When Rothbart was almost ready to rip Blue Sword’s heart, he felt a hoof trespassing his body and reaching his heart.
"What the..." he began.
Blue was stunned when he saw Heartbeat, behind Rothbart, piercing his body with her hoof.
"You forgot to say please" she said to Rothbart, smiling. "Don't you know it's rude to take things that don't belong to us without asking."
"The General of Affection…" Rothbart said, panting.
"What are you doing here, Heartbeat?" Blue asked.
"Golden got to know what was happening and sent me to go in the front" Heartbeat said. "Don't worry, he is coming… with a little surprise. About Medusa… Well, let's just say I wasn't the only one to come."
In a more distant part, Medusa had managed to corner Shining.
"Finally, you don't have nowhere to go and none of your light spells will help you" she said. "Get ready to join my personal collection."
And her eyes shone, while Shining was waiting to be turned into stone. Medusa fired her power, but then it hit on some invisible surface and rebound.
"WHAT?! No!" she screamed, as she was hit by her own petrifying look.
Her body began to petrify, while she said:
"No, this can't be happening again... No... NO!"
And she was completely petrified.
"What the hell happened?" Shining asked.
"It was me what happened" Mirror Coat replied, appearing besides Shining.
"Mirror Coat?" Shining asked, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"Apparently, to stop you from turning into a statue" Mirror Coat said. "Thanks for the distraction. This allowed me to intervene without her noticing."
And after saying this, he summoned the cellblaster, where there was already a life cell, and he sucked the petrified Gorgon to its interior. After this, he summoned the prison-book and put the life cell inside.
"And now we have a full set of gorgons in Tartarus" Mirror Coat said, making the book and the cellblaster disappear.
"We must return" Shining, panting. "The others…"
"Don't worry, everything will be fine" Mirror Coat reassured.
Heartbeat still kept her hoof within Rothbart and then smashed the heart that there was there and then launched him against the floor face down. After that, she used her magic to remove the threats from Blue wires then took him to the edge of the two guards.
"Are you all right, captain?" the light guard asked.
"Yes, I am" Blue replied, turning then to Heartbeat. “You arrived just in time, Heartbeat."
"Yes, I know" she said.
But that was not done, as the red and grey masks appeared, with the first launching a torrent of fire that Heartbeat defended with her barrier. While this was happening, the yellow mask passed through them, heading to Rothbart.
"No..." Blue said, knowing what was going to happen.
The figure began to get inside of Rothbart, while his mask broke, and then he stood up.
"This is unexpected" Heartbeat said.
But the most shocking thing was when the red and grey masks also entered into him, making a lot of threats coming out of Rothbart’s stiches, giving him an appearance similar to the figures, not to mention that the threads were also exiting from his mouth.
"You broke three of my hearts" he said. "You're going to pay because you are destroying a spell that took me years to accomplish. This time, there is no escape."
After he said this, threads came out the ground and intertwined Blue, Heartbeat and the two guards. Then, Rothbart took the parts that were underground to the surface and said:
“Blue Sword, I intended to replace the hearts I lost with yours. But I changed my mind. After all, I can find more hearts anytime I please.”
The red and grey masks appeared on the amount of strings and Rothbart exclaimed:
“NOW, DIE!”
And the two masks opened their masks, preparing to execute their conjugated attack.
It was then a voice exclaimed:
“SPIRALING SPHERE!”
“TEARING TORRENT!”
And so a ball of wind surrounded by water appeared and created together a large quantity of water vapour where a strong wind whirls around, turning it into a solid barrier that stopped the intensive fire. When the vapour assented, Golden Paladin and Star appeared in front of the tangled ponies, who were released.
“Sorry if we’re late, dad” Star said. “But better late than never.”
“Star…” Blue said, not expecting his son to be between the reinforcements.
“You sure have a better timing than me” Heartbeat said.
Golden Paladin took a slight look to Blue and commented:
“I never saw you so troubling about an adversary, Prince Blue Sword. Rothbart must be really stronger than before.”
