Chapter 15

The other Elements were up to their eyeballs in monsters. Manticores, Timberwolves, Kappas, Giant Vampire Bats, and other horrible creatures were pouring in from every direction.

“We gotta think of something!” Applejack yelled, her voiced muffled by her mouth full of the tail of a Cockatrice as she used it as a makeshift cudgel.

“Well, we’ve got to wake up Twilight! She’ll know what to do!” Rainbow reasoned as she karate-kicked some Timberwolves.

“And how exactly are we going to wake her up?” Rarity asked as she used her horn as a light to drive away some giant bats, “I’m the only Unicorn here and I don’t know a thing about mental spells!”

“We gotta have faith Twilight can get herself out!” Pinkie Pie called back as she bounced around, deftly avoiding the teeth and claws of a dozen monsters “It’s our only hope!”

“We can’t hold out forever!” Fluttershy cried as she used her Stare to keep a pack of Chimeras at bay.

“Then we’ll hold out as long as we can, sugarcube!” Applejack announced as she threw the Cockatrice deep into the brush, where it collided with a pack of gargoyles.

***

He was amazing.

Despite being an evil, sociopathic tyrant… Twilight had to admit he was a genius with magic. During their duel he conjured golems from smoke, manipulated tiny storm clouds inside the throne room, created crystal barriers from thin air, made himself shrink and grow in size, and other magicks Twilight never even imagined were possible.

As Twilight used her magic to move a pillar of marble to block the mouth of a black dragon Sombra had summoned, she knew that she couldn’t win. Twilight was naturally gifted with magic of all stripes and had been studying all her life, but he was older and wiser than her by leagues and far more vicious. And she was tired… So very tired…

“You will fail Twilight Sparkle” Sombra proclaimed, as he dispelled his dragon, “You have no chance against a Unicorn King. You will fail and Celestia will cast you out!”

He’s right, Twilight thought, I don’t have a prayer.

Hey! What’s with all this quitter talk? another voice pitched in, You can’t let this guy beat you!

Twilight was surprised and confused at the presence of another voice in her head, but didn’t have time to ponder on it as Sombra telekinetically tipped one of the pillars over to fall on Twilight. She instinctively caught it with her own magicks, but then Sombra decided to go the extra mile. He fired a blast at the celling and rubble from it fell around Twilight, adding to her weight to hold up. She couldn’t teleport away, because to switch spells would leave the rubble that fraction of a second to crush her. She strained to hold up the weight as Sombra added more and more weight to Twilight’s burden, dropping more pillars and throwing more debris on her.

C’mon Twilight! That voice piped in again, You’ve beaten tougher guys then this!

Who are you? Another one of Sombra’s tricks?

Oh, come on egghead! You know who it is!

And then Twilight realized she recognized that husky voice anywhere.

Rainbow Dash…

And as if summoned by her name, a ghostly image of Rainbow Dash joined Twilight under her prison of rubble, walking through the debris as if it wasn’t there.

That’s my name! Don’t wear it out!

But how?

Oh, we’re never too far away from you, Darling, Rarity said as she entered the scene as well, After all, we’re bonded together by more than just the Elements of Harmony you know.

We’re bonded by our friendship, remember? Fluttershy reminded as she joined too, We’re always in your heart, just like you’re always in ours. And we’re here to help you fight, even if it is a little scary.

“This isn’t real!” Twilight said aloud, shaking her head, “You’re not real! You’re just figments of my imagination!”

Maybe we are, but that don’t mean we ain’t right, sugarcube, Applejack said, crossing her legs in her signature pose, And Fluttershy hit the nail on the head: what you’re doin’, fighting this Sombra fella, is scary stuff. And that’s what he wants: to scare ya.

Twiiiiiliiiiight! Twiiiiiliiiiight! I am the ghost of Pinkie Piiiie! And I’ve come back with a waaaaarniiiiiing!!

PINKIE! The other four scolded.

Sorry, Pinkie apologized, Seriously though, all Sombra-puss has been trying to do ever since he showed up is to make us scared. To make you scared, Twilight.

And you’re not scared of us, are you Twilight? Asked Rainbow Dash.

“No…”

And you’re not scared of Sombra? Rarity inquired.

“Yes! I mean… No… I mean…”

He is pretty scary… Fluttershy mentioned.

But he ain’t what she’s really afraid of! Applejack said, So Twilight…

What

Are

You

Afraid

Of?

Twilight’s thoughts turned to Princess Celestia, her teacher, who stared down at her as she struggled to fight an opponent she could not hope to defeat. She thought of the look of bored, disinterested disappointment that must have been on that face. And then she thought of something Celestia had said once:

You are a wonderful student, Twilight. I don't have to get a letter every week to know that.

