Night had fallen again. The remainder of the Apple family was taking their turn on the perimeter along with Scootaloo, even little Applebloom who was growing up far too fast. Fluttershy was out there as well. I was lost in thought in front of the makeshift fireplace we'd installed in the basement when Rarity came up beside me. Lost staring at the dancing flames and mentally processing the story she'd told me while we were on perimeter. Reflecting on how much we'd all changed.

The 'Crusaders' were growing up too fast, another crime to lay at my hooves, stolen innocence. Scootaloo becoming the Element of Loyalty, Goddess but she was so young. She was truly Rainbow's heir though. Scootaloo had gained her cutie mark soon after the Event that leveled Ponyville. A crimson lightning bolt cut in twain by an iron-grey streak It only took seeing her fight once to figure out why, she moved like the speed of thought, none of the horrors of this place could hope to keep up with her. When the first fight came to us her at the Library, before we had shored up our defenses the walls themselves were barely enough protection. But she was there, every gap in our defenses closed by a colored blur. All the crusaders had gained their marks, Applebloom got hers in the hours after the fight. Even though she was small she fought tooth and nail, and after it was all over she was the last to collapse only after tending to each and every ponies wounds. Once I thought that the sturdiness of the Apple Family was exemplified in James, Applebloom put the lie to that. She was so exhausted didn't even see the beautiful red and white blossom that appeared on her flank until the next day.. Even little Sweetie Belle revealed some stunning talents that day. I let a small smile grow as I remembered her... unorthodox manner of fighting. Most of us had only our hooves or our magic, even Applebloom had a leg up over Sweetie Belle, being an Earth Pony. She shewed a talent I'd thought lost to all but Celestia, Luna, and perhaps myself. Energy projection, there was a time when I could barely manage it without exhausting myself so I'd hardly call it a talent of mine. Yet there in that fight was Sweetie Belle, barely older than I had been when I earned my mark flinging bolt after humming bolt of captive sound. When I asked her about it she said it was easy, you just make it do only what you want it to do, if you let it do other stuff it wastes power. I was stumped until I brushed up on some old basics on magical theory and metaphysics. I suppose what she was saying was that when most unicorns tried to make energy they brought together all the things they thought of. Heat, light, power, the whole bundle. Except making all that at once would be exhausting and each one would take away from the power of the whole. She just made sound, bounced it around until it had force, and let it go. Fine in theory. Most unicorns I know would pass out trying to generate that much focused concentration. Yet here she was, throw bolts around like a professional battle-wizard of old. I was honored at how similar our cutie marks were, the mark that adorned her flank was four four-point stars arranged around a larger, fifth star, all the color of moonlight. Together they were still the Crusaders, they'd just dropped the 'Cutie Mark' part of the phrase.

It was far from just the little ones that were changed though... Fluttershy... I think seeing her fight might've been the biggest shock of all. She had stretched out her wings, more muscular than Rainbow Dash's had ever been, and launched herself in an arc at one of the creatures. When she landed she brought those heavy pneumatic forelegs down, the weight crushed its skull in. Fluttershy had never been a fighter but now... I think it has something to do with Angel's fate. That little ball of fur and aggression had been so much more than any of her other animals. It was only after the events with Contempt that she had changed. Applejack was more withdrawn than ever, I know a part of her blamed herself, but she was too familiar with this kind of grief to let it take her apart. She was more dedicated to the cause than anyone because while the rest of the family had granny to avenge and we had Rainbow to avenge, Applejack had both. Then there was Rarity, I wonder sometimes if I'll ever forgive myself for what she became, in the end, what had to be done in the name of mercy.

Of what I had to do.

Of course I'd changed just as much or more. In hindsight I knew, at least intellectually, that the mare I was before wouldn't have just been horrified at some of the things I did on an almost daily basis now, she would have had me locked up as a menace.

Maybe I am.

“What's so funny dear?” Rarity's voice broke into my thoughts as she sat down beside me to take in some of the warmth. She was always cold nowadays.

“Not funny really, just thinking about how different we all are now,” I said honestly, there were no more secrets between us, we had shown each other the darkest corners of our souls and neither of us had flinched.

“We change with the times darling, we change with the times,” she said in a sagely voice that brought a small smile to my face, “remember that dear, because it's a fact of life.”

That she said more seriously.

I knew that of course, at least in my head I knew it, but my heart had a much harder time digesting it than my brain. Rarity seemed to have it down pat but then, and I hated myself for thinking such a thing, she wasn't really all-the-way pony anymore.

“We need to talk about where we go from here Twilight,” Rarity said quietly, but her voice was the cadence of steel. “You've been trancing in front of that crystal,” she flicked her tail gracefully to indicate the sickly glowing shard in the middle of the room, “every day ever since we recovered it from Fluttershy's pantry,” she looked me in the eyes and I realized she wasn't becoming impatient or antsy, she was genuinely worried. “That thing is pure evil Twilight darling and that cannot be good for you, I think that it's high time we move on.”

There it was, the crux of the conversation. Of course I knew we couldn't stay here indefinitely, the attacks were slowly becoming more focused and Scootaloo had brought back more than one disturbing report of a ghostly alicorn moving through Ponyville. My machine has kept her at bay, ironically whatever sick demiurge created Contempt, once inverted, proved to be a powerful defense against the more potent enemies. As it stood I still wasn't sure why the weak ones could pass through while the strong ones were kept at bay, usually it would be the the opposite of that. Still, Rarity had a point, we had to move on eventually but...

