As far as Twilight was concerned, all communication had broken down, but deep down somewhere beneath her new and troubling instincts, she knew that wasn't really the case. She'd simply given in because things had gotten complicated and it was easier to let go and let the Voices take over. She was the Avatar of Retribution now after all, why not play the role thrust upon her? No, it was a choice; she'd chosen to take on this contract, granted it was hardly any kind of choice given the alternative. It was either this or madness and eternal isolation. Death would've been a blessing, but she was denied that and almost met a fate much worse, but all that time she wandered her desolate world alone, she couldn't help but wonder from time to time, was the end result really any better? She still had no idea what would've happened to her if her other self hadn't shown up then but maybe that was for the best.

Still, without her turbulent emotions to distract her, the former alicorn's innate desire to learn—which she found hadn't at all been affected—was free to blossom, and beneath those new and troubling instincts, she had a great many questions she wanted answers to. One of the biggest questions that came to mind was how her new abilities worked and the other, more recent, question pertained to this militaristic iteration of herself and how she came to wield the magic of another pony, and from the feel of said magic currently wrapping around her cosmic frame in the form of tightly bound golden chains, it wasn't just any other pony either. Before she'd had the chance to let her abilities run wild or make any other sudden moves, she'd been bound by another spell this world's Twilight had unleashed, and much to her own surprise, she'd had quite a bit of trouble breaking free of it by magical means or otherwise.

Given that I don't yet know what I can do or what kind of damage I may cause to the others around me, this may be for the best. Still, what is it this magic that can hold me like this? I never saw anything like this in my Equestria...

With those thoughts, Twilight had once again gained control of herself, much to the displeasure of the many Voices in her mind. They ranted and raged and nagged at her like an everpresent itch, but she ignored all that as she reverted back to her smaller alicorn self, the brilliant golden chains shrinking right along with her. Twilight didn't recognize the spell that was used, but if it could hold back the creature she'd become, she knew it couldn't have been any ordinary binding spell. it must've been some kind of task to pull off if the other lavender mare's strained and exhausted expression was anything to go by. The blank-eyed alicorn watched silently as her uniformed counterpart closed her eyes and held a hoof to her chest. In a gesture painfully familiar to the alicorn, the Captain took a deep breath, held it for a brief moment, and let it out in a barely audible sigh of what Twilight was sure was relief. Having composed herself, the Captain turned her attention to the stunned and horrified onlookers.

"Now then... I have questions for the dragon so it needs to stay, but the rest of you all need to leave immediately," she called out in a tone that brooked absolutely no argument, "I have the situation under control for the moment, but there's no telling if or when that will change. I suggest you evacuate the forest now before you're dragged into this incident any further."

For a long minute, nopony moved.

The situation had been sorted out somehow, but it was still too surreal to Rainbow Dash and the others. It had all happened too fast and the shock of what had transpired still left them all frozen—Rainbow Dash especially. Yes the horrifying creature had been dealt with, but watching that monster slowly make its way over to the wild-eyed Captain of the Solar Guard, Rainbow Dash felt like she was in a dream—like reality was warping around her. She'd had her suspicions about whether or not that thing posing as an alicorn was Nightmare Moon or maybe somepony working to bring Nightmare Moon back, but seeing what was most likely the creature's true form and what it had done to those soldiers, all her suspicions were blown away. Rainbow Dash knew now without a doubt that this wasn't Nightmare Moon. This monster was something much worse. It may have looked similar to the Mad Queen, but every bone, every nerve, every instinct in Rainbow's body was telling her this was something else entirely.

She couldn't stop trembling.

She wanted to run, but her legs wouldn't move. Her aching wings had twitched with the desire to flee, but they weren't taking her anywhere; the crippled pegasus was so transfixed by the sight before her that she didn't even notice the usual pain of trying to move her broken limbs. Somewhere far away she could hear voices; she could hear the little purple dragon verbally floundering about in indecision and she could tell Fluttershy was saying something to her, but she didn't have the wherewithal to acknowledge the yellow pegasus. A small smile crept onto her face, quickly warping into a twisted grin as a bitter, helpless chuckle escaped her lips. It was horribly inappropriate, but when she thought back to all those years of pent up anger and hatred—the countless fantasies she'd had of vengeance against the unnamed beast that destroyed her life, what else could she do but laugh?

