It was only supposed to be a little over 3000 words, but when you got the motivation to write, you get to writing.

Believe it or not, I rarely write anything about the Mane Six. Also, I changed the rating to teen since there was going to be a good dose of violence in this chapter and possibly in future ones as well.

The dawn of a new day graces the homely cottage; the brimming light bleeds through windows, awakening its residents with low moans and brief yawns. Dawn and Dalia rose from Fluttershy's bed with stretched limbs and cracked bones, eliciting pleased groans escaping their lips.

Dawn hops out of bed and trots towards a window, looking out to the Everfree Forest. She scans and scans until her eyes met a bridge near the cottage just a few mere feet away. Following the bridge, her eyes squinted to see a town in the near distance; the town Calabus mentioned, and their current destination.

How odd... it was there the whole time, yet none of us noticed it until now.

Dalia fluttered out of bed and landed softly on Dawn's mane, happily hugging a few strands. "Shall we get Calabus and Fluttershy, sweetheart?"

Dawn nodded. Yes. Let's go.

The duo headed out of the bedroom and made their way downstairs to find Calabus and Fluttershy in the kitchen eating oatmeal and sipping tea. On the table were two bowls and cups: one for Dawn and one for Dalia. Stomachs rumbling, the duo joined the imp and the pegasus as they began to eat their breakfast.

Twenty minutes later, the group was nice and fed, heading out the front door and slowly making their way to Ponyville. Dalia stayed on Dawn's head while Calabus perched on Fluttershy's with a lovely shade of pink looming over his cheeks.

"Once we get into Ponyville, I'll introduce you to my friends as fast as possible," the feeble pegasus said merrily. "They'll be so happy to see such a unique pony." Fluttershy rubbed her chin as a brow raised. "Now that I have a good look at you, Dawn, what exactly are you if you don't mind me asking?"

Unfortunately, Dawn still couldn't speak, she only tilted her head to the side cutely.

"Let's herd all your friends first and then we'll tell you," Dalia said sweetly. "Hopefully Dawn will be able to talk soon."

"Bah, what's the point?" Calabus announced, rudely butting into the conversation. "It's not like she says much anyway."

Dalia smoothed her face with her hand. "Cally, let's not do this right now. How about later?" she suggested. "You'll be able to complain all you want then."

The imp gave Dalia a rude glare before turning away, burying his face in Fluttershy's mane. The pegasus giggled.

"Wow," Dalia said, sounding surprised. "I still can't believe he's warmed up to you so quickly. He doesn't usually do that with any creatures other than Dawn and me."

Fluttershy blushed. "Well... he's a real sweetheart and he doesn't always mean what he says." Fluttershy grabbed the imp and cuddled him close to her chest. "When we head into town, we'll-" Fluttershy stopped speaking and stood in place abruptly. Her eyes widened as her body began to shake.

Curious, Dawn, Dalia, and Calabus looked forward and almost mirrored Fluttershy's shock. There was an enormous foreboding cloud of smoke overshadowing Ponyville, followed by a deafening screech that shattered the wind, and rumbled the very earth. Orbiting over Ponyville was a menacingly large blue dragon blowing fire into the town below.

It roared, bellowed, and screeched like mad, its eyes glowing a bloody red as it continues its terrifying assault on Ponyville. Desperate, Fluttershy galloped faster than the trio had ever seen the mare go; Calabus had to clutch his tiny hands around tufts of the mare's coat just to keep from falling off.

As the pegasus ran toward the town, Dawn and Dalia continued to stare at the alarming scene.

Dalia, did you see the beast's eyes?

Dalia bobbed her head. "I did," she answered. "Its rampage is not of its own volition. Those eyes... are unsettling. What should we do?"

We go. We protect.

"As you wish," Dalia said happily. "Should I bring Cally back here?"

Dawn shook her head. No. He'll protect Fluttershy. I'll only need you for this.

Dalia's smile grew. "Then are you ready, sweetheart?"

I am. Let's go.

With a snap of her finger, Dalia transformed into a beautiful blue chain that hung around Dawn's neck, pulsating with power. It enhanced Dawn's defensive strength. Without a second thought, Dawn turns into a shadow and began leaping toward the harried town.

