The freshly forged armor was lifted piece-by-piece and slowly locked into place onto Gentle Blade’s body. Luna herself lifted each piece, slowly locking the intricate plates of ebon steel. Every so often, the newly minted Thestral frowned for a moment and did a little shift of her shoulders before nodding in satisfaction. Luna herself didn’t know how the Lunar Guard had gotten an entirely new suit of fitted armor prepared overnight… or perhaps they knew her mind better than she did.

Behind her, the ninety-nine other Ki-Lin watched in respectful and solemn silence as their Captain was clad in her new raiment. In due time, each of them would follow in her hoofsteps as members of the Guard, though that would take time. There were ways to accelerate the process, but… No. I draw the line at such steps, lest I become no better than my enemy. For now, Gentle Blade would be enough to lead her Guard into battle and her compatriots would follow.

The last piece of plate settled down, completing the glittering armor beautifully. She wore no helm - but no member of the guard wore a helm when operating outside of her direct control. “Gentle Blade…” Luna began, turning to face her newest family member with her own solemnity. “You are Gentle no longer. You have been reforged anew, with a new purpose and a new life.” She nodded to her balcony, where ten batpony Thestrals waited in silence. “So you must join my children as a new pony, with a new name. Thus, I name you Crescent Blade, Chosen of the Moon.”

The ten batponies on the balcony saluted as one, then returned to their easy stance - each of them the very essence of restrained violence made flesh. Luna half smiled before she spoke again, her tone firm and unyielding. “Your orders are simple. Take my children and bring ruin upon the Shadow. Show this Umbra who truly rules over the Night.” Luna took in a deep breath, closing her eyes and her heart to the pain. “Belladonna will lead you and my children to the one who now wages her own war against the Shadow. Her name is Scootaloo. Join her, if you can. Belladonna will tell you more about what you face on the way.”

The Ki-Lin mare that had once been Gentle Blade nodded slowly, giving the armor a brief experimental shake before standing up with a half smile of her own. “I shall not fail you, my Queen.” Her voice had not changed much - but it was subtly deeper and darker than before. She walked with a liquid grace utterly at odds with the enchanted armor she now wore, as she strode without further word to the balcony.

There, half a dozen voices murmured warmly and softly to her - words that Luna could hear, but she doubted her comrades could. “Welcome, sister,” they said, one after another. The newly reborn Crescent Blade smiled briefly to them before closing her own eyes in a moment of focus. Her horn alit with a dark green magic that flowed from the tip of her horn into the armor she wore. Runes of subtle power lit up one by one with the vibrant green glow of her magic until she was veritably covered with them. With a word in a language nopony in Equestria spoke, the magic snapped out of the armor and blossomed out of her shoulder blades where two conspicuous narrow gaps in the armor had awaited this moment.

She made no sound or movement as the power shaped and warped itself into reality. The long leathery wings of the batponies slowly forming to life out of pure energy until she stood amongst them as one of them, and Luna felt a surge of pride in her newest daughter. These wings she did spread wide, and a look of astonished bliss passed over Crescent Blade’s face before settling into a more serious vein. “We fly,” was all she said as she snapped out the wings and swept them downwards - launching herself into the air with the instinctive skill granted by the black blood of her Goddess now flowing through her veins.

All ten of her new brothers and sisters launched up behind her and were gone from sight within moments. Luna smiled faintly and gently closed the balcony doors - hiding her tears from those warriors that had remained behind. She knew she was sending her children to danger and death - and worse, that their hopes for victory were slim indeed. But she had no other stick to lean on right now, and so she could but hope. The shadows over her beloved land were growing darker by the day. But for now, she had plans to lay….

And a friend to save.

“... and that’s the plan we’ve come up with.” Scootaloo looked up at the assembled friends and soldiers that now composed her far more numerous Cutie Mark Crusade. “Any objections or questions?” she asked quietly, anticipating few if any of them. Those here who hadn’t been involved in the planning directly weren’t generally the sorts to make waves, especially not after Scipio had gone over the whole thing as thoroughly as he had.

