The Duke and Duchess of Maretonia had visited The Crystal Empire. Princess Twilight Sparkle had been called to the be present at their arrival, along with Princesses Celestia, Luna, and of course Cadance. Twilight was relegated to unfurling a banner, smiling, and waving. But she wan't needed to be present at the meeting between the visiting dignitaries and the other three princesses. On the balcony of the Crystal Empire Palace, Twilight felt left out, even after the other three assured her of her place and purpose as a princess.

"Your time will come," Celestia said to her, with that same absolute confidence she always seemed to have about her. She and the other two elder princesses turned to leave. Celestia needed to be up early to raise the sun. And even though the diplomatic meeting was schedule as late in the evening as possible, and Luna was already running a sleep dept and needed to start her twelve hour shift for the night. Cadance turned back to speak with Twilight after the two sisters left.

"Twilight, believe me, I know how you feel," she said.

"How can you? You already know your role. You've been an alicorn for a long time. You have your crown, palace, the whole empire and... a prince." Twilight said, leaning against the balcony railing. "All I seem to be is the princess of smiling and waving."

"Well, yes. That is true, now," Cadance said. "But you know, the Empire has only recently returned. For a long time I was a princess of nothing. I was just 'Celestia's niece', just as you were once 'Celestia's most faithful student' or 'protege'. I felt the same way about things as you when I was the 'princess of foalsitting'."

Twilight lifted her chin from the railing. That was true, she realized. Cadance was already a princess when she was Twilight's foalsitter.

"And, like you, I wasn't born an alicorn," Cadance added.

"Yeah, I know. You were a baby pegasus that was found in the woods by earth ponies, who took you to their village. When you grew up you reversed a love-stealing spell cast by Prismia. Prismia wore a magic-enhancing necklace that amplified her evil and jealousy, but when you confronted her, the necklace amplified your love. Once Prismia changed her horrible ways, you were surrounded by magical energy and transported to a strange place where you met Celestia, who adopted you as her royal niece, and you got your horn."

"That is the official story, Twilight," Cadance said. "And it's a fine bedtime story. But like so many bedtime stories, it's not entirely true."

"What!? What part?"

"Most all of it," Cadance said. "Being found in the woods, the village, Prismia, all of that. For as long as I can remember, it was always Aunt Tia. I have no memories of a life without her. In fact, the earliest memories I can recall was her teaching me how to fly in the Canterlot Castle courtyard. As a pegasus."

"Really!?" Twilight asked in astonishment. Cadance nodded.

"I remember the day I got cutie mark. It was at the same time I got my horn. Celestia had started teaching me about the history of the Crystal Empire. At one point she showed me a piece of the crystal from the empire that had been gifted to her from the empire's royal family before King Sombra took over. As soon as I touched it, I was surrounded by magical energy and transported to a strange place. Celestia found me there and then the magic within me gave me my horn."

"So that was why Celestia sent you to the Crystal Empire when it returned. You were destined to be the Crystal Princess!"

"Yeah, but at the time that I got my horn, I didn't know any of that would happen. I became an alicorn, but I didn't know what the crystal heart on my thigh meant, other than love magic was my special talent. I still only felt like a princess in name only, being made to foal-sit." Twilight frowned. "Don't get me wrong. I'm glad I was your foal-sitter! But it didn't help me feel like a princess with a purpose. I struggled for years not knowing what my destiny would be. Do you understand what I mean?"

"So you think I'm destined for greatness, and to be the princess of something more than just smiling and waving?"

"I don't think so, Twilight. I know so! Besides, with the way you handled things defeating Discord the first time around, and Chrysalis, and saving Ponyville, Luna, and Tia, I'd wager that you'll be the princess of being a badass!"

"Princess Badass?"

"Who knows. Three years ago, if you had told me that I would be the princess of a crystal empire that reappeared after having vanished for a millennium, I would have thought you were crazy. But here we are. Even Celestia can't see into the future. My point is that there is really no way of knowing for sure what exactly your destiny is, except that you are destined! It's just a matter of time." Cadance placed her hoof on Twilight's wing. "And I think now, time is something you have in abundance."

"That's true."

"But for the time being, you should get some sleep," Cadance suggested before she excused herself to retire for the night.

Twilight remained out on the balcony for a while longer. Despite how important it had been made to be for all four of the princesses to be there, the prince was markedly absent. Twilight didn't know if he was just busy elsewhere or if he was deliberately avoiding her. As much as she wanted to see him again, the wounds from their last encounter still hurt terribly. The closest she had seen him after that was from the stands of the Equestria Games stadium, while he was down on the field, announcing the different cities' athletes. Cadance was right, though. Twilight had time. It would be best to let the dust settle first before trying to talk about things with Shining.

In fact, she found herself thinking more about Cadance. She hadn't ever questioned the story about Cadance's origin before. But now that it turned out to be a fabrication, it had her wondering what else she had taken for granted to be true. The fact that even Cadance herself didn't know where she came from could only mean two things:

Either Celestia never told her where she came from,

or she didn't know.

Both possibilities troubled her.

Although it occurred to Twilight that there was a way for her to find out what had happened in the past. All she needed to to was speak to a certain Zebra once she got back to Ponyville.

Twilight crept through the dark hallways of the Crystal Palace. From the end of the corridor, she could see the guards posted outside of the royal bed chamber. With a quick flash of her magic, she was able to sneak attack them with a sleep spell, knocking them unconscious. She stepped over them and opened the door. Inside, Candace and Shining were in the massive bed. She walked inside and closed the door behind her. Cadance was sound asleep. Another spell from Twilight ensured that she would stay that way. She cast a fertility spell on Shining strong enough to make a stallion's corpse viable. He was immediately hard and already on the verge of cumming from his over-full balls. If he would not give her a foal, she would take it for herself. She pulled the covers away and climbed on top of him, startling him awake.

"Cadance?"

A pussy that was already very hot, very wet, and very much not Cadance's slid down onto his dick. He blinked a few times to focus his eyes on the mare on top of him.

"Twilight!?" he shouted. She made no effort to quiet him. Her only focus was on fucking him as fast as she could. In a panic, Shining turned to see Cadance sleeping peacefully beside them, mere inches from their rutting. Even with a panicked start, he was still groggy from sleep. He hadn't the magical or physical strength to stop his sister. She could tell her was close to ejaculating soon. "Twilight, you need to cum quick!" he said.

"Speak for yourself!" She said with a coy grin.

"Twilight! Come quick!"

Twilight opened her eyes to see Spike shaking her in her bed.

"Twilight! Come quick! Princess Celestia said it's an emergency! The fate of Equestria hangs in the balance!"

"When does it ever not?" Twilight grumbled as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. She sat up at the edge of her bed, feeling the dregs of her dream slip away from her memory. She shifted where she sat, hoping the sheets would be enough to make her appear decent without time to visit the restroom. She concealed the damp stain with the covers and followed after Spike to see what the emergency was about.

Twilight joined Celestia and Luna who were still waiting for Cadance. Twilight looked across the table at Luna. If the princess of sleep had seen anything of Twilight's dream, she didn't show any indication of it. Cadance arrived a moment later. As soon as all four of them were in the meeting room, Celestia began to brief them

"Luna and I had shared a vision last night. It seems that Tirek has returned!"

"Tirek? Who's that?" Twilight asked, looking toward Cadance who seemed equally clueless.

"Long ago, Tirek and his brother Scorpan came here from a distant land, intent on stealing Equestrian magic," Celestia explained. "But Scorpan soon came to appreciate the ways of Equestria, even befriending a young unicorn wizard."

