In the cave behind Neighagra Falls, the only waterfall on the mainland and the closest location to Lord Dario's castle, stirred a fierce torrent of water. The pool around the water crystal, the likes of which was safely stored there, began to shake and bubble, eventually giving rise to a long, blue, serpentine dragon with an arrow-shaped head and mouth, as well as two fins on its upper body with four large red spikes on both of them. It looked around the area, seeing if anything was lurking nearby.

"I haven't much time left here..." the dragon spoke in a raspy voice "But yet... I sense that she is near... She is in grave danger! I mustn't die yet! I must help her, I-"

The dragon stopped for a moment, listening to the whispering voice inside its head.

"M-My lady... are you... sure?" the dragon wondered, to which the voice confirmed its question "But she'll... surely die if we don't make it too her fast enough... I don't... undertstand..."

The voice once again spoke to the dragon, this time going in full detail why her answer was clear. The dragon listened closely, nodding whenever the voice paused. The dragon never really understood why the voice was in its head, nor did it understand where it came from and what its purpose was. All it knew was that the voice was female, and very timid about things most of the time.

"I... I understand..." the dragon nodded "In that case... Godspeed, water vestal... I will give you... the last of my power... May it... help you... show... your... true... self..."

At last, the team was all set to go. They had listened in on a few of Pinkie Pie's tunes to heal them up, as well as drank some Tinctures to restore a bit of their lost mana from the monster battles they fought earlier. They all stepped up close to the door preparing to strike the vampire and save Fluttershy when Twilight realized something.

"Someone has to stay behind..." she sighed "Someone has to stay here and protect the area in case things go wrong. While every one of us deserves a chance to kick his ass, I don't want anything going wrong."

"I'll stay" Discord smiled "Besides, I have better things to do then beat up some emo pretty boy. Go along now..."

"R-Right, of course" Twilight nodded.

"Yeah, it's about time!" Rainbow grinned, going for the door. Before she could grab it, Rarity pulled her back.

"Darling, don't you think we should be careful about this?" she suggested "I mean, Lord Dario and... urm... Posey could be planning any sort of attack for us behind there."

"Are you kidding me right now?" Rainbow shouted "We don't have time for careful strategies or thoughtful planning! Fluttershy is literally right behind this door, and I'm not moping around one more second!"

"Rainbow Dash is right; we ain't got time fer this" Applejack smirked and nodded at her friend "Kick it open, Dash!"

"With pleasure!" Rainbow lifted up her leg and smashed the door open, knocking it right off of its hinges. She pulled out her spear and ran inside the even darker room that the foyer. Everyone looked at each other with worried and confused faces before shrugging and following their friend into the throne room.

(Music Stop)

"Gee, it's kinda dark..." Pinkie pointed out.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious" Pipes sarcastically said "Did someone bring a light?"

"No!" Pinkie said in a tone that sounded way too silly for anything really.

"Careful, Pinkie, darling" Rarity brought up "If you are not careful, that word and that tone could be used by everyone way too much in the future. Then it would just die itself out after a few years..."

"You say that as if you've had something like that before" Twilight curiously pointed out.

"Well, um... Yes, I believe it was a fad back in the mines..." Rarity recalled "It was most uncouth, but I believe one would take something someone said and compile it into a multitude of other things someone said and turn it into the final product, which was usually loud and/or distracting and annoying."

"What was it called?"

"Oh, what WAS it called?" Rarity tried to remember "I know it had something with tubes and body waste..."

"Eugh... Too much information!" Pinkie stuck out her tongue.

Suddenly, they all heard the door slam behind them, despite the door having already been knocked off. The room had now become pitch black, and no one could see a thing. Suddenly, candles along the throne room's hall began lighting up, from the door all the way to the other end. The flickering lights continued until they illuminated the throne itself. There, Lord Dario was sitting with Posey sittingg rather suggestively on his lap. His face showed signs he was displeased by the six barging into his private time, but he wore a grin anyway.

"Uncouth mortals..." he began "How unpleasant to see that you have invaded the time my wife and I were so wondrously spending together. Isn't that right, my flower?"

"Quite" Posey giggled "How foolish of them to think they could barge in and ruin our fun."

"Oh, I can assure you, my dear Posey, that these whelps will be taken care of easily" Dario chuckled.

"That word... whelp, I mean" Twilight brought up "I'm not sure it means what you think it means."

"Kaw!" Spike called out.

"Does that really matter right now, Twilight?" Rainbow questioned Twilight before stepping up and aiming her spear at Dario "Hey Dandy Dick! You give back our friend now or I stick this spear up your ass!"

"Certainly one way of putting it..." Rarity said under her breath.

"Why, I do think that was a threat, my love" Posey gasped before circling her lover's chest with her finger "Should we dispose of these mortals or not even bother wasting our power? Any choice is my choice..."

