Freedom

by marmalado

Rating: everyone
Tags: Opaline, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Izzy Moonbow, Dark, Alternate Universe, Misty, My Little Pony: A New Generation, Sunny Starscout, Cozy Glow, Adventure
Length: 7578

Cozy Glow was the only pony to witness Sunny's and Izzy's ascensions.

Sunny Starscout and Izzy Moonbow didn't think anypony was around in the old, dilapidated and rusted Canterlot when they managed to become alicorns.

Little did they know, however, that there was somepony around.

And little do they know, she's got big plans for them.

Her, and two other ponies who aren't too happy with the prospect of new rulers to continue what Celestia and Luna had done.

A side story to Solar and Lunar. Prior reading is not required to understand this story, but it is recommended.

Very last-minute entry for the 4th Annual Cozy Glow Short Story Contest, combining the prompts:

- From the ruins of Canterlot slunk Cozy Glow...
- Cozy Glow had never heard of Maretime Bay before.

Published 2023-09-25 10:50:00 UTC
Last updated 2023-09-25 10:50:00 UTC

Getting Cozy in a Newfound Equestria

Cozy Glow wasn't sure how she managed to get free, exactly.

One moment, she was hit with a rainbow beam and trapped in stone, with a hideous look of fear on her face that made her look like an utter coward.

And the next moment, she was a free filly, lying on the ground and in immense pain.

As she slowly rose to her hooves and rubbed her head, she opened her eyes to take in her surroundings. Oddly enough, it looked completely desolate, with nothing but grays and browns littering the environment. Even the skies seemed to be stuck in a state of perpetual cloudiness, and there was no hint of blue anywhere.

One thing she also noted was that in a sea of dilapidation, she was the brightest thing in the entire area.

She turned around, staring at her former comrades who were, to her dismay, still trapped in stone. She took a step forward, contemplating making attempts to free them, before she scoffed and turned back around. If Chrysalis nor Tirek were freed in addition to her, then it had to be nothing but fate. Besides, they were nothing more than dead weight to her. She could take over Equestria on her own, by her own means. She didn't need some egotistical changeling and dumb-brute centaur to help her do it. After all, she tried to do it once on her own, and would have succeeded if not for her grave oversight. She could do it again, surely, especially if the rest of Equestria was as run-down as Canterlot was.

Cautiously, she began trotting through town, keeping her senses on high alert in case that smelly old Twilight Sparkle and her ragtag team of inbred friends came a-knocking. Even though it seemed unlikely she would ever meet them given the state of the place, she could never be too careful. The buildings, much like the structure of the town itself, looked to be long since out of order, and some looked downright unsafe to be in. When she looked at those buildings, a thought nagged at her mind, telling her to be as rebellious as she always had been and go explore, but she pushed it away. She knew better. She was free, and she wasn't about to let an act of stupidity bring it all crashing down.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed by the time she had made it to the town center. The wind that blew was piercing and chilling, but it didn't bother her any. Within its soft howling, however, she heard a voice.

It sounded like...singing?

Who the heck could be singing at a time like this? Cozy's muzzle wrinkled in disgust. I mean, at least it's not Twilight or any of the others...at least, I hope not.

Normally, she would have thought to veer far away from the voice. She didn't need some stupid companion to explore the ruins of the city she had once sought to take over in her conquest for the country. But if somepony was actually here, as a living, breathing being who still had joy and whimsy, it would be a miracle beyond most anything Cozy had ever seen before.

So she decided to get closer to the song, however disgustingly pleasant it was.

She weaved through alleyway after alleyway, ducked behind all sorts of ruins, and kept her eyes and ears open for any sign of the voice's source, all the while her mind running with a million questions.

It wasn't until she rounded the bend and hugged the side of an old house that she spotted a unicorn that was no bigger than her, with a curly blue-and-purple mane and tail. Her fur was a shade of purple that reminded Cozy of Twilight, and she couldn't help but stick her tongue as she tried to get the memory of that thing out of her mind. The unicorn filly was bouncing with glee and singing a ditty that was nothing but pure gibberish, but what mattered to Cozy was where she was going.

The castle!

Her head tilted upwards as she took in the view of the building she had once so mercilessly destroyed. If she was being honest, it being destroyed looked a lot better than what it looked like now, with its broken stairs and its boarded-up windows.

Not wanting to lose the filly as she went into the castle, Cozy chased after her, instinctively flapping her wings in an effort to gain flight. This only served to make her plummet to the ground chin-first, and she came to the obvious realization that, having been trapped in stone for so long, her wings didn't work as well as they should. Grumbling, she decided to chase after the filly on hoof, racing into the castle and shutting the door behind her.

