//------------------------------//
// Chapter 5: Death  
// Story: Elementals 
// by Parodox 
//------------------------------//

The Dead do not speak for they have said all that there is to be spoken .

-King Sombra





The Crystal Empire, despite its frazzled and bewildered state, was beginning to repair itself from the recent attack caused by the Griffons. There wasn't much to repair, just a couple of fires to be put out, some holes in buildings to be repaired, Crystal Ponies who had hurt themselves by either scraping their knees or getting a bruise was being treated by first aid. Honestly the only real damage the Griffons did was when they blew up the Crystal Heart and almost toppled the Palace. Luckily, thanks to Shining Armor and Cadence, the Palace did not crush a fourth of the empire, and thanks to Sunburst and everyone in the Crystal Empire the Crystal Heart was successfully repaired.

But what had truly damaging to the Empire was that the Griffons could return and do possibly worse damage than before. Also what was on everyone's mind, but was unable to be answered, was how Flash was able to defeat Gideon. But before anyone could ask him, he retreated to his quarters.

Flash watched from the window at the bustling ponies as they worked on rebuilding the Empire.

You have questions.

"Yeah, no duh." Flash said flatly. "A lot of questions actually."

And I have answers. Ask me a question, one at a time, and I will answer.

Flash thought before asking his first question, "what are you?"

I have told you already. I am an Element of Atlas, the Guardian. My power comes from protecting those who cannot protect themselves.

"Yeah but...what the heck is an Element of Atlas?" Flash asked.

The Elements of Atlas are the Elementals who hold the world on their shoulders with their power. You are one of six.

"Six? You mean there are others like me?" Flash asked, pointing to himself.

Yes and no. There are other Elementals but there is only one Guardian.

"What are these other Elemental's?" Flash asked.

To understand the Elementals one must first understand of the five branches. Would you like me to tell you?

"Yes." Flash answered.

There are five types of Elementals. These five are Atlas, the Spectrum, Nature, Harmony, Life and Death.

"Wait," Flash counted in his head. "Isn't that six Elements?"

Life and Death is considered one branch of the Elemental Star.

"Oh. So these other Elements of Atlas, who or what are they?" Flash asked.

There are six Elements in each branch. These Elementals are known as the Guardian, [color=3c26af]Element of Protection, the Warrior, Element of Battle, the Traveler, Element of Speed, the See-er, Element of Sight, the Berserker, Element of Might, and the Armory, Element of Weapon-making. These are the Elements of Atlas.

"What about the other Elements, like the Elements of the Spectrum, and Nature, and..." Flash's eyes widened in realization. "The Elements of Harmony...wait isn't that-"

Kindness, Honesty, Loyalty, Generosity, and Laughter. These are the five Elements which make up the power of Harmony.

"But I don't understand." Flash shook his head. "I thought there was only one type of Elements."

The reason why you think that is because the other Elements were sealed away inside an object called Pandora's Box. It wasn't until today, that a pony who goes by the name 'The Master' freed all of the Elements.

"And Gideon was one of them." Flash assumed. "Which one was Gideon, that Griffon guy."

His power is unknown, the only information I could gather from him is that he was an Elemental of the Spectrum.

"The Spectrum, Nature, Life and Death. What do these Elements do anyways?" Flash asked.

Each Element is unique, the Atlas is a group of elements who take power from those worthy. The Warrior, for example, is an Elemental who is driven to fight. The Spectrum, is a group of Elements who absorb power from emotion. Nature is much like Atlas, Nature chooses its host by their personality. Finally there is Life and Death, how these Elements choose is unknown. But Life and Death are the most powerful.

Flash raised a brow, intrigued. "How are they the most powerful?" He asked.

Imagine each branch has a percentage of power to 100%. Now imagine that power distributed to each Elemental by one sixth. Each Elemental therefore has 16.5% of the branches power, this is not the case for Life and Death. Because there is only two, the branches magic is distributed by 50% instead of 16.5%. Making them more powerful than the others.

"Geez...what can the Elements of Life and Death do anyways?" Flash asked.

...

"Well?"

Oh, I'm sorry, was that not rhetorical?