“I don't want to leave without Pinkie,” I said softly, part of it was selfish and part of it was, well, the fact that she was our friend. Of course another part of it was, she actually had a clue about what was going on, kind of. It was a Pinkie Pie thing.

“Darling I agree that we'd be much better off with Pinkie at our sides, however some of the others feel about her...” I winced inwardly at that last one.

Marelyn...

Not that I blamed the former Mayor for her feelings on the matter. If the town I was in charge of protecting had been the epicenter of the most violent killing spree in the last century I wouldn't be keen on working with the perpetrator either. Even after I had explained about the broken elements and the Others it hadn't helped matters much. When Marelyn looked at Pinkie all she could see was the mass murderer who had tortured and killed ponies she had been in charge of protecting.

“Still...” Rarity continued as my thoughts trailed and I steered them back on course, “we have to move soon and if Pinkie isn't back then she isn't back, I'm sorry darling but that's the way it's going to be.”

I knew when I'd been defeated, to be perfectly honest I had expected to be outvoted and ousted much sooner than this. I think it was only their respect for me and our mutual friendships that had kept them believing in me for this long. In the thoughtful silence between us I found myself thanking my teacher once again for making me come to Ponyville. Without my friends to draw me back into the light I knew that my drive to find the truth could lead me to some very dark places indeed. I would stay here forever trying to glean droplets of information from that disgusting specter. Rarity was right too, the more I thought about it the more I...

Suddenly the coin dropped, “It played me,” I hissed quietly, there was a snap of tension in the air that Rarity immediately picked up on, her eyes narrowed in concern.

“Twilight, dear what do you mean?” Rarity voice was worried, and well it should've been.

“Contempt, that's the whole reason we're still here is because we can't move her and she knows it,” I saw the light of comprehension dawn in Rarity's eyes, “it's been stalling us.”

“Why though?” Rarity stood quickly, I could see inky shadows play on the edges of her eyes.

I cursed myself for a foal, Contempt had me read the moment I stepped into her playground and she'd been playing with me ever since. How many days had I wasted torturing her for information she would never give when I could've been helping. How many more ponies had... “Because, Rarity, I'd wager every second that gloom out there sits unopposed it grows, spreading like blight.”

“And the reason she kept you here was because you are the only one who stands a shadow's chance of pushing it back,” Rarity finished, she knew the ways of this darkness better than most.

The air around us suddenly grew heavy, I felt it clog in my lungs and cloy my senses with an invisible miasma. “R-rarity do you...” I whispered as I turned to my friend. Her face stopped me though, it was one of fear, tears that had begun falling from her eyes were already blackening. In the distance I heard Big Macintosh shout a wordless warning from outside, his roaring voice waking the entire household.

“Tw-Twilight... help me...” Rarity whispered in a voice like a filly begging for her parents to chase off the monster in the closet. “H-help...” she hacked and choked as black ichor fell from her gums in tiny droplets where thin blade-like teeth had begun to grow. Her coat took on the luster of cold silver and staggered back from me, coughing and retching up more of the black tar that boiled up from her insides. Despair was rising up from inside her, clawing her way out, but how? I backed up, chest tightening as I drew energy up the coil of my horn. I knew what I had to do.

“Rarity forgive me.”

I saw the barest hint of a nod and eyes filled with sadness before being consumed by pitch before I released a dense orb of energy. I had learned from my new apprentice as much as she had from me. The sphere barely collided with Rarity's mutating form when it detonated with an ear-splitting shriek of sound that sent my friend hoof deep into the wall behind her with a gut-wrenching crack of splintering wood. I turned to see Sweetie Belle staring at me, horror and betrayal in her eyes that cut into my heart. No time to explain now, I only hoped that one day she would forgive me.

Besides, I could already hear ribs, vertebrae, and other inequine body parts clicking and oozing back into place.

How though, the question riddled my mind as I conjured eldritch chains to bind down the crumpled form embedded in the wall. How had Despair suddenly found the strength to overcome Rarity after all this time. Surely if she had possessed it all along it would've slaughtered us in our sleep a long time ago. Something else then, an outside force.

For the second time that day the coin dropped.

“Scootaloo come down here!” I yelled, there was one force that could draw all of the Other's together. Give them strength and substance even when they were beaten over and over again. That thing was their queen, their own dark princess and my sworn nemesis. Big Macintosh was already inside, his coat scored by minor cuts and abrasions and was gathering everyone up. Scootaloo landed with a dull thump, her eyes were clear of distrust, there was only sadness. She always did see further than the others.

“Tell me what to do Twi.”

I didn't deserve this kind of loyalty. She didn't even asked why or what happened. She trusted me implicitly and without reserve.

“Take everyone through the back exit, make sure they get out, Mac finished the emergency escape hatch a few nights ago and the passage through to the shed is mostly complete,” she nodded silently throughout my orders as I walked calmly towards the front door. When I finished she grabbed my shoulder and turned me to face her.

“You could do all that Twi, except...” she sighed softly, “you're not coming with us are you?”

“I'm sorry Mary,” one of the only times I ever used her given name, “the only way I can make sure you all are safe is to stay behind.” I hesitated for a moment but she deserved to know what she was fleeing from, maybe it would lend speed to her wings, “Accursed is here.”