Twilight looked at Midnight Armor “What roar?”

Celestia shuddered “The roar of a creature that never should have existed.”

Artemis looked at Twilight “How much do you know about the creatures of legend?”

Twilight raised an eyebrow “Technically, you are a creature of legend.” She paused as her family laughed. “Which one are you talking about?”

“I don’t want to say its name so I’ll describe it instead.” Artemis replied, shuddering as well “It had the body of a lion, the wings of a dragon and a snake for a tail. The lion head could breathe fire with a strength that only the strongest dragons could match. That would have been bad enough, if the snake didn’t have its own power. There was only one thing the snake could do and that was eat. The problem was the snake’s food source. The lion part of the creature killed anything that lived and ate their bodies while the snake ripped their souls from their bodies and ate them. That made the entire creature stronger.”

Everypony looked at Twilight, expecting to see a look of shock, or horror, on her face, but that’s not what they saw. Surprised, they glanced at each other before turning back to her.

“Hmm” She said, looking down as she thought “The creature was clearly a Chimera. However, the fact that the snake ate souls means that it wasn’t a normal Chimera. I read that there was only one that could do that. The roar must have come from the Chimera Anima.”

“WHAT?!”

Twilight jumped and looked up, unintentionally echoing their mother. “What?”

Sundance stared at Twilight in shock. “H-how do you know about that creature?!”

Twilight shrugged “There was a description of it in a book.”

Celestia hesitantly asked “When did you read about it? And where did you find this book?”

Twilight tilted her head “Five years ago and it was in the castle library.”

Celestia gasped “Why didn’t you tell me about this?!”

Twilight blinked “I couldn’t have told you anything at the time. You had gone to the Griffin Kingdom to solve a dispute of some kind. I don’t know anything else about it because you refused to tell me. You just said that the trip was critical and that I wasn’t to send you any letters unless it was an emergency. You left a bunch of work for me to do, but I finished it all in the first two days. After that, I got bored and went to the library.”

“When I got to the library, I was approached by the previous head Archivist. She had just finished translating a shipment of ancient texts. She told me that one of the texts was a little strange and she couldn’t figure out what section to put it in.” Twilight paused “I believe she had an appointment with you to discuss the matter but it was cancelled because of your emergency trip to the Griffin Kingdom. Anyway, she asked me to read the book and give her my opinion on where she should put it.”

Celestia’s eyes were wide “W-what was it that you read?”

Twilight stared off into the distance as she thought. When she finally spoke, her words weren’t directed at any of them. Instead, it was almost as if she was thinking out loud. “The book didn’t have a title and was a record of a major battle. However, it clearly wasn’t an official record. Instead, it seemed like it was made by an average citizen. The fact that the tale had four alicorns in it made me question its authenticity because the only alicorns we knew of at the time were Celestia and Cadance. Still, I was curious enough to keep reading. The tale included physical descriptions of all four of the alicorns, but none of them were named. They were simply referred to as King, Queen, Prince and Princess. As for their descriptions . . .” She paused, looking at the ponies around her, before slowly giving voice to her new train of thought.

“Dad fits the description for the King, Mom fits the one for the Queen, Artemis fits the one for the Prince and Celestia is obviously the Princess.” Eyes wide, Twilight gasped as she suddenly understood. “T-that means . . .!”

Midnight Armor pulled her into a hug, trying to stop the panic attack that had clearly already started. “Shh, it’s alright. Calm down, Twilight.”

“B-but-!”

“Shh” He repeated, hugging her tighter. It took him awhile, but he eventually managed to calm her to the point that her breathing returned to normal. Fearing that she would have another panic attack, he used a wing to keep her by his side.

Realizing that he wasn’t going to let her move, she lay her head on his shoulder and took several deep breaths. “I-I’m sorry”

Midnight Armor nuzzled her “It’s alright. It’s a lot to take in.”

Sundance nodded “Especially since you didn’t know that what you read appears to have been a recording of history. You clearly thought it was fiction so I’m not surprised that you reacted that way.”

Celestia hesitantly asked “Did the tale say who we were fighting?”

After thinking for a moment, Twilight nodded “The Chimera Anima and a unicorn stallion. Like the alicorns, the unicorn wasn’t named. Instead, he was referred to as the Advisor to the Crown.”

Artemis growled, surprising Twilight “That was Golden Thunder’s official title. In fact, he was the last one to hold that title because we no longer use it. Anypony who knows this would know exactly who it was referring to.” He turned to Celestia. “If that book is still in the library, who knows how many ponies have read it by now. It’s possible that Golden Flash has read it as well.”

Celestia nodded “If he has, it will have been my fault.”

Midnight Armor turned to his oldest “How could it have been your fault? There’s no way for you to control if he read something or not.”

Celestia took a deep breath and shook her head. “It is my fault, for two reasons. When I returned from the Griffin Kingdom, Twilight told me that I needed to see the head Archivist about an unusual book. The head Archivist also came to see me, probably about the same book. Unfortunately, I had other things on my mind at the time.”

“I was focused on ensuring that what happened in the Griffin Kingdom didn’t cause trouble in Equestria because it could have started a war. I was so focused on preventing a potential war, I forgot about what they told me. If I had gone to see the head Archivist, I could have made sure that book was put somewhere safe.” She turned to Twilight “Have you told anypony about what you read?”

Twilight shook her head “Even though it mentioned you, I thought the story was fiction. This is the first time I’ve mentioned it to anypony.”

She nodded to Twilight “That’s good. Anyway, the second reason is worse. Roughly six months ago, Golden Flash said something in court that annoyed me. He kept making some claim about “the way things used to be done”. Instead of telling him why he was wrong, I sent him to the library because I wanted him to figure it out for himself. I remember being surprised when he didn’t come to court for almost a week. When he finally returned, he was behaving slightly different and had brought the first of many petitions requesting legal changes. He also asked me for a grant, requesting research funds.”

Sundance shuddered “That sounds disturbingly familiar. Did you grant his request?”

Celestia shook her head “Even after all these years, I haven’t forgotten what happened with Golden Thunder. Whenever anypony asks for research funds, I make sure they tell me exactly what they’re researching and what they plan to use the money for. If they refuse to give me that information, I don’t give them the funds. Golden Flash refused to tell me what he was researching, so I denied the grant.”