"Fluttershy," Calabus pleaded, desperately hanging on the mare's coat, "slow down! You can't just rush into danger like this! What's wrong with you?!"

Gasping for air, Fluttershy responded, "I know Cally, and I'm very sorry but I have to go and see if Twilight is okay!"

Calabus squinted his eyes. "Twilight?! Who's that?!"

"You'll see soon, Cally, we're almost there!"

Fluttershy was right. In the middle of town, just slightly off to the side, a large crystal castle was in view. Narrowed eyes revealed fire and smoke arising from the castle, and Fluttershy flapped her wings forwards, gaining a burst of speed before skidding to a halt at the castle's front door.

"Twilight," Fluttershy announced desperately, "are you in there?! Ponyville is in danger; your castle is on fire! Are you in there?! Twilight!"

Frantic, Fluttershy banged on the door as sweat dripped down her face. She looked right and left and saw three groups of timberwolves running amuck in Ponyville, relentlessly chasing after the terrified townsfolk. She noticed their eyes were glowing red like the dragon.

Suddenly, a horrid flock of bugbears invaded the town's airspace, snarling and roaring with the same glowing red eyes. They crashed and destroyed houses with reckless abandon, then they started working with the timberwolves in tandem to hunt down the townsfolk.

After banging on the crystal door for a few seconds, Fluttershy heard a large shattering noise and looked toward one of the windows, and saw her purple alicorn friend blasting the bugbears with violent magic. The beasts started to fall like lemmings until Twilight glanced downwards and saw a pack of timberwolves about to pounce on an unsuspecting Fluttershy.

"Fluttershy," she called out, "behind you!!! No!!!"

The pegasus turned around and fell on her flank from seeing such a large pack of bloodthirsty wooden wolves leaping to her in unison. Quickly, the purple alicorn blitzed to the ground, sending a large shock wave of magic that repelled the timberwolves.

After saving Fluttershy, Twilight conjured a magic spell with her horn, evoking, "Rainbow Dash! Pinkie Pie! Applejack! Rarity! To me! Ingress!"

Four bright pillars of light beamed from the heavens, descending to the earth. Then, the bodies of Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rarity appeared before the two mares.

"Twilight, I saw everything from Cloudsdale," Rainbow Dash said, looking out to the havoc. "What should we do?"

"Rainbow, sonic rainboom on the dragon, stat! Applejack and Pinkie Pie, take care of the timberwolves! Rarity, round up the townsfolk and protect them from the bugbears with your magic! Fluttershy and I will handle things from here! Let's go, girls!" she ordered, and the girls went in an instant.

"Fluttershy, are you alright?" the purple mare said, constantly scanning over the pegasus. "Are you hurt?!"

Fluttershy shook her head quickly. "I'm fine, Twilight, thank you," she said, trying to de-stress the alicorn. Upon further inspection, Twilight had a few cuts and bruises from fighting the bugbears. "We need to get those injuries looked at!"

Twilight merely shook her head, saying, "There's no time. Ponyville is being assaulted; my wounds will be taken care of later. For now, we-" Twilight stopped at looked at a peculiar creature cradled in Fluttershy's hooves. "Fluttershy, what animal is that? I've never seen it before."

Calabus scowled at the mare. "Alicorn, huh? Hmph..."

Twilight gasped. "It can talk!"

Calabus growled at the vexatious mare. "First off, I'm a guy! Second, what's going on here?!"

Twilight cautiously stepped away from the sheer ferocity of the imp. "Well," she started, "I'm not too sure myself. They suddenly began attacking us for no apparent reason! I think it has to do with them having glowing red eyes, but I haven't seen anything like this before!"

Calabus broke from Fluttershy's grasp and fluttered next to her head. "They aren't in their right minds; this frenzy has affected them greatly, sending them on a rampage," he explained. "Those maddening eyes are the symbol of their insanity. It's been... a long time since I saw it. Not long enough..."

"How do we stop them?" Twilight asked frantically.

Calabus grumbled and glared at the dragon. "You knock the daylights out of 'em. If you don't, they'll keep getting up... no matter how much suffering they feel. We shouldn't have anything to worry about since Dawn is here. She'll fix everything."

