Dark Magic

by newHelm

We Keep Trying

Two cloaked figures walked into the Equestrian Guard's encampment. Everypony knew who they were, the Traitorous King and the Silent Blade. Rumors had spread across Equestria of their great deeds and mystery.

One such rumor was that they were a drakos defect and a mutilated pony. Another claims that they are changelings that have learned to feed off of fame. Yet another claims that they are monsters escaped from Tartarus looking like a pony and were repaying Princess Celestia for past crimes. Spike's favorite was that they were simple Discord's attempt, and joke, to support the war. Macintosh on the other hand found the one about them being the princesses in disguise hilarious.

The fact that nopony had ever seen their faces or bodies helped the rumors, it just didn't help the Guard. Fortunately Macintosh was a brilliant pony who came up with a hand signal for Spike to use.

Within minutes of walking into the camp, they stood before colonel Break Hoof. The colonel was in charge of most of the main forces and worked directly for the major general, that included Spike's ragtag squad. He was a sickly green color with a bright red mane. "So, success as usual. Sorry bout the loss of your pony. He was up for promotion too. Damn good soldier if I ever saw one."

The two saluted their superior officer. "Yes sir. He died honorably."

The colonel shook his head. "No such thing captain. He lived honorably, and fought as such. Now, you have your orders. Report to transport, a pegasus carriage will bring you to the train station, which in turn will lead to the Crystal Empire. When you get there, the captain of their royal guard will meet you at the station and explain your new orders. He will be your new superior from this point forward. Your troops as well as private Sunrise's replacement should already be there." He raised a hoof as Spike stepped forward. "I know how you feel about the quick replacement, hell I feel the same, but it keeps ponies alive. More ponies means less work on all. Plus the newbie will learn and hopefully won't end up like his predecessor. Now dismissed." As the two began to leave, the colonel raised a hoof. "Hold on, here you go Spike. I know you collect these, to give to the families." He tossed a chain with two metal tabs on it. "Private Sunrise would be honored if you had them. Good luck boys."

They nodded and left the tent. Spike fiddled with Sunrise's dog tags. "Ya know, he has no family to give these to."

A hoof landed on his side. "Nope."

"Then who?"

"Us."

Smiling, Spike took the tags and placed them around his neck, next to his own and five other sets. "And we'll remember him always."

"Eeyep."

The two boarded the carriage and left for the Crystal Empire, and away from the drakos border.

Rarity paced around their seats of the train, needless to say she was nervous. "So we are now a part of this war."

Twilight rolled her eyes as she set her book down. "Yes Rarity, we've been over this. Princess Cadence has asked for our help in the war up at the Crystal Empire. King Sombra has returned and joined with the drakos to retake the Empire. Our job is to get to Sombra and use the elements to take him out."

Rarity looked down and stroked her necklace as Rainbow Dash spoke up.

"What I wanna know is how he's still alive. I thought that Cadence and Spike killed him when they restored the Crystal Heart."

Twilight fluffed her wings and scratched her head in embarrassment. "Well, uh, I have been studying his dark magic and talking to Discord." Her face darkened. "It is very powerful magic. I did a few test, it was too strong for me to do little more than simple things like projection. It also had a bad habit of burning anything I used it on. Discord found out and sat with me as he explained it out for me. While magic is personal and revolves around natural talent, dark magic doesn't. It revolves around emotions, sorta. Anger, hate, greed, that's what powers it. He said most dark magic users loss themselves in the sins of flesh. He also told me, it passes down in family. A tainted pony taints their child. It scares me to think that I've used it." Rarity looked into her frightened eyes, and it passed through her as well. "He also told me, the only possible immortality spell is black magic."

Applejack scratched her head. "I thought that Discord and the Princesses were immortal. Did they use black magic?"

Twilight shook her head, relief passed over her face at the change of subject. "No, I was told that they aren't really immortal, just everlasting. I don't really understand and the princess said she doesn't want me to understand, so I just left it alone. Rarity are you ok?"

Startled, she raised her head up. She had been rubbing her chin as she stared at the floor, deep in thought. "Oh yes dear, I was just pondering on color schemes. Sorry to have bothered you. I need to get a breather, I'll be out back if you need anything thing of me."

She faintly heard Rainbow Dash whisper out as she left the cart. "She's thinking of colors at a time like this?"

The last cart was empty as she stepped out of the door to the back. 'Good, I need to be alone. I wish I could ask the princess about this. Oh how I wish Spike was here, for many reasons.'

The door behind her opened and she rolled her eyes, believing Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy was coming to check on her. The booming raucous laughter surprised and delighted her, if not make her nervous. "Bro, I'm telling you, she was digging you so badly. I almost heard her eyes beg you to come home with her."

