The Stars, the Seal, and the Kraken

Chapters

Chapter 2: What Rough Beast
Chapter 3: Boldly They Rode and Well
Chapter 4: Shatter'd and Sunder'd
Chapter 5: Death Be Not Proud
Chapter 6: Weak and Weary
Chapter 8: A Quaint and Curious Volume
Chapter 9: The Centre Cannot Hold
Chapter 10: Quaff this Kind Nepenthe
Chapter 1: The Widening Gyre
Chapter 7: Surcease of Sorrow

Chapter 2: What Rough Beast

Rainbow Dash glided above the streets of Ponyville, following the straight white line now traced along them, flanked here and there by traffic cones and "wet paint" signs, and found a familiar purple unicorn at the end. She watched as Twilight carefully positioned a paintbrush attached to a large compass glowing with purple light and, checking measurements against a scroll levitated before her, traced out a precise circle centered around the straight line's tip.

Rainbow cocked a baffled eyebrow at her friend. "Whiskey tango bravo?"

Twilight rechecked the measurements before looking up at the pegasus, confused.

"WTB?" she clarified. Twilight shook her head slightly, brow furrowing.

Rainbow threw her forelegs into the air. "What the buck, Twi? Last I saw you, you were writing to the princess, and now Spike's babbling about some author and you're doing your geometry homework in the streets?"

Twilight dismissed the enlarging spell on her compass and returned the brush to the paint can. "I haven't taken a geometry class in years."

Rainbow nearly facehooved. "I didn't mean-- never mind. I checked in on Ditzy, she said the feeling stopped for about twenty minutes, then started up again. She wrote down the times, too. I showed 'em to Spike, he said the thing landed for about twenty minutes then took off again, and Ditzy's times were only about two minutes after his."

"Hmm." Twilight did some quick mental math. "I'd figured the mountain had to be close to a hundred miles away, if not more. If these ripples are travelling at the speed of sound, and assuming everypony's clocks are accurate, close to a two-minute delay would be about right."

"Seriously, though, what the hay are you doing?"

Twilight levitated the scroll towards her friend to read. "It's a symbol to protect the town from that creature."

Rainbow quickly read the princess' letter. "Okay, what I know about magic couldn't fill a sticky note, but I do know that symbols--"

"'Symbols and incantations don't make magic, that's just superstition.' I know, I know." Twilight sighed as she gathered her notepad, pencil and assorted tools into her saddlebags. "I keep thinking the same thing. The first lesson they hammered into us at Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns was the difference between superstition and magic, that magic is just another field of science and that it follows its own clear set of rules." She glanced down at the symbol, then up to the horizon, at the gap between the ranges of mountains far to the South and West. The gap through which the creature, this "kraken", would most likely come if it approached Ponyville.

"There's... there's no logical reason why this symbol should do any good. Not that I know of, at least. But on the other hoof, I know the princess wouldn't lie to me about this. She wouldn't ask me to do this if she didn't think it was our best chance. And that means what they drilled into us on that first day... wasn't entirely true." She shook her head slowly. "Do you know what professors call the science education most ponies get before college?"

Rainbow Dash chuckled. "Yeah. 'Lies to children.' Meteorologists say that, too."

"Exactly. Most everything you learn below the university level is a simplification. But I have a bachelor's degree! I'm a freaking doctoral candidate! All the 'lies to children' I learned about magic, I was sure I'd unlearned them all by now. What's going on here that I don't know? Why don't I know it? Is there some kernel of truth to the superstitions my professors scoffed at, and if so, why hide it?" Twilight lowered her head. "I feel like the world doesn't make any sense anymore."

Rainbow rarely bothered to pick up on the ten-bit words Twilight would casually throw around sometimes, but there was one phrase that stuck with her, because she'd seen how badly it affected her friend on more than one occasion. "Cognitive dissonance," she said softly.

Twilight looked up slowly. "Yeah. I don't deal with it well, do I?"

Rather than answer, Rainbow just smiled. "Come on, you'll figure this out. So it's new and weird; when's that stopped you? Well, aside from the Pinkie Sense..."

Twilight gave an embarrassed chuckle and smiled at the memory. "That's not a bad comparison, actually. You know, once I stopped trying to debunk it and accepted the evidence for it, I was actually able to come up with a hypothesis for how it works. I think what might be happening is..." She met Rainbow's eyes and saw them starting to unfocus. "...something you're not remotely interested in. Right." She smiled nervously, and took a deep breath to help herself focus. "Okay... Strange phenomenon. Outside of our experience, but a strong suggestion of its validity regardless. It's merely undocumented; not entirely, since the princess knows about it, but maybe there's not enough corroboration. Without that, it would never have been published in a peer-reviewed journal and thus never made it into standard curricula. Okay. That... makes sense."

"There's another possibility: It could be a state secret."

Twilight looked at the pegasus like she'd grown a second head and a couple extra wings. "What."

"You know... the Nightmare Files?"

Twilight rolled her eyes. "Augh! I keep telling you, those are just an urban legend!"

"Of course no one would publicly admit to them if they were real! Secrecy is the entire point."

"Rainbow, this is why I hate conspiracy theories. Every bit of evidence against them is twisted around to support it." She started walking alongside the freshly-painted line, while Rainbow landed to walk with her. "I need to finish this. The sun's getting low and I have one more branch to draw."

Twilight carefully painted the equilateral triangle around the tip of the last branch, overlapping the strokes and magically erasing the excess paint to sharpen the corners, when an apprehensive-looking purple and blonde pegasus approached them. Rainbow Dash took to the air to meet her. "What's up?"

"That weird chill on the wind," Cloud Kicker replied. "I... think I'm starting to feel it. It's like Ditzy described it, cold but not really, no actual movement to the air, at regular intervals. And really ominous."

Rainbow spread her wings out and glided for a moment, trying to feel it. She shuddered for a second, then again. "Oh jeez. Yeah." She landed next to Twilight. "You catch that, Twi? It must be getting stronger."

The symbol finally complete, Twilight started packing up her tools and sealed the paint can. "Closer, more likely."

"Should we head back to the library?"

"In a moment." Twilight closed her eyes and steadied her breath as her horn began to glow. The violet aura reached the brightness of a lantern before she dipped her head down and discharged her spell into the paint. Purple lightning crackled down its length to the intersection, where it spread left and right down the main trunk. Gasps and cries of alarm from assorted ponies spread along the streets like a stadium crowd doing a wave. As it passed, the paint seemed to become a more vivid white. Twilight smiled, pleased with her work. "There. Its glow should be inversely proportionate to the light it's exposed to, so even at night with no streetlights it'll be as bright as at midday."

Rainbow flew back and forth over the line. Though the ground around it dimmed in her shadow as normal, the paint never did. "Okay. I'm genuinely impressed. I'll bet the Wonderbolts would love to have you cast this on them for night shows."

"If we're still here tomorrow, you can write to them about it. Let's go."

Twilight and Rainbow arrived at the library to find Applejack pacing around the main room, Winona curled up in the corner looking anxious. "Thank goodness yer back, Twi. Didja hear the mayor's announcement?"

Twilight lifted her bags from her back and set them on the table. "No, but I gave her a copy of all my notes for it. Why?"

Applejack gulped. "You mean... You told her to say all that?" Twilight nodded. "Aw, dang. I was hoping she was all up in a tizzy over nuthin', and you'd be able to set her straight..."

Rainbow Dash spoke up, trying to reassure her friend. "Hey, it's cool, AJ. There's some freaky stuff going on, but the princess already has some idea of what's up and Twi just finished putting some cool defenses in place. We'll be fine."

"Ah know, Ah know, she mentioned that's what you was doin'. But she told us that we need to stay inside the town proper, so we had to clear outta the farm--"

"I know, I'm sorry about that," Twilight interrupted, "but it didn't look like I really had the time to cover both the farm and the town."

"Naw, I get it, it's okay. Granny's down at the senior center with her friends, and Mac said he'd stay with Ditzy and Dinky. It's just that..."

Twilight's throat tightened. "Apple Bloom?"

"Ah can't find her anywhere, Twi! Th' three of 'em were at the clubhouse after school, Ah thought they'd still be there, but all Ah found was some map Ah couldn' make heads or tails out of, Ah mean, Cutie Mark Crusader Cartographers they ain't..." Her voice cracked and panic started to fill her eyes. "It sorta looked like they mighta been headin' out into the Whitetail Woods, but Ah spent all afternoon lookin' there and I couldn't even follow their trail."

Rainbow Dash spoke up. "I'm on it. Twilight, where's your binoculars?"

"Upstairs in the study, on the--" Rainbow was already gone by the word "study", a multicolored contrail leading up the stairs, out the window, and off to the woods in search of the girls. Twilight and Applejack blinked at each other before the farmer spoke up, smiling weakly. "Well, Ah 'magine that's taken care of."

The library door burst open as a frantic blur of white and purple barged in. "Applejack! Your brother said you'd be here. Do you know where Sweetie Belle is?"

"It's alright, Rare. Rainbow Dash just rainbow-dashed outta here to find 'em. Seems like they were explorin' the Whitetail again."

Rarity let loose a tightly-held breath and relaxed. "Oh thank heavens. That announcement, about some creature, and telling us to shelter in our homes..." She turned back to the door. "I should let Mom and Dad know." She turned expectantly towards her librarian friend. "Twilight, dear, I know it would be a terrible imposition, but..."

Twlight smiled gently. "Yes, you can stay here tonight, Rarity, it's fine. I can't imagine anypony wanting to be home alone right now."

"Thank you, Twilight, you are such a dear. I'll be back after I tell Mom and Dad what's going on." With that, she galloped out the door.

Twilight stopped to think for a moment. "Speaking of ponies who shouldn't be home alone..."

"Yer thinkin' of Fluttershy?"

Twilight nodded. "She's pretty far from the main part of town, too. I don't know how protected she'll be out there."

"Good luck convincin' her to leave alla them animals behind, though."

"I'll think of something."

"I am NOT leaving all these animals behind!"

"I'm not trying to make you, Fluttershy!" Twilight tried to stay calm while looking into the pegasus' unusually steely eyes. She had yet to unleash the full fury of The Stare, but Twilight was still worried about provoking it. "But I really don't think it's safe for you to stay out here."

"So you're not making me, you're just implying that I should."

"No! I... Look, there has to be something we can do. I could put a sleep spell on them so they won't get frightened and hurt themselves..."

"And they won't feel a thing when the kraken swoops down and eats them all up like popcorn?" Her eyes tightened and started to take on a sterner, more Stare-like quality. "Try harder."

Twilight swallowed.

"AJ?"

Applejack looked up to see Twilight's head poking around the frame of the open front door. "Yer back! You figger out what t' do with Fluttershy?"

"Yeah, sort of... Can you open up the door to the basement?"

Applejack cocked at eyebrow at the unicorn who still had not entered her own home. She kept shifting slightly, like she was trying to hold onto something out of view. "Uh, sure thing, sugarcube." She trotted over to the door in the back of the kitchen and pushed it open. "Alright, done."

Twilight practically leapt across the threshold and dove out of the way as a tsunami of assorted creatures swarmed in, flapping, crawling, hopping, slithering and waddling into the main room of the library, through the kitchen, and finally downstairs, while Fluttershy, all smiles and kindness, hovered nearby and gently herded them along. Once it passed, Twilight stepped back out and returned levitating two bales of straw, a stack of blankets, and a dozen bags of various kinds of animal feed, which she lowered down the steps. Fluttershy followed her animal charges, and Twilight let out an exhausted breath once she'd shut the door behind the pegasus.

Applejack was silent for several seconds, staring at the haggard unicorn. "So, uh... Ah take it she wouldn' leave 'em." Twilight's only answer was the sternest glare she could muster in her current state, which wasn't much of one. A faint draconic snicker came from upstairs, but she just rolled her eyes and tried to knead the headache out of her right temple.

"Pinkie showed up while you were out. She went upstairs to pout, a mite dramatically if'n ya ask me, when I told her she shouldn't throw a party even though everypony's already comin', but I think she fell asleep."

"I'll go check on her."

Twilight climbed the stairs wearily and quietly opened the door to her bedroom. A pink earth pony was curled up in her bed, sleeping like a foal. As she turned to leave, a groggy voice greeted her. "Hey, Twilight."

"Hey, Pinkie. Sorry if I woke you."

"It's fine, I was only half-asleep." Twilight was surprised she could be even a quarter asleep after the menagerie monsoon that had migrated through the the library mere moments ago.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. I don't suppose you're feeling any more party-positive than AJ us?"

Twilight shook her head. "Sorry. I just don't think it's a good idea. Nopony's likely to be in a party mood tonight."

Pinkie lifted her head, looking distraught. "But that's when ponies need a party the most!"

Twilight stepped closer to her friend and gave her a gentle hug. "You know parties can't fix everything, right?"

Pinkie sighed. "I know. I wish they could, but they can't. I just want to make my friends feel better and not be sad or scared." She pulled out of the hug and and laid back down, facing away from Twilight. "It's what I'm good at, you know? Sometimes, when there's a problem, it feels like I don't really have any other way to help you guys. I'm not magical, or super strong, or super fast, or good with animals, or artistic... I'm just Pinkie Pie the Party Pony. That's basically all I do. And when I can't do it, I... I just feel..." Her breath hitched.

"Useless?" Pinkie nodded slightly. "Pinkie, you're not useless. You always manage to cheer us up, or at the very least make sure we know somepony cares about us, and you don't have to throw parties to do that. You just have to be you. Remember when we freed Princess Luna? You didn't need a party to banish those scary monster-trees."

"True..."

"All six of the Elements of Harmony are important, Pinkie. Even yours. There's a military saying I heard from a palace guard once: 'Morale is a force multiplier.' The side that first loses the will to fight is the side that loses the battle, even if they have every other advantage. You're our morale officer. You keep our spirits up, you sustain our will to fight." Twilight stroked her mane. "We couldn't do what we do without you."

Pinkie sniffled and rolled back to face Twilight. "Thanks," she said, smiling faintly, "I needed to hear that."

"What brought this on, though? We've faced major threats before, and you've never doubted yourself like this." Except for the time you thought we didn't want to be your friends anymore, Twilight remembered, but thought better of bringing that up.

Pinkie's smile disappeared. "I had a... combo."

"Your Pinkie Sense?"

She nodded. "It was horrible. My... My everything clenched. Snout to tail, hoof to scalp. It was like being dunked in ice water." She looked down at her hooves. "Something really bad is gonna happen, Twilight. Something awful. I don't know exactly what, but somepony we all care about is gonna get really badly hurt. Maybe even..." Her throat closed up, unwilling to let the word escape her lips. "I'm not even sure if it's one of us six girls, but if it is... I guess maybe I wanted to make sure that we all had a good time together and made some happy memories before... before..."

Pinkie felt Twilight's forelegs wrap around her again, tighter this time. She cried into her friend's mane for a while before she felt the tears falling on her own neck, and hugged the unicorn as tight as she could.

After they'd dried their tears, Twilight and Pinkie came back downstairs to find Applejack and Rarity talking quietly with Spike about anything and everything except the whereabouts of their younger sisters, as the red sky grew purple. The five of them tried to keep their hopes up, but as the darkness grew, so did their worry. Winona pressed herself against Applejack, whining softly, while Opal kept up a good show of not being bothered but shot frequent, hopeful looks towards the door.

As the first stars began to appear in the night sky, a sound of rushing wind approached the library and a colorful streak shot through the open window. Rainbow Dash skidded to a halt in the main room of the library, three fillies clinging tightly to her back: One exhilarated pegasus, and a terrified earth pony and unicorn. Applebloom and Sweetie Belle hopped off and rushed to greet their sisters, while Scootaloo clutched her idol's mane with wide, manic eyes and an immense grin. "That... was... AWESOME!"

"Does 'awesome' mean 'terrifying' now?" Sweetie Belle snarked.

"No, it means 'too rad for pansy unicorns to handle'!"

As the trio launched into one of their usual arguments, the previous fright or the reason for their rushed retrieval forgotten, Rainbow turned to face Twilight. "Hey. So I was wondering..."

Twilight sighed and smiled at the pegasus. "Yes you can sleep here. Everyone else is already. You should go get Tank before it gets well and truly dark."

"Thanks, Twi. You're the best." She turned and prepared to take off again, but hesitated.

"Something wrong?" Twilight asked.

"With my wings furled, especially inside, I can't feel it. But when I'm flying..." She set her jaw and locked her eyes on the open window. "Guess I'll just have to hurry." Before Twilight could say any more, she was off.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders had gotten over their argument and were now telling Applejack, Rarity and Spike about their adventure in the Whitetail Woods looking for pirate treasure.

"But there's no ocean around here for miles," Spike objected.

"Well, duh," Apple Bloom explained, "That's what makes it such a great hidin' place! No other pirate would think t' look this far from the sea."

Spike looked up at their older sisters. "The worst part is, I can't even find a fault in her logic."

"You get used to it, dear," Rarity reassured him.

Twilight stepped towards them to interrupt. "Sorry girls, I know you had a lot of fun, but we should really get Scootaloo home before it gets any darker." And before that creature gets any closer. "One of us can walk you there."

"Can it be Rainbow Dash?"

"I dunno, we really shouldn't wait..."

"But she's gonna be right back! And she can get me home faster than anypony else can!"

Twilight looked in the filly's eyes, and saw the growing fear there, the fear she didn't want to admit to. Rainbow Dash was the bravest and toughest pony around, as far as she was concerned, and Twilight knew how much safer she'd feel with her as an escort. "Well, okay. As long as she doesn't take more than a few--"

Twilight was cut off by the slowly rising round of the town's emergency siren. The one that, according to the mayor's earlier announcement, meant "shelter in place".

Applejack stepped forward. "Scootaloo lives clear across town. It might be better for her t' just stay here for the night."

Twilight bit her lip. "I don't want her parents to worry..."

"If it were Apple Bloom, Ah'd rather worry all night an' find out she was safe come mornin', than have her take any kinda chance just so's I'd feel better." She glanced towards Rarity, who nodded in agreement.

While Twilight struggled with the issue, Rainbow Dash reappeared, Tank clutched under one foreleg, and abruptly shut the window behind her before landing. Her eyes were wide and harrowed as she set down her pet tortoise. "I hope nopony had anywhere they had to go before hunkering down for the night." She looked at the other ponies all facing Scootaloo. "Oh."

The pegasus filly looked up towards Rainbow Dash. "I was kinda hoping you could, you know..."

"Sorry, kid, but I don't think anypony should be going anywhere right now." Her friends could tell that her expressed concern for others was masking her own fear at the idea of going outside again herself. "It's too close," she said, facing Twilight. "I felt more than that weird chill, I felt an actual current."

Twilight turned back to Scootaloo. "That settles it. You're staying here tonight. I just wish I could get a message to your family..."

A soft hoot answered her. She turned to see Owloysius, finally waking up for the night, perched on the banister near the upstairs study where he'd been sleeping. He flew silently down to her writing desk and, hooting again, pointed a talon at her quill.

Twilight stepped towards him hesitantly. "Are you sure about this?" He nodded.

Twilight lifted and inked the pen, and scratched out a quick note.

To the parents of Scootaloo:

Your daughter was with us here in the library when the siren sounded. We don't think it's a good idea for anypony to venture outside at this point, so we can keep her here where she's safe. I'm sorry we couldn't get her home sooner, but we only just got her and her friends back from where they were playing in the woods. There's plenty of responsible adults here, so she'll be okay. Fortunately my surprisingly brave owl has volunteered to deliver this note. Please try not to worry about her.

Twilight Sparkle

Twilight rolled up the note, and Owloysius grasped it gently in his talons before flying out the window she opened for him.

A few minutes later, he returned, feathers looking slightly ruffled. The approach of the kraken appeared to be getting to him as well. He dropped a simple folded piece of paper onto Twilight's desk. Flattened out, it read:

Thank you. Keep her safe till morning.

As the situation gradually sank in, Fluttershy at long last emerged from the basement. "Everyone's settled in and comfortable, and they all have plenty of food. If they start getting spooked, though, that sleep spell you suggested might still be a good idea."

At the sight of the yellow pegasus, Pinkie appeared to emerge from the last of her funk. "Well, now that everypony's here, who wants to play a game? I know it's not really a party, but that doesn't mean we have to stand around and mope."

The frowns of eight ponies and a dragon suddenly turned, however slightly, into smiles.

Twilight had pulled a small stack of board games and a few decks of cards from her closet to help everypony pass the time, and while Spike and Pinkie busied themselves in the kitchen preparing a simple dinner for ten, unpacked blankets and pillows for everyone to sleep on. Rather than try to figure out who'd share the only two actual beds in the house, they'd apparently agreed that a mass sleepover in the main room of the library was the best solution. Despite some ponies' insistence that it wasn't really a slumber party, it was beginning to feel like one.

Applejack's and Rarity's business sense had quickly obliterated the other Monopony players, and the two titans were now locked in an economic struggle worthy of a griffon saga. Twilight had expected to dominate the trivia game, but was thwarted by Fluttershy's vast zoological expertise, and even Sweetie Belle had beaten her soundly at pop culture just from what she'd absorbed from her sister. Apple Bloom and Pinkie Pie couldn't care less that Pictionmarey was meant to be played in competition against another team, while Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo and Spike engaged in an epic battle of wits over a deck of cards.

Rainbow carefully lifted the corner of one her cards just barely enough to read the number, giving her opponents a poker face worthy of an Appleoosan saloon. "Do you have any... threes?"

Scootaloo looked at her own cards with measured casualness. "Go fish."

"AUGH. How are you doing this to me? I used to ROCK at this game!"

"Guess yer jus' gettin' rusty, old-timer," the filly replied, affecting Apple Bloom's accent.

The casual revelry of the group was broken by a strange noise, a distant, booming howl that rolled through the air like thunder. Every one of them shuddered to hear it.

"What the hay was that?" Scootaloo asked, looking up at the Rainbow Dash's taut face.

"I think that was the kraken. That chill... it felt like the one on the wind from its wings."

Everypony was silent for several moments, until Spike's stomach rumbled and he belched forth a gout of flame.

Twilight rushed over to grab the scroll almost before it was completely formed. She unrolled and read it, then turned to the rest of the group. "It's from the princess. They just got word that the kraken approached Fillydelphia, but was seemingly repelled by the protective symbol." She smiled sheepishly. "I, uh, guess it works."

"Well that's sure a relief," Applejack replied, visibly relaxing along with the others. Pinkie Pie looked less reassured, though, and despite her brave front, so did Rainbow Dash. Still, they returned to their games with the others, hoping for at least a temporary distraction from their worries.

As the night wore on, the long-running games were completed (or in the case of Monopony, declared a stalemate) and the fillies began to tire. Twilight turned out the lights and built a fire in the hearth while the others arranged their makeshift bedding. Spike and the Crusaders insisted they weren't sleepy, of course, and were allowed to stay up to join in the conversation, but were gradually drifting off. As they groggily continued to chat amongst themselves, the adults clustered together on their blankets and began to talk of more serious matters as a rhythmic wind rustled and grew outside. Fluttershy checked on her animals in the basement more frequently as they seemed to need her calming influence more and more, and eventually requested that Twilight help them sleep with her magic as some were getting too agitated for her to manage. Pinkie hadn't said anything about her premonition, but the others guessed that she'd had one based on her waning mood. They all seemed to realize that they weren't yet out of the woods.

While the others talked and shared their worries, Twilight had grown quiet and stared into the middle distance. Applejack prodded her with a hoof, and she suddenly focused her attention on the present before looking away, embarrassed.

"What's eatin' you, sugarcube?" Applejack asked her.

"Nothing, it's... silly."

"Mah granny wears a bunny suit an' talks to bees to make jam. Silly don' bother me none."

"You can tell us, Twilight," Rarity added. "I should just be happy my little sister is safe, but a corner of my mind is wondering if this beast's passing will harm my shop. Applejack and Fluttershy have more to worry about in that regard, and they aren't holding it against me."

Twilight sighed. "it's just that I feel, well, out of the loop. The last two big threats to Equestria, we were right there in the thick of it. Everything hinged on us. But this time, Celestia knew what was going on before I even wrote to her, and already had a defense plan in the works. Wheels are in motion all the way in Canterlot, and they're turning without me. Any other pony could have painted that symbol in the streets, and nearly any unicorn could've made it glow. I feel..."

As she trailed off, Pinkie Pie finished her sentence for her. "Useless."

Twilight smiled at the pink pony. "Yeah. I know I should be glad that the princess knew how to defend against this creature, and saw it coming before we did. I should be relieved that this time, the responsibility isn't ours alone. But I'm not. It's absolutely crazy, but... I'm just not." She turned her eyes to the Northeast window, the one from which she could barely see Canterlot on a clear day. "I wish I was there right now, helping them organize and research and plan, not huddled around a fire hoping a few white lines on the ground will protect us against a monster from the fever dreams of some long-dead pulp writer."

Twilight saw Rainbow Dash smirk, and expected to be mocked for wishing her life was harder than it was, but instead felt a friendly hoof muss up her mane. "Don't sweat it, Twi. As much as I wanted to get indoors and away from that freaky chill, part of me still wants to go kick that thing in the face."

Looking around, Twilight saw eyes filled with nothing but empathy and kindness, and found herself feeling considerably less silly.

Eventually the conversation died down, but sleep didn't come. The six friends lay together in rarely-broken silence, the wingbeats of the kraken slowly growing until the windows began to rattle. Spike and the fillies were fast asleep by then, but the six mares grew increasingly on edge, Rainbow Dash most of all. After nearly half an hour of the windows shaking in their frames and the fire guttering slightly every few seconds, she seemed ready to crack. Fluttershy tried her best to console her, and Tank leaned reassuringly against her, but it wasn't enough.

"I can't take this anymore," she said quietly, huddling under a comforter. "I thought it was just about on top of us ages ago! How big would this thing have to be for it be this loud from so far away?"

Twilight fought the urge to compute an actual answer. "I'm scared, too, Rainbow. But it's okay. We know that symbol works. We'll be safe here. Eventually it'll get close enough, see it, and fly off like it did at Fillydelphia. Maybe it'll even pass us by entirely." Twilight didn't think that was very likely, but it wasn't inconceivable; they still had no idea what motivated the creature.

"What if it doesn't work?"

"What do you mean? It was repelled by the symbol once already."

"It was repelled by something. What if somepony tried something else, too, without telling anyone, and that was what drove it off? Maybe it's already right above town, just hovering there, deciding what it wants to do to us. How could it possibly be that loud if it wasn't?"

Rarity looked nervously towards where the children slept as they started to stir. "Rainbow, please keep your voice down," she pleaded.

"I CAN'T TAKE THIS!" Rainbow reared up and spread her wings in a flash, throwing the comforter behind her. As the young ones woke with a start, she flew to the South window and flung it open.

Twilight stood and stepped nervously towards her. "Rainbow, please! Just calm down!"

"I just need to see it! Just one good look so I can gauge the distance! I can't handle constantly thinking it's almost here, Twilight!"

Spike shook off the last of his grogginess at those words. "RAINBOW! DON'T--"

Before he could get the words out, the front half of Rainbow's body was already out the window, her forehooves on the sill. A strangled gasp escaped her throat as she went rigid. No one dared move.

After several tense seconds, Rainbow Dash shakily pulled herself in from the window, shut it, and drew the blinds. She staggered back to her improvised bed in front of the fire, and was greeted with gasps of horror as she reentered the light.

The rainbow colors were gone from her mane.

"I didn't even get a... a really good look." Her voice was quiet and hollow, devoid of inflection, but her eyes held the horror it lacked. "It was just a silhouette against a moonlit cloud. That... that was all I..." her voice cracked and she buried her head in her hooves, sobbing weakly. "We're screwed, Twi. There's no way around it. We are completely and hopelessly screwed."

Scootaloo walked slowly and tentatively towards her role model, and stretched out a hoof to gently stroke her mane that was now as white as the clouds she liked to nap on. Rainbow Dash lifted her head just enough to look at the frightened filly, and pulled her into a hug.

Applejack and Rarity shared frightened looks, and leaned towards each other for comfort as they held their terrified younger siblings. Twilight wrapped a leg around Spike and tried to summon words that sounded courageous or confident, but none would come. Fluttershy clutched her pillow to her chest, crying through eyes screwed tightly shut, while Pinkie, mane now falling ruler-straight, held her close and tucked her blanket in around her.

In a cozy little house in Ponyville, a large earth pony stallion held a frightened pegasus mare and her unicorn daughter, promising to keep them safe even though he had no idea how.

In a community center in the heart of town, elderly ponies who would have otherwise been home alone found comfort in the company of their own generation.

In a library built into a tree, six mares, three fillies and a baby dragon tried desperately to comfort one another, their sheer refusal to accept failure becoming its own kind of success.

And in the skies above the Everfree Forest, a horror from the stars began to contemplate what revenge it would take against these small, frail creatures that dared to think they could stand against it.

Chapter 3: Boldly They Rode and Well

The occupants of the Ponyville library had no more words of comfort, and so tried to give it in silence.

The beating of the kraken's wings grew ever stronger, shaking not only the windows but the boughs of the tree. The sound of the rushing wind became almost deafening, and before long the very walls seemed to tremble with each stroke. Even the unnatural chill it left in the air seemed to penetrate the library like a draft. Each moment they thought it could not possibly get any worse, the very next proved them wrong.

The timbers groaned from the stress, and ten frightened friends drew closer, each wondering silently how much longer they had to wait.

After countless minutes, the wait was over.

The walls shook. Teacups rattled free of their hooks and crashed to the counter. Framed pictures tumbled and fell flat. A bust fell from its pedestal and rumbled across the floor. And no one heard any it over the howl of apocalyptic fury crashing down upon them from above, driving all thoughts from their minds save those of hopelessness and the end of all things.

And then it ended, replaced by the frantic beating of colossal wings desperate to distance themselves from the site. After a few moments, the rushing wind and evil chill returned to their former bough-shaking rhythm, but with a subtle difference. They were receding.

The nine ponies and one young dragon stayed rigidly in place for a while, as their frozen blood began to thaw. Soon they began to let themselves believe it wasn't coming back.

Twilight scanned the faces of her companions. Eight sets of eyes met hers, filled with cautious yet growing hope. The ninth, the only ones to have seen the kraken itself, were buried in a pillow. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, and panted like she'd just run a sprint. "I think... that means... it worked." She held Spike close and smiled wearily, while the other ponies hugged, high-hoofed and gave quiet, weak cheers.

All but Rainbow Dash.

Pinkie, her mane slowly regaining its curl, tried to rouse her pegasus friend. "C'mon, Dashie. It's alright. The symbol worked, it's gone." Pinkie brushed the stark white mane from her brow, but Rainbow only buried her face deeper into the pillow. Pinkie looked up towards Twilight, her face filled with worry.

Twilight let go of Spike and took a few tentative steps towards Rainbow... towards Dash. "Hey," she said softly. "What's wrong?"

Dash lifted her head slightly, giving her mouth just enough room to speak but keeping her eyes shut tight. "I already told you. We're screwed."

Twilight was baffled. "What do you mean? We know for sure now that our defenses work. That means wherever the princess found that symbol, it's at least a partially reliable source. She's probably got more things to try already. Rainbow..." The pegasus flinched at the use of her now-inaccurate first name. "We can beat this thing."

