“Twilight? Are you alright darling?” Rarity asked, slowly running a hoof up and down the lavender Unicorn’s back. “You’ve been sitting there for the past ten minutes without saying a word. Not that I don’t mind the peace and quiet but…you’ve barely even spoken.”

Twilight took a deep shaky breath, blinking away to tears floating in her eyes. “I…I’m sorry Rarity, I didn’t mean to make you nervous. I’m just…I’m a little out of it right now.”

“Would this happen t’ be because o’ th’ fact that yer mentors on her way here right now?” Applejack asked softly with a half-lidded expression.

“Y…yeah, kind of.” Twilight nodded, lifting a hoof to rub at her eyes. “I just…I can’t believe that she’s really on her way here. D-don’t get me wrong, I really was expecting her to come while we were searching for the Elements, b-but…” She sniffled again. “I…I honestly didn’t expect her to get here…so soon. We’ve been through so much petrifying situations here, almost getting burnt alive, drowning, eaten alive, and now…this. I was almost convinced that we weren’t gonna make it through, and a couple of us did lose our heads and get more than a little out of commission.” She glanced over at Rarity and Fluttershy, who both shared little chuckles as they smiled at Twilight. “Now though…I feel kind of silly that I thought that.”

“Oh, it’s alright Twilight…you don’t need to feel silly.” Fluttershy cooed, wrapping a wing around the lavender Unicorn. “You’re not the only one whose been stressed and scared of what’s going to happen to us here. We’ve all had the same thoughts running through our minds, even before we came here, but I’m sure you already knew that.”

Twilight blushed, looking away with a sheepish smile. “Yeah…I already theorized that.”

“Sure you did.” Goku said, glancing over at Twilight with an amused smile. “Don’t forget though, Rainbow Dash, Violet Fire and the Shadowbolts are still behind there. We’re not exactly out of the woods yet.”

“Uh Goku,” Pinkie Pie began slowly. “We still are in the woods.”

“It was just a phrase, Pinkie Pie.” Applejack explained patiently. “G meant it both literally an’ figuratively.”

“Plus.” The tan Pegasus continued, starring up at the starry wall. “There’s also our other guest that we’re going to be meeting very soon.”

“What other guest?” Pinkie Pie asked, tilting her head. “Is it those ponies that Dashie and the Shadowbolts are battling right now?”

Goku snorted. “No Pinkie Pie, I mean-”

“Oh! Oh! Is it Queen Celestia?!” Pinkie Pie excitedly. “Because you already said you and Twilight already said she was coming here.”

“That’s not it either Pinkie Pie. I’m talking about-”

“Or do you mean the Wonderbolts? They’re already here, and their Captains over that wall trying to help Dashie. So I don’t see how-”

“W-wha…no, of course not! We literally saw them fly up and over that wall! Why would you think-”

“Oh wait, are you parents coming?! That is so awesome! You always told us how they were members of Celly’s royal guard, and they were the best of the best! Oh, if they really are coming it’d be more awesome cause I-”

Pinkie Pie’s chatty tirade was finally cut off when Zephyr gently, but firmly, placed a hoof onto her lips. Abruptly, the bubblegum pink mare went silent, her cerulean eyes darting to meet the royal blue Pegasus’s own.

“Pinkie Pie, please, let Goku speak.” The Solar Royal Guard said, his tone matching his actions as he stared into Pinkie’s eyes. “She doesn’t mean any of that, especially what you said about her parents. I think she means the pony that we’re here to stop.”

Pinkie Pie blinked a couple of times as Zephyr slowly took his hoof away from her muzzle. A second later, her eyes widened slightly as recognition clicked into them. “Oooooooh, you mean that big black scary meanie pants Nightmare Moon!”

“Yes, thank you.” Goku nodded, flashing her fellow Shenron a thankful smile. “That’s what I’ve been trying to say this whole time.”

“Well why didn’t you say that before?” Pinkie Pie chortled. “I would’ve saved all this trouble guessing if you did.”

“Wha…b-because you were…because you, I…we…never mind.” Goku sighed, putting a hoof to her face as she shook it. “Let’s just keep watch until Rainbow Dash and the Bolts can take care of whatever’s going on back there.”

“Um, darling…” Rarity murmured softly. “…I don’t think you’ll have to wait for very long.”

Flicking her ear, the tan Pegasus looked over to where the alabaster Unicorn was. “What do you mean...what the…?!”

That was all that the Kirin was able to get out of her mouth before the rest of her words died in her mouth, her jaw hanging unhinged. She, Rarity and just about everypony else stared wide-eyed at the ethereal wall, which looked like it had little multiple explosions on it. That wasn’t the only thing that took them by surprise, however. It was the fact that those little bursts of light were all different shades of color.

Colors of the rainbow.

“Uh, I don’t mean to make anypony scared here,” Sky Ranger began. “But can anypony explain to me what that was?”

“It looks like there’s an explosion that’s going on!” Zephyr replied, looking just as taken aback as the azure blue Hippogriff. “That’s what it looks like.”

“Anypony know what’s causin’ it?” Applejack asked. “Ah’m pretty sure that there’s somethin’, ‘r somepony, makin’ it happen.”

“Me too.” Fluttershy nodded, her ears picking up the sound of chirping and explosions. “And I think I know who’s causing it.”

“You do?” Twilight asked, looking over at the buttermilk Pegasus. “Who?”

All of a sudden, the girls felt themselves shooting up more than several feet in the air by an explosion that was even louder than one they heard just minutes before. They all screamed as they tumbled across the ground, futility trying to regain their footing as the ground shook at its most violet pace yet. As if that wasn’t enough of an unexpected surprise, the wall they were standing in front of light in a bright prismatic light, nearly blinding them as it shined. As quickly as it came, it slowly receded, a powerful gust of wind following shorty after. Then, it all went quiet.

