The Sun Falls

by PonyJosiah13

First published 10th of June, 2015

When Princess Celestia is shot, Equestria is put on the brink of chaos. But there's more to this than a simple assassination attempt...

The Summer Sun Celebration turns horrific when Princess Celestia is shot by a hired sniper. With the leader of Equestria hospitalized, Princess Twilight and her friends find the whole country balancing on a razor's edge. Fear rules the city of Canterlot, and a future without Celestia is dark and frightening to behold.

Meanwhile, Phillip Finder attempts to find more information on the hired sniper, only to find out that there is far more to this than the attempted killing of the Princess...something far more terrifying...

The Phillip Finder series
The Pony in the Gray Trilby
The Everfree Forest Affair
Time Flies
The Blue Moon Brings Death
Letters to a Candymare
The Face in the Darkness
Checkmate
Secret of the Mare Lisa
The Sun Falls
Clockwork
Behind Locked Doors
Siege of Clovenworth
The Silent Fugitive
Curse of the Taverneigh Blue
Mystery on the Mareish Moors
The Grilled Cheese and the Muletese Falcon
Trifle Not With Monsters
The Fillydelphia Solution
The Sydneigh Ritual
Endgame

Part 1: Rain in Canterlot

It was supposed to be sunny and warm in Canterlot for the Summer Sun Festival. Instead, rain poured down from the gray sky, as if the heavens themselves were weeping. The icy rain, combined with a chill wind, chased the citizens of Canterlot back into their homes.

In fact, it was intended for that.

Twilight looked out the window of the third floor of the hospital, staring out into the empty street. The rain water spattered against the glass window, blurring her vision. How could this have happened? she thought. She kept going back to that moment, wondering if something could have been differently. But every conclusion she could reach was the same: there was nothing she could have done. She, the Princess of Friendship, who had passed many arduous trials, who had conquered many foes, could have done nothing. The realization made Twilight feel even worse, shame and guilt weighing down on her heart. She had to turn away from the window. The rain spattering on the glass reminded her too strongly of the blood.

Turning, she saw the other occupants of the hospital waiting room. All was silent save for the rain on the window and the clock on the wall ticking away. Spike was next to her, nervously fiddling with his claws as he sat on one of the couches. He looked up at Twilight, his green eyes shining with worry.

"Twilight?" he asked softly, as if afraid that speaking out loud would make his fears a reality. "W-what happens if...if she...?"

"Spike, don't worry," Twilight said, pulling him into a hug in an attempt to reassure him. "It'll be all right."

With his face buried in her chest fur, Spike couldn't see the look of deep worry on Twilight's face. To her left, Twilight saw Flash next to her, his face mirroring her fears. Twilight's other friends were scattered around the room. Rarity had been sitting next to her at the window, and she continued to stare out of it, lost in thought. Pinkie Pie was sprawled across another couch: her mane had gone straight and turned dark pink, signaling that she was in deep distress. Fluttershy was next to her, speaking softly in an attempt to reassure her. It did not seem to be working. Applejack was sitting on the floor next to her, staring down at her hat as she turned it over and over in her hooves. Behind her, Rainbow Dash anxiously paced around and around in a tight circle.

On the other side of the room, Luna sat, her head bowed and her eyes closed. She was whispering indistinctly to herself: Twilight realized that she was praying. Next to her, a white pegasus with blue hair adorned in the dark purple armor of a member of the Lunar Guard sat. He looked like he wanted to try to comfort her, but couldn't think of anything to say.

Twilight then turned her attention to the door at the other side of the room. A pair of double doors stood before her. On the other side of that door, doctors were working frantically. Soon, the doors would open, and a doctor would walk through with news for them all to hear. News that could change everything that they knew.

Twilight both wanted the doors to open, and dreaded their opening, dreaded hearing what might be said. And she wasn't the only one: a black unicorn with white hair, dressed in the armor of a Royal Guard Captain, stared at the doors, his blue eyes unblinking and stoic expression stretched tight over his face.

After about ten minutes, or maybe ten years of silence, the doors opened and a doctor, a unicorn with pale red fur, stepped through. His face was grave: the kind of expression doctors are trained to adopt when they are about to give bad news. Every head in the room turned towards him, everypony bracing themselves for the worst.

"Well?" Luna asked urgently, having looked up as soon as the doors opened.

"She's alive," the doctor said softly. Everypony immediately breathed a sigh of relief. "But it's not good. We've managed to repair most of the damage, but she still lost a lot of blood. The bullet traveled right through her: it punctured one of her lungs and damaged her aorta." He paused. "To be honest, she was extremely lucky. Another inch lower and it would have struck her heart."

"Will she be all right?" Luna asked, her jaw set tight.

The doctor paused, thinking of a way to put this to her. "She's still unconscious," he said slowly. "She should be all right...when she wakes up."

The implied "if" echoed through the room. "I would like to see her," Luna said.

"So would I," Twilight said, hurrying forward.

"Of course," the doctor said, stepping aside and gesturing for them to follow. Luna strode briskly after the doctor, her long strides quick. Twilight fell into step beside her. The walk down the bare, white-washed hallway seemed to stretch forever; it took an eternity to get to her room. The whole time, worried voices swarmed around in Twilight's head. What was going to happen now? Who could've done this? Why? How could she salvage this situation? What if she never...?

They had arrived at the door. Luna paused momentarily, gathering herself, and stepped into the hospital room. Twilight followed, her heart aching at the sight within. The room was bare, the walls a dull blue. A single rain-streaked window opened into the empty street. The only feature of the room was the bed, and the equipment surrounding it, including an IV tree loaded with blood bags and an EKG that let out a slow, steady beeping to measure the heartbeat of the patient. She lay in the bed, her eyes shut, an oxygen mask over her face. Her long mane, which normally shone and flowed as if caught in an invisible wind, was now of a dull sheen and lay limp around her.

"Sister?" Luna whispered, reaching out a hoof. But Princess Celestia did not respond. A painful groan rumbled out of Luna's throat, and she lowered her head, tears falling from her eyes.

Twilight and Luna sat beside of the wounded Princess Celestia, both of them thinking back to how this happened...

Author's Notes:

Trying something a little different this time: starting the story in the middle of the action. I think it works here.

So how'd this happen? See next chapter...

Part 2: Red Sky at Morning

Several hours earlier...

"How do I look?" Twilight said, spinning in place as she examined herself in the mirror.

"You look lovely, Twilight," Flash said, doing his best not to stare and fighting a losing battle against a goofy smile. Twilight was dressed in a deep purple dress, laden with sequins that sparkled like stars in the sky of the setting sun. Her mane had been combed and done up, and spilled to her shoulders like a lavender waterfall.

"Oh, you're just saying that," Twilight said, blushing.

"No, you look great, Twilight!" Spike said energetically, dashing up. Upon a purple cushion, he held up Twilight's tiara, which he had just finished polishing.

"Thank you, Spike," Twilight said, accepting the tiara and placing it on her head. She checked herself in the mirror once more and, deciding that she was presentable, proceeded towards the door of the room. "Now, come on. We have to check with Celestia and Luna before the Summer Sun Festival begins."

"Right behind you, Twilight," Flash said, falling into step behind her. Spike hopped up onto Twilight's back. The two proceeded down the hallway of the Royal Palace in Canterlot, guided by the light of lanterns and stars shining through the grand windows. Turning several corners, they came to a pair of large golden doors that opened into the Royal Bedrooms. Two Guards on either side of the door saluted as they approached. Twilight acknowledged them with a nod and knocked at the doors.

"Come in!" a familiar voice called from within the room. Twilight opened the doors and the trio proceeded into the room, a cushiony common room with a roaring fireplace. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna were both there, each speaking to an officer from their respective Guard companies. Celestia looked up with a warm smile when Twilight entered.

"Twilight, it's wonderful to see you again," she said, embracing her favorite student. "Thank you for coming to the Summer Sun Festival."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," Twilight said.

"Spike, Flash Sentry, it is good to see you again as well," Celestia said to the other two, who had knelt before the Princesses. "I believe you have met Captain Polaris."

Flash snapped to attention and saluted the officer next to Celestia. Polaris, Captain of the Canterlot City Guard, was a black unicorn with close-cropped white hair and deep blue eyes. His cutie mark of the constellations of the Big and Little Dippers, composed of bright yellow-white stars, shone brightly against the dark of his coat. His golden armor was highly polished, the double silver bar on his collar gleaming in the firelight.

"Corporal," Polaris said in an even, but friendly tone, returning Flash's salute with a small smile. "Excellent work so far. You should know that there are a number of ponies here rooting for you."

"Thank you, sir. That means a lot," Flash said with a slightly nervous smile.

Luna stood to greet the friends. "It is a pleasure to see you all again. May I introduce one of my most trusted guards, Lieutenant Silent Knight."

Silent Knight was a white pegasus. His blue mane was short and parted down the center, framing a handsome face. His blue eyes had the look of somepony with a lot on their mind, but was still focused on the task at hoof. His cutie mark was a blue crescent moon and silver sword, partially obscured by the dark purple armor of a Lunar Guard. He returned Flash's salute with a brief nod before looking back down at the map of Canterlot placed before the group.

"I can have this street cleared," Polaris said, tracing out a route with his hoof. "It'll provide a fast route to the castle if necessary."

"Why all this security?" Spike asked, looking over the map and it's markings of routes and guard positions.

"Better safe than sorry," Silent Knight said softly, barely glancing up.

"True," Celestia said. "But I seriously doubt that anything will happen."

"Corporal, we've got you right behind Twilight," Polaris said, lighting up his horn. He extracted a radio and headpiece from his saddlebag and levitated it over to Flash. "Take this. It'll keep you in communication with the other Guards. We're on Channel 3."

"Thank you, sir," Flash said, taking the radio. He clipped it into his belt and placed the earpiece in his ear and the microphone on his collar. Turning the radio on, he spoke into the mic for a test.

"TESTING! IS THIS WORKING?!"

Polaris and Silent Knight, along with every Guard within a half-mile, cried out in pain and clutched the sides of their heads as Flash's voice bellowed into their ears, accompanied by the shrill squeal of static.

"Corporal, turn the mic down!" Silent said.

"SORRY, SIR!" Flash apologized, causing another grimace from the officers. Polaris used his magic to turn the volume knob on Flash's radio down several notches. Flash grinned in embarrassment. "Sorry," he whispered. "I guess it works."

"Sister, it is almost time," Luna said, noting the position of the moon in the sky. She rose. "Come, my friends! The Summer Sun Celebration is about to begin!"

The group headed out of the room, proceeding through the hallways of Canterlot and out into the keep. A small squad of both Solar and Lunar Guards awaited them, simultaneously snapping to attention and saluting at the approach of the monarchs.

"All right, everypony knows the plan," Polaris addressed the Guards. "Let's get out there and have a Summer Sun Celebration!"

