The Harmonizers: Twin Originsby TheEveryDaySparkleChaptersCh.1- InitiationCh. 2 The AccidentCh. 3- The Two AcesCh. 4. Trial and ErrorCh. 1.5- A History LessonCh.1- InitiationAuthor's Note Hello, everyone! I'm back with another story, finally! Now, I don't know whether or not I'm back for good. All I know is I'm feeling pumped right now, so I decided to write this. It's only the first chapter and I don't know if it's gonna be good, but I'm gonna try. Like I said this is an AU and not everything matches between both stories so don't hurt me. Let me know what you think and I'll decide if this story continues! I have another in mind as well! Ch.1- Initiation It all started with that letter. Twilight could remember it as if it were yesterday. "Dear Twilight Sparkle. Due to your astounding display of your magical prowess at the exam yesterday, I would like to extend to you an invitation to become my personal student. I believe that studying under me will give you a more in depth, focused look into just how vast your abilities are and can be. Of course, this does come with a bit more of a workload, but I believe you can handle it. And in the event you can't, well, I'll be there to give you a push should you need it. If you decide to accept my offer, I would be very grateful. But do not feel pressured to accept right away and give it the proper thought. Thank you" Your teacher, Princess Celestia. Twilight could still remember how excited she was to receive that letter. She had begged her parents to let her go, and to her surprise, they said yes. In fact, they were proud of her, cheering her on as she walked up to the huge double doors that signaled the entrance to the famous boarding school. She had been too excited to sleep the previous night, and had stayed up preparing for anything the princess might ask of her. She had her books, quills, paper, ink and note cards just in case. Lucky for her she was used to all-nighters. Those days had been hard, but worth it, and she had learned so much over the years, that she couldn't imagine going back. Especially not with how much Princess Celestia trusted her. She may have been her mentor, but she was like a second mother to Twilight. And she trusted her completely But now that she stood in front of the massive double doors the made up the entrance to the Princess' office, she felt more nervous than she ever had in her life. She gulped, tugged at the collar of her shirt, and stepped forward, knocking. "Come in." Came the voice of the mare she had become so familiar with. A voice that now sounded more foreign to her than it ever had before. Whether it was because she was on the other side of the door, or because Twilight was too nervous to fully recognize the voice of the woman who had practically raised her alongside her parents, she didn't know. Whatever it was, she pushed open the doors and came in slowly, the sight of Celestia in all her glory coming into view like the unveiling of a priceless painting. For a moment, Twilight stood transfixed, and then she heard her name. "Twilight? Twilight, I said, are you ready?" Celestia's voice called, causing Twilight to snap from her revelry. "I'm sorry, ready for what, Princess?" "Why, your initiation of course!" Twilight's mind wandered as Celestia lead her through the halls and into some kind of room at the back. "Where are we going, Princess?" Before Twilight could ask any more questions, Celestia had conjured a key with her magic and used it to open a hidden door in the floor of the classroom. She gestured for Twilight to follow her down, which she did with a small hint of hesitation, which was quickly drowned out by her trust in the wise alicorn. But once she was down in what had to be the basement, the questions forced there way back into her mind and she had no choice but to make them known. "Um...Princess? What's going on?" Twilight asked, a hint of trepidation in her voice. "You'll see Twilight. Just a little longer and we'll be there." Celestia said in a soothing tone of voice that seemed to ease Twilight's worries, though she could feel them still there, under the surface, waiting. Twilight kept silent for the rest of the way there, which admittedly wasn't that long considering everything it took to get there. Soon they were coming upon what looked like an entrance into some kind of natural cavern, and what Twilight saw, nearly blew her away. Books upon books, upon books scattered far and wide and organized immaculately into shelves by order of topic. The walls were covered with drawings of beasts the likes of which Twilight had never seen before and- was that a telescope? Before Twilight could get too lost in everything that was going on around her, she heard a voice to her left say, "So, what do you think?" She turned her head to see the Princess smiling down at her, her arms crossed with a knowing smile on her face. "Is it amazing or what?" "It's wonderful Princess... but, why did you bring me down here?" Twilight asked, getting back on track with her questions. "Because Twilight, you are now a member of the biggest monster hunting organization Equestria has ever seen." Celestia swept out a hand over all that lay before her. "Welcome, to the Harmonizers." "I'm sorry, the what now?" Twilight said in a flurry of rapid speech that came out of her mouth mostly without her own notice. "I understand you must be shocked," Celestia said, a bright smile on her face. "What is a place like this doing under the school? What are the Harmonizers? Why are you hunting monsters?" "Those are a few of my questions, yes," Twilight said, still caught off guard by everything that was going on. "Well those are easy enough to answer. But first, let me ask you this," Celestia said as she ushered Twilight along through the cavern, showing her everything the place had to offer. "You understand that Ponyville gets attacked on an almost monthly if not weekly basis, correct?" "Yes...?" Twilight answered, not quite seeing where this was going. "And you understand that a threat to the safety of Equestria could strike at anytime, right?" "Yes...?" Twilight was slowly beginning to paint a picture in her mind. "Well, that's what the Harmonizers are for. We hunt monsters and eliminate threats to the safety of Equestria as a whole." "Well, what about the Elements? What about you and Princess Luna? You're alicorns!" "Being an Alicorn does not make you invulnerable, Twilight. And the Elements won't be around forever. What would happen if we were to become incapacitated somehow, or the Elements lost their powers?" The thought of anything happening to Celestia was inconceivable to Twilight. She was the strongest pony in all of Equestria. There was no way she'd lose. Right? Suddenly, Images of Celestia badly injured, or in a coma or worse flashed through her mind. Of Equestria in ruins, everyone either dead or a prisoner of some horrid tyrant. The thought made her blood run cold and her lip quiver in fear. She held herself tight as if she were freezing, taking deep breaths to calm herself. "I...I don't know..." Seeing Twilight like this, Celestia placed a hand on her shoulder, bringing her in close and letting her head rest on her chest. "It's okay, Twilight. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. You don't have to worry." Celestia simply held her there, waiting until she felt better. Meanwhile, Twilight was surprised. Celestia was holding her, comforting her just like she used to all those years ago. It brought back memories of her time as a young girl. Of the times when she'd cut her finger, stubbed her toe, or scraped her knee. When she'd failed a test, couldn't understand a question, or got a low grade. Celestia was there with her. She had always been there. There was no way she'd just up and disappear like that, would she? No, impossible. She had to be overreacting. She took a deep breath, stepped back and looked Celestia in the eyes. "You feel better?" The Alicorn asked, a warm, loving smile on her face. "Yeah...I do now..." Twilight said, smiling back. "Good. I'm sorry I made you think of that, but you do understand what I mean now, don't you?" "Yes, Princess!" Twilight said with a resolve she never knew she had. "We need to be prepared for everything, which is why this library exists." Twilight caught on to the word library like a spider to its prey. "This place is a library?" "Yes, and a very extensive one at that, though not quite the one you're probably thinking of." Celestia said as she reached up and plucked a book off one of the shelves before handing it to Twilight, who eagerly opened it. Celestia chuckled inwardly to herself as she watched Twilight pore over the book like a moth to an inky flame. Then she cleared her throat to gain her attention before continuing her explanation. "This, is a monster library. It has information on every beast, every spirit, every creature to ever threaten Equestria since ancient times. And that book," Celestia said, pointing to the one in Twilight's hand, "is just the beginning." "Wow..." Twilight stared at the book in her hands. This was just the start of a whole journey of information just waiting to be discovered. She took a moment to bask in the awe-inspiring majesty of all the wisdom that lay before her. As she looked around. She noticed something she hadn't seen before. The very walls of the cave itself had been turned into shelves for books of all shapes, colors, and sizes, all organized perfectly and in order. The sheer amount of knowledge contained within these walls was enough to fill a second Canterlot Library. Twilight was sure she had died and gone to heaven until Celestia pulled her out of her revelry again. "Ahem. Equis to Twilight Sparkle. Anybody home in there?" Twilight could practically hear the smug grin on Celestia's face as she turned around. And sure enough a playful smirk lay there for all to see. twilight looked away in embarrassment. "S-Sorry, Princess. Guess I got carried away..." "The love of knowledge is not something to be ashamed of Twilight. Just make sure it doesn't take up too much of your time. Friends are important, too." "But why would I need friends when I have you?" Twilight said, giving her a genuinely curious look. "While that's very flattering to hear, Twilight, and while I do consider you my friend just as much as my student and even my own daughter, I am far older than you realize. I cannot be a proper friend to you because we have nothing in common. You need people your age, who can learn and grow with you. Which is why..." "Which is Why...?" Twilight Parroted in a questioning tone. "Which is why I got you a roommate!" Celestia swept her hand out again. Twilight noticed she seemed to enjoy doing that. But what Twilight saw next made her jaw go slack. "Introducing... Sunset Shimmer!" Celestia called out. Coming down a flight of stairs Twilight apparently hadn't noticed during her book filled revelry, was a rather tall woman with yellow skin and and black leather jacket. But that wasn't what caught Twilight's eye. No, what she noticed was her fiery red and yellow hair flowing down her back in elegant curls that framed a fair, unblemished face that held the most striking teal eyes Twilight had ever seen. If she didn't know how love worked before. She was sure she did now. "Oh, Come on, Princess. You're gonna make me blush." Sunset Shimmer said as she came down the steps and walked towards Twilight, holding out a hand. "Hi there. My name's Sunset Shimmer, though, you already knew that. What's your name, if you, don't mind me asking of course." For a brief moment, Twilight couldn't speak. She was too busy staring into those beautiful blue oceans the rest of the world called eyes. When she finally managed to stop herself from drowning, she blinked, accepted the hand and said, "M-My name is Twilight Sparkle. It's V-very nice to meet you." "It's nice to meet you, too, roomie. Come on, lemme show you the ropes around here." Twilight caught onto that rather quickly and broke free of her romance-fueled trance. "Wait, she's not now like me?" "'Fraid not, Twi. I'm a year ahead of you." Sunset said, a big grin on her face as she pointed to herself with pride. Twilight looked to Celestia for confirmation and got a nod in return. "Sunset here is one year your senior. You'll be staying with her for the rest of the school year. She'll teach you how things work around here and get you all settled into your room." "Our room? You mean, we're sharing a room?" "Uh, yeah. What did you think we meant by roommate?" "I only thought you meant we'd be sharing space in the cavern or something!" Twilight yelled, but then stopped herself. "Sorry, Princess." "It is quite alright. I understand your trepidation. But trust me, this will be good for you both. In order to foster better relationships among teammates, we encourage them to share rooms with each other. To help them get along." "I...I see..." Was all Twilight could say as she looked from Celestia to Sunset, Sunset to Celestia and back. Her heart was beating fast in her chest. Not only did she just meet the most attractive mare she thinks she'll ever see, but she also gets to room with her, from day one! The pounding of her heart was so fast she could hear it in her ears. And it wasn't too long before her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she passed out on the floor, unconscious. Ch. 2 The AccidentAuthor's Note Hello, everyone! It took a few days for me to work up the courage to make this, so I hope you enjoy it. if it seems a little off compared to the other chapters or doesn't feel as nice, its because I've had to rewrite it once after I made a mistake and deleted all my original work on