Sundance nuzzled her daughter “You had your hooves full at the time. Not only were you trying to keep Equestria together and teach Twilight, you were also trying to prevent a war. Additionally, you were doing all of this by yourself. Not to mention the fact that your brother was due to return soon. That must have been on your mind as well. While I wish you had done as Twilight and your head Archivist had asked, I don’t blame you for not doing so.”

Midnight Armor nodded “I agree with your mother, Celestia. I also agree with, and applaud, another of your actions. I’m glad you learned from our mistake with Golden Thunder. If you hadn’t begun to take more care with who research funding is given to, this would likely have been much worse. As it stands now, even if he knows the truth, you should still have time to prevent him from using Golden Thunder’s plan.”

Twilight had been thinking as she listened to her family. She suddenly spoke up. “If what I read was correct, Golden Thunder’s plan depended on him being able to use the Chimera Anima. Is this true?”

Surprised, Celestia nodded

Twilight smiled “Golden Flash can’t use that plan right now.”

Artemis paused “What do you mean?”

Still smiling, Twilight replied “There was only one Chimera that could eat souls. If the battle in that book really happened, and that book is an accurate record of said battle, then the Chimera Anima was destroyed.”

Sundance gasped “You’re right, Twilight. It was destroyed.”

Midnight Armor sighed in relief, understanding her point. “It was the only one in existence because it wasn’t born, it was made by ponies. That’s what Golden Thunder used the money he took from the treasury for. He had been researching a way to give a chimera that he had captured the ability to steal and eat souls.”

Sundance nodded “He was also researching control spells so he could make the Chimera Anima obey him.” She turned to Celestia “What about those spells? How many ponies know about them?”

Celestia smiled “I’ve classified them as forbidden and banned ponies from learning them, let alone casting them. Most ponies, other than Artemis and myself, don’t even know those spells exist.” She paused, looking at Twilight.

Twilight quickly shook her head “I don’t know any spells that can do that.”

Sundance thought for a moment. “How many Chimeras still exist?”

Artemis blinked “I’m not sure. I haven’t seen any since my return.”

Celestia smiled, but Twilight beat her to the answer.

“None” Twilight said, also smiling “According to what I read, the last one died roughly two hundred and sixty years ago.”

Celestia nodded “She’s right”

Midnight Armor grinned “Good. That means he’ll have to create one if he wants to turn it into a Chimera Anima. That could take years.”

Sundance nodded “If he wants revenge, he’ll have to come up with something else. In fact, that may be why he wants the funding.”

Celestia tilted her head “If so, that may be why he won’t tell me what he’s researching.”

Artemis sighed “Of course, all of this is assuming that he knows what happened and wants revenge.”

Midnight Armor nodded “You’re right, Artemis. Even though he’s clearly up to something, it could be harmless. Perhaps he’s just greedy. However, he could also be out for revenge or anything in between. Because we don’t know which one it is, your mother and I want to make sure you’re prepared for the worst.”

He turned to Twilight “To that end, I’d like to get back to the original topic. You may have read about that battle but, without reading it for myself, I don’t know how accurate that account is.” He nuzzled her “You’re right, this is a sensitive topic for us. However, we believe you need to know what happened and would prefer to tell you ourselves.”

Sundance smiled at her youngest “We’re the ones that brought this up, so don’t worry about us getting offended.”

Celestia saw Twilight’s expression “If you’re worried about how Artemis and I will take it, don’t. We need to see this. I’m sure that, like me, Artemis has pushed as many of the memories of that day as possible to the back of his mind.” She looked at her brother in time to see him nod. “We’ve probably forgotten things that we shouldn’t have.”

Twilight grimaced but nodded

Sundance looked at her husband “I’ll take it from here, Midnight. After we heard the roar . . .”

- - -Sundance’s Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor tensed as they looked around, searching for the source of the roar. Seeing nothing, they took to the air, heading towards the sound.

“Was that what I think it was?” She asked, flying at top speed next to her husband

“It had to be a Chimera.” He replied “No Manticore sounds like that. But I don’t understand why a Chimera would be here. We chased all of them from Equestria decades ago.”

Looking in front of them, she gasped “We’re headed for the castle!”

Both of them stopped in shock as a wall of their daughter’s magic appeared in front of the castle before reaching back to form a dome, protecting the castle and everypony in it. Another roar shook the forest but this one was accompanied by an intense blast of flames, aimed directly at their daughter’s shield.

Midnight Armor gasped “I’ve never seen a shield like that. It’s almost as powerful as my barrier!”

Sundance nodded “I don’t know where she learned how to do that, but you’re right. Unfortunately, even a shield as powerful as that one won’t be able to hold off a Chimera for long. We need to hurry.”

He nodded as they began flying again, still heading for their castle.

As they got closer, they watched the Chimera’s attack get close enough to touch Celestia’s shield. They gasped as a beam of dark blue magic met the flames. For a moment, it appeared as if the attacks were evenly matched. Then the beam of magic began to push the flames back. Eventually, the Chimera was forced to stop its attack in order to avoid getting magic in its mouth.

“That was Artemis!” Sundance breathed “H-how did he do that?!”

“When did his magic get that powerful?!” Midnight Armor asked, stunned

Before either of them could say anything else, they arrived above the castle. Easily passing through their daughter’s shield, they landed near their children.

“Celestia! Artemis!” Sundance shouted, racing over to them “Are you alright?!” She took a good look at her children, noticing that both were injured and clearly tired. Celestia had a small gash on her right flank and Artemis had one to his chest.

“What’s going on?!”Midnight Armor demanded as he reached his son’s side.

Celestia and Artemis glanced at each other

“We would tell you,” Artemis began “but we both know you won’t believe us.”

“Agreed” Celestia continued “You should ask somepony you will believe.” Seeing the expressions on the faces of their parents, she nodded at something on the other side of her shield. “Him”

Midnight Armor and Sundance looked at each other, confused, before turning to look in the direction she indicated. Both of their jaws dropped as they saw a large Chimera standing near Golden Thunder.

Sundance turned back to her daughter. “I know you don’t like him, but that’s no reason to allow him to die! That Chimera will kill him!”

Artemis snorted “No, it won’t. He created that thing, Mother, and has been using it to attack us for several hours now.”

“W-what?!” Midnight Armor exclaimed “Golden Thunder, is this true?!”

“King Midnight Armor and Queen Sundance” Golden Thunder sneered, taking them both by surprise “Welcome back. I thought the dragons would be able to keep you busy longer. In fact, I had hoped to greet you as Equestria’s new king, but your children have proven to be a more formidable defense than I expected.”