"Yes, sir!" the Guards chorused. As one, they turned and dispersed, scattering out ahead of the group and into the streets of Canterlot. Proceeding through the gates, the Princesses and their Guards walked down the main street of Canterlot. A few meters ahead of them, a wide stage had been set up, wide purple curtains stretching across the street. The group stopped behind the curtains and paused.

Glancing at Celestia beside her, Twilight was reminded of the first time she saw her, so many years ago. How regal and powerful she had seen, white coat gleaming in the rising sun: the manifestation of magical power, an inspiration to her then and now. And now here she stood beside her!

Polaris paused, his head cocked as he listened to the radio, then nodded to the Princesses. Bowing, he stepped aside, pulling the curtains open with his magic. "Break a leg, Twilight!" Spike cheered as the three Princesses proceeded onto the stage. The crowd before them cheered loudly at the sight, every face lighting up with delight to see the alicorns. In her center position, Twilight could see her friends—Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie—all standing in the very front of the crowd, all of them cheering loudest of all. Her heart soared at the sight of them.

Above them all, a gunpony surveyed the crowd.

PFC Zipline lay atop the roof of one of Canterlot's many shops, double-checking for any suspicious activity through the scope of his .30 caliber Summerfield rifle. He was a white pegasus with a red mane that reached towards his shoulders and pale blue eyes. He wore the sunshine yellow armor of a member of the Solar House Guard, the protectors of Princess Celestia, but lacked the helmet, allowing his mane to blow in the wind. A red circle on both his shoulderplates designated him as a sniper. Seeing nothing suspicious, he spoke into his microphone. "Sniper two reporting, all clear."

The other snipers and the Guards on the ground also gave the all clear, allowing the festival to proceed. With a flourish, Luna floated into the air, using her magic to slowly lower the moon. A moment later, Celestia rose into the sky, carrying the sun up into the sky. As the sun rose above the horizon, the sudden light and warmth dazzled the entire crowd, drawing "oohs" and "aahs" from several ponies.

Among the crowd, a single pony wearing a gray trilby watched the display. Phillip Finder might not have enjoyed many holidays and celebrations, but he made an exception for the Summer Sun Festival. The Festival had come to Sydneigh once when he was young, and left an impression. He had been amazed and awed by the sight of Princess Celestia; not just of her beauty, but because of the ideals she represented, the nobility and grace that she displayed with every step. And now, seeing the Princesses framed against the sky, backlit against the sun, he once again felt that same awe.

But out of the corner of his eye, Phillip spotted a strange glimmer above him. Turning, he saw the glimmer was coming from the sunlight reflecting off of something on a balcony of a building next to him. Instantly, he felt a familiar tingling on the back of his neck: the feeling of something not being right. Forgetting the ritual, he squinted up at the light, trying to figure out what it was.

Zipline noticed the same glimmer. Turning his rifle scope towards the source of the light, he peered through the scope, having to adjust the focus to see clearly.

Both stallions recognized the object for what it was, and for a moment, could only stare in utter shock and disbelief. The glimmering was the sunlight reflecting off of a well-polished rifle barrel, clutched in the hooves of a pony obscured in the shadows of the balcony.

And he was aiming the gun right at Princess Celestia. She was still hovering in midair, eyes shut in blissful concentration, unaware of the danger.

"Your Highness!" Phillip shouted, sprinting forward, pushing his way through the crowd. Heads began to turn his direction, the Guards becoming aware that something was wrong. Zipline opened his mouth, taking in air to shout into the radio.

Suddenly, at that moment, the sky was torn by a tremendous CRACK like lightning. Red mist exploded out of Celestia's chest, illuminated by the sunlight. Her magenta eyes opened wide in shock. Gasping in pain, she collapsed out of the sky like a rock, crashing to the stage. For a moment, nothing moved, everything frozen in horror.

And then, as the echoes of the gunshot died away, the panic started. Ponies in the crowd fled screaming in all directions.

"Sister!" Luna shouted in horror, diving down beside Celestia, who lay unconscious on the stage, a red stain growing across her white chest. At the same instant, Polaris, Silent Knight, Flash and every nearby Guard moved, shock turning into trained reflexes. They dived on top of the Princesses and began to hurry them away, heading down an already cleared street. The unicorns among them cast protective shield spells around the group to protect from further attack, while some of the pegasi and earth ponies hurried forward to ensure the way was clear.

"Sniper, third-floor balcony, Grand Hotel!" Zipline shouted into the mass of confusing voices over the radio as he flew off the roof and to the balcony. Hearing his call, several Guards on the ground began to hurry towards the building. Seeing them on the move, Phillip began to push his way through the crowd, cutting through the currents towards the building.

"Going around back!" a unicorn corporal declared, leading his partner behind the building as a larger detachment burst into the doors. Phil's instincts guided him to go around to the back, and he followed the two Guards around the back of the building into an alley that was empty save for a couple of dumpsters and a back door. Neither of the Guards noticed him.

As they rounded the corner, the door suddenly burst open and a unicorn burst out. He was a dark orange color with steel gray hair and green eyes that glimmered with the desperate cleverness of a trapped animal. His cutie mark was a lightning bolt piercing a red circle. And in a green magical aura, he held a black revolver.

Upon spotting the Guards, he immediately opened fire, sending two shots in their direction and forcing them to duck behind cover. The assassin sprinted away. "He's headed out back!" the corporal shouted into the radio as he and his partner gave chase. "Male unicorn, dark orange! He's got a gun!"

Unnoticed behind them, Phillip leaped up onto a dumpster, then sprang onto the low roof of a building. Cutting across the roof, he jumped across the alleyway, seeing the assassin pass beneath him and turn right ahead. The gunpony had a headstart and was fast, but Phillip still knew the layout of the Canterlot streets. Hurrying across the rooftop, Phil glanced beneath him to see the gunpony turn another corner, forcing a pursuing Guard to back up with another two gunshots. Leaping across the alley once more, Phillip ran over the rooftops, jumping obstacles and cutting corners to stay a few feet behind his quarry.

"I've got him!" a shout sounded from above. This shout was followed by another gunshot, then a cry of pain. Halting, Phillip looked over the edge of the roof to see a Guard, a gray earth pony, lying on the ground, clutching his bleeding shoulder in pain. The assassin was already several feet ahead. Phil hesitated, torn between pursuing the assassin and aiding the injured pony.

"Guard down!" a pegasus Guard shouted, flying down to aid his injured comrade. The decision made, Phillip put on speed. The gunpony had a bigger head start now, but Phil knew that the alley ahead cut into a T. And the left turn went straight into a dead end. If the assassin was smart—and Phil anticipated that he was—he would turn right. Recalling the assassin's speed and estimating where he was, Phillip sprinted forward, glanced over the edge, and leaped.

He'd timed it perfectly; he landed on top of the assassin, who collapsed beneath him with a great "Oof!" To his surprise, the unicorn reacted instantly, shoving him off him with a blast of magic. Rolling as he hit the ground, Phillip got up to his hooves in time to see the unicorn, a vicious snarl on his face, raising the pistol and aiming it at him. Phillip dodged just in time, feeling the heat of the bullet carving through the air inches above his head. He sprinted forward at the assassin, who adjusted his aim right at Phillip's face. At this range, there was no chance of dodging. As if in slow motion, Phillip saw the chamber of the gun rotate and the hammer rear back, then snap forward.

BANG!

Phillip halted in his tracks, astonished. The revolver clattered to the ground; the assassin followed a moment later, his jaw slack and his eyes wide as if in surprise. Blood trickled out of the hole in the dead center of his forehead. Turning, Phillip saw Zipline standing at the end of the alley, lowering his rifle. "You okay?" he asked, hurrying forward.

"You shouldn't have done that," Phil said, scowling at Zipline.

"He shot Princess Celestia, and he was going to shoot you!" Zipline said, taken aback by Phillip's hostility.

"No, he wasn't," Phil said, snatching the revolver up. He opened the chamber and shook the gun. Six empty brass cartridges fell out, clattering as they hit the ground. "He was out, I was counting."

"Well, how was I supposed to know that?" Zipline snapped back.

Phillip scowled deeply but didn't reply, realizing that Zipline had a point. Two other Guards ran up to secure the scene.

"What's happened to Princess Celestia?" Phil asked.

"We're taking her to the local hospital," Zipline said, his voice falling grave and tense. "Last I heard, she was still breathing, but..." He broke off, swallowing.

"She'll be all right, mate," Phil said softly. "We do what we can."

Taking the body of the assassin, the Guards exited the alley just as the rain clouds rolled in to chase the last of the crowd into cover. So consumed in their own thoughts, that none of them noticed a single raven sitting on a lamppost, watching them.

Now...

Flash chewed on his lip, standing outside the door to Celestia's hospital room. Every instinct told him to go inside, to be with Twilight, to see Celestia with his own eyes, but he was restricted by the protocol of a Guard. The waiting, the inability to do anything, was agonizing.

A quiet cough at the end of the hallway caught his attention. Turning, he saw Phillip striding towards him. "Where've you been?" Flash said, his voice a rough mix of irritation and relief.

"Autopsy of the assassin," Phil said softly, his voice soft with weariness. "Is she still alive?"

"Yeah," Flash said. "But it's not looking good. She's still unconscious."

Phil sighed, closing his eyes briefly. "And the Guard who was wounded?"

"It was just a flesh wound. He's fine."

"What about you?" Phil asked.

Flash paused, considering the question. "I'm holding up," he said. But just barely. He felt like an egg about to brought down on a countertop edge.

Phil gazed at the younger stallion for a moment, long enough to see through the facade and see the frightened colt beneath. He strode forward and put a hoof on Flash's shoulder, his touch rejuvenating him.

"Go be with Twilight," Phil said. "She needs you now. Maybe more than she's ever needed a friend."

Flash nodded. "What about you?"

"The Guard has its way of getting information. I have mine." Phil pulled his hat down lower on his face and turned to leave, steely determination in his voice. "I'll be back when I have something."

"Take care of yourself," Flash called after him.

Phil paused at the end of the hallway and turned briefly. "You, too." And with that, he turned the corner and exited.

Flash entered Celestia's room, taking in the sight of Luna and Twilight watching over the wounded Celestia. Striding up to Twilight's side, he sat down next to her. She placed her head on his shoulder, taking comfort from his presence. The three sat in silence as the rain continued to pour down on the window.

Author's Notes:

The Princess of the Sun is wounded and dying. What is going to happen now?

Polaris and Zipline are my own OCs, appearing in previous stories The Blue Moon Brings Death and The Face in the Darkness, respectively.

Silent Knight belongs to Anzel, used with his permission.

Part 3: The Sun Is Gone

Three days later...

Twilight wearily walked into a private chamber in the Canterlot Castle and collapsed onto a cushion like a sack of potatoes. "How does Celestia do this?" she groaned. She had just closed court, having spent most of the day dealing with civilians with a number of complaints.

Several had asked about Princess Celestia, and Twilight had to give them all the same answer: she didn't know. Princess Celestia was still unconscious, laying in that hospital bed, and there was no telling if she was going to get better.

