Starlight and Twilight climbed the slope that below Winsome Falls. Reaching the of a sheer cliff that marked the last stretch of their climb, the two mares settled down for several minutes to catch their breath, above them they could hear the rushing of water. Starlight and Twilight continued their climb up the sheer cliffs, forehooves gripping onto small stony outcrops while their hind hooves pushed off where they found purchase.

Starlight looked over her withers at the lavender alicorn climbing below her. "Twilight, why are you climbing? Couldn't you, I dunno, fly or even teleport yourself up to the top? Heck, why haven't I levitated or even teleported myself to the top?"

"If I have another attack and lose control, I'd rather have it while clinging to this cliff than in flight or in the middle of a teleport.", Twilight replied, "Besides, if I'm right and you're with foal, you shouldn't overtax your wellspring, you could give yourself a miscarriage."

Starlight took a few moments to look around. "Well we're pretty exposed here, all it would take is one pegasus patrol to fly by and we'd be right back in that dungeon. I'm pretty sure that would cause some unwanted complications." She shimmied down the cliff next to Twilight. "Brace yourself, I'm about to get us to the top, potential miscarriage be damned."

Before Twilight could protest, the two of them vanished in a flash of turquoise light, leaving a scorch mark on the rock face, a split second later the lavender alicorn and the lilac unicorn appeared on the top of the cliff. "That was extremely stupid Starlight.", Twilight scolded, "Any pegasi flying by would have surely seen the flash of your teleportation, not to mention you've probably taxed your wellspring." Starlight sat on her haunches catching her breath. "Well then I*pant pant* suggest we find some*huff huff gasp* cover."
********************************************************************************************************

Daybreaker walked through the upper dungeon on her way to the interrogation chamber. Opening the heavy iron door, she stepped in, her chief torturer, Mistress Sparkle, was standing by a table where a changeling was strapped down, twirling a long knife with a cruel curve in her magic, fresh hemolymph, clear-green in color, trickled from fresh wounds.

"I receive so few live changelings to entertain in my parlor.", Mistress Sparkle said in a tone that was both calm and cruel, "Even if you won't tell me what I want to know, I can still use this opportunity to better learn about insect anatomy." The lavender unicorn mare with the pair of crossed knives cutie mark slowly ran the tip of the sharp knife along the carapace of the changeling. "Don't worry about it hurting, I promise I won't feel a thing. Oh! Your majesty! I'm sorry that I did not hear you come in my most divine queen. Many apologies." She bowed low to the floor and offered the handle of the blade to Daybreaker.

"Rise my faithful and efficient interrogator.", Daybreaker replied, "It is I that who should apologize for interrupting you during your work. Though I must admit that watching you work is like watching a painter or a composer create a masterpiece."

"Did you come to watch me work? Or maybe this changeling knows something that requires extracting by your own sacred hoof?", Mistress Sparkle said, supplicating before her queen again.

"I have not come to inquire of this...thing, instead I have come to ask a small favor of you."

"I live to serve my queen. Ask it of me and it is yours, even the very last drop of my life's blood."

Daybreaker gently a bronze shod hoof across the cheek and under the chin of the lavender unicorn. "And to think Celestia was so blind as to not recognize the true talent she had right here under her own snout. Surely your talents would have moldered and atrophied as a requisition officer of the guard. But I do not require such a sacrifice of you. Do you still have the fur, mane and blood samples of that little alicorn that knew your tender loving graces?"

Mistress Sparkle placed the long, cruelly curved knife back in its box and bowed. "I do my most divine queen." She walked into her office and opened the various cabinets that containing all sorts of specimens. "All I have is yours to do with as you so choose."

"I only require one hair from her mane, three hairs from her coat and a few drops of her blood."

Mistress Sparkle took the asked-for items and placed them in three test tubes, then passed them to Daybreaker. "Will that be all my most divine queen?"

"Now that you mention it, do you have a vial of fire cobra venom?"

Mistress Sparkle pulled a small glass vial of cloudy reddish-yellow liquid from a stand on her desk. "Be most careful with this my queen, there is a reason why the fire cobra is also called the suicide asp."

