Pennington took a deep breath, keeping his nerves steady. He and Full Sails may have had a friendly rapport, but he knew that Sails's smile wouldn't even waver as Pennington felt a knife slip into his back. He was as ruthless and unfeeling a killer as they came, and he couldn't let his guard down. Calling him here was more of a risk than he liked to generally take, but they were out of options.

"I'll admit it, you're full of surprises, Penny! I haven't gotten a letter from you in what, five years? Longer?"

"Well, usually, if I want to talk to you, I just have to look over my shoulder any time I have a feeling of overwhelming dread."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Inkwell. The mask of Cha'Qued, however..." he held out his hoof expectantly, "will get me off of your back once and for all."

Pennington took his turn to roll his eyes, limping to where the mask lay in the snow. Just as he was about to reach for it, however, a swath of roots grew up from the ground, wrapping around the mask and carrying it to Full Sails. Pennington stepped back, caught off-guard at the suddenness of the action. As Sails graciously plucked the mask from the roots, Pennington shook off the surprise. This was all according to the plan, Ravia had simply thrown off the pacing of his act.

"You're pretty full of surprises, as well, Full Sails! I mean, imagine the look on my face when your friends, here, told me you'd finally come around to MY way of thinking! I mean, Full Sails, wanting to DESTROY the mask of Cha'Qued? Of course I had to see that with my own eyes!"

Penn noticed Sails stiffen slightly, his wings parting ever-so-slightly from his body as instinct tried to propel him into the air.

"I mean, I couldn't believe it! I thought all the knowledge of the Mozunian gods died with Mozun Akai! The ziggurat had collapsed when I went back to look for more secrets there!"

"That's the problem with you, Penny. You were always so narrow-minded. The answer didn't lay in the ruins of Mozun Akai, it was in the apocryphal scriptures in the seaside archives of Mount Aris!"

Pennington raised an eyebrow in surprise. It was clever of Sails to use the Aris Archives, it had been one of the first place A.K. Yearling had taken them for personal tutoring, and there was no way to know everything contained within in even a lifetime of reading. It was entirely possible an answer COULD lay there, but there was no way to verify it.

"Well, that IS something! In that case, I can't wait to see what you found that I didn't!" Pennington smirked. "Right here. Right now."

Sails blinked, obviously not understanding Pennington's words for a moment before his eyes narrowed and her turned back to glare at Delta, who was still wearing Ravia's mask.

"J-just what you told us, sir!" Delta stammered. "That you sent us to get the mask so that you could destroy it!"

Pennington couldn't help but feel a mix of glee and trepidation as he could see the gears in Sails's brain turning. Glee that the plan was going has he had envisioned it, and trepidation as he wondered just what kind of wrench Sails would come up with to throw into the works.

"You FOOLS! Now he'll NEVER let us have it!" Sails shouted, shaking the mask in his hooves. "The chosen host MUST give up his place as Cha'Qued's vessel WILLINGLY before it can be destroyed!"

"I'll perform whatever ritual it is myself, if I have to! Under your careful supervision, of course!"

"Power? You mean like the kind of power I could have used to free myself when I was about to be buried alive? Or power to restore my flesh with ease after heavy injury? Or the power to-"

Even as Full Sails cut him off, however, Pennington could tell that the damage had been done. The expression of Ravia's mask had changed from a suspicious glare to one of surprise.

This is true. Cha'Qued's dominion is over the flesh. If he were truly Cha'Qued's disciple, there would have been no need for him to attack us while injured. When Cha'Qued wiped out my people, I saw bodies that had been completely torn asunder stitch themselves back to perfection as easily as I might grow back the lost limbs of a tree, ponies so strong their own bones snapped beneath the pressure of their blows, only to mend again seconds later. Delta turned to Sails, the eyes of the mask beginning to narrow in suspicion towards their ally.

"She's right. If Penn is so addicted to the Cha'Qued's power, why not use it when we were ready to kill him?"

"Because THIS is what he wants! This is all an act!" Sails shouted, pointing an accusatory hoof at Pennington. "LOOK AT HIM! He's so SMUG because you're playing right into his hooves! He's playing the long game! HE called me! HE led us all here, to this remote location! HE was the one who is still refusing to give up his connection to it, even now! He's been playing all of us for FOOLS, because that's what he does! He makes up stories, stories so perfect he turns allies on one another and then wipes them all off the face of the earth once they're too weak to fight!" Sails dropped to one knee, bowing and lowering his head.