“I can see you brought me another Jinchuriki to take to my master” Rothbart said, observing Star. “And this one doesn’t seem to be in his perfect condition.”
That was truth,Star was covered by bruises by all the training he got.
“Are you okay, son?” Blue asked.
“Yes, I’m fine, dad” Star answered. “Where’s Uncle Shining Armor?”
“He went to take Medusa away from us” Blue told.
“By now, Mirror Coat is already there” Golden Paladin. “Let’s just hope it’s not too late for Prince Shining Armor.”
“If I were you, I wouldn’t worry about him right now” Rothbart said. “After all, at this moment, you were nothing but heart replacements for me. Except for you, young Jinchuriki. The Lord of Chaos have other plans for you.”
“That’s what we’re gonna to see” Star said. “Now, you’re dealing with me.”
Noticing how confident his son was on his words and the shape of his body, Blue asked to Golden:
“Did he perfect it?”
“No, it only works half of the time” Golden replied. “Although… we’ll just keep watching. Trust me, he has come a long way.”
Star summoned two clones, ready to execute his new spell.
“Prince Blue Sword, can you tells what we are dealing with?” Golden Paladin asked.
“Rothbart is not using the same tricks he already used” Blue said. “It seems he created a new spell that allows him to split himself into multiple entities. See those two masks? Not only they can detach, but each one has its own beating heart and can act on their own. He originally started with six hearts, but now he’s down to three. We have killed him three times already, and he won’t down until we get rid of the other three. Plus, with that, he can fight in mid-distance, using different natures.”
“I see…” Golden Paladin said. “Prince Star Knight…”
“Yes, I know” Star said, while his clones advanced towards Rothbart, before the others’ surprise.
Seeing that, Rothbart launched his treats, being able to catch one of the clones, but the other appeared from behind and launched a magic beam. Because of that, Rothbart had to dodge, while releasing the other clone that disappeared. After this, he caught the clone and then said to the original, while the clone disappeared:
“Only clones? You’ll never win that way.”
Receiving the information his clones provided him, Star realized he would need three clones for diversion, so he created them. That rose Rothbart’s curiosity, what made him wondering what he was planning. While one clone stood still, the other two helped Star creating his new spell. It appeared just like the Spiraling Sphere he had thrown before, appearing to be a ball made of wind, but at the same time it was differente. Everyone was staring at that, noticing the buzzing sound it released.
“Interesting…” Rothbart commented.
While observing that, Golden Paladin remembered when he asked Star to face his Spiraling Sphere with the his with the wind nature, with the result being the negating of Golden Paladin’s, but also some bruises to his foreleg, that didn’t long to heal thanks to the General of Peace’s own healing spell. But that was without a doubt the proof of Star’s new spell’s power.
But what Star made with that sphere of wind was something that let everypony amazed, including Rothbart. He rose it in the air, while it shaped to get four large points around the core, giving it the appearance of a great shuriken.
“This is my new wind spell: Spiraling Star!”
While he hold the spell, the clones positioned themselves in front of him.
“Okay, let’s finish this!” he exclaimed to his clones.
“Right!” they replied.
And the four started to advance towards Rothbart. Blue intended to go with him, but Golden prevented and said:
“No, stay away!”
“But…” Blue started.
“I know that’s your son, Prince Blue Sword, but you have to understand one thing” Golden Paladin said. “You can get caught on his spell.”
Star continued his way towards Rothbart, who commented:
“So that’s the power of the Nine-Tails’ Jinchuriki. That power certain suits the beast.”
And the three clones prepared to attack Rothbart. One attacked from above, but Rothbart was fast to grab him with his threats. The second was to behind, while the other was straight to him. This made Rothbart to use his masks. And the three clones disappeared, but they were only distractions so Star could get close enough.
“What?!” Rothbart exclaimed, while Star prepared to hit him. “No!”
Everypony looked, expectant, but when Star was about to hit Rothbart, the new spell simply were off.
“Oh no…” Golden Paladin said.