“Whoa, that was one big blast!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed. “Anypony know where that came from?!”

“Your guess as good as ours, girl!” Gou replied, slowly hovering back down to the ground. “First there’s little fireworks going on and then there’s another blast?! How many times are we gonna keep experiencing that?!”

“Just what Ah’m thinkin sugarcube.” Applejack snorted, getting back up to her hooves. “Ah’ve pretty much had it up to here with all o’ these jump scares! If Ah get knocked off mah hooves one more time Ah’m gonna-”

“Girls!” Fluttershy suddenly exclaimed. “Look up! At the wall!”

The four other mares, the Wonderbolts included, all looked up to where the lavender Unicorn was pointing. Gasped left each of their throats when they saw the ethereal wall as beginning to crack and break before their eyes. It started off small at first, leaving the girls unsure as to whether it was really happening. It then began to pick up speed, growing shorter by the second as it shattered and turned to mist.

“I…I don’t believe it.” Rarity murmured. “The wall is beginning to break!”

“But, how can that be possible?” Twilight asked, looking in between her friends. “We didn’t see anything that happened over there. What could’ve caused to dissolve and dissipate?”

“I have no clue, but it’s going away either way.” Goku replied a small smile on her face. “Now we’ll finally be able to get to Dash and the others.”

“You don’t think Rainbow, Violet and the rest of the Wonderbolts and Shadowbolts will be hurt too badly, do you?” Fluttershy asked worriedly.

“Only one way to find out.” Sky Ranger replied, flaring her wings. “Come on young travelers!”

“Hey now, wait fer us!” Applejack shouted as she and the others galloped after the two Wonderbolts. By some miracle, the bridge, which looked to be severely charred, still intact, rope and all, allowing the six mares run across it. When they reached the other side, they were immediately assaulted by the telltale sign of smoke and ash filling their nostrils. After taking a few moments to try to adjust to the smell, they looked around in shock at the destruction in front of them.

“Oh my word…” Rarity breathed. “What in the name of Faust happened here?”

“You tell me...” Twilight replied. “It looks like either a hurricane or a giant storm passed through here!”

“That’s an understatement.” Zephyr snorted, fighting back the urge to sneeze. “It looks and smells like somepony lit of a hundred bombs all over this field!”

“Yes, we can tell.” Fluttershy grimaced, her eyes becoming watery. “Do any you see Rainbow Dash, Violet Fire and her team anywhere? And the Wonderbolts?”

“I can’t tell.” Goku replied, sniffing the air. “I can still smell her scent here, along with the Wonderbolts and the Shadowbolts. Along with some…other ponies that were here.”

“You can?” Sky Ranger asked raising an eyebrow. “Your sense of smell is that strong?”

“Goku’s sense of smell is equivalently stronger than that of a normal pony.” Twilight explained. “Since she has the powers of a dragon, and a Thestral her five senses exceed that of what an ordinary pony is capable of. She can detect things in the dark, listen for even the reduced of sound, and smell farther than ponies that have even the sharpest of senses. Even when she’s not in her Kirin Mode, she can still detect things that ponies without powers like her’s, or Zephyr’s, or a Bat Pony’s, can’t. It’s one of the benefits from not only being in apart family that’s part of the Secret Seven Clans of Equestria, but one another family that’s known to be supernatural”

“Seriously?” Sky Ranger asked, looking somewhat amazed. “So does that mean that all of you can do that?”

“Only if we’re in our transformations are similar to Goku’s darling.” Rarity replied, tapping at the cross hanging from her neck. “Goku’s family is the only one that’s able to use their powers while still being able to somewhat maintain being in their normal forms. The rest of us on the other hoof, half to work just the slightest bit harder to get to her level, and even then, she still exceeds us.”

“I see…” Sky Ranger murmured, absorbing the information. “Is Rainbow Dash the same way was well?”

“Well, more or less sugarcube.” Applejack replied tentatively, glancing over at the azure blue Hippogriff. “Though, Rainbow Dash’s powers are a bit more destructive and most of ours…well, alien like, which is why it ain’t quite as mixed in with’ the rest of our own powers.”

Sky ranger raised an eyebrow at that, but before he could as what she meant by that, they suddenly heard Zephyr speak up. “hey, um…guys? I think don’t think that Rainbow Dash is hidden anywhere below here.”

Twilight looked over at the royal blue stallion, a sapphire blue brow raised. “How do you know that?”

Zephyr pointed a golden hoof up. “Because I can see her DIVING RIGHT FOR US!!!”

At those words, everypony’s heads immediately snapped up to where Zephyr was pointing, and they all froze upon seeing a large prismatic trail diving down towards them. At the speed it was going it looked like it was going to blow them all away, and the eight mares had a pretty good idea what, or who, it was.

“EVERYPONY TAKE COVER!!!” Goku screamed, galloping off and diving to the ground. The other’s followed immediately afterword going off in random directions and taking cover, just in the nick of time.

The rainbow trail slammed into the ground, the force not being anywhere near that of the last explosion, but still being pretty close all considering. They waited for the shaking to recede, before they even dared to look in the direction of the collision. There, standing in the middle of the public fountain sized crater in which she mad made, was Rainbow Dash, coated head to hoof in a cloak of multicolored lightning.

“R…Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy asked quietly. “I-is that you?”

The cyan mare, with her eyes glowing as two bright magenta orbs, smiled cockily at the buttermilk Pegasus, her fangs gleaming. “No, it’s your one and only Firefly Wisp, the General of the Wonderbolts and creator of the Sonic Fireboom. Of course, it’s me!”

