Chapter 167: Princess Twilight Sparkle Part 1: Attack of the Everfree Forest
A couple of days went by after Spyro, Twilight, and Spike went into the alternative version of Equestria to get Twilight's crown back, having only returned when they had to go to the new Wonderland and stop the Organization and the Dark Overlord from getting what they wanted or doing what they had originally planned, but Aphara however got what she needed, the Jabberwocky blood that she was sent to get, annoying Spyro as he fumed about failing to stop her. Over the last couple of days, he was working with Maya to create a secure connection to The Grid so as to do more research into the new digital world that was discovered by Tron, boosting the signal so that he could get a secure connection with Radiant Garden, not having much luck until he raised the antenna on the garage, turning a dial and the static he had was clearing up, strengthening the connection until he had a clear image, seeing The Grid as he smiled.
"Got it!" Spyro said, securing the signal. "The connection is stable Maya. We have direct access to The Grid now."
"That's good news." Maya said. "I've been doing what I can here. I'm no tech genius like you are, but from what I can see, the darkness in this Digital Circus is only growing. We need to figure out how to get there and stop it."
"I'll run some tests and try to break the firewall protecting this world." Spyro said, looking at the clock and realizing what time it was. "Whoop, gotta go. I'm late!"
"What could you possibly late for?" Maya asked.
"Rainbow Dash and I are going to be giving Twilight some lessons on how to fly." Spyro replied. "I'm late to help her learn how to use her wings."
"Heh, it's rare for you to be late for anything." Maya said. "Think you're baby'll be like you? Smart, yet forgetful?"
"Ha ha, very funny." Spyro replied. "But... if she's going to be like anybody, I hpe she's like AJ. Strong and honest." He looked up, thinking what his life was going to be like as a father, unsure if he was ready or not, but smiled, clearing his mind of those thoughts as he looked back on the screen. "Anyway, better get going or I'm never going to hear the end of it."
"Well, good luck teaching the new princess." Maya said. "Something tells me it's not going to be an easy teaching her."
Spyro ended the call, and sprinted out of the garage, taking out his Sling Ring and spinning his hoof around to open a portal to Canterlot to help Twilight practice, but as he left, his terminal was starting to glitch out, images and green words appearing as the screen changed into an abstract, looking around as purple eletricity covered it, calming down as soon as the terminals firewall kicked in, dispelling the abstract for the time being, but the dark eletricity was still arcing on the terminal. In Canterlot, Rainbow Dash was already starting on helping Twilight to practice using her wings, Twilight having issues staying in the air as she flapped her wings, falling a bit before crash landing, hitting a tree and making everyone cringe.
"Seems I got here just in time." Spyro said, walking up.
"No, you're late." Rainbow Dash said. "We started practice ten minutes ago. Where were you?"
"Sorry, I was at the terminal strengthening the connection to The Grid." Spyro replied.
"Again darling?" Rarity asked. "Any luck getting it to work?"
"Actually, yes, I got it to connect." Spyro replied. "Now my garage has direct access to The Grid."
"That's great and all, but we're here to teach Twilight how to fly, remember?" Rainbow Dash asked as Twilight managed to free herself from the tree and rolled on the ground.
"You ok there little bookworm?" Spyro asked.
"Yeah, I'm ok." Twilight replied, getting up. "How are you so use to having wings all the time? They feel so alien to me."
"Well, being a dragon, there were many things I had to get use to." Spyro replied. "Having wings was the least of my worries." He then took off into the air, flapping his wings and joining Rainbow Dash in the air while looking down at Twilight. "What I was told, you must let go of all your worries, let the ancestors show you the way. Let them lift you up."
"But... none of my ancestors were pegasi." Twilight replied. "At least, not to my knowledge."
"Then just don't think, feel." Spyro replied. "Flying is about instinct. You're wings are an extenxion of yourself. Let them do what they were meant for."
Twilight nodded, extending her wings and closing her eyes, feeling the wings as she flapped them, hovering a bit above the ground before looking down, finding she was doing good so far before flapping a little harder, going up to them while wobbling a bit, slowly steadying herself as she got to them.
"Nice work Twilight!" Rainbow Dash said. "Flap them a little harder, show us what they can really do!"
Twilight nodded, flapping them harder while straining herself to stay in the air, but she then ended up spinning out, crashing into the tree and being a bit dizzy fromt he spin out, blushing in embarrassment.
"Maybe not that hard." Spyro said, flying down. "Come on, let's try again."
He helped her out of the tree and got her to flap her wings again, but as she tried again, she crashed into the ground again, smacking into the ground hard as Applejack went over to help her up.
"Lookin' good princess Twilight!" Applejack said.
"AJ, we've been over this." Twilight said. "You don't have to call me princess. We're practically family."
"But why do you protest so?" Rarity asked. "You've already given up wearing your crown all the time. The least you can do is embrace your new title."
"It's fine for other ponies to address me that way, but not you girls or even you Spyro." Twilight said. "It just doesn't feel right for my herd and friends to call me that." She looked at her friends, still unsure of her new role as princess while also stretching her wings. "And neither does this flying business."
"Think that's bad, wait til you have to preen those feathers." Spyro said. "Thankfully, my wings are made of skin and membrane, so I don't have to preen them."
"I'm just afraid I won't be able to perform my part for the Summer Sun Celebration coming up in the next couple of day." Twilight said, seeing that everyone was getting everything ready.
"Not if you spend your time down here you won't!" Rainbow Dash said. "Now get up there and show everypony the big finish!"
