> Be Twilight.
> After a few hours of no food and little rest, you aren’t really in the mood for cordiality.
> Plus, Mac’s constant corrections and apparent superiority seriously wrinkles your sprinkles.
> You’ll show him.
> You can [spoiler]wing[/spoiler] it just as well as he can!
> So, without much ceremony, you gave ‘winging it’ a shot.
> After bashing the door open, you spin around and you get a glimpse of…
> of…
> nothing.  
> The room is completely empty.
> Walking inside, you look around, and while the room is pretty dark, its quiet as the grave.
> The room itself was massive, roughly half the size of a hoofball field.
> There is a large pillar to one end that appear to be the focus of the room
> Perfectly smooth canals of fetid green standing water surround the main room.
> A few windows let streams of light in, but are either gated off or not large enough to escape through.
> In all, the eerie quietness was not helping.
> “Well this is the room.” Rarity says, breaking the heavy silence, “But it was a lot more active when I was here…”
“Perhaps they’re all out looking for us?”
> “I don’t think so,” Daring added, “Ahuizotl is a lot of things but he isn’t really one for action. He prefers to pay others to do the dirty work for him or swoop in and steal the work of others.”
“So where do you think he is?”
> Daring shrugs.
> “Probably off setting a trap somewhere.”
> Out of nowhere, the door you entered through slams shut, echoing off the walls.
> Everyone falls silent, waiting for what happens next.
> “Right you are, Daring,” states a very familiar disembodied voice.
> The voice echoes from somewhere in the room.
> You swear you see some of the water ripple slightly, but it wasn’t enough to pinpoint the location.
> “Ahuizotl, I should have known you would pull something like this!”
> “You’re right, you should have!”
> The blue monkey-dog crawls out of the muck and stands before you.
“Why do you want to bring back Nightmare Moon!? She wants to block out the sun and plunge the world into eternal darkness!”
> Ahuizotl laughs at you.
> Why is that laugh so annoying?
“Stop Laughing! Princess Luna has returned to be a fair ruler of Equestria, and we won’t let you jeopardize that!”
> His laugher dies to a chuckle.
> “You don’t understand, do you? Well, let me educate you. ‘Nightmare Moon’ was not a pony, but rather a possessive spirit, the Dark Shadow of the Moon.”
> You raise an eyebrow at his mockery.
> “The creature known as Nightmare Moon was simply the most well known case amongst ponies, but ancient texts mention other victims. There are earlier reports of the Dark Shadow of the Moon affecting ancient kings, those with heavily repressed feelings becoming monstrous renditions of their former selves at night.
> “Like werewolves?” Mac asks.
> “Similar, but not exactly. The Dark Shadow only seems to infect those who have a specific goal in mind, then, come nightfall, grants them immense strength, but twists their objectives to its own goals…”
“That makes no sense!”
> “What doesn’t make sense about it? Have you ever seen nightmare moon during the day?”
> Come to think of it, you can’t say you have…
> You wrack your brain for fallacies, but come up with nothing.
> “And wouldn’t your princess be the ideal target for a spirit that only has power at night…?”
> You don’t respond.
> You have nothing to say.
> “Your Princess’s jealousy simply made her an ideal target…”
> “And what could you possibly want with a dark spirit, Ahuizotl?” Daring interjects.
> “Simple! The Dark Shadow grants whosoever is infected great power to achieve their goals. After years of praying to him, the stars have granted us a proper host…”
>Ahuiztol gestures you to follow him and leads you to a gated window.
> “Take a look, pony, and see the chariot of my salvation!”
> You follow his gaze to what appears to a meteor.
> It’s oddly shaped, but easily visible against the sand beyond the iron bars.
> “It’s truly a shame that you won’t be around to see it!”
> His tail grabs Daring, and he scampers up the vertical walls of the room, heading for a hole in the ceiling.
> “Hey!” Rainbow shouts, firing up her wings and taking to the air.
> Ahuizotl turns, smiling menacingly at her.
> “Farewell, Daring Do!”
> With a flick of his tail, he throws Daring at Rainbow, the two colliding in the air and falling into the putrid water.
> “…and Friends!”
> Ahuizotl crawls through the hole and quickly sealed it with rocks as Rainbow and Daring crawl out of the water, coughing and sputtering.
 
 
> Be Mac.
> You we listening intently to Ahuizotl, and upon his leave, you rush to the window
> You instantly recognize the meteorite.
> Pop Quiz: When is a meteor not a meteor?
> When it’s an airplane.
