THE FINAL COUNTDOWN: 7

Princess Luna stood on the border of Canterlot Castle on the porch of the throne room, peering off into the distance with a disturbed expression. Lightning echoed from the distant landscape of the Everfree Forest, and even more troubling, in a location she felt was awfully close to her heart, close to home. She sat there continuing to stare off in that particular direction, and soon making her way beside her would be Princess Celestia. Princess Celestia regarded her sister with a look of worry. "Does it trouble you that much Luna?"

Princess Luna nodded plainly. "Yes sister, something just isn't right about all this."

Princess Celestia glanced down silently at her sister before looking off into the same particular direction she was staring. "I understand your worries Luna. But you and I have other pressing concerns we need to address. Besides, we've already gotten help in regards to your worries, so try not to think about it too much." Her brows furrowed. "We must get to the bottom of this alicorn issue first. We are the guardians of this realm, if an alicorn has somehow been created under our watch, then we must do whatever we can to correct it." And as Princess Celestia spoke, the doors to their throne room opened slowly, as a smile slowly crept upon her face. "Speaking of which, here they are." And as the two princesses turned to face their guests, Princess Celestia exhaled softly. "Hello, Twilight."

Twilight Sparkle, who was accompanied by the rest of the mane six, halted before both princesses. Twilight just flashed Princess Celestia an affectionate smile before bowing her head a bit. "We've come to help Princess Celestia, just as you've asked."

Princess Celestia chuckled softly before trekking lightly towards the mare. "As you always do my dearest Twilight." And the two took a moment to embrace one another in a one hoof hug before Princess Celestia took a few trots back towards her throne and Princess Luna didn't hesitate to follow behind her. "I thank you all for coming. I assure you, both issues are just as dire."

Rainbow Dash rose, fluttering as she cocked a brow at the princess. "Both issues?"

Princess Celestia nodded in confirmation before she and her sister lowered their rears to sit. "Both issues."

The mane six then sat as well, listening attentively to Princess Celestia as she prepared to brief them on the current situation.

Princess Celestia then continued to proceed. "It seems an ancient tome has been stolen from Canterlot, one that holds both wondrous capabilities, and deadly consequences. This tome was known as none other than the Tome of Transmutation."

Twilight's eyes widened exponentially as she froze in place, remaining silent.

Applejack raised a hoof, appearing just as confused as most the others. "Tome of transmu-....what now?"

Princess Celestia continued. "Transmutation. I won't go into detail regarding how it was created, such things matter little as it stands. But I will say it was intended as a fail-safe, not a weapon. In all honesty I intended to provide it for Sunset Shimmer, then as one would naturally expect the right fell to you Twilight once certain events transpired, even for Princess Cadence, and you as well, little sister."

Princess Luna cocked a brow at Celestia then.

Princess Celestia just continued to address the mane six. "But I locked the tome away, fearful of what it might have wrought upon Equestria had I continued to experiment with it. And it seems my fears have come into fruition. "

Twilight started to tremble lightly then as she lowered her head, still utterly frozen by the proclamation. She asked somewhat hesitantly, taking a moment to glance up at Princess Celestia in that moment. "W-What happened princess?"

Princess Celestia glanced down at Twilight silently before sighing, "But I digress, the tome is not why I've called you all here."

Twilight suddenly appeared puzzled, as did the rest of them, but especially Twilight as her eyes widened at Princess Celestia, absolutely perplexed. If the tome wasn't the reason they were coming here then why were they called in the first place!? Twilight rose, unable to accept the idea that actually wasn't the issue. She opened her mouth as if about to say something, but before she had the chance to speak, one of her friends already took hold of the reigns to voice their concerns, Rainbow Dash in specific. "W-Wait? So there's something even worse than this tome thing going on? What could that possibly be?"

Princess Luna spoke out then. "Not necessarily worse, as of yet. But the reason you've all been called here today is because of none other than I. There is a favor I'd like all of you to personally delve into. It regards the old castle, something I'm sure you're all very familiar with at this point. Something stirs within the castle grounds, and whatever it is it attempts to harness my magic."

Fluttershy trembled as she covered her head with her hooves. "EEP! S-Something hiding?....I-I-In the old castle?"

Twilight's squinted, appearing a little irritated by how clueless she felt as she muttered, "What?"

Pinkie Pie grabbed at her mane as she started rolling around on the ground like a dog. "Gaaaaaah! So confusing! Is this a test!? This is soooo hard! Twilight can I copy your answers!? I forgot to study last night! Pleeeeeease! PRETTY PRETTY PLEEEEASE!?"

Even Applejack started to tremble as she gulped. "T-The Shadow Pony?....N-Naw it couldn't be...."

