The last light of the moon was fading from the pre-dawn sky, giving way to the fullness of the night. The rim of the lunar sphere had dipped below the horizon as seen from Dawn's Greeting tower some twenty-seven minutes and thirty seconds earlier, and now a recently-revived ceremony which had once marked the beginning and end of each day for hundreds of years was to be played out again.

A pair of Guards were stationed at either side of the wide, sweeping stair where it met the western end of the flat stone roof, their pure-white coats and gleaming golden armour immaculate. Behind them, a precise distance east of the mid-point of the tower, three more Guardsponies stood facing the stairs; a young Captain flanked by a pair of veteran N.C.O.s, the bright colours of their unit pennons flying at the tips of their lances. Finally, on the easternmost edge of the tower, a tall, graceful Alicorn with a flowing, ethereal mane and tail faced the eastern sky, massive white wings raised and fully spread as if to embrace the world. None moved so much as a muscle at the rhythmic, ringing tramp of armoured ponies mounting the stairs.

The heads of the approaching ponies appeared, three of them marching abreast, each carrying a furled standard. In contrast to the others, their helms and mail were a glossy black against their dark-grey coats, and the leader of their formation bore leathery, bat-like wings on her back. They kept up the same metronomic pace until they made the last turn onto the long platform a single, symbolic step below the roof level. When they reached this point, the two stairway guards took a pace forwards and turned to block the newcomers' path, lowering their heavy silver halberds threateningly.

“Halt!” bellowed the golden-armoured guard on the right of the stairs. The newcomers obliged, crashing their hooves down one final time in perfect synchronisation. “Who comes there?”

“The Night!” roared the bat-winged pony.

“Whose Night?”

“Princess Luna's Night!”

The two guards lifted their halberds and reversed their course, ending at attention. “Pass, Princess Luna's Night, for all is well!”

The Captain swallowed. “Colour Guard! Atten-shun!”

The Captain and her companions snapped erect and the black-armoured ponies took this as their cue to resume their advance, marching past the stairway guards and the motionless trio before coming to a halt again directly behind the Solar Princess.

“Colour Guard, about turn!”

The three spun in place to face east, and as their hooves cracked down on the worn stone once more, the newcomers thrust the staffs of their standards into three gilded sockets at measured intervals, thump – thump – thump.

“Colour Guard, present arms!”

With that, the Captain and company made their traditional salute and the newcomers tore the bindings off their standards and came to attention themselves. The heavy, intricately-embroidered banners of the Sun and Moon fell open to ripple lazily in the fitful breeze either side of the grand flag of Equestria.

“Night has passed!” declared the bat-winged pony.

“Day is breaking!” agreed the Captain.

“Harmony and Equestria!”

At their combined shout, the mighty wings of the Alicorn beat once, then again, lifting the Goddess into the sky while blinding white light spilled from her horn.

Seconds later, exactly thirty minutes since the moon had ceded the sky, the light of dawn broke once more over Canterlot.

Joining Princess Celestia for the official levée breakfast was an honour which few ponies experienced in their lifetimes. The fare was simple – seasonal fruits, delicate slices of melon, fresh bread still warm from the oven – and the beverages no more exotic than fresh orange juice and gently-steaming cups of lemon tea, all served by waiters who passed by on rubber horseshoes like shadows in the night, but even the highest of nobleponies had been known to fight tooth and hoof for the privilege of attending these gatherings.

Those nobleponies, therefore, would be reduced to tears of outrage and indignation that such an occasion should be attended only by two common-born ponies, even if they were Celestia's personal student and the Captain of the Guard. It was also probably best that they didn't see the sight of Princess Luna sprawled in a lazy heap, munching noisily on a bowl of own-brand granola from the local supermarket.

“We should do this more often, sister,” the Princess of the Night declared, patting a splotch of yoghurt from the royal muzzle.

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Have breakfast together, Luna? Or watch you gorge yourself like a starving parasprite?”

“Break our fast with friends,” Luna said with great dignity. “None of those rapacious social climbers you often encumber these occasions with. Make it a pleasure rather than one of your subtle tortures where using the wrong fork on your ridiculously-extravagant fruit is political suicide.”

Celestia sighed, setting down one of the gilded forks in question. “I don’t particularly care whether somepony uses the wrong fork, or even no fork at all. They have made it so, and seem particularly resistant to changing to the idea. And while I grant you that the fruit is a luxury, it is hardly so extravagant as you make out.”

Luna snorted. “You have become soft, sister!” she declared with a smirk. “Why, the signs of your gluttony are born on your very frame – don’t you agree, Shining Armour?”

“How very dare you, Luna!” Celestia cried in mock-outrage, turning to Shining Armour with a beseeching look.

“Can I refuse to answer on the grounds of avoiding banishment by one or other of you?” he replied, hiding his grin behind his teacup.

“See? Only his chivalry prevents his mentioning the wobble of thy flanks and the pendulousness of thy belly! To stint one’s self of cake in the afternoons would most assuredly be of great benefit to your constitution.”

Celestia laughed. “Ah, now we come to it! After all, I know of only one princess who eats cheesecake first thing on arising – and it certainly isn’t me! Perhaps you should look to your own habits before criticising mine?”

“It is only natural that I join our little ponies in the meal which coincides with my time of rising. Cheesecake is a valid part of such meal,” Luna replied loftily. “My abstemiousness is reflected in my figure.”