> And not just any airplane.
> Your eyes travel the wreckage, and looking towards the front, you notice the lettering emblazoned on the side of the aircraft.
> It’s heavily scratched and covered in dirt, but you know the words anywhere.
> ‘Fly by night.’
> Oh no.
 
 
> There’s no way.
> Of all the people you could have the misfortune of sharing a friendship with...
> And here?
> HERE
> OF ALL PLACES!
> You knew he had a knack for showing up at the wrong place at the wrong time, but this was a little ridiculous.
> You look up to see Rainbow and Daring drying themselves off with their wings.
> Rainbow is rubbing her bruised head, and rarity rushes over to aid her.
> “I can’t believe him! Of all the insufferable beings I could have the displeasure of meeting...”
> Your thoughts exactly.
> As Rainbow recovered from a crack to her skull, she slowly began to walk around, if unsteadily so.
> You look around.
> Door’s locked.
> No surprise there.
> A couple of barrels of heavy, heavy alcohol.
> I guess the orgy wasn’t all he had planned for the party.
> Some spears rested against the wall after being abandoned by their owners.
> You take off your backpack and take a look.
> Some lightly burned rope, matches, and a map of a now worthless location.
> A soft gurgle from the waters brings you and your little ponies from your activities.
> “Did you hear that?”
> You look around at the pools of liquid.
> A ripple here and there, other than that, nothing…
> Rainbow slowly trots over to the waters edge and peers into the water.
> “Darling, I wouldn’t do that. We dont know what’s in there…”
> “Rarity’s right… You never know what Ahuiztol’s got in mind…”
> “Hold up, I think I see something…”
> Rainbow reaches her hoof into the water.
> And screams.
“Rainbow!”
> You rush over and grab her, pulling her away from the water.
“Are you alright!? Where does it hurt?”
> You look to her offending appendage, and don’t see any immediate damage.
> It wasn’t until now did the noise coming from her reach your ears, and it was laugher, not crying.
> “Man, I got you again, it’s just too easy!”
> Gaddamnit.
> Rainbow regains her composure, and points past you.
> “And look, it’s just a frog making the ripples! Man, you are so gullible…”
> You follow her gaze, and, sure enough, you see a small frog, roughly the size of your fist.
> It croaks softly, before hopping back towards the water.
> “I think I’ll name him ScaredyMac.” Rainbow says.
“Real creative.”
> “Thanks. I Try,” she say, your sarcasm lost on her.
> ScaredyMac hops into the canal with a heavy plop.
> Rainbow walks to the edge and watches him swim away and out of sight.
> “See, nothing to be afraid of. Don’t be so uptight. Not everything is a monster.”
> Daring, who was hovering above the scene, suddenly lets loose a scream.
> “Daring, you can’t just pull that prank right after I d-“
> Rainbow was interrupted by Daring’s hooves to her chest, forcing her down.
 
> Be Rainbow
> You barely had a second before you got hit by daring, forcing you to the ground.
> You look up, seeing feathers.
> But not Daring’s.
> Large, blood red feathers.
> Wings.
> Scales.
> Water.
> You blink.
> A splash.
> Daring was gone.
 
 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Auuqlcom6tM
> Be Twilight.
> You saw the whole thing.
> It only lasted an instant, but you know what you saw.
> After Rainbow’s [spoiler]horseplay[/spoiler], something giant burst from the water.
> Seeing this, Daring dive-bombed Rainbow, forcing her legs to buckle under her.
> The object was a head, serpentine in nature, but covered in red feathers.
> And massive, easily the size of two carriages end to end.
> More intriguing was the crackling of electricity around it as it lunged out.
> While it was clearly reaching for Rainbow, Daring’s actions put her in the line of fire instead.
> Or rather rows of teeth.
> The large head missed Rainbow, grabbing Daring and pulling her under the water.
> It was all so fast.
> Against your better judgement, you rush to the water’s edge and attempt to fire up your horn again, only to be met with the sputtering of magical energy associated with retarding wards.
> All you can do is call out.
“Daring!”
> You were met with the sight of bubbles floating up from the deep.
> The water was too murky to see anything, but you were met with the sickening sight of the murky brown water turning blood red.
 “Daring…?”
> Rainbow was recovering from the ordeal, still in shock.
> “What the heck was that!”
“I don’t know! A dragon maybe?”
> “Dragons don’t live in water!”
“Some do! Maybe. We don’t know much about them, maybe –“
> “- Who cares what it was, what are we going to do about it!”
