It was a difficult task to remember what Night Light had told him. The girls did not move a muscle, stuck in a shocked trance. "It will not help Twilight if both Night and myself are turned to the dark side. Now it was clear to them just how much Twilight valued her friendship with them, as well as her relationship with her brother and with Celestia. Standing before Chrysalis was a tall and thick stone gate, which opened immediately to reveal an equally tall iron portcullis. Before long, Applejack had managed to pull herself together. ", "Yes. "Your Majesty, may I present Snake Bite. Tone asked flatly. "Now I must return to the palace. Cadance was left with the job of escorting them out. To make matters worse, she was the Element of Honesty (or rather, the FORMER Element of Honesty) and therefore she couldn't tell a lie. "You have nothing to be sorry for. She's even madder now. The memories of that dreadful episode of her life were rushing back into her mind. "You crash-landed, pretty hard too." Stepping through them was Spike. Twilight is skeptical about her brother's wedding and Ash is worried about the threat on Canterlot. Even Spark was having trouble dancing the ballet of clashed blades with his other, despite his high morale. Shining assured the company. Back in Canterlot, Shining Armor had arrived at his and Twilights old family home with the orders to inform their parents, Twilight Velvet and Night Light of their current situation. Angel tried his best to comfort her, not knowing the reason behind his master's sorrow. To make me be Celestia's attack dog again?!!". Meanwhile, Snake Bite was maintaining his cover from outside. No doubt the events from earlier were still taking a hefty toll on her mind. It was making her apprehensive, but her overall mood was not shaken. Turning to the girls, she decided to test them, in order to prepare them for what they were about to face. Tears began to flow from their eyes and everything, but most importantly, the last word had fallen to Twilight. Twilight was clearly still in anguish and self-pity. And don't come back unless you want to be my friends again!". It was because of him that the most recent events of the day transpired, and it wasn't just any old day. "You have not seen the last of me Celestia! We must catch the train". Applejack's voice began to waver as her normally iron will sagged, melting back into a puddle of regret. "What if I was wrong about the impostor? "No Rainbow!" Remember, I'll be staying in Carousel Boutique while I'm here, so if you ever need me, I'm here for you. Please wait here.". Have you forgotten just how much she believed in you? ", "No ma'am. Believe me, I spent a lot of time with her when she was a filly, and she would never do something like that without good reason. "Well, OK, I'll take your word for it. "That is true, but here's the thing Granny Smith." You can still be angry at Twilight's friends, Shining Armor and Celestia, but not too much. Replied Velvet anxiously. ", "Excellent. I'm sorry if this interrogation caused you any inconvenience. Celestia could feel her gut twisting with guilt more and more. We all chose that stupid bug over our best friend, that's how we repaid Twilight for all the fun times we've had together. We both know Cadance is capable of taking on any responsibility with the same good grace and warmth she is so blessed with. 19. r/mylittlepony 12 days ago. ", "I was well aware of such a situation unfolding sir." All passengers, the next stop is Ponyville!". Applejack replied. Back in the wedding hall, there was little more than seven ponies with the responsibility of Canterlot's invasion laid on their shoulders, a baby dragon devastated by Twilight's revelation, while also disgusted at his own reaction to the lavender unicorn's outburst at the wedding rehearsal. With a "mmph" of configuration, she smiled at Luna once more. Another brief pause followed, before Spike made the decision to report to Twilight. Her efforts to try to pick herself up were in vain, as no matter how hard she tried to put it behind her, temporarily or otherwise, her own memories always found a way back to the forefront of her mind. Luna gasped in shock. For Celestia and the Mane 5, this was very grave news. Still, somepony had to say it, and it fell to Rainbow to take up that mantle. With an instant feeling of urgency coursing through her body, Luna was quick to acquiesce to Shining's orders. ", "But that's the problem Princess." He glanced up ever so slightly to look at her, but quickly looked back down too ashamed to look her in the eye. In the background, Black Blade had returned with one of the best spies in the army, Snake Bite. "We are Twilight's friends! Night moved closer to his wife, who leaned close to him in response. The rest of the Mane 5, along with Cadance and Spike, joined the hug, doing all in their power to console the distraught unicorn. ", "Very well. ", "No, it's OK. Celestia please help us.". Engagement at this time is a no-go. One of the guards said gruffly. Was the collective response from the gathered war room personnel. But what she saw instead was a small settlement, complete with an equally small garrison of Royal Guards. They had a job to do, and they would get it done. You know what we want, and if you do not surrender, then we will happily walk over you and anypony else who stands in our way to get it". Their mistake, which deserved a big fat mark of shame. The sound was so loud that it caused everything made of glass in the room (along with Shining's eardrums) to shatter. For Twilight and Spike, it had felt like hours since they had left Canterlot for Ponyville, but in reality, it had only been a little over an hour and a half. ", "I have no doubt Twilight was gravely hurt by what her friends, her brother and Celestia did to her," Luna replied, "but what prevented the Nightmare Forces from corrupting her is that she had no bitter feelings towards them or desires of their destruction. Shining couldn't keep it together anymore and slowly wept. Just then, the conductor called out from the middle carriage. "What is it Granny Smith?" The cowpony confirmed glumly. What matters is that we are sorry for what we did, and all we want now is for us to be friends again. Rainbow tried going after him, but Applejack raised a hoof to stop her; it was best that they did not disturb either Spike or Twilight at this time. I know we did try but it's just not enough. From the sound of the plan, this new operation would succeed where the previous attempt failed. Has Twilight ever been wrong about something before?". Snake grinned. What if Cadance wasn't