Hecate's Orphanage

by BlackRoseRaven

The Crone

Chapter Ten: The Crone
~BlackRoseRaven

First there was the pain. Then there was the denial, and the fear. And then there was the cold.

And after that, there was only the Swan.

This was when the Swan was at her most powerful. This was when the Swan flourished. Because it was Cadence who had died, and it was Danzsöngr who came a little more back to life.

The dead body of the mare glowed with ill ivory light before her wings stretched out, as bones healed with sickening cracks. The broken tree she was impaled on seemed almost to bubble, like the rubbery bark was trying to resist the magic, but then it simply exploded, in a hail of splinters that made Sol Seraph stagger backwards and the Praetor snarl in surprise.

The winged unicorn flapped her wings once as she let out a soft sigh, her body flexing as the gaping hole through her form healed rapidly and sealed itself. She dropped calmly to her hooves as she rolled her head on her shoulders, her mane twisting and writhing, spilling like a living waterfall around her head as it grew long and gorgeous, as did her tail.

The Swan smiled through Cadence's mouth as her eyes locked on Sol Seraph, and the Pegasus looked back at her for only a moment before the two lunged at each other. But this time, it was Sol who ended up rearing back in shock as a hoof crashed across her face before the Swan slammed another into her breast, knocking her off her hooves.

Sol tried to recover, beginning to flip, and the Swan caught Sol's rear hooves in midair just as she started to regain her balance, slamming the Pegasus straight down onto her back before the Swan forcefully shoved one hoof down into Sol's knee as she shoved upwards at the same time, the limb loudly snapping. Yet Sol didn't even flinch, even as she half-rolled to the side and slung a kick viciously into the side of the Swan's head, knocking her away.

The ivory mare lunged forwards, and then her eyes narrowed slightly as Sol rolled herself over and kicked out with both hind legs: impossible, considering the break she had just suffered. Surprised or not, however, the Swan easily flapped her wings and sailed over Sol-

Sol shoved herself off the ground and rolled her body around in midair, slamming both forehooves into the Swan's chest and knocking her towards the sky. The Swan snarled and retaliated by lashing her horn down, more merciless and pitiless than Cadence would ever be as a gout of white flames shot down and washed over the Pegasus, incinerating her.

Or at least, it should have. The Swan scowled as she flapped her wings hard, dropping to the ground a short distance away as Sol only stood in the flames, her physical form flickering strangely as she glared through the ravenous white fire at the ivory mare. Burns would spread over her face, mane would char away, but then, in eerie twists and flashes of light, those wounds would repair themselves almost instantaneously, as if...

“You are nothing but a worthless failure, Sol Seraph.” the Praetor said contemptibly, turning his back on Sombra. Then, without looking, he drew a glass sphere free from his pouch and flung it sharply backwards, the sphere exploding in a burst of static and light in front of Cadence's father and making him howl in pain as anti-magic coursed over his body, the Swan's eyes immediately shifting to the Praetor. “You can't even-”

The Swan shot into the Praetor and slammed a hoof towards his face, but the Praetor caught it with a snarl, his eye glowing with anger as he growled: “You worthless cur.”

The Swan continued to lean forwards into her attack, and the Praetor gritted his teeth as he flexed, his limb trembling, the two struggling against each other until the Praetor suddenly roared as he yanked the Swan to the side, a knife appearing in his other hoof that he stabbed down-

The Swan half-spun with a cold smile as she yanked herself away from the Pegasus, slashing her horn into the knife and deflecting the attack. Instead of piercing her, the knife stabbed into the Praetor's own breast, piercing his armor as he staggered backwards with a gasp... then trembled as he yanked it free from his breast, a strange, watery liquid dripping out, steam hissing up off the metal of the knife as the Swan saw pure energy dancing and bleeding from the wound.

“It seems that you are the weak one, Father.” Sol Seraph said calmly, as the fires around her finally died down, the Pegasus mare shaking herself off before she continued with unhidden derision: “Not to worry. I will destroy them all myself, I-”

The Praetor snarled at his daughter, and Sol Seraph gave the faintest twitch, shifted the slightest bit backwards before the stallion looked back ahead and hissed: “No. I'll kill them all myself. You wasted your opportunity, and-”

He halted, then frowned suddenly as his body began to glow. Sol Seraph looked down in surprise as her own body lit up with an eerie radiance, and the Pegasus stallion snarled before he looked up and shouted angrily: “Let me go! These scum are mine to kill!”

“No, no, no! You two are great laughs and all, but you take your very simple job a little too seriously!” reprimanded a voice, and Danzsöngr looked up in disbelief. She knew that voice. She knew that voice. “This is a Swan Maiden, from the old days! And you two need to heal up before you get too many holes poked in you and all your energy bleeds out.”

The Praetor snarled in disgust, but any arguments he had were nullified by the fact that he simply vanished in a burst of light. Sol Seraph scowled, but a moment later she vanished as well. Yet still, that presence lingered for a moment as Danzsöngr stared almost needfully into the air, before the voice asked softly: “What's your name?”

“It is...” The Swan frowned, shivering for a moment before she shook herself, eyes closing, and it was a different mare who opened them, groaning quietly as she grasped at her chest and whispered: “My... my name is Cadence...”

“Hello, Cadence, that's such a pretty name! Oh, this is so exciting!” the voice said brightly. “Come on, come on up, I've got so much to talk to you about. You just walk into my tower and come up and see me and we'll talk it all over!”

“I... wait, who are you?” Cadence asked uncertainly: even though the Swan inside her seemed to be almost overjoyed, she had a strange, crawling sensation, like a mix of trepidation and barely-swallowed disgust...

“My name is Thokk, but... oh, just come on up! Come up, come up! We'll talk about it once you get here!” exclaimed the voice, then faded into laughter that gradually disappeared.

Cadence looked uneasily into the air for a moment, before she shook herself, shivering as she turned around. Her eyes widened in horror at the sight of La Croix, who was pale and trembling, a hoof over his throat, and she stagger-ran towards him, but Sombra quickly stepped forwards, catching her before she could fall into the Loa. “Calm down, mi amore, calm down! Are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah... calm down, Cygne, ain't... we okay...” La Croix wheezed, and he offered a shaky smile before he carefully removed his hoof from his throat, revealing an ugly, but thankfully far from lethal wound. “That... salaud probably didn't think I was worth the knife to kill... probably wanted to finish me off later.”

“Hurts.” mumbled Moonflower from where he was laying on his face, and Cadence sighed in relief as she straightened slowly, trembling a little as she looked at the black stallion, who gave her a faint smile even as he struggled to raise his head. “Not that it's... too much for me, of course, but... I... don't want to leave La Croix down here all alone... that would be inconsiderate.”