Star, before the failure of his spell, opened his wings and took flight to move away from Rothbart as fast as he could, but the villain extended his threats and caught him, trying then to go to his heart.
“No…” Blue said, running towards them, while saying. “Golden! Heartbeat!”
“Right” they said.
Golden then invoked a chain that he threw, while Heartbeat used her speed to get close to hit Rothbart. Rothbart got closed to Star, while saying.
“Now, you’re mine, kid.”
But he then noticed the conjugated attack from the two Generals, what prompt him to dodge, distracting him long enough for Blue to cut the threats, take Star and teleport to the others’ side. The two other Generals’ attack made Rothbart to retreat as much as he could to be safe. Golden then retrieved his chains, while Heartbeat returned to the edge of the others.
“It seems you still have a lot to practice that spell of yours, Star” Heartbeat said. “I mean, when I saw it, I really though you would throw it, but you have to run to hit with it?”
“Hey, but it works when it hits” replied Star, who disliked when Heartbeat was so critical.
“This new spells is supposed to be a frontal attack” Golden Paladin explained. “Furthermore, it needs to proper diversion, in this case the clones.”
“But the spell runs out to quickly and only last a few seconds” Blue continued, with Golden nodding his head.
“We’ll never catch him with that time” the crystal guard said.
“Yeah, he is too much fast” the light guard added.
They were right and Rothbart was also able to analyze Star’s spell very well, making him to get to the conclusion that he only had get his distance, not let him be distracted by the clones and keep his eyes on the original.
Star got up and said:
“I’ll try again.”
“What?” Blue asked. “No, Star, no way. He already knows what to expect from your attack and he will only dodge it. Let us help you. We are in numerical advantage, so there is no need for something like that.”
“Dad, please, listen” Star said. “I know I can do this. I have to do this. I have to prove that I can be strong, even without Nine-Tails’ energy. I know teamwork is important, but right now I need to cross this bridge and cross it alone, independently the danger the bridge turns out to be. If I don’t beat this challenge, I will not be able to look to myself. Please, have faith on me and don’t took from me the chance to prove what I can do. You know I can do this.”
Although his parent side was telling him to not let Star go, his words were able to make him see the strong desire his son had, what made him remember his mother’s determination. Blue smiled and got up, asking to Golden Paladin:
“What do you say, Golden?
“Well, my prince, I have to admit” Golden Paladin said, also smiling. “I want to see how much this young prince has changed.”
“Yeah, I agree” Heartbeat said. “After all, growing in body is one thing, but in mind and spirit is another.”
“Very well then” Blue said. “Son, you can go.”
“Right” Star said, starting to advance.
Seeing him advancing, Rothbart realized he had to change to long-raged attacks. And then he started to release from his mouths a lot of threats and the ones that were exiting from his body extended a lot. He collected his talons, reuniting them with his body. With his, Rothbart seemed to have the appearance of a giant spider, what shocked the ones who were seeing that.
“It’s not just a transformation” Golden said. “That’s a huge amount of energy… dark energy to be precise.”
“He’s preparing to Star’s new spell” Blue said.
Star didn’t let himself be intimidated and so he created the three clones he needed. He and two of the clones started to create the spell. When everything was ready, the original said:
“Okay, now!”
And he and the clones started to head towards him, with the clones going ahead. Rothbart also advanced towards them. However, this time, Rothbart jumped over the clones, with his eyes staring the Star that was holding the spell. Then, he threw his threats towards Star, hitting him apparently.
“Star!” Blue called, while he and the others protected themselves from the shockwave. When the dust cleared, it could see Star on the ground, unconscious, stabbed by Rothbart’s threats.
“It is done” he said.
But it was then that Star disappeared, revealing himself to be a clone.
“What?!”Rothbart exclaimed. “Just a clone?!”
He then heard the same noise caused by Star’s new spell. He turned and saw Star flying above and descending while creating the Spiraling Star with the other two clones.
“I see…” Rothbart said. “He hid himself in the crowd.”