Twilight was bewildered. "Who's that? And how is she able to-" Twilight suddenly staggered to the ground, alerting Fluttershy and Calabus. The mare held her horn as a long, pained groan escaped her lips.

"Twilight, what's wrong?" Fluttershy cried out.

"It's... a wave of magic, or I think it was magic, just hit me hard," she answered, rubbing her head. "I've never felt something so... unnatural before."

Calabus huffed, saying, "That was Dawn. The pain will subside for you magically sensitive types shortly."

Twilight was shocked. "She did that?! That magic is on a whole different level!"

The red imp chuckled. "Yeah, magic. We'll call it that." Calabus sat on Fluttershy's head. "What should we do?"

Twilight rose from the ground with Fluttershy's assistance. "We'll keep these creatures back until the fighting is over. Right now, Rainbow Dash should be coming down soon..."

Twilight, Fluttershy, and Calabus searched the sky for the rainbow mare to mare from the clouds. Then they saw a bullet of colors descend; it was Rainbow Dash. A trail of rainbows flew behind her, then, in an instant, the sky looked as if it shattered with vibrant colors.

The mare, who once was a mere bullet, is now a speedy missile that collides with the dragon. A terrible screech broke through the air as everypony tried desperately to cover their ears from the horrible sounds. The dragon crashes near the crystal castle; the deafening impact sent Fluttershy, Calabus, and Twilight barreling across the ground before skidding to a stop. Although the dragon was down, more timberwolves entered the village, setting their sights on the pegasus and alicorn with hungry eyes.

After Rainbow Dash recovered from the sonic rainboom, she was told to help Rarity, so the pegasus gave a brisk salute and blitzed off. Alone with Fluttershy and this new creature, Twilight charged up her horn as the timberwolves filed in. She fought them the best she could, but fatigue was starting to wear into the alicorn's mind, and it didn't help from her earlier injuries fighting off the bugbears.

Twilight started to become dizzy, falling to the ground in exhaustion. She tried to catch her breath and charge up her horn, but the horn was barely flowing with magic.

"No!" she shouted, repeatedly trying to conjure magic. The seemingly endless onslaught of wooden wolves kept piling in. "No time to rest. Where are all these timberwolves keep coming from?! They aren't stopping!"

Dawn was taking out bugbears and timberwolves left and right in quick succession. She purged them, split the light within, and had the darkness consume them whole over and over again. However, it seems that no matter how many fell before her, there were always more taking their places.

They keep coming. There must be a way to stop these reinforcements.

"How about the dragon?" Dalia suggested in Dawn's head. "If this is like before, then the bigger, more dangerous creature may be behind their summoning."

Summoning...? That sounds familiar...

"Don't think about that right now," Dalia said. "We should focus on taking down the dragon. It recently fell in the middle of town by some giant shockwave in the sky. I think Fluttershy and Calabus are there."

Right. Let's go.

Back at the still-burning crystal castle, Twilight was somehow able to continue fighting off the invasion of timberwolves with what little magic she could spare, but as each wooden adversary fell before her magical might, so to her strength waned to keep them at bay; the alicorn found it hard to focus or to even stand; she was overwrought with fatigue.

Calabus tried to help, but no matter how many wolves his fire incinerated, more would just show up. They were hopelessly overwhelmed, and the damning predators inched nearer and closer. To add insult to their ever-growing injuries, especially Twilight's, the blue dragon began to stir and raise from the ground with a giant roar.

Fresh out of magic and options, a timberwolf pounced on Twilight, knocking her to the ground as she struggled to force the abhorrent creature off her, but more started to surround the mare, and she was, unfortunately, overwhelmed. Fluttershy suffered the same fate, the timberwolves pounced on her and attempted to gnaw and rend her flesh. Calabus tried to assist, but he couldn't run the risk of harming Fluttershy with his flames, and he found himself swatted away.

A timberwolf manages to clamp its sharp teeth on Fluttershy's left hind leg, bringing about a terror-filled scream. It shook its head, trying to rip it off, but then a large dark emanation tore through the timberwolf completely, and then the rest of the pack that surrounded the pegasus with ease. Another black appendage shot through another pack that was overwhelming Twilight Sparkle, shattering them to pieces.