As predicted, no one spoke for a few moments, so Scootaloo nodded. “Alright then. Some of the Praetorian blacksmiths will be helping us get our weapons sharp and our armor up to snuff. We need to be ready to leave within an hour of the scouting reports if we want to pull this off, so anyone who dawdles is gonna have to catch up.” Then she paused, gently licking at suddenly very dry lips. The raids up to now had all been hit-and-run surprise attacks, but this… this was going to be a real, knock-out-drag-out fight.

So into the silence she spoke firmly, trying to disguise her own fears behind confidence. “Give a hug to whoever isn’t coming with us. Kiss your loved ones goodbye. Miss Cheerilee is collecting note packets if you’ve got any last wishes, and she’ll hold onto ‘em until we need them.” For a moment, there were murmurs echoing through the tent - murmurs of fear, of confidence, and of resolve. They were scared too, but that didn’t mean they weren’t ready to fight and ready to win.

Fortunately, Scipio stepped in to cover for her then. She’d plum run out of words, and he knew it. He spoke strongly, tapping the butt of his massive spear against the edge of the table to get attention. “Go my friends, and enjoy tonight. Eat, drink, and make merry, for tomorrow we may die.” His words rumbled strongly through the crowd, as did the confident, devil-may-care attitude that he carried in his bearing. His eyes glittered in the candle-light of the tent, the same light that gleamed upon his armor. “But even if we do… We’ll make them pay for it in blood.”

That got the crowd stirred up a great deal more. “Hear Hear!” went up a cry from a pegasus Scootaloo didn’t recognize. “Honor and Glory to you, Caesar! Honor and Glory to you, Crusader!” went one of the griffons, brandishing his spear above his head. “We’ll show them what we can do!” proclaimed a rough and tumble looking donkey, his ears laid back and teeth bared stubbornly.

“For Equestria!” cried out a scarred earth pony - one of the guards ponies who had been trickling into her camp in defiance of Cadence’s orders, and a chorus of cheers followed his words. “For Roam!” countered one of the griffon Praetorians, which was met with another barrage of cheers in the tent. “For Ponyville!” yelled Thunderlane, his wrecking crew of pegasi cheering at their leader’s bravado.

Then Scootaloo held up a hoof, and silence draped over the tent. She wrestled with the emotions inside of her, before speaking softly. Almost too softly for the room to hear, but somehow the sound carried to every ear within. “For Applebloom and Sweetie Belle. For Mr. Cake and Octavia. For Mayor Mare and Diamond Tiara. For all of those we have lost, and may yet lose. We will fight. And we will win.” The last words tumbled from her lips, and murmured prayers and bowed heads followed.

The words were a clear dismissal, and the tent was soon emptying of all but herself and Scipio. Zecora was in her tent getting everything ready for the big day, and Miss Cheerilee was doing her best to take care of the other foals while the other adults did their own thing. She insisted she didn’t mind but… “Hey, Caedryn!” she called out to the deerfolk Captain just before he ducked out of the tent. He paused and turned his head to tilt curiously toward Scootaloo. “Do you have anypony who could watch the foals for tonight? Miss Cheerilee needs some time for herself.”

The captain nodded solemnly, speaking in his quiet voice. “I shall bring over some of the does from our camp. They shall be delighted to care for the young ones.” And then he was gone in a whisper of autumn wind, not needing any further conversation. All of the deerfolk were like that, but Caedryn was the worst. Scootaloo sighed gustily, and stifled a chuckle at the wry smile on Scipio’s face. At least he knew it as well as she did.

For a few moments, she sat in silence alongside Scipio, her eyes trailing over the model inch by inch, looking for flaws or possible speedbumps. She knew Scipio was doing the same, and that was a comfort that she was glad to have. Scipio’s motivations might be a little bit different than hers, but his goals were the same. Still, there was no reason he had to be as cooped up as she was. “Go on, Scipio,” Scootaloo said with a surprising softness. “Go out there and party a bit. You need to loosen up before the fight anyway.”

