Dusk Village

Rainbow Dash, Princess Luna and the CMC all started backing away, fearful of the daunting force that stood before them. Though they had success in intimidating Iron Hoof and his soldiers, they'd have an awful time trying to intimidate an Alicorn. Helios was now among them, with more reinforcements than ever. Over one hundred soldiers were present, more than a match for the small group they had going for them.

"I-...I suppose I hadn't counted on your returning so soon." Luna admitted.

"Well, your failings are my gain, sister. I am here to bring you home." Helios chuckled, seeming quite excited.

"Well, unfortunately, I like being free, like most creatures that you haven't tainted, so I think I will pass." Luna countered.

"Well that's the trouble, you see, it's not so much a matter of choice, so much as it is a matter of time. By my estimates, That ought to be a matter of about 150 seconds, give or take." Helios eyed Princess Luna in a challenging way.

"Well, does your estimate account for this?" Luna's horn glowed for just a second, and the ground between the two groups immediately cracked and broke apart, shaking most of the soldiers down and kicking up a cloaking cloud of dust and dirt. As if on cue, all five of them turned and dashed for the forest nearby, disappearing inside a few seconds.

Helios, who had kept his footing, laughed out loud. "Ha ha, as a matter of fact, it does." He replied, long after Luna had disappeared. "Now for the fun part." He looked at his army, which was just starting to get back on its feet. "Soldiers, search that forest now! I want them all alive! They won't evade us forever!" And with that, the unicorns took off in numerous angles to effectively cover the forest, while the pegasi took to the skies for an overhead view. The chase was on once again.

Rainbow Dash lagged behind the rest of the group. She was so badly weakened in her state that all the activity she had done today had ravaged her of energy. She couldn't keep running; she had to stop soon.

"Guys, I-" She tried to call after them, but couldn't manage the breath as she ran. It just wasn't possible. "I can't... I can't keep... I... as fast as... you... I... guys..." The distance grew between them, and they hadn't stopped to notice her body fading behind them. As Dash continued to run, she felt her leg get caught on some plant, which caused her to lose her footing and fall. She couldn't catch herself, and fell flat and hard. She didn't even notice the pain; until she took her first step onto her right hoof. She immediately  fell again, her right ankle alive and thriving with pain. The pain was unbelievable

"Guys?" When they did not respond immediately, Dash panicked. "GUYS?!" Finally, Luna and the CMC stopped to notice Dash and started to walked back to her. Scootaloo was first on the scene.

"Dash? What's wrong, are you okay?" She asked.

"No... my ankle I... oh god that hurts... I... I think I sprained it. I can't walk on it." Dash explained.

"I don't suppose anypony knows any healing magic of any kind?" Applebloom suggested.

"I never did get around to that..." Sweetie Belle admitted.

"Power enough to move the stars themselves, but not enough to fix a minor injury. How frustrating!" Luna cursed.

"Look, We'll talk about... healing later, right now... let's at least get... some damn cover!" Dash commanded. With Scootaloo's help, she hobbled over to an area where several trees were tightly packed together, providing some visual cover.

Luna, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and Applebloom all stopped to look and Dash's leg to see how bad it was. It was a bright red color, and it was swelling fast. It was definitely a bad sprain.

"We need to keep you off that leg for a while," Sweetie Belle concluded, "At least for a few days."

"A few days?" Dash sounded worried. "But those soldiers are... following us right now! We have to keep... moving!"

"Look Dash, I've had a few bad sprains in my day, and let me tell, you, there's no easy way to deal with it. It takes time and rest, just like a lot of things do." Said Applebloom.

"But we don't have... time! We have minutes until they... catch up to us!" Dash exclaimed, becoming more and more frustrated with herself.

"Couldn't she just fly out of here?" Scootaloo suggested.

"No, she'd be too easy a target, she'd give away our location." Luna replied. "Sorry, Rainbow Dash, but you tend to standout."

"Then we'll just have to keep moving on foot! Come on Scoots, help her up!" Applebloom declared. Again, Scootaloo let Dash on her, and they did their best to hobble along as quickly as they could.

Despite their pace, Paragon's soldiers caught up eventually. Before long, they started seeing several of them moving by, causing Dash's group to have to take cover again.