Though dazed at the attack, Fluttershy was able to make out a figure trotting up to her with a beautiful blue chain wrapped firmly around their neck. The figure helped the mare off the ground and Fluttershy was able to get her senses back under control and saw that it was Dawn who saved her and Twilight from being lunch.

The pegasus cried and embraced Dawn tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you," she said rapidly, burying her face into Dawn's chest. "Thank you for saving me and my friend, Dawn. Thank you..."

Dawn hugged Fluttershy back before breaking away and trotting over to Twilight, who's looking a bit worse for wear at the moment: she had large bruises and even larger gashes around her face, chest, neck, and legs.

The ailing alicorn groaned, opening her eyes to see a mare with antlers and large wings standing over her like an angel. "Am... am I dead?" the alicorn whispered, desperately trying to catch her breath. "Please... help us."

The angelic figure smiled, placing her antlers against Twilight's forehead, uttering what seemed to be a spell. In some archaic dialect she could not distinguish, Twilight saw a bright golden light and suddenly felt warm. From Fluttershy's perspective, the golden light enraptured her purple friend, witnessing her injuries slowly fade away; Dawn was healing her.

After a few seconds, Twilight's vision was able to properly behold her savior. It was indeed a pony with antlers and large wings. She had thought she was hallucinating, but she was in her right mind after all. The alicorn rose from the ground and saw that her savior was just as tall as Big Mac if not slightly taller.

"Who... what are you?" she asked the mare. Her response only got a cute head tilt. "Are you Dawn?" The mare nodded silently. "How did you heal me? I can even feel my magic being restored." The mare only smiled. "Well, whatever you did, thank you!"

Dawn tapped her blue chain as a blue light overcame Fluttershy and Twilight's sight. Once it subsided, Twilight beheld another creature, a blue one, she had never seen before, fluttering over to the red one.

"Oh Cally," Dalia let out sadly, looking at the knocked-out imp and hugging him. "There's only so much we tiny imps can do by ourselves..."

Dawn marched up to Calabus and picked the imp up gently, muttering something under her breath, changing the imp into a necklace that latched firmly around her neck.

Rest, my friend. Forgive me, I wasn't here to help you.

Fluttershy hung her head, delicately touching Dawn's coat to get her attention. "Will Cally be okay?"

Though silent, Dawn gave Fluttershy a reassuring smile. Quickly, the mare instantly healed Fluttershy's leg wound.

"He needs rest," Dalia said. "Calabus may be... explosive, but our bodies aren't very strong. He's lucky he hasn't any broken bones."

Twilight stepped forward. "I don't know who or what any of you are, but that red creature said that Dawn could fix all of this."

Dalia flew over to Twilight and said, "The dragon catalyzes the wooden wolves and the bugbears' summoning, and if Dawn can take the beast down, everything should return to normal."

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "What would you have us do? My other friends are too busy helping other ponies."

This one has potent magical strength. She can distract the dragon. I'll go in after.

Dalia smiled. "Dawn wants you to get the dragon's attention. From there, she'll take care of the rest."

"Alright," Twilight agreed before turning to Fluttershy. "Stay close to the castle." The pegasus nodded. "Good. Let's put an end to this!"

Twilight shot into the air, gaining the dragon's ire with intense magical blasts from her horn. The beast screeched in irritation, constantly attempting to swat the alicorn from the sky. She weaved, dodged, and rolled from the monstrous strikes, harrying the large abomination with an onslaught of magical blows. The beast bellowed angrily; Twilight has successfully gained the monstrosity's enmity.

With the dragon distracted, Dalia shifts back into the chain and hung around Dawn's neck as the mare began to mutter something under her breath, prompting her antlers to shimmer with an eerie glow. Fluttershy felt a coldness emanating from Dawn; a terror-filled spell was about to come into fruition.

The embroil of darkness laying deep within the earth, heed me, and rise to bind my adversary!