"Scorpan urged his brother to abandon their plans," Luna said. "When Tirek refused, Scorpan alerted us to Tirek's intentions."

"Scorpan returned to his own land, and Tirek was sent to Tartarus for his crimes. But it appears he has found a way to escape," Celestia said.

"We believe it happened when Cerberus left his post at the gates," Luna said. Twilight recalled the event of the three-headed guard dog's escape, and his subsequent return.

"But that was a long time ago. Why is he just now starting to steal magic?" Twilight asked.

"His time in Tartarus left him very weak. He has just now gained enough strength to use his dark powers."

"But with each passing moment, he grows stronger still!" Luna said.

"And I know just the princess who can stop him!" Cadance said.

"Yes! I'll find him and-"

"No Twilight!" Celestia cut her off. "I'm afraid I must call on another to stop Tirek... Discord."

The other princesses gasped.

"I'm sorry, could you say that again?" Twilight said. "I must have had something crazy in my ear, because it sounded like you said Discord."

"Discord can sense when there is a magical imbalance. The next time Tirek steals magic, Discord will be able to track him down," Celestia explained.

"So what am I supposed to do in the meantime?" Twilight asked.

"Nothing. Return to Ponyville and await the good news of Tirek's defeat. With Discord on the job, it should be short work."

Twilight decided that she would return to Ponyville. But she would make a little detour to the Everfree Forest on the way. When they changed trains in Canterlot, Spike accompanied her other Ponyville friends. Twilight insisted on 'flying home' from there, since she 'needed the practice.'

It also meant that she would have a good hour's head start on the Ponyville train departing Canterlot. More than enough to navigate her way to Zecora's hut, retrieve the past-seeing potion, and bring it back to her lab beneath her home in the Golden Oaks Library. Zecora was happy to see Twilight again, still grateful that she had stopped the Everfree Forest from taking over.

"I need that potion again," Twilight said. "The one that let me see into the past," Twilight said.

Zecora showed her to the boxes stacked in the corner of her hut. They had been hastily packed when she evacuated with her cart, and she hadn't yet unpacked all of them again. They went through them together until they came to the trunk they were looking for, with the flask of white 'potion' inside. Twilight lifted it out with her magic. She was certain that there was less in it when she had last seen it.

"Did you make more potion for this?" Twilight asked. Zecora shook her head.

"These trunks I have not unpacked
since the day the vines attacked."

"Where did you even get this potion from?"

"I- I actually can not seem to recall.
I have no memory of getting it at all."

Twilight regarded the potion in her hoof. It was a flashback potion after all. And that was related to memory. Zecora did say that if a non-alicorn used it it would be tragic. Perhaps instead of bestowing a memory, it would take one from her.

"I should get this back to my lab for study," Twilight said. Zecora only nodded, still looking troubled that she could not remember anything about the flask.

Flying back to Ponyville, Twilight could see the train from Canterlot arriving at the station in the town. She flew as fast as she could, which was still a modest pace as a rookie pegasus. She got back to the Golden Oaks Library and brought the potion to her laboratory in the basement.

It sat there on her lab bench while she dug through a few of her books, looking for anything that might help explain how the potion worked. The flashback effect felt more like a spell than a potion effect. There had to be something in one of her books to explain how the flashback potion worked, and why it didn't affect her memory, but it did affect Zecora's.

Magic that affects memory, other than restoring it, was borderline-dark magic. It didn't surprise her when she couldn't find anything about the potion in her personal library of books. But it occurred to her that the ancient library in the Castle of the Two Sisters might have something.

"Uh, Twilight?" Spike said from the top of the stairs. "Are you down there?"

"Yeah."

"Everypony is here. Outside. They just wanted to make sure that you made it home alright."

"Okay, I'll be right out." Twilight set her work aside and when outside to greet her friends.

"So if Discord is the one looking for Tirek, what are you supposed to do in the meantime?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Nothing. Unless of course one of you needs me to smile and wave," Twilight replied, turning to leave.

"Where are you going?" Spike asked.

"To the Castle of the Two Sisters," Twilight answered. "I'm not really needed anywhere else. Might as well catch up on some of my reading."

"You want some company?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"It has been a while since we visited the Castle," Applejack added. "Might be fun."

"Maybe I could use a little company right now," Twilight said.

Back in Canterlot, Princess Celestia sat at her coffee table in her breakfast nook. Across from her, sat the spirit of chaos, Discord. Celestia poured herself a cup hot water from the kettle to make tea. Far below them, Luna watched from the floor, witnessing Celestia's inverted tea party on the ceiling, courtesy of Discord.

"Is this really necessary?" Celestia asked, motioning to themselves.

"I just think that is was thematic to the situation, don't you think?" Discord said. "The world, turned upside down. You, coming to me for help. I, a former villain that you turned to stone for a millennium." Discord tossed a tea bag into his mouth and poured in some boiling hot water from the kettle before swallowing it, bag and all. "You know, a lesser being might have held a grudge." Celestia took a long sip of her own, scalding-hot cup of tea.

"We are not lesser beings," she said quietly.

"We?" he chuckled. "If that were true, you wouldn't have to come to me for help."

"I don't have to," Celestia said. "We have defeated Tirek without you before. We could do it again if we must. I am choosing to ask for your help. Because you could solve this problem in a literal snap. Tirek is too dangerous. I'm not taking any chances but to deal with him as swiftly as possible. That's why you're here."

"Yes, I suppose you don't want another Marelantis incident," he said. Celestia bristled.

"It has been a long time since I've heard that name," she said.

"Ah, yes. What do they call it now? Seaquestria? Makes it sound like it was always there, and not the result of a cataclysm."

"I don't hear the seaponies complaining. Besides, the loss of Marelantis, while tragic, is small compared to the destruction of all of Equestria. Grogar had to be stopped."

"By any means necessary?" Discord asked.

"Yes."

"And now, with stopping Tirek?"

"I am asking you after all. It would be hard to argue to the contrary," Celestia said. Discord sighed, growing bored with the tedious discussion, even if it was upside down on the ceiling.

"Very well, Celestia. By your command, I will find Tirek and kill him as soon as possible," Discord said. He said it loudly. Celestia looked at her sister down below them, hoping to keep the details of this discussion privy to just Discord and herself.

"You will do no such thing. Do not engage him. You are to locate him, and then alert Luna and I to his position. We will deal with him."

"Kill him, you mean?"

"Securing him back in Tartarus will be enough," Celestia said.

"Do you believe that is the benevolent choice?" he asked. "You clearly have never been to Tartarus. Killing him would be a mercy compared to that." Celestia set her jaw and growled at him, quietly.

"We don't kill, Discord."

"Tell that to King Sombra," Discord muttered.

"We are not responsible for the magic of the Crystal Heart. He was a monster that chose his fate. I have no sympathy for him."

"A few years ago you would have said the same of me."

"..."

"Don't deny it."

"Fine. Yes. But even so, we didn't kill."

"Only turned me to stone."

The tea in Celestia cup began to boil.

"Would you have preferred being turned to ash?"

"Temper, temper," Discord chided. His ears had come aflame. "Don't be too proud of yourself," he said, pointing at his ears. "This isn't your doing. I'm being spoken about in the Everfree." He snapped his fingers and vanished. Celestia's world lurched as gravity resumed it's pull on her. The table, chairs and tea set plummeted to the floor with a crash. Celestia righted herself with her wings and gently flittered down.

