"Alright, 'Twilight', how was your trip?" Duskwing approached, the limp on his damaged side being very noticeable. Along that side was a massive scar that stretched down his body from collar to flank, a grotesque reminder of what had happened.

"It went well. I wasn't expecting to see you back so soon." She walked forward to meet him, bringing him into a hug.

"The best doctors in Equestria were assigned to me. I assume that was either your doing or Celestia's." He chuckled. "I see the filly isn't having much trouble walking anymore."

The two separated to sit on the bed next to each other. "A lot has happened in the short time since the Equestria Games. I've been so busy with one thing or another. Sorry I wasn't here when you got out of the hospital."

"No worries. If you ever need a shoulder to cry on, you got both of mine." He winked at her, getting a small blush. "Have you spoken to Nightwind yet?"

"I've only seen you and Somnia since arriving back a few minutes ago. Did something happen while I was gone?"

"Yeah, you could say that. He got two marefriends!" Duskwing laughed.

"What?! But who? And why?!" She asked baffled.

"Don't know why, gotta ask them. Apparently the orange one also wanted in on it at first but backed out after the second date because her old coltfriend came crawling back." He shook his head in amusement, remembering his own time as a colt.

"Scootaloo had a coltfriend?!" Twilight fell back onto the bed followed by Duskwing. "I thought Rumble was only friends with her. How much did I miss?"

"Well, Somnia and Apple Bloom are keeping the little guy busy with dates and lessons. You'll have to ask about what's going on with Scootaloo, I haven't really been told much about her. Somnia also apparently has some not-so-secret lab she's been setting up in the basement, no idea how to get to it though. I got back to town two days ago and had to talk your friend into waiting until you arrived back."

"Arrived back for what?"

The door burst open, the elements jumping in. "Your welcome-back-to-Ponyville-and-Twilight-has-a-coltfriend party!" They all shouted out.

"Girls!" Twilight jumped up and off the bed, going over to meet them for a group hug. "I've missed you, even though it's only been a few days."

"It's been over a week for us, darling. It's so good to have you back." Rarity nuzzled her. "How did everything go in the other world?"

"It went great! We beat the Sirens and Sunset feels like she's accepted by the other students."

"I got the entire throne room setup for the party!" Pinkie squee'd.

"Not so fast, sugarcube. Twi looks mighty tired, maybe we should do it tomorrow mornin'?" Applejack suggested.

Pinkie sighed. "Yeah, okay." Perking up: "I'll go put the food in the refrigerator!"

"I'll come with." Rainbow accompanied Pinkie along with Applejack.

"We'll leave you two be. You probably have a lot to catch up on." Fluttershy gave one last wave back as she and Rarity left, the latter winking to her friend. Turning back to Duskwing, Twilight saw he was playfully pouting on the bed, rubbing the spot next to him. With a giggle, Twilight went back over and laid down next to him.

"So... Somnia, Apple Bloom, and Nightwind?" She asked.

"Yup. Never thought Nightwind would be the herd sort. I know a few batponies who made a herd for themself, but that's because of the severe lack of available quality stallions in Hollow Shades." He stretched his forelegs, putting one around Twilight.

"Smooth." She playfully jabbed him, smiling to herself.

"I never got involved with that though. Too much politics, not enough money, etc. It's not like I haven't been offered by a tenth of the town, I just never had the time with Nightwind and the hunting team."

"You got time now." Twilight turned to him with a sly smile on her face. "Planning on leaving me to raise our daughter so you can form a herd of your own?"

"Nah." He leaned closer to her. "You're a hoofful as it is." He got a light punch to the gut. "Oof, I deserved that."

"Yes, you did." Twilight got up off the bed. "I'm headed to my room. It's been a very tiring couple of days."

He gave another devilish grin. "Is that an invitation, your majesty?"

"In your dreams." She scoffed, walking to the door, pausing just before it. "Actually..."

Turning back, she got into bed and pulled the sheets over herself, settling onto one side. "I think I'll spend the night sleeping here. Hooves to yourself, stallion."

"Wouldn't even dream of it." He chuckled, getting up and walking to the door. "Oh, by the way, it's just after sunrise."

"Everything is in your saddlebags. I know it'll be difficult to pay attention, and that you won't be able to take notes for a bit, but you really need this." Duskwing leaned down to eye level. "You nervous?"

Nightwind nodded, biting his lip. Duskwing brought him into a hug. "It's going to be alright. First day is always tough. Remember your first day in Hollow Shades? Whenever you're stressed, take deep breaths. It'll be alright."

"Thanks, uncle." He mumbled back. A few other students trotted by on their way to the red schoolhouse, paying little mind to the two batponies.

"Anytime, kiddo." He stood back up and waited until Nightwind entered the playground to find the crusaders, giving off a contented sigh before heading back towards town in order to look for a job. If he was going to be living with somepony, he was going to pull his own weight.

Sitting down at the picnic table, Nightwind checked his saddlebags once more to make sure everything was there. It had been years since he went to school, he wanted to make his best first impression on the other foals. It was a new start, one that would hopefully last.

"Eww, where did you crawl out from?" A voice came from behind, causing his back to straighten.

"The Everfree Forest is that way." The gray colored filly walked into his peripheral vision, a pink one on the other side.

He tried his best to ignore them, double-double checking his supplies, but the pink one wouldn't let it go. "What? Are you a new student in our class or something? Didn't think your kind was smart enough to learn anything besides stealing or fighting."

"Leave me alone." He mumbled, checking the binder his family put together for him. He had briefly read through it, although much of it was to supplement what he didn't understand.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" She got into his face, looking into his bag. "What's that? You have notes already? Not smart enough to make your own, huh?"

"Please..." He closed his eyes. "L-Leave me alone." The filly grabbed his saddle bags, tugging them out of his reach. "Hey! Give those back!"

