Friendship is Missing: Twilight's Journey

by ssjgokillo

Rating: everyone
Tags: Adventure, Twilight Sparkle, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, King Sombra
Length: 12045

After the Changelings have been defeated, Twilight finds herself feeling lost and alone. Some study time in the library provides her the perfect solution, as she learns of the creation of the Elements of Harmony.

The night before the real wedding of Princess Cadance and Shinning Armor, Twilight finds herself in trouble. Still feeling hurt and alone when her friends, brother, and mentor all abandoned her to comfort the fake Cadance, Twilight notices her coat has lost it's color, just like it had when Discord had made her lose faith in her friends. Fearing that something serious might be going on, Twilight visits the Canterlot library, where she finds a book by none other than Starswirl the Bearded, and about the journey he went on to create the Elements of Harmony. Feeling inspired by the book, Twilight takes off on a journey to follow in Starswirl's hoofsteps, hoping that it will help heal her wounded heart, and once again show her the magic of friendship.

Published 2012-12-13 07:20:01 UTC
Last updated 2014-06-12 20:50:21 UTC

The Journey Begins

Disclaimer: I do not own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, all rights to the show and it's properties belong to Hasbro.

Night had fallen over Canterlot, with the moon hanging brightly in the sky thanks to Princess Luna. While most of the city's citizens had already gone to bed, many were still awake. Some celebrating the defeat of the changeling queen Chrysalis, while others were simply too excited for the wedding that was to take place the next day, between the Captain of the guard Shining Armor and the real Princess Mi Amore Cadenza.

One young mare though, had other thoughts keeping her awake. She had spent the majority of the day trying to solve the changeling crisis, then ensuring that everything was ready for the wedding tomorrow. To be honest, she had been grateful for the distraction, the work that kept her mind busy with the task at hand, rather than the thoughts that had been building in the back of her mind ever since Chrysalis had sent her to that cave beneath Canterlot.

But now that the work was done, and the quiet of night covered Canterlot, Twilight Sparkle found herself unable to avoid the troubling thoughts. Perhaps it would have been better to confront them when they first started, rather than giving them time to build, but now they were rearing the presence in her mind, refusing to be quieted for a few hours of sleep.

She had been abandoned.

Her friends, her mentor, even her own brother. All of them had left her. Perhaps for Shining Armor and Princess Celestia it was excusable, after all Shining was going to comfort his supposed distraught bride, and Cadance was Celestia's niece. But what about her friends? Each and every one of them had turned their backs on her, to comfort a mare that they not only did not know very well, but had been rude to them throughout the day.

How could any of them think that she would ever say those things without good reason? Did they truly think so little of her? That she would try to make someone seem like they were evil just because she didn't want to lose her brother? Cadance had been her favorite foal-sitter! Aside from Shining Armor, she had been the only pony Twilight would have considered to be a friend before moving to Ponyville.

And that was what led to Twilight's current predicament, as she sat staring into a mirror with a blank look on her face. Just moments ago, while these thoughts had been running through her head, she had glanced at the mirror and hadn't been able to look away. Her reflection showed that her normally purple fur had dulled, to an almost gray color. Even her mane had been affected. This had only ever happened to her once before. When Discord had used his magic to split up her friends, and when she had been unable to believe in the magic of friendship any longer.

Ever since Twilight and her friends had become their bearers, Twilight had done research into the Elements of Harmony. As far as she was able to find, there had never been a time when six separate ponies had each bore one of the elements. In fact, ever since their discovery the only two beings in Equestria who were known to be able to use their power were Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. Even Starswirl the Bearded, the pony who had discovered the Elements of Harmony, was unable to use them. So anything that happened now was new territory, territory that Twilight had been documenting with her usual studious nature.

After the fight with Discord, she had thought about what had happened to her and her friends, and had come up with a hypothesis. That night in the castle, when she and her friends had faced down Nightmare Moon, they had bonded with their respective Elements. They were, for all intents and purposes, the Elements themselves, the stones now acting as a catalyst for their powers. Discord realized this, and had taken the time to turn them individually against the very thing that made them their specific Element. For any other pony this would not have been anything special, but for the bearers of the Elements it had been like a poison to their soul. Their bond with the Elements was so strong that the sudden absence had basically drained the life out of them, leaving empty husks in their wake.

And that was the dilemma facing Twilight now. The hurt from the betrayal of her friends had left her unable to believe in the magic of friendship, and thus had cut her off from the Element she represented. And it hurt. It was like she wasn't even herself anymore.

She had already tried to go over the lessons in friendship she had so seriously recorded and sent to Princess Celestia during her time in Ponyville, but the color had not returned to her. Her friends and family had willingly turned their backs on her, and the wound from that ran too deep for such a simple fix.

But where did that leave her? Since she had moved to Ponyville her life had revolved around her friends and her study of friendship. Without that what did she have left? She doubted Princess Celestia would simply let her stay in Canterlot and resume her study of magic. The Elements of Harmony were too important to Equestria. No, the Princess would send her back to Ponyville to try and reconnect with her friends and restore the balance.

Twilight thought about that. Maybe it would be that easy, return to Ponyville and let things return to normal. Time heals all wounds as the saying goes. But she didn't think that would happen in this case. Sure, in time she may accept what happened and move on, but the sting of her friends' actions would remain, she doubted she'd ever be able to be the spark the Elements required if that happened.

Realizing her thoughts were starting to go in circles, Twilight sighed and stood up, walking out of her room. There was only one thing she knew to do in situations such as these, research! Surely there was something in the Canterlot library that could help her? After all, Starswirl the Bearded had discovered the Elements of Harmony, and there was an entire wing dedicated to his research.

As Twilight trotted across the courtyard towards the library, she was unaware of a pair of eyes following her her, a pair of eyes that had seen the troubled mare throughout the day and realized that something was amiss. The pony watched her for a few more moments, before returning to her own duties. After all, even though the last crisis had been averted, it was still her job to guard the night.

=-=MLP:FIM=-=

The library was closed for the night, but the guards has quickly opened the doors for Twilight when she approached. None of them commented on her appearance, though Twilight couldn't really blame them.

'After all, how many times have I forgotten to sleep while researching something? I've probably looked worse than this' She thought ruefully to herself, as another guard raised the gate to the Starswirl the Bearded wing of the library.

Once inside Twilight took a moment to relish in the feeling of serenity she got whenever she was in a library. There was something about the quiet, the smell of dried ink and old paper, that relaxed her. As it always was when she was a foal, libraries were a sanctuary to her.

After giving herself a moment to enjoy the atmosphere, she went to the shelves and started browsing their contents. There was still so much here she had never seen. While she had always been interested in the spells and research of Starswirl the Bearded, Princess Celestia had insisted that she get a better grasp of the basics before she delve into his notes. Not that she forbid Twilight from reading his material, just that she suggested Twilight wasn't ready for it, and Twilight never wanted to disappoint her mentor.