Cozy knew the castle well, of course, and so she had very little issue with direction, especially since she was merely following a bouncing singing pony. She made sure to stay quiet as the filly went down hallway after hallway, wondering if she even knew where she was going in the midst of her deluded happiness.

Suddenly, the filly stopped, both in her song and in her gait. Cozy did too, moving her head around to seek a hiding place and finding one where a portion of the wall jutted out to form an arch. Only her head stuck out, watching as the filly moved her head to the left as though noticing something.

The filly ducked into the room. Cozy opted to hang back to see what would happen, so she wouldn't risk getting caught.

A loud hum echoed out of the room and through the halls. With it came the filly, struggling to pry her hoof off of some round object that was holding it high into the air.

Now this is more like it! Grinning, Cozy bolted after the filly, ignoring her vain attempts at freeing her hoof and the frantic cries that came with it. Excitement coursed through Cozy's veins as she began to wonder what, exactly, the object was. It was being levitated by magic, and not from the filly's horn, so that eliminated any theory of magic being entirely gone. Cozy came to the conclusion that it had to be some kind of a magical artifact, one that was left behind by somepony sometime in between when she was turned to stone and when she was freed. She only had a limited field of senses when she was trapped, so she wasn't too sure when it was left behind or what it even was. All she knew was that it was powerful, and she wasn't going to lie, she wanted it for herself.

The artifact stopped when it reached a large set of double doors, then veered a sharp right. Cozy, for her part, slunk inside as quickly and as quietly as she could, examining the room for places to hide. Conveniently, there was a spot right behind a rather thick and ugly-looking pillar that would be perfect for concealing a tiny pink-and-blue winged body, and she ducked behind there before peeking her head out just far enough to be able to see.

With a grunt, the filly fell to the ground, the artifact having been freed from her hoof. It too clattered to the ground, its ethereal glow dying down. A small part of Cozy's mind told her to make a mad grab for the device, but she decided to stay put. After all, she really didn't feel like being infected by this other pony's nauseating goodness. It certainly wasn't the fake kind of goodness that Cozy had mastered.

"Hello?" The filly got to her hooves and poked the artifact. "I'm Izzy Moonbow! And I'm asking you, why did you take me to this room?" She craned her head all around as she examined it. "What are you, even?"

She got no response. It took every inch of willpower for Cozy to hold back a mighty guffaw of mockery.

The filly, called Izzy, began trotting around the room aimlessly. She admired the tapestries, the architecture, and the furniture. All the while, she began having a conversation with the artifact that couldn't talk, which only served as a willing challenge for Cozy to not laugh or mock her. Not because she didn't want to, of course, but because she had to stay hidden.

And then Izzy began singing songs she had made up, and the fun was over for Cozy as she fought to keep her eardrums from bleeding.

An unknown amount of time later -- Cozy felt like it had been hours, but who really knew -- the latest hit by one Miss Izzy Moonbow had come to an abrupt stop, which was enough for the Pegasus filly to perk up and poke her head out from behind the pillar again.

Flopping on the ground was another filly, this time an Earth pony with orange fur and a purple mane. Sort of like if Applejack had borrowed part of Twilight's mane, Cozy guessed.

"Oh! Ohhh my gosh, it's another pony!"

Another artifact fell beside the Earth filly, and Cozy's eyes widened as she realized that it looked almost identical to the one Izzy had.

Like they're...two halves of one artifact.

"And...and an Earth pony too!" Izzy began bouncing up and down. "Oh my gosh, this is so exciting! My name's Izzy Moonbow. What's your name?"

"Uh...m-my name's Sunny. Sunny Starscout."

Cozy's muzzle wrinkled. Sunny Starscout? Ugh, sounds like she's some dumb relative of Twilight's or something.

The Pegasus filly watched as Sunny picked up her half of the amulet. "Um, why are you here?"

"Oh! Funny story about that, actually." Izzy began reiterating the details of how she got to Canterlot to begin with, as Cozy took extensive mental notes. The name "Bridlewood" and the reveal that there was a portal in existence that connected Canterlot to it stuck out in her mind the most. As far as she was concerned, Equestria -- at least, the Equestria she knew -- didn't have a Bridlewood. And she was pretty well-versed in geography to know that for a fact. But at the same time, Canterlot didn't have a portal, either. She couldn't recall hearing anything about a portal from her time as a living pony or as a pony trapped in stone, and it made her curious.

