The Revenge of the Sombranian Cult

Chapters

Prologue
Rainbow's Dream
The Pursuit Begins
Spike's Shocking Revelation
A Brief Skirmish
The Calm before the Storm
The End
The Attack

Prologue

Deep beneath the castle of the Crystal Empire, two menacing unicorns both dressed in matching black ceremonial robes, silently wound their way through pitch-black tunnels. Lord Anthautu, the leader of the Sombranian Cult, was fuming, angry that he had been unable to help his King. If only I had been able to get there in time... Glancing down, he looked at his second in command, Mordronous, who had his horn lit to guide them down the tunnel.

Out of all those in the cult, Mordronous was the most intelligent, due to the fact that he used to be a bookworm in his foalhood. But when he joined the cult, evil had taken over his mind and and pushed away his affection for books. But still, somewhere deep down inside him, part of that bookworm still existed. Because of that, Lord Anthautu had made him the caretaker and interpreter of the Sombranian Cult's holy book, the Ponynomicon, which was tucked safely and securely in his saddlebags.

Turning his head back to gaze down the tunnel, Lord Anthautu could barely make out the outline of the large archway that led to the main chamber. As they approached the broad and imposing entrance, Mordronous glanced up and admired the intricate carvings that depicted King Sombra's takeover of the Crystal Empire over a thousand years ago. As they passed under it, Mordronous dimmed his horn, as the tunnel they were walking through was dimly lit from a series of magical lights at the base of the walls.

They walked through the winding tunnel in silence for a minute, listening to the echoing voices of the cult, and eventually came upon the entrance to the main chamber. Their eyes adjusting to the bright light, they saw that the rest of the cult were arguing amongst themselves around a large stone table.

Mordronous silently listened to the cult argue amongst themselves. He groaned in disgust and was about to shut them up when his master, Lord Anthautu, spoke, “Listen to those ponies bicker amongst themselves.... such imbeciles. We should silence them before they... do something stupid,” his voice sending a slight shiver down Mordronous’s back.

“I agree, my lord,” he answered, his gaze shifting back to the occupants of the room. “Please, allow me...”

Mordronous sucked in a deep breath, used his magic to amplify his voice, and loudly barked, “Cease!” His loud voice echoed throughout the chamber, shocking those sitting around the table into silence. “That's better...” Mordronous dryly said, glaring at the room as a whole.

Lord Anthautu silently took his place at the head of the large table, his gaze shifting to the ponies gathered around it. He sat down, looked at all of the ponies staring at him, and slowly said, “Ever since our king was slain, we have been without a leader; without direction. We must exact our revenge on those who laid him low. My right-hoof pony has come up with a promising plan, and I will allow him the privilege to present it. Mordronous, you have the floor.”

Mordronous quickly stepped forward to stand beside his lord, gave him a quick bow, and said, “Thank you, my lord. Since the day following the death of our mighty king, I have been scouring our most holy writing for something; anything. And after weeks of hard and grueling work, I have finally found it.” He paused, his eyes sweeping to look at each pony. “I have found a way to resurrect our beloved king."

As everypony gasped in surprise, he pulled out a heavy leather-bound book from his saddlebag, and reverently laid it on the table. “If my interpretation holds true, the text says that we must have a piece of the fallen, such as a horn or a feather, the blood of a baby dragon... and most importantly,” He paused again, glancing down at the book before him, “the sacrifice must take place on the eve of the summer solstice, which is exactly two weeks from this very night.”

“But how can we get a piece of King Sombra? He was laid low in his attempt to reclaim his rightful kingdom!” one pony exclaimed, slamming a hoof on the table.

The others murmured in agreement for a few moments, and then the newest member, Zeo, an earth pony, spoke up. “I move that myself and two others kidnap the baby dragon known as Spike from his home in Ponyville. We'll be able to resurrect our fallen lord with his blood, and also take revenge for his death. We will be able to effectively kill two birds with one stone! We still need something from King Sombra, or all of our efforts will be for naught.”

This idea was met well, as shown by the excited whispers of those around him. After a few minutes of deliberation, Lord Anthautu lifted a hoof, instantly quieting the large room.

“I concur. Both Mordronous and Garath will join you on this mission. As for something from King Sombra...” He pulled out a small object wrapped in worn leather, and carefully laid it on the table, drawing several looks of confusion from several members. Mordronous slowly and carefully unwrapped the small object to reveal the severed tip of King Sombra's horn. The rest of the cult gasped, whispers and shouting breaking out amongst them.

Garath, a pegasus, yelled over the rest, “How did you get ahold of something so sacred?”

Lord Anthautu covered up the horn with his magic, his voice instantly quieting the group. “That is of little relevance now. What truly matters at this time is that we must make our move on the baby dragon. Mordronous, take Garath and Zeo and plan the attack. Once you have taken the baby dragon, we will reconvene and perform the ceremony on the eve of the summer solstice. With that being said, this meeting is adjourned.” He slowly rose, his voice echoing across the cavern as he spoke. “Mordronous, Garath, and Zeo, I wish you luck in your monumental task. Do not fail us…”

Rainbow's Dream

BOOM!

"Mmmm...no, Twilight, don’t get up..." Rainbow softly murmured as she slowly woke up from a dream where she and Twilight had been innocently cuddling in her bed. Shifting a little bit to find a more comfortable position, she realized that the pony that she was so tenderly cuddling with suddenly didn't feel like a pony anymore. She groggily opened her eyes and looked down, only to find that she was cuddling with one of her pillows. With a cry of dismay, she chucked it across the room and watched as it impacted the cloud wall with a less than satisfying thud.

With a sigh, she looked out the window and realized that it was already late in the afternoon. She threw the covers off of herself and slipped out of bed, heading for the bathroom. Flexing her wings, she hopped into the shower, turned on the hot water, and relaxed as the warm water cascaded over her body. Her thoughts drifted back to her dream as she enjoyed the warmth of the water, her hooves slightly sinking into the bottom of the tub.

Ever since she and Twilight had started reading books together, she started to feel something more than platonic friendship. Since that first time they read a book together, she cherished the time that they spent together, leaning against each other. At the time, she wasn’t sure what those feelings were, but she knew exactly what they were now. She had no idea how, but she had fallen for one of her best friends.

During the past couple times that they read together, she had tried build up her courage to tell Twilight about her feelings, but she always lost her nerve at the last second. The only thing that held her back was the fact that she was afraid that Twilight would reject her.

“Gah! Why am I so bad at this sappy romance stuff?” Rainbow thought, stomping her front hooves in anger. This whole situation had been driving her crazy the past couple of weeks. If she wanted to get on with her life, she knew that she had to talk to Twilight about her feelings sooner or later.

So, her determination building, her eyes narrowed ever so slightly as her heart pounded loudly in her chest. Today would be the day. Today she would mare up and confess her feelings to Twilight. She grinned nervously to herself as she turned the shower off, her tail twitching anxiously.

Hopping out of the shower, she quickly dried herself off with a towel and shook her mane, letting it return to its usual shape. She trotted downstairs and confidently walked right out the front door, but her grin faltered slightly as an ominous black storm met her gaze. Rain pelted her fur as she examined the storm, the likes of which Ponyville was unaccustomed to. Several bolts of lightning struck the ground off in the distance, massive thunderclaps echoing through the air.

BOOM!

She jumped in surprise, the hair on the back of her neck standing on edge, as a bright bolt of lightning struck the ground directly in front of her cloud house.

“So that's what woke me up...a stupid storm! You won't stop me from talking to Twilight today!” She stretched her legs and bit back a yawn as she prepared to fly toward Ponyville. Another bolt of lightning slammed into the ground near her house, quickly followed by a loud clap of thunder. Deciding now was as good a time as any, she threw herself off her cloud, the wind and rain assaulting her relentlessly, limiting her visibility as it came pouring down in sheets.

As she flew over Sweet Apple Acres, she glanced down, seeing most of the apple trees being violently blown from side to side. She looked back up just in time to see a bolt of lightning appear just mere inches from her left wing, the bright light blinding her. She blinked her eyes repeatedly, the dots in her vision slowly clearing. Below her, the lightning bolt had set a small bush on fire, only to be quickly put out by the rain. She sighed in relief and thought, “This is ridiculous! I need to have a chat with the weather team... this storm is out of control!”

She tucked her wings closer to her body, and dove closer to the ground as she picked up speed. She darted above the town, quickly covering ground as she headed straight for the library. Below her she could make out a dim magenta glow, the hazy figure of a purple mare barely visible through the downpour.

She increased her speed, a grin growing on her face as the rain revealed the familiar form of the town librarian. Her heart fluttered in her chest suddenly, her stomach tossing nervously. Her eyes lost focus as she suddenly imagined Twilight saying that she shared her feelings...

Her eyes flew wide as she twisted to the left, narrowly missing a bolt of lightning that had appeared before her. Another bolt slammed down ahead of her, but she just banked to the right and sailed past it.

A flash of agonizingly bright light suddenly filled her vision and pain shot through her entire body. The world blurred before her, a dull ringing filled her ears as the smell of burning fur assaulted her nose, and her eyes drifted shut as she blacked out, a flare of magenta light being the last thing that she remembered.

As Twilight trotted down the muddy road, she thought, “I sure am glad I was able to restock my studying supplies before Davenport shut his store for the storm. I was really low on quills, and Celestia knows I can't have a proper study session without them! I really wish he would stop trying to sell me a sofa every time I see him, though, that’s getting kinda annoying...”

She looked up, smiling as she watched rain pelt the shield spell above her. She had altered her brother's shield spell from an anti-changeling shield to a shield to block an even greater evil; the rain.

She smiled at her ingenuity, giggling to herself as a bolt of lightning splashed across the magenta shield, which slightly brightened as it absorbed the energy from the lightning. She had added a twist to the spell that attracted lightning, harnessing its electric power and its kinetic energy to fuel the spell, resulting in a self-sustaining, hooves-free magical umbrella.

A second bolt of lightning struck the shield as a pair of window-shaking thunderclaps echoed across the small town. She frowned as a third thunderclap followed the first two, her eyes lifting to the sky above her.

“Three thunderclaps...but only two bolts of lightning hit my shield,” she thought as she examined the sky, her eyes narrowing as she saw a shape darting below the rolling storm clouds. She sighed as a flash of light revealed a familiar cyan mare, her wings trailing dramatically behind her. “Wow, Rainbow is pretty early for reading day... She isn’t supposed to come over for at least a few more hours.”

She watched in concern for a moment, her nerves slightly on edge. She couldn't place a hoof on it, but she had a very bad feeling about...something. Her eyes narrowed as she squinted through the rain, her heart turning to ice as she realized Rainbow was plummeting out of control towards the ground.

She ran forward, her horn flaring a magenta light as she aimed at the falling mare. Her heart beat quickly, almost painfully hard in her chest as she gathered her magic, charging it for one desperate spell. She banished her shield and released the spell, biting her lip, hoping that her aim was true.

Twilight cried out in joy as she watched Rainbow’s limp form suddenly glow with her magenta light, her descent slowing to a mere crawl. She swayed suddenly, her eyes drooping from exhaustion. The amount of energy she had just spent saving Rainbow’s life had been enormous, nearly draining all of her strength. With what little energy she had left, she unsteadily trotted up to the hovering mare and winced as she caught sight of Rainbow’s burnt fur. Knowing she had to help her friend, she turned sluggishly, pulling Dash behind her as she trudged the remaining distance to her house.

She sighed in relief as she finally pushed her door open, a warm heat drifting over her fur as she stepped inside.

“Oh my gosh, Twilight! What happened?!” Spike asked, his eyes full of concern and bewilderment as he caught sight of Rainbow’s still-smoking form.

“Not now, Spike!” Twilight said, her voice thick with worry as she gingerly laid the mare down on the table in the center of the library. She raced over to the shelves and started to levitate a stream of books in front of her, searching for anything that could help with treating lightning bolt strikes. "I need you to help me search for any books that deal with treating burns!" she yelled, hoping that she wasn't too late.

“Wha...where am I?” Rainbow asked in confusion, shaking her head as she slowly woke up, not recognizing her surroundings. She looked around in worry as she realized that she was no longer in Ponyville, a frown on her face as she saw smoke twisting and flowing in every direction, limiting her gaze to only a few yards.

She stood, her eyes widening as she suddenly remembered what had happened. “Ok, I was struck by a lightning bolt...then I wake up in a mysterious and smoky... place.” She frowned, her eyes scanning the area around her. Hearing a small noise from behind her, she quickly looked over her shoulder, searching the smoke for any movement.