"Why do you let him get to you like that?" Luna asked. Celestia didn't answer. She took a deep breath and calmed herself. "Are you really sure that this is wise? Do you really trust him?"

"Of course not," Celestia said. "But this isn't like last time, with the small populations of the old villages. Tirek is in Canterlot. He will be able to start consuming power in mass if we don't stop him as fast as possible. And I don't want to just throw Twilight at him. She's not ready for his... tactics," she said. Luna frowned.

"No. You're right. He would use her friends against her. And she-"

Celestia embraced Luna, cutting her off.

"Twilight wouldn't sacrifice his hostage either."

"I'm glad you didn't incinerate me with him like I told you too."

"I'm just glad the Pillars got there when they did."

"We got lucky. He wasn't yet at full strength."

"I don't like to rely on chance," Celestia said, turning to leave the room. "That's why I'm not taking any."

"So what's your contingency plan?" Luna asked, walking alongside her out into the hallway.

"Cadance. Between the three of us, we can overpower him. And this time, we are ready."

"It will take time for Cadance to get here from the Empire," Luna said. Celestia stopped outside of the guest suite.

"I instructed Cadance to come to Canterlot on the next train, before I ever contacted Discord." Celestia opened the door. Inside, Cadance was just finished helping Shining Armor get dressed. "Are you ready?"

"Always," Cadance confirmed.

"Commander?" Celestia asked of the recently promoted stallion. He went to attention. She nodded at his uniform armor. "How is the fit?"

"Good. It feels good. And... it feels good to be back."

"It's good to have you back," Luna said. "Hopefully we won't keep you from your retirement too long."

"Are you clear on your mission, Commander?" Celestia asked.

"Aye, Ma'am."

"Good luck," Cadance said, giving him a kiss. Shining departed the group to head down to the barracks.

"Alright you smooth-brained chuckle-fucks! Pucker up your assholes! We have a prince coming!" Sea Cay shouted across the Royal Guard barracks. "Get that head clean enough to drink out of!"

"The water cooler will suffice," Shining Armor said.

"Royaly on deck!" Sea Cay shouted. Everypony went to attention.

"As you were!" Shining yelled, letting the troops carry on.

"Your Highness," Sea Cay greeted.

"Stow it. I'm not a prince today," Shining said. He flicked the new brass on his uniform's lapel.

"Commander," Sea Cay amended his greeting.

"Captain, now, eh?" Shining greeted his old friend, noting his promotion as well.

"Well somepony had to fill your horseshoes," he said.

Aegis joined the familiar group.

"Commander," he greeted. "You got fat."

Shining chuckled.

"Speak for yourself, Sergeant Major is it now?" Shining asked. "Whose dick did you have to suck to get that stripe?"

"Mine," Capt. Cay said. "And you, Commander?"

"My wife's dick," he said. All three of them laughed. "Fuck, I've missed you guys. Sergeant, gather the troops. I have a briefing to deliver from the princesses."

"Aye, sir!" Aegis turned from the group and addressed the room. "Alright you shit-fucks! Fall in!" The entire barrack formed up with practiced precision on command.

"Alright gentlecolts, listen up!" Shining shouted.

"Uh, sir?" Sea Cay tapped his shoulder.

"What is it?"

"We're a mixed unit now. We have females." He pointed out a few of the mares in the formation, distinguishable only by the slightly softer features in their face.

"Whose dick was thinking for them to make that decision!?" Shining asked.

"That would be your... wife's dick, sir," Sea Cay said. "The Cadenza Initiative, for equal opportunity employment in the Royal Guard. 'If the Crystal Empire could do it, so can we'," he quoted.

"Fine. Whatever. Listen up, troops!" Shining shouted. "We have a mission from the tip top! We are to locate a target within Canterlot city: A centaur named Tirek. He is considered to be extremely dangerous. We are to immediately report his position directly to the princesses. We are to avoid direct engagement with the target. Any questions?"

"What are they going to do? Get your little sister to save the day for you again?" a guard asked. The rest of them snickered.

"Camisa! You better shut your mouth before I fuck it!" Aegis yelled. Shining squinted at the brazen guard, surprised to see that Camisa Roja hadn't yet gotten himself killed in a grease fire, or something equally ignoble.

"Are there any real questions?" Shining asked. None came. "Alright then. You have your orders. Spread the word to the other squads and fan out. No way we're letting Discord get the credit for this over the Royal Guard! I want this guy found by the day's end!"

The day's end came and went. Tirek was still at large.

That night, under the cover of darkness, he resumed his feeding frenzy on the magic of the citizens. He snuck up behind his latest victim, ready to consume his power. The pony turned at the last moment. His head morphed to reveal his true identity.

"Tirek, I presume?" Discord greeted. Tirek squinted and then recognized the misshapen creature before him.

"Discord? You're free?" he asked.

"As a bird."

"I commend you on your escape."

"I'm afraid the feeling isn't mutual," Discord said, snapping his fingers. Cuffs appeared on Tirek's wrists. He reflexively fired a destructive beam of magic at Discords head, splitting it in half. The result was less fatal than he had hoped. The halves of Discord's head recombined unscathed.

"I should have know you would want Equestria all to yourself," Tirek said.

"Oh I'm not doing this for me, I'm doing it for my friends. Just between the two of us, it's mostly for Fluttershy."

"Fluttershy!? You're not saying that you're friends with ponies!?" Tirek spat the word out as though it tasted awful in his mouth.

"Surprise!"

"I am surprised that someone with your intellect does not see this 'friendship' is but a new form of imprisonment. Clearly you had to abandon your true nature to stay in their good graces," Tirek said.

"I have done nothing of the sort."

"Please. I've seen this before. But he was always weak-minded. You are Discord. You are legend. You can not fall into the same trap that claimed my brother. Help me to grow strong, and be rewarded with something far greater than friendship: Freedom! Once I have stripped these ponies of their magic, nothing would give me greater pleasure than to see their world turned upside down. Who better to do so than the Master of Chaos, himself!? Join me, Discord, and reclaim your greatness! Unless, of course, 'pony errand boy' is the role you've always wanted to play in this world."

Discord considered it for a moment. Tirek's offer sounded good on the surface. But Discord knew that Tirek was a betrayer through and through. That would never change about him, even after a thousand years in Tartarus. As soon as he had enough power, Tirek would cast him aside just as he did his brother.

Tirek was defeated before he even got started. His prisoner, ready for delivery to Tartarus. They might make a stained-glass window for him, or maybe make him an alicorn princess. He thought about his crown and his throne and kingdom and... ruling. Signing legislature and tax codes and zoning ordinances. It all sounded so boring. But perhaps letting Tirek try to take over would prove entertaining. Right up until he got his flank kicked. It would be a boon for Princess Twilight's confidence. And then maybe he wouldn't have to listen to Fluttershy worry about her so much at his next tea party with her.

But...

In order to let that happen, he'd have to make her think that he had betrayed her and her friends. That would break her heart. It would crush her. He decided that if he were to go along with Tirek's plan he would keep her out of harms way. Tirek wanted to steal Equestrian magic. But he wasn't a killer. If that changed, it was something Discord simply wouldn't allow. Death had such a boring, un-chaotic finality to it.

"What say you, Discord?" Tirek asked. It would be fun, Discord reasoned. Fluttershy would forgive him. Eventually. She always did. Discord snapped his fingers, making the cuffs on Tirek's wrists vanish. Tirek grinned. "A wise choice, friend."