"Alright, I got this." Twilight said to herself. She took in a deep breath and spread her wings, taking off into the air a flying around, Twilight flying very well after a few mishaps she had, growing a wide grin as she looked down at her friends. "Hey, look everypony! I'm doing it! I'm doing it!"
"Twilight, look out for those clouds!" Spyro shouted.
She looked ahead and saw the clouds Spyro was warning her about, crashing through them and leaving imprints of herself through them, coughing up some of the clouds, but failing to keep her wings flapping as she started to fall, screaming ad she fell until she spread her wings and glided up, catching herself for a moment, but then crashed into the ground, creating a trail in the ground. She looked up, stars spinning in front of her eyes as everyone rushed over and Spyro helped her up.
"Wow, that was a big finish!" Pinkie said, Twilight groaning as Spyro helped her up.
"Good try Twilight." Spyro said. "With a little more practice, you'll be a great flier in no time."
"Heh, no thank you." Twilight said. "Keyblade training is one thing, Jedi training is something else, but this, there is no way I'll be able to fly properly like you and Rainbow Dash do."
"Not if you don't practice Twilight." Spyro said. "With a little more practice, you'll be an expert flier in no time."
"Yeah, maybe I should end the practice for today." Twilight said. "Don't want to end up all bruised and battered before the big day."
After helping her up, they went into the palace and in there, they walked to the corridor that had all of the stain glass windows, standing in front of the window that had Twilight's image, showing the moment she was turned into an Alicorn with her crown on her head and having her coronation.
"Darling, you look amazing." Rarity said. "They really captured your regality."
"I guess." Twilight said.
"Oh, don't modest Twilight." Rarity said. "Why, iut's everypony's dream to someday wear a crown and have their coronation preserved in stain glass for all to see."
"I don't think that it's everypony's dream." Rainbow Dash said.
"Rainbow Dash has a point Rare." Spyro said. "I mean, as a kid, it was sort of my dream to be a prince. And look where I am now, a Prince of Light and Darkness, while also a Keyblade warrior, a dragon, Jedi knight, and the user of the Seven Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald."
"Most of my dreams are about frosting." Pinkie said, licking her lips and looking like she was day dreaming.
"Anyway..." Spyro said, ignoring the random pony's frosting dream thing. "Everyone has different dreams they wish to accomplish or come true. Some do so by going out and doing it, others just don't and it remains just a dream for them."
"Spyro's right Twilight." Rainbow Dash said. "Though you can't be in ponyville this year for the Summer Sun Celebration, it doesn't mean we won't be a celebration at all!"
"Speaking of, we better get going, or we'll miss our train girls." Fluttershy said.
"Fluttershy's right." Applejack said. "And Ah don't know about all of ya'll, but Ah've got a whole bushel load of work to do for the celebration. The Summer Sun celebration is here in Canterlot this year, the mayor is havin' us prepare one heck of a party back in Ponyville. And with Spyro bein' needed here, it's gonna take me quite a while to get it all done."
"Just don't strain yourself too much AJ, alright?" Spyro asked, walking up and the kissing her. "Remember, if ya need me, I'm only a shout away."
Applejack just giggled, the both of them rubbing their noses together as they looked lovingly into one another's eyes. Twilight however seemed depressed, looking down at the ground and kicking her hooves as she felt like she was being abandoned, whcih Spyro could sense her sadness and walked over, wrapping his wing around her.
"Aw, don't be sad Twi." Spyro said. "Just because our friends won't be here for the celebration, it doesn't mean we'll be gone forever. We'll be right there with the other princesses when the sun is raised.."
"And it's a great honor." Twilight said. "Truly, it is, but... the Summer Sun Celebration is what brought us all together in the first place. I just don't feel good celebrating such a special day with all of my ponyville friends."
"I concur, it doesn't feel right with us either." Rarity said. "But if the Mayor wasn't so desperate for our help, we'd most definitely stay with you here in Canterlot. Of course we also understand your duties as royalty must come first."
"No Rare, friends and family come first." Spyro replied, wrapping Applejack in his other wing. "We're all family as the herd is family. So, no matter what, i'd always drop whatever I'm doing to help and protect you girls if push came to shove."
"Plus, the Summer Sun Celebration may have brought us together, but there is something that'll always keep us connected." Applejack said, looking to the window that had the image of them purifying Luna of her darkness. "Not only are we connected through the herd, but also by the six elements of harmony. And no amount of royal duty is gonna change that. Right everypony?" They all nodded, agreeing with her when she looked at Pinkie Pie. "Right Pinkie Pie?"
"Creamy, creamy frosting." Pinkie said, Fluttershy wiping her mouth off.
"Maybe take that as a yes." Fluttershy said.
They then started to leave, leaving thre corridor and then out the palace, Twilight watching from the balcony as her friends made their way to the trainstation, Spyro walking up beside her as she sighed with sadness, Spyro sensing how upset she was as he wrapped his wing around her.
"Don't worry Twilight, this isn't forever." Spyro said. "We'll only be here for a couple of days and we'll be back home in Ponyville. It'll be like we never left."
"I know Spyro." Twilight said. "It's just... they've only been gone for a minute and I already miss them. I feel like i'm missing something."
"That just means your bond to your friends is extremely strong." Spyro said. "And bonds like that are near impossible to break." He then pulled her in, putting his head on top of hers as he gently nibbled on her ear, making her giggle a bit. "Don't worry. Once the celebration is done and over with, we'll be back home in no time."
"Telegram for the princess." A courier said.
Twilight took the letter and looked at it, wanting to know what was written as she opened it.