“I wish I had been able to fool your children like I fooled the two of you, but they’ve been suspicious of me for as long as I can remember. In fact, they’ve been trying to warn you about me for years.” He saw their stunned expressions and laughed. “Of course, they’re too young to understand what’s going on. Isn’t that right?”

The Chimera Anima chose that moment to launch a close range attack against Celestia’s shield. Caught by surprise, she barely managed to hold her shield together long enough for the attack to end. Then it shattered.

Midnight Armor tried to raise his barrier but cursed when he realized that he didn’t have enough magic.

Golden Thunder saw this and laughed “I guess the dragons were useful after all.” He lit his horn. The Chimera Anima launched another attack.

Midnight Armor and Sundance’s eyes widened as they watched the flames head for their family. Just as they were about to use the last of their magic to protect their children, they felt two surges of powerful magic beside them.

Everypony’s attention was suddenly drawn to the sky. The sun, which had been about to set, rapidly returned to the highest point in the sky. A bright light drew everypony’s attention to Celestia.

She was glowing, so much so that she could be mistaken for a second sun. When the light faded, her mane and tail were no longer pink. They had been replaced with a gently flowing river of soft pink, blue and green. On her flank, there was an image of the sun.

Before anypony could comment on Celestia’s new look, their attention was drawn back to the sky. The moon quickly rose and blocked the sun, forming a solar eclipse. A dark flash of light drew their attention to Artemis.

He was glowing as well. In his case, they felt like they were looking into a piece of the night sky. When the darkness faded, what they saw left everypony stunned. His coat was darker than it had been, now a deep sapphire. His mane and tail were no longer light blue. Instead, it looked like they were made of the night sky and, like his sister’s, they gently flowed in an invisible breeze. On his flank, there was a dark patch with a silver crescent moon.

Working together, they raised a shield that easily blocked the attack.

Midnight Armor stared at their daughter “C-Celestia!”

Sundance gasped as she looked at their son “A-Artemis!”

Together they said “They earned their Soul Marks!”

Golden Thunder paused “I have to admit, I didn’t see this coming. Congratulations, Princess Celestia and Prince Artemis. It’s not every day that one meets ponies who can control the heavenly bodies. I must say, it’s quite an honor.”

He studied their shield and sighed. “This calls for a change in strategy. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this, but it’s time for me to reveal my creation’s hidden ability.” He summoned two dozen ponies to his side. All of them had been bound and gagged.

Midnight Armor’s eyes widened “Release them at once!”

Golden Thunder chuckled “I’m afraid I can’t do that, my king. They are an important part of my strategy. I won’t bore you with the details. Nor will I subject you to the gruesome sight of my creation feeding.” He lit his horn. The Chimera Anima turned and pounced on the captive ponies. Just as it reached them, all of them vanished. When the Chimera Anima reappeared, it was alone and glowing.

Sundance glared at Golden Thunder “What have you done to them?”

He smiled “Me? Nothing. My Chimera Anima? That’s another story. It can eat the bodies and souls of living creatures. Every soul that it eats makes it stronger. It should be strong enough to destroy any defensive spell now.” He shook his head “It took many years of research to discover how to make this possible. I must thank you for the generous funding, your majesties. This wouldn’t have been possible otherwise.”

Midnight Armor matched his wife’s glare. “We funded your research into a defense system for the kingdom, not this.”

Golden Thunder’s smile widened “That’s where you’re mistaken, King Midnight Armor. This Chimera Anima is a very effective defense system and will do a great job of defending my kingdom.”

With that, the Chimera Anima launched an attack that was strong enough to melt Celestia and Artemis’ shield, the castle behind them and everypony in between.

Golden Thunder’s eyes widened “That’s too strong! I want to take over the castle, not destroy it!”

Artemis and Celestia’s eyes turned white as they poured all of their available magic into their shield. Unfortunately, even their new powers weren’t enough. Their shield was starting to give.

Midnight Armor jumped in front of his children, his horn glowing.

Sundance gasped “Midnight, No! You don’t have enough magic for that!”

Midnight Armor smiled at his wife “Yes I do, Sundance. I will protect our children, even if it kills me.”

For a moment, Sundance stared at him in horror, immediately knowing what he was going to do. Then her expression turned to determination as she joined him. “You won’t be doing it alone!”

He kissed her one last time before both of them turned to Golden Thunder and the Chimera Anima. Their eyes turned white as both of them released the last of their magic, adding it to their children’s spell.

Celestia and Artemis watched in horror, but could do nothing to stop their parents. “Mother, Father, No! If you use the last of your magic, you’ll die!”

The shield blocked the attack but shattered as half of the magic powering it suddenly vanished.

Sundance and Midnight Armor collapsed, dead before they hit the ground.

The Chimera Anima moved closer, sniffing the bodies of Midnight Armor and Sundance. The snake slithered forward, eyes glowing. As it hissed, the souls of Midnight Armor and Sundance were torn from their bodies.

They looked down at their bodies before turning to each other. When they spoke, everypony was somehow able to hear them. Both of them asked the same thing.

“What?”

Golden Thunder laughed “This is perfect! Now my creation will gain so much power that nothing will be able to stop it!”

The Chimera Anima leapt towards the bodies of the fallen alicorns, only to be repelled by a shield made of sunlight.

“I don’t think so.”

Everypony turned towards the voice to see a very angry Celestia. They stared in shock. None of them had ever heard her use that tone of voice before. Tears streamed down her face, but her mane and tail had been replaced with flames. Her horn glowed as she used the sun’s power to protect the bodies of her parents.

Golden Thunder stared at her for a moment before shrugging. “Fine. You can keep the bodies of your parents. Consider them a final gift. Besides, it’s their souls that I really want.” He turned to the Chimera Anima. “It’s time for your feast, my creation. Devour their souls!”

The snake part of the Chimera Anima hissed again.

Sundance and Midnight Armor’s eyes widened as their souls were pulled towards the creature.

“No”

Sundance and Midnight Armor gasped as their souls were surrounded with their son’s magic. Caught in his unbreakable grip, they found themselves pulled away from the Chimera Anima and towards their children.

Again, everypony turned towards the voice. This time, it was Artemis that they stared at.

