"I swear, whoever built this place must've been totally brain dead," Rainbow grumbled angrily from Spike's left as he, Pinkie, and Dash reached yet another four-way split in the seemingly endless maze of tunnels and passages that ran beneath the castle. It did almost seem like somepony had designed it to get ponies lost...

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Rainbow turned to Spike and watched as he debated which of these three new tunnels they should try their luck with this time around. After finding him earlier, they hadn't been able to rediscover the spiral staircase they'd come from.

Pinkie was down onto her hands and knees in front of Spike, sniffing around on the stone floor like a dog. She even waggled her butt side-to-side. He wasn't sure if she genuinely expected to find anything by doing that, but he'd be lying if he said the view it gave wasn't nice.

"Hey, where'd you get that from anyway?" Rainbow Dash suddenly asked, gesturing towards the flaming stick Spike had been holding in his left hand. So far, it had been their primary source of light down here. Pinkie had a light of her own stuffed away inside her mane, but it wasn't as bright.

"Oh, uh, I used my flame breath to light up a couple of torches that Applejack and I found near the throne room," He explained, glancing up at the dancing green flames that surrounded the top of the wooden stick. He was kinda surprised it was even lasting this long...

"Okay... But, why is it green? Last I checked, fire is supposed to be red, yellow, white, or whatever." She said, cautiously eyeing the peculiar flames.

"Well, uh, Twilight thinks it has something to do with my-" Spike started to explain, only to be interrupted as Pinkie Pie suddenly popped up between them.

"Well Duh! It's because he is green, ya silly!" Pinkie said, placing a finger onto his scaley green chest while playfully poking Rainbow's muzzle.

"Uh, well actually-"

But before he could correct her, Spike was cut off yet again. Though this time it wasn't the pink pony's doing. A thunderous boom suddenly roared from the left tunnel, causing all three to jump as they turned towards it.

"What in Tartarus was that?!" Rainbow exclaimed, staring down the dark tunnel as if she expected the source of the unnatural sound to come barreling towards them at any moment.

"I... I don't know..." Spike said, the last echos of the strange sound ringing in their ears as it traveled down the tunnels behind them before finally fading completely. "Maybe... maybe it's from one of the others?" Spike guessed, trying to sound hopeful.

Rainbow didn't appear too confident in his theory either, but it was technically a possibility. Though it could just as easily end up being from some bloodthirsty monster that lived under the castle, on its way to eat them all alive.

Taking it slow, Spike stepped up to the mouth of the dark tunnel the sound had come from, with Rainbow and Pinkie following close behind him as an ominous silence dominated the trio. Despite it all, Pinkie remained unfazed by the ominous darkness ahead, a curious smile adorning her face. Dash's fists were clenched as she constantly peered back over her shoulder as they started slowly making their way towards the source of the roar...

It wasn't very long before something was revealed ahead of them, at the very edge of the torch's light. A single closed wooden door stood at the center of a blank stone wall. A small window in the top half of the old door allowed a peek through to the darkness beyond. A strange metal plate was embedded in the center of the door, etched with some old-ponish writing Spike couldn't quite make out.

Flying over him, Dash hovered up to the tiny window and peered through it while Spike held his torch behind her head to give her some light, being extra careful not to accidentally catch her mane on fire in the process.

"There's a round room with a bunch of doors and a really big hole... I don't see anypony either." She said, not confident that a monster wouldn't be waiting for them inside.

Not seeing a knob, Rainbow cautiously pushed at the door. It slowly creaked open, the green aura of their torch revealing the inside of the strange room. Just as Rainbow described, multiple metal doors took up most of the walls and in the center was what Spike could only describe as some kind of giant well or pit. Pinkie wandered nonchalantly up to the very edge of the bottomless abyss and bent down precariously over the edge as she called down into it.

"Heellooo!" She howled, her voice echoing down until it eventually faded to nothing. "Is there anypony down there?!" She called again...

"H-hello?! Is there somepony out there?!" A feminine voice suddenly shouted from behind one of the metal doors on the left side of the room. "P-pinkie Pie? Was that you just now?"

Though it was a little hard to make out exactly what she was saying at first, it was unmistakably Rarity's voice.

"Yep, yep! Me, Rainbow, and Spike are all here!" Pinkie cheered, though she was still shouting down into the pit.

"Oh thank Celestia!" Rarity sighed, sounding immensely relieved. "Oh, um, Fluttershy's is in here with me, though... she had a bit of an i-incident." She explained, sounding strangely flustered towards the end.

