Chapter 2

A few months after her coronation, Princess Twilight Sparkle sat quietly in her library at Ponyville engrossed in a book she was reading. Her day started just like any other, she had stayed up late studying and woke early to study more. Despite becoming a princess of Equestria, little had truly changed in her life. Her new wings and other ponies genuflecting to her often were about all that was new. Both were difficult in getting used to, as the studious alicorn was not comfortable with either. They brought attention to her that she was not truly fond of. The wings themselves were a hindrance when attempting to sleep as they kept opening up when she finally would get comfortable enough to doze off. How Rainbow Dash or Fluttershy managed to sleep with wings was beyond her.

It was early morning and she was almost finished with her book when she heard footsteps from the stairwell. She glanced up from her book to see Spike make his way groggily down the stairs. The young dragon was a heavy sleeper, even when he got more than enough sleep; he still never woke up well. Twilight herself could go with minimal amounts of sleep and awake feeling refreshed. Something the young dragon grumbled about frequently.

"Good morning Spike." She said cheerfully.

He muttered something, still rubbing at his eyes. "How long have you been up Twilight?" He asked, glancing at the stack of books next to her.

She waved a hoof dismissively. "An hour or two." She stated, having no real idea how long she had been up. "Autumn Leaves received a new shipment of books yesterday at her shop, and I found a few I hadn't read yet." She was referring to a unicorn mare who had opened up a book store in Ponyville a month ago.

Spike grunted and made his way to the kitchen to begin cooking breakfast for the two of them. The smell of cooking hot cakes and barley toast brought a grumble to Twilight's stomach. It had been a while since she had last eaten. She had just finished the last chapter of the book she was reading when Spike brought her a plate of food.

"Thank you Spike, you really are the number one assistant." She said rubbing at his head spines affectionately.

He blushed faintly at her compliment. "Have you already made out your checklist for the day?"

She nodded easily. "Done and done already. I'll get started after breakfast. Fluttershy wanted my help with a task."

"Don't you have more flying lessons with Rainbow Dash?"

Sighing, she said "Yeah, even after months of practicing, she still feels I could do better."

"That's Rainbow Dash for you. She probably won't be happy until you fly as well as she does."

"She has years of flying experience on me, and I doubt I could ever fly as well as she does." Twilight protested.

"Tell her that."

"I did."

"Did she listen?"

"No…"

"That sounds like her then." He said blandly.

They both shared a laugh and not long afterwards the two were moving on to their tasks. It did not take them long to make it to Fluttershy's cottage. They could hear the sounds of the numerous animals that dwelled within and around the pegasus's home. They could also hear the pegasus singing softly to herself. Twilight knocked on the door.

"Come on in." They heard Fluttershy call.

Opening the door, they could see the pale yellow pegasus busy with minor cleaning duties aided by a few of her animal friends.

"Twilight, Spike, I'm glad you both came." She said in her typical quiet voice.

"It's no problem Fluttershy. We're glad to help." Twilight said, as she Spike hopped off her back. "What did you need help with?"

"Well, with you being so good at cataloguing and keeping things organized I thought you would be able to help me keep track of the supplies I've collected." She said, kicking a fore hoof to the floor shyly. Even despite knowing each other for years the yellow pegasus was still shy and hesitant in asking for anything.

Twilight smiled at her friend. "Of course Fluttershy, we'd be happy to help."

Fluttershy smiled warmly. "Oh thank you."

Spike already had clipboard and quill in hand before Twilight could say anything.

It did not take long for the task to be finished. Despite Fluttershy's call for help, she was already adept in keeping her storage shed tidy, like her home. Twilight asked her why she needed help when she had pretty much done everything that needed done.

Fluttershy again kicked the ground idly. "Umm…Well…I knew that Rainbow Dash was going to make you practice again. I just wanted you to have a break. I know how Rainbow Dash can get when she wants to push someone to do something." She looked to Twilight with a faintly worried look. "I hope you're not mad."

Twilight smiled to her friend. "Thank you Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash has had me train awfully hard lately. Though we both know she'll find me eventually and likely make me work extra hard."

"I know, I just wanted…" She started but didn't finish.

"I know Fluttershy, maybe if we're lucky she won't-" Twilight began.

"There you are! Slacker!" A shout was heard from above them.