When she didn’t see anything, she glanced down, examining her cyan coat for any blemishes. To her immense surprise, the fur was clean and was not burnt in the slightest, and her mane was even finely combed.

She sank to her haunches, a hoof scratching her chin as she thought, "Okay, let's make sure I have this straight. I’m flying over Ponyville, I get hit by a lightning bolt, and I wake up... here, wherever here is, and somehow I am perfectly fine. I don’t even have burn marks in my coat!"

She froze suddenly as she realized what must have happened, a hot anger suddenly filling her entire body. “Wait! I bucking died?!?” she screamed in rage, her fur standing on end as she slammed her hooves on the ground. “No! No! No No NO NO!” she yelled to the swirling smoke, her hooves making deep imprints on the ground. She threw herself backwards, her wings splayed out at her side as she panted.

She flapped her wings, determined to fly as far away as she could as she lifted herself into the air. She picked a random direction and sped through the smoke blindly. She flew and flew, her wings slicing through the air, her lungs screaming for air. She flew for what felt like miles, but after seeing nothing but smoke, she dejectedly returned to the ground with a heavy heart, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

Upon landing, her limbs suddenly buckled under her and she collapsed, falling to the ground as her tears streamed down her face. “I don't wanna die; I’m too awesome to die! I was gonna tell Twilight how I feel about her; how I want to be more than just her friend!”

She had been so close to telling her, and now she would never have the chance. “Twilight! I wish I could see you one last time... I'd tell you everything...” She moaned, despair clear in her voice. She cried, sobs wracking her body as the tears poured down her muzzle.

Eventually, she cried herself out, resting her head on her forelegs pathetically. She lifted her head suddenly, her ears cocked to the side as she heard soft hoofsteps approaching her, echoing throughout the hazy smoke.

“This is it...” she thought to herself, trying to make herself seem strong. She sat up, resting herself on her rear as her tail twitched nervously against her back. She peered ahead, her ears twitching nervously as the hoofsteps grew closer and closer.

She gasped in surprise as Princess Luna suddenly emerged from the swirling smoke, her eyes flashing a dull silver as the smoke moved around her imposingly. The princess of the night approached Rainbow, who shivered slightly under her imposing, yet slightly comforting gaze.

Rainbow clenched her eyes shut, fearing what Luna was going to do to her, but to her surprise, she felt a comforting hoof start to rub her back. She opened her eyes and saw that Luna had sat down next to her, smiling at her reassuringly.

“Calm yourself, Rainbow Dash...it is not yet your time...” Luna said, her voice echoing through the smoke.

As Rainbow was about to ask why she was here, Luna’s eyes suddenly glowed brighter, and Dash blinked, her eyes impossibly heavy. She stared at the princess through half-lidded eyes, her tongue growing heavy in her mouth.

“What are...” she started to ask, suddenly slumping to the ground as she drifted off into a deep sleep.

The Pursuit Begins

“Alrigh' Big Mac, I'm gonna head into town and set up the stand!” Applejack yelled, her tail flicking behind her as she trotted towards the barn. “You gonna be able ta handle the farm on your own today?”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac replied, looking at the large puddles surrounding the farm. He sighed, his shoulders slumping as he mentally prepared himself for a particularly hard day's work. He had planned to plow the southern fields for some new crops, but with the fields all muddy, he knew his work was going to be much harder. Trotting to the side of the barn, he hooked himself up to the plow and wound his way toward the distant fields.

Applejack gripped the barn door's handle between her teeth, grunting as she pulled the heavy door open. She walked inside, her hooves leading her to her trusty apple cart, softly whistling a tune as she tossed a couple bins of apples into the cart. She secured herself into the cart's harness, shrugging her shoulders as she slipped the rope over her neck.

"Hey sis! Whatcha ya' doin?" Apple Bloom yelled out, shattering the quiet morning like an air horn.

"Oh, nuthin' much; Ah'm jus' headin' into town to sell some apples," she responded, digging her hooves into the dirt as she slowly pulled the cart out of the barn. She held her breath, hoping her sister wouldn’t ask-

"Oh, that sounds like fun! Can ah come?" Apple Bloom asked, her eyes wide with hope as she hopped onto her sister's back and leaned over her head, looking into her eyes with a silly grin on her face.

Applejack blanched, her mind returning to the last time her sister tried to help her sell apples in town. She shuddered lightly, drawing a cocked eyebrow from the smaller pony.

"Ah think ah have it this time sugar cube. Why don' ya go an see what your friends are up to? Today looks like a great chance for some crusadin'!" She said, winking at her little sister.

"That's a great idea! Thanks, sis!" Apple Bloom said, leaping off her sister’s back and vanishing down the dirt road, a miniature cloud of dust following her.

“Hey, sis, don' forget your chores!” Applejack yelled after her sister, sighing as she shook her head. Her little sister was nearly out of sight, so she most likely didn’t hear her. She closed her eyes as she made her way by memory down the dirt road leading into Ponyville, enjoying the warm sun on her coat.

“Hey Applejack! How's it going?”

Applejack opened her eyes, grinning at the pink party pony bouncing in circles around her and her cart.

“Everythin's going great, sugar cube. Where're ya headed?” She lazily followed Pinkie with her eyes, shaking her head as the pony jumped into the cart behind her. Pinkie rooted around in the bins, pulled a large red apple out of the pile and threw it into the air.

“Oh, nowhere in particular!” Pinkie Pie responded, lifting her muzzle and opening her mouth just in time as the apple fell. Her jaws slammed down on the apple, swallowing the red fruit in a single bite. “I'm just finishing some errands before I have to take care of the twins. Mr. and Mrs. Cake are going to Canterlot for a vacation, so I offered to take care of the foals for them this week!”

Applejack cocked an eye at the smiling pony. “You know, if you keep eating mah apples like this, ah'm gonna have to start chargin' ya!” She chuckled as Pinkie Pie stuck out her tongue in response. Changing the subject back to the twins, she said, “Anyways, that's mighty nice of ya to do that fer them; ah'm sure those little tikes can be quite a hoof-full!”

“Oh, they're not that bad once you get used to them,” she smiled as her mind went back to the first time she took care of the twins on her own. “They're actually really fun to play with! Anyways, I need to head back to the bakery now; the Cakes are leaving shortly, and I told them I'd be there now. See ya later, AJ!”

“See ya, Pinkie!” Applejack waved to the pink mare, a smile on her face as she watched her friend merrily hop away. "Hmm... Ah wonder what Twilight's up to. Ah should have enough time ta stop by an' see how she's doin'." She hiked the straps up a little higher on her shoulder, pulling the cart behind her as she wound her way towards the library.

As the library came into view, the hair on the back of her neck stood on end, a sudden feeling of dread worming its way into her stomach. Her eyes narrowed as she caught sight of the front door hanging from a single hinge, papers and book covers scattered around the doorway.

"What the hay..." Applejack pulled her cart towards the large tree, her hooves scrambling at the clasps as she quickly unhooked the harness from around her chest. She galloped into the building, her jaw dropping as she slid to a stop, her hooves sending books and papers flying. The library was trashed; books were everywhere but the shelves they belonged on, and Twilight's bedroom door was in pieces at her hooves.

“Twilight?” Applejack hesitantly called out, her voice breaking the unnatural silence in the library. “Twilight, ya in here?” She looked around the room, her eyes drawn to a large pile of books near the bottom of the stairs. She made her way through the sea of books, her eyes going wide as she caught sight of a mess of purple hair poking from between the books.

She pulled books from the pile as fast as she could, tossing them aside. She shouted her friend's name as she tossed book after book aside, only stopping when Twilight was fully uncovered. She shook the mare, trying to wake her unconscious friend. When Twilight didn't respond, Applejack lightly slapped the unicorn's muzzle, making her snort lightly.

“No Rainbow, I don't wanna get up yet...” Twilight mumbled as she slowly began to wake up.

“Wake up, consarn it!” Applejack yelled, slapping Twilight's muzzle a little harder.

Twilight slowly opened her eyes, her hooves vainly searching for the cyan pegasus.

“Rainbow, where are you?” Twilight mumbled, thinking that she was in bed with her. Realizing something was amiss, she slowly sat up as she turned toward Applejack with a confused look on her face.

“Are you feeling okay? You have a mighty ugly bump above your eye,” Applejack asked in concern, turning Twilight's head with her hoof. “What happened here?”

“What do you mean what happened...? Nothi....” Twilight trailed off as the events of the previous night came rushing back to her. She jumped to her hooves, the room spinning as her head screamed in protest. She gingerly ran a hoof across her brow, wincing in pain as she pulled her hoof away.

“What the hay happened here, Twilight?!” Applejack repeated, concern evident in her tone.

Twilight shook her head, her eyes unfocused as she tried to remember something. “Hold on, AJ..." In the back of her mind, she felt that she was forgetting something important, and she suddenly gasped as she remembered that Rainbow Dash had shared her bed with her last night.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight gasped, her heart racing as she galloped past Applejack, her hooves clopping on the stairs as she galloped into her bedroom. She rushed to her bed, her heart relaxing as she spotted Rainbow happily snoring away, her hair fluttering in the small breeze that her snoring created. She hopped onto the bed beside her and ran her hoof through Rainbow's mane, her cheeks blushing as she admired the mare's adorable face. She looks so cute when she's sleeping...

“Rainbow...” Twilight whispered, lightly poking Dash in the side. After the mare let out a particularly loud snore, Twilight prodded harder, raising her a little bit voice as she did. “Rainbow, wake up.”

Once again, no response. Twilight smirked as she lifted a pillow, her purple glow illuminating the room as she tossed it at the sleeping pegasus. Rainbow twitched as the pillow hit her on her back, her legs slightly kicking at the air. Twilight's eye twitched as Dash snored loudly, her ear twitching in her sleep. Twilight growled, her horn flaring as she retrieved the thrown pillow, and smacked the sleeping mare right on the nose with it.

Rainbow snorted as she was abruptly awoken. She yawned sleepily and asked, “Huh... wazgoinon?” She rolled over, smiling as she spotted Twilight laying next to her. “Mmm... hey Twi,” she yawned again, rubbing at her eyes with her hooves. “How'd my favorite unicorn sleep?”

Twilight stared at the mare in amazement, her anger rising. “Wha... What do you remember from last night?”

Rainbow sat up, her wings stretching out behind her as she cocked her head at Twilight. “I remember you snuggling up to me in the middle of the night...” Rainbow trailed off cheekily, patting herself on the back mentally for shifting the blame.

Twilight blushed furiously, her cheeks glowing red as she stuttered out a response. “What! I didn't... You di... huh?”

“Don't worry, Twi. I didn't mind!” she said, winking at her friend with a grin on her face. “I actually enjoyed it, you're really soft ya know...” Rainbow leapt off the bed, lazily spinning through the air before landing beside Twilight. She rubbed her muzzle against Twilight's cheek, smiling as she faced her. “Thanks for letting me stay last night. I really didn't wanna try and fight that storm again. That's not the only reason I didn't wanna go home... alone…"

Twilight shifted uncomfortably, wishing her cheeks would cool down. “Do you remember anything from last night? Specifically after we went to bed?”

Rainbow sat on her haunches, scratching at the back of her neck as she thought. “Not really... I remember climbing into bed with you... Wait... I remember somepony coming in... Spike woke me up screaming...” She narrowed her eyes, her eyes unfocused as she recalled the previous night’s events. “I tried to get up and stop a strange unicorn…but his horn started glowing and...that's all I remember…okay?” Rainbow said, glancing at Twilight through her mane. “Where is Spike; is he okay?”

Twilight sighed, a tear coming to her eye. “Ok, here’s what happened: three ponies came into the library after we went to sleep. They said they needed help in finding a book, so I went downstairs to try to help them... But I heard Spike screaming a couple minutes later. I ran upstairs to try to get to him, but the leader teleported downstairs... I blew the bedroom door off its hinges just in time to see his two friends escape... and before the leader managed to leave, I sealed the library off...and...and...” She trailed off as more tears ran down her cheeks, leaning into Rainbow's embrace.

Applejack appeared in the doorway, a scowl on her face as she faced her two friends. “Can somepony have the decency to explain to me what in the hay is goin' on here?”

Applejack froze as Twilight turned to face her, her tears glistening in the dim light. “Some ponies came into the library late last night *sniff* after we had gone... gone to...” She trailed off as sobs wracked her body, tears spilling down her cheeks. She fell to the ground as her sobs rose in intensity.

Rainbow pulled Twilight to her side, her hoof running over Twilight's back. “After we had gone to bed, some strange ponies broke in and kidnapped Spike... We don't know where they went...”