Which meant that she herself had to take the reigns as the current ruler of Equestria. Which meant endless paperwork, appearances, meetings with nobles and advisors, dealing with citizens. And making arrangements in case Celestia didn't....didn't return.

After only three days, Twilight was thoroughly exhausted. She lay on the couch, massaging her aching head, which felt like it was being squeezed in a vice, cracking beneath the pressure of carrying a world on her shoulders. A weight that had been transferred to her suddenly, without preparation.

Because of a single, senseless act of violence. For a moment, Twilight flashed back to that moment: an earsplitting crack, and warm blood, glistening scarlet in the sunlight, spraying across her face. Celestia, her mentor, her teacher, her friend, gasped and collapsed to the ground, blood staining her pure white coat. Wounded. Dying.

Everything—all the fear, hopelessness, despair and grief—that Twilight had been holding back all came flooding out at once. She buried her face into the cushion and began to sob, her tears racking her whole body.

A touch at her shoulder brought her back to reality. Looking up, she saw a yellow and pink blur standing next to her. "There, there, Twilight," Fluttershy said soothingly, stroking her shoulder with a hoof and giving her a tissue. "Just let it out."

Twilight's cries eventually turned into sniffles. She dabbed at her eyes, clearing her vision to find that all her other friends were all in the room with her, all looking at her sympathetically. Spike was just coming in with a glass of water and an aspirin, which Twilight gratefully accepted.

"It's going to be all right, Twilight," Fluttershy said.

"I don't know," Twilight groaned. "What if I'm not ready to take on the role of being a ruler of Equestria? What if I crack under the pressure? And what if...what if Celestia...if she doesn't..." She still could not force the words from her mouth, could not give voice to the terrible thought that had been hanging over her head for the past three days.

"Hey, Princess Celestia will be all right," Rainbow Dash said. "Nothing can put her down for good. And nothing can put you down, either." She gave Twilight a confident grin, playfully punching at her shoulder. "You're tough, Twilight, tougher than you know."

"It really doesn't do for you to fret so much, dear," Rarity said, taking out a comb and brush and starting to smooth out Twilight's tangled mane and bristling coat. "You have to try to keep calm; you won't be able to function if you strain yourself worrying."

"And you can always count on us to stay by your side," Applejack said. "No matter what happens, Twilight. We will always be with you."

"So turn that frown upside-down, Twilight!" Pinkie said, giving her one of her trademark ear to ear smiles. "The sun'll come out tomorrow: it's only a day away!"

Her stress relieved and her heart comforted, Twilight smiled at her friends, gathering them all up in an embrace. "Thank you, everypony," she said. But then reality came back into her life, and she remembered that she still had a Princess in hospital. She sighed. "I just wish we could cheer up Luna."

"Speaking of which," Spike said, gesturing out the window. Twilight realized that the sun was dipping towards the horizon: it was almost time to raise the moon.

Sighing quietly, Twilight got to her hooves. "I'll go find Luna."

Soon after, Twilight was walking down the hallway of the hospital, Flash and another Guard following behind. Doctors, nurses and patients around her all kept a respectful distance; Twilight could feel their gazes on her like heat from spotlights, and she had to fight down the urge to squirm.

Turning the corner, she saw the hospital room up ahead, two Guards standing sentinel before it. They both looked up at Twilight's approach. "Has she—?" Twilight started to ask, but one of the Guards solemnly shook his head. Groaning, Twilight gestured for Flash to wait outside and entered the room. Respecting her privacy, Flash stood at attention opposite the other two Guards, all three of them briefly sharing the same look of concern.

Twilight slowly entered the room. Luna was still sitting at her sister's side, her head bowed in thought. Celestia looked the same as she had always looked these past days: her mane was still as dull as before, lying limp around her. Twilight walked over to Luna and sat down next to her. The Princess of the Night did not acknowledge her presence. Up close, Twilight saw that her eyes were baggy and streaked with red. For a moment, neither spoke. The only sound in the room was the slow, steady beeping of the EKG and the amplified sound of Celestia's breathing through the oxygen mask.

"Luna?" Twilight finally spoke. "It's time to raise the moon."

Luna blinked a couple of times, then got up and strode to the window. Looking out of the window into the sky, she lit up her horn, reaching out with her magic. Very slowly, the sun began to descend, the sky darkening. The sun disappeared, but the moon did not rise. Luna's body trembled and she let out a little growl of frustration, straining as she attempted to lift the moon. A single tear slowly trickled down her face.

Twilight stepped forward, reaching out with her magic as well. The feeling of her magical touch seemed to calm Luna, who took a slow, deep breath. Together, the two of them slowly raised the silver crescent into the sky, it's light illuminating the capital below.

"Thank you, Twilight," Luna said quietly.

"It's all right," Twilight said, placing a foreleg around Luna and hugging her. Luna accepted the embrace, leaning down onto Twilight's shoulder.

They were interrupted by a sound from the bed. Turning in surprise, they saw Celestia's eyelids flickering. With a feeble groan, Celestia opened her eyes and looked around. "Wha...where am I?" she whispered.

"Celie!" Luna shouted, hurrying to Celestia's side. The Guards outside poked their heads in to see what the commotion was about. "Guards, get a doctor!"

One of the Guards immediately ran off down the hallway. "Doctor! Nurse! Somepony!"

"Be still, sister," Luna said, taking Celestia's hoof in both of hers. "You've been hurt, but you're going to be all right now."

"Luna..." Celestia whispered, trying to get up.

"Shhh," Luna hushed. "It's all right. You're safe now."

A doctor hurried into the room. "Your Highness, it's good to see you awake," he said, taking out a stethoscope. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired," Celestia said. "I need to get back to the palace. I need to..."

"No, Your Highness, you need to rest," the doctor said, gently pushing Celestia back down. "Everything is all right. Now, then, do you hurt?"

Celestia surrendered herself to the attention of the doctor. Luna, Twilight, Flash and the Guards all stood back and watched in relief. "Well, it seems that your wounds are healing faster than anticipated," the doctor said. "I guess that's your alicorn magic at work. I recommend that you continue to rest for a while so we can make sure that you're all right."

"Thank you, doctor," Celestia said, already finding it hard to stay awake. Luna grabbed the doctor in a grateful (and rib-cracking) hug, but quickly let go.

"It's all right now, Celestia," Twilight said, taking Celestia's hoof. "We can take care of everything."

Celestia smiled at her. "I know you can, Twilight. Thank you." And with that, Celestia slowly lowered herself into the pillow and fell asleep. The doctor politely shooed everypony else out of the room so that she could rest.

"I must inform everypony else!" Luna said, already hurrying down the hallway, happier than Twilight had ever seen her. "There is hope after all!" Bursting out the hospital doors, she took flight, heading for the palace.

Smiling, Twilight spread her wings and flew after her, Flash by her side. "Good to see her happy again," she said, turning to Flash. To her surprise, Flash did not appear happy by this turn of events; he was frowning slightly, his brow furrowed in thought. Twilight had seen that look on his face before: it never meant anything good. "Flash?" she asked. Her bodyguard did not seem to hear her. "Flash!" she repeated, reaching out and shaking his shoulder. Flash blinked and turned to face her. "What is it?"

"I was just thinking," Flash said, turning away to concentrate on the flight.

"Thinking about what?" Twilight said.

"It's nothing," Flash said, intentionally avoiding her gaze.

"It's never just nothing," Twilight said sternly. "If you—"

She was interrupted by a whistle from below. "Oi!" a familiar voice called. Looking down, Flash and Twilight saw Phillip standing on the street beneath them, waving up at them. The pair descended and landed before him.

"Did you find anything?" Flash said urgently; it had been the first anypony had heard from him for the past three days.

"No," Phillip said heavily. He looked very tired: his head was lowered slightly, his eyes were a little baggy, his forehead wrinkles seemed deeper than before, and there was a shadow beneath his jaw. "And that's what's worrying me."

"How so?" Twilight asked.

"Getting a professional assassin to kill a Princess is big. Somepony, somewhere in this town, should know something," Phillip said. "And yet, nopony's talking. None of my old contacts, nopony in the local underworld knows anything."

Flash frowned. "That's not the only thing, is it?"

Phillip bit his lip. "It's the way they're being silent," he admitted. "Like they're being told to stay quiet."

"You think there's more to this?" Flash said, his brow furrowing.

Philip looked up at his partner. The investigators shared the kind of look shared between two ponies who are both thinking the same thing.

"What is it?" Twilight said, looking between them, her previous joyous mood quashed.

"I've been thinking," Flash said slowly. "The assassin was a professional, right? Connected to dozens of killings over the past fifteen years?" Phillip nodded. "So how come he missed?"

"What do you mean, he missed?" Twilight almost shouted, her wings flaring in shock. "She's been in hospital for three days!"

"Th-that's not what I meant," Flash stammered out quickly. "I mean...think about it. That shot was taken from less than a thousand meters away, in broad daylight, with no crosswind, against a target that wasn't moving very fast. Easy shot: Celestia should be dead now. Instead, he aims for her body, and only wounds her."

"And then he rushes out, guns blazing, instead of just quietly slipping away," Phillip said, beginning to see where Flash was going. The two of them paused, the same thought swimming in their eyes.

"What if he didn't kill Celestia on purpose?" Phillip said quietly. "What if he was supposed to get caught? What if whoever did this wanted Celestia wounded, weak, but not dead?"

Twilight stared at them. "But why?"

Phillip glanced down the empty street behind him, dark shadows creeping up walls and into cobbled alleyways, only partially banished by flickering street lamps.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Flash said quietly, his voice carried away by the whispering wind. The other two ponies silently agreed.

The night was quiet, the passing hours marked by the chiming of clocktower bells. The two Guards remained outside Celestia's room, standing watch over their princess. The armored ponies stood still as statues in the darkening hallway long into the night.

Nothing happened until past midnight, when one of the Guards suddenly realized that something wasn't right. The hallway wasn't just quiet. The hallway was silent. Not a single sound to be heard, as if the world had held it's breath.

Then the two of them heard a noise: a low, humming buzz that seemed to reverberate within their skulls. Looking up, they saw a figure standing at the end of the hallway, wearing a dark hooded cloak that hid it's entire body. The figure began to walk towards them, it's step slow and purposeful.

"Halt!" one of the Guards, an experienced master sergeant shouted, taking up his spear. His partner leapt to his side, the two of them forming an impassable blockade between the figure and the door to the Princess' room.

And that's when the Guards both felt fear that they had never before experience. The humming grew louder, deeper, and they both gasped in shock, their weapons trembling in their hooves. The pony continued to stride forward.

"I said halt!" the senior Guard repeated, summoning up his reserves of courage and strength even as his knees quivered. The cloaked figure paid no heed to his command, continuing to stride forward. The humming grew ever louder, filling the Guard ponies' ears, echoing inside their skulls. Both of them shook down to the tips of their tails, struggling to breathe, but held their ground.

"We are fully trained elite members of the Royal Guard!" the sergeant called out once more, talking to himself, his partner and his enemy, trying to convince them all. "You do not scare us!"

