//------------------------------// // Chapter 13 - Returning Harmony // Story: Death's Bargain // by Haseo //------------------------------// Chapter 13 Returning Harmony Soul and Applejack tossed the doors of the chamber open and happily walked into the hall. Blaze was still sitting there patiently, waiting for them to end their private chatter. He noticed the small, sheepish smiles and blushing cheeks of them instantly. Both of them were walking awkwardly close together. The young stallion began to smile at his role model and decided to follow them. “Hey Captain! Looks like you settled your fight for good. Hope things will work out for both of you in the future!” Both of them widened the gap between them and shoved Blaze in the resulting space. They ruffled his mane and nudged him teasingly. Soul offered him his most generous and gleeful smile. “Thank you, my dearest friend. I guess we couldn't be any better right now.” Applejack winked at the fully grown stallion next to her and playfully nudged his shoulder. “Ya could consider us happy for the time being, but we still have much work to do until we can settle down and enjoy each other's company.” Blaze bounced up and down in his light armour and happily chirped in between Soul and Applejack. “Finally! I'm so ready to wipe the floor with our enemies! Nothing will part us three anymore!” Soul and Applejack looked at each other for a brief moment in concern before they pointed their gaze back at Blaze. The young stallion watched Soul suspiciously; the expression in the older stallions face made him worry. “I have no doubts that you are ready to help us, but didn't I just see a whole pile of unread books in there? You can't possibly leave before you’ve worked through every single task the Princess has given you!” Blaze leaped in front of them and athletically turned around in mid-air. He pounded his hooves against the marble floor beneath him and let his desperately high-pitched voice do the work. “Oh come on! You have to be kidding me! This way I will never be able to help you!” Soul couldn't suppress another small giggle by the attitude of young stallion he saw growing up under his watch. “Always remember! A passionate soldier will be remembered as hero, but a wise soldier will be able to tell ponies himself of his glorious battles. I believe in you, Blaze. You will get your chance to prove yourself and make me even more proud about you than I am already.” This couldn't really console Blaze, but at least it eased the desire to want to go out to begin a hopeless fight against an unknown enemy. He let fall himself back into the gap between Soul and Applejack as they walked upstairs to meet with Princess Luna again. The silence between them didn’t last for long. Though Blaze could be convinced to stay at the castle, he was still eager to learn what Soul's next steps would be. “Soul? I know it shouldn't be my interest, but what will you do next? I mean Applejack had told me that you already fought two of these apocalyptic ponies, but will you go straight for the other two? In one of the books inside the library there was something written about them. According to that book, the stallion named Pestilence was standing in for values like justice and righteousness but he was blinded by his stubbornness and lost his senses. He began to fight everything imaginable, regardless if friend or foe. The crimson mare called War only seeked for the blood of others and enjoyed blood-spilling. Both of them are creatures of the manipulative kind if you can trust certain conjectures. The next one in the row would be a pitch black stallion named Famine. Rumours were spread that everything the stallion touched began to rot and perished into dust. Under his hooves nothing would ever grow again. Many soldiers were seemingly slaughtered by a mere gentle touch of this pony. Which makes him far more dangerous than the previous two. But the ultimate threat is their fourth sister, the pale mare named Death. Ponies told each other stories about her legendary abilities to kill ponies just by looking at them. She was the literal grim reaper of ancient myths. When a simple touch, a gaze, or even just her presence can cause a ponies death, there is no hope. I guess she will be the worst problem. I can't imagine how we should deal with her.” In anticipation for a valid answer, even Applejack stared from the corner of her eye over to Soul. The stallion walked over the last step of the stairs and headed straight for the door of Princess Luna's chamber. Without emotion he calmly responded to the eager young stallion. “We won't deal with her at all.” Applejack leaped a little bit in front and blocked the door. Her eyes were still expressing her joy from before, but a faint glimmer of determination was boiling inside of them. “What do ya mean when ya say ‘we won't deal with her at all'? Do ya want to leave her rampagin' through Equestria until she finally gets us?” Soul's eyes had become dull and grey. He seemed to have changed into a whole different pony in this moment. Applejack gulped at his sight and prepared for the worst. “No, I won't let it go that far. When the time arrives to face her, I will make sure to get rid of her. I have promised to protect you, and