Twilight almost literally broke Zecora's door down as she laid Screwball on a couch while Zecora rushed to her bottles to try to find something to heal the injured filly.
"Must find the right remedy and soon or Screwball will soon meet her doom!" Zecora said to herself as she frantically picked up several bottles filled with several different ingredients and threw them into her cauldron.
"Applebloom go help Zecora with her potion," Twilight ordered "Spike get Screwball a pillow."
Twilight refused to leave her pupil's sight. Twilight had been extremely hard on Screwball for freeing Ash without her approval, and putting Equestria in danger. But what Twilight had witnessed when Twilight came face to face with Ash and Screwball again made Twilight proud to call Screwball her student. She followed her gut despite Twilight's doubt, and followed in both her mother and Twilight's tradition of turning foes into friends. Twilight had been so caught up in her duties as princess of Equestria she had almost forgotten how some of her closest friends like Starlight Shimmer had once been her enemy, and almost forgotten how the right pony in the right situation can soften even the hardest of hearts. Screwball was that pony, she could see it now. Screwball could continue for Equestria the lessons of friendship that Twilight and her friends started years ago. Shame it took nearly dying and a war for her to see that though.
"Hang on Screwball, hang on!"
"We got it," Applebloom yelled, putting the liquid antidote in a bowl and handing it to Zecora who walked it over to the injured filly.
"Drink this my dear filly friend and soon you will feel your normal self again."
She lifted the bowl to Screwball's mouth and she drank the liquid cure. It tasted and smelled like molded hay but if this saved her life then she would deal with the horrible taste for the time being.
Drinking the whole bowl Screwball then closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
"Sleep well my dear child, for what you have experienced is rather wild. Sleep will help the pain go away and tomorrow you will be ready to tackle the day."
"Thank you," Twilight replied to Zecora as Screwball rested. "I don't know what I would do if I lost Screwball. I don't even want to think of how Fluttershy would handle such a thing."
"You care for the child the same way Fluttershy do, for you see in that child parts of you."
"I do," Twilight admitted as she watched Screwball rest on the couch. "Outside of being a prankster I see a lot of myself in her. The ability to learn, to never stop trying to please me as my student. The ability to trust my gut instinct and prove myself. The ability to forgive and try to change another pony who has gone down the wrong path and needs help. Those are all traits that she shares from me. I know she's Fluttershy's daughter, but in a strange way, I almost see her as my own as well."
"Princess Twilight," Spitfire approached Twilight and bowed to her "The other ponies are wondering what our next move is now that the force field is down?"
"Now we wait," Twilight replied to the surprise of Spitfire "Ash has surrendered peacefully, now all we have to do is wait for him to is officially step down from the throne and come to us. We did it ponies, we have won. Go and celebrate."
"You hear that every pony?" Spitfire flew to the ceiling and shouted over every pony. "We have won! This war is over!" Every pony cheered while Spitfire flew to DJ Pon 3. "Come on, drop a victory beat for us. We deserve to party!"
Smiling DJ Pon 3 took out her spin tables, only for Twilight to stop and point to Screwball, who was asleep on the couch.
"Right," Spitfire realized "Why don't we take it outside then." Nodding DJ carried her spin tables outside while most every pony followed.
"You know," Spike replied walking up to Twilight "The rest of your friends are probably heading towards Canterlot, unaware of Ash's change of heart."
"Your right Spike," Twilight's eyes went wide in realization.
"Go, reunite with them and update them on the situation. I will keep an eye on Screwball."
Nodding Twilight flew off as fast as her Alicorn wings could take her. Applejack and the others still probably thought she was dead, and was probably on their way to avenge her right now. She had to beat them to Canterlot and update them on everything. Ash's life depended on it.
Luckily for Twilight it was a lot quicker to get to Canterlot from the Everfree forest then it was from clear outside Equestria and as she reached the Canterlot city limits she saw her friends up ahead with a large army of their own. Twilight's eyes went wide at the sight, her friends wasn't messing around. They had the yaks, griffons, and dragons on their side. They were completely ready for a war. She almost hated to disappoint them after going through all that work, but Ash had surrendered and reformed, and she was going to honor that.
"This is it y'all!" Applejack yelled as they reached Canterlot city limits. "Once we get inside it will be like as wild as a weasel in a hen house! So let's not waste anymore time!"
"STOP!" Every pony froze, but not because some pony yelled "Stop," But because of the sound of the voice when the words was spoke.
"Twilight?" Applejack gasped
Twilight landed right in front of her friends and allies, her front right hoof was stretched out signalling for them to stop. "Before you attack you have to hear me out."
"TWILIGHT!" All of Twilight's friends suddenly tackled her, every single one of them were crying, overwhelmed with joy finding out that their princess and best friend was alive.
"Oh my gosh how the tarnation did you survive Sugar cube?" Applejack belted out.
"Oh I am so overwhelmed to see you okay." Fluttershy cried.
"Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh." Pinkie was hyperventilating.
"But how? How did you survive being stabbed? And that fall?" Rainbow asked
"Don't you ever scare me again like that dear?" Rarity sobbed.
"I am so happy to see you all too." Twilight cried, refusing to let go of her friends right yet.
"You know, there is very few ponies I would say is crazier than me," Discord replied "But you surviving what I witnessed earlier has to be without question the most craziest thing I have ever seen."
"Where is Applebloom and Sweetie Belle?" Scootaloo asked noticing they weren't with Twilight.
