Chapter two: The best laid plans…

While there was incredible turbulence from the raging emotions and magic at the castle, none of it reached Ponyville. The idyllic little town kept on hustling and bustling as it always had; daily life uninterrupted for its occupants. That is, until Twilight came through. *Crash* *Smash* She ran into boxes and the occasional potted plant as she ran. “Late….. latelatelatelatelatelate LATE!” she muttered under her breath as she scurried through the streets, heading towards the train station. Spike was out of breath and hustling to keep up, despite the size difference between them. He was at least half again as tall as Twilight now, his purple and emerald spikes shining in the sunlight. He had grown into a fine young dragon, but still had a way to go, as he was a tenth of his full grown size and strength. “Spike, hurry UP, or we’re going to miss the train!” Twilight shouted back. Spike added that little extra burst of speed as he mumbled about how she sounded like his mother. “What was that?!?” she glared back at him, not noticing where she was running.

“Nothing,” Spike shouted back, “But you might want to look where you’re….” *Crash* “Oooooh…. That’s gotta hurt” Twilight had literally upset the applecart, and of course the mare behind it.

“TWILIGHT!!! Ah swear, ya’ll ‘re as clumsy as a tap dancin’ rattlesnake!” shouted the young cream colored mare, with her red hair tied up in a “pony-tail”.

“Sorry Applebloom, I’d help you clean up, but I’m late getting to the train station!!” Twilight shouted back as she careened around a corner. The teenaged filly huffed, and started picking up her wares. She then deftly bucked a pair of apples to Spike, who caught them without looking.

“Thanks ‘Bloom! You know how she gets, we’ll help next time we drop by, Pinkie Promise!” he waved back at her.

“Ya’ll better, or my sister’ll be getting’ an earful, believe you me! And that don’t bode too well for the two a’ ya!” she tossed playfully back at him. She of course had no such intentions, it was just part of the game. Twilight being in a panic and causing mayhem had become a regular occurrence in Ponyville, and all its occupants cut her some slack. She HAD saved the town more times than folks could count, not to mention she and Spike were well liked and renowned by all. “Shoot, now what’m I gonna do? That was the mos’ excitin’ thing to happen today…” Applebloom pouted, then sighed and went back to work tending the apples.

As she and Spike sped through the streets, Twilight was mentally counting down the seconds until the train left, and was beginning to panic further, when suddenly her momentum was halted. The last thing she saw before she hit the ground was a pink blur, and then next thing she knew, she was looking up at her five best friends, the one who tackled her directly on top, grinning ear to ear.

“Twilight Twilight Twilight! We all heard you were leaving for a few days and we were worried you’d be gone by the time we got here but you weren’t and I was sooooo happy that I just had to jump over and glomp you!” Pinkie said in one short breath.

“Pinkie, I’m really glad to see you and all, but I’m late, and I need to get going!!” Twilight said as she struggled to get free.

“Now keep yer mane straight, we were jus’ comin’ by to see ya off, an’ we knew you were a bit late so…”

“NONONONONONO this is not just a bit late, as you so casually suggest Applejack. I am running exactly fifteen minutes and thirty-seven seconds late! It’d be a miracle if I haven’t missed the train!” she shouted as she tossed and turned beneath a heavy layer of Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash began to tug on Pinkie, trying to help Twilight up.

“Well DUH! Sheesh, that’s why we’re here!” the cyan and rainbow mare said, finally freeing the captive unicorn. Immediately Twilight was sprinting towards the doors to the station, but again, momentum was stopped, and she suddenly turned around to face them, a blue glow surrounding her body.

“Yes, of course, we understand dear, but we still need to say our goodbyes after all! This could be the last time we see each other, and I simply couldn’t bear to face the dreadful thoughts of not saying goodbye to you before you go on such a big journey!” Rarity hammed it up as she dragged Twilight back toward the group.