> You look to Mac, who is, oddly, fiddling with the spears, and taking the spearheads off and tying them together.
> The whole room reeks of alcohol, and you noticed that the barrels had been knocked over.
> What is he cooking up…?
> You we snapped from your trance by Rarity, who not-so-gently pulls you back.
> “Stay away from the edge Darling, we don’t want two casualties, now, do we?”
> You nod, not being able to argue.
> “Daring!” Rainbow calls out in vain.
> Daring always escapes the traps.
> Right?
> You are all huddled together in the center of the room.
> You feel the presence all around you.
> “Accept your fate, sacrifices.”
> The deep ethereal voice seemingly comes from everywhere, and is less spoken as much as it echoes in your mind like telepathy.
“W-who are you?”
> You try to hold your composure, but your voice is shaking.
> “I can sense your fear, my child. Do not fear paradise…”
> The water stirs.
> A pony crawls from the murky depths.
> You smile for a second, and are about to call out to Daring, only to realize it’s not her.
> Before you stands a brown stallion, adorned with feathers and jaguar skins.
> “…For all will see it one day.”
> His voice was not one of malicious intent, but rather one of calm.
> “Nothing lasts forever. Give your lives to me, and I will grant you paradise for eternity.”
> You hear what sounds like birdsong.
“Who are you?” You ask again.
> “So single-minded, aren’t you, mortal?”
> He chuckles lightly.
> “I go by many names, but most know me as The Winged Serpent.”
> Out of nowhere, rainbow swoops past you.
> Carrying a spear.
> She plunges it into the pony’s chest, protruding a few inches beyond.
> Oh shit, Rainbow, what have you done!
> “I don’t care who you are. No one hurts my friends!”
> Looking down at his injury, he sighs, then looks to rainbow.
> His eyes filled not with hate or anger.
> But with disappointment.
> He slowly reaches for the spear, pulling it out of his chest, and casting it aside before returning his eyes to the Pegasus.
> “Your anger betrays you, child of the air. I can sense your anger, your disappointment. You feel as if you have been cheated.”
> “You just killed my friend!” Rainbow retorts, tears forming in her eyes, which were twisted into a scowl.
> “Such is the way of life. That is a lesson I failed to teach my creations properly. Ponies, dragons, rabbits. All that was born must die. However, something happened. My children have created hospitals, medicine, and ways to help those that fate has preyed upon to heal. That is not how it is written! Every life saved is one that should have died. The master plan is unraveling. The Balance has been disturbed!”
> He looks deep into rainbow’s eyes.
> “You were supposed to be crippled for life during your flight training, but your kin, your friends, helped you to heal. If it was not before, your fate is now sealed, and YOU SHALL BE MY EXAMPLE!”
> His voice slowly rises, and the last few words were slurred by a noise akin to a gust of wind.
> FOR I AM QUETZALCOATL! LORD OF THE SKIES!”
> The stallion before you is wrapped in a gale, and amongst the wooshing, you hear the sound of bones snapping and being reformed.
> The air pressure bursts and the feathered Sky Lord emerges in all his glory.
> A giant snake, with feathers as opposed to scales.
> Thunder crackles around his body, forming what appears to be a thunderstorm in the immediate area.
> Two massive wings, similar to those of pegasi, but each one as large as a tree, protrude from his back.
> He releases a screeching roar, before turning his eyes on you.
 
> Be Mac.
> The Soviets have had a few crazy contraptions that you have had to deal with.
> Giant Snake Gods were not among those.
> You don’t believe Rainbow did what she did.
> You could have reasoned with him.
> You could have convinced him that you and the equines were worthy of life.
> C’mon Dash…
> As soon as you had seen the snake’s head emerge from the water, you began to scrap together whatever you could get your hands on while watching the scene unfold.
> Alcohol dumped, check.
> Flint spearheads collected, check.
> You pull the rope from your backpack and cut off two 3 foot segments.
> Picking up the wooden spear shafts, you lash two of them together at two points, creating a semi-flexible wooden shaft roughly as tall as you are.
> Working quickly, you whip out your pocket knife, notch the ends of the spear shafts and the rest of the rope around the ends into the notches, securing some of the rope from your backpack to each end to make a makeshift bow.
> Grabbing another spear, you notch the butt of it to make a knocking point on your spe-arrow.
> Pulling the map of the crash site from the pack, you rip off the corner, wrapping it around and folding it into a single feather.
> It won’t fly far, but at least it will fly straight.
> You’re only going to get one shot at this.