La Croix gave a raspy chuckle at this, and then he looked up at Cadence and managed out, gesturing carefully at his cape: “White potion...”

“Yeah, yeah, of course.” Cadence carefully pulled away from her father, giving him a reassuring smile even as she shivered a little when she felt the broken armor over her chest dig gently against her breast, reminding her that... “I... died again.”

“Not your fault, Cygne. Not even I know what that was... what about you, Papa Sérénité, do you have any idea?” La Croix whispered as Sombra knelt over Moonflower, gently rolling him onto his side so he could try and extract the knife.

Sombra only frowned, and Cadence shivered as he looked up and saw why: the knife had buried almost completely through Moonflower's armor and pierced deep into his breast. From Moonflower's labored breathing, she guessed that it might have knicked a lung: how could a Pegasus possibly throw a knife that hard?

But as she dug through the inner pockets of La Croix's cape, she knew part of the answer already: that hadn't been a just a Pegasus. Neither of them had been: nor were they demons, or Benevolent. They were something terrible, something... other, that she couldn't quite put her hoof on.

“We need to contact Hecate as soon as possible. All I'm sure of is that we've never encountered anything like that before.” Sombra murmured, and then he shook his head before asking hesitantly, as he carefully removed the knife from Moonflower's chest: “The voice, Cadenza... who was it?”

“I... don't know.” Cadence confessed, shivering a little before she swore under her breath as her mane fell in her eyes, pushing it quickly back with a grimace. It was long and straight and beautiful: by far the most annoying thing about dying was that every time she did, her mane and tail grew out again. Her body both regenerated and changed...

Cadence finally pulled a vial free from La Croix's cape and smiled briefly at its contents, then she gently offered it to him: the Loa took about half of the contents into his mouth, and then he coughed a few times as she brought the vial worriedly away, but the Loa only hissed as the ugly wound in his throat began to slowly close, La Croix wheezing: “I be... I be just fine, you... go give the rest of that to Moonflower.”

“I... I am alright...” Moonflower tried to mumble, but he was clutching his breast and his breathing sounded like it had worsened, his body shivering as he whispered: “I am a... god of darkness, you know, very...”

He groaned quietly, and Cadence hurried over to the stallion: thankfully, he didn't fight her when she gently poured the rest of the contents into his mouth, and after a few moments, Moonflower seemed to settle. The ivory mare relaxed a little, sighing softly as she straightened, and then she frowned and looked down in surprise as she held up a hoof, realizing that it had turned bright gold.

She turned it back and forth apprehensively before she looked at her father, who gave her a small nod. She frowned uneasily, but resisted the urge to ask about what else had changed: until she took off her armor and got a chance to look at herself in a mirror, she wouldn't really be able to know, anyway. She had to focus on the here and now, especially because she was more vulnerable to the Swan's urges and instincts at the moment.

But the Swan was distracted and almost giddy. She hated that. She was almost afraid of what that meant, as she looked back at the leaning, black tower, her eyes tracing over it nervously before she whispered: “What if... Valthrudnir...”

“Valthrudnir is dead. You know that as well as I do, mi amore. And the Swan hates his kind, as you told me yourself.” Sombra reassured quietly, striding over to the mare and looking at her worriedly. “Cadenza, what do you want to do here? Do we push forward, or should we try and find a way to contact Hecate?”

“No, we have to push forwards.” Cadence said after a moment, shaking her head and grimacing a little as she rubbed slowly at the hole in her armor: how had Sol Seraph outclassed her so quickly, so ruthlessly, so easily? What the hell was she? “We can't fail this mission, for a lot of reasons. Besides, there... I have to talk to Thokk. Thokk has... answers.”

Cadence looked silently up at the top of the tower, and Sombra nodded slowly before La Croix chuckled quietly as he picked himself up, murmuring: “You just be careful, Cygne. Seems like your friend keeps some dangerous dogs... and only nasty people keep nasty pets.”

The ivory mare shifted a little, and then Moonflower picked up the knife that had been pulled out of his chest, frowning uncertainly at it before he held it up and asked: “Cadence, what are these made of? It doesn't look like silver to me.”

The ivory mare frowned as she glanced at her father, who nodded and confirmed: “It's a strange material, like nothing I have ever seen before. It also seems to be the only thing capable of hurting those creatures, whatever they are.”

Cadence grimaced a bit at this, but then she murmured, as she looked down: “No, I know I must have been doing... something to Sol, it just... wasn't nearly enough.”

She strode towards them, then glanced down and picked up her fallen weapon belts, sighing as she paused to strap these on. Meanwhile, Sombra took the knife from Moonflower to study meditatively, as La Croix picked up the strange blade that had pierced his own body, the zebra muttering: “Yeah, it don't look like anything I've ever seen, either. But it got a real nasty feel about it, Cygne. Sharp, too.”

“It didn't kill either of you, though. So at least there's that.” Cadence muttered, and La Croix grunted as Moonflower did his best to try and laugh it off, but he only sounded awkward and muted, as Sombra looked uncertainly at his daughter. “Sorry, I think the straps are broken...”

“Here.” Sombra approached her, and Cadence smiled and bowed her head quietly, letting him finish making the adjustments for her as he murmured: “Just a loose clasp. You always have a habit of assuming the worst, mi amore.”

“Thanks, Daddy.” Cadence said softly, knowing it was true as she gave her father a small smile. Then she shook her head as Moonflower and La Croix both finally picked themselves up, the mare asking finally: “Should we push forwards?”

“We have no other choice, Cadenza. But it's up to you what we do. You were chosen as team leader for a reason.” Sombra said gently, and then he reached up and gently pulled his daughter's mane back before starting to braid it carefully, Cadence blushing but smiling all the same as she shifted silently to give her father easier access.

It only took him a few minutes to neatly braid her mane for her, and Cadence nodded her thanks to her father before she murmured: “You're right. I know what we have to do, I'm just... hesitating again, because I'm worried, and because...”

She looked uncertainly up at the tower, studying it silently. Thokk... that name was familiar. That name was also particularly worrying, for reasons she couldn't put her hoof on.

She shook her head briefly, then murmured: “Okay. Fall in, regular formation. I need you to keep an eye out, Daddy.” As much as I want you up here beside me.

“Of course, mi amore.” Sombra said softly, and he smiled as he stepped to the side to let La Croix and Moonflower pass as Cadence started forwards, the mare doing her best to put her focus forward.

They approached the base of the black tower, and almost immediately, Cadence's eyes locked on the entrance: a pair of enormous but rusting double doors that were already half-cracked open. It looked as if they hadn't been used in years, from how there was grass and moss growing over the humped-up dirt near the bottom of the damaged doors.

“What happened here...” Cadence asked herself quietly, as she studied the entrance. Then she shook her head briefly, hesitating only a moment before she gestured at the others to wait a moment before she approached the door.

