We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.

Hours. Long hours had passed. The two princesses sat alone in the halls of the ancients. Many a scroll sat dusty in the apertures stretching down the long, narrow hallway. But the princesses cared not for these.

At the end of this hallway, a large, silver and titanium portal lay, awaiting to be opened for the first time in millennia. The door at the end of this hallway could lead to the ultimate survival of Equestria, or the ultimate destruction. Holding an ancient spell that could only be used by the two Alicorns. The parchment was laden with a heavy codex of complex material that no mortal mind could comprehend. The dangers of this scroll are far to dangerous to understand, and this scroll mustn't be used, except in the most dire situations.

But that it was.

The sun Goddess looked over to her sister, who replied with a slow nod. They both sat up, and stretched their limbs. Many weeks had passed since the Changeling and the Gryphon Nations had declared war upon Equestria. Many colonies on the outer borders of Equestria had been savaged and burned, leaving not a single pony alive. It had all happened to fast, confusing all of ponydom.

There has been a few attacks upon Canterlot itself, all of which had failed miserably. The last attempt for control had occurred last week, with the army of changelings marching upon Canterlot, and the griffins leading a winged assault from above. Over fifty of the goddess precious ponies had been brutally slaughtered, raped and tortuered. For them, this was the last straw. The Royal Guard as a whole could not match the swarming numbers of the two nations combined, and their skill was divided among three races. This left weak points in Equestria's army. If the enemy severed a certain pony race from a platoon, then the adjourning race of the enemy could easily overtake the guards.

The sound of hooves echoed thoughout the long hallway as the princesses stalked through them. For any normal pony, the depictions lining the walls would have been an incredible sight to behold. Millennia old paintings portrayed scenes from the two royal sister's reign. From the begging of the Celestial Age, to the dawn of the nightmare. The portraits grew newer as the forms of royalty descended the hallway. Images of the Elements of Harmony defeating evils and redeeming loathsome ponies from jealousy and hate took the places of older artworks entirely.

The beauty of the balls was drones out from the weight of current events, and the sorrowful depression from the princesses. Bright and colorful lamps that once shone bright over Equestria, now dimmed a dull gray, dampening the mood even more. The jewels in the Alicorns Regalia once glowing vibrant colors, now had lost its beauty entirely.

The echoing came to a deafening stop, leaving only the annoying ringing of silence in the princesses ears.

The two sisters had hoped it would not come to this. They had tried to take the peaceful approach, but were bluntly refused. The sun goddess sighed deeply, showing a shaking nervousness in her actions. Never had she thought that she would be standing in front of this door.

The dexterous door glowed a faint white around the edges, leaving a false expression of happiness in the room. The door itself consisted of a deep shade of blue, contrasting with the lighter colors of elegant carvings aligning the door perfectly. In the center, between the large split in the door, sat the Equestrian Royal Seal. A large circle displaying the two goddesses flying flat around their respective celestial bodies.

Two large holes sat on either side of the seal, entry points for Alicorn horns. The Alicorns dipped sir heads low, aligning their horns with the slots inside the heavy door. In perfect unison, their horns were thrusted into the door. The golden glow surrounding the carvings grew a dark crimson, and slowly dripped along the curves of the statuettes. The glow crept its way to the holes on the door, and seeped inside. The holes immediately flashed a deep, midnight blue as the locks deactivated. Old mechanisms could be heard grinding in the bowls of the gateway. A seem of light crept into the gloomy hallway as the heavy doors crept open slowly.

The interior of the room was large. Elegant, spiraling pillars of weight stretched on all sides of the chamber, supporting the weight of the ceiling. Dotting the walls were heavy, stained glass windows showing memorous moments from the Alicron sisters reign. But this windows were magical, and changed with the mood. They now stood a dull black, showing no images at all. Magnificent chandeliers hung high in the ceiling, bathing the room in light. Or, that's what they were supposed to do. The light was now glowing faintly, barely illuminating the smallest of spaces in the room. Being immortal ponies, however, the princesses could make out every detail of the chamber, light or not.

