It had been almost a year since the events that took place on the castle grounds, but it was an event that not many would have recommended dwelling on. In that time not a lot had happened, thankfully. The biggest change was probably the fact that Spike, Twilight's little dragon brother, had been maturing at a very interesting and rapid rate. He was only about six, soon to be seven, but he was almost as mature as ponies twice his age. Something he clearly learned it from his older sister, no doubt about that. But Raven had also seen him as a little brother as well, watching him when needed when Twilight or her parents were busy. There must have been something about his draconian heritage as well that caused him to mature so well, because Spike was in a league of his own.

She loved the little guy, nerdy quirks and all.

Right now, it was just him and her in Twilight's observatory as they did their own things. Raven was posted up on a window loft, basking in her mother's early morning sunshine reading a book while Spike was down below, padding along happily in his favorite pair of warn jeans and favorite white t-shirt with a print of a pink donut on it, and carrying a red present wrapped with a yellow bow. The little drake hummed himself a tune as he wandered across his second home, waiting for his sister to arrive. Twilight had been out doing something and said she would be back at some point.

He just hoped it was before Moondancer's party that was happening later.

Just as he passed by the front door, it opened violently, smashing into his face and chest and sending him streaking across the floor.

"Spike!?" Twilight yelled as she entered the residence. "Spiiiiiiike!?" Spike? There you are!”

Raven sat up and lowered her book in shock but relaxed a bit when she saw Spike sit up and hold a claw to his head, while his eyes rolled within their sockets. “You know, Twilight?” Raven said as she leaned back against her perch and elevating her book back into its previous resting spot on her chest, causing the ears on the purple mare to swivel towards the young woman. “Spike is your little brother, not your slave,” she chastised.

Twilight rolled her eyes dismissively before jogging further into the building and up the stairs that led to the second floor, which was on the same level as Raven. “Quick, find me that copy of Predictions and Prophecies,” the mare ordered as she searched the shelves of her personal library while Spike slowly stumbled up the stairs and onto the second floor. “What's that for?” she questioned, looking towards the young drake.

Confused, Spike glanced over his shoulder before reeling back in surprise at what was going to be his gift to Moondancer, speared through and through by the spade on the tip of his tail. He brought his tail, and the poorly slaughtered gift around before he removed it from his appendage. “Well… it was a gift for Moondancer but...” he said dejectedly while he held the gift out in front of himself with both claws before a light brown teddy bear -that looked like it was on the receiving end of a serial killer- fell from the bottom, squeaking loudly as it hit the floor.

Twilight seemed rather annoyed as she glared at her younger brother before rolling her eyes, “Oh Spike… you know we don’t have time for that sort of thing!” she said exasperatedly while shuffling back through a stack of books, tossing a few of them haphazardly onto the floor.

“But we're on a break!” Spike whined, wilting.

Raven on the other hand, lowered her book and sat up on her perch. “Twilight, you have known for weeks about this event!” Raven explained as she bent a leg, resting her sock clad foot on the edge of her perch, placing her arm atop her knee. “You even agreed to go!”

Twilight however, had stopped listening as she glared at one of the tossed aside books at her hooves. The purple bookworm activated her horn, pulling several books from the tall bookshelf before her, muttering to herself, “No, no… no. No no no! Ugh! SPIKE!” she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Raven spared a glance at the drake who had already climbed a ladder and grabbed said book from a completely different bookshelf, all while she hadn't been paying attention to him. “It’s over here!” he hollered, waving said book around in his right claw. Raven went stiff when she saw the pink aura enveloped the manuscript, jerking at Spike’s right arm, nearly tearing him in half as he held on for dear life to both the ladder and the book. Instead of letting go of the book like he should have, his claws on his left hand gave way. Spike sailed through the air, landing face and front first with a loud slap against the floor at Twilight’s hooves. The mare leaned in closer to examine the blue cover momentarily, then leaning back with a satisfied smile. “Ah!”

The sounds of several books clattering against the floor filled the air as Twilight stopped supporting them with her magic, completely forgotten. She then turned around without so much as a thank you as she trotted off to a nearby table. Raven landed on the floor nearby before she wandered over, glaring at the back of her friend's head before she bent over and helped Spike to his feet.

“You okay?” Raven asked softly.

Spike nodded and smiled thankfully towards his friend as he stood up, but immediately wilted upon spotting the mess he knew he was going to clean up. Raven rolled her eye and immediately started to help him clean up battlefield of books, all the while Twilight was mumbling to herself as she searched through her manuscript.

“The Elements of Harmony, see Mare in the Moon?” Twilight muttered, confused.

Both Raven and Spike, the latter of the two already up a ladder with a stack of books in his claw, turned back to face the teen. “The Mare in the Moon? That’s just an old pony's tale,” Spike clarified.

“Care to explain that silhouette on the surface of the moon?” Raven questioned while looking up at the drake.

Spike glanced down at her and shrugged as his answer. That was good enough for her as she occasionally tossed books up towards the drake, who caught them and placed them in their respective places. Yet again Twilight was off to the side, flipping through her book and muttering to herself.