Applejack's eyes went wide as she glanced at Spike's empty bed, her heart lurching at the sight.

”Spike is gone... I might never see him again... “Twilight sobbed harder at the chilling thought. She covered her eyes with her hooves, speaking between sobs. “He's gone... and I have no... idea where they took him!”

Rainbow laid down next to Twilight, nuzzling the mare as she laid a wing over her and pulled her closer. “We'll find Spike, and even better, we'll teach those ponies not to mess with us! I'll fly to the ends of Equestria and further if that’s what it takes to find Spike!” She glanced over at Applejack, who was still standing in shock, and beckoned at Twilight with her head. She received a confused glance from the farm pony. “Isn't that right, AJ?”

“Oh, uhh, yeah!” She stepped closer, pushing her chest out as she spoke. “Dash and Ah will go through town and ask if anyone saw anything last night, and we'll go out and head them off!” She glanced down at Rainbow Dash. “I'm sure somepony saw somethin'.”

Twilight didn't respond, she just sat there sobbing with her face buried in her hooves. Rainbow hugged the mare tightly, before she stood and stepped towards the door. “You hear that, Twi? AJ and I are gonna go around town and see if anypony saw the ponies that took Spike! You gonna be okay for a while?”

Twilight tensed up, her eyes rising to meet AJ’s and Dash's. Her friends subconsciously took a step back from seeing the fire that suddenly sparked in her eyes. “No. I'm not going to sit here while Spike's kidnappers get away!” She stood up and marched past the two, her tail flicking as she stepped down the stairs. She glanced at the books around her, her eyes narrowing at the mess. Her horn flared as she levitated all of the books into the air, neatly stacking themselves in towering piles in the far corner of the room.

She glanced over her shoulder, glaring at the two slowponies who were still standing at the top of the stairs. She tapped her hoof impatiently, and indignantly asked, “What are you two waiting for? Come on!”

Rainbow shot a glance at AJ before gliding down the stairs, flapping her wings as she hovered beside the agitated mare.

“AJ, you go find Pinkie and Rarity, and I'll go nab Fluttershy. We'll meet back here and start asking around!” Rainbow said, flapping her wings as she hovered in place. Just as she was about to fly out the door, she yelped in surprise as Applejack bit down on her tail, yanking the pegasus back towards the ground.

Applejack spit Rainbow's tail out of her mouth, and said, “Now hang on a sec, y'all! Rarity is off in Canterlot sealin' a big deal with a fancy store, Fluttershy's takin' care of a young falcon that lost a wing, and I ran into Pinkie on the way over here; she's got her hooves full takin' care of the Cake’s twins for a week. We're pretty much on our own here.”

Dash sighed, her head falling. “Ugh! Whatever, we can still do this on our own!” She indignantly said as she trotted outside, her eyes sweeping the street. Her eyes went wide as she spotted Bon Bon walking down the street, a basket of sweets balanced atop her head. She quickly flew over to her and asked, “Hey Bon Bon! How's it hanging?” Without waiting for a response, she barreled on. “Say, you didn't happen to see any strange ponies around town last night, did ya?”

“Oh, hey Rainbow Dash!” Bon Bon said, a large smile on her face as she greeted the pegasus. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully, a focused look on her face. “Well, Lyra and I spent last night at home, so we didn't see anypony strange. Why, is everything okay?” She asked, glancing toward Twilight and Applejack, a frown on her face as she saw the sad expression on Twilight's face.

Rainbow ran a hoof through her mane in exasperation. “Uhhh...yeah, everything's fine Bon Bon. Listen, I'll talk to you later, okay?”

She was about to fly away when Bon Bon suddenly said, “Wait..! I talked to Berry Punch this morning, and she mentioned meeting a trio of new ponies in the bar last night..? Maybe that could help you out?” She said, glancing over at Twilight who suddenly had a hopeful expression on her face.

“That helps a lot; thanks!” Rainbow said, waving to the mare as she flew back to her friends. “Bon Bon just told me that she talked to Berry Punch this morning, and she said that she might know something!”

“Well then, what the hay are we waitin' for; let's go find her!” Applejack said, her muzzle breaking into a light grin.

“Yeah…about that...any idea where to start?” Rainbow said, cocking an eyebrow at Twilight as she trotted past her.

Twilight slowed to a stop, glancing over her shoulder at her friends. “Knowing Berry Punch, she'll most likely be at home recovering from a hangover.” Twilight turned, her hooves kicking up dirt as she galloped down the street towards Berry’s house with her friends in tow.

After a brief gallop, she slowed to a stop outside the small cottage, her hooves clacking over the cobblestones leading towards the front door. She rapped against the wood three times, three sharp pops ringing throughout the small house. A moment passed in silence, broken only by Applejack's voice.

“Maybe she isn' ho-” she said, trailing off as Twilight banged harder on the door, putting small hoof-shaped imprints in the wood.

“Ugh... Okay, okay I'm coming; Hang on a minute...” a voice called from inside.

Twilight huffed, her foot tapping the ground impatiently as she glared at the door. She was just about to yank it open when it opened, revealing a disheveled Berry Punch holding an expensive-looking bottle of liquor.

“Hey Twilight.. AJ, Dash...” Berry Punch said, her words slightly slurred as she waved at the three, spilling her precious liquid onto the ground below her. “Ah shucks...oh well. What can I do for ya?”

“Did you meet three new ponies last night? A pegasus, an earth pony, and a unicorn?” Twilight asked, her eyes narrowing as Berry winced at her sharp tone. “Three ponies broke into my house last night, and you might be the only one who saw anything...” She trailed off as Berry Punch raised the bottle to her lips, taking a large sip of the sloshing amber liquor.

“Yea, I remember them...” she said slowly, holding the bottle toward Twilight, offering her a taste of the drink. Twilight shook her head, her eyes never leaving the tipsy mare. Berry raised an eyebrow before shrugging. “The unicorn actually gave me this bottle!” she continued, glaring at the near-empty bottle. “After I left the bar, I started to make my way home, and ran into him again... literally. He knocked me down and left me laying in a puddle of mud. Now that I think about it, he was coming from the direction of the library…” She said, scowling at the bottle as if the stallion himself sat before her.

“Did you see which way he was running?” Twilight asked, holding her breath as Berry scratched her cutie mark.

“Yeah, yeah... they were headin' north, past the old windmill, I believe...” She said, throwing the remaining contents of the bottle back. “I hope that you catch your burglars... If you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go back to bed; I have what you might call a slight hangover...” She turned away and walked back into her house, the front door hanging wide open behind her.

Twilight stared at the wasted pony in astonishment and used her magic to slowly shut the door behind Berry. She walked back to her companions on the road, shaking her head slightly. “Berry said she saw the three last night at the bar last night, and she said that she saw them head north, out past the old windmill. So, that's where we're headed!” She said, her hooves already beating at the road below her as she raced down the road that led towards the northern edge of town.

Spike's Shocking Revelation

“How's the prisoner doing?” Garath asked, tucking his wings into his side as he returned from his latest patrol. He stretched lazily, groaning as his back popped loudly. He stood tall, relishing the feel of solid ground beneath his hooves after a long day of flying patrols.

“He's fine,” Zeo replied, glancing at the saddlebag hanging from Mordronous's side. His eyes darted to the gray unicorn’s face, wincing slightly at the look of sheer annoyance on it. His voice lowered a bit, glancing at their leader once more before turning his attention back to Garath. “He got a little rowdy while you were gone, though...”

“What do you mean by... rowdy?” Garath asked, turning his eyes toward the bulging saddlebag.

“Well... he...” Zeo started, frowning toward the saddlebag as Spike suddenly cut him off.

“Hey, ummm... sir? I need to use the little dragon's room again,” Spike said, his voice quivering timidly from inside the saddlebag.

“Again?! This will be the seventh time today!” Mordronous exclaimed, gritting his teeth as he glared at the bag on his back. He shook his head, replying with a dangerous edge in his voice. “You can just hold it.”

“Well...” Spike said, hesitating a bit before he continued. “Either I go behind a tree, or in your saddlebag. Your choice!”

Mordronous growled, his horn flaring brightly as he undid the clasp around his belly, quickly flipping the saddlebag upside down. Spike tumbled out of the bag, hitting the ground with a muffled groan.

As Spike picked himself off the ground, Mordronous said, “Alright. Go and do your... business behind those trees,” he directed, pointing to a small outcropping of trees with a raised hoof. “Don't try to escape though; I have several methods of tracking my... prey,” he growled, his eyes narrowing darkly as he shot the baby dragon an evil grin.

With a shiver, Spike jogged behind the trees, his claws held between his legs. “Sheesh.... that guy creeps me out. It's almost as if he WANTS me to try to escape.”

As soon as he was behind the treeline, he pressed himself against a tree, his claws glinting in the fading sunlight as he quietly scratched the letter “S” into the side of the tree, scraping away bark as fast as he could. He grabbed a bundle of leaves, sucking in a deep breath as he blew a light flame over the green plant life. They smoked lightly, curling in on themselves as the edges smoldered. He glanced toward the sun, hoping that Twilight would notice the subtle clues that he had been leaving over the last several stops.

Back on the road, Garath giggled to himself as he slung a wing around Zeo, pulling him off to the side as he whispered into his ear, “Hey, while we wait, I got something to show ya...”

With a curious and excited glint in his eye, Zeo followed Garath, quietly creeping away from Mordronous's scowling form. Once their leader was out of earshot, Garath arched his back and popped open his saddlebags with a wing. His tongue poked out between his lips as he rummaged inside his bags, a grin on his face as he succeeded in pulling out a pair of Twilight's panties; a slim-striped purple and black pair. He lifted them up to his face with a wing and inspected them, admiring his prize with star-struck eyes.

“Gimme some!” Zeo whispered, sticking his snout into Garath's saddlebag. He pulled a pair out of the small side satchel, laying them on the ground with a lecherous grin. He stared at the pair, shooting a sly grin at his companion before speaking. “Wow, these are nice... How many were you able to snatch?”

“Oh... enough.” Garath said, his voice tinted with mystery. “But that's not the best part!”

“Oh?” Zeo asked, cocking his head in confusion.

“You know what I found in her bed?”

“What?”

“Another mare, so you know what that means! She’s a fillyfooler!”

“So? That doesn't mean she's a fillyfooler. They could just be friends having a sleepover!” Zeo said, lifting an eyebrow as Garath shook his head. “What?”

“I don’t know if you saw this, but she had her foreleg draped over her as we opened the door...”

“Ohhh…wow, really?”

“What are you two blabbering about back there?” Mordronous yelled, glaring at the two stallions.

“Nothing!” Garath and Zeo quickly replied, hiding the panties from view.

“Why must I deal with these idiots...” Mordronous thought, his tail twitching as he tapped his foot impatiently.

Garath and Zeo hurriedly trotted back up to him, stowing the stolen panties back in Garath's saddlebag.

“Did you happen to see anypony following us on your patrol, Garath? At least he's good for something. I wonder if Lord Anthautu would notice if Zeo didn't... make it back...” He chuckled darkly, drawing strange looks from his companions.

“Not a soul!” Garath replied, holding his breath as Mordronous stared at him for a moment before turning away. He could have sworn his leader had seen the panties he'd stolen, but thankfully it seemed like he didn’t.

Mordronous eyed the setting sun, shaking his head slightly. “Alright, since we've put a... reasonable distance between ourselves and Ponyville, we should make camp for the night.” His horn flared and a tiny voice suddenly shrieked in surprise from behind the trees. A small purple dragon flew through the air, coming to a stop in the air beside the three.

Spike levitated beside Mordronous as he led the group off the road, heading deeper and deeper into the forest. Coming upon a small clearing, Mordronous spoke, “Here is where we will make camp for the night. Zeo, go gather some firewood. Garath, dig us a fire pit. I have a feeling that it’s going to be a cold night tonight.”

With Garath and Zeo busying themselves with their tasks, Mordronous dealt with their prisoner. He roughly shoved Spike against the base of a tree, holding him in place with his magic. Mordronous dug around in his bag for some rope, a dark smile on his face as he tightly bound the young dragon to the tree. He turned away from Spike, turning just in time to see Garath finishing the fire pit. He stepped towards the newly-constructed pit, stretching his hooves out before him as he laid down. He relaxed on his belly, his head lying across his outstretched forelegs. He closed his eyes, reviewing their plan in his head.

So far their mission was a success. They had to make it all the way back to the Crystal Empire though, and that was still several hundreds of miles away; at least a several week journey on hoof. Thankfully, they didn't have to hoof it all the way back to the cult's place of gathering.