Rainbow Dash knew all along that if she'd ever met the monster that terrorized Cloudsdale all those years ago she wouldn't be able to do a thing. She knew she was powerless and was even willing to accept help from the Solar Guard if it meant getting her revenge. She knew there was no way she could take on something that could wipe out so many so thoroughly in so short a time, but none of that mattered to her so long as she could see the creature with her own eyes... but was that really true? Was that really the reason? Now that she'd seen this demon seemingly spawned from the very stars themselves for herself like she wanted—now that she'd seen what it was capable of, she couldn't help but think...

What did I even come here for in the first place? Was it just to finally give that thing a piece of my mind? Even at the cost of my life? I dragged Fluttershy into this for such a stupid reason?

Did I really have that much of a death wish?

Maybe that was it, maybe deep down she really was looking for an excuse to end it all, but even if that was the case, this was just too much. It was far beyond what Rainbow had expected and not only was she disgusted with herself for thinking such things and getting her closest friend involved in her hangups, at the end of the day, she was still just as helpless as she'd ever been—as she always was. Whatever she'd thought before, seeing the gruesome fate of those two guards and what was most likely about to happen to their captain had convinced Rainbow Dash—or rather snapped her out of her years-long haze of hatred and self-loathing. She didn't want to die and she was an idiot for bringing not only Fluttershy, but all these other ponies into her foolish venture in the first place.

So caught up in her spiraling thoughts was Rainbow Dash that she didn't immediately notice the soft touch of a hoof resting itself on her withers. It wasn't until it pressed a bit harder and shook her slightly that she finally turned with a surprised yelp to see Fluttershy staring back at her. Rainbow could see a clear mix of pity, relief, and worry amidst the residual fear in her fellow pegasus' eyes. It hadn't been the first time she'd seen that look and just like every other time Rainbow had seen it, she'd hated it and herself for causing that kind of expression to cross Fluttershy's face. Every time she'd had to make that face, it was because Rainbow Dash had done something stupid like lash out in a fit of unwarranted anger. It was why she'd been working so hard to quell that kind of behavior—at least around Fluttershy.

"Fluttershy, I..." Rainbow began, trying to find the words to convey just how sorry she was for involving her closest friend in this mess. In the end, all she could think to give was a simple, "I'm sorry. I... this was stupid—I was stupid for letting you follow me here. Yeah, things turned out okay with the Solar Guard here, but if they hadn't... if I hadn't—"

"There's no telling what would've happened if you hadn't used the scroll when you did," Fluttershy interjected with a frown, "maybe things would've turned out alright in the end anyway, maybe not, but there's no point worrying about it now, and I chose to follow you here, Rainbow. You don't need to feel guilty about a decision I made on my own."

"Yeah, but—"

"If you're still not satisfied we can talk things out once we're back at the cottage," Fluttershy continued, her expression and tone turning somewhat strained and slightly pleading, "but please, Rainbow Dash, I don't want to be here anymore. Let's take the Captain's advice and leave while we still can."

That's right... the whole reason she came here was to make sure I made it back...

The thought crossed Rainbow's mind at Fluttershy's words and the guilt that had already been smoldering in her chest flared up once again. Her soft-spoken friend had been right of course; it had been her decision to accompany Rainbow and the others into the forest, and it was because of that very promise she'd made to herself. Rainbow Dash knew that, but it didn't change the fact that Fluttershy wouldn't have had to make such a promise if a certain stubborn rainbow-maned pony refused to listen to reason and go traipsing off into the forest to confront her potential doom anyway. But even realizing all of this, just below the guilt and self-pity and fear, Rainbow Dash, still couldn't let go of that pig-headed grudge.