“The Mare in the Moon, myth from olden pony times. A powerful pony who wanted to rule Equestria. Defeated by the Elements of Harmony and imprisoned in the moon. Legend has it that on the longest day on the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape and she will bring about nighttime eternal!” Twilight read from the book before gasping in shock.

Raven had been watching the mare and failed to notice the ladder next to her beginning to sway back and forth. When she did however, she jumped at the worrying sight and immediately grabbed the sides of the ladder and eased it back against the shelf, much to Spike’s relief.

Twilight, still oblivious, turned towards her friend and little brother with a gasp and a frantic look of panic. “Do you guys know what this means!?”

“No,” Spike answered as he placed the last book on the shelf and slowly worked his way down and back onto the floor while Twilight approached the duo as Raven stepped aside to allow Spike to step off the ladder. Just as he turned towards his sister, he grasped the quill and parchment Twilight had in her magic and offered to him.

“Take a note please,” Twilight requested. “To the princess.”

Raven rolled her eye and crossed her arms, pursing her lips out indignantly.

“Okey dokey!” Spike confirmed as he unfurled the parchment and wrote dutifully, his quill a red blur across the paper.

“My Dearest Teacher, my continuing studies of pony magic have led me to discover that we are on the precipice of disaster!” Twilight started but was forced to pause as Spike struggled with the word ‘precipice,’ repeating the word several times to try and spell it. “Threshold?” Twilight offered, earning yet another worried look from Spike. “Uh… brink?” Spike finally wilted, lowering his arms and giving his sister yet another confusing look, making an ‘o’ with his mouth. Twilight finally sighed, “That something really bad is going to happen!” Spike was quick to scribble that down, so Twilight continued to preach like a lunatic on the street corner. “For you see, the mythical mare in the moon is indeed Nightmare Moon. And she’s about to return to Equestria and bring with her eternal night! Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy does not come true! I await your quick response. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”

“You’re blowing this horribly out of proportion,” Raven stated as she watched her friend pace around the room while Spike signed off on the letter.

“Got it!”

“Great! Send it!” Twilight said excitedly.

“Now…?” Spike whined.

Raven let out an exasperated sigh as she finally uncrossed her arms. “Just do it bud. Mom will be quick to answer,” she explained before turning towards Twilight.

“Do you have any idea how serious this is!?” Twilight spat in a panic.

“Do you have any idea how ridiculous you sound?” Raven countered with a raised brow causing Twilight to reel back in shock slightly. “You are a lot of things Twilight, but a conspiracy theorist you are not.”

“Then how do you explain what happened a year ago!”

Raven went stiff briefly, her features darkening for the briefest of moments before she spoke. “That was not any sort of prophecy. That was not some stallion from myth and legend. It was a maniac on a mission that could have never been predicted!” Raven spat angrily, her tone increasing in volume the more she spoke.

Twilight winced at the aggressive tone, her ears splaying back on the top of her head. “Sorry, sorry,” she quickly apologized while holding up both hands placatingly. “That was bad of me. I’m sorry for bringing up such a bad memory.”

Raven inhaled deeply before letting out a long sigh, reeling in her anger. She closed her eye as she spoke, “The point I’m trying to make is that when can you name the last time one of these predicted prophecies came true?” Raven asked as she held up her bladed hand.

Twilight held up a finger and inhaled in preparation to give her answer but hesitated when she came up with nothing.

“My point exactly,” Raven confirmed as Twilight lowered her arm. “I’m going to get ready for Moondancer’s party, I expect to see you there,” she said as she headed for the stairs. As she descended the steps, she heard Spike belch and start reading the letter he had just received.

“Eh-hem! My dearest, most faithful student Twilight,” Spike read. “You know that I value your diligence and that I trust you completely. But you simply must stop reading those dusty old books!”

Raven sniggered a laugh at the sound of Twilight’s gasp of surprise.

It was about two hours later and Raven was leaning up against one of the few tables that inhabited the area of the western courtyard of the castle. As time begin to progress further and further, the princess was becoming more and more frustrated the longer she waited. The rest of her friends had shown up, but Twilight and Spike were still missing. It was only when Moondancer had asked the rest of the girls, they hadn’t answered immediately, averting their gazes as well. Lyra was running late as she had informed them earlier. But when Raven arrived, she assured her friend that indeed they were coming.

That was an hour ago.

Moondancer had always seen Twilight as a bit of a mentor and her inspiration to do better in school. So it meant so much to her that Twilight be there for her party. The redheaded mare was becoming more and more dejected and was on the verge of tears. It was in that moment that Raven, now thoroughly pissed off, pushed off the table.

“I’m going to go find them and drag her flank here!” she declared.

Raven stormed her way across the castle grounds, leaving her friends behind in the courtyard to try and salvage what remained of the party. The girl was across the castle grounds in a couple of minutes and she was at the teen’s observatory. Raven was quick to bang on the front door with her closed fist, shouting for the sole occupant that usually inhabited the building.