Underneath Fluttershy's hooves, the earth was beginning to crack and split open, sprouting purple tentacles that shoot forward and latch around the arms and legs of the unsuspecting dragon. The belligerent beast bellowed, struggling against the dark binds whilst being pelted by Twilight's magic.

The enraged beast screeched, rearing its head back and blowing forth a crimson blaze at Twilight. With the flames too close to evade, the purple alicorn erected a barrier around her body and took the torrent of flame head-on. The heat and the sheer ferocity of the flames gradually whittled the shield, wearing Twilight down. It proved to be too much and the alicorn couldn't hold back the flames any longer and gave in; she was forced back, barreling into the top of the crystal castle with a heavy crash.

Fluttershy shrieked as her eyes widened with despair as tears began to roll down her face. "Twilight!" the yellow pegasus screamed, the rumbling impact sent her to the ground.

Shards of sharp crystal fell from the ruined castle, descending quickly towards Fluttershy. The distraught mare was too shocked by what she witnessed to escape the fallen debris.

"Dawn!" she wailed.

"Dawn," Dalia hastily exclaimed in the mare's mind, "Fluttershy is in trouble!"

Immediately Dawn shattered the restraints she held on to the dragon and blitzed toward Fluttershy. The mare saw the near-demolished castle's debris about to violently crush the frozen pegasus. Hurriedly, Dawn leaped into the air and descended onto the frightened pegasus, knocking her down before chanting a barrier.

The fallen pieces of the castle clamored on top of the barrier; the reverberation of the clangor elicited a cacophony of noises that loudly racked the two mares' ears. The high-pitch whang of the crystals produced an ear-piercing resonance that rung in Fluttershy's head, arousing the mare to scream out in distress. Dawn, who was experiencing some degree of discomfort, is able to shrug off most of the crystals' harrowing discordance.

Though the terrible pandemonium of the cacophonous clangor has now been somewhat abated, Fluttershy was still screaming, holding her head as the harried noise ricocheted heavily inside her fragile skull. She squirmed and shouted, desperately beseeching the suffering to cease.

Seeing her new friend in such anguish, Dawn strived to expunge it. Sudden energy flowed through her, like a calming wave flowing through her body. She then felt something that was tightened up loosen ever so slightly, allowing the small freedom of that something which was once firmly locked away.

She leaned down to Fluttershy with a gracious smile. "Fluttershy," she soothingly said, her sweet voice elegantly rolled smoothly off her tongue. "Fluttershy."

Her blood-curdling screams devolved into a meek whimper and near, almost non-existent sobs. The pained pegasus struggled to open her once-clamped eyes and gazed at the beautiful visage of Dawn; that adorable smile and those extraordinary gray eyes began to soothe the despondent pegasus into nothing more but the quiet, occasional sniffle.

"Fluttershy," Dawn repeated slowly. "You... are... o-okay." Though having her speech return, it seemed to Dawn she could seldom say a few words before feeling her throat starting to restrict her.

Fluttershy ogled at the mare with her tear-stained face in disbelief. "Dawn?" she uttered quietly. "You... you're talking."

Dawn nodded. "Yes," she responded before turning her head towards the roaring dragon. She turns back and says, "Trust. Trust in me."

Fluttershy, still awestruck at seeing Dawn talk barely processed what she said. "T-trust?" she sputtered, her still-beating heart quaking in mild fear. "W-what do... d-do you mean?"

Dawn gave Fluttershy another smile. "Letting go," she uttered slowly, trying to enunciate her words carefully. "Fluttershy. Trust in me. I... will protect."

Fluttershy slowly directed her shaking hoof on Dawn's chest, feeling her soft, smooth coat. "I... trust you," she whispered in near silence. "I trust you, Dawn."

That was all Dawn needed to hear. She raises her head and steps away from Fluttershy before leaving the barrier. She stood tall and faced the dragon with a hard glare.

The blue, red-eyed dragon glowered at the mare. "Erebus..." it said slowly to a crawl. "Erebus..."

At this point, Dalia was understandably shaken. "How does it know your last name?" she wondered. "None alive could know your name..."

It's hard for me to remember.

"Do not stress yourself, sweetheart," Dalia said. "We'll ponder this sudden revelation at a later date. For now, we must take this dragon down to stop the timberwolves from being summoned."