If I went through that portal...I could still take over Equestria! Cozy thought, her face lighting up with hope and anticipation. If Canterlot is this much in shambles, Celestia, Luna and Twilight have to be gone...maybe not dead, though I'd definitely prefer if they were...and I bet the Equestria beyond the portal is full of life! Life to rule over, to crush under my hoof...

Just as a wicked grin came over her face, it died unceremoniously. She had been so lost in thought that she nearly missed Sunny attempting to fix the amulet by piecing the two parts together.

"But how is it gonna stay together?" Izzy asked. "Oh, oh, I know! Do you have some tape? Or some Ponilla Glue? Glue's much better than tape, in my opinion."

A loud hum began emulating from the amulet right then. Cozy watched with her full attention as two white tendrils of magic began twirling into the air and enabled both Sunny and Izzy with the ability to float. Their eyes glowing a bright ethereal white didn't sway Cozy any, as she watched the tendril under Sunny break off into multiples and begin snaking around the filly, extending out from her sides and from her head. The same thing happened to Izzy, only with one tendril wrapping around her horn and glowing so brightly that Cozy had to shield her eyes with her front leg.

The ordeal was over in less than a minute, but the aftermath was something unlike Cozy had ever seen before.

Where an Earth pony and a unicorn once stood, there were now two alicorns. Real-deal, bonafide, no-imitations-accepted alicorns.

Cozy's jaw dropped. Izzy's horn lighting up caused her to duck back behind the pillar as a reflex, but she was otherwise in complete and utter shock.

But I thought...how did these two become...

Her gaze drifted to the amulet. All it did was give a single shimmer as soon as the magic retracted itself back into it.

What is that thing?

She watched as Sunny did a loop-de-loop into the air and landed back on the ground, telling Izzy something about how her dad had told her stories of alicorns but she didn't think they were real. As somepony who had been one, Cozy had to resist firing off a witty retort, right through when Sunny began explaining to Izzy about all the unicorns of...

Of...

Wait, did she just say "ancient" Equestria?

Cozy was stuck in a whirlwind of emotions and thoughts. On the one hoof, this being ancient Equestria cemented that a lot of time had passed since she had been turned to granite -- and even that was an understatement. But on the other hoof, this being ancient Equestria cemented that whatever was beyond that portal led to Equestria as it was now, an Equestria that was as sweet and peaceful and harmonious as it was before she began her reign of glorious terror.

I have to go through that portal. If these two fillies came from there, then I can just follow them! Easy!

Cozy saw Izzy despondently place the amulet in Sunny's hooves and plod away, with the energetic filly calling her by title and name and rushing after her. That was the Pegasus filly's cue to book her flank out of the room and follow them.

Throughout the entire journey there, both alicorns -- or Princesses, as they referred to themselves as, much to Cozy's disgust -- stayed silent. The air had been negative before, but now it seemed even more crushed by their bad moods. The only pony who had gone home happy was Cozy, who felt like she could walk on air. And she probably would have, if her wings would cooperate with her, but every attempt she tried ended in failure.

By the time the portal came into view, her hooves were growing sore. Which was rather odd, because normally she had a lot more stamina. But she supposed that was a caveat of being turned into a rock and staying there for moons upon moons. She figured she should be lucky that any part of her body was working at all after what she went through. She watched Sunny and Izzy go through the portal, but decided to wait a few moments before following them, not wanting to risk getting caught.

In that minute that she waited, she turned to face Canterlot. The city where she had once nearly succeeded in her takeover of Equestria was nothing more than a pale shadow of its former self. Now that she thought about it, she supposed that whatever had caused its downfall had eliminated the dirty work for her, bringing only end results that she could easily steal the credit for.

The thought made her smirk as she took a deep breath and stepped into the portal that would mark her journey into present-day Equestria. For her sake, she hoped the present day was just as soulless as the ancient era.

As it turned out, the portal led to a small cave that was only a few hoofsteps away from the entrance -- an easy feat for Cozy, as she climbed out with ease.

So far, present-day Equestria didn't look any different than ancient Equestria. Her head moved to the left, where Izzy was still plodding off like she just got told her parents died in a carriage crash. Then her head moved to the right, where Sunny was walking with more gusto even though it was clear something was troubling her.

Two directions, one filly. Which way would Cozy go?

Ultimately, she decided to follow Sunny. She wasn't sure why, but the now-alicorn filly radiated Twilight vibes, and Cozy figured that if she studied her, she would have a pretty good idea on how to take down Equestria with the gift of newfound freedom that she had been given.

Quickly and quietly, she stalked the filly, making sure to take in the sights. Present-day Equestria looked peaceful, disturbingly so. It certainly didn't surprise Cozy that it looked like that, not with her keeping things in check. One of the things that did surprise her, though, was that there were no other Pegasi in the sky, or any unicorns trotting past her. Granted, she was on a path that appeared to be a bit out of the way of any kind of equine civilization, but it almost seemed like a dead zone for anything but a few odd-looking creatures and some flowers.