this chapter. It's still ultimately the same as how I envisioned it but...it just feels a tad off. Anyway, I have another chapter coming soon, mostly because that chapter was supposed to be apart of this one, but I split them because it didn't feel right to lengthen it so much. just to reach what I want to get to. Thank you, and enjoy! Ch. 2 The Accident Twilight awoke the next morning feeling particularly...empty. Of course, this was nothing to worry about, as she wasn't necessarily sad or depressed. Just...empty. It felt like a mix of contentment, and a sort of deep boredom that made it so she didn't want to get out of bed. She guessed it had something to do with the story she and Sunset had read the previous night. That had certainly taken a lot out of her. Maybe she just felt a little drained. Nothing a quick shower couldn't fix! Sunset had told her that their belongings would be brought up to their room in the night, so there was nothing to worry about. That didn't stop her from worrying anyway, even as she sat up to look around for anything that looked like it had to do with clothes. Just as her eyes landed on what looked to be a wardrobe, she suddenly became acutely aware of a distinct lack of a certain person in their bed. Sunset was gone. "Um...Sunset? Sunset!" Twilight called out to her, hoping that nothing had happened to her roommate in the night. "I'm in here, Twilight! Gimme just a second!" Came the voice of her friend from behind the bathroom door to her left. Twilight let out a sigh of relief as she shuffled out of bed and made her way over to the wardrobe in question, which, upon opening it, she found it contained a number of different outfits all styled in some approximation of the Harmonizers student uniforms. A brief panic swept through Twilight as she considered the possibility that her regular clothes had been tossed aside and replaced with standard issue suits. Not that she minded of course, but they were still her clothes. She let loose a second sigh of relief when she saw that they were on the second shelf, just under the numerous outfits that lined the wardrobe in front of her. She picked out a uniform that suited her style and set it aside on the nightstand next to the bed as she waited for Sunset to finish up in the bathroom, which didn't take very long, as a mere five minutes later, the door to the bathroom swung open, revealing Sunset in all her glory. "What's the matter, Twilight? You called out my name like someone had broken in or something. Is something wrong?" Sunset asked, waiting for her friend to explain the situation. When all she got back was a wide-eyed expression and stunned silence, she began to get a little worried. "Uh...Equis to Twilight. You okay in there?" "S-Sunset...?" Twilight said, raising a hand to point at just what had taken her attention away from the question. "Your t-towel..." "Towel? What'd'ya mean my towel? My towel's right..." As she looked down, Sunset's eyes widened, as she finally realized just what had caught her roommate's attention to such a degree. Standing in front of the still open bathroom doorway, stark naked, and in full view of Twilight, was Sunset Shimmer, in all her glory. "Oh no...not again..." She looked up at her friend with a worried expression. One deep enough to tear Twilight away from her trance. "I can explain..." Sunset took deep breath and let it out slowly. "Wait, you sleep naked?" Twilight asked, wondering why someone would choose to not wear clothes. "Yep! Buck naked." Twilight couldn't help imagining Sunset in bed, completely nude and surrounded by roses. The thought made her blush like mad, and gave her a feeling she had never felt before. She couldn't quite tell what it was, but it felt like a tingle in her lower regions. She took a moment to banish the thoughts from her head and look up at her friend. "...But why?" "Well, it's not like I just go around naked on purpose," Sunset quickly explained, hoping Twilight wouldn't think she was some sort of pervert. "But it does feel kinda good..." Twilight imagined it would, especially if that image of Sunset in her head was anything to go by. She kept quiet and waited for Sunset to continue. "But that's not why I do it!" Sunset said again. "I do it because, well... I have to." At those words, Sunset's lowered her head, as if she were sad about something. Twilight noticed this and placed a hand on her shoulder. "What do you mean, you have to?" Sunset took a deep breath before she spoke again. "My magic is...strong. Really strong. And while I do take pride in that....it comes with a price. My body can't handle the sheer amount of magic inside of me, and it overheats." Twilight kept silent, letting her friend vent her frustrations. "If I don't sleep naked, my body will get too hot and I will literally catch on fire. It won't hurt anypony too badly, but any non-living thing around me is burned to a crisp." Twilight could only stare in shock at what she just heard. "But what about now? You seem to be doing fine right now? No big magical fire in sight." "That's because I'm awake. I can control it when I'm awake, but when I go to sleep, my magic has nothing holding it back and just leaks out on its own." "And what about your jacket? You went to sleep in your jacket and seemed just fine." "My jacket is made with special magical thread. It's magic conductivity makes it easier for my magic to move through and around my body without hurting anything. I guess I'm so used to sleeping naked that I took it off in the night." Twilight couldn't help but feel bad for Sunset. Of course, she could still live a normal life, but to have to deal with the risk of hurting somepony at all times is just...too much. "I'm so sorry, Sunset." "Hey, don't worry about it! It's not like you're the reason I'm like this, right? Besides, It's not all bad. I got that cool jacket out of it." Twilight laughed at that. "Yeah...I guess you did, didn't you?" "That's right. Now..." Sunset struck a pose for Twilight,, making sure to show off all her curves. "Do you like what you see?" Twilight couldn't help but blush at the sudden display. Here she was just wanting to go take a bath, and now she's staring at Sunset, examining her body in order to figure out if she liked it or not. Not that she had much difficulty making that decision. Sunset was a sight to behold. Beautiful unblemished amber skin, an hourglass figure, large breasts with perky nipples and a slim waist leading down to wide hips, each with their own individual cutie mark symbol covering her rump. Slender legs spread open to reveal a clean shaven slit. And Twilight, was loving it. "You look...amazing, Sunset. Absolutely amazing." "Wow, Twi. I thought you might like it, but I didn't know you'd like it that much." Sunset laughed it off, but Twilight could see the light blush on her cheeks. "It's true. You're beautiful, Sunset. I mean it." Twilight said, wanting to see her get more flustered. "Alright, alright, now you're just buttering me up." Sunset said, but blushed harder despite herself. "What do you say we get to class before Princess Luna catches us, hm?" That seemed to have turned on a switch in Twilight's head. "Oh no, class!" She exclaimed as she practically jumped out of bed and rushed into the bathroom to shower. "Well then. That's one way to end a conversation." Sunset said, smiling as she watched her go. She looked down at her body once more, the smile leaving her face. Sunset had never really paid much attention to her body before. Of course, she still took care of herself, she wasn't a slob, but she only ever really saw it as a curse, a danger to those around her that she had to do everything she could to keep at bay. It wasn't anything remotely beautiful. But, as she thought about everything she had gone through because of it, her mind wandered over to Twilight. 'You're beautiful, Sunset. I mean it.' It was the first time anypony had ever seen her body and called her anything other than a pain. A smile crept its way across her face as she thought of this, and she placed a hand to her chest. Deep down, she hoped she still felt the same when she saw her burning away in the night. Ch. 3- The Two AcesAuthor's Note I apologize if this chapter took a while to make. I especially apologize if this chapter feels rushed or abruptly ended. I have no idea what kinds of weapons the two would have and it's throwing me off my game along with my motivation. I would appreciate suggestions in the comments along with any other things you may want to say. And please, don't feel afraid to comment. I get so little word traffic on my stories that its a blessing when one of you speaks. Ch. 3- The Two Aces After the bathroom incident was resolved, Twilight and Sunset were finally ready to start the day. Of course, after what those two had seen, there wasn't much of a day to start. Returning to regular classes after being told that you were now a part of a team of monster hunting professionals whose entire purpose is to protect Equestria from destruction kind of made all the everyday stuff seem...dull? Mundane? Yeah, that was it. It was like everything that once seemed so important to them, classes, homework, their grades, and the like, suddenly felt... small, insignificant, trivial even. Luckily for them, fate felt the same way, as a few minutes into their second class of the day, there was a knock on the classroom door. Everything went silent, as everypony waited for the teacher to open the door, only to be shocked as Princess Luna walked inside. "Excuse me, are Twilight Sparkle and Sunset shimmer here?" She asked the teacher, causing her to look up at them as they both stood up. "Here, Ma'am!" Sunset said, raising a hand to indicate where they were. "Ah, good. Come with me please." Luna said as she beckoned them both down with a finger. The two of them came down from their seats at the back of the class and followed her out, with Luna silent for a good chunk of the way there. In fact, it had gotten so quiet that Sunset felt she had to speak up. "Um, excuse me, Princess but, where are you taking us?" Luna looked over her shoulder at them as she walked, a look of bewilderment on her face. "Oh? Were you not informed? Today is your first day of training." "Training?" Sunset and Twilight both called out in surprise at the same time, starling Princess Luna and causing her to jump. "Th-That's right, girls. I'm afraid your everyday classes are not all you have to worry about anymore. Now then, let us continue." Luna says as she walks into yet another classroom, opening a similar trap door to the last one Twilight saw with Princess Celestia. She wondered what she would find below this one. And sure enough her questions were answered when she and Sunset came across a spacious room filled to the brim with every kind of training tool, from everyday workout gear to blades, bows, wands and even hammers of all sizes. Many ponies, some of whom were recruits like them were doing their best to master their particular weapon of choice. The two could only stare in awe as they took it all in. "So, what do you think? It may not be my sister's library, but it is just as wondrous, is it not?" The girls were taken aback by everything they saw. So much so that they almost missed her question, Sunset speaking up first, seeing as she broke free of her revelry first. "Hm? Oh, yes, of course! Sorry, I was just in awe of all the different things going on all at once." "Haha, wonderful! You have been rendered speechless by my students' Iron resolve, have you not? Do not worry, Sunset Shimmer. Soon, you and your roommate will both be as proficient as they are in the ways of combat." Twilight on the one hand, was put off by Princess Luna's enthusiasm. "Haha... yeah, sure... I can't wait." "Then wait you shall not! I have already prepared your mentors for today after all." "Mentors? Who are they?" Twilight said, her interest peaked at possibly being taught by experts in the field. "You may not know of them, young Twilight Sparkle, but i'm sure your partner will have quite the high opinion of them." As if on cue, two rather tall looking unicorns stepped out of the shadows and out into the light in front of them, and Twilight couldn't help but think, "Who are they?" Time seemed to stop completely as those words left Twilight's lips, as if they were some kind of magic spell. All was silent for a total of ten seconds, and then Sunset spoke up, her voice laced with awe and admiration. "Who are they? Who are they?? Only the two strongest ponies in the entirety of the Harmonizers. They're our aces, second only to the princesses themselves." "What? Are they really that strong?" Twilight said, looking them over more critically. One was a unicorn with a purple mane and tail like hers, only instead of the single pink stripe that ran through her own, it was a single, bright teal stripe that demanded as much attention as her mere presence did. The mare stood a few feet above Twilight, her all black bodysuit covering up her more intimate parts while accentuating them all at the same time. Her strikingly blue eyes reminded Twilight of Sunset's own emerald green pools, and for a moment, she almost got lost in those as quickly as she did her roommates, but a quick shake from Sunset and she was back in her right mind in no time. "Hey there, Twilight, you okay?" Sunset said from beside her, giving her an amused smile. "Oh! Y-yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that." Twilight said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "Jeez, Twilight. You keep spacing out like that and somepony's gonna have to carry you to class." Sunset said, getting a light shove from Twilight in