Earlier today...
Upon arriving at where our chariot awaited, I spotted Twilight and Spike saying goodbye to their family. Her older brother had tears in his eyes, which he preferred to call "liquid pride."
As I got close enough to hear them clearly, Spike waved me over with an excited grin. This was his first trip outside of Canterlot, which made me feel a bit giddy as well. The Sparkle family noticed my arrival and greeted me with smiles as I approached, but Twilight appeared rather downcast.
"Good morning, Ace. How's my daughter's bodyguard doing?" Nightlight said with his usual grin, causing the rest of the family to laugh, minus my charge as she tried to keep her flushed face under control. "Making sure she gets her daily exercise?"
"Take it easy on him, Night. These things take time," Velvet said, gently reprimanding her husband with a nudge of her hoof in his side.
This has become an ongoing joke between my charge's parents and me. Since I spend a lot of time with their daughter, they often tease us, suggesting that we are becoming a couple. However, that would be a long shot, as Twilight prefers the company of books and parchment over other living beings, aside from her family, Shining, and myself. Finding a date is not something she's interested in!
"Doing my best, ma'am," I said with a glance at the filly, gouging her reaction. "She's certainly an adamant one when it comes to studying!" at that she couldn't help but glare at me.
"Well, we certainly should get going. So, I'll see you guys soon, hopefully." Twilight said a bit rushed, like she wanted to avoid talking with her parents and me about her social life. Nightlight and Velvet gave their daughter another hug goodbye as Shining came to wish me well.
Now that I was basically a full-grown stallion since living in this world, I'm tall enough now to look the white unicorn in the eye.
"Take care of her, Ace. You and I know how she gets when she's worried. And don't try any funny business with her, pal." Shining said, ending with an almost threatening growl. Lowering his eyebrows once he got into "big brother" mode. Of course, we both knew it was still a joke, but I didn't want to press my luck either.
"Don't worry, Shining. Your sister's well-being is my top priority, and she'll be back home before you know it, Captain." I said formally, saluting the white stallion.
Ever since our first encounter, we have been good friends, practically brothers if you will. With him being a guardspony in training, and me as a guardian apprentice, we both would take some free time to spar together. While he was more magically inclined, I was a bit physically stronger, so we'd usually end our matches in a draw.
He and I have respect for each other, despite the fact that when we were growing up, I would spend time with Twilight within the castle until nightfall, until she moved into the observatory. After that, he hardly ever saw her except on special occasions.
"I'll hold you to that, Pentagon." Shining said, more relaxed as we exchanged a bro-hoof. "Try to make sure she loosens up while you're there; the fresh country air might be what she needs!"
After that, he went to go hug his sister while the parents came up to me. Both holding sad smiles for some reason.
"Ace, for as long as we've known you, you have been like one of the family," Velvet Sparkle said fondly, on the brink of tears. "And we already know that you don't see our precious girl in that sort of way, but we want you to stick by her side and support her, no matter what happens."
"You've been the only true friend our little Twily has ever had, kiddo." Nightlight said while bringing his wife in for a hug. "So be sure to keep your chin up, your nose clean, and use that wit of yours wisely."
"Don't listen to this fool's preachings, just do what you can for our girl, and be the best you can be, Ace!" Velvet cut in jokingly.
I honestly felt myself tearing up a bit, and I brought the couple in for a hug. Since being stuck in this world, these two have been the closest thing to having parents that I'll ever have. "Thank you, for everything." I whispered to them, smiling as we broke the hug.
Until I heard, "And be sure not to have too much fun, deary, I'm not ready to be a grandmother just yet!" from the grey mare. And with that, my face flushed crimson.
"Okay, we'll be leaving now!" Twilight said in exasperation from the chariot, causing us to chuckle.
"See ya!" I called out as I leapt into the chariot as it was taking off, riding off into the skies while we waved to the ponies below.
And we were off.
Present Time...
"So, who wants to go first?" I asked the group of mares, awaiting the bombardment of questions they undoubtedly had.