The mare hesitantly leaned in through the damaged doorway, looking back and forth before she shook her head briefly and murmured: “Looks safe enough... but it also looks... ancient, too. And there's no signs of recent repairs or anything...”

Cadence hesitantly stepped inside, and she frowned as she realized the floor was layered thickly enough in dust that when she lifted her hoof, she left a distinct, easily-seen mark behind. The mare shook her head briefly, and then she murmured: “It must have been years since anyone's walked these halls...”

She stopped, then glanced over her shoulder and called: “It's safe, guys, come on inside! I don't think anyone's been walking around in here for a while.”

La Croix slipped in easily, while Moonflower got himself stuck in the doorway for a moment, wheezing a little before he managed to squeeze through. Sombra followed last, and he frowned a little as he asked quietly: “Do you see anything, mi amore?”

She knew what he was asking, and the mare grimaced a bit before she looked ahead, saying finally: “No. Do you...”

“Yeah, I feel it too, Cygne. Bad mojo.” La Croix muttered, looking up uneasily, and Cadence nodded slowly, looking over her shoulder at the two. La Croix and Sombra were both sensitive to dark energies, and Cadence thought that her own senses were being blocked by a mixture of the Swan's giddiness and the fact that she had died so recently.

Died recently. That was never going to get old, she thought wryly, as she shook herself out before she started down the hall, murmuring: “My senses are still a little... dull. I can't see or sense or anything, so you two will have to keep your eyes open. Moonflower, just in case, keep your magic ready. I don't want to make any mistakes here.”

Moonflower grunted, nervously touching his own breastplate as La Croix muttered: “We only got a few doses of Yemaya's Tears left, too, then I'll just be able to give y'all painkillers and bandages.”

“Alright. Keep the healing potion for yourself and Moonflower, Daddy and I can deal with any wounds we get the old-fashioned way.” Cadence smiled faintly. “Considering the fact I don't feel a whole lot different, well...”

She couldn't make the joke, though, as they walked down the dark hallway, the mare sighing and shaking her head before she began to light up her horn, and then she flinched as bright lights flashed on above them, illuminating the entire corridor as Thokk's voice called cheerfully: “There, isn't that better?”

It echoed all around them, and Cadence looked back and forth, feeling the Swan bubbling with eagerness inside her even as the pony-part of her felt almost sick with fear and anxiety. Something in that tone, some instinct, some mare's intuition told her to turn and run, run away as far and fast as she could, and the Swan's happiness was only amplifying that... “Come on, come on! I've turned on the main elevator for you, I'm just upstairs!”

At the end of the corridor, there was a brief ding before a set of elevator doors creakily slid open. Cadence nodded, biting her tongue as La Croix grimaced and Sombra's features tightened, but it was Moonflower who asked nervously: “Should we... maybe... not do this?”

“I...” Cadence wanted badly to answer that they should just turn around, leave, forget this whole thing, but then she forced herself to take a breath and shake her head, murmuring: “No. We need to keep going. As much as I don't want to, we need to keep going. Thokk has answers. Thokk will tell us what to do.”

Cadence winced involuntarily, her mouth snapping shut: that had been the Swan, not her. Why did the Swan believe that? Why was the Swan so excited, why did it believe...

She sighed quietly, and then she glanced up as La Croix strode up beside her, the Loa giving her a small smile as he said quietly: “We with you, Cygne. Don't you worry. We all got Papa Sérénité here to look out for us.”

The ivory mare laughed in spite of herself, and then she looked ahead and nodded a bit, warmed by the support of her friends and teammates as she felt them all following her lead without hesitation. She didn't feel like she deserved that, especially with the Swan trying to twist and turn inside her, so excited about meeting this witch...

Witch? How did she know that Thokk was a witch? But that was a stupid question with an obvious answer: the Swan, of course.

Cadence grimaced a bit, but forced herself to head down the hallway. The elevator was just past an intersection, and the mare couldn't help but check both ways carefully and frowning further at what she saw: one corridor had half-collapsed in a jumble of broken metal and shattered concrete, and the other led to a security door that had been visibly pried open by some sort of tremendous, hostile force. So it was obvious that something bad had happened here...

Answers waited for them above. That was what Cadence focused on as she strode into the elevator. She nervously turned around as the others piled in, and Sombra looked at the broken panel with a frown before he glanced up at a half-done of crystal in one corner as it lit up, and Thokk's excited voice came from it in a crackle of static: “Great! Just hold on one moment, dearies, not very good at this technology stuff...”

There was a double clank as the lights flickered violently, before the elevator doors slowly closed and the lift began to ascend, the floor vibrating worryingly under their hooves. The four ponies were silent for the ride up, Cadence not even knowing what to say: part of her was certain this was a horrible idea, while another part of her just kept screaming answers, answers, answers! and she knew that by now, the others had probably realized that this was all a terrible idea.

All she could do was put on a strong face and lead her team forwards and hope she didn't end up dying again. She shivered a little at this thought, her eyes darkening a bit as she tried not to think about that: one unfortunate experience had taught her very well that dying multiple times in a row was not something she wanted to go through if she could avoid it.

The elevator slowed to a halt, and the doors rattled open to reveal... Cadence didn't know what it was. The top of the tower, she thought, as she uncertainly led her team onto the cracked concrete and dirt, but once upon a time, this place had likely been some kind of greenhouse or garden. Except now it was nothing but broken stone, half-fallen pillars, wild brambles and flowers and even a few small trees here and there that did nothing to hide the jagged teeth of metal and glass that were all that was left of the surrounding walls.

And when Cadence looked up, she saw an island, floating ominously, a faint humming coming from what looked like a massive, crackling orb of energy and electricity beneath the floating structure of steel and stone, likely what was somehow keeping it afloat. She shivered a bit, then dropped her eyes back ahead as a voice cried out to them: “Come, come right on in! Swan Maiden, Cadence... come here! We've got a lot to talk about!”

Cadence slowly started forwards, glancing nervously over her shoulder to check her team's positions before she took a slow breath and nodded. They crossed the barren concrete plains and made their way around a crumbled wall that had several ugly trees growing out of the thick stone, and entered what had likely originally been a circular pavilion in the center of this area, but now, the fountain had been converted to a makeshift throne, and only the area directly in front of this uncomfortable-looking stony seat was clear of jutting rock and thorny flower.

The two Pegasi from before were standing silently on either side of the broken step leading up to the throne, the Praetor cold and indifferent, Sol Seraph smiling her hollow smile as she smoked a cigarette. And in the throne itself sat a figure who leaned eagerly forward, her long, black dress swirling around her body as she clapped her sharp-fingered hands together, crowing: “Cadence! Cadence, oh, it's wonderful to see you dear! And look at all your pretty friends!”