response. "I'll say." Came the voice of the mare Twilight had so openly ogled not mere moments ago. "I haven't been stared at like that in a long time. Reminds me of when I was a newbie." This caused Twilight to blush from embarrassment, meanwhile, to her right, a much smaller mare made herself known. "Maybe she just can't handle how great and powerful we are, Starlight. We do have that effect on ponies from time to time." To her right, just about the same height as Twilight, was a mare who's entire being seemed to scream "Look at me!" A star-filled witch's hat sat atop a mint cream colored mane , topped off with a cape covered in the same material. Luckily her own bodysuit was a mere pink and fuschia, something that somehow went well with the mares rather outlandish choice of clothing. Surprisingly though, she also had a rather modest wooden wand between her fingers. Twilight's first impression of her was flashy and overzealous, but she carried herself in a way that suggested she was more than just what was on the surface. The mare named Starlight giggles as she hears her teammates remark. "Yeah, maybe. Come on, girls. Trixie and I will teach you how combat works" They both turned around, gesturing for the girls to follow them, which they did without much convincing, and made their way into one of the empty rooms in the cavern, which turned out to be a private training room. Inside the room was all manner of weapons and practice areas, and even if she knew what all of it was for, she had to ask anyway. "What's all this?" "This, my dear newbie, is your first test!" Trixie said, as if putting on a stage performance. "Before we can show you how combat works, we need to figure out which weapons suit you best. Otherwise you may as well go into battle naked. The girls blushed as they briefly pictured the two mares before them fighting evil in the nude. "Hey! Stop your fantasizing and get over here! You need to pick a weapon!" Trixie called out, waking them from their daydreaming. "Don't be so hard on them, Trixie, they're new to this stuff. Let them breathe a bit." Starlight said as she stepped up to them and led them to the weapons counter. "Now then, go ahead and pick anything that strikes your fancy. And don't be afraid to mess up. It's all part of the process." Upon hearing those words from the Unicorn, Twilight and Sunset turned their attention to the assortment of weapons laid out in front of them on the table. They stood in awe of the sheer amount of them all, wondering just what kind of threats each of them might be used on. Ch. 4. Trial and ErrorAfter a moment, Twilight's gaze landed on an ornate looking bow with strange markings carved into it that she couldn't recognize. She suddenly felt curious and went over to examine it, grabbing it and looking it over. "Oh, so you're into bows, are you?" Twilight's hand stopped just as she was about to pick it up as she heard Starlight's voice from beside her. "Good choice." "Well, I wouldn't really say I'm into them, but the markings on it seemed interesting, so I got curious." Twilight answered with a blush, embarrassed that she had to admit to being a bit of a nerd. "Oh, so that's it? You've got a good eye, newbie. That marking is our symbol. All the Harmonizers weapons are marked like that. It helps us recognize each other in undercover missions. It's also made with special thread that helps us channel magic through our weapons. May I?" Starlight asked as she held out her hand to briefly take the weapon. "Oh, yes, of course. Here." Twilight said as she handed her the weapon. She watched as the more experienced unicorn knocked an arrow, and drew back the bowstring. Before she fired however, a surge of magical energy enveloped the arrow in a lavender glow. She then fired off the weapon, and Twilight once again watched as the target burst into lavender flames upon impact, which dissipated in mere moments, leaving the target singed and slightly melted. "Wow..." Twilight said as she stared in awe at what used to be the target in question. "So that's the power of a magical weapon. I read about them in some of the books in Celestia's library, but I've never seen it in person until now." "Be sure to remember it well then, Twilight. Because you'll be doing it too, soon enough." With her demonstration over, Starlight stepped away, leaving Twilight to stare Slack-Jawed at the weapon in front of her. "I...can do that?" She takes the bow into her hands and gets a better look at it. She smiled, determination welling up inside her as she became even more invested in this new world she had stepped into. Meanwhile, on Sunset's end, she was having trouble finding a proper weapon. They all looked good and useful, and she couldn't choose one over the other. On top of that they all looked so cool. Watching Starlight use that bow had made her want to be able to do something like that herself. "Having trouble over here?" Trixie said as she walked up to Sunset, a knowing smile on her face. Sunset sighed in defeat as she turned to her. "Yeah... Everything's just so flashy and awe-inspiring that I can't choose." Trixie chuckled as she heard this, unable to stop herself from laughing just a little, which caused Sunset to feel a little insulted. "Hey I'm trying my best over here! Don't laugh at me." "Sorry, sorry, I just couldn't help it. It's just... you remind me a lot of myself when I was a newbie. I always wanted the biggest, most amazing looking weapons. I was like a foal in a candy store when Starlight first showed me this place." "Wait, really? You?" Sunset said in mild shock, not having expected such a powerful harmonizer to have lived anything other than the most extraordinary of lives. "Yep. I was just like you when I showed up. But here's the thing, Sunset. It's perfectly find to want the coolest looking weapon. Its perfectly fine to want the most powerful, and eye-catching thing you can think of. I mean, look at what i'm wearing. But the most important thing is that you choose from your heart. Let your feelings guide your choice, and you'll never go wrong. At least, not in this case." Sunset took a moment to think about what Trixie said, then turned back to the weapons on the counter. "The weapon my heart wants..." For a moment, Sunset was stuck on just where to start looking. Each of them all called to her in different ways. One glowed, One was lined with intricate designs, and the other looked like it came straight out of a movie. But strangely, the one that caught her attention, was just a normal blade. At least, it looked that way on the outside. For some reason, Sunset could feel a strong desire to grab it and hold it in her hands. And so she acted on it, taking it into her hands and holding it up like a trophy. The blade then proceeded to burst into flames from the hilt upwards, and Sunset was spellbound by the beauty of the magical fire. "Wow..." Sunset said, her eyes fixed on the embers that occasionally flew free of the flame. "Looks like you found what you were looking for." Trixie said from beside her, her hands on her hips. "Oh, most definitely." Sunset said, finally lowering the sword and letting the flames subside. "That was...amazing!" Twilight said from a few feet away. She had been watching her as well, it seemed. The two shared an excited grin as they showed off their weapons to each other. "I know right? If this is what it's like to train here, then this is gonna be tons of fun." The two shared a high five while their mentors looked on with smiles of approval. "Now, now, don't get your hopes up too high!" Trixie called out from behind them, breaking the girls free of their revelry. "Trixie's right. There's more to being a Harmonizer than just a fancy weapon and a few years of training. We're hunters, girls. And Hunters have to know their prey almost as well as they know themselves." came Starlight's voice right after. "Pop quiz! What is a TImberwolf's weakness?" Twilight was quick to respond, having studied up quite thoroughly the night before. "Fire, Ma'am." "Correct. And why do we have to be careful how we use it?" Sunset was up next. She wasn't going to let Twilight hog all the questions for herself. "Because we could start a forest fire, ma'am." "Yes, that's correct, though not quite what she meant. Glad to know you two have common sense. But there's actually another reason why we can't just use fire against it." Trixie said, walking up beside Starlight to join in the conversation. Both girl's went quiet, interested in what this other reason could be. "The Timberwolf has a magical core. It's similar to a pony's heart, and is what keeps the Timberwolf alive. If you don't destroy it, then it doesn't matter how many times you burn it, or crush it, or slice it up. It will reassemble and attack again." The girls were in awe at this information. "So...to kill a Timberwolf outright...we have to blow it up?" Sunset asked, curious as to just what methods could be used. "Not exactly, Sunset. You just have to use an attack with a decent amount of force. And make sure to lace it with Magic, or you aren't going to get anywhere." "I see..." Came Twilight's voice, as she was lost in thought. But she was soon ripped from those thoughts as she heard Starlight saying, "Well then, there's one last thing we need to do before you can go, girls." Starlight spoke up once more. "What's that?" Sunset and Twilight said in unison, giving each other a smile at at their little moment before turning back to her. "We need to take some blood samples." she said, while taking out a syringe. Sunset took one look at the tip of the needle and promptly....passed out. Ch. 1.5- A History LessonAuthor's Note Here's chapter two. I meant this to be something a tad different but the story ran away from me and I really loved what came out of it. Anyway I hope you enjoy this longer chapter that came as a by product of inspiration and a runaway imagination. Thank you. Ch. 1.5- A History Lesson Twilight's eyes slowly opened, her vision blurry and unfocused as she tried to pry herself from the jaws of the dream world. She could feel a cool weight pressing down on her forehead and realized it had to be an ice pack, which meant she must have hit her head pretty hard. But how? Had she fallen or something? She groaned as her vision came back into focus and she tried to wiggle her way out from under the covers, but her body wouldn't respond right. There must have been someone there with her, because she felt a hand on the back of her own, which somehow calmed her down enough for her to not freak out. "Good morning, sleepyhead. I see you're finally awake." Came a voice from beside her. She looked over to see Sunset Shimmer looking down at her, one hand gently caressing her face. As she looked up at her, she swore she could get lost in those eyes and never come out. But the shock of how she got there forced her to sit up. "What, what happened- Ow!" Twilight suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head, and held her hand up to it in an attempt to ease it. "Whoa there, Twi. Relax, You're alright. You just passed out. Sunset said, laying her back down. "What? Passed out?" Twilight asked, shocked. "Yep! Out like a light. Celestia had me carry you upstairs to our room and lay you down. You've likely got a pretty nasty headache." Twilight sighed, settling down once more. "You can say that again. Wait, you carried me up here? By yourself?" "Yep. I'm pretty strong, you know? I'm not a member of the Harmonizers for nothing. Plus, I carried you bridal style~." Sunset said, her tone switching from bragging to sultry in mere moments. Twilight's face lit up at the mention of bridal style, and she couldn't help but imagine the scenario herself, causing her to blush brighter and cover her face. "Looks like you're awake now." Sunset suddenly said, surprising Twilight and causing her to stop blushing and look at her, only to lightly punch her in the arm. "Hahaha. Sorry, Twi. I can't help it. You're just so fun to tease. Anyway, what's that book you've got?" Sunset asked, giving Twilight a curious look "What? What book? I don't have any book?. Twilight said, not quite understanding what she was talking about. That is until she said, "You know, the one Celestia gave you to look at? You were holding onto it pretty tight in your sleep. I thought it was important." "Oh, that? I haven't read it properly yet. I don't know what it is." Twilight said, finally sitting up. "Maybe its a research book on beasts. Celestia did say that the place had tons of information on them." "Well, you wanna look at it together?" Sunset asked, smiling at her. "Together? You mean, you and me?" "Well, yeah, who else is here but us? Plus, it's still pretty early, and Princess Luna hasn't made us all go to bed yet, so... why not? Let's be study buddies. What'd'ya say?" Twilight thought about it for a moment. She was still unfamiliar with this whole monster hunting thing, and if she was going to have any idea on how to get started, that book was probably her best bet. Plus, she did love to study, and getting to do it with Sunset was just a bonus. She couldn't help the wide grin that spread across her face as she said, "I say 'Yes'!" Twilight and Sunset sat together at a desk that had been set up in the room, no doubt as a workbench for students who wanted to get an early start on their coursework. Twilight was grateful for the thoughtfulness, but her close proximity to Sunset, though out of necessity, was making it really hard to focus on the book. But over time, her new roommate just became a comforting background presence as she lost herself in her research. "So what does it say?" Came Sunset's voice from her left "Hold