She let her eyes wander over the titles of scrolls and books she could see. There was much on history and the mechanics behind magic, there was even a report on some of the creatures that lived in the Everfree Forest. She could spend days in here reading and still only barely scratch the surface of the knowledge Starswirl left for future generations.

Twilight reigned her mind back into focus. While she would love to simply browse these writings at her leisure, she had come here with a specific purpose. With that in mind, she began wandering the shelves, looking for anything that would have information on the Elements of Harmony.

'Heh, maybe it's filed under “E”' Twilight thought to herself, a small smile on her lips.

Sure enough, when she looked through the books and scrolls in the “E” sections, she came across a small bound book with scrawling text across the front that read “Elements of Harmony”. Twilight grinned excitedly and pulled the book from the shelf, using her magic to hold it in front of her as she began to read.

It took her a moment to get used to the hoof written text, a brilliant wizard Starswirl may have been, but his hoofwriting left a bit to be desired. The beginning of the text told of Starswirl's journey to a mysterious empire to the north of Canterlot, a place called the Crystal Empire. There he had met the Crystal Ponies, a group of ponies whose fur and mane shone like the crystals that gave their empire its name. But what did this mysterious empire have to do with the Elements?

I had never before seen such an amazing thing. These Crystal Ponies actually protected their entire empire with a powerful magical barrier, one that was powered by love and happiness! I was astounded. While I had known from previous studies that love was a powerful force, I never actually thought of the implications of using it in magic.

I had asked my guide where they had found such an amazing artifact, and he told me that the artifact (A Crystal Heart, a heart shaped crystal as the name implies) had actually been a nothing more than a fine piece of crystal before their second Princess had taken it, and gone on a journey to the far reaches of Equestria. When she returned, the Crystal Heart held a glow within it, and the pony's happiness at the sight of their returning princess filled the heart with power, radiating protective magic throughout the empire.

I then told my guide about the troubles of the kingdom I had come from. How an being of pure evil and chaos currently ruled the land, and how I was searching for a power that might be able to end his reign to put the rightful heirs back on the throne.

My guide anticipated my next question, and decided to let me down gently, explaining that the Crystal Heart would only work for the Empire, as it was a combination of their Princess' and Ponies' love for each other and their home that powered the artifact.

I was disappointed to be sure, and it must have shown on my face, for my guide nudged me with a kind smile on his own.

All was not lost it seemed. While the Crystal Heart would not be of any use to my cause, he did have a solution.

“What you seek is not beyond your own power to provide. Our princess realized that love would protect our land, and so on her journey she filled the Crystal Heart with the love of those she met on her travels, as well as her own love for her homeland. We can supply you with the crystals, but it will be you who will have to empower them, for the sake of your own homeland.”

I must confess I was confused for a moment, before it dawned on me. While the Princess of the Crystal Empire had used love as a catalyst for the Crystal Heart's magic, I would have to find my own.

I retired to my room early that evening, and began to think about what could best protect my homeland. I had studied many different forces and powers in my life, but none that I could think of that would be stronger than love.

I fell asleep at my desk as I often do, but even in my sleep my mind continued to focus on finding a power as great as love to protect Equestria.

And it was in my dreams that I found it. This dream was a memory of a conversation I had with Princess Celestia when she was still a filly. About how there were greater powers than magic in the world that I wanted her to study, powers such as love...

And Friendship.

Twilight's eyes widened as she continued to read the book. Starswirl the Bearded hadn't simply discovered the Elements of Harmony. If she was correct in what she assumed lay in the next pages, then he had actually created the Elements.

And as she read on, her assumption was proven correct. After carefully considering the task he had set for himself, he began thinking on the principles of friendship. What friends shared, what they craved, what exactly made friendship what it was.

His Crystal Pony hosts were extremely gracious in granting his request, giving him six different crystals to use as the catalyst for what he was currently calling “The Friendship Crystals”. The book went on to describe Starswirl's journey to empower each of the crystals with what he considered to be the elements of friendship; Kindness, Honesty, Loyalt, Generosity, Laughter, and finally, Magic.

However, when the book got to the part of Starswirl's journey where he tried to empower the crystal he had saved for magic, it abruptly ended. There was no information on how he had intended to fill the crystal with the magic of friendship, just blank pages until the very end of the book, where there was simply a hastily scrawled note.

The magic lies at the end of the journey.

Twilight eyed the line in confusion. What did that mean? How did Starswirl imbue the final Element? Was it supposed to be some kind of secret?

She considered it for a few moments, before realization dawned on her. 'The journey! Starswirl is saying that the magic of friendship was created on his journey, and imbued the Element at the end of it!'

That thought gave Twilight an idea. Perhaps, if the magic of friendship could truly be found on this journey, then she could find her answers by following Starswirl's steps! Even the very thought of undertaking such a journey had her feeling more like her old self. It would be so exciting! Seeing the strange and exotic places that Starswirl wrote about, learning about different cultures, and in the process she could even heal the wound on her heart! It was perfect!

Feeling more energized than she had all day, Twilight hurried back to her room, keeping Starswirl's book floating alongside her as she went. She burst into her room, and began making a mental checklist of what she needed to do.

'First things first, I'll have to pack some quills and blank scrolls in case I come across anything interesting to record!' The purple aura of her magic appeared around a hoofful of quills and some scrolls, slipping them into her saddlebags. 'Check, now I'll need some scarves and perhaps a coat, Starswirl's book mentions that the Crystal Empire was far to the north of here, so it might be quite a bit colder there.' And so she went, using her magic to pack things she figured she'd need on the trip, lastly packing the book that Starswirl had written. She made sure to pack it where it would be easily accessible, as the journal had the only map she'd have to go off of.

She used her magic to slip her saddlebags on, before another thought hit her. Could she really just leave without telling anyone? What about Spike? Or her brother? What about...

She sighed. If she told anyone what she was planning they would just try and stop her. Princess Celestia might even order her to forget the journey and to continue her studies back in Ponyville. But, she realized, that could only happen if they found out before she went on the journey...

Her horn lit up with magic as a scroll laid across her desk and a quill dipped itself in ink. “Dear Spike,” She said as she began to dictate her letter. Once she was finished, she rolled the scroll up and set it on one of the pillows on her bed. She looked around the room one last time to make sure she wasn't forgetting anything, before closing the door. Once it was shut, her horn once again lit up with magic, and she smiled as she heard the click of the lock sliding into place. That should at least buy her a little bit of time before anyone noticed she was missing.

Ensuring everything was in place, Twilight smiled to herself as she surrounded herself with her magic. There was a zapping sound as the light grew brighter, and when it faded, Twilight Sparkle was gone.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

It was quite a sight to behold, after all it was the first Royal Wedding Canterlot had seen in well over a millennium. The decorations were sublime, everypony was dressed in their finest clothes, and the excitement filled the air. If anything, the changeling invasion the previous day had only heightened the excitement for the wedding. After all, it was no secret that it was Shining Armor and Princess Cadance's love for each other that had dispatched the changelings. This was the ultimate celebration of that same love, and nopony could contain themselves.