Two figures stepped past her and her corner as they leaned on the side. Apparently they did not see her "I know you don't just hook up but she was smokin hot dude. If I didn't have somepony I was totally into back home, I would have been all over that." She knew she was wrong as she noticed the large red pony smile down at her sitting form. He tried to nudge his loud companion as he smiled knowingly. Unfortunately the purple drakos dug his grave deeper. "I mean, she wasn't as pretty as you know who, but dang, I almost went after her." He lit two cigarettes and went to hand his friend one and turned. As he finally saw her, he dropped both of them, and his jaw. "R-Rarity, didn't see you there!"

"Hello Spike, Big Macintosh, how are you today? See any pretty ponies?" Her voice sounded like pleasant bells, but her glare was anything but pleasant. She flipped her mane and turned her gaze to the retreating tracks.

Macintosh Apple just chuckled as he picked up the cigarette and stepped over to the unoccupied corner of the train. Spike on the other hand stuttered as he tried to speak. "Uh, wuh, umm. Hey, what are you doing here?"

She raised her head and turned slightly away from him. "Riding a train. I would ask you the same but I believe that I have heard enough testosterone speak for one day. Is this the traditional smoke after a perceived job well done?"

A chuckle escaped the lips of the red pony on the other side. Spike growled at him. "Sush you." His eyes turned toward the white pony who's wrath he had incurred. "No, nothing like that, I didn't, I mean I haven't. You know what, what if it is, hmm?" He raised an eyebrow and leaned on the railing. His eyes popped as he quickly retrieved his smoking treat before trying to resume his posture with dignity.

She turned her head to him lowered, as she raised one eyebrow. "Nothing to me, but I just never took you for the ruffian to disgrace some poor mare by rubbing her dignity into dirt. Bragging about some fictional score with you buddies just was not the kind of behavior I remember you having. Mr. Macintosh over there had the dignity to at least try and not to speak that way in front of a lady." She flipped her mane as she turned her head away, nose held high. "Cretin."

Spike rolled his eyes, a large smile on his face. "What, I thought ladies liked the bad boys. None badder than me."

Her eyes flew open as she glared at the drakos. "Silly fillies like bad boys, not ladies. We like dignified, courteous, and gentle stallions."

He wiggled his eyebrows. "I'm a drakos, I ain't no stallion. Maybe the ladies like their ponies gentle, and their reptiles rough."

Her eyebrows and jaw dropped. "Well I never. Spike that was just crude. How can you even use that mouth to kiss with much less..." She twirled her hoof as she looked away.

He rubbed two claws on the side of her head. "Easy, I've never kissed anypony."

She turned to him, her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed. "I do believe I have kissed your scaly hide before. I'm regretting ever doing so now."

He grinned, mischief all over his face. "I never said I've never been kissed. All the ladies want a piece of this, but I like to think my heart's been stolen away."

She smiled as her face relaxed. "Ah, ther is the horribly poetic Spike I know. How have you been since I last saw you?"

He leaned his back on the railing as he puffed on the awful substance in his mouth. "Better than before. Still missed everypony horribly, you?"

She leaned her head on her hooves. "I've been better. The rest of the girls are in the second cart if you wish to see them."

He shook his head. "Nope, not ready to see them yet." He leaned his head to the side. "Plus it seems that our company has left, and no gentledrake leaves a lady alone. How does he smoke so fast?"

Rarity closed her eyes as she laid her head down. "He use to smoke when him and Applejack first took over the farm. He quite when Young Apple Bloom started coughing whenever he was around. Poor colt he was had a rough time then. Applejack was too young to work the fields and it was all up to him. He actually had only just completely quit when you and Twilight came into town. He would hide in the fields and town just to get a puff. The war must have gotten him started again."

"Nah, well yeah. A pony in our squad use to smoke and would offer us all one. I was kinda the one who pushed him into doin it again."

"Ahh, well than. You are the bad influence here. You and that other pony."

She looked up at him as his eyes glazed over. "Corporal Cane, Sugar Cane the ninth. Family name, overbearing folks, typical rich ponies. Not looking forward to meeting them."

A smile spread across her face. Humming, she leaned into his side. "Sounds like you all are a close nit bunch."

A light clanking noise caught her ears and she looked up at him. He was fiddling with a pair of the many tags he had around his neck. Why had she only now just noticed them. "Yeah, war does that to ya."

Concern covered her features. "I do not like the look on your face. Whatever is the matter dear?"

He smiled sadly as he laid down next to her. "Nothing to worry your gorgeous head about. Oh look, the sun is setting, beautiful isn't it?"

Her eyes looked over at the sun as it started to hide behind the mountains. The orange light was stunning. She was glad to be sharing that moment with her favorite drakos. "Quite beautiful my dear little Spike."