on, just let me get a good look at it and...there." Turns out the book was a history book, detailing the lives of the Princesses back in their prime years. There were many tales of battles with mad gods, shadow demons, shapeshifters, and all manner of other things dark and creepy alike. But the one that interested Twilight the most, was the story of the Nightmare, a rare and malicious spirit that preyed on the suffering of others, and twisted their minds and personalities until they were practically unrecognizable even to those who knew them well. As the story goes, Celestia and Luna were tracking a pack of Timberwolves deep into the Everfree Forest, when suddenly, their hornlights went dark and their magic fizzled out. They tried their best to cast their magic, light their flashlights, anything, but nothing worked. There was nothing but darkness for miles. But somehow they could make out a figure beckoning to them in the darkness. A voice calling out to them in the deafening silence of the forest. They made their way towards it, but something felt...off, as if the figure was...distorted, as if the voice was muffled. They tried to reach it as best they could, thinking it was somepony who needed their help, but no matter how hard they tried, or how close they got, it always felt like it was just out of their reach. As they got closer, the figures and voices changed. No longer were they voices of ponies in trouble, now they were voices of ponies in pain. Unbearable pain. Depictions of ponies suffering untold amounts of torture or falling into despair. The two alicorns recognized these ponies. They were the ponies they didn't save. The ponies they couldn't save. The ponies whose lives were lost in their pursuit of a better Equestria. And while they had come to terms with the loss of these ponies for the greater good, that did not mean they were ready to relive it so soon. But then the voices stopped. The alicorns listened out for any sign of the noise of battle, anything that resembled a sign of life or lack thereof, but there was nothing. Instead, in its place was yet another voice. A voice so sinister and menacing it could only have been the voice of a villain, and yet so smooth and soothing it could have been the voice of a friend. It encouraged them to follow it, urged them to heed its advice and accept it as a friend, as someone they could trust. It drew them in with promises of power. Of strength so unparalleled that none could match them. It told them they could save everyone. That nopony would have to suffer ever again, just as long as they did what it said, and followed its orders. But still, something felt off. As it turns out, the figures and the voices were fake, a trick designed to lure them out and separate them, so the spirit could strike them down and feast on their fear. Celestia was the first to realize it was a trap, and she was able to shake off the illusion and resist the spirits embrace. But Luna, was not so lucky. She had been swayed by the Spirits honeyed words, caught up in its depictions of a better world. She had accepted it. Celestia may have broken free of its grip, but her sister was still locked in the prison of her own mind, and she was nowhere near her to help her out of it. The creature had succeeded in separating them, and was now feasting on her sister's desires, her fears, her sorrows, all of it. Celestia searched and searched and searched, but Luna was nowhere to be found. But just when she was on the verge of giving up, of bursting into tears at the thought that her sister was lost forever, she came across a clearing with a single, brightly glowing stone in the center of it. For some reason, Celestia felt drawn to this stone, and went to pick it up. When she did, she could feel power radiating from it. As she stood in awe of the beautiful stone that shone with all the colors of the rainbow, it began to glow. It glowed so bright that Celestia had to shield her eyes from its brilliance, and when she finally reopened them, she found that the stone was nowhere to be seen. When she looked around for it, she found that it had become a pendant, and latched itself around her neck. She didn't exactly know what had happened, but she knew that the stone had chosen her, and she would use its power to save her sister. She raced as fast as she could to the place where her sister was, guided only by the light of the stone around her neck. When she finally made it she found that Luna was...just standing there, by herself, in a clearing. No big evil spirit controlling her to be seen. That is until she turned around, and Celestia could see her eyes. Gone were her usual indigo orbs, replaced instead with bright greenish-blue marbles that stared blankly off into the distance, looking at nothing, seeing nothing. "L-Luna? Are...are you there?" Celestia walked up to her sister, but her voice seemed to fall on deaf ears. It was only when she reached out to touch her that something happened. And it was at that moment, that everything changed. Something in the air shifted, and Luna's once dead eyes glowed with life once more, and they were filled with nothing but Hatred. Hatred for ponykind, Hatred for their lost comrades, Hatred for her own weakness, Hatred...for her. It was as if everything that had taken place in the past had risen to the surface in a tidal wave of emotion that had overtaken her sister and sent her into a fit of rage unlike anything she had ever seen. And all of it, was directed at her. "Don't touch me, 'sister'." Luna spoke the word with such venom in her voice that Celestia was sure she had been stabbed, even clutching her chest to check for a wound that wasn't there. "Luna, I..." Was all she could muster out to say in response. "Don't 'Luna' me, traitor! How could you let our ponies die like that! How could you let them go out onto the battlefield knowing they were marching to their deaths! How! How, Celestia!" "No, that's not true! I didn't...we didn't...we didn't know! There was no way we could have known!" "Liar! Of course you knew. When we faced the Shadow Demon, you knew he wouldn't hold back. You knew he would show no mercy, and yet you still sent our ponies out there to risk their lives for a cause you made up!" "Made up? Luna, the safety of Equestria is far from 'made up'." "Is that really the case? Is Equestria really any safer now that you've sacrificed the lives of thousands to vanquish a single threat? If that's so, then how many more lives will need to be sacrificed to stop yet another enemy, or another, or another? The battles, will never, end, sister. Our ponies lives will be at risk on a constant basis if we allow this to continue. With this power I can end all their suffering! Forever!" "And tell me, sister, what will that accomplish? If you go rampaging through Equis and rid the world of evil through force then what will that leave? The only evil left will be you! Because you're right! It will never stop. If we get rid of evil, more will just pop up in its place. Your crusade will never end and we'll be fighting for the rest of our immortal lives! Is that what you want. A neverending battle between good and evil that lasts for all eternity? What about the innocents? What about redemption? What about Friendship? Do you truly believe nopony can change? Will you just abandon all that we've worked for in favor of a twisted sense of justice?" "Silence! I will not listen to a filthy traitor like you!" Luna says as she blasts a barrage of magic at her sister. Celestia dodges out of the way and fires her own blasts back, still trying to convince her that this was all a trick. "Well what about you? If I'm a traitor then you're one, too! You gave the same order as me. You told our ponies to fight for their home and give their all for the cause. You are just as guilty as me, sister!" This seems to get to, Luna, as she begins to hesitate. "You're lying! You're trying to confuse me! I won't let you! You won't stand in the way of my dream!" Luna says as she continues firing. Celestia meanwhile fires her own blasts, cancelling hers out. "Please, Luna. I'm not the one trying to trick you. I'm not the one messing with your head. This creature, this THING, is warping your mind, making you see things that aren't there. It's making you feel things that aren't real!" "Not real!? You mean to tell me that the deaths of all those ponies weren't real? Then what were they? Were they all a dream? Have I been living in a fantasy land this whole time?!" Celestia rethinks her words "No, sister, they are real. And everything you're saying did happen, but it was years ago. There's nothing we can do about it now! We have to move on." "Move on, MOVE ON!? You want me to forget the sacrifices of the ponies who made our country what it is? I always knew you were a monster!" That comment hurt Celestia the most. How could her own sister call her a monster? No, that wasn't her sister. That was the creature. That Nightmare. Th at was what was doing this, not her. And she had to find a way to do something about it. Just when she was thinking that, the gem on her necklace started to glow, brightly, and Celestia felt power welling up inside her once more. She smiled and stood her ground, firing a stronger blast at her sister that knocked her back a bit. "Moving on doesn't mean we have to forget what happened in the past, sister. It simply means we don't let the memories of what happened keep us from living our own lives. Because if we were to do that, what would be the point of all those sacrifices in the first place. They may as well have never even happened." Celestia said as she walked toward her. Luna was taken aback by this. "Wh-What...? What are you saying? Is this more of your tricks!?" "No tricks, sister. I'm being honest and straightforward. Do you really think that the ponies who risked their lives for us would want us to wallow in self pity and blame ourselves for their sacrifice when they knew what they were getting into the moment they signed up for it?" "Well...N-No...but-" "Exactly!" Celestia was now in her sister's face. "It's not our place to decide who's good or evil, Luna. And we don't have to give our lives fighting a never-ending battle either. The only thing we need to do is what we can, while we can. Let's make the world a better, safer place, one threat at a time. Without all the melodrama. Okay?" Celestia held out a hand to help her sister up. Luna looked at it for a moment and back up to her sister, who simply held it out further. Soon, Luna took her sister's hand and got up with her help. "Now let's go ho-" But the Nightmare wasn't done with Luna yet. Seeing that it had lost its hold over her, it switched to plan B and simply took over her body entirely, causing Luna to yank away from her sister's hold and attack her. "How dare you take my prey from me! I'll destroy you!" Celestia looked up at her sister with shocked eyes. "Luna, no!" She reached out for her, but there was nothing there. Nothing except a single tear that fell from her sister's eye... and onto Celestia's hand. "There's nothing you can do to save her anymore, fool! Your sister is gone! I'm in control now!" The nightmare began to laugh maniacally as it rose into the air changing her sister to become more sinister in appearance. "No, you aren't! You may have taken my sister's body! But her mind is still her own! And you will never take that away from her!" The stone glowed brighter and brighter as Celestia spoke, and before she realized it, she began floating in the air like the creature. When she finally realized, she was eye level with the monster that had taken control of her sister. "I will defeat you, and save my sister from your horrid clutches!" Celestia screamed. "Just come and try it." The beast said, a confident grin on its face. "With pleasure." Celestia said, a grin of her own as the two fired blasts from their horns at each other, that met in the middle and held there, struggling between one way and the other. "just give up already!" yelled the NightmLare. "Never! I'll never let you win!" Celestia yelled back as her beam began to push back against her opponent's It eventually overtook the Nightmares, causing them to scream out in pain as they were disintegrated, leaving nothing but Luna behind. Celestia wasted no time going to catch her sister, who had fallen asleep in her arms. Celestia smiled as she saw her softly snoring away. "Alright. Let's get you home, Sister." The last thing Celestia heard her sister say was a soft, barely audible "I'm sorry..." "Don't worry about it, Luna. I forgive you." "And after that the Stone split into 7 different gems, all different colors of the rainbow, and spread across the world, said to only come together when the world needed them the most." Twilight and Sunset closed the book after reading that chapter, both breathing heavily from all the action in that one chapter alone. "Well...that was...intense." Sunset said, as she tried to catch her breath. "You could say that again. I can't believe all that happened back then..." Twilight responded. letting go of a breathe she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "It's certainly a lot to take in. You think we should ask the Princesses about it?" Sunset asked, looking over to Twilight. Twilight looked back at her, and silent conversation was shared between the two of them in that one moment. "Nope!" They both said at the same time. "Let's get some sleep." Sunset said as she slowly slipped under the covers. "Right behind you." Twilight asked as she got in as well, right next to her. The two of them had seen enough for one night, and didn't really want to think about much other than sleep for the rest of the night, and so they dozed off, silently swearing to take this to their grave.