“Indeed it is – which is why you sprawl there like a stunned Ursa Minor after flying the short distance down from your tower, unable to raise another hoof!”

Shining Armour carefully edged backwards. While it was great fun to see the two sisters tease each other, he knew the trick was to avoid taking sides – and not, under any circumstances, to laugh. He had done that only once – and quickly found his horn harpooning flying bread rolls.

Twilight, on the other hoof, sat quietly in the corner pushing a bread roll listlessly around her plate while draining her third cup of coffee. Already the caffeine was starting to show in her rather wild eyes and the tremor in her hooves. Both Princesses had been watching her for some time, and Shining Armour thought their little byplay was aimed at making her smile, but it was Luna who eventually interceded directly.

“Are you well, Twilight?” she asked solicitously. “You are most singularly quiet, and I noted the tumultuous nature of your dreams last night.”

Twilight’s head jerked up in panic and the Princess rushed to reassure her. “I saw not their content, Twilight, only that they were disturbed. I do not intrude on ponies’ privacy unless I absolutely must.”

“…Oh. I didn’t sleep very well, but I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

Luna eyed her keenly. “As you wish. If you are finished, sister, perhaps we should get started?”

“Oh, I suppose I can drag myself away from my rampant gluttony and haul my wobbly flanks and pendulous belly into the Opal Office – assuming everypony is ready?”

“At your command, Princess,” Shining Armour said, and beside him Twilight leapt to her hooves.

“Tarry a moment whilst I recover my breath for the momentous journey across the hall, sister.”

The two Princesses swept out, snickering to themselves, while Twilight leaned closer to him to whisper, “Are they always like that?”

He shrugged. “When they’re alone? Pretty much, yeah.”

Twilight gave him a stunned look but they had little time to discuss things as they followed the Royal Sisters into their working office. Two large mahogany desks dominated the room, their panels intricately carved and highlighted with iridescent blue stones. A series of similar stones, each a smooth globe the size of a pony's hoof, were set as the focal points of a frieze which stretched around the room.

Celestia took up station behind her desk with her usual regal grace and pushed some paperwork aside before addressing the two Guards stationed either side of the door.

“Thank you, that will be all. Please see to it that we are not disturbed.”

“Of course, Your Highness.”

The two Guards bowed their way out and pulled the tall oak doors closed. As they boomed shut, Luna stretched and sank decorously onto the thick herringbone-patterned rug stretching between the two desks, curling her legs beneath her.

“Help, sister! Mercy! My exertions are inequine, unspeakable!” she murmured feebly throwing her head back in a swoon. Celestia just rolled her eyes and flicked a crumpled ball of paper at her from the waste paper basket.

“To get down to business, both Twilight and Shining Armour are here to learn the full tale of the recent events – and we to learn what has subsequently transpired from them. We must also decide what actions we can take in pursuit of the creature – and in defence of Applejack.

“Firstly though, we would both like to thank you, Twilight. You have pursued this problem with diligence and zeal in excess of even my greatest expectations, and that you led us to a solution at all given how little you had to work with is little short of incredible.”

Twilight hung her head. “I was too late, though. A pony died, and the creature escaped.”

“Any recriminations must be directed at Celestia and I alone,” Luna said firmly. “Were we not so slow to discern the truth we would have been in time. As it is, we owe you a great debt that we now know with certainty what our foe may be, and that information will most assuredly lead to its capture, in the fullness of time. Do not take on this burden, Twilight; it is not yours to bear.”

Celestia gave Twilight a sad smile, full of regret. “Luna is right; please don't blame yourself, Twilight. There was nothing more you could possibly have done.”

Twilight shook her head stubbornly but did not answer. With a sigh, Celestia continued, “And I must apologise to you also, my Captain, for keeping you in the dark about this threat. As ever, the fewer ponies who share a secret, the better kept it remains.”

He bowed his head in acknowledgement. “But why all the secrecy, Princess? Why not put everypony on their guard?”

“A reasonable question. The short answer was, to prevent a panic. The longer answer will become clear as we explain the full circumstances.”

“How shall we proceed, sister?” Luna asked. “I can attempt a summing-up, if you wish?”

Celestia chewed her lip in thought for a moment. “Perhaps it would be best Twilight began from our original meeting through to the events outside the town hall? That way, Shining Armour can see how things unfolded from her perspective.”

Luna nodded sharply. “A sound proposition. We will add to the telling if needs be, but I think any further answers can come after. If you are willing, Twilight?”

Closing her eyes, Twilight nodded again. It was several moments while she ordered her thoughts before she began to speak in a quiet voice.

It took her over an hour as she explained the Princess' original instructions and then the ebb and flow of information and uncertainty around the two new ponies in town. The meeting in the town which so nearly descended into mob justice left her shaking her head in frustration. “I should have realised just how bad the feeling in Ponyville had got when Summer's window was graffiti'd. If it wasn't for Cloud Kicker and Applejack...,” she trailed off, her meaning clear. “I should have said something when it was obvious that everypony knew that something was going on. Like Applejack told me, I didn't have to go into specifics, just enough that it was clearly something from the Everfree Forest.”

“You think they would have believed you?” Shining Armour mused. “It sounds like they'd already made their minds up long before.”

“Maybe. The earlier I told them, the more likely they would have been to believe it. As it was, they'd already made up their own minds to the point that they thought I was just making something up to defend them.”