"Ha, ha." Flash rolled his eyes. "Just tell me."

Your lack of enthusiasm is disturbing, I thought the answer to the power of the Elements of Life and Death would've been obvious. It seems I was wrong, and I shall correct this. The Element of Life is a white element that grants its host the power of healing and regeneration. It is also cable of resurrection.

Flash ears twitched upon the words 'resurrection'. "When you say resurrection, do you mean like zombies or something like that or-"

If by zombie you mean a corpse that has missing pieces of flesh, then no. The Element of Life is capable of bringing a once living creature back to life completely restored as if the one never died.

"Oh...and Death."

The Element of Death is the opposite of the Element of Life. Instead of healing and resurrecting, the Element of Death kills and destroys. The Element of Death is so powerful, its host only needs to touch your heart and you die instantly.





The Griffon Empire, a massive cluster of homes and buildings surrounded a rather wide and short castle made of stone. The Griffon Empire had three major cities as neighbors, there was Griffonstone, Handleburg, and Clayvein. GriffonStone had once been the very jewel of the Empire, shining bright and proud underneath the Griffon banner. But now, now the Griffon Empire was a joke, a laughing stock among the races. But that was something that was about to be dealt with.

Lexus, along with the rest of the soldier's, watched in awe as they passed over the Empire. They had missed their home, their families and loved ones. But their was a vacancy among the crowd, and its name was Gideon. Gideon didn't lean against the railing like his soldiers and Uncle did, instead he stayed in the center of the ship looking off into the distance. Lexus took his gaze from the city and approached his nephew.

"You should see this nephew, the Empire's never looked better." Lexus stated.

Gideon remained silent for a moment, continuing to stare off into the distance. "It was her wasn't it?"

Lexus sighed, averting his gaze at Gideon. "Yes, your sister sent the letter." He admitted.

"So we're still banished." Gideon assumed.

"Not exactly." Lexus rubbed the back of his head rather awkwardly. "My brother did sign the letter with his seal of approval, allowing us to return. But it was your sister, Aurora, who sent the letter."

"What is it she wants?" Gideon asked.

Lexus shrugged. "She didn't say." He lied. "Just that we were summoned here."

"Is that so?"

Gideon's sister, Aurora, was the Princess of the Griffon Empire, and was clarified by some as the devil. Aurora was cunning, vicious, and precise, along with other powerful traits. She was one year younger than Gideon, but when she was born into this world, no one could ever suspect the woman she had become.

Gideon's airship slowly docked itself at the sky port, the wooden plank fell connecting the ship and deck. Standing at the deck was an organized legion of Griffin soldiers, each wore armor made of steel which covered their whole body and neck along with a helmet. All but the female Griffon standing in front of the airship, the Griffon was adorned in steel armor like the soldiers behind him, only she didn't wear a helmet, showing off the red feathers on her chest, white feathers on her head, and blue pupils. When Gideon's soldiers saw the Griffin before them they saluted her by pounding their fist against their chest.

"Hail!" They shouted. "Hail to you Second General Vex!"

The Griffon observed Gideon's soldiers before saluting to them. "Hail to you, brave soldiers. Welcome home." She said.

"It is an honor Ma'am!" Gideon's soldiers said in perfect unison.

The Griffon, now know as Vex, turned her gaze to both Gideon and Lexus, who were at the edge of the plank that was connected to the ship. "Return to your homes at once." She ordered Gideon's soldiers.

The soldiers stood stone still, some of their gazes looking to Gideon for a second or two, as if silent asking for his permission. They may have been soldiers to the Empire, but they were loyal to the royalty first, Empire second. Gideon saw these signs in his troops and ordered, "do as she says, you all know what happens when you cross Vex."

Gideon's troops saluted before exiting. Lexus and Gideon walked down to the plank to meet Vex, who extended her arm for a greeting. Lexus, instead of a clawshake, decided it would be best if he would give Vex a bear hug. "It's so good to see my Niece-in-law." He exclaimed before putting her down. "Look at how big you've grown."

"Uncle, you've only been gone for three days." Vex stated as she readjusted herself. "And its good to see you too."