Dawn nodded in agreement. Right. Let's get this done.

"Erebus..." the dragon eerily let out in its haunting voice. "Naught but ash..."

The dragon inhaled a large amount of air and blew out a frighteningly powerful breath of fire at Dawn. The mare stomped her hooves on the ground as her antlers shined once again before evoking sacred words in her mind.

Divine light shadowed by the blight of darkness! Voidless Shadowlight: Dread Reverse!

A black and white powerful ray of concentrated power blasted forth from Dawn's antlers; the mare dug her hooves into the ground to stabilize the blast. The dragon's scorching flames clashed with Dawn's beam. The very earth rumbled and shook, the manifestation of light from the clash blared so brightly that it drowned Ponyville in a coat of blinding light.

The dragon was struggling to hold back the pure power Dawn was dishing out, and in a near-instant, her ray overpowered the dragon's flames and struck the horrid beast in the chest piercing through its body as it shrieked in pain. The body of the dragon was starting to physically crack as the potent beam tore through it. The cracks forming its body began to glow white, engulfing the entire dragon before exploding in a magnificent explosion.

The air flittered with small amber embers flowing around Ponyville. The timberwolves stopped attacking, writhing on the ground before suspiciously vanishing into thin puffs of blackened smoke. The bugbears followed suit, vanishing out of the air. The terror was over; the town of Ponyville and its residents still stood, albeit with some injuries, and a few houses, including the crystal castle, looked worse for wear.

"Good show, Dawn," Dalia congratulated. "Head back to Fluttershy."

I will.

Dawn trotted towards the barrier shielding Fluttershy. She taps the barrier with her hoof, and it promptly dissipates, releasing Fluttershy from its protective grasp. Dawn marched up to the timid pegasus and gently helped her off the ground to which the mare gave Dawn a heartfelt hug.

"You did it!" Fluttershy exclaimed happily. "You saved the town! Thank you so much, Dawn!"

In light of Fluttershy's joy, the terrified townsfolk were able to catch a breather. The Elements of Harmony: Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash, who all looked a little beat, if not a little dirty to Rarity's dismay, gathered and studied their supposed savior.

They stared at a luscious crimson coat that flowed slowly in the wind. The middle of her four legs bore black and white stripes aplenty, and her gorgeous mane and tail intertwined with the mysterious colors of black and white. Her dusty eyes were as gray as the dullest clouds swimming in the shady sky and gave off an air of equanimity; phlegm and tranquility deftly swam amongst them, as if forever.

Her lofty wings presented themselves as a sign of strength and bravery, but they hid the imprint that shows her special talent, her cutie mark. The most notifying of her graceful figure was her antlers that mirrored her mane and tail in color and pattern. Everything was topped off by a cute little mole on one of her cheeks.

"Fluttershy," Pinkie Pie said merrily, "who's your new, mysterious friend?"

"I was thinkin' of the same thing," Applejack added.

"Indeed darling, I simply have to study that beautiful mane," Rarity chimed in.

Rainbow groaned, saying, "Before we do anything if any of you hadn't noticed, we are short one pony! Where's Twilight?!"

Fluttershy instantly lost her lustrous smile as a sad frown appeared. "She's... Twilight is over there." Fluttershy sadly pointed towards the top of the damaged crystal castle. "She was fighting the dragon and it... overwhelmed her."

The Elements were almost speechless.

Rainbow was the first to speak up. "That's... Twilight could be..."

"Hold up there, Dash," Applejack interjected. "We don't know if Twi kicked the bucket, and I don't want to think about it."

Rarity agreed. "Let us hurry and get our friend out of there."

"Yeah!" Pinkie Pie chirped, bouncing in place. "Twilight's fine, I know it!"

Fluttershy was on the verge of crying, but she was comforted by Dawn. "Thanks," she whispered. "How will all of us reach the roof?"

Dawn tapped her chin as an idea sprang in her head. She gestured to Fluttershy and her friends to come near her, and they did. A silent mutter was seen from Dawn as her antlers shimmered faintly and a platform of light appeared under the hooves of the group. They exclaimed at first, but they gradually settled their nerves as the platform rose in the air until the group was at the top of the crystal castle.

