Shining Armor may have been right. The Tree of Harmony may not have been destroyed. In her heart, Rainbow Dash did not think it had been. She would have felt it. All ponies were linked to that tree in some way, but her and Fluttershy were connected to it even more than anypony else. They could tell when something was wrong.

Even if the Tree of Harmony had only been moved, the effects of its loss were substantial. The Forest- -the Everfree Forest, really- -had faded precipitously without its presence. The light had faded, and the trees, once so grand and leafy, seemed to be dying, their leaves falling away. The animals were all in a panic, cowering from something that they either did not understand or understood far better than any pony could.

Most of the sentient lifeforms also seemed to be agitated. The deer, especially, had taken the injury to their forest hard. The breezies, likewise, had placed their cities on lockdown. The few zebras that lived in the area also seemed aware of the events, and carried it in their behavior with solemn acceptance.

The only beings in Fluttershy’s kingdom that seemed not to care were the gohh. Their swamp had become so much darker and stranger when the Tree had been lost, but at the same time, it seemed no less alive. Instead, it had become angry and dark and perverse, perhaps even more alien, a relic of an Equestria that predated the Tree of Harmony’s presence by endless millennia.

The group had left the swamp to the buzzing, plant-like creatures. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash had returned to the peripheral components of the Forest to prepare. Fluttershy was somewhere else, probably attempting to reassure her people- -or Discord, even. Rainbow Dash had been placed in a large outdoor “room” for her own preparations.

These ‘preparations’ entailed being attached to numerous machinery. Rainbow Dash stood still as an undead creature attached the electrodes and framework around her. She tried to pretend that it was just another pre-flight outfitting, just like she had performed during her time with the Wonderbolts. Doing so took a great amount of mental focus, though; the creatures surrounding her consisted of partially metal ponies whose heads had been replaced with masses of squirming, insect-like robotic arms.

Even more disturbing, though, was the realization of what was being attached to her- -or more specifically, where it had come from. If she was wearing something that Shining Armor had created himself, it might have been okay, but this was Five’s work. Her life’s work was being placed on Rainbow Dash’s body, and it was going to make her do exactly what Five had intended it for. That alone irritated her beyond measure, and her only consolation was that Five would never get to see her weapon used to do some good rather than harm.

A pair of creatures approached from the side. One was a deer, and the other was a pony, his skin overgrown with wood. They were both carrying heavy loads, and set them down in front of Rainbow Dash.

“I never thought I would be helping a dirty pony,” muttered the deer, apparently oblivious to the racial background of her comrade beside her.

“Thanks a lot,” said Rainbow Dash, sarcastically. She looked down at the boxes, and realized that they contained armor. “Do I really need that?” she asked.

“The dead one says that you do,” said the deer, annoyed at the question.

“You do,” said the pony werewood. His voice was a deep growl, but sounded far more amiable than that of the deer. “Where you are going is heavily contaminated. The dead-god has placed spells in this armor to protect you.”

Rainbow Dash grumbled. She really did not like wearing armor, at least not the armor that she had been provided. Even looking at it, she could tell that it would be heavy. The whole point of Pegasus armor was that it was supposed to be as light as possible; really, the traditional war-armor of the Pegasi was really intended essentially to improve aerodynamics. The spandex Wonderbolt uniforms did the same thing.

Still, she knew that it was necessary, even if she would never admit it. Not only was she about to go into battle with an immortal, all-powerful goddess, but she was also pregnant. The armor was not meant to protect her alone, but also her unborn foals.

Thinking about them, she momentarally wished that there was another way. Even if it meant missing another epic battle, it might have been worth it to sit this one out. Of course, there was no way she could do that. She was the Element of Loyalty, and without her, the Elements of Harmony would be useless.

“I don’t like this,” said the deer. “Can we really trust a pony- -a cyborg, no less- -to defend us?”

One of Shining Armor’s constructs replied with a long, silent stare. The deer, apparently unnerved, stepped back.

“Come on,” she said, backing away. “I don’t have time for this.”