"Are both of you alright?" Spike asked worriedly, running over to the door with Rainbow.

"Yes, we're both fine, but, do you think you could get this dreadful door open? It appears to be locked from your end."

Spike reached down for a doorknob, only to discover that there wasnt one. In fact, none of the doors in the whole room had so much as a keyhole.

"Uh, I don't think we can unlock it from this side either..." Rainbow said, scratching the back of her head.

"Oh, of course not!" Rarity groaned, clearly tired of her predicament. "Oh wait, um, Spike darling~? Do you think you could try bashing this thing down with those impressive dragon muscles of yours?" She asked in a slightly seductive tone.

"Yep, no problem!" Spike yelped, her efforts working like a charm. But as he eyed the solid metal barrier, he wasn't so sure he'd actually be capable of such a task.

Looking up and down the door, he could tell that it would not be so easily brought down. Despite how old it probably was, it still looked like it was in mint condition. There wasn't even the smallest hint of rust anywhere on it, despite the constant damp and wet atmosphere. It was probably enchanted or something, which didn't make him feel any better about his chances...

"Well, ah, stand back Rarity," He warned, trying to figure out the best possible way to go about doing this. He'd seen it done plenty of times in his comics, but this was the real deal. To be honest, he was kinda excited.

'Alright, come on muscles! Don't fail me now!' He thought, taking a few steps back from the door as Rainbow moved aside. She seemed just curious if he could pull it off as he was.

Making sure he didn't accidentally back up into the pit in the center, he was about to hand the torch over to Rainbow Dash when he suddenly got an idea. Staring into the flames around the mostly unburned stick, he remembered how his last encounter with magic and his fire had gone...

Rarity sat huddled against the wall in her borrowed hoodie as she waited for Spike come bursting through the door at any moment. She glanced over at Fluttershy who lay unconscious next to her. The poor thing had fainted almost immediately after realizing that her little display of arousal had been noticed.

The shy pegasus had never been very good with awkward situations, and it was safe to assume that suddenly popping a wingboner in front of your best friend was probably pretty high on her list of worst nightmares. Not to mention the fact that her best friend had technically been the cause of it. Rarity doubted Fluttershy had even registered that she wet herself at the same time. No doubt it wouldn't have made the situation any less traumatic for her though.

Rarity had done her best to dispose of both their messes with her magic, including dropping her own pile of manure in the furthest corner of the room. Though, the lack of any kind of ventilation down here meant that the smell was almost impossible to avoid. Thankfully, Rarity was able to ignore it as she was far more used to that particular aroma than most ponies realize...

She still had no idea what that strange sound was or why it had suddenly caused them both to void themselves on the floor, but it couldn't have been anything good.

*Sniff, sniff*

Rarity's nose wrinkled as she caught a whiff of something overpowering the pungent odor stuffing the room. It smelled like something was... burning? A small flicker of light drew her attention towards the door where she spotted a faint greenish glow coming through the tiny gap along the bottom. But before she could call out and ask if everything was alright, the entire door was suddenly engulfed in bright green flames.

"Oh my Celestia!" She gasped, scrambling to her feet as she felt waves of intense heat blowing past her.

The entire door started to melt, the metal turning a bright reddish-white color. The raging inferno ate away large portions of it in seconds as if it were a small piece of paper in a bonfire. A tall and intimidating silhouette stepped through the smokeless flames once the door had been reduced to only a quarter of its original height. Standing over the melting remains, a green and purple beast with broad sharp-looking spines and a muscular form stood stoically before her, face obscured by shadow. The still roaring flames behind him licked harmlessly at his shiny scales, like a stoic knight's glistening armor.

Rarity felt her heart skip a beat as a warmth that wasn't from the fire burned in her cheeks, in addition to a few other places...

"O-oh m-my~" She mumbled quietly.

"Are you okay Rarity? You didn't get hurt or anything, right?" Spike asked, his very concerned tone clashing with that of his dramatic entrance. The flames finally started to die down behind him, revealing an expression full of worry.

"Y-yes, I'm fine." Rarity panted as questionable images flickered through her subconscious. "Perfectly fine..."

While completely innocently looking up and down his body, she noticed something that was slightly alarming.

"Um, S-spike, I do believe you're a little bit... on fire." She said, gesturing to a lick of green fire that had managed to catch onto the side of the grassy loincloth she'd made for him earlier.