Scipio’s beak parted and snapped shut as he gave her a long and searching look. Whatever he saw, it convinced him that talking wasn’t going to change her mood, so he nodded graciously and made for the exit. Scootaloo half smiled as he left, watching his feathers rustle the tent flap. She’d only known him a week, and already he understood better than most ponies. He knew better than to try to talk her into things or give her sappy encouraging speeches or anything like that.

Scootaloo closed her eyes and leaned back into the stiff wooden chair, rubbing at her temples with the tips of her hooves. “This is the right thing to do,” she muttered softly, trying to convince herself that this entire scheme wasn’t utterly insane. Truthfully, it almost didn’t matter that it was insane. Even with the deerfolk’s help, they needed to secure supplies for the upcoming winter. They needed dried oats and nuts, preserved fruit and other staples. Scootaloo was certain, and Scipio agreed, that their campaign against the Shadow would be a long one. Or that at the least, it would not be concluded until after winter.

This would be the decisive moment. To find out if they would be able to hold out here in the White Tail wood and continue stymieing the Shadow’s advance into the south, or be forced to retreat to… somewhere. Scootaloo really wasn’t sure where they would go. Los Pegasus, probably. Re-draw the lines further to the west. Blow the bridge up to save Appleloosa and hope that you can keep them penned in with the help of the desert and the Guard. But that would be difficult in the extreme, this was going to be their very best chance to score… if not a decisive victory, then at least a strategic one.

Scootaloo winced softly as the headache she’d been nursing grew worse and tried to stifle her whimpers. She could not afford to show any weakness now. Too much was at stake. Too many ponies were relying on her. Ponies like… “Scootaloo… It’s okay,” whispered a gentle voice - and soft hooves gently massaged at her temples from behind. “Shh…” the voice insisted as Scootaloo prepared to rouse herself. “Don’t. Just relax. You’ve done enough today.” That was Silver Spoon, gently working some of the tension out of her head before working into her shoulders.

Scootaloo couldn’t explain what drew her to the pony who had once been one of her biggest bullies. She couldn’t explain why she suddenly liked this quiet and unassuming earth pony with the platinum silver mane and the jewel-rimmed glasses. Maybe it really was that they had both lost everything they loved… and it was just a case of misery loving company. Or maybe it was because without Diamond Tiara around, Silver Spoon felt lost and alone. Just like Scootaloo did without Applebloom and Sweetie Belle around.

Maybe it was something more complex than that. Maybe she was growing up and seeing past the surface crap. Or maybe I just love how she manages to make the pain go away… I would love to know where she learned how to do this, Scootaloo thought with a little shiver, leaning back into the hooves and sighing with relief as some of the pain ebbed out of her head. “Thanks, Silver,” she murmured. Everything that was going on, and she was still struggling to figure out exactly how she felt about somepony else.

Gentle legs folded around Scootaloo’s chest, and a soft cheek buried itself in her rough mane. “Promise me you’ll come back,” Silver whispered softly, fearfully. “Promise you won't get killed out there…. I need you, Scoots. We all do.” Silver was squeezing tighter with every word until Scootaloo feared she was going to bruise a rib or something with how tight she was holding. Earth ponies didn’t always appreciate how much more fragile a pegasus could be, even one as tough as Scootaloo.

So she patted Silver’s hoof softly and wheezed out, “careful, or you’re gonna squeeze the life right outta me.” She grumbled and instantly Silver let up on the pressure. Scootaloo gave her best cocky grin, trying to imbue her voice with all of the confidence she didn’t feel. “Don’t worry, Silver. I’ll be fine.” She squeezed Silver Spoon’s hoof, trying to convey some comfort through it. “I promise, I’ll be back fit as a fiddle.” And she meant that - she intended to come back from this, no matter what happened. At the end of the day, her primary goal was still getting back her friends… and she couldn’t do that if she was Shadowed or dead.

