Verve

The next five days were rather straightforward; Rainbow Dash was exceptionally bored, and bothered (or wing slapped) a lot by Vee. The purple pegasus seemed to simmer down, as she turned her expertise to action; enchanting necklaces galore in an attempt to find the perfect spell for the battle. Oarkin spent his hours talking with Calia, and growing close to the little fawn. Celestia joined Aster in arguing with smaller groups of deer, to buy time for the Breezies to be found and Vee to patch together a plan.

Arin spent every waking moment he could learning about healing magic from a nearly coffee-ruined book, practicing grappling techniques, and putting his spells to good use when he would inevitably smash his head or fracture an arm on a tree with his new gadget.

The banishment orbs left untouched by the still at-large thief turned out rather nicely, with four successes counted among the ten failures. They even had time to craft new potions for Pumpkin’s use, which would be fitted on a bandolier around her chest.

Umbra would occasionally spar with Tempest, a great way to pass the time with fresh bruises and the occasional broken bone Arin could practice mending. They were exceptionally violent, but it fit them well. The deer were even kind enough to give them a full score of blunted weapons to practice with.

Pumpkin spent her days writing her book on their adventures with verve; her energy budding as the chapters flew with the stroke of her quill. Of course, it was all a rough draft - and it would need a lot of refining to really hammer in. Princess Celestia did mention a couple of ponies with a knack for editing, at her behest; she’d have to contact Nickleshine and Storm Leaf both to look over their adventures. Perhaps she should interview Arin, concerning his tenure as Luna’s knight - it could help her story. If anything, it was more writing, something she was fond of. Her spare time besides this was focused on weaving together a new broom, something Vee had to help her with occasionally, or Arin could assist by whittling it down with his experience in woodcrafting.

General Falon turned out to be an amazing teacher, and with his new bond with Arin - had a lot in common with him. The buck took up many small jobs here and there to make ends meet, when living with just his mother - he had a vast array of skills, and knew the value of a hard eve’s work. Within the first few days, Arin didn’t even find it awkward to call him father - as sudden as it still was for him to have a family now. Even if it was just him, and well… Falon.

Eventually, the others caught wind of this little revelation, most taking it well - save for King Aster, as he one day called the buck to his side during the party’s lunch.

“General Falon, I have heard a curious rumor among our guests; do you really intend on adopting Arin into your family?” the regal buck prodded, unsure of how to even address this.

“Yes, your majesty. He has a kind heart, and we share much in common. I would love to guide him as my own kin.” The General proudly raised his chin to face the King; he did so with respect, and just a bit of authority, as well.

“I don’t know how the courts could process this; it could quite possibly be the first case of a White Tail trying to adopt a non-citizen; a loophole that’s already patched in our legal system. Arin, you are an Equestrian, correct? By law?” His calm voice came over the quiet hush of whispers, as his friends quieted down for the more important conversation. Princess Celestia cleared her throat;

“This is correct, Aster. I had granted him citizenship as an Equestrian citizen three years prior, in our time.”

At that, King Aster was left at a loss; “It is strictly written that Equestrians can not attain citizenship by any means through our court system. This is to prevent bucks and does from taking in ponies as children, allowing them entry to Silversun by law. As the laws currently stand, I can not legally grant you the right to his bloodline. But, times do change. After the coming conflict, I will see to it that Equestrians are once again allowed in the walls of Silversun, despite the ancient laws I helped embed in our society.”

His eyes fell to Celestia now, speaking quietly among the now cheerful ponies. “This is, of course, a hard promise to keep - I will have to attain the votes of at least the vast majority of senators to strike an agreement. If it is at all possible, I could use your strong voice to help sway them; you have been a boon by my side, Celestia.”

The Princess smiled, bowing her head. “If it means a brighter future for Equestrians and White Tail both, you have my support.”

Oarkin cleared his throat, turning eyes to the giant who rested next to the little fawn; by now, she would have been turned over to the small orphanage nearby - if it weren’t for his pleas not to let her go. She was still thin and weak, and even though they found her a fresh set of glasses - the giant feared for her safety.

“I want to adopt Calia.”

The little fawn bleated, hugging tight to Oarkin’s side in sheer happiness. Two in one day! Even Vee, preening away among a pile of books - seemed happy from all of the family bonds being made.