"Dear Twilight, don't worry, you aren't missing anything." Twilight read. "And don't worry, as Spyro said, you'll be back home in n time. Signed Pinkie Pie."
"THAT'S ME!" Pinkie shouted, Twilight and Spyro looking as she waved at them as the train left the station, both ponies smiling as they went back inside.
"Alright, I need to get to work making sure everything is ready for the celebration in a couple of days." Twilight said. "Make sure the decorations are in order, the venue is perfect for the princesses-"
"Twilight, relax." Spyro said. "Let Spike and Celestia can handle that. You however, it's time for you to continue your training in the way of the Jedi."
"Wait, already!?" Twilight asked. "But-"
"No but's Twilight." Spyro said, pushing her along. "Come on now. Let's get going."
They went into the training yard where the guards had just finished their exercises for the day and went inside right as they went out, going to the middle of the field where Spyro turned to twilight.
"So, what are we going to learn?" Twilight asked.
"Well, we're going to learn how to use a Lightsaber today." Spyro said, getting his out. "A lightsaber, much like a Keyblade, is an extension of yourself." He then ignited the blade, his purple blade shining out as twilight looked at it. "Swinging a weapon is easy. Learning how to handle and wield it, that's the real trick."
"I sort of understand." Twilight said. "But not entirely."
"That's because for most, the way of the Jedi is unknown." Spyro said. "The way Jedi and Sith fight, they fight with elegance and grace. Their strikes are powerful, yet delicate as each side has a different form. The Jedi are peace keepers, guardians, some believe saints and monks. But their code lead them to their down fall."
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.
"There is no emotion, there is peace." Spyro replied, walking around Twilight. "There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serentiy. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is only the Force."
"How did that code ruin the Jedi?" Twilight asked.
"It lead the jedi away from attachments, from passion and from familial love." Spyro replied. "They believed they were above their own emotions and feelings, but unfortunately, it lead them down a dangerous path. The longer one denies their emotions, the more those feelings will fester inside until you can't control them, leading them to the Darkside. To the Sith."
"And what was their code?" Twilight asked.
"The Sith code is quite the opposite." Spyro replied, dragging the blade in a circle. "Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion, I gain strength. Through strength, I gain power. Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force will free me." Twilight looked at Spyro, seeing his eyes change to Sith eyes as he recited the Sith code, feeling chills run down her spine when his eyes returned to normal. "The Sith used their powers for a darker, more sinister reason. They use it to destroy and kill, spread fear and rule the galaxy. At one point, the sith were many, but they killed one another constantly, so a single Sith, Darth Bane, created the rule of two."
"The rule of two?" Twilight asked.
"Only two Sith may exist." Spyro replied. "No more, no less."
"That's... interesting." Twilight said. "But what does this have to do with Lightsaber combat?"
"Each side followed the seven forms of lightsaber combat and the variants to them." Spyro replied. "Shii-cho, Makashi, Soresu, Ataru, Shien, Djem so, Niman, Juyo, Vaapad. These are the seven forms, with Djem So being a variant to Shien, and Vaapad being a variant to Juyo, which is a Sith technique. But you'll be learning the first form, Shii-cho."
"Alright, so what do I do?" Twilight asked.
"Take out your saber." Spyro ordered. "And attack."
Twilight was unsure of that, getting her saber hilt and igniting the blade, a green plasma blade igniting from the hilt as she held it.
"You sure about this?" Twilight asked.
"Don't worry about me." Spyro said, raising his blade. "You just focus on attacking, I'll worry about defending."
Twilight was a little unsure of his instructions, but did as she was asked, swinging her blade like how Spyro taught her with her Keyblade, but he blocked with his saber, pushing it away as she swung, blocking her attacks every time as he backed away, flipping backwards before using the Force, knocking her down and knocking the saber away as he landed.
"Wow, that was cool." Spike said as he walked out.
"Form two cancels Form one." Spyro said. "Shii-cho is about disarming your opponent while Makashi focuses on blocking your opponents attacks while also disarming them. Perfect for one on one combat."
"So what's the point of Form one if two cancels it?" Twilight asked, getting her saber.
"Form one is the beginners form." Spyro replied. "It's meant to disarm your opponent and take care of superios numbers. It's the ideal form for Padawans." Twilight then got up, reigniting her blade as he held it up. "Again."
Twilight took in a few deep breaths, charging at Spyro as she swung, but Spyro kept on blocking, wearing her down and knocking her down a few more times, getting on her nerves as she kept up the assault, her rage taking over as she attacked, but Spyro always blocked and dodged, moving with grace and speed as he has done this many times. On the fourth time Twilight was knocked down, she grew more agrivated, getting back up and reigniting her blade, feeling her anger take over, but then realized what was happening, calming down as she looked back at Spyro as she raised her blade, this time letting the Force flow through her as she swung, both ponies fighting with the Force as their ally, both moving with incredible speed as they both jumped in the air, both flapping their wings as they flew as the Force told them both what to do, their sabers connecting and bouncing off one another as they kept up their assault, locking their blades as they flew in the middle of the air, Spyro smiling as he broke the lock, looking at her as he deactivated his blade.
"How was that?" Twilight asked, deactivating her blade.
"Good." Spyro said, both ponies hovering all the way to the ground. "Very good."
"I... I felt strange." Twilight said. "I was angry and frustrated, both at the same time, but I didn't let that overcome me. I let the Force guide me. What does that mean?"
"It's the way of the third faction who uses the Force." Spyro replied. "The Grey Jedi."
"Grey Jedi?" Twilight asked.
