Solar Court, Canterlot - EquestriaSolar Court, Canterlot - Equestria
14th of Chillfrost 16 EoH
The sun shone through the stained glass windows, projecting images from Equestria’s past onto the highly polished marble floor. The pillars holding up the massive vaulted roof were fashioned from perfectly clear quartz and decorated with intricate carvings. Between each window hung finely woven silk tapestries, bearing the crests of the families who ruled Equestria’s various provinces.
The raised dais upon which the throne sat had a plush red carpet leading straight to it from the doors, and was paired with two large red and gold tapestries on other side of the throne which hung down to the floor, providing the impression that the carpet was some sort of silken river pooling around the throne, which sat between two ‘waterfalls’.
But the crown jewel of Celestia’s throne room was her throne itself.
The throne’s shape was reminiscent of a fancy high backed dining table chair. Were it not for the gold leaf covering its entirety and the quilted red silk lining the back and seat, the throne could almost be called simple. Instead the small embellishments, the gold, the silk, the small white diamonds inset into the intricacies of the decorative carvings, they made the throne into a piece of artwork.
Celestia sat on her throne, her ethereal mane flowing regally in the soft white light, looking as close to the sun as anypony could hope to become.
Before her stood a pair of ponies. The first was Princess Cadence, who was looking a little nervous at the moment. The other was a slightly tall unicorn mare with a pastel washed out purple coat, and a slightly pink pearl colored mane. She was Cadence’s chambermaid Sunset, a personal assistant of sorts to the Princess of Love.
Celestia nodded at the two mares as they approached her throne. She couldn’t help but frown at Sunset. While the mare had a common name her flawless memory reminded Celestia a lot of her foster daughter who had also been named Sunset. Their cutiemarks were similar as well, but the Sun Princess’s ‘identify’ spell always listed her as Sunset Breeze, and it had never been fooled before.
Of course, the pale purple pony was also creepy for not seeming to have any sort of personal aura, yet still being capable of magic. Presumably, her talent rendered her aura invisible, but Celestia always assumed there was more to oddities than the obvious explanation.
“Is something wrong, your majesty?” Sunset asked with a polite yet concerned frown.
Celestia pursed her lips, mulling the idea of confronting her over for a few moments. “I’ve suspended court for one hour to address your proposal, Cadence. But please let me have one minute. It’s time I asked something. Miss Breeze, why don’t you have any personal aura?”
The mare’s ears drooped in alarm, but her face remained static. “Er, beg pardon?”
“I’m sorry, perhaps I should have provided some context,” Celestia conceded politely. “Every time I see you, you seem to have no magical aura at all. I have known a few unicorns who had no aura, but they were magically dead, and I have seen you perform basic spells before. Are you intentionally concealing your aura? That is a crime, in case you are unaware.”
Cadence cleared her throat. “Tia, she doubles as my bodyguard. Her lack of an aura is a combination of her special talent and an enchantment we co-designed. We wanted it to only mask her active spell effects and enchantments, but well, we couldn’t achieve that level of precision.
“As she can’t go around the palace heavily warded and not disrupt diplomatic functions, we decided it would be best to keep possible attackers worried and guessing at what she could have than knowing what she does have. She has my authorization to use Cloaking charms… Does she also need your approval? I’m sorry if that is the case. I thought my authorization would be enough.”
Celestia nodded slightly, turning her head to face Sunset. “Is this true?” She asked.
“Yes,” Sunset agreed immediately.
“Alright. I’m satisfied. For the record, Cadence, your authority is more than sufficient to authorize a pony to carry a weapon. You can appoint knights, after all. IF you wish to update your enchantment, Miss Breeze, I can provide you with a similar Cloaking Spell used by my Guard which works as you intended,” Celestia offered as she settled comfortably back into her throne.
“Now then, Cadence,” Celestia continued, turning back to face her old friend. “You want to convince me to grant asylum to a litch, a Sapphire changeling, and a Prench deserter. I’ll happily allow Light Step to immigrate, anypony who leaves an army over moral concerns is, of course, welcome in Equestria.
“But the others? I must admit I laughed at your letter, but you did seem quite serious. Written words are not suitable for this matter. Convince me.”
Cadence nodded. She’d known that it would be a hard sell to bring Repose and Felling into Equestria itself. What’s more, she didn’t want to essentially keep them prisoner in her castle for the next four decades.
“Celestia,” Cadence began, “I am aware of how insane it must sound for me of all ponies to ask you to grant asylum to a litch. However, despite Gentle Repose’s undead state, I assure you he is quite sane. The mercenary I have employed to escort him checks in with me daily, and she has been very consistent in her reports.