“Open the damn door Sparkle! I know you’re in there!” Raven was beyond pissed off now. This was becoming a regular thing the last couple years. Twilight would come to parties and events, but she wouldn’t participate in any of the activities or discussions. She would sit there in the corner, muzzle buried in a book while she mumbled whenever anypony talked to her. It was starting to tear her relationships apart. Raven had taken notice, but every time she addressed the issue, Twilight got defensive and dismissive, avoiding the topic entirely. So Raven grabbed the door handle and jerked on the locked door, but to no avail. Either Twilight had locked herself in her home reading again, or she was actually out of the house. As much as Raven wanted to kick the door in, Spike would have answered by now. That left the young woman with one last option, her mother may know where the purple nerd went.

With a frustrated growl of acceptance, Raven marched off towards the throne room.

It was about ten minutes later that the young woman entered the throne room, entirely ignoring the court in progress. Her mother, Princess Celestia, was in her usual spot in said room, right on her throne, listening to some noble blabbering on about something that did not even remotely relevant to requiring the monarch's attention. Raven didn’t care though, if anything her presence was a momentary salvation to the elder mare.

“Excuse me!?” the noble mare stated as she was rudely interrupted as the younger princess passed her.

Raven paused, turning towards the mare. “What?” she questioned, trying to not blow up on somepony that doesn’t deserve it right now. “Okay, what is your problem?” she asked, crossing her arms.

The mare blinked, but took the opportunity, nonetheless. “If you must know, I have had a problem with the local playground and the numerous foals that play there. They are simply making too much noise and are in clear violation the noise ordinance-”

“Day or night?” Raven cut it.

The mare paused. “Pardon?”

“Day or night?” Raven repeated a little slower and clearer.

“Day,” the mare answered. “But I will have you know-”

“No!” Raven stated while holding up and a hand before the mare could protest. “The noise ordinance only applies during the times of 8 p.m. To 7 a.m. If they are doing it in the middle of the day like you have told me. You have literally wasted my time and my mother's time!” Raven shouted out the last line in frustration, making the mare wince at the volume. “I don’t give a fuck what else you have to say over some stupid bullshit!”

The mare was floored, her lower jaw bobbing like a fish before she finally found her voice and turned towards the solar princess. “Are you not going to say something!”

“Language,” Celestia chastised in a calmer tone before addressing the mare in question. “She is correct though, if the foals are making noise during the times of the ordinance, then yes, you can complain, but not to me, contact C.P.D. If they are doing it during the day, there is nothing you can do about it. I’m sorry.” Celestia turned her attention towards her daughter with a confused and a concerning look as the mare she was listening to seethed while being escorted out of the room. “What is the problem sweetie? You seem… frustrated.”

Raven inhaled deeply to control her frustration. “Have you seen Twilight?” she asked in a calmer tone. “She isn’t at home and didn’t make Moondancer’s party.”

Celestia blinked in confusion this time. “She left for Ponyville not too long ago. I put her in charge of preparation for tomorrow.”

Tomorrow was the Summer Sun Celebration, which was going to be taking place in Ponyville, the little town just down the valley from Canterlot. Raven had been there once a few years ago to deal with some financial issues that had been plaguing the town at the time. But Raven and Celestia were supposed to travel down there early tomorrow morning.

But Raven wasn’t focusing on any of that…

“She… WHAT!?”

“I thought you knew?” Celestia stated with a hint of worry in her tone as she stood up from her throne and wiped the wrinkles from her dress. “Did she not say anything? Out of all of her friends, I thought that she would be the first to say goodbye.”

Raven was still in a state of minor shock at the declaration. Twilight just up and left? Spike must have gone with her as well. Without a warning, Raven dropped into a squatting position, holding her right hand to her head in exasperation. Celestia, shocked, suddenly lurched forward in panic, reaching out to her daughter.

“You okay honey?”

Raven was on the verge of tears, both out of the pain and anger of abandonment. She had already lost one friend to similar circumstances and to have it happen a second time was even worse. Memories of Sunset Shimmer flooded her brain and the pain of losing her friend under such horrible circumstances. She was so lost her emotions that she barely registered the pair of hands around her shoulders and the half hug she had been pulled into.

“I think I’m going to go to my room…”

Without another word, Raven stood up and left her mother's warm and caring embrace, mindlessly stumbling out of the room and towards her bedroom.

A guard would later inform the teens in the west courtyard, one of them would mimic the princess’ reaction…

Raven hadn’t slept all night…

She was exhausted, but she still did her best to look good, even in the early morning hours of the Summer Sun Celebration. Now normally, the tradition was to stay up all night -and party- before Princess Celestia would raise the sun, then the rest of the day would be spent with, as one would guess, more partying. It was practically all one big excuse to not work and drown oneself in booze, and no pony would bat an eye or say anything otherwise. But Raven had decided to just go to bed after what turned into a rather miserable day…

But she was still standing before her mirror, adjusting the straps on her black dress before giving her hair one last combing. As soon as she was sure that her hair would not try to fight back, the sleep deprived teen stood up after resting the comb on the table before her, before grabbing her crown and resting it atop her head. Once set, she donned her heels and exited the room and headed off towards the throne room. The poor girl yawned loudly, holding a hand to her mouth momentarily before smacking her lips and heading towards the throne room via her usual route. It was way too early and the train ride was probably going to force her to sleep.

That was the hope.