The cloaked pony stopped right before their trembling spear hooves. The humming sound was now becoming painful, and the Guards felt nauseous from fear, struggling to hold their weapons as their hooves became slick with sweat.

Slowly, the figure raised his head to reveal his face from the shadows. Both spears clattered to the floor, their owners slowly backing away, wide eyed and open mouthed in horror.

"Boo," the cloaked pony whispered.

The Guards turned and ran for their lives down the silent hallway, too terrified to even scream.

Now that the way ahead was clear, the cloaked pony entered Princess Celestia's room unmolested. He went straight to the bed, to the sleeping alicorn within. Sensing his presence, Celestia opened her eyes and turned towards him. The blue eyes widened in horror.

"Good evening, Princess," the cloaked pony hissed. He reached over to a morphine drip, turning the dial to increase the painkiller feed. Celestia tried to get up, to shout out, but fell back into the bed, overwhelmed by the narcotic.

Going over to the window, the intruder opened it up wide, allowing the cold night wind to enter. Going back to the bed, he pulled out all of the tubes and wires and lifted Celestia up in his hooves. He carried her over to the window and waited.

Outside, a raven cawed three times. The figure dropped Princess Celestia. She tumbled down three stories and landed directly in a wagon of hay, the soft grass cushioning her fall. Immediately, two ponies covered Celestia with a tarp and more hay, then attached themselves to the harness of the cart and hurried forward down the street.

With a satisfied smirk, the cloaked figure spread his bony wings and flew out the window, disappearing into the night.

Author's Notes:

Question: who would have a Princess shot and then have that Princess abducted from the hospital for reasons unknown, and scare two experienced Royal Guards while doing it?

Answer: wait and see...

Part 4: Searching for the Sun

The alarm was raised by the Guards, who were still on the verge of panic by their experience. Upon returning to the hospital and finding no sign of either Princess Celestia or any cloaked kidnappers, the responding Guards immediately began a canvass of the hospital and surrounding area. A pair of pegasi found an abandoned cart in a dead-end alleyway nearby, filled with hay and a tarp, and some stray multicolored hairs from Celestia's mane, with a discarded package of heart medicine nearby. A set of wheeltracks in the mud led away from the cart. Unfortunately, the trail ran out before it led anywhere. Even the doctors and other hospital staff proved to be no help, all of them stating that around midnight, they had all developed a sudden dread of the hallway where Princess Celestia's room was.

As dawn approached, Princess Luna ordered a city-wide search to take place. All travel outside of Canterlot, from trains and airships to chariots, carts and hoof travel, was immediately halted and every available Guard was summoned to the Palace at once to join in the search.

Twilight hurried into the main room of the Palace, a bleary-eyed Spike and a hastily-dressed Flash following behind. The other five girls were already there, each of them looking as worried as Twilight felt. All around them, several Guards were gathered into groups, standing as they waited for instructions, conversing with superiors, planning out routes and areas to search. The constant chatter reminded Twilight of the blustery wind before a storm: the mood was grim, almost tense, like a match being held above a set of tinder.

"What are we going to do?" Rarity declared, still wearing a fluffy bathrobe and her hair in curlers.

"We're going to find Princess Celestia!" Rainbow Dash declared, her wings buzzing with nervous energy.

"But Canterlot is huge! She could be anywhere by now!" Rarity said in alarm.

"And she's already hurt!" Fluttershy added.

"Getting your hair in a tangle isn't gonna help any," Applejack said, trying to restore calm to the situation. "Listen, Celestia needs our help now, and we're not gonna get anywhere by panicking." There was a pause while everypony gathered themselves, then Applejack turned to Twilight. "So, what's the plan, Twilight?"

Twilight was tired, stressed and afraid. But she was also a Princess, and had to be able to take control in a situation like this. She could do this: she had once before, during the invasion of the Everfree Forest. Taking a breath, she stilled her emotions, drawing deep in her sense of confidence. "I'll check with Captain Polaris. All of you just stay calm and we'll figure out what needs to happen." So saying, Twilight walked over to the other side of the room, maintaining her mask of calmness the whole way. She could feel the eyes of the Guards on her as she passed, knowing that they were looking to her for guidance; she could not afford to have them lose faith in her.

On the way, she passed by the two Guards that had been assigned to protect Celestia. Both of them were ashen-faced, their heads bent with shame, having already received a stern talking-to from Captain Polaris. Their helmets had been removed and were placed on the floor beside them. The other Guards were all ignoring them. Upon seeing them, Twilight felt a momentary surge of outrage. How dare they abandon their posts, go back on the vow they had taken? Didn't they know what duty meant? Didn't they care if Princess Celestia was in danger?

But when they saw her, both of the Guards immediately knelt, their faces to the floor. "Your Highness, please forgive us," the more senior Guard said in a soft, almost quivering voice.

Hearing the genuine shame and remorse in his voice, Twilight felt her anger dissipate somewhat, but she still gave them her sternest look. "What happened? Why did you run?"

"We were just...so afraid," the other Guard replied, unable to look up. "There was this noise, it got louder and louder, and it just made us so scared."

"And then his face...dear God, his face..." the sergeant added, shivering at the memory.

Seeing the terrified Guards, realizing that their fear had been both genuine and stronger than she thought, made Twilight think of something. Could it be...?

No. She couldn't consider that possibility. The idea of Celestia being in his hooves was too terrible to think about. Just concentrate on finding her and getting her home safely.

"It'll be all right, you two," she finally said. "Just...if you think of anything else, let me know right away."

"Yes, Your Highness," both Guards replied, bowing again. Twilight proceeded over to Captain Polaris, who was deep in conversation with his lieutenants, discussing a plan of attack. All of the officers knelt at Twilight's approach.

"Captain. What is the plan?" Twilight said shortly.

"We're going to divide Canterlot into different sections and go through each one with a door-to-door, asking if anypony has seen anything suspicious," Polaris explained, indicating the map of Canterlot with an overlaid grid. "Any abandoned areas are to be thoroughly searched, as are all train cars and outgoing vessels, and the Investigative Division has got a list of ponies that should be questioned. You and your friends can help by working with our squads on searches."

"We can do that," Twilight nodded. "What about Luna? She could be a target as well."

"Don't worry. Silent Knight will make sure that she stays in her chambers. He's one of the few ponies that she'll listen to in times like this."

The plan made, Polaris walked to the center of the room to address the Guards. The chatter died almost instantly as the soldiers snapped to attention, all of them facing their grim-faced leader.

"Who here is afraid?" Polaris said, looking around the room. His voice was even and soft, but carried into every ear as if he was standing next to everypony, speaking directly to them.

Fluttershy raised her hoof almost instantly, followed by Spike's claw. After a moment, to everyone's surprise, Polaris raised his hoof. Encouraged, several other Guards raised their hooves.

"There's nothing wrong with that," Polaris said, his blue eyes sparking with emotion. "Fear gives you strength. Fear keeps you going. Use your fear. Harness it. And do your duty to your Princess and to Equestria! We will find Princess Celestia if we have to turn this city inside out! Right?!"

"YES, SIR!" the entire room chorused in one voice. "FOR PRINCESS CELESTIA AND FOR EQUESTRIA!"

The Guards hurried out of the Palace and into the streets of Canterlot, with Twilight and her friends following them. Above them, the sun began to slowly rise above the horizon, it's light crawling up towards the sky. From her balcony in the castle, Princess Luna looked out over the city, eyes watering with tears as she struggled with the sun.

Sister, where are you?

"Well, if you see anything suspicious, please let us know right away," Flash said for the umpteenth time several hours later as he, Twilight and Spike exited the Sofa and Quills shop, the worried clerk watching them leave.

As they walked out into the empty cobbled street, Spike sighed. "This is getting us nowhere!" he declared, throwing his claws up in frustration. "There's no telling what's happening to Celestia now!"

"Spike, I know this looks bad," Twilight said, trying to keep calm. "But we're doing what we can. We—"

She was interrupted by a crashing noise from up ahead. Two pegasi were just emerging from a jewelry store, their hooves laden with stolen jewelry. Upon spotting an alicorn and a Guard up ahead, they immediately took to flight, soaring into the sky with their ill-gotten gains. "Hey!" Flash shouted, starting to chase after them.

"Leave them," Twilight said reluctantly, causing Flash to trip and land on his face. He gathered himself back up, briefly glad that the streets were mostly empty. "We have other things to do," Twilight said. The trio continued down the street, pausing at every door to question the inhabitants if they had seen or heard anything suspicious. Always, they were greeted with wide, frightened eyes and quivering voices. Always, the answer was no, they hadn't seen anything, and they were really worried about Princess Celestia and what was going to happen if they didn't find her?

As if they needed reminding of it.

The hours crawled on, the sun trailing across the sky as if mocking them. They passed the Canterlot Courthouse, which had a message graffitied in bright red paint sprawled across the white marble mall: "NEVER ANOTHER SUNRISE." An abandoned can of spray paint lay on the ground next to the still-drying paint. Down a side street, a burglar alarm rang incessantly, the bells echoing endlessly down the street. Nopony responded.

Up ahead, they saw a squad of Royal Guards marching down the street. With a surge of concern, Flash noticed that all of them were equipped with riot gear, including batons sheathed at their sides and reinforced plastic shields across their backs.

"ATTENTION!" the squad leader was shouting through a megaphone. "BY ORDER OF PRINCESS LUNA, A DOOR TO DOOR SEARCH IS TAKING PLACE. PLEASE REMAIN WHERE YOU ARE AND REMAIN CALM. THE ROYAL GUARD ASKS FOR YOUR COOPERATION TO MAINTAIN PEACE—"

The sergeant was interrupted when a glass bottle came hurtling out of a nearby alleyway, striking him on the side of the head and knocking his helmet askew.

"You can't keep us safe!" a young unicorn shouted from the alley, hurling another bottle at the Guards. "You can't even protect your own Princess!"

Two of the Guards broke off from the group and chased after him, forcing him to turn and run down the alley. The rest of the Guards continued down the street, spreading out to knock at doors.

"This is bad," Flash said as he led Twilight and Spike down another road. "The way things are going, sooner or later somepony's going to do something stupid and all hell's gonna break loose."

"Why would ponies act like this?" Spike asked.

"Because they're afraid," Twilight responded. "Ponies will act irrationally when they're scared."

"There's somepony here that Investigative Division wants us to talk to," Flash said, checking his notebook. He pointed at a large shop sitting between two apartment buildings. The wooden sign hanging above the door, swinging creakily in the breeze, read "Dirt Nap, Undertaker."

"This is a shady character," Flash said as they approached the shop. "We've suspected him of being involved in smuggling for years, but haven't been able to prove anything. However, he's known to take the heart medication that was found near the cart."

"What kind of smuggling?" Spike asked.

"Drugs, weapons, contraband...ponies," Flash added quietly. Twilight and Spike both blanched as Flash opened the door to the undertaker's office and entered.