“Land sakes girl, don’t scare us like that!” Applejack scolded, frowning at her friend. “Fer a second there we thought ya were some critter divin’ down on us ready t’ carry us off!”

“Uh, did you guys not see the rainbow trail heading for you? It should’ve been pretty obvious, what, or who, was coming for you.” She laughed as the lightning around her slowly began to disappear. “Who did you think it was, one of those dumb Galaxy Star Bastards I took out?”

Rarity raised an indigo eyebrow at Rainbow Dash “I beg your pardon dear? The who now?”

“DASHIE!!!” Pinkie Pie suddenly screamed, making everypony jump and look over at her. She suddenly leaped into the air straight towards Rainbow Dash, forelegs open wide. “YOU’RE OKAY!!!”

“WAIT! DON’T TOUCH-” Rainbow Dash began to scream back, but it was too late. Pinkie Pie landed right on top of Rainbow, while she was still coated in lightning, causing both of them to fall to the ground.

The second she made contact, Pinkie Pie’s whole body began to twist and turn in unnatural directions as Rainbow’s lightning zapped her all over. She didn’t scream or even cry out, but she did make low moaning sounds as she was electrocuted. Just as quickly as it started, it stopped, and she collapsed right into Rainbow Dash’s forelegs.

“Pinkie!” Rainbow Dash cried, sitting up and holding the Earth Pony. “Pinkie, Pinkie are you okay?! Come on girl, say something! Please!”

A second later, Pinkie Pie’s eyes snapped open and she leaped out of Rainbow Dash’s embrace. Her whole body shook as she turned to look at the cyan Pegasus with a wide grin on her face.

“Holy moly that was one big zap!” She exclaimed, trotting in place. “I’ve hardly been struck by lightning before, but that had to be the biggest zap I’ve ever heard in my life!”

“Uuuuh, the buck was that?!” Zephyr asked, slowly recovering from his shock. “How did you survive that?!”

“Survive what?” Pinkie Pie asked, the grin on her face not faltering in the slightest. “All that happened was that I got zapped by lightning.”

“Yeah, that’s exactly what she’s talking about!” Zephyr exclaimed. “How in the bucking Tartarus did you manage to recover so quickly form that electrocution?! Most ponies that don’t go through enough training wouldn’t be able to move an inch! Especially from that much lightning!”

“Oh, I that’s easy.” Pinkie Pie giggled. “I just chose not to focus too much on the pain, and it didn’t hurt me as much. You really should try it; it’ll really help you to recover a lot faster from zaps like that, heehee!”

Zephyr’s mind shut down for a long moment, before winding up again. “That…that doesn’t make any bucking sense! How in the hell are we supposed to understand that?!”

“Hon’, it’s best of you don’t question a thing that mare says.” Applejack said dryly, looking sympathetically at stallion. “Trust me, you’ll save yourself a long torturous headache if you do. Just go with whatever she says and does, and you’ll be just fine.”

“Oh, thank Faust…” Rainbow Dash said, breathing a sigh of relief. “For a second there I really thought I had charred you up there Pinks.”

“Oh, you could never ever char me up Dashie.” Pinkie Pie giggled, smiling cheekily at the cyan mare. “I didn’t really hurt that much! If anything, it felt like a real good buzz!”

“Yeah well, don’t do that again okay?” Rainbow Dash said, running a hoof through her mane. “I really thought that I had hurt you back there. I mean, I know you’re you and all but…seriously, be more careful okay?”

Pinkie Pie giggled again, bringing Rainbow Dash in a tight hug. “With you around, I don’t think I really need to be careful.”

“Well, you two seem to be having a lovely little time.” A familiar soft voice said from behind the nine mares. They all jumped and turned around to see Violet Fire, and the rest of her team hovering behind them, most of them having various expression of amusement on their faces.

“Oh, hey there Violet Fire!” Goku said with a wide grin. It soon faltered when she saw the condition that they were all in. “Oh jeez, what in the hay happened to you guys?!”

“A lot Goku, a lot.” Fast Tracks murmured, crossing his arms. “More than we can even begin to explain to you.”

“Though, if you wanted put more simply….” Storm Shadow said. “…we had a little run in with a few Bolts ourselves.”

“Wait a minute.” Twilight began, holding a hoof up. “Are you meaning to imply that you ran into another group of Ariel Flyers?”

“Pretty sharp aren’t you kid?” Fast Tracks snorted dryly. “To answer your question, yes, we fought a group of Ariel Flyers while your friend, the Shadowbolts and us were trapped in this giant trap. I hate to admit it, we got our asses kicked left and right trying to hold our own against them.” He glanced over at Rainbow Dash with a thankful expression. “That is, until a totally awesome mare sent them all flying in one epic explosion!”

Rainbow Dash grinned. “You’re welcome.”

“Well, I’m glad to see that you’re okay Captain.” Icy Mist said. “I knew that you, Rainbow Dash and your team could do it.”

Blue Skies giggled. “Yeah, I guess we did…even if one of us did nearly get electrocuted to death."

“While we’re on the subject.” Rarity said, taking a step forward. “Would you mind explaining to us what in the world happened here to cause all of this?”

“Rares, didn’t you here what Captain Spitfire just said?” Rainbow Dash asked, looking annoyed at Rarity. “They were in a fight with another group of Bolts that bucked our asses all over the air, and the castle!”

“Well of course I heard her Dash, I have working ears you know.” Rarity replied hotly with a snort. “What I was referring to was what had happened to end the battle like this?”