She really didn’t want to go to the celebration this year, especially after the events of the day before. It didn't help her any either that her anger was still festering. She knew that if she ran into Twilight, subtlety was not going to be her strong suite this day. Raven was a walking hand grenade and it was only a matter of time before her timer reached zero. As the princess rounded the final corner, she pushed the doors to the throne room…

And was horrified at the sight.

In the center of the room, Celestia was struggling hard, pawing at the light blue, armored gauntlet wrapped dangerously around her neck.

“Mom!?” Raven shouted as her tiredness was immediately replaced with serious concern as she rushed into the room.

Celestia, with panic etched upon her features, released the armor with her right hand and elbowed the dark mare holding her captive right in ribs. “Raven!” Celestia frantically shouted once she could breathe. The solar mare lurched forward, desperately reaching out towards her daughter. “Find Twilight, get the Elements of Harmony! AH!”

Celestia was cut off as the armored forearm tightened around her throat. That’s when Raven finally caught a glimpse of her mother's captor.

The mare looked like her mother but was Celestia’s polar opposite. She was clad in light blue armor that covered her head with an open-faced helmet, a pair of armored gloves that attached to a pair of armored gauntlets that came to a halt at the dark mare's elbows. She wore a chest plate that covered her ample bust, which exposed her toned, jet black midriff and six pack. She had a pair of shoulder guards that attached to the chest plate. Raven caught a glimpse of the armored thong that had two, dark blue loincloth strips of fabric that covered the mare’s ass and crotch. Lastly, she wore a pair of armored shoes and shin guards.

It was… more sexualizing than it was useful…

The mares head snapped towards the rushing teen, her cat like, light blue eyes narrowing at the human. “You will stay out of this you rat!” The mare spat, her fanged teeth glistening with saliva. Just as Raven was within lunging distance, strands of ethereal tentacles seemed to materialize out from the dark mare's back, engulfing both her and Celestia before pulling them into the stone floor. Raven came to a sliding halt at the site, all that was left, were wisps of cold mist.

Raven was left to stare…

Perhaps Twilight was right…

“SOMEPONY GET ME A FUCKING SHIP TO PONYVILLE NOW!” Raven shouted in the royal Canterlot voice as she spun on her heels, tearing off towards her room. Much like a year before, the castle exploded into a flurry of activity.

The guard were quickly mobilized.

Captain Flare and First Lieutenant Armor, both lacking their armor and dressed in their underwear -the former in a tank top and her panties and the latter in jogging shorts- stood before the young princess. Raven quickly ordered the entire lockdown of the country and demanded a chariot to be mobilized for her.

She was going hunting…

Ponyville -to put ot bluntly- was no better off than Canterlot Castle.

A majority of the town was in a panic, mainly around the town hall which was a flurry of activity and panic. ~Raven~ stepped off the back of the escort chariot in full combat gear and eager for a fight. The armored warframe surveyed the town for anything that may stick out immediately, but nothing stood out. But it was only when she started to move did the princess find trouble. She had made it only a few steps before several guards rushed her, leveling their spears and barking orders. ~Raven~ glared at the troops but her ‘saving grace’ was one of the guards that flew her to the town.

“Lower your weapons!” the sergeant ordered, grabbed the shaft of the closest guard and giving it a jerk. “You will respect your princess’s authority!”

All eyes in the immediate vicinity, both guard and civilian alike, went wide at the shocking declaration. The four guards with weapons raised, went pale with embarassment before they immediately snapped to attention. “Where is the pony in charge?” ~Raven~ demanded, opting to ignore the act of embarrassment done by the local guards.

One of them, a young corporal, gulped nervously, “Thi… This way, your Majesty!”

The poor stallion -who was sure that he was going to be demoted effective immediately- led the twin horned warframe into the town hall where upon they quickly found the nervous mayor. The light tan mare, who was dressed in a white dress shirt, a black skirt and wearing her signature green ascot, paced back and forth across the main room of the building. The mare paused though when she spotted the large bull and his guard approaching her.

“Tell me everything,” ~Raven~ demanded.

The mare was quick to recount everything that had happened up until that point in time. The description of the dark mare was to the letter to what she witnessed back at the castle. The mayor then explained how the princess’s student, who had been sent to make sure everything was set up for what was supposed to be a grand celebration confronted the evil entity. She finished her tale by telling the young princess how the student had taken off with several of the locals in tow.

“And where did they head off to?”

“They were last seen heading into the Everfree,” Mayor Mare explained. “On the path that leads to the old castle ruins.”

That was all that Raven needed.

With that, she turned around and headed towards the door. “Where are you going?” Mayor Mare questioned nervously.

~Raven~ drew her Javlok, metal grinding as it extended to full length.

“Hunting…”

She could hear the beat, of the Naga Drums.

Twilight landed hard and painfully against the cold, hard stone of the abandoned castle. Her clothes were torn in multiple places, exposing the singed fur underneath, and smoldering with magical smoke. The princesses star student had thought she could do this. That it was her destiny to defeat the Mare in the Moon by herself. But the dark mare was just too powerful! Twilight was so close too! The young student had found the Elements of Harmony; she had tried to ignite the spark. But even she was no match for the immense magical strength of an alicorn. Even though she had the mare right where she wanted her, surrounded by the arcing stone orbs, it was not enough.