an impostor? You see, before I became Nightmare Moon, I shared rule of Equestria with my dear sister. Chrysalis and the Changelings followed suit. With that, the Mane 5 began to move out of the treehouse, one by hesitant one. Only the Creator knew how long they were going to be there, but that mattered little to Cadance. "So, what's the plan?". ", "Of course they do Twilight, that's why they're here. Twilight was somewhere out there, hurt, alone, and for all he knew, lost. Twilight had just reunited with her brother, who also happened to be the groom. "What?! "Well, it's best that I start from the beginning..". Everypony has learned from their mistakes, not least the girls. I mean, what are the chances they could screw up again? Replied Applejack, slightly unsure of what was about to happen. Shining's thoughts were soon interrupted by the sound of Celestia throwing herself atop her bed, dispirited and miserable. After a while of walking, Spike eventually reached Twilight's quarters, where he saw Princess Cadance closing the door leading inside. It didn't take long for Velvet to catch on either. However, Cadance did take into account that while upsetting a bride before her wedding is an undeniably despicable act, the knowledge that the fate of Equestria was at stake managed to outweigh her crime, but only a little. I am her number one assistant, and one of the few loyal friends she still has. "Instead of waiting outside the city to attack, our forces will infiltrate the city in disguise en masse, and blend in with the locals. With that, Spike went back inside, the doors closing behind him. She was failing to find words to counter Spike's arguments. To her, the Royal Guard were as naive as ever, but one should never underestimate their capabilities. I was just thinking about stuff. After thanking the runner, who left the war room immediately, Shining read the letter, which was sent from the village attacked by the Changelings moments earlier. Also, we didn't just walk out on her. Just then, Spike stepped down the stairs. "Y-yeah, sure." Inside the Changeling Hive, which too was being lashed by the ferocious rainfall, the leaders of Queen Chrysalis's army were gathered inside the war room, studying a strategic map of Canterlot which was spread out on the table. She knew they couldn't afford to say something that would upset Twilight. This site and its contents are not affiliated with Hasbro, Inc. Maugrim! To Luna, that was both an outrage and a major injustice to the lavender unicorn, who had done so much for not only Equestria, but for them both. Not only did they emotionally scar our beloved daughter, they left her vulnerable and helpless. ", "It was I and Alkaios who came up with a separate plan of attack to deal with the princesses, your Majesty." Perhaps the word "Twily" sparked connotations between Twilight and the memory of her brother banishing her. The worst thing about all this is that they didn't even care! That much was clear. "Oh, well that's a shame", said Night Light, disappointed. Unfortunately her mind would not serve the same purpose, constantly tormenting her with the still fresh memories of herself and the girls abandoning Twilight at the rehearsal and her subsequent reaction following the victory over the Changelings. "Rainbow!" Raider! You doing OK this morning? The difference here was that while Twilight was wronged, Spike was as much part of this disaster as Princess Luna was. ", "As much as I respect and admire your loyalty to your family Captain, I'm afraid your duties lie elsewhere. Fluttershy returned to her cottage and carried on her duties to her animal friends but all the while, she thought about Twilight and how much she had been hurt behind her and the others' backs. As you know, we had received word of a threat against Canterlot, which turned out to be true and more effective than we believed. "Who's there?" Somepony would probably catch us. They now recognize that they made a terrible mistake and they wish to make amends however possible.". "At ease." Meanwhile, Applejack had woken up from a deep slumber. The stallion was beginning to grow desperate, fueled by his intense remorse for his actions. For all intents and purposes, this felt like an interrogation, and probably the most painful and harrowing encounter she had to deal with yet. Having settled himself in the living room, Shining gathered what remained of his steely nerves and what was left of his resolve to break the news to his parents. ", "Yeah..I guess." Fluttershy said before yawning mid-sentence. However, teams of my pegasi will dive bomb the Guards and engage them from behind, allowing our troops to move in and finish them off. Spike could only smile at that. The guards immediately saluted, before giving Luna the lead out of the room. She mocked and belittled my efforts to prepare for the wedding, as well as those of the others. I would do it myself, but I must oversee repairs to the city, as well as the immediate treatment of the injured. Last time we merely harvested the love from the ponies and kept attacking. One would expect her to take it maturely. Do you realize, Princess, that had Twilight not found the real Cadance, who was also imprisoned down there, they could have both died? "Now, we are aware that at this point, the Canterlot Royal Guard will come out of the castle en masse and attempt to form a defensive perimeter around the castle walls and entrance. Replied Snake. Still, her mindset was very much like Spike's; it remained to be seen if the Mane 5 regretted their actions at all, therefore now was the time to prove it. "What is it you want?" I need to know what she was doing the day of the invasion. Spike frowned. Celestia wanted to personally tell Night Light and Twilight Velvet that she, Shining and her students friends are all sorry for what they did to Twilight and assure them of their rekindled friendships as soon as possible, but the chances of their blessings and for the chat were slim. As for the other group of officers, they are to take their men and assist with reconstruction efforts wherever they are needed.". If it was any consolation, although she did not know it at the time, Applejack was not the only one experiencing a restless night. "What if I was wrong? "Without her, we can't be friends anymore!" Spike filled me in on everything, especially the part where those five backstabbers wish to apologize.". Shining replied grimly. Something he couldn't quite put his claw on. Were it not for Twilight and Cadance's intervention, Canterlot faced certain doom at the hooves of Chrysalis, and they would've been held responsible.