“That was entirely our fault, Celestia and I,” said Luna. “We were very explicit in our instruction to Twilight that no word of our suspicions could reach outside a very select group. I even forbade her to discuss it with her fellow Elements of Harmony, although Celestia and Twilight convinced me otherwise.”

“Why, though?” asked Shining Armour. “It would have made everything so much simpler, for everypony.”

Luna leapt to her hooves and began to pace agitatedly. “Because at that point, we still had no idea what we were dealing with. It must surely be other than an ordinary pony, but what form did it take? Did it hide itself in plain sight, and live in pony form? Did it pass somehow unnoticed through the crowd? Also, in years past, at least one of those who investigated on our behalf had disappeared. Did they draw its attention, somehow? You can see why we were loath to risk information leaking out and possibly ruining our best chance of stopping these incidents permanently”

“Peace, Luna, we shall come to that in time,” said Celestia calmly. She rose from her desk and walked to a small alcove set into the wall, where she poured two glasses of water from a tall, crystal pitcher. Levitating them in her magic, she set one each in from of Twilight and Shining Armour and she settled herself on the floor in Luna's place, while her sister's restlessness ended with her standing at the patio doors looking out into a little private courtyard, her tail twitching. Twilight took her glass gratefully, letting the water rest on her tongue between swallows, but other than a perfectly-polite thank-you, she didn't seem to realise the honour that the Princess did her by putting herself on the same level. Then again, she shared a much closer relationship with Celestia than nearly any other pony at Court, barring her sister and Cadence; the respect was certainly there, but the formalities tended to be taken as read.

“Please continue, Twilight, if you feel able,” Celestia prompted.

Twilight closed her eyes for a moment and took several deep breaths. Opening them again, she resumed her tale from her receipt of Princess Celestia's hurried letter. “Applejack panicked,” she summed up in a hushed voice. “I couldn't stop her, and I knew that I couldn't go after her until the Guard had arrived, but by then it was too late. I just can't imagine how it could go so wrong.”

Twilight's eyes screwed shut and she gritted her teeth against her tears, her head drooping. Celestia patted her shoulder consolingly. “Applejack was right to be worried about her sister – just as you were right in what you did.”

“She said she nearly killed him” Twilight forced out. “Beat him to a pulp and then galloped back to the farm, only to find that everything he'd told her was true. And then I went and... found him.”

Her voice cracked huskily on the last two words, and the room was silent for a long time except for Twilight's wet, shaking breaths. Shining Armour knew what she had found, and it was almost hard to believe that it had been a living, breathing pony. Words seemed futile and inadequate.

Finally, Luna broke the horrified spell. “I think that takes us up to your involvement, Colonel. We would be grateful for your report.”

Dragging his mind away from the broken body beneath the grape vines, he tried to focus his thoughts and quickly set out his version of events. Given that most of the two days was tied up with confirming the same things, his progress seemed peculiarly small when spelled out in total.

“Applejack's in a whole lot of trouble,” he concluded. “The Prosecutor was arriving just as we left town, but Autumn Breeze and Nightjack were adamant that she was facing prison time. The only question in their minds was what the eventual charge would be.”

Celestia let out a long sigh and rose to her hooves, pacing the office much as her sister had done earlier. “This is already a tragedy. Should one of the Elements be imprisoned, it would turn into a disaster – for Applejack, for her family, for her friends. We may just have to hope that it doesn't turn out to be a disaster for Equestria, as well.”

“Isn't there anything you can do, Princess?” Twilight begged.

“We will come to that, Twilight, but bear in mind that justice must be done – and must be seen to be done,” Celestia said reluctantly. “For now, you have both told your tales, and I think we have reached the point where Luna and I must take over the story and fill in what remains.”

The two Princesses exchanged a look, and it was Luna who began to speak. “It is difficult to pick a clean starting point, but perhaps we should begin when the original investigation did? My sister first became aware of the creature about 250 years ago, when a badly damaged body was found on the outskirts of Trottingham. There was no indication of anything more to the case than possible animal attack, and no culprit was ever found. It was nearly fifteen years later that a similarly-mutilated body was found, almost on the other side of Equestria, but the similarities between the two led my sister to order more wide-ranging enquiries. She discovered that a number of small items had vanished from the town over the preceding months, but no further hint or clue as to the assailant. Lines of enquiry quickly dried up, but she sent a standing order to the mayors of Equestria's towns and villages for any peculiar deaths or disappearances to be reported to her office.”

Celestia sighed. “The greatest difficulty was determining what was significant. The clear-cut cases were many years apart, in differing locations, and only ever became apparent long after the fact – the local authorities faced a major challenge in reporting to Canterlot, assuming that they remembered to report it at all. Evidence was usually scanty, as few ponies understood the need to investigate or what they were looking for. Sadly, occasionally ponies disappear around Equestria and their fate sometimes remains a mystery. Sometimes, there will be an outbreak of petty theft. There was no telling whether one such occurrence was important or not in the context of our enquiries.”

Luna nodded and continued. “One advantage of our long span is the ability to recognise patterns over long periods of time. In recent years, my sister became aware that the frequency of deaths and disappearances was increasing, and as communication across Equestria improved, so did the flow of information. It became apparent to her that the interval between these incidents was decreasing, and shortly after my return she took me into her confidence. In the course of my rehabilitation, I was able to dedicate much time to the systematic analysis of information and try to derive patterns from the data. After the last recorded incident in Coltenhagen, with some deduction and possibly a few educated surmises, together we drew up a shortlist of potential targets. We were able to warn agents in each of these locations to be on the lookout for any of the warning signs. One such town was Ponyville – and one such agent was Twilight Sparkle.