Twilight hung on her brother's shoulder as they walked down the Canterlot avenue. It was the day of their big anniversary date, and he had promised to take her out to the theater. Not the movie cinema, but the actual theater with a stage and live actors.

Today's presentation was the story about the Kirin who hid below an opera stage, and fell in love with this opera singer, and he wore a freaky half-mask thing, and he played the organ a lot and got all broody 'cause the singer was in love with another dude, so he took her away on this underground gondola. I mean, who doesn't love musical theater?!

Arriving at the Canterlot Playhouse, they presented their tickets to the usher and he directed them to their seats. They settled in and Twilight went through her bag. She pulled out a small prescription bottle and showed it to her brother.

"Zesper?" he asked, reading the label. She nodded.

"It should kick in a couple hours from now, when the play ends. Just in time for us to head home and..." she trailed off, giving him her best bedroom eyes as she took the tablet.

"You little minx," he teased, nudging against her shoulder. The lights started to go down in the theater.

"Ooh! The show is about to start!" she said.

The curtain parted. But instead of the troupe of pony actors the audience was expecting, it was the infamous draconequus, Discord. The audience gasped. Most ponies had never seen Discord in person. His odd figure and imposing height was enough to be intimidating by itself. But most who did recognize him, knew him for the villain he was. News of his reformation hadn't traveled as far or as fast as Ponyville being turned into the chaos capital of the world. It mattered little in that moment.

Discord, dressed as a magician, produced a top-hat and a wand. Setting it on the stage, he gave the hat a tap with the wand. From beneath the hat emerged Tirek, who grew into his normal size. He tossed aside the hat and his cloak, revealing himself. The crowd hadn't any time to react before he consumed their magic.

Twilight and her brother could only hold each other in terror as they felt the magic being torn from their bodies. They could each see it leaving the other's horn as the cutie marks vanished from their flanks.

"Get out of here! Go!" he shouted.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"I need to go warn the Princess and the Royal Guard!" he said.

"What about me?" she asked. He turned and looked into her eyes, dulled from the loss of her magic.

"Run home as fast as you can! I love you!" he said, kissing her. She kissed him back before he turned to leave with all haste.

"I love you, too!" She shouted after her brother. As soon as he was out of her view, Twilight Velvet ran home.

Night Light reached the castle perimeter. The former Guard officer entreated entrance, imploring audience with the princess immediately regarding the imminent danger. The bedraggled stallion was brought before Princess Celestia, barely able to move himself under his own strength. What strength he had left, he used to relay the message of how Discord had betrayed Equestria and joined forces with the evil centaur.

"It seems I've put too much trust in Discord, and the effect that friendship would have upon him." Celestia said.

"I need to get home to Velvet," Night Light said. He turned to run home but stumbled over his own hooves from fatigue. He barely saved his fall and wheezed against the lush carpet of the throne room floor.

"Lieutenant, please!," Celestia said, addressing his former rank out of habit. She rushed down to his aid. "You're in no condition. If Twilight is safe at home, please, stay here until this is resolved!" She motioned for a guard to help him to a guest room. He shoved them away.

"Princess," he called out. She looked away. She knew what Tirek could do. What he would do if they didn't stop him. She didn't want to see the dull grey of Night Light's lifeless eyes. The fate that would befall her, and all she loved if she failed. He hadn't the strength to repel the guards twice as the held him.

"Celestia! Look at me!" he demanded. She did, finally. Weak as he was, dull as his eyes were, the resolve in them was a strong as ever. "Promise me that you'll look after my family!" The emphasis he put into the word 'family' was more than enough for her to understand his meaning.

Celestia sent for each of her guards to summon Princess Luna, and Cadance, leaving the two of them alone.

"I promise," Celestia said with absolute seriousness, "that Twilight means at least as much to me as she does to you. And I know that right now, with her magic stolen, home is the safest place for her. And I know that she wouldn't want you running around the streets of Canterlot with Tirek on the loose." She walked with him out into the hallway. "We have defeated him before. And this time we are ready for him."

A guard returned, escorting Luna. Celestia directed him to show Night Light to a guest room. Just as soon as they left, a guard from the Pegasi Air Corp came bursting into the room. He looked like he had crashed into a tree and hit every branch on the way down.

"Your Highness! We just got a message from Cloudsdale! A monster is stealing flight magic from the pegasi! The Air Corp and the Wonderbolt tried to intercept, but-" His disjointed wing tried to flex, making him wince in pain.

"Tirek is stealing flight magic already!?" Luna asked.

"Discord has betrayed us," Celestia said. "With him teleporting Tirek all over Equestria, the is no limit to how fast he will gain power!"

"Discord betrayed us?" Cadance asked as she trotted into the room.

"It seems so. I've just had two other eye witnesses."

A flash of magic light materialized a scroll in front of Celestia. She picked it up and read it.

"The mayor of Appleloosa has broken the emergency seal!" Celestia said, looking over the scroll. It detailed much the same events. "Tirek is stealing magic from earth ponies with Discord's help."

"Earth ponies too!?" Luna gasped. "But that means-"

"Yes. He will move against us next, seeking alicorn magic. And with Discord by his side, we will not be able to stop him from taking it."

"What do we do!?" Cadance asked.

"What we always do," Celestia said as she hastily wrote a letter to and sent it off. "Let Twilight handle it."

"..."

"..."

"Okay, but how though?" Cadance asked with dubious concern.

"I have a three step plan," Celestia said. "Step one, we rid ourselves of our alicorn magic. Step two-"

"Wait! What!?" Cadance balked. "We rid ourselves of our magic!?"

"Yes. So Tirek can't steal it," Celestia said.

"Okay, but again, how though?" she asked. "One of the first lessons you ever taught me about magic is that it can't just disappear into thin air."

"That's correct. We will need to transfer our magic to Twilight," Celestia said.

"Or-" Cadance interjected. "Or, and I'm just spit-balling here; we could not do that!"

"No. There is no other way. Between transferring our magic to Twilight, and the Elements of Harmony, it will give her the edge she needs to defeat Tirek and Discord."

"But I thought the Elements needed to be returned to the Tree of Harmony to prevent the Plunder Vines from taking over," Cadance said.

"And they did. She can borrow the Elements from the Tree again, just as Luna and I did before. With the magic of friendship, they'll be able to turn them both to stone and return all the magic that was stolen from the ponies.

"And what do we do in the meantime?"

"I'm thinking... a nap?" Luna said with a yawn.

"How can you be thinking about sleeping right now!?" Cadance asked.

"I just got off a twelve-hour shift!" Luna said.

"But how can you be so sure that Twilight will be able to handle it?"

"Because it works every time! Trust me," Celestia said. "Everything will be fine. Twilight can defeat both of them with just the Elements. Giving her our magic is just to prevent Tirek from getting it. Okay?"

"Okay."

The doors the the throne room opened and Twilight Sparkle galloped in. "I came as quickly as I could! Is something wrong? Is it Tirek?"

"I'm afraid I put too much trust in Discord, and the effect that friendship would have upon him," Celestia said.

"Discord has betrayed the ponies of Equestria and joined forces with Tirek," Luna said.

"How could he do this!?" Twilight cried. "I thought our friendship meant something to him. I thought he had changed."

"Tirek has stolen enough magic that he now has the strength to steal flight as well," Celestia said. "Without pegasi to control the weather, there will be no rain in Equestria. There is word he has gone after earth ponies as well. Without their strength, they will not be able to tend to the land."