For a funeral parlor, the place was well-maintained. There was a crystal chandelier hanging from the roof and flickering lamps and candles provided further illumination. There were pots of brightly-colored flowers on both sides of the door, and expensive-looking, exquisitely carved coffins on display on raised dais' all around the wide room. In the very center of the room was a very large white coffin, carved with images of roses. A sign next to it read "Service tomorrow 12:00 for our dear departed friend, White Rosebud."

"Can I help you?" a voice croaked out. Spike leapt off of Twilight's back with a yelp and hid behind her as Dirt Nap, a skinny pony with muddy brown fur and greasy midnight black hair with a mustache sauntered up behind them. His tombstone gray eyes glittered as he smiled, revealing several golden teeth. He wore a formal black suit and bow tie with a rose in the buttonhole, and his cutie mark was a gravestone.

"Princess Twilight Sparkle," he said in a low, slimy croak, affecting a bow. "How can I help you—" Then he saw Flash scowling at him and frowned. "Ah. The Royal Guard come snooping around again."

"Mister Nap, I am Corporal Flash Sentry," Flash said formally, trying to look down his nose at the undertaker. This was not very effective, as Flash was actually a bit shorter than Dirt Nap. "I need to ask you a few questions regarding Princess Celestia's disappearance. Where were you last night?"

"Right here," Dirt Nap replied. "Working on Mrs. Rosebud. The funeral is tomorrow at noon, after all, so I had to be ready for the final viewing."

"So you don't know anything about her disappearance?" Twilight asked.

"I don't know who took her, or where she is," Dirt Nap shrugged. A grin spread across his face once more, his eyes glimmering rather nastily. "I only know where she and everypony else is going..." He gestured to the coffin with the roses in the center of the room. Behind Twilight, Spike swallowed nervously.

"Well, if there's nothing suspicious here, you won't mind if we look around," Flash said coldly.

"Be my guest," Dirt Nap said through a forced grin.

The three ponies began a thorough search of the premises. They checked inside all of the coffins, beneath the tables and inside the closets. Nothing at all. They went downstairs into the cold basement where Dirt Nap prepared the bodies. A vicious concoction of chemical smells assaulted their noses as they entered the room. A metal table sat in the center of the room; the body of a tiny, elderly mare with white hair, yellow-white fur and a cutie mark of a rose was stretched out on it, respectfully covered with a plastic sheet. Cabinets were spread across all the walls, which contained nothing but chemicals. There was no sign of Princess Celestia anywhere.

"I think you've intruded on my work long enough," Dirt Nap finally said. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave so we can both get back to work."

Flash scowled, glaring suspiciously at the undertaker, but Twilight gently touched his shoulder, encouraging him to leave. The trio exited the funeral parlor, Dirt Nap bowing them out with a glittering smile. "I do hope you find her safe and sound," he called after them as he shut the door behind them.

"We should get back to searching," Twilight said, starting away. But Flash hung back momentarily, frowning in thought. Something was nagging at the back of his mind, like a splinter in his skull. Something that he had missed...something wasn't right...

"Flash, come on."

Called back to duty, Flash reluctantly pulled himself away, following Twilight down the still empty streets.

Back within the funeral parlor, Dirt Nap watched them leave through the curtains, a smug smile on his face.

Darkness. All Celestia knew was darkness, hovering on the edge of sleep and wakefulness. She couldn't see or hear. She tried to speak, but no sound came out. She tried to move, but her limbs seemed to be encased in lead: likewise, her horn seemed disconnected from her body, leaving her magic useless.

Where was she?

What was going to happen to her?

Author's Notes:

There is something that Flash missed...did you spot it?

More soon.

Part 5: A Glimmer

The search of Canterlot continued throughout the rest of the day and into the night, all for naught. Nopony had seen anything, and Celestia was nowhere to be found.

A sleepless night and a late sunrise over a cold, gray morning did not improve anypony's mood. The fruitless search continued, with increasingly lackluster energy. Meanwhile, the citizens became more and more restless: looting increased, there were several instances of street violence, and three squads of Guards had to be called in to stop a riot in the eastern district.

"It's looking worse by the minute," Twilight said, looking out the balcony of the Palace into the city beneath her. She had grown up in the capital, known it as her first home. Now it seemed to unfamiliar and alien to her, a frightening beast that threatened danger from all angles. For a horrible moment, Twilight wondered what would happen if this horrific nightmare spread to the rest of Equestria: what would happen if the entire country panicked all at once? The thought was even worse to her than the memory of Discord's first return and overtaking of Ponyville.

Behind her, Flash paced endlessly in a circle, muttering to himself. "I missed something..." he muttered, chewing his words and spitting them out as if they had a bad taste. "What? What was it? What was out of place?" He growled softly, rubbing his temples to soothe his pounding head. "Come on, Flash, think!"

Outside, a bell began to chime, sounding out twelve bells. It was noon: Princess Celestia had been missing for thirty-six hours. Unbidden, a statistic from his training in the Investigative Division flew into Flash's head: The likelihood of a kidnapping victim being found alive greatly diminishes after forty-eight hours...

He shook the thought out of his head. Or he would've, if the incessant clang of the bells hadn't driven it out already, aggravating his headache in the process. With a groan of pain, he massaged his forehead.

"Take a deep breath, Flash," instructed a voice. Phillip Finder was standing at the window, staring out at the city. "You're no help to anypony if you get frustrated."

Nodding, Flash took a breath and let it out slowly, forcing himself to calm down.

"What are your instincts telling you?" Phillip asked.

"That I missed something," Flash replied, continuing to pace.

"That means you probably did," Phillip stated, turning to face him. There was no emotion in his voice, no sign of disappointment; he was merely trying to guide Flash through his confusion. "Your subconscious mind is trying to tell you something. What sticks out the most?"

"Dirt Nap," Flash stated, continuing to pace, gritting his teeth at the memory of the undertaker's sneering face.

Phillip walked over and gently grabbed Flash's shoulders, stopping him in pace. "Close your eyes," he instructed him. Flash gave him a look of confusion, then slowly closed his eyes, taking a breath to settle himself down.

"Go over everything from your visit there in your mind," Phillip told him. "What was the first thing you saw?"

"The displays," Flash said, speaking slowly. In his mind, he was transported back to the funeral parlor; he could see, hear, smell and feel everything that, and he moved through the parlor at his own pace. "There's coffins everywhere. All of them are expensive-looking. I can smell the flowers."

"Is there anything that sticks out in your mind?" Phillip asked.

Flash paused, allowing the memories to sift before his eyes, the most pertinent details catching on the filters before his eyes. "The one big coffin on display. The one for Rosebud. Her funeral's today."

"Describe the coffin."

"It was large: almost twenty feet long, and four feet high," Flash said. "It was white, and carved with roses..."

A flash of clarity sparked in his mind and his eyes opened wide. They met Phillip's gray, and he knew that he had realized the same thing. "Stupid!" Flash burst out loud, smacking himself on the forehead.

"Excuse me?" Twilight said, her face a mixture of shock and offense: she clearly thought that he'd been talking to her.

"Not you, me!" Flash said, already hurrying out of their chambers, Phillip racing after him. They raced down the hallway towards the main meeting chamber, a bewildered Twilight close behind. What fools they'd been! If only they'd seen it sooner! They had to tell Captain Polaris right away!

As it turned out, Flash was going to see Captain Polaris much sooner than expected. As he turned a corner, he collided at top speed with another pony. There was a loud crashing of armor, a cry of "Oof!" and the shattering of ceramic, and the next thing that Flash knew, he was lying nose-to-nose on top of a surprised Captain Polaris in a decidedly suggestive position, both of them covered in cold coffee.

Attracted by the noise, other Guards and Twilight and her friends came bounding up to see what was going on. Rainbow Dash took one look at the two stallions and burst into hysterical laughter, rolling around in midair as Phillip helped Polaris and Flash up.

"You wanted to see me, Corporal?" Polaris said in an entirely unamused tone.

"Sir, I think I know where Celestia is!" Flash shouted through his frantic pants. Immediately, every head turned towards him, eyes wide with anticipation. "She's being hidden in a coffin that's being used in a funeral today!"

"How can you be sure?" Twilight asked.

"Twilight, remember Dirt Nap's funeral home?" Flash said. "You remember that big coffin?"

"Yeah," Twilight said.

"Think about it; a big coffin for a tiny, little old mare?" Phillip explained. "That coffin was big enough—"

"To put an alicorn in!" Twilight finished with Flash, her eyes widening.

"Good heavens! Princess Celestia's being hidden in a coffin?" a horrified Rarity cried out.

"B-b-but what if she's...if she's been already..." Fluttershy stammered out, the unspoken thought hanging in the air like a guillotine blade.

Immediately, Polaris was on the radio. "Attention, all units, we have a new lead! Be on the lookout for a hearse! Stop and search any hearses immediately!"

By the time he had finished, everypony else had already hurried out of the Palace.

Rainbow Dash flew over the streets of Canterlot, peering downward with her eagle sharp eyes. Twilight, Flash and Fluttershy beside her. Beneath her, she could see the rest of her friends, hurrying beneath her. A few citizens were now walking the streets, as well as some carriages.

Suddenly, she spotted her target: a small black hearse, being pulled by a fat brown pony in a dark suit and tall top hat. "Over there!" she shouted, pointing. Immediately, the group broke, chasing after the carriage. Rainbow Dash dived down towards the pony, who looked up too late to avoid her. With a crushing impact, she drove him into the ground, halting his progress.

"What? What is this?!" Dirt Nap protested from the ground, glaring around at the group in furious astonishment.

"What've you done with the Princess, you slimy rat?" Rainbow Dash snarled into her face.

"I don't know what—hey, leave that alone!" Dirt Nap protested, witnessing several of the Guards taking the coffin out of the hearse and setting it on the ground. Twilight ripped the top open.

Inside was White Rosebud, dressed in a light pink dress, her eyes closed and forelegs crossed as if in peaceful sleep. The group stared at the corpse in disbelief. Flash himself was frozen: had he been wrong? Had he just cost Princess Celestia her life by wasting time on this wild goose chase?

"Wait a minute," Twilight said. She placed her hoof inside the coffin, measuring the distance to the bottom. The problem was immediately obvious. "There's a false bottom!"

"Wait! You can't do that!" Dirt Nap shouted. Ignoring him, Twilight gently levitated the body out of the coffin and set it on the ground next to them. Then, reaching inside the coffin, she grabbed the false bottom and yanked it out. Everypony gasped at what lay inside.

Nothing. The hidden compartment, which really was large enough to hide an alicorn within, was empty. Peering into the secret cavern, Phillip reached inside with and extracted a hair. A long, pink hair.

Dirt Nap looked at the hair, then looked up at Rainbow Dash, who was still lying on top of him. With a smirk, he said, "I want a lawyer."

Celestia opened her eyes slowly. She was lying on a metal table in a cold, dark room. She tried to get up, but her limbs were strapped down. She tried to use her magic, only to cry out in pain as her magic was forced back into her by a powerful restraint ring. Panting, she looked around, trying to see into the suffocating darkness. "Is anypony out there?" she called. "What's going on? What am I doing here?"