“I must admit that at first, we were a little dismissive of Twilight's first report from Ponyville. It was so soon after she had been briefed that we thought she was jumping at shadows. Also, it coincided with the arrival of two new ponies in Ponyville – Silver, and his companion, Summer Clip – and I'm sorry to say that therefore we suspected that if she was correct, it would likely be of mundane explanation. We were more focussed on events in Saddleburn, near Las Pegasus, which were later resolved by the capture of a mare who confessed to stealing from her neighbours. At that point, we asked Twilight for more information about the two of them. Information which seemed curiously difficult to come by.”

“You mean they were evasive?” said Shining Armour, turning to look at Twilight. “I can see why that must have made you suspicious.”

Twilight didn't look up but fidgeted with her hooves. “It wasn't so much being evasive as they knew that it was more than idle curiosity and wanted to know why. Silver wasn't stupid – we kept dancing around each other and he kept leaving me these opportunities to tell him, but I wouldn't.”

“So what did you do?”

Twilight let out a pained sigh. “I wrote to the Mayor of their home town, asking for information. What we got back meant that it couldn't possibly be them. Unfortunately, the Mayor had taken the chance to put letters from their parents in with her reply. That left me with no choice but to admit what I'd done.”

Shining Armour winced. “You could have simply not given the letters to them?”

“It would have come out eventually, and then it would have been even worse. As it was, Silver didn't take it very well. We had a blazing row, actually. He kind of avoided me after that.”

He shook his head, blowing out his cheeks. “So Twilight was investigating these two ponies; was there anypony else on the list?”

Luna nodded. “Twilight and a number of others were also tasked with searching back through written records for anything which may give clues as to what manner of creature the culprit might be. Together, they must have turned the entire Royal Archive upside down, but without sufficient information to guide their search, the results were poor. That in itself was a mistake, as Twilight overtaxed herself to no good end, but I suspect asking her not to research this would have been as futile as asking my sister to stop raising the sun. As she said, Twilight and her friends were quickly convinced that it was improbable that Silver and Summer were responsible, but few alternatives presented themselves.”

“Well, ninety-nine percent convinced. Every now and then, something would come up which would make us wonder a little,” Twilight admitted reluctantly.

“Like what?” Shining Armour asked.

“Like... like the day before Summer's salon was attacked; Spike happened to meet Silver at Rarity's. All Spike said was that Fluttershy was sick, but he knew that Rainbow Dash had brought her into town, and when.”

“And there was no other way he could have known that?”

“Well, no. Not unless…,” Twilight trailed off as a horrified look crept over her features. “Cloud Kicker. Of course, Cloud Kicker! Rainbow Dash stayed with Fluttershy all day – except she had to go and get somepony to cover for her on Weather Patrol. Silver’s fillyfriend is a weather pony, and she lives in Ponyville. Oh, great Goddess, how could I have been so stupid?!” she burst out, clapping a hoof to her forehead.

“Calm yourself, Twilight; hindsight is a wonderful thing. Communication has been a key problem all the way through this sorry episode,” Luna noted. “Take Ponyville's ordinary citizens, for example. Thanks to my sister and I, their only knowledge of the situation was that their belongings were being taken and, perhaps naturally, they closed ranks against the outsiders. Rumour flourishes in the absence of fact, and we judged that it was best to let it do so rather than the creature be alerted and the opportunity lost.

“As for the creature itself, the first real hint as to its identity came from your Zebra shaman, Zecora. Whom we notice you confided in contrary to your orders, Twilight; perhaps there is a lesson in there for Celestia and I. There is little that escapes the attention of a shaman on her own ground, and they are capable of seeing on many levels. Your report was the first to put real momentum into the research in Canterlot, however I think that also, in the back of her mind, my sister first began to have doubts, to feel the first faint stirrings of a memory long, long buried.

“The lack of success of both you and the research team worried me greatly,” Celestia agreed. “And my suspicions began to grow when you described Fluttershy's experiences – and more particularly the strange symptoms which accompanied them. They seemed to firm my hypothesis on one hoof, yet weaken it on the other, for while the appearance and effects described were broadly correct, the manner in which the creature acted was not. In fact, it could hardly be more different. It was only when you began to resort to the mythical and semi-mythical in your reports, the Leprefaun, even the Night-Gaunt, that forced us to reconsider. Those stories are mostly nonsense, of course, but they share some faint, common threads of authenticity with our fears. Finally, we decided that the quickest and best way to allay our suspicions was to investigate.”

Celestia stared thoughtfully into space, and after a tense wait, eventually Twilight's patience ran out.

“What is it, Princess? What is the creature?” she asked breathlessly.

Celestia's faraway expression did not change, and after a moment Luna resumed the story in a strangely-reluctant voice.

“As the stars turn, so the world changes. What was familiar becomes merely a story, story becomes legend until, eventually, the ancient knowledge passes out of the world and is forgotten. Forgotten by all except us, Twilight, except Celestia and I. Many thousands of years ago, when Equestria was new, the small scatterings of ancient ponies were threatened by many things. Long before the three tribes, even before the Windigos, were fell beasts which preyed upon the unwary ponies. My sister and I began to teach them to protect themselves from slaughter, and so they worshipped us. Our reign and stewardship of the ponies was begun.