“Rarity, I’m just going to Canterlot for the afternoon…. I’ll be back by tomorrow!!! Now LET ME GO!” she said as she burst Rarity’s magic with her own, and then proceeded to fall right on top of Fluttershy. “Oh, Fluttershy, are you alright?!?!? I’m SO sorry!!” All she got was a little squeak, so she quickly jumped up.

“Ouch…. Twilight, I’m sorry, are you all right?” Fluttershy asked quickly.

“Fluttershy, you have nothing to be sorry for, it was my fault. Now, if you’ll all excuse me I NEED to go!” In her struggles to escape the others, she landed some smarting blows, and then Rainbow and Applejack jumped into the fray to calm her. Spike huffed and puffed as he finally caught up, rewarded with the strange sight of the six best friends in all of Equestria accidentally pummeling each other as they struggled to calm Twilight and get loose of one another.

As this occurred, Derpy floated by, happily munching a muffin. Seeing the tussle, she stopped and asked “Hey, you all okay? Anything I can do to help?”

“NO!”, they shouted in unison.

Upon seeing Derpy’s face, however, they quickly recanted. “Derpy, I’m sorry,” Twilight said, “We’re fine, I’m just running late and am very stressed.”

“Oh, that’s ok then. See you later guys!”, and with that, the grey pegasus flitted off towards the center of town.

Suddenly, the train whistle blew, and Twilight blitzed for the platform. Waiting there was the train to Canterlot, with dozens of ponies on board looking and laughing at the show. “This is what we we’re tryin’ ta tell ya sugarcube. We asked the train ta stay a mite longer so ya could get on easy after sayin’ yer goodbyes.”

“Oh my…. I’m sorry everypony. I made a complete fool of myself, and hurt you all for no reason.”

“Its fine” said Rainbow Dash, “I was looking for a good workout anyway! Besides, we all know how you get when you’re flustered and want to impress the princess.” Twilight turned a shade of bright red, and they all shared a laugh as they gathered for a group hug before Twilight boarded.

However, the perfect moment was shattered when they heard wing beats and a call “Twilight Sparkle!” Two of Celestia’s guards streaked towards them, out of breath, but still pushing hard, trailing a large enchanted flight carriage. They landed with a heavy unified thud, and one stepped forward. “Miss Sparkle, the Princess has requested your and your friends’ presence at the castle immediately. Something has happened.” With that, the six shared a look and clambered aboard the carriage as Applejack waved the conductor for the train out of the station.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“It’s sure been a while since we were all here, huh gang?” asked Spike, as they walked quickly down the large entrance hall for the castle.

“Not now Spike, we need to hurry!” shushed Twilight. They quickly trotted up the steps and headed directly for Celestia’s hearing chambers. There, they saw a sight that frightened them on a deep level. Both of their beloved princesses, clearly shaken up and drained, were seated on the far side of the room. None of the group had ever seen either princess like this, let alone both at once. Something was very wrong…

“Princess Celestia, we came as soon as we could. What’s going on? What happened to the two of you? You look terrible!”

“Twilight, all will be explained in a moment. First, I feel like we could all use a little tea.” With that, several servants poured in and presented each pony (and dragon) with a fine cup of hot tea. Spike downed it all at once, relishing the warmth it spread through his body, and the rest sipped quietly as they waited for the princess to speak again. After several moments of silence, Celestia looked at them sternly, and began to recant the tale of what had occurred that morning.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I…. wait…… What?!?!” Rainbow asked incredulously.
“You heard exactly what I said, Rainbow Dash. The stallion that taught Luna and I, thousands of years ago, one who we believed to be dead and gone has returned, possessed by the same nightmare that held Luna the day you all first met, during the Summer Sun Festival. Somehow it has survived and come back stronger than ever, in the only form we couldn’t hope to defeat…. “

“How is this possible?” Twilight asked. “I’ve never heard of any of this before…. None of the history texts mentioned anything like what you’ve described, you’ve never said anything of your mentor, and we always assumed you were the strongest of your kind.” she stated.