"Doing?" a voice like rattling bones answered from her left. "You're doing what any sane pony in your appalling conditions would do." A cloaked pony moved into view next to her, bending over her prone body. "You're going insane."

Celestia swallowed, ordering herself to remain calm. This was nothing she couldn't handle. "Who are you?"

"My name is Doctor Nevermore," the cloaked pony said, his face indistinguishable from beneath the hood. "And you are part of my experiment."

"Trying to kill me for an experiment?" Celestia said, wincing as her injury flared with pain.

"Not kill you," Nevermore explained, moving away from Celestia, although his voice still carried as though he was standing right next to her. "Simply create a cloud of fear over Equestria. You should see the result: ponies panicking, cowering in their homes or giving in to their basest desires." He sniffed deeply, as if recalling the scent of a fine wine. "Delicious. But merely hors d'oeuvres." He turned back towards Celestia, now holding a large syringe filled with a green liquid. "No, the real hypothesis if you, Your Highness. What makes you...afraid."

There was no way to avoid it, no way to fight back. Before Celestia could do more than cry out in protest, Nevermore plunged the syringe into Celestia's foreleg, injecting the liquid into her veins.

Immediately, she felt the effects. Her heart seemed to stop for a moment, her breath freezing in her lungs, then her pulse skyrocketed as terror took hold. The darkness seemed to close in, crushing her helpless body. As he leaned over her, Nevermore allowed his hood to fall back slightly, revealing his face.

If Celestia had been in her rational mind, she would have recognized the face as a mask, a costume. But she was not in her rational mind, and the sight was terrifying to her eyes. The face beneath the hood was that of a corpse, its rotting flesh yellow-green, face frozen in an expression of horrible agony. Its shriveled eye sockets were empty and the toothless mouth was frozen in a silent scream. Most horrific of all, blood was smeared across the corpse's face, trickles leading from it's forehead, eyes and mouth as if the blood had replaced the sweat and tears.

The corpse leaned closer to Celestia, and she could feel, smell the blood dripping off it's face and onto her. "Now, Princess," Nevermore whispered. "Let's discuss your childhood."

Princess Celestia did the only thing that she could do.

She screamed.

Author's Notes:

Remember this guy? If you do, then you know this can't be good.

Part 6: Dread

Hours later, Dirt Nap was sitting in an interrogation room in the City Guard Headquarters. A low lamp cast harsh light directly into his face, but he barely blinked, sitting back in his chair with his forelegs crossed over his chest and a small smirk on his face.

"I know how this works, boys," he said into the darkness around him. "We've been through this. I'm not scared of you."

"You should be, buddy," snarled a voice to his right. A tough-looking dark blue earth pony—the "bad cop"—leaned in close to his face, glaring at him like he was a particularly disgusting, hairy, multi-legged insect. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you're in? If it was up to me, we'd stop wasting time and throw your ass into a cell!"

"He does have a point," the "good cop" said, a green unicorn with blue eyes that shone in the lamplight. He leaned forward slowly, placing his forelegs on the white-washed table. "That was Celestia's hair in that coffin. You're looking at a life sentence. But here's the deal: if you help us find Princess Celestia, we may be willing to discuss a lighter sentence."

Dirt Nap's smirk flickered, but did not falter. "Don't you care if Princess Celestia dies?" the good cop asked. "Her life could be in danger right now."

"Because of you," the bad cop hissed into his ear, slapping the table with his hoof. "If she dies, it's on your hooves."

"And everypony's going to know that you let the Princess of the Sun, ruler of Equestria die," the good cop continued in an even tone, as if telling a child why they shouldn't play with matches. "How long do you think you would last in prison?"

Dirt Nap maintained his smile, but a single bead of sweat trickled down his face, down his chin and over his quivering throat. "Just tell us where she is and who has her," the good cop said slowly, leaning forward.

There was a long silence while Dirt Nap considered the deal, looking back and forth between the two Guards. Twice, he adjusted the cuffs of his suit, glancing down at the pristine cloth. Finally, he looked up at his interrogators.

"I have a better idea," he said with a twisted smirk. "Why don't the two of you go **** yourselves and get me a lawyer?"

The bad cop snarled and slammed both his hooves against the table, thrusting his face directly into Dirt Nap's smug countenance. The good cop scowled, starting to rise from the chair as his self-control failed him.

Before anything could happen, the door opened and a pony stepped through. A pony in a gray trilby.

"Gentleponies," Phillip Finder said quietly. "You've been at it for a while. Why don't you and the lads outside go get some coffee? I'll keep an eye on him."

The two Guards looked at each other, then at Phillip. Without a word, both of them got up and slowly exited the room, shutting the door behind them with an audible click.

Dirt Nap looked at Phillip as he slowly approached him, walking around the table, keeping his head lowered so that the brim of his hat hid his eyes. "I know who you are, detective. You don't scare me, either."

"You are scared," Phillip said quietly, pausing just out of reach of the undertaker. "The thing is, you're more scared of your boss than us."

Suddenly, without any warning, Phillip moved forward like a thunderbolt, knocking Dirt Nap's chair out from beneath him and sending him sprawling onto the floor. Before he could even cry out, Phillip was standing over him, pressing his hoof against his neck and pinning him to the floor. "Let's change that," he whispered.

"What are you doing?" Dirt Nap sputtered, trying futilely to get up. "You can't do this to me! I've got rights!"

Phillip raised his head slightly, revealing his glinting eyes, silhouetted against the lamplight. The look he gave the smuggling undertaker was cold enough to make him freeze where he was lying.

"You've got rights," he growled in a voice like thunder on the horizon. "Lots of rights. Sometimes I count them just to drive myself mad. But what you've got right now is a very pissed-off pony standing on your throat. If he pushes down a little harder, he'll crush your throat." To demonstrate his point, he pressed down hard for a moment, cutting off Dirt Nap's air and causing him to choke. "I'd do something about that if I were you."

"You can't! Stop!" Dirt Nap protested.

Slowly, Phillip began to press down harder, ignoring the suspect's desperate attempts to get his crushing weight off him. "Where. Is. Princess. Celestia?"

"All right! All right!" Dirt Nap choked out. Phillip released the pressure slightly, allowing the suspect to gasp in a breath. "The airship docks...warehouse 13!"

"It's Doctor Nevermore, isn't it?" Phillip asked. The flare of sheer terror in Dirt Nap's eyes answered for him. "Thanks." Getting up, Phillip strode to the door and exited the room, slamming the door behind him.

"You enjoy that?" a voice growled. Turning, Phillip saw Flash standing next to the observation window, glaring at him.

"No," Phillip replied. "I did what was necessary."

"Necessary?" Flash almost shouted. "You could've killed him!"

"He's scum," Phillip replied, his voice even, but firm.

"That may be true, but he's also a pony," Flash replied sharply. "A pony with rights. What happens the next time you need info out of somepony, and they don't talk? Of what if you get the wrong pony?"

Phillip held up his hoof, stopping the conversation. "You know the difference between me and you and the others? Deep down, you and the others are good ponies." He walked around Flash, not looking at him. "And deep down, I'm not. Now come on. We've got a Princess to save."

"I have had the subject for almost nineteen hours now, and the experiment is a success," Doctor Nevermore spoke into a microphone, recording his voice onto a tape. "It has taken longer than anticipated, and I required more of the toxin than I originally estimated. This is likely due to her enhanced alicorn physiology.

"Nonetheless, I have succeeded. Even if she is an alicorn princess, Celestia is just a pony. A pony who can feel fear. And I have made her feel more fear than she has ever known."

He paused, smiling. "Princess Celestia has been driven mad. I've proven my point."

"Nopony outside," a Guard said, peering at the dark, empty warehouse through a set of binoculars from their position on a nearby rise.

"He'll be waiting for us inside," Phillip said. He was with Flash, Twilight, the other Elements, and a detachment of Guards. Also among their number was Princess Luna, with Silent Knight and a group of of Lunar House Guards: once she'd heard that a rescue mission was underway, she would not be dissuaded from coming along.

"Your Highness, once again, I must tell you this is a bad idea," Captain Polaris told her. "If you—"

"Captain," Luna said calmly, giving him a steely look. "Kindly shut up." Polaris decided it would be wise to obey that order, and instead turned to the others.

"All right, everypony put on your gas masks."

Everypony had a small brown satchel with them that they now reached into, pulling out a gas mask. One by one, each of them strapped the mask onto their face, ensuring that they were sealed tightly.

"Are these really necessary?" Rarity complained as she put hers on.

"You've had some of Doctor Nevermore's hallucinogens before," Flash pointed out. "You want to go for another round?" Rarity evidently decided that he had a point, because she did not reply.

"All right, listen," Captain Polaris said, his voice muffled by the mask, but still carrying all of its authority. "If this Doctor Nevermore character is as dangerous as Mister Finder says he is, then we may have to brace ourselves for the worst. Stick together, move fast, and watch your back and the back of the pony with you. We have to find Princess Celestia and get her to help as soon as possible. If you have a chance, bring Nevermore in."

"But be careful doing it," Phillip put in. "Nevermore is clever, and he's no doubt protected himself against attack. Approach with caution, and do not let him touch you."

"Any questions?" Polaris asked.

"Are you my mummy?" Pinkie asked. Polaris raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. "All right, let's move."

The group moved quickly and quietly through the night darkness, following only the dim light of stars and faint illumination from a pair of flashlights used by the front guard. Fifteen hearts beat rapidly: fifteen ponies breathed heavily, peering out through the masks, alert for anything.

As they approached the door, Phillip noticed something odd: the ground around them had been disturbed, as if several holes had been dug recently and covered up again. His senses sounded an alert, but it was already too late.

The lead pony didn't noticed the tripwire until he had already walked through it. With a snapping noise, several silver canisters sprang up from the ground, spinning in midair.

"AMBUSH!" Polaris and Silent Knight shouted simultaneously.

KA-BOOM!

Author's Notes:

That's not good.

Couple of references in here. Think you found them?

Part 7: House of Horror

A blinding flash and a thundering boom, and then everything went dark and silent. For several terrifying seconds, there was no sight or hearing. Only the painful headaches and the thudding of their hearts in their throats told the ponies that they were still alive. Slowly, a high-pitched ringing grew in their ears as vision gradually returned in the form of blurred, indistinct colors. It took several seconds more for their eyes and ears to recover from the assault; only then did anypony dare move.

"Wh-what was that?" Fluttershy whimpered, trembling as she hugged the ground.

"Flash-bang grenades," Captain Polaris said, shaking his head to try to regain his balance. "We use them sometimes as a non-lethal deterrent."

"Nevermore just wanted to spook us," Phillip growled. "Show us he could have offed us all if he wanted to."

While the group was no doubt frightened, nopony was hurt and the mission could go on. Without needing to be told, the two lead ponies proceeded to either side of the warehouse door, while the rest of the group stacked up behind them. On a silent count of three, one of them kicked the door open from the side and immediately proceeded inside, short sword ready.