By the time Cozy and Sunny had come into view of some semblance of life, the former's hooves and legs were screaming in pain. Now she wanted nothing more than to sit, relax, and plan her next move. But no matter how much her hooves and legs hurt, she refused to lose sight of the filly she had taken an invested interest in. She had only just begun assembling the puzzle, and she would not stop until it was finished.

An Earth pony came trotting up to them, almost in a manner that he wanted to pass them. Sunny stopped and glanced up, but before she could say anything, the pony trotted away with a startled look on his face. The alicorn paid him little mind, instead continuing on her way. Cozy, on the other hoof, had a big stupid grin on her face.

Ha! He's terrified of me, I just know it! We made eye contact!

She almost wanted to call out after him. Almost. But common sense won over in the end, and so she continued to follow Sunny to what she determined was the other filly's home. A big lighthouse in appearance, Cozy became overtaken by curiosity and set her plans to explore on the back burner, waiting until Sunny ducked inside before approaching the building.

"Dad? I'm home!"

"In here, Sunny-bunny!"

Cozy's ears swiveled as she tried to pinpoint the source of the voice. The windows were open in the front, so she assumed all the windows in the building were open as well. As a conversation was held regarding Sunny's new alicorn form, Cozy parked her flank right outside a window that was situated pretty high up, and wanting to give her hooves the rest they so badly needed, she decided to try again with her wings.

Nothing. She fell chin-first, just as she had in Canterlot.

What? This makes no sense! She rose into a sitting position. That stupid amulet had magic! Ponies have magic! I should have magic!

Slowly, rage began to build inside of her.

Unless...me being turned into stone took my magic away.

No. She refused to accept it. It was a wild theory, a baseless theory. She could still fly, she just needed some time for the ability to return to her. The waiting game sucked, but she would be able to fly once more if she played it and flew home a winner.

Besides, she had more important things to do right now. The more she walked, trotted, and galloped, the more stamina would return to her, anyway.

She pushed all of her thoughts aside and listened as the stallion inside the house -- Sunny's dad, she guessed -- began discussing the amulet that Sunny had brought home with her, again taking extensive mental notes.

The Sun and Moon Amulet, huh? Cozy tapped her chin. Celestia and Luna had it, but they gave it to Twilight while they were away... She shook her head. Probably because she was so weak she couldn't move the sun and the moon on her own. How pathetic!

The information was juicy, and it could certainly be used to Cozy's advantage, but it left her unfulfilled. She still had a lot of questions.

"Dad...can we go outside, and you can tell me more? Pleeeeeeease?"

"Of course. C'mon."

Cozy's ear lifted as high as it would go without detaching from her head. The sound of hoofsteps fading away provided her with the perfect chance to sneak inside, and although she failed the first two times due to her legs having not been used in many moons, she was able to grip the windowsill with her front legs and hoist the rest of her tiny body up.

Once she was inside, she began having a look around the room. Since Sunny's dad knew about the amulet, it wasn't too hard to guess that he was knowledgeable about a lot of stuff in regards to ancient Equestria -- stuff that, like the amulet and what it did, could be used to Cozy's advantage. She knew that she couldn't take stuff from the room without him or Sunny getting suspicious, and so, she relied on her brain to store as much information as she possibly could.

With that decided, she hoofed her way through all sorts of books, articles, and artifacts, making sure to put them away exactly as she found them. She was able to find more information on the Sun and Moon Amulet in particular...

The Sun and Moon Amulet: Infused with small portions of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna's powers, this amulet allowed Princess Twilight Sparkle to control the sun and the moon when they were unable to do so for any reason. Most notably, it was placed in the care of Twilight when Celestia and Luna left on vacation. It was activated using Twilight's magic, but somehow, it managed to break. The amulet fell into disuse when Twilight ascended to become the new ruler of Equestria, having learned the natural ability to move the sun and the moon just as Celestia and Luna had.

...but it told her next to nothing. What she had really wanted to find out was why and how it was able to make Sunny and Izzy alicorns. Simply touching it did nothing to Cozy; she didn't feel any magic coming out of it nor did she see any wispy tendrils extending from it.

Maybe it's because they have "sun" and "moon" in their names? But "cozy glow" could totally describe both the sun and the moon! The stars! Space, even! It's not fair!

She paused, and took a deep breath. Now was not the time for getting angry, not when a stallion and his daughter were right outside. Now was the time for research. She could let her emotions out later.