It was what Princess Celestia told her when her first Friendship Lesson had come in late. She realized that one of her great struggles had always been her desire for the Princess’ attention and respect, and that her greatest fear was losing that respect from a pony who was like a second mother to her. But that brought its own realization: that deep down she had never felt she was worthy enough to acknowledge that she already had that respect.

This revelation brought her strength, and with that strength she used her magic to blast the piled detritus off of her in a fantastic explosion.

“What!?” Sombra exclaimed.

Twilight opened her eyes to face Sombra, a new fire burning in her eyes. And, as if to acknowledge her victorious epiphany, her pain receded as her wounds healed. In mere moments, Twilight was completely restored without a scratch on her.

“How are you doing this!?” Sombra demanded.

Twilight didn’t waste a word, she just charged all her energy into her horn and fired. The magic slammed into Sombra and he shattered into millions of shards like a black crystal mirror, screaming in rage.

Twilight looked around and saw the ghostly images of her friends regain their solid form as they grinned at her with approval. Twilight then turned to Celestia and found she still wore her cold expression. But it lasted only for a moment, and then it melted into a smile.

“Well done, Twilight,” Princess Celestia’s cold demeanor was gone and replaced with her familiar warmth, “You have passed my test. As I knew you would.”

Twilight smiled as the world was overcome by white light.

***

Twilight’s friends were desperately huddled around Twilight, making a protective phalanx around their catatonic friend, as they were surrounded on all sides by the creatures of the Everfree Forest.

“Well, I guess this is it,” Rarity said glumly “I would have preferred to meet my end somewhere with more silk sheets, but… At least we’re together.”

“Ya know Rainbow, you and Fluttershy could always make a break for it though the canopy,” Applejack pointed out, “We wouldn’t blame ya.”

“I’ve never abandoned my friends before, and I don’t plan to start,” Rainbow Dash said defiantly as Fluttershy nodded in agreement.

Pinkie Pie reached out and took Rainbow Dash’s and Rarity’s hooves in both of hers. They took the hint and all five friends locked arms around Twilight.

“Finish them!” Sombra commanded.

Sombra’s monsters rushed, but as the friends prepared for the worst, a bright white glow erupted from the middle of the six friends. The hordes of creatures were stunned, the Shadow King himself hissed, and the Elements felt a rush of energy flow through them. Squealing, screeching, and howling, the monsters fled the bright light, retreating back into the forest. Twilight’s eyes, once dull green, now blazed white and without pupils. She floated above her circle of friends as they gave her power and she gave it to them in return.

“What is this!?” Sombra hissed, shielding his eyes from the light.

“This is the end for you, Sombra,” Twilight intoned, her voice having a strange echo effect, “My friends and I have conquered our fears. And so, you have no power over us.”

“No…” Sombra whispered “No! NOO!! I have suffered enough! Now you will suffer, Twilight Sparkle!!”

With that, the illusion cast over Zecora ended, and the zebra fell unconscious. Back in Ponyville, the crystals that were only seconds from destroying everything stopped. The shield fell. Sombra retracted all his magic into himself, and fired a monstrous, black energy blast from the Crystal Tree at the six friends. Twilight used her horn as the focal point for all her untapped magical energy and the energy provided by the love and strength of her friends and unleashed it all in a titanic blast of her own.

Blackness of Hate collided with magenta of Friendship as the two hit each other. It became a struggle as the two Unicorns pitted their wills against each other.

But Sombra was alone, had only himself to draw upon.

Twilight was not.

She overwhelmed Sombra’s magic and, in a scream of rage, Sombra’s tree was engulfed in the magenta magic and detonated with tremendous force.

***

Ponyville was rocked by an explosion, not from within the town, but from the shockwave of the explosion in the Everfree Forest. Windows rattled and the ground shook as the mushroom cloud from the detonation expanded high into the sky. The force of it was such that the clouds that had blanketed Ponyville were blasted away, letting the sunshine spill over the anxious town. There was a few seconds of complete silence, and then the town as a whole erupted into thunderous cheering. Stallions laughed, mares wept with joy, and the fillies and colts danced in the streets. No one was sure of what exactly had happened, but they knew they had been saved.

Only Spike did not raise his voice. He looked toward the slowly dissipating cloud with anxious eyes, his claw grasping the scroll he had written less than an hour ago.

“Twilight… Please be ok…”

With puff of Spike’s magical breath the scroll was away, uninterrupted by dark magic this time.