab her.

"Don't touch me!" Angrily yelled Celestia, slapping his claws with a forehoof.

"Well, Your Highness, after you." Chad made a reverencing gesture instead, indicating her to take off.

But just when she had done that, she got trapped by Shining Armor's Bubble Prison.

"Captain, what are you doing?! Let me out! I've made a deal of honor with them! LET ME OUT!" Roared Celestia, while the gryphoons only sat to laugh.

"Please, Your Highness, you can't go with them! You'll be at their mercy, and they have none of that!" Pleaded the white unicorn, concerned.

"LET ME OUT, I TOLD YOU!!" Angrily screamed Celestia, starting to prancing and beating the Bubble's surface with her hooves and horn several times, hitting it so strongly, that her eye wound come open and she started bleeding profusely, until she fainted due the blood loss.

"Your Highneeeeeess! NOOOOOOO!" Shining Armor screamed, frightened to death, dispelling the bubble and galloping to heal his bleeding liege.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! This is the best show I ever seen!" Laughed the gryphoons. "I won't lose this for nothing in the world!"

Shocked, Trixie turned to them:

"Please, gryphoons, don't make my Princess to hurt herself like that! Trixie will go with you! Trixie will go with you! Please, don't drive her to kill herself!"

Chad looked at her, sternly. One of his henchmen commented: "What we need you for? We already have the big fish... Wait! She can be the main dish on tonight's celebration!" He suggested, but Chad raised a claw:

"Nope, this looks like a better option."

"Boss?! What are you talking about?! It isn't better to take the alicorn princess?!"

"No, isn't. Look at her, she's dying! She'll need a miracle or something to get alive to the Empire. And I don't need to tell you how dissapointed King Gryphanius will get, if we come to appear there with a corpse." Said Chad, pointing Celestia. "So, no more arguments, let's take our prize and go home. I'm hungry."

And, with that said, he took off, and the gryphoons took Trixie and Celestia's copy, and followed him.

While flying, the gryphoon that was carrying Trixie commented:

"Hey! This puny ponies are so featherbrained! They speak all that horseshit about friendship and all that crap, but when it comes to real, they stab on they so-called friends loins as easy as saying 'hello'! Just like that purple pony, she might have suspected something, so she sent this blue one to us to take instead!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The gryphoons laughed.

Trixie's eyes quivered: She can't believe it! That bucking Twilight! She had setted Trixie up!

"You're right, my wing!" Confirmed Chad. "It's no wonder that Celestia didn't want to go to war! Those coward ponies will start quitting files from day one!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The gryphoons laughed even louder.

A wave of fury and resentment passed through Trixie's body: 'How could that filthy traitor do that to Trixie?! It's a bucking liar and a hypocrit!' Then, Trixie looked to her front, enraged: 'The Great and Powerful Trixie will have her revenge!'

A good while had passed, until finally Celestia recovered conciousness.

"Thanks heavens!" Exclaimed Shining Armor, relieved.

Celestia raised her head, looking everywhere: "Where...? Where are the gryphoons?! Where is the little pony?!" She asked, concerned.

"She went away with the gryphoons..." Started to explain Shining Armor.

"What?!! They took her?!!" Celestia tried to stand up, but she couldn't: She was too weak.

"No, she... she went with them by her free will, so they left you... please, don't move, Your Highness, I'm going to look for help. I'll be back right away!" Exclaimed Shining Armor, still worried about the severity of his liege's injury.

"Halt there, captain!" Celestia ordered, and Shining Armor stopped short, looking behind. "Your weapon and your badge, at once!"

Trembling of embarrasment, the former captain took out his helmet, spear and captain's badge, put all that in the floor, and, with tearful eyes, galloped to look for help.

"Monkeeeeey!! Monkeeeeey!!" Desperately screamed Shining Armor when he saw me. "Princess Celestia is hurt!! Please, save heeeeer!!"

"Where is she?!" I asked.

"In the amphitheater!! Quick, hurry up!!"

We quickly reached there, and Twilight gasped of horror, putting both forelegs in her mouth, I extended my hands, trying to reach Celestia's body, but she bucked my hands back: "Don't touch me!"

I looked to her perplexed: "But Your Highness, that wound needs treatment!"

Celestia managed to stand up, with still trembling legs: "I have no need of your pity." She sourly blurted, making a grimace.

"Sorry, but I strongly disagree." I replied, pointing her with a finger.

Celestia didn't answer, she just tried to walk, but her legs failed to held her on foot, and I grabbed her just before she hits the floor.

"Don't touch meeeeee!!" Celestia yelled with a high pitched tone, making me to stumble back. There she stayed, drooped in the floor, panting and looking at me with a killer stare.

"Cellie, what's up with you, huh? You're gonna die if I don't heal that wound! Now stop being so stubborn and let me do!" I scolded her.

Celestia snorted: "Alright, but just heal the wound, don't give me a new eye. Just... heal the wound..."

After I did so, she stood up again and walked away, and while she was passing besides Shining Armor, she told him with a grimace: "And you... I don't want to see you again. Pack your things and leave." And she took off and left.

Shining Armor sat on his haunches, silently crying, and Twilight quickly trotted to comfort him: "But big brother. What happened?"

"I just... I just was trying to protect he-e-e-e-e-e-r..." Said Shining Armor among sobbings and cries.

"Don't lash too hard on you, dude. You did you best." I tried to cheer him.

"I di-i-i-i-i-dn't! I did my wo-o-o-o-o-orst! My wo-o-o-o-o-orst!" He complained, crying even louder.

I raised a brow: "Well, time for the magickal speech..."

"No!" My marefriend stopped me.

"No? Why not?"

"Not with him!"

"But why not with him? Then, I can do it with your friends, but not with your brother? That's a bit biased, you know?"

Twilight raised a hoof and opened her muzzle to reply something, but finally she gave up.

From the amphitheater, the loud scream of Shining Armor could be heard: "I'LL DO WHATEVER YOU ASK!! WHATEEEEEVEEEEEER!!"

The next morning, I went to the Canterlot palace, to check if Celestia was OK, and, by the way, to speak in Shining Armor's behalf. Twilight stayed with him, to prevent him to do any stupidity. Just in case.

Celestia received me with a cold courtesy, and when I made the plead, she ordered: "Guards, leave us."

The guards looked each other, worried: "Your Highness, are you su...?"

"Anypony wants to follow Shining Armor?!" Angrily replied Celestia.

"No, no, Your Highness. With your permission." Complied the guards, scared, and left.

When we ended alone in her throne room, Celestia stepped down and slowly walked to me and started to surround me with a stern look: "What are you trying to do, monkey? You confuse me. For moments, it looks like that you were trying to finish me off, and the ancestors are witness that you've had plenty of chances to do it. But then, you came and save me, then, you came back with a backside move, and you take down me again, and later, you came in my rescue again. I don't get it. What kind of game are you playing? What are you true intentions?"

I raised a brow. "Cellie, girl. Truly, you must have read too much conspiracy histories. I'm not trying to take you down!"

"Then, why you spend all your time defying and defying me over and over again, if you know that I'm weakened and vulnerable? What are you trying to prove? That you're better than me? Stronger? Wiser? WHAT?!!" She yelled the last word.

"Cellie, you're vulnerable because you want to! Why you don't let me to heal your eye?!"

"Because I don't want to owe a favor like that to you! I know you'll throw in my face later, and you'll make me to do something that I'll regret!" She angrily exclaimed.

"Like sending me to the moon?!"

"I'm sure I won't regret doing that! That'll be the best for Equestria! Before you and your fat crony came, my kingdom was perfect! Everything was running over wheels, there was harmony, peace and happiness! But since you came, it's only been trouble, sorrow, war... DEATH! Why you had to come to shatter my kingdom, monkey?! It was too good for you?! It made you to feel like something this nice shouldn't exist?! Explain me, monkey, because I DON'T GET IT!!" She finally yelled, panting.

I was taken aback by Celestia's confession. I truly felt responsible for all the trouble I've caused, but it was unintentional... mostly.

"Cellie..." I replied, rubbing the back of my head, embarrased. "I... I just want to make everything right. To correct my mistakes. I want to help."

Celestia huffed and turned around, ending loinside to me: "Do you know why I told everypony to leave, monkey?"

"Hummm... not really. It's not like you trust me or anything."

"Because... in despite my best judgement... I feel safe with you around. I... I don't have a logical explanation to that. It's just a feeling. And the life has taught me to trust more in feelings that brains." Then, she turned to me again. "And that... scares me to death... because... it feels alike... something I tought that was dead and buried long ago... and..." Celestia turned around and huffed again.

"What it is Cellie? Come on, you can tell me." I smiled, and raised my hand with a trustful gesture.

"And I'm worried about Twilight. I mean, I had to send her to the Gryphoon Empire recently, and there she could..." She stopped speaking and I could hear her sobbing.

"Celestia, what could had happened to Twilight in the Gryphoon Empire?" I asked, worried.

Celestia raised the head and stared at me with a look that I couldn't decipher: "Alright. I'll think about your plead in Shining Armor's behalf, and I'll communicate my decision to you, as soon as I have it. That's all I can do. Now dismiss. This conversation is over."

"Oh, no no no no. This conversation is not over until you tell me what could had happened to Twilight in the Empire." I repeated, starting to get upset.

"I have nothing more to say." Replied Celestia, walking away.

"You do." I started to walk after her.

"No, I don't!" She repeated, walking even faster.

"Cellie!" I insisted.

"No! Stop following me!" She looked me with a scared face, starting to trot.

"Cellie! Stop right there!" I started to jog after her.

"No!" She exclaimed starting to gallop away from me.

"Cellie, don't try to escape! I need you to tell me!"

Celestia gave a scared gasp and jumped from the window, taking off, and I followed her in my flying cloud.

"Come over here Cellie!" I told her, locking her on.

"AHH!" Celestia gave a short scared scream and started to teleport away from me, but I had her locked on.

I couldn't tell how long we played the cat'n rat game, until Celestia, exhausted, landed near a wall in the garden, and I cornered her.

When she realized she couldn't escape from me, she covered her head with her trembling forelegs and cried: "No! Don't touch me! Don't touch me!"

I kneeled near her, concerned: "Oh. My. God. They raped you, the gryphoons, right?" I asked her, putting two plus two.

Celestia sadly looked me, and she slowly nodded.

Oh, Jesus Christ.

"Now you understand, monkey? Why did I had to do that dreadful deal of honor? I had... I had to make sure that those cursed gryphoons didn't touched Twilight, that they'll respect her purity. I needed to protect her!" She cried.

"But why you didn't send me there too?! I could have protected her up to the best!"

"I couldn't send you, monkey! With you being so violent and troublemaker, we'll be already at war at this point! I couldn't take that risk, even with you being the best option! I couldn't...! And that's why I was so angry with you."

"Then, it wasn't for the big bat prank?" I smiled.

"Nope. It wasn't for that. Not even for the beating you gave to that gryphoon bastard. The ancestors knows he deserved worst."

"Then, why you lied? Why did you put all that show then?"

"Because I was scared... for the reaction you may have. Not to me, but with Twilight. I knew you'll try to take her from me. And I was selfish, I know it. I've lived long enough, and frankly, death doesn't scare me anymore. Solitude is. This awful certainty that I'm going to outlive any beloved one that I could have, that prevented me to get emotionally bonded to anypony, or anything... until you and Twilight appeared..."

"And your sister? She's inmortal, like you. She can accompany you, isn't?"

Celestia chuckled. "Sure. I've tried. Twice. But she always have other plans. So, that's not a real solution."

I lowered the head, embarrased to the infinitum and beyond. All this time, I had tought that Celestia had a nice and easy life. Now, I realized all the suffering, all that she had sacrificed for the well being of her kingdom and her subjects. And, here I am. calling her an 'ungrateful tyrant'. I'm such a jerk.

I raised the head, and smiling, I extended my arms to her: "Come on, Cellie. Give me a hug."

Celestia looked at me with perplexity.

"Come on, Cellie. I don't bite... too hard." We both chuckled.

Slowly, Celestia started to get closer to me, until, suddenly, she hugged me, and resting her head on my shoulder, she started to cry. A deep, painful cry, forcefully held inside herself for so many years, finally surfaced in all it's strenght and constrained feelings. I hugged her back, even kissed her forehead, and cared her mane and loin: "That's OK, Cellie. You can let it go. You can let it go."

After a long while, she finally calmed down, and I asked her: "Now you're gonna let me heal that eye, right?"

"Yes, I will." She replied, and suddenly she broke the hug and started to nervously looking around. "But not here! Not here! If anypony see us like this, they're going to think that we're... and we're not, right?"

"Yeah. We're not." I smiled.

Back on her room, I quickly made a new eye for her. It looked perfect.

"Well. How do I look now?" She joyfully asked.

"Now I'll show you." I told her with a smile, and reached for a hand mirror. Looking to the mirror, I thought 'Why not?', and, without she noticing it, I cast an image deformation on it. Then, I put the mirror in front of Celestia's face.

Her joyfully expresion slowly turned into a horrified one, when she saw herself looking like Derpy Hooves.

"Cursed Tartarus! But what's this?!!" She yelled, holding the mirror with her magic, spooked at will by her own reflection. Then, she saw me, laughing like there was no tomorrow.

I didn't see it coming. The bucking was so swift and precise, that I saw the stars, the planets, the galaxies, all the bucking universe in a single second.

"OHHHHHHHRRRRRRRGGGGGG!!" I rolled on the floor, grabbing my pained crotch.

"OH! I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry!" Celestia quickly apologized. "I didn't mean to do it, my body just moved by its own!"

"Alright, alright. I deserved it." I waved an arm, and stood up with difficulty.

Then, suddenly, Celestia gave me a kiss in the mouth.

"Whoa, girl! What was that?!" I bumped back, chuckling.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry... I was so embarrased... that..." Celestia lowered the head and the ears, deeply blushing, and started to nervously look around, rubbing her forehooves.

"Let me guess. Your body just moved by its own."

"Yes. That's right." Celestia raised the head, perked the ears and smiled. "That was what happened."

I smiled. "Well, it looks that I deserved that too."

Celestia giggled and gently pushed me with a foreleg: "That's enough, you rascal. Now get out of here."

"Alright, alright. Until tomorrow, Cellie."

"Until tomorrow, monkey... Ah! And make sure to come by, so I can make you a rightful Equestrian Citizen, ok?"

"And I'll be honored, Your Highness." I smiled, satisfied from a job well done, before walking away with a respectful reverence.

Chapter 5 - Feelings of Betrayal

"It's not fair!" Screamed Shining Armor, enraged. "How I'm going to get bucked out from the Royal Guard, while he's earning his citizenship?! It's not fair!"

"Don't worry, big brother. Celestia is forgiving and kind. I'm sure she'll let you to come back when she cools off." Tried to cheer him his sister.

"And if she isn't?! And if she isn't?!! And where is Cadance?! Why she isn't here, supporting me up?!! Why everypony has abandoned me?!!" He protested with tearful eyes.

Twilight opened her muzzle, perplexed: That's right: Why Cadance wasn't here too? "Brother, I haven't abandoned you!! BBBFF, remember?!"

"Do you want to know what I think? Do you want to know? It's all his fault!" He accussed me, pointing me with a foreleg.

"Great. Right. Now everything is my fault." I made an annoyed gesture.

"Of course it is!!" Roared Shining Armor.

"No, big brother, no! It isn't his fault! Everything was a misunderstanding, trust me! And everything is gonna be set right! Just be patient, please!" Assured Twilight.

"Patient, you say? I can't be patient with this... thing, screwing everything up, and now messing with my family too." Continued Shining Armor, with clenched teeth. Then, he slowly walked near to me: "I want you to step away from my sister... at once!" He angrily screamed.

"Brother! That's enough! You're going too far! Now behave yourself or I'm gonna tell mom and dad!" Twilight tried to 'threaten' him.

Shining Armor chuckled: "Little sister. What do you think that I am? A foal? Now listen to me, and listen well: I don't want you to see that filthy monkey... ever again! Am I clear?!!"

"You can't forbid me that, big brother! I'm gonna marry him in three days! Remember?!"

"You're not marrying him!!"

"Ah, no? Says who?!"

Shining Armor closed the eyes and angrily huffed: "Twilight, if you marry him, you'll lose me."

Twilight shrugged an eye: "Lose you?"

"Yes, you'll lose me, because you're going to let me with nothing to live for!" Almost cried Shining Armor.

Twilight got pale and started to sweat cold and hyperventilate: "No, brother... you can't be serious... please..."

"Twilight, look at me. I've lost everything... My place as a Captain, the respect that Celestia had for me, even my marefriend abandoned me... all I have is you... please... don't abandon me you too." Sobbed the formerly proud and self confident stallion.

I faceslapped: Damn, It's... Twilight Sparkle... male version...

"But big brother... I'm not abandoning you... how could you think such thing...?" Sobbed Twilight, with tearful eyes too.

"Yeah? Then, choose. He or me!" Shining Armor pointed me with a foreleg and pointed himself later.

Twilight looked nervously at me, and then looked to him back: "No, brother, no... don't make me do this... You know I love you both, and you know I can't afford to lose any of you... big brother, please, don't." Her last words were almost unhearable.

At this point, I knew that I had to interfere, so I walked to him, snapping my fingers: "Hey, dude! Stop putting your sister between the wall and the sword! If you're so whiny, I sincerely don't know how Cadance hadn't bucked you out before!"

"What?!!" Shining Armor's sadness inmediately turned back to anger. "Are you telling that I'm not worthy for her?!"

"Neither for her, neither anymare else!" I pushed even further. Maybe I shouldn't have done that.

"All of this... all of this is your fault!!" He screamed, heartbroken.

"No, brother! I've already told you..." Tried to explain Twilight again.

"Yes, it's his fault!" Shining Armor interrupted her. Then, he turned his head to me again: "If you never had shown up, Luna wouldn't never had turned against Celestia, and she hadn't injured her, and the gryphoons will still be thinking that she was indestructible...! And my marefriend wouldn't ever have found out that I'm not worthy... So it's your fault!!" He exclaimed with crying voice, pointing me with a foreleg.

I looked to a side, starting to get upset too. Then, I looked to him again: "Look, dude..."

"Stop calling me 'dude'!!" He interrupted me.

"Alright, alright. Look, brother-in-law..."

"I'm not your brother-in-law!!" He interrupted me again.

I made another annoyed gesture with both arms: "Alright! Shining Armor! I swear that I'll do anything within my power to make that Celestia gives your position as a Captain back! Happy now?!"

"That's not the point!"

"What?!" Twilight and me looked at him at the same time. "How's that's not the point?"

"No! The point is that you're using me and my family to earn favors from the royalty, you shameless freeloader slug!"

I faceslapped again: "Shining Armor... I'm not using..." I put my fingers in the base of my nose. "And stop speaking nonsense, will you? You're gonna kill your sister of a heart attack." I pointed Twilight, who was still pale, sweating and hyperventilating, with a hoof in her chest.

That made Shining Armor to back off: "Oh, little sister... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..."

"You have nothing to be sorry for, big brother. BBBFF, remember?" Twilight smiled, hugging him and relaxing at last.

Then, Shining Armor broke the hug, and sternly looking at me, suddenly blurted: "There's only a way to solve this... I'm hereby challenging you to a duel of honor... to the DEATH!"

"What?!! NO! No brother no please don't do this please think on me please." Quickly spoke Twilight, scared to death.

"Silence! This is no longer your concern!" Shining Armor harshly interrupted her. Then, he looked back to me: "What then? Are you afraid, chicken?"

"Yeah. Super afraid. Look how I tremble. Ohhhhhhhhh." I made a fake body shivering. "Now go to eat some hay somewhere, and don't forget to clean your flank after that, whiny boy." I replied in my most despective tone.

I guess I shouldn't have said that.

Shining Armor trembled of anger and clenched the teeth, and teleported outside. Twilight drooped to the floor, panting.

I kneel at her level "Are you alright, love?"

She nodded and smiled. But then, the loud voice of Shining Armor was heard:

"Hear me, citizens of Canterlot! I, Shining Armor, former captain from the Royal Guard, have just defied the monkey to a duel of honor..."

"What the...?" I asked, and walked out the hotel, followed by my dumbfounded marefriend, seeing her brother already surrounded by a crowd of curious ponies.

"... and if he refuses to do it, he'll always be known as a dishonorable, unreliable and untrustful coward, who doesn't respect the laws and customs from this kingdom, and I'll ponially travel to the last city, town and corner of Equestria, to let everypony know about this shameless freeloader slug!" He pointed to me with a foreleg.

That was it. This damned stallion is messing with my pride. And no one, or nopony, messes with my pride! EVER!

"You want to have it?! You'll have it!" I angrily walked to him, pointing him and later angrily waving my arm back. "Bring it on!" I raised my hands, making the 'bring it on' gesture as well.

"No, love, no, please!" My marefriend tried to stop me.

"Step aside, Twilight!" I pushed her back pretty roughly, almost making her to fell to the ground.

"Choose your weapon, monkey!" The white unicorn kick the ground with a foreleg.

"I don't need a weapon to get rid from a big mouth like you!" I angrily pointed him and waved my arm again, walking nearby him.

Twilight put both forelegs in her head, scared to death: "Oh no, oh no, oh no! This's a disaster! Now what do I do?!" She started to turn around two or three times, desperate. Then, she stopped short: "Wait, I know! Celestia, she can stop this!" And she quickly galloped back to Canterlot Castle.

I was already in Shining Armor's range, when each of my hands ended within a yellow sphere, each one pulling my arms, causing them to stretch away from my torse, and effectively disabling me from perfoming any spell. I raised my eyebrows: Whoa, clever move!

Then, being sure that I wasn't able to fight back, Shining Armor galloped to me, trying to pierce me with his horn. But he forgot something very important: I still had my legs free. I waited until he was close enough, and gave him an up kick in his muzzle that made him to backflip, and stunned him enough so the magic grip of my hands faded. Then, realizing that ranged spells will be his best bet to defeat me, I decided to pass to close-quarter combat.

I came closer him and started to punch his head, trying to break the shield he had cast there, then he teleported to some distance, and I did it too as well, and we repeated that tactic four or five times. Finally, he did what I was expecting to: He stood on his hinder legs, trying to buck me with the forelegs. Then, I took the chance, and casting a magic dispelling glove, I launched an uppercut right to his jaw. My fist pierced the shield, but it slowed the punch enough so I couldn't knock him down. Nevertheless, it made him to stumble, and I turned around, took his forelegs and, with a quick judo bending, tossed him loinside to the ground. Then, I jumped over him and started to repeatedly punch his shielded head again.

However, he quickly recovered and teleported away again. Then, he started to gallop around me, shooting me with a conical-shaped magical projectiles. I dodged the first two or three, and then I retaliated with my multi hadou-ken. Due my higher rate of fire, he soon begun to take hits on his magically shielded body, and, being a clever pony as he is, he soon realized that if he continued with that tactic, he'll be defeated.

Then, he started to teleport and attack me from different angles and heights, and so did I, until we appeared close enough, then I grabbed him and tossed in the air, and teleporting over him, I tried to push him against the ground, but he telported before I could. Then, I rolled in the ground and, taking the chance that I was close enough, he tried to buck me with his hinder legs. I quickly stood up and gave some turns around him, dodging his attack, and, using the impulse given by my motion, I hit his head with my elbow. Even it didn't broke his shield, the impact was strong enough to stun him a bit.

Then, I cast another magic dispelling glove and grabbed his horn, effectively preventing him to cast any spell. There, I passed to my favorite part: The punching bag. With my free hand, knees and legs, I unleashed on him a beating that'll surely take down Muhammad Ali. But he simply wasn't going down. Finally, and fearing that he could be taking too much damage, I grabbed him with a neck lock, trying to make him to give up, and we both fell to the ground. Now, everything was reduced to how long he can struggle using nothing but brute force.

"Give up Shining Armor! This fight is over!" I warned him.

"Never! I'm going to kill you, filthy monkey!" He shouted, his face red from the air lacking.

Scared to death, Twilight arrived to Canterlot Castle, and the standing guards, as usually, crossed their spears on front of her:

"Please, I need to see Celestia! It's an emergency!" She yelled with a frightened high-pitched tone.

"Sorry, miss Sparkle, but Our Highness has departed a while ago. She had some important matters to attend in Manehatten." The guard informed her.

Twilight, horrified, put both forelegs in her head, and later gave about a dozen quick turn arounds in the same place, yelling in despair: "Oh no oh no oh no now what do I do now what do I do now what do I doooooooo?!" Then, she just stood and, sitting in her haunches, she screamed, desperate: "SOMEPONY HEEEEEEEEEELP!!!"

"Twilight? It's that you?!" Cadance, with tearful eyes, galloped from the garden to the castle's entrace. "Let me thru!" She ordered to the guards, who hesitated a bit but finally obeyed the order. "Where's Shining Armor?! What happened to him?! Please, tell me!" She asked to Twilight with a cracked voice, extremely concerned.

Twilight looked at her, perplexed "What?"

My struggling with the unicorn was coming to an end, as the strenght was slowly abandoning his body. However, as I've learned recently, I was worried he'll try a last second self-destruction spell, so I need to stay on my guard. I won't ever forgive myself if I had to carry with Shining Armor's death in my memory.

"My love! No! Stop! Stop please!" Cadance landed near us, just on time. "Stop fighting him, I beg you!"

"Cadance?" Shining Armor reacted. "Cadance, my love!" His face brighted with happiness.

"My love! Where were you?! I was looking for you everywhere!" Said Cadance, filled with happiness too, so I released him, and he and the alicorn hugged and kissed passionately.

"My love, I thought you had abandoned me!" He said with trembling voice.

"How could I, my love?! Celestia just said she had dismissed you, but never told me where! I was dying of sadness, I thought you had abandoned me too!" Said Cadance between tears.

I sat back, panting from the effort, and looked to Twilight, who trotted to my side, smiling of relief.

"Whoof. That was close." I commented, sweeping the sweat on my forehead and hugging her with the other hand...

A pretty long while have already passed, when a group of pegasi guards come to look for Cadance, as she was taking too long in returning to the castle. They also brought a message from Celestia: That I come with them to the castle, and waited for her there, as she had something important to discuss with me. Shining Armor stood up too, but they told him:

"Not you. Just the monkey, citizen."

When Celestia finally arrived, she gave me Shining Armor's badge, and blessed the incoming marriage of Twilight and me, but her gloomy face and dull eyes told me that she wasn't entirely fine with that. I felt a bit doubtful, like marrying Twilight... wasn't right. Luckily, the anointement don't lasted too long, because seeing Celestia like that was really breaking my heart...

Walking all the way back to the hotel where Twilight and Shining Armor were staying, I couldn't help myself but to keep thinking on Celestia's kiss. I mean, it was a fortuitous event, driven by a rapturous moment of embarrasment and recently rediscovered feelings, isn't? Isn't...? Or there were... something else? What about if... Celestia had true feelings about me? Well, she mentioned that she felt 'weakened' and 'vulnerable' with me, and when a girl says that, it definitively means something. Besides, seeing Celestia with her two eyes again made me felt so... fulfilled? That was what I felt? Damn! Now I'm not sure! I think it'll be the best to shake all that doubts away, as they will only lead to no good. I guess I'll do some joke for a change.

Deep in that thoughts, I arrived to my destination, and walked to the room where the brother and the sister where. I put the key in the keyhole, and opened the door, finding Twilight unsuccessfully trying to cheer her brother. As soon as I entered, he raised his head, and stared at me, hopeful. Then, I made a negative movement with the head and a fake sad grimace: "Dude, really, I don't know what to say..."

Shining Armor's hopes faded like a shadow in the night, and he dropped his head on the table: "Ohhhhh noooo... I want to dieeeeeee." He cried.

"No, little brother, no! No please, no! Don't say that, don't say that pleaaaaaaase!" Twilight hugged her brother and they started to cry together.

"But to give your badge back!" I concluded joyfully, putting the badge in the table.

"What?!" They said at the same time, looking at me with perplexity.

"That's right! You can go back to work tomorrow, Shinny! You're a captain again! Now, stop crying like somepony had died!"

Shinning Armor looked like he was gonna have an attack or something.

Twilight gave me 'that' furious look: "I swear that 'somepony' is gonna die now..." She threatened me with a dreadful tone.

"Ha! Do you want to have it?! Come on!" I raised my fists, getting in a fighting stance.

Next, I teleported out the hotel, and Twilight did the same, shooting me with her purple beams and spheres, and I, laughing and enjoying as hell, dodging it or stopping her shots with my shielding spells. Finally, thinking that I had enough by just getting hit, I retaliated with a harmless Bull's Eye spell. I thought that Twilight will do something to avoid or dodge it, but she took the hit directly on her face, making a faceslaping sound. I couldn't help myself but to cackle:

"Ha ha ha ha ha! Love, you're supposed to avoid tha ha ha ha ha ha!"

But my laughter quickly dissapeared, when I saw my marefriend sat in her haunches, crying with a foreleg in her face.

"Oh, no no no. I'm sorry, my love, I'm sorry, let me see it, please." I ran to her, and kneeled at her level, concerned.

Suddenly, she surprised me with a purple blast that threw me twisting in the air, for some meters backwards. When I fell backside to the ground, she jumped over me and started to buck me, trying to hit my face, angrily yelling: "I'm gonna kill you, you filthy ponynapper! I'm gonna kill you!!"

Some ponies came closer, concerned, but I told them, among laughters: "Don't worry, folks, it's just a couple fight, it's just a couple fight!"

Finally, Twilight got exhausted, as she haven't the stamina to keep her bucking for too long, and we laughed together, until she dropped her head on my chest. Then she raised the head again, and looked me with a smile, still laughing a bit:

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Ahhhhhhh... Love, if you do something like that again, I'll kill you."

I smiled: "Really? Will you be able to kill your dear love, honey?"

She just smiled again, and bucked me with her hinder leg on my crotch:

"OHHHHHHHRRRRRRRGGGGGG!!"

Ball two! Strike two!

The grated door come open, and Trixie, not without some struggle, was thrown into a large jail. There, in the center, Celestia's copy was standing motionless, still wearing the magic dampening bridle. Trixie looked at the clone alicorn, frightened to the death, and quickly turned around and started to buck the jail bars:

"Let me out! Let me out, please!"

"Silence!" A badass looking gryphoon guard menaced her with his claw. "Stop whining and do your job, because if it turns that you're useless to us, you'll be the main dish tonight! Now, go and take out the bridle! MOVE!"

Trixie trembled at the perspective of being eaten, and gulping, turned around and cautiously walked near the clone. Then, closing the eyes and sweating cold, she removed the bridle. Soon, the alicorn turned into a living fireball, and started to walk to her. Trixie, completely sure that was her end, quickly walked backwards until her flank hit the jail bars. Then, she drooped to the floor, covering her head with the forelegs, shivering of fear.

The fireball slowly walked up to her, and when her face was only a mere inches from Trixie's:

"Hi! How are you! What are you...? Ah! A pony, no? I'm not completely sure. I'm not completely sure of what I am, either!"

Trixie take apart her legs from her face a bit, surprised of being still alive, and risked to take a look: In front of her, a friendly Celestia twin was featuring a wide grin.

"Oh! Did I scared you? Sorry sorry sorry. It's just that I was chilling, and I figured that I could warm myself a bit. Are you alright?" Asked the alicorn, concerned.

Trixie was still too scared to give a coherent answer:

"I... well... actually... kinda... maybe... not... yes... I mean..." She mumbled.

The alicorn then stopped listening to her and started to look around: "And where are we? A jail?! Oh no! Did we do anything wrong? What did we do? I can't remember! I can't even remember my name! Tell me, pony! What's my name? Do you know it?"

"You're a Daybreaker!" A gryphoon told her from outside the cage.

"AH!" The alicorn startled, realizing that were others beside Trixie and her. "Hello... what are you...?" She puts a hoof in her temple and bumped it a few times, making memory.

"We are gryphoons, and are your owners!" Said the guard.

"Oh... then... I'm some sort of slave?" Asked the alicorn, putting a hoof in her chest, horrified.

"That's right." Confirmed the avian.

"And what did I do? I commited some horrific crime, and now I'm being punished for that?!" Asked the clone again, frightened.

The gryphoons looked to each other, smirking, and told her: "Exactly. You commited an unforgivable crime, and now you're being punished for that."

"Ohhhhh nooooo..." The clone cried and dropped to the floor to cry. That made Trixie to react:

"No, no, no. Don't cry, Daybreaker. They told me that... if you obey me, everything will be alright."

"Ah!" Daybreaker stopped crying. "Then, that's all I have to do? Obey you?"

"That's right!" Trixie joyfully confirmed, recovering her composture bit to bit. "If you do all what I say, they'll let you free!"

"OW!" Daybreaker puts a hoof in her chest, relieved. "But what about you? They'll let you still imprisoned?"

"Oh, no, no, no! They'll release me too!" Assured Trixie, then, she turned her head to the gryphoons and loudly added: "Doesn't it, guards?!!"

"Yes, yes, sure! We will!" Confirmed the guards.

Then, Trixie looked to Daybreaker:

"Daybreaker. Do you know who I really am?" She asked her in a murmur.

"No." Daybreaker answered in a murmur too.

"I'm your mother..." Lied Trixie. "But don't tell them until I say you to..."

"Why, mommy?" Asked Daybreaker, scared.

"We're in danger, my daughter." Trixie half-lied.

Chapter 6 - The Day of the Wedding

Two days had passed, and we were getting ready to get back to Ponyville, as we wanted to have a simple rural wedding, with all our friends and relatives. The morning of the third day came slower as usual, as Twilight couldn't sleep, counting every second, millisecond and microsecond that lasted to our wedding, and thus keeping me awake too, but I couldn't be more agreeing with the sleep lacking.

Still a bit sleepy, I decided to check on Celestia just before leaving, and left Twilight taking care of all the stuff we had adquired to arrive on time to the train station. When I got to the throne room, I was surprised by Celestia inviting me to talk to her in her room, in private. I couldn't refuse, even I was a bit worried to where that could lead.

When I was already inside and the door closed, I quickly asked:

"So, Cellie. How you're taking it?"

She gave me a mild smile: "So so. I'm having some nightmares, but no big deal. I'll live."

She looked so despaired, that I couldn't help myself but to hug her: "You know that you can count with me for anything, Cellie. Anything."

"I know. And I'm so grateful for that." She said with a sobbing voice, hugging me back too.

"Cellie... only one last thing..."

"Yes, rascal?"

"Who was..."

"No, rascal, no. You know that I can't tell you, because I know you'll go straight for his head. Just let it go, like you said the other day to me. Just let it go... Just... hug me..." She interrupted me, almost crying the last phrase, hugging me even tighter.

Suddenly, our hearts started beating as one, and, without even noticing it, our foreheads were touching each other, and our lips were about to merge in a kiss...

"Ow!"

"Whoa!"

We both turned our heads away and broke the hug.

"Oh... sorry." She apologized, smiling and drying a tear from her new right eye. "How improper from a princess, trying to kiss the groom of her protégé!"

"Ah. Don't worry. It was your fault. You're just too cute and you were too close from me." I smirked.

"Stop teasing me, you rascal!" Celestia laughed. Then, the smile dissapeared from her face. "And please... don't tell anypony about what happened. I don't want them to think that I'm a whor..."

"Shhhh, shhh, shhh!" I interrupted her, putting a finger on her muzzle. "You did what you have to, to protect your kingdom and your subjects. And I'm proud of you for that. Not anyone, or anypony, can do what you did."

Now Celestia smiled with a truly smile of joy and relief.

"Thank you, rascal. I was scared that you were thinking ill about me."

"Come on, Cellie. You know that you have a place here already." I put my open hand in my chest. "Well, I'm leaving now, but I'll check on you from time to time. Ok?" I told her turning around, but still looking at her and giving her a thumb up.

"Ok. Bye-bye!" Celestia waved a foreleg in a 'bye-bye' motion. Then, she added with a sweet crooning voice: "Surprise me!"

In the train station, Twilight and me were surprised with Shining Armor mounting into the train too.

"Big brother? Why are you taking the train?" Asked Twilight. Then, she put her forelegs in her head, concerned: "Don't you tell me that Celestia bucked you out ag...!"

"No!" Her brother interrupted her. "It's just a new schedule of service. There are two Royal Guard captains now."

"Two Royal Guard captains?" Twilight was surprised.

"Yes... In case that one of them... fails..." Explained Shining Armor with unhiding grief. "And we'll be doing weekly shifts. Mine starts today."

"But it wasn't a week since you started!"

"Celestia forwarded it, so I could assist to your wedding."

"Ahhh." Twilight sighed, relieved. "And where are you gonna spend the rest of the week?"

"Celestia recommended me to stay in Ponyville too, so I could learn what the meaning of 'I don't favor anypony' is."

"Ahh! Ha ha ha ha ha!" Twilight and me laughed, but quickly apologized when we saw the unicorn's grimace:

"Sorry, brother, it wasn't on purpose."

"Sorry too, brother-in-law." I apologized too. Shining Armor just made a disdainful gesture.

"And Cadance? She's not coming with you?" Asked Twilight, looking around.

"We... had an argument..." Said Shining Armor with a somber face.

"You had an argument?! But if you were so cool only two days ago! What happened?!" Twilight was more curious than concerned.

"I don't want to talk about it..." The stallion concluded, turning his head away, and we weren't able to get anything else from him in all the trip...

When we arrived to Ponyville, and we all had greeted each other, Twilight, who was worried about her brother being so sad all the trip, came closer to Pinkie Pie:

"Hey, Pinkie. You got something to do right now?"

"Well, I was about to held a birth-hay party for one of AJ's relatives! Why?"

"A birth-hay party? I've never heard of that!" Giggled Twilight.

"Of course you won't! I've just invented it!" Proudful and joyful proclaimed Pinkie Pie.

"Well, that's perfect then, because I want you to cheer my brother up."

"Oh!" Pinkie startled, discovering about Shining Armor's bad mood. "Come on, Twilight's brother, don't be sad. I don't like ponies to be sad. In fact, I don't like anything to be sad. In fact..."

"Pinkie! That's enough. He had an argument with his marefriend. That's why he's like that." Twilight interrupted her rambling.

"Just an argument? And why that should be reason to be sad? I have arguments all the time, and that doesn't make me sad! I'm sure that something else happened! Come on, tell me pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleasepleaseplease..." Pinkie repeated almost breathlessly.

"Alright! We're...! We're just giving us a time off, and that's all!" Finally decided to talk the unicorn stallion, thing that neither Twilight or me could back in the train. Amazing how Pinkie manages to loose the ponies tongues out.

"Then... that means that you're single?!" Smiling, Pinkie's eyes turned each one into a heart, and multitude of blinking stars appeared around her.

"Don't get any ideas, Pinkie!" Giggled Twilight.

"Why not? Come on, Shinny! I'm gonna make you happy, happy, happy!" Happily bumped Pinkie, practically dragging the stallion against his will.

"No! Wait! Twily! Little sister, help me! Help me out!" Shining Armor waved a foreleg, scared, looking to Twilight and Pinkie over and over again.

Twilight half closed her eyes, smirked and waved a hoof: "Bye-bye, brother! Have fu-uuuuuuun!" Then, she turned to me: "Love, I'm gonna try the wedding dress that Rarity has made for me. It'll surely look gorgeous! Sure you don't wanna watch?"

"Nah. It gives bad luck to see the bride's wedding dress before the wedding itself."

Twilight shrugged an eye and tilted her head a bit: "But that doesn't make any sense, love. Sounds like some sort of superstition."

"It is. But I'll rather not tempt the luck anyway."

"Ow. Well. Then, what are you gonna do?"

"I'll check in the jewellery for our wedding rings. I think that the special one that I ordered for me must be ready by now. Later, I'll ask Pinkie to attend our wedding party."

"But why did you waited to the last minute to ask her that?"

I kneeled to her level and gave her a peck in the forehead and in the muzzle: "Because, I'd like spontaneity in our most special moments, as that'll make them unforgettable and truly special, like this that we have is."

Twilight blushed: "That's why I love you so much..." and gave me a passionate kiss and hug.

Then I added: "And... because you know that Pinkie works better under pressure."

We both laughed.

"You're rightfully right, my love! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Twilight concluded, laughing the lungs off.

After picking up the rings and taking care of other wedding-related details, I headed to Sweet Apple Acres, where Pinkie was really cheering everypony, even the depressed Shining Armor. I could see her in the distance, blowing a bugle in her muzzle, and I couldn't help myself but smile. Everything was so perfect. My lifetime dream was gonna become true, and I'll be happy ever after with the mare of my dreams. And nothing will stand on my way.

"Yippeeeeee! The fun has just starteeeeeeed!" Was yelling Pinkie, standing on her hinder legs and with her forelegs raised over her head. Then, she opened the eyes and saw me, and the bugle fell from her muzzle: "What... what he's doing here?" She mumbled, dumbfounded.

Suddenly, I saw Pinkie galloping to me:

"Out! I want you out from my party! I want you out from all my parties! Out!!" She started bucking me, with an angry look, but as she's not really the bodybuilder type, her hits was just tickling me.

"Stop, Pinkie, stop! Ha ha ha ha ha!" I laughed, thinking that it was another of her pranks.

"I told you to get out! GET OUT!" She was becoming progresively more angrier, but I was too amused to notice it.

"Stop tickling me, Pinkie! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" I continued laughing.

'He's laughing of me! He's laughing of me!!' Pinkie thought, and her eyes became red: "Hadou-ken!"

Pinkie's attack took me completely off guard, and with no shield to protect me, the powerful fury-filled energy ball impacted directly on my body, shooking it up to the bone. I fell several meters away and hit the ground with my buttocks. There I stayed, with a slightly bent leg, a hand in the grass and the other arm in front of my face, just in case, scared, sore and surprised.

"Pinkie... are you trying to kill me...? Are you nuts...?" I could barely speak, with almost no air in my lungs.

Pinkie's eyes turned back to normal, and she started to look her still smoking forehooves: "Oh no oh no oh no. What I've done?" She asked herself, concerned. Then, she looked to me again: "Gus, are you alright?! GUS!!" She galloped to the human, who was already lying motionless and unconscious in the floor.

"Wow, Rarity! You really exceeded yourself this time!" Twilight was joyfully turning around to see herself in the mirror, wearing an astounding Rarity-made wedding dress.

"Oh, darling! It's nothing like that at all! I'm sure I could have done it even better!" Giggled Rarity, with a hoof in the air. "But, as soon as you start walking through Ponyville wearing it, I can bet than half of the village's stallions will be wanting to marry you!"

"Come on, Rares, don't let my coltfriend to hear that, or he will get mad with you!" Giggled Twilight.

"Ow! Do you think he'll start chasing me again?" Giggled Rarity as well.

"What? Rarity, did he used to chase you for some reason?" Asked Twilight, suspicious.

Rarity startled: "Oh, no! It was just once! He scared me to death... wait, I think I can improve this splendid dress even more, let me take my tools and..." Rarity quickly changed the subject of the conversation.

"What are you talking about, Rarity? It's perfect! Beyond perfect! It's..." Suddenly, Twilight's happy compliment come to a sudden stop, and she, with a pained face, put a hoof in her chest.

"Darling? What's happening? Your heart is hurting again?" Asked Rarity, concerned.

"Oh sweet Celestia! I felt as if something awful has just happened!" Twilight declared, worried and scared. Then, she looked to the Caroussel Boutique's entrace: "Oh no oh no oh no, this only can be... NO!!" She shrieked the last word and darted out the house-shop, lightening her horn as she was casting a life-force detection spell: "Oh no, oh no! He's badly injured! Hold on, my love! Hold oooooon!!" She screamed while galloping in direction to the human.

By the time she reached him, he was already at the hospital. Twilight ran up to nurse Redheart, who was in the reception:

"Where's he?! Where's he?!!"

"Sorry, miss Sparkle, but he's in surgery right now. You need to wait outside."

"In surgery?!!" Twilight panicked. "Let me thru! I can heal him! I've studied his anatomy better than anypony!!"

Redheart looked to the doctor in charge, and he nodded in approval. Twilight then quickly put on a doctor's gear and darted inside the surgery room. There she helped the medics to stabilize and save the life of her beloved coltfriend. But he didn't regain conciousness. The damage had been massive. Desperate, she decided to go back to her house to send a message via Spike to Canterlot, so a copy from the book with the life-force healing spell were sent to her.

Exiting the surgery room, she came to see something that she had missed when she entered: Three of her friends and her brother.

"AJ! What happened?! Please, tell me, please!" She asked her first, as she knows that the cowpony will tell her the truth.

Applejack started looking nervously to Twilight and Pinkie Pie two or three times. Pinkie, who was sitting at her side, with her mane and tail deflated and closed tearful eyes, slightly nodded.

Then, with the ears down, Applejack looked to Twilight, concerned: "Twilight... Pinkie... shot him..."

"What?... What?!!" Twilight almost couldn't believe it. Then, she, trembling, looked to the party mare: "Pinkie... it's that true? It's that true, Pinkie?!!" She yelled, with tearful eyes.

Pinkie nodded: "Sorry, Twilight... sorry..." She sobbed.

"Pinkieeeee..." Twilight cried, saddened to the deepest core of her heart. "How could you, Pinkieeee? The day of my weddiiiing! The day of my wedding, Pinkieeee! How could you, Pinkieeeeee? HOW COULD YOUUUUUU?!!" She yelled, putting a hoof in her chest.

Pinkie trembled, clenched her tearful eyes and bite her lower lip so hard, that she hurt herself, sharing Twilight's pain.

"I hate you, Pinkie! I hate you!! I don't wanna see you again!! EVER!!" Twilight screamed, deeply in grieve, and using her telekinetic powers, roughly threw Pinkie Pie out from the hospital, making her rolling in the ground for some seconds before stopping.

Quickly, Rainbow Dash flown before Twilight: "No, Twilight! Don't hurt Pinkie, please! She didn't do it on purpose!"

Twilight angrily looked at the cyan pegasi: "And now is when you appear, Rainbow Dash?! Where were you and your super powers when needed most, huh?!
Where?!!" The veins was clearly visible on Twilight's neck and temples.

Rainbow Dash eyes opened wide and she scrambled her mouth: "Sorry, Twilight. Everything happened so fast, I couldn't..."

"'Everything happened so fast'?!!" Twilight scolded her with an angry mocking tone: "Faster than you, the fastest pony in Equestria?! Buck you, Rainbow Dash! What's the point of being so fast if you can't save your friends, you piece of idiot?!"

Dashie landed, sat on her haunches, lowered the head and the ears, closed the eyes and silently cried.

"Twilight, tha's enough, girl." Tried to calm her down Applejack. "Ah saw all tha happened, she hadn't time to react!"

Then, Twilight looked at her, enraged: "You saw all that happened, and you did nothing?! Everything happened before your very eyes, and you didn't figured it out?! Where do you have the brains, in the flank?!"

"What in tarnation?" Applejack turned the head for a moment, shocked, then, she, in a mixture of anger and sadness, replied: "Twilight, it never crossed mah mind tha somethin' like tha could happen! Honestly!"

"Of course, it never crossed your mind! I wonder if anything at all cross your stupid mind!" Twilight angrily scolded Applejack.

"Ah'm not stupid!" Replied Applejack, with sobbing voice and tearful eyes.

"Yes, you are! Stupid, blind and retarded!"

And like RD, AJ sat on her haunches to cry too.

"That's enough, little sister, you're hurting your friends. Stop already, please." Now it was Shining Armor's turn.

"And you... you did it on purpose, didn't you? You just sat there to let him die, because you hate him and you want him dead! Isn't?! Deny it!!" Yelled Twilight to her brother, enraged.

Shining Armor didn't replied. He just stared his sister, sure that any reply will be worse than just stay silent.

Nurse Redheart approached Twilight and put a hoof in her shoulder: "I'm sorry, miss Sparkle, but you're making too much noise and are disturbing the patients. I have to ask you to leave, please."

Twilight shrugged an eye and raised a foreleg, pointing the two mares and the stallion: "I don't want to see anypony of you again, do you hear me? Ever!" And she quickly turned around and galloped outside the facility.

"Little sister, wait!" Shining Armor called her and galloped after her, but Twilight teleported and dissapeared from his sight.

Shining Armor stopped, sighing annoyed, and looked around mindlessly, catching to see Pinkie Pie slowly walking in the distance. Worried, he galloped to her.

"Miss Pie, wait!" He soon reached her. "Are you going home? Let me accompany you!"

"I don't want any company. Just leave me alone..." Meekly said Pinkie, with sobbing voice.

"What are you saying, miss Pie? You cheered me when I was down, so let me return the favor! We can do something together!" Smiled Shining Armor.

"Thank you, Shinny, but I don't need any company where I'm going..."

Shining Armor startled, concerned, and quickly, he put himself in front of Pinkie Pie and stopped her, putting his forelegs in her shoulders: "Miss Pie, please don't tell me that you're going to kill yourself."

"Let me go, please!" Cried Pinkie Pie, and tried to escape, but Shining Armor held her with his magic:

"Miss Pie, wait! Don't do it, please! Don't give up so quickly! I'm sure that my sister will forgive you!"

"She's never gonna forgive me! Didn't you hear her?! She hates me, and she's gonna hate me forever! FOREVER!" Cried Pinkie again.

"Miss Pie, I tried to kill her coltfriend too, and she forgave me! So she will with you!"

"That's different! You're her brother! Her family! She'll always forgive you, but I'm nothing to her! Nothiiiiiing!!" Still insisted Pinkie, with sobbing voice, bucking quickly, trying to escape from the stallion's magical grip.

"That's not true! You're her family too! Ponies don't need to have a blood bond to be family, miss Pie!"

Pinkie stopped crying and her struggling to escape, and looked to Shining Armor, perplexed.

"That's right!" Continued Shining Armor. "And they don't even need to be of the same species! When my sister and the monkey get married, he's going to be my family too, and he's not even a pony! I finally understood it!" Then, he released Pinkie from his magical grip: "And that's why my sister is going to forgive you. Just, give some time to her, and she will." He concluded with a soothing voice.

"But what if he dies?" Still asked Pinkie, doubtful. "Oh no! What I'm gonna do then?" She put both forelegs in her head, despaired.

Shining Armor chuckled: "Don't worry, miss Pie. That bucking piece of idiot it's like as made from steel. He'll live."

"But...? But what if not...?" Pinkie wasn't convinced yet.

Shining Armor smiled and petted the party mare's mane with a foreleg: "He will."

Pinkie, recovering hope thanks to the unicorn's assurance, smiled too at last.

"Thank you, Shinny." She said with quivering and tearful eyes, and tightly hugged him, and, before he could stop her, she kissed him in the muzzle.

"Buckings horns!" Shining Armor stumbled back. "But why did you do that, miss Pie?!"

"Because I like you, like... I like like you!" She answered, with more cheerfulness. "Do you... do you like me, Shinny?"

Shinning Armor hesitated to answer, rubbing the mane in the back of his neck with a foreleg: "I... hummm... well... really..."

"Is that a yes? Is that a yes?!" Happily bumped Pinkie Pie, and her mane and tail poofed again, and she started to jump around with her joyful 'sproing' sound: "He likes me he likes me he likes me he likes me he likes me!"

Suddenly, Shining Armor heared a sobbing behind him, and he turned around... facing to no other but Cadance herself!

"Cadance, love! But... but since when are you there?!" He asked, startled.

Cadance, with a sad grimace and tearful eyes, didn't reply. She just shooked slowly her head, walked a bit backward, and then flown away, crying.

"Cadance, my love, wait!!" Screamed Shining Armor galloping after her. "Noooo! Wait! Come back here, let's talk! Let's talk!" But there was no way he could reach her. He then slowered his gallop, until stopping, and there he stood, staring fixedly to the sky until his former marefriend dissapeared among the clouds.

Pinkie trotted to him, concerned: "'My love'? Weren't you two broken up?"

Shining Armor scowled: "We are now..."

Chapter 7 - Self Sacrifice and Forgiveness, Signs of Greatness

Spike was looking to Twilight with weariness, while she was giving turns and more turns around the center of her library: "Twilight, could you calm down, please? Giving turns and more turns wouldn't make the book to come sooner."

"But why it could be taking so long?! It's just a stupid book, it should be here already, for Celestia's sake!" Protested Twilight, like she wasn't heared the dragon.

Suddenly, somepony knocked the door, and Twilight angrily looked in that direction and said while walking to the door: "I swear that if it's anypony of those false friends coming to apolog..." She stopped speaking, because when she opened the door, she stood facing with Celestia herself. "Your Highness...? But... why are you here?" She asked, surprised.

"Hello, my faithful student... can we speak in private, please?" The alicorn asked.

Once they were in private, Celestia spoke: "My faithful student, it has came to my knowledge about the terrible news. How's the rascal doing? Are too serious his wounds?"

"I'm afraid so, your Highness, and I'm grateful... and surprised... that you've came ponially to ask, but... why are you here, exactly?" Twilight was suspicious.

"My faithful student, it also came to my knowledge, that you've asked for a very dangerous healing spell, and I'm sorry, Twilight, but I can't allow you to use it."

"What...?! WHAT?!!! Your Highness, you can't be serious! You want him to die?!!" Twilight freaked out. "You hate him so much?!! Your Highness, he's my husband-to-be!! I'm not gonna let him die!! And if you forbid me to save him, I'll kill myself!! I swear!!" She yelled with tearful eyes and sobbing voice.

"I'm not forbidding you to save him, I'm forbidding you to use the spell!" Replied Celestia. "It's an alicorn-level spell, you're not ready to cast it! You'll die if you do it, and I can't allow that!"

"But then how I'm supposed to save him?! I've tried everything else already!" Pleaded Twilight, slightly bending her four legs.

"I'm going to do it! I'm going to do it..." Assured Celestia, pointing herself with a hoof.

"What?" Twilight startled. "No, Your Highness! You could die too! You can't take that risk! You can't!" She raised a foreleg and denied with the head, scared.

"Yes, I can, Twilight, because, just like you, I'll do anything for the one I love!" Finally admitted Celestia with broken voice, putting a hoof in her chest again.

Twilight was taken aback by this confession: "What...? Then... then... this is all that was about? All those tantrums, all those scoldings and threatenings...? All those attempts of breaking us apart... because you're into my coltfriend?!"

Celestia lowered the head and the ears, and closed her eyes: "Sorry, my faithful student... I know that I should have told you before... sorry... I don't planned this to happen... I don't even wanted this to happen... it just... happened..."

Twilight sat on her haunches, trembling and sobbing: "Why, Your Highness...? Why the life has to be so cruel with me...? Why it has to put me with this painful decisions over and over again...? What have I done to deserve this...?"

"What are you talking about, my faithful student? It's not a painful decision at all!" Smiled Celestia, trying to be cheerful, even she was trembling and almost crying too. "I'll cast the healing spell instead of you, and that's all!"

Twilight turned her head, clenching the eyes and the teeth, because it was taking all her willpower and more, to say what she was going to say next: "Sorry, Your Highness... but you're far more important than me, to take all this risk for nothing... saving the one you love, even knowing that he'll run into the hooves of another mare... it's not fair... I'm just a mere soul... who'll pass by... like many others before and many others to come... I'm not that important... so I understand... I... I'll step away this time..." And saying that, she turned around, teleported and dissapeared.

When I finally opened my eyes again, surrounded by almost all my friends, I was surprised by having Celestia's face instead of Twilight's at first sight:

"Cellie?"

"Welcome back, rascal!" She cheerfully welcome back me. "How do you feel?"

"Me? Fine. Like if my skeleton were removed and another one were being put in its place. Besides that, fine."

Without time to even blink, I had Dashie hugging me. "Master! Master! You're alive, master!" She sobbed.

"Whoa whoa whoa, Dashie. It still hurts a bit. You know?"

"Ow! Sorry, master, sorry." She broke the hug, drying a tear.

I then looked around, realizing where I was: "What's that, Dashie? You only call me 'Master' when there is a hospital in the way?" I smirked.

All the ponies and I chuckled.

"No, it's not that!" She replied, giggling. "It's because you're my master, and that's all."

"Ah." I raised a brow, and then tried to stand up.

"No, no, no, patient! You're still in recovery! You must stay in bed to rest!" Nurse Redheart held me with a foreleg.

Her sudden stop made me to feel a mild sting in my chest, and, when I looked to my torse, it was featuring a large surgical scar. "But what's this?!" Then, I looked to Dashie with a fake angry look. "But, my student! What happened with all that I've taught to you? Why you didn't healed me? Why did you let those folks to cut me open like a pig?"

The smile dissapeared from Rainbow Dash's face, and was replaced by a scrambled grimace. She then closed the eyes and raised the head, about to cry, and she was about to fly away when I grabbed her for the shoulders: "Hey, hey, hey. It was a joke. OK? I don't mind, really."

"Are... are you telling the truth...? You're not mad with me?" She asked with sobbing voice.

"Awwww, come on. How could I be?" I hugged her and petted her mane, but then I quickly broke the hug: "Heh, I'll better don't cuddle you too much, or Twilight will freak out." Then, I looked around. "And where is she, by the way?"

"Don't worry, rascal. I've sent her home to rest. She had a very stressful time patching you up." Explained Celestia.

I relaxed. "Ah. Well, let me finish her job." And saying this, I raised a finger, cast a powerful regenerative spell, and the scar dissapeared like it never had existed. Then, I raised a fist and happily declared: "Ha! My resistance is not futile! I will not be pinkied!"

I wasn't surprised by the ponies not understanding the meme reference, but by their somber faces.

"Ah. Ow. Hummm, what I really meant is that I'm not mad with Pinkie. Ok?" I rubbed the back of my head, with an apologetic smile. "And how's she, by the way?"

"She's fine. She's at Sugarcube Corner, with her colfriend." Dashie explained me.

"With her coltfriend?! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" I cackled. "No shit! How long I was out, a year?" Then, I put a hand in my hurting chest. "Whoa, it was so funny that it hurts."

"Well, rascal. You must rest now. Everypony, let's go! Let our friend recover!" Cheerfully ordered Celestia.

"Recover soon, darling! I'll keep your wedding dress for you for the time being!" Happily announced Rarity.

"Shhhhh!" Celestia commanded her to shut up, not so cheerfully this time.

"Thanks, Rares." The smile dissapeared from my face. Damn! The wedding! Twilight must be heartbroken! And I wonder how she'll be gettting along with Pinkie. Girls doesn't take too kindly when someone, or somepony, screws their weddings up.

It took another five days for me to fully recover. All the girls from the Mane 6 came to visit me at least once. All of them but my marefriend.

When Pinkie came. she spreaded herself in apologies, and she told me that I could hit her if I wanted to. She even brought a flogger. No idea how or where she got it. I just laughed and asked her why she doesn't want me in her parties.

"You look too much alike the other monkey. That gives me the thrills." She confessed.

I told her that I wasn't mad, that anyone, or anypony, commit mistakes. She only had to learn how to manage the anger and keep it cool, as she usually does.

She smiled and warned me: "Alright. Just... don't appear on my parties... just in case."

I smiled. "Noted it."

Next, I asked for my marefriend, but everytime I did, she, like all the others, just answered me with evasives, and AJ simply refused to answer:

"Ah can't tell you. Honestly." Was her answer.

I was starting to worry, and the first thing that I did when the doctor finally gave me the release, was to go to Twilight's library. When I arrived, I tried to open the door, finding with disgust that the lock has been changed, and my key doesn't opened it any longer. Then, I knocked the door: "Twilight, love, it's me, Gus. Open up, honey!"

No answer.

I knocked even harder: "Love, this isn't funny! Open up! Why did you changed the lock?! Open up!!"

Finally, a sobbing voice could be heard behind the door: Twilight's voice: "Gus, please... leave..."

"What? Honey, what are you talking about? What...?" I opened my arms, dumbfounded.

"Please..." She sobbed even harder. "Leave... don't make this even worse of what already is... just leave, please..."

"But, Twilight, love! I don't understand! Why do you want me to leave?! What did I do?!" I was about to cry too.

"It's not youuuuu... it's meeeee..." She was crying already. "I'm haviiiiiing... this feeling storm... please... don't talk to me again... don't look for me again... if you love me... just leave and don't come ba-a-a-a-ck!" Her crying was already heartbreaking. I simply couldn't stand it anymore. So, I turned around, put my hands in my pockets, and walked away.

Inside the house, Twilight turned loinside to the door and cried, heartbroken to the deepest core of her soul, as she had lost a part of herself, who was leaving with all her hopes and dreams, sinking her in the most painful grieve possible...

The next week was simply the worst time in all my life. I was just sleeping in a bench in the park, like a homeless, as I hadn't even the desire of building a new home. I barely had strenght to stood up, not to say to eat or anything. Thankfully I had some chores to do in my communal work, to help my friends in repairings and so, or I don't know what would have been of me. And bounty hunting, my preferred and most profitable job, was completely out the question.

Rainbow Dash kept coming all the afternoons, asking me if I wanted to start training again, but I always refused, argumenting that I still didn't feel well, which, in fact, was true. She also proposed to move with her, but I refused as well, as living in a cloud will make jumping very easy.

Celestia visited me twice, and offered to move to Canterlot, but I wanted to be close of Twilight. I was sure that it was just a temporary 'feeling storm' shit, and that any day she'll appear happily galloping back to me. So, no. I'm not moving.

Luckily, the eighth day, Rarity came asking me for help accomodating a recently arrived delivery. While I was in her shop, she was looking to me once and once again, worried for my state. Finally, she asked me:

"Darling, it breaks my heart looking at you like this. Please tell me. There's something I could do to help you?"

I hesitated a while, but then I thought: 'What I have to lose?'

"Rares, you're still in well terms with Twilight. Didn't you?"

"Oh yes. We still can talk like friends. I think that if I keep like this, I'll be able to convince her to forgive AJ, Rainbow and Pinkie!"

"Rares, can you... can you ask her why she broke with me? I still don't know, Rares, and that alone is killing me!"

Rarity gasped, facehoofing. "But of course, darling! Of course I'll ask her! I think she's in the library right now, so I can go right away!"

"Will you do that for me, Rares?" I smiled, hopeful. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

I tightly hugged her, and I didn't noticed it, but her mane and tail bristled, and a quick, but deep shiver traveled through her body.

A while later, Rarity was walking to Twilight's library, while thinking:

'Oh, he loves her so much! I just wish that somepony could love me like that.'

Then, her eyes went to a side: 'Of course, I want to marry Prince Blueblood. But get real, Rarity! What are the odds? He's a prince, and I'm just a pleb in a lowly town of the outskirts! And that handsome monkey it's right HERE, just in FRONT OF ME!'

Then, her eyes went to the other side: 'Wait! What I'm thinking?! He's Twilight's coltfriend, for Celestia's sake! I shouldn't been wanting something that's not mine!'

Then, her eyes went to the other side: 'Ohhh, but that hug that he gave me! It made me to shiver like a spring's waltz!' Her eyes went up and she smiled, enthralled.

Then, she shooked her head, annoyed. 'OW! No! No! Shush! Out, mean thinkings! That's not right! That's not right!'

Deep in her thoughts, she arrived to her destination without even noticing it. Then, she just stood in the door of the tree. She raised a hoof to knock, but her foreleg trembled, and she lowered it a bit. The foreleg went up again, ready to knock, but finally, Rarity changed her mind, and lowered the leg back to the floor. She shooked her head, annoyed:

"Hufff." She huffed. "I'm sure I'm going to regret this..." And she turned around and trotted away.

Rarity returned to the shop with a sad face: "Sorry, darling. There was nothing I could do..."

I lowered my shoulders, defeated. "Well. At least you tried. Thank you anyway." And how I had already finished my chores, I walked back to my bench.

However, after a while, Rarity decided that enough was enough, so she approached me, and started yet another of her annoying and endless speechs. As if I was hearing her anyway. That was when she hit me for the first time.

"Dear! Are you even listening?! It's very impolite and inconsiderate to keep a lady asking without any answer!" She protested.

I just turned around in the bench: "Stop pestering me, Rares. Go away. Leave me alone."

She hit me again: "I'm not leaving until you give me an answer about what I've asked!"

I raised the head a bit. The hell if I remember what she had asked. "Alright, Rares. If I answer your stupid question, will you go?"

"'Stupid question'?!" Rarity startled, offended. "How your good behalf could be a stupid question?! The winter is too close, and here are you, living in the park like an indigent! That's indignant!"

I chuckled. That even rhymed. "So, you want me to move with you. Isn't it?"

"No! I want to give you a job, so you can pay a rent! I'll pay you in advance, so you can have shelter inmediately!"

"Come on, Rares. I'm sure that Sweetie Belle can do that for free, whatever it is."

"But...!" Rarity was starting to get upset. "How could you propose such thing! I'll never disparage myself by using infant work! What do you think that I am?! Some sort of exploitative?!" She hit me again. This time hurts.

I rolled quickly, sitting in the bench and angrily looking to her. I was passing for too much emotional pain, and the last thing I wanted was to sum physical pain to it: "Rarity, where you hit me again..." I threateningly raised my finger, shrugging an eye.

And she stepped a hoof in my right big toe... Now she's gonna have it.

I don't know how long I chased her through the village. Being hungry and limping from a leg didn't help. However, after a while, I realized how fun was to chase her. Somehow it gave me a new purpose on my life. When I finally caught her, as she's not really an athletic portent or a speed demon, she was trembling, and, with a quick gasp, she put both forelegs in her head, thinking that was her end.

I smiled, because she had taken that risk, worried for my behalf, and just mildly slapped her flank.

"AHHH!" She yelled, and looked at me with fearful and quivering eyes.

"Alright, Rares. I'll take the job. Just don't hit me again." I waved my hands with a slapping gesture.

"What?" She asked, perplexed. "Ow! Ow. Sure, darling. You're hired." She smiled, relieved.

"This is what I have to do? Chase you?"

We both laughed.

"No!" Giggled Rarity. "Is nothing like that, dear! Let me explain you. It's that I've had problems recently with the deliveries and gem finding..." She started her speech again, adding excesive words to an explanation that could be done in just a few lines. However, what she was thinking was: 'So, you don't like to be hit, huh? Next time I'll bite you, stud...!'

Needless to say, next morning I was with better mood. Still wasn't on my usual prankster mode, but I finally started training with Rainbow Dash. And Ho! HO! This time she meant business! Nothing about shield bumping, this time she cast her lightning swords, forcing me to use my dispel sword! Oh yeah! I really missed those sword fightings!

But I had passed several days without feeding very well, so, after a while I had to say her to stop.

"Awwww!" She protested. "Just when I was starting to enjoy this!"

"Seriously?" I shrugged the eyes and pointed her with a finger. "You have a cut in a cheek."

"Did I?" She passed a hoof in the cheek, checking a little bleeding that she had in her face. "Oh. I hadn't noticed..." She quickly healed it.

"You have to think some moves ahead, Dashie. Your attacks are too reckless. It may work against a mindless monster, but you'll run into trouble with a more experienced fighter. That's why you lost against that gryphoon guard." I warned her. "Alright, that's enough for today. Class dismiss..."

"Alright. Hey, master."

"Yes, Dashie?"

"Will you..." She blushed "Will you move with me now?" Then, she started to jump in the place. "We can make our master plans when we go bounty hunting together! And we can compete in air racings! And we can also watch the stars on the night! That'll be 20 percent cooler!"

"Watch the stars? That's the only thing that we'll do in the night?" I teased her, smirking.

"Hey, don't get any ideas, you bucking worm. We're just friends. Remember?" She angrily protested. "And, if you try something, I'll rip you not one, but the two ears off. Got it?"

I laughed: "Alright, alright. It was just a joke, Ok?" Then, I looked to her home in the clouds. "Well, as a matter of fact, Rarity gave me a job so I could get a rent, but if I don't find anything that suits me, I'm in."

"Well, then I hope you to not find anything! Ha ha ha ha ha!" She pranked. Then, she looked like remembering something, and she asked to me: "By the way... do you happen to know... some kind of prediction spell? Just asking."

"Prediction?" I raised the head, closed an eye and scrambled the mouth. Sadly, I have to admit that I've screwed the show's timeline so much, that I don't even know what the hell is going to happen next. So, I looked to her again: "No idea, Dashie. Let me see if I can think on something..."

The oak library's door sounded, and Spike half opened it, checking that the visitors were Rarity and Fluttershy. When he saw the dressmaker mare he smiled, enchanted. "Hello, beautiful..."

"Spike! Who in the Tartarus is it?!" Twilight's angry and sobbing voice could be heard.

"Ah!" That snapped out Spike from his daydreaming. "Wait a moment, let me ask Twilight if she's gonna let you in!" He put a claw before them, indicating the two mares to wait, and turned the head back: "Twilight, you have visitors!"

"Who are they, anypony I told you to buck off?!" She replied.

"No, they're Rarity and Fluttershy!"

"Ah. Alright. Tell them that they can come in. I'll be there in a moment."

Rarity and Fluttershy were already at the center of the library, when Twilight, after a quick do out, finally approached them. The mares got worried seeing her hollow-eyed, pale and trembling. "Hello, friends." She said with sobbing voice. "I'm so relieved, that I had at least you to take care of me..." She slightly smiled. Then, she looked down, closed the eyes, and lowered the ears: "I don't know what I had done if I had been left alone... (sniff)" She almost cried.

"Oh, Twilight, darling, you look terrible." Concerned, Rarity picked a comb and started to dress Twilight's mane. "This's not doing you any good, dear. You shouldn't keep rejecting your friends, you need them more than anything else!"

"That's right, Twilight." Also spoke Fluttershy. "I know what's like being rejected and downtrodden by other ponies. I can tell they're suffering as well. Why don't you forgive them? It's that much effort?"

"Please, Twilight. Listen to Flutters. She knows of what she's talking about. Besides, we were a team, aren't we?" Added Rarity, with a soothing voice.

Twilight looked to Rarity, then to Fluttershy, and then, she smiled even more: "Alright, tell AJ and Dashie to come over."

"And Pinkie?" Asked Fluttershy.

Twilight's face became somber again: "Not Pinkie. At least, not yet..."

Chapter 8 - Patching Some Ponies Up

As I had decided to resume training with Dashie, I thought that finding a suitable place for our drills will be the best. It needs to be an open field, not too close from the village, and not too far, in case of an emergency. One has to be prepared for any odd. I thought that Fluttershy could know about such a place.

I flown to her cottage, then I took out my raincoat first, and then knocked at her door.

"Who is it?!" Fluttershy's scared voice could be heard. "Please don't eat me!"

"Flutters, it's me, Gus. Are you alright?" I asked, concerned.

She timidly half-opened the door:

"Ah! Uhmmm... hello Gus... Thanks goodness you came by... I... I was trying to go shopping and I was just so scared. I thought I saw something in the woods. Did you... did you saw something when you arrived?"

I mindlessly looked around: "Everything is looking fine."

"Ow." She answered. "Humm, Gus, friend, sorry for bothering you so much, but it's that I don't feel safe anymore. I mean, humm, Twilight gave me an encouraging speech and all that but... I still can't go anywhere alone. I have to wait for other ponies to come to visit... I'm such a burden..." She sobbed.

"Awwww, come on. How can you say such thing?" I told her in my most cheerful tone. "Say, I have a lot of free time lately, so I can accompany you anytime you want."

"Se... seriously? Would you do that for me?" She fully opened the door, radiant of happiness.

"Of course! Come on! Let's shop!" I smiled, looking to Angel, who was angrily pointing to a book, featuring a picture of a large ice cream with a cherry in the top.

On our way to the market, she asked me: "Are you alright? How are you taking your breaking up with Twilight?"

I shrugged my shoulders, with my hands in the pockets of the pants and my folded raincoat in my arm: "Not so bad. The first week was the worst, but I'm getting used to by and by. I guess she should had a good reason to do it. Or maybe, she just got tired of my idiocies. Hell I know..."

"Ow... humm... and where are you living now?"

"In a bench on the park."

"What?! But why you hadn't told me! You... hummm... you can move with me." Fluttershy blushed. "That way, you'll protect me... and I won't be so scared all the time... if you don't mind, of course..." She looked at me with her lovely and cute smile. How I can say no?