“For the record,” whispered the werewood, “I believe in you, Rainbow Dash.” He then retreated with his friend back into the woods, leaving Rainbow Dash alone with the silent corpses.

One of them reached into the box, removing a piece of the armor. The other joined, attempting to weld it onto the already heavy framework of technology that covered her. Rainbow Dash swatted them away. “Stop that,” she said. “Go away! I can at least put on my own armor!”

The acknowledged her request by setting out the armor in front of her, organizing it neatly. They then fell back to the nearest tree, sitting down and becoming inactive. Rainbow Dash shivered. She did not know how Shining Armor dealt with being surrounded by weird things like that all the time. Of course, he always had been a bit strange.

She directed her attention toward the armor and examined it. Most of it, she found, was made of metal, the same sort that Shining Amor’s constructs used. It was far more impressive than she initially had expected, and, to her surprise, Shining Armor seemed to have taken steps to make it at least marginally lighter. Parts of it were made of light-colored plates of wood. Rainbow Dash was not sure what good wood would do for armor, but tapping on it revealed that it was incredibly durable.

Then she saw the insignia on one of the shoulder plates, and she felt herself starting to inexplicably cry. Shining Armor did have an eye for detail: he had included her Wonderbolt insignia and rank into the period-correct location of the armor. Rainbow Dash smiled, even against the sad memory of what she had been, and realized that this was real. She was really about to go into battle, just like she had before so long ago.

She began to don the armor, taking care to adjust it in a way that would allow her the best mobility in the air. As she was attaching the chestplate over the underlying framework of electronics beneath, she became aware of two ponies approaching her.

One of them she recognized. She was the pony she had seen at Fluttershy’s side back on the island beneith Cloudsdale, the one dressed in the same armor as the gohh. She appeared wearing the same armor, but her helmet was removed. From the amount of green growing where her mane should have been, Rainbow Dash guessed that she probably was not even a real pony, but rather some sallow and rotten hybrid that the gohh had created.

Beside her was another pony, one much smaller. At first Rainbow Dash dismissed him, but as they came closer, she suddenly gasped and dropped the piece of armor she was holding.

“Brown?” she cried in disbelief.

Brown looked up at her. She had not recognized him, and could barely recognize him now. His fluff had been almost completely shorn, leaving him with only a few centimeters of fuzz over his body. Even his long mane had been trimmed into a neat Mohawk, and his tail shorted substantially.

“Indeed I am,” he said, sounding slightly embarrassed, looking up at Rainbow Dash with his clear blue eyes.

“You’re so…so…” The world Rainbow Dash was looking for was “small”, but that did not even do Brown justice. She had known he was short in stature; she had explored most of his body quite thoroughly, and was aware that he was not as large as a normal pony. Feeling him and seeing him turned out to be two very different things, though. With his fluff gone, Brown was only slightly larger than a filly. He was muscular and stocky, but tiny.

Seeing him with short-cut hair caused Rainbow Dash’s wings to flutter involuntarily, and she had to make a conscious effort to keep them from pomfing open.

“Yup,” she said. “I’m a pedophilly.”

“Excuse me?”

“Nevermind,” said Rainbow Dash, shaking her head. “Brown, what did you do?! Where’s all your fluff?”

“I had it removed,” he said.

“But- -it’s your fluff!” Although Brown had never stated it explicitly, Rainbow Dash was aware that he was actually quite proud of his Exmoori heritage and by extension his thick, luxurious hair.

“Integration with the bioarmor will not work through thick fur,” said the pony standing beside Brown. She turned her head and looked down at Brown, and Rainbow Dash saw that the back of her head was open and connected to a number of green tubes that led from her hollow skull into her armor. She looked down at Brown with the same blank expression that he had once possessed.

“Bioamor?” asked Rainbow Dash, confused. “What does that mean?”

The gohh raised her hoof, showing Rainbow Dash the chitinous gray material that covered her body. “This,” she said. “It is what our soldiers use. We use it, but it is not of us. We found it, harnessed it. Tamed it, even.” Her eyes narrowed. “However,” she said, “our biology is unique. How it reacts to a living pony is uncertain.”