Ch.1- InitiationAuthor's Note Hello, everyone! I'm back with another story, finally! Now, I don't know whether or not I'm back for good. All I know is I'm feeling pumped right now, so I decided to write this. It's only the first chapter and I don't know if it's gonna be good, but I'm gonna try. Like I said this is an AU and not everything matches between both stories so don't hurt me. Let me know what you think and I'll decide if this story continues! I have another in mind as well! Ch.1- Initiation It all started with that letter. Twilight could remember it as if it were yesterday. "Dear Twilight Sparkle. Due to your astounding display of your magical prowess at the exam yesterday, I would like to extend to you an invitation to become my personal student. I believe that studying under me will give you a more in depth, focused look into just how vast your abilities are and can be. Of course, this does come with a bit more of a workload, but I believe you can handle it. And in the event you can't, well, I'll be there to give you a push should you need it. If you decide to accept my offer, I would be very grateful. But do not feel pressured to accept right away and give it the proper thought. Thank you" Your teacher, Princess Celestia. Twilight could still remember how excited she was to receive that letter. She had begged her parents to let her go, and to her surprise, they said yes. In fact, they were proud of her, cheering her on as she walked up to the huge double doors that signaled the entrance to the famous boarding school. She had been too excited to sleep the previous night, and had stayed up preparing for anything the princess might ask of her. She had her books, quills, paper, ink and note cards just in case. Lucky for her she was used to all-nighters. Those days had been hard, but worth it, and she had learned so much over the years, that she couldn't imagine going back. Especially not with how much Princess Celestia trusted her. She may have been her mentor, but she was like a second mother to Twilight. And she trusted her completely But now that she stood in front of the massive double doors the made up the entrance to the Princess' office, she felt more nervous than she ever had in her life. She gulped, tugged at the collar of her shirt, and stepped forward, knocking. "Come in." Came the voice of the mare she had become so familiar with. A voice that now sounded more foreign to her than it ever had before. Whether it was because she was on the other side of the door, or because Twilight was too nervous to fully recognize the voice of the woman who had practically raised her alongside her parents, she didn't know. Whatever it was, she pushed open the doors and came in slowly, the sight of Celestia in all her glory coming into view like the unveiling of a priceless painting. For a moment, Twilight stood transfixed, and then she heard her name. "Twilight? Twilight, I said, are you ready?" Celestia's voice called, causing Twilight to snap from her revelry. "I'm sorry, ready for what, Princess?" "Why, your initiation of course!" Twilight's mind wandered as Celestia lead her through the halls and into some kind of room at the back. "Where are we going, Princess?" Before Twilight could ask any more questions, Celestia had conjured a key with her magic and used it to open a hidden door in the floor of the classroom. She gestured for Twilight to follow her down, which she did with a small hint of hesitation, which was quickly drowned out by her trust in the wise alicorn. But once she was down in what had to be the basement, the questions forced there way back into her mind and she had no choice but to make them known. "Um...Princess? What's going on?" Twilight asked, a hint of trepidation in her voice. "You'll see Twilight. Just a little longer and we'll be there." Celestia said in a soothing tone of voice that seemed to ease Twilight's worries, though she could feel them still there, under the surface, waiting. Twilight kept silent for the rest of the way there, which admittedly wasn't that long considering everything it took to get there. Soon they were coming upon what looked like an entrance into some kind of natural cavern, and what Twilight saw, nearly blew her away. Books upon books, upon books scattered far and wide and organized immaculately into shelves by order of topic. The walls were covered with drawings of beasts the likes of which Twilight had never seen before and- was that a telescope? Before Twilight could get too lost in everything that was going on around her, she heard a voice to her left say, "So, what do you think?" She turned her head to see the Princess smiling down at her, her arms crossed with a knowing smile on her face. "Is it amazing or what?" "It's wonderful Princess... but, why did you bring me down here?" Twilight asked, getting back on track with her questions. "Because Twilight, you are now a member of the biggest monster hunting organization Equestria has ever seen." Celestia swept out a hand over all that lay before her. "Welcome, to the Harmonizers." "I'm sorry, the what now?" Twilight said in a flurry of rapid speech that came out of her mouth mostly without her own notice. "I understand you must be shocked," Celestia said, a bright smile on her face. "What is a place like this doing under the school? What are the Harmonizers? Why are you hunting monsters?" "Those are a few of my questions, yes," Twilight said, still caught off guard by everything that was going on. "Well those are easy enough to answer. But first, let me ask you this," Celestia said as she ushered Twilight along through the cavern, showing her everything the place had to offer. "You understand that Ponyville gets attacked on an almost monthly if not weekly basis, correct?" "Yes...?" Twilight answered, not quite seeing where this was going. "And you understand that a threat to the safety of Equestria could strike at anytime, right?" "Yes...?" Twilight was slowly beginning to paint a picture in her mind. "Well, that's what the Harmonizers are for. We hunt monsters and eliminate threats to the safety of Equestria as a whole." "Well, what about the Elements? What about you and Princess Luna? You're alicorns!" "Being an Alicorn does not make you invulnerable, Twilight. And the Elements won't be around forever. What would happen if we were to become incapacitated somehow, or the Elements lost their powers?" The thought of anything happening to Celestia was inconceivable to Twilight. She was the strongest pony in all of Equestria. There was no way she'd lose. Right? Suddenly, Images of Celestia badly injured, or in a coma or worse flashed through her mind. Of Equestria in ruins, everyone either dead or a prisoner of some horrid tyrant. The thought made her blood run cold and her lip quiver in fear. She held herself tight as if she were freezing, taking deep breaths to calm herself. "I...I don't know..." Seeing Twilight like this, Celestia placed a hand on her shoulder, bringing her in close and letting her head rest on her chest. "It's okay, Twilight. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. You don't have to worry." Celestia simply held her there, waiting until she felt better. Meanwhile, Twilight was surprised. Celestia was holding her, comforting her just like she used to all those years ago. It brought back memories of her time as a young girl. Of the times when she'd cut her finger, stubbed her toe, or scraped her knee. When she'd failed a test, couldn't understand a question, or got a low grade. Celestia was there with her. She had always been there. There was no way she'd just up and disappear like that, would she? No, impossible. She had to be overreacting. She took a deep breath, stepped back and looked Celestia in the eyes. "You feel better?" The Alicorn asked, a warm, loving smile on her face. "Yeah...I do now..." Twilight said, smiling back. "Good. I'm sorry I made you think of that, but you do understand what I mean now, don't you?" "Yes, Princess!" Twilight said with a resolve she never knew she had. "We need to be prepared for everything, which is why this library exists." Twilight caught on to the word library like a spider to its prey. "This place is a library?" "Yes, and a very extensive one at that, though not quite the one you're probably thinking of." Celestia said as she reached up and plucked a book off one of the shelves before handing it to Twilight, who eagerly opened it. Celestia chuckled inwardly to herself as she watched Twilight pore over the book like a moth to an inky flame. Then she cleared her throat to gain her attention before continuing her explanation. "This, is a monster library. It has information on every beast, every spirit, every creature to ever threaten Equestria since ancient times. And that book," Celestia said, pointing to the one in Twilight's hand, "is just the beginning." "Wow..." Twilight stared at the book in her hands. This was just the start of a whole journey of information just waiting to be discovered. She took a moment to bask in the awe-inspiring majesty of all the wisdom that lay before her. As she looked around. She noticed something she hadn't seen before. The very walls of the cave itself had been turned into shelves for books of all shapes, colors, and sizes, all organized perfectly and in order. The sheer amount of knowledge contained within these walls was enough to fill a second Canterlot Library. Twilight was sure she had died and gone to heaven until Celestia pulled her out of her revelry again. "Ahem. Equis to Twilight Sparkle. Anybody home in there?" Twilight could practically hear the smug grin on Celestia's face as she turned around. And sure enough a playful smirk lay there for all to see. twilight looked away in embarrassment. "S-Sorry, Princess. Guess I got carried away..." "The love of knowledge is not something to be ashamed of Twilight. Just make sure it doesn't take up too much of your time. Friends are important, too." "But why would I need friends when I have you?" Twilight said, giving her a genuinely curious look. "While that's very flattering to hear, Twilight, and while I do consider you my friend just as much as my student and even my own daughter, I am far older than you realize. I cannot be a proper friend to you because we have nothing in common. You need people your age, who can learn and grow with you. Which is why..." "Which is Why...?" Twilight Parroted in a questioning tone. "Which is why I got you a roommate!" Celestia swept her hand out again. Twilight noticed she seemed to enjoy doing that. But what Twilight saw next made her jaw go slack. "Introducing... Sunset Shimmer!" Celestia called out. Coming down a flight of stairs Twilight apparently hadn't noticed during her book filled revelry, was a rather tall woman with yellow skin and and black leather jacket. But that wasn't what caught Twilight's eye. No, what she noticed was her fiery red and yellow hair flowing down her back in elegant curls that framed a fair, unblemished face that held the most striking teal eyes Twilight had ever seen. If she didn't know how love worked before. She was sure she did now. "Oh, Come on, Princess. You're gonna make me blush." Sunset Shimmer said as she came down the steps and walked towards Twilight, holding out a hand. "Hi there. My name's Sunset Shimmer, though, you already knew that. What's your name, if you, don't mind me asking of course." For a brief moment, Twilight couldn't speak. She was too busy staring into those beautiful blue oceans the rest of the world called eyes. When she finally managed to stop herself from drowning, she blinked, accepted the hand and said, "M-My name is Twilight Sparkle. It's V-very nice to meet you." "It's nice to meet you, too, roomie. Come on, lemme show you the ropes around here." Twilight caught onto that rather quickly and broke free of her romance-fueled trance. "Wait, she's not now like me?" "'Fraid not, Twi. I'm a year ahead of you." Sunset said, a big grin on her face as she pointed to herself with pride. Twilight looked to Celestia for confirmation and got a nod in return. "Sunset here is one year your senior. You'll be staying with her for the rest of the school year. She'll teach you how things work around here and get you all settled into your room." "Our room? You mean, we're sharing a room?" "Uh, yeah. What did you think we meant by roommate?" "I only thought you meant we'd be sharing space in the cavern or something!" Twilight yelled, but then stopped herself. "Sorry, Princess." "It is quite alright. I understand your trepidation. But trust me, this will be good for you both. In order to foster better relationships among teammates, we encourage them to share rooms with each other. To help them get along." "I...I see..." Was all Twilight could say as she looked from Celestia to Sunset, Sunset to Celestia and back. Her heart was beating fast in her chest. Not only did she just meet the most attractive mare she thinks she'll ever see, but she also gets to room with her, from day one! The pounding of her heart was so fast she could hear it in her ears. And it wasn't too long before her eyes rolled to the back of her head and she passed out on the floor, unconscious.