Cadence smiled uneasily as she came to a halt in front of the throne. She began to open her mouth to speak, but then her eyes widened as the Swan suddenly took her body over, forcing her to drop to a kneel and lower her head as it said fawningly in the old tongue: “Thokk, I live to serve. I am Danzsöngr, of the First.”

“Danzsöngr, well, aren't you pretty?” Thokk said warmly, even as Cadence struggled wildly to take control of her own body, but the Swan's power felt almost absolute, like they had just traded roles: now Cadence was nothing but the screaming voice, the struggling consciousness, and Danzsöngr ruled. Danzsöngr... “Be a dear, dear, and let me speak to your host for a moment.”

Danzsöngr nodded calmly: a moment later, Cadence gasped as she shoved herself up to her hooves, her body quaking and her eyes wide as she felt the Swan recede. She stammered a little, but Thokk only laughed loudly before saying apologetically: “The Swans were always a particularly... difficult sort, especially the Firstborn. Very dedicated, very studious, but I really can't imagine having one as my roommate, either. Why, one of me is enough to drive me crazy!”

Thokk tapped the side of her head a few times, and Cadence finally looked up at the witch's face... or rather, the witch's mask. Ratty, greasy black hair fell around her head like a natural veil, and shadows seemed to crawl over her visible skin, like a living cloak, but somehow it was the mask that made Thokk truly impossible to know.

The mask was made of marble, with no nose, rounded eyes, and smiling, full lips elegantly, delicately shaped into it. The mask had no visible holes in it for speech, for breathing, or even for sight: it was as if it had been cut off a statue and simply pasted onto Thokk's face. The mask was soulless, and hollow, and it made Thokk's cheery voice sound somehow malevolent even as she asked: “How are you doing? Do you need healing, helping? Oh, I have so many questions!”

“We... we're looking for someone. We're on a mission, and... why did your...” Cadence didn't know what the hell these two Pegasi were, so she finished lamely after a moment: “Why did they attack us?”

“Oh, they're overprotective, hard to keep in line, that's all. I apologized, didn't I?” Thokk said in an injured voice from where she was sitting on the crumbled fountain, touching her own chest as the mask's blank eyes seemed to glare right through Cadence. “Look at you and your friends, though! That one looks like he's been touched by a certain Jötnar we all know and hate, and that one... you're from the Black Waters, aren't you? And... I don't know what you are, but you're pretty cute, cutie!”

Moonflower winced at this as La Croix gave a weak smile: only Sombra stepped forwards, the black unicorn nodding calmly as he replied quietly: “Yes, Valthrudnir and I have crossed paths. Did you know him, Lady Thokk?”

Thokk laughed loudly at this, hammering the makeshift arm of her throne before she blurted out: “Lady, yet! You have manners, don't you, sweetie? But oh, don't you worry about that, I'm not a lady at all. Just an old witch. An old, old witch who's been around since time immemorial, but... it does me good to see you again, Danzsöngr. It does me a lot of good.”

Thokk chuckled again, and Cadence couldn't help but notice how she completely ignored Sombra's question, the ivory mare asking hesitantly: “Did you know... were you around when...”

“Yes, I was.” Thokk replied easily, tapping her fingers together in an excited motion in front of herself. “I wasn't around the entire time, you know, but I grew up during a time of prophecy, a time of stories... stories I so desperately wanted to be a part of! And now I am. I know all the old legends, all the old words, and I've even participated in one or two myself, dearie, and believe you me, they aren't half as exciting as the old coots make them out to be...

“But where are my manners? Do you want anything?” Thokk absently gestured outwards, each gesture making a table full of food and drink burst to life along the front of the square. “Cookies? Milk? Bread? Hay? Meat? I don't know what you want to eat. Hey, that rhymes!”

Thokk giggled, then she clapped her hands together, and the tables of food vanished as quickly as they had appeared as the witch continued cheerfully: “Okay, if you don't want anything, we should get down to business! Danzsöngr, there's so much to do!”

“What do you mean?” Cadence asked uneasily, even as she did her best to fight down the Swan, to reason with it, to beg for it to wait a moment because there was something terribly, terribly wrong going on...

Thokk laughed again, and then she gestured outwards and exclaimed: “Well, first we need to gather up all the others like you, of course! I know for a fact there's still a few gods, goddesses, and other reborn scattered all through these many worlds. We need to get as many of them as possible so we can have an Alþing! And then, once that's done and we've decided on a course of action, we need to act on it. Simple, sweetie.”

Cadence frowned uneasily even as she felt the Swan nodding rapidly inside of her, the ivory mare looking back over her shoulder at her friends before she turned her eyes forwards and asked slowly: “What do we need to decide on?”

Thokk clasped her hands together as she leaned back in her throne, and Cadence could sense the witch's smile, the witch's cruelty, the witch's sick sense of satisfaction as she replied casually: “What the best way to clean up this mess is, of course. I'm not saying we have to get rid of all of this, but... have you seen the state of Valhalla? And look at Helheim, absolutely unacceptable, there are demons down there who are actually enjoying themselves! No, no, no. This is all wrong. We need to have a great big meeting, restore everyone who fell, clear the scum out of Valhalla, and... do some repairs.”

Danzsöngr was smiling in agreement, but Cadence stared as she heard the implications beneath all those smooth words, her mouth working slowly before she whispered: “Fix things... you mean you want to...”

“Fix things! That's what I mean, clearly!” Thokk almost whined, swinging one arm out. “I mean, look. I love a little chaos. But you know what I really hate? Trail mix. Raisins, chocolate, seeds, and dried fruit are all from different food groups, as far as I'm concerned. Oh, let's not quibble. Different food classes. They shouldn't be mixing. It's okay at first, but then I start to hate it. I start to hate it a lot, because I hate the taste of raisins, and chocolate upsets my stomach, and I have to spend all my time picking seeds out of my teeth, and all I really want are the pieces of banana. And you know what? If they're all separate, and I decide, hey, today I feel like having a handful of garbage, I can make that handful myself, nice and quick. Here's a bit of this, a bit of that, all in a different bowl. Chaos in a bowl! Like Ginnungagap! Better yet, I don't have to have raisins at all, and the chocolate can just go into a high cupboard somewhere for special occasions.”

Cadence could barely understand, but Sombra seemed to catch on immediately, the stallion saying quietly: “You don't think we should be traveling between worlds. And you want to destroy certain worlds because you don't like them.”

“When you put it like that, it sounds really harsh. No, let's stick with my metaphor.” Thokk said after a moment, the witch sitting back in her seat and sniffing loudly. “Look. You might not believe me here, but I really do want what's best for everyone. Or at least what's best for the Aesir. The All Father sure as hell didn't know what he was doing: at the end of the day, he just went rabid because of Valthrudnir. Putting on attitude, getting his cronies to attack people for him, using blood magic and curses to make it look like he still had all his powers after Valthrudnir had drained him dry.”