"No we can't. You didn't see it, Twilight. You don't understand. You can't. Sure we can hold it off for now, but how long can that last? How long can we hole up under these symbols, hoping we never have to step outside their protection? How long before it's able to find a way past them?" She finally opened her eyes and turned them towards Twilight. "All we've done is delay the inevitable, and piss it off in the process."

When Twilight saw her eyes, she began to suspect what was wrong. They were haunted, unfocused, and overflowing with grief. She'd thought that what they'd felt when the kraken bellowed with rage was akin to what Rainbow had felt when she saw it, but if it was, what it had done to the pegasus was orders of magnitude worse.

Twilight reached out and brushed her friend's cheek. "Rainbow Dash..." Her horn glowed sloftly. "Sleep."

Her eyelids grew heavy, and she set her head upon the pillow. "M'kay," she mumbled, as her tense eyes relaxed and closed, and her mouth curled into a childlike smile.

Twilight straightened Rainbow's blanket and tucked her in. "She'll be fine in the morning," she said softly. "A few hours of happy dreams will sort her out." Looking around, she saw the others' weariness written on their faces. No one else would need magic to help them sleep. Abandoning their separate corner of the room, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle bedded down with their sisters, and Scootaloo between each pair. Spike curled up next to Twilight, while Fluttershy and Pinkie rearranged themselves so they were on each side of Rainbow Dash. Winona, Opal, Tank and Owloysius all found comfortable places within reach of their respective ponies.

Twilight barely had the presence of mind to grab a quill and paper to scribe a quick note to her mentor, and prodded Spike into sending it before he passed out completely.

It worked. We're safe.

Thank you.

Twilight

Twilight awoke to the sound of the emergency siren sounding the all-clear. Pulling her blanket up over her head to block out the intruding sunlight for a few more moments, a rich, heavenly aroma slinked up her nose and injected warm fuzzy feelings directly into her brain. She moaned softly, her snout lifting involuntarily to seek out the source.

"Mornin', sugarcube," a quiet drawl greeted her. "Coffee?"

"Mmmyeah..." Twilight slowly cracked her eyes open and saw Applejack carrying a saucer in her teeth, a steaming mug perched on top. She took a gentle hold of it with her magic and lowered it in front of her, taking a small sip. It was like drinking the morning. "What're you doing up already?" she whispered.

"Ah'm always up jus' before dawn. Comes with bein' a farmer, couldn't sleep in if Ah tried." She went back to the kitchen for her own cup and sat back down on her blanket next to Twilight. "An' I wanted to get a pot started before Spike got his claws on it, boy always brews it too hot." The baby dragon's ears twitched at his name, but he just wrapped his blanket tighter around himself in the way he does when he doesn't want to admit he's awake.

Applejack looked across their semicircle around the fireplace towards Rainbow Dash, her unruly white mane at once familiar and alien. "You sure she'll be alright?"

Twilight watched the pegasus sleep for a moment, her body limp as a rag doll. "Not a doubt in my mind." The events of the previous night had raised some peculiar questions, and she'd already begun to form possible answers, but further inquiry would have to wait.

Over the next half hour, the rest of her friends gradually dragged themselves into consciousness. They all tried to keep an eye on Rainbow Dash without looking like they were, with varying degrees of success. She resisted their gentle attempts to rouse her with the determination of a schoolfilly on a Saturday morning until Pinkie nudged a cup of Applejack's coffee and two pieces of cinnamon toast towards her nose. Rainbow reached out her hooves to lift the mug to her lips, and smiled dreamily. Her limp but wavy mane suddenly sproinging back to normal, Pinkie snuck out of Rainbow's field of view and silently pumped a hoof in the air, miming to the others that she'd gotten a smile.

Once Rarity has finished grooming herself, Rainbow Dash asked to borrow her mirror. The unicorn levitated it in front of her as Rainbow fiddled with her mane. "It's not a terrible look," she admitted, running her hooves over it, "I mean, it still feels healthy, and it's got the same body. Kinda makes me look like my Aunt Cirrus." She sighed dejectedly, turning to look at her matching cloud-white tail. "But it is completely un-me. I might need a hoof setting this right, if you don't mind, Rarity."

"Oh, not at all." Rarity stepped forward and examined Rainbow's mane with a critical eye and a glowing horn. "The follicles are unharmed, they'll grow back in their natural color. So if you'd like me to dye it for you, just the once should take care of it." A mischievous gleam appeared in her eye. "In fact, while I'm doing that, it wouldn't be but a trifle to, say, try a few different styles--"

"Yeah, that's not happening." Rainbow smiled up at her disappointed fashion-conscious friend. "No offense, I'm just happy with my usual look. Next fancy dress ball we go to, though, I'll let you do it up like last time."

"Hey Rainbow," Twilight called from the basement door, "can Fluttershy and I borrow you for a moment?"

Rainbow stood and stretched before cantering through the kitchen. "Sure thing." She followed Twilight down the stairs, marvelling at Fluttershy's improvised sleeping arrangements for the countless animals under her care. Many were nested all around and on top of Twilight's scientific instruments which dominated the room. A family of quails had even nested inside one of the electrode helmets. Twilight appeared to be trying very hard not to look at any of it. "So whaddya need?" She assumed that they needed an extra set of hooves to deal with some unruly critters, but they were all still asleep except for Angel, who seemed to have everything under control by himself. Instead, Twilight and Fluttershy just looked at her nervously.

"We wanted to talk to you away from the rest of the gang," Twilight replied. "About last night."

Rainbow looked away, her gut clenching at the memory. "Oh, yeah... I guess you would."

"I know it can't be easy for you," Fluttershy said, "but we both promise you, we won't breathe a word of it to anypony else."

Twilight nodded in agreement. "You can be completely honest with us, Rainbow. And whatever you can tell us might be really helpful in the long run, too."

Rainbow mulled it over for a second. They're trying to help, she told herself, and they're doing everything they can to let me keep my pride while they do it. Looking up at their worried faces, she knew there was more. But they need my help, too.

"Alright. What do you need to know?"

"Well, for starters," Twilight asked, "how do you feel now?"

Rainbow rolled her own feeling around in her mind for a moment. "Worried, but glad my friends are okay. Ticked off about my mane. And, um, a little hungry, still." She chuckled faintly. "Kind of a little embarrassed about losing it last night."

"You don't feel depressed or hopeless like you did before?" Rainbow shook her head. "What about when you try to remember what the kraken looked like?"

Rainbow tensed suddenly. "Do I... have to?"

Fluttershy stepped forward and rested a hoof on her shoulder. "If it's too much, we understand. But please try."

Rainbow took a deep breath and closed her eyes, pulling the image up from her memory. A wide cumulo-nimbus to the South, silvery-white in the moonlight, and the dark outline of a bloated body with clawed feet outlined in front of it. Its wings stretched far to each side, looking as of if they could enclose all of Ponyville. A frightening image... but nothing more.

"No... Nothing. I mean, it's kinda scary, but no, it's not freaking me out like it did when I saw it for real."

"I suspected as much," said Twilight, her tone detached. "It's not the appearance of the kraken, but the act of perceiving it with your own senses. Like the eyes of a cockatrice." She focused on the pegasus again. "One more thing: When you saw it... what did it feel like?"

Rainbow's mouth felt dry. The only words she knew for it, hopeless, worthless, pointless, none of them felt adequate. But the experience had brought an image to her mind, one she couldn't shake until Twilight had put her to sleep.

"You remember my first sonic rainboom?" Her two friends nodded, unsure where she was headed. "It was the most incredible thing in my life. The power I felt flowing through me, the energy. It wasn't just that I won the race, or pulled off an awesome stunt, or even got my cutie mark. I felt alive. Like for the first time in my life, I was seeing in color. And now I know that it wasn't just me; that rainboom led you all to your cutie marks, set all your lives on their course, and eventually brought us all together."

She lowered her eyes to the floor before continuing. "But what if it never happened? Suppose I never do the sonic rainboom, suppose I never set those events in motion, and none of us ever find our true talents or what makes us happy. I never find real joy in flying. Fluttershy never connects with the animals. Rarity never finds those gems. Applejack never comes back home to the farm. Pinkie never throws a party. And you... you blow your entrance exam, Spike stays stuck in an egg forever, you never meet Celestia and can't stop Nightmare Moon." She shuddered. "Imagine all that magic just erased from our lives, and all the joy and meaning it brought never happened... and you'll know what I felt when I saw the kraken." She looked up to see Twilight and Fluttershy holding back tears. "Does that tell you what you needed to know?"

Twilight nodded. "Yes, it does. I think this will help a great deal, actually..." She charged forward and hugged her tight. "Oh Rainbow, I'm so sorry you had to go through that!"

"Hey, It's cool. It's just a memory now. I'm all better."

Twilight stepped back as Fluttershy stood by Rainbow's side and wrapped a comforting wing around her. "What I find really interesting, though, is that the kraken seems to be putting a lot of effort into convincing us that it's unbeatable." The concern in her voice was shifting into confidence. "I'm not saying it isn't dangerous; just from its sheer size it could cause a great deal of damage, and it appears to be quite magically powerful as well. But this aura of despair all around it... It's like it's trying its hardest to rid us of the very idea of opposing it. Last night, even after it fled, you were convinced that we didn't stand a chance. You wouldn't listen to reason, like it was a foregone conclusion."

The wheels in Rainbow's brain ticked along and started to catch up. "Hey. You're right. It's trying to trick us into giving up without a fight!"

"It's like a threat display," Fluttershy added. "Animals only use one when they need to appear stronger than they really are."

"It was your mane that tipped me off," Twilight explained. "Despite being a common trope in horror fiction, it's physically impossible for a pony's mane to instantly turn white from fear alone. Magic had to be involved." She began to smile. "It's all smoke and mirrors, Rainbow. It wouldn't try this hard to convince us that we can't beat it unless it knows we can."

"What are we gonna do about its freaky mind-melting power, though? It'll be hard to fight if we can't even look at it."

"Based on what you've told me, and what I could sense of its magical signature last night, I'm pretty sure I can shield us from it." Twilight's smile spread into a grin. "You said last night that you wanted to kick this thing in the face. We're gonna figure out how to do just that."

"Alright! Who wants to give a giant flying monster a black eye?"

Rainbow Dash stood in the kitchen doorway, her eyes hungry for action and her usual devil-may-care smile back where it belonged. Fluttershy stood behind her looking surprisingly hopeful, next to Twilight and her "I have an awesome plan" grin. The others simply gawked at them; Rainbow's crushing despair and Fluttershy's paralyzing fear seemed like a fading dream. Scootaloo's eyes grew wide as her grin threatened to bisect her skull, her shaken faith in her hero instantly restored. "I KNEW you'd shake off the mind-mojo!"

"To be fair, Twi deserves some credit there," said Rainbow. "I think the dreams from her sleep spell helped keep it from really taking root." The unicorn looked slightly embarrassed by the praise, but didn't object.

"So what's the plan?" asked Spike.

"Well, for starters," Twilight said, stepping forward, "I thought we'd make our way to Canterlot, grab the Elements of Harmony, and see what they can do to the kraken."

"Ah do like the sound o' that," added Applejack, "but if even lookin' at the thing chills us to the bone like it did RD, how in the hay are we gonna take th' fight to it?"

"One of my books on ancient equi-draconic conflicts has a spell to resist dragonfear. A grown dragon is legitimately frightening, but some older ones are able to project an aura of magical fear than affects any who see them; even experienced warriors would be rendered helpless without magical protection, which this spell provided. The kraken clearly has a similar aura, except instead of fear, it causes despair. I can modify the dragonfear ward to protect us; it might not be one hundred percent effective, but if we stick together and remind each other that it's using magic against us, that it's a trick to keep us from standing up to it, I'm confident we can push through whatever gets past the spell."

"What did I tell you, ladies?" Spike pointed gun-fingers at his adoptive big sister. "Who's awesome? You're awesome. Urp!" His glowing praise was interrupted by a fiery belch as another scroll arrived. Twilight snatched it from the air and read it aloud.

My Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle,

Twilight found the return of her customary greeting immensely comforting, and her writing was back to its former precision.

Our most recent reports indicate that the kraken has set down somewhere in the Everfree Forest, many miles from Ponyville to my great relief. Storm clouds have appeared all around its last known location, which it seems to have summoned. There are some deep caves in that area where it may be seeking shelter for the day. Unfortunately, it does not appear to be unduly harmed or disadvantaged by the sun, merely displeased with it; I am trying not to take the insult too personally, but of greater importance is that sunlight does not appear to be a weakness we can exploit. So far, our only proven defense against the kraken is the symbol, known as the elder seal, which I asked you to draw yesterday, and we are as mystified by the fact that it works as you undoubtedly were. It almost seems to be afraid of it, as much as you are of snakes. Our research continues, but has yet to produce anything concrete.

As there is nothing to prevent the kraken from moving about by day, I am issuing a recommendation throughout Equestria that everypony remain in whatever city or settlement they are in, if it is protected by the seal, or to make their way as best they can to the closest one that is. I also realize that it would be pointless to expect you and your friends to adhere to this request, so I have instructed the palace guard to prepare for your arrival should you have the impertinence to defy me.

Your Mentor,

Princess Celestia

There wasn't a great deal to go on, but clearly the princess still held hope for victory. Seeing her sense of humor return was more reassuring to Twilight than any of the information provided. She looked up from the letter to see the others watching her expectantly.

"Okay, here's the plan. Everypony head home, take care of anything you'd need to do before going out of town for a while, and pack any supplies you think you'll need. We'd be too vulnerable and too easy to find on a train or in the balloon, so we'll make our way to Canterlot on foot. If we leave by noon and keep up a steady pace, we can make it there by nightfall. We'll meet up with the princess, compare notes, and failing any better ideas, find the kraken and hit it with the Elements. Bring something for cold weather just in case we have to go cross-country looking for it. Applejack, would you mind handling our provisions?"

"As if ya even had t' ask."

"Excellent. And... Check on your farm, too. I don't know if apple trees can be affected by magical despair, but I'd like to know if they're okay."

"Ah been worryin' 'bout that mahself, Twi. But Ah'm sure it's nothin' we can't spring back from."

"I hope so. Fluttershy, do you need to make any arrangements for your animals? You can keep using my basement until this is over."

"It's fine. Angel knows what to do, he's taken care of things when I've been away before. And if he has any trouble he knows to find the vet."

"Can he really do all that?" Rainbow Dash asked, and Fluttershy nodded proudly. "That is one capable rabbit, 'Shy."

"Rarity, I expect you'll want to check on your shop," Twilight continued. "I'm sure it's fine, but take your time if you need to. It's your livelihood, after all; no less important than AJ's farm." Rarity smiled and nodded graciously.

"Rainbow, do you know who to put in charge of the weather while we're away?"

"Cloud Kicker's sorta my unofficial second in command already, she can hold down the fort."

"Good. Pinkie, will the Cakes be able to manage for a few days without you?"

"They'll be okay, but I should see if there's anything they need me to do before I go anywhere."

"Alright. Spike, do you mind pet-sitting? I'm sure Angel can lend a paw if they get unruly."

"I'd rather be going with you guys, but yeah."

"Sorry, Spike, but you're our fastest line of communication with the princess. We'll be seeing her personally; you need to stay here so she can stay in touch with the town." Not to mention the fact that you're my baby brother and I'm trying to protect you, not carry you into danger. "I'll write as soon as we meet with her."

Twilight looked around the room, rechecking her mental checklist. "Okay, I think that covers everything. Everypony, try to be back by noon, but if something important is holding you up, just let us know. If you need help, just ask; the better we coordinate, the faster we can get on the road."

"Wait!" shouted Sweetie Belle. "You didn't tell us what we can do!"

"What you can do," Rarity told her sternly, "is go back home and stay safe."

"But we wanna help!" Apple Bloom wailed.

Applejack turned a steely gaze at her sister. "You can help by listenin' to yer elders an' not makin' us worry 'bout ya while we're out savin' the dang world."

"Oh, come on!" yelled Scootaloo. "We're not asking to go with you, we'll stay right here in town, where we're protected. We just wanna do something to contribute! We could do..." Her eyes searched the room for anything to give her an idea, but all she saw were books. "Research!"

"Research?" Sweetie Belle deadpanned. "That's the best you could do?"

"I didn't hear you coming up with anything better."

"Actually," Spike interjected, "that's not a completely terrible idea."

"How do you mean?" Twilight asked him.

"Well, you remember what I said about Clopcraft's writing? The fiction section actually has a good number of his collected works. We could try to sift through his stories and look for details that jump out, I could try to cross-reference anything that sounds promising, and send anything we come up with to the princess." He leaned close and whispered. "Odds aren't great that they'll find anything, but it'll keep them in one place and out of trouble, and they'll feel like they're contributing. 'Sides, I could use the help cleaning up after Winona."

"I'm not sure about this," said Rarity. "I don't like the idea of Sweetie Belle reading those ghastly stories at her age."

"I'm not as delicate as you think, Rare," the younger unicorn objected, "and how could a story be any scarier than what happened last night?"

Twilight was skeptical, but the pleading eyes of the three fillies broke her. "Alright, fine." They started to inhale for a great cheer. "If you get permission from your families and I can find a suitable adult to supervise you." They deflated and put the cheer on hold until they had confirmation.

Rarity left to escort Sweetie Belle home and ask their parents if they were okay with the plan, and Rainbow Dash did the same for Scootaloo. Apple Bloom wore down the last of her sister's resistance with an angelic smile as they left to check on the farm, and Pinkie bounced out to see what she could do for the Cakes. That left Twilight and Fluttershy as the only adults in the library.

"So who do you think would be willing to watch the girls while we're gone?" Twilight asked, starting to run down a mental list of adults she knew got along with them. "We could ask-- EEP!" She suddenly went rigid.

Fluttershy stepped cautiously towards her. "What's wrong?"

"Z-z-z-z-ZECORA! I completely forgot about Zecora! She was out there in the forest the whole night, way outside the protection of the seal!" She started to prance nervously as if the floor was burning hot. "Oh jeez oh jeez oh jeez, I'm the worst friend ever!"

"I'm sure she's okay," the pegasus said, trying to reassure her. "The kraken never landed anywhere near here. And she had to realize something was going on, if she thought she needed help she would've come to us. And you're not the worst friend ever, you just had a lot to worry about already."

"What if she didn't think we could help her?"

"I'll go check on her. I'm the one who has the least to do before we leave. You focus on finding someone to watch the girls. Twilight, she's fine, I'm sure of it."

The unicorn took a deep breath and smiled cautiously. "Okay." I can't believe she's the one reassuring me for once. "Spike, keep an eye on the place, I've got a mayor to brief and a crusader-sitter to find."

Cheerilee would have been perfectly willing to continue normal classes today, but after the previous night's harrowing experience the parents of Ponyville had collectively decided to keep their children home and start the weekend a day early. She couldn't really blame them, had she foals of her own, she wouldn't want to let them out of her sight right now, either. Taking advantage of her unexpected day off, she decided to curl up on the couch with some hot cocoa and a gripping mystery novel. The dastardly deed had just been discovered when someone knocked on her door. Marking her place, she got up to answer it.

"Hi, Cheerilee. Got a minute?"

"Sure, Twilight. Come on in." She stepped to the side to let the unicorn into her home. "I want to thank you for setting up the defense for the town."

"It was Celestia's idea, really. I just implemented it. But I wanted to ask you about something else. You see, my friends and I are going out of town, probably not for long, but we can't really say for sure. And Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are dead-set on finding a way to help us." She briefly explained Spike's idea, framing it primarily as a way to keep them out of trouble.

"Well, I don't really have any other plans, and they do tend to listen to me. Well, slightly more than half the time, anyway... Oh, what the heck. I'll do it. It actually sounds kinda fun."

"Oh, thank you! They'll be so relieved to hear that I found someone."

Twilight returned to the library to find the three fillies had already returned, with Rainbow Dash and Spike keeping them company. "Good news, girls! I found someone to supervise you while we're out of town."

The crusaders leapt to their feet and sprinted for the door, eager to greet--

"Miss Cheerilee?" they said in baffled unison.

"Now girls, be nice. You like Miss Cheerilee, don't you?"

"Well, yeah, she's really nice, and a great teacher..." Sweetie Belle started.

Scootaloo finished her thought. "...But she's a teacher. Is she gonna make us do school work and stuff instead of helping you guys?"

Cheerilee laughed brightly. "Now now, we're not in school. I'm just here to supervise, not teach. Think of me as more of a sitter. If you need any assistance with your research, I'll be more than happy to help, but I won't make you do any school work. And since I'm not acting as your teacher right now, you can just call me Cheerilee."

Apple Bloom looked hopefully towards Twilight. "Does that take care of everythin', then? We all got permission, an' you found someone to watch us... So we can help?"

Twilight nodded. "That's right. Everything's good to go."

The three fillies rushed together to release the cheer they'd been holding in reserve.

"CUTIE MARK CRUSADER SCHOLARS OF FORBIDDEN LORE!"

Cheerilee seemed to age five years as the reality of what she'd agreed to began to sink in.

"So Zecora's fine?"

"Um, as far as I could tell, yes. She had her own ways of defending herself, I guess. There was some weird powder spread out around her hut, and a sign on her door saying she was sleeping, not dead." Fluttershy shuddered, remembering the sight through the window of the eerily still zebra on her cot. "Without that, I would have thought she was." In her forehooves, she held out a pouch with a small scroll tied to its drawstring. "She left this for you."

Twilight untied the scroll and raised it to her eyes. On the outside, it said simply "For Twilight".

Take this powder of Ibn-Gazelle
With my hope that it will serve you well
But the hope I hold as greater still
Is rather that it never will

Twilight smiled and placed the pouch in her saddlebag. She had no idea what "powder of Ibn-Gazelle" was, but she could look it up later; clearly the zebra shaman thought it was important, perhaps even what she'd used to protect her hut. Thank you, Zecora. You're a better friend than I was.

Her reverie was broken by Spike handing her a book, a thick paperback titled A Clopcraftian Concordance. "I thought you might find this handy. Taking all of Clopcraft's stories with you would be too much weight, but this is kind of a condensed reference guide, you know, for the obsessive fan. Nearly everything he ever wrote about, along with some stuff by his friends and imitators, all alphabetized and cross-referenced, with complete citations for all sources. The kraken's in there, too, but Clopcraft called it 'the star-spawn' in his story. Obviously a lot of it is pure fiction, but who knows, maybe it'll... help... a little..." He gave up on his brave front and threw his arms around her, sniffling. "Take care of yourself, will you, Twi? I know this isn't the first ancient evil you've faced, heck, you're two for two on those, but... Just be careful, okay?"

Twilight floated the book into her bag and returned his embrace. "I will, Spike. I promise."

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle hugged their sisters tightly, nearly having to be peeled off of them by Cheerilee. Scootaloo gave her hero a sharp salute, and Rainbow Dash returned it with military precision. Big Macintosh had come to see them off as well, Ditzy and Dinky in tow, as well as Rarity's parents, Cloud Kicker, and the Cakes. Everyone said their worried goodbyes, but no one argued that they shouldn't go.

"I know telling you all not to worry would be pointless," Twilight said to the small group of family, friends and well-wishers assembled outside the library, "but you can count on us. I'll bring them all back in one piece, you'll see." With a final wave from everyone, the six mares started down the road towards Canterlot.

Pinkie stepped up besides Twilight and the two fell slightly behind. "You could've Pinkie Pie Sworn," she said softly. "You didn't."

Twilight sighed. "I know. I felt bad just making that promise to Spike. But I'm not going to make a Pinkie Pie Swear I don't know for sure I can keep."

Pinkie nodded somberly. "You also said that you'd bring us back in one piece. You didn't say anything about yourself."

"No. I guess I didn't." Twilight looked down the road ahead of them. "Pinkie, if you could know for certain who your combo was about, who was going to get hurt... would you want to?"

Pinkie thought for a while. "No... I don't think I would. It's bad enough knowing what I already do."

"Well, if your Pinkie Sense does tell you anything more, let me know, okay? I don't want to worry the rest of the gang, but even if we can't keep it from happening at all, maybe we can at least be better prepared when it does. Forewarned is forearmed, you know."

Pinkie grinned. "But Twilight, we don't have forearms."

Twilight failed to contain her laughter, instead turning into a nerdy gigglesnort. "How long have you been holding onto that one, Pinkie?"

"About a week."

"What're you two dweebs snickering about back here?" Rainbow Dash asked as she buzzed overhead.

The two earthbound ponies shared a look. "Oh, Pinkie's just trying to pun me to death."

"Glad I missed it, then. Anyway, weren't you the one telling us to keep up the pace so we can make Canterlot by nightfall? Hop to it, soldier!"

Pinkie bounced her way up to the pack. "But if we hopped the whole way, wouldn't that be hard on our knees?"

The other ponies groaned, and retorts built on top of each other until the banter reached full swing. The six friends stepped up their trot to a canter, a fact that inspired Pinkie to start an extemperaneous composition she called "Cantering to Canterlot". Twilight admired her ability to switch back to jokes and songs after discussing such a somber topic only a minute or two earlier.

That's our pink little morale officer, she thought to herself as Pinkie started to improvise dance moves for the song. The kraken doesn't stand a chance.

Zecora's Interlude - A side vignette by Lurks-no-More

Chapter 4: Shatter'd and Sunder'd

Celestia looked out over the ramparts of Canterlot Castle towards the conjured thunderhead hovering over the kraken's daytime shelter. Had anypony been around to see her, they would have thought her confident, determined, even serene. An unassailable rock of resolve behind which all of Equestria could find shelter.

Luna knew her too well to be fooled.

She approached her older sister slowly, cautiously, but let each step ring clearly against the stone so as not to accidentally surprise her. Celestia's only reaction was a subtle shift in stance, which Luna recognized as her changing gears from regent and defender to big sister. She stepped to her side, and waited for her elder to speak first.

After a quiet minute, she finally did. "I received another letter from Twilight. They're on their way, trying to make it here by dusk."

"Did you even try to dissuade her?"

"A good commander must recognize hopeless battles and allocate resources elsewhere."

Luna shot her an incredulous glare. "And what can the Elements of Harmony do against a foe their bearers cannot lay eyes upon? Do they know what trauma even of glimpse of this beast will inflict?"

"They do. Rainbow Dash, apparently, got quite an eyeful."

"Stars above! The poor girl..."

"She's fine, Luna. She was badly affected, but a good night's sleep and a spell to prevent nightmares was all she needed. Twilight even thinks she can protect them with a modified dragonfear ward."

Luna blinked for a few moments, thinking. "That... might actually work." She closed her eyes briefly, examining the more brute-force defense, a powerful and indiscriminate psychic shield, both sisters kept ready. Twilight's approach seemed far more elegant and efficient; she began to modify her shield in the same manner, but kept the general protection running on a trickle of power that could, if needed, be boosted with a moment's thought. The energy and concentration freed by the change was a welcome relief. Opening her eyes to look at her sister with her magical senses still active, she saw that's she'd already done the same.

Celestia smiled at her. "They're more capable than you realize, sister."

Luna's eyes drifted downward as she remembered how she first met the bearers of the Elements. "I suppose I should know most of all."

Celestia noticed her sister beginning to turn maudlin, and changed the subject. "How's the research going?"

"It... continues apace."

"Meaning you've found nothing else."

"At all." She sighed. "I wish I could discern the truth behind the claims that it would rise when 'the stars are right', but no alignments or bodies are ever mentioned with any specificity. I fear that the kraken's myths have merely been contaminated with my own."

"Nothing is without a weakness, Luna. We will learn the kraken's."

"And what of your plan? Do you still intend to endanger Canterlot for the sake of your conscience?"

Celestia's gaze turned hard. "To not defend ourselves would be foolish, but to start an unnecessary war would be more so. It is no mere animal, sister; it thinks, it plans, it works its own brand of magic. It did not merely fly directly towards Fillydelphia and on to Ponyville, it scouted around them first. It showed caution, cunning. It had to have noticed the seals protecting them from some distance, and yet approached anyway to test their effectiveness empirically." Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes briefly; they were softer again when they opened. "If it reasons, it can be reasoned with. I will not strike the first blow."

"I just fear what damage even one blow from that fiend can do."

"With me in its way? None."

"None to Canterlot, perhaps."

Celestia stretched out a wing to wrap around her sister. "Don't worry about me. In a way... I've been itching for something like this."

"What? Why?"

"It's been over a century since I last personally faced a foe that was a legitimate threat. It's a chance to flex muscles I never use, muscles I've trained myself not to use, much as I trained Twilight. It's perverse, I know, but a thrilling prospect nonetheless. For once, I won't have to hold back, not even a little."

"And if those disused muscles are not enough?"

"Then the Elements will smack it in the snout like a naughty puppy. I just hope they don't send it to the moon, imagine what it would do to the place!"

For the first time since learning of the threat, the sisters shared a genuine laugh.

"So Twi, I've been wondering something." Rainbow Dash leaned back against an oak tree and took a bite from an apple, swallowing before she continued. "Why is a flying creature that resembles a dragon more than anything else named after a mythical sea monster?"

Twilight, laying on her stomach atop the picnic blanket they'd laid out for an early supper, looked up from her book. "Well, Clopcraft's stories described it as being imprisoned under the sea. Supposedly it had a lair on a rocky island in the ocean, but when the stars were no longer 'right', whatever that means, the island sunk and it was trapped inside. A character in one story speculated that, whatever was wrong about the stars, it needed to take shelter from it in the sea, even suggesting that the star-spawn, as he called it, was the inspiration for legends of the kraken."

"So, what, now the stars are right again, and it's not stuck underwater anymore?"

"That's what it sounds like."

Rainbow thought for a bit more as she finished the apple. "What the hay kinda name is 'star-spawn', anyway? Sounds like an unflattering nickname for some celebrity's bratty little foal, if you ask me." Pinkie and Applejack laughed at that, and even Rarity hid a demure chuckle behind a hoof. Fluttershy seemed to think it wasn't nice to make fun of children, even hypothetical ones, but didn't say anything.

"Its race is said to travel freely from star to star and whatever other worlds are out there. They don't even need ships, they just do it by force of will."

"Kinda like in the gal in A Prince of Ares?"

Twilight looked at Rainbow Dash blankly. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Wow. I never thought I'd say this, but... Twilight, you need to read more."

Rainbow continued to regale Twilight with the adventures of Jane Teamster on the Red Planet, even as they packed up and continued down the road. They all noticed the sun getting low in the sky and the Eastern horizon beginning to turn red, and increased their pace without comment.

The city gates were in their sight as the sun finally set, the stars beginning to appear in the sky. Without warning or preamble, all six ponies felt the kraken's evil chill in the air as it emerged from its shelter and took flight under the thick storm clouds.

"Alright girls," Twilight said, "gather around." She lifted a notepad from her saddlebags, reviewing the formula for her modified dragonfear ward as her horn began to glow. After several seconds, the light flared and vanished, and the six of them felt the spell settle into them like a warm blanket around their minds. Immediately, the chill vanished.

Rainbow Dash spread her wings, trying to feel for it. "Huh. Well that's a good sign." She turned her eyes towards the wall between them and the city. "Home stretch, girls. Let's pick up the pace."

They sped up to a full gallop, attention focused on their goal. After several minutes, Twilight suddenly felt a threatening presence off to her right, but kept her eyes locked forward.

Fluttershy hadn't. "Oh... oh my goodness." The only time Twilight had heard her voice quiver like that was when she thought the princess' pet bird had died.