The dark mare laughed maniacally, lifting a single armored hoof and smashing it flat against the floor so hard that it shattered the stone orbs.

Twilight was absolutely devastated…

But just as she was about to concede her defeat, Twilight could hear the shouts and assurances of her friends coming to her rescue. It was seconds as the five other mares charged into the room from the stairs. The two earth ponies were quick to take up defensive boxing stances while one of the two pegasi took up a Taekwondo stance -the other pegasus found it safer to hide behind a pillar. And lastly, the only other unicorn of the group clenched her fists and rolled her neck, taking up a defensive stance as well. Twilight felt emboldened, her magic swirling around her form and engulfing her outstretched hands, manifesting into two bright orbs of violet light. But just as she was about to fire off an attack, the dark mare beat her to it.

Twilight gasped, watching as the beam of dark energy was aimed right at her chest.

With a heavy, stone shattering thud, ~Raven~ smashed down in front of the six mares, swiping her arms across her body and activating her Snow Globe ability, protecting all of the females from what could have been lethal harm. The beam impacted against the frozen surface of the globe, ricocheting wildly and smashing through a nearby wall that encased the throne room. Twilight and her friends lowered their arms and stared in awe at the looming sight before them.

Nightmare however, growled angrily, baring her fangs. "You…" she seethed, fists clenching. "I had a feeling my little niece had that fire. No matter." The mare relaxed as if nothing was wrong, turned back towards the shattered throne. "Oh Shadow~"

Twilight went pale…

Raven clenched her teeth within her suit.

The man that was thought long dead emerged from the shadows of the throne. Stalker, more alive than ever, wielding a hooked scythe of dark steel in his grasp.

"Twilight," Raven ordered, grabbing everypony's attention. "You deal with my aunt and figure out how the Elements work…" Raven drew her sword, spinning it in her grasp. "Stalker's mine!"

The fight was on!

There was no hesitation as blades clashed with a bang and a flash of ethereal sparks as the two warframes locked ice and steel. ~Raven~ pushed back immediately, playing dirty as she kicked out, her boot smashing flat against the opposing warframe’s chest, sending him sailing across the room. Stalker landed with a roll but never had time to recover. She was faster, much faster. ~Raven~ palmed his broken chest plate, jerking the armored man forward, cocking him square across the front of his helmet as she stiff armed Stalker, clotheslining him hard.

Nearby, Twilight fired a volley of offensive blasts, each one as explosive as the last. But much like her niece, Nightmare Moon was quick too, she was still an alicorn after all. The dark mare, in order to dodge the magical strikes was even quicker to take to the skies, using her ability to fly to dodge several of the strikes, only blocking a few of them with her own magical shields when needed. It would have been easy for her to use her aerial ability if it were not for the blue pest currently hovering around her like a pesky fly. Nightmare’s attention was split between her two aggressors. She had to keep up her shield -which was starting to fail and spider web- while the rainbow maned pegasus was fairly nimble, even in her torn purple jeans and tank top, kept the mare's attention split. But while Nightmare was not used to such a foreign style of fighting, she could still hold her own against the pegasus. As the blue mare went for a kick, but Nightmare was quick to block the strike with her metal gauntlet. The pegasus's hoof clacked against the metal of the arm guard before Nightmare wrapped her left hand around the blue mare’s shin.

“Uh oh…” Rainbow said softly. “Woah!” she yelped as Nightmare gave her arm a jerk, sending the pegasus spiraling violently out of control. “Waaa-aaah!”

Raven ignored the blue mare that smashed down nearby, rolling violently across the floor and back first into a shattered column with a shout. Stalker’s head recoiled backwards from the powerful strike given to him by the plaid clad farmer looking earth mare. “Come on!” the farmer waved the man on, taunting him. “Yah yella fella?”

“He’s not yellow silly!” the pink mare in a pink top with white edges and a light blue skirt giggled, smashing a pie she had apparently pulled from her mane, right against the man’s helmet, blinding him. “He’s red!”

“More like a mahogany, Darling,” the mare with a curlicue mane and cut tail, wearing a pair of dress pants and a white, frilly skirt-like top with a black belt around her waist said. “But this is too gothic,” she waved her hand in a disgusted manner at the man as he continued to claw away at the confection blinding his sensors. “It could be better,” she shrugged before hopping forward, tucking her arms in close and smashing her hoof against Stalker’s chest piece, fully shattering the remaining armor plate entirely.

Nightmare smashed down in front of Twilight with enough force to not only shatter the stone beneath her hooves, but to cause the teen to stumble backwards, frantically waving her arms to keep her balance. Twilight cursed her luck and was about to try and teleport away before an errand whistle grabbed both mares' attention. A loud smack filled the air as a fist connected with Nightmare’s muzzle, causing her cat-like eyes to cross as she stumbled backwards towards Twilight. ~Raven~ watched the mare lose her hoofing and land on her ass, propping herself up on a single hand.

“Figure out the Elements,” ~Raven~ ordered Twilight, her gaze never leaving the form of the dark mare before her. Twilight was quick to listen and made a run for the shattered remains of the Elements of Harmony while her friend covered her tail. Raven stepped forward, grabbing the mare by her chest plate and lifting her off the floor. “Stop this madness at once!”

