Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer stood on the balcony of The Dazzlings' castle. They had a perfect view of one half of the kingdom of Lyrican Sirens, whilst the other half was obscured by the towering structure behind them.

The streets below were filled with simple Lyricans who had not yet been called in to wield pendants, fight with swords, or channel powers from Euphoria or Dystopia. They were simple people; civillians, the most harmless and docile people of the species. The streets below were crowded with Lyricans; family, friends, and warriors alike. Most of the townsfolk were going about their lives and gathering food for their children, whilst the armoured ones were doing their best work to preserve order.

Looking down on the city, Twilight sighed with its majesty. "It's still hard to believe that an entire kingdom of Sirens exists..." she said, "I thought that it was just The Dazzlings at first; but after all that's transpired, I can see that there's much more to their kind than meets the eye..."

However, Twilight had then noticed that Sunset wasn't responding, and was instead staring off into the skies. "Uhh, hello? Lyrica to Sunset? You in there?" she waved a hand in front of her friend's face.

"The darkness..." Sunset said lightly. "I thought that it had been vanquished..." she hung her head. "But is darkness really just something that can be destroyed?"

"What do you mean, Sunset?" Twilight tilted her head.

"I'm saying that what if my inner evil was never destroyed in the first place? If what Symphonia and Adagio said are true, then it's only a matter of time before a raging she-demon breaks loose and tries to harm everything again..."

"I know you're still being eaten up by that, Sunset; but you need to let it go for now," Twilight put a hand on Sunset's shoulder. "And Symphonia tasked us with tracking down and defeating that darkness if it ever escapes again. And given the power that we've been gifted by The Dazzlings, I'd say that that monster has something to be scared of right about now..."

"Which brings me to my next concern, Twilight..." Sunset turned to face her. "What about you and your friends? What of your darkness? Don't you fear what monstrous being lurks deep within you, just waiting for the Malefics to harvest and use against you?"

"True, we all have darkness within us. But as long as we have pure hearts, they'll stay chained up for a really long time..."

"But still; doesn't it just terrify you to know that underneath your friendly and peaceful exterior, there's a horrific monster lurking inside, just waiting for the ticket to get out of its cell?"

"Yes. It does terrify me, Sunset. But we need to focus on the more immediate threat for the time being. And that's the problem of Malefic armies commanded by Cataclysm and his remaining Signs of the End..."

"And what about the rest of the humans and ponies of the other worlds? What about them?"

"As long as Cataclysm pushes out attack after attack after attack, there's no way we can save everyone from his onslaught of death and destruction," Twilight paused and looked up at the sky. "But recently, he's been slowing down and making his invasion at a bizarrely slow pace. If he wanted to crush The Dazzlings and the Lyricans, why hasn't he done it already?"

"Cataclysm must have something big planned if he's not making his move..." Adagio appeared behind Twilight and Sunset. "It's not like him; sitting back and preparing for a breakthrough. Cataclysm usually likes to fight as constantly as possible, not give the opponents a chance to recuperate and rebuild their lives..."

"Adagio? What do you mean like that?" Sunset Shimmer asked, looking back at the ruler of Lyrica.

"I mean that Cataclysm's what we in the art of warfare call a Berserker," Adagio walked over to the railing and leaned against it. "Berserkers are known for constant attacks, coupled with rage and high resistance to pain. They can bring whole blocks of houses down with a single strike if they are strong enough..."

"And your point is?" Twilight tilted her head.

"Some places in existence are closer to Euphoria or Dystopia than others might think," Adagio took a deep breath. "Lyrica is on the doorstep of both, Equestria is close to Euphoria, whilst Earth leans towards Dystopia," then, she herself gazed skyward. "But the Malefics have a certain energy to them. They let out so much rage when they battle, but we're not able to consume it. In fact, this Malefic Furen Energy can corrupt other life-forms if it was released, causing them to instantly turn evil."

"So you're saying that the Malefics have access to an evil version of Lyrican power?" Sunset finally put two and two together.

