Princess Celestia galloped past large groups of burning buildings, an expression of pure anger covering her face as she did, while a bright gray stallion rushed away from her, outmaneuvering her in many different ways past buildings.

Finally, once he was within range, Celestia yelled, "NOW!", which caused the stallion's red eyes to widen, until he found himself getting blasted by a light blue ray of magic.

"Accordant Heart! What is the meaning of this?! You murder our allies, you wipe out an entire race... WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? WHAT COULD BE THE POSSIBLE REASON FOR SUCH AN ATROCITY?!"

The stallion chuckled heartily, until he replied, "Isn't it obvious, Celly? I did this because they are far more chaotic than I am... and what would the Element of Chaos be, if he didn't hold his title correctly?"

"Element of Chaos?! ACCORDANT! Just because you are the Element of Chaos doesn't mean that you destroy anything that moves!" With a glare, Celestia lowered her horn, and gritted her teeth. "For your betrayal, I shall destroy you!"

Suddenly, a loud booming voice filled the sky above them. "STAND DOWN, SISTER! THERE HAS TO BE AN ELEMENT OF CHAOS, OR THE BALANCE OF THE WORLD WILL COLLAPSE!"

Celestia looked up, but didn't change her serious expression. "You do not understand, Luna! If we let him live, who knows WHAT he will do to the rest of us?!"

Luna sighed, before landing on the ground in the opposite side of Accordant. "I know... which is why I have a proper punishment for him!" Accordant looked up at her, and smiled slyly. "Until you are able to control your ways, you shall become a monster of many things... you shall no longer be a pony, but a beast, instead! And for the rest of eternity, you shall not be able to murder anyone, ever again!"

With that, she blasted Accordant Heart with a blue ray of light, which caused him to cry out in pain, as his body began shifting in uncomfortable ways, until he was a mere fragment of his original appearance.

Out of anger, he glared at Luna, and asked, "W-WHY?!"

Luna replied, "Get used to it, for it shall be an example of who you have become... Discord!"

With a huff, Discord managed to do a teleportation spell, and disappeared from the burning kingdom.

After Discord was no longer in sight, Luna sighed deeply, while her head hung low, with tears beginning to form within her eyes. Celestia saw this, and slowly trotted towards her. "I'm sorry for your loss, my sister... I know how much the Humans appreciated the night, compared to the ponies."

Luna nodded her head, and silently whispered, "Thank you, Tia... but right now, I need to be alone. Please..." Celestia nodded her head, and then spread her wings out, before taking flight towards a distant city in the middle of a woodland.

Then Luna slowly trotted through the burnt ruins of the city, and sighed. "I'm sorry, my subjects... I have failed you... all of you..."

Before she could even make it halfway across the town, a distant sound could be heard... a sound that caused her ears to perk up. "Is that a... baby crying?!" As quickly as her hooves could take her, Luna rushed towards the source of the sound, until she gasped at the sight before her.

A human woman lied in a puddle of bloodied water, while next to her was a young man. Below the woman's cloak she wore, a baby stirred within, crying loudly. Slowly, Luna walked up to the moving cloak, and lifted the baby with her Magic, until she got a good look at the baby's eyes. Then her eyes widened when she found that she couldn't see a pupil, or an iris within its eyes.

"Are... are you... a blind baby?!" Her tears finally managed to burst through her eyes' barriers, while she floated the baby towards her. Then, when the baby was within reach, she sat on her hind legs, and held the baby with her fore hooves, nuzzling the baby with her nose, which caused the baby to stop crying, and stare in the open space.

"You may not see with your eyes... but that doesn't mean you won't be able to see at all." She said, while her eyes began to glow. Suddenly, the baby's eyes started to glow as well, while it's gaze rested on the moon. Then, when their eyes stopped glowing, a pair of dark blue irises materialized in its formerly blank pupils. If one looks closely at its eyes, they appeared to have endless constellations, while in the center, where a pupil would appear, his eyes glowed white, and were about as bright as the moon.

Then the baby's eyes focused on Luna, which caused it to smile, before it began making odd baby-like moans.

Luna smiled at the baby, and kissed its forehead, while saying, "Don't worry, my child... I shall always protect you... Shadow Blade."

