The grey Mork with black and deep crimson mane and tail continues to stare at Borris and the gang for a solid minute, as if he knows what they’re up to. He speaks,

“Why is your armour all golden and shiny?”

“The cruel pranks ponies of the RAEM play on us in our sleep brother,” Borris replies, “it’s extremely unpredictable.”

“Why do you smell so, peculiar?”

“You got something against me? I captured all these ponies for the empress.”

“Then why was I not informed of this assault? Empress Midnight let’s all Morks know where every single one is going to with her superior wisdom and magic.”

“Because she hates you,”

“Wait, is it, just me or does she have some form of list for underperforming Morks?”

“Just you in particular,”

“Oh, does everypony else know thi-”

“Yep,”

“Oh, well, I might as well, let you in while I… take a moment to let that process.”

“You do that.” The shocked Mork slowly steps to the side and opens the large wooden door. Two by two, the twelve ponies and dragon quickly enter the large quartz corridor inside and small in the door behind them.

“Just me… And what is that awful stink?!” Inside the empress’ castle, Borris turns to his friends who are all confused by what just happened.

“So, how’s it been?”

“Borris,” Rainbow whispers, “I thought you left us.”

“I did, and I’m sorry for that, I’m sorry for leaving you, I’m sorry for lying to you, for deceiving you, for trying to make you into somepony you were not,”

“I’m still fairly mad at you for that.”

“What I’m trying to say is that I’m incredibly sorry and maybe we can start over.”

“Well, I’m not going to forgive you for what you did,”

“Oh…”

“But I’m willing to overlook it and start anew if you promise you’re telling the truth and you see me for who I am.”

“I promise,”

“Do you Pinkie Promise?” Lieutenant Pie adds.

“Cross My Heart, Hope to Fly, Stick a Cupcake in my Eye!”

“Good.”

“And no pony breaks a Pinkie Promise.”

“What are we going to do now?” The ex-marshal asks, “Midnight’s figured out that I’m back with you ponies. As soon as that Mork comes to his senses, he’ll call up the entire guard and we’ll never be able to break Twilight out of Midnight’s grasp.”

“Not likely, Morks trust each other to the word and unable to put two and two together without consulting Midnight. We’ve got plenty of time. Here’s the plan; Me, Dash, and the Fluttershies will infiltrate the Mork armoury and get a set of wheels and wait in the foyer. Rarities and Applejacks, use your skills of flattery and seduction to free the ponies in the dungeon, there’s a high chance Twilight will be down there as well.”

“What will Raindrop, the Pinkie Pies, and I do?” Spike asks impatiently.

“You ponies are going to find the room Empress Midnight is in, and I want you to set up a surprise party and find the Alicorn Amulets.”

“A distraction,” Raindrop confirms, “that’s good.”

“Oh! I love parties! Race you to Midnight!” Pinkie Pie cheers, followed will her counterpart exclaiming,

“Ready-set-go!” In the blink of an eye, a small whoosh of dust remains of the two pink mares.

“We better head off now,” Raindrop replies, “Spike.” The small dragon hops onto the mare’s back as the two slowly follow behind in the search for Midnight. Borris calls out to the others,

“She’s right, let’s move out!” The other two groups split to different hallways of the corridor. After several minutes of gliding and shoving large doors open, the four pegasi find themselves in a large forgery, surrounded by empty Mork helmets and metal suits. “This looks like we’re close to the armoury, if luck is with us, we might be able to find a chariot within a couple of doors.”

“Hey Borris,” Rainbow Dash responds timidly.

“Yes Dash?”

“So, you loved Captain Dash?”

“Yeah,”

“And after hearing her gone,”

“I was torn to shreds, so, in selfishness and disbelief, I tried to use you as a replacement,”

“That’s not what I hear,”

“No?”

“What I hear is that your undying loyalty and determination of love blinded you and you made a stupid choice as a result of it. A pony with a heart and spirit like that, you would have been the perfect somepony for her.”