“Gentle Repose is indeed a litch. But he is absolutely harmless. While the technical details went over my agent’s head, it’s very clear that Repose solved some major flaw in the spells and enchantment which creates a litch. He has retained his personality, emotions, memories, and possesses no malicious intentions.
“In fact, he has been consistently described as ‘Twilight if she preferred enchantment to evocation’. An assessment I agree with based on the data. He’s a tinkerer and a nerd. The only difference between himself and anypony else is he is exceptionally hard to kill.
“What’s more, as he is over five hundred years old, it’s clear his sanity is stable and will last. But the most convincing fact I can share with you his reason for seeking to become a lich in the first place. He was afraid of missing out on new discoveries.”
Celestia blinked, a frown parting her lips. “He became undead so he could see the march of technological progress?” she asked incredulously.
“Yes,” Cadence confirmed. “He has no desire to rule, and even as a litch he’s only in pre-alicorn Twilight’s league as a mage. He’s not dangerous.”
“At the same time, a walking corpse would frighten anypony enough to attack him. Would he remain peaceful in such a situation?” Celestia asked.
Cadence smiled, shaking her head. “Actually, you’d never know he wasn’t alive. He keeps his body in pristine shape. In fact, he’s rather cute. If I was into necrophilia and didn’t have Shining in my life, I wouldn’t mind a few romps with him.”
Celestia nodded thoughtfully, trying to think of any other major issues with allowing an undead temporary citizenship. “Very well… How hard would he be to destroy if we had to fight him?”
“Fairly easy,” Cadence soothed. “Again, he’s not stronger than Twilight used to be. Additionally, he’s not a battlemage, though he does apparently know a few field artillery and fortification spells. However, I know his weakness. As it happens, what makes a lich a lich is binding their consciousness to an object, and controlling their body from it like a puppet.
“Repose is bound to a pocket watch. It’s magically protected from accidental damage, naturally. But it's still just a watch. Smash it, and he would die immediately. Furthermore, I have it on good authority that he can not leave an area of a few kilometers around that watch. If he does, he would drop dead and have to reform a new body, which takes several days.
“If you wanted to contain him, you, I, or Twilight could simply keep the watch on their person. However, I personally see this as cruel since again, he’s just a nerd who likes to tinker.”
Celestia hummed to herself and then nodded once more, her eyes softening. “Alright. Let’s move on to Felling Axe. Why should we allow him in?”
“Because he’s not one of Chrysalis followers, and should be treated like anyling not affiliated with her Warband,” Cadence answered instantly.
Celestia sighed in frustration. “If that’s true, then he’s welcome,” she said, shifting forwards in her throne to look Cadence in the eyes. “However, while you did say that in your letter, I need proof. The Sapphire Hive is an official enemy of the state. We are in a state of war with them.
“Yes, still. I’m not entirely convinced Chrysalis is dead for sure. Maybe I’m just being silly, but someling that old had to have a contingency plan or two. Which is why I am still holding the Sapphires captured in the battle of the badlands in military prisons.
“What is your proof that Felling is not affiliated with his family?”
Cadence gave Celestia a thousand yard stare, looking directly into the off-white alicorn’s eyes with all the incredulously her mind could muster.
“He’s an individual,” She said incredulously. “He’s got a personality. He’s a people.”
Celestia frowned, her brow furrowing at Cadence’s tone. “Cadence…” she warned.
The princess had always hated feeling mocked.
Cadence’s face scrunched up in confusion. “How- I… Nevermind. You forgot. That’s fine. Chrysalis used some kind of spell to turn her entire army into drones. Remember? They would atrophy and just kind of drop dead within a few days of being too far from the swarm?”
Celestia opened her mouth, shut it again, and slapped a hoof to her forehead in embarrassment.
“Faust’s mane… you’re right. Since he’s still an individual he couldn’t have taken part in the invasion,” she groaned. “I’m sorry, it’s been a long, long day. I had to explain to a Duke that his threat of ‘leaving the union’ is empty because it’s illegal for a province to leave Equestria, and that his soldiers would probably not continue to follow him if he succeeded because I refused to allow him to annex part of Zebrica…”
Celestia sighed and rubbed her temples. “I’m starting to wish I had made it a crime to threaten to leave. Then I could just replace that idiot. His daughter is a much more stable and kindly mare.”