Silver Spoon nodded a little, her cheek still pressed against Scootaloo’s mane. Then she gently placed her hooves on Scootaloo’s cheeks and turned her head to face her. “Good,” Silver Spoon said softly, her eyes shining with unshed tears. For a brief moment, Scootaloo tried to figure out what she could do for those tears… if there was anything at all she could do. There were so many things that kept spiraling out of her control, that sometimes...

Then Silver Spoon kissed her. It was clumsy, unpracticed, but warm and genuine all the same. There was none of the false lust of the Shadow she’d felt back in Applebloom’s bedroom… none of the raw, savage, unthinking animalistic need that she’d seen in their eyes. There was something special there… something different. Something Scootaloo wasn’t quite sure how to reciprocate, but she tried all the same. After a few moments, Silver Spoon parted from her and whispered in the gentlest voice Scootaloo had ever heard out of her.

“For luck.”

“She’s five days travel away.”

The words struck against the walls and ricocheted off the table as the flame haired Wonderbolt dropped a singed and battered scroll upon the table. “She’s got nearly ten thousand effectives with her, not including support staff. According to what intel we’ve managed to get, she left the bulk of her new…” Spitfire’s mouth twisted into a disgusted grimace as she spoke, “citizens back in Roam. They’re hunting down those who’ve gone into hiding and are laying siege to the far western forts.”

Cadence sunk her head into her hooves and stared at the still faintly smoking scroll, and all of the horrors it represented. Shining Armor was more stoic than she, but the tightening around his eyes told the tale of his worry. Spitfire shook her head and glared at them. “We’re lucky the griffons came to us. We can still outnumber her five to one, as long as we call up all of the Cloudsdale Reserves. And thanks to the presence of the Legions, we’ve got an army the Shadow is completely unaware of.” Spitfire snorted and gave off a harsh laugh, obviously finding irony in needing to be grateful to the griffons of all creatures.

Shining Armor spoke, sparing Cadence the need to do so. “Where is she going next, then? She isn’t going to come here with such a disadvantage, and the instant she tries to hit another Equestrian town we’ve got her dead to rights.” He leaned over the strategic map, glaring at all of the various threat markets on the Equestrian borders. “Too many possibilities here,” he grumbled, grimacing in… something. Perhaps pain.

Spitfire shook her head. “We’ve got good intel that she’s going south east.” She tapped the map in the appropriate spot. “Winterlight hasn’t been bothering to keep her trap shut. They’re going after the Zebricans first, then supposedly the Ki-Lin.” She dragged her hoof from the enemy-flagged Ponyville southerly. “Which means she might just oblige us by hitting Appleloosa and Dodge City.”

Cadence shook her head slowly. “If she does, she’s going to do it in such a way that doesn’t look like an attack. Just like she did to Ponyville. She won’t make war on Equestrian government until she’s absolutely sure she can win with a minimal loss of life.” Cadence spoke with a firm amount of authority - if she was sure of anything, it was that all of this stemmed from a desire on Twilight’s part to ‘save’ Equestria from the threats it faced… and then from the weakness it suffered from within. Well, weakness by her definition anyway.

Spitfire nodded. “That’d be our guess, too. I’ve already provided some warnings to Sheriff Silver Star and Chief Thunderhooves through EIS, but there’s a lot of resistance to the idea of abandoning that area.” She paused and gave a brief smile, a sparkle of mischief in her eye. “Luckily, Little Strongheart has proven a lot more willing to listen. She’s going to try to bring together as many of her tribe as she can get to follow her and bring them up to join the Crusaders in a few weeks.”