In the center of the ancient room, stood a large, crystal pillar, emitting a light blue glow, displaying its contents above. In a magical blue aura, held by no pony, but also held by many, floated a crinkly, coarse scroll. The sun goddess levitated the container of ancient text from the angelic, blue glow, and held it in front of herself and her sister.

Many ancient symbols dotted the scroll, many fades by millennia of decay. Splitting the scroll in two, sat the Seal of Shadows. For this scroll was black magic, a forbidden art that Starswirl himself could not achieve. An art so dangerous, yet so frail. Once decision to decide the fate of thousands, the lives of millions.

The midnight Alicorn charged a dark beam from her horn, and shot it into the center of the seal. Immediately, the splotches and faint decay of the scroll was relieved, revealing a clean and brisk piece of destruction. So beautiful was it, but frightening more so. The Alicorns lit their horns, and relayed the symbols to the magicka holds deep within their subconscious. Their horns grew brighter as they finished conjuring the spell. A deafening boom erupted in the room as two beams of bright light beamed from the horns of the Alicorns. The beams collided within midair, and redirected themselves toward the crystal at the center of the room. The beams of light traveled faster than the eye could see, and slammed into the blue crystal, immediately turning it a dep black and red.

Particles glowed faintly in the air around the dark crystal, leaving the air with a musty aroma. The royal sisters stalked over near the pedestal, nor frightened of its presence, but its power. So many mellenia had passed since the use of such magic, and the folds of the dark shadows were eager to be released. The moon goddess remembered this crystal, and knew personally the effects in the case of its failure. She shook the disturbing thoughts out of her mind, and followed suit to Celestia, and neared the crystal.

The Alicorns stood silent for some time. Gazing deep into the crystals center would drive any mortal insane. Causing them to endure pain rivaling any other. The nightmare would overtake their souls, and turn them into dark, restless demons. That was how the Tale of Nightmare Moon began, the real tale. But that is a story for another time. Perhaps you will know one day.

Faint, indescribable whispers could be heard drifting from the crystal, asking you, begging you to come closer. The Alicorns stepped back, and charges their horns. A bundle of colors shot from their horns, connecting yet again, but this time, forming a magnificent rainbow. The assortment of colors swirled around the pedestal. The Elements of Harmony had been crafted using similar magic, but that version was altered for peace only. It's magic, for death.

The rainbow dwelled into the seems of the crystal, erupting the crystal, shattering it into millions of pieces.

A small, purple orb was left in its place, aloft a few feet off the ground. Shimmering beauty was a good description. A funny thing, magic was. The most ravish beauty found within the most vile of entities.

Princess Celestia approached the orb, Luna following suit. They sat in silence for a time, depicting their thoughts carefully. A big decision this was, but an easy one non the less. The sun goddess extended a foreleg, and brushed the orb with the edge of her golden hoof. The purple immediately expanded, leaving a larger, more lighter shad elf purple in the shape of a slim countertop.

A long, impenetrable silence followed. The ringing of silence rattled their ears. It is said if one was to sit in deep thought, in complete silence, and listen, they could hear the voices of the forgotten. They would beg the poor soul to come with them, and relish in the mysterious beauties of the gods. The foolishness would cost one heir sanity, much like the ones of many more before them.

The silence was broken by the sun goddess,

"Show us the path to light. The trail to redemption." She commanded the orb. The orb obliged quickly to her commands, as if it already knew her intentions. The images shifted, until morphing into a rather odd scene.

A large, hilly plains dotted with small mountains in the background appeared into view. A tall, bipedal creature with a very short cut mane lay on its belly in the center of the portrait, cradling a long, bulky metal object in its arms. Celestia looked over to Luna, and reached out her right hoof. Luna responded, and placed a hoof against her sisters, gaining a soft thud.

Hooves still connected, Celestia reached forth, and sank her hoof into the light.