Rainbow snarled as her red scorpion clashed with the Dark Phoenix, the scorpion lunged at the Phoenix with it's pinchers catching the wing of the fire bird construct. The Dark Phoenix used its talons to slash at the scorpion’s pincer, but just as it raised up to slash, the second pincer caught the talon before it could strike. The Dark Phoenix thrashed against the vice like grip of the scorpion, feeling its serrated pincers begin to slice into its construct body.

Inside, Roneo and Starlet used their concentration and the power of their rings to keep the Dark Phoenix from falling apart, that is, until, they saw a giant red stinger heading right for the heart of their construct. The two Black Lanterns moved to the sides just in time to watch the stinger tail of the scorpion pierce through the Phoenix’s chest and out the other side. The construct let out a screech of pain from the attack. Rainbow Dash motioned for the scorpion tail to retract, with yet another motion and flash of the ring the stinger began to glow with red light.

Upon her command the stinger fired a beam of crimson light right at the head of the Dark Phoenix, dragging down till it completely sliced the creature in half. The scorpion let go of the remaining pieces, letting the two halves fall. Rainbow Dash smirked at how easy it was to dispatch their so called “ultimate attack”. But, as she was soon beginning to figure out, believing anything was “too easy” in regards to Black Lanterns was a taboo statement.

The two halves of the Dark Phoenix turned into black flames which reached out to each other and became one big ball of ebony flames. The sphere then burst apart and once again the Dark Phoenix was whole again. Rainbow Dash face hoofed herself, growling in anger from the resurrected construct. “You gotta be kidding me!”

“Seriously, you don’t even know the legend of the Phoenix itself?! This bitch is dumb and has breath taking anger management issues too!” Starlet laughed.

“The Phoenix cannot be killed, when it dies it is reborn from the flames. You cannot kill that which can resurrect itself over and over again, Rainbow Dash.” Roneo informed.

“Fine then…” Rainbow Dash slammed her hooves together as she glared at the Dark Phoenix and the Black Lanterns within. “I’ll just keep killing you again and again until you stay down!”

The scorpion clicked and hissed as it flew after the Dark Phoenix, the fire bird launched a torrent of black flames from its beak, but Rainbow Dash created a barrier in front of the scorpion construct, blocking the attack. The scorpion continued to fly towards the attacker as the Phoenix continued to blast it with it flames. Once the scorpion was in range, Rainbow dropped the shield and had the construct lash out with its pincers. The twin guillotine appendages wrapped themselves around the neck of the Dark Phoenix and in one swift motion cut off its head.

Before the creature could regrow its head, the stinger of the scorpion rose up and stabbed right through the neck wound. The stinger was now inside the chest, hanging overhead of Starlet and Roneo. The stinger began to glow with built up power. Brighter and brighter the stinger shined, becoming a red star within the chest cavity of the Dark Phoenix. Starlet looked at Rainbow Dash in stark realization of what she was planning on doing.

“ARE YOU INSANE!!? YOU’LL BLOW US BOTH UP!”

“No, just you two mooks!” Rainbow shouted back.

The pincers of the scorpion latched onto the body of the Dark Phoenix, keeping it held in place. Rainbow Dash then dropped out of the scorpion construct and descended down from further and further away. The scorpion construct’s body was starting to glow with the same pent up energy as as the tail, turning the entire creation into bomb. When Rainbow Dash was far enough away, she pointed her ring right at her creation. With a devilish grin, she fired a single beam at the light in the sky.

The moment the beam struck was like lighting the fuse on a powder keg. The whole construct exploded with tremendous force, engulfing the Dark Phoenix and the Black Lanterns within. Whatever screams the two may’ve uttered were drowned out from the roaring blast of crimson that lit up the sky.

“Not one of my more flashy attacks, but it’ll get the job done…” Rainbow was starting to pant heavily, while empowered by the red ring, the constant battling was beginning to take a toll on her body. “Need to find where that ring went…get some down time and figure out what the buck I’m going to do next…”

‘Second ring detected.’

Rainbow Dash looked down to her ring, “Show me then! I ain’t got all day-um-night I mean!”

The ring created a construct arrow that pointed Rainbow in the direction where the second ring flew off to. Wasting no time, Rainbow Dash flew with great haste towards her, potential, ally. She may be strong, unrelenting, and fierce, but even Rainbow was not completely immune to fatigue. There was only so much she could do on her own, and with AJ, and “Twilight Sparkle”, wielding rings too and bringing others to the side of Nightmare Moon, she needed all the help she could get...

As she approached the signal however, she would be greeted with a rather... underwhelming surprise...

For Twilight and her friends, the rest of hike was long and silent, save for Twilight, Sweetie Belle, and Pinkie's occasional crying. Then again who could blame them? Sweetie Belle had lost her big sister, Twilight had raised Spike since he had first hatched, and Fluttershy was one of Pinkie's closest friends, even Celestia had gone completely silent.

As the group exited the cave, they saw Canterlot. They had finally made it...but at what cost?

As they got closer, they noticed a large pink bubble surrounding the city. The shield shimmered in the moonlight like a beacon of hope.

"That's my brother's shield!" Twilight exclaimed as she and rushed towards the city gates. The rest of the group quickly following suit.

"HALT!" A voice called out as they approached the gate. Several Royal Guards approached them from behind the shield, each one wielding a spear. "Canterlot is currently on lockdown! State your names and-"

The Lead Guard froze when he noticed The lavender unicorn within the group. "...Twily?"

Rarity gasped as she crawled out of the river, carrying an unconscious Pegasus and Dragon on her back.

"I knew those swimming lessons would come in handy someday..." She gasped as she took several breaths. The fashionista carefully laid the two down on the soft grass.

She carefully placed her ear against Fluttershy's chest. Thankfully, she was still breathing. When she checked Spike however...

"OH SWEET CELESTIA NO!!" She cried out as she began pushing down on his stomach repeatably. "Come on now, don't you dare die on me!" She screamed as she continued to push, put her head to the dragons chest, nothing!

The fashionista took a deep breath before locking lips with the dragon, pushing as much air into his lungs as possible. She repeated the process untill the baby Dragon coughed a few times and started taking deep, ragged breaths.

Rarity let out a content sigh of relief. "Oh thank Celestia..." She said before slowly levitating the unconscious Pegasus and Dragon onto her back. "Don't worry you two. I'll get us to Canterlot in one piece..."