"They are a faction of Force users who follow the Jedi code, but they never made it their life." Spyro replied. "Their code was completely different from both Sith and Jedi. They focused more on balance, light and dark. It is the code that I follow."
"And how did their code go?" Twilight asked.
Spyro smiled, motioning for twilight to follow her as they went back inside to get some rest as night was coming.
"There is no Dark side, nor a Light side, there is only the Force." Spyro replied. "I will do what I must to keep the balance, the balance keeps me together. There is no good without evil, but evil must not be allowed to flourish. There is passion, yet emotion, serenity, yet peace, chaos, yet order. I am the wielder of the flame, protector of balance. I am the holder of the torch, lighting the way. I am the keeper of the flame, soldier of balance. I am the guardian of balance." As they walked, Spyro used his magic to lift Twilight's lightsaber up, holding it between them as they stopped. "This weapon, like the Keyblade is your life. It is a part of you now. Never loose it."
"I won't Spyro." Twilight said, taking her saber back and putting it on the leg belt she had on her hind leg. "So, what was the purpose of that? To give me a lecture about the codes of the Jedi and Sith?"
"That, and to see if you will become either or." Spyro said, continuing to walk as she walked next to him. "And you Twilight, you have the makings of both a great princess, and a worthy Jedi."
Twilight smiled at his kind words, leaning against him as she smiled, the two continuing to walk in the corridors until they reached her room, Spyro waiting outside while Twilight went to get herself cleaned up, taking a hot bath and scrubbing the dirt and grim off of herself while thinking about what Spyro had said, the codes continuing to replay in her head as she cleaned herself up, scrubbing off the dirt and grim until she got out, toweling herself off as she walked out the bathroom, seeing Spyro watching the day end and the night begin as Princess Celestia was in the room.
"Princess Celestia!" Twilight said, she and Spike bowing before her.
"There is no need for you to bow to my Twilight." Celestia said.
"Sorry." Twilight said. "Force of habit."
"I must say Twilight, I am looking forward to the Summer Sun Celebration this year." Celestia said.
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.
"For my subjects, it is known as the day that I defeated Nightmare Moon." Celestia said, watching her sister raise the moon. "But for me, it is a terrible reminder that I was forced to banish my own sister long ago." She wiped away a tear before turning to her two students. "But thanks to you and your friends, and to the Prince, it had become a day in which my sister has returned to us as Princess Luna and of our happy reunion."
"It's the least we could do Princess." Spyro said.
"And because of it, I am happy that you both will be playing a role in the Summer Sun Celebration this year." Celestia continued. "I know that it must have been difficult for you to see your friends return to Ponyville without you."
"It was princess." Twilight replied.
"You might not be my student any longer Princess Twilight, but know that I will be there if you need me." Princess Celestia said. "Just as I hope that the both of you will be there for me when I need you."
The two hugged one another, glad to be with each other as a mail courier came in, presenting a letter for them as the two princesses ended the hug.
"Uh, letter for Princess Twilight Sparkle." the courier said.
Twilight took the letter and the courier left, the princess opening the letter and a moment later, confetti shot out everywhere, brightening Twilight's mood as the princess laughed.
"A letter from Ponyville I presume?" The princess asked.
"Heh, Pinkie being Pinkie." Twilight replied. "Anyway, how can I help with the preparations?"
"The preparations are already taken care of Twilight." Celestia said. "Everything on the checklist is already taken care of."
"Well, maybe we can double check the checklist." Twilight said. "Make sure we haven't missed a thing!"
"I knew you'd say that Twilight." Spike said. "That's why we already double checked the checklist."
"As I said Twilight, we have everything under control." Ceelstia said. "And after the little sparing match you had with Spyro, I bet you're quite exhausted."
"You know about that!?" Twilight asked.
"Of course I know." Celestia replied. "Some of the guards saw you both battling in the training grounds, inspiring them to become better warriors and soldiers." She then walked out of the room, leaving the two ponies and the baby dragon alone. "You two sleep well, for we still have much to do for the celebration coming in the next couple of days. And I have a feeling that you'll be in for a great surprise when you get home Spyro."
"Oh poodoo, you're right!" Spyro said. "I forgot my birthday is during the Summer Sun Celebration! Pinkie's going to probably throw a banger of a party when we get back."
"I'll leave you two be then." Celestia said. "You both have a good night."
As she left the room, Spike went over the checklist again while Spyro yawned, stretching his wings as he also started to walk out of the room.
"Yeah, we better get some sleep Twi." Spyro said. "Even though the princess has everything covered, your training in the ways of the Force has only just begun."
"Spyro, wait." Twilight said, stopping him. "Would... would you please stay... for the night?"
Spyro looked at Twilight, seeing how nervous she was and sensing how unsure of herself she was, smiling at the lavender Alicorn as he walked over, the two kissing as Princess Celestia was looking in, smiling to herself at how happy her students were as she walked down the hall, leaving them alone as she went to rest for the night. In the morning, Spyro was the first to get up, both he and Twilight in the same bed together, but due to him being an early riser, he was use to getting up early, getting out of the bed without disturbing her as he walked out of the room, gently closing the door as he went to the dining room to eat, putting in an earbud and pressing the button on it to turn it on, a blue light appearing on it.
"AIVA, how's the decryption coming along?" Spyro asked. "Any progress?"
"None yet sir." AIVA replied. "The firewall surrounding this world is pretty heavy and the Crashbugs are having little effect on it." As he walked, something in the shadows was slithering down the hall, following Spyro as he was walking. "Whoever made this firewall really didn't want anyone getting in or out."
