//------------------------------//
// Souls 
// Story: The Disaster Pokemon 
// by Onomonopia 
//------------------------------//

"I can't find my party cannon! Where is my party cannon?!" Pinkie exclaimed as she raced around the princesses chamber, barely able to be seen as she whipped back and forth. She lifted the throne of the princesses and looked underneath of it, before Twilight grabbed hold of her with her magic and dragged her back over to the rest of the group.

"You probably left it in your room, Pinkie," Limestone said with a shake of her head and her sisters antics, while the rest of the Pie family said nothing. Limestone looked around the throne room at the rest of the families that were there with them, including the Apples and Twilight's family. Marble and Big Mac were making small talk (or no talk in their cases), while her parents were talking with Twilight's parents. Fluttershy's family were talking with the family of Rarity, aside from her little sister, who was off with her friends, while Dash's dad stood off by himself.

Pinkie and her five other friends were talking amongst themselves. Limestone couldn't hear what they were saying, but from the looks upon their faces it was evident to the mare that it couldn't be good. Yet with another wary eyes across the numerous families, Limestone had to wonder what sort of event would cause the princesses concern to gather all of their families in the same location.

Yet even with all the tension in the air, Limestone couldn't help but stare in awe at the throne room of the two most prestigious princesses in all of Equestria, those that she had admired since she was a little filly. The paintings and stained glass were a sight to behold, but the eyes of Limestone were all on the columns and floors, which see practically pressed her face against to get a better look at.

'Some of these stones haven't been seen in Equestria for over five hundred years!' she realized silently as her eyes scanned up and down the floors, her body following her eyes as she moved up the material. 'Crystalized sandstone! Where in all of Equestria did they find this stuff?!'

"I am sorry to have called you all here so suddenly," Princess Celestia said as she entered into the room, causing every knee to bow upon her entrance. Once they had bowed all of the families rose up to their hooves, while Limestone did everything in her power to keep from fan-girling at the sight of the princess of the sun. She flicked her mane out of her eyes and tried to stand in a cool way, but when Celestia passed by without a glance Limestone gave up.

"I come bearing grave news. Grave being the word you should be aware of," Celestia began as she reached her throne, turning to face the ponies with a look of uncertainty upon her face. Her horn glowed with the spiraling power of the sun, a magic which she then projected into the air above their heads. With eyes filled with amazement as the magic created an image, one of a being that looked like a floating suit of pony armor, with a dark and evil smile within the helmet.

"This, my little ponies, is the infamous King Spiral, the king of the undead," Celestia explained. Limestone felt herself move closer to her family at the simple uttering of the kings name and a glance at the other ponies showed that they had acted in a similar manner. "He is one of our oldest and most ancient of foes. He is the being responsible for the death of my uncle, Prince Sol."

"I've read about him. He was able to call upon and command the armies of the dead, earning their trust by promising them a place among the land of the living," Twilight stated, turning all heads towards her. Limestone had heard a lot about Twilight from Pinkie, even before she had become a princess, yet every time Limestone was around Twilight she always felt inferior. Like compared to Twilight she would never be anything.

'Actually, I kinda feel that way standing next to any of them,' Limestone thought to herself as she cast her gaze over the other five members of harmony, guilt filling up her heart when she looked at the bouncing, pink pony that was her sister. 'I should be happy for her. She's a freaking hero for Faust's sake. No time for stupid, sisterly jealousy.'

Maud, somehow sensing Limestone's emotions, pulled her into a tight hug, something that also upset Limestone. Despite being the eldest sister, Maud was stronger, taller and had a better education than her. Not that Limestone minded the last bit all that much, as she had chosen to stay on the farm. But still, one more thing to be measured up against.

"...when he unleashed the armies of the dead against the castles in the south, where at the time Prince Sol was ruling," Princess Twilight continued on, snapping Limestone back into reality. She struggled against the might of Maud and her little sister released her grip, allowing Limestone to move over next to Marble, who was staring at Big Mac.

"Enraged by the death of his brother, King Solace defeated the king of the ghosts and imprisoned him in the furthest reaches of the world, where he was supposed to spend all eternity," Twilight finished with a grim look upon her face. "His grave was supposed to be impossible to find, but apparently somepony managed to do it. And with the return of King Spiral comes the return of his army. His army of ghosts."