On and on she went, reading books and studying artifacts that reeked of ancient Equestria. None of them provided her with many answers, either to how Sunny and Izzy became alicorns or to what had happened to the country while Cozy had been in her stone prison -- yes, she had a new goal now. She figured she would kill two ponies with one magic blast. But as far as she was concerned, the information Sunny's dad had was all worthless.

She angrily threw Equestria: What You Need to Know to the floor, quickly grabbed a nearby cloth (it had many uses), and made a hasty retreat out of the window, galloping past the house and away from Sunny and her dad. As she looked up to the sky and saw the sun setting, she came to a stop.

Not that she could see it very well, of course, but she could have sworn that there was magic encasing the sun. And lowering it.

She didn't know who it belonged to...no, that was a lie. She knew exactly who it belonged to. It was obvious, really. A pony with "sun" in their name, lowering the sun? And...now, a pony with "moon" in their name, raising the moon?

Those dumb, pathetic fillies...they're gonna be the new Celestia and Luna, aren't they? Cozy ground her teeth together. I should kill them while I have the chance. If I kill them, then there won't be any new rulers! I can take over Equestria on my own!

She jerked her head away and blinked a few times to let her vision readjust. When she was able to see again, she saw a view of a town that certainly didn't look like any town she had ever seen. Her thoughts of nipping the leadership problem in the bud were set to the side, and she suddenly felt a tug of curiosity.

Maybe that town can give me some answers.

Taking a deep breath, she took the cloth from where she had slung it over her back, sat on her haunches, and tied it around her. By the time she was done, it looked like she had gotten a nasty stomach wound and was using the cloth for absorption and pressure -- which was exactly the excuse she planned to devise. After all, if her wings were worthless, she was just as basic as any common Earth pony.

She quickly darted away from the lighthouse home and began heading for the town as fast as her hooves would carry her, hoping her cloth didn't make her stick out. The closer she got into town, the closer she saw more signs of civilization, as ponies began pouring out from some nearby building and flooding the streets -- Earth ponies, to be specific.

Where are all the Pegasi and all the unicorns? Cozy scoffed. Is this some weird freaky town of just Earth ponies? Ugh, that doesn't help me at all! Earth ponies can't even do anything! They don't even have magic!

Rage began building inside of her again. A few more deep breaths fixed that.

She, of course, listened to the conversations as she walked. Most of the ponies were talking about weird inventions like "Pega-Gravity Boots" and "Uni-Mirrors", while others mentioned some pony named Phyllis and her "Canterlogic inventions". Truth be told, Cozy was not interested. None of the names she heard sounded anything close to a descriptor of a magical artifact, let alone one that made ponies into alicorns that could control the sun and moon.

Her stomach growled with such ferocity that it echoed throughout the town square, causing her to widen her eyes. She hadn't eaten since she had gotten freed, and if she was being honest, it was a miracle that she had made it this far without food. Perhaps it was the rest of her body finally realizing that she was a free filly once more.

"You poor thing!" A mare trotted up to her. "Are you hungry?"

Nah, I'm just making weird growling noises. What do you think?! Cozy wanted to snap at her. But instead, she put on her sickly-sweet facade, the same one she had practiced and wielded for years, and smiled while nodding. "Golly, miss, it wouldn't be too much trouble to ask you if you had any food, would it?"

"Oh, no, of course not!" The mare waved a hoof. "I'm pretty sure Le Chehz is still open. Why don't I treat you?"

Cozy placed a hoof to her lips. "No, I-I couldn't possibly!"

"Please. I insist." The mare took ahold of the filly's leg. "Come on."

And so, Cozy was led down the streets, passing Earth pony after Earth pony, her stomach growling all the while as though getting impatient. She set everything to the side for now, only focusing on getting herself filled up. After all, it was much easier to work on a full stomach.

When offered shelter for the night by Mayflower, as she was so called, Cozy agreed. She wanted nothing more than to sleep in a nice and, dare she say, cozy bed after her previous bed had been nonexistent.

The home was nice, she had to admit, but even she knew that it was only temporary. All she was here for was to unravel the mystery behind Sunny and Izzy being alicorns, and unravel the mystery behind ancient Equestria's poor state. Once that was done, she could live her life as she so pleased, beginning with her takeover of Equestria and serving as its proud ruler.

The only problem was that Mayflower was a nuisance. She was nothing but a future pawn in Cozy's conquest. She had repeatedly asked about the filly's wrapping, only for her to keep reiterating that it was purely for accessorizing and wasn't for any injury she had. It wasn't until Cozy snapped at her that Mayflower shut up about it.