A rainbow blur landed beside them, appearing outraged. "I've been looking everywhere for you Twilight." Rainbow Dash said as she brushed her hair out of her eyes. "I've something to show you."

"Another lesson?" Twilight asked with a sigh.

"You can say that." She said, and then smiled wide in anticipation. "It will be awesome!"

"Awesome?" Twilight asked dubiously. "Do you consider my crashing into things as awesome now?"

"No, no,… well sometimes. You've had some pretty crazy crashes before, but no, that's not it. Come on you three, you've got to see this."

"M.m. me too?" Fluttershy asked, surprised and a little nervous.

"Yes, you too Fluttershy. Come on you two, we're wasting time." The cyan pegasus said pushing them along the path back to Ponyville.

Well, perhaps not directly to Ponyville, but instead the cyan pegasus ushered them to the local swimming hole. It was a popular place for the residents of Ponyville to cool off from the summer's heat. As they approached the lake, Twilight could see that a recent addition was being built. She could see from her view point that it was a large slide and that there was a fast moving pink blur near its base.

"What is Pinkie Pie up to?" Twilight asked Rainbow Dash. Watching the pink mare zip around the newly built slide, a feeling of trepidation came over her. When Pinkie was excited, the end result was never certain.

Rainbow Dash smirked. "It's not just Pinkie Pie. She and I got an idea after the Cutie Mark Crusader's last attempt at getting their cutie marks."

"What were they…?"

"You don't want to know." Rainbow Dash said dryly. "It involved a water pump, I'll just say that."

"A water pump?" Twilight asked curiously.

Rainbow Dash would not be baited. "Come on you three, they should have it done by now." As she pushed them along.

When they got to the watering hole, they could see that the slide was a simple straight down slide that turned upward sharply at its end. The slide was wide enough to accommodate a fully grown pony. Standing about two stories tall and with an impressive incline, Twilight could imagine Rainbow Dash's excitement. She noticed that her friends Applejack and Rarity were there as well, the former hammering in the last of the nails to the slide and the other sun bathing on a nearby bench.

"Afternoon, Twilight, Fluttershy, Spike, 'bout time ya got here. What kept ya RD?" Applejack said as they approached.

"These slackers were trying to hide out. I found them at Fluttershy's place."

"We were hiding?" Twilight asked Fluttershy quietly, with a faint smile.

The yellow pegasus smiled quietly in turn.

"Twilight! Have you seen what we've built?" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, appearing next to Twilight, lifting her up in her excitement. "It's going to be a giant water slide!"

"I can see." Twilight grunted as she was unceremoniously dropped to the ground.

"Oh, when it's done, we'll have a big pool party. It's gonna be fun!" The pink mare said excitedly.

"When it's done? It's done now." Applejack said, driving in the last nail to the top platform. "Rainbow, bring up that hose, won't ya?"

"You got it." The cyan pegasus flew over and brought up the requested item.

As Applejack set the hose in its designated place, she called down to Twilight. "Can ya put that other hose in the lake Twi?"

"Of course." She said, then used her magic to levitate the other hose over the lake before dropping it.

Applejack nodded in approval. "Alright Pinkie, let'er rip."

"Okely, dokely!" She hollered before turning on the large water pump.

Instantly the machine roared to life, and began draining water from the lake and to the top of the slide. The machine was putting out enough water to provide a good, steady stream. It was perfect for the water slide.

"Yee-haw! It works." Applejack reared up in triumph.

"Alright!" Rainbow Dash cheered, giving Applejack a high hoof.

Pinkie Pie's show of excitement was a blast of confetti from her trusty party cannon.

The only one to show no real excitement was Rarity; who only lowered her sunglasses enough to look at all of the commotion. She then snorted dismissively, and pushed her glasses back to their place and to her sun bath.

Twilight looked at the water slide with a smile, amazed her friends put together such a thing. "Where did Applebloom and her friends find the pump?" Twilight just could not resist asking; directing the question to Applejack.

"Who knows where they get half the things they get. It's one'a them things where ya is better off not askin." The orange mare shrugged.

"Fair enough." Twilight shrugged, finally letting the topic go.

"So who's going first?" Applejack asked them.