"Of course, Flutters. This is a decision that I haven't to think twice."

Her face turned in the cutest and most adorable smile ever!: "Yay..." She meekly cheered.

We finished at the market, and were walking back to her cottage. She looked so happy! She was alternating trotting and flying, and looked to me over and over again, with her smiling muzzle holding a basket with her purchases.

Once we were back on her home, she asked me:

"Gus, friend... hummm... I'm sorry to ask but... I always had the curiosity... why you haven't almost any hair in your body? All your kind is hair bare like this?"

"Yes, it is. Why?"

"Well... because..." She blushed again. "I have to admit that I have no idea how to take care of an animal like you... I mean... Harry the Bear needed constant delousing." She looked me from up to down and sniffed. "And he stinked to rotten fish all the time. He thought that I didn't know he was still eating fish..." She made a sad grimace and sobbed. "But I loved him anyway... because he protected me..." Then, she startled and looked to me again and facehoofed: "Ow. I'm surely boring you with my ramblings... sorry..."

"Nah. Not at all. And don't worry. You don't need to delouse me, and I don't eat meat anymore. And I bath..." I raised the head, looking up and scrambling the mouth, very embarrased because I had passed more than a week without seeing the water and the soap. "...everytime I can... Can I use your bathroom?"

"Of course, bear-monkey." She smiled, closing her beautiful eyes.

"Bear-monkey?" I chuckled. "I don't think so. I'm more like a Teddy bear."

"Oh, then, Teddy bear will be!" Happily concluded Fluttershy.

Pinkie, as usually, was attending her job at Sugarcube Corner. Shining Armor had already departed to his weekly shift as captain, so she was alone again for a week. She cheerfully greeted all the costumers, as usually, but, in the inside, the grieve of the recent disaster was still eating her up: What if Twilight never forgive her? What if she is gonna hate her forever? FOREVER?! She shooked her head, and the smiling face returned to her. She doesn't want the other ponies to realize the struggle she was enduring on.

In that moment, Applejack and Rainbow Dash came to visit: "Hi, Pinkie!" They said at the same time.

"AJ, Dashie!" She happily trotted to them and hugged them. "I'm so happy that you've dropped by!" Then, she dragged them to a table. "Sit here, and I'll give you some cupcakes! It's on the house!"

"Oh, no, no, no! You haven't to do that, Pinkie! We're not here to sponging on you! We'll pay, as we usually do." Dashie rejected the offer, smiling.

"Tha's right! Mah apple bussiness is runnin' on wheels and Ah have plenty of bits to share! Honestly!" Also rejected Applejack.

Pinkie dropped her head and ears: "But then, how I'm gonna prove that I'm really really sorry..." She sadly said.

"Don't worry, Pinkie. You don't need to go aroun' givin' things away like Rarity, just to show how sorry you are!" Laughed Applejack. "We already know tha you're sorry, and we aren't mad with you."

Pinkie raised the head and perked the ears: "Really?! You're not mad with me?!" And then she asked with a less cheerful tone. "Even after all the trouble I got you into with Twilight? She doesn't want to speak with you again..."

Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked to each other: "Actually, we're just coming back from her library. Rarity let us know that she had forgave us, and we dropped by to visit her." Announced Rainbow Dash.

"She forgave you?! Already?! And me?! What about me?! Did she forgave me too?! Did she?!" Pinkie happily jumped several times in place.

Rainbow Dash looked to Applejack, and pushed her with a leg, like saying 'Tell her by yourself'. Then, Applejack looked to Pinkie:

"Pinkie, uhmmm... she didn't..."

"I knew she will...! What?!" Started to say Pinkie, stopping short in her bump jumps. "She didn't...? Oh no..." Her mane and tail deflated, her ears lowered, and she sat on her haunches and sobbed. "I knew iiiiit... I knew she'll never forgive me-e-e-e-e-e." She cried.

"Oh, come on Pinkie. Don't cry, girl, don't cry." Rainbow Dash and Applejack hugged her. Then, Rainbow Dash looked to Applejack: "We have to do something."

"Agreed." Confirmed the cowpony.

Twilight and Rarity were walking back from the spa, after a relaxing session there:

"I'm so glad you've agreed to go out from that somber library at last, darling!" Cheerfully commented Rarity. "That loneliness and that locking up wasn't doing you any good! I bet that after that single session in the spa, you're as good as new!"

Twilight just gave her a mild smile. Then, she looked to the front, facing Rainbow Dash and Applejack, looking at her with surprise:

"Ahhh!" They both startled. "Twilight, we... we didn't know you were around..." Said Rainbow Dash, then, she shrugged an eye: "Were you following us?"

"No!" Giggled Twilight. "But why are you so scared of me? Do I look so bad?" She asked, confused.

"No, it's not that. It's..." Rainbow Dash and AJ tilted their heads a bit and looked to something behind Twilight, then back to her, two or three times.

Twilight half closed the eyes and got an annoyed grimace: "She's behind me, isn't?"

"Mmhmm." The two mares nodded.

Twilight slowly turned around, angrily looking to Pinkie Pie, who, with deflated mane and tail, quivering tearful eyes and trembling, pleaded to her: "Please, Twilight... forgive me... look... I've brought you a cupcake... courtesy of the house..." She said with sobbing voice, forwarding a cupcake with a trembling foreleg.

Twilight's face softened, and she raised a foreleg: "Come on, Pinkie. Give me a hug." She slightly smiled, making a 'come on' gesture with the leg.

Pinkie's face brightened up: "For real?! You're forgiving me?!! Yippeeee!!" She jumped in the place several time with her 'sproing' sound and her mane and tail poofed again. The cupcake fell on Rarity's head, pouring itself over her annoyed face.

Then, Pinkie jumped to Twilight, receiving a hoof jab right on the muzzle: "Prufght!" Pinkie fell awkwardly on the ground, and the next second she had Twilight over her, bucking her with rage: "You destroyed my life! You destroyed my life! I'm gonna kill you, you crazy wag! I gonna kill you!!"

"No, Twilight, no!" Rainbow Dash and Applejack quickly reacted to stop the beating.

They separated the two mares, and Pinkie stood up again in her four legs. Then, she stared fixedly to Twilight: "It's... it's that true...? Do you want... to kill me...?" She asked with sobbing voice.

Twilight, held by Rainbow Dash and Applejack, looked at her with rage: "What do you think, you bucking piece of idiot?"

Pinkie's mane and tail flattened again, and she turned the head and closed the eyes: "AJ, Dashie, please... release her..."

"What? No! Come on Pinkie, run away!" The other mares warned her.

"No... if she wants to kill me, I won't stop her. Release her, please." Pinkie sobbed. "Better to end all this suffering already."

Applejack and Rainbow Dash looked each other, and, even with Rarity fearfully shooking her head and waving a foreleg, silently pleading to them not to do it, they released Twilight. The purple unicorn give some steps to Pinkie, and asked her: "Any last will, hapless?"

"No, Twilight, no please, don't do it. You're not like this, you..." Tried to stop her Rarity.

"SHUT UP!!" Twilight screamed to her. Then, she looked to Pinkie again: "So well?"

Pinkie sat on her haunches, lowering the head and the ears and closing the eyes: "Just... send my ashes to my family... and bury me under a rock..." She sobbed.

Twilight's horn lightened. "So be it."

"No, Twilight no!" The three mares raised their forelegs, scared, just when Twilight shot a powerful spell just at Pinkie's side. The pink mare doesn't even moved. Only her mane and tail rippled a bit due the air blast.

The other mares sighed with relief.

"Oof! That felt so good!" Admitted Twilight, smiling, looking up and blinking. "Alright, Pinkie. Now I've truly forgiven you." She looked to the party mare.

Pinkie raised the head and perked the ears: "Truly...? For real?!" She asked, still skeptical.

"Yep. For real this time." Smiled Twilight, closing the eyes.

Pinkie, with tearful eyes and smiling, raised her forelegs: "Ok, give me a hug then."

Trustfully, Twilight walked to her, receiving a hoof jab in the muzzle too. Twilight turned the head for an instant, and later she stared to Pinkie, scowling and with a scrambled annoyed mouth, rubbing her sore cheek.

The other mares gasped of terror, facehoofing and waiting for nothing but the worst.

"Gotcha!" Said Pinkie, mischievously looking to Twilight, with poofed mane and tail again.

But, instead to what they were expecting to happen, Twilight just started to laugh, and soon all of them were laughing their lungs off.

"Alright, you can hug me now." Finally allowed Pinkie, among laughters.

"For real this time? No more surprise jabs?" Asked Twilight, still laughing.

"For real this time. Pinkie promise."

The ponies were gathering at the amphitheater in Canterlot, where Luna's public trial was held. The prosecutor, after enumerating each and every law broken and misdeed done by the accused, stepped before the jury, among the booings of the crowd, asking to 'Send her to the moon' 'Banish her from Equestria' 'Throw her at a dungeon where she never sees the light again', etc.

"Gentlecolts and ladies from the jury. What your verdict is?"

The jury whispered a bit among them, and finally, the headmare of the crew stood up and spoke: "We find the accused, guilty of all the charges."

"Hoorayyyyyyy!" The crowd acclaimed the decision.

"Now, it correspond to Our Highness to apply the punishment she deems fit." Concluded the mare, looking to Celestia.

Celestia closed the eyes, and then looked to her hornless sister:

"Sister, you already have heard the verdict. What do you have to say in your behalf?" She still gave her sister a chance to save herself.

Luna stood up with smugness, and replied: "Sister, you'll better send me to the gallows, and finish up with this clowning already."

"What are you talking about, Luna? You know that I abolished the death penalty already!"

"Then make an exception with me. I'm sure everypony is going to thank you for that."

"Hey, that's right! Send her to the gallows! Cut her head off!" Said somepony among the public and everypony agreed with the first.

"SILENCE!!!" Ordered Celestia with her Royal Canterlot Voice. Then, she looked to her sister. "Why, sister? Why do you have all that hatred to me? What did I do to you to deserve it?" She asked with sad voice.

"Save your whinings, sister. You only want me to stay alive, to accompany you in your endless reign, because everypony around will die but us! So stop being so flabby and kill me for once and for all!" Luna angrily blurted.

"That's not the reason I want you to stay alive for! It's because I love you!" Exclaimed Celestia.

"Well, too bad for you because I hate you! And if you want me to say it directly, I will!" Luna pointed herself with a hoof. "I want to kill you, and I will, at the first chance I have!" She angrily waved a hoof and later hit the ground, to emphasize her confession. "So you better kill me now, that you can!"

Everypony stayed silent, dumbfounded, looking to the perplexed Celestia. The prosecutor even dared to come closer and whisper to her: "Your Highness, according to the law, you could perfectly make an exception..."

"Silence!" Celestia interrupted him. Then, she looked to her sister, dissapointed. "Sister, you know that I can't kill you. You know that..."

"That's your problem, sister. You're too soft and too merciful. Always trying the diplomatic approach, when it was clear that we have to use the force. That's why I should rule and not you. This pathetic kingdom is condemned to doom because of your pitifulness! And I'll be there when it crumbles, as it will, and I'll laugh the last! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Luna evily laughed.

Celestia sighed, defeated, and turned her head to Shining Armor: "Captain, I have my decision: lock her in the castle's dungeon. Carry on." She sadly ordered.

"Yes, Your Highness. At once."

This day started quite unusually, as Celestia, after learning about my 'awesome' psychological skills, came to visit me, asking for my help: it turns that Cadance had passed several days depressed because her broke down with Shining Armor, and Celestia was extremely concerned that her life could be at risk. And knowing how soft-hearted and emotional these ponies are, I knew she had all the reasons to be concerned. I said 'awesome' among quotes, because I doubt I could fool a human city folk using that same technique. But it worked wondrously with ponies. It's another culture. More innocent, more impressionable... that's why.

Anyway, after we arrived to Cadance's room, and after several attempts from Celestia to get an answer from her locked door with no success, I finally decided that enough was enough and kicked the door down. Celestia looked at me with, astounded:

"But what are you doing?! That's a privacy invasion!" She angrily scolded me.

I, instead of replying her, just entered the room, saying aloud: "Cadance, you better not be trying to kill yourself, or I gonna slap your flank until it turns red!"

Celestia gasped, facehoofing: "But rascal! What manner is that to treat...?!"

"Shut up, Cellie! Let me do it my way!" I interrupted her.

Cellie scowled and deeply blushed, and then she looked to a couple of guards at her side:

"You haven't heard nothing of this. Understood?" She whispered to them, and they nodded in agreeing.

Next to this, a slapping sound could be heard, along with Cadance's sobbing voice: "Ouch, Ouououch, ouch! No! It hurts! Ouuuuch! OUCH!"

The guards looked to Celestia:

"Don't worry, Your Highness. We haven't heard anything. Anything at all." They shooked their heads, denying knowledge.

Next, my voice was heard again: "Will you try to kill yourself again?!"

"NO! No, please don't slap me anymore! It hurts too much!" Cadance's sobbing voice was heard.

"Swear it!"

"I swear! I swear!"

"Now, go to the dinner room and eat something, at once!"

Cadance, galloping like her life depended of it, darted out from her room, and quickly she was eating from the table directly, without serving in a dish first, looking around, scared.

After a moment, I exited the room, smiling victorious:

"See, Cellie? Problem solved." I opened my arms, self assuring.

Celestia angrily looked at me:

"Sincerely, I don't know how Twilight could stand you." She blurted below her breath, shrugging her eyes and shooking her head a bit.

That hit me. Hard. And the tears started to slid on my face. Celestia soon realized her bad doing:

"Oh! Oh, sorry, rascal! I... I didn't mean to hurt you. It just... it just go out from my muzzle. Oh, I'm so sorry for being so unsensitive!" She hugged me and we cried together for a while.

"That's ok, Cellie. That's ok. I know you didn't do it on purpose." I assured her when I was able to speak again. "And maybe you're right. Maybe she broke up with me because she got tired of my idiocies."

"Oh, rascal. Don't worry. I'm sure that wasn't the reason." Celestia, with tearful eyes, petted me with her hoof and soft wings. "Besides, I love you exactly the way you are." Then, she blushed when she realized what she had just said. "But what are we doing here, crying like somepony has died, when we should be celebrating Cadance's recovery instead!" She smiled, changing the subject of the conversation. "Let's eat something tasty and drink some apple cider from Ponyville's best brewer! Cheers!"

"We haven't heard anything about cider, but we can have a bit anyway?" Said one of the guards.

Celestia and me laughed, and suddenly her muzzle was so close from my mouth. She closed her eyes, I closed mine...

"Your Highness!" Somepony called, and we broke the hug with a gasp. "Your Highness! Princess Luna tried to escape, and she got injured, pretty badly!" The messenger announced.

I smiled and looked to Celestia. "Sorry, Cellie. Duty calls. We'll celebrate later." Then, I indicated the messenger to take me to the wounded mare, and ran after him to path up that ungrateful bitch...

Chapter 9 - Too Late for Jealousy

"You did WHAT?!" Rainbow Dash's facial expression talked by itself: "You moved to Fluttershy's cottage?! But if you told me that you were gonna move with ME!" She angrily pointed herself with a hoof.

"Nope, Dashie. I told you that if I didn't find anything that suited me, I'll move with you. That was what I said. Remember?" I replied, amused with her jealousy display.

"NO! You said that you were gonna find a rent, that Rarity payed you to!"

I cackled. "Ha ha ha ha ha! No! Rarity didn't payed me to find a rent, she just gave me the money so I could afford one!"

"Youptfh..." Rainbow Dash angrily shooked the head, saying some incomprehensible babbling. "Stop laughing of me! I thought you liked me!" She angrily sobbed.

I looked to her, and the smile dissapeared from my face: "What?"

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes wide, and blushed: "What...? What I meant is that I thought you liked to train with me. That was." Her tone suddenly softened.

"Sure, Dashie? Because that wasn't what I understood." I told her, coming a bit near of her. Her rushed heartbeating was clearly visible on her chest.

"No? And what did you understood?" She asked with scared voice, starting to tremble.

"Will you rip my ears off if I told you?" I smirked.

"Yes! Yes! Definitively! I'll rip your ears off! Without thinking!" She yelled, scared.

"Well, then let's leave that there." I smiled and withdrawn.

"Alright, alright." She agreed, sighing with relief.

"Well then. Ready for today's beating?" I smiled and sharpened my eyes, casting my dispel sword.

"You bet." She smiled and sharpened her eyes as well, casting her lightning swords.

We started to train as usual, but, despite what I told her, she kepts with her unrelentings, but predictable attacks. Finally, I had her pattern so well known, that this was just boring me. So, I decided to teach her the hard way, and when she came in her ninth dive, I, instead of just block her lightning swords, pierced her for the torse with my dispel sword. Her swords slowly faded, and she fell to the ground, panting and staring me with a surprised and scared look.

"You killed meeeee..." She barely could sadly say, puffing.

I pointed to my dispel sword: "No, Dashie. If this would have been a solid sword, you'll be dead by now. But this is not. Check yourself. Any wounds?"

She looked to her, checking surprised and relieved that there were no injuries. Then, she looked perplexed to me, then to herself, then to me, then to herself again. She even touched her coat, still untrustful. Then she looked to me again.

"Why I'm not...?"

"Dashie, the dispel sword doesn't cut. It's primary purpose is to disarm and exhaust the opponent. That's why you're so tired."

"Ow." Rainbow Dash relaxed. "But why you haven't told me that? You scared me to death... almost literally."

I looked up, thinking. "Well, I thought that you'll be more careful if I kept you believing this thing actually cuts." Then I sternly looked to her, putting my fists in the waist. "But I see that I was wrong."

"Wait... But you didn't cut Luna's horn with it?" She pointed me with a hoof.

"Nope. I just used it to block her magic attack, and when she was close enough, I swung my hand like this." I did a karate bottle cut move with my hand. "... and chopped her horn off. That was it." Then, I extended my hand to her: "Are you alright? Can you step on your legs?"

"Let me see..." Rainbow Dash tried to stand up, but she fell in her haunches again. "Buckings, master, I can't barely move..." She panted.

I smirked. "Alright. Let's end our drill for today. I'll take you for a treat. Do you want me to carry you?"

She angrily looked to me, shrugging an eye: "Don't you dare."

"I swear I'll rip your ears off for this." Was angrily protesting Rainbow Dash, while I was carrying her inside my backpack.

I mindlessly walked to an outside restaurant, and pulled her out and sat her in a chair. "Alright girl. Ask what do you want." I smirked.

She looked to me, scowling: "I want two monkey ears. Fried."

We both laughed.

"Sorry, but I think that isn't in the menu." I pointed.

"I can fix that." She replied. "Just put your head close of my muzzle and that's it."

We laughed again.

"No way." I raised my finger.

"What happens? Chicken out?" She challenged me.

"That's so? If that's the case, I want two pony ears. Raw." I retaliated, and pulled one of her ears.

"No! Don't you dare! No!!" She tried to buck my hand off, but she was just too tired to even do that. So, I pulled her ear even further, and then I bent near her and opened my mouth like if I was gonna bite her ear. "NO, NO, NO, AHHHHHH!!" Dashie bucked desperately, freaking out.

I released her and got back to my seat, cackling.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Holy Christ!" Then, I looked back to her: "Do you still want monkey ears, fried?"

She shooked the head, with the eyes opened wide, and I stopped laughing, because she was about to cry.

"Come on, Dashie. It's just a prank. You do pranks all the time. So what's the big deal?" I asked her with a concerned tone.

"Now I know why Twilight bucked you out. You're mean." She sobbed.

That hurt me as hell, so I made an annoyed gesture with my arm. "Yes, Dashie. You're right. I'm mean. I came from a world where almost everybody is mean and cruel. And I fell in a world where almost all setient creatures are nice and lovely. What did you expected? That I'll suddenly change, like I was some kind of super cool dude, that spreads love and tenderness everywhere? Sorry, Dashie, but that's not how I am. And believe me, that if you don't want to keep hanging up with me anymore, I'll understand. I loved my marefriend to death, and she left me. And I don't know what could be worse than that."

Rainbow Dash looked down, then she looked back to me: "Well, maybe she gave up with you... but I never will. It's like you said to me: 'Failing doesn't make you a loser, but giving up is'."

I looked to her, and smiled. This time not with a prankish smirking, but with a truly grateful smile: "Thank you, Dashie. You don't know how good make me to hear that." Then, I scratched my eyebrows: "I guess I can't give you a hug yet?"

She smiled. "Not here. And don't you dare to tell anypony, or I'll rip your ears off."

We both laughed again.

"Are... you ready to order?" Asked the waitress, gulping, a bit scared.

I looked to her, surprised: "How long were you been there?"

"Since... since the 'I'll eat raw pony ears' part. I sincerely thought you were going to eat her ears... I was so scared, that I couldn't move, and closed the eyes, thinking that I was the next..." She confessed with a fearful voice.

I looked to Rainbow Dash, and she was deeply blushing. "Sorry girl. Seems that your little secret is no more." I smirked.

"You bucking worm..." She concluded.

As part of my new schedule, I was making periodical travels to Canterlot, to check how Cadance and Luna were going on and, I hate to admit it, but I had grown a recent interest in seeing Celestia more often. I could say that I had developed my own version of 'feelings storm'. I really liked being with her, as I've recently discovered how interesting was to talk with her about the history of our respective worlds, and comparing both.

And maybe the relationship could have evolved to something else, if it wasn't because Cadance started to get an interest on me too. All started a day that, after Celestia suddenly departing to attend an important meeting, I decided to check on Cadance, who was in the garden, trying to pull out an undergrown bush there:

"Come on, come out already!" She angrily said, pulling the bush with her magic. "You're going down this time, you little scoundrel!" She swung her head to the sides, and the bush did the same, but remained stuck to the ground.

I raised the brows, as I didn't recall she was this weakling: "Hey Cadance..." I was to ask her if she wanted help.

She gasped, putting a hoof in her chest and looked to me, scared and hyperventilating: "No, please, don't hurt me! I'm not doing anything wrong!"

I chuckled. "Don't worry, Cadance. I know you're not doing anything wrong. Actually, I don't even know what are you doing at all!"

"Ow!" She relaxed and put the leg back down. "I... I'm practicing my magic, so some day I could be as strong as Tia."

I looked to the tiny bush. Maybe it was really this hard to pull out? So, I come closer to it, and pulled it out with a single hand and a single attempt.

"Hummm... seriously Cadance? You can't even pull out this?" I asked her, perplexed, with the bush still in the hand.

"Awwww! I wanted to pull out that by myself!" She complained.

"Oh. No problem then." I told her and I planted the bush again, cast a ground spell and left it like it was before.

Her smile was enlightening: "Hey... 'rascal'..."

"Rascal?"

"Yes... that's how Tia calls you, isn't?"

"Yes, it is, but that's her per... I mean, her ponial way to call me. I'd rather you call me by something else."

"Ow. Of course! And how do you want me to call you?"

I raised the head, wondering how she could call me.

"Wait! I know!" She happily waved a hoof: "Bushy!"

I chuckled: "'Bushy'?"

"Yeah! Isn't funny?" She giggled. "Bushy Bushy Bushy Bushy Bushy!" She giggled again. "Bushy Bushy Bushy Bushy Bushy!" She laughed with a clear and lovely laughter. It reminded me some angelic singer back there in Earth.

"Yes, it is." I had to admit it.

"See, Bushy?" She giggled even again. Then, she facehoofed, blushing a bit. "And I was wondering... if you could train me... I've heard that you're training that pegasi at Ponyville... and she's quite something!" Then she looked at me, putting her wings over her face. "Can you train me too? If it's not too much bothering, of course." She femininely blinked several times.

"Sure. But I have to warn you. My training sessions are quite exhaustive and hard working."

"It doesn't matter! I'm ready for it!" She spreaded and flapped her wings, self confident.

"Are you sure? You can't even stand a flank slapping." I chuckled.

She startled a bit, then, she scowled: "Yes, I can! Look!" And she turned around to me, giving her flank to me. "Go ahead, slap it!"

I smirked, shooking my head a bit, trying not to focus in the sight I had before my eyes:

"Are you sure, Cadance? Don't be crying later! Last call!"

"Go ahead! I'm telling you that I can stand it!" She turned her head to me and winked.

I shrugged my shoulders and slapped her flank.

"Ouch!" She trembled a bit and lowered the ears, and then looked back to me: "Again!"

I raised the brows: Well, if she wants it...

"Ouch...! Again! Ouch...! Again! OUCH!"

"Alright, alright. That's enough. You convinced me." I waved my hand, trying to not get used to it. You know, too much of a good thing...

Cadance turned around to face me, deeply blushing and rubbing her sore flank. "See? I told you I could." Then, she looked to a side: "Hmmm, it doesn't hurt as much as the first time. Did you slapped softer?"

"No, I slapped the same."

She raised the head, perked the ears and smiled. "Ow! Then I'm improving! Yeeeeeees!"

The next time I arrived to the palace, I found Celestia angry with me again:

"Cellie? What's up with you this time, girl?" I asked her, concerned.

She looked at me with rage: "So, it looks you're having fun with Cadance lately, isn't?"

I chuckled "Ah! Is that! How do you think I could resist to such lovely flank..."

Celestia slapped my face. I stared to her, dumbfounded.

"I thought you respected me, rascal, but now I see that you're just an idiot that jumps into the first flank you put your sight on." She scolded me. Then she walked away: "We have no more business to deal with. Please leave."

Just... perfect... It looks that I've shitted everything again. Bravo, superhero, bravo...

I thought that my 'affair' with Cadance had came to an end, but, only two days after returning to Ponyville, she came to visit me at Fluttershy's cottage herself! And this time, it was Fluttershy the pony that was jealous too! They had an argument and all! It was even more funnier, because it was like two little angels trying to scare the other. They ended just pulling the tongue out to each other. I was about to have something to dinner, when the lovely storm came:

Both mares flown to me and asked at the same time: "Do you love me?!"

I stared to them: "What? If do I love you?"

"Yes!" They said at the same time.

"But... do you mean... 'love you' like... 'I like you' or 'I want to marry you'?"

The both mares deeply blushed, then they looked to each other, and then back to me:

"Yes!" They said at the same time again.

"But which 'yes'? The first or the second?"

The mares gulped at the same time and started to tremble and sweat cold.

"Both..." They said at the same time even again, but not too convinced this time.

I made an annoyed gesture with my arm.

"Hey! That's not fair! You're confusing me!"

However, luckily for me, in that moment a pegasi Royal Guard patrol came looking for Cadance, as she had escaped from the castle and everypony there was worried for her. Cadance protested a bit but lastly they convinced her to go back. Then, I looked to Fluttershy:

"Well, you saying?"

"Eeeek!" Catatonic.

I sighed of relief. At least, that's something I can manage, isn't?

Three months. Three month have passed since my last visit to Canterlot Palace, and Celestia was sadly looking to the mirror in her room:

"Ohhh... how I miss the rascal..." She dried a tear from her eye. "Why he has to be such an idiot? Why he can't be a gentlecolt like Shining Armor, or Storm Chaser?" Then, she started to hit her own chest with a hoof, crying. "Why, bucking heart? Why you had to play this dirty trick on me? Why, after all those thousands of years? Why precisely now?! Whyyyyyy?!" Then, she put her hoof back down. "Just hold on, Celestia... You've survived worst things than this. You'll make it. You will..." Finally, she looked back to the mirror: "I just don't know if I could take something like this again..."

At that moment, a 'plop' sound was heard behind her:

"Hello, sister. Missed me?"

Celestia turned her head around, facing her sister, all blood stained, and with a horn in her head. But it wasn't hers.

"Luna! But how did you...?! Oh, holy heavens!" She startled, looking her bloody sister.

"Don't worry sister. It's not mine." Luna evily smirked, sharpening the eyes.

"For the memory of the ancestors! What have you done, Luna?!" Celestia was horrified.

"Whatever it tooks for escaping that pitiful prison. I told you that you should have killed me when you could. But you never listen!" Luna hissed. "Now, let's finish this! En guarde!" She threatened Celestia, casting her flaming sword.

Celestia slowly turned back to face the mirror again. "I'm not going to fight you, Luna. I'm tired of this nonsense."

Luna chuckled. "Really? You're not going to fight back? What about all that whining of 'oh, my poor ponies', 'my poor little ponies'" She mocked. "Come on, stand up and fight!" She hit her sister with a hoof in the loin. Celestia shivered due the pain, but she doesn't moved.

"Luna, promise me that, if I let you kill me, you'll take care of the day and the night." The white alicorn pleaded with sad voice.

"Sorry, sister, but the only thing that I can promise you is... certain death!" Luna evily assured.

Celestia sighed, defeated. "Fine. If that's what it takes to end with this stupidity, then so be it."

Luna clenched the teeth and trembled with rage: "Why, sister, why? Why always do you have to take everything from me? Even the pleasure of revenge?!"

"I didn't take anything from you, Luna! You're just an ungrateful naughty filly that never learnt to forgive and forget!"

"How can you...?" Luna was livid of fury. "How can you say such thing...? Don't you remember? Six months ago? Just six months ago, Celestia! The only stallion that had love me, and you took him from me! Maybe you didn't killed him, but it was with your consent! Nothing happens in this cursed kingdom without your bucking consent...! And King Sombra... You knew I was into him! But you... you seduced him until he galloped after you, and you cared nothing about me!"

"I didn't seduced him, Luna! He was into me from the beginning! And I rejected him, and that's why he became evil! And that's a guilty load that I have to carry every single day of my existence!" Angrily replied Celestia. "So YOU stop your whinings and be a mare for once in your life, and finish me off already!" And saying that, Celestia roughly pushed Luna with a foreleg, making her to walk some steps backwards.

Luna just stood there, with her muzzle half opened and quivering eyes, looking perplexed to her sister. Her flaming sword simply faded.

"So well? I'm waiting." Celestia hurried her, scowling. She didn't fear death. Not anymore.

But instead of giving her sister the killing blow, Luna just nervously chuckled: "You can't fool me, sister. This is another of your tricks, isn't?" She pointed her sister with a hoof. "You're just waiting for me to shot you, so you can backfire to me." She pointed herself with a hoof. "But guess what? I'm not falling in your trap this time. Because I'm smarter than you!" And she teleported and dissapeared.

A little while after that, a pony guard started to frantically knock Celestia's room door:

"Your Highness, Your Highness, Princess Luna has escaped! It seems that she killed two guards! What are your orders?!"

Celestia sighed, defeated, again: "Send the alarm..." She ordered with weariness.

Chapter 10 - You May Only Choose One

I was finishing with a capital repairing with all the Zap Apple processing system at Sweet Apple Acres. When I did, I jumped down from the container, and gave it two knocks. "That's it. Everything is fixed now. I don't know how it could be still working this long, with that huge stuck in the pipes. Now it should work at least three times faster."

Applejack looked at me with astonishment: "Three times?! What in tarnation?! Tha means three times the profits! Thank ya, sugarcube, thank ya!" Then, she sadly lowered he head and the ears: "Ah can't believe how much we've lost all this years. If only Ah had figured it out earlier. Now Ah'm honestly thinkin' that Twilight was right callin' me stupid." She scolded herself.

I chuckled: "No shit, AJ. Listen, girl, you shouldn't lash yourself just because you didn't get all the picture about a particular event. That happens more often that you could imagine. However, if that makes you to feel better, I can give you some hints to help you to detect flaws on any matter of your interest."

"And do ya think tha Ah can learn? Ah don't know much else than just buckin' apple trees, doin' lasso catches and basic maths." She doubted.

"And that's your first mistake. Never think that you can't learn more. That'll only block your actual ability to do so. And the only way that you can learn, is accepting that you'll need several attempts to solve a determined problem, and not giving up if you can't at the first time."

Applejack listened to me with her muzzle opened: "Ah didn't think tha ya were so wise. Honestly, Ah tought tha ya only knew to fight and doin' stupid things, like yar Rarity's weekly chases. Why do ya do tha, by the way?"

I raised the head and looked up: "Honestly? I have no idea."

We both laughed.

"Alright, sugarcube. Ah think ya deserve some payment for yar work." Assured Applejack.

I waved my arm with a disdainful gesture: "No need to, AJ. I didn't do this for the money."

"Hey, but it's not money! It's a Zap Apple pie, from the first batch of this season! Don't ya dare to reject it, or Granny Smith will get mad with ya!" Said Applejack, giving me the pie.

"Thank you, AJ."

"Yar welcome, homie! And Ah have to tell ya, Ah am really eager to receive all tha wisdom ya have!" She joyfully winked to me, blushing a bit. Suddenly, a strong trotting noise was heard. Applejack turned her head, then turned it back to me and told me: "Well, sorry hun, but it looks there's another stampede. See ya later, sugarcube!" And she turned around and galloped away, swinging a rope: "Yeeehay!"

I stood there, dumbfounded about if she was telling me something between lines. I looked to her, then to the pie, then to her again, then to the pie, then to... she already was nowhere to be seen.

So, I turned around and walked away, mindlessly chewing the zap apple pie. Which was delicious, by the way...

Rarity was making a fine-draw motif, with a very delicate material: "Steady, darling, steady. This material of haute couture is very expensive and hard to find. So I have only one shot..." She said to herself.

At that very moment, Spike slammed the door, startling her and making her to ruin the motif:

"Spike! For the mane of...!" Rarity inhaled like she's going to yell, and then she said with soothing voice: "What's happening, darling?"

"Rarity, Rarity! Where's Twilight, where's Twilight?! I have to deliver this message to her! It's urgent!" He ran to her with desperation.

Rarity froze in place and shivered, because this scene looked frightfully familiar to her, like a Deja Vu.

"Let me see..." She said, scared, grabbing the scroll with her magic, and starting to read: Oh no, a message from Celestia. What could have done that little bookworm now...? Wait. Luna has escaped?! And Celestia is making a search'n capture team?!! And Gus is going?!!!

The scroll slowly fell to the floor, while Rarity, trembling of fear, was imagining the worst of scenarios: "Oh no. They have to fight that fearsome evildoer again! And the poor monkey has been so down lately, with his break up with Twilight! What about if that affects his combat skills?! What about if he doesn't make it, because he thinks that nopony loves him?!!" Then, she put a hoof in her forehead and exclaimed, concerned: "NO!. Of all the worst things that could happen... this is... the... worst... possible... THING!" Then, she galloped out her Carousel Boutique, looking for her beloved chaser. "I have to tell him that I love him! That'll cheer him up, and it'll surely give him strenghts in the battle! I don't care anymore if Twilight thinks later that I'm a coltfriend stealer! I have to tell him what I feel for him!"

Spike just stood there, dumbfounded. Then, he picked up the scroll again and ran after her, exclaiming: "Rarity! You forgot thiiiis! Raaaaaarityyyyyy!!"

Fluttershy was looking herself in the quiet waters of the small brook in front of her house: This was the day. She had been preparing herself for the past three months, just for this moment. Like her advicer told her, she inspired and exhaled two or three times, filling herself with courage to do what she wished to do, with all the strenghts of her heart.

Then, she walked, alone for the very first time in the last six months, in direction to an open field she knew. There, she saw him: Her Teddy Bear. He was sitting in a rock, looking mindlessly somewhere, not even noticing her. A shiver passed all through her body, from hooves to head, her heart beat frantically, the desire of running away was almost unbearable... But she stood there, and she gave a step, then another, then another one. Her Teddy Bear was closer everytime. She closed her eyes, put her mind blank, inspired and exhaled, and just walked, without thinking on anything at all. Suddenly, she heard a noise, and she opened her eyes: Her Teddy Bear had stood up, and he was shooking the dust from his raincoat.

She wanted to turn around and run far, far away, but, after a titanical willpower effort, she managed to constrain that primal instinct, then, she inspired and exhaled again, and, like she has practiced several times in the brook, she spoke: "You know, Teddy Bear? That raincoat doesn't scare me anymore..."

I turned to her, surprised: "Whoa, Flutters! You surprised me, I didn't felt you coming. That sneaking practice are paying off, girl!" I smiled, scratching the back of my head and giving her a thumb up with the other hand.

"Really? I... I'm that good?" She smiled too, closing her eyes and swinging her tail, satisfied.

"Yeah! And, you're not scared of my clothes anymore! That's all an achievement, I can tell you!"

She blushed and laughed with that lovely and feminine way she does, and turned her head, covering her face with her mane: "Don't keep saying that, or I'm going to believe it."

"But it's the truth! Even if it doesn't looks like the big deal, it is!"

She looked at me perplexed: "But how...? How that can be so important? It's just a silliness, like everything I do..."

I looked at her, smiling, and put a open hand in my chest: "Because you're very important to me."

She facehoofeed, half opening her muzzle, her eyes quivered, and tears of happiness slid from them. Then, she smiled too, and with sobbing voice, she told me:

"Teddy Bear... there is something... that I... I want to tell you..."

"Yes, cutie?"

She shivered and gulped: "I... I... want to ask you... if... if... you want to be... my... my..."

In that very moment, Rainbow Dash appeared from nowhere in the sky: "Master! Master! I've just received an emergency call from Canterlot! Luna has escaped! Celestia has summonned an urgent meeting!"

"What?!" I scowled and put my fists in my waist. "I knew it! I told Celestia that bitch can't be trusted!"

Fluttershy blushed and lowered head and ears when she heard that strong word.

"Oh, sorry, Flutters. It's that damned mare that put me on the nerves." I quickly apologized to her. "We'll continue our conversation later. Can you get back home from here, cutie?"

She nodded, relieving me. Then, I cast my flying cloud and flown to Rainbow Dash: "Lead the way!"

Fluttershy just stood there, looking at me while I was dissapearing in the distance: "... coltfriend?" She concluded.

During the flight, Rainbow Dash, after briefing me about the mission, commented to me: "OHMYGOSHOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH! I'm so excited! This is our first real mission together, master! We should celebrate it after we get the job done!"

I chuckled. "We haven't finished the mission, and you're thinking in celebrating already?"

"Of course, master. If there's something I've learned during our time hanging up around, is that there is nothing you can't do. I mean that you're like... a super cool mean dude, who's not mean enough to be cool and cool enough to not to be so mean... I mean... You know what I mean, don't you?"

I was a bit confused with the meaning of so many 'means', but I nodded anyway.

"And I want you to know, that if we end up in my house in the night, we can do... something else besides watching the stars..." She blushed and smiled.

"Really?" I chuckled again. "No ear ripping this time?"

"Nope. No ear ripping. But it may include piercing. Disarming and exhausting piercings, like your dispel sword does, if you know what I mean." She assured, smiling and lewdly closing her eyes.

I smiled and winked. "Yep. This time I DO KNOW what you mean."

After the flight, we arrived where Celestia was expecting us, among some ponies more: Shining Armor, that so-called Storm Chaser the pegasi and... Twilight.

As soon as we saw each other, at the same time, we exclaimed and raised arm and foreleg, respectively: "Please don't...!!" Then, with a lower tone, we concluded: "... leave." at the same time too. We just stared to each other, like two fools. For me, everything seemed to dissapear but her. For her, everything seemed to dissapear but me...

"Hey, you two! We haven't time for that right now! Now pay attention to me, at once!" Celestia snapped us out from our daydream. "This is the state of things: My scouts have spotted Luna in the mountains at north, near our frontier with the Gryphoon Empire. I don't know if she'll try to contact them for help, so you'll need to be very careful and stand on your guard. Under no circumstance, and I repeat, under no circumstance, you may engage combat with any gryphoon party in the area. Understood?"

We nodded in approval.

"Also..." Celestia continued. "I want you to bring back my sister unharmed!"

"What?!" I protested. "Are you kidding, Cellie? That damned sister of yours is gonna fight back with teeth and nails, and she doesn't even have nails!"

Celestia angrily looked to me and walked some steps closer to me: "Listen to me, rascal. Now I'm not talking to you as your friend, but as your liege: You. Will. Not. Hurt her! Understood?!"

I sighed, put a fist in my chest and respectfully bent: "Yes, your Highness. Understood."

"Well, team. Bring my sister safe and sound back home. Carry on!" Ordered Celestia.

"At once, Your Highness!"

I cast my flying cloud again, and invited Twilight to mount up, but she refused, and mounted a balloon with Shining Armor. Rainbow Dash and Storm Chaser tied themselves to the balloon to propel it, so I was on my own. No complaints, I guess?

Actually... yes. I had a complaint. And I'll feel very bad in disobeying Celestia's order. Not because I could be fearing any punishment, but because I truly respected her. So, I sighed and turned to her: "Listen Cellie, truly, I'll try to obey that order, but if she ends up hurting or killing any of my friends, I..."

Celestia looked at me with a blank expression: "Rascal, then I think that it'll be better to you to not going in this mission."

"Cellie, what are you talking about?! Then you'll be sending all this ponies to a certain death!" I protested, pointing to them with my open hand.

All the present ponies gasped and facehoofed, looking to her, perplexed.

"That's not going to happen, because I'm going too." Replied Celestia.

"WHAT?!" Everypony and me shouted at the same time.

Twilight jumped down from the balloon's basket: "No, Your Highness, you can't risk yourself like this! Not again!" She shouted, concerned.

"Don't worry, my faithful student. I'm starting to get used to this." Replied Celestia.

I put my fists on my waist and angrily agreed: "Cellie, Twilight is right. What your sister wants is TO KILL YOU!" I pointed her with a finger. "So, the worst thing that you can do is to put yourself at her reach!"

"You leave me no with other choice, rascal!" She angrily replied to me. "What kind of ruler would I be, if I come to allow the murdering of my own sister?!"

"A ruler that thinks on her subjects and accepts that her sister is a bloody murder who deserves death!" I angrily replied to her, defiantly opening my hands.

Celestia wide opened her muzzle, and then, angrily shooking her head, walked to me: "Listen to me, rascal, I'm going to take my sister back, and you'll have to kill me to impede me to!" She scowled and clenched her teeth.

Twilight quickly stepped between us, standing on her hinder legs and putting a foreleg in front of each one, very nervous: "Please, don't start with this again. I know you love each other. Lovers doesn't kill each other. Please, reconsider..." She pleaded, quickly looking to one and another.

I looked to Twilight, perplexed: "What? 'Lovers'? Twilight, what are you talking about?"

Twilight looked to me, shocked: "Wait. But... you're not lovers?" Then, she looked to Celestia. "Your Highness, what's happening here?"

I put my fists on my waist again, suspecting that Celestia had something to do with my break up with Twilight: "Yes, Cellie. What's happening here?"

At that very moment, as if the tension weren't bad enough, Pinkie Pie appeared, galloping to us: "Shinny, my love! I made it on time! You filthy pug, you were leaving without letting me know! I've brought your cupcakes for the trip!"

From the other side, as if they were set some kind of agreement, Rarity and Fluttershy appeared too: "Yay!" They said at the same time: "We made it on time! I have something very important to tell..." They both stopped speaking and looked to each other, perplexed.

"Flutters, are you some kind of mind reader, dear?" Asked Rarity, shrugging an eye.

"I... I was about to ask you the same question, Rares." Replied Fluttershy, surprised too.

I decided to ignore all that turmoil, and looked back to Celestia: "Well, Cellie. I'm waiting."

"What?" She asked, as if stunned.

"Yes, because I wanna hear it too!" Added Twilight, scowling.

Celestia's heart looked like it was gonna pump out from her chest: "I... I don't know of what you're talking about..."

"You don't..." I chuckled, looking for a side, then turning my sight back to her. "You forced Twilight to buck me out, didn't you?"

"What?!" Celestia backed off, scared. "No! I..."

"Cellie!" I forwarded my head, shrugging an eye.

"No! I didn't! Twilight did it by her free will!"

I looked to Twilight with my mouth opened.

"I did it because she told me she was into you!" Twilight explained with tearful eyes, pointing Celestia with a foreleg.

Everypony gasped of surprise.

I looked to Celestia: "What?! Then why did you bucked me out?!"

"Because you were flirting with Cadance!"

"What?!" Shinning Armor angrily jumped off. "You were WHAT?!! You shameless freeloader, Cadance is mine!" He pointed himself with a foreleg.

"What?!" Pinkie angrily jumped as well. "Cadance is not yours! I AM YOURS! Were you cheating on me, you filthy pug?!"

"No! He's the only cheater here!" Replied Shinning Armor, pointing at me with a foreleg. "Send him to the hospital again! It's an order!"

"What?!! Shinny! How could you ask me such thing?!" Angrily replied Pinkie.

"Don't you dare! Now I can predict your moves! I won't let you to hurt my beloved one!" Rainbow Dash appeared between Pinkie and me.

"He's not your beloved one! It's MY beloved one!" Rarity interrupted her, scowling and pointing herself with a foreleg.

"No, he's MY beloved one!" Blurted Fluttershy, scowling too.

Rarity angrily looked to the yellow pegasi: "I called it first!"

"But he moved with me first!" Replied Fluttershy.

"And I gave him a job first!" Rarity replied back.

Storm Chaser angrily stepped to Rainbow Dash: "Then, this was why you let me hanging out on our date?! You were using me as a BAIT?!"

"And so what if I did?!" Angrily replied Dashie to the pegasi stallion.

"Cellie, why you didn't told me anything?!" I required her.

"I told you I wanted you to surprise me!"

"That's not an excuse!!"

Twilight looked to the center: The human and ponies arguing among them, she looked right: More ponies arguing among them, then to the left: Even more ponies arguing among them. Soon, the mixing of the voices of all the ponies -and human- speaking at the same time, had become some sort of unintelligible 'Blah blah blah blah blah' to her.

Twilight scowled and clenched the teeth, and started to tremble, until she couldn't take no more.

"EVERYPONY SHADDDAAAAAAAAAAAAAP!!!" She raised the head and screamed so loud and with so much passion, that everypony, and even me, stopped speaking and looked to her, perplexed.

Twilight panted a bit, to recover from the effort: "Do you realize how stupid is this?! You look like a bunch of foals and fillies, fighting for a toy! Shame on you!" She angrily scolded us.

Everypony, even Celestia and me, lowered the head, embarrassed.

Then, Twilight turned to Celestia: "Your Highness, how could you do this to me?! Why didn't you told me that you weren't lovers?! You drove me into six months of a Tartarus of suffering, for no reason! HOW COULD YOU?!!" She angrily and quickly hit the ground several times with her forelegs, with tearful eyes.

Celestia sadly looked to Twilight: "My faithful student, I'm sorry. I know I should have told you." Se put a hoof in her chest. "I just couldn't find the word..."

She couldn't finish the word 'words', because Twilight tossed a book right in her face, so violently, that made her to turn around with a short pained gasp, trembling from pain and with closed eyes, and pressing with a hoof her sore and bleeding right nostril.

"Your Highness!!" The two Royal Guard captains and the pegasi pulling Celestia's royal chariot galloped to her: "Are you alright?! You're hurt!"

Then Shinning Armor angrily looked to his sister: "Little sister! How could you attack Celestia?! Now I have to forget that you're my sister and arrest you!"

"No, no, no." Celestia raised the other foreleg. "It's alright, it's alright. I deserved this."

"Your Highness! Are you sure?!"

"Yes, yes. I am." She nodded.

Then, Twilight looked to me: "My loooooove..." She cried, shedding plenty of tears, and galloped to me.

I bent a bit and happily opened my arms, and Twilight jumped to me with such speed, that I hit the floor with my buttocks, but I couldn't care less, as I was with my beloved marefriend again, kissing, hugging and cuddling like mad.

"My love." She told me between kisses and cuddles. "How I missed you. How I needed you. I thought I was gonna die..."

Rainbow Dash looked to a side, and then she turned to Storm Chaser: "Hey, Stormy... I... I think we might have started with the left hoof..." She drew a big smile in her face.

"That's Captain Storm Chaser for you, young pegasi, and don't you dare to flirt with me anymore! Understood?!" Angrily replied the stallion, shrugging his eyes. The smile slowly dissapeared from Rainbow Dash's face.

Pinkie looked to a side as well, and she looked to Shinning Armor: "So... filthy pug... How this leave us, then?"

"Filthy pug?" Asked the white unicorn.

"Yeah, humm. Dashie just called her coltfriend 'Stormy', and they broke up, see?..."

Shining Armor chuckled: "Bucking horns. You're funny even when you don't meant to."

Pinkie smiled, hopeful: "Then, that means that we were ok? Are we still getting married next Heart and Hooves Day?"

"I don't know, miss Pie. I still have feelings for Cadance. We had a three-year engagement. You know?"

"Yeah. I bet it's hard to let it go... so... maybe it will be the best... that I... just..." Sadly suggested Pinkie, and, looking to the floor with deflated mane and tail, turned around to leave.

"Wait, miss Pie." Said Shining Armor, making her to look back. "I haven't decided yet. You know?"

Pinkie just gave him a sad smile, and looking to her front again, silently walked back to Sugarcube Corner.

Rarity looked up: 'Wait! They had a three-year engagement?! A pleb and a Princess?! Then, why can't I have an engagement with Prince Blueblood?! Ow! How silly of me!' She tought, and, after saying all the goodbyes, turned around and left with a hopeful smile.

Finally, Celestia just got tired of seeing Twilight and me cuddling and interrupted us: "Hem-hem! Rascal, Twilight. You still have a mission to fulfill."

Twilight and me broke the hug, and I stood up: "Alright, Cellie..." Then, I noticed her bleeding nostril: "Let me heal that..."

But Celestia stopped me with a foreleg: "No, rascal, no. Let it heal naturally. Sometimes I need to remember that I'm not invulnerable."

"And not errorproof, either." I scolded her, pointing her with a finger. "I'm not gonna forget what you made to pass through to Twilight and me. Now I'm starting to understand why you sister hates you so much."

Celestia lowered the head and closed the eyes, embarrassed.

Then, I added with a sarcastic tone: "Now, excuse me. I have to pick some stuff for your 'mission'." And I cast my flying cloud: "Coming, love?" I asked to my marefriend.

"Just a minute, love." She said, then, she looked to Celestia, and also told her with a sarcastic tone: "And, Your Highness, you should head back to Canterlot. There's no need to risk yourself for 'no reason'." And later she added, but with a scolding tone this time: "Besides, you playing that victim's role of yours won't help changing Luna's mind, anyway." Then, she happily turned to me: "Coming, love!" And hopped to my cloud, and we flown to Fluttershy's cottage, so I could pick my stuff, as I was returning to the oak library after all.

Celestia, on her side, hopped on her Royal chariot, and indicated the pegasi to take her back to Canterlot, which they did.

Then, everypony had setted things up.

Everypony, but Fluttershy.

She just stood there, trembling, unable to move, unable to think, unable to even breath. Her Teddy Bear! Twilight had stolen her Teddy Bear, the one that she had dreamed so many nights to be hers! She took him just before her snout and there was nothing, nothing, that she could do!

Finally, the imperious need to breath made her to come back to her senses, even against her will. She was wishing she could hold her breath up to death. Her world was crumbling. All her dreams and hopes had been crushed in a single sweep. Nothing made sense to her anymore. She could easily take a knife and pierce her heart with no second tought.

"Flutters. Are you alright?" Rainbow Dash asked her, concerned.

Fluttershy looked to Rainbow Dash, with quivering and tearful closed eyes: "I want to dieeeeee..." She sadly mumbled, sobbing with crying voice.

"No, no, no, no, no! Flutters, look at me, look at me!" Rainbow Dash held her from her shoulders, making her to half lidding the eyes and to look her right to her eyes. "You have to be strong! You have to be strong and pass through this!"

"I caaaaan't... (sobs) I'm so weak... so useless... (sobs) Nopony loves me... (sobs) Nopony needs meeeeee..." Fluttershy sobbed with meekly voice, twitching lips and closed tearful eyes again.

"That's not true! I... I need you!" Said Rainbow Dash, hugging her.

"Really?" Fluttershy asked, hopeful. "Then... that's why you kept (sniff) defending me all this time?"

"Yes, yes! Exactly!" Confirmed Rainbow Dash.

"Thank you, Dashie. Thank you. You're the best -and only- friend I truly have." Fluttershy hugged her as well.

"Don't worry, Flutters. I'll help you to find somepony to love you... as a couple, I mean." Rainbow Dash smiled.

Fluttershy gave her a sad smile, drying her tears: "Thank you, Dashie. That... (sniff) that'll be great... (sniff)"

Pinkie returned to Sugarcube corner, and, instead to get back to her workplace at the cake shop, she, with tearful eyes and a sad grimace, galloped upstairs until her room, and she threw herself on her bed to cry, sinking her head in the pillow:

"He's gonna leave meeeee... (sobs) He's gonna leave me, I know iiiiiit... (sobs) He's gonna leave me, and I'll have no other but to dieeeee..."

When Fluttershy finally got back her home, she get surprised from some strange noises coming from inside. Using her sneaking abilities, she silently and undetected half-opened the door, catching a glimpse of what was happening: The shirtless human and Twilight, tangled in a love-making madness. Fluttershy slowly and silently closed the door, and walked to the brook on her garden, grabbed Angel, who was nearby, eating some carrots, dropped to the grass, and sadly looked to her reflection in the clear waters.

"I'd like to be a tree..." She barely mumbled

Chapter 11 - 180 Degrees Turning Off

The Gryphoon Empire, the previous day of Luna's escape:

The big and heavy grate opened up with a screeching noise, and the huge and bad ass looking red dragon entered the arena, surrounded by thousands of fervent gryphoon spectators:

"Yes, yes! It's me, Agronath, the reigning champion from the Dragonlands! Yeah! Hail me, yeah!" He happily raised his foreclaws, triumphant. Then, he turned his head to the grate on the opposite side of the battleground: "Well, let's see what immensely unlucky opponent they have got for me this year. I'm going to rip him in strips, like the previous one! Mwahahahahaha!" He mocked for himself, smirking.

The second grate didn't opened, and Agronath grew impatient: "Well, this is new. Victory by forfeit? This is going to be the most wasteful trip I've ever made to the Gryphoon Empire, by far. They'll better give me a good compensation, or I'm going to eat them all, starting with King Gryphanius." He shrugged an eye, looking to the gryphoon in question, comfly sit in his throne, near the top of the tiers.

The gryphoon arbiter announced: "Gladiatooooors, get ready for battleeeee!"

Agronath got surprised: 'Gladiators?' Where is the other?. He looked around, seeing nothing, until he opted to look down. Then he looked her: A white alicorn, very alike to Celestia, but with the difference that this one has a short cut mane, with shaved sides of the head, and a mid-lenght plait over the right side of her face, almost completely covering her reinforced eyepatch. She was wearing a full body armor, with two samurai-like swords crossed over her loin, and, in the edge of her braided tail, was hanging a very sharp kunai.

Agronath couldn't help but to cackle: "Ha ha ha ha ha! THIS IS my opponent?! A LITTLE PONY?!! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" He arched his head back to laugh better. "Well, at least they made me laugh... ha ha ha ha... I think...(chuckles) I think I'm not going to eat them this time." He chuckled, drying the tears from laughing so much.

But his laughter didn't last long, because he felt a slight tremor in the ground, as the alicorn unsheated her two swords, causing an air blast around her that raised a small dust cloud.

Agronath looked at her with surprise, shrugging an eye. "Whoa, it seems that this one is going on business. I almost feel pity for her."

The alicorn smirked.

"FIGHT!" Screamed the arbiter.

Without waiting, the dragon spitted a fire column from his mouth where the alicorn was, and when the fire died out, nothing were left there.

"Prftt!" Mocked Agronath. "If I come to know that this will be so easy, I'll AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!" He roared with his eyes and maw wide opened, and he quickly turned around, looking with surprise and anger how almost half of his tail had been chopped off.

"AHHHHRRRGGGGGG!!!" He roared again of fury, and almost instantly a succession of white shinning bubbles started to quickly appear and dissapear around him, cutting him everywhere. "AAAHHHHRRRGGG!!!" He roared again, but of pain this time.

Suddenly, the bubble appeared to one of his sides, and quickly passed below his foreclaws, cutting his belly from side to side.

"AAAHHRRGG!" Agronath roared even again, bending forward, just for the bubble to appear on his back, slicing from the chopped edge of his tail, up to almost the base of his wings.

"AAAHHHHRRRGGG!!!" Agronath arched back, contorting of pain, and then, the alicorn, sure that he was stunned enough, appeared a certain distance from him, and swinging and making longer her tail, threw the kunai to the dragon's maw, steadily piercing it.

"Come over here!" Said the alicorn then, and, with an unbelievable strenght for a being of her size, she pulled the dragon to her hinder legs, hitting him in his mouth with such force, that she made him to fly back up to hit with a rumbling in the colosseum's walls, making the building to tremble.

"EHHHHHHHHH!!!" The gryphoons cheered! Madness in the arena!

"Killer combo!" Bragged the alicorn. Then, she twirled her swords, cleaning them from the dragon's blood, and, smirking, pointed him with one of her weapons: "Had enough, dragon dweeb?"

The dragon shooked the head, coming back to his senses, and, with red eyes from rage-filled spirit, launched a roar that made the colosseum to tremble, and took off against the alicorn, with pony-eating intentions. The alicorn then flown higher, higher and higher, and the dragon was everytime closer, until he closed his maw over the alicorn. But his 'victory' was short lived, as the white shinning bubble appeared left -slash- and right -slash-, and both of the dragon's wings were cut off.

With a pained and scared roar, the dragon, with no wings to keep him in the air anymore, fell from a considerable height until he hit the ground with his head, with an eartshaking rumbling, and there he stood, defeated.

"EHHHHHHHHH!!!" The gryphoons cheered! Madness in the arena again!

The alicorn landed near her opponent, and looked to King Gryphanius. The gryphoon king smirked, raised a claw and gave her... a thumb down.

The alicorn smirked: That meant 'FINISH HIM', so, she turned to the still conscious dragon, who raised a trembling claw, scared.

"No, little pony, no. Have mercy, please. Your kind are nice and good and... Arggghhh..." Agronath trembled in pain again, as the alicorn enlarged her horn, piercing the dragon head from inside his open maw, and appearing from the back of his head. Then, with a quick swing of both swords, she severed the dragon's head, which fell some feets away.

"EHHHHHHHHH!!!" The gryphoons cheered! Madness in the arena even again!

"Of course I have mercy." Commented the alicorn, returning her horn to it's original size and sheating her swords. "I gave you a quick and painless... FATALITY!"

Then, the arbiter happily announced: "And the winner is: Our new champion, Gryphoonheart, 'The Scorpioooooon', Daybreakeeeeeeer!"

"EHHHHHHHHH!!!"

Then Daybreaker turned to King Gryphanius, putting a hoof in her chest: "My liege!! I, Gryphoonheart 'The Scorpion' Daybreaker, are honored to give you yet another victory, for the eternal glory of the Empire! Long live King Gryphanius!"

"LONG LIVE!!!" Cheered the gryphoons.

"Long live the Gryphoon Empire!!" Daybreaker happily acclaimed with a raised foreleg.

"LONG LIVE, EHHHHHHHHH!!!" The colosseum seemed to be falling apart anytime.

Daybreaker, satisfied, looked to one of the dragon's wings, walked to it, and, using a sword, cut a slice and took it to her muzzle, chewed it a bit, and then spitted it: "Puaj. It tastes to sulphur..."

King Gryphanius, satisfied, looked to an old-aged and one-eyed gryphoon on his side: "Well done, Master Tharkhan. You've turned her in the jewel of the Empire."

Master Tharkhan smiled too: "Thank you, my King. I'm honored from your laud. I told Your Majesty that she was ready."

Trixie, shocked, was staring all that show, and a gryphoon hit her with an elbow: "Eh, little pony. Why aren't you cheering too? Come on, I want to see you cheering too! Cheer!"

Trixie made a forced smile and 'cheered' too, raising a foreleg: "Ehhhhhhh..."

A little while later, Trixie was walking from side to side of her tent, where she was being put to live with Daybreaker, to take care of her: "I can't believe this... I can't believe this... In what a mess I have gotten into. Those buckings gryphoons, they've turned my lovely and nice Daybreaker into a coldblood killing machine! Cursed and bucked all they be!"

Suddenly, she put a hoof in her chest and gasped. Then, she nervously walked to a nearby table, took a flask from there and quickly drank it's contents, then, she sat in her haunches, until her heartbeating returned to normal. Trixie closed the eyes, despaired. She was unable to escape, because, not too long after her arrival to the Empire, she had contracted some strange and incurable heart disease, and the gryphoon doctor told her that if she didn't take that medicine daily, she'll die for sure. So, even she wasn't tied at all, she was a prisoner, anyway. What a fateful destiny, just when everything was seeming to turn into better...

Trixie put the hoof back in the ground, and scowled: It should be Twilight the pony who had to be passing through this! Not her! NOT HER! Treacherous unicorn, just wait to her to return to Equestria, and she'll see!

She was deep in that thoughts, when Daybreaker happily returned to the tent: "Mommy, mommy! Did you see it?! Did you see it?!! It was like slash, flash, squish!" Daybreaker joyfully started to swing her head, mimicking the moves that she did in the battle. "That dragon dweeb never saw what hit him! Ha ha ha!" She walked to the wall and hanged her weapons and armor there. "And he was so stupid! He didn't know that he can't fly without wings! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Daybreaker cackled with a foreleg in her muzzle. "He fell like a manure sack ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

Trixie made a slight disgusted grimace. "Yes, my daughter. Very funny."

Daybreaker looked to her with tenderness: "Oh, come on, mommy. Why aren't you happy for my victory? Everygryphoon was. Even King Gryphanius congratuled me! It was so honorable! And they gave me a special feast in my honor! There was cow, pig, yak... That yak meat is so hard to swallow. You know? It's so hairy. I once burned one almost to the bone, and it still has hair in the meat! Can you believe it?!"

As Daybreaker kept talking, Trixie's face started to turn green.

Daybreaker continued talking about her meal, without noticing it: "The cow meat is the best, it's soft, sweet and easy to rip. I mean, the pig's one is tasty too, but it's too greasy. I fear that it could fatten me too much. That'll slow me down, and I can't afford that, and..."

Trixie's face was now fully green, and her bloated cheeks couldn't stand it anymore:

"Bruarrghfff!" Trixie puked off.

"Mommy! Are you alright?!" Daybreaker asked her, concerned.

"Puff! Of course that I'm not... (cough) I'm not alright! (cough)" Trixie protested. Then, she turned to Daybreaker, trembling: "Daybreaker, you know that I can't stand you talking about your meals! That make me sick!"

"Bah. You don't know what you're missing, mommy. I bet that's why you ended so undergrown, while I could grow so big and strong!" Daybreaker pointed herself with a foreleg, full of herself. "I hate to say this, but you look pitiful, mommy."

Trixie scowled: "Daybreaker, stop offending your mother! Or you're going to sleep out again!" She angrily threatened her.

"No, mommy, no! Alright, alright. I'm sorry. Forgive me." Daybreaker smiled, trying to be as kind as possible.

Trixie sat on her haunches, closed the eyes, crossed her forelegs and turned the head to a side: "Hmptf!" She annoyingly huffed.

"Well, mommy..." Daybreaker decided to try another thing. "What about a truce toast?" She offered, pulling out a bottle.

Trixie looked to the bottle with the side of the eye. Given her current situation, she would like something stronger than cider. The alcoholic beverage that gryphoons made doesn't look as a bad choice. At least, getting drunk will give her some relief to the burden of her everyday life.

So, Trixie relaxed: "Alright. Let's toast..." Then, she walked to a table, and Daybreaker, very happy, served her a cup with the red content of the bottle.

Trixie looked suspiciously to the cup, and, just in case, she sniffed it, quickly backing off, horrified: "What's this...?! BLOOD?!!"

"Indeed." Confirmed Daybreaker, sniffing her cup. "Aged. Seven yea..."

She couldn't finish the explanation, as Trixie tossed the cup to the floor: "Daybreaker! You were going to make me to drink BLOOD?!" She angrily asked.

"But mommy! Everygryphoon drinks blood! What's the big deal?"

"I hate you, Daybreaker! How are you going to do this to your mother?!" Angrily Trixie scolded her.

Daybreaker's face adquired a sad grimace: "But mommyyyyy... I thought you'll be proud of meeeeeee..." She said with crying voice.

"I'm not proud of you! I hate you! I regret to have brought you to life!"

"Mommyyyyy...." Daybreaker sink her head on her forelegs and started to cry.

At that very moment, Master Tharkhan opened the tent's door: "Hey, miss Trixie, King Gryphanius demands... Daybreaker, stop crying at once!!" He angrily scolded her.

"Sorry, Master Tharkhan. I don't know what happened to me, I just..." Tried to justify herself Daybreaker.

"Silence! Is dishonorable for a warrior of your caliber to be crying like this! A true warrior's heart has no spare for tears! So, sorry is not enough! A thousand push ups, with the maximum weight you can carry, at once!" He pointed to the direction of the training area.

"Yes, master." Sadly said Daybreaker, slowly walking to the entrace.

"And I don't want to see you crying again! Move!" Master Tharkhan loudly slapped Daybreaker's flank.

Daybreaker quickly flown to the training area, loaded her loin with weight until she could barely stand, and started to do the four-leg push ups: "One, two, three, four..."

"That'll teach her." Master Tharkhan shrugged his only eye. Then, he looked to Trixie: "Miss Trixie, King Gryphanius demands you at his presence, at once!"

Trixie was walking with weariness through the throne hall. The recent remains of the celebration feast were still there, and Trixie was, simply, nauseated. However, she managed to arrive to King Gryhanius throne without fainting, as she feared that could cost her the life.

"Ave, King Gryphanius. Did you asked for me?" She asked with a trembling reverence.

"Indeed." He confirmed. "I have to say, that, despite some minor inconveniences, you've done a great job, miss Trixie."

"Oh, I'm honored for your attentions, my king."

"It's lauds, miss Trixie. Lauds. When are you going to learn? When we eat you?" Mocked Gryphanius.

"Lauds! Lauds! Yes, yes, it's lauds! I've already learned, I've already learned!" Frightfully said Trixie, with stiffed legs.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The gryphoons cackled. "Alright, now let's go to the point. When our Daybreaker will be able to move the sun and the moon? We're growing impatient."

"Ow!" Trixie got pale and started to tremble and sweat cold. "I... I'm sorry to say this my king, but... but... that's a spell that only one of the princesses... can taught to her... I... I've conducted every investigation possible and... and... that's the only way." Then, she looked to the gryphoon with big pleading eyes: "I... I'm sorry..." She gulped. "That's... all I can do... Please don't eat me..."

"Hmmm. Then that could be a problem." King Gryphanius rubbed his lower beak with a claw. "I don't think that Celestia will allow another hearing with us after the last incident. What do you propose, Agent G?" He asked to a tuxedo and black glasses-wearing gryphoon at his side.

"Well..." Agent G adjusted his shades "We thought that this could happen, so we've developed a contingency plan."

"Which is?"

"As far as we know, Princess Luna is imprisoned in the Canterlot Castle."

"Then, are you proposing a rescue?"

"Not exactly. Most likely an 'eased escape'."

"And once she's free?"

"We'll send her a messenger with the location of an extraction point and we'll bring her here." He pointed to Trixie, and then to the floor.

"Wow. Brilliant." Commented Gryphanius, with a sarcastic tone. "And she'll happily come here, forgetting that it was we, gryphoons, the ones who massacred her family."

Agent G smirked. "Nogryphoon said she'll come here from her own will."

Trixie's eyes opened wide, as she remembered ambassador Chad's words to Celestia: 'The only reason because we haven't crushed your cute little kingdom was because not only us, but all Equus needed of you. But not anymore! We have power over the moon and the sun now! So we can wipe out Equestria from existence... anytime we want!'

'Oh no!' She thought. 'If they manage to make Daybreaker a sun goddess, that'll be Equestria's end! I have to do something! I have to do something!!'

When Trixie returned to her tent, Daybreaker was already finished her punishment, and was curled, sleeping, tired to death. Trixie walked to her, to make sure she was asleep, then she walked to the tent's door and looked out, to make sure there was no gryphoon watching, and once she did that, she walked to the wall where Daybreaker's weaponry was, and silently and slowly, unsheated the kunai. Then, she walked to the sleeping mare, and raised the trembling weapon over the alicorn's neck.

"Sorry, Daybreaker... sorry... my little daughter..." Trixie mourned, with tearful eyes.

Suddenly, Daybreaker spoke among dreams: "Mommy... I love you..." Causing Trixie to gasp and to walk some steps backwards, quickly hiding the kunai under her cape.

Daybreaker continued speaking among dreams: "Mommy... I just want you to be proud of me... Why can't you be proud of me, mommy?"

Trixie lowered the head and half closed her tearful eyes. Then, as slowly and silently as she had taken the kunai, she put it back where it was, and sat on her haunches to cry...

Equestria, the day after Luna's escape:

The balloon, pulled by both Storm Chaser and Rainbow Dash, who were flying giving angry stares to each other with the side of the eye, had it's basket occupied just by Shining Armor, as Twilight and me were sharing a large flying cloud right behind. We were hugging and passionately kissing yet again, and when we broke the kiss she told me:

"Love, I have to tell you, that our first time was even better than as I had dreamed it."

"It was?"

"Yeah. Even if it still hurt a bit, and I barely can move my hinder legs, but it was... so beautiful. I was... like slowly falling in a reverie, and floating... in a warm sea of joy and happiness. And the waves of pleasure just keep coming and coming... I have no words to describe it." Then, she looked at me with an apologetic face. "The only thing that I regret, is that I've spoiled our perfect honeymoon."

"Don't worry, love. Any honeymoon with you will be perfect." I smiled.

"Do you think so?" She smiled back.

"I don't 'think so'. I'm sure of it." And we cuddled and kissed again.

When we broke the kiss again, she told me: "Love, I... I have something to confess to you..."

"Yeah? What, you cheated on me?" I teased her.

"No! Of course not!" She smiled, softly pushing me with a foreleg. "I'll rather die first. Is... that I was a bit jealous of you. I mean, you with Rainbow Dash. Even if I had given up on you, I feel as if I had to become stronger than her. I mean, that I've spent all my life studying magic, and I wasn't able to do most things that you two learned in just a few months. For instance, this flying cloud of yours. I didn't managed to cast it until just recently. I quickly figured out that it has something to do with condensing enough of the environment's moisture, but I couldn't keep the cloud joined together."

"That's beacuse you have to cast two spells at the same time, the Cloud Making and the Cloud Walking. Then the cloud will sustain by itself."

"Yeah. But you have two hands, and I have only one horn."

"That's not an issue. You can use a hoof instead."

"And that's exactly what I found out. Now I can cast up to five spells at once, against only four of Dashie! And I can even fly!" She happily bragged, opening her forelegs. "I'm stronger than her now!"

"Hey, I can hear you!" Rainbow Dash protested.

Twilight and me laughed.

"Is that's the case, I'm the one that should be jealous about you." I pointed myself with a thumb.

"Yeah? Why?" She smiled, doubtful.

"Love, because, for instance, I'm sure I'll never be able to do the ten digit-precision square and cubic roots you do, all by memory. You're like a trotting computer."

She giggled, blushing a bit: "Can you tell me more about computers?"

I smiled too: "What's this? Are we gonna cuddle, or to talk about science?"

She lewdly smiled too: "Both..."

Many miles ahead, to the north, Luna was stepping in the top of a mountain, from where the blurring form of the Gryphoon Empire could be started to be seen. She sadly looked the nearby country, and huffed:

"What I was thinking? This has to be some trap of that treacherous gryphoons. There's no way they'll let me to get to their king. They'll kill me first, and my family will never be avenged!" She trembled of anger. "I still can't understand how Celestia can let them to walk through Equestria, like nothing had happened! That's why she has to die!" She angrily hit the ground with a foreleg. "Maybe five thousands of years have passed, but I don't forget...! I can't forget..." She sadly looked to the floor. "And I can't forgive..."

She slowly drooped to the ground, despaired: "Then... what I'm supposed to do...?" She looked back in the direction to Canterlot, even it was too far away to be seen. "I can't go back there." Then she looked forward. "And I can't go further..." She looked down. "And I'm all alone..." Her eyes started to abundantly shed tears. "What... what I'm suppossed to do...?" She mumbled. Then, she closed the eyes, raised the head and screamed with the Royal Canterlot Voice: "WHAT I AM SUPPOSED TO DOOOOOO?!!!"