To nopony's surprise, Pinkie was the first to start asking questions at rapid-fire, bouncing around and getting uncomfortably close to my face! "When's your birthday? Do you like cupcakes? How about balloons? Are you here to stay? Did you like the party I threw for you? How'd you get that scar? Are you a soldier? Can..." Suddenly, I saw somepony discreetly shove their hoof into Pinkie's unstoppable mouth, halting the onslaught on my ears.
"Pinkie," Rainbow Dash said with a strained smile, "Maybe just one question at a time?" She then lowered her hoof from the hyperactive mare's mouth.
"Well," I said with a chuckle. "I'll see if I can answer them all." And then, with a big intake of air, I began: "My birthday is in December, just at the start of winter. I prefer chocolate but won't turn my nose up at any available flavor. I certainly do like balloons. As far as I know, we're just here until the Summer Sun Celebration is finished. This is probably the best party I've ever been to. My scar came from a little accident that happened some time ago. And no, I'm not a soldier, but I do train in combat quite often! Whew!"
"Um," whispered Fluttershy from behind her mane, shrinking in on herself as I looked her way. "I...if you don't mind my asking, how come your cutie mark doesn't match your name? If that's alright?"
"That's a fair question," I said with a nod, smiling gently at her in hopes of appearing non-threatening. "But I like to think that it represents me like a well-fitted horseshoe; the five parts and colors of the mark show diversity, and the lion's head means apex. So I think it is a subtle way to match my name!"
At that, Fluttershy actually seemed to relax more in my presence, about to ask another question. Until a certain speed demon interrupted.
"Wait, if you're not a soldier, then why are you training in combat?" Rainbow Dash said incredulously, hovering above my head.
I gave a flat look myself until an idea came to me to jab back at her. "I could ask the same about you, Dash, training for the Wonderbolts!" That got the blue mare to look at me in shock. The other girls laughed at the interaction.
"I train because it feels right. Knowing I can defend myself and come to anypony's rescue makes me feel like I'm doing my part. Besides, it keeps my life interesting." I said in clarification.
"Well, that's quite interesting, darling," Rarity said from the side, flipping her mane like the diva she seems to be. "But what about your life in Canterlot? I would most certainly like to know more about that!" I could clearly see both tomboyish mares roll their eyes at the fashionista's words, Fluttershy silently looking between her friends with a nervous glance my way, and Pinkie Pie devouring a tray of cupcakes.
"Well, there's not much to tell you, Miss Rarity. I don't exactly mingle with the nobles in Canterlot if you were hoping for me to get a good word in for you up there," I said, which caused her to frown briefly. "But I will say that your work is astounding, and I have high hopes that you shall make a name for yourself in a city as grand as that. In fact, you might just fit in up there!" That seemed to brighten her mood up a bit.
"Thank you, dear. I mean, don't get me wrong, Ponyville is a fine place to set up shop, but creating a fashion line for ponies across Equestria has always been my goal!" Rarity said with passion, her eyes practically sparkling like an anime cartoon.
Applejack seemed to be next since Rarity must have gotten everything she wanted to hear from me. "From what it sounded like y'all said, bein' able to defend ponies, that almost sounded a bit personal." She said, which surprised me with how observant she appeared to be, but so as not to offend, I tried not to show it. "Meaning something happened to you before, care to fill us in, Sugarcube?"
This seemed to catch all the mares' attention, even the pink and yellow ones. So, I tried to elaborate a bit, keeping my "human" origin and guardianship under wraps.
"Well, many years ago, I left my family to try and earn some money to help. But it seemed like once I did leave, things were going downhill for them; my dad got hit in an accident, leaving him somewhat crippled, and my mom working overtime at the postal service; then I learned that my baby sister had fallen ill. I was too far away when the doctors said she wouldn't make it, meaning I wouldn't get a chance to say goodbye."
Now, my eyes were on the verge of tears from the memory, so I quickly brushed them away before they could get worse and concluded my story. "But that was when I was offered a job in Princess Celestia's service, and they willingly helped heal my family. However, with that saying, I had to leave them to fulfill my promise to Her Majesty. With no way back, and a chance to make my family proud, I took the offer."
Looking up, I saw the girls had gotten teary-eyed from my tale. Some hid it better than others, but it made me feel bad for making them cry.
