Hecate's Orphanage

by BlackRoseRaven

The Mother Of Witchcraft

Chapter Forty Three: The Mother Of Witchcraft
~BlackRoseRaven

It was one of the most uncomfortable places she had ever been in, Cadence thought. Even the Replicants were sweating: hell, even if he was doing a good job of hiding it, Cadence could tell that Thorn was just as uncomfortable, too, and Moonflower was simply sprawled out on the floor, while she was sitting in a corner, fanning herself uselessly with one hoof.

Thorn had opened up a control panel and created a digital projection so he could interact with it, and he was currently using it to slowly open them a path through this nightmare zone of an industrial zone or whatever the hell this place was. Thorn referred to it as the 'furnace,' which Cadence guessed was close enough: the floor beneath them was all grating, the walls were copper, and everything was lit by an ugly orange glow thanks to not just the lamps in the wall, but the slag moving through crystal-shielded tubes... and Horses of Heaven, is it ever hot.

Cadence shifted uncomfortably, then she grimaced a bit as she reached up and absently hammered a hoof against her horn. It was so swelteringly hot in here that it was affecting her ability to concentrate, and thus both her magic and her natural senses were suffering, which probably wasn't a good thing, considering that she had earlier gotten the feeling that there was something nasty floating around, watching them.

She thought that even Muse was having trouble keeping up her concentration, though, in this horrible, suffocating dry heat. And as if he had heard her thoughts, Thorn glanced up from the panel and said moodily: “I'm almost through. Hold on for five more minutes.”

Cadence grinned awkwardly, then said before she could stop herself: “Well, I guess I'm glad to see you the heat's bothering you, too.”

Thorn sighed a little, but he nodded grudgingly as he returned his attention to the panel, tapping moodily through it as he muttered: “It's much higher than it should be, and none of the safety shielding has been closed. I'm surprised that none of the heating lines have ruptured as a result.”

“I thought this was a disposal facility.” Cadence said, and Thorn nodded, which made the mare grimace a bit. “What, they use waste disposal for heating?”

“Some of it. But most of the heat is redirected to the manufacturing plant. It shouldn't matter where the heat comes from, as long as it's efficient.” Thorn replied as he made a few adjustments on the holographic screen, and then he shook his head slowly. “Something's wrong. I can't take the sector off lockdown. We might have to cut through the door.”

Moonflower blinked blearily at this, awkwardly forcing himself to sit up before he asked dumbly: “What door?”

“Not here, idiot.” Cadence said after a moment, when she realized that the unicorn thought Thorn was referring to something in the vicinity. “He means the door for the area. We still have to get there, once the... other doors are open, I guess?”

“I've opened up a route, as I said. Or at least, I think I have.” Thorn muttered, shaking his head briefly. “Like I said, none of the protocols have been followed. Some of the security doors might still be sealed, but I can open those manually.”

Cadence nodded, and Thorn grimaced a bit before he finally dismissed the screen. “We need to get moving. The heat here is only going to get worse and I think it's interfering with all of us.”

“Uh, boss? Are you sure it's safe?” Necrophage asked awkwardly, and Thorn frowned slightly as he looked over at her. “I just mean... you know, since nothing is working and all...”

Thorn sighed a little after a moment, and then he turned his eyes to Muse. “Can you run a wide area scan while we move?”

Muse smiled hesitantly, shifting a little on the spot, and the sapphire stallion visibly shifted before he added in a quieter voice: “It's alright if you need a few moments. Cadence, can you scout ahead down the hallway? I'll update your Mission Drive so you know the route to take.”

“Yeah, no problem.” Cadence clambered to her hooves, as always rather struck by how Thorn treated the Replicants so kindly... but it does prove he has a heart in there, somewhere.

Thorn smiled briefly and gave a quick nod, and Cadence nodded back before she shook herself out, then turned and headed down the corridor. She absently brushed her sweaty mane out of her face as she made her way slowly forward, trying to make herself focus through the abysmal heat.

Her Mission Drive beeped on her foreleg, and Cadence glanced up as a holographic map appeared beside her, the ivory mare quickly memorizing the simple route through the corridors. Then she nodded once before saying awkwardly after a moment: “Uh... dismiss?”

The holographic map vanished, and Cadence sighed in relief before she winced slightly when Thorn's voice stated from the Mission Drive: “Verbal commands need to be given with authority, Cadence.”

“Right.” Cadence said lamely, not entirely sure of what that even meant. She simply continued on her way down the corridor, before frowning a bit and looking hesitantly towards the device strapped to her leg as she realized... “Are you still there?”

“Yes.” Thorn said after a moment, and Cadence cocked her head curiously before the sapphire stallion sighed a little, then admitted, to her surprise: “I'm not sure what to do here. I expected that the mission parameters would change and evolve, but they've exceeded my expectations and preparation. I'm considering requesting additional support.”

“Hey, we can do this!” Cadence encouraged immediately, and she smiled a little as she looked ahead down the corridor, saying quietly: “My team and I have gone through much worse than this, you know. And we're still infiltrating, aren't we?”

“I consider us to be on silent infiltration still, yes. That has little bearing on the reality of the situation, however: it's much more likely the enemy has already been alerted to our presence and is either waiting to ambush us or is simply silently observing us.” Thorn replied, and Cadence could just imagine how Moonflower was likely reacting to this information as she smiled wryly.

“Well, Thorn, I know that you're the team leader and all, but... as far as I'm concerned, we're still safe for now. We have to be cautious, I agree, but if the enemy isn't making any moves against us...” Cadence suddenly halted, then she frowned as she looked back and forth as a chill passed through her body.

Cold sweat broke out over her frame, and her spine felt like it had turned to ice: the sensations made her feel sick to her stomach as she looked back and forth. It felt like something was sapping the life from her body as she looked around, whispering: “Something's here.”

Thorn remained silent over the communicator, but she thought she could hear Moonflower in the background, asking worried questions. She ignored the chatter for a moment, however, as her eyes narrowed slightly and she focused on her environment, slowly looking back and forth...

Nothing. She couldn't see anything, even as she paced slowly around in a circle, biting her lip. But that feeling was only intensifying, and Cadence shivered a little as she shifted back and forth before whispering: “Something feels... wrong...”

“We're heading to your position now. Stay on alert.” Thorn said crisply, and the communication link cut out as Cadence nodded, her heart thudding in her ears as that painful, itching coldness grew worse, even as the nauseating heat pulsed all around her.