"Clear!" he called out, giving the cue for the rest of the group to proceed inside. Inside the door was a small, dark hallway, completely empty of anything. They proceeded forward in silence, flashes peering into the darkness.

All of a sudden, a voice came out of the shadows up ahead. "Do none of you know how to knock?"

"Nevermore!" Flash hissed.

"Come and see what I have made," the voice called out as a light appeared up ahead. Cautiously, everypony moved forward towards the light to behold a terrible sight.

The room before them was large room, with shelves of bubbling chemical vats and thick notebooks. A metal table with straps lay in the center, underneath a bright lamp. In the corner opposite lay Princess Celestia. She cowered away from them, her forelegs over her head, tears streaming from her tightly-closed eyes as she whimpered pitifully.

Before her stood a figure dressed in a black cloak, with his back turned to the group of ponies. "Behold your Princess," Doctor Nevermore said, not reacting to their entrance. "The greatest source of hope for all Equestria, reduced to a terrified child."

"Sister!" Luna shouted, starting forward only to be held back by Silent Knight and Twilight. In response to the shout, Celestia let out a little cry and curled into a ball.

"Get away from her!" Twilight shouted fiercely as the group moved to surround Doctor Nevermore. He still did not look up, only continuing to stare down at Celestia.

Slowly, Polaris approached Nevermore, who still did not move. Reaching out with his magic, he seized the cloak and pulled.

The empty cloak fell to the floor, revealing the stand that had been holding it up and the speaker from which Nevermore had been broadcasting his voice. A light snapped on, revealing a large door carved with the words, "ABANDON ALL HOPE, YE WHO ENTER HERE."

"Sister, can you hear me?" Luna asked, bending over Celestia. At her voice, Celestia looked up. In her eyes, she beheld several towering, hideously-deformed ponies bending over her, glaring down with their bright yellow eyes set in blank black faces, threatening her with muffled growls. With a terrified scream, Celestia tried to back away from them, scrabbling against the wall. "No! Please, leave me alone!"

"Sister, it's me!" Luna said, leaning in closer, only to scare Celestia even more.

Luna looked down at her frightened, crying sister in a mixture of shock and pity. The blue eyes that usually brimmed with love, kindness and wisdom were now wide with fear, trapped within a living nightmare.

Nightmare...

Luna closed her eyes and took a breath, centering herself as she prepared to voyage into the dream world. The world around her dissolved away as she entered the gossamer realm. She immediately detected Celestia's spirit amongst the hundreds of minds and honed in on it like a bee attracted to a flower. Opening her eyes, she found herself in the middle of Hell. A nightmare of such ferocity as she had never known surrounded her like a storm. All of Celestia's ghosts, every failure in her life, every demon she'd exorcised, every bogeymonster that she'd chased out from beneath her bed...all of them were here, now.

In the midst of the darkness, Luna found Celestia, cowering on the ground as the monsters swarmed around her, taunting her with their vicious whispers and cruel laughter. "No, please..." Celestia whimpered, flinching away from a shadowy image of Tirek as he growled in her face.

"Celestia!" Luna called, but her sister didn't appear to hear her, instead giving a frightened yelp like a wounded dog when a shade of Nightmare Moon brushed up against her side. "Celestia, can you hear me?" Luna approached, struggling through the nightmares that pushed against her like icy winds. Sensing her presence, the monsters grouped up and tried to shove her back out Celestia's mind, but Luna pushed on. Nothing was going to keep her from her sister. With a furious shout, she sent out a burst of positive magic, forcing back her attackers and clearing a path to Celestia. Crouching down beside her, Luna took Celestia's hoof in both of her own.

It worked. Celestia looked up slowly, tear-streaked eyes meeting her sister's. "Luna?"

"It's me, Celie," Luna said softly, bringing Celestia into an embrace, slowly stroking her mane and neck. "It's me. You're safe now. You're safe."

Slowly, the nightmares faded away, dissolving into pale white light as Celestia calmed down. "Luna, I'm so sorry..." she whimpered, her tears drying.

"Shhh," Luna hushed, resting her sister's head against her breast, both in the dream world and in the real world. "It's all right. The nightmare's over."

With a grateful blink, Celestia let out a little, contented sigh and relaxed into Luna's embrace. The Princess of the Night pulled herself into reality to find everypony around the two of them, concern etched into their faces.

"She's peacefully asleep now," Luna said. "She'll be all right." She glared up at the others. "Find him."

Leaving Silent Knight behind to look out for Luna, the rest of the group proceeded to the labeled door. A Guard kicked it open, allowing them to enter a darkened hallway that they hurried down.

"I knew you would catch me eventually," Nevermore's voice spoke, coming from a hidden set of speakers. "But it doesn't matter. I've won: Princess Celestia has been driven mad and Canterlot is self-destructing. I've proven my point; that fear dominates all. Hope, love, friendship, happiness, morality...all of them, in the end, bow to terror. And soon, you all will bow as well."

The path split into two pathways up ahead. Without a word, the group split up, heading down either way. Phillip, accompanied by Rainbow, Pinkie and Fluttershy, followed Polaris and two Guards down the left pathway. Without warning, several vents in the wall opened up and released a thick cloud of gas, no doubt some of Nevermore's fear-inducing hallucinogens. However, they failed to get through the ponies gas masks.

"Stop hiding!" Polaris shouted in fury, storming forward through the cloud. "Come out and face me like a pony!"

Suddenly, Pinkie's tail began twitching. "Watch out!" she called, darting forward and grabbing Polaris' tail just in time. A trapdoor opened beneath his hoof, almost sending him tumbling down onto a bed of sharpened metal spikes.

"Thanks," he nodded, skirting the trap and leading the way forward into a more open area. Suddenly, there was a flicker of motion from the darkness above, then everypony leapt backwards in fright as a dozen bodies dropped from the ceiling, hanging by their necks from thick ropes. They stared at the intruders with their rueful, blank gazes, as if warning them of their future.

Phillip took the leg of one of the nearby corpses. "They're just dummies," he grunted, skirting around it. The others followed, most of them doing their best to avoid touching the disturbingly realistic dummies.

But when Rainbow Dash passed one—a pony with pale yellow fur wearing a hood—it suddenly sprung to life, leaping off its hook. Before Rainbow Dash could react, it seized her, flinging her to the floor. A claw-like weapon sprang from the pony's right sleeve and he stabbed Rainbow in the shoulder. Instantly, Rainbow screamed in terror, scratching at herself violently. "Get them off! Get them off me!" she screamed.

Doctor Nevermore was already flying away before anypony turned. He disappeared into a secret passageway that closed up beside him, narrowly avoiding Polaris' spell and Phillip's boomerang. Fluttershy bent over the panicking Rainbow Dash, taking off her mask in an attempt to calm her.

"First one down," his voice came from a speaker. "The rest of you to go..."

Twilight, Flash, Applejack and Rarity were accompanied by the remaining three Guards as they walked down the other hallway, which twisted and turned as they proceeded further into Nevermore's labyrinth.

"I don't like this," Applejack murmured. "I keep expecting something to happen."

"Oh, please don't jinx it," Rarity whimpered behind her. "I shall be perfectly content if nothing happens."

At that moment, something did happen. The Guard up ahead signaled a halt. "What is it?" Twilight asked.

"I heard something moving," the Guard replied, shining his light into the empty hallway ahead.

Suddenly, there was a glint of light and a shape hurtled towards the group. "Down!" Flash shouted, grabbing Twilight and pulling her to the floor. Everypony else ducked in time to avoid a volley of steel-tipped arrows. They thudded into the wall behind them.

"Are you hurt?" Flash asked, helping Twilight and helping her up.

"No, I'm fine," Twilight said. But before she could thank him for the save, a trapdoor opened up beneath Flash, sending him tumbling down a shaft. The trapdoor closed behind him before anypony else could react.

Flash fell fast, bouncing off the curving walls until he tumbled to a halt at the bottom of the shaft. With a groan, he forced himself to stand up, shaking his spinning head. Raising a hoof to his cranium, he found that his helmet had fallen off in his fall. Opening his eyes, he found himself surrounded by choking pitch black: his flashlight had been smashed and was dangling uselessly from his shoulderplate.

He clicked the microphone around his neck. "Does anypony read me?" he asked quietly. Not even static bothered to answer his call: evidently, his radio had been damaged as well. "Great," he muttered, probing a hoof around to try to find his helmet.

Instead, his hoof found the wall. With a horrified gasp, Flash suddenly realized the tightness of his quarters. Panic gripped him: gasping, he flew up to try to find the exit, but it had closed up. His hooves scrabbled against the unyielding wood in a desperate bid to escape his confinement. "Help! Twilight!" he shouted.

"Are you scared?"

Flash whirled around at the whisper, pressing his back against the wall as his heart leapt to his throat. That wasn't a speaker. Nevermore's in here with me.

"I'm not scared of you," he shouted back into the darkness.

"Of course you are," the voice hissed, its position impossible to discern amidst the echoes of the room. "You're locked in here with me."

Flash hissed in breath through his teeth, his eyes darting as he peered into the darkness. The attack could come at any moment: every breath, every beat of his heart could be his last. And he couldn't do anything about it: his shivering limbs refused to move!

"Soon you'll join Princess Celestia in madness, as my poison courses through your veins," Nevermore growled from his hidden position.

Celestia...

"You're wrong," Flash called out, some of his confidence returning. "Celestia is fine."

"What?" the voice snarled back in disbelief.

"She's still sane," Flash taunted, moving away from the wall to prepare for an attack. "In spite of all your sick, twisted games, she's as sane as she ever was. And she's not afraid of you. None of us are!"

"You lie!" Nevermore roared, leaping at him. Hearing his attack, Flash opened his wings and dodged to the side with a powerful flap, feeling the wind of the attack as it brushed by his face. Instantly, Nevermore turned in midair, slashing at Flash again. Flash felt the attack coming and, with a rush of gratitude towards Phillip for teaching him to fight while blindfolded, instinctively blocked it, counterpunching at Nevermore's face. His opponent slipped the attack, but Flash looped his hoof around his neck and brought him forward, striking him in the gut with a knee, then swinging him around to smash him into the wall. With a powerful yell, he spun in midair, lashing out with both of his hind legs. The powerful double buck sent Nevermore crashing right through the wall and tumbling into the next room.

Flash leapt out after him, pouncing on his chest. Nevermore, winded but not beaten, made another effort to inject Flash with his toxins, but Flash grabbed his hoof. The two began to struggle against each other, rolling around on the floor as they battled for dominance. Nevermore wound up on top. With a growl, he slowly brought his poisoned claws closer and closer to Flash's neck. The tips glimmered in the low light.

Flash growled back at up his opponent, shifting in an attempt to get up, but it was futile. The blades came within an inch of his skin, threatening to penetrate his skin.

Suddenly, he felt his leg come free. Without a moment's hesitation, he drove his knee up into Nevermore's groin. The doctor shouted in pain, instinctively rearing back. Raising his hips off the ground, Flash twisted Nevermore's hoof, flinging him off him. "Doctor, heal yourself," he growled, stabbing Nevermore with his own claws, injecting him with a large dose of his own toxins.