Nopony that is, except for the groom himself. Shining Armor glanced around, hoping to see even a hint of purple that would show his sister was there. While he hadn't actually said anything yesterday, he had thought that the misunderstanding between them was cleared up with the Changeling revelation, and that she would be standing at his side as his Best Mare. Spike had said that Twilight hadn't answered when he'd tried her room, and none of her friends from Ponyville had seen her since the re-done wedding preparations yesterday. She couldn't seriously think that he didn't want her to be here... could she?

“Shining Armor?” He started at the voice of Princess Celestia, who was looking at him in concern. “Is something the matter?”

Shining Armor sighed. “I don't think Twili is going to show up.” He said, his eyes drifting over the crowd once again.

Celestia smiled kindly at the young stallion. “I'm sure she's around Shining Armor, she may just feel awkward about what happened yesterday. You have other things to worry about, your bride will be here any moment.” She said.

As if fulfilling Celestia's words, the chorus of birds Fluttershy was leading began to trill the bridal march, as the doors to the room opened. The entirety of the congregation turned to look, as three fillies skipped down the aisle, scattering flower petals from the baskets they held in their mouths as they passed.

Then, with a murmur of excitement going through the crowd, Princess Cadance stepped through the doors, looking more stunning than even Shining Armor was expecting. She gracefully walked down the aisle, where she joined her soon to be husband before Princess Celestia. She smiled at Shining, all her love showing through as she gazed at him, and he once again couldn't help but wonder how anyone had been fooled by the Changeling Queen.

Shining smiled back at her, and as the doors closed allowed himself one more quick glance around the room. His smile almost slipped when he still did not see his little sister even amongst the guests, but he decided to instead focus on his beautiful bride. He'd figure out where Twilight was during the reception, for now though, he had a wedding to finish.

Shining wasn't the only one to notice the lack of the lavender colored mare however. Twilight's friends all exchanged a worried look as they stood next to Princess Cadance.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

“Come on Twilight open the door!” Spike called as he once again knocked on the door. He had been surprised when Twilight hadn't shown up for the wedding, but he knew she's never forgive herself if she didn't at least get a chance to congratulate Shining Armor and Cadance during the reception.

He had ran straight from the wedding to Twilight's room, where he had found the door locked and Twilight still not responding to his calls. This was the third time he had tried to get her to open the door and he was starting to get worried.

“Twilight, at least answer me and let me know you're okay!” Spike pleaded, pressing an ear to the door to listen for any sounds coming from inside.

“Spike?” A voice called from the side, causing Spike to jump into the air in fright. He whirled around and saw Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity walking toward him. “What's going on? Why wasn't Twilight at the wedding?” Applejack asked.

“I don't know! Her door is locked and she's not answering me or anything!” Spike said, the worry clear on his face.

Rarity walked forward and knocked on the door. “Twilight sweetie? Are you alright?” She asked. Everyone listened closely, but nothing could be heard inside the room.

“Twilight cooooome ooooonnnn! You're gonna miss a super-duper-ultra fun party if you stay cooped up in there!” Pinkie Pie said with a slight whine in her voice. Still, there was no answer from inside.

The ponies (and dragon) in the hall all looked at each other, not sure what to do. Finally, Rainbow Dash lost what was left of her patience.

“That's it! Twilight if you don't open this door I'm gonna bust it down! You can't keep ignoring us like this!” She said.

“Um, Rainbow Dash, maybe we shouldn't bother Twilight...” Fluttershy said, worried for her friend, but not wanting to infringe on her friend's privacy either.

“No way, she missed her own brother's wedding for pony's sake! I'm giving you to the count of three Twilight, then I'm bursting through.” Rainbow Dash threatened. There was still no answer, so Rainbow Dash took a few steps away from the door.

“One...” She counted.

“Two...” She crouched down, as she prepared to charge the door.

“THREE!” With that, Rainbow Dash charged towards the door, trying to ram it open. Right as she was about to connect however, the door flew open and she found herself trying desperately to stop as she slid into the darkened room, hitting a wall on the other side with a loud THUMP.

The others looked inside at Pinkie Pie, who had opened the door from the other side. Applejack looked towards where Pinkie had just been standing, back to the mare standing in front of her, and back to the spot again.

“Now how in tarnation did you get in there?!” She asked the pink mare.

“Simple silly, I just came in through the window!” She said, smiling as her friends entered the room.

“But Pinkie Pie, this room isn't on the ground floor, how did you get in through the window?” Rarity asked, looking out the opened window to the ground below.

“Oh that's simple Rarity, I just...”

“Hey, where's Twilight?” Spike asked, gaining the attention of the mares in the room. They looked around and sure enough, there was no sign of their missing friend. The lights were off, her bed didn't even look like it had been slept in.

“Um... maybe there's something in that scroll on her bed...” Fluttershy said, drawing everyone's attention to the paper resting on one of the pillows on Twilight's bed. Spike reached forward and snatched the scroll up, quickly unrolling it as he began to read out loud.

Dear Spike,

By the time you're reading this I will be gone. I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was leaving myself, but I knew that you would either try and talk me out of it, or try to come with me, and this is something I have to do myself.

I'm sure you're wondering why I've left and where I'm going. And well, there's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to say it as honestly as I can. Something broke inside of me yesterday. When everyone left to help the fake Cadance after I'd tried to tell everyone something was wrong... I had never felt so alone in my life. Well, that's not entirely true, there was one time, and that leads me to my problem. The only other time I had ever felt this... alone and abandoned, was when Discord had used his powers to turn us all against each other, and I was no longer able to believe in our friendship.

After helping with the wedding preparations again, I noticed that my heart was aching, and my fur was starting to lose its color, much like the event with Discord. After thinking about it, I came to the conclusion that I once again could not feel the magic of friendship, which as the Element of Magic has left me in a very painful position. It... hurts. I'll just say that.

So I found something in the library that I think will help me, but I have to go on a journey to do so. I'm not sure when I'll be back, but I promise you I will return as soon as I can.

Please apologize to Princess Cadance for me for missing her and Shining's wedding. And let Princess Celestia know that I understand if she wishes to replace me as her student after this. And tell the girls that I, I hope... Tell the girls that I wish them well. Be good until I get back ok?

Love,

Twilight Sparkle

Everypony in the room stared at each other in shock as Spike finished reading the letter. The room was silent as the letter slipped through Spike's claws, as tears began to form in his eyes.

“Twilight... she... s-she left me...” He said, a hitch in his voice before he began to cry. Rarity quickly ran over and scooped the little dragon into a hug as he began to bawl into her fur, her own tears falling silently as she tried to comfort him.