"Thank you my most loyal and efficient interrogator." Gathering the things in her magical aura, Daybreaker walked to the door of the torture chamber and left. Entering back into the castle-proper, she walked through the hallways as guards saluted and servants bowed to her. She entered into her private study, setting the things on her desk, on one side of the desk lay the damaged, but still mostly intact petrified head of Discord, on the other side lay the charred skull of Sombra.

Daybreaker pulled out a piece of pure crystal, carved to look like an alicorn, she levitated the test tube containing the drops of blood over the top of the carved crystal and dripped the few drops of blood onto it, then fused the hairs from the mane and coat to it. She looked at Sombra's charred skull. "Your first mistake was thinking that you could take what was rightfully mine. Your second mistake was thinking I was that pathetic weakling Celestia. Your third mistake was thinking I couldn't pry the secrets from you. Your last mistake was thinking you could best me. Hahahahahahahaaaaa! I am the eternal sun and none can stand before her!"

"Only the eternal night can truly stand before the eternal sun.", Nightmare Moon said walking into Daybreaker's study, "Now pray tell sister, what have you concocted and why you think you can go behind my back to prepare tortures without seeking my council?"

"Did you seek my council before implanting your tantabus into that little wretch?", Daybreaker snarled, baring her sharp fangs.

"Put away your fang, sister of mine. I meant it not as a challenge. And yes, I did implant a tantabus into her without your council.", Nightmare Moon replied, "Now pray tell sister, what have you concocted?

Daybreaker levitated the vial of fire cobra venom, chanted a few strange words softly. The reddish-yellow liquid turned purplish-black and started bubbling. She placed a dropper in the vial. "Just a curse of pain and madness meant to poison that little wretch's mind while she is awake. Who knows, maybe if fortune favors us, she'll find Cadenza and that wretched insect and in a fit of madness, rid us of their burden. Then maybe their pathetic little rebellion will die without their leadership."

"How do you know that Chrysalis still lives?", Nightmare Moon asked, "When you burned her hive, there was enough ashes that any could have been her."

"I know she still lives.", Daybreaker sneered, "If she was dead, then why do her changelings aid those who defy our rightful rule?" She levitated the dropper filled with purplish-black liquid over to the head of the alicorn carving.
********************************************************************************************************

Twilight and Starlight stopped at the edge of a pool where one of the many rainbow-colored falls poured in to, lowered their snouts to the water and started drinking.

Suddenly Twilight reared up on her hind hooves, screaming in pain and clawing at her head with her hooves. Flopping onto her side, she started thrashing as her mouth foamed, her brain felt like it was on fire.

"Twilight!", Starlight shouted, rushing to the alicorn's side, "What's wrong?"

Twilight got to her hooves, flecks of foam falling from her mouth. Her eyes stared unfocused as she babbled incoherently. She started walking in circles as her eyes spun in their sockets, she started foaming more and more, like she was rabid as globs of foam fell to the ground.

Starlight grabbed Twilight with her magic, holding the alicorn still. She stared into her eyes, noting that one was like a pinprick and the other's pupil had nearly blacked it out. "You're unwell. Come on, I'll carry you."

"I'm banana cream quesadilla oval square. Rotten apple decaying flapjack! You, you're bruised diamonds orange blue."

"Uh...whatever you say.", Starlight said as she lifted Twilight in her magic, "Come on, let's see if we can't find somepony to help you." The lilac unicorn started walking in the direction of the Everfree Forest carrying the lavender alicorn in her magic.

As they finally entered the edge of the Everfree, everything went from the brightness of late afternoon, to darkness like unto dusk The branches of the trees in the dim shadows made the forest feel claustrophobic, here and there light shown down through gaps in the dark green foliage.

Panting, Starlight levitated Twilight onto her back. "Bats fly at day. Phbbbbbttt! Yellow and pink! Yellow and pink!" "That's right Twilight, yellow and pink. Now how do we find this resistance? If it even exists." Starlight noticed several rabbits on a trail, staring at the two of them with large quizzical eyes before scattering into the undergrowth.

"Those who look for us rarely live long enough to regret it.", a voice whispered from above in the branches of the forest's canopy.

Starlight set Twilight down onto the ground and erected a shield around them. "Who's there?! Show yourself! If you're here to help, my friend is sick."