"I will!" Pinkie shouted before anyone could answer, already in mid-leap over the start of the slide. With a high pitched 'Whee!" she slid down the slide at a good rate of speed. She then flew over the lake and splashed down with an impressive cannon ball. The resulting wave soaked all standing near the lake, including an unaware Rarity.

The white unicorn sputtered as she shook off the water, a horrified expression on her face. "P,Pinkie Pie! My…my hair!" She declared in a tragic tone.

"Oh, sorry Rarity." The pink mare said as she floated in the middle of the lake, a not so sorry expression on her face. "You should come swimming with us; it's a whole lot of fun."

Rarity scoffed. "Fun? Darling, I fail to see how swimming in a dirty old lake could even possibly be considered fun. But you girls go ahead and have your fun; I'll enjoy my time in the sun." With that, she used her magic to dry her hair; which promptly settled back to its normal state. She then went back to her sun bathing.

The other mares had a small laugh and had a fun time with the new slide. Even Fluttershy gave the slide a try, after much coaxing from her friends. It soon became a contest between Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie on who could make a larger splash. Though none got close to Pinkie's first cannonball, they didn't lack for trying. After Applejack's last attempt, an impressive splash that reached well into the air, Rainbow Dash zipped up to the top of the slide and stretched her wings, acting for the entire world as if she was preparing for a big race. With a confident smile she leapt into the air, going up a short distance, then turning a sharp 180 and descending swiftly. Her wings tucked to her side, she gained speed as she reached the end of the slide.

As she sailed out over the lake, she did a few midair flips and splashed down with a loud. "Yeeeaaah!"

The splash nearly out did Pinkie's, the resulting wave soaked everyone along the shore; save Rarity who saw it coming and used her magic to shield herself from the water, not a hair out of place.

"Yeah! That's how it's done!" The cyan pegasus cheered from the water's surface. Her friends all cheered as well, that was when Rainbow looked Twilight's way.

"Alright Twilight, it's your turn. I want you to do the same thing I just did."

Twilight blinked, it took her a moment to respond. "You want me to dive from the air..?" She asked incredulously.

"That's right. It'll be your flight lesson today. There's nothing to it, just tuck your wings in as you dive and you'll get up a good speed"

Twilight did not appear convinced.

"You'll be fine." Rainbow said to that look.

With a sigh, Twilight took off into the air and hovered at a point above the slide.

"Just tuck them in?" She called down.

"Just do it Twilight!" Rainbow yelled back up at her, impatience thick in her tone.

"You can do it sugarcube!" Applejack called up encouragingly.

"Yay! Twilight! Whoo!" Pinkie Pie added.

Fluttershy looked on, eager to see how Twilight did. Rarity lowered her sunglasses enough to view the spectacle. Spike, of course, looked on with a hint of worry.

With a calming breath, Twilight descended down as Rainbow had earlier. Tucking in her wings, she descended with a good rate of speed. She hit the slide and sailed out over the lake…and beyond. Rainbow noticed it a second too late to warn her, her wings were not tucked in enough and the resulting wind current carried her further than anticipated.

"Twilight! Look out!" Spike called, mirroring other shouts from her friends.

With a panicked scream, Twilight tried buffing her wings in an attempt to stop herself, but it was not enough to keep her from crashing into a tree near where Rarity sat.

Her friends, sans Rarity, rushed over to call up into the tree she crashed into.

"Twi, you alright?" Applejack asked.

"Ugh…never better." Came the sarcastic response from the tree.

The typical Twilight response set them all at ease.

"Ya had us worried there sugarcube."

"I had myself worried. Whoa!" Came her surprised yelp, followed by the resounding thuds as she bounced off each branch the whole way to the ground.

She sat dazed a moment, and then shook her head to clear the dizziness.

"What did I do wrong?" She asked.

"You had your wings out for too long. When you got to the slide, you should have had them by your side." Fluttershy said softly.

"You couldn't have told me that before I dived head long into a tree?" Twilight said exasperated, but then apologized as she saw Fluttershy wince from the words.

"Really darling, you shouldn't let Rainbow Dash talk you into doing every crazy stunt she does. Not until you're at least a bit more experienced in flying." Rarity said, and then added as if an afterthought. "No offense Rainbow Dash."

"Oh, none taken." Rainbow Dash said, far too easily.

There was something in her tone that had Rarity turn to look at the pegasus. She then saw a grinning Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, who quickly grabbed her and lifted her up from her bench.