“One of the creatures threatening our beloved ponies stood out above all others for their wanton cruelty and the unpredictability of their rampages. Their true name we do not know, if indeed they have one, although they bore many from their prey; the Spirit-Shadows, the Night-Walkers, the Black Mist. Semi-corporeal and able to hide themselves in plain sight, although they always favoured darkness.”

Luna broke off, a bitter smile quirking her ageless features. “Even then, my little ponies learned to fear the night. 'Twas a time of terror, for despite every precaution, despite earthen walls and earnest vigilance, the creatures could fall undetected upon an encampment and slaughter everything, mare, stallion, and foal. Worse, they seemed to delight in the slaughter, and delight in the fear of their victims. Some settlements were wiped out overnight, yet more remote colonies left primitive record of being stalked for days, of individual ponies being taken from their midst before the end came. The creatures brought with them a strange plague, one which racked its victims with paranoia and sickness, fainting spells and weakness, even until the blood ran from their noses.”

Celestia shook her head wearily. “They had to be stopped if Equestria was ever to develop beyond a few scattered gatherings of ponies, all forever fearful. Their only weakness ever discovered was an aversion to cold-iron, which was painful to them. My sister and I took conference and decided that we must act. One by one, we captured them all after many years of effort. You can imagine our shock when we realised there were but five of them, responsible for the deaths of thousands! Luna and I spent several centuries trying to overcome their natures, but they were unmanageable. They had no self-awareness, such as we could tell. They could not be exiled, for they would return. They would not learn, showing not the slightest understanding of anything beyond their base lusts. And they neither sickened nor died, for in truth they did not appear to be wholly alive.

“Eventually, with much sorrow, we concluded that the only thing to be done was to seal them away and put them far beyond reach of Equestria. Each was entombed in a specially-worked cold-iron casket, sealed forever with the strongest magic we could devise and then buried at the bottom of the deepest ocean.”

“That's horrible,” said Twilight into the growing silence. She looked appalled, and Shining Armour could feel a chill in his own stomach at the thought.

“Indeed yes,” said Luna gravely. “Alive and unfading, but trapped for eternity, lightless and alone. Or so we thought, for as we have discovered, there was a flaw in the workings of one of the caskets. Millennia passed, but eventually one of the creatures escaped. When it returned to Equestria is impossible to say, but on its return its nature had changed. Mayhap we were wrong, for it seems to have learned a patience and caution that it certainly never had before. That is why we did not recognise it, for in its youth it would have annihilated entire towns. The signs of its passage would have been utterly unmistakable.”

“Why couldn't we find any record of them?” Twilight asked. “You said that the ancient ponies left records?”

“They did, Twilight, but only after the manner of their kind. When I said primitive, I mean the scratchings of a burnt stick, or chalk marks on fired clay. The ancient ponies' learning and history was oral, for literacy was exceedingly rare and written records were both immobile and short-lived.”

“How did it escape?” Shining Armour asked. “I mean, you and Princess Celestia-”

“My sister and I are divine beings, within the meaning of such limited understanding, but we are not infallible,” Luna corrected him gently. “There were many other crises threatening our rule, many pressures upon us, and the working of their caskets was long and slow.” She shrugged. “One of us made a mistake; it matters not who, or how.”

“But the other caskets?” he pressed, looking uncomfortable.

“Whole and intact, and very much occupied,” Celestia confirmed sadly. “I had inspected three before I found one vacant, and was sure to check the last one.”

Twilight found herself exchanging a look with her brother, half worry and half relief, while Luna arched her neck serenely and continued. “Once we knew the nature of the beast, the rest was comparatively straightforward. We dispatched the guard in advance while my sister and I prepared ourselves, then proceeded to the Everfree to apprehend the creature.”

“I was wondering about that, actually,” said Twilight. “When you arrived you were a little, uh, noticeable.”

Luna laughed shortly. “Yes, I suppose we were. It would have mattered not, for once we had the creature's trail we would have run it down. In truth, we preferred that it focus its attention on us in the hope that it might overlook your brother's Guardsponies.”

Luna's mirth died away, and her face sobered. “Instead, we were too late by fractions. It had already taken its victim and fled across Equestria. We tracked its path back and forth throughout the Everfree Forest with relative ease, for the signs of its passage were well evident to those that know what to look for. Many such trails were found, most strongly on routes that it used often such as that around your friend Fluttershy's house, but its lair was empty and there was no indication of whither it had gone hence.

In the end, we had to admit defeat and return to Canterlot. But mark you well, we will succeed. In the mean time, both my sister and I have inspected its reworked prison over and over again. This time, the casket is flawless. Once we capture it, Celestia will return it to the ocean deeps, where it will remain until the world is unmade. And there the matter will rest, along with the lives of an unknowable number of our little ponies, upon both our consciences,” she finished softly.

Twilight took a few deep breaths before looking up at her mentor with anger still smouldering in her eyes. “I'll help. I am going to help you catch this thing if it's the last thing I ever do.”

“Then your aid will be most welcome – we're going to have a lot of Equestria to cover, but knowing what we do now and going on past experience, we're hopeful that it may take as little as three to six months. Certainly in time to stop it striking again,” said Celestia, turning away.

Shining Armour swallowed. “How long did it take you last time? You know, after you decided to round them all up?”

“As I said, maybe as little as three to six months.”

“And the maximum?” Twilight demanded roughly.