Danzsöngr suddenly quieted inside Cadence, and the ivory mare shifted nervously before Thokk gestured towards her, the witch saying kindly: “Come with me, Cadence. The Swan in you knows what's best. The Swan lives to serve, doesn't she? Tell me, have you met any of your brethren? I need to find them. I need to gather them up and give them their lives back: I have the power, the magic to do that! Why, just look at these two: they were nothing but mortals whose souls managed to survive in the Void for... I don't even know how long. A little bit of magic later, and bam! Here they are, walking around, and ain't they a lovely pair?”

The Praetor only continued to look contemptibly over the ponies in front of him, while Sol Seraph calmly pulled the butt of her cigarette out of her muzzle and flicked it away. Thokk cleared her throat after a moment, then she dropped her arm and said finally: “Well, okay. Maybe they're not that lovely. But you're missing the point! Anything with enough will survives inside the Void, and there are still many gods and friends of gods just waiting for us to release them!”

“What does that have to do with gathering the other fallen gods and goddesses?” Cadence asked uneasily, as the Swan began to writhe inside her with what felt like anger. The Swan's joy had turned so quickly into fury that Cadence felt like her own head was spinning, and she couldn't entirely process why the Swan was suddenly so incredibly angry...

“Simple! Look at you, Swan Maiden, trapped inside a host body, a pony body. Reborn as something much... lower station. That's not right.” Thokk said, gesturing towards her... almost disdainfully. Cadence narrowed her eyes, and for once, she welcomed the fact that the Swan flared with anger at the contempt they were being treated with. “So it's simple. I'll gather up everyone I can, and then they can take a long walk into the Void. And when I bring them back out... ta-da! They'll have their old bodies back! They'll be the same old gods. Exact same old gods.”

“With all due respect, Lady Thokk... you said these ponies were once mortals, but after you brought them back from the Void, they seem like they have become something... different.” Sombra said tactfully, gesturing towards the Pegasi. “I know gods are far different from mortals, but would they be the same?”

“You know, you say it like that, you almost make it seem like a bad thing that they can't be killed. But no, these Voidborn are immortal, but I'm sure the gods will be plenty different. Trust me.” Thokk said, making a placating gesture, and Cadence could sense the smile behind her mask... and the cruelty as well.

For a moment, there was silence, and then Thokk chuckled quietly before she said softly: “Or, you know, don't trust me. That's okay too. Danzsöngr, tell me: who else have you met from the old golden halls? Tell me.”

Cadence felt the Swan rise up, shoving her consciousness aside and taking over her body, and the mare wanted to scream, wanted to shout, wanted to fight it with every fiber of her being. She knew the Swan was too powerful, though, and that emotion wouldn't get through to the Swan, but she knew the Swan. She couldn't forget that she knew the Swan, and even if she was shoved off to the side, she knew that just like she could hear and feel the Swan, the Swan could hear and feel her.

“Brynhild. I have encountered Brynhild of the Valkyries. She has taken lovers and borne children. I have heard that Freya still lives, and heard hints and rumors that there are others. Empress Hecate, whom I serve now, is also searching for them.” Danzsöngr said calmly.

Thokk leaned forwards eagerly at this, asking quickly: “Who is Hecate, Danzsöngr? Why are you serving her?”

Danzsöngr hesitated as Cadence tried to warn the Swan Maiden not to answer. And to her surprise, the Swan shifted a little before saying slowly: “She is my commander. I serve her because she seeks to protect the creations of the Mothers and Fathers. That is all.”

Thokk leaned back in her throne, the witch tapping her claws against one arm of the makeshift seat before she looked at the others. And with but a gesture, Sombra, La Croix, and Moonflower were all hefted into the air in bubbles of energy, unable to move, struggling weakly against the burning magic that wrapped around their bodies as the witch asked curiously: “She uses these?”

“Yes.” Tell her to put them down. Tell her to let them go! “They are my fellows.”

“Oh, that explains all the disturbances between layers... a self-proclaimed 'protector,' huh?” Thokk looked thoughtful, and then she made a spinning gesture with one finger, and Moonflower rotated through the air towards her, the stallion gritting his teeth as he struggled in the witch's grip. “Cutie-patootie here seems like he's got enough magic energy coursing through his body to make him all-but-ageless. Still, I don't think that gives him the right to go around, showing off to other worlds.”

The Swan remained silent, as Cadence cried out: He's your friend! They're your family! Tell Thokk to let them go!

Thokk revolved a finger again, and Moonflower floated backwards as La Croix came forwards, the witch clicking her tongue in distaste. “And see? This right here? This is a big part of what we have to stop. I have very little respect for the All Father, but even less respect for the gods and self-proclaimed gods who jumped in as quick as they could, mashing their servants and slaves into horsey-form so they could better communicate with the pony-life he created. That's plagiarism, as far as I'm concerned. This one we'll have to send back to the swamp he crawled out of.”

The Swan shifted slightly, her eyes narrowing dangerously, and Cadence shouted: Stand up for them! Are you a coward? Do you care about honor, or family? Do you really have no emotions, are you really nothing more than a... a tool that has to listen to Thokk because... what, she knew the Aesir once?

Thokk made the absent twirling gesture again, and La Croix floated away, Sombra coming forwards now, and the witch studied him silently before she said moodily: “And here, the worst. I hate Jötnar. That's one thing we're not going to bring back.. in fact, I plan to get rid of Jötunnheim completely. Pave it over and replace it with a parking lot! Or better yet, we'll build a carnival! Hell, why not both? Parking lot in the winter, carnival in the summer! But I digress. Scum like this? Sorry, sweetie, we can't have any of Valthrudnir's old toys scooting around, no matter what they promise. Promises are just timebombs waiting to be broken.”

Don't you dare don't you dare hurt him I'll kill you if you hurt him I'll- “We cannot destroy Jötunnheim. Many Jötnar serve the balance as well. It is the gifts of the Jötnar and the gifts of Thanatos that made the Swan Maidens.”

Thokk frowned at this, and there was silence for a few moments before the Swan added in a quiet, serious voice: “I must observe my mission. I am a tool. Valhalla and the honor of the Fathers and Mothers must be protected at all costs, Thokk. I do not care for these creatures as Cadenza does. But they all the same... serve my needs.”

Thokk's entire demeanor changed as she sat slowly up in her throne, flicking her wrist to launch the ponies trapped in her bubbles backwards. They crashed to the floors in heaps as her magic faded from around them, the hollow stone eyes of her mask glaring down into the Swan's even gaze as the witch asked in a deadly voice: “Are you placing yourself against me, Swan Maiden?”