“What do you mean ‘uncertain’?” asked Rainbow Dash. “Brown, what does she mean?”

“Tactical Commander means that this…well…it could hurt me. Badly. That is why I came here. To let you know.”

“Then don’t do it, idiot!”

“I have to,” said Brown.

“No, you don’t! Why would you even want to do this?”

“Because I’m just a pony,” he said softly. “Even as an Exmoori, I’m just a pony. An alicorn destroyed my entire people. Every one of us. And now you are going to fight one. I can’t let you go alone, Rainbow. I just can’t.”

“But that’s insane! You’re not an Element, Brown, and you saw Thebe. You won’t be able to do a thing against her!”

“I know,” he said. “But I have to be there. I just have to.”

“Why?”

“Because I love you, Rainbow Dash. Because I want to be at your side in this battle. I never want to leave your side. I may not be able to help, but if you got hurt while I was cowering here, I could never forgive myself.”

Rainbow Dash found the notion oddly romantic, if strange. She smiled. “So you want in on this battle too?”

“Any battle in which you participate shall certainly be a great one.”

Rainbow Dash looked up to the gohh pony, and then down at Brown. “I just want you to be safe, Brown. But I get that this is your choice to make. I really would like you to be there, because together, not even Thebe will be able to stop us…but I don’t want you to do something stupid, either. Don’t get yourself killed for me.”

Brown nodded. The gohh pony looked down at him. “Are you ready, then?”

“I’m freezing,” said Brown. “Hurry up.”

The gohh pony extended her hoof, and the armor on it shifted. The plates extended, slithering forward and aligning themselves at her will into an object the same size and shape of a book made out of the same material that her own body was covered in. “To be honest,” she said, “I am interested to see whether or not this will cause complete cellular disincorporation. Now, it may hurt somewhat. It will be fusing to your body on a biological level. Nerves, cells, circulation. The shock might be hazardous.”

“I am Exmoori,” said Brown. “I will survive. Just do it.”

The gohh set the plate on Brown’s back. At first, it did nothing- -but then exploded violently into armored tentacles that grabbed Brown, digging past his fur and into his flesh. Rainbow Dash saw Brown close his eyes and grit his teeth against the pain, but he never once cried out as the armor rapidly coated his body, consuming him.

Then, in seconds, he was covered. He looked like a tiny version of the pony next to him, complete with a gray, eyeless helmet. For a moment, he just stood there. He said nothing, and did not move whatsoever.

“Brown?” asked Rainbow Dash, stepping forward. “Are you…are you okay in there?”

Brown remained silent, and then his helmet suddenly retracted into the gray material. He gasped for air. “This feels weird!” he said, stepping forward awkwardly. “I can…I can hear it in my head. The sensory equipment alone…Rainbow, I know what you taste like!”

“Um, Brown, you already know what I taste like.”

Brown blushed profusely, and the armor on his back suddenly shifted. Three sets of insect-like wings burst outward.

“Um,” he said, looking back at them. “That’s new.” The wings immediately started to flutter, and he was pulled slowly and awkwardly into the air. “I don’t like this,” he said, waving his legs trying to reach the ground below. “Bad upsies!”

“Congratulations,” said the gohh. “You didn’t die.”

Brown bumped into a tree, and then dropped onto the ground. “Well, it is durable, at least,” he said.

“Yeah, if only you could figure out how to use it,” said Rainbow Dash. She recalled her first time wearing wingblades, and found herself suddenly laughing at the similarity.

“It’s not that funny,” said Brown, still trapped on his back.

“Yeah, it is,” said Rainbow Dash, scooping him up and, despite his child-size, kissing him deeply. “But thank you. This means a lot. And just so you know, I do love you.”

“Thank you,” said Brown, his eyes widening.

“And if we get out of this alive, well, I think we can ‘reward’ ourselves. If you know what I mean.”

“If we make it out alive,” said Brown, considering, “I will make love to you on the cloud of your choice.”

“But you hate clouds,” said Rainbow Dash.