“Thanks, but now it’s time to accept to past and look to the future, with my friends.”

“Right.”

“Ah, here it is.” The group surround a door with the sounds of distant explosions and wind seeping around its edges. “Stay back here, I’m going to see if any Morks are in there.”

“Good luck.” Borris then quietly squeezes his way through the door, leaving the three mares behind. Rainbow Dash looks to her right to see her friend and her otherworldly counterpart smiling at her. “What? Borris is a nice pony, a good heart, smart, brave, loyal, and that, strong physique in that, tight armour… So dreamy…” Muffled arguing leaks from the door, followed by a quick succession of punches, kicks, shouting, and ending with the sound of a slap and a loud thud. The grey stallion with a Mork helmet on his head pokes his head out the door.

“We’re clear.”

Meanwhile, deep below the ground, the Rarities and Applejacks are silently crawling down the winding stairwell. Upon seeing the specially-designed stone flooring, signifying the bottom of the stairs, Marshal Apple signals her followers to stop. She then beaks one of her green eyes out of the corner and sees a squad of eight Morks guarding a door and the end of a long hallway lined with metal cages. The marshal signals turns back and waves her front hooves around in a unusual pattern, silently messaging the others who seem to get it.

“Let me out!” A small mare’s voice echoes from the other end of the chamber.

“Give it up Non-Empress Midnight,” a green pegasus Mork barks back, “you’ve already requested that action over fifty times. Request disachknowledged.”

“Oh boys,” The second Rarity shouts in a flattering voice, now standing at the foot of the stairs.

“Rarity, you are recognized as a threat, prepare to be captured.”

“Oh my, such a powerful voice, I’m utterly defenseless compared to all of you strong and might I add, dashing stallions.”

“Withhold your sarcastic comments miss, you are in direct violation of the laws governed by Empress Midnight.”

“Oh, woe is me, I’m utterly defenseless against any one of you, what’s a beautiful and innocent mare to do on her own?”

“Get her.” Slowly the Morks begin to surround the single mare, waiting for her to peacefully surrender.

“My, did it hurt when you fell from Heaven? Because you look absolutely strapping,”

“…”

“You must be very strong for a pegasus if you are guarding what appears to be, quite an elaborate prison.”

“What’s this?”

“For some unknown reason, I feel like we have a sort of, special connection, you and I.”

“I don’t follow…”

“Mr. Mork, has anypony ever had a crush on you?”

“I don’t know, possibly.”

“Well one does now…”

“Who’s that?”

“…Really, you don’t know?”

“Nope.”

“I want you.”

“Apologies, but I am required to be resigned of duty by Empress Midnight if I am to join your army.”

“You seriously did not get it? I just said ‘I want you’ on the spot. How do I spell it out more obviously than that?”

“Oh I see…”

“Finally-”

“You’ve been trying to seduce me into delaying your capture for one of your plans.” The white unicorn gives herself a facehoof in utter confusion from the complete obliviousness and genius of the Mork.

“You’re too late now, anyways, they’ve opened the door.” The Morks frantically look back to see the trio of other mares opening the door as they glance back at the stallions with devious grins.

“Uh oh…” At that moment, all chaos broke loose. Seven alicorn princesses and one unicorn, burst out of the room. Rage filled in all sixteen eyes as magic blasts burst from their horn, launching the Morks into the barred walls of the cages. The walls and floor shook as each of the guarding stallions were smashed into each other, blasted by magic, before finding themselves stuck to the ceiling, each rattling in pain and fear. As the dust settles and the ponies regroup themselves, Twilight looks to the ceiling and sees the defeated the Morks. She gently sets them down and takes off each of their helmets, resulting in the freed ponies falling one by one. “Ow…”

“You did it Twilight!” The ex-marshal cheers as she runs towards the purple mare, only to be flung to the wall and frozen in place.