With a rather un-manly yelp, Spike rushed to pat out the flame before it could burn away what little remained of his dignity. Deep down, Rarity couldn't help wish she hadn't said anything at all and let her creation be destroyed...

As the last of the once-solid door was eaten away, the fire finally died out. Now clear, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie carefully stepped over the metallic puddle in the doorway, with Rainbow Dash holding a green torch as far away from herself as physically possible while glaring at it as if it might decide to leap out at her mane. But upon seeing Fluttershy lying unconscious next to Rarity, she darted over to Spike, shoving the torch back into his arms, before practically materializing next to her childhood friend.

"What happened?! Is she alright?!" She asked, sounding slightly panicked.

"She's perfectly fine, darling, nothing to be worried about. She just, ah, fainted when we arrived here. Though, I'm still not quite sure how that last part even happened..." She admitted.

"Oughhh... R-rarity?" The yellow pegasus mumbled, regaining consciousness as Rainbow was kneeling next to her. "R-rainbow Dash? Is that you? W-what happened?"

Looking around in a daze, she eventually spotted Rarity standing beside her, giving her a little wave and a nervous smile. Fluttershy's pupils shrunk as she suddenly remembered the events that led her to loss of consciousness.

"Oh... O-oh my..."

Rainbow was quick to help her back to her feet, berating the pegasus with questions. Fluttershy mumbled responses but kept glancing back at Rarity with concern, as if expecting her to be angry or upset with her. Rarity made a shushing gesture before mouthing: 'Later', causing Fluttershy to blush a little as she nodded in response.

With a sigh, Rarity turned back to the now empty doorway, expecting to see one other pony enter the room. Only, said pony was nowhere to be found.

"Um, Spikey?"

"Huh? What is it Rarity?"

"Was... was Applejack not with you?" She inquired, sure that he and the country mare had been exploring the castle together.

"Uh... so about that..." He began with a nervous grin.

"Oh, you've gotta be kiddin me..." Applejack groaned.

Having just rounded a corner in her seemingly endless search for the ever-elusive castle throne room, or at least somepony she knew, she now found herself glaring at a dead end. The corridor continued for a few more feet past the corner but then just ran straight into a blank stone wall.

Applejack scowled and glanced back the way she came. She hadn't found any other branching passages since separating from Spike, meaning she would now have to go all the way back. And that, of course, meant going through that hallway again...

But as she begrudgingly started to turn back, something caught Applejack's eye at the end of the tunnel. The floor throughout the entire passageway so far had been constructed from smooth stone tiles, yet one by the end wall was noticeably higher than those around it. Quirking an eyebrow at this odd imperfection, she couldn't help but feel that there was something very strange about it.

Curiosity, as well as a faint sliver of hope, eventually pushed her to investigate. If for no other reason than to delay the arduous walk back. Striding over, she squatted down next to it for a closer look, causing the densely packed mush still contained inside her shorts to squish and spread between her legs.

Applejack paid the feeling little mind though. She had no intention of walking around this creepy place bare-bottomed, so she chose to ignore the sticky sensations spreading up through her crotch and butt crack. After all, she'd worked out in the orchards in similar states for far longer than this before.

A bit hesitant, Applejack reached her hand down and cautiously placed it upon the raised tile. Though only slightly, she felt it start to slowly sink under the weight of her palm. Immediately pulling away from it, the tile then rose back up to its original position. It seemed to be some sort of 'button' that was built into the floor. Memories from her most recent tussle with an ancient magical organ came to mind.

It would likely require more weight to activate it, though she didn't like the feel of this one bit. Unfortunately, she didn't have anything else to go off of at this point. The thought of passing back through that mannequin hall, in particular, sent cold shivers down her spine. Still, there was no telling what this button might do, if anything at all. What if it was the key to finding the Element things that they were looking for...

"...Ah shucks, here goes nothing." She mumbled, ears flattening against her head as she stood up and hesitantly stepped onto the raised tile.

With a heavy *clunk!*, it immediately sank to the same level as those around it, but instead of emitting another loud boom like she'd been bracing for, the wall in front of her started to move. Stone bricks turned and rotated on their own, transforming into a strange doorway in a matter of seconds. Applejack squinted into the darkness revealed beyond it, only for several black arm-like appendages to suddenly dart out from the void in her direction.

"What the-!" She yelped, only to be abruptly cut off as one of them shoved itself right into her open muzzle.

