Angel of Justice: Blood Moon

“Ngh… ow!”

Shining Armor grunted as Pinkie balanced on his back. Sparkplug stood back and watched as the pair were struggling to free what appeared to be a metal contraption of some sort built into the rear of Sugarcube Corner.

“Are you almost done, Pinkie?” Shining asked, a bit weary from the strain being put onto him.

“Almost got it.” Pinkie reported, swiping a hoof up at the device and trying to unhook it.

Sparkplug hid an amused chuckle at the admittedly humorous sight. “You know, this would have been a lot easier if you just used magic.”

“I tried that! It was… gah! Stuck!” Shining yelped as Pinkie almost lost balance, thankfully managing to save herself by planting a hoof on his neck.

“You gotta know how to do it, silly!” Pinkie stated. Just before the unicorn could get any more annoyed, a metallic click sounded out. “There. I got it!” She reported with an accomplished smile.

Shining and Sparkplug backed up as a grating creak came from the metal staircase. The painted steps lowered to the ground, allowing them relatively easy access to the upper level of the building.

“I was thinking more like you lift Pinkie up there with magic and then teleport, but this works too.” Sparkplug shrugged.

Shining flattened his expression at the gray mare and sighed before shifting his attention to the rickety-looking contraption before them. “So this is your shortcut?” He asked, raising an eyebrow. It looked like at one point it was used as some kind of fire escape, but now it seemed like the pink mare got the most use out of it.

“Yep! We can get all the way up to my room, no problem.” Pinkie reported.

The pair looked over as Sparkplug started to walk further down the back street. She turned to them and flashed a worried expression.

“I hope you guys know what you’re doing.” Sparkplug said.

Shining Armor turned to see Pinkie sporting a confident smile before reciprocating his own to the gray mare. “We’ll be ok. Just hang out by the front door and wait for our signal once you get done with that distraction.”

“Signal?” Sparkplug asked.

“You’ll know it when it happens.”

Meanwhile, Pinkie adopted a more curious expression as she thought of their plan. “Hey, what are you going to do to distract that guy?” She glanced upward to the top of the building, where a bloodthirsty creature of the night was standing watch in her bedroom. “How will we know when to move?”

Sparkplug glanced down to her vest, a hint of hesitance in her eyes before she looked at the pair and forced a smile. “You’ll know it when it happens. Good luck in there.”

With their plan set out before them, the trio got to work. As Sparkplug ran further down the street, off to do whatever it was she was about to do, Shining and Pinkie Pie started their climb.

The metal staircases and walkways leading up the rear of the building were sturdy enough, though they weren’t a constant. After they reached the roof, they then had to scale an even thinner staircase leading up the tower to Pinkie’s room. Shining almost lost his footing, but he was quick to recover. Pinkie, naturally, was like an agile cat slinking along the chocolate-colored tiles with grace and light hooves.

Once they climbed about halfway up to the cupcake at the top, they adopted a stealthier approach, or at least as much as they could on metal. They weren’t sure if the pale pony in Pinkie’s room could hear them from inside, but they weren’t taking any chances.

Finally, they both reached the top. The staircase ended right at a window leading into the bedroom.

Shining Armor cautiously poked his head up to peer inside the glass. Pinkie started to look as well, only to have the stallion quickly pull her back as he slipped to the side. She looked to him, confused as to the sudden shift in attitude, before noticing a shadow moving past the window.

“That must be him.” Pinkie whispered.

Shining kept both of their bodies out of sight for a moment before relaxing ever so slightly. “Yeah…”

Pinkie looked down to the glass vial held in her hoof, something like anxiousness shimmering in her eyes. “Strobes don’t work to actually hurt them. Sorry, but I think you’re going to have to do most of the work.”

Shining glanced down to the silver blade strapped to his guard uniform before flashing a reassuring expression to his companion. “Don’t worry, I can handle it.” He said.