"Ponies will no longer be in control of their world," Luna said. "That power will belong solely to Tirek."

"There is no doubt that Tirek is after alicorn magic," Celestia said. "With Discord by his side, we will not be able to stop him from taking it."

"Once it is in his possession, his power will know no bounds," Luna said, "and all hope will be lost."

"But there is one solution," Celestia said. "It is only by making this sacrifice that Equestria and the lands beyond it might be saved. We must rid ourselves of our magic before Tirek has the chance to steal it from us." Twilight gasped.

"Tirek is set on possessing alicorn magic," Luna said. "When he comes for us, we can not have what he is looking for."

"I'm more than willing to do my part and give up my magic," Twilight said.

"You misunderstand," Luna said. "Our magic can not just disappear into thin air. Somepony must keep it safe."

"That somepony is you, Twilight," Cadance said.

"Why me?"

"We do not believe that Tirek is aware that a fourth alicorn princess exists in Equestria," Celestia said. "If we transfer our magic to you, Tirek will not know where it has gone."

"Do you understand what we are asking of you?" Cadance asked.

"Yes. It's just- I'm only now learning how to control my own alicorn magic. To take on even more-"

"Twilight, you represent the element of magic. If there is anypony who can do this, it's you," Cadance assured her.

"Taking on this task will be one of the most difficult things I will ever do. This is the role I am meant to play as a princess of Equestria. I will not fail to do my duty!"

"Then we must begin at once!" Celestia said. The three princesses surrounded Twilight and expelled their magic from their horns into a massive orb of light. As soon as they were done, it funneled down into Twilight's horn.

Far away, in Fillydelphia, Discord felt the magical imbalance like a shiver up his spine. He knew what it felt like, but it simply couldn't be true. Celestia wasn't that reckless. "That can't be right," he muttered. It might make for a greater spectacle later, he thought, but ultimately it would be of little consequence.

Back in Canterlot, Twilight composed herself from the magical transfer. She rushed over and embraced her old mentor, who was fatigued from the act. Celestia and the other two alicorns were blank flanks.

"It is done," Celestia said. "You need to get out of here before Tirek arrives. But before you go, Let me show you how to lower the sun."

"And raise the moon," Luna added.

Under the cover of the night, Twilight returned home to the Golden Oaks Library. By the time she got home, it was so late at night that it was early. Spike was fast asleep. The sound over her hooves on the floor stirred him from his sleep.

"You weren't gone very long," he said. "Does that mean everything's okay?"

"Yup. Everything's fine," Twilight lied.

"In that case I'm going back to bed. The sun's not up and neither am I."

"That's strange. The sun should be up by now. The sun should be up by now!" Twilight said, realizing that she was now responsible for that.

~

Shining Armor was getting ready to go on his morning patrol in Canterlot. They had a new mission. Not only to locate Tirek, but also now, with news of his treason, Discord. "That's strange. The sun should be up by now," he said.

"On top of everything else, Nightmare Moon is back?" Captain Sea Cay asked.

"I hope not."

There was no dawn. The moon plummeted out of the sky and then back up into it again, chased by the sun, dipping up and below the horizon several times as Twilight Sparkle struggled to control her new magic.

"Geez! Has Celestia been up all night drinking?" Sea Cay asked.

"Probably having another one of her 'let Twilight handle it' parties," Sergeant Aegis said with a chuckle.

"Go ready the others," Shining commanded them, sending them off. He headed out of the tower onto the city overpass bridge as the the sun settled into a noon-ish position in the sky. His helmet vanished with a flash of light, only to reappear on the head of his target beside him.

"Shining Armor! Why, whatever are you doing here?" Discord asked, appearing beside him in a flash. He was genuinely surprised to see the stallion-prince, former-royal-guard, back in Canterlot. Discord had hoped that Shining and Cadance would have stayed in the Crystal Empire during this little lesson for Twilight's confidence. As amusing at it would be to him for Celestia to be sent to Tartarus for a time, he didn't wish such a fate for Cadance. The poor mare was blameless in all of this.

"Back off, traitor!" Shining growled.

"The only one Discord betrayed was himself," Tirek said, appearing at the far side of the bridge. "Abandoning his true nature to make friends with weak-minded equines who offer him nothing!"

You are to locate the targets and report directly to the princesses. Do not engage!

With the centaur in front of him and Discord behind him, Shining Armor had no escape. He put everything he had into it as he blasted a bolt of magic at Tirek. Tirek caught it in his hand like it was no more than a ball of crumpled paper and ate it like a snack. He grabbed the stallion by the face and inhaled the rest of his magic from his horn, leaving the pony to collapse on the bridge.

"How could you do this?" Shining whimpered to Discord.

"Why don't you go and have a little fun. I won't stand in your way," Tirek said to Discord, before he left to raid the rest of the city. Discord glanced at the stallion laying there, motionless, on the bridge. This wasn't very chaotic. This wasn't his idea of fun at all. But he didn't want to be too far from Tirek. He needed to make sure that the centaur didn't do anything too permanent.

As soon as they were gone, Shining got up and headed to the castle. He needed to warn the princesses that Tirek would be coming for them soon. He needed to save his wife.

The castle shook with each heavy step of the massive beast approaching. A former Royal Guard gathered up the rest of the civilian staff of the castle and herded them all down into the bowels of the castle, to hide away from that monster. It was like the old 'dragon attack' drills they used to do. The castle dungeon hadn't been used as such in centuries. Most of it served as long term storage. Some of it had been converted into a wine cellar, or a pantry of the kitchen a floor above. But there was plenty room enough left to serve as a shelter for the non-combatants.

Night Light could't know for sure if he had managed to find everypony. He closed the door and locked it. He barricaded it as best as he could along with the others inside the shelter. All they could do now is pray that whoever was still up there in the castle, had run very, very far away. Upstairs, the three princesses waited in the throne room.

"I want to go on record as saying that I still think this is a stupid plan," Luna said, sitting beside Celestia and Cadance in the throne room. Their usually wavy manes hung limp devoid of magic.

"It will work," Celestia assured her. "We've bought Twilight plenty of time to get back to the Everfree forest with her friends and get the Elements of Harmony. With them, they will be able to easily defeat Tirek and return them to the tree before the the forest has a chance to grow feral again."

"We... did tell her to use the Elements again... right?" Cadance asked, thinking back to when Twilight was with them, unable to recall if they had mentioned that bit.

"Yes... We must have. Right?" Celestia asked, also unsure.

"I... I don't know. But I mean... it seems obvious, right?" Luna asked. "They've solved everything every time before. Why wouldn't she immediately use those?"

"You're right," Cadance said. "And Celestia's right. Everything will be fine."

"..."

"..."

As the sound grew closer, they braced themselves for what was coming next. The throne room doors exploded into splinters as Tirek stomped through the broken frame, easily thrice the size of Celestia's height. He held Celestia in his magical grasp and opened his mouth. He had been looking forward to this moment for a millennium. He anticipated the taste of alicorn magic.

None came.

"What have you done!?" He bellowed. Celestia just grinned at him with that same smug confidence she always had. He grabbed Luna and Cadance, trying to drink each of their magics in turn. It was gone. "Where is your magic!?"

"We got rid of it so that you can not take it from us!" Celestia said. He tossed them aside onto the floor and took thier place on the throne.

"Getting rid of your magic so that I can not take it from you? That was your plan?" Tirek asked. Celestia just smirked at him. "That has to be the stupidest plan I have ever heard!"

"Called it," Luna muttered.

