Trying to do more than monthly updates. At the previous rate, the story wouldn't be finished, but I'm coming back, guys. I will try and finish this arc up.

Equestrian Heroes
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Naruto x Rarity x Twilight x Fluttershy x Applejack x Pinkie Pie x Rainbow Dash x Ditzy x Luna x ? x ?
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For Normal Speech
Inner thoughts, Text read, Italics used to represent characters speaking in different language.
Demonic rage, Demonic characters, Kurama Speak
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Author's Note
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After much time and consideration, I decided to make the events preceding chapter 269 its own story so the story is not rushed to get back to the main action. I will hopefully have the first chapter up by Tuesday if not Wednesday by the latest. Until then enjoy the long-awaited continuation of Equestrian Heroes.
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Story Start
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Oh Goddess, Source of Gods and Mortals,

All-Fertile, All-Destroying Gaia,

Mother of All, Who brings forth the bounteous fruits and flowers,

All variety, Maiden who anchors the eternal world in our own,

Immortal, Blessed, crowned with every grace,

Deep-bosomed Earth, sweet plains and fields fragrant grasses in the nurturing rains,

Around you fly the beauteous stars, eternal and divine,

Come, Blessed Goddess, and hear the prayers of Your children,

And make the increase of the fruits and grains your constant care, with the fertile seasons Your handmaidens,

Draw near, and bless your supplicant

The spoken verse ended as Applejack kneeled at the altar. The room was built of stones of old with pillars being the backbone of the room. Say for the platform, ramps, and mirrors there was no other structures within this room. All the large slabs were carvings of a language unfamiliar to the occupants as a faint green aura gently washed over Applejack.

In rapturous silence, Naruto and Fluttershy watched with interest as the calming energy of nature itself reverberating through the room.

In a realm of no conscious name, Applejack began to come to. As her eyes adjusted she comes to realize she was in a room.

It was not just any room but the royal Canterlot chamber. It was darkened thanks to the foliage that now seemed to sprout from the windows and walls. As she took in more of the room she realized that more than plant life filled the room. Her vision was soon drawn to what should have been where the royal sister's thrones were, but in its place was a single saddle brown and light emerald green throne with the all too familiar emblem of her cutie mark on it.

"No...this...what's happenin'?" Applejack wondered as the thick bustle of vines near her throne expanded and spread apart revealing a much older Applejack. "What, what are ya?"

The elder titled her head with a lackadaisy smile escaping her lips. "Ain't it obvious? I'm you." She answered before taking a seat on the throne. Lacking her signature Stetson hat there was something else that was quite startling.

"How can ya be me? What's goin' on? Explain yerself!" Applejack demanded as the other she just continued to gaze down at her.

"Ah'm the you, willing to do whatever it takes to protect the family. To protect everypony I'm willing to take the power necessary to protect everything in the world that matters. After all, it would be good to be something else besides...useless."

"Ah ain't going to fall for yer trick." Didn't Pinkie encounter something of a dark shade of her own due to that incident with the mirror pool? Was this a manifestation of interacting with Cervidian ritual magic? Regardless Applejack figured this was simply a trick to lower her guard.

"Come now, are you really this simple-minded? This is no trick. I'm the you who you don't want to face. Fear, regret, anger, sadness...everything little thing you bottled up to the point conscious could attack to it and as a result, I was born."

If this shadw, this copy of her was anything like what she was warned about it would be trying to talk her down and preparing her for a fight in an attempt to take control of her body. Applejack moves into a stance as she readied for whatever cheap tricks the doppelganger would pull.

The other merely snorted and clasped her face as she leaned back in the throne. "If you're preparing for a fight it's already pointless. Nothing good would come from us fighting when the true enemy has already made itself known. If you want to protect everypony then we need to seize the power of the temple, otherwise, we will simply continue to hold the team back."

"What...what are you talking about? How are we holding them back?"