Pennington shook his head. "I'll back up my big talk! Tell me how to destroy the mask, Sails! Share this precious information you've been so vague about!"

There was a brief moment where the tension in the air felt ready to snap. Pennington's breath caught in his throat as he waited. This was the moment of truth, the climax. It was true that he had been TELLING a narrative, but only the one he had pieced together from what Sails had supposedly said.

Delta shook his head, taking a step towards Pennington... only to stop as his head was yanked backward.

"RRgh! R-Ravia! What are you-" Delta's leg took another shaky step forward, obviously resisting the motion.

Delta Raider, you will heed my wishes! His head shook back and forth in denial, even as the eyes of the mask narrowed in frustration.

All at once, the mask separated itself from Delta's face, catching itself on legs of long vines before it hit the ground. Slowly, Ravia's mask crawled across the ground until it reached Lily's hooves, where it quietly lowered itself into the snow.

No! Until I am certain fact has been separated from fiction, I shall not act for either side. I shall stand with the only pony I find trustworthy, even if possibly misguided.

Lily's eyes widened in surprise as she picked up the mask, and Pennington could catch the flush of an embarrassed blush beneath her fur.

Pennington smirked. Couldn't have picked a better pony, if you ask me... With a smug grin, he turned back to Sails and Delta.

"Well, fellas? What is it going to be? Help me destroy Cha'Qued? Or show your true colors and admit you were lying all along?"

Still glowering with anger, Sails slowly advanced across the snow, walking right up to Pennington until they stood only inches apart.

"If you won't renounce the mask, then I'll TAKE it from you, by right of conquest."

"I won't. You know I can't even-" his words were cut short as a gust of wind blew past his face, and Full Sails's wing settled back against his body. Dread settled over Pennington as he slowly turned his head.

Between a translucent magical shield, three knives lay buried in the snow at Spike's feet, having only barely missed him by the smallest of margins to the left, right, and between his feet. He stared down at the objects, only realizing for the first time that he had been nearly killed. The color drained from his face and he stumbled back, staring in horror at the near-death experience.

"SPIKE!" Twilight immediately turned around, placing herself between Spike and Sails and carefully inspecting the dragon for injury.

"These knives cut through magic like butter. I had them made especially to counter that little trick of yours, Pennington, but they'll work just as well against your friends!"

"Well, if you want him to reach adulthood, YOU'LL keep out of my way..." Sails turned to Pennington, raising an eyebrow to challenge him. "And YOU will accept my challenge."

Twilight lowered her horn, a magical blast gathering around her horn. Pennington could see another, larger knife shifting its way through the feathers of Sails's wing, one more than big enough to slice off a horn in a single blow.

The scenario played out in his head without even trying. Twilight would fire off an enraged magical blast. Sails would throw the knife at the same time. The knife would pass through the magic unimpeded, and the magic would pass around it. Both attacks would reach their targets. Twilight was no killer, but Sails was a sadist. He would recover, or even get away completely unscathed due to some hidden ward on his person, but Twilight would be scarred for life.

His hoof shot up, punching Sails across the jaw with everything he could muster. Full Sails's head only turned slightly with the blow, and a satisfied smile spread across his face. Pennington knew he was past the point of no return. Sails was going to get a fight, either with Twilight or with him.

Pennington punched him again, though he could feel the blow was weaker, now. Not wanting to let up the pressure, Pennington switched hooves, cracking Sails under the chin with his other hoof. That hoof was weaker than the first, both of his front legs lacking any type of power. Rearing back onto his hind legs, Pennington tried to compensate by leaning into his punches and alternating as fast as he could. He struck at pressure points in the head and shoulders, tried his hardest to break his jaw, pounded on Sails's temples to try and discombobulate him. Pennington felt a small thrill of joy in his chest as he noticed a trickle of blood beginning to drip down from his adversary's nostril. Drawing strength from his newfound hope, Pennington dropped back down to all fours and spun around, planting his back hooves into Sails's chest and bucking with all of his might...

driving him muzzle-first into the snow and bashing his spinning head against the ground as Sails remained immovable.

Pennington tried to press his front hooves into the ground to stand back up, only for his trembling joints to give way as he realized he couldn't even support his own weight, any more.

Pennington didn't even register the pain of Sails yanking on his mane, pulling him out of the snow and pressing a blade to his throat.