Like his sister, he had tears streaming down his face as his horn glowed. The moon also glowed as a beam of moonlight shone down on him, feeding his power. What surprised everypony the most, was the power present in his voice.

Golden Thunder glared “Give me those souls!”

Artemis returned his glare “You may have taken our parents’ lives, but I will not allow you to take their souls.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled

Golden Thunder scoffed “You’re just a spoiled foal that can’t accept the fact that he’s lost. Your parents are dead!” He paused as Artemis’ glare deepened. Deciding to try a more diplomatic approach, he switched to a worried tone of voice. “Besides, it isn’t possible to return their souls to their bodies. If you don’t allow my creation to eat them, they’ll disappear forever.”

Artemis shook his head “I won’t allow that either. In fact, I have a better idea.” He closed his eyes and followed the instincts that had come with his new powers. The souls of their parents began to glow.

Golden Thunder gasped “W-what are you doing?!”

Opening his eyes, Artemis looked at Golden Thunder. “I will place their souls in the night sky as stars. You will never be able to get your hooves on them again.”

Midnight Armor and Sundance stared at their son in shock.

“H-how will he do that?!” He whispered to his wife

She shrugged “I may have no idea, but clearly he does.”

“Should we-?”

She cut him off. “No, Midnight. If we had trusted our children, we wouldn’t be in this mess. No matter what happens, I will trust our son now. Besides, I would far rather place the fate of my soul in the hooves of our son than allow Golden Thunder and his monster to have their way with it.”

Midnight Armor smiled “You’re right. Let’s see what he does.”

Throwing diplomacy out the window, Golden Thunder growled at Artemis. “You’re crazy! Even with your new abilities, there’s no way you have the power to do that! You have control over the moon! Nothing else!”

Artemis gave Golden Thunder a grim smile. “Not quite. I am the Prince of the Night. As such, I have control over the night sky and everything in it. Placing a couple of new stars in my night sky is well within my power.”

Celestia nuzzled her brother “I like your idea much better than the one he came up with. How long will it take?”

Artemis turned to his sister “I’m not sure. I’m going to take this slowly because I want to make sure it’s done properly. If it was any other star, I’d be done in a few minutes. But these two are different. They are going to be made from our parents’ souls.”

Celestia nodded “I trust you, little brother.” She turned to Golden Thunder as he glared at them.

“It doesn’t matter what you think, princess.” He snarled “As soon as I take the throne, you’ll both be following my orders. The first thing I’m going to do is order your brother to give me those souls.”

Celestia gave him a look “I assume you mean to take the throne because the law states that if the King and Queen die before their oldest child comes of age, the Advisor to the Crown takes it instead.”

Golden Thunder smirked “Of course. Why do you think I convinced your parents to pass that law?”

Celestia actually laughed “You really should have paid attention to the change Mother and Father made to that law before passing it. You can only take the throne if the oldest child plans to take the throne alone and isn’t old enough. However, if the late King and Queen had more than one child, their children can take a dual throne if their combined age is above thirty-five.” She smiled “I’m twenty-nine and Artemis is twenty-three. We meet every requirement to take the thrones of our parents.”

Midnight Armor laughed “By killing us, all you did was force our children to take the throne.”

I’m suddenly very glad we made that change. Sundance smiled “You may have fooled us, but our children have foiled your plan. You will never rule Equestria, Golden Thunder.”

Golden Thunder laughed “I’ll just have my creation kill them. They have no foals. Once they’re dead, I’ll take the throne.”

Celestia shook her head “Ah, yes. Your creation. Unfortunately for you, I’ve come up with a solution to that little problem.” She channeled the sun’s power again. This time, it wasn’t sunlight. It was the true fire of the sun. A towering column of solar flames engulfed the area where the Chimera Anima was standing. When it finally died down, the Chimera Anima and Golden Thunder had both disappeared. All that remained was an after image. Not even a minute later, that disappeared as well.

She turned to Artemis “Oops.” She said innocently “I guess I used too much of the sun’s power. I am new at this.”

Artemis shrugged “I’m not upset at the outcome. Are you?”

Celestia shrugged as well “No”

Midnight Armor laughed “We may never know how many ponies he’s killed with that creature’s fire. Regardless, I find it rather ironic that he was killed by the strongest fire in existence.”

Celestia and Artemis turned as they heard a thunderous cheer. At some point during the battle, the ponies that were taking shelter in the castle had gathered behind them.

“All hail King Artemis and Queen Celestia!”

“NO!”

Everypony turned to Artemis, who had fresh tears in his eyes.

“Father lost so much today. I won’t take his title too!”

Celestia quickly spoke up, tears in her eyes as well. “The same goes for me. My brother and I will take the dual throne, but we refuse to take our parents’ titles. There will never be another King or Queen of Equestria.”

- - -End Flashback- - -

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other for a moment. Both had tears in their eyes. Looking at their children, they saw that Twilight had tears in her eyes as well. Celestia had buried her face in their mother’s shoulder, her body shaking as she sobbed. Artemis had leaned over Twilight and buried his face into their father’s side, sobbing as well.

Celestia whispered “Why didn’t you listen to us?”

Artemis nuzzled deeper into their father’s side. “Y-you didn’t have to die”

Sundance and Midnight Armor looked at each other. Not sure what to say, they held their children tighter. Fortunately, Celestia and Artemis didn’t seem to be expecting a response. For a long time, nopony moved.

Eventually, their tears stopped. Celestia lifted her head and lay it on their mother’s shoulder. Twilight lay her head on her forehooves. Artemis rested his chin on top of Twilight’s head, with the rest of his head leaning against their father’s shoulder.

Sundance nuzzled Celestia and draped a wing over her back. Midnight Armor nuzzled his son as he lifted his wing before laying it over both of them. It was a long time before anypony spoke.

“Hmm.”

Midnight Armor, Sundance, Celestia and Artemis looked at Twilight to see a thoughtful expression on her face.

Midnight Armor shook his head I can almost see the wheels turning. What’s she thinking? “Twilight?”

“I noticed something strange about Golden Thunder.” She said slowly “Don’t you think it’s odd that he was so interested in souls? That was the strange part about the Chimera Anima as well. I mean, why did he create a creature that ate souls? He didn’t seem to care when Celestia stopped his creature from eating your bodies. In fact, he gave them up without a fight. But he was almost livid when Artemis stopped it from eating your souls. Then he demanded that your souls be given to him. He even tried to reason with Artemis, but only about that one thing.”