"How does it feel," Tirek asked, "knowing that soon, every pegasus, unicorn, and earth pony will bow to my will and that there is nothing that you can do to stop it?"

"You will not prevail, Tirek," Celestia said. With each passing moment that Twilight and her friends didn't rush into the room with the Elements of Harmony, Celestia felt her hope fading. Her words sounded increasingly hollow, even to her.

"Give my regards to Cerberus," Tirek said, opening a portal to Tartarus, and casting the princesses into it.

A lone Royal Guard pony watched in horror from just behind the broken frame of the throne room doorway. With the princesses gone, things had gone from bad, to catastrophically worse. He ran as fast as his hooves could carry him. He turned the corner at the end of the hall and collided with the Guard Commander. Shining Armor tumbled along with the poor guard, both landing on the lush red carpet of the castle floor.

"Sir! We have to get out of here! Sound the evacuation!" the young stallion cried. "The princesses are gone!"

"What do you mean, 'gone'?" Shining asked in terror.

"Tirek sent them to Tartarus! He opened a portal and sent them through! They're gone! I'm out of here! I need to get home to protect my wife and family!"

Shining grabbed him by his collar.

"What about MY wife!?" he yelled. "What about Cadance!?"

"She's gone! All of them!"

Shining Armors gripped on the pony failed him. His legs went limp. The guard scampered away and ran out of the hallway.

Cadance was gone. The royal sisters were gone. He looked down at the brass armor on himself. He was a Royal Guard. But there was no royalty to guard. There was no reason for him to be there. Except to kill Tirek. He wanted to charge in there and vaporize him. But without his magic it would have been suicide. And even with his magic... It wouldn't have gone any better that the last encounter with Tirek. The only thing that awaited him here was death or worse. He turned on his hoof and fled. He had never run from a fight before in his life. He had stood up to Sombra in the frozen north. He felt like a coward. But what else could he do? He ran home.

Once he got outside, Shining Armor realized that the Crystal Empire was a long damn jog away. And that was really only his home with Cadance. It never really felt like home to him. For years, home was in the barracks, with his fellow guards. But now that wasn't his home any more, either. There was only one place left. One last stand, worth fighting for. His last home. His first home. Much had changed in the city, but he knew the way well.

He hadn't been a prince long enough to grow fat and lazy. He was still in great shape. But the magic that Tirek had taken from him was more than just his abilities as a unicorn. His cutie mark was gone, and along with it, a piece of himself. One might call it a soul if he were inclined to believe in such a thing. Shining was starting to. He didn't have his usual strength, speed, or endurance. It was like his legs were filled with cement. But he persevered.

Strangely, when he arrived at his foalhood home in Canterlot, he didn't feel tired. Or rather, not any more tired than when he'd had his magic drained. He wasn't panting or wheezing from physical exertion. His muscles didn't ache. Losing his magic to Tirek just made him feel slower, but his body didn't lose any of its conditioning.

He rapt on the door with his hoof. There was no answer. He felt a wave of dread wash over him. He knocked harder. He stepped back from the door and looked at the house. There was a flicker of movement in the second floor window curtain. "Mom!? Dad!?" Shining shouted through the door. "It's me!" He strained to hear the hoofsteps coming downstairs. He heard the loud scraping of wood on wood as furniture was shuffled around inside. The locks on the door were unlocked one by one with clumsy hooves. At last the door opened.

Twilight Velvet stood inside, standing shakily as she leaned against the pile of furniture. Her eyes had the same dull glaze as his. She'd had her magic taken as well. "Mom!" He rushed in to her and hugged her. She hugged him back. He hadn't noticed to at first, but he could feel it now. She was sweating. Her eyes, dull as they were, were red and puffy from crying.

"I thought you were guarding the princesses," she said.

"They're gone," he said, not letting go of her.

"But- what about Cadance!?" she pleaded.

"She's-" he tried to say it but the words caught in his throat. From the moment the guard told him what had happened, he had been running on instinct, relying on his training, to protect what he could without thinking of himself. But now, the reality of it hit him like a train. "She's gone!" he cried.

Twilight Velvet felt the pain in her chest as the air left her. Her throat had gone so tight that she couldn't even form a sound to cry. It just rushed out as a long, dry wheeze. Like the icy grip of death itself had reached into her and crushed her lungs. She gasped for a breath.

"She's gone?" she cried.

"A guard saw it with his own eyes," he told her as tears streaked down his cheeks as well. Just as it had happened to Shining when he heard, her legs gave out from under her. He hadn't the strength to hold her up and could only do his best to make their fall to the floor a controlled one. She couldn't believe that her daughter was dead.

"Am I alive or dead?" Cadance asked.

"You're dead," Celestia replied.

"Nine," Luna said.

"Would I be in history books?" Cadance asked.

"Yes," Celestia answered.

"Eight," Luna counted down.

"Am I from before the founding of Equestria?"

"Uh... yes."

"Seven."

"Am I a unicorn?"

"Yes."

"Six"

"Am I a princess?"

"No."

"Five."

"I'm Clover the Clever," Cadance guessed.

"You got it." Celestia confirmed.

"With four left," Luna said. "Not bad."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"So what now?" Cadance asked, giving a futile tug at the cuff chain keeping her hoof bound to the floor of their cell in Tartarus. It was the same as the chains on the other two alicorns. "How about 'I Spy'?"

"How about no."

"I spy something black."

"It's Cerberus."

"I spy something white."

"It's Tia."

"I spy something blue."

"It's me."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"How about 'Twenty Questions' again?"

"How about we take a nap?" Luna growled.

"Wait, what time is it?"

"It doesn't matter here. Time has no meaning in Tartarus," Celestia said.

"I just realized that I haven't eaten today. But I don't feel hungry," Cadance said.

"That's part of the magic of Tartarus," Celestia explained. "You don't get hungry, or thirsty. You can't starve. You don't even age. When you're here, you're here forever."

"Wow. That sucks," Cadance said. "But how long are we going to be here?"

"Just until Twilight has enough time to find the Elements and use them against Tirek," Celestia said. "Until then, our magic is safe with her."

"Unless Tirek finds her first," Luna said.

"He doesn't know about her though," Celestia said. "That was the whole point of the plan."

"..."

"..."

"Yeah, but, how though?" Cadance realized. "I mean, Twilight's coronation was national news. And even if he never picked up a newspaper, there is the image of her in the throne room stained-glass window. Not to mention the fact that Discord is working with him now and he obviously knows about Twilight being an alicorn princess."

Celestia opened her mouth to retort something, but nothing came out. Cadance could see the gears turning in her head as Celestia arrived at the only obvious conclusion.

"Fuck."

Shining locked the door to the house and did his best to help his mom restore the barricade by hoof. As they finished, he realized that it would have been a lot easier with more help.

"Wait, where's Dad?" he asked.

"You haven't seen him?" she asked. He shook his head. "We were at the theater for our anniversary date when Tirek attacked. I barely managed to escape. He ran to the castle to warn the Princesses. I haven't seen him since. I fear the worst!" She cried again and wiped her eyes. Shining hugged his mother again. He led her over to the couch and sat down beside her. They just held each other. It was all they could do.

As he held her, he realized that he hadn't seen her since Twilight's coronation, and his wedding before that. He realized how much he had missed her. After losing his wife and father, and pony-knows-who else, it made him cherish that which he had all the more. And the same was true of her as she held her son.