Nightmare panted, spitting out a mouthful of blood in the process. “Never!” she seethed. “The night shall last-”

Raven cracked her head against her aunts, knocking the mare out cold.

“Forever… I know…” ~Raven~ mumbled as she dropped the mare like a sack of bricks. “I can’t believe Twilight was right…” The warframe drew her sword, pacing her way over towards the group of mares standing around a cornered Stalker. “The fucker’s mine,” ~Raven~ declared as she rested her hand on the farmers shoulder, gently pushing her out of the way. “Guard Twilight.”

Four of the five mares were quick to take off after their friend while the farmer girl hesitated. “Be safe princess.”

~Raven~ assured her with a nod as she continued to glare at the warframe before her. As the farmer mare headed off towards the rest of her compatriots, Raven spotted the scythe laying at her feet. With a flick of her leg, she sent the weapon sliding towards the man, who spared her a confusing gaze. “I’m going to kill you… dead this time. Pick up the fucking scythe.”

Stalker observed the weapon before him but didn’t immediately grab for it. Perhaps he was second guessing his decision. Or maybe how much of a bad idea this was. But that was not the case, it ever would be. Stalker wrapped his hand around the shaft of the weapon, rising to his feet.

“You will perish on this day…”

~Raven~ cracked her neck, rolling her weapon in her grasp. “Try me bitch…”

“Oh dear oh dear oh dear!” The butter yellow mare in a green dress jogged towards the rest of her friends. “I hope you have a plan!”

Twilight stood in the center of the swirling circle of broken pieces of stone in her magical grasp. The rest of the mares felt useless, moving nervously in their spots as they watched the two warriors clash for dominance. All of them winced as they watched as their savior, frantically flailing his arms to keep his balance as the scythe wielding stallion marched towards his victim. He disappeared behind a stack of fallen debris…

The girls winced at the sounds of blades clashing and stone shattering before Stalker was sent sailing through the air, smashing through a still standing column. Several hundred pounds of stone came crumbling down atop the man, effectively burying him in a pile of rubble. But Raven knew better than to think that a pile of stone would end him. This time, several of the mares screamed out, all of them flinching and reflexively throwing their arms into the air to protect their heads when a wall of pure ice sent the man smashing through what remained of the roof, the bull leaping through the opening after the man not a moment later.

“I need to help him!” Rainbow shouted as she unfurled her wings.

“In three… two… one,” Twilight absentmindedly listed on three fingers. Just after she reached the end of her countdown, a different part of the roof collapsed in this time, much closer to the group, causing Twilight to flinch this time. She was actively starting to panic now; she was quickly losing focus!

“The spark the spark the spark!” she muttered desperately trying to rack her brain for every single bit of infor-

That’s when it hit her.

Time slowed as the purple mare eyed each and every one of her new friends that had helped her through these tough times. She wasn’t after the physical objects; she was after their spirits! Applejack had reassured her when there was doubt… she represented the Spirit of Honesty! Fluttershy, was the one to tame the manticore with compassion not shown by the rest of her friends. She represented the Spirit of Kindness. Pinkie was the one to laugh in the face of danger, she represented the Spirit of Laughter! Rarity calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift represented the Spirit of Generosity! Finally, Rainbow Dash, who didn’t abandon any of them for her own selfish desire was the Spirit of Loyalty!

Twilight let out one gasp of realization.

If anypony had been looking deep into her eyes they would have seen it…

One, single, spark…

That’s when the power of the shards began to take their true forms. The five mares were caught by surprise when the shattered bits of stone began to hover around them on their own accord, it was as if each of them had their own gravitational pull.

“Hey!” Pinkie suddenly protested, talking and glaring to the ceiling. “Are you calling me fat?”

She was ignored as there were pressing matters to attend to!

“I’m not fat…” she pouted, crossing her arms under her ample bust and puffing out her pudgy cheeks.

They didn’t have time to waste though!

Nightmare groaned, holding a hand to her throbbing as she propped herself up with the other. Her vision was a bit blurry and the front of her helmet had caved in slightly. But when her vision finally returned, she was immediately blinded by a bright light, forcing her to shield her already bad vision with her arm. When she could see again, she gasped in horror.

The sixth element had made its presence known!

“No… no no no!” The mare seethed, quickly jumping to her hooves. “Shadow! Destroy them!”

The man in question, turned his head towards his queen before he focused on the six mares near the end of the decrepit room. Stalker pushed off the other warframe, making a desperate run for them.

“Like hell you will!”

The man suddenly lurched forward when something grabbed him by the back of the neck. Like a cane to a bad actor, he was pulled backwards and off his feet before the sound of metal breaking and flesh being impaled filled the air.

"This is for Bronze…"

Stalker’s entire body spasmed as ~Raven’s~ sword impaled the man straight through his back, the razor sharp, frozen point punching through the front of his chest. He could only stare in horror at the sight of the hunter, finally becoming the hunted. The assasin frantically clawed at the tip of thw sword but to no avail, because just as fast as it went in, it came out. She released him, letting him drop to his knees in defeat.