"You won't need these." She went over to her friend where they began tossing some of the items out. Unbeknownst to the three of them, a filly was watching intensely from across the playground, waiting for a moment exactly like this. The pink filly opened his lunch tin, examining the contents. "Ew, is this meat?!"

"I knew he was a bloodsucker!" The gray one gagged.

"Huh..." The pink one frowned, seeing something within the binder he had been given. "D-Do you--"

"Hey! What are you two doing?" A yellow and green unicorn filly approached the two. "Leave him alone!"

The two bullies glanced to one another confused. The gray one asking: "Are you new here too?"

"I'm not going to tell you again. Buzz off!" She snarled.

"And what are you gonna do about it?" The pink one got up, stepping up to the new filly and donning a smug grin. "I've never seen you around before. What? You actually care about these monsters?"

The filly flicked their eyes to Nightwind. "Sorry about this, kid."

"Kid...?" The two fillies backed away as the filly lit her horn and picked up both of them in her green grasp, the pink one yelling out: "Hey! Let us down!"

"No chance." She marched off towards the entrance of the schoolhouse, leaving Nightwind to pick his stuff back off the ground. He took a look at the page the pink filly seemed hesitant about. Twilight and Somnia had written him a small note about the day's schedule, each also providing words of encouragement. He couldn't help but tear up.

"Nightwind, right?" An older voice came from the behind. He turned to face who he could only assume was Ms.Cheerilee.

"Y-Yeah?" He stuttered back.

"Can you please come inside for a moment?" She motioned for him to follow. He quickly put the last few things into his bags before following after her. Inside the schoolhouse were the two fillies seated across from the yellow filly, her forelegs folded as she glared at them intensely. The two seemed to be a bit worried, but held deceptive smiles in spite of the gaze.

Nightwind took a seat next to the filly who had helped him. Do I know her? He didn't remember seeing her around town, or anywhere for that matter.

"Now then." Cheerilee sat on the chair facing all four. "Would you mind telling me what this is about?"

"They were bullying Nightwind. They called him a bloodsucker and a monster, and were rummaging through his stuff without his permission." The yellow filly declared simply.

"No we didn't! She's lying!" The pink one pointed at her accuser. "We were helping him sort his bags!"

Cheerilee narrowed her eyes on the yellow filly. "I've never seen you around before. Are you also new to town?"

"Kinda." She tilted her head. "But this isn't about me. It's about them and their attitude."

"So you two were just helping him?" Cheerilee turned to the two fillies that gave nods, turning back to the colt: "Nightwind, were they really helping you?"

"N-No..." He admitted.

"That's a lie!" The gray filly declared.

"It's not a lie." The yellow filly narrowed her gaze further. "I was listening to the whole thing."

The teacher shook her head. "I don't know who to believe. Both of you are claiming such different things, and there's no clear proof one way or the other."

"Can I speak to you alone, Cheerilee?" The yellow filly asked.

"Whatever you have to--"

"Alone." She reiterated, expression one of absolute seriousness. With a look to the other foals, Cheerilee motioned them towards the door. Once they had left, the filly stood up and transformed into their true form, Cheerilee fumbling from her chair and stepping back in shock.

"Still think I'm lying?"

"You're going to regret that! You hear me, meat-eater?" The pink one kept close to his face as she trailed him back onto the playground. "I'm not some blank flank nopony like you are!"

"Well well well, if it ain't the blight herself." A voice said from behind, getting the two fillies to face them.

"What do you want, blank flanks? This has nothing to do with you!"

"It doesn't, does it?" Scootaloo walked around them over to Nightwind, turning him back towards the surrounded bullies. "Y'know, he's not quiet as much of a nopony as you think."

Sweetie Belle proceeded to the other side of Scootaloo. "You wouldn't really know about that, which is why you're probably going to be in for a rude awakening when Scuttle gets back out here."

"Scuttle? What kind of name is that?" Silver Spoon scoffed.

It was Apple Bloom's turn. Moving around next to Nightwind, she placed a hoof around his withers. Her smug grin was wider than it had been in a long time. She let it hang for just a moment, savoring it as the two adults walked up behind the bullies. "My coltfriend's bodyguard."

"You dun bucked up, kids." A rough voice came from behind. The two slowly turned to see an armored changeling standing next to a furious Cheerilee.

"Both of your parents will know what you have been up to. I can't believe I didn't see it before, but this is the last straw! This is going to end today!" She turned to the rest of the playground. "Alright, everypony! Time for class!"

The fillies and colts made their way to the doors, the nervous Diamond Tiara and terrified Silver Spoon quickly falling in with the crowd while the crusaders and Nightwind remained outdoors for another minute.

"H-How long?" Nightwind turned to Scuttle.

"For you, just today, but I've been monitoring the playground for a little while now." He shrugged. "I'll leave you be once they have learnt their lesson. It wasn't the first time they tried messing with the queen or her friends."

"She mocked me because I couldn't fly and they've been calling us blank flanks for years." Scootaloo walked up to him. "We've had enough of them and their bullying. We couldn't get Ms.Cheerilee to listen, so we talked to Somnia about it. She offered to have Scuttle watch over the playground to listen and report what happened."

"They'll learn their lesson, and they'll be better off for it." Scuttle nodded. "You all should get inside to class. Don't want to miss anything."

"You're sitting on the other side of me." Sweetie told Nightwind, trotting past towards the door. "Come on!"

Nightwind lagged a bit, giving one last smile to Scuttle. "Thanks."

"Nopony deserves to be treated like they're a monster because of the type of pony they are." He gently smiled back. The colt trotted off into the schoolhouse, leaving Scuttle to return back to town for the scavenging Somnia wanted to do on the library. Never in his life did he think that he'd be helping ponies--

No, he was a pony too. The queen was adamant about that. In the time since saving Somnia, he had become less reliant on love-supplements, going days without even feeling the need. Was this what she meant? Having friends, and those who treated you like family, was it really all the changelings needed not to go hungry?