The other sent Applejack a look of contempt. "Come now, what do we have to offer that no other earth pony can't fill? Face it, as we are now we're of no consequence. We have no talent or power that is useful in combat. Without this power, we'll only hold them back."

Applejack couldn't help but let out a chuckle at her other self. "If this had been six months ago, your words might have rattled me, but if you were really me, you would have known what I've done to see past my issues." With that, the area they were in began to wobble and compress as the space of reality began to bleed and twist and reshape itself into a barren wasteland. In Applejack's hand, a single seed rested in her palm. "It was Princess Celestia who insisted we tackle any personal hang-ups as soon as possible. Baggage like personal issues are dangerous to have unresolved cause they can be used against ya and that wasn't somethin' ah could afford. So ah avoided wallowing about what ah couldn't do and focus on what ah could do.

"Ah'm an Earth Pony. Most ponies, even other earth ponies and especially unicorns, don't understand every application of our magic. Ah can make a tree grow tall and strong in the barren desert just by singin' it a lullaby..." Planting the seed Applejack focused her thoughts on the tree then began to blossom into a mighty fine oak tree. "Ah'm more than just a farmer who wants to be there for her family. Ah may not have those big aspirations like the rest of my herd, but ah'm okay with there for others and being their rock is more than enough for me. I may not be energetic like Pinkie, smart like Twilight, brash like Rainbow Dash, flashy as Rarity, magnetic like Fluttershy or as headstrong like Naruto, but ah'm happy bein' dependable."

The other smiled as the image faded away to reveal a furless being with light pinkish-white skin, long pointed ears and in a forest green gown with golden hair and slender form. "From the beginning, you knew you were being tested?" The unknown figure questioned as Applejack shrugged.

"Ah figured a power like this had to have more to it than simply three poni...eer deers having the designated virtues. Sort of like the Elements of Harmony you know. Sorry to disappoint ya, but my herd's been through so many experiences that we try to avoid being tripped up on things we encountered before. "

"Aah yes, the incident with Pinkamena. I trust that you, bearer of Honesty hold no anger against this soul. By coming into my realm your mind and all its memories were opened to me." The figure replied with clasped hands behooves against her breasts.

"Ah was warned that something like that would be occurin," Applejack answered with a sigh, while not happy with anypony or anything poking around in her head she knew it had been necessary. "So ah don't hold nothin' against ya. Ah just want to know what this whole thing was about?"

"I had wished to test you to see if you were truly worthy of the gift that Mother's vessel wishes to bless you with." Upon seeing Applejack's confused expression she continued with her explanation. "To put it quite simply, Queen Deemeter is the embodiment of nature as a vessel chosen by the mother the embodiment of nature whose essence is mixed with hers as her chosen avatar. Just as your princesses exist as avatars of the sun and moon's very essence."

Applejack was beginning to grasp just what the spirit was trying to tell her. "So did ah pass the test?"

"Swimmingly Element of Honesty, it has been eons since a counterpart has surpassed their prime counterpart."

"Prime Counterpart?" Applejack wondered aloud as the spirit gasped and let out a nervous titter.

"Just rambling of mine, it matters not." The spirit fluttered over to Applejack. "To complete the ritual." The spirit tapped a finger to Applejack's head as a bright blinding white light filled the scape.

On the outside, Naruto and Fluttershy watched and waited as Applejack merely floated in the spiritual nexus of energy from the platform. Suddenly the energy exploded with bright intensity causing them to shield their eyes from the energy. The energy began seeping out and coursing through the temple illuminating it in its energies. On the outside, the temple was bathed with energy as a beam shot out from the top into the sky. The energy from the temple began to faintly wash over the nation as some life was poured back into the nation enough to where some of the dead and decaying plant life went back into a state of liveness, but far from their former glory.

The glow soon began to fade as Naruto and Fluttershy approached Applejack. The energy soon cut off as Applejack fell back into their arms. "You alright AJ?"