"What kind of encryption is on it?" Spyro asked, sensing something was off as his eyes moved back.
"The encryption seems to have a feedback loop preventing anyone from leaving while also creating an ever changing codex of data and information that prevents the terminal from getting a complete analysis of the codes." AIVA replied, Spyro reaching for his lightsaber as whatever it was wasn't a Heartless, nor a Nobody, but he didn't want to show that he knew they were there. "But given a little more time and more power, I might be able to crack the code and grant a direct route to this new world."
"Do whatever you must AIVA to get a route to this world." Spyro replied, moving the saber to his chest. "I'll do whatever I can when I get back. And one more thing AIVA..." He moved the saber in front, tilting his head to see who it was that was following him, but barely saw a thing, sensing darkness behind him and getting ready for a fight. "Lock the garage down until I get back. No one in or out until then. Understand?"
"Perfectly sir." AIVA replied. "I eagerly await your return sir."
The earpiece turned off and he quickly spun around, acivating his lightsaber, but before he could do a thing, a wave of black washed over him and he was instantly gone, his saber deactivating as it fell to the ground, clattering as it his the ground. A little while later, Twilight woke up, yawning as she stretched her legs and her wings as she smacked her lips, feeling how dry her mouth was and looked over to wake Spyro up, but he was already gone, thinking he got up a little earlier than she did and got up, walking past the window and looking out to see another beautiful day, but she suddenly froze, seeing that half of the sky was daytime and the other half was night, feeling her heart skip a beat as saw the phenomenon. She then did her little panicky dance as she rushed over to Spike, shaking him awake as he opened his eye's groggily, seeing Twilight and groaning as he got up.
"Twilight, what's wrong now?" Spike asked.
"Spike, the sky!" Twilight said.
Spike looked out and his eyes widened immediately, seeing what Twilight was seeing as his jaw dropped.
"Holy guacamole!" Spike said. "What the heck is happening!?"
"I don't know!" Twilight replied. "We need to find the princesses and Spyro, stat!" Twilight and Spike then rushed out of the room, Spike on Twilight's back, but she didn't get very far when she skidded to a halt, looking to the ground as Spike looked over to see what it was she was looking at, only to find Spyro's lightsaber on the ground, Twilight using her magic to levitate it up. "Oh no, no, nononono! This is bad!"
"Is that... Spyro's laser sword?" Spike asked.
"It's a lightsaber Spike." Twilight said. "And yes, it's Spyro's."
"Maybe he dropped it when he ran out to figure out what was going on with the sky." Spike suggested.
"No Spike, Spyro would never loose his lightsaber." Twilight said. "He told me a lightsaber is a Jedi's life. He always has it on him. Besides, the clasp is still intact. He must have taken it off to use it to fight something."
"But what could be powerful enough to take Spyro down?" Spike asked.
"I have no idea." Twilight replied, putting the saber on her leg belt. "Come on Spike, we better head outside and figure out what's going on."
Twilight rushed towards the exit, running as fast as she could before getting outside and seeing a panicky horde of ponies trying to get answers about what was going on, seeing Twilight as they all rushed forward.
"There, Princess Twilight will know." One of them shouted, everyone crowding her.
"Princess, can you tell us what's happening!?" One of them asked.
"Are the sisters quarreling again!?" Another asked. "Has Princess Luna become Nightmare Moon again!?"
"Now, let's not panic everypony." Twilight replied. "I'm sure there's a logical explination for what's going on."
"Princess, please, come with us." One of the guards said. "It's important."
Twilight followed the guard away from the crowd as other guards did their best to keep the panicked crowd back as the doors closed.
"The princesses, they're gone!" Another guard said.
"What!?" Twilight asked. "But... I don't understand. Where did they go?"
"I have no idea." Another guard said. "It's as if they... vanished."
"And they aren't the only ones either." A third guard said. "The Prince of Light and Darkness is also missing."
"But... how?" Twilight asked. "What could be powerful enough to subdue Spyro and capture the princesses?"
Twilight was thinking it over, trying to figure out what ti was that could be powerful enough to subdue her coltfriend and herd leader, feeling her heart thump against her chest as she was on the verge of panic, everything happening right now being too much for her to handle all at once as she tried to process everything that's going on.
"Uh, princess?" One of the guards said, getting her attention.
"Huh, wha?" Twilight asked, snapping back to reality. "Sorry, what did you say?"
"Your orders higness." The guard replied.
"My orders!?" Twilight asked.
"We're members of the royal guard, so we take orders from the princesses." The second guard said. "With Princess Celestia and Luna gone, along with the Prince being missing as well and Princess Cadence overseeing the Crystal empire, that means you are who we take our orders from. Please princess, tell us, what do you wish for us to do?"
Twilight was unsude about what to do, not use to giving orders like her mentor or her sister, and definitely not like how Spyro gives orders, Spike fainting over all the excitement, but Twilight took a deep breath, calming herself down as she looked at the guards.
"Continue to search for Princess Celestia and Luna." Twilight replied. "We need to find them before Ponies begin to panic. And continue the search for Prince Spyro. There has to be some clue as to what happened to them. If you find anything, let me know immediately!"
"Yes your higness!" Both guards replied, saluting.
Both guards ran to see if they could find the princesses and the prince, leaving Twilight and Spike alone in the room as the lavender Alicorn as she breath a sigh of relief, having given her first official orders as a princess.
"Way to take charge princess." Spike said.