“I do not serve you. I serve the Fathers and Mothers. What you speak of is not what the Fathers and Mothers want.” the Swan replied fearlessly. “Thokk, you were a crafter, and so I was eager to meet you, for I am a tool and you are a carpenter. But what you speak of now is heresy. I will not serve a hand that strives to turn me against the Fathers and Mothers. I will bloody it, instead, guided by my love of the Fathers and Mothers, sharpened by Empress Hecate.”

“Yeah. We'll see about that, hon.” Thokk said coldly, standing up on her broken, makeshift throne as she glared contemptibly down at the Swan Maiden. She looked at the Pegasi, who both shifted to full attention as the witch said icily: “I've got some things to take care of, it sounds like. Thankfully, I have plenty of resources at my command, and plenty of pawns to keep arrogant little misfits like you busy.”

Thokk paused, then clicked her tongue before she held up a finger as the Swan glared at her, adding mildly: “Oh, one more thing. Swan? I order you to go to sleep.”

Cadence felt her entire body go loose, her head dropping, her legs quaking under her as her mouth fell open, drool falling from her jaws. But a moment later, she snapped back to attention, a snarl crossing her features. “What the hell did you do?”

Except she knew it, because the Swan was suddenly buried under a thousand tons of fatigue and tiredness, so great and powerful it was seeping into Cadence's brain. With one order, the Swan was simply gone, and Thokk chuckled contemptibly at the question as she clearly saw Cadence already had the answer. “You know what I did, and I know you know, Cadence. Voidborn? Kill 'em. I'll dredge the Void for the Swan later. It'll be worth the effort just to see the look on her face when she's forced to serve me for eternity, and double the profit when I get to turn her loose on her former employers.”

The Praetor and Sol Seraph both stepped forwards, and Cadence readied herself as she felt her teammates quickly getting into position behind her, as the old Pegasus growled: “Gladly. Sol Seraph, finish your job. The three stallions are mine.”

“The job that you didn't finish.” Sol Seraph remarked calmly as she produced a box of cigarettes from a pocket, and the Praetor snarled at her. “Very well, Father. As you command.”

“Family. Ain't it wonderful?” Thokk remarked, and then the witch bowed mockingly before vanishing, even as her echoing voice added mildly: “Oh, by the way? Tools rust pretty fast when you leave them in a place like the Void. So after you die and get sent there, make sure you cling to what little existence you have left, okay? I don't want you turning to mush like Odin and most of the other weak-kneed, slack-jawed, inbred, everything-but-the-wife-banging cowardly cheating lying scum-sucking filth-guzzling... you get it. I don't want you dissolving before I get a chance to bring you back.”

The Swan twisted, but that was all it had the strength to do, and Cadence gritted her teeth as Thokk's presence faded, looking up and preparing herself-

Sol Seraph was already moving forward, and Cadence barely had time to bring her hooves up to block the first attack; but then her eyes widened in horror as she heard the tink of metal biting into metal, a moment before Sol leapt backwards and yanked on the almost-invisible steel string that was now hooked tightly into the vambraces around Cadence's forelegs, yanking the ivory mare off balance.

The Praetor, meanwhile, had already leapt over the two fighting mares, flinging two glass spheres outwards, but Sombra caught these with telekinesis and flung them off to either side, where they exploded harmlessly in bursts of antimagic energy. The Praetor moved immediately for Sombra, but he was forced back by a blast of magic from Moonflower as La Croix yanked a potion free from his cape and flung it quickly at the Pegasus.

The Praetor only snarled and slapped the potion away, but La Croix grinned as the potion suddenly boomeranged around, flinging itself back towards the Pegasus' face. But then he gaped in shock as the Praetor not only ducked under the potion, but twisted his body as he kicked a rear hoof out to send the bottle zipping through the air and smashing into Moonflower's face.

Moonflower went rolling backwards, yelling wildly as his head burst into flames, and La Croix made the mistake of taking his eyes off the Praetor. In one liquid movement, the Praetor flipped himself forwards, yanking knives free from the pouches at his sides before he flung them just as he landed, the movement of his legs letting him break immediately into a sprint.

The knives slammed into La Croix, knocking the Loa backwards with a howl as the Praetor bullrushed Sombra and forced him to rear backwards. The Pegasus slammed two quick punches into the black unicorn's breast, but then he snarled in surprise as his third punch made Sombra shatter into crystal, his eyes widening before he roared as the storm of dark gemstone began to whirl around him, slashing and tearing at his body.

The earth rippled beside Moonflower, the real Sombra leaping out of the ground to quickly dispel the flames from the stallion's face, and Moonflower wheezed in relief as he straightened and shook himself: his skin was raw and his mane was burnt mostly away, but thankfully that was the worst of it; it wasn't like Sombra had time to check, anyway, as there was a tremendous burst of anti-magic that disintegrated the crystal maelstrom, the Praetor snarling in fury.

The Pegasus rushed immediately at the two stallions; his daughter was just as savage, her hooves slamming cruelly across Cadence's face to force her to the ground before she flicked her wrist, a hidden blade popping free from the wrist of one bracer before she stabbed this savagely down into the base of Cadence's wing, beginning to pull back-

Cadence's wings glowed with ivory light as she screamed, and the hidden blade smoldered before it was melted more than cut through by the radiant energy, Sol Seraph wincing as she leapt away. But Cadence lunged after her, snarling as her body moved in a way she didn't even know it could, using her wings like glowing blades as she danced and spun herself around the Pegasus.

Sol Seraph dodged most of the strikes, but was forced to try and block an attack with her bracers: Cadence's wings sliced through armor and flesh below like butter, Sol Seraph's eyes widening in shock as her hooves were severed completely from her body. For a moment, Cadence felt victory as Sol Seraph lunged backwards, but by the time the mare landed, her hooves had reformed, and the severed chunks of limb had already burst apart into nothing but blue smoke and motes that were already fading from the air.

Her melted, broken bracers fell loose from her forelegs, and Sol Seraph frowned as she rose one of her front limbs, studying her regenerated hoof silently. It had healed, but Cadence smiled grimly as it thrummed with strange blue light.

“You don't deserve such power. I will take your horn. And I will take that power from you.” Sol Seraph said quietly, and then she lunged forwards. This time Cadence was ready, though, even as the light faded from her wings: ready for Sol, and ready for the feint and the lash of silver wire.

Cadence snapped her horn out, slicing through the hooked wire before she leapt forwards, but Sol countered by yanking something out of one of her packs and swinging it at the ivory mare. Cadence was able to dodge the attack, even swing one of her own hooves up in a counter that knocked Sol Seraph's head back, but then everything was swallowed up by the explosion of light, sound, and antimagic, Cadence screaming and not even feeling the hooves that pounded over her body before she was punched backwards, hitting the ground hard and bouncing and rolling from the force of impact.