Tapping her hoof on the ground, Somnia 'supervised' the structural evaluations on the charred husk of the old library from just outside the ruins. Flying above were Dawny and Scuttle while Shield and Love 'carefully' examined the remains. It had been a few days since her mom got back, and she wanted to get this out of the way before some other situation occurred.

"And?" She called out to anypony.

"Basement's been partially collapsed." Shield yelled out.

"Even I can see the sagging on the floor. Seems structurally sound enough though." Dawn also answered from above.

"Is it possible to access?" She trotted into the ruins, going to the old door that led to the basement.

"Not that way." Love chopped the floor with an axe they borrowed from Applejack. "We gotta make our own entrance."

"How long do you think that will take?"

"Days if we get an hour or two with the axe each day." Shield rubbed the back of his head while Scuttle swooped down to another part of the charred remains. "Less if we get a second axe."

"I can ask Mr.Oak if he has one." Somnia suggested.

"Or we could just use magic." Dawn landed next to Somnia.

"No, the materials in the lab may become reactive. We need to do this manually." She refuted. "We don't know how many of the compounds broke, and if it was all of them then it's an alchemical time-bomb!"

"That's a pleasant thought." Love took another swing at the wood, starting to make a small hole where she chipped away at.

"You know more about them than us. How dangerous could it be?" Shield asked concerned.

"If the soulsand mixed with the nightshade essence and rabid ginger roots, then it's an anti-biological weapon capable of wiping out the town in a haze of red mist!" She considered the possibility after a second. "But that would have eaten through the wood, so I don't think that happened."

Dawn began kicking away at the door to the basement, breaking through to the other side with his bucks. Taking a quick look in, he frowned at the mountain of debris blocking the path downstairs. Walking back to Somnia was Scuttle with a few charred books in his saddlebags.

"These are still in decent condition. Only the edges have damage. Don't know how the first sweep missed them." He passed one of the books to Somnia who looked it over.

"These can go back to mom. She'll want to see how they are and maybe reorder them." She passed the book back. "The cover is from dragon-sneeze trees. Fire resistant."

"Probably should have fireproofed the entire library." Shield mumbled, warily turning to the ashy remains around him. "Shame the entire upper floor was destroyed, that's where the good stuff was."

Somnia sighed, trotting away. "Let me know how it goes!" She yelled back to Dawn and Love while setting off with Shield towards the town blacksmith. Her to-do list only had a few entries, but each one was necessary to continue her work. Arriving back at Smoky's Smithy, he finished hammering away at a metal bar before turning to her.

"If it isn't my favorite customer! What can I do for ya this time?" He sat down at the small table used to negotiate with customers, Somnia taking out a small stack of papers from her saddlebags.

"I need these produced." The papers had various sketches of small components she would be using along with the necessary materials. "Invoice the Royal Treasury as usual."

He took a look through the papers, examining each one. "This is very intricate. Are all these details needed?"

"Every last one." Somnia stressed.

"I'll start work on the larger ones, but the smaller ones will take some time like usual. As you know, it's not as easy to forge items this small. What are you even building this time? A clock?" He chuckled as he continued flipping through the pages.

"Something more complicated." She took out one last sheet of paper. "These are the details for the invoice. Keep it in your files and make sure to include the numbers at the top along with a complete itemized list of the items produced when you submit it."

"Gotcha." He flipped another page, flicking his eyes between Somnia and the paper. "I'm not even going to ask what this is for."

"Good." Somnia got down from her seat and trotted out towards her next destination: Sweet Apple Acres. She needed a certain type of fertilizer, and the best place to get it was the farm. She casually trotted past the sign, straight up to the door and knocked.

A few seconds later, Applejack opened the top half. "Howdy, Somnia! Lookin' for Apple Bloom?"

The filly asked as sweetly as she could, an innocent smile on her face and with fluttering eyes: "Can I buy some dung?"

Applejack scrunched up her nose. "I'll show you to the pig pens."

She closed the upper half and opened the entire door, leading the filly towards the pig pens. The pigs were happily laying around in the pen, oblivious to what their excrement would be used for.

"Here they are." Applejack motioned. "You can see the occasional droppin' left behind by 'em... where are ya goin'?" She asked as Somnia entered the pen and headed not towards the old piles, but a fresh one. Taking out two jars and a potion from her other saddlebag, she carefully scooped up the fresh dung into the first.

Marching up to one of the pigs, she poured the potion onto her hoof and rubbed the pig's back. It looked back to her before going wide eyed, at which point Somnia positioned the other jar to catch the fresh droppings it excreted to the horror and disgust of Applejack. The filly didn't even mind the occasional bit that got onto her hooves or the urine running down her back-legs. Closing the lids on the jars, she put them back into the dedicated saddlebag and walked back out of the pen.

"So how much will it be?"

"What in tarnation was that about?!"

"There wasn't enough." Somnia shrugged. "I came prepared in such a case. How much do you want for two jars?"

"Uhh..." Applejack turned to Shield who was indifferent to the entire display or the filthy filly. "Forty bits?"

"Done. Stop by the castle after I clean up and I'll give them to you." She coughed, giggling lightly. "Geez, I smell." She trotted off, giving one last wave to Applejack: "Thank you!"

"No problem?" Applejack turned back to the contented pig, completely baffled at what she just witnessed.

"Shoot me." Somnia closed her eyes as the water sprayed over her and the saddlebags. Shield walked around her, making sure to clean enough of her so that she wouldn't trail it into the castle before moving on to clean off the jars. They were just outside the castle, a hose running down from one of the nearby houses was generously granted for her use, if only so the resident didn't have to smell her anymore.

"All clean." Shield declared after finishing off with her hooves.