He put up no resistance…

~Raven~ hooked the curved blade of his lost scythe around the front of his neck and with a single swift kick square to the shoulder blades. With a wet slicing sound and the breaking of bones, the blade of the weapon sliced cleanly through the fallen tenno’s armor, his head thumping against the stone floor not a moment later. But the young princess didn’t have the time to bask in her victory, there was still one more threat that needed to be dealt with. Nightmare Moon was hot on the offensive as she charged towards the six mares still standing opposite her.

~Raven~ reached deep into her reserves, clenching her hand as cold wisps of mist, twinkles of ice and snow materialized within her open palm. With a single clench of her fist, a solid brick of ice suddenly materialized around the dark mares’ legs, halting her advance effective immediately.

Nightmare gasped in shock, her gaze snapping down towards her encased hooves. She was quick to draw from her own magical reserves to try and break free from her frozen restraints, but as she activated her magic, two more columns of thick ice shot out from the floor, encapsulating her hands immediately. The mare tugged at her bind, desperately trying to rely on her earth pony strength to break free, but each time the ice cracked or even a little sliver snapped free, the column grew in size, limiting her ability to move that much more.

It was then that Twilight and the other five mares started to glow brightly, the power of the elements coursing through their veins. It was stronger than anything they had ever felt, the power elevating them off the floor as the power contained within the spirits manifested itself as a swirling rainbow of pure magic.

Nightmare Moon screamed as the beam arched high into the air before slamming into the mare at full force. It swirled around her like a snake as it wrapped around her from hoof to head, swallowing her whole. Once she was fully engulfed, the rainbow magic condensed in on itself before it exploded in a blinding light.

Twilight and her friends landed hard back onto the cold floor, their bodies spent and thoroughly exhausted. They groaned as they sat up, their bodies hurting in ways they never knew they could. What laid before them was a little greyish persian blue mare with sapphire blue mane and tail, no older than Twilight herself, surrounded by the broken shards of her armor and in a very tattered blue dress.

"No! No have mercy!"

All of their mares turned towards the noise, immediately gasping at the sight of the same mare they had just defeated, frantically crawling away from the bull looming over her naked form. He palmed her by the throat, lifting her into the air as she clawed at her armored gauntlet, gagging and wheezing as the glove tightened around her throat.

“Shut your fucking mouth!” ~Raven~ hissed, pressing the mare’s snout against her helmet.

“-but I reckon we do represent the elements of friendship,” the farm mare stated.

“Indeed you do!”

It was at that moment the sun began to rise in the east before another ball of light manifested itself in front of one of the eastern windows. It bathed the room in yet another blinding light before it slowly faded away to reveal the once missing princess of the sun. The mare, unscathed from her earlier fight, stood tall and proud, wings outstretched like the angel she was. Twilight gasped as her new friends bowed towards the mare out of respect. But just as the solar mare was about to embrace her grateful student, she paused, going wide eyed at the sight of her armored daughter approaching with enemy mare in hand. Celestia's attention shifted from her daughter and Nightmare's and down towards the other princess laying on the floor nearby.

“It would appear we have a new problem,” ~Raven~ stated as she too, turned towards the smaller mare laying nearby. If she was being honest with herself, the tenno hadn’t even noticed the lighter blue mare until that point. The warframe drew her blade, spinning it in her grasp in preparation should anypony try to attack.

“Princess Luna!” Celestia said firmly, causing both mares to gasp, their eyes going wide and pupils to the size of pin pricks. The one in the warframes grasp curled into a tight ball as the other slowly propped herself up on her hands, turning towards the older mare with a look of utter shame. “It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this…” Celestia spoke in a gentle tone as she approached the shameful looking mare. The mare known as Luna closed her eyes, averting her downcast gaze as Celestia kneeled before her. “It is time for us to put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together, little sister.”

“Sister?” the six mares gasped.

“Will you accept my friendship?” Celestia offered as she stood to her full height. Luna began to shake as she stared at the floor in utter shame, her answer very hesitant and ears splayed back.

Then suddenly, she leapt to her hooves, jumping towards the elder mare, sputtering her apology. “I’m so sorry!” The mare, about two thirds the height of Celestia, graciously wrapped her arms around the solar mare’s torso, eagerly hugging her long lost relative. “I missed you so much, big sister!”

Initially, Celestia was caught off guard, but was all too eager to accept the apology and the hug. Tears of utter joy streamed down both their cheeks as the two long lost sisters were finally reunited after a millennia.

“Mom,” ~Raven~ gently cut it, causing both solar mares to look towards the warframe. Luna reflexively hugged her older sister a little bit tighter at the imposing sight before her as Celestia gently squeezed her back, assuring the smaller mare that nothing bad would further happen. “We still have a problem here…” The warframe gently set the nude mare on her hooves, violently forcing her to turn around and face the solar and lunar princesses, locking an arm behind the mares back and making her wince. It was like looking in a negative mirror. The dark entity looked exactly like Luna in build and features - but much less imposing due to her smaller stature and lack of armor. “What about her?”