The fashionista made her way through the Forest, trying to find a cave to take shelter in or possibly some path and might lead to a small patch of civilization. Then again since she didn't exactly know where the river had washed them up, she was pretty much traveling blind by this point.

However that all changed when she found a small opening in the trees. She quickly (yet gently as not to drop her two friends) trotted towards it hoping that she might be able to find a place to rest. However when she arrived her eyes widened, they were at Rambling Rock Ridge! She could easily recognize it from some of the jewels that were poking out of the ground, as she herself a come here at certain times to harvest a few of them for her dresses. In the distance she could also make out Ponyville, what appeared to be more Black Lanterns swarming her hometown.

'This is bad...' She thought to herself. 'The only town nearby is the one that's under attack, and I can't go back to the forest. I need to find somewhere safe to hide whete we can replenish our energy. But where...'

She was brought out of her thoughts when she saw a small cave nearby, she trotted towards it immediately and-after checking to make sure no one was inside-layed Fluttershy and Spike down on the softest patches of dirt she could find.

"I normally wouldn't even think of resting in a dank and dirty cave like this... but we're pretty much out of options right now..." She sighed to herself as she stayed near the cave entrance to keep watch.

Unknown to her however, there were a few sinister shadows watching...

"I SWEAR, IF I SEE THAT STUPID PURPLE DRAGON EVER AGAIN I'LL RIP HIM APART ONE SCALE AT A TIME!!" Three Leaf screamed as she trudged out of the river with Gladstone right behind her.

"Calm yourself, Leaf." Gladstone said as he shook himself off. "While I mirror your desire to take vengeance on the ones who defeated us, we have a much bigger priority at hand. Mainly reporting back to our Queen..."

"Well if you're so eager to report our failure to our Queen then go ahead!" Three Leaf snarled, putting a special emphasis on 'failure'. "I'm going to go find those bastards and feast on their still-beating hearts!" She screamed before taking off into the air.

Gladstone stared in the direction she flew for a moment before sighing and taking off in the opposite direction. "She's right about one thing, the Queen is not going to be happy about this..."

"That little bastard of a dragon is going to pay for humiliating me..." Three Leaf growled as she searched through the sky's. She then caught sight of a Unicorn Stallion below, wandering through the forest alone. "Hm, easy prey..." She smirked and she swiftly dived down towards the unsuspecting target...

Only for said target to dodge to the last minute before striking her with the beam of magic, sending her flying into a tree.

"Nice try, but it'll take more than that to get the drop on me." The stallion said as he kept his distance from the Black Lantern. He stepped into the moonlight, revealing himself. He had a black mane and grey coat, and wore a trenchcoat and a bandanna over his face, covering up the scar under his right eye. "I was in the Royal Guard, underestimating me is not a smart move." He smirked.

"You little bastard! Do you have any idea who you're dealing with?!" Three Leaf snapped as she picked herself up.

"No, and apparently neither do you." The stallion said that he got into a fighting stance, his horn glowing with dark energy. "Now why don't you run along, otherwise I'll show you exactly why they call me "Shadow Knife"."

"You filthy little rat! I'll shut that mouth of yours permanently!" Three Leaf shouted as she created a construct in the form of a scythe and charged forward.

Shadow Knife's smile simply grew wider as his horn glowed once more and several black chains surrounded him. "Oh, this is going to be fun..."

Back in Whiltetail Wood, the ring had guided Rainbow Dash to newist weilders of the Red Lantern Ring.

Sadly, she was less than impressed.

"SERIOUSLY, A FOAL?! THAT'S WHO THE RING CHOOSE?! A BUCKING FOAL?!" The cyan Pegasus screamed in frustration as she landed in front of the orange filly. Disappointment and irritation written all over her face, she had been hoping that her ring would reach the grown mare that had been accompanying the other foals.

"Sorry kid, but you can't handle this power." She said as she moved to remove the ring from the young ones hoof, only to draw her hoof back as the ring crackled with red energy and seemingly fastened itself around her hoof.

She mentally growled at this, however upon looking around she noticed that not too far away there was a crater the size of a grown stallion filled with what she could easily identify as the acidic blood. Around the crater she could easily make out little bits of entrails, black ooze, limps, and bits of the uniform from what used to be a Black Lantern. While they were still recognizable, there wasn't enough for the zombie to simply regenerate itself.

'This kid...' She thought to herself as she turned her attention back to the orange Pegasus. '...beat that creature all by herself?'

Before she could think any further, her armor suddenly vanished into her ring. "What the hey?! What happened to my armor?!"

‘Ring at 20% power, must recharge immediately.’ The ring stated.

"How the heck am I supposed to do that?! This thing run on triple-A batteries or something?"

‘Negative.’ The ring deadpanned. You must summon the Power Battery.’

"Power wa-?" Before she could finish the ring glued the deep red and suddenly a small crack appeared in front of her. Slowly a large Red Lantern with a handle on top floated out of the crack. It's inside seemed to burn with a very flames of Tartarus itself. "OK, it's summoned, now what?"

'The Red Lantern oath must be recited by the wearer.'

"And that is...?" She asked in the irritation.

'With blood and rage of crimson red,
ripped from a corpse so freshly dead.
Together with our hellish hate,
We'll burn you all...That is your fate.'

"Brutal, merciless, and downright pissed off... I like it!" She smirked as she raised her hoof. However just as she was about to recite the oath, a small little groan from behind her got her attention.

"Huh...where am I?" Scootaloo groaned as she got up. However upon looking up her eyes widened when she saw the Pegasus that had saved her, twice. "It's you!" She exclaimed with a smile as she rushed to hug the Pegasus, not the least bit unnerved by the scar on her face.

"WOAH! Hey squirt, calm down!" She winced as she pushed the filly off her. "What is your deal?!"

"S-sorry miss...uh..."

"The name's Rainbow Dash kid."

"Thank you soo much for saving me! Miss Dash!" She squealed eagerly as she bounced around the cyan Pegasus.

'Oh great, a fangirl. Just perfect...' She thought to herself. However seeing the opportunity this would provide Rainbow Dash decided to take the foal. “Ah it’s no problem kiddo though you... seem to be able to handle yourself.” She said as she pointed at the body that Scootaloo killed.

“Oh… I-I just kinda…. lost control.”