“Now we just wait for Sparkplug.” Pinkie sighed, trying not to let her nerves get to her. Instead, she shifted her thoughts to a more curious direction. “I wonder what she’s going to do?”

She didn’t have to wonder long, as soon after, a loud series of crackles and pops came from the street below. The pair looked down, only to spot a veritable lightshow of sparks like someone had set off a firework.

Hearing hoofsteps approaching the window, they both got to either side and hugged the wall just in time for the window to open with a slight squeak. A discolored gold unicorn mare with polka-dotted red and blue hair came leaning outside, confusion and annoyance evident in her narrowed red eyes.

“What the buck?” She muttered, watching the sparkles with bewilderment and irritation.

Before she could formulate any further thoughts on the distraction, a sharp pain dug into her back and her eyes went wide. She produced a grunt, which quickly shifted to a pained yelp as her body started burning up. She managed to look to the side just in time to see Shining Armor before ash and ember overtook her and her disintegrating remains were carried away with the wind.

Shining Armor stared at his now visible silver dagger as he held it in the air briefly, a slight frown on his face. “Sorry…” He muttered, wishing the mare to finally be at rest, before turning to Pinkie.

She was wearing a similarly unsettled expression as she too dwelled on the fact that they just killed somepony. Well, perhaps they didn’t kill her. More accurately, they finished the process of Dusk killing her.

“Come on. The Cake’s and those other ponies need us.” Shining said, putting his knife back in its sheath and offering the pink mare a look of sympathy before nodding his head to the side.

Pinkie adopted a serious expression and nodded as well before climbing through the window. She was finally home after so long, and it was time to evict some unwelcome guests.

With some mixture of stealth and urgency, Shining followed his companion inside and stepped hoof into Pinkie’s room. The area was dark, with no lights on at all.

“Oh man…” Pinkie’s voice grew softer as she looked around. Even in the dark, she could see how much of a mess the room was.

Unidentifiable debris littered the floor, and something cold and sticky was underhoof. Her bedsheets and pillows seemed to have been thrown to the floor, and her bed was even crooked as if something had knocked into it with great force.

“I just cleaned in here.” Pinkie deflated slightly, more in passing than anything else.

Shining Armor lit up his horn, casting magenta-tinted light around the room. Immediately, both of them widened their eyes.

It was much worse in the light.

The unidentifiable debris turned out to be white stuffing, apparently having come from a pillow that was ripped to shreds and cast aside. There was a broken picture frame on the ground, most likely knocked from its table. Stuffed animals littered the floor, with one leaking cotton from a torn stitch.

What was most alarming, however, was the cold and sticky substance Pinkie had stepped in. Even against the deep red carpet, there was no mistaking it. It was blood.

All at once, a grim thought popped into her head. Her eyes widened, and her pupils shrank as a gasp escaped her. “Oh my gosh, Gummy!”

Shining Armor softened his expression as the pink mare started turning the room upside down in a rabid search. “Gummy… You mean your alligator?”

“Yes!” Pinkie said, holding up a pair of pillows and looking underneath. “He’s the only one that usually comes up here! Gummy?! Where are you?!” She fretted, her heart beating faster the more places she searched, only to end up empty hooved. She dreaded the thought of finding her beloved pet half-eaten somewhere. Or maybe she wouldn’t find him at all?

Shining grew more concerned as the pink mare sat on her bed, hugging her knees and starting to hyperventilate and rock back and forth.

“Where is he… He’s not here. He’s not… he’s…” She paused, tears welling up in her eyes.

“Hey…” Shining walked over and sat down in front of her, hoping to get her to calm down somewhat. “We’ll find him. I know he’s ok, wherever he i-”

A sudden scuff made both of them freeze. They turned toward the source of the noise, only to spot the door to Pinkie’s bathroom.

They hadn’t noticed it before, but the few scattered streaks of blood seemed to lead under the door. There were also several scuff marks near the knob, and a small crack going down the center of the door itself.