“I got you!” Star exclaimed, while he hit the spell on Rothbart. He started to scream in pain, while the spell threw him away a long distance, while ravaging the threads. The central sphere then detonated, producing a vortex of wind. While everypony was amazed, Golden Paladin warned:
“Watch out! The shockwave is coming!”
And that was truth, as the shockwave was so strong that almost took them down. Star and his clones fell on the ground, with the clones disappearing. Star raised his head and watched his own attack slicing Rothbart, who was immobilized in the midair, while his masks were destroyed. When the vortex stopped, Rothbart was still in midair.
Blue was amazed how that attack was divided in multiple ones that were so much and so fast that nopony couldn’t keep up with the pace. He turned to his son, who was patting, exhausted, and then said:
“That is an amazing spell, son. Very well.”
It was then that Rothbart fell on the ground that was now a crater, just like the one Star had created before. The guards became astonished by such thing, as they had never seen such power before.
“I’ll see how he is” Heartbeat said, moving quickly to Star’s side to apply her healing spell.
While doing it, she said:
“I can only apply the first aid. Leaf Mane’s healing spells are much superior to mine. But I have to say, you being among the clones was a surprise to all of us, me including.”
“It’s impressive he was able to do that spell three times in a row” Golden Paladin said to Blue. “Last time, he was only able to do it twice.”
“I guess his desire to prove himself was what prompted him to surpass his limits” Blue said. “He is just like his mother.”
“Well, we have to go” Golden Paladin said. “Mirror Coat must have already taken Prince Shining Armor back to the Crystal Empire. We should go there too. Princess Twilight and the others will meet us there.”
“Yes” Blue said.
He then went to his son and helped him to rise up.
“Don’t worry, son, I help you.”
“Thanks, dad” Star thanked.
He then saw Golden going to the crater.
“What will he do?” he asked to his father.
“Golden goes to take care of loose ends” Blue replied.
The General of Peace got in the crater and approached Rothbart, who was still breathing, but he couldn’t move.
“Defeated… by a brat… incredible.”
“You have lived a lot of centuries, Rothbart” Golden Paladin said. “No wonder you see Prince Star Knight as a brat. But it can be seen on the other way around. And so here you are, dying, hugging the earth like a worm.”
He made a chain rise up from the ground.
“After everything you did, you deserved to die in pain, feeling what all of your victims felt” Golden Paladin. “But I am not like you and I am willing to give you a painless death. Goodbye, Rothbart.”
And, using the chain, Golden Paladin gave the stroke of mercy to Rothbart.
They returned to the Crystal Empire, where Shining was already there, receiving the care for his injuries. Getting there, Blue and the two guards also received medical attention. Star, on the other hand, was taken to a room where Leaf Mane, who had come with Mirror Coat to the Crystal Empire, began to treat him. Twilight, seeing Blue coming out the hospital wing, embraced him, saying:
"I'm glad it went well."
"Yes, and it's all thanks to our son" Blue said.
They finished the hug and Twilight asked:
"How do you think he is?"
"He's fine, Twilight” Blue replied. “Relax. You should have seen him. He was up to the task. He is exactly like you."
"Well, I wouldn't have acted impulsively like him" Twilight said. "In that respect, he's just like you."
Leaf Mane left Star’s room, finding Golden Paladin at the entrance.
"I took care of the prince" she said.
"And the wound on his right foreleg?" Golden Paladin asked. "Did you analyze it already?"
"I need to observer Rothbart’s body to confirm a few things" Leaf Mane said. "I'm glad you brought him. In this way, we can analyze this new spell of Prince Star Knight."
"Be quick" Golden Paladin said. "We cannot afford to lose time."
"Yes, sir" she replied, pulling away.
During the ensuing night, Leaf Mane examined Rothbart’s body, but then she called Golden Paladin to inform him of what he had discovered.
“The examination isn’t completed yet, but I already found out something about his new spell of Prince Star Knight’s” Leaf Mane said. “The damages Rothbart sustains didn’t just come from individual blows no matter of how many they were.”
“What do you mean?” Golden Paladin asked.