“Er, well…” Cadence began, suddenly shaking her head. “N-nevermind. Back to Felling Axe… he did take part in the Invasion. However, he claims to have deserted during it after being ordered to attack civilians. He even took out many of his own hive before leaving the battlefield. I think that’s worth a pardon.
“Especially since we have another Sapphire soldier serving in the Wonderbolts.”
Celestia nodded. “Granted,” she admitted. “That is commendable and deserving of a pardon. For the record, Lightstride is mentally ill. She may have been a Sapphire, but as of today, she’s 'always' been a pegasus. And don’t say otherwise around her. Didn’t Twilight explain Kriit’s Syndrome to you?”
The pink alicorn shook her head. “No, this is the first I am hearing of this,” she informed with a concerned frown. “Is she getting medical care?”
“No, there isn’t a cure,” Celestia replied. “Kriit’s is a post-traumatic disorder for changelings which occurs if something happens to them which is so heinous they can’t bear the thought of being a changeling any longer. They abandon their identities and fully fall into a completely new non-changeling persona. As far as Lightstride thinks, acts, and dreams, she is a pegasus. Ponyfeathers, she’s so convinced she’s a pony that her cutiemark works!
"If she ever remembers her true identity she could die due to subconsciously willing her body to self-destruct. Let me be clear, there is no Sapphire changeling in the Wonderbolts. There is simply a new pegasus member. And if we can ever get her to visit Doctor Lily, there will be no trace of changeling left in her. Understood?”
“Understood,” Cadence agreed with a sharp nod. “Back on topic, what is your decision?”
Cadence stood still while Celestia rolled her lips in thought, eventually nodding to herself.
“I think I will allow them temporary citizenship, for the duration of their exile from Prance,” She decided. “However, before I do I want three things to happen. First, they are to be delivered to your keep as soon as possible. I want you to personally read each of their hearts and send me a letter giving me your personal assessments. No third party info. Your mercenary could be wrong in her judgment.
“Second, I want Twilight to confirm your assessment. I’ll have her travel to the Crystal Spire as soon as she can. Yes, I know she is uncomfortable there, but I am sure she will understand this is important.
“Third, I want you to tell me why you are helping them.”
“That’s all reasonable,” Cadence agreed with a polite nod. “I was going to pick them up personally on the border, but I can have the airship they are using arrive at the Spire instead. As for Twilight, she should come to the Spire anyways. Because of the ‘why’.
“I’m helping these three because Emperor Prance asked me to. Repose was exiled by the Steward because he was working on a possible cure for the Emperor’s condition. I was promised a very favorable trade deal in exchange for assisting the Emperor in this way… and he’s my friend. Why wouldn’t I help somepony who is likely to have a way of healing an injured friend?”
Celestia sighed, closing her eyes tightly. “Why wasn’t this in your letter!? That’s worth some risk. Cementing a stronger tie to Prance would solve so many of our international problems. Do it! Tartarus, I’ll set up a credit line from the treasury for the project.”
Cadence coughed into her hoof. “I didn’t mention it in writing in case the letter was intercepted… The three of them are still outside our protection. Oh yes! I was also promised that Twilight would be given access to the Emperor’s personal library of First Kingdom tomes if he is healed with our assistance.”
“He promised what?” Celestia asked, eyes widening.
“He’ll let Twilight read preserved, readable condition, First Kingdom era books, including spellbooks, which he has kept preserved since his colthood, if we help him return to his throne,” Cadence repeated.
Celestia waved a hoof at her throne room doors urgently. “Why are you still here? Go! Housing a pair of unusual ponies and a changeling is a small price to pay for that! I’m assuming she will be allowed to make copies? … It won’t matter, she’ll remember them.”
Cadence smiled happily. She had hoped she wouldn’t need to use the fact they were being paid handsomely to help in order to convince Celestia to do the right thing. Which is why she saved that card for the very end.
“Do you still want me to go through with conditions one and two?” Cadence asked happily.
“Yes! Just to be safe, we need to still be absolutely certain they are all good ponies. Or bugs,” Celestia agreed. “However, if the reward for helping them is priceless knowledge made accessible to our greatest wizard, some leeway in just how good they are is acceptable so long as we can control them.
“I have to return to my duties. As soon as you get a budget for their work send me a letter by dragonfire. I’ll have a credit line available and ready to be opened by moonrise.”
“Of course, Tia,” Cadence agreed with a smile. “We’ll get right on that. Come on Sunset, we need to get to the Spire and talk to Blade. Get her to change course.”
Sunset nodded, speaking for the first time since the conversation began. “I’m sure she’ll understand, Cadie. Farewell, Princess,” she said, giving Celestia polite bow before the two mares teleported away.