She sank her head on her forelegs and started to cry, scratching the ground with her hooves: "Why...? (sobs) Why I have to be inmortal...? (sobs) Why I can't die like anypony else...? (sobs) I didn't ask for this, I didn't! My sister took all the decisions for me! She never asked me! She never..." She couldn't continue speaking, her voice cut by the crying.

Then, she stopped crying: "Wait... I CAN DIE. I just... I can just kill myself..." Then, she turned the head to a side, with clenched eyes: "No! Not like this! Not like this..." She sadly looked again to the floor. "If at least, it was in a battle... yeah, a battle. That way, I'll go with a bit of dignity..." Suddenly, she perked the ears and looked back, looking the floating balloon in the distance. She smirked and sharpened the eyes: "Ow, good. Served cold..."

"Dashie, Storm Chaser! Can you pinpoint the source of that scream?!" Asked Shining Armor from the balloon basket to the leading pegasis, looking around.

"No, we can't! It could have come from anywhere!" Answered the above-mentioned.

I quickly stood up, while Twilight did the same with difficulty, but her hinder legs trembled and she had to sit on her haunches again.

"Damnation!" She cursed.

I looked to her, scrunched the mouth and raised a brow. As if this wasn't gonna be hard enough...

But I haven't too much time to bother, as I had to quickly cast a shield to protect the balloon from a dark blue beam, coming from somewhere in the distance. Well, at least we already know where she is...

"Everypony, land now, land now!" Ordered Shining Armor.

Suddenly, I had an idea: "Shinny, jump here with your sister and surround Luna from behind! I'll keep her shooting the balloon, to distract her!" I ordered, jumping to the basket and starting to retaliate with Multi Hadou-kens, to cover the rest of the ponies moves.

Shining Armor looked at me with hesitation, but Twilight assured him: "Come on, brother, do as he says! He knows what he's doing!"

Once he jumped to the flying cloud, I indicated to the pegasi: "Storm, Dashie, take her from the flanks!" They looked to me, perplexed. I rolled the eyes: "Not that flank, the sides, I meant!"

They do an understanding gesture, and flown each one by their side.

Luna kept shooting the balloon and dodging my Hadou-kens by flying or teleporting: "Come on, come on! Give me your best shot!" She pleaded below her breath.

Suddenly, a lightning stroke her magic shield. Luna looked to the side it came with the side of her eye: "Is that little bucker again. She will not escape this time..."

Then, she cast a huge dark ball on her horn, and suddenly threw it to the other side, where Storm Chaser was coming: "Ha!" She mocked. "As if I didn't know that tactic!"

However, Storm Chaser teleported, or best saying, was teleported to safety by Twilight, coming from Luna's back, while Shinning Armor trapped the blue alicorn within his shield.

But it wasn't for too long, as the spherical shield soon exploded by Luna's magic retaliation. Then, she perked the ears, and cast her Dark Cover, and everything come out of vision. Everything but me, turned into a living lightning, illuminating the area again:

"You're not going to get me with that again!" I told her, casting my dispel sword, and rushing to her. But just when she was at my reach and I had swung my hand with my bottle-cut move, to chop her horn off again, she teleported on my back, trying to catch me off-guard.

"You're not going to get me with that again either, pleb scum!" She mocked, but she couldn't hit me, as Twilight, Shining Armor and Dashie shot her at the same time.

Then, Luna bristled, forming a feather shield around her, which she used to block the attack, and then, charging that very feathers with the spell they had just threw on her, she retaliated with multitude of sharp arrow-like feathers! I didn't expected that!

Shining Armor, Twilight and me could hold the blast quite well, but Rainbow Dash and Storm Chaser didn't ran with so much luck, being the last one the pony that took the worst!

I had to make a decision: If I left the inside of the Dark Cover, Twilight and Shining Armor will likely end sightless and in great danger, but if I didn't, Dashie and Storm Chaser will surely die. So, I told them: "Shinny, make a shield around you and your sister, and kept it until I come back!" And I darted to take the battered bodies of the pegasis.

Exactly as I feared, not sooner I left the Dark Cover, I could hear that screeching sound again, the very one that almost took me down!

I get the pegasis to safety, gave a quick heal to Rainbow Dash, until she recovered conciousness, and telling her, pointing to the other pony: "Take care of him!" I quickly teleported back into the Dark Cover.

Once inside, I checked with horror how Twilight and Shining Armor had been defeated by Luna's sonic attack, as they hearing was sharper than mine, due their bigger ears! The flying cloud dissipated, and they were falling, unconscious, to the emptyness!

I appeared near them and grabbed them, using my own body to cover them from Luna's horn piercing attack. Luckily, my magic shield could stop it enough to her just giving me a skin cut.

I was in a disadvantaging position, carrying two fainted ponies against Luna, but luckily Rainbow Dash had recovered herself enough to attack Luna again, giving me enough time to take my marefriend and her brother to safety too. Not too long after I did it, Dashie fell again to the ground, too wounded to keep fighting. It seems that it was up to me again...

Luna appeared in front of me: "Well, pleb scum. Now we can finish what we started, with no more annoying interruptions..." She smirked, with sharpened eyes.

I took my hand to my side, where I had my Glock 9 mm, but I've swear not to use a firearm in Equestria again, unless strictly necessary, so I cast my Dispel Sword instead. "You're going down this time, bitch..." And telling her that, I cast a Life-Force Powered spell on my Dispel Sword, turning it into an offensive weapon.

"Good." She replied. "I was wondering when you were going to get serious..." She smirked.

Then, she cast her giant Flaming Sword, and it clashed against my Life-Force Dispel Sword, and with every clash, her sword started to turn smaller and smaller, as I was absorbing her strenght with every hit. Her smirk soon dissapeared from her face, turning into a surprised look first, and later into a tired one.

Soon, her sweating body couldn't stand no more, and her sword dissapeared, along with her will to fight. Then, I dispelled my Sword, walked to her, and casting a Magic Dispel Glove, grabbed her horn and disabled her, rougly pulling her against a nearby tree.

There we stood, both panting due the effort and looking each other with wariness. Then, I turned my head, to look all my friends, and my beloved marefriend, all spreaded around, unconscious.

"It seems that you have more ponies that you can carry. Isn't?" Luna evily chuckled.

That's it. I looked to her again and took the pistol and pointed her: "You know? Screw Celestia's orders. I'm gonna kill you, bitch."

Surprisingly for me, her expression wasn't of fear, not even of anger, but of relief. She smiled and half-lidded the eyes as I put the cannon of the gun in her muzzle, as shooting her looks like a more humane way to do it, than simply beating her to death. Then, she completely closed the eyes, and a tear slid on her cheek...

My hand trembled. The finger on the trigger twitched. Damned I'll be with my damned feelings! So, I took out the pistol from her muzzle: "Damn it, Luna! It doesn't have to end like this, girl. Why did you keep trying to get killed, bitch?!"

"I'm so tired..." She answered, with tired voice. "Tired of an eternity without friendship, without happiness... without love... I just want this to end... I can't take it anymore..." Then, she opened her big sad and tearful eyes. "Kill me, please. I beg you. You're the only one who can. Please, kill me alreadyyyyyy!!" She cried.

I rolled the eyes: "Luna, your sister loves you..."

"She didn't!" Luna interrupted me, with sobbing voice. "She hates me too! She only wants me to accompany her in her endless reign! Everypony hates me! All of them!"

Well, time for the bold move: "I don't hate you, Luna!" I exclaimed.

"W... what?" She blinked several times, perplexed.

"Yes, exactly as you heard! I mean, I hate you hurting my friends, but I don't hate YOU!" I pointed her with my finger.

"But... but how's that possible...?" She couldn't believe it. "I've tried to kill you, I've tried to kill your friends several times! That's not possible! You have to hate me too!"

"Well, believe it or not, I don't hate you, because..." I did a pause to give more strenght to my argument. "You've given me the best battles I've ever dreamed of, and thanks to you, I've become stronger and better. And that's something which I'll be forever grateful." I smiled.

Luna's irises and muzzle slowly opened even wider, more that I've tought it possible: "Then... if you don't hate me... what are your feelings about me, exactly...?" Her eyes quivered.

Now it was the time. I only pray that I can find the correct answer: "I feel... gratefulness, Luna. And I respect you, as a formidable opponent, that always pushes myself to my limits. That's what I truly feel about you."

Luna's tearful eyes shrugged, and her muzzle scrambled: "Nopony... has never said something... so beautiful to me... never ever..." Her sobbing voice trembled. "Please, forgive me..." She pleaded.

I raised a brow and shrugged an eye: "Forgive you? Who do you think that I am, your sister?"

"Please..." She pleaded again.

"And what do you will do for me to forgive you?"

"Anything! Anything you ask! Want me to be your slave?! I'll be your slave!" She offered, swallowing her pride, and about to cry.

"No, no, no!" I chucled. "I don't want a slave... I want you... to become my sparring dummy."

"Sparring dummy? What's that?" She looked to me, perplexed.

"It's just somepony who I'll be asking to have a friendly combat from time to time, to keep my skills polished."

"Ow! Yes! Sure! Sure! I can be that! I can be that!" She happily assured. "Then, do you forgive me...?" Her last words was almost unhearable.

"Yes. I do."

"Thank you thank you thank you!" She thanked me with so much passion and happiness as I've never expected on her. Then, taking strenght from where wasn't any, she pushed against me and hugged me tight, tight, tight.

I released her horn, sure about her feelings, and hugged her as well: She wasn't gonna try to kill me. Ever again.

Then, I looked to the sides, because her heart and mine started to beat as one. And I know where that could lead: "Humm... Looney-Mooney, could you... let it go? That's enough, girl."

"No."

"Luna, I'm telling you that's enough!"

"No!" She hugged me even tighter.

Then, my worst fears come true, as a familiar voice sounded behind me: "Love... are you al...? But what's the meaning of this?!!"

I rolled my eyes: "Jesus Christ..."

Storm Chaser's eyes slowly opened, as he slowly came back to his senses, being Rainbow Dash's face the first thing that he sees: "Welcome back, handsome." She greeted him.

Storm Chaser shrugged the eyes: "I think I've told you to not to flirt with me anymore."

"Yeah. As if you had any choice, stud." She joyfully mocked.

Suddenly, a purple bright and the sound of a battle could be heard at his side. The stallion startled and tried to stand up, but Rainbow Dash looked very quiet about it: "Hey, young pegasi, they're fighting Luna! Why aren't you helping them?!" He inquired, concerned.

"They aren't fighting Luna." Calmly assured Rainbow Dash, continuing with the healing procedure.

"No?! Then why are they...?!" He looked to his side, and he could see Twilight rolling around the human's head like a boa constrictor trying to asphyxiate its prey, and bucking him with every hoof and every way possible:

"I'm gonna kill you, you filthy ponynapper! I'm gonna kill you!!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" The human laughed, apparently very fond with his marefriend's killer instincts.

Storm Chaser looked to Rainbow Dash: "And there you are, so calm about it?"

Rainbow Dash shrugged her shoulders, smiling: "It's kind of funny, once you get used to..."

Chapter 12 - Encounters of The Unkind Type

Equestria, nearby Ponyville, third day after Luna's escape:

"Daybreaker, are you sure that we will find any information about Princess Luna's whereabouts... in this lowly town?" Was asking Trixie to the white alicorn, now disguised as if she was Celestia, while both were walking in direction to the town. "Shouldn't we be looking for her... I don't know... nearby Canterlot?"

"Yes, I'm sure, mommy. And not. We can't be sneaking near Canterlot, or my disguise could be discovered. According to Intel, at least two of the so-called 'elements' ponies went on Princess Luna's capture, and, as she hasn't arrived to the Empire, we can only assume that they've succeed. So, they'll be returning here at any moment." Explained Daybreaker.

"And if they don't? If they take a detour or something?" Trixie still insisted.

"That's exactly what we've come to learn here." Daybreaker smiled.

"And how 'exactly' are you going to learn? It's not likely they'll reveal that important information nice and easy. Are you going to... torture them...?" Asked Trixie, horrified.

"Only as a last resource, as I want to put in practice my spying skills first! I'll make Agent G proud too!" Daybreaker happily announced.

"Ow. That's... a relief..." Trixie puffed and smiled, relieved.

They were in that talking when they arrived nearby Sweet Apple Acres:

"Well, mommy, now hide, and watch how a pro do her job!" Daybreaker joyfully told to the blue unicorn, while undressing from her body armor and weaponry, and putting it all in a small wooden cart that Trixie was pulling.

Applejack was taking a nap under a apple tree, when she felt a flapping nearby. She raised her stetson a bit, and her surprise was outstanding: "Yar Highness!" She quickly hopped back in her four legs: "Ah had finished all the work already! Honestly! Ah wasn't slackin' off!"

Daybreaker giggled, with a hoof in the muzzle "Don't worry, little one! I'm sure you did!" Then, she put the hoof back in the ground: "Have you got any news about Luna?"

"Oh, sorry, Yar Highness, but Ah haven't heard anthin' from two days ago, since ya sent the team in her capture."

"Are you sure? You might be forgetting something. Why don't you try harder that good memory of yours?"

Applejack looked to a side. There was something odd about this Princess Celestia. If only she could figure out what...

"Nothing? Nothing at all? Ow. I have to say that I'm very dissapointed about you, little one." Angrily commented Daybreaker, looking to a side with her eye closed. "I hate to say this, but you're dumber than the trees you buck everyday. Brute, foolish and stupid."

That hit Applejack. Hard. She immediately remembered Twilight's scolding, and she couldn't skip the tears. Even Princess Celestia was telling her that she was stupid! Then, it was true! Oh, what a shame! What a shame!!

Applejack looked down, clenched the teeth and her tearful eyes, and started to tremble: "Ah'm stuuuupiiiiid..." She sobbed.

"That's right." Daybreaker smirked, realizing that she could use that on her own benefit. "And a stupid like you shouldn't be an element. You'll only bother the others with your stupidities, screwing up all what they do!"

Applejack was about to break. Her trembling legs was barely keeping her on hoof, and she was deeply crying.

"So, I think you should step aside, so somepony more capable than you can hold that important title." Assured Daybreaker.

"Ya... (sobs) ya'r right, Yar Highneeeeess... (sobs) Ah should... (sobs) Ah should go awaaaaaaayyy..." Cried Applejack.

Then, Daybreaker decided to give her the finishing blow, and threw a rope in front of her: "You know what you have to do..." And she flown away, back to where Trixie was.

Trixie was looking and hearing everything, and she quickly whispered below her breath to Daybreaker:

"My daughter! But what have you done?! You have driven her to suicide!"

"Indeed. All was in the plan. She wasn't of any help, and I have a death writhe on those so-called elements." She pulled out a small scroll with an alphabetical sorted list of the Main 6. "And she's first on the list! Applesack, see? And if we can make it to look like a suicide, it'll be perfect! That'll tear down the enemy's morale!" She bragged. Then, she looked to the list again. "Now let's see who's next... Flustershy? An isolated hut near the forest? Piece of cake! I'll be right here, mommy! Don't go anywhere!" And she flown in direction of Fluttershy's cottage.

Trixie opened her eyes: Now it was her chance! She waited until Daybreaker couldn't see her anymore, managed to untie her from the cart and then quickly galloped to Applejack, who was already climbing an apple tree with the rope tied to a thick branch of it.

With a last sobbing, Applejack put the rope on her neck and cried with despair: "Death to the stuuuupiiiiids...!" and jumped down from the branch to hang herself, but, while she was still in the air, the nut on the rope around her neck magically untied and she hit the ground instead. She looked around, perplexed that her expertise in nut making had failed to her too, but her perplexity was even bigger when she saw Trixie:

"Who...?" She asked with sobbing voice, looking to the blue unicorn. "Wait... Ah know ya... ya'r tha pretentious from tha ursa incident..."

"Yes I am but I'm not like that anymore I've changed listen Applesack that's not Princess Celestia she's an agent from the Gryphoon Empire named Daybreaker and Flustershy is at risk she has a death writhe on all of you elements!" Quickly spoke Trixie, nervously waving a foreleg.

"What in Tarnation?!" Applejack backed off, surprised.

Fluttershy was finishing her daily housekeeping, when Daybreaker landed near her cottage:

"Your Highness! What good timing, I was finishing tiding up my house already. Please come in, I'll prepare that nice tea that you like so much." She happily invited her in. Once they were both inside, Fluttershy went to the kitchen to prepare the tea.

Daybreaker took a look around, staring to the cutlery, mainly the knives... Nah, it was too easy.

"Well, tell me, little pegasi, have you heard anything about Luna's whereabouts?"

"Oh, hummm, no... Sorry, Your Highness, but I haven't heard anything at all. And it has been two days already. I'm very worried for my friend."

"Your friend? Maybe you meant your friends?" Asked Daybreaker, to making her talk.

"Oh, no. I have no need to worry about Twilight. She'll be perfectly safe with my Ted... with the monkey taking care of her. Dashie is the one I'm worried about. She's the only pony that cares about me. I don't know what I'll do if something happens to her."

Daybreaker smirked: "Seems that you love her a lot, isn't?"

Fluttershy stopped short on her tea making: Love? Could that be what she was really feeling about Rainbow Dash?

"Young pegasi, are you alright?" Asked Daybreaker, with soothing voice.

"Ow! Yeah... I... humm... I think so..." Fluttershy resumed preparing the tea, blushing a bit.

Suddenly, Angel hopped inside the house too.

"Angel, honey! You little cheeky, you sniffed the smell of something tasty and you came right away." Fluttershy happily petted him.

Daybreaker looked to Angel, coming out with a gruesome idea: "Hmmm, you seem to love that bunny a lot too, didn't you?"

"Oh, yeah. He's the only one that's always with me, at all times."

'The only one, huh?' Daybreaker thought, shrugging her left eye. "Well, young pegasi, I hate to tell you this, but that 'Dasie' friend of yours, doesn't love you at all."

Fluttershy turned her head around, shocked: "What?"

"That's right. And to prove that, she told me that I should take that bunny of yours, because she wants to show you how much she hates you."

"What?!" Asked Fluttershy, with crying voice, completely turning around in a flash. "No, Your Highness, please no!" She pleaded with tearful eyes.

"So, I'm taking it and you'll never see it again." Daybreaker concluded, grabbing Angel with her magic and taking off.

"Nooooo! Please, Your Highness... (sobs) Please, Your Highness... (sobs) Please, Your Highness don't take my Angel awaaaaaaaaayyyyy." Disconsolately cried Fluttershy, slowly galloping after her, until she stopped near the brook. "Don't take my Angel away... (sobs) Don't take my Angel awaaaaayyyy... (sobs) don't be so meaaaaaan... (sobs)." She pleaded raising a foreleg, until she dropped to the ground to cry. "Dashiiieeee... how could you do this to meeeeee...? (sobs) I thought we were frieeeeeends... (sobs) Why everything has to be taken from meeeee...? (sobs) What have I done to deserve thiiiiisss...? (sobs) I want to dieeeeee..." She couldn't keep talking, too deeply in her sorrow, and sunk her head in the brook to drown herself.

Daybreaker smirked while leaving: "Hmmm. That'll do. I think I'll keep this bunny for my meal later, now, let me see who's next... Pinkio Pio, pink party mare. So, all I have to do is to find a party somewhere..."

Applejack and Trixie arrived just in time before Fluttershy drowned herself:

"Flutters! Flutters! Talk to me! Talk to me!" Nervously asked AJ, pulling her out of the water and pushing her chest with her forelegs.

"I think you should better let her breath!" Suggested Trixie.

"Ow! Right! Breath, Flutters, breath!"

When Fluttershy had regained her normal breathing and coughed all what she was gonna cough, AJ told her: "Flutters, tha wasn't Celestia, she's an imposter...!"

"Come on, Pinkie. Please attend our party. You made an appointment with us. Remember?" Were Lyra Heartstrings and Bon Bon trying to convince the depressed Pinkie into a party, in her work at Sugarcube Corner.

"I already told you that I can't. I don't feel well. I'll let you know when I get better..." Pinkie sadly rejected the request.

"Awwww. Come on Pinkie, if you're always up into partie! What can be so awful for the super duper party mare to make her not wanting to make a party?!" Joyfully asked Lyra.

"I had an argument with my coltfriend. I fear he'll break up with me." Pinkie confessed.

"Well, if he returns and finds you with that look he surely will." Lyra replied.

Pinkie raised the head, gasped and facehoofed, horrified: "Do you think so?!"

"Yeah. So, if you want him to stay with you, you should look as you usually do, so he sticks with you again!" Assured Bon Bon.

"You're right! You're right!" Happily bumped Pinkie, and her mane and tail poofed again. "Of course! How silly of me! When he arrives, I'll make him a party so big and so long that he'll forget that former marefriend of his! Thank you, girls, thank you, thank you! I'll end with my shores here, and we all be in a party in no time!" She joyfully stood on her hinder legs and raised her forelegs, with a wide smile.

No too long after Pinkie's departure, the trio of AJ, Fluttershy and Trixie arrived to Sugarcube Corner:

"Mr. Cake! Where's Pinkie?!" Asked Applejack, very concerned.

"She has just left for a party with Lyra and Bon Bon. Why?"

Then, Applejack turned to Fluttershy: "Flutters, we still hav' time! Go to Twilight's house an' send a message to Celestia with Spike! Trixie, ya com' with me!"

Fluttershy arrived to Twilight's oak house and knocked the door, but for her surprise, it wasn't Spike the one who opened the door, but a young pegasi stallion instead:

Fluttershy gasped, deeply blushing and unable to speak, because that stallion has something...

"Ah! You should be Fluttershy! I can tell by your cutie mark. Hello, I'm Flash Sentry. Nice to meet you! Can I call you Shy?"

Fluttershy nodded, with wide open eyes and muzzle, still unable to speak.

"Are you alright, Shy? Oh! Maybe you're surprised that I'm here. Celestia posted me here to take care of Spike while Twilight is gone. Seems that Equestria it's not so safe nowadays, isn't?" He smiled. "But tell me. What can I do for you?"

"Where's Spike?" Asked Fluttershy in a whisper.

"Where's who?"

"Spiiiiiike." Whispered Fluttershy again.

Pinkie's party has already begun, and Daybreaker had hid nearby, as she'd like to be seen the least the better, to watch Pinkie from the distance, so she could take her down where nopony would be looking. But her 'winning streak' was interrupted when she saw Applejack and Trixie arriving at the party. She couldn't believe it: Her own mother, betraying her and the Empire! That deserved no less than the death penalty!

Daybreaker angrily stood up in her four legs, and flown to get her combat gears back, resolved to sever every and each head on that lowly town.

"Pinkie! Pinkie!" Applejack called her. "Ar' ya right?!"

"Of course, AJ, I can't be better! Why? Is something happening?"

"Com' on, we'r all on danger! Let's find Rarity an' wait fer Celestia at Twilight's!"

Pinkie backed off, surprised: Well, if it's Applejack the pony who said that, then it must be true! So, she turned to her hosts: "Sorry, girls, but it seems that there's an emergency somewhere! See ya!"

And they galloped to Carousel Boutique, until Trixie had to stop, putting a hoof in her chest:

"Trixie, we havn't time for tha!" Applejack scolded her.

"I forgot... my medicine... I left it... in the cart..." Said Trixie among gaspings, becoming pale and stumbling.

"Com' on! Hop on!" Said Applejack and mounted up Trixie on her loin and carried her from there.

Finally, they picked Rarity up and they got to Twilight's house, once there, and after a briefing with Flash Sentry, Applejack asked Trixie: "Trixie, yar cart, where ya left it?!"

"Forget about it, AJ... Daybreaker... will be there too and she'll... kill you..." Barely could said Trixie, having problems to breath, laying on the side in the floor.

"Stop talkin' so much applecrap an' tell me already where it is!"

Trixie hesitated for a couple of seconds "Behind some bushes... near your farm..." She finally explained, fainting.

Applejack turned to Pinkie: "Com' on Pinks! Ya'r good at findin' stuff!"

Pinkie nodded, and they both galloped back to Sweet Apple Acres.

"Don't worry, ladies! I'll protect the ladies!" Assured Flash Sentry, causing Fluttershy to giggle, even she doesn't know why.

Daybreaker was having a hard time finding the small cart: "Claws and beaks!" She cursed. "All this bushes looks the same! Where is my stuff?!"

Then, she perked her ears, and happened to catch AJ and Pinkie rushing to the farm. She smirked: "Bah. Two earth ponies. No need of weapons for those."

Fortunately, Pinkie had a combo: "We're gonna be attacked!" She warned. A mere second after that, a white beam came from the bushes and Pinkie rolled until she could hide behind a thick trunk. "AJ, hurry, hide here..." She called below her breath, waving a hoof. "AJ?" Pinkie quickly looked to each of the sides, being unable to see Applejack... then, she dared to look behind the tree, and her eyes opened wide, quivered and started to shed tears: There, lying in a puddle of blood was... the battered body of Applejack.

'No... no... no... NOOOO!!!' Multitude of scenes of her hanging with Applejack quickly, but not less painfully, passed by her mind, lovely and friendly times spent with her dear friend, who now was lying down motionless in a blood pouring, probably dead. Pinkie felt a burning force inside her, like an erupting volcano: Her anger know no limits! Her eyes turned red, and small rocks levitated from the ground, and started to orbit her mane and tail like asteroids. Then, she screamed with a demoness's like voice, and darted from back the tree to fight Daybreaker all by herself, taking the alicorn by surprise: She wasn't expecting such fierce retaliation.

Daybreaker yet launched some more beams, which Pinkie easily dodged, and the alicorn had to teleport and take the air to avoid the pink mare's onrush. There, she smirked, as now she has clear advantage, so, she decided to save her magic and try to pierce the enraged Pinkie by quickly enlarging and recoiling her horn, but the fury-crazed mare looked like she knew where she was going to hit, dodging every and each of her attacks.

Finally, she jumped behind some bushes and Daybreaker enlarged her horn even once more, but, for her surprise, instead of piercing Pinkie, she found her galloping above her enlarged horn, right against her! And when she was only a few meters away: "Hadou-ken!"

Even with her magic shield, the impact was so strong and violent that threw Daybreaker several dozens of meters backwards, shooking her body up to the bone. Daybreaker then flown higher, to recover from such attack, which let her dizzy, and yet she had to dodge more Hadou-kens from Pinkie. No doubt about it, while she remained on the mare's vision field, she'll not give her respite, so she had no other choice but retreat higher and faster to the sky.

Pinkie managed to drop safely over some bushes, and shot Daybreaker some times more, until her foe dissapeared in the sky, then, her eyes returned to normal, and she galloped back to Applejack: "AJ! AJ... oh no. Please, you can't be dead. Oh sweet Celestia, don't let her die, please!" Then, she carried the battered body of her friend, and, happening to see the cart, she took in her muzzle Trixie's medicine rack, and ran back to Twilight's home.

Celestia was already at Twilight's library when Pinkie almost took down the door: "Your Highness save AJ please save AJ!" She pleaded after spitting the medicine rack to Trixie, who quickly took a flask and drink it, escaping from certain death too.

Without hesitation, Celestia cast a Life-Force healing spell, and brought Applejack back to life from near death. Then, she sat on her hauches, scared to death, as every time that she cast such spell, could be the last.

"Pinkie, what happened?" She asked when the fright was gone.

"That bucking Daybreaker, imponiating Your Highness! Look what she did to AJ!" Replied Pinkie with tearful eyes.

"And how could you escape my clone, Pinkie?!" Asked Celestia, amazed.

"I... I don't know... I was... so angry... I can't tell exactly what happened..." Pinkie rubbed her mane with a hoof. Then, she looked to Celestia, perplexed: "Wait a sec. That's your clone?"

All the present in the room looked to Celestia, perplexed.

Celestia closed her eyes, embarrased: "Sorry, my little ponies. I should have told you before..."

The alarm bell was ringing in Ponyville, and several pegasi Royal Guards were warning: "Evacuate! Everypony, evacuate! This is not a drill! Take your foals and fillies! Leave everything else! Evacuate the town at once!"

The ponies were rushing with a nervous trotting, obeying the command, while Mayor Mare was 'helping': "Come on, come on. Evacuate orderly, please. We have to protect every and each pony. We can't miss even one." Then, she added under her breath: "Less ponies means less tax payers."

Celestia flown in front of a line of royal guards, which were getting ready to fight: "Stand ground, guards! We have to defend this town with our lives!"

"Your Highness, please return to Canterlot now! We can manage from here!" Assured a high-ranked guard.

"No way, sergeant! If my clone is as strong as me, there's no pony strong enough to stop it here, but me!" Denied Celestia.

Pinkie galloped near her: "I'm gonna help too! I'll give her a taste of my 'Pinkie Power'!" She smiled, sharpening her eyes. Then, she turned around in direction of Sweet Apple Acres: "I'll make her pay for hurting my friend!"

Celestia smiled. She knew that there would be no way to convince her otherwise.

Inside the oak house, Rarity and Fluttershy were doing their best to get Applejack back on hoof. Even her life wasn't in danger, she was still unconscious and in a very bad shape.

"Ow... my." Mourned Fluttershy. "I should have paid more attention to my healing practice. Now I don't know if I'll be able to help at all." She raised her forelegs over Applejack, and tried to follow Rarity's directions:

"Look at my horn, dear. Look how it shines. Try to gather that same kind of magic into your hooves. Come on, I know you can do it, darling."

Fluttershy's eyes filled with tears, as she was sure she wouldn't be of any help. She was the most useless, foolish, uncapable...!

"I know you can do it, Shy." A soothing stallion voice snapped her out from those despairing thoughts.

Fluttershy turned her head to look at Flash Sentry's smiling face, and it was like a lightning of hope stroke her heart: Yes, yes! She can do it! She can do it!

With smiling face and renewed strenghts, Fluttershy made her forehooves to shine like Rarity's horn...

Suddenly, a earthshaking rumble made the nearby appletrees to twitch, and finally, they ended unrooted and thrown far away, like an invisible giant had pulled them out, and Daybreaker, now armed, dressed in her full body armor, and featuring her usual femme-nazi look, landed in front of Celestia and her guards, leaving a crater in her wake.

She unsheated her swords, causing another eartshake and a dust cloud, and hit the floor with a whipping sound of her braided tail, causing yet another eartshake and a loud whipping sound:

"COME OOON!!" She angrily and frightfully roared, and there she stood, panting with rage.

Celestia froze at the sight of Daybreaker's swords. The memories, as vivid as if she was watching them, returned to her mind like a cascade:

Severed heads, bodies cut at half...

Celestia's widened eyes got filled with tears: "Not again..." She mumbled.

Legs and wings teared down, screams of agony and pain... "Not again!" She said louder.

Corpses spreaded all around, blood... DEATH!

Putting her eyes white bright, Celestia screamed with the Royal Canterlot Voice: "NOT AGAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIN!!!"

Then, she cast a huge lightning spear, and teleported to fight Daybreaker first! Swords and spear clashed, leaving a trail of sparks with every swing! Then, they started to teleport and clash, teleport and clash, teleport and clash! They were doing it so fast, that the guards, who flown right after their liege, soon found out that they were no longer there, then, they flown backwards, because the alicorns have appeared there, but, the next second, they weren't there either. The battle was so quick and violent, that it looked like there was a firework display in the sky!

After several times of uselessly flying to aid their liege, the guards finally gave up, as there was no way they could keep with such speed. They just stood there, unable to doing nothing but to watch. Even Pinkie was perplexed:

"Amazing... She wasn't so fierce when she battled Luna the previous time..."

The stallion sergeant unyielded his spear: "I think it's because she found a true reason to fight. One that she had forgotten long ago..."

Celestia made her spear to twirl, rushing with a relenteless attack over Daybreaker, who retaliated with several slashes of her swords and swings of her braided tail, trying to pierce Celestia with her sharp kunai, but Celestia always managed to dodge or block it. Daybreaker tried to push Celestia away by enlarging her horn, but a hit on it that almost broke it, made her to avoid doing that tactic again. Then, Celestia used several and quick lunges of her spear, trying to take Daybreaker out of balance, but Daybreaker dodged or blocked them all.

Unfortunately, centuries of a peaceful existence started to take it's toll, as Celestia was unable to keep with Daybreaker's pace. She was panting already, and her sweaty body was an unmistakable indicator of her exhaustion. To make it even worst, she was running out of magic too. Maybe Daybreaker haven't as much magic as Celestia, but she knew how to save it better.

Then, the dreadful time arrived, when Celestia tried to teleport and failed. Daybreaker smirked. That was her chance!

So, she did her signature move, the one that had made her to gain her nickname: She turned her wings into some sort of sharp pincers, and quickly trapped Celestia with them, and then, holding her in place, swung her braided tail and stroke her with her kunai, as if it was a scorpion's sting, several, several, several times, so quick and stronger, that she finally managed to pierce Celestia's magic shield.

Fortunately, doing that movement meant that she couldn't fly anymore, as she was using her wings as a weapon, and Celestia stopped flying too, covering herself with her own wings, as a last resource to avoid a fatal wound. So, they both started to fall, soon reaching Pinkie's field of view, making her able to throw a Hadou-ken to Daybreaker, forcing her to teleport away and saving Celestia just in time.

Unfortunately, it wasn't fast enough as Daybreaker managed to wound Celestia, very badly. She gasped of pain and rolled in the ground, avoiding further harm. Daybreaker threw an angry stare to Pinkie: "Hey, you dishonorable puny pony! How dare you to mess with a battle of honor?! Wait for your turn!" She scolded her with one of her swords.

"How dare YOU to talk about honor?! You treacherously attacked AJ and me, and when you couldn't defeat me, you escaped like the bucking coward you are!" Angrily replied Pinkie.

"I escaped because you cheated first, hiding my stuff!" Replied Daybreaker.

"I didn't hide anything, it was you the bucking piece of idiot that couldn't find her horseshoe even if she had it on!" Kept 'angrily' arguing Pinkie, but she was actually trying to earn time so Celestia could recover herself.

But Celestia didn't seem to recover at all. In fact, she looks like she was getting worse. She even tried to stand up, but she fell to the ground.

"Your Highness!" The guards rushed to her, concerned. "What's happening to you?!"

"I feel faint... I think she poisoned me..." Barely could explain Celestia, panting.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Evily laughed Daybreaker. "Seems that the scorpion's touch is taking effect!" She bragged, twirling her kunai. Then, she looked to the rest of ponies: "Soon, your almighty sun goddess will be no more, and I'll have my rightfully earned prize! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Next, she looked to Pinkie: "So, I think it'll be no trouble in taking you down first, you annoying thing. Your fate is sealed, anyway. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

The guards raised their spears, but Pinkie, with red eyes, stopped them short, turning her head to them with a crazy enraged look: "Nopony dare to get in the way! SHE IS MINE!!"

The orbiting rocks levitated again around Pinkie's hairy areas, and she scratched the ground with a foreleg: "Come down here and fight!"

Daybreaker smirked: "This might be fun..." And next, she rushed against Pinkie, with her swords ready to slice her in three...

Scotaloo was doing some stunts to drive her scooter among the running ponies, when she gets to Applebloom and Sweetie Belle: "Hey girls! Celestia is fighting with another alicorn! It's like a firework festival! It's amazing, you have to see it! Come on, this way!"

"Are you sure, Scoots? Everypony is evacuating now. We should do the same." Sweetie Belle replied, frightened.

"Wha'r ya sayin'?" Applebloom bumped. "We can earn ar' cutie marks in fightin'! Let's go!"

"Yeah! Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" Eagerly agreed Scootaloo.

"Cutie Mark Crusaders, to the chaaaaaarge!!" They both happily exclaimed, and they galloped back into the mayhem. Sweetie Belle, still not convinced, followed them anyway...

Not too far to the northwest, a Gryphoon platoon, with the purpose of supporting Daybreaker in her extraction, hiding among the woody areas around, came to watch the battle. Their commander looked to his soldiers:

"Wings, our Daybreaker has engaged battle with the enemy! It looks like is Celestia herself! We must aid her! Take off, take off, take off!"

Daybreaker sliced her swords where Pinkie was, but finding nothing there, Pinke popped behind her and threw her another Hadou-ken, but Daybreaker dodged it as well. Then, the alicorn tried to pierce Pinkie with her poisoned kunai, quickly and randomly hitting around her, trying to get her by chance, as she figured out that it was no use to attack her directly. Suddenly, she has Pinkie on her head, biting the alicorn's mane and quickly pulling it in all directions!

"AHRG! What the claw?!" Cursed Daybreaker, surprised by that orthodox attack, and both mares rolled for the ground. "Get off me!!" Exclaimed the pained alicorn. "OOOUCH!!"

And in a completely unexpected chance of luck, Pinkie managed to grab a sword, and to put it on Daybreaker's neck!

"The antidote!" Pinkie demanded Daybreaker. "Give me the antidote, at once!"

Daybreaker was astonished. How was this possible?! She had underestimated this opponent, not once but twice, and now she was paying the price! But she'll never give the antidote to her. That'll be dishonorable, and she'll rather die than that.

"Hey! Where ar' the fireworks?! Ar' we taa late?!" Loudly asked Applebloom, galloping at the front of the CMC.

Pinkie turned her head to them, scared: "No, girls, no! Go away, she's dangerous, go agh...!"

She couldn't end her warning, as Daybreaker took the advantage of her small lapsus without paying attention, and shooked off Pinkie from her loin, dropping her to the ground and presenting the edge of a sword on Pinkie's neck.

Everypony facehoofed and gasped of terror, as they could imagine the gruesome outcome of that.

Pinkie angrily looked to Daybreaker. "What are you waiting for, horseshit?" She defied her.

Daybreaker smirked. "You've put a good fight, pink pony, and you've earned my respect so forth." Then, she looked to Celestia, who had already been completely affected by the poisoning, and now she was tilting her head to the sides, like drunk. "So, how I won after all, and the winner takes it all, I'll generously reward you by letting you to live... so you can enjoy how I slain everypony else. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" She evily cackled.

Pinkie's tearful eyes widened and quivered, and her muzzle scrunched in a sad grimace: She has failed! She has failed and now everypony is gonna die because of her fault!

"Daybreaker, my daughter! That's enough! Stop, please! Stop this madness already!" Trixie yelled to her, barely standing, slowly walking to the alicorn.

Daybreaker looked to her with anger: "How dare you...? How dare you to call me your daughter? You betrayed the Empire! You betrayed me! How could you... mommy?!" She said the last statement with crying voice.

"I did it because this is wrong! All of this is wrong! Daybreaker, the ponies are your kind, not the gryphoons! They're just using you for their own benefit! They don't care a mane about you! Only for you to solve their plights! No more!" Trixie tried to convince her.

Daybreaker bucked Pinkie's muzzle, leaving her unconscious, and direfully walked to Trixie, pointing her with a sword: "Listen to me well... puny pony. You're no longer my mother. You're no longer a honorable subject from the Gryphoon Empire." Tears appeared in her only eye. "And for your betrayal, I hereby condemn you to death!" She said with sobbing voice, and swung the sword, leaving it in horizontal position, getting ready to sever Trixie's head.

Tears appeared on Trixie's eyes too: "Please, Daybreaker. This was my fault. Only my fault. Take my life, and Celestia's spell, but let them live, please. Don't make them all to pay for my mistakes. Do that last favor to your mother, I beg you..." She pleaded.

Daybreaker's sword trembled: "So... so be it... mommy..." She cried.

"I'm so proud of you... my little daughter..." Trixie truthfully smiled, and closed the eyes, resigning to her fate.

Daybreaker didn't delayed it anymore, and launching a pained yelling, swung the sword again, making everypony to scream in terror...

Chapter 13 - Proving Worthy

After my 'fight to the death' with my marefriend, which ended with both of us cuddling, -and several but luckily unsuccesful attempts to leave me sterile-, we arranged to come back to Canterlot, planning to make a short stop in Ponyville first, of course. As Rainbow Dash was still unable to fly, and Storm Chaser wasn't even able to move, Twilight and I are pulling the balloon with just our combined clouds, and we're traveling back taking our time to enjoy the ride, anyway.

Twilight, however, had a somber face all the way, so I couldn't help but ask her:

"Love, what's happening to you? We won! We successfully completed our mission! Why're you so sad?"

She doesn't answered at first, but after some attempts more, she finally confessed: "Damnation, Luna defeated me so easily..."

I laughed. "That's all? Love, I don't see any problem with that! I'm here, remember?" I joyfully pointed myself with my thumb.

"That's exactly the problem! I've trained so hard! It's not fair! Why can't I become as strong as you?! Why can't I get to your level?!" She angrily complained. "I always have to rely on you for all the hard battles! What if someday you get heavily wounded again?! I won't be able to protect youuuu!" She cried, upset. "I gonna have another... you know. I don't want to recall that." She sobbed.

"Yeah. A heart attack..." I mimicked a death stertor, with my tongue out, trying to change the focus of her attention.

"I've told you that I don't want to recall that!" She angrily protested, and I cackled. She looked at me with a frowned smile: "Stop teasing me!" Then she facehoofed "No, wait. I think it was like this." She turned loinside and stiffed her legs straight up and put her tongue out too, playing dead. But she couldn't stay too much in that position without start chuckling: "This is so stupid!" And we both laughed our lungs off. Seems that I succeed.

Then, she jumped to hugging and kissing me, but I covered my crotch, just in case.

Once we had cuddled enough, she asked me in a whisper, very seriously: "Love, are you sure that we can trust her?"

The smile dissapeared from my face, and I looked Luna, who was apparently in deep sleep, along with the other three ponies, in the balloon's basket. "Yeah." I nodded.

Twilight shrugged an eye: "'Yeah'? But 'Yeah' like what? 'Yeah,' she's trying to take you from me too? Or 'Yeah', she'll kill us at the very first chance she has?"

"Damn it, love. I think you're a bit paranoid with this."

"Do you think so? Just look the facts: She betrayed and tried to kill her sister, not once but twice. She allied with that fatso false friend of yours, tried to take over Equestria, tried to execute Fluttershy, killed two guards to escape, and now tried to kill us again... Should I continue the list?" She pointed with a foreleg.

"What's your point, love? What do you want to do... with her?"

"I don't know. I just don't trust her. Alright? So, we'll better keep an eye on her." She hugged me even tighter, and sink her head in my shoulder.

She has a point. So, I think I'll better have a conversation with the former bitch...

Suddenly, my thoughts was interrupted by a strange sky event: It was a tilting sequence of sparks, on the direction of Ponyville. I warned everypony, and cast a perception enhancing spell, coming to see that it looked like a firework display or something, and also a huge Gryphoon platoon taking the air in that direction too. What the..?!

As it was pointless to take Rainbow Dash or Storm Chaser there, we left them in the balloon's basket, along with Shining Armor, who strongly protested, unwilling to be left behind, but somepony had to take care of the wounded. Then, after leaving my pistol to Dashie, as she had some expertise in shooting, Twilight, Luna and me fastly flown to the battle-like mayhem...

With a swift magic casting, Twilight managed to save Trixie just before Daybreaker severed her head.

"What the claw?!" The alicorn cursed, looking to us.

We were perplexed: Two Celestias?! Well, at least we know which the mean one is. At that very moment, the Gryphoon platoon arrived as well:

"Wings, Celestia is down! This is our chance! Attack!" The commander ordered.

"Guards, protect our liege!" Ordered the pony sergeant, and the pegasi guards took the air to battle the gryphoons!

Daybreaker looked to Celestia: She'll better take the spell first, so she could take care of the unwanted newcomers with advantage. So, she teleported at her side, and lightened her horn over Celestia's head, to absorb her magical wisdom, as the poison had a mind-breaker side effect too:

"Tell me the sun raising spell!" She ordered to the dizzy Princess.

But she couldn't take her prize, as she had to teleport to avoid a dark blue beam from Luna, who went forward Twilight and me, because we were taking a bit of time to aim, to not to hit Celestia by accident.

"Step away from my sister!" She yelled and rushed with her flaming sword to attack Daybreaker. I told my marefriend: "Take care of Celestia!" and rushed to attack Daybreaker. But this alicorn can defend herself for the front and for behind at the same time! And she was not only fast, but strong as hell! Everytime she hits my magic shield with her pointed tail, it was like an elephant's trunk had stroke me!

Luna wasn't having it easier, as every time her flaming sword clashed with Daybreaker's ones, her sword ended cut in two or three! This alicorn is a beast! And for making everything even worst, she doesn't stop moving, making me unable to hit her with my Hadou-kens, as I figured out that punching or kicking her armored flank probably won't make too much damage to her.

It would be better if I was in the front, to take a clear shot when she got to approach me in an onrush or something!

I was on that plannings, when she surprised me by actually piercing my magic shield with her kunai! It's sharp edge ended just mere milimeters from my eyes!

"Come over here!" She exclaimed, and she dragged me to her, and hit my shield with her hinder legs! God! It was like being hit by a train!

I fell to the ground an rolled several times before I could recover myself, putting my hand in my sore ribs, panting. Jesus Christ! She left me breathless!

And it was all it tooks. Just some seconds off combat, and Luna had her belly pierced from front to back by Daybreaker's enlarged horn. I only had time to teleport her out from Daybreaker's swords reach, so she couldn't slice her in a thousand pieces, minding the countless times Daybreaker swung her swords over her horn, before realizing that Luna wasn't there anymore.

I tried to reach Luna to heal her, but Daybreaker, now free to gather all her attention to me, started to relentlessly attack me, not giving me a second of respite, dragging me away from Luna, trying to pierce me with her horn as well.

While all that was happening, Twilight had already managed to get Celestia back into her senses:

"Your Highness! Are you alright?!"

Celestia looked at her with tired eyes: "Yes, I'm... Twilight, watch out!" She loudly warned.

Twilight looked up and around, realizing that three gryphoons were approaching them, from three different directions! Celestia opened her eyes and muzzle, frightened: This was the end! There was no way that Twilight could repel the three of them on time!

But Twilight proved otherwise. She raised a foreleg and a hinderleg, and shoot a purple beam from each hoof and horn, taking down the three gryphoons at the same time! Another one, picking up a wounded pegasi guard, tried to use her as a hostage, but Twilight teleported a book in his claw, disabling him from hurting the pony, and then she tossed another book directly to the gryphoon's eye, making him to release his prey and to roll around with a long and loud crow's shriek!

Yet another gryphoon, diving from higher in the sky at a ludicrous speed, was coming trying to get her in a kamikaze-like attack, but Twilight, levitating a spear and using it as a baseball bat, made the first equestrian homerun using a gryphoon as a ball!

"Don't worry, Your Highness! I'll protect you with my life!" She exclaimed.

Celestia was astounded: Heavens, Twilight was so amazing! She was so smart, so strong, so brave and resourceful! She has all the traits that a true leader needs! Celestia smiled: Twilight had trained so hard this past six months, trying to put herself at the monkey's level, and she had witnessed how her faithful student had progressed so much in so little time! She would made such a wonderful princess!

When all the gryphoonic menace was over, Twilight happened to see me, still struggling with Daybreaker.

"My love, don't worry! I'm coming!" She cleaned the sweat from her forehead and mounted in a cloud to aid me in the extremely hard battle.

Celestia then happened to watch her badly injured sister, lying loinside in the ground, with her forelegs bent over her chest:

"Little sister! NOOOOO!" She cried, and crawled to reach her.

Daybreaker, despite her lessen sighting, quickly spotted Twilight, and started to attack her with her speed demon tail attack. A cold wave went through all my body, as I imagined my marefriend pierced as a sieve. But, fortunately, as I had sent her to attend Celestia first, she had chance to watch Daybreaker's attack pattern, and being the smart pony she is, she quickly came with a counterstrike:

Twilight condensed a big ice block over her, which she used to block Daybreaker's poisoned kunai, and when it had shattered it enough, she used the ice shards to cover Daybreaker's tail, freezing it and anchoring the alicorn in place, stuck to a small iceberg!

That give me enough respite to back off and cast my Life-Force Powered Dispel Sword, and attack the alicorn. After the fourth or fifth clash, she discovered that I was weakening her, and stopped attacking with the swords, and started to shot me with light beams from her horn instead. Suddenly, she stopped short and looked up, as Twilight was floating over her in another flying cloud, lightening her horn and her four hooves at once, getting ready to launch a Fivefold magic attack on her!

Without hesitation, Daybreaker used her sword to cut her own tail, and teleported just in time before getting hit. But she haven't her tail anymore. Well done, Purple Smart!

Celestia finally managed, with bleeding knees, to reach her agonizing sister:

"Please, don't die, my little sister. Stay with me. Stay with me!" She tried the Life-Force healing spell, but she was still too weakened by the poison's effect, and she couldn't do it.

"What a change... of luck. Huh, sister?" Meekly commented Luna, with a smiling bleeding muzzle, and clearly showing pain in her talking.

"Please, little sister. Don't talk. Save your strenghts. The help is coming already. Don't talk, please." Celestia sobbed, with tearful eyes, raising her sister's head and gently putting it on her forelegs.

"Don't bother... sister. We both know... that this is the end of the road... for me..." Luna whispered.

"No, little sister, no please, don't give up, please. You're the most important pony to me. We are a team. Remember?" Celestia sobbed.

"Yeah... a team... " Luna's eyes rolled, momentarily losing her conciousness. "Sister... there is something... I have always wondered..."

"Yes, little sister?" Asked Celestia, with a soothing smile and voice.

"What did you give... in exchange of our... immortality? You never... told me..."

Celestia smiled again: "Sure I'll tell you. But only if you live."

Luna chuckled: "You and your.. dirty tricks... bucking... old... hag..." And she closed her eyes and stopped breathing.

"Luna? Luna?! LUNAAAAAAA!!" Cried Celestia, saddened to the core of her heart. Then, she cried in despair: "RASCAAAAAAL!! HURRY UP, PLEASEEEEE!!"

To that moment, Twilight and me had managed to stop Daybreaker's initial head-on. She was now heavily panting, alternatively looking each of Twilight and me with wariness, pointing us with her swords, pondering her next move. I was exahusted, and Twilight even more, heavily panting too, wobbling and all sweated, about to fell down from her cloud. This battle couldn't last much longer, or there will be no winners, only dead bodies.

Then, Daybreaker heared Celestia's plead, and smirked: "Give me the sun moving spell, and I'll let them heal your sister!"

"Alright! Alright! Rascal, Twilight, stop fighting at once!" Celestia ordered us, with trembling frightened voice.

Twilight and me looked each other, and she lit out her horn and hooves, and I dispelled my sword. Then, Daybreaker come closer to Celestia: "The spell, if you were so kind, please."

Celestia bent her head a bit, and, lighting her horn, gave the spell to Daybreaker. "There you are..."

"Thank you!" The evil clone mocked.

"Move out!" I told her, and she did. Then, I cast my healing spell on Luna, and her wound regenerated... and I was left exhausted as hell.

"Ohhh! But what we have here? Now, the happy family is going to die all together!" Mocked Daybreaker, twirling her swords. "Master Tarkhan was right: Feelings only weaken a warrior's heart!" And she raised her swords, to finish us all off.

But right when she sliced her swords against us, Luna stepped up and blocked her attack with her flaming sword: "No while there's still life in these bones..." She clenched her teeth.

Daybreaker smirked: "But what have this pony of stubbornness?! She has just died and now she wants to die again! What a bad wing I would be, if I don't please her. Do I?"

"I think you forgot something, horseshit."

Daybreaker's eye opened wide, and she quickly looked back, to see Pinkie standing in her hinderlegs, cleaning the small strand of blood on her muzzle with a foreleg. Then, she put both forelegs near her solar plexus: "Now I have you where I wanted to... Hadou-ken!"

And Daybreaker was launched faraway, but she recovered in mid-air, and, realizing that she was the only one left, as the rest of gryphoons had been defeated, she escaped flying.

"Come back here and fight, bucking coward!" Pinkie angrily screamed to the alicorn.

Luna gave us a last tired look, smiled, and passed out. And Celestia. And Twilight. And me...

"I can't believe this..." Complained Shining Armor. "They left me behind. What am I, a Royal Guard Captain, or a bucking nurse?"

"At least you're on hoof, unicorn. I was left behind like an useless garbage sack." Protested Storm Chaser.

"And me, the fastest and most awesome pony in Equestria, was left with the most pitiable stallions in the world!" Protested Rainbow Dash as well.

Both stallions angrily looked at her: "Shut up!" They said at the same time.

"I'm not shutting up! Shining Armor, how could you ask Pinkie to shot Gus again?! If you were so interested in Cadance, why haven't you tried to come back with her?"

"I've tried, but she keeps avoiding me! And she can fly and I can't!"

"Then learn to! Your sister did!"

Shining Armor didn't answered.

"Do you wanna know what do I really think? That you still believe that you're not worthy for her." Assured Rainbow Dash.

Shining Armor looked at her, perplexed.

"Yeah. Twilight told me the tale." Explained Rainbow Dash. "And I'm tired of watching you making Pinkie suffer. She's really into you. You know?"

Shining Armor lowered his head, doubtful.

"So, if you're the gentlecolt that you affirm you are, I suggest you to stop lying to Pinkie. That'll break her heart, but it'll be better for her than to pass everyday, thinking that she's gonna lose you at the next. Make your mind, Shinny!"

"Hmpft. Speaking about lies and broken hearts, are we?" Replied Storm Chaser. "I was really into you, do you know?" He told with a despaired tone to Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow Dash looked at him, perplexed too: "Hey, weren't you the pony that didn't want to flirt anymore?"

"Yeah. As if you had any choice." Storm Chaser replied, smiling, and the three of them laughed their lungs off.

"Sorry, Stormy. I didn't mind that you were so deep into me, and I played with your feelings like a heartless bitch. Sorry." Rainbow Dash apologized.

Storm Chaser shrugged the eyes. "Apology accepted, but... I still have the doubt... Why the monkey and you keep using that word... 'bitch'? That's not the female of the dog?"

"Yep. But it means that somemare is mean, too."

"Ohh..."

"Then, about your feelings... wanna give it another try?" Rainbow Dash proposed to the pegasi stallion.

Storm Chaser smiled: "Can I bring along a date who's not a bitch?"

Rainbow Dash chuckled: "You're a fast learner, stud!"

When the balloon finally landed at Ponyville, near the hospital, Pinkie joyfully came galloping to greet her coltfriend:

"Shinny, my love! You are alright! I'm so glad you're back! I was so-so worried!"

She hugged him and kissed him in the muzzle so passionately that let him trembling and all bristled, like he had received an electric shock.

"You're not gonna believe what just happened! I fought the clone of Celestia, that no-good horseshit of Daybreaker, and gave her a taste of my Pinkie Power! Can you believe it?! Can you?! Now I'm as strong as Twilight...!" She gave a happy little jump.

"Well, maybe not that strong." She facehoofed with a pensive expression, looking upside.

Then, she happily waved her hoof "But I'm stronger than before, that's for sure...!"

Then, she stopped short and looked down, regretful "Ow... sorry, love, I had no time to prepare your welcome back party..."

Then, she regained her happy look: "But don't worry, as soon as the Princesses recovers, I'll make the biggest and longest party of all times! All together! And just for you!"

She joyfully stood on her hinderlegs and opened her forelegs, featuring another of her extra-wide smiles, and then she hugged Shining Armor again, rubbing her head to his neck, with closed eyes and a face of so much happiness, that the stallion just didn't have the heart to tell her goodbye...

A nurse and two stretcher-bearer stallions came to the balloon basket, and the nurse complained: "Oh no. More wounded! As if we hadn't enough already!"

Rainbow Dash bumped: "I'm not wounded...! I mean, not too wounded."

The nurse, after checking that Storm Chaser was safe in the stretcher, looked to her: "But you still need to be seen by a specialist. Come to the hospital, young pegasi."

"No!" Rainbow Dash protested. "It's just a sprain!"

While Rainbow Dash was walking up to the doctor's office, she could hear the nurses gossiping among them:

"Those bucking gryphoons! I never have seen any of them before! How they could get here so easily?!" Said somepony.

"They must have a guide, I tell you!" Replied another one.

Rainbow Dash looked down. That's right. They must have a guide. Somegryphoon that had been to Ponyville at least once, and knew how to get to the town. Then, she took a glance on the side of the hospital where the wounded gryphoons were being attended. Then, she stopped short. No, no, no. It can't be. Her eyes must be tricking her...

Rainbow Dash trotted to one of the litters and stuttered: "G-G-G-Gilda! You-you brought them here? How-how-how-how could you?!"

The above-mentioned gryphoon looked at the pony with narrow eyes: "'How could I?'" She asked in a sarcastic tone. "And are you still asking that? Are you stupid? You changed me for that pink mare dweeb! You ponies are nothing but dishonorable traitors! I can't be more happier to see your kingdom in shambles, you false friend!"

Rainbow Dash angrily clenched the teeth: "And I can't be more happier that you've got what you deserved, you bucking bitch!"

"Just wait, puny pony, just wait. When our almighty Empire crush your pitiful kingdom down, I'll gryphoonally tear your wings off, and I'll eat them and I'll make you watch!" Gilda angrily threatened Rainbow Dash.

"I'm gonna kill you, bitch!" Angrily exclaimed Rainbow Dash, out of herself, and it tooks several ponies to held her back: "Let me kill her!"

"Teddy bear? Are you alright? Teddy bear?" Fluttershy's soothing voice was the first thing I could sense after recovering conciousness.

"Flutters...? Twilight! Is she Ok?!"

"Yeah, she's fine. She's still fainted, but her vitals are good." Fluttershy smiled, relieved.

"And Celestia and Luna?"

"Luna is recovering well..." Fluttershy smile dissapeared from her face.

"And Celestia?!" I asked, very concerned. "How's she?! Please tell me, Flutters!"

"She... she's not so good. The doctors were unable to take the poison from her body, and she's very ill."

"Damn!" I cursed, and sat in the bed. "I'm gonna heal her right away."

"No, Teddy bear! She told me that's very risky!" Fluttershy raised her hooves, scared.

I chuckled. "Flutters, 'Risky', is my nickname."

I walked the hospital up to Celestia's bed, and cast, once again, my Life-Force healing spell, but she didn't get well. This was some new kind of poison, a magical one, resistant to any treatment, but it's antidote. And the 'Horseshit' of Daybreaker was the only one who had it...

However, my treatment give her some strenght back, and she opened the eyes: "Rascal? You're alright... thanks to the ancestors... How's everypony? Are they alright?" She asked, breathing with difficulty.

I smiled, with, tearful eyes, petting her mane: "Yes, Your Highness, all of them are recovering well."

"Thanks to the heavens..." She closed the eyes, relieved. Then, she opened them again. "And Twilight? Is she awake already?"

"Yes, I am, Your Highness. I'm here." Said my marefriend, appearing from I don't know where.

"Twilight... my faithful student..." Said Celestia, with tired but relieved voice. "I want to ask you a favor."

"Yes, Your Highness. Whatever, whatever you ask." Twilight assured, smiling and with tearful eyes.

"Twilight... if I... if I don't make it... I want you to..." And she magically took out her crown, and put it in front of Twilight.

"No, Your Highness, no, please, no. Don't do this to me, please. You can't die. You can't! I'm not ready for this! I'm not!" Cried Twilight.

"My faithful student... you don't need to be ready... I wasn't ready when I was crowned... you've proven that you're worthy... and that's all I need."

"No, no, no, Your Highness, no! I still have too much to learn! Too much to see and hear! I'll never be so great ruler as you are! Please, Your Highness, don't give up hope! We'll find the antidote, and we'll put you back in hoof! Right, love?" Twilight looked to me with a desperate look.

"Of course!" I confidently assured. "We'll pursue that Daybreaker bitch until the end of the world, if we have to!"

Celestia shooked the head: "No, my faithful subjects... You're the strongest ones... and the only ones that can... protect my ponies... If you leave... they'll been left defenseless... And I can't allow that..."

"That's so untrue!" Affirmed Pinkie, trotting up to us, as she was standing guard to protect the princesses. "I'm perfectly capable to manage that horseshit of Daybreaker! I had her, until those idiot fillies... came!" She angrily complained, looking to the room's entrace.

Celestia frowned: "I said 'No'."

Twilight raised a foreleg, and I raised a finger, at the same time, to complain about it, but Celestia interrupted us: "And that means 'No'."

Twilight and me, at the same time, lowered our members and heads, sad and defeated.

Celestia smiled. "And that's my last lesson: To know your own limits... is to know your true strenght... Rascal... please take care of my litte sister... She'll be needing a strong-willed one... to keep her in the good path... and... my faithful student... please take care of my kingdom... It's in your hooves now... Princess Twilight Sparkle..." And she closed the eyes and passed out.

"Your Highness? Your Highness?! Is she...?!" Twilight asked me with crying face and voice.

I quickly put a hand on her chest: "No, she's alive. But her vitals are too weak. I don't know how long..." I couldn't continue speaking. A nut in my throath impeded me to.

"But she's gonna get well, right?" Pinkie asked, concerned.

"Yes, yes! Of course!" Twilight and me said at the same time, forcing a smile.

"Ow. What a relief." Pinkie bought it, and then, she doubtfully looked to my marefriend: "Twilight... then, does this means... that you're a princess now?"

When I got out from the princesses's room, I was still so shocked by the previous event, that I had to sit on a nearby bench. Twilight hopped to my lap, and hugged me, with tearful eyes:

"Love, what are we gonna do now?" She sobbed. "We can't let her die. We can't go looking for the antidote. And now that bucking Daybreaker have control over the sun and the moon. If the gryphoons declare war to us, how are we supposed to defeat her...? Oh, my love, I don't know what to dooooo." She sunk her head in my shoulder, crying.

I have to admit it: Nothing of this will have happened if I never had shown up. But now wasn't the time for regrets. It was the time to take responsibility and to overcome the odds!

"Love, let's go home. There's something we need to discuss. In private." I told her.

When we were in our way out, we happened to see Trixie among the patients. She saw us too and greeted us from her bed: "Wow, Twilight! You're back in hoof already! You two are really something!"

"Trixie!" Twilight sadly smiled to her. "You made it, you managed to escape from the gryphoons!"

"Yeah. I can't thank you enough for saving me... Hummm... monkey... they told me that you can cure practically anything..." Said Trixie, sinking her head, a bit embarrased. "And I might have... some kind of... thing..."

I smiled and put my hand on her chest, discovering that she had the same illness than my marefriend, six months ago.

"Hey, I know this. This is the same cardiac disease you had, love."

"What?" Twilight asked, concerned. "Where did you get that, Trix?"

"At... at the Gryphoon Empire... soon after arriving there... Why?"

I healed her and looked to my marefriend.

"This is not a disease. This is a poisoning..." I pointed Trixie.

Twilight looked to Trixie, doubtful: "And how did you managed to survive this long, Trix? That poisoning is deadly!"

Trixie facehoofed: "Well, the gryphoon doctor gave me a medicine..."

"A medicine?! You brought some sample with you?!" Hopefully asked Twilight, interrupting her.

"Yeah. An entire rack of it. Why?" Asked Trixie, dumbfounded.

Twilight widely and happily opened her eyes and muzzle, like everytime she comes out with something...

Hiding behind some barrels, nearby the hospital, the CMC were sadly and regretfully looking each other:

"Girls..." Finally Applebloom spoke, with sobbing voice. "Maybe it's time... (sniff) to disband... this despicable group... (sniff) of ours..."

"What?" Asked Sweetie Belle, with tearful eyes. "Nooo! Then, we'll never get our cutie maaaaaaarks!" She cried.

"We'll be a losers for foreeeeeveeeeer!" Cried Scootaloo too.

And the three of them started to cry, holding each together.

They were at that pitiful display, when Cherilee happened to hear them and to find them there: "Girls! But where were you?! I got tired of looking for you everywhere! You had me so worried! Come on, we have to go to a safe place. No complaints, come on." She pushed them with her forelegs, forcing them to start walking.

When Applejack opened the eyes, she was surprised by seeing Fluttershy around, wearing a nurse cap, attending patients in the crowded hospital's main hall.

"Flutters?" She meekly asked.

"AJ!" Fluttershy happily trotted to her. "You're awake! Thanks to Celestia! You had me so worried!"

Applejack looked to Fluttershy's head: "Ya now work in the hospital? How lon' Ah was out? A year?"

Fluttershy giggled: "Of course not! I'm helping with the patients, because the staff was overwhelmed with so much wounded ponies and gryphoons in the battle. Even the princesses are being attended here. It's a madness."

"There was a battle?!" Applejack was surprised. "An' mah family?! An' mah little sister?!!" She asked, concerned and scared.

"Oh... they're... fine. All of them evacuated on time." Fluttershy figured out that Applejack doesn't needs to know about her little sister's 'incident' with Pinkie and the CMC. At least not for now.

Then, Applejack remembered Pinkie:

"An' Pinkie?! What happened to her?! Is she ok?!"

"Oh. You're not going to believe it, but Pinkie fought like a goddess! She forced that evil clone of Princess Celestia to ran away! Who would have thought that?" Fluttershy explained, smiling.

"Ow. An' Rarity?"

"She's here, helping in the hospital too."

Suddenly, the metallic sound of a medic implement falling to the floor and a scared gasp was heard:

"Oh no! I cut a vein by mistake! I can't stop the bleeding!" Yelled a nurse, scared, trying to stop the bleeding pony with a piece of bandage.

Fluttershy trotted there and quickly raised her forelegs and healed the wound. The other ponies, earth ones all of them, looked to her, amazed:

"How did you do that? You can do magic without a horn?! Amazing! Then the rumors were true!"

Fluttershy giggled, blushing a bit: "Oh, my. It's not a big deal, really. I can teach you if you want." She proposed them.

"Yes, yes, sure!" The other ponies happily nodded.

"Well, all you have to do is to focus it right. Gather the magic into your solar plexus and..." Started to explain Fluttershy.

Applejack looked down: Everypony was helping somehow. Twilight and Rainbow Dash went on Luna's capture. Rarity and Fluttershy have found a place in the health care line. Even Pinkie have proven herself useful, defending Ponyville like the best! And what was she doing? Nothing. Nothing at all. Wounded in a bed, being a burden to everypony else. Then, she rolled to a side of the bed. "An' Ah'm here, like the stupid useless Ah'm. Ah didn't helped at all!" Her eyes started to shed tears.

"... and that's how's done. All what you need to do now is to practice." Fluttershy ended her magic lecture and returned to Applejack's bed, finding it empty: "AJ? Where are you? Hey, anypony has seen AJ?"

Applejack was slowly limping away from the hospital with a stumbling pace, when Fluttershy flown up to her: "AJ! Where do you think you're going?! You're still in recovering! Let's go back to the hospital, now!" She angrily told the cowpony.

"Please let me go, Flutters. Ah'm sure there's somepony tha needs tha bed more than me." Applejack refused. And next to that, her trembling legs failed and she fell to the ground.

"See?! You're too weak, AJ! You have to go back...!" Fluttershy started to scold her.

"Ah already know tha Ah'm weak! Weak an' useless! Ah don't deserve to be an elemeeeeeent! Ah don't deserve to liiiiiiive!" Applejack cried in despair, interrupting Fluttershy.

Frowning, Fluttershy trotted in front of Applejack and slapped her in the cheek. The earth pony stopped crying and stared the pegasi, astonished. "Don't you dare to say such thing again, AJ, or we are going to be in trouble. Do you hear me?" Fluttershy scolded her.

Applejack nodded, rubbing her sore cheek, amazed by the soft pegasi's sudden self-confidence.

"Now, stop with this foolishness and go back to your bed, at once." Concluded Fluttershy, pointing to the hospital with a foreleg.

It was long past time to night, and the sun, as obvious, was still in it's zenith, as both Princesses were disabled. Cadance arrived to Ponyville, along with a strong protective squad and supplies, as it looks that the Princesses could be staying in the town's hospital for some time, as moving them could be risky for their lives.

"How's Celestia health? Is she gotten any better?" Cadance quickly asked to the doctor in charge.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but she's getting worse everytime. Luna, on the other hoof, is satisfactorily recovering...!" Started to joyfully comment the doctor.

"That's enough! I don't care a mane about that odious mare!" Cadance angrily interrupted him. "She can die already, as far I'm concerned!"

The doctor scrunched his mouth and shut up.

Then Cadance mumbled for herself:

"Why the life is so unfair? Why the good ones fall while the mean ones arise without trouble?"

Then, to make it even worse, Pinkie Pie made another of her ever unexpexted appearings:

"Hi! Good evening-night-morning-whatever it is, Your Highness! Coming to see the Princesses? I'm standing guard on their room, day and... day!" She featured another of her inexplicably wide smiles. "Anything mean nearby is gonna taste my Pinkie Power!" She happily assured.

Cadance observerd her scowling, and with a side twitching lip.

"How dare you, you filthy thief...?" She finally could spoke.

Pinkie shrugged an eye: "Hey, you were the pony that bucked him out. I just picked him up. If you had loved him so much, you hadn't left him dropped around like garbage!" She angrily scolded her.

Now Cadance was red of anger: "Shut up, you stupid mare! You stole my stallion! You took advantage of his kindness and generosity! You took him from me!!" She pointed herself with a foreleg.

"Then, why you keep avoiding me, Cadance?" Shining Armor's voice sounded behind her.

Cadance turned around in a flash, with stiffed legs. "Shining Armor... I..."

"Shinny, my love!" Quickly jumped Pinkie. "This mean mare is insulting your marefriend! Say something to her!" She pointed Cadance.

Cadance jumped as well: "No! I'm not insulting her! Shining Armor, my love, please forgive me! I only was blinded by my grudge! Forgive me, forgive me, please! I can't live without you! Forgive me, I beg you!" She assured with tearful eyes, sitting in her haunches and praying with her forelegs.

Shinning Armor looked to her with a blank stare.

Pinkie trembled. Her worst fear was going to become true. Now, her beloved stallion will jump back into Cadance's hooves, and she'll be left behind. Pinkie scrunched her mouth. Her mane and tail deflated. Tears filled her eyes. She turned around to gallop away, to return back to Celestia's room, to take a pillow and cover her head with it, to not to hear her death sentence...

Chapter 14 - If I Change, Everything Changes With Me

One last suture, and the gryphoon's wound ended stitched up. Then, Rarity, proud of her work, cut the remains of the surgical thread.

"And that's it. This uncout and mean avian is going to see a new day." She commented. Then, she turned around and walked to a pair of nurses, who were looking at her with wariness. "Why are you staring at me like that, darlings? It's very uneasing." She looked to each one of them two or three times.

"I don't know how you can attend that bucking gryphoons. They attacked us!" Said one of the nurses.

"Oh dear! I don't know if you have noticed already, but this is a hospital, and hospitals is where patients are attended." Rarity replied.

"But they attacked us! They tried to kill the princesses! They're mean and pony-eaters! They're our enemies!" Protested the other nurse.

"Then why you brought them here, if you weren't willing to heal them?" Inquired Rarity.

"We didn't! It was the Royal Guard! They have that nonsense order to take every wounded to the hospital, friend or enemy!" Said a nurse.

"Yes! It's a nonsense! And luckily, we aren't obliged to attend them!" Added the other.

"I don't know what your parents taught to you, but that's not the way a health caretaker should behave! A true healer should always display mercy and compassion, even with their enemies, as that's what make us superior to them!" Rarity replied, upset.

"Yeah?! And what about if they get healed, and then start to slaughter everypony in the hospital, huh?! Because that's what they'll surely going to do!" One of the nurses protested, clearly frightened.

"Yeah! And we're just little ponies, weak and defenseless, with no Princess to protect us now..." The nurses started to tremble, looking to the unconscious gryphoon in the litter. "He's going to kill us all..." One of them whispered, scared.

"I don't want to die..." Whispered the other, scared too, sweating cold.

"That's not going to happen." Assured the Royal Guard Sergeant. "Cadance has just arrived with reinforcements. We'll keep the gryphoons at bay."

"Ow." The nurses sighed, relieved. "But we'll better stay away, just in case..."