Twilight and the others reflexively looked, and saw in the distance that the kraken had emerged from the clouds, it's misshapen body hanging from impossibly large wings carrying it towards their own destination. Hopelessness fell upon her like a crushing weight, but she tore her eyes away and it passed. "Don't look! Just keep your eyes forward!"

"Twi, Ah don't..." Applejack struggled to string her words together. "Ah'm not sure that spell a yours is doin' a whole lot."

"It is," Rainbow assured her. "Even with a better view, this isn't even a tenth as bad as it was last night."

"Yer kiddin'." Applejack stared at the pegasus in horror, but Rainbow kept her gaze locked on the the city ahead.

As they crossed the last low hill in the road, they sprinted down the slope and across the plain. A tremendous impact shook the ground, and Twilight risked a furtive glance East. Fighting through the false despair that made it through her spell, she saw the kraken, as large as an Ursa Major, clinging to the mountain above Canterlot Castle with its enormous claws. Two points of light, one bright gold and the other soft blue, rose slowly in the air in front of it. The dozens of tentacles that dominated its face writhed and flexed, producing a series of foul noises that Twilight supposed was its own language.

"Twilight! Over here!"

Forcing her gaze forward, she saw a grey earth pony in golden armor. He stood near a sally port leading into a stone guard tower beside the main gate of the city, shielding his own eyes from the sight of the monster atop the mountain. Twilight veered slightly to the right, her friends following her lead. Lungs, legs and wings burning from the strain, they tore across the plain and through the door, breathing deeply in relief as it slammed shut behind them.

"Steely! Thank you..." Twilight struggled for breath after the hard sprint. "... for getting the... door for us."

"HRH told us to expect you." Many of the guards that Twilight had known were comfortable shifting into military slang and jargon around her, such as "HRH" for "Her Royal Highness", as she'd picked most of it up while living in the palace.

"Girls, I'd like to introduce you to Sergeant Danforth Steel-Eye. Spike and I know him from when we lived in Canterlot."

The guard gave them a casual salute. "Everypony calls me Steely Dan. Or just Steely. Pleasure to meet y'all." He turned back to Twilight, his tone more serious. "I'm to escort all of you to the armory. Celestia's already taken the Elements from the vault and stored them there for you to retrieve, but she gave clear instructions that--"

He was interrupted by a crack of thunder that stung their ears even through the stone walls.

"--that you're not to use them until the kraken demonstrates clear and unambiguous hostile intent in case peaceful negotiations are possible, but it sounds like that ship just sailed. Heads up, hooves forward!" He led them out of the tower, down the alley behind the city wall, and past security checkpoints that waved them through with barely a glance, until they entered a larger tower at the edge of the palace. Steely approached a window not unlike that of a bank teller with a metal grate in place of the glass, and had barely started his formal requisition from the unicorn behind it when she lifted an ornate wooden box to the opening on the counter and slid it through.

As Steely took a pen in his mouth and signed a form on a clipboard, Twilight took hold of the box with her own magic and opened it in the center of the group. "Okay. necklace, necklace, necklace, necklace, necklace, aaand big crown thingy!" Her friends shared a chuckle at the memory.

The Elements of Harmony at last in the possession of their bearers, Steely led them through the tower and finally to another sally port. The sounds of magical battle rang out overhead.

"You know, Twilight," Steely began, a tone of regret in his voice, "you shouldn't have to do this. We've been talking about it all day, the other guards, I mean. The six of you, you're not soldiers. You didn't sign up for this. You've done plenty of good with the Elements, but we all agree, it's not fair that you have to, just because they chose you for the job."

Twilight looked around at her friends, and saw the same look in all their eyes: He doesn't get it. "You're wrong, Steely. We did sign up for this. The Elements chose us for the job because they knew we were willing to do it."

Sergeant Danforth Steel-Eye stared at them for a moment, his silver eyes wide, before saluting again. Not the casual salute of a career soldier greeting a friend, but the crisp, professional salute one gives to a superior officer. As Twilight returned it, he said to them, "May the stars guide you home."

Pinkie Pie smiled softly at the sergeant. "And may the earth carry you there."

Steely's demeanor softened, touched that the old-fashioned Manenite farewell was not only recognized, but returned. Turning to hide his misty eyes from the girls -- "Crying on duty is against regulations," he'd occasionally joked -- he opened the door for them, and watched as the six bravest ponies he'd ever met charged through it to join the princesses in their fight.

As they ran out onto the grass, the sight that greeted them was no less than a battle of titans.

The kraken dominated the scene, of course. It had clambered down the mountain and now fought the princesses in the foothills. Unlike an adult dragon, it stood and walked on its hind legs despite its immense bulk. Indeed, now that they had a good view of it, they could see that its form could only be called "draconic" because no other word fit any better. It bore only the most passing resemblance to one, with legs, arms, claws, wings and a head, but no finer details matched. Even its limbs moved strangely, as if it was not jointed like any known animal. Its wings seems much smaller folded against its back, and its body seemed even more bloated and flabby than before. Parts of it, like the tentacles of its face or the digits of its claws, seemed almost translucent when seen clearly, as if its skin were clear and its flesh composed of murky water.

The only thing familiar about the sight was the crushing despair that came with it. This time, they could not turn away; they had to be able to look at it in order to strike it with the Elements. Twilight found herself imagining a life without her friends, a life spent in dreary solitude without even magic or an academic career to motivate her. Her horn felt numb, like when she was a foal and had not yet developed her awareness of magic.

With the help of her mental shield and the support of her dearest friends, she drove the thought away. "Remember, girls, it's a trick. It's not real."

The others groaned with the effort of resisting the psychic assault, but with a few moments' reassurance, they pulled through. "Hell's bells," Applejack swore, "Ah really went weak in th' knees fer a minute there."

"I know what you mean," said Rainbow. "For a moment my wings felt like they just couldn't hold my weight anymore." The others shared looks and nods indicating that they'd all felt something similar.

As they began to shake off the effects, they took in more of the scene. Far above, Luna shepherded a storm cloud of her own, keeping it out of the reach of the kraken while Celestia called called down bolts of lightning from it. These seemed to hurt the monster, searing and tearing its flesh, but whatever wounds it suffered were healed with unnatural haste. The kraken seemed to grow frustrated with the assault, and with surprising speed unfurled a wing and swatted the cloud from the sky, dispersing it and forcing Luna to fall back.

As a massive claw swung down towards Celestia, she disappeared in a flash of light, teleporting to her sister's side. The kraken's momentum carried it forward even after it noticed her escape, and the ground shook with the impact. As it struggled to rise, the sisters combined their magic, and a lance of golden light sprung from the fading red light in the West, reflected off the bright half of the moon, and pierced the kraken through its back. The beam, its energy mostly spent, blasted out from its abdomen and seared the ground before vanishing.

The six mares took a moment to cheer the sisters on as the kraken staggered forward, struggling to contain the gelatinous tissue spilling freely from the wound. It was gravely hurt, but not slain, and the gaping hole already began to close.

"They've got it on the ropes!" Twilight shouted. "Let's finish the job!"

The gems of the Elements pulsed with light, and their bearers felt the kraken's aura of despair vanish as the power of Harmony enveloped and shielded them. A band of colored light snaked out from each one, braiding together into a bright and beautiful rainbow. With a surge of power, the light of the combined Elements launched into the darkening sky.

Twilight struggled to see as her eyes shone like searchlights, but with her magical senses as much as her physical ones, she noticed Princess Celestia, her mentor and friend, streaking through the air towards them. She was shouting something, but over the roaring blood in her ears and the sickening noises made by the struggling kraken, Twilight couldn't make it out. She thought at first that the princess was cheering them on as they had for her and Luna, but something didn't seem right. She thought she could hear her own name, but there was something else.

As she came closer, Twilight could see the fear in her eyes. The rainbow began to descend towards the kraken, and Celestia's Royal Canterlot Voice rang out through the hills.

"TWILIGHT! RUN!"

Before she could react, the rainbow of Harmony seemed to crash into an invisible wall surrounding the kraken. It strained to pierce it, skittering across in search of a weakness, but found none. The individual colors began to separate, peeling apart and twisting away from one another, and the rainbow frayed along its length, up from the kraken, across the apex, and back down to the Elements themselves. Like flipping a switch, the light from each gem was suddenly gone.

Its wound almost fully healed, the kraken stood again and, with one enormous claw, swatted the distracted princess from the sky.

Celestia tumbled through the air like a rag doll. The six friends watched, expecting her to open her wings at any moment and control her descent, but she never did. Luna shot towards her like a rocket, and with a sparkling blue aura took hold of her sister and slowed her fall.

Steadying its footing, the kraken strode towards the group that has just attacked it. Its gait was slow and lumbering, yet each earthshaking step covered a great distance. With the Elements shut down, its aura bore down on their minds again, freezing them in place like frightened rabbits below a hawk. Twilight tried to call up their power again, just to bolster their mental defense, but their response was sluggish.

The horrible words of its language assaulted their ears, like the incoherent babbling of a drowning madpony, and the kraken abruptly froze in its tracks. Twilight looked up and saw Luna hovering a short distance above and in front of them, staring the beast down. The words rang out again, echoing like thunder, and she realized it was the moon princess speaking, challenging the kraken in its own tongue.

As the six mares again found the use of their legs, Luna turned her head towards them. Without words, she pointed a hoof back towards the door they'd emerged from, the length of a football field away, her eyes desperate. A trickle of blood flowed from the corner of her mouth, and Twilight thought she saw a spray of dark drops as she turned and spoke to the kraken once more.

As the beast bellowed with rage, its tentacles flailing like a nest of serpents, the bearers of the Elements turned and ran. Steely opened the door for them again, shutting and barring it behind them. The tower shook with a great impact, dust falling from the ceiling, and a siren blared through the stone structure, signalling the guards to evacuate. Steely urged them along, guiding them towards the exit into the city.

They and the other guards poured out onto the street, hopping over fallen blocks of stone. Another nearly came down on top of Steely, but Twilight caught it with her magic and brushed it aside safely. Once they were clear, they turned and saw the pulverized ramparts of the tower and the massive cracks throughout its structure.

Behind it, they saw the kraken, the wall barely concealing its waist even from their low angle, pointing an outstretched talon towards Luna. Speaking more of its horrid language, it curled the digits inward as if clutching an invisible ball, and a ripple in the air like the heat from a paved road in summer shot forth. Luna blocked the kraken's spell, a shell of bright blue magic appearing around her, but it distracted her and forced her back.

From the ground before the monster's feet, its source obscured by the wall, a light like that of the dawn revealed its grotesqueness as never before. Twilight could finally see its eyes, black and uncaring, like the darkness between the stars. As those cold eyes focused on the source of the light, it raised one claw and brought it down like a hammer. The cracks in the tower widened, yet more stones fell, and the glorious, golden light vanished like a candle in a gust of wind.

Twilight stared dumbly at the creature as it rose to face Luna once more, unable to comprehend, or perhaps accept, what she had just seen. Only the voice of Sergeant Steel-Eye, bellowing like a drill instructor, cut through the fog.

"You have your orders, soldiers! RUN!"

On instinct alone, because no higher level of thought was available to her, she obeyed, her friends following behind.

After several blocks, their hard sprint slowed to a trot, and eventually the six of them stopped in their tracks, unsure where to go. Twilight's panicked eyes darted around, searching for any sign of hope.

"Twilight," Fluttershy said timidly, "Don't worry. I'm sure the princess isn't--"

"DON'T. Just... don't say it. Don't even think it. If I hear that word, I'll crack, I know it."

The sounds of the battle outside the city echoed through the streets. Rainbow Dash started to fly up to get a better view, but quickly decided against it. "So, what now? Any ideas?"

Twilight forced her breathing back to regularity, and scanned their surroundings. She'd never seen the streets of Canterlot this empty, even at night. A few lights shone out of windows, but the only ponies outside where them. She saw metal bars crossing from rooftop to rooftop, glowing bright white; the streets here were too tight and chaotic for the elder seal to fit, so it had been constructed above them instead. A variety of locked and barred storefronts surrounded them, and a poster at a nearby bus stop advertised an act at the theatre...

"I've got one! This way!" Without waiting, she bolted down the street, leaving her baffled friends to catch up.

After countless blocks and several twists and turns, they found themselves in front of the Royal Canterlot Theatre. Twilight grinned with satisfaction as the others read the marquee and balked.

Applejack snorted. "Oh you have got to be buckin' kidding me."

"Seriously?" Rainbow Dash sneered. "I mean... Seriously?"

"I don't mean to be harsh, dear," Rarity said, "but I wonder if your judgment is in full form at the moment. After all, her cutie mark is a wand."

"Rarity! That is just completely unfair."

Rainbow Dash raised a hoof. "Uh, someone mind filling in the slow kids in the class?"

Twilight's voice was hard as she explained. "Magicians of other races typically need some kind of focus item to use their magic. Griffons, for example, usually use staves or wands. But the only ponies with the potential for magic don't need any kind of tool; we have one right on our heads, with a direct nerve connection to the brain. The only ponies who ever use wands are stage magicians, performers who pretend to have magical powers as part of their act. I believe what Rarity was trying to imply is that this particular pony is a fraud."

Rarity gave her fellow unicorn a stern look through narrowed eyes. "I implied nothing of the sort. I thought I was being quite clear."

Thunder roared through the sky from the continuing struggle outside the city.

"Look, we don't have time for this!" Twilight said, exasperated. "Will you just trust me here? I have a plan, and we need her for it."

"Ya mind tellin' us what exactly this plan is, then?" asked Applejack.

"You can listen when I explain it to her. Come on!" Twilight's horn glowed, and the locked door of the theatre buckled and burst open. She led her friends through the lobby and down the hall to the dressing rooms, and through the crack under the door of the last one, they saw a dim light. Twilight stepped forward and knocked tentatively.

The pony inside yelped in surprise. After a few moments, the door swung open, revealing a bright blue unicorn with a pale, silvery-blue mane. Her violet eyes boggled at the six mares, still wearing the Elements of Harmony, before furrowing her brow in disbelief.

"What could you insufferable hecklers possibly want with The Great and Powerful Trixie at a time like this?"

Chapter 5: Death Be Not Proud

"We need your help."

Trixie stared incredulously at Twilight for several seconds before answering. "Those have got to be the four words I least expected to ever hear from you. 'I am a pumpkin' would have been less of a surprise."

Twilight took in the sight of the unicorn she hadn't seen in over a year. She looks good... WELL. She looks well. "Um. Can I come in?"

Trixie rolled her eyes. "I suppose," she said as she stepped out of the way. Twilight entered her dressing room, her friends barely a step behind her.

"Now, could you please explain to me how exactly I'm supposed to be able to help a unicorn who utterly showed me up when we first met, and who now has the Element of Magic perched atop her head?"

"Yes, please, Twilight," said Rarity, her tone cattier than an animal shelter. "Do tell us."

Twilight kept her tone as level as she could manage. "Rarity. Knock it off. I know you don't like her, but she has skills we need."

"An' how exactly are skills at showboatin' and takin' advantage o' groupies supposed to help us out here?" asked Applejack.

"I'm trying to get to that if you'd all just pipe down for a minute--"

"Heck with that," said Rainbow Dash, "how about good old-fashioned plagiarism?" Hovering by a hat rack holding Trixie's trademark star-covered hat and cloak, she jabbed a hoof towards a framed poster on the wall. The style was several years old, around when Twilight and her friends would have been just fillies, and showed a sophisticated unicorn mare wearing an identical outfit. "I knew your look was familiar. You stole your whole act from The Mysterious Midnight!"

"YOU SHUT YOUR GOD-DAMNED MOUTH, YOU LITTLE BITCH!"

Trixie's eyes were filled with rage. Twilight had in the past caught glimpses of Fluttershy's infamous Stare; her eyes contained a fury that could make gods hesitate, but behind it all was compassion, even for the recipient. The fire that burned in those eyes was, ultimately, one of love. Trixie's eyes held a similar fury, but driven by nothing but cold, murderous hate.

Rainbow Dash flinched briefly, but her bravado got the better of her. "Oh yeah? Why don't you make me!"

As Rainbow came closer and Trixie's horn began to glow, Twilight rushed between them and pushed them apart with her forelegs. "Both of you, STOP IT!"

Trixie released the energy she'd been gathering, but still kept her hate-filled eyes locked on the pegasus. Rainbow fluttered back a pace, opening her mouth to speak again before Twilight's magic snapped it shut.

"Rainbow, The Mysterious Midnight was her MOTHER!"

Twilight released her magic on Rainbow's mouth. The pegasus stared at the two unicorns before her, comprehension turning to horror as she processed what she'd just heard. One word, the worst, twisted her stomach into knots: "Was".

"OOOOOHMYGOSHOHMYGOSH I AM SO SORRY--"

"RAINBOW." Her attention snapped back to Twilight as she spoke. "Hallway. Now." She was out of the room before anyone realized she'd moved.

Twilight whipped around and faced the rest of her friends with a glare that could melt steel. "And if any of you have the slightest doubt in your ability to keep your mouths shut for two minutes while I talk to Trixie, you can wait out there with Rainbow Dash. GOT IT?"

Without a word or even a nod, the other four Elements ran out of the dressing room in a flash. Trixie watched them go with some satisfaction, but her eyes here still furious when they turned back to Twilight. "This had better be good."

"I know you'll probably scoff at this, but we need your magic. You're a lot better at fine detail and precision than I am in a lot of areas."

Trixie scoffed, as predicted, but her eyes lost their fury. "Please. Ego aside, you're way out of my league. No wonder you're the Element of Magic..."

"Yes, I admit, in terms of raw power I'm in a higher weight class than you, so to speak. But that's just inborn talent. I'm talking about skill, things you've trained at and made a living with."

Trixie sighed. "Look, Miss Sparkle, I'm flattered. Really. But... I'm an illusionist! A good one, granted, but still. You've been studying under the wing of Princess Celestia since you were a foal--"

"But I never studied illusions! Nothing advanced, anyway." Twilight levitated a scroll from her saddlebag, the one Celestia had sent her with the instructions for drawing the elder seal, and unrolled it in front of Trixie. "You're not just a good illusionist, Trixie, you're the best illusionist in Equestria. And right now, an illusionist is just what we need."

Trixie took hold of the scroll and read it, eyes growing wide, while a new sound added to the muffled cacophony outside: Artillery. The army had joined the fray.

Twilight stepped closer, resting a hoof on Trixie's shoulder. Her fellow unicorn met her eyes and saw them filled with a mix of determination and worry. "I know you're no coward, Trixie. When that Ursa came to Ponyville, you could've run. You'd have been smart to run. But you didn't. You stood your ground. No matter what anypony else might say about you, you stood, and you gave it your best."

Trixie tried to wrap her mind around what was being asked of her. "But... This symbol, it's protecting the city, isn't it?"

"For how long? The kraken's intelligent. I don't think it would have come here, or stuck around this long, without some kind of plan for getting past it. Heck, it might just be able to throw rocks at it from outside until it bends out of shape. All that's keeping it from doing so is the princesses. They're out there, right now, fighting this thing, and they're... they're..." Twilight struggled to control her breathing. "They're losing."

Trixie closed her eyes and released a held breath. She rolled up the scroll, returned it to Twilight, and stepped away, looking up towards the poster of her long-dead mother, advertising her last -- some say greatest -- show, performed at that very theatre. After a long moment, while Twilight grew convinced that she'd refuse, she carefully lifted her hat and cloak from the rack and put them on. As she turned again, Twilight saw her mouth take on a cocky, lopsided grin. Her eyes were now filled with a different fire, the same one she'd seen in her eyes during her performance in Ponyville, and again when... Twilight pushed the thought out of her mind as Trixie finally spoke.

"What the hell. Either we win, or it kills us, and at the very least I want to make sure this thing remembers how hard it was to take me down."

Twilight leapt forward and hugged her, before remembering what personal boundaries are and stepping back, blushing. The two unicorns rejoined the rest of the group in the hallway and ran for the entrance.

"Wait!" Twilight shouted as they approached the busted door. "I forgot something important." Her horn and the gem of her tiara began to glow, the other Elements following a moment later. Having recharged since their earlier use, Twilight tapped into their power to recast the dragonfear ward over the seven of them, reinforced by the power of Harmony. "Even looking at the kraken without protection can really mess you up. That should suffice, but if anything leaks through, remember, it's just a trick."

Trixie relaxed as the oppressive weight of the kraken's presence vanished from her mind. "So it's got some illusions of its own, I see. Well, let's show it what the G and P T can do." Twilight caught Applejack rolling her eyes at that, and gently swatted her with a hoof.

Rainbow Dash climbed a few yards into the air, pointing to the sky. "Uh, guys?"

Most of the stars were out by now, but their positions were off. The most familiar constellations were twisted and distorted, and Twilight could tell that hardly a single star was in its proper place. As they watched, they could see them slowly drifting through the sky, twisting and swirling around each other.

Fluttershy, nearly frozen in panic, struggled to find her voice. "W-what's doing that? Is it the kraken?"

Twilight reached out with her horn, feeling for the magical currents in the sky. "No, it's not the..." She gasped. "It's Luna!"

"Luna?" Rarity asked, surprised. "Why would she do such a thing?"

"The stars are right..." Twilight whispered, before raising her voice again. "The kraken is said to escape from its prison when the stars are right! Princess Luna's trying to make them wrong again."

Things in Ponyville were beginning to return to normal. Everypony felt safer knowing that the elder seal protected the town, and the kraken had not attempted to approach since the previous night. So to keep their spirits up, Ditzy Doo and Big Macintosh had taken Dinky and Sparkler out for a picnic in the park that afternoon. Dinky had almost been too terrified to leave her room, but just a few hours of normalcy and fun had worked wonders for her spirit.

As the sun sank low in the sky, they returned home by way of the market square so Ditzy could pick up ingredients for supper. As she looked over some bundles of alfalfa, a familiar voice called to her from a nearby alley.

"Ditzy... Doo?"

She turned to see Rocky Road, one of the local EquesTrans workers. His crew kept the roads within, to and from Ponyville in good repair, and had helped build the rail line the previous year. He seemed to be hiding in the shadows of the streetlights, and his voice sounded halting and awkward. "Ditzy... Got minute?"

Thinking he might be hurt, Ditzy trotted his way to offer aid, but he withdrew deeper into the alley as she approached. "Rocky? What's wrong?"

"Need your help. Need find... Zecora."

Ditzy started to respond, ready to give directions, but her thoughts stumbled and fell flat. Zecora... Who the hay is Zecora? "I'm sorry, who are you looking for?"

Rocky's eyes turned hard and cruel. "No game. Zecora, where find. Now."

Ditzy's heart raced. Something was terribly wrong with Rocky. As her anxiety grew, her eyes diverged; only one pointed at Rocky, the other at a faint shadow he cast in the light of the half-moon overhead. A shadow that looked nothing like a pony.

She wanted to run. She wanted to scream. She wanted to fight back as the thing that wasn't Rocky Road crept towards her like a predator that had cornered its prey. As her hooves and her wings refused to respond to her panic, a rational corner of mind remembered how she'd always feared that her life would end like this: A situation she could easily escape if not for the way she locked up under stress.

The creature snarled in anger, revealing a mouth filled with countless, jagged teeth.

"Momma? Who're you talking to?"

Somewhere in Ditzy's brain, a switch flipped, and the hindmost part of it took over, leaving the rational part to simply watch and marvel. Rearing up on her hind legs, wings and nostrils spread wide, she snorted and whinnied in a mad fury. Any creature of Equestria would recognize the display, and the message it conveyed: I am a pegasus mother, I am protecting my foal, and any attempt to pass will end with your life.

The abrupt change from frozen victim to icon of wrath startled the creature, giving Ditzy the opening she needed. Her forehooves slammed down upon its head, stunning it and driving it back. She heard her daughter scream, a sound that turned her blood to fire, and with a single stroke of her wings, she launched into the air and lunged.

The creature rolled to the side, dodging her assault, and quickly grappled her. Grasping her forelegs at the ankle -- a part of her managed to wonder how it could do so with hooves -- it twisted her off her feet and onto the ground. As claws she could feel but not see dug into her skin, she bunched up her hind legs and kicked her attacker in the abdomen. She felt something crunch, and nearly escaped the grapple while it gasped in pain, but it was quick to recover. It was larger than her, it was stronger, and it knew how to fight. In a blur of motion, it twisted her onto her back, pinning her down, and that horrible, shark-like mouth opened wide over her throat...

… before two huge red legs slammed into it like the pistons of a steam engine. Big Mac's powerful rear hooves, shod in iron shoes far heavier than Ditzy's own, crushed the monster's head against the nearby wall. With a sickening pop, it went limp and fell to the ground like a rag doll.

A handful of nearby ponies shrieked in horror. Ditzy stood and saw that Sparkler was already comforting Dinky, escorting her away from the scene. Her old friend Carrot Top stood nearby, eyes wide. "Celestia's name, Mac... You-- You killed him!"

"Not him. It." He stepped aside to let the growing crowd see the creature that had attacked Ditzy, its disguise now vanished: A mottled green reptile, as large as Mac himself but scrawnier and more wiry, with stocky hind legs build for bipedal walking and slender arms ending in wicked, grasping claws.

Peeling her eyes from the dead creature, Carrot Top turned her attention to Ditzy. She was muttering something, repeating it over and over. "What's that, sweetie?" Her volume started to rise, but she was speaking to quickly to be clear.

A callous voice muttered, "Ignore her, she's just going derpy again."

"Thank you fer your opinion, Sticks," Mac drawled, "now kindly shut the hell up." He turned back to Ditzy. "Deep breaths, bright-eyes. That's right." As she caught her breath, both her eyes met his. "Now, what is it yer tryin' to tell us, darlin'?"

"Rocky Road's address. 27 Stirrup Street. Apartment B. Somepony... check on him."

Lyra and Bonbon, only a few yards away, looked at each other fearfully. Rocky was their upstairs neighbor. They bolted down the street together, the building only a couple blocks away.

No more than a minute later, the entire market heard Lyra's scream.

After a moment's argument with the guards in another tower, the bearers of the Elements of Harmony and the Great and Powerful Trixie charged back onto the field of battle. As they'd approached the outer wall, the sounds of cannon-fire had tapered off and eventually ceased; looking out over the grassy plains, they could see ranks of guns left behind by their crews, some of them bent or crushed. Luna still fought the kraken, ceaselessly harassing it and diverting it away from the city.

The seven ponies came to a halt. Trixie looked ill for a moment as she took in the sight, but shook it off.

"How long do you need?" Twilight asked her.

"Two, maybe three minutes? I could rush it, but if I understood that letter correctly, quality is more important than speed."

"Alright. You get to work; if it notices and tries to approach before you're ready, we'll run interference." If I can figure out how, Twilight thought to herself.

Trixie nodded and sat down on her haunches as Twilight laid out the scroll on the ground in front of her. Closing her eyes, she focused on her breathing and the flow of magic through her body that accompanied it. Opening them, her horn glowed and a transparent, pale blue square, about a foot across, appeared in the air before her. Glancing at the diagram, she held out her forehooves and willed a diagonal line to appear on the square.

"Beggin' yer pardon, Trixie," interrupted Applejack, "but shouldn't it be a bit, um, bigger?"

Trixie tensed. "I can work, or I can explain. Not both."

Applejack suddenly felt sheepish. "Fair 'nuff."

Over the next few minutes, Trixie carefully constructed an image of the elder seal in miniature, adjusting each element more minutely that any of them could see. As the final pieces were laid out, Twilight noticed the sounds of the battle between Luna and the kraken were drawing closer. Looking up, she saw that it was making its way towards them, and Luna's efforts to force it back were failing.

"How much longer?" asked Twilight.

"Just thirty seconds or so."

"I'm not sure we have thirty seconds," said Rainbow Dash.

As the kraken took a few more purposeful steps towards them, panic edged into Twilight's voice. "Trixie..."

"Ten seconds!" The glow of her horn grew brighter.

The ground shook as the kraken drew dangerously close, and Twilight decided to take a gamble. The Rainbow of Harmony couldn't hurt it, but it sure seemed to not like lightning. Her horn and the Element of Magic glowed as one, the others flaring to life a moment later.

"Uh, Twi," Rainbow said nervously, "this didn't work so well the last--"

Her words were cut off as a tremendous bolt of electricity shot forth from the gem of Twilight's tiara, blasting the kraken's outstretched claw into goo. The chunks fell to the ground some fifty yards in front of them like sacks of pudding, liquefying in seconds, and a stench like low tide assaulted their noses. The kraken pulled back the stump of its wrist as viny growths sprung forth, quickly hardening into gnarled, woody bones. The murky gel of its flesh crawled along them to reform the appendage it had lost.

"There!" As Trixie's horn flared, so did the seal in front of her, and like a slide projected onto a screen, another one, as high as the kraken and precise to the width of a razor's edge, burst into being in front of them. The kraken roared, attempting to shield its eyes, but seemed almost physically repelled by the glowing symbol. It staggered backwards, but then caught itself, trying to edge around the symbol to its right.

"Oh like hell you do," muttered Trixie. With a wave of her hoof, she duplicated the miniature seal and swung the copy around to her left, and with another flash from her horn, a second full-scale seal appeared in the air to block the kraken's maneuver. As it tried to go the other way, she created a third copy, leaving it nowhere to go but backwards. As it tried to retreat from the trap, Trixie placed another behind it, and as it tensed to leap upwards, a fifth appeared above it, boxing it in completely. The kraken covered its head with its arms and wings, seemingly incapable of any action other than cowering, until it turned towards the seal behind and thrust out a claw towards its center.

In the miniature model of its cage, the furthest seal began to waver. "Oh no, nonononono," Trixie said in a panic, trying to rotate the box around it, but before she could the seal flickered and vanished. The kraken dropped to all fours and loped desperately from its makeshift prison. It flabby bulk seemed to shrivel while the oddly small wings unfolded and grew to immense size. With a single powerful leap and a downstroke that nearly knocked the ponies off their feet from the wind, it launched itself into the air and flew back towards the Everfree Forest.

Trixie looked dejectedly at the broken cage she had crafted from nothing more that light and geometry. With a wave of her hoof, she dismissed the image before her and the larger version vanished with it. She turned to see the other six mares gawking at her, eyes wide and jaws slack. Trixie couldn't imagine why they could possibly be surprised. It's not like they've never seen me fail at anything important before.

Twilight took a tentative step forward. "Trixie... you..." She struggled to find words, but Trixie knew that once she did, they'd sting worst of all.

Rainbow Dash spoke next. "That... was..."

Feeble. Pathetic. Whatever the opposite of great and powerful is. Just say it already, stop trying to savor the moment.

"AWESOME!"

… Wait, what?

"Trixie," said Rarity, her eyes downcast. "I believe I owe you an apology. I never should have questioned Twilight when she suggested we seek your aid, and my behavior earlier was just... inexcusable."

"What she said," added Applejack. "Ah may not've cared for yer attitude before, but ya can't argue with results. You were the right pony for the job, and we shouldn'a doubted you." Fluttershy and Rainbow all nodded in agreement, and Pinkie was practically hopping as she grinned at Trixie.

The response was leaving the performer distinctly confused. "But... it got away."

"Yeah, after you kicked it to the curb!" Rainbow shouted, taking to the air and doing a victory loop.

"Wait, Trixie..." Twilight said, stepping closer. "Did you really expect to imprison it on your first try?"