Able to survey the damages, the group, except for Dawn, gasped in horror. The top of the crystal castle was nearly demolished: crystals lay amongst the castle's dirty rooftop. The flames from the dragon persisted as small embers scattered across the roof randomly with smoke plaguing every corner. The eyes followed a horrendous skid mark that trailer to the other end of the castle's rooftop where a small pile of crystal rumble lay still.

All hooves, except for Dawn's, lifted to the mouths of the Elements in pure disbelief. Everything was on the brink of ruin, held by some will to prevail. Ordering the platform forward, Dawn and the Elements were as silent as a dead wind, daring to not speak a single word as if any sound could be enough to bring about the downfall of the crystal castle's rooftop.

As they got closer to the wreckage, a faint purple light pulsed occasionally from the crystal rubble. As they watched on, the purple glow began to fade, only to be started again with another pulse, but it would be weaker than the last.

"Twilight's alive!" Rainbow shouted vehemently. "Her horn says it all!"

A breath of relief escaped Applejack and Rarity while Pinkie Pie hugged Fluttershy, who was crying tears of joy. Even Dawn smiled at the news and had the platform lower next to the rubble. Quickly, all of Twilight's friends, and Dawn, galloped towards the rubble and began to hastily, with caution, fish out their friend. It took five whole meticulous minutes to clear the wreckage.

There they lay their eyes on a still-conscious purple alicorn with looks of concern and happiness. The poor alicorn was bleeding all over: her horn was split right down the middle, her wings were torn and shredded, and her coat, mane, and tail had a layer of blue dust. Deep gashes riddled her body, her right eye was black, and she could barely move.

"What should we do?!" Pinkie said worryingly.

"I ain't got a single clue," Applejack muttered sorrowfully. "Never have I seen a pony that messed up before."

Rainbow flew next to Twilight with Fluttershy in tow. "Hey, Twi," pegasus uttered quietly. "You'll be okay, I promise. We can take you to the hospital and fix you up."

Dawn trotted slowly to Twilight and skillfully scanned over her unnerving wounds. She waved at Fluttershy with her hooves, gaining the mare's attention.

"Can you save her, Dawn?" the pegasus asked hopefully. "Please help her."

Dawn grinned and said, "I help. I heal. Step away."

Rainbow Dash wasn't sure if she should trust Dawn, but with the convincing from Fluttershy and the rest of her friends, the cyan mare allowed Dawn to help. The Elements stepped back and let Dawn work.

Dawn narrowed her eyes and concentrated, her mysterious antlers glowing luminously as the light enveloped Twilight slowly. A whirring sound, sort of like a low continuous drone, filled the ears of Twilight's friends as they look on in awe. When the light diminished and faded, Twilight's wounds were gone as if they had never existed. The alicorn was able to breathe normally. Aside from some small aches, Twilight was completely healed from all injuries. With help from Dawn, Twilight rose from the floor. She looked at her friends and then at Dawn with a small smile.

"Dawn, thank you," Twilight said, bowing to Dawn in appreciation. All of her friends did the same. "Did everything return to normal?"

Dawn nodded. "Dragon gone, wooden wolves gone."

"And the bugbears?"

"Gone," Dawn replied. "Home saved."

A sigh flew out from Twilight's mouth as she plopped her flank on the floor. "Hadn't had an attack like since Tirek. Whew... glad that's over." Twilight looked at Dawn's face with a curious gaze. "Why are you smiling like that?"

The smirk on Dawn's was quite peculiar to Twilight but as the mysterious mare stepped to the side, Twilight saw the happy faces of all her friends, and the alicorn wasn't prepared!

Twilight began to sweat. "Now girls, we talked about this," she said, but her friends inched themselves closer. "W-wait, I'm not ready-"

All of her friends, including Fluttershy, leaped at Twilight, cuddling the mare as happy noises escaped their merry lips. Dawn chuckled at the cute scene as Dalia, in her mind, joined her.