"You know? These disgusting things are beginning to get on my nerves..." Dario nodded, finally deciding what to do with the group "I think it's about time we show them your true power, my most beautiful flower."

"M-My true power, my love?" Posey questioned "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"Posey, my dear, all Vampires have some sort of hidden power locked away inside them" Dario explained "I have seen all powers... save for yours, of course. Oh, don't fret, dear... Your lovely voice would stay with you..."

(Music Stop)

"St-Stay with me?" Posey had gotten off Dario's lap and gave a genuinely fearful face "D-Dario, what are you trying to say?"

"I'm saying that your voice shall continue to live on... through your transformation" Dario smiled "Which is good, because if it didn't, I would have no use nor love for you anymore."

"Dario..." Posey shivered before closing her eyes and clutching her head, moaning in a bit of pain. Once she stopped, she opened her eyes back up again to reveal they had turned back to the normal baby blue of Fluttershy's eye color. Everyone besides the woman in question gasped at this.

"F-Fluttershy!" Applejack's eyes widened "Could it be?"

"I..." she rubbed her head before looking around the room "Where... Where am I?"

"Fluttershy!" everyone but Lord Dario cheered with joy. The Vampire in question's eyes widened in shock and fear, trying to understand how Posey could be freed from his control.

"Impossible!" Dario shouted "My grasp on her was too strong; she shouldn't have conscious control! Something... Something helped her... and I intend on finding out what!"

"M-My body..." Fluttershy looked down at her hands, still the darker yellow she had when she was a Vampire "A-Am I... stuck like this? Am I cursed to be... a Vampire?"

"Ahahahahahahaha!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Lord Dario's pupils shrank, his smile widened and his hands clutched his head "So you think you can take away my Posey from me, HUH?! You are all fools! She will stay with me and sing to me! She will be all mine and there's nothing you can do about it!"

"Enough, Dario" Rainbow, with her lowered weapon, sighed "You've lost, so forget it. Fluttershy is our friend and not your plaything, and I'm pretty sure she would like to stay with us instead of you."

"Y-Yes, very much so, yes" Fluttershy nodded before loosening up and walking towards the group, who all greeted her with open arms. But anyone should have known that's not where Lord Dario was going to let things end. He had been searching for far too long to let things end here. With one of his shadowy hands from his back, he reached out and grabbed Fluttershy, causing her to scream in fear. Everyone gasped at this, but all pulled out their weapons, ready to help their friend.

"Put her down, Dario" Applejack growled "Or y'all be sorry in the mornin'!"

"You're making a huge mistake, Dario!" Twilight called out "You only defeated us on our airship because you caught us off guard. Now that we're ready, we can take you on!"

"Poor things... You actually think you're going to face me in combat?" Dario chuckled, much to everyone's confusion "Do you really think I would mention a Vampire's true power without demonstrating it to you?!"

"You wouldn't dare..." Rainbow' grip on her spear got tighter.

"If I transfer my power into my wife, she would gain enough power to not only dispose of you, but rule in my stead!" Dario laughed "I would be powerless, but Posey would be all-powerful."

"Please! Let me go!" Fluttershy struggled.

"Sorry, my beautiful flower, but you have proven yourself to be much too troublesome to allow to be let free" Dario said as he pulled out another shadowy hand and grabbed Fluttershy's body again "Now... hold still and accept your power! You will be mindless, but you will be more beautiful than ever before!"

(Music Stop)

"N-No! Please, stop this!" Fluttershy had begun crying as she felt Dario's power enter her and fill her soul with darkness "Please! Please... P... lease... sto... p... P... l... e... a... s... e..."

"Enough of this!" Rainbow Dash jumped up and tried to cut Dario's shadowy arm off, only to realize it was futile "What? How can I go through that? Is it actually made of... pure darkness?"

"Off of here!" Dario pulled out another hand and and pushed Rainbow away "You mustn't disturb us now! You run the risk of killing me, let alone her! Surely you don't have the heart to strike me down now."

"You... You..." Rainbow tensed up "...fucking asshole..."

"That's what I thought..." Dario chuckled before a bright flash of dark light appeared before everyone "At last! The power conversion is complete! My dear beautiful flower, now you shall powerful and have a lovely voice as well! Feast your eyes upon her: Posey, the Vampire Queen! MY Vampire Queen!"

Dario's shadowy hand dropped Fluttershy onto the floor. A dark energy then surrounded Fluttershy's body and engulfed her before finally expanding and dispersing around the room. Where Fluttershy was lying stood a hideous bipedal gray creature with a gaping mouth and four holes where its eyes should have been, with red, glowing dots in them. Two dark brown and curly horns protruded on its head, and pink crystals covered its two massive arms. Its long tail had a pink, glowing energy ball at the end of it, and its back had two giant dark gray wings protruding from it. With its curved back legs, it stepped forward and roared at the team.