"Hey, I'm not so little anymore."

"Little anymore or not, you will always be little Spiky Wiky to me."

He grumbled and she could feel him being upset beside her. "Oh no, not in a bad way. Just that first meet when you were so small and cute. You were so small with such a big heart, it just left an impression on me."

"Well at least I outgrew cute into ruggedly handsome."

She nudged him with her head. "I don't know, I think you are quite cute still."

"You know, I'll take that as a compliment. Come on, let's get inside, it's getting dark."

She walked inside the cart in silence with Spike. She turned around when they reached her section of the cart, words hanging on her lips, but he was gone. Pain filled her chest. "He can be the bravest, most selfless at times. When it comes to feelings, he cannot seem to gather an ounce of courage."

Once she was through the door, Spike lowered himself from the ceiling. Head down, he walked away to his lowered.

She walked in and laid on her bunk as she drifted to sleep, but was rudely awoken by a pink set of curls. "Hey Rarity, we were wondering when you would get back. AJ said you probably found some cute colt and were flirting and just lost track of time but I knew better. I said 'nu uh, she doesn't just find somepony and keep on them like that, she only spends a little time flirting unless she really likes them.' But everypony just rolled their eyes at me. I mean you flirt a lot but you got standards girl and they agreed with me on that. I said 'she's a lady and ladies just find somepony, they find the right pony.' Rainbow laughed and said it was a good impression of you. Than we talked about boys in general and Rainbow went on and on about Sunrise and we all poked fun at her for liking a clumsy soldier boy." A piece of popcorn hit the inflated pink poofy mane. "We all know that when he gets back she's gonna jump on him and smooch on him till he can't take it anymore. Than we tried to see who we all liked. Twilight seems to like Flash Sentry and his guardyness. Than we found out Fluttershy has a little crush on Big Mac and I went ahhh!" She put her hooves to her cheeks and gasped. "Three of us like guard ponies! Than Applejack said she meet a colt at one of the ponyville dances that she's been writing to who was in the guard also! I couldn't believe it! More guard ponies! Nopony has caught my eye just yet, but now I'm gonna watch guard ponies to see if one of them catches my eyes now. Anywho, we were wondering, well I was wondering, since we were talking about boys, do you have a special pony you have an eye on?"

Rainbow Dash went to speak but light blue magic surrounded her mouth. An effective way to keep rumors from being spread. "Pinkie, you are a dear friend, all of you are. However, I wish for my private love life to remain just that, private. Sorry but I do not wish to speak on this matter further. Now if you don't mind but I need some beauty sleep. Good night girls." Her back was turned before she could get a reply from any of her friends.

Even after her firm statement, she could still hear her friends talking about her. Applejack's drawl reaching her ears. "What's got her tail in a knot?"

Twilight was the next to add her statement. "Ooh, maybe it's a secret love affair. Like a bad pirate who is learning how to be kind from her?"

Fluttershy whispered softly. "Um, Rarity is just over there, maybe we should respect her wish and leave it alone. This isn't a book Twilight."

Pinkie Pie inhaled deeply but was stopped suddenly. The voice of reason came in the form of Rainbow Dash. "Look guys, she's having a hard time. If you were having a hard time, would you want eveypony to pry into your troubles? Hey Rarity, you ok?"

"Yes darling, just tired. Thank you for your concern but I'm fine." She raised a hoof to her eyes. Wet tears ran down her cheek. In a whisper that nopony could hear, she spoke true. "Everything is most definitely not fine."

Comments

[Neutrinos are Magic]

Two figures stepped past her and her corner as they leaned on the side. Apparently they did not see her "I know you don't just hook up but she was smokin hot dude.

Missing full stop?

"Ahh, well than. You are the bad influence here. You and that other pony."

*then

"Ah, ther is the horribly poetic Spike I know. How have you been since I last saw you?"

*there

"Little anymore or not, you will always be little Spiky Wiky to me."

Magic E's, man. Spikey Wikey.

I said 'she's a lady and ladies just find somepony, they find the right pony.'

I think there's supposed to be a "don't" somewhere.

Than we talked about boys in general and Rainbow went on and on about Sunrise and we all poked fun at her for liking a clumsy soldier boy."

Than we tried to see who we all liked. Twilight seems to like Flash Sentry and his guardyness. Than we found out Fluttershy has a little crush on Big Mac and I went ahhh!" She put her hooves to her cheeks and gasped. "Three of us like guard ponies! Than Applejack said she meet a colt at one of the ponyville dances that she's been writing to who was in the guard also!

*Then,
Also, Rainbow will be more than a little disappointed with Sunrise's fate.

[randomsurprise]

well, so far i lik it keep up t good work and can't wait for moar sometime soon