"Damn, they're everywhere. I can even see them in the sky." Scootaloo said, looking up to see a few pegasi fly overhead. "If any of them see us, they'll tell Helios where we are, and then that's it." Everyone in the group started to hang their heads, feeling defeated. Dash made a quiet whimpering sound, which Scootaloo noticed first. "Dash? Hey Dash, are you okay?"

She lifted up Dash's had to see that she had started crying. But not just crying, more like bawling, she had completely lost control in just a matter of moments. Scootaloo was shocked, as this was her first time seeing Dash like this, and tried to console her.

"It's just not fair!" Dash cried. "We were doing so good... things were finally... going our way... I had hopes and dreams... and now we're all going to... get caught, and it's all my fault... because I couldn't watch where... I was going!" Dash hit the ground angrily with her left hoof.

"Hey, hey, come on Dash, don't be like that." Scootaloo said, trying to sound soothing.

"Yes, please, Rainbow Dash, I don't mean to be insensitive, but you're going to give us away if you don't calm down." Luna said.

Dash made herself calm down, but she was still crying a bit. "It's just... it's so frustrating. Every time things start to go... my way, something terrible... happens, and there's always... at least one other pony... who gets caught up in my... shit luck!"

"Dash! Stop!" Scootaloo grabbed Dash by the shoulders and looked her straight in the eye. "Just stop, okay? Don't beat yourself up.  It's only going to make things worse." She tried to settle down the pony she once idolized, but Dash wasn't having any of it.

Unable to move with all the soldiers in the area, Luna, Dash, Sweetie Belle, Applebloom and Scootaloo sat helplessly in the night under their thin cover of the brush around them. It was only a matter of time before they checked their hiding spot, and then... it was all up to luck at that point. But with the odds stacked imposingly against them, none of them felt particularly lucky. Dash, having just then started calming down, spoke up again.

"I'm going." She declared all of a sudden. The statement worried the rest of the group, and all eyes were on her.

"What do you mean, 'going'?" Luna asked.

"I'm going to reveal myself... and fly as fast as I can... away from here. When I do, you guys have to... start running, and get as far... away from here as possible. It's our only hope." She looked at each of her friends' faces, biding a silent farewell.

"But, Dash, that's crazy! Who knows what they'll do when the catch you! It's suicide!" Scootaloo spoke up in protest.

"They'll keep me alive... as long as they can. Paragon and I know... each other enough, that... he hates me enough to... want to torture me as long as... possible. It's going to really suck... but at least you'll be free. That's the important thing. It's better than all of us... getting caught at once." Dash was very calm about what she said. She had thought about it a lot. "Besides, I'll only slow you down... if you try to move with me."

"This is crazy! Dash don't do it!" Scootaloo exclaimed.

"Yeah Dash, don't do it!" Applebloom agreed. Their eyes turned to Sweetie Belle who had been quiet the entire time Dash talked about her plan. "Come on, Sweetie, tell her she's crazy!"

Sweetie Belle waited a log time before she answered. Her lack of worry is what worried her fellow Crusaders the most. "If I could think of one good reason not to do it... if I could find just one excuse to try something else, and to say that her plan was crazy... if I knew of even one other scenario where we would be better off, I'd agree with you two. But I can't. Even though it will hurt us, even though it's not the best case scenario, it's the best option we have. The only option we have." Silence fell over the others. "I'm sorry, but that's all I have to say."

Dash walked over to Scootaloo, who, despite fighting them back as hard as she could, started to shed tears. Dash put a hoof on her shoulder, trying to console her. "Find what we are looking for. Keep the dream alive... and bring us back the hope... that we desperately need. We have a chance now... and I have to do this... to keep that chance alive." The more she spoke, the more Scootaloo cried. Applebloom had joined in, and both Luna and Sweetie Belle had to look away. "Everything will turn out alright. We'll meet again. I promise." Even Dash did not have faith in that last statement, but she maintained it for morale's sake. Dash started to separate from the group. "Good luck, everpony."

"Y-you... you too... Dash..." Scootaloo sobbed. And with that, Dash took flight.

The soldiers noticed her right away, just as she had hoped.

"There's one! After her!" One of them yelled. And they all stopped their searching and turned for her. Perfect.