"Don't worry. I'll take care of them." Assured Rarity.

"That sounded like something I'd say." Slightly happily commented Fluttershy, trotting to Rarity. "I'll help you, Rares."

"Ow. Thank you, darling."

"You haven't to." Fluttershy smiled. "But tell me, Rares, as I'm intrigued. How did you managed to overcome your hemophobia?"

"Ow! That's a very amusing tale to tell!" Rarity giggled, closing her eyes, while suturing another gryphoon. "It happened that Sweetie Belle wanted to prepare me a breakfast, and she dropped a flask down. And when I got there, scared by the noise, and saw her all stained in red... I thought it was blood! I must have fainted at least a dozen times straight, as everytime I woke up, I was looking her all red!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Both mares laughed.

"And that's how you overcome it?" Asked Fluttershy, still laughing.

"Not at all!" Continued Rarity. "After the thirtheenth or fourteenth time, Sweetie Belle had freaked out too, and she was trying to pick me up with her body, and thus staining me with the red thing as well. And when I woke up and saw myself red too, I just screamed so loud..."

Fluttershy looked up, recalling: "Ow. Then that's why I heard that scream the other day..."

"Sure it was, and then I started to shout: 'Blood, blood, I'm bleeding to death!' And then Sweetie Belle yelled to me: 'It's tomato puree!'"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!" Both mares laughed again, even louder.

"Well, to make the story short, I was so embarrased, that I lost my fear to blood... ow, seems that I run out of suturing thread. I'm going to get some more." Rarity concluded and went to the hospital's medic shelves.

She was on that way, when she heared a stallion's voice: "Pinkie, wait!"

Rarity looked to the walkway, happening to see Shining armor, Cadance and Pinkie Pie, who was slowly turning back to them. Ow! Fresh gossip! Her specialty! So, she hid under the wall, to hear without being seen.

"Cadance, if you loved me as much as you say, then why you keep refusing to get married with me? I lost the count of how many times I practically begged you to!" Shining Armor inquired the alicorn.

"That's what you want? To get married? Then, yes, yes! Let's get married! As soon as Celestia gets well, I'll marry you, I swear!" Assured Cadance.

Pinkie trembled, clenched her tearful eyes, scrunched her muzzle and raised the head. Now she knows why her beloved stallion had told her to wait: He wanted revenge from her to not had prepared his party, and now he was gonna make her suffer up to the last second! And she deserved it! She deserved it all! How could she be so inconsiderate?! HOW?!!!

The world started to twirl around her. The voices sounded like an echo in a dark and creepy grave. She started to hyperventilate, her hinderlegs lost their strenght, forcing her to sit on her haunches. A piercing pain in her heart, that forced her to put a foreleg in her chest, was the dreadful sign for her nigh death. 'Please, please, say it already, say that you are abandoning me, so I can die and my suffering ends for once and for all!' She wanted to say, but the words simply don't come out from her muzzle...

"Now I'm the pony who doesn't wants to marry you, Cadance!" Shining Armor angrily assured.

'No, that wasn't possible. My ears must be tricking me', Pinkie thought.

"In this last six months, I've met a mare that have filled my heart with joy and happiness, and who doesn't spend all the time enthralling me with spells, to keep me drooling like a stupid after her!" Shining Armor continued.

'It has to be a mind trick. The mind part that doesn't want to die must be inventing that nonsense', Pinkie thought.

"I'm tired of you playing with me, as I was your toy! You didn't want to marry me, because you were minding what the other royalty would say! If you had truly loved me, nothing of that would had mattered to you! And I had enough!" Shining Armor angrily explained.

'Three times? This is starting to get weird. What if...?' Pinkie recovered her composture, hopeful, and everything started to look and sound normal, even the horrible pain was gone.

Cadance was deeply blushing. "Sorry, Shining Armor. Sorry for enthralling you. Now I realize how mistaken I was. Please, let's get married now... I don't care what they would say anymore..."

Pinkie facehoofed and gasped, scared to death, hyperventilating and sweating cold. Her heart wanted to pump out from her chest.

"I think it's a bit late for that... 'Princess of Love.'" Shining Armor sarcastically scolded her. "That's your special talent, isn't?"

"What... what do you mean?" Asked Cadance, without confidence, looking nervously to the sides.

"You cheated on me! Did you think I wasn't going to find out?!"

Pinkie looked to Cadance, astonished: "You cheated on him?! No way!" She couldn't skip a smile, and her mane and tail poofed again: She was saved.

"What did you wanted me to do, huh?! You cheated on me first! I was heartbroken and wanted revenge!" Cadance tried to justify herself.

"I didn't! I'm being respecting miss Pie all this time! You just assumed I did, and never tried to find out the truth!" Shining Armor angrily roared.

Rarity mischievously smiled too. What a juicy gossip she has on her hooves! But what she heared next, erased that smile in a blink:

"And it has to be with Prince Blueblood! The worst possible choice!" Continued Shining Armor. "He was bragging about that the other day, assuring that you have to marry him now!"

Now it was Rarity the pony taken aback. All her dreams and hopes had been destroyed like a card castle. Her illusion of marrying a perfect blue prince gentlecolt was just that: An illusion, and nothing more. Stumbling and with tearful eyes, Rarity walked to the medic shelf, to get the suturing thread, unwilling to continue snooping about.

Pinkie's tail and mane twitched: Something awful was about to happen to one of her friends. She looked back, concerned.

"Miss Pie." She heard her beloved stallion's voice, and she turned her head again, to face him, with their muzzles at mere inches from one to another: "Will you marry me?"

Pinkie was about to faint, but something clinched inside her, making her to regain her consciousness, and the twitching of her hairy parts only got even stronger, making it impossible to ignore.

"SorryShinnyIhavesomethingtodooooo!" She turned around and galloped away.

Cadance smirked, and walked to the stallion: "Hmpft. It looks that the monkey was right. You're not worthy for anymare!"

Shining Armor lowered his head, and clenched his tearful eyes, heartbroken.

Rarity had reached the medic shelf, and a sharp set of scalpels quickly drawn her attention. "Why to continue living, if I have nothing to live for?" She sadly asked herself, with crying voice, without taking her sight off from them.

"Rares, are you alright?" She heard Pinkie's voice.

With a scared gasp, Rarity quickly and loudly closed the shelf and walked some steps back, looking to Pinkie, panting and with a hoof in her chest: "Pinkie! You scared me to death..."

"I think it wasn't being scared what was gonna kill you." Pinkie joyfully dropped down.

"What? What're you talking about, darling...?" Asked Rarity, 'surprised', nervously looking to the sides.

"Come on, Rares. You can't fool my Pinkie Sense." Pinkie assured with a smile.

Rarity looked down: "Ow..."

Meanwhile, a couple of pegasi Royal Guards, coming from the recent arrived squad, a stallion and a mare, were walking to other pair of guards, which were guarding the Princesses's room:

"Take a rest, soldier. We're your shift." Said the mare.

The guardian stallion looked to a big clock in the wall with tired eyes: "It was about time. I was almost falling asleep on hoof already. Sweet Celestia! I truly need a break."

"There's another pony with the princesses?"

"Just a nurse. Miss Pie went out to dinner or something, just a while ago."

The newly arrived Royal Guards patiently waited for the other two to dissapear on the walkway, and then the mare looked to the stallion, and her eyes flashed with a quick shade of green: "Stand there like nothing is happening."

"Yes, my queen." Confirmed the stallion, like hypnotized.

Then, the mare entered the room, and the nurse quickly scolded her: "Hey! What are you doing here? You can't be bothering the Princesses! They need to resght...!" She couldn't end the phrase, as the 'Royal Guard' mare pulled out a dagger and sliced her throat, making her to bleed to death, among a few final agonic stertors.

Then, the mare approached Celestia, who was with assisted breathing, like her sister at her side. She smirked: "Justice at last, you filthy tyrant. You're going to pay now for what you've made to pass through to my kind. I only regret that you're unconscious, but I guess one can't have everything in the life..."

Pinkie's twitching doesn't look to stop: "This is weird." She noted.

"What's weird?" Asked Rarity.

"If I saved you, then why my Pinkie Sense is still...?" Pinkie's eyes and muzzle opened wide: "The Princess!" She jumped with her four opened legs in the air, scared, and then, without reaching the floor again, she darted back to the Princesses's room.

The murder mare had already raised her dagger again, this time over Celestia, when a pink blur literally teared down the door, and Pinkie and the murderous pegasi rolled on the room floor, violently bucking each other. The pegasi tried to take off, but Pinkie put a hoof in her cheek, hitting and pressing her head against a nearby metallic shelf, dimpling the metal door with a loud metallic sound. Using her levitating magic, the pegasi tried to stab Pinkie in the loin, but Pinkie managed to roll over, and the dagger ended piercing the shelf.

Then, Pinkie delivered a couple of jabs to the pegasi's muzzle, but her contender managed to pull out and in a concealed black and twisty horn, full of holes, almost pulling Pinkie's eye out. Without minding the pain, Pinkie hit her muzzle again with an elbow, and, while she was stunned, she pulled the pegasi's mare left foreleg against her body, delivering two jabs in the mare's rib, that made her to gasp and left her almost breathless, and then, she quickly projected her loinside to the floor. Pinkie learned all those moves from a time she saw Rainbow Dash and me practicing martial arts, and it was only once.

"Slave, protect your queen!" Exclaimed the 'pegasi', taken aback with such unexpected beating.

The hypnotized stallion outside the room wielded his spear and entered the room, but when he raised the weapon, Rarity stopped it with her magic: "Heeeeelp! Heeeeeelp! The Princesses are being attacked!" The unicorn mare warned, frightened.

However, the stallion sudden entering startled Pinkie enough to give time to the pegasi mare to escape flying.

"There she goes! Don't let her escape!" Rarity warned the guards that quickly came to her call.

Pinkie knocked out the stallion hiting him with a crutch, and quickly took him out from the room, where another guard held him. Then, she said to Rarity: "Rarity, quick, look for Gus, that nurse is badly injured!" She pointed the motionless earth pony, already surrounded by a puddle of blood.

After Rarity was gone, Pinkie got back to her guarding position, while observing another nurse and a strechter-bearer stallion taking away the injured mare. "Heavens! I hope she'll be alright." Then, she looked down, worried: "Sweet Celestia. I hope Shinny can forgive me for this..." She commented for herself, while starting to clean the blood in the floor.

Great agitation formed in the hospital: "Where's she?! Where she got into?! She's a pegasi, search all the pegasis mares!" Could be heard among the pursuing guards. The pegasi furtively hid behind a curtain, and a brief green flash could be seen, and then, it was an unicorn what came out, only to stop short in front or Rainbow Dash's lightning sword:

"Please, give me a reason to kill you." The cyan pegasi angrily threatened her.

"Drat! I was so close!" The newly transformed 'unicorn' furiosly complained below her breath.

It wasn't long until Shining Armor reached the Princesses's room: "Pinkie, my love! Are you alright?!" He asked, concerned, looking to Pinkie, who featured a purple eye and some scratches and bruises.

Pinkie widely smiled, forgetting the pain: Did he said 'My love?' Yes. Yes! YES! HE DID! HE DID!! A tear slid for her cheek, and her quivering eyes, were reflecting the greatest of all joys: He loved her!

"Yes yes! YES! My love I'll marry you I'll marry you I'll marry youuuuuu!" She exclaimed with happy crying voice, and both Shining Armor and Pinkie Pie, tangled themselves in the most romantic pony kiss you could imagine.

Cadance, who just have come over, just frowned, spitted to a side, turned around and left...

"Sorry, love, but I can't approve this." Were saying my marefriend to me. "Mass firearm production? Are you insane? Don't you remember how much damage was done with just a few of that things, six months ago? And we haven't enough time to, either! If Daybreaker is as smart as Celestia, she'll figure out how to use the sun spell in just a few days! No more!"

"Well, what do you propose then, my princess?"

"Stop calling me 'My Princess'. I'm not a princess yet."

"You're already one to me."

"Stop it!" She chuckled. "Come on, let's get serious." Then, she looked to her chemistry table: "Good. It looks that the formula is ready." She commented about the boiling flask. Then, she took a sample of the liquid and poured some drops on a Petri capsule, with a sample of Celestia's blood. Then, she looked it by her microscope, putting a scrunched mouth, then, quickly taking a flask and filling it with some of the liquid, and giving it to Flash Sentry, she told him: "Take this to the hospital and tell the nurses to inject it via intravenous to Celestia! Hurry up!

Once the pegasi has flown away, Twilight explained: "Well, the results aren't the best, but they'll prevent Celestia's death, at least. She'll have to take that injection daily, until we get with a definitive way to get rid of the toxine." She said while filling flasks until the boiler was empty.

Then, she walked to a board and took a chalk. "Now, about my theory: I think I figured out why you're so strong and how I can become stronger."

I looked to her, perplexed: "Already? Weren't you focusing in Celestia's antidote?"

"I can be thinking on two or three problems at the same time. It's no big deal to me." She smiled and winked.

Oh. I had forgotten how smart she is.

"Well, some time ago, I calculated what would happen to Equus, if it had a sun with the mass and at the distance the yours is. It turns that it'll be
under the effect of a radiation level so high, that all the planet will burn in a blink!"

I... blinked, astonished.

"Which means..." She continued, making a sequence of drawings and equations in the board. "That any Equish inhabitant who came to be exposed to your planet's environment, will die due radiation burning in a matter of seconds!"

I lowered my head: "Then, that means..."

"That if you have taken me to your world, I'll had died almost instantly. Burned like a coal log."

I took my hands to my head: Jesus Christ! I was so close of losing her!

"Then, this is my theory: If I came to expose myself to a progressively higher levels of radiation, and adapt to it, I can increase my magical strenght until unsuspected levels!" She happily explained.

"Or you could end turned in pony steak." I replied with a somber face. "And then I'll eat you." I direfully pointed her with a finger.

Twilight put a 'surprised' face: "You'll... eat me?" She put a hoof in her chest, with a fake gasp, joyfully 'scared'. "No!" She slightly shooked the head, facehoofing with a mocking grin.

"Yes! Absolutely! You'll be dead, anyway." I tried to sound scary, ignoring her sarcasm, but a slight chuckle betrayed me.

Twilight chuckled too: "Not necessarily. I've calculated a 77.62 percent of success rate!"

"Yeah, right. That makes a 22.38 percent of a horrible death rate, if you haven't noticed it." I protested.

"Come on, love! This can be the next hit in magical development, at the level of Starswirl the Bearded! Maybe higher!" Twilight happily waved her hoof, very excited.

I shooked my head. There was no way I'll approve such experiment. "Love, that'll surely take a lot of time! Weeks, months, years!"

"No if we do it... together..." She couldn't skip a blush.

Ahhhh. That's just so perfect. That way, I could witness her turning into dust from first hand...

Suddenly, a messenger arrived to our house, warning us about the Princesses's murder attempt. We rushed back to the hospital, and I cast my Life-Force healing spell on the nurse. But it was too late. Life has already abandoned the poor innocent pony. That day I felt so disgraced.

I looked to my marefriend, very angry: "We have to make a decision."

She frowned, and nodded. "We'll do both." She said with unbreakable resolution.

I sat down and lowered my head. Twilight hopped to my lap, hugged and kissed me in the face and in the lips: "Love, I need you to trust me. I won't be able to do it, if you aren't supporting me."

I sadly smiled, hugging and kissing her as well. "Alright. How we're supposed to do it?"

"Well, first I'll synthesize a catalyst from your blood's plasm, and I'll inject it to my own blood current, to make me radiation resistant. Then, I'll expose us to progresively more rads, while you'll be casting regeneration spells on me if I get too harmed."

"Wait, wait. That'll be a lot of pain, isn't?" I asked, worried.

"Don't worry, love." She smiled with that soothing expression of hers. "I can take it. Now, how are we supposed to get to a mass firearm production?"

Rarity was sadly looking to the hospital's hall. All major work had already been done, and she was still down by her recent heartbreaking discovery, so, she found nothing better to do than just doing nothing at all. Fluttershy trotted to her:

"Rares. What's happening to you? You're not the same from a couple of hours ago."

Rarity forced a smile: "It's nothing, Flutters. I'm just tired. That's all."

"Ow." Fluttershy smiled, buying it. "Then, why haven't you gone to rest already? I bet you're hungry. Hey, do you want to come along with me? I know how much do you like gossiping and... I have a date."

"What?!" Rarity opened the eyes, surprised. "A date?! With who?"

"Ow, there he comes." Fluttershy smiled, watching Flash Sentry landing near her.

That's it. Now, Rarity was officially pissed off. Even the shiest mare in Ponyville gets a date, while she's more lonelier than an unicorn's horn! Inconceivable! Then, Rarity took a look to Flash Sentry... 'Ohhh! He's so handsome...! I want him for me!' She thought, turning all her generosity in egotism in a blink.

Fluttershy's date passed fine at first. Rarity could restrain herself pretty good at the beginning, but it took only an attempt of Flash Sentry to cuddle with Fluttershy, to drive off her. What could be a lovely soiree, quickly turned in a unfriendly argument. However, to Rarity's surprise, Fluttershy not only didn't ran away, but she actually fought back, and ended calling her 'Bad friend' and 'You're hateful'.

That made her react: She was being hateful. She was being hateful with the lovely Fluttershy! How could she?! She tried to apologize, but the two pegasi had already gone, leaving her alone with her gruntings. Rarity looked down and started to cry: Her life couldn't get worse, right? Right?

Slowly getting back to her house, Rarity remembered how she tried to take Twilight's coltfriend as well. Could be that the reason because she always ended alone? Because beneath a false impression of generosity, an egotistic and hateful mare was actually hiding?

Wait, that doesn't make any sense. Then, why she was chosen as the element of generosity? Something wasn't right here! What was happening with her?! What was wrong with her feelings?! Why can't she be happy?!!

Rarity opened her eyes, realizing all by a sudden. She wasn't happy. She was a lonely and a narcicist mare, always too worried for looking beautiful and for to please everypony, that she never tried to please herself. She never gave a chance to herself. She... she never really tried to be happy. What... what can she do?

Without realizing it, her pace has taken her in front of her house. But she wasn't tired. She was... just sad. Luckily, she knew certain mare who's always happy and she can... teach her how to be happy! Yes! And she can take something to her to eat, and a blanket and a pillow, so she can feel confortable while standing guard! She bets that Pinkie will need a shift from time to time, to not to let the Princesses unguarded! Look what happened in the single minute she was out!

Smiling of self-reassuring, Rarity entered her Carousel Boutique, only to get blankets, pillows and some spare bits to get Pinkie a well deserved Rarity-like display of generosity!

It was the third day that Applejack was hospitalized, and she was almost recovered. The effective magic treatment, plus her natural earth pony's resistance, were doing miracles. At least, on the physical part. Emotionally, she was tore down. Lying downside with the four legs resting straight back, she had her muzzle sunk in the pillow, and she was sadly looking the occasional Royal Guard patrol to pass by, or the not so occasional gryphoon struggling to escape, quickly reducted by the sudden and inexplicable appearings of Pinkie Pie, as like she knew that was gonna happen.

At least that was funny. Seeing those bucking avians shrieking like the vultures they were, was like music for her ears. But it didn't make the sadness to go away. In the past, at least she could put some fight to her foes, but now, she was clearly outmatched. If a war gets to come open, she'll surely be forced to evacuate to a safer place, as she wasn't strong enough against this new enemies. And she wouldn't be of any help in the hospital, as she doesn't know how to cast spells. In fact, she wouldn't be of any help, at any place, at all. And that feeling of uselessness was breaking her down.

The cowpony perked an ear, and looked to a side, glancing at Fluttershy, who was coming for the ninth time to check on her. There was no way she could escape this time.

"Hi, AJ. Feeling better already?" The pegasi asked with tenderness.

"Brflfgflbrsgbfff!" Applejack angrily replied, without raising the muzzle from the pillow.

Fluttershy smiled, sweating cold, hoping that wasn't a collection of countryside insults: "AJ... I... I didn't understood."

Applejack raised her head a bit: "Leave me alone, Flutters! Buck off!"

"I'm not 'bucking off' until you don't eat properly, AJ." Fluttershy came closer to her with a dish of food.

"No!" Applejack turned her head to the other side. "Ah'm not hungry!"

"Come on, AJ! Don't force me to do this like you were a filly! Eat already, is for your own good!"

"No!" Applejack continued refusing, covering her head with the pillow.

At that very moment, Rarity happened to pass nearby. She had been trying to apologize with Fluttershy this past three days, but she kepts avoiding her, leaving her with the word in the mouth. But now it was her chance: Fluttershy wasn't gonna leave AJ without being fed. So, the white unicorn approached the yellow pegasi, who looked to her with disgust.

"What do you want now, Rarity? Don't you see that I'm busy?" She asked with unhiding hostility.

"Flutters, forgive me please. I didn't mean to be so mean in your date. I don't know what came into me." Rarity pleaded.

"I perfectly know what came into you. You were jealous, and tried to spoil off my very first date! We have nothing to talk any longer. You're not my friend anymore." Fluttershy blurted, upset.

Rarity sat on her haunches, sobbing: "Flutters, pleaaaaase. I didn't meaaaaan it. What do youuuu want me to doooo? To beeeeg? I beeeeeg youuuuu! Forgive meeeeeeee!" She raised her forelegs to Fluttershy. "Wahhhhhhhhh!" She covered her face with her hooves, crying.

"AJ, eat something, please." Fluttershy requested again, completely ignoring Rarity's plead.

Applejack opened her eyes: Maybe actually there was something that she could do?

"Flutters, Ah'll only eat if ya forgive Rarity." She demanded.

Fluttershy stopped short, surprised, with the spoon in the hoof: "AJ, that's not fair. That's blackmail." She scowled.

"Well, tha's how is goin' to be. Remember tha Ah'm like a little filly now." Applejack assured.

Fluttershy's sidelips angrily twitched: "Fine, but don't get used to this." She conceded, closing her twitching eyes. "Alright, Rarity. I forgive you. Now... EAT, AJ!"

Applejack smiled. She'll be scolding herself for a very good long season for blackmailing a friend, but it was totally worth it...

No! No! NO! My worst nightmare come true! My beloved marefriend, crumbling to dust among my fingers!

I woke up in our bed with a scared gasp, and quickly relaxed up, putting my fingers in the bridge of the nose: Thank God. It was just a nightmare. Just that. Then, I looked to the side of my marefriend, seeing her blanket flat over the mattress: It seems she woke up already, to make me breakfast again. I smiled, but then, my smile dissapeared when I saw a strange bulge in the center of the blanket. Intrigued about what that could be, I raised the blanket and: "Ahhhhhhhh!" I screamed, as there was... a small pile of dust!

"Twilight, my love! NOOOOOO!" I screamed in despair, but I quickly stopped when I heared her laughter:

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Oh, love, that was priceless! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" She was laughing her lungs off.

I sat back in the bed, but I can't get upset, so I laughed too. Karma is coming around. Isn't?

"You seem very cocky today." I 'scolded' her, with a smile. "Why the good mood? Don't you tell me that you're actually enjoying being cooked off. That's masochism. You know?"

"Don't worry, love. I told you that I can take it." She assured. "It's that earlier today, I received very good news: Celestia regained consciousness and she's recovering satisfactorily! It seems that my formula is slowly draining the toxine out from her system!"

"Oh! That's great news!" I happily cheered. "But then, that means that you can't be a princess anymore." I tried to 'avenge' from the fright to death that she made me to pass to.

"I told you that I don't want to be a princess. Not like this, I mean."

"Right. And Luna? Is she awake too?"

"Not yet." Twilight facehoofed, seriously looking to a side. "And that's weird. Her condition wasn't worse than Celestia's..."

Back in the hospital, we quickly went to see Celestia, who was besides her little sister's bed, looking at her, very worried:

"Your Highness! Welcome back!" We both hugged her and we all laughed and cried of true happiness.

"My faithful subjects, I'm so glad that you've came so quickly, as I fear for my little sister's life." She thanked us, drying her tears.

"What? Why? Her vitals looks good." Said Twilight, intrigued, looking to the monitors, and later, lightening her horn over Luna, to double-check them. "I don't see any problem, so far." She concluded.

Celestia shooked her head: "It's not her body what's injured. Is her mind. I fear she lost the will to live. That's how we lost our middle sister, Eclipse."

Twilight gasped, facehoofing: "Yes! I remember that story! Eclipse got depressed after your family's demise, and she fell in coma and died short after! But how are we supposed to save her?!"

Celestia sadly closed the eyes: "We can't. This's a battle that she has to win on her own. But I need you to be close. Maybe that could give strenghts to her... and to me. If I lose her, I may follow..." She said with crying voice.

We quickly hugged her, and Pinkie joined too: "No, Your Highness, no! We'll support you, no matter what!" We said at the same time.

The surroundings were all dark and silent, and Luna raised her head, startled: "Where I am?! What's this place?!"

She stood up, and looked around: "Hello? Is anypony there? Hello?!"

The echo of her own voice lugubriously resonated around, scaring her.

"What's happeni-i-i-i-ing?" She stuttered and trembled.

Suddenly, her attention was drawn to a group of blurry forms in the far aways. Luna shrugged the eyes, and then, she opened them wide: "Mommy? Daddy?! Eclipse?!!" She galloped there and started to look around: "Mommy! Daddy! Eclipse! Granpa! Granma! Uncle! Auntie! Cousins! You're all here!" She happily shouted. "Where were you hiding all this time?! I was worried sick!"

The blurry forms didn't answer. Then, Luna looked up: "And this is the cave where we were living before moving to Canterlot! It's like how we left it!" Then, the smile dissapeared from her face. "Nothing of this is real. Isn't?"

Then, she looked to a side, as recalling something, and she walked in that direction. There, a huge and bottomless pit could be seen. She remembered well what was it's purpose. This is where the corpses of the departed were thrown. And all what she has to do is to jump. And everything will be over. No more suffering. No more struggling. She'll join with her family and finally will rest in peace.

But she hesitated. If this option had been proposed to her only a week ago, she'll had jumped with no second thought. But not now. Now, she has a purpose. She was a 'Sparring Dummy', whatever that means. And she has an owner. She fought to save her sister because of HIM, because HIM wanted her to. She knows that her sister will never admit it, but she'll never trust her. That means, she was agonizing, and she didn't tell her how they became immortals! It's that a big deal? Come on!

No. Her only reason to live was HIM. Her only reason to exist was HIM! And HE'LL want her to live!

Luna scowled. What an irony. The Princess of Dreams, trapped in one. She turned around, only to get face to face with Nightmare Moon. Or her reflection, or... wait. She's speaking?

"He'll never be yours. His heart belongs to the little traitor." Nightmare Moon spoke.

Luna clenched the teeth: "Out of my way, nightmare! I'm not under your influence anymore!"

Nightmare Moon smirked: "Are you sure? Then, why did you do all that atrocities, huh?"

"I was under a mind control! I wasn't myself!"

"A mind control? From who?" Nightmare Moon looked around. "There's nopony else here. Come on, Luna. Who are you trying to fool?"

Luna trembled: "You... you're not real! You're just a reflection from my guilt!"

Nightmare Moon smirked again: "Well, I might not be real, but your guilt is. And, be honest with yourself. How long do you think it'll take, before you start being naughty again?" She mocked, tilting the head.

"Never! I'll never relapse again! I have a caretaker now!" Luna angrily yelled.

"You have nothing, Luna! Nothing! You're alone! Alone and despised by everpony!" Nightmare Moon mocked.

"That's not true!" Luna replied with crying voice.

"That's not true? Then, why are you doubting? Because you KNOW that you'll lose him too. You'll screw it up, like you always do, and that'll be it." Nightmare Moon cruelly mocked.

Now Luna was crying.

Nightmare Moon looked to the Pit: "And there she goes again. You're so pitiful, you know? You should jump there, and save both of us from this embarrasment. Come on. Let's jump together. At the count of three. One..."

"SHUT UP!!!" Luna screamed in the Royal Canterlot voice. "SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UUUUUUUUUP!!!"

Nightmare Moon flapped and unfolded her wings: "So, this is it? Are you defying me? You know you can't defeat me!"

Luna flapped and unfolded her wings too: "I don't care! I'll fight anyway!"

"Why?! You have no reason to fight!"

"Yes, I have! I'll fight for love!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Nightmare Moon laughed. "Now this is hilarious! Fight for love?! He doesn't love you! He loves the little traitor, and he'll never, never ever, love you!"

"I don't care!" Replied Luna. "I have enough with loving him in silence, in secret, hoping that someday..." Tears appeared in her eyes. "He comes to love me."

The smile dissapeared from Nightmare Moon's face. Luna's resolution was unbreakable. She had passed the test. Nightmare Moon slowly started to fade, with a final statement: "Thank you, alicorn. Now we are truly free..."

Luna opened her eyes and looked to a side: "Sister?"

"Lunaaaaa!" Celestia happily hugged her, with tearful eyes. "Little sister! You're awake! I'm so relieved!"

Luna looked to the other side, to the smiling human: "Pleb scum?"

I couldn't help but to chuckle: "Exactly. That's me." I pointed myself with a thumb.

Then, Luna looked to Twilight, who was looking at her with a furious grin: "Don't you dare..." Twilight said below her breath, with a twitching eye.

Chapter 15 - What Hate Can Make

Well, it seems that it was time to have that conversation with Luna. The sooner the better. So, after Celestia ended cuddling her little sister, I asked everypony to let us alone and wait outside. Twilight looked at me with a face that spoke by itself, but I told her: "And that means you too."

She shooked her head. The fear was clearly visible in her eyes. But I didn't give in: "Love. Out. Now." I pointed with my finger to the door.

She refused, and instead, she bite my raincoat an dragged me to the other side of the room. There, she made a gesture with her foreleg to me to kneel, and when I did it, she whispered to my ear:

"Don't do this, my love. Alicorns have a powerful enthralling spell. She's gonna take advantage of your concern on her... and she's gonna take you from me..." She concluded with sobbing voice and tearful eyes.

I smiled and whispered too. "Love, Celestia was into me too and she never..."

"How you're gonna compare... her... with Celestia, love?" Twilight interrupted me, slightly looking at Luna, tilting her head a bit. "She's treacherous and crooky. She's gonna take you from me... She's gonna take you from me, and I'm gonna die!" She sobbed below her breath and hugged me tight, tight, tight.

"I'm gonna be Ok, love, just wait outside. It'll only take a few minutes, trust me. Wait outside, alright?" I patted her loin, kissed her in the muzzle, and she nodded, and, reluctantly, exited the room too, looking back to me.

Then, after patting Twilight's flank and closing the door, I walked to Luna: "Luna, we have to talk."

She nodded and smiled. "Yes, pleb scum?"

I chuckled: "Well, first of all, stop calling me 'Pleb Scum'. That's an insulting term. You know?"

Luna facehoofed and gasped: "Oh! Sorry... I... then... how I'm supposed to call you?"

I looked up. Kinda tired of nicknames, actually: "Just Gus will be ok."

"Alright, Just Gus then." She smiled again.

I raised my finger and opened my mouth to tell her how she should behave, when she interrupted me again: "Why we don't get married?"

I sternly looked to her: "Luna, that's Rule Number One: I'm engaged with Twilight and you're gonna respect that."

"That way you wouldn't be a pleb scum anymore, but a Royal Scum instead." She continued, like she haven't heared me.

Really, she was pissing me off, but I kept my cool and chuckled again: "Damn, Luna. You're funny. Hateful, but funny."

"What?! I am... hateful?" Luna asked with crying voice and quivering and tearful eyes.

I stopped short, as I had to be very careful with what I was gonna say next, or I could screw everything up again. And no solution this time.

"I'm joking, Luna. Of course you're not hateful."

But Luna was already crying her snots out.

I made an annoyed gesture "Alright, give me a hug. Come on." I smiled and raised my arms to her, and she jumped from the bed and hugged me tight, tight, tight, still crying.

Twilight was walking nervously from side to side in front the door, until she couldn't take it anymore and slightly opened it, only to see the above-mentioned scene. It was like she had received a jab in the muzzle and her heart was submerged in frozen water. She gave some steps back and dropped in her haunches, panting and trembling: She knew it! She knew it!! SHE KNEW IT!!! Now, the next step will be the two of them kissing! And the next step will be...

Twilight's eyes went up. It was like as if she was watching it: Her beloved human will walk away from the room, with Luna in his arms, and he'll tell her: "I'm sorry, Twilight, but I have a new marefriend now. Farewell."

Twilight gasped in terror, putting a foreleg in her chest. Her heart was beating slower and slower. Her skin became pale. The strenghts started to abandon her. The world slowed down and started to twirl. She knew what was coming next. She had lived it before... She knew... Heart attack...

NO! Not again! She must live and fight for her love!

In a rapture of desperation, Twilight quickly shooked her head and came back to her senses, and almost tore down the door:

"Stay away from him, you bucking sponger! Stay away from hiiiiim!" She jumped over Luna and bite her mane and dropped her to the floor.

"Twilight, that's enough! I told you to wait outside!" I scolded her, after I managed to separate the two struggling mares.

Quickly, Twilight cast some spell on me, and I, quickly as well, covered my crotch.

"Whoa! Easy with that, love!" But my fears were unfounded, as I felt no hit of any sort. "What was that, love?" I asked.

"Oh, thanks Celestia. You're not under any enchantment..." Twilight closed the eyes and sighed, relieved.

Not too long after that, Celestia entered the room too: "Twilight Sparkle. Can you explain me what's the meaning of this?" She asked, scowling.

Now Twilight was deeply blushing: "Sorry, Your Highness. I thought she was enthralling him..."

We flown back to our house, and I was featuring a fake angry expression, and my marefriend was featuring a... truthfully? embarrassed one. She wasn't capable to look me to the eyes. After entering the house, she walked to a couch and sit there, sorrowful. I sat at her side and we stayed silent for a while, until she spoke: "Alright, now you can stop pretending you're upset."

My face changed to a joyful one, as well at hers: "Did you see Luna's face?" I joyfully asked her.

"Yes! She thought that I was gonna rip her mane off! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

And we both laughed, and hugged and kissed.

"Sorry for doubting you, love. Is that, only to imagine that I could lose you... it drives me crazy..." She confessed with tender voice.

"I know. And I like you to be like that. That way, I know you truly love me." I assured her, smiling.

Twilight lewdy looked to me: "So... mind if I send Spike to another errand?"

Unfortunately, Luna didn't take Twilight's intrusion so lightly. Damned Tartarus, she was so close, so close! She tried to sweep off the thought from her mind, but it kept coming over and over and over again: If only the little traitor wouldn't be in the way. If only the little traitor wouldn't be in the way! Her caretaker could be hers, and only hers!

Luna gasped and backed off: If she just 'take out the little traitor out the way...' Her caretaker will never forgive her! He'll hate her, like everypony does, and that'll be it! Luna turned her head to a side. There must be a way she could have her caretaker... Wait. Actually, there's a way that she can have the caretaker! And the little traitor wouldn't be a problem at all! Luna smirked, and shrugged the eyes, enacting a devious plan.

"I don't like that look, little sister." Celestia commented, worried, as it was the look she have everytime she was gonna do something stupid.

"Nnnngh...! Ooof... Ungh..." Was mourning my marefriend, panting and all sweated, while hugging me. I knew she was enduring a horrible pain, and seeing her like that was breaking my heart, but I know that if I left her on her own, she'll do it anyway, and then, her survival rate will be less than 36 percent.

"Agh!" She mourned for the ninth time, while I was quickly healing the ninth ultraviolet ray burn that appeared on her loin.

"How... many... rads?" She could barely ask.

I looked to the radiation meter: "49 dot 3. You know that anything above 50 can leave permanent damage to you. Right? I think this is enough. Let's stop this, please."

"Noooo." She panted. "Just a bit... more... closer."

I waited just a while longer, and then turned off the UV bulb. "That's enough, my love. You're giving off smoke. Are you alright?"

Twilight dried the sweat from her forehead: "How much...?"

"49 dot 5. And that's enough! You're gonna cook if you keep irradiating yourself like that."

Twilight gave me a tired smile: "I did it, huh?" And she fainted.

I took her to our room and put her in the bed. The very bed where, just a few hours before, we had made love. I think that life is like that: A nice time, and then, a hard time next. Sincerely I don't agree with that, but it seems that not even being powerful wizards as we are, could overcome such fate.

I laid with her in the bed too, constantly monitoring her vitals, until she woke up, several hours later.

"Whoa. I feel so itchy. Can you scratch me?" She asked, still half sleep.

I started to scratch her, but I quickly stopped when I suddenly ripped off a large strip of skin from her loin.

"Shit!" I cursed, quickly healing her again.

Twilight looked to me with a cryptic stare: "Damnation. Do you think I overdid it?"

I scrunched the mouth, worried: "I'm pretty sure you did. Did it hurt?"

Twilight looked to me again, but this time scared: "No, I didn't feel a thing. Love, do you think that... all that horrible things that you told me that happens to irradiated people... happens to me too?"

"Well, love, all that symptoms start to appear on people irradiated above 60-70 rads. But that's on humans. I have no record of how the pony body will react."

"Damn." She cursed, scratching her forehead with her hoof, and thus ripping another chunk of skin from there. "Oh no, love! It's not stopping!" She said, frightened.

I quickly monitorized her vitals again: They were fine. Maybe it was just skin burns.

"Well, love, your vitals are fine, and your neo-cortex seems to be working fine too." I informed her, passing my hand near her forehead. "No internal damage so far, either. I believe it's just skin burns."

"Oh!" Twilight hugged me, relieved. "I was thinking just the worst, that I was gonna turn in an undead or something!"

I took her to the hospital, just in case, as I needed to check how the mass firearm production was going...

Meanwhile, in the Gryphoon Empire:

Daybreaker growled, after her ninth failed attempt of raising the moon: "Claws and beaks! What could I been doing wrong?!"

Suddenly, the sun flashed, and fired a yellow bright beam right on the alicorn. Luckily for her, she had time to raise her shield and to close her eye, so she just ended black like a bunt and giving off smoke like a lit out torch, as well as the peak of the cliff where she were standing. "That treacherous pony dweeb!" She blurted below her breath, annoyed.

She healed herself and shooked her body, to get rid ot the excess burned hair and feathers, and, unable to fly, galloped back to Gryphanius' throne. Once there, she knelt before him, ashamed: "My liege! Forgive me, please, as I have failed!" She pleaded with cracked voice.

King Gryphanius angrily stood up: "What?! Daybreaker, how is that you have failed?! Explain yourself!" He pointed her with a claw.

"I'm sorry, my liege, but that pony dweeb has deceived me, giving me another spell! And I fell like a stupid in her trick!" She sobbed.

That drove off King Gryphanius: "Daybreaker, how could you fell on that lowly trick?!! How could you not figure out?!! We lost an entire batallion in this operation!!" He angrily waved his claws and flapped his wings. "And now are you telling me that all this was for nothing?!!"

Daybreaker dropped to the floor, crying: "I'm sorry, my liege. I'm so ashamed. I'll commit suicide to clear my honor!"

"No, Daybreaker, no!" That made King Gryphanius to react: "This wasn't your fault! It was those tricky ponies that drove you to failure!"

Daybreaker stopped crying and smiled, relieved: "Really? Oh, thank you, my liege, thank you!"

"That's right!" Continued King Gryphanius. "And this is the last time those puny ponies take us as fools! Commodore Gomoc, gather the troops, send the word, make the drums rumble! We're going to WAAAAAAR!" He raised a fist, enraged.

Cadance stepped in front of Celestia, who was setting everything up for her returning to Canterlot:

"Hello, Tia. How do you feel today?"

"I'm fine. Well, almost fine. I still be needing those bothersome injections for a while. I hope it wasn't for too long. That needle is so huge! It drives my coat off! Owwwwww!" Celestia shivered and bristled, proving her point.

"Then, are you returning to Canterlot already?" Cadance giggled.

Celestia looked to the sky: "Not today. Past tomorrow..." Then she looked to the clock: "Holy heavens! I should had raised the moon two hours ago!" Then, she turned her head to her sister: "Luna! Why didn't you warned me?!"

Luna was like in another world: "Huh?" She came back from her daydreaming.

Celestia shooked the head: "You know? Nevermind." And raised the moon, among the cheerings of everypony, relieved that their liege were back to work.

Cadance giggled again, and then asked: "Tia. Can we speak in private?"

"Sure. Just act as if Luna wasn't there. She isn't, anyway." Celestia smiled, looking to her daydreaming sister, as she looked so happy that she didn't want to bother her.

"Seriously, Tia. I need this in private."

Once they were in private, Cadance asked: "Tia, I need a very huge favor from you... Please, convince Shining Armor to come back with me!"

Celestia frowned up, surprised: "What? If you said that you didn't want anything else with him!"

"That was before Prince Blueblood took advantage of me!" Replied Cadance. "That filthy swindler, he somehow managed to reflect my enthralling spell back to me! Shining Armor would never have done that!" Cadance angrily protested, deeply blushing.

Celestia smirked: "So, it looks that your silly games cost you more than you were willing to pay. Huh?"

"Tia, don't you mock on me too! Now I'm going to be the laughingstock of Canterlot!" Cadance angrily blurted. Then, her tone changed to a pleading one: "Please, Tia, tell him that I'm sorry, that I need him... He doesn't listen to me, he's lovestruck with that pink mare thief!"

"And do you think that he'll accept you, now that he's not going to be the first one?" Now Celestia was putting the hoof in the sore.

"Tia, stop please, now you're making me suffer!" Cadance was almost crying. "Why are you doing this to me? What have I done to you?!"

"What did you do? Oh, nothing, nothing at all. Only screw up the only chance I've had in my life to have a true love. Besides that, nothing at all." Explained Celestia with a stern tone.

Cadance was taken aback: "Then... that's why...? You were... taking revenge on me...?"

Celestia facehoofed: "Revenge? No, not at all. Just. How can I say it...? Poetic justice."

"Bucking you, Celestia!" Cadance angrily blurted again. But she quickly went back to the pleading tone: "Please, Tia. I've learned my lesson. Now I know I shouldn't play with other ponies' feelings. Please, Tia. Help me regain my stallion back. I beg you!"

"He's not your stallion, Cadance. He never was. You just had him enthralled all the time, up to make him to frequently fail in his duties as a captain!" Now Celestia was upset too.

"Then why didn't you say nothing to me?! Why didn't you warned me about what could happen?!" Cadance inquired.

"Because I thought you were happy!" Celestia said. "I thought you were really in love, and that's why I let that be!"

That silenced Cadance. After a while, she managed to speak again: "Tia, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She hugged Celestia, crying: "Please, forgive me. I didn't mean to stand between the monkey and you. I wasn't myself..." She couldn't continue speaking, deep in her cries.

Celestia patted her loin, and after a while, she finally told her: "Sorry, Cadance, but I can't help you."

"Why?!" Cadance protested, crying. "You can! You're his liege, you can order him to come back with me, you can raise a royal decree or something! You have to help meeeeee!"

Celestia sternly looked to Cadance: "Cadance, that you're asking me to do is what a tyrant will do, and I'm not a tyrant. So, the answer is no."

Cadance roughly broke the hug: "What?! What kind of ruler are you, that you leave your own family helpless?!" She angrily protested, waving a hoof: "He's just a common subject! He has to do what you order him to! You're the Sun Goddess! All Equestria bents on your hooves! He has to obey...!"

"That's enough, Cadance!" Celestia interrupted her. "Do you know how dissapointed I'm about you?! At every turn, you prove me how unworthy are you to rule!"

Cadance stopped short speaking. Her eyes quivered: "Me... unworthy...?"

"Yes! You just keep behaving like a pampered filly, using your spells without concern, escaping from the castle anytime you have a chance...!"

"I escape because the castle bores me to death! Is always the same, every every every, every bucking day! It drives me crazy!" Cadance angrily replied, interrupting Celestia. "I can't take it anymore! I want to leave and never come back!"

"Then leave! Pack your useless stuff and leave!" Celestia roared, red of fury, raising a foreleg to a side.

"Tia... are you... bucking me out?" Asked Cadance with tearful eyes and sobbing voice.

Celestia backed off, realizing that she had gone too far: "Cadance... I... I'm not bucking you out. It's just that I've been to a lot of stress lately, and I can't help but overreact. Sorry, Cadance, I didn't mean to scare you."

"Then, are you going to help me with my beloved pony?" Asked Cadance, hopeful.

Celestia shooked the head: "Sorry for that too, Cadance, but Shining Armor is not your pet anymore. It's not like you're going to throw the branch and he's going to bring it back to you like a pug. Do you remember how much did you laughed of him because of that?"

Cadance looked down, enraged: "Then, this is it? Are you going to let me on my own?"

Celestia shrugged her shoulders: "You're the Princess of Love. You'll figure out. And this conversation is over. I'm tired and I want to sleep. Good night."

Cadance trembled of anger, clenched the teeth, and scowling, turned around and left.

Back on her house, Twilight took a bath, and after coming out from the shower, she shooked her coat, to take out the humidity excess, thus releasing countless skin chunks too. She screamed and facehoofed, scared to death, watching the considerable amount of tissue pieces she dropped. She stood still for a while, trembling and hyperventilating, until she could calm herself enough to be able to think again.

"Sweet Celestia!" She said with frightened voice. "I think I dropped it all!"

She was so scared, that she didn't dare to watch herself. With scrunched muzzle, she come closer to the bathroom's mirror, but without daring to look herself on it. She shivered of terror: How she was gonna look? Like a skinless skeleton?! Like a peeled ulcer?!! LIKE AN UNDEAD MONSTER?!!!

"Oooooh nooooo!" She closed her eyes and covered them with her forehooves. What a disaster! Her beloved human was gonna become nausated before that sight, and he'll surely... and he'll surely...! BUCK HER OUUUUUUUUUT!!!

"NOOOOOOO!!" She screamed, crying, terrified by that very single thought. She has to do something! She has to do something!!

Without hesitation, she ran to a first aid kit, took a bandage reel and enveloped herself form head to hooves, only leaving her eyes uncovered.

"That's it. Now, I have to figure out how to solve this mess." She said for herself, relieved.

"Twilight, what happened to you?" Asked Spike, concerned, as he was just returning from his errand.

"Ah!" Twilight gasped and gave a small jump, startled. "Oh, nothing, Spike. I had a... an awful accident, and I got burned, That's all."

"An accident?! Flakes and scales, you have to go the hospital, Twilight!" Spike said, concerned.

"I can't! I just got back from there! They're gonna think I'm doing it on purpose!" Replied Twilight. "And, Spike! Don't you dare to tell anypony about this, specially my coltfriend!" She direfully raised her hoof in front of the little dragon, to make her point.

"Alright, alright, Twilight. I wouldn't tell anypony, I swear!" Assured Spike, scared, putting both foreclaws before her.

Twilight then looked to her library: "Well, now I have to search for a good skin regeneration spell." So, she walked to the shelves, but she stopped short: "Wait. That'll took too long, because regeneration spells takes a lot of time to work! Oh, no! I won't make it on time!" She freaked out. Then, she looked to the table were the life-force spellbook was. But she shooked the head: "No! Celestia told me that are alicorn-level spells! I'll die if I cast it!" But then, she looked to the other side: "But it might be my only choice. I'll rather die than lose my beloved one!" And she galloped to the book and opened it.

But she hesitated: "Wait, if I just start casting this spells here alone... well, not alone, with Spike... which is almost the same... and something goes wrong..." She looked to a side. "Maybe it'll be better if I do it in the hospital. If anything goes wrong, I can be attended right there! There will be no delay traveling from here to there! But I can't be seen... Wait! I know! I'll talk only with Flutters! She'll keep her mouth shut!"

Rarity put off the nurse cap from her head and walked to the hospital's entrace, where she found Fluttershy, still with the cap on: "Come on, Flutters. We're done here. Let's go to eat something at a restaurant, and tomorrow, I'll invite you to a relaxing time on the spa! It's all on me!" She happily said to the pegasi.

"Ow, thank you, Rares, but I'm staying, actually. My shift hasn't ended yet." Said Fluttershy.

"You're staying?" Asked Rarity, surprised. "Why's that?"

"Well, I didn't planned to, but the hospital manager practically begged me to, and it turns that there was a vacancy in the staff..." She looked down, sorrowful.

"Yes, with the death of that poor nurse." Rarity looked down too. "But don't blame yourself, Flutters. It's not like you were taking her place... I mean..."

"Yeah. I know what you mean. Besides, the payment is good. Maybe the management raised it so I stayed."

Both mares giggled.

Rarity facehoofed: "But Flutters, then your work as an animal caretaker, how you're going to manage it?"

Fluttershy looked back: "Well, even if I was willing to help each and every animal, it turns that there are just too many of them, and I'm only one." She turned back the head to face Rarity. "It was an exhausting and neverending job, not to mention that some of the diets weren't of my liking. The otters, for example, they eat fish, and I'm not going to fish to fed them. No way." She slowly shooked the head. "Thus, I decided to teach the animals how to survive on their own. Like an animal school." She smiled with tenderness. "That way, I'll have plenty of time for me and my coltfriend!"

Rarity opened the mouth, happily amazed: "You've made it official?! Wow! That's so great! I'm so happy for you, darling!"

"Rarityyyyyy!" A filly's voice was heard.

"Sweetie Belle, dear!" Rarity smiled. "You've come!" The sisters hugged each other.

"Rarity, you're Ok! I was so worried!"

"And me too, Sweetie. With who you came?"

"With miss Cherilee, Big Mac and Applebloom. Miss Cherilee said that it was already safe to go back to town, so I wanted to stay with you this weekend. Can I?"

"Of course, darling. All the time you want." Rarity nodded.

"Well, it looks that you'll have to postpone that trip to the spa." Giggled Fluttershy.

"Aha." Confirmed Rarity, smiling.

After visiting their respective sisters, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom met each other:

"Hi, Applebloom! How's your sister?"

"She's almost fine, thanks. The doctor said she'll be released tomorrow... Hummm, Sweets, hav' ya seen Scoots? Ah havn't seen her from four days ago."

"Me neither. I'm worried. Do you think we should pay a visit to her?"

"Ar' ya sure? Ah think she's still mad with us because..."

"Well, Apples, we maybe not be Cutie Mark Crusaders anymore, but we are still friends, no?"

"Yar right!"

They happily galloped in direction of Scootaloo's last known hideout, somewhere at the town's outskirts, but they found her on their way, riding her scooter like she had seen a ghost: "Girls, girls! Don't go that way! There's a monster there, I tell you!"

The other two fillies stopped short and gasped, scared.

"But if miss Cherilee said it was safe to come back!" Said Sweetie Belle, scared.

"We hav' to warn the guards, quick!" Said Applebloom.

Suddenly, a frightening image appeared before them: It looked like a mummy, covered with ripped clothes and fringes:

"You're not warning anypony!" The monster said with a deep scary voice.

"Ahhhhhhh!" The filles tried to run, but they were trapped in a levitation spell: "Nooooo! Heeeeelp! Anypony heeeeelp!" They pleaded.

"Shut up, or I'm gonna eat you all!" Said the monster, and the filles made silence, with scrunched muzzles and trembling of fear. Then, the monster spoke again: "I'm the Monster of the Mischiefs, and I've come to punish you for making too many of them!"

"No, please, no, Monster of the Mischiefs! Don't punish us, please! We're going to behave well, we're going to behave well, we swear!" The fillies cried, scared to death.

"Well, do as I say, and I'll forgive you this time!"

"Yes, yes, yes, we will, we will!"

"Alright, from now on, everytime you're gonna do something to earn your Cutie Marks, you'll ask for an adult's supervision first! Understood?!"

"Yes, yes, yes, we understood, we understood!"

"And you can't tell anypony that you've seen me, or I'm gonna go to your houses and I'll eat you!"

"No, no, no! We won't tell anypony, we won't!"

"Alright. You can go now." The levitation spell slowly faded, and the fillies were safely back on earth, and they galloped away, screaming in terror.

The 'monster' giggled: "Sweet Celestia. I should have done this before..."

Fluttershy were out of the hospital, waving her hoof, saying goodbye to the last leaving visitors, when she heared Twilight's whispering voice: "Flutters, Flutters, take a look here, please."

Fluttershy looked behind some garbage trunks: "Twilight? What happened to you? Why are you hiding there?"

"I was making an experiment and dropped all the skin out. Please, attend me where nopony can see us!" Twilight whispered.

Fluttershy shrugged an eye, suspicious by her friend's strange behavior and all that bandages concealing her body: "Yeah? And how I know that's really you, huh? You could be an imposter, as far I know!"

Twilight startled: "Come on, Flutters. Who'll bother on making a clone of me?"

Fluttershy facehoofed and gasped in belief: "Oh, you're right! Quick, come, we have to attend that right away!"

"No! Not at the open sight! I don't want anypony to find out, specially my coltfriend!"

"Huh? Why?"

"Because he's gonna buck me out if he sees me like this!"

Fluttershy facehoofed and gasped again: "Oh my! Wait, I know. There's a employee's restroom which is not being used. Come on, this way."

Cautiosly walking through the hospital, hiding Twilight from any passing nurse or doctor, in which case, Fluttershy featured a fake wide smile, they managed to get to the room without Twilight being seen.

Once there, Fluttershy told Twilight: "Well, I had enough septic sash, disinfectant and anesthesia. Let me see what the damage is." She said, starting to cut Twilight's bandages. "Does it hurts?"

"No, I don't feel a thing... Oh, Sweet Celestia! I should look horrible!" Sadly mourned Twilight, putting a hoof in her forehead.

Fluttershy smiled, finished removing the bandages, and put a mirror in front of her friend: "Why you don't look by yourself?"

"No, I can't!" Sobbed Twilight, turning the head away and clenching the eyes.

"Come on. Open the eyes. You have nothing to worry about." Fluttershy encouraged her.

Twilight's trembling left eyelid slowly opened, and then the other one, faster this time, and turned her head to the mirror. She couldn't believe it: She was fine!

"See, Twi?" Fluttershy smiled and closed her eyes with tenderness. "You have nothing to worry about!"

"Damnation! I should had checked before freaking out!" Twilight scolded herself...

Spike opened his maw and a scroll come out. He opened and read it: "Twilight, it's a message to you from... Luna?"

"What? A message from Luna? Let me see." Asked Twilight, intrigued, taking the scroll to read it too: "It says: Bucking Little Traitor..." Twilight made a quick grimace: "That bucking...!" But she skipped that and continued reading: "We have to talk. Meet me at the Training Field of Ponyville at midnight. If you fail to comply, I'll enthrall your coltfriend and I'll take him for m..." Twilight clenched the teeth and trembled of anger: "That bucker jerk!" She burned the scroll. "Of course I'll be there, miserable!"

"What does it said?" Asked Spike.

"Nothing of your concern!" Twilight growled.

It wasn't midnight yet, and Twilight was at the meeting spot already. Luna didn't last in appear, either. Twilight sharpened the eyes: "Alright, miserable jerk, I'm here. Now speak! I haven't all the night!"

"Me neither, so I'll go straight to the point." Said Luna while landing. "I think we have a little issue here, but we can get to an agreement."

"'Issue'? 'Agreement'? What do you mean?" Asked Twilight, shrugging the eyes.

"As you know, the monkey is my caretaker now..." Started Luna with her usual smugness.

"And...?"

"And I think that we can have him for both of us." Said Luna with an intriguing smile.

"I think right that you think wrong. He's mine, and only mine!" Twilight angrily assured, pointing herself with a hoof.

"Come on, come on. There is no need of such hostility!" Luna smiled and waved her hoof, with a peacekeeping gesture. "I'm not selfish anymore, and, according to the old customs, there isn't any problem with a stallion having a herd!"

"Yes, there's a problem, because herds are not used anymore!" Twilight replied. "That's a stupid and discriminatory custom, from the times when us mares were treated as slaves, and which Celestia abolished thousands of years ago! So, yes, there's a problem here!"

"I tell you that there isn't...!" Luna angrily yelled, but she quickly backed off to her soothing tone: "I mean, there is no problem with that. I'm sure that if I talk with my sister, she'll make an exception for me." She said with closed eyes, restraining her anger.

"Well, too bad for you, because I'll not make any exception for you!" Replied Twilight.

"You stupid bookworm! I'm offering you a truce! I'm not asking for much, just a day in the week!" Luna insisted.

"You're offering me a truce? What for?! We aren't at war or anything! Take out that idiotic idea from your head, Luna!" Twilight differed.

"You want to bargain, huh? Fine! Half a day!" Luna proposed.

Twilight sternly looked at her, shrugging an eye: "No way, Luna. And this is not negotiable. Besides, why should I negotiate something that's already mine, huh? Now buck off and stop pestering me!"

And she turned around to leave, when a dark blue beam stroke just before her face, opening a hole in the ground:

"Don't you dare to give me the flank, you stupid bookworm." Growled Luna, below her breath. "I came in peace, to offer you a convenient deal for both, and you rejected it! So, you leave me no choice but to challenge you to a duel! The winner keeps the stallion!" She threatened Twilight, flapping and opening her wings.

Twilight turned her head to her: "I knew I couldn't trust you, miserable traitor. So, what now? Are you gonna attack me from behind, like the bucking coward you are?" She angrily asked her.

Luna evily chuckled: "As if I had any need for that. I can defeat you with my eyes closed. So run, run for your life, little bookworm, while you still can."

Twilight started to slowly walk away, as she has no need of that stupid duel.

"But if you leave, you'll lose the respect I have for you, and I'll take your coltfriend for me!" Luna warned Twilight.

Twilight stopped short, looked down and sighed. What can she do? Talk to Celestia? What for? Celestia will bias in behalf of her sister. And her beloved one will try to talk, and she'll enthrall him, and that'll be it. There was no other choice. She has to duel. And she knows that she's gonna lose. And that'll mean death. If Luna doesn't kill her, losing her beloved one surely will. Tears fell from her eyes.

"Sorry, my love. I have failed you." She mourned, raising her head, sure of her awful fate.

Then, she dried the tears with a foreleg, and sharpening the eyes, with a last sniffing, turned around and spoke: "Luna, I don't want to fight you..."

Luna widely smiled and said with a mocking tone: "Then, you're admitting defeat already? Awwwww, I'm so dissapointed, I wanted to leave you with some flank burns as a memorial of our..."

"But I will!" Twilight interrupted her, posing in a combat stance.

Luna smirked: "Oh, good! Don't worry, little filly, I'm going to be easy on you." Then, she lightened her horn. "So, I'll finish this at the first strike!"

And she galloped towards Twilight...

But, unlikely the first time, when she battled Nightmare Moon, Twilight didn't move. Everything looked to slow down around her: Then, this is it? She's gonna give up without putting a fight? Are she even gonna raise the shield, to minimize the impact? Will that matter at all? It'll make any difference in the result? Can she...?

She was in the middle of that thoughts, when she actually received the strike. Everything looked to shake off, and a pain in her forehead, made her came back to her senses. After rolling several times in the ground, she finally managed to stand up on her hooves again, amazed to be still conscious. Then, she looked to Luna, who was featuring a wide smile:

"Ow! It looks that your training is paying off, little bookworm!" She cheered her. "You're still on hoof! But my next attack will take you down!" And Luna charged against Twilight once again.

Twilight closed the eyes. There was no way she'll resist this attack. A new powerful hit, this time in her ribs, thrown her several meters backwards. Twilight trembled a bit for the pain, but she opened the eyes, as it wasn't by far as painful as the UV treatment. The pain quickly receded, and she opened wide the eyes: She hadn't raised the shield yet!

Luna was staring her with a surprised look: She had realized that something wasn't right: The little traitor had to be unconscious by now! Why she hasn't fell already? Has she became that strong?!

Twilight smiled, realizing that she has a chance, and then she raised the shield: "Now, it's my turn, miserable traitor!" And lightening her horn and her four hooves, launched a fivefold attack over Luna.

"Ungh!" Mourned Luna, barely managing to escape by teleporting to the sky. "What the Tartarus?!"

But she hadn't too much time to curse, as Twilight had cast the flying cloud and had flown to her same height: "You can't escape from me!" She happily told her.

What came next was anything like being easy on each other. Enraged, Luna cast her Flaming Sword, while Twilight cast yet two clouds more at her side. And when Luna launched her attack over her, a lightning crossed both clouds, shocking Luna.

"Agh!" Luna mourned, backing off, all bristled by the electric shock, and then she cast the Dark Cover and made her Sonic Wave.

But Twilight had a counterstrike for this too: She surrounded herself in a big hollow ice block, and filling the nearby environment with lightning clouds, she illuminated the area enough to spot Luna, and once she did, she locked her down, and lauched a thunder storm and a hailstorm at the same time over her!

It doesn't mattered where Luna teleported, the storms always reappeared where she does! The lightning storm were weakening her magic shield, while the hailstorm were beating her down!

Desperated, Luna tried her deadliest attack, the Arrow Feathers, but they only managed to get stuck in Twilight's ice shield. Finally, Twilight realized that Luna was stunned enough, and she cast a huge ice ball and tossed it on the alicorn's muzzle... and Luna fell KO...

The next day, Luna woke up in the hospital, and Fluttershy's face was the first thing she saw.

"Who could have thought this, huh? Look who I found not even starting my shift. Oh my..." Said the yellow pegasi, scowling.

Luna blushed: "I can't believe this... I lost..."

"Yes, you did. And now you're MINE." Fluttershy smirked, and raised a bowl of food: "Come on, Luny, you have to eat to recover your strenghts." She said with a mischievous face, putting a full spoon near Luna's muzzle.

Luna looked her with a defeated stare and scrunched mouth, and ate the spoon's contents, only to open the eyes wide, and turn her head to the other side and spit: "PUAJ! But what's this?!" She protested, disgusted.

"Twilight made it by herself, just for you. Now, EAT!" Angrily said Fluttershy, taking yet another full spoon to Luna's muzzle.

"Nooo!" Luna protested, swinging her forelegs, closing the eyes and with a horrified face.

"Come on, Luna, don't make me do this like you were a filly! EAT!"

The sunlight found Cadance still awake, with tired eyes, and she hadn't figured out what to do. She stood up, opened the window and sadly looked to Canterlot. The awful thought quickly came back to her: She was walking, sorrowful, while everypony was laughing her lungs off about her. And, to close it with a golden seal, Prince Blueblood, smirking, will raise his foreleg and say: "Behold, citizens of Canterlot! Here comes my whor...!"

Cadance quickly shooked the head, horrified: "Aaaagh! Noooo!" Then she mourned in despair, putting a foreleg in her forehead. "I can't... I can't pass through such embarrassment! I'll rather die!" Then, she crossed her forelegs before her chest. "If at least, my kind Shining Armor were protecting me, he'll put all those mockers in their place!" Then, she looked back: "I have to gain his love back, or I don't know what's going to be of me!"

She exited the apartment and flown back to the hospital, where she knew that Shining Armor was, protecting the Princesses. Where else he could be?

But when she arrived there, she found out with horror that they were already left. Celestia, Shining Armor, the royal guards... Only Luna was still in the hospital. More like, back in the hospital...

Cadance put a hoof in her forehead, despaired, and a tear slid on her cheek: All was over! She was left behind, abandoned on her own! Now, she was nothing but a helpless soul, who nopony cares about! Sorrowful, she slowly walked back to her apartment. Only a guard was outside, but she didn't care. There could be none. Better, she was wishing there were an assassin waiting for her in the bedroom, to save her from the embarrassment which was waiting for her in Canterlot.

And, as if she had rubbed Aladdin's Lamp, not even she entered the room, a dagger appeared on her neck.

"Silence, or I'll cut your throat! You have to help me to escape!" A fearsome female voice was heared.

Cadance looked emotionless to a side, with half lidded eyes. "You're that assassin, huh? Go ahead. I don't care anymore."

"Sure?" Asked the voice, and the dagger pinched Cadance's right shoulder, making a little cut on her body.

"I've told you that I don't care. Kill me already." Repeated Cadance with the same indifference.

"Why? What happened? Celestia let you down too?" Asked the voice.

Cadance opened the eyes: How she knows? "Who are you? What do you know about me?"

"I'm Queen Chrysalis, ruler of the changelings, and I'm the last hope of my kind!"

"Last hope? What are you talking about?"

"Celestia, that filthy tyrant, banished my kind to the wastelands, thousands of years ago, and we're been at the brink of starvation since! If I don't find a source of food soon, me and all my race will die!"

Cadance opened her eyes wide: She'll never have thought this! Her Tia, the very Sun Goddess that she had worshipped as the living proof of purity and kindness, all this time, was nothing but a heartless mass murder!

"Then that's why you tried to kill Celestia... But then why did you killed that innocent nurse? She didn't have fault of anything!"

The dagger trembled and fell to the floor, and Cadance took the chance and turned around to face Chrysalis. The Queen's condition was deplorable: she was thin and pale, and her black body color was bleak; her ribs could be perfectly seen, bulging at her sides; her wings were ripped off, making them unusable to fly; and her cheeks and eyes were sunk. All this features were giving her a cadaveric look.

The Queen looked the Princess: "I'm desperate! My subjects are my family! And I'll do whatever it takes to protect my family! What you'd have done in my place, huh? What?!" She said with broken voice.

That touched Cadance. This Queen was trying to protect her family, while Celestia had abandoned her on her own! A wave of anger and hatred filled her heart. And she took a decision: "Tell me, Queen Chrysalis, how can I supply food to you? I'll do everything in my power to make it happen!"

"That'll be a bit hard to you to do, Princess, as what we need to eat is not regular food." Sadly assured Chrysalis.

"Not regular food? I don't understand."

"We changelings do need feelings to eat. Love is the more nutritive of all, and this kingdom has plenty of it! But that selfish tyrant of Celestia, doesn't let us to take not even a bit. We don't ask for much, just a sip from time to time!" Were explaining Chrysalis, when suddenly, her legs trembled and she drooped to the floor, defeated. "I'm so hungry... I fear I haven't much time left..." She closed her eyes, with trembling body. "Forgive me, my dear subjects... I have failed you..." She sobbed.

Cadance smirked: Love? Who was the Princess of Love, huh? And she cast her signature Love spell on Chrysalis. Instantly, her pale black color turned into a lustrous shoeshine-like one, and the her green wings regenerated, her sunk features dissapeared, like her cadaveric look as well.

Chrysalis looked to Cadance, surprised: "Oh, thank you, thank you! You have saved me, you have saved me...!" She thanked, smiling and with crying voice, and crawled to Cadance's legs an kissed her hooves. "But... Why...? Why did you do that?" She asked, intrigued.

"Because I know what you had been through. Now tell me. How much love do you need?"

Chrysalis turned her head to a side, touching her muzzle with a hoof. "Well, that spell was quite strong. It could easily fed all my hive with just a few casts! Amazing!" She assured, raising a hoof, impressed.

That made Cadance to get deeply moved. She felt... important. She has the power to save an entire race from extinction, and the only thing that she has to do, was to cast a mere spell which she used to play everyday, just to kill the time!

"Queen Chrysalis, take me to your hive. I'll fed it with upmost pleasure!" Happily affirmed Cadance.

Chrysalis shrugged the eyes: "Well, that's... interesting... What's the catch?"

Cadance sharpened the eyes: "I want some annoying pink party mare out of the way."

Chrysalis frowned up: "Which one? The one with the balloons cutie mark?"

"That very same! Why? Do you have a grudge against her too?"

"Indeed! That filthy meddler seems to been everytime messing with my plans. I had the perfect hit at this very town, six months ago, and that odious pink pony sent the groom to the hospital, and screwed everything up!" Chrysalis angrily blurted, standing on her four legs again and hitting the floor with a foreleg.

Cadance evily smirked: "So, it seems that we have a deal."

Chrysalis evily smirked as well: "Yeah. We do."

It was first day that classes were allowed, as the town was restoring to it's normal daily functioning, but it was friday, and Cherilee decided to let the day off to her students, by just giving them a stroll and visiting amusement sites. She took her students to some nearby places, until she and her unquiet youngsters arrived to an array of statues. She stopped in front of one, that resembled a dragon, with different legs and horns, and she was explaining: "... and this, my dearies, is the statue of Discord, Lord of Chaos, who was turned to stone by the Princesses, four thousands of years ago..."

Meanwhile, the former Cutie Mark Crusaders, who was doing anything but listening to their teacher, were arguing among them:

"Apples, I'm telling you that monster wanted us to be Cutie Mark Crusaders again! Don't you remember what he said?" Were argumenting Scootaloo.

"Shhh! Shut up! Remember that we can't say anything, or he'll go to our houses and he'll eat us!" Warned Sweetie Belle, below her breath.

"You shut up, Sweets! Don't you see that I'm discussing an important thing?" Replied Scootaloo.

"Ha! Sure it's important! You're discussing how to get us into trouble again!" Angrily replied Sweetie Belle.

"It wasn't my fault! It was Apple's! She was the one with the idea of earn our cutie marks on fighting!" Argumented Scootaloo.

"It wasn' mah fault! It was yars, 'cause ya lied about the fireworks!" Applebloom argued back.

"I wasn't lying!" Denied Scootaloo. "We got too late because Sweets delayed us!"

"Liar!" Angrily yelled Sweetie Belle, and hit Scootaloo, and she fought back, hitting Applebloom by accident, and soon the three fillies were fighting among them.

"Girls, girls! That's enough! Stop fighting at once!" Cherilee quickly interceded.

But it was too late, as Discord's statue cracked, and a mischievous laughter could be heared...

Chapter 17 - Resolve Tested to the Limit

Cadance landed near the hospital's entrance, and quickly entered the building, approaching nurse Redheart: "Nurse! Nurse! Please, for Celestia's sake, tell me where Shining Armor is!"

"Your Highness! But weren't you already gone to Canterlot?! Everypony left already!"

"What?! They left and left me behind?! No! You must be lying!" Protested Cadance, incredulous and scared.

"Well, Your Highness, you can search the hospital if you're wishing to. We have only Luna entered here. Celestia left to who-knows-where and all the guards followed her, including Shining Armor."

Cadance backed off her head, putting a hoof in her forehead in despair: "Oh, the sorrow, the sorrow. Everypony has abandoned meeee... Now what is going to be of meeee...? Alright... if this is how is going to be... then... I'll go back to my rooms, to prepare myself to face my disgraceeee..." She sobbed, and sorrowful and crying, she slowly turned around and walked away.

The right next second that Cadance left the hospital, Pinkie arrived and landed through the hole that Celestia had opened the night before, in the other side of the building, startling Fluttershy, who was just arriving to start her shift:

"Pinkie! You're flying! How...?!" Fluttershy opened her eyes and muzzle wide, dumbfounded.

"Ah! That's a long story. I'll tell you later. Hey, Twilight told me to keep an eye on Luna, and only serve her with trusted stuff. There's an assassin at loose."

"An assassin?! Another one?!" Fluttershy gasped and facehoofed, scared.

"No, is the same one, that escaped." Said Pinkie, nonchalantly.

Fluttershy looked at her, surprised and scared: "And are you telling that so quiet?! What about if she goes for us?! What about if she goes for me?!!" Fluttershy put her both forelegs in her head, horrified.

Pinkie looked at her, shrugging an eye: "Why would she go for you? You're not a princess of anything like that." She asked, slightly shooking the head.

Fluttershy looked up, calming down: "Ow. You're right."

Pinkie smiled again. "Anyway, here I have the food that you'll have to give to Luna. Make sure that it's only Rarity or you who serve her."

Fluttershy looked to Pinkie, horrified again: "What?! I serving Luna?! What about if she turns nasty?! Celestia isn't here anymore, to keep her at bay!"

Pinkie disdainfully waved her hoof: "Don't worry, Flutters. Twilight gave her a tickle under her wings, and left her as tamed as a pigeon. You'll have no problems." She calmly said, with half lidded eyes and a soothing smile.

"But, how can you be so sure...?" Still doubted Fluttershy, trembling.

"Girl, my Pinkie Sense told me that, and it never lies." Pinkie happily assured, with all the confidence of the world.

For some reason, Pinkie's good vibes finally calmed Fluttershy, and she took the food: "Alright, if you say so..." Then, she sniffed the food: "It smells good." And then, she tried it, quickly making a disgusted grimace: "Ugh, puaj... agh... It tastes horrible. Who cooked this, Twilight?"

