//------------------------------// // Hurt The One You Love // Story: Soren The Alicorn Part 4: The Rift // by KingNyroc15 //------------------------------// "Soren!" Sunny hugged the alicorn tightly. "You looked like you were having an awful dream. You wouldn't stop squirming and mumbling." "I'm fine," he replied softly. He needed to calm down. "You don't look fine," the Doctor retorted. He pointed to Soren's back. Investigating, Soren saw three red scratch marks on his back. "I'd say that was much more than a bad dream." The brown stallion couldn't help but notice that Sunny has yet to let go of Soren. "Soren...did something happen to your Rainbow Dash? Is that why you left in the TARDIS?" "What? No, nothing happened to her; she's fine. Why do you ask?" The stallion looked at Sunny. "Whoa, no no no no, it's not what you think. We're just friends. Honest." Soren broke Sunny's hug so he could get off of the bed. "We may as well try if everypony keeps thinking that," Sunny teased. "Thin ice, Sunny..." "Sorry. You can't stop a flirter from flirting." "Noted. Anyway, I know that I accepted their terms, but do those mares really have to do the trials so close together? It's been like...8 hours. Give or take." "Ironically enough, they do not want to give you a chance to rest," Bastian said. "Even when they said they would let me sleep before starting, they invaded my dreams. Well I'm halfway done..." Soren's stomach growled. "What time is it?" "A few hours past noon." "Let's get something to eat while I have a break." The other four ponies nodded in agreement. They were so worried about Soren that they also haven't eaten all day. The ponies left the hotel, and Bastian led them to one of the restaurants in Appaloosa to eat and finally relax. ------------------- One Hour Later ------------------- "Bastian," Soren started, "can you tell me about the geography of this Equestria?" Soren walked next to the zebra as they, along with Sunny, Derpy, and the Doc, walked towards the church. "It seems as though vegetation is more common here than in our world." "You would be correct. Plant life covers most of the land, not including bodies of water which make up a much smaller percentage. It is because of this that varies species of plants and animals exist." "I have yet to see a single animal actually. Is there a reason for that?" "I only have a theory. As I am sure you are aware, strange things have been occurring lately. Those mares are not the only phenomena happening." "I experienced necromancy for the first time days ago. Someone resurrected a dead mother to kidnap her orphaned child." "That's disgusting," Derpy commented. The ponies stepped into the church and took a seat near one another. The Doctor looked at Bastian. "I want to believe that the necromancy and whoever gave your 'Evil Ones' their 'knowledge' is connected in someway. Obviously you have seen phenomena before, otherwise you all would have been more surprised of a time traveler meeting his future self." "I noticed that too," Soren added. "When I showed Sunny the TARDIS, she was surprisingly relaxed and stoic about everything." "Maybe it's because I can turn into fire," the crystal mare interjected. "Things that are abnormal aren't exactly rare for me." "Maybe." The conversation shifted into a dead silence for minutes as the Doctor and Soren became lost in thought. The mares and Bastian took this time to relax themselves. As they all predicted, the time for action eventually came once again. "Hey, Soren~!" a voice shouted from outside. "It's time to come out and play!" The alicorn walked over to one of the windows and looked outside. Rainbow Dash was standing out there, staring at the church. "If you don't fight me outside of town by sunset, my friends and I will have to harm every pony in town." Seeing Soren in the window, the rainbow mare turned around and shot into the sky. Soren also turned away and looked at his friends. "They're playing hard ball now. They really want me to cooperate." "Do you want us to help?" the Doctor asked. "Even though I'm supposed to do this on my own, yes. I think we can all assume they will cheat in someway. Why not beat them at their own game?" "How can we help?" "You can't, but Sunny can." "Me?" The crystal mare was surprised. "Of course. It'll be simple. Before I leave for the fight, I'll camouflage you so you can blend in with the environment. If I need you, I'll say a certain phrase. That's when you strike." Soren walked up to Sunny and put a hoof on her shoulder. "I'll need you to lose your mercy for today. "If I have to," she replied. "What's the phrase?" Soren looked at her. She will lose her mercy; I can guarantee it. He then began whispering in her ear. ------------- The orange sky set the mood on the grassy plain