It didn't take long for Thorn and the rest of the group to arrive, and Moonflower stumbled his way towards Cadence with a worried look as Thorn strode immediately past, surveying the area with his visor before he asked: “Muse?”

Muse looked nervously back and forth before she said uneasily: “I sense... something. It's nearby... so close that I can't lock on to it more specifically...”

Thorn turned around with a frown, then he reached up and tapped his visor several times, flicking through vision modes before his eyes narrowed at Cadence. Cadence frowned a bit as she shivered a little, before the sapphire stallion asked quietly and urgently: “How are you feeling?”

“I'm... cold.” Cadence hesitated, then she shivered a little and looked uneasily over at Muse, asking: “How can it be so close that-”

“Cadence, concentrate your magic.” Thorn ordered, and the ivory mare blinked at the interruption, but then she only winced and nodded at the look Thorn gave her, taking a breath before her horn glowed-

As it did, she caught a flicker over her shoulder, and the ivory mare frowned before looking backwards. Her eyes widened slowly in horror at what she saw: there, latched onto her back, was some hideous pony-shape that was pulsing with light in response to her magic energies, the mare mouthing wordlessly as Thorn said calmly: “Cadence, the wraith is draining your vital essence. You should be able to remove it with a concentrated blast of magic.”

“I... okay.” Cadence took a breath, forcing herself to focus even though just concentrating her energy was hurting, and the mare gritted her teeth before she snapped her horn forwards, blasting the wraith loose from her back with a burst of holy fire.

Immediately, the chills vanished as the phantasm squealed silently in midair, becoming visible to all present for a moment before it whiffed completely out of reality. Cadence sighed and slumped a bit, then flinched and blushed when Thorn said quietly: “You need to stay alert.”

“I... yeah.” Cadence said finally, lowering her head and knowing she didn't have an excuse: wraiths were among the phantasms she was capable of seeing with her weird eyes.

Yet, all the same, she couldn't help but blurt out, as Thorn turned around to survey the corridor: “It must have come through the ceiling or-”

“Not important. Let's move forward. Keep your eyes sharp.” Thorn steamrollered, and Cadence grimaced a bit but then lowered her head, resisting the urge to sulk as Moonflower shifted awkwardly and Muse and Necrophage both immediately moved into escort positions.

They headed down the corridor in silence for a few moments, and then, to Cadence's amazement, Necrophage said suddenly: “Thorn, be nicer, okay?”

Thorn blinked and looked over his shoulder in surprise, and the Replicant smiled warmly before she said: “I know you're a really nice person! But if you're concerned or worried about someone, then you should show that you're concerned and worried about them, instead of scolding them, okay?”

The sapphire stallion shifted a little, and then he said finally: “I'm-”

“A really great pony! But we're all good ponies here, just doing our best! Let's work together!” Necrophage said brightly, and Thorn looked at the Replicant for a few moments before the squat mare gave a warm smile to him. “I know you know what I mean, boss, 'cause you're really smart, Thorn. And I know you want me to speak my mind, right?”

“Yes. Yes.” Thorn said grudgingly after a moment, and then he sighed and turned his head ahead, saying finally: “Alright. Let's keep our focus on the mission for now.”

Necrophage beamed brightly, and Moonflower looked almost enviously at the small mare as Muse lowered her head a little and murmured: “I don't sense anything else nearby. There is still a strange presence above us, but it has grown more... distant.”

“We need to remain cautious, but...” Thorn paused, then he created a holographic screen, scowling a little at it. “We have five minutes to get out of this sector, and then we'll push hard through the service corridors while the enemy is hopefully distracted by the breach in the waste facility. We should be able to surface directly into the computer core.”

Apart from the sweltering, painful heat, the travel through the furnace corridors was uneventful: the only thing that slowed them down was when Thorn had to manually open a service door, and thanks to the open security panels, that was only a few moments' work each time.

Unfortunately, that ease ended when they reached the massive, armored shutter that cut the furnace sector off from the rest of the facility, Thorn studying it intently before he said quietly: “We don't have a choice. Moonflower, I need you to cut through.”

“I... yes. I can do this. I can do this.” Moonflower repeated, biting his lip before he took a slow breath, straightening as he concentrated his magic.

As a ray of energy shot out of his horn and slowly began to cut through the thick metal that composed the door, Thorn turned his eyes towards Cadence, saying in a low voice: “Something is extremely wrong here. Someone had routed power to those control terminals exclusively, but they didn't activate this door. We're being funneled.”

Cadence frowned at this, opening her mouth to ask if Thorn was sure, but of course he was sure. So instead, she asked: “What does that mean? I... we're not going to cut this door open just to run into an ambush, right?”

Thorn shook his head, gesturing towards Muse. “She would sense if we were. I'm not concerned about running into enemies in this sector, although I am worried that we're going to encounter increased security around the computer core. No, not all of this... makes sense.”

Cadence nodded, looking at Thorn curiously as he seemed to hesitate for a few moments, before the stallion finally sighed and said quietly: “I think we might have an... unknown element. A third party may be tampering with this mission, and I don't like it.”

“Do you like anything?” Cadence asked before she could stop herself, and Thorn gave her a flat look, which made the mare drop her head sheepishly before she suggested: “Why don't we alter our point of entry, then? Or pull back?”

“We're too close now. Service access is right ahead and it's the fastest way to our objective. It's also the safest.” Thorn paused. “Hopefully.”

“Hopefully.” Cadence repeated, and she couldn't help but shake her head, saying finally: “It's really awkward to hear that word from you in this context, Thorn.”

Thorn only gave her a dry look, and Cadence smiled a little before she added quietly: “And I know I screwed up, I do. I'm sorry about that.”

Thorn looked at her for a few moments, and then he smiled briefly before he replied: “Apologies are unnecessary, Cadence. But I appreciate the gesture all the same.”

A beep cut through the air between them, and Thorn grimaced a bit before he muttered: “Thirty minutes are up. Moonflower, how much time left?”

“I almost have it!” Moonflower wheezed loudly, and Cadence grimaced a bit: the black unicorn was shaking a little and had sweat pouring down his body from more than just the horrible heat. And from what Cadence could see, so far the stallion had only managed to cut a few feet through the shutter.

“Take your time.” Thorn said, surprisingly gentle, and Moonflower blinked in surprise before he squawked as he lost concentration and diffused the laser for a moment, scarring the shutter with blasts of energy before he hurriedly concentrated it back into a solid beam.