"Well, I took that from her freezer, so is very likely it is."

Fluttershy's eyes moved to a side, and then, they returned to look Pinkie: "Pinkie, maybe it's Luna the pony who's going to eat this, but I'm not into torture. Not even with her." She denied with the head.

"Well, Flutters. You already knew the saying: 'Safety first'. If I came to be an assassin trying to poison the food, I'll make it to taste good, right?"

Fluttershy scrunched the muzzle: "That's a good point... but still..."

"Well, I gotta go. My Pinkie Sense are giving me a strange reading, and I'm supposed to report Twilight of anything strange in town. See ya!" And Pinkie cast her flying rocks, hopped on them and flown away, leaving Fluttershy with her untasteful task.

"Tsk." Was all that Fluttershy said about it, looking annoyed to a side.

"Are you sure about this?" I was asking to my marefriend. "I think that you alredy got your lesson. I can chit-chat with Celestia until she gets bored and gives up."

"No, love. I have to do this. I need it to improve myself. Just think! If I can defeat Celestia, then we'll have no problems to defeat Daybreaker! She wouldn't stand a chance against us teaming up!" Twilight happily assured.

I made a defeated gesture, as she had a point. "Alright. Just keep your limits. Remember that she's not Luna, OK?"

Twilight giggled: "Oh, love! Believe me, there's nothing I have more in mind!" Then, she turned around to face Celestia: "I'm ready, Your Highness! Let's do this!"

Then, Twilight and Celestia took some distance one from the another, to resume their duel.

"En guarde!" Warned Celestia with a smile, casting her lightning spear.

"En guarde! Come on, give me your best shot!" Twilight happily replied, casting her ice balls.

"But are you still with your counter-attack stance?! What did I told you-? Ugh..." Was Celestia angrily starting to scold Twilight, when she stumbled, with a hoof in her forehead, and fell to the emptyness, fainted.

"Your Highness!!" Screamed Twilight, scared, and she quickly cast a cloud to catch her in mid air. Then, she approached her and lit her horn, to check on her vitals: "Your Highness, your vitals aren't good! What could...?" Then, Twilight took out a mechanical clock, to check the time: "What the...?! Your Highness, it's past the time of your injection! The poison it's not still removed from your system! You'd..." She suddenly stopped short speaking, realizing something: "You did this on purpose, to make me to kill you!! Didn't you?!" She protested, concerned.

Celestia looked her, dumbfounded: "What...? No..." She denied with the head.

Twilight shooked the head, incredulous: "Never mind. I'll have to return to Ponyville, to get your medicine. We'll have our 'duel', when you get completely recovered. And not before! Understood?!" She angrily pointed Celestia with a hoof.

Celestia smiled: "Yes, mommy." She mocked.

Twilight shooked the head again and snorted, upset, and took Celestia back to Cloudsdale.

Pinkie was walking around the town, when suddenly... Chocolate started to rain! Pinkie's eyes opened wide, like her smile as well: "Chocolate rain! It's raining chocolate! My dream come true!" And she started to do what she'll do in such case: to eat as much as she could.

Twilight arrived at that same moment, just to get startled by such unusual event: Could this be the doing of the assassin? As being an elusive and tricky foe, it could be some sort of trap. And the presence of tall legged rabbits, and back flying birds, only made it even scarier "Pinkie, NO!! Stop! Stop, it could be poisonous!" She galloped to the pink mare.

Pinkie stared to Twilight, with her eyes opened wide and her cheeks bloated with chocolate, and then, she stood on her hinder legs, put a hoof in her chest and looked up, and then, she fell loinside to the floor with the tongue out.

"Pinkieeeeee, noooooo!!" Yelled Twilight, horrified, galloping to her and enlightening her horn, to check Pinkie's vitals, only to find out... that she was OK. Twilight furiously looked to Pinkie, who was chuckling.

"Gotcha!" Pinkie mocked.

"This isn't funny, Pinkie! Come on, we have to inform Celestia about this, at once!" Twilight waved a foreleg, enraged.

Just a while had passed after Twilight left to Ponyville in search of Celestia's medicine, when a pegasi scout arrived to Cloudsdale, panting and sweating by the effort: "Your Highness! A huge gryphoon army is gathering in our northern border! It looks that they're getting ready to invade!"

"What?! Quick! Bring me scrolls and quills! I have to activate the alliances Equestria has!" Commanded Celestia.

A pegasi brought the stuff, and Celestia quickly wrote her requests to assistance, and sent the scrolls with her rapid teleportation spell.

It didn't took long until she received the answers. Celestia opened the newly arrived scrolls, and her expression turned to a very concerned one: "But what's this?! Sorry, Your Highness, but Daybreaker will scorch our land if we don't assist the gryphoons in the invasion?!" Then, she opened another scroll that appeared: "Sorry, your Highness, but Daybreaker was here and destroyed up to the last of our defences! We have nothing to send to you!" And she opened other, and other, and other one, until she gave up: All our allies had been previously 'visited' by Daybreaker and 'kindly convinced' to turn down us.

Celestia looked to me, horrified: "Oh, no, rascal! This is a disaster! We are alone in this ordeal! All our allies have turned their loins to us!"

Without time to waste, I called Trixie: "Trix, are those weapons ready to use?!"

"Of course they are! Why do you think that I hadn't time to learn that stupid cloud walking spell?!" She replied.

Alright, she got me there. I guess I owe an apology to her. But that'll be later: "Alright, start loading the ammunition mags and proceed to arming all the ponies in combat condition!" I ordered.

"What?! But if they haven't had time to practice firing!" Trixie complained.

"We haven't time for that! The gryphoons hasted their invasion!"

Celestia wrote a large scroll of instructions an sent it to Canterlot. A reply came right after that. She read it and complained, almost crying: "Oh, noooo. Just more disgraces. Now Cadance is looooooost! Oh, what a bad time to play that bad joke on heeeeer!"

I shrugged the eyes. A bad joke? What bad joke? I shooked the head, as there are no time to think in such things, and told Celestia: "Cellie, I'm gonna go to the border. I have to take all the weaponry and reinforcements to the battle front."

Celestia looked to me, dumbfounded: "What? No, rascal, no. There's no time. It's needed about two days to fly there from here, with good wind."

"I'm not going by flying. I'm gonna cast a massive teleportation spell."

Celestia backed off her head, surprised: "What?! But that's not possible! I know you could teleport there, but only on your own! Not with an entire army! That'll destroy you!"

I smiled. "Cellie, don't underestimate the power of the Life Force. I'll be fine."

Celestia stood up with trembling legs, and walked to me: "Rascal, please, don't do any unnecessary madness. Look... if anything happens to you... I..." And suddenly, she hugged me, and our hearts started to beat as one. "I'l1 die!" She cried.

I hugged her as well: "Cellie, please, don't make this harder than already is. I'm telling you that I'll be fine. I know my limits. Remember?"

Celestia sobbed: "That's exactly what scares me the most... Please, rascal, come back to me. Don't leave me alone... I can't live without you..."

I sternly looked to her: "And Twilight? What about her? Are you gonna... hurt her? Because if that's the case, I...!"

"No! No. Of course I'm not going to hurt her..." She interrupted me.

"Then, she is right?! You're gonna let her to kill you?!" I asked, scared.

"No! Of course not!"

I shooked the head, upset: "Cellie, you're confusing me! What're you up to, huh?!" I asked, raising my open hand in fron of her.

Celestia smiled: "I think we'll better leave that for when everything is over with, my love."

I sharpened the eyes. "Cellie..." I scolded her.

"Now go. Don't waste anymore time. It's an order." She finally ordered me, giving me some taps in my back.

Twilight came a bit later, and she was informed of what was happening. Then, she injected Celestia while reporting what was happening in Ponyville.

"Oh no! This can't be worse! Now we had Discord on the loose too!" Complained Celestia, in the brink of a nervous breakdown. "Quick, Twilight, bring me to Canterlot! We have no time to waste!"

"What?! No, Your Highness, you're still too weak! No!" Twilight tried to stop her. But that was less than impossible...

When I arrived to the frontier, an unicorn officer quickly galloped to me: "General, you came so fast! Thanks to Celestia!"

I shrugged the eyes: "General?"

"Yes! Celestia send a royal decree and promoted you to general. Well, what are the orders? We're just a small garrison here, but we'll do anything we can to help!"

"Name and rank, officer!"

"I'm Lieutenant Stout Heed, sir!"

"Alright, sergeant, report me about the situation."

"Yes, sir! The gryphoons didn't came alone! The brought several platoons of yaks, zebras and buffalos! Scouts have even reported jiraffes and elephants to be seen! It seems that they're preparing a full invasion campaign, sir!"

I turned to my troops: "Ponies, load your mags, and get ready your weapons! Everypony to their positions on the trench!"

The ponies obeyed my instructions and quickly took position in the trench. Not long after that, the vanguard of the above mentioned animals could be seen approaching our positions. That tricky gryphoons, they're sending the pawns first.

When they were close enough, I ordered: "Warning fire!" And I and all the ponies with firearms shot once to the air.

The vanguard of the yaks stopped short, startled by the sound of that weapon never heard before. Then, I stood up and told them, pointing them with my own version of an AR-33: "Former allies of Equestria! We don't mean to hurt you, but if you move forward, we won't hesitate to do so! Get back to your countries! We have nothing against you!"

"We have no choice!" Said someyak. "If we don't attack Equestria, the new sun goddess, Daybreaker, will scorch our land with the power of the sun itself, until the last bristle of grass gets burnt, and up to the last of us gets roasted! She even roasted alive our king, and ate him in front of us! We have no choice!"

The zebras also added: "And she was at Zebrica too, and turned our jungles into a carbonized desert! And there was nothing that we could do to stop her! She's too powerful!"

The ponies and me exchanged a concerned look. But I had still hope of solving this peacefully: "Listen to me! Do you realize that if you do this, you'll become the gryphoon's slaves, and they'll use you for nothing else than cattle to supply the tables in their feasts?!"

"Not us!" Replied the yaks: "We made a deal of honor with them! They swore to spare us from their hunting raids!"

I quickly replied: "And the zebras?! They'll spare them too?!"

"Yes!" Confirmed the zebras. "They swore that they'll spare us too! They'll hunt the other species!"

I came out with something, and pointed the yaks: "Including the yaks?!"

"Yes!" Answered the zebras.

"What?!" The yaks startled. "They said that they'll spare us, and hunt the other species!"

I pointed the zebras: "Including the zebras?!"

"Yes!" Assured the yaks.

Suddenly, all remained in silence, as all the animals realized that they have had been deceived.

"Those deceptive gryphoons! They have lied to us all!" They angrily protested, looking to each other. "We should have known, we should have known! How could we have been so stupid?!"

I raised the cannon of my firearm up, and told them: "Alright folks. This's what we're gonna do..."

Chrysalis took Cadance into an hideout, where about a dozen changelings drones were waiting for her. Chrysalis landed and galloped to the nearest one, who, like all the rest, was lying loinside in the floor of the cave, with their eyes closed and featuring a cadaveric look.

"Hakim! Hakim! Talk to me, please!" Sobbed Chrysalis to the drone.

Hakim meekly opened his half-lidded eyes, and said with ragged voice: "My queen... it was an honor... to serve under your command..."

Scared, Chrysalis looked to Cadance: "They're in their last! Quickly, Princess, cast your spell!" She quickly waved a foreleg.

Cadance did so, and soon all the drones were in foot again: "My queen! You've found food for us! You've saved us again! Hoorray!" Cheered the drones.

Chrysalis sighed, relieved, with a foreleg in her chest, and walked to Cadance. "Thank you, Princess... I... I don't know how to pay you for all this that you're doing for me."

Cadance closed her eyes and smiled. "Just honoring our deal. That'll do it."

Chrysalis smiled with an apologetic smile. "Well, Princess, we still need to get to my hive, which is outside of Equestria, pretty deep in the wastelands. You know?" Then, she looked to the ground, sorrowful. "But, if you don't want to, I'll understand. I can't ask you for more than you've done already..."

"What are you saying, Chrysalis? I promised that I'll save your hive, and that's what I'm intending to do." Joyfully assured Cadance, closing her eyes again and swinging her tail.

Chrysalys's face enlightened up: "Really?! Well, then, there's a last thing to do. Come, Princess, as I still have a last task to do in this unfriendly kingdom."

Cadance looked to her, dumbfounded: "Which is...?"

This time, it was Chrysalis who half lidded her eyes: "To save some odious gryphoons. I hate to do it, but I made a deal of honor with them."

Cadance backed off the head, surprised and scared: "To save... some gryphoons...?"

"Yes... those who were captured in the town's battle..." Chrysalis replied with disdain.

The captured gryphoons were being transported by railroad, whose wagons have been changed by cages, giving the caravan the look of a circus train. Suddenly, a pegasi flown before the locomotive: "Stop! Stop! There's a huge rock in the rail ahead!"

The train stopped near the said rock, and there, it was assaulted by Chrysalis and her drones, who quickly reducted the guards and operators. Cadance observed, horrified, how Chrysalis had took out her dagger, and was approaching the prisoners:

"No! Wait, wait! Don't kill them! Don't kill them!"

Chrysalis turned her head to Cadance, dumbfounded: "Why not? They're the enemy now."

"No, Chrysalis, no! Spare them, or I'm not going to help you!" Angrily threatened Cadance.

Chrysalis tsked, and sheathed the dagger back. "Alright..." And she ordered her drones to let the ponies go, and when they were far enough, she ordered to open the cages of the train.

The gryphoon commander jumped down and walked to Chrysalis: "Well done, Queen Chrysalis! You've captured Princess Cadance! Now, we have a royal hostage to bargain with!" He happily reassured her.

Cadance opened the eyes and muzzle wide, scared, regretting to have come this far.

Chrysalis turned to the gryphoon officer: "Sorry, gryphoon, but the Princess is not a prisoner. She's willingly going with me to fed my hive."

"What?! Queen Chrysalis, I demand you to honor our deal! Surrender Princess Cadance to us, at once!" The gryphoon direfully pointed her with his claw.

"I'm not giving away the last hope my hive has, gryphoon!" Angrily denied Chrysalis. "And what it relates to our agreement in, I think that freeing you make it fulfilled enough!" And she turned around and walked away.

"This's not what we agreed, Queen Chrysalis! Obey our demands right now, or face the consequences!" The gryphoon angrily threatened her again.

Chrysalis stopped short walking, and turned her head to him: "Yeah?! And what are you going to do to me?! Rape me, like you did with Celestia?!" She angrily replied.

"We weren't intending to do that! That was a last minute change of plans!" Replied the gryphoon, clearly embarrassed.

"A 'change of plans'?! How raping her could be a 'change of plans', huh?! Abusers! Rapists!" Chrysalis accussed the gryphoon.

Cadance fear changed to astonishment, and it, to rage. How they could...? After giving them sunlight for five thousands of years...? How could those gryphoons be so ungrateful?!

The gryphoon angrily shooked his head, unwilling to continue the argument: "Fine! Go away to that den of treason that you call home! But, after we get done with Equestria, we'll go for you!" He threatened her even again, pointing her with his claw, and he and all the gryphoons took the air.

Chrysalis disdainfully spitted to the ground, and walked to Cadance: "Let's go already, Princess. Those swines make me sick." She angrily said below her breath. And they and all the drones took the air too.

After a while flying, Cadance was tired and told Chrysalis: "Queen Chrysalis, huff, puff... could we... walk for a while? I need to rest." She puffed.

They landed, and Cadance asked the changeling queen: "Sorry, Chrysalis, but I'm confused. Weren't you trying to... kill Celestia?"

"Yes, I will. But I wanted to give her a quick and painless death. That what those disgusting gryphoons did to her, is something that you don't do to not even your worst enemy."

"Ow." Cadance understood. "But why didn't she told me anything of this? Why did she kept the secret?"

Chrysalis chuckled and turned her head back, to look Cadance with the side of an eye: "I can't hardly believe you're on the royalty, Cadance. You don't seem to know anything about politics. She can't make this public. Do you know what will happen if her subjects found out about that?" Then, she turned her head to face her front, and started to tilting it and to speak with a mocking tone: "'Why should I respect Celestia, if she's a shameless whorse, who sells herself cheap to our sworn enemies? Blah, blah, blah, blah.'" Then, she turned her head to Cadance again: "I could continue speaking, but I guess you got the point already. Didn't you?"

Cadance looked down, sorrowful: "Yes... I did..."

The gryphoon army near Equestria's border, were dumbfounded looking how all their vanguard platoons were galloping back in disbandment:

"What's happening here?! Why aren't you fighting the ponies?!!" Commodore Gomog shrieked: "Go back to fight!!!"

"Ohhhh!! The ponies have developed a fearsome weapon! There's nothing we can do against it!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVEEEEES!!!" Screamed the animals in unison, passing by the side of the surprised gryphoon.

Gomoc made an annoyed gesture, and turned to Daybreaker:

"Daybreaker! We haven't enough troops to invade now! Go to the Dragonlands, and convince them to aid us in our campaign! Our honor is at the stake!"

"Yes, commodore!" Daybreaker confirmed, giving a military salute, and taking the air.

Gomoc turned around and passed his claw under his beak, concerned: "I'll better invade quickly, or King Gryphanius will have me executed..."

Rarity galloped to the hospital and announced, scared: "Flutters, quickly, there's an emergency! All the elements need to go to Canterlot, at once!"

Fluttershy gasped: "An emergency?! What kind of emergency?!"

Rarity waved a hoof and shooked the head: "I'm not sure! I think it's a war or something!"

Fluttershy gasped again, horrified: "A war?! Oh no!"

Nurse Redheart gasped, horrified too: "A war?! Oh no!"

Luna featured a cheek to cheek smile: "A war?! Oh yes! Where is the war?! Where is the war?!" She hopped out of the bed and happily looked around, relieved to not to have to eat Twilight's disgusting prepare again.

Celestia had gatehered the Elements of Harmony at the Canterlot Castle, and was explaining them about Discord, but when she opened the door where the Elements Jewels should be, the box was empty.

A mischievous laughter was heared later, and Discord appeared, to make his challenge: "To retrieve your missing elements just make sense of this change of events. Twists and turns are my master plan. Then find the elements back where you began..."

The Mane 6 gathered in front of the garden labyrinth, where Discord stripped the unicorns from their horns, and the pegasis from their wings. Rainbow Dash tried to protest but she didn't feel too well yet, as she wasn't completely recovered yet from her wounds, and resigned to her fate, just thinking: 'This's some sort of bad dream. I'm still sleeping in a bed of the hospital, and Pinkie is flying on my dreams...'

Not too long after entering the labyrinth, the mares spreaded and separated one from the others. Applejack was the first of Discord's 'victims':

"Ah, hello, cowpony. Do you wanna know what will happen, if you keep always saying the truth?" And he took Applejack to a fountain, where he show her an awful scene, where all her friends, with a greyed coat, were arguing among them.

Applejack observed the scene, and she was already having ill thoughts, when she startled a bit: There was something odd about this scene, if only she could figure out what... wait. This looks like something that evil mare of Daybreaker will do. Trying to make her to think ill. Applejack sharpened her eyes, as there was something else weird there: Where was Rainbow Dash?

"Eh, Discord. This is not wha' is goin' to happen, homey." She pointed the fountain with a hoof. "Why everythin' is colored but us? An' where is Dashie? Ah didn' see her here."

"Oh, that's because the cyan pony is going to leave." Mischievously said Discord.

"'The cyan pony'? How can ya tell who is the cyan pony? All of 'hem look gray." Applejack retorted.

Discord looked to the fountain: "I mean the pony with the rainbow cutie mark."

Applejack looked to the fountain: "Discord, there's nopony with a rainbow cutie mark in there."

"That's because she's gonna betray you!" Repeated Discord, starting to get upset.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Don' make me laugh, Discord! Dashie will never betray us!" Applejack laughed.

"I'm telling you that she will!" Assured Discord, waving a fist, even more upset.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Dashie betraying uuuuuus!" Applejack couldn't stop laughing. "Ya'r so bad liar, Discord! Honestly!"

"OOOUUUOOOUUUUAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!" Discord roared, exasperated beyond description. "Now I'm gonna show you that I'm not lying!" And he popped out of existence.

Twilight appeared a bit after, and asked Applejack: "AJ, what happened? What was that roar?"

"Nah, just Discord tryin' to convince me tha Dashie will betray us." Applejack chuckled.

Twilight chuckled too: "Dashie, betraying us? That's ridiculous!"

And both mares started to laugh.

Next 'victim', was Rainbow Dash, obviously. Not long after the cyan pony spotted Discord, she stood on her hinder legs and adquired a boxing stance: "What, do you want to fight, huh?! Let's fight!" She challenged him, throwing some jabs with her forelegs.

Discord smiled, and popped a gift box: "Listen, cyan pony, I have your wings here. And all that you have to do to recover them, is to go and leave your friends behind."

Rainbow Dash skeptically looked to the gift box, took it, and pushed it on Discord's mouth: "You can eat them, as far I'm concerned! I'll never ever abandon my friends!"

Discord, with half-lidded eyes, chewed a bit, swallowed and spitted some cyan feathers. "Crunchy..." He commented, nonchalanty.

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes wide: "What? Did you... just... ate... MY WINGS...?" Then, she covered her face with her forelegs: "No no no no no. This has to be a nightmare... This MUST be a nightmare!" And when she opened the eyes, Discord assured her: "Sorry, little pony, but this IS NOT a nightmare. This is the reality of chaos!" He happily announced, raising his forearms. "So, last call. Leave your friends, or you wouldn't see your wings again!" He blackmailed her, smiling and with his fists in his waist, sure of his victory.

Rainbow Dash looked him with tearful eyes: "Never." She whispered.

"Hmmm? I didn't heard you." Said Discord, approaching his ear to her and making it to grow excesively larger.

"I SAID NEEEEEVEEEEEER!!" Rainbow Dash screamed, with sobbing voice.

Discord looked her, dumbfounded: "What...? Never?!"

"NEEEEEEVEEEEER!! OR ARE YOU DEAAAAAAAAF?!!" Screamed Rainbow Dash again, about to cry.

Discord trembled, until he came out with something else, and ducked to Rainbow Dash's level, to look her fixedly to the eyes.

"What's this?! A staring contest?! Bring it on!" She said, and looked him fixedly to the eyes as well.

And they were like this for a while, until Discord stood up and: "OOOUUUOOOUUUUAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!" he roared, exasperated beyond description, and popped out of existence.

Not long after that, Twilight and Applejack appeared from behind a bush wall: "Dashie! Are you OK?!"

Rainbow Dash was anything but OK: "He... he ate my wings... he ate my wiiiiiiiings!" She dropped to cry on Applejack's shoulder. "My life is ruineeeeeed!"

Next 'victim', was Pinkie Pie. Pinkie was presented with a lot of balloons and party related stuff, and one of the balloons spoke with a mischievous smile: "Pink pony, your friends are laughing of you."

Pinkie smiled: "Oh, no. They laugh of my jokes. Not from me."

"No, they laugh of YOU." The talking balloon assured.

"They do?" Said Pinkie, seriously looking to the floor, but then, her smile returned to her: "Well, that's fine for me too."

The mischievous smile disappeared from the balloon: "What? You don't care that they laugh of you?"

"Actually, I don't. I thought that once, and almost killed one of my friends. So, I Pinkie Promised to myself, that I'll always keep my cool, no matter what!" Pinkie happily assured.

The balloon clenched it's teeth, or whatever that was. "You have to CARE! Anyone in her right sense SHOULD CARE!" He insisted.

"I've told you that I don't. Wanna know what do I really care? That I still haven't given your welcome party!" Happily raised a hoof Pinkie. And, apparently from nowhere, she pulled in her party jukebox, and started to sing:

"Welcome welcome welcome. A fine welcome to you." And she put a party hat on Discord head, who quickly took it out and scrunched it, enraged. "Welcome welcome welcome. I say how do you do?" And Pinkie took a trumpet and sounded it through Discord's ears, making him to become even more upset, and to start swinging his forearms all around, trying to catch Pinkie. But it looked like she knows where he was gonna to go, and always managed to escape from his grasp, pounding nonchalantly a drum around him. "Welcome welcome welcome. I say hip hip hurray. Welcome welcome welcome. To Ponyville todaaaaay!" And she danced all around until she sliced on her knees up to front of Discord, while happily saying: "Wait for it!"

And just when Discord was gonna catch her, the Party Jukebox threw a bunch of streamers, just on Discord eyes, and he swung his forearms, temporarily blind, but time enough to Pinkie to escape capture once again.

"OOOUUUOOOUUUUAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!" Discord roared, exasperated beyond description, and popped out of existence, once again...

Next 'victim': Rarity. The dressmaker mare was walking around, thinking aloud: "They have to be kidding me. How I'm supposed to find anything among all this dirtiness?! And bugs, and dry leaves, everywhere! Oh, my beautiful mane is going to get ruined!" She mourned.

Suddenly, Discord popped before her. Rarity looked around, realizing that she was all ALONE! There was nopony to protect her! And she haven't seen or heard of her friends in a while! Could he...? Could he... had eaten THEM?! Rarity trembled before that prospect, but, realizing that it was useless to try to escape, she decided that if she had to go, she'll go with dignity. So, she bloated her lungs, closed her eyes and scrunched her muzzle, raised her head a bit and there she stood, trembling, waiting for the killing blow.

"You have nothing to fear, little pony. I have a gift for you." Discord said.

Oh, how cruel of that dragon, or whatever he was. Calling the death of her friends a 'gift'. Rarity thought, and a tear slid on her cheek.

"But why are you crying? I'm telling you that I have a gift for you. Come on, open your eyes."

Rarity did so, as she had nothing to lose, and then, a wide smile appeared on her face, as the biggest diamond that she has ever seen was right before her! "What?! That's... that's for me?!" She asked, touched, with a hoof in her chest.

"Yes, yes. Is for you. And only for you, not for anypony else." Mischievously said Discord to her. "You're the only one that deserve such great gem!"

Rarity sat on her haunches and put both forelegs in her chest: "Oh, that's so generous from you, Discord! I'm so relieved, I was thinking already that you was some sort of pony-eater! Spike is going to become so happy, he likes to eat gems so much!"

"Yeah, right... What?!" Discord shooked the head, starting to get upset: "No! I told you what that diamond is for you and ONLY for you, not for anypony else!"

"But, Discord, Spike is not a pony, he's a dragon." Replied Rarity.

"Argh! Then, that diamond isn't for anydragon, either! It's just for you and ONLY for you!" Discord insisted, even more upset.

"But, Discord! What kind of friend would I be, if I don't share that beauty with Spike?!" Rarity angrily protested. "He has been so long into me, and I've never... given him a chance..." Rarity looked down, doubtful.

"You can't share this beatiful diamond with no one! Nopony, nodragon! No one!" Discord swung a fist, even more upset.

But Rarity wasn't paying attention to him anymore, and she stood up and started to walk away, looking to the floor, thinking aloud: "Spike have been into me for so long... he's always trying to be near of me... giving gifts to me, helping me in whatever he can..."

"Hey, little pony, you're forgetting the diamond!" Discord warned her.

"Huh?" Rarity stopped short, and looked back: "Diamond? What diamond? All what I see, is a giant rock embedded on that wall... and I can't attend you right now, Discord! I need to put in order my feelings!" She cleared to him, closing her eyes and putting a hoof in her chest, and she turned her head to face the floor again and resumed her aimless walking around, thinking aloud about Spike and herself.

"But, the diamond!" Still insisted Discord, pointing the rock with his both arms, but Rarity couldn't care less about the 'diamond'.

"OOOUUUOOOUUUUAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!" Realizing that his calls where useless, Discord roared, exasperated beyond description, and popped out of existence, even once again...

Last 'victim': Fluttershy. Gulping, the timid mare was looking around, when a shadow passed near her. Her first impulse was to run and hide, but, after a titanical willpower effort, she constrained that primal instinct, and turned around to see what it was.

"Ow! It's a butterfly! Come over here, butterfly! Don't be afraid, I'm not going to hurt you!" Fluttershy happily galloped after the insect, who started to speak to her:

"Yellow pony, your friends thinks that you're weak and defenseless."

Fluttershy smiled, closing her eyes: "Yes, I know that. And I'm fine with that."

The smile disappeared from the butterfly's face: "What? You don't care about it? Then, how you're suppossed to protect your friends?"

"Oh, Discord. I'm not supposed to protect anypony." Assured Fluttershy. "That's Twilight, Pinkie and Dashie's job."

"You don't? Then, you seem pretty useless to me." The butterfly's tone turned angrier and more offensive.

"Oh, I beg to differ." Fluttershy smiled again. "I'm very important, as my job is to show other ponies that being weak and disabled, is not a reason to give up. That's my job."

The butterfly turned into Discord, who roared again: "OOOUUUOOOUUUUAAAAAARRRRRRGGGGGG!!!" exasperated beyond description, and he took Fluttershy for the head, trying to forcefully break her will.

"Discord... what are you doing? You're scaring me..." Barely said Fluttershy. "Are you... going to eat me? Are you going to eat me?! Heeeeeelp! Heeeeelp! Twilight! Pinkie! Dashie! Teddy bear! Anypony! Heeeeelp! He's going to eat me, he's going to eat meeeeee!" Fluttershy cried, meekly trying to push Discord's head away from her with her forelegs.

Fluttershy calls reached the other mares ears, who quickly galloped to the spot. There, Twilight scolded him: "Discord, you filthy pony-eater! How dare you to take advantage of the weak and defenseless?! Release our friend at once!"

But Discord didn't released Fluttershy, as he was determined to break at least one of the ponies.

"Discord, I regret to have given your welcome party! You're not better than a bucking gryphoon, you damned horsehit!" Pinkie angrily scolded him too.

"Discord, then my fears were justified! You ate Dashie's wings and now you're going for Flutters! Uncout! Degenerate! Disgusting! How can you be so insensitive?! I hope that you end thrown in a muddy swamp and never come out!" Rarity scolded him too.

Rainbow Dash wanted to say something, but she was at the brink of a nervous breakdown, and she couldn't.

"That's enough!" Twilight protested: "Fifth Seal Life-Force Dispelling Spell!" And her horn reappeared on her head again. Then, she lit it, teleporting Fluttershy back to safety, near them.

Discord stood up and smirked: "Heh, I think we're missing some chaos here." But before he could do anything else, he has to teleport by himself, to avoid a Hadou-ken of Pinkie.

"I think you're missing a lot of things here, Discord!" The pink mare warned him. "A lot of things have changed in four thousands years, so snuff up, horseshit!"

Discord appeared again, and mischievously threatened them: "Of course there's a lot of things missing, as I have your magic, and if you keep attacking me, I'll never give it back to you."

"Then, suit yourself, Discord, because I'm not using ANY magic!" Twilight defied him. "So, come and fight with somepony of your level!"

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes and muzzle wide: "Twilight, you're still using your life-force?! NO, stop, you're gonna die!"

"Don't worry, Dashie. I know my limits. And I'm not gonna let that filthy pony-eater unpunished for leaving you wingless!"

Discord chuckled. "You? At my level? Little pony, not even Celestia and Luna together are at MY level." He bragged. "And without your Elements of Harmony, you'll never defeat me! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" He laughed, triumphant.

"Twilight... my wings are gone... let it go..." Sadly pleaded Rainbow Dash.

Twilight looked to her, concerned. "What?! NO! Your wings meant everything for you! I can't allow...!"

"Twilight... please. Your life is more important... than my wings... let it go... please..." Rainbow Dash sobbed, interrupting her. But, as Twilight wasn't giving up, she added: "Twilight, let it go, or I'll kill myself!"

Twilight looked down, and unlit her horn. Then, she looked to Discord, enraged: "I had enough of this horseshit!" Then she turned to her friends. "We're not playing his stupid games anymore, as it's clear that he's tricking us! Just think: He may be crazy, but he's not stupid! How he's gonna give the only artifacts that can defeat him, to the only ponies that can defeat him?! All is a deception!"

The smile disappeared from Discord face: He have hadn't no fun until now, and it looks like that he wouldn't have any fun anytime soon.

"So, to the Tartarus with the Elements of Harmony!" Continued Twilight. "I'm gonna call back my coltfriend, and together we'll give Discord the beating of his life! Pinkie, you protect the ponies while I'm out! The others, head back to Ponyville and organize the evacuation of the town! Move!"

"Hold right there!" Discord raised an arm, and he put it on his mouth and pulled out Rainbow Dash's wings: "Look what I have hereeeeee!" He anounced, swinging them.

"MY WIIIINGS!!" Exclaimed Rainbow Dash, raising both forelegs in front of her.

Right following it, Discord swallowed the wings again.

"NOOOOOOO!!" Rainbow Dash sobbed, and turned to cry again on Fluttershy's shoulder.

"You bucking bastard! Stop torturing my friend! Give her wings back to her!" Twilight exclaimed, enraged.

"Now you see." Joyfully said Discord. "You'll have to play with my rules, or I'll accelerate my digestion, and the cyan pony can say her wings bye-bye."

"NOOOOOOOOO!!" Cried Rainbow Dash.

Twilight trembled and clenched her teeth, infuriated: "Alright... Discord. We'll play by your rules. So... what's next?"

Discord tried to laugh, but there was something about that pony... a resolve... that scared him... But, while he had the wings of her friend, he'll keep her at bay.

"Well, then, it looks that we have to play another game. Shall we?" He happily opened his arms, sure to win this time.

A green skinned male changeling drone, with a slightly darker green mane and tail, quickly flown inside his hive, and there, he galloped to a group of about fifty male and female regular drones, who were spreaded all around the place, lying in the floor in different positions:

"Brothers, sisters! Gather here, quick! I've brought food!" He happily announced, but no changeling moved a bit. "Brothers, sisters, what are you waiting for?!" He asked, concerned. "Come on, you're passed too many days without eating! Come on, gather around me!"

But, no changeling moved.

Scared, the drone galloped to the nearest female drone: "Faria, Faria, look to me, look to me, please! I've brought food! Come, take your portion!" He neared a foreleg to her.

Faria half-lidded her eyes: "Thorax... please... let us go."

Thorax opened his eyes wide: "What?! No! Come on, Faria, eat already! I've to feed the others!"

Faria slightly smiled: "You're too kind, Thorax... but we've already given up. We can't take this anymore... the everyday... struggle... starving... suffering... no more, please." She sobbed.

Thorax lowered his foreleg, dumbfounded, and looked around to the other drones, very concerned: "Then... are you all... giving up?"

The surrounding drones nodded: "We can't take this anymore, Thorax... Save yourself... You don't need feelings to survive... let us go, please..."

Tears slid on Thorax cheeks: "No... You're my familyyyyy... my brothers and sisteeeeeers... I can't turn you down... I caaaaan't!" He sobbed.

But he received no answer to his plead.

Heartbroken, Thorax turned around, and slowly walked away, sorrowful, while mourning: "Ohhh... I have failed... I knew it... I knew that I was an useless half-breed... I was never meant to have been born!" He cried.

Then, he walked to an improvised armory, took a dagger with his magic, and sit on his haunches, mourning: "Don't worry, my brothers and sisters... We're going to be together... forever..." And he raised the dagger, to kill himself.

"NO NO NO NO! WAAAAAAAIT!! WAAAAAAIT!!" Queen Chrysalis' voice saved him in the last second:

"Auntie?" He turned his head, hopeful.

Chrysalis flown to him and threw the dagger far away, and happily announced: "My dear subjects! Your Queen has returned! Quick, gather here to fed!" Then, she turned her head to Cadance: "Princess, cast your spell, quick!"

After all the drones had been fed, they bowed before their queen, grateful: "Thank you, thank you, my queen! You've saved us, when we had lost all hope!"

Chrysalis smiled: "I'm not the one to thank to. Here, she's your savior: Princess Cadance, from Equestria."

"Princess Cadance? She's the royalty? My queen, then, you managed to convince Celestia to forgive us?!"

Chrysalis shooked the head, ashamed: "I'm sorry, my dear subjects, but I couldn't do that. Cadance decided to aid us on her own will."

Thorax looked to his aunt, concerned: "Auntie, but that doesn't turns her into a traitor? If she returns now, she'd likely to be sent to prison!"

Cadance blushed, as Thorax's greeny mane reminded her the bush that she used for magic practice: "Ow, that's OK. I was weary of that boring Canterlot Castle, anyway. And finally, I had the chance of having a real trip! To know the rest of Equus, and not to spent all my life locked-up within closed walls!" She happily explained.

"Alright." Chrysalis turned to Cadance. "Princess, now, let's talk about your part in our deal."

Cadance looked around, dumbfounded: "Here? Around all your subjects?"

Chrysalis giggled. "Princess, I don't hide anything from my subjects. Whatever I decide to do, they have the right to know."

"Ow." Cadance understood. "Well, I was thinking... that 'taking the pink mare out of the way', was a bit going too far. I think that we'll better ponynap my coltfriend, and have him brought here!" She proposed, with an apologetic smile, while thinking: 'Oh, holy heavens... Now they're going to think that I'm a whimsical filly, and they're going to scold me off...'

Chrysalis giggled: "Oh, you're such a whimsical filly! But if that is what you want, then of course that we'll do it!"

Cadance stopped short talking, dumfounded: "... Ow... I... Well..."

Chrysalis chuckled: "Come on, Princess! Don't be ashamed to be in love, or your cutie mark is going to disappear!"

Cadance backed off her head, scared: "What?!"

All the changelings laughed: "We're just teasing you, Princess! Don't take us too serious!"

Cadance sharpened the eyes, annoyed. "Bucking clowns..."

Then, Thorax turned to Chrysalis: "Well, auntie, I'm going to check on the lower levels of the hive. They'll be needing to be cleaned, as they'll be receiving eggs soon. Didn't they?"

"Alright, my dear nephew-in-law, but there's no rush. I have to find a King first, you know?" Chrysalis sadly smiled, looking down, making circles with a foreleg and speaking with a mild tenderness, slightly blushing with a green shade of her cheeks.

"Permission to proceed, my queen." Said Thorax, with a royal tone.

"Permission granted. Dismiss." Answered Chrysalis.

After Thorax had left, Cadance turned to Chrysalis: "Chrys... Can I call you Chrys?"

"Sure. You can call me as you want."

Cadance giggled: "Humm, that stallion... he looks so different from the other drones. He's not bald, or tailless either, and he's... so handsome."

"Ow. Thorax, handsome? Ohhhh... he's a daintiness..." Chrysalis smiled, looking up and putting a foreleg in her cheek, with unhiding enthralment. "And I think that's because he's half-breed."

"Half-breed?" Cadance startled. "With what other specie?"

"With ponies."

"With ponies?! Changelings and ponies can mix in?! I didn't knew that!"

"Neither do I!" Chrysalis replied, and both mares laughed: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

"Ok, then..." Said Cadance, putting a hoof in her cheek. "And... do you have... you know... any feelings for him?"

Chrysalis blushed green again: "Me? Well, I... humm..." She nervously looked to the sides.

Cadance giggled. "Come on, you don't have to hide your feelings from me."

Chrysalis made an apologetic smile: "Oh, Hives. It was so evident?"

Cadance giggled again: "And, what about him? Does he feels the same for you?"

Chrysalis looked down, sorrowful. "Unfortunately, he doesn't. He still sees me as family, so I fear that we'll never get anywhere."

"Ow. That's too bad. And where are his parents? I haven't seen anypony else here."

"Oh. His father died in combat, and his mother died at delivery. And Thorax has spent his entire life blaming himself for that. Could you please, talk to him? I don't know what else to say to lift his mood up."

"Ow! Sure!" Cadance smiled, closing the eyes and deeply blushing.

Not long after Thorax had reached the hive's lower levels, Cadance stepped down there too:

"Princess! But what are you doing here?! This is not a place for a Princess like you! Is dirty, ugly and stinky!" Thorax complained, concerned.

Cadance sniffed two or three times: "I don't smell anything." Then, she looked around: "And this place looks very clean and neat. Why are you coming here then? It's not like that it needs any taking care of."

Thorax lowered his head and looked down, evasive: "That's none of your business..."

Cadance walked to him: "You come here to cry and grieve, didn't you?"

"No!" Replied Thorax, with tearful eyes and sobbing voice.

Cadance was touched. He looked so commiserable, so needed of love and support!

"You know, Thorax? My mom died on delivery, too." Cadance lied.

"What? She did? And how...? How are you taking it?"

"Quite fine, actually! I don't think on that anymore. That wasn't my fault. One does not ask to be born, you know?"

Thorax raised his head, hopeful: "Do you...? Do you think so?"

"Of course! And, I have to tell you, that never was a hitch to give and receive love! I even earned my cutie mark by giving love to everypony around!" Happily said Cadance. "So, there's no need to lash yourself for something that you haven't the control of. You have the right to love and to be loved. You've earned it."

Thorax started to shed tears, and his lips formed a trembling smile, and his heart, for the very first time in his life, felt as light as a feather. That touched Cadance so hard, that she started to shed tears too, and she sat on her haunches, raised her forelegs in front of her and told him with closed eyes and a soothing smile: "Come on, Thorax. Give me a hug."

With no second thought, Thorax launched himself to hug Cadance, crying of happiness and relief. Cadance's head popped from Thorax's shoulder, with eyes wide open: He hugged her so tightly, that she thought he was going to break her bones or something!

Cadance frowned, and her eyes moved to a side, thinking: Wait a sec. Why should she still be troubling herself with Shining Armor, if he didn't loved her anymore? Besides, it was clear that she didn't needed him. She has spent seven months avoiding him, and there she was, alive and still kicking. Maybe it was time to move on? Start a new life, in a new place, among new ponies, or, in this case, changelings? Wasn't that what she had always wanted, a life of adventure, traveling around Equus, to know another countries, another cultures? Being herself, without the burden of her royal status?

Why she would come back to Equestria, just to face neverending mockings and embarrasment, specially from that jerk of Prince Blueblood? Why don't she better, take the chance that she had right on her hooves, a hopeless and love-needing handsome stallion, who surely wouldn't care about not being the first one? Why not...? So, she closed her tearful eyes too, and hugged him tight, tight, tight...

Chapter 18 - Unexpected Solutions for Unexpected Troubles

Twilight, all sweated and panting, managed to stand up in her trembling legs. She looked around, with tired eyes. She had lost the account of how many 'games' Discord had played with them. Then, she turned around, to check on the rest of her friends.

Pinkie was sitting on her haunches, all sweated too: "I'm so tired... and so hungry. A cupcake. I could kill for a cupcake..." And her stomach growled.

Fluttershy was all sweated too, but her concern was another: "Oh, my Flash Sentry and I had agreed to have a date today, and I'm late already. What about if he thinks that I've turned him down? He's so softhearted, he could try something against his life. I'm so worried!" She mourned, putting a hoof in her face, closing her eyes and slowly shooking her head.

Rarity was drooped on her side in the floor: "I... can't go on... I'm so tired... the mean guy already won... I can't go on..." She mourned, panting and looking around while talking.

Rainbow Dash was sitting on her haunches, talking to her own forelegs: "Hey, haven't you seen my wings?" She asked with a smile, looking to a hoof and waving it a bit. Then, she looked to the other hoof and waved it too: "No, I think they're gone on a vacation or something." Then, she looked back to the first hoof: "Well, tell them to not to take too long, I can't be a wonderbolt without them!" Then, she looked to the other hoof and waved it too: "Right! That's so funny!" And then, Rainbow Dash started to laugh maniacally: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" and suddenly, her laughter turned into crying tears: "Wahhhhh-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ahhhhhhh-ah-ah-ah-ah..." and Fluttershy quickly hugged her, trying to confort her up as best as she could.

But, from all the ponies, the one that was in the worst shape was Applejack. She was sweating cold, pale and trembling, and she was pushing her left foreleg to the left side of her belly.

"AJ, are you alright?" Twilight asked her, concerned.

"No, Twilight. Ah feel dizzy, and Ah hav' a piercin' pain in the left side of mah belly..." Applejack could barely say, and right after that, she almost fall to a side, but Twilight held her and gently laid her in the floor.

Worried, Twilight said: "Fifth Seal Life-Force Dispelling Spell!" and made her horn reappear even again, as Discord had made it to dissapear again. Then, she checked on Applejack's vitals, finding, horrified, that her liver was inflamated, with a high risk of hepatic failure, and her blood pressure was high up to the clouds! She could have a cardiac arrest any minute! This can not continue any longer!

Applejack looked to Twilight with weary eyes: "How Ah am? Please, Twilight, don't lie to me..."

"AJ... What happened? What was your test?"

"Just climbin' a supposedly neverendin' stair. But Ah thin' tha' ah overforced... Com' on, Twilight, don' change the subject. Tell me how Ah am already."

Twilight looked down, sorrowful: "You're dying, AJ..."

Applejack closed her eyes: "Ah imagined so..."

Discord was standing, with his forearms crossed, thinking in what other test he could put those ponies to pass through. He was so upset! No matter how many twists, how many turns, how many tricks he puts them, they always manage to overcome them with their will intact, with their friendship as strong as it started! Tartarus, that was boiling his blood up! He wasn't having any fun! Twilight always remained steady and focused, Pinkie always was happy and forthcoming, Rarity always was generous and freely giver, Rainbow Dash always was loyal to the death, Applejack always was honest to the bone! ARGH!

Discord smirked: Bah! That doesn't matters, as he had unlimited strenght and those ponies don't, so their will was going to break sooner or later, and he won't stop until doing so!

So, he turned around, ready to give the Mane 6 even another test, finding Twilight right behind him:

"Little pony, what did I told you about that horn, huh? You're breaking my rules!" Discord scolded her with a mischievous smile, raising a finger up.

Twilight sharpened the eyes: "This can't continue, Discord! AJ is dying! Let her go to the hospital, she needs urgent medical assistance!"

"Sorry, but all the ponies have to play, or all the ponies my game will fail." Discord carelessly refused.

"Then heal her! You're powerful enough for that!"

"Sorry, little pony, but I can't heal anything besides myself!"

"What?! You can make our body parts to appear and disappear at will, but you can't heal us?! That doesn't make any sense!" Twilight complained.

"Making sense? What's the fun in making sense?" Mocked Discord.

Twilight trembled. A wave of rage passed through all her body: "Miserable degenerate... I swear that you'll pay for this... I'll make sure that you met a fate worst than death!" She angrily assured him, with her teeth clenched.

Discord chuckled, trying to sound nonchalant, but he felt Twilight's raging outburst, making his scales to shiver.

"And what are you going to do? I have your friend's wings. Remember?" Discord mocked again.

"Don't... push... your bucking... LUCK!" Twilight angrily blurted, shrugging an eye, about losing her temper. "I demand a time out!"

Once back in Ponyville, Twilight hasted in sending a help request to Celestia, asking for advice in defeating Discord, but she received notice of the both alicorn princesses leaving to the battlefront. Equestria was in war hoofing, and she, the strongest mare in the kingdom, was stuck with a bucking heartless clown!

Not even arriving to the border, Celestia galloped to hug me: "Oh, my love! I was so worried about you!"

Luna shrugged an eye and shooked the head: "'My love'?"

I scrunched the mouth: "Yep, she still believes that she have a chance." I despectively assured.

"What?! Do you mean...? Do you mean... that... that... I haven't any chance... at all?!" Celestia asked, with quivering eyes, horrified and saddened, with her forelegs crossed over her chest, hyperventilating.

I quickly gave her a hope, because I knew what was gonna happen next if I told her otherwise: "Unless you win that duel with Twilight, of course!"

Celestia looked to me, hopeful, and lowered her forelegs, and a wide smile appeared on her face: "For... for real?! If I win, you'll be my King?!"

I made a defeated gesture with my arm: "Yes... that's exactly what I said..."

Luna smiled too: "Then, get ready, sister, because I'm challenging you next!"

"For the ancestors' sake, Luna! Three times wasn't fair enough?!" Celestia startled, and looked her sister, shocked.

I quickly put my open hands in front of me and twitched them in a 'hold right there' gesture: "Alright, alright. Let's leave all that horseshit for when everything is over with. OK?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Both princesses nodded at the same time, smiling. At least there's something that they're agreeing with.

Suddenly, a scroll appeared near Celestia, and she quickly took it, mourning: "Oh, Holy Heavens! I hope this isn't more bad news!" And opened it to read. Then, she put a hoof in her cheek, concerned: "Oh no! Discord is taking my Elements to the limit!"

I looked down, doubtful. This wasn't what was supposed to happen. Discord should be already taken care by now!: "What's happening, Cellie? Who's that Discord?" I asked as if I didn't know.

"Oh, he's an ancient God of Chaos. Four thousands of years ago, he appeared, apparently from nowhere, and started to spread chaos around my kingdom, causing so much suffering to my ponies, that my sister and me had to intervene! We tried to talk with him, but he's a lunatic who can't be reasoned with! Luna and me managed to defeat him, turning him into a statue with the power of the Elements of Harmony, but now he has returned and it looks that the same trick is not going to work twice!"

"He can't be reasoned with? How can you be so sure?" I asked, dumbfounded, as I remembered that he actually could BE REASONED with.

"Because according to what Twilight is reporting me, he's blackmailing her with Rainbow Dash's wings, and, even worse, he has driven Applejack to near death! And I don't know what to advice to her!"

"What?!!" I opened my eyes wide, concerned and enraged: Of course! If this is the 'Adult version of MLP', Discord has to be completely evil, beyond any redemption! My marefriend is in serious danger! All my doubts and guilts were removed from my conciousness, as I understood what was I'm really doing here in Equestria: I had to get rid of that blight, for once and for all!

"Cellie... I have to return to Ponyville. Twilight is in danger." I told Celestia, very serious.

Celestia turned her head, to angrily look at the gryphoon army, which gasped and gave some steps back, scared.

"I know it. And don't worry, my love. Those cowards gryphoons won't try anything without their 'Secret weapon'. And when she arrives, I'll be waiting for her. I'm not going down this time!" She assured, with unbreakable resolution.

I turned to Trixie: "Trix, take care of the firearms. After me, you're the pony that know better those weapons."

"Ha, of course I do! I designed them by myself!" She bragged, smiling and putting a hoof in her chest. But, she quickly rectified: "Using your directions, of course." She added, with an apologetic smile.

I smiled too: "Trix, I can't thank you enough for all this you're doing."

Her face turned to a surprised one, and she blinked several times, dumbfounded. "Huh?"

Then, I turned to Celestia: "Cellie, give her a high rank officer degree, and put her in charge of the gunponies batallion. She knows what she's doing."

Celestia smiled, and lewdy blinked several times: "Of course, but only if you kiss me."

I opened my eyes, dumbfounded: "What?"

Celestia giggled: "Gotcha!"

I smiled too: "Seems that you're learning to be mean, huh?"

Trixie's eyes moved from a side to the another, still shocked: "Somepony please pinch me..."

A little while had passed after I had teleported back to Ponyville, when Luna asked Celestia: "Sister. What are we doing here, sitting like a pair of stupids in front of the gryphoons? An exhibition? Why we don't attack them already? They wouldn't stand a chance."

"Sister, I gave my word that Equestria will never start any conflict. And I'm intending to fulfill my vow."

"With that treacherous gryphoons?! Come on, let's smash them! I'm in more risk to die of boredness than in battle!" Impatiently requested Luna, standing in front of her sister.

Celestia giggled: "Always so impatient, little sister. I bet that's why you never got married."

Luna blushed: "That's... that wasn't the reason!"

"Ah no? And which it was, then?"

Luna hesitated to answer. "I never found the right one..."

"Why not, sister? You're prettier than me."

Luna blushed again, pointing herself with a hoof: "Me? No...! Do you really think that?"

"Of course! Just look at me! I'm an old hag." Celestia pointed herself with a foreleg.

Luna shooked the head, embarrased: "No, sister! I didn't mean that!"

Celestia giggled again: "Gotcha!"

Luna shooked the head, but upset this time: "I can't believe this, you got me again!" and both mares giggled, with a hoof under her muzzles. Then Luna sit on her haunches again, at the side of her sister, with disgusted half-lidded eyes: "The life has been so unfair with us, eh sister?"

"Indeed. And after all we have been through, now we're back to where all started: We fighting for the same stallion."

Luna looked to her sister, sorrowful: "Look, sister, I... I really don't want to do this, but I can't imagine my life without the pleb scum. I just... can't."

Celestia smiled: "Me neither. So, I was thinking..." And she looked around, making sure that nopony was hearing them, and then putting her head closer to Luna's and whispering to her: "That we can make a herd instead."

Luna looked at her, dumbfounded, and then, a smile appeared on her face: "Sister! I was thinking the same thing!" But then, her face turned to a sorrowful one again: "But Twilight wouldn't allow it. That stubborn and selfish filly! She wants him for herself and just for herself!"

Celestia half-lidded her eyes: "Don't worry, little sister. I have a plan." She happily announced in a low tone and winked in complicity.

When I arrived to Ponyville, Twilight appeared from nowhere, happily galloping to me: "My loooooove! I brought you here just minding you!" And she jumped to me, and we kissed and hugged each other tight, tight, tight, and our hearts, as usually, beat as one.

Then, I quickly reached Applejack, and healed her, also telling in loud voice: "Alright, her life isn't at risk anymore, but she still needs to rest from ten to fifteen years."

Applejack raised her head, scared: What in tarnation?!"

Twilight and me laughed: "Fifteen days, AJ!"

"Ahhh... please, don' scare me like tha.'.." She lowered the head and put a hoof in her chest, sighing of relief.

Then, Twilight, Pinkie and me marched to face Discord, as Rainbow Dash's mental condition impeded her to battle. That damned Discord! Just when we needed Dashie the most!

Discord smirked when he saw me: "So... this's your fearsome 'coltfriend', huh?" He mocked of Twilight. "He doesn't look so scary for me. Actually, he looks weaker than a pony, if I may say so." Then, he adquired a twisted stance: "And why you're not a pony, huh? Twily, I didn't know you were into bestiality!" He prattled. "I can turn him into a pony, if you want to... Hey, that sounds like fun!" He happily raised his arms over his head.

And he clacked his fingers, as I knew he'll do, but his spell died in my dispelling body shield.

"Hmmm... this is weird. Do you have magic? Ow! This can become even funnier!" He prattled again. "A magical duel, like the old times! But I have to warn you: I'm a hopeless cheater!"

I smiled. As if I didn't know: "Do you know what's gonna be really fun, Discord? What's gonna happen if you don't hand over Dashie's wings. That's gonna be amusing to death!" I assured, with an evil smirk, my fists in my waist and making my raincoat to float in the wind like I was a superhero.

Discord's smile trembled, as his flippancy started to falter.

"So, shall we begin...?" I started to say, but he popped out from existence. That damned coward! He'll never engage in a direct approach! He'll wait that I end up wounded or disabled to strike! And, worst of all, he still has Dashie's wings! The longer this situation takes, the higher the risk that her mind ends up permanently damaged! DAMN!

Twilight looked to me, worried: "Oh, no! He escaped! Now, how are we gonna recover Dashie's wings?!"

I kneeled to her level and whispered to her: "I can't talk right now. He's near, listening." And saying that, I put my hand behind my ear, pulling out a little Discord, who was wearing diapers.

"You won't harm a baby draconeequs. Would you? That'll be such a crimeeeee!" He spoke with a baby-like voice. Next, he popped out from my hand before I scrunched him like a tin can and danced like he was a painting on the walls of the houses around the town. "Hey, over here! Shoot here!" He tried to trick me. But I knew he was doing that, so I ended up destroying the houses. Nice try.

Hmmm, it looks that he'll come near to hear what we're planning. I can use that as an advantage. And, according to my experience, Pinkie's best resort was her spontaneity. So, I knelt and whispered to her: "Pinkie, I need you to create a distraction, so we can catch him off guard."

"A distraction? I have the perfect one! A party! A DiscordBuckYouAndDieLikeTheBuckingDegenerateYouAreAnd..." Pinkie started to ramble.

"That's enough, Pinkie. I got the point. Move out." I whispered to her.

"... ImGonnaKillYou party!" Pinkie ended blurting the name of her 'party' anyway, with sharpened eyes.

Then, I made a 'come closer' gesture to my marefriend, and we started pretending that we were planning something. And Discord, as I imagined, come closer, dancing nonchalantly on the paint of the house walls.

Pinkie, by her side, apparently from nowhere pulled in her Party Jukebox, and started to dance while singing:

"Discord Discord Discord die, I'm gonna kill you." And, inexplicably, she managed to grab Discord from a wall of a house, pulling him out by biting one of his horns and next strangling him with a neck-lock, making him to pull his tongue out. "Discord Discord Discord die, 'cause you hurt my friend." Discord tried to escape, but Twilight and me quickly stepped near him, aligning with the planet's magnetic poles, and I extended both arms and said: "North-West!" and Twilight extended both forelegs and said: "East-South!" And then, both of us said at the same time: "Four Cardinal Axis Magic Binding Spell!"

Now, he wasn't gonna go anywhere. Pinkie continued with her fearsome song: "Discord Discord Discord die, nopony is saving you, Discord Discord Discord die, 'cause you're a crazy fiend." Discord desperately swung his arms and legs, with red face and the tongue out by the air lack, but Pinkie only tightened her deadly 'hug'. "Discord Discord Discord die, your master plan has failed, Discord Discord Discord die, you're gonna die todaaaaaaaay!"

And just when Discord was giving his last agonic stertors, Pinkie released him, and he fell to the ground, deeply panting for air, almost asphyxiated.

Pinkie shrugged an eye and pointed him with a foreleg: "And now, give back my friend's wings, or you're getting a rerun of my 'party'!"

Discord raised a trembling arm and said with ragged voice: "Alright! Alright. Take." And he pulled out Rainbow Dash wings from his mouth, and gave it to Twilight, who quickly galloped to stick them back on her friend. Then, Discord looked to Pinkie, dumbfounded: "How...? How did you managed to be more chaotic than... the God of Chaos himself...?" He asked, among deep inhales of air and coughings, holding his sore neck with a hand.

Pinkie half-lidded her eyes, with a mischievous smile: "Hmptf! I bested you, 'cause you're a loser. And losers always lose, loser!"

Discord's face saddened, and he bite his lower trembling lip and his eyes started to shed tears, about to cry. If it wouldn't be because he nearly killed Applejack, I would have felt pity for him. So, I put both fists on my waist, as I wanted to kill him, but that'll be a bad example for Pinkie, as she was scaring me too. So, I told him with a stern tone: "Discord, you're hereby banished from Equestria, and if you ever come back, you'll be executed in the spot. No trials, no prison. Death! Understood?! Now, get out from my sight!" I pointed with my finger to somewhere around.

Discord closed the eyes and nodded, and he popped out from existence, for a last time.

With Discord's threat taken care off, we now can focus on the gryphoons and their invasion attempt, and our primary concern: Daybreaker.

As Applejack was still in recovering, we were unable to use the Elements of Harmony, providing that we ever found where Discord hid them, as I searched on Twilight's house and didn't find them. Damn! I made a stupid mistake! I let Discord go and didn't asked him where the jewels were! I thought they'll be at the oak tree, like in the show, but he had hid them somewhere else! Well, no point in complaining now.

Well, not just one mistake, but two of them! There was no way to stick Rainbow Dash's wings back on her! It was like her joints had disappeared! Twilight could try a last resort surgery, but that could leave Dashie permanently disabled! It was too risky!

Damn, it seems that we had to bring Discord back, to make him to undo all his misdeeds. But now... Where bucking was HIM?!!

I sadly walked to my marefriend, who was sitting on a chair, sorrowful, loinside to me, in front of a table filled with X-ray pictures and medical books. I scratched the back of my head, embarrassed: "Love... I... I screwed the things up again... Sorry."

Twilight sighed, without turning around: "Yep. I knew you'll do it again, sooner or later."

I looked down, leaving my arms to hang, defeated: "Then... this is it. You're bucking me out, aren't you?"

Twilight hopped down from the chair and slowly walked to me, with tearful eyes, and when she was about a meter from me, she stood up on her hinder legs and extended her forelegs to me: "Hug me..."

I carried her and hugged her: "Love, sorry for being so idiot... I..."

"Shhhh, shhhh, shhhh." Twilight hushed me. "I know it. I know that you're an idiot, but you're my idiot." Then, she backed her head to face me, and smiled: "Don't worry, love. We'll figure it out, together, like we always do."

I smiled too, relieved, as I realized that there was nothing in this world that could break the bond we had...

Rarity walked to Fluttershy, and asked her: "Flutters, I'm so worried, please tell me how our friends are doing!"

Fluttershy sighed: "So so. AJ is recovering, but very slowly, and her physical condition is very delicate, but her prognosis is favorable, as well as her mood. Dashie's mental health, in the other hoof, have me very worried. I've had to double my shifts to keep a constant eye on her. It looks that now it's up to us to take care of her."

"Ow. Then Gus, Twilight and Pinkie already left to the battle front, isn't?"

"That's right. Luckily, Celestia allowed my coltfriend to stay on duty here, or I'd be worried sick." Fluttershy turned her head to watch the clock. "By the way, I think it's time to check on Dashie again. Come on, let's cheer her up together." She smiled.

"Head on!" Smiled Rarity too. While they were walking, she asked: "Flutters, and why Storm Chaser hasn't come to visit her? He wasn't her coltfriend?"

"Exactly. He was. They had a couple of dates, but it didn't work."

"Ow! That's too bad! Do you happen to know why?"

"Nope, and she doesn't wants to talk about it. Maybe you could get something from her, with your 'gossiping powers'."

And both mares giggled.

"Sure!" Confirmed Rarity. "And on what bed is Dashie?"

"Ow, she's right..." Started to say Fluttershy, but when she looked to Dashie's bed, it was empty. "Oh, no!" She exclaimed, horrified. "She slipped away! Come on, Rares, help me find her, quick!"

Rainbow Dash was sitting on her haunches in the borders of Ponyville's training field: "Now I'll never be a Wonderbolt. I know it." She mourned. "But I can't just give up. Wait, I know: I'll get married and have a foal or a filly, and I'll train the little brat to be the greatest Wonderbolt of all times!" She exclaimed with a smile, raising both forelegs to the sky, trying to cheer herself up. Then, she put her legs back on the floor and looked down, sorrowful: "Who I'm lying to? Who's gonna love me now? Nopony loved me when I had wings, so nopony is gonna love me wingless... My life is ruineeeeeed!" She mourned again.

She was disabled lifetime. Her dreams were shattered. Her only hope of having a family gone. She has nothing to live for.

Then, she looked in front of her: There it was, the Glock 9 mm. It was gonna be quick and painless. Of course, if she could figure out how to fire it with her hooves, as she learnt to do it with the wings, body part that she haven't anymore...

"Dashieeee!" Fluttershy's meek scream was heard: "Dashie, there you are, you crazy pony! Why are you worring me like this, escaping from the hospital like a naughty filly?! Come on, come back to your bed, or we're going to be in trouble!" She scolded Rainbow Dash.

"That's right, Dashie! It's not fair that you make your friends to gallop all the town long in such a rush! My tail tangled with something and now I have to spend two hours brushing it again!" Rarity complained.

Rainbow Dash sighed, weary, when suddenly, a shadow passed near her, making her coat to bristle. She looked to the sky, startled, and her eyes opened wide: "G-g-g-gilda! What are you doing here, you bucking bitch?!" She angrily blurted.

The above mentioned gryphoon looked at her, dumbfounded: "I... can't... believe this! You really lost your wings!" Then, she looked to a side, annoyed. "This definitively will ruin the fun."

"That's right, Gilda!" Confirmed Rainbow Dash. "You arrived too late! Someone else tore my wings off, ate them, and made me watch! So, what now?! What're you gonna do, huh?! You can't make my life more wretched of what it is already!"

Gilda looked to Fluttershy and Rarity, and smirked: "I beg to differ..."

Rainbow Dash's expression changed from anger to fear, and she turned her head to her friends: Even still having her wings, Fluttershy wouldn't ever be able to escape from Gilda's speed, and Rarity, even still having her horn, was as pretty much defenseless as Fluttershy. It was up to her to protect them!

Rarity lit her horn, bluffing: "Stand back, filthy gryphoon, I've made great progress in my combat skills! I'm warning you!"

Gilda evily chuckled: "Sure. If you had done so, you'd had taken me down by now!" Then, she direfully opened her foreclaws: "Make your last prays, puny pony!"

Fluttershy and Rarity hugged each other: "Ahhhhhh! We're going to dieeee!" They yelled, closing the eyes, scared to death.

Dashie extended a foreleg to a side, trying to cast a lightning sword, but her depressed state had severely dampened her magic abilities, and just harmless sparks came from her hoof! It looks like that she has to rely on martial arts skills!

So, she darted to stop Gilda in the air, just before she could reach her helpless friends, hitting the gryphoon using her own body as a projectile!

Gilda and Dashie rolled around the field, the first trying to cut and scratch the later, while Dashie were doing her best to avoid a mortal wound! Finally, she managed to shake off Gilda from her, giving her a hoof jab in the gryphoon's beak that almost broke it. Gilda took the air, rubbing her beak, smirking: "Oh, not bad, not bad. I was worried that you wouldn't give me a proper fight. This can be fun, after all!"

And she flown against Dashie again, claws opened to kill! Dashie managed to backroll and to dodge Gilda's attack, throwing her away to the ait, but, as the gryphoon could fly, that was nearly useless. Dashie gave some steps back: She can't go in a direct attack. She has to think some steps ahead!

Gilda got ready for another attack, and Dashie waited until she was close enough, and when her foe was, she gave a back flip, supporting herself by just a forehoof, hitting the gryphoon in the beak again! However, the hit wasn't strong enough to knock her down, and Gilda counterattacked, giving a long cut on one of Dashie's hinderlegs. Dashie rolled away from the attacker, thinking for herself: 'That the healing spell works, for Celestia's sake, that it works.' Then, she neared a foreleg to her bleeding wound. Then, she felt Gilda's flutters, coming closer to her. Dashie knew it. There's nothing that she could do. Even if she was able to cast the spell, she wouldn't have enough time to heal herself. All was over.

Dashie closed her eyes. Somehow, her heart was at ease. She was going down in a battle, not in a pitiful suicide. And she did all what she could for saving her friends. So there was no regrets. But the killing blow wasn't coming. Dashie opened her eyes, dumbfounded, only to find Gilda twitching in the grass, with both foreclaws in her ears and looking like she was withstanding the worst of pains.

Surprised, Dashie looked to her side, looking to Fluttershy, who was with her muzzle opened, making a gesture like she was screaming, but no sound was coming from her lips. However, Gilda looked like she was hearing a deafening rumbling. Even her ears started to bleed.

"Ahhhhggg!" Finally could scream Gilda, drooping to the floor, panting, as Fluttershy's lungs ran out of air. Then, Gilda opened a pair of bloody stained crazy eyes: "I'm going to kill you, puny pony!!" She screamed, crawling direfully to Fluttershy, who looked extremely exhausted by whatever she had just done.

Dashie looked around, desperate: There was something that she could do! And then, her eyes spotted the glock 9 mm. For that moment, Gilda had managed to reach Fluttershy, who was crawiling too, trying to escape. Rarity tried her best to stop her, levitating some stones and throwing them to the gryphoon, but with no success:

Dashie said to Rarity: "Rares, the gun! Use the gun!" She kicked the pistol to the unicorn. Rarity took it and tossed it against Gilda too. "Nooo!" Dashie exclaimed, waving a hoof. "Point the avian and pull the trigger! Point the avian and pull the trigger!"

Rarity levitated the pistol again: "What trigger?! What trigger?!" She asked, desperate, as she was watching how Gilda pulled Fluttershy's tail, and dragged the pegasi at the reach of her claws, while slowly raising one of them to kill.

"The one on the ring!!" Screamed Dashie, horrified. Fluttershy could be dead any second.

Suddenly, two shots were heard, and Rarity gasped and dropped the gun, scared, with both forelegs in her muzzle.

Gilda stopped short, with her claw still over Fluttershy. Then, she looked herself, and put the claw in the two bleeding holes that she now had in a side of her body, among her ribs. Dumbfounded, she looked Rarity, and then, she drooped to the floor.

"Oh, for Celestia's sake! Did I killed her?! Did I killed her?!" Asked Rarity, horrified by her own doing.

Dashie made a limping trotting to the motionless gryphoon, who looked to her with a resigned expression: "Well done... puny pony. You... got me. Go ahead... finish it off." She panted.

Dashie sharpened her eyes: "Yeah? And become a horseshit like you? Think again!"

The gryphoon commander raised a foreclaw, indicating his battalion to stop, and then pointed down, and the battalion landed in a woods nearby, waiting for a pegasi scout to pass by. There, the commander turned to his troops: "Good, it seems that they didn't spotted us. Alright, let's rest here and make sure there's no gryphoon missing."

The gryphoons looked around: "I think there are... wait. Where's Gilda?"

"What? She's not here with us? Could she had quit files?"

"No way!" Replied the commander. "She's a proud and loyal member of the Scorpion Squad, our honorable SS Battalion! She'll never quit files, for the Tartarus sake!"

Another of the gryphoons pointed: "Wait! I think that I recall her rambling about how she was going to have her revenge, even if that was the last thing she'll ever do!"

The commander looked down, rubbing his beak with a claw: "A revenge? Of course! She must be wanting to settle a score with some puny pony there at the town! I saw they arguing in the hospital! Come on, we have to fly back! The Scorpion Squad never leaves a soldier behind! Move!"

Rarity ended suturing Rainbow Dash last open wound, and Fluttershy applied her magic, and the wound instantly cicatrized. Then, she bandaged it until the wound ended perfectly protected from the environment. Then, Fluttershy closed the eyes and happily said: "And, that's it. Dashie, how do you feel?"

But Rainbow Dash didn't ansewered, deep in her thoughts. Worried, Fluttershy gently pushed her with a foreleg: "Dashie, are you alright?"

"Huh?" Finally reacted Rainbow Dash. "Oh, yes. Did you two finished already?"

"That's right... Dashie... are you sure you're alright? You didn't wanted to use any anesthesia to treat your wounds."

"Yes, Flutters, I'm alright. I just didn't wanted anything that could daze my mind. Gilda's reappearance here keeps bothering me, and I wanted to meditate about the matter."

"But, Dashie. All that treatment should had been a Tartarus of painful!" Commented Rarity "I think I must have had puntured you at least a million times!"

Rainbow Dash giggled: "Come on, Rares! What you were doing in my coat? An embroidering?"

Rarity frowned: "That's not funny, Dashie! You have us very worried!"

And Fluttershy nodded in agreement. "Hmhmm!"

Dashie made a nonchalant gesture with her foreleg: "You have no need to worry. As a part of my training, I learned that if I put my mind in deep thoughts, I can stop feeling pain."

"Huh?! What?!" Rarity and Fluttershy opened her eyes and muzzle wide and looked each other, incredulous.

"Alright." Continued Rainbow Dash, hopping down from the bed. "I guess I should go and..."

"What?!" Fluttershy protested. "Oh no no no, miss Dash, the last time you 'go out' we all got nearly killed! So, you're staying here in bed until you get recovered and fine!"

"Flutters, Gilda returned to the town and nopony noticed, until she was practically over our heads!" Dashie replied. Didn't you see how she left that poor pony who she caught to interrogate? What about if there are more of them...?!" Rainbow Dash stopped short speaking and looked down, worried: "Oh no..."

Rarity and Fluttershy looked at her, concerned: "Dashie, what's... what's happening?"

Rainbow Dash raised her head, concerned: "Gilda was part of a huge battalion! If she escaped, her battalion could very likely to have too! And they could come here, looking for her!"

"Oh no!" Rarity and Fluttershy gasped, with a hoof in her muzzle, terrified. "We must send a message to Celestia, so she send troops to protect us at once!" Rarity suggested.

Dashie galloped first, while Fluttershy was still yelling her: "But, Dashie, for Celestia's sake! What did I just told you?!"

"Then, nothing?! No reply at all?!" Was asking Rainbow Dash to Spike.