The other mares weren't faring much better. Pinkie Pie's mane had somehow deflated after spike finished reading the letter, hanging flatly down her head as she began crying, tears literally bursting from her eyes as if they were hoses. While Fluttershy whimpered to herself, quietly crying over the thought of losing one of her friends.

Applejack as trying to wrap her mind around it, even as her entire body felt like it was suddenly made from lead. She thought that after she'd apologized to Twilight when Queen Chrysalis revealed herself that it had all been okay. How could she not have seen how much her friend was hurting?

Out of everypony's reactions, Rainbow Dash's was perhaps the strangest. He eyes went from shocked, to teary, to narrowed and determined before she began to walk past the others and out of the room. Seeing the mare leave the room knocked Appledash out of her stupor to call out to the cyan pegasus.

“Rainbow? Where are you goin'?” She asked.

Rainbow Dash cast a glance back at her friends. “I'm gonna go tell Princess Celestia what happened, then I'm gonna find out where that egghead went and drag her back here!” She said, determination in her voice. “Nopony just leaves without saying goodbye to me, and I'm not gonna let one of my friends go off on her own because I hurt her! I'm gonna find that egghead, prove to her that we're still friends, and bring her back to Ponyville kicking and screaming if I have to!” With that, she trotted out of the room.

And as she left, her words hung in the air, filling the other ponies with hope.

“Yeah! We can't just let Twilight go off on her own like this! We'll find her and throw her a huge Sorry-We-Were-Thoughtless-And-Didn't-Listen-To-You-About-The-Changelings Party and then have an even huger party when we're all friends again!” Pinkie Pie shouted, a wide smile across her face as her mane was back to it's normal poofy nature.

Applejack smiled. “Yer darn-tootin we will! Ain't no way I'm just gonna let that filly just walk away without tryin' ta fix this! Come on gals, let's go meet with the Princess before Rainbow Dash takes off without us.”

Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie nodded, and all three turned to look at Rarity and Spike, who had finally stopped crying. The little dragon wiped his eyes with the back of his claws, before nodding at the others. “Lets go get Twilight back!”

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

Twilight looked out the window of the train as it sped across towards the north. She sighed as she wondered how the wedding was going, and whether or not Shining Armor would forgive her for not attending. Part of her wondered who he had gotten to replace her as his Best Mare, but was sure he'd handled that the day before. She sighed again thinking about it. She'd been so happy and excited when he'd asked her to be his Best Mare, and now...

She quickly banished the thoughts. Since her journey had begun her heart had already started to feel lighter, and her coat had even regained some of its color. If she kept dredging up bad memories, the small progress she had made would be lost.

She focused her eyes onto the map in Starswirl's book. Her first stop would be the place where Starswirl had gotten his idea for the Elements of Harmony, the Crystal Empire. The map had it listed far to the north of Canterlot. When she had inquired at the train station they had said that there was a stop near the area, but it was mainly used for ponies conducting experiments or studies of the arctic nature up there. As far as the mare at the ticket window was aware, there were not settlements in the area, let alone an empire.

Still, it was where Starswirl started his journey, so even if Twilight had to try and find the snow covered ruins of some lost city, it would be the start of hers.

With a slight smile on her face, she put the book away and began to let her mind wander, trying to picture just what she might learn on this adventure.

And in the future, when she remembered this moment, she'd smile ruefully to herself and shake her head.

Her guesses never even came close.

Author's Note

So there you have it, the first chapter of my first My Little Pony fanfic. I just watched the show last month and to be honest, after the first few episodes, I couldn't see what the big deal was. But I watched more and more and suddenly I realized, these characters are awesome! Sure, there's all the sappy moral lessons each episode tries to teach, but I even began to like those over time.

But when I got to the end of the second season, I found myself with this little plot bunny running around my head, demanding to be written. So here we are.

As you've read I've taken some liberties with Equestrian history, but I tried to keep it all in line with cannon. If I did mess something up, it was from a lack of knowledge, not me disregarding the world already established.

I'll hopefully update this soon while the Brony Bug is still squirming around in my brain, but the next chapter will be after I release the next chapter for Fuzzy Wuzzy Protector.

So please, let me know what you think of the story, or any errors I may have made.

The Crystal Curse (Part 1)

Disclaimer: I do not own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, all rights to the show and it's properties belong to Hasbro.

Friendship is Missing Chapter II

The Crystal Curse

Celestia frowned as she made her way through the halls of the castle. She had only just found an opportunity to escape from the nobles and other party goers who wished to speak with her during the wedding reception. Normally she was more than happy to spend time with her subjects, even the more pompous nobles, but she had other business to attend to now.

Her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, had not shown up for either her brother's wedding nor the reception. Celestia held no illusions about why Twilight had not attended. She was still hurting over the treatment she had received during the wedding rehearsal. A feeling of guilt clawed at Celestia's mind as she thought about how she had dismissed her student, but what could she have done? Despite what her little ponies may have thought, she was not omniscient. While Twilight had raised some valid concerns regarding the fake Cadance's behavior, Shining Armor's rebuttal had also made perfect sense. So she had scolded Twilight, told her she “had a lot to think about”, and left her to think on her actions. Was that not her duty as Twilight's teacher? To help her recognize when she'd done something wrong, and how to fix it? It was perfectly reasonable in her mind to assume that Twilight had been acting as a jealous little sister who did not want to lose her big brother. Yet, even if at the time she had acted perfectly reasonable, she could not help the clawing feeling of guilt as she recalled Twilight's teary eyes.

There was not time for such thoughts now however. She was going to set things right, she would sit down with her student, and explain her actions, and ask for Twilight's forgiveness. Perhaps she could even convince Twilight to read something together, like they did when she was younger and still living in Canterlot. She really did miss having her around.

So lost in her memories, Celestia almost did not notice as a prismatic blur flew towards her. Almost. Her horn glowed as a similar aura caught the object in mid air, revealing a slightly worried looking Rainbow Dash.

“Hello Rainbow Dash, may I ask what has you flying around the halls of my castle like you were trying to race a Wonderbolt?” Celestia asked, smiling gently at the pegasus who floated in her magic.

“Princess Celestia! Twilight is gone!”

At Rainbow Dash's words Celestia momentarily lost control of her magic, causing Rainbow Dash to fall to the ground. Rainbow Dash shrugged it off, quickly getting to her hooves and looking expectantly at the Princess.

“Gone? Whatever do you mean Rainbow Dash?”

“She's gone! She ran away, and left some stupid note about how she had to find herself or something because she was sad and left!” Rainbow Dash hopped from hoof to hoof, clearly anxious to get something done.

“I see... do you have this note?” Celestia asked, as her mind began to fly through the possibilities. This was.... she couldn't even believe it. Her faithful student... the mare she loved as if she were her own daughter, had left because of the hurt she'd caused.