Ch. 2 The AccidentAuthor's Note Hello, everyone! It took a few days for me to work up the courage to make this, so I hope you enjoy it. if it seems a little off compared to the other chapters or doesn't feel as nice, its because I've had to rewrite it once after I made a mistake and deleted all my original work on this chapter. It's still ultimately the same as how I envisioned it but...it just feels a tad off. Anyway, I have another chapter coming soon, mostly because that chapter was supposed to be apart of this one, but I split them because it didn't feel right to lengthen it so much. just to reach what I want to get to. Thank you, and enjoy! Ch. 2 The Accident Twilight awoke the next morning feeling particularly...empty. Of course, this was nothing to worry about, as she wasn't necessarily sad or depressed. Just...empty. It felt like a mix of contentment, and a sort of deep boredom that made it so she didn't want to get out of bed. She guessed it had something to do with the story she and Sunset had read the previous night. That had certainly taken a lot out of her. Maybe she just felt a little drained. Nothing a quick shower couldn't fix! Sunset had told her that their belongings would be brought up to their room in the night, so there was nothing to worry about. That didn't stop her from worrying anyway, even as she sat up to look around for anything that looked like it had to do with clothes. Just as her eyes landed on what looked to be a wardrobe, she suddenly became acutely aware of a distinct lack of a certain person in their bed. Sunset was gone. "Um...Sunset? Sunset!" Twilight called out to her, hoping that nothing had happened to her roommate in the night. "I'm in here, Twilight! Gimme just a second!" Came the voice of her friend from behind the bathroom door to her left. Twilight let out a sigh of relief as she shuffled out of bed and made her way over to the wardrobe in question, which, upon opening it, she found it contained a number of different outfits all styled in some approximation of the Harmonizers student uniforms. A brief panic swept through Twilight as she considered the possibility that her regular clothes had been tossed aside and replaced with standard issue suits. Not that she minded of course, but they were still her clothes. She let loose a second sigh of relief when she saw that they were on the second shelf, just under the numerous outfits that lined the wardrobe in front of her. She picked out a uniform that suited her style and set it aside on the nightstand next to the bed as she waited for Sunset to finish up in the bathroom, which didn't take very long, as a mere five minutes later, the door to the bathroom swung open, revealing Sunset in all her glory. "What's the matter, Twilight? You called out my name like someone had broken in or something. Is something wrong?" Sunset asked, waiting for her friend to explain the situation. When all she got back was a wide-eyed expression and stunned silence, she began to get a little worried. "Uh...Equis to Twilight. You okay in there?" "S-Sunset...?" Twilight said, raising a hand to point at just what had taken her attention away from the question. "Your t-towel..." "Towel? What'd'ya mean my towel? My towel's right..." As she looked down, Sunset's eyes widened, as she finally realized just what had caught her roommate's attention to such a degree. Standing in front of the still open bathroom doorway, stark naked, and in full view of Twilight, was Sunset Shimmer, in all her glory. "Oh no...not again..." She looked up at her friend with a worried expression. One deep enough to tear Twilight away from her trance. "I can explain..." Sunset took deep breath and let it out slowly. "Wait, you sleep naked?" Twilight asked, wondering why someone would choose to not wear clothes. "Yep! Buck naked." Twilight couldn't help imagining Sunset in bed, completely nude and surrounded by roses. The thought made her blush like mad, and gave her a feeling she had never felt before. She couldn't quite tell what it was, but it felt like a tingle in her lower regions. She took a moment to banish the thoughts from her head and look up at her friend. "...But why?" "Well, it's not like I just go around naked on purpose," Sunset quickly explained, hoping Twilight wouldn't think she was some sort of pervert. "But it does feel kinda good..." Twilight imagined it would, especially if that image of Sunset in her head was anything to go by. She kept quiet and waited for Sunset to continue. "But that's not why I do it!" Sunset said again. "I do it because, well... I have to." At those words, Sunset's lowered her head, as if she were sad about something. Twilight noticed this and placed a hand on her shoulder. "What do you mean, you have to?" Sunset took a deep breath before she spoke again. "My magic is...strong. Really strong. And while I do take pride in that....it comes with a price. My body can't handle the sheer amount of magic inside of me, and it overheats." Twilight kept silent, letting her friend vent her frustrations. "If I don't sleep naked, my body will get too hot and I will literally catch on fire. It won't hurt anypony too badly, but any non-living thing around me is burned to a crisp." Twilight could only stare in shock at what she just heard. "But what about now? You seem to be doing fine right now? No big magical fire in sight." "That's because I'm awake. I can control it when I'm awake, but when I go to sleep, my magic has nothing holding it back and just leaks out on its own." "And what about your jacket? You went to sleep in your jacket and seemed just fine." "My jacket is made with special magical thread. It's magic conductivity makes it easier for my magic to move through and around my body without hurting anything. I guess I'm so used to sleeping naked that I took it off in the night." Twilight couldn't help but feel bad for Sunset. Of course, she could still live a normal life, but to have to deal with the risk of hurting somepony at all times is just...too much. "I'm so sorry, Sunset." "Hey, don't worry about it! It's not like you're the reason I'm like this, right? Besides, It's not all bad. I got that cool jacket out of it." Twilight laughed at that. "Yeah...I guess you did, didn't you?" "That's right. Now..." Sunset struck a pose for Twilight,, making sure to show off all her curves. "Do you like what you see?" Twilight couldn't help but blush at the sudden display. Here she was just wanting to go take a bath, and now she's staring at Sunset, examining her body in order to figure out if she liked it or not. Not that she had much difficulty making that decision. Sunset was a sight to behold. Beautiful unblemished amber skin, an hourglass figure, large breasts with perky nipples and a slim waist leading down to wide hips, each with their own individual cutie mark symbol covering her rump. Slender legs spread open to reveal a clean shaven slit. And Twilight, was loving it. "You look...amazing, Sunset. Absolutely amazing." "Wow, Twi. I thought you might like it, but I didn't know you'd like it that much." Sunset laughed it off, but Twilight could see the light blush on her cheeks. "It's true. You're beautiful, Sunset. I mean it." Twilight said, wanting to see her get more flustered. "Alright, alright, now you're just buttering me up." Sunset said, but blushed harder despite herself. "What do you say we get to class before Princess Luna catches us, hm?" That seemed to have turned on a switch in Twilight's head. "Oh no, class!" She exclaimed as she practically jumped out of bed and rushed into the bathroom to shower. "Well then. That's one way to end a conversation." Sunset said, smiling as she watched her go. She looked down at her body once more, the smile leaving her face. Sunset had never really paid much attention to her body before. Of course, she still took care of herself, she wasn't a slob, but she only ever really saw it as a curse, a danger to those around her that she had to do everything she could to keep at bay. It wasn't anything remotely beautiful. But, as she thought about everything she had gone through because of it, her mind wandered over to Twilight. 'You're beautiful, Sunset. I mean it.' It was the first time anypony had ever seen her body and called her anything other than a pain. A smile crept its way across her face as she thought of this, and she placed a hand to her chest. Deep down, she hoped she still felt the same when she saw her burning away in the night.
Ch. 3- The Two AcesAuthor's Note I apologize if this chapter took a while to make. I especially apologize if this chapter feels rushed or abruptly ended. I have no idea what kinds of weapons the two would have and it's throwing me off my game along with my motivation. I would appreciate suggestions in the comments along with any other things you may want to say. And please, don't feel afraid to comment. I get so little word traffic on my stories that its a blessing when one of you speaks. Ch. 3- The Two Aces After the bathroom incident was resolved, Twilight and Sunset were finally ready to start the day. Of course, after what those two had seen, there wasn't much of a day to start. Returning to regular classes after being told that you were now a part of a team of monster hunting professionals whose entire purpose is to protect Equestria from destruction kind of made all the everyday stuff seem...dull? Mundane? Yeah, that was it. It was like everything that once seemed so important to them, classes, homework, their grades, and the like, suddenly felt... small, insignificant, trivial even. Luckily for them, fate felt the same way, as a few minutes into their second class of the day, there was a knock on the classroom door. Everything went silent, as everypony waited for the teacher to open the door, only to be shocked as Princess Luna walked inside. "Excuse me, are Twilight Sparkle and Sunset shimmer here?" She asked the teacher, causing her to look up at them as they both stood up. "Here, Ma'am!" Sunset said, raising a hand to indicate where they were. "Ah, good. Come with me please." Luna said as she beckoned them both down with a finger. The two of them came down from their seats at the back of the class and followed her out, with Luna silent for a good chunk of the way there. In fact, it had gotten so quiet that Sunset felt she had to speak up. "Um, excuse me, Princess but, where are you taking us?" Luna looked over her shoulder at them as she walked, a look of bewilderment on her face. "Oh? Were you not informed? Today is your first day of training." "Training?" Sunset and Twilight both called out in surprise at the same time, starling Princess Luna and causing her to jump. "Th-That's right, girls. I'm afraid your everyday classes are not all you have to worry about anymore. Now then, let us continue." Luna says as she walks into yet another classroom, opening a similar trap door to the last one Twilight saw with Princess Celestia. She wondered what she would find below this one. And sure enough her questions were answered when she and Sunset came across a spacious room filled to the brim with every kind of training tool, from everyday workout gear to blades, bows, wands and even hammers of all sizes. Many ponies, some of whom were recruits like them were doing their best to master their particular weapon of choice. The two could only stare in awe as they took it all in. "So, what do you think? It may not be my sister's library, but it is just as wondrous, is it not?" The girls were taken aback by everything they saw. So much so that they almost missed her question, Sunset speaking up first, seeing as she broke free of her revelry first. "Hm? Oh, yes, of course! Sorry, I was just in awe of all the different things going on all at once." "Haha, wonderful! You have been rendered speechless by my students' Iron resolve, have you not? Do not worry, Sunset Shimmer. Soon, you and your roommate will both be as proficient as they are in the ways of combat." Twilight on the one hand, was put off by Princess Luna's enthusiasm. "Haha... yeah, sure... I can't wait." "Then wait you shall not! I have already prepared your mentors for today after all." "Mentors? Who are they?" Twilight said, her interest peaked at possibly being taught by experts in the field. "You may not know of them, young Twilight Sparkle, but i'm sure your partner will have quite the high opinion of them." As if on cue, two rather tall looking unicorns stepped out of the shadows and out into the light in front of them, and Twilight couldn't help but think, "Who are they?" Time seemed to stop completely as those words left Twilight's lips, as if they were some kind of magic spell. All was silent for a total of ten seconds, and then Sunset spoke up, her voice laced with awe and admiration. "Who are they? Who are they?? Only the two strongest ponies in the entirety of the Harmonizers. They're our aces, second only to the princesses themselves." "What? Are they really that strong?" Twilight said, looking them over more critically. One was a unicorn with a purple mane and tail like hers, only instead of the single pink stripe that ran through her own, it was a single, bright teal stripe that demanded as much attention as her mere presence did. The mare stood a few feet above Twilight, her all black bodysuit covering up her more intimate parts while accentuating them all at the same time. Her strikingly blue eyes reminded Twilight of Sunset's own emerald green pools, and for a moment, she almost got lost in those as quickly as she did her roommates, but a quick shake from Sunset and she was back in her right mind in no time. "Hey there, Twilight, you okay?" Sunset said from beside her, giving her an amused smile. "Oh! Y-yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that." Twilight said, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "Jeez, Twilight. You keep spacing out like that and somepony's gonna have to carry you to class." Sunset said, getting a light shove from Twilight in response. "I'll say." Came the voice of the mare Twilight had so openly ogled