"Come here, dearie." cooed Mayflower from her spot on the balcony. In her hooves were a pair of binoculars, which immediately piqued Cozy's interest. What better tool to provide her a good vantage point of the town she now knew was called Maretime Bay? She could make all sorts of mental notes from what she could see from afar.

Once Cozy arrived on the balcony, Mayflower gave her the binoculars, and she immediately got to looking. She tuned out the older pony as she went on about how the tool was some family heirloom passed down through at least five generations, and instead looked out beyond the sea that lined the town.

Off in the distance, farther than Cozy could imagine, was a castle. It almost looked like a relic of the castle she had so beautifully wrecked in ancient Equestria, lined with a bridge for easy access...but this castle seemed a little different in a way she couldn't describe. She lowered the binoculars and opened her mouth to ask what the castle was, but ultimately decided to close it and resume looking.

I wonder if anypony lives there, she thought. It sure looks evil. And it would be great for me! A wicked grin spread across her features. It's really far away, though, but the journey will be so worth it. And maybe, just maybe, I can find out how to become an alicorn there!

"Are you coming to bed?"

Cozy snapped out of her scheming by the silky voice of Mayflower. Her head turned, and she shook it. "I'm going to sit out here a little while longer."

"All right."

The filly waited until the sound of hoofsteps were nonexistent. Then she got back to looking at the castle.

That's it. First thing tomorrow. I'm leaving for that castle. I don't know how I'm gonna get there, especially without my wings...but I'll make do. Just like I've always done.

Her thoughts ceased as a voice made itself known.

You. Filly.

The greeting was so sudden that Cozy blinked a few times in surprise and confusion, forgetting to put on her facade of innocence. "Uh...yeah?"

Come to me.

Cozy shook her head, and blinked her shimmering eyes again. "Golly, miss! I don't know who you are. My name's Cozy Glow, and-"

I know who you are, idiot! snapped the voice. Just come to me!

"Well golly, I wish I could, but I don't even know where you are! Maybe you could be oh so kind as to give me a map?"

The voice groaned. You see that castle, don't you?

Almost immediately, Cozy's dreams were shot to bits and pieces. "Don't tell me that's your castle?"

No, it belongs to Twilight Sparkle, the voice spat. Of course it belongs to me! Who else?

"Uh, me?" Cozy offered. "I was gonna use it as a base of op- uh, I mean, a home, maybe find out how to become an alicorn again..."

A base of operations? This castle is much more than a base of opera- The voice paused. Wait. Did you just say "how to become an alicorn again"?

"Yeah?"

Again?!

Cozy rubbed her forehead, suddenly getting flashbacks to when she worked together with Queen Chrysalis. She wouldn't be surprised if that changeling, full of holes as she was (in both the physical and mental sense), was speaking to her from beyond the stone prison. But it didn't sound like her.

"Yeah. Again." The filly rolled her eyes. "What's it to you? Who are you, anyway?"

You will know when you arrive. Come to me, my little pony. Together, we can achieve great things.

Cozy scoffed. "Whatever. I'm not interested in working with some villain wannabe." She rolled her eyes. "But I'll still come. Just so I can find out how alicorns are made here in this new Equestria."

New Equestria? The voice sounded genuinely confused. This is the same Equestria it has be- It paused again. Ahh, I see. I understand.

"You understand...what?"

Never mind. Are you coming or not? the voice asked. Perhaps you'll make a better minion than the useless unicorn I have.

That piqued Cozy's interest, though not by much. For a moment, she wondered if the voice was referring to Izzy -- that pony was about as useful as a drain fly. But surely there were tons of other unicorns in this new era of Equestria the voice could be referring to.

And besides...if she had a chance to become this pony/creature/whatever's minion, she could easily usurp them, just as she had done with Discord when he was Grogar. Yes, she could usurp them and claim the castle for her own, and then everything would go according to plan. All she needed to do was to get there.

"Well golly, miss, I'm not sure what to say!" Cozy placed a hoof to her cheek. "I sure could use some more stable living arrangements, and a better roomie or two. So I guess you could say, I'm in!"

Wonderful. I will have Misty meet you at the town line of Maretime Bay first thing tomorrow. She will lead you to the castle.

Cozy blinked. Not because she didn't know who "Misty" was, but because apparently the voice's castle and Maretime Bay were nothing more but a stone's throw away from each other. It almost made her want to get going now, but the fatigue that was faintly pulsing throughout her body told her that getting some sleep was ideal. She could learn who this "Misty" character was tomorrow.