“Ummm... no Princess, I think Spike has the letter. I flew ahead to come find you.” Rainbow Dash looked slightly guilty about that, not having even considered that the Princess may want to see the letter.

“Do not worry Rainbow Dash, let's go find your friends and we'll discuss what to do.”

“That won't be necessary Princess, we're right here, and dangit Dash I told ya to wait for us!” Applejack approached with the others behind her, giving Rainbow Dash an annoyed look.

It was obvious to Celestia that all of Twilight's friends were upset, but Spike was the worst. He still had tears in his eyes, but he also looked determined as he approached and held out a scroll to her.

“This is the letter that Twilight left, Princess Celestia.” Spike looked at the Princess hopefully as she took the letter in her magic and began reading it.

Celestia felt her mouth tug into a frown as she read her student's letter. This was even more serious that she'd thought. She'd never considered that the Elements of Harmony and their bearers could be so tightly tied together. She could only imagine what it must be like, to have the Element you're tied to reject you.

Years of dealing with the public and having to keep her emotions under control kept her from tearing up as she reached the end of her letter. Had she truly failed Twilight so badly, that Twilight would even think she would replace her?

Celestia rolled the scroll back up, and looked at Twilight's friends. They were all looking at her, with a look Celestia had seen too many times over her rule. The look of hope, of uncompromising belief that she held all the answers, and could fix every problem. Never before had she wished that was the truth.

“I see. You found this in Twilight's room I take it?” She asked, receiving nods from the ponies and dragon. “So she's obviously already left. Very well, I will begin an investigation to see if we can find any information on where Twilight may have gone. Her letter states she found something in the library that she believes may help her, so I'll question the guards who were on duty last night.”

“Great! Then what should we do Princess?” Spike asked.

Celestia sighed. She knew that this was not going to go over well. “For now Spike, there is nothing you can do. We have no leads, no idea where Twilight may have gone. Until we have something to go on, the only thing we can do is wait.”

Spike and Rainbow Dash looked like they were going to protest, but Celestia hurried to cut the off. “I understand you're worried about Twilight, and believe me, so am I. If I knew where she was I would be there in an instant. We will find her, have no fear, but there is little to be done at this point.”

Rainbow Dash still looked rebellious but Spike nodded his head sadly.

“So uh- What should we do then Princess?” Applejack asked.

“I'd like for you six to stay in the castle for now. That way as soon as I discover something, we can make all haste to wherever Twilight has gone.”

The five ponies and young dragon nodded, before making there way down the hall. As they went, Celestia overheard Rainbow Dash muttering how the pegasus could just fly all over Equestria until she found Twilight, but she followed the others. Celestia spared a glance out the window, looking at the moon as she wondered what could have become of her student. There was only one thing to do for now, talk to the guards who were stationed at the library last night, and hopefully find some clue as to where Twilight had gone.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

Twilight jolted awake as she heard the screeching sound of the train's brakes, and felt the train begin to slow down. It had been three days since the night she'd left Canterlot, and she was starting to get a little stir crazy. She'd had to take the train from Canterlot to Fillydelphia, and was luckily able to catch a train from there to the Northern Research Outpost, the closest spot she could find to the Crystal Empire.

She looked out the window to see the snow falling heavily. She wondered why Starswirl's journal never mentioned the arctic climate. She knew the Crystal Empire was far to the north, but surely snowfall like this would have deserved at least mention in his notes? As the train pulled into the station, and Twilight saw a couple ponies bundled head to hoof in warm clothing, she began to regret the decision to only bring a scarf. She had considered packing a coat, but she wanted to travel lightly...

There was nothing for it now, she'd simply have to make do. She wrapped her scarf around her with her magic, and stepped out of the train.

It felt like hundreds of tiny frozen needles were trying to dig under her coat! How could anypony stay in an area like this? She glanced back over the the bundled up ponies working on the train platform and rolled her eyes. Of course, being prepared for the weather would help.

Still, it wasn't like she was completely out of options. She quickly cast a spell, and a burst of purple light emanated from her horn, flowing down her body. It wasn't much, but her magic would dull some of the cold, making her feel more like she was walking through Ponyville in winter than crossing an arctic tundra.

With that taken care of, Twilight walked off the train platform, and into the flurry of snow. Within a few moments the curtains of snow hid the platform from view, and Twilight found herself in a world of white. She thanked the fact that she had already studied spells for wilderness situations. Without the spell to point her in the right direction, she'd be wandering this place forever.

She used her magic to pull Starswirl's journal out from her saddlebag, and checked the map again. If she was reading it correctly, then it looked like she was in luck, the train platform was only a couple hours travel by hoof. It was a good thing too, because even with her magic protecting her she could feel the bite of the cold air seeping through. The sooner she got to her destination and could set up a camp, the better.

Twilight trudged through the snow, calculating the distance she was covering in her head as she went. There weren't any landmarks to guide her, so she had to hope that Starswirl had kept his map as accurate as possible, otherwise she would be wandering for a while.

As time passed, Twilight began to fear that perhaps the scale on Starswirl's map was incorrect. She should be coming up on the ruins of the Crystal Empire, but she saw nothing in the distance. Just more snow. She figured that any outlying settlements would have been covered by snow or eroded by time, but the brilliant Crystal Castle that Starswirl spoke of, surely something had to remain of that?

But... there was something there. She couldn't see anything, but as she got closer to what she assumed was her destination, she began to feel something. It was like a tickling sensation in the back of her brain. There was magic in the air. Powerful magic. So powerful that she could only equate it to one of the Princesses... or perhaps the Elements of Harmony?

It was stronger now too. She could practically taste the magic hanging in the air. There was so much of it! But what could be causing it? Was there some kind of spell or enchantment in place that...

Twilight almost slapped a hoof to her face when realization struck her. Starswirl had mentioned in his journal that the Crystal Empire was protected by an artifact called the Crystal Heart, the same artifact that inspired him to create the Elements of Harmony. Obviously, the magic in the air was coming from the artifact. It had probably remained active even years after... whatever had happened to the Crystal Empire happened. The Crystal Heart was probably keeping her from seeing, possibly even from entering the remains of the Crystal Empire! If that was the case, then it was extraordinary! She couldn't wait to find it and see if she could research it a little.

Of course, first she'd have to find a way past the barrier keeping her out. She'd just need to make a small hole in the barrier, one big enough for her to get through but small enough to keep the entire barrier from falling apart.

Twilight began focusing her magic, not through her horn like she normally would, but this time to her eyes. Soon, the snow in her vision was replaced with glowing orbs of magic. It was an old trick she'd read about during her studies, a way to check on wards and enchantments. She also knew from talking with Spike that it caused her eyes to glow white, which he always complained about, saying it was just too creepy.