“You traitor,” the princess sternly speaks, her horn glowing more radiantly then before.

“Twilight, don’t!” Rarity exclaims, “she’s back with us!”

“Wait, what? Came back?”

“Yeah Twi-” the other Rarity croaks, “I’m so sorry, Midnight was too persuasive. Please, let, me, go…” Following her orders, Twilight sets the mare down, leading to a short coughing and wheezing session. “I promise that I’m 120% loyal to the RAEM now.”

“120%?”

“Let’s just say an old friend told me its cooler like that.”

“Oh, that friend…”

“Princess Celestia, Luna, Cadence! You’ve come back! Where were you ponies for all these months?”

“Stuffed in an extra-large potato sack inside a broom closet,” Celestia answers, “we ran on the hope that you ponies would and did free us.”

“And potatoes,” the alternate Luna adds, “lots of potatoes.”

“So wait, there’s something about you Rarity betraying somepony?”

“Is it really necessary we address that at this time?” the ex-marshal nervously replies, trying to avoid talking about that moment.

“So what’s going on?”

“The final battle’s goin’ on that’s what.” Applejack responds, “We came here to save you and Twilight so she can detach the Morks from their helmets. Us ponies of the resistance are fighting the Morks.”

“I see, we need to take action now then.”

“Major Borris and the pegasi are preparing a chariot and should be waiting for us in the foyer right now.” Marshal Apple adds, “He’ll take us out of Midnight’s castle and onto the main battlefield where you can help the resistance.”

“My, I’m so proud on how mature all you ponies have become, I am proud of you.”

“Thanks, but this wouldn’t have happened if you didn’t give us hop-” A large springy boom blasts from high above the chamber, followed by inaudible chants by what sound to be mares. “That’s probably the Pinkie Pies right now, distracting Midnight.”

“That Midnight,” Twilight’s Celestia mumbles in anger, “I’m gonna get up there and give her a lesson or two…”

“What?”

“Happy, happy, Midnight, from both of us to you! We wish it was our party, but there would be no surprise!” The two Pinkie Pies chant directly the face of Midnight, with her looking as if she saw a frightening ghost appear right in front of her. As Midnight slowly backs into her throne, she shrieks,

“Where did you two come from?”

“Happy, happy, Midnight, we know this doesn’t rhyme! We came her in a hurry, so we made it on the fly!” One of the Pinkies leap behind the other and pulls out a light blue cannon and aims it at the empress. “Surprise!” The cannon fires a stream of confetti directly in Midnight’s face, launching her into the black throne and knocking it to the floor. Now furious, Midnight quickly picks herself up and grabs the pink Earth Ponies in her hooves.

“Game’s over! What is this?”

“Well duh,” the lieutenant exclaims, “it’s a surprise party.”

“For what?”

“For you,”

“What for?”

“A something-month anniversary of your reign and upcoming retirement, we set up this surprise party for you silly filly.”

“Upcoming is an understatement; it’ll take a trillion years before I even consider retirement. With the two Alicorn Amulets in my possession, I have ascended my power beyond that of alicorn princess. Actually, I’m too powerful to be an empress either, I am a god!”

“Then where are the amulets?”

“Being prepared to be installed into my new suit, those idiots should be done by now.”

“Can we see it?”

“Sure, you’ll be a contestant to see how strong the new suit is, by bashing you into it!”

“Hey Raindrop! Hey Spike!” Pinkie hollers as she looks back at the door, “you got the amulets? I think we’re doing a great job distracting Midnight!”

“WHAT?!” The armoured pony tosses the two aside as she charges towards the ajar door. Now grabbing hold of the scratched gold trim still on the massive doors, Midnight tears the two off the wall, sending rock and loose debris down with them. She looks to see Raindrop and Spike, holding one Alicorn Amulet in each claw, fearfully staring straight at her. “You…” She grabs Spike and chucks him to the rugged hallway of the throne room, launching the two pendants right next to the fallen throne. A low groan exits the small dragon as he crumbles himself into a ball, riving in pain.

