Meteors land in Equestria. Aliens emerge. Death. Destruction. Love. Compassion.
Princess Celestia dispatches the Mane Six into the Everfree Forest to recover a meteorite. What happens when vicious, dangerous aliens suddenly land in the peaceful land of Equestria? Part II: The past of the aliens is explored. New relationships blossom, old relationships sink, a vendetta is settled, and friendship is thicker than blood. Part III: Reports of missing ponies concerns the regal sisters, reports of strange activity in the Everfree gets Twilight's attention. What is Darqlon up to? The denouement approaches!
“Long. Live. Me,” a familiar voice stated viciously in his ear.
Darkness.
All of Equestria gazed in awe at the spectacle in the sky. Did Luna decide to bless them with a show? Flicks of light streaked overhead, marking the beginning of a meteor shower. Astronomers, amateur and professional alike, watched the show through telescopes. Even the ponies in the bustling, bright cities could see lights in the night sky.
Princesses Celestia and Luna watched the show with concern from their castle in Canterlot. Without saying a word, Princess Luna knew what the look on her sister’s face meant: trouble.
“We need to gather whatever rocks may land,” Celestia spoke aloud, then turned to address her younger sister, “ready your guards. This will be a long night.”
A loud roar seized their attention as a massive chunk of burning rock barreled past the regal mares. Moments later, a bright explosion in the Everfree Forest marked where the meteor landed. Princess Luna ran out of her sister’s room, calling for her guards to assemble immediately. Princess Celestia trotted to her desk, brought up the parchment and a quill with her yellow magic aura, and began to write.
“Dear Twilight Sparkle…”
“Alright, girls!” Princess Twilight Sparkle spoke, raising her voice above the murmur of the others to quiet them. “Princess Celestia wants us to go to the Everfree Forest and examine the meteorite that landed there.”
“Do we have to?” Fluttershy whispered.
“I agree,” Rarity voiced, “that place is absolutely dreadful.”
“Yes,” Twilight answered matter-of-factly.
“Ooo!” Pinkie Pie interjected, “What if we find a weird looking, tall, bipedal, two-armed, fur-less, alien?!”
The room went silent as the ponies stared at the pink mare blankly.
“Yeah!” Rainbow Dash shouted, breaking the silence, “That would be so awesome!”
“Uh,” Spike chuckled nervously, “maybe I should stay here to watch over the castle?”
“Yes,” Fluttershy nodded quickly in agreement, “I should stay-”
“Not acceptable, Fluttershy. We all have to go; we are a team,” Twilight said, placing a hoof on the yellow pony’s shoulder for assurance, getting a weak smile from her.
“Well, if we gotta get goin’, we best get a movin’,” Applejack stated. All the others nod in agreement.
Spike tapped Twilight on her leg.
“You can stay, Spike.”
“Yes!”
She chuckled, gave him a smile, and nuzzled him before leaving.
"Please, don't bring any aliens home!" Spike pleaded to them from the doorway.
The sounds of the forest and the near complete darkness of it left the girls on edge. Fluttershy jumped at every little sound and stayed closely to Applejack. Rainbow Dash flew considerably closer to her friends than usual. After about twenty minutes of walking silently through the eerie forest, they could see the light of a fire up ahead. Trees had flattened from the shock wave and dirt covered the gloomy bushes. To their surprise, another pony was waiting for them.
“I suspect you are here in the middle of this night,” Zecora greeted them with a wave, “to come and inspect this meteorite.” She pointed to the burning rock in the middle of a massive crater.
“Yes,” Twilight answered, “Princess Celestia wants me to get samples and decide if bringing the meteorite back is possible.”
“Unless you can walk through fire, the situation is quite dire,” Zecora informed the violet pony.
“No problem!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. The cyan pegasus zoomed past them, heading for the meteorite. She flew around the burning rock, creating a rainbow tornado, extinguished the flames.
“Nicely done!” Twilight complemented the cyan pegasus as the others cheered for her.
Rainbow Dash buffed her hoof on her chest, “No biggie,” she bragged.
Pinkie Pie was the first pony to see the meteorite up close, as soon as the embers died, she hopped up to the rock, “It’s huuuge!” she awed, standing back on her hind legs and opened her arms wide, for emphasis.
The others caught up to her, even Fluttershy, who decided that being with her friends was better than being in the dark forest alone. Twilight brought out her tools from her bag with her magenta magic. She tapped on the meteorite with a rock hammer, collecting a piece of meteorite in a paper, and collecting dust in a glass vial. The other ponies walked around the meteorite and examine it. Rainbow Dash hovered in the air, already bored of the rock.
Pinkie Pie knocked on the meteorite, “Hello! Any aliens in there? Come out! I won't bite!" She giggled, "Probably!"
Rainbow Dash saw this as an opportunity to play a prank. She swooped down silently to the other side of Pinkie Pie and thumped the rock twice.
Pinkie Pie gasped and knocked harder, “Are you in there?! Can you hear me?! Helloooo!”
Rainbow Dash stifled her laughter as best she could and tapped on the rock again. This time, the meteorite shook, spooking Fluttershy into hiding behind Zecora.
“What. Was. That?” Applejack asked, staring wide-eyed at the meteorite, slowly backing away from it.
“Maybe it is a space egg!” Pinkie Pie concluded. She rubbed the egg lovingly, "C'mon little fella. Push!"
The rock began to shake as fissures and cracks formed.
“Pinkie, I do not think you should touch that thing anymore!” Twilight said in an alarmed tone. “We need to get away—now!”
The ponies made it to the tree line just as the meteorite exploded. Twilight put up a shield spell around them, which protected them from the flying debris and hot steam. As the dust settled and steam dissipated, the ponies stared in disbelief at the figure curled up in a ball, where the meteorite had been.
“What in Celestia’s name is that?!” Rainbow Dash shouted, breaking the long silence.
“Stay here girls... I will go check it out,” Twilight said hesitantly as she swallowed the large lump in her throat.
After a minute passed without her moving, Pinkie Pie hopped over to the strange creature with a big smile on her face. The others chased after her.
Twilight removed Pinkie Pie with her magic, “We don’t know if that thing is dangerous or not, Pinkie!” she yelled at her.
“Exactly!” Pinkie chimed, “We don’t know anything about it.”
“Let Fluttershy go, she’s good with animals!” Rainbow Dash recommended as she pushed the yellow pegasus forward.
“No!” Fluttershy screamed, digging her hooves into the charred ground and flapping her wings.
“We’ll all go,” Applejack stated and pulled Rainbow Dash down by her tail. The orange earth pony tiptoed cautiously towards the unmoving creature with her friends in tow.
When they get about three hoof lengths from the creature, it suddenly moved, making them all jump back and shriek. The creature fell to its side, sprawled outa groan escaped its mouth. The creature easily was twice their size with a short mane atop its head, and an otherwise, fur-less body.
Zecora got closer to the creature and stood over it. She saw a small cut on its back and upon closer inspection, saw its muzzle-less face as if it was resting. She placed a hoof in front of what she assumed was its nose and felt a slow, exhale of breath.
The others went to Zecora’s side to observe the creature. When they got to its lower half, they all shied and blushed away, except for Twilight.
Zecora let out a small laugh, “It seems to me, that it’s a he.”
I do not know how to say this without sounding crazy but... we found an alien life form in the meteorite. I know! For now, itheis with Zecora. He appears to be unconscious, but we do not know how long he will stay that way. If pony anatomy is any indicator, I can say with near 100% certainty, that the alien is a male. He is very large, twice the size of an average male pony. His height, not his... well, anyway, I will await your reply and instructions.
Forever your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle
P.S. I can hardly contain my excitement!
Princess Celestia put down the letter and passed it to her younger sibling. A sigh left her lungs. When the meteor shower started, she knew something would happen, but this? A new speciesan alien, to be exact. Too many questions ran through her mind, her thoughts only interrupted by her younger sister.
"'He is very large, twice the size of an average male pony'," Princess Luna read aloud and giggled to herself.
"Lulu!" Celestia exclaimed, "We have an unidentified, unknown creature, that just landed in our kingdom! We need to worry about the safety of our little ponies."
"I know!" Luna pouted, "But Is this not exciting?" Princess Luna asked with a beaming smile, barely containing her enthusiasm. "Think of all we may learn from him!"
"Yes," Celestia said flatly, "Still, sister, we should err on the side of caution. We know not of his capabilities. Is he hostile? Is he friendly? We can only hope that he will be passive and helpful."
"And not end up like most aliens in all these new movies?" Princess Luna joked.
"Those are my fears exactly," she replied grimly.
"Fret not, dear sister," Princess Luna smiled up at her older sister.
"Thank you, Luna," Princess Celestia nuzzled her sister before walking over to her desk. "Now, to message Twilight."
For the second time that night, the six heroines walked through the Everfree Forest, with a tired young, purple drake on Twilight's back. Twilight had to bribe the young dragon with a couple sapphires to accompany them back to Zecora's hut. The group traveled with an eagerness to see the new life form waiting for them. The dim, wild forest helped increase the group's speed to their destination. Finally, after a thirty-minute journey, they arrived at Zecora's hut.
A knock on the door told Zecora that her guests had made it safely to her home. She opened the door and ushered them into her house. They all made their way to the back of the hut, where the alien was resting. Zecora made sure to cover him. Since his legs could not fit on the bed, Zecora found some boxes for them to rest comfortably on. Without saying much, probably in fear of waking him and not wanting to disturb him, they observed the alien. Twilight brought out a quill and notepad to take her observations down.
Preliminary examination shows that the subject suffered a small stab near the middle of his back. He appears to be in good health and shape. Seems to be in good physical condition, with muscular features such as hind legs, forelegs, chest, and abdomen. Has a short, thick, black mane, with black eyelashes, and strange tufts of black hair arching above his eyes. Has small ears on the side of cranium and forward facing eyes, suggesting a predator. She used her hoof to gently open his mouth. Yup, with four relatively large canines, about twice the size of his other teeth, definitely points to a carnivore. With a light shining in his mouth, she makes a new discovery. Flat, grinding molar-like teeth in the rear of jaw suggests not only a carnivorous diet but also a herbivorous diet, making him omnivorous.
"At least we do not have to worry too much about him trying to eat one of us," she thought.
Spike's sudden heaving caught everyone's attention as he burped loudly, producing green smoke and a scroll. "From Princess Celestia, Twilight," he informed her.
Twilight accepted the letter with her magenta magic, quickly opened it, and read its contents. She tucked the scroll away into her bag.
"Alright, girls," she began, "the Night Guard will arrive shortly with a coach for the alien and for us. She wants us to stay at the castle until further notice."
"Yay! A vacation!" Pinkie Pie celebrated, throwing confetti into the air and was about to fire her party cannon when a low groan from behind froze them in place. Slowly, they turned around, to see a still unconscious alien laying in bed. They collectively sighed in relief with Twilight glaring at the party mare.
An hour later, raps at the door announced the arrival of their escorts.
"Now, be careful; he is much bigger than you may think and" Twilight was instructing the Night Guards, who had the unfortunate task of loading the alien when she heard a hollow thud. A hoof found her face, as the guards chuckled nervously, adjusting the aliens head at an angle that would not hit the door of the coach again.
"Ow!" Pinkie Pie winced, at the sound, "That's going to hurt in the morning."
"You poor thing," Fluttershy soothed the alien's black mane gently through the window of the coach; his frame filled the entirety.
Rarity used her cyan magic to cover the coach in a black tarp, to keep prying eyes from seeing inside. The others started to take their seats in a carriage. After final preparations, Twilight Sparkle took her seat. The pony bats hooked themselves to the coaches and took flight, headed for Canterlot.
"My friends, take care," Zecora waved farewell to them, "don't give him a scare!"
Brother. I failed you. Mother. I failed you. Forgive me. Help me... Sister.
Princess Luna observed the alien and the pained expression he made as he slept. Even a blind pony could see that he suffered from a nightmare. As much as she desired to do so, she refrained herself from traveling into his dream. She could not be certain if she would even be able to enter his dreams or if she would be able to leave.
"Sister..." the alien muttered with a deep, raspy voice. "Help me..."
"Did he just speak in Equestrian?" Princess Luna wondered in amazement, "Fascinating!" With Twilight Sparkle's notes beside her, she wrote down the new discovery in her own notes, along with him saying he has a sister. After she finished, she stroked his mane softly. "Do not worry, we will help you," she spoke to him gently.
His eyes shot wide open which revealed goldenrod irises. He stared intently into her teal eyes.
They stared into each other's eyes for what felt like years. His eyes: unblinking, unafraid, and non-threatening. Princess Luna noticed his outstretched limb reaching close to her face. With a gentle touch, his hand touched her cheek.
An angel...
"So... beautiful..." he spoke slowly, in his deep, hoarse voice, with a small smile across his lips, he stroked her cheek with his thumb. With a sigh, his arm fell to his side, as he succumbed to sleep.
Princess Luna stood as still as a statue. She could still feel the warmth of the creature's paw on her face. She sat on her haunches, wide-eyed, and still uncertain what to make of the situation.
Just then, the studious Twilight Sparkle entered the room, holding a book with her magenta magic, "I think I know what he might be!" she announced with glee. Noticing the night princess not moving, Twilight went up to her, "Princess Luna?" She waved a hoof in front of the royal mare's face, getting no response. She turned her attention to the subject laying on the long bed. With nothing out of the ordinary, she returned her focus back to the midnight blue princess.
"He..." the stunned mare finally spoke, "said we were 'beautiful'."
"What?" asked the perplexed lavender unicorn, "You mean. . . he can speak in Equestrian?!"
"And he touched us," Princess Luna said, ignoring the unicorn's question, and placed her hoof on her left cheek where the creature's paw had once been.
"What is more important, Princess Luna is that we can communicate with him properly!" Twilight dropped her book and ran out the door to bring this exciting news to the others. She stopped in her tracks in front of the guards guarding the door and ran back into the room. The guards turn to look at each other, both shrugging their shoulders.
Twilight's horn glowed as she scanned the alien. Her nose wrinkled when she could not get any readings from the subject. It was as if her magic was being blocked by him. She noticed that his breathing was louder and had a faster rate, suggesting that instead of being unconscious, he was just sleeping. Rather than sharing her theory with Princess Luna in her stupor, Twilight decided to share them with her slumbering mentor.
Moments after Twilight Sparkle left the room, Princess Luna went back to lightly petting the alien's mane, "We bet thy hunger will awaken with thou." She got to her hooves and walked over to the door.
The guards snapped to attention when the princess opened the door.
"Have the chef prepare a meal for us and bring us a pitcher of water, with two glasses," she ordered the right guard. With a salute, the guard rushed to fulfill the princess' command.
Taps on the door awoke Celestia from her short rest. With a long yawn and stretch, she reluctantly rolled out of bed, slipping into her slippers. "Enter," she said groggily.
The door opened and Celestia recognized the lavender muzzle that poked through the crack. The rest of Twilight Sparkle entered while Celestia lit the torches in her room, casting away the darkness.
"I hope I am not disturbing you, Princess," Twilight bowed slightly, "but this is very important."
Princess Celestia smiled politely at her student, "I know you would not wake me up for anything less."
"The alien spoke!" Twilight blurted out, not able to contain her enthusiasm any longer, "And Princess Luna understood it! Which means, hesomehowknows our language!"
"Incredible," Princess Celestia mused.
"Also," Twilight floated her book into Celestia's face, "I believe he evolved or is closely related to simians."
The pictures that Celestia had thrust into her face showed pictures of primates. "How so?" she asked, lowering the book with her soft yellow magic.
"Well, for one: he has comparable facial features and skull shape; two, shares a near identical dental construct; three, his hands and feet are similar in nature, with the exception of an opposable big toe; and four, he has the ability to walk bipedal but does it more efficiently than apes," she took in a large breath, "All of this leads me to believe that he evolved or is at least related to simians!" she beamed triumphantly.
"Well done, Twilight," the princess praised her star pupil, "I suppose we will know for sure when he awakens. He willno doubt, have questions for us as well.
"I can not wait for the ponies to learn of this discovery!" Twilight elated.
Celestia encased Twilight with her magic, "No, Twilight. The last thing we need is for the people to panic over this." She released the alicorn, "We have to be delicate about this."
Twilight saw the gravity in the princess' eyes, "Of course, Princess."
"Good," the princess smiled, "I will not keep this a secret from them, but if handled incorrectly, the people may get out of hand."
"You are right. They might think he will try to take over the world like the aliens in the movies."
"Exactly." The princess went to her desk and looked over the reports that arrived hours earlier. "Astronomers report at least four more meteorites in Equestria and one in the Griffon Kingdom." She saw the realization in the alicorn's eyes, "Exactly: there could be five more aliens in our world."
"And one may be in the talons of the Griffons. . ." Twilight speculated.
"I already have my guards retrieving two of the meteorites. Princess Cadance has retrieved one and is sending it here," Princess Celestia informed her student.
"What about the one in the Griffon Kingdom?" Twilight asked.
"We will wait for King Gallus to send a letter to us first. If he sends nothing, then I will send him a letter inquiring about the meteor," Princess Celestia stated.
"You said there were five," Twilight began, "What about the fifth one?"
Princess Celestia had a big grin, "Do you six feel like traveling to Yakyakistan?"
A long howl carries in the wind, sounding all to close for me.
"Why Olav not back yet?" I asks.
"Me not know," says Güter.
I hear the crunch of snow to left and turn to look.
I see Güter.
I see why Olav not come back.
Güter see why Olav not come back.
Well, part of him come back.
The front half of Olav in the monster's mouth, come back.
Olav face look scared.
Güter face look scared.
Monster eyes burn yellow, like hot iron.
Monster drop Olav.
Güter says something, but me not hear.
Too afraid.
Me not move.
Too afraid.
Monster crush Güter back.
Too afraid.
Güter cries.
Too afraid.
Monster bite off Güter head.
Too afraid.
Monster breathe on me.
Too afraid.
Monster open mouth.
Too afraid.
Too afraid.
Too
"So, why in Celestia's name did the Princess send us way out here?" Rarity complained, shivering in her tan faux-sheepskin boots.
"Because the Yaks are our new allies and Pinkie is the only pony to ever visit here," Twilight answered, her teeth chattered.
"Yeah!" Pinkie chimed in, "Even if it was for a few seconds! Still, I don't remember it being this cold!"
Rainbow Dash plodded through the snow beside Applejack, "I guess all that fur is good for something."
"Shame we missed the delivery train for the other meteorite," Applejack added to the conversation.
Up ahead Pinkie spotted a familiar cave and stopped in her tracks, "Wait, guys! There is a not-so-friendly monster that lives in that cave! I think that is why nopony ever made it back before."
As they reached the top of the snowy hill a terrible sight laid out before them: the snow had turned red with blood; pieces of Yak were strewn about the entrance of the cave; organs, weapons, and armor littered the area.
Fluttershy fainted.
Rarity turned green and had to turn away from the gruesome scene.
Applejack lowered her hat over her eyes.
Rainbow Dash hid behind her wing.
Pinkie Pie frowned, tears welled up in her eyes.
Twilight could not take her eyes away from the horrible sight. She had to find out what creature was capable of doing such a thing. She mazed her way around the cadavers, to get to the cave opening. Inside, she saw the skeletal remains of Yaks. The rotting body of snow beast caught her attention.
"If something killed that snow beast, then that snow beast could not have killed the Yaks," she concluded in her mind.
A howl seized their attention.
"What is a timberwolf doing way up here?!" Applejack shouted.
"That sounded much bigger than a timberwolf!" Rainbow Dash cried in alarm.
"Quick!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, "Yakyakistan is only two minutes up the mountain!" She ran past the grisly scene, leading the other ponies behind her. Applejack picked up the unconscious yellow pegasus on her back and high tailed after her friends.
When they arrived at the massive wooden gates, they saw that massive claw marks scarred the doors. Chunks of stone littered the area as if two giant statues were broken.
Twilight went to the doors and banged on them with fervor, "Please open up! It is I, Princess Twilight Sparkle!" A second howl sounded throughout the whole mountain top. "For the love of Celestia, please open up!" she pleads.
The doors buckled and slowly groaned open a crack. They did not wait for an invitation to enter through the gates. The gates closed swiftly, with large logs locking them.
"Prince Rutherford want see you," a dark brown Yak with wide horns informed them, "Follow."
As they followed their guide, they were amazed to finally see the Yak homeland for themselves. Large igloo like houses with wooden roofs bordered stone streets and walkways. Not to their surprise, many Yak hid inside their home. They would walk by a fully armed and armored warrior Yak every minute, each grunting as they passed. After they passed a second gate and wall, a massive building towered before them.
"That Prince Rutherford keep," their guide informed them as he ascended the stone steps that led to the keep.
Two Yak guards strained to open the immense keep doors. They marveled as they entered the keep which appeared to have been completely carved out of stone. Even with Prince Rutherford's large size, he was dwarfed by the soaring vaulted ceilings and walls. He sat on a throne, tapping impatiently on the armrest.
The six ponies bowed before the prince.
"Me not lie," Prince Rutherford boomed, ignoring pleasantries, "Me need your help. Many Yak die!"
"We saw what happened. . ." Twilight spoke, "What horrible creature did that?"
"Me not know. Killings happen after burning rock fall from sky. One Yak see monster. North Gate guard Yak. Says monster black as night. With burning eyes and as big as six Yak!" Prince Rutherford opened his arms wide. "Can bite Yak in half... has bite many Yak in half!"
All the ponies gulped loudly.
"Monster prowls south," Prince Rutherford informed, "Maybe ponies find useful stuff in big rock north?" He could see the ponies' hesitance. "I send 10 best warrior Yak with you. Please, I fear Yak safety."
Twilight turned to see the faces of her companions. They each nod silently. "Okay, Prince Rutherford, I promise we will stop this monster for you."
"Me trust you," Prince stated.
"Could we maybe have something to eat and rest, please? We traveled a long way to get here," Twilight said, the other ponies nodding in agreement.
"Good idea. Very not safe at night." He smiled, "Me have rooms for ponies ready. No good to fight sleepy or hungry."
After a surprisingly refreshing dinner, Twilight and the others retreated to their rooms. The thought of facing the monster haunted their minds. Twilight wrote to Princess Celestia, informing her of the dire situation in Yakyakistan. Princess Celestia replied, stating that the other recovery teams are facing similar troubles but to not be too concerned and worry only about the Yak problem for now. She did give good news: their alien had awoken and is much more friendly than anticipated.
Princess Luna noticed the alien stir in bed and eagerly awaited for him to awaken. She could hear him sniff the air. She saw him turn on his side to face her and he opened his eyes, blinking sleepily. She sat and waited with a big smile on her face.
"Good morning!" she finally greeted him after a moment of silence.
The creature propped himself up, not taking his goldenrod eyes off of her. "Water," he rasped and coughed.
Princess Luna passed him a glass of water with her light blue aura.
He snatched the glass out of the air and gulped down the water, choking. After he finished coughing he asked for more water. Which Princess Luna happily served him.
After drinking the second glass of water, slower this time, he stretched his arms and back but stayed in bed.
"Hello," he said in a soft, deep voice, after examining the royal mare. "I like your mane," he smiled.
"Thank you," Princess Luna returned his smile. "I am Princess Luna, Keeper of the Moon and the Stars, and Princess of the Night."
A confused look contorted his face. "I... I do not know who I am," he admitted.
Princess Luna pouted, "T'is most unfortunate."
"Yeah. . ." after a prolonged silence he added, "What if you gave me a name?"
"We suppose we can," Princess Luna thought for a moment. "How about Sky Gift?"
"That does not sound right," he answered after pondering the name for a minute.
"Meteor Strike!" she said enthusiastically.
He laughed, "No. Sounds good but no."
She thought for a moment, "Doth thou remember nothing?"
"Nothing personal, sorry. But I do remember how to talk," he replied. "And I know that blue is my favorite color," he winked at her.
She laughed, "Oh, thou art truly a flatterer."
The guards shifted nervously outside as they both wondered who the princess was talking to and who that male voice belonged to. They went to attention as Princess Celestia soon was in sight. When she reached them, the left guard spoke up.
"Good morning, Princess Celestia," he saluted, "I believe the alien is awake."
Laughter caught the three's attention.
"So I can hear," Princess Celestia smiled, and opened the door.
The sudden door opening and white unicorn filling the doorway caught his attention.
"Whoa!" he awed. "Is she your mother?" he asked.
Princess Luna couldn't contain her laughter.
Princess Celestia felt both humbled and annoyed by his statement, "I am afraid not," she said, standing next to his bed. "I am her sister, Princess Celestia."
"Oh, I apologize," he bowed, "I meant no disrespect. You are just... slightly larger than Luna so I just assumed. . ." he trailed off.
Princess Luna giggled into a fetlock.
"I am glad to see you awake. May I ask you your name?"
Princess Luna managed to calm her laughter down to a titter.
"I do not know my name, your majesty. To be honest, I know nothing about me."
"Only that thy favorite color is blue," Princess Luna added, grinning.
"Yes," he smiled then huffed. "We were trying to come up with a name for me. Do you have any suggestions, Princess Celestia?"
Princess Celestia contemplated. "You look like an Adam."
"Hmm. 'Adam'," he mused. "Adam sounds like a good name. What does it mean?"
"It means 'reddish'. Like the color of your skin," Celestia said.
"Well, I like it!" he grinned.
"As do we," Luna nodded in agreement.
An awkward silence filled the room.
"Do you really not remember anything?" Celestia asked.
"No. I'm sorry," Adam apologized.
"How about we tell you what we know about you?"
"Sure thing."
Princess Luna lifted up her notes with her magic and cleared her voice to begin.
"Wow! How are you doing that?" he wondered, pointing to the floating notepad.
"Magic," Luna stated.
"Can I do that?"
"We are uncertain," she admitted.
Adam slumped.
"To be honest, we found you yesterday," Celestia spoke, "you were encased in a meteorite that fell from the sky. My faithful student and her friends found you in the Everfree Forest, where youbasically, hatched from the meteorite."
"'Meteor Strike'!" he elated with laughter, "Now I see why you wanted to name me that," he said to Princess Luna. He turned his attention to Princess Celestia, "I will pretend to know what all that means," he nodded, with a deadpan face.
"We believe, and art quite certain, thou art not from our world: meaning, thou art an alien," Luna stated.
"Is that a bad thing?" he asked, with a concerned face.
"Not necessarily," Princess Celestia smiled. "We have never met an extraterrestrial life form before."
"We were hoping to learn many things from thee," Luna said flatly.
"How about filling my empty head with knowledge of this world? The biggest thing I would like to know first, is. . ." he eyed Princess Celestia and Luna.
"We are called alicorns," Princess Luna stated matter-of-factly.
Adam chuckled, "That too, but first if you were married or had someone special in your life, Luna?" he grinned widely.
Princess Luna hid her scarlet face behind her wing, "And why would thou want to knoweth?" she asked, flustered.
"Just curious," he teased.
"We have nopony like that in our life. . ." she answered coyly.
Celestia cleared her throat and stepped in front of her sister, "I will be more than happy to educate you in our ways, as long as you help us understand you better, in return."
Adam smirked, "Anything for you, your Highness." His stomach growled.
Luna giggled, regaining her confidence. She floated a platter over to Adam and place it on his lap, "We knew thou would be hungry, so we had the chef prepare thee a meal."
He removed the lid and found a bowl filled with green leaves with sliced red, orange, and purple plants. He sniffed his food, "Smells delightful!" He picked up the fork and began to eat. "What is this called?" he asked after swallowing his first bite.
"That is a simple salad," Celestia informed him. "The green leaves are lettuce, the red slices are tomatoes, the orange slivers are carrots, and the purple bits are red cabbage; tossed with a light vinaigrette."
"Mmm!" he interjected, "Luna, you may have had someone else prepare this for me, but I can still taste all your love in it." he winked at the midnight blue alicorn.
Luna giggled sheepishly, "Thou embarrass us."
A letter popped in front of Celestia. It was from Twilight. "Sister," she spoke, "We have something to discuss," she made her way to the door, "If you will excuse us, Adam."