Shining Armour turned to her in shock, but Celestia was already answering. “It won't come to that-”

Twilight whirled on the Princess in fury, “How long?!”

There was a shocked, awkward silence. Finally, Luna was the one to break it. “Two hundred and seventy-three years.”

None of them felt like eating, but it was obvious that a break was needed and the moment they stepped out into the secluded little courtyard a waiter appeared with a trolley, swiftly followed by others who set out cushions, blankets, and other picnic accoutrements next to a small fountain. Luna thanked them all warmly but as they trooped out again neither she nor Celestia appeared in any hurry to start on the broccoli and Stilton bisque or the quiches.

Rather than join them, Twilight veered off to one side, sitting in the patch of sunlight peeking down into the courtyard through the clouds and tilting her face up to catch the rays, her eyes closed. Shining Armour picked at his plate and tried to make conversation with the Princesses but his eyes kept being drawn back to his sister. Finally, he could take no more. He filled a plate and bowl and levitated it over to rest it on the ground beside her. She shot him an annoyed glare, but he forced himself to ignore it and turn back to the Princesses.

“You do not go to her?” Luna asked in a whisper.

“No. I think she wants a little time to herself. She knows where I am,” he replied shortly. Luna looked bewildered at this, but he didn't feel like explaining.

“So, Shining Armour, will you take a leave of absence to return to Ponyville?” Celestia asked, deftly changing the subject.

“I think so, yes – assuming you can spare me.”

They kept up their safely-neutral conversation until lunch had well and truly petered out. Finally, Luna rose to her hooves. “I think we should continue, assuming everypony is ready?”

“Coming, Princess!” Twilight blurted, jolted out of her thoughts.

The two Alicorns led the way back into the Opal Office, while Twilight fell in by her brother's shoulder.

“I don't need you to mother me,” she hissed sharply.

“I know,” he said blandly. “But speaking of which, we really ought to go and see Mum and Dad later. It's been ages since we've all been together.”

Twilight gave him a dark look but muttered her agreement. Inside, both Celestia and Luna had gathered around the former's desk, and the two Unicorns hurried to join them.

“So. Now that we're all up-to-date on the rest of this affair; Applejack. Do you know who the Prosecutor is, Shining?” Princess Celestia asked.

“Cui Bono, she called herself. Strange name.”

Celestia nodded. “Ah. I see the Chamber have sent one of their best.”

“Autumn Breeze seemed to know her; I don't think they get along.”

“I can well imagine. Cui is very good at what she does – fair, but aggressive, and her manner can be rather... unfortunate, sometimes.”

“Is there anything you can do to help her, Princess?” Twilight begged her mentor.

“Probably not,” Celestia sighed. “As I said before lunch, justice must be seen to be done. I cannot interfere with the due process of the law without irretrievably breaking the system; if I do it for one pony, why would I not do it for all? By all means, if it appears that justice may go awry because certain facts are unknown to them then I would endeavour to correct that, but even then we must be extremely careful to avoid the appearance of partiality.”

“So that's it? After all she's done for you-”

“After all she's done for me, she will have the benefit of a system as fair as we can possibly make it. Justice, even-hoofed and without favour,” Celestia said sternly, a frown creasing her features. “Actions have consequences, Twilight, you know this. As a powerful magician, it was one of the first lessons you learned.”

“I know. I know, but-”

“But it's Applejack?” Celestia suggested in a gentle tone. “I know how dear your friends are to you, my faithful student, and I know how much you want to help her. I would expect nothing less. But consider this; if she had killed him, if your brother's report concluded that he had died before the creature mauled him, what then? Would you still ask me to prevent her facing justice?”

“That's not...”

His sister's voice died away as she realised the Princess's point. I hate to say it, Twily, but it really is the same thing.

Celestia continued. “Applejack understand this. That's why, in keeping with her very nature, she stood up and admitted her fault. She knows what she did was wrong, despite the provocation, and she is willing to face what may come. And she is willing to trust that the system will treat her fairly, and take into account any mitigating factors which may be present.”

Twilight didn't answer, but hung her head. He shuffled over a bit to lean his shoulder against hers and, after a moment, she leaned back into his.

Celestia sighed again, before changing tack. “Having said all that, one of the other problems we face will be public perception. For now, most of the press corps are being relatively sensible.”

She passed them a sheaf of newspapers; the Canterlot Herald on the top was representative of the others,

Twilight quickly leafed through the rest, but all bore similar headlines. “I suppose the articles aren't entirely unreasonable, considering what they know so far?”

Luna was holding another newspaper that she'd kept back from the pile. “My sister is correct; those newspapers you have there are the more traditional publishers but it seems that some few are intent on making hay while the sun shines. This, for example, suggests we may have problems ahead.”

Boggle-eyed, Twilight snatched the paper out of Luna's magical grasp and tore it open to the main story, while Shining Armour read over her shoulder in increasing disbelief,

The shocking murder of a pony in Ponyville may be the result of a jealous love-triangle amongst the Elements of Harmony, The Fox can exclusively reveal. The dead pony, named at the inquest which was opened and adjourned in Ponyville last night as Silver Braise, is reputed to have been the object of affection of Princess Celestia’s personal student and the leader of the Elements of Harmony, Twilight Sparkle. Pretty librarian Twilight reputedly became enamoured of the victim immediately on his arrival in Ponyville.