“I-...” Even King Aster, who had almost thought it likely - didn’t see this coming. “...I will try my best to make that happen, if she really is in good hooves, Sir Oarkin. Are you an Equestrian citizen as well?”

Celestia shook her head. “He has no ties to any country, at the moment. Save the Far Reaches in Erenorn.”

“Then it can be amended, as well. Once a proper investigation takes place, and we are able to determine the best outcome for her safety, I am sure Oarkin will be a fine choice for her - again, later on. For now, we have more dire things to attend to; that being the potential end of the world. Times are looking… rather bleak, at the moment, for us.” He sighed, slumping his large antlers forward. The jeweled aster resting on his ear shifting in the light.

“We still have no idea where the breezies are, and the time for action is fast approaching. This twilight is the last court you all will be able to attend, and-”

“Wait, breezies? Like, the little… tiny, itty bitty pixie things?” Rainbow pointed her hoof at the king; “I wasn’t paying attention. I, uh, may be kinda bad at that.”

“Rainbow Dash, have you paid attention to literally any of the court’s problems, or?...” Arin prodded; even Falon agreed with him, at rest by the Seraph’s side.

“Why do you even ask? It’s not like you would know where to find them,” the battalion leader pushed, unamused eyes glaring right through her.

“Uh, of course I know where to find the breezies! I’ve been to their secret hollow or… whatever, once with Twilight. I know exactly where it is, we all flew there together.”

“...You knew where to find the breezies this entire time, and you are telling not just the deer who desperately need this source of magic - but every defender fit to challenge Nightmare Moon, that you simply didn’t… pay attention, to quite possibly some of the most important days of all of our lives.” Tempest glared, Umbra joined in too - both former villains scowling down the Element of Loyalty with absolute authority. It took Pumpkin’s soft hoof to snap the former commander out of her deadly gaze, but still, the point was made.

Celestia intervened, hoping to ease the rising tension at the dinner table. “Everypony please, settle down. Let’s not point hooves. Rainbow Dash is not at fault; I have received many a letter detailing her… less than attentive nature. Rainbow, if you hold the key to finding the breezies, it may be best if you aid the White Tail in searching for them before it’s too late.”

The King recovered from this late news, pinching his snout with a cloven hoof in frustration. “General Falon, do I even need to give instruction?”

The buck shook his head, not even bothering to hide his glower at the lack of discipline from the ‘hero’. “No, my liege. Rainbow Dash, come with me. You are being conscripted into our service until further notice.”

Falon gave a nod to Arin, who agreed that this was the best course of action - before seizing the Rainbow maned pegasus in his green magic. Despite her very vocal concerns, she was swiftly ignored by all, save Celestia.

“The fate of Equestria, nay - all of Equis, rests in your hooves, my last Wonderbolt. Go with great haste.”

“Neigh,” Vee said from behind her book fort, strictly out of habit.

The wriggling mare stopped her struggle, saluting to her leader with respect; “On it, Princess! You can count on me! Now, let me go, ‘kay? I can fly on my own without your magic, uh… General Deer.”

“Falon.”

“Whatever.” And at her request, she was released from the buck’s hold to flap by his side once more.

“Hmhmhm! Oho, yes, this should work…” Vee neighed quietly to nopony in particular, using her pristine, very well groomed, and outright dazzling wings to brush apart her cluttered books and scrolls; tumbling papers and scrapped sigils falling to the floor, as she lazily nibbled a piece of chalk between her teeth. Despite King Aster’s requests to not practice magic at the table, she couldn’t be stopped - quickly sketching several markings in a quick circle. A sapphire brooch fell upon the wood with a clatter, drawing Tempest’s curious eyes to watch the process as Vee dabbled several tiny mana gems around the exterior. Along with a few other components; stardust, a pinch of desert crystal powder, and other magic attuning components that would hopefully render the desired effect.

“Your Sister has been busy these last few days, Pumpkin. Has anypony translated her crazed gibberish into a common tongue yet, or are we still in the dark about that?” Tempest poked, interested in her witchery.

“I think she’s looking for a way to both incapicitate and protect those who fell under Nightmare Moon’s influence. I’ve seen her in this mood before, when she restarted her hunt for an infinite coffee enchantment.” Pumpkin chewed on a piece of toast, as Vee’s snooter nestled in the last of the ingredients.