Thorn shook his head briefly, and then he said quietly: “Cadence, keep an eye out behind us. Muse, I need you to do pulse scans: inform me if you detect anything moving.”

Muse nodded before she closed her eyes, her glass orb silently rising up to orbit slowly around her, and Cadence saluted before she headed a few feet back down the corridor, deciding that Thorn probably just wanted a bit of time to think.

She frowned a little after a few moments, however, as she felt that uneasy coldness spreading through her bones again. She checked compulsively around her before looking quickly up towards the ceiling, and this time she was fast enough to spot the wraith.

It moved with hollow intent in a strange, swimming motion, drifting more than gliding through the air towards her as it wailed silently. It looked like nothing more than the husk of a pony, almost completely translucent even in her vision, its body distorted and twisted, forelimbs dragging through the air as it stared at her with hate and hunger.

Cadence gritted her teeth, then she snapped her horn quickly upwards, and the creature dissolved almost instantaneously from the touch of white fire. That tenseness didn't leave her shoulders, however, and the air still felt clammy in spite of the heat, which warned her-

“There are more coming. They are being sent towards us.” whispered Muse, and Thorn gritted his teeth before he looked quickly over his shoulder at the door. Moonflower had cut most of the way through it, leaving a large, C-shaped scar in the middle as he huffed and puffed away-

“Moonflower, that's enough. Necrophage, Muse, breach it.” Thorn ordered, and Moonflower looked dumbly up as the magic vanished from around his horn and Necrophage squealed in what sounded like delight, while Muse only winced.

But the Replicant sisters moved almost immediately and in tandem, Necrophage leaping in front of the door before hopping several strides backwards as she tensed her body, and Muse lowering her head slightly as she visibly concentrated, her glass orb spinning silently beside her head as the psychic Replicant gathered focus and power.

Then Necrophage leapt suddenly into the air, and Muse snapped her head to the side, flinging Necrophage with all the telekinetic strength she could muster. Necrophage smashed into the door like a cannonball and kicked savagely off it with a giggle, hitting with so much force the armored shutter was nearly knocked off its rails and a tattered circle of metal was kicked out of the center of the heavy steel gate.

Necrophage landed with her head raised and a proud 'ta-da!' as Cadence and Moonflower both gaped, while Thorn only strode quickly towards the hole that had been knocked in the metal shutter. He glanced back and forth, then nodded quickly before leaning back and ordering: “Cadence, with me. Muse, Necrophage, follow behind with Moonflower.”

Moonflower blinked dumbly a few times as Muse gave a tired smile and Necrophage saluted briskly, while Cadence quickly shook herself out before hurrying over to the stallion, nodding awkwardly as she said lamely: “Yep, you got it.”

Thorn stepped through the hole in the shutter without looking back, and Cadence followed him after a moment, nervously looking back and forth: but Horses of Heaven, stepping out of that sweltering heat and into the cool, open hall beyond felt like it was worth the possible ambush they were walking into.

Cadence sighed in relief as even that icy feeling down her spine faded, but Thorn didn't give her more than a moment to relax as he instructed: “We'll open the way forward. Follow me.”

The ivory mare hurried to fall in behind Thorn as he strode across the empty steel corridor, the mare looking uncertainly back and forth as she asked: “What is this place?”

“A zadkja, like we discussed before. Just a larger version, designed to act as a connector for multiple points in the facility.” Thorn explained as he walked towards a support pillar, except then Cadence's eyes widened in surprise as the pillar whirred before smoothly sliding into the ground, revealing a podium that had been hidden inside.

Thorn took only a moment to interface with this, calling up a holographic screen as Cadence approached and stared in disbelief, asking before she could stop herself: “How did you manage to do that?”

Thorn only glanced at her, then he returned his eyes to the holographic screen, and Cadence smiled wryly as she reminded herself of who she was talking to. That thought helped make her feel far less surprised when a section of wall suddenly rumbled, sending down a hail of dust as it slowly descended into the floor to reveal a passage beyond.

The stallion strode towards this, and Cadence followed even as she glanced over her shoulder at the breached shutter, where Moonflower and the Replicants were carefully climbing through. “You know, if we wait a few moments-”

“No. I want to move a little ahead.” Thorn said, and Cadence shrugged a bit as she tossed one last look over her shoulder at the others before following the stallion into the room he had opened up.

The room was more like a giant hatch: the walls were lined with storage compartments, while the center was dominated by an enormous, wide ramp leading up to a vent near the ceiling, and Cadence frowned uncertainly as she realized that not only was the ceiling made of naked pipes, they all seemed to lead straight above that vent.

Thorn strode up the ramp towards the grating, and then he grasped it and easily yanked it out of place, Cadence wincing a bit at the screech of metal on metal before she asked awkwardly: “Are you sure we want to go in... there?”

She looked uncomfortably at the duct passage past Thorn: the ceiling looked like it was completely made out of piping, while the walls were composed of a mix of steel tube, electrical wire, and heavy concrete.

Thorn only turned towards the duct and stepped into the passage, and Cadence grimaced before she followed, glancing uncomfortably up at the ceiling of pipework. It made her skin crawl just to look at it, and she could see a very distinct marring in the material that told her... “Clay of Prometheus?”

“And other chemicals, yes. Let's keep moving.” Thorn said as he strode quickly down the narrow duct, and Cadence grimaced a little before she couldn't help but shiver as they passed a ruptured pipe, carefully stepping over the black ooze leaking out of the hole in the metal tube.

“You really don't like the Clay, do you?” Thorn asked without looking over his shoulder at her, and Cadence blinked in surprise before she gave a small smile and shook her head. “It's never had any effect on me.”

That was a weird thing for Thorn to volunteer. Well, okay, anything was weird for Thorn to volunteer, she supposed, and Cadence tilted her head curiously before she said finally: “Well, uh... why not? I mean, it effects just about everything, right? That's why I hate it, when I touch it, I feel...”

Cadence shivered a little: she wasn't entirely sure what she felt, but it was never anything good. That, and the Clay of Prometheus almost always felt like it was charged with a toxic energy, like... the blood of husks.

Where did that come from? Cadence grimaced uneasily at the thought, but tried to throw it off when Thorn looked over his shoulder at her oddly, the mare giving a strained smile. “Just...”