"Yes. And that shit is what creeps me, Aria, Sonata, and the rest of the Lyricans out the most..." Adagio's brows lowered.

"How do we find this darkness and defeat it?" Sunset asked.

"Well, our darkness can't ever be vanquished," Adagio hung her head. "It's a part of ourselves that will kill us if not contained permanently; sort of like our second half in a way. But we can defeat the Malefics, since they are born of darkness and seem to live without light. They can be destroyed and won't return, but it won't be easy taking down Cataclysm himself..."

"However, Cataclysm's location is unknown, and we are still having difficulty trying to locate him..." Symphonia appeared as well, but in a burst of blue and red light. "If we could just pinpoint the darkness in which that fiend resides, I would gladly lead the charge and impale that insipid heart of his..."

"Symphonia? I need to ask you something..." Twilight spoke softly.

"What is it, Twilight?"

"It's about the darkness inside of us... Why do we have it?"

"It is not a hard thing to accept, Twilight Sparkle of Equestria. Every being has darkness within their heart, much like there is also a faint glimmer of light within every heart of darkness," Symphonia explained. "Much like how you can't have night without day, you cannot have light without darkness. It is one of the very principles of life, and trying to fight against this system will lead to your own self-destruction...

"But it does not stop there..." Symphonia touched both Sunset and Twilight's hearts with a finger from both hands, then used his wings to generate a screen showing their bodies radiating a powerful light. "You two have done a number of heroic world-saving feats, including the defeat of The Blasters a year ago. Those actions have increased your light to a phenomenal level.

"But this also comes with a heavy burden to bear..." Symphonia waved his hands, showing a powerful black ball of energy growing from Twilight and Sunset's hearts. The darkness became two silhouettes, but they were chained up and furiously trying to break free. "As it stands, Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer have also conjured up a powerful darkness from their enhanced light. This is not rare among heroes, as the closer you pit yourself towards the light, the bigger and more powerful your shadow becomes..."

"It's just like before," Adagio stood next to Symphonia, "Fortissimo, Allegro, and Orchestral were devoted to safeguarding Lyrica before the war, and then their tremendous darkness overwhelmed them after the dust had settled..."

"But even now, they can't threaten us anymore," Twilight's smile finally returned. "The Blasters got what they deserved, and ultimately ended up paying the price for straying from the path of good and becoming evil."

"But darkness and light, when destroyed, is recycled, renewed, and reborn..." Symphonia looked down on the kingdom of Lyricans. "Every time someone falls, either in battle or by old age, they return to the world they came from and relinquish their life force. And whether or not they embraced the light or darkness, it still leaves their body; ready to be used by another being..."

"So you're just saying that The Blasters could possibly return, but with all of their power inherited by someone else?!" Sunset threw out her arms, then withdrew herself and cursed. "Great... that's just fan-tucking-fastic..."

"That reminds me, Adagio," Twilight raised a finger. "When we battled Chaos, he mentioned something about our darkness and what monsters we would create when he tried to kill us. Does that ring any bells?"

"I'm not really sure abo—"

"The Malefics have a long history of stealing a person's darkness and using it against them," Symphonia threw out one of his arms, silencing Adagio instantly. "When assaulting Earth or Equestria, they usually drain the darkness from civillians, and then kill them for fun. It's sick, I know; and that's why we cannot let them steal your darkness, or the darkness of your friends," he hung his head. "Who knows what despicable things the Malefics could try and create if they got their hands on you and the rest of The Rainbooms?"

"I can imagine..." Sunset agreed with the Lyrican.

"By the way, Symphonia; what's with Cataclysm holding back his armies?" Twilight asked.

"It's a theory that Cataclysm is working on a new unit of Malefics; ones that act in secrecy, and then eliminate the enemy when they get what they have," Symphonia thought, stroking his chin. "But how secret they act is quite alien to their nature, seeing as Malefics usually go all-out when taking an objective for themselves. Something's not right..."

"They could be snatching darkness from under our noses... bringing it back to Cataclysm so he can create an even bigger army to..."