Luna sighed, "Yes, sister," she slowly walked to the door, peeking behind her, earning a second wink from Adam, which made her happy.
A buzz slowly erupted in the streets of Cloudsdale. Citizens watched in awe and wonder and awed wonder as the guards pulled a massive rock on an equally massive platform. Many saw this as a chance to take pictures of something new. Without warningthe rock exploded violently.
The boiling hot steam it emitted burned the twelve guards connected to the platform. Chunks of rock ripped through many defenseless pegasi and embedded into a few cloud buildings. The guards writhed on the ground in agony, only to stare up at a creature in horror. A giant, six-winged creature hovered above them, wielding a menacing scythe, and as black as the darkest shadow; two glowing crimson orbs observed the chaos it just created.
Bulwark Defense thought his short twenty-three-year life was over when the phantom reached out its five-clawed arm towards him. When he closed his eyes, he suddenly felt the burning sensation and pain lift from him. He finally got the courage to open his eyes and saw the phantom touch his comrade, healing them in a black aura.
The screaming pegasi saw what the creature was doing, and their fear left them. Instead, they were bringing their wounded friends and family to it, begging for its assistance. It held out its hand and everypony went silent. Slowly raising its arms, all the wounded pegasi were enveloped in a shadowy aura and their injuries instantly healed. It gently placed them on the ground when it finished.
"My. . . deepest. . . apologies," it spoke slowly with a raspy voice. "I mean. . . you all. . . no harm." It snapped its fingers and the scythe disappeared. Shouting grabbed its attention as a grey pegasus landed in the street with a terrible crash. It set foot on the clouds and walked up to the grey colored, amber eyed pegasus. "Excuse me. . . where am I?"
The wall-eyed pegasus looked up at the imposing figure before her, "You are in Cloudsdale!" she informed him cheerfully. "If you don't mind me saying, you are the strangest looking pegasus pony I have ever seen." She circled around the dark figure. "Six wings, that's neat!"
"I am not. . . a pegasus. . . nor a pony," the phantom figure stated. "I am a Reaver. . . reaper of souls. . . and agent of Death. My name. . . is Darqlon. . . God of Shadow. . . Lord of the Night."
"Oh. . . you must be like Princess Luna then!" she said with glee.
"Princess Luna? Is she your ruler?" he questioned.
The pegasi now circled around the shadowy figure and grey pegasus.
"Yes! Well, she co-rules with her sister, Princess Celestia."
"Excuse me.... sir?" Bulwark Defense finally spoke up, gaining the eyes and attention of everypony. "We were just on our way to take you to see them before all of this happened."
The specter suddenly hovered into the air, without so much as flapping his wings, or disturbing the clouds, "Then. . . we should get going."
"You insolent wyrm!" Queen Chrysalis shouted, "Do you know who I am?!"
The ground trembled as an enormous obsidian dragon landed before her. Shrouding it in sand momentarily.
"I warned you to leave me be, yet you and your army persisted!" the dragon boomed.
"Trespassing on my land means instant death!" she hissed.
"As does attacking me," it growled, narrowing its sapphire eyes at the changeling queen.
"Attack!" Queen Chrysalis commanded.
The dragon reared its hulking body, crashed back down, and spat blue flame from his toothy maw; instantly incinerating his attackers and the big, pony-bug thing that challenged him.
From a nearby plateau, a group of guards watches the battle.
"Lieutenant, should we inform Princess Celestia about this?" a white pegasus guard asked the decorated pegasus.
"Absolutely," the Lieutenant said grimly, after a moment of silence, lowering her binoculars from her face.
Help! Monster!
That was all the letter from King Gallus read; blood smeared the bottom half of the parchment.
The princess sisters exchanged a terrified expression.
Two more letters popped up between the princesses.
After reading the first message, Princess Luna sighed, "A dragon? A dragon! As if we could not get any worse news!"
Princess Celestia shared her sister's sorrow and opened the second letter. Thankfully, it was good news: the team to Manehattan had no troubles nor complications. They had retrieved a fairly large obelisk-like relic and were on their way back.
Princess Celestia summoned a parchment and quill from her desk and began responding to Twilight's letter. She heard a faint pop and rolled her eyes when Luna had disappeared. Hopefully, her next talk with Luna will not be interrupted by missives so she could finally tell Luna what was on her mind about the alien Luna had become smitten with.
Adam tossed the book down on the ground. He could not comprehend the scribbles the pages held. With his fingers laced behind his head, he laid his head back on the pillow and stared at the domed, grey ceiling above. He really needed to use the restroom. When his search of the room came up empty of a container to do his business in, the thought of using the silver lid became more enticing.
Suddenly, Princess Luna poofed into the room, making him nearly soiling himself. She posed in front of him with one hoof raised, her head held high, with her astral mane and tail, flowing on an invisible wind.
"Did thou miss us?" she asked with a wink.
"Yes!" he whimpered. "I reallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreallyreally," he gasped for air, "Really need to use the restroom!"
"We suppose we should have thought of that earlier," she turned to exit the room and giggled, "Follow me."
Adam immediately went to her side, holding his legs together, which along with the face and dance he did, made Luna giggle.
"I am glad my suffering brings you such happiness, Princess," he hissed between his teeth.
The guards were surprised to see Princess Luna open the door to the room.
"We will be escorting our new guest to a new room. Come," she addressed her guards, who obediently followed.
Both guards stared up at the alien in awe, who was easily a head taller than Celestia.
"How's it going?" the alien waved to them, "The name's Adam."
This trip was not going the way Twilight imagined. Nopony could imagine the horrendous scenes the monster left in its wake. She loathed having to face it, but she gave Princess Celestia and Prince Rutherford her word, and she would see this through to the end. She felt more secure with the ten warriors the prince sent with her.
After trudging an hour through the thick snow and blistering wind, she could see the crater the meteor left. The crater was easily three times bigger than the one in the Everfree Forest. Fragments of rock bordered the crater. In the middle of the crater, there was the meteorite or what was left of it.
The Yak warriors decided it was best to guard the perimeter while the six ponies examined the meteorite. Now that Twilight was closer, she saw what had caught her eye from the rim of the crater: a stony, obelisk-like rock. Strange carvings in the stone made Twilight assumed it was definitely alien in nature.
A howl erupted in the silence.
"Monster!" a Yak yelled at the top of his lungs, before charging out of sight. Three guards followed him.
Their war cry was silenced by a sickening crack of bones and a blood-curdling scream echoed.
"Must protect ponies!" their previous city guide Yak shouted.
Twilight froze in horror as the visage of a black wolf rose behind the Yak. He valiantly slashed his spear at the nose of the wolf but the tip of the spear broke off. His actions only enraged the beast. The other Yaks went to his rescue, leveling their spears at the belly of the beast. Despite their gallant efforts, the beast sent all the Yaks flying off the mountain, with a swipe of its arm. With the Yaks gone, dread descended upon the ponies. Its burning eyes piercing their soul, they were frozen with fear, as the beast drew near.
Something was different about the tiny horses before it. The wolf could sense their power and a familiar scent.
"Please don't eat me!" Pinkie Pie cried, "I taste funny!" Under normal circumstances, the group would have laughed, but this was no laughing matter.
The wolf sniffed the ponies.
"Oh, pleasepleasepleasepleasepleasePleeeease! Fluttershy rambled, "Do not eat us, Mister Wolf!"
The wolf sat on his haunches and licked Fluttershy, "Only because you asked nicely," he spoke.
"You can talk?!" Rainbow Dash asked surprised.
"Says the talking little horses," the wolf remarked.
"He does make a point," Applejack said.
"And we are ponies!" Pinkie Pie corrected him.
"Pot and kettle," the wolf said flatly.
"If you could talk, why didn't you talk with them instead of attacking and killing the Yaks?" Twilight demanded.
The wolf stared blankly at the purple pony. "Since you appear different from the others and look important, I will amuse you with further conversation. I agreed not to eat you, but made no promise to not kill you." The ponies shifted nervously. "Who said I did not try to communicate with them? I was defending myself. As you may have noticed, I am not speaking to you through my voice but through telepathy. Perhaps, their thick fur, thick skulls, and thick helmets prevented my thoughts from reaching them?"
Twilight thought about what the wolf said, "So why didn't you just run away?"
"I fear nothing; I run from nothing. In addition, I was hungry and they seemed edible," the wolf answered, licking his chops.
"Do you have any idea how you got here?" Twilight question.
A strong gust of wind made the ponies shudder.
"How about this: we go to some place warmer, where you ponies will not freeze to death and then I will answer your questions. Deal?" the wolf offered.
Twilight turned to her friends, who all quickly nodded. "Fine. We will go back and tell the prince what happened, rest, then depart for Canterlot."
"I will wait for you all at the base of the mountain," he stated. He got up to leave.
"Wait!" Fluttershy shouted, getting his attention, "What is your name?"
"Pleasantries can wait. A snow storm is brewing. You all need to leave now," he warned them, picked up the obelisk in his mouth, then dashed off.
"I do terribly wish to get out of the cold, darling," Rarity placed a booted hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "We should heed his warning." Twilight nodded in agreement.
They all headed back to the comfort and safety of Yakyakistan.
Kyll some more, blood and Gorr.
Kyll some more, blood and Gorr.
"Why are you doing this?!" King Gallus shrieked as he hung upside down.
An evil grin spread across the chanter's lips, "I was locked up once, long ago. Didn't care for it much," he stated.
"I know it was a mistake, but please release me! I was just trying to protect my people!" the broken griffon tried to reason with the giant.
The giant laughed maniacally, "Ironic then, isn't it? What you thought would protect them is the reason they are dead?"
The light tan and bloody griffon groaned in agony, "J-Just kill me then! Spare my subjects! My people are innocent!" he pleads.
"I. Think. Not," the giant snarled.
King Gallus shrunk, staring into the evil saffron eyes of the giant.
Lieutenant Shield Breaker watched the spectacle play out with her binoculars. Boy did she not want to tango with that dragon. Out of the few dragons, she has seen this one was, hoofs down, the largest. It made short work of the changeling army and continued to assault their hive, not wanting to let a single one escape. She felt half sorry for them, but they brought this upon themselves.
Wing beats caught her attention. Her scouts had returned.
"Report," she ordered as soon as their hooves touched the rusty ground.
"You were right, Lieutenant. That deep chasm you spotted in the southwest was created recently by a meteor," Corporal Swift Shoes reported.
Private Farsight added, "There was a strange object in the middle of the crater, but it was too heavy for the two of us to carry, sir."
Lieutenant Shield Breaker contemplated for a few minutes. "Ok. Gather around!" she barked, the other six guards lined up in attention, "You six, pick up the object that Swifty and Farsight located and take it back to Canterlot. You two are with me. After a short rest, we will go introduce ourselves to the dragon."
Private Farsight wanted to protest but held his tongue.
"I do so get terribly cold at night," Adam feigned. Patting the bed, he asked, "Are you sure you can not lay with me and keep me company, Luna?"
Luna blushed slightly and smiled, "We need a dinner and movie first."
"How about tomorrow then? I'm free," Adam pressed.
"We have plans for thee tomorrow already," Luna replied.
"Oh?" he sat up, his curiosity piqued.
"My sister will inform thee about it. Good night," Luna left before she gave into her temptation.
"Night. . ." he sighed and laid back, rejected. "She is absolutely beautiful," he thought then chuckled to himself, "I hate to see her go, but love to watch her leave." A second thought entered his head, "Is it weird or unnatural for me to have feelings for a different species? Even if it is, I still like her."
He had a feeling that she had mutual feelings for him but noted that Princess Celestia would more than likely interfere. A snicker left him, as he remembered calling her Luna's mother. After deep reflection, he concluded the best course of action would be to tone down his advances and take everything a day at a time.
Twilight had a deep frown. How could she think she could trust a murderous beast. He said he would wait for them and lo-and-behold he was nowhere in sight.
"I keep my word," she heard his voice echo in her head, making her jump.
A large mound of snow to their left stood, revealing the gigantic black wolf. His eyes pierced Twilight, his hot breath bathed them. A sled which was strapped with the obelisk rested under him.
"Good morning, Mister Wolf," Fluttershy greeted him with a warm smile.
He gazed at her for a few seconds before he replied, "Good morning, ponies."
"What's that?" Pinkie Pie inquired, pointing to the sled.
"A platform to aid in the transportation of my totem. I lacked enough wood to construct wheels," he replied.
"How in tarnation did ya build that?" Applejack wondered.
"Telekinesis."
"You know how to perform magic?" Twilight asked.
"I suppose in your world it would be considered as such." The wolf picked up a rope that was attached to the sled and began to pull it down the mountain, "Let's walk and talk, yes?"
"So... you can read minds?" Twilight questioned, following the wolf.
"Yes."
"That is a major invasion of privacy," Rarity input.
"A good thing your mind does not interest me," the wolf remarked.
Rarity scoffed and turned her nose up at him.
"You are after my mind, aren't you?" accused Twilight.
"Yours has provided me with much information," he admitted.
Rainbow Dash flew around the wolf's head, "How do you know our language?"
"I do not. I am speaking in my tongue. When Twilight was corresponding with Princess Celestia last night, I could not read the writing."
"How far can you read minds?" Twilight mused, agitated by the mass invasion of privacy.
"Do not concern yourself with that information."
"It is my mind! You should not be intruding into my thoughts!" Twilight's anger finally flared.
"Too. Bad," he growled.
"Do you know about the other aliens?" Rainbow asked, feeling safe from his probing since she did not really have anything important in her memory to an alien.
"Yes. I know them well. I also know that we will need the help of the others to take down the most dangerous one rampaging through the Griffon Kingdom."
"What do you mean?" Rainbow Dash hovered in front of the wolf's face.
"His name is Kyllgorr. A supremely powerful demon. Not even I can hold my ground against him." Rainbow stared at him in horror. "Do not worry, your friend Gilda is unharmed and is on her way to Canterlot."
"How do you know that?" Rainbow Dash confronted him.
"I am able to connect to the minds of those you share a strong bond with."
Twilight stopped trying to argue with the rude wolf and stopped thinking of anything, wanting to reach Canterlot as soon as possible.
She noticed the grinning yellow pegasus trotting beside the wolf, "Fluttershy, why are you so happy?"
"Huh? Oh..." Fluttershy suddenly found something interesting to look at the ground. "I'm just talking withPrice."
"Price?" Twilight asked, puzzled.
"That is my name," the wolf stated.
Twilight was amazed that the wolf had the ability to talk simultaneously with others.
"Luckily," the wolf began, "we have three powerful gods that will be able to put him under control easily. Although..."
"Gods?" Applejack interrupted.
"Yes. Although, one of them does not know, or to put it better, has forgotten that he is a god," Price said with concern.
"Who?"
"He was the one you found in the Everfree Forest. He is the most powerful of us all. Even with our powers combined, he could defeat us." Price sighed. "I think him without his memories is for the best."
"Why is that?" Fluttershy spoke.
"He had a very troubled life. And if we are here, that means he was slain. And if he died, there is a ninety-two percent chance that he was betrayed. And he will want revenge, stopping at nothing to achieve it. That would endanger this world tremendously," the wolf explained.
The group continued in silence. Price enjoyed the forest they were traveling through, but the trees could not compare to the giant Forrough trees back home. How he longed for home. Looking back, the Crystal Mountains still dominated the horizon with their majesty. His ears perked up and he cut through the trees.
"We are taking the aquatic highway. Much faster that way," he informed the group.
"No offense, but I don't think there'll be enough room for you and us on the sled." Applejack pointed out.
"Sure there will."
A river rushed up ahead but the ground dropped to a steep overhang.
"Okay." Price said, dropping the rope from his mouth, "Everypony aboard." The ponies hesitantly climbed onto the sled. "Hang on," he telekinetically placed the sled onto the river, turning it into a raft.
The ponies looked up to see the black wolf missing.
"Price?" Fluttershy called up.
They heard running and watched in shock as the hulking wolf jumped off the bluff. They all screamed and closed their eyes. Several seconds passed by before they opened their eyes. A miniature Price sat before Fluttershy, grinning wolfishly.
"Oh ye of little faith," he said smugly.
"Awwww!" Fluttershy cooed, picked the small wolf up in her hooves, and nuzzled him, "Aren't you adorable!"
Price let out a small laugh. "Yes! Fawn over me," his tail wagged.
"I gotta admit," Applejack said, smiling, "you are one cute critter," she rubbed his head with an orange hoof.
"Cute! Cute! Cute!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed, bouncing around Fluttershy.
Twilight did not want to concede that the brash wolf actually looked cute, she walked to the front of the raft, watching the scenery pass. Rarity joined her friend at the bow of the raft.
"Unlike that wolf, I can not read minds, darling," she stated and placed an ivory hoof on her friend's shoulder. "What are you thinking about?"
Twilight heaved a heavy sigh, "A lot of things. I just don't know what will happen with these new aliens. They are all dangerous and I feel it will be better if they went back home."
"I feel that way, too, darling, but how will they get back home? How did they even get here in the first place? What did he mean the others are 'gods' and a 'demon'? These are all questions we will only get answers to if we help them. Even if they are brutish and barbaric."
Twilight sighed again but felt better talking with Rarity. "Thanks, Rarity," she managed a small smile.
"What a strange yet familiar place this is," the giant mused as he flipped through the pages of a book with pictures of creatures both familiar and foreign. "Even if I do find an abecedarium for this language, I have nothing to compare it with," he growled with frustration. He decided to check if any chicken-cats were stupid enough to stay in the castle town.
Descending the castle steps, he marveled at his chaos: griffons of every color speckled the stairs and paved streets, destroyed buildings, broken statues, and the blood that painted nearly every thing. Wings here, tails there, legs to, talons fro, and heads rolling around. A question popped into his head: why were there no scavengers picking at the cornucopia of chicken-cat chunks?
A red blur in the corner of his eye interrupted his train of though. He could hear something running. A vicious grin pulled at the points of his mouth. Let the hunt begin!
"I just wanted to visit the Griffon homeland!" Seamless Stitch cried in her head. She had to keep herself from vomiting upon seeing the dreadful sight of all the dead griffons. To make matters worse, a terrifying giant was walking through the gore, bathed in blood. She needed to escape. As she sped up, she ran into what felt like a brick wall. Shaking her head and getting her barrings straight, she wished badly that she had hit a wall. She was petrified with fear, staring up at the bloody. . . grinning giant. . .
He picked up the cardinal red horse by her barrel with both hands. "Greetings," he grinned devilishly. He heard it squeak and it urinated, fainting in his hands. "Now, that's not polite," he grimaced.
She awoke to a crackling flame. She strained to get up but found that difficult. When her eyes adjusted to the dim light, she found herself bound with chains. Panic coursed through her veins.
"Omigoshomigoshomigoshomigoshomigoshomigosh! It's going to eat me!" she shouted in her head. Then she remembered she was a unicorn. "Heh heh heh. Not too smart, eh giant?" Her horn glowed a soft pink and the chains glowed a similar color.
A beefy hand grabbed her horn, which dispelled her magic, and lifted her up.
"So, that's what your horn does," it mused, its orange eyes burning into her skull. "Neat little trick."
He stared at her for a deathly long couple heartbeats.
"Good. You didn't wet yourself this time."
He placed her on a table and started removing her binds, which baffled her.
He spoke. "You can run. . ." he glared at her, "but you'll just die tired."
She gulped audibly.
The giant pulled a chair to him and sat. "You will teach me your language, in exchange for your freedom," he stated and pointed at the table.
Seamless Stitch saw stationary, quills, and ink, neatly set on the table. She looked up at him, then down at the table, then back up at him.
"Great. You're a mute," he groaned.
"N-no. . ." she managed to squeak.
"Then get started."
Darqlon landed in the training yard in a small cloud of dust. The guards landed behind him loudly and carefully placed the platform down. He could not lie: the castle was breathtaking and probably looked better during the day. He absorbed his shadowy wings into his back and stretched.
"If you would not mind, sir, could you please wait here?" the white pegasus, Bulwark Defense, asked politely.
"I do. . . not mind," Darqlon said.
The pegasi guards followed their sergeant. Two dark grey unicorn guards entered the yard and stood guard at the platform. Darqlon went over to the obelisk to read its inscriptions. The unicorn guards eyed the black phantasmal figure wondering which abyssal pit of Tartarus it escaped from.
Learning nothing new from the obelisk, he began to study the structure of the castle and its walls. Simple architecture but efficient nonetheless. The yard was completely closed off with high walls and two towers posted at the corners. Test dummies and targets were in one corner of the yard with a boxing square ring in the middle of the yard.
The sound of doors opening made him turn to the sound. He saw a tall, proud, white winged-unicorn, with a spectral flowing mane and tail, walking towards him, accompanied with Bulwark Defense.
"A pleasure to make your acquaintance," Princess Celestia addressed the form with glowing red eyes, with a slight bow. "My name is Princess Celestia. I rule Equestria along side my sister, Princess Luna."
"The pleasure. . . is all mine. . . your Highness," Darqlon knelt with a deep bow, he remained that way for a second before standing again, "I am called. . . Darqlon."
"I thank you for healing my little ponies in Cloudsdale," she smiled gratefully.
"It was an accident.. . . that I caused. . . so I helped. . . naturally," he replied humbly.
"You had a long journey; you must be hungry. I have a meal prepared for you," she said uncertainly if the shade even ate.
"That. . . will not be. . . necessary. . . your Highness. I do not. . . require food for. . . my sustenance," he declined politely.
"Very well," she nodded and walked over to the platform with the stony obelisk. "Could you tell me what this is?"
Following the princess, Darqlon answered, "Of course. That is. . . a simple granite obelisk. . . with inscriptions. .that say my name. . . and title. Why it is here. . . I can not say. This type of obelisk. . . is primarily used. . . as a grave marker."
"Interesting. And what was your title in your world?" the alabaster alicorn inquired with curiosity.
"In my original. . . plane of existence. . . I am considered. . . a god," he stated.
"A god? Really?" she awed.
Darqlon reached down to the ground and picked up a shadow, manipulating it like a black blanket. "I am the God of Shadow. . . and Lord of the Night," he waved his hands in the air, the shadow following his movements like flowing water.
"Incredible. . ." Celestia watched the show in wonderment, as did the guards.
The shadow morphed into a large scythe, startling the ponies, he quickly dissipated the weapon and threw the shadow back on the ground.
"Bravo!" Celestia clapped her fore-hooves together.
Darqlon bowed, "I have much to. . . inform you Princess. . . and would be. . . more than happy. . . to share. Though. . . I would not mind. . . having a seat."
Princess Celestia chuckled, "Certainly. Follow me. I believe we have a creature from your realm in our care. You may visit him, if you wish."
"I would like to see this creature first, please."
"Very well," Celestia led her new guest into her castle.
Lieutenant Shield Breaker kept her brave façade the entire descent to the changeling hive, but when she smelled the burning corpses and saw the carnage up close, she found it harder with each step to keep up her performance. She tried to have a more positive, optimistic outlookif anythingto calm her nerves.
"At least now we do not have to worry about the changelings ever attacking again," she thought pessimistically. She prayed to the Four Princesses that her crazy plan would work. Holding up a hoof, she stopped and the two ponies halted behind her.
Wheezing and writhing in agony, the charred mass that once was the proud queen of the changelings, clung desperately to life.
"If you think. . . I will beg for mercy. . . you are mistaken," the queen labored and spat, struggling to stand on her hooves.
"Fine by me," the lieutenant smirked. Before she could plunge her sword into the queen's gut, a gust of wind knocked her down.
The ground quaked.
When the dust settled, she saw the obsidian dragon looming over her. It lowered its head to get a better view of her. It exhaled smoke into her face, making her choke.
"Death is mercy she does not deserve," he bellowed.
"I will destroy you!" Queen Chrysalis threatened under the claws of the dragon.
The dragon put his weight on the singed queen, making her choke, "Silence." He addressed the armored pegasus, "what did you come here for?"
Shield Breaker cleared her throat, "You," her voice cracked.
"Why?"
"The ruler of the land wishes to meet with you and help you."
The dragon scratched his neck as he thought, scanning the three pegasi, "Why?"
"Because she is a kind and just leader. She has helped the other creature that emerged from another meteorite, and wants to make an alliance with you aliens," Shield Breaker explained.
"Better to have me as an ally than an enemy," it stated. "Very well, take me to your leader. My trophy comes," he interrupted the pegasus before she could speak, "Not negotiable."
"I will have to inform the Princess about this," she said after a moment of silence, "Then I will take you to her."
The dragon faded to a dark shadow and started to shrink. When he manifested, he was a tall, bipedal creature, with light colored skin, short, spiky black mane, sporting a pair of dragon wings on its back; he somehow had abyssal black armor.
Removing his armored foot from the neck of the bug-unicorn thing, he introduced himself. "Call me Onyx," he grinned, "Don't make me wait too long," he grabbed the bug-unicorn by its horn, dragging it towards a cave.
She watched the conquered Queen Chrysalis somberly accept her fate, not even bothering to resist.
Adam awoke from the morning sunlight shining into his face. A long yawn left him. He sat up to stretch, groaning as his back and elbows popped. Knocks on the door woke him up slightly.
"Only Luna may enter," he declared to whomever was on the other side of the door. The door opened with the white alicorn princess letting herself into the room. Adam frowned and pouted, "You are not Luna."
"Good morning to you, too," Princess Celestia greeted warmly. "It's time for you to finally get out and explore a small portion of Equestria."
"Whadda ya mean?" Adam yawned and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.
"Oh, I just have a series of tests for you to complete," Celestia said shrewdly.
"And why would I do these tests?" he question in defiance.
"Maybe to stretch the legs, or perhaps," she smiled widely, "Impress a certain blue alicorn?"
He chuckled, "Fine. I have nothing better to do." He rolled out of bed and examined the simple gown he wore, "Do you think I could wear something more. . . fitting?"
"When we get to the labs, they will dress you accordingly to the tests," Celestia informed, opening the door.
"Maybe I can get something to eat, too?"
"After-"
"-the tests," Adam interrupted, "Yeah. Yeah. Lead on, your Highness."
"Remarkable!" Luna admired from the observation room, scribbling in her notes.
"Yes. Amazing." Celestia had to agree with her sister. Adam breezed through every test thus far. Earlier, he had lifted a ton of weight as if it was nothing. Right now, he was running on a tread mill, going for three hours barely breaking into sweat. He kept a modest pace of about seven kilohooves per hour. While a foal could out sprint him, he could out run even the most enduring stallion. Celestia tapped on the window.
The doctor observing Adam told him the test was over. Adam huffed, placing his hands on his hips. He wiped his face with a towel. Feeling hot, he removed his shirt, setting it on the exercise machine, revealing his rippling muscles.
Luna's wings sprang open as she blushed. Her eyes devouring the eye candy.
Celestia rolled her eyes, wiping her sister's drool and closed her mouth, which dropped back open.
"What's next, doc?" Adam asked as his stomach growled.
"Lunch," the light gray unicorn stallion smiled. "You did exceedingly well on the physical tests. Next, we will test your mental capabilities."
"Sounds like a plan," Adam went to the adjacent locker room to shower.
Princess Luna used her light blue magic to create a screen on the wall to her left.
"What are you doing, sister?" Celestia asked, curiously.
"We art going to observe his cleansing and hygienic rituals," Luna giggled with a licentious grin.
Celestia saw Adam enter the showers with a towel wrapped around his waist. Her eyes widened at her sister's true motivations. As soon as his towel came undone, Celestia interrupted Luna's spell.
"Why did thou interfere?" Luna was crossed.
"Our parents did not raise you to be a pervert!" Celestia scolded, "Respect his privacy."
Luna sighed and hung her head in shame. "I. . . apologize, sister." She gazed up at her sister with puppy eyes, "Can thou forgive us?"
Celestia smiled and nuzzled her sister, "Of course." She raised Luna's head with her white hoof. "Even if you have feelings for him, you can not let them cloud your judgment."
"We understand, sister," Luna said dejected.
"I have to attend court. Please, get some sleep, sister."
Adam stared absently at the colorful blobs on the white card.