The original plan was for them to snag Spike, cast a sleeping spell on him, and make it out of the town without being discovered. With the dragon asleep, they would conceal him inside a saddlebag and hop on a train to the Crystal Empire the next morning. However, their discovery had thrown a wrench in their plans. Since they had been discovered, everypony would be on the lookout for the three of them, which meant that taking the train was simply out of the question.

As much as he didn't want to, he knew he would have to make use of the long-range teleportation spell Lord Anthautu had taught him. He had practiced the spell enough to be able to cast the spell in a moment's notice, but he had never attempted to bring anypony else with him, let alone two full-grown stallions and a baby dragon.

The normal teleportation spell called on his own internal magic, as most spells did. However, with the others added into the spell, he would have to harness their life force to be able to pull the spell off correctly. He had to be careful though. For the spell to work correctly, he had to draw on the exact amount of energy from the others, taking care not to take too much of it. If he did, they would die... slowly and painfully. If he took too little energy, the spell would send them off course, leaving him too tired to reattempt the spell, and most likely too lost to make it back to the cult's headquarters before the eve of the summer solstice.

Spells that drew energy from others had long since been banned by Princess Celestia, due to the obvious danger of death. The princess had spent years destroying the existence of any spells that ran along these lines, due to the fact that it was essentially black magic in inexperienced hooves.

He opened his eyes, scratching at the dirt before him with a hoof as he calculated the distance and energy needed to move them from hills outside Ponyville to the Crystal Empire. Teleportation was a tricky branch of magic to deal with, especially long-range teleportation. The caster would have to have intimate knowledge of their destination, along with unwavering focus. He would have to charge just the right amount of energy into his horn for the spell to work, with very little room for error. Too little energy, and they would never make it to their destination, too much... and they might never reappear.

His mind wandered as he scratched details into the dirt, thinking back to his attempts to master teleportation spells when he had just joined the cult. Lord Anthautu had warned him of the dangers of practicing indoors, and he forbade him and anypony else from practicing in the caves. He had practiced in a large field, mastering the ability to gauge how much magic would be needed to move from one spot to another. You could easily miscalculate the distance needed, causing you to mistakenly reappear inside walls or in between floors. It usually resulted in a quick death, and it definitely was not painless.

The sounds of twigs snapping broke him out of his thoughts. He jumped to his hooves, his horn alight with a gray aura as the noises grew closer and closer. Knowing that it was only Zeo returning with firewood, Mordronous grit his teeth as his horn flared brighter, pointing his horn directly at the source of the noise. If he was quick, he could probably make this look like an accident.

As Zeo neared the campsite, Mordronous took aim, his horn crackling with a bolt of lethal magic. Garath sprang in front of him, waving his forelegs as he yelled, “No, wait! That's just Zeo!”

“Your point?” Mordronous asked, his voice heavy with disdain. He released his magic, letting it fade away. He laid down with a groan as Zeo trotted past him, dumping the a good amount of the wood into the dug-out fire pit.

With a quick flash, Mordronous lit the wood, shaking his mane as the fire roared to life, its warmth spreading to the three of them. Within seconds they had a full fire going, providing a small measure of warmth against the chilly night.

As the three of them gathered around the fire, Mordronous pulled out a few loaves of bread, his horn flaring as he passed them around. Not having eaten the whole day, Zeo quickly dug into the bread, scattering crumbs all over the ground as he chowed down.

Garath took a few bites from his bread, his ears twitching as a low growl sounded from behind him. He dropped his bread, leaping into the air as he spun around, his eyes searching for the source of the sound, but all he saw was the tiny dragon sitting tied to the tree.

“Hehe... sorry about that. I haven't eaten anything since last night...” Spike said, wincing as his stomach let loose another deep rumble.

“Ha! Sounds like the little guy's a little hungry,” Zeo laughed, poking a hoof at the dragon. “Too bad there isn't any food for him!”

As Spike's stomach grumbled again, he clenched his fist as hunger pangs bit at the bottom of his stomach. “Please! I'll do anything, just give me a little food!” Spike begged, blinking back tears. He had never experienced hunger pangs like these before, since Twilight had always made sure that he was very well fed.

Garath frowned as he looked at the hungry dragon, pity welling up inside him. As a young colt, life had been hard for him and his younger sister. His parents had died when he was young, and he had been forced to grow up a lot quicker than all of the other colts his age. He stared at Spike, his eyes glazing over as he seemingly looked through the baby dragon.

He had to stop going to school to be able to raise his sister, which meant he had to find a job. Thankfully, somepony hired him at a small general store; a gentle mare with a tender heart. She wasn't able to pay him much, but it was just enough for him and his sister to get by. There were several occasions where he went hungry, just so his sister could eat. He knew the pains of hunger, but he gladly endured them so his sister wouldn't have to.

Garath grinned lightly, stepping forward to give Spike half of his bread. He broke off a chunk of it, and held it out to the baby dragon, but just as he was about to hand it over, the bread was knocked from his hoof by a gray aura. He stared at the fallen bread in shock, and turned to face Mordronous with a frown.

“Hey, what gives?!? He’s hungry!” Garath said indignantly.

“The prisoner gets no food. Besides, he’s going to be sacrificed in a couple of days; he doesn’t need food where he’s going...” Mordronous responded ominously.

“SACRIFICED!?!?!?” Spike yelled, hyperventilating. “What the hay do you mean SACRIFICED?!?!?!”

“Ohhh, you are going to be offered to the old gods in a blood ritual that might bring back our king, the beloved King Sombra,” Zeo said, licking his hoof nonchalantly as he spoke.

“You better watch your tongue, Zeo, lest I cut it out for speaking such blasphemy. Our king WILL return once we perform the sacrifice, and he will reward us, his ever-faithful servants,” Mordronous said, glaring at Zeo. Turning his attention back to Garath, he said, “Sit down Garath, and let our prisoner rot in his misery.”

Grumbling to himself, Garath picked his bread up off the ground, brushed the dirt off of it with a wing, and rejoined the other two around the fire. As he sat there feeling sorry for their prisoner, an idea slowly formed in his mind.

“Wait, did something just move there?” Garath hesitantly asked, pointing into the forest with a hoof behind Mordronous.

“What?” Mordronous’s head spun around, looking for anything out of the ordinary. His eyes narrowed as he stared into the darkness. “Where?”

“There!” Garath yelled, shaking his hoof at some invisible object.

Jumping to his hooves, Mordronous lit his horn to use as a light and plunged into the forest to investigate. As soon as his leader stepped out of the small clearing, Garath quickly flew over to Spike and placed what was left of his bread in his claws.

Looking up at him with curious eyes, Spike gratefully mouthed the words, “Thank you,” and wolfed down the bread, scattering crumbs all over the place.

“Garath! What do you think you’re doing?!?” Mordronous barked, quickly returning from his brief search. He stomped towards Garath, poking the pegasus in the chest with his hoof.

Thinking quickly, Garath brushed the bread crumbs away with his back hoof, and he hurriedly replied, “Ummm... making sure the prisoner is secure, sir! I figured you would want us to watch him while you went off.” He glanced around uneasily and continued. “So, uhhh... did you find whatever it was out there?”

Mordronous stared at him suspiciously for a few moments before sighing. “Ugh... I have no idea what you saw, but whatever it was, it's long gone.” He fought back a yawn as he wondered if Garath was messing around with him. “Alright everypony, time to get some shut-eye. Zeo, I’ll wake you up in a few hours, so get some rest and wake up Garath when your shift is over.”

He returned to his place next to the fire, its flames holding the night’s cold embrace at bay. Mordronous glanced up and watched the moon slowly make its way across the night sky, its pale light dancing through the treetops, knowing that it was going to be a long night.

A Brief Skirmish

Only a short distance down the road, Twilight, Rainbow, and Applejack trotted down the worn dirt path, exhausted from galloping all day. The sun had already set half an hour ago, the moon being their sole source of light, its light glistening on the path.

“Alright girls, I think it’s time we stop for the night…” Twilight groaned as she slumped to the ground, her whole body aching from the prolonged gallop.

“Sounds good to me,” Rainbow said as she laid down next to Twilight. She pulled some bread from her saddlebag and passed it around, her friends gratefully accepting the food. As she ate her small dinner, Rainbow stretched out her hooves, letting her sore muscles rest. Normally she was used to extended periods of working out, but now it felt as if every muscle in her body was on fire.

As she tossed the remainder of her bread into her mouth, she was about to go find some water from a stream nearby when she saw a small light flickering through the trees further down the road. Not wanting to get anypony’s hopes up, she nonchalantly said, “Hey, before we call it a night, I’m gonna go stretch my wings. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.” Without waiting for a response, she took off and flew towards where the light was originating from.

Slowly down, she silently hovered above the trees above the source of light. She peered through the treetops and tried to get a good look at whoever it was down there. She waited a few brief moments and listened intently. When she didn’t hear anything, she was about to land and move in on hoof when she heard somepony speak. Instantly recognizing the voice, she thought, “That’s the stallion that was in Twilight’s bedroom!”

Without wasting another second, she flew back to where her friends waited for her, landing in front of them with a soft thump.

“Guys, I found the kidnappers!!” Rainbow said in a hushed whisper.

“What?! Where?” Twilight scrambled to her hooves, impatiently waiting for Rainbow to continue.

“Just a little bit further down the road and to the left, off in the trees,” Rainbow said. “I recognized the stallion’s voice that kidnapped Spike last night. I didn’t hear Spike or anypony else, though...”

“Well, what the buck are we waitin’ for, galls? Let’s go!” Applejack said excitedly, ready to kick some flank, but Twilight held her back.

“Applejack, we can’t just go rushing in; that’d be a tactical mistake!” Twilight said, placing a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “A few weeks ago, I was reading a book about how the element of surprise is the most important thing in a fight and how it often was the determining factor, and our situation is no different.”

Rainbow nodded in agreement, and the three of them started to form their plan of attack.

A few minutes later they were all ready, each in a key position around the enemy camp. Twilight was about fifteen feet from the tree where Spike was tied up, Applejack was on the other side of the camp hiding behind a tree just outside the road, and Rainbow was silently hovering above the camp, keeping watch over Twilight.

Twilight got Applejack’s attention with a wave of her hoof, and Applejack waved at Rainbow, signaling that they were moving in. Twilight peered around the tree that she was hiding behind, and making sure that the unicorn keeping watch wasn’t looking in her direction, she stepped forward, moving towards the next tree.

*SNAP*

Twilight cringed in fear, praying to Celestia that she hadn’t been heard. Glancing up, she locked eyes with the fearful stallion, who was staring right at her.

“You!” He cried out as he instantly recognize the purple mare, scrambling to his hooves to give chase.

With a small eep of fear, Twilight turned tail and ran as fast as she could into the forest. All that mattered now was leading the unicorn as far away from the camp as possible. Thankfully, she had Rainbow to watch over her, and she glanced up through the treetops, seeing brief flashes of the pegasus through the leaves.

As she looked back down to see where she was going, she suddenly tripped over an upraised tree root, severely spraining her two front hooves in the process. She violently rolled across the forest floor, coming to a stop at the base of a tree. Hearing her pursuer come closer and closer, she slid herself behind the tree, hoping that she wouldn’t be found. “Maybe he’ll just keep on running…” Twilight desperately thought to herself. She heard the unicorn stop in the clearing where she had just fallen. “Or maybe not!” She clenched her eyes shut and hoped that Rainbow would do something.

Stopping in the clearing not ten feet from Twilight, Mordronous looked around, listening for anything that would give the purple unicorn up. Looking down, he noticed that the hoof prints ended in this little clearing. Knowing that she was somewhere nearby, he glanced about, searching for anything that would give up the unicorn. A few seconds later, he found exactly what he was looking for; a tuft of purple hair sticking out from behind a tree to his right.

“Well...well...well, what do we have here?” Mordronous menacingly asked, a wicked grin slowly forming on his face as he crept closer and closer to the tip of Twilight’s tail. With a triumphant cry he stomped on it, pinning the injured unicorn in place. Thinking quickly, he levitated a magic blocking ring from his saddlebag and swiftly secured it around Twilight’s horn, disabling her from using any magic whatsoever.

“What the hay is this thing?” Twilight asked fearfully after she failed to teleport away; she had never felt so helpless before in her life.

“Oh, it’s nothing, really, just a little device that the beloved King Sombra used when he ruled over the Crystal Empire. It temporarily blocks a unicorn’s magic for a short time, leaving no permanent effects…usually. There are only a few lef- OOF!”