There was a rustle in the branches above and a blur too fast to make out went from the branches of a nearby tree into a thicket of bushes. Starlight turned to face it. "Hello? Is anypony there?" Twilight pointed a hoof and shouted, "Rotten banana! Poop sponge cake souffle!" "You're not making any sense Twilight." Twilight growled in frustration. "Sheep cake! Orange water green! Yellow pink! Pink pink! Gray! Brown and black from below!"

Three things ran through the undergrowth with a blur. As Starlight turned to face whatever it was, three thestrals dropped onto her shield from above. Before Starlight could cast a spell to knock them off her shield, two earth pony mares jumped out of the undergrowth and started repeatedly driving their hooves with all their might into the shield, one was gray, the other was pink. Starlight strained to keep the shield up as spider web cracks started spreading across it, as she went to reinforce it, the thestrals started slamming their hooves into it. When the shield shattered like glass, Starlight collapsed to the ground in exhaustion, the thestrals immediately dog-piled on her and Twilight. From the undergrowth a yellow pegasus mare with a pink and mane and tail walked out. "Good work.", she whispered. The pink earth pony mare leaned her head down close to Starlight's ear and growled, "You should have listened to your friend."

"What should we do with these two?", one of the thestrals asked.

The yellow pegasus mare walked around the to prisoners. "Bag 'em and take 'em to to camp.", she whispered, "We'll let Zecora find out the truth about them before we bring them to Cadenza and Chrysalis."

Starlight and Twilight had heavy burlap bags pulled over their heads, the latter babbled and sputtered incoherently. As they walked for what felt like an hour, Starlight heard Twilight scream, followed by dull thud and the sound of something thrashing on the ground. "Uh, boss?", a voice said, "I don't think this one is quite right." "Have the other one carry her.", came a whispered response. Starlight grunted as Twilight was placed on her back, the alicorn felt like she was burning up and her breathing was erratic and labored.

After what felt like an eternity of walking, the bag was yanked of Starlight's head. She blinked her eyes repeatedly as they adjusted. It was well after dark and they were standing in an odd village, village was too descriptive of a word, it was more a collection of tents and hovels. A motley collection of ponies and changelings walked or flitted around the camp, intermixed here and there were a few griffons and minotaurs. Sunset looked over her withers into the face of Twilight who was still laying on her back, her eyes were unfocused and partially rolled up in their sockets, she had stopped foaming, but it was replaced by a line of drool.

Quickly shifting her weight down to the ground, Starlight levitated Twilight gently onto her side. "Come on! Come on! Show me that you're still in there!", she said, brushing the alicorn's mane with a hoof. Twilight's lips moved, at first no sound came out. "T-t-tr-tr-trai-trai..." Starlight moved her head closer to Twilight's mouth so she could hear her better.

Twilight's eyes snapped open, they were glowing a deep purple, her coat started turning dark. "Traitor!", she snarled and leapt from the ground. Starlight tried to spring back, but quickly found herself overpowered and pinned under the slowly darkening alicorn. "You think you can murder the whole world and nothing would come of it?!", Twilight growled in a distorted voice and pushed her hoof into Starlight's throat. The lilac unicorn chocked and gagged as she flailed ineffectively at the darkening hoof.

"What is going on here?!", a voice called out. All turned to see a tall pink alicorn walking towards the fray.

"Whorse!", Twilight snarled in an unnatural voice and charged her. Starlight gasped , sucking in air as the hoof was removed from her throat. As Twilight covered the space between her and the pink alicorn, she suddenly found herself caught in a pale blue aura. Twilight struggled against the blue aura for a few seconds then teleported out of it. Appearing above the pink alicorn, she reached forward with her forehooves as she went into a dive. A lime green aura encapsulated her and tossed her to the ground.

Chrysalis strode forward, her black carapace covered in discolored burn scars, putting herself in between the crazed lavender alicorn and Cadance.

"Thief!", Twilight growled in a distorted and unnatural tone. Sticky green mucus surrounded her hooves. She struggled against the quickly hardening green mucus holding her hooves in place.

