MLP: Darkness Rising

Chapter 19 - To Be Continued...

Disclaimer: Hasbro/DHX are the rightful owners of this franchise. I just own this story, any OCs, etc. and the character "Stardust Balance" was created by the Warrior of Twilight.

Author's Note: I apologise again for the obvious pacing issues in this story; an unplanned hiatus and unexpected events happening in my personal life was the cause of that… but maybe one day, I'll release the alternate version of this story.

After finishing the first bite from the plate of pancakes in front of him, Casey looked over at his special somepony with a teasing expression. "So, uh… am I supposed to refer to you as 'your Highness' and all of that once you're officially declared the ruler of Equestria?"

"No, of course not," replied Twilight, shaking her head while using magic to prepare more pancakes for everyone else that lived in the castle. "You don't expect me to address you as 'my prince' or 'majesty', do you?"

Casey started to look like he was considering for Twilight to call him that, but he held up his fore hoofs in defense after his fork suddenly began to magically point towards him. "Well, now that I think about it… whoa, alright, kidding!"

Twilight chuckled to herself, and went back to focusing on making breakfast while Spike made his way into the dining room, giving a small yawn before his nose detected the cooked meal. "I thought my stomach smelled something good this morning… wait a sec, is there something special happening today that I forgot about?"

"Huh? No, why?" Twilight asked, slightly turning her head in his direction with a confused expression, and Spike shrugged as he sat beside the orange-brown pony.

"Probably because you don't really make pancakes that often," replied the young dragon, with an amused Casey covering his mouth to muffle his laughter as much as possible.

Twilight did her best to avoid rolling her eyes, and sighed while presenting Spike with his own plate of pancakes before going back to make more. "There's no big event or anything going on today, Spike. I just felt like it was a good day to make-"

"Alright, Casey, what'd you do to make Twilight happy enough this morning to make pancakes?" Starlight was entering the room now, and it was now Spike's turn to attempt hiding his laughter. "Or is there some huge event that we don't know about except for her?"

Before Casey had a chance to respond to Starlight's question, Twilight gave her former pupil a small frown while giving the pink unicorn her own plate. "Is that really the only reasons you guys think I make pancakes?"

"I still can't wrap my head around the fact that you're able to cook in general," said Stardust, the golden-furred stallion entering with a rather disheveled appearance. "But it looks like Pinkie's teaching skills paid off."

"Pinkie didn't teach… oh, never mind," muttered Twilight, giving the cloaked pony his breakfast plate while Casey looked at the Twilight Warrior with a slightly-raised brow.

Pointing a hoof at Stardust in reference to his appearance, Casey asked, "You and, uh, Sunset get into an argument or something that resulted in you sleeping on the couch?"

"For your info, pal, Sunset's busy with some kinda shopping mall thing that I didn't pay much attention to when she told me yesterday," replied Stardust, who now began to somewhat make himself look a little more presentable. "And in case you forgot, I am known as the Twilight Warrior for a reason."

Casey chuckled while taking another bite of his meal, and he said, "So I take it you don't turn into a sparkling vampire pony or something?"

"Alright, you know what, I'm about to make you see some damn sparkles with my hoof if-" Stardust glared at Casey from across the table, but he stopped his sentence after the two stallions heard Twilight clear her throat. "Just let me enjoy my meal peacefully before I go back to sleep."

#############

Leaning against part of the bridge between the castle and the Friendship School, Casey sighed as he continued to look at the blackened hilt of Emerl's blade that was currently in his right forehoof.

I'm sure that she knows what you did here in Equestria last week, spoke the young stallion's symbiotic inside his mind, and Casey now had a look of surprise on his face. What? Am I not allowed to be sympathetic every once in a while?

"No, it's fine, I just… thanks," said the orange-brown pony, and was about to put it back in his cloak when he noticed a ladybug suddenly land on top of it. Casey almost jumped in surprise, but for some reason, he found himself smiling at the small and beautiful bug. "Hey."

A few seconds later, the red-and-black insect flew away from the hilt, and Casey watched it disappear up into the cloudy sky while continuing to smile. Then, just for simple enjoyment, he took a nearby pebble and tossed it into the lake to create some sparkling ripples.

############

"You still waiting for that ladybug to return, Casey?"

The young stallion - now in his late 20s - looked away from the rippling water, and focused his attention on the pink unicorn that currently had an amused expression.

"Just thought I'd try one last time since it'll be a while before I come back to this bridge," replied Casey, and he gestured his head over to the school behind him. "Place still looks fantastic. You must be a great principal to the students and everyone there."

As he began following the magical mare away from the bridge, Starlight gave a sheepish chuckle and said, "I mean, I'm not exactly Twilight, but yeah, I feel like I'm doing good… now come on, there's still a lot to get done before evening arrives."

Taking a moment to think about a certain small square-shaped object in his pocket, Casey's smile began to grow just a little more. "Yup… tonight's definitely going to be unforgettable."

################

Meanwhile, in an unknown location…

As his master continued to watch the two ponies head off to the train station a magical portal, a scarred black-furred stallion that was currently standing beside him said, "This proves that I was right about Xenos failing to take control of that world, and bringing an end to that stallion. Now I fear, oh Great One, that your plan-"

"The plan will be as fine as it was when I first thought of it many years ago, Darkshade." The menacing and powerful figure stood up from his skull-and-marble built stone, and he began to make his way over to a floating magical orb that contained one of several special weapons. "She will succeed in what X failed to accomplish for me. Once that happens, everything will fall into place."

Darkshade nodded in agreement, and silently watched as his master began to release what was being held in the orb. "The Equestrian World becomes mine for all eternity… and not even all the mightiest warriors together can stop me."