“Spike!” The No-Pony shrieks. Midnight grabs her and holds her up to the empress’ red eyes.

“Look at this, you and a baby dragon trying to take down me? A god? It’s absolutely adorable.”

“Midnight, you have exactly ten seconds to set me down and surrender, or else!”

“Or else what Tiny?”

“My friends will come in here and they won’t be so merciful on you.”

“Hahaha!” Midnight laughs viciously, slowly waking back to her chair with Raindrop in her massive talons. “Do you honestly think that ponies would risk life and limb to save some useless blind pony?”

“Yes, Celestia, Luna, Cadence,”

“Twilight?”

“Well,”

“Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Gruncle Boris, Borris perhaps?”

“Well when you say it like that, it seems unlikely,”

“It seems worthless, a worthless effort to save a worthless pony.”

“I am not worthless!”

“Do your ‘friends’ think that?”

“I may not be a maroid-induced, evil monster like you, I may not be the strongest, wisest, most agile pony around. I may not even be the most righteous pony I once thought myself to be, but I am a good friend and they see me as somepony worth fighting for.”

“What a big mouth for such a tiny filly, you’d be an excellent asset for my empire…”

“What do you mean? You just called me worthless.”

“You are, no doubt about that, but if I could fix you, all your dreams can come true.”

“You don’t know what my dreams are.”

“Oh, I do. Your dream is to be recognized as a true pony, not just some dead weight that somepony has to look out and push around.”

“…If that was true, how would you fulfil it in the first place?”

“First, I’d give you a pair of wings, just like mine, so you wouldn’t be tied to the earth. Then, I would give you a helmet, just like mine, so you’d have a horn to project magic and no pony would ever notice that you’re blind. Finally, I’ll teach you every magic trick in the book, with you by my side, heir to my empire.”

“You can really do all that? You’re bluffing,”

“How do you think I got these majestic wings, and this magnificent helmet, or even this power?”

“Don’t listen to her!” Spike croaks, “Remember what happened to Rarity.”

“Rarity betrayed me, mind you that, and the reason she left your pathetic resistance in the first place was because she was feared. You are the opposite, you’d remain loyal to me right? You’re not a backstabber like her, nor Applejack, nor Pinkie Pie, nor Fluttershy, nor Rainbow Dash, nor Gruncle Boris, nor Borris, nor Celestia, nor Luna, nor Cadence, and especially not-”

“Me?” A voice announces into the room, Midnight turns to the doorway to see the purple alicorn, staring straight at her.

“You… Morks! Get those morons and the new armour up here pronto!”

“We’re sorry,” Borris replies as he flies out from behind Twilight, “your call could not be forwarded, please leave a message after the beat,”

“Borris!”

“He’s not the only pony ready to settle a score…” Rainbow Dash shouts as she, the Applejacks, Rarities, Fluttershies, and Gruncle Boris walk into the room from the sides of the missing door.

“Where are all you ponies coming from?”

“Right behind you,” Another voice speaks, this time directly behind the dark alicorn. Nervously, Midnight turns to see six multicoloured alicorns, each within breathing distance of Midnight.

“You didn’t hear-”

“Every. Single. Word. Miss.” The empress creates a loud gulp of terror, slowly backing to the center of the room, becoming circled by the nineteen ponies, including the Pinkie Pies and Spike after shortly recovering during her speech.

“Celestia, we can talk this out right? I did invade your world, but we can come to a truce, say, 80-20, me and you?”

“…”

“70-30?”

“…”

“50-50?”

“…”

“20-80?”

“Empress Midnight, for you crimes against all of both Equestrias, you are hereby punished to the lands of revenge.” Slowly, Midnight opens her wings, settling into an attacking position.

“Bring it…”