Sundance gasped “I never thought about it like that, but you’re right. He clearly had an obsession with souls, especially ours.”

Twilight glanced up “I’m not sure why that caught my attention, but it did.”

Midnight Armor shook his head “You’re able to look at things differently because you weren’t involved. This allowed you to see something that we probably never would have even thought to question.”

Celestia nodded thoughtfully “I’m going to look into those spells he used. Maybe they’ll tell us something.”

Artemis nodded as well “That’s a good idea. I don’t know how much help I’ll be, but I’ll join you.”

They both looked at Twilight

Twilight shook her head “You don’t seem to want me to know those spells, so I won’t be able to help. It’s alright, there’s something else that I want to look into. I don’t want to say anything else yet, just in case I’m wrong.”

Celestia smiled, relieved that she wasn’t going to press the issue. “Let us know what you’re researching, and how it’s going, when you’re ready. One more thing. We’re going to the library after breakfast. I want you to show me that book.”

Artemis made a face “If it’s alright with everypony else, I’d really appreciate it if we could talk about something else.”

Midnight Armor looked at his son “Do you have something in mind?”

Artemis shook his head “Anything but this”

“Well,” Twilight began, turning to Artemis “I do have a question for you.”

Artemis raised an eyebrow “Does it have to do with Mother and Father’s deaths? What about Golden Flash or Golden Thunder?”

Twilight shook her head

“Then it’s fine with me.” Artemis replied “What’s your question?”

“Remember when Mom and Dad tried to wake me for the baby party?”

Sundance and Midnight Armor laughed, remembering how she had reacted.

Artemis nodded, laughing as well

“When I woke up, you said that the last time you had seen them so happy was their first visit after you returned.” She shrugged “I’ve been curious about it ever since.”

Celestia’s eyes lit up “That’s right! You mentioned that they visited but never told me what happened.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “I’d like to explain this one, if that’s alright with you.”

Artemis nodded I’m not sure why Father wants to be the one to explain it, but I don’t have a problem with letting him do so.

Midnight Armor smiled “Thank you. The first thing I should explain is that your mother, Star Swirl and I are able to talk to each other, even as stars. I’m not sure how that works, but I’m glad it does.”

Artemis shrugged “It wasn’t intentional, mainly because I didn’t know I could do that at the time. Don’t worry, I won’t change anything.” He paused as both of their parents smiled. “As for your ability to talk to each other, Star Swirl said something similar when I talked to him. He told me that you two have been telling him about Twilight.”

Sundance laughed “Did you really think we wouldn’t?”

Artemis shook his head, laughing as well “Thanks to whatever you told him, he’s coming for a visit. Not to see me, but to meet Twilight.”

Celestia looked at her brother “When is he coming?”

Artemis shrugged again “Sometime next week. He practically demanded that I bring Twilight into my dream but I don’t think he’ll complain if I bring you as well.”

Celestia smiled “Thank you. It will be nice to see him again.”

Meanwhile, Twilight was looking up at a star that was flashing quite a bit. “That star’s clearly trying to get our attention. That’s Star Swirl, isn’t it?”

Artemis followed her gaze “Yes, that’s him. You’re right, it seems that he has something to say.” He paused “Star Swirl, I won’t be able to tell what you’re saying unless you slow down.”

The star slowed down.

After a minute or so, Artemis turned to his family. “He says that he would like to see Celestia as well as meet Twilight, asked me to thank Twilight for noticing that he had something to say and wants to congratulate both of us on Twilight’s pregnancy.”

Twilight smiled and looked up again “He’s still talking.”

Artemis looked up as well. A couple of minutes later, he laughed. “He says that he expects to meet our foal when he or she is born. Additionally, there’s a lesson that he wants to teach our son or daughter when he or she is old enough.”

Sundance, Midnight Armor and Celestia laughed as well.

Twilight stared at the star for a moment “A-alright. I don’t see why he can’t.”

The star glowed brightly for a moment.

Artemis smiled “He said “Thank you”.”

Midnight Armor shook his head, still laughing “I’d like to get back to Twilight’s question. I brought up the fact that we can talk to each other in our star forms because that’s where this starts.”

- - -Midnight Armor’s Flashback- - -

In the large expanse of space, there were several stars. However, three of them were grouped fairly close together, close enough that they could talk to each other.

At the moment, they were resting. Being stars, they couldn’t really sleep. However, when they weren’t needed in the night sky, they lowered their brightness to conserve magic.

As a familiar spell swept across them, they brightened to their usual nighttime levels and prepared themselves to be raised into the night sky. However, tonight they were in for a surprise. The magic that brought them into the night sky was different than usual.

One of the stars turned to another “That didn’t feel like our daughter’s magic.”

The second star replied “Your right, Midnight. That wasn’t Celestia’s magic, but it was definitely familiar.”

The third star shifted thoughtfully “I’ve felt that magic before, just not in a very long time.”

After looking around for a moment, Midnight Armor made another comment. “Is it just me, or are we in a different part of the sky than usual? Star Swirl, you know more about this than I do. What are your thoughts?”

The third star, Star Swirl, replied “You’re right, Midnight Armor. I recognize this part of the night sky because it’s where he placed us. This is where we were supposed to be all along.”

The second star gasped

Midnight Armor turned to it “Sundance? What’s wrong?”

Sundance turned to her husband “I finally recognized the magic that brought us out tonight! We didn’t recognize because we haven’t felt it in ages!”

Star Swirl gasped. “Y-your right! It’s his magic!”

Midnight Armor gasped as well “B-but that’s impossible! He was possessed by Nightmare forces and sealed in the moon!”

Sundance began to glow. A moment later, she took the form she had when she was alive. The form of an alicorn mare.

Midnight Armor asked “Where are you going, Sundance?”

She turned to him “Where do you think?! I’m going to see if our son has truly returned! Are you coming with me or not?”

Midnight Armor paused “What if we’re wrong? Where will we go then?”

Happy to hear the “we”, Sundance smiled as she watched her husband take the form he had when he was alive, an alicorn stallion. Stepping closer, she nuzzled him. “We were able to visit Celestia last time. If we’re wrong, we’ll visit her again.” Turning to Star Swirl, she asked “Are you coming with us?”

“No” Star Swirl replied “It would be nice to see Celestia again, and even better if I could see him again. However, if we’re wrong, and it’s not him . . . I don’t think I would be able to bear the disappointment.”