"Got the towels." Dusty walked over with two towels on her back. "What did you do to get..." She spotted the jars. "Oh."

"Do you want more hoof-canon shots, or not?" The filly raised a brow.

"I'm not complaining." She tossed the towels onto Somnia, at which point Shield used his magic to begin rubbing her down.

"I still liked my idea better." Shield chuckled. "To see the look on Twilight's face as you slide across the floor on a towel looking like you just came from a Manehattan sewer would have been priceless."

"I already had to walk through town like that, I'm not going to risk upsetting her." Somnia rebuked. Once dry enough, Somnia went directly to her room where she hopped into the shower. Two layers of shampoo and two extra clean jars later, she trotted her way to the puzzle room with her saddlebags and entered.

Pushing open the double doors to her lab, she smiled at the sight of her newest shipment next to the tables. Without delay, she began unpacking the alchemy equipment onto the benches. While she would move it to its proper area once reactor construction began, for right now it was fine where it was. Truth be told, the explosive used in the hoof-canon was only partially why she got the manure. The other reason was far more potent.

Hopping onto the table, she began to carefully assemble the alchemy setup, making sure that everything was in its right place. It had been so long since she had her own setup, no longer needing to go to Zecora's hut to brew the few potions she had made. This new station would suffice until she introduced electricity, at which point it would become even more complicated.

She carefully got down from the table and checked each of the parts of the setup, making sure everything was working as intended. Grabbing the alchemical cleaner she bought from a local store, Somnia quickly ran it through the system to purge unwanted contaminants, using every system to ensure proper function. Besides needing to tighten a single spot, it was ready for the project.

She grabbed five other ingredients she had acquired by various means, carefully prepping them for creation of what would be her most complicated project yet. All six ingredients were measured to perfection, failure couldn't be afforded when working with volatile substances. She worked tirelessly for several hours, keeping her eyes on the prize. Through the system the different fluids were flowing, combining, reacting, and ultimately separating until only one pure solution remained at the end.

Carefully dripping the yellow liquid into a small vial, she breathed a sigh of relief. Enough to cause the intended effect, but not so strong as to cause a psychotic break.

"What is that for?" Twilight asked from next to the setup, having stayed out of the way until this point. Somnia knew she was there the past three minutes, but she was too focused on the process at work.

"In case another Tirek shows up." Somnia began to perform purges on the leftover materials, putting them away into the run-off flasks for later reuse. "If another creature like him shows up, drink this and kill them."

"Kill them?" Twilight examined the vial. "What even is it?"

Somnia sat down on one of the chairs she had dragged down, the energy draining from her system from the potion she drank at the start. "It's a magical elixir meant to produce a single surge of energy. When I saw you raising the sun, I considered the applications of cutie mark magic." She motioned to the ingredients. "Heart's Desire, Poison Joke, Scorchflowers, ground up mana crystals, and dung, carefully prepared in a certain order with specific regents. After you drink it, you will feel a massive magical surge stronger than when you had the other princesses' magic. Fire the laser, and wipe out everything in front of you."

Twilight picked it up in her magic, carefully examining it. "I didn't think it was possible to do something like this."

"It isn't for a normal pony." Somnia took off her glove, revealing a bloodied bandage. "My blood was mixed in to access the energies within the world via Tartarus, similar effect as when Celestia raises the sun, but much stronger. This can wipe out an entire mountain in a single burst, if my calculations are correct."

"You..." Twilight put the vial back in its holster, cantering over to Somnia to examine her hoof. "How much blood?"

Somnia raggedly sighed, the last bits of alchemical energy leaving her bloodstream. "Too much." Before collapsing into Twilight's forelegs. "I'm fine, j-just a little light headed."

"We really should get you to--"

"No, I'm fine. It's already clotted. I've made sure of that before I started the experiment."

Taking another look at the alchemy setup, Twilight finally noticed the blood runes carved into the table, some still glowing slightly. This wasn't just alchemy, this was dangerous magic banned from use within Equestria and most other areas she knew of. But how would she even know how to do that?

"Somnia, where did you learn how to do blood magic?"

"A book from the Castle of the Two Sisters." She breathed out, taking her time with her words. "I found it in the old basement lab. Celestia and Luna aren't as innocent in what they do as everypony believes. Magic forbidden since before Fae became queen, practiced right under the noses of ponies by those who stand to gain the most by having it banned."

While she was surprised to hear this, it didn't surprise her that the regal sisters would do such things in private. Carrying Somnia upstairs, she asked the next question. "Where's the book located?"

"Your private study. I'm keeping my books there until I get some bookshelves downstairs."

Quickly taking Somnia back to her room and ordering Dusty to personally watch her, Twilight headed to her study. It was a repurposed room on the other side of the library from the lab entrance. About the same size as the puzzle room, a little smaller than the bedrooms. It contained a crystal desk with a comfy chair behind it and a single bookshelf so far, if you didn't include the Equestrian flag that hung from one of the walls. Reading the names of the different books, she picked out a nameless one made of charred leather, carrying it to her desk.

She spent the next two hours combing over the book, taking note of as many details as she could. The ritual Somnia had to have performed required a full pony's worth of blood, something she wouldn't have been able to provide in a single day. Going back down to the lab with the book in her grasp, she compared the runes carved into the table with those in the book. Most lined up, but it was far too complex according to what the book had recorded down as the steps to 'harness the Fires of Tartarus'.

Then she began tracing the symbols, looking for exactly what each interacted with. The book provided more complicated rituals, some of which were comparable in complexity. While she read on the chair next to the equipment, the occasional scribbles from Celestia, Luna, or a third writer would appear. It wasn't from Somnia, as her writing was a lot neater, and it was written in Old Ponish, but wasn't like Star Swirl's messy horn-writing. The insights each provided into blood magic were fascinating, far surpassing what she had written an essay about years prior, and she made sure that essay was fully researched without actually reading the banned texts.