Rainbow Dash paused, her eyes widening slightly. “Oh, yeah…that. W-well, you see I-”

“Yeah that’s what I wanna know!” Fast Tracks suddenly shouted, looking pointedly at Rainbow Dash. “What in the hay did you do back there, Rainbow Dash?! Some kind of sonic boom the color of the rainbow or something?!”

“Uuuuh, um…” The cyan mare tried to say, her lips fumbling. “I-I uh-”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that in my life!” Lightning Shadow nodded, giving Rainbow Dash an impressed smile. “Sure, I’ve seen my fair share of combined attacks, but none anywhere near like the one you did, especially at that power level!”

“T-that’s because I didn’t really try something like that before.” Rainbow Dash stuttered. “A-at least, not here.”

“Well, that the hay was it?” Store Shadow asked patiently. “If you had tried it before, then you should’ve known what was going to happen even before you did it. Seriously, you were this close to blowing of us away and turning us all into ash.”

“I’m sorry, I wasn’t trying too!” Rainbow Dash protested, holding her hooves up in defense. “I was just trying to stop those Galaxy Star Bolts from killing you guys and me! I didn’t know what else to do, so I did the one thing that my brain told me to! I pulled off the Sonic Rainboom!”

“The…Sonic Rainboom?” Violet Fire asked slowly, her golden eyes slowly widening. “T…that was what we saw in the air?”

“I’m pretty sure that it was Captain.” Blue Skies replied softly. “I mean, we did see an explosion of prismatic colors explode into the sky. There’s no other name that can explain what it was, and what Rainbow Dash called it is the only one.”

“Whoa, now that is just crazy!” Fast Track exclaimed, grinning his widest grin yet. “You actually managed to pull off a sonic boom; and not just any sonic boom, but a Sonic Rainboom! How in the hell did you manage to pull that off?!”

“As much as I’m sure that our dear Rainbow Dash wants to explain I’m afraid that we don’t have anywhere near enough time to do that.” Rarity murmured, glancing at the castle that was just in front of them. “We’re finally at our desired destination, and the last thing that we should do I waste any more time in getting to the one responsible for all of this.”

“Good idea Rarity.” Twilight said, smiling approvingly. “We’re already here anyway. So, we might as well get to it while the going is still good.”

“Exactly what I was thinking Twilight.” Goku grinned as she began to walk ahead of the group and towards the Nightmare Castle. “Come on guys, we have a castle to explore!”

With a flick of her tail, she silently gestured to all of them to follow her, and everypony else, Sky Ranger included, followed. All of their eyes were trained directly on the behemoth of a castle that they were now heading towards, each of them feeling the instinctual urge to turn tail and run. As much as most of them wanted to do so, they fought the urge down, their determination and desire to find and defeat the one that hurt their loved ones ushering them forward. It was the only thing keeping them from following their instincts, least they back out and make the worst decision of their lives.

After what seemed like an eternity of trekking towards the castle, which in reality was only a few minutes, they found themselves at the entrance of the castle. All of them could feel the aura of malice and dark power emitting from it, chilling them to the very bone. From the gigantic double doors that they were about to go through, to the moon flag billowing at the very top. Upon first seeing it, it was already a giant to their eyes, even so far away; certainly, bigger than Celestia’s. Now that they were standing just in front of it, they found themselves unable to come up with any proper words to describe the sheer size of the newly restricted castle. One thing they could all agree on though, was that it was the biggest castle they had ever seen in their entire lives, and probably will ever see.

Swallowing as much fear as they were allowed to, each of the ponies and one Hippogriff looked at one another, giving light nods to each other to signal their readiness. With nothing else to say, Goku walked over and gently pushed the double doors open, no sound coming out of them as she did so. With a silent prayer to the Goddess of the Ponies, they all slowly entered into the darkness of the castle, the doors closing behind them with a menacingly slow and soft slam.

Celestia’s regal sword-like horn glowed brightly as she rocketed her way through the giant trees of the Everfree, blasting away any branches and trees that were in her way. She ducked, swerved and leaped her way through the branches, her majestic wings conjuring up dust from the ground as she soared past it. Not too far away from her, Venture Vine was flying next to her, his armor giving faint gleams in the faint shadows of the forest. Behind them, the rest of the Solar and Lunar Guards that they were leading were flying and galloping just behind them, effortlessly keeping pace with the two flyers. As Celestia ascended into the air, the trees became less and less dense allowing her to get a better view of the outside of the forest.

As her horn lit her way through the forest, she could feel a powerful surge of magic up ahead of her, the amount of which easily being on par with her own magic. It grew stronger the closer that she, Venture and the rest her guards got, as well as colder, sinister and bloodthirsty. It was something that Celestia had felt before, something that always haunted her, even after a thousand peaceful years of not feeling it. She knew that there was only one being capable of wielding that kind of power, and that very same being was just yards away, silently waiting in the shadows for her victims to come. Celestia didn’t know what Nightmare Moon had in store for her, her guards, or her students and her friends when they finally did confront her, but she did no one thing.

The end of the Dark Queen’s terror was near.

“Venture Vine, how close are we to my abandoned castle?” The swan white Alicorn asked, keeping her gaze forward as they flew through the giant trees. “Can you sense any magical presences from how far we were?”

The grass green mare stayed quiet for a brief moment, closing his eyes and concentrating on searching for any magical essences ahead of them. By some miracle, he managed to keep himself from running into or colliding with any of the trees while he focused. He eventually locked onto something, and, after taking a few sniffs, opened his eyes and looked back to his Queen.

“Your highness, I can detect thirteen magical presences from where we’re heading to, and they’re all very close.” Venture Vine plied, glancing back at her Queen as she flew alone side her. She suddenly rose up into the air, just in time to avoid a large branch that he was closing in on. “I can also sense another type of magic. This one is larger, much larger than all seven of them, as well as darker.”