The concentration of magic in the area was almost blinding to Twilight. She winced and looked away momentarily, before turning back to see what she could do about this barrier. Or... whatever it was, because it looked nothing like any barrier or ward Twilight had ever seen before. She had seen Shining Armor's barrier with her magic sight, and it was like looking at a spiderweb made from words, symbols, and power. Instead this was just like... like a huge concentration of magic. It was directionless, without purpose. The magic was just sitting there, almost like a placeholder for whatever was supposed to be there. Whatever the Crystal Heart was doing to keep the Crystal Empire hidden away, it was beyond Twilight's understanding. On the positive side however, this would make it much easier to gain entrance into the empire. She'd been planning on having to study the barrier, figure out the different variables written into the magic and various power sources it would use, and find a weak point to push through with a shell of her own magic. Now, she'd simply have to absorb a little bit of the magic floating around, just enough to make a hole for her to get through.

Plan in mind, Twilight pushed her magic back down, away from her eyes. She began focusing, letting her magic reach out into the air, seeking out the magic protecting the area. She felt the electric jolt of the foreign magic, which didn't really feel all that foreign at all. She actually thought she could recognize it, but she couldn't quite place from where.

Before she could think on it further, she felt a surge in her own magic. It was reacting! Reacting to the magic all around her. She quickly tried to reel her own magic back in, but it was like she was stuck, trapped in a connection with this other magic. Her chest began to feel warm, and it spread to the rest of her body, slowly at first, but gaining speed like a wildfire. She felt like she was burning up, and didn't even realize it when her hooves left the ground. Then, even as she struggled with the burning sensation, she felt it. The magic guarding the Crystal Empire was rushing towards her, swirling around her faster and faster, becoming visible even to the naked eye. It was a whirlwind of colors, melding into some kind of cyclonic rainbow. Her chest felt hotter, and she threw her head back as she screamed.

And miles away, in the castle at Canterlot, five other ponies gave a cry as heat rushed through their bodies. They fell to the ground, even as their cutie marks glowed, and a small dragon tried to figure out what was going on. Then, suddenly as it had happened, the feeling was gone, and the glowing disappeared.

Twilight's head suddenly snapped forward. As if following the motion, the rainbow of magic spinning around her launched forward, colliding with the ground before shooting up the sky. The magic splayed as it reached it's apex, as though hitting an invisible ceiling. There was a sound like a thunderclap, and then everything was still.

Twilight, who had returned to the ground after the magic left her, shakily got back onto her hooves. She looked forward, and gasped. Where before there had been miles of arctic tundra, now there stood a city, warm and beautiful, and gleaming in the sun.

She had found it. The Crystal Empire.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

In Canterlot, castle, the Princesses Celestia and Luna snapped their heads to the north, their eyes widening with dreadful realization. It was time, sooner than either could have expected. The Crystal Empire had returned, and they were not prepared.

Celestia trotted quickly to the guard stationed outside the Starswirl the Bearded wing of the Canterlot Archives. “Guard,” Celestia gave a mental grimace at her form of address. She would much to know the names of her guards, but it was part of the enchantment all the royal guard wore, they all would look and talk exactly alike. “I need you to quickly gather the bearers of the Elements of Harmony and my sister, and tell them to meet me in my study. There will be a small dragon with them, have him send a letter to Princess Cadance stating that her and Shining Armor need to return to Canterlot immediately.”

The guard nodded, and galloped away to fulfill his orders. Celestia watched him depart, before turning back to look at the room she'd just been in. She'd been going through all the texts she could think of that Twilight may have read. For three days she'd done nothing but read, and reread, trying to see what she could be missing. The guards who had been posted that night had said that Twilight had visited this wing, spent a hour or so reading, and then had left. Whatever she had found in here had inspired her to go on this journey, but Starswirl the Bearded had gone on many journeys over his lifetime. Twilight could be anywhere in Equestria, or even outside its borders. And now she needed to be found for more than just personal reasons. The Crystal Empire was back, and while they had her princess, Celestia was sure that only Twilight would be able to save the Crystal Ponies. Because if the Crystal Empire was back, that would mean he had returned as well.

Sombra would be back. It would take time for him to regain his power after the Elements of Harmony banished him, but he would regain it, and now the Elements of Harmony were separated. She would have to send the other Elements of Harmony and Cadance to the empire swiftly, and then locate Twilight. She may have to send Luna to buy them time to locate her missing student. She shuddered to think about that outcome. Luna would give her all to protect the ponies of Equestria and the Crystal Empire, but she could not prevail against Sombra. Even if Luna found it within herself to try to end Sombra's life...

No, her mind would not go down that dark route. She would fix this, she would keep Equestria and all her ponies safe. She would fight to her last if that's what it took

Yet, in her heart, there was a sliver of doubt. She had fought Sombra once, side by side with her sister, and they still had needed the Elements of Harmony to survive. She couldn't even call what had happened a victory, just mere survival. If Sombra had truly returned, with nopony to keep him in check while he regained his power...

She took a deep breath and cleared her mind. Now was not the time to worry about what-ifs. Her plan was already in motion, she just had to wait for the players to arrive.

And more important than ever, she needed Twilight Sparkle.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

Twilight's body protested against the movement. Any movement really, but her mind and curiosity overrode her body's cries of pain. This was amazing! She had expected to find ruins, dilapidated buildings and perhaps the remnants of a roadway. Instead, she found an entire city, a sprawling metropolis that hadn't aged at all. Was this what the Crystal Heart was capable of? Protecting the empire from not just threats, but also nature and time?

The smile on her face would be sure to scare away other ponies, if there were any around. She couldn't help it though. If the buildings were in this kind of condition, then that meant that more had survived the ravages of time. There could be books! There could even be... Twilight's eyes got a dreamy look to them, as she imagined a crystal library, stored with ancient knowledge that ponies hadn't seen since the time of Starswirl the Bearded. She just might have to take a break from her journey, there was just too much research here to pass up!

The architecture around was similar to the style used in bigger cities like Manehattan. The biggest difference was that in Manehattan, the buildings were all clustered together, trying to use up all the available space. Here, the buildings were spaced apart from each other, but still consisted of multiple levels.

And there was something else... but it had nothing to do with architecture. Twilight as she trotted through the town, she couldn't help but feel like she was being watched. She knew it was silly, it was probably just the sight of all those windows coupled with the empty town. How could there be anypony here?

Trying to rationalize it did not make the feeling go away. She sighed in irritation, and gave in to her urge to look through one of the windows. Not because she actually thought somepony was watching her of course. She just wanted to see what the inside of one of the buildings looked like, that's all.

So Twilight stopped walking, and turned her head to look through the lower window of a building she next to.

And to her credit, she only shrieked a little at the green eyes looking back at her.

The pony in the window jumped back at Twilight's scream with an alarmed look. Strange as it sound, that reaction helped calm Twilight down. She felt her heartbeat slow, as she realized that whoever this pony was, they were just as nervous about her presence as she was of hers. How there was a pony still here was a mystery, but it was a mystery that could easily be solved by simply talking to her.