Two others quickly seized her arms before yanking her through the opening and into the darkness. A few seconds of silence went by before the doorway slowly closed shut behind her. All that remained of the earth pony was her torch which was still rolling around on the floor as the tile rose back up to its original position...

Applejack could see nothing but darkness all around her as she felt herself being carried quickly through the air, struggling blindly against the stiff limbs that were restraining her. Pulling with all her strength, she tried to reach up and yank off the one which forced its way into her muzzle, only for the two who were holding her wrists to suddenly tighten and yank them away.

She continued to struggle furiously against the mysterious monster, tensing as she felt herself abruptly stop moving through the air. Her legs dangled uselessly beneath her, though they too were seized a few seconds later. The one which had shoved part of itself into her muzzle felt thick and leathery, and it didn't seem to care whenever she tried biting down on it or pushing at it with her tongue. What was it going to do with her?!

Applejack let out a muffled gasp as something big pressed up into the seat of her soiled shorts. Whatever it was pulled away after prodding curiously at the protruding bulge, leaving Applejack fearful of what the strange monster might have planned.

There was a tense pause before she felt two more of the strange limbs hook around the rim of her shorts on either side. Each started slowly easing them down, peeling the caked denim away from her rear. Applejack could feel the layers of thick muck coating her ass as a cold breeze blew past her, sending a cold shiver up her spine. She felt her shorts finally fall past her feet, leaving her messy and exposed in the mysterious beast's grip.

Then, something large, cold, and wet made contact with her right ankle before slowly sliding up between her legs. As it worked it's way up, she could feel it's strange texture rub against her as it squeezed between her thighs. Applejack gasped as the tongue-like mass was pressed firmly into her crotch. It then slowly dragged itself backward, digging deep into her every crevice as it slid up through her shit-filled butt crack.

'What's this thing doing to me!?' She thought, face heating up from the intimate contact as she feared that it might try something a little more invasive next.

But it would only return again and again, each time repeating the same motions until, by the end, she felt like she'd been wiped completely clean of her accident. Applejack already had given up struggling, realizing it to be pointless and was far too busy trying to make sense of what the creature was doing.

She gasped as suddenly she felt a tiny worm-like tentacle squirm up between her wet ass cheeks, parting them slightly as it did so. It began lightly poking and prodding around before finally discovering her still tightly clenched anus. Applejack tensed her jaw, expecting it to try to force itself inside her at any moment.

But instead, there was just a gentle tickle as it slowly worked its way around the rim of her hole, clearing away any remaining brown smudges that it could find before pulling away just as fast as it had appeared.

She waited with held breath to see what would happen next, but... nothing did. Finally being allowed a few moments of peace, Applejack tried to make sense of her bizarre situation. It seemed like she'd pretty much just had her butt wiped like a little foal, a thought that made her blush. Whatever this thing holding her was though, she was still entirely at its mercy.

She was ripped from her thoughts, her gasp muffled as something new started moving up between her legs. As it grazed past her inner thighs, she could feel its soft texture. It instantly reminded her of something, though she couldn't quite place exactly what. An odd crinkly sound accompanied the thing as it met against her crotch, and in just a matter of moments, it was fastened tightly around her waist. But before she could process this further, all of the arms holding her aloft suddenly released her at the same time.

"Gaahh- Omph!" She started to yell, a sudden brightness blinding her just as she also met the ground.

She'd only been falling for a second or two before landing on some kind of large and cushiony surface. Vision returned to her as her eyes adjusted, replacing the dark void with a dimly lit room. She shot up from where she landed, looking around frantically for the creature that had abducted her. Yet instead, she merely found herself sitting alone in a tiny room of the castle.

Loud crinkling accompanied most of her movements, prompting her to eventually peer down at the source. Confusion flooded her mind as Applejack discovered what the creature had done. She was wearing a... diaper?

Again she was left with almost no time to process this as a pleasant *Ding!* sounded from across the room. A small opening had appeared in one of the stone walls next to the only visible exit. There her shorts lay, neatly folded, and by the looks of it, completely cleaned.

"What just..." She trailed off, struggling to make sense of anything from the past few minutes.

She appeared to be sitting on some sort of bed that jutted out from the wall. It was very soft, despite being made from the same solid stone as the wall that it was attached to. Swinging her legs off to the side, she stood up, crinkling sounds emanating from her newly acquired padding from even her slightest movement. It felt so strange to be wearing something she'd only ever seen little foals wearing, but even stranger still was the fact that it was clearly designed for sompony around her size. She'd never heard of anything like it before.