The Purple’s eyes flashed, lighting the spell into fruition - unfortunately, it instead backfired. Knocking the mare back with a flurry of pages and spilled coffee, scorching the fine maple table in the process. The Purple was left with a blackened snoot, and a cracked sapphire in her brooch.

“Perfect! Catastrophic failure; my favorite. If my favorite was bad. And things I didn’t like. D’ohoho~” She didn’t let the disaster get the best of her, regardless - and took a wing to preen and a wall to stare blankly at. Contemplating many things. Coffee. Sigils. Runes. Inscriptions. Just kidding, it was more coffee.

“Celestia, I do believe this is going to cost my sanity.” Aster rubbed his hooves along his aching migraine; though much was accomplished during their tenure here, it was likely that they would run out of time before the key pieces would fall in place. And if this occurred, the group may have to charge in with nothing save the hides on their backs.

“You and I both, Aster. You and I both.” Her spirits dropped, as things started to look bleak. Tomorrow was their intended day to depart. With the Feywild’s magic depleting, the night growing ever darker - they may not be ready by then.

Arin was still struggling with his new techniques; and it wasn’t even something he could abandon, to stick to his old roots. They needed both as much magic as they could get, and the Seraph needed the mobility White Tail tutorship could provide - his wings were terrible for tight corners, and a grappling hook could work to both boost his speed, and alleviate his weaknesses. On top of that, his new position in the ranks required movement; he was going to play a crucial support role for the party, as one of the few healers left fit to face the shadows.

Umbra and Tempest were powerful fighters, but they were completely limited by the fact that their methods were brutal. And often fatal, as well. If they were left to terrorize the battlefield, the corpses would pile up. And with the world as dark as it is now, this could very well grant the Entity the power to puncture the thin veil of the Prime, and reappear in mass - which would kill them all.

Pumpkin was ready, but she was also their primary disruptor; meaning at best she could buy time, and had no ways to directly engage Nightmare Moon or her corrupted troops at all. So if she had no front liners to make use of her smoke and clouds, she was effectively useless.

Oarkin, too, the force of nature - the mountain, the towering winged warrior, was useless without a way to safely incapicitate and decommission soldiers and ponies alike.

Finally, there was Celestia. She had quite possibly the most daunting task of all; she was the only one capable of facing Nightmare Moon directly. Arin couldn’t fight her while under the Oath of Nocturne, Tempest would be taken down in one attack due to her lack of a magical barrier, and the fact that she was grounded did nothing to help. Umbra could leap far in her shadow form, but heights were the main issue here; meaning Nightmare Moon could simply fly out of range.

Vee would be the only viable choice to assist her in this endeavor, but she insisted her magic was limited. Thus the use of mana gems to circumvent enchantment costs. This would mean that she, too, was vulnerable to a killing blow without the use of arcane power to block or evade damage.

“Tempest, let’s assume we don’t have the assistance of the deer, nor ways to safely indispose ponies. As a military leader, what would the strategy be?”

“Well… ‘Tia’, by the stars it feels weird calling you that, but if you insist - our best bet would be to find a nice set of blades to impale ourselves on, and hope our souls escape the clutches of the Entity’s black tendrils before it finds us.” She finished her buttery roll quickly; she had paced her eating since Driderhold, but food rarely lasted more than a few moments with her regardless. Unfortunately, her words only brought more misery to the red maned Princess, who slumped.

“Wonderful. Now, could you lie to me instead? I would prefer that over the truth right now.”

“Of course; we’ll simply crash through a window, blast Nightmare Moon with every single Banishment Orb on hoof, wake the Elements while Oarkin distracts an entire army for us, and have them cast Harmony on your Sister. Hundreds would surely die, some of us would as well - but Equestria would be saved for several minutes, until the Entity broke free. Then, we’d all perish. But we’ll all be remembered as heroes, for the few who lived more than a few days after, I assume.” Tempest stared blankly through the Princess, crossing her hooves in thought. “But you’d win the battle, that’s for sure.”

“Thanks, that didn’t help at all.” Celestia used her golden magic to push away the plates and food in front of her, before falling limply over the table. She had that creeping feeling again; the same one she had, after the Crystal Heart was stolen three years ago. They had tried their hardest, but they were bested at every turn. The party seemed mostly unphased; like they didn’t even realize how dire things were.