Midnight Armor tilted his head “What if we’re right?”

Star Swirl brightened as he allowed himself to consider the possibility. “If that is the case, he will need his family and friends. However, after everything that he must have gone through, too many ponies will probably overwhelm him right now. I will wait to hear from you when you return.”

Sundance and Midnight Armor smiled at him and turned to the path that lead to the Dream Realm. For the first time in a very long time, they spread their wings and took flight.

They landed in one particular pony’s dream and looked around. At first, they didn’t see anything.

Then Sundance gasped softly. “Midnight, look!”

Midnight Armor glanced at his wife before following her gaze. What he saw took his breath away. “It is him!” he breathed “But why is he in that form?”

In front of them, lay a blue alicorn colt with a light blue mane and tail. The Soul Mark on his flank depicted a silver crescent moon set on a black background. He was curled into a ball and shaking, clearly terrified.

Sundance shook her head “I-I’m not sure. Regardless, we have to help him.” She walked forward and lay down next to her son, before gently nuzzling him.

He yelped and tried to jump to his hooves. Instead, he was pulled into a feathery embrace as another pony lay on his other side. He knew who these ponies were, but that didn’t make him feel any better. Instead, it terrified him because he was afraid to face them after what he had done.

“It’s alright, Artemis” Sundance whispered

Midnight Armor nuzzled him “Calm down, son. There’s no need to be afraid.”

Artemis whimpered “M-mother, F-father” Still shaking, he tried to hide under his mother’s wing.

Smiling, Midnight Armor looked at his wife. “You were right. Our son has finally returned.”

Also smiling, Sundance nodded

Neither of them pushed their son. Instead, they just held Artemis close until he finally calmed to the point where he was no longer shaking.

Realizing that they were waiting for a sign from him, Artemis nuzzled into his mother’s shoulder. When she lifted her wing, he nuzzled his father as well.

Sundance draped her wing over her son once more and pulled him closer. “When did you return?”

Artemis sighed “It hasn’t even been a day.”

Midnight Armor tilted his head “How were you able to escape the Nightmare?”

Artemis shook his head “I didn’t. I was freed.”

Sundance raised an eye brow “What do you mean?”

Artemis shuddered “When I first returned, I was still in the grip if the Nightmare. He attacked Celestia and sent her to the sun before heading to a village near the forest. The ponies that lived there had been preparing for a celebration of some kind. At first, it appeared that he was going to kill those ponies, but a unicorn stopped him.”

Midnight Armor blinked “How was a unicorn able to do that?”

“He was angry because he thought nopony knew who he was. Fortunately for everypony, a unicorn mare recognized him. She stopped him by saying his name. To him, that was enough. He declared that he would bring about Eternal Night and headed to our old castle, which now lies in ruins. My memory gets a bit hazy at that point, so I don’t know what happened next.”

Sundance nuzzled her son “How were you freed?”

Artemis shuddered again “The Elements of Harmony”

Midnight Armor gasped “Your sister told us that she’s no longer capable of wielding them!”

Artemis shook his head “The Elements of Harmony have chosen new bearers. They each wielded one of the Elements and worked together to defeat the Nightmare.”

“T-that’s incredible!” She stared at her son “But there has to be more to it. If that was all it took, your sister would have done it . . . How long were you gone?”

“S-sister told me that it’s been a thousand years . . .”

Both of his parents gasped “What?”

Taking a deep breath, Artemis nodded “You’re right, Mother. There was something else that saved me. Actually, it was somepony. I haven’t told sister about this because I’m not sure how to tell her what happened. I don’t even understand it myself.”

Midnight Armor nuzzled his son “Tell us what happened. We’ll help you figure it out.”

Artemis hesitated, looking down “Even I have trouble believing what happened. T-there’s no way that you’ll believe me.”

Sundance gently lifted her son’s head. “We’re not going there. Not again. Your father and I died because we didn’t believe what you and your sister tried to tell us.” She saw him wince and nuzzled him. “Besides, we both know that you have no reason to lie to us.”

Midnight Armor’s voice shook “Your mother is right, Artemis. Regardless of what you tell us, we will help you understand what happened to you.”

After a moment, Artemis nodded “Very well.” He took a deep breath. “At first, I only saw things in flashes. I vaguely recall looking into a library, rushing through a forest, and something about a river serpent before finding myself in what used to be our throne room. Not long after we got there, six ponies walked into the room. They were an even mix of two earth ponies, two pegasi, and two unicorns, all mares.”

“One of the unicorns was different. It was easy to tell her from the rest because her coat was lavender. More importantly, her Soul Mark reminded me of something. I recognized it later but, at the time, I struggled to place it. Anyway, the others turned to her and asked what they should do next. She pointed to the Elements of Harmony. The pegasi lifted the five stones and placed them in front of her.”

“Fives stones?” Midnight Armor asked I know it’s been awhile, but I’m certain that there are six Elements of Harmony.

Artemis nodded “There were only five of the Elements present and they had been turned to stone. The Element of Magic was missing.”

Sundance tilted her head “How did they stop the Nightmare? The Element of Magic is required in order to use the Elements of Harmony.”

Artemis shrugged “I don’t remember all of what happened, so there are several holes in the story. I’m not sure how much time had passed, but the next thing I remember was noticing that we were in a different part of the castle. The Nightmare had just shattered the stone Elements.”

Both of his parents gasped

“I thought all hope was lost.” Artemis continued “Fortunately for all of us, I was wrong. The shattered Elements glowed and began to circle the other five mares before the lavender unicorn somehow summoned the Element of Magic. That’s when I realized why her Soul Mark was familiar. It’s a pink six pointed star.”

Sundance gasped “The same as the Element of Magic!”

Midnight Armor stared “She summoned her Element?!”

Artemis nodded “At the time, I was still trapped within the Nightmare while he used my body. Some of the time, I was able to see things going on around us but I didn’t even have a form. When I couldn’t see out, everything around me was pitch black. As the mares prepared to use the Elements of Harmony, everything went black again. I was actually grateful for that because I didn’t want to have to watch the Elements hit me again. I fully expected to either be sent back to the moon or killed outright. However, with the Nightmare in control of my body, all I could do was wait for the end to come.”

Midnight Armor raised an eyebrow “Obviously neither of those happened.”

“Yes,” Sundance replied “but something else clearly did. What happened next?”

