Chapter 3 - A Dream and Story

Cadance relaxed into a recliner at the Lower Canterlot Library. She had a warm drink next to her and a book in hoof. Between the quiet atmosphere and the tiring day of classes, she was just about to fall asleep, but sounds from down the hall kept stirring her awake.

"You shouldn't worry about it so much!" She shouted. "You know she adores you! She wouldn't honestly expect you to learn a master level spell so soon!" The teenaged alicorn flittered her wings. Her tone was snippy, but she had a fond smile on her face.

"Adoration shouldn't mean anything when it comes to academic excellence! Unless, you're calling your Auntie 'nepotistic'!" Dusk Shine's voice rang from the other room. "I'd like to think she expects my best regardless of how realistic the goal is!"

Cadance rolled her eyes at the colt's response. It was admirable to not let being Celestia's private student go to his head, but she'd wish he'd give it a rest. He was barely a couple years younger than her, but acted so childish at the same time.

'Although...." She looked around the empty library. One that had been abandoned not too many years ago before a certain pony made it his home. 'It's much better than how he used to act.'

"Oh? Oh.... OH! Cadance! Ca-Cadance come quick! I got it! I got it!"

The princess-to-be giggled lightly as she hastily got up and trotted down the hall. She rounded the corner and found herself in the Crystal Empire. Her eyes widened in realization as she felt the soreness of battle hit her body all at once.

This, right now, was a month ago.

The adult alicorn came to her senses and galloped through the halls of her castle as it shook from the battle happening above.

Cadance had just escorted her people to safety, leaving the so-called 'King' in the hooves of the Element bearers. She had turned right back around as soon as she confirmed her wards' safety, fully intent on lending her strength in any way she could. She'd been knocked over as the first burst of magic radiated from the throne room and jolted through her system. By the time of the second burst, she'd readied herself to avoid being sent down a flight of stairs. Cadance moved as fast as her legs allowed. She had to make it this time, she had to be there to stop him.

"DUSK!" The mare burst into the throne room to find that she was too late.

"Cadance, look it! " Dusk pranced around the old library's main hall like an excited foal. He was separated from her by a glowing barrier wide enough to cover the entire room.

Cadance's jaw dropped. "The whole room?" She crept closer to the field to give it a tap with her hoof.

"I am Dusk Shine the Invincible now! No enemy will pierce my-" The shield broke the moment Cadance touched it. "-impeccable defense."

The two looked around at where the barrier stood for a solid minute before their eyes met.

"I am become death, destroyer of shields."

That set them off as they both fell into a laughing fit. Literally falling over each other as they struggled to breathe. When things calmed down, the pair settled themselves against the wall, leaning heavily against each other.

"Dusk, how are you so heavy for someone so small?"

"Not small, you're just big." Dusk replied with a quiet voice.

Cadance rolled her eyes. "You drained all your energy, didn't you? Pushed your magic too far, again?"

"M--b-." The colt was half asleep.

She chose to assumed that it was Dusk's way of admitting fault and asking for both her help and forgiveness. Oh, how fortunate was he to have such a gracious princess-to-be watching over him. She touched her horn with his and allowed her magic to restore his.

"Mmm, love magic."

"It's just a restoration spell."

"You say that like everypony can do it, Princess of Love." Dusk sprang back to life before she could retort and surprised the mare by pulling her into a hug, minding her wings, of course. "Thanks, Cadance. I don't think I could ask for a better friend."

'Friend. Right.' Cadance thought with vitriol before blinking. 'Where did that come from?' She chose to ignore it and returned the gesture with gusto. "I'd hate to see where the bookworm would be without me."

"Probably, locked in some old library in Upper Canterlot, left to rot by his lonesome until he dredges himself from the depths upon the discovery of arcane knowledge lost to time." Dusk broke away and put some distance between them. His horn coated itself in a light purple aura as he focused. In just a few short moments, he replicated his spell and the barrier stood once more. "Let's see how durable this spell is when I'm bearing straight."

Cadance resisted the urge to roll her eyes and stood up to meet Dusk with a smile. She raised a hoof and he stood boldly at the challenge.

She brought her hoof down on the field, again and again. "DUSK SHINE! PLEASE, DUSK!"

"Please, watch over them, Cadance." Dusk faced away from her. He stood boldly against the approaching silhouette of a figure she's grown to hate more and more. "We've never used the Elements of Harmony twice in row like that, so I'm thinking they're just as exhausted as I am."

Cadance's memory told her of the five unconscious ponies by her side, but her mind refused to see them in the moment. This was the last she'd seen of him and it took in every detail.

"I guess some things don't really change." Dusk's body lightly shook under the strain of his own weight. The remainder of the Mane Six were out of commission and Cadance's own magic was depleted. He couldn't stand against this foe alone, but he'd do so for the sake of his friends. It was a fatal flaw of his that grew and festered over the years. An otherwise heroic trait that Cadance loathed for moments like these. "Don't worry, please don't worry. I have an idea. One that will save everyone."