Pinkie shared an uncertain look with Shining Armor before quietly getting out of bed. Both of them approached the door, unsure of what they would find.

Shining tried the knob with his magic, but he was met by stiff resistance. There was a muffled sound behind the door. It almost sounded like panicked breathing.

“Hello? Is somepony in there?” Pinkie spoke up softly. “It’s safe to come out now.”

After a moment of nothing happening, they both started to think that the door was going to remain shut. Then, without warning, it cracked open slowly, allowing an equine silhouette to peer out briefly, and then come all the way out.

“Pinkie…?” A familiar voice asked, though it was diminished and more than a bit fearful.

Pinkie’s mouth fell open into a joyous smile. “Mr. Cake!”

Sure enough, it was Carrot Cake, co-owner of Sugarcube Corner, and closest family to Pinkie Pie. Closest by distance, anyway. He was clad in his usual apron, though it was scuffed up, and his hat was missing entirely. Worryingly enough, he was also bleeding from a nasty bite on his shoulder.

“Oh my gosh, you’re hurt.” Pinkie frowned as she saw how banged up the stallion looked. The blood on her floor must have belonged to him.

Mr. Cake cringed as Shining Armor took him aside and examined his wound. Even being gentle as a seasoned guard could be, it still stung like crazy.

“Sorry to make such a mess of your room, Pinkie.” The beige stallion smiled nervously. “I was up here, checking on Gummy when I heard some commotion downstairs. These ponies stormed in and threatened us. I tried to do something, but one of them chased me up here and bit me! Can you believe that? I hate to say it too, but something must have been wrong with her. Her eyes were all red, and her fur looked so pale!”

“That’s because she was a vampire.” Pinkie stated casually.

Mr. Cake blinked, unsure if what he heard was simply Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie. “Come again?”

“Vampires.” Shining Armor repeated, understanding of just how confused the stallion was. “Fangs, thirst for blood, the whole kitten kaboodle. We’re trying to get a handle on it.”

“Umm… ok.” Mr. Cake stared at the two blankly, still processing things. He knew the pink mare and her friends got up to some weird antics and adventures, especially recently, but this was a bit much. “That definitely explains some things… like the curfew. And the extra guards. Is that why the sun didn’t come up for a long time the other night? Is the princess ok?”

“Princess Celestia is fine… last we checked,” Shining muttered the last part to himself as he trailed his eyes away.

“What was that?”

“N-nothing!”

Meanwhile, Pinkie returned a more concerned look to her face as her thoughts shifted elsewhere. “You said you were checking on Gummy when you got stuck up here. Is he ok? Where is he?” She asked, trying not to get too desperate.

In quiet response, Mr. Cake backed up and receded into the bathroom once more. He knelt down and picked something up out of sight, only to come back with a familiar alligator in his forelegs.

“Gummy!” Pinkie gasped excitedly as she took the alligator from him and smooshed him up against her face in a tight hug. Gummy opened his toothless maw and lovingly nibbled on some of her mane.

“That mare seemed pretty violent, so I didn’t want to leave him alone with her.” Mr. Cake admitted, smiling warmly at the sight before him. Even Shining Armor felt a tug at his heart that softened his features.

Pinkie held her pet at limb’s length and nuzzled the tip of his snout with her nose. He blinked one purple eye at a time and stared at her. “Oh, Gummy! I’m never letting anything scare you again!” She cooed, frowning sympathetically at him. He was stiff as a board.

However, she had more important things to take care of at the moment, evidenced as she looked up to Mr. Cake with a serious expression.

“We’re going to go save Mrs. Cake and the others. You two stay here.” She said, giving Gummy back to the stallion.

“Pinkie, I-” Mr. Cake stammered, unsure of what to say as he looked between the pair. Finally, he sighed and returned to a neutral expression. “Be careful. I don’t want you getting hurt.”

“I’ll take care of her.” Shining Armor assured. “And don’t worry, we’ll save your wife and the others. I promise… one husband to another.”