"Oh, you poor thing," Fluttershy said with a handkerchief nearby, dabbing her eyes with it. Pinkie couldn't stop the waterworks as easily, however, and clung to me while bawling her eyes out.
"I'm sorry, Ace. I didn't mean to reopen the old scars," Applejack said, rubbing the back of her head with her hoof. "No, it's fine. If anything, I'm the one who's sorry!" I stated, earning confused looks. "I should be apologizing for ruining the splendid party that Pinkie here worked so hard to make!" I motioned to the party pony still clinging to me. She wiped her eyes with a sad smile at my consideration.
"Right, parties are supposed to be happy!" Pinkie exclaimed while confetti shot out of nowhere. Then she pranced off with the other girls in tow to the party. I headed to the kitchen to keep my promise to a certain egghead upstairs.
"You coming, Ace?" Rainbow Dash asked, hovering next to Fluttershy, who also seemed to be thinking the same thing.
"Maybe later, guys, I need to make things right real quick," I said with a small smile. They smiled back before rejoining the party, leaving me to my task.
I followed Spike upstairs as he went to find Twilight, wearing a lampshade covered in confetti for some strange reason. It made him look ridiculous, but hey, I'm not going to spoil the kid's fun; that's what his sister is for! I decided to let him go first and catch the brunt of Twilight's frustration so I would be spared. The mug of tea I had fixed was hovering next to me with my amber magic.
I waited behind the purple dragon as he burst into the closed-off room, saying, "Hey Twilight! Pinkie Pie's starting pin the tail on the pony, wanna play?" excitedly dancing around.
"No!!!" bellowed the mare from inside the room. "All the ponies in this town are CRAZY! Do you know what time it is?"
Way past your bedtime I'm sure? I thought to myself with an eye roll.
"It's the Eve of the Summer Sun Celebration! Everypony has to stay up, or they'll miss the Princess raise the sun." Spike said, stating the obvious. "You really should lighten up, Twilight. It's a party!" And with that, the plucky hatchling passed by me to rejoin the shindig downstairs, leaving me with a temperamental introverted unicorn mare. I'd say my chances are eighty-twenty right now, so I sealed my fate as I stepped in.
Walking on eggshells, I saw Twilight mocking Spike's words harshly, with a pillow resting on her head. She rolled over, clutching the cushion with her hooves, and continued to rant.
"Ugh, here I thought I'd have time to learn more about the Elements of Harmony. But, silly me, all this ridiculous friend-making has kept me from it!" she grumbled, staring at the ceiling.
Taking a chance, I approached, making sure that I wouldn't startle her with my interruption.
When Twilight noticed me from the bed as I passed by the bookshelves, she wore a frown. Probably still ticked off from the way I treated her all day. "What do you want?" she said with an uncharacteristic growl.
With a sigh I brought the teacup over to her, shame was the only expression my face showed the mare.
In retrospect, I guess I should have been a bit more sensitive to Twilight's feelings today and tried to tone down the craziness for her. So, being the only friend she has, I sat by her side to apologize.
"I came here to apologize, T." I said, watching as she took the cup in her grasp and inspected it like the critic she can be. Once it seemed to her liking, she turned her attention back to me. "For what? Not pulling me out when I was being harassed by the townsfolk? For splattering mud all over me? For letting me go through all this just because you thought it would be a good laugh?" She said through gritted teeth, lifting the pillow in a position as if to slam it against me.
Hardly looking at her, I said evenly, "And for not supporting you." I said with my ears flat. Her hold on the weapon released as she looked at me without hostility. "I think you might have been onto something about this "Nightmare Moon" returning, and I should have been more aware of how you were taking this."
I turned to look at her with resolve in my eyes, watching her expression. "I've known you for a long time, Twilight Sparkle, and I can understand your viewpoint on everything that's happened since we came here. Sure, maybe it was a bit excessive with what they were doing, but it certainly has been a nice change of pace for us." I watched as she seemed to take it in, quietly sipping the tea I made her with a thoughtful expression.
"You should know, Twilight, that I didn't intend to make you feel bad all day. And I don't intend to be a harassment to you anymore. You're my friend, and I want you to live your life like any other young mare your age. But, if it's what you wish, I'll take my duties more seriously for the rest of the evening until we go home." I stated, placing my hoof over my chest.