"Girls! No! What are you doing? Put me down this instant!" Rarity yelled, struggling to escape.

"Oh, we're not doing anything." Pinkie Pie chirped as they carried her towards the lake shore, their intent obvious.

"No! Girls! No, not the lake! "My-" Her remaining protests were lost in a scream as she was unceremoniously tossed into the lake.

She came up sputtering, her make up running and her hair soaking wet. No easy magic was going to fix it this time. She was quickly joined by a diving Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, soaking her once again.

She gave them one of her death glares and uttered. "It. Is. ON!" She then promptly dunked Rainbow under the water.

The girls all shared a laugh and enjoyed the rest of the day at the lake, having fun and enjoying each other's company. It was one of those days they would all look back on and remember fondly. Unfortunately, it would also be one of the last they would have for a long while.

That same day, Princess Celestia quietly sat out on the balcony overlooking the city of Canterlot. The last she heard from her sister was a few weeks ago, saying that Luna's expedition had found the temple and more; and to expect her home soon. Luna was expected back this day, and Celestia would finally learn if her fears were well founded. Their form of communication was not consistent as it was with Twilight and Spike. Their magical sendings were much more difficult to send and maintain. Thus the sisters had agreed to share the final news in person.

Her thoughts drifted once again. Equestria had only just begun to settle into a state where there was little fear of an outside threat. Nightmare Moon was vanquished, Discord reformed, the changelings imprisoned, and Sombra defeated. It had seemed that peace and stability had finally settled over her kingdom. With a newly crowned princess, her ponies were happy. She dreaded that their happiness would so soon be threatened once again.

She was jarred out of her thoughts by the sound of a horn being blow by the gates of the city, signaling the return of Luna and her expedition. Celestia quietly made her way back to the throne room, there to await Luna.

She did not have to wait long. Luna made her way directly to the throne room. When she arrived Celestia saw she was followed by a pair of guard ponies pulling a canvas covered wagon and also accompanied by a worn looking blue-green pegasus with a three coin cutie mark. Celestia looked over the pegasus with a look of concern before looking to the wagon curiously.

"Welcome home sister, I hope you and those of your expedition are well?" She said to Luna.

"We are indeed sister." Luna replied. "But I fear the news I bring is most dire."

Celestia felt her heart sink. "It is true then?"

Luna nodded gravely. "We found Tourmaline there, at the fringe of the jungle. In ill health and delirium, but we were able to determine she knew where the temple lay hidden. We nursed her back to health and she agreed to show us where it lay." Luna turned to Tourmaline. "Come forward young one; please tell my sister what you have told me."

Hesitantly the blue-green pegasus stepped forward and bowed respectfully to the Princess.

"Princess." She said softly.

Celestia smiled gently. "It is alright my little pony, it is safe here. Your name is Tourmaline yes? It is a beautiful name."

"Y, yes princess." The pegasus replied, feeling more relaxed at the princess's words.

"Can you tell me what you witnessed at the temple in the jungle?"

Tourmaline looked crestfallen and looked to the canvas covered wagon. "I truly wish we had never found it."

She then told Celestia al what occurred that day at the temple. She told of Wanderer, her brother Tormod, the crown, and the scepter; and the awful stallion that Wanderer had become.

"Can you describe what this stallion looked like?" Celestia asked when Tourmaline came to that point in her telling.

Tourmaline closed her eyes a moment. "His coat was a dark purple, almost black, his mane was a lighter shade of purple with a gold streak through it. He had gold armor on his chest, as well as the crown and scepter. But it was his eyes, I cannot stop seeing them. Yellow eyes and how they looked at me. We three had battled monsters before, some of them very dangerous, and I never flinched against them. But his eyes, looking at them and I couldn't move, and that was when Tormod." She choked back her words, looking to the wagon again with a look of shame, unable to continue speaking.

Celestia looked back to the wagon and with a soft glow from her horn, the canvas lifted; uncovering a still petrified Tormod. Celestia looked on with wide eyes then looked to Luna.

"I have been unable to undo what was done to him. He dreams however and I have visited him there, and he has relayed much the same to me." She said to her sister.