The purple dragon shrugged his shoulders. "You have been all this time here with me. I have nothing to hide."

Flash Sentry opened his eyes wide, concerned: "Oh no, that only could mean one thing..."

"What is it, my love?" Asked Fluttershy.

"They're already engaged in battle! They can't send anypony here! We're on our own!" Answered the stallion Royal Guard.

All the rest of the ponies in Twilight's house gasped of terror.

"Oh no! Of all the worst things that could happen... this is... the... worst... possible... THING!" Dramatized Rarity, with a foreleg in her head. Then, she extended her forelegs to hug Fluttershy, but the yellow pegasi had already hugged her coltfriend. Rarity turned around and hugged Rainbow Dash instead, but the cyan pony quickly complained:

"No, Rares, let it go! My wounds are gonna open!"

Rarity released her, and, looking around, desperate to hug something, she finally spotted Spike. Rarity deeply blushed and sweated cold, and her eyes moved left-right-left-right, until she made her mind and hugged Spike anyway. The little dragon hugged her as well, smiling, with half-lidded eyes, bedazzled.

Rainbow Dash sharpened the eyes, and walked to a shelf where she knew that her master kept his not so small arsenal. She counted the weapons: 7 pistols, 2 revolvers, 3 shotguns, 2 assault rifles, 2 ZMG submachine guns and one sniper rifle. 17 weapons, and counting her glock, 18. And plenty of cartridges and ammo mags.

Rinbow Dash turned to the others, and ordered them with firm voice: "Listen, everypony! We're not gonna let those filthy gryphoons to slaughter everypony here! Rarity, give the alarm and go around the town, gather all the unicorns you can and bring them in front of the oak! Flash, Flutters, do the same with pegasis! Tell the earth ponies to evacuate with the foals and fillies! Move!"

Once almost half of the town was gathered around the oak library, Rainbow Dash announced there: "Listen to me, citizens of Ponyville! Is very likely that we'll get attacked any minute by a gryphoon battalion!" A general scared gasp could be heard. "Celestia has engaged battle in the border, so she can't send us spare troops!" Another general scared gasp could be heard. "So, we have to defend the town on our own! Unicorns, get this weapons!" She ordered, and Spike and Rarity distributed the weapons until they ran out of them.

The unicorns levitated the guns, dumbfounded: They never have seen before such a weapon, a lot less to use it.

"Pegasis, your work is to lure the gryphoons near the gunners, so they can take them down! Don't engage them directly! They'll cut your wings with their claws and that'll be it!" Rainbow Dash explained.

"But how do we use this?!" Asked somepony, raising a shotgun.

"Rarity, show them." Rainbow Dash asked to the white unicorn, who, gulping, took the shotgun with her magic, loaded it, pointed it against a nearby barrel and, covering her eyes, shot it, filling the wood barrel with several holes, from where water started to pour.

The ponies backed off and gasped, scared by the shot's noise.

"Almost correct, Rares, but the eye closing part!" Indicated Rainbow Dash. "Alright, Rares, you can go now. I'll manage from here."

"What're you saying, Dashie? I'm going to make some shots too! After I saw what that uncout and unmannered gryphoon did to that innocent mare, just to make her talk, I have no other choice but filling them of holes!" Said Rarity, with a rarely seen anger on her voice.

After a quick firearm fast-pace, Rainbow Dash was surprised by Applejack, Big Mac, and some other earth ponies, armed with working tools as a weapons:

"AJ! What are you doing here?!" Asked Rainbow Dash, concerned.

"Wha' do you thin', sugarcube? Helpin' , o' course!" Happily replied the cowboy pony.

"No, AJ! You're still recovering from your wounds! Evacuate, now!"

"An' so wha'? Ya'r recoverin' from yars, taa!" AJ replied.

"AJ, earth ponies are no match for gryphoons! Neither of you'll stand a chance!" Rainbow Dash still insisted.

"Look who's talkin'! Ya'r an earth pony taa, if ya haven' noticed!" AJ replied, upset.

"Yes. But can you do this?" Asked Rainbow Dash, extending a foreleg to a side, and casting a lightning sword.

The other earth ponies remained silent.

"I thought so. Evacuate now. I don't want any dead pony in my conscience." Sternly said Rainbow Dash, dispelling the sword, and turning around to check that everything was ready.

"Then, tha's it?! Ya'r leavin' me behind?!" Asked AJ with sobbing voice, about to cry.

Rainbow Dash sighed: "AJ... please understand... is for your own safety..."

"Mah own safety?! Mah own safety, Dashie?! Since when we'r came to this, huh, puttin' me aside because mah... mah condition?!" Screamed AJ, with sobbing voice again. "Ah can fight! Everypony here can fight! Let us fight! Let us help!"

"I can't, AJ! That'll only increase the casualty number! And I'm trying to keep this battle the less physical as possible!"

"An' who elected ya leader, Dashie?!" Replied Applejack, upset. "Ya just started givin' orders and shakin' everypony like ya owned this town!"

"Because I'm an experienced fighter, AJ, and you aren't! Want me to be honest with you, huh?! You're not capable of fighting anymore! Happy now?!" Blurted Rainbow Dash.

"Wha--wha'?" Asked AJ, dumbfounded, letting her rake to fall. "Wha' do ya mean...?"

"I saw your medical report! You received permanent damage the last time you were wounded! You're disabled!"

AJ lowered her head, with tearful eyes: "An' when ya were thinkin' in tell me thiiiiiis?!" She screamed, crying, and turned around and slowly and limping trotted away. Rainbow Dash looked to Big Mac: "Go after her, Big Mac. Don't let her do any madness." Then, she looked to the rest of the earth ponies: "Folks, sorry for speaking like that, but AJ is not really in fighting condition, that's why I had to be so hard with her."

"And us? Can we be useful, somehow?" Asked somepony.

Rainbow Dash thought for a moment: "Actually, yes, you can."

When everything had been settled down, yet another issue was presented to Dashie, in the form of Snips and Snails:

"We want to help too."

"Yeah, we're both unicorns, you know? We can use those fire I-don't-know-what things too!"

Dashie shrugged her eyes, wondering how she could get rid of them. Then, she looked to a side, spotting a large garbage dumpster, and she came out with an idea. So, faking a smile, she put herself between the two, and leaving her forelegs to rest over the stallions necks, she told them, nonchalantly.

"Guys, I have to tell you that I've always had you in great steem."

"Really?!" Happily asked Snips and Snails. "We didn't know that we were so dear for an Element Bearer! We're so honored!"

"That's right!" Confirmed Rainbow Dash. "And that's why I'm gonna trust you a top secret about gryphoons." She whispered to their ears. "You can't tell anypony, or you'll lose the esteem I had on you. Understood?"

Snips and Snaps nodded and closed their respective heads, to hear better.

"The gryphoons like to dive in garbage, it's a mania, like mandatory to them. So, when they arrive, surely their leader will jump to a garbage dumpster, like that one over there. So, you'll hide inside, and when he enters, you'll jump over him and capture him, the battle will be over and you'll be heroes! Imagine!"

Snips and Snails smiled, imagining already how'll be to be heroes. Oh, yes!

"So, move out, hide already and make me proud!" Dashie ordered them, and the two stupids stallions happily galloped to the dumpster, jumped inside and closed the cover.

Dashie smirked: "Good, that'll keep them safe."

Suddenly, a pegasi scout came flying: "They're coming! They're coming already!" She warned.

"Alright! Everypony to your positions! Don't let them reach the foals!" Ordered Rainbow Dash, galloping to the front of her improvised army.

"They're coming!" Said Flash Sentry. "Wish me luck, my love!"

"No! Please don't go, I beg you! I'll die if anything happens to you!" Pleaded Fluttershy, with sobbing voice.

"My love, I have to go! It's my duty as a Royal Guard!"

"No, that's not your duty! Your duty is to stay here, to take care of Spike! Not to go out there to get killed!" Fluttershy insisted.

"But, love! That you're asking me is treason!" Replied Flash Sentry.

"It's not treason! Did Celestia ordered you to fight?!"

"No." Said Flash Sentry, doubtful.

"Shining Armor?"

"...no." Said Flash Sentry, even more doubtful.

"Storm Chaser, anypony?"

Flash Sentry lowered his head, sorrowful: "But they're going to think that I'm a coward!"

"I don't care! I do prefer a living coward rather than a dead brave!" Pleaded Fluttershy, crying, hugging her coltfriend. "Please stay here with me! I need youuuuuu!"

Rainbow Dash looked to Rarity: "Rares, that's enough. You can evacuate now. You've done more than enough."

Rarity smiled, getting ready the sniper rifle: "Yeah, sure. Who's going to save your flank then, you crazy pony?"

Rainbow Dash smiled too.

"Look, they're waiting for us!" Said a gryphoon, pointing the small pony army.

"I don't see any Royal Guard. They're just civilians." Commented the commander.

"Are they surrendering? Because that'll ruin the fun." Complained another gryphoon.

The gryphoon commander smirked when he saw some of them armed with working tools: "Hey, wings. Remember that hunting raids on the yak's lands?!"

"YEEEEEEEESSS!!" Happily raised their foreclaws the gryphoons, and they launched over the ponies!

But, when they approached enough, they were received by a bullet rain!

"But what's this?!" The gryphoons backed off, when they started to have the first casualties. Surprised by the strange attack and the noise of the shots, they tried to escape from the mayhem by flying higher. The fallen gryphoons that were still alive were quickly beaten down by the nearest earth ponies!

Then, a group of pegasi flown up to the gryphoons height, armed with working tools, like rakes, shovels and so. The gryphoons darted after them, but the pegasi only dived down, making the gryphoons to inadvertently come closer to the gunners again, and another barrage took down another large number of avians!

"Commander, we're getting too many casualties! What are that weapons?! We've never seen them before!" Complained a gryphoon.

"We should withdraw! We've lost half of our forces, and we haven't even took down a single pony!" Said another.

"And sink our proud squad in the mud of eternal opprobium?! Never! Death will be better! Wings, attack to kiiiiill!" Ordered the commander.

And with a screeching shriek, the remaining avians dived over the ponies, ignoring the heavy casualties they were receiving. This time it became close-combat. Dashie cast her two lightning swords, and, for her record, she was the one who took down the largest number of enemies. And Rarity wasn't wrong. In the heat of the battle, the gryphoon commander, even wounded, managed to attack Dashie for the back, but Rarity took him down before he could strike, with a surgical precision headshot. And the battle was over.

Flash Sentry sadly observed how the other ponies fought, while he was forced to get stuck with his marefriend, and when the battle was over, he was so ashamed, that he screamed, crying: "I feel so baaaaaad! I feel like garbageeeee!" And he galloped to the dumpster and jumped inside.

"We got him! Catch him!" Happily said Snips.

"He's ours! We're heroes!" Happily said Snails.

And the dumpster started to dance on the most stupid struggle that can be imagined...

When Flash Sentry recovered conciousness, he was surrounded by his marefriend, Rarity and Dashie, who were looking at him with an open wide smile. Flash looked around, dumbfounded: "What... what happened?" Then, he sat in his haunches. "Ohhh, my head... I think something hit me..."

"That's right! You fought bravely against the gryphoons, and you were knocked down!" Happily lied Dashie, with a well faked smile.

"Truly? Did I...? But that's not what I recall. What I recall is..." Started to reply Flash Sentry.

"Forget of what do you think you're recalling! Brain contusion drives to confused memories, so you'll probably start to think ill and so on! I'm correct?" Said Fluttershy, with a tenderness that could soften the hardest of hearts.

"Huh? Brain contusion? But how...?" Still doubted the pegasi stallion.

"Believe me, my love. It's a health professional who's talking." Assured Fluttershy, pointing herself with a hoof, with all the confidence of the world.

All the ponies gathered around Rainbow Dash: "Wow, Dashie, you're awesome! Yo managed to defeat those nasty gryphoons, without any casualties! Five hurras for Dashieeee!"

And the ponies gave her kudos: "Hip hip hurrahhhhh!"

Major Mare herself awarded her, and proclaimed her Ponyville's heroine!

Dashie was so proud, that she thought that she'll go floating any moment. Who needs wings? She can be awesome anyway! Even without legs...! Well, maybe that was a bit excessive...

Scootaloo appeared among the crowd, happily cheering too: "Amazing, Dashie! You organized the town's defence in minutes! You're so smart! I want to be your little sister!"

Rainbow Dash looked down, as it was dawning to her: "I'm... an egghead!"

Once all the mess was taken care off, it was time to check on Applejack. Dashie felt very bad for treating her like she did, but she hadn't time for a long convincing session: She needed to took her off danger fast, not right. So, she, along with Rarity and Fluttershy, payed a visit to Sweet Apple Acres.

"She doesn't want to talk to you." Was Big Mac's riled answer to their request, and then, he closed the door on their faces.

"Oh boy, This looks bad. Maybe I should let her fight..." Rainbow Dash complained.

"She's too weak, Dashie." Fluttershy replied. "You were worried for her, and that's what matters."

"That's right! So, don't worry, Dashie. If Fluttershy forgave me for trying to take her coltfriend from her, I'm sure that AJ..." Started to say Rarity.

"You tried to WHAT?!" Fluttershy bristled like a hen whose chicken are about to be taken, very angry.

"No no no no, Flutters, I mean... that time... when..." Tried to explain Rarity, scared.

"That's enough, both of you!" Ordered Rainbow Dash. "Come on, let's go home. I'm tired..." Then, she looked to Rarity: "Rares, could I... sleep in your house until... I could find something else?"

"Oh, sure! You can stay all the time you need! You can use Sweetie Belle's room. She's staying with our parents these days." Rarity happily agreed.

Chrysalis walked to Thorax's room, finding him very happy and in a very good mood.

"Hello, auntie!" He happily hugged her.

"Hello, Thorax! How's my favorite nephew-in-law doing?!" She happily asked too.

"Well, since I'm your only nephew-in-law, I think that's a bit unfair!" Thorax laughed. "Your true nephews should be more favorite than me!"

"Awwww, always so modest!" Chrysalis giggled, slowly waving a foreleg. "But tell me, it looks that Cadance's visit did you a lot of good!"

"Indeed, auntie! She's so great! She's so cool! She's funny, and beautiful, and she always have something to say... Oh, auntie, I think I'm in love with her!"

"She truly is... what?!" Chrysalis shooked the head, dumbfounded.

"And you know what she told me? I bet you'll never guess! I bet you'll never guess!" Happily said Thorax, doing small jumps of excitement.

"No..." Said Chrysalis with concern, but she could imagine what could it be.

"She said that she was wrong with her feelings, and that she wants to know me better, so... we're having a date! Can you imagine?! Can you?!"

"Nope... I bet I'll never could..." Said Chrysalis with disdain, but Thorax was so happy that he didn't noticed.

"So, auntie. Any advice that you can give to me? How I should behave? How I should approach her? I mean, she's a pony! And not any pony, but a princess pony! Oh, I'm so worried! What about if I don't do it right?! Do you think that she could get upset with me, and doesn't want to talk to me anymore? Oh, auntie! I don't know what I'm going to do without her! I think I could die!" Thorax mourned, with a foreleg in his forehead, concerned.

Chrysalis eyes were quivering, and her half opened muzzle remained silent.

"Auntie? Are you alright?"

"Don't worry, Thorax. You'll do it right. I have to go." Quickly said Chrysalis and left Thorax's room as fast as she could.

Back to her room, she dropped to her nest: "I can't believe this. I can't believe this! She's here just a day, and she already wants to take my Thorax away from me! How dares she?! Whimsical filly, she changes her mind like a changeling changes it's shape! And I can't kill her, I need her to fed my hive...! But... but... if she takes my Thorax away from me... I... I..." Chrysalis sank her head in the nest and trembled, feeling like her heart almost stopped beating. "I have to come out with something before it's too late!" She managed to say after she recovered from the emotional jolt.

Cadance was tiding her new room, when Chrysalis appeared with a green flash, startling her:

"Woah! Oh, Chrys! You scared me! You know, back in Canterlot, the ponies knocked the door before they..." Started to explain Cadance.

"Undo it." Chrysalis interrupted her.

"What?!" Cadance backed off, dumbfounded.

"Whatever you did to Thorax. Undo it."

Cadance blinked two times, without understanding: "What? Why? He's so happy now! And I think I've found my true..."

"You've found nothing!" Chrysalis direfully interrupted her again. "Thorax is mine, and only mine! He's destined to be my King, and you're not going to take him from me!"

Cadance looked the changeling queen, with quivering eyes and shocked expression.

"And we're leaving tomorrow to bring your 'Shirring Almol' whatever he calls, here! And you're going to marry him and let my Thorax away from your hooves! Understood?!"

Cadance gulped and nodded, scared.

"Fine! And if you know what's best for you, you'll respect your vows from now on!" Angrily said Chrysalis, before disappearing again with a green flash.

Chapter 19 - The Least of Two Suns

Equestria border with the Gryphoon Empire, just before Ponyville's second gryphoon attack:

Daybreaker was flying, proudly leading the dragons, after easily convincing them to invade Equestria. Being the standing Arena Champion does had it's advantages, indeed! Suddenly, Discord approached her: "Hey, pretty pretty. You do look like a lot like Celestia. Are you relatives?"

"Yes. I'm her twin sister."

"Are you? I fought with her four thousands of years ago, and she hasn't any twin sister, as far I recall."

Daybreaker shrugged her eye: "And who are you? I don't remember seeing you at the dragonlands. Did you joined later?"

"Oh, yes, I did. What are you seeing here is just a poor humiliated soul, who was only trying to have some harmless fun, but that hideous ponies almost strangled me, and that wicked hairless monkey banished me from Equestria under death penalty. Ohhhh! I'm so disgraced!" He falsely mourned with a fake grieve.

Daybreaker rolled her eye: "That wasn't what I asked. I asked WHO YOU ARE!" She said in a growing upset tone.

"Oh. Where are my manners? I'm Discord, God of Chaos and former ruler of this lands." He presented himself with a reverence.

"Hmpft. Then you must be EXTREMELY OLD." Mocked Daybreaker. "Tell me, what use could I have of an old crock like you?"

"What use? As I've told you, I already fought with Celestia, so I can give some hints on how to defeat her." He smirked.

Daybreaker smirked: "Now you're talking..."

It haven't been long after I returned from defeating Discord, when a huge pegasi battalion, with Spitfire at command, arrived to reinforce us: "Your Highness, Marshal Spitfire reporting on duty!" She saluted. "If there's something that's taught in the academy, it's how to fight that filthy gryphoons!" She assured, and I saw, relieved, how all of them had a full body armor, that protected up to their wings.

Celestia smiled: "Well done, Marshal, but, from now on, General Gus is giving the orders here. He knows about war far much better than anypony."

Spitfire saluted in a military way: "Acknowledged!" Then, she turned to me: "General, what are the orders?!"

"Marshal, you and your troops get the new weaponry I've brought, get a know-how from Captain Trixie, and stay ready to enter in action!" I ordered her, pointing to the site where the gunponies where.

"Yes, sir!" And she and her troops flown to carry on.

I walked to Celestia, and asked her: "Do you want me in command? Are you sure?"

She smiled and lewdly blinked several times: "Love, if you're going to be Equestria's King, is only mandatory that you're put in command of the troops."

"Ahemm, ahemm!" Twilight cleared the throat and spoke with measure: "Your Highness, I'm gonna ask you very politely..." Then, she angrily screamed: "AND JUST ONCE!!" Then, she returned to her measured voice. "That you restrain yourself in calling my coltfriend..." And then, she angrily screamed again: "'LOVE'!!"

Celestia stood up and walked to her, smirking: "You won't be so pretentious after I'll take you down again."

Twilight frowned even more and smirked too: "We'll see who's going down..."

Suddenly, Lieutenant Stout Heed's horn glowed, and he spoke, interrupting the funny girl-fight: "General, I'm detecting a large group of dragons approaching from the enemy's side, an alicorn, and another creature of god-like strenght!

I shrugged the eyes: "A creature of god-like strenght?" and I cast an enhancing sight spell, and looked with my telescope, spotting... Can you imagine? Discord himself! That damned degenerate, he allied with the invaders! I should had killed him when I had the chance!

"Discord has allied with the invaders! This's gonna put us to the limit!" I angrily blurted, waving an arm.

Celestia gasped, scared: "Oh, no! Discord! We barely could defeat him the last time, and he was alone! Now he's coming with an army and all! How are we supposed to defeat him this time?!"

I looked down, pondering the strategy to proceed. Obviously, we'll need the trio Twilight-Pinkie-Me to take care of him, and we had to do it fast, or he'll make disappear the pegasis' wings and the unicorn's horns, putting us in a dangerous handicap. Coward and treacherous by nature, he'll hid on the rear guard, to safely bother us, protected by the dragon army. There was only a way to win this: We had to attack first and fast, with a demolishing strike!

So, I turned to Celestia: "Sorry, Cellie, but I have to break your 'Non-attacking first' policy."

Celestia smiled. "What did I told you? You're in charge now. Do as you wish."

Luna stood up, very happy: "See, sister?! What did I told you?! We need to get past our limits!" And then, she trembled, and surrounded herself with a dark cloud! Her coat turned black, and her eyes became green and shrinked up to became cat-like! Then, she screamed with the Royal Canterlot Voice: "I'M NIGHTMARE MOON, AND VICTORY WILL BE MINEEEEEE!!!" Then, she smirked and looked to her scared sister: "What's happening, sister? Scared?"

Celestia gulped, trembling and sweating cold.

On my side, I teleported back to Cloudsdale, and quickly returned with two weapon prototypes that I was wishing not to have to use, and then, I put my hands on my solar plexus, and said: "Seventh Seal Life-Force Magic Cancelling Surrounding Effect!" And a wave blasted from me, giving all the nearby troops a temporary magic protective shield.

Celestia and Twilight said: "Soul Shield!"

Pinkie cast her flying stones, hopped on them and apologetically smiled, looking to us: "Hummm, I'm supossed to say something?"

The large dragon flock were flying in a care free way, sure to being far enough to be attacked, when... they were attacked! A bombshell fell over them, exploding and causing panic among the scaly creatures! And then another, and another!

"What's this?!" Asked Daybreaker, surprised and confused.

Discord stopped short in the air a projectile, and looked nonchalantly to it: "It seems some sort of explosive metal barrel..." And then, he made it to disappear with a plop.

From the distance, my artillery pieces were keeping fire, while I was looking the results with my telescope: My plan had worked: Now we had Discord's exact location!

"Alright! Twilight, Pinkie, get ready!"

And I teleported the three of us in front of Discord, just in the middle of the dragon flock! Risky move, but mandatory! Luckily, the two artillery pieces continued firing, giving us certain advantage among the mayhen. Celestia and Nightmare Moon teleported themselves just in front of Daybreaker, while, simultaneously, in the border, armed with firearms, the pegasi troops charged to the unwary gryphoon army, which was still expecting for us to wait until they attacked first!

The strategy worked, and soon, the gryphoon army, surprised and attacked for three sides at the same time, and technically surpassed, were quickly sustaining too much greater casualties than our own army!

Discord tried to escape, but, no matter where he tried to go, he always found a scary smirking Pinkie before him: "Discord, my 'friend'! Ready for another rerun?!" She happily mocked of him.

Discord trembled, opening his eyes an maw wide, turning white, and a yellow line appeared in his loin. "Ahhhhhgggg." He gasped of terror, and flown away, with Pinkie behind his tail. With Discord's menace taken care of, we could take care of the dragons, which, after the inital shock, were regrouping to counterattack. Twilight and me made them to regret trying to attack Equestria.

On the other side of the battlefield, Celestia and Nightmare Moon were having a hard time with Daybreaker.

"Useless coward!" Complained Daybreaker when she spotted Discord giving up. And then, she lit her horn... and the sun started to shot powerful lightbeams over her opponents!

"And the sun could do that?!" Celestia backed off, scared.

Nightmare Moon, on her side, rushed to Daybreaker for the front: "Sister! Take her down when I lock her in place!" She indicated, floating over the enemy alicorn, and with a deafening neighing, she surrounded her with a dark cylinder, locking her in place!

Celestia cast her lightning spear, and tried to rush against her evil twin, but, suddenly, a brightly sunlight beam fell in front of her, rendering her blind for a moment! And when she regained her sight, Nightmare Moon was falling defeated to the emptyness!

"SISTER, NOOOOO!!" She screamed, desperate, trying to fly after her but a pair of swords stopped her flight.

"Give me your horn!" Demanded Daybreaker. "Your sister or your horn!"

Celestia didn't gave it a second thought: "Cut it!" She allowed, dispelling her magic body shield.

And just when Daybreaker was going to sever not Celestia's horn, but her head instead, a purple beam tossed her away, while I took Luna just before hitting the ground!

"Your Highness, how could you fall on that dirty trick! She was gonna sever your head, not your horn!" Twilight scolded her, shooting to the still coming dragons.

Celestia shooked the head, realizing her mistake, and landed near her sister, to heal her.

Daybreaker looked around: The gryphoon army was fleeing, with a pegasi squad fusillading the latecomers, the last of dragons were being taken down among large hadou-kens and five-fold purple beams.

The witty white alicorn shrugged her only eye. If the gryphoons where fleeing, why she wouldn't? Better to live to fight another day. And she teleported away and escaped...

Once the battle was over, we put ourselves to the sorrowful task of counting the casualties: unfortunately, at least thirty brave ponies wouldn't return to their homes. On the enemy's side, seventy three dragons and two hundred twenty seven gryphoons gave their last breath. There was a lot more of casualties among wounded and prisoners. So, I could say this was a crushing victory. Those filthy gryphoons wouldn't dare to attack us in a good while.

Even better, Pinkie returned with Discord captured, all beaten up, and throw him with disdain to our feet, where he fell like a deflated balloon:

Ha ha ha ha ha! Did you see, Discord?! Your resistance is futile, whatever you do, you'll be pinkied!" I mocked with my most evily possible smirk.

"Please, spare me. I'm a war prisoner. War prisoners have rights!" He pleaded.

"Yeah, sure. But to earn those 'rights', you still have some things that needs 'fixs'" I mocked again.

"...And then, when we thought that it was dead, it grew another head! We had to cut it and to burn the necks until it couldn't grow anymore!" Was Rainbow Dash bragging about our times when she and I were going bounty hunting, taking down dangerous animals and capturing criminals around.

"Ohhhhhh." The foals and fillies opened their muzzles, amazed by the cyan pony's tall tales.

At the side of Cherilee, Fluttershy was hearing the story, smiling, happy because her friend had overcame her disabling and had given a new purpose to her existence.

"I'm so happy for her." She commented, pouring tears of happiness.

Suddenly, Rarity came galloping, happily announcing: "Dashie! Dashie! Twilight has returned with Discord! They're going to put back your wings on!"

"Wow! I'm coming!" Happily said Rainbow Dash. Then, she turned to the children: "Well, kids, I have to go, have a nice afternoon today and listen to your teacher!"

"Awwwwwww!" The foals and fillies complained, eager to continue hearing her tales.

"Don't worry kids! I'll be back next week, with more stories of bravery and awesomeness!" Rainbow Dash happily cheered them, gesturing a bye-bye with a foreleg.

"Ehhhhhhhhh!" The children happily acclaimed.

When Dashie's wings were back on her sides, she smiled and said, flapping them: "Oh, yes! Back to work, then!"

Twilight giggled: "That's all, Dashie? What about the 'Oh my gosh oh my gosh' thing?"

Rainbow Dash smiled and remained silent for a while: "OhMyGoshOhMyGoshOhMyGoooooosh!!"

The wooden door was knocked, and when it got opened, there were Twilight and Pinkie, looking to the house owner with pleading eyes.

Twilight was the first one in speaking: "Please, Big Mac, let us talk with AJ. We're very worried for her. Pretty please?"

Pinkie raised her foreleg with a platter full of cupcakes: "Look, I've brought apple cupcakes. Her favorites! Well, I really don't know if they're her favorites. But they're tasty! She'd like it!" She featured a wide smile.

Big Mac looked them for a while, very serious: "Let me ask her." And he closed the door.

The two mares waited for a while in front of the door, talking between them.

"Twilight, do you think that he said that to get rid of us?"

"No, Pinkie. Big Mac is as honest as AJ. So, if he'd had wanted us to leave, he'd had told us already."

After a tense while waiting, finally Big Mac opened the door again. "Alright. But make it quick."

When they entered, Applebloom quickly galloped to them: "Than' goodness tha' mah brother let ya in! Ah am so worried for mah sister! She doesn' wanna eat, she doesn' wanna stand up from the bed! She's gonna die! Help her, please!"

Twilight and Pinkie looked each other, concerned.

Once on AJ's room, Twilight came closer to her: "AJ, please, listen to us..."

"Why, Twilight?" Applejack interrupted her. "Why always Ah hav' to get the worst luck of all? Mah parents died on tha' accident, and left me at charge of the orchard. An' now, Ah end up disabled..."

Twilight closed her tearful eyes. "Listen, AJ, I..."

"Tell me, Twilight." Applejack interrupted her again. "If Celestia is as powerful as she says. Why didn' she prevented my parent's death, huh? Why didn' she prevented my misfortune? Where was she, Twilight?! Answer me!" She asked, rather angry and sobbing.

"AJ, Celestia can't be everywhere, she..."

"And how she can call herself a Goddess?! What kind of Goddess is tha', tha' can only look on those tha' she cares of?! An' screw with the others off!" AJ asked, with crying anger.

Twilight looked down, not knowing what to answer.

"AJ." Pinkie come closer. "Celestia is the Goddess of the sun. She takes care of everypony. That's a lot of ponies. And she's only one. So, she can't take care of everypony at the same time! She'll become mad, like me! Can you imagine a Pinkiecelestia?"

AJ turned around in her bed: "Tha's not funny, Pinkie."

"But it's the truth. And the truth is not funny. It's hard and painful. You should know it best."

AJ sighed. "Ya'r all right..."

"Then, eat some cupcakes, AJ. You're gonna die if you don't eat, and that's the truth."

AJ smiled and a tear slid on her cheek: "Oh, Pinkie. I don' know how, but ya always make me smile. OK, Ah'll give 'hem a try..."

"Well, well, well. What we should do with you, huh?" I asked to the scared Discord, with Celestia at my side, and Luna, with a foreleg in a sling, at the other side.

"I'm gonna behave! I promise! I didn't attacked anypony, you know?" Discord pleaded, praising with his hands.

At that moment, Twilight arrived along with the rest of the Mane 6: "Good news, Your Highness! We found the Elements Jewels exactly where indicated!"

"See? That's a token of my good will!" Said Discord in his defence.

"Hmmm, given the situation, maybe we can give him a chance." Celestia said, with a hoof under her muzzle. "If somepony wants to take care of him, of course. Twilight?"

The purple unicorn raised an eyebrow: "What?! Prrft! Not even dead!" She refused with a disdainful smile and gesture of her foreleg.

Celestia turned her head: "Dashie?"

"What?! No! He'll mess with the weather up so much, that he'll put the clouds to rain upwards!" Protested the cyan pony, who was pegasi again.

Celestia turned her head again: "Rarity?"

"No! No no no no no and a thousands times no! I'll blew the tap of his brains first!" Angrily refused the dressmaker.

Celestia turned her head again: "Pinkie?"

This time, it was Discord who refused, twitching both hands, scared: "No no no no no! Not her! Anypony but her! NO!"

Pinkie smiled and turned the head: "Your loss..."

Celestia turned her head again: "Flutters?"

Fluttershy angrily looked to him: "What? After all he made to pass thru to my friends? No way!"

Celestia sighed again, hopeless: "AJ?" She asked without confidence. There was no way she'll accept him, after leaving her disabled.

Applejack smiled: "Ah'll take him."

"Well, given the facts... What?!" Celestia shooked the head, incredulous.

"Ah said tha' Ah'll take him. There's a lot of things tha' ar' needin' to be done in the orchard, an' any help woul' be welcome." She explained.

Celestia blinked a couple of times, dumbfounded, and then, she smiled: "Alright. Then, I hereby order that Discord stays at Applejack's custody. But put him to work, AJ. Don't let him to slack off."

Applejack smiled: "Ya can bet Ah will, Yar Highness!"

After all was settled down, everypony was leaving, but Celestia told to Twilight: "Twilight, my faithful student. I want to talk to you. In private."

Once they were in private, Twilight asked Celestia, concerned: "What's this is about, Your Highness? If it's about our duel, I want to tell you that you already won. We don't have to duel again, so, I'll step... aside..." She sobbed and sniffed a couple of times.

"Shhhh, shhhh, shhhh. That's enough, Twilight Sparkle." Celestia interrupted her. "It's time for us to stop with this nonsense."

"What?" Asked Twilight, still weeping. "What do you mean? I don't understand."

"It's about what you did. In the battle. You could had let me die, and you didn't."

"Ow. That's nothing, Your Highness. Anypony would have done the same."

Celestia smiled. "See, Twilight Sparkle? You always keep despising yourself. That way, no matter how many times I insist you, you won't get serious in any duel with me. And that's not fair."

"Huh?" Twilight blinked. "Ow. Well. But, Your Highness, I still don't see where you want to go with this."

"Ah! It's easy. Instead having a serious duel with me, you'll only have a serious duel with Luna, and, if you win, I'll consider myself defeated as well."

Twilight giggled: "Ow! Then, you're giving a Two-for-One showdown!"

"That's right! Otherwise, I'll end up having yet another duel with Luna! And I think that we'll be needing a third moon this time!"

Both mares giggled.

"Well, everything is settled up, then. Luna's still recovering from her wounds, so you have plenty of time to get ready. But don't push yourself too hard. This is a test, like any other else. Alright?" Celestia explained. "Well, that's all. We'll talk later. Dismiss."

Twilight turned around to leave, but then, she stopped short, and looked to Celestia: "All this was part of your plan, or you came out with this after the battle?"

Celestia winked in complicity: "A bit of each one..."

The sun was raised that morning, as well as AJ's stetson, while she was putting it on her head as she always do, every morning but sundays. Then, she walked limping to Discord's room and knocked on his door: "Wake up, sleepy head. Breakfast is ready."

But Discord didn't answered.

"Com' on, Discord. Yar'v' already slept for four thousands years straigh'. Stretch that ol' bones already."

"But is still too early." Discord complained, yawning.

"Ya'll better get used to it." Applejack smiled.

Once in the orchad, and after an entire morning of hard work, at least, hard for Applejack, as she was trying to do her best, finally the noon arrived. Big Mac left to the house to bring the lunch, and Applejack sat to rest for a while, and Discord sat at her side:

"I... I still don't understand. How could you forgive me so easily, after all I did to you... and your friends?" He asked.

Applejack smiled: "Ya reminded mahself, bac' then when Ah was a liar, cheater an' dishonest."

Discord opened his eyes and maw wide: "No waaaaaaay! You... dishonest? Then, how did you manage to become an element?"

Applejack smiled again: "Ah changed. Ah had to, 'cause all mah misdeeds provoked a situation so bad an' a disaster so huge, tha' almos' destroyed all tha' we had worked so hard to build." Then, she looked to Discord. "So, Ah can say tha' Ah am some sort of reformed villain."

Discord raised his eyebrows "And are you not afraid of... I don't know... a relapse?"

"All the time..." She honestly said. "And ya?"

Discord smiled mischievously: "I want to relapse all the time, but I know that Pinkie Pie will best me, so I stay cool in the meantime, pretending that I'm good." He mocked, lying down on a appletree, with his arms behind his head and half-lidded eyes.

They both laughed.

"An' how do ya feel, Discord? Ah mean, about yar career change from God of Chaos to a mere farmer?"

Discord opened the eyes: "How... do I feel? Good gracious, nopony had ever asked me that before... I don't know. How do I feel? Do I feel? I'm quite not sure." He put a finger in his maw, thoughtful.

"Tha' shoul' had been quite a sad an' lonely life, didn' it, Discord? Not even knowin' if ya can feel a thing."

Discord looked to Applejack, and forced a smile: "Sad? No! Not at all! It was funny, full of jokes and entertainment! Nothing about sad!"

Applejack giggled: "Ya'r lying, Discord, an' Ah can spot a liar from a mile away. So, tell me. Wha' can Ah do to make ya happy?"

Discord's eyes moved to a side, and then, they returned to look AJ: "Anything that doesn't include Pinkie Pie."

They both laughed again.

"Yeah, ya'r right. Pinkie can drive ya crazy sometimes. It's like the saying: 'Taa much of a good thin'. But ya haven' answered mah question."

Discord shrugged the shoulders: "I don't know. I always had got all I wanted, and even all that I didn't, so, it's hard for me to figure out what you could do for me."

"Well, Ah am listenin' to you right now. Wha' do you want to talk about?"

Discord eyes moved to a side again: "I don't know... I mean... this is annoying! You keep asking me things that I'm unable to answer to!" He stood up, upset.

Applejack giggled: "See? There are things tha' not EVEN YA can do."

Discord looked up, and then, he smiled too: "Ohhh, you got me there, little pony. And now, tell me. Aren't you afraid from me?"

AJ shrugged her shoulders: "Why shoul' Ah?"

Discord looked around: "Because we are here, all alone, in the middle of the woods, with nopony nearby. And I'm a God-like Draconeequs and you're a weak and disabled little pony. That's why." He extended both arms.

AJ sadly smiled again: "Why? Ar' ya thinkin' in doin' somethin' nasty?"

"It might be."

AJ looked down. "Well, if tha' makes you happy, then, go ahead."

Discord looked to Applejack, dumbfounded: "What? You're not afraid? You're not worried? For real?"

"Wha's the point, Discord? It's not like Ah could stop ya, anyway. Go ahead. Hav' fun with me."

Discord opened his eyes and maw wide: "For real? You're willingly... letting me to.. do anything I want with you?"

"Yep."

"But... why?" Discord raised his arms, dumbfounded.

"'Cause tha's wha' true friends do."

"Friends? Friends?! Nonsense!" Exclaimed Discord. "How could you be my friend?! I left you disabled! I took the raison d'etre from you! You can't have forgiven me so quickly! How can you want me to be your friend?! That's impossible! That's nonsense!" Discord rambled about, flustered.

"Look who's talkin' about nonsense." AJ chuckled.

Discord stopped speaking and looked to her: "What's happening with me?"

AJ pointed him with a foreleg: "And tha's how ya'r feelings feels. Seems tha' ya can feel, after all."

Discord looked down, even more confused: "Why? Why are you doing this?"

"'Cause, as ya said, ya took the raison d'etre from me, so Ah had to find a new one, by reforming ya."

"Ah! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! That's hilarious! This pony has turned crazy! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! What makes you think...? Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! What makes you think that you'll be able to reform me?! That's impossible! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Incontrollably laughed Discord.

"Well, Ah made ya happy."

Discord stopped laughing, realizing the fact. "Huh?"

"An' Ah may fail, but Ah am not givin' up. A good friend of mine taught me tha' bein' weak an' disabled, it's not a reason to giv' up." Assured, with an everlasting smile AJ.

Discord sat at her side again, looking ashamed to her, and later, looking down again: "Oh. Well. I see."

At that moment, Big Mac returned with the lunch and with Applebloom:

"Lunch time in family, everypony!" AJ happily cheered.

Daybreaker's only eye moved from a side to other, making sure that she wasn't been spotted. Maybe the battle had been lost... But not the war! She still can give a devastating strike to the enemy forces! And the only thing that she has to do, was to render their main weapon, the Elements of Harmony, unusable. That way, she could return to the Gryphoon Empire with her head up, proud of having at least an objective accomplished!

Daybreaker pondered her attacking strategy: As far as she knew, the six Elements were required to use the weapon, which means that she could complete her mission by killing just one of them, so, she has spent her time studying her targets. Twilight, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were out of the question: They were way too powerful. The other three were more approachable: Fluttershy was a good candidate, but she was always accompained by one of her friends, or by her coltfriend, and trying to take down two pegasis at the same time had their hitchs: One of them could escape and give the alarm. The white unicorn with the three diamonds cutie mark looked easier, but she lately had became a master in the use of that new fearsome so-called 'firearms'. Daybreaker still didn't understand how these apparently harmless pieces of metal and wood, could leave a powerful gryphoon like a sieve. It must be dark magic of something.

Then, there was Applejack. She was PERFECT! She was an earth pony, weak and disabled, who spent most of the time in a woody area, accompanied only by other earth ponies or that useless coward of Discord. It was going to be... a piece of cake. If only she could find a way to enter undetected...

Daybreaker's train of thoughts was interrupted by a far away steam engine sound. The alicorn roamed among the woods to look what it was:

"Look, Flam, we're almost arriving to Ponyville!"

"That's right, Flim! And with our Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000, there's no way we can lose! Sweet Apple Acres will be ours!"

And the two stallions laughed, sure of their success. Suddenly, they both opened their eyes wide:

"Your Highness! What an honor! Are you coming to enjoy the best cider ever made?" They smiled apologetically.

Daybreaker smirked: "'Your Highness'? Negative!" And, with a flashing move, she put her forehooves on each of the stallion's muzzles and her swords on each of their necks, impeding them to speak or scream: "I'm Your Worst Nightmare!" Then, she looked to the machine: "And where are you heading with this big piece of junk?"

"Hmmmmpftmmmmpft!" Said Flim and Flam at the same time.

"What? I didn't heard you. Do I have to kill you to make you speak?" Daybreaker mocked, smirking.

"Mmmmoooo mmmmleaseeee!" Said Flim and Flam at the same time again, sweating cold and scared to death.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Evily laughed Daybreaker, releasing her forehooves from the stallion's muzzles. "Answer now!"

"We're going to Ponyville, but only as visitors! Right, Flam?"

"Yeah, we weren't intending on taking Sweet Apple Acres at all! We're only going there because it's the best cider brewer in Equestria, and we want to learn from the best! We swear!"

"Ow! You're going to Sweet Apple Acres, then? But that's not perfect?" Daybreaker mocked.

Next, after threatening them to stay quiet, she opened a side cover of the machine and started to toss inner parts away, so she could fit inside, while Flim and Flam where helplessly staring how she destroyed their precious Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000, letting go the big tear drop. Once the alicorn eviscerated the machine enough, she entered inside and told the owners: "And play along like nothing is happening, or I'll roast alive both of you! Move!" And she closed the cover, perfectly hidden inside the vehicle.

"Well, that's the last of them." Happily said Discord, placing in order the last cider barrel of that season's cider batch.

"Than' ya, Discord. Tha's a great job ya'v done there, sugarcube!" AJ complimented him. "Now, will ya be a perfect gentlecolt, an' help stan' up a damsel in distress?" She asked, with a Rarity-like entonation, raising a foreleg.

"I'll be honored!" Smiled Discord, gently helping her to stand.

AJ was so happy. Slowly but steady, she was managing to turn Discord into a good fellow, and that's all that mattered for her. And even if a solution for her condition was never found, she felt that her purpose in life was already fulfilled.

The Super Speedy Cider Squeezy had already arrived to Sweet Apple Acres, an it was running along the long line of ponies, waiting to buy cider.

"But wha' tha' coul' be?" Asked Applebloom, curious, walking along the machine.

"Oh! This is a Super Speedy Cider Squeezy. But it's broken, so we're taking it to the next repair shop." Lied Flim with a fake nervous smile.

"A Super Speedy Cider Squeezy? And wha's that does?"

"Well, it crushes apples, to make cider."

"To make cider?!" Startled somepony. "Hey, everypony, there's a cider making machine here! This season we're having more cider than ever!"

"Ehhhhhhhhh!" Cheered everypony.

"Claws and beaks!" Swore Daybreaker inside the machine. "Just when I found how to enter, there's half town in a line here!" So, she used her magic and pulled Flam's head inside the machine: "Don't you dare to stop, or I'll kill you both!" And then, put him where he was again, with wide opened eyes and trembling of fear.

"Sorry, everypony, but we can't stop now! We have to take the machine to repair! But we swear that we'll return later!" Said Flam, nervously tighting his small tie.

"Awwwwwwww." All the ponies complained.

Applebloom galloped to her sister: "Sister, sister! There's a cider makin' machine there, but is broken! Yar magical friend couldn' repair it?"

AJ looked to Discord: "Discord, friend. Do ya think ya can repair tha' thin'? Ah imagine tha' won' be the big deal for ya!"

"Oh, I'm sure it's just a mere loosen strap! Nothing that the omnipotent Discord couldn't do!" He bragged, opening his arms and forwarding his chest, and he plopped near the machine, stopping it. Then, he opened the side cover and froze in time and space, when he found himself face to face with Daybreaker.

The alicorn used her magic to slowly pull his head up to left him looking directly to her eyes: "I won't do anything stupid, if I were you. You told me all your tricks, so I already know how to best you." She direfully said to him. Discord eyes's quivered, as he realized the HUGE BIG MISTAKE he had made, by telling Daybreaker how he was going to defeat Celestia.

"So." Continued Daybreaker. "Run for your life, you idiot fool, and don't you even dare to give the alarm." And she pulled him out of the machine.

Discord gulped.

At that very moment, Rainbow Dash landed: "There's still cider left?! Oh, yes yes yes!" She happily gave some small jumps in the place. The, she galloped up to AJ: "AJ! Please, dear friend, give me two well frozen!"

"Sorry, sugarcube, but if ya wan' cider, ya hav' to make the line like everypony else!" AJ indicated her, smiling and closing the eyes.

"Awwwwww! That's not fair, AJ! I never get to the cider! It always ran out of stock first!" Rainbow Dash complained.

"Ya'll get yar cider if ya always came earlier, homey! An' no exceptions, Dash!"

"It's not fair! I can't come so early! That's training time wasted!" Rainbow Dash still complained.

Suddenly, Discord plopped near them, stuttering: "S-sorry, my friend, b-but I forgot m-my tools there in the ho-house and..."

"Discord? Wha's happenin' mah friend?" Asked AJ, concerned.

Discord lowered his head down to the two mares and told them in a whisper: "Sorry, little pony, but this is not my fight..." And he plopped out of existence again.

AJ laughed in all honesty: "Ha ha ha ha ha! Mah friend it's so weird! Always with his clownin's. When he'll learn?"

But Rainbow Dash was already suspiciously looking to the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy and it's... occupants? Flim and Flam had fled from a while ago, leaving a trail of dust in their rushed leave. That's all she needs.

"AJ, take your family and leave inmediately." Said Rainbow Dash in a whisper to her friend.

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Laughed AJ again. "Wha's this? Ya'r threatenin' me just to get the cider? Hav' ya fell so low mah friend?"

"Shhhh!" Hushed Rainbow Dash. "I think there's something wrong with that machine. Leave, quick!"

Rainbow Dash's serious stance finally worried AJ, and she made a silent gesture to her family to get to her. Then, she turned her head to Rainbow Dash again: "An' wha' about the line, Dash? Wha'r we goin' to tell 'hem?" She whispered to her.

"Let that to me." Assured Rainbow Dash, and she walked to the line: "Sorry, folks, but the sell is over! You'll have to come later, when the owner reopens again! Thanks for your cooperation!"

"Hey, she's only saying that because she wants to buy first!" Said somepony, upset.

"Freeloader! Brasher! Perky! Go away!" The crowd started to scold her.

Rainbow Dash clenched the teeth and trembled of anger, but suddenly, she came out with something "Exactly! I'm Ponyville's Heroine, the awesome Rainbow Dash, and that's why I demand to buy first! Anypony dares to face me in battle for that tasty cider?! Anypony?!"

All the ponies shutted up.

Daybreaker trembled of anger inside the machine: Now, that Rainbow Dash were there too! She has lost this chance! She had to try to escape, and try again some other time later.

"So, what are you waiting for? Go home! Hush hush hush!" Rainbow Dash ordered to the crowd, who slowly turned around and walked away, still swearing.

Meanwhile, Applebloom and Granny Smith had managed to hop AJ on Big Mac, and all of them made their leave.

Soon, there was nopony there but Rainbow Dash herself, who hid on a nearby grove, to watch what's inside the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy 6000.

She hadn't to wait too long, as, mere minutes after everypony has made their leave, Daybreaker cautiosly came out from the vehicle.

'I knew it.' Rainbow Dash thought, frowning. 'Luckily, she'll leave without hurting anypo...'

"Com' on, girls! We can take all the cider we wan'!" Happily said Applebloom, galloping with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle back to the orchad.

"Damned be..." Rainbow Dash opened wide eyes and muzzle. Those bucking Cutie Mark Crusaders always appeared at the worst of moments!

A neverending door knocking and Pinkie's calling where heard in Twilight's house: "OpenPleaseOpenPleaseOpenPleaseOpenPleaseOpenPleaseOpenPlease!"

Twilight opened the door: "What's happening Pink...?"

"There's no time! One of our friends is in danger!"

"Who, Pinks, who?!"

"I don't know, that's why I came to see you!"

Twilight looked up and enlightened her horn, to check on her friend's vitals: "Well, Flutters is fine, Rares is fine, AJ... is moving too fast! She can't run that fast, she's gonna hurt her liver!" Then, she turned her head to me, horrified: "Love, quick! AJ is in trouble!"

In middle of a chaotic dust cloud, Daybreaker and Rainbow Dash were rolling, struggling in mortal combat! As she was told before, Rainbow Dash knew that she must avoid to let Daybreaker to perform her deadly tail attacks, and the best way to do that was to stay as close as possible from her, so she couldn't toss her poisonous kunai without risking in hurting herself. But that was easier saying than done. Staying too close of the alicorn mare meant that she could use her Goddess-like strength to crush her opponent against the ground. That's why Rainbow Dash were using a rolling technique to avoid being anchored in place.

Unfortunately, rolling too fast finally made the centrifuge force too much for Dashie to bear, and she was tossed far away from her opponent. A Kunai tail attack came right after that: "Come over here!" Dashie used her lightning swords as good as she could to protect herself, but she was pulled by a titanical force, and suddenly trapped by two pincer-like alicorn wings.

"Scorpion's wrath!" Exclaimed Daybreaker, and an unstopping rain of tail attacks fell over Dashie's shield and swords!

Unable to escape or to do other thing that just resist, Rainbow Dash closed the eyes, her strenght was abandoning her. Her shield was shattering. Her swords were fading. She won't be able to resist much longer.

"Sorry, Master." She sobbed. "I've failed you... I'm an unworthy student... and I'll never had the chance... to tell you... how much I..."

And all her life passed before her tearful eyes. It was the end...

A powerful five-fold purple beam tossed Daybreaker away from Rainbow Dash, just in the moment that her shield was giving in, and she was tossed on the opposite direction, unconscious!

Daybreaker impacted against the Super Speedy Cider Squeezy, crushing it. She quickly stood on her fours, finding herself surrounded by Twilight, Pinkie and me. But Daybreaker wasn't defeated. Realizing that Rainbow Dash was unconscious, she teleported the cyan pegasi in front of her and put a sword on her neck.

"Easy, easy. The life of this puny pony means nothing to me." She threatened us.

"That's enough, Daybreaker! The war is over, or haven't you noticed?!" I pointed her and swung my arm away.

"Shut up, filthy monkey, or I swear that you'll need a thousand coffins to bury this pony!" Said the alicorn. "Now, you're going to let me go, and end of the story!"

"You're a bucking coward, Daybreaker! Come and fight with honor!" Said Twilight.

"Fight with honor?" Daybreaker chuckled. "Three against one? Where is the honor in there?"

"What do you want? And One-on-One combat?" I asked the alicorn.

"That's right! And how I'm the challenger, I'll choose the opponent!" And then, she pointed to Pinkie: "And I choose her!"

Pinkie shrugged the eyes: "Bring it on, horsehit! We still have a score to settle!"

Daybreaker smirked, and she tossed the frazzled body of Dashie to me.

Twilight opened her eyes and muzzle wide, and then, she turned around, closed the eyes and covered her head with her forelegs, scared to death: "I don't want to see I don't want to see I don't want to see!"

So, I told her: "Love, go and verify that the Crusaders are alright."

Twilight nodded and left.

Pinkie looked back to me, with a look that scared me: "And you... don't you dare to get in the way... or I'll kill you too!"

I gulped and backed off, to give healing treatment to Rainbow Dash on peace.

The wind raised a small twister of dust, and Daybreaker tossed one of her swords in front of Pinkie: "Take. That'll even the odds."

Pinkie took the sword on her muzzle and said: "Hrrmmrrrmmrprft."

Daybreaker shooked the head, chuckling: "What?"

Pinkie spitted the sword: "Pfth! How I'm supposed to say something deep with that thing in the muzzle?!" She angrily complained.

Both mares chuckled.

"It was fun to met you, pink mare. For real." Said Daybreaker.

Pinkie looked to her, surprised: "Huh?"

"You know? If the circumstances were others, we may have been friends." Said Daybreaker with unhiding sadness.

Pinkie shooked the head: "You're still on time to. You haven't any actual need to do this. You know?"

"I'm sorry, pink pony. It's too late for me. Fight with honor and die with glory. That's the only thing that I have left to do." Then, she levitated her remaining sword: "Don't worry, pink pony. I promise to do this as less painful as possible. Get ready!"

Pinkie raised her sword with the muzzle again: "Hrmmrmmrmmprft!"

Daybreaker launched to Pinkie, breaking up with laughter, and the next second, Pinkie had pierced her chest from side to side, and the bloody sword's edge came out from the alicorn's loin. Blood came out from the still smiling muzzle of Daybreaker:

She wearily looked to Pinkie, and raised a foreleg to her chest: "Thank you... pink pony... for giving me... a warrior's death..." She said, smiling with relief.

And Daybreaker fell motionless to the floor, in front of the shocked pink mare...

"An' Discord?! Wha' happened to him?!" Was asking AJ, very concerned.

"How I'm gonna know, AJ?! He wasn't anywhere nearby!" Said Twilight.

"Wha'?! He didn' helped in the battle? None... at all?" Asked AJ, with tearful eyes.

"Nope. We didn't see him. Pinkie had to took down Daybreaker all by herself." Sadly explained Twilight, looking to the trembling pink pony, who was with wide open and quivering eyes, and with shaking lips, still shocked by her very first kill. "And, honestly, I'm more concerned for Pinkie right now. If it makes you to feel better, we already knew that he was a lost cause. You created illusions for nothing, AJ." Said Twilight, turning to face AJ again, with half-lidded eyes, but with great sorrow in her heart, as she knows how much that was hurting her friend. But it was the truth.

AJ closed her tearful eyes, and lowered her head, crying: "Why, Twilight, why? Why Ah always hav' to fail in everythin' Ah try to? Wha' hav' Ah done to deserve thiiiiiis?"

Twilight hugged her. "You didn't failed, AJ. You did more that anypony of us could have done. And that's all that matters."

"But tha's not enough for me! Ah wanted to do it right, not to fail miserably again! Now Ah hav' nothin' to live fooooooor!" Cried AJ.

"No no no no no, AJ, no! Don't worry, my friend, we... we'll find a fix for your disabling... you'll see."

"An' wha' about if you can'? Wha' about if Ah am condemned to be a burden an' a shame for everypony, huh? Ah am not goin' to take it! Ah am not!!"

Twilight looked to me with pleading eyes. I understood and raised my finger: "AJ, you're an useless pony, a burden for your family, and a shame for your friends..."

"Yes, yes! Tha's right! Tha's exactly wha' Ah aaaaaaam!" AJ cried.

I frowned, as it looks like that my inverse psychology wasn't working... "And how you'll be never be able to buck a single tree again, I think that you should give up."

"Ya'r right! Ya'r right!! Ah am givin' up! Everythin' is over for meeeeeee!" Cried AJ, even more in despair.

I scratched the back of my head. That wasn't the reaction I was intending to produce: "And, finally, since you're not capable to stand for yourself, I believe that you should resign to your Element status, and give it to somepony else."

"Yes, yes! Mah sister Applebloom is the new Element of Honesty! Or Big Mac! Any of 'hem will do! Ah already hav' written mah last will! Ah am ready to die... Oooh..." AJ put a hoof in her chest, and later, she put the same hoof in her forehead, and she fell back on her loin. I quickly reached for her, gasping, fearing for her life, but fortunately she had just fainted.

Twilight looked to me, frowning and with scrunched mouth: "You just made it worse..."

I frowned too: "I know..."

What can we do to help Applejack? That's the question we ask ourselves everytime that we wake up in the morning, that have breakfast, that have lunch, that we bath, that we have dinner, and that we go to bed in the night. This is the fourth night that Twilight haven't slept at all, researching on medical an magic books for a fix for AJ. I don't know how she could do that. Anyway, on the fifth day, we're both exhausted at hell.

"I can't go on." Complained Twilight. "I feel responsible for this, but I can't go on anymore. I'm gonna turn crazy." She put a hoof on her unbrushed and disordered mane, with bags under the eyes and a weary look.

"I can't neither." I added. "And, if somepony as smart as you can't find the answer, it's unlikely that I'll find it on my own."

"I give up..." She sadly said. "And I'm still having a duel with Luna... and I'm so tired, that I think I'm gonna lose!"

I shrugged the shoulders. "Well, then, I guess that I'll have to marry Luna."

Twilight looked me with a crazed angry look: "What?! Don't you dare!" She shrugged an eye.

"Well, lose, and you'll see." I said with disdain.

"What the prfth...?!" She angrily blurted. "Never! I'll kill you first!"

"You'll kill me? For real?"

"Yes!"

"You don't have the gu..."

And that was such a couple fight... Ahhhh, how I missed it!

The nightfall found us hugging each other, among a pile of disordered books, broken things and holes all around in floor, walls and roof.

"I hate you." Said my marefriend to me, hugging me with tenderness, just before we both fell asleep...

The next morning, I was awaken by a sudden bucking on my chest, that startled me so much, that I, still sleepy, threw a punch and accidentally hit Twilight's face. Pretty strong.

"Ouch! It hurts!" She complained.

"Damn it, my love! You scared me! Shit, let me heal that..."

"No no no! Listen to me, I got it, I got it!" She happily assured, with a purple eye from my punch...

We both arrived Sweet Apple Acres first thing in the morning: "Hello, Big Mac!" Twilight greeted the big red pony. "We have great news for AJ!"

AJ was with her eyes closed, lying in her bed, as the living image of despair, when we came to visit her: "Wake up, wake up, AJ! I have great news for you!" Happily announced Twilight.

AJ slowly half-lidded the eyes and smiled: "Yeah? Ar' you goin' to let me die? Yes, please. Ah am ready..."

"No, AJ!" Happily replied Twilight. "I've figured out!"

"Wha'?!" AJ fully opened her eyes. "No, ya'r teasin' me Twilight, there's no fix for mah misfortune" But she sounded hopeful, despite her affirmation.

"Yes, there is!" Happily assured Twilight. "The liver is an organ that can regenerate itself, so, if you have a surgery and have the damaged part removed, you'll be as good as new!"

AJ's eyes and muzzle happily opened wide, filled with hope: "And wha'r we waitin' for?!"

Chapter 20 - Four Weddings and a Final Battle - Part 2

Queen Chrysalis, AKA 'Princess Farsania', was enjoying her weddung dress in front of a mirror of her guest room. Who could have thought this? Changelings had passed from Public Enemy Number One, to an ally of Equestria, nice and easy! They should have a shortage of allies or something! Bah, who cares, as long as she achieved what she wanted to. This marriage was symbolic, of course. The only reason to be at disguise was because Luna didn't stand changelings, but after the wedding, she'll reveal herself and laugh on her face. Ohhh! That'll be something for remember!

Chrysalis smirked. She had everything covered. According to her treaty with Celestia, carriers will make regular travels to the castle, to harvest Cadance's spell in magic containers to feed her hive and herself. The Princess won't even have the need to leave the castle, if that was what could had Celestia concerned. And that will keep her away from her Thorax! That was... perfect! Now, she had a trustful and abundant source of food, with which she could experiment with, so she could find her so long desired way to harvest feelings from other non-sentient living things, maybe mushrooms or something. She had so many improvement plans! Changes in her society's customs, more equitative distribution of wealth, ranking according to individual achievements and not just by killing each other! In short, in the five months she has lived among the ponies, she had realized how wrong was her ancestors, and how much they can learn from each other!

"Ohhh... If only mother and father could see me now." Mourned Chrysalis, sorrowful.

Suddenly, a knocking in the door startled her, and she quickly turned again into 'Princess Farsania': "Who is it?"

"It's the butler, Your Highness." It was heard from outside the door.

'Ah, it's Hakim.' Chrysalis thought: "Come in!"

A butler looking stallion entered the room, and closed the door: "Greetings, my Queen."

"Greetings, my dear subject. Is everything alright?"

"Yes. In fact, I want to have a word with you."

"Well, speak then."

"My queen. Are you sure about this?"

Chrysalis 'Farsania' giggled: "What are you talking about? Of course I'm sure! Nothing could be better for us changelings than this!"

Hakim looked at her with disdain: "For real? Are you going to throw our pride to the garbage, only for a few crumbs?"

Chrysalis looked to Hakim, surprised: "It's not crumbs, Hakim. It's all that we need! Our race has payed a high toll for it's ambition in the past, and I'm not commiting that same mistake! From now on, we changelings will only make fair trades, and we will earn our sustenance with honest work."

Hakim chuckled: "What? Are you crazy? We changelings are nothing but kidnapers and murderers! That's how we've survived all this time!"

"That times have ended, Hakim! This is the dawn of a new age! You should learn from Thorax! He never had to kidnap or murder to get food!" Angrily replied Chrysalis.

"That filthy half-breed? Puaj! He disgusts me! Wandering half Equus, pleading for care like he was a beggar! He's a shame for our race!"

"How could you be so ungrateful, Hakim?! Have you forgotten how many times he saved us all?! He's an irreplaceable subject, and my King to be!"

"Ha! That's just too much, littering our race with that filthy half-breed blood..." Hakim complained, with a rather insulting tone.

"That's enough, Hakim! I've allowed you to be honest with your thoughts, but you're insulting me already!" Chrysalis interrupted him. "We've talked enough! Dismiss!" She turned around, upset.

But Hakim didn't move. Chrysalis turned the head to him: "Haven't you heard?! Leave inmediately!"

"I'm not taking more orders from YOU!"

Chrysalis turned around, with teeth clenched, sharpening the eyes:

"I hope this's some kind of joke, Hakim, or I'll have you execut... I mean, imprisoned!" She threatened him, shooking the head.

"Imprisoned?" Hakim chuckled. "See? Mixing up with those puny ponies only have weakened you, Chrysalis. And it seems that you'll won't stop until you have extinguished us all!"

"Extinguished?! Hakim, how could you say such thing?! I've saved us all!"

"Saved us? From what? We were doing fairly well until you had that idiot idea of 'cutting the snake's head' sticked on your shell!"

"That was before I knew the truth! I was blinded by thousands of years of unjustified hard feelings and hatred! The ponies aren't so bad as the elders kept telling us! And doing fairly well? Hakim, how having such a poorly surviving rate could be 'fairly well'?!"

"Of course it is! The survival of the more fitting! Natural selection!"

"Natural selection? Don't make me laugh, Hakim! In the ancient times, a Changeling Queen could have easily a dozen eggs per batch! Nowadays, they were lucky if they had one or two! I've been unable to hatch a single one by myself, I think that I'm infertile or something!"

Hakim smirked: "Then, it seems that you're not of any use for us."

Chrysalis frowned and sharpened the eyes even more, and walked until she pushed her forehead against Hakim's: "And what exactly do you mean with that, Hakim?" She asked with a rather threatening tone.

But, suddenly, her eyes and muzzle opened wide, as she felt the cold of a metal blade piercing her chest. "Agh!" Then, she looked to her open wound, with the dagger still nailed on her body. Then, she looked to Hakim, dumbfounded, and her muzzle started to pour her green blood: "Hakim... what have... you done?" She barely could say before drooping down to the floor, struggling for breathing.

Hakim looked to her, smirking: "I just did what must be done. Matriarchy has driven us Changelings near extintion, thus proving that Queens are unworthy to rule! And rejoice, because you're right! It's the dawn of a new age! It's time to a change in management! It's time for us males to arise!" He raised a foreleg, triumphant.

A green tear appeared on Chrysalis' eye: "No... Hakim... please... All has... been solved... Celestia forgave us... please... don't..."

Hakim evily chuckled again: "Solved? Do you think that Celestia will forgive us again, when she discover that her filly... is half-changeling?"

Chrysalis eyes quivered: "What... what have you done...?"

"Ohhh, just a little addition to my achievements. Remember, eleven months ago, when you sent me, disguised as a gryphoon, to spy on her at the Empire?" Hakim bragged.

Chrysalis meekly shooked the head in despair, realizing what that meant: "No... no... no..."

"Yes, yes, yes. It was easy! I just put some sleeping powder in her beverage, and when she fell half unconscious... mmmmmhh mwah ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Evily laughed Hakim.

Chrysalis closed her tearful eyes and sobbed: That stupid male drone had destroyed all that she worked so hard to build...

"Well, I'll rather have you witness the greatness of our ascending, but I can't risk you giving the alarm." Added Hakim, roughly pulling the dagger out from Chrysalis' body, making her to mourn of pain. "So, say mommy hi from my part!" He smirked again, and raised the dagger to finish her off...

"This isn't fair, Tia! You just raised a royal decree, and now I have to get married with Shining Armor almost forcefully!" Was complaining Cadance.

"I don't understand, Cadance. That wasn't what you want? You begged me for it." Celestia replied. Then, she cuddled her filly with tenderness: "Say. Isn't she gorgeous?"

"Yes, she is..." Said Cadance, smiling with tenderness, Then, she replied: "And yes, I know that I asked you for it, but it's different now!"

"How's different?"

"I... I knew somepony else..."

"You did?" Celestia giggled. "Where? Wait. No. Don't you tell me. A changeling?!" She asked with a mixture of surprise and joy.

"No...! I mean... yes.... how did you know?"

Celestia looked up, pensive: "Hummm... Let's say that I have... some sort of sixth sense for this stuff."

Cadance shrugged the eyes: "That's not funny, Tia."

Celestia giggled again. "What do you propose, then? To cancel the wedding?"

"No! That'll break Shining Armor's heart... again. Just... I'm still... I need to talk to... you know who."

"Alright, be my guest, then. Just remember: Careful with what you desire, you may get it." Celestia waved a hoof, and returned to cuddle her filly. "What? What does wants mommy's little filly? Cooch cooch cooch cooch."

Cadance shooked the head: "That wasn't any helpful. You know?" Then, she turned around, walked to the door, and stopped short, and turned around again, her eyes moved to a side, and then back to see her aunt: "Tia... humm. Can I get some help here? I don't want to face her alone."

Celestia laughed: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha. What?! Don't you tell me that you're afraid now! You two seems to get along so well!"

Cadance closed the eyes and clenched the teeth: "Stop mocking on me, Tia! This's important to me!"

"Alright, alright. Take Twilight with you. That way they'll start to get along too."

"Twilight? Does she knows...?" Cadance asked, relieved.

Celestia nodded. "She does."

"Twilight, I'm so happy that you've agreed to help me in this troublesome affair. I assure you that I have absolutely no intention in hurting your big brother. It's just a matter of... that I want to make sure that everything is alright and..." Was telling Cadance to the purple unicorn while both were trotting to Queen Chrysalis, 'Farsania' room.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Hold your horses right there. Let's make this clear. The only reason because you want to talk to her is because you want to screw up the wedding." Twilight interrupted her, with a rather angry tone.

"No no no no! I assure you that no! I just want to put a dot or two on..." Started to nervously reply Cadance, but they were arrived already to their destination, and Twilight interrupted her again by knocking the door:

"Your Highness, it's Princess Cadance and Twilight Sparkle! We want to have a word with you!"

Inside the room, Hakim was startled by the unexpected call, and he looked back, second that Chrysalis took and, gathering the last of her strenght, teleported outside the room.

"Ahhh!" Screamed the mares otside, scared when they saw the changeling queen injured.

"Chrysalis! What happened?!" Asked Twilight, quickly casting a Life Force Healing spell on the queen.

"Mutiny..." Meekly warned Chrysalis.

"But what in the Tartarus is that?!!" A ragged voice was heard, and Twilight and Cadance raised the head to face Luna, who was watching them with quivering eyes and stiffed legs, in the deepest of confusions: "A CHANGELING?!!"

Twilight gulped, horrified: "Jesus Christ..."

The castle's walls rumbled, and dust fell from the roof, and Celestia quickly covered her filly with her forelegs, frightened: "Holy Heavens! What's happeniiiiiing?"

"IT'S A CHANGELING QUEEEEEEN!! THEY KILLED MY FAMILYYYYYY!! I'M GOING TO KILL HEEEEEER!!" Screamed Luna, like possesed, trying to break Twilight's shield by attacking it with all she got.

"No! Wait, Luna, wait! They're not the enemy anymore!" Was Twilight trying to stop her. Then, she turned her head to the scared Cadance: "Cadance, look for my coltfriend, quick!" And she teleported her to safety.

"I'M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL!!" Screamed Luna again, turning into Nightmare Moon, when I appeared and hugged her.

"That's enough, Looney Mooney! That's enough! Calm down, please, calm down!"

Luna slowly returned to her old self, and hugged me too: "What's happening to meeeee? Why I can not control myseeeeelf?" She sobbed.

Hakim teleported where his henchmen were: "What happened, my King? It's done already?" They asked.

"No! Everything screwed up! We have to strike right now!" He explained. "Call our secret weapon!"

"Yes, my King!"

I was walking quickly around, wondering if I should give the combat's clearing for action, when, suddenly, all the wings of the pegasis, except Dashie, and all the horns of the unicorns, exept Twilight, dissapeared, along with all the spears the guards had.

I had no doubt then: "Seventh Seal Life-Force Magic Cancelling Surrounding Effect!" I quickly shouted, and all the wings and horns reapeared, but not the spears.

Discord.

Without wasting anytime, I pulled the alarm electric switch, and quickly teleported out of the castle, where I could see the God of Chaos mocking: "I'm baaaack! Seems that we're missing some chaos here, so I've brought some friends to play!" And, saying this, he clacked his fingers, and a batallion of dragons and another of gryphoons appeared just from nowhere. "Have fuuuuuuun!" He mocked again, and disappeared as the bucking coward he is.

I smirked, as all around me, well concealed Anti Air guns appeared from behind the castle's walls: "Open Fire!" I shouted. Hell, I always had wanted to said that.

The battle quickly generalized, and among the chaos of the civilians running in panic, I had work for everypony.

The guards quickly gathered the concealed firearms that I had strategically spreaded all the city, and quickly organized in platoons, opening fire against the invaders. Everything could have been under control, but, then she appeared: Daybreaker. Well, not exactly Daybreaker. For outside the alicorn looked liker her, but her only half-lidded eye was... colorless. There was no life, no soul on that undead body.

"Groooooowl." Drooled the partially rotten alicorn, and, unsheating her only sword, she flown to attack me.

Just perfect. Now I have to deal with a zombie Sun Goddess, so, I wouldn't be able to take her down until I could find the puppeteer.

Shining Armor, Cadance and a team of the very best royal guards quickly reached Celestia: "Your Highness, quick, you're no longer safe here!"

"What's happening?!" She asked, standing and carrying her filly in a bag she had on her loin.

"We're under attack! Come on, this way!"

The guards trotted, pointing their guns, until the next room:

"Clear! Move, move, move!"

Between Twilight and me, we're giving Daybreaker a beating of the best, but, as she was undead, everytime she fell, she stood up again, once and once again, and her strongest attack, the SunBeam, was giving us real trouble.

"Love!" I told my marefriend. "This isn't gonna end until we find the puppeteer!"

"But what can we do? He could be anywhere!" She replied, looking around, while taking down Zombie Daybreaker for the ninth time.

"Try a reversal Locking Down spell, or I don't know! Whatever that came to your mind!" I suggested, taking down Daybreaker yet again.

Inside the castle, some dragons managed to bypass the AA Guns, and entered thru the windows:

"Ahhhrrg! I want roasted pony!" They roared, but, almost instantly, they were received by a bullet's rain.

The ponies, strategically hidden behind columns and furniture, shot them, and when the dragons came too close, they galloped back, while the rearguard covered their withdrawal: "Contention fire! Cover me!" they said, firing over the intruders and taking them down.