"I nearly did! But I didn't have a clear line of sight to the seal behind it, so I couldn't keep it as precise as the others. It was the weak link, and it broke it."

"Trixie, you didn't fail to capture it, you succeeded at driving it away! That's honestly all I'd expected. We don't know how to really hurt it yet, we just needed time to regroup and learn more. And you bought us that time." Twilight smiled gently at her. "You're still setting the bar too high for yourself."

Trixie thought she saw Rarity and Applejack sharing a suspicious look, but it passed before she could really see for sure. "I suppose..." Allowing herself a shy smile, she added, "I guess that was pretty awesome."

"OOH, speaking of awesome," said Pinkie, "Twilight's super-mega-lightning bolt of doom! I didn't know the Elements could do that!"

"Well, the rainbow is just a blast of pure Harmony," said Trixie, "but the Elements are also powerful reservoirs of magical energy. In the possession of their bearers, that power can be used for just about anything that doesn't contradict the nature of a given Element or Harmony itself."

Applejack looked back and forth between Trixie and Twilight. "You been workin' on yer ventriloquism, Twi?"

"What?" asked Trixie. "I read her paper in the ERM." Seeing the blank looks at her answer, she added, "The Equestrian Review of Magic. She was the first grad student they'd published in years, of course I checked it out."

Applejack's face and voice were deadpan. "Mm-hm."

Glancing towards Twilight, Trixie expected to see her either blushing or grinning in pride, possibly both, but instead saw her staring into the distance, her face full of worry. She suddenly realized who had been absent from the scene. "Um... Where's Celestia?"

Twilight's worry blossomed into full panic, as she bolted across the grass at a dead sprint. The others struggled to catch up with her; when they did, they found her standing in what looked like a shallow crater in the shape of one of the kraken's claws. In the middle, laying in the grass and mud, were a few iridescent strands of hair, long and sparkling, and a large, white primary feather stained with blood.

Twilight stared at them for what felt like a lifetime. They resisted all her efforts to will them away. I need to be strong, she told herself, trying to blink through her tears. My friends need me to be strong. Equestria needs... She screwed her eyes shut, trying desperately to contain her grief. I'm no help to anypony if I lose it.

She felt like a house of cards, and the wind was rising.

"She's alive."

Relief struck Twilight like a bucket of ice water. Her knees buckled, and the tears she'd held back spilled forth in a torrent. Wearily, she lifted her head and saw Luna standing before her, streaks of blood still staining the fur around her mouth. Her voice had been low and raspy, and sounded like it hurt to speak.

With comically forced casualness, Pinkie Pie stepped to the princess' side. "Begging your pardon, Princess, but..." Pinkie nearly vibrated with the effort of keeping a straight face. "... you're a little hoarse."

Luna blinked at Pinkie for several seconds, then snickered before losing all control and laughing madly. The others quickly joined, and Pinkie nearly burst with glee at pulling one of the worst puns in the Equestrian language on a princess.

"Thank you, Pinkie," said Luna. "I think we all needed that."

"That's what I'm here for."

Twilight finally found her footing again. "Princess Luna... How is she?"

Luna's demeanor turned serious again, but her voice was improving. "She was badly hurt, and still unconscious when last I saw her. But it is no easy thing to kill an alicorn; we do not succumb to our wounds hours or days after receiving them. What does not kill us swiftly had best be far away when we recover, for we surely will."

Twilight mind was drowning in questions, but this wasn't the time or place for all of them, so she prioritized. "Do you have any idea why the Elements didn't work?"

Luna nodded. "Indeed, once we engaged the kraken in battle we realized quickly that they would not, but had no chance to communicate this to you in time. The kraken... is utterly immune to magic."

Rainbow Dash raised a hoof. "Uh, I have a question. That makes no sense."

Twilight corrected her automatically. "That's not a question."

"The princesses were constantly blasting the thing with lightning. You threw the biggest lightning bolt I've ever seen at it, and that was dwarfed by the freaking sunlight laser they bounced of the moon, which was completely epic, by the way. How does that add up to an immunity to magic?"

"Those were physical effects created by magic," Luna explained. "Lightning from a spell is still lightning, as is fire, frost or anything else. But spells cast directly upon it simply failed. Including the Rainbow of Harmony."

"How is that even possible?" asked Twilight.

Luna hesitated before answering. "It is... completely isolated from the Stream."

Twilight's eyes went wide, and her jaw flapped for a moment before she managed to speak. "Th-that's... That can't be true! It's alive! It has magic! I felt its signature, it used it against you!"

"What you felt was the disruption of the Stream's natural flow caused by its presence."

"I... But then..." The pieces of the puzzle finally snapped together, and the picture they made was worse than any Twilight had imagined. "Oh no. No no no." She felt like her body couldn't decide if it wanted to faint or vomit, and was working out a compromise to somehow combine the two. Trixie fell back on her rump, and Rarity just shut her eyes and grimaced.

Rainbow briefly contemplated getting a sign that said "dumb it down please" and carrying it any time she hung out with unicorns. "Um... What?"

Twilight struggled to order her thoughts. "The Stream is, in simplest terms, the flow of magic. But it's more than just what unicorns use to cast spells. It lets pegasi fly and control weather, it gives earth ponies their strength and nourishes the land they work, it even makes our cutie marks appear. The Stream isn't just magic... it's life. And that's no metaphor. It's literally the animating force behind all life. For the kraken to be cut off from it, and still live, is disturbing enough. But for it to be able to consciously harness the disruption it causes in the stream to cast its own quote-unquote 'spells'... That would only be possible if it was animated by some kind of energy that's antithetical to magic and life as we know it."

Applejack's voice sounded queasy as she spoke. "So this thing, it's some kinda spirit of death?"

Twilight shook her head. "No... Death is part of the cycle of life. The matter and magic of a living being are reabsorbed by the environment and put to new use. The kraken is more like... Extinction. Sterility. The negation of life as a concept. Remember when we got our first clear, up-close look? You said your knees felt weak. Rainbow Dash said the same about her wings. My horn felt the same way. Even through the protective spell I cast, we felt a manifestation of the Stream inherent to ourselves being diminished by its influence -- earth pony strength, pegasus flight, and unicorn magic -- as if the presence of the kraken was nullifying them. When we look at the kraken, our eyes see a monster, but our souls see a lifeless void."

Rainbow Dash started to look as sick as the unicorns. "I don't like where this is going."

Twilight couldn't bear to meet her friend's eyes. "I was wrong. The kraken doesn't have an aura of magical despair. Last night, when you looked at the kraken without protection, what you felt was an entirely natural reaction to seeing it for what it truly is."

Twilight's friends stood and sat in silence for a full minute, absorbing what she'd explained, until Luna spoke again. "There is still hope. Despair, even when natural, is not always rational or warranted. And if the energy that drives the kraken negates the magic of the Stream, then it can be negated by it as well."

"You're right. That kind of cancellation can't be a one-way street. The modified dragonfear ward still protected us partially, perhaps simply by being made of magic. It was even more effective when powered by Harmony."

"But if it's allergic or whatever to the magic of our entire world," Rainbow asked, "why didn't it just choke and die as soon as it landed here?"

"Maybe it has something like a diving suit, a barrier to isolate itself from the Stream. I don't know why it would choose to live on a world where it needed one, but maybe having such a barrier is as natural to it as having an armored shell is to a tortoise."

"Um, I have a question," Fluttershy said nervously. "Where'd Pinkie go?"

A scan of the horizon revealed a pink speck near a row of abandoned cannons. Twilight gave a questioning look towards Luna, but the moon princess only winced and shut her eyes. She ran towards Pinkie, and as she drew closer she could see her shoulders shaking and a faint glint of gold in the moonlight by her feet.

Pinkie didn't react as Twilight approached, or as the others followed behind. She just sat there, crying softly, over a few bent and battered pieces of gilded armor and the blackened skeleton they contained. Twilight gingerly lifted the dog tags towards her eyes, the chain still around the bones of the neck.

STEEL-EYE
DANFORTH
SGT 1ST ARTY
318631
MANENITE

"His platoon provided cover fire while the medics retrieved Celestia," said Luna. "His squad covered the retreat of his platoon. He covered the retreat of his squad. My sister, and many others, still live... because of him." She stepped gingerly between Pinkie and Twilight. "That should provide some comfort, should it not?"

Twilight simply sat and stared.

"One would think it should," Luna whispered. "So why doesn't it?"

Chapter 6: Weak and Weary

"I'm so sorry, Twilight," Luna said softly. "I should have told you. I wanted to. I should not have let you find out like... this."

Twilight lifted a spent shell casing in front of her with her magic. It was large enough to use as a wastebasket, and yet the shell it had hurled had likely done no more than distract and irritate the kraken.

Denial was all but impossible when staring at a loved one's charred and blasted remains, but her brain tried its hardest anyway. She felt like she was watching a play, disconnected from facts and events that couldn't possibly be real, despite the evidence of her senses. She felt Pinkie give her a gentle nuzzle on the neck, but she didn't respond. She couldn't even cry.

Pinkie let Twilight have her space and turned to Luna. "Princess? The only musical instruments I brought were kazoos -- packing light, you know -- and, well, I hope you don't think it would be disrespectful, but..."

"No, it's alright," Luna answered.

Pinkie fished out a package of kazoos, quality wood ones rather than cheap plastic, each painted in the colors of everypony's coat and mane, including one for Luna and a few blank spares. "Sorry, Trixie, I didn't know you'd be joining us, but you can use one of the unpainted ones for now." The showmare nodded slightly and took the plain wooden instrument. Twilight brought herself back to reality as she took hers, and once they were were distributed, Pinkie led them all in a dirge for the fallen soldier.

"We should get inside," said Luna, once the song was complete and Pinkie put away the instruments. "Celestia will be at the hospital by now, I would like to be there when the doctors have completed their work." She paused, giving one last glance towards Steely's remains. "And I will see that Sergeant Steel-Eye is tended to. He will have a state funeral, and a statue in the gardens. Now come along. The night grows cold, and we have all earned our rest. Though I fear mine is still some time away..."

As they began the walk towards the city, Twilight kept a discreet eye on Pinkie. As she lagged slightly behind the rest of the group, Twilight slowed her pace to join her.

"So," Twilight said, "Celestia will be okay, even if it takes a while for her to recover. I guess we can stop worrying about your premonition now."

Pinkie kept her eyes forward and said nothing.

"Right, Pinkie?"

The earth pony turned her head towards Twilight with worried eyes, but quickly looked away again. "It wasn't her, Twilight. When the Elements failed, and again when Trixie drove the kraken away, my right front knee twitched, like a reminder. It was a little stronger the second time, like we're getting closer to when and where it'll happen... But it hasn't yet. I'm sorry, Twi. It's still coming."

As the last purple light of the sunset faded, A pegasus and an earth pony stood outside the Ponyville Public Library, arguing in whispers.

"Mac, please. Just tell me."

The large stallion sighed. Indecision was not a feeling he was used to, and he hated it. "Ah don' know, Ditzy. Ah jus' feel like yer better off not knowin'. Ah feel like Ah would be." He shuffled his feet nervously, but his worried eyes never left hers. "Ain' it enough knowin' that you got me around to protect ya?"

Ditzy's crooked eyes abruptly straightened and turned hard. "Dammit, Mac! This isn't about you protecting me! It's about me protecting my daughter! I need to know what they found, so I can know what I'm up against."

Big Mac closed his eyes, and steeled himself. "Bones an' blood."

"What?"

"That's all they found. His bones were stripped, an' they had... teeth marks. That thing, that lizard monster... It ate him, Ditzy. It ate every last scrap of him."

Ditzy managed to control the urge to vomit, but it was a near thing. "Thank you."

Mac nodded once before turning to the library door and banging a forehoof loudly against it. Three fillies, a mare, and a baby dragon yelped in surprise before it opened a moment later.

"Evenin', Cheerilee. Ah'm here to take Apple Bloom home. Well, to Ditzy's home, anyway."

"I understand. We heard about what happened, but only a little. Are you both okay? Is Rocky really..."

Mac nodded somberly. "He is. But we're fine, an' right now Ah'm just workin' to keep it that way."

Cheerilee nodded, and turned her head back inside. "Alright, girls, time to pack it up for the night."

A chorus of disappointed moans answered her, but the fillies did as they were told. As Mac and Ditzy entered, they saw them marking places in a dozen different books and putting away pencils and notebooks, as Spike attempted to impose some faint hint of order to the mess. As Apple Bloom stuffed the book she had been working from into her bag, her brother interrupted her. "You should prob'ly leave that here, AB."

"But it ain't that close to bedtime. Ah was gonna keep readin' and share mah notes in th' mornin' when Ah came back."

"You ain't comin' back. Yer stayin' at Ditzy's house where I can keep ya safe."

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle dropped their bags and stared at Mac in shock. "WHAT?" they shouted in unison.

Apple Bloom, however, responded with an anger that reminded everyone of her older sister. "Big Mac, how could you? You promised me you'd let me do this!"

"That was before somepony was killed right here in town!" Big Mac took a deep breath to try to calm himself. "Things've changed, AB. We all thought we'd be safe here, but we ain't. Ah need to look out for ya, first an' foremost. You'll jus' have to wait an' find yer cutie mark some other way."

"This ain't about mah buckin' cutie mark!"

The eyes of two fillies and two mares boggled at Apple Bloom, but the stallion's filled with fury. "Ah'll talk to ya 'bout yer language when we're safe inside. But this 'research' idea o' Scoot's, Ah was jus' lettin' ya do it so's you could feel like yer helpin'. We all knew it weren't gonna turn up nothin'. So git yer things, leave the book, and follow. Us. Home."

The anger in Apple Bloom's eyes and voice lessened, but didn't vanish. "Ditzy? When the thing that looked like Rocky attacked you, did you see its shadow?"

"Apple Bloom, stop stallin' an--"

"Yes," Ditzy interrupted. "I did."

"Did it look like a pony's?"

"No, it... It looked like its real shape. Like a lizard."

"It's called a Valusian. Some folk call 'em serpent people. They had an empire a long time ago, right here where us ponies built Equestria. But somethin' happened, and most of 'em vanished. Their empire fell apart. That's why there weren't no one livin' here when the three pony tribes sent their expeditions. The Valusians that were left went underground, literally. Started livin' in caves, and forgot most o' their ways. There ain't hardly any left now, but a few o' the ones that are, they got some strange kinds o' magic from back in the day. One of 'em is a spell to disguise themselves if they have to go t' the surface, so us ponies won't see 'em for what they are. But to cast it, they gotta... eat the pony they mean t' mimic."

Cheerilee turned pale. "Oh Celestia..." She turned towards Mac. "Is that what happened to Rocky?"

Mac made no move or sound to confirm, but neither did he deny it.

"The spell ain't perfect, though," Apple Bloom continued. "It's just an illusion, not a physical change. An' it don' affect their shadow. So they stay away from bright light an' outta the sun. Get anypony in good light, and one glance at the floor'll tell ya fer certain if it's really them or a lizard in diguise."

Mac stood there in silence while everypony else gaped at his sister, carefully taking in her words before speaking. "It's still time you came home fer supper," he told her. "Ditzy's makin' vegetable soup. And Dinky's had quite a fright, so we'd all rather you didn' tell her nothin' 'bout this, but she could use a friend her age t' take her mind off it."

Apple Bloom let out a defeated sigh as she picked up her bag.

"An' I suppose you aughta bring that book with ya. After we put Dinky to bed, you can stay up readin' for as long as yer eyes stay open."

Apple Bloom rushed forward to hug her brother's massive foreleg, before turning back to retrieve her book. "Thank you so much, big brother! I won't let you or AJ or any of her friends down!"

"Don' think Ah forgot about yer language earlier, though. We still gotta talk about that."

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. "Jeez, Mac, Ah said 'buck', with a 'B', not--"

Mac held up a hoof to silence her. "AB, Ah'm gonna tell you somethin' that yer sister ain't never learned in all her years, an' Ah sincerely hope it sinks in. When yer already in a hole... fer Pete's sake, stop diggin'."

For most of her life, Trixie had avoided hospitals whenever possible, seeing to her own healthcare at clinics and private offices unless absolutely necessary. Some were better than others, or course; Royal Canterlot Teaching Hospital, for example, aside from having the best doctors and facilities in all of Equestria, was as clean and comfortable as anypony could ask for.

But all the soft couches, soothing paintings and surprisingly decent cafeteria food in the world couldn't change the fact that nopony ever visited one unless a loved one was in danger.

One glance through the door was all Trixie needed to know that she wouldn't be able to enter the room. Celestia in her oversized bed seemed just as large in proportion to her now as her mother had seemed when she was a filly. The heart monitor, the IV, the crash cart in the corner, the smell... The horrible familiarity of it all was more than she could bear.

Princess Luna, Twilight, and her friends poured into the room impatiently, but the yellow pegasus hesitated, her eyes on Trixie.

"Hello," Trixie said nervously, "I, ah, don't believe we met when I was in Ponyville before."

The pegasus gave her a anxious smile. "I don't think so, no. My name's Fluttershy. It's, um. It's nice to meet you."

The name clicked something in place, and the familiarity Trixie felt finally made sense. That's right, the model. Stars above, no wonder she quit, a timid little thing like her... Knowing from experience how annoying a squealing fan can be at the wrong time, she let the revelation pass without comment. "Same here," she replied, extending a hoof.

Shaking it gently, Fluttershy asked, "So, um, are you coming in? I mean, you don't have to, but after everything you've done I'm sure you'd be welcome."

Trixie looked away nervously. "I'd rather not. I know I just saved everypony's flanks not even half an hour ago, but... I don't know the princess like all of you do. I'd feel like I was intruding." Even though it was true, it still felt like a lie. She didn't want to tell her the real reason.

When she looked back, she saw Fluttershy looking at her closely, like she was studying her. Trixie's heart pounded as she expected to be called on her half-truth, but her wide, teal eyes were filled with worry rather than suspicion, and after a moment, understanding.

"It's okay," she said, smiling more confidently now. "Let us know if you need anything, even if it's just company. Okay?"

Trixie relaxed and returned the smile, a genuine one rather than her showmare smirk. "I will. Thank you."

Twilight's first thought was how eerily silent the room was. With all the machines, she expected there to be a constant stream of sound, like hospital scenes in a movie. But the heart monitor only blinked quietly rather than beeping, graphing Celestia's pulse and blood oxygen electronically instead of with a pen scratching away on paper. The mask over her snout only provided additional oxygen, rather than assisting her breathing. The wires stuck to her head and horn lead to an electrothaumagram, much like the one in Twilight's basement lab, but again with an electronic display rather than paper. A bright, almost luminescent blue liquid flowed slowly from an IV bag through a tube and into her leg.

But in a room filled with silence, the worst was that of Celestia herself. Her hair lay limp and still, and the rise and fall of her chest was almost imperceptible. Not a single muscle moved, even as her sister leaned over to nuzzle against her bandaged neck. Twilight had never seen the princess, he mentor and oldest friend, look so vulnerable. It was hard for her to even accept that the battered and beaten alicorn was really her.

Twilight forced herself to engage the facts before her. "How..." Twilight swallowed. "How bad is she?"

"Several cracked ribs. Fractured bones in her wings. A dislocated hip. A few deep cuts. She lost quite a bit of blood, but they've already transfused her. They were worried about infection, but her wounds were all completely sterile; unnaturally so. Her reserves of magic were nearly annihilated by her brief contact with the kraken, hence the intravenous potion; they believe that supplementing her natural recovery will assist the healing process. Their biggest concern, however, is the hairline fracture in her skull, and the swelling around it. For an ordinary pony, they would be concerned about permanent brain damage. She will, of course, recover... Eventually. But until she wakes, we cannot know how long it will be until she is truly herself again."

Twilight felt something warm and soft drape over her back; turning her head, she saw Fluttershy standing next to her, her wing wrapped around her like a mother bird sheltering her chicks. She leaned gently into her pegasus friend as if freezing and desperate for warmth.

"As much as I would like to stay," said Luna after a few moments of quiet, "with my sister incapacitated, the responsibility of Equestria's defense now falls to me. I must report to our commanders, coordinate what intelligence we have gained this night, and plan our next move."

"Luna," said Twilight, "before we left, I promised Spike that I'd write to him as soon as we met with you and Celestia. He's probably worried sick already, would you mind sending him a short note before you go?"

Luna smiled and nodded. "Of course."

Twilight pulled a sheet of paper and a pencil from her saddlebag, but suddenly worried about what to write. While she was essentially Spike's big sister, Celestia was very much like a mother to him. She hated having to tell him what had happened to her, but if she said nothing, he'd wonder why the letter had come from Luna instead. She had to choose her words carefully.

Dear Spike,

You'll have noticed that Luna sent this letter, so I'll get this out of the way so you can stop worrying. Celestia was hurt, but she'll be okay. She just needs to rest.

We're here in Canterlot, and we're all still in one piece. The battle was difficult, and the Elements didn't work because of the kraken's resistance to magic, but we drove it away with the help of (you won't believe this) The Great and Powerful Trixie. Now stop making that face.

I'll write to you later with more detail. Take care of yourself, and tell everypony that we're okay.

Twilight

Rolling up the page, Twilight levitated it towards Luna, who incinerated it with her horn. The glittering smoke disappeared through an air vent, Luna asked, "Will he be sending a reply shortly?"

"He should," Twilight answered. "Any longer than five or ten minutes, and I'd start to worry. But if you need to, I mean, I don't want to hold you up..."

"Worry not, Twilight, I can wait a short time." Almost as soon as Luna had checked the clock on the wall, however, another wisp of smoke flew towards her and coalesced into a scroll at the tip of her horn. Twilight snatched up the letter eagerly, but her face fell as soon as she opened it, her ears limp against the side of her head. She looked up to see her companions staring at her, sick with worry. She swallowed to ease her suddenly dry throat, and read aloud.

Twilight,

Bad news. Rocky Road is dead. Some kind of lizard monster ate him and took his shape. It attacked Ditzy in an alley, but she fought it off. Big Mac killed it. Apple Bloom says she read a story about them, look up "valusians" or "serpent people" in that book I gave you. The really important thing is that their shadows don't change, it's always shaped like a lizard. The mayor's having notices put up telling everypony how to spot them. And I said they probably wouldn't find anything useful. Guess I have to eat those words, huh?

Another thing is that when the lizard guy was disguised as Rocky, it was asking about Zecora. Ditzy says that while she was talking to him, she couldn't remember who that was. She insists it wasn't just that she was panicked, because it was before she knew anything was wrong. She says she was about to answer him when "the information just fell out of my head all of a sudden", as she put it. It seems to be really bothering her, so if you can come up with anything, I can pass it on.

Spike

PS: Thanks for telling me the truth about Celestia. When you know more and have the time, please write again.

PPS: How did you know I made a face?

"Valusians?" said Luna. "My sister and I thought them extinct. I must inform the guard and police of this."

Twilight noticed that the ink on the postscripts was still damp, and had left an impression on the back of the scroll when it had been rolled. "He had to have written the letter earlier and been waiting to send it," she said. "He must have been so scared."

Rarity sniffled softly. "Poor Spike..."

"Poor Rocky," added Fluttershy.

Luna nuzzled her sister again and, closing her eyes for a moment, steeled herself for the duties ahead of her. "I have instructed the hospital staff to treat you all as family. You will be able to stay with her as long as you wish. I will return when I can, and with luck, I will come with answers to what questions remain."

Twilight woke with a start. She didn't even remember getting drowsy, but "too tense to sleep" had apparently lost to "too tired to stand". She started to adjust her blanket before realizing it was still Fluttershy's wing that kept her warm. Twilight slowly scooted herself out from underneath it, trying to not to disturb the pegasus; once she was free, Fluttershy furled her wing back against her side and curled up like a puppy.

Somepony must have turned the lights out at some point; the brightest light in the room was the faint pre-dawn glow coming through the window. Looking around in the dim grey light, Twilight saw their saddlebags piled neatly in the corner, the Elements stored within; Applejack on her back on a sofa, her hat covering her eyes; Rainbow Dash sprawled on the floor, oblivious to Pinkie Pie both using her as a pillow and hugging her like an immense stuffed doll; and Rarity curled up in a soft chair, looking up at her from a paperback novel she had been reading by the focused light of her horn.

"You're still up?" Twilight whispered.

"Again, actually. I woke up a little while ago and couldn't get back to sleep." Rarity looked away, her eyes darkening. "Well, to tell true, I didn't want to. Not after the dream I'd had."

Twilight rested a hoof on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. Would you like me to cast the sleep spell on you, the one I used on Rainbow?"

Rarity nuzzled her friend's outstretched leg and smiled. "No, thank you. I'll be alright." She glanced out the window at the slowly growing light. "Looks like Princess Luna has the sunrise well in hoof."

Twilight sat on her haunches next to Rarity, leaning sideways against the chair. "It could probably rise and set on its own for a few days unattended, really. Celestia explained to me once how she mostly just nudges it to keep it on course."

The two sat in silence for a minute, Rarity looking out the window and Twilight watching Celestia's vitals on the monitors. Suddenly, looking at Rarity's immaculate mane and complexion, Twilight was struck with how sweaty and grimy she felt and, she suspected, looked.

"Rarity?" she asked, grimacing. "Can I borrow your grooming kit? I just realized how gross I feel. If I can just wash my face and mane I'd feel ten times better."

"Of course, darling. We all took turns in the shower last night," Rarity said, tilting her head towards the hospital room's private bathroom, "but you'd already nodded off by then." She lifted the small canvas pouch from her saddlebags and levitated it towards Twilight. "Would you like me to help? You've had a dreadful day, you deserve a bit of pampering."

Twilight took the bag in her own magical grip and considered the shower for a moment, but didn't want to wake anypony else with the noise. "That's not necessary, I think I could use a few minutes alone anyway. I'll be back in a little bit."

"Take your time," said Rarity, returning to her book as Twilight stepped out into the hall.

The rest of the hospital was quiet, almost empty. Around the corner Twilight could make out the sound of nurses talking quietly, and a soft snore drew her eye to a sofa in the hallway just outside Celestia's room where the Great and Powerful Trixie slept like a foal. Her head was supported by a cushion propped against the arm of the sofa, her hat shielded her eyes from the light, and her cloak was tucked around her like a blanket. Twilight paused to admire the sight for a moment; when she wasn't fixated on proving how great and powerful she was, she could be truly adorable.

Walking into the nearest mare's restroom, Twilight wiped the sleep crust from her eyes and blearily approached the sink. Turning on the tap and waiting for the hot water to come, she splashed and wiped her face several times before she looked up, her eyes finally clear, and saw reflected in the mirror the pony responsible for Celestia's injuries and Steely's death.

The mirror shattered as if struck by a hammer, and Twilight wondered briefly what had done it until she felt the power fade from her horn. Staring at the fractured pieces of glass still stuck to the wall, she now saw twenty accusing, purple eyes where before she had only seen two. Heart racing and bile rising in her throat, she tore her gaze away and ran into the stall, clumsily slamming the door shut. It slowly swung open again, her magical grip too shaky to latch it, but at least the mirror was out of sight. She tried to calm herself with one of the breathing techniques Celestia had taught her to help keep her magic under control, but doing so just reminded Twilight of her mentor and what had happened to her.

After several tense minutes, she finally managed to calm herself down and remembered why she'd come here to begin with. Gazing under the partition, she saw Rarity's grooming kit on the floor where she had carelessly dropped it. With the lightest touch she could manage, afraid of crushing it with poorly controlled force, she dragged it across the floor into the stall with her. Opening the kit, she pulled out a hairbrush and tried to restore some order to her frazzled mane, but it was a losing battle. Giving up after a minute or so, she traded the brush for a more finely-bristled one and set to work on her coat. It wasn't a bath, but it was still soothing, and even seemed to pull a little bit of grit and grime away with each stroke.

As she rolled to the left and reached back to brush her right flank, she examined her cutie mark. She ran the edge of her hoof over it, carefully examining the boundary where the fur changed color from her normal lavender to the darker purple of the star; the skin underneath was the same pale pink as everywhere else. Searching through the bag, she retrieved a pair of chisel-tipped tweezers and gently plucked a single dark hair from her cutie mark. She held it up to her eyes and stared at it, wondering how this hair and its neighbors could signify so much about her, her talents, and her destiny. Turning it around this way and that, she could see its shape, the way it tapered to an almost imperceptibly fine point, the root that was so much softer than the rest, and the way the color seemed to change slightly depending on how it caught the light. But she saw nothing that explained its connection to the role she had successfully filled until last night.

A second hair plucked gently from another point of the purple star held no further insights. Neither did one pulled more roughly from one of the small white stars around it, or one ripped carelessly from the very center.

Her breathing grew ragged, her eyes filled with tears, and the pile of plucked hairs continued to grow, until suddenly she felt the tweezers ripped violently from her grip. Blinking through the tears, she saw Trixie standing just inside the door as it swung closed behind her, staring at her in horror.

"Twilight? What... What the hell are you doing?!"

Twilight started to answer, but couldn't find the words. Her jaw hanging uselessly, she looked back at her cutie mark and saw a bald patch the size of a bit at its center, the exposed skin raw and flecked with blood. She heard Trixie's hooves approach slowly, carefully, as if afraid of startling her. She looked back towards Trixie and saw tears forming in her eyes as well.

The dam broke. Twilight buried her face in her forelegs, sobbing like a foal. She tried to open her eyes, but they stayed scrunched shut of their own accord. She tried to speak, to apologize to Trixie for acting like a child, for letting Celestia get hurt, for getting Steely killed, for her failure as the Element of Magic, but the only sound that escaped was a feeble, wordless scream.

She felt Trixie lay down beside her, soft and warm, and smelling faintly of lilacs and gunpowder; a weak chuckle escaped Twilight's throat as she wondered if the former was just to cover the latter. She leaned into her as Trixie lifted a foreleg and draped it over her back, pulling her close.

Twilight had no idea how long they lay like that, and didn't care. She didn't feel happy, or confident, or secure, but with Trixie there, she felt like it was okay that she didn't. It was as if, by just holding her and letting her cry, Trixie had given her permission to be as sad and angry and hurt as she needed to be, for as long as she needed it. She felt broken, helpless... and safe.

After a while, Twilight's breathing evened out and her tears slowed. She nuzzled Trixie's neck, and with a voice that sounded less like a pony's and more like a frog's, whispered, "Thank you."

Trixie gave her a gentle squeeze and a peck on her forehead. "You're welcome."

Twilight wiped her eyes, sniffled, and cleared her throat, sounding overall like she had a nasty cold. She saw Trixie's aura envelop a paper towel poking out of the dispenser and pull it towards them, and blew into it once it was bunched up in front of her nose.

Trixie crumpled the towel and tossed it into the trash. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Twilight hesitated for several seconds before answering. "Not really."

"Do you feel like you need to talk about it?"

Twilight was surprised by the question, and again by her answer. "Maybe."

"Take your time. You don't have to. But if you do, whatever you feel like you need to say, whatever you're thinking or feeling, I won't judge, okay? You've been through a lot, and there's probably a bunch of stuff going through your head that doesn't make any sense right now. But that's okay. Understand?"

"Yeah."

They laid there like that for a few minutes as Twilight tried to turn her jumbled thoughts into words. At one point another pony tried to come in, but Trixie had apparently had the foresight to lock the door, so whoever it was moved on quickly.