not mere moments ago. "I haven't been stared at like that in a long time. Reminds me of when I was a newbie." This caused Twilight to blush from embarrassment, meanwhile, to her right, a much smaller mare made herself known. "Maybe she just can't handle how great and powerful we are, Starlight. We do have that effect on ponies from time to time." To her right, just about the same height as Twilight, was a mare who's entire being seemed to scream "Look at me!" A star-filled witch's hat sat atop a mint cream colored mane , topped off with a cape covered in the same material. Luckily her own bodysuit was a mere pink and fuschia, something that somehow went well with the mares rather outlandish choice of clothing. Surprisingly though, she also had a rather modest wooden wand between her fingers. Twilight's first impression of her was flashy and overzealous, but she carried herself in a way that suggested she was more than just what was on the surface. The mare named Starlight giggles as she hears her teammates remark. "Yeah, maybe. Come on, girls. Trixie and I will teach you how combat works" They both turned around, gesturing for the girls to follow them, which they did without much convincing, and made their way into one of the empty rooms in the cavern, which turned out to be a private training room. Inside the room was all manner of weapons and practice areas, and even if she knew what all of it was for, she had to ask anyway. "What's all this?" "This, my dear newbie, is your first test!" Trixie said, as if putting on a stage performance. "Before we can show you how combat works, we need to figure out which weapons suit you best. Otherwise you may as well go into battle naked. The girls blushed as they briefly pictured the two mares before them fighting evil in the nude. "Hey! Stop your fantasizing and get over here! You need to pick a weapon!" Trixie called out, waking them from their daydreaming. "Don't be so hard on them, Trixie, they're new to this stuff. Let them breathe a bit." Starlight said as she stepped up to them and led them to the weapons counter. "Now then, go ahead and pick anything that strikes your fancy. And don't be afraid to mess up. It's all part of the process." Upon hearing those words from the Unicorn, Twilight and Sunset turned their attention to the assortment of weapons laid out in front of them on the table. They stood in awe of the sheer amount of them all, wondering just what kind of threats each of them might be used on.
Ch. 4. Trial and ErrorAfter a moment, Twilight's gaze landed on an ornate looking bow with strange markings carved into it that she couldn't recognize. She suddenly felt curious and went over to examine it, grabbing it and looking it over. "Oh, so you're into bows, are you?" Twilight's hand stopped just as she was about to pick it up as she heard Starlight's voice from beside her. "Good choice." "Well, I wouldn't really say I'm into them, but the markings on it seemed interesting, so I got curious." Twilight answered with a blush, embarrassed that she had to admit to being a bit of a nerd. "Oh, so that's it? You've got a good eye, newbie. That marking is our symbol. All the Harmonizers weapons are marked like that. It helps us recognize each other in undercover missions. It's also made with special thread that helps us channel magic through our weapons. May I?" Starlight asked as she held out her hand to briefly take the weapon. "Oh, yes, of course. Here." Twilight said as she handed her the weapon. She watched as the more experienced unicorn knocked an arrow, and drew back the bowstring. Before she fired however, a surge of magical energy enveloped the arrow in a lavender glow. She then fired off the weapon, and Twilight once again watched as the target burst into lavender flames upon impact, which dissipated in mere moments, leaving the target singed and slightly melted. "Wow..." Twilight said as she stared in awe at what used to be the target in question. "So that's the power of a magical weapon. I read about them in some of the books in Celestia's library, but I've never seen it in person until now." "Be sure to remember it well then, Twilight. Because you'll be doing it too, soon enough." With her demonstration over, Starlight stepped away, leaving Twilight to stare Slack-Jawed at the weapon in front of her. "I...can do that?" She takes the bow into her hands and gets a better look at it. She smiled, determination welling up inside her as she became even more invested in this new world she had stepped into. Meanwhile, on Sunset's end, she was having trouble finding a proper weapon. They all looked good and useful, and she couldn't choose one over the other. On top of that they all looked so cool. Watching Starlight use that bow had made her want to be able to do something like that herself. "Having trouble over here?" Trixie said as she walked up to Sunset, a knowing smile on her face. Sunset sighed in defeat as she turned to her. "Yeah... Everything's just so flashy and awe-inspiring that I can't choose." Trixie chuckled as she heard this, unable to stop herself from laughing just a little, which caused Sunset to feel a little insulted. "Hey I'm trying my best over here! Don't laugh at me." "Sorry, sorry, I just couldn't help it. It's just... you remind me a lot of myself when I was a newbie. I always wanted the biggest, most amazing looking weapons. I was like a foal in a candy store when Starlight first showed me this place." "Wait, really? You?" Sunset said in mild shock, not having expected such a powerful harmonizer to have lived anything other than the most extraordinary of lives. "Yep. I was just like you when I showed up. But here's the thing, Sunset. It's perfectly find to want the coolest looking weapon. Its perfectly fine to want the most powerful, and eye-catching thing you can think of. I mean, look at what i'm wearing. But the most important thing is that you choose from your heart. Let your feelings guide your choice, and you'll never go wrong. At least, not in this case." Sunset took a moment to think about what Trixie said, then turned back to the weapons on the counter. "The weapon my heart wants..." For a moment, Sunset was stuck on just where to start looking. Each of them all called to her in different ways. One glowed, One was lined with intricate designs, and the other looked like it came straight out of a movie. But strangely, the one that caught her attention, was just a normal blade. At least, it looked that way on the outside. For some reason, Sunset could feel a strong desire to grab it and hold it in her hands. And so she acted on it, taking it into her hands and holding it up like a trophy. The blade then proceeded to burst into flames from the hilt upwards, and Sunset was spellbound by the beauty of the magical fire. "Wow..." Sunset said, her eyes fixed on the embers that occasionally flew free of the flame. "Looks like you found what you were looking for." Trixie said from beside her, her hands on her hips. "Oh, most definitely." Sunset said, finally lowering the sword and letting the flames subside. "That was...amazing!" Twilight said from a few feet away. She had been watching her as well, it seemed. The two shared an excited grin as they showed off their weapons to each other. "I know right? If this is what it's like to train here, then this is gonna be tons of fun." The two shared a high five while their mentors looked on with smiles of approval. "Now, now, don't get your hopes up too high!" Trixie called out from behind them, breaking the girls free of their revelry. "Trixie's right. There's more to being a Harmonizer than just a fancy weapon and a few years of training. We're hunters, girls. And Hunters have to know their prey almost as well as they know themselves." came Starlight's voice right after. "Pop quiz! What is a TImberwolf's weakness?" Twilight was quick to respond, having studied up quite thoroughly the night before. "Fire, Ma'am." "Correct. And why do we have to be careful how we use it?" Sunset was up next. She wasn't going to let Twilight hog all the questions for herself. "Because we could start a forest fire, ma'am." "Yes, that's correct, though not quite what she meant. Glad to know you two have common sense. But there's actually another reason why we can't just use fire against it." Trixie said, walking up beside Starlight to join in the conversation. Both girl's went quiet, interested in what this other reason could be. "The Timberwolf has a magical core. It's similar to a pony's heart, and is what keeps the Timberwolf alive. If you don't destroy it, then it doesn't matter how many times you burn it, or crush it, or slice it up. It will reassemble and attack again." The girls were in awe at this information. "So...to kill a Timberwolf outright...we have to blow it up?" Sunset asked, curious as to just what methods could be used. "Not exactly, Sunset. You just have to use an attack with a decent amount of force. And make sure to lace it with Magic, or you aren't going to get anywhere." "I see..." Came Twilight's voice, as she was lost in thought. But she was soon ripped from those thoughts as she heard Starlight saying, "Well then, there's one last thing we need to do before you can go, girls." Starlight spoke up once more. "What's that?" Sunset and Twilight said in unison, giving each other a smile at at their little moment before turning back to her. "We need to take some blood samples." she said, while taking out a syringe. Sunset took one look at the tip of the needle and promptly....passed out.
Ch. 1.5- A History LessonAuthor's Note Here's chapter two. I meant this to be something a tad different but the story ran away from me and I really loved what came out of it. Anyway I hope you enjoy this longer chapter that came as a by product of inspiration and a runaway imagination. Thank you. Ch. 1.5- A History Lesson Twilight's eyes slowly opened, her vision blurry and unfocused as she tried to pry herself from the jaws of the dream world. She could feel a cool weight pressing down on her forehead and realized it had to be an ice pack, which meant she must have hit her head pretty hard. But how? Had she fallen or something? She groaned as her vision came back into focus and she tried to wiggle her way out from under the covers, but her body wouldn't respond right. There must have been someone there with her, because she felt a hand on the back of her own, which somehow calmed her down enough for her to not freak out. "Good morning, sleepyhead. I see you're finally awake." Came a voice from beside her. She looked over to see Sunset Shimmer looking down at her, one hand gently caressing her face. As she looked up at her, she swore she could get lost in those eyes and never come out. But the shock of how she got there forced her to sit up. "What, what happened- Ow!" Twilight suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head, and held her hand up to it in an attempt to ease it. "Whoa there, Twi. Relax, You're alright. You just passed out. Sunset said, laying her back down. "What? Passed out?" Twilight asked, shocked. "Yep! Out like a light. Celestia had me carry you upstairs to our room and lay you down. You've likely got a pretty nasty headache." Twilight sighed, settling down once more. "You can say that again. Wait, you carried me up here? By yourself?" "Yep. I'm pretty strong, you know? I'm not a member of the Harmonizers for nothing. Plus, I carried you bridal style~." Sunset said, her tone switching from bragging to sultry in mere moments. Twilight's face lit up at the mention of bridal style, and she couldn't help but imagine the scenario herself, causing her to blush brighter and cover her face. "Looks like you're awake now." Sunset suddenly said, surprising Twilight and causing her to stop blushing and look at her, only to lightly punch her in the arm. "Hahaha. Sorry, Twi. I can't help it. You're just so fun to tease. Anyway, what's that book you've got?" Sunset asked, giving Twilight a curious look "What? What book? I don't have any book?. Twilight said, not quite understanding what she was talking about. That is until she said, "You know, the one Celestia gave you to look at? You were holding onto it pretty tight in your sleep. I thought it was important." "Oh, that? I haven't read it properly yet. I don't know what it is." Twilight said, finally sitting up. "Maybe its a research book on beasts. Celestia did say that the place had tons of information on them." "Well, you wanna look at it together?" Sunset asked, smiling at her. "Together? You mean, you and me?" "Well, yeah, who else is here but us? Plus, it's still pretty early, and Princess Luna hasn't made us all go to bed yet, so... why not? Let's be study buddies. What'd'ya say?" Twilight thought about it for a moment. She was still unfamiliar with this whole monster hunting thing, and if she was going to have any idea on how to get started, that book was probably her best bet. Plus, she did love to study, and getting to do it with Sunset was just a bonus. She couldn't help the wide grin that spread across her face as she said, "I say 'Yes'!" Twilight and Sunset sat together at a desk that had been set up in the room, no doubt as a workbench for students who wanted to get an early start on their coursework. Twilight was grateful for the thoughtfulness, but her close proximity to Sunset, though out of necessity, was making it really hard to focus on the book. But over time, her new roommate just became a comforting background presence as she lost herself in her research. "So what does it say?" Came Sunset's voice from her left "Hold on, just let me get a good look at it and...there." Turns out the book was a