Wadling awkwardly over to the space in the wall where her shorts lay, Applejack hesitantly grabbed them. She checked them all over, making sure nothing had been done to them. Surprisingly, they were spotless. Even older stains from months before were nowhere to be found. Regardless, she was just glad to have them back. It was already a miracle that her hat had remained on her head during all of that...

'Well, as weirdly comfortable as this thing feels, I ain't sure I want Rainbow Dash seeing me wearin it. That mare would never let me live it down.' Applejack thought, grimacing as she patted the thick padding covering her ass.

Reaching up, she tried to pull down on the diaper, only for it to put up far more resistance than she was expecting. She felt around for some kind of tape or tab to pull but found nothing of the sort.

"Come on, stupid thing!" She grunted, pushing even harder to no avail. Despite her best efforts, the diaper didn't budge an inch. If anything, it seemed to adhere to her waist even more.

"Well, that's just great." She sighed, hands resting on her padded hips as she tapped her foot anxiously.

Her shorts would never be able to stretch over the diaper either. Granted, they were already getting a little small for her by themselves anyway. As strange as this was, she would just have to deal with it for now. With her luck, it was probably magic or something. Meaning, she'd need either Twilight or Rarity's help to remove it. Embarrassed even at the thought of asking them something like that, Applejack decided not to think about it.

Looking around for anything else of note before leaving, she grabbed a dimly lit torch that hung on the wall over the weird stone 'bed'. It was baffling how she'd even fallen into this room in the first place.

Not keen on remaining in the probably cursed room any longer than she had to, she turned to leave...

...Only to run face-first into the broad and scaley chest of a familiar dragon the moment she stepped through the doorway.

"Gah!" Both she and Spike yelped, leaping back from each other in surprise.

"S-spike?!"

"Applejack?!" Spike and four other mares behind him all gasped at the same time, all looking just as startled as her.

"Where the hell did you just come from?!" Rainbow exclaimed, giving her a suspicious look as her eyes slowly drifted downwards.

"I was just in-" Applejack started to explain, turning to point into the room she'd just left, only to find the entrance was gone, replaced by a blank stone wall. "What the tarnation!? Where'd it go?!"

"Yay, we're all back together again!" Pinkie cheered, leaping up over the others and tackling Applejack to the ground in a big bear hug. As she sat up, now straddling the dazed farm pony, she felt her butt sink down. Pinkie's ear twitched as she heard crinkling coming from beneath her.

"A-applejack!" Rarity suddenly gasped. "W-why in Equestria are you wearing a- I mean, w-what are you wearing?!" the fashionista stammered, her cheeks turning a deep red as she stared down Applejack's new attire. Right behind her, Fluttershy was glowing an even brighter as her wings sprung out from her back.

"Wait, hold on a second. Applejack, are you wearing a... diaper?" Dash asked, her confusion giving way to muffled chuckling.

"I, uh, I think so?" Applejack replied, cheeks burning as she tried to ignore Dash's laughter. Pinkie stood up, offering her a hand and helping her back to her feet. "Some thing grabbed me and put this on... I can't seem to get it off either." She explained, deciding not to mention what else the monster had done to her.

Though Rainbow was likely only laughing at the sight of Applejack wearing something so childish, for whatever reason, both Fluttershy and Rarity were acting as they had all caught her doing something scandalous. Both Spike and Pinkie shared a confused glance.

"Ahm, well." Rarity began, clearing her throat as she tried to regain her composure. "We're glad to see you're safe, we've been looking everywhere for you."

However, her words were mostly overshadowed by Rainbow's laughter, which was now obnoxiously loud as she had given up on holding back while she rolled around on the ground.

"Rainbow, It ain't that funny. Applejack growled, glaring at the pegasus.

"Yes, Applejack is quite correct. A-anyway, you said that some creature put that t-thing you? And now you c-can't get it off?" Rarity asked, voice wavering a little as Fluttershy appeared to be ready to faint behind her at any moment.

"Yea, but then it just... let me go." Applejack replied, still not sure why it did herself.

"Well, hopefully, it doesn't come looking for the rest of us too. I would hate to be put in one of t-those too." Rarity said, shifting uncomfortably as she toyed with a spiraling lock of her mane.