"Yeah and Thunder Soar?" Rainbow Dash noticed "You survived, he had to survive to right?"
"They are all fine," Twilight insisted "They are all back with Zecora at her cottage."
"Is Screwball with them too?" Fluttershy asked worried noticing her daughter wasn't with her.
"Yes she is," Twilight replied as her voice dropped some, the change in her voice though caught Fluttershy's ear and she instantly got worried. "She got hurt as the force field went down. Zecora was able to whip up a antidote but she is currently recovering as I speak."
"Ash hurt my daughter!" Discord roared "I am going to kill that little..."
"No not Ash," Twilight insisted "His second in command Shadow Reaper."
"But he's still responsible, I swear when I get my claws on that little..."
"Ash is not our enemy!" Twilight suddenly shouted over Discord causing him and every pony to go silent and freeze.
"Say what now?" Applejack asked
Twilight took a deep breath as she tried to find the right words to explain what all had happened while her friends were trapped on the other side of Equestria. "I don't know the full story of how Screwball did it, you are going to ask her yourself when you see her, but instead of fighting Ash like me and my rebellion was, she worked on befriending him."
"You started a rebellion?" Rainbow Dash interrupted "COOL!"
"Rainbow Dash? Really?" Rarity scolded "Listen."
"Thank you," Twilight replied before continuing. "Anyway I found out from Celestia that Ash was tormented his whole life due to how he looked. She took him in and made him her student but still most ponies wouldn't give him a shot at friendship, instead attacking him just because he looked different."
"Well that's absurd," Rarity shot put "No pony should be mistreated because they are different, that's what makes them special."
"I know, and the attacks got so bad that one day he reacted wrong and ponies got hurt and he got kicked out of the school. That's why he went bad because almost no pony ever gave him a chance."
"Well I know if no pony ever wanted to befriend me I would probably go cuckoo crazy too," Pinkie replied
"Screwball refused to be like every pony else. She gave him a chance, and he has reformed now. There is no reason to fight anymore."
"Wait!" Prince Rutherford of Yakyakistan replied "Pony princess mean to tell yaks that Pinkie came all the way to Yakyakistan, begged yaks to help stop a war only for war to end before yaks could help?"
"Um, yeah?"
"Yaks are angry, yaks are disappointed yaks are..."
Pinkie put her hoof over Rutherford's mouth to cut him off. "Yaks could still stick around for the post war victory party?"
"That will do, yaks do like good party."
"I can't believe it," Fluttershy replied after taking in what Twilight told her. "My little girl helped reform what turned out to be a misunderstood pony and not a heartless psycho. I am so proud."
"Well that's find and dandy and all but he still tried to kill Twilight," Applejack responded, still not ready to one hundred percent forgive Ash for his crimes. "We still need to do something about his crimes right?"
"Actually I am, I am going to put Screwball in charge of teaching him everything I taught her on the magic of friendship. He is report to her the same way Screwball reports to me and I used to report to Celestia."
"Wow, looks like we missed out on quite the adventure." Scootaloo replied
"Well you can still all join us for the victory party that Spitfire is throwing at Zecora's."
"Sweet," Rainbow Dash screamed "Next to Pinkie Pie Spitfire throws some of the wildest party's I've ever been a part of." Rainbow Dash quickly flew off, soon followed by the rest of the main six and their allies, every one of them headed back to the Everfree forest to celebrate the war being over.
Down at the dungeons of Canterlot castle Shadow Reaper sat in silence, his eyes closed as he sat on the cold floor, his back towards the cell door. He listened as the guards talked about him, mocked him.
"My how the mighty has fallen," One guard laughed
"Once the head of the school of dark magic and second in command to the king himself, now just a prisoner of Equestria, worthless, weak."
It was the "weak" comment that caused Shadow Reaper's eyes to shoot open. No pony called him weak, he was the most powerful possessor of Dark magic. Every pony who learned dark magic learned it from him. He was not about to spend the rest of his days in a jail cell being insulted by some of his own past students. His horn suddenly lighting up the keys to the cell suddenly yanked off the wall and levitated toward's Shadow's cell. The guard's watched in confusion as Shadow made the keys unlock the door with his own mind. Then, black mist coming out of his dark black eyes, his head became a flaming skull and he attacked every guard in the dungeon.
The guards screamed and they attempted to use their own magic to subdue Shadow, but he knew every spell they used against him, he taught them those spells, and he knew how to counter them.
"You really think you can beat me?" Shadow Reaper roared as he levitated one of his former students in the air "I taught you everything you know!"
A bright yellow light shot out of Shadow's horn and the pony screamed as his whole body soon became consumed by fire. Throwing the burning corpse to the ground Shadow soon attacked each guard one by one, killing each and every one. He suffocated one pony with his mind, used a aging spell to make one age rapidly until he was nothing but bones. He made another melt, and he even froze one to death. Soon each guard in that dungeon was dead, blasting a whole in the wall Shadow escaped and disappeared into the night. He would get his revenge, he was going to take Equestria, kill Ash, kill the pathetic little filly who changed him, kill Twilight, and he was going to burn Equestria to the ground.
And he knew just how he was going to do it. The Mirror pool and Grogar's Bewitching bell.
What you thought this story was about over? Not quite my friends. For now the true villain of the story is out for blood and believe me when I say Ash at his worst will look like a saint compared to what Shadow Reaper has in store. So don't you dare go anywhere yet.