“Kinda? Kid that’s the BEST kind of rage! These punks are trying to take over our world but we’re supposed to just stand aside and let them take it?” Rainbow asked with a smirk on her face.

“No! I think they should be roasted alive!”

“Um… kinda hard to do that since… you know. They’re already dead.”

Scootaloo blushed a little from realizing her error. “Oh yeah, forgot about that part. But you get what I mean right?”

Rainbow was starting to feel an odd kinship with the foal, despite her young age and fangirl attitude towards her, she’s shown some potential. The fact that she is young was plus, it meant she could teach her and, in the unlikely event that Rainbow herself ever fell to those undead plotholes, she could pass the metaphorical torch over to this filly. The ring had to chose her for a reason right?

“What’s your name squirt?” Asked Rainbow.
“Oh yeah, my name!” Scootaloo stood at attention, puffing out her chest with pride as she spoke. “It’s *ahem* it’s Scootaloo, but my friends call me Scoots sometimes.”

“Scootaloo huh, alright.” Rainbow Dash stood to her full height and looked down upon the filly with a serious gaze. “Since we seem to be on the same page here there’s something serious I need to ask you, so pay attention.”

Scootaloo nodded vigorously.

“You know that these zombies and Nightmare Moon are attacking Equestria, and pretty much either killing or turning everypony we care about into undead mooks. As awesome as I am… unfortunately… I can’t fight them all on my own, these damn things come back sooner or later after I tear them apart. I sent that ring out in hopes that it would go to that mare who was helping you and the other foals.”

Scootaloo averted her eyes, a feeling of disappointment entering her heart upon hearing that. Rainbow Dash wanted the ring to go to Cheerilee, but instead it came to her. 'I guess that makes sense…I mean, I’m just a kid…a Pegasus that can’t even fly…guess she wants me give it back…'

“But the ring came to you, and from what you did to that zombie back there, I think it chose right.”

Scootaloo eyes snapped back to Rainbow Dash, wide and filled with excitement. “R-Really, you think so?!”

Rainbow Dash placed a hoof on Scootaloo’s shoulder as she gave her a confident smirk. “I’m not going to pretend I know how these rings work, but if it chose you then it must be for a reason. So, if you want, you can join me and fight beside me. But you have to do what I say, ring or no ring I don’t like putting kids in the middle of a dangerous situation, got that?!”

“Yes, I’ll do whatever you say Miss Rainbow Dash, ma’am!”

“Just Rainbow Dash or Dash, none of that ‘Miss’ stuff.”

“So, uh, what do we do now?” Asked Scootaloo.

Rainbow Dash brought up her right hoof and stared at her ring. “For one, I need to recharge this ring before it runs out on me. While we’re on that subject, how’s yours?”

Scootaloo stared at her ring. “I don’t know.”

“Well ask it, mine told me when it was low.”

The orange Pegasus filly looked at her ring in confusion and decided to do as Rainbow Dash instructed. “Okay… uh, ring, how much power do you have?”

‘Power levels are at 80%.’

Rainbow Dash rubbed her chin with her hoof as she heard the ring’s report. “You’re still pretty high, but better to be fully charged now than be near empty in a fight.”

“So how do we do this?”

Rainbow Dash instructed Scootaloo on how to summon her power battery. The filly pointed her ring to an open space and commanded her ring to summon the object. A hole space opened up, bringing the red lantern to rest right beside Rainbow Dash’s. Scootaloo eyed her power battery, which was identical to Rainbow’s, further signifying that they were part of the same time.

“So we just say this oath thing and point our rings to the opening and that’s it?”

"Pretty much, yeah. But now that I think about it, we should make this oath a little more personal.” Rainbow Dash sat before her lantern, prompting Scootaloo to do the same. “Alrighty then, let's change this little oath up a bit! Repeat after me squirt!" They aimed their rings at the power batteries, crackling with energy as the power rose up from the batteries.

"With blazing flames of raging red,"
"From Tartarus depths we bring great dread."
"With crimson storms of burning hate,"
"We'll burn you all...That is your fate!!"

Not too far away however, the BL elites; Roneo and Starlet, where trudging through the woods. The blast had done a great number on them however, as they were missing several body parts.

"WHERE THE BUCK IS MY LEG?!" Starlet screamed as she searched through the forest, missing her right back-leg as well as her left hoof, her right ear, and a good portion of the left half of her face.

"Calm yourself, Starlet" Roneo said as he nonchalantly reattached his midsection, luckily he still had his ring hoof, so gathering his remains was a little easier. "While I know you're disappointed..."

"DISAPPOINTED?! I. AM. PISSED!" She screamed before she heard some scuttling, looked to her left to see her ring hoof using a claw construct do scurry back to her. "I swear, the next time I see that flying gay pride parade it'll be too soon!"

Suddenly, a loud boom echoed across the forest as two streaks of red shot through the night sky.

"Oh, you've got to be FUCKING KIDDING ME!! THERE'S TWO OF THEM NOW?!" Starlet snarled in rage.

"Well that's unfortunate." Roneo deadpanned.

"NO SHIT SHERLOCK! She snapped as she reattached her ring hoof. "If that bitch is recruiting more ponies to wield the same power we need to kill them now before she finds more!"

Starlet immediately attempted to take off after the two, only to be held back by Roneo's claw construct. "That would not be wise love, we are just recovering from the battle ourselves and from what I can tell those two are at full power. He explained as he set his partner down. "If we were to confront them now we would lose again, and I doubt they will be willing to risk us coming back next time..."

"Oh alright fine! But the next time I see her, she's dead!"

"Good, now what do you say we find the other half of your face and your leg?" He asked as they began to search through the woods.

"Already found it, half of it anyway." She said as her claw construct dragged out half of a leg out of the bushes.

"Dear, that's not your leg..."

"What do you mean? It's long and it's a little thinner than I remember..." It took Starlet a few seconds to notice that Roneo was trying to hold in his laughter, after which she took a good long hard look at the leg and almost immediately dropped it. "OH GROSS!!" She screamed as Roneo burst into laughter.

"Well at least you found my "fifth leg"!" Roneo said as he continued to laugh.

"SHUT UP! THAT IS DISGUSTING!" She screamed before tossing the "leg" at Roneo, who caught it with ease.

"Oh don't act like you haven't been curious..."