“This is the part I don’t understand.” Artemis paused “I sensed another presence and turned to find the lavender unicorn standing behind me. Both of us were inside the Nightmare. Before I could say anything, she surrounded my soul with a spell of some kind. Then the Elements hit. The next thing I remember was hearing Celestia’s voice.”

“What?!”

Artemis looked up to find his parents staring at him in shock.

Voice shaking, Sundance asked “W-who is that mare?”

“Celestia called her Twilight Sparkle.” Artemis replied “I haven’t had a chance to really talk to her, or any of the new bearers, yet. Unfortunately, that’s all I know.”

Midnight Armor let out a shaky breath “The next time you see Twilight Sparkle, make sure you thank her.”

Sundance took a deep breath and nodded. “She saved your soul.”

Artemis gasped “W-what?!”

Midnight Armor nodded “I don’t know what spell she surrounded your soul with. Nor have I ever heard of a unicorn able to do something like that. What I do know, is that her actions are what kept you safe while the Elements removed the Nightmare. You wouldn’t be here if she hadn’t done that.”

Artemis stared at his father for a moment before gasping again. “I just remembered something else! Celestia called Twilight Sparkle her “Faithful Student”!”

Sundance blinked “You said “Faithful Student”? I haven’t heard that title in a long time. In fact, I’m surprised your sister hasn’t changed it to something else.” She laughed “Regardless, this Twilight Sparkle has certainly earned that title.”

“That’s for sure.” Midnight Armor smiled “Celestia certainly found herself a good student.”

Sundance nodded “I’ll say.” She nuzzled her son “You’re really back, right? Not just your soul?”

Shaking himself out of his shock, Artemis returned his mother’s nuzzle. “Yes, Mother. In fact, I’m in Celestia’s room right now, asleep next to her in her bed.” He laughed “I know we’re too old to share a bed, but I had no choice because she won’t let me out of her sight.”

“I’m not surprised.” Midnight Armor replied, laughing as well “Nor do I blame her. If you truly have been gone for a thousand years, she’ll probably be acting like that for a long time.”

Artemis shook his head “After being separated for a thousand years, she can be as clingy as she wants and I won’t complain.”

Smiling, Midnight Armor turned to his son “If you don’t mind me asking, why are you in that form?”

Artemis shrugged “Celestia was worried about that as well, so that she cast several diagnostic spells on me. As far as she can tell, much of my magic was tied to the Nightmare and stripped away by the Elements. She believes that my magic, and proper form, will return with time.”

Sundance smiled “Good.”

Before anything else could be said, Sundance and Midnight Armor noticed that they were starting to fade. They both stood.

Artemis stood as well.

Midnight Armor hugged his son “I wish we could stay but, unfortunately, we have to leave now.”

Sundance hugged him as well “Yes, but we’ll be back in three months.”

They smiled at their son as they were pulled towards the stars. Unable to hold back any longer, Sundance preformed several backflips in the air. Laughing, Midnight Armor did the same. Just as they were getting out of range, they smiled as they heard a sound that they had been afraid they would never hear again.

Their son’s laughter.

They were still smiling when they returned to Star Swirl.

“Well?” he asked, trembling in anticipation

“He’s back!” Sundance shouted, grinning at her husband

“R-really?!” Star Swirl stammered, brightening considerably “H-how did he-?!”

Midnight Armor pulled his wife into a kiss before they returned to their forms as stars. “We have much to tell you, Star Swirl.”

- - -End Flashback- - -

Celestia smiled at her brother “That explains why you were so calm the next morning.” She paused and laughed “Well, once I convinced you that you weren’t dreaming and that you were really home.”

Twilight looked at Artemis “I’m not sure how you can compare me calling them Mom and Dad to that.”

Sundance giggled “I can think of one way. I recall being told that we have a lavender unicorn to thank for saving our son’s soul and helping to return him to us.”

Midnight Armor chuckled and nodded “We were told about all of the other things that she has done for our son. Then we found out that, not only has our son fallen in love with this mare, but she’s carrying his foal. Our grandfoal.”

Sundance reached around her husband to nuzzle Twilight. “Imagine how we felt when that mare referred to us as her parents.”

Not sure what to say, Twilight stared at them for several moments. Before she could think of a response, Celestia and Artemis raised their heads. “It’s time.”

Artemis turned to their parents. “We’ll be back tonight.”

Midnight Armor nodded “If you figure anything out, please let us know.”

Celestia, Artemis and Twilight nodded before they vanished.

Ten minutes after she woke up, Celestia sat down at the dining room table. A couple of minutes later, Artemis and Twilight walked into the dining room and joined her at the table. They looked up as Apple Crunch walked into the room with three plates of pancakes.

Celestia and Artemis smiled but Twilight froze, her stomach already voicing a complaint. Knowing Celestia and Artemis were going to insist that she eat, she poured a small amount of maple syrup onto her pancakes before beginning to slowly work her way through her meal. A few minutes later, her eyes widened before she teleported out of the room.

Artemis winced I was afraid of this.

Apple Crunch immediately tried to apologize but Celestia cut him off.

“It’s not your fault, Apple Crunch. Unfortunately, morning sickness tends to start rather early in alicorn pregnancies.” She paused “Our mother had it really bad. In fact, when she was pregnant with Artemis, there was roughly a month where she was unable to hold down any food at all. It looks like it might be the same for Twilight.”

I’ve never heard either of them mention their parents before. Apple Crunch paused “Do you know what Princess Twilight might be able to keep in her stomach, princess?”

Celestia shook her head “What works is different for each pony, even alicorns, so it’s probably going to take a bit of trial and error to figure that out.”

Artemis tilted his head “If I recall correctly, Father said that the only thing Mother could keep down during that month was apple juice.”

“You’re right, Artemis.” Celestia replied “That’s as good a place as any to start. If you have any Apple Family Apple Juice, try giving her that.”

That makes sense. Apple juice is gentle on the stomach. Apple Crunch nodded “I believe we still have a couple of bottles, princess.” He bowed “I’ll be right back.”

Several minutes later, Twilight walked back into the room and sat down next to Artemis.

Apple Crunch walked over to her with a bottle of apple juice. “Here you are, Princess Twilight. Hopefully, this will be a bit better.”