"Mother, look! I managed to hit the center of the target three times in a row!" Shadow yelled, before running up to Princess Luna, who stood in the center of a shadowy cave, observing him shooting an arrow from a bow, and hitting a target that stood fifty feet away..

She smiled at the human child, and chuckled lightly. "Well done, Shadow! You're getting much more used to your capabilities, now!" Then she looked at a light brown-coated unicorn filly with brown spots on her hooves, eyelids, and ears, and an orange mane and tail. "Well, Shadow, I think you've been practicing enough for now. Why don't you go and see if your older sister, Gari needs any assistance?"

Shadow looked at the filly who stood halfway his height, before nodding his head, and replying, "Yes, ma'am! Thank you, mother!" Then he ran off, joining his sister Gari in a rough-housing competition that she started with their other ten brothers and sisters.

With a light chuckle, Luna said, "Alright, my dears! Please be good children, and head on to sleep, now! The sun is about to rise!"

"Aw, but I wanna look at the sunrise with you, mother!" Shadow whined.

Luna chuckled, and hugged him dearly, before replying, "As much as I wish that could happen, Shadow, you know that you can only see in the dark."

Shadow groaned, before nodding his head. "Yes, ma'am... I love you, good-morning, then!"

Luna nuzzled his forehead, which made him giggle, before replying, "I love you too, my children... good-morning."

With that, the children all walked deeper into the cave, and rested on their beds.

"Shadow, do you think mother is hiding something from us?" Silver Stripe asked. He was a young Earth Pony stallion with a black mane that had a silver strip on the tip of his mane. His coat was a dark, coal-like shade of gray.

Shadow, at this time, had dark brown hair, light skin, and was wearing a fine silk pair of red pants, along with a green sleeveless vest over a white long-sleeved shirt. On his feet, he wore a pair of boots made entirely of dark blue silk, with soft wooden pads inside it, wrapped in cotton to produce comfort.

He sat up, looked at his younger brother, and replied, "Of course she is, Silver Stripe... we all have secrets somewhere. It's just for our safety that she keeps them from us, though."

Gari groaned, then said, "Will the two of you please try to get some sleep?! I need to have my sleep, so that I can take the Balance Test tomorrow!"

Shadow smirked, before replying, "Aren't we both taking the same test, Gari?"

Gari groaned, before replying, "Please don't remind me... I still don't understand why we both have to take the same exam!"

When their single lantern in the center of the cave room dimmed out, they remained silent, until nothing but feint snoring could be heard.

"Are you sure you're okay, Mother?" Shadow asked. He was wearing a taller, but similarly-colored set of clothing, yet this time, he also wore a long, pure white cloak over his entire body that blended in with the scenery's colors. He walked closely to Luna, who had her right hind hoof caught in a trap.

It was broad daylight, so Shadow had to wear a bandana over his eyes. With it over his eyes, he was able to see clearly, unless the bandana were to be removed. Even so, he was sixteen years old, and more than capable of sensing anything from a mile away before it could even find him.

"I'll be fine, Shadow... it's just a basic Paralysis Trap... something Silver can easily disarm. Please, go find him for me! Be careful, though! Changelings have been spotted recently, and can easily manipulate your family members!"

"Don't worry, Mother... I can easily tell the difference, since you've given me the Eyes of the Moon." Then he looked out in the distance, and smiled. "Looks like Gari is on her way here now... perhaps she'll know where Silver went."

As if on cue, a mare wearing a dark blue cloak rushed through the bushes, as her cloak began to turn as white as Shadow's. "Mother! I heard your cry of pain! Is everything okay?!"

Shadow cleared his throat, and replied, "We need to get Silver here, as soon as possible! Can you watch over Mother, while I get him?"

Gari looked concernedly at Luna, before nodding her head. "Please make haste, Shadow! We can't be out for too long, when the Changelings could be anywhere!"

Shadow nodded his head, and then replied, "Don't worry. I'll return quickly."

With that, he ran through the bushes, and began climbing the trees, until he reached the top, while his cloak began to turn a darker blue color, as he ran deeper into the darker sides of the White Tail Woods.