Then, a loud thump came from downstairs, followed by some muffled shouting and cries. The sound immediately cemented a feeling of alarm into their guts.

“Come on! We have to hurry!” Pinkie said, already rushing out of the room.

Shining followed after, hoping to keep her from getting into trouble. “Wait up, Pinkie! We need to stay hidden!”

Thankfully, Pinkie was at least being quiet as she scampered down the stairs toward the main floor. She paused before the opening to the bakery itself, allowing the unicorn to catch up with her.

They both silently surveyed the scene before them for a moment, eyes growing wide with alarm as they saw how bad things were.

It seemed as though the intel they received from the guards and the shaken mare outside was accurate. There were five ponies total in the room, with two of them being vampires.

Mrs. Cake and a persimmon-furred earth mare with white hair were cowering behind the counter as a pale teal and green pegasus mare kept them in line. Over by some tables, a lone earth stallion with fiery red fur and gray hair was on the floor, surrounded and covered in broken glass. Standing over him, was another pale mare that used to be yellow with striped orange and brown hair.

“I told you to sit down and shut up, didn’t I?!” The mare snarled, eyes flaring and fangs bared. The stallion grit his teeth and hugged the floor, clutching his shoulder limply.

“Please, don’t hurt him!” Mrs. Cake squeaked timidly, much to the annoyance of the mare behind the counter.

Pinkie put a hoof to her mouth to hide a gasp as the pale pegasus smacked the blue mare across the face, nearly sending her to the floor with a red mark already formed.

“Stow it, chubs, or you’re next!” The mare threatened.

Mrs. Cake could only oblige and stay quiet on the floor, stifling a few sobs as tears welled in her eyes. The other customer hugged herself and cowered up against the counter, silently wishing that this was just a nightmare.

Feeling a sudden change in temperature, Shining looked to the side, only to recoil in surprise as he noticed Pinkie red in the face. A fierce growl came, though not from one of the pale ponies, and the stallion could almost see his companion vibrating with rage.

Just before Pinkie rushed off, she was held back as Shining grabbed her. He looked at her with soft features and whispered. “We need to be smart about this.”

Pinkie seemed hesitant to relent, but eventually, she did.

Then, however, a muffled croak drew their attention to the side. The yellow mare had a hoof planted on the stallion’s neck and was pressing down hard.

“The Prince said to cause trouble until the element bearers got here. I say, what better way to cause trouble than to toss a dead body from the roof?” She grinned.

“Sounds like a plan to me.” The other pale mare chuckled deviously as her partner pressed down harder on the stallion’s throat, much to his agony. They were actually going to do it.

Shining cringed uneasily as he realized that they were out of time. They would have to act now if they were going to prevent anyone from dying.

“Follow my lead!” Shining whispered tensely to Pinkie before getting up and rushing down the stairs, dagger drawn. Pinkie was happy to finally be doing something proactive, but she couldn’t deny a feeling of nervousness that someone was going to get hurt.
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..
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Meanwhile, outside, Sparkplug was crouched down near the front door, waiting for whatever signal her friends were going to make. Her fur still smelled like smoke and chemicals from her own signal of sorts. She was glad it worked well enough to get Pinkie and Shining inside, but now she didn’t know what they were doing or if they were ok.

Looking out to the small gathering in the middle of the street, they were all watching her expectantly, like she was some kind of authority on the situation. It only served to make her all the more tense.

“Come on, guys… give me something to work with here.” Sparkplug huffed.

*Crash*

All at once, a thunderous shattering of glass and a mare’s scream made the gray pony and everyone else watching dart their eyes toward one of the windows on the left. A flaming equine shape was careening through a sea of broken glass before crumbling to the ground in a scattered heap of bones, which themselves crumbled into dust.

Sparkplug was left wide-eyed and slack-jawed at this sudden disturbance for a brief moment before she shook herself to her senses. “Oh man!” She exclaimed before turning back to the door and rushing inside.

