//------------------------------// // Angering a God // Story: Blazing Darkness // by shadeofthenight //------------------------------// Everfree Forest, Prison Entrance Cadence landed gracefully on the burned grass. She had had a long mental conversation with Celestia about the appearance of the creature. Cadence was glad for the description, but also a little scared. She was happy that she knew what it looked like, not so much about what it could do. Have you arrived? Celestia asked in her mind. Yep, and i'm going in. Hopefully my Shining Armor is okay. Cadence thought hopefully. That was when she heard Shining Armor's broken cries. "Cadence! CADENCE! Cadence!" came his repeating cries within the cave. "Shining? Shining Armor? What happened?" She called. But his broken cries only continued. Then the laughter came. It was the deep rasping laughter that Cadence had known too well. Oh gods, King Sombra is back! Cadence cried in her mind. WHAT?! I thought he was killed! I thought he was too, but he's torturing my Shining Armor, so i have to go after him! Cadence wai- But it was too late, Cadence had launched herself into the darkness, oblivious to everything but her husband's cries and the laughs of King Sombra. The darkness around her seemed more solid than normal, so Cadence did have some difficulty, but she was still determined to reach Shining Armor. Eventually the dark shadows gave way to a large cavernous room that had a bright light in the center to Cadence's short relief. Then she saw what it actually was. It was a creature whose partial being was fire, while the rest was pitch black, but still distinguishable. The fire traced down and would flare around the black bones of the creature. Its head was a dragon's skull with blood red smoke drifting in and out of its sockets and mouth. Its eyes were visible in its sockets: pure blue, but outlined with red. Its wings looked like they were fashioned from living souls, but each one was an unspeakable horror that shifted around with the others. It height was taller than Celestia, around three feet taller, and much more sturdily built. As Cadence got closer she could make out the faint outline of muscles glistening around its bones. It was just watching Shining Armor as he cringed and sobbed, rubbing something's half decayed skull and calling it Cadence. "Hey!" She shouted angrily at the creature. It turned towards her and opened its mouth: A harsh scream erupted around them, one that sounded like ultimate pain. Cadence felt herself slipping into unconsciousness, the horror of this sound working into her very being. She felt helpless, hopeless, almost like the time when she had watched Celestia lose to Chrysalis. The creature put its muzzle close to Cadence's ears and whispered something as she fell unconscious, More to come, but only with a sliver of my being i will terrorize your city. Imagine what i will do when i unite with my vessel. Then you will wish you had stayed in the caverns beneath your city. Canterlot Celestia paced around her courtyard, making her guards nervous. She had not heard back from Cadence or from Shining Armor yet. Knowing how that monster worked, they might have been caught in a crossfire. Then she remembered how it had cast the illusion on her to think that Luna had been grieveously injured, and then to Cadence mentioning King Sombra and Shining Armor. Oh my. It came to her what it was doing. She raced up the stairs and shut the door to her room, preparing the teleportation spell. The Prison Celestia arrived with a flash of light and a loud BANG! She had used Cadence's beacon of power as a magnet, so that way Celestia was able to warp right in. She looked around at the scene. Shining Armor was a pitiful bundle of sobbing stallion while Cadence was unconscious and cringing wildly. "What did he do to you?" She whispered. The two ponies had been one of her strongest supporters, and yet here they had been cast aside like they were new recruits against a master. Celestia knelt by them both, pulling them close together. Then she rose, her face tight with rage. She conjured a shield around the three of them, then began to concentrate. Edge of the Everfree, Abandoned House Lucid Dream, Twilight Sparkle, and the rest of the ponies were putting the finishing touches on Lucid's new home(while Lucid was chatting with the other ponies, being charismatic and well liked after a couple minutes of talking to Twilight's observation), when they heard a loud explosion coming from the Everfree. All fifty ponies looked up to see a column of light slam into somewhere in the Everfree. "Wha- what's going on?" Rainbow Dash gasped as the ground began to shake. The ponies began to panic as fireballs landed near them. "Everybody get back to the town and take shelter!" Lucid Dream shouted, but looked rather calm about it, his eyes shone with fierce determination. Twilight and her friends managed to get to him without getting trampled. "What is it?!" Twilight demanded, her friends right behind her. "I don't know, but i'm going to find out." Lucid Dream replied, beginning to head into the Everfree. "Oh no, we're going too." Applejack said defiantly. Lucid Dream shook his head, "No, you need to keep everypony safe here. They just met me, and even though they tell me I'm likable, i must chekc this out alone. Besides, if anything gets past me you can just use the elements of Harmony right? Great i knew i could count on you." Then he raced into the gloom towards the column. Twilight sighed and turned back to the panicking ponies and began to corral them with the help of her friends. He's been here a day and yet he thinks of others before himself. She thought. Lucid Dream smiled, a crazy maniacal smile, as he ran through the Forest heading towards the prison. The second stage of the fiery void's plan was about to begin.