as Soren walked into talking distance from Rainbow Dash. The two ponies stared at each other for a short time as a light breeze flowed through them. "Quite a romantic date you brought me on, Rainbow," Soren teased. "Heh, you wish it only that. Are you ready?" "We both know the answer to that." The mare grinned at him. Digging into the ground with her hooves, Rainbow prepared herself. Both ponies opened their wings and crouched slightly. "You girls are going to regret healing my wings." "You're going to regret interfering." She launched forward at speeds faster than Soren's Rainbow Dash could fly. She punched Soren in the chest, sending him soaring yards away. After tumbling, Soren recovered and slid across the ground. Creating a steady stance, he launched off of the ground as well and flew towards his opponent. Still grinning confidently, Rainbow accepted his challenge and flew towards him. Before they could come close to each other, Soren illuminated his horn and sent a concussive blast towards Rainbow. The blast impacted, forcing the pegasus backward and to the ground. After crashing, Rainbow held her now-bleeding left ear. The ringing in both ears wouldn't be enough to stop her. I wasn't expecting him to fight back so willingly, she thought. "How does it feel to make the pony you love bleed?" she asked Soren, who had just landed on the ground a good distance from her. He didn't say anything; he simply stared evenly at her while keeping his horn lit. On the inside, he was feeling every bit of pain he was dishing out. Rainbow stood up then took flight once again. From high up, she flapped her wings hard in Soren's direction. He didn't know what she was doing, but soon he felt it. Boom Boom BOOM BOOM He felt the pulses hit his head with a consistent pound. The pulses increased in strength every few thuds. Holding both hooves to his head, Soren barely hovered over the ground as he began to fly backwards to escape the pulsing. He couldn't get far, however, for he bumped into something. Looking behind him with a sliver of his eye open, Soren saw Twilight standing there. Lighting her horn, Twilight grabbed Soren body an extended his hooves outward in an X shape. The pulsing stopped as Rainbow landed in front of the imprisoned Soren. "You're welcome," she said. "I stopped the pain for you." "Now what? You're going to finish me?" "Of course. Any last words? Or is that too 'cliché' for you" "I have something to say." Rainbow leaned in with her uninjured ear to humor him. "You have beautiful eyes." She quickly pulled her head away and showed an expression of irritation. Rainbow attempted to punch Soren one last time but was stopped by a jumping kick to her face. Twilight's eyes widened as she saw Sunny Star take Rainbow's place. Feeling the aura around him lighten, Soren took this opportunity to ignite his horn and teleport him and Sunny away from Twilight. Rainbow dusted herself off and walked over to Twilight, who was now a little annoyed about the new presence. Soren and Sunny now stared at Rainbow and Twilight; the four ponies readied themselves for a round of combat. Closing her eyes, alicorn Twilight decided to start the fight by trying to snap Soren mind like yesterday. Soren felt the invasion of his mind and closed his eyes as well in order to concentrate. "No!" he shouted. "Not this time!" Twilight could see inside Soren's mind; his thoughts, fears, memories, and conscience. Upon seeing said conscience, Twilight was immediately blinding by a bright yellow light. She saw the light coming from the eyes of a silhouette. This figure was a pony with a slightly short mane and bat wings. "You evildoers never learn, do you?" the bat mare said. "This colt is protected." The yellow light flashed again and Twilight was cast out of Soren's mind. Both Soren and Twilight stumbled a bit after her spell failed. "Are you ok, Soren?" Sunny asked, putting a hoof on him to steady him. "Yeah, let's just finish this." "Come on then, Soren!" Rainbow yelled. "Let's go!" "Yes, it's time to end this little conflict," Twilight added. "And to think, the mighty Elemental Guardian chose this simple mare with a temper to help protect his life." Something sparked in Soren's mind; he smiled. "There's one thing you don't know about Sunny Star, Twilight," he began. "You six only know information about me and the friends I have already made. But you know nothing about Sunny, and that is what will help me right now. She isn't just some random mare that joined me." Flames ignited out of thin air next to Soren, who didn't flinch from it. Twilight and Rainbow watched the flames as they died down to reveal a mare made of pure fire. "She's practically a sun." "Burn with me," Sunny said as she sent a horizontal pillar of fire at Rainbow and Twilight.