Twilight nodded, opened the bottle and hesitantly took a sip. After a couple of moments, she took a larger one. Realizing that it was going to stay down, she smiled and finished the bottle. “Much better. Thank you, Apple Crunch”

Apple Crunch sighed in relief. “I’ll contact the Apple Family and ask for another shipment of their apple juice. It may take me awhile, but I’ll find meals that you’ll be able to eat, princess.”

He bowed and headed back to the kitchens. “I know I put that book of recipe suggestions for pregnant mares around here somewhere. I ordered it for when Princess Twilight began to experience morning sickness. I just didn’t expect to need it this soon. Ah, there it is. Now then, let’s find something to make her for lunch.”

Not daring to eat anything else, Twilight waited patiently for Celestia and Artemis to finish their food before standing. The three of them walked into the hallway.

“We have over an hour before court starts.” Artemis began “What do you want to do now, sister?”

Twilight turned to him “Didn’t Celestia say that we were going to the library?”

Celestia nodded “I want to find that book.”

A few minutes later, they walked into the library. One of the librarians, not used to ponies coming in so early in the morning, turned to ask the visitors to come back in an hour.

She stopped, shocked, as she saw the three alicorns. Recovering from her surprise, she walked over to them and bowed. “Is there anything I can help you with, your highnesses?”

Twilight nodded “There’s a book that I read a few years ago. I was telling Celestia about it and she decided that she just had to read it for herself.”

Celestia smiled at the librarian and nodded. Leave it to Twilight to find a way to make this sound like something innocent. That will help us keep what we’re doing a secret until we’re ready for anypony else to know about it. She was pulled from her thoughts as her sister continued.

“Unfortunately, it didn’t have a title. That means it may be a bit difficult to find.” Twilight paused “There’s a spell I developed when I lived in the Golden Oaks library that will speed things along. Do you mind if I use it now?”

“Oh my! Twilight, is that you?”

Twilight turned towards the voice to see an aging Pegasus mare. After a minute, her eyes lit up. “Frost Blossom! I haven’t seen you since you retired!” She turned to Artemis “She was the head Archivist before Magic Scrolls.”

Frost Blossom walked closer and bowed “You’ve grown quite beautiful, Twilight! Becoming an alicorn certainly didn’t hurt matters, your wings are lovely.” She laughed as Twilight blushed and turned to Artemis, bowing again. “Good Morning, Prince Artemis. I don’t believe we’ve been properly introduced. As Twilight said, my name is Frost Blossom.”

Artemis smiled “Good Morning, Frost Blossom. It’s nice to meet you.”

Frost Blossom leaned closer to Artemis “If you don’t mind, your highness, I have two questions. Are you really courting Twilight? More importantly, is she really pregnant?”

Artemis kissed Twilight “The answer to both questions is yes. I’ll also answer the question that I’m sure is coming next. The foal she’s carrying is mine.”

Frost Blossom’s eyes lit up “That’s great! Congratulations to you both!”

Twilight smiled at Frost Blossom “Thank you. By the way, do you remember the book that didn’t have a title? I told Celestia about it last night. Now she wants to read it for herself. Unfortunately, I never asked you where you put it.”

Artemis shook his head I have to admit, she’s good at this. She hasn’t lied to anypony. She’s just not going into detail. Celestia taught her well.

After thinking for a moment, Frost Blossom nodded “You mean that strange one, right? I believe I ended up putting it in the battle portion of the history section. Even though I was convinced it was fiction, I couldn’t bring myself to put it in that section.”

“Thank you” Twilight smiled and quickly headed for that section. A few minutes later, she returned with a frown. “I couldn’t find it. It looks like I’m going to have to use that spell after all.”

Standing in the middle of the library, Twilight lit her horn. Every book in the library was surrounded with her magenta magic and floated into the air. Most of them were put back on the shelves she took them from. Some of them were put back in slightly different places. She frowned as most of the books in the library were put in their proper places without her finding the one she was looking for. Her last hope was a large stack of books that were behind the counter, waiting to be re-shelved. As she began to put those books away, her frown turned to a smile. A single book floated towards her while the others were returned to their proper places. She opened the book, read a page somewhere in the middle, smiled and nodded. “This is the book I was looking for.”

Frost Blossom stared at Twilight for a moment before shaking her head. “I wish we had known that spell when I worked here. Do you know how long it usually takes to re-shelve all of these books?”

Twilight laughed “I created this spell a couple of years ago. It took a while to re-shelve the books in my library as well so I decided to make a spell that would take some of the stress off of Spike.”

Celestia smiled as she saw the looks on the faces of the librarians. “It might be a good idea for you to teach that spell to a couple of the unicorns who work in the library, Twilight. While I’m sure they’re happy that you did the re-shelving for them this time, I think they’d appreciate being able to do it themselves.”

Twilight followed Celestia’s gaze and laughed as three librarians walked towards her. “Sure, it’s a fairly simple spell. However, due to the number of books in this library, the three of you will probably need to cast it together.”

All three of them stopped in front of her and bowed “Yes, princess”

Twilight took a few minutes to teach them her spell. Smiling, they thanked her and bowed again before heading back to the checkout desk to get started for the day. Frost Blossom wished them a good day and walked out of the library.

Nopony noticed a pony walk into the library and pause at the sight of the alicorns before vanishing between the bookshelves.

Twilight turned towards Celestia and Artemis. Before she could say anything, she felt something unexpected. Surprised, she looked at the book as somepony tried to take it from her. Strictly on reflex, she strengthened her magical grip and pulled it towards her. She blinked as somepony with a red magic aura strengthened their grip as well.

“That’s a new one.” Celestia remarked “Somepony actually thinks they can overpower Twilight?”

Artemis shook his head in disbelief “That would be difficult, even for us. I don’t believe that any other pony is capable of doing it. Does this pony know who they’re dealing with?”

“Probably not.” Celestia replied “Even though she’s not using anywhere near her full strength, whoever this is doesn’t have any hope of succeeding. Though I have to wonder who is brave, and foolish, enough to try.”

More curious than anything, Twilight traced the magic and levitated the pony it belonged to towards them. Once he was pulled from in between the bookshelves, Twilight was so surprised that she nearly dropped him.

It was Golden Flash.

Before anyone says anything, i researched the ancient Greek monster, Chimera. There is a version that has wings. Anima is another word for Soul. That creature is a Chimera that eats souls.
It wasn't until after I'd written that chapter, and was taking a break, when I realized that it's the same name as the creatures from the anime "Tokyo Mew Mew". These are in no way the same thing, nor did I take the name from the anime.