The blood red eyes grew wide with shock. A horrified cry erupted from Nevermore's throat as he rolled away from Flash, covering his head with his hooves and trembling. Panting, Flash got back to his hooves.

"Flash? Where are you?" Twilight's voice came from nearby.

"Down here!" he shouted back, taking off his gas mask with relief. All of the others reappeared, eyes widening in surprise as they saw Flash standing victorious over the quaking Nevermore. "It's over, everypony," Flash said with a grin. "I got—"

From out of nowhere, a sound came: a low, vibrating hum that reverberated in everypony's ears, echoing in their skulls. Terror filled their hearts: everypony froze in place, their limbs shaking like trees in a hurricane. Slowly, they backed away from Nevermore, who was slowly rising from the ground.

"Fool," he growled at Flash, who was backpedaling away from him as fast as possible. "I'm immune to my own toxins." He held up his hoof, revealing what looked like a small walkie-talkie, from which the terrifying sound was originating. "My latest invention," he explained, his red eyes glittering with superiority. "How I got past Princess Celestia's Guards. It sends out a sound wave that acts as a signal to the amygdala, the part of your brain responsible for fear. Imagine feeling more fear than you ever thought was possible, without knowing why. Imagine that you are terrified, incapable of thought, only able to stare up in horror." He moved closer to Twilight, who whimpered in fright, covering her face with her wings. "Oh, that's right. You don't have to."

The entire troop backed away from Nevermore; even Captain Polaris was trembling down to the tip of his tail. Phillip stared up at Nevermore, his hooves shivering from helpless terror. Nevermore rounded on him and he flinched away as the throbbing hum pierced his ears.

Suddenly, a thought crossed his head, his rational mind observing the situation and noting the problem; there was no reason for him to be afraid of a sound. His eyes settled on the black box in Nevermore's hoof. His objective burned in his mind: Destroy it.

With something to focus on beside the fear, Phillip forced himself to stand up straight. He took one step forward. Nevermore stared in surprise. He took another step forward.

"A stronger specimen," Nevermore grunted. He turned up the dial on his device. The volume of the throbbing hum increased. Phillip stopped in his tracks, a fresh wave of terror rushing through his body.

Get to the box. Stop him.

Gritting his teeth, he forced himself to walk forward, step by step. Nevermore stared in bewilderment, then growled softly, turning up the dial of his device. The noise was now as loud as thunder. Phillip felt like he was going to vomit from sheer fright; his skin was trying to crawl off of his body and his innards were squirming as if trying to retreat from the irrational threat. He tried to take one more step, but he felt as though his hooves were encased in lead; he could not summon the strength to move them.

But then he saw movement out of the corner of his eye. Rainbow Dash was stepping forward, her head held high in spite of the fact that she was shivering like a leaf in a storm. Then Flash started approaching, followed by Twilight and Applejack, then Polaris and the others. Feeding off of one another's courage, the entire troupe moved forward as one, closing in on Nevermore. Now it was the doctor's turn to cower, to back away in confusion and fright, still holding out the device as if trying to fend them off.

"Enough!" Phillip snarled, snatching the device from Nevermore's hoof and crushing it. The throbbing hum ceased immediately, ceasing Nevermore's control over them. The former doctor backed up against the wall, his glaring red eyes darting frantically from one pony to another in search of an escape. His captors glared back at him, all of them doffing their gas masks.

"Nevermore, you are under arrest," Polaris declared, his horn lighting up threateningly. "You have the right to remain silent—"

"Lenore!" Nevermore shouted. Almost immediately, a raven flew in with a screech, dropping a small black capsule in the midst of the group. With a loud bang, the smoke grenade went off, filling the room with thick black smoke, choking and blinding the group. When the smoke cleared away, Nevermore and his pet raven were both gone.

"Damn it!" Phillip shouted, stamping the ground with a hoof.

"Hey, it's all right," Flash said, touching his shoulder. "We're all safe. We proved him wrong."

Phil let out a growling breath. "Let's just get out of here,"

"I agree. Let's leave," Fluttershy said as the group headed back up towards the surface, where the sun and the hope it brought awaited them.

Author's Notes:

Courage is not the absence of fear. It is the ability to conquer fear.

Final chapter soon.

This chapter was revised 7-27-26.

Part 8: Nothing to Fear

Princess Celestia, while shaken and weakened from her ordeal, was unhurt and still sane. The city of Canterlot, along with the rest of Equestria, was relieved and overjoyed to have their Princess back.

That same day, a delayed Summer Sun Celebration was held in the Palace. Ponies from all over town gathered in the grand ballroom, cheerfully chatting as they looked forward to the rest of the year to come. Nowhere was there to be seen any sign of fear or despair or sadness.

Almost nowhere.

"Twilight, please, I'm fine," Celestia said with a smile, sitting near the front of the room with Luna, Twilight, Flash and Polaris. She was wearing a bright deep purple dress with her cutie mark displayed on her sides and on a medallion over her chest. The ensemble did an excellent job covering her bandages.

"Are you sure?" Twilight asked, brow knitted in concern. "You were just—"

"I was scared," Celestia admitted gravely, her face falling slightly. "Terrified, in fact."

"Your Highness, I'm so sorry," Polaris said, unable to look the Princess in the eye out of shame. "We should have protected you. I should have protected you."

"There is nothing to be ashamed of, Captain," Celestia reassured him, putting her hoof under his chin and raising his head to look at her. "You did everything in your power. And when the time came, you took control of the situation, provided this town with leadership and courage and hope." She smiled at him. "I'm proud of you, Polaris."

Polaris managed a smile. "And I'm proud of you two, as well," Celestia added, turning to Twilight and Flash. You and your friends did extraordinarily well, keeping calm even when everything seemed hopeless."

"It was never hopeless," Twilight said, taking Flash's hoof. "Not as long as I had my friends by my side."

At that moment, the drummer of the band on the stage began beating out a rhythm, signaling several couples to head towards the dance floor. "Enough talk," Celestia declared, standing and taking Polaris by the hoof. "Now, we have a party to attend."

"Huzzah!" Luna cheered, also standing. "Come, sister, let us take possession of the dance floor!" The friends cut a path directly towards the wooden dance section before the band, all of them smiling.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the ballroom, Phillip Finder was leaning on the bar, nursing a shot glass of cider. He stared down at his reflection in the dark amber liquid, lost in thought.

"What's up?" a cheery voice said next to him. Looking up, Phil saw Pinkie Pie smiling at him. "Aw, come on, Phil, don't look so down! What's on your mind?"

"Nevermore got away," he grunted, looking back at his drink. "But that's not all."

"What's not all?" Pinkie asked in concern, leaning in close.

"On the floor of Nevermore's lab," Phil said. "A cigarette. Goldleaf, Saddle Arabian tobacco." His grip on the shot glass subconsciously tightened, nearly crushing the glass. "Zugzwang. He was there. He was part of this." He gritted his teeth, breath shuddering in his chest.

Pinkie laid a hoof on his shoulder. "Maybe he was," she said. "But look on the bright side. You stopped them. We stopped them." She gently turned him around so that he was looking into the ballroom, pointing out each of their friends. "See? They're all safe, and they're all happy. Because of you." She pressed a hoof against Phillip's chest, over his heart. He looked down at her hoof, then at her, his gray eyes shimmering faintly. "And as long as there are good ponies like you, bad ponies like them can never win."

Phillip swallowed. The bright blue eyes, sparkling with happiness and care, seemed to be scrutinizing his soul. "I'm not good," he whispered.

"Of course you are," Pinkie said. "You just need to be reminded of that once in a while."

That was when the band started up again. Phillip's ear twitched when he recognized the heavy drum beat. "Benny Goodpony," he identified the artist.

Pinkie grinned. "Now, come on! Let's party!"

Phillip turned to her. "By party, do you mean smile and laugh, make fools of ourselves on the dance floor, and forget all about tomorrow?"

Pinkie's grin grew wider than the crescent moon and twice as bright. "Of course, silly! That's what parties are all about!"

Phillip smiled back at her. "Only if you'll do it with me," he said, offering her his foreleg. She gratefully took it, and he guided her to the dance floor.

The party lasted long into the day. Everypony smiled until their faces hurt, laughed till their sides were sore, and danced till their hooves ached. Because there was nothing to be afraid of.

Author's Notes:

And that's the end. I hope you enjoyed the latest addition to the Phillip Finder series, and are looking forward to the next episode!

Chapter notes

Part 2
—The chapter title, "Red sky at morning," is a reference to the old saying "Red sky at morning, sailors take warning."
—Captain Polaris is my own OC, first appearing in the previous story, The Blue Moon Brings Death.
—Silent Knight is the OC of my friend Anzel, the star of the series Memories of a Royal Guard, used with his permission.
—While it worked here because there was only one gun, the trick of counting the number of shots to determine how many bullets the shooter has left probably would not work in real life.
—A raven...sound familiar?

Part 3
—"The sun'll come out tomorrow: it's only a day away!": words taken from the lyrics of the song Tomorrow from the musical Annie.
—"Celie!": according to The Journal of the Two Sisters, this was Luna's childhood nickname for Celestia.

Part 4
—...being in his hooves...: fans of the series may have an idea who "he" is.
—Dirt Nap is from the saying "taking a dirt nap," a slang term for dead.

Part 5
—The idea of Celestia being hidden in the false bottom of an oversized coffin came from The Disappearance of Lady Carfax.
—"You're doing what any sane pony in your appalling conditions would do. You're going insane.": reference to one of Joker's lines in Alan Moore's The Killing Joke, which this story is loosely inspired by.
—Nevermore's costume is inspired by Poe's The Masque of the Red Death.

Part 6
—"You've got rights. Lots of rights. Sometimes I count them just to drive myself mad.": referencing Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns.
—Having Nevermore's base be at Warehouse 13 is symbolic: in many countries, 13 is considered bad luck.
—Flash, being an active member of the guard and the holder of a criminal justice degree, is a bit sterner about the rules than Phil.
—"Are you my mummy?": reference to the Doctor Who episodes, The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances.

Part 7
—Polaris finding that Nevermore's cloak is an empty costume reflects the ending of Poe's The Masque of the Red Death, in which the ball guests seize the Red Death costume to find that it is empty.
—"ABANDON ALL HOPE, YE WHO ENTER HERE": in Dante Alighieri's The Divine Comedy (Inferno, Canto III), this is inscribed onto the gates of Hell.
—"Doctor, heal yourself." : reference to the Bible, Luke 4:23: "Physician, heal thyself."
—Nevermore's invention is based off of a similar invention that Scarecrow used in The Scarecrow's Trail of Fear (Batman #262, April 1975). As Batman did in the comic, Polaris overcame it by coming to realize that there was nothing to actually be afraid of.

Part 8
—The song being played is Sing, Sing, Sing by Benny Goodman, or Benny Goodpony, as Phillip identifies.

Author's Notes:

Chapter notes from the story.