Twilight slowly approached the window, trying to give a friendly smile to the mare inside.

“Hello! Sorry to startle you, I just didn't think anypony else was here.” She said as she approached. The mare just stared at her through the window. Twilight got a good look at her, and tried to study the mare without seeming to obtrusive (or creepy, as Rainbow Dash had once told her when she had been studying pegasi wings). The pony had a coat and mane that seemed glossy, but not shimmering as Starswirl the Bearded had described of the Crystal Ponies. Perhaps a descendant of the Crystal Ponies then? Had the Crystal Empire continued to function even after it's supposed disappearance from Equestria? This mare's coat was a light red, bordering on pink color. Her mane was a light blue, and it hung limply around her face. And her eyes...

Her eyes gave Twilight a start. Not because they looked strange, for they were simply a pair of green eyes. There was something behind them however. Twilight could almost feel crushing defeat and despair as she looked into the mare's eyes, almost as if she'd never be happy again. She looked away and brought a hoof up to her face, feeling the wetness there. Tears had been silently falling from her eyes just from looking into the eyes of this mare.

Twilight backed away from the window. The mare was still looking at her with that crushing stare. She had to look away, but when she did, she saw more ponies looking at her from windows around the street. They all had the same glossy coats and manes, and the same defeated look in their eyes. Twilight found herself wondering what exactly had happened to make these ponies look so despondent. And why were they all staying indoors? There should be at least some ponies going about their business, but instead everyone was hidden away.

“Hello?” Twilight called out. At the sound of her voice, the ponies watching her from the windows flinched away. Some pulled the curtains shut, some galloped away into a different room, while others just continued to watch.

Undeterred, Twilight decided to try again. “It's alright! I'm not going to hurt any of you. My name is Twilight Sparkle and...” She tried to think of what else to say, something that could reassure these ponies.

There was a creaking sound behind her, and she turned to see the door to the building she'd had her back to opening. The mare she'd first seen poked her head outside. There was a certain confused hesitance to the way she was looking around that puzzled Twilight. It was as if the mare had no idea where she was.

“Hello?” Twilight tried again, taking a step towards the mare.

“Who... who are you?” The mare asked. Her voice sounded nervous, almost scared.

“My name is Twilight Sparkle, I'm...” She had to think about how to continue her introduction. Normally, she'd introduce herself as Princess Celestia's student, but now... “I'm um, a student from Ponyville.”

The mare didn't comment on her introduction. She continued looking around, almost as if she was trying to assure herself that she was really here, before letting her eyes settle on Twilight again.

The silence was almost oppressive, the warm smile Twilight was trying to give was faltering in the face of it. She cleared her throat, trying to think of anything to break the air of awkwardness.

“Sooo... I'm surprised to see so many ponies still living here. The last documented contact with the Crystal Empire was well over nine hundred years ago.”

The mare looked at Twilight in confusion. “What do you mean? We just received a shipment of mining supplies from San Palomino last month.”

It was Twilight's turn to look confused. San Palomino? “I'm afraid you must be mistaken ma'am. San Palomino was a frontier town that was abandoned after the gem mines were emptied, and that was over eight hundred years ago.”

“No, I'm sure of it. He was very angry that mining had slowed down while we waited for new tools.” The mare said.

“He? Who's 'he'?” Twilight asked.

The mare thought about it for a moment, and then closed her eyes in a wince. It looked like she was in pain, but the moment passed quickly. “I... I'm not sure. I can't remember... it's like I don't want to remember.”

Twilight wasn’t sure what to make of that. “Are you alright?”

The mare nodded. “I, I’m fine. I just feel a little… out of sorts I guess?”

“Oh. Is there anything I could do to help?”

Twilight’s question seemed to shatter whatever courage the mare had used to speak with her. The way the mare tried to make herself as small as possible while still keeping Twilight in her sight reminded her of Fluttershy.

Which was something she very much did not want to think about.

“N-no. I’m alright. Thank you for your concern...ummmm...you said your name was Twilight, right?”

“Yes, Twilight Sparkle.”

“That’s a nice name. I’m Rose Quartz.” Rose, as Twilight now knew her, nodded in greeting. “I don’t know if it will help, but there’s a library a little ways away from here. At least, I think there is. You should find it if you just follow the road down that way.”

Twilight’s eyes lit up with excitement. A library?! This was perfect! Oh she could not wait to see what kind of books the Crystal Empire had, and there was sure to be books about the Crystal Heart and the empire’s history.

“Oh my gosh! A library! In the Crystal Empire! This is so exciting! Do you know how many books they have? Do I need a library card? Can I even get a library card if I’m not a resident of the Crystal Empire?”

Twilight’s excitement brought a small smile to Rose Quartz’s face, the first smile Twilight had seen since she’d arrived at the Crystal Empire. “I don’t know, I can’t really rememberer much. But I’m sure you’ll be able to at least look at the books without a library card.”

“Ohhh, I can’t wait! I bet there’s books in there that nopony in Equestria has seen in centuries!”

Rose Quartz winced at that, and her smile disappeared. “Um… it was nice talking with you Twilight, but I think I’m going to go lay down for a bit.”

To Twilight, Rose looked like she would simply collapse if she was kept any longer. “Of course. Thank you for your time, Rose Quartz.”

Rose nodded, and closed the door. Twilight looked around at the deserted street, her taking in the sight while wondering what exactly had happened to these ponies. She hoped she could find some more ponies willing to talk to her while she made her way to the library. It seemed that her trip to the Crystal Empire had turned into a full-blown mystery.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

He had awoken. But not from the curse ending, at least not naturally. It seemed that for whatever reason somepony had broken the enchantment that kept him banished. Not without consequence however. He was little more than a shade at this point. Still he was returned, and his power would soon follow.

He was eager to reclaim his throne, yet something gave him pause. The magic that had broken the curse had felt familiar. It reeked of the same light that the sisters had used to banish him originally. Whoever had freed him somehow had access to the same magic. Were they agents of the sisters? Had the sisters moved on from this world during his imprisonment?

There were too many unknowns. He would bide his time, wait for his full power to return. Here, surrounded by crystals, he would grow in power swiftly. Then he would take back what had been stolen from him. The Crystal Empire would be his again.

=-=MLP:FiM=-=

Twilight couldn't believe it. It was impossible! How could everypony in the Crystal Empire not remember anything? She'd asked every single pony who'd been willing to talk to her, and not one of them remembered the name of their king (She had at least gotten confirmation that it was a king, which was strange considering this was the Crystal Empire, but she decided not to delve further into that just yet). Some had given her a reaction at the mention of the Crystal Heart, but after thinking about it for a few moments they would simply shake their head and apologize for not knowing. Strangest of all, they all swore that the date was some thousand years in the past.