"Yeah but... oh just shut up and put you're stupid "fifth leg" back on!" Starlet growled as she stormed off.

"I don't know sweetie, I might need some "assistance"... "

"FUCK TO THE NO!"

In the city of Manehatten, many ponies were in a state of panic. With the moon still high in the sky despite the fact that it was currently 11:30. When word of the attack on Ponyville got out, many of the law-enforcements immediately turned the city into a safe-zone for refugees that managed to escape. The Royal Guards, Police, and even a few Wonderbolt stationed there were trying to keep things under control.

Flash Sentry landed next to the train as it pulled into Manehatten station. As the civilians poured out of it he turned to address two Unicorn Guards. "Be sure to escort them to the safe houses we've positioned throughout the city. And remember, if you see any suspicious activity, you're to alert me immediately, understood?"

"Yes Commander Sentry!" The two Guards answered before making their way towards the large crowd. As the Royal Guard turned to meet up with the others, he noticed a Pegasus Guard with a navy blue coat and black mane soaring towards him.

"Commander Sentry." The Pegasus said as she landed, Flash giving her a salute in the process.

"It's good to see you again, Lieutenant Ballista. Though I wish it was under different circumstances..."

"Word on the current situation had already reached us... Is it really true? Has Nightmare Moon truly returned?" She asked, nervousness evident in her voice.

"Afraid so." Flash stated. "She also knows some sort of dark magic that seems to involve... " The commander stopped when he noticed he was starting to attract a crowd. "Let's discuss this in the more private location, I don't want to worry the rest of the civilians."

Ballista nodded and the two flew off...

Meanwhile, in another part of the station, a mint green unicorn mare with a lighter colored mane and a harp cutie mark stepped out of the caboose, followed by an Earth Pony with a pale coat, blue mane with a rose pink streak, cerulean eyes, and a cutie mark of three pieces of candy.

"Where is she?! Where is she?!" She screamed as she looked around frantically,

"Bonbon please, you need to calm down..."

"Calm down? You honestly want me to CALM DOWN?!" The arth pony snapped, turning her gaze on the mint Unicorn and causing her to flinch. "My little sister is somewhere in this station alone and scared, AND YOU HONESTLY WANT ME TO CALM DOWN?!"

"Bonbon..."

"DON'T BONBON ME! WHAT IF MY LITTLE SISTER IS SEARCHING FOR ME RIGHT NOW?!"

"Bonbon please-"

"...OR WHAT IF SHE'S NOT EVEN IN THE STATION?! WHAT IF SHE'S BACK IN PONYVILLE WITH THOSE THINGS?! WHAT IF-"

"SWEETIE DROPS! CALM. DOWN." Lyra bellowed, Bonbon almost immediatly stopped talking. Her marefriend never called her by her real name except for when she seriously needed to get her attention.

"Now look, I understand you're scared and worried. I would be too if one of my family members were missing, but we have to keep a level head here." She said she gestured to all the ponies around them. "Look around, there are practically millions of ponies here, and I'm sure your sister is one of them. So let's find a Royal Guard and ask him for help."

Bonbon stared at her marefriend for a second before engulfing her in a tight hug, tears streaming from her eyes. "I'm sorry Lyra, I just... I just..." She choked between sobs.

The mint green Unicorn placed a hoof of her marefriend’s mouth. "Shhh... it's OK, I promise will find your sister."

Bonbon nodded as the couple begin to trot through crowds of ponies, looking for Royal Guard. 'Don't worry Twist, your big sister is coming!'

Meanwhile in another part of the station, a Pegasus Royal Guard with a pink coat and blue mane soared through the sky and towards the train station, only one thing was on her mind: her beloved daughter.

'Please my little pegasus...please be safe....'

Gilda darted through the abandoned streets of Cloudsdale as fast as she could. No matter where she turned, there were Black Lanterns waiting for her. She would slice through anyone she came across but sadly it was clear she was horribly outnumbered.

"Jeeze! These thing's are like freaking hydra heads, cut one off two more take it's place!!" She snarled and she darted around another corner, hoping to catch her breath for a second.

"Well well, what do we have here Grey Hoof?"

"I believe it's a little bird that has flown away from her nest, Mitta!"

Gilda's pupils shrank when she heard two voices above her. She darted out of the way just in time to avoid two large black claws that nearly grabbed her and took off into the skies.

"I'm so sorry..." A female voice called out. Gilda barely had time to dodge when another Black Lantern nearly grabbed her but with luck on her side Gilda was able to not only dodge the freak but also give it a good sized scratch on it’s head as well.

"GOT YA!!"

Her little victory was short-lived however when the other two caught up to her. Mitta used her claw construct to grab her by the throat. "I have to admit I wasn't expecting a Gryphon of all things, but I can't complain!" She smiled sadistically before slamming her into one of the cloud houses, knocking the wind out of her.

"And another little fly to add to our web!" Mitta cackled gleefully as she lifted her and pray in front of her while creating a second claw construct to rip out her heart.

Gildas eyes shrunk to tiny dots when she saw the claw about to gore her. 'No! It can't end like this! NOT LIKE THIS!!' She mentally screamed as she vainly struggled to escape.

"Welcome to the Black Lantern Corps..." However, just as her claw about to dig into her rib cage, a blue blur slammed into her side, causing her to lose concentration and drop the Gryphon.

"What the-!!" Was all Grey Hoof could say before a second blur took him by surprise, sending him spiraling into Ruby and crashing into one of the ruined cloud houses.

Gilda quickly steadied herself in midair and looked up to see her savior... or rather saviors. Two Wonderbolts, one male and one female, landed in front of her.

"Are you alright?" The female asked.

"Y-yeah! I-"

"Good, there's a specialized airship waiting near the southern part of the city. Head there and you'll be taken to safety!"

As much as Gilda wanted to defy these orders and stay and fight, she knew for a fact that she was badly wounded and would probably end up getting killed. So she swallowed her pride and nodded before taking off towards the south end of the city.

She grieved a sigh of relief before turning back to the three. "Ready Soarin?"

"You bet I am Spitfire!" The male Wonderbolt said as landed next to her. "For Fleetfoot." He stated, giving the creatures a nasty glare as they recovered from their assault.

Spitfire nodded, a small tear trailing down her cheek as she remembered hearing how her comrade fell to the Nightmare Queen.