“Yes, I know, I sensed it too.” Celestia nodded, expertly fighting back a shiver that threatened to go down her spine. “How are they, are they alright? Have the confronted Nightmare Moon yet?”

Venture Vine shook her head, not bothering to focus on the energy this time. “No, I’m afraid not…as a matter of a fact, I don’t sense Nightmare Moon anywhere near them yet. Despite the power that she’s giving off, even from this distance. As for the condition of the others, I think I can say that they more or less alright.”

“Could you be more specific?” Celestia asked, her brows slightly furrowing with worry. “Just what is the state of their condition?”

“Well…judging from what I felt, they’re still somewhat recovering some of their energy, my son included. Probably from confrontations with some of the beasts that they faced.” Venture Vine replied explanatorily. “I can tell that they’re making progress, and it won’t really be too much longer before their back in peak condition. For now, though…they’re getting there.”

‘The Shadowbolts must’ve had something to do with that…looks like I made a wise decision in sending them to protect Twilight and her friends after all.’ Celestia thought, as she mulled over Venture Vine’s words. After making a mental note to thank Violet Fire and her team for replenishing her student’s and her friends’ power reserves, the swan while Alicorn looked back up at the royal blue stallion. “I see, thank you for your intel Venture Vine. Continue keeping your eyes forward, and watch out for any danger that may come at us. We cannot afford to get distracted by anything that may keep us from our mission.”

“Yes, your Majesty, of course.” Venture Vine replied, giving a formal nod to her Queen, before turning her direction back ahead of her. “I’ll let you know if I sense anything coming.”

Both ponies went silent after that, the former letting the latter’s words sink into her mind as they continued to fly through the forest. A wave of relief washed over when she was told of her student’s fate, making her all the more relieved that she made sent the Shadowbolts in when she did. Despite this, she still couldn’t help but be concerned for her faithful student, Goku and the rest of her friends, especially since it had been stated that they had battled Everfree animals. She only hoped that they student wasn’t too torn up from that experience, or else their mission would become just a little harder than she had originally thought.

‘Don’t worry Twilight…’ The swan white Alicorn thought, her eyes flashing as she pursed her lips. ‘…I don’t let you die here tonight. It is not your time to go yet, neither is it your friends, and especially not Goku’s. You all have so much more to accomplish, and I will not let your decisions tonight end that…not by a long shot.’

Just as this though crossed her mind, she saw an opening through the branches, and before she even realized she was doing, she found herself flying towards that opening. Venture Vine, although surprised by her Queen’s sudden rush of agility, she found herself following after her, the rest of the guards doing their best to keep up. It didn’t take long at all for them to finally make their way out of the giant pillars for trees, and they all felt their eyes widen when they saw themselves in front of a seemingly endless stream of plains.

“My goodness…I’ve never seen so much grass in my life.” Celestia murmured softly, realizing that the Everfree had been through much more of an unexpected transformation since she had last been in it. “Where are we now?”

“The Everfree Plains, if I’m correct.” Venture Vine said, walking up next to her Queen. “This is the one part of the Everfree Forest that doesn’t have trees, but a seemingly fast and endless amount of plains stretching over the very center of it. According to what me and my son had learned about it, this is where the self-proclaimed demonic Farukonchītās live.”

“The…Farukonchītās?” Celestia repeated slowly, looking like she was having trouble saying the word.

“The Falcon Cheetahs your Majesty.” Venture Vine emphasized patiently, walking around the plains and observing their vastness. “They’re one of the few predatory animals here that don’t necessarily live in the forest like all of the other carnivores. They tend to live in part of the forest like this, where they have a better view of danger and quarry. They are also known to be as strong as they are fast, which is why they’re given the nickname, the Speed Demons of the Everfree.”

“Oh, I see…now I understand.” Celestia nodded. “Is there a chance that we may run into them as we go through these plains?”

Venture Vine walked in front of her Queen, her nostrils flaring as she took a few deep sniffs of the air and kept her ears pricked. Celestia patiently waited as Venture continued to detect any magical essences, while the guards stood to attention. Finally, Venture Vine looked back at her Queen, her tail swishing about. “I can’t smell any of them around here at least not very strongly; they must’ve left the plains. Still, I can smell the scent of my son, Twilight and Goku…along with the other ponies. I think I can assume that they’ve taken care of the Farukonchītās for us, however inadvertedly.”

“I suppose that the girls, Zephyr, and the Shadowbolts had to have at least one more animal encounter here in this forest.” Celestia sighed as she closed her eyes, preventing her from seeing the look of shock that suddenly appeared on Venture’s face. “Still, you are right…at least we can head to the castle without facing anymore distractions.”

“U-um…your Majesty?” One of the Solar Royal Guards said from behind her, making her turn to him. Her pale lavender eyes widened slightly upon seeing the flabbergasted look on his face. “I think you may want to take a look at your, um…old castle right now.”

“Why? What’s wrong with my…old…castle…?” Celestia began as she looked back to where her and her sister’s abandoned castle was, only to fall silent. She felt her eyes widen even further when they laid upon what had to be the largest castle that she had ever seen in her millennium long lifespan. The castle back in Canterlot City was nothing compared to the dark, menacing, and downright evil looking castle that stood in the middle of the Everfree Plains. It was so big that it looked like it could fit her own castle within it, and that was saying something.

“Mother of Faust and all that is holy…” Another Solar Royal Guard murmured, trying his best to pick his jaw up off the floor. “…that has got to be the biggest castle that I have ever laid my eyes on!”