One going to the Crystal Spire, the other returning to the pirate airship, the Kestrel. ‘Blade’ already had her orders.
Light Step - 14th of Chillfrost 16 EoH
The Kestrel - In Flight Above the Trade Sea
I’d been on a lot of airships in my day. The Kestrel was one of the worst. Big canvas balloon, sides made of scrap steel, overlapped to form crude armor… It looked like a literal flying junkyard.
It also flew like a junkyard. The rough timber deck shuddered and shook even without winds blowing the hull about. The whole thing creaked and moaned.
Blade wasn’t joking when she said she sent a crippled ship to pick us up. I wasn’t even a Sea Guard and I could tell this heap was limping along after being battered to hell and back. I remember somepony mentioning something about this thing having fought a Griffonese flagship. It seemed beaten and battered enough to have just barely limped its way to victory against something like that.
All that said, it was still fairly fast, I didn’t have to walk, and I fit comfortably into the rear cargo bay. Also, somepony had thought to bring me something to eat. It was a sweet thought, but two chicken breasts are half a mouthful when I’m not normal sized. Thankfully, we would be landing soon.
Blade came back from checking in only to report that plans had changed and we were being taken straight to the Crystal Empire. Why? Turns out that the Emperor heard about Repose’s attempt at a cure, and went over the Steward’s head to get Celestia to agree to construct the device and shelter us in exchange for something pretty big.
Which meant we were heading to work as soon as possible. Because Celestia really wanted whatever her reward was.
With any luck the Crystal Empire would have enough food to keep me going until somepony could shrink me. Mabey Repose could make a charm before being put to work? If not, surely someone else could help. I heard a rumor that the Crystal Empire was the transformation capital of the world.
The timber door leading into the airship’s main deck creaked open. Red’s boots thunked loudly against the floor as he stepped in and closed the door behind him.
This was the first time I’d ever seen him with his helmet off. He was a pretty handsome stallion, dark chestnut fur, a sandy tan colored mane given a short cropped military cut, and emerald green eyes.
He’d kept the rest of his armor on, which made me wonder how a jawline could look more chiseled than plate steel. And also what exactly he had in that full saddlebag and rucksack kit lashed to his back.
“Red,” I greeted with a hungry nod.
“Hey there, kid,” Red greeted with a smile. “Finally have a little time to break away from everything. Sam needed a pretty damn good nap and a hearty meal to get her head back on straight. Are you ready for that explanation I promised?”
I nodded. “Yes. Please.”
Red slid the bags off his back and sat down next to the door, facing me as I lay between two stacks of crates. “Where do you want me to start?” He asked plainly.
I didn’t even need to think for a second. “What is Tartarus? Why do ponies think nothing lives there? How do souls get trapped there? What’s supposed to happen to a soul after you die anyways, I thought they just burned out unless a Necromancer preserved it.”
“We’ll start with souls. This all comes down to souls, so they are pretty damn important,” Red said with a grim frown. “Your soul isn’t what most people think of when they think of the soul. It’s not the force that animates you, it’s not your consciousness. It’s a metaphysical record of you. A copy of your consciousness, with a flawless memory. They are like books that record everything about you.
“Normally, when you die, your soul would… Well, to stick with the book analogy, when your body dies, your soul is read on a higher plane of existence where the gods live. Your consciousness pops back into existence as it's 'read', emerging from your ‘book’. You would then be ‘read’ by Dusk, the goddess of death, and you would be judged by your deeds in life, and your soul would be placed into an afterlife constructed expressly for you. It could be a paradise, it could be a copy of the world you knew, it could be a pit of despair. Depends on what you did in life. You're your own measuring stick.”
“Excuse me,” I interrupted. “But this is just the Old Religion… Is it right? My best friend was a follower. I know a lot of it.”
Red shook his head quickly. “No, most of it is wrong. Anyway, that’s what normally happens to a soul. It’s put into a place made just for you, shaped by your actions. You live there for the rest of eternity.
“But, souls can be burned. Not you know, actually lit on fire, but there isn’t a better word for it. The consciousness can be awakened, recreating the being who ‘wrote the book’, and they can be dismantled slowly to create vast amounts of energy. More energy than any of us mortals can comprehend.
“This is what Tartarus is for. It’s a huge trap meant to drag people, ponies especially, inside. There are portals across dimensions leading to Tartarus from everywhere. Every reality you can imagine. Why? Because if you die there, your soul can’t leave and just drifts around the realm until a demon eats it and burns it for power over the course of eons.