Ruby, Mitta, and Grey Hoof faced the Wonderbolt duo. Mitta was about to charge, but then Grey Hoof stopped her. ”What the hay are you doing?!”

”While I’d love nothing more than to rip out their hearts with you, we’ve got a bigger priority on our hooves.” He said before glancing at the southern sector of Cloudsdale. “You sensed it too, right?”

Mitta arched a brow before her eyes widened and her body tensed up, as if a wave of energy just passed through her. “Oh yeah, I felt that.” She deadpanned before turning to the two Wonderbolts before her. “Well then, if we can't turn you, I suppose a few "old friends" of yours can take you down...” Mitta smirked as her ring began to shine.

"Wait, what the heck does she mean by-" Soarin was about to ask, only to be tackled to the side by his teammate just in time to avoid being hit by two black creatures attacking from the sky.

“Have fun you two, play nice now!” Mitta taunted as she and her two comrades took off towards the northern sector.

Spitfire and Soarin glared at the two retreating creatures, they quickly attempted to follow, only to be intercepted by twin blasts of black energy. As the two turned around however, their eyes widened and their jaws dropped as they saw the two ponies revealed themselves.

“FLEETFOOT!? SURPRISE?!” Spitfire called out, tears threatening to fall from her eyes as shock and horror overtook her.

Fleetfoot smile coyly. "Sorry sweetie, but we’ve got a new boss now."

”And our boss doesn’t want any resistance under her new rule!” Surprise smirked as they both charged towards their former comrades.

Back in Canterlot, it would seem that this night wasn’t done with emotional reunions for Twilight. After a happy reunion with her BBBFF, the group was escorted by some Royal Guards to her Twilight’s home. While Shining Armor wanted nothing more than to escort them himself, Canterlot was still in a state of panic, and as captain of the Royal Guard he had too keep things in order.

Even though they had a bit of a big group of ponies, Twilight knew that her parents wouldn’t mind a few houseguests, especially given what they had all been through together. It was strange, Twilight didn’t know these ponies all that well, but she felt it was her responsibility to keep them safe. She owed Applejack for helping her when that enraged Pegasus, Rainbow Dash, nearly killed her for thinking she was a spy for Nightmare Moon.

On top of that, she was finding that she was growing strangely attached to them. Could this be what Princess Celestia meant by “friendship”?

’Of course not…How could anypony form a friendship on the horrors and hardships we just witnessed! Such a “friendship” would only be temporary, an alliance would be a better description.

Twilight glanced over at Applejack. She remembered the day before all Tartarus was let loose, her first stop in Ponyville was the apple farmer’s home. She remembered how friendly Applejack was to her, acting as if she was a long lost family member and treating her with hospitality, although a bit overwhelming, it was still nice. Twilight knew, for some reason she couldn’t logically understand, she felt she could honestly trust this mare to fight beside her and keep her safe during likely future battles.

’A comrade…somepony who will fight beside you through the worst of times and celebrate the good at the end of the long road…’

The studious mare didn’t realize it at first, but she was staring at the Earth Pony mare. Her golden blonde mane, her strong yet beautiful emerald green eyes, and of course those strangely cute freckles. Twilight’s eyes soon took in the rest of Applejack’s form, her orange coat that no doubt hid the strong muscles she had developed over years of working on a farm, giving her a lean body that wasn’t overly muscular. It wasn’t until Twilight found her eyes roving further down to Applejack’s cutie mark that she felt the slight warmth in her cheeks.

The Unicorn mare realized the feeling and quickly turned away, staring intently out the window of the carriage so as to hide the red on her face. Applejack noticed the quick movement from the corner of her eye and saw the Twilight was staring out the window, and that her face as a little red.

“Twi, ya alright there sugarcube?”

“I-I’m fine! Just great thanks for asking!”

Applejack quirked an eyebrow at that statement but resolved to shrug it off and leave the mare be. This long night was getting to a lot of them and Applejack knew it wasn’t a good idea to press anypony right now, especially with her big brother, little sister, cousin, and Pinkie Pie in the carriage.

“Well, if ya need to talk Ah’m willin’ listen.”

Twilight glanced over her shoulder and smiled softly at the Earth Pony mare. “Thanks Applejack, I-I will.”

Applejack nodded to Twilight and resumed her gazing out the window at the fancy houses that made up the more wealthy residential area of Canterlot. Twilight looked out the window too, but was now mentally berating herself.

’Applejack’s worried about you and what do you do?! You ogle her flank while she isn’t looking! Great Sparkle, you’re off to a fantastic start with your comrade! Why not throw sexual attraction into the craziness while we’re at it?!’

It took a moment for Twilight to realize that she just admitted that she was sexually attracted to the farm mare sitting beside her, a thought that made the already blushing Unicorn become redder. Meanwhile, oblivious to the interaction going on between them was Big Mac and Pinkie Pie, one filly could see what was going on. Babs, after seeing that brief dialogue and the reactions from Twilight when she was staring at her older cousin, grinned knowingly. She then elbowed her other cousin, Apple Bloom, lightly in her right foreleg to gain her attention.

“Looks like cousin AJ’s got an ‘admirer’, if ya know what I mean.” Whispered Babs.

Apple Bloom looked at her cousin in confusion. “‘Admirer’? Who, ya mean Twilight?”

“Duh cuz, I mean, look at her, she’s so hot and bothered that her face is red.”

Apple Bloom thought that over for a moment, looking at Twilight and her big sister. “Now when ya say ‘admirer’ ya mean…what do ya mean?”

Babs Seed only grinned a little more. “I could tell ya, but I don’t think Ah should. On account that yer not old enough yet.”

Apple Bloom pouted upon hearing that. “Yer only a year and a half older than Ah I am!”

“A year and a half older and more mature cuz.”

“Gosh darn it Babs just tell me what ya’ll are talkin’ about!”

Babs shook her head and sighed in defeat. “Alright, alright, come closer though.”

Apple Bloom leaned closer to Babs, the bronze filly quietly whispered into her ear as she explained what she meant earlier. Apple Bloom’s eyes went wide as she quickly put her hooves over her mouth to stifle a gasp. Babs leaned back against the seat and smiled smugly at her cousin.

“Told youse was still not old enough.”