“Yes, I realize this must be a lot to take in, but I assure you, it’s all true. We never revealed it to anyone, because it was never relevant. We thought that force had been destroyed by our teacher’s final act…. I never suspected It was what had Luna acting as she did. I knew there was something wrong with Luna, all those years ago, but I never suspected she was being controlled...”

Luna spoke up, “I find it hard to believe as well, but I think ‘tis the truth. I recall whispers in the dark, taunting me, angering me, flaring my jealousy of you, dear sister. Then I remember very little until our reunion in the Everfree forest...”

“I never would have believed you were under another’s control, Luna, because what it would suggest was something all alicorns believed impossible. The idea that a soul could survive on our plane for an extended period of time without a body was a theory at best, and scoffed at by most… the corporeal essence should have dissipated. Let alone a corrupt soul and a period of over a thousand years.... I only wish I had realized sooner, something could have been done to prevent this”

Pinkie suddenly chimed in, “You know, if I was that nightmare, and I had the power to possess a pony, I’d do it and be all sneaky and throw parties for ponies who weren’t expecting it!”

Suddenly, Twilight gasped. “That’s it!!!! Pinkie Pie, you’re a genius!” she shouted.

“No I’m not, I’m a pony! Jeez Twi, I thought we established this… You’re gonna confuse all our readers!”

“Pinkie, I… What?... Never mind.” Twilight shook her head. “Princess, I know how the Nightmare survived! You said that your master spent his soul in an attempt to destroy the nightmare, right? Well, forcing something like that into a spell would have to cause feedback. There was simply too much energy, and so the spell was unbalanced. Rather than completely destroying the nightmare, it hollowed out your master’s body, and destroyed the Nightmare’s body. With equivalent exchange, we cannot completely destroy energy, or make it appear out of nowhere, and so your teacher’s soul was used as fuel for the spell, which destroyed the Nightmare’s physical form. However, he couldn’t use the spell to annihilate both the nightmare’s body and soul, since he didn’t factor in his body as well. The energy was enough to destroy the physical forms of the Nightmare and its army, but not their souls. The Nightmare has been flitting from pony to pony for years, biding its time until it had gained enough strength to find a new form. It noticed Princess Luna’s jealousy of you, and took her by surprise! You know the rest….”

“I believe you are absolutely right Twilight, and so we must tread carefully. We have no way of knowing what the Nightmare has planned. Now that you know what is at stake, I wish to explain the last portion of what happened, and our plan.” Celestia said calmly, and began to explain the rest of her tale.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Afterwards, they were all shocked. None of the six friends had anything to say, or anything they could say. Finally, Spike spoke up. “So, wait a minute. We all have to FIGHT each other to beat this crazy monster which is more powerful than anything the world has ever known…. But the ultimate prize is our reward? I’m having trouble wrapping my head around this one…”

“I agree with Spike, this is simply dreadful! How in Equestria do you expect one such as moi to fight other ponies? I simply won’t have any part of it.” Rarity stamped her hoof.

“If you don’t mind, I’d rather not do it either. I know that I can’t harm anyone, and I’m sure you all realize it too…..”

“Fluttershy, don’t try that. You know as well as I do that when you get worked up, you can be crazy scary” Rainbow Dash said. Fluttershy just looked down and mewled.

“Don’t worry, my little ponies. I refuse to force you to do anything you don’t want to, but all of Equestria hangs in the balance. I implore you, as the holders of the Elements of Harmony, do your best to stop the Nightmare. It will be unable to use all of our teacher’s powers, as we have sapped It of much of its strength. As well as this, there are rules in place, bound by magic until the tournament is complete. We cannot interfere on anyone’s behalf, as it would allow the Nightmare access to its powers. We must not use magic until it is all finished. But, while we cannot directly cast spells, we have control over the protection and regeneration spells that were weaved into the tournament challenge. We will set limits, and have a wide variety of different challenges available. As well as this, the tournament will be open to the public, and we plan on inviting fighters from our neighboring countries, as the outcome will affect them as well. Only you and a select few will know the truth. The general public must believe this to part of the upcoming Summer Sun Festival, or there will be panic. We plan on explaining how no one will feel great pain or suffer permanent damage, and what the prize is. The more fighters we have, the better our chances of stopping the Nightmare before it’s too late.”