Seeing that Twilight was is danger, Rainbow dove through a small hole in the treetops, tackling Mordronous to the ground. She flew back to where Twilight was and she stood over her friend protectively. “Come one step closer, I dare you!” Rainbow yelled angrily, watching the unicorn slowly return to his hooves.

“Or what?” Mordronous dryly asked, his patience with these pesky mares running incredibly thin.

“Or I’ll pound you into the ground, that’s what!” Rainbow yelled back, her wings flared, ready for action.

“Let’s see what you’re made of then!” Mordronous snarled as he charged his horn with a spell, waiting for her to make her move. They stared at each other for a few seconds, tension filling the air.

“Rainbow, get out of here!” Twilight cried out, tugging on the ring on her horn.

“No, I’m not leaving you, Twi! I’ll never leave you!” Rainbow said, looking back at her friend.

“Oh, you love her, don’t you?” Modronous sneered.

“What? I...yes...no, wait...I...I...oh, buck it all to hell!” Rainbow jumped into the air and charged at Mordronous, only for him to slam her into the ground with his magic. Before she could get back up to pound him into the ground, Mordronous cast a deep sleep spell on her, effectively putting her out of the fight.

“Rainbow!!” Twilight desperately cried out, her eyes widening in fear. “Get up! Please, get up!” When Rainbow didn’t move an inch, Twilight pushed herself over to her limp form. She pushed Rainbow’s back with a hoof, shaking her back and forth. “Rainbow, please don’t be dead!”

A look of disdain on his face, Mordronous advanced on the pair of mares, watching as Twilight’s cries rose in intensity. Annoyed by Twilight’s sobs of anguish, he cast the same deep sleep spell on her as he did on the other mare, sighing in relief as Twilight collapsed. Tired, he levitated the two mares into the air with his magic and made his way back towards the camp.

Back at the camp, Applejack was waiting for the perfect moment to make her move. She had already made her presence known to Spike, and he was doing everything in his power to not give away her position. She knew that she would be overcome if she tried to free Spike and run, so she figured that she had to take out the other two ponies still in the camp first. One pony was fast asleep and the other was sitting near the fire, letting its warmth wash over him. Thankfully, the one by the fire had his back turned to her, so she silently made her way towards him first. When she was only a couple feet from the unsuspecting pony, she turned around and whistled softly to get his attention.

Shocked by the sudden noise, Zeo turned around and saw a mare facing away from him, bending over slightly. “What the buck is she doing here? Wait...is she in heat?” Thinking he was going to get lucky, he smiled as he stood up to introduce himself, only to get bucked upside the head, instantly knocking him out cold.

Quickly pulling the unconscious pony out of sight, Applejack heard Garath tentatively move towards her hiding spot.

“Uhh...Zeo?” Garath asked, worry tinting his voice. “Hey buddy, you there?” He waited a few seconds, and when his friend didn’t respond, his wings started fluttering nervously. “Stop it, wings! GAH I hate it when this happens!” He timidly crept forward a few steps closer to where he had saw his friend a minute ago, and then he froze as he heard a twig snap behind him. He turned his head to look behind him just in time to see an orange-coated mare buck his head, knocking him unconscious.

“Whew…that went a little easier than I thought…” Applejack thought to herself as she trotted over to where Spike was. “Hey Spike, Ah’m here to getcha out!” she said cheerfully. “Twi and Rainbow Dash are keeping that awful unicorn away from here while Ah free ya, so lemme see here…” She inspected the intricate knot with a trained eye, knowing exactly how to untie the knot. What she didn’t know was that Mordronous had enchanted the rope, making it so that only he could untie it. Applejack did everything she could to the knot, but it would not yield.

“Ah really don’t know what to do here, Spike,” Applejack said worriedly. “These knots won’t budge!”

“I’m sure Twilight can figure something out when she gets here,” Spike nervously said, keeping an eye out for anypony.

“Uhhh, yeah about that…” Applejack nervously began. “The plan was for them to lead that nasty-lookin’ unicorn away so that I could getcha outta here. But now that Ah can’t…” She stopped talking as she heard somepony coming back towards the camp, and it sure didn’t sound like Twilight or Rainbow. “Uhh...I’ll be back!” she whispered, silently slipping back into the forest.

A few seconds later, Mordronous stormed back into the camp, levitating the limp bodies of Twilight and Rainbow. “Oh sweet Celestia, no...he didn’t kill them, did he?!?” Applejack thought in sheer terror as she watched him throw her friends onto the ground near the fire.

“What did you do them, you savage...savage beast?!?” Spike yelled at Mordronous, staring at the limp forms of his friends. “Rainbow and Twilight tried to save me... and now they’re dead…” Tears formed in his eyes, slowly making trails down his scaly face as he suddenly realized that Twilight, the most important pony in his life, was now gone forever. Feelings of anger and guilt surged through him as he stared at the pony who had killed his best friend.

“Oh, shut up already; they’re fine…” Mordronous responded dryly as he untied Spike from the tree. He threw him into his saddlebag and locked it shut with his magic, trapping his prisoner inside. He touched his horn to his comrade’s limp forms and cast a quick revival spell on each of them.

“Whadabuck just happened…” Zeo groaned as he woke up, clutching his throbbing head. He pulled his hoof away and looked at it, sighing in relief when he saw that there was no blood. He stood up and looked around, searching for the orange mare.

“You were taken down because you are incompetent…” Mordronous snarled angrily, his muzzle inches away from Zeo’s. The earth pony backed down fearfully with a small squeak, afraid of what the unicorn was going to do to him.

Desperately trying to change the subject, Zeo timidly said, “Hey, uhhh, you know boss, there’s another pony somewhere nearby. She might try something, so...uhh...you know...”

With a growl, Mordronous turned away and said, “No matter. We’ll be far away by the time she tries anything.” His horn lighting up, he levitated Rainbow and Twilight into the air and bound their hooves together tightly. He motioned for the other two ponies to stand beside him, and he laid Twilight across Garath’s back and Rainbow on Zeo’s. The two ponies grinned at each other, lustful thoughts flowing through their minds. Modronous shook his head in annoyance, and shaking his annoyance away, he closed his eyes and concentrated, drawing energy from the other four ponies. An image of the sacrificial room of the cult popped into his mind, and he focused on it, making sure that no other thoughts strayed into his mind. If he suddenly thought of some other area while executing the spell, they could be sent way off course, ending up at neither destination.

“What to do...what to do...” Applejack thought to herself as she silently watched from the treeline on the edge of the camp. “Since Twi and RD are tied up, I guess that means they’re still alive, so...wait, what’s goin’ on here?” She watched perplexed as a massive whirlwind of bright gray magic surrounded the five ponies. As the light grew brighter and brighter, she ducked behind the tree just as the kidnappers teleported away with the sound of a small explosion.

“Holy hay, now THAT was a doozy…” Applejack thought as she peeked out from around her tree. The area in front of her was utterly destroyed. The area that the five had just stood was pockmarked with peculiar black crystals of various sizes. She trotted up to them and realized that they were the same crystals used when they were in the Crystal Empire. “Wait, does this all have something to do with Sombra?” She picked up one of the many crystals and inspected it for a few seconds before placing it in her saddlebag.

“So… they’re in the Crystal Empire, eh? How the hay am Ah gonna get all the way there?” She paced around the camp for several minutes as she tried to figure out how she could get there in a timely manner. She sat down, poked her head a couple times with a hoof, and said irritably, “Come on, brain! You gotta help me thinka somethin’!”

A few seconds later she heard a train whistle off in the distance, a little bit further down the road. Her eyes widening, she jumped to her hooves and ran back towards the road. Galloping as fast as she could, she thought, “Of course! I shoulda remembered that the train runs parallel to the road for a good bit!”

After a few minutes of galloping down the road, the train tracks finally came into sight. She peered both ways, trying to pick out the train in the dark and thankfully spotted it coming from the south. She waited for it to come closer, and as it passed her, she jumped up and galloped alongside it, hopping onto the last car as it was just about to pass her. She peeked inside and saw that she had jumped onto a sleeper car, and it seemed like there were a few beds still empty. She cracked open the door and quietly crept inside, softly closing the door behind her without a sound. Hopping onto the nearest bed, she pulled the covers over herself and fell asleep, knowing that the Crystal Empire was still several hours away, and she was sure that she would need her strength.

“Twi...RD...I hope I can get to ya’ll in time…”

The Calm before the Storm

A few hundred miles away, the five of them reappeared with a sudden and deafening bang deep underground, right in the main chamber of the cult.

“Garath, Zeo, take these three and lock them away; I need to rest.” Mordronous panted as he left his companions. He made his way out of the main chamber towards his master’s private quarters, hoping to get an audience with him. As he rounded the corner, he saw his lord’s closed door come into view. Walking up to it, he knocked on it loudly, the sounds of his hoof beating the door echoing throughout the small, dimly-lit tunnel. The door was yanked open moments later, revealing his lord.

“Welcome back, Mordronous. I take it your mission went well?” Lord Anthautu asked menacingly as he allowed the unicorn to enter his quarters. Closing the door behind him, he tapped his hoof on the ground as he impatiently waited for his right-hoof pony to respond.

Mordronous bowed to his master before speaking. “Yes, my master, I have attained the dragon along with two of his friends, the famous unicorn, Twilight Sparkle, and the pegasus, Rainbow Dash.”

Lord Anthautu’s eye’s widened at that last bit of news; he had not expected to be brought two of the precious Elements of Harmony. “You have done well, my son. We shall sacrifice those who laid our beloved King low, and bring him back to the land of the living…”

“Indeed we shall, father… Indeed we shall...”

“Alrighty, in ya go you stupid sacks of fur!” Zeo exclaimed as he tossed Twilight and Rainbow inside an empty cell. Locking the door, he heard Garath do the same with Spike’s enclosure down another passageway. “You good?” he yelled down the hallway as he locked the two mares inside the cell.

“Yeah, I’m good. The dragon is secured!” Garath yelled back. “What about the other two?” Upon not hearing a response, he made his way back to his friend. Moments later, he came around the corner to find him staring hungrily at the two mares still under the influence of the sleep spell. “Why- why are you looking at them like that?” he asked apprehensively.

“It’s been a while since I’ve been with a mare…” Zeo said hungrily, staring at the rainbow-maned mare.

“Absolutely bucking not! You aren’t going to have your way with these helpless mares; I won’t allow it!” Garath said, taking a defensive stance between the cell and his horny friend.

“But why no-”

“NO!” Garath yelled, leaving no room for a rebuttal, unknowingly waking the two mares. “Walk away, Zeo, I’m warning you!”

“Okay, okay, sheesh…” Zeo backed down; he’d never seen his friend act like this before. “I was just joking…”

“And why don’t I believe you?” Garath asked, pushing his friend down the passageway roughly. “Now come on, let’s get out of here before they wake up; the spell should wear off any moment now.”

“They aren’t gonna go anywhere, not with what we have set up in the cell...” Zeo muttered as they trotted back to the main chamber, leaving their prisoners all alone.

A few minutes later, Twilight woke up. “Ugh… my head…” She groaned as she sat up in the near pitch blackness, a lone torch at the end of the passageway providing a small modicum of light. Letting her eyes become adjusted to the darkness, she felt around with her hooves, eventually coming across the still form of somepony.

“Rainbow, is that you?” She whispered softly, poking the pony laying before her with a hoof. “Wake up, I need you!”

“Wha… Ow, my head…” Rainbow grumbled as she slowly woke up. Rubbing her head with a hoof, she groaned as she felt a nicely-sized lump on the left side of her face. “Did we get Spike back?”

“No, we didn’t…”

“I– Wait, what are those things up there?” Rainbow wearily pointed up at the roof of their cell. Twilight craned her head up and noticed that there were a series of pipes with odd-looking star-shaped devices every foot or so.

“Those… those look like sprinklers,” Twilight responded as she stood up to get a better look at them. But just as she placed her forehooves on the bars of their cell, the sprinklers activated, coating them in a sickly sweet-smelling mist. Panicking, Twilight took in large gulps of air, unknowingly breathing in a lot of the sedative. “Rainb–” She started coughing uncontrollably as she tried to find Rainbow in the dark.

Seeing Twilight in distress hurt Rainbow. She stood up calmly, already feeling the effects of the sedative. She quickly pulled Twilight into a firm hug and whispered into her ear, “Twi, I’m here…” She gave a small yawn as the two of them suddenly slumped to the floor, feeling terribly sleepy. “I’ll never leave you, I promise…” And with that, they were out.