As Twilight charged up her horn to fire a blast, her cutie marks levitated off her flanks, leaving a pair of gray equal signs. All eyes watched as the two starburst cutie marks floated in the air towards Starlight, who quickly scooped them into a jar. Immediately Twilight's magic dissipated and she collapsed to the ground, the normal color returning to her coat. Her eyes went back to their normal color as they slowly closed.

Chrysalis stomped towards Starlight. "Who are you?! Why did that one attack us?!" Starlight hunkered down in fear as the changeling queen towered over her. "You will answer me or I will drag it out of you!"

"Chrysalis!", the pink alicorn snapped, "Hold your ground. These are the two our informants told us about. Zecora!"

A zebra walked up carrying a pair of saddlebags with a cadueus printed on them. "Get the lavender mare to the infirmary and give me a vial of truth potion if you have it."

"As my general commands.", the zebra replied reaching in her saddlebags, "Before i forget, Iron will has again broken one of his hands."

Chrysalis sighed. "I don't know why we keep him around, Cadenza. Every time one of turns round, he's hurt himself again."

"We need all the bodies we can get. If it weren't for his skills at organizing, the attack on Canterlot would have gone much worse.", Cadance replied. She pointed a hoof at Starlight, "You! Come with me."

Starlight followed Cadance into a hut made from stones precisely stacked on each other, with Chrysalis following close behind. Starlight found her hooves secured to the floor by sticky green mucus, Cadance pulled the stopper from the bottle of potion and shoved the spout into the lilac unicorn's mouth. "Drink and we shall know your truth.", Chrysalis said calmly. Starlight nearly gagged as she drank the truth potion down, it tasted like rotten apples mixed with the scraping of a pony's hoof after a long slog during the middle of summer.

Cadance and Chrysalis stood in front of Starlight for several minutes as they waited for the potion to take effect. "Okay, I think that's been long enough.", Cadance said, "Let's start off simple. What's your name?" Starlight found herself compelled to speak, "Starlight Glimmer." Chrysalis took a step forwards. "Where are you from originally?" "A small community called Sire's Hollow." Cadance rubbed a hoof under her chin. "There used to be a well to do community called Sire's Hollow, but it has long since been turned into a prison. Are you trying to say you're from that prison?" "No ma'am, I come from a different timeline where Equestria was nothing like this." "How did you come to his timeline?", Chrysalis asked. "I was so angry at princess Twilight for turning my village against me that I modified Star Swirl's time travel spell to stop the sonic rainboom from happening that gave Twilight and her friends their cutie marks."

As Cadance and Chrysalis continued to to interrogate Starlight, the two of them became more and more agitated. "SO BECAUSE YOU LOST CONTROL OF THE VILLAGE YOU HAD CONTROLLED AND THE DECIDED TO THROW TEMPER TANTRUM, YOU DAMNED US ALL TO LIVE UNDER THE HOOVES OF THOSE TYRANTS!", Chrysalis roared, beside herself in rage, "Give me an excuse to not crush your skull in right now!" She raised a holey foreleg to ring her hoof down on Starlight's head.

"That's enough Cgrysalis!", Cadance shouted as she interjected herself between the two of them, "We are not Daybreaker or Nightmare Moon!"

"But she admitted to..."

"She's right.", Starlight interrupted, "This is all my fault! However you choose to punish me, I won't resist. Just please, please don't let Twilight suffer for my foul-ups.", she pulled the modified time spell from her pocket dimension, "Get Twilight to the map table on the far side of Ponyville. She can cast the spell that gets her home where her friends can help her."

"Fine by me!", Chrysalis growled. "Chrysalis! Stand down!", Cadance shouted, planting her hooves and spreading her wings, "You weren't the one who watched aunt Celestia fall further into desperation and grief to the point of madness. I did! I watched as her student gave into jealously and greed led through the mirror! I watched her year after year when hopeful after hopeful prospect failed their entrance exams! I watched as Nightmare Moon came back from the moon and loom over her laughing! I watched as my loving and caring aunt gave into her own darkness becoming that...creature! I swore on that day that I would no long sit by and watch! I swore to save all I could, even if it meant my own destruction!", her tone softened as she lowered her wings, "Right now we've got a chance to stop this before it starts."