“Princess, this is a lot to take in, but you know you can count on me! How about it girls?” Twilight asked.

“Yee-Haw! Time for a good ol’ fashioned rodeo beatdown!” Applejack Shouted as loud as possible.

“I have to compete, if AJ is doing it! No way am I losing to an earth pony!” Rainbow Dash grinned.

“Are you loco in the coco? Of course I’ll do it! This is gonna be the most fun thing that happens all year!” Pinkie was bouncing in anticipation.

“Ugh…. I suppose if I MUST, I will try to win a few matches. But I had better not get dirty!” Rarity begrudgingly agreed.

“Well, if all the rest of you are doing it, I guess… I mean, I suppose… I think maybe I could try…” Fluttershy mumbled.

“Count me in too! I could use something to do, and I bet I’ll do way better than any of you! HA!” Spike said with confidence.

“In that case, I suppose we have much to get ready for. Go back to Ponyville, everyone, and wait for us to finish preparations. We’ll send word along, and set up a registry for ponies to sign up. Be alert, as we don’t know what the Nightmare has planned.” Celestia said, trying to hold her composure, but let her worried look through.

“Don’t worry, Princess. When the six of us...” *AHEM* Spike grunted. “Heheh…. Sorry…. SEVEN of us work together, there isn’t anything that we can’t do!”

Suddenly, a mellifluous voice filled the air, “Oh really? Are you all so sure of that? Because it seems to me that you can’t properly seal away a spirit of discord… heheheHAHAHAHA!”

“Discord!” Celestia gasped. “No…. no no no, this cannot be happening now!”

“Oh, but it is, dear Celestia. Come now, the fun is just beginning! Did you really believe that I would let a gathering of my old immortal chums go unnoticed? Look, here’s the deal…. I’m still trapped in this hunk of rock, but I feel like I warrant a piece of the action here. I want some representation, and a chance to be free of this prison. I’m only asking nicely, because I know how much it makes you squirm to know I’m right. I can get my champions in, whether you like it or not, so you might want to stay on my good side, hmm? Ta for now!” With a resonating laugh, the voice faded back into nothing.

“Can this day get any worse?” Twilight asked, exasperated.

“Yeah, of course it can silly! It could be a Monday!” Pinkie giggled. Twilight, having no response to Pinkie’s usual randomness, suggested they take their leave. They quickly said goodbye to the princesses, and headed back to Ponyville to prepare for the challenges ahead.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After they had left, Luna took the opportunity to speak with her sister. “Celestia, you know those girls aren’t warriors. They can’t handle this! Let the Peacekeeping Corps and I take care of this. You and I both know we are much more suited for the challenges ahead!”

“Luna, you know that you cannot be involved in the fighting. Besides that, your soldiers will already be informed and ready. I took the liberty of sending them a message regarding the situation just before Twilight and her friends got here. Understand however, they are the backup. Twilight won’t let us down, and I can’t say we should sell her allies short either. They are all capable and accomplished in their own ways. If anyone can save us, it’s them.”

Luna was torn between her pride and the hard truth, but she decided to trust her sister’s judgement. “Alright, sister. The element bearers will be the ones to save us.” She said. “However, they aren’t ready. Set it so they fight my soldiers first. They will win, but not without pushing their limits, and learning the hardships that await them.”

“Agreed.” Celestia nodded her head. “Now then, we have much to do, and even more to prepare for. Let us begin.” With that, both sauntered deeper into the palace, their fates and the task ahead weighing heavily upon their shoulders.

Pic: Fighting is magic
http://www.ponibooru.org/post/view/101521#search=mane_six