Shining Armor opened a door, finding some royal guards there: "Don't attack us! We're guards!" They said.

Shining Armor shrugged the eyes, and said: "X-ray Vision spell!" And blew the tap of the brains of the changelings. Yep, as easy as that, because, as changelings are bug-like, they have an exoeskeleton instead of the mammal's endoeskeleton, and any X-ray sight will reveal they're boneless, unlike vertebrates like the ponies. So, any boneless pony was a changeling. Period.

"Quick, ponies, come over here, were saying Rarity and Fluttershy, trying to take the ponies that had hid around to safety. They were quite a few, including foals and fillies. Rarity from time to time was raising her Rarity-made sniper rifle, which she called 'The Judge' and taking down a gryphoon or a dragon with a single shot.

Fluttershy looked, shocked, how a huge dragon fell nearby them: "How... how did you do that?" She asked, astounded.

"Just shot between the eyes." Answered Rarity, raising the gun and taking down another dragon, pretty high to see where his eyes were. Then, she, with all the cold blood of the world, turned around, while reloading her rifle, and walked away very calmed, and the corpse of the huge dragon fell behind her, on the place where she was just mere seconds ago. Rarity finished reloading the gun and commented: "Thou art been judged."

Suddenly, about a dozen of gryphoons approached: Rarity has no time to take down so many!

"Stand back!" Said Fluttershy, and she trotted to the front, and opened her muzzle. No sound came from it, but all the gryphoons covered their ears with their claws and fell to the ground, rolling and shrieking of pain, where Rarity took down all of them with her two handguns.

A tear fell from Fluttershy's eye: "Why do we have to do thiiiiis?" She asked, sorrowful, biting her lower lip.

"Is them or us, Flutters, and they're not going to have mercy with the foals! Come on!" Rarity pulled her crying friend away.

Inside the castle, the princesses were taken to a safe place, and Celestia turned to Cadance: "Cadance, I trust in you with my life, so I'm going to leave you protecting my filly! I have to help in the battle!"

"Negative, Your Highness! Our duty is to protect you both!" Sternly replied Shining Armor:

"But I saw Daybreaker outside! My ponies need me!" She replied.

Shining Armor pointed to her and then to the floor with a foreleg: "Stay put and shut up, Your Highness! And that's an order!"

Celestia shooked the head 'What?'. But she complied, and sat on her fours legs on the blanket, and carried her filly to cuddle her. "Are you hungry, my beauty? Come, take mommy's tasty milk." She told her, breast feeding her with tenderness. Cadance opened her muzzle wide, amazed by the unicorn captain's attitude.

I was mentally counting the time until my spell's effect will disappear, then that degenerate of Discord will came back to screw everything up. I know that he's uselessly clacking his fingers somewhere, waiting for my spell to vanish. Fortunately, the enemy's number has been reduced enough, and Luna joined to battle Zombie Daybreaker:

"Hey! But that mare wasn't dead?!"

"She's dead."

"What?!" Exclaimed Dashie, frightened, who had joined the fight recently too. "Dead?! But dead, like a zombie?!"

"Exactly."

"Ohhhh nooooo." Dashie trembled of fear, with her forelegs in her muzzle. "Zombies gives me the creeeeeeeeps."

Pinkie finally found Discord: "Ha! I found you! Surrender, horseshit!" She ordered him, smiling.

Discord started to twist around himself: "Oh no. She found me! What I'm gonna do? What's gonna be of me...? Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" He launched a sneer laughter.

Pinkie raised an eyebrow, dumbfounded, but then, she looked behind her, and she saw Hakim:

"Well done, Discord. I'll take care from here." He smirked, while Discord disappeared.

Pinkie got ready for battle, but Hakim was more that she could manage, and knocked her down.

"Good, now they'll had to surrender." He evily chuckled.

Discord was enjoying his 'prowess', when he hear a familiar voice from behind him: "Discord, how could ya?"

He turned around, to find Applejack, angrily looking at him.

"AJ!" He looked around. "What are you doing here? You can't fight! Run away and save yourself!"

"Wha'?! And wha' about the others?! Screw 'hem, then?!"

"That's right! I don't care about the others! Only you!" He replied.

"And why do ya do this, if ya care about me?! This is hurtin' me taa!"

"This isn't hurting you! Is hurting the others! Not you!"

"Tha' wasn' wha' Ah mean! If ya hurt mah friends, ya hurt mah feelings!"

Discord sneered again: "How can that hurt you? Hakim promised me that he was gonna spare you!"

"Wha'? Ya did a deal an' all?! Ya buckin' traitor!" AJ trembled of fury. "Ah thought ya was mah friend!" She complained with tearful eyes.

"I am! That's why I'm protecting you!" Discord opened both arms.

"Ya aren' protectin' me! Ya are hurtin' me, by hurtin' mah friends!"

"They're not my friends, AJ! So I have no need to protect them!"

"But they're mine, an' Ah need to protect 'hem!"

Discord did a disdainful gesture, crossing the arms: "You know what? Screw you!"

Applejack looked him with tearful eyes: "Then, tha's it? Ya don' love me?"

Discord looked at her, dumbfounded: "What?"

"Then, if ya don't love me, Ah'll kill mahself!" Said Applejack with despair, and put a hoof in the left side of her belly: "Ah only have to press hard here, and Ah'll have an internal bleedin' an' Ah'll die! So, tell me, are ya goin' to help mah friends or not?!"

Discord scrunched the maw an looked down, upset.

Our battle with Daybreaker has turned quite boring, as it looked like: Take her down, she stands up, take her down, she stands up, repeat. Ugh! This is not gonna ever end! Suddenly, Hakim appeared:

"Having fun, puny ponies? Look who I have here! The Mistress of Fun!" He smirked, levitating the frazzled body of Pinkie Pie, with a dagger on her neck to ransom us.

"Sorry. He got me." She mourned.

We all looked to him with anger, while struggling with Daybreaker.

"Well, this is how is going to be. You're going to surrender to me, King Hakim, and you will anoint me as the new ruler of Equestria. Otherwise, your friend here will have her last party. Mmmmm mwah ah ah ah ah ah ah!" He evily laughed, and his eyes turned red for a moment. Only then, I spotted, in his neck, the amulet of the alicorn. Shit.

But, while he was laughing, he wasn't paying attention, and Twilight, remembering how Daybreaker lost with Pinkie for being laughing, took the chance and froze the dagger, making it unable to cut. Then, I quickly teleported Pinkie to safety, while Twilight shot Hakim.

"What the...?!" He complained, receiving the five-fold shot directly on his shell. But it looks like that he had a magic shield or something protecting him, because he managed to recover and escape anyway.

"So well?!" Asked AJ to Discord, and how he didn't replied, she did the gesture to push her side.

"NO!" Discord shouted, extending bothy arms. "Alright, alright! I'll help your friends!" He accepted, upset, and turned around, just to face Hakim. Discord opened his eyes wide, scared.

"Betraying me then, huh? Give me your magic!" And Hakim stripped Discord from all his magic, leaving him laying in the floor, deflated like a punctured balloon. Then, he flown to AJ. "Good! My booby prize!" And he levitated AJ to take her hostage.

"No, wait Hakim! You promised that you'll spare her! You promised!" Discord complained.

Hakim evily laughed: "Mwah ah ah ah ah ah! And you believed me?! You're as fool as you look like, if not even more! Changelings, retreat!" He ordered, and all the remaining changelings made their leave.

About a half on a hour later, all the dragons and gryphoons were either dead, wounded or taken prisoner, so, all the weaponry could focus on defeating Daybreaker. All the AA guns, the gunponies, Twilight with her five-fold attacks, Luna with her dark beam, Pinkie and me with Hadou-kens...

"Grooooowl" Growled Zombie Daybreaker for a last time, and her shield give in, and she exploded in a disgusting spurt of bad-smelling rotten flesh and blood. What a shameful end for such a lofty warrior...

Twilight flown to Discord and shook him very roughly, very angry: "Discord! What did you do with AJ?! Tell me before I'll kill you!"

"Hakim took her! Hakim took her! Please don't..." He meekly pleaded.

"Where?!! Where did he took her, Discord?! Answer me!" Twilight interrupted him.

"I don't know! Maybe to his hive, but I'm not sure!"

Twilight dropped him and looked backwards: "I know who knows."

And everypony and me left, leaving Discord there, alone, forgotten, weak and disabled, among a pile of shambles and dead bodies.

"Chrysalis! Tell me where your hive is, at once!" Twilight demanded to the changeling queen.

"Yes, yes. I'll take you there..." Meekly agreed Chrysalis, with weary face and standing up on trembling legs.

Twilight lit her horn, reading the mare's vitals and realizing they were too bad for her to do that trip, so she rolled the eyes and shooked the head: "No, Chrysalis. Just... give me your hive's location. That'll do." She demanded with a more friendly tone.

"Alright." Agreed the queen, lightening her horn to give her hive's coordinates. "And I know this is too much asking, but please, don't harm my Thorax. He's not like them. I beg you!" She pleaded with tearful eyes, sitting on her four legs again, as she barely could stand on foot.

"And how are we supposed to know who he is? All of them look the same!" Twilight replied, triangulating the hive's location.

"You'll know when you see him." Assured Chrysalis.

Twilight lit out her horn: "Got it!"

Luna gave some steps forward, with a maniacal smile: "Good! Can I kill her now? Can I? Can I?!"

"No!" We denied at unison.

"You can kill me if you want to... All this is my fault..." Sadly commented Chrysalis.

"Yes!" Happily said Luna, lightening her horn, but I grabbed it, dispelling her spell, and denying with a finger of the other hand.

"OK! We have no time to waste! Let's rescue AJ!" Said Twilight. "Dashie, Pinkie, come along! Rarity, Flutters, stay here, to protect and serve, as you know how!"

"Don't worry, Twilight! I have all the mean guys on the eagle's eye!" Happily informed Rarity, raising her Rarity-made sniper rifle. Which was a piece of work, I must say.

"I... hummm... I'll do my best." Agreed Fluttershy, still a bit shocked, but confident on her skills.

Then, I turned to Luna: "You come too. You'll have the chance to kill as many changelings as you want."

"YES!" She joyfully jumped in place.

Recklessly entering the hive was a very-very bad idea. They could have some hive-size magic dampening trap, and we'll be in trouble. The best way to approach them is to make them to get out.

Luna turned to Twilight, happily proposing to her: "Hey, I have the perfect way to settle our issue! A changeling-killing contest! The one who kills more, wins, and keeps the stallion! What do you say? Do you agree, yes?"

Twilight scrunched the muzzle, unease about killing for fun: "Hummm... and taking from you the pleasure of destroying your sworn enemies? That'll be so unfair from my side!" She said with a fake smile, pretending that she 'generously' were giving her that 'honor'.

"Oh! You're right. Bucking horns! I'll have to think in something else..." Luna complained, upset.

Twilight walked to me: "How are we gonna do this, love? We can't just start to attack the hive, some shambles could fall over AJ, and hurt her."

I analized the situation: "We'll take care of them like we do with bug infestations in my world: With pest control."

"Pest control?" She asked, without undestand.

I smirked: "Smoke."

"Smoke, like, asphyxiating them?"

"That's right."

"But that... won't asphyxiate AJ too?"

"Not if we use the right chemical compound."

"Ah. And then what? They come out and what do we do? How do we manage them?"

"Easy. We leave the minions to Luna, and the rest of us take care of their leader."

"What?!" Twilight backed her head off, horrified. "Luna wants to kill them all! That'll be genocide! I can't be partisan of this, love!" She angrily refused.

"That's why I brought her here, love."

"What?!! This was your plan from the beginning?!! How could you?!!"

I shrugged the shoulders, indifferent: "What's the big deal, love? I told it before leaving the castle."

Twilight shooked the head, enraged: "What the prfft?! I thought you were joking!"

"How was I gonna be joking in a moment like this, love? Are you crazy?"

Twilight turned around, upset, and she turned to face me: "I don't know! I mean, you're making mean jokes all the time! I thought...!" She clenched the teeth and the eyes: "I can't be part of this, love. I can't!"

I smiled: "Remember what Celestia told you, about being forced to do things that you don't want to?"

Twilight looked at me, dumbfounded. "Yes... but I never thought..."

"This is war, love. And war never changes. It's always cruel, harsh, and forces you to make this kind of decisions. You should understand that if you're gonna rule someday." I told her. "And if we want to save AJ, we have to do this."

Twilight lowered her head, sorrowful, and tears started to fell from her closed eyes. I hugged her with tenderness.

"Love, I'm sure that Celestia had to make decisions like this hundreds, if not thousands of times. But she did it, because she had a kingdom to protect, and, with great powers, come great responsibilities."

"Love, then, I think that I won't be able to succeed her. If ruling Equestria means doing things like this, then, I don't want to rule. Let that burden to somepony else."

I smiled: "Celestia will be very disappointed when she hears that."

"I don't care. Let's save AJ and get this horseshit over with."

After covering all but one of the hive's entrances, we gathered enough bug-killer and made a big campfire in front of the hole, and using a wind spell, we sent the smoke inside the hive.

It wasn't long until the bugs started to come out like... bugs. Luna gave herself the great time, making among them a big slaughter, and when Hakim came out, green for the poisoning, we dropped all together against him. Nevertheless being weakened, Hakim put a fight so hard, that I had no other choice but to anchor him with my knees to the ground, and to punch him, and to punch him, and to punch him, until he moved no more.

Well, as I recalled, the amulet of the alicorn only can be removed by it's wearer. But, when I grabbed it, it easily slipped off.

Hakim was dead.

Inside the hive, we found AJ safe and sound inside a cage. We found no changeling else. At least, not alive.

"And Thorax?! Where's my Thoraaaaaaaax?!" Cried Chrysalis in the deepest of despairs, when she found out the news. "How could you do this to meeeee?! Why didn't you killed me fiiiiiirst?!"

"That was I said." Commented Luna. "Allow me to end with her suffering." She gave some steps forward, but I pulled her back again. "Hey! There's no reason to keep this... thing... alive!" She complained, pointing the changeling with a foreleg.

"She's riiiiight! Let me die, pleaaaaase!" Chrysalis pleaded, crying the snots out.

"Wait, Chrysalis, wait a sec. We have no confirmation of Thorax's demise. Maybe, if you had described him better to us."

"He was green, and he had mane and tail, and a unicorn-like horn!" Explained Chrysalis, sobbing.

We looked each other: "Well, all of them were green, by the poisoning, and the hair could have been burned by the fire." I commented. "But a unicorn-like horn? We didn't see anyone like that."

"Huh?" A glimpse of hope came to Chrysalis. "You... didn't...? Then, could he be... ?"

"Still alive? Yes, he might be." We agreed.

"Then, somepony has to return to the hive, and look for him! If he returns there, and find every changeling dead, he... he'll surely commit suicide! Please! Send somepony there, I beg you!" Chrysalis pleaded, desperately waving a foreleg.

"But what's thiiiiiis?!" Asked Thorax to himself, shocked, when he returned to the hive, finding the horrible massacre that had taken place there.

The flower bouquet that he has brought to give to his beloved auntie, fell to the ground, and his quivering eyes, soon were shedding tears.

There he stood, motionless, speechless, thoughtless. Every changeling had died. All his family. He was alone in the world. Why he couldn't be there, when everything happened, so he could have died with them? Why did he had to live, just to watch such a gruesome scene?

He drooped to the ground, sitting on his four legs. Nothing mattered anymore. He has no strenght to go on. He fell to a side, breathing with difficult. Death. Yes. That'll appease his suffering. He slowly closed his eyes...

"Hey, dude! Are you still there?!" I clacked my fingers on his face. "Come on, stand up! Your auntie is worried sick for you!"

Thorax barely opened his eyes: "You're lying... she's dead... like everychangeling else..." And he closed the eyes again.

"Come on, your auntie is alive! How do you think that I found this place?" I told him.

Thorax opened the eyes again, hopeful: "Truly? For real? Did she sent you... to look for me?"

"Yeah!" I joyfully confirmed. "So stand up and don't do like Marcus Antonicus and Cleopatra, dude!"

Thorax shrugged the eyes: "Who?"

I sighed, annoyed: "Never mind..."

The amphitheater was again the place for a public trial, where Discord, powerless and frightened to death, was brought among the boos of the crowd.

"SILENCE!!" Ordered Celestia: "Discord, you've been brought to this trial, because of your recurrence on your crimes and betrayals, and I have forgiven you twice already, and, too much for my regret, you've proven that you can't be trusted. So. Have you something to say in your defence?"

While that was happening, I was asking my marefriend: "Did you tell Celestia already?"

"No, I didn't."

"Why? You know that you've to tell her sooner or later, and the sooner the better."

"I know! I..."

Suddenly, Discord said: "Well, if it's because of crimes why I'm being judged here, then why do you have such a bloody murderer unpunished?!" And he pointed me, making Twilight to stop short speaking and we both looked at him, surprised.

"What are you talking about, Discord? Explain yourself!" Demanded Celestia.

"In the Everfree forest, there's a cave with a pool filled with the corpses of half the forest animals! And he killed them all!" He pointed me again.

All the ponies gasped, horrified, and I gritted the teeth: That damned jerk, harmful up to the bone!

Celestia looked to me, dumbfounded and scared: "Rascal, that what he's saying... Is... is that true?"

Well, seems that the karma finally got me around. Remember that I told that I had spoke only the truth? Well, I spoke the truth, but not ALL the truth. Just put yourselves in my shoes! Imagine that you're gonna met your potential girlfriend, or marefriend in this case, for the first time, and you're aside a huge pile of dead bodies, and then, with the smoking gun still on your hands, you walk to her, saying very happily: 'Hello, I mean no harm!'.

See my point?

So, I slowly stood up, and confessed: "Yes, that's true."

All the ponies gasped of horror again, and I swear that I saw the smirking Discord to grow a pair of Satan's horns.

My marefriend looked at me, with that enigmatic expression of hers that always concerned me, as I can't figure out what she's thinking: "Love... when do you were thinking in telling me this?" She asked, slowly shooking the head and shrugging an eye.

"Well... I..." I scratched the back of my head. "... never."

"Never?" Twilight backed off her head, and then she turned the head, nodding in disapproval, looking mindlessly around. "Never, huh? Oh, boy." And she turned around, loinside to me.

A frozen wave passed thru my body: Oh God! I'm gonna lose her!

"Love, please! I was another person then! I'm different now! I swear that I'm incapable to harm anypony for no reason! Please, love!" I almost sobbed, thinking nothing but the worst. "Forgive me, I be..." I stopped short pleading, as a slight twitch on Twilight's lips betrayed her 'anger'. I shrugged an eye: "Love?"

Twilight slowly turned the head, and she was chuckling, with the eyes closed: "Love, that was... priceless!" She chuckled even more.

I opened my smiling mouth and put both fists in my waist: "I can't believe this, you got me again, you lil' devil!"

Twilight turned around and jumped to my chest to kiss and hug me: "I knew already. I was there, and the only thing that I found, was savage beasts and predators that got what they deserved. Thank you, love, for making the Everfree a safer place for us ponies." And she gave me a kiss so romantic, that all the ponies were charmed:

"Awwwwww." They cheered.

Discord's smirking disappeared, and it was replaced by an angry face and gritting teeth.

Celestia put a hoof in her chest, sighing of relief: "Well, with this little 'discording' solved, let's hear the charges from the prosecutor..."

Thorax turned his head to Chrysalis: "Love, there's something I need to ask you."

"Yes, darling?" Asked the changeling with tenderness, looking to him too.

"I know that you told me that a volcano killed all the hive, but I was there again, and I didn't find any. Not even lava. Anything. Are you sure it was a volcano?"

"Of course, my teté." Smiled Chrysalis, gently rubbing the stallion's muzzle with a foreleg, causing him to bristle.

"Love, I'm trying to tell you what that's is too suspicious! It's like they were slaughtered on purpos..."

That pissed off Chrysalis, and she sharpened the eyes and gritted the teeth: "Do you want to know what really happened? Do you? I was there and killed all of them, by myself!" She shouted, upset.

"What?! Why?!" Sobbed Thorax, shocked.

"Because I haven't enough space to fit all of them in the hive!"

"Love! How could you did such thing?! They were your own...!" Started to complain Thorax, with crying voice.

"I told you that it was a volcano! How do you want me to tell you, in draconian?!" Chrysalis blurted, interrupting him.

"Ah. Love, please don't scare me like that again." Thorax sighed, relieved.

"Then, you stop asking stupid questions to me! And shut up already! I want to hear the verdict!"

"A... alright..."

"... and given all the facts and evidences, this jury find the prosecuted, guilty of all the charges."

"Ehhhhhhh!" Cheered the ponies.

Then, the attorney stallion turned to Celestia: "Now, it's up to our liege to decide his fate."

"Thank you, attorney. There's anypony that wants to speak in his behalf?" Celestia asked.

"Ah! Ah wan' to talk in his behalf!" AJ stood up, smiling. "Your Highness, he did all tha', 'cause he wanted to protect me, 'cause he loves me!" Then, she turned to Discord, with quivering eyes: "Do ya love me, Discord? 'Cause Ah love ya, with all the strenght of mah heart!"

Discord frowned: "No, AJ. I don't love you."

"Wha'?" Asked Applejack, with tearful eyes and scrunched mouth.

"I can't feel, so I can't love. Love makes sense. And what's the fun in making sense?" He said with indifference.

Applejack sat on her hauches, sobbing, and Rarity and Fluttershy quickly hugged her, to confort her as much as they could.

Celestia raised a scroll and a quill: "Well, given the fact that the prosecuted refused his defense, and taking in account the verdict given by the jury, I hereby decree that the prosecuted gets banished to the Tartarus, lifetime, at once. Let's see how he manages there without his powers, in the company of the 'friendly' folks that roams there. Carry on." She ordered, signing the royal decree.

"Yes, Your Highness." Complied the guards, taking away Discord in a cage to his final destination.

Discord sadly looked to Applejack, as he was taken away: "Sorry, AJ, but it's better this way..."

Then, Celestia stored the scroll, and happily said: "Well, now to the happy part of the soiree! We're having four weddings today!"

"Ehhhhhh!" Cheered the ponies.

"First couple: Fluttershy and Flash Sentry!" Announced Celestia, raising a foreleg, pointing to the bridegrooms, who saw each other, having the happiest day on their lives.

"Flash Sentry, do you accept this mare as your beloved wife, to love her in all times, to protect and respect her until the death takes you apart?

"Yes, I do."

"Fluttershy, do you accept this stallion as your beloved husband, to love him in all times, to protect and respect him until the death takes you apart?

"Yes, I do."

"Now, if there's anypony that have something to say for this wedding to not to take place, that speaks now, or remain silent forever." Indicated Celestia.

Nopony said a word.

"Then, by the rights that my status as this nation's liege confers me, I hereby declare you, Husband and Wife. You can kiss the bride." Celestia concluded.

"Ehhhhhh!" Cheered the ponies.

Next, Thorax and Chrysalis followed. And Shining Armor and Cadance. I looked worriedly to Pinkie, waiting her to say something on the 'speak now, or remain silent forever' part, but she just whispered, sobbing and with tearful eyes: "I'm so happy for them." and she turned around to cry on Rainbow Dash's shoulders.

Finally, our turn arrived: Twilight Sparkle and me. AT LAST! At the three is the pot, isn't? And Twilight was so nervous! It was like she was expecting something awful to happen any second.

"Gustave Foreman, do you accept this mare as your beloved wife, to love her in all times, to protect and respect her until the death takes you apart?

"Yes, I do."

"Twilight Sparkle, do you accept this stallion as your beloved husband, to love him in all times, to protect and respect him until the death takes you apart?

"Yes, I do."

"Now, if there's anypony that have something to say for this wedding to not to take place, that speaks now, or remain silent forever." Indicated Celestia.

"I hate you, Twilight! I hope you die!" Was heard in the crowd, but nopony could identify the shouter, and nothing else was said, either.

Twilight almost passed out.

We all looked around for some tense seconds, but as nothing else happened, Celestia sighed with relief, and concluded:

"Then, by the rights that my status as this nation's liege confers me, I hereby declare you, Husband and Wife. You can kiss the bride."

"Ehhhhhh!" Cheered the ponies.

Then, I touched my flamboyant wife with a leg, and told her, with a forced smile: "Tell her now..."

Twilight forced a smile too, sweating cold: "Your Highness, there's something I need to tell you..."

The amphitheater trembled with Celestia's Royal Canterlot Voice: "HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME, TWILIGHT SPARKLEEEEEE?!!!"

Epilog

"That was so foalish, Luna! How are you going to say such thing in the front of everypony?!" Where angrily scolding Celestia her little sister.

"She lied to me! We're supposed to have a duel, and she just tricked me, so I ended up arriving too late to the wedding!" Luna complained.

"Well, from my point of view, that was a duel of smartness!" Celestia smiled.

"What?!" Luna blurted, upset.

"You know the saying! In the love, everything goes! And she bested you with astuteness, fair and square!" Celestia petted Luna's mane.

"No! It wasn't fair!" Luna sobbed, and hugged her sister, crying.

"Don't worry, little sister. I'm sure that you'll find somepony to love you."

"Who? Who's going to love me? Everypony hates me, and now, the pleb scum too... You told me that you had a plan! You told meeeeee..." She couldn't keep speaking, her voice drowned by tears.

"I lost him too, Luna. Not all my plans works, you know?" Celestia sadly commented.

"But you have your filly, at least! I have nothing! Noothiiiiiing!" Luna cried in despair.

Suddenly, a scroll appeared, and Celestia opened it to read: "Hummm. This is so weird. This one is for you, Luna."

"Bah! It must be from that bucking little traitor. Burn it. I don't want to know anything about her." Said Luna, without paying attention.

"No, it's not from Twilight. It's... from a secret admirer?"

"What?!" Luna raised the head, intrigued, and she quickly took the scroll with her magic: "Sister, it's a stallion, and he wants to have a blind date with me!" Then, she looked around, annoyed. "This isn't another of your jokes, is it? Because if it's, I swear that I..."

"Come on, Luna! How could you think that I'm going to be so bitch for to play with your feelings? That's Cadance's expertise."

Luna opened her eyes wide: "Then... this stallion... really... wants a date... with me?!" And her face turned to the happiest one she has had in centuries: "I'm going to get ready at once! I'm not very instructed in modern matching customs, but I'm sure that arriving late isn't one of them! If you excuse me, sister!" And she flown, literally, to her bedroom to make up and so.

Celestia sadly giggled: "Well, at least one of us made it." Then, she turned around to the cradle of her filly: "Missed mommy, my gorgeous, missed mommy?" She said with tenderness, slowly shooking the head.

I'm dreaming: The beautiful and adorable face of my marewife, placidly sleeping before my very eyes, on our queen size bed. I open the eyes: No, I'm not dreaming: The beautiful and adorable face of my marewife, placidly sleeping before my very eyes, on our queen size bed. I take my time, just watching her, thanking the life for to have given me the fulfillment of all my wishes. Thank you, whatever or whoever who made this possible. Thank you, thank you, thank you! I pet the mane of my marewife, and her lovely cheek. Oh no, I woke her.

"Mmmmm..." She murmurs, pleased, and opens her eyes too. "Good morning, love. Did you slept well?" She ask me with tenderness, her cutely smile filling with happiness my heart.

"Like in the heavens. I watched you while you were sleeping. You're so beatiful, my love, and I love you so much, so much, so much!" I cuddled her.

"I love you too, so much, so much, so much!" She says too, hugging me tight, tight, tight. Then, she curls a bit. "I feel something sticky there..." Then, she breaks the hug and raises the blanket a bit, taking a look behind it, and she opens the eyes wide and scrunches the muzzle, looking at me and under the blanket two or three times, surprised.

I take a look below the blanket, and I can't help but chuckle: "Wow, It seems that your magic wasn't the only thing strengthened, eh?"

Twilight and me laughed my lame joke, with a laughter right from the heart, like the couple of fool lovers we are: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! That's so funny, love! Now, help me to clean up this smearing. I can barely move my hinder legs..."

Our honeymoon was just... so... PERFECT! And I said it literally. No sarcasms at all. Not because all the love we made, but because Twilight did the maternity test and she was... PREGNANT! Oh my God! Oh my God!! OHMYGOD!!! I'm not quite sure how that could happen, but again, in this magical land of colorful talking ponies, anything could happen.

Anyway, after our return to Ponyville, we made a full welcome back party, and I had the perfect chance to check how everypony was doing: AJ ended up pulling through Discord's affair, and she's practically recovered from her liver operation. She'll be able to get back to work in her orchard anytime, and I'll could rest from doing that job for her, as the least I could do.

Pinkie is behaving strangely. Sometimes she seems nostalgic, others like nothing had happened. Others she just disappears, and reappears when her friends starts to worry about her. I think that she hides so nopony could see her cry.

Fluttershy is happily married with Flash Sentry, and no, she hadn't rendered him deaf, but, if she manages to render Angel deaf, I think I'll give kudos to her.

Rainbow Dash applied to the Wonderbolts, and she's writing a book about Military Tactics. Who could have thought! I think that Daring Do adventure books could have had something to do, heh heh.

All looked pretty normal, until we arrived to the Carousel Boutique, and we found it... for sale?

"Oh no!" My wife gasped, horrified. "Something awful must have happened to Rarity! Quick! We have to find her!"

We looked for her in the only other place that we could think of: The stores. Luckily, she was there.

"Ow! Twilight, Gustave, dears! How are the new consorts doing?!"

"Rarity! Are you alright? Why do you have your house for sale?!" Asked my wife, very worried.

"Ow! Sorry, my fault!" Rarity giggled. "I should had let you know, but I wanted to give you the surprise!"

"Surprise? What surprise?! Are you leaving Ponyville?!"

"Oh, no no no no no! I'm just changing the premises for another more suitable for my new career."

"Your new career?!" We asked at the same time, surprised.

"Yes! Weapons!" Happily said Rarity, opening her side bags, and showing us a large collection of Rarity-designed weapons. Very rejigged and encrusted with jewelery and rare wood, a pieces of work, by the way. Then, she added: "I did a market research, and it turns that there are so much cloth designers! So much competition! But, in the firearm design field, I can say that I'm the first one in the game! And you know the saying: The pony that hits first, hits twice!" She happily assured.

I scratched the back of my head, maybe this wasn't what we want... is it?: "Rares, I hate to say this to you, but I think that Trixie is designing weapons before than you, so she might..."

"What?! That bucking pretentious! She's not going to take the premiere from me! She's nothing more but a competitor, and a lame one, if I dare to say!" Then, she turned around, waving a hoof, upset: "This calls for extreme measures! You both are assisting at the dawn of the very first firearms race! And I'll win, yes or yes!" She announced with winning resolve. "Now, if you excuse me, but I need to gather all the raw materials I came looking for, and to start working right away! Time is primary! We'll catch up later! See ya, darlings!" And she left, trotting pretty fast compared to her usual speed.

I stood up: "Shit, I think that I just made it worse."

My wife looked at me with half-lidded eyes: "Yep. I told you that those firearms were a bad idea..."

Prologue

Equestria, Ponyville. Three weeks after the Equestrian Civil War (AECW):

The huge and badass looking gryphoon rolled on the ground, leaving a small dust cloud in his way, until he stopped and stood up again, looking around with perplexity, trying to figure out what or who has hit him.

His perplexity only grew even more, when he saw me healing a pretty badly injured Rainbow Dash:

"Come on, girl, come on. Don't give up, come on." I was telling her, worried because she wasn't even moving.

Finally, she slowly half opened her eyelids, and looked at me apologetically:

"S-sorry, m-master... he... he c-caught me off g-guard..." She stuttered.

"Shhh. Breath, Dashie, breath. Don't talk, don't move, just breath." I told her, relieved, and a tear slipped for my cheek, as I got touched by her calling me 'Master' from the very first time.

I finished healing her, and carrying her to Big Mac, that was coincidentally among the small crowd of ponies that had gathered around, to watch the fight, I gently put her on his loin:

"Take her to the hospital, hurry up!"

"Eeeyup." He nodded and galloped there.

I, by my side, turned around to the gryphoon, as I needed to stop him before he hurts more ponies.

"And what might you be?" He asked, shrinking an eye.

"Me? Just a hairless monkey, who happens to be friend of the pony you just hurt, and thus making this... Personal!" I replied, hitting the palm of my right hand with my left fist.

The gryphoon looked me from up to down: Yes, I might be larger than most ponies, but I haven't claws, or beak, or fangs, or wings; not even a weapon. And my little mouth will surely get hurt by merely trying to bite one of his feathers.

The gryphoon smiled confidently, thinking: 'Ha! This is going to be as easy as taking down that puny pony, if not easier'.

"Well, I hope you have made your last prayings, baldie!" He mocked, and quickly, he took off, getting ready to perform the same move he did to take down Rainbow Dash. 'He won't even be able to reach me here.' He thought, smirking.

But his smile dissapeared when he saw me floating up on my surfing cloud, right at the height where he was.

"Where are you going, punk?" I adopted my fighting stance.

The gryphoon shooked the head, figuring out that the word 'punk' must be some sort of strong insult, and getting angry, he launched himself over me with his claws opened, eager to make damage. He couldn't commit a bigger mistake.

"Hadou-ken!" I stopped him short with my force ball, and he fell to the ground.

But before hitting the ground, he used a snubber flying stunt, thus avoiding a direct impact. Then, I launched myself over him, but he rolled over to a side, dodging my earth-shaking pound. He quickly recovered, and tried to hurt me with his right claw. Then, I did a full body turn, grabbing his wrist, putting his elbow over my shoulder and pulling his arm down. His elbow cracked and I could hear his pained yelling.

Then, he yet tried to slash me with his other claw, but I dodged it, and gave him a punch in his jaw with the back of my right fist and another with my left, causing him to turn the head and stumble backwards, moment that I took the oportunity to kick the side of his right knee, breaking it and making him to scream again. Not giving him time to recover, I grabbed his left wrist and twisted his left arm to his back, and, with the open free hand, I hit his left shoulder and pulled the arm at the same time, dislocating his left shoulder as a result.

He screamed in pain and tried to escape flying, but I grabbed his two wings and, violently pulling them to me, I delivered a brutal kick on his back. The base of his wings clacked, indicating that the joints there have been dislocated too, and the gryphoon, screaming and trembling in pain, fell to the ground some meters away from me. Then, I walked to him with clenched fists and grabbed him from his neck's feathers, among the kudos of the small pony crowd.

"No, no, no! Wait!" The gryphoon screamed, scared and pained. "I have diplomatic inmunity! I have diplomatic inmunity!"

I pulled his head, pushing his beak again my nose:

"Does it look I care about?!" I angrily screamed to him, not buying it.

But when I had raised my free fist to finish him off, a male voice sounded behind me:

"Halt there, white monkey! Let go that gryphoon guard! Do you want to provoke an international incident?!"

I lowered the fist, and turned my head to the royal guard stallion that was behind me. Well, it looks this gryphoon thug was actually an embassy's guard from the Gryphoon Empire. Then, what he was doing in Ponyville, and why did he picked a fight with Rainbow Dash?

"The gryphoon started it!" Somepony yelled from the small crowd.

"Silence!" Replied the royal guard stallion, looking around. Then, he looked back to me: "Monkey, our highness Princess Celestia demands your presence at the Canterlot Castle, just before sunset!"

I smiled, because I knew exactly why Celestia wanted me there at that precise time, and no other. Then, I looked to the frightened to death grypoon thug:

"And don't you dare to hurt my friends again... And I'm not bald!"

The gryphoon shooked rapidly the head, and I released him. Then, I stood up and looked to the stallion:

"Alright, alright. I'll be there on time." I pointed with a finger.

"I'm sorry, monkey, but our highness sent us to make sure you'll be there on time, so, you'll come with us"

I chuckled: "What?! I'm under arrest?"

"Only if you refuse to comply!"

I chuckled again: "Ok, ok. But it's still too early. Let me check on my friend first. I'm worried about her."

The stallion shrugged his eyes: "Fine. But we'll be watching..."

Celestia was reading a scroll that has just arrived, and her single eye was twitching. Annoyed, she called a messenger pony:

"Tell Twilight Sparkle to come here to the throne room, at once. No excuses."

"Yes, your highness."

The messenger pony galloped to the Canterlot's library, where was Twilight since the previous night, uncusessfully trying to solve a task from Celestia.

"Twilight Sparkle, your highness requests your presence in the throne room, at once!" Informed the mare.

Twilight, buried beneath a giant pile of books, pushed her head out:

"What?! The time's up already?! Oh, no, no, no, no, NO!" She put both forelegs in the head, sad and despaired "I just need five minutes! Five minutes more, please!" She indicated with a straight foreleg.

"Sorry, miss Sparkle." Replied the mare. "But Princess Celestia said 'No excuses'."

Twilight made a sad and pained grimace: This was her end! Her end!!!

Trembling from hooves to head, Twilight came out from under the pile of books and, with her head and ears down, slowly walked to her demise.

Upon arriving to the throne room, she gulped, and announced her arrival.

"Y-your hig-g-ghness, I-I'm here..." She stuttered.

"Come closer, Twilight Sparkle." Celestia sternly ordered.

Twilight's vision got blurred, and she almost fell to a side. Her heart wanted to get out from her chest. Stumbling, she came closer to the alicorn princess and closed the eyes, raised the head and scrambled the mouth, trembling and waiting for nothing but the worst.

"Look what your coltfriend has done now!" Celestia said, putting the scroll near Twilight with her magic.

Twilight opened an eye, later the other: 'What?' She tought. Then, she took the scroll with her own magic, read it, and her face passed for several shades of purple. "Ohhhh nooooo..." She made another grimace. "Why he keeps embarrassing me like this? Whyyyyyy?!"

Celestia closed her remaining eye, very upset: "I told you that this would happen, Twilight Sparkle. But you simply don't listen." Then, she opened her eye and pointed Twilight with a foreleg "I don't know why you insist in your engagement with that... human. He's nothing but trouble!"

"But I love him!" Twilight cried, still holding the scroll. "I love him too much and I can't live without hiiiiim! Your highness, please understaaaaaand!"

Celestia snorted, still upset, then she spoke again: "How's going the task I gave you yesterday?"

Twilight gulped, as this was the last nail to her coffin, but she was mare enough to admit defeat:

"I'm sorry, your highness. I couldn't solve it..." She sobbed. Then, she added with crying voice: "I've failed youuuuu! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm ready to go back to kindergarten!"

Celestia moved back her head a bit, surprised: "Holy heavens, Twilight, don't be so dramatic! I'm not going to send you to kindergarten for that!"

Twilight stopped crying, and looked her with an expresion of hope and relief: "No?"

"No! My faithful student, how I'm going to punish you for not solving a task that I cannot do by myself?"

"Ow..." Twilight put a hoof in her chest, and sighed in relief.

Celestia then looked to the sky, upset: "Well, it looks that we'll have to wait for the stupid of your coltfriend to get this solved." Then, she raised the scroll again: "And later, he'll have to answer for this!"

Twilight got scared again: "Your highness... What... what are you going to do to him...?"

"I swear for the memory of my parents that I'm going to send him to the moon this time!"

"NO!" Twilight raised both forelegs, horrified. "No please no...NO! Forgive him, I beg you, forgive hiiiiiim!" She dropped at Celestia hooves, crying.

"I simply don't understand, Twilight!" Celestia raised the voice: "He's a violent and destructive being! Why you can't see that?!"

"I don't care!! I love him anywaaaaay! Forgive him, I beg you! Forgive hiiiiim!" Twilight cried, hugging Celestia's forelegs.

Celestia rolled the eye and shooked her head a bit: "Alright, alright. I won't send him away this time. Just stand up, my faithful student. I hate to see you humiliating yourself for this... pesky monkey..."

"Thank you, your highness, thank you thank you thank you!" Twilight happily thanked her.

At that moment, the pegasi royal guards pulling the chariot that Celestia had sent to look for me, and me, arrived. I stepped down from my cloud (Of course I wansn't going to bother in riding that farcical tiny chariot) and joyfully greeted Celestia:

"Hello Cellie! How're you doing? And the family? Still don't want me to heal your eye?"

I almost haven't time to stop with my magic a huge flower jar headed directly to my head. I smiled, satisfied with my catch, when the jar literally exploded in my hands. Whoa! I've pissed off Celestia really big this time! Good!

But, for my surprise, it was Twilight, and not Celestia, the one that had her horn spreading smoke. Then, she galloped to me, screaming in anger: "You're a bucking stupid piece of idiot! How you're going to attack a guard of the gryphoon diplomacy?! Do you want to drive us to yet another war?!!"

I scowled, as it was clear that they haven't told the whole story: "Twilight! He hurt Rainbow Dash! Almost killed her!" I pointed with my arm.

"What?!" Twilight's anger dissapeared like by magic's arts. "Oh no! Is she alright?! Is she gonna make it?!!" She stood on her hinder legs and put her forelegs on my chest, scared and extremely concerned.

"Yes, she is! I was nearby, by luck! Thank you!" I angrily replied, healing my burned hands.

Twilight gasped, when she realized she had hurt me, and added with sobbing voice: "Oh no, my love. I hurt you unjustly. Please forgive me... Please forgive meeeee!" She drooped to my feet, crying.

"Twilight, don't humiliate yourself for this...!" Celestia raised her hoof, very upset. "Monkey! Come over here inmediately, and undo this!"

She lightened her horn, and the sun gave way to the moon, which was featuring a gigantic Batman logo on it.

I put both hands on my face, restraining my laughter a bit.

"This isn't funny, monkey!" Angrily replied Celestia. "I've received countless complaints of concerned ponies, scared about that... thing... could come down at night, to steal their foals and fillies!"

"And why you didn't removed it by yourself, Your Highness?" I mocked between laughs.

"Alright, alright! I admit it! You're stronger than me! Happy now?!" Celestia waved her forelegs up and down, very upset. "Now remove that scary thing from our new moon, at once!" She pointed to the moon with a foreleg.

Yeah. All this was because an argument I had with Celestia about safety measures. I had found quite a few of security leaks around, but when I told that to Celestia, she said that she was powerful enough to manage any trouble that could arise. And I decided to prove her that she was wrong. So, I took the opportunity when she gave me the task of helping in building a new moon...

"That sounded a little forced. You know?" I commented, after removing the Batman logo. "Like you didn't really meant it."

"What?! Are you implying I'm lying?!!" Celestia roared.

"Well... basically." I confirmed with a joyful tone, and my enjoyment was even bigger when I saw Celestia's face turning red.

"My love, please, not again!" Twilight stood up on her hinder legs and put her forelegs on my chest again, shooking her head and talking with fear. "She's really mad with you this time! Please, don't upset her anymore!"

"Can you at least tell me..." Said Celestia, grunting. "...why did you put that thing on the moon?"

"What, Batman?" I asked.

"'Batman'? What's a 'Batman'?" Asked Celestia, with a twitching eye.

Joyfully, I took out a Batman mask that I've made and put it on my head:

"I'm Batman!" I said with a low-pitched voice and a smile, opening the arms.

The silence in the throne room was such, that the crickets could be heard. The smile dissapeared from my face: Another epic fail.

"Twilight Sparkle..." Said Celestia with a stern tone. "Step away from that monkey."

"What?! No no no no no! No your highness no please no don't do that no please no..." Twilight quickly spoke, jumping to my neck and hugging me, trembling and frightened to death.

'Aha! So she wants to fight now? Now I'm gonna put her in evidence!' I thought for myself, smirking and sharpening my eyes, so I told Twilight: "That's fine, my love, step aside, I'm always in the mood for a sparring. Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt her."

"She doesn't want to spar with you, she wants to send you to the moon!" Twilight yelled with panic.

"WHAT?!!" That took me by surprise. 'I can't believe it! She really hates me so much?!' I thought, now truly worried.

"Step away, Twilight Sparkle!" Angrily yelled Celestia.

"No!" She replied.

"HOW DARE YOU TO DEFY ME, TWILIGHT SPARKLE?!!! STEP DOWN FROM THAT SAVAGE BEAST RIGHT NOW!!!" Celestia screamed in the Royal Canterlot Voice, putting her eye with a bright white light and lightining her horn, making most of the ponies present in the room to run away in panic.

'Oh God, oh God, oh God; she's going serious this time! You crossed the line, you piece of shit!' I thought, scared and worried, as I wasn't going to be sent to the moon nice and easy, and that will surely end in a epic battle like I've had with Luna, but with no possible happy ending this time.

"Tia, no, please! Stop!" Fortunately, Cadance came in my rescue. "Please, don't do this! You'll regret it later!"

"Your highness, please reconsider! You're not like this!" Shining armor interceded too. "You're better than this!"

That seemingly cooled her off, because the white bright dissapeared from her eye, and her horn faded it's light.

Celestia shooked her head, recomposing herself a bit, and then she said, in her usual voice again, but still very upset: "How dare you to betray me like this, Twilight Sparkle?! Do you know how disappointed I am with you?! Step down from that monkey already! It's your last call!" She angrily hit the floor with a forehoof.

"That's alright, love. It looks that I'm not going to the moon anymore. Step down." I told to my marefriend, very serious.

"Are you sure?" Twilight was still very worried and frightened, hugging me very tightly. "I'm still scared to death..."

"That's ok. Go down." I told her, and she nodded and reluctantly stepped down.

Celestia calmly waited to Twilight to go to the floor, and then pointed me with a foreleg: "And you... monkey, I want you out of Equestria. Out! And never come back!" She quickly waved her foreleg horizontally.

I put my fists on my waist, very upset too: "Fine!" Then, I turned the head to the right, mumbling: "You ungrateful tyrant..."

"How did you called me?!!" Celestia yelled, getting angry again.

"Shut up, you stupid!" Twilight hit me in an arm with a foreleg. "I'm sorry, your highness, that's his way to say he's sorry... from there where he comes..." She said without being very convinced herself. "Come on, my love, let's go home. We have to pack."

"What?!" Celestia shooked her head again. "Are you leaving with him?!! Don't you dare, Twilight Sparkle!"

"Sorry, your highness, but I'm going where he goes. And that's out of the question!" Twilight replied with her usual unbreakable resolution.

"This is outrageous!" Celestia walked to Twilight and looked her like she wanted to kill her. "Twilight Sparkle, I'm giving you a last chance, and you're defying me again?!"

"Yes, because I love him!" She replied to Celestia in an angry tone too.

Celestia raised a foreleg to slap Twilight, but I hold it before she could strike her.

"Don't you dare Celestia! I won't allow you to hit my marefriend!"

Celestia looked at me and her remaining eye brighted white for a second. "Go ahead, you savage beast! Hit me! Hit me and kill me, so everypony knows who you really are!" She exclaimed with rage.

"You know I can't kill you, Celestia! Who's gonna raise the sun then?!" I replied, releasing her leg and pointing up with my open hand.

"Oh! That's it then?! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Celestia laughed, raising a hoof to her muzzle. "Of course, how silly of me, 'who's gonna raise the sun then'." She mocked, turning around and walking back to her throne. "Ha ha ha ha ha ha...! Oh my..." When she arrived to her throne, she sat down and looked to Twilight: "Twilight Sparkle, are you going to take full responsibility for the actions of your coltfriend and your own?"

"Yes, your highness, but I want you to know that I'm sorry that this has come..." Twilight has started to spoke but she was interrupted by Celestia's raised hoof.

"That's enough, miss Sparkle. That's all I needed to hear." Then, she looked at me: "Alright, monkey, you can stay in Equestria."

"Really? Hoorray! Thank you, your highness!" Twilight and me cheered at the same time, and Shining Armor and Cadance sighed of relief.

"But..." Celestia continued. "I can't leave this defiance unpunished, so I'm hereby disowning you, miss Sparkle."

Twilight got pale, and started to sweat cold.

"You're no longer my faithful student, and you're no longer an element bearer. And I don't want any of you to step a hoof back in my castle! EVER!" Celestia shouted. "Now go! Out! I want you two out! OUT!!" She angrily pointed with her hoof to the castle's exit.

Twilight passed out, but I was fast enough to held her head just before it hits the hard tiled floor of the castle. Then, I carried up my unconscious marefriend, and teleported both of us out of the castle.

Cadance then come closer to Celestia: "Tia, I think you overdid it with your punish..."

"Silence, Cadance!" Celestia angrily interrupted her. "Or you're next!"

Author's Note

Yeah, yeah; right. I know it, I know it.

I know that I said that if I got enough votes, I'll upload this Book 2, but then I bumped with
that enlightening phrase that says: "Second marriage is the triumph of hope over experience".

So let's give hope a second chance, shall we?

Chapter 2 - Sometimes Being Powerful is Not Enough

"Dashie. How are you doing?" Asked Twilight.

Slowly, Rainbow Dash's head come out from beneath the blanket, which was being pulled by my marefriend, as Rainbow Dash herself doesn't even bothered in doing so. Only then, Rainbow Dash reacted: "No, Twilight. Please, leave me." She covered her head again, speaking with a sobbing voice.

"What's happening, my student? Why you don't want to talk to your master?" I joyfully asked her.

"Please, Gus, it isn't funny. Really, go away. Leave me alone." She replied from under the blanket.

"You're getting me worried, Dashie." Pleaded Twilight. "Please, talk to us. It breaks my heart seeing you like that."

Rainbow Dash hesitated in speaking for a while, and finally spoke with a sad voice: "Fluttershy was just here, trying to cheer me up and I... I yelled to her. Ohhhh! I'm such a terrible friend!" She then started to sob "First... (sniff) first, I let that bucking gryphoon (sniff) to get away with his felony and then... (sniff) and then, my best friend come to see me, and... and... (sniff) I just..." She couldn't continue speaking, and started to cry.

"Hey. Hey, hey, hey, hey. What's that, Rainbow Dash? How's that the strongest mare and faster flier in Equestria could be crying like a little filly that has lost her doll? Come on!" I told her, a bit upset. "That's not the Rainbow Dash I know and respect!"

The crying stopped, indicating that I was in the right track:

"That's right! Seeing you crying like that just makes me to regret being your teacher! It's a shame and a waste to taught somepony that's no more than bluffing and rubbish!" The blanket started to tremble, and Twilight looked at me with concern, quickly shooking her head, silently asking me to stop, but I knew what I was doing. "Aha! But what I was expecting?! A miracle? No! Just a crying baby, that loses with the bad guys and then mistreats her friends just because she's too...!"

"Stooooop!" Rainbow Dash came out from under the blanket, with tearful eyes. "Please stop... I can't take anymore of this..."

"Do you want me to stop?" I pointed myself.

"Yes, please..." She pleaded.

"And what will you do to make me stop?"

"Anything! I'll do anything you ask, I swear!" She assured, still sobbing.

"What about a sparring?" I asked with sharpened eyes and a impishly smile, raising a fist.

Rainbow Dash opened wide her eyes and muzzle, and then she stood on her four hooves on the mattress and started to defy me: "Come on! When you want, where you want! I'm gonna buck your lights out!"

"Shhh. Silence! You're bothering the rest of the patients!" Nurse Redheart scolded us.

"Ha! That's the spirit! When you get fully recovered, we'll have our sparring." I told Dashie, smirking.

"Then I'm gonna get well in no time! You'll see then, you bucking worm." Said Dashie with sharpened eyes and smiling too, returning back to the bed.

When Twilight and I come out from the hospital, she couldn't stop but asking me: "Wow, that was just... awesome! How did you managed to cheer her so fast? Normally it requires months, if not years, for a pony in that depressed state to fully recover. And sometimes he or she never recovers at all!"

"That's called inverse psychology." I explained her. "When a patient is in that state, if you start with just the pitiful speech: 'please, get well, do an effort, is for your own good' etcetera, the patient only gets worse just because she CAN'T. She can't do any of these things. Can't get well, can't do the effort, and it doesn't matter if it's for her own good. Simply she can't."

"Wow." Said Twilight, amazed. "And just when I tought I knew everything about you... Can you taught me how it's done?"

"Of course, love. Just be careful. It can heal, but, if misused, it can destroy too."

"Don't worry, love. I'll be careful. Now, let's check on Flutters. That what Dashie said, left me worried."

"Whoa! You're right!"

When we arrived to Fluttershy's cottage, we got surprised to find it with several reinforcements in the walls, door and windows. I knocked the door.

"Go away, you big huge meanie! There's nothing to eat here! Go awaaaaaay! Heeeeelp! Anypony heeeeeelp!" We could hear Fluttershy's voice from inside the house.

"Flutters, it's us Twilight and Gus! Open up!" Twilight announced.

"Ow. I... humm... just a moment..."

We heard several metallic frictions behind the door, and finally it half opened, and Fluttershy looked cautiously to outside: "Oh, thanks to Celestia, it's really you AHHHHHHHHHHH!" She screamed and closed the door.

"Flutters, what's happening?!" Asked Twilight, concerned.

"It's the raincoat! The raincoaaaaaaat! They're coming for meeeeee! They're going to eat meeeeeee!" Fluttershy screamed from inside her cottage.

"Flutters, nopon... I mean, nothing is gonna eat you! Open up!" Repeated Twilight.

"Nooooooo! The raincoat is theeeeeereeeee at my doooooor, waiting for eating meeeeeee!" Fluttershy screamed again, frightened to death. "Heeeeeelp! Anypony heeeeeelp!"

Twilight looked at me: "Love, take out that raincoat, damn it!"

"Ah. Ok." I did so.

Twilight then knocked the door again: "Flutters, the raincoat is gone already, open up!"

Inside Fluttershy's cottage was like to be inside a sauna. I don't know how she can stand such heat. Angel surely not, as I didn't see him anywhere.

"Damn it, Flutters, there's an infernal hot in here." Twilight complained, cleaning the sweat in her forehead with a foreleg.

"Yeah, why you don't open a window?" I said, opening one.

"No!" Screamed Fluttershy, closing it again and pushing her loin against it, with a horrified expresion: "The monsters are going to enter! They're going to enter while I'm sleeping, and they're going to eat me!"

"Flutters, there aren't any monster left. We destroyed them all." I assured her.

"Yeah? How can you be so sure, huh? How can you be so sure?! I've seen them... watching me among the treeeeees." Her voice trembled in fear. "Haunting me... waiting to catch me off guaaaaaard..."

Twilight looked at me: "It looks that she needs of your 'magic' too." She tilted her head.

I then kneeled to Fluttershy: "Flutters, if there were any monster left, they'll had eaten you long ago."

"Ow... humm... Wait! Are you saying... that if there are any monsters outside, they can eat me anytime?!" Fluttershy started to hyperventilate and move nervously, in the beginning of a panic attack.

"Well... yes. That's exactly what I said." I confirmed her suspicions.

"Eeeek!" Fluttershy fell catatonic, loinside to the ground and the four legs straight up.

I looked to Twilight, opening my arms: "Looks that it's a tough case!"

I sincerely don't know what to do in this case. It wasn't a matter of beating up some nasty monster, so all my strenght was pretty useless. I needed something else to counterfeit Fluttershy's paranoia. But what?

Twilight and me stayed on her cottage, doing some than other thing, until Fluttershy recovered conciousness.

"Alright, Flutters. Now I want you to imagine that I'm a big monster that comes to eat you..." I started telling her.

"Eeeek!"

Catatonic.

"Flutters, now I'm gonna take out the raincoat, nice and easy..."

"Eeeek!"

Catatonic.

"Flutters, now we were gonna take you to the forest, where you can see that all those eyes..."

"Eeeek!"

Catatonic.

"...aren't real..."

Twilight hoofpalmed: "Love, this isn't working! At it's nightfall already! We have to think on something else!"

Fluttershy recovered conciousness from the nth time, and looked outside: "AHHHHHHHH! It's nightfaaaaaaall! The giant bat is going to eat meeeeee!" She ran upstairs and locked in her room.

Twilight gave me a furious look, and, with clenched teeth, raised a foreleg to hit me yet again, but she changed her mind, and just sat on her haunches, turning her head and angrily snorting.

We had to sleep in her cottage...

At least, it was fun... for me, as Fluttershy spent the night trying to cuddle with us and Twilight pushing her away. Oh God! That was fun!

Finally, just before I fell sleep, I saw them having some sort of argument, and Fluttershy stopped trying to sleep wit us.

I don't know how Twilight managed to do it, but the next morning Fluttershy just can't wait for us to leave, and we were walking back to Twilight's home, I mean, our home. Twilight remained scowled all the way, and I decided to tease her a bit:

"You know, love? I've been thinking, and maybe I should move to Flutters' cottage."

"What are you talking about, my love? Can you imagine the four of us there, Flutters, Spike, you and me? There's not enough space!"

"No, I mean, to move just myself..."

"What?!!" Twilight stopped short, straighten her four legs, in a jealousy attack. That's so damned funny!

"No." She denied with her head.

"Why not? It will be easier, and in the case that we have an argument and break up, Flutters can..."

"NOOOOO!!" Twilight raised her forelegs, screaming so funnyly scared, that it made me to laugh aloud. Then, she started to cry: "Why are you doing this to meeeee? You don't love me anymooooore?"

"I'm joking, my love, come on." I extended my arms to her, and she jumped to them.

"Please don't do jokes like that anymooooore. Pleaaaaase-eh-eh-eh!" She cried.

Alright. Once is enough.

I carried her from there, and I happened to see a gathering of ponies in front of a lettersign. It reads: 'Royal contest to look for a place as a Celestia's ponial adjutant'. 'Ponial'...? Ah! I think that's the equivalent to 'personal'.

"Hey, love. Look at this. It seems you were right. It haven't passed merely two days and Celestia is already looking for a replacement for you."

"See? I told you." Then, she stared to the royal guards that were explaining the crowd about the contest's rules. "I don't get it. Why Celestia is so obsessive about some gryphonic decorative lightstones? It doesn't make any sense."

I looked to my marefriend, smirking "So, that was what you were doing at the Gryphoon Empire, huh? Just playing with decorative little lights?"

Twilight looked at me, smiling: "I can't confirm or deny anything."

We both laughed and I resumed walking back to our library home.

"Love." Said Twilight. "Now that we were talking about decorations and travels and so, I can't help but recalling that showmare. What was her name?
Trix? No, Trixie. Trixie was."

I made a 'doubtful' gesture: "I've never heard of her."

"That's right. Me neither, for a while, and I don't know why, but I'm feeling a bit worried about her."

"How so? I believe that Equestria is quite safe to wander around nowadays."

"Yeah, I know. Is just... I believe she could be in trouble. She left the town pretty rejected and mistreated... and I know that this isn't very scientific to say, but I have this hunch, that she might need our help."

"A hunch? Seriously? Are we gonna embark in a search for an unknown mare, that might or not be in trouble, and might or not need our help, being left so little for our wedding... for a hunch?"

"Please, love. I just... I just wanna to put all my stuff in order, ok?"

I looked her, worried: "Geez, love. You're talking like you were gonna die."

Twilight didn't answered. She just gave me a sad smile.

I smiled too, and gave her a peck in the forehead and in the muzzle: "All right. Let's go for this Trixie girl."

It was night time, and the storm roared strongly, and the lightnings crossed the sky over the shabby abandoned shack, making the blue coated and white maned mare curled in it's interior, to shiver in terror. She then coughed, as her time wandering in the open as a homeless had driven her to get a strong cold.

She looked to her ragged star cape, and to her crumpled conical star hat. Oh! She has lost everything! Everything! Now she was the laughingstock of Equestria! Nopony wanted to see her shows, ans nopony wanted to give her a job either. She had tried everything. Everything. Even the rock farming. Nothing. A tear slipped in her cheek, as she was sadly looking to the falling rain. She coughed again. Well, at least she was dry...

In that moment, the roof of the shack crumbled, getting her as much wet as she could be, and a strong wind gust took her hat far, far away. She didn't moved anyway, only swore her bad luck. She had given up. She was done.

"The great and powerful Trixie... is going to die... (sniff) lonely and forgotten... (sniff) in the middle of nowhere..." She sobbed, with a crying voice.

The next day, the morning light illuminated Trixie coughing even worse, loinside to the ground and breathing with difficulty, as the last night's rain had turned her cold into a severe pneumonia. The fever was already blurring her understanding. Breathing had already turned into a struggle, one that she was losing bit to bit, as she really didn't want to fight anymore. She wanted all to end. She looked to the sky, where the vultures were already flying around, expecting her to stop breathing. She smiled: They weren't the spectators she would want at her final moments, but at least she had spectators for her final act. If only she could start over, like nothing had happened. Other life, on the body of another pony, so nopony could recognize her, she'll maybe give it another shot. But that was nonsense. There was only one Trixie, and she was going to die shortly. Finally, she coughed a last time, and her conciousness faded into the nothingness...

"Is she still alive? Yes?! Oh, thanks to Celestia...! Damn! She's so pale and emaciated! She must have suffered a lot. I feel so guilty." The words, as an echo, resonated in Trixie's ears. She hardly could open her eyes, looking surprised to a strange hairless monkey that was doing who knows what with her. But that voice. She could swear she has heared it before. Trixie turned her head, to see the other pony: She was a purple unicorn, with a straight two colored mane and tail. Trixie clenched her eyes, as she recognized her at once. That was HER, the cause of all her misfortune. And now, she doesn't let her even die? Until when she was going to mess with her business?

"Why?" Trixie asked with a coughing voice. "Why you don't let Trixie die? Please, let Trixie die..."

"Shhh. Take this soup, girl, while is still hot." I told her, putting a bowl with a tasty vegetable soup and a spoon to her reach.

Trixie fully opened her eyes, hesitating, but ultimately, her grunting stomach sweeped all her doubts, and she simply sit in the bed, and taking the bowl with her forelegs, she started to drink the soup directly from it, not even minding the spoon.

"Take it easy, Trix, or you might get burned!" Said Twilight smiling joyfully, closing her eyes.

Trixie drank all the soup, and then she stood looking straight to me, then to Twilight:

"This is the Tartarus?"

"No, Trix! I don't think that in the Tartarus you get welcomed with a hot soup and a confy bed!" Giggled Twilight.

Trixie stared to the now empty bowl:

"Why? Why save Trixie? Nopony wants Trixie. Everypony hates her... Why...?" She sadly asked.

Twilight looked at me, silently pleading to me to say something that made sense.

"Trixie, we're very mad with you because what you did in Ponyville..." I started. Twilight just rolled the eyes and shooked the head, figuring out to where I was going, and then walked away and started to twist the rest of the soup with a ladle.

"... and we want you to know, than that's not what a showmare does!" I continued, waving my finger with a fake angered face. "What you did there is proper just from bluffers, rubbishs, worthless, inepts, useless, unfitting, undesirables..." Trixie's head and ears were progresively drooping down with every word, until she couldn't stand anymore:

"Then kill Trixieeee!!" She screamed, heartbroken. "For Celestia's sake, just kill Trixieeeeeee!" She cried.

"You want me to kill you?" I pointed to myself, then to her.

"Yeeeeees!" Affirmed Trixie.

"And what will you do for me to kill you?"

"I'll do whatever you ask! Whatever!" She cried.

"Will you present yourself as Celestia's new adjutant?"

"Yes...! What?!" Trixie shooked her head, perplexed, when I presented before her the Royal Edict announcement. She took the papier with her forelegs and read it: "Is this a joke?" She asked, confused.

"It isn't!" Twilight turned her head to Trixie, smiling. Then she approached to the showmare with yet another bowl of soup held with her magic: "I've recently quit my job as Celestia's adjutant, and I want to recommend you for the place!"

"Me? Why me? Why Trixie? All what Trixie has done is to lie and to fake and..."

"Trixie, it requires a lot of study and magickal training to do all that spectacles you do." Said Twilight. "Besides, I think that writing friendship reports won't be quite a challenge for you."

"What? Writing friendship reports? That's all you do?" Asked Trixie to Twilight, perplexed.

"And arranging meetings, organizing books, preparing schedules... Mostly paperwork. My former job's contract really doesn't include fighting monsters or preventing disasters, I do that quite voluntary. You know? You don't have to do any of that, so I'll be quite relieved if you take the job instead. That way, I'll have more time and less pressure to... fighting monsters and prevent disasters." Explained Twilight.

Trixie opened her muzzle, happily surprised: "Seriously?! You want Trixie... to take you old job?!" She pointed herself with a foreleg and her face brightened. "What Trixie have to do?!"

"Oh, it's easy. Celestia will give you a chore to perform, and if you do it before the deadline... You're in!"

"Ahhhhhhh!" Happily screamed Trixie, clapping her forehooves. "That's it?! Trixie can't believe it!" But then she got worried. "But surely there will be a lot of aspirants to the place. How Trixie is going to perform better than all of them?"

"Oh, don't worry! You'll have advantage!" Twilight winked. "I'm gonna give you all the information you need to pass. This time, the task consist in manipulate a bunch of magickal lightstones. I even gonna taught you with the spell I developed to do so. It's still incomplete but I'm sure you're smart enough to get it finished. Just don't tell anypony what I did, specially Celestia."

"Ohhhh." Trixie got joyfully amazed. "You can bet Trixie won't..."

Chapter 16 - Dame's Gambit

Ponyville, the night just after Twilight and Luna's duel and before Cadance's betrayal:

Celestia opened her eyes, realizing, dumbfounded, that she wasn't at the hospital anymore. Instead, a pair of scary green eyes were looking at her with a predatory look. Celestia sharpened her eyes and lit on her horn: She wasn't going down without a fight. But suddenly, her horn lit out, her coat bristled, and a frozen wave passed through all her body, as she realized that the eyes wasn't looking to her neck, like a regular predator will do, but to her lower parts. Horrified, she opened her eyes wide and scrunched her muzzle: She was... she was going to be... raped... AGAIN!!

NOOOOO!!! NOT AGAIIIIIIIN!!!

Celestia quickly put her both forelegs between her hinderlegs, covering her private parts.

"NOOOOO!! NOOOOO!! AHHHHH!! AHHHHH!!" She screamed with sobbing voice, frightened to death...

Celestia's screams woke up Pinkie and Rarity, making the pink mare to quickly jump to the Princess's bed to calm her down, while the later turned on the light:

"Your Highness, Your Highness! What's happening?! Calm down, please, calm down!" The self-proclaimed Princess's ponyguard asked, very concerned.

Celestia was bucking and screaming desperately, but Pinkie's known voice made her to react, and to quickly hug Pinkie: "Pinkie! Oh, Pinkie! It's that you! I was having such an horrible nightmareeee!" She panted, trembling, still horrified by her experience.

The guards waiting outside opened the door too, worried for their liege: "Your Highness! What's happening?! Are you in danger?!"

"No, no, no! It's just a nightmare, it's just a nightmare!" Rarity waved a hoof, calming them too.

After Celestia finally recomposed herself, she commented: "That horrible nightmares... I think I'm going to have a heart attack the next time I have one... I... I guess I should ask for Luna's help... this is her area of expertise, anyway."

So, she looked to her sister's bed, getting surprised by finding it empty.

"Ow! Luna? Where's Luna?" She asked around.

"She said that she has to go to the bathroom, but that was more than a hour ago." Informed Pinkie.

"What?! Pinkie, but why didn't you let me know?!" Asked Celestia.

"Sorry, Your Highness, but I don't know how long a Princess takes in her bathroom's duties. I've had my own times by myself everytime I made a mistake with my recipes, and after trying them, I had to go to the bathroom for a very looooong time and..." Joyfully started to explain Pinkie.

"Alright, alright, that's enough." Celestia interrupted her, getting the point. "Guard, please go to the bathroom and check if my sister is fine." She ordered to one of the guards that was still on the door, watching just in case.

The guard returned in a hurry a while later: "Your Highness, your sister isn't in the bathroom, and not even in the hospital!"

"What?!" Celestia stood up a bit, worried.

Suddenly, another guard came galloping too: "Your Highness, miss Twilight has just arrived carrying your sister, and she looks pretty beaten up!"

"What?!!" Celestia jumped from the bed.

"Be careful, Your Highness! You're still in recovery!" Pinkie warned her, very concerned.

Paying no attention to her ponyguard, Celestia galloped to the hospital's entrace, finding Twilight and Rainbow Dash there, getting interrogated by Shining Armor.

"Brother, I'm telling you that she attacked me first! She was rambling about some stupid duel or something!" Was explaining the lavender unicorn.

"Twilight Sparkle! What's the meaning of this?!!" Almost roared Celestia, enraged, when she found out how bad Luna looked like.

"Your Highness, likewise I was explaining to my incredulos brother, your lovely and obvioulsy swellhead sister, called me to a secret meeting of some sort, and there she attacked me!" Calmly explained Twilight, putting a hoof in her chest, trying to not to exite the tempers.

"She attacked you?! Then, why aren't you hurt?! Not even a scratch!" Celestia inquired, doubtful.

"Ow, I think that's the result of my latest experiment, so I think that's proof enough that it works!" Happily raised a hoof Twilight, full of herself.

"And that's all you care about?! Your stupids experiments?!!" Angrily roared Celestia. "Look how you left my sister!! It looks like a giant had stepped on her!!"

Rainbow Dash quickly came on her friend's defence: "It wasn't a giant! It was a huge hail and lightning storm! It even woke me up, and I'm a awesome sleeper!"

Twilight slowly looked to the cyan pegasi, shrugging an eye and slowly shaking her head: "Dashie... What side are you?"

Rarity come closer to Celestia and whispered to her: "Your Highness, just to the record, Twilight is behaving strangely lately. Fluttershy told me that she came yesterday, all covered in bandages, asking if she still had skin... She thought at first that she was an imposter..."

Twilight hoofslapped her face: Damnation! Fluttershy told her that she was gonna keep her mouth shut!

Now, all the ponies where looking suspiciously to Twilight. Then, Celestia asked again: "Twilight Sparkle, you said that my sister called you to a secret meeting. How did she do that, exactly?"

"Well, she sent me a message and..." Twilight stopped short, realizing what was the next logic question: 'Where is the message?'

"And where is that message, Twilight Sparkle?" Sternly asked Celestia.

"I... I burned it..." Confessed Twilight, embarrassed.

"So, you burned it..." Celestia repeated, shrugging the eyes.

Twilight opened the eyes and the muzzle wide, scared, realizing how bad this misunderstanding could get, if she don't stop it on time:

"But Spike saw it! He can give credit of what I'm talking about!" She rapidly waved her hoof.

"Yeah?! Like the time he told me that you and your friends hated me, and doesn't wanted to know about my parties again?!" Angrily replied Pinkie.

"That was because we wanted to give you a surprise in your birthday!" Explained Twilight, deeeply blushing.

"Minute surprise! I almost commit suicide! You know?! If Shinny doesn't happens to arrive at that moment, I wouldn't be here right now!"

"Sorry, Pinkieeeee, I'm sorryyyy, forgive me pleaseee, I didn't know I was gonna hurt you so muuuuuch... Forgive me pleaseeeeee!" Cried Twilight, sitting on her haunches and covering her eyes with her forelegs.

Pinkie's face turned to a joyful one and turned around to face Celestia: "It's her." She happily assured.

"What?!" Everypony was dumbfounded.

"Of course. Only the real Twilight will remember such an event. And even if she was an imposter who could know about it, only the real Twilight will react like this." The pink mare explained, pointing the unicorn with a foreleg.

Celestia backed off her head a bit, astounded by the simplicity, but yet geniality, of Pinkie's lie detection.

"Ow... That was... Wait a sec... Did you almost commit suicide?"

Pinkie deeply blushed: "Come on, Your Highness. I was just teasing Twilight, you know?" She smiled nonchalantly, swinging her tail.

Twilight sharpened the eyes, pondering if hugging or killing Pinkie.

Suddenly, another guard came galloping, this time to Shining Armor:

"Captain, the prisoner has escap...!" And he stopped talking, when he saw Celestia there too.

"A prisoner has escaped? One of the gryphoons?" Asked Celestia. "Weren't they all already moved to a high security prison?"

"Yes... t-they were..." Shining Armor stuttered a bit.

Celestia raised a brow: "Captain, I have the feeling that you're hidding something from me. Come on, speak it out."

Shining Armor looked to the sides a couple of times, and spoke: "You have no need to worry, Your Highness. All you need to think about is on your full recovering." He forced a smile.