“That’s what demons are for. They are batteries that store the energy of dying souls, as well as warriors under the command of Tartarus’s creator.”
I realized I had been holding in a breath and let it out slowly. “Okay, okay. So. That entire universe is artificial. It’s creator made it to burn souls for fuel to power an army of super-monsters… Having been there, I believe you. That place... It’s not right. Why is the ground alive!?”
“Oh,” Red said, changing conversational gears to a more ‘talking about my adventures’ grandsire tone. “The entire universe is one singular living organism. It took me a long time to get an answer, I had to track down a motherbucking demonic myth to-”
“Wait, wait, what? Myth? They have Myths!?” I demanded incredulously.
How the flying buck could that screaming monster have been smart enough or social enough to have myths!
“Demons are sapient lifeforms. The big ones fear little ones ganging up on them and killing them to steal the souls they stole for themselves so the little ones can become bigger ones. The smaller ones band together and form tribes. They are fairly civilized when they are Imps and other younger daemons. They get brutal as they age and gain power,” Red explained. “Anyways, I had to track down a myth of theirs. A succubus who has free will, I didn’t think one could exist, but she does! She’s also nice. Fell for a young colt in this world actually. Apparently, she likes being a housewife…
“Er, bunny trail aside, Tartarus is one giant living organism because that makes the realm metaphysically ‘life’. Which is why the demons leader can go there. Normally, Dawn can’t leave this universe. He’s chained to it like any other God. But because that universe is nothing but his own domain, he can enter it. It’s a sanctum.”
I frowned, tilting my head in confusion. Which I swore leveled my head relative to the ground.
“The god of LIFE made Tartarus?” I scoffed.
Red nodded. “He did. He’s evil.”
“How can life of all things be evil?” I asked with an eye roll.
“Botflies,” Red answered immediately.
“Huh?” I asked.
Red sighed. “We have a lot more to get to. I’m only going to say this once. Dawn is evil. It's not living itself, or the concept of life. It's the asshole in charge of it. Think about how life is for a moment, really think about it. Botflies, big fat bucks that reproduce by laying eggs inside a pony’s skin. A pony feels a small sting and then a week later has maggots eating them alive for a month until they have grown so big they leave tunnels through the flesh, dig their way out, and then go to pupate into flies and infest others. Oh, and they prefer to lay their eggs in your eyes.
“There are hundred of foals born every year with bone cancer. Cancer which despite magical treatments, mundane treatments, and even alchemy once you get it, it can always come back even if fully removed. Love, the greatest pleasure we can experience can also be the worst pain imaginable to go through, even retroactively under commonly occurring conditions. There are entire species of fungi whose entire life cycle revolves around taking over the bodies of living changelings and using them to spread the fungi to the entire hive so it can eat all of them from the inside out.
“Do you need me to go on? There are countless ways life is cruel, downright evil, and vile seemingly at random. Now remember, there's a guy in charge of all this shit! And the most insidious thing is that despite all of that, no matter what cruelties which you can think of that exist in the world you still want to live.”
“Of course I want to live,” I exclaimed with lips pulling to one side. “Why would I not? There’s a lot of good in life too! It’s worth all the pain.”
Red nodded. “Yeah. That is how every last living thing feels. We also all fear death. We all hope. That’s the point, that’s what he wants. It’s no fun for him if his playthings give up, lay down, and die.”
“But life is about more than just avoiding death!” I protested. “Everypony wants to… start… a… family. Oh.”
It clicked. It really finally clicked. Life was harsh and unfair, that was true. And there were just enough things good about it to keep you hopeful and going on long enough to make more life. Which would also inevitably suffer and spend most of their lives doing everything it took to avoid hardship and pain… and fail. Because everypony experiences some torment.
Red nodded solemnly. “Mhm. What kind of god would make a world like that? Sure. If you let creatures have free will there is going to be pain and suffering. I accept that. But why botflies? Why birth defects? Why can giving birth kill the mother? Why all those ways the world itself can torment you for no reason? Whatever god is in charge of life is either incompetent, or cruel.
“In this case, he’s an asshole and does all of this because he likes it and can get away with it.”
“You’re gearing up to kick his ass!” I exclaimed as the pieces fell into place.
“Yes. I am,” Red confirmed with a proud smile. "Don't get me wrong, someone has to be in charge. But this guy needs to be fired, and since I don't know how to talk to his boss..."