"Have a good night!" the filly called, before turning and heading back inside. She decided to tuck the binoculars away in hammerspace, just in case she needed it again in the future, and began moving through the house until she found the spare bedroom. With a yawn escaping her, she closed the door behind her, undid her wrapping, climbed into bed, and conked out snoring.

The clock read 6:00. Mayflower wasn't up yet -- Cozy guessed she was a late riser. Cozy wanted to be one too, but she figured the earlier she left, the better.

After re-applying her wrapping and grabbing a box of blueberry breakfast bars from the pantry, she made a hasty escape and galloped towards Maretime Bay's town line. It seemed that hardly anypony was an early riser, as only a few were out on the streets. The melancholy air she had felt both yesterday and this morning was put into her brain as a mental note to study later.

She stopped when a small bright purple orb begun dancing on her nose and then darted in the opposite direction. It didn't take her long to realize that she was going the wrong way, and so she followed the orb as fast as her hooves would take her, ignoring the pangs of hunger that shot through her stomach.

It only took her an estimated fifteen minutes to get to the town line -- or at least, the part of the town line that wasn't by Sunny's house. There, she laid eyes on a filly whose head was wrapped in a dark cloak, with something protruding from her head that was quite obviously a poorly-hidden unicorn horn. The filly had no cutie mark, and her tail had kinked blue-and-teal hairs.

"Golly!" Cozy blinked, watching the orb disappear in a dull flash of light. "You wouldn't happen to be Misty, would you?"

The filly nodded. "Y-yeah. Um...w-who are you?"

"My name's Cozy Glow! An absolute pleasure to meet you!" Cozy looked behind Misty. "So that way's the castle, huh?"

"Sure is." Misty turned. "C'mon. I'll take you to...uh..."

Cozy waited. Her expression began to turn sour after all of five seconds, which scared Misty into blurting out a name.

"Opaline! I-I'll take you to Opaline!"

Opaline... Cozy could finally put a name to the voice. It certainly sounded powerful, but then, names weren't everything -- after all, nopony would expect a pony named Cozy Glow to be evil and nearly take over Equestria successfully.

"Sure thing! Lead the way!"

Misty gave a sharp yelp, promptly turned around, and began heading for the castle with steady hoofsteps. Cozy followed, sidling up next to her new friend -- whoops, "friend" -- and opening her mouth to pose a question.

"Hey, so...how far is this castle, anyway?"

"Um..." Misty bit her lip. "I-it's not far. Usually I get to Maretime Bay and back within...an hour." She shook her head. "But Opaline says that's too long, so I run there. Which takes me about a half-hour."

"Can we run there now?" Cozy asked, before putting a hoof to her mouth. "Whoops! Sorry about that. It's just that I'm so excited to see the castle and meet your boss!" She smiled. "You understand, right?"

"Huh? Oh!" Misty perked up. "Um, yeah. Yeah, I-I'm excited too! Let's run!"

Cozy wasn't convinced, but ultimately said nothing as Misty darted away, following the other filly at a speed she certainly could tell was faster than how she normally ran. Her stomach growled, but her excitement easily trumped her hunger tenfold. Her mind ran at a million miles an hour as the questions kept on stacking up and up.

Finally, the duo reached the entrance of the castle, just across the bridge. In a stopped position, Cozy seized the opportunity to stuff a breakfast bar into her mouth, wanting to make sure she was properly nourished before introducing herself to her new leader. In her and Misty's journey to the castle, Cozy had forgotten to ask what Opaline was like -- all she knew was that she was evil, and if the Pegasus filly was being honest, that was good enough for her.

Misty crossed the bridge first and nervously pushed open the double-doors. "Um...h-hello? Opaline?" she called, her voice echoing throughout the halls. "I brought the pony you were asking for!"

Almost immediately, Opaline appeared, rounding the corner from another hallway. Cozy's eyes widened to be the size of saucers as she took in her appearance. Tall, poised, regal, with wings and a curved horn, a white mane with cyan streaks that swirled like ice cream laced with fudge, and metal cuffs on her legs that were blue-green in color. Truly, she was the epitome of power.

Outclassed by Cozy herself, of course, but still powerful in her own right. Game recognized game.

Yes. Yes! This is the pony who's gonna get me all the answers I want, and so much more! Cozy had to resist performing an evil laugh right then and there, instead staring at the alicorn with intrigue and awe.

"Well done, Misty." Opaline praised plainly, before fixing her dark blue eyes on Cozy. "I'm quite sure I know your name, but why don't you introduce yourself to me while we walk?"