“As impossible as it may seem, his entire magic network has been severed” Leaf Mane. “As you know, all creatures possess some kind of magic, even it is latent, like in earth ponies or pegasi. And what is before us can be difficult to believe, but is truth.
“I didn’t realized this wind spell was so powerful” Golden Paladin said.
“The effect on the body is more like a poison than a physical trauma. It’s an incredible precise attack, doing it’s damages at a cellular level. I believe he shapes the wind energy into a blizzard of miniature thorns and systematically attacks every cell on the body.”
“You’re right” Golden Paladin agreed. “It is poisoning indeed. So it would be more accurate to speak in terms of concentration rather the number of attacks. How about Prince Star Knight?”
“Well, it’s there where the problem is” Leaf Mane said. “Golden, whatever happens, don’t let Prince Star Knight use the Spiraling Star Spell again.”
“Is that so serious?” Golden Paladin asked.
“I saw these symptoms in his right foreleg” Leaf Mane explained. “Not a severe, but the same. If he keeps to use that spell, sooner or later, he’ll use the ability to use his own magic.”
That made Golden to sigh and said:
“It seems every powerful spell really comes with risks.”
“When cells are disconnected from the magic network, it’s beyond my ability to restore it” Leaf Mane said. “Make sure Prince Star Knight understands that.”
Twilight was on the edge of her son, who was asleep. Blue entered in the room and said to Twilight:
"Twily, why don't you go get some rest. If you want, I can stay with him."
"No need, Blue, I can stay here" Twilight said. "After all, you've been through a lot today."
"You know that I've faced worse and I still managed to stay awake for days" Blue replied.
That made Twilight to drop a slight laugh, but then she was filled with concern, looking at Star’s foreleg in a cast.
"That spell really is quite powerful and destructive" she said. "From what it was described to me, it outweighs by far a lot of offensive spells ever created, even by powerful sorcerers like Star Swirld or the Generals of Order."
"I see, you’re worried about the effect it can have on Star" Blue said. "Yes, I'm that also concern about that. But, whatever happens, we will be here to support him."
Twilight smiled, nodding.
In the following day, Golden went to Star’s room, where he was reading a book.
"Surprise me that your parents are not here" Golden said, entering.
"They're talking to my uncle and aunt" Star replied.
"Well, it’s good that way" Golden said. "Prince Star Knight, I would like to talk to you about your new spell."
There was a pause and Golden continued:
"There is no doubt you get stronger. What you did was something that even I was not able to do. But no matter how strong you are, the greater the spell, the greater are the risks to yourself."
"Yes, I know…" Star said, looking at his right foreleg on a cast. "I know what you're trying to say, Golden, and I understand. But I know my limits better than any otherpony."
Golden smiled. Star was really strong and was dealing well with the situation, although it was not necessary to have Heartbeat’s empathy to know how frustrated he was by having developed a spell so powerful that he couldn't use at risk of not being able to use his magic ever again. For this, he said:
"Very well, I have an idea that might cheer you up a bit. What if, when you get better, we work on a new kind of spell you can use without problems?"
That cheered Star up who said:
"Sounds good to me!"
Meanwhile, in Griffonstone, the Lord of Chaos appeared in one of the caves located on the mountain where the kingdom rested, advancing to a black statue of a monster with the shape of a goat, covered with moss and ivy.
"I really wasn't counting on Rothbart’s demise and Medusa’s imprisonment" he said. "That Prince Star Knight is getting stronger every day. Therefore, I can't afford to have so few villains at my service. That is why I will give you another chance, though you don’t deserve it… Arimaspi."
And, having said that, he pointed his hand to the black statue. The moss and the ivy that covered it were destroyed, while an empty star seed appeared over the head. It was then that it was filled with darkness, disappearing then. The surface of the statue began to crack and what was stone became fur and Arimaspi came back to life.
"I hope this time, Arimaspi, you don't disappoint me" the Lord of Chaos said to him.
"I will do everything to make sure that doesn't happen again... my lord" Arimaspi said, kneeling before his master.