“It was obvious when they first met that there was chemistry,” said a witness. “They became an item at a party, and I saw them on several romantic outings together. Twilight even found an excuse to be near him by contracting Silver, a carpenter, to refurbish the library. I don’t know exactly what happened, but they had a falling-out and it was over pretty quickly.”

It is believed that he then caught the eye of local farmer and fellow Earth Pony, Applejack, the Element of Honesty. It was notable that during recent tensions in Ponyville over a series of thefts in the town, when Silver and his sister were accused, athletic beauty Applejack was first at his side.

“He was often out at [Applejack's farm]. They had a great rapport, and he also hung out with Applejack's brother,” said a local pony. “It's been obvious for weeks that something's not right amongst the Elements [of Harmony]. They've been meeting regularly and there's clearly been tension between them. Occasionally you could hear them arguing around town,” added another.

Elements of Disharmony

The addition of romance into the equation may well have caused a split within the Elements of Harmony. “It's inevitable that the others will be forced to take sides in such a conflict,” said Professor Bruce of Trottingham University's Department of Logical Positivism. “Given that they are supposed to represent a unifying power of positive attributes, one wonders whether this split will affect their relationship with the powers of the Elements and, crucially, their ability to employ them in the defence of Equestria should they need to. If it came to a crisis, could they put their personal problems to one side and unite long enough to deal with it? You'd like to think so, but with the strong personalities involved I would hesitate to suggest that this will be healed quickly or easily.”

Power Play Gone Wrong?

It is believed that Silver's tragic death may be the result of a desperate ploy by Twilight Sparkle to break up the happy couple and win the stallion back for herself. Inside sources suggest that the powerful Unicorn attempted to engineer a crisis situation by inventing a threat from the Everfree Forest to raise tensions in the town and then spiriting Applejack's younger sister away while telling her love rival that the carpenter was responsible for the filly's disappearance; a scheme worthy of the Canterlot court at its nastiest, where the young Twilight was raised as Princess Celestia's student.

What she couldn't foresee, however, was that the confrontation would turn violent and end in Applejack taking a brutal revenge for the unfortunate Silver's imaginary-

There was a bright flash, and he reeled back in panic as the newspaper went up in flames. An irresistible force shoved him hard in the chest, sending him tumbling across the rug, while a dome of golden light snapped down around Twilight. Untangling his hooves and looking up, he could see Celestia had sprung to her hooves, wings spread in alarm, while Luna's dark-blue magic smothered the glowing embers of the paper.

“Calm, Twilight! Deep breaths!” Celestia said commandingly.

Twilight's chest heaved, her eyes glowing a burning white, “It's OK, I'm calm, I'm calm!” she gasped. Looking closely, he could see little columns of steam where her tears evaporated. “I'm calm! I'm... no I'm not, I'm fu-!”

There was a flash of golden light and a loud, metallic pop, followed immediately by a loud splash from the little fountain in the courtyard.

Scrambling to his hooves, he galloped after the two Alicorns the short distance out into the courtyard. There, surrounded by a squad of stunned servants, Twilight floundered amidst the sloshing remains of the fountain and clouds of steam. Lifting a hank of sopping mane out of her eyes, she looked around sheepishly and let out a false giggle, fixing the servants with a massive, embarrassed grin. “Um... whoops?”

It was rather lost on the servants, who were too busy bowing at the presence of the Royal Sisters. Golden light lifted her out of the ruins of the fountain, and another quick flash left her completely dry. Meanwhile, Luna coughed awkwardly. “We apologise for the interruption, my little ponies. Please, be about your business. We shall withdraw forthwith.”

Together, the four retreated to the Opal Office. Once the door was firmly closed again Celestia asked, “Are you all right, Twilight?”

Twilight didn't raise her head, instead slowly rubbing at a bruise on one front knee which was beginning to swell. “No. No, I'm not.” she said eventually, her voice trembling a little. “What the hay was that?!”

“Trouble,” said Luna laconically. “How far into the article did you get?”

“Far enough,” said Twilight, her voice rising in outrage, “Far enough to see them call me a lying, psychopathic bunny-boiler, and make Applejack out to be some sort of violent berserker!”

Celestia raised a placating hoof from behind her desk. “Calmly, Twilight, calmly! I understand how you must feel but please, we've had enough fires for today! You see now why we were worried about appearances? Had you continued, you would have seen they are already beginning to suggest that Luna and I were at best duped into aiding your schemes – or at worst, actively seeking to cover up your supposed misdeeds. Your brother's presence has not gone unnoticed, either.”

Twilight shook her head slowly and sank back onto her haunches. “Why? Why would they write this? These, these lies?”

“Because they can,” Luna said darkly, shooting a dark look at her sister.

Celestia, in turn, eyed Luna sternly. “There is a reason that The Fox is the most heavily-sued newspaper in Equestria, you know. Indeed, that may be one of the reasons for their spite; Luna and I have resisted the owner's lobbying to change libel laws most adamantly. As my personal student you are intimately associated with me, Twilight, and they may seek to embarrass me through attacking you.”

“I'm sorry, Princess! I-”

“I wouldn't have it any other way, my faithful student. I am very proud at not only what you have achieved but also the fine mare you have grown into. You have nothing to apologise for – if anything, I should apologise to you that you suffer on my behalf. As for the rest, it is probably sheer mischief; they create copy by running a lurid story, even if it is not entirely accurate, and they can then report on the fallout.”

“Even if it's not entirely accurate?” Twilight hooted in disbelief. “Did you even read that trash?”

