Chap 13

Tiger looked around as they stepped hoof in the Canterlot region. “…This is bad,” Tiger muttered. In front of the group was a large dome of darkness that covered every inch of Canterlot. “We need to get in there!” Twilight started running towards the dark dome. Tiger held his arm out and stopped her. “Before we even think about approaching it…” Tiger pointed at the spell book. “This darkness isn’t the comforting type that you see before you go to bed everypony…” Tiger gritted his teeth remembering the cold feeling. “Alright..” Twilight said as she closed her eyes. Her horn started to glow. Tiger doned his armor and added his elements of harmony to each of the girls’ spheres. “Be careful everypony, we don’t know what’s in there,” Apple Jack warned. “…Somehow I have a feeling I know,” Tiger gripped his sword. They walked through the wall of Darkness and were greeted with a sudden chill. “What.. what happened here?” Twilight’s mouth opened in shock. All the structures were pale ivory in color. The atmosphere seemed to have an inky feel to it. “It’s been touched by the Darkness,” Tiger looked around as he drew his sword. “Tiger, what’s wrong?” Rarity asked. “..Something’s around here,” Tiger looked around. “Just point it out and I’ll get rid of it in 10 seconds flat!” Rainbow Dash reared up and punched out her hooves in an intimidating fashion. “It’s so dark in here… how can you see anything Tiger?” Fluttershy was looking around as well. “FLUTTERSHY BEHIND YOU!” Tiger’s eyes flashed has he leaped over the yellow pony and slashed at a shadowy figure which was bareing it’s fangs. It instantly dissipated into cinders as Tiger’s sword slashed through it. “What in tarnation was that thing?” Apple Jack asked as she helped Fluttershy up, who had taken a slight fall due to the fright. “It’s a shadow … as long as we are in the Darkness, they will keep on coming…” Tiger’s senses were on high alert. “May I suggest that we get moving then?” Rarity pointed to a large amount of shadowy figures that where approaching them. “Let’s go!” Tiger motioned for them to run. He couldn’t leave them to fight if he were to keep them protected with the elements. He had to find the darkness mirror and stamp it out. “Twilight, the map!” Tiger called out as he slashed a shadow that appeared to the side of Rarity, he then flipped over the group to the other side. He then dragged the sword upwards as he slashed another shadow causeing sparks to fly. “If we are where I think we are…” Twilight was trying to focus, “it must be this way!” Apple Jack pointed down a narrow street. “Let’s go!” Pinkie Pie looked worriedly at Tiger who was standing in front of her, he had taken down a scary shadow that had wanted to eat her. Her sphere had dimmed in color, “Pinkie Pie.. don’t be scared, remember what Grammy Pie used say?” Tiger looked back at her with a smile, “yeah! Pinkie Pie giggled a little. “Keep moving. I’ll protect you! Just remember to focus on your elements!” Tiger yelled. The ponies ran through the street until they saw a large shadow crawl across the ground and manifested in front of them. A large claw formed on one of its arms and threatened to swing it at Apple Jack. “HAH!” Tiger jumped up and removed its claw with a quick swipe of the sword, then bound back and forth using his sword on the rest of the creature. He finished his attack with a somersault over the shadow causing it to fall over with a dozen burning slash marks before dissipating into the cinders. “Everypony ok?” Tiger looked back. “Y..yeah” Apple Jack looked back at him with a small smile. “Ohh.. I wish I could use a sword!” Rainbow Dash said, frusteration in her voice. “Tiger, you have such grace when you swing your sword” Rarity commented, “did you take dancing as well?” “Umm…” Tiger brushed the back of his mane. “Ya really did?” Apple Jack’s eyes grew wide as she started to laugh. “..Yeah,” Tiger blushed, “I learned how to sing too… but it doesn’t help during a fight, that’s for sure. Honestly I don’t like fighting,” Tiger said, “it really isn’t my style”. “Hmm according to the map, the cave should be around here somewhere,” Twilight looked at what was in front of them. It was a very steep hill which was pure white. Tiger shivered a little, he felt the atmosphere starting to get to him. “I can sense it behind that hill,” Tiger took an attack pose. “Tiger, what are you doing?” Twilight asked as she watched him swing his sword at the hill. There was a bright flash and the hill itself disappeared. “What in the hay?” Apple Jack’s eyes grew wide. “If, I am not mistaken, this hill is known as the hill of mist?” Tiger looked back as they all checked the map. “It looked so real!” Pinkie Pie looked at the map and then back at where the hill used to be then back at the map. “We need to find the Darkness Mirror, it’ll get rid of the Darkness that is shrouding Canterlot,” Tiger motioned for them to follow him. “That is where you are WRONG!” Sol Lune laughed as he dropped from the sky and stuck his lance into the ground in front of Tiger. “Wha..?” Tiger’s eyes grew wide as he felt the ground give way from underneath. He and the others fell through the ground. Tiger felt the Darkness slowly creeping up on him. The spell had been broken. “No!” Tiger cried out as he reached out his hoof, “Apple Jack!!!”

---Inside the Darkness---

It was cold. Apple Jack looked around, and found that she had been separated from the others. “Where the hay am Ah?” she asked herself as she dusted herself off and put her hat back on. “Tiger! Twi? Rainbow!! Rarity!! Pinkie Pie!!! Fluttershy!!!” she called out. Her voice didn’t seem to travel in the endless Darkness that was in front of her. “…” worry started to close in on her. “Wh.. where is everypony?” she noticed that it was abnormally cold here, where ever she was. She started to move and felt her hooves touch something smooth underneath. “…” she looked down and saw a reflection of herself looking back at her. Something was out of the ordinary though. The Apple Jack that was looking back at her had a nasty sneer spread across her face. “Hay there… pardner,” her reflection said in almost a cold voice. “…” Apple Jack started to move backwards nervously as she tripped over her hind legs. “Wass the matter? Too good to look at yerself in the mirror?” the Apple Jack in the mirror seemed to ripple for a moment and slowly rise up through the mirror’s surface. “How… are you doin that? And what are you?” Apple Jack looked up at her. “Ah am the opposite, ya could say,” she tipped her hat as she walked towards Apple Jack. “Ah am the Element of Untruth, trust me sugar, it ain’t no simple lie that Ah’m gonna tell you,” she grinned, “Ah’m gonna show you all the lies and secrets that you hope that you’d never see yerself”.