“But, like, wouldn’t that kill everypony? I mean if he is life then-”
“No. That’s the best part, it won’t. If we kill Dawn, his godly powers will not be destroyed but instead, will find another consciousness and latch onto it, making a new god of life. We kill that asshole and someone else gets the power to govern how life works. I don’t want that person to be me, but well, anyone will do better than him,” Red said, spitting in disgust.
“Well, sure… Life is kinda cruel,” I agreed. “But what if someone even more malevolent gets his powers and-”
“The point of Tartarus, the Demons, and luring ponies to die in that realm is to gain enough power so he can kill every other god take their power for himself and become the all powerful overlord of this reality. To have enough power to do that, he will need to kill off a number of people equal to the current population of Equis. I know for a fact he has done this three times before in the past. Oh, and that whole ‘torment’ thing, yeah turns out you get more power out of a soul that suffered in life,” Red said in disgust.
“Ah,” I said, closing my eyes. “Okay, and the good news is… What?”
“Well he hasn’t done that yet because he’s mortal,” Red said happily. “In order to gain enough free will for himself to enact his plans he had to give up some of his power. The downside for him is he can be killed by anything with enough power. He’s not truly immortal anymore.
“If he opened up the gates of Tartarus right now and stormed the world, the combined power of a few alicorns might be able to take him out… if they got very lucky and were very skilled and he slipped up and gave them an opening. But more importantly, the other gods would see him working against the universal order and just annihilate his ass.
“He can’t do shit yet. Not until he can attack without just being insta-killed. And he gains power from his demons. Who can also be killed. With mundane weapons, even. Oh, and when you happen to kill one you can take its power for yourself and well… That power doesn't go to Dawn anymore.
“Kill enough demons, especially the elder ones, and we postpone his planned armageddon. Gain enough power and one day, one of us will get to march up to his fortress and learn if he has a soul that can get sent to his sister. That’s what the Slayers mission is. Delay the inevitable Armageddon, kill Dawn, make life better for everyone, and save the harpies.”
I nodded slowly. With this revelation, I didn’t have a choice. I had to take his job offer. But I still had a few questions.
“Harpies?” I asked seriously.
What the hay were those? A kind of demon? Was there a field manual for them? Some kind of bestiary?
They gave us a bestiary for Prance's monsters. Where else are you going to learn how to identify the different kinds and where their vital areas were?
“Peaceful sapient species native to Tartarus. Extremely kind, but their souls don’t provide much ‘fuel’. Dawn didn’t create them they sort of just sprang into being. They don’t go mad there, but Dawn loves to torment them. The sickest part is that they instinctively want to come to the mortal world, and Dawn lets them. He waits until they are happy and feel safe for the first time in their lives then sends a few demons over to drag them back…” he muttered darkly.
“How big is your organization?” I asked, mentally cringing and raging at that little tidbit.
“Just my wife and I right now. People like you are extremely rare. Despite the small size we’ve set him back three decades so far. Every Elder killed is a serious delay for him,” Red answered.
Okay. Victory was possible. Good.
“How did you learn about all this in the first place?” I asked suspiciously.
“My best friend, a harpy, escaped Tartarus through a portal which happened to be under my bed when I was a colt,” he replied. “I thought she was a monster, she insisted she was running from a monster. She did look really really scared, and dad alway said it was good to be brave so you can be a role model for young fillies needing someone to look up to.
"So I stole my dad’s chainsaw, went through the portal myself, killed the monster, and earned my cutiemark. Been trying to give her a happy life ever since. I am failing. She lost her wings to parasites.”
“I’ll help,” I promised. “When is doomsday? How long do we have to get ready? A week?”
Red shrugged.
“How can you not know that!?” I demanded, ears flying back.
“Sorry, but I don't know. I do know we pushed his planned invasion back thirty years, but I don't know exactly when he planned to attack originally. We have between twenty and thirty years from now before he can attack, assuming we don’t do anything more to slow him down,” Red grunted. “It’s not an immediate threat. We can cool our hooves and train you up. This is something that will happen one day in the far future. If we can’t stop it that is.”
I sighed in relief. “Good! Good… So what do we do then? Do I follow you guys and learn on the job?”
“Hay no!” Red laughed. “You stay in this universe for now and keep an eye on it. This world is Dawn’s second target… he um… he already destroyed one.”
“What?!” I eeped. “But if he-”
“No, no, he didn’t conquer it, he destroyed it. He let out an arch-demon named Grogar to see if he could use his toughest demons to destroy gods. He could. But yeah… that literally destroys the entire universe the tactic is used in. False vacuum collapse. Poof, everything gone. Deleted forever. That was my homeworld too. I liked it,” Red sighed.