“Big?!” A Lunar Royal Guard repeated incredulously. “That castle is fucking huge! Not even Queen Celestia’s own castle is as big as that! That looks like it could fit every single one of us, and probably even more than that!”

Another Thestral gulped. “Y-you…you don’t think that’s the castle that our corrupted Queen is resigning herself in, do you?”

“…No, it is most certainly her.” Celestia suddenly said, her dark tone causing all of the guards to look over at her. “Even in its corrupted state, I can feel my dear sister’s power coming from that castle, even from afar. I can feel her power, and feel the evil behind it, including from that castle that she made. There is nopony that I’ve ever met in all of my existence that can do something like this, nopony, except for my own sister.”

“If that’s true, then we need to hustle on over there.” Venture Vine murmured, getting over her shock as she locked eyes with her Queen. “Nightmare Moon has already created a castle in who know how short of a time it took her to do so. For all we know, she may already have whatever monsters she has lying in wait for us when we get there, and that’s if she hasn’t done anything to Zephyr and the girls first.”

“You’re right; no time to waste.” Celestia nodded, aiming her spear forward as she flared her wings. “Come everypony, to the castle!”

Unlike with the last group, it didn’t take nearly as long for the Solar and Lunar Army to finally make it to the nocturnal Nightmare Castle. As they did so, they were all greeted with the sight of a practically desolated part of the Everfree plains, presumably where their young travelers had fought the Farukonchītās. Unfortunately, neither them, Venture Vine, or Celestia had any time to really take it, for they were too focused on the castle they were heading to. Upon reaching it, they were greeted with the sight of an absolutely devastated land of earth, all of it giving of an almost revolting stench of a fight that was no doubt happened here. Though, from what Venture Vine was able to detect with her smell, it wasn’t the girls for once, but the ponies Celestia sent as extra aid and protection. However, there was also something else that Venture Vine detected, something that she did not quite expect to get, but that was put on hold for a moment.

“My word…look at all of the destruction here.” Celestia commented as she observed the destroyed earth and piles of rubble all over the ground. “The Shadowbolts must’ve really had a tough time with whatever enemies they were facing.”

“Yeah, it really does look like it. I can still feel the power in this field, and their smell is still so strong that I almost can’t stand it.” Venture said absentmindedly, doing her best not to scrunch her face up. “There’s also another scent that I’m getting…one that I don’t think that I’ve ever gotten before.”

Celestia looked over at the smaller mare. “What is it?”

“I…don’t know why, but…” Venture Vine said slowly and contemplatively. “For some reason, I’m getting the smell of another unknown creature here. Something along the lines of a pony and…a bird, like a hybrid of some sorts.”

“A pony bird hybrid?” Celestia asked, silently taking in the mare’s words. “That’s what you’re detecting around here.”

“Well, back at that icy looking bridge, but yeah.” Venture Vine replied; her face still scrunched up into one of confusion. “It was mixed with Zephyr, Goku and the rest of the girls own scents, all in one spot, without much movement or anything. I can even smell it going all the way to those doors too.” She glanced back up at the Queen, her tail skirt giving a gentle sway. “I don’t know who it was that was with Twilight and the rest of her gang, but it looks like they’ve made a new ally of some sort.”

“Hmm…maybe.” Celestia nodded, looking up at the double doors of the castle. “We can think about that later. For now, I believe we all have a little confrontation with my sister to uphold.”

Right at that moment, one of the Thestrals looked up, having picked up a strange sound coming from up above. When she detected it, her cat-like eyes went wide and a gasp left her, before she turned to Celestia and Venture, shouting, “Your Highness, Venture Vine, above you!”

Luckily, the warning came just a little earlier before it was said, for Venture Vine was already lunging towards Celestia and knocking her out of the way. It came just in time as a large blur of orange dived down from the air and slammed into the ground just feet away from where Venture Vine and Celestia were standing. They, along with all of the guards readied their weapons and themselves as the unknown figure was slowly revealed. The figure turned out to be none other than Garnet Blaze Bijuu, side extended out and cape flowing behind her.

“Oh yes! Finally, the Light Army is here at the castle at last!” She squealed gleefully, slamming the foot of her scythe to the ground. “I was wondering when you were all going to get here! I was almost about to come out here and go searching for you guys myself!”

‘This mare…there’s something about her that’s off, yet familiar. I don’t know why, but I feel like I’ve seen her before, but where?’ Celestia thought to herself as her lips pursed. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, and ignoring the knotted feeling in her gut, Celestia asked, “So, I take it that you’re one of the ponies that’re apart of my sister’s army?”

“Yep, I sure am, your Royal Sunniness!” Garnet Blaze giggled, spinning her scythe around in one hoof as she gave a foxy grin. “I am the leader of the most feared army in all of the land! The Infamous Orange Fox and Garnet Flash of the Lunar Army!” She stopped spinning her scythe as she set it down, her grin becoming more feral. “Though, if you want to address me on more pleasant terms…then you can feel free call me, Garnet Blaze Bijuu.”

The instant those words left her mouth, both Celestia and Luna both gasped, along with a good majority of the Lunar Royal Guards that were with them. Celestia took a step back as her magic nearly fizzled out around her spear, while Venture Vine merely paled under her draconic skin, although for a bit of a different reason.

“G-G-Garnet Blaze?!” Celestia stammered, horror shaking in her voice.

“B-B-B-B-Bijuu?!” Venture gulped, her hindlegs shaking.

“Oooooh, so the two of you heard of sweet little old me, huh?” Garnet Blaze cooed, taking notice of the looks of shocked recognition on the two mare’s faces. “I take it that you were told of me and all the fun things that I’ve done in my lifetime?”