Spitfire laid her hooves on the table firmly and fixed her gaze onto Cadence. “It’s time we made a decision, Princess. Even with the help Princess Luna has sent them, they’re facing a supply problem.” She paused for effect, obviously to make it clear what she thought about the Equestrian government’s current stalemate. “I’ve got the resources to help them out, ready to go. The Cloudsdale Senate is tired of these half measures as much as you are, but I can’t release the funds without authorization. Celestia left you in charge.”

Cadence didn’t even bother to argue that. Since Luna was back it should have been her decision - Luna wanted to remain strictly off the books for now. She wanted her presence - and by extension the presence of a certain incredibly ancient and powerful wizard - to remain secret for the time being. That meant that all of the authority was still hanging over her shoulders like an overgrown filly, and she was the only one who could issue the order.

Politically, once the veil of secrecy had been lifted and the Equestrian Parliament found out what she’d done, she’d be in really deep trouble. Practically, Cadence wasn’t sure that she cared that much anymore. No one else was doing a thing to slow down the Shadow, and somehow little Scootaloo had become the focal point for any number of powerful forces converging to bring battle against the Shadow.

So she planted her golden hoofboots on the table and sighed. “Do it, Intelligentsia.” She paused and made another decision, there and then. “In for a bit, in for a sack of them. I want you to personally oversee the defensive works project we discussed earlier. By winter's end, I want this entire mountain to be a fortress,” she proclaimed with a quiet air of desperation, and blessedly Spitfire just nodded and swept out of the room, barking orders as she went.

Shining Armor laid a hoof on her shoulder and squeezed comfortingly. “Celestia is coming, Cadey. She’s bringing an army and goodness knows what else. We’re still in this fight… and we’re not going to let Twily die.” The last words were all the comfort she could have hoped for, and Cadence nodded solemnly. But if she was being honest, she was worried.

She didn’t know if the rest of her allies would share her desire to save Twilight.

“You are going?” the soft whispering voice spoke as the moon slowly rose into the sky behind the two figures standing upon the hill.

“I must,” replied the gruff voice, like gravel tumbling over in a barrel. “Who knows? Perhaps I will accomplish something of meaning.”

“Then you must take care of the young one. She is the key to all,” the voice whispered again, like the leaves skittering over the ground in a stiff breeze.

“Mm. She is already gathering the others to her, though she knows it not.” There was a stiff sigh and a deeply inhaled breath. “And then of course… there is you.”

The White Doe half smiled, tilting her head to one side. “I am but doing that which I was born to do, Sage. As are you. As is he, though it surprises me to see him care so much.” She turned her head to the shining city, far behind them now.

The rough voice chuckled, and Star Swirl the Bearded gripped his staff more firmly. “Discord. Who would have thought, him of all creatures?” He laughed harshly, stamping the butt of his stave upon the ground. “A miracle before my very eyes. Enough to make me believe we might still pull this off.”

The voices fell silent for a time, as the chilled breeze whipped across the hilltop. “Do not confront her, Titania. She must come to the decision to act of her own accord, or else all we have done will be for nothing.” His voice hung low with anger and full of warning.

The White Doe hung her head for a moment, then sighed. “The Shadow falls heavily upon the world, my friend.” She lifted it up, her ears twitching. “I hope you are right about her.”

And with a leap, she was gone into the wind - and Star Swirl chuckled softly. “Oh, I am, old friend.” He eyeballed the horizon and sighed, adjusting his hat and trotting down the moon-blanketed road with a smile on his face.

Darkness was falling, but the dawn was not so far away as it seemed.

Rarity arched her back fetchingly, allowing the sweet moan to slip from between her lips and flow out into the world. It was a signal that all was well in the land of Shadows and the glazed, pleasured look upon Aloe’s face was almost as good as the feel of her tongue. “Mmf… Very good, darling. You’re getting ever so much better at that,” Rarity cooed, gently stroking the spa-pony’s cheek with the business end of her crop. “Now, be a dear and go fetch Rainbow Dash for me.”