"Now, Adam," a jade crystal pony spoke calmly, "there are no right or wrong answers. Tell me: what do you see?"
"Why, the mother of my children, of course," he stated matter-of-factly.
"Really?" she mused, "And whom might that be?"
"Luna!" Adam beamed.
"Okay," the pony entertained his answer. "And this one?"
"Hmm. . ." he placed his hand on his chin as he contemplated. "My lover on the side."
The pony questioned him with emerald eyes.
"Princess Celestia, obviously."
"Okay," she smiled politely, putting the card away. She set a small wooden tray with three different shape holes on the table. "Put a peg into the corresponding hole," she directed, placing three pegs beside the tray. "I will be timing you for this. Begin."
Adam quickly placed the pegs into their holes in five seconds.
The doctor smiled, "Good job." She removed the tray and brought out a display. It had a wire arced across into the base of the display, with a metal ring connected to a short metal rod. "Holding the rod, move the ring to the other side."
He furrowed his brow and glared at the display.
"Is something the matter?" she inquired.
He held out his hand near the wire, he could feel the small current of electricity, charging the wire. "Nothing is 'the matter'," he sneered. Adam easily maneuvered the ring to the opposite end without getting shocked.
"Excellent," the doctor put that display away and set a similar, more complicated, one on the table. "Repeat the task."
"Yes, ma'am." He grabbed the rod with his shirt and completed the test.
"Good job," She said, writing on her tablet. "No more tests, Adam. The guards will escort you to your room."
"Alright," he got up to leave.
"Princess Celestia has agreed with your request," Lieutenant Shield Breaker informed the bipedal-dragon thing, shouting into the cave. She heard rustling and seconds later, the armored thing walked out with Chrysalis over his shoulder.
Onyx saw the sky becoming orange as dusk began to fade over the rusty crags in the distance. "You obviously waited until night to tell me this. No matter. Let's go."
Adam observed the night sky through the window. Wondering if any one of the many stars was his home. Without any memories, he did not feel homesick, just curious about what his homeland was like. Did he have someone waiting for him? Did he have children? Friends? Parents? How did he get here? His thoughts were interrupted by knocks at the door.
"Luna?" he perked up.
A white horn appeared behind the door, with a sigh, he turned back to the window.
"I hear you did well on all of your tests. Congratulations," Celestia complimented.
"Whatever. I don't feel like talking," Adam moped.
"Oh, but I have a guest that wants to meet you."
His curiosity piqued, he returned his attention to the door. A tall, shadowy figure, with crimson glowing eyes, stood by Celestia side. Everything went dark and he collapsed to the ground.
"By the time we reach the castle, everyone should be there," Price informed the ponies.
"How? I can't fly everyone up there!" Rainbow Dash voiced.
"Once we are close enough, I will be able to teleport us and the obelisk to the castle."
"Why are you telling us this now?" Twilight asked annoyed.
"I am incapable of long-distance teleportation," the small wolf in Fluttershy's bag admitted.
The weary group trotted down the road, with Price towing the obelisk with his telekinesis. An hour passed and night settled across the land. Canterlot was in view.
"Get ready," he warned.
"Ready for" Rarity could not finish her question as the world around her warped. In an instant, she found herself within castle walls.
Two unicorn guards were startled to see the six heroes of Equestria unexpectedly appear out of thin air.
"Where are we?" Applejack groaned, her head spinning.
"Castle training yard," Price jumped out of the bag and went over to the platform with an obelisk already on it. He placed his beside Darqlon's.
The guards were surprised at what they witnessed.
Price ran back to Fluttershy and hopped back into her bag.
Before the guards could say something, a thud behind them made them spin on their heels. They ran off seeing the giant with dragon wings.
The ponies gasped as they saw what the giant carried on its shoulder: Queen Chrysalis, burnt to a crisp.
His sapphire eyes shone when he spotted a familiar wolf. Dropping his burden, Onyx ran over to the wolf.
Price jumped towards Onyx, growing to the size of a Yak.
"Wolf!" Onyx embraced the black wolf.
"Onyx!" Price's tail wagged.
"Wolf, you have no idea how the past few days have been," Onyx rubbed the top of Wolf's head. "It's good to see you again, pal."
"I have quite the tale, as well," Wolf grinned.
Chrysalis groaned. Through her blurry vision, she saw the ponies, the dragon, and a very large dog. She fainted, her strength slowly returned to her.
Onyx picked up Chrysalis under his arm. "Look at what I found! She wasn't as burned at first, until she thought it was smart to challenge me."
"I know what that is," Wolf stated, pawing at the twisted horn, "Princess Celestia will want to see her."
"I didn't damage her sister, did I?" Onyx mocked.
"She is only the bane of all pony kind!" Twilight finally managed to say.
"Ah, looks like I did you all a favor by exterminating all those bug-horse things," Onyx boasted with a cocky grin.
The ponies exchanged concerned looks.
"The princesses are on their way," Wolf stated, watching the door.
Princess Luna had removed her silver hoof boot to stroke Adam's black mane as he slept. Her teal eyes shimmered as she tenderly watched over him. "Awaken," she whispered. She tapped his arm, "Adam, awaken needest thou."
Adam grumbled, "Eighteen more minutes. . ."
"No," she smiled, "Many people hast gathered to see thee, and await us."
Adam yawned and noticed Luna. He placed his hand on her cheek, "So, you came to join me after all, eh?"
She sighed contently at the warmth of his hand, "Sadly not. Thou art to meet thy fellow aliens, who claim to know thee."
"I will only go see them if you give me a kiss," his goldenrod eyes gleamed in the dim light.
Luna flushed scarlet but quickly kissed him on his forehead and teleported away.
"Cheater," he chuckled, rolling out of bed. He ran his fingers through his hair. The hall way lights temporarily blinded him when he opened the bedroom door. "Where am I supposed to go?" he asked the guards.
And waiting longer.
Princess Luna assured them that he was on his way.
The dining hall doors opened and Adam poked his head around the white door. He backed out as if to leave, but the night guard pushed him inside.
"Rude!" Adam exclaimed at the door. He awkwardly made his way to the table, feeling the weight of all their eyes on him. He sat at the empty chair across from Luna, winking at her.
"I don't know 'bout y'all, but I'm famished," he stated and chuckled nervously. He turned to the black armor-clad man to his right, "You new here, too?"
The man suddenly picked up Adam in a suffocating hug. "Grey!"
"Blue!" Adam gasped.
Onyx placed his friend back on his feet, clasping his shoulder, "Grey, it's been eons since we last spoke."
"'Grey'?" Adam had a confused expression.
"That is your name," the shade, seated to the right of Onyx, rasped, "Gray. . . Zamanova. . . Whulphe."
Adam sat down, his head began to spin, the room began to spin, "And who are you? Smokey?"
". . .Funny. . ." Darqlon replied flatly.
"You have much to learn about yourself, Grey, but now that we're here, we will help you," Onyx said confidently.
The kitchen doors swung open. A convoy of serving carts entered the dining hall. Everyone had waited ever so patiently for food. The servers gave everyone a bowl of salad and a plate of grilled fish to the carnivores, as an appetizer.
Rainbow Dash saw the shade pick up a fork, stick it the fish, and bring it to its face, where the white meat disappeared, "How do you eat? Is like, your whole face your mouth or something?"
". . .Or something. . ." his hoarse voice replied.
"You're kinda scary," Rainbow Dash confessed, "I like that."
"Thank you."
"I'm Rainbow Dash!"
"I am Darqlon. . . Reaper of Souls."
"So. Awesome!" Rainbow Dash elated.
Princess Luna listened carefully to what Onyx was telling "Grey"; Celestia also focused her attention on the stories Onyx told; Twilight wrote down every word Onyx said.
"Grey, you slew the first, most powerful Demon Kingnow that I think about it: you've slain every Devil!"
"And. . . how many Devils were there?" Adam asked between bites of salad.
"One hundred and twenty-three. You went to Hell, the plane of pure evil, and slew them while they were at court," Onyx regaled. "You even slew half the Demon Army when you saved Valkyrie" Onyx stopped himself as if he said something bad.
Grey perked up at that name, "'Valkyrie'?"
"Y-yeah. . . your little sister. . ." Onyx stuffed his mouth.
"You're lying," Grey stated.
Onyx was busy forking salad into his mouth to say anymore.
"She was your. . . soul mate," Darqlon said.
Grey sat back in his chair to see the shade, "'Soul mate'?"
"In the literal. . . and figurative sense. Since you. . . we. . . are all immortal. . . marriage is a very. . . sacred act," Darqlon explained. The others had quiet down when he began speaking. "At the end of. . . the ceremony. . . half of your soul. . . is given to. . . your soul mate. . . becoming Bonded. . . as one. When one mate dies. . . the other. . . literally. . . loses a part. . . of themselves. You killed twenty gods. . . to breach Hell. You killed every. . . Demon and Devil. . . who stood in your path. Unfortunately. . . when you found her. . . her soul was. . . already corrupted. You cared not. You fought for a week. . . killing Demon and Angel. . . alike to reach. . . the mortal plane."
Grey processed the information, "If Hell is evil, why did she go there when she died? And why do you talk so slow?"
"She was the. . . Firstborn child. . . of the Demon King," Darqlon answered. "I speak this way. . . because it takes. . . much labor. . . and power. . . to speak."
"She was already a Demon..." Grey surmised.
"Yes."
"How did she die?"
"Mystin. . . the Demon Kingher fatherkilled her. . . disguised as you. She became. . . corrupted. . . because she felt. . . that you betrayed her," Darqlon paused. "You endured . . . a painful process. . . to extract her soul. . . from yours. I know. . . because I preformed. . . the ritual. After reuniting. . . her soul halves. . . her soul became good again. . . or so I thought. . . so it should have. Several ages later. . . she tried to. . . kill you. She always was. . . hellbent on getting even. . . with those who wronged her. You had no choice. . . but to kill her. . . permanently. . . with the Godsbane dagger. You had a daughter. . . with Valkyrie. Her name is Shade. When you killed Valkyrie. . . Shade had witnessed. . . you do it. Ever since then. . . she has hated you. . . and try to kill you."
Everyone at the table was misty-eyed, even Grey.
"How cruel fate is," Grey said grimly.
"Truer words. . . have never been spoken," Darqlon concluded.
Grey shook his head, "But that was the old me. Yes, it is sad, but I have no memory, no real emotions about all that."
"Exactly. You have been given a second chance," Wolf spoke, "Do not squander it."
The rest of the meal was in silence, everyone absorbed with their own thoughts. Grey caught Luna staring at him. She gave him a comforting smile, he gave a weak smile in response. When Princess Celestia ended the dinner, everyone went to their rooms, except for Grey. He sat at the table forlorn.
Princess Luna softly nudged his arm with her snout. He turned to gaze into her mystical teal eyes.
"Here for thee I am," she assured him.
He knelt and wrapped his arms around her neck, "I don't know what to think anymore."
Luna was surprised by his sudden embrace, but placed a hoof on his back, "We will figure it out together."
"Thanks, Luna," he broke their embrace, "I feel much better," he smiled.
"We shall escort thee to thine room," she grabbed his shirt with her teeth and tugged him. "Come along."
"Eee...?" Kyllgorr pronounced the vowel on the paper insecurely.
"That's 'i'! Like I see you or my eye burns," Seamless Stitch raised her voice. "This is the fifth time now!"
"Well, excuse me!" Kyllgorr mocked, "It's not my perfect language, where every vowel and consonant looks and sounds different, because that would be too easy! No, let's make minuscule differences in a curving alphabet; where an 'i' sounds like 'eye' in one word then in the next goes fucking bipolar and sounds and looks like an 'e'!" He slammed his fist on the table, spilling ink everywhere.
Seamless Stitch grabbed his face between her fore hooves. She bored her hatred into his eyes. They scowled at each other. Minutes passed and their eyes were still locked in an unblinking battle. Kyllgorr blew into Seamless Stitch's amethyst eyes, forcing her to blink.
"Ha!" he thrust his fists into the air victoriously.
"You... you..!" frustration bubbled in the little red unicorn's face, "Big illiterate meanie!"
Kyllgorr guffawed falling out of his chair, rolling on the floor laughing, "'Illiterate meanie'!"
"Hmph!" she snorted in annoyance.
One Day Earlier
The giant roared, breaking through the solid bulloak door. Seamless Stitch screamed in horror in the corner of the office room. The ice cold granite bit into her burning, red fur, her heart pounding against her chest. She used her pink magic to fling chairs and a desk at the monster to no avail.
He grabbed the trembling horse by her horn, sneering. The pony flailed her limbs wildly. He picked the small horse by her barrel. Her amethyst eyes were as wide as plates. His expression softened slightly.
"You are lucky I need you alive," he tucked her under his arm and walked back to the King's Study, as she whimpered helplessly.
He sat her forcefully down on the cold, hard ground. She curled up in a ball and cried. She observed him picking up the papers, quills, and ink they had knocked over in her mad scramble to escape. His saffron eyes peeking at her every so often. When everything was picked up, he sat down in the chair, and organized the writing area to his liking. He rested his head on the table and studied the horse in the corner.
She yelped when she felt him grab her.
"P-please don't... d-don't hurt me," she pleads, looking up at him with her ears flat.
He picked her up and placed her under his arm, feeling her quiver. After a short walk, he placed her on a kitchen table, grabbing her muzzle.
"Sit," he ordered.
She obediently sat on her haunches.
"Don't. Move," he warned.
She quickly nodded her head.
He moved over to the sink. He found an ewer and two mugs in the third cabinet he searched. He pumped the handle in the sink filling the containers with water. He set the mugs in front of her.
"Drink," he stated as he drank from the silver ewer.
Seamless Stitch realized how dehydrated she was when she gulped down the first mug. By the time she drank the second mug, she felt revitalized.
"Thank you," she said gratefully, smiling weakly at the giant.
He sat on the bench with a sigh. He stared into her eyes, "I didn't mean to kill them. I... was scared."
She saw the truth in his wavering eyes.
"A long time ago, I was locked up in a dark, terrible placetortured at every waking moment," He paused to take another sip from the ewer, "I killed for vengeance, I killed out of hate, but most of all, I killed for survival. Before I knew it, I had developed an insatiable blood lust; one that even rivaled Grey. Once I kill somethingI lose control," he confessed.
The unicorn nodded her head.
"You don't even care, do you?" he scoffed turning away from her. He sensed her hoof on his hand.
"Even though what you did is inexcusable, I can understand why you did it, and if you truly do feel sorry for your actions, you can do something about it," she stated, rubbing his hand.
"I will!" he blurted out then cleared his throat, "I will live out the rest of my days trying to atone for what I have doneif I have to."
"I know there is good in you," she stated, "I mean, you could have hurt me but so far you haven't."
He just stared at her.
A moment of silence fell over them.
"So... did you make those clothes yourself?" she inquired, trying to make conversation.
"Yes. Although truthfully, knitting is more my schtick than sewing," he confided with a quick blush.
"I am a tailor in a small city called Fillydelphia. My parents are tailors, too. That's why they named me Seamless Stitch. Luckily, I got my cutie mark in fashion," she shared.
"I am Kyllgorr," he grinned. "What's a 'cutie mark'?"
She pointed to her flank, "This picture. Mine is a needle with thread, a thimble, and scissors; but, every cutie mark is unique. Although, family members and ponies with similar special skills tend to have cutie marks that resemble each other. Ponies don't get their cutie marks until about ten years of age," she explained, "But you don't need to call me Seamless Stitch, everyone calls me Amy."
"Because of your eyes?"
"Precisely," she smiled, "So, what's your story about knitting?"
"Ah, well. . ." he rubbed the back of his neck, "I'll tell you if you can make me better clothes, deal?" he avoided the question.
"Deal," she agreed, curious about his unlikely hobby.
Spending a few hours searching and scavenging for materials, she made Kyllgorr simple pants and a t-shirt. He suggested skinning and tanning Griffon hides for boots and thicker clothes but she could not, in good conscience, allow him to do that. She informed him that hides are a big faux pas in their society. He countered saying that his feet need protection from the elements, which made sense, considering how fleshy his feet appeared. She simply told him to do what he wants.
"I didn't know my parents," Kyllgorr began his story, as he sat in the study with Seamless Stitch laying on the table listening attentively, "a kind farmer found me near a river with a wolf pup. He brought us back to his wife, who more than happily accepted me as a gift from the gods. They kept the pup, too, deciding he would become a great protector.
"When I was eleven, the old man died of heart failure. I had always helped out around the farm, but now, I had more responsibilities. The old woman spun wool for extra money. And occasionally knitted for people, but she always knitted my clothes. I was fascinated how her knotted, fragile fingers could create such beautiful clothes. So I asked her to teach me and she did.
"One terrible winter, she had knitted a beautiful red scarf for me and Wolf. The red wool cost ten times that of our wool, but it was a gift for our twentieth birthday. I had come down with a debilitating flu the next day. Our firewood ran out, so she went out in a blizzard to get some more from behind the house. " Tears welled up in his eyes as he tried to fight from crying, "I found her frozen body the next morning, laying beside that old man's gave." His lip trembled, "It was just her time to go." He choked back his tears. Her heard Amy sniffling on the table.
"That's so sad!" she sobbed.
"They had a good life and raised me well," Two tears traced down his cheeks. "Anyways, every year, I knit me and Wolf a red scarf in her honortheir honor."
She placed a hoof on his hand smiling up at him, "That's beautiful."
"Yeah. . ." he cleared his throat, "Okay. Time to teach me your language."
"No," she sat up, turning her nose up at him.
"What do you mean?" he growled.
"You said to teach you for my freedom, but I don't want freedom." She smiled warmly at him, flashing her amethyst eyes, "I want to be your friend."
He wore a quizzical expression, "After... everything I did to the Griffons. . . to you. . . you would still want to be my friend?"
"Well, yes," she stated matter-of-factly.
"I don't know what to say," he sounded conflicted.
"Yes," she said sternly, then stuck her tongue out.
Grey stirred from his sleep. He felt an intense pair of eyes burning into his flesh. He felt Luna press her body back into his. He opened his eyes, he saw the intimidating glare of fuchsia eyes looming overhead.
"Princess Luna!" Princess Celestia's voice boomed, making the midnight blue alicorn, fall out of bed. "What are you doing laying in that man's bed?"
"Tia! We were"
"That is Princess Celestia, to you!" she scolded her younger sister. "You!" she pointed an angry golden hoof at Gray, "Go to the dining hall!"
Grey got out of bed and stood in front of Luna, "You. Do not raise your voice at me," he admonished the white alicorn. "Firstly, we did not do anything, but sleep in the same bed; secondly, Luna is an adult and old enough to make her own decisions; and thirdly, even if we did have sex, it would be none of your business."
"That is where you are wrong. She is and always will be: my younger sister and my responsibility. I do not need her associating with a narcissistic sociopath. Now, you leave, or so help me, if you step foot in my castle againyou will be sorry." Celestia warned. "Come, Luna," Celestia ordered, leaving for the door.
Luna glanced up at Grey, heartbroken, and followed her sister with her head hung low and starry tail between her legs.
"Be careful, Luna, it is her castle," he shouted. A pool of shadow began to form underneath him. It moved a foot away and Darqlon emerged from the liquid shadow.
"We are leaving. . . to go get our. . . last companion," Darqlon informed.
"Whatever," Grey stood but Darqlon pushed him down on the bed.
Before Grey could retaliate, Darqlon held out an amulet to Grey, "Wear this. Touch the marialite gem. . . and you will have armor. . . comparable to Onyx's. It comes complete. . . with your preferred weapons. . . two longswords. . . one claymore. . . and kite shield. The overall quality pales. . . in comparison to your works. . . but will hold up. . . in any fight," Darqlon explained.
"I... I don't remember how to fight."
"It will come naturally. . . trust me. . . you are the best fighter. . . in existence. Just follow. . . your instincts. I doubt we will. . . have to fight Kyllgorr. . . but the armor comes with boots. . . You like boots. . ."
Grey chuckled and touched the yellow gemstone in the middle of the amulet, instantly being wrapped in shadow then covered in armor. His full gear had a significant weight to it. He had to admit: the boots were comfortable and stylish, but he noticed something missing, "No helmet?"
"Just hold out your. . . hands at your gut. . . and act like you. . . are putting a. . . helmet on. . . one will appear."
Grey followed Darqlon's instructions. He placed his hand near his belly and extended his arms. A black helmet materialized in his hands. "Nice," he placed the helmet on his head. "Let's get outta here."
"As you say," Darqlon teleported the two of them to the dining hall.
The commander of the guard nodded to the two men who appeared to him, he was too old for anything to surprise him. "We will escort you to the Griffon Kingdom in royal coaches," he began to explain, "Under the guise of Griffon nobles, we will not draw too much attention. The Griffon refugees are taking temporary residence at Cloudsdale since the city already knows about you aliens and has kept quiet about it thus far. Reports are... disheartening. Your friend has killed over half the population of Griffons and King Gallus. Princess Celestia has already passed judgment on him. He will serve community service until she thinks he has learned his lesson."
Wolf spoke up, "Kyllgorr will agree to those terms. He feels guilty about his actions."
"Good. Assuming this goes smoothly. We should all be back here around nightfall. By Princess Celestia's orders Grey"
"I know," Grey interrupted.
"Okay. There is an abandoned castle you are more than welcome to reside in temporarily."
"I'll take you up on that offer."
"Actually," the stallion cleared his throat, "Princess Luna made the suggestion."
"Be sure to give her my thanks."
"Yes, sir." the Commander started to walk, "Well, no time like the present."
"I brought you girls down here for one reason," Princess Celestia spoke, her voice echoed off the cavernous ceiling. "With the suggestion and approval of the other three aliens, I am tasking you six to hide this obelisk," her horn glowed soft yellow, lighting the torches behind her, revealing the obelisk.
"Where will we hide it?" Twilight asked.
"I do not know. That is for you all to decide. I can not know about it. When you find a safe place to secure it, Twilight, please cast a memory erasing spell so that it can remain hidden," Celestia instructed.
"If you don't mind me askin', Princess? Why are we takin' all these precautions?" Applejack inquired.
"If what the aliens said is true, then the fewer people who know about this obelisk the better," Celestia stated.
"What about the other ones?" Pinkie questioned.
"They can be used as decoys. As long as this one does not get into the wrong hands nor Grey's hands, we should be safe."
"What's gonna happen if Grey touches it?" Rainbow wondered.
Celestia had a grim look, "Most likely the end of our world as we know it."
The seven ponies stood in silence and darkness for a short moment.
"An important tip," Celestia broke the silence, "magic does not work on it and destroying it is out of the question."
"There goes my idea," Rainbow Dash deflated.
"Ooo! Ooo! Ooo!" Pinkie Pie bounced around, "Have you guys ever lost something you had a second ago, and you look aaaaallll over the place, but don't find it? Until you find it out in the open?!"
"What are you getting at, dear?" Rarity asked.
"We hide the obelisk in plain sight!"
"Yes," Twilight agreed, a light switching on in her head, "And I know the best place."
In all the seventy years of Commander Adamant Aegis' career, nothing could have prepared him for the appalling display that awaited them in Griffonstone. What abomination could be capable of such acts of cruelty? Griffon parts thrown around like the pieces to a foal's puzzle, the bloodeverywhere, but the worst part had to be the smell. Many guards lost their lunch when the decomposing stench pervaded their nostrils. Mercifully, the aliens allowed them to wait at the entrance of Griffonstone while they went to retrieve the murderous fiend.
From the window, Seamless Stitch saw the three giant beings similar to Kyllgorr and a giant wolf strolling through the mess below, making their way to the castle. The armor and weapons the giants wielded made her gut wretch.
"Kyllgorr!" Seamless Stitch hollered down the hall as she searched for him. She found him in the library reading books, "Kyllgorr!" she collapsed at his feet, trying to catch her breath.
The giant knelt before the cardinal unicorn. "What's wrong?" he asked with concern.
"Giants! Kill! You!" she managed to wheeze out.
His face grew dark, "Stay here. I will handle this," he pets her dark pink mane and left.
Wolf noticed Kyllgorr first and ran up the steps ahead of the others, tackling his best friend.
"Kyllgorr!" Wolf elated, licking the giants laughing face.
"Price!" Kyllgorr hugged his brother tightly.
Onyx and Darqlon chuckled at the reunion of the two. Grey shifted uncomfortably in place.
"Kyllgorr?" a small female voice called out behind the castle door, a red unicorn peeked into view. "Do you know them?"
Kyllgorr got to his feet, only because Wolf reluctantly got off him, "Yes!" he beamed. Patting the wolf on his head, "Seamless Stitch, this is my brother: Price."
Wolf bowed, "A pleasure," he spoke.
Hearing the voice in her head spooked her, "H-hi. . ." she stuttered.
He walked over to Onyx and Kyllgorr hooked his arm around the dragon's neck, "This is my comrade, Onyx. He's a dragon."
Seamless Stitch walked out from behind the door and smiled up at the blue-eyed giant, "Hello."
"This phantom is Darqlon, God of Shadows," Kyllgorr continued.
"Greetings. . ." Darqlon rasped out with a slight bow.
"A g-god?!" Seamless Stitch immediately grovelled at his feet, "I'm not worthy!"
Kyllgorr laughed and went over to pick up Amy, "You don't need to do that, besides he isn't in his true form, and he isn't a god in this world."
"Precisely," Darqlon stated "I do not need. . . your veneration. . . yet. . ."
"Okay. . ." she smiled politely and noticed the last giant with his back to them. "Who is he?" she pointed a hoof.
"Grey," Kyllgorr then quickly added, "He's not important."
Gray huffed, not knowing why the man with the red highlighted black hair extremely irritated him.
A blind pony could see they had a rough history, Seamless Stitch would ask later.
"What are you all doing here?" Kyllgorr asked.
"The ruler of this land, Princess Celestia, wishes to meet with you," Price informed, sitting on his haunches.
Seamless Stitch saw Kyllgorr stiffen.
"You all know my track record with people of power," Kyllgorr sighed.
"Yes," Onyx nodded, "That's why you are going to stay with Grey in an abandoned castle."
"What?!" Grey and Kyllgorr interjected.
"I'm going with you, too, brother," Price added.
"You, yes. Him. Hell-to-the-fucking no."
Grey's eyes glowed through the helmet, "The feeling is mutual."
"It's a big castle," Price added, "You two will probably never see each other."
"Let's hope so," Grey descended down the steps, headed for the coaches.
Kyllgorr knelt down to Amy, "What will you do?"
She saw the sadness and uncertainty in his saffron eyes. "I. . ." she sighed, "I have to go back home. . ." she said sadly.
"I understand," he said stiffly and quickly got up to leave. A tug at his pants stopped him and he looked down at the red unicorn.
"No, you don't understand." She puffed her cheeks, then smiled widely, "I have to go back home to pack."
Price had given Princess Celestia a great idea on how to introduce them to all of Equestria: tell the public they are ambassadors of different species from a far away land. If she informs the court during one of her sessions that ambassadors of five new clans were planning to visit, the press would spread the news like a wildfire and not cause panic across the land. Yes, the more she ruminated on that idea, the more she began to like it.
She sighed as she tossed and turned on her four post bed. Her sister has been avoiding her ever since she yelled at her last week. Celestia regretted doing that deeply. The white alicorn tossed the purple silk sheets off her and climbed out of bed. Perhaps a night flight would ease her mind. With her soft yellow magic, she opened the glass double doors to the terrace. The regal alicorn, spread her great wings, feeling the cool breeze caress her frame. A familiar black, hazy figure sat on a cloud, his back to her. She launched herself into the air to go and talk with the shade.
Darqlon found a considerable amount of solace in the night: the still, the quiet, the overall tranquility. A sigh left him. How much he covet a body is unfathomable to any mortal. He felt powerless, barrenunnatural. That thought amused him, considering his current form was his natural shape, given life by his mother and father. Wing beats fluttered closer and closer. He did not have to look to know who his guest was. She landed softly beside him, her immaculate snow white coat reflecting the moonlight, with her poudretteite eyes sparkling.