"Thanks Spike." Twilight said. "But I'm definitely not a leader like Spyro is. Still, I need to inform Master Yen Sid about this before anything else happens."
"The only place I know of that might have a way of calling him is Spyro's Garage." Spike said. "But knowing Spyro, he probably locked it down while he's away."
"Yeah, after what happened with the fillies breaking into his garage, he's probably taken precautions." Twilight replied.
"Princess, princess!" Another guard shouted, running to her. "News from Ponyville!"
"What's wrong?" Twilight asked.
"Well, I don't know how to explain it." The guard replied. "The Everfree forest is... well... it's invading Ponyville!"
"WHAT!?" Twilight asked, Spike fainting again as he fell down.
In Fluttershy's cottage, all the animals were hiding inside of the shy pegasi's little home, some shivering while others were just plain afraid, Fluttershy walking through them and seeing how terrified they looked.
"Oh dear, what's wrong little guys?" Fluttershy asked. "What is it that has you all spooked?" The bear grunted, pointing outside to tell her that something was happening outside. "I'm sure whatever it is, it's nothing to worry about." However, as soon as she looked outside, she screamed, dark thorny vines growing all over the place as she slammed her back against the wall, panicked by what she saw. "No, you're right! Now is a good time to worry!"
In Sweet Apple Acres, the Apple Family was having difficulty with the vines growing in their fields, little black tree sprouts popping up in the fields like weeds, but the Apples and Scootaloo were doing their best to pull them out. Granny Smith doing her best, but do to her old age, she could barely pull on the vines, being pulled down and smacking her head against the ground as her eyes spun.
"Come on ya'll, put yer backs into it!" Applejack shouted, pulling out one of the vines.
Apple Bloom was pulling on one, but everytime she pulled, it grew longer and longer, getting on her nerves as she and Scootaloo yanked together, getting knocked back and crashing into some barrels, their heads popping up as they were covered in rotting apples. Big Mac was oing his bestto get the vines, but everytime he tried to get one, it would go back into the ground like it was a game of whack-a-mole, getting on his nerves, but the next time he tried to grab a vine, it ducked and another one came up and whipped him in the flank, making him growl as he turned and got it, starting to yank on it as hard as he could as payback for being hit like that.
"This is ridiculous!" Scootaloo shouted. "These things keep on coming!"
"You can say that again." Apple Bloom said, shaking off the rotting apples. "These weeds are not natural! Where the heck is Spyro!?"
"He's in Canterlot with twilight!" Applejack replied., pulling out another vine. "But I've never seen these weeds before or have ever had a problem with them. Where the heck are they coming from!?" A moment later, she heard a scream from up above and looked up, seeing that the clouds have thorns on them as Rainbow Dash fled from them, confusing the farm mare. "What the heck is with the clouds!?"
In the sky, Rainbow Dash was flying away from the cloud, turning to face it as she had enough of running and facing it head on.
"Alright thorn bush, listen up!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "The rain wasn;t supposed to come until after the Summer Sun Celebrations! So why don;t you Everfree clouds go back to where you came from!" She then charged towards the cloud, trying to destroy it, but the cloud just caught her and dropped the pegasi, which she got control and flew up to face the cloud. "Oh, you wanna do this the hard way, huh?"
She then called her Keyblade to slice the cloud up, getting ready to charge when it shot a bolt of lightning at her, forcing her to dodge as more clouds fired bolts of eletricity at her, making the rainbow maned Pegasi retreat as the half a dozen or so clouds chased after her. At Carousel boutique, Rarity was oblivious to what was happening, opening the curtains to greet the beautiful dau when she saw the sky was half day and half night, looking at it quizzically.
"Hmm, the sky seems to be a little off today." Rarity said. "Maybe it's an old tradition with the sisters or something." She disregarded it as she walked away from the window, not noticing the black vines growing as they budded, flowers blooming and released blue spores itno the air, the white unicorn mare bringing over a teapot with a tea cup to have her morning tea, but as she was about to pour it, the spores dispelled her magic and took over her horn, the mare pouring the tea, but it then moved in erratically, moving in a random direction, just missing her as she looked in her store and saw the tea hit one of her hats, making her scream. "What in the name of Celestia is going on!?" A moment later, the teapot started spraying tea at her cat, the scared feline running from the teapot as Rarity watch. "Oh, Opalescence, I'm so sorry dear. I proimise, I'm not doing this on purpose!"
"Rarity, help!" Sweetie Belle screamed, her horn levitating her and making her hit her head on the stairs as she was flying upside down. "Something is wrong with my horn!"
"Something is wrong with mine as well!" Rarity replied, licking her hoof and pressing it against her horn, dispelling the magic.
But it then came back as Sweetie Belle fell down and the curtain was surrpounded by the same magical blue spores and ripping off, making the filly scream as she ran away, running as fast as she could before running to her sister, the curtain passing over them both as they screamed. In Canterlot, Twilight was running the stairs near the back of the castle with her Emelement of Harmony on her head, Spike running after her as they ran to Ponyville.
"What do you think is causing the Everfree to invade?" Spike asked.
"I have no idea Spike." Twilight replied. "But whatever it is, we're going to need the help of our friends and thre Elements of Harmony to stop it! I just hope we haven't missed the train."
"Uh, twilight, there is another way to get to Ponyville." Spike said.
"There is?" Twilight asked, stopping abruptly and making Spike run into her flank, the baby dragon falling, but Twilight used her wing to get him and lift him up.
"You can fly!" Spike replied.
"Oh yeah, I forgot about these." Twilight said, putting Spike on her back. "Hope I don't end up crashing like last time."