Dash flew as hard as she could,evading the other pegasi who chased her and the occasional energy bolt fired by the unicorns. The brush made it hard to for her to gain any speed, but then again, the same challenge was presented to her pursuers. As she fled, She glanced over her shoulder. In her immediately view was about a dozen pegasi flying after her, but far behind them, she noticed a few colored dots that she recognized as her friends making their escape. The soldiers hadn't even noticed them. Dash's stamina was already quite thin from all the running and flying she had done that day; she couldn't keep it up for long, but it wouldn't take long for the others to escape. She was practically surrounded in almost an instant. The pegasi caught up slowly from in front, while the unicorns took shots at her from in front, hindering her movement. She finally figured she'd be better off over the trees, and broke through the tree tops. Now, at least, the unicorns could not see her very well. Her wings were worn out and her chest was burning; she was practically choking on exhaustion, as she could hardly breathe regularly. Drawing her pursuers as far back as possible, she could see the ruins again, and she figured she was only a few hundred feet away now. She'd done a good job; they'd have a heck of a time trying to catch Luna and the others now. Just as she was about to congratulate her efforts, Helios burst through the treetops right in front of her like a great, winged meteor. Close to blacking out from her exhaustion and poor oxygen intake, Dash didn't have nearly enough presence of mind to evade him. With a mighty swipe of his hoof, he punched her square in the jaw, and she fell like a stone.

She came to a moment or two later, utterly surrounded by unfriendly faces, coughing, panting and choking on her own fatigue. Her ears were still ringing and she couldn't hear much. After a moment, Iron Hoof came into view, and said something to his troops that Dash didn't make out. A moment later, they hoisted her onto hooves. She remembered her ankle, and kept off of it as they picked her up. Iron hoof forced her to look straight into his eyes.

"The others. Where are they?" He demanded sharply. Dash, still only barely conscious, spat at him. Luckily it was instinctual to be a prick towards these ponies, otherwise she wouldn't have even thought of that. Iron Hoof, irritated and losing his usual cool, stepped aside and said, "Fine, I don't have to deal with you." Now Helios stepped into view, and looked at Dash. She would have been afraid, if she was at all clear minded. Helios looked her up and down once, taking special note of Dash's ankle, and turned away without a word to her. Now he spoke to his soldiers.

"It seems that today, I command only the foolish and the inexperienced." He stated.

"S-sire?" Iron Hoof seemed confused.

"Not one of you seems intelligent enough to recognize a decoy when you see one. Do any of you see the others even near here? Do you hear the rustling of a rescue attempt going on in the nearby bushes?" There was no answer. "That is because she was drawing our attention so that they might escape. Look at her ankle; it's swollen like a balloon!. She couldn't walk like this, so she sacrificed herself for her friends' safety. Honestly, it's quite painfully obvious what happened here." Helios said this calmly, but his expression showed that he was quite furious.

"Those dirty tricksters! Soldiers! redouble your search! Move!" Iron Hoof commanded.

"Don't bother, in the time we spent following her, they've likely made a grand escape. It would take days to find them now, and our efforts would spread our troops too thin. Best to wait until they make their next move. They're bound to try something, otherwise they wouldn't have bothered staying alive." Helios looked at Dash again. "As for this one... I think Paragon would like this one. He spoke of a rainbow-colored mare once, and he did not speak fondly of her at all. We might not be at a total loss here." He chuckled in a way that greatly unnerved Dash.

It had been a few days since Dash was taken into custody by Helios and Iron Hoof. She was bound by chain in a dark cell, and was fed very little; though she had to admit, the little that she was fed was better than she had eaten for a long time. At least it was food. From what she could tell, Luna, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom had evaded Paragon for the time being, since she didn't hear any of the guards talking about them. Dash imagined it would be a fairly momentous occasion for them. With nothing else to do in such a place, Dash merely waited around, thinking about what had happened and wondering about what will happen. She hated being injured; it made it impossible to go anywhere. Although, being chained to a wall helped that a lot, too.

Dash heard guards enter from the exit on the far end of the room. Her cell was at the very end or the row, so she couldn't make out anything they were saying right away. They had hushed up by the time they reached her cell. There were two of them, a unicorn and a pegasus. She watched them cautiously as they opened her cell and walked up to her. Their ever stony faces made them impossible to read, and unsettling to watch. Dash often wondered if they were even really alive. The unicorn walked up right beside Dash, and his horn began to shimmer. Before Dash could wonder what he was doing, the lock on her chain came undone, and she was freed.