“Okay, so he won't do that here because he wants to rule this place, not destroy it,” I said to confirm things to myself.
Because fighting something which once destroyed a universe is more terrifying than I could imagine, WHILE BEING TERRIFIED BY IT!
“No, he won't. And we have at least two full decades to plan and train you. So you just get set up in this universe and act as our scout. When he makes a move, you call us and we come running!” Red said with a grin. “Sound like a plan?”
“You want me to sit on my plot while there’s a bucking doomsday on its way!?” I demanded incredulously.
“No, I want you to train too. I’ll come by whenever I can and teach you everything you need to know. It will be a slow process, but we’ll make a Slayer out of you between missions. And when the shit hits the fan, whenever that may be, then you’ll fight with us,” Red declared as he gazed into my eyes, sealing that promise with a single steely gaze.
“Good… Wait a minute. You said there was a friendly demon,” I said with a frown. “Are there more? Do they all serve him?”
Red nodded. “Yeah, there’s one more besides Helsea. Speaking of that succubus, I promised her I would never tell anyone or thing her pony form’s identity. I can judge hearts now, it’s a skill I learned and can teach you. Despite her origins, she’s on the side of good. Permanently. Because um, well, she’s insane. For a demon. Which makes her safe, nice, kind, and also apparently the best at making chocolate chip cookies. She also thinks souls are gross and doesn't eat them. Completely harmless, since there’s no way to ‘cure’ her, nor does she want to be ‘cured’.
“The only other deamon I found with a good heart didn’t start out as a daemon. They were a filly who got trapped in Tartarus along with their guardian, who was able to shield her mind from the realms mutations, but not her body. Meaning there’s an imp with a pony’s mind out there. That’s all of them I know of, and I’ve seen probably a million.”
“You got her out of there, right?” I asked with a worried frown.
“Who, Helsea? No, she just left,” Red chuckled.
Just left? That seemed too easy. A question for later.
“No! You didn't leave a filly in Tartarus, did you?” I asked pleadingly. “Sure she mutated physically but-”
“Oh! No. Earth Cloud is still in Tartarus for all I know. She and her guardian refused to let me lead them to the nearest portal. Said they were on a mission to find something. They were fine, so I offered to help, they declined, I left them to it,” He explained with a shrug. “Some ponies… am I right?”
That didn’t quite satisfy me.
“What about her guardian? Are they immune?” I questioned.
He nodded twice. “Mhm. The undead can’t be corrupted by Tartarus, and even if she was alive her armor had some really bucking important enchantments on it. Especially that mask… I wish she was evil, I’d have taken it off her corpse.”
“Okay… I um, I guess I’ll have to take your word on that,” I sad.
I was about to ask another question, but then a more important one slammed through into my mind.
“Wait! If demons eat souls, and those souls are tortured people, and that’s where their power comes from, and you’ve been absorbing demons power to get your own power, you’re a demon too!” I accused.
Red rolled his eyes. “No, I’m not! I’m not absorbing the souls. I set them free and absorb the energy created by burning them which had yet to be consumed. You know, the already destroyed parts which sadly, you can’t put back. It's why I’ve killed several hundred thousand of the damn things but am only just now as powerful as a Hell Barron. A mid-tier demon. I get very little power per kill.
"And I don't get demon's powers, the magic I get from them is the same kind harpies have. Mildly enhanced senses. The ability to summon items, change effective mass, speed, and density, and teleportation... Although, porting takes a while to earn. And I've never met a harpy that can do it.”
“Prove it!” I insisted.
I wasn’t about to help until I knew for damn sure that I was doing the right thing.
“Of course,” Red agreed. Reaching into his bag he pulled out a bundle of cloth, unwinding the cloth to reveal the demon heart he’d retrieved the other day. “Touch it. The second you do, you’ll sense all the souls held captive in this thing.
“They will beg you to release them, you can. Just will it and they will be free. The leftover energy is yours to keep. Since you’ll be using it to kill their tormentors, they don’t mind. I’ve had several ponies ask if they could give me all of their power, but I’ve always turned them down. I recommend you do the same.”
I looked at the heart, the odd orange lines glowing within its cracks and crevices made the organ look like it was full of lava.
Should I do this? It could be a trap. An elaborate one meant to trick mortals into getting trapped in some other demon's heart somewhere. Maybe even Red’s.
I knew nothing about him, except that he was ‘at home’ in Tartarus and could use a magic of a kind I’d never seen before. He could easily be a monster pretending to be a friend.