“Swan-thoughts.” Thorn finished, and Cadence gave a small laugh and a surprised smile before Thorn looked ahead, saying softly: “I recognize your difficulties, Cadence, but don't forget that all of us have our own Swans in our heads. You can learn to deal with yours... and at least yours can be spoken to and reasoned with.”

“She can be ordered around, if that's what you mean.” Cadence mumbled, as the Swan grumbled inside of her... but at the same time, the ivory mare had to admit that maybe Thorn had a point. “I... don't know how the Swan feels about you. I think she respects you-”

“I don't need her respect, Cadence. I need yours.” Thorn interrupted gently, and Cadence couldn't help but give a small smile and nod before Thorn turned his eyes back ahead, and they continued down the tunnel in silence.

Cadence felt the Swan give a strange twist inside her as they neared the end of the long, narrow passage, and the mare bit her lip before she said suddenly, as Thorn reached towards the hatch in the ceiling: “Don't.”

Thorn paused and frowned at Cadence, and the ivory mare shifted a little. It was so hard to put into words, but as the Swan roiled inside her, she knew she had to try, all the same. “I have a bad feeling.”

Great start. Thorn was still frowning at her, and Cadence tried to sort those 'bad feelings' out before she explained: “It's the Swan, and I guess it's sort of my own instincts, too. There's this sense that you shouldn't... that something bad is going to happen.”

Thorn frowned slightly, and then he reached up and grasped the valve handle controlling the hatch, turning it slightly. Cadence grimaced and stepped uncertainly backwards, and Thorn looked meditatively at the ground for a few moments before he said finally: “We'll wait for the others to catch up. They can't be very far behind, anyway.”

Cadence smiled lamely, blushing slightly, and Thorn only shrugged before he looked up at the hatch. She felt relieved he had listened, though... for a whole slew of reasons. “Thorn, uh... thanks for-”

“It's fine.” Thorn interrupted as he called up a holographic screen, and Cadence smiled in amusement even as he pointedly ignored her.

“Asshole.” she said loudly, and Thorn glanced up in surprise, but then he gave a small smile despite himself and shrugged a bit, and Cadence shook her head before she said in a softer voice: “You're doing good, you know.”

Thorn clearly didn't care about her opinion, keeping his eyes locked on the screen in front of him, and the mare couldn't help but smile in amusement before she turned around to look down the long tunnel, waiting impatiently for Moonflower and the Replicants.

They arrived after a few minutes, and Thorn barely had to glance at Muse before she bowed her head and said courteously: “Of course, sir.”

She closed her eyes, then almost immediately frowned as she murmured: “Something is attached to the other side of the hatch. It was attached recently... it has a pulse, of electricity...”

“Uh-oh!” Necrophage leapt up, Thorn wincing as she almost scrambled on top of him so she could shove her face against the hatch, sniffing loudly before licking the metal as Cadence and Moonflower both stared, before the Replicant's eyes widened. “Oh no! Class two plastic explosive!”

“We'll assume it's militarized. I'll take care of it.” Thorn said calmly, and Cadence frowned as Necrophage quickly hopped away, as the sapphire stallion reached up and placed his mechanical foreleg against the metal hatch.

Electricity sparked along his limb, and the Replicants both winced as Cadence watched nervously, before her eyes widened when Thorn grabbed the valve handle and twisted it firmly. He shoved it open as the mare flinched on instinct, but then she blinked and relaxed after a moment when nothing happened as Thorn climbed up into the room above.

Thorn frowned as he looked around the room he had emerged into: massive server racks took up the rear half of the room, while the computer core dominated the other half, thrumming with power. It was an hourglass shaped pillar, enormous, thick cables feeding into it from both above and below to provide power for the systems: the cables themselves were almost as thick as Thorn's body, while even at its thinnest, where the pillar was made of glowing crystal instead of solid steel, the computer core was at least ten feet in diameter.

That wasn't what drew Thorn's attention, and nor did he care about the hastily, sloppily-prepared explosive trap badly glued to the top of the concealed hatch. It was the fact that all of the security shutters had been sealed tightly over every other possible entrance, and there was a presence on the catwalks above, watching silently from beneath the shadows.

Thorn nodded ever so slightly towards the shape as the others began to climb out, just enough to acknowledge it, but the shape didn't respond: which, Thorn thought, was enough of a response in and of itself as he turned his attention towards the computer core. Muse and Necrophage were both looking intently up at the second floor, and Cadence was looking uncomfortably around, as if she sensed other forces, but Moonflower only stumbled hurriedly after Thorn, blurting: “What do we do now?”

“Just give me a moment.” Thorn replied calmly as he approached the computer core, looking up at it with a slight frown. It was in low power mode, but this was far different from what he'd expected: since it wasn't on standby, that might mean... “Register imprint, code 1X1X, user code empress-0.”

The computer core began to thrum with life, the light in the crystalline core pulsing several times as a series of holographic screens appeared in front of the pillar. Thorn frowned a little at this as he looked over the screens, noting the various percentages and statistics before he ordered: “Manual input mode.”

There was a beeping, and a small pedestal rose up out of the floor in front of the stallion, a control panel unfolding like a blossoming flower on top of it. Thorn frowned for a moment, feeling like this was all too easy before Moonflower asked nervously: “Is this it?”

“Yes.” Thorn said, although he wasn't honestly sure what was going to happen next, even as he used telekinesis to pop open a hidden panel on his mechanical leg. He unwound a thin connector cable from inside, then plugged this into the control panel in front of him.

A holographic screen appeared, displaying bursts of information as it automatically ran through the process of uploading the anchor program Seneshcal would use to download himself into the core. It only took thirty seconds, but Thorn felt uneasy all the same: that was more than enough time for their enemy to step in and do something, after all.

But once it was finished, the computer core automatically went into standby to update itself and begin reallocating resources to the cross-dimensional link, and Thorn frowned a little as he unplugged himself from the control panel and returned the cable to his foreleg, muttering: “That's about it.”

Moonflower smiled at him, then shifted awkwardly before the unicorn asked lamely: “Then why don't you look happy?”

“Because of that, I'm guessing.” Cadence said quietly, and Thorn and Moonflower both looked up to see that a figure had emerged from the shadows above, and was now leaning over the railing of the catwalk, studying them with a strangely-gentle smile on her face.