Umbra stood up from Arin’s side, quietly cantering towards the defeated Princess with worry. She sat her flanks down, reaching a hoof forward to urge her to sit up.

“What, Umbra? Leave it. It’s over. Unless Vee pulls off a miracle, and Rainbow Dash reappears with every single breezie in tow - there’s no hope.” She faced the former villain with a broken heart. Immediately, and much to Celestia’s surprise - Umbra seized her horn and dragged her close, eye to eye with the alicorn.

“Get yourself together. This is the second time I have done this for you, but regardless - I will say it again. We need you, Princess. You are the one pony who can face Nightmare Moon. I can not hope to do it, neither can Tempest, Arin - even Aster is no match for her. If you falter now, leader or not - none of us will survive. I am no queen, nor a commander - but I can see that you’re doubting not just yourself, but all of us. We need you. Equestria needs you. Equis needs you. Are you going to sit here and abandon all hope - and let your mother die in vain? Your sister perish in the dark? You will let your friends, us - all of us, the ones you call not just companions, but family - die for nothing? Or are you going to straighten your back, raise your head high - and challenge these overwhelming odds?”

Her grip slackened, allowing Celestia reprieve and distance - as the whole table went silent to face her.

“Well? Tell us now. Are we all going to die here, clutching each other in our hooves because you think there’s no chance? Or are we going to piece our hearts together, and face this challenge as a team?”

The Princess reeled from Umbra’s overwhelming hope, as she made it to her hooves. With everypony awaiting her answer, food left forgotten and Vee left snooting gems in the quiet - she finally settled her nerves and spoke.

“Umbra… you’re right. By the stars, how are you always right? We can do this. All of us, together - working as a team, we can face Nightmare Moon, and we can take her down. I have been weak willed since this journey began, and I can’t let my doubts cloud our days. As I’ve said before… the darker the night, the more brilliant the dawn. Thank you, all of you, for standing by my side.”

“D’ohoho!” Vee called, raising a topaz amulet in her hoof; the gem within glowed with a soft light, the now channeled magic glimmering in faint sparkles. “This is very good for the feathers. Hmhm! Pumpkin! At attention!”

Vee rooted around in her nearby bag, settling the gem over her neck as Pumpkin made her way around the table to her Sister’s side. With a curious salute, the little witch answered the call.

“Y-Yes Vee?”

“Does this smell like dream powder to you?” Vee said, before puffing a small cloud at Pumpkin. She sneezed, coughed - then eventually slumped to the floor. Sleeping soundly on the spot.

“Hmhm! Now, the fun part.” Vee raised a wing, much to the ire of Tempest - who darted around the table to her lover’s aid.

“Vee! What are you doing to her-”

SMACK!

Vee whacked Pumpkin hard with the feathers on her wing, so hard in fact that it could definitely shatter bone. Vee was rather surprised she didn’t crack the stone beneath her very well preened - and slightly sooted - wings. Yet… Pumpkin didn’t snap awake. In fact, her body faded in place - a now ghostly visage sleeping where she lay now.

Tempest froze, seeing the ghostly image of the little witch slumbering in a mute void - falling back an inch in terror. The small pony’s ethereal hindleg kicked adorably in her rest; she would have been making the cutest noises by now, if she could be heard. “Pumpkin?”

“Relax, Stern-fry! She’s perfectly fine. More than fine, in fact! Because she gets to sleep, and I don’t. Hmhm! This calls for a celebratory coffee~ Ugly-disgusting-vomit-mane-fry! You have your solution. D’ohoho~”

Vee raised the necklace off her neck with a single feather, ho-humming her work with pride. She was an expert of all things sleep related, after all. And an insomniac of the highest caliber.

All eyes left unattended were soon settled over the now sleeping ghost-mare, Celestia trotting by her side to wake her. Her hoof slid right through; missing the little witch entirely, like a spectre.

“What did you do?...” the Princess whispered.

“I killed her! Half way. Maybe! I simply switched her astral body with her physical one. Look! It even shows her lil’ hat, definitely my finest preening. Also, neigh.” She waved her hoof through her Sister, plucking some much-too-dirty feathers to float right through her.

“Is she… what? How do you bring her back? Vee - did… is this permanent?” Tempest glared, raising a hoof to prod at the Purple’s chest. She gave an all too familiar ‘d’ohoho’, staring right through the rage-building mare.