Before the blade could do its work, however, the world turned purple in a flash of light and warmth, and he felt a violent yank on his body.

This, however, proved to be what finally overwhelmed him. The world went dark as his eyes rolled back into his head, and the last thing he heard was Twilight's voice.

Pennington tried to speak, tried to warn her, but he couldn't make his mouth move properly and his tongue flopped uselessly about in his mouth.

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Twilight had never put much stock in the phrase "seeing red" as meaning "uncontrollable anger." Anger was an emotion just like any other, chemicals reacting in the brain, endorphins causing response in the body, where supersaturation would only cause it to shut down, not endow it with superpowers.

But now, as Spike hid behind her out of fear for his life, as Pennington's crumpled body lay on the ground beside her and she stared into the uncaring, collected eyes of Full Sails, she realized. This was a pony who cared nothing for others, who would threaten, beat, and even kill anyone who stood in his way. He and Pennington had greeted each other as old friends, but nothing could have been further from the truth. Full Sails was the antithesis of every virtue Twilight had ever learned about friendship. He was a monster, far more real and present than any bogeyman that Luna had put a stop to.

Now, the rage flowing through Twilight's veins was unlike any sensation she had felt in her life, her blood a cocktail of endorphins and violent chemical reactions as it boiled with righteous fury. It was like her brain had switched off, emotion taking the wheel as the rest of the world disappeared and her vision blurred at the edges, leaving only a clear image of the creature she was determined to destroy. Her limbs trembled, and she couldn't tell whether she was more frightened of what would happen to her if she tried to contain this violent energy or of what she would do to Sails if she chose to move. Her magical energy began to sputter and spark uncontrollably out of her horn, flowing faster and faster until her entire body was wreathed in an aura of lilac flames. There was only emotion, now, and that emotion was rage, indignation, and protective instinct, all boiled and distilled into purest compulsion to violence imaginable.

The distance between her and Full Sails was only a short distance, maybe five meters, but it felt like miles. She moved at a crawl at first, as if unsure her own legs could hold her. Then, she escalated to a trot, and her fears all fell away as she was reassured of her own strength. A moment later, she was in an all-out sprint towards Full Sails. Her magic pushed her forward, the flames burning brighter until she was tearing across the clearing like a comet in the night sky. Just as she was about to slam into him, Twilight saw a flash of metal from his wing. She wasn't afraid of his magic-piercing knives, but she wasn't going to let him stop her from reaching him.

Twilight teleported, navigating the ether by pure instinct and appearing to Sails's left. By the time his eye had even turned to look at her, Twilight was already ready.

The magical blast that she unleashed shook the earth and sent shock waves through the mountain itself, triggering avalanches throughout the whole of the Macintosh Hills. Trees bent and shook at every side of the clearing, and the wind itself wrapped around the motion, punching a hole through the overcast sky above. The snow beneath the path of her blast was vaporized, the earth torn away and scorched in a trench that reached all the way to the trees on the opposite side and left only a row of charred trunks and smoke.

Twilight didn't stop, not consciously. She poured every ounce of rage, every trickle of magical power in her body into the spell, letting it taper and sputter out of its own. As it did, she felt her legs shake and wobble underneath her and her knees gave way, forcing her to kneel in the crater she had made.

There stood Full Sails, his body looking translucent and ghostly, as though he were only a poorly-projected image or an incomplete illusion. After a few seconds, he became opaque again, a sickening grin on his face.

"I mean, having the day YOU'VE had and still having enough power to cast an earthshatter-class spell like THAT? Most would call it impossible!" He gave her a sly wink. "Makes sense you'd be Penny's type."

"Wha... h... HOW?" Twilight was barely able to force the word out between ragged breaths.

Sails slowly revealed a small object clutched in his hoof: a shard of smoky-looking rock, glistening and translucent in the light.

"Fairytrail Ghost Quartz. They say it's the same type of charm that made Threadmane untouchable to chaos magic in their war against Discord, actually! Fascinating stuff, I just HAD to get my hooves on some..."

Twilight couldn't believe what she was seeing, even as her head began to spin. The ground seemed to come out from under her and everything lurched to the side. She felt a splitting pain in the side of her head for a moment, and everything went black.

"Oooh, tsk tsk... Looks like today's trials finally caught up to her. Poor thing..."