The first thing that struck Thorn was that she didn't seem hostile: she seemed... sad, Thorn thought. The second was the massive, octagonal collar around her neck, inscribed with runes and almost visibly pulsating. He didn't recognize any of those runes, but as his eyes studied them, he felt the ring around his horn reacting to their malign magic, as if these inanimate objects were infused with eras of animosity.

The mare wearing this collar was stunningly beautiful: her coat was a gorgeous silver-black, her curls of platinum mane spilling around angelic features out of which gazed eyes that were the richest red of leaves in autumn. And from both the ancient poems and older-still histories he had read about her, Thorn knew who this mare had to be: “May I take it that you are Melinda, the Sky Witch?”

The unicorn gave a soft laugh, and then she replied in a gentle voice that was as melodious as she was beautiful: “Yes, child. And you are Thorn Blackfeather, are you not? Your brother, Thesis, has told me a lot about you.”

“Good things, I hope.” Thorn said politely, as Cadence stared in surprise: she had never really imagined Thorn as the diplomatic type. “Are you here to engage us under Thokk's orders?”

“More than just orders, as I am sure you are aware. My magic and... my long existence in the Void has given me more control over myself and my integrity than some of my kin, but... Thokk has still devised a way to keep me under her control.”

“More like impelled, I think. But I suppose you must have an exceptionally strong will.” Thorn replied, and Melinda gave a slight smile before the stallion asked quietly: “Did Thesis help in... 'defending' this zone?”

Melinda chuckled softly at this, and then she replied kindly: “Now, Thorn, I respect your tact, but there's no need for it. Yes, Thesis ensured that you would have a route directly here. While he unfortunately has his own cross to bear, as I do, I must admit he has always been far more creative in dealing with his problems than I am.”

Thorn gave a brief smile in response, and Melinda clicked her tongue as she looked thoughtfully over the group before she calmly stepped over the railing, and Moonflower and Cadence both watched in wide-eyed amazement as the unicorn calmly floated to them, gliding on a current of magic that only Thorn was sensitive enough to feel. The sapphire stallion couldn't help but smile briefly as she landed in front of him, and when she offered her hoof, he took it and kissed it before saying: “I see that the old poems didn't exaggerate your skill, Lady Melinda. If anything, they underestimated it.”

“Thank you, Prince Thorn, but I am quite certain you are as aware as I am that I wasted more than a few bæns with that small show. I fear I am rather out of practice.” Melinda replied kindly, before she stepped forwards, kissing the air on either side of Thorn's face.

She stepped back with a warm smile as Thorn lowered his head respectfully, and then her eyes turned towards Cadence and Moonflower, studying the two with interest as she said kindly: “I should apologize, however. I did not mean to leave your friends out of the conversation. May I inquire as to your names?”

“Yes! I am Moonflower, the... Moonflower, of Decretum!” Moonflower stuttered, but Melinda only smiled in entertainment as she curiously drew her eyes over the stallion.

“My, you put out quite a bit of energy. You must be a very talented magician.” Melinda remarked, before her eyes turned to Cadence, who looked caught between distrust and confusion. “And your name is... Cadenza, correct? Cadenza Danzsöngr, who shares her mind and body with a Swan Maiden. But again, I forget my manners, and I apologize for that, darling. I fear that this collar has made me... impatient to experience these moments while I still have the chance to.”

Cadence only shifted awkwardly as the Swan rumbled inside of her, hissing something about neutralizing the threat while they had the chance. But as if she had heard these thoughts, Melinda smiled slightly before saying gently: “I am not your enemy. Perhaps that is very difficult for someone still so young to take in, but even if we stand upon different sides of the field today, that no more makes me your enemy than the hawk must be the enemy of the dove. Or... swan, I suppose, as the case may be.”

Melinda smiled again in her kind, pretty way, and Cadence gave a lame smile in return before she mumbled: “Daddy is a lot better at this thing than I am. I uh... it's... nice to meet you?”

“Thank you. It's very nice to meet you, too.” Melinda said kindly, before she turned her eyes towards the Replicants. Muse bowed her head humbly, and Necrophage gazed at Melinda with big, excited eyes, as the unicorn inquired to Thorn: “Do you treat them as servants or golems?”

“I treat them as friends, Melinda, and I would please ask that you give them that respect as well.” Thorn said, and while his tone was still polite, there was firmness in it, too. One that apparently impressed Melinda, who looked at him with a slow nod.

“I apologize. I am still of the old era. Well, in that case, may I inquire as to your names?” Melinda asked, as she turned her eyes towards the Replicants.

“I'm Necrophage! And this is my big sister, Muse!” Necrophage immediately declared happily, bouncing forwards and nodding with a bright smile. “And don't you worry! Thorn is a really super nice pony, he just wants us to be treated like we were really people even if we didn't start life off as really people!”

“Well, I think you're the nicest person I've ever met, Necrophage. I feel a very warm energy from you.” Melinda replied politely, and then she blinked in surprise when Necrophage suddenly leapt forwards and hugged her around the neck, the silver-black unicorn blushing ever so slightly as she awkwardly patted the Replicant on the back. “Oh my.”

“Necrophage. Please respect her personal space.” Thorn said in an almost exasperated voice, and Necrophage blushed as she hurriedly leapt backwards, giving a wide but embarrassed grin. “I apologize. She tends to be... affectionate.”

“That's perfectly alright. No harm done.” Melinda smiled, brushing at herself a little before she sighed a bit as the runes over her collar glowed, a faint steam of energy hissing up off her body as she murmured: “I should apologize. I will have to cut our pleasantries short. Thokk's eye is upon us and it seems that... she has a dire desire for you, Danzsöngr.”

Cadence shifted uneasily as the gentle ruby gaze of Melinda turned towards her, the mare's throat going dry before Thorn said quietly: “My mission objective has already been accomplished, as I'm sure you understand. As we speak, Seneschal is likely already enslaving the core processes, and once that's complete, Decretum's forces will march into this facility in force.”

“Yes, I know. And I dearly hope you succeed. But can you outlast my magic for these crucial few minutes, my darlings?” asked Melinda as she calmly turned around and strode a short distance away, and Thorn grimaced a bit as he looked around the room.

At this point, it didn't matter if the computer core and the rest of the room was destroyed: the programming would have already propagated to at least one of the other cores that controlled the facility, and unless they destroyed the main system core, there was no way they could possibly stop Seneschal from taking over.