"Good evening," Princess Celestia greeted him.
"Good evening. . . your Highness," he bowed respectfully.
She smiled and gazed over the sleeping land of Equestria, "Beautiful, isn't it?"
"Yes. . ." Darqlon agreed, captivated by the majestic princess.
Princess Celestia sat on the cloud, slightly closer to Darqlon. He noticed this. They sat in content silence, watching Ponyville pass below.
"I have decided to put Price's plan in action," said a nervous Princess Celestia.
"To be fair. . . Grey first voiced. . . the idea," he informed.
"I see," Celestia said despondent.
Silence.
Princess Celestia studied the shade beside her: he shared a similar shape with the other aliens, he stood a head taller than her, but his features were lost in his revenant shadow, except for his soft, glowing red eyes, which reminded her of the stop lights of the city. Every second, they would disappear, suggesting that he was blinking. Ponyville disappeared below them, now, they cruised over a sleeping White Tail Woods.
"You know how to. . . make up with. . . Princess Luna. . . you are just being. . . too stubborn," Darqlon stated precipitously. Before a perplexed Celestia could reply, he continued, "The heart will love. . . whom the heart. . . desires. Oft it is said that. . . 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'. . . I found that to be one. . . of many universal truths," his eyes gazed into her fuchsia gems, "You are only. . . straining your relationship. . . with your sister. . . causing you three. . . to suffer."
Princess Celestia heaved a troubled sigh, "You are right. Who am I to wedge myself between their love? Do you think Grey can make my sister happy and treat her right?"
"Without a doubt. Grey is a very loving. . . compassionate. . . and devoted man," Darqlon stated. "But you should try. . . avoiding conflict with him. . . he will push back. He is impartial. . . and rational. . . until the situation. . . becomes personal. You respect him. . . and he will respect you. The best way to. . . apologize to him. . . would be to. . . give him candy."
Princess Celestia giggled, "'Candy'?"
"Oh, yes," Darqlon nodded, "he has an immense. . . sweet tooth. Especially for watermelon. When you do give. . . him the candy. . . do not just give him. . . watermelon candy. . . or he will be. . . suspicious."
Princess Celestia got to her hooves, "I will make amends with my sister, right away." She smiled warmly at Darqlon, "Thank you for your council and time."
Darqlon stood and gave a deep bow, "I aim to please." He admired her as she flew off back to Canterlot. "Truly. . . the heart will love. . . whom the heart desires."
He groaned as he stretched his tired muscles and aching joints. He sat in a chair, breathing in a long yawn. He kicked off his boots, popping his toes, and cracking his knuckles. A cardinal unicorn hopped on his lap, smiling brightly up at him, her amethyst eyes glittering.
"I can't believe we are done!" Amy voiced, resting against the giant, exhausted.
"Y-yeah. Me neither," Kyllgorr replied, still not used to how affectionate Amy was, not that it bothered him. He sat there awkwardly, not knowing what to do with his hands. He played it safe and rested them on the arm rests. The crackling of the fireplace filled the silence.
"I'm glad Princess Celestia didn't throw you in jail," she whispered, gazing up at him.
"I don't know," Kyllgorr groaned, "I never had to clean up my messes before. I think jail would have been letting me off the hook."
Amy just stared up at him.
"Wh-what?" he asked nervously.
"What is the problem between you and Grey?"
An agitated huff escaped him, "I don't want to talk about it."
Amy pouted, then an idea struck her, "What if I give you my finest red yarn and needles, would you tell me then?" She had a sly grin on her lips. She noticed his defenses breaking. She stood on her hind legs, resting her fore hooves on his shoulders, "You will tell me eventually, might as well get something out of it," she said with a crafty grin.
Kyllgorr turned his head away from her to avoid her gaze. Minutes passed and he finally caved in, "You vile temptress. . ." he quipped.
With a smug look, she sat on his lap to listen to his story.
"I can not tell you that story unless I tell you about how we first met," he explained.
"So tell me how you two met."
"What's in it for me?" he inquired.
Amy's jaw dropped in disbelief, she then frowned at him angrily, "Shrewd, shrewd, shrewd."
Kyllgorr chortled. A hoof on his mouth made him stop. He gazed into Amy's yearning violet eyes, finding himself lost in them.
"I just want to know you better and help you," she whispered, her nose touching his.
He melted under her beautiful stare, "I'll... tell you anything you want to know," he said mesmerized.
You can only enter Heaven if you have a pure soul. You can only enter the Underworld if you repent. You can always enter Hell.
I had died two years earlier. I killedmutilatedthe man who killed my brother. I received a swift trial and execution. I did not repent to the Gods of my sins; I felt that the ends justified the means. When I got to Hell, because murdering is a sin, I refused to pledge allegiance to the Demon King. That bastard threw me in jail. Had me chained up like an animal. Demons tortured me relentlessly. Pulling off my skin, ripping my muscles, breaking my bonesonly to awaken the next day, completely healed and ready for them to torture me to their hearts content again. For. Two. Years.
A commotion outside my cell, one day, distracted the guards who were in the middle of my torture. They put the firebrands and pokers on a table to check see what was happening. The Demons running in the hall informed the torturers that the gate to Hell had been left open, so, of course, every Demon wanted to escape. Except for the two Demons in charge of me. They went back to work on me.
I heard a crash from behind me. Grey broke through my cell, knocking me free and to the ground, his gold eyes scanned the room, then he disappeared through the hole he created. The Demons who had tormented me for so long were stunned against the door. I could not let this opportunity slip out of my fingers. I picked up their instruments of torture in both of my handsand killed them. My hatred and anger all erupting as I beat them to a bloody pulp.
I enjoyed it. It frightens me, now, but back then I craved it. My burning vengeance and seething hate took over me. I had to kill every Demon.
Grey had entered Hell with one objective in mind: rescue his beloved. He only had one problem: the millions of Demons that stood between him and her. That minor predicament did not slow him down. I watched in veneration as he ripped and shredded every Demon stupid enough to cross his path. I went to the Gates of Hell, slaying Demons left and right, on my way there.
Darqlon and Onyx along with a few other Gods were at the gates, killing Demons and keeping them from leaving. The tide of the battle was in favor of the Demons, no matter the legions I killed nor the amount the Gods killed. They called for reinforcements. You see, they couldn't close the gates, Grey had the Burning Key and only that key could lock and unlock the gates.
When the Angels entered the fray, the tide began to turn in favor of the Gods. The Demons retreated to gather their strength. Leaving me there near the gates and the legion of Angels. It did not matter to them that I had killed Demons, they saw me as one, and tried to kill me. I defended myself from them.
A horn trumpeted and the Angels stopped fighting me. I looked up to see Darqlon and Onyx flying away. The seven other Gods were shouting at them. Angels were confused. Those loyal to Darqlon and Onyx followed their generals out of Hell while the others remained on the ground. Another horn sounded and the Gods were coming after me.
I was not about to die, not after my brief taste of freedom. I cut down all the Angels that dared fight me. A God slammed me against the ground it was: Ēōroin, the God of Lightninga force to reckon with. Before he could plunge his spear down on me, Grey kicked him to the ground, pinned him down, and decapitated him. He glared down at me, then ran towards the incoming Angels and Gods, carrying Valkyrie over his shoulder.
I picked up Ēōroin's legendary spear, kicked his head in spite, and joined Grey. Angels are considerably more powerful than Demons, but every time I killed an Angel, I grew in power. Grey and I were only a mile from the gates but took us a week to exhaust the Angel's reinforcements. After nine days of continuous fighting, fatigue was our enemy, as well as the last six Gods. Four focused on Grey and two came after me. When we emerged victoriously, Grey allowed me to kill his four enemies, so that I could claim their power. With the last of our strength, we closed and locked the gates. During that entire ordeal, we never shared a word with each other. He handed me the key, waved good-bye to me weakly, and traveled the Crossroads with Valkyrie cradled in his arms. I chunked the key into Hell; I didn't want the damn thing.
Twenty thousand years later, the Demons figured they have enough strength to wage a war against the mortals. The Divines never recovered from what Grey and I did in Hell, so they abandoned the mortals. Being a mercenary at the time, I became rich quick killing Demons. In a battle against Mystinthe Demon Kingan Abyssal Dragon broke my leg. I managed to kill it, but I couldn't stand. Grey came to my aid, unbeknownst to us, the Demons used me as bait for a trap, and swooped down on him.
When he was about to kill the last General, it told him that he would never know where Valkyrie was. He hesitated. I told him that it was impossible for her to be alive. He killed the General after it revealed to him where Valkyrie supposedly was. I told him it was a trap, that he knew she should be dead because he killed her.
He ignored me and left me on the battlefield. He didn't even heal my leg. He said he would come back for me when he found Valkyrie.
He never found her.
He never came back.
Demons dragged me back to Hell and tortured me.
He never came to my rescue.
He never apologized.
I never forgave him.
"And now, here we arehere I am," Kyllgorr finished his story. Amy hugged his thick neck. Only taken aback for a second, he wrapped his arms around the tiny frame of the red unicorn. They succumbed to their weariness, holding each other in a warm embrace.
Queen Chrysalis sat upon the royal throne, cackling over her victory. The white alicorn, broken, bruised, and bloodied, displayed above her for all to see. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna put up a valiant fight, but in the end, Queen Chrysalis proved to the royal sisters how powerful she truly was. Princess Luna struggled to stand, she fared no better than her elder sister. Her once beautiful, dark blue wings, now a mangled mess; her obsidian crown, lost in the ruins of Canterlot; but she was not about to surrender to the tyrannical changeling. A blast of green energy to her ribs knocked her down, Queen Chrysalis' deranged laughter shook the walls. A massive black dragon crashed through the ceiling, its blue eyes blazing through her soul. Before she could react, blue flames engulfed her.
She sat up. Her serpentine eyes wide, heart hammering against her chest and ears, panting. The chains bit into her baked carapace. She screamed in agony and rage.
"Aw, you poor baby," a familiar voice jeered.
In the dark corner of her cell, a pair of recognizable sapphire eyes lit up.
"What do you want?" she spat.
The bipedal dragon sauntered out of the shadow, his hands behind his back, wielding a toothy grin, "Just wanted to check-up on my trophy."
She snarled and bared her fangs, "I am not your 'trophy'!"
He stood a few hoofs out of her reach, his egotistical expression infuriating her, "Now, don't be such a sore loser."
She lurched at him, snapping at his face, the binds biting deep into her exoskeleton. His countenance relaxed. She retreated to the cold stone wall she was connected to. Not wanting to cry in front of him from her pain. He crouched before her, removing his hands from his back, showing her what he was hiding. Her eyes grew wide.
"Oh, so you know what this is?" he gibed.
"It... looks different, but I can feel its power. . ." her mouth salivated at the pink cotton candy like substance in his hands. "How did you get that?"
"How doesn't matter," he stood back up with an evil smirk on his face, "What does matter is: do you want it?"
"I want nothing from you!" she hissed, lying through her teeth.
He knelt, his sapphire eyes leveled with her peridot, viper eyes. He wore a strange expression.
"I know you aren't evil."
Chrysalis guffawed, throwing her head back, "I am evil incarnate!" she shouted in her flanged voice.
"Really?" he cocked an eyebrow at her, "Because everything I've heard and read, only shows your compassion and love for your subjects. If you truly were evil, you wouldn't care about them."
"I-I need to make do with the resources I have. Of course, I would want them to become stronger! Conquering Equestria would be effortless to achieve with a strong army!" The memory of her changelings burning and begging for her help squeezed her heart. She glared murderously at Onyx, "You killed them all!"
"Au contraire," he stuffed the cotton candy into a pouch on his belt, reached into the bag at his side, and pulled out a changeling grub by its barrel. Its blue eyes blinking in terror, "She isn't the only one in the hive."
The changeling chittered happily upon seeing her Queen. Onyx let it go and it flew to her Queen, nuzzling her muzzle affectionately. Chrysalis sighed contently. Onyx grabbed the grub and stuffed it back into his bag quickly.
Chrysalis' soft expression hardened again, "You do anything to my babies and I'LL BUCKING KILL YOU!"
Onyx pulled out the pink, cloud-like treat from his pouch, "I only want to help you."
"Why?" she grew skeptical.
"This land is all about 'friendship' and 'harmony', oui? I believe I can help you and your people," his sapphire eyes smiled.
"Fine. Give me the food," she snapped.
"I wish it were that easy," he sighed, standing up.
"What do you mean?" her eyes narrowed.
"The princesses have some. . . conditions."
"'Conditions' about what?"
"Conditions of your freedom," he smiled weakly. "Don't worry. I'll put you to sleep for the worst of it."
Her eyes shrunk as he approached her.
She awoke moments later, her body feeling sore but refreshed. Her poly-green eyes had to adjust to the bright white light of the room she now occupied. She rested on a softness she had never felt beforea bed, covered with comfortable linens, and a fluffy pillow. To her surprise, she found herself unrestrained. She immediately jumped out of the bed and ran to the metal door of the white room.
"Most inadvisable," a raspy voice advised from behind her.
She stopped in her tracks, and spun around, spotting a daunting shade with glowing eyes, standing in the middle of the room. "What do you mean?"
"Do not mistake compassion for weaknessfor stupidity," he pointed at his head, making her check her horn, she found a metal ring encasing her gnarled horn, she failed to cast any spells.
"What did you do to me?!" she demanded.
"Besides healing you. . . completely. . . moving you to this room. . . and keeping you alive?"
She snorted and stared daggers into the phantom.
"Just be sure. . . to thank Onyx. . . for that inhibitor," it teleported close to her face. "Everyone voted. . . to remove your horn."
The shade disappeared into her shadow as the door behind her was unlocked. She turned her head to see Onyx fill the doorway as he entered with a wide grin.
"Aren't we looking rather bewitching?" he had his hands behind his back again.
"What do you want?" she asked and ignored the obvious truth he spouted.
"In my world, a person said two simple words to another when that person selflessly helps them, I am pretty sure those two words exist in this world, as well," he said evasively, advancing slowly towards the dusky queen.
"Good job," she stated with a nod of her head.
Onyx pouted, "Well, I guess you don't want this then," he brought out the pink, fluffy treat. He drew in a deep breath, preparing to incinerate it.
"Wait!" she cried desperately. He smiled pompously. "Th-thank. . . y-you. . ." she choked out.
"Here," he said as he outstretched the treat to her, "you deserve it."
Her eyes dilated and mouth watered as she inched closer to her beckoning meal. She sank her fangs into the pink fluff, her mouth exploding with an overwhelming power which charged her chitin and muscles, she devoured the love-fluff-ball in three bites. Her eyes glowed, with her powered renewed she thought about getting her revenge on the dragon. A better plan from the depths of her mind reached out to her. She smiled malevolently.
I can play along.
"Thank you," she whispered sheepishly, batting her eyelashes.
Onyx smiled, "Even if you don't do this out of the kindness of your heart, at least do this for your people."
Chrysalis returned his smile, "Don't keep me waiting. What is this plan of yours?"
"And I should not have kicked you, an esteemed guest, out of my castle, when we should have talked about our problems like adults."
"Aaaaaannnnd?"
Princess Celestia rolled her eyes and sighed, "And. . . 'I am a big, ol', meanie sun-butt'."
Grey chuckled and heaved the giant bag of candies over his shoulder, "Apology accepted." He placed a hand on her withers, "That wasn't so hard, right?"
"There is a coach waiting for you to take you back to Canterlot," Princess Celestia monotonously stated.
Princess Celestia and Grey walked down a dim, decrepit hallway. The years and forest not being too kind on the ancient castle; the marble and limestone walls ragged and crumbling; the ceiling giving away to the starry, night sky.
A weighty sigh escaped Grey, "I remembered everything, " he confessed, "when Onyx called me by name; when Darqlon told the story, it all came back to me. . . I think. That is why Luna was with me. I. . . needed someone to talk to."
Princess Celestia gave him a sombre expression, "I see and can empathise. Luna has always been my confidant. I want us to be like we used to."
"That's never gonna happen unless you stop blaming yourself for what you did. Yeah, you banished her, but you thought it was for the best," Grey placed his arm around the white alicorn. "Luna has already forgiven you. You need to forgive yourself."
Celestia smiled feebly, "You are right. I do still blame myself."
"Dwelling on the past will never move you forward," Grey removed his arm. "That's why I want to move on and forget about my past, to live for a new future." After a long moment of silence and walking, Grey quipped, "She's really comfy and cuddly, right?"
"Yes," Celestia laughed.
"And now I have her all to myself," A wide grin pulled at his lips. That comment earned him a sideways glance from Celestia.
She rolled her eyes, "We'll see."
"You know, I wouldn't mind having two wonderful alicorns to sleep with," he winked playfully.
"Fat chance."
"Better than no chance," he retorts.
Celestia huffed and ignored him.
They soon found themselves descending the steps of the archaic castle. A black coach with black curtains and four-night guards attached to it waited for him.
"It can be any colouras long as it's black," he chuckled.
Princess Celestia smiled politely , not knowing his reference, "We have much to catch up on but we can do that tomorrow when Kyllgorr arrives."
Grey deflated, "Great." He tossed his bag of goodies into the coach. The coach groaned and tilted as he got in. "Let's not keep Princess Luna waiting, boys."
Grey rubbed his arm, "It was a general term! How was I supposed to know you were a mare? Lift up your tail?! Sheesh! I've got more class than that." The female ponybat huffed at him, continuing to walk away with her nose in the air. He turned to the last ponybat guard, "Mares."
The stallion chuckled, "Can't live with them."
"Can't live without them," they said in unison, laughing.
"Princess Luna is still in court but said she will meet you in your room as soon as she is done," the stallion informed.
As they walked Gray nudged him, "If I put a sock on the handle. . ."
The stallion snickered, "We put a rock attached with a string on the handle. 'If you see the rock, don't bother to knock,'" he winked knowingly.
"You night guard are way more fun than the stuck up day guard. What's your name anyways, stud?"
"Vinter Solace, sir."
Grey wrapped an arm around his new friend's neck and pulled him in close, "Oh, we are going to be the best of friends."
Vinter Solace laughed, "Everyone calls me 'Vinny'."
"So, what was that chick-with-the-stick-up-her-butt's name?"
"'But'?" Vinter Solace asked confused.
"Yeah. . . her rear, posterior, rump, ass. . ." listed Grey.
"Oh!" Vinny finally understood, "you mean her plot?"
"Sure, her 'plot'. . . what's her name?"
"Noir Aerialis. Everyone calls her 'Ariel' though. Why do you want to know?"
"I'm going to report her to Luna!" Grey harrumphed, "She punched me. I bruise easily," Grey pretended to be hurt.
Vinny laughed loudly, "Sir, you're a character."
"You can drop the 'sir' crap, Vin," Grey yawned and shifted the bag of sweets to his other shoulder.
"Whatever you say, Grey."
"Sooo. . . you and Noir ever. . ." Grey insinuated with his eyebrows.
"What?! No! She's my cousin!"
"Kissin' cousin?"
"No, bro. Besides, she's a fillyfooler."
"Come again?"
"She likes other mares."
"Ah. Got'cha. Where I'm from we call them 'hœmœs', for both males and females. Same sex relationships are accepted by the majority of my people. Me? I don't care. The heart will love who the heart decides to. As long as they love each other, that's all that matters," Grey explained.
"'Ho-e-mo-ies'? Anyways, it doesn't matter to me either. But. . . her family took it hard and disowned her."
"That's ricidulous," Grey stated, shaking his head.
"Yeah, well, what can you do about it, right?" Vinny sighed.
"Kill 'em?"
Grey and Vinny shared a glance and laughed.
They reached Grey's room. Grey waved Vinny good night. When he entered, he sat the bag beside the door. He went to the restroom, knocking on the bed post and dresser as he passed them. Before going to the restroom, he pulled some fresh clothes out of the dresser. He shed the worn-out clothes he had hand washed for the past week and turned on both faucets in the bathtub. He examined the scar on his back in the mirror.
How did I get that?
A sound from the door, made him wrap himself in a towel and investigate. When he opened the door, he saw a small stone wrapped around a string; looking down the hall, he saw Vinny wink. With a smirk, Grey took the gift inside with him and set it on a table below the window of his room.
A groan escaped him as he sank into the tub of hot water. The tub was a little cramped but it was better than dips in a stagnate pool. The stress of the past weeks seeped out of his bones and muscles. He mused at that. Two weeks? It felt more like two months to him. A knock at the door disturbed his thoughts.
"Come inonly if you're nekid!" Grey joked.
Onyx leant against the doorway, smiling, "You're not really my type, Grey."
"Yeah, you're too damn ugly for me," he quipped.
That made Onyx laugh, "Anyways, I just wanted to tell you that Princess Celestia has a big announcement for all of us in the dinning hall in the morning."
"Ah. Okay."
"Night, Grey," Onyx left
"Do svidaniya."
Grey was a little disappointed Luna had not arrived yet. He got the wash cloth and began to scrub himself.
Ever since that red unicorn, Seamless Stitch showed up, Price had felt like a third wheel. He knew his brother loved him, but he also knew they had feelings for each other, so to make it easier for Kyllgorr, Price decided it would be best to leave the two of them alone in the castle. He traipsed through the Everfree Forest. Unlike the rest of Equestria, the Everfree Forest had a natural energy to it. He found a considerable amount of game to hunt but relatively few predators. The timber wolves he met were friendly enough after a demonstration of his strength and the monsters gave him something to occupy his time with. All the time in the forest gave him the opportunity to chart a map of the area. Loneliness getting the better of him, he sought the company of a particularly kind pink haired pegasus.
A particularly kind pink haired busy pegasus. Watching from the treeline, he spotted the quaint cottage, and all the animals running amok outside. Maybe now would not be a good time orit could be the best time. He shrunk and padded over to the cottage silently.
"Angel Bunny!" Fluttershy sternly called to him in her small voice, "You will get in the bath and you will enjoy it!"
The mischievous white bunny shook his head in disagreement, stuck out his tongue, blew a raspberry, and hopped away. Before the bunny could reach the bushes, a black wolf leaped from the bushes, snatching up the bunny in its mouth.
"Angel!" Fluttershy cried. A moment of realization came over her, as she recognized the black wolf as Price. "Price! Spit him out!"
Wolf stood rigid with his back to her, "I am afraid I can not do that, Fluttershy."
Her face grew with horror.
He turned around, holding a flailing Angel by the scruff of his neck, wielding a toothy grin, "Because I did not eat him."
Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief, "Oh, thank goodness!"
Wolf walked over to the bucket of soapy water in front of Fluttershy, dunked the white rabbit in the lukewarm water, making sure to give him a good shake, and pulled out a drenched, scowling Angel, "Clean as a whistle."
"Thank you, Price," Fluttershy accepted the angry bunny in a towel, drying him off.
"Fluttershy, you are actually not pronouncing my name correctly," Price informed her, licking an already irritated Angel clean.
"Oh, I'm sorry," Fluttershy apologized, releasing Angel, who glared at the wolf then at Fluttershy before running off.
"It is no problem. Just call me 'Wolf'," he smiled.
"But I would really like to know how to say your name correctly and know more about you," she said cheerfully, then shrank, "O-only if that's alright with you?"
Wolf grinned, "Sure. Do you mind if we go inside, though?"
"Oh, of course!" Fluttershy beamed.
The two of them took a short stroll to Fluttershy's cottage. Price courteously opened the front door for Fluttershy to enter. Fluttershy politely smiled back to him. Despite outward appearances, her cottage was quite small, but since all manner of animals lived with her, he figured that the animals had their private rooms built in between the first and second floors and in the walls. With Spring in full bloom, the fireplace in the middle of the right wall was not in use, the green chaise on the back wall did not seem all that comfortable to him.
"Would you like something to drink or to eat?" Fluttershy offered from the doorway to the kitchen.
"Well, those chipmunks sure looked scrumptious," Price stated with a hungry grin. Fluttershy went pale, "It was a joke," he laughed. "I'm fine, Fluttershy."
"Oh," the yellow pegasus and the chipmunks sighed in relief. She sat on the green chaise below a window and offered Wolf the spot beside her.
Wolf sat on the floor and rested his head on the soft cushion, "You wanted to know how to properly pronounce my name, yes?"
"Oh, yes. Please teach me," Fluttershy nodded.
"There are two things to keep in mind about my language: one, every letter is pronounced and two, 'r's are rolled."
Fluttershy wore a confused expression, "Do what?"
He chuckled. "You press the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth, exhale while pronouncing 'r'. It takes practice." After a few minutes of practicing and failing, Fluttershy managed to roll her 'r'. "Very good. Now, there are four characters to my name: 'p', 'r', 'y', and 's'. When you pronounce my name it will sound like Pee-r-why-es. There you go, that's my name in my native tongue. It means 'dark' or 'shadowy'."
Fluttershy practiced his name for a minute, "Prys?" she said uncertainly.
"Very good," Prys complimented, "but hearing you say it is a little embarrassing," he blushed slightly.
Fluttershy beamed, "Can you tell me about your world. . . Prys?"
"Do you want the history or the geography?"
"Both!" she leaned in, with her wings flapping, and her teal eyes shimmering.
"Alright. Get comfortable. This is going to be a long lesson," Price cleared his throat.
"When I say artificial, I do not mean fake, your world is justdifferent from what I'm used to sensing. Instead of dwelling on the differences of your world, I like to observe our similarities," Price concluded.
"Wow. . ." Fluttershy managed to whisper in awe, her mind being completely blown by the vast amounts of information Prys had just told her. Twilight might have appreciated the scientific insights and asked deeper questions about his world, but Fluttershy was content with what he had revealed to her. Now that she thought about it, he had not disclosed anything personal about him. "Prys? What about your parents? How did you meet the other aliens?"
Price sat up with a sly grin, "I told you everything you wanted to know about my worldnot everything about me."
"But. . . I want to know more about you. ." Fluttershy admitted.
Price grew solemn, laying his head down on the chaise, facing away from the yellow pegasus.
Fluttershy softly stroked the depressed wolf's head, "If you don't want to talk about it..."
My parent's were the last of a noble race of wolves, the Pure Wolves, the first wolves I told you about. A race of bipeds called Humans had enslaved all of the Ancient People. Over the millenniums, we became smaller and tamer. A group of bandits raised my parents. When I was born, my brothers and sisters were sold as pets, my mother was devastated. She ran away with me to a peaceful village.
Six months later, the bandits found the village and killed everyone. I saw my father kill my mother. My mother destroyed his sense of smell during their fight. I hid. When they left, I searched the village for any survivors. I found a baby boy crying under his deceased mother. I couldn't leave him to die. I took him with me to find another village to live in. During the second night of my journey, a fierce snow storm struck without warning. I huddled close to him, to keep us both warm, but I fell unconscious.
When I awoke, I found myself in warm house, and two people having a discussion. It was an older man and woman and she held the baby in her arms, lovingly. They had saved us. Those people raised us like their own.
About when we were eleven, Kyllgorr, my brother, went into town for supplies, the bandit group who raised me had found the farm by cruel Fate. They demanded money from the man and when he refused, the bandit captain killed the old man. The woman gave the bandit all the silver she had saved for Kyllgorr, which appeased the bandits and left, claiming they would return. She wrapped the old man up for burial and lied to Kyllgorr when he returned, saying he died of old age. He was heartbroken.
In the middle of the night, I followed the bandit's trail back to their new camp. I killed themall of them; for the old man, for my brother, and especially for my mother. To my surprise, my father was still alive. I killed him. I claimed the bandit's money, burying it a short distance from the house, to use for emergencies.
Fluttershy sniffled, holding back her tears. Price levitated a box of tissues to her.
Ten years later, on our birthday, the old woman gave us matching red scarves. I loved it. I could feel her love and compassion in every fiber. The next day, she died outside while trying to get firewood in the middle of a blizzard. Kyllgorr grew despondent and depressed. I managed to convince him to leave the farm so we could explore the world since that is what the old woman wanted us to do.
