Spell 63: The Stallion in the Sun

Bubble Berry and the other stallions watched helplessly from the other side of the bridge as Solar Flare caused Dusk Shine to vanish in a wall of fire. “Dusk Shine!” the stallions shouted in unison.

Solar Flare looked over to see the ponies trying to make their way across the bridge in pursuit. “Stay back, ponies,” he shouted, using his magic to cause a wall of lava to erupt from the crevice below the bridge. The bridge was completely incinerated and nopony was able to get across, not even Rainbow Blitz because of the wall of lava. When the lava finally died down, Solar Flare was gone.

“He’s gone!” Elusive shouted. “Of all the worst things that could have happened, this is the. Worst. Possible. Thing!”

“How are we going to beat Solar Flare without Dusk Shine?” Butterscotch asked. “We don’t even know what these Elements of Harmony look like, let alone how to use them.”

“Hold up, Butterscotch,” Caramel Apple said, looking up. “Hope may not be lost yet. Look!” He pointed up above the ponies to find the fire serpent flying into the castle behind them. “Maybe if we follow him, we’ll find Dusk Shine. Come on.” The five ponies then galloped into the castle and began running up the stairs to the top floor where Solar Flare was headed.

“Are we comfortable, Twilight Sparkle?”

Dusk Shine slowly opened his eyes to find Solar Flare standing over him. Not only that, but he was in a cage made of fire. “I ask again, are you comfortable?” Solar Flare asked.

“What’s going on?” Dusk Shine asked in reply. “Where are my friends?”

“Twilight Sparkle, it’s you I’ve captured. I’m sure your friends are all right.” Solar Flare turned and began walking before adding “For now, that is. Now, are you comfortable?”

“Uh, yeah, I guess.”

Solar Flare turned sharply and used his magic to intensify the flames of Dusk Shine’s cage and caused it to enclose around him. “Still comfy?”

“Not really,” Dusk Shine replied quickly.

“Good,” Solar Flare said, turning back around. “I’m sure you have no idea why I captured you.”

“So me and my friends can’t use the Elements of Harmony to defeat you?”

“Not exactly. I captured you for two different reasons. First, I need somepony to tell my real story to. I’m sure the story your books held was... fairly distant from the truth.”

“Envy for your younger brother?”

“Kind of. You see, a thousand years ago, Prince Artemus and Lord Solaris worked together to maintain harmony in Equestrion. Solaris raising the sun, Artemus raising the moon. Ponies frolicked and played during the day and slept through the night. Artemus was all right with this, but Solaris grew tiresome. His precious days were cut short when ponies enjoyed them so much. One fateful day, he refused to lower the sun, explaining his reasoning to his younger brother.”

“I’m going to stop you right there, real quick,” Dusk Shine interrupted. “Aren’t you Lord Solaris?”

Solar Flare turned so quickly at Dusk Shine’s question, he could have set almost anything around him ablaze without even using his magic. He did, however, use his magic to shrink Dusk Shine’s cage further. “Don’t you dare say that Solaris and I are the same pony.” Solar Flare then turned back around. “As I was saying, Solaris refused to lower the sun, one day. He explained his reasoning to Artemus, but the fool refused to let Solaris go through with his plan. It was then that I, Solar Flare, took my opportunity and possessed Solaris, forming the whole pony you see now. I used Solaris’s magic to combat Artemus and use the power of the sun to burn Equestrion. However, Artemus was better prepared than I had expected. He used the Elements of Harmony and sealed me in the sun, taking control of both the moon and the sun to maintain harmony single-hoofedly.” Solar Flare turned back to Dusk Shine, who flinched a little, expecting the cage to shrink again. Solar Flare just chuckled a little at this. “And now here I am, a thousand years later, ready to finish what I started. But this time, thanks to you, I cannot be defeated by the Elements of Harmony because they cannot be used without you. As long as I have you here, the element of Magic will never appear, and Equestrion will burn.”

“You said you had a second reason for capturing me?”

“Oh, yes. I apologize, but I have a tendency to monolouge. My second reason for capturing you is that you are going to help me.”

“Help you? Why would I help you?”

“Because using my magic, the magic of flame, I can give you anything you ever wanted. Ever. All I ask in return is for you to cast Spell 63 for me.”

“I would never doom my world for just anything.”

“What about the one thing you’ve been missing? I can release you from Dusk Shine’s body and give you your wings back. You’d be stuck like this without me. So, how about it?”

“You must be forgetting something... I’ve dealt with Discord, before. I know that there are always more strings attached than you tell me about.”

“Fine. I can always absorb your magic and cast Spell 63, myself. And don’t expect your magic of friendship to save you this time, because this is your final adventure, Twilight Sparkle.” Solar Flare then walked over to Dusk Shine and cast his spell for shrinking the fire cage. “Once you’re crushed by this cage, I will have all of your spells and your magic powers will be added to mine.”

Dusk Shine tried to center himself in the cage as much as possible, but the cage continued to shrink slowly. “No,” Dusk said to himself. “This isn’t how it ends. It can't be.” Suddenly, he heard his friends calling for him from downstairs.

“Don’t get your hopes up, Twilight Sparkle,” Solar Flare said. “They can’t help you.”

Dusk Shine suddenly had a realization. “Yes they can,” he said, standing up.

“Oh really? How?”