"Ensure the destruction of Earth, Equestria, and Lyrica!" Twilight, Adagio, and Sunset spoke together with a gasp at the end.

"Your Majesty. The orders are all yours," Symphonia kneeled down towards Adagio. "Tell us what you want to do..."

"Have Intimo and his group oversee the improvements to the Show Stopper and the rest of the Lyrican Fleets. Then, get The Seasons to manage upgrades to Lyrica's defences. Finally, alert The Rainbooms, Aria, and Sonata on the problem at hand!" Adagio gave her commands to Symphonia, who saluted and disappeared just as quickly as he had arrived. "Twilight? Sunset? You're with me. We need to enhance the effects of the Darkhouse to try and find these covert-ops Malefics!"

In a dark plane of existence, Apocalypse, Armageddon, and Carnage looked out into the farthest reaches of space; namely, from a spiked balcony in Cataclysm's fortress. Their helmets were removed, so their voices were distinguishable now.

"Tell me, Apocalypse," Carnage spoke, in a laid-back voice. "Why is it that these Lyricans always seem to get in the way of our hunts?"

"It is simple, Carnage," Apocalypse's voice was very commanding, but he still knew his place in the hierarchy. "These maggots stand for everything we revile. Because of this, The Dazzlings, The Rainbooms, and those other insipid scum will continue to defend their worlds with vim and vigour..."

"It's not fair, if you ask me..." Carnage crossed his arms.

"Either way, the Overlord's word is law," Armageddon also had a serious voice, but his was different from Apocalypse's. "Cataclysm has a plan going this time. And he has seen the destruction of the Lyricans in his future."

"But if this goes exactly the same as before, won't he just end up back in that Songless Sea again?" Carnage was questioning Armageddon. "If every Lyrican faces him at once, then we could be in serious trouble..."

"Which is exactly why he will remain in the Evil Cosmos for the time being," Apocalypse cut in, "As long as the Overlord remains alive, then we all remain alive; possibly even immortal, but I can't be sure..."

"Either way, I detected this strange anomaly coming from Earth a while back, you two..." Armageddon conjured up black energy with his hands, which he then used to create a screen showing Canterlot High School. "It seems that there is an enemy to CHS aside from us. Derived solely on conquering their foes by any means necessary, there exists a place of darkness right on the doorstep of this radiant palace of friendship. They are known as... The Shadowbolts of Crystal Prep."

"Sounds like some kind of lame social group, Armageddon," Carnage scoffed, "What good would it be to bring in a whole other school to combat forces that are way beyond their comprehension?"

"Not the whole school, you fool!" Armageddon lashed out at Carnage, then calmed himself down hastily. "There are a certain group of students there who exhibit a darker aura than the rest; ones that the Overlord could use to create some very powerful Malefics out of..." he changed the screen to show six students in particular. "These six have the strongest darkness emanating from them for the time being. Sugarcoat, Sunny Flare, Lemon Zest, Indigo Zap, Sour Sweet, and Twilight Sparkle of Earth..."

"Hold on, Armageddon. Slow down there for a second..." Carnage was dumbfounded, "You're telling me that there's a Twilight Sparkle who emanates darkness, instead of the Magic of Friendship?!"

"I'm with Carnage on this matter, Armageddon. Why didn't you tell us this before?" Apocalypse agreed. "There is a Twilight Sparkle, letting off a powerful dark aura, capable of making either an army of Malefics, or enabling her to become a decisive counterpart to defeat The Rainbooms of Equestria? This could cripple The Dazzlings..." Apocalypse grinned evilly. "We need to go see Overlord Cataclysm about this..."

Author's Notes:

Given that Friendship Games comes out tomorrow, I'm just going on the assumption that The Shadowbolts won't change their ways after the games are over.

Also, I just want to state that for the record, this whole series, as well as the Siren Song Trilogy before it, does not count Friendship Games as canon. If it did, then it would be too much for Sunset Shimmer to bear.