What Cadance could see of Dusk's face displayed confidence, but her heart knew the truth. Whatever action he'd commence would take him away from her. Whatever false bravado he put up was meant to ease her worries in the moment, but did nothing with the passage of time. Tears streamed down her eyes as she threw her body against the barrier.

"Please. Please please please please...."

The world around her went dark. She lost consciousness around this time, so there was nothing for her memory to bring forth. Regardless, she refused to leave this moment. Staying within those last moments.

"Prin-, er, Cadance? I'm sorry to disturb you, but we'll be going soon and-"

Cadance's eyes blinked open and she found herself back at the Apple home. Her eyes met Rarity's who looked back with a sad smile and a tissue. It took her a moment longer to feel the dampness underneath her own eyes.

The princess shook from her shock and took the tissue. "I'm sorry, Rarity. I must've dozed off."

"I'll have none of it. I'm sure you needed it." The white pony waved off the apology. "We're about ready to go. Would you like a moment to prepare?"

Cadance thought for a moment. She looked towards the direction of the Castle of Friendship. She felt those signatures, again, but this time it steeled her resolve. "I'm ready. Let's be going."

. . . . .

"It was not long after my coronation as Ruler of the Crystal Empire. The ponies, my ponies were in such a confusing state. They couldn't recall specifics about their lives before vanishing and lacked the shining luster that made them crystal ponies, but they were otherwise fine."

"Physically fine. but scared out of their wits."

Cadance nodded towards Rainbow Dash, who lazily flew above the party as they made their way to the Castle of Friendship.

"I had initially put this down as a reaction to the Changeling attack, but something felt... off. So, I sent an invitation out to the Holders of the Elements of Harmon-"

"Just call us the Mane 6!" Pinkie Pie yipped as she bounced along.

"Uh, yes. So, I invited you all to the Crystal Empire." Cadance ignored a low 'Boooo' from Pinkie. "Slowly, but surely your collective efforts began to draw my little ponies out of their homes. I began to see genuine smiles and hear shouts of happiness throughout the city. To celebrate and really put a capstone to everything, I organized the Crystal Fair."

"Oh, and it was a really nice fair. Thank you, again, even if I don't like being celebrated. I know that Spike loved it though." Fluttershy spoke up.

"Eyyup." Applejack agreed.

"Fluttershy, Applejack, dears. I'm sure the comments are appreciated, but please allow Cadance to finish her story."

"You're mothering, again, Rares. Knock it off."

Rarity scoffed. "I'm not 'mothering' and stop with it that nickname. Two extra syllables aren’t the end of the world." Rainbow blew a raspberry in return. "Oh, don't make me come up there, missy!"

Cadance smiled at the exchange. Regardless of the circumstances, getting out of the castle and away from worried glances has been a pleasant experience.

Her smile disappeared.

Now, here she was making her way to another castle hosting something much worse.

Looking amongst the group, she was glad to not be alone. There weren't many ponies willing to brave what they were approaching after experiencing what went down last month. Then again, these five ponies have become quite used to besting immortal figures of power.

Which made it all the more surprising that none of them had been told of her and Dusk Shine's first encounter with Sombra. Sure, she had him promise to not frighten her citizens with the story, but she hadn't expected that to extend his sisters. Now, he's locked himself away for over a month without reason.

"Why keep secrets from those who love you?"

"It was no matter, Fluttershy, Applejack. You've all been nothing, but kind to me during our every interaction. The celebration was the least I could do." Cadance looked at the still grumpy Rainbow Dash. "Thank you, all, for being there for us."

Rainbow's expression softened before she muttered something and picked up the pace.

"What did she say?"

"It's no matter. Why not pick up the story?"

"Right, sorry." Cadence shifted her gaze to the sky under the sinking Sun. "While you all were helping the citizens, I felt a dark presence around the empire. Dusk and I were investigating when we discovered a secret passage...."

"Down here, Princess." Dusk Shine said with a sly grin. He stood in front of a staircase that hadn't been there moments prior leading down into the depths. "A secret staircase to a secret library found right within your new un-secret throne room, your highness."

Cadence rolled her eyes with a smirk. "Okay, okay, you did good. This wasn't mentioned anywhere in any schematics or documents I've read. How did you...?"

The stallion pointed down the stairs. "Library."

"And...?"

"Do I really need to explain why I, Dusk Shine, notorious book worm/nerd, was able to find a library?"

"I... guess not?"

"Good, because admitting that I've been spending the last few days blindly wondering the halls with a sensory spell would've been embarrassing." Before she could reply, he was already jumping down the steps. "Now, come on, your grace. I've got to show you the cool stuff I found."

"I should push you down these steps!"

"He explained to me that it must've been the personal library of the previous King. It wasn't large, but it housed all manner of tomes and relics. Above all, it held the...."

"The Crystal Heart? So, the legends are true?!" Cadance looked on in awe. "The King must've kept it hidden. Even from the Crystal Ponies."

"I can see why."

The Princess of Love jumped slightly as a loud thump rang through the air. She looked back to see Dusk standing next to a book he just dropped. "Shiny?" The stallion's eyes were transfixed on to the floating relic before them. He took a step forwards, placing a hoof firmly on the tome. "Dusk Shine!"