The next three days passed with them drifting in and out of consciousness. Whenever Twilight woke up, she found that she was still too paralyzed to move, but that wasn’t the part that interested her the most. What she did find interesting was the fact that she found herself in Rainbow’s embrace. One of her wings was wrapped around her at all times, and Rainbow had laid a hoof over her shoulder, keeping her close and making her feel safe. Well, as safe as they could be in a situation like this.

Since the only thing that she could do was think, she had spent the last couple of days thinking back to when Mordronous had accused Rainbow of loving her. She felt conflicted, mainly because Rainbow had said ‘yes’ at first, and then had tried to cover up her feelings by saying ‘no’ immediately afterwards. Twilight wasn’t sure what to think, or even what to feel, but there was still something nagging at her, trying to push her to come to a conclusion, one that she was nervous to make.

Hearing the sprinklers come on again, she glanced up just in time to see the mist sink down onto them, making her lose consciousness once more.

The End

Twilight woke up on a cold, stone table. She squirmed and tried to sit up, but quickly realized that she was tied down, from head to tail. She barely had any wriggle room, and she couldn’t even budge an inch. Her heart started beating faster and faster as she remembered what had happened the past few days.

Memories of Rainbow snuggling with her drifted into her mind. Rainbow! “Rainbow, you there?” she called out into the darkness. The chamber she was in had no light, leaving her completely in the dark.

Suddenly, something stirred right next to her, startling her.

“Ugh… What’s goin’ on?” came Rainbow’s slurred voice.

“I… I don’t know,” Twilight said fearfully. “I… I think they might kill us…”

“WHAT?” Rainbow started struggling, whipping her body every which way, but to no avail. Their bonds kept them secured together.

“Rainbow, it’s useless, I already tried.” Twilight tried using her magic, but the ring on her horn prevented her from doing so. Her stomach ached terribly, and she was incredibly thirsty. “I… I just don’t know what to do…”

Rainbow gave up, letting herself go limp. A tear slipped out of her eye and made its way down her cheek as she suddenly realized that they didn’t have much time left. It’s either now or never… “Twilight?” Rainbow felt adrenaline start to rush through her body. “I… I have something to tell you…” she choked out, grabbing Twilight’s hoof.

Twilight turned to look at her friend, feeling Rainbow’s grip on her hoof tighten. “What… what is it?” She already sort of knew what Rainbow was going to say, but her heart sped up nonetheless. Is she gonna…

“When you saved me a while ago, I… I realized something. Life is way too short to waste away, and… When I woke up on your table, I saw just how much you cared for me just from looking into your eyes. You know why I was flying to see you?”

“Um, I…”

“I was flying to tell you that I… that I…” Come on, Rainbow, you can do this! “That I love you...” She waited nervously as she waited for Twilight to respond, hopefully in a positive way.

“I know, Rainbow,” Twilight said, giving her friend a gentle nuzzle.

“Wait, how?”

“Well, when you protected me from Mordronous in the forest, and he teased you about you loving me, your first answer was yes…” Twilight smiled, snuggling up against Rainbow.

“Oh, yeah… that…” Rainbow giggled, but quickly shut up when she heard footsteps coming from behind them. “Oh ponyfeathers, I think somepony is coming!” she whispered.

“Well, well, well… Ain’t you two a cute couple?” came a familiar farm-pony’s voice from just behind them.

“Applejack?” Both Rainbow and Twilight exclaimed at the same time.

“Yep! Now lemme get you two outta here…” She bit at the rope, quickly untying them. “Come on, ya’ll, there’s several squads of crystal pony guards right around the corner that’ll escort us out.” She waited for them to slide off the table.

“But what about Spike?!” Twilight stopped, sitting on the table. “We can’t leave without him!”

“Keep your voice down!” Applejack whispered. “And we’re not leaving without him; we already have him! He’s safe outside with Princess Cadence.”

“Well, what the hay are we waiting for?” Rainbow whispered eagerly. She laid a wing over Twilight’s back and gently walked forward, following the sound of Applejack’s hoofsteps. They couldn’t see a thing, but after walking for about a minute, they saw a small flicker of light come from around a corner up ahead.

They rounded the corner and came upon a contingent of guards. “This way, you three!” One of them whispered. Without another word, he led them through several tunnels, eventually emerging at the surface through a small crack, one just big enough for a pony to pass through.

“Twilight!” Cadence called out from the left, rushing up to pull Twilight into a hug. “Oh, it’s so good to see you!”

“You as well, Cadence,” Twilight said as she pulled away, blushing slightly as she remembered what Rainbow said to her only minutes ago. She looked back over her shoulder at Dash, feeling her heart flutter as they made eye contact. She turned back around to find Cadence with a playful smirk on her face. “What… why are you giving me that look?”

“Oh, I think you know, Twilight,” Cadence said, walking around the unicorn. “I’d recognize that look anywhere.” Twilight blushed harder, silently admitting that Cadence was right. “You’re in love, aren’t you?” She pranced in place, impatiently waiting for Twilight to answer. Little did she know that Rainbow was listening to every single one of their words with rapt attention.

“I, um… yes. Yes, I am,” Twilight said, looking back at Rainbow with a nervous smile.

“Well, what are you waiting for?” Cadence asked, pushing Twilight towards Rainbow. “Don’t leave her standing there by herself!”

“But… AJ’s there…” Twilight said.

“You know what I meant, now get a move on! She’s waiting for you...”

Twilight nervously walked back over to Rainbow, watching as Applejack walked away, giving them a little bit of privacy. “So…” she said, trailing off.

“Yeah?”

“Did you really mean what you said back there? About… about… loving me?” Twilight blushed as she looked into Rainbow’s eyes.

“Hmm… Let me respond to that in the following way!” Rainbow quickly closed the small gap between them and planted her lips on Twilight’s. They made out for a few brief seconds before they were interrupted by Spike.

“Guys!” Spike hopped off of Applejack’s back and ran forward, latching onto Twilight’s leg. “I thought I’d never see you again!” He pulled back, finally realizing that Twilight was just kissing Rainbow. “Um… hehe, anything I should know about?” He couldn’t help but let a smile slip on his face as he looked up into Twilight’s eyes.

“Uhh… Hehe...” Twilight giggled nervously and looked at Rainbow, silently asking her to say it.

Rainbow rolled her eyes and gave Twilight a playful nudge. “Fine, I’ll tell him.” She cleared her throat and looked down. “I’m gonna marry Twilight.”

“What?!” Spike exclaimed. “But– but–”

“Haha, you should see the look on your face, Spike!” Rainbow laughed for a few moments, quickly coming to the realization that nopony found her joke funny, least of all Spike. “Heh, I’m just playin’, little guy. Back in the tunnels, I… I told Twilight I–” Suddenly, a large explosion cut her off. Startled, she looked behind her and watched in awe as an entire section of land just collapsed in on itself. “What the…” she trailed off as she heard a large number of hoofsteps come from behind her.

The three of them jumped out of the way just in time to let the crystal guards pour out of the opening. They were all covered in dirt, especially Shining Armor.

“Jenkins!” Shining Armor yelled, coughing up a bit of dust. “What the buck do you not understand about the words ‘a small breaching charge’?”

“Sorry, sir! I just really wanted to give those damned cultists something to remember us by!” somepony yelled back.

“You know you just killed them all, right?” Shining growled, trotting up to the pony in question.

“Yeah? So? Wasn’t that the reason for us to go down there in the first place?”

Shining rolled his eyes in annoyance. Ugh, I wish I was back with an actual trained guard, and not with this bunch of slackers. He looked up and barked, “Alright, everyone! Establish a perimeter around the… for lack of a better term, the massive hole in the ground!” He looked at his wife and said, “We could use your help too, honey!” He and the rest of the guard galloped away, fully intent on finishing their job.

“Coming!” Cadence yelled. She trotted up to Twilight and Rainbow, saying, “I’m sorry, but I have to cut this short. Are you two going to be alright?”

Rainbow and Twilight looked into each other’s eyes. “Oh, I think we’ll be fine,” Twilight said, eliciting a small smile from Rainbow. She walked forward and pulled Cadence into a hug.

Cadence returned the sign of affection and gave Twilight a gentle nuzzle just under her ear. Pulling back, she said, “We definitely need to catch up soon, but that’ll have to wait. Shining needs my help!” Flicking her mane out of her eyes, Cadence galloped away, leaving the four of them alone.

“So… what now?” Spike asked, climbing up onto Twilight’s back.

“Well, for starters, we get out of here!” Rainbow exclaimed, making Applejack chuckle in agreement.

“Sounds good to me!” Twilight said, starting to make her way towards the train station. “I think I’ve had enough of the Crystal Empire for now, wouldn’t you all agree?” A chorus of ‘mhm’s’ and ‘oh yeah’s’ followed her question, and the four of them trotted away, leaving the past behind them and heading towards something new.

The Attack

Rainbow slowly woke up on a hard surface, her eyes fluttering open. She groaned quietly as pain shot down her spine, her muscles tensing involuntarily. She forced herself to remain still, her eyes roaming across the room. She smiled as she recognized the numerous shelves around the room, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw a familiar purple unicorn examining book after book before her. I'm alive... Sweet Celestia! I'm alive! She thought, her heart soaring as a smile appeared on her muzzle. She tried to sit up but fell back down, hissing in pain as her back screamed in agony.

Twilight glanced over her shoulder, her eyes going wide as she did a double take. Her horn blinked out suddenly, the books she had been examining crashing to the floor in an untidy heap. She hurried to Rainbow's side, smoothly brushing her mane off her face, her hooves gently sliding over Dash's cheek.

“Rainbow! Oh thank Celestia! You're alive!” Twilight threw her arms around Rainbow, pulling the pegasus into a tight hug. Her horn flared, a pillow drifting over and sliding under the cyan mare's head.

Rainbow snorted, forcing a cocky grin on her muzzle. “I’m fine, Twilight! I don't see what your fussing abo-” She gasped, breathing heavily as pain shot down her spine once again, a couple of tears escaping from the corners of her eyelids. She turned her head ever so slightly, biting her lip between her teeth as she tried to find the source of her pain.

The fur where the lightning bolt had struck her was singed black, and blood dripped from where she had reopened the rather large scab on her back. She shuddered, although she was unsure if it was from the fear of what had just happened or from the pain coming from her back. She turned back, her eyes losing focus for a moment. “W-what happened? The last thing I remember was flying to see you and then... everything went black...” She said, speaking slowly, her eyes full of confusion and uncertainty.

Twilight gulped nervously, her heart heavy with guilt. She didn't want Rainbow to know that her shield may have put her life in danger. “You were hit by a bolt of lightning. You're lucky to be alive, Dash,” she spoke softly, her voice cracking slightly. “If I hadn't been there to catch you, you would have died...” Tears suddenly sprang from her eyes. Although she had recently been thinking of Rainbow in much more than a friendly manner, she realized how close she had been to losing one of her best friends. “I just don't know what I would have done if you... if you...” Twilight said haltingly, her words choking out in between sobs, unable to finish her sentence. Her sobs lessened as a cyan hoof ran over her cheek, wiping tears from her face. She looked up, her eyes red as she looked into Rainbow's smiling face.

“Twilight...” Rainbow said, placing her hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “You know I'd never leave you hangin’! I'm the element of loyalty, remember?”

“Hehe, yeah...” Twilight said, giggling as she wiped the last of her tears away. She forced a smile on her face as she fought a war inside her mind. She desperately wanted to tell Rainbow she liked her, but couldn't get past her fear of her friend’s reaction. And what of Celestia? What would she think if she told her that she was a fillyfooler? The rather important fact that Rainbow had nearly died pushed her to make her to make up her mind.

It doesn't matter what anypony thinks, she thought. “This is my life, and I’m going to tell Rainbow I love her!”

“Rainbow, I have something to tell...” she trailed off as Spike ran to her side, a large book held in his claws. She hesitated, her eyes darting from side to side as Rainbow waited for her to finish. She blushed furiously, desperately trying to come up with a good excuse.

“I uhhh... love your mane!” Twilight blurted out, a fake smile on her muzzle. Beside her, Spike gave her an odd look, a single scaly eyebrow raised as he glanced toward Rainbow's mane.

Rainbow's eyes darted upward, running a hoof through her colorful mane. “Um... thanks? Ok, THAT was a little weird...” she said, eyeing Twilight for a moment. “I didn't do anything different to it...”

“Ah. Ok then; I’m gonna go grab some medical supplies from the kitchen,” Twilight said as she nervously trotted into the kitchen, followed closely by Spike. UGH! Why does this love thing have to be so hard?