Chrysalis locked eyes with Starlight and gave a snarling hiss. "Fine!", she snapped turning with a huff, "We'll do it your way. But that doesn't mean I have to like her!"

Cadance gave a small smile. "Fair enough. Now find your fastest and sharpest-eyed changelings. I'll load them up on love so they can find that map table.", she then gave Starlight a deadly serious look, "For all our sake, they had better find that table or I won't be able to stay Chrysalis' hoof again."

Zecora walked into the hut. " This is the worst! I tried to heal that little alicorn, but even my knowledge could do little but calm her. Her mind is cursed!"

Cadance and Chrysalis both gave worried looks. "How long before before the curse consumes her?"

"Hard to say. Never have I worked with an alicorn who was cursed both awake and asleep. If I had to hazard a guess, she has at the most a few months if her curse was put on her today."

"Very well.", Chrysalis said, her countenance falling, "I'll gather five changelings, you load them up on love and they'll find that map."

Over the next three days Starlight walked around the camp with Twilight, the two of them surrounded by several changeling guards. Whenever Twilight would have an attack, Starlight her curie marks off and changelings would dog pile her.

Words spread quickly around the camp, ponies, griffons, minotaurs and changelings would post watch day and night. As each day rolled by, they would become more and more concerned. In the predawn hours of the fourth day, rustling in the undergrowth drew everycreature's attention. Bright Eyes stumbled into the clearing, leading Rarity, with Sweetie Belle close by.

"General Cadenza? General Cadenza?", Rarity called out. Cadance and Chrysalis hurried out .

"Rarity! You know the Everfree isn't safe!", Cadance exclaimed, "Do you have any news?"

"Two days ago a changeling staggered into the camp close to death. She said something about a map table and that the queen's soldiers were there waiting for them.", Rarity said morosely, "I'm sorry Chrysalis. If you want to bring her home, Bright Eyes can tell you where we buried her."

"Pharynx, Spiracle, Mandible, Stinger and Antennae knew the risks before they went out. They did their hive proud by making sure a message got back to us." Chrysalis closed her eyes and turned her head away so none could see her mourn for her children. After several minutes she regained her composure. "General, I think it's time we we upped our patrols. Sooner or later we're going to have to make a press for that map."

Cadance nodded her head.

That evening several ponies, griffons and minotaurs rushed into the camp by the way of the long abandoned castle, they carried on stretchers several sickly, emaciated foals. Starlight recognized one of the fillies, a pegasus with a bright orange coate and a bright magenta mane, the stump where her leg gad been cut off was badly infected. "Make way!", the lead creature shouted. As the sat the stretchers down, Zecora ran out with her medical supplies.

"Oh dear dear dear! Can somecreature tell me what happened, right now and here?!"

"We managed to liberate them from a labor camp outside of Manehattan.", the lead creature replied, "They were working them to death and barely feeding them."

Starlight watched as Zecora, along with several other creatures. Bright Eyes ran over to an unconscious form of a unicorn filly with a light gray coat and blonde mane, she was little more than skin and bones. Starlight clenched her eyes shut and looked away crying. "If I survive long enough to get back, I swear I'll do everything in my power to make this right."
********************************************************************************************************

Starlight and Twilight waited four months as the resistance gathered supplies for an attack to draw away as many guards as possible. Twilight grew less and less coherent as he attacks became more frequent, Starlight's belly grew into a small bump, revealing she was pregnant, she walked into the hut where Cadance and chrysalis were putting the last details on a plan. "Me and Twilight can't afford to sit on our hooves any longer. She's getting worse and needs to get back to where somepony can help her."

"What about your foal?", Cadance asked.

"All that matters right now is getting Twilight back. If I'm unable to get back, I'll kill myself to keep my foal away from their hooves.", Starlight replied.

"You won't have to go that far.", Chrysalis replied laying down a small stack of papers, :Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon are coming tomorrow to make a big show about rooting out dissidents.", she snorted, "This will make the...what is it...eighth time they've tried this?"

"More like the twentieth time.", Cadance retorted, "But that's not what Chrysalis is trying to say. Go ahead and show her."