Before she could fall to a stop, Sol Seraph lunged in and kicked her hard with both rear hooves, knocking her skidding over the ground before the Pegasus dove in and swung both hooves down in a savage tomahawk straight at Cadence's head, meaning to crush the life out of her. But Cadence managed to flap her wings once, narrowly launching herself out of the way before she flipped sharply and landed on all four hooves, skidding to a halt even as Sol simply turned the missed strike into another lunge after her prey.

Cadence slashed her horn down, and Sol Seraph twisted her head slightly to the side: it turned the deadly attack into a thin cut across her features that nipped wantingly at her neck, but allowed Sol to slam a hoof straight up into the ivory mare's throat. And as Cadence choked and staggered, Sol twisted herself with a flap of her wings, catching the mare around the throat and laying across her back as she started to twist-

Cadence flipped herself awkwardly, desperately forwards, slamming roughly down on Sol back-first, and the Pegasus' grip was shaken. Then Cadence swung her head backwards as hard as she dared, and she was rewarded with a sickening crunch as Sol went limp for a moment, allowing Cadence to tear herself free and quickly leap to safety.

Sol lay for a moment on the ground, her eyes closed, her muzzle broken. But it was only seconds before her eyes snapped open and her wounds healed, the mare sitting up and blinking slowly once before she smiled thinly. She looked back and forth, then picked up her cigarette from the ground, putting it back in her muzzle as she pulled out a lighter and said quietly: “We cannot die. You can't win.”

Sol calmly lit her cigarette, then, as Cadence started to answer, the Pegasus suddenly flung her lighter hard at Cadence. The ivory mare reacted instantly, slashing the harmless object out of the air with her horn before Sol blew sharply, and Cadence felt a piercing pain tear through her cheek as she staggered backwards, before she began to shiver.

“That poison is how I killed my father. Except I put the needle through his eye. You are fortunate that my aim was off...” Sol Seraph smiled thinly as Cadence grasped at her face with a trembling hoof, touching the needle lodged in her face before she hurriedly tore it free, but she knew it was too late. She could feel the poison, spreading through her veins, her body already beginning to seize up. “Or perhaps not.”

Sol calmly strode forwards as Cadence whimpered, her horn flickering before it lit up, but without slowing, Sol pulled out another glass bauble and casually flung it at Cadence's hooves. The burst of antimagic knocked Cadence crashing to the ground with a scream, her body spasming helplessly as Sol Seraph stood over her, asking with mild interest: “How many times do I have to kill you before you stay dead? It does not matter. You make the better trophy.”

Cadence twitched and writhed on the ground, her eyes rolling in her head as foam gargled out of her muzzle, the mare gasping for air. She stared in horror, unable to move, unable to do anything as she saw the Praetor tearing into her teammates, her friends, like they were nothing but toys to him, the Pegasus somehow even crueler and colder than Sol Seraph...

Moonflower staggered to the side, his face a bloody mess as Sombra leapt between him and the Praetor. But the Praetor simply caught Sombra by the face when the unicorn tried to slash in with his horn, the Pegasus' other hoof smashing across his nose before he drove him to the ground with a vicious elbow. And without looking, the merciless Pegasus pulled something out of his pocket before throwing it backwards, the small orb hitting La Croix and making him flinch before it exploded with a tremendous whoosh of flames, and La Croix screamed as his cape burst instantly alight.

The Loa panicked, yanking his cape off and flinging it to the side before it exploded, potions and glass bottles and countless odds and ends hailing down in all directions as the magical charms woven into the cape were eaten away by the flames. And before he could even turn, the Pegasus was there, slamming a hoof across La Croix's jaw to send the Loa to the ground and catching his top hat as it flew off his head.

The Praetor calmly tore this in half, ignoring the great burst of objects and light that came out of it as he said with disgust: “Magic like this is wasted on your kind, stripehorse. Go back to the swamps where you belong.”

La Croix snarled, raising a hoof as green lighting sizzled over it, but the Praetor simply caught him by the wrist before he twisted. And the Loa screamed as his foreleg snapped like a twig, but the Praetor smiled coldly as he bent the zebra's leg backwards, bones cracking like brittle wood as he said contemptibly: “Don't you raise your hoof to me, boy.”

The Praetor paused, then, without looking, twisted to the side as a blast of dark magic shot by before he turned and flung La Croix into Moonflower. Without losing his momentum, the Praetor sidestepped a spike of crystal that tore out of the ground, before he produced a small bladed disc that he flung sharply at Sombra.

The shuriken slammed into Sombra's chest before it beeped violently several times, and the unicorn's eyes bulged as he gritted his teeth in agony, electricity bursting and sizzling over his body as he was slowly forced down to his knees. Moonflower shouted in denial, then leapt forwards, standing protectively over La Croix's body as he lashed his horn out, black lightning crackling through the air before a black hole ripped open in reality-

And somehow, the Praetor ignored the pull of the singularity as he leapt to the side, then shot straight in towards Moonflower, driving a hoof into his throat before there was the loud click of a hidden blade, and the stallion coughed blood over the Praetor's face, his eyes bulging in horror. A moment later, the Pegasus yanked the blade free from the underside of Moonflower's jaw and flung him to the ground over the Loa, as the black hole fizzled out of reality.

The Praetor turned as Sombra roared, a shockwave blasting the shuriken free from his body before he lashed his horn forwards, a black fireball streaking through the air towards the Pegasus. But the Praetor sneered as he simply leapt into the air before he dove down, driving two quick jabs into Sombra's face to knock him forwards before the Praetor's hooves slammed into the device on his back.

The Praetor tore the machine with him as he sprung off Sombra's back, and the black unicorn howled miserably as the machine was ripped free and flung away with an electric squeal, blood and purifying agent spraying from the device. And even before it crashed to the ground some ten feet away, the Praetor was already moving again, lunging forwards to slam his hoof into the bloody hole in Sombra's back... before there was a terrible, crunching, rending noise, and the Praetor ripped what could only be a chunk of spine free from the black unicorn.

Sombra collapsed bonelessly, and the Praetor smiled thinly as the tossed the piece of vertebrae away. Then he scowled as he saw Sol Seraph simply standing over Cadence, the stallion snarling: “Stop wasting your time!”

“I am deciding on the best method to remove her horn. The poison has her incapacitated.” Sol Seraph replied calmly, looking contemptibly at her father. “You are the one who has left his prey alive.”

The Praetor snorted, his eyes flicking with disgust to La Croix, who was trapped under Moonflower's heavy body. The zebra was trying to use his little magic to heal the wound in Moonflower's jaw even as the life rapidly faded from his body, and the Pegasus rolled his eyes before he strode forwards. “I don't understand why such maggots fight to delay the inevitable.”