So Twilight had done what she always did in times of crisis, visit the library! The problem was that even the library was being frustratingly unhelpful. After an increasingly aggravating conversation with an older mare, who wasn’t sure whether or not she even worked in the library, Twilight had set about on her own looking for books to help explain the situation. Only there were not any books discussing the royal line, and nothing on the Crystal Heart. She'd only found one book that was of any help at all, titled A History of the Crystal Empire. Unfortunately, the title was a little misleading. Rather than talk about the history of the Crystal Empire itself, it mainly spoke of a tradition set in place by the Empire's first Queen (who also unfortunately went unnamed in the book), the Crystal Fair. The Fair had been established to help renew the spirit of love and unity in the empire, to protect it from harm. At the end, there was a picture of the Crystal Heart, which was evidently the centerpiece of the fair.

The book however did not mention the fact that the Crystal Heart was what protected the Empire, nor that there was anything special about the heart at all. Had Twilight not already known of the Crystal Heart's significance, she would have thought it was simply a decoration.

It was almost like... like somepony was trying to hide the history of the Crystal Empire. But why? What had happened that would make the entire population forget their King? Or that they were supposedly protected by a magical artifact that was the precursor to the Elements of Harmony? What had happened that made it so the last millennia of history was simply hidden away?

Something wasn’t right. The closest thing Twilight could even hypothesize was that the crystal ponies had entered something similar to a fugue state of mind, causing the ponies to temporarily lose memories, personality, or even invent entire new identities for themselves. This would explain not only why they could not remember general information about their kingdom, but also why they thought that the date was some thousand years in the past. The only problem with that idea though, was that she’d never heard of an entire populace affected before. No, whatever had happened to these ponies was not normal.

She had to figure out what was going on here. But how? For once books didn’t have the answer, and the ponies she’d met couldn’t seem to remember anything that would help, only vague warnings to stay away from the castle.

If only there was a way she could help restore their memories somehow.

That thought made her pause, before she smacked a hoof against her face. There was way she could help restore their memories. It was a simple spell, though one that required finesse. She couldn’t believe she’d forgotten about it. After all, that was the spell she had used when Discord had corrupted…

She shook off the negative feelings as she thought about her friends. She didn’t have
time to wallow in pity, she needed to figure out what was going on in the Crystal Empire. She’d just have to find a pony to cast her spell on. Then, hopefully, she’d get some answers.

With that plan in mind, Twilight left the library, if only a little reluctantly. After all, there was a literal treasure trove of books she’d never even heard of before! But helping the crystal ponies would have to come first. She could raid their library later.

Once outside, Twilight was surprised to see the streets were no longer deserted. Crystal ponies were finally starting to emerge from their houses, though they still seemed nervous. One actually jumped at the sight of its own shadow, dashing back inside with a speed that my have made Rainbow Dash envious, and possibly predicting two more weeks of winter.

Twilight made her way back through town, towards the home of the one pony who had actually been any help. While she could cast the spell on anypony, she’d rather have the pony’s permission first. Given the reception she had received so far, she figured that Rose Quartz would be her best chance.

Luckily, Rose Quartz was still at home, and willing to answer the door when Twilight arrived. The pink coated mare looked better, though she still carried that air of nervousness that seemed to afflict all the crystal ponies.

“Twilight, right?” She asked, this time actually smiling at her. “Did you find the library alright?”

Twilight nodded. “I did, but it didn’t have the information I was looking for. But I did get an idea while I was there, and I was wondering if you’d be willing to help me?”

Rose glanced around hesitantly. “Well, I suppose I could try. What do you need me to do?”

“Nothing actually!” Twilight chirped, happy to finally be making some headway. “I would just like to try casting a memory spell on you, to see if it helps with the weird memory loss everypony here seems to have gone through.”

“A-are you sure that’s necessary, Twilight?”

“No, but it’s the only thing I can think of. There’s something really strange going on here, and I want to get to the bottom of it.”

“Well...alright then.” Rose clenched her eyes shut, her whole body shaking with nervousness.

Twilight didn’t want to waste a second, worried that Rose might change her mind if she waited too long. With a thought her horn began to glow, and she gently touched it to Rose’s forehead, letting the arcane energy flow into the other mare.

The effect was instantaneous. Rose Quartz fell to the ground, screaming and writhing in pain as she clutched her forehooves to her head. Twilight recoiled at the sound, staring at the mare in horror. She wasn’t sure what was going on. She knew she hadn’t cast the spell wrong, but she’d never seen nor heard of such an adverse reaction to it before.

The few crystal ponies who were out on the street quickly galloped away, all looking for places to hide. Twilight looked around, as if somepony else may have an answer to what had happened to Rose.

After a few seconds, Rose’s screaming stopped. The mare laid on her side, taking in shaky breaths. Tears matted the fur around her eyes, and her curly brown mane was sticking up in patches from where she’d grabbed her head.

“R-Rose? Are you…?” Twilight felt sick. She’d never hurt a pony like that before. To hurt somepony with her magic, she felt like she’d committed some unforgivable sin.

Rose was silent for a few moments. She looked at Twilight, and the look in her eyes made Twilight shudder.

“I...I remember…” Rose’s voice came out hoarse, a whispery sound that Twilight would have missed if there had been any sound other than her own breathing. “We...we have to get out of here. It’s not safe, he could be back any moment.”

There it was again, he, the mysterious pony that everypony knew but couldn’t remember.

“What do you mean Rose? Why isn’t it safe here? And who is ‘he’?”

There it was again. That look of hopelessness, as though nopony would ever be happy again. It made Rose Quartz look like she was a thousand years old.

“Sombra.” Rose said. The word itself evoked feelings of dread, even in Twilight. She half expected to hear thunder booming ominously in the distance.

“Sombra?” It even sounded awful when she said it, and she still had no idea who this Sombra was.

Rose whimpered at the name, but was slowly getting back onto her hooves. “King Sombra, the tyrant of the Crystal Empire. If we’ve returned, then so has he.”

Twilight still wasn’t sure what exactly was going on. But the word ‘tyrant’ rang strongly in her ears. From her research, the ruler of the Crystal Empire was supposed to be a wise and benevolent pony, one who was able to inspire such love in their ponies that the very force of it could be used to power the Crystal Heart, and protect the empire.

“Tell me everything.” Twilight said, and for the first time since her brother’s wedding, she left everything troubling her behind. Something was dreadfully wrong here, and Twilight was going to fix it. She was going to save the Crystal Empire, no matter what the cost.

Author's Note

Hey, remember when I first wrote this story like, over a year ago? Good times, good times.

So here's the start of the Crystal Empire Arc. This once gave me far more trouble than I think it's worth, but I think the next chapter will be smoother. Maybe I'll even have it out by next year?

Ahahahahaha....

Ahem. So yeah, I'll just go back to writing now.