And so we did. During that time, we ran into Onyx, Grey, and Darqlon and befriended them. Five years later, thieves on the road ambushed us. Kyllgorr did not know how to fight so I defended him. There was one last guy. I had bit his hand and before I could lunge at his throat, he stabbed me with his other hand. He ran away while Kyllgorr was distracted trying to save me. I felt so sad, having died, being the last family he had. I wanted to protect him. As his best friend. As his older brother.
I found myself enveloped by a warming, white light; then, in the presence of a beautiful, ethereal woman. She introduced herself as the Goddess of Nature. I beseeched her to allow me a second life to help my brother. She granted my wish but told me I had to wait until he needed me the most. The next time I gained my consciousness, I was in Hell. The Goddess told me not to be afraid and to go free my brother.
Price smiled widely, tears welling in his eyes, "The look on my brother's face when he saw me, when I saw him, it was an indescribable feeling. I freed him from prison and we left Hell. He told me about what had happened after my death, how he descended into madness and corruption. . . how Grey betrayed him. Just then, a blinding light in the sky knocked us to the ground. Next thing I know, I'm in a frozen, desolate wasteland, emerging from a fiery rock."
Fluttershy stared in admiration at the magnificent, dark wolf before her, her eyes misty, "You've had such a hard life..."
Price gently licked her muzzle and smiled, "There were just too many happy moments to list."
She hid her bright, flustered face behind her pink mane, surprised by his affection, "I-I'm glad..."
He sighed and brought his head back down on the chaise, "I am in no hurry to return to that chaotic world."
"You. . . don't have to go, Prys. . ." Fluttershy smiled.
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," was all he said with a wolfish grin.
Onyx sat up in bed, thrusting his dagger in the air. He saw Darqlon beside his bed. The morning light haloing around the specter. Darqlon lowered Onyx's hand.
"Breakfast. . ." he rasped.
Onyx cleared his throat and slid the dagger back under his pillow, "Thanks. I'll be down in a bit."
Darqlon bowed slightly in acknowledgement, vanishing into the wooden floor boards.
Onyx sighed.
You have no power over me anymore, coward.
Luna's sparkling teal eyes greeted him when his eyes opened. She gently nuzzled him. Grey held her face softly and kissed her gently. She sighed contently and leaned into his kiss.
"Good morning," she paused to say, returning her lips to his.
Grey chuckled, gave her a long kiss, before reluctantly breaking away, "You being here, always makes my mornings good."
"Only 'good'?" she said hurt with puppy eyes.
He scooped her up in his arms and laid her under him. His golden eyes staring lovingly into her teal gems, "There are no words in all the languages to describe how I feel with you."
Luna blushed, accepting his long kiss. A knock on the door interrupted them.
Grey growled, annoyed, got off of Luna, and sat on the bed, "Come in."
Onyx poked his head inside, a devilish grin on his face, "Am I interrupting something?"
"No"
"Yes," Luna snapped.
Onyx snickered, "Sorry, lovebirds, but Grey you need to come down for breakfast and the meeting."
"Yeah, yeah," Grey waved Onyx away.
Before leaving, Onyx winked at Luna, earning her glare.
"Duty calls," Grey sighed and slipped on his slippers.
Luna wrapped her fore hooves around his waist, her eyes begging him not to go. Grey shared a long kiss with her, before peeling her hooves from his waist. Luna huffed as she saw him close the door. A sigh left her as she laid on the bed. Deep breaths of his scent sent her to sleep and blissful dreams of their future filled her mind.
Onyx had a grin from ear-to-ear. He nudged Grey's elbow, "So?"
Grey cast him an annoyed glance, "'So' what?"
"How was your first time with a horse?"
"Luna isn't a 'horse'," Gray growled, "She is an alicorn pony. And we didn't do anything but sleep."
"What?" Onyx said surprised, "Even for a pony, she's quite the looker. I would have totally bone-"
Grey grabbed Onyx's windpipe with the tips of his fingers, "If you want to live, you will not finish that statement," his eyes flashed in warning.
Onyx weakly nodded his head, choking out an, "O.K."
Grey released his vise-like choke, "Smart boy."
Onyx held himself up with the aid of the wall, coughing, and gasping for air. After getting his breath back, he jogged to catch up to Grey, "So," he cleared his throat, "You love her?"
Grey grinned, "Yeah," he said smitten.
"That's fantastic!" Onyx announced. "It may not sound so weird now to admit that I'm a little more than interested in Chrysalis."
"The changeling Queen?"
Onyx sighed in relief, "Whew, I'm glad you didn't call her a 'pony-bug thing'. I didn't want to die without even getting to first base with her."
Grey laughed. "It's funny how love works, eh?"
"I can drink to that!" Onyx agreed, raising an invisible glass.
Everyone and everypony, sat at the royal long table, eating their breakfast in silence.
Onyx decided to break the silence, "Fish is great and all but, I could really go for some red meat," he grinned wolfishly at the cardinal unicorn across from him.
Seamless Stitch dropped her fork in fright.
"Onyx," Kyllgorr spoke, "We may be friends, but if you lay a hand on her-"
"Jeez!" Onyx held up his hands in surrender, "I was just joking. Why does everyone want to kill me this morning?" He winked at the little unicorn, "It was just too quiet for me."
"I agree!" A pink pony exclaimed at the end of the table.
"Yes, Princess, what did you need us for?" Twilight questioned, seated beside her mentor.
Princess Celestia placed her fork down and politely cleaned her mouth, "I have decided to reveal our new guests to all of Equestria."
Everypony stopped eating and paid close attention to the regal alicorn at the head of the table.
"And how will you go about doing that?" Grey inquired.
"I will introduce you all as the sole survivors of your own species from a far away land on the other side of the world."
"What is this land called?"
"Why are we the sole survivors?"
Princess Celestia held up a gilded hoof, "That is why we are having this meeting: to compose a story, without revealing the full truth."
A murmur rose among the gathered bodies in agreement.
"The land will be called, 'Màçànd'," Grey stated. "Which means 'massive land'. Since four out of the five of us were born there, it makes sense."
"That is fair," Darqlon concurred, being the one not native to the other's homeland.
The others played around with that word in their head. With Prys' lesson earlier, Fluttershy was confident she could say it correctly.
"As for why we are the sole survivors, that question is easy," Grey turned to his comrades.
They nodded and spoke in unison, "Demons."
"Let's say they killed forty percent of our population before we exterminated them, but disease and famine killed fifty-nine percent of the population," Grey continued. "The last of us poured all our resources together to send out a scout party. By the time a boat large enough could be constructed, the five of us remained."
"Say that we invaded the Yaks first but left when the land was too hostile," Price added, getting a nod from Grey, "And we went to the Griffon Empire next, which is why they had a mass exodus."
"Yes," Celestia agreed. "On that subject; after much deliberation and compensationPrice and Kyllgorrthe Yaks and Griffons have begrudgingly agreed not to pursue your heads, which I doubt they would succeed in acquiring, you two are not allowed within the borders of the lands you damaged. Should the kingdoms require your aid, you will have to help them."
"Of course," Price accepted.
Kyllgorr did not like the fact Celestia went behind his back with these grievances but knew he would be held accountable for his actions someday. "Whatever," was all he replied.
"We also need to give them the name of each of your species," Princess Celestia added.
The five of them contemplated.
Grey pointed to Price, who sat across from him, "Lycanae." He pointed to Onyx seated beside him, "Rylokan." He pointed to Darqlon who sat to the left of Princess Celestia, "Spectomant." He turned to Kyllgorr who sat beside Price, with his arms folded across his chest, "What do you think we should be called?"
Kyllgorr quickly wiped the puzzled look on his face, "I dunno, we were Demon once and Ancient."
"How about 'Antiqons'?" the small purple alicorn beside Grey commented.
Grey and Kyllgorr glanced at each other, then nodded in agreement.
"We are Antiqons then," Grey accepted.
"Now, we just need your leader to sign these documents," Princess Celestia said uncomfortably.
"And who will that be?" Kyllgorr asked. His three comrades all looked at him as if he had asked an obvious question. He met the eyes of a glaring Grey. Before he could say something, Amy touched his arm, her amethyst eyes calming him. With a snort and through a clenched jaw, he agreed. "Fine," then added, "I hate paperwork anyways."
Princess Celestia let out a sigh of relief, she subconsciously held, "That is about it. Tomorrow, get ready for a press conference. The press will want to get plenty of photos and ask many questions."
"Wait," Darqlon spoke up before Princess Celestia could dismiss them. "If Miss Rarity . . . would not mind. . . I think the five of us . . .should be appropriately . . . dressed for this . . . ceremonious occasion."
"Yes!" Rarity shot up from her chair, "I have hundreds of ideas that have been running through my head!"
Princess Celestia stood, "Girls, if you would not mind letting Rarity and our guests discuss their attire, I would like you five to accompany me while we plan the ceremony."
She received five yeses. The five ponies followed the royal alicorn out of the dining hall. Rarity sat next to Grey, placing her notepad on the table. He saw sketches of clothes in the notepad, she was not lying when she said she had ideas.
"For you, Mister Grey, something gold to accent your armor . . ." she began.
After spending the rest of the morning with Rarity, Price led Grey to the training yard to help Grey remember how to fight. Onyx came along out of boredom. Darqlon went about his own business. Since Amy went to help Rarity, Kyllgorr decided to watch the others in the training yard.
"Are you sure about this?" Grey asked hesitantly.
"Absolutely. Even if you forgot how to fight, your body will still remember," Price coached.
"So, if you lose, does that mean Luna is mine?" Onyx jeered.
Grey cracked his knuckles, set up a fighting stance in the middle of the boxing mat with Onyx, and Price rang the bell.
He lunged straight at Onyx, who easily dodged and tripped Grey, with a satisfied smirk on his face. Grey quickly got to his feet and leapt towards Onyx. Onyx knocked Grey down with a left hook. After two minutes of enduring Onyx's assault, Grey collapsed to the mat.
"Wow, Grey. Now, I'm feeling a little bad," the blue-eyed dragon laughed.
"Do not get angry," he heard Price speak in his mind, "Relax and concentrate. Become one with your surroundings. Do not see with your eyes, see with your mind."
Grey growled, getting to his knee. He rested on his arm, taking deep breaths, and did as Price advised. He closed his eyes, his body went lax, he ignored the pain in his jaw, and he focused on his other senses. He could feel the sun's power radiating on him, the magic flowing through the world; the scent of ponies grew, the smell of joy emanating from Onyx, he could even smell an apple pie being baked; his ears twitched at the sound of flags flapping in the air, and he heard Onyx's heart beating.
Onyx was growing impatient, he was going to get back at Grey, once and for all. Before he could kick Grey down, Grey stood with his eyes faintly glowing yellow. He knew what that meant. He had enough time to block Grey's blinding punch, but not enough time to evade the second blow to his gut. An elbow to the back of his head made black out.
Grey let out the breath he held. The world began to move at normal speed.
"Great job, Grey!" Price cheered, "You just learned how to use your Combat Sense, as you used to call it. You focus your mind to slow the world around you, allowing you to move faster and act quicker."
Kyllgorr pulled the unconscious dragon out of the ring, "My turn. I actually know how to melee fight." He began to loosen his muscles and pop his joints.
Grey let out a deep breath, his eyes glowing yellow, as he took his stance.
Kyllgorr chuckled, his eyes flashed orange, "That little trick of yours won't work on me." Kyllgorr charged Grey and threw a right hook. Grey put up his arm to block, which Kyllgorr anticipated as he kneed Grey in his ribs.
What he did not expect was Grey to absorb the blow, grab his leg, and trip him to the mat. Kyllgorr countered by tucking in his legs and grabbing the back of Grey's head, launching him to the ropes. Grey hopped back to his feet as Kyllgorr speared the wind out of him. They punched and kicked at each other until Kyllgorr hurled Grey to a post. Before Kyllgorr and his weight could steamroll Grey, he picked up his foot, driving his heel into Kyllgorr's jaw. He capitalized on his stunned opponent by kneeing Kyllgorr in his midsection and ax-handling the back of his head. On the ground, Kyllgorr grabbed the back of Grey's leg, tripped him, rolled on top of him, and held Grey in an excruciating ankle lock.
Grey roared in pain as Kyllgorr kept wrenching on his foot. Arching as far back as he could, he wrapped his hands under Kyllgorr's chin, and choked him. Price interfered, bulldozing Kyllgorr, breaking the two of them up.
"Enough!" he shouted.
Kyllgorr sat up and rubbed his neck, staring daggers at Grey.
Grey crawled to a post to help sit him up, he sneered at Kyllgorr, rubbing his ankle.
Kyllgorr walked over to Grey, his anger dissipating, "I. . . forgive you," he huffed.
Grey cocked his head in confusion, "What?"
"For abandoning me on the battlefield." After a long silence he added, "I know you just wanted to see if she was still alive, but you should have known better; but, in your shoes I would have done the same thing. That is why I forgive you," he held out his hand for Grey.
Grey accepted Kyllgorr's hand, "I. . . I'm sorry. I just wasn't thinking straight." With Kyllgorr's help, he hopped on his good leg, "I couldn't go back because Mystin was advancing towards Heaven and they needed all the reinforcements they could get."
Price padded up to Kyllgorr's side, "Don't worry about it. I was able to be resurrected and save him."
"Only to die hours later," Kyllgorr input.
"Or teleported someplace else," Grey added.
"What happened up there anyways?" Kyllgorr inquired.
"How about we discuss this after I ice my ankle," Grey stated, as he hobbled out of the ring.
"Sure," laughed Kyllgorr, who picked up a snoring Onyx and slung him over his shoulder.
Princess Celestia watched a gray pegasus flying away from the North Tower where Darqlon stayed. She walked faster to his room. Before she could knock, Darqlon opened the door for her, bowing politely, and allowed her in.
"To what. . . do I owe. . . the pleasure. . . your Highness?" he said in his hoarse tone.
"Who was that pegasus?" she inquired.
"Jealous?" he quipped.
"N-No!" she flustered, "I do not like random ponies flying to and fro my castle as they please."
"She is a friend," Darqlon went to his desk and put a letter into a drawer.
"A 'friend'?" Celestia repeated.
"Yes," he replied flatly.
"What is her name?"
"Ditzy Doo. . . the mailmare."
"Oh," Celestia said, a little too relieved.
Darqlon turned to face her, "What. . . did you need?"
"Can you shapeshift?" she quickly questioned.
If Darqlon had a face he would have worn a confused expression. He crossed his arms, "Why?"
"For a crazy idea that I had," she stepped closer to him, "Can you?"
"What makes. . . you think. . . I can?"
"If I had to be honest, it would be because of your lack of a physical body," she admitted.
He let out a sigh, "Why don't you. . . just stab me. . . in the heart? At least that. . . would hurt less. . . than your honesty."
"I did not mean-"
"Short answer. . . yes," he cut her off. "Long answer. . . I don't like to."
"I was thinking-"
"I can't," he interrupted her again and sighed, "Ever since I arrived. . . in this world. . . without a body. . . I lose my power daily. I spent a high. . . amount of power. . . healing those ponies. . . and more creating. . . the amulet for Grey. . . even more talking. If I had a. . . willing vessel. . . I could retain my power. If a temple. . . was built for me. . . and your people started. . . worshiping me as. . . the god I am. . . I would gain power. If I went on. . . a murdering spree. . . harvesting souls. . . I would have power."
Celestia heard the irritation and annoyance in his voice. She went to his side, "That is the second time you mentioned needing a vessel to me. The first time, I thought it was wrong," she shifted nervously, "but I have found possible candidates."
His crimson eyes stared intently at her, ". . . Go on."
Luna sighed, as she felt the warmth of lips climbing up her neck. She feigned sleeping but she could not hide her grin as Grey nibbled on her ears. She giggled when he licked her face.
"What art thou up to?" she finally spoke, smiling.
Grey chuckled, "Just trying to wake you up."
She wrapped her fore hooves around his neck, giving him a long, passionate kiss, "Consider us up."
Grey picked her up by her barrel and held her above his head, "No, this is up!"
Luna squealed and giggled, "Put us down!" She saw the twinkle in his eyes, then realized the error of her words. Before she could retract them, he let her go and she landed on the bed with an "Oof!"
He pounced on her and gave her a kiss, "Your sister can raise the moon, right?"
Luna nipped his ear, "Yes, but we need to see to our duties responsibly."
Grey sat beside her, tracing a finger around her barrel, making her giggle, "Today was a very productive day."
She pushed away his hand, sat up, and rest her head on his shoulder, staring into his eyes, "Tell us about it?"
"I remembered how I used to fight and that I was the greatest blacksmith in my world. I am working on a gift for you," he gently kissed her.
"A gift? For us? Truly?"
"Yes, but the way I'm progressing, it will not be done for a year," he sighed.
"We are certain the gift will be worth the wait," she nuzzled him in assurance.
He rubbed her cheek, "Thanks."
Seeing the darkness grow outside her window, Luna knew she had to raise the moon soon, but loathed to depart from Grey's company. She heaved a sigh, "I must go."
They shared one last great kiss before she got up to leave.
"Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow," Grey waved with a goofy grin.
"Good night," Luna replied with a sad smile.
A twinge of pain sparked in his head. Where did he hear that before? That was going to gnaw at him all night.
Amy hugged Kyllgorr tightly, "I'm so proud of you!"
Kyllgorr laughed sheepishly, holding her, "Thanks, Amy. I. . . could not have done it without your help. We didn't always have a close friendship, but we knew we could count on each other when it mattered, and you restored our friendship."
She circled a red hoof on his chest, her amethyst eyes sparkling, "Does that mean I get my reward?"
Kyllgorr blushed, "I suppose. . ." he hastily kissed Amy on the cheek.
Amy beamed and pulled his rosy face close to hers, giving him a long kiss on the lips. When she pulled away, she giggled to see him almost as red as her, "That is a kiss."
"I-I'll s-say. . ." he muttered breathlessly.
She leaned in, kissing his hesitant lips more gently. She felt him squeeze her closer. They broke away again, to take a breath, both of them smiling widely.
"I. . . I have never done. . . something like that before. . ." he confessed shyly.
Amy was surprised, "You've been around for thousands of years, and you're a complete virgin?!"
"Y-yeah. . ." he cleared his throat, "There was no room for love in my heart filled with hate. . ."
"And now?"
"Now, my heart has been purged and needs to be filled again. . ." he smiled, his citrine eyes happy.
Amy smiled mischievously, "I love working with new fabric. The possibilities are limitless."
"Are you sure it will work?" Princess Celestia asked, standing over the brown earth stallion laying in bed in a coma.
"Only one way. . . to find out," Darqlon stated, "You should probably. . . stand back."
The doctor and Princess Celestia left the room to move to the observation room.
Darqlon leaned over the stallion as his wings shot out of his back, touching the ceiling. He placed his shadowy hand on its chest and the other on his forehead.
"Only one way. . . to find out," he repeated to himself as he inhaled.
All the light from the room drained, being absorbed by the mass of darkness that enveloped Darqlon and the patient. The black singularity began to spin, growing in size. Princess Celestia knew that something bad was going to happen.
"Get everyone out of here now!" she ordered.
With the hidden facility evacuated, the singularity had swallowed up the building. Just when Princess Celestia was losing hope, the singularity suddenly collapsed on itself, pulling ponies to the ground. A bright light shone in the middle of a crater. It slowly began to dim, until it faded completely and a black figure laid unmoving on the ground.
When Princess Celestia landed beside the figure, she gasped in surprise. A large, abyssal black stallion, with wings, a horn, and ghostly, blood red mane and tail, stretched out before her. Curiously, he had crossed scythes as a cutie mark. She heard him groan. He labored to pull himself up. His deep crimson eyes pierced Celestia as he tried to gain his focus.
"Darqlon?" she called cautiously.
"Yes, your Highness?" the obsidian alicorn spoke, looking down at her.
"It worked. . ."
Darqlon examined his new body. He was almost as shocked as Celestia to see how much taller and bulky he was compared to her, he unfurled his midnight wings which were easily twice his length, but the thing that stood out most to him was his ever-flowing mane and tail.
"That's mesmerizing," he said to Princess Celestia as he ran a hoof through his mane.
"A mane like my sister and I means that you have a great amount of magical energy," Princess Celestia input.
Darqlon examined his surroundings, "I didn't hurt anyone, did I?"
"No," Princess Celestia assured him, "I evacuated them when that black sphere formed around you."
"I can not wait for the others to see," Darqlon chuckled.
"Oh, no doubt they will be surprised!" Princess Celestia giggled.
"Let's get going then," Darqlon opened his wings and launched himself high into the aironly to plummet back to the ground.
Princess Celestia stifled a snicker and went to check on him, "You kinda have to flap your wings now, Darqlon."
"R-right. I knew that," he stood up proudly and shook the dust off him.
Grey shuffled in his black armor, more nervous than he expected. He marveled at Rarity's work with the gold embroidery on the black satin robe that covered his armor. She did a fantastic job with the wolf design on his chest and in such a short time. He wondered what she could do if she had weeks or months to prepare.
Kyllgorr was less than satisfied having to wear silver, but the fact Amy made it especially for him, meant more to him than any amount of gold. His black silk armor suit felt comfortable, if a little toasty. He was surprised at how frightening the image of the demon on his chest look, he stopped trying to think what was going through that cardinal unicorn's mind.
Unlike the others, Onyx felt perfectly fine with crowds and wanted to show off his wings. He could not complain about the jewel encrusted dark blue robe Rarity made for him. If there was one thing he liked most about it: the black onyx dragon, with its wings spread and ruby fire spitting from its mouth, although his flame burned blue, but minor details.
Price sat patiently on his haunches in the gold outfit with white embroidery Rarity put him in. He liked how she made it appear like armor and did not restrict his movement. A black wolf inside a white circle was the insignia he chose for himself to represent his species, Rarity also marked his breastplate with it. He was adamant that she add a red scarf, Rarity and Price settled on a red bandanna, instead.
Under normal circumstances, Fluttershy would be a terrified mess, but she was too happy to be by Price's side. When he had suggested her to be his translator, Princess Celestia saw no reason against it. Ponies would probably be shocked hearing a voice in their heads.
Darqlon held his noble stance. Grey was able to finish the platinum, ruby encrusted boots and yoke Darqlon wore. Simple yet elegant engraving etched the edges. His alicorn name was Dark Eidolon or Darklon for short. Twilight had picked it out for him. He was beginning to find her more tolerable.
"Introducing, Princess Twilight Sparkle of Friendship Rainbow Kingdom," the speaker announced.
"That's my cue," Twilight sighed, "Just be yourself." The lavender alicorn walked to the doors which the guards opened for her.
Grey groaned, "I don't think I can do this. My stomach feels weird."
Kyllgorr rolled his eyes.
Princess Celestia began to speak, "Mares and gentlecolts, it is with great honor I introduce the first guest of honor. He is the Chief of the Four Tribes, Grey Zamanova Wolf."
Time stopped for Grey as he entered the court. It felt as if he was using his Combat Sense, the world around him slowed, his heart drummed in his ears, the way the ponies gawked at him. He ended his short journey beside Princess Celestia, who smiled widely at him. He held out his hand and smiled. As soon as they touched, the crowd of reporters began buzzing and the flash of cameras blinded him. Princess Celestia raised a hoof, silencing the crowd.
Grey cleared his throat before speaking, "Greetings to you all. I am grateful and indebted to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna for helping my comrades and I during our time of need. Coming from a place where fighting means survival, I deeply regret the uncivilized acts we committed against the Yaks and the Griffons, upon our first contact. It will be a trying experience, but we are willing to change and to help in whatever ways possible. Without further ado, I want to introduce a long time friend and fellow Anticon, Kyllgorr."
Kyllgorr strolled into the court. He shook Princess Celestia's hoof and took his spot to the left of Grey. He crossed his arms, keeping a stoic expression on his face, "Hello."
Cameras flashed and reporters scribbled in their pads, noting how Kyllgorr was a head taller than Grey and his fearsome mien. Grey swiveled his head to Kyllgorr, only to receive a nod. He continued the introductions, "Next, he is the Alpha of the Lycanae Tribe, Wolf."
Price winked at Fluttershy to reassure her. The black wolf sauntered into the court, with Fluttershy in her green dress trailing close to him.
"Translating for him will be none other than Ponyville resident animal expert, Fluttershy," Princess Celestia comment above the gasps, then shared a bow with Price as he sat beside Kyllgorr.
Fluttershy settled next to Price and cleared her throat, "Lord Wolf extends the warmest of greetings to all ponies. He also wishes that the alliance with Princess Celestia will last for eons to come."
The ponies clapped their hooves together.
Grey stepped forward, "Introducing a long time loyal friend, Lord Onyx of the Rylokan Tribe."
A black blur flew past them on the stage. Onyx swooped over the ponies, some of whom passed out from fright, he hovered in the middle of the court, nearly breaking a chandelier. He roared, shooting blue flames from his mouth toward the ceiling. He did a backwards dive and landed before Celestia, in a deep bow.
"Princess," he smirked and winked at the wide-eyed white alicorn.
Princess Celestia regained her composure and shook his hand; the ponies stop running around like chickens without heads as Onyx began to laugh heartily.
Onyx leapt to Grey's right side and landed perfectly. "Ponies!" he exclaimed with his wings and arms outstretched, "I will allow you all to bask in my glory!" Shutters and flashes went off, bathing Onyx in the limelight he wanted.
Rainbow Dash hovered in the air and clapped her hooves, "SO AWESOME!"
Princess Celestia held up her golden hoof, and the crowd simmered down, "Last but not least, I introduce to you: Lord Dark Eidolon of the Spectomant."
The abyssal alicorn ambled through the doors, his fore hooves marching high, he caught the attention and breath of all the present ponies. His crimson mane flowed majestically by some invisible force, the platinum accessories shone brightly against the background of his black hair. He commanded the attention of all. He bowed politely to the royal alicorn, who bowed in return with a smile. He sauntered to where his four comrades were.
"Mares and gentlecolts," he said in his deep, husky voice, "I know Fate brought us here for a reason and that reason was to help each other. This treaty is just a formality. We helped Princess Celestia before and we can now openly help her and Princess Luna, and all of Equestria, which we will do until our eternal slumber." The ponies cheered and clapped their hooves. Cameras flashed. "Now, we are here to answer any of your questions."
A flood of voices and a wave of raised hooves rose over the ponies.
Grey raised his hand and the ponies subsided. "How about this: you," he pointed to a mint unicorn with aqua streaks through a white mane, "Ask your question first to whom you want, then we will go down the row, with each pony asking one question."
The unicorn's golden eyes gleamed, she stood to her hooves, "Hi! I am Lyra Heartstrings! My question is for Chief Grey."
Queen Chrysalis laid sprawled out on the white bedboredom her bane. Did they forget about her? How dare they! She would make them paymake them all pay! She snorted in frustration; first, she had to break the black amulet around her neck and band on her horn in order for her to use her magic; second, she needed to escape; and thirdher stomach growledfirst, she needed to eat. . .
Onyx usually brought her food daily, but it was his third day not showing up, and she was growing agitated and hungry. It was not her first time starving, she and the changelings starved for years on end, but since he always brought such delicious love for her. . . She passed the time by reading all the books he brought her, all the magazines, and doodling in the journal that was meant to be her diary. Most of the drawings were of her defeating the princesses and her ruling Equestriaobviously. What bothered her the most was not knowing the state of the changeling grubs who were out there all alone. The turning of locks and clink of metal from the door drew her attention. A strangely dressed Onyx entered the room.
"Greetings, my Queen," he smiled, "I have a prize for your good behavior."
Chrysalis turned her head away from him, "I am not interested in your 'prize'," her stomach betrayed her with a growl.
Onyx frowned, his voice serious, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to not feed you. I"
"I don't care what you have to say!" she spat, crossed.
Onyx placed a hand on her neck, she snapped at him, he did not flinch, and smiled, "Then let me show you."
Darqlon had agreed to a private interview with a journalist from the Manehattan Times. He was a white unicorn colt with a coffee brown mane and bright blue eyes by the name of Willem Sapphire. Darqlon agreed to do the interview because he sensed the ambition of the young upstart. What better way to boost his career than the only interview with any of the new species? Willem was away gathering his materials.