"The thing is, my cutie mark... It doesn't just represent magic. I'm pretty sure it represents the Element of Magic. There's been similar marks in my family, but that purple, six-pointed star is pretty much unmistakable. And the five white stars around it, I think those are the others."

"Your friends' Elements, though, their gems resemble their cutie marks."

"That's true, and at first I thought that's all it was. But even historical depictions of the Elements show the same thing. Just about every rendition of Celestia's defeat of Nightmare Moon shows her wearing a tiara like mine. My friends' Elements resemble their cutie marks, but for me it seems to be the other way around. And the... the Princess, I think she knew. She was there when I got it, she had to have recognized it. She never said a thing, and I never asked, but I have to wonder, was I destined to bear the Element of Magic? Have I always been its bearer?"

"Wait, you never asked her? Why not?"

"I'm not sure. I've wanted to, but... I guess the question just feels too big. And... I think she might feel a bit guilty for using me. I wonder if she feels better thinking I don't know."

Trixie fidgeted for a moment and sounded like she was about to say something, but swallowed her words. "Go on."

"Other ponies might resent being manipulated like that, but I found the idea that my life had purpose to be pretty comforting, actually. And in the end, if I was being 'used', it was to bring back Celestia's sister. I would've willingly gone through a lot worse to achieve that."

Twilight turned away and stared into the middle distance. "But last night, it all went wrong. You didn't see it, Trixie. The Elements, the princess... She was, she tried to..." Twilight's breath hitched, and the tears returned. "She tried to warn me away, Trixie! Her attention was on me, not the kraken, and it just swatted her out of the sky like a bug! And then Steely... He died protecting her, which he wouldn't have had to do if it weren't for me... It's all my fault, Trixie! Mine! I screwed up! I didn't just try to help and fail, I made things worse! If we'd gone to find you first, you could've made your giant seal cage, and maybe with both princesses' help we might have been able to do more, but even if not, Celestia wouldn't be in a coma and Steely would still be alive! He's dead, and she's halfway there, all because I just assumed it was as simple as 'Elements plus bad guy equals victory'!"

Trixie held Twilight as she cried, giving her time to let the grief drain out of her. As her sobbing eased again, she said quietly, "It's not your fault, Twi."

Twilight sniffled. "Yes it is, I--"

"No. It's not. Your friends told me what happened after you fell asleep. You didn't even know I was in town or where to find me until after Celestia was hurt. And using the Elements was her plan, too. You made the best decisions you could based on the information you had at the time. That's all anypony can do under the best of circumstances."

"Well, okay, but... Why do I still feel like it's my fault?"

Trixie stroked Twilight's mane as she calmed down. "It's called survivor's guilt. Somepony you care about was hurt badly. Another was killed. You feel like you don't deserve to live any more than they do, so you feel guilty just for being alive and walking when they're not. And your mind tries to find a way to justify that guilt, some excuse to lay the blame on yourself. But even though the feeling is real, the reason isn't. I know it's hard to convince yourself of that. And it's okay if you can't just yet. But... don't do anything rash based on what you think you deserve, okay?"

Twilight sniffed again, and shrugged noncommittally.

"Okay?!"

"Okay, yes."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Trixie relaxed and nuzzled Twilight for a moment. "Okay. Good. Sorry to push, but, ponies with survivor's guilt have been known to do some pretty stupid things. Sometimes they hurt themselves, or... Anyway. I just want to make sure that doesn't happen to you."

After a quiet minute, Twilight asked, "How'd you get to be so good at this, Trixie?"

"I spent a lot of time with grief counselors back in the day. Read a few books, too."

"Because of your mom?"

"Yeah. Never had any formal training, but I remember what helped me."

"Well, I'm sorry about your mom, but I'm glad you had such good people to help you when you needed them."

"Thanks."

"This survivor's guilt thing, though... Where'd you learn about that? Was it in one of your books?"

Trixie shifted in place nervously. "No, that was personal experience talking."

"That doesn't make any sense. How did you manage to blame yourself for your mom dying?"

"Survivor's guilt usually doesn't make any sense. The guilt comes first, then the mind makes up a reason, remember?" Trixie sighed quietly. "Anyway, I remember thinking that if she didn't need the money to take care of me, she wouldn't have had to be on the road performing as much, and could have seen a doctor sooner, or something."

"Did you ever, um, do anything because of it?"

"You mean self-harm, putting myself in needless danger, that sort of thing?"

Twilight nodded.

"Well... There was that time I tried to fight off a bear the size of a three-story building even though I knew I didn't stand a chance in hell against it. I suppose that counts."

Twilight chuckled weakly. She immediately felt bad for laughing at Trixie's pain, but the showmare just smirked and held her close.

Chapter 8: A Quaint and Curious Volume

Twilight's daisy and oat sandwich and side of hay fries were receiving far less attention than the page of note paper in front of her. As she tried to use what they'd learned about the kraken to work out a revised spell formula to protect their minds against its influence, she only remembered to take a bite whenever Trixie poked her in the ribs. It was difficult work; she understood the theoretical framework for what she was working with, but had never before needed to apply it to a practical spell. Still, she was nearly finished; just one more check on the equations, and...

"There!" she announced proudly. "Next time we face the kraken, this spell will protect us even better, and with less effort. I told you I just needed a few more minutes."

"Twilight," said Trixie flatly, "the rest of us finished eating over an hour ago."

Twilight blinked, glanced at the clock on the wall, and looked back, grinning sheepishly. As she opened her mouth to speak, her stomach rumbled like a mildly annoyed bear, so she gave up on conversation and assaulted her lunch.

Trixie leaned on a hoof, watching the purple prodigy as she ate. Blinking rapidly as she realized she was staring, she tried to casually adjust her position to something less blatant, but as she turned she saw Applejack's knowing smirk and realized that she'd been caught. Blushing furiously, she tried desperately to hide her face behind the brim of her hat. But rather than razz her about it, the farmer just rolled her eyes and turned back to listen to Rainbow Dash's descriptions of the latest stunts she'd been working on.

When the conversation reached a lull, Pinkie slumped over the table and huffed. "I'm bored. Anyone else bored? Because I am."

"Ah'm surprised you didn't bring a stack of games with you," said Applejack.

"I did, but they're all in Celestia's room. I don't want to bother her just yet..." She sighed deeply. "No, that's not true. I really really do want to bother her and try to cheer her up, but even I know she needs time to grieve." Her tone suggested that she was trying to convince herself more than anything. "If she wants to be alone, then..."

As the silence and somber tension started to grow, Trixie took the initiative towards clearing it away. "I've got an idea," she said, removing her hat. Holding it upside down and waving a hoof over it, she levitated out a pack of playing cards.

"Oh, are you gonna show us some card tricks?" asked Twilight.

"Well, I was actually about to suggest a game of hearts... But if anyone's interested, sure." Looking around to see their reactions, her showmare smirk started to creep onto her face. "Alright, somepony shuffle these for me," she said as she slid the deck along the table, but Applejack quickly intercepted. Trixie watched, visibly impressed, as she shuffled the deck with the speed and skill of a professional dealer and pushed the deck back to her across the table. "There ya go," she said, grinning.

"Aaalright then," said Trixie, donning her hat again. Fanning out the deck in the air in front of her, she cocked an eyebrow at the farmpony and her crooked smile grew. "Seems the gauntlet has been thrown down. Pick a card, pardner."

Applejack smiled back, eyes narrowed, sensing that the "trick" had now become a duel of wits. Looking over the array of cards, she skipped her first instinct, and then her second, and followed her third, plucking the card with her teeth and carefully angling it downwards to keep it out of view.

Trixie swept the cards back into a single stack and set them on the table, the glow of her magic disappearing. "Now look at your card, remember it, and show it to the others. Once you've done so, put it back in the deck," she instructed, turning away and closing her eyes.

"'Kay, that's done."

Trixie turned back and, using only her hooves, cut the deck, shuffled overhoof once, and drew a card from the top. "So tell me, Applejack... is this your card?" she asked, presenting it to her on an upturned hoof.

Applejack cocked an eyebrow at the stage magician. "Nope."

Trixie's smile vanished as she looked around, seeing nothing but politely shaking heads. "What the hay?" she muttered, and started flicking cards off the deck face down, again without magic. She whispered to herself quietly as she did so, becoming louder as she reached the end. "Forty-eight, forty-nine, fifty, fifty-one... Hmph. There's a card missing." She looked quickly inside her hat before putting it back on her head, and looked all around and under the table from her seat.

"An' how exactly would a missin' card mess up yer trick? It woulda been missin' from the get go."

Trixie sat back up, her expression deeply confused. "Would you mind looking under your hat, AJ?"

"Ooo-kay..." She lifted her hat from her head and looked inside. "But I don' see how it coulda-- Well Ah'll be." She turned her hat over, letting the card fall face-up on the table, the jack of spades. Every other pony gawked at it in silence.

The look on Trixie's face could only be called 'triumphant'. "Is that your card?"

Applejack looked back and forth between the card and Trixie's enormous grin. "All right, Ah'm impressed."

Twilight grinned and raised a forehoof towards Trixie. "Nice," she said as the showmare completed the high-hoof.

"Ya know, Trix, if you'd opened with something like this instead o' that hooey about beating an ursa major, maybe we wouldn'a started off on the wrong hoof like we did."

"Aaand there it is," Trixie sighed, facehoofing briefly. "I know you're the Element of Honesty," she said, voice dripping with snark, "but you do know the difference between deception and performance, right?"

"Ah beg yer pardon?!"

"Trixie!" Twilight hissed in surprise. "I know this is a sore subject for you, but these are my friends." She reached a hoof towards hers. "Just... try to be civil? Please?"

Trixie turned to face her, intent on explaining exactly why she had every right to be angry, but with one look into those pleading, indigo eyes, the bile in her throat vanished. "Alright... As long as they do." Turning back to the farmpony, she continued, her tone even. "What I meant was, stage magic is a performance. It's theatre. You don't go a play and criticize the actors for pretending to be who they're not, do you?"

"No, 'course not. But they're bein' up front 'bout what they're doin' on the playbill, listin' the actors' real names an' such. You weren't pretendin' to be nopony but you."

Trixie suppressed an irate whicker, forcing herself to take a deep breath. "It's still just a stage persona. Magicians often perform under their real names, or a variation on them; it's just part of the act, pretending to be a version of yourself with unusual powers. The Great and Powerful Trixie, sorceress extraordinaire, may have vanquished the mighty ursa major; but Beatrix Friganza Lulamoon, graduate of the Manehattan High School for the Performing Arts, hasn't vanquished anything bigger than the cockroach infestation of her first rathole apartment. I honestly never expected anypony to confuse the two."

"Ah think I get what yer sayin', but Ah'm afraid don't get why. Why not just be you, and show us what you can do? Ya don't see the Wonderbolts doin' this sorta thing."

Trixie shrugged. "It's just part of the genre, I suppose. When you go to see a stunt flyer, you're there to see what they can actually do. But stage magic is built on a foundation of willing deception: The audience plays along, and for an hour or two they get to believe in something extraordinary. It's part of the fun. Outlandish and obviously fictional claims on the part of your persona are part of that. I just used the ursa major story for the mystique, the same way my mom, when she was in character, claimed to have studied dark and forbidden arts at the Scholomance."

Applejack cocked an eyebrow. "The scholo-what now?"

"The Scholomance. It's a mythical school of magic supposedly run by Nightmare Moon, hidden somewhere in the Everfree Forest. According to legend, she only admitted ten students at a time, and as 'tuition', she'd keep one of them for herself, forcing them to do evil in her name. Part of the Mysterious Midnight's story was that she'd earned her cutie mark -- a star inside a crescent moon -- by outwitting Nightmare Moon and escaping after having been chosen. Ever read Count Fetlock?" Seeing Applejack shake her head, she continued. "Well, they left it out of the film, but in the original novel, most of his powers were gained from attending the Scholomance, rather than from just being a vampire."

Applejack let Trixie's explanations sink in for a minute, and a look of embarrassment crept onto her face. "So. Ah guess that means when we were givin' you a hard time about claimin' to be so great an' powerful..."

"You were essentially heckling me, yes. That's why I got so ticked off about it. Not to mention it's how I make my living; the bits I collected passing the hat around after the show bought my dinner that night."

"Hold on a sec," said Rainbow Dash. "Didn't you invite ponies in the audience to challenge you?"

"Well, okay, granted... but that was after the three of you," she said, pointing to Rainbow, Applejack and Rarity in turn, "had already gotten the ball rolling. I was trying to shut down the heckling, and it usually works. That time, I suppose it backfired a bit, and if I'd known my audience better -- which as a performer, I should have -- I'd have known it would. Humiliating three local heroes probably cost me some bits that day. So I guess I should take at least some responsibility for what happened after that." She sighed and slumped into her seat. "Since we're taking an inventory of my mistakes, though, there was one more which I'll cop to: That pair of colts."

"Snips and Snails?" asked Twilight.

Trixie nodded. "Children usually love my show, and I'll be honest, I love 'em too. I still remember one unicorn filly that was there for the Ponyville show, little blonde-maned cutie; I did that trick I used on you, AJ, and she grinned like it was the coolest thing ever. But foals don't always know the difference between fantasy and reality as well as adults. I shouldn't have stayed in character around them after the show; it put ideas in their heads, and I should have known better. So... That one's on me, I suppose."

"I hope I can speak for the rest of us," said Rarity, "when I say 'apology accepted', and offer one in return." Looking around, she saw the others nodding in agreement. "I have one question, though: If The Great and Powerful Trixie is a fictional character, why did you introduce yourself as such when we came to your room?"

"Honestly?" replied Trixie, looking like she'd just bitten a lemon. "I was hoping, with the exception of Twilight of course, that you'd remember how much you disliked me and leave me alone."

A loud gigglesnort from Pinkie broke the tension before it could truly build up, and the giggles quickly spread to the others.

"So..." asked Twilight. "Hearts?"

"Alright," answered Trixie, shuffling the deck. "I should warn you, though, in high school they called me 'Trixie Shoot-the-Moon..."

Princess Luna nodded at the guards by the entrance to the high-security wing of the hospital, and trotted towards the cafeteria. While internally debating whether she should get her sister something simple like daisies or if she'd be in the mood for tulips, she heard familiar voices ahead.

"Aw, I got stuck with all the hearts again. And the black mare."

"Is she doing this on purpose? I honestly can't tell."

"It's best not to ask. You'd have an easier time getting a straight answer out of-- Princess Luna!"

"Really? Everything I've read about her says she's actually very forthrigh-- Oh!" Trixie yelped in surprise as she followed Twilight's gaze and saw the moon princess standing in the doorway. "Um. Your Highness."

Luna stepped towards them, smiling gently. "Please, save the protocol for court. I am just glad to see you all again."

Rainbow Dash grinned casually at her. "Afternoon. You're up kinda early, aren't you?"

"I often sleep while the moon does, rather than strictly during the day. And I have just raised a rather nice waxing gibbous one, if I am permitted to boast," she replied, sounding almost embarrased. She turned towards the newest member of the group of friends. "Miss Trixie. It pleases me to see you again."

Trixie fought the urge to bow, but not knowing what else to do with her hooves, she found herself fidgeting with her cape. "It's, uh, nice to see you, too. Your voice seems to have recovered." Beneath a warmth and kindness akin to Celestia's, Trixie was surprised to hear a more youthful, almost vulnerable quality to it. More than anything, it suggested to her that the younger princess was perhaps in need of a hug, but she didn't think that offering one would be a good idea.

Twilight stepped forward, pawing the floor nervously. "Princess... Have you spoken to Celestia yet?"

Luna shook her head. "I was just on my way there, I was told she was awake. I am surprised to see you all here, however."

"About that... Before we left, she said some things that, well, have me worried about her..."

With Twilight's words fresh in her ears, Luna opened the door to her sister's room. Celestia looked up blearily, her bloodshot eyes widening a moment later as she recognized her visitor. "Lulu?"

Luna rushed to her sister's bedsite to embrace her. "Tia..." She held her close for a few moments, sniffling quietly, before pulling back. "I hear you are recovering swiftly."

"After battling Nidhogg, I was fine after only a few months of rest. With these recent advances in medicine, I should be out of here in a matter of weeks." She smirked slightly, adding, "And the doc says I didn't brain my damage."

"It is good to hear you jest again..." Luna's expression turned dark. "But Twilight spoke to me of the pain you bear. She is worried about you, sister."

Celestia sank deeper in her pillow. "After a screw-up like that, all Equestria should be worried about me..."

"Tia, no! That is not what I meant at all! She is worried not for any failure on your part, but for the blame you lay upon yourself." Luna reached forward to stroke her sister's still-limp mane. "When she blamed herself for your injuries, and Danforth's death, her guilt consumed her. With the help of her friend Trixie, she was able to absolve herself, but even so she is still haunted by a shadow of that guilt."

Fresh tears began to form in Celestia's rose-colored eyes. "Sh-She doesn't deserve that..."

"No," said Luna sternly. "And neither do you."

"I allowed myself to be distracted in battle, if I hadn't --"

"Then you would not be my sister! What exactly was the cause of your 'failure'? Compassion. You dared to care more for the wellbeing of your subjects, of your friends, than that of yourself. While under tremendous pressure and denied a chance to think clearly, your first instinct was to act out of love. How could you be the ruler Equestria needs and deserves, and not do so?"

Celestia shut her eyes tight as her tears began to fall.

"If you must lay blame, lay it where it belongs: On the kraken. It is that beast that injured you, and killed brave Danforth. Do not allow it to convince you that you must change for the worse, that you must become harder or colder to do your duty. That is the first step down a dark path."

The sisters were quiet for a long moment before Celestia spoke again. "He was a good pony."

"He was. When others were unsure how to act around me after my return, he was... kind." Luna was quiet for a moment before wiping away tears of her own. "I would like nothing more than to stay by your side and keep you company, sister... but duty calls."

"I understand." Celestia smiled weakly. "Take good care of them for me."

Luna bent down to kiss her sister on the cheek. "I will."

On her way back, Luna struggled to regain her composure, wiping her eyes and magically drying the fur around them. Sending a guard to retrieve their bags, she returned to the seven anxious mares waiting for her in the cafeteria

"Twilight Sparkle, please gather together all your notes and what research materials you brought with you. The rest of you, bring whatever you feel you need, but travelling supplies and the Elements may be left behind for now. Trixie, if there is anything you would like to retrieve from your room at the theatre, we may collect it en route. We have much to do."

Trixie looked around nervously as the others eagerly sprung into action. "Uh, where exactly are we going?"

Luna smiled as she led the way. "It is time I showed you to the Laundry."

In downtown Canterlot, the Bearers of the Elements, The Great and Powerful Trixie, and a perfectly ordinary blue pegasus mare walked into the entrance of Canterlot Laundry Services.

"Welcome, ladies," greeted the middle-aged stallion behind the counter. "What can I do for you?"

The blue pegasus stepped forward, smiling. "Good afternoon. We have an appointment with the business manager."

"Alrighty, then, head on back, ma'am," he replied, lifting up the hinged portion of the counter to all them through. "He'll be waiting downstairs."

"Thank you." The pegasus led the others through the cleaning facilities and towards a back hallway, and finally into a large freight elevator. Once Twilight had pulled the door shut behind them, the blue pegasus shimmered with a magical aura, growing in height and sprouting a horn from her head. Her disguise abandoned, Princess Luna pressed a hoof against a maintenance panel below the elevator buttons and twisted it clockwise. It receded and flipped around, revealing a glass panel with a glowing image of a hoofprint. As she again pressed her hoof against it, a line of green light scanned up and down her hoof before the entire panel turned green. With a soft beep, the panel receded and turned around once more, again appearing to be an ordinary maintenance panel as the elevator began to descend.

With each step of their clandestine journey, Rainbow Dash's grin had grown larger. Twilight had a bad feeling about it, but did her best to ignore it.

Finally the elevator came to a stop, and the door sprung open. Outside was a modestly sized office, the walls lined with maps, bulletin boards, diagrams, photos, fact sheets, and countless written notes, and a steel fire door in the far corner. Sitting behind a desk covered in similar materials and reading an old and battered-looking book was a unicorn stallion that Twilight found maddeningly familiar.

"Luna! You're back, excellent! And you've brought company." The stallion rose from his seat and stepped out from behind to greet them, and as his cutie mark came into view, wheels spun rapidly in Twilight's brain and pieces began snapping into place.

"Everypony," Luna began, I would like to introduce you to--"

Twilight's eyes shot wide open as she pointed an accusing hoof at the familiar pony. "You!"

Twilight Sparkle cantered cheerfully through the park nestled within the campus of Canterlot University. Having the day off from working in the campus library and no other pressing responsibilities that afternoon, she intended to indulge in two of her favorite vices: A bright sunny day, and a good book. Heading for one of her favorite reading spots under a small tree near the pond, she found it already occupied by an off-white unicorn stallion with a forest-green mane and an unusual cutie mark: A minoan letter Delta in bright emerald green. Twilight watched him for a moment as he read the aged-looking book laid out on the grass before him and briefly adjusting his glasses, wondering if he'd mind the interruption.

"Hello there," she said, trotting up towards him. "You don't mind sharing the tree with somepony, do you?"

"Hm?" He looked up for a moment, not really paying much attention, and returned to his book. "Oh no, go right ahead. Don't mind at all."

Twilight settled down on the grass and lifted a paperback copy of Daring Do and the Shrine of the Silver Monkey out of her saddlebags, and slowly began to lose herself in the story.

"Yo, Delt!" The abrupt bellow from across the park broke her from her literary trance. A burly earth pony with a soccer ball cutie mark was hollering in the direction of the stallion next to her. "Kegger at Cask Strength's place! He said to grab you to help set up since you owe him for rolfing on the rug last time."

"Sure thing, bro," the unicorn said as he stood, about to run off with his friend, but then he turned to Twilight. "Hey, you work in the library, right?"

"Yes, but --"

"You mind taking this back for me?" he asked, pointing briefly at his book lying open on the grass, but galloped off without waiting for an answer.

"You're supposed to return books --"

"Thanks!" he yelled over his shoulder as he disappeared over the hill with his friend.

"-- yourself." Twilight glowered at the spot where she'd last seen him, but her efforts to hate him to death proved ineffectual. Probably got that cutie mark for being a fraternity pledge, she thought bitterly. Turning towards his abandoned book, an image of what appeared to be Princess Celestia in a centuries-old style caught her eye. The mare was clearly an alicorn, tall with a slender build, and like many classical depictions of the princess showed her with a mane and tail of solid pink rather than her blend of pastel shades. Not only that, but standing across from her was another alicorn of similar build, but with a dark blue coat and lighter blue mane. Her anger at the long-gone pony forgotten, the contents of his book had intrigued her; slipping the Daring Do novel back into her bag, she began to read.

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters who ruled together and created harmony for all the land...

The off-white stallion with the green letter Delta on his flank stared awkwardly at the furious purple mare. "Um, yes? Last I checked, I was still me."

Twilight stared at him for several seconds, her eyes showing a bizarre combination of shocked realization and stark disbelief, her mouth contorting into a range of shapes as every profanity she knew tried to escape through it at once but continually tripped over each other. Eventually they all teamed up to produce a single strangled scream of frustration, before she lowered her pointing hoof and hung her head in defeat.

Luna looked at the stallion with one raised eyebrow. "Did you not wear a disguise?"

He shrugged. "Didn't see the point. Figured she'd have the clearance to know who I was soon enough, not that we'd ever meet again before that."

Trixie stepped gingerly beside Twilight. "What did this guy do to you, Twi? Stand you up for homecoming? Wreck your parents' carriage?" She paused a moment, shuddering. "Write in a book?"

After taking a moment to regain her breath, she replied, "Later. Just... Don't ever, ever, ever play chess against Princess Celestia. Or poker. Or tic-tac-toe. You'd be lucky to even realize you were losing."

A rather un-princess-like snort escaped Luna's snout before she stifled her laughter, but she couldn't hide the smile. "I will have to tell her you said that." She paused to clear her throat. "As I was saying, everypony, I would like to introduce you to Delta Green, one of our top covert agents. He is in charge of coordinating intelligence regarding preternatural threats to national security."

Rainbow Dash emitted a high-pitched squeak that likely caused several dogs above ground to start barking. Applejack gave her a sidelong look. "You need oilin' there, Dash?"

"Before we go any further," said Delta, "there's the niggling little detail of security clearance. Technically you shouldn't even get to see this room without it."

Luna nodded. "I understand. By my authority as the Younger Diarch of Equestria, I hereby grant emergency security clearance to these seven ponies, Level Black with special Case Nightmare authorization, effective retroactively to the time of our arrival at the archive." A wicked smile appeared on her lips. "Send my sister the paperwork. She needs something to keep her busy."

Delta Green chuckled as he lifted a clipboard and pen with his magic, quickly jotting down what she'd said and noting the time. After signing it, he passed it to Luna to sign as well, and then to the others. "Full names, printed, and signatures please." Once they'd all done so ("'Miriam'? Ah thought it was 'Danger'." "Shut it."), he took the clipboard back to his desk, rummaged around in a drawer for a moment, then stamped an official-looking seal onto the improvised document. "Fillies and, er, more fillies, welcome to the Nightmare Files."

"Oh buck yes!" shouted Rainbow Dash, launching into a loop above everypony's heads. "Pay up, AJ!" She did a short victory dance in the air as Applejack fished a hoofful of bits out of her bag and passed them to her.

"What the hay was that about?" asked Twilight.

"'Fore we left Ponyville," Applejack explained, "RD bet me five bits that we'd be shown the Nightmare Files before this was through. Ah bet against it on account o' you sayin' they were an urban legend and usually knowin' what yer talkin' 'bout."

"You can blame us for that," said Delta. "We arranged to have the Files appear as a crackpot conspiracy theory, so any actual leaks that mentioned them would be discredited by association."

Twilight sighed. "See what I mean? Chessmaster."

While Applejack and Twilight hung their saddlebags on the coat hook and Trixie hung her hat and cape, the princess turned towards Delta. "have you found anything new since our last meeting?" she asked.

He levitated the old book from his desk towards him, idly flipping through it. "Nothing useful. I've been over Unaussprechlichen Colten with a fine comb; it backs up what we already knew about the Valusians, aside from thinking they were extinct, but doesn't cover any new ground. And it had an explanation about the nature of the elder seal, but it's bunk."

"What did it say?"

"That the central diagonal represented the plane of the ecliptic, and the branching lines marked the positions of various planets, thereby marking the time of the return of the Old Ones. Which almost makes sense, except that the author was a rubbish astronomer: The alignment he describes has happened twice just in the time since the book's publication. Plus he wrote that the seal was placed on their tombs as a reminder to wait until the appointed time, and as such would lose its power once that time had come. We already know that's not true."

"I see. And what of the Ponype Scripture?"

"Nada. It's little more than a guide for the laity, nothing really esoteric."

"The Sandown Shards?"

"You didn't hear? They're a forgery. Lab work proved it, oh, six months back, I think."

"Blast."

Delta Green looked at the princess silently for several seconds. "We're out of options, Luna. We need it."

"Necessity alone cannot conjure a thing into our possession, Delta."

The stallion locked his jaw shut for a moment to contain his frustration. "Of course not, Your Highness," he said, his tone conveying little respect for the title.

Twilight stepped towards him, glowering, but as she was about to take him to task for his disrespect, Applejack hastily pulled her back. "Pardon mah interruption, but what exactly is 'it'?"

As Luna looked away nervously, Delta took a deep breath and spoke. "The Necroneighmicon. Written over a thousand years ago by a pony known only as The Mad Arabian, it's considered the authoritative book on the kraken and its blessedly few worshippers."

"Wait, it's real?" asked Twilight with surprise. "Admittedly I'm new to this field, but I thought Clopcraft invented the Necroneighmicon as a device for his stories."

"You were meant to," Delta said with a smile, but it vanished as he continued. "However, all he was ever able to get his hands on was one of the extremely abridged -- or rather, redacted -- editions of recent centuries. The original is supposed to be a treasure trove of occult lore."

"So where is it?" asked Rainbow Dash.

Delta shot another dark look towards Luna before turning towards Rainbow. "We don't know. The last known location of a complete copy was searched ages ago; they found nothing. The only later references we have are to incomplete editions or unsuccessful attempts to find the original."

"We do not even know for certain that it contains the information we need," said Luna. "Or that such information cannot be found elsewhere."

"We don't know that it doesn't, either," countered Delta, "or that it can."

"Well," sad Twilight, "we may not have much to go on, but we have seven pairs of fresh eyes to look at the problem. I assume that's why you brought us here?" she asked Luna, who answered with a nod. "So, what's the most recent lead you have?"

Delta walked back to his desk with a shrug and rifled through the chaotic mess of papers. Finding the page he needed, he levitated it towards Twilight. "Here ya go. Most recent hit on the title was just a few years ago. An ethnobotanist from the University of Buckswana submitted a request to both Canterlot University and the office of Princess Celestia herself -- this was shortly before Luna's return -- requesting permission to study it. Her sources had led her to believe we had a copy, but we wrote back informing her that she was mistaken."

Twilight held the paper in front of her as she scanned it, and her eyes abruptly grew wide. "Oh, no way," she said with a giggle. "I don't believe it." She lowered the paper and looked around at her friends with a grin. "This 'ethnobotanist' was Zecora!"

"What?!" shouted the other five Element Bearers in unison.

"You know her?" asked Delta.

"She lives right outside Ponyville!" said Twilight. "I talk to her all the time! She's the one the Valusian was looking for!"

Delta gawked at her. "The buck what?"

"This has to mean something. Zecora is the most recent individual known to have been looking for the Necroneighmicon, and it wouldn't have been mere idle curiosity, not if she wrote to the princess. She had to have had a reason. The Valusians must know that she was after it; they may even think she has it, or knows where it is. And they must know that it contains information that can be used against the kraken, which is like some kind of god to them. They've been relying on secrecy to protect them for as long as Equestria has been around, they wouldn't risk exposing themselves now unless it was extremely important!"

Delta rubbed his chin as he soaked in what Twilight was telling him. "Okay. That is interesting. Really interesting. But it doesn't prove that she actually knows anything that could help us."

"Not by itself, but something else that's been bugging me suddenly makes a lot more sense. When the kraken came to Ponyville, I made a point to make sure all of my friends were safe. But Zecora just slipped my mind completely. I haven't known her as long as the others, but she's not just a casual acquaintance. I was horrified when I realized I'd forgotten about her. No one else brought her up the whole night, either."

"Well, it was a rather stressful situation, I wouldn't blame you for that."

"There's more. When the Valusian attacked Ditzy Doo, it was asking her about Zecora. But she couldn't even remember who she was."

"Again, stressful situation, and if she wasn't as close a friend..."

"It was before she even knew anything was wrong! And she's the primary mail carrier for the entire town! She knows everypony, and her memory is almost as sharp as Pinkie's! Zecora exchanges letters with friends back in Zebrica all the time, she's in the post office at least once a week picking up the latest and sending replies, and she always stays to chat. That Ditzy wouldn't know who she was is just... inconceivable!"

Delta cocked an eyebrow at Twilight. "Where are you going with this?"

