Return of the Lord

The moon hung in the sky, forlorn, as if it knew something the world below did not. Its luminous glow caressed the ground with its soft, gentle light, and Ponyville lay wreathed in the lunar shine, tranquil under a starlit symphony of silence. Animals had ceased their bickering hours before, and not a sound permeated the palpable veil of night that lay upon the landscape.

Amongst the moonlight buildings was a barn, although it was a fair while from the town itself. It was surrounded by rows and rows of apple trees, which composed the livelihood of Sweet Apple Acres. At the front of this barn, leaning against the door, and observing the night sky, was a pegasus.

Zaros shifted his weight more onto the barn. He had found himself out of activities, as such, to pursue, and now chose to simply appreciate the sky he could now see before him. It was filled with many stars, each one glimmering like the tears of imprisoned gods, and the moon itself reclined in the black velvet of darkness, it's brilliant white shine cast down unto the sleeping land.

Zaros continued simply stand and look; the whole night could pass like this. Although eager to return, he was under no true time restraints, and Zaros had no issues with waiting for things. So, deciding his actions for the immediate few hours, he continued to gaze at the moon. Twilight had told him that Luna, one of the sisters whom resided in Canterlot, moved the moon across the night sky, and her sister moved the sun.

Zaros could feel their power then, and now, in Ponyville, their presence was still known to him. Moving celestial bodies was not an easy feat, and although it would be quite easy for a being with power like that of Zaros, the power expended shone like a beacon, which was easily detected by Zaros' godly powers, and revealed the princesses' every move to him.

Deciding to contemplate over recent events, Zaros shifted a little against the door, focusing now more on his thoughts, rather than the sky. The remainder of the week in Canterlot had gone well, with no incident's occurring, and the ponies' faith in the security of the palace meant that nopony had yet discovered the missing elements, which Zaros was now keeping in an enchanted saddlebag in the barn which Applejack was currently letting him reside in.

When the time to depart had arrived, Rarity had stayed on, saying she would be back in a week or so, for she longed to attend even more events, and to spend yet more time amongst the Canterlot elite. Twilight and Zaros had therefore made the journey back alone. Zaros hadn't seen much of Twilight on the way back, although he had stayed confined to his personal cabin for the most part. He assumed the unicorn had done likewise.

Fluttershy had been waiting for them at the station, and Zaros could feel the suspicion and distrust on her as soon as he got off the train, and this worried him a little. A night or two had passed since their return, but Zaros had plans in order to help him get back to Gielinor. Fluttershy's suspicions could make things a lot more complicated and harder than Zaros hoped.

Zaros thought back to his plan he had formulated during the stay in Canterlot. It was risky, but not as annoying as it would be to find himself in a different plane to the one he wanted. He needed to make sure he could locate and transport objects to Gielinor, and using the help of the elements he was confident his power was enough to transport something that would yet yield results, in time.

He knew what to do, and it would require waiting, it would require time.

And so Zaros would wait, but as always to avoid an unnecessary conflict, stealth and silence were to be his arsenal.

Twilight sat in her kitchen eating a breakfast Spike had made for her, whilst the said dragon was busy in the main library, cleaning and re-shelving the books.

"Twilight!" The dragon shouted, and Twilight reluctantly put down her daisy sandwich and walked into the library.

"Yes, Spike?" Twilight said, answering the dragon's call, a little annoyed to be disturbed from eating.

"I was putting back the books you asked me to get on with re-shelving, and just came across this one here," Spike held up the book in question, "I opened it just to check on it, and it seems somepony damaged it, all the words are missing!"

Spike looked a little distraught, probably a little afraid of Twilight's reaction, considering the last time he had hid damaged books from her.

Twilight frowned at him.

"Spike, that's a picture book. It's meant for little fillies and colts to enjoy."

Twilight's voice was laden with annoyance; Spike thought it best to continue working, and so, smiling innocently, and walking backwards slightly, he continued to swipe the dust off of the tomes and restarted placing them around the library in their correct locations.

Twilight, convinced the little dragon was going to be able to finish the task without any more interruptions to her breakfast, turned around and walked back into the kitchen, sitting down at the table, and continuing her daisy sandwich.

Once she had left the room, Spike sighed a sigh of relief, and sat down against the bookcase he was just re-shelving. He liked being, no, he loved being Twilight's assistant, but he knew more than anypony that when Twilight gets mad, she gets really, really mad.

Gently placing his clawed hands on the floor, he applied pressure and gradually lifted himself back up. He glanced over the library, and he felt his heart sink as he saw the piles and piles of books clustered around the surrounding floor.

This was going to be a long day.

Big Mac stared in astonishment at the sight before him. His sister had told him some strange things about the new pony they had hired on the farm, but the sight he currently saw astounded him beyond measure. The lithe pegasus, Mac forgets his name, had simply strolled into a grove of trees, and with a deadpan expression, slammed his hoof straight down into the earth.