“Oh, don’t get me wrong: I will be terrified out of my fluff. Or would be, if I still had any. But you will like it…and to be honest, I think I probably will too.”

Rainbow Dash kissed him again, and this time both his and her wings extended to their maximum length. When she had finished, Brown turned to the gohh pony who was watching ambivalently.

“Tactical Commander,” he said. “Can you teach me how to use this armor?”

“In less than three hours? No,” she said. “But Softgust can. Assuming he does not attempt to kill me for giving you a key strategic resource.”

She crossed the clearing and grabbed Brown by the back of his armor and started to drag him away.

“I will see you soon,” he called, waving. Rainbow Dash waved back.

The others had gathered in a large, circular clearing. Rainbow Dash was one of the last to arrive; she descended from above to join them. Shining Armor was already there, waiting for her. Beside him was Flutershy, dressed in a similar version of the armor that Rainbow Dash was wearing that was no doubt complete with the same internal system within to access her Element. Discord was with her, but so was Philomena, who was perched on her back.

From behind, there was a buzzing sound as Brown descended, landing somewhat awkwardly. When he saw that the others probably did not recognize him, he retracted his mask.

“Wow,” said Discord, looking at Rainbow Dash. “Didn’t know you went for that type of thing, Dash.”

“Considering your wife is less than one tenth your age,” said Buttery Snake, causing everyone to jump suddenly.

“How did- -but you were stone,” said Discord. “How did you get out?”

“Simple,” said Buttery Snake. “Continuity error.”

“Why didn’t I think of that?” whined Discord.

“Eh, trade off, really. I really do like pie. Especially Maud flavor. But seriously, D. Trophy wife mutch?”

“But look how adorable she is,” said Discord, hugging Fluttershy with an audible squeak.

“Oh, Discord,” she said, momentarily sounding like her old self.

“I really should go with you,” he said, putting her down gently and smoothing her wings. “I mean, what if something terrible happens? You could lose a wing, or an eye, or get offed completely!”

“Discord,” said Fluttershy, nuzzling him. “I really appreciate your concern, but you know you can’t. If I fail, you need to rule the Forest. Hastur can’t do it alone.”

“But I don’t want to rule Equestria anymore.”

“Aww, I know, honey,” said Fluttershy, hugging him. “And thank you so much for taking my friends while I do this.”

“No problem,” said Discord, belching loudly and producing a crab that crawled out of his mouth and into one of his ears as well as several large bees. He shivered violently. “Anything for you, my fluffy little soft-bodied wife.”

“You called me soft,” said Fluttershy, hugging Discord harder. They then kissed, and Rainbow Dash felt somewhat nauseous. Shining Armor watched without interrupting, and Rainbow Dash saw that he looked so much sadder than normal.

“Shining,” said Rainbow Dash. “I know that what you did…it must have been hard.”

“What do you mean?” he said, turning his attention toward Rainbow Dash and Brown.

“Turning against Five. I know that you had a thing for Blackest Night.”

“It is more than a ‘thing’,” he replied. “We are equivalents. She is the only being in Equestria like me. I do not love her, but our souls are bound by death. And she will, in time, return to me. Eternity itself is meaningless to the dead. I only need to wait.”

“That’s…um…romantic?”

“More poetic, I think,” said Brown.

“Is he coming too?” asked Shining Armor.

“Yes,” said Brown, firmly. “I am not leaving my special somepony to fight without me.”

“Fine,” said Shining Armor. “Just don’t get in the way, and stay by my soldiers if you can.” Shining Armor turned his attention toward the group.

“Ooh!” cried Buttery Snake. “This is the part where he tells us the plan!”

Shining Armor glared at the Chaos pony, and then continued. “I know where Thebe is. I am going to teleport us in with a long-range teleportation spell. Once we are there, there is a risk of resistance. I have my army on standby. If we are attacked, let them defend us. Do not engage any golems. They are not our target.

“Thebe generally resides within a large pyramid floating over the former location of the Finality Core. The area is heavily radioactive, but the protection spells on your armor- -and Brown’s biosuit- -will protect you.”