She started to flap her wings, but as she did, it sounded like an engine that was having trouble starting up, but then she got going, flying off towards the direction of Ponyville to get her friends and fix the mess that was happening. In Ponyville, everyone was panicking, Rainbow Dash was still trying to avoid getting eletrocuted by the clouds as Rarity ran through the town, seeing the chaos that was happening as she ducked itno the town hall to get her breath.
"If there is an explination for what the heck is going on, I'd very much appreciate it!" Rairty said.
"All I know is that the sky is split in two and these clouds are definitely not from around here!" Rainbow Dash said.
"And neither are these plants!" Applejack said, pulling out another plant. "These varments are coming from the Everfree forest. And try as we might, we Earthponies can't stop them."
"Rarity, you got any magic that can fix this!?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Alas, I'm afraid whatever these plants are doing is leaving my horn on the frits." Rarity said, her magic flickering to prove her point.
"I wish we had Spyro or Twilight here." Fluttershy said. "I don't know how much more Ponyville can take." A moment later, a vine tried to grab her, making her yelp as Rainbow Dash came and sliced the vine, freeing her. "I don't know how much more I can take!"
"The forest is expaning!" Applejack said, stoping on a vine as Pinkie was jumping on another. "And by the rate it's goin' it's ain't gonna be content with taking over Ponyville. Ah think it wants to take over all of Equestria."
Thye looked at the vines, seeing how out of control they were as they all ran in the direction of the library.
"Quick, maybe the library has a book on how to fix this!" Rainbow Dash said.
"I hope so." Rarity replied. "All of this is murder on my silky smooth coat."
They all ran towards the library and burst through, running to the books to start looking for a solution when Twilight teleported in, spinning a bit before crashing into a shelf with a bunch of books falling on top of her while Spike smacked against a glass window, sliding down it as twilight popped her head out of the books.
"Note to self, practice on my landings." Twilight said, shaking her head.
"Oh, thank goodness you're here darling." Rarity said. "Why, where is Spyro?"
"He's disappeared." Twilight replied, making the ponies gasp. "Something or somepony has made him and the other princesses disappear."
"Who the heck would do something like that!?" Applejack asked, clearly worried for Spyro's safety.
"No idea, but right now, we need to find a way to get the Everfree under control." Twilight said.
"Yeah, I don't know if you noticed, but the Everfree is a tenny tiny bit out of control." Pinkie said, her tail twitching as she ducked, Rarity getting his by a vine.
"Guess this wasn't the celebration you here hopin' for when you and Spyro got home." Applejack said, cutting the vine with the window as Rarity got back up and shook her head, regaining her bearings.
"Without the princesses and Spyro, I don't know of any magic that can reverse what has happened." Twilight said. "But I have one idea that might work." Twilight lifted the glass case from over the Elements of Harmony, giving them to each of her friends. "We're gonna need to use the Elements of Harmony to fix what has happened!"
"Oh yeah!" Rainbow Dash said, putting her element on. "Just like old times!"
The others put their elements on, glad to be working together again and to use the Elements again as Applejack put hers on, smiling at Twilight as she did.
"I told ya we'd be connected by the Elements of Harmony." Applejack said. "Now we need to figure out who to aim these bad boys at..." She then looked down and crushed another plant before it could grab her. "To get princess Celestia, Luna, and to get Spyro back before all of Equestria becomes plant food. Any ideas?"
"Well I haven't found squat in any of the books I've been through!" Pinkie said, the books she was going through being coloring books. "Whoopsies, missed a spot!"
"Hmm, I might have an idea whose behind this." Twilight said, walking to the window. "Half day, haf night, strange weather patterns, and strange plants growing everywhere. Remind you of anypony?"
"Discord!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
"Come on girls, let's get him out here and make him fix this whole thing!" Twilight said.
They walked out of the library and went to an open area in the town, everyone standing in a circle as they closed their eyes and the Elements of Harmony started to glow, a rainbow coming from each of them as they made their way to Twilight's crown, going into the star shaped gem stone on the crown, a bright light shining out and a moment later, Discord appeared, looking a little worse for wears as he was riddled in bullet holes, but no blood was coming out, looking like he went through a warzone as he looked around, smiling as the holes disappeared, looking very happy.
"Equestria!" Discord shouted. "Sweet, sweet Equestria!" He then started to kiss the ground, confusing the ponies as they looked at one another, Rainbow Dash shrugging her shoulders as they looked at him. "Aw, I have never been so glad to see this world of rainbows and friendship in my entire life!"
"Discord, are you alright?" Twilight asked.
"Twilight Sparkle!" Discord said, picking her up and swinging her around. "Oh, I never thought I'd say this, but I am so glad to see you again princess!"
"I can't believe you said that either." Twilight said, Discord setting her down.
"Thanks to you and that little summoning spell the princess taught you, you brought me back home!" Discord said, turning to the authror and looking angry. "No thanks to the author forgetting to bring me back after Chapter 163 after Twilight and Spyro got back."
Oh yeah, I knew I forgot something. Still, that's what you get for stealing my computer.
"Wait, Discord took your computer?" Pinkie asked, the party pony looking at him.
He did. Sent him to Cadia as punishment for stealing it. Let me tell ya, he was mad when I did that.
"Nope, only those who break the Fourth wall on a daily basis!" Pinkie replied.
"Uh, who are they talking to?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"No clue sugarcube." Applejack replied.
"Discord, we want you to release the princesses and Spyro and stop the Everfree forest from growing immediately!" Twilight demanded.