"When Fluttershy went to check on Zecora the next morning, she'd put herself in some kind of magical sleep and surrounded her hut with this strange powder. She knew the kraken was coming, and took steps to protect herself: Not just from the kraken itself, but from its agents. Fluttershy was able to find her home and cross the lines of powder without any problem, so whatever spell she cast doesn't protect against us. But in the presence of the kraken, and a Valusian acting as its agent, we completely forgot that she even existed. She knew that someone would come looking for her, she may have even known it would be Valusians. I don't know why she didn't warn us, maybe there just wasn't time, but somehow she was able to work a protective spell that would not only keep her enemies from finding her, but made it impossible for anypony to lead them to her!"

Everypony in the room stared at Twilight, eyes wide, absorbing what she'd just explained. After a long silence, Luna spoke first. "The powder of Ibn-Gazelle."

"Are you sure?" asked Delta.

"It has to be. The powder is said to be the greatest defense against the kraken and those who act in its name short of the elder seal itself. It is supposed cloak one from their perception, and to even act as a conduit for other magics, allowing a canny sorcerer to craft precisely the defense one needs. It's alleged properties seemed so outlandish, I had thought it a mere legend...."

Twilight opened her saddlebags and retrieved the pouch left for her by Zecora. "It's not. Zecora left it for me before going to sleep. She'd hoped I would never need it, but realized that I might." She set the pouch down on the desk and turned back towards Delta. "We're on to something here. Zecora wouldn't just leave us hanging. She would've given us some kind of clue to point us in the right direction; we must not have recognized it for what it is yet."

"Unless she just doesn't know any more than what we've covered."

Twilight shook her head. "I doubt it. Maybe she had to be subtle so the Valusians wouldn't pick up on it, but it's there. She learned how to use the powder of Ibn-Gazelle from somewhere. Somehow she got her hooves on a large quantity; she may have even made it herself, which means she found a recipe somewhere. We know this information is somewhere to be found. We just have to figure out where."

Delta looked at her strangely determined face for a long moment, before barking out a short laugh. "Fresh eyes, eh?" he said to Luna with a smile. "Alright." He turned towards the heavy steel door in the back corner of the office and opened it wide, revealing a storeroom filled with shelves and file cabinets. "Let's compare notes, shall we?"

Chapter 9: The Centre Cannot Hold

"Ah wonder if maybe we should bring Dinky in on this."

"I dunno, Apple Bloom, I don't think she likes scary stories," said Sweetie Belle. Glancing back down at her place in The Horror at Red Hoof, she added, "I don't really think I do."

"I don' mean just to help us get through these books," the farmfilly explained. "She knows a lot about science an' stuff, 'specially astronomy. She's even got a telescope in 'er room!"

"So?" asked Scootaloo. "Twilight's got, like, a dozen."

Apple Bloom rolled her eyes. "Ah mean, she knows more about that stuff than we do, maybe she can help us figger out what some o' this means." She pointed a hoof at her own notes. "The stories keep talkin' 'bout how the Old Ones or whatever will return when 'the stars are right', but they're never clear 'bout what was wrong with 'em in the first place. But Dinky knows more 'bout the stars than any o' us, maybe she can help us make sense of it. She's a smart filly, ain't that right, Miss Cheerilee?"

The off-duty teacher looked up from her own book; she'd decided to join the effort by reading The Shadow Over Hoofsmouth after reading about the hippocampi in the paper. "That's true. You remember her solar system model, don't you, girls?" The young unicorn had even included comets and major asteroids.

"Will she want to, though?" asked Scootaloo. "She never joins in when we do anything fun."

"No," corrected Sweetie Belle, "she just doesn't join in when we do anything dangerous."

"That's what I said."

"I think it's a great idea," added Spike looking up from the newest letter from Twilight. "I swear she's gone through every astronomy book we have. She might be able to provide some perspective."

"Alright, it's settled then," said Apple Bloom, smiling. "Ah'll ask her tonight." Her smile faded as she looked towards the window facing the Everfree. "Ah really wish we could talk t' Zecora, though. She's gotta know some stuff that could help, but no, she had to put herself in that weird magic sleep..."

Sweetie Belle opened her mouth to speak, but her eyes glazed over for a moment. "Wait, who're you talking about?"

Apple Bloom cocked an eyebrow at her friend. "You know, the... um." She looked at the others' faces, and saw similar reactions. Ditzy Doo's story about the Valusian suddenly came to mind. "G-girls, Ah think--"

Spike reached across and placed a claw over her mouth, raising a single digit to his lips as he looked around, making sure everypony got the message. He snatched up a stray piece of paper and a pencil, hastily scrawling a note before showing it around.

There's one nearby.

The fillies and their teacher looked around fearfully, eyes darting to every window. Cheerilee turned to Spike and silently mouthed the words, "What do we do?"

Spike thought for a moment before writing some more.

Keep talking. Act natural. Don't let it know that we know.
Cheer, follow me.

Spike led Cheerilee towards the kitchen. "Can you help me look for some stuff in the pantry? I can't see the top shelves."

"Uh. Sure."

Opening the pantry door, he ducked inside and beckoned for her to follow. Making sure they were out of sight of the windows but could still see the girls, he whispered as quietly as he could, "I've got an idea. But it's risky." He took a deep breath. "And I'd need help."

Cheerilee looked worriedly towards the main room of the library, where the girls tried to maintain a casual conversation while they watched her and Spike, unable to hide the fear on their faces. She swallowed once, and turned back to the young dragon, her eyes hard. "I'm in."

"So what does this cutie-patootie mark mean, anyway?" asked Pinkie, prodding Delta Green's flank and ignoring the cocked eyebrow and sharp whicker he gave her in response.

"It's a mystery."

Pinkie finally met the stallion's eyes, her own boggling at his statement. "What?! You mean you don't even know what your cutie mark means?"

Delta grinned. "No, I do. A mystery is what it represents. It has no obvious meaning, and the only clue that it has one at all is its context. That's my talent: Figuring out puzzles, puzzling out enigmas, and enigma-ing out figures."

"You made that last one up!"

"Hey, it's my talent, I can if I want to." His grin grew wide and wicked as he leaned in close to her. "Give me enough time, and I bet I can even figure you out."

Pinkie giggled softly. "Heh, you're funny," she said, smiling.

Delta continued grinning, a determined gleam in his narrowed eyes.

Pinkie's smile drooped slowly, followed by her ears. She swallowed, finding her throat suddenly very dry, and backed carefully away from the pony who, it was now clear, had not been joking in the slightest.

Having deflected Pinkie's probing questions and hooves, Delta returned his attention to the mares examining the row of file cabinets closest to the door, some enthusiastically, others apprehensively. Rainbow Dash was quickly flipping through the endless folders of documents in the open drawer marked CASE NIGHTMARE KRAKEN, while Rarity and Pinkie discussed whether CASE NIGHTMARE MOON was named after Luna's alter ego or vice versa. Trixie stood by Twilight's side as she stared at the label CASE NIGHTMARE SUN as though unsure if she should be offended.

Luna noticed her reaction and stepped towards her. "For matters of such importance, we cannot allow personal feelings to prevent us from preparing for the worst. Before it happened, my sister would have considered my own betrayal unthinkable as well." She turned gaze towards another drawer, CASE NIGHTMARE BEDLAM. "As we both did his."

Trixie stared at the label for a moment before the realization clicked in place. Her eyes wide, she opened her mouth to say something, but swallowed her question as she felt Twilight's hoof touch hers.

"Alright," said Delta, tapping a hoof on the floor to get everypony's attention. "What do we know about this thing? You lot have field experience here that I lack, so what have you learned about it?"

"It smells like fish and seaweed," contributed Rainbow Dash sagely.

Applejack rolled her eyes at her. "Ah'm pretty sure he meant useful information."

"Hey now, we don't know what will be useful yet," said Delta as he scribbled a note on a clipboard. "Any details you can remember might help."

"Um, actually," muttered Fluttershy softly, "that's... kind of interesting. Maybe." All eyes turned towards her, prompting a faint "Meep!" in response, but a gentle prodding from Rarity got her to continue. "Well, okay, this is kind of gross, but... Most marine life doesn't smell like much of anything if it's healthy. Usually it just smells like saltwater. That so-called 'fishy' smell doesn't happen until it's started to, um... rot."

A hint of green started to show on Dash's cheeks. "Ew."

"Um. So anyway, when Twilight blasted its claw with that lightning bolt, a really strong smell came from it. Like... well, like dead and rotting marine life."

"Hm." Delta continued scribbling notes. "Kinda like it was already dead and rotting itself? That is interesting. The literature, both authentic and fictional, is full of poetic references to the creature being immortal or already dead or something like that."

"That would line up with its magic immunity," said Twilight.

"Yeah, I'd heard reports that the Elements didn't work. Is the reason for that what I think it is?"

Twilight nodded. "It's cut off from the Stream, and most likely animated by negative magic."

"Ya know, that's been bugging me," said Rainbow Dash. "How's it casting magic through the, what did you call it, diving suit?"

"It's a bit like putting a magnet on a table, and then pushing it around with another one underneath. Magic doesn't behave quite the same way as magnetism, though; like charges tend to flow together like water or air while opposite ones repel, or so goes the theory. If it lived on positive magic, like we do, then while inside the diving suit it just wouldn't interact with the Stream at all, like a river flowing around a stone. But with negative magic, it could manipulate its own internal energy to push against the Stream outside the barrier. It should have some awareness of magical activity around it, too, as the flow of the Stream pushes its energy the same way."

"That is true," said Luna. "While facing it, I had at one point made myself invisible and harassed it with illusory copies of myself, but it was able to track me nonetheless. It must have enough awareness to sense and locate my own magical signature."

Pinkie turned away from the group and looked around the room. With everyone politely taking turns to talk, a large chunk of her attention had nothing to occupy it. She looked over the map on the wall, where colored string and pushpins marked the movements of the kraken from its first appearance at the mysterious island to its retreat back to the Everfree after its close call against Trixie. She stared at it for several moments as she listened to the discussion, her ears turning to follow whoever spoke.

"Hold on, I missed a step here," said Delta. "What diving suit?"

"That's how I'd described the barrier between itself and the Stream," explained Twilight. "It's what provides its magic immunity and keeps the positive and negative energies from mingling and negating each other."

"Which means we have at least a vague idea of how to destroy it, right?" asked Rainbow Dash. "Just poke a hole in that suit, or remove it completely, and the kraken falls over dead."

Delta grimaced nervously. "That... might not be as good an idea as it sounds. Luna, you had the most direct contact with it out of anyone here, do you think you might be able to estimate how much negative magic this thing has, all told?"

"Hm..." Luna pondered the question for a moment. "Lend me your clipboard, I will attempt some... I believe the modern phrase is 'back of the envelope' calculations." Delta levitated his clipboard and pencil towards her. Pausing occasionally to think, she scratched out a rough estimate. "I would say somewhere in the range of five to ten kilothaums."

"FIVE TO TE-- Your sister tops out at eight and a half, and that's at noon on the summer solstice! And half of that's dedicated to controlling the sun!"

"I am aware," she replied, passing the clipboard back to him. "As I said, it is an estimate, and a rough one. But in terms of raw power... I would class the kraken as a peer to myself and Celestia."

Delta looked over her calculations and made a few of his own. "Five to ten motherbucking-- Alright. If you just collapsed or negated its 'diving suit' or whatever, introducing five to ten freaking kilothaums of negative magic into the environment would kill everything within a four to six mile radius, and I mean complete and utter sterilization. Another six to ten miles past that would be horribly and monstrously mutated in a way that would make the Everfree Forest look like a petting zoo." He looked up towards the wide eyes and slack jaws of six young mares. "So, no. Don't do that."

Pinkie grimaced at the thought, but kept quiet. Failing to discover anything interesting about the map, she scanned the other documents pinned to the corkboard. The excerpts of barely-legible occult writings and news articles of strange relics found in archeological digs proved equally boring. Her mind starved for activity, she glanced towards Delta's desk and saw the pouch containing the powder of Ibn-Gazelle still sitting there. As she stared at it, pondering what Twilight had said, her right front knee suddenly twitched.

Twilight was the first of the others to get her mouth to function again. "What about the Elements of Harmony? Their capacity is in the kilothaum range."

Delta looked over his math again. "Good point. Yeah, a full power blast from the Elements, or any other influx of energy on a similar scale... Depending on exactly where it is in that five to ten range, it might completely annihilate it. At worst, it'll negate enough to keep the affected radius under a mile or so, and drastically reduce the severity of mutation; might even give you enough time to get out alive. Far enough from a populated area, I'd call that an option, but only if the Elements are fully charged and even then as a last resort."

"There's another possibility to investigate: The barrier might not be a hundred percent perfect. Celestia lost some of her free energy -- what isn't tied to the sun or keeping her alive, I mean -- when it struck her, so a strong aura in direct contact might bleed through."

"Right, right," muttered Delta as he continued to write. "Whatever it is, it's probably at least semi-permeable. Maybe there's a way to penetrate it without tearing it open, and inject positive magic without spilling the negative."

"There's another thing 'bout divin' suits Ah think yer forgettin'," added Applejack. "The air hose."

Twlight blinked for a moment. "Of course! Negative magic still follows the laws of thermodynamics; it couldn't function as a closed system. Maybe that's what's important about the stars: When they're 'wrong', it could be prevented from drawing power from whatever source it uses, and goes into hibernation. If we can cut that off, even if it doesn't die right away, maybe we can force it to hibernate again or leave for another world."

"I doubt the stars have anything to do with it," said Luna. "I threw them into utter disarray, and the beast was unaffected. I think it is time we abandoned that line of inquiry; clearly the legends of my own imprisonment have bled into those of the kraken."

Twilight thought for a moment. "I'm not so certain. After all, you weren't moving the stars themselves, just angling the light from them so they appeared to move, right?" Luna nodded to confirm. "Obviously we should keep the possibility in mind, but until we know what was wrong with the stars before now, we shouldn't discount their importance completely. I know this is unscientific of me, but... my gut tells me there's something to it."

Delta stared at the clipboard in front of him, tapping his pencil against his chin. "What else... Those incantations. Did you try those out, Luna?"

"Yes. They were effective, to an extent. Not as much as the seal, but I was able to distract the kraken, though at the cost of considerable pain. A pony's throat is not meant to make such horrid sounds."

"'Considerable pain'?" said Applejack with a snort. "You were coughin' up blood!"

Luna gave her a puzzled look. "Well, yes. That is what I meant."

Rainbow Dash chuckled softly. "You're more hardcore than I thought, Princess. And I already thought you were pretty hard."

"... Thank you?"

Pinkie untied the note from the string and laid it flat on the desk, using a pencil cup and a Manehattan snowglobe to hold it flat. Slowly and gently, she opened the pouch and gazed at the strange powder within, glittering like stardust. She dipped the very tip of her hoof into it, and a small amount clung to it as she drew it back. She brushed it off and onto the paper note, but instead of falling as one would expect, it flew rapidly towards the paper and clung to it, like iron filings around a magnet. Her eyes grew wide as she realized the shape it revealed: A crescent moon.

"And this is the part that's been bugging me," said Twilight. "How the hay do those words and the elder seal even work? Do we have any idea? Is it just a phobia of the kraken's?"

"Near as we've been able to determine," answered Delta, "it or its kind somehow tied their magic to their language and iconography. Or maybe their language is some kind of fundamental expression of their magic." He paused to scratch his head in thought. "We don't really understand the mechanism, but there appears to be some metaphysical process involved when the kraken is confronted by the seal, but it's specific to it rather than a general monster repellent. Same with the words; the kraken allegedly taught some to its worshippers to let them contact it and summon a few smaller nasties, but others learned the language well enough to create ones to ward them off as well."

"Sounds like the kraken underestimated us mere mortals, huh?" said Twilight, smirking. "So, is the elder seal just a 'no krakens allowed' sign, written in its own language?"

"Eh, not quite. We think it represents some kind of inherent weakness, something it's vulnerable to. Maybe something that can even destroy it. But we have no idea what that is."

The wheels in her mind spinning furiously, Pinkie turned to look back at the group. She froze in place as her eyes met Rarity's, narrowed and stern; realizing the unicorn had been watching her, she looked away with forced nonchalance and began playing with a yo-yo, leaning casually against Delta's desk. Holding that pose for a few moments until she felt the heat of her friend's suspicious gaze leave her, she let out a breath before noticing the shadow that loomed over her. Her yo-yo dangling and spinning down at the end of the string, she looked up and saw Princess Luna standing at her side.

Pinkie dropped back to all fours, her yo-yo rolling away and falling to the side at the end of its string. The princess didn't even seem to see her there, as her wings and ears slowly sagged, her eyes locked on the glittering crescent moon on Zecora's note.

"Alright, girls, I'll be back soon," Cheerilee said through the front door. "Don't give Spike too much trouble while I'm gone." Giving them one last reassuring look, she nudged the door closed and turned her eyes down the street.

Her breath caught in her throat. This is exactly what the posters around town say NOT to do, she thought to herself. 'Use the buddy system at all times. Go nowhere alone.' What the hell am I thinking? She let her breath out slowly, her eyes turning towards Canterlot. For a moment, she imagined that she could see the wreckage of the outer wall even from her great distance.

I'm thinking about keeping the girls safe, that's what. Come on, time to pony up. With an effort of will, one hoof stepped off the edge of the porch onto the road, followed by another, and then two more. Keenly aware of the growing distance between herself and safety, she forced herself to walk with an even pace. She had to look calm. She had to look oblivious.

A rustling sound from a bush make her heart skip a beat. She pressed on, hoping her faltering step had gone unnoticed, and concentrated on her gait. Right front. Left rear. Left front. Right rear. Right front. Left...

A soft, hungry hiss came from behind, closer than she would have thought. Her left ear twitched involuntarily towards the sound, trying to lock onto its source.

Her feet were no longer moving.

Her head turned slightly to follow her ear, and cold, slitted eyes met hers.

The creature sprung to its full height, one clawed hand lunging forward like a striking snake. With a sound like a whip crack, a pink ribbon wrapped around its wrist before it reached her, yanking it backwards, and the Valusian let out a snarl of pain as its shoulder twisted at an impossible angle. A green and purple blur leapt from the bushes and climbed the length of the ribbon like a yo-yo. Releasing and retracting his tongue, Spike collided with the back of its head with enough force to send it sprawling forward.

Cheerilee ran. She didn't see what direction, she didn't even care. She just ran. Focusing every drop of her terror into her lungs, she shouted as loudly as she could manage. "POLICE! HEEELLP!!"

The Valusian struggled to prop itself up with only one good arm as jaws that crush diamonds latched onto its neck. Rather than trying to pull him off, it hurled itself to the side and landed on its back, crushing Spike between its weight and the cobblestone road. The impact knocked his grip loose, but didn't even stun him. As it tried to right itself again, the young dragon rolled to his feet.

The monster turned its eyes towards its opponent for the first time, but saw only fire.

It staggered backwards, howling in agony, blinded by the brilliant green light. It tried to shield its face from further harm, but the slightest touch sent out fresh ripples of pain. The blast has lasted less than a second, but the blackened scales felt as though they still burned. Another heavy impact struck its chest, knocking it onto its back. Tiny claws scrambled over it, surprisingly strong, and forced it onto its side. It felt a fresh wave of pain from its injured shoulder as the useless arm was pulled behind its back and held tight.

Suddenly, it was still, and so was its attacker. It heard screaming voices and panicked hoofsteps all around, and felt hot breath against its neck. Its vision slowly returned, blurry at first, but soon able to make out the magenta pony it had stalked as she left the library, running alongside a stocky male in a blue uniform.

"Do you understand me?" Spike asked, his voice low.

The Valusian took a deep breath, and spoke carefully. "Y-yes. Not speak well, but... understand."

"Good. Then understand this. I have very good control over my fire. The setting I hit you with, I call 'toast'." Spike moved closer, whispering into the slit on the side of its head he took for an ear. "I can go as high as 'smelt'."

The Valusian did not reply, remaining silent and still.

Spike chuckled viciously. "Now I want an answer from you before I hand you over to the cops. The pony you're looking for... Zecora. Why her? What do you want with her?"

"The book... She knows where moon princess hid the book."

"Thank you," said Spike, his voice eerily devoid of gratitude, but his tone became bright and cheerful as the uniformed stallion approached.

"Afternoon, officer," he said with a grin. "I'm making a citizen's arrest."

"It's okay, Luna," whispered Pinkie. "I'm sure you had a good reason."

The princess took a slow, uneven breath and opened her mouth to speak.

"A good reason for what?" asked Rainbow Dash, hovering above her.

Luna shrunk down in shock, her eyes panicked. Pinkie glowered at the pegasus, her voice a low hiss. "For keeping a really big important secret from nosy ponies like you, you... you nose-stick-inner!"

"Alright, jeez! Sorry, okay? I'll go."

"Go where?" asked Twilight. "What's going on?"

Pinkie gave Luna a concerned look; this cat seemed determined to crawl its way out of the bag. Before she could explain, a cloud of green smoke gathered around Luna's horn, solidifying into a scroll. Twilight eagerly snatched it, grinning widely. Pinkie and Luna thought they were off the hook until Twilight's smile began to fade. She turned her eyes back towards the princess, her disappointment and hurt plain to see.

"Is this true?" she asked, levitating the hastily-written letter before Luna's eyes.

Luna shut her eyes and struggled to control her shuddering breath.

"You know where it is, don't you." It wasn't a question. Twilight tried to keep her feelings of betrayal out of her voice, but was less than successful.

"I'm sorry, Twilight. I am so very sorry."

Twilight sighed. "Alright... I won't lie, I'm angry. But we know now, and it's not like we really had a chance to go get it before, so--"

"No," interrupted Luna. "I am not sorry I kept it secret, nor will I ever be." She opened her eyes and met Twilight's. The pain, the fear, the regret they held struck the unicorn like a physical blow.

"I am sorry because you will have to read it."

Chapter 10: Quaff this Kind Nepenthe

"Do you understand these rights as I have explained them to you?"

"No."

Sergeant Copper Shield groaned, remembering the various times petty criminals had pretended to not understand their legal rights, whether as a stalling tactic or just to annoy him. He usually explained to the former that if they didn't want to answer any questions they could just invoke their right to silence instead of wasting everypony's time, while for the latter, getting up and leaving them alone in the box for an hour or five usually bored them enough not to try it again.

He wasn't used to dealing with perps who genuinely did not get it.

Maybe it's a language barrier, he thought to himself. His Equestrian's pretty rough.

"Alright. Vulrask, was it? What don't you understand?"

The Valusian sat awkwardly on the chair, its seat just slightly too low to be comfortable with his long legs. He picked up the sheet of paper in front of him with his right hand, while his left, shackled to the table, drummed thoughtfully across the wood surface. His slitted eyes read and reread the printed text, his scaled brow furrowing in confusion. "Vulrassk," he replied, emphasizing the 'S'. "It say... I have right to remain silent. I not have to answer questions?"

Copper Shield nodded. "That's right. And I'm not allowed to keep badgering you until you break down, either."

Vulrassk looked back up at the police officer, his confusion deepening, before looking down again. "And it say I have right to... legal counsel? Someone who work to protect my rights, help me understand what going on?"

Copper nodded again. "We have professional lawyers on our side, it's only fair that you have access to one as well."

Vulrassk shook his head, his eyes closed. "This make no sense."

Copper paused to rub the bridge of his snout before speaking again. "What makes no sense? It sounds to me like you understand it pretty well."

Vulrassk sighed. "Perhaps is, what is phrase... Language barrier." Copper suppressed a laugh. "What I not understand is... Why?"

Copper blinked. "Why what?"

"Why I have rights? I criminal, yes?"

Copper flinched. As much as he loved the idea of just letting this monster stumble blindly into a spontaneous confession, especially after he'd tried to eat the schoolteacher, he knew that safeguarding his rights now would help the prosecution down the road. Besides, he reminded himself, it's the law.

He held up a hoof, hoping to silence the suspect before he said anything damaging. "You've been accused of a crime, yes. And we have a limited legal authority to detain you while we conduct an investigation. But that's all, until a court of law makes a determination of your guilt or innocence."

Vulrassk stared at him, his incomprehension plain on his face. The sheet of paper drooped in his hand.

"Alright... You're confused. Would you like someone to help you make sense of all this?"

"I... Yes. Would like that. Very much."

Copper Shield let out a tense breath. "Good. You just invoked your right to counsel."

"What the hell, Luna?" shouted Delta, the stamp of his hoof resonating loudly in the small room. "I mean, what the actual flaming hell?!"

"HEY!" snapped Twilight, putting herself between him and the princess. "I don't care how angry you are, she is still your princess and you do not get to speak to her that way!"

Delta glowered at Twilight over the tops of his glasses. "Stop me."

Just as she looked about to try, Luna interrupted, her voice stern. "Twilight." Once she had her attention, she continued. "Delta Green is of such great value to me for many reasons, but among them is that he is one of a very few ponies who are willing to speak to me thus." As Twilight stared at her in confusion, she explained, "Yes-ponies are poison to good leadership. As my sister puts it, every leader needs somepony to call them on their crap."

After a tense moment, a muffled snicker broke the silence. "Sorry," said Rainbow Dash with a smile, "I just imagined hearing that in her voice."

"All this time," Delta muttered, still staring daggers at the princess. "The whole time I've been busting my flank looking for answers for you, and you've already had them locked away somewhere. I don't believe it."

"You never did," said Luna icily. "Why start now?"

"Whoah, there!" Applejack stepped cautiously between the bickering ponies, wearing an obviously forced smile. "How 'bout we stop tradin' barbs like a pair o' rowdy hedgehogs an' move on t' some more important questions, like 'Where is it?'"

"There's another I'd like answered first," said Twilight, looking up at the princess. "Why?"

Luna met Twilight's eyes for a moment before looking away, and took a long, deep breath before speaking. "I need you to understand, Twilight, that I value the written word and its power even more than you do. Over the long span of my life, even before my banishment, I have seen knowledge fade and vanish, ponies believing it to no longer be of use in their time, preserved only in handwritten tomes or collections of scrolls like insects in amber. I have seen the turn of the ages bring about a day, long after the ponies who made that choice were themselves forgotten, when it was needed once again. I have seen ponies' lives saved by such vital lore, and seen them enriched by the art and literature of a bygone age thought lost forever and joyously rediscovered. I have been granted a perspective beyond yours, a long view made possible by a life measured in centuries." She paused to turn her gaze back to Twilight's. "I tell you this so that you will take my full meaning when I say that the Necroneighmicon is the only book I have ever wished to burn."

Twilight stared at her in horror for a long moment. "Buh... Burn?! Why-- I mean, how could you even think that?"

"Clopcraft had little accurate information about the book on which to base his fiction, a fact for which I must claim some personal responsibility. For his purposes, he imagined it to reveal great cosmic truths too horrible for mortal minds to bear. But he misjudged only the nature of the book's malevolence, not the scale of it. It is no mere scholarly treatise, Twilight, but the memoirs of the Mad Arabian himself. Any who read it must confront the full measure of his wickedness and depravity; I myself have only read a scant few pages, and I did not purge that memory from my mind solely so that I would remember why it must never be read again in any but the most desperate of circumstances. The evil between its covers is neither grand nor cosmic, but terrestrial... and wholly equine."

Twilight swallowed hard. "B-but... Knowledge itself can't be evil! It can describe things that are, but that just gives you the tools you need to stop it, right?" Rainbow Dash's words from two days prior came to mind: "Cognitive dissonance."

Luna leaned down to nuzzle gently against Twilight's neck. "I understand, Twilight. I could not believe it myself, until I opened the book. But also, you must know that knowledge, even if not intrinsically evil, can be dangerous; it is for this reason that access to certain sections of the royal library is restricted. Never have I encountered a book with information more dangerous than this one: Its author was an authority on the darkest of arcane arts, drawing power from sources akin to that of the kraken."

Twilight felt her skin crawl as another lie to children was revealed. "You're... You're talking about antinomy."

"Isn't that a metal?" asked Applejack.

"That's antimony," corrected Pinkie. After noticing the stares she was getting, she muttered darkly, "Rock farmer, duh."

Twilight closed her eyes for a moment and shuddered. "Black magic. The Left-Hooved Path. It... It's what I was talking about when I said that curses don't exist. A power alien to ponykind, but that can be called upon with rites and symbols. Candles, pentagrams, spooky chanting, all that sort of nonsense. It's rich fodder for cheesy pulp authors like..." She groaned. "Like Clopcraft."

"So," said Delta, his voice soft, "why didn't you burn it?"

"For the very reason Twilight just gave: So that the knowledge could be turned against the evil it describes, should it become necessary. And it has. We have exhausted all other avenues of research; I did not want to admit it, for reasons I hope you now understand, but the information we need has not been copied elsewhere. I kept it secret, even from you, to ensure that it would only ever be our absolute last resort. But as you said, we are out of options."

Delta was quiet for a long moment. "Alright. I understand. I know what you've faced before," he said, glancing briefly at the drawer marked CASE NIGHTMARE SHADOW, "you wouldn't say this lightly." He sighed. "So. Next question. Where?"

Luna took a deep breath, holding it a moment before answering. "The Scholomance."

"WHAT?!"

Luna and Delta flinched at volume of the simultaneous outburst, and turned to blink at the seven ponies staring at them with identical wide-eyed, slack-jawed expressions. Trixie was the first to recover, after a fashion. "Th-th-the Scholomance? The actual factual 'school of dark magic run by Nightmare Moon' freaking Scholomance?!"

It was now Luna's and Delta's turn to gawk. Luna turned towards him and asked, "Is that honestly how it is remembered?"

Delta's eyes darted back and forth between Trixie and Luna before he burst out laughing. Luna simply glowered at him ineffectually until he caught his breath.

"Oh jeez... Sorry, Luna," he said, removing his glasses to wipe his eyes. He tried to compose himself, but his smile wouldn't go away and intermittent snickers still escaped his throat. "It's just... Oh wow, that's too perfect."

Trixie summoned the courage to interject. "Uh. I should mention that the version I heard about was a folktale, by the way. No one believed it was actually real, at least not anymore. Like Nightmare Moon herself, I suppose."

Delta cleared his throat. "Yeah. That. It was part of your sister's effort to mythologize you before your return. It just so happens that Trixie's mother used it in the backstory of her stage persona, which I'm guessing she told them all about. it's actually a pretty obscure legend these days."

Luna cocked an eyebrow at him and Trixie in turn, before cracking a smile herself. "Ah. I believe I understand your... amusement."

"So what's the real Scholomance, then?" asked Trixie.

"The legend is not entirely inaccurate," Luna answered. "It was a school of magic, but a quite ordinary, if prestigious one; rather like Celestia's is now. While my sister has always been more powerful than I, I had a greater command of the theory of magic and its more subtle applications. She felt that I would be more suited to the position of headmistress of the capital's magic academy, a position I held proudly for generations, until... Well. You all know, I think."

Twilight nodded. "How do we find it?"

"You've already been there. We stood in what remained of the main dining hall when you used the Elements to restore me."

Twilight blinked. "Really? I had no idea, I thought it was just another part of the castle..." She shook her head slightly to focus herself. "So where did you hide the book?"

"I do not remember," Luna replied. Smirking at Twilight's wide eyes, she explained. "But we have something that does. I purposefully removed that information from my memory, so that it could not be extracted from me against my will, and stored it in a compass which I had my sister lock away. It is perhaps fortunate that I did so; had I access to such lore when... When I..." Her breath caught in her throat as she looked away.