Shining Armour winced at the angry disrespect in her voice.

“Yes, I did,” Celestia said mildly. “And while you are right to be angry, it is leavened with a surprising number of facts – even if the conclusions drawn from them are ridiculous. They have done a lot of digging or had a lot of luck in covering this story in such a short time.”

“So what now? Surely we can't just let that slide?”

“It sounds to me like they could do with receiving another lawsuit,” Shining Armour growled in agreement.

“There is certainly grounds there for libel in the accusations that Twilight manipulated her friend into killing Silver. By all means serve them with proceedings; most newspapers monitor the court rolls and would certainly report it – which would make it a comment in itself, even if you said nothing else. If you do make some sort of statement I would caution you, however, that they will seek to twist your words in any way that supports their angle.”

“You are far too passive in this, Celestia,” Luna scowled. “We have had words on this subject before.”

Celestia sighed. “My sister believes that access to the Court for reporters should be a matter of royal favour. I am loathe to restrict ponies' freedoms, but-”

“Nay, not a matter of favour but a matter of privilege! Should they abuse that privilege by publishing untruths, it should be withdrawn and they can scrabble for stories from Associated Pony Press instead.”

“They would crow from the rooftops that it proved we had something to hide,” Celestia pointed out. “And they would simply approach anypony with an axe to grind outside of our walls, where any such decree would have no effect.”

“They will do so anyway if it fits their purpose, so let them crow from the outside! Mud sticks, sister, and ponies remember. If we are to stand for truth, then we must stand against them.”

“Perhaps you are right, Luna, but I fear that there is no straightforward solution. In the meantime, there will be – must be – a statement from the Palace. Already we are swamped with reporters asking for comment. The question is, how much do we tell them? Again, we must be careful not to cause undue alarm – and also not to say anything which will trip us up later.”

“Why tell them anything?” Shining Armour asked. “Applejack's been arrested, making the whole thing sub judice, anyway?”

“A fine point, Shining Armour,” said Luna approvingly. “It would also address your concerns about impropriety, sister, as it would not influence the outcome of the police investigation. Once any charges have been announced and the course of proceedings is clear, perhaps we can answer some few of their questions.”

“Very well. 'We deeply regret the news of the death of one of our little ponies in Ponyville, however due to the ongoing police investigation it is inappropriate for us to comment further at this time. It is important that their investigation proceeds freely and independently, and until such time as the investigation is concluded all enquiries should be directed to the police.' Does that sound about right?”

“Adequate for now,” Luna agreed. “Perhaps one of your scribes can cast it in more flowery prose.”

“Twilight? Shining Armour? Can you think of anything else we should give them?”

“Given the choice, I wouldn't give them the steam off my... coffee.” He caught himself just in time, and tried not to blush at Celestia's knowing look.

“Why not tell them everything? Twilight asked. “I mean, you know what it is now, right? It's not like this thing is going to be reading the newspapers or anything?”

“Because it would cause unnecessary panic over trivial matters which could devolve into serious harm,” Celestia explained gently. “Somepony loses something, a pony goes missing, or even just stays out late? If this is all over the newspapers, then if even one pony leaps to the conclusion that the creature is there and out to get them – and they will, there's always one – then it won't take long before it starts to snowball and suddenly we have a problem of the public taking matters into their own hooves. They will single somepony out – the new pony, the quiet pony, the strange pony – and then we are in for a repeat of what so nearly happened in Ponyville, but multiplied out in towns and cities across Equestria. By keeping this to ourselves we have an entire year at the very least in which to find it – and all those problems can be avoided. I'm sure you remember the trouble that paediatrician had in St. Bridles a few years ago?”

Twilight sighed, and nodded in acquiescence. “You're probably right.”

Celestia continued, “Then we are agreed – which leaves the hunt for the creature itself. You wish to continue to help us, Twilight?”

“More than anything. This thing has to be stopped, and I don't think I could live with myself if I tried to walk away,” Twilight said adamantly.

“Then we will discuss this further tomorrow. You look exhausted, Twilight. Get some rest, because we will have need of your sharp mind at its full capacity.”

“I don't know that I have time. I need to see my parents, and I also need to arrange a lawyer.”

“You intend to sue, then?” Luna asked.

“Yes, but that can wait. This is for Applejack; she needs a professional's help, whether she admits it or not.”

Celestia nodded thoughtfully. “Obviously, as your Princess I can only wish you luck in your search. However, as a friend, I suggest that you could do worse than to try Pro Bono on Chancery Lane.”

Shining Armour frowned. “Pro Bono? Any relation to the Prosecutor?”

“Sisters, but although they are very different ponies I am told that they are equally adept in court. I imagine that this case would catch her interest, if nothing else.”

“I'll see if Dad recommends anypony, but I'll add her to the list,” said Twilight, rising to her hooves and dropping a curtsey. “And... thank you. Both of you. I'm sorry if I'm a bit edgy right now.”

Celestia gave her a warm smile and rounded the desk to stand in front of her. “I laid a large burden on your shoulders, Twilight. You have born it exceedingly well, and I cannot complain if your patience runs a little short from time to time.”

Twilight didn't look up. “I just wish-”

Her words failed her, and Celestia laid a comforting hoof on her student's shoulder. “We all do, Twilight. Something I have had to learn over the centuries is, sometimes there is nothing more you can do. And that thought often brings you no comfort at all.”