After a bit of time the carriage finally came to a stop. The Guards outside opened the doors and allowed the ponies within to exit. Big Mac, AB, Babs, AJ, Pinkie, and Sweetie stared at the home that stood before them. It was quite a large home, ritzy like the rest, but modestly so. A bronze metal plaque was stationed below the house number with the name “Sparkle Family” engraved into it. Applejack looked to Twilight, who had exited the carriage last.

“Twilight is this…is this really yer home?!”

The mare in question gave a sheepish grin. “Yes…ever since I was a filly.”

“Wow…Ah mean, Ah know ya said you were from here, but Ah didn’t think ya’ll were…rich ponies…”

Twilight rubbed the back of her head nervously after seeing the reactions of the ponies who have accompanied her thus far. “Well…my Dad works in the Canterlot Royal Library, archiving various old history books, literature, and important documents from way back. And my Mom, she’s an editor for some aspiring novelists and well known ones as well. Have you ever heard of A. K. Yearling?”

Sweetie Belle poked her head out from the group. “‘A. K. Yearling?! Isn’t that pony who writes the Daring Do stories?!”

“The very one!” said Twilight with a slight amount of excitement. “I got to see most of the first drafts of the Daring Do series, and my Mom would sometimes let me read over the finished work once she was done!”

The six ponies all stared at Twilight in awe, not only was she the personal student to Princess Celestia, had a brother who was Captain of the Royal Guard, and was foalsat by a future Alicorn Princess. But she had parents who worked or worked with very important ponies and items. For some reason, the modest appearance of the residence didn’t seem to match the possible overflowing wealth that these particular Canterlot ponies possessed.

“Well let’s head inside, I don’t know about you guys, but I’m really tired and would like to sleep for a little bit, if at all.”

Twilight trotted up to the front door of her house, making the group behind her gulp. As Twilight knocked on the door, the group imagined how her parents would look. A mare and stallion dressed in the finest clothes their wealth could by. The inside decorated by the finest interior designers and furnished with the best couches, tables, and whatever other knickknacks rich ponies liked to buy. The door began to open slowly as the group braced themselves for what they might see, but were surprised when the door revealed the occupant within.

It was a Unicorn mare, her coat was a light gray, with a mane of purple and white. Her cutie mark was that of three purple stars, and her eyes, they were a beautiful shade of skyblue, eyes which were now glistening with tears. The mare brought a single hoof to her mouth as she looked upon Twilight, who was now starting to feel a lump form in her throat.

“Twilight…? Oh thank Celestia…you’re alive!”

“I am Mom, I’m home.”

Twilight Velvet, or Velvet as she usually liked to be called, rushed forward and embraced her daughter in a tight hug, a hug that Twilight Sparkle returned. Both mother and daughter just stood there in each other’s embrace, tears falling from their eyes as they cried into the others shoulder.

“W-When we heard about Ponyville and that you were there…your father and I we…we thought that you might’ve been…” Velvet couldn’t say the rest, afraid that if she did that Twilight would vanish from her embrace and make her worst fears come true.

Twilight nuzzled her mother comfortingly as she felt her shudder from whatever horrible scenario she must’ve imagined. “I’m alright Mom, I’m right here.”

Velvet’s smile grew as more tears flowed from her eyes. "Twilight! Oh my sweet baby it's so good to see you again!"

"Mom!" Twilight cried out as she embraced her mother tighter.

It was slightly awkward to see Twilight and her mother sobbing and crying, but the six didn’t bother saying anything, they couldn’t. So they stayed silent out of respect for Twilight, allowing them to have this reunion to themselves. After a minute or three of crying and hugging, Twilight and Velvet separated. Velvet glanced over her daughter’s shoulder and looked upon the group of ponies curiously.

“Honey, who are these ponies?”

“Oh, oh my gosh I need to introduce you to…um…my…friends? But could we do intros inside, we’ve been through quite the ordeal and I’d like give them a proper place to rest.”

“Of course, come in all of you.” Twilight Velvet moved to the side and waved her hoof, welcoming them into her home. The group didn’t waste much time entering the lavish home, but as Applejack entered, Velvet couldn’t help but notice that there was somepony missing, and with a worried look she turned to her daughter. “Twilight… where’s your little Dragon, Spike?”

Twilight paused, shedding a mournful tear. “I’ll…I’ll tell you inside Mom…”

The reunions didn’t end there, Night Light, Twilight’s father, was in the house as well and upon seeing his daughter return to their home he ran right to her and enveloped the mare in a near bone crushing. For Twilight, her father’s presence was very reassuring in this chaotic mess that Equestria was in.

After a few minutes of getting settled, Twilight, Applejack, and Big Macintosh recounted the events that led to where they currently were. Pinkie Pie, the Earth Pony mare who had been strangely quiet since the incident with Rainbow Dash, had decided to retire to one of the guest rooms. Velvet and Night Light’s faces went through various stages of shock and horror as the three ponies recanted their trials to get to Canterlot. The loss of Rarity, Fluttershy, and…Spike, Applejack had to place an foreleg around the Unicorn mare for comfort, having lost someone who was essentially a surrogate little brother.

With the tales of woe over, pretty much everypony was left to their own devices. Big Mac was allowed to stay in the guest room with Pinkie, while Babs and Apple Bloom were knocked out on one of the spare beds. Apple Bloom had been whimpering and kicking in her sleep, obviously having a nightmare. Without really realizing it, Babs reached out to her cousin and hugged her tight. Apple Bloom stopped her squirming and whimpering as a content smile found its way across her lips. Sweetie Belle couldn’t really sleep, despite everything they had been through, and really, after seeing the scene before her, Sweetie really didn’t want to climb onto the bed and disturb her friends slumber.

The Unicorn filly wandered the house of the Sparkle family, trying to do whatever she could to keep her mind off of what happened to her big sister. She wanted to keep believing that her big sister was still alive, somewhere in the deepest part of her, Sweetie Belle could feel that Rarity was alive. One could attribute it to wishful thinking, others could say she was just hoping for the best, but Sweetie Belle believed that it was a special connection she shared as sisters. Still, it didn’t stop her from worrying all the same.