Rainbow gently laid back down on the table, wincing as her back twinged in pain. As her head hit the pillow, she tried to remember the events that had led up to her injury, but her memory was a little hazy. She closed her eyes and relaxed, glad that she was safe and in good hooves, knowing that everything was going to be alright.

In the kitchen, Twilight was pulling cabinets open and searching through drawers, her frustration growing.

“Spike!” She yelled, a sheepish grin on her face as he walked up. “Do you know where the medical kit is? I need to clean Rainbow's wound.”

“Isn't it under the sink? The same place it is every time you need it?” He said, chuckling as he pulled the bag from under the sink.

“Oh...thanks Spike,” she said, a sheepish smile on her muzzle. She turned, the bag levitating behind her as she trotted back into the living room. She sat down next to Dash, her horn flaring as she spread the bag's contents around her.

“Hey Spike,” Twilight called out as she organized the materials she needed, “did you find anything about trea-”

“Right here, Twi! The Treatment of Burns, both Severe and Mild. I found it hidden behind some of the other medical books,” Spike said, allowing the book to slip out of his grasp as Twilight levitated it from him.

“Thank you, Spike; I'll let you know if I need help.” Twilight said, smiling at her assistant as she flipped through the pages of the book, stopping at the chapter conveniently titled ‘How to Treat Lightning Burns’. She quickly read the page, her eyes shifting from left to right as she devoured the text.

“Alright, Rainbow, I'm going to try to heal your back.” Twilight said as she set the book aside. “I can't guarantee this will heal you completely, but I feel confident about this spell.”

“I know you'll do your best, Twilight.” Rainbow looked up at her friend, a calm smile on her face as she spoke. She turned ever so slowly until she was laying on her stomach, hissing as pain exploded in her back. She panted slightly as she laid on her belly, her wings tucked in at her sides. She closed her eyes, breathing steadily as Twilight gently placed her hooves above and below the wound stretching across her spine.

Twilight closed her eyes, her horn glowing brightly as magic lazily floated through the air, covering Rainbow's burn. Several minutes passed without anything happening, and Twilight was just about to admit defeat when the burn slowly started to form a new scab. As she watched in amazement, new flesh grew quickly replaced the burnt skin, and cyan fur formed across the new unmarked skin. The fur grew thickly, quickly covering up the bare patch of skin.

Rainbow shivered at the tingling sensations across her back, a smile appearing on her face as the pain on her back slowly faded before vanishing altogether.

Twilight's horn dimmed, her eyes opening as she examined the flawless fur beneath her hooves. Twilight smiled, her magic fading away as she dispelled her magic. She blinked rapidly as the room suddenly swam before her, small stars bursting in her vision.

“Twilight, are you okay?” Rainbow said, eyeing the unsteady unicorn as she sat up.

“I'm fine. That spell took a little more out of me than I expected... It was a very complex spell. I accelerated your body’s healing ability, and instead having you wait a week or two for you to heal completely, I healed you in a matter of...”she trailed off as she glanced at the clock hanging on the wall. “eleven minutes... I just need a moment to catch my breath.”

The storm raged on outside, branches and leaves being torn from the surrounding trees. Three mysterious colts were watching the library from a bar just down the street while they waited for the perfect time to attack. An uncomfortable and nervous silence hung heavily over the three, despite the festive mood in the bar that night. Garath glanced between his two companions before turning to Zeo.

“Ya know, since we're breaking into this mare's house, we should totally take something to remember it by! You thinkin what I'm thinkin?”

Zeo smiled, a glimmer of hope shining in his eyes. “A panty raid?”

“Aww yeah!” Garath yelled, his hoof raised towards Zeo. Zeo slammed his hoof against Garath’s, and they downed the rest of their mugs.

“Hey Mord, I’m gonna go grab us another round; you sure you don’t want anything? Garath said as he stood up.

“I told you never to call me that, and no, I don’t drink...” Mordronous growled, his eyes never leaving the library's lit windows.

“Sheesh, okay, sorry...” Garath shook his head, his wings flapping at his side. He trotted over to the bar, signaling the bartender for another round. A moment later he returned to the table, pushed one of the mugs to Zeo, who caught it with a look of disgust on his face.

“Seriously? Another beer? Let's do some real drinking!” Zeo said, a challenge in his voice.

Before Garath could decline, Zeo was already standing at the bar yelling at the bartender.

“Hey, bartender! I want your finest bottle of Applejack Daniels!” He scattered his bits across the counter as the bartender hoofed him a bottle of the delicious amber liquid. He grabbed a couple of empty glasses as he trotted back to the table.

“Are you sure about that? We have a mission to do...” Garath said, his eyes darting toward the glowering figure beside him.

“It’s all good! We’re only gonna have a little!” Zeo said, a fifth of the bottle already poured into the glasses.

Garath shook his head as he glanced at Mordronous again. He didn’t look away from the library, but Garath could easily see the hate apparent in his eyes. He looked away quickly, a shudder running down his spine as he grabbed his beer and took a few sips of the cool brew.

Zeo slammed his glass on the table, a buzzed grin on his face.

“So, what do we know about this mare?”

“From what we've been told about her, she's a pretty normal mare. She doesn't get out too much, and our reports say that she does not have a special somepony.” Garath said, his hoof scratching his chin as he regurgitated the intel that he had read before they left the Crystal Empire. “We know that she’s one of the Elements of Harmony, and that should be enough to scare you into knowing that we shouldn’t mess around with her. And on top of that, she’s also one of the most powerful unicorns in all of Equestria, and on top of THAT, she’s also Celestia’s prized student.”

“So, a bookworm, eh? We can easily take her!” Zeo said confidently, sure that this was going to be a cinch.

Mordronous looked away from the library and, his horn flaring, he gripped his companions’ heads in his magic, and slammed their heads together, a dull thunk ringing through the bar.

“Ow! What in the flipping hay was that for!?” Garath yelled, clutching his throbbing head between his hooves. He glared at Mordronous, who stared back at him with a smug look.

“Yeah! What the buck was that for?” Zeo chimed in, rubbing his head as he checked his bottle for any spills.

“You idiots!” Mordronous whispered furiously. “Do you really want to blow this whole operation? Talk about something else, for Sombra’s sake!”

“Alright alright!” Garath quickly said, rubbing his sore head.

“Fine...Hey, at least I didn't spill my drink!” Zeo bragged, raising his hoof for Garath to bump.

Mordronous's eyes narrowed, his horn flaring a dull grey as he once again grabbed Zeo's head. He smacked the poor earth pony’s head onto their table, a small crack appearing in the wood, knocking over Zeo’s drink in the process.

“Hey, you got me bucking wet, you coltcuddler!” Garath exclaimed as the Zeo’s drink spilled all over him. He stood up, futilely trying to wipe the the strong-smelling alcohol from his fur.

“Well, it wasn’t my fault! Blame him!” Zeo said as he struggled against Mordronous’ magical hold on his head.

Mordronous slammed his hoof on the table, drawing their attention towards him. “Enough!” He said, staring at the two stallions before him. Zeo sank back down into his chair slowly, gulping in fear as he sat beside Garath.

“You two need to get your heads back in the game. I can't believe you two idiots are drinking when we have a mission to do.” His horn flared as he grabbed the bottle from Zeo, levitating it across the small bar. The bottle floated to a stop beside a beautiful mare, who waved and winked in thanks. He nodded in her direction as he returned his attention to the two before him.

“Now, we need to go over the plan one more time...”

Rainbow frowned as Twilight swayed, her eyes half-lidded. She moved forward and nuzzled Twilight, leading her to the couch.

Twilight looked at her with a sleepy smile, sending a jolt through Rainbow's heart.

Knowing that this was probably going to be the best chance that she could get, Rainbow swallowed her fear, her voice wavering slightly. “Twilight, I have something really important to tell you; I...” she trailed off as Spike walked into the room, unknowingly cutting off another confession of love.

“Hey Twilight, dinner is ready.” Spike said, a smile on his face as he spotted Rainbow standing on her own. “Wow, Rainbow, you look great! How are you feeling?”

“Umm, much better, Spike; all thanks to Twilight...” Rainbow trailed off, annoyed that she had been interrupted.

“That's great to hear! Well, like I said, dinner is ready! I made daffodil and daisy sandwiches with a side of hay fries.”

“That sounds great, Spike,” Twilight yawned, stretching her legs with a pop. She turned her attention back to Rainbow, a curious smile on her face. “Oh, weren’t you about to say something?”

Rainbow panicked, hiding her eyes behind her mane for a moment. “Oh, uhh, yeah! I love my wings!” She stammered weakly, fluttering her wings in emphasis.

“Yeah, they’re... um... nice?” Twilight gave her a strange look before turning, her tail flicking behind her. “Well, I'm glad the spell worked! Come on, let's grab some dinner.”

“You don't have to tell me twice!” Rainbow said, a sly grin on her face as Twilight stuck her tongue out at her. At least I get to spend some more time with Twi…

Twilight stepped into the kitchen, her tail twitching behind her as the smell of hay fries filled her nostrils. Rainbow trailed behind her, her eyes drifting down to admire Twilight's flank. Wow, who knew a bookworm could be so... hot! She pretended to look past the purple unicorn and out the window as Twilight suddenly glanced over her shoulder.

Twilight raised an eyebrow as she noticed Rainbow staring directly at her rear.

“Enjoying the view? The storm, I mean,” she nervously asked, blushing as Dash stuttered and stammered, her cheeks flushing red.

Before she could form a coherent statement, Twilight giggled. “Hurry up; we don't want Spike's cooking to go to waste!” Twilight said as she lifted her tail, sitting down on a cushion in front of the table.

Rainbow nervously sat down on the other side of the table, relaxing onto an extra pillow Spike had set out for her moments before. The table was already decorated with food, the delicious scents wafting through the air tantalizingly.

The three of them dug into the food without another word, each occupied with their own thoughts. Twilight was pondering over ways to express her feelings to the pegasus across from her, while Rainbow unwittingly almost mirrored the unicorn’s exact thoughts. Spike sat between the two, his mind filled with sparkling gems.

A minute passed in silence before Spike turned to Rainbow, a question on his lips.

“Hey Rainbow...how did you get hurt so bad? All I saw was Twilight laying you on the table, and and she wouldn’t tell me what was going on,” he said, a pout on his face as he glared playfully at Twilight.

“Spike!” Twilight said, her voice raised. She frowned, afraid that Rainbow's mood would plummet with the reminder of how close she had come to death.

“It's ok, Twi,” Rainbow said, a quick lie forming in her head. “Well, I had just finished another Daring Do book and I was on my way to pick up the next one when that storm started throwing lightning bolts at me, and I managed to dodge most of them. But the next thing I know...” she trailed off, a faint memory of a smoky pony appearing in her mind for a moment before fading away. “I'm waking up on Twilight's table with a big burn on my back.”

“Wow... I'm glad you’re alright, Rainbow.” Spike said, smiling at the daredevil pony. He yawned, covering his mouth with a claw as he pulled himself to his feet. He grabbed the dishes and quickly deposited them into the sink.

“Well, Twilight, I'm gonna head to bed; I'm pretty tired...” He said, trailing off with another loud yawn.

“Good night Spike!” Twilight said, nuzzling the little dragon as she hugged her, an embarrassed smile on his face.

As Spike made his way upstairs, Twilight asked, “Well, since you said you finished the last Daring Do book I gave you, would you like the next one?”

“Yeah, definitely!” Rainbow responded, her stomach full of Spike’s delicious food.

Rainbow and Twilight stood and walked into the living room. Rainbow sat down on the couch while Twilight searched for the book. After a few seconds, Twilight smiled, her horn flaring as she pulled a book from the shelves around her, laying it gently at Rainbow's side.

Rainbow stared at the book for a moment, a confused look on her face.

“You are on this book now, right Rainbow?” Twilight asked, a funny look on her face.

“Oh, yeah, I was just surprised you knew which one I was on!” Rainbow said, fishing for a subject change. “I'll get this back to you as soon as I finish it!” She said, gripping the book close to her chest. She hopped off the couch and made her way towards the door. “Well, I guess I better get going, seeing as it’s late and all...” She opened the door, the sound of heavy rain filling the air. She gazed outside with a grimace, jumping as a loud thunderclap sounded above them, and she jumped again as the door was suddenly ripped out of her grip, slamming shut with a loud bang.

“Rainbow, there is no way I am letting you fly back to your house tonight,” Twilight said, a steely edge in her voice. “That storm is way too dangerous, and I don’t want you to risk getting hit by another lightning bolt! I don’t want to lose you again...”