He seemed to snap out of it, blinking his eyes and shaking his head. When he came to, his first instinct was to gasp in horror and scoop up the poor book in his forelegs, whispering sweet nothings to it. "Sorry, your excellence. I don't know what came over me. It's real... pretty... that."

She noticed that he refused to look directly at the Crystal Heart, again. Probably for the best.

"We looked into the Crystal Heart for several days after. I found that most of the legends were true. That it was a relic of a great energy, similar to my Love Magic, in the same way the Elements were to Harmony Magic. It drew dark energy into itself and eradicated it over time.

"It also seemed to have an odd pull over Dusk. Multiple times I'd have to stir him from his daze as he tried to approach the Crystal Heart until I had to ban him from the study entirely. More worryingly, dark crystals, which had been present before, started to grow in size and number around the study. The relic itself even seemed to cry out directly to my Magical Core.

"It's so obvious to me now what was happening, but I was too dense to see it. The entire Crystal Empire had been sealed away somewhere for unknown reasons, yet each and every one of its structures and citizens returned without warning. All of them except...."

"King Sombra!" Dusk practically fell down the stairs. While the populace had been celebrating outdoors, the two continued their research in the increasingly cramped study. "It's King Sombra!"

"That was the old King's name?" Cadance flinched as a dark crystal poked its way through the ground and into her hoof.

"More than that!" He practically threw a book open on the desk next to the Crystal Heart. His horn glowed and the princess could see the text of the book warp and alter. "He was also a brilliant mage! He hid his texts in plain sight, he's the one who sent the Crystal Empire away and he's the one responsible for these dark crystals!"

"Responsible?" She looked around the private library idly casting a detection spell. "Where? If his handiwork is right in front of us then where can he be?"

"I'm looking right at 'em."

Cadance saw Dusk staring into the Crystal Heart. Unlike before, his eyes weren't clouded over, instead they were blazing with a righteous fury. It was a good look on him.

She followed his gaze to stare into the relic as well and felt a now familiar jolt to her Core. As she looked, not at the Crystal Heart, but into it she realized that it wasn't the magical artifact that kept pulling Dusk Shine's attention, it was the being inside that had been beckoning.

A being the relic of light refused to let go of despite the waning curse, for it was the Crystal Heart's duty to eradicate all darkness.

Even if that process was fruitless.

"It all happened so quickly after that. It was as if we set off a trap, and to an extent, I think we did. I'm still not sure how a being so evil could take refuge within something as soft and harmonic as the Crystal Heart, but it had been biding as much time as it could. It saw us trying to figure it out and was going to gather as much strength as it could.

"I hate to say it, but there's not much left for me to add. The darkness I'd soon know was Sombra burst from the Heart. Dusk cast a shield, but the torrent was so strong that he couldn't both hold it back and move. I just grabbed him and took flight....

"We didn't make it. That dark energy took him away and I thought I lost him. It seemed... distracted with him. It bought me just enough time to feel that pulse, again. It was the Crystal Heart reaching back out to me. Without its prisoner, it was already regaining strength and more than willing to take up the task yet again.

"I really can't remember what I did. It was all base instinct and emotion, but I united with the Crystal Heart the same way I believe you all unite with your Elements. All that I can recall is feeling more powerful than ever before while simultaneously feeling more exhausted than I have in my life.

"I- I also remember that face, those eyes. Those were not the eyes of a pony or any of Equestria's creatures.

"Other than that, we both got out of there safe. We told Aunty Celestia and she did a thorough search of her own. There was no telling when or if the Crystal Heart would fail, again, so the agreement was to be ready at moment’s notice."

"The rest? I trust you already know. We gathered and shared our strength. We bore down on the King and that thing with everything we had and it still wasn't enough.

"And, now...."

Everypony let the silence hang. What was left unsaid was pretty obvious. While hopes were high, they could very well be walking into the very same situation, again. Now, without their Prince of Friendship.

"I just thought y'all were bangin'."

The Mane 5 all broke into laughter when the Princess stumbled and her face went from pink to red.

"WHAT?!"

"Rather uncouth, but the point stands. You two spent nearly every waking moment alone together and were quite secretive about the whole thing. Even showed up fashionably late to your own fair. Ruffled mane and everything."

"There was no doubt in my mind. Plots were being clopped!"

"Eyyup."

"Like rabbits."

As the five's laughter continued, the princess' shocked face slowly softened until she was laughing with them as well. It was such a juxtaposition to what happened, but Cadance couldn't lie and say she didn't see it as well.

'No wonder the servants were so keen on giving us alone time. I thought they were reading into the gravity of the situation. Although, I suppose they were it was just a different type of situation.'

Cadance brushed aside tears. She hadn't laughed that hard in quite a while. Such a joyous re-

The princess stopped in her tracks. The group had just crested a small hill that gave them clear line of sight to the Castle of Friendship. As if on cue, she felt a sudden change to the signatures radiating from it.

The overwhelming presence had calmed and, in its place, she could feel...

"Princess Celestia?" Rainbow Dash was squinting into the distance.

Cadance took off flying.