Celestia disdainfully looked to a side, putting a hoof under her muzzle. "I've wondering if I have truly need of two royal guard captains. It looks like that Storm Chaser is good enough by himself..."

"Alright, alright!" Shining Armor raised a hoof, scared, realizing what that means. "This is another prisoner, an assassin!"

"An assassin?! In my kingdom?!!" Celestia put both forelegs on her head, shocked. "Oh no! Did he... killed anypony?!" She asked later, terrified.

"Unfortunately, yes, Your Highness. She murdered one nurse, and if it isn't because miss Pie caught her, she'd probably had you killed too."

"But why didn't anypony told me anything about this?!" Exclaimed Celestia, shocked. Then, she closed her eyes, raised the head a bit and put a foreleg in her forehead, grieved. "Holy heavens, the rascal is right, I should make some MAJOR changes on my security measures." Then she put the hoof back on the ground and sat on her haunches, and asked with ragged voice, swinging her forelegs with fury: "When this happened?! When I was still unconscious?!"

"Yes, Your Highness, just after Cadance arrived with reinforcements, so we suspect that she was imponiating one of the royal guards of Canterlot."

Celestia stopped her furious bucking, and fixedly looked to her royal guard captain: "Wait a sec. Imponiating? Like an... imposter?"

"Yes, Your Highness. She seems to be very good at shapeshifting. Miss Dash by herself caught her turning from a pegasi to an unicorn."

"Yes, she did that. I saw a strange green flash behind a curtain and that warned me." Confirmed Rainbow Dash.

"And when I was fighting her, a freaky twisted black horn grew and shrunk on her head!" Added Pinkie Pie.

"And one of the guards was under a powerful hypnotic spell. I had quite a hard time removing it." Also explained Twilight.

With every explanation, Celestia's fear was growing bigger and bigger: All the hints pointed to a... changeling! But that damned race wasn't extinguished already?! And getting killed wasn't what was scaring her. She had dealt with changelings and death before. It was... her... NIGHTMARE!! It was just like a... premonition!

Her eyes went up, as she was imagining the worst of scenarios, where she had been rendered disabled and defenseless, with a magic dampening ring on her horn, and her four legs spreaded and tied, as well as her wings, and a degenerate changeling stallion were putting his dirty and disgusting forelegs in her flanks, while evily saying: "Now, let's put some little changelings inside you. Shall we?" And an evil laughter right after that.

Celestia shooked her head. NO! Not raped again!! ANYTHING BUT BEING RAPED AGAIN!!! Then, she looked around, sweating cold and panting. As far as she knew, changelings always infiltrated in groups. It could be anypony!

"Your Highness. Are you alright?" Asked Shining Armor, coming closer, concerned.

"No! Stay away from me! Stay away from meeeeee!!" Celestia bucked back, freaking out, and, seeing no other exit, she shot a light beam to the hospital's walls, opening a huge hole, and escaped through it.

"Your Highness, nooooo, waaaaaait!" Exclaimed most ponies, and Twilight and Rainbow Dash, along with almost all of the pegasi royal guards, darted behind her.

Pinkie's tail twitched, and she desperately galloped after them: "Twilight, Dashie, nooooo!! Don't go after her, don't go after her! Something awful is gonna HAPPEEEEEEEN!!!" She screamed, scared too.

Shining Armor looked back, about to go for Princess Cadance, when he noted a royal guard pegasi that haven't taken the air. He had an awfully familiar expression. Shining Armor walked to him: "Guard. Weren't you watching Princess Cadance?"

"Yes, I was, but she left, and I was dismissed." The guard said, with the tongue out, with a dumb voice.

"What?! She left?!! To where?!!" Asked Shining Armor, worried.

"I don't know. Canterlot?" Answered the stallion with the same dumbness.

Shining Armor lit his horn, realizing that the stallion was under an hypnotic spell too. Worried, he turned to the guards:

"Guards, quick, we have to get to Canterlot! Princess Cadance is in danger!"

"But she can't fly? We'll never catch her!" Protested the sergeant, as all the guards that remained were unicorns.

"Don't worry, she's not a great flyer, so she'll have to rest two or three times before getting there! Come on, we might still have time, move!"

Then he galloped to Pinkie, who was mourning, sorrowful: "If I just could fly..." and told her:

"Pinkie, my love! I have to go! Keep an eye on Luna for us. Will you?" And they both gave a quick kiss, and the stallion unicorn left with his troops.

Using a combination of teleporting and speeding up spells, Celestia had already put a good distance between her pursuers and herself. But not even her could rely on magic all the time, and when she ran out of it, Rainbow Dash started to getting closer. Celestia looked back, horrified, as she could see the cyan pegasi to come closer and closer everytime.

Desperate, and not seeing any other solution, Celestia gathered the last of her magic, and when Rainbow Dash was about to get her, she cast her huge lighting spear and stroke the cyan pegasi.

"DASHIE, NOOOOOOO!!" Screamed Twilight on her flying cloud, putting both forelegs in her head, while she saw, horrified, how Rainbow Dash were falling to the ground, leaving a trailing jet of blood.

Without hesitation, Twilight darted after the falling body of her unconscious friend, catching her in another flying cloud before she hit the ground. The rest of the pegasis had already flown away, continuing on their useless pursue, leaving Twilight alone to attend her badly injured friend. She tried to heal her with some conventional spells, but it didn't work, as them, like any regular healing spell, needed the target's ability to regeneration.

Twilight lit her horn to check on her friend's vitals, realizing with horror, that they were going down. Fast. Her life was slipping right between her hooves, and there was nothing that she could do. Tears started to fell from her eyes. She pondered her options: Her coltfriend was in Cloudsdale, too far to get there, she wouldn't get there on time, not to mention that moving Rainbow Dash will surely haste her death. What can she do? What...?

Her eyes opened wide, and quickly turning her head to her sidebags, she took out the Life-force spellbook. She looked to the book, lit by the moonlight, thus giving it an even more gloomy look. She knows what that means: A life in exchange of another. Twilight clenched her tearful eyes, as she was about to lose everything. She sadly looked to the moon, while mourning: "Sorry, my love. I only hope that you find another marefriend, who can love you as much as I do..."

And sobbing, she opened the book in the required page, and her horn lit on with a purple glow, while the book fell to the ground...

I was shocked when Celestia arrived to Cloudsdale that morning, or the morning arrived when she did. Not sure in what order. She galloped to me and hugged me, all sweated and panting: "Rascal! Please, protect me! Please!!"

"Protect you? From who?" I asked, dumbfounded, looking around, as I couldn't spot any threats.

"From the rapists." She whispered in my ear. "They're everywhere, stalking me, waiting to catch me off guard to... rape me..." She whispered again with sobbing voice, hugging me even tighter.

Suddenly, a stallion wearing a worker's cask came flying: "Director, we have a doubt about... Your Highness! What an honor!"

"Ahhhhhh!! He's one of them, he's one of them. Quick, get rid of hiiiiim!" Screamed Celestia, frightened to death, pointing the shocked stallion with a trembling foreleg.

"Cellie! What're you talking about?!" I replied, concerned about her strange behavior.

"Didn't you heard?! He called you 'Director'! That's not your name! He's one of them!"

"I told them to call me 'Director'! Everypony here does!" I informed her.

"Ow. You should've told me that!" Angrily replied Celestia.

"How, if you're just arrived?" I replied back.

"Ow... You're right. Sorry."

"Alright. What was all that about the rapists?" I asked her in lower voice.

"I was flying here to visit you, and a huge swarm of changelings appeared from nowhere, and almost got me! Luckily, I took out my lightning spear, and took down their vanguard, and barely could lose them. Please, protect me, rascal! You're my only hope!" She told me with sobbing voice and tearful eyes. She looked so helplessly cute!

I looked down, concerned: First, a gryphoon attack, and now, a changeling attack? Yep, the things are starting to get dangerous. I'll better keep Cellie by my side. Also, I got another piece to my puzzle, as it looks like that it was a damned changeling degenerate who raped Cellie at first instance. Curious, I thought it was a gryphoon...

"OK, Cellie, then I guess I should inform you of what I'm doing here. While you were out, Twilight and me agreed to upgrade your army's weaponry, so I'm using Cloudsdale's cloud factory to create firearms, and the snowflake one, to create the ammunition. It was relatively easy, all what I actually needed was a change of the molds, and with the technical part, it turns that we already had an expert in explosives with us." I pointed to Trixie, who was visibly flattered.

"Yes, Your Highness. That's me, aaaaaaall an expert." She pointed herself, with a wide smile. "Who'd say that I'll be so important!" She bragged.

"And so pretentious." Mocked Celestia, and we all three laughed.

Suddenly, Trixie started to slowly sink in the cloud: "Hey... friend... could you... could you cast that cloud walking spell on me again? I think that mine is dissipating already..." She asked, blushing, with an apologetic smile.

"What's so, Trixie? It was about time you had dominated that spell already. It's not so complicated." I scolded her with a smirk.

"Come on, friend, I haven't had time! I had to concentrate on... Could you hurry up, please?! I'm FAAAAAAAALLIIIIING!!" She screamed, sinking up to the neck.

I quickly cast the spell on her again, and pulled her up back to the cloud's surface.

"Why did you always do the same thing to me, huh?! Waiting until I'm almost in free fall!" Trixie angrily protested, sweating cold and panting.

"Because you have to dominate that spell, Trix. I can't be always near you to save your flank. You know?"

"You could had come out with a better way to remind me, you know?!" Trixie angrily protested again, getting back to work.

Celestia looked me with an angry stare: "You're terrible..." Then, her expression changed to a lewdly one. "But I love you to be like that..." She smiled and suggestively blinked several times.

I scrunched the mouth. "Alright, Cellie, let me get you to some royal-like room. You should be tired from your trip."

I walked with her until I found a spot not too far and not too close, and there I started to form a new cloudhouse for Celestia. She took some magic-regaining potion and quickly put herself to help me out, while she was rubbing her body against mine, and petting me with her wings with tenderness, until that pissed me off:

"Alright Cellie. What's up with you?" I angrily blurted, putting both fists in my waist.

"What? You don't like to be loved? I don't think Twilight to be capable of such tenderness, does she?" She replied, with mellow voice.

I looked up, annoyed. "Come on, Cellie. I thought we had got past this. And if my marefriend catch us so 'tangled', she'll leave me sterile."

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha!" Celestia laughed. "She'll dare! I'll give her an one way trip to the moon first!"

I looked to Celestia, concerned. She was worring me. "Cellie... what?! You're kidding, right?!"

Celestia walked in front of me, looking at me with a predatory stare and relicking: "I'll do whatever it takes to protect my stud!"

That's it. Now she was freaking me out: "Cellie...? Are you alright?"

"I never was better off." She said with a raptured voice, starting to walking towards me.

"Cellie, could you... stop it? You're scaring me." I started to slowly walk backwards.

"Why should I stop? I'm the ruler of Equestria. I'm the sun goddess. Why can't I have what I want?" She asked, smirking.

"And what...? (gulp) what's that you want?" I asked her, even I feared to already know the answer.

"'And what's that you want?'" She mocked, tilting her head while speaking. "I want you, silly. I want you inside me... filling me with your seed... warming me with your body... handling me with your... hands." Celestia continued with her cute sexual harassment, walking toward me, until she make a cloud wall to appear behind me, impeding me to keep walking back. Damn, dude. This is bad.

Gently, but firmly, I pushed her back: "No, Cellie. I'm engaged with Twilight. Snap out from this horseshit already."

Celestia looked me with quivering and tearful eyes: "Then... then... you don't... love me...?" She asked with sobbing voice, trembling, sitting on her haunches and putting a hoof in her chest, hyperventilating.

"No, Cellie. I DON'T LOVE YOU." I told her, denying with my finger, trying to sound secure, but without raising the voice, to not to hurt her.

However, my words stroke Celestia like a punch in her jaw, and she, raising her head and putting a hoof on her forehead, with a pained grimace, fell backwards, fainted, and her cloud walking spell disappeared, and she fell to the vacuum, with a short dying moan.

Luckily, I was close enough, so I had spare time to catch her in mid air. Come to think, I haven't fully carried her before. She was surprisingly light, given her size. Compared with an earthling counterpart, as Twilight weighed like the teeneager she is, Celestia weighed like a grown-up slender woman. And now that she was fully supported by my hands, I had a more accurate feeling of her coat, which was so soft, that it felt like skin. I almost had forgotten how a woman's skin felt, and boy, this was the closest one I ever had on Equestria. That reminded those days, among people, among my kind, and a nostalgic wave drove me into some sort of daydreaming.

After all that cascade of sensations, I couldn't help but stare to the gorgeous unconscious alicorn mare I had on my arms: Oh, boy, she looked so cutely helpless and vulnerable, with her muzzle half opened and her closed eyes still pouring tears, which were glimmering with the reflection of the sunlight, and falling along with the breeze, like shooting stars! And her multicolored mane, sagging and limply swaying with the wind, with a grace and a beauty that simply bedazzled me! It was like an angel coming from the heavens, and the clouds all around only were making that impression even stronger!

Suddenly, I couldn't gave credit to my eyes, as a brightly holy ring appeared over her head. That was simply too much to bear, and I momentarily lost all capacity to reason. When I regained my thinking power, I found myself... kissing her. In the muzzle...!

With a gasp, I quickly backed my head off, breaking the kiss. Damn! I shouldn't had done that!

Celestia smiled and gave a romantic sigh of relief, and slowly opened the eyes, regaining conciousness: "Rascal... my love... I knew it... I knew you loved me.." Then, she slowly reached me with trembling forelegs and hugged me: "I love you... I love you... I can't live without you, my beloved rascaaaaaal..." She sobbed, while our hearts started to beat as one. Again.

Oh boy... this is bad...

The first rays of the sun woke up Rainbow Dash. She looked around and tried to move, but she was unable to. Then, she looked to Twilight, who was sitting on her haunches in front of her, with her eyes closed, with a defeated expression.

"Twi...? Twilight?" Meekly asked Rainbow Dash.

Twilight seemed to react to her voice, moving her head around, and raising a foreleg, but without opening the eyes: "Dashie? Where are you? I can't see you... I can't see anything at all... I'm blind!" She facehoofed, horrified.

"I'm here, in front of you. What happened?"

"Celestia hurt you, very badly. Don't you remember?"

"What?! Her?! No way! She wouldn't..." Rainbow Dash stopped short speaking, as she made a recollection of what had happened.

"Oh, Dashie! You're alright, thanks to Celest... wait, this was actually a FAULT of Celestia!" Twilight realized, turning her head to a side, putting a hoof under her muzzle. Then, she rectified the statement: "Dashie, thanks to God you're alright! How do you feel?"

Rainbow Dash looked to herself: "Actually, I don't feel any good. I'm so cold, and I can't feel my legs..."

"And I can't feel my legs either... and I'm so cold too..." Said mournfully Twilight. "Dashie, I think we were both dead..."

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes wide: "What?! No! I can't be dead! I have to be a wonderbolt! And I'm speaking with you...!"

"Dashie... Can you move?" Asked Twilight with sobbing voice.

Rainbow Dash tried to, and she couldn't: "Noooo... I caaaaan't... and I'm so cooooold." She said with sobbing voice too.

"And I'm so cold either... and I can't see... How could I be so stuuuupiiiid? I cast a deadly spell without practicing befooooore, and now I've killed us boooooth!" Cried Twilight.

Both mares started to cry, saying at the same time: "We're deaaaaaaaad!"

"Twilight! Dashie! Where are you?!" Pinkie's voice could be heard.

Twilight and Rainbow Dash stopped crying and started to call her: "Pinkieeee! Pinkieeee! We're here! We're here!" And they started to laugh: "We're not deaaaaaad! Hoorray!"

Suddenly, Pinkie arrived there... by flying! Rainbow Dash looked to her, doubtfully. Pinkie flying? Maybe she was dead, after all.

"Friends! You're alright, thanks to Celestia! But what are you doing over that ice block? Come on, hop down, you're gonna catch a cold!"

"Huh, an ice block? When I cast it...?" Twilight rubbed her forelegs over the icy surface, while Pinkie was taking Rainbow Dash out from the ice.

Right after that, Pinkie helped the chilled to the bone unicorn to get to the ground: "Twilight, why do you have your eyes closed?"

"I rendered myself blind, Pinkie. I cast a spell which I wasn't ready for." Mournfully said Twilight.

"Yeah? I think you're overreacting." Joyfully assured Pinkie, cleaning the frozen tears from Twilight's eyelids, opening one first, and the other one later. "See?"

Twilight blinked two or three times, realizing that she could still see. "Ow..." Then, she turned her head to a side, annoyed. "Damnation! I should had checked first!"

Rainbow Dash skeptically looked to Pinkie: "Pinkie. How's that you can fly now?"

"Ow! Is that I was wondering how could I catch you, when I came out with this!" Pinkie explained, surrounding herself with levitating earth clods, and using four of them to put her hooves over, and thus ending about a foot above the ground. "And then, the rest is easy. Look!" And she gave some turns, flying all around the place. "Wooooooo! Where's Pinkie Pieeeeee?!"

Rainbow Dash and Twilight only could turn their heads around, looking dumbfounded to Pinkie's inexplicably flying ability. Another inexplicably feature for an inexplicably mare.

Twilight shooked her head, pointing the pink mare with a foreleg: "But that... it's not scientifically possible!"

"No, Cellie! I can't just ditch Twilight like an old piece of cloth! Not after all what we had been through!" I was angrily arguing with Celestia, trying to convince her to snap out from her whim. Or at least I hoped it was a whim.

"But if I told you that I love youuuu! Why don't you believe meeee?!" Celestia was sitting on her haunches, pouring herself in tears. "What do you want me to do to prove my loooove?! To kill myseeeeelf?! I'll kill myself!" She mourned, casting a smaller version of her lightning spear and pointing it against her chest, closing her tearful eyes and raising her head a bit, with an affected expression.

"No, Cellie, no! Damn it!" I quickly grabbed her horn, casting a magic dispelling glove and thus dispelling the spear. "I don't want you to hurt yourself!"

"Then, why are you making me to suffer like thi-i-i-i-is?! Why can't you love mee-e-e-e?!" She protested with crying voice, crossing her forelegs over her chest, and shooking her head in despair.

"Because this is wrong! You had your chance and you blew it! Or don't you remember?!" I pointed her.

Celestia raised her forelegs to her face and started to cry: "It wasn't my faaaaault! It was Cadaaaaance's! She's a shameless whorse, who plays with other ponies feeeeeeeliiiiings!"

That pissed me off. It was breaking down all the respect I had for her, as the purity personified, or, in this case, ponified: "That's enough, Cellie! Or do you want me to spank your flank like I did with Cadance, huh?" I threatened her, with my fists in the waist.

Celestia stopped crying, and looked to me, blushing. Then, she stood on her four legs and turned around, giving her flanks to me: "Go ahead. Spank. Hit! Make a mess of me!! If that's what it tooks to make me yours, then so be it!"

I cast a surrounding acoustic-proof cloud, and direfully raised my finger: "This is gonna hurt, Cellie. Don't say later that I didn't warned you."

"Do it!" Exclaimed Celestia, full of confidence.

And I spanked her flank. Several times and hard. But, despite how hard I hit, she didn't withdraw, and the only sounds I could get from her was just constrained mournings and neighings. Finally, I gave up, and she looked to me, deeply blushing and panting: "See, my beloved rascal? No matter how hard you hit, you will never break my resolve!" She assured with tired but determined voice.

Then, she turned around to face me and dropped to my feet: "Oh, my beloved rascal! I have proven that I am worthy of your love! Please, allow me to be your queen! I will make you the happiest and proudest king ever on Equestria! Be my king, I beg you!" She begged, sinking her head between my legs.

I sighed and looked down in defeat. Oh boy... This is bad... No, is not bad, it's a disaster...

"Then, are we getting back to Ponyville?" Asked Pinkie to Twilight, after the unicorn finished making sure that Rainbow Dash's life wasn't at risk.

"No, actually, I'm taking Dashie to Cloudsdale. We're closer, and I want to visit my coltfriend. I have some sort of bad feeling, not sure why." Explained Twilight, a bit worried.

"Well, then I'm getting back. I was supposed to keep an eye on Luna. I'm so informal!" Pinkie giggled, putting a hoof in front of her muzzle. "But I'm getting good vibes from her, so I guess it's OK."

"Ow. Are you expanding your Pinkie Sense's capabilities too?" Joyfully asked Twilight.

"Oh, girl. I'm EXPANDING a lot of things lately, if you know what I mean." Pinkie mischievously winked.

That comment left Twilight with her muzzle scrunched: "No... I actually don't know what you mean... Well, that doesn't matters. By the way, I'm a bit worried about that assassin at loose, so, please make sure that the food and drink given to Luna are safe. I think I still have a spare on my freezer. Here, take the key of my house. And report me via Spike from any strange thing happening in town! Anything at all! Understood?"

"Oki doki loki! See ya!" Pinkie giggled, and casting her earthly flying spell, or whatever that was, flown away, leaving Twilight wondering what she could have meant with 'expanding things'.

Then, realizing that it probably was some sillyness, she turned around to Rainbow Dash: "Well, Dashie, time to go to the hospital."

"What?! But if I was just released!"

"No complaints. Hop on." Commanded Twilight, casting a second flying cloud.

When Twilight arrived to Cloudsdale, Celestia was announcing to the other ponies her marriage with me. You can imagine the scene:

"What?! But what's the meaning of this?!!" Twilight blurted, shocked, galloping to us, and quickly turning back to take Rainbow Dash to the hospital, and then galloping back to us.

"Your Highness!! But what are you doiiiiiing?!!" She inquired, with fury and fear, and ragged voice.

"Exactly as you heard, Twilight Sparkle. I hereby decreed that the rascal will break his engagement with you and now we're getting married soon." Explained Celestia with a royal tone, putting a hoof in her chest. "Pay your respects to the new King of Equestria, young unicorn!" She pointed me with a foreleg.

"What?!! Love!! She's not Celestia! She's the imposter!" Twilight desperately waved a hoof.

I scratched the back of my head: "Humm... Lo... I mean, Twilight, I'm pretty sure that she's Celestia."

"What?!! But aren't you hearing what she's saying?!! She's trying to tear us apart! Celestia will never do that!" She argumented with tearful eyes and sobbing voice. She even lit her horn, to make sure I wasn't under any enchantment: "She's deceiving you! You can't trust what she's sayiiiiing!"

"Twilight, there's a life-force detection spell..."

"Yeah, and so what?!" She angrily inquired.

"That can be used to say if a pony is herself. Every life force is unique to the pony, like a fingerprint."

"A finger-what?!" Angrily blurted Twilight.

I faceslapped: Ponies haven't fingers, so she didn't get the point.

"Enough with this nonsense!" Celestia ordered with her royal tone. "Twilight Sparkle, I order you to back off and return to Ponyville, and wait there for further instruct...!"

"I'm not going anywhere!!" Twilight screamed, defiant, closing her eyes. "I won't allow you to take my coltfriend!! Not now, and not ever!"

"Are you defying me, Twilight Sparkle?! How dare you?! Don't forget who you are! I made you who you are, and I can't undo it if I see fit!"

"And what do you mean with that?! That you'll disown me?! That you'll strip me from your favors as your protégé?!! Do you think that I care anything about it?!! Think again!!" Twilight bravely defied her.

Celestia backed her head off a bit: "Twilight Sparkle, show respect to your liege, or I'll be forced to banish you from Equestria!"

All the ponies gasped by that statement, and I scrunched my mouth: This only could get worse. But, against my best judgement, which was screaming to me to say: 'Go away, Twilight.' I decided to wait to see how far this could get, before it becomes unavoidable to interfere. Seeing two powerful girls, or ponies, fighting for me, was quite of awesome, anyway.

"Make me!" Defied Twilight.

Celestia trembled of anger, but she constrained herself: "Twilight Sparkle, don't make me do this! I have the right to love! I've kept this ungrateful world living for the past five thousands of years, without asking nothing in exchange! I think I've earned my right to love! I deserve it, and I won't allow a naughty filly that was born yesterday, to take it from me!"

That made Twilight to back off. She looked to Celestia with despair, and then to me. Later, she lowered the head, crying, and closing the eyes, she turned around and started to slowly walk away. Wow, that was... heartbreaking.

I lowered my head too: That was it. My history with Twilight has arrived to an unhappy end. Long live the queen.

"Wait a darn minute there!" Rainbow Dash voice was heard, and all the ponies looked to the cyan pegasi, who was walking, limping, toward us: "I want you to explain me... Why did you tried to kill me?!" She accused Celestia with a hoof.

"Dashie, your wounds! You're not still recovered! Please, go back to the hospital, you could die if...!" Twilight galloped to her, concerned.

"That's enough, Twilight! I can't allow this murderous mare, who calls herself the righteous one, to take the most important thing that my friend has! It's not fair!" Rainbow Dash interrupted her, giving token of a loyalty beyond words.

I looked to Celestia, shocked: "You tried to kill Dashie?! Cellie, how could you?!!"

Celestia nervously looked to me, and around, and to Twilight, and to Rainbow Dash: "I... I was just following your advice! 'Shoot first and ask later', wasn't it?"

I faceslapped: "That's only with unknown folks, Cellie! You can't 'Shoot first and ask later' to your own subjects!"

"But I didn't know if she was my subject! She could have been a changeling!"

"But she wasn't!"

Celestia shooked the head, confused: "You're confusing me!"

"Exactly, you're confused, and that's why you're acting like this! Snap out from this horseshit, I'm telling you!" I demanded.

Twilight looked to me, and a glitter of hope sparkled on her eyes.

Celestia looked down, and turned to Twilight: "Sorry, my faithful student. I think that I know what's happening to me. I'm having some horrible nightmares, and they're getting the best of me..."

Twilight smiled, relieved: "Then, that means...?" She hopefully asked, with tearful eyes.

"That means that I'm overreacting. But that doesn't change the fact that you defied me, Twilight Sparkle!" Celestia said with a rather angry tone.

The smile dissapeared from Twilight's face: "Your Highness...? What...? What's gonna happen with me?" She asked, scared.

"Given the current events, and given that I'm still this kingdom's liege, I demand some sort of compensation!"

Twilight became pale, and started to sweat cold: "What kind of... compensation?" She asked, afraid of hearing the answer of her question. What could Celestia be wanting as a compensation? Imprisonment? Banished to the Tartarus?! To the moon?!! NO!!! She'll never be with her beloved one again! Death will be better! Please, ask her for commiting suicide, and she'll gladly do it best!

Twilight raised her head, put a hoof in her chest, closing the eyes and hyperventilating, scared to death, as she was waiting to hear nothing but the worst.

"So, I'm challenging you to a duel! The winner keeps the stallion!" Announced Celestia.

Twilight shooked the head, surprised: "What?! A duel?! Another one?!"

"That's right! And nopony dare to interfere! I have to teach my student a lesson!" Celestia ordered, swinging horizontally a foreleg. Then, she put her head closer to Twilight: "Or are you afraid? You can forfeit if you want to. Nopony will scold you for that." She suggested with a smile, turning the head away from the unicorn, but still looking at her.

Twilight looked to me, concerned, and I smiled and told her: "Don't worry, love. It's not showing off if you can back it up."

Twilight shrugged her eyes: "And what's that supposed to mean?" She asked, slowly shooking her head, dumbfounded.

I made an annoyed gesture: "That means: 'Go for it', love! Or are you unwilling to fight for our love?!"

Twilight raised her eyebrows, getting it at last: "Ow! Sure!" Then, she looked to Celestia again: "Challenge accepted, Your Highness! I hope you'll be ready to lose!" She added with a smirk and sharpened eyes.

Celestia smirked too, and they both flown to some distance away from Cloudsdale, so the city could be safe, as the duel could become big and nasty very quickly.

"Any rules, Your Highness?" Asked Twilight.

"Just fight with honor." Answered Celestia.

"You can bet I will." Confirmed Twilight.

Rainbow Dash was trembling: "Oh, sweet Celestia! I should had kept my muzzle shut!" She commented, apologetically.

I smiled again and told her: "Don't worry, Dash. Celestia is just doing that what any good teacher will do."

Rainbow Dash looked at me with wonderment: "What? Do you mean, like a test?"

I nodded. "That's right." Then, I looked to the two mares in the distance. "Twilight was complaining that she wasn't ready to fulfill her destiny, so Celestia is gonna make sure she will be."

Rainbow Dash looked to me with surprise: "Destiny? What destiny?"

I formed a bench so we both could sit, and finally told her: "You'll find out when the time is right."

"But I want to find out right now!"

"Shut up and let me see the battle!" I swung my arm, upset.

Once they were far enough from Cloudsdale, Both mares stood one in front of the other. In one side, was standing an amazing inteligence and the strenght and the vigor of the youth. In the other, the experience of thousands of years and hundreds of battles.

Celestia cast a smaller version of her lightning spear, about the size of a regular spear used by the royal guards, just a bit longer. Twilight, on her side, cast three iceballs of about her own size, and kept them levitating and orbiting around her.

Celestia smiled: "So, it looks like you're the counter-attack type, huh?" And with that comment, she launched herself to attack Twilight!

Twilight tried to stop and inmobilize Celestia with her iceballs: she doesn't wanted to hurt her, but Celestia, showing a great spearsmanship, managed to break the ice balls and forced Twilight to teleport to safety, above of another flying cloud!

"Lesson number one: The best defence is a good offence!" Explained Celestia, and then, she pointed to Twilight. "Guess you should check that cheek."

Twilight rubbed her cheek, finding out that she was bleeding. 'What?! Celestia was up to this?!!' Enraged, Twilight opted for knocking her down, like she did with Luna, by casting the locking on spell with her horn, a hail storm with a forehoof, and a lightning storm with the other. She could have used the four hooves, but she didn't.

But, instead the result she was expecting, Celestia raised her spear and exclaimed: "Lightning Bind!" and the spear absorbed the lightnings, and to protect herself from the hailstorm at the same time, she exclaimed "Soul Mirror!" driving the hailstorm back to Twilight, who had to dispel her attack, and when the ice rain stopped, she used her overcharged spear to shot a gigantic lightning to Twilight, who, despite of raising her shield, ended all bristled and with little electric arcs appearing on her coat!

"Lesson number two: Use your opponent's strength against them!" Explained Celestia, twilrling her spear.

Then, she started to quickly teleport around Twilight, attacking her with lightspeed spear lunges, giving her almost no time to cover herself with her magic shield or with protective ice walls. Twilight tried to create some sort of safe points, teleporting and leaving a flying cloud in the spot, but Celestia thought ahead that, and started to put the clouds closer, until Twilight found herself with her vision covered by her own clouds!

Then, coming from inside one of the clouds, Celestia appeared like a lightning from behind Twilight, and pushed her some meters down, threatening her with her spear in Twilight's backneck, both mares standing in a flying cloud!

"And lesson number three: It's not about quantity and size, but precision and power! Class dismiss!"

I put both hands in my head: Twilight... lost! Oh God! My last hope is gone!

Twilight, who had been forced to bent on her four legs, sadly looked to Celestia: "Great battle, Your Highness. I give up..."

Celestia raised her spear and put it on her loin, and smiled: "What are you saying, my faithful student? I only won because you were holding back. Come on, get serious and give me a challenge this time."

Twilight looked at her, dumbfounded: "Your Highness... I can't get serious with you. What would happen... if I come to hurt you too badly?"

Celestia smiled again: "Twilight, you can't expect to win a duel thinking like that. Just fight me like you did with Luna. I'm pretty sure you didn't hold back with her."

"But that's different!" Twilight protested.

"Different? In what is different? I'm trying to take your coltfriend from you too. Are you going to give him to me, nice and easy?"

"NO!!" Denied Twilight, concerned.

"Then give me a proper fight, young filly. I know you can."

"I caaaan't!" Protested Twilight, with sobbing voice.

Celestia dispelled the spear and sighed, dissapointed: "Well, then so be it. Now, excuse me, young unicorn, but the rascal and me have a royal wedding to attend."

"NOOOO!!" Twilight protested, crying and scared, turning to face Celestia, raising her both forelegs in front of her.

"Ow! Are you ready to fight, then?!" Celestia smiled again, hopeful.

"Noprft...!" Twilight stopped short speaking. "Your Highness!! Why are you doing this to me?!! Why are you forcing me to do something that I don't want to?!!" She protested with tearful eyes and sobbing voice, swinging her forelegs.

"I had to do that too, hundreds of times in my life, Twilight. But I did them anyway, because they were the right thing to do, even if it hurts like a Tartarus. Like that time that you renounced to the rascal in my behalf. It's the same thing right now." Explained Celestia.

"It's not the same thing!" Replied Twilight. "Your sister and you are the only ones that can make the sun and moon to rise! All Equus will die if you both die! All my family, all my friends! I can't allow that!"

"That's... not entirely true." Assured Celestia.

"What?" Asked Twilight, dumbfounded.

"Believe me, my faithful student. That's not a hitch anymore, if that's what you're afraid of. I've made all the needed arrangements already, in the case that I..."

"NOOOO!!" Twilight raised her forelegs again, scared to death. "Your Highness, you can't be serious! You can't take your own life! How are you gonna...?!"

"That's enough, Twilight Sparkle! I'm not going to take my own life! It's just a backup resort, if the worst come to happen!!" Celestia interrupted her.

"You can't fool me, Your Highness! I know already how this 'falling in love' stuff works!" Twilight still insisted. "Now I understand why you remained single all this millennia!"

Celestia's face became somber: "Yes, I knew you'll found out, sooner or later. That was the main cause of death of ponies in the ancient times. You know? And it was specially bad with us alicorns."

Twilight looked to her, concerned: "Then... that's why there are so few of them. Isn't?"

Celestia nodded. "Yes. That's why I tried to create an utopic kingdom, where everything was happiness and friendship. But that didn't solved the problem. Only made it worse. Nowaday, ponies are raised weak, impressionable, manipulable. Anyone with an evil intention could make a damage beyond any description. The recent events had opened my eyes and shown me that awful truth. But I'm trying to end with such hideous prospect, starting now. And you're my best hope to correct my mistakes."

Twilight stood in her four legs, even more dumbfounded: "Me...? How...? Why...?"

"Because you were brave enough to defy me, and for the right reasons. Not like my sister, who did that driven by jealousy. So, that's why is so important for us to finish this duel, and to finish it right! No holding back!"

Twilight lowered her head, still hesitating.

Celestia laughed, looking at Twilight's face, putting a hoof in her muzzle: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" But there was no evilness in her laughter. It was clear, pure, angelical. "Come on, Twilight! It's not the first time that I have to duel for a stallion! So, are you going to get serious or what?"

Twilight raised the head again and smiled: "You can bet I will..."

Chapter 20 - Four Weddings and a Final Battle - Part 1

Celestia was sadly looking to her into the big mirror in her room. Then, she looked down to her belly. With a clever combination of spells and optical tricks, she had managed to hide it until now, but soon, her bloated belly will become impossible to hide anymore. Then, there will came the questions, the suspicions, the rumors... What can she say about it? What...? And she can't have an abortion. That'll be murder! The poor foal have the right to be born! If it turns to be a foal. It perfectly could be a little gryphoon. Celestia still didn't understand how that could have happened. She never had heard of a gryphoon impregnating a pony before!

Nevertheless, she has to make a decision. The only thing that she knew for sure, is that she'll never neglect the newborn, whatever it may be. But what her subjects will think about her? She'll surely lose all the respect from them, and she'll have no other choice but to abdicate!

Well, thinking it best, that wasn't so bad. She had ruled long enough. Maybe it was time to move on, and let the nation in the hooves of the new generations. If everything turned as she had arranged to, the sun and moon movement will be automated, using the 24 hours timetable proposed by the rascal. Gone will be the times, when the days and nights had irregular duration, including harmful stoppings, backward movements and delays.

And she will finally be able to retire, and have a life like everypony else, removing that bothersome immortality curse that she has like a burden over her shoulders. She have had enough of it. She had played her part, keeping an entire planet alive, and she had earned a righteous retirement. Celestia looked to her belly and rubbed it with tenderness. Despite the traumatic event that made that new life to appear, it gave her a new perspective on her own existence. A new purpose. To have a family. A real family. Her very own family. No more fearing of her foals being taken by a predator. No more suffering seeing those she loved to pass away. No more immortality...

Celestia smiled. She wondered if Luna will agree with that too. She hadn't much like a chance to say no when she made that inmortality deal. In fact, she still haven't told her what did she do, and, preferably, she'll let it that way. Of the many things that she was regretting to have done, that was the one that she regretted the most. So, she'll rather take the secret to the grave. Luckily, it looks like Luna hasn't recalled her question, and Celestia'll happily let it that way.

Well, it looks that she had some stuff to put in order before everything ended. And one of them was getting back on good terms with Cadance. The poor filly haven't been the same after she was forcefully brought back to Canterlot. It was needed a complete battalion to reduct her this time. Oof! It seems that she's struggling even worse everytime!

So, Celestia stood on her fours, and slowly walked out of her room. From there, she took her steps up to Cadance's room, and knocked her door:

"Cadance, it's me, Tia. Let me in, please, I want to talk with you, yes?"

"No! Go away!" It was heard from inside the room.

Celestia smiled again: She wasn't going to kick the door open, so she just teleported inside the room. Cadance was there, in her bed, completely covered by a blanket.

"Come on, Cadance. We can't be like this forever. We have to talk. I'm sure that we can arrive to some sort of..." Started Celestia to talk, when suddenly, a magic dampening ring fell on her horn, and, from the bed, a green sticky goo was shot to her muzzle, impeding her to scream or even talk.

"Mmmmmmmmpfth!" Mumbled Celestia, horrified, turning around to escape, but a set of ropes wrapped her, impeding her to flee.

Celestia dropped to the floor, and there she stood, trembling and with wide opened frightened eyes. But her fear only became worse, when she saw a scary pair of green eyes looking down at her. Oh no! It was her nightmare come true!

"MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMPFTH!!" Mumbled Celestia again, clenching her tearful eyes: Now she was going to be raped again! NO!!! Why just now when everything was finally turning out well?! WHY?!!!

But against all the horrible things she was expecting to, it was a female voice which spoke: "Scared, Your Highness? For real? The almighty Sun Goddess, scared of two or three mere changelings? Oh, I'm so dissapointed!"" She said with a mocking tone.

Celestia slowly opened her eyes, with trembling eyelids, to face Chrysalis.

"Ow! That's better, Your Highness. I'll rather do prefer to be seen while I'm speaking. That gives some sense of being listened to, you know?"

"Hmmpfth?" Asked Celestia.

"Ow! Sorry about all this, but I needed to make sure you'll listened to me before throwing all the royal guard upon us, but, if you promise to be a good girl, I'll let you speak." Said Chrysalis with a hoof in her chest.

Celestia nodded, and the changeling removed the green goo from her muzzle.

The alicorn spitted two or three times, to get rid of the goo's remains: "What do you want, changeling queen?"

"Owwww! I'm flattered! You seem to recognize royalty when you see it, don't you?" Said Chrysalis, touching her crown with a foreleg. "Well, as time is short, I'll go straight to the point. I'm here to end the ancestral enmity between Equestrians and Changelings. It has lasted too much, from my point of view, of course."

"And what's this? A ransom or what?" Asked Celestia, slowly recovering her composture.

"Exactly! Say, I'm so glad that we're getting into understanding so fast!"

"Alright, changeling queen. What are you terms?"

"What?! But what's this? Are you going to be so impolite to not even inquire for my name, Your Majesty?" Asked Chrysalis, a bit upset.

"Why that would even matter? You're going to kill me, anyway." Said Celestia with disdain.

"Oh, ha ha ha ha ha!" Evily laughed Chrysalis. "Nooo! I'm not going to kill you, Your Highness, if you agree with my terms, of course."

"Then, spit them already!" Blurted Celestia.

"Shhh! Not so loud, or the guards would hear you, and then I'll do have to kill you." Chrysalis waved a foreleg, with a 'Shut up' gesture. "I want you to organize two royal weddings, one between 'Shirring Almol' and Princess Cadance, and the other between me, at disguise, of course, with some prince of your liking."

Celestia looked the changeling mare with despise. "And I presume that you have something to bargain with, didn't you?"

"Of course! We do have the real Princess Cadance held hostage, and if you don't comply with our request, we'll return her decomposed corpse in a gift box to you."

Celestia smiled, don't buying it: "Yeah? And how are you expecting me to believe that you have her hostage? It can be another of your dirty tricks, you filthy changeling!"

Chrysalis looked to herselef, dumbfounded.

"Well, I have her crown, and her tiara and her shoes." She pointed to the items she was wearing.

"And so what? You could have had stolen them!"

"What do you want then, a leg?" Asked Chrysalis, upset. "Bring the prisoner here!"

And two Changelings stallions came from inside the wardrove, with Cadance tied and gagged. Then, Chrysalis took out her dagger and walked to Cadance, raising a leg of the alicorn:

"Sorry, princess, but your auntie wants a leg to prove you're here." She said, raising the dagger as if she was going to cut the Princess' leg.

"Mmmmmmpfth!" Mumbled Cadance, scared to death.

"NO!" Exclaimed Celestia, but she quickly backed her head off when she realized that she had raised the voice too much.

"It's something wrong in there, Your Highness?" A guard's voice was heard from outside the room.

"No no no no!" Quickly denied Celestia. "Everything is alright! Everything is alright!"

"Ah. Let us know if you need something, alright?"

"Yes, yes! I will!" Replied Celestia.

"So well? Convinced enough, Your Highness?" Mocked Chrysalis, with a triumphant smile.

"Yes. Convinced enough." Confirmed Celestia with wariness.

Once Celestia was untied and allowed to leave, Chrysalis untied and ungagged Cadance as well:

"Well played, Princess! It looked pretty convincing, even for me! I didn't know that you had it on you, honestly!" Chrysalis chuckled.

Cadance looked at her with half-lidded upset eyes: "That's enough, Chrys. I'm only doing this because I don't want your race to starve. But don't push your luck."

Chrysalis looked to her, dumbfounded, but she regained her mocking tone almost instantly: "Oh, come on, little Princess. You can't take us too serious, remember?"

Cadance's left eye twitched.

Twilight took out her surgery's gears ans washed her face with plenty of water: "Ooof! That was such an ordeal! Eh, Rares?"

"Ow! Indeed it was!" Agreed the white unicorn, washing herself as well. "I thought we're taking forever in there!"

When both mares left the hospital's restrooms, Fluttershy came trotting, very concerned for her friend:

"Twilight, Rares! How was it? Did AJ made it?" She asked with concerned tone.

"Of course! She's particularly straightforward on her innards! I thank that's consistent with her honest nature!" Twilight giggled. "Also, her blood type was easy to get, so, I'm giving her a very good prognosis so far."

"Oh, thanks to Celestia for hearing that!" Said Fluttershy, but Twilight couldn't skip a disgusted grimace. She didn't like 'thanking' to Celestia.

"Alright... humm... Twilight... could you found out something about..." And Fluttershy looked around, like what she was going to say was something awful, and whispered. "What did I told you?"

"That's right. I've conducted a quick research, and what you did look very alike to what in the ancient times where called 'The Call of the Silence'"

"'The Call of the Silence'?"

"I know that it sounds like poetry, yeah!" Twilight giggled. "But, according to my experiments, it's an ultrasonic wave, with the exact frequency to harm the gryphoon's auditive organs!"

"It's that? But...! But... how that's possible!" Fluttershy got surprised.

Twilight finished organizing the table that she has before her: "Well, it just make sense, as, on the ancient times, gryphoons were the natural predators of the pegasis. So, some of them should have developed that defense system, to protect themselves."

"But I've never heard of anypony using it before."

"That's probably because all this thousands of years of relative peace and stability, so, with no reason to use it, the ponies forgot or lost the ability. But, fortunately, it looks that you still had it, Flutters!"

"Ohhhh." Fluttershy amazed, with a hoof in her muzzle. "But, what about if I harm somepony by accident? I don't want to let my Flashie deaf while we're sleeping together!"

"Don't worry, Flutters. Ponies haven't the capacity to detect that lenght of wave. Have you heard the bats while they're flying in the night?"

"The bats...? Humm... not really. Why?"

"The bats use ultrasonic waves to fly in the darkness. Nopony can hear them, because our auditive system can't."

"Ow. Wait. Then, basically, are you telling me that I have a bat-like ability?"

Twilight facehoofed, looking pensively up: "Well... if you put it that way... then... yes, it is." She nodded.

Fluttershy gasped, horrified. "Oh no! Could I be turning into a... a vampony?!"

Twilight lowered the head and looked into Fluttershy's muzzle, shrugging the eyes: "Oh, my god! I think you're growing the fangs already!" She backed off the head, facehoofing with a fake horrified expression and a fake gasp.

"What?!" Fluttershy freaked out. "Oh no. Oh no! OH NO! Twilight! Quick! Find a wood stake and pierce my heart before is too late! Hurry up, please!" She exclaimed, sitting in her haunches and opening the fur on her chest with her forelegs.

Twilight broke out in laughter: "Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Flutters, I'm teasing you! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!" She waved a hoof up-down.

But her laughter was suddenly stopped by a Rarity's faceslap: "Twilight, how could you do that?! You made her cry!"

The pegasi was crying the snots out.

"Oh, sorry, Flutters, I didn't mean..." Tried to apologize Twilight, but Fluttershy turned around and galloped away, crying inconsolably.

"Well done, jerk." Rarity angrily scolded her, and left too, galloping after her friend. "Flutters, wait! Don't do any madness! Waaaaaait!"

Twilight just stood there, angrily looking down: "What I'm doing? I have to think before act! Think!" She hit two times her forehead with a forehoof.

None of the mares were a speed demon or an athletic portent, so, the pursue wasn't specially fast or long. Rarity was a bit faster than Fluttershy, so she finally caught her in the town's outskirts.

"Come on, come on. Flutters. Hug me. Don't cry, don't cry anymore." Said the unicorn, hugging the pegasi.

"Twilight is so meaaaaaan!" Sobbed the soft pegasi.

"Yes, yes, I know. But she didn't do it on purpose, I'm sure of it."

They still spent some time more there, Rarity comforting Fluttershy, when they happened to hear two ponies talking:

"Shinny, what was that so important that you wanted to tell me?" Pinkie's happy voice was heard.

Rarity's face enlightened: Fresh gossip!, so she whispered to Fluttershy: "Keep silence, Flutters, let's hear what they say."

Fluttershy slightly smiled and silently nodded.

"Miss Pie, I have been thinking..." Shinning Armor's voice was heard.

"What's that about 'Miss Pie'? Haven't we agreed in call ourselves...? My looooove?" Interrupted Pinkie with a romantic tone.

"Silence! Let me finish! Miss Pie, this cannot continue."

"What? 'This cannot continue'? What...? What do you mean, Shinny?" Pinkie's voice turned into a concerned tone.

"We can continue being lovers, that's what..."

"Whaaaaat?!!" Pinkie almost cried: "But why, Shinny, whyyy?!! What did I do?! What did I doooo?!! Please tell me and I'll fix it right awaaaayyyy!!"

The face of Rarity and Fluttershy turned into a concerned one, and they looked each other, and both sneaked on the bushes, happening to see Pinkie, walking on the knees of her hinder legs: "Please, Shinny, don't leave meeeee! I can't live without you!! You're everything for meeeee! Please, noooo!" She desperately extended her forelegs to her coltfriend.

"I'm sorry, Miss Pie, but Cadance is the mare of my dreams, and she's the one I'm going to marry. Not you."

"WHAAAAAT?!!! NoShinnyNoPleaseNoDontDoThisToMeNoPleaseIBegYouNoPleaseNo!" Pinkie cried in the deepest of despairs, but her plead had no effect on the stallion.

"So, I'm bucking out you. Farewell." And he turned around and left.

"NOOOOOOOO!!" Cried Pinkie, crossing her forelegs in the chest, her mane and tail flattening, as a piercing pain beyond description was causing her heart to fail.

"Pinkie, no! Stay with me! Stay with me!" Said Rarity, galloping to the pink mare, who was already loinside on the floor, with her hinderlegs extended and her forelegs bent over her chest, giving agonic stertors.

"Pinkie, it's me, your friend Rarity! Listen to me, listen to me please! Don't go! This's not the end! You're a strong mare! You can't die just because of this! Please, don't leave us! We need you! All of us!" Said Rarity, gently raising Pinkie's head with her foreleg.

"Yes, Pinkie! You're an example for us all! Please, stay with us, for our friendship, for our love!" Also added Fluttershy.

"Flutters, go back to the hospital and get Twilight! Fly!"

And Fluttershy flown as fast as she could to look for Twilight.

Then, Rarity looked to her barely alive friend, and told her: "Pinkie, you saved me, so, let me return the favor." And her horn lit with a white glow.

Meanwhile, 'Shining Armor' looked around, making sure that nopony was watching, and turned into Hakim, who smirked: "Mission complete."

Shining Armor entered Cadance's room, where 'Cadance' herself, was waiting for him: "Did you called for me, Princess." He asked, with a cold courtesy.

"Indeed. Look, there's somepony that wants to talk with you." She said, pointing to 'Pinkie'.

"Ah. Hello, Captain." She said, with half lidded eyes, and a disdainful tone.

"Pinkie, my love! What are you doing here? I thought you were in Ponyville." Said the stallion, surprised.

"I had to come to tell you that I don't want to be with you anymore." She said with serenity.

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Laughed Shining Armor. "I didn't get it, but it was funny anyway! Alright, what's the catch? A new party, perhaps?"

"Nope. We're not having anymore parties. I'm bucking you out."

"What?" Shining Armor's face turned into a pained one: "Pinkie, my love! What are you saying? You're scaring me!"

"Exactly as you heard. You're an unworthy and boring stallion, and I don't want to know about you anymore." She turned the head away and closed the eyes.

"Noooo... Pinkie, my love, please... don't do this to me... Why? Why did I do?" Shining Armor cried.

"That's none of your business. Farewell." Said 'Pinkie', and walked away with the eyes closed and the head raised with disdain.

"Pinkie, my love, wait! Don't go, please, don't abandon meeee..." Sobbed Shining Armor, with tearful eyes, but 'Pinkie' left with indifference.

"Noooo..." Mourned Shining Armor, bending his four legs and drooping to the floor, crying, heartbroken.

Then, 'Cadance' trapped him with an enthralling spell:

"She doesn't love you anymore." Said 'Cadance'.

"She doesn't love me anymore." Repeated the stallion, hypnotized.

"Cadance is the only mare you're in love to."

"Cadance is the only mare I'm in love to."

"Good. Now, leave, and ask Celestia for permission to marry Cadance. She's waiting for you."

"She's waiting for me." Said Shining Armor like a robot, and left.

'Pinkie' walked back to 'Cadance', and the later said: "Well done, Faria. Everything is going according to the plan."

When Twilight and me found Pinkie, she was about to give her last breath.

"Pinkie, no, Pinkie, no, please!" I desperately hugged her, because that was the only thing that came to my mind to do.

Suddenly, our hearts started to beat as one...

The pink mare returned to life with a deep gasp, and I, relieved, pulled her a bit off: "Pinkie? Are you alright?".

She stayed silent, looking at me, dumbfounded: "I'm a... little confused here. Wasn't I in love with Shining Armor, not mere ten minutes ago?"

I scratched the back of my head, looking to a side, hesitating to answer straight: "That's kinda... hard to explain right now. It's like..."

"Yes?" She asked me with sobbing voice and quivering eyes, and a sad expression.

"That... sometimes there are things that you have to let go and..."

"Noooo." Pinkie refused with crying voice. "Please, don't leave me. I love you, I can't live without you."

Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy and me looked to her, dumbfounded: "What?!" We said at the same time.

Pinkie hugged me, closing her tearful eyes: "Don't leave me! I love you!"

"Hummm... Pinkie, I think you're a bit confused here." I told her, looking nervously to my enraging marefriend.

"That's exactly what I'm saying!" Pinkie confirmed. "I was in love with Shining Armor about thirteen minutes ago, and now I'm in love with you! How could that happen?! I can't understand!"

I looked to Twilight, but she was as confused as me.

"Love, what did you do?" She asked, frowning.

"Nothing!"

"You can't have done 'Nothing'! This isn't the first time that this happens!" She pointed us each with a foreleg. "So, you MUST have done something, and you're gonna describe it EXACTLY to me!" She demanded with certain anger in her voice, pointing herself with a hoof.

I put my finger in my jaw, thoughtful: "Well, I just hugged her, and then our hearts started to beat as one..."

"Like ours?!" Twilight asked, pointing to her chest.

"Exactly! Like ours too!" I confirmed, pointing her and me each.

"Hey, that happened with me too!" Said Rarity.

"And with me!" Said Fluttershy too.

Now Twilight was pissed off: "What?! How could you?! Did you do it on purpose?!" She blurted.

"No! It just... happened. I had no control in that!" Then, I looked back, putting two plus two: "And that happened with Celestia too, and with Luna, with Dashie... I guess that the only ones missing was AJ and... and Pinkie, because, you know, we didn't get along."

Twilight was listening to me with great attention, then, she looked downright, with a hoof in her muzzle: "I think that I know what's happening... It seems that when your heart and somepony's synchronize beating, it produces some kind on enthralling effect... That'll make sense."

"An enthralling effect? Could you please... remove it? I don't want to stand between Gus and you... again." Pinkie pleaded, without releasing me.

"Let me see if this works." Said Twilight, casting a Love Dispelling spell on Pinkie.

Pinkie blinked two or three times. "Did it work?"

Twilight shooked the head: "I have no idea. How do you feel?"

"Weird..." Said Pinkie, with half-lidded eyes, releasing me and closing the eyes, wandering in her hinder legs like a sleepwalker all around the place.

"Oops. I think I overdid it." Twilight smiled apologetically.

I have to grab and to carry Pinkie, so she didn't wander aimlessly around, and she fell asleep in my arms.

"Will she be OK?" I asked, worried.

"I think that we'll have to take care of that later. Now, we must figure out what's happening. I mean, my brother will never do that to her. All this is very suspicious! He might be an imposter!" She put a hoof in her muzzle, gasping, horrified.

"What're we waiting for?! Let's go!" I told her, and the four of us ran back to find Shining Armor.

But we were unable to. Twilight sent a letter to Canterlot, asking for Celestia's advice, but she said that Shining Armor wasn't came back yet. So, we had no other option but to wait and check how Pinkie's doing.

After three hours, Pinkie finally came back to her senses. We told her that the Shining Armor she saw was an imposter, and that prevented her to had a heart attack, but she was still so shocked, that we had to leave her in her home, with Rarity and Fluttershy watching her, while Twilight and me headed to Canterlot.

Once there, we were shocked too by the news: Shining Armor was marrying Cadance. We couldn't believe it, until Celestia confirmed it by herself.

There was nothing else that we could do, but to hid that from Pinkie until we found out a way to avoid her heart to explode of grieve and pain.

And we hadn't the least idea how to do it...

A desperate bucking waked me again, and I, still sleepy, almost punched Twilight's face again, but I held back the arm on time.

"Love! Love! Have you heard?! Celestia is pregnant!"

I raised may head: "What?!" Then, it came to me: "That filthy changeling!"

Twilight looked to me, dumbfounded: "Love. Did you...? Did you knew it?"

I looked apologetically to her: "Sorry, love. I should have told you..."

A messenger mare came to Celestia: "Your Highness, Miss Sparkle wants to see you."

"Please, let her in."

Twilight trotted to Celestia, and when she got to her, she hugged her mentor: "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Your Highness! I didn't... I didn't know! And I treated you as horseshit! Please, forgive me, I beg you!"

"There's nothing to forgive, my faithful student. In any case, I should be the one apologizing, for hiding all this from you."

"What are you saying, Your Highness?! You could have told me, and we'll had found a solution to this!"

"There's no solution to this, but to keep calm and carry on until the delivery time arrives." Said Celestia with happiness. "And I want you to know, that I'm retiring shortly after that, and that you're my succesor."

"What?! No! I mean... I'm not ready! For real!" Said Twilight, scared.

"Don't worry, my faithful student. We still have time, so you'll be ready when the time comes."

"Ow."

"And I also think, what that's the perfect moment for you and your friends to marry your respective coltfriends!"

Twilight shooked the head: "What are you saying, Your Highness? I haven't had my duel with Luna yet."

"You're talking like you're going to lose."

"What?! No! Me losing? Prrft!" Twilight nonchalantly waved her hoof, trying to look very self-confident in her victory.

"For real? Have you prepared enough?"

"Oops. Nope. I haven't. I had this problem with AJ first, and now we're dealing with Pinkie's one. We still don't know what we're gonna tell her. I mean, that doesn't end up killing her."

"I see." Said Celestia. "But, I have faith in you, Twilight. If anypony can solve this, it's you." She smiled, encouraging her.

Twilight half-lidded the eyes: "That wasn't any helpful, you know?"

Celestia giggled: "Come, my faithful student. There's something I want to show you. Just don't tell my sister."

"What's that?!" Asked Twilight, horrified, when Queen Chrysalis and her drones was presented to her. "Your Highness, they harness dark magic! Dark magic users are very likely to be evil! How can you be so calm...?!" Twilight stopped short speaking: "Your Highness... is this a trap? Did you brought me here to turn me evil?!!"

"No, Twilight, listen to me..." Started to say Celestia.

"Stay away from me!" Screamed Twilight, lightening her horn and her four hooves and giving some steps backwards. "You'll not taint me, evildoers!"

"That's enough, Twilight Sparkle! They aren't the enemy anymore!" Exclaimed Celestia. "They've come with an offer for a peace teatry."

Twilight looked nervously to one, and then to other, two or three times, trembling and unconvinced.

"Hello, miss Sparkle. I'm Queen Chrysalis, and I've come to marry Prince Blueblood. That way, our kingdoms will be united by a royal bond." Friendly said the changeling, extending a foreleg to greet Twilight, which she refused.

"And the ancestral enmity between Equestrians and Changelings will be over!" Happily announced Celestia.

My words quickly returned to Twilight's mind: 'That filthy changeling!'

"Your Highness! But... if it was a changeling who raped you!" Said Twilight without thinking.

"What? No! It was... Silence, Twilight Sparkle! You don't know of what you're talking about!" Replied Celestia, upset.

"Of course I know! As far I know, gryphoons are not genetically compatib...!"

"I TOLD YOU THAT'S ENOUGH, TWILIGHT SPARKLE!!!" Roared Celestia with the Royal Canterlot Voice, interrupting Twilight. Then, she turned her head to a side, and then back to look to Twilight: "Twilight, if my sister finds out that those changelings are here, there are going to be some casualties in the palace, so remain calm, please!" She said with disgust and concern.

Twilight frowned: "Some casualties, huh? I wonder why..."

Celestia frowned: "Twilight, I'm getting tired of your sarcasms. Wait for me in front of my room. I have something to discuss with our new allies. Dismiss."

"Hmpth." Grunted Twilight, looking suspiciosly to everywhere, and turned around to leave, but Celestia added just before she left:

"And I hope that you stop being so hostile, or I'll seriously consider you succeeding me."

Twilight looked back to her with a rather angrily look: "This is not 'being hostile', Your Highness. It's called 'common sense'." and she teleported away. Then, she waited, sitting on her haunches, until Celestia reappeared, and indicated her to reenter her room.

There, Celestia closed the eyes, sighed, and then, she opened them again, and sadly confessed: "Twilight... Luna is half-changeling."

Twilight opened her eyes and muzzle wide, and then, she looked down: Now, everything made sense: Herds in the time the sisters were born; Luna's evil predisposition; her smaller size than her sister; her turning into Nightmare Moon, who featured a dark coat, cat-like greeny eyes, dark powers...

Now, everything made sense.

"Your Highness... Luna knows that she's half..., did she?" Twilight asked, shocked.

"No, she didn't. And changelings helped in murdering our family, so I want it to stay like that." Indicated Celestia. "And nopony can know about this, not even your closest friends. Nopony, no changeling, no exceptions at all, Twilight Sparkle."

Twilight hesitated a while to ask: "And... and my coltfriend?"

Celestia looked up, pensive. "Well... he'll find out anyway." Then, she looked to her student again: "Now, I need you to stop being hostile, and to talk with our new allies like a civilized pony, please. It's time to forgive and forget..."

But, nearby, remaining undetected, was hiding Hakim, and he smirked, satisfied with his discovery...

"What?!" I was surprised by my marefriend's tale: "Celestia allied with the changelings?! No way!"

"Yes way!" She angrily replied, with concern. "I sincerely don't know how she could fall that low! All those freaks give me the creeps, but it's their queen, who gives me the most!"

"And how did you said that she was called?" I asked as if I didn't know.

"Chrysalis or something. And I'm telling you, love, there's something fishy about all this. I think they didn't told me everything. I had to get to the bottom of this!"

"I think the same, love."

Twilight looked to me, surprised: "Yeah, for real? You're not gonna try to convince me otherwise? Nothing about being 'paranoid' and all that stuff?"

"Nope. This time I suspect you're right." I supported her.

Twilight looked down, worried: "That's good to know... but... we still don't know what to tell to Pinkie. Can you imagine what would happen, if she assists to Shining Armor's wedding?"

"Yep. We'll lose her."

"Oh, no! Love, what're we gonna do?" She mourned with both forelegs in her head.

I put a finger under my chin: "I think that I have a plan..."

Twilight looked to me, frowning: "I just hope that you don't make it worse."

I opened both arms, smiling, trying to be reasurring: "Well, a bad plan is better than no plan at all."

Twilight looked to a side: "Love, if Pinkie dies, I'll never forgive myself. So think carefully what you're gonna do, or you could lose two for the price of one."

I shrugged the eyes, and pointed her: "Is that a threat?"

"Take it as you feel like..."

"Then, this is your 'plan'?! A memory erasing potion?" My marefriend asked me, doubtful.

"Yeah! And this, combined with a Life-Force Love Dispelling spell, will do the trick!" I told her.

"And how can we be sure that'll work? Pinkie's memory is flawless! What about if she remembers, after all?!"

I looked to my marefriend, disgusted: "Then, I think that we should test it on... you."

Twilight looked me with an enigmatic expression: "Yes... that'll... make sense."

"Alright. Ready to forget me and all we have been thru?" I told her, trying to sound happy, but dying on the inside.

Twilight looked me with tearful eyes: "Yes. Whatever it takes to save my friend..." She sobbed.

But just before taking it, she told me: "Just don't forget to make me to fall in love again, OK?"

I smiled. "I won't."

Pinkie's room door was knocked, and she opened the door like a flash, very happy: "Shinny! You've com..." But she stopped speaking when she saw that it was me. "Awwww. I was hoping it was Shinny." She said, visibly disgusted. "Gus, friend, please tell me. Why he doesn't come to visit me? Why he doesn't worry about me? I'm so so so so worried! Where's he? Please, I need to know please!"

"I told you that he's ill, with a very contagious disease. He can't come to visit you until he gets well." Said Fluttershy, aware of what I had came to do.

So, I gave my prepare to her: "Take, Pinkie, he sends this tasty fruit juice to you."

"He did?! For real?! Yippes! He didn't forgot meeee!" She happily jumped in place, and drink the glass. Then, her eyes became blank, and I cast a Life-Force Love Dispelling spell on her, and she fainted. I grabbed her before she hit the floor, and gently laid her in her bed.

"Thank you Flutters." I told the pegasi.

"Don't worry, friend. I know that you did it for her own good. How's Twilight?"

"As oblivious as you might think. Have patience with her, yes?"

"I will."

On my way back, I found... Twilight, walking around. Seems that she had woke up already. She's so strong, that powerful potion couldn't keep her on the bed for more than a hour. I happily came closer to her:

"Hi! Twilight Sparkle, I presume?"

"Yeah, that's me. And who might you be?"

"Well, I'm..."

"You know? I'm really not interested on knowing who you are. You must be some of those circus freaks that come to visit Rarity and her stupids designs. Sorry, but haven't time for this. Gotta go." And she turned around and walked away, with disdainful half-lidded eyes.

I can't believe this. That bucking memory erasing potion has turned her into a bitch...

So, trying to get her to falling in love again, huh? At this point, I hardly believe that she'll be needing anything of that... or if anything of this would worth a shit... So, I walked to the first bench I found, and curled on it to sleep. Screw it all...

Luna was sitting on her four legs, in a cliff, sadly looking to a lake behind her: "And here I am... alone again. Nopony loves me... They hate me... All of them! Even the pleb scum..." Her eyes were shedding plenty of tears, and her half-opened muzzle was trembling in sorrow.

Then, she looked to the sky, and screamed in despair: "I have nothing to live for!!"

Then, she levitated a dagger, and put it on her chest: "I only want this pain to stooooop!!" She screamed, ready to kill herself.

"Luna, no, wait!" I yelled to her. She looked to me, tearful:

"Stay away from me! I'm going to do it! I swear!"

I cast the Love Dispelling on her. She looked to me, surprised, and blinked a couple of times.

"What was that?"

I took advantage of her stunning, and teleported the dagger out of her reach.

"How do you feel, Luna?"

"How do think that I feel?! Alone, sad and despaired! That's how I feel!" She replied with sobbing voice.

"And about me? How do you feel about me?"

"About you? And are you still asking that?" She backed her head a bit, dumbfounded. "I love you, with all the strenghts of my heart! But you'll never love me, so I have no other choice but to die!"

Wait. That's what I think I'm hearing? No... damned darned... way...

"Luna... do you... do you love me?" I asked her, hopeful.

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes and a thousand times yes!" She cried:

I opened my arms: "Then come to me, Looney Mooney! What are you waiting for?!"

Her sad face turned into a happy one, as happier as nopony can be, well, maybe except Pinkie, and she galloped to me and hugged me, covering me with kisses and cuddles: "I can' believe this! This's really happening! Oh, I'm so happy I'm so happy I'm so happyyyyyyyy!"

A buck woke me, and I quickly sat on the bench, looking face to face with... Twilight?

"Why did were you calling Luna?!" She angrily inquired.

I shooked the head: "What?" Suddenly realizing that the last events were just a dream.

"'What'? 'What'?! That's the only thing that you can say, huh?!" She inquired again, even more angrier.

I smiled, dumbfounded, and yawned: "I should be still dreaming."

"Of course you aren't! Why did you hid your location?! I was looking for you everywhere! I was worried sick!"

I looked her with indifference, with my hand holding my chin: "Because... I didn't wanted to be found?"

We both laughed and hugged and kissed passionately.

"Thank goodness, my love. I thought you had stopped loving me." I told her.

"How could I, my love? I'll rather die first."

"Then, why did you left and left me behind?"

"Sorry love, but I had to. When I saw you in the street, and I found out that I was still in love with you, I had such a feeling storm... I was happy and sad, angry and scared, joyful and disgusted... I can't... I can't describe it with precission. So, I gave you the first excuse that came to my mind, locked in my room, cast a sound-proof spell and screamed, and screamed, and screamed, and screamed... until I couldn't do it anymore..." Then, she broke the hug to see me directly on the eyes. "Love, didn't you cheated on me in the meantime, right?"

I looked to a side, shrugging my mouth: "I might..."

"What?!" She asked, horrified, and she was about to hit the floor, fainted, when I grabbed her for the neck.

"Of course not, my love! How could you think such thing?! Don't you know me best already?!"

She looked to me, still panting, and told me with sobbing voice: "Then, why were you saying 'Luna, Luna' on your dreams?"

"How I'm gonna know, love? I just dreamt with her, and that's all."

"Ow, then..." Her expression turned to an angry one: "That bucking bitch! Just wait I put my hooves on her!"

Then, I looked to her, dumbfounded: "Wait a sec, if you remembered everything, then Pinkie..."

Twilight smiled: "Love, Pinkie doesn't know that she was enchanted, and she doesn't know the counter spell either."

I looked up, relieved: "Ah."

"Alright!" Happily said my marefriend. "Now, let's solve some mysteries, shall we?"

But we weren't able to find anything. Everything was suspiciously in order, so as the man of action that I am, I applied one of my favorite mottos: 'If you want peace, prepare for war', making sure that our 'new allies' didn't know anything about.

After five months, Celestia gave to birth. It was a filly, and she was named Celeia, and the day was declared as a national holidays. Also, as she decreed, four couples were getting married: Twilight and me (In the case that she wins her duel with Luna, of course), Fluttershy and Flash Sentry, the reluctantly Prince Blueblood and a newly appeared 'Princess Farsania', who, obviously, was Queen Chrysalis at disguise. She couldn't find a better fitting name, if I dare to say, and Shining Armor and Cadance.

We're very concerned about bringing Pinkie to the ceremony, as she could remember something, but Celestia encouraged us, by telling that forbidding her to assist will be too suspicious. And about Cadance's issue, it turned to be a joke from Celestia: She just enthralled her, and then convinced Prince Blueblood to start bragging that he had slept with the Princess of Love. I knew that Celestia will never allow anypony to be taken without their consent. Not in her watch.

Pinkie behaved rather normal in the prenuptial party, and she asked some question about the couples, but she seems not to remember anything. Or at least anything about her past engagement with Shining Armor. About the rest, it seems to be well written on her memory banks, as she even recalled how to fly.

Twilight was enjoying the party, when her stomach growled, her cheeks bloated, and her eyes opened wide. With a titanical willpower effort, Twilight swallowed whatever she had in the muzzle, and excused herself to go to the restrooms... to puck.

"Buuuuaaargh...! Argh... Ooofff..." Twilight released her stomach's contents inside the toilet. "Damn! It seems that something indigested me. What could have been? I don't remember to have done any major change in my diet." She thought aloud.

She left the mare's restroom, and when she was passing by the stallion's one, she clearly heard Pinkie's voice:

"Shinny?"

A frozen wave travelled thru Twilight's loin, and her coat shivered like she was under zero degrees cold: Oh no, oh no, oh no! Pinkie remembered! Pinkie remembered it all! Quickly, Twilight turned to the door, but she thought: 'Wait, I should think before act, and check first, and don't do a rushed movement. Better let me hear what they say'. And she put her ear on the door, ready to enter in action if needed.

"Miss Pie? What are you doing in the stallion's restroom?"

"Shinny, I have something to tell you."

"Alright, but not here, let's go..."

"It must to be here! Nopony can figure out!"

"What? Why?"

"Because... 'cause my life depends of it!"

"Oh. Well then... go ahead, Miss Pie. I'm listening."

"Shinny, I knew that you had your reasons to... buck me out..."

"What? Buck you out? If it was you...!"

"Shush! Let me finish! Listen... I... I moved on, and I... I need to let it go. When... when you bucked me out, I thought I was gonna die..."

"Miss Sparkle. Could you be so kind to move from the door? I need to go to the restroom." Said a stallion guest behind Twilight.

"Huh, huh. Sorry, but the restroom is... Out of order! That is!" Said Twilight with a fake smile. "You'll have to go to another floor, sorry for the inconveniences!"

The stallion shooked the head and left, annoyed, and Twilight sticked the ear to the door again:

"... but, my friends did something to me, that made me to have a glimpse on what'll happen if... if I died. So much mishap, so many deaths, so... I made a willpower effort, and let you go. Our love was never meant to be..."

"Pinkie, I..."

"Shhh, shhh, shhh. Please don't say anything, Shinny. There's no need to. All that you need to know, is that I'll always have you in my heart, and I'll always remember you, as my first love ever."

"I will always remember you too, Pinkie. And I hope that, someday, you could find somepony worthy of your love."

Then, a hug-like sound was heard.

"Farewell, Shinny. I'll never forget you."

"Farewell, Pinkie. Take care."

Twilight barely had time to dodge the opening door and to hide beneath it, to avoid being hit. Pinkie, with tearful eyes and flattened mane and tail, walked some steps, and then, she looked back:

"Who told you that you weren't worthy, Shinny?" She said with a sad smile, and she galloped away, at all the speed she could.

Shining Armor came out from the restroom a bit later, with tearful eyes too, and closed the door, finding his sister there.

"Little sister? How...? How long have you been there?" He asked, surprised.

Twilight looked down: "Long enough..."