Grey declined because he already had a headache the size of Equestria and needed to rest before he went on a killing spree. Kyllgorr did not like to talk much to begin with, plus, he wanted to spend the rest of the evening with Amy. Onyx said that he had some business to care of and flew off in a hurry. Price did not want Fluttershy to speak any longer for him than she had to and wanted to patrol the gardens with her, now that everypony knew about them and did not have to stay a secret. That left Darqlon as the only one to approach for an interview. His meeting with Ditzy and the others would have to be postponed.
Willem entered the office where Darqlon wanted to take the interview. He did not want to walk all the way back to his room in the North Tower, the furthest tower from the court. The unicorn levitated a pencil and notepad with his lime green magic. Taking a chair across from Darqlon, Willem began the interview.
"'Are you single?'" Amy mocked in annoyance, "If it weren't for all the ponies there. . . why I would have!" Kyllgorr interrupted her adorable little rant with a kiss. Amy hugged his neck and smiled, "Thank you for saying that you already had someone special."
Kyllgorr placed the red unicorn on the wooden table in their room and sat in the chair beside it, "Oh, yeah, I guess I have you, too," he quipped.
Amy pouted and turned her head away from him, "Hmph!"
He pulled her to him by her hind legs, earning a squeak. He wrapped his arms around her, rubbing his cheek against her lavender striped hot pink mane and her neck. She melted in his warm embrace, unable to stay upset at him. They stayed together for minutes, enjoying one another's warmth and company, as they watched Luna bring up the moon.
"I'm glad you didn't tell them about you," Amy finally spoke, staring into his citrine eyes, "I like being the only pony who knows about your past self."
"And the only pony in my future," Kyllgorr claimed with a grin.
"Aww, Killy!" she cooed, giving him a long kiss.
"The Master designed this test to weed out the weak and promote those who are the most faithful," a female pony spoke from a stage, cloaked in a black robe and hood, allowing her to remain anonymous, "This is but the first of many trials we, the Faithful, will endure in order to join His new kingdom."
Her voice echoed through the ruins. The sconces on the wall were barely enough light to illuminate the decrepit auditorium, but the ponies gathered did not worry about the darkness, because their Master was the Shadow Incarnate; darkness meant that he was all around them, they found solace in his omnipresence.
"You have until morning to make it to the Castle of the Two Sisters. Those who do not make it nor survive will be forsaken to live in this kingdom and not join our Master in His new kingdom. GO!"
The shrouded ponies ran out of the auditorium in a uniform fashion. The Herald descended down the steps of the stage to leave the ruins. Once outside, she shed her cloak, unfurled her grey wings, and launched into the sky. Her blonde mane flowing in the night air.
Grey hammered away at the chunk of red, hot iron he held with tongs on an anvil. Slowly, the metal started taking the shape of a collar. Why Darqlon wanted the collars to be completely made of metal made no sense to him, but at least this gave Grey the opportunity to hone his blacksmithing skillsand be left alone. He only had to make one hundred, then Darqlon would keep duplicating and enchanting them simultaneously.
He was not certain the Changelings could ever be changed, but he was willing to give them a chance. No race deserves to be ostracized or targeted because of how they were created. It was the same thing with the Vampyres. Grey stopped. The Vampyres? How did he know about that? He fell to his knees, holding his head, as pain wracked his brainmemories flooded his eyes.
Moments went by and the pain subsided. He got back to his feet and walked over to a trough against the far wall, filling a bowl with water. The cool liquid quenched his thirst and cooled him off as he dumped the water over his head. Yes, it worked out for the Vampyres, it will work out for the Changelings.
Onyx hovered over the ground, carrying a blushing Chrysalis in his arms like a princess, a beaming grin on his face, "Now, you promise not to attack me once we are on the ground, yes?"
"Only if you are fast enough to escape my wrath!" she hissed.
"Chrysie, Chrysie, Chrysie," Onyx shook his head and let her go.
Chrysalis tightened her fore hooves around his neck and wrapped her legs around him, "Yes! Yes, I promise! Just don't drop me again!" she cried in desperation.
Onyx placed his arms under the quivering Changeling Queen, "I warned you to stop struggling, didn't I?" he laughed. Seconds later they were on the rusty sand of the Badlands, in front of her hive.
She quickly jumped out of his arms, running to the hive to check on her young subjects. She reached her chambers, and much to her surprise, the green pods were filled with healthy, strong grubs. Her di-green eyes were misty.
"You gave my food to them, right?" she questioned the footsteps behind her, touching a pod on the ground lovingly.
"I figured you would not mind sacrificing yourself a little for them," Onyx admitted, staring at a tall, gnarled gray tree growing from a pool of green liquid.
A wicked grin formed from her ear to ear.
"Don't even think about it," Onyx warned with his back still to her, "I will not hesitate to kill you this time. Do not waste the chance of a better life for your people over revenge." He turned to her with sad eyes, "Revenge is never worth the price and is only a hollow victory. In the end, all you have are more bodies around you." He walked up to her and held her head in his hands, gazing deep into her eyes, "I know you are not as selfish and evil as you claim. Do this for your people. Even if you ruled over all of Equestria, your people would still die when all the love ran out. By coexisting, the lives of your people and you will last much longer."
Chrysalis pushed his hands away, hating to admit that his plan did bear better fruit than her shortsightedness.
"It will not be easy, but I believe that everything good is worth the labor and time you put in achieving it," Onyx smiled at her.
She ignored and turned her back to him, "Where is my prize?"
"It is our duty to follow Mystin and Pyros!" Elderlon roared.
"It is our duty to serve the Gods! Not those. . . Demons who turned their backs on the Gods!" Onyx rebutted.
"Pyros is our God! And we will join his fight against the tyranny of the Gods!" Elderlon snarled, his garnet eyes burned with rage, "You will do as I command! I am your father!"
"No! I will not let the name of the Dragons be slandered by you or that serpent Pyros!" Onyx lunged at the dark gray dragon.
They fought; wrestling on the ground, clawing, and biting each other in the middle of the hall, as the Dragons watched and cheered. Iridescence and Diamond watched with sadness. Onyx overpowered the aging drake and slammed him on the ground. Before he could deliver the finish blow, Elderlon threw sand into Onyx's eyes.
Elderlon was helped up by his few loyal guards, "This is not over!" he shouted, retreating to the door, "Come, Iridescence!"
His luminous bond-mate went over to her son, her aquamarine gems glaring at him, "If Onyx didn't kill you, I would have. Leave and never return!"
Elderlon sneered at them and turned, flipped his red cape, and broke down the great hall doors as he left.
Diamond knelt beside Onyx with a bowl of water. She handed the bowl to the Queen.
"Thank you, honey," she spoke. Onyx groaned in pain, trying to keep his eyes open, "I know, my son," Iridescence soothed his forehead. She dipped a claw into the water and dripped the water in his eye, making him wince.
Diamond cleared the hall of the remaining Dragons. She found bandages and clean cloth for Onyx's minor cuts. She sat on her tail beside the Queen and Prince, waiting to be of assistance.
"Diamond, honey, help me take Onyx to the longhouse," the Queen received a silent nod of acknowledgement from Diamond. They hooked his arms around them and lift Onyx up. Onyx limped along as the three of them made their way to the longhouse.
Once outside, Mount Pyros coughed out a billow of black smoke and ash, shrouding the blue sky. Onyx knew he would have to evacuate his people off the island before the ash killed them all. They reached the longhouse in minutes, taking him up to his bedroom. Iridescence started to undress Onyx, Diamond watched eagerly.
"Diamond, I'm going to fetch the healing oil. Watch over him please," the Queen left hastily.
Onyx laid on his bed, with his loincloth onmuch to Diamond's chagrinhis breathing labored. She went to his side, stroking his black mane softly, as he drifted in and out of consciousness. He stared at her soft, pale blue eyes, as she gazed lovingly into his sapphire eyes. He shifted his attention to the scar in the middle of her neck; a flashback of Elderlon stabbing her played in his mind. Iridescence stopped talking to Elderlon since then, ten years ago. Diamond may not be of their blood, but Iridescence always loved her as if she was. When his mother returned he fell unconscious.
He opened his eyes and saw Chrysalis stare at him curiously, "Sorry I fell asleep," he chuckled nervously.
"Who is 'Diamond'?" she questioned, her face close to his.
"My sister," Onyx grinned.
"She didn't sound like a 'sister'," Chrysalis replied curtly.
Onyx sighed, "She was adopted." He ran his fingers through his thick, black hair, "Everything bad happened to her because of me."
She rested on the ground beside him, "It is not like I care, but I am dreadfully bored, so I will allow you to tell me about her, since you obviously have much on your mind."
He chuckled as he pulled on his boxers and pants, "Thank you, my Queen."
The ground shook, which rocked me out of bed. I cursed the floor, trying to get to my feet, when my door flew open. It was my mother and she was in full battledress with my armor and weapons.
"Elderlon has returned," she tossed my outfit on the bed, lifting me up, "And is much uglier than how he left. He has legions of Demons with him. I have told the children and elders to head for the southern coast and sent a message of help to the Black Legion. Get dressed, we must fight or die taking as many of them down with us."
The Black Legion? He had heard about a young Mountaineer Wolf training a special force of soldiers, but why would she contact them? If there was any hope in defeating the Demons, all the bad blood between the clans would have to be settled with the blood of the Demons.
"Do you think they will get here in time?" Onyx asked, snapping on his red cuirass and tightening his sword belts.
She lifted her desert mask and stared at him grimly, "No, the message was more of a warning."
A massive quake shook the entire longhouse, a loud roar bellowed outside.
Queen Iridescence went to the shattered window and gasped, "Gods preserve us." Mount Pyros erupted with fury, lava shot miles into the sky along with ash and flaming debris. A shock wave flung the Queen against the wall.
"Mother!"
"Get down!" she gasped.
Searing hot ash and smoke filled the room as the pyroclastic flow of the volcano engulfed the longhouse and island. Luckily, Dragons could survive the heat of the tephra but they still needed to breathe and every breath took in ash, poison, and cinders which burned their soft tissues on the inside.
"Mother!" he called out, not daring to open his eyes. A desert mask was pressed onto his face, it allowed him to see and breathe. He fastened it, and saw his mother next to him without hers. "No! Mother you need!"
He saw the glint of a dagger in her hand as she stabbed her chest. Tears left streaks through the soot that covered her face, she smiled and mouthed, "I love you."
"Mother!" he began to cry, as he held her lifeless body in his arms, "I need you!" He shook her, hoping that this was all a terrible dream, "Mommy. . ."
Footsteps alerted him. He gently placed her on the ashen floor and picked up his blade, ready to attack anything that came through the door. White scales flashed in doorway and heard a familiar whistle: it was Diamond. He rushed up to her when he noticed the two masks in her arms.
He grabbed her by the shoulders, "Why weren't you with my mother!" he yelled in her face, "Why did you take so fucking long to get the masks!" Out of rage and grief, knowing that she could not answer him, he threw her to the ground beside his mother, "You fucking did this! You! This is all your fault!" pointing at his mothers dimming body.
Diamond went over to her surrogate mother, tears filled her mask. He ignored her sobs when the sounds of battle grabbed his attention outside. Onyx jumped out the windowmore than encouragedto slaughter Demons and his father.
"It figures that bastard would not be leading his army to battle," Copper stated, huffing through his mask.
"Gather those who yet stand, we need to prepare for the third wave!" Onyx ordered a light grey Dragon. "Copper, how do you think we will fair?"
The brown dragon brought down his spyglass, "Not well," he answered flatly, handing his prince the spyglass.
The first two waves were small fries, but through the spyglass, Onyx spotted massive Abyssal Dragons, Beasts, and Demons, along with two Generals.
A blue she-Dragon stopped beside Onyx and saluted, "My Prince, we have about two hundred soldiers left and one hundred civilians willing to fight."
"Thanks, Cobalt. You lead the civilians as a last resort, arm them with bows, you may fire when the Demons are in range, Sergeant."
"Yes, my Prince!" Cobalt ran off to assemble the civilians.
"My Prince," a red Dragon saluted, "half of the catapults are destroyed and the others are severely damaged."
"Fix the damaged ones with the destroyed ones, Ruby. We will need them now, more than ever."
"At once, my Prince!" Ruby dashed away.
Copper was sharpening his sword, "When this is over, you gotta make me a General."
Onyx chuckled, "If we live, I'll make you Martial Commander."
"Position accepted."
A Demon war horn sounded in the distance. War drums echoed through the valley.
"So it begins," Onyx said to himself.
Onyx coughed, groaning as he sat up. The Abyssal Dragon looming over him, about to finish the prince with a stomp. He waited for the foot to crush him, but, the dragon toppled over as twenty black armored wolves jumped on it. He looked to his right and saw the other Abyssal Beasts fall like the dragon. He was never so happy to see Wolves before.
"Prince Onyx, always having someone else do your dirty work," he heard a deep yet familiar voice walking towards him quip. A figure clad in black armor stood over him. Once he removed his helmet he knew why the voice sounded familiar.
"Grey?"
"The one an only," Grey said with a toothy grin. He knelt beside the battered Dragon, with his palm glowing green, he pressed his hand into Onyx's abdomen. Onyx growled in pain and huffed as the pain went away. "C'mon, we can talk after killing these bastards."
"Definitely," Onyx accepted his childhood friend's hand, "We shall leave none alive in our wake!"
"Grey and I knew each other since before we were born. Our mothers were close friends. I even considered his mother my aunt," Onyx shared. He sat next to Chrysalis with his knees up and arms resting on them.
"I killed my father, we drove the Demons back, we talked about our mothers, I apologized to Diamond, and we went off to defend the world from the Demons, and wonending the First Demon War," he summed up.
"Fascinating. Anything else you want to share?" Chrysalis stifled a yawn.
"I think I've shared plenty with you for one night, don't you think?" he winked.
Chrysalis hid her blushing face from him, "Your performance was. . . satisfactory."
He stood, dusting off his pants, "Shall we get going, my Queen?" he bowed.
"If we must," she huffed.
Onyx quickly picked her up in his arms. She refrained from beating him like last time and instead wrapped her hooves around him, closing her eyes.
Princess Celestia let out a content sigh as she laid in bed. Darqlon kissed her neck and nuzzled her affectionately.
"That was... incredible," Celestia admitted with a giggle.
"It was something new to experience as an alicorn, yet just as fun as I remembered, but even better than I imagined," he grinned devilishly and they shared a passionate kiss.
"I-I am glad you were my first, Darqlon," she confessed coyly.
Darqlon grinned, "As am I," his kissed her, "I only hope to spend more time with you like this."
"As do I," she professed.
They stared into each other's eyes until they gave into their exhaustion.
Darqlon waited until he was certain Celestia had gone into a deep sleep before getting out of bed. He resisted the urge to kiss her before he spirited himself away. Celestia awoke and sighed dishearten. She did not want her suspicions to be correct.
Twilight Sparkle felt his teleportation spell and immediately headed for the Everfree Forest. Once there, it did not take her long to find Darqlon headed for her old castle. The memories of her past exploits here filled her mind. Her thoughts dissipated when she heard voices. She quickly headed for the voices in the old courtroom.
She spied Darqlon through the crack of the doors. He held a pony by their head between his fore hooves.
"If you do not want to talk here, then we can talk back at the dungeons, and do this the real easy way!" he threatened.
The pony kicked Darqlon in the barrel with its legs, making Darqlon grunt and drop the pony. It did not run away far when a red bolt of magic struck its side.
Darqlon stood over the pony and sighed, "Then I guess we do this the easy way."
Twilight opened the doors, able to see the room, which had strange glyphs and writing all over the place. Darqlon turned to her, surprised.
"What are you doing here, Princess Twilight Sparkle?" he questioned as he clasped a muzzle on the pony.
"I was investigating the rumors," she answered, examining the glyphs, "Why are you here?"
"Doing the same. I figured if anything strange was going on, that this castle would be a good starting point, considering it is the only structure out here." He levitated the pony with his red magic.
"My assumptions as well," Twilight nodded.
"Plus, I figured if I could solve this case, I would get extra brownie points with Celestia," Darqlon chuckled, walking past the purple alicorn, motioning to her to follow.
She walked with him, "Did that pony confess?"
"Sadly not. I will ask Wolf to track a recently disappeared pony in the morning, with your permission, Princess Twilight Sparkle."
"You have my permission," Twilight confirmed, "but I will bring this up with Princess Celestia."
"Absolutely."
"I will ask Grey to lend you a. . . hand."
"I do not think that will be a good idea, Princess. I have asked him to make the items we require to reform the Changelings. He will be very busy," Darqlon informed. The rush of the night wind greeted the two alicorns when they found themselves outside. "Plus," he added, "Price will be helping me."
"As you wish. I fear for the safety of the ponies," Twilight sighed.
"I will not fail you nor the ponies," he stated.
They both flew back to Canterlot and Darqlon locked the prisoner in the dungeon, then they headed to the Night Court to inform Princess Luna.
Grey worked tirelessly at the forge. The heat, the movements, all of it brought back his memories, and the joy he felt of being one with the forge. He chuckled to himself, the forge, as fiery as any woman, and just as deadly. After the thirty-seventh collar, Grey was able to make them faster and more efficiently, he was working on the fifty-ninth collar when he decided to take a break. When the order was done, he thought about going prospecting across the land in search of the best ore to make his armor and weapons. He did not need them, but he liked wearing full armor and being armed to the teeth. Plus, he needed to find the perfect jewels and gems for Luna's present.
Luna. Now that he thought about her, he had not seen her in three days. He still had plenty of platinum left over, perhaps he should make her a necklace to make it up to her. He might as well go the whole way to apologize to her. Better to be safe than sorry. He checked the clock on the far wall. Four hours. He only had four hours to set his plan in motion. Six, he could be late, he was going to apologize to her anyways.
Kyllgorr knitted happily in his chair by the crackling fireplace. A scarf began to take shape in his lap. Amy paced around the room nervously.
"Are you going to live in the castle forever?" Amy asked.
"I don't know. For now, I guess I will. Why?" he put down his needles, focusing on the red unicorn.
"It's nice and all, but I miss having my own home and able to do whatever I want," she sighed, "I know being the 'Antiqon Liaison' is a special privilege, but I want to go home." She placed her hooves on his knees, "I want us to go back home."
Kyllgorr rubbed her cheek, "Okay. I'll go tell Celestia we are leaving."
"You can do that?" her ears perked up.
"I would like to see her try to stop me," he grinned.
The morning birds sang wonderfully, fluffy white clouds floated lazily in the blue sky, and a calm breeze blew through Darqlon's crimson ethereal mane. Darqlon could tell Wolf was annoyed. Coupled with the fact that his ears, tail, and head were lowered, he did not say a word during their short trip to the Everfree. Even with Fluttershy's nudge, Price did not like to be used like a dog, even if it was for a good cause. Once at the edge of the forest, he stopped in his tracks.
"Give me the damn pillow case," Price grumbled.
Darqlon used his red magic to bring out the white, cotton pillowcase that belonged to Rose and holds it in front of Price to sniff.
Price inhaled her flowery scent and memorized it. His body went lax, as he eliminated all other scents from his mind. When he opened his eyes, they glowed faintly. Without warning, Price shot off running along the edge of the forest.
Princess Luna opened the door to her room and frowned: empty, yet again. Another lonely morning. She heaved a sigh, moped to the bathroom, removing her regalia along the way. How her heart ached for even a glimpse of Grey! As she was drying herself after a long bath, small noises from her room piqued her curiosity. She opened the door a crack and with her teal eye peeked through the opening.
Grey stood by the table near the balcony window with his back to her. She could not see what he was doing. As silently as she could, she opened the door and stealthily advanced towards him. A wide grin plastered on her face.
"Boo!" he exclaimed and suddenly turned around.
Princess Luna jumped and screamed in surprise and landed on her haunches, "You juvenile!" she pouted, not able to scare him.
Grey laughed and went over to help Luna up. She turned away from his kiss and sat on the bed, with her back to him.
"Oh, I see," Grey walked back to the table that had a covered silver platter resting on it, "Well, I guess I will be taking this dinner for myself."
Her ears perked up, "Fine! I am not hungry anyways!" she huffed in defiance.
Grey moved to the bed with the platter and a long, wooden box poking out of his pocket. He set the platter at the end of the bed and sat behind the midnight blue alicorn. He placed his hand on her back, feeling her go rigid.
"D-Do not touch me!" her voice faltered.
He leaned on her and whispered into her ear, "I missed you, Luna," he confessed sweetly.
She turned to gaze into his golden eyes and saw his sincerity. Her heart melted, "I missed you, too, Grey!" She gave him a long kiss before her stomach interrupted them. She blushed violet.
"That is why I brought you dinner," Grey chuckled. He held the platter for her and removed the lid.
On the platter was a bowl ofwhat she assumed to bea strawberry Waldorf salad, a bottle of white wine, and two glasses.
"What is the occasion?" she inquired, lifting the salad and a fork with her light blue magic.
Grey frowned, "First, you ignore my kiss; then, you ignore me; now, you ignore what today is?"
"I am sorry, Grey. . ." she apologized with her ears back and eyes big.
He kissed her muzzle, "Forgiven." With little effort, the cork popped off the wine bottle, and Grey served the wine, "Today, my dear Luna, marks my first month in Equestria."
Luna ruminated her food, counting mentally, "Wow. I did forget. It feels like months since you fell out of the sky. . ." She accepted the glass of wine Grey offered.
"A toast!" They tapped the glasses together, "To a new and wonderful life here on Equestria!"
"And. . . to us," Luna added sheepishly.
"Especially to us," Grey confirmed and they both drank.
After the delicious meal and small talk, Luna finally decided to ask Grey about the box in his pants.
"Grey, what is in that box?" she questioned, pointing a hoof at his leg.
He smiled, "How badly do you want to know?"
"I am just a little curious. . ."
"Well, a little curiosity is not enough to open the box," he chuckled, "Guess I'll have to keep it for now."
"Wait!" she bit her lip, "How about for a kiss?"
"Hmm," Grey stroked the short hair on his chin he was growing out, "Tempting. . . but no."
"Two kisses?" she smiled.
Grey chuckled, "You're adorable." He thought to himself, "I forget how young she is." He removed the box from his pocket and held it out, "Make it ten kisseson the lips, and you have yourself a deal."
She hugged his neck, leaned on him, and provided her payment to him hastily. She beamed, "the box please."
He bit her lip gently and she whimpered, "I never said which lips I wanted to kiss," he winked.
Luna blushed brightly at his insinuation, "You are bad. . ."
Grey leaned in to kiss her passionately, opened the box, and simultaneously removed the platinum-plate-collar necklace. He broke away their kiss and presented his gift to her.
"It is beautiful," she marveled.
He fastened the jewelry around her neck, kissing her neck softly.
Luna nuzzled him affectionately, "I love you, Grey."
"I am a pretty great guy to love, huh?" he joked and kissed her, "I love you, too Luna."
She laid on her back, blushing, "About those k-kisses. . ."
Price huffed on the cold, hard stone floor, sprawled out on the bloody engrams, his limbs chained to the wall. Lit candles circumvent him, which cast light on the cloaked cultists that surrounded him. Rose's trail led him to a newly constructed temple of some kind, with an architecture from his world, which should be unknown to the people of Equestria. Her scent was mixed in with the blood of dozens of other ponies. Magic kept him from being able to use his telekinesis outside the circle.
Two cultists made their way to him from the door of the circular room. They stood before him and he realized that he smelled them before, but from where? The one on the left levitated a bag with gold magic, the other on his right, jumped into the air, hovering with grey wings.
"Price, Price, Price," he heard Darqlon speak as he rose from the shadows, "Price, I did not plan for things to end like this for you. I truly am sorry, old friend."
"When Kyllgorr finds out, he will make short work of you!" the chained great wolf snarled.
"No, he will grieve and move away, maybe even hit me once, but he will not kill me. Your death will be because of an unfortunate series of events," Darqlon stated, then nodded to the two cultists.
The other cultists ran away when the cultist with gold magic tossed the bag up which released a plume of purple dust. The pegasus cultist gust the dust into Price's nose. They followed the rest of their cult out the doors. Price's nose burned intensely. He roared, growled, and shook his head. His mind went blank as his eyes turned red.
Wolf grew to his natural form and reared back, ripping the chains from the ground. Darqlon lunged at Wolf. Wolf swat Darqlon into the side of the room. He charged the alicorn, Darqlon teleported out of the way, making the enraged beast crash. Darqlon shot rapid bolts of red magic at Wolf's side. Annoyed, Wolf leapt into the air and landed on the ground, which sent a shock wave of rock towards Darqlon. Darqlon put up a shield. Wolf bit the red shell surrounding his target. Darqlon exploited this opening. He launched himself into Wolf's mouth and impaled the beast through the roof of its mouth, stabbing his brain. A whine and a gurgle left Wolf as he collapsed to his side. Darqlon huffed, as he walked out of Wolf's open mouth, covered in saliva and blood.
Celestia saw a naked Grey behind her sister, holding her hips, with his head under her tail. He fell out of bed and Luna tried to hide her embarrassment under the covers. She shook her head, not caring what they were in the middle of doing right now, "You two! My room now!"
"But Tia!" Luna whined.
"This is urgent," Celestia stated. She saw Luna realise her seriousness and received a nod. Celestia left, trotting to her room where the others were to gather.
"Someone had better be dying!" Grey growled as he got dressed.
Luna gave him a short kiss, "We can continue later."
Grey sighed, seriously regretting his statement from earlier. Kyllgorr knelt beside his brother's body on the terrace, crying and choking on his tears. Amy sat beside him as tears rolled down her eyes, she had a hoof on his back. Onyx and Grey watched somberly from the balcony doors. Darqlon leant against the wall, beside them, with a grim expression. The sisters waited respectfully by the bed.
"Price!" Kyllgorr wailed and hugged his body, "Not you too, brother. . ."
"What happened?" Grey asked Darqlon.
Darqlon glanced at Grey and Onyx and heaved a heavy sigh, "I had asked for Price to assist me in finding the missing ponies"
"I don't want the story. I want to know why Price is dead!" Grey demanded.
Darqlon swallowed the lump in his throat, "We got separated and somehow he got caught by these cultists. When I managed to find him, he was chained down in a large room. I broke down the doors to free him, but the cultists sprayed a purple powder into his face, which made him go berserk. I tried to talk to him, but in his eyes, I saw that he was gone. There was no choice but"
Kyllgorr's arms crashed through the wall, his massive hands found Darqlon's neck. Pulling the black alicorn back through the wall created a larger hole.
"You killed my brother!" he snarled, his eyes glowed fiercely.
"I had no choice!" Darqlon choked out.
"Now, I have no choice but to kill you!" Kyllgorr tightened his grip. Darqlon kicked at Kyllgorr to release him, to no avail.
"Killy! Don't!" Amy cried out, tugging at Kyllgorr's shirt.
With a roar, Kyllgorr slammed Darqlon to the ground. His eyes faded, "You. You are dead to me," he sneered between gnashed teeth. For good measure he punched Darqlon in the head and stormed out of the room, carrying his brother, with Amy at his heels.
Darqlon writhed on the cracked granite floor, his head spinning. Onyx left the room silently. Grey followed soon after with Luna by his side.
Celestia rested beside Darqlon, soothing his head with her gilded hoof, "The right choice is seldom the popular or easy choice to make."
". . .Yeah. . ." he groaned.
Kyllgorr and Grey dug a pit on the edge of White Tail Woods. Onyx dragged logs out of the woods and set them by the pit. When Kyllgorr and Grey were done with the pit, Onyx finished setting up stones. Kyllgorr and Grey followed Onyx when he silently beckoned them to follow. Amy and Luna sat in silence after they wrapped Price with linen sheets and watched the men work. Ten minutes later, they emerged from the treeline hauling a flat boulder over their heads. Grey and Onyx joined the two mares in sombre silence as they watched Kyllgorr line the pit with stones and then with logs. He walked over to his brother and carefully picked him up in his arms. He gently placed his brother on the pyre and covered him with logs and branches.