"Well, uh, we should probably keep moving," Spike suggested. "We were supposed to meet back with Twilight at the library ages ago."

"Yes, that is a splendid idea! Come along Applejack!" Rarity quickly agreed, snatching Spike's torch out of his hand as she continued down the tunnel past Applejack. Fluttershy followed quickly behind as she glanced back down at Applejack's diaper for a moment. Upon catching up, she whispered something into Rarity's ear that only made the pair's faces redder.

Applejack looked over at Pinkie and Spike in hopes they could shed some light on whatever she must have missed. But both merely smiled back and shrugged before Pinkie bounced off to catch up with them.

'Why do I feel like I'm missing the joke here...' She thought, glaring down at Rainbow who was still rolling around on the ground in hysteria. One swift kick to the butt eventually got them back on track though...

A few minutes of wandering later and everyone seemed to have finally calmed down. Spike was back in the lead, torch in hand while Rarity held his other arm tightly against her chest.

Since being rescued, Rarity seemed to make an effort of attaching herself to him whenever possible, usually holding his forearm to her chest in a manner that Spike was doing his best not to think about too much. He doubted there was any meaning behind it, but had no intentions of objecting as her soft breasts enveloped his arm. The others were following close behind, the only sounds accompanying the crackle of both his and Applejack's torches being Rainbow's wing flaps, their footsteps, and the constant crinkling that came from Applejack's new 'diaper.'

He wasn't even aware of diapers big enough for adult ponies as a real thing. That fact that she couldn't get it off was concerning, but he was sure Twilight would be able to help her once they found their way back to the library... assuming they found their way out of here at all.

Unfortunately, the task was proving to be much easier said than done. As Rainbow had complained aloud numerous times already, the underground tunnels and passages under the ancient castle seemed to never want to end. Applejack had apparently been wandering around on her own for just as long as they were but had yet to recognize anything they'd come across so far. It seemed to be only by luck that they even had managed to find each other again.

On the bright side, he had at least been able to mostly confirm a theory of his while rescuing Rarity and Fluttershy. Neither he nor Twilight fully understood how his dragon fire really worked, beyond its strange ability to send things to Celestia. But now he was sure that it was tied to his intentions in some way. It would explain so many of the random incidents involving his fire that occurred over the years.

From every time he'd angrily sent a letter, only for it to just burn up in mid-air, to that one time he accidentally sent a certain lewd comic to Celestia in the middle of the night... He felt himself blush at the memory. The comic had been featuring her.

"Hey, I think I see something up ahead!" He heard Rainbow call, waking him from his thoughts.

She pointed over his shoulder at something that was revealed at the edge of their torchlight. A blueish glow could be seen coming from around a corner that they were approaching. Cautiously, they each peeked their heads around it. A small door lay cracked open not far down this new tunnel. Dim light streamed through the opening as the sound of some kind of commotion echoed through it.

Moving quietly, he tip-toed up to the door, the sounds of a few magic spells going off becoming audible. Suddenly, there was a loud crash as he was reaching out for the doorknob, almost like glass shattering. His heart froze as he heard a familiar voice cry out in despair, only to be overtaken by a maniacal cackling that undoubtedly originated from none other than Nightmare Moon herself...

"Nooo!" Twilight cried, falling weakly to her knees as her injured leg finally gave out beneath her. "T-that isn't... t-they can't be..." She stammered, tears welling up in her eyes as she stared down in disbelief at the broken stone fragments laying at Nightmare Moon's feet. The Elements of Harmony had been their only chance at stopping her, the only way to save Equestria from eternal night, and the only way to bring Celestia back. And now they had been destroyed...

"Now, now" Nightmare Moon chuckled with renewed confidence as she watched tears drip from Twilight's cheeks. "Why so sad? Have you finally realized that you never stood a chance of ever defeating me? You were foolish for even thinking that a pathetic unicorn such as yourself could ever hope to achieve something that even Celestia herself could not!"

Twilight didn't respond, still in shock as she stared down at the floor. Nightmare Moon stepped over what little remained of the Elements Of Harmony, striding up to the broken mare. Her magic scythe rose into the air.

"I had hoped to make use of you, but now you must pay for your defiance with your life!" She declared, unveiling a toothy grin. "Now, DIE!"