Before she knew it, Sweetie Belle had found herself in a room. It wasn’t unlike her room back home in Ponyville, except for the obvious fact that the bookshelf was filled to the brim with not just fairytale stories, but chief among them were tomes on magic, some a little more advanced than one would usually find in a filly’s room. The bedsheets were plain, nothing that stood out. On the nightstand was a picture of Twilight Sparkle, along with her big brother, the Captain of the Royal Guard, Shining Armor. Twilight seemed happy as Shining Armor ruffled the younger Twilight’s mane. And next to it was picture of her with the young dragon, Spike, using his tail as a pacifier as he sat next to Twilight, and with Princess Celestia.

Sweetie Belle sighed, seeing these reminded her of Rarity and the fun times she had with her big sister. Turning away, Sweetie Belle went to the bookshelf and began perusing the contents, her eyes stopped when she stumbled upon one particular book that seemed worn from repeated use. Which seemed odd since most of the books appeared well taken care of.

Sweetie Belle carefully maneuvered the book out of the shelf and gently placed on the floor before her. The name of the author was somewhat blurry, the most she could make out was '...en Str...'. The book itself had the image of a beautiful black Alicorn mare in the cover, she had a long flowing purple mane with a cutie mark in the form of a sheild with a crescent moon on the left side. She was atop a cliff in front of the full moon, standing heroically before a horde of monsters.

“That’s one of Twilight’s favorite bedtime stories.”

“AHH!” Sweetie Belle jumped a good two feet in the air, spun around, and then landed on her hooves, facing the owner of the voice.

When she did, Sweetie saw a very apologetic Twilight Velvet standing in the doorway. “Oh I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten you!”

Sweetie Belle let out a sigh of relief. “Sorry Mrs. Sparkle, you just surprised is all. Guess I’m still a little jumpy from…well, everything that’s happened…”

Velvet frowned a little. “You’ve been through a lot, and I’m sorry you ever had to be…”

“It’s alright…”

The light-gray Unicorn mare felt as if she needed to remedy this situation. Her eye rested on the book and a nostalgic smile spread across her face. “Sweetie Belle, would like me to read it to you? I know you must be tired and it always helped Twilight sleep when she was younger…if…if you don’t mind?”

Sweetie Belle looked to the book and then back to Velvet. A sheepish smile appeared on her face she nodded a yes. Velvet levitated the book to her and waited for Sweetie to climb on the bed. Once she was there, Velvet laid on the bed next to Sweetie Belle and brought the book over to them. She then gently opened it to page one, Velvet smiled a little when she felt Sweetie Belle nestle closer to her.

“‘Once upon a time there lived a strong, beautiful, and brave mare who defended the night…’”

In the ruined streets of Cloadsdale, Gilda flew through the cloud city at breakneck speed, silently praying that the airship hadn't left yet. Her entire body was still aching from the beat down those two demons gave her, despite this she pressed on, she had to make it, she would not be left behind!

As she turned the corner she saw it, the airship was at least five blocks away! She could see droves of Pegasi flying towards the airship with several Wonderbolts escorting them and fighting off the zombies. The Griffon flew as fast as she could, she was so close...

“Roadblock!!”

...and yet so far. A large black claw slammed onto her from above, knocking the wind out of her,

“You didn't think we'd let you get away that easily, did you!?” Mitta snarled from above. The claw around her body began to squeeze tightly, forcing the remaining air out of her lungs.

Out of the corner of her eye, Gilda saw Grey Hoof soar overhead and straight towards the airship with several more Black Lanterns at his command, she could already hear the terrified screams of the Pegasi as they swarmed them.

“Can’t you just turn her and get it over with?” Ruby asked as she floated down next to her.

“Shut it Ruby!” Mitta snarled. “I want to savor every moment as I watch the life leave her eyes!” The demonic pony snarled as she began to squeeze tighter, all the while having her victim in unnervingly wide smile.

‘No…c-can't d-die here I…can't... I’m sorry RD...’ The Griffin thought to herself as a small tear trailed down her face...

Suddenly, Gilda heard a loud boom echo across the city as two streaks of red shot through the night sky and straight towards them.

"GET AWAY FROM HER YOU BITCH!!"

Before any of them could react, the two streaks slammed into Ruby and Mitta, breaking the latter’s hold on Gilda and sending them flying through several houses.

As the Griffin gasped for air, one of the red streaks took off towards the airship, lying around in a zigzag pattern and easily taking out several of the zombies alongside the Wonderbolts. While the second one floated down towards her and offered it's hoof to her. "You alright Gilda?"

His eyes widened upon hearing the familiar voice. "It can't be..." She looked up and indeed her old friend was standing before her, clad in crimson armor with a scar on her face.

"The cavalry has arrived!!" Rainbow Dash proclaimed proudly.

Seconds after she spoke however, a large claw immediately burst out of the clouds behind her.

"DASH, LOOK OUT!!" Gilda screamed as she immediately pushed her friend out of the way seconds before the claw grabbed her, resulting in her getting snatched up instead.

“Oh good, I needed a hostage!” Mitta cackled that she held the Griffin like she was some sort of prize. “Now then what do you say we have you-” Mitta was cut off when Rainbow Dash quickly recovered and immediately aimed her ring at her. Thinking fast, Mitta immediately held Gilda in front of her as a shield.

Much to her shock however, the cyan Pegasus simply smirked and shot a red bolt of energy at her, lasting Gilda in the chest and sending her flying across the street.

“Killing the hostage? Have to admit, I wasn't expecting that.” Mitta snarled, making a mental note to resurrect the Griffin later.

The cyan Pegasus however simply chuckled. "Who says I killed her?"

Before Mitta could ask what she meant, a red pillar of energy erupyed from the clouds behind her where the Griffin had landed. Turning around, she saw the Griffin was not dead and she thought, but in fact wearing a ring similar to the one the cyan Pegasus had. Not only that but she seems to be the one creating the fiery pillar that surrounded her.

As she stepped forward with what appeared to be blazing red blood flowing from her beack, she glared at Mitta before saying three words:

"YOU. WILL. DIE!!!"

Back in Canterlot, Twilight and Applejack rested in Twilight's old room. While at first Twilight had offered her the bed for the night, the farm pony stubbornly refused, insisting that it was Twilight's home and she would be comterble simply using the sleeping bag on the floor. This went back-and-forth for a few minutes before Twilight outright levitated her onto the bed and teleported into the sleeping bag, leaving no room for another argument. With an angry pout(which Twilight had to admit was kind of cute), she reluctantly took the bed.

As she slept however, she found her mind drifting back to that moment... where she had lost her little brother...