In a flash of green flames, Chrysalis changed her form to match Cadance's. "I'll go out with as many creatures that are willing to sacrifice themselves to make a big show that General Cadenza is staging a big showdown. I'll load me up on as much love magic as I can hold so I'll have a chance to hod the off long enough. Meanwhile the real General will be with you two, making sure you both get to the map safely."

"So when are they coming?", Starlight asked.

Cadance and Chrysalis glanced at each other before responding simultaneously, "Tomorrow."
********************************************************************************************************

As the sun rose, Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon landed in the main square of Ponyville, dressed in full battle gear. They were accompanied by a battalion of heavily armored guards setting down on pegasus chariots. As Daybreaker started to give a grandiose speech, her attention was drawn by a ruckus from the gathered ponies. Chrysalis disguised as Cadance marched, wings held high, along with several hundred creatures.

Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon walked side-by-side to confront their 'niece'. "Mi Amore Cadenza. I implore you to give up this futile and destructive defiance.", Daybreaker said, "Just prostrate yourself before my sister and I, kiss our hooves, declare us to be your most divine queens and everything shall be forgiven." She held up a hoof to accentuate her point.

Chrysalis placed a hoof to her chin like she was considering it. Hmm...a tempting offer, but...", she dropped her disguise, "...nah!"

The two alicorn sisters momentarily recoiled in shock. "Chrysalis!", Nightmare Moon snarled, "Why are you-Mffmmfmmmfmfff!" Her eyes went wide as a glob of green sticky mucus covered her snout, blocking her mouth and nose.

"Settle down Little Moon. Let the grown-ups talk.", Chrysalis chided in a mocking tone.

Daybreaker stepped forward as Nightmare Moon scraped the mucus off her snout. "If you want to talk, what shall we ever talk about? Oh, I know! Let's talk about how your changelings screamed as I burned your hive! Or let's talk about how every changeling that I captured cried out in agony and begged for their pathetic lives while Mistress Sparkle vivisected them."

Chrysalis felt her rage burn, but she kept a close lid on it. A wide grin spread across her lips. "I'd rather talk about the terms of your surrender."

This caused the two sisters to scoff in derision. As Daybreaker lit her horn, Nightmare Moon spoke up, "Not yet sister of mine. First let's hear her terms, then we'll decide what to do."

"How very mature of you Little Moon.", Chrysalis retorted. It nearly made her laugh when the black alicorn's face twisted up from the nickname. "Your reign is coming to a close and the ponies you rule over rise against you. Surrender your crowns, disband your armies, relinquish your hold over the heavens and give yourself over to my army for justice."

Daybreaker huffed and stamped a hoof. "Is that all, you pathetic excuse for a ruler?!"

Chrysalis sneered defiantly, it was time to provoke this fight. "No...", she said calmly, "...as we take you to your dungeons, we will stop at every house and hovel and the two of you will be the forgiveness of every creature that lives there, then you both will bow down and...", she shook her flanks at them, "...lay a big wet kiss on my rump."

"YOU DARE?!", Daybreaker roared charging forward. She and Chrysalis crossed horns.

"I do!", Chrysalis mocked back. As they went into a shoving match, she shouted, "Now!" Changelings disguised as members of the crowd or heavily armored ponies dropped their disguises and leapt on the surprised enemies, the creatures making up the ragtag resistance force charged forward to join the fray.

Daybreaker leapt backwards to make some space. Flames flowed down her mane to her tail and around her legs, melting the ground around her hooves into lava. Taking a breath, she breathed out a gout of flame. Chrysalis threw up a shirld around herself as the ground was flash melted into glass. The alicorn and the changeling queen charged up their horns, firing continuous beams that locked in a magical duel. Chrysalis dug in her hooves, she knew she was burning through a lot of absorbed love magic, but refused to yield. Nightmare Moon walked up and touched the tip of her horn to her sister's. Nightmare Moon's and Daybreaker's magic intertwined into a coiling beam of magic that slowly pushed towards Chrysalis, who poured as much power as she could in a attempt to hold back the advancing dual beam.