"Summons from Lord Paragon. He will see you immediately." He declared coldly. Before Dash could respond, the pegasus hoisted her up to her hooves. Her ankle was recovering, but it was still a little sore, making walking a challenge. She also hadn't really walked, or even stood, for a long time. The two guards walked her out of the cell and down the prison lane.

"What's this about? What does he want?" Dash demanded to know. Neither of them answered.

The three of them continued to walk through the hallways of Canterlot castle, the place that Dash had been taken when she was captured and the new capital of Paragon's ever expanding world. It was quite eerie how little the place had changed, physically, while spiritually, the place was now it's own polar opposite. It was once the heart of all Equestria, the place where a pony could feel safe and happy; now it was the home of their greatest enemy, and the holding place for the only ponies strong enough to fight back against Paragon. They walked for a while, until they reached a large, double-door, and then each guard stood on either side of it.

"He is through here." The pegasus stated. The silence that followed indicated that these mindless drones had completed their current task and were now essentially off duty. With limited stamina and a still injured leg, the thought of fleeing only briefly crossed Dash's mind before it immediately dissolved, based on how foolish the premise was. There was just no point in trying; she knew she'd be caught again before she even made it to the end of the hall, and by then all she would of accomplished would be a waste of energy and patience. She walked through the large double-doors as she was told.

In the room, there was a sight that made Dash's jaw nearly hit the floor. This place was clearly a banquet hall, as she noted a massive table many times her own length in size, covered with every dish of every food she could have imagined. The steam coming off each dish told her that it was all fresh. There a few dozen chairs all around the table, all of them empty. After about 30 seconds of staring at all the food, she finally noticed out of her peripherals the figure of a very large Alicorn who was standing beside her, about 8 feet away. she turned to look at him, already knowing who she'd find. It was Paragon, her least favorite pony in the entire world. Just looking at him pushed the thought of food right out of her head, replacing the image with memories of all the terrible things that she, as well as her fellow ponies had been put through, as a result of his ambition and his greed. It clicked just then what was going on here. He was going to eat right in front of her! A stranger form of torture she had never known, but effective, nonetheless. Her bottom lip quivered at the thought of being held back while she watched a pig eat a feast fit for a king.

"So glad you could join me, Rainbow Dash." Paragon feigned that same smile he always had. The way he smiled, he looked like somepony who'd never genuinely smiled in his life, and could only do impersonations of one based on very limited experience. "It seems like a lifetime since we met last." He casually strolled around the room while he spoke. He didn't look directly at Dash as he talked. "So much has happened since our last encounter, and the world has changed a lot in just two years..."

"What do you want... Paragon?" Dash tried to get straight to the point. She figured, at this point, having seen Paragon so soon, it either meant she was damned to death or cursed with immortality, and by now she had nothing to lose. "You've got me already. Anypony who is or could... possibly be a threat to you... is dead or away now..."

Paragon stopped and stared into the distance. "Well, that's not entirely true, but that's a matter I'll get into later." He replied, and continued pacing. "Rainbow Dash, I've wondered about what I'm going to do with you for a few days now. I've sought after you mindlessly, as though there was some special plan I had for you, and yet, once you were finally in my grasp... I had no idea what I was going to do with you. I thought maybe I'd just kill you, for old time's sake... but it just didn't feel right. I mean, certainly it wasn't the first time I thought about killing you, and  if I did, it's not it would have been the only time I ever did it. No, that idea's just not appealing to me anymore." Paragon shook his head, and looked almost as if he were confused, or at least very disappointed. "What would I be killing you for, really? For beating me in a race? For uncovering my plan? For hitting me? Granted that one rightfully pissed me off. But really, that was just so long ago, I'm passed that." He stopped and turned towards Dash, looking directly at her for the first time. "And then I thought of a brilliant idea, one that gives a fair shot at survival, and is a certainty  for my own entertainment!" With more vigor in his steps now, he closed half of the distance between himself and Dash. "Gladiation!" He said, excitement in his voice.

Dash looked quizzical. "Excuse me?"