I will keep it, no matter what I will have to sacrifice to achieve that goal.” The dark stallion proceed to walk to the door. To both sides of the door were silken curtains that hid the plain marble walls behind. His horn ignited faintly and wrapped Applejack inside its magical aura. She was taken out of the way and shunted right next to the door frame. Even her upcoming anger couldn't break the restraining magic. “What does that mean? Don't tell me ya’re plannin' to do the same that ya did to Lunacy!” He laid his hoof upon the doorknob but still hesitated to push the door open. His cold eyes turned to Applejack and mustered her luscious green eyes. “When I fought Lunacy, I showed kindness. But the mare of death won't be blessed with this gift. One of us will go down, and I'm doing everything to assure that it’s her.” Soul let his gaze casually strive past Applejack before he paid attention to the door again. The lock clicked open and the magic around Applejack vanished. Without a turn he walked into the chamber. Applejack and Blaze shot each other a worried gaze before they followed him inside. The door clicked tightly shut behind them. The hall behind them was deserted from any life. Only a pale grey mare was standing right next to a curtain. Her deadly gaze was pointed at the spot Soul had stood before. She licked devilish over her lips and dispersed silently into fog. Inside the chamber Princess Luna was scribbling hastily on a scroll before she sent it away via her magic. Applejack left Soul's slipstream and passed him while walking, but her rapid trot was soon interrupted. Because two little fillies were sitting next to the hooves of Princess Luna. In glee the farmer couldn't hold her happiness back. “Applebloom! Sweetie Belle!” Both fillies turned around and almost exploded from their sheer happiness to see Applejack again. They lost no time and immediately rocketed into the hooves of Applebloom's older sibling. Small tears were forming in Applejack's eyes when she could finally embrace her little sister again. “Oh, Applebloom! Ah'm so glad that nothing happened to ya. Do ya know how the other ponies in Ponyville are dealin' with Discord bein' around?” Applebloom dried her tears on the coat of her sister and looked into the eyes of her sister for the first time since Discord caused havoc in Ponyville, but Applebloom's expression wasn't one of happiness anymore but of concern. “Sorry, sis'. Ah don't know what happened to the others. Sweetie and Ah ran into the Everfree Forest and looked for Zecora's hut, but we got lost on our way there.” Sweetie Belle severed her face from Applejack's coat and shot her a concerned frown. “Do you know what happened to my sister? I hope so hard that nothing happened to her!” Applejack's worried expression answered the question before she could actually say something. Tears began to drop from her alabaster-coloured cheek and met the floor. The shadow of the ongoing black stallion passed above the little alabaster filly. Sweetie Belle followed him with her eyes until she almost fell over her back. She turned around and followed the dark stallion. Soul felt a soft tug at his tail and slowly turned around. His dull eyes met the watery eyes of Sweetie Belle. The sight of the seriously concerned filly softened his heart. He couldn't bear her expression anymore. His eyes returned to normal and could express compassion again. Sweetie let go of his tail and looked bashfully at the ground between her and Soul. “Excuse me, Mister Soul Tearer. My sister had told me once about the miracles you made work. Could you please try to save my sister, Rarity?” The tiny, sad frown was the most convincing thing Soul had seen for a long time. It was more of a reflex than a willingly given response. “I will bring her back. I promise, little filly.” Despite her tears, she managed to bring out a small sheepish smile. Sweetie bounced up and down in relief and found herself only seconds after right in front of Soul. She shifted her weight to her rear legs and pushed her face into the soft coat of the old stallion. “Thank you so much!” For a short moment Soul forgot about everything that was waiting for him outside of the Canterlot when the warm body of the little filly shared its heat with him. Tears began to form inside his sapphire-blue eyes. Quickly he wiped them away before anypony could get a look at them. “Is this how it would have been to have a filly? What would I give to live through such an experience.” Sweetie dried the last of her tears inside his coat and looked straight upwards at him. She tilted her head slightly to the left and flashed him a confident smile. “Well, why don't you just do it? You don't seem to be that old to me. There are definitely many single mares out there that were happy to meet you.” Soul laughed for a short moment, but his voice ceased quickly. He ruffled through her mane but looked thoughtfully out of the window behind Princess Luna. “You may be correct, but I don't think that I will ever get the chance again to have a foal on my own. I don't even know how the future will look when I fight this so-called mistress off.” Applejack and Applebloom followed Sweetie Belle's path. The older sister laid her hoof around Soul's back and