Cadance, Starlight and Twilight slowly crept towards the map table. The sounds of the fighting from Ponyville were heard clearly. The loud scream of Chrysalis was heard as clear as a bell a split second before the magic of the two sisters annihilated her. As the map table came into view, there were several heavily armored ponies surrounding it. Cadance leapt from their hiding spot in the tall grass, using her magic and greater strength to quickly overpower most of the guards. As she fought hoof-to-hoof against the last few guards, an armored pegasus flew off in the direction of town. Using her magic to knock out the remaining few guards, Cadance sprinted after the armored pegasus and shouted, "Get back to your own time or this is all for naught!"

Starlight started guiding Twilight to the map table. The lavender alicorn collapsed as an attack hit her. "Just hold it together a little bit longer!", Starlight exclaimed as she levitated Twilight onto her back, "We're almost there!"

Cadance's pained scream was the only warning Starlight received that Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon were coming. She hastily placed Twilight on the map and retrieved the time spell from her pocket dimension. The two sisters appeared in a flash of teleportation.

"If you try and cast your time spell to escape, you'll be dead before the first spark.", Daybreaker said in an angry tone. Starlight lowered her head. "Very good! Now, you will allow my sister and I to travel to your time...", Daybreaker said coldly, "...or...", the two sisters lit their horn. Twilight thrashed about on the map table screaming.

"You win! You win!", Starlight shouted, "Just don't hurt her anymore!"

"Very good.", Nightmare Moon said, "Now we shall travel to your time. We might even let you keep you foal." The two sisters stepped up on the map table. "Now cast the spell."

Starlight took a deep breath. 'Here goes nothing!", she thought to herself. She lit her horn in preparation to cast the spell. Daybreaker and Nightmare Moon's eyes lit up with shock as their cutie marks were snatched off and Starlight pinned them under her hoof. As the sisters tried to cast a killing on spell on Starlight, their magic was blocked by the gray equal signs on their flanks. Starlight quickly summoned a wall of force to knock the two alicorn sisters off the map table, she then quickly cast the time spell.

Starlight held the still spasming Twilight close to her chest as the tie tunnel opened, pulling them both in. In the Castle of Friendship, Spike, Twilight and Starlight emerged from the time tunnel and slammed into the friendship Map.

"Twilight!", Spike shouted as he scrambled over to the pony who was his big sister that was being held by the crying lavender unicorn. "Get off of her!", he growled shoving Starlight away.

Twilight's other friends crashed through the door to the map room and gasped at the seizing alicorn that was their friend. "You better have a good explanation why you're here, Starlight!", Applejack growled.

"Get help!", Starlight screamed, "She's been cursed!"

Spike hastily scrawled out a not, rolled it up and sent it with a puff of green flame. "When Princess Celestia gets here, you're going away for a long time."

In flashes of golden and blue light, Celestia and Luna in a flash. "Twilight!", Celestia screamed out as she cradled her thrashing former student, "Shh! Shh! It's okay! I'm here now!"

Luna locked eyes with Starlight. "Thou hast better explain. With due haste!"

Before Starlight could reply, a journal with a two-tone red and orange sunburst logo on the front started chiming and glowing. Celestia levitated the book over, opened it and gasped, "Sunset Shimmer calls for help!"

"Go sister! We've got things handled here!", Luna replied. Celestia nodded and sprinted through the mirror portal.
********************************************************************************************************

Sunset Shimmer, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity and Sci-Twi were all sitting on a blanket in front of the stature where the portal to Equestria was. Celestia suddenly sprinted out, wobbling unsteadily on her legs.

Celestia shuddered. "Even after all these centuries, it still feels just as weird to be bipedal."

"Princess Celestia? Is something wrong with Twilight?", Sunset asked.

"Yes.", Celestia said, "She's been cursed. Don't worry, Luna's with her right now. But keep yourself on standby, I might need to call on your help. Now what happened that you called on Twilight to help?"

Sunset gestured to the human Twilight. "Wwwweeeeellll...it's kind of a long story."
********************************************************************************************************

Celestia stepped back through the mirror portal in Equestria. "Bbbbrrrrrbbbbbbbrbbrbbbbrrrrrr!", she shuddered shaking her head, "I'll never get used to that bipedal world!"

"Sister, is everything alright with Sunset Shimmer?", Luna asked.