Twilight found herself running through the woods, constantly looking over her back to make sure she wasn't being followed. The forest had an ominous atmosphere about it, as if the shadows themselves would leap out an attack her...

"TWILIGHT!" A familiar voice called out.

"Spike?!" The lavender unicorn called out before dashing towards the source of the voice. As she continued onward she came to an opening in the trees, upon passing through them she found herself in a graveyard of some sort. She quickly ran through the mist and passed all the tombstones untill she finally found the young Dragon fleeing for his life from looks like the swirling vortex of black clouds, however as they got closer the clouds took the form of none other than Nightmare Moon herself! What's worse, as he was running Spike tripped on an outstretched root as the vortex closed in on him.

"Monster! Leave him alone!" Twilight screamed as she fired a blast of magic at the demonic Alicorn. Sadly it's simply bounced off of her and she laughed maniacally. The cortex grew stronger as it began to pull things into it, specifically the young dragon in front of her.

"NO, SPIKE!!" The lavender unicorn screamed as she darted towards the portal, intent on rescuing her little brother, who was holding onto one of the tombstones for dear life as the winds got stronger.

However suddenly she found herself being dragged back, looking behind her she could see a gray decaying hoof reaching out of one of the graves and grabbing her back-leg! She quickly shot it with a blast of magic, but the second it was repelled several more took it's place. Each of them grabbing onto her a hooves and dragging her into the cold ground.

"NO, LET GO! SPIKE? SPIKE!!" She screamed as she vainly tried to struggle escape their grasp, by that time however her entire lower half of her body was already underground. She could only watch in horror as the tombstone slowly broke apart, leaving her little brother to be sucked into oblivion.

"TWILIGHT!! WHY COULD'NT YOU SAVE MEEEEE!?" Spike screamed as he was sucked into the vortex.

"SPIIIIIKE!" Twilight screamed in vain as she was slowly dragged underground...

'Twilight...wake up...'

Twilight awoke in a cold sweat and looked around to see that she was still in her room with Applejack sound asleep in her bed. "Was it all...?" She trailed off when she noticed yellow glow a emiting from beneath her pillow.

'It was only a dream Twilight, nothing more.' Celestia said as Twilight pulled the ring from under the covers.

"It seems so real..." She said as she stared out the window, the moon illuminating the night sky. "Spike..."

'Certain dreams tend to have that effect on ponies.' Celestia stated. 'Twilight, I'm sorry about what happened to Spike, I truly am. But you cannot let this get to you, least more innocent ponies suffer and those dreams become a reality.'

Twilight nodded. "I understand Princess, I won't let you down, or Equestria for that matter." She said, confidence now evident in her eyes.

'Very good Twilight. Now, I think you'll be pleased to know that I found a way to restore power to your ring.' Celestia explained as a bright light appeared in front of the lavender unicorn, the light died down to reveal an odd looking yellow lantern that appeared to have lightning crackling within it. 'Apparently the wearer of the ring can use this 'power battery', as they call it, to restore energy to their ring. All theymust do is speak the oath that the ring stands for.'

Twilight stared at the lantern for a few seconds before looking back at her ring. "The oath, what is it?"

'I have changed it to my liking. Repeat after me.' Celestia stated before reciting the oath, with Twilight repeating it word for word.

'In Blackest Day, In Brightest Night,'
'Beware your fears made by my light,'
'To those who dare challenge my might,'
'Burn like my power... Fear's vengeful Light.'

With the oath completed Twilight’s form became covered in yellow energy that flowed into her ring. Already she could feel her power returning to it’s natural state. 'It feels amazing! Like every fiber of my being is racing with energy!' She thought to herself as the light died down. "Thank you Celestia. With this power, I promise I'll put a stop to Nightmare Moon and forces."

'It's the least I could do Twilight.' Celestia said as Twilight put away her ring and went back to sleep. 'Especially since it's my fualt...' She silently added.

Unknown to either of them however, a certain farm pony had been wide awake and listening in on their conversation. Under the covers, Applejack held up her ring to a similair lantern, only green in color.

"In Brightest Day, in Blackest Night,"
"I will not flee from evil’s sight!"
"When evil rises and wields it's might,"
"Beware my power - Green Lantern’s light."

"Don't worry Twi." She whispered as she felt her energy returning. "Ya won't be alone..."

Princess Cadence stood atop the balcony, overlooking the city before her. Her mind was going through a million scenarios at once. So much had happened in so little time. A new thread had made itself known to a Equestria, and to make matters worse with Celestia missing, she was next in line for the throne! The Princess sighed as she massaged her temples, almost oblivious to Shining Armor approaching her.

"My Princess... are you alright?" Shining Armor asked as he came to her side.

"No Shining, I'm not." The Princess of love stated. "My Aunt has gone missing and demonic Alicon has waged war on Equestria. And on top of all that, I'm supposed to lead our forces in this time! I'd say I'm far from alright!" She snapped before looking at her boyfriend, trying her best to remain calm but failing miserably.

"I don't suppose a bit of good news would be helpful right now?" He asked, a bit of hope evident in his voice.

Cadence arched a brow. "What could possibly be good enough news to bring any light to this situation?"

Shining Armor allowed himself to smile."It's Twilight, she alive." He explained, getting his marefriends full attention. "She was found with several other ponies outside Canterlot. We've already sent her back home and-OOF!" Whatever Shining Armor was about to say was cut-off as Cadence enveloped him in a bone-crushing hug, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Oh Twily! My little Twily is safe!" The Princess said through pained sobs.

Shining Armor smiled as he embraced his marefriend, glad to a least have some positive news for her. However, upon looking up he noticed a figure in the sky approaching the city. At first it appeared small, but as it got closer it seemed to be getting bigger...

"Shining...? Is some thing wrong?" Cadence asked as she noticed her boyfriends shift in tone. She followed his line of sight and spotted what he was focused on. Her eyes widened and she saw exactly what was coming towards them.

A giant black dragon.

Author's Notes:

Another chapter done! Hope U all like! Also, I'd like to give a special thanks to Darkmare and Michael_Ravencroft for coming the revised Sinestro & Green Lantern Oaths! As a sign of my appreciation, I have given both of their OC's(Shadow Knife for Darkmare and Ballista for Michael_Ravencroft) a special cameo appearance in this chapter! There's also a third OC hidden in this chapter, think you can spot her?