When they returned home, they were surprised to see the down deserted.Unnerved, they all just stood there, until Pinkie bounced away at a record pace. Not wanting to lose their friend, they chased her all the way to Sugarcube corner, watching as she disappeared inside. Nodding to each other, they all slowly headed towards the open door, unsure as to what they should expect. But as the lights flashed on, and confetti rained down, they realized what had happened. Pinkie had set up a party beforehand to celebrate their success. Their shock quickly turned to joy and mirth, as they joined in the festivities. That is, all except for Spike.

As Spike sat at a table, drinking his punch, his mind raced. He was so deeply engrossed in his thoughts that he didn’t notice the figure who walked up and sat down at the table.
”Hey dweeb, what’s wrong?”
”Oh, hey Gilda. Good to see you.”
”Seriously, what’s up with ya? Haven’t seen you this down in the dumps before.”
”Its nothing, just… something that dragon said sticks out to me.”
Gilda looked looked at Spike concerned, wondering what the dragon could have said to him.
”He didn’t say anything shitty to you, did he?”
”He did, but that’s not what I’m worried about. When I tried to ask him to leave, he started talking about how that had been his cave for thousands of years. And in passing, he mentioned an age of chaos, before the sun and moon took over. What I’m worried about is what caused this age of chaos? And what if it could come back, like Nightmare Moon did?”

Gilda thought for a moment, before replying to his question.
”Well if that happens, you got those element things and whatnot, so you guys’ll be fine.”
”Yeah, you’re right. Thanks G, can always count on you.”
”No probs Dweeb. Now let’s go and enjoy this party.”
At that point, Thorax managed to stumble towards them, disoriented and covered in punch.
”I think some pony mighta spiked the punch. Literally, it’s all over the floor now.”
”Thor, what happens to you?! Why are you covered in punch?”
”I think I was in the splash zone.”
Spike guffaws at this, before hugging his beloved and rejoining the party.

The party had finally died down after a few hours, and everyone was exhausted. Pinkie was somehow passed out on the ceiling, lampshade adorning her head, and a bottle of Pink liquid hung loosely in her hand. Twilight began to look for her two roommates, and d’aw’d upon seeing them.Thorax and Spike had fallen asleep upon each other, arms wrapped around each other. Though while the display was cute, she had to get them home. So, she pulled out the amulet she had gotten all those years ago, and put it on. Feeling the magic flowing through her, she gently picked the two up in a spell, before teleporting them all home. As they blinked into existence on the second floor, Twilight let out a massive yawn. Gently setting the two down in their bed, she quickly raced up to hers, and plopped down, instantly falling asleep.

As the three slept, their dreams began to shift, and slowly coalesced into a single, shared dream. Flashes of visions began to assault them, overwhelming the three. Then suddenly, just as they had began, they stopped.
”Huh, back here again. Guess something’s about to happen.”
”Wait, what do you mean here again? Where are we?”
”Wait, how are you two here?! normally I’m alone in these dreams!”
”Wait a minute, I remember something. That time you woke up in the middle of the night, panting and sweating, did you have one of these dreams?”
”I… I think I did. I couldn’t remember that dream, but now… it’s all coming back to me. But why are we here?”
”That would be my doing.”
”Dont forget me. Couldn’t have gotten all three of it weren’t for me.”
Upon hearing the voice, Spikes blood ran cold. The three slowly turned around, and finally noticed them. The tyrant, and his witch.

”You… what do you want from us?!”
”Calm down there you feisty chicken, we’re about to get to that.”
”Hey, don’t call my brother that, it’s rude!”
”Don’t care, Sparkle.”
”H-h-how do y-you know m-m-my name?!”
”Enough, Calamitas. The reason you are here is that we wish to warn you.”
”And what could be sooo big that you needed all three of us here?!”
”You were right. During the age of chaos, there was a ruler. The living embodiment of disharmony. Discord, the spirit of chaos. And the presence of a being of two worlds has caused the barrier to start weakening early.”

”What do you mean?”
”A valid question. What it means is that a foreign element has become apart of your world, causing a chain reaction, leading to his early freedom.”
”Well how did this happen?”
”When one soul flee’s into a different world, a soul from that world must me transferred to keep the balance. It matters not what time or place the soul is placed into, all that matters is that one must trade their place for another.”
”And how do you know all this?”
”Heh, I know more about your world than you know, birdy. And I know that sun- bitch didn’t tell you about discord yet, to quote unquote, ‘PrOtEcT yOu!”
”Don’t talk about the princess like that, who do you think you are?!”
”I think that I know more about her than you do. Tell me, what do you know about her previous students? What happened to them? Notice how not a single one since Starswirl has ever been documented or even remembered. That is, until you.”

”What the hell is that supposed to mean?!”
”ENOUGH, BOTH OF YOU!”
Upon hearing his shout, the trio had felt their hearts skip a beat. The power, rage and Authority behind that voice was… menacing.
”Apologies, my master. I got overworked.”
”Good, you are forgiven.Now back to the topic at hand, I offer you advice. When what you desire is on the line, trust not his words, for they will split you. For what you seek can be found where your heart lays. And be warned, lest he twist your mind. For only the past, will bring you back from this fate.”

As the tyrants words sink in, they begin to ponder. As they realize what the words mean, their eyes light up, before looking yo the tyrant.
”What we seek would be the elements, that’s obvious. As for where they lie, home is where the heart lies, so they would be at our houses.”
”As for trust not his words, I’m assuming he’ll try to trick us into splitting up, making us easy pickings.”
”And mind twisting is a type of magic. It can be used many ways, from rendering a subject malleable, to completely changing personality at a whim. So he’s probably do something that makes you unable to use the elements anymore, like switching your personality.”
Upon their decree, the tyrant begins to laugh. Not in a mocking tone, however, but in a tone of amusement.
”Very good, that is correct. I knew you would be able to figure it out.”
”But why tell us? I know what you’re planning to do, so why not just let him beat us?”
The world begins to crumble, as the tyrant chuckles again.
”I have my reasons. Farewell, you three. May you succeed in your mission.”
As the world finally collapses, they can barely hear the laughter of the tyrant.

The three all simultaneously shoot up in bed.
”Man, what a weird dream.”
”That wasn’t a dream Thorax. That was a warning.”
”Wait, are you saying that we were actually in the same dream?!”
”Yep. And I’m assuming that what he just warned us about, is gonna happen very soon.”
As Spike says this, a letter appears in front of Twilight, causing her to jump. She quickly unfurls it and reads the contents, eyes shrinking the further down she gets.
”Spike, Thorax, go get the girls. Canterlot is under attack.”

Author's Note

Si draculus in animo habeat, silvestrem rursus volabit draco.