Princess Luna continued. "Yes you heard me correctly Princess Twilight. I've felt a strange magical anomaly drawing me back towards the old castle. For obvious reasons you can imagine I'm not very fond of returning to that place. But I still cannot shake the feeling somepony or something is trifling with the magical essence which has lingered there, my magical essence. I'm not sure what it's doing or what it's goal is but I believe it is certainly worth investigating, and it'd put me at ease if you managed to put a stop to it. My sister and I would go personally but we believe you and your friends are more than capable for this. And whatever lingers there, I have an odd feeling it is attempting to purposely draw us there. Celestia and I would be better suited to deal with the tome, it is our responsibility to keep balance in Equestria. But Princess Twilight, please, if whatever is there is too much to handle, retreat at once."

Twilight raised a hoof, "W-Wait! Princess Luna, Princess Celestia! P-Please, would you at least tell us what is it is that you two are going to do? What's happened!? Where is this tome? What've you two discovered?" She appeared desperate to say the least.

Princess Celestia also appeared fairly concerned with Twilight's sudden outbursts of curiosity. "Twilight?"

Twilight blinked a bit, before flinching and turning red in the face before twirling her hoof. "I-It's just..I mean, I'm worried you know? You two seem like you're getting involved with something extremely dangerous. And you aren't telling us all the details it sounds like! I-I'm just concerned! Maybe we can all work together on settling each issue one at a time! It'll only be faster don't you think!?"

Princess Celestia shook her head as she glanced down at Twilight tiredly. "No Twilight, this cannot wait, nor do I want the situation at the old castle to escalate if possible, especially if it's as worrying as Luna says."

Twilight looked up at them desperately, almost pleadingly. "Then would you two at least tell us, what's happened with the tome?"

Princess Celestia gave Twilight a long questionative stare, as if running a few thoughts through her head regarding how the mare was acting but, eventually she'd sighed and just nodded to Twilight. "Of course Princess Twilight, you've all more than earned the right to know these things. I guess you must've noticed I'd have preferred not to share such news with you, but, it seems I have no choice now." Princess Celestia took a deep breath as she closed her eyes and frowned. "It seems due to my carelessness, Queen Chrysalis may have managed to create an actual living, breathing, alicorn. But it seems her actions have backfired on her and the alicorn may have rebelled against the Queen and taken her hostage. But nonetheless, a rampant alicorn is what worries me."

The mane six gasped, well each one besides Twilight. Rarity's jaw dropped, "CREATED, an alicorn!?"

Twilight just froze again as she could hardly speak, appearing as stiff as a statue. Pinkie and Rainbow blinked as they nudged their friend a few times before Twilight shook her head, looking at them as Rainbow blinked and raised a brow at Twilight. "Twilight are you okay? I know this is bad but, even then, you're acting pretty fishy! Is everything cool?"

Twilight just kept her eyes fastened on the rainbow maned mare for some time before her eyes saddened and she sighed, lowering her head and frowning heavily as she spoke out to Princess Celestia in a solemn tone. "Princess Celestia, d-do you know if this alicorn has managed to hurt anypony? Is she a danger to us?" Twilight glanced up hopefully. "I-I mean she helped capture Chrysalis right?"

Princess Celestia's brow rose then in confusion. "She?"

Twilight blinked a bit before recovering and chuckling lightly. "N-No I mean I'm only assuming! Sorry, I guess we can never be certain. But will you be bringing her back here Princess Celestia? She'll be rewarded for helping us against the changelings right?"

Princess Celestia's nose scrunched up as she raised a brow. "Twilight what're you even sugges-"

But Rainbow Dash rose, smirking and raising a hoof then. "Hah! I agree with Twilight! Why're we making a big fuss out of an alicorn who took care of Chrysalis for us!? If the alicorn is that awesome maybe she can join us! Heck, probably tell us how the heck she did it!? I mean to take on Chrysalis by herself! That sounds pretty amazing! And if that's all she did then I see no problem!"

Princess Celestia glared at Twilight then. "Twilight, you....."

Twilight nodded hurriedly as she smiled at Rainbow Dash. "I agree Rainbow!" She looked up at Princess Celestia, "Princess Celestia we should really consider this. I mean, w-what's the harm in taking her in if she's only helped us-"

Princess Celestia snapped. "ABSOLUTELY NOT TWILIGHT! I thought you'd understand how dire this situation is!"

The mane six staggered back as Princess Luna peered at Twilight in disappointment.

Twilight just looked up at Princess Celestia wide eyed herself, unable to react herself to the princess's sudden outburst.