Onyx lit three torches with his breath and motioned for them to follow him to Kyllgorr. He handed a torch to Kyllgorr. Kyllgorr reluctantly accepted the burning branch.
"Prys," Kyllgorr spoke in a hoarse and depressed tone, "an excellent older brother and wonderful being overall. I know not the reason you died, only that you are gone. I pray to Death, may She look past my sins and hear my prayers and know that I am sincere; I. . . pray to Nature, that She will always watch over you in Her Eternal Forest; I pray to the Father and Mother, to give me the strength to live on and not kill their son Darqlon," Kyllgorr lit the pyre with his torch, tears streamed down his face.
Grey accepted a torch from Onyx and went to Kyllgorr's side, "Prys, you were a great brother and an invaluable friend. You will never be forgotten. I only regret that you could not see the grass of our homeland one last time," Grey threw his branch onto the pyre.
Onyx took Kyllgorr's left side and spoke, "Prys, keep watch over Kyllgorr and make sure he doesn't do anything too stupid. I'll miss you, buddy, but I'll always have the memories of all the trouble and fun we had," Onyx choked up, "Your last breath here, was your first breath of everlasting peace. I only wish we had stood side-by-side on the field of battle one last time. Rest in peace," They all spoke in their native tongue: Vāstùch.
Amy had walked up to Kyllgorr but Onyx shook his head at her and placed a finger on his lips. The five of them observed the pyre burn all day. Before Luna had to raise the moon, the three men lowered the flat boulder megalith over the pit of ashes, sealing them in. Grey squeezed Kyllgorr's shoulder before leaving with Luna. Onyx hugged Kyllgorr farewell.
When night descended over them Amy finally spoke up, "I'm sorry for your loss, Killy."
He turned to her, his eyes pink and puffy, he bent down and hugged her tightly. She pats and rubbed his back, softly humming to Kyllgorr.
Fluttershy cried on Rainbow Dash's shoulder, "It's all my fault! I should not have told him to go!"
Rainbow Dash ignored the wetness and comforted her friend, "I keep telling you: it's not your fault."
The other four waited for them on a hill, feeling like they do not deserve to be down there. After saying one last goodbye, Fluttershy left a red scarf by the stone and reluctantly walked away, with Rainbow Dash's help.
Once at the top of the hill, Fluttershy grabbed Twilight's face, "We need to find out who is responsible for this! And the missing ponies!"
Twilight stared into the determined-sad teal eyes of Fluttershy, "Yes, Fluttershy, we will find the ponies and bring justice to those who harmed Price."
"Absolutely, darling," Rarity added, placing a hoof on Fluttershy's back.
"Yeah! I'll make sure to kick their butts extra hard for you, Shy!" Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
"Don't worry, sugar cube," Applejack smiled, "we will stop at nothing to find those bad guys."
Pinkie hopped around, "To the Everfree Forest then!"
"I understand one of your friends passed away," Queen Chrysalis stated, "You have my condolences."
"Thanks, your majesty," Onyx smiled weakly.
The two of them landed in the training yard. Onyx shifted the large metal box in his arms. Chittering from the box escalated.
"Hush, my little darlings," Chrysalis rubbed a hoof on the box, "Everything will be fine." The Changeling grubs calmed down, hearing the voice of their Queen.
"Once I drop them off at the meeting, I will have to leave and meet up with Princess Twilight for a mission," he informed Queen Chrysalis.
"What kind of mission?"
Onyx smiled, "A secret one."
They made their way to the dungeon. Once inside the dungeon, they traveled down a long, winding flight of stone stairs which opened up to a cavernous area. Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and a man she assumed to be Grey, all waited in the middle of the well-lit cavern. Chrysalis saw a strange, big chalkboard like contraption between the princesses and a crate sat at Grey's feet filled with collars.
"You better have a good reason for waking me up so early in the morning," Chrysalis yawned.
"Chrysalis," Princess Celestia spoke, "this is going to be the last chance I give you and your people. Do not squander it and do not make me regret it."
"I will do what I like," Chrysalis retort.
The princesses shared a glance, Luna shook her head.
"This is how things will go," Princess Celestia began to explain, "This board here has pictures of different colored ponies, mane styles and colors, and eye colors, from the three tribes. The Changeling will pick the options they like and with the help of those collars, permanently be that pony. The collars will grow with them and nullify their powers. Since they are young, they can eat regular food, but once they get older, the collar will supply them with nourishment. If they build a strong bond with somepony else, then that pony will be able to feed them. The collar will limit how much love they can receive and absorb."
"The Changelings in that box will serve as an experiment," Luna added, "If they can not behave, we will allow Darqlon to terminate you all."
"Then let us begin," Chrysalis grinned.
Kyllgorr loaded their bags on top of the specially made extra large coach. Twelve earth ponies were hooked up to the massive vehicle. With Kyllgorr's magic cancelling aura, flying was out of the question, they had to travel by land. Amy waited patiently in the immaculately designed interior, not wanting to damage any of the inlay or deep purple velvet lining.
Kyllgorr entered the coach, forcing an askew smile as he sat beside the cardinal unicorn. His eyes still red from crying last night. She placed a hoof on his hand and leaned on him. He leaned back on her and the coach lurched forward as the ponies began to run.
"What is Fillydelphia like?" he asked.
"Big and bustling. Much bigger than Ponyville but slightly smaller and nicer than Manehattan," Amy explained, "Very tall buildings, like, as tall as the palace but narrow. There are all sorts of shops there, too. You can find anything there. Fillydelphia is also the second largest port, so there are a lot of ships and sailors with fantastic tales to share. But walk for an hour, and you're out of the city, you find rolling hills and farmland as far as the eyes can see!"
"Ah, my world had many cities like that, but not too much natural green. Our technology was very advanced, but also our hubris. We became too dependent and ignored the past, that's when the Demons attacked, billions of people fell within a day," Kyllgorr talked and saw Amy gazing up at him with her amethyst gems, "What?"
"I can't imagine what it would be like for billions of people to die. . ." she mused.
He sighed, "It isn't pretty," he admitted, "War and death bring out the ugly in everyone."
"Killy," she whispered, "I don't ever want to see you like that again."
Her words twisted a dagger into his heart, "I'm sorry. I. . . don't know how to control my emotions well. . ."
She stood up to kiss him but a bump in the road made her fall into his lap. He leaned down and kissed her passionately.
Darqlon rested in bed as he recovered from his concussion. He was lucky Amy interfered when she did or he would be dead and his plans of world domination would have flown out the window. He was surprised that he could lie past Grey; Grey who has the ability to detect lies. Maybe he has not figured out that power yet? Darqlon moaned as he tried to sit up, but eventually his leaden head was too much of a burden for him. At least while he recovers, the Changelings will be tested, and if all goes according to plan. . . he chuckled evilly.
Grey picked up a grub by its backit screeched and flailed. He tickled its belly, making it chitter happily, "They are kinda adorable," Grey chuckled. He set the grub down and she rubbed against his leg affectionately, he pat her head. "Wouldn't it be impossible for them to be unicorns, since they, oh I dunno, won't be able to use magic?" Grey pointed out to the solar princess.
"Minor detail," Princess Celestia replied, slightly blushing from her mistake. She tore down the unicorn picture.
"Ahem," Chrysalis cleared her throat which made the grub run back to the Queen, "Do not dilly dally. Choose what you want from the catalog, child."
While the grub flipped through the pictures a thought popped into Luna's mind which made her have to ask Chrysalis, "Does she have a name?"
"Huh, no wonder I liked her," Grey input, "Eighteen is my favorite number."
The two mares disregarded his statement.
"Anyways," Chrysalis turned her attention to the grub, "If we will be amalgamating into pony society, I suppose they will need pony-ish names."
Worker Eighteen finished picking out her new form, largely at random. She transformed into a brilliant blue earth filly, with ice blue irises, and sporting a short gray mane with a single white stripe lining the front of her mane. Princess Celestia smiled down at her. Beaming from ear to ear, she trotted to her Queen.
Grey snatched up the filly and hugged her tightly, "Isn't she precious! I want to hug her and squeeze her and call her!" he held out his arms, staring into her eyes, she beamed back at him, waiting, "Cobalt! Cobalt Blossom."
"I like that!" the filly announced.
"If you name it, you often end up keeping it. . ." Luna muttered, a little jealous of how Grey was treating that creature.
"Great!" he placed her on the ground and grabbed a collar from the box, "This is for you. It will protect you and protect those around you." When he place it on her, she shivered, "Sorry, didn't think it would be that cold."
"What's your name?"
"I am called Grey," he pointed to Luna, "She is a Princess and co-ruler of the land, Princess Luna," he pointed at Celestia, "And she is Princess Sunbutt, she" he fell to the ground with a grunt, whimpering in pain from the crate of collars crashing into his crotch.
The cavern filled with Queen Chrysalis' laughter. Luna and Cobalt Blossom rushed to his side.
"Tia!" Luna snapped, "Was that necessary?!"
"Absolutely," Celestia held her head high.
"I thought you were opposed to violence. . ." Grey coughed.
"I can make an exception for you," Celestia smiled devilishly. "Chrysalis, bring out the next one."
Chrysalis caught her breath, holding her sides, "Yes, Princess 'Sunbutt'!" she snorted, erupting in laughter again, rolling on the floor.
"It would not make sense for them to stay in that place since Darqlon already found it," Twilight voiced, walking behind Onyx.
"We are going there for clues, not to find the cultist," Onyx explained.
The six ponies and Onyx trekked through the Everfree Forest. The perpetual darkness of the Everfree Forest blocked the afternoon sun. They followed the rough sketch to the temple Darqlon provided for them.
"The last time I was with six beautiful young ladies, their fathers tried to have me killed," Onyx remarked, "I'm not going to have that problem this time, right?"
"As long as you don't get fresh with us, then yeah, you're cool," Rainbow Dash answered, flying above his head upside down. She put her hoof to her eye then pointed at him.
Onyx laughed, "I dunno. . . I just feel like a rooster in the hen house with all you beauties around."
"Oh no," Fluttershy spoke, "A rooster in the hens house would be problematic."
"Ah think that's what he's gettin' at, Shy," Applejack voiced, rolling her eyes.
"Oh."
Onyx stopped immediately in his tracks, holding up a finger to his lips, cupping a hand behind his ear. They stopped to listen and heard a choir of voices. He proceeded silently with the six ponies following him. They hid behind bushes and could see the scene fairly well from their position.
A bonfire crackled in the middle of a large circle of cultists. Doing a quick head count and estimate, Twilight calculated there to be about thirty ponies. They were chanting in some weird language. She saw Onyx furrow his eyebrows.
"What are they saying?" she whispered in his ear.
"Nothing good," he replied grimly.
"That's one creepy party," Pinkie chimed.
"They are preparing sacrifices for their 'Dark Master'," he explained, "Which means. . ."
"Some of the missing ponies are still alive!" Rarity concluded.
Just as she spoke, more cultists showed up dragging bound and gagged ponies. Rarity, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash gasped seeing their respective sisters being hauled in with the group.
"Stay here," Onyx ordered, drawing his sword, "I will release them all and dispatch the cultists."
"No, I have a better plan," Twilight advised.
Apple Bloom cried, her tears staining the gag around her mouth. Moments earlier, she and the Crusaders were investigating the disappearing ponies with Zecora when they were suddenly ambushed by cloaked ponies. She watched helplessly with her tangerine eyes as the dark ponies dragged her friends and Zecora behind her. She was glad they were with Zecora, she put up a good fight for them to escape, but they were caught anyways. Now, it appeared they were going to barbecue them. She struggled to break free of the ropes but gave up when they just bit deeper into her skin.
A thunderous roar echoed through the trees and a gust of wind knocked everyone to the ground. The pile of flaming tinders rolled off into the group of cultists who were unfortunate enough to be standing behind the fire. She heard branches snapping, then a massive dark shape broke through the trees, once she saw the blue flame erupt from its mouth, she knew what it was: a dragon.
The cultists ran around in a panic. A few tried to extinguish their burning comrades. Shouts and whoops sounded from the treeline and she saw her sister and her friends charging at the cultists. Her heart was filled with joy and relief. A cultist wrestled her to the ground. She struggled to break free when a black tail swung over head, sending the cultist flying into the distance. She saw the dragon walk closer, then morph into a shadow, taking the form of the guy she saw in the newspapers. The cultists that failed to escape found themselves on the ground after the Mane Six dispatched them.
"Always here to help damsels in distress," he remarked with a bow. He drew his sword and cut the binds and gags off the ponies.
"You have my thanks for setting me free," Zecora thanked as she got to her hooves, "Would you mind telling me who you be?"
"Just your friendly neighborhood dragon," Onyx bowed.
Before Apple Bloom could thank her savior, Applejack hugged her tightly, "Apple Bloom! What in tarnations were you doin' out here?"
"We were just tryin' to help. . ."
"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity blurred past them, picking up the unicorn filly with her light blue magic, "Sweetie Belle I'm so relieved!" she also hugged her sister tightly, then released her, "Wait until we get home, young lady!" Seeing Sweetie Belle's puppy eyes, Rarity hugged her sister again.
Rainbow Dash swooped down to Scootaloo, plucking her up in her arms, "Scootaloo!"
"Rainbow Dash!" Scootaloo cried.
They both coughed and released each other.
"Those ponies were lucky you showed up when you did!" Scootaloo exclaimed, "I was just about to break free and kick their butts!"
Rainbow Dash giggled and ruffled the orange pegasus' dark pink mane, "Yeah, I know squirt. Just glad to see you okay."
Twilight pulled a cloak off a pony and saw it vanish in a poof of smoke. She recognized the pony on the ground, "Octavia?"
The gray earth pony groaned as she opened her eyes, "Wh-Where am I?" She scanned her surrounds then jumped to her hooves, "Is this the Everfree Forest?! Why am I here?!"
Twilight put a hoof on Octavia to calm her, "I don't know, but what I do know is that when I took a cloak off you, it disappeared."
"Cloak?" Octavia rubbed her head, "Ow, my head. It feels like I was hit by a train."
"Sorry, sugar cube," Applejack apologized behind her, "We were just trying to save our sisters."
"Girls, remove the cloaks off everypony!" Twilight ordered.
"Yes, ma'am!" Onyx replied.
Twilight smiled, then turned her attention back to Octavia, "Do you remember anything?"
"The last thing I remember is. . . being in my room, practicing for an upcoming recital. Next thing, I'm here," Octavia explained.
More moaning, groaning, and complaints were heard as the ponies were waking up from their curse. Twilight needed to have a talk with the jailed cultist.
Kyllgorr sat in bed, mulling over the events of the past monthespecially about the red unicorn sleeping next to him. He sighed heavily and leaned against the wall. The soft light of the moon shone through the window on the right. He was glad Amy lived in a house on the outskirts of the city where he could renovate it to suit him better or build a new house entirely for them.
If he wanted to do that, he would need to get a job. There were no usual jobs he was used to mercenary work, freelance gun-for-hire, or private security. He considered working with Amy's family in their shop but quickly threw that idea out the window. Perhaps he could do manual labor; he was exceptionally stronger than any pony. The clock hanging on the wall in front of him ticked like a metronome. He ran his fingers through his thick black hair and sighed. Amy stirred.
"What's wrong?" she asked sleepily.
"New places make me restless," he confessed, "I'll go for a walk or something."
Amy placed a hoof on his leg to prevent him from leaving, "Talk to me, Killy."
He sighed, he could not resist her beautiful amethyst eyes, "I. . . I. . ." he struggled to speak his mind, "I guess the biggest thing on my mind is: how could you fall in love with someone like me? With someone you just met? With someone you just met and saw his murder streak? With someone you just met, knew nothing about, slaughtered Griffons, and threatened your own life? It. . . I just. . . If I was in your shoes, I couldn't do that."
Amy saw the confusion on his face and smiled up at him, "Because, even though you did all of those things, I never thought you were evil. I looked past everything you did, your exterior, and realized that you were just scared and needed a helping hoofhand. From when you first opened up to me, to the whole trip over here, all you did was talk. You needed somepony to talk to, to listen, to understand you and I wanted to be that pony." She held his face in her hooves, staring deep into his citrine eyes, "Especially now, you need somepony more than ever to help you with your loss; because when I look in your eyes," tears began to pool in her eyes, "I see a scared, lost little boy who has lost everyone who ever loved and cared for him, who has lived a hard lonely life, and the man that I love."
Kyllgorr wrapped his arms around her and brought her in for a long embrace, "I always thought that I would never find love, that I was not meant for love, that no matter how happy I wasit would be taken from me instantly in that moment."
Amy stood up to kiss him, "That pain means you really cared for them, and even though they may be goneyou will always have your memories of them."
"Memories are just happy nightmares. . ." he replied cynically.
"At least they're happy," she smiled.
Kyllgorr huffed and laid back against the wall, with Amy lying on him, "Can you tell me a story to help me sleep?"
Amy chuckled, "Sure." She cleared her throat and began, "Once upon a time, there was a little colt who kept his sister up all night. He went to her and asked her to tell him a story. Being the red, beautiful, intelligent, compassionate, unicorn goddess that she was. . . she did."
Kyllgorr laughed softly.
Cobalt Blossom stared at Grey. She poked his nose, "Are you dead?"
"Many have tried," Grey groaned as he sat up, "But none have come as close as you have."
"I'm sorry!"
His heart melted seeing her sad eyes and quivering lip, "As long as you're fine, that's all that matters," he pet her head, "None were as adorable as you either."
He removed the iron ingots off him. With Cobalt Blossom's help, the two began cleaning up the mess that once was a tower of ingots. Grey considered it his fault for not watching her closely. Luckily, he noticed the tower falling in time before the metal ended her short life. They stacked the iron ingots in the corner, only this time, not as high.
"Well, if you are going to be my assistant, you need to know about the castle. C'mon. I'll show you around, CB."
The blue filly hopped by his side gleefully.
Onyx opened the door to Chrysalis' room and noticed a charcoal pegasus with dark turquoise mane and tail with their back to him. The pegasus turned to him with a wide grin and he recognized her peridot eyes. A smile found his face then quickly faded away, seeing two black pegasus fillies at her hooves. When they saw him, they ran up to him happily.
"Daddy! Daddy!" was the last thing he heard before fainting.
"Yeah, yeah, just manipulate my emotions," Onyx replied flatly, he sat up and moved a table and chair next to the bed, where the pegasi sat.
"But of course," Chrysalis smirked.
"Who are they?" Onyx questioned and sat down as a black pegasus filly jumped on his lap and nuzzled him. He scratched her behind her ears. The other black pegasus filly went to Chrysalis' side and watched him with dark blue eyes.
"This," Chrysalis extended a wing over the filly beside her, "Is Jet Sentinel. And the one on your lap is Scout Melanite."
"Nice to meet you two!" Onyx greeted.
"Hiya, Daddy!" Scout Melanite beamed.
"You're adorable, but I am not your father," he quickly turned to Chrysalis, "Right?"
"Perhaps. . ." she smiled wickedly.
"Anyways," Onyx examined the papers and books on the table, "If you are going to teach them Equestrian, I might as well learn alongside Scout Melanite and Jet Sentinel."
"This is going to be fun, right, Daddy?" Scout Melanite beamed.
He smiled, her azure eyes sparkling, "You're cute, Melanie, but we already established that I am not your father."
"Yeah, sis, he's too ugly to be our dad," Jet jabbed, with a toothy grin.
"I'm not above picking a fight with a kid, Jet!" Onyx exclaimed, standing up.
"Bring it ugly!" the indigo-eyed filly jeered.
"Onyx. Sit," Chrysalis snapped, "Do not make me have to kill you."
Onyx sighed defeated, knowing better to get between a mother and her children, and sat down. Jet blew a raspberry at him.
"I know where you sleep, Jet," he thought malevolently.
Princess Celestia stroked Darqlon's crimson mane as he slept. Her sad fuchsia eyes sparkling in the moonlight, she held back her tears. "I am sorry for ever thinking you were behind the cult, Darqlon," she thought. She kissed his forehead before lying down to sleep herself.
Princess Twilight Sparkle sauntered down the dimly lit cobblestone hallway, with a two unicorn guard escort. An explosion rocked the dungeon, which made the three of them run to prisoner's cell faster. When they reached the solitary confinement hallway, smoke and dust clouded their vision. Twilight used her magic to clear the dust. Two pegasus ponies stood at an open doorway. When Twilight reached the door, she saw what they were staring at, a hole in the roof which tunneled up to the castle.
"You two," she pointed to the pegasi, "Follow that tunnel. You two," she turned to the unicorns, "Go warn the guards." The guards saluted and left to follow the Princess' orders.
Twilight scanned the room for clues and found nothing. Oddly, the cot had been thrown to the wall, but she paid no mind to it and focused on the writing on the other walls. A metal thud cracked her skull, dropping to the floor. The last thing she saw was a silhouette standing over her.
Not only were her ponies being kidnapped, the cultists had to go and make things personal by kidnapping her protégée. Princess Celestia heaved a great sigh. Darqlon hugged his princess reassuringly.
"I will go search for her," he stated.
"No, you are still injured," Celestia pointed out.
"It is only a matter of time before something happens to her. The more eyes looking for her the better chance of finding her in one piece," Darqlon rebutted. He gave her a long kiss, "I will come back. I promise."
"Okay," she sighed, "Please be careful."
Darqlon left through the balcony doors and flew off. Things were proceeding faster than planned. He had to make his move now.
Darqlon barged into Chrysalis' room.
"What are you-!"
Darqlon stunned her with his red magic along with the pegasi fillies. He then teleported them to their Hive. He then left to go to the forge.
"Hi!" a blue filly greeted him when he opened the door to the forge.
He recognized the collar around her neck, "Where is Grey?"
"Grey went out to help look for-"
Before she could finish, he stunned and spirited her away to the Hive. Darqlon rushed inside and found the crate of collars. He teleported the crate and himself to the Hive.
The Herald barked out orders to the Faithful, the Master was on his way, and she wanted everything to be perfect for Him.
"He does not want Twilight to be harmed, not yet, put the inhibitor on her horn before she awakens. You four, bring the second cage in now. Harbinger, is the ceremony ready?"
The Harbinger finished tracing out the glyphs on the stony floor with the last of the sacrificial blood. She turned to the Herald and silently nod.
"Excellent."
A poof sound grabbed the Faithful's attention. In the middle of the green, pod covered cave, Chrysalis and two pegasi fillies appeared. Before guards could descend on them, the Herald spoke.
"No! That is our ally, Queen Chrysalis and two of our soldiers. They must not come to harm."
The five guard ponies bowed and carefully moved the pegasi to a small alcove. Minutes later, two more poofs sounded, with Darqlon standing in the middle of the cave. The Faithful stopped what they were doing and bowed down to their Dark Master. He scanned the progress inside the cave and was pleased.
"Excellent job, Harbinger. Herald, bring that box and come with me," he ordered.
The gray pegasus immediately did as she was told and the Faithful continued their preparations. He woke Chrysalis from her short coma.
"Where-" Chrysalis shook her head and surveyed her surroundings. "What are you doing to my home?!" she demanded, standing up.
"Queen Chrysalis, I am giving you the opportunity to rule over Equestria, as you always wanted, in exchange for a little assistance from you," Darqlon spoke.
"What?" she said puzzled.
"I am asking you to lend me your strength and the strength of your Changelings. I only need the power of all the unicorns to have enough to send me back to my universe, where I can rule as the God I am." He held out a hoof to her, "You can keep all the love your people need and I can go back home. Do we have a deal?"
Chrysalis thought for a moment, "What about Onyx?"
Darqlon smirked, "I will drain his power and you can keep him." Chrysalis hesitated. "I will also allow you to deliver the killing blow to Celestia," he offered.
"I accept," Chrysalis grinned devilishly.
"Great. I need you to awaken your subjects and equip the collars on them-"
"No!" she interrupted.
"The collars will allow me to channel Twilight's power to them, supercharging them, allowing them to grow into adults faster," he explained.
"Very well."
She felt magic behind her and saw Darqlon. He was panting.
"Did you find Twilight?" she asked, going to him, draping a wing over him.
"Yes," he exhaled, "But she is in danger and I am low on power from teleporting and using scan spells. I have enough power to get us over there. She needs you."
"There is no time to waste then!"
Darqlon grinned, "No, no there is not." With a flash, they disappeared and appeared in the Hive cave.
Celestia saw the Hive pods empty of Changelings, then noticed two cages, one with Twilight and the other open, next to a green pool. She ran over to her faithful student.
"What happened, Darqlon?"
"I guess when I escaped, the cultist pushed their plan into action. Magic will not work on the bars," he explained standing beside her.
"So. . . we take the cage with us!" Celestia pressed.
"Yes, that is why I needed you here," he slammed his hoof on the back of her head, knocking her unconscious. He placed an inhibitor on her and dragged her into the open cage. He whistled and his army entered the cave. Chrysalis entered with a smug grin.
"This. . . this has gone so perfectly! It almost brings a tear to my eye."
"One finally thing we need to do, Chrysalis," he entered the elaborate engram in front of the cages, "We need to drain their power."
Chrysalis joined the black alicorn in the circle, "What do I need to do?"
Darqlon pierced her heart from her side with his obsidian horn, "Die."
With her last breaths of life, Chrysalis knew that she had made the wrong choice. Her selfishness and arrogance: her undoing. If he could betray Celestia, why did she think he would not betray her? He did say he needed all the unicorns. How foolish of her for not noticing earlier.
"Onyx. . ." she gasped as a tear fell from her eye, her world turning black.
"Oh, nothing," Onyx put the binoculars in their pouch, "I just thought I heard someone call my name."
Rainbow Dash thought it would be a good idea to search from the sky but they were not successful in locating Twilight. After what she witnessed in the Everfree Forest, she did not want Twilight in the cultists hooves any longer. Her frustration built to a shout. Onyx smacked his head.
"I know where they are," he stated.
"What? How?"
"Because I felt a massive surge of energy in the Badlandsand since I'm a betting man, I'm willing to bet the cultists are there preparing for a full-scale attack."
"Wait? What?" Rainbow Dash was confused.
"Everything they did up until now was to drain magic and gain power. Twilight is missing and she is a well of untapped magical energy. When they drain her of her magicwe might not be able to stop them," he explained and unfurled his wings, "Go tell Luna to prepare the guards to rescue Twilight in the Badlands. I'm going to go bring Kyllgorr."
"You got it!" Rainbow Dash zoomed off towards Canterlot in a rainbow streak.
Grey's skin crawled and he felt strangely irritated. He pulled the amulet Darqlon created for him out of his pocket. If war was coming, now would be the perfect time to wear it. With his combat knowledge back with him he would be able to protect Luna.
He stared at the empty chair next to him and sighed. Where had Cobalt Blossom disappeared to? With Princess Luna assembling the guard, he hoped that CB would pop up soon. He activated the amulet which shrouded him in shadow then hardened into armor.
When he opened the door to the forge, a regiment of guards stood at attention listening to Commander Adamant Aegis. While the veteran pony was no doubt giving them a motivational speech, Grey had no desire to waste time not looking for his new assistant. Plus, he wanted to speak with Luna.
He waited patiently in the court room while Luna ordered her guards. Half of the guards would go to the Badlands and the other half would help evacuate the city. The fact that Princess Celestia was not present did not escape him. Did she personally search for her student? It would not surprise him if she did.
"Lord Grey Wolf," Princess Luna addressed him, he moved forward, "I would like you to lead the guards on this rescue mission."
"I beg your pardon?"
"Thou art the only one here with experience commanding an army into battle. We will stay here to govern my ponies while mine sister is absent. If bloodshed is unavoidable, so be it, but we would like to see this resolved peacefully," she directed.
Grey sighed, "With how things have gone thus far, bloodshed will be unavoidable. Something out there is able to control and manipulate ponies, who knows how many it has at its command," He placed a balled fist over his heart and stood at attention, "I will lead your guards and I will stop at nothing to quell the threat."