Indeed, they were, mainly Queen Celestia, for she had not just been told of and heard about Garnet Blaze Bijuu, but she had actually met her in pony. Over two hundred years ago, before her sister’s banishment to the Moon, Celestia had been told by her sister that a new mare had risen in the ranks of the Lunar Division. The very first pony in her guard that was not a Thestral, but a pony just the ones in the Sun Goddess’s Solar Division. Garnet Blaze was known to be a very cheery and optimistic mare, and one that was not afraid to face any challenge that was thrown at her from anything. Even if that challenge meant enlisting in the Equestrian Royal Guard, one that she immediately took when she was at the ripe age of sixteen. After enlisting through two years of military training, Garnet Blaze slowly began to rise to the ranks in Luna’s Lunar Division with each accomplishment she made.

By the time she was twenty-five, Garnet had reached the rank of the Captain of the Lunar Division and was known as the youngest Captain known to reach that rank, known for her sneakiness and cunning onto the battlefield. That, along the mare’s sheer raw power and ferocity that she displayed whenever in the face of danger while she was serving under Queen Luna’s reign. The last moments of Garnet Blaze’s life was when she fell under the corruption of a corrupted Queen Luna, and was forced to fight against the ponies she once fought aside. It was only thanks to Celestia getting a lucky shot on her that she wasn’t able to wipe out more than half of the Solar Division, her included. Though it still pained the Solar Queen to her core do so to such a sweet and bubbly young mare who had only barely begun to live.

The Clan that Garnet Blaze was known to originate from was known as the Bijuu, or Tail Beast Clan which was said to originate from the wild continent of North Amareica. They were all known for their petrifying transformations into gigantic tailed beasts that were said to represent predatory mammals of all types, from Lions, to Wolves, to Cheetahs, and even ones as small as that of Foxes. Despite the slight size difference, none of those Clans were to be taken lightly, for they were known to cause destruction beyond that of even a Dragons, without even having to use the full extent of their power. And that was when they used just their tails to attacks, which were known to smash mountains and send tidal waves crashing to the shores. These ponies were not ones that could be defeated by any easy means and entire army would be needed to face off against at least one of them, and that is only if that army could hold their ground.

Both mares were brought out of their shocked states when they heard Garnet Blaze giggle again, the grin on her face widening slightly. “Well, I take it by your expressions that you do know about me! After all, how could you forget the one mare that nearly killed half of your Solar Army…Queen Celestia?”

“N-no…no, this is impossible! This is just…no!” Celestia stammered, the last words coming out in a cry as her lower lip quivered. “T-there’s…no way that you should still be alive! You had been killed countless centuries ago! How is it that you’re still alive?!”

“C…Celestia?” Venture Vine asked, locking eyes with the terrified swan white Alicorn. “What’s the matter? Do you know this mare?”

“I do…much too well in fact.” Celestia gulped as she swallowed a lump in her throat. “Venture…that mare is Garnet Blaze Bijuu, The Legendary Orange Flash and Garnet Fox of Equestria’s Ancient History and Historical Legends. She was also one of the first none Thestral that joined the Lunar Guard while my younger sister was still in power, up until she became the youngest Captain to ever join the Lunar Division, at only twenty-five years old.” She took several deep breaths, not noticing Venture’s shocked look as Celestia continued on in a more sorrowful and fear-filled tone. “Garnet…Garnet was also one of the ponies that was corrupted by my sister the day that she had transformed into Nightmare Moon.”

“R…really?” Venture Vine asked, slowly turning back to the dark mare in front of them. “If…if that’s true, then she should be dead right now. It’s been over a whole millennium, and if she lived during that time, then she’s supposed to be long deceased.”

“That’s right miss dragon pony mare! By all accounts, I should infarct be dead. Afterall, this was my burial ground after Queen Celestia stabbed me through my heart and sliced it in two.” The creamy Earth Pony mare nodded in confirmation, giggling softly as her incredibly thick tail flicked behind her. “For those last thousand years, I was…that is until my awesome Lunar Queen brought me, and a bunch of other ponies out of our beds under the ground!”

Celestia froze like a statue, her eyes widening even further as her fur turned an even lighter shade of white. “She…she did what?”

Garnet Blaze smiled again, giving rapid nods of her head as she held her scythe in both of her hooves. “That’s right, your awesome and powerful Queen of a sister brought us back out from our forever sleep, and gave as another chance a life! Though, I’m pretty sure that you’re wondering how she managed to do something like that, aren’t you?” Without waiting for Celestia to reply, Garnet pulled her cape to the side and puffed her chest out, revealing a gleaming blue gemstone in the center of it. “Tada, here’s your answer!”

“What the…?” Venture blurted out, blinking in confusion. “What in the world is that?”

“This, is the oh so sweet and totally amazing Magical Life Force Gemstone that our oh so sweet and amazing Moon Goddess made for all of us!” Garnet replied cheerfully, gently running a hoof across the gem. “When she summoned us, she gave me, and each and every one of us these gems as we were getting our physical bodies back! It helps us to sustain our physical forms and help us to not dissolve into the creepy husky skulls that we all were!”

“Magical…Life Force…Gemstone?” Celestia repeated, slowly regaining her composure.

“Uh-huh, that’s exaclty what I said~!” Garnet Blaze replied slyly, her overly thick mane bouncing as she giggled some more. “They also help us to be able to keep going in battle regardless of how many injures that we sustain in our upcoming fight! And as long as we don’t let them get destroy by anything, or anypony, then we’ll all be good without a problem!” The creamy Earth Pony mare looked back down at the gemstone again, and laughed as it glowed in response to her cheerfulness. “Heehee, amazing what kind of things that you can create during a whole thousand years trapped in the very essence of outer space!”