Princess Celestia frowned heavily. "I can see where you're going with this. But an alicorn constructed from the Tome of Transmutation obviously is no natural occurrence. It isn't meant to be, nor is it meant to exist. I won't deny the possibility of keeping this supposed alicorn isn't completely absurd, but it is highly illogical. It is more than likely an unstable creation, made-up not of organic material at its core, but only of magical essence. The tome will only derive life from the lifeless. This alicorn is ultimately unpredictable, and if watched at all needs to be under guard 24/7. Only with the perfect guidance can she be trusted to be responsible with such powers. The privilege of being an alicorn isn't just something that should be given carelessly Twilight, that is the tome's biggest fault."

Twilight stomped a hoof angrily. "B-But Princess Celestia if she was created by this tome then isn't it only-"

Princess Celestia sighed before cutting off Twilight yet again. "Enough Twilight. We will discuss this matter further when she is actually in my custody. Then I will determine whether she's responsible enough to bare the burden of responsibility that comes with being an alicorn." She gave Twilight a reassurring glance. "I can understand your concerns Twilight as the Princess of Friendship but this is not your area of expertise, you know little of the Tome of Transmutation and what it can cause, especially the creations from those who carelessly use it as if it's some toy or plaything. It involves an extremely delicate magical process. So no, I sadly cannot simply allow you to befriend this alicorn and add her into our ranks, there's a process that goes along with all of this, a process we need to ensure remains instilled and if this alicorn truly is a danger, then leave it to my best judgement on what needs to be done."

Twilight's eyes saddened as she just turned sluggishly towards the exit doors and proceeded by herself on the way out. "I understand Princess Celestia." How come I knew you'd say something like that? She just trotted tiredly towards the open doors. She glanced back at her friends, "I'll be outside whenever you guys are ready to go." She then disappeared in a poof of violet smoke.

Princess Celestia frowned yet again before glancing down at the rest of them with a troubled expression. "Girls, has Twilight been like this recently? What's with her today? She has been awfully involved with this whole matter which isn't surprising, but, I'm not feeling comfortable with the way she's been acting. Has she been under much stress as of late?"

Rarity shook her head. "Not from what I recall Princess, Twilight was just fine before this."

Pinkie Pie nodded to Rarity. "Yep yep! She was really happy! Maybe she just really loves alicorns hehe!"

They all looked back up towards the princesses.

Princess Celestia just appeared questionative before nodding to them. "I see. Well either way thank you girls, and do please tell Twilight that I said the same thing, although I'm fairly certain she knows this already. We will give you an update on the situation when we return. And girls, do please be careful out there. Remember, do not overestimate yourselves. Despite all you've accomplished, there are many dangers out there still, and we must be on guard at all times." The Princess bowed along with her sister then in the form of a courteous and grateful thanks. "We thank you again for all your efforts in helping us keep peace in Equestria."

The Mane Six then bowed their heads as well with pleased smiles as they all proceeded out through the door as well.

Princess Luna glanced at Princess Celestia as they departed. "Sister?..."

Princess Celestia was silent as just appeared to be lost in thought and concern. "Twilight..."

Some time later, Twilight and the others all stood on the border of the edge of the Castle of the Two Sisters. Twilight glanced around a bit, taking notice of the beautiful scenery. It was an awfully quiet and beautiful day, and nothing as of yet seemed too suspicious. The castle from the outside looked fairly ordinary to say the least. Twilight groaned, "Ugh...let's be careful guys."

Applejack blinked as she proceeded beside the mare and raised a brow at her. "Ya feel anything funny Twi? Like errrrr, any tinglin sensation that sets off your magic meter. If ya have somethin like that that is."

Pinkie Pie gasped happily, clapping her hooves. "Like my Pinkie sense!"

Twilight shook her head. "Nope! Nothing setting off, well at least not at the moment. Let's take a closer look." They all then went into a crouching position as they proceeded closer towards the castle, remaining entirely cautious along the way.

Twilight, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie all remained crouched as they made their way through the front doors of the old castle. They remained silent, glancing at one another as if sending signals to approve of individual movements. But as they proceeded further inside, the doors immediately shut behind them as the entire pathway leading down the massive throne room became dark. Fluttershy let off a light yelp as Twilight spoke out, "Everypony stay close!"

But just as she'd said those words, lights towards the end of the throne room came on as a cloaked figure sat on the end with her head covered by a cloak and a cape wrapped around her body. The figure was tiny as she peered at the six individuals who'd entered the castle as they all looked back at her with piercing glares themselves. Twilight gritted her teeth as she lowered her head, analyzing the strange tiny creature from afar to determine whether it was possibly dangerous. "W-Who are you!?"