shot him a wink. “That's pretty obvious to meh! Ya will return everythin' to normal just like ya did before. With the slight difference that ya will stay in Ponyville together with us!” Applebloom jumped from the other side at the back of the stallion and held tight on his mane. “Yeah! Ah'm sure ya can live with us at Sweet Apple Acres!” Princess Luna had to laugh at the thought of the glorious former Captain of her Nightmare Legion as farmer. She quickly hid her laughter behind her hoof and carried the conversation along. “Seems like you really made some dear friends, Soul. Are you sure that you don't want to involve the former Nightmare Legion in this? They are all ready to fight along with you. Most of them are already training and patching up their armours. They are only waiting for your command.” Applejack observed Soul's reaction closely, but instead of giving in, the stallion just sighed and lowered his head. “I'm sorry, Luna. I won't sacrifice any of their lives. I will ask for their help to rebuild the destroyed areas, but I won't involve them in a hopeless fight.” Soul moved and freed himself from Applejack, and the little filly jumped down from his back. He went straight to the Princess and placed himself next to her. Only to face them directly. “Applejack. Since your sister and her friend are here, I won't force you to come with me. It is up to you if you either want to follow me or stay here, safe with your little sister.” She looked down at the sweet little filly next to her. Her heart was aching and various thoughts raced through her mind. She only got her sister back; how could she leave her again? The little filly wasn't worried or anything like it. She just looked at her older sister and smiled. Applebloom jumped up and tapped the top of Applejack's hat and gleefully proclaimed her thoughts. “Don't worry, sis'! Just go with him. Ah think that he’ll protect ya pretty well. So Ah guess it’s alright!” Applejack lowered herself to meet Applebloom's eye-level. “Do ya really think this way? Ah don't want to be separated from ya again.” The little filly playfully bopped the nose of her sister and flashed her an even greater smile. “Sure thin'! Soul’ll protect ya!” Applejack arose from the ground. Her eyes were filled with determination and confidence. “Alright! Lets do this! We will wipe the floor with these ponies and return safe and soundly!” Soul took a deep breath and turned once more to the big window behind them. Somewhere in the far distance was Los Pegasus. He didn't respond nor did he react to Applejack. Only his horn faintly began to shimmer and his eyes closed gently. Sweetie Belle closed in to the highly concentrated stallion and stretched her hoof into his direction. But the Princess blocked her path and gently laid her hoof upon Sweetie's. “I'm sorry, Sweetie Belle. You can't bother him right now. He is searching through the fields below the cloud city of Los Pegasus. Back in his time, this city didn't exist. He really wants to ensure Applejack's safety.” Sweetie's mouth opened widely. She blinked rapidly and bounced cheerfully up and down, flashing the most happy smile ever and squeaked in a high-pitched tone. “He can actually do something amazing like that?” Small careful tapping noises came from the door when Blaze finally decided to greet their guests as well. There was a faint trace of a heavy blush on his cheeks. Sadly, he hadn't worn his helmet to hide his face. “Of course! My Captain can accomplish everything! Someday I will become just like him!” Applebloom and Sweetie Belle turned to the young colt and immediately dashed towards him. The little Apple screamed in excitement at her friend. “Look! Another colt! Maybe he’s a blank flank, too! Hey, do ya want to become a Cutie Mark Crusader?” Both fillies were way too fast to stop before they met Blaze, but the months of crusading for their cutie marks had its perks. They folded their legs and slid forward on their bellies. This way they reduced their speed only barely enough to come to a halt right in front of the startled young stallion. Sweetie jumped up from the floor and greeted him enthusiastically. “Hey! I'm Sweetie Belle, and this is Applebloom! What’s your name?” Confusion took hold of Blaze's mind while they waited eagerly for an answer. “Well, I don't know what being a Cutie Mark Crusader actually means, but I guess I can tell from the name. I haven't found my cutie mark yet, but when I can fight for the first time along with my Captain, I will certainly earn it! My name is Blazing Night, and I will be the next Captain of the Nightmare Legion!” His sight slipped from Sweetie Belle over to Applebloom. The faint blush in his face seemed to return. “But If you want… you… you can call me Blaze.” Applebloom grabbed his hoof and violently shook it. She flashed him a goofy, careless smile and didn't bother with the fact that she almost dislocated his arm. “Hey, Blaze! When we get back to Ponyville, we’ll make ya one of our Cutie Mark Crusader capes!” Blaze forced a smile and tried to cover the pain inflicted by the younger farmer. “Thank you...” Applejack smiled at the sight of her little sister and the love-struck little stallion. She looked over her shoulder to Soul. His horn was still