Time seemed to suddenly slow to a crawl as Nightmare Moon swung her blade down towards the base of Twilight's neck. But just as she was about to give up all hope, she felt something spark deep within herself as her thoughts suddenly turned to all the ponies who had gotten her this far. Five ponies she barely even knew had all risked their lives to get her to this point. Without them, there would be no telling if she would have even been able to reach the castle at all.

Suddenly, there was a flash of movement as a shadow descended over her. Looking up, she expected to see Nightmare Moon's blade coming down, only for her eyes to widen in surprise as she found none other than Spike standing over her. A massive plume of green flame was spewing from his maw, enveloping the equally surprised alicorn.

Nightmare Moon quickly leaped back, scowling as her magic weapon started melting in her grip from the flames. Much of her armor was burnt away as if it were made of paper, leaving her mostly naked with only a few conveniently placed scraps remaining. But Spike was unfazed, his expression intense as he stood stoically between them.

Moments later, the rest of Twilight's new friends rushed to her aid, emerging from a hidden door hidden behind one of the few hanging banners left in the throne room. She looked up at each one of them in surprise, their faces full of concern as the tears evaporated from Twilight's cheeks from the intense heat of Spike's roaring flames.

Twilight staggered up from the floor with their help, leg still throbbing painfully. But despite this, a warmth was steadily rising in her chest as she suddenly realized what the cryptic words in her book had really meant.

"You DARE to attack me, you insolent beast!?" Nightmare Moon roared, her magical scythe rematerializing a few seconds later as she growled at the dragon. "You will all pay for getting in my way with your lives!"

She took to the air, glaring at Spike's as his flames finally stopped. In the past, the alicorn's intense icy glare alone had him cowering, yet now he stood resolute and unmoving under her fierce gaze.

Nightmare Moon's horn began to spark and crackle as she charged a powerful beam that she was sure would turn them all to dust in an instant. But, glancing down, she noticed something strange was going on. The tiny broken fragments of the Elements Of Harmony were slowly rising up into the air, enveloped by a familiar white aura.

"WHAT?! N-no! That's impossible!" She boomed, taken aback as she watched all the spheres repaired themselves. Then, five colorful gemstones emerged from each of them, each one bearing a different symbol.

Behind Spike, Twilight started to rise up into the air, eyes glowing white. Her friends stared up in awe at the spectacle, only to feel the same powerful sensations flooding into themselves as well. Nightmare Moon burst forward with a mighty flap of her wings, recognizing the very same magic that imprisoned her for a thousand years.

Lowering her horn, she fired a massive beam of dark magic aimed directly at Twilight's head. It crackled with lightning as it soared through the air in slow motion. But before it could reach its target, one last figure rose up in it's path. The powerful beam ricocheted harmlessly off Spike's shimmering scales, his eyes glowing. Then, as Nightmare Moon struggled to comprehend what just happened, one final star-shaped gemstone emerged from the large inner sphere of the sculpture behind them.

Nightmare Moon raced forward to swing her blade down at the dragon's neck, only to be horrified as the blade shattered like glass the moment it made contact with his scales.

"W-what!? No! No, not again!" She cried, voice trembling as she felt hot liquid start dribbling down her legs.

She watched with growing terror as six colorful beams of light connected the six mares behind Spike, the gemstones having risen to their chests and glowing as all the magic within them was funneled down into the dragon. Nightmare Moon watched in abject horror as he opened his maw. Yet instead of flames, a massive beam of rainbow-colored energy slammed into her, forcing her to the ground in an instant. An intense heat overtook her as raw magic clawed away at her very soul.

"NOOOOOOOOO!" She cried, feeling her magic being stripped away with any of her remaining clothing. There was a brilliant flash of light which shone through all the windows, easily visible for miles around...

As the light finally started to fade from his eyes, Spike found himself slowly floating to the ground. A large crater was left where the Nightmare Moon once stood, with only a few small fragments of her armor smoldering around the rim.

"Ugh," He groaned, head pounding from a strange headache as he felt the immense energy coursing through him start to leave his body. It focused down around his neck, transforming into a small white circular gemstone that hung from a golden necklace.

'Whoah...' He though, unsure how he even just did all of that.

Upon touching the ground, he quickly turned around, hoping to find all the others alright. Their eyes fluttered as the light faded from them as well and they each let out a groan as no doubt similar headache manifested among them.

But to Rarity's immediate joy upon looking down at herself as she was massaging her skull, her dress from the party appeared to have been completely restored. Additionally, Applejack's diaper had been replaced by her shorts. All that remained of the padding was a pile of shredded fabric that was strewn on the ground around her boots. Fluttershy had her hoodie back, and any bruises they had were gone.