Finally, once he reached the familiar cave, he ran inside, only to stop at the kitchen area, where his brother Silver Stripe was eating. Then he cleared his throat, which caused Silver to stop his eating, and smile, before waving his hoof at him.

"Silver, we need you to get your Paralysis Remedy! Mother is in need of our help!"

Silver's eyes widened, before he nodded, and asked, still with his mouth full of the daffodil sandwich, "Is she alright?!"

Shadow shook his head, and replied, "No time, now! She is, but she won't be much longer, if we don't bring her the remedy!" Silver nodded his head, and followed him out of the kitchen area, where he slid his travel pack on his back, and in the matter of seconds, the two of them were headed back to where Luna was.

Once they made it, they were relieved to see that she and Gari were still there, unharmed. Then Silver ran up to Luna, and said, "Mother! Are you okay?!"

Luna chuckled lightly, and replied, "Oh, Silver! Of course I'm okay! Sorry if I caused a raucous at home... I wish I didn't end up waking you sweethearts up!"

Shadow smirked, before replying, "Nonsense, Mother! You can never be a burden to your children!"

Before they could continue, a small green filly with a creamy yellow mane that was braided on both sides trotted up to them, and panted heavily.

"Apple Smith?" Gari asked, before running up to her, and patting her on the back. "What's wrong?!"

Apple sighed, before replying, "I'm sorry, Gari... I must've dozed off again, when you needed me to work on the apple trees!"

Gari smirked, before shaking her head. "It's alright, Apple! You're still young, and need your rest! Who knows? Maybe you'll earn your Cutie Mark with something Apple-Related!"

Apple smiled weakly, before nodding her head. "You're right, Gari... I'll try planting some apple trees over by the field way over yonder! If they grow, I may just start farming 'em!"

Shadow smirked, before murmuring, "Perhaps she'll even turn into an apple, at this rate!" Then, once Silver finished freeing Luna from her Paralysis Trap, the group headed back to their home in the cave, while Shadow continued his talk with Luna.

"Listen, Shadow... I didn't want to have to say this, but... I fear that I may have to visit less often than I have been."

Shadow looked at her, while his face showed slight confusion. "You're... not abandoning us, though, right?"

Luna chuckled weakly, before replying, "Of course not, Shadow! You're my children! You'll just have to take all that I've taught you into account, and help the other children that join our family, the same way I have taught you and Gari... the two of you seem to be the most skilled of the children... so I ask that the two of you lead the family, if something ever happens to me."

Shadow slowly nodded his head, and held his arms out, while Luna and he embraced in a mother-to-son hug. "All that was good in me... began with you, Mother. Thank you..."

"No... this CAN'T be happening! It just can't!" Gari shouted, while being held back by Shadow. The two of them had tears covering their eyes, as they witnessed a bright rainbow fly up to the moon. Shadow could feel what happened, and knew what it was that happened.

"Nothing more can be done, Gari... we have to take responsibility, and guide our youngest siblings, now... Mother has been banished... but she will return!"

Gari glared at the Alicorn Princess who flew down, clearly showing pain in her eyes. "And when she returns... I will see to it that she learns what she just put us through!"

Shadow looked at, who his mother must've referred to as "Auntie Celestia", then back at Gari, before shaking his head. "She isn't the one to blame, Gari... I know it was Discord. If anything, he's the one who will pay for his actions!"

When they returned to the cave, they all wept throughout the night, until the morning sun caused them to fall asleep... everyone except Shadow, who sat on the top of a large tree.

He closed his eyes, and began speaking to the Moon... which was normally a way how he could communicate with Luna from a long distance.

"Mother... I know you're still in there." He weakly smiled, and looked up, his short goatee-style beard showing up in the moonlight. "When we hear your voice again... your children shall respond." He paused for a moment, before continuing. "Apple Smith has finally developed her Cutie Mark... and we helped her join another family... a life of violence was never something she was cut out for, anyways... but she's still very much part of our family! We have her keeping an extra eye out for us in the daylight. Should anything happen, she will call us by playing the lullaby you always sang to us."

The moon began to continue with its lowering process, until the light could be seen from the horizon. "Until we meet again... Good-Morning, Mother."