"Did you mean it?" she asked in an almost hushed whisper. At my head tilt like a curious dog, she elaborated. "About me being onto the 'Nightmare Moon' return?"
Oh for the love of... Out of everything I just said, that's what she focuses on! I internally yelled, throwing a few choice words in the mix in my mind as I held a blank look before nodding to Twilight.
She then looked at the moon through her window, seeing the shadow-like image of a pony's head on its white surface as she brought a book close to her.
"Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night!" she recited from the book of predictions and prophecies. I walked up next to her to look myself, seeing her look at the night sky with a slightly worried face.
"I hope the Princess was right, I hope it really is just an old pony's tale." she said, the moon reflecting in her violet eyes.
"If it is, will you at least try to relax a bit more? The last thing I want is for you to end up bitter and resentful towards ponies if this is just all smoke and mirrors." I asked the mare.
Suddenly, before I could recieve an answer, a certain scaley boy burst through again in excitement. "C'mon Twilight! Its time to watch the sunrise!" he waved from the door.
The whole town was gathered in the town hall; in fact, I'd say it was a full house. For those who couldn't find a place to stand, the pegasi hovered in the air just above the crowd's heads. Everyone was waiting with anticipation for the celebration to begin.
Twilight, Spike, and I had a decent spot to see everything. The dragon hatchling was sitting on Twilight's back to get a nice view. My charge still didn't look all that comfortable in this crowd of ponies, so, in a gesture of encouragement, I placed a hoof on her shoulder in a comforting manner, just like what Celestia has done for me in the past. And it seemed to be working!
"Isn't this exciting? Are you excited because I'm excited? I've never been so excited, well, except that one time when I first saw you walking into town, and then I went (gasp)! But I mean, really, who can top that?" Pinkie Pie's sudden appearance and fast-talking brought a smile to my face. I rolled my eyes at the party pony's antics before I heard the fanfare begin.
The crowd quieted down enough to listen as a tan earth pony mare with a silvery grey mane and tail, wearing glasses and some sort of dignitary collar, standing on the stage, began her speech. "Fillies and Gentlecolts. As Mayor of Ponyville, it is my pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!" The crowd cheered at that all around us with enthusiasm; the only ones not feeling festive were Twilight and I.
I mainly kept making sure Twilight was okay, as she constantly shifted her focus from one area to the next, as if she expected something bad to happen. So, in case things were to go pear-shaped, I discreetly prepped my transformation spell, just to air on the side of caution until this night ended.
"In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise and celebrate this: the longest day of the year!" I noticed Twilight looking out the window for a moment and grew worried, as red flags went off in my head that something wasn't right. Even I could feel the shift in the balance of magic, and it was an unpleasant feeling. "And now, it gives me great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land."
I hardly paid attention to the rest of her speech as I shifted my attention to my magic sensing ability, trying to pinpoint its origin. My instincts told me that something very bad was about to happen. However, something caught my attention: the moon looked like it had changed, the pony face had disappeared from it. Twilight noticed too and grew worried.
"Princess Celestia!" announced the mayor with pride!
But once the fanfare began, thanks to Fluttershy, and the curtains were drawn, everypony got quite a shock at the next turn of events; there was no sign of their beloved Princess on the stage she was supposed to be standing on. Ponies started getting restless, and I know for a fact what happens when horses get nervous: they stampede!
"This can't be good!" Twilight said with a nervous glance my way. I tried to send a reassuring look the mare's way, but she had already looked away.
"Remain calm, everypony, there must be a reasonable explanation!" The mayor said, trying to be the voice of reason.
"Ooh, ooh, I love guessing games! Is she hiding?" Pinkie asked randomly, looking high and low. Seemingly not grasping the concept of the situation here. I saw Rarity come back out from behind the stage after searching, and I hoped that my gut feeling was just from too much sweets from the party.
"She's gone!" Rarity exclaimed, causing gasps all around. "Ooo, she's good!" Pinkie said childishly, her blue eyes wide. Until she gave a yelp of fright that was aimed at the pavillion.