Much like his own necklace, five amulets hung around each of their necks. Each one featured a different gemstone, each one almost like reflections of their respective mare cutie marks. Twilight's was different though. Hers had manifested into some kind of golden crown, complete with a purple star-shaped gem on the front.

"Urgh, my head." Rainbow Dash groaned, rubbing her temple as she stretched out her wings.

"Oh, Rarity! Your tail!" Fluttershy gasped, pointing down excitedly behind the fashionista who had been too busy gushing over her dress to even notice that her tail had also been restored.

"Oh, thank goodness!"

She reached down, hugging it as if it were a long lost friend. Pinkie meanwhile appeared to be entertaining herself by jumping up and down, watching her amulet bounce on her chest. Even his clothes own shirt and shorts were back!

Spike turned to face Twilight, only for a purple blur to suddenly lunge and tackle him to the ground.

"Oh Spike, thank Celestia you're alright!" She cried, holding him tightly as her head lay on his chest in a warm embrace.

She eventually leaned back up, hands splayed out on his upper chest as the two found themselves staring into each other's eyes for a few seconds. There was a still silence between them until Twilight gazed down, yelping as she realized the somewhat suggestive position she was in, straddling his crotch. She quickly scrambled to her feet, using her magic to help him back up in the process.

"I-i, um... thank you, Spike, for saving me." She mumbled shyly, staring down at the ground as her cheeks turned red. Spike felt a tingling in his heart, not used to seeing Twilight acting so flustered around him. It was cute...

But before he could say anything back, there was a bright glow from one of the windows of the throne room. Everyone looked as a beam of sunlight descended from a newly risen sun on the horizon, carrying with it a magnificent ball of light that floated gracefully through the tall window. Then, stepping out of it, Princess Celestia appeared, her beautiful white wings extending proudly from her back. Her multi-colored mane and tail waved in slowly beside her as it always did, caught in an invisible wind that acted as a symbol of her power.

A long and regal white dress fell gracefully over the princess's gorgeous body. Slightly transparent due to how thin the fabric was, it left very little to the imagination. She was easily as tall as Nightmare Moon and even bigger in certain other ways...

"P-princess Celestia!" Twilight cried out, running over to the princess who smiled warmly at the sight of her faithful student.

"Oh Twilight, I knew you could do it!" The princess said, the two joining together in a gentle embrace as happy tears rolled down Twilight's cheeks. She pulled back a moment later, confused at the monarch's words.

"B-but, in your letter you-"

"In truth, I had foreseen Nightmare Moon's return, but I knew that you had the magic inside to defeat her. But to harness that magic, you first had to let both true love and friendship into your heart..." Celestia explained, a hand coming down to brush back Twilight's messy mane. "Now, if only another will as well...."

"Princess Luna!" Her voice boomed, turning towards the crater they'd left with the Elements.

A sharp gasp came from within, and Spike was surprised to spot somepony peering out over the edge. With pale blue fur and a light blueish mane, a new mare looked up at the approaching Celestia with a fearful look in her eyes.

"It has been over a thousand years since I've seen you like this..." Celestia spoke solemnly, kneeling down as she reached the edge of the crater. This mare, whom Spike realized was not only completely naked but also an alicorn cowered away from her. "It's time we put out differences behind us, we were meant to rule Equestria together... my dear sister."

"Sister?!" Many surprised voices exclaimed, including Spike's.

"Will you accept my friendship?" Celestia asked, offering the frail-looking mare a hand down, her voice soft and caring.

There was a moment of tense silence before the mare leaped forward into Celestia's arms, embracing her tightly as she sobbed into her bosom. Celestia returned the embrace, a quick flash of her horn manifesting a simple robe, preventing Spike from having to shield his eyes as the two separated.

"I'm so sorry, sister! I-i missed you so much!" The mare cried, tears of joy rolling down her face.

"It's all going to be alright, my little Luna. I've missed you too~..." Celestia replied as the two stared longingly into each other's eyes.

Then, as if the shocking sibling reveal hadn't been enough, their lips suddenly met, the two of them practically melting together in a passionate kiss. Hearing a crash behind him, a very dumbfounded Spike turned around to discover Twilight laying face-down on the floor with a small trickle of blood running from her nose...

Author's Notes:

Fun 'Fact' Of The Chapter: Incest is wincest.