She'd felt bad for getting Fluttershy caught up in her own problems, but those problems continued to persist even now. One look back at the thing entangled in golden chains was enough to strike not only terror in her, but also that same relentless hatred. One look at her mangled wings was still enough to drag out that bitterness and resentment she'd been carrying for years. That she'd come to her senses and saw just how foolish she'd been didn't erase the past and how she felt about it, but another look at Fluttershy's pleading expression and she realized that maybe now she could at least try to put it all behind her. Maybe one day, she'd even succeed and live a happier life going forward, but with the source of all her pain, misery, and fear right there before her, it was impossible to forget it all completely. Now though, she'd her friend enough trouble, so at the very least she could heed the Captain's command and withdraw for now.

Rainbow Dash let out a resigned sigh and opened her mouth to tell Fluttershy just that when another voice spoke up, snapping through the air like a cold and bitter wind.

"It seems you've all lingered a bit too long. There's been a change of plans," came the Captain's curt voice. All other ponies present, plus Spike who'd been in a hushed and frantic conversation with Big Mac, turned just in time to see the magenta glow of magic around the Captain's horn die out. The Captain, who'd had her eyes closed in concentration only moments ago opened them and looked back at the others with a businesslike frown as she spoke, "I've just updated Her Majesty on the situation and by Her decree, you're to accompany me back to the castle for further questioning. All of you."

The Captain of the Solar Guard listened to the expected protests—the loudest of which was coming from the drakeling and the crippled pegasus—with a cool expression. The guarantee of their safety had initially been one of her top priorities which was why she'd given them all a chance to leave, but all they'd done was stare at her like stupidly gaping fish before ignoring her completely in favor of their own problems. After a second's thought, she decided that rather than give another warning, it was more important to contact the Queen while the anomaly was still captive and so she did just that via telepathy. The report she'd given was a short one—clear and succinct with a focus on only the most important details. The rest could be further discussed with the Queen herself when she returned to Canterlot Castle.

The result was as she'd told the others. Queen Daybreaker had been very interested in the results and demanded every bit of information she could squeeze out of the situation. Captain Sparkle had been all too happy to comply, as she was no less curious. Still, she couldn't help but frown at her earlier behavior. Even at a glance, the disparity in power between herself and that thing trapped before her was too great, the monster too much a threat to Her Majesty and the rest of Equestria to leave alone. It was her duty to see the threat either captured or neutralized in the Queen's name, but she'd panicked and made mistakes. Big ones. The Captain of the Solar Guard was supposed to be ruthless, fearless, cunning, a leader among leaders—the most powerful pony in Equestria save for the Queen herself. She knew all of this, and yet her thoughts and emotions had been thrown into turmoil at the realization that Nightmare Moon had returned.

She'd needlessly sacrificed her subordinates when she knew full well that they would've attacked on her command without hesitation anyway. Yes, it was true that any data gained on what this thing could do was valuable, but to act in such a way was shameful beyond measure. She'd left her blunder out of the brief report for now, but she'd have to bring it up eventually, and she knew Queen Daybreaker wouldn't let her mistakes slide. Twilight could only hope the Queen would understand given the circumstances, but she wouldn't hold her breath. The spells she'd used weren't meant to be used lightly, and if she couldn't maintain a proper handle on the situation after using two of the three precious spells she'd 'borrowed' from the Queen, there would most definitely be Tartarus to pay later. Even standing before this terrifying creature, the thought of failure and the punishment that awaited her should she come back with nothing to show for her efforts still gave Twilight chills.

Ultimately the simple fact was that Twilight had shown none of the qualities that had gotten her so far throughout the years of her service to Equestria and the Queen. She'd been shaken by the sight of that false alicorn who shared her appearance even upon first laying eyes on her. The first step to improving was to admit that much, and so Twilight did, albeit grudgingly. Her unease had caused her to make mistakes, but that was then. Now, though she hadn't yet grasped the full scope of the danger this creature posed, she did have a better handle on herself. She ignored the griping of the other ponies and turned to get a better look at the cosmic being who'd reverted back to its alicorn shape. Now that rational thought had once again taken over, it didn't take long for her to come to a conclusion she'd been too panicked to come to before.

"...You really aren't Nightmare Moon, are you?" the Captain muttered more to herself than to the monster, "no... you look like her in that form, but you're something completely different..."