Shining had heard the horror stories of Royal Guard ponies that had fallen in battle. In their last moment, as the bled out, crying for their mothers. He could only have the barest of understanding about it without experiencing it himself. But with the rest of the world outside on the verge of destruction, it felt very much like it could be the end for him. But unlike those poor bastards dying in the trenches, he actually had his mother there to comfort him.

She was no creature of physical strength, and her magic was gone. And she was even more broken by loss at that moment than he was. But in her hooves, he felt a glimmer of hope. Some absurd, unfounded feeling that somehow, someway, it would all be okay. Perhaps it was the familiar scent of her fur. A perfume of hers that he recognized that made him feel better somehow. Something. Or something else.

She got up from the floor to go sit on the couch. He followed after her. His nostrils flared as he sniffed the air around them. This did not escape her notice. She realized that her tail was flagging involuntarily. She forced it down to cover herself before she sat on the sofa.

"Sorry," she apologized.

"What?"

"It was for your father, for out big date today," she said.

"Big date?"

"Yes. For our anniversary."

"Oh. Oh! I'm so sorry! I completely forgot!"

"Well, things have been a little crazy the last couple days for you, I'm sure."

"Yeah, but I still should have sent a card at least. I can't believe I forgot!" he apologized.

"It's okay. It... it doesn't matter anymore," she said.

He smelled the scent in the air again without trying to be too obvious about it.

"So that's... you?" he asked.

"Yeah." She blushed. "I took Zesper to... well, you know what it does. But without him to deal with it, it's just uncomfortable."

"I'm sorry." Shining felt like an ass for even bringing any attention to it. Zesper was a medication for older mares who were approaching menopause to stimulate a heat cycle. It helped to put them in the mood to mate, and make it easier for them to achieve orgasm. But without doing any of those things, the effects of Zesper, much like being in heat, itself, could become quite irritating.

"I'll be fine. It'll pass in a day or so. I've been through worse heats," she assured him. Shining felt a twinge of stirring in his anatomy, reacting on instinct. But the combination of the grave situation, and his will, kept his body firmly in check as he sat down and nuzzled against her.

In Ponyville, Discord had trapped Twilight's friends in a cage, including Fluttershy. It broke his heart to see the betrayed look in her eyes. But he needed to maintain the ruse for just a little while longer. Tirek consumed her magic, along with the other ponies.

"You really think she'd do anything for them?" Tirek asked.

"If Twilight has magic to give, it will be yours," Discord said. "There won't be a pony who will be able to stand up against us."

"Who said anything about 'us'?" Tirek said. "You helped me grow strong. You've provided the means by which I can obtain Princess Twilight's magic. And now you are no longer of any use to me."

Oh, Discord thought. This is the part where he betrays me. This is sooner than I was expecting. And here I was thinking that Twilight would have rainbow-magic-beamed him first. Or if in the outside chance he managed to defeat the elements, I could have just snapped him out of existence and saved the day. Oh well. Discord prepared to snap his fingers. Although, it would be worthwhile to see what Twilight could do if she really really thought there was no other help coming. If she believed that even a god of chaos had been beaten by Tirek. If her friends' lives were at stake. What happens, I wonder, when a good pony goes to war?

Discord feigned helplessness and let Tirek consume 'his magic'. The thing about infinite magic is that you can always spare a little. He even made his given bit of magic plaid, just for fun. Tirek tossed him onto the ground like a rag doll. Discord held up the amulet Tirek had given him.

"But you said this was a sign of your gratitude and loyalty. A gift from someone close to you," Discord said.

"My brother who betrayed me. It is as worthless as he is."

"Surely you saw this coming," Applejack said.

"I didn't," Discord lied.

~ ~ ~

"PRINCESS TWILIGHT!" Tirek's voice boomed across the town of Ponyville. "YOU HAVE SOMETHING THAT BELONGS TO ME!"

Twilight only needed to do two things that day:
1. Gather her friends and arm them with the Elements of Harmony.

And until then,

2. Avoid Tirek to keep him from getting the alicorn magic.

She had already screwed up the first part. As a purple streak flew across the sky on a direct intercept course with the massive centaur, she was well on her way to screwing up the second. Coming to a screeching halt in front of him, all she managed to do was demonstrate that she was an inept flier.

"You're going to give me what I want!" he said. He opened his mouth to consume her magic. She teleported away before he could. But rather than go someplace remote, she teleported into her home in Ponyville, in the center of a densely settled civilian population. She rushed to her telescope to see where he was. His gaze followed along her teleportation wake. He could sense her powerful magic. Through the lens of the telescope she could see him charge up a magical beam to attack. She had only a fraction of a second to react. She grabbed her pet owl and teleported out of the tree library an instant before the blast struck.

In the blink of an eye, her home exploded into a billion shards of burning wood embers, leaving little more than a charred stump. Her owl flew away to safety as burning books fell from the sky all around her. She looked down at the ashen pages of her library scattered all over the ground. Many were first edition. Some were one-of-a-kind printings. Words that would never be arranged in quite the same way ever again. The greatest thoughts of ancient minds, lost forever. Like teardrops in the rain.

Ordinarily, Twilight Sparkle was not a pony prone to anger. Twilight Sparkle was not one to succumb to hatred. Ordinarily, Twilight Sparkle was a mare of logic, and reason. As such, she always knew that there was a reasonable response to resolve conflict. Even for a crime as unforgivable as this. Twilight would not go into a blind rage and resort to m u r d e r.... ordinarily.

But these

were

~ extraordinary ~

times.

~

When asked later about the reports of Armageddon happening in Ponyville, Twilight's memory from that point on was a bit hazy.

The force of the explosion shattered everything made of glass nearby. All of her neighbors' windows and everything in their cupboards. Nothing inside Twilight's home survived. Not even in the depths of her basement laboratory. Not even an enchanted flask that had been in a trunk in Zecora's hut just a day ago. It shattered, releasing the spell it held, and the hex on the stallion ensnared by it. The contents of the flask didn't spill everywhere, however. In the snap-back of the spell being broken, the accumulated contents of the flask were...

... returned to sender.

In Twilight Velvet's Canterlot home, she had stirred from her sleep. They were both so exhausted from everything that had happened that day that Shining had fallen asleep right there on the couch as she held him. She let him lay down and she joined his nap shortly after, her body draped over his. It didn't seem to bother him any. They were both quite comfortable in the position. At least, she was as comfortable as she could be, despite the ever-present itch in her nethers. She noticed the ground shake beneath them. It was a minor tremor, like a piece of heavy furniture being dropped upstairs, or something very big had happened very far away.

Immediately after, something very big happened close by. She hadn't put any mind to their specific position until she felt a bulge growing in his sheath under her pelvis. She tried to shift away from it but it grew so unnaturally hard and fast it was almost beyond belief. She felt the blunt tip of his shaft emerge from his sheath and push up along her backside. It parted her pussy lips, smearing her copious wetness. It nearly caught the entrance to her vagina, barely pushing inside of her before glancing away. Her son's shaft continued to grow longer past her anus and pressed into the dock of her tail, firmly propping it upwards behind her as his medial ring brushed past her winking clitoris.

Shining's eyes shot open as though he had just awoken from a night terror. Velvet was mortified to be in such a compromising position by him. She was certain that it was because of her state from the Zesper. She moved to lift herself off of him. His hooves moved in a flash to her hips and gripped her flanks and he thrusted his hips upwards and the rest of his body just kept going up with it. His back arched to a degree that would impress both a gymnast and exorcist alike. His eyes screwed shut and his mouth was open in a silent wail, stretched so far it was like his jaw had unhinged like a snake.