"Whatever are you talking about?" Discord asked. "Incase the bullet holes weren't a dead give away, I was actually running for my life after the Author left me on Cadia for the last three days!"
"Wait, so you aren't the one whose causin' this?" Applejack asked.
"Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love what you've done with the place." Discord said, taking out a camera. "But I can't take responsibility for this. Just ask the author, he sent me to that xenophobic planet Cadia and left me there for days after I took his laptop."
"Yeah right!" Rainbow Dash said. "This has your cloven hoof prints all over it!"
"Ok, one, I only have one cloven hoof Rainbow Dash." Discord said, his leg going up his body to prove a point before kicking her and disappearing. "And two, what part of, I WAS SENT TO ANOTHER WORLD, don't you get?"
"Drop the act buster!" Pinkie Pie shouted. "We're on to you."
"Ladies, ladies, please, I'm innocent of all this." Discord replied. "Would I lie to you?"
"Yes!" They all said at the same time, except for Fluttershy as she kept quiet.
"Well, it seems we've reached an impass." Discord said. "I'm telling the truth, but you all don't believe me. Tell me, what do friends do in a situation like this, Princess Twilight. Oh, and congratulations on becoming princess by the way, you totally deserve it!"
"I say we blast him back to stone!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
"Works for me!" Applejack said. "Better he be turned back to stone than have my baby be around him!"
"Oh yeah, I forgot you were pregnant Applejack, congratulations!" Discord said. "Tell me, how many weeks has it been? Two? Three?"
"That's enough!" Rarity said. "I maybe a lady, but there is only so much I can take from a brute like you! Ready girls!?"
Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack got ready to use the elements again as they glowed, but Fluttershy flew in front, blocking them.
"Wait, what if he really is telling the truth?" Fluttershy asked.
"Well finally, somepony believes me!" Discord said. "The rest of you could learn a thing or two from Fluttershy."
"Well, if you aren't doing it, then who is?" Twilight asked.
"Well, I could help you, but after all the hoof pointing and the be smurching of my good name, I don't know if I can." Discord replied.
"Discord!" Twilight shouted.
"Oh calm down, I'm not the only way to figure it out you know." Discord said, getting some knitting needles and knitting something. "How about you ask another member of the herd? You know, you're zebra friend."
They looked at the arrow and saw it was pointing to her hut, everyone looking at one another quizzically when they saw Zecora coming out of the Everfree, pulling a heavy wagon with her.
"Zecora!" Twilight shouted, everyone running to her and unhitching her from the wagon. "What happened?"
"From y home I had to flee, for the forest has grown too wild, even for me." Zecora replied, looking to the Everfree forest.
"Zecora, do ya have any idea why this is happenin'?" Applejack asked as a vine took her hat and she fought with it to get it back.
"I'm afraid this is a mystery to me as well, but I might have something that can help if it's combined with a spell." Zecora replied. She walked to her cart and reached in, pulling out a bottle with purple liquid, everyone looking at it curiously.
"What the heck is it?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"A potion that i dare not use for the results would be quite tragic, for it only responds to Alicorn magic." Zecora replied.
"You mean, I have to use my magic to make it work?" Twilight asked.
"Princess Twilight, only your magic can turn the potion from purple to white." Zecora replied. "And after a sip, you can then see why the sky is both day and night."
Twilight was unsure if it was such a good idea, looking at the bottle and remembering what the Alicorn magic did last time she used it, but she knew if she was going to have any hope of figuring out what happened to the sisters and to Spyro, she had to do it. She charged up her horn, using the dark energies as the Alicorn magic built up until she fired a beam of dark magic at the bottle, the magic hitting it and turning the purple liquid white. She then used her own magic to pick it up, still unsure of if it was safe or not, but Zecora nodded her head, so twilight took a few sips of the potion, everyone watching as she drank it, licking her lips as she found the taste to be pleasant before looking at it.
"Doesn't seem to be working." Twilight said. However, her eyes turned white as she felt like she was being pulled somewhere, shaking her head as she looked around, finding she was in the middle of a throne room, somewhere unfamiliar to her. "Where am I?"
"Not another step." A voice said.
Twilight turned to see who it was that was talking when she saw it was Luna, standing under her banner and in front of a dark blue throne.
"Princess Luna." Twilight said, approaching the princess of the night. "I'm glad you're ok. But... why did you and Princess Celestia disappear?"
Luna didn't answer the question, as if not acknowledging her as she looked straight ahead, confusing her as she sat there.
"Did you honestly think I'd sit idly by while they all basked in your precious light!?" Luna asked, confusing Twilight even more.
"Precious light?" Twilight asked. "Luna, what are you talking about?"
"There can only be one princess in Equestria!" Luna said as a dark aura surrounded her. "And that princess is ME!"
She stamped her hooves onto the ground and caused the barrier on the platform to break and the wall behind her to crack, the wall exploding as Twilight used her wings to cover her and look at Luna, watching her raise the moon and block out the sun, but as she did, dark beams of magic shot out and as it did, the dark beams turned into a storm of dark magic, enveloping Luna as she screamed in pain until an orb of darkness was floating in the air, Twilight watching in horror as the orb exploded, Nightmare Moon having returned as she laughed maniacally at having returned.
"No, Luna." Twilight said, as she felt her heart drop into her stomach, a tear rolling down her cheek as she gazed at her former friend and herd member. "Please no. Not again. This can;t be happening again!"
Twilight gazed at her, wiping away the tear as she called her Keyblade, standing before Nightmare Moon as she was ready to fight her and praying she can save her like Spyro did before.