history book, detailing the lives of the Princesses back in their prime years. There were many tales of battles with mad gods, shadow demons, shapeshifters, and all manner of other things dark and creepy alike. But the one that interested Twilight the most, was the story of the Nightmare, a rare and malicious spirit that preyed on the suffering of others, and twisted their minds and personalities until they were practically unrecognizable even to those who knew them well. As the story goes, Celestia and Luna were tracking a pack of Timberwolves deep into the Everfree Forest, when suddenly, their hornlights went dark and their magic fizzled out. They tried their best to cast their magic, light their flashlights, anything, but nothing worked. There was nothing but darkness for miles. But somehow they could make out a figure beckoning to them in the darkness. A voice calling out to them in the deafening silence of the forest. They made their way towards it, but something felt...off, as if the figure was...distorted, as if the voice was muffled. They tried to reach it as best they could, thinking it was somepony who needed their help, but no matter how hard they tried, or how close they got, it always felt like it was just out of their reach. As they got closer, the figures and voices changed. No longer were they voices of ponies in trouble, now they were voices of ponies in pain. Unbearable pain. Depictions of ponies suffering untold amounts of torture or falling into despair. The two alicorns recognized these ponies. They were the ponies they didn't save. The ponies they couldn't save. The ponies whose lives were lost in their pursuit of a better Equestria. And while they had come to terms with the loss of these ponies for the greater good, that did not mean they were ready to relive it so soon. But then the voices stopped. The alicorns listened out for any sign of the noise of battle, anything that resembled a sign of life or lack thereof, but there was nothing. Instead, in its place was yet another voice. A voice so sinister and menacing it could only have been the voice of a villain, and yet so smooth and soothing it could have been the voice of a friend. It encouraged them to follow it, urged them to heed its advice and accept it as a friend, as someone they could trust. It drew them in with promises of power. Of strength so unparalleled that none could match them. It told them they could save everyone. That nopony would have to suffer ever again, just as long as they did what it said, and followed its orders. But still, something felt off. As it turns out, the figures and the voices were fake, a trick designed to lure them out and separate them, so the spirit could strike them down and feast on their fear. Celestia was the first to realize it was a trap, and she was able to shake off the illusion and resist the spirits embrace. But Luna, was not so lucky. She had been swayed by the Spirits honeyed words, caught up in its depictions of a better world. She had accepted it. Celestia may have broken free of its grip, but her sister was still locked in the prison of her own mind, and she was nowhere near her to help her out of it. The creature had succeeded in separating them, and was now feasting on her sister's desires, her fears, her sorrows, all of it. Celestia searched and searched and searched, but Luna was nowhere to be found. But just when she was on the verge of giving up, of bursting into tears at the thought that her sister was lost forever, she came across a clearing with a single, brightly glowing stone in the center of it. For some reason, Celestia felt drawn to this stone, and went to pick it up. When she did, she could feel power radiating from it. As she stood in awe of the beautiful stone that shone with all the colors of the rainbow, it began to glow. It glowed so bright that Celestia had to shield her eyes from its brilliance, and when she finally reopened them, she found that the stone was nowhere to be seen. When she looked around for it, she found that it had become a pendant, and latched itself around her neck. She didn't exactly know what had happened, but she knew that the stone had chosen her, and she would use its power to save her sister. She raced as fast as she could to the place where her sister was, guided only by the light of the stone around her neck. When she finally made it she found that Luna was...just standing there, by herself, in a clearing. No big evil spirit controlling her to be seen. That is until she turned around, and Celestia could see her eyes. Gone were her usual indigo orbs, replaced instead with bright greenish-blue marbles that stared blankly off into the distance, looking at nothing, seeing nothing. "L-Luna? Are...are you there?" Celestia walked up to her sister, but her voice seemed to fall on deaf ears. It was only when she reached out to touch her that something happened. And it was at that moment, that everything changed. Something in the air shifted, and Luna's once dead eyes glowed with life once more, and they were filled with nothing but Hatred. Hatred for ponykind, Hatred for their lost comrades, Hatred for her own weakness, Hatred...for her. It was as if everything that had taken place in the past had risen to the surface in a tidal wave of emotion that had overtaken her sister and sent her into a fit of rage unlike anything she had ever seen. And all of it, was directed at her. "Don't touch me, 'sister'." Luna spoke the word with such venom in her voice that Celestia was sure she had been stabbed, even clutching her chest to check for a wound that wasn't there. "Luna, I..." Was all she could muster out to say in response. "Don't 'Luna' me, traitor! How could you let our ponies die like that! How could you let them go out onto the battlefield knowing they were marching to their deaths! How! How, Celestia!" "No, that's not true! I didn't...we didn't...we didn't know! There was no way we could have known!" "Liar! Of course you knew. When we faced the Shadow Demon, you knew he wouldn't hold back. You knew he would show no mercy, and yet you still sent our ponies out there to risk their lives for a cause you made up!" "Made up? Luna, the safety of Equestria is far from 'made up'." "Is that really the case? Is Equestria really any safer now that you've sacrificed the lives of thousands to vanquish a single threat? If that's so, then how many more lives will need to be sacrificed to stop yet another enemy, or another, or another? The battles, will never, end, sister. Our ponies lives will be at risk on a constant basis if we allow this to continue. With this power I can end all their suffering! Forever!" "And tell me, sister, what will that accomplish? If you go rampaging through Equis and rid the world of evil through force then what will that leave? The only evil left will be you! Because you're right! It will never stop. If we get rid of evil, more will just pop up in its place. Your crusade will never end and we'll be fighting for the rest of our immortal lives! Is that what you want. A neverending battle between good and evil that lasts for all eternity? What about the innocents? What about redemption? What about Friendship? Do you truly believe nopony can change? Will you just abandon all that we've worked for in favor of a twisted sense of justice?" "Silence! I will not listen to a filthy traitor like you!" Luna says as she blasts a barrage of magic at her sister. Celestia dodges out of the way and fires her own blasts back, still trying to convince her that this was all a trick. "Well what about you? If I'm a traitor then you're one, too! You gave the same order as me. You told our ponies to fight for their home and give their all for the cause. You are just as guilty as me, sister!" This seems to get to, Luna, as she begins to hesitate. "You're lying! You're trying to confuse me! I won't let you! You won't stand in the way of my dream!" Luna says as she continues firing. Celestia meanwhile fires her own blasts, cancelling hers out. "Please, Luna. I'm not the one trying to trick you. I'm not the one messing with your head. This creature, this THING, is warping your mind, making you see things that aren't there. It's making you feel things that aren't real!" "Not real!? You mean to tell me that the deaths of all those ponies weren't real? Then what were they? Were they all a dream? Have I been living in a fantasy land this whole time?!" Celestia rethinks her words "No, sister, they are real. And everything you're saying did happen, but it was years ago. There's nothing we can do about it now! We have to move on." "Move on, MOVE ON!? You want me to forget the sacrifices of the ponies who made our country what it is? I always knew you were a monster!" That comment hurt Celestia the most. How could her own sister call her a monster? No, that wasn't her sister. That was the creature. That Nightmare. Th at was what was doing this, not her. And she had to find a way to do something about it. Just when she was thinking that, the gem on her necklace started to glow, brightly, and Celestia felt power welling up inside her once more. She smiled and stood her ground, firing a stronger blast at her sister that knocked her back a bit. "Moving on doesn't mean we have to forget what happened in the past, sister. It simply means we don't let the memories of what happened keep us from living our own lives. Because if we were to do that, what would be the point of all those sacrifices in the first place. They may as well have never even happened." Celestia said as she walked toward her. Luna was taken aback by this. "Wh-What...? What are you saying? Is this more of your tricks!?" "No tricks, sister. I'm being honest and straightforward. Do you really think that the ponies who risked their lives for us would want us to wallow in self pity and blame ourselves for their sacrifice when they knew what they were getting into the moment they signed up for it?" "Well...N-No...but-" "Exactly!" Celestia was now in her sister's face. "It's not our place to decide who's good or evil, Luna. And we don't have to give our lives fighting a never-ending battle either. The only thing we need to do is what we can, while we can. Let's make the world a better, safer place, one threat at a time. Without all the melodrama. Okay?" Celestia held out a hand to help her sister up. Luna looked at it for a moment and back up to her sister, who simply held it out further. Soon, Luna took her sister's hand and got up with her help. "Now let's go ho-" But the Nightmare wasn't done with Luna yet. Seeing that it had lost its hold over her, it switched to plan B and simply took over her body entirely, causing Luna to yank away from her sister's hold and attack her. "How dare you take my prey from me! I'll destroy you!" Celestia looked up at her sister with shocked eyes. "Luna, no!" She reached out for her, but there was nothing there. Nothing except a single tear that fell from her sister's eye... and onto Celestia's hand. "There's nothing you can do to save her anymore, fool! Your sister is gone! I'm in control now!" The nightmare began to laugh maniacally as it rose into the air changing her sister to become more sinister in appearance. "No, you aren't! You may have taken my sister's body! But her mind is still her own! And you will never take that away from her!" The stone glowed brighter and brighter as Celestia spoke, and before she realized it, she began floating in the air like the creature. When she finally realized, she was eye level with the monster that had taken control of her sister. "I will defeat you, and save my sister from your horrid clutches!" Celestia screamed. "Just come and try it." The beast said, a confident grin on its face. "With pleasure." Celestia said, a grin of her own as the two fired blasts from their horns at each other, that met in the middle and held there, struggling between one way and the other. "just give up already!" yelled the NightmLare. "Never! I'll never let you win!" Celestia yelled back as her beam began to push back against her opponent's It eventually overtook the Nightmares, causing them to scream out in pain as they were disintegrated, leaving nothing but Luna behind. Celestia wasted no time going to catch her sister, who had fallen asleep in her arms. Celestia smiled as she saw her softly snoring away. "Alright. Let's get you home, Sister." The last thing Celestia heard her sister say was a soft, barely audible "I'm sorry..." "Don't worry about it, Luna. I forgive you." "And after that the Stone split into 7 different gems, all different colors of the rainbow, and spread across the world, said to only come together when the world needed them the most." Twilight and Sunset closed the book after reading that chapter, both breathing heavily from all the action in that one chapter alone. "Well...that was...intense." Sunset said, as she tried to catch her breath. "You could say that again. I can't believe all that happened back then..." Twilight responded. letting go of a breathe she hadn't realized she'd been holding. "It's certainly a lot to take in. You think we should ask the Princesses about it?" Sunset asked, looking over to Twilight. Twilight looked back at her, and silent conversation was shared between the two of them in that one moment. "Nope!" They both said at the same time. "Let's get some sleep." Sunset said as she slowly slipped under the covers. "Right behind you." Twilight asked as she got in as well, right next to her. The two of them had seen enough for one night, and didn't really want to think about much other than sleep for the rest of the night, and so they dozed off, silently swearing to take this to their grave.