“I…I cannot believe this.” Celestia murmured softly, looking like she was about to fall into her haunches. “How could all of this have happened…of all the things that could’ve been prepared for, this was not something that I was anticipating. Just…just what has the Nightmare done to be sister while she was trapped onto the Moon?”

“Celestia…Celestia, snap out of it!” Venture Vine barked, causing the swan whit Alicorn to jump and look over at her. “Listen, I know that you’re shocked by everything that you’re learning right now, but you can’t let that distract you right now! We need to get passed this mare so we can get to Zephyr and his friends, so we can help them all in their fight against your sister!”

Celestia let out a soft gasp, her senses coming back to her as she shook her head. “R-r-right, I’m sorry Venture…I suppose Garnet Blaze’s return got to me more than I thought that I did.” She said with a slight stammer as she straightened herself. “I don’t know how all of this was made possible to lead to your revival Garnet Blaze, but I will say this! You were not meant to be used like these, least of all by the creature that took my sister away from me. You were put to rest centuries ago, even if it wasn’t by the best of circumstances, and were meant to stay in your eternal resting spot in ever lasting peace. I swear, if it’s the last thing I do, I will end your suffering once more, and make sure that you stay rested for the rest of time.”

If Garnet Blaze showed any reactions of anger or displeasure, she didn’t show it in her expression, as evident by the giggle she let out in response. “So, you’re gonna put me back inside of my spooky bed, huh? well, you’re more than welcome to try if you want Queen Celestia! Though, I don’t think it would be as fun if I was the only one to fight all of you, so let me bring out some guests!”

Before Celestia and Venture Vine could attempt to stop the mare, she put her scythe in her teeth and slammed her forehooves on the ground. The force was so powerful that it nearly knocked the entire Solar Army off balance and onto the ground. As they all recovered from it, they noticed the ground begin to morph and shift behind them, before dark forms began to rise from underneath the ground. Venture Vine and Celestia nearly lost their bladder when they saw a whole army sized group of ponies rise from the ground as if they were zombies rising from the graves.

Each of the ponies they were now facing looked like vampiric versions of the ponies from the Three Pony Tribes, looking just as scary as the Thestrals on the opposite side. Some of them had buff bodies that made them look like monstrous versions of boxers, with others having vast muscular wings spans that were on par with Goku’s, while others had horns that looked to be sharper than any sword made by ponies. All of them had slitted eyes like that of cat’s with fangs like that of vampires, making them look even more menacing, which was only amplified by the inky black auras surrounding their bodies. They eyed the ponies in front of them with looks that could only be described as hunger, making them feel as if they were being eaten even though nothing had happened yet.

“Surprise!” Garnet Blaze chirped through the scythe in her mouth, trotting in place. “You guys like it?! I brought the entire Dark Army over here to meet you all, and in just one sweep! I really do live up to my title as the Captain of the Lunar Division huh?”

“Sweet Lauren Holy Faust Lifegiver…” Celestia breathed. “What in the name of all that is holy has my sister done to these ponies?”

“Look at how many of them there are!” Venture Vine whispered, eyeing each of the Nightmare Ponies. "There’s an…entire army of them, probably even more than the forces that we have here!”

“Uh-huh! There sure are, and they can’t wait to tango with all of you!” Garnet Blaze said, setting her scythe back down. “Can you hear it? They’re tummies are just rumbling with hunger, and they’re dying to just get at least one good hit on all of you! You can handle that, right Queen Celestia?”

“…If I was any less of the mare that I am now, I don’t think I would’ve been able to face even half of these ponies here, Captain Garnet Blaze.” Celestia said solemnly, narrowing her eyes as she flared her wings. “However, I’m not the same mare that I was a millennium ago; I am fully prepared to face you and your entire Dark Army with all of my might! Whatever it takes to free all of you and my sister from the corruption of Miasma, even if it means slaying you all once more!”

Garnet Blaze let out a cheer of excitement. “Woohoo, there we go! That’s the kind of determination that I like to see! It gives you a much more graceful and ladylike appearance to you given the fact that you’re a Queen and all!” With a grin that was the very definition of foxy, she pointed her giant scythe forward. “I hope you ready your Majesty, because you’re about to relearn why I was given the nickname the Orange Fox! And trust me, I’ll make sure that you’ll have a lot of fun learning that lesson; believe it!"

Author's Notes:

Alright now, the first part of this chapter was taken out by the last version of when after Rainbow Dash had used the Sonic Rainboom and her signature technique to wipe out the Galaxy Star Bolts once and for all and save the Wonderbolts and the Shadowbolts from sudden death. For this newly edited version if it, I just took out the dialogue on the Wonderbolts and replaced them with Zephyr and Sky Ranger being the ones that said them instead, especially since I already have them taking care of the Dark Army that's back in Ponyville, so that's a good first part of this chapter that was done fast, having a scene that, again, I felt like would fit in a chapter like this! Now, as for that scene with Celestia, Venture Vine, and the guards coming to the Everfree Plains, I guess to some of you that may have seemed a little unnecessary, but since they didn't see the new castle that Queen Celestia has, I figured that I let them take some time to take in the new castle that Nightmare Moon/Luna made before moving on their quest. because, who wouldn't be flabbergasted to see a new nightmarish caslte in the middle of a forest like the Everfree, especially in since it was made in such a short amount of time? As for the encounter with Garnet Blaze...well, it's just say that I hope I've given a better explanation about those Magic Life Force Gemstones, especially with how the Dark Army sounds like they've been here in Equestria before.

Well, that's all for right now; next time we see the girls, Zephyr and Sky Ranger take a little bit of an exploration across Nightmare Moon's castle, before finally coming face to face with the Goddess of the Black Moon herself!!!