But the only cover this room had were the flimsy server racks, and when Thorn glanced towards the hatch as a possible means of escape, Melinda not only slammed it shut and sealed it with a gesture, she also dissolved the disarmed bomb, vaporizing it with little more than a thought.

Moonflower blanched at this power: for once, Thorn thought, the black stallion was probably the only pony who really understood how frightening Melinda's powers were, as Cadence only grimaced as she faced the mare and said coldly: “We've faced Voidborn before. No matter how nice you are to us, you're still nothing but-”

“Melinda the Sky Witch is the Mother of Witchcraft. Do not underestimate her or what she is capable of, Cadence, or we will all suffer for it.” Thorn said quietly but firmly, and Cadence winced slightly before she nodded quickly and set herself.

Moonflower nervously stepped up beside Thorn, as both Muse and Necrophage strode into flanking positions. And Melinda, meanwhile, smiled as she turned around to face them, the collar thrumming around her neck as she said politely: “In the past, we took great care in organizing our duels before they even began: it was not merely about fairness, after all, but in a way, the rules we set would help decide the victor of the duel. I will admit in the past I was never quite as courteous as I am now, and thus I feel it only right that I agree to whatever terms and conditions you would like to set.”

“I appreciate that, Melinda. All I ask, however, is that if we last against you in combat until the link to Decretum is established, you acknowledge our victory and surrender.” Thorn said politely, and Melinda gave a small smile before she bowed her head.

“I will withdraw with grace in that event. But I cannot promise that Thokk will not send... less pleasant things in my wake.” Melinda answered, and Thorn smiled wryly at this, which seemed to be answer enough for Melinda as she chuckled quietly. “Of course. Then strength to you, Thorn Blackfeather, and to your comrades as well.”

“May you win with grace.” Thorn replied, and he Melinda bowed deeply to each other. Cadence shifted uncomfortably as Moonflower hurriedly bowed his head as well, while the Replicants both saluted.

What happened next, Cadence would never forget: in a flash, Melinda snapped her horn up, and black lighting erupted through the air towards Thorn, who deflected it off to the side with a concentrated, dish-sized shield of energy as the pistons on his mechanical foreleg began to thrum.

Melinda only smiled calmly, the arcs of dark lightning still ripping through the air between the two before she swept a hoof forwards almost gently, and Cadence's eyes widened as a massive wave of black flames erupted from the ground, the blaze roaring and growing larger by the moment-

Moonflower almost fell on his face jumping in front of Thorn, but when he snapped his horn down, the pulse of gravitational power not only dispelled the flames, it struck Melinda and knocked her skidding backwards several feet, interrupting the arcs of black lightning as her eyes widened in surprise. And acting immediately, Thorn leapt forwards, using Moonflower as a step to jump higher into the air as he grabbed his shield of energy like a physical thing, before flinging it like a discus at Melinda's face.

The Mother of Witchcraft intercepted the disc of energy with a flick of her horn, before she smiled in amusement as it exploded in a small but concentrated burst of magic that all the same harmlessly swept around her, the mare both unsurprised and unfazed as Thorn landed in front of Moonflower, who was mouthing wordlessly. “I am very impressed. You have excellent control... but you've already nearly exhausted your supply of magic.”

“Yes, but I have more than magic at my disposal.” Thorn replied calmly as the pistons pumped on his shoulder, before he added quietly: “And I'm not alone, either.”

Cadence nodded firmly as she jumped forwards, and Moonflower stumbled hurriedly up to Thorn's other side as the Replicants fell in on the flank. “That's right! He has us, we... I am the Lord of Darkness, a master of magic who has yet to show the full equivocation of his-”

“I think you mean the full 'quality' of your magic. Which I anticipate, and eagerly.” Melinda said kindly, and Moonflower stuttered to a halt before the Mother of Witchcraft added gently: “Please show me your abilities, Moonflower. I would much prefer to see the quality of your work than hear declarations of it, if at all possible.”

Moonflower mouthed wordlessly for a moment, and Melinda smiled before she asked kindly: “Can you dispel this?”

Melinda snapped her horn forwards, sending a black fireball streaking through the air towards Moonflower, and the unicorn squawked before he slapped it to the side without looking, Thorn wincing as he ducked the deflected fireball and Cadence swearing when it streaked just past her face, searing her mane. Moonflower grinned lamely at them, and Melinda chuckled quietly before she said with the slightest quirk of a smile: “You remind me of when I was young.”

“I'm... very young! I mean, I'm not very young but I am still very... handsome, and... I can understand why you would think I was young but I am not young, I merely look... young. Because I am handsome.” Moonflower petered out after a few moments, looking awkwardly at Melinda before he leaned to the side and whispered to Cadence and Thorn: “Sorry.”

Thorn only sighed, while Melinda laughed and shook her head slowly. Then she smiled before saying softly: “Wonderful. But I am afraid that... I cannot allow myself to be distracted any further. Please pardon me.”

Melinda snapped her horn forwards as it gave a single pulse, and Cadence and Moonflower were both blasted off their hooves by the tremendous gout of force that struck them both. Thorn barely weathered the telekinetic explosion as he skidded backwards, shielding himself with his mechanical foreleg, and Muse flinched as Necrophage shrugged off the worst of the blast before she growled like a little dog when Thorn shouted: “Protocol five!”

Necrophage charged straight at Melinda, who grimaced before she stomped a hoof into the ground, and the metal floor erupted upwards and reshaped itself into a barrier of deadly spikes in front of her. Necrophage immediately skidded to a halt, but then lunged suddenly forward and bit into the base of one of the larger spikes, tearing it off before she flung it into the air.

Muse caught the spike with telekinesis before launching it down, and Melinda gasped in shock as the spike of metal tore into her body, staggering backwards in disbelief before she gritted her teeth and snapped her horn forwards. The spiked barrier exploded, but Necrophage had already retreated to a safe distance on the Mother of Witchcraft's flank, while Thorn simply shielded himself from the hail of debris.

Cadence grimaced as she picked herself up, and Moonflower shook himself stupidly out before his eyes widened as he felt the pulse of magic that tore through the air, a moment before several pillars of black flame exploded out of the steel floor, rending and melting the steel with the force and heat of their eruption.

Thorn dodged to the side a moment before another pillar of dark fire tore out of the ground where he had been a moment before, and Melinda smiled slightly as her eyes traced after the ponies, watching how quickly – and not so quickly – they reacted. Her eyes lingered on Moonflower for a moment as his face was scalded by one of the pillars erupting directly in front of him, before her horn gave the slightest thrum of magic.