On the other hoof, if he was telling the truth then I had to help. Nothing was being asked of me right now other than to agree to be trained for a new job killing monsters. That’s what I’d done for most of my life so far. The Scouts mostly work on taking down the bigger more dangerous creatures roaming the Empire’s wilds.
Could I trust him? If he wanted to corrupt me, he could easily have done so back in Tartarus. He could have tricked me into eating that heart then and there by saying I had to in order to go home. I’d have bought that.
And this whole spiel. Yeah, it seemed like an attempt to coerce me by using my sense of duty and honor to lever me into doing what he wanted. But while he knew I was a soldier, he knew nothing else about me. He didn’t know my personality at all.
Yeah, this was probably legit. But what happens if this is a trap?
I get used as demon chow.
What happens if this is a legit job offer, and I turn it down?
I just might doom the world to a fate worse than death.
Buck. That’s not much of a choice. Not for me. Needs of the many and all that.
“Alright,” I said with a nod.
I reached out for the heart and took it from his outstretched hoof. It was warm, weighed a surprising amount, and-
<Free us!> A thousand voices cried within my mind.
I dropped the heart in shock. It hit the deck with a meaty thud.
It was all true. No doubt about it.
“How do I-”
“Just will it,” Red repeated.
I nodded, took a deep breath and touched the heart again.
<Please! Mercy!> the voices screamed.
Doing my best to ignore the bubbling mixture of fear and rage the screaming pleas for death, mercy, and freedom, I focused with all my will on the voices, willing them to go where they wished.
<Thank you…> The Heart flashed a bright white. The voices grew silent. The orange glow dimmed, fading until the bright magma-like glow became a mere candle inside a paper lantern.
I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. It didn’t help untangle the knots in my stomach.
“That… I… I don’t-” I stammered, unable to put my emotions into words.
Red stood up and nodded solemnly. “Do you understand why we have to kill those things now?”
I nodded. “I do. So, I just eat this thing? What happens after that?”
“Well, your flight will improve a bit,” Red mused. “You’ll also gain the harpy's most basic ability, summoning. Any object you mark with your name can be summoned to you, and banished back to where it was previously. You need to mark your name in Tartaran runes… Which would be um…”
Red looked around the cargo bay, spotted a wooden crate, walked over and casually ripped a plank off it like tearing a sheet of parchment in half. He then took his hoof tip and scratched three curved, claw-shaped singles into the plank before holding it out to me.
“There you go, it’s Light Step, right?” He asked.
I nodded. “Yeah… Gonna make a joke about my name now?”
“Why? Because you’re a giantess?” Red asked with a laugh. “Nah. Too easy. Well? Going to take my job offer or not?”
I nodded once more, picked up the heart, and sniffed it. It smelled like a burnt potato soaked in urine. This was going to suck…
I ate it. I did my damnedest to blank out the entire experience. The taste, texture, and knowledge of what might go wrong is not something I want to remember.
But the power… Oh, the power!
An overwhelming rush of energy shot through my entire body and STAYED THERE. It was like that feeling of being completely pumped after hearing the greatest motivational speech of your life and then getting to punch your worse enemy in the face!
I had thought I would feel dark, tainted, corrupt, but no. I felt alive! More alive than I had been. This was the greatest I had ever been.
“Holy bucking crap!” I exclaimed in shock as the feeling just refused to go away.
Red’s ears perked in alarm. “What is it? Throat contracting? Guts rolling?”
“No! I feel bucking amazing!” I said with a happy laugh. “Is this what magic feels like? Is this what I’ve been missing my whole life!?”
Red smiled in relief. “Probably, I couldn’t tell you. Earth pony.”
I looked around the cargo hold. My vision seemed sharper and clearer. I could still see shadows but they didn’t hide as much detail as they had a second ago. I could smell ponies two decks above me. I could hear the couple in the cabin above having a bit of adult fun… Ew.
That sounds really wet and sticky. Take a shower break, assholes!
“Right,” Red said to himself. “Feel up to learning how to summon? It’s pretty easy. I can probably teach you before we land.”
“Yeah, let’s get this training started. We may have decades but why waste time?” I asked rhetorically, laying back down to get down to his eye level.
He nodded. “Exactly. Now, to summon, you need to learn how to access your magic. Luckily as an Earth Pony, I had no active magic and had to learn this too. I’ve been where you are and trust me, it’s not too hard to learn. This isn’t unicorn magic or mortal sorcery. First, close your eyes...”