Celestia glared down at the mare, glowering as she thought about what she intended to do with the little pest. But she was better than the plethora of malicious thoughts running through her mind. It was several tense seconds of glaring before she eventually made her final decision. Igniting her horn, Nightmare closed her eyes at the sight of the mare preparing an attack, sobbing loudly and openly as she prepared to breath her last breath. With a very loud pop that caused her to flinch, the dark spirit was surprised when she felt the soft touch of a blanket on her shoulders before wrapping around her lithe form, covering her modesty. When she looked up, Nightmare was floored at the sight before her. There was no malice, no harmful intent or hatred in Celestia's gaze.

Only concern and a tidbit of shame.

“You and I will be having a bit of a talk,” Celestia informed Nightmare before stepping forward and holding up her hand. Nightmare winced when she felt something cold descend down the length of her horn. It was an inhibitor ring. The sharp jolt that went straight through her skull caused her to whimper and tear up further as she accepted her punishment. “As for now, we have other issues to attend to.” Grasping the smaller mare by her right forearm, Celestia led her away with Luna in tow.

Twilight found this moment as the perfect opportunity to finally take a breather, thank her friend and introduce her to her new friends!

Eager and rather excited, Twilight approached her friend from behind with a smile. “Raven! I can’t-”

“What the fuck is wrong with you!?” ~Raven~ all of the sudden spat as she spun on her heels. Twilight reeled back as if she had been struck by the harsh tone in her friend's voice.

“W-What?”

“What? What? That’s all you have to say-” Raven transferred out of her frame, the sheer look of hatred etched on her features as she glared at the purple teen. “-is 'what!' What’s up with you!? Am I not good enough for you!” the human spat as she gestured to herself with both hands, looming over her friend and forcing her to start backpedaling. “You just up and leave! No warning, no goodbye! Not a see you soon or anything!” she continued to list angrily as tears started to form in her only good eye. “Do I not matter to you…” she sobbed, sniffling. “Do you not care about me? About our friends?”

Twilight was floored, sputtering her response. “What...what do you mean?” she said, choking back a sob. “I-I had a job to do!”

“So that gives you grounds to just up and leave! To say fuck all and walk away!” the princess spat exasperatedly. “To abandon everything, you had back in Canterlot? Do you even know what you did?”

This time, Twilight stood her ground. “I saved the world!”

A single, loud, echoing slap reverberated off the walls of the room.

Twilight's head recoiled hard to the right, her face burning and skin turning a bright shade of red as she stared in complete and utter shock. Raven was shaking, tears now streaming down her face like a river. “You didn't save the world. Because I did all the work! You abandoned us…” Raven bit her lip, holding up a threatening finger in front of the mare. “I already lost one friend and you were the one pony that I hoped was different.” She clenched her hand, her knuckles turning white, as if she was ready to beat someone’s ass into the floor. Raven looked like she was about to say something more but opted to just turn around and start walking away.

Raven knew that she was actually at the point of violence.

It was better this way.

Twilight slowly lifted a hand to her face, hesitation as her shaky hand hovered over the afflicted area, her fingertips lightly brushing across the burn, aggravating the area with each little touch of her skin. “I’m sorry…!” she sobbed.

“SORRY DOESN’T FUCKING CUT IT SPARKLE!” Raven finally exploded as she once again spun on her heels. “MOONDANCER WAS IN TEARS WHEN YOU DIDN’T SHOW UP TO HER PARTY! SORRY DOESN’T CUT IT WHEN YOU LOCK YOURSELF IN YOUR ROOM LIKE A WITCH! SORRY DOESN’T REPAIR YEARS WORTH OF IGNORANCE AND NOT CARING YOU BITCH!”

The girl was screaming at the top of her lungs, venting years of buildup frustration she didn’t even know she had been harboring. With each word, curse, and hate filled word, Twilight shrunk further and further into trying to make herself as small as possible as Raven approached her, face red with hate. But just as the human was about to be within arm’s reach, the cowpony hat wearing mare and the blue pegasus stepped in between the pair, quickly coming to the defense of their purple friend.

“You touch her again, and yur gonna hafta go through me!” the farm mare threatened.

“Yeah, where do you even get off?” the pegasus added.

Raven was forced to come to a halt as she glared up at the pair of ponies. The plaid clad mare was about a head taller than the human and the pegasus was about a head shorter, but neither of them were wavering as the former crossed her arms in front of her chest as the latter rested her hands on her hips. The human was panting heavily, but her urge to break something was curbed for the time being. Not because there were two opponents -she’s taken and killed more than that at once- but that their presence was a bit of a surprise. She never had anypony stand up to her.

Respect, for sure.

But Raven shifted her gaze away from the pair and right between them, back towards her ex-friend, holding up yet another point of her finger. “Fuck you… fuck you!” she then turned her attention towards the five mares surrounding her, wagging her finger at the muscular mares in front of her. “She abandoned us like we had never existed...” her gaze drifted towards the other three mares, all of them glaring at her with hatred in their eyes. “You best expect the same…”

With that, the tenno turned around and made her leave, transferring back into her warframe and heading for the door to the room, descending the steps, her shadow slowly disappearing from sight…

On that day… one heart was mended, another torn apart…

Author's Notes:

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