Everypony watched in surprise as a strange purplish-blue mist littered with stars materialized out of thin air, growing larger by the second. I felt my magic spike at the mere sight of it, sensing the threat that could literally rival the Solar Sovereign, and I knew for a fact that I had to uphold my oath as a guardian.
"Oh no," Twilight whispered beside me in fear, watching the mist split away to reveal a pony inside; her coat was so inky black that it looked out of place in a place like this. The nebula-star covered mist took the place of her mane and tail as it moved in an unseeable breeze. She strangely had slitted pupils like those of a cat in her teal eyes. She wore light purple armor that covered her head, hooves, and chest, and I could clearly see the long spiraling horn on her head as well as the raven-like wings protruding from her back, revealing this to be an alicorn. Her cutie mark, which was also emblazoned on her breastplate, was that of a crescent moon surrounded by darkness. "Nightmare Moon!"
Spike merely fainted and slid off his boss's back.
As the tall, dark alicorn looked down upon us and began her little villainous speech, I was getting ready for an inevitable battle, observing my surroundings and making sure the exits were clear enough for the populace to evacuate. As guardian, my duty is to protect the citizens from otherworldly threats, but since this Sith of a princess just escaped her imprisonment on the moon, I figured that this qualifies.
"What did you do to our Princess?" I heard Rainbow Dash asked accusingly in the background, I looked to see her attempting to tackle the thousand-year-old dark ruler, only for Applejack to snatch her by the tail just in the nick of time. "Whoa there, Nelly!" She mumbled through prismatic hair.
"Why? Am I not royal enough for you?" asked the mistress of shadows mockingly as I discreetly used my magic to open all the exits so ponies wouldn't have to be stuck in here with her. "Don't you know who I am?" she then asked a bit more sternly.
"Ooh, ooh, more guessing games!" Pinkie's undeterred voice piped up nearby. As she rambled off very strange name ideas, which one of them made me snicker—hehe, Black Snootey—I spotted some of the Canterlot guards who were waiting with eager anticipation to arrest the dark mare.
Hope their prepared for situations such as this. I thought with worry.
"Does my crown no longer count now that I've been imprisoned for a thousand years?" Nightmare asked darkly to Fluttershy as her birds flew off, the yellow mare flinching away from the towering entity.
The alicorn then moved to Rarity, who was still stuck on the pavillion and couldn't get away in time. The nebulan mist held up her chin like a hand would. "Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?" she said, her patience slipping by the second. As if anypony in this century actually spent time doing that.
"I did!" Oh right! Twilight stood next to me with a determined look on her face as she stared unflinchingly at the imposter. "And I know who you are! You're the Mare in the Moon: Nightmare Moon!"
Just the sound of that name brought gasps from the crowd again, as they anxiously glanced between the Legendary dark mare and the little purple pony. Nightmare, however, seemed quite pleased at the moment. "Well, well, well. Somepony who remembers me!" she said with a snicker, fluttering her black wings. "Then you also know why I'm here," she stated, glaring down challengingly.
At that, Twilight's bravado seemed to have vanished, leaving her stuttering for a moment as the reality of the moment finally hit her. "You're here to...to...gulp."
Getting tired of seeing my charge in this state, I stepped in front of her with a snort. "I'm guessing you want to put the entire world under the cover of darkness out of jealousy so you can overthrow the Monarchy," I stated to the alicorn mare, narrowing my eyes at her.
Her only reply was a sinister laugh that sent chills down my spine. "Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last! From this moment forth, the night will last forever!" she exclaimed, bursting into a full-blown cackle as her mane and tail whipped around her, complete with lightning flashing above us all.
Everywhere I looked, ponies cowered at the storm and who was creating it. Even Twilight, who found the tome containing the prophecy, was literally shaking in her hooves!
I have had just about enough of this! I thought as I charged my magic and leapt forth to confront the villain. "Not on my watch!" I bellowed, catching everypony's attention with my possible madness.
"ACE! NO!" I heard Twilight shout worriedly, seeing me gallop full-tilt to attack the dark mare. Nightmare Moon only laughed at the sight of somepony daring to challenge her.