The midnight alicorn stepped down from her throne, levitating a golden sash with the Equestrian coat of arms on it, "With our power as co-regent of Equestria," she placed the sash over his shoulder, "We name you Brigadier General of the Royal Guard."
Grey bowed, "Thank you, your Majesty, I will not fail you or Equestria."
Onyx nearly broke down the green door of the small cottage by knocking on the wooden door. "Kyllgorr!" he shouted, "Something big is about to happen. I think the cultists are preparing to attack!" He heard voices on the other side of the door. "I know you're in there! We could use all the help we can get."
Amy placed a hoof on Kyllgorr's shoulder, "You have to help them, Killy. If it is as bad as Onyx said..."
Kyllgorr huffed, "Onyx always exaggerates in his stories. They're a small cult, what can they do?"
"Please, Killy? If not for the Princesses, can you do this for mefor your brother?" She hated to use Wolf to guilt him, but she knew Kyllgorr could defend Equestria from the cultists.
He growled as he got to his feet and turned to herhis eyes faintly glowing, "I will make them all pay for his death."
Onyx was about to knock on the door again, when Kyllgorr barged out, sending Onyx to the ground.
"You're flying me there," Kyllgorr asserted.
"Shouldn't we just go in there?" Vinter inquired to the new Brigadier General, as they and the rest of the forces blockaded the Hive.
"Only if you want to die, Adjutant," Grey replied, "We would be funneled into their defenses. Tell the unicorns to prepare their biggest fire ball spells to launch into the cave. We will smoke them out."
"Yes, sir!" Vinter ran down to the regiment of unicorn guards.
Grey turned his focus to the skies, where the regiment of pegasi hovered. He thrust his shield in the air, ordering them to hold a defensive grid. Vinter ran back to him, Grey saw the unicorns with their heads back and globes of fire at the tip of their horns. He held up his sword, then sliced down, ordering them to fire.
The barrage of fire all found their way inside the cave. Flame erupted from the mouth of the cave. Buzzing could be heard. Immediately, a swarm of Changelings emerged from the cave. The wave of black crashed against the pegasi.
"Unicorns, fire at will!" Grey commanded.
The regiment of unicorns followed their orders and launched fire at the ranks of the Changelings. Larger Changeling warriors stormed out of the cave, charging at him. Grey ran towards them, sword in air, and the guards charged after him with a war cry. Grey easily cut down the warriors and smaller worker changelings, he had to push through to get inside and rescue Twilight, if he was not too late already.
After a grueling twenty minutes of battle, he made it inside the cave. He turned back to observe his forces and frowned. They fought valiantly but the Changeling numbers were too much to overcome. He was surprised to see Vinter charge through a warrior and run up to him. His dark coat and wings covered in their green blood and red blood of his comrades.
Grey grinned, "Let's go rescue the Princess." Vinter nodded with a sword in his mouth and the two proceeded deeper.
Darqlon tapped his horn on the Herald's head, she collapsed, holding her head. When the pain subsided, she managed to get to her hooves, and could see the world better than ever before. No longer did her vision cross nor did she see two different things. Tears began to flow from her new eyes. She fell to Darqlon's hooves.
"Oh, Master! Thank you! Thank you!" Ditzy Doo sobbed, "All my life. . ."
He placed a hoof under her chin and smiled, "I promised to cure you. You have served me faithfully and I reward those who serve loyally."
"I can't thank you enough, Master!"
"Save it for later, Ditzy, we have to prepare for the upcoming battle."
"Yes, Master," the grey pegasus picked herself up from the ground.
The abyssal black alicorn walked over to the Harbinger, who bowed respectfully to him, "And I have not forgotten about your service, Trixie."
"Trixie? How could you?!" Twilight shouted, gripping the bars to her cage, "After everything that has happened?"
"The Great and Powerful Trixie does not have to answer you," Trixie snipped.
"Darqlon. . . why?" Celestia asked crestfallen.
"For your power of course. I find it amusing how easy it was to manipulate you," he said arrogantly, stepping up to her cage. "You, and your sisterand every magical being does not have the right to control nature. Magic is artificial and a plague. You believe in balance and harmony? You have destroyed the balance and harmony of your world." Darqlon sighed, "I suppose it is wrong of me to accuse you, Celestia, but the child carries the sins of their parents. I know it is not your fault, but you will pay. I will make sure every magical being suffers for disturbing the natural order of things."
"We only wanted to survive!" Celestia rebutted, "My parents and all the alicorns before me, did what they could to protect our world from destruction. Is it so wrong to want to live and not die?"
"Without death and destruction, birth and growth can not be achieved. You think your species, your world, your universe is the first to be destroyed? It is all a part of life. Your people's selfishness caused the premature extinction of all life in your universe. As the God of Law and Order, I can not turn a blind eye to this injustice. Since I can not return home, I will create a new universe here and those Faithful to me will be reborn to a better and natural way of life," Darqlon monologue.
Twilight did not know what to think. What did he mean magic is a plague? What happened to the alicorns? There was so much her teacher had failed to teach her let alone mention. "Darqlon," she spoke up, "If you could give us a second chance and teach us-"
"No!" Darqlon roared. "I am not the Goddess of Mercy! I have passed my judgment! Your reckoning is upon you. You will atone for the actions of your ancestors." He picked up Twilight with his red magic and pulled her out of her cage, slamming her onto the ground, in the middle of the engram. He ripped out the heart of the lavender alicorn with is magic, routing her magenta power into his Changeling army, making them grow threefold in size and tenfold in power.
"No!" Celestia cried out helplessly, tears streaming down her cheeks.
"Master!" a Faithful pegasus ran up to him and bowed, "Scouts have spotted the Canterlot Army advancing. As you said, a man with black armor is leading them."
"Excellent," Darqlon grinned devilishly, "Prepare my army."
Grey could not believe his honey eyes: Darqlon loomed over a bloody lavender alicorn, a hundred dark cloaked ponies waited for them, and Princess Celestia locked in a caged, her will drained from her. He snarled and aimed his sword at the black alicorn but his body did not move. With great strain he tried to move any part of his body and failed.
"Thank you for coming here, Grey. I did not want to go all the way to Canterlot with out my instrument of destruction," Darqlon spoke, sauntering towards them.
Vinter dug his hoof into the ground about to charge. A sharp pain stung his side. He looked back and saw Gray's sword embedded in him.
"No!" Grey growled, unable to control his body, "I'm so sorry, Vinter. . ." The pony bat coughed up blood, his eyes rolled back, and he fell to the ground. "What did you do to me?!" Grey demanded.
"Nothing at all, Grey. I am simply controlling the armor I created for you," Darqlon smirked.
"You bastard!" he spat into the face of Darqlon.
Darqlon grimaced and materialized Grey's helmet, placing it on his head, "Wait here for me."
Grey shouted but the helmet left him mute.
Darqlon levitated the sword on Grey's back out of its sheathe and made his way to Celestia. She gazed up at him with hopeless eyes, accepting her fate. "Celestia, this is the way it should be." She hung her head. Darqlon quickly pierced her heart with the blade and absorbed her golden powers. She collapsed to the ground with a sigh and tears in her eyes.
The black alicorn turned to his followers, "We march to the capital, my Faithful!"
As they neared the capital, Kyllgorr and Onyx saw the black swarms of Changelings massing around Canterlot. Kyllgorr spurred Onyx's collar and tilted Onyx's head by his horns to the city under siege.
"I know!" Onyx roared, "I am not your horse!"
"You are until we get there, pony boy," Kyllgorr retorted.
Onyx began to regret letting Kyllgorr ride on his neck.
The obsidian dragon swooped down, emitting blue flames from his maw, roasting scores of Changelings. Kyllgorr jumped off of Onyx and slammed into a group of Changeling warriors, instantly crushing the one he landed on, and then crushing two of their heads together.
Onyx was confused as to why Chrysalis would lead an attack, after promising that she did not want to see her people suffer. He decided to head for the castle and find her.
Darqlon felt the presence of Kyllgorr and Onyx. He made his way, with Grey, to Kyllgorr.
Kyllgorr spotted Darqlon and Grey headed for him and immediately knew something was wrong: they were not attacking the Changelings. He pounded the head of a warrior into the ground with his foot and ran to them. He barely had enough time to dodge Grey's slash. Now he knew he had to kick Grey's ass.
The two juggernauts fought for minutes, but with Grey being armored, all of Kyllgorr's blows had no effect. He fell to a knee, breathing hard and bleeding profusely. He felt Grey's blade skewer him through the chest. He grabbed the helmet and tried crushing itto no avail. Grey kicked him to the ground, blood gushing out of Kyllgorr's chest. Kyllgorr saw Darqlon's smug grin.
"You. . . you killed my brother. . ." Kyllgorr accused, holding his chest.
"Obviously."
With one motion, Grey lobbed off the great demon's head.
Onyx saw Changelings fly past him as he rounded the corner. Poking his head, he spotted Princess Luna in the hallway. She saw him, too. He ran up to her, sheathing his sword, as she began to wobble.
"What's going on, Luna?" he inquired, holding her up.
"We know not," she exasperated, "They fell upon us like black snow."
"They are bigger and stronger than the ones I met before," Onyx pointed out.
"Yes," Luna sighed and smiled at Onyx, getting her second wind, "I do not think Chrysalis is behind this. She would have shown her self by now."
"So who is controlling the Changelings?"
"I am," a voice rasped behind them. They saw Darqlon and a listless armored Grey at his side.
"What?" Onyx drew his blade, unfurling his wings to shield Luna, "Why!"
"This world is long over due an extinction," Darqlon stated, pointing a hoof, he launched Gray at the dragon.
Onyx blocked and reflected Grey's sword attack, only to be knocked back by a shield bash. He knew what came next. Grey stabbed Onyx through the stomach. Onyx spat up blood and tried to stab Grey in the neck but his blade broke against the armor. Grey removed the blade from Onyx.
Onyx fell to his knees, warm tears rolled down his cheeks, "Things. . . were different over here, Darqlon. They did not need to follow the rules of our universe."
Luna stood still, terrified and shocked.
Darqlon rushed past Grey and kicked Onyx to the ground, "That is where you are wrong!" He forced his hoof down into the face of Onyx, splattering his head like a cantaloupe.
Luna watched in horror. Her eyes shifted to Grey who lumbered towards her. She saw Darqlon's red magic remove Grey's helmet. Grey was crying.
"I'm so sorry, Luna."
Tears welled up in her eyes, "I do not blame you, Grey." His blade found her heart. She gasped, "I. . . love you. . ."
Grey screamed in agony and frustration, "Curse you, Darqlon! I will fucking kill you! I will destroy you! I! WILL!"
Darqlon put the helmet back on Grey to silence him. He went over to Luna and absorbed her blue magic.
In one day, Canterlot and Ponyville fell; the following week, all of Equestria fell, save the Chrystal Empire. Princess Luna had warned Princess Cadance. Shining Armor and the crystal ponies, along with Discord, resisted but ultimately met Grey's blade. Darqlon had ordered the Changelings not to harm the unicorns, and the unicorns became slaves in their home towns. When his conquest of Equestria was complete, Darqlon absorbed all the magic, and destroyed the universe. A Big Bang exploded and with it, Time and Space were created.
Dèshū [Goddess of Death and Mercy] heaves a heavy sigh, "Oh, Brother."
She rises from her Bone Throneher black lace, white frill dress, hugging her petite framecradling a crystal ball, walking to her Creation Room. Once inside, the racks full of crystal balls shine beautifully. She places the crystal ball on an empty pedestal in the center of the dark room.
Onyx perked his head up. Was he hearing things? A strange shift in magical energy pulled towards the southeastthe Badlands. As far as he knew there was only one thing over there: the Changeling Hive. He turned to the cyan, chromatic mane pegasus that stood on the cloud beside him.
"Did you feel that?" he inquired.
"Feel what?" Rainbow Dash replied quizzically.
"That fluctuation in magic."
"No, but then again, I'm not a unicorn. Only unicorns can sense changes in magic," she explained.
"Ah. . . Well, I think we should go warn Princess Celestia," Onyx suggested.
Princess Luna stared out a window in the West Tower. Her astral mane floating in the air. The two men waited for her answer behind her.
"We felt the disturbance earlier, as well," she finally spoke, "We will assemble the guard. First," she turned to them, "We need to do something for you." She walked to the far side of her room where two tall wooden boxes stood, "There is no time to stand on ceremony." With her magic, the two boxes opened, revealing two sets of golden armor.
One set had a more ornate look, obviously meant for someone of high caliber. Both helmets had blue plume brushes, but one had the shape of a wolf's head, the other had the shape of a dragon's head, the ornate armor had an engraving of a wolf's head on the chest piece with a black and silver sash, the other set of armor had a dragon with wings unfurled on the chest with a blue sash, and both armors had the Equestria coat of arms shield on the pauldrons.
Princess Luna levitated the dragon helmet to Onyx, "Lord Onyx, we present you with the armor and rank of Brigadier Commander of the Royal Guard."
Onyx held the helmet in his hands, "I. . . accept. Thank you, your Highness."
She levitated the wolf helmet to Grey, "Lord Grey Wolf, we present you with the armor and rank of Brigadier General of the Royal Guard."
Grey accepted the helmet, "I will not fail you nor Equestria, your Highness."
They both saluted and bowed to the Princess.
She slightly bowed in return, "Now, if you two will excuse me, I must inform the guards about this. You two must go on ahead and scout the Hive."
"Yes, Princess," the two replied in unison.
When she left the room, Onyx shed his black armor to wear his new armor. Grey removed Darqlon's amulet from his pocket and stared at it. He then placed the amulet on a dresser, opting to wear his new armor instead.
Amy dropped a glass and it shattered on the kitchen floor. Shards of glass surrounded her hooves. Kyllgorr heard the noise from the dining room and immediately went to her side. He saw a concerned expression on her face.
"Amy?" he knelt beside her with a hand placed on her back.
She faced him, her amethyst gems wide, "I just sensed a large disruption in magic coming from the direction of Canterlot."
"And that means. . . what?"
"I think it means something bad, Killy," she shook her head, "You should go check it out."
Kyllgorr wore a sour face, "Why?"
"Because of something bad is happening, you should help your friends."
"They are more than capable of"
She cut him off by grabbing his face with her fore hooves, "Kyllgorr," she had a serious tone and eyes, "If not for them, do this for me. Please? I'm scared."
Kyllgorr sighed and held her hooves, "Okay." He gave her a gentle kiss, "I'll do this for you. I won't let anything destroy our happiness. Not now."
Darqlon tapped his horn on the Herald's head, she collapsed, holding her head. When the pain subsided, she managed to get to her hooves, and could see the world better than ever before. No longer did her vision cross nor did she see two different things. Tears began to flow from her new eyes. She fell to Darqlon's hooves.
"Oh, Master! Thank you! Thank you!" Ditzy Doo sobbed, "All my life. . ."
He placed a hoof under her chin and smiled, "I promised to cure you. You have served me faithfully and I reward those who serve loyally."
"I can't thank you enough, Master!"
"Save it for later, Ditzy, we have to prepare for the upcoming battle."
"Yes, Master," the gray pegasus picked herself up from the ground.
The abyssal black alicorn walked over to the Harbinger, who bowed respectfully to him, "And I have not forgotten about your service, Trixie."
"Trixie? How could you?!" Twilight shouted, gripping the bars to her cage, "After everything that has happened?"
"The Great and Powerful Trixie does not have to answer you," Trixie snipped.
"Darqlon. . . why?" Celestia asked crestfallen.
"For your power of course. I find it amusing how easy it was to manipulate you," he said arrogantly, stepping up to her cage. "You, and your sisterand every magical being does not have the right to control nature. Magic is artificial and a plague. You believe in balance and harmony? You have destroyed the balance and harmony of your world." Darqlon sighed, "I suppose it is wrong of me to accuse you, Celestia, but the child carries the sins of their parents. I know it is not your fault, but you will pay. I will make sure every magical being suffers for disturbing the natural order of things."
Grey ignored the green goo that he was crawling through and trudged on to Darqlon's voice. Onyx was in front of him, more serious than Grey has seen him in millennia. Onyx stopped and Grey saw a faint beam of light up ahead.
Onyx's heart broke, seeing his dusky goddess laying motionless and discarded in the green pool. He choked back his tears and signaled to Grey that he spotted Darqlon and two prisoners. Grey crawled beside Onyx and looked through the hole in the ceiling. He could hear Darqlon's soliloquy. That bastard planned to kill them. He saw Darqlon's red magic surround Twilight and he immediately jumped down the hole, with Onyx following.
Twilight saw her life flash before her life, but noticed that it was the flash of gold from the roof of the cave. She rolled to the ground when Grey landed on Darqlon. Onyx soared to Princess Celestia and ripped off the doors to her cage.
Darqlon teleported from underneath Grey, "Get them!" he roared to the Faithful and Changelings.
Grey unsheathed his sword, "Onyx, get them the Hell outta here!"
"Come along princesses!" Onyx picked up Princess Celestia over his shoulder and Princess Twilight under his arm, he launched himself back through the secret entrance.
Grey made short work of the Faithful, blocking their magic with his shield and cutting them down. He felt Darqlon coming from behind and reacted fast enough to absorb the black alicorn's body with his shield. They fought sword to sword, with Darqlon conjuring up multiple crimson sabres.
"Commence the attack of Canterlot!" he ordered the Herald. Darqlon kept Grey to the back of the cave in order to allow his army time to escape.
"Surrender now and I will give you a swift death!" Grey snarled.
"Enough!" Darqlon blasted Grey which sent him to the cave wall. A continuous beam of crimson energy kept Grey pinned. "I am more powerful than you now, Grey! No longer will I play second fiddle! I AM DARQLON, FIRSTBORN, AND HEIR TO ALL CREATION!"
Grey felt Darqlon's horn bury into his chest, piercing the gilded armor. Darkness filled his vision.
Soft humming woke him up. He found himself in a dark place which oddly had light illuminating through the floor. The ground was warm and cloud-like.
"Big brudder!" he heard and was tackled onto his back.
A young girl with long, pink, curly pigtails and vibrant green eyes sat on him. She beamed from ear to ear.
"Dèshū?" he questioned with a groggy and heavy head.
"The one and only!" the young girl chimed.
"Dèshū, what's going on?" he inquired as he sat up.
The girl jumped off him, did a back flip in the air, and landed on the ground with a victory pose. She dusted off her black lace dress, "You're dead! Again. . ." she sighed and placed her hands on her hips, "For someone who is all powerful and immortal, you sure do die a lot, big brudder."
"Darqlon he"
"I know!" Dèshū snipped. "Another dumb big brother. I could wave my hands and put everything back the way it was before, but honestly, I do not like how Equestria turned out."
Then it dawned on Grey, "You. . . You created that universe!"
"Uh, duh!" she gibed, "It was full of cute, adorable creatures and ponies! And rainbows! And friendship!"
Grey shook his head. He should have figured that out earlier.
"That was only a taste of my punishment for you!" she teleported before him, "Since you forgot my BIRTHDAY!"
"Mystin launched a simultaneous attack against every plane of existence!" Grey rebutted.
"Yeah? So? You should have attended my party anyways!" she argued, then pouted, "Y-you know I can't leave here. . ."
Grey sighed and hugged her. Her father knew that she would become the most powerful goddess so he locked her in a prison called the Netherworld. She could not physically leave, but she found a loop hole: she could create other planes of existence in the Netherworld and manipulate others. She spent her time creating worlds and universes with the things she liked but could never visit them.
"I'm sorry, Dèshū. I wasn't thinking."
The petite girl squeezed Grey, "If you had come to visit me, big brudder, I would have sent my Reavers and Reapers to destroy Mystin and his army."
"How can I make it up to you?" Grey held her small shoulders.
She smiled devilishly, "If you use your obelisk, you can reset the WHOLE universe to the very beginning. Do that and we will be even."
"Why don't you just do that now?"
She snapped her fingers and her Bone Throne appeared behind her. She sat down and beamed, "Because it wouldn't be as entertaining!"
Grey huffed, "You little voyeur." He groaned and got to his feet, "Fine. Where is it?"
"That's for me to know and you to find out!" she singsonged and snapped her fingers.
The citizens of Canterlot ran through the streets for their lives. Changelings ripped apart the ponies that were not quite fast enough to out run them. Changeling warriors destroyed buildings and property.
"The horror! The horror!" a pink, blonde earth mare cried. She screamed and ducked in time to miss a warrior's massive pincers.
Onyx swooped down and rescued the pink mare, "Your friendly neighborhood Onyxhere to save the day!"
"Oh, thank you! Thank you!" she hugged his neck tight, and shrieked, her golden eyes fixed on the five Changelings flying after them.
"Time for evasive maneuvers," he opened his wings wide and the Changelings crashed into him. He spun and sent the Changelings slamming into a wall. With a satisfied huff, he flew to the southern gates, where pegasi guards were evacuating citizens. He landed and tried to pry the pink mare off him, she squeezed him with a vise like grip. "Uh, miss?" he chuckled, "you can let go now."
"No! No! Don't leave!" she shouted hysterically.
"Everything is going to be fine. You have nothing to worry about," he assured her.
A massive Changeling broke through the stone gate walls, debris fell. The pink mare screamed in his ear and squeezed him tighter.
Onyx winced and choked, "L-lady! I-I c-c-can't b-brief!" he tapped on her leg.
A yell made him turn around and he saw Kyllgorr slam into the back of the giant Changeling's head. Green spurts of blood fountained out of it as it roared in agony. It reared back and crashed to the ground. Kyllgorr emerged from one of its blue eyes, covered in green goo.
"Stop your flirting and get to killing!" he barked at Onyx then ran down the street to face the oncoming horde of Changelings.
Grey gasped. He found himself back inside the Hive cave. His chest ached and he saw a hole in the breastplate of his new gilded armor. He felt strange. He could not place his finger on why but he could feel power coursing through his body; power he had in his previous life; power he thought he would never have againand he liked it.
"Thanks, sis," he commented as he got to his feet. He picked up his sword and shield and teleported out of the cave.
"That the best you got, Darqlon?!" Kyllgorr challenged.
He held the black alicorn's hoof from suffocating him and kicked Darqlon in his barrel, which made him stumble back. Kyllgorr launched himself up and body slammed the black alicorn. Darqlon rolled out of the way of Kyllgorr's punch and fired a blast of magic at him. Kyllgorr shrugged it off, but left him exposed. Onyx shoulder charged Darqlon before the alicorn's horn found Kyllgorr's heart. The two of them held their ground, defending the three princesses passed out behind them.
They glared at each other in the court room. The immaculate marble floor and walls stained with blood and scorch marks of magic. The chandelier laid broken in the corner where Darqlon had tried to crush Twilight. Luckily for her, Princess Luna distracted Darqlon long enough for her to dodge out of the way. As hard as the three princesses fought, they were clearly no match for the abyssal alicorn. The massive wooden doors of the court flew off their hinges.
Darqlon could not believe his eyes. Grey advanced slowly towards himhis eyes glowing. Onyx heaved a sigh of relief.
"What took you so long?" Kyllgorr heckled, resting on his knee.
"You. You should be dead!" Darqlon roared.
Grey stopped in his tracks, "Aren't little sisters great, Darqlon?"
"All of your siblings are dead!" Darqlon thought for a moment. "Dèshū," he said in realization, "it makes sense now."
"You two get the princesses out of here," Grey cracked his neck and unsheathed his sword, "I have some unfinished business to attend to."
He charged Darqlon, but Darqlon shot a powerful crimson beam at him.
Grey held out his hand and absorbed the beam, "That trick won't work twice, old friend."
Darqlon summoned six crimson sabres and attacked. Grey defended and deflect his attacks. He grabbed a sabre and shattered it. Darqlon stepped back in disbelief.
"Stop this madness, Darqlon, and I'll spare your life," Grey offered.
"I don't need your generosity," Darqlon snapped and went on the offense against Grey again.
Grey danced between the attacks, closing the distance between him and Darqlon, "So be it."
He landed a huge uppercut to the alicorn and spun, delivering his blade into the chest of Darqlon, puncturing his heart. Darqlon gasped, his face twisted with shock. Grey removed his sword and Darqlon collapsed to the ground in a pool of his own blood. Grey did not hesitate to decapitate his former comrade. Grey heaved a sigh of relief but new that he had one thing left to accomplish: find his obelisk.
He tracked Onyx's scent to the dining hall and when he opened the door was glad to see the two of them waiting by the door.
Onyx sat on the ground with a huff, "I'm glad it's over."
"Not quite. Where are the princesses?"
Kyllgorr pointed to the corner of the room where the three alicorns laid talking to each other.
He made his way to them and bowed, "Your Majesties."
Luna jumped on him, wrapped her fore hooves around him, and planted him with a long kiss, "We. . . he said you were dead. . ."
Grey hugged her tightly and gazed into her wide teal eyes, "I was dead." He gently pushed her back and showed her his chest where Darqlon's horn pierced the breastplate. "Death and I have a strong friendship."
Luna kissed her hero once again.
"The day is not won yet," he said, when Luna broke their kiss, "There is still an army of Changelings, heretical ponies, and I need to find my obelisk."
"I wish we could help you," Celestia spoke, "But I instructed Twilight and her friends to hide your obelisk."
"Actually, Princess Celestia," Twilight dug her hoof in the marble floor, "I. . . know where it is." She smiled sheepishly with her ears folded back.
Celestia shook her head, "Where is it then?"
"Ponyville."
Applejack stared in horror at the black mass of Changelings that descend from the sky and swarmed Ponyville. Her gawking was interrupted when two Changelings landed beside her. One screeched at her.
"Y'all are much bigger than before!" She pulled her hat down, "Jus' means Ah gotta hit y'all harder."
Rainbow Dash had prepared all able and willing ponies to defend the small town at Onyx's request. A small sandbag fort circled City Hall. The young and old ponies protected inside with the unicorns shield magic. Much to Fluttershy's chagrin, she asked the animals to aid the ponies in their defense but the animals were more than glad to defend their homeland. Rarity commanded the remaining unicorns to act as ranged support; Pinkie Pie was to lead the earth ponies as the main body of defense; and Rainbow Dash led the pegasi as cavalry.
A loud buzz could be heard. The swarm rushed through the streets and over rooftops.
"Here they come!" Rainbow Dash warned.
All the ponies prayed to the Four Princesses to give them the courage and strength to fight.
Onyx and Kyllgorr did not join them in heading for Ponyville. Kyllgorr was quite incessant in going to Fillydelphia. Onyx decided to fly him over there. Grey jumped off the edge of Canterlot and hurled himself down to Ponyville, not wanting to encumber Luna or Celestia.
Grey landed in the middle of town with a huge impact that sent out a shock wave of energy. He obliterated Changelings directly under him and the pressure from the shock wave pulverized Changelings in a two hundred hoof radius. The Changelings scattered and retreated.
"Yeah! You better run away!" Rainbow Dash panted heavily. She assessed the damage and frowned. Too many ponies laid on the ground dead and even more groaned in pain and agony.
"They will be back," a familiar female voice said behind her.
The cyan pegasus turned around to see a battered Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Twilight, "P-Princess?!"
"You did well, my little pony," Princess Celestia complimented, "Take the injured to the hospital. Princess Luna will protect them."
"Yes, ma'am!" Rainbow Dash saluted and darted off.
Princess Luna helped the injured ponies up and advised them to go to the hospital.
"Twilight, I need you to show Grey where the obelisk is. I," she sighed, "I will handle the deceased ponies."
Grey rendezvous with the Princesses with a somber expression, "Ain't war Hell? At least we are close to ending all of this."
"If you would please follow me, Grey," Twilight requested.
"Lead the way, Princess."
They did not need to go far. After five minutes of walking, the lavender alicorn stopped in front of a stone road marker. She tapped her horn on the prism and it slowly turned into an obelisk.
"Hidden in plain sight," Grey mused.
"The best hiding spot," Twilight smiled up at him.
Grey sighed, "I guess this is the end." He stepped up to the obelisk, which started to glow.
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.
Grey smiled, "Nothing to worry your little head about. An end is just the beginning of something new."
He placed his hand on the tip of the obelisk and a flash of white light exploded.