"Isn't she marvelous?" Dario asked "The best part is that she's going to DESTROY YOU!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!" with that, he teleported away. But the group couldn't think of him now. All they could think about was the monster in front of them, and how they were going to save it.

"Whatever you do, don't hurt her!" Twilight shouted "Monster or not, that's still Fluttershy underneath that!"

"Never did ah think ah would be fightin' ya, Shy..." Applejack sighed "Y'all were such a nice young woman too... Git ready, everyone! Here she comes!"

The creature roared an ear-shattering cry before leaping up and flapping its wings, causing a huge gust of wind to blow around the group. The mages were almost immediately thrown back, leaving the physical attackers to fend for themselves for a while. Pipes took no time in charging right for the creature.

"Pipes, wait!" Rainbow shouted "Don't hurt her!"

"Rainbow Dash, as far as I'm concerned, this ain't Fluttershy nu more" Pipes pointed out "Besides, defeating it might actually bring Fluttershy ta her senses, it might!"

"Reed Pipes could be right, darling!" Rarity called out from behind "Sometimes a good smack is all someone needs to snap right back into it! Works with men, anyway..."

"That could work..." Applejack pondered "Alright then, let's try ta knock her out instead. No one use any sorta sharp thin' or somethin'! Just go fer whackin' attacks!"

"Whacking attacks are my specialty" Pipes pumped her fists together before leaping up and grabbing the creature's face, lining up an attack, and punching it right in the nose. This caused the monster to roar and cease flapping its wings, felling it onto its belly and opening itself up for attack.

"CHARGE!!!" Twilight shouted with her book high in the air. The others that were knocked back from the wind came running right back at the creature with their weapons, ready to smack it into oblivion or something of that ilk. Rarity pounded her rod on the monster's head, while Pinkie jumped around it, hitting her seemingly unbreakable ukulele against any place she could. Pipes simply continued punching it, doing the most damage out of the group. Rainbow Dash and Applejack looked at all their friends with slight confusion.

"Y'know, when I went into this battle with Fluttershy, I thought it was going to be a lot more serious than this" Rainbow mentioned "I mean, it's the battle to get our friend back and we're whacking her with musical instruments."

"Ah hear ya" Applejack nodded "Ah mean, maybe ah kinda wanted somethin' else, y'know?"

Just as Applejack said that, the creature got back up and knocked all its attackers off its body, raising its head into the air and letting out a powerful roar. Its arm crystals then grew larger and began emitting electricity between them, eventually charging up its arms and claws. It once again let out a roar before charging at the others.

"Crap, crap, crap!" Twilight ran out of the way, just barely escaping the attack "Whoa! That energy from those crystals is strong. But what if we took the crystals out?" she pulled out her summoning book and flipped to her Lv.2 chapter "Summon! Lv.2 Ifrit!"

The same tanned skin man with horn and a red loincloth appeared out of a summoning circle in front of Twilight's feet. He held out his hand and magically summoned a fiery sword into his grasp. He swung said sword right at the monster, only to have it block the attack with its bulky arm. Twilight had never seen a monster block a summoning attack before. But then again, she had never seen mutation before either.

"Twilight, what the hell is Ifrit doing here?!" Pipes shouted.

"You heard what ah said, right?" Applejack wondered "No use o' sword weapons on-"

"I heard what you said, thank you, Applejack" Twilight confirmed "But we might not get anywhere if we can't cut off those crystals Flutte- the creature has. See, the crystals are giving it power. If we can remove or destroy them, perhaps with a blade or two, the creature won't have any means of powering itself up, and this battle will have gotten easier for us!"

"...alright, but jus' the crystals" Applejack nodded "Y'all heard the girl! Aim yer attacks on those crystals!"

"Sorry about this, Shy!" Rainbow leaped up into the air and landed onto the monster's arm that was blocking Ifrit's sword and swung her spear at the crystals, cracking them slightly and knocking the creature about, allowing Ifrit to finish the job. The left crystals shattered and stopped giving power to that arm, causing its coloration to become a darker gray.

"And for my next trick..." Rainbow twirled around and attempted to strike the other arm. However, the creature learned from the last attack and punched her into the ground just before her spear could hit its target.

"Rainbow Dash!" everyone shouted in fear.

"Nng..." she groaned, feeling as if all her bones were shattered "N-No, I've lived through worse than this... But damn, Fluttershy, that was a nice hit... Wait... Fluttershy!" she slowly got back up and faced the creature dead in the eye, dropping her spear and letting out a long sigh.

(Music Stop)

"What is she doing?" Pipes questioned Twilight about her friend's intentions.