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Lily's heart was beating a mile a minute. So far, Full Sails had made Pennington beat himself to a pulp, completely nullified Twilight's magic, and left both of them unconscious from sheer exhaustion, all without even donning the mask of Cha'Qued, which was sitting right at his hooves on the ground.

She glanced down, staring at Ravia's mask sitting in the snow. For a moment she considered picking it up. As she reached down, however, Ravia's voice cut her short.

Now we see the truth. We will see if Sails keeps his word to destroy Cha'Qued.

Slowly, deliberately, Sails reached down and picked up the mask. Lily did the same, picking up Ravia and whispering into the place where an ear ought to be.

Well, I would hope that you could find sufficient motivation to help me destroy them both?

She didn't have time for an answer, however, as Delta's cackling rang out across the clearing.

"Ha ha HA! Well DONE, sir! That was incredible! Two of the OLR's most wanted completely dispatched without so much as breaking a sweat!"

"And you two? What's it gonna be? Fight or flight?" When Lily and Spike didn't answer, he simply shrugged and returned his attention to Cha'Qued.

"So! How do we start? Some kind of ritual circle? Incantations? A potion?" Delta chuckled, closing the distance between him and Sails to get a closer look at the mask.

"Oh, silence, you sniveling sycophant! If you're expecting a reward, you won't be getting any!" Sails snapped, causing Delta to recoil back. "Finally... it's felt like eons since I touched this ivory, decades since I felt the hum of its power!" Unconsciously, he licked his lips and Lily's blood turned to ice.

"Congratulations! Looks like we might make an agent out of you, yet!" Sails shouted, rolling his eyes as he began to raise the mask to his face. In an instant, Delta snatched the mask out of his hooves.

"Are you KIDDING? All of this for your STUPID MASK?" Delta shouted. For a moment, Lily couldn't believe it. Delta had stolen the mask of Cha'Qued right out of Full Sails's hooves.

"You KNOW, if you'd been up front about this, I wouldn't be this MAD! I thought we were destroying a threat to Equestria, not getting another artifact for your collection!" Delta raised the mask to his face, placing it over his own features.

"I risked my LIFE for this! Inkwell had artifacts too, you know! An invisibility cloak! Magic swords! A gem that could control water! IN A FROZEN TUNDRA!" The mask began to attach itself to his face, growing tendrils of bone that wrapped around his skull. "Without Ravia, I would have died!" Delta's voice was growing deeper and more gravelly, but the mask remained static, not moving with his mouth.

Sails didn't move, staring unblinking as the mask finished wrapping itself around Delta's head.

Sails pondered for a moment. "So, you steal a sentient mask with mystical powers and bottomless hunger straight out of the grasp of the one who JUST proved himself the rightful vessel, and your BRIGHT idea is to IMMEDIATELY put it on your face?"

Delta froze, as if realizing for the first time the depth of his mistake. After a few seconds, he started from his stupor, desperately grabbing at his head in an attempt to claw off the mask. Lily knew, however, that it was too late.

"Imagine it's like a scary movie! Close your eyes and cover your nears! Hum a song, if it makes you feel better!" Lily urged, using her magic to press his hands against the side of his head. She tried to ignore Delta's desperate pleading as he shook his head back and forth.

Lily shut her eyes, trying to block out the imagery her mind was conjuring up to match the noises. Slowly, Delta's pleading shifted to screams of agony. She kept her eyes shut as the screams were cut off by a stomach-churning pop and the sound of wet and sloppy chewing. Lily waited, only cracking open her eyes enough to feel her way to Spike and wrap her hooves around his head to make certain he didn't open his eyes or uncover his ears.

Finally, when the sounds had come to a stop, Lily opened her eyes. Full Sails was standing alone now, holding the mask, with fresh blood staining the teeth and a large red stain on the ground beside him. Slowly, she let go of Spike.

Sails sighed, rolling his eyes as he held the mask up level to his face. "Was that really necessary? I'm hungry too, you know."

Lily raised the mask to her face, staring into the empty features from the other side as her hoof trembled.

Sails breathed deeply, shuddering with pleasure. As he did, though, Lily couldn't help but notice something. After a few seconds, it became clear that Sails had noticed, as well. Reaching up, Sails pulled the mask from his face, staring at it in confusion.

Lily recoiled as Cha'Qued's voice echoed in all of their heads at the same time.

You call allowing Ravia and that MEAL to beat Inkwell to the brink of death FOR YOU a conquest? You allowed a weakened opponent to toil himself to collapse and called it sport! You are WEAK.