ignited, but only seconds after she took the horn into focus its light extinguished. He slowly opened his eyes and faced his friends again. “I'm sorry to interrupt you love-birdies, but I may ask you to play down in the study room now. I have to discuss some serious matters with the Princess and Applejack that is not meant for little colts and fillies.” Sweetie Belle and Applebloom began to protest. They stomped their hooves at the ground and complained, but their voices silenced when Blaze blocked their ongoing rampage with his hoof. He looked from the corner of his eyes to Soul. He knew this dead serious expression. It certainly didn't mean anything good. “Sorry, girls, but I think we should really leave. We have to accept the authority of my Captain and do as he pleases.” They noticed the worry in his voice and finally budged. The three of them finally left the room and closed the door behind them firmly. Soul waited until the soft noise of twelve tapping hooves were finally gone and turned to the Princess. “Luna, I've searched extensively through the area around Los Pegasus. There is absolutely no valid reason for the unsuccessful growth. The climate is almost perfect to grow crops and vegetables. There is no drought or anything similar, but there is something odd for this mountainous region. It seems like there was a flood that caused the crops and vegetables to rot.” Princess Luna rubbed her chin. Los Pegasus was one of the youngest cities in Equestria, but the area where the cloud-city was floating wasn’t unfamiliar to her. “You are right. For this particular region is a flood very unusual, almost impossible. The valley underneath the floating city is surrounded by mountains. Their tips aren't even covered in snow. There is no way there could be something similar to a flood. A second, foreign source of magic has to be involved. But if this is the case, why did you send the foals away? They already know about the Apocalyptic Four, so what is the reason behind this?” Soul's gaze briefly strived Applejack. It was a short moment of uncertainty. Applejack noticed his inner tremor. Her sharp mind already guessed what might be the reason. “There is somethin' different, right? Ah think ya were not tellin', because there is somethin' very bad out there.” The dark stallion nodded. Once more his gaze turned hard and merciless. Even his eyes became cold and stern. “You are right, Applejack. I could feel the same weird magical aura that surrounded War and Pestilence. Somewhere beneath the city in the sky has to be the third Apocalyptic Pony, but this is not everything. There is a second strong magical trace in this area. It is definitely the magic of a living creature. I can't think of a different user of such strong magic than their mistress.” Princess Luna leaned expectantly forward, holding her breath in anticipation. Soul hesitated for a short moment before he continued to speak and gnashed with his teeth.. “Considering everything we know so far, we have to assume that this mistress is Twilight. Which would pretty much explain Discord's appearance inside her basement... I never thought that I would say this one day, but we could really need Celestia's help.” Applejack cocked her eyebrow and nudged Soul's shoulder, shooting him a challenging but playfully grin. “What? Do ya think that ya ain't able to bring Twilight back to her senses? We always had a good life when Princess Celestia was still in power, but Ah think Princess Luna is doin' her job equally well or even better, if ya ask meh. Wasn't it you who wanted Princess Luna to become the prime ruler of Equestria.” Princess Luna faintly blushed and nodded approvingly to the honest farmer. “Thank you, dear Applejack. Your opinion is very welcome.” The orange farmer raised her hoof towards her chest and pounded proudly against it. “Ah'm just honest, Princess.” Soul could merely offer a weak smile towards both mares. His eyelids were already falling down, covering the majority of his eyes. “Luna is a wonderful Princess, but I don't need power here. I need compassion. Celestia was Twilight's mentor for the majority of her life. With her help it would be much easier to convince her. Don't take this wrong, but getting rid of her is easy. But convincing her to reject the dark thoughts inside her mind will be hard.” Applejack bit forcefully on her lip, only a little bit harder and she would bite through her own flesh. This fierce vein upon her forehead was pulsing hard once more. “There is no way ya will do anythin' to Twilight! If it will be that hard, why don't we get the Princess back?” Princess Luna gulped and laid her hoof upon Applejack's shoulder to calm her down. “I'm afraid that won't be that simple. My sister disappeared and never told me where she headed nor where she planned to appear. Even I can't reach her. We can't rely on her help, so we have to deal with her alone.” Applejack shook her entire body and forced the Princess to withdraw her hoof. She hissed and snarled, but nothing came to her mind that would help to solve this issue. Soul let his confident laughter chime. Applejack shot him an evil glare, but the dark stallion didn't mind. “Well, I guess that we have to reunite the Elements of Harmony to bring her back.”