As she threw open the front door and entered the bakery, the vested mare was met by a chaotic scene. Pinkie Pie was near the stairs at the back, while Shining Armor was by the now broken window with silver dagger in hoof, a terrified stallion on the ground beneath him.

A persimmon mare was hugging the wall behind the counter, while Mrs. Cake and another pale pony were looking toward the front door at the newly arrived monster hunter.

Seeing the vampiric mare so close to two innocent and defenseless ponies, and seeing the cold red eyes meeting hers before darting to the side, Sparkplug realized that she had to act fast. Her hooves fumbled along her vest, managing to pull out and unfold her crossbow in one motion. Pushing through her pounding heart and shaking hooves, she stiffened up and took swift aim before letting loose a silver bolt.

The tiny projectile sailed through the air toward the pale mare. The pegasus cringed in anticipation and dodged to the side, narrowly missing a head-on impact and instead catching the bolt as it grazed her cheek, leaving a smoldering line behind.

“Ow!” The teal mare yelped before growling and glaring at Sparkplug, who was already fumbling to load in another bolt. Suddenly, she shifted her attention to Mrs. Cake and formed a toothy smirk.

Seeing what was about to happen, Pinkie widened her eyes and leaped forward. “Mrs. Cake!”

In a blur of time, Shining Armor and Sparkplug both raced to help their friend already in midair. The pale mare was lunging for Cupcake’s throat, fangs bared and eyes glowing. Pinkie reached out as she sailed toward the pair, hoping to get there in time.

And then, a pileup happened as all three ponies collided and vanished behind the counter.

There were some assorted scuffles and grunts, even a bang or two as the sounds of struggling came. The frightened mare off to the side was watching, too petrified to move.

“Pinkie!” Shining Armor exclaimed, readying his knife as he rushed up to the counter.

Sparkplug finished loading her bow and rushed over as well.

By the time they reached the counter, they recoiled abruptly as the pale mare popped back up, only she wasn't alone. The pegasus had a tight grip around Pinkie’s neck, and judging from the look in her eyes, she wasn't afraid to trade lives.

“Alright, you two! Drop your weapons, or I’ll kill her!” The pegasus said, squeezing the pink mare roughly and causing a fearful squeak. Pinkie tried to struggle loose, but any attempt only resulted in the hold over her getting tighter.

Shining Armor felt his heart sink as he realized that they were beaten. However, as he trailed his eyes to the floor behind the counter, he noticed Mrs. Cake still on the ground, clutching a superficial cut on her shoulder. They briefly locked eyes, and for a moment, she nodded to him.

“Ok… Ok…” Shining said, tossing the knife over the counter, where it clattered to the floor and slid a short ways until it was near enough to the blue mare that she could reach it. Thankfully, the pale pegasus seemed more focused on Sparkplug and Shining than where their weapons were ending up.

“Alright, now you!” The pegasus instructed, shifting her eyes over to Sparkplug.

Sparkplug felt her whole body getting tense as she shakily trailed her eyes from her crossbow to Pinkie, and then to Shining Armor. She seemed like she didn’t know what to do.

After getting some silent cues from Shining Armor, an impatient growl from the pegasus, and a fearful whine from Pinkie, Sparkplug cringed hesitantly before folding her bow back up and tossing it over the counter. “Fine…”

“Good…” The pegasus relaxed ever so slightly, though she kept a tight grip on Pinkie the whole way. Much to everyone’s dismay, she started backing further away from the group, further away from Mrs. Cake and the knife. “Now, here’s the deal. I know your little friends are going to be here eventually, but if you want little Miss Puffball here to be alive to see them, you’re going to do exactly what I say, when I say it. Understand?”

Shining Armor wrinkled his mouth and tensed his jaw. He needed a way to get the pegasus to move closer without noticing Mrs. Cake. When suddenly, an idea popped into his head. “Is that what Dusk sent you here to do? Botch a hostage situation?” He smirked. “Doesn’t seem like a very good plan if you ask me.”