Delta Green's usual snide expression fell from his face as he looked at her with worry in his eyes. "Luna--"

"No matter," she said hastily, clearing her throat. Stepping towards the desk, she levitated a white cardboard box from the floor next to it and placed it on top. A horn-written label on the side read "N.M. Kraken - artifacts". Lifting the lid, she unpacked a small wooden box, like a jewelry box, from a layer of yellowed newspaper. "A cheap trinket at the time," she said quietly, "but now an antique worth hundreds of bits, if not thousands. And yet its true value was never suspected, even by you, was it, Delta?"

Delta Green's worried, distant eyes snapped back into focus. "What? Oh. Oh. Wait, the catalog says that was recovered from a broken-up cult back in..." He paused, blinked, and his smirk returned. "Heh. Pretty clever of Celly, there. I guess she decided the Archive was finally a safer place to store it than her own nightstand, eh?"

Twilight stared at Delta, one lower eyelid twitching. "Princess Celestia, my friend and mentor, falsified an accession record?" Groaning loudly, she added, "If this keeps up I'll be out of illusions to shatter by the end of the week."

Luna smiled at Twilight as she floated the wooden box towards her. "While within the walls of the Scholomance itself, simply cast a spell upon it to increase its magnetism and it will lead you to the book. Remember, not even Delta and his assistants, nor their predecessors, could find it on any of the previous searches of the site, so if its directions make no sense, just remind yourself that it is extremely well-hidden."

As Twilight gingerly took the box and placed it in her bag, Delta rummaged through the cardboard box on his desk. "Hey, Lu, think we should lend 'em this while we're at it?" he asked, lifting up a stone about the size and shape of a large starfish, shot through with streaks of dull green.

"Oh, definitely!" she said excitedly, taking the stone with her own magic and offering it to Trixie. "I believe you will find this to be most helpful."

Trixie took the stone and examined it. Its upper face was roughly hewn in the shape of a star, with a symbol carved crudely into the center resembling an eye with a flaming pupil. Confused, she turned it over and saw that the underside was cut smooth and polished to a mirror surface, and etched into it with a jeweler's precision was the Elder Seal.

"The Star-Stone," he explained. "Supposedly recovered from a valusian warlock slash priest slash whatever in the last days of their empire. We knew about the Seal from a bunch of different texts, but this is where we got the precise measurements we've used to protect our cities. We've tried to duplicate it, but whoever made it -- we're pretty sure it wasn't the valusians -- had better means of precision manufacturing millennia ago than we do today."

Trixie's eyes grew wide, and her grin followed. "A template!" she shouted. "I... I can use this as a template!" Seeing the confused looks from Twilight's friends, she went on. "The miniature Seal I made first, remember? Before I made a full-sized one? Once I had it just right, I could copy it however many times I needed to, but with this--" She wrapped a foreleg around the stone and clutched it to her chest like a teddy bear, nearly bouncing with glee. "I can just skip that step entirely and copy directly from this! I could project a full-sized Seal in a matter of seconds!"

"Hold on," said Applejack, "If y'all had this thing locked away, why didn't ya bring it with ya when ya went out to meet the kraken?"

"We did not wish to risk losing it," Luna explained, "and from my aerial vantage point I could have used the larger one over the city just as easily. But even with a template, crafting such a precise illusion takes more time than the kraken ever allowed us."

Trixie's grin faded. "Yeah, when I said 'a matter of seconds', I meant around ten or fifteen. That's forever in a fight. It's a big advantage, but if it comes to it somepony still needs to cover me."

"That won't be a problem, Trixie," said Twilight. "I'll watch your flank." Her ears flicked abruptly in the direction of another muffled snicker, but by the time her eyes followed she saw only polite, smiling faces. Sighing, she added flatly, "We all will. Right?" That, at least, was answered by enthusiastic nods.

Twilight's eyes unfocused for a moment as she went over a mental checklist. "Okay! If I'm not mistaken, this is starting to shape up into an actual plan. We should probably hunker down for the night and try to get some sleep -- if we're lucky, the kraken will spend tonight plotting and licking its wounds -- but in the morning we can gather our gear and strike out for..." Her enthusiasm abruptly faltered. "...The Everfree Forest. Where the kraken is hiding out. And is possibly crawling with valusians to boot. And all this to look for a book that's said to drive mad those who read it, so I can study it cover to cover." Putting on a stoic smile, she said cheerfully, "Well, what's important is never easy, is it?"

The words she kept to herself expressed her feelings more succinctly. Buck my life.

Shining Armor took a sip from the mug of mediocre coffee between his hooves as he watched the sun set behind the city walls. He focused his attention on it, trying with little success to push the images of the ponies inside the aid station from his mind. The brilliant colors bleeding through the sky just seemed to remind him of the jarring absence of color within. Instead, keeping his eyes on the sight only prevented him from noticing the pony creeping up behind him.

"Lieutenant Armor! What's the meaning if this... lollygagging?!"

Swiftly setting his mug down on the folding table, he stood, whipped around and saluted smartly at the young mare. His crisp military composure didn't last long, though. Smiling broadly, he lunged forward and wrapped a foreleg around his sister as their necks entwined. "It's called a coffee break, Twiley. And seriously, 'lollygagging'? Who says that anymore?"

Twilight nuzzled her brother warmly before pulling away. "Princess Luna, for one." Her smile faded as she met his bloodshot eyes. "Jeez, Shiny, you look beat."

Shining allowed himself to slump a little after their embrace. "Double shift. Still got an hour and a half to go, then I can finally get some rack time. Been running on coffee and MREs all day." With a soft groan, he sat back down on the bench. "Plus, among all the unicorns in the service with a talent for defensive magic, I'm the one with the most juice to throw around, so they've been running me ragged casting your mind shield spell on just about everypony. Which is why I'm drinking my coffee like this," he added, as he lifted his mug to his lips again with a hoof instead of his magic.

Twilight reached up and patted her brother's shoulder. "You poor thing," she said, smiling gently.

"You're looking good, though, all things considered." He paused for a long moment, smirking faintly. "No more eyepatch, for one."

Twilight blinked for a moment before screwing her eyes shut with a groan. "Please don't remind me of that. It's... not one of my proudest moments."

Her brother smiled warmly at her. "As I recall, Little Miss Predestination Paradox, that ended with you casting a time travel spell without prior study. That's pretty impressive, even if you were a bit off your rocker at the time. Heck, maybe more so."

Twilight blushed faintly at the praise. "Yeah, well, I hadn't slept in a few days by that point. Remind me to tell you about the tactile hallucinations sometime," she said with a shudder.

Shining Armor winced. "Yeah, had those once during finals week."

"Well, if you'd just practice good study habits through the whole term--"

"Hey, I'm done with school. You're the one doing post-grad."

Twilight rolled her eyes at him. "Alright, fine, I'll drop it. But as soon as you've got a foal in kindergarten, by my authority as their aunt I'll be making sure they learn good habits from the start."

Shining stifled a chuckle. "Sure thing, Twiley." After a pause, he perked up suddenly. "Oh, hey, speaking of foals, you'll never guess who I ran into earlier. Your old sitter!"

"Cadence?!" she said excitedly, before being struck with worry. "Oh no, was she hurt?"

"What? OH! no no no, she was working. Aside from the injuries -- nothing too nasty, thankfully -- a number of ponies who hadn't gotten a mind shield got a bit too much of a look at the kraken. She was able to help a lot of them recover with her magic." Slumping slightly into his seat, his face darkened. "Most are okay now, and the ones that aren't are at least doing better, but it was pretty awful. There was one earth pony, we had to talk him down from a rooftop. Nothing we said got through to him. Cadence got him to back away from the edge by using her magic just to make him feel loved, but he was so far gone she nearly overchanneled doing it."

"That poor stallion... I've seen what even a faint glimpse can do to a pony. But he's recovering, right?"

"Yeah, he is, and the others, too. Once the hospital finished handling injuries and beds started opening up, we've been moving the worst cases there to recuperate. All they seem to need is is time, rest, and somepony to talk to, but we can't afford to leave them unsupervised. Even the ones that aren't so bad, no one wants to take any chances."

Twilight nodded somberly. "How many do you still have in there?" she asked, cocking her head towards the tent.

"About a dozen or so, I think. They sent a carriage to bring another few to the hospital about an hour ago, after they'd discharged a few more." He shook head weakly. "I remember the first time I walked into that tent, as if it was only a minute ago. I swear, hoof to Celestia, the first thing I thought of was that nightmare you had as a filly, when those bullies at school told you that sick urban legend about how rainbows are made."

Twilight grimaces for a moment at the memory, but them smiled and gave her brother a gentle nuzzle. "Well, they've got you to watch over them now, just like I did back then." She turned her eyes towards the spires of the palace, silent for a long moment as her expression darkened. "Shiny... If it really came down to it, would you die to defend Equestria?"

Shining Armor blinked in surprise at her grim question, but didn't take long to answer. "Yeah. I mean, I wouldn't give up without a fight, but a choice between saving my hide and defending the Realm is no choice at all."

"What if your life wasn't enough? What if you had to give up your mind, or... or even your soul?"

This time he paused before answering. "Well, I dunno how it would come to that, but... I suppose I would." Rising again and taking a few steps to stand beside her, he continued, "But you wouldn't."

Twilight whipped her head around to face her brother, finding a smile on his lips that seemed at once both kind and a bit smug. "What?! You can't really think I'm less dedicated to the Realm just because I don't wear a uniform! After everything I've done, everything I've been through?"

"And after all that, you're standing right here in front of me, alive, relatively sane, and with your soul as secure as anypony's." Seeing her anger suddenly deflate, he said, "I was right, though, wasn't I? This is about you, not me." Twilight simply nodded. "Your dedication isn't the issue, Sis, it's just that, well, you're a lot smarter than me."

"Oh come on, I know I give you a hard time about your studying, but you're not stupid."

"And my GPA at West Horn is proof enough of that. But that just supports my point. You're still an intellectual titan compared to me."

Twilight blushed and looked bashfully away at her brother's praise. "Um, thank you? But what does that have to do with anything?"

"Remember the scene in Curse of the Yeti, where Ahuizotl forces Daring Do to choose between saving her father's life and her own?"

Twilight's eyes lit up and her mouth curled into a smile. "Oh, yes! One of my favorite parts! The way she managed to save both herself and her father--"

"--Made my jaw drop," her brother interrupted. "But you saw it coming. That's my point. Every time you read about a villain putting the hero in some false dilemma like that, you always see a way out, sometimes more than one. You almost never miss the one the author uses, either." He reached up to put a hoof on her shoulder, and looked her square in the eye. "Whatever it is you're expecting to face, Twiley, I'm sure it doesn't have to be a binary choice. If it were me, I'd pay that price for the good of Equestria, but you'd find a way to not have to. Someway, somehow, you'll make that coin land on its edge."

"Thanks," said Twilight, smiling warmly at him. "I wish I shared you confidence, but... Hm." Her brow began to furrow slightly, and Shining Armor could already see the gears turning behind her eyes as she recalled Princess Luna's words from earlier that day.

"I purposefully removed that information from my memory..."

Shining Armor watched quietly as his sisters' eyes darted back and forth, not truly looking at anything, and her forehoof tapped thoughtfully on the ground. Gradually, a determined grin spread over her face, soon matched by his own. "Got an idea, Twiley?"

"Yeah," she answered softly. "I just might." She snapped out of her reverie to meet his gaze again. "I need to make another late trip to the library." Her smile turning slightly sheepish, she added, "I'll, uh, use the front gate this time. And leave the catsuit at home."

"That's probably for the best; I don't need to overhear another round of comments from the night shift like I did last time, certainly not about my kid sister."

Twilight's smile faded a bit. "Oh. Well, I hope you didn't break too many of their bones for making fun of me."

Shining Armor blushed slightly, but his pale coat showed it more clearly than Twilight's. Looking away nervously and scratching the back of his neck, he said, "Er, actually, most of what I heard was less derogatory and more... appreciative. Apparently, black is a very flattering color for you."

Not even Princess Luna's coat could have hidden Twilight's blush.

Copper Shield's hoof hovered an inch away from the door. After several moments, he sighed and tapped against it.

"Come in," called the mayor's voice from inside. Copper noticed how weary she sounded, even through the door.

Copper slowly opened the door and plodded through. "Evening, Marigold. I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

Her tired eyes perked up at the sight of the gruff detective. "Copper! Oh no, nothing urgent, anyway." She scanned the paperwork littering her desk and sighed. "Honestly, I think I'm just trying to put off the trip home. Even with a police escort I don't really look forward to setting one hoof outside right now." Groaning quietly, she leaned back in her chair. "What about you? Any progress with that beast you have in custody?'

Copper grimaced inwardly. "That's what I came to talk to you about, actually. He's invoked his right to counsel. I need a rope-a-dope." Like many towns too small to have their own public defender's office, Ponyville often conscripted practicing attorneys to represent defendants.

"I see." Marigold's expression turned dark as she steepled her forehooves in front of her. "Who did you have in mind?"

Copper Shield looked at her for a moment, his eyebrows rising slightly.

Marigold's eyes grew wide. "No." Her forehooves dropped to her lap. "No, no, no, no, no." She jumped to her feet, her chair banging into the wall behind her as she sputtered incoherently. "I... That... No! Hell no! How could you even think-- NO!"

Copper rode out her fit with quiet understanding. "Name anypony in town who'd respond any more favorably, and I'll eat my hat."

"You aren't wearing a hat."

"But I own one. It's quite nice, actually."

"Whatever. They're not the mayor. Why should I have to defend that monster?"

"Marigold--"

"Don't you 'Marigold' me!" she shouted. "That... thing... attacked Cheerilee! It would have killed an-an-and eaten her! Any one of the ponies in this town would have been bad enough -- Rocky was bad enough -- but Cheerilee? Every filly and colt in this town loves her; even the ones who hate school think she's the best thing about it."

"I know, Mar," he said quietly.

"Can you imagine if it had succeeded?" she asked, propping her forehooves on her desk and leaning across it. "Can you imagine having to tell her students that she wasn't going to teach them ever again? Can you imagine a town full of grieving children?"

Copper swallowed.

"BECAUSE THAT'S ALL I'VE BEEN DOING SINCE I HEARD THE NEWS!"

Copper flinched and looked away. Marigold stared at him furiously, her jaw clenched. After a long silence, her breath hitched and she slumped down, her rear hitting the floor as she rested her chin on her desk.

Copper waited before speaking again, but she seemed not to have any more to say. "If not you, then who?" he said softly, stepping forward. "There's only two other active members of the bar in town, and neither has your experience in criminal law. We can't request somepony from another town because no one will travel with that huge monster still on the loose."

Marigold said nothing, her expression dour.

"You should have seen him in the box, Mar. He didn't understand anything. He knew the words, but it's like the entire concept of defendant's rights was alien to him. The case needs a pro."

She looked up at him, then down again.

Copper knew he had to play his trump card; he just hoped she wouldn't hate him for it. His throat felt dry, and the words tasted bitter in his mouth. "Remember your first campaign? During the debate, when they took questions from the public, someone asked how you could live with defending a suspect you knew for a fact was guilty. You said that their guilt or innocence didn't matter, because it was your job; the Crown needs to be made to work for a conviction, to dot every 'i' and cross every 't', and not be allowed to cut a single corner. Because doing so--"

"Doing so protects the rights of every pony, including the next suspect whose guilt may not be so certain." She closed her eyes, sighing deeply. "Damn you, Copper. Damn your ability to be so... so right all the time."

Copper chuckled weakly, trying to hide the guilt that twisted his stomach into knots. "You used to love that about me."

Marigold opened her eyes and gave him a weak smile. "It's why I married you."

"Heh, yeah." Copper's own smile faded. "It's why you divorced me, too."

Marigold looked away with a frown. "Copper, I--"

He held up a hoof. "Forget it. Water, bridge, et cetera. Will you take the case?"

Marigold stood up and looked him square in the eye. "On one condition."

"What's that?"

"That we make it to Berry's pub before last call, and you buy."

"That's two conditions."

She rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Deal?"

"Sure. Deal."

Chapter 1: The Widening Gyre

Ditzy Doo was taking a page from Rainbow Dash's playbook, napping on a cloud under the warm sun. After delivering the day's mail, dropping off the outgoing mail at the post office, and passing by the school to wave at her daughter, she found herself with a solid hour to kill before Dinky got home. It was a sunny Autumn day with a few clouds scattered through the bright blue sky, and she'd found a small, puffy cumulus close enough to the school that the bell would wake her up. Ditzy scrunched up some of the cloud for more support under her chin and stretched out her wings to feel the breeze.

Her eyes popped open as her entire body went rigid, a trace of cold sweat forming on her brow.

The breeze.

She couldn't put her hoof on it, but something in the air was wrong. Despite the warm afternoon, something had chilled her to the bone. She stretched out her wings to their full reach and tried to feel for it with her feathers, but it was gone. As disturbing as it had been, the strange, evil chill had lasted only a brief moment.

Ditzy did her best to dismiss it and snuggle back down into her cloud. Whatever it was, it was gone now.

When she felt it again, she leapt into the air in a single stroke of her wings, eyes darting around in panic. And then it was gone again. She tensed, counting the seconds as she did between seeing lightning and hearing its thunder.

The chill struck her again. One one-thousand, two one-thousand, three one-thousand... When she reached six, it came again. She counted again from one, and this time it came on seven. The time after that, on five. She wasn't sure if it was because her counting speed was inconsistent, or the chill itself was varying in frequency, but it wasn't slowing down, it wasn't getting any weaker, and it wasn't stopping.

Every six seconds, give or take, the calm air carried with it an ominous, threatening undercurrent, each one no longer than a heartbeat. Or a wingbeat, she thought to herself.

"This is bad." She felt her eyes start to swivel away from each other, but shook her head and willed them back into place. She could feel her mind trying to retreat from the stress, to withdraw and cower in panic, but she forced herself to focus. If it's something dangerous, I need to keep it together and protect Dinky. She took several deep, practiced breaths, and laid things out logically. A sense of danger on the wind. Atmospheric disturbance. Who to talk to?

"The weather team. They'll know what to do."

Rainbow Dash stretched out on her sofa, Tank comfortably asleep on her stomach, and the latest issue of Meteorology Monthly open on her face, fluttering as she snored. A sudden banging sound shocked her out of a pleasant, if confusing, dream about Soarin and Spitfire, and she tumbled to the floor along with her magazine and pet tortoise. They both took approximately the same amount of time to process what had happened, as the banging repeated itself.

She set Tank back on his legs and answered the door, eyes briefly widening in surprise at the sight of Ditzy about to start knocking for a third time.

"Oh, hey." Rainbow rubbed the sleep out her eyes. "Did those records I ordered... come... in?" She gradually noticed that Ditzy wasn't carrying her mailbags and had a distressed, nearly panicked look on her face. "What's wrong?"

"I... There's... The wind..." Ditzy scrunched her eyes shut and breathed deep. "I don't actually know what's wrong, but... I can feel something in the wind. I don't know how to describe it. It's like a chill, but it's not actually cold. And it's regular, every six seconds or so. It's really freaking me out."

Rainbow Dash blinked a few times, trying to process what she'd heard. "Um, what?"

Ditzy sighed, and grabbed at her foreleg. "Just come outside for a minute."

"Okay, okay! I'm coming!" As much as she wanted to get back to her nap, she could tell that Ditzy was upset, so she decided to at least hear her out. Once they were outside, she waited as patiently as she could for Ditzy to explain herself.

"Alright. Now just stretch out your wings and try to feel the currents, like I'm doing, okay?"

Rainbow raised a skeptical eyebrow at her, but complied. She watched Ditzy nod her head slightly, as if counting.

"There! Did you feel that?"

"Feel what?"

"I'm sure you'll know it when you feel it." She nodded a few more times. "Aaand... now!"

"Nothing. Sorry."

"Dang! I know it's subtle, but as the head meteorologist around here I thought for sure you'd be able to feel it."

Rainbow looked around nervously, rubbing the back of her neck. "Are you certain there's, well, actually anything there to feel?"

"Yes I'm certain!" She angrily pointed a forehoof at her cutie mark. "Subtle air currents are my thing, remember? And if you say 'I thought that was for your bubbly brain' I swear I will knock your teeth down your throat!"

Rainbow Dash snapped her mouth shut like a trap and took a step back. "Alright! I'll take your word for it! Jeez, what's gotten into you, Ditzy?"

"That... wind has gotten into me!" Ditzy's wings drooped, and her eyes started to diverge. It was just too much work to keep them straight anymore. "I can't explain it, Dash, and I know it sounds crazy... But I swear on my life, my wings and my love for my daughter, whatever is causing it is dangerous. And I can't protect my little muffin from something if I... if I don't even know what it is."

That, at least, was something Rainbow Dash could understand: Doing everything in your power to protect your loved ones. She looked down at the frightened pegasus and felt that familiar fire start to build up in her chest. If it was a threat to Dinky, it was a threat to her friends, too.

"Alright." The sudden steel in her voice surprised Ditzy. "I still can't feel it, so I'm no help figuring it out. But I know who will. Come on, we're going to the library."

Twilight Sparkle was laying on the balcony, legs neatly tucked underneath her, reading intently. The scientific discoveries she read about, and the promise of more to come, filled her with as much glee as a trashy romance novel did for Rarity. Her ears twitched as something intruded on her academic reverie, but she brushed it off. Whatever it was insisted on repeating itself, but she didn't care. This was... bliss.

"Twilight!"

"AAAH!" She jumped back in a panic, magically raising her magazine in front of herself as a shield. She blinked, and relaxed when she saw that it was Rainbow Dash who'd shouted at her, and that she was accompanied by Ditzy Doo. "Jeez! You don't have to shout."

"Uh, yeah, I did! I tried calling your name, like, a dozen times, but all you did was twitch your ears."

So that's what that was, she thought, blushing. "Eh-heh. Sorry. Scientific Equestrian just put out a special double issue all about astronomy! Apparently our solar system's been inside a huge interstellar dust cloud for as long as we've been studying the stars, and we thought that was just the normal interstellar medium, but it seems to be passing us by. They're starting to make all kinds of new observations now that there's less dust in the way, and--"

"Yeah, I'm sure it's all very interesting and you can tell me about it later..." Twilight knew from Dash's tone that 'later' would never come, but to be fair she had been starting to ramble. "But we've got a problem."

Twilight invited the two of them in and led them down to the main room of the library, where she listened to Rainbow relate everything Ditzy had told her about the chill on the wind so that the increasingly-distressed mare wouldn't have to try to articulate it.

Twilight looked at the grey pegasus with concern. "Well, considering your special talent, it's hardly surprising that you'd be the first to feel it. Can you tell if it's getting stronger?"

Ditzy was relieved that she took her at her word without argument. "I'm... not sure. Maybe? Maybe not." She scrunched her eyes. "I... I dunno."

Twilight reached out a reassuring hoof to her shoulder. "Hey, it'll be okay. We'll figure this out. Now, can you tell what direction it's coming from?"

"I'll try." Ditzy stepped outside and stretched her wings, turning in different directions. After a minute or so, she came back in, pointing a hoof. "Kinda thataway-ish."

"So roughly South by Southwest." Twilight looked back upstairs, relieved that her telescope was already at the window facing that direction. She grabbed an atlas off a nearby shelf. "Let's take a look."

The pegasi crowded around Twilight as she leveled the telescope and slowly scanned the horizon. "No smoke or fires, no volcanic activity that I can-- what the hay!" Twight pulled back from the eyepiece, checked the angle on the dial, and studied the topographical map before looking through the telescope again.

"What is it?" Ditzy asked nervously.

"There's... a mountain there."

Rainbow Dash cocked an eyebrow at Twilight. "So? There's mountains all around."

"But not in that direction. At least there aren't any on the map." She quickly flipped to the title page of the atlas and checked the listed dates. "Unless the Royal Cartographer's Guild let a bunch of fresh interns put this together, that mountain didn't exist as of last April! And considering that the scientific press hasn't printed word one about a new mountain appearing out of nowhere, I'm willing to bet that it wasn't there as of yesterday."

The two pegasi shared a worried look. "So..." Rainbow said, "that's weird, right?"

"Very, very weird." Twilight gasped, her eye still at the telescope. "Ditzy, you said it was about a six second interval, right?"

"Yeah. Why?"

Twilight's lips moved slightly as she silently counted to six. Then again. And again. Finally, she raised her head. "I think I see what's causing it. But I'm not sure what it is."

Ditzy rushed over to look for herself, careful not to disturb the delicate instrument. She saw the mountain, tall and jagged, dark stormclouds gathered around its peak. She wasn't sure what Twilight had been talking about, but then she saw it. A dark speck hung in the sky, slowly circling the mountain. It slowly glided downwards, then jerked upwards for a brief moment, only to resume its descent. Then, about six seconds later, it jerked up again.

Ditzy drew back from the telescope, trembling. Rainbow Dash gently nudged her aside to look for herself for several seconds, then stepped back. "Wingbeats." She swallowed hard. "She's feeling its wingbeats."

"What is it?" Ditzy asked. "A dragon?"

Twilight sighed. "I don't know. I guess it could be, but I've never heard of them having such an effect on the air, even from up close. The green dragon in the Everfree Forest, and the red one that tried to lair in the nearby mountains, they never affected you like this, did they?"

Ditzy shook her head. "No... All I felt from them was wind. And even then, not from very far away." She shuddered. "This... It's not like I'm even feeling anything different about the airflow, or the temperature. It's more like, well, the flavor of the air. I mean, if you could taste the air with your feathers. I'm not making any sense, am I." Her inflection made it clear that it wasn't really a question.

"No, I think I get it." Ditzy looked at Rainbow Dash in surprise. "It's like the charge in the air before a thunderstom?"

"Yeah... Yeah, it is. Not exactly the same sensation, but similar, I guess."

"So if it's not a dragon, what is it?" Rainbow asked.

"I have no idea. Dragons are the largest known flying creatures in the world. I suppose it could be a very unusual dragon, maybe a very magically potent one. Their magic isn't like ours, but they use it to fly and breathe fire, and according to some reports, do stranger things. This is pure speculation, but a truly ancient dragon could be powerful enough that it would send out a strong magical ripple with each stroke of its wings."

"Maybe..." Ditzy didn't seem satisfied with the explanation. "I've felt magic in the air, like when Rainbow Dash did that sonic rainboom, but this doesn't feel remotely the same. Maybe it's just that dragon magic is so different, but..." She shook her head. "Let's just say I hope you're right, because I don't want to think about what it could mean if you're wrong."

Rainbow looked nervously towards the horizon. "So what now?"

"Now? Well, school will be out soon, so Ditzy, you should probably go get your daughter and make sure she gets home safe. If you notice anything new or different, no matter how minor, let me know right away. And if I learn anything more, I'll let you know. Rainbow, you should get the weather team together and brief them. If this feeling on the wind gets any stronger, they'll likely be the first to notice it besides Ditzy, and that will probably mean it's coming closer. We need as much data as we can get, so make sure they know what to watch for." Twilight lifted and closed the atlas, and started downstairs. "I'm going to do some more research, see if I can find any mention of similar phenomena. And I'm going to write the princess."

Spike came back from the market, laden with groceries. "Hey Twi. Got everything on the list except parsnips, somepony else got all the good ones. I picked up some extra carrots instead."

"That's fine, Spike. You're the cook, I trust your judgment." Twilight's voice carried a detached tone that Spike immediately recognized: Research blitz.

Setting the large bag down on the table, he could finally see Twilight surrounded by an array of open books, spread out in what Rarity liked to call 'organized chaos'. He remembered how much Twilight had liked the phrase when she heard it, and how well it described her study habits. Looking around, he saw books on geology, meteorology, zoology, metaphysics and history. Usually he could get some idea of what she was after by the subjects she cross-referenced, but this time he was at a loss. "Cramming for a trivia contest?" he asked with a smirk.

Rather than laugh, or even smile, she just turned a page and kept reading. "It's complicated. There's a letter on my desk I need you to send to the princess; it's all spelled out in there, so feel free to read it first."

Spike was officially worried. This wasn't fun studying, this was emergency studying. Spike never doubted Twilight when she was worried, not since blowing off her concerns about the Nightmare Moon prophecy. If Twilight thought there was a problem, odds were she was right.

Spike unrolled the scroll on Twilight's desk and began to read. Slowly, his eyes grew wide and his pupils shrank to pinpricks. His breathing became rapid and shallow. Mysteriously appearing mountains? Huge flying monster? An evil chill on the wind? It... No way. It can't be. "Heheh... You're pulling my leg, right, Twi?"

Twilight looked up at him, confused. "Why would I joke about this?"

Spike gulped. Either she's serious, or she's really going the extra mile for the gag. "Well, I mean... This can't be real. It... No way."

"Just because it's outside our experience doesn't mean it's not real, Spike. Remember the whole Pinkie Sense fiasco?"

Spike faceclawed. "No! that's not what I... I mean this, this specific thing, there's no way it can be real."

Twilight rolled her eyes and groaned. "Fine. come on." She led him to the telescope, still aimed at the mountain. "Take a look."

This is a long way to go to get a ring of ink around my eye, Spike thought as he looked through the eyepiece. He immediately jumped back, alternately staring at the telescope and the horizon. Pure, elemental fear was painted on his face.

"Spike! What's wrong?"

"You put a spell on the telescope, right, Twi? You did, you cast an illusion on it so I'd see that mountain and the flying monster." His breathing became ragged. "Well done, Twi, well done. Prank of the year, no doubt. Pinkie and Dash will be jealous. Now make it stop."

"Spike... Do you know something about this?"

Spike felt himself getting faint, and forced his breathing back to something slightly more regular. "It's... not a prank, is it."

Twilight shook her head, the concern on her face growing. "Spike, if you know something, please. You have to tell me."

Spike's jaw flapped uselessly, before he gave up on attempting to speak and went to the nightstand beside his and Twilight's beds. Opening the bottom drawer, he pulled out a digest-sized paperback book and handed it to her.

Twilight lifted the book in front of her with her magic. The cover showed a lonely, jagged mountain jutting up from the sea amidst a stormy sky, and a strange, dragon-like beast flying near the peak. The title read Tales of Terror: Classic Stories by H. P. Clopcraft.

Twilight had occasionally teased Spike about his taste in books, but was secretly pleased to see him read more, regardless of what it was. Now, she looked at the book in a new, and disturbing, light. "Spike... You're telling me that this situation occurred in one of Clopcraft's stories?"

"Well... not exactly, maybe. But it's similar."

At such news, Spike could have expected many different reactions from Twilight. Fear. Despair. Even frustrated dismissal. He would never have expected joy.

"Spike!" She grinned brightly at him, her eyes shining. "This is GREAT news!"

"Say what now?"

"This kind of similarity suggests that Mr. Clopcraft took inspiration for his stories from real life! That means that actual records of this creature probably exist somewhere! If we can find where Clopcraft got his ideas, maybe we can find some real, useful information! Oh, this is wonderful. I hadn't been able to find anything in my research, I was so worried that it was something never encountered before and we'd be flying blind, but now I have a real lead!" She lunged towards Spike craning her neck around him and wrapping a foreleg around his back in an overjoyed hug. "Oh thank you, Spike! I'll never say a derisive word about your taste in literature again!"

"Twilight, this isn't good news!" Spike angrily forced his way out of her embrace. "If Clopcraft's stories are accurate, that... monster is going to destroy the world and there's nothing we can do to stop it!"