“Of course not, Invade-my-personal-space-fry! Once she wakes up, she’ll switch places again. Probably. Or not! The spell works only while a pony is sleeping, after all. I think. If not, well… who knows! She isn’t dead. Just not breathing! There’s a big difference, hmhm. Oho! This should do very well against a dream walking pony. They’ll be ghost-fries until the lunar magic is gone, then they’ll wake up - remember everything, and come running with apologies and coffee… gifts, bits~ Tax relief~”

The insane pegasus began to idly chatter about the good wing tingles, King Aster thinking quietly over the effects of the spell from nearby. It really strained his knowledge of all things restoration, but… it seemed promising, up front.

“This could work, by my belief. They are essentially immune to physical harm in this state, and can not be killed by normal means - not unless Nightmare Moon were to channel her mind into the dream realm to target them… What I worry about, is the fact that their physical bodies are now in the same slice of reality that the Entity came from. The dream realm is a shared space of the astral plane; it could very well claim their physical form, leaving their spirits marooned in the Prime.”

“Oho! I thought about that, as well, King-fry! It turns out the Entity isn’t in the Astral plane. It’s stuck in the shadowfell! Which means that they’re immune to all things soul drinking, probably. ‘Cause I saw that jerk-face in the Carnival! He was there, with his weird black tendrils and angry noises, making nightmares come to life and all that jazz.”

Arin coughed; “I think I saw it, too - haunting Driderhold. All of that death and destruction likely weakened the planes, allowing it to pierce the earth and strangle the trees and roots. It would make sense.”

“And it made its home in the Deepwoods, at the roots of the great trees - farthest from the light. There, it corrupted the spirits of the felled great woods, using them to possess the now long dead pegasi,” Tempest finished, piecing the last of the story together. “By all accounts, this would imply that this darkness is too close to breaching the Prime. My study of banishment doesn’t stretch this far - what do you think, Umbra?”

“A telling sign is that the Entity’s influence has begun to crop up in other places through history, as well. I had spent many moons researching the darkness during my insanity, hoping to garner effective tactics to take the Crystal Empire back. The Changelings came from directly south of Canterlot - the Umbrum from the northern wastes. The east once held Grogar, where he eventually traveled to Equestria to claim dominion - he called forth great power, using his Bewitching Bell to summon monstrous abominations to prowl the world and kill ponies that dared to live in the mild safety Equestria. Arimaspi, a creature of evil intent, sought to disrupt the Griffon’s lands by stealing their precious Idol of Boreas - a ploy the Entity would likely endorse. Hollow Shades, where the pony of darkness had arisen - was left a ruin, a husk, after banishing this dark fragment to purgatory. Even the attempts to later rebuild it failed miserably.

“All of this began to encroach on the edges of the world, leading closer inland - ever onwards towards Mount Celeste. Canterlot. Where you live, Princess. As we know, the entity burrowed itself deep into the roots of Equis, and when Queen Astra used her magic to destroy it - she failed to do so properly, and took half the world with her. Which means that over the course of centuries, it's been festering beneath the surface. Growing upwards, steadily, and into the realm of the Shadowfell, where it tries to drain lost souls of their power to break its banishment.

“All of this, every piece of evidence - every war and battle that has ever occured in Equestria, has been an attempt to claim one throne. Yours, Princess. Because that’s what the Entity wants; the heavenly mountain, the heart of Equestria. The capital. Why do you think every single battle has been over control of your home, save the few attempts I made to secure the Crystal Empire? Because with Canterlot in foul hooves, the Entity could likely burrow up, sprout free, and hold total dominion over the land.

“This may very well be why it crashed into Starlight’s Peak. It had the greatest source of harmonious magic on Equestria, at the time. And now, Canterlot is directly above it - where thousands of ponies are now ready for the harvest, controlled by Nightmare Moon and willing to throw themselves to the slaughter.”

An uncomfortable quiet fell on the table, as Arin stared at his lover in shock. “You… knew all of this?”

“When I came to stay at Canterlot, besides the scant pictures I had - why do you think I carried mostly books? Adventure novels? No. Knowledge is the greatest source of power, my fledgeling; I have always aspired to know my enemy. I simply didn’t see the connections until now.”