At first, Big Mac had tried to suppress a giggle, but it quickly vanished when the ground beneath the pony's hoof had cracked, and the apples in the trees surrounding had dangled dangerously on their stalks. Impressive, thought Mac, and if he was any other pony he would have most likely poked some fun at the pegasus' attempt.

It was lucky that he was Big Mac however, and that he had kept his mouth shut, for a second stomp from the white pegasus brought every last fruit in the surrounding foliage tumbling earthwards, and into neatly arranged baskets.

Big Mac replayed the event countless times over, but his mind still refused to believe what had just occurred.

"Big Mac...?" Applejack said from beside him, laughing slightly over his reaction.

Her words, however, snapped him out of his trance, he must have been staring at those baskets for a good ten minutes.

"Eeyup?" He replied stoically.

"I take it one wishes to let me remain?" The pegasus, who had performed the inequine feat, finally spoke up.

"Eeyup." Big mac replied, continuing to stare into space, still a little unsure of what he had just witnessed.

The white pegasus smiled softly, a gesture which Big Mac assumed to be a thankful one, but he couldn't help but feel the pony was mocking him. He then turned around, and with determined paces, walked back to the barn.

Big Mac heard Applejack start to walk back to the farmhouse, but she stopped after a few paces.

"Ya comin'?" She said, an ounce of worry creeping into her voice.

"Eeyup."

Satisfied, she continued to walk on, but Big Mac just sat and stared at the buckets a while more, before at long last, lifting himself off his haunches and trotting back to the farmhouse to join the rest of his family.

Well, maybe we'll be able ta afford a new hip for Granny after all.

As the sun set on Ponyville, a white pegasus slithered through the shadows cast by the dying light. The shadow he cast appeared to have large sacks attached to either side of his body, but anyone who caught a fleeting glance of the stallion saw none.

As the ponies left outside began to shrink, to his destination the pegasus reached, unseen by mortal eye. He approached a structure familiar to many ponies of the town - for it was distinctly shaped like a tree, and in the realm from which the white pony came, it might have been known as a sorcerer's abode.

The door opened on its own accord, making itself low to the visitor, as if bowing before it's lord. Once inside, the door swung shut once more, hastening to obey it's master, but making not a sound. From the hooves of the pony, purple smog emerged, and within seconds, the inside of the building was enveloped in a purple haze.

The pony slowly, but with utmost purpose, ascended the stairs to the master bedroom. Inside, a baby dragon and a purple unicorn fully slept, buried in a cloud of deepest sleep. As if caressed by ethereal force, the dragon was pushed outside the room and onto the top stair, and the door swung closed.

Along the white pony's flank, a pair of saddlebags appeared, enchanted with powerful magic. They opened, and one by one the elements of harmony exited the vessel, and also a stick of chalk. The unicorn began to float, and was moved to a large space of empty floor.

Upon this floor, the chalk twisted and writhed, as if possessed by a serpentine demon, and it drew a six pointed star within a circle, the purple pony at its centre. The elements were lowered onto each point, and together they encircled the unicorn mare.

The white pony observed his work.

Crude, but effective

The perishing sun at last dropped below the horizon, and no more light entered the forlorn windows, and as if in response, the curtains drew themselves across the panes, sealing the room in from the world outside.

The white pony suddenly began to dissolve into the air, and within moments nothing remained, but if one was present in that room at that moment, they would have felt the ancient power as if it was as thick as tar.

The elements began to glow harmoniously, illuminating the room with a soft polychromatic glow, but at the centre where the mare lay, a menacing un-light had begun to form. To describe it would be impossible, it was everything, yet nothing, sound, yet silence.

The elements began to shine now, emitting so much light as to rival the sun itself, but the more they tried to glow the more the black presence grew, until it had completely ensnared the slumbering mare. At once, the elements trembled, shaking and vibrating, but their illuminations began to wane, and the writhing void began to thunder and fold in upon itself.

Zaros continued to feed it power, and began to think of Gielinor, how it felt from across the portal when Azzanadra had contacted him, and soon enough he found it. In a mad flurry of will and mind, he lunged, and grasped onto the realm, pushing with all his godly might.

Then, in a sudden moment, the elements were flung away from the circle, and their brilliant light vanished in an instant. The void shrunk back and disappeared, leaving no trace of the pony or the chalk circle. However, the effects of the portal's closure transcended the physical realm - a fearsome magical blast resonated throughout the very essence of this realm, and unicorns across Equestria woke up in cold sweats, screaming as their heads threatened to explode. Two certain sisters were also afflicted, but more than that, they were confused.

This was unlike anything that had ever happened in Equestria's whole history, but the one thing they did know was that this was very, very bad.

Around first light a white pegasus returned to a barn on Sweet Apple Acres. Although invisible to the eye of an observer, he was carrying saddlebags laden with six of the most powerful relics in Equestrian history. He deposited the saddlebag in the barn and prepared for a day's work on the farm.

All he had to do now was wait. For a long time.

And Zaros was good at waiting.