"Yeah, ah'm fine." She said as they let her stood up as she looked herself over. "Ah don't feel any different, but ah guess that parts come after we're done."

"Let's get out of here and set up camp for the day," Fluttershy suggested after giving the blonde a glance over and noticing some exhaustion on the pony's face.

"I saw a spot not too far from here. Purifying the river should be simple and then we can begin our trek to the next temple." With that, they were out of there.

Walking through the vast cold wasteland that compressed the frozen north was a single figure cloaked in a brown cloak. Hidden from detection with the exception of a pale grayish arctic blue peeking out from the back of the cloak there was no way to identify this figure. The figure's purpose was unknown but a story followed them.

For within the deep depths of the wasteland she traveled was a location used to prison the worst of monsters. This prison lacked the charm of Tartarus lacking even its one vulnerable flaw of escape. While Tartarus was more suited for criminals the place of the icy gateways held monstrosities that lacked common form or soul. While over time there were entities of Tartarus that could be purged of their sins through karmic retribution the prison within these lands were and would forever be an eternal prison.

The rulers that once ruled over these lands were renowned for putting these monstrosities on ice. The lost of the once ruler, Princess Amore resulted in the knowledge of much of these creatures and the secrets of the north lost.

"Wow, after all these years I still wasn't ready to see this place." Stepping into the room and gazing around she took in the sight of the study. A private journal with green covering and many marble busts of King Sombra littering the room. The carpeted room was littered with many candles and other relics of the century. "You can come out now. I know you're here, no need to hide from me Sombra." The figure pulled off the hood of the cloak revealing them. An equine mare with moderate artic blue eyes, grayish arctic blue mane that was a pale shade with a grayish heliptrope coat.

"Hope..." The deep rumbling hiss warbled as the room began to shake. Appearing was the red curved shaped horn of Sombra following by wispy purple and black streams coming together like smoke. Further fumes of red and yellow formed together to make a simulation of Sombra's face. "So you've come to finish the job, have you?" The disembodied spirit accused her.

"Finish the...Sombra, you don't understand!" She pleaded as if shock by his accusation.

"I understand perfectly!" He hissed at her. The closest thing he had to a genuine bond. The one entity he held some measure of care for. And she had betrayed him. "How you abandoned me and betrayed me to the royal sisters."

"It's not that simple Sombra." She argued, trying to reason with him, "I didn't know what you were or what Princess Amore had done. What the Crystal Empire had done, but I have had time to learn some things and now I can make it right."

"And how do you propose that? It took me months to get this far, it'll take the better part of a decade before I am strong enough to reform."

With that Hope's horn began to glow a brilliant cornflower blue. "Hold on! This is going to hurt!" Magic erupted from her horn as she blasted the spirit.

The smoke collapsed and formed into a marble-like cube as Hope continued the spell. Her horn burned as sweat dripped down her face. Collapsing from exhaustion and pain the spirit of Sombra roared as the essence crackled and exploded before collapsing and solidifying.

Lifting her head she asked, "Well, how do you feel?"

"The king has returned." He bared his sharp teeth as his sickly green eyes glowed. Once again he was back to his mortal form. "Long live the king!" He declared. "Still, to have learned this means to restore me, where did you find this knowledge?"

"That would be me!" The voice put Sombra on alert has his horn began to glow. "Is that any way to greet a potential ally?" The voice quipped as he entered the room.

Sombra's eyes widened as he immediately went on guard. There were only three entities he was wary of as their reputation superseded his by virtue of both power and infamy.

Radiant Hope backed away in fear, hiding being Sombra. Discord? But wasn't he defeated by the forces of Equestria? What's someone like that doing here?

"And what would the god of Chaos need of a being like me?" Even a king would be foolish to cross a god.

A smile formed on Strife's featured as he waves his hand and conjured marble statues of his hand. The seven bearers and Spike. Once more relying on the fear and reverence of his father's deed to further his own plans. "We have mutual enemies. How would you like help in disposing of them?"

"You have my attention."