You hunger FOR power! MY hunger GIVES me power! You have proven nothing today but that you are a coward who refuses to fight his own battles! A queen among insects, perhaps, but you are no PREDATOR! No HUNTER! Inkwell toppled you at the pinnacle of power, and you think this is a feat that has proven you greater than him?

"NO! This WAS me! Even if I didn't do it with my own two hooves, this, ALL OF THIS was me!" When he was only greeted by silence, Sails slammed the mask against the ground, leaning down and screaming directly into Cha'Qued's face. "I set this up! I chased Pennington for years and years, trying to track you down and losing OVER AND OVER! And now, when I finally triumph with my wits, it's not GOOD ENOUGH for you?"

Lily's breath caught in her throat. She wasn't certain whether she should be hopeful that they were going to live or afraid that they were going to become the new targets of his wrath now that Cha'Qued had stopped talking. Sails paced back and forth, obviously lost in manic thought.

Calalily Curl. Now is the time. Please, I am begging you. Help me avenge my people. Place the mask on your face and we shall save your friends! Ravia's voice echoed in Lily's brain. Once again, she brought her trembling hoof up to her face, staring blankly into the empty abyss of the back of the mask. Far in the distance, she thought she heard the whistle of a train, felt greedy tendrils gripping at her head as her body became not her own. Immediately, she tore Ravia's mask away from her face, tears in her eyes.

"I can't..." she whispered, shaking her head. "I'm so sorry... I'm too scared... It's pathetic, I know, but I just CAN'T!"

Sails locked his eyes on Pennington's unconscious body, beginning to take long strides towards them. Long fangs grew out of his mouth and his jaw unhinged in an ugly, unnatural motion that made Lily want to vomit.

I can tell that you have encountered him before, I can sense his stain upon your soul... He leaves something of himself in every pony he touches, a corruption not easily washed away.

Dark realization fell over Lily like a shadow as she understood the dark meaning of Sails's words. She looked back down at the mask for a third time. It was like there was a block that physically prevented her from placing the mask on her face, an invisible barrier between them. Gritting her teeth, Lily placed herself between Sails and Pennington's body, mustering up the best angry glare she could. Earlier, she had been able to just draw on desperation and adrenaline to make sudden shows of courage against Delta's guards and Chrysalis. Now, however, she was just tired. She was spent, completely and utterly.

As Sails came face to face with her, he tilted his head, the slightest hint of a smile playing on his distended mouth.

Lily shook her head, her breath coming in ragged gasps out of raw fear closing up her throat.

"I- I can't wear masks... not after Cha'Qued possessed me..." she whispered, shaking her head. "Do you know how hard it is to run a beauty parlor and not be able to wear face masks? It's ridiculous! E-even now, when my life is on the line, I'm too terrified to do it!" She stamped her hoof, trying to call up just a hint of courage to keep talking.

"B-but Pennington and Twilight already gave everything they could! And I can't just stand by and d-do nothing! S-so, if you want to get Penn, you h-have to-"

Sails rolled his eyes, no longer willing to wait for her to finish and lunging for her throat. Lily threw up her hoof in defense.

Lily's hoof once again had the white plating over it, protecting her from harm, and just barely holding back Full Sails's attack. Sails seemed surprised, eyes wide as he gnawed at her leg. He quickly released her, staring in surprise at her before his twisted smile widened.

Lily shook her head, stamping her armored hoof on the ground to reaffirm her position. "Just scars, Sails..."

Full Sails growled, narrowing his eyes as he prepared himself to attack. Lily raised her hoof in a defensive position. She wasn't certain how long she could hold Sails off, but she couldn't think of anything else. No other place she could be.

It was in that moment that a dark shadow fell over the two of them. Just as Sails looked up, a massive spiked tail swung down, striking him in the chest and sending him flying across the clearing, all the way to the other side and past the treeline.

A gigantic dragon dropped down from the sky, landing on all fours and letting loose a deafening roar that shook what few leaves remained left on the trees.

The dragon stood proudly on four legs, with silver scales and a sapphire underbelly that glowed brightly as he let forth a wall of blue flame from his mouth and into the sky. Lily could hardly believe her eyes as it turned its long neck to look at her and she spotted a tiny purple wyvern sitting on top of its head.

Penn and Stone: Dynamic Duo

by Pennington Inkwell

Inkwell's Demons