With the spell on the flask broken, all of his semen had returned to his scrotum. All at once. Shining was in the throes of the worst case of blue balls anyone had ever experienced ever. They were so blue, they were beyond blue, beyond purple, they went right off the end of the visible spectrum. He had Ultra-Violet balls.

He had never known such a need before. It was a need more severe than a starving pony's need for food. More desperate than a drowning pony's need for air. He needed to cum immediately if not sooner. His conscious mind was chemically shocked into submission as the instincts of his animal brain took over. It no longer mattered that the mare on top of him was his mother, or even a mare, or even a pony.

Velvet could only hold on as she was suddenly lifted into the air on top of him. His entire body broke into profuse sweating. Even his eyes. The muscles in his back relaxed and they fell together on the couch. His hooves gripping her hips kept her privates pinned firmly against his own. She couldn't keep her face from pressing against his chest, damp with sweat. The flood of excess testosterone reintroduced into his system saturated his sweat with potent pheromones that filled her nose and absorbed into her skin. Pheromones crafted by eons of evolution to start a chain reaction in her brain, the chemical precursors to signal the onset of an emotion, designed specifically to overwhelm logic and reason. An emotion that was already blinding her from the simple and obvious truth: This stallion was her son.

Less a second later, he thrusted upwards again, nearly as high as the first time. His dick only just hitting the dock of her tail and rubbing against the outside of her marehood. Not that it mattered to him. At that point, he could have fucked a hole through a concrete wall. But even on the brink of cumming instantly, it wasn't enough to get him there. It wasn't nearly enough for Velvet to get there, either. His body needed it. Her body wanted it. And neither of them had the state of mind to resist their desires.

Velvet mistook the sweat rolling down his cheeks as tears. Shining wasn't really crying, although he was absolutely in enough agony to justify it. But Velvet only saw tears of remorse. Perhaps in the moment, she was projecting her own self doubt. But it was a moment only. Maybe it really was pain. He had gotten so hard, so fast, and it was her fault. Damn that Zesper! She did this to him, she thought. But she would make it right. She would make the boo-boo all better. They flopped onto the couch again. She shushed him and cooed to try to calm her baby.

"It's okay. Mommy is going to make it all better," Velvet whispered. She reached back to help aim him.

Her hoof on his penis was light a bolt of lightning. As though he had already cum for the eighth time in as many minutes, and the world's best whorse had just gone into super-suck mode on his ultra-sensitive dick. He made a very undignified cry. His hooves on her flanks faltered.

"Shh, it's okay," she said, able to lift her hips now. She aimed his tip at her needy vagina. "I want this too," she whispered.

She lowered herself onto him, her dripping pussy easily allowing his penetration. The instant his tip was inside her, his hips bucked again. Saved by her quick reflexes she was able to stand on the sofa cushion fast enough. His blunt tip still hit her cervix with an appreciable force, making her vision go white in a flash of visceral pain. The Zesper had made her innermost barrier more pliable, but even so, there were limits.

Shining's hips bucked and thrusted wildly, without finesse or rhythm, trying desperately to just get off as fast as possible. His hooves pawed at her flanks, but could never get a good purchase on her to pull her down to him. Fortunate for her given the length and girth of the spear she was currently riding. It was enough for her just to have her son's medial ring slipping in and out of her, brushing across her winking clit with each pump.

She could feel the knot in her tummy getting tighter and tighter with each thrust, begging to snap free and release. Her wetness dripped down his shaft as it made wet, squelching noises with its textured surface sliding into her tight pussy, stretched completely around him. He must have gotten the very best parts of his father, because his sheer size put even her husband's beast to shame.

"Shining I- I-" Velvet's voice hitched in her throat. The knot in her belly snapped and her entire body trembled and shook as her pussy quivered around the penetrating cock, still fucking her silly. Shining didn't slow down. If anything, he went faster. Velvet's legs gave out and she felt onto him, trying to fall as far forward as she could, pulling herself up toward his shoulders while he continued to fuck her.

She felt the depths of her pussy stretch as his tip began to flare. He was about to cum. He wrapped his hooves around her and held her tight, trying to shove her back downwards onto his dick as deep as he could. She felt his flare push against her cervix. It wasn't a blunt impact like the first time, but a firm, constant pressure, as though he was determined to push his dick right into her womb. He was already flaring, so she was certain that there was no way. But he seemed determined. She was actually getting scared that he might succeed.

He made a series of noises that she could only describe as inward screams as he gasped for air. She felt his body stiffen and shake. He was about to cum. His hooves pushed down on her his even harder. He was in such intense agony and ecstasy. He didn't think he was dying.

He hoped he was.

His eyes opened for the first time since he had awoken. Even with massive, panicked breaths for oxygen, he had tunnel vision. It was like what ponies with near-death experiences had described. Ponies, dying on the battlefield, screaming out. The last image their brains saw before they died. Was it the face of god, herself? He looked up at the terrified mare on top of him.

"M- Mommy!" he cried out.

And then Shining Armor came.

Velvet knew the sensation. She felt the stallion's cock flex even harder, straightening itself, and her on it, forcing her to sit upright on top of him. She caught herself from falling backwards. Looking down, she could see the bulge it was making in her stomach as his tip flared wider.

He throbbed and pulse inside her. She could fell the first massive blast of his semen pelt against her cervix, instantly filling what little space there was left in her vagina. His second and third rope of cum only added to the pressure inside her. His hooves pushed down on her hips. His wide flare making her cervix part just enough to alleviate the pressure. His cum began to flood into her uterus. His balls churned and his shaft pumped more and more. Pumping more into her faster than she could take.

Every time he had tried to have sex with Cadance. The dozens of times he had jerked off in secret, alone with his shameful thoughts. And even the attempt he had with his sister. All of his cum finally came. All of it. And it just kept cumming. On average, he could fill a couple shot glasses. But Velvet looked down at the bulge in her stomach as her womb filled with ten-fold of her son's potent seed. It wasn't an absurd inflation to the point of looking any degree of pregnant. But it certainly felt that way. And even as impressively wide as her son's flare was, nothing could stop the deluge of cum to come.

White baby batter spurted out of her tight pussy from around his cock, entire ounces at at time. Velvet couldn't see it from her angle. But she could sure feel it. If it was spurting hard enough to make any lewd noises, she was deaf to it. All she could hear was the ring of tinnitus. All she could see was Shining's gaping mouth. She realized he was screaming. He had been for a while.

Shining came and came until his simply could not, any longer. It did not, what he would classically call, feel 'good'. It was like a hospital patient in horrible pain getting Milk of the Poppy. It was pleasurable, only in that it was the removal of pain. After so, so long, he finally came. His balls, once full beyond capacity, were now empty. He was utterly, literally, drained. And, much like a patient getting Poppy Milk, his eyes flittered, skirting the fringes of consciousness.

Velvet felt her son go limp. In both sense of the word. His body fell slack as he passed out, and she felt his erection inside her begin to soften. It slowly retreated from her and into his sheath. It stalled a bit as his remaining flare was stuck just inside her. She tried to lift herself off. The simple flexing of her muscles was enough to squeeze him out, followed by a thick rush of his semen flooding out of her, soaking his fur, and her own, and a decent portion of the couch.

She was too exhausted to care, flopping back onto him, laying with him on the couch, drenched in their own mess. If Tirek didn't destroy all of Canterlot with a Mega-Spell by tomorrow, she would deal with it then.