As expected, a pair of red eyes hardened and glared at the unicorn as a faint snarl filled the air. “Don’t talk about the Prince like that!” She clenched her hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder, causing the pink mare to stiffen up.

“Uh… Shining. Do you really think it’s a good idea to get on her bad side right now?” Sparkplug whispered tensely, shooting the unicorn the most uncomfortable expression she could at the moment.

Instead of backpedaling, Shining seemed to be unfazed by the facial cues and wary stares he was getting from near everyone in the room. “Oh, I’m sure this Prince of yours had a well-thought-out plan. Too bad he picked you to be a part of it. Then again… maybe he isn’t too smart. After all, he turned you out of everyone else he could have picked.”

Pinkie could feel the pegasus vibrating with pure hatred. A cold puff of air hit the back of her mane as the pale pony’s breathing quickened and grew more intense. Then, she suddenly found herself being half dragged half carried forward toward the counter.

The pegasus mare stomped over and shoved Pinkie down onto the countertop with one hoof before smacking the other down next to her. “You really think I care about dying?! If my Prince were here, I know for a fact that he would love to see the looks on your faces after I snap her neck!” She yelled, picking Pinkie back up and putting her hooves on either side of her head.

Sparkplug and Shining Armor gasped in alarm and started to reach forward. However, instead of hearing a chilling snapping sound, they heard a fleshy piercing sound instead, followed closely by a pained yell.

Faltering slightly and looking down with face full of agony, the pegasus noticed a familiar silver knife sticking out of her hind leg, which was now swiftly disintegrating into ash and ember. She also saw Mrs. Cake on the floor, staring back up at her with an intense glare.

“Get your dirty hooves off my Pinkie!” The blue mare stated.

“Gahh! Why you little- Oof!”

Just then, the pegasus received an elbow to the gut as Pinkie broke free. The strike sent her reeling off balance now that she only had one leg. She would have fallen over, if not for a magical aura wrapping around her and pulling her down face-first into the countertop.

“Sparkplug, now!” Shining Armor said urgently.

Not wasting a moment, Sparkplug reached down to her vest and pulled out her own silver knife. She rushed up to the counter and planted it down into the mare’s back just as she was starting to buck upwards. The blade impaled the pegasus with ease, and almost immediately, an orange light sparked to life as her form started combusting.

“NghAHH!!” The mare’s cries trailed off and abruptly stopped as her body was overcome by flame. She collapsed into dust, with only a single identifiable part of her skull still keeping its shape for a moment before that too crumbled under its own weight.

A few silent moments passed by as everyone breathed and rested their racing hearts. Even the two civilians watching the ordeal felt exhausted by proxy.

Finally, Shining Armor looked up to the pink mare, a glimmer of worry in his eyes. “Are you ok, Pinkie?”

Pinkie nodded, her movements holding the slightest jitter. “I am now… thanks to you guys.” She said, casting a thankful smile to her two companions before sliding that look to the blue mare getting up off the floor. “Mrs. Cake… you saved me.” She rushed forward and hugged the older pony tightly, taking care not to agitate the bite on her shoulder. “Thank you so much.”

“Dohh, don’t be so modest, dearie. If you didn’t show up, I’d still be in a world of trouble. We all would.” Mrs. Cake said as she looked at the two customers in the room.

“Y-yeah… thank you.” The persimmon mare off to the side piped up, flashing a small smile under her still shot nerves.

“Thanks for the save.” The red stallion added with a croak, rubbing a hoof to his tender neck.

“We were happy to help,” Shining said. “And, uh… sorry about the window.” He cringed a bit as he turned to see the mess he made.

Mrs. Cake stared at the gaping hole in her bakery and all the glass scattered around with a calm, if a little drained, expression. She seemed to internalize whatever reaction she had to it before bringing a smile back to her face. “I suppose I should just consider us even… although, maybe I still owe you some. After all, you three were so brave back there with how you handled those hooligans.”