In front of Moonflower, the pillar suddenly became a tentacle of black flames that lashed down with a life of its own, trying to seize him its grip. The stallion reacted on instinct more than anything else, blasting it with his own magic and severing the tentacle of flame at its base, but while the upper portion whiffed out, it was quickly replaced by a new burst of flames from the root of the pillar, which renewed the attack on Moonflower.

The stallion leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding being caught and constricted by the deadly flames as the other pillars took on their own unnatural life, but Thorn locked on to Melinda, sending several short blasts of energy at her to try and disrupt her concentration. These were all deflected by the invisible barrier protecting the mare, however, Melinda smiling in amusement: not that it mattered, since her magic had already been channeled. For better or worse, these tentacles of flame had their own short-lived, insidious life.

Cadence swore as a tentacle slapped across her armored body, but thankfully her gear absorbed the worst of the damage, even as she was sent skidding backwards. She snapped her horn out in retaliation, and her holy magic tore through the pillar, an unnatural scream echoing through the air as black flame turned to stone.

The white fireball streaked towards Melinda out of luck more than anything else, but it too was deflected by her invisible shield even as she looked at Cadence, intrigued. But before she could move, a sudden pain ripped through her body, her eyes bulging before she looked back over her shoulder in shock at the spike of metal buried in her side, and which she had unfortunately forgotten about for a moment in the hubbub, unused to her numbed physical body after so long in the Void.

She reached back towards it, then flinched when Muse forcefully twisted the spike with telekinesis again: the moment she flinched, Thorn launched Necrophage with telekinesis as the short Replicant flung herself straight at Melinda, the Replicant barely flinching even as she tore through several pillars of dark fire before slamming home into the Mother of Witchcraft's face. Melinda cried out in pain and surprise as she was hauled into the air before Necrophage kicked her savagely with all four hooves, sending her straight down into the steel floor.

Melinda bounced brokenly backwards, and it was only reflex that let her blast Necrophage out of the air with a bolt of magic, knocking the Replicant sprawling on her back instead of finishing her with a stomp. The sorceress rolled quickly to her hooves, snapping her horn hard to forcefully rip the spike of steel out of her body, but Muse caught this in midair and redirected it-

Except Melinda was able to deflect it this time, even as energy leaked out of the rapidly-healing wound in her side. The sorceress smiled grimly as she began to raise her head, opening her mouth-

A blast of gravitational energy smashed into her, shattering her barrier like glass and flinging her bonelessly backwards into the computer core. She bounced off and stagger-landed on her hooves, mouthing wordlessly at the power of the impact as Moonflower shouted brazenly: “And... and that's only the beginning of what I can do, you... you meanie-head!”

“Yeah, meanie-head!” Necrophage shouted in agreement, which made Moonflower all but swell with pride even as Thorn slowly closed his eyes and Cadence rubbed at her forehead with a pained expression.

“Stronger than I thought. I am impressed.” Melinda said softly, and then she smiled slightly at Moonflower before her eyes flicked towards Thorn. “You lead your soldiers well.”

Melinda flicked her horn suddenly, and Thorn flinched before his eyes bulged and he grabbed at his throat as he started to choke loudly. Muse was immediately at his side as the sapphire stallion's legs gave out beneath him, Thorn collapsing as Moonflower shouted: “Leave him alone!”

“It's not a lethal hex, don't worry.” Melinda reassured gently, and then she calmly leaned forwards, a strange, blurry energy steaming up from the ground in front of her to form a glowing shield, as she said softly: “Let's test how well you do with your commander incapacitated.”

“Wait!” Necrophage's voice was suddenly sharp and serious, and Melinda raised her head slightly in surprise before the Replicant demanded, her voice quavering with emotion: “You promise! You promise you won't hurt him! That you won't... hurt him!”

There was silence for a moment, and then Melinda smiled softly as she looked at Necrophage, who was trembling with emotion, and then at Moonflower, who was glaring holes in her as his whole body trembled with anger. “He's a very lucky stallion. Yes, of course. He will not die, and I will not seek to harm him unnecessarily. You are my focus, my friends.”

“Okay!” Necrophage said brightly, even though she tossed a worried look over her shoulder at Thorn, who was struggling to breathe as he shivered on the ground, Muse fearfully standing over him until she looked up mutely when her sister said brightly: “Come on! We need your help, big sister!”

The Replicant siblings traded looks, sharing a conversation in the way only twins could before Muse hesitantly nodded and nervously stepped away from Thorn. The sapphire stallion wheezed weakly on the ground before he suddenly reached up and grasped Muse's foreleg, and the Replicant flinched in surprise as she looked down at the stallion, who gazed up at her, and after a moment, Muse nodded hesitantly before she turned and quickly joined her sibling.

Necrophage smiled brightly at her sister, and Cadence shifted nervously before Melinda said politely: “As I am trying to maintain some level of professionalism, I'd like you to know that if you want to surrender, I will take you peacefully to Thokk. Thesis and I will ensure that you are treated kindly.”

“Yeah, no. Thanks, though, really.” Cadence said, unable to keep the irony from dripping from her words. Melinda only smiled, however, and the ivory mare narrowed her eyes before she asked quietly: “How did you hex Thorn?”

“It was very simple When his magic connected with me, I was able to... know him, so to speak. It gave me the necessary understanding to apply a simple choking hex.” Melinda explained gently, and then she said softly: “But I'm going to have to cut this conversation short. Time is limited, and I can't let myself be distracted any further by your stalling.”

Melinda flicked her horn forwards, a black fireball erupting from the spire towards Moonflower. The stallion slapped this away with a snort, but then his eyes widened in shock as the fireball boomeranged towards him before exploding in front of the stallion, splitting into three miniature balls of dark magic that each streaked towards a different pony.

Cadence deflected hers on instinct more than anything else, and Necrophage leapt forwards and chomped down on the one heading towards her. Muse was struck by the last, however, gasping as it didn't so much explode as become a net of black energy that coiled around her, the mare shivering in pain as the magic began to drain the life from her body.