"So yer saying there's an army of the dead that now haunts the lands of Equestria?" Granny Smith asked.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. And these ghosts...their incredibly strong. The rainbow power can defeat them without much effort, but a normal pony wouldn't be able to even lay a hoof on them," Twilight explained before pulling out a tome and flipping through the ancient text to a page in the center of the book. "According to this, a unicorn with strong enough magic can repel the ghosts, but the unicorn is susceptible to the ghosts power, more so than a regular pony in fact. So all of you need to be careful." 

"Yeah right," Thunder Dash said with a snicker, turning all heads to the rainbow haired stallion that was leaning against the wall, forehooves crossed. "You didn't drag all of our families here just to tell us all of that. A letter would have done that. No, there's another reason you gathered all of us, the families of the six champions of the land I might add, together. What is it?"

"You are more observant than I was led to believe," Princess Celestia said with a smirk before she let out a sigh. "As your father stated Rainbow, there is a reason we brought all of your families here together. It is because we believe the ghosts to be targeting the families of those who bear the Elements."

All of the ponies let out a gasp at this, aside from the six elements who had been told ahead of time. "Both Twilight and Applejack's families were attacked by the ghosts, yet instead of trying to add them to their ranks, the ghosts tried to carry them off. Is that not correct?" Celestia asked as she looked at the families in question, who both nodded their collective heads with worried expressions.

"So that is why we have brought you all together. Because it will be easier to keep an eye on all of you in a large group than it would be spread out across Equestria," Twilight picked up for her former mentor, shifting her weight upon her hooves while her eyes lowered to the floor. "We don't know why the ghosts are trying to take you away. It could be that the king is trying to use all of you as leverage against us or they may just be taking living ponies somewhere. Until we can figure out more, this is all we can do for now. I hope you all understand."

All of the families nodded their heads in agreement, before Celestia stepped forward off of her throne and changed the image floating above them, turning all eyes to her magic once more. The being within the image was hard to see, but the ponies could just vaguely make out something with a white coat of fury and a black horn that looked like a blade upon its head.

"There is also the manner of this strange being that has appeared recently," Celestia added on, narrowing her eyes as she did so. "We know not what it is nor where it comes from, but all we do know is that it has shown up in three cities, right before they were overrun with the ghosts. That leads us to assume that it is working with the ghosts, perhaps as a leader of sorts."

"Of course, that is only speculation. It may not be related to the ghosts at all, but be careful if you see it all the same," Twilight added on, before clapping her hooves together. The doors to the throne room were opened and numerous servants entered the throne room, each of them picking a family and bowing to them. "These ponies will take care of you and your families while you are staying here. Stick close to them and tell them if you have any questions. They and the royal guard are here to protect you. Ponies, please show these guests to their rooms."

Limestone gave the servant that walked over to them a quick glance before she gazed out a window to the side of her. The sky was black overhead and down in the streets she could see the largest gathering of guards that she had ever seen in her life. Despite the throne room being warm and cozy, she still felt a chill run down her spine before she walked over to her family. She spent a moment prying her sister away from Big Mac before she and the rest of her family followed their guide into the castle, all of them excitedly talking amongst themselves.

(]o[)

Limestone was used to sharing a house with her family, which was something that she could just barely tolerate. Having to share a single room, even though it was an incredible furnished and well made room, was where she drew the line. The moment the guide had shown her and her family to the spare room within the Canterlot Castle where they would be staying, she immediately took up residence on the couch.

Her mother and father had said nothing during the time they had been with the others, but now that they were along with their daughters Limestone could see that they had the faintest looks of concern on their faces, even if they did their best to hide it. Marble had made a fort out of her beds pillows and was hiding beneath them, with only her eyes visible beneath the fortress of fluff. Maud sat off by the window, her face unchanged as she spoke to her pet rock.

"So it's ghosts, huh?" Limestone finally said once everypony was settled in, unable to take the monotony any longer. "What, did they run out of giant, mythical monsters to fight and have to fight something that has been scaring little foals since they were little?"

"Says the mare whose legs are shaking," Maud pointed out, getting Limestone to turn on her sister with a look telling Maud to be quiet. Limestone glared down at her legs to get them to root them in place, before walking over to the bed and glancing at the set of eyes gazing out at her from beneath the pillows.

"Marble, get out of there. Pillows won't protect you from ghosts," Limestone informed her sister, plunging a hoof into the fortress of pillows and grabbing hold of her little sister. Marble fought as best she could, but as the second strongest sister Limestone pulled a flailing Marble out from under her pillows with relative ease. "Now set the bed for you and Maud. I need to get the couch ready for me."