Celestia nodded slowly and approached the petrified unicorn. Her horn grew much brighter and the same colored aura surrounded the statue. Despite her effort, she too was not able to undo the petrification. She did recognize the magical aura that surrounded it still, seen only by her and her sister, it confirmed without a doubt who was behind it. It was a magical aura that she would not forget.

She turned and looked to the worried Tourmaline. "You are tired young one, you and your brother will remain here as my guests in the castle. I promise you that I will do all that I can to cure your brother."

Tourmaline bowed graciously to her. "Thank you Princess, I truly thank you for your help."

"You are most welcome." Celestia then looked to a guard who stood by stoically. "Please show her to the guest rooms."

After Tourmaline had left Celestia turned back to her throne in quiet contemplation; Luna stood quietly next to her, allowing her sister time to mull over the news.

"I should have foreseen this." Celestia said quietly.

"One cannot predict the future sister. You cannot be blamed for his return."

"I know this, but I dread what he is capable of now. He has had centuries to focus his power despite his imprisonment. "

"He has been released for a few months now, and we have neither seen nor heard anything of him. Perhaps he is weakened instead and is unwilling to face us as of yet." Luna suggested.

"Perhaps." Celestia allowed. "However, it is not in his nature to act rashly. When he does reappear, it will be thoroughly planned out and he will come for us. We cannot let him harm our subjects in his goal for domination."

"Until he acts, we can do little but prepare for that day."

Celestia nodded in agreement. "We will have to warn princess Cadance and princess Twilight, and advise her friends to have the elements of harmony at the ready. We will also have to inform Discord, he might be able to provide more information that we can use."

Luna winced at the thought, even if Discord offered information; she hoped it would make at least a sliver of sense.

In another part of Equestria, south of the Applelosian Mountains and past the forest of Leota, sat the remains of a recently destroyed castle. The remains of a small town surrounding it had long since been abandoned. Inside the castle, it was as still as night. It was not until one came to its lower confines that one would hear a sing song voice happily repeating the same tune over and over again. It was broken long enough to recite a poem before breaking out in song again. A routine that was maddening to any one subject to it with no means of escape.

Maddening was putting it lightly, the Queen of the Changeling thought to herself. For almost a year now she and her hive of changelings had been imprisoned in this infernal dungeon. Ever since that fateful night of the comet and the battle with Twilight and her friends, the queen had to hear that insufferable song and rhyme repeated. All in the voice of the pink earth pony, it drove them all to the ends of sanity.

She and her minions tried in vain to not only dig themselves out, but also tried to solve the riddle of the enchanted costume that blocked the only exit from their prison. Queen Chrysalis even attempted to use her magic to destroy it, but whatever Twilight had done to the costume, it was impervious to her power. How she wished she could go even a short time without hearing that song again!

"My Queen." Said one of her minions, her lieutenant to be exact, distinguished only by the armor he wore that her others did not.

"What?!" she snapped, her patience long since eroded away.

He flinched at her tone but gave his report anyway. "We have tried digging at a different section of the antechambers but they too resist our efforts."

She scoffed at this. "You tell me nothing I don't already know. Do not come back to me unless you have found something that will get us out of here."

He bowed and backed away. "Yes, my queen."

After he left, she looked around in despair, there was no way out she knew. Not until Twilight herself came back to release them, and what were the chances of that ever happening? She plopped down on her dais, her hooves over her head, trying to drown out the rambling of the possessed costume.

Then it happened, the costume seemed to have stopped its singing for a split second, almost like a hesitation. The queen perked up, as did her nearby minions, and looked to the large costume that barred the door. When it started up again she had thought it was only a cruel joke played by her mind. At least she thought until the costume exploded out in a shower of shredded cloth and material.

The sound of its destruction had her and her changelings on their hooves in shock. Finally that insufferable singing had ceased, but in its place stood a tall stallion earth pony. His coat was dark velvet, his mane a lighter shade of his coat and a gold streak going through it. Adorning his head was the snake entwined crown, and he held the gold manticore scepter in his left hoof.

The stallion's amber colored eyes scanned the room of the collected changelings before settling on their queen. A small sneer crossed the face of this stallion.

"The queen of the changelings, I presume?" He said in voice that was dark yet had that edge of charisma that could likely sway any pony that heard him speak.

Chrysalis scowled softly, looking at this one; perhaps they would have been better off with the annoying costume.