Whilst celebrating, a scroll suddenly appears above the cuddle pile and dropped on Twilight's head. Rubbing her mane from the assaulting scroll, Twilight began reading its contents, and her eyes grew.

"Hang on, girls, give me some space," the purple alicorn pleaded. Fortunately, she got her wish. "Good. Now, this is a letter from Princess Celestia detailing that powerful unknown magic was coming from the Everfree Forest and asked us to go and check it out. Buuuut, I think I know where that magic is coming from, or what I think to be magic is coming from." The purple alicorn pointed at Dawn.

"Uhh," Rainbow Dash muttered, scratching her head. "It's her?"

Twilight bobbed her head. "Yep," she said gaily. "I felt her magic, and it was unlike anything I've ever felt before. Now that we know who that magic was coming from, I proclaim we get an understanding of our savior."

"Yay!" Pinkie Pie shouted. "New friend!" The rest of the group, excerpt for Dawn and Fluttershy, celebrated.

"Alright, everypony, let's settle down," Twilight said, turning to Dawn. "I am Twilight Sparkle. These are my friends: Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy. I'm going to assume you already knew Fluttershy from the fact that the red creature was with her."

Dawn tilted her head to the side as usual. Although she could speak, her speech was highly limited, and it seemed that she had to wait longer until she was able to fully speak without any hindrance.

Fluttershy spoke for her. "Her name is Dawn, a friend that I met yesterday evening. She saved me from a pack of timberwolves. She's very kind and friendly, she even likes animals!"

Twilight clapped her front hooves together. "That's amazing! And I am very curious as to what exactly you are and what type of magic you used. But before we go any further, parts of Ponyville need to be rebuilt. It should only take a few hours. Everypony ready?"

All of her friends, including Dawn, were ready and amped to get Ponyville back in shape. With that said, the mystery surrounding Dawn will be brought closer to the light. However, as the light grows, so does its shadow.

Meanwhile at midnight in Canterlot Castle...

Princess Celestia was just about to call in for the night. After getting a scroll from Twilight almost immediately after she sent her's, Princess Celestia was quite shocked at what had transpired in Ponyville. The onslaught of rage-induced creatures did indeed worry the majestic alicorn, but most of her concerns about the event had been deftly abated by the visitor named Dawn.

This remarkable mare's magic was indeed the one Princess Luna felt, but it was so unusual and foreign; could this supernatural power even be called magic? The letter detailed by Twilight had attempted to properly explain what type of power Dawn has, but all she could read were minor theories and speculations.

Although Princess Celestia would love nothing more than to unravel this mystery surrounding this peculiar mare, she thought it is prudent to let things run their course. Also, she was quite tired from the monotony of Day Court. As she reached her bedroom to resign for the night, Princess Luna was there, presumably waiting for her.

With a darling smile, Princess Celestia approached her little sister. "Luna," she said, nuzzling the alicorn, "how are you this fine night?"

"Better than yesterday," she replied, nuzzling her sister back. "I went to Seaward Shoals to find Discord and tried to convince him to investigate the magic I had felt, but he ardently refused." Princess Luna's ears drooped. "He wanted nothing to do with what's been happening."

"Really?" Princess Celestia said in disbelief. "That's unusual. I would have thought that it might entice him. Why did he reject you?"

Princess Luna merely shook her head. "He said that he didn't like none of it. He almost sounded... unsettled talking about it. Anyway... what's going on?"

Princess Celestia explained what had happened during her departure. The Moonlight Mistress had a look of intense curiosity, but Princess Celestia warned against her sister doing anything drastic.

"Worry not, dear sister, I will not act out and confront this Dawn," she said. "However, I would like for her to visit Canterlot Castle so we can be formally introduced. Sound sensible enough for you?"

"Fine, fine," Princess Celestia said waving her hoof in the air. "Let us wait a few days before we present the idea to Twilight. I put her in charge of watching over Dawn. For now, let us carry on as normal."

Princess Luna nodded. "Have a good night, sister."

"To you as well, Luna. Goodnight."

Princess Luna left her sister to her devices. The celestial alicorn entered her room and fell onto her bed as a pleased sigh blew from her tired lips.

"We'll see who this Dawn is very soon," she muttered before drifting off to sleep.