Emboldened by my courage, I heard the mayor call out, "Seize her, she knows where the Princess is!" And the pegasi guards took flight, following me in a mad rush.
But, if there was one thing I've learned from television, it's that unless you're a main character in the story, you're going to get knocked onto your haunches badly. Hope that doesn't apply to me! I thought with worry.
More irritated than anything, Nightmare Moon turned to us with a glare, her eyes and horn glowing white as she snarled, "Stand back, you foals!" before the lightning struck the guards out of the sky. They crashed to the ground around me as I dodged each armored pony to attack this threat. The mare saw me still making a beeline for her, rolled her eyes at the stupidity, and focused her lightning into a single beam and shot it at my face.
With a flash of amber light, I let my true power shine. At least one of them, that is. My hooved legs thinned out, my tail shrunk in on itself, my unicorn horn was replaced with a pair of bronze antlers, and my teal fur shifted to silvery grey.
Just as the bolt of lightning struck, I drew it in through my antlers, charging myself up with the magically enhanced energy! "Power of Wood!" I chanted, redirecting the blast to the sender, striking her squarely on the chest.
She looked at me in surprise as something seemed to be happening around her: vines and roots were growing at an alarming rate and were tying up her hooves to the ground, momentarily restraining her.
Looking back, I saw that all eyes were on me in complete shock, either from the transformation or the fact that I actually landed a hit on an alicorn. "Everypony, you need to evacuate the building! Now!" I ordered, getting many to snap out of their stupor and get the heck outta Dodge.
Before I could check on my charge, Nightmare Moon blasted through the foliage she was trapped in and flew at me with rage, striking like a cobra! She barreled into me with the strength of a freight train, knocking me back a few feet as the town's residents skedaddled.
Quickly, I scrambled back to a fighting stance in hopes of keeping the evil princess busy, the guards directing the crowd to the open doors.
I shot another wind blast her way, which she evaded easily. Retaliating with a swipe of her horn as she swooped overhead like a diving bird. My antlers blocked the spear-like object from getting too close to my face as I wrestled with our magical outlets battering against each other.
Her mane wrapped itself around my legs and swung me in the air, slamming me down repeatedly on the floor like a dusty rug. With a groan of slight pain, I struggled to my hooves, watching the alicorn charge me once again with her horn lowered like a lance.
Thinking quickly, I recited another spell, "Power of light!" creating a shockwave of pure light to repel the spirit of darkness, knocking her off her course and tumbling away. Once she regained her senses, the dark mare took to the sky and glared down.
"Either you are very brave or very stupid to dare challenge your new ruler, young guardian!" Snarled Nightmare as she hovered above me, her nebulan mane flowing ominously.
"Okay, first off, I'm sure there is a fine line between stupidity and courage." I said, making sure her eyes stayed on me, keeping my antlers lit up. "Second of all, how did you know that?"
"Do you take me for an idiot?" Nightmare said flatly. I chose not to answer the trick question as she continued, "We were there to witness the demise of the previous ones, watching as they fell like leaves from a tree. Celestia thought that bringing outsiders to Equestria would protect her little ponies, but even they couldn't hope to best me!" she gloated, smirking at my shocked face.
"You were the one who..." I trailed off, quite disturbed by the revelation. "Yes, you foolish upstart. They no longer protect this place thanks to my rise in power!" the alicorn said, her voice booming like thunder. "So what chance does a young pretender such as yourself have against me?" she asked, baring her fangs (which I never noticed she had until I saw them just now) in a sinister grin.
I backed up a few steps in fear, watching the mare give me a look like a hungry predator. If Askari and Alabaster were defeated by her all those years ago, what chance do I, half of a guardian, have?
Seizing an oppertunity, she struck again. A cone of condensed dark magic shot out of her horn and hitting me square in the chest, blasting me back into the wall.
"Do you fear me, outsider?" hissed the alicorn, watching me weakly try to stand up. At my lack of reply, she continued, "You should. Because now, everypony will see how worthless your attempts are to stop me. Once Equestria is completely mine, I'll be coming for you!"
As I tried to regain my footing, Nightmare Moon turned herself into a vaporous mist and raced for the door. Acting quickly, my magic turned red, I tried to intercept her, using my antlers as a flamethrower against the mist.