Sol Seraph smiled thinly, before her eyes focused in interest as Sombra twitched. The Praetor scowled at her, but his daughter only looked back at him evenly before she said quietly: “You did a messy job with all of them.”

The Praetor snarled, beginning to step towards her as he opened his mouth angrily, and he missed Sombra's eyes snapping open, or the way his body became like shadow, writhing and twisting as the wound in his back almost instantly healed. He felt the malice, but didn't turn in time before Sombra lunged into him as hellish miasma leaked from his eyes, the unicorn snarling in fury before his jaws sank into the Praetor's throat.

The Pegasus choked loudly, shoving and grasping at the animal Sombra as the unicorn grinned cruelly, blood spurting out around his teeth before he crushed and twisted, ripping the Praetor's throat out. The Voidborn staggered backwards, gargling, eyes bulging, grabbing at his neck even as the wound healed, and Sombra stomped both hooves down to send a forest of spikes and spears of crystal ripping up through the Pegasus' body, forcefully lifting him into the air as he howled in frustration, humiliation, and denial.

“Prey...” hissed Sombra, his eyes glowing with malevolence, his whole body coursing with dark energies before he laughed mockingly, rasping: “You... prey now!”

“He has a point, Father.” Sol Seraph remarked carelessly, before she reached down and grasped Cadence by the horn, hauling her up and shaking her back and forth like a treat. It immediately got Sombra's attention, and the Pegasus asked: “Do you want this?”

Sombra roared before charging forwards, just as Sol anticipated. It was straight, it was sloppy, it was crude, and it allowed Sol Seraph to easily throw a single, strangely-gleaming knife straight forwards, the weapon hitting Sombra between the eyes as he gave a dog-like yelp before crashing to the ground and skidding lifelessly several feet.

“And it looks like I am the one cleaning up your messes, Praetor.” Sol said calmly, and the Praetor snarled in fury before he tore himself loose from the network of spikes, not caring about the wounds he left or the way the needles of crystal snapped off in his body as he forced himself down: the damage healed almost as quickly as it was caused, after all.

But one thing that clearly hadn't healed was his ego, as he strode towards Sol Seraph and growled: “Listen to me, you little bitch, you had better-”

Before he could finish, Sol Seraph was blasted off her hooves by a pillar of dark flame that tore suddenly up from the ground, the Pegasus flying backwards with an expression of shock. She managed to recover in midair as the Praetor spun around, shouting in outrage: “What does it take to kill you-”

Something tore into his neck, and the Praetor gargled before Sombra yanked the knife back, the dark unicorn grinning cruelly before he stabbed the weapon down again, and again and again into the Praetor's face. Each and every wound pierced deep into the Pegasus, sending up bursts of raw energy as the Praetor staggered backwards in shock, unable to react as Sombra hissed at him with what sounded like savage delight.

The Praetor finally managed to yank a glass sphere free from his pack, flinging it sharply at the ground, and Sombra recoiled with a howl of misery, the knife falling from his grip as he hurriedly backed away as antimagic shocked over his shadowy form. But the Praetor was gasping in pain, clutching at the wounds in his face before he looked up with a tremble, whispering: “I... I will not be killed by such undeserving scum as yourselves. I will not be dishonored, dying at your hooves, I... I will kill you all! I will kill-”

Silver wire suddenly twined tightly around his neck, as a mare's body dropped itself across his back: the Praetor had enough time to look surprised before the wire yanked itself tight, and the mare seized him by the head, twisting his skull savagely to the side to snap his neck.

The Praetor fell, gurgling stupidly as the wire cut into his throat, and then Sol Seraph calmly twisted his head hard in the opposite direction, separating his spinal column further as the silver wire in his neck tore deeper. His eye rolled in his head a before he stared back at her disbelievingly, and Sol Seraph looked down at him calmly before she leaned slowly down into her father's face, saying quietly: “I did you a favor. Now undeserving scum has not killed you. I have, instead.” She paused, then smiled, arrogant, and callous, and with cruel revenge in her eyes, as she whispered in his ear: “For the second time.”

The Praetor looked at her for a moment longer, and then, as his body began to slowly dissolve into motes, he snarled in rage, mouthing her name as he looked at his daughter with utter hatred in his eye. But in less than a minute, the Voidborn had dissolved entirely, and Sol Seraph smiled calmly as she straightened and turned her attention towards Sombra, who was shivering like an animal as the antimagic continued to course over his body.

“W-Why...” whispered a voice, and Sol Seraph frowned and turned around before her eyes narrowed to see Cadence slowly forcing herself to stand. “He was... your father...”

Sol Seraph chuckled quietly at this, and then she said softly: “As if that means anything to me. I am a predator. My job, my pleasure, is in culling the weak. He showed a moment of weakness, and I took advantage of that. That is all.”

Sol Seraph flexed one foreleg slowly, and then she looked contemptibly towards Sombra as the shadowy unicorn snarled and began to advance on her slowly, as the antimagic faded from his body. “I will offer you a mercy, Cadence. I will kill your father, too. Your love for him is weakness, and I see in truth that he is only an animal, stupid, controlled by his urges. Then I will kill you. You will not have to worry about serving Thokk: you are too weak to survive the hardships of the Void for long enough for her to find you.”

Cadence gritted her teeth through the agony of the poison coursing through her veins, but she could feel the Swan inside her. And the Swan didn't care about pain, or poison, or emotion. But it did care, very much, about the humiliations they had suffered here today, as the ivory mare hissed: “No. My Father and I will kill you instead, even with your coward's tools and ambush.”

Sol looked thoughtful, Cadence thought. And then, to her surprise, the Pegasus suddenly smiled at her: it was cold, and it was cruel, but it was the closest thing to a smile that Cadence had seen on the face of the mare so far. “Yes. Killing you all now would mean giving the Praetor undue credit. Attend to your wounds, Cadence. And feel fortunate that I take pride in my kills.”

Sol Seraph turned around, spreading her wings, but she paused for a moment to say calmly over her shoulder: “Consider this as well, Swan Maiden: my Father and I cannot die. We only return to the Void, and wait for Thokk to bring us back to our duties.

“I will be waiting for you above. Do not disappoint me by killing yourself out of cowardice.” With that, Sol Seraph leapt into the air, flying sharply up towards the floating island as Cadence trembled, staring after the heartless, ruthless predator as Sombra snarled in animal rage, her teammates shivered in pain, and for the first time in its life, the Swan inside her felt fear.

Comments

[Mira Starlight]

Gosh darn cliffhangers! Well, at least tomorrow's a Saturday. Sol Seraph I hate you so much. She's a big fat meanie, as Pinkie would say.

[BarrenBaron]

Never before have I so uniquely regretted asking the question "what ever happened to x"