"Rainbow Dash, you gotta stop!" Twilight called out "That isn't Fluttershy anymore! She'll be like this until we can find a way to save her, and I promise you we will; but please, you have to stop!"

"Fluttershy..." Rainbow reached out for the creature "Fluttershy, if you're still in there, I-"

The creature growled at her, causing her to jump back a bit. After a few seconds of patience and quiet, Rainbow continued inching closer and closer to her friend.

"Shy, listen to me, okay?" she plead "It's me, Rainbow Dash! Please, I..." a thought crossed her mind; one that she was sure was able to bring her friend back "...look, Shy, I know about all the looks you've been giving me for a while. I know that you have one, gigantic crush on me like the lesbian you are. Heh..."

This finally calmed the creature down slowly but surely. It growled a few more times before at last ceasing to be aggressive. It looked at Rainbow Dash with curiosity in its eyes.

"Yeah, th-that's it... there w-we go..." Rainbow was starting to feel weak and lightheaded from the extremely powerful punch the monster lay down on her "Fluttershy, this isn't... nng... you. You have to snap out of this and come back to us... please..."

The creature continued to look at her curiously, as if her words went right over its head.

"H-Hey, lemme tell you something, okay?" Rainbow Dash was finally able to place a hand on the creature's leg "Truth is, I think you're pretty cute. Your smile always brightens up everyone's day. Your very presence makes our world, my world, all that much better... F-Fluttershy, I... I lo..."

Rainbow's eyes closed as she collapsed onto the creature's leg.

"Rainbow Dash..." Applejack sighed.

"No, this can't be!" Rarity looked away from the scene. All Reed Pipe and Pinkie could do was watch as everything unfolded.

The creature began shaking a bit, eventually scooping Rainbow's body up in her right arm. Tears had begun rolling down its face as a bright light enveloped it and shrank it back down to size. All that remained of the creature was a cream yellow woman with curly hair and a green dress on. She fell to her knees and held her friend in her arms.

"Rainbow Dash, please wake up!" Fluttershy cried "You can't die! You can't! NO!" she lowered her head and continued to sob "This is all my fault... Everything..."

"Fluttershy, this isn't your fault" Twilight walked over to her friend and placed a hand on her back "Lord Dario was the one that-"

"But I was the one that hit her..." Fluttershy tried her best to speak through her sadness "I was the one that killed her. I watched her die, Twilight! She... I..."

"Please, you have to understand, Fluttershy" Twilight begged "You couldn't have known what you were doing. Even if you did, you weren't in control. Everything is Lord Dario's fault."

"...then I'll kill him" Fluttershy spoke angrily as she wiped away her tears, surprising Twilight; never had she heard her friend say something so violent the time she knew her "I'll kill him and find a way to bring Rainbow Dash back, I swear. No amount of healing magic can save her, nor Phoenix downs... She's dead, Twilight... but I think I know a way to revive her..."

"You do?" a small smile once again appeared on Twilight's face.

"I've lived a bit of my life in this castle" Fluttershy regrettably remembered "I know where some things are, like a passage to the water crystal. The healing properties of the crystal might be the only thing left that can heal her."

"Then what are we waitin' here for, lass?" Pipes finally spoke "Let's get her back, yeah?"

"Yay! We can bring Rainbow Dash back!" Pinkie hopped up and down "Count me in!"

"Ifin we have ta fight some sorta guardian again, ah'm willing ta lay down mah life ta git a friend back" Applejack nodded "Ah'm ready fer anythin' now. Let's go!"

"Twilight, will you help us?" Fluttershy wondered.

"...Fluttershy, there's nothing I wouldn't do for a friend" she smiled "I was on board this band-wagon before it even began!"

"Then in that case, let's get our friend back!"

"YEAH!!" everyone shouted in joy.

Author's Notes:

Whew! New chapter done! Took me long enough, eh? Sorry for the super-long wait, but due to a general lack of interest and school projects (that took away my interest, BTW), I had no time to finished this seemingly short chapter.

IMPORTANT!! PLEASE READ!!

This is why I'm calling for a hiatus on the story. I know it sucks, but hear me out. What with all the school now taking up my time, I have very little time to work on this project. Sure, I'll still be on FIMfiction, but for anyone who doesn't know this already, I always have FIMfiction open on my tabs, so I'm never offline and I can talk with people about their stuff.

Does this mean the story's gone for good? No, that's why it's a hiatus. It'll return, but I need some time to clear my writers block. You might see some other things from me in the meantime, but until I can get some ideas down, this story is in sleep mode for the time being. I really hope you guys can understand.

If anyone's interested though, I have a new Chrono Trigger story up that I think you might enjoy. Wanna give it a Like?

Be sure to Like, Comment, Favourite and Follow, and until then, dream on everyone!