The third writer took note of different rituals that a pony can perform involving...

She got off of the chair and examined the engravings at the side. They were no longer glowing, but had been activated within the past day. Apparently meditation with certain runes could provide protection against Tartarus' evil entities, shielding the caster from being detected while they performed a ritual under a certain threshold, although these runes weren't like the ones listed. Going back over to the runes on the table, she grabbed a mostly empty flask that contained a few remaining droplets of blood, strategically dripping them onto certain runes and igniting her horn to examine the magical flow.

It all began to click as to what Somnia had done. She meditated to perform a certain task, likely to rapidly increase the blood production of her body and protect herself, then used the table runes to simultaneously activate two rituals, one that involved the 'Fires of Tartarus' and the other involving a 'blood bond', in this case bonding to a certain signature. Quick examination of the runes and extrapolation based on the other runes depicted in the book led her to the conclusion only she, Somnia's biological mother, and the filly herself would be able to drink the potion for its effects to activate.

"Damn... That's ingenious." Twilight voiced out loud, floating over some spare paper and a pen Somnia had left laying around, quickly taking note of all the different runes she had carved as well as the connection to the alchemy setup.

This is going to make for an excellent scientific paper! Twilight almost squealed in excitement. I'm going to have to ask her about this further when she gets up.

Let them come.

Are you sure?

Do it!

Somnia focused as Grar opened a temporary rift to the small chamber of her mind, allowing the entities on the outside to come in. Just as intended.

Once they got over their hesitation, the monstrous beasts flooded through the opening without end, all charging Somnia down.

This is my domain! Let this be the first of many lessons until I come for you in your home! Your days are numbered, foul demons! She quoted an old adventure novel and activated her horn, a function exclusive to her within the 'dreamscape', firing off a blast that vaporized two of the beasts instantly and giving pause to the others.

She galloped forward, firing off laser after laser banishing them back to Tartarus. They got close, some even managing to scratch her, but she was too much alone. This was her home territory, and she was invincible. They would gash her with their claws, the 'wound' being healed as quickly as it appeared. They swarmed her, quite literally piling against her in waves that broke under her magical might.

Each shot was deliberate and calculated. Dozens were wiped from the pocket of her mind with each blast, making room for even more to fill the void left behind. She sped up her motions by internally slowing her perception of time, rapidly carving her way into the horde that charged her down with blast after blast of focused magic.

The minor spawn were routed after two minutes of intense fighting, giving her the opportunity to chase them down to the very hole they had come from. Once the last limped from her mind, Grar closed the hole and began reinforcing it while Somnia rested.

"They... hit hard..." She panted out.

They are much weaker than the ones in the universe at large or in physical space. Here they are weakened by the Golden World. A suggestion for next time: Don't get hit. Getting hit directly impacts your mental defenses, draining you of energy to keep fighting. There are also other spells I can show you in order to delay their approach.

"Maybe another time." She fell to the non-existent ground, half-giggling half-panting. "That was awesome!"

It isn't as awesome when innocent lives are at stake. Here there is only you and me to worry about... Hold on. He opened the hole again, letting in a familiar entity.

"Good heavens, Somnia, are you hurt?" Luna landed next to her, checking the filly over with her magic.

"Did you see them running?" Somnia giggled to the mare standing over her.

"Did you..." She finished scanning the filly. "You aren't hurt?"

"Nah, they put up quite a fight before running though." Somnia sighed in relief. "Wanna practice with me next time?"

"Somnia, they are incredibly dangerous! You could have been killed, or worse, corrupted!"

"It's fine, they learned their lesson for now. Besides, that stone gave me near total control of my mind." Somnia ignited her horn and sealed the hole behind Luna.

"W-What are you doing?" She backed away from the now devilishly grinning filly who stood back up.

"Showing you something." She swirled energies around her, slowly at first but rapidly quickening. In front of her a Tartarus beast was constructed. "They weren't expecting me to capture a few for study, which makes them a valuable source of information and target practice."

"Somnia! Don't you dare--" Luna quickly flew into the air as the beast leapt at her. "What are you thinking?! That thing could kill us!"

"It won't." Somnia walked up to the beast growling at Luna, petting its head with a summoned hoof to the beast's confusion and annoyance. "I'm in complete control. It will never strike a damaging blow against you."

Luna lit her horn and circled the creature from above, firing laser after laser into it until it collapsed into magical sparks. "What? It was supposed to be destroyed completely!"

"I'm in control here." Somnia let out the breath she was holding. "It's attacks are measured by me, it's core is under my protection. Those last two lasers I took directly while I returned it to an isolated part of my mind."

"This is insane! Let me out!" Luna demanded, landing near to her.

"Very well." Somnia lit her horn and reopened the hole. "You are free to go, for now. But I'm warning you: Call off your undercover guards. If they aren't gone by tomorrow at noon, I'm sending the Queen's Guard to eliminate them."

"You would just have them killed?!" Luna angrily stepped towards her. "Twilight said--"

"I was wrong." Somnia declared sternly, her expression one of defiance and absolute seriousness. "I was wrong about my grandma. Sometimes a show of force is necessary to prevent more ponies from being hurt. If the three or however many guards you have aren't gone when the clock strikes twelve, we'll bury them in the Everfree Forest in a nice clearing that Isirilas picked out close to the path for their family to visit. Their blood will be on your hooves."

"Murder is a first-class felony punishable by long term imprisonment!" Luna shouted back.

"I'm not taking anymore of either of your orders. I'll do what I want to do, with or without your approval. If it's in the interests of Equestria, I'll help. If it's for my own good, I'll accept it. But I will not accept being controlled like a puppet!" Somnia tone shifted to light smile. "Please reconsider training with me. It gets awfully boring at night."