The tiny figure began chuckling menacingly on the far end as she just continued to peer at the lot of them. "Who am I?" But as she stood there for some time only causing a lasting silence, she burst on her hind legs as she spread her forehooves happily and chuckled, revealing herself from beneath the cloak as none other than Nightmare Moon herself in filly form! The young alicorn chuckled heartily and evilly as she exclaimed. "YOU DARE NOT KNOW WHO I AM LITTLE PONIES!? I AM NONE OTHER THEN THE SCARY AND FEARSOME NIGHTMARE MOON HERSELF! I have returned to put everypony in darkness, FOREVAAAA!!!!" Nightmare Moon then blinked a bit as she placed a hoof on her muzzle and began tapping it and muttered. "W-Wait..Uhm, what was next again? Eeeerhm...o-oh no oh no oh no this isn't good! O-One second please!" She then turned around, glancing down at a piece of paper on the throne as she clapped her hooves together in remembrance. "O-Oh yes! That was it!" She took in a deep breath, preparing to speak again. "So GO! Go and grab your princesses and bring them back here if you wish to stop me! Mweheh....MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Her laughter soon died down as she blinked a bit and stared at the others on the far end of the throne room curiously. Did it work?

Twilight and the others just regarded the filly with puzzled expressions as Twilight exclaimed. "No, really, who are you?" It was obvious to each and every one of them this Nightmare Moon was an obvious fake. It was apparent even the color of the coat was some sort of black powder and not even legitimate. Plus the armor was made out of cardboard with crayon markings on it.

Rainbow Dash groaned heavily as she crossed her forehooves, "Ugh! So it was just some kid throwing a prank!?"

Rarity brushed her mane back with a hoof for a second before muttering. "What dreadful acting."

The filly gasped as she whimpered heavily and lowered her head. "I tried hard okay..."

Fluttershy smiled hopefully. "Oh, w-well she is a filly. She just wanted to have some fun."

Twilight proceeded forward as she to had a raised brow in regards to the supposed Nightmare Moon filly. "We promise you won't be in big trouble but you can't just do things like this. Tell us what you were doing here, why were you trying to scare us?"

The filly whimpered as she looked upon the approaching mare with saddened eyes. "I guess I thought my performance would be nice enough to trick you all. But I guess we'll just have to play tag instead." She crossed her hooves and then slowly started to pull off her wig and cardboard armor, revealing a naturally ruffled mane. She flashed them a smile. "Do you like tag?"

Twilight was almost immediately thrown off as were the others. "H-Huh?"

Pinkie Pie rose as she bounced, "Oh my gosh oh my gosh! I love tag!"

The filly squeed as she placed her hooves on her cheeks and nodded hurriedly. "Me to me to! I want play! Momma said she needs the Princesses of Equestria. But none of you ponies will go back and get them for me so I'm just going to keep you all here for awhile okay!? Don't worry it'll be fun! I'll feed you and clothe you and we can play many games while we wait for ponies who will help us do as Momma says! Sorry I'm not very good at planning stuff, but I'm really good at games!" She clapped her hooves. "Okay! So the rules of the game is simple! I capture you and you run away! It's really easy, but NO cheating! You're only allowed to stay in the castle and if you leave then you're cheating and I'm going to be very sad! I also worked really hard on the banishment spells I created!"

Twilight shuddered for a moment. "B-Banishment spells? What are you going on about little one, you can't create-"

The filly nodded hurriedly as she spread her hooves in a grand gesture. "Mhm! I made banishment spells, but they need a very big area to happen in so I need to bring the princesses of equestria here in order to send them away! Oh my gosh! Isn't it awesomesauce!? It's like the coolest plan ever! I thought it all up myself!" The filly hurried behind the throne as she began grabbing stacks on stacks of books as she began flipping through the pages hurriedly and speaking as she did so. "I mean it took quite a lot of work and it was really tough figuring out the procedures for the timeless school while trying to manifest the link between the suitable location and the runic requirements of the atomic breakdown process! But there were lots of old books in this place! Hehe, I think with this I'll be able to go up to 2000 years at least!" She began bouncing up and down happily as she looked at them. "Momma would be proud don't you think!?" The filly then glanced down at herself as she noticed she was still covered up in her black powder. She chuckled, "Oh one second!"

Twilight continued to proceed, approaching the filly a little more cautiously. "Just who are you? Who's your mother?"

And as the filly's horn started to glow, she was suddenly enveloped in a purple mist before that mist removed all of the black powder covering the filly's body. And as the power dissipated in the air, Twilight and the others eyes widened slowly as similar looks of horror began to emerge on each of their faces, especially Twilight who shook her head as she backed away slowly. There sitting before the throne would be a purple alicorn filly, with wings as definite as any other and baring a horn obviously just as definite. The filly shook her head and ruffled her mane yet again as she exhaled and tilted her head to the right with a giggle. "My Momma?"

The mane six were silent as they all just continued to sit there and stare in deathly silence.

The purple alicorn filly continued. "Queen Chrysalis!"

And Twilight's expression sunk as she'd appeared to be struck by everything she'd just seen and heard. "W-What?" Next Chapter: The Final Countdown: 6 Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 57 Minutes