Sparkplug chuckled awkwardly and held a hoof to the back of her head. A hint of red was working its way to her cheeks. “Don’t mention it. They did most of the work. I was just the distraction.”

Suddenly, Pinkie perked up at this. “That reminds me. What did you do to cause all those pops and sparkles outside, Sparkplug?” She asked.

“Oh, that? Heh...” Sparkplug got a bit sheepish as she reached down to her vest and pulled up a pull cord with two vials on it. One had red sand inside, while the other was empty, with its cap missing entirely. “Glitter walked me through how to make some of our charms, so I know our detectors are highly flammable.” She explained before her eyes suddenly became nervous and intense. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

“Heh… don’t worry, your secret is safe with us,” Shining smirked a bit. Then, his expression fell back into a sober line as he shifted his attention back to their current situation. “And speaking of the others, we should probably check in and see if anyone needs our help.”

“Good idea.” Pinkie agreed instantly. “Oooh, I hope everyone’s ok.” She fretted.

“I’m sure they’re doing better than we were.” Sparkplug said confidently, though she couldn’t shake a hint of unease from her eyes as she thought about her friends. “I hope…”

Against the chill night air, against the nagging panic in the back of their minds, Twilight and her two new friends ran for the central hub of Ponyville. The beating heart of the humble town. The Square.

Of course, calling it a square wasn't exactly accurate. The whole town was built in a circle, spreading out from the central building that was currently under siege by supernatural assailants.

The trio beat hoof over the bridge spanning the stream that ran through the town. Already they could see a gathering of ponies in the square ahead.

A team of guards was camped a healthy distance away from the town hall, along with several Ponyville denizens. A few pegasi guards were hovering in the air overhead, but even they were keeping back. Everyone was watching the seemingly quiet building in a tense vigil. The lights were on, but there was no sign of activity in the windows or on the balconies, save for one pale figure on the second floor keeping an eye on the crowd.

As the trio weaved through the crowd and got closer to the perimeter kept by the guards, a unicorn stallion of apparently high rank noticed them and held a hoof up.

“Miss Twilight, I’m sorry, but you and your friends are going to have to back…” He trailed off as he noticed the presence of Glitterball, an official member of a royal task force of sorts.

“The princesses sent us. We’re here to help.” Glitterball said.

Twilight cast her eyes up to the second floor, only to see the lone figure on the balcony looking her way before they suddenly receded back into the building. “How many ponies are in there?” She asked, hiding her concern behind a serious front as she turned to the guard.

“We counted six.” The stallion explained. “Miss Mare, her staff, and a hoof full of visitors. We’re not sure where they are in the building, and they’ve threatened to kill everyone if we get close.”

“That’s not good…” Twilight trailed her eyes down briefly, a palpable sense of unease within them before she looked back up. “What about the vampires? How many of them?”

The guard seemed discouraged at this. “We’ve counted at least three different ones, but we don’t know for sure. They got in and got ahold of the building before everything else happened, so we got here too late to see.”

As if in response to this, Blue Bolt stepped forward slightly and closed his eyes. Twilight and Glitter, and even a few perplexed guards and townsfolk watched as he took a breath before exhaling an eerie hiss. A cloud of blue vapor escaped his lungs, and the slightest of shivers went down his back as he let himself sink into the myriad of feelings washing over him. Then, he opened his eyes and turned to his companions.

“I’m feeling eight of them. Four on the first, and four on the second floors.” Blue reported.

“Eight of them?” Twilight softened her expression with worry. They knew that they would most likely be outnumbered, but not by this much. “I think that rules out a direct assault.”

“Yeah. They would have time to hurt some of the hostages before we could do anything.” Glitter nodded, putting her own mind to work alongside the purple mare to try and come up with a strategy.