> Literally.
> You knock the arrow and aim it towards the fray.
> A gust of wind almost wrenches it from your hand as the pony that had been there a second ago was replaced with a monstrous serpent.  
> It screeches and looks hungrily at Twilight.
> Now or never.
> Time to live forever, bitches!
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxujAPhxlo0&t=1m0s
> You aim your arrow at the drained barrel of alcohol, intentionally leaving the one next to it upright and sealed, the flint spearhead on the end of the spear lined up for the steel ring on the barrel.
> You release the arrow, and due to the adrenaline rush, time seems to slow down.
> Quetzalcoatl lunges at twilight.
> The arrow flies.
> Rainbow lunges to save twilight.
> The arrow gets closer.
> Twilight is blinded by Quetzalcoatl’s rows of dagger teeth, flinching and covering her eyes with her hooves.
> Inches from the barrel…
> The arrow misses.  
> no.
> NO!
> Looking back to twilight, you see Quetzalcoatl snapping jaws, shearing 6 inches off Rainbow’s tail, who managed to reach her in time.
> “Give in, mortals!”
> “Never!”
> Quetzalcoatl screeches, summoning another storm of wind, shifting the dust around you.
> Beneath the dust you catch a glimpse of a rune of sorts etched into the
“Twilight, get over here!”
> “A little busy at the moment!” she calls back, dodging the god’s attacks.
> “Hey snakie!” Rainbow calls out, drawing the attention of the serpent. “You think we’re afraid of you? That’s ‘hisssstarical.’”
> Quetzalcoatl turns from Twilight, setting his sights on Rainbow.
> Has she lost her bloody mind!?
> “You will pay for your disrespect! Bow before me!”
> Taking advantage of the distraction, Twilight runs as fast as her little hooves would take her, diving and sliding to a stop in front of you.
> Rarity, who had been hanging back for the majority of the ordeal jumps into the fray to help Rainbow.
“What is this symbol?”
> “It looks like some form of apotropaic magic, but twisted for use by evil beings to prevent good,” The gears within twilight’s brain whir to life “This could be the ward blocking my magic! I just need to recite the text correctly and it should break the spell.”
> Her large violet eyes scan the text, and in an instant, three words leave her lips: [spoiler]Deus[/spoiler] [spoiler] Ex[/spoiler] [spoiler]Machina[/spoiler].
> The ground cracks under her feet, and the rune shimmers and fades.
> A humming that you weren’t even aware existed dies down.
> Twilight’s Horn begins to glow a bright purple, and the barrels of alcohol drift towards the locked door.
> Wow, magic really is a thing…
> You grab your bow again, sticking a spear into it without fletching or notches.
> “Hey Quetzy, over here!” Rainbow calls out, hovering above the barrels.
> Quetzalcoatl slithers closer, closer.
> “I have had enough of your indolence, whelp. Die!”
> You raise and draw the bow.
> The arrow trembles in your grip.
> The wood creaks under the tension.
“This one’s for Daring.”
> You release it.
> The arrow flies straight and true.
> It grazes the steel on the barrel, sparking the alcohol saturated air.
> The alcohol on the ground instantly ignites, and the flames spread to the other barrels.
> The sealed barrels explode, causing a fireball and a shockwave that knocks rainbow from the air and all the other ponies from their hooves.  
> The locked door is blown open.
> Aside from Rainbow, who was hovering above the barrels, Quetzalcoatl was the closest to the blast.
> His feathers are set ablaze, and he becomes a living bonfire.
> He shrieks and flies upward, bashing into the walls and ceiling in an attempt to put out the flames.
“That’s it! Go!”
> Rarity and twilight rush to the exit.
> Rainbow Is lying unconscious on the floor.
> Running for the exit, you scoop her up in your arms as you dive through the doorway, the flaming snake still screaming behind you.
> Twilight’s horn glows again, and rocks being to pile up, and the door is completely reformed, and glows a brilliant purple and twilight slams and locks it.
> Twilight is panting, and you can hear her heartbeat from across the room as she collapses to the floor.
> Rarity is not far behind her.
> Rainbow is still unconscious, and you hold her small body to your ear, listening for her soft heartbeat.
> It’s steady, but faint.
> Her fur is clammy and covered in sweat, her mane is disheveled, and her tail has had a few strands ripped out, but she is alive.
> You fall to your knees, fatigue getting the best of you.
> As you drift off to an uneasy sleep, you hear a new noise from within the sealed chamber of the Winged Serpent.
> Crying.