Luna bit back her response and flew from the small dreamscape back to where she came from, leaving Somnia to close the hole behind her.

You're playing a dangerous game.

"She'll see the light, eventually." Somnia sighed. "If only that could be said about Celestia."

Do you know what we will do about her when the time comes?

"Not yet. I don't want to kill her, or imprison her, or anything like that. I hope that she will step down and retire from politics when I'm ready to become queen properly. She's still family, and has done a lot for me since I arrived in Equestria."

The hardest choices require the strongest wills. Yours is unmatched, and the choice is only yours to make. There are likely several years before something needs to be done, so let us revisit this later on.

"Yeah, okay."

A knock at Somnia's door distracted her from the task at hoof. Taking off the grip-glove, she trotted over to the door and opened it to the friendly faces of her family.

"Hey, Somnia! Are you coming to the party?" Twilight asked curiously.

"Yup!" She trotted out on the other side of Twilight, opposite Spike. Trailing behind slightly were the colts, both having their own unoriginal thoughts. "Eyes up, Nightwind."

"Same goes for you, Duskwing." Twilight added, biting her tongue to suppress a blush.

Somnia giggled as Duskwing continued to stare at his marefriend's swishing tail that got ever so slightly more swishy. Her mom and dad seemed to be getting along, which was good considering what happened two weeks ago. Her own thoughts drifted to Nightwind behind her, getting her to fall back so she could walk with him. While he was embarrassed about being caught, he accepted her nuzzles into his neck.

Duskwing briefly quickened his pace to get in line next to Twilight, and from where she was, Somnia could make out the conversation.

"Is he your adopted son or something?"

"And number one assistant!" Spike proudly declared.

"Both of those." Twilight giggled. "I hatched him when I was trying out for Celestia's School For Gifted Unicorns. He's been with me ever since."

"Hatching a dragon egg can't be easy."

"It wasn't. Only with a magical surge from the sonic rainboom my other friend Rainbow Dash made was I able to get him to hatch."

"I heard that something weird happened back then. Unexplained natural phenomenon, according to the big brains from Cloudsdale."

"And when did you hear about this?"

"Yesterday, when Rainbow Dash told me."

"Right." She playfully bumped him with her hips. Opening the door to the throne room, confetti showered them from seemingly nowhere and the elements cheering out for their friend. While the others spoke to Twilight and Duskwing, Somnia picked up some of the confetti to examine.

Shame about what I'll have to do to her eventually.

Let's not think of this right now. This is supposed to be an occasion to celebrate!

Duskwing and Twilight were seated next to each other, a chair having been pulled up next to Twilight's throne for her coltfriend. Each of the elements were taking their places on their thrones after getting various snacks from around the room as Somnia closed her eyes. Three... Two... One...

The area in the center of the thrones began sprouting crystal, spreading out to create a table, a holographic display shimmering to life with a geographical map of Equestria, small models being in certain places to indicate where various notable locations were. From her perspective, Somnia could see unique energy signatures coming from different parts of Equestria. Different sections had unique patterns, some stronger than others, but none would help find the catalysts.

"This is incredible! It's got all of Equestria!" Spike exclaimed, hopping up onto the table.

"Hi, mom and dad!" Pinkie leaned to down to view the little rock farm that was promptly stepped on by Spike, drawing tears.

Somnia saw tendrils extend from the map to each of the elements, grabbing a small trace of them before floating them back over to the table. She decided to open her eyes to watch it unfold in real time. The visual representations of their cutie marks rotated around a particular point in the eastern Crystal Mountains.

"But if this is Ponyville, why are our cutie marks over there?" Fluttershy asked.

"I don't know. But it seems like the map wants us to find out. The tree, the chest, this castle, and now the map. How can we not follow it?" Twilight rhetorically asked.

"Y'know what? There's a ton of room for dangerous adventure along that route. Count me in!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.

"Aw, shoot, I reckon you're right." Applejack agreed.

"Well, I was hoping to finish this party then organize my baking sheets, but okay!" Pinkie excitedly added.

With a sigh from Rarity: "Very well."

"Um, maybe I'll just stay here with Spike and Somnia." Fluttershy suggested.

"Awesome! Me and Big Mac have a huge weekend ahead of us talkin' hoofball, and... and trading hoofball cards, and arguing about hoofball stats..." Spike smirked to her.

"O-On second thought, m-maybe I'd better go with them. In case they need me."

"Looks like it's time for a road trip!" Twilight declared, turning to Duskwing. "Do you mind looking after Somnia while I'm gone?"

"Not a problem." He put a hoof around her withers. "You can count on me."

"Thanks, handsome." She sarcastically rubbed her nose on his, getting some coo's from the other elements. "That settles it, let's go get packed!"

The elements all dispersed while Duskwing, Spike, and Somnia stuck around in the throne room.

"Hoofball, eh?" Duskwing smiled to Spike. "I could get into that."

"W-Well..." He nervously chuckled.

"I want in." Somnia happily declared. "I don't know anything about hoofball, but it will be a great chance to spend time together!"

"I-It's not a-actually hoofball." Spike rubbed the back of his neck. "It's actually O-Ogres & Oubliettes..."

"Is that a game of some sort?" Duskwing raised a brow.

"I'll go get the rules." Spike ran from the room, leaving the curious loiterers to sit on their respective chairs. Duskwing had claimed Twilight's throne, while Somnia sat in Rarity's. The filly closed her eyes, examining the world in slow motion.

"You tired?" Duskwing asked curiously.

"Shhhhh..." She tilted her head, listening. "Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Hmm, I guess not yet." She opened her eyes, smiling to her dad. "This will be something fun to do while they're gone. I don't know what Ogres & Oubliettes is, but sounds like it could be fun."