The doors closed behind Cozy, solidifying that there was no turning back. Not that she wanted to, anyway, as she followed Opaline and Misty with eager hoofsteps, watching the latter take off her cloak and tuck it into hammerspace. She noted that Misty's horn had unique lines and swirls that were unlike the indents on the horns of unicorns and alicorns she knew in ancient Equestria, herself included. "My name's Cozy Glow!" she chirped. "And you must be Opaline!"

The alicorn abruptly stopped. Slowly turned. Narrowed her eyes at Misty. "Misty, I told you to not tell her my name!" She groaned. "You ruined the whole big reveal!"

"S-s-sorry, Opaline!" Misty whimpered, shrinking backwards. "I-it won't happen again."

"Hmph." Opaline continued walking, and the fillies followed suit. "Cozy Glow...you are the pony that nearly drained all the magic from Equestria, nearly became a permanent alicorn, and nearly caused the righteous downfall of Equestria before facing the punishment of a lifetime in stone. Am I wrong?"

"Golly, no!" Cozy blinked rapidly. "That was all me!"

Opaline snorted, as though not believing the filly. "Right. Well, anyway, I believe you will be of much use to me."

The three ponies arrived at a large set of doors, which Opaline opened to reveal a rather spacious throne room. She made her way to her throne and sat, while Misty took a spot next to her like it was second nature. Cozy decided to pause in her gait to eye the room's interior.

"So I will offer you a wonderful place to stay, here in my castle...in exchange for going out and gathering information on Equestria and the ponies that live in it." Opaline waved a hoof. "Equestria doesn't have magic at the moment, but I expect that to change eventually. And when it does..." She smirked. "Then we can work towards the return of what has wrongfully been stolen from me!"

"And my cutie mark!"

Opaline paused and stared at Misty as though she had a screw loose. "Yes, that too." she remarked, before making eye contact with Cozy. "So what do you say, Cozy?"

"Well, I have a few things I want to get accomplished too." Cozy shrugged. "If you can help me achieve those, then sure, I'll work with you."

"Oh?" Opaline leaned back on her throne, ending up in a slumped position. "By all means, do tell. Perhaps we can work together and help each other out. I have your back and you have mine, as they say."

Cozy eagerly nodded, and began launching into her story of how she became freed, what she had found, and what her goals were with her hard-earned freedom. Of course, she left out the part where she got rid of Opaline and took over Equestria for herself -- that plan still needed kinks ironed out.

Opaline grinned. "I see. Very interesting developments." She ran a hoof along the arm of the throne. "It seems we have some new rulers in Equestria. Ill-fated as they may seem."

She got up from her throne and went to the center of the room, where a large hexagonal pool lay. Her horn lit up in a brilliant neon violet color, and the pool shone in a wide array of colors before it returned to its normal purple hue, with pink sparkles rising from it as it rippled. Within the pool were two images, one of Sunny and one of Izzy, each being dragged on the ground by bright magic emanating from their horns.

"What?!" came the unisonant reaction from both Opaline and Cozy. They stared into the water for a full minute before exchanging bewildered glances.

"Just what is this?!" Opaline exclaimed, pointing to the pool. "You never told me about this, Cozy!"

"I had no idea!" Cozy countered, resting on her haunches and holding up her hooves defensively. "I don't know what's going on!"

"You two, go follow them! Now! Before they get away!"

The order was a scream that reverberated through every inch of the castle. Immediately, both fillies booked it, rushing out of the room and nearly bowling each other over in the process.

Opaline went back to her throne, sat on it, and heaved a sigh. She knew it would be a while before either of them returned, but she certainly didn't care.

I'm going to find out just what's going on with our new Sun and Moon Princesses. And when I do, I'll crush them under my hoof, take back my magic, and rule Equestria as I was meant to...and so much more.

Everything will work out in the end. Of course, it always does.

Author's Note

You ain't never seen procrastination go as badly as this, folks!

Real talk though, I had created this story this way back in August, but juggling seven other stories, including five for the Thousand Words Contest Mark II, caused me to put it on the back burner until I remembered that "this contest is still going on, how about that." This is absolute garbage and I certainly don't expect it to win, especially not with some well-established names throwing their hats into the ring, but I'm entering it into the contest regardless. Think of it as a handy-dandy "how not to write Cozy Glow" guide. ~~I don't think I improved from~~ Just Like Me ~~either, but you can be the judge of that.~~

Regardless of how terrible this is, though, this is meant to be canon to Solar and Lunar, and I'd encourage you guys to give it a read. I'm putting the final touches on the final chapter before it releases, but have this little side story in the meantime. Since I plan on making a sequel story to Solar and Lunar, I want to work Cozy (and Opaline, and Misty) into its universe and this contest seemed like a good springboard to do that.