“By using the lessons they’ve taught me. The lessons I thought I’ve already learned. When you collapsed the mountain and tried to send us to our doom, I was able to remain honest to my friends even though they doubted every bit of me. When faced with a powerful enemy that actually caused harm to one of my friends, I was able to remain calm and kind to keep anypony else from getting hurt. When it seemed like there was no light at the end of the tunnel, I showed my friends how to stay optimistic and keep going until the end. When one friend didn’t have enough to give, I had the will to step in and offer up what I had to help everypony. And when I was given the opportunity to return to my old life, I remained true to my new friends and their world that I never knew before. And why did I do all this? Not because I was afraid of what you might do to my world when you finished here, but for the sake of new friendships. Friendships like my old ones, but completely new at the same time. A friendship that taught me something that I forgot a long time ago. Taught me that within everypony, whether among friends or in an individual, has an extraordinary power within them. A power that could be enough to find one’s friends again if they’re ever lost, no matter what obstacles must be overcome.”

“No,” Solar Flare said, stepping back. “No. You will be defeated!”

“Sorry, Solar Flare, but my friends need me.” Dusk Shine then concentrated and cast a spell that he never cast before. One that he never had the power to cast before now. A spell that froze the flames that made up his cage, stopping from shrinking altogether. He then bucked the cage, causing the whole thing to shatter easily.

“But you’ve forgotten one thing, Twilight Sparkle. You still don’t have the Elements of Harmony.”

“Oh really?” Dusk Shine asked as the other stallions entered the room. “Because I beg to differ. The Elements of Harmony are not actual physical items. They are the spirits within all ponies. The spirits of friendship that cannot be defeated by any evil. The spirits... that eradicate evil.” Dusk Shine began glowing and rising into the air. “And they can be used by all or focused into one. One single pony or even two souls combined as one.” Suddenly, there was a massive burst of light as Dusk Shine seemed to suddenly grow wings.

“What is this?” Solar Flare asked. “Unless... no. NO!”

A massive burst of light was then shot from Dusk Shine, hitting Solar Flare square in the face and causing him to seem to vanish. “Woah!” Bubble Berry exclaimed. “What was that?”

“I’m not sure,” Caramel Apple replied.

Dusk Shine slowly lowered to the ground, the light surrounding him still too bright for the other ponies to see. “Dusk Shine?” Butterscotch asked, shielding her eyes.

The light surrounding Dusk Shine slowly died down, revealing a pony that wasn’t Dusk Shine. It was Twilight Sparkle, herself. “Woah, woah, woah!” Rainbow Blitz shouted. “Who the hay are you?”

Twilight slowly looked up to find the other stallions looking at her. “What’s everypony looking at?” Suddenly, she noticed something tickling her back. Was that... feathers? Twilight looked over to find that her wings were back. “My wings! My body! I’m back to my old self!” Twilight was overjoyed, but she suddenly thought of something. “Wait, where’s the real Dusk Shine, then?”

“I’m right behind you,” Dusk Shine replied from behind Twilight. “Good to actually meet you, Twilight Sparkle.”

“Same to you, Dusk Shine,” Twilight replied. “Oh, good. Your tail’s okay.”

Dusk Shine turned around to find his tail back to normal. “What do you mean ‘okay’? Did you do something to it?”

“No. Nothing important.”

“Will somepony please tell me what the hay is going on?” Rainbow Blitz shouted.

“Oh, right,” Twilight said, turning to Rainbow Blitz. “It was a simple spell, but it went horribly awry.”

“There’s one simple explanation for that,” came a voice from behind the ponies.

“SOLAR FLARE’S STILL ALIVE!” Bubble Berry shouted.

“No, Twilight and Dusk Shine defeated Solar Flare. I would prefer to be called by my real name, Lord Solaris.” At this, Lord Solaris walked in from behind the ponies up to Twilight Sparkle and Dusk Shine. “Thank you. Both of you. I know that neither one of you could have defeated Solar Flare without the other.”

“That’s great and all,” Dusk Shine said, “but where’s Prince Artemus?”

Just as Dusk Shine said this, the sun outside set and the moon rose, bringing with it a light unlike any other. An almost healing light. One that seemed to heal the scorched land of Violent Volcano Fields. And then the light entered the room, transforming into Prince Artemus himself. “I’m right here, my student,” he said to Dusk Shine. “And I’m all right thanks to you and your royal counterpart, here.”

“Prince Artemus!” Dusk Shine shouted, running up to hug his teacher.

“Or you could just bow like everypony else,” Twilight said, bowing along with the other ponies. “Prince Artemus, let me just say what an honor it is to-”

“Twilight,” Solaris interrupted. “Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“I do?” Twilight asked. “But what about the celebrations in Ponyville? Can’t I-”

“I’m afraid Princess Celestia is waiting for you back in your world. You haven’t time to lose.” Solaris leaned in a little closer. “I’ll make sure you get the credit you deserve, Twilly.”

Twilight was a little reluctant, but she understood and began to walk away. “Goodbye, my new friends,” she said to the others. “Caramel Apple. Elusive. Rainbow Blitz. Butterscotch. Bubble Berry. And of course, Dusk Shine. I’ll miss you all.”

“Twilight Sparkle,” Solaris said, walking over, “you still have access to Spell 63. You can come and go as you please, now.”

“But what about the mistake?”

“That was Solar Flare who messed up the spell. It should work properly now that he’s defeated. We hope to see you soon.”

“Okay.” Twilight then turned around and prepared to cast the spell, but was stopped by Dusk Shine.

“Wait, Twilight Sparkle,” Dusk Shine said. “I have to know something. Am I going to become a prince like you became a princess?”

Twilight just gave a little chuckle and shook her head. “If you play your cards right, you just might.” Twilight then turned and cast Spell 63, causing her to disappear in a flash of light.

“Goodbye, friend,” Dusk Shine said after Twilight teleported away. “May we meet again sometime soon.”