"Roll for perception." Spike turned back to Somnia who rolled the dice. Unbeknownst to everypony else, Somnia could predict the outcomes of every dice roll and deliberately choose whether it would succeed or fail. It made for some interesting situations, especially when she would get a Natural 1 on purpose just to see how the others would react, or Natural 20 on meaningless things.

Rolling, she positioned it so she would barely fail the roll. "You see nothing helpful in the abandoned shed."

"Well, what is in the shed?" She asked.

"A broom and a broken rake."

"I grab the broken wooden end of the rake." She declared.

"It's not even useful!" Spike threw his claws into the air exasperated. "Why are you collecting all this junk?!"

"You'll see." She winked, not actually having an plan for the collection. A stretchy frayed rope, two dozen small rocks, two medium sized rocks, various nails and screws, bits of bark from several trees, a roll of twine, pieces of wood she picked up off the ground, and now a broken rake.

"Typical Grubber..." Big Mac shook his head.

"Hey, isn't this supposed to be role playing?" Duskwing questioned. "Can I steal the broom?"

"It's abandoned!" Spike huffed. "Nopony owns it! What are you even going to do with a broom?!"

"What about if I take off the end of it and turn it into a staff?"

"Roll for ingenuity." Spike rubbed his eyes as Duskwing rolled a Nat-1.

"That's bad, isn't it?" He nervously smiled.

"Wedging the broom under a rock, you jump onto it and break it into splinters." Spike sighed. "Are we ever going to get into battle with the group of enemies just over the hill?"

"Where's the fun in that?" Somnia shrugged. "Screwing around is half the fun."

"I go to the top of the hill and scout the group of skeletons." Big Mac said, receiving a sigh from Spike.

"Roll a D-100." The red stallion nervously rolled the dice, resulting in a 47.

"What's gonna happen?"

"Due to your armor's reflective properties, they catch a glimpse of you from atop the hill and move in on your position." Spike declared, straightening up triumphantly. "Sir McBiggun is atop the hill closest to the charging enemies, both Grubber the Insane and Featherflight are at the bottom of the hill on the opposite side. Roll for initiative."

Each of them rolled a D-100, Somnia receiving a 96 while Big Mac had a 73 and Duskwing a 28. Spike did a few hidden rolls for the enemies.

"Alright, there's four enemies in total. Two skeleton warriors, a skeleton archer, and a lesser necromage. Grubber, you rolled highest so you begin."

"I make a slingshot crossbow with the junk I've been collecting." Somnia giggled at the confused yet annoyed expression on Spike's face.

"WHAT?! How?! It's junk!"

"Want a demonstration?" She raised a brow. "Or can I roll?"

"If it succeeds, I want a demonstration or it's an automatic failure." He sighed.

Rolling, Somnia rolled a Nat-20, smirking to Spike. "How about that?"

"Prove it!" He glared at her.

Getting down from her throne, she galloped out of the throne room while the others continued. Spike did a few hidden rolls. "The skeleton archer fires an arrow at Sir McBiggun."

"I deflect it with my sword!"

"Roll for dexterity." He watched as Big Mac rolled. "16, minus the penalties from armor, 8, and the rolls of the archer means... you take five damage." Spike shrugged.

He slumped back in his chair while Spike moved the cardboard cut-outs of the warriors closer and the mage 'cast' an illusion spell to reduce ranged attack accuracy against them. "Alright, Featherflight, what are you going to do?"

"Can I charge them?" Duskwing asked curiously.

"You don't have a line of sight, and you aren't in range." Spike deadpanned.

"Can I fly over to Sir McBiggun?"

Spike quickly checked his reference sheet. "You can get most of the way up the hill, all the way if you exhaust yourself and sit out the following round."

"I go most of the way, but not right to Sir McBiggun."

"Fine." Spike looked around. "Where's Somnia? It's her turn!"

"I'm here!" She called back, breathing heavily with saddlebags on her back, different pieces of wood sticking out. "I got the stuff!" Dumping out the items onto the table: "Look adequate for the demonstration?"

"Yup. I'll skip your turn while you make it. Sir McBiggun, your turn."

Spike kept his eyes on Somnia while she worked. Using a medium sized rock, she hammered the nails and screws into the wood to combine the pieces while using the twine to double secure it. Once finished with the general frame, she put one rock onto the ground and threw the other directly into it, breaking it half. She used the edge to make small carvings to fit the rope on with a bark sling, tying it all together with more twine. She grabbed one of the small rocks she had brought and put it into the sling made of bark, pulling it back with all her strength.

"Believe me?" She fired it at the wall, breaking the rock against the crystal.

All three of them hadn't even moved since she started, all watching in fascination. "Woah." Big Mac uttered.

"S-So what do you do?" Spike turned back to him.

"I retreat from the hill."

"Okay, you run back down the hill towards Featherflight. The four skeletons continue to approach. The two warriors are now on top of the hill. Featherflight?"

"I fall back towards Grubber."

Spike sighed. "You can't run forever, but fine, you return to where you started from. Grubber, what's your move?"

"I fire a rock at one of the Sir McBigguns' leg to disable movement." The other three stared at her quizzically.

"Hold on, you can't pick specific body parts." Spike countered.

"Come on, where's the fun in that?" She playfully pawed at him. "They aren't real. It's alright if sticks and stones break their bones. Or at least hold them in place for a turn or two."

With a sigh: "Roll for dexterity."

Somnia giggled as she tossed the die, 17, barely passing. All three stared at the die in disbelief.

"Sir McBiggun, do you dodge?"

"Eeyup!" He rolled the die, resulting in a 3 and a disgruntled mumble as he crossed his forelegs.

Spike turned back to Somnia. "Roll for critical?"

5

"You fire the rock and it hits Sir McBiggun's leg, crippling him from moving for two turns." Spike said in utter confusion. "Sir McBiggun, what are you going to do?"

"I stand my ground." He stated in disappointment, glaring at Somnia. "Can't move, now can I?"