"Gladiation, Rainbow Dash. I've begun a new event I'll be hosting every week, where two ponies enter an arena together and compete in whatever type of match I feel like on that day, and the winner stays on for the next week! The loser, well... they're not so fortunate."

"You're insane." Was Dash's reply. "I'd never agree to... that type of thing. I'd rather rot in a... prison cell!"

Paragon's eyebrows flickered and he tilted his head. "Well, that's too bad. I was hoping little Maree and all her friends might be around for a little longer.

That got Dash's attention. "What.. did you just say?"

Paragon 'smiled' again. "That's right, Rainbow Dash. I've known about their hiding place for quite some time now, and it's the merest of whims that keeps me from bulldozing it right this very moment." if Dash were sitting down, she would have slumped. She was horrified at the idea. "Their lives are as long as yours. When you die, they die. It's up to you how long that is." Dash stood still for a very long time. She was so frustrated that she'd been caught in this. This was something she'd never expected to come up. She really didn't have a choice, did she?

"So what's it going to be?" Paragon asked. "Are you up to the challenge?"

"I..." Dash didn't want to answer. "I guess... I don't have any choice."

"Excellent! I'm looking forward to it!" Paragon said with enthusiasm. After a few moments, while Dash mauled over her increasingly terrible situation, Paragon walked right up to Dash, his titanic frame dwarfing Dash.

"You, know, you're actually quite pretty, I'll admit that. It was hard to see when your foolish pride and your over confidence blotted out the view." He brushed his hoof by her cheek, in a way that would have made Dash very uncomfortable, had she been paying any attention at all. "Take that all away, and strip you down to the helpless, weak and ultimately vulnerable individual that you are, and you're actually quite pretty." He took a few steps, turned back to Dash, a devilish smile on his face. "Or maybe I'm just the psychotic type of bastard who likes to see women cry!" He laughed an eerie laugh that gave Dash goosebumps.

"By the way, you can help yourself to the food on the table there." Paragon added over his shoulder. "I want to give you your best opportunity to win. It's no fun if you lose on your very first attempt because you were too hungry." Paragon finally took a seat and just watched Dash. The conversation was over. Dash stepped over to the food. For some reason, she just wasn't very hungry right now.

Luna, Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo finally emerged on the other side of the last mountain in their way. At the base, they saw their target: Paragon's castle. Weeks of travel had finally brought them there, through torrential rain and frighteningly cold mountain peaks, they had pushed through and had finally reached this destination in the hopes that somepony within these walls could tell them exactly what they need to hear.

There was a surprisingly small number of guards on duty, making infiltration relatively easy. Luna wondered if there might have even been fewer guards present than when she first scouted out this area. This idea concerned all of them, but nevertheless, they pushed on.

"So, where should we be looking?" Applebloom whispered as they moved through the corridors.

"I would first check the lower levels; that's probably where the dungeon will be." Luna replied.

They found a staircase and went down. When there were no more windows, and everything was illuminated by torchlight, they knew they were underground. In the dungeon, there was once again very few guards; a couple quick sleeping spells, and they were alone, safe for any prisoners who might still be alive.

They checked several cell rooms; no sign of life anywhere. Some of them seemed dead as recently as yesterday, which Luna felt deeply mournful for. If they had just gotten there a little bit sooner... but alas, this was no time for that kind of thinking. They continued to move along, and found nothing, until they got to the last cell. This one was larger than most, and was designed to hold several prisoners. Though they could not see anything, they heard the faint sound of... soft breathing.

"Hello?" Luna called out tentatively into the darkness. There was no light, and they could not see where the sound was coming from. "Is anyone in there?" She asked. There was no reply, but they could still hear the breathing.

"We need to see what's in there." Sweetie Belle concluded. "Chances are slim, I know, but this might be exactly what we're looking for."

"I got this." Applebloom said, turning around so that her hind legs faces the door. With a hearty buck, the door flew wide open as if it wasn't locked at all.

"Way to go Applebloom!" Scootaloo cheered.

"I could have opened it too..." Sweetie Belle muttered as they all walked inside.

Sweetie Belle lit up the room with her horn, and they looked around the large cell. Several dead bodies littered the floor, some of them having been dead for a while now, giving off a foul odor. On the far end, they found what they had heard from outside. A lone unicorn pony, who's coat was mostly yellow with a tint of green with a long green mane, laid on the floors, chained to the wall, breathing gently. She was awake.