Necrophage looked over at her sister with wide eyes, and Melinda took the opportunity to seize the distracted Replicant with telekinesis, making Necrophage squeal as she was hefted into the air. Moonflower reacted quickly, snarling as he fired a missile of dark magic at Melinda-

The barrier of blurry energy absorbed the magic harmlessly, and Moonflower stared in disbelief before Cadence sent her own blast of magic at Melinda. It was just as ineffective, however, and the winged unicorn swore before she leapt into the air and shot towards the Mother of Witchcraft, as Necrophage writhed helplessly in the air-

The barrier flashed, and Cadence was blasted backwards with a gasp of shock by the thrum of agonizing force. It made her whole body hurt in a way she couldn't describe as she rolled backwards over the ground, feeling like all the energy in her body had just been sapped from her form.

Moonflower cursed before he snapped his horn forwards, hammering the barrier with several blasts of gravitational force, but they only made the blurry wall of energy ripple before Melinda flicked her horn towards him, blasting him off his hooves with what felt like telekinetic force, except when Moonflower began to pick himself up, he gasped in pain as he realized there were splinters of some kind buried through his armor, and several of them were already beginning to grow ivy and tapers that were spreading rapidly over his body.

Moonflower wildly grabbed at himself in a panic, while Cadence swore as she picked herself up, before Necrophage shouted: “Kinetic force!”

Cadence had no idea what the hell that meant, but Melinda quirked an eyebrow in surprise as she began to rapidly spin Necrophage like a top, while saying curiously: “And how did you figure that out? Oh, I see...”

She turned her smile towards Muse, who was trembling under the net of black energy. But Cadence could barely hear the mare over the noises Necrophage was making as she flailed wildly through the air, which sounded almost like childish explosions in spite of the fact she was being-

Kinetic force. Gun. Cadence reacted with the Swan's uncanny speed, feeling like the two of them meshed for a moment as the rifle flew free of its holster and she caught it in her hooves, the weapon extending to full length a moment before she pulled the trigger.

The spike of metal it shot passed through the blurry barrier in front of Melinda and hit the Mother of Witchcraft with enough force to hammer her off her hooves. Immediately, the magic protecting her vanished as Necrophage was dropped unceremoniously to the ground, the Replicant hitting the floor with a loud smack as she spun dumbly on her stomach a few more times.

Necrophage stumbled drunkenly up to her hooves even as her eyes almost comically rolled in her head, giggling awkwardly, while Muse managed to throw off the net of magic, gasping for breath as she clambered to stand. Cadence grimaced as she leapt forwards, but then her eyes widened in surprise when Moonflower suddenly lurched forwards despite the brambles that were peeling the armor from his body.

He snapped his horn forward, and Cadence flinched as a black hole erupted into reality above Melinda, the Mother of Witchcraft looking up with surprise etched on her features before she gasped, struggling to cling to the floor as the black hole began to pull her into its crushing embrace.

Moonflower gritted his teeth, concentrating all the magic he could into the singularity, which thrummed in response, pulling even harder on the mare and her surroundings. Melinda struggled to resist, gritting her teeth before her horn gave a sudden, powerful pulse.

Moonflower's eyes widened as dark shapes erupted from the floor: these hideous, smoky specters lunging straight into the singularity to be devoured by it. But their powerful, malign magic tampered with the energy powering the black hole, making it unstable as Moonflower flinched, struggling to maintain control for a few moments before he gasped in pain as the black hole suddenly exploded in a tremendous shockwave of concussive force and dark magic, making the entire room tremble as it knocked the ponies sprawling.

For a few moments, there was silence as the embers of dark magic gradually settled, and then Melinda slowly picked herself up before she said softly: “Impressive. But I have to wonder, can you-”

Melinda stopped suddenly, then frowned and looked up as Cadence stiffened at first, then realized that faint beeping echoing throughout the computer hall likely meant- “Attention, attention!”

Cadence looked up in surprise as the computer core suddenly pulsed to life, and a moment later, the upper half of Seneschal appeared in holographic form, the AI announcing loudly and obnoxiously: “If I may have your attention, please, Decretum has now begun reappropriation of its facilities, and all hostiles are hereby advised to leave immediately or surrender to Empress Hecate.”

“There are no hostiles here.” Melinda said kindly as she relaxed, before she flicked her horn calmly, and Moonflower blinked in surprise as the brambles still trying to twist their way into his body simply vanished, and Thorn gasped for breath as he was finally able to breathe again. “Well, it seems that you have won our game for today. I will retreat in the face of this opposition. I must warn you, however... Thokk will not like it.”

“Thokk can go suck an egg.” Cadence grumbled, and Moonflower looked at her awkwardly before he turned his uncertain eyes towards Melinda.

But Melinda only smiled at them, her eyes roving to Thorn before she said softly: “Your fellowship is strong, but stronger still have fallen apart without the right guidance. I pray you will protect them on their journey.”

Cadence felt oddly stung, considering that she was supposed to be the team leader, but Thorn only smiled wryly before he replied candidly: “They've survived without me up to this point. As long as they have each other, they'll be fine.”

Melinda smiled softly at this, and then she bowed her head courteously to them as a portal opened behind her, the mare saying gently: “Then I hope and pray that you are correct, Thorn Blackfeather. May the weather be fair until we meet again.”

“And the flowers in bloom, and the grass green.” Thorn replied, and Melinda looked strangely pleased with his response before she calmly turned around and simply strode into the portal.

Cadence couldn't believe it: the Mother of Witchcraft had been more than holding her own in the fight, and somehow the ivory mare knew that she had barely been trying. And yet she had kept her word: they had survived, and she had left.

She began to open her mouth, but then she noticed that the portal wasn't closing: no, if anything, it was growing larger, crackling with unstable energy. Cadence narrowed her eyes and set herself as Thorn said quickly: “Defensive positions!”

Moonflower dumbly staggered back to Thorn as Cadence hurried backwards, slipping her rifle back into its holster. The Replicants had already dropped back, both standing at the ready as the portal widened, distorting itself as it twisted and rippled ever further open.

Thorn narrowed his eyes as Cadence grimaced, the mare asking quickly: “Did Melinda-”

“This isn't Melinda's work. Get ready.” Thorn interrupted, his visor beeping and displaying a variety of readings over it that he direly hoped were incorrect, as he gritted his teeth before cursing under his breath as a massive, insectile leg shoved itself out of the portal. “Hræzla!”

Cadence's eyes widened in horror as Moonflower blinked stupidly and both Replicants anchored themselves. And, as the Terror from the Void tore itself out of the too-small portal with a scream of fury, Thorn only hoped that the faith Hecate had placed in them hadn't been misplaced.