Twilight's smile fell and her eyes softened. "Oh, Spike," she said soothingly, "Clopcraft was a horror writer. I'm sure he was just exaggerating. And this doesn't change what that creature is, or where it came from, or why it's suddenly active. It just gives us more information. And that is always a good thing."

Spike began to relax. What she was saying made sense, he knew, and the visceral terror he felt when he first read the letter was beginning to fade. He took a deep breath. "You're right. There's no need to go all scatological until we know more."

"I think you mean 'eschatological'. At least I hope you do."

"Why, what'd I say?"

"Never mind. I need to add something to that letter." Twilight bounded down the stairs to her desk and lifted her quill again.

P.S.: Spike says this entire situation is highly reminiscent of the work of horror author H. P. Clopcraft. The similarities appear strong enough to suggest that Mr. Clopcraft had some actual knowledge of the phenomenon at hand, although he may not have realized there was any truth to it. If we can determine the sources from which he drew the inspiration for his stories, it may lead us to more reliable primary sources about the creature, its nature, and its intentions. I will continue my own research, and look forward to whatever insights you may be able to provide, and if this does present a threat to Equestria, I hope that I have been able to provide information that will be useful in our defense.

Y.F.S., Twilight Sparkle

Twilight rolled up the scroll and sealed it. "All right, send it."

Spike picked up the letter and breathed out a narrow jet of flame, incinerating it. They both watched the glittering green smoke drift out the window and disperse on the wind, wondering how long the response would take. While they waited, Twilight returned to her books and Spike started to put the groceries away.

About fifteen minutes later, Spike felt a familiar rumble in his stomach. Turning away from the carrots he was chopping, he belched forth a gout of green fire which burned in reverse to produce a scroll. Snatching it from the air, he unrolled it, and the fears which Twilight had so logically dispelled began to resurface with his first glance at the script on the page.

Twilight cantered into the kitchen at the sound of the arriving message. "Oh, she wrote back already?" Her smile vanished when she saw Spike's face. He handed the scroll to her, and she gingerly floated it towards herself and unrolled it.

In every letter Twilight had ever received from her, Princess Celestia's script had always been neat and precise, no matter the circumstances. But this time, it was a mess. It was perfectly legible, but letters were uneven, stroke weights varied erratically, and the lines of text were oddly angled. And yet, it was still recognizably Celestia's own writing. The only time Twilight had ever seen her mentor write so messily was when writing notes for herself. Even the shopping lists she wrote for the kitchen staff were immaculate.

The only possible explanation was that she had been in a terrible hurry when she wrote the letter, and that frightened Twilight far more than the actual words it contained.

Twilight,

That alone was worrying. Not "My Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle", just "Twilight".

Thank you for your letter. We were already aware as of this morning of the sudden appearance of the mountain and the creature flying around it, as well as the connection to Mr. Clopcraft. However, word of your friend's ability to sense a disturbance in the air that corresponds to its wingbeats was surprising, and potentially useful, so I thank you for it. If you learn anything more, please write again. I would like to compare notes more thoroughly, but I haven't the time. I can tell you that the mountain you saw is in fact an island in the deep ocean beyond the Everfree Forest.

That can't be right, Twilight thought to herself. For us to be able to see that thing from so far away, even with my telescope... It must be huge.

In truth, I was beginning to prepare a letter to you when I received yours. Your concerns, and Spike's, are valid. This being, which we are referring to for the moment as "the kraken", does present a grave threat to Equestria, and we are currently organizing our defenses. To that end, I have a task for you which may be instrumental in the defense of Ponyville.

I have enclosed a diagram of a geometric symbol which our intelligence suggests is an effective defense against the creature and its ilk. I need you to draw this symbol on the streets of Ponyville, so that it will be visible from the skies above, even at a great altitude. I have sketched below a possible layout, but feel free to change it if you can find a better fit. Since we are not sure how well the creature can see at night, I would suggest you enchant the symbol so that it will glow in the dark.

The symbol itself I have drawn in black, and the measurements I added in red. It is allegedly effective at any scale at which the creature may see it clearly, but I cannot stress this enough: the proportions of each element of the design must be maintained. Our intelligence indicates that the greater the precision, the more effective the ward. At the scale of the included diagram, a difference of a hair's breadth could cut its effectiveness in half.

I urge you to give in to your meticulous, detail-focused nature for this task. Do not let anypony tell you that you are being "too fussy" or that it is "good enough". Even if nopony else can see the difference, do what you feel you need to and tell any critics to stuff a sock in it. In fact, tell them that I told you to say that. Just try to have it completed before nightfall. If the creature does approach Equestria, Ponyville will likely be one of the first settlements it will encounter.

I know these instructions will make no sense to you. I know that you will want to argue and debate and pick it apart fact by fact. But I beg of you, Twilight, just accept it for now and do as I ask. I will explain when I get the chance, but right now I simply do not have the time.

Until we next meet, know that Luna and I love you and all your friends very much, and we're both very proud of you.

Celestia

Twilight read the letter a second time, certain that she had to have misunderstood. She hadn't. You're right about one thing, Princess, it makes no sense to me.

She looked down at the symbol that was supposed to protect Ponyville. Its geometry was simple, at least. A single diagonal line went from the bottom left to the top right, and a few other lines branched from it horizontally and vertically. The lengths of the lines varied, and each one, including the main diagonal, bore another shape at the end, one a square, another a triangle, and the others one or more circles. She had no idea what this strange glyph was meant to represent, or how it would protect the town. Symbols and incantations don't make magic, that's all just superstition! She wanted to scream out every logical flaw in this plan. She wanted to write a dissertation on how wrong it was, and how badly misinformed the princess had to be to think that it would work, and send it to her and wait for the real plan. She imagined that this must be how Spike had felt when he read the letter she'd written, the certainty that what it said simply couldn't be true, because if it was, then nothing made any sense anymore.

She reread the second-to-last paragraph. She knew I'd react like this, she realized, and she asked me to do it anyway.

Confused and conflicted, she reread the very end. Despite the optimism in the phrase "until we next meet", Twilight couldn't shake the feeling that it was the kind of thing you told someone you didn't expect to ever see again. The kind of thing you said when you were saying goodbye for what might be forever.

Twilight didn't realize she'd started to cry until she saw a tear land on the hastily-drawn map of Ponyville with the protective symbol in its streets. Sniffing and wiping her eyes, she studied the map. She might be able to place the symbol better, but it would take time. Better to get started right away.

"Spike", she croaked out, "take a letter."

Spike was at the desk in a flash, paper and quill in hand.

Dear Celestia,

You can count on me. And we all love you, too.

Twilight

Spike looked up at her. "That's it?"

"That's all that's necessary. Send it."

Spike burned the letter and looked expectantly at Twilight. The doubt and fear on her face had been replaced by steely resolve.

"Grab my saddlebags. We've got work to do."

Chapter 7: Surcease of Sorrow

Trixie began to shift uncomfortably on the floor. "As much as I hate to break this up, you see, I'm glad I found you, but I hadn't actually been looking for you..."

"Oh. Oh! Uh, right, I'll just. Um. Eh-heh." Twilight zipped out of the stall as Trixie shut and latched the door behind her, and set to work repairing the mirror.

When Trixie emerged, Twilight had washed her face again, but her mane was still a mess. And so was her cutie mark. "I don't know how I'm going to explain that to the girls," she said with a sigh.

"You won't have to. Hold still a sec." Trixie's horn glowed, and with a flash of light, the bald patch on Twilight's flank was covered in a healthy coat of fur, indistinguishable from the rest. "You don't work with pyrotechnics for as long as I have without losing a few patches here and there. And that's real hair, not a conjuration like your moustache spell, so you won't have to worry about it wearing off or getting dispelled."

"That's pretty handy. Can you teach me that when we have the time? I don't work with pyrotechnics so much as live with one."

"Sure thing. For now, why I don't I help you bang that mane back into shape?" Trixie lifted the brush from the grooming kit began slowly working the knots out of Twilight's mane.

As Trixie worked, Twilight looked worriedly at the bathroom door. "Jeez, I hope no one heard me earlier. I was making kind of a racket, wasn't I?"

"It's okay. You had a lot of stuff pent up and it was your first real chance to let any of it out. Besides, I put a soundproofing spell around the room, so I doubt anypony heard much of anything."

"Trixie!" gasped Twilight in a mock-scandalized tone. "Locked door, soundproofed room; you could have done just about anything to me in here. You could have me completely at your mer--" Bonk. "Ow!"

Trixie brandished the hairbrush in a threatening manner, but fought to conceal her smile. "'Nuff of that. Let's just get you presentable so you can go back to your friends before they start worrying."

"Yes ma'am," said Twilight sheepishly.

By the time they returned, Applejack and Fluttershy were awake and talking quietly with Rarity over the morning paper, but Dash and Pinkie were still out, despite having somehow traded positions. Trixie still stopped warily at the threshold like a vampire who hadn't been invited in, but Twilight stayed close to her, just inside the door.

"Welcome back, dear," said Rarity. "You're looking much better, I'm happy to see."

"Mornin', Twi. What took ya so long?" Applejack asked cheerfully.

"Oh, uh, Trixie and I were just... talking," said Twilight, blushing. "About stuff."

This time, there was no mistaking it. Rarity and Applejack shared a stern look, and both locked their gazes firmly on Trixie, as Fluttershy gently swatted Rarity with a wing and gave her the "play nice" glare.

Trixie struggled to keep her forehooves on the floor instead of her face. Nicely done, Twi. You managed to make the truth sound like a freaking alibi. Trying to keep an actual secret would probably destroy you.

Twilight was oblivious to the silent exchange, however, having been nervously looking everywhere else. Turning her attention back to Trixie, she asked, "Are you sure you wouldn't like to come in?"

"Don't pressure her, Twilight," said Fluttershy. "She doesn't have to if she's not comfortable."

"No, it's okay," said Trixie, her voice tense. "I can do this." Twilight needs my support more than I need to wallow in my issues. Check your emotional baggage at the door, Trix... She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and stepped in. Opening her eyes again, she looked around and, to her surprise, managed to not completely lose it.

Twilight bit her lip, only now putting together the reason for her reluctance. "I'm sorry, Trixie, I didn't realize... I didn't think."

"Don't worry about it. You couldn't have known."

Twilight took another look at the unconscious princess in her bed. A fresh IV bag now held a milky white liquid, and her bedding looked slightly disturbed.

"Any change?"

"She's stirred a few times," answered Fluttershy. "She almost seems like she's just asleep. A doctor came by while you were out, he said the swelling in her brain's gone down and her magic's almost back to normal, so they took her off the potion and starting feeding her intravenously."

Twilight stepped close to the bed, examining her mentor for any sign of life. Her breath seemed deeper, although the mask over her mouth remained. Slowly, she reached out a hoof to touch hers.

It twitched.

Twilight gasped and nearly pulled her hoof away by reflex, but she caught herself. After a few tense seconds, she gently stroked Celestia's leg, and the princess extended it towards her. The movement was slight, not even an inch, but it was a reaction. Celestia shifted her head slightly, breathed deeply, and let out a contented sigh. Twilight was certain for a moment that she would open her eyes right then, but they stayed stubbornly closed, and soon her breathing returned to its former pace.

"She's improving," Twilight whispered. Her head knew that she would, but now that her eyes had seen it, her heart was finally able to believe it. However long it may take, Celestia would be okay. She felt the tears come again, but she didn't mind; these were the good kind.

Twilight shared a smile with her friends and noticed Dash and Pinkie were finally waking up. "Morning, girls."

"Hm? Oh, hey Twi," croaked Rainbow Dash, her eyes unfocused.

Pinkie, in contrast, woke up like switching on a light. "Goooood morning, everypony! Who wants breakfast? Wait, this isn't the bakery..." Looking around for a second, her eyes landed on the crash cart. "Okay, if someone can find the ingredients, I think I can rig that defibrillator into a crude waffle iron--"

"Or," interrupted Rainbow Dash hastily, "we can go to the cafeteria where they've already got waffles."

"Bud I ahreaby gob oud by buldidool," complained Pinkie around the 23-in-1 folding multitool gripped in her mouth. Looking around at the combination of disapproval and terror on her friends' faces, she spit it out onto her upturned hoof. "Fine. I won't mess with the extremely dangerous piece of medical equipment that they might actually need to save somepony's life and okay I think I see your point."

"Right," said Rarity, taking charge. "Now that we're all awake, Twilight, why don't you go ahead and get a nice hot shower, and Trixie and I can take everypony's breakfast requests to the cafeteria."

Trixie blinked and cocked an eyebrow at Rarity. "Me?"

"Why not? We'll have an easier time carrying all that food with our magic, after all, and it will give us a chance to talk, unicorn to unicorn."

Trixie stared at Rarity's conspicuously non-threatening expression, and felt as though a noose was tightening around her neck. "Uh. Sure."

Rarity smiled and levitated a memo pad and pencil off of the end table, as Rainbow passed a folded menu to Twilight. "Alright then, Twilight, what would you like?"

"Hm, I wonder if they-- ooh, blueberry pancakes. And orange juice." Twilight passed the menu back to Rainbow, and looked towards the bathroom door. "And that shower does seem to be calling my name. Later, Trixie, have fun with Rarity!" she said, smiling as she opened the door, completely oblivious to the showmare's impending doom.

"No," said Trixie as they turned the first corner down the hall.

"I beg your pardon?" asked Rarity.

"I'm saving you the trouble of asking the question you're obviously going to. And the answer is no. I am not having an affair with Twilight."

"Oh, I already knew that. The effort of keeping such a secret would absolutely destroy her."

Called it, thought Trixie as she turned a suspicious eye towards Rarity. "Alright, then what?"

"Well, it's plain to see that there's something going on between you two, although I haven't been able to tell exactly what. You certainly seem to know a fair bit about each other, and you've been awfully... familiar."

Trixie sighed heavily. "She did tell you, right? About the night after that fiasco with the Ursa?"

"She did mention, briefly, that you'd come back to town to collect your things."

"Right. I had some personal effects I wanted to retrieve, and my insurer's response to my claim was basically 'Thank you, that's one we hadn't heard before,' so I pretty much needed to bring the wreckage complete with embedded Ursa hairs right to their office to prove it. Well, that or get corroborating testimony from credible witnesses, but I didn't exactly feel confident about getting anyone in Ponyville to help me out. So I'd meant to just sneak in after dark, magic my wagon back into a vaguely road-worthy condition, and haul it out of there.

"But Twilight spotted me, invited me in for some tea, and we chatted for a while. She told me about the princesses and her friends, I told her about my career and my mother. I felt a lot better about getting shown up by her after I found out who she was, and that she'd never meant to in the first place. I was surprised by how genuinely nice she was, actually; she wasn't holding a grudge or anything, and she really seemed to feel sorry for what had happened. When I felt like it was time to go, she helped me with my wagon and I set off on the road. After that, we wrote a couple times, and she even gave me a written statement for the insurance investigator, which shut down their stalling tactics pretty hard and got me a nice settlement."

By this time they'd arrived at the cafeteria. Rarity read off their orders, but when she was about to give her bank information for payment, the cashier told her that they were all on the royal account. "Luna's orders," he'd said.

"That was nice of her," said Trixie, sipping on her fruit smoothie.

"Indeed," said Rarity. "So, you're telling me that you and Twilight are just two friends who hadn't seen each other in a long time?"

"Basically, yes. It just looked weird to you because you didn't know we were friends. Also, you apparently didn't like me for some reason." Trixie took a slow, deliberate sip. "That may have colored your perceptions a bit."

Rarity allowed herself a demure chuckle; Trixie had scored a fair hit, there. She was quiet for a moment, watching Trixie take another sip of her drink.

"Did you sleep with her?"

Trixie experienced the abrupt sensation of drowning in mango and pomegranate. Coughing the icy mixture onto the floor, she noticed that the food she'd been carrying was now surrounded my Rarity's aura, and hadn't dropped or tilted in the slightest.

"What?!" Trixie sputtered. "No! No, I did not sleep with her! We just--" She snapped her jaw shut like a trap.

Rarity fixed her gaze on Trixie like a dragon who'd caught a thief in its hoard. "You. Just. What."

Frozen in her tracks, Trixie searched high and low for something, anything to look at other than those furious, blue eyes. "We... just... kndamadoutferabit."

"I'm sorry? I couldn't quite catch that. I had something murderously overprotective in my ear."

"We kinda made out for a bit! Okay?"

Rarity relaxed her gaze slightly before passing Trixie's smoothie back to her. "Well. I'm relieved to hear that Twilight was able to show some self-restraint under the circumstances."

"Oh, really. And I'm some awful predator who would have just taken advantage of her if she hadn't been so damn virtuous?" Trixie now glared back at Rarity with equal fury. "I broke it off, Rarity. Me. Specifically because I didn't want to take advantage of her!"

Rarity blinked several times, and slowly relaxed. "I'm listening."

"Are you really going to stand there and make me recite the particulars?" Trixie examined Rarity's less furious but still hard gaze. "Of course you are. Fine." She took another sip of her smoothie before continuing.

"As I said, she invited me in for tea, and we'd talked for a while. And I admit, I thought she was cute. Honestly, I don't think she has a clue how good she really looks. And, well, I noticed her maybe checking me out a little; nothing overt, just the occasional glance that she didn't hide as well as she thought she had. And I started thinking, 'Hey, maybe tonight won't be so bad after all.' I mean, she was a college girl! U.C. may not be a party school, but still, who goes to university and does all their experimenting in a lab, you know?"

Rarity offered Trixie a slight but genuine smile, beginning to see where this was going.

"Yeah. Twilight 'four-point-oh' Sparkle, that's who. But I didn't know that yet. So I start shifting a little closer, a touch there, a nuzzle there, and she starts blushing like crazy and she's got this adorable grin on her face that just won't go away. And then I lean in close to say something, because honestly at this point it's just fun to see how flustered she can get, and before I know it she's got her tongue in my mouth."

"Oh my."

"I'm thinking she's finally gotten tired of playing coy and decided to up the ante without waiting for me. But I was happy taking things slow; I really didn't have any expectation of seeing her again, so I wanted to make the most of it. And then after fifteen, maybe twenty minutes of this, we break off for a moment, just to come up for air, and I look into those big, deep purple eyes of hers..." Trixie hung her head, her ears drooping. "She was just completely over the moon. I hadn't even started to get really frisky, but the way she was staring at me, she was utterly enraptured. Everything finally clicked into place. She wasn't being coy, she was nervous and embarrassed. She wasn't flirting or fishing for my attention, she probably didn't even realize the signals she was giving me. The whole time I thought she'd been playing the innocent filly, but it turned out she wasn't playing.

"And I realized that I... I just couldn't do that to her. She'd enjoy it, heck she was practically drowning in bliss already, but come morning when I'm not there anymore, she'd be devastated." She met Rarity's gaze again, relieved to see it had finally softened, but her voice was hard when spoke. "If I was the heartless monster you seem to want to believe I am, I could have had my way with her however I wanted. But I didn't, because I didn't want to break her heart."

Rarity chewed on the revelation for several seconds, taking a small sip from her latte. "Well, I must admit, that does sound like her. I suppose I should thank you for taking her feelings into account." Casting her eyes downward, she added, "I do wish she'd come to me about this, however; it must have been rather trying for her, and I'm sure I could have been of some help."

"Mm-hm. Are you entirely sure she didn't try?"

"I most certainly--"

"Hi, Rarity. You're... not too busy, are you?"

"Twilight, darling! I'm never too busy for a friend. How can I be of help?"

"Well, I wanted to talk to you about something. You see, Trixie came back into town last night--"

"Ah, yes, I'd noticed the absence of that gaudy wreckage on my way to see Pinkie this morning. I can't say I'm sad to see the last trace of that charlatan gone from the town... I'm, sorry, dear, what were you saying?"

"Oh, um... Nothing. Just that she came by to collect her things, so, uh, I guess we don't have to worry. About that. Anymore, I mean... I'll be going now."

Rarity blinked several times, her ears slowly sagging as comprehension sunk in. "Oh dear."

Trixie sighed. A moment ago she'd have been happy to twist the knife just a little more, but seeing Rarity's disappointment in herself painted on her face as clearly as her eyeshadow put an end to that. "You can make it up to her later. C'mon, we've got hungry ponies to feed."

Bathed and fed at last, Twilight pored over the accounts of the previous night's events in The Canterlot Chronicle and Equestria Daily. Both papers' stories were filled with holes, errors, and speculation, but considering how little even they knew, she didn't feel like she was in a position to criticize. A story below the fold in the Chronicle caught her eye, however.

"Girls, listen to this. 'Hippocampi Sighted in Baltimare. A Baltimare dockworker reported to local police yesterday evening that he had seen a number of hippocampi, or seaponies, sneaking through the port, seemingly attempting to reach the mainland. Despite the traditional depiction of hippocampi having a tail in place of hind legs, the dockworker, speaking on condition of anonymity, claimed that they were quadrapedal and had an odd hopping gait like that of a frog. Police searched the area, but found no sign of the creatures beyond wet footprints of an unusual shape. During the search, another dockworker reported hearing sounds like a group of ponies diving into the water, but no sign of anypony swimming in the harbor was seen."

Rainbow Dash shuddered. "Yikes. Creepy. Sounds like those fish-toad pony-things that were in that one story, what were they called?"

"The Deep Ponies, from The Shadow Over Hoofsmouth. Yeah, according to the story, they're the truth behind the seapony legends. Another interesting bit: 'Responding to suggestions that the intruders may have simply been ordinary ponies in diving gear, the witness added, "I got a good look at 'em, they weren't no normal ponies. No fur, just wet, scaly hides, and teeth of a meat-eater. And their eyes, Celestia, those cold, black eyes." The witness became visibly agitated while describing them, and insisted on ending the interview and going home. When asked if he intended to return to work the following day, he provided no answer.'" Twilight put the paper down and looked away, thinking. "If I'd read that article two days ago, I'd have dismissed him as a crackpot. Now, I don't know... It's bad enough that the kraken's real, and the valusians. Sure there's plenty of other dangerous things in the world, but..." She shook her head and shrugged. "I don't know."

Trixie, seated next to her on the sofa, started to reach a tentative hoof towards her for comfort, but hesitated, and folded it back beneath her. Looking up, she saw Rarity watching her, her expression appraising, but kind. Trixie watched as she and Applejack had another of their strange, silent conversations, ending in the farmpony giving a slight shrug and looking away. From what she'd heard and read from Twilight, she knew those two frequently locked horns. Still, they certainly seem to have mastered nonverbal communication. She saved the thought for later.

"Oh what the hell?!" Twilight shouted, the paper held taut in front of her. Everypony in the room balked at her; it wasn't much a swear, but it was still unusual for her to use any strong language. "This editorial in the back. 'Can Equestria Survive Without Celestia?' He goes on and on about the possible political consequences of her death or disability, what it would mean for treaties and foreign relations and domestic government... But does he write a single word about everyone who'd miss her? About Luna possibly losing her big sister, or all her friends and extended family..." Her eyes narrow and her teeth clenched, she ripped the newspaper in half. "Not. One. Word."

Trixie reached over laid a foreleg across Twilight's back. "Whoah, calm down. It's okay." She waited a few moments for Twilight's breath to even out and her hackles to lower. "For what it's worth, I think I know how you feel. When my mom... When she was sick, the entertainment press was writing non-stop about what a great loss it was to the performing arts and to stage magic, and all the contributions she'd made to the craft and the community of performers, and how there'd never be another showmare like her. But precious little about the little filly she was leaving behind, who'd just earned her cutie mark trying to be just like her mom, the soon-to-be orphan who'd have to go live with her aunt and uncle all the way in Fillydelphia..." She felt Twilight lean into her as she sniffed and kept herself from crying by pure force of will. "It seems like, when an important pony dies, the papers forget that there's always other ponies left behind who don't care how important they were to the world, because they were important to them. Not always, but enough for it to sting."

"If, um, if you don't mind, Trixie," asked Fluttershy, "How did your mom, um... die?"

"Leukemia," answered Trixie. "She thought she was just fatigued and overworked, at first. Then she started losing weight but thought she just wasn't eating right. But then her makeup artist noticed that she was bruising more easily, and they weren't fading like they should..." She closed her eyes, trying to trap the tears inside, but they wouldn't be stopped. She felt the gentle warmth of Twilight's muzzle against her neck. "By the time they diagnosed it, it had already spread. They tried every option, some of them made her feel worse than the cancer did. But they were just too late. Eventually she gave up, stopped treatment, and once she had some strength back, put on one last show at the Royal Canterlot Theatre. A month later... she was gone."

Trixie wiped away her tears, eyes still closed. She was sure that if she saw their symathetic and concerned faces, she'd lose what composure she still had. The room was silent except for a brief, faint cough she thought to be Fluttershy's, until Applejack spoke.

"Ah'm so sorry, Trixie... Ah lost mah folks, too, when Ah was young. There was an accident on th' farm, an' they..." her voice started to quake; Trixie opened her eyes and saw AJ keeping hers shut tight the same way. "It was 'fore Ah got mah cutie mark, an' Ah figgered, mah destiny ain't set in mah coat yet. Every time Ah looked at those trees, all Ah saw was what killed mah folks. I just wanted away from there, a life that didn' have nuthin' to do with apples." She opened her eyes again, and shot a meaningful look towards Rainbow Dash. "Thank heavens Ah got some sense knocked back into me 'fore it was too late. Ah still had a family, and Ah'd gone and hurt 'em a second time while they was still reelin' from the first. It weren't jus' that I needed them... They needed me."

The farmpony was quiet for a moment as Rarity reached forward to place a hoof over hers; Trixie was struck by the similarity of the gesture to the one she'd backed away from a short time ago towards Twilight. Her eyes seemed to hold a deeper understanding of her friend's pain than the others'. As the group offered silent comfort, Trixie heard another quiet cough, but missed where it came from.

Applejack turned to face Trixie. "Ah'm sorry you didn't have anyone closer t' home t' take ya in, Trixie. Leavin' home after that was hard enough when Ah thought it was what Ah wanted; musta been even worse for you. If you'll forgive an inquisitive mare, where was yer dad in all this?"

Trixie flinched slightly at the question. "If you ever find him, you're welcome to ask."

"Aw, horseapples."

Trixie chuckled quietly at her rural profanity. "All I know about him is that Mom was angry with him when he left. He's not even really a pony to me, just... a concept. Can't miss what you never had, you know?" Eager to change the subject, she turn to Twilight, who had started trying to repair the newspaper. "You need a hoof with that?"

"No, no, I'm getting it." The ragged tears were proving more difficult to align and mend than the neat fractures of a glass mirror, but a trail of purple light worked its way down as the first sheet was made whole.

Trixie heard another rasping cough, and finally spotted its source. "Twilight..."

"Just... Gimme a minute, here," she replied, lifting another pair of half-sheets with her magic and fastidiously aligning them.

"Twilight."

"I mean, sure it's nowhere near the level of burning a book, but I still feel awful about it, you know--"

"Twilight!" Trixie hissed, reaching across to shove the paper down from in front of her face and pointing across the room.

"What?" Twilight snapped, before following the line of Trixie's leg. A plastic water bottle, surrounded by a faint trace of golden light, trembled slightly on the end table near Celestia's bed. Slowly, it slid towards the edge, before tumbling to the floor and rolling away.

"Pr... Prin...cess?" Twilight rose slowly, unsure of the truth of what she'd seen.

A faint, raspy voice struggled to answer her, dry as a desert wind. "T-Twi..li..." Celestia began to cough again, loud and ragged, her whole body shaking. As Twilight dashed towards her, she managed to croak, "W-water."

Twilight snatched the fallen bottle from the floor with her magic, wrenched off the cap, and gently moved the oxygen mask from the princess' muzzle. Lifting the bottle to the her lips, she whispered, "Here you go. Not to fast." Celestia sucked desperately at the mouth of the bottle for a moment, but slowed once the liquid reached her dry throat. They quickly fell into a rhythm, Celestia swallowing another small sip as Twilight tilted the bottle for her.

Half the bottle gone, the princess closed her mouth and gave Twilight a faint nod to indicate that she was done. Squinting against the light, she looked up at her teary-eyed but smiling pupil. "Twilight," she said softly, a faint smile on her lips. "You look terrible."

Twilight made a sound like a hybrid between a laugh and a sob, before answering with a grin. "You should see the other guy." She lunged forward, burying her face in her mentor's neck, sobbing in relief. Celestia slowly moved a trembling forehoof over her pupil's back, and craned her neck around her. After a few minutes, Twilight pulled away, her face a tear-streaked grin. "We were all so worried about you."

"I know, dear." Her eyes opened wider, and her voice was clear but faint. "But I'm... Well, alright, I'm pretty far from fine. But I will be. Admittedly it's been some centuries since I've taken much of a thrashing, but I've bounced back before and I will again." She lifted her head slightly, and for a brief moment her mane rippled as if blown by an unfelt wind before falling still. Looking around the room at the other ponies, she said, "Could you girls give my pupil and I a minute alone?"

Applejack quietly herded the rest of the group out of the room, and once they were gone, Celestia's face darkened. "What's wrong?" asked Twilight.

"I know what happened last night. Once I had healed enough to begin to dream, Luna came to visit me. She told me about Trixie, and... And Sergeant Steel-Eye."

Twilight stood there silently for a moment. She felt she should answer, but all she could think to say was, "Oh."

"Twilight, I know this ordeal must have been very hard for you. I know Steely wasn't as close to you as your parents, or your brother, or Spike, or those six mares waiting in the hall. But I know he... he mattered to you. He was somepony you cared about. And I know that on some level, you might blame yourself, that part of you likely feels responsible for his death. But you're not."

"I... I know. I talked it over with Trixie earlier, she called it survivor's guilt. I know, rationally, that it's not my fault, but it doesn't quite feel like it's true. Whenever I try to remind myself of that, I feel a little like I'm deluding myself." She hung her head and sighed. "I think it's going to be eating at me for a while."

"Twilight, look at me."

Lifting her head again, she met her mentor's pained eyes.

"You mustn't blame yourself. Nothing you did led to Steely's death. Nothing you hadn't done could have prevented it. I can't bear the thought of you punishing yourself for something completely out of your hooves. It wasn't your fault, Twilight." Celestia looked away, her eyes unfocused. "It was mine."

Twilight stared at her mentor, her jaw slack. She wanted desperately to argue, but couldn't string together the words. She couldn't even comprehend the concept enough to refute it; to her mind, Celestia was just constitutionally incapable of such a thing. She's just taking the blame so I won't, she thought, she must be.

The logic struck her like a brick to the head. Twilight had blamed herself for distracting Celestia, but Celestia blamed herself for allowing herself to be distracted. Dropping her guard in order to warn her pupil gave the kraken its opening to strike, and it was her rescue from the battlefield that got Steely killed.

Twilight didn't want to believe it. She couldn't believe it. But before last night, she realized, she'd have been unable to conceive of the princess ever being seriously injured, much less rendered comatose and nearly killed.

After a long silence, Celestia spoke again, still looking away. "I'm sure the doctors will want to examine me. After that... I think I'd like to be alone for a while. I'm still very tired, I need to rest. I'm... I'm sure you understand."

"I... Sure. If you change your mind..." Twilight saw the tears beginning to fall from Celestia's eyes. "Okay."

As the door closed behind her, it blocked out a sound that Twilight had heard only once as a filly, late after her first Nightmare Night at the palace: the sound of Princess Celestia crying.