The ground all rushed over to her.

"Are you alright?" Scootaloo asked immediately.

"We're not here to hurt you." Sweetie Belle said calmly. "We only want to help."

"I...I know... why.. I know why you... are here..." The unicorn replied hoarsely, her voice barely audible. She was not healthy.

Luna stepped forth. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am-"

"Luna... Princess... Luna..." The unicorn finished Luna's sentence for her. Everyone was surprised.

"H-how did you know that?" Luna asked.

"I know you all... Sweetie Belle... Applebloom... Scootaloo... I have heard all of your names before... in my dreams..." The unicorn explained. "I... am Marya. I am the one... who you have sought for so long..." Marya tried to move herself so that she could face Luna and the CMC more effectively, but she could not pick herself up off of the ground. "I have a long story to tell you all... And I have very little time to tell you of it... but I shall try my best." She said, as she began to tell her tale.

"I am the last remaining member of a special sect of the unicorn clans... who were gifted at birth with powerful foresight, allowing them to see their better future, so that they might... work towards making it happen, for the benefit of all ponykind." She started.

"Aliconus Osu." Luna thought out loud.

"Correct, my Princess. We of the Aliconus Osu served closest to the Alicorns many generations ago... until Hayperion came to power."

"We know what happened after that.." Luna said sympathetically.

Marya paused for a little while, probably thinking about her ancestors. "After that day, we were forgotten by history, and lived on the outskirts of Equestria... ours days gradually dwindled, and we lived our seemingly pointless lives in solitude... until one day, I was told by my mother... That I was destined to marry an Alicorn prince; the son of Hayperion, our slayer. I did not believe it to be true for most of my life... until I had my very own vision of the same future that they saw. I knew, after that day, that somehow, our marriage would inevitably benefit all of ponykind... I did not know how, or why, but this, I did know. When I approached Paragon at first, he did seem... different. Not immediately hostile, like his father had been. I knew that somewhere in that castle, Hayperion was alive, but he was at least too weak... too weak to ever meet me in person. I had my suspicions from the beginning; Paragon seemed to be be the only one in that castle who looked on me positively. We were married after a short time, and before long we had our child... but Paragon was not happy with our child." Marya stopped again. She looked like she might cry soon. "She was born far too early, and was sick and weak. Paragon was disgusted that an heir of his could be so pathetic..." Now Marya's tears started to flow. It hurt her very much to recount these events. "I understood very quickly. What I was to him... was no a partner, but instead some tool... for him to use to create an heir for himself. I meant nothing. He ordered to 'get rid of it', not even with the dignity to treat her as a living creature. I could not do this to my child, but I knew that if I did not... Paragon would kill us both. Instead I allowed my foresight to guide me to a town by the name of Ponyville... here I left my child, knowing that somewhere near here, someone would take her in, and treat her as their own..."

"Hey, that sounds an awful lot like..." Scootaloo started.

"..Maree?" Luna said, finishing the sentence.

"I knew, then, that it was not my marriage to Paragon that would directly influence ponykind... it was the birth of our daughter. I knew that she would be okay... I knew she would grow up and stop Paragon one day. It was suddenly clear to me what my purpose was... what the purpose of my child was..." Marya looked directly into Luna's eyes. Her own eyes were the most piercing shade of green Luna had ever seen, like two perfectly round emeralds looking up at her. "She is our hope, my Princess. he is our only hope..." Marya coughed meekly. Her eyelids fluttered a bit. She wasn't going to last much longer.

"Sweetie Belle, come here... I must give you something... before I am gone form this world..." She said. Sweetie Belle stepped forward so that she was right next to Marya.

"Place your hoof... on my chest... and wait." She said. Sweetie Belle did as she was told. Marya closed her eyes, and her horn began to glow a light green color. In response, Sweetie Belle's horn also glowed, and she looked as though she was straining herself somehow. After a few moments, the glowing stopped, and both unicorns relaxed.

Sweetie Belle took a step back, holding her head, which was a little sore. "W-what... just happened?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"I have given you... the location of your friends... I have known of their place... for a long time... and I have waited until now.. for someone to come here... so that I can convey this message... this last message that you must hear..." Marya was straining to stay awake.

