Thankfully Cadance’s injuries were not serious – according to Zecora and Nurse Redheart she just needed to rest as they monitored her condition. Shining sat down with his wife and grieved with her over the apparent loss of their daughter – they were barely clinging on to their sanity, and Shining had become a loose cannon. All that was needed was a little spark and he would be consumed by anger and vengeance. A spark that was about to be lighted.

The Pegasus mercenary, who had first enabled the Iron Guard to enter Canterlot, stood menacingly on a neighboring hill that overlooked the mountain-side city once again. She was joined by an Iron guard. “Midnight Star.” The mercenary said as the Iron Guard landed. “Blood Moon.” The guard responded. “Do you know what you must do?” Blood Moon sighed and replied that she had been the one waiting for her, and with that she leaped off the cliff and silently glided off toward canterlot castle like an angel of death – taking advantage of the darkness provided by the setting Sun.

She glided into an open corridor that a royal guard had happened to be patrolling, collided with him, threw him against the wall and knocked him unconscious with her hoofs. She then pulled off his helmet and flung it across the corridor. It landed with a loud clang as she fled in the opposite direction. This caught the attention of three other guards, two of which gave chase, and the third went to call the Princess.

Twilight was with Shining Armor and Cadence in her own private medical room. The startled royal guard burst into their touching re-union, saying that the cloaked pony who had broken into the castle had returned – she fit Tempests description in her briefing. Twilight’s gaze hardened as she told Shining to stay with Cadence and departed, saying, “Time to hunt.”

Blood moon had already torn through several guards and disappeared in the west wing of the castle. It had been locked down and almost all of the royal guards had been brought there, led by both Twilight and Tempest, the latter of whom was more than eager to face-off the pony again.

Shining sat by Cadance’s bed and laid his head down next to her as she gingerly stroked his mane - saying everything would be alright. Suddenly he heard Nurse Redheart screaming outside, and some (relatively) quite explosions. He got up and approached the door, and with a burst of red lightning it was thrown open and he was sent reeling into the wall next to Cadance’s bed. Midnight Star glared at cadence as her eyes widened in horror. Without a word an almighty bolt red lightning struck cadence.

Shining recovered to see his wife gasping and desperately breathing for air. Muttering, “Shiny, shiny…” He rushed towards her and told her to stay strong. She said told him through a gasp and a wheeze that she was sorry and that she loved him with all her heart. With that she took a gulp of air and her fur began to glow. It slowly flaked away, and turned into glowing dust as her eyes closed, and with that she disintegrated completely and her glowing dust ascended the room. Shining was left in shock as he clutched the empty blanket, his eyes wide in disbelief. “Interesting thing to witness isn’t it?” an uncaring metallic voice sounded from behind him.

He turned his head to face the Iron Guard, “The death of an alicorn.”

He screamed in anger as the Iron guard leapt pass him and smashed through a lonely wall on the right of the room. She had Candance’s crystal crown clutched in her lightning as she descended into the city like an angel of death – looming over the city with a terrifying presence. She began shouting, “THE CRYSTAL PRINCESS… IS DEAD! THE CRYSTAL EMPIRE HAS FALLEN! ALL OF YOU WILL PERISH AND JOIN THEM IF YOU DO NOT SURRENDER YOUR PRINCESS TWILIGHT TO…” she was cut short as a bolt of light shot and destabilized her flight. She smiled wickedly and turned to her attackers, “to us.” With that she shot the few pursuing Pegasus down with a jolt of lightning and destroyed to tower from which the attacking unicorn fired.

She landed with a clang on the streets of canterlot, using her lightning to wreak havoc on the streets and make her location known. She was met by Twilight herself, next to tempest and a less than pleased Rainbow Dash. Tempest and Rainbow charged at her, but she simply sighed and used her lightning to throw them to either side of the street. Twilight shot a beam of purple light at her and she countered it, lightning versus light.

The duel was short lived as midnight squealed as she was impaled by a jagged speared-flagpole that had its flag removed. She gasped and groaned in pain as her legs wobbled to keep her upright. The pole had pierced between the chinks of the ‘armor’ and anchored itself into the ground. Twilight stood there, surprised as her brother leapt off a nearby short building with 6 more such poles to face the Iron Guard. “You,” he started between tears, “Killed… Cadance.” He raised five of the poles, inserting three more into her back like she was a needle cushion and two through her neck in an X shape. “Now I will kill you.” He said, as he raised to final one to impale the gasping, grounded Iron Guard through the face. She could barely breathe and was clearly struggling. Twilight pulled the pole out of his magic with her own, telling him to stop and not to lose himself and become like them. He turned to face his sister, shouting to her that it had killed Cadance. Twilight stood there in shock, and said that as much as she wanted to be the one to end her they needed her alive for interrogation.

The Guard wheezed with a snicker and muttered, “Listen… like a *gasp* good little… puppet.*gasp* you all… *gasp* were always…so soft.” Shining turned to her with venom in his eyes and slowly pulled the poles out of her. She cringed in pain as the sound of scarping metal echoed throughout the city and immediately transformed back into her normal pony form as the metal spun and receded around her. By this time many ponies had stuck their heads out of their windows as they fearfully watched the cloaked and hooded pony fall to the ground. She was unable to stand, but she snickered, saying in a familiar voice, “Then again… you could never hurt me… could you?” Shining Armor threw all the poles to the ground and held only one in his magic to beat her as he pulled off her hood. His jaw dropped, his eyes popped out of his skull and he dropped to pole upon seeing her face. Twilight’s reaction was similar and other spectators gasped and even let out little screams.

“Could you? …Brother?”

Shining Armor saw the face of his little sister stare back at him with an evil smile. “Twily…” he whispered under his breath. He stood up straight, picked up the pole in his magic and knocked her unconscious.

Author's Notes:

Well that escalated quickly...
I will be posting more next weekend, perhaps earlier! The story is 100% complete, so don't worry.