“What about sneaking in there?” Blue Bolt suggested. “They’re split up, and I think the hostages are too. We could probably take out four of them at a time if we attack both floors at once.”

The idea seemed sound, but somehow Twilight wasn't convinced. “I don’t know… I think we would need more help if we were going to do something like that.” She said, looking around at the team of guards. There were six total, counting the unicorn and the two pegasi up top. It wasn't necessarily a matter of their numbers, but their capability. The guards only had silver blades. They needed range on their side if they were going to just burst in guns blazing.

Glitterball sighed hesitantly and brought a hoof up to her ear. “I’ll see if any of the others are free to help.” She said, a hint of doubt to her voice, before pressing her hoof down and focusing on her friends. “This is Glitter. We’re at a bit of a standstill over here at the square. Is anypony able to come over and help?”

A few moments went by with seemingly no response before a familiar voice piped up.

“This is Sparkplug. We just wrapped things up at Sugarcube Corner. We can be there in a few minutes.”

“Sparkplug’s group is on their way,” Glitter reported with a slight smile.

“Good. It’ll really help to have Shining here.” Twilight reasoned. The more unicorns they had, the more options they had when they finally did make their move. Having more crossbows, poppers, and strobes didn’t hurt either.

Suddenly, Glitterball’s expression shifted as another voice rang in her ears. She put her hoof back up, focusing the sound and listening intently before her eyes widened and a look of alarm came over her.

“Glitter…?” Twilight asked. “Something wrong?”

“Sssh!” Glitterball hushed the others urgently before returning her full attention to the voice in her head. Her face paled abruptly, and a slight gasp escaped her. “Ok… Ok, got it!” She exclaimed before she dropped her hoof and turned to them, paying particular attention to the pegasus stallion. “Blue, you need to get to Sweet Apple Acres, right now!”

“Wh...what?” Blue tilted his head, a bit concerned and confused.

“Now, Blue!” Glitter insisted.

The stallion scrambled into action and spread his wings. “Ok!” He stammered, still not entirely processing the adrenaline of the situation before taking off. He didn’t want to leave his friends, but judging from the grave expression on the unicorn’s face, something was terribly wrong.

As the stallion zipped off into the night, Twilight turned to her unicorn companion with newfound urgency. “What’s wrong, Glitter?” She asked.

Glitter merely shook her head. “I’m not sure… Glimmer didn’t specify, but-” She swallowed uncomfortably, “I think someone’s hurt.”

A look of fear came over Twilight’s face as she thought about her friends over at the farm. She thought Applejack, Rarity, and Glimmer Shine could take care of themselves. Then again, maybe it wasn't one of them that was hurt, and that thought made her shiver in revulsion.

“Can this night get any worse?” She sighed tensely as she cast her gaze back to the town hall.

Glitter frowned as she watched the purple mare staring ahead, her breathing starting to quicken ever so slightly. The situation was starting to overwhelm her, not that it wasn't understandable. Glitter was having to use every bit of her training not to descend into a nervous wreck so she could stay focused.

Then, a noise echoed into the square, making the two unicorns’ ears prick suddenly. It didn’t come from the building in front of them. In fact, it sounded like the clap of thunder.

Twilight spun around and looked up. The night sky had been clear throughout the ride up to Ponyville for miles. It was still clear, however, the faint noise seemed to indicate a great distance.

Finally, she saw it. Out on the horizon, a bank of rolling storm clouds was rising into the air. It wasn't getting closer, but judging from the near-constant flashes of lightning, it must have been strong. Her brows narrowed the more she stared at it. She could almost swear that she could see a hint of red in the clouds.

“What now?” Glitterball huffed in concern as she stared at the flashing mass of clouds in the distance. She and her team had a bad track record with sudden changes of weather.

Then, Twilight’s face paled as she realized something. The direction she was staring, the distance of the storm, it all seemed to point toward one thing, or rather, one location. New Hoofshire.

“Oh no… Princess…”