"The two skeleton warriors approach you and attack. Roll for endurance."

18

"With your extra endurance from your armor, you take no damage from their combined attack." Spike scratched his head. "The skeleton archer and mage move to the top of the hill. The archer fires an arrow at Featherflight and Grubber." He rolled in secret. "It missed."

"I pull the rope back on the crossbow." Duskwing smirked at Spike.

"O-kay... You pull the rope back. Grubber...?"

"I aim for the necromatic sigil on the mage with my crossbow and fire."

"Roll for dexterity..."

20!

"Roll for damage?"

20!

"Roll for crit?!"

20!

All three blinked a few times each as they saw the result. Quickly checking the strength stat of Featherflight, the necromage's highest armor stat, and the properties of the 'necromatic sigil' according to the eighth edition rules, he gave a deep sigh. "You fire the rock at the sigil, breaking it into pieces, unleashing the energy from the necromage, defeating all three other skeletons and knocking down Sir McBiggun. You win..." He hit his head on the table as Somnia squealed in delight while hugging Duskwing.

"Am I alright?" Big Mac asked worriedly.

"You had barely enough life. You're down to one life point." Spike turned up from his reference sheets, squinting annoyedly at Somnia. "That was supposed to be the big battle, you know!"

"What about the loot?" Duskwing struggled out under the crushing grip. "Anything interesting?"

"An enchanted spear, two enchantment stones, and a pouch with assorted gemstones." Spike checked his notes. That was everything he had planned for the starter session. Tavern, bounty board, basic combat tutorial, small travel segment, big battle to finish off. And they managed not only to avoid the basic combat tutorial due to a taming check from Featherflight, but the traveling section went far longer than he intended, taking them towards a destroyed cottage to 'investigate'.

"We'll take it all!" Big Mac declared. "Time to head back to town!"

"That's all I had..." Spike mumbled, returning his glare at Somnia. "Were you cheating?"

She gasped. "How could you accuse me of such a thing? It's not like I can see the future or anything." The filly picked back up the makeshift crossbow, loading another stone. "Catch."

She fired it over Spike's head, getting him to duck. "Somnia! What was that for?!"

Caught it. Excalion cawed from behind him, flying over to place it on the table. I really should be the one in charge of story telling. I won't run out of ideas or allow Somnia to cheat. Also so you can play as well, Spike.

"Fine. What happens next?" He looked to the bird that strutted along the table, levitating a few pencils around it as it began drawing on the spare cardboard cutouts.

The trip back isn't nearly as calm as the trio expected. Featherflight carried Sir McBiggun upon their back, straining from the added pressure. Ahead of them, a robed figure was reading a map--

"I approach and sneeze on their map!" Somnia laughed.

"What?" The three guys asked at the same time.

Before you could get too close, the robed figure turns to you, revealing themself to be none other than the renowned magician, Garbunkle!

"Halt, adventurers! It is I! Garbunkle of Spiketopia!" Spike mimicked what he believed Garbunkle to sound like. "Are you locals to these parts?"

"Hips fillibreak, Garbunkle! It is good to meet another fellow scholar of the arts!" Somnia gave off a crackly and old voice for her character. "Do you have flowers on that map of yours? Or are you just slipping in the mud?"

"Ignore her, honorable one." Big Mac humbly stated. "She's lost more than a few marbles."

"I groan and drop Sir McBiggun to the ground. He can walk on his own." Duskwing playfully rolled his eyes.

"Pray tell, from where do you hail, knight?" Garbunkle asked.

"My king abandoned their duty to the people." The indomitable knight got up onto their hooves. "I left to seek help in defeating the Squizard!"

"It wouldn't happen to have been the king of Spiketopia, would it?" The enchanter approached. "I left in seek of help against the forces of the Squizard in the service of Lady Shmarity."

"Might as well call her Charity." Somnia snickered, getting a blush from Spike.

"I-It's a normal name in Spiketopia!" He defended.

Focus, adventurers. The leaves surrounding you rustle with an unnatural breeze, chills running down your backs. Limping down the pathway from the hill, a half charred skeleton approaches with a fire from where their sigil formerly was...

"Good to see you again, Princess Twilight." Dawn opened the door to the castle to allow her entry, the princess only giving the briefest of smiles as she trudged past. Going straight for her room, she didn't even bother to get ready for bed before collapsing down on it. Giving a content sigh, Twilight pulled the sheets over herself, getting a bit of pull back.

Lighting up her horn, she stared into the amused smile of a thestral. "Have a nice trip?"

"GAH!" She shot up. "What are you doing in my bed?!"

"This is my room, remember?" He chuckled, sitting up to face her. "What happened?"

Twilight settled back onto the bed, although she stayed above the sheets. "A pony named Starlight Glimmer had enslaved her entire village. We helped the townsfolk see through her lies."

"Is she getting comfy in a dungeon cell in Canterlot?"

"No, she escaped." Twilight sighed. "I tried getting through to her, but she didn't want to listen."

"Hey, it's alright. You can't win every battle." Duskwing rubbed her back. "Are the other ponies alright?"

"Yeah. She tried to hurt them, but I managed to put up a shield in time." She laid down, snuggling closer to him and closing her eyes.

"It's good to hear almost everything worked out." He laid back down, wrapping the other half of the blanket over her. "You'll probably have a lot more opportunities to help in the future. Maybe you'll even find her again and be able to convince her."

"Yeah, maybe." Twilight gave one last half smile before drifting to sleep, shuffling a bit closer into his warmth.

"Goodnight, princess. Sleep well."

She mumbled back: "Goodnight, Dusking. Love you."

He let it be, snuggling closer to her. Love you too, Twi.

Author's Note

Fun fact: Duskwing's personality is a mixture of the original plan and that of his brother, Gravewing. Since I decided Gravewing was going to be deceased, I merged their personalities.