Marble did as Limestone asked while Maud continued to stare at the stars outside of the window. Limestone was amazed that they could see any stars at all, with all of the dark clouds that were covering up the sky. She pulled up a chair and sat next to her sister, glancing down at Boulder who was laying on the table.

"What do you think of this whole ghost affair?" Limestone asked Maud in a near whisper, revealing to her sister how afraid she actually was. Limestone often took comfort in Maud whenever she was scared, as not only did Maud practically never show emotion, but Maud would carry a secret to her grave. "I don't know if Pinkie can handle this by herself. Do you think we should back her up? Maybe we could-"

"You said the same thing when she first got her element. Then when Discord attacked. Then Sombra. Need I go on?" Maud replied wisely. "Pinkie will be fine. She is the strongest member of our family. Instead of doubting her, we should believe in her."

"I thought you were the strongest in our family?" Limestone said with a nervous smile, only for Maud to give her a stare as blank as a slate. Limestone then let out a grumble as she rested her head on her hooves. "She's my little sister, yet I can't do anything whenever she needs to go save the world. I should be able to take care of her. I-"

"Would get in her way," Maud finished, getting Limestone to let out a sigh of acceptance and lay her head on the table. "Pinkie has always done things a different way than us. Trying to help her would only hold her back. She can't fly if she's carrying us as well. We're rock farmers. She's a hero. It's that simple."

"I still haven't gotten used to you being so wise. What did those years at school do to the little filly that used to crack her head against a rock to break it?" Limestone asked with a smile at Maud and this time Maud gave her sister the faintest of smiles.

"She learned how to be wise from you," Maud replied, before she looked out the window and narrowed her eyes. "Huh, didn't think they'd show up."

Limestone was about to ask what Maud meant before the window was shattered and Limestone was hurled out of her seat. She hit the ground hard, but managed to retain enough sense to roll up onto her hooves. She laid eyes on the foe that attacked her and her eyes went wide with what she saw.

A being that looked like the upper half of a pony's body floated above her, a wicked and glowing smile on its face as it glared down at her. The being was transparent, yet had a black tint to it that made it look sinister. The ghost looked around the room before two more ghosts with different colors flew in the room behind them, laughing manically as they did so. Under the light of the moon the ghosts seemed to glow with a supernatural power, making them even more menacing than they had before.

Limestone looked past the ghosts to see that Maud hadn't been budged by the exploding glass, yet from the look on her face Limestone could tell she was mad. The ghosts let out a wail and lunged towards the ponies, with one coming right towards Limestone.

"Alright, you want some? Come get some!" Limestone roared as she flung a punch right at the ghost, only for her hoof to go flying through the beings body with ease. She had expected the punch to hit, so her momentum brought her straight down onto her face. She quickly pushed up to her hooves and spun around to face the ghost, only to take a blast of spectral magic to the face. The blast hurled her across the room and into the side of the wall, where she slid down with her head swimming.

Maud placed herself between her sister and the ghosts, the glare on her face getting the spirits to back away for a brief moment. That moment was long enough for the door to be kicked in and three guards to swarm into the room, all armed and one a unicorn. The ghosts cackled as they turned on the guards, their faces looking like smiles as the guards attacked.

The two guards with weapons were tackled to the ground by the ghosts, while the unicorn started to blast the main ghost with magic. The magic blast struck the ghost in the chest and hurled it into the wall and then straight through the wall. The unicorn narrowed his eyes as he started to look around the room, never spying the ghost as it appeared through the floor behind him.

"Look ou-"

Before the words could leave her mouth the ghost slashed the guard in the back with claws glowing in an ominous purple light. The guard let out a weak moan before he fell over, leaving the ghost to turn its attention to the ponies. Limestone's mother and father were trying to stop the two ghosts from getting to them and Marble, as the ghosts were done with the guards. The other ghost approached Limestone and Maud, the latter refusing to move even and inch. The ghost saw the challenge in her eyes and smiled, changing its hoof into the purple claw once more.

As it did this, another ghost flew into the room, one that was large than the other three combined. It was a dark black color while its eyes and mouth spewed a red light. It's body seemed to be a mix between a minotaur and a pony's, but that was all Limestone could make out. The other ghosts stopped what they were doing the moment they saw it, telling her that it was in charge of them. It gazed around the room, chilling Limestone as its gaze passed over her, before it spoke.

"The elements are on their way," it spoke to the other ghosts in a tone that felt like somepony was breathing on the back of Limestone's neck. The ghost then held up a lantern that was filled with a blue light, one that was both comforting and disturbing. "Time to go."

Then everything went black.