"It turns out that Equestrian magic is roaring to life in the human world and there is a human Twilight who accidentally corrupted herself.", Celestia replied, "Don't worry, Sunset and her friends managed to get everything under control. Have you found out what happened to Twilight?"

"Verily, sister. It appears the curse that was put on her was concocted using the corrupted venom of the fire cobra. There is nut one other pony who used a similar curse."

"Sombra!", Celestia snarled, "Did you figure out how she ran afoul of such a curse?"

"Verily.", Luna replied, "It happened when Starlight Glimmer used Star Swirl's time spell she modified. Though naught but a few minutes passed for us, they were trapped in a timeline for at least four months where corrupted versions of ourselves ruled the land."

"Were you able to lift the curse from her?", Celestia asked.

"I was able to pull the poison from her mind, it it has already seeped into her wellspring. That shall take more time to cure. There is also something else deeper. Something familiar. Something that so far has hidden from all my probes.", Luna said.

"Get her back to Canterlot and start working on a treatment. I'll join you shortly.', Celestia said. After Luna teleported Twilight and herself away, Celestia turned to Starlight. "Now what to with you."

Starlight huddled low to the ground, she placed a hoof defensively over her belly. "Do with me as you want, but let me have my foal. After it is born, lock me in a dungeon or banish me or lock me in a dungeon where you banish me. I won't struggle as I know it's better than I deserve."

Celestia sighed. "Where do my ponies get ideas like that? I've only ever banished one pony." She stepped towards Starlight and placed her horn against the unicorn's horn. "Now be quiet while I look into this." Her horn glowed a soft golden color as she probed Starlight's mind.

Celestia raised up to her full height and called for Spike, when the little drake hastily eneterd the room, she ordered, "Go tell Mayor Mare that Starlight Glimmer is on probation and under house arrest for the duration of her pregnancy, whereupon she shall be judged again to see if she is worthy to join society as a whole." After the drake left, she looked down to the unicorn, "Starlight Glimmer, as of today your rehabilitation starts. I expect to be kept informed of your progress."

Tears ran down Starlight's face as she stroked her belly. "Thank you!", she whispered.

"Don't thank me just yet. It's not my forgiveness you must earn.", Celestia replied.
********************************************************************************************************

Over the next seven months down in Ponyville, Starlight's belly grew more and more gravid. She gave birth to a unicorn filly with a pearl pink coat, brilliant aqua eyes and a dark blue mane and tail. She named her daughter Hope Beacon.

Over the same seven months Twilight slowly lost her fight against the tantabus that was attacking her mind. One night as she lay sleeping fitfully on her bed, here eyes snapped open, glowing an unnatural purple, dark swirls of magic came from the corners of her eyes, the shadows extended from all the corners of the room to merge with her coat, turning it a dark purple. On that night Twilight Sparkle fell asleep and something much darker woke up in her place. An evil smile graced her lips as her teeth became sharp fangs, her pupils became cat-like slits. Her coat was dark purple with splotches of black staining it like soot, her feathers were a gradient of dark purple to black. A purplish-black aura swirled around her horn as she lit her magic and levitated a couch.

Luna reached up her hoof to open the door to Twilight's room when she heard the crash of glass shattering. Bursting through the door, the room was empty and the window was broken outwards. Running to the window, she caught the shadowy image of an alicorn slipping behind some clouds. Pivoting on her hind hooves, Luna sprinted through the castle to alert Celestia.

Down in Ponyville, Starlight had just put Hope Beacon down for the night. After gently closing the door, she started walking down to her room when the loud crash of shattering glass made her freeze mid-step. Rushing back up the hallway, she burst through the nursery where Hope was sleeping. The last thing Starlight saw before she was hurled out of the room by a blast of magic was a dark alicorn, silhouetted by the darkness levitating her daughter out of the crib.

Starlight woke up in the hallway smelling iron in her nose. She scrambled into the nursery, seeing Hope's bassinet was empty and the window was smashed in from the outside, she screamed in horror. That night all across Equestria, mares joined Starlight in their screams of horror as they discovered their foals stolen.

Author's Note

This story comes to a dark conclusion.

Thank you all for reading and I hope you all enjoy.

Like the story? Hate it? Got some criticisms? Wanna throw shade or pure bane? Leave a comment down below.