Without the panic clouding her judgment, it was obvious that this was altogether a different creature. Just the fact that it had chosen to take her own lavender form out of anypony else's should've been some kind of evidence of that. It had given an explanation of why that was the case of course, but the Captain wasn't sure how much of that to believe just yet. There were still too many unknowns, but even if she couldn't sort it out, she was sure Queen Daybreaker would, and the Captain herself would be there for the questioning so there was no need to worry about answers she didn't have right then. With that thought, Twilight decided it was about time to wrap up the situation and make her way back to the castle, but before she could berate the others for their insolence in arguing against the Queen's orders, another voice called out to her unexpectedly.

"This magic... these chains you've bound me in," the alicorn began in a dull monotone that somehow still managed to convey deep curiosity, "this is not a spell of your own making, nor is it your magic to wield. How is that possible?"

The other ponies had fallen into a bewildered silence in the wake of the creature's sudden question, but the Captain's cool answer came with almost no hesitation.

"A strange question to ask for somepony in your position, but I suppose I can sympathize with your curiosity if nothing else," she replied with a slight sneer, "unfortunately for you, I'm not at liberty to say. What I can tell you is that the spell entrapping you is powerful enough to keep even the Spirit of Chaos at bay, so don't think you'll be escaping anytime soon."

"...I see," the other lavender mare murmured after a brief silence, "and what do you intend to do with me?"

Rather than answer right away, the Captain instead lit up her horn, the hue of magic surrounding it once again glowing with a brilliant golden shine. At the same time, the chains—which had been haphazardly wrapped around the alicorn's entire body—rapidly shifted, shrinking as they snaked along the alicorn's fur. After a few seconds, the changes slowed until the only chains that were left had uniformly snapped back into place around each of the creature's six limbs like the hoof and wing cuffs of a prisoner—the prisoner that the cosmic being technically was.

The last chain had shrunk and morphed itself into a small ring that slipped around its horn. The change had no effect on the actual magic binding the alicorn; it only made movement somewhat easier for the prisoner and nothing more. Unbeknownst to the creature bound in chains, the spell was still incomplete, its secondary effect taking hold in the form of another complex magic circle of blinding gold flashing into existence beneath the false pony. There was a cry of surprise from the bystanders watching and a cry of Twilight's name from Spike, but the Captain continued to ignore the others in favor of finally answering her counterpart's question.

"You will be transported to Tartarus effective immediately via these Chains of Tartarus," the Captain explained in a cold and formal tone, "there you will be imprisoned while you await Queen Daybreaker's interrogation. She will be the one to decide your fate," a small sneer crossed her face, "and who knows? Perhaps the Queen will give you the answers you seek."

As the Captain finished speaking, a sharp chill seemed to fill the air, effectively wiping the cruel smirk from her face in the process and replacing it with an involuntary shiver. She wasn't alone; the others could feel it as well, a chill they'd felt before, back when they'd first entered the Everfree. All eyes focused on the entity now slowly sinking into the glowing magic circle, but the creature only had eyes for its unicorn self. There was no hint of emotion on its face or in its tone, but the words it spoke next carried a terrible weight that was directed at the Captain but felt by all.

"Remember this, Twilight Sparkle: I am the Avatar of Retribution. My body is a blade—no... a tool that can and will take any shape necessary to carry out the Will of the Slighted, be they living or dead... and that includes you. We will meet again at some point, but until then, I will give you something to think about..."

Nopony spoke a word in the heavy silence that followed. The Captain, frozen where she stood, could only stare back at this incomprehensible thing with a grim frown. She'd broken out in a cold sweat, but she paid that no mind as she focused on the creature's next words, the last words spoken before it vanished within the circle below and completely disappeared from the Everfree Forest—parting words that destroyed her composure all over again.

"The creature that killed your brother all those years ago... it is still very much alive... and much closer than you think..."

It's finally, finally done! Sorry for the long wait, but after nearly frying the circuits in my brain, I found the road that's gonna take me further into the future of this story. So going forward the writing of future chapters shouldn't take nearly as long... hopefully.