But she swerved around the flames as she made her exit, flying up under my chin and knocking me for a loop. I followed after her for a bit to see where she went: straight into the nearby forest that the ponies have dubbed the Everfree Forest.
"I... I failed." I muttered to myself weakly, nearly collapsing from exhaustion. Everything else faded into background noise as I lamented, my spell wearing off and returning me to my unicorn form. "I'm sorry, masters, I couldn't do it."
"If she was powerful enough to have defeated you all those years ago, how am I supposed to save anypony from such a disaster?" Thoughts of everypony I've met in this town and even within the walls of Canterlot were all in danger because I couldn't hold her back.
"Ace?" Somepony asked tentatively, breaking my moment of silence. Looking up, I saw the five mares of Ponyville giving me worried looks.
"Are you alright?" asked Applejack with concern.
"How'd you do that?" asked Rainbow Dash suspiciously.
"What happened back there?" Rarity asked with fear.
"Where does it hurt?" asked Fluttershy as she looked me over for injuries.
"Who did you fail?" asked Pinkie Pie curiously.
But there was one question that I knew none of them had to ask, "What's going to happen to us now?"
Looking at each of them in turn, I could tell that these girls were scared, some more than others, and here I was lying on the ground as if I was going to give up on them. I mean, heck, they probably saw me fighting Nightmare and thought that I was their only hope since Celestia hasn't shown up yet.
As that thought crossed my mind, two things popped up in a revelation to me: first, these ponies were depending on me, and I was given these powers for just such a cause, to protect others. Second, Twilight wasn't with the group. She must have an idea on how to end eternal night and ran back to her library to figure out how!
So, with my stubbornness returning tenfold, and my doubts thrown to the back of my mind for the time being, I stood up to address the group. "That's not important right now. What is important is stopping Nightmare! And I know just the pony to ask."
"Elements, Elements, Elements," were the first things I heard Twilight say, frantically throwing books all over the place in her mad search.
She apparently hadn't noticed my arrival, too stressed out to think clearly. "How can I stop Nightmare Moon without the Elements of Harmony?" she asked aloud as if awaiting a reply. Heh, typical Sparkly.
In swooped the brash blue pegasus with an accusing glare on her muzzle as she was in my charge's face.
"And just what are the Elements of Harmony?" Rainbow asked angrily, backing Twilight into a corner with her interrogation. "And how did you know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you a spy?"
Her tirade was cut off as I yanked her back by her tail, sending her back to the rest of the group as I stood between them and Twilight. "She's not a spy, Dash," I said tiredly.
"But she does know what's goin' on, don't ya Twilight?" asked Applejack as she and the other girls approached.
Twilight glanced around at the expectant faces, her eyes landing on mine briefly before she dropped her gaze and explained, "I've read all about the predictions of Nightmare Moon. Some mysterious objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her." She pointed out, which almost sounded like she was reprimanding yours truly. Now you tell me! I grumbled in my mind.
As Twilight looked outside, her tone became more unsure. "But I don't know what they are, where to find them. I don't even know what they do!"
I could see where her worry was coming from. It was the same for me, even if I didn't have anyone related to me in this world. Before I could try to console my charge, Pinkie Pie miraculously found what Twilight was after.
Said mare ran over and shoved the party pony away to investigate. "How did you find it?" asked the unicorn in surprise. Pinkie, being Pinkie, just bounced in the room and said in a singsong voice, "It was under E~!"
Once again, typical Sparkly. She could be the smartest pony in the room, but can be so clueless! I chortled in my head as she found the page she was after in the red book.
"There are six Elements of Harmony, but only five are known; kindness, laughter, generousity, honesty, and loyalty. The sixth is a complete mystery. It is said the last known location of the five Elements was in the ancient castle of the royal pony sisters. It is located in what is now... the Everfree Forest!?"
Well,Tanya. If your watching this, please root for me! I'm going to face a boss level villian!
My Little Pony belongs to Hasbro
The Lion Guard belongs to Disney
Valt the Wonder Deer belongs to Dream East
I own nothing except my oc.