Comet Dust walked across the barren dusty wasteland, dust blew across the ground. His throat was sore. Everything that he saw was off. Something about the environment was wrong though he had no idea what it was. He was alone he didn't know where any of the other Crusaders were or even how he had gotten lost. He could hear somepony just beyond the fog. He pushed further in.
"Screwball?" He stepped around the battered filly. She looked up at him, her purple and white eyes spinning. "Screwball what happened." Something in his head was screaming at him. He couldn't pay it any attention. She cowered away from him fear evident on her face. "Screwball it's me Comet Dust."
"Oh I don't think that she's afraid of you." Comet turned around loosing a volley of magic at the source of the voice. His magic evaporated as it hit a green magical shield spell. Despair's horn flashed. "You're pathetically weak."
"I'm strong enough to beat you!"
"Even if you were, you're not strong enough to save her." Despair laughed. Comet looked over his shoulder to Screwball, she was nothing but a stone statue. "Nor will you ever be." She crumbled into dust. Despair laughed and faded away as Comet tried to gather the dust back into his hooves, tears streaming down his eyes, after several seconds he forgot what he was doing, where he was. He got up and started walking across the barren dust covered waste. His throat was sore.
"Comet?" His ears perked up. The voice was weak, but close. "Comet, help." He rushed into the fog.
"Screwball?" He ran past hundreds of crumbled statues, that were so crumbled that no pony could guess what they originally were, some of the statues were all alone others had two shapes huddled together. "Screwball where are you?" The fog began to fade. "Please answer me, Screwball!"
"Comet. Run!" Screwball ran past him grabbing him and pulling him back into the fog. "Hurry, it's right behind us!" The two of them rushed passed the crumbling statues. With the fog clearing it was obvious that the they were ponies, many were a filly, and the statues that had the two forms one was a colt.
"What's behind us?" Comet looked over his shoulder.
"Don't look, just keep running! We've got to get away from it. We can hide in the fog." The world flashed, Screwball became something that wasn't her, for a second. Something over took the two of them. A miasmic creature tackled Screwball. The two of them rolled threw the ashen dust.
"Screwball!" His horn lit up. The miasmic creature advanced on him. "Stay back." The creature slowed down just standing there for a second, before taking a cautious step toward him. The world flashed again. The miasmic creature became Screwball and the Screwball on the ground became the miasmic creature. Comet stepped back.
"Comet hurry kill it." Screw ball screamed.
"Comet it's me I'm here to get you back. Please, what's wrong?" Screwball's voice came from the miasmic creature. Screwball jumped the miasmic creature throwing it to the ground.
"Comet, run into the fog I'll find you in the there later." He stood there as the world flashed again Screwball pinned on the ground under the miasmic creature. "Hurry I can't hold it down much longer."
"You're not Screwball."
"What?" A blue bolt of magic shot her off of the miasmic creature.
"What are you?"
"What are you talking about it's me Comet." The miasmic creature pulled at his tail. "If you go with her I promise you, you'll regret it." The world flashed again the two switched, this time it didn't flash back. "And you little filly are going to regret comin here. I'll finish what I started in your cell." Comet shot another bolt of magic into the creature, that still used Screwballs voice. His magic evaporated as soon as it struck the creature, as did his horn.
"Come on Grandpa has a portal open." She yanked his tail one last time pulling him into a gallop. The two frantically raced away from the creature, which simple walked after them. Screwball slipped only to find herself caught by Comet and pulled back to her hooves. Shadow like tentacles lashed out at the two of them.
"Screwball, Comet, quickly." Solaris's shot bolts of magic through his portal at the nightmare creature. The colt and filly jumped into the portal with the Tantabus snapping at there tail. The portal closed as the two of them made it to safety. "Are the two of you okay?" Comet struggled to catch his breath.
"Yeah I'm fine." Screwball jumped on him.
"I'm sorry, Comet I'm sorry, I'm sorry."
"Screwball?" Comet pulled the spiraled eyed filly into a hug returning her gesture. "What are you sorry for?" She continued to babble. He looked up to Solaris.
"Despair tortured her to find out who had unlocked the books." Hatred flashed across Comets eyes and he pulled Screwball tighter to him. "Apparently, Despair decided to use the Tantabus to trick her into giving him the information. And then sent it to attack you."
"He'll regret that." Comet held Screwball close. "I promise."
***
Scootaloo laughed as she and Gilda recalled all of Rainbow's exploits. Grandpa Gruff and Gabriella contented themselves with listening to the awesome tales of the prismatic pegasus. The laughter soon ended as Trove burst into the house. "Scootaloo there's been an attack on the cave." Pound and Monsoon came into the house panting and sweating from exhaustion.
"Comet was the target." Pound panted between gasps. "He's unconscious and not responding, and he's in a lot of pain."
"It's completely crash." Monsoon added.
"Is that the unicorn that was translating the books?" Gruff asked Scootaloo nodded as she grabbed her saddle bag. "Then I'll come as well you may need a griffon now more than ever. Trove you and Gabriella will stay here until I return. You two pegasi as soon as you can fly again, we'll leave for your cave. Hopefully I'll be able to help, you'd be surprised how long I've lived. I've got solutions for just about everything."