“What about you?” asked Fluttershy.

Shining Armor pressed his hoof over his phylactery. “My body is purely artificial. Radiation will not affect me.”

“So how do we get to her?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“That remains to be seen,” said Shining Armor. “I don’t know how she will react. But we have to expose her. Historically, the Elements of Harmony work with at most a two kilometer range with zero interference, and that was with the real Twilight Sparkle. Ideally, we need her within five hundred meters.”

“And what is to keep her from simply vaporizing us from a distance?” asked Brown, darkly.

Shining Armor shook his head. “Thebe is a classically trained mage. Her instinct will be to engage at medium-close range if she has the chance.”

“Wizard battles are very talky,” noted Buttery Snake. Discord nodded knowingly.

“And the Elements?” asked Rainbow Dash. In her mind she pictured the machine, the skulls of her friends bolted into metal clasps and attached to cables and electronics. She hated doing this to them, but she knew that it was the only way.

“Proctor is already integrated and ready,” said Shining Armor. “When Thebe is in range, I will break down the barrier between the Pocket and Equestria. Anhelios’s weapon will be drawn around us and integrate within three seconds. If it works, firing take place in seven seconds.”

“ ‘If’ it works?” asked Fluttershy.

“I can’t exactly test it. The design is visionary, but the construction is haphazard at best. I’m not sure if it can be fired more than once.”

“What if it takes more than one shot?” asked Brown.

“When have the Elements of Harmony ever taken more than one shot?”

“It took two for Nil,” suggested Fluttershy.

“And they didn’t even work on Oblivion,” recalled Rainbow Dash.

“This isn’t instilling me with confidence,” muttered Brown.

“And I’m surprised you trust the robit,” said Buttery Snake. “I mean, really? What if he, oh, I don’t know, tries to exterminate all organic life or something?”

“Don’t even joke about that,” said Rainbow Dash. “Proctor would never do that. He’s our friend.”

“He is,” said Shining Armor. “And we can’t use the Elements without him.”

“Yes,” said Discord, smiling and slithering through the air. “That would be terribly cliché, Buttery.”

“It sure would,” said Buttery Snake. Both of them were smiling for some reason.

“Also,” said Shining Armor. One of his soldiers stepped forward from the darkness of the trees and passed a unicorn-horn rifle to him. “Proctor found this floating beneath Cloudsdale.”

“Snowprancer!” cried Brown, excitedly.

“I thought I told you to take care of her,” said Shining Armor disapprovingly. “She is one of my children. Treat her with respect.” He then threw the rifle to Brown, who buzzed into the air and caught it.

“Oh, Snowprancer, I’ve missed you so much!” he said, hugging the gun. He then noticed that Rainbow Dash was looking up at him, and he cleared his throat. “Because I need an adequate weapon,” he said, quickly.

The construct that had brought the rifle retreated back to the trees, and Rainbow Dash saw that he was not alone. The entire clearing was surrounded by creatures of every shape and size. There were animals and birds of every kind, as well as deer, zebra, breezies, werewoods, and even gohh standing amongst the undead and the ghostly.

Fluttershy seemed to notice them as well, and held her head high. Rainbow Dash could tell that she was frightened, but she was hiding it, instead trying to appear strong for her citizens who had come to see her off.

“Hey,” said Rainbow Dash to them all, taking flight. “None of you need to worry. I’m going to make sure she gets back to you.”

“Yes,” said Fluttershy, looking out at them all. “Thank you so much. All of you. You are all my friends, and I care for you all so much. I will be back. But right now, I have to do this. For you, for the Forest, and for Equestria!”

They all cheered for her, and she blushed bashfully.

“Are we ready?” said Shining Armor.

Discord, holding Philomena, and Buttery Snake floated back from the clearing, joining the creatures of the Forest. Shining Armor moved to the center of the remaining three, and Brown stood close to Rainbow Dash.

“Let’s do this,” said Rainbow Dash.

Shining Armor nodded. “Teleporting in three. Two. One.”