"What is it?" Luna asked frantically.

"The mural you saw... in those ruins. The inscription is incomplete." Marya explained.

"Yeah, we know that, we need to know what it says!" Scootaloo interrupted.

"I erased the last few words... so that Paragon might see it... differently than it truly was..." Marya continued.

"Hey, that's great! Did you hear that? It really was a misunderstanding!" Applebloom exclaimed.

"En... asperie..." Marya's voice was just a whisper.

"Come again?" Scootaloo said.

"En asperie... In the rough." Luna translated.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"I'm not sure. But I know it will probably make sense later. Right now we need to go, and get find the others as soon as we can." Luna declared.

"What about her?" Applebloom said, motioning toward Marya.

"My purpose... is fulfilled... I have nothing left to do in the world... but leave it..." Marya said. All eyes were on her. "Take my message... take my story... but leave my life... for it belongs... to the almighty ones... who shall come for it... soon..."

Luna walked up to the dying mare. "We thank you for sharing this story with us. We will not allow your life to be in vain." She promised.

"Protect Maree... save Equestria... stop... Paragon... gooo..." And that was the last breath Marya ever drew before she was still and quiet. The others had a moment of silence out of respect for the recently departed.

On their way out, Luna and the CMC discussed the meaning of the last piece of the inscription.

"In the rough... what could it mean?" Applebloom wondered aloud.

"Well let's remember the whole last part... flawless diamond... in the rough... somehow, that addition is supposed to be significant..." Luna said, "Yet, it still sounds like it's talking about Paragon..."

"Marya made it pretty clear that Maree was involved somehow..." Scootaloo pointed out.

"That's true. I always looked at Maree as just another little filly, but who knows, she could be more significant than any of us realize..." Sweetie Belle replied.

"What we really need is somepony who knows the language to read the inscription in full, so that we can get a real idea of what it's all about." Luna concluded.

"Where can we find somepony like that?" Sweetie Belle wondered.

"Haven't I already said it?" Luna looked at the others. "My sister. She's the only one I can think of who can help us."

"But she's stuck inside of Canterlot Castle, and that's assuming she isn't... you know..." Applebloom didn't finish her thought.

"She's alive." Luna said confidently. "And we'll get her back, somehow. We just need a little bit of help..."

On their way out, they had very little difficulty escaping. The hallways were quite... eerily quiet. On the semi-final turn that would have led them to the main hallway, they had to back pedal after seeing several soldiers rounding the corner at the same time. Figuring they hadn't been seen, they decided to turn around; only to face a number of other soldiers who had snuck up behind them. Sweetie Belle yelped in surprise. They had been ambushed! As the soldiers from around the corner reached them, they were trapped on all sides. One of the soldiers from the group behind them stepped forward.

"We don't take kindly to strangers snooping around our castle walls uninvited." He said harshly. "Especially when said strangers are our enemies."

Luna acted quickly. She launched a spell at the wall next to them, blowing a hole right through it that led to the outside. "GO! GET OUT!" She yelled at the CMC. They made a break for it immediately. As soon as they were out, before the soldiers could even react, she cast another spell unleashing a blinding flash, which made their vision go black. Able to get away now, Luna also walked through the openning. But as soon as she did, four armed pegasi dropped down in front of her. With no time to react, one of them slashed at her with his hoof-mounted blade, cutting her deeply across the chest, while another caught her wing. The CMC heard her cries of pain, and turned around; only to see the soldiers from inside the castle recovering from their temporary blindness and emerge from inside the castle to encircle Luna.

"Don't stop for me! Run! Run for your lives!" Luna called after them. With no time to argue, Sweetie Belle, Applebloom and Scootaloo fled the scene. They were not followed.

Luna, badly injured, did not resist her capture. "Princess Luna, so you are caught at last." The same soldier from before spoke to her. "Paragon has a special plan for you. I can't wait to see how it goes." He chuckled evily.

"Do with me as you will. Your time shall come to an end soon enough." Luna replied coldly. "You're 'king' Paragon will fall... it is only a matter of time now."

The soldier chuckled, and shook his head. "We shall see."

With the stage set for the last arc, it is time for destiny to converge on our characters. The retribution begins, next chapter...

End of Chapter 10.