“Yes, mistress,” Aloe panted faintly, her own body shivering visibly with the pleasure at obeying a command, before hurrying out of the spa at top speed. Rarity smirked faintly at the sight of the dripping liquid that the mare had left in her wake and made a mental note to make sure that she was attended to later. Good service deserved a reward, after all.

For now though, her thoughts were entirely consumed with the knowledge that her beloved was returning to Ponyville and to her arms. The emotions of love, lust, and all the rest surged down through the Shadow and into her body. It was like an electrical current passing through her and three times as pleasurable. (Rarity had experimented, just to be certain.) Each pulse of emotion promised that she would spend some time with her, and each of the friends they all so loved. It was an occasion fit for a party, and Rarity already had the makings in the works.

Even dear Applejack, quiet as she was these days, was visibly excited at the prospect of her beloved’s return. She’d been positively loquacious at lunch, and she was hardly ever talkative with anypony except for Rainbow Dash anymore. It was a good sign that she was finally settling in to her new life, and Rarity could not have been happier for her. Yet thoughts of Applejack inevitably turned to thoughts of her other close friend, and the deep worry that now accompanied those thoughts.

Sure enough, Rarity needed only look outside of the window to see her. Fluttershy was always there around this time, just after the sunset and perched upon the balcony outside of Rarity's rooms in the spa. Staring off in the direction of Canterlot without a single word spoken. She never acknowledged anypony speaking to her during these moods, and they never failed to come each and every day. Rarity deeply loved Fluttershy - in ways that she had not the words to describe. And while the rest of the time her dearest friend had become positively social in regards to other ponies, it was these moments that made Rarity’s heart ache for the poor dear.

Whatever it was that held her attention so, she had refused to say, and not just in her usual way. She’d forcefully told them all, in a voice that seethed with a deeper anger none of them wished to arouse, that she did not wish to talk about it, and that was that. So after the first few days, nopony bothered her during her nightly vigils. Sooner or later, she would break out of her funk and come inside for dinner. The evening would pass with far more pleasantness then, and oftentimes Fluttershy would even indulge in a little expression of her new powers.

Such was the reason that twenty ponies, including the spa twins and a number of others who had made the mistake of displeasing her or those she loved, were now under her total control. Perhaps the most fun was little Diamond Tiara, who now served as the personal maid for Sweetie Belle. Utterly unable to do anything but obey her little sister's every twisted whim. It was a power Sweetie Belle was learning to exercise with elegant brutality, thanks to the careful tutelage of her sister. It was positively delightful to see the little bully finally laid low for her arrogance, and it was also highly satisfying to see Sweetie Belle's skills at domination improving.

Twilight would surely understand, of course. Her beloved knew the depth of Rarity’s passion for her touch and the seething need that festered within her when they were parted. Still, best not to bring it up unless asked. There was much Twilight needed to be concerned about, and her little games were certainly not amongst them.

The door swung open a moment later, revealing her cyan pegasus friend in all of her glory. Ribbon Bound, her delightful little batpony friend was close in attendance. And as always, Applejack was right behind her, hat tilted low over her eyes, and her body language reeking of submissiveness as she trotted into the room. Rainbow Dash, as always, was keeping Applejack close to her and squeezing her hoof for comfort. It was such a romantic scene that it sometimes moved Rarity to joyful tears. “What’s up, Rares?” Dash quipped casually, breaking through Rarity's thoughts as her head cocked to one side with that arrogant smile Rarity often admired on her face. “Get tired of whipping Lotus till she cums so hard she passes out?”

Rarity smirked, laughing delightedly. Rainbow Dash was always so blunt about things - odd how it had taken her until now to appreciate it properly. “I never tire of that game, my dear Dash. I just wished to ask if you had any ideas for our Mistress's homecoming party.” Rarity lifted a neat roll of parchment, giving Dash a sultry sort of look. Maybe she could finally convince her to give Applejack up for a day, so that her beloved might have Dash all to herself. It was an intriguing thought, and full of luscious potential.

“After all, it’s going to be quite the event.”