“Yeeaaah...that’s probably a good idea, Twi,” Rainbow said, watching a couple more lightning bolts strike the ground outside through a window.

“Come on, let's head upstairs and get some sleep, it's already pretty late.” Twilight yawned, eyeing the clock once again. “Oh... um, just one thing, though. Spike's been sleeping in the spare bed lately, so you'll have to share my bed with me... is that okay? It should be big enough for the two of us.”

“Yes!” Rainbow shouted, leaping into the air with a sudden flourish of her wings. She quickly sank back to the ground, snorting as she tried to play it cool. “I mean, yeah, that's fine.”

Twilight shook her head, giggling lightly as she trotted up the stairs. She quietly opened her bedroom door, holding it open as Rainbow slipped into her room. Twilight's horn flared as she doused the lights in the main room, her horn keeping the room illuminated as she made her way to her bed. She passed by Spike's bed, her horn flaring brighter as she pulled the cover further over him, a loving smile on her muzzle.

They both jumped onto Twilight’s bed and slipped under the covers. Rainbow relaxed as the comfortable blanket was pulled up over her shoulders.

“Goodnight, Dashie,” Twilight whispered, yawning lightly as she nuzzled her pillow.

“Night, Twi,” Rainbow whispered back, a smile on her muzzle, wishing that this moment would last forever. After several minutes, she turned over to face Twilight, frowning as sleep continued to elude her. She blinked in surprise as a light snoring filled the air, coming from the pony beside her. She giggled as the most perfect idea jumped into her mind.

Rainbow stared at the mare, making sure that she was asleep. She slowly scooted closer and slowly maneuvered herself into Twilight’s embrace, laying her head just under Twilight’s chin. She softly pulled Twilight’s arm over her, and she sighed happily, sleep claiming her just moments later.

Back at the bar, two ponies suddenly sat up as they saw the lights in the library go out.

“Hey boss! The lights are out!” Zeo yelled, slightly slurring his words. “Let’s go get ‘er!”

“Sit down, you idiot!” Mordronous barked, his voice hardly hearable over the normal bar noise. How did this imbecile even make it into the cult? He glanced around the bar, his eyes gleaming menacingly as he returned his gaze to Zeo. “Stick to the plan. Meet me in front of the library in half an hour's time.” He stood, his hooves moving soundlessly across the bar's wooden floor. A moment later, he disappeared into the howling storm.

“I still don’t know how he does that.” Zeo said, his eyes scanning the darkness their leader had just walked into.

“Well, he is a unicorn... They can do some pretty amazing magic, and besides, I’m sure Lord Anthautu taught him some pretty nifty spells.” Garath responded as they stood up to make their way outside, smirking as Zeo nodded drunkenly.

“True, true. Anyways, I shink it's about time that we go an... and meet ol' Mordy.” The earth pony said, wincing as he nearly tripped over a trashcan.

“You feelin’ okay there?” Garath said, laughing at Zeo as he leapt into the air, his wings beating up and down quietly.

“Yeah, yeah, I feel fine. Let's go!” Zeo said, drunken excitement filling his voice.

The two of them left the bar and wound their way between buildings, down side alleys, and through dark shadows. Once the pair were satisfied they weren’t being followed, they headed for the library and found a good hiding spot, nervously glancing around for their leader. They remained silent, their eyes roaming over the buildings around them.

“So...where do you think he is?” Garath said, eyeing the moon through the stormy clouds as Zeo shrugged.

“Behind you,” a voice suddenly whispered from directly behind the pair.

Garath and Zeo jumped, their eyes wide as Mordronous stepped out of the shadows, a small smirk on his face. His horn flared as he soundlessly opened the unlocked library doors.

“Of course, nopony would lock their doors in such a sleepy little town...” Mordronous whispered, snorting in amusement. They entered the darkened main room, their eyes roaming across the room. Mordronous beckoned for Zeo to take the stairs, his eyes turning to Garath.

Zeo stepped forward, stumbling slightly as he drunkenly walked into a table stacked full of books. The books swayed, swaying dangerously to the left as they teetered for a moment before they suddenly started to fall. Oh buck me... I'm gonna get it now... Zeo thought, his eyes wide in terror.

Mordronous's horn flared, his magic catching nearly all the books except for the largest of the group, which slammed onto the floor with a loud bang. He quietly placed the rest of the books on the ground, his horn flaring as he reached out and pulled Zeo and Garath against him.

Suddenly, the world went dark around them; shadows clutching at their fur as smoke filled their vision. Behind the fog they could vaguely see movement, creatures twisting and slithering off in the distance.

Upstairs, Twilight woke up, her eyes opening groggily as a loud bang sounded from downstairs. What was that? I better go check...

As she slowly came to her senses, she noticed that she had somehow snuggled up against Rainbow sometime that night, her hoof draped over the cyan mare's body.

Oh, Rainbow; why are you so warm...ugh...I really don’t want to get up... She snuggled closer to the mare, fighting the urge to check downstairs. She gave up and sighed, giving Rainbow a small nuzzle as she slipped out of bed, silently making her way to the bedroom door.

She opened it slowly and her horn flared as the room burst into a low magenta light, her eyes instantly focusing on the fallen books.

Hmmm... I'll have to stack my books lower from now on... With a flourish of her horn, the books rearranged themselves in smaller stacks on the table.

She took one last look around the room, an uneasy feeling rising in her chest. Something felt a little off, but she couldn’t place a hoof on it. She shrugged, closing the door behind her as she returned to bed. She laid down beside Rainbow, a guilty smile on her face as she replaced her foreleg around Rainbow's belly. Dash stirred in her sleep, mumbling something inaudible as she snuggled deeper into Twilight's embrace.

Downstairs, Mordronous released his spell, his companions gasping in fear as they faded back into the library. They stared at him with wide eyes, their hearts beating against their rib cages.

“What in Sombra's name was that?!?” Garath whispered as loudly as he dared, his voice cracking with fear.

Mordronous turned, eyeing him for a moment before speaking. “Oh, just a little something Lord Anthautu showed me. It definitely has its uses...” he said, slowly making his way up the stairs. Zeo and Garath fell in place behind him, Zeo watching his step much more carefully.

Just as Twilight was about to drift off to sleep again, she was awoken by the click of her bedroom door opening. She sat up in confusion, her horn flaring dimly as she blinked in surprise as three ponies quietly stared back at her. She slid out of bed, quietly speaking as she stepped closer to them.

“I'm sorry, but the library is closed for the night; you'll have to come back tomorrow.”

Mordronous stepped forward, the very picture of nervous panic. “We're so very sorry to have woken you, but we desperately need a book that deals with long range teleportation. One of my colleagues attempted a highly advanced teleportation spell he had been toying with, and we have no idea where he's gone. We could really use your help.”

“Well...alright...” Twilight reluctantly said, eyeing the three ponies before her. “I may be able to help you with that. Please, follow me.” She glanced back at Rainbow, wanting nothing more than to snuggle with her back in bed, under the warm covers.

Garath stepped to the side and watched as the librarian and his companions descended the staircase. His eyes swept over the room, lingering on the mare in the bed the unicorn had just stepped out of. Well, who would have guessed; she's a fillyfooler! That must be her marefriend in the bed... Knowing that time was of the essence, he darted over to the nearby dresser, pulling the drawer open with his mouth as he glanced inside. Score!

The drawer was perfectly organized, panties folded neatly to the left side, socks and stockings to the right. He reached into the drawer, grabbing one of the stacks of underwear, and he quickly stowed the panties in his saddlebag. He grinned to himself, smirking as he made his way out of the bedroom. As the door clicked behind him, Twilight turned, her eyes narrowing as she glared at him.

“What were you doing in my bedroom?”

Mordronous and Zeo stared at him, waiting to hear his excuse, hoping that he wouldn’t blow the whole operation.

“Um.. I had to use your bathroom. I hope that's ok..?” He said, smiling nervously at her in what he hoped was an innocent way.

“I guess..?” Twilight said, quickly hiding a look of disgust. I don't trust these three... “So which book are you looking for?” she asked, glancing between the three of them.

“Well, we've already checked ‘A Travelers Guide to Teleportation!’ but there wasn't much information in the way of what to do if your friend teleports off course.” Mordronous quickly replied, surprising his companions.

“Yes, I agree; that's more of a starter guide than anything else...” Twilight replied, sighing as her eyes roamed over the bindings over her many books. She trotted over to the transportation bookcase, her horn flaring as she pulled down every book on the topic, her head shaking as she started looking through all of the books.

Seeing the mare busy herself with her books, Mordronous slid closer to Garath and Zeo, whispering to the two. “I'm going to sneak upstairs and secure the baby dragon. Keep her busy, and whatever you do...do not let her come upstairs. Got it?” He asked, the threat in his voice coming across loud and clear.

The pair nodded, stepping closer to Twilight as Mordronous slipped up the stairs and into the bedroom.

He lit his horn, his eyes lingering on Rainbow's sleeping form for a moment before drifting to the small dragon in the large bed. He slowly pulled the covers back, a smirk on his face as he levitated Spike into the air.

Spike squirmed suddenly, yawning as he opened an eye. His eyes snapped open as he saw an unknown unicorn floating him through the air towards a large black bag.

Spike screamed, his voice ringing through the library. “Twilight! Help me!”

Rainbow suddenly woke up, her eyes going wide as Spike yelled for help. Seeing an unfamiliar pony in Twilight’s bedroom, she leapt to her hooves, her eyes flashing in anger as Mordronous turned to look at her with a smirk on his muzzle.

“Put him down!” Rainbow threatened, ready to tackle the ominous-looking unicorn.

Mordronous chuckled to himself. Before Rainbow could jump him, his horn pulsed a dull gray, putting Rainbow in a dead sleep. He thrust the dragon into the bag, a satisfied smile as he started trotting towards the bedroom door.

Hearing somepony yelling from upstairs, Twilight knew something was up, so she pushed the two ponies beside her away with her magic and ran upstairs. She burst into the room, her horn glowing dangerously as she glared at the gray unicorn before her. She looked beyond him, her horn brightening suddenly as she took in the empty bed behind him.

“Where is Spike?!? What did you do to him?” She furiously yelled, sparks shooting from the tip of her horn.

Mordronous chuckled, an evil glint in his eye. “Oh, nothing...yet.”

Twilight stepped forward and tried to subdue the unicorn with her magic, only to scream in frustration as he vanished with a snap, teleporting out of the room.

A couple seconds later, he reappeared downstairs next to Zeo and Garath, who were slowly picking themselves off the floor. He threw the bag to Garath, who caught it deftly in his mouth. “Go!” Zeo and Garath bolted from the library, quickly vanishing into the dark night.

He started galloping towards the door and was just about to make his escape when it suddenly slammed shut with a loud bang. He turned his head toward the stairs, his eyes going wide as he ducked beneath Twilight’s former bedroom door. He lifted an eyebrow at the mare, staring her in the eye as she snorted in anger.

“You won't leave until you give Spike back!” she screamed, her magic arcing to the floor around her. She secured the library with a force field, preventing Mordronous from teleporting away. She charged down the stairs, her eyes full of fire.

Mordronous smirked, his horn flaring as he grabbed the contents of a nearby bookcase, throwing its contents at the angry mare.

Twilight flinched as she suddenly tripped over a flying book into her legs, her angry screams turning into painful yelps as she tumbled down the rest of the stairs.

Mordronous laughed evilly, a rather large leather-bound book held firmly in his magical grasp. He took careful aim and sent the book flying straight for Twilight's head, knocking her out cold. He breathed heavily, his eyes examining the unconscious mare. He felt all-powerful, knowing full well this pony’s life was now quite literally in his hooves.

”Maybe I should kill her now... save myself the trouble later...” The more he pondered on the idea, the more he seemed to think it was a good idea. Besides, he didn’t want her chasing him and making things complicated for him later on. ”Should I snap her neck, leaving a mess for somepony to find? No.. That's no fun.. Ah, yes I know! Suffocation! I always do enjoy a good suffocation. And the best part about it is, nopony will know she was murdered...”

He laughed as a gray aura appeared around her throat, slowly growing tighter and tighter until a thought suddenly burst into his mind. Lord Anthautu did tell me to be as inconspicuous as possible... leaving behind a body isn't exactly the best way to do that...”

He groaned in disappointment, his magic vanishing as he turned away from the defenseless mare. He so desperately wanted to end her pathetic existence, but he didn’t want to face his lord’s wrath either. He hated to admit it, but she did put up a halfway decent fight. He turned, broke the force field she had placed around the library, and galloped away into the night.