Vex, rarely known as Princess Vex, was the daughter of the Griffoness who went by the name Givra. Givra was the sister of the Griffoness who went by the name Ruby, and Ruby was Gideon's mother. Which made Vex and Gideon cousins. Of course, while Givra was Ruby's sister, she wasn't born as royalty. But rather, over time, she fought and trained hard enough to become the first Griffoness in the Royal Guard, and after she had done that, she soon became the first and only Griffoness general.

"Welcome back Gideon." Vex said, extending her arm.

Gideon looked at Vex's extended arm then back to Vex. "Where is Aurora and my dad?" He asked.

Vex flashed a sign of sadness before it returned to her normal self as she lowered her arm. "They're both in the throne room, they're waiting for you now." 

Gideon walked past Vex, down the dock towards the entrance of the castle, his eyes glued on the door. Vex and Lexus shared a glance of disappointment before walking after him.






Past


In the castle of the Griffin Empire, in the room with red colored carpet, a bed with an oak frame and red covers, matching oak furniture, a door which led to a bathroom, and a door which led to the walk-in closet. In the bed was a Griffoness with red feathers all over her body, black feathers on her neck, chest, and head, and she had ocean blue eyes. The Griffoness was Aurora, Princess of the Empire, and she had just woken up. Her upper body rose, she stretched her arms and body which gave off slightly audible cracks. She removed the covers and walked over to her bathroom where she looked in the large mirror. Her reflection showed a Griffoness with multiple feathers sticking out, unkempt and messy. She looked at the reflection and became furious.

"Maids!" She roared.

"You called your highness?"

At the entrance of the bathroom were two Griffonesses, both wearing a maid outfit and spoke in unison. The maids had impeccable timing, as was expected for them.

"Clean, now." Aurora ordered.

"At once your Grace." The two bowed as they entered the bathroom and drew a hot bath.

As Aurora soaked in the water, the maids washed her head and claws until everything was sparkling clean. Once they were done, Aurora dried herself off while the maids brushed and combed her feathers. Aurora looked in the mirror once more, this time her reflection showed a beautiful and elegant Griffoness who looked to be the perfect image of importance. Satisfied, she ordered the maids to leave but halfway through the order the maids had removed any trace of their presence. As was expected.

Aurora walked past her window and stopped as something caught her eye. She turned her head to look out the window where she saw a beacon of light which soared past the sky. From the beam, numerous colored objects shot out and raised through the sky with a trail matching its color following it. The beacon faded and two small objects could be seen, one bright white, one pitch black. The two shot in the opposite direction of the other, both leaving a trail which matched their color. The black objected soared until it could no longer be seen, the white one did the same.

At first Aurora thought nothing of the objects, until the black object reappeared, soaring in the opposite direction before disappearing. Then it happened again, the black object reappeared and then disappeared over the horizon. Then reappeared, and disappeared. The black object continued this loop twenty more times before coming to a halt and flew straight towards Aurora.

The black object was in front of Aurora within seconds. Aurora slightly flinched, taking two steps back. She now had a better look at the object, it was shaped like a triangle but with five black streaks attached to the bottom. It floated in front of Aurora at eye level.

"Greetings." It spoke, the voice sounded raspy and ghostlike, almost as if it was...dead.

"I'm having a bit of trouble, you wouldn't by chance know of anyone worthy of the Element of Death?"

Aurora blinked twice showing her confusion. "What?" She asked.

"Oh right, I've been gone for about three thousand something years haven't I? No matter, I'll save you the boring explanation and just show you." The object said, as it attached itself to Aurora's forehead.

A blackness flooded Aurora's eyes, completely engulfing them until they were completely black. Images flashed within her mind, showing her things she could've never imagined. It was from these images that Aurora learned of the five branched star. A symbol which categorized Elements, each with their own unique power. Aurora learned that the object talking to her was known as the Element of Death, a powerful magical artifact which gave the one who wielded it unbelievable power.

The blackness in her eyes washed away as quickly as it had came, the Element of Death removing itself from Aurora's forehead.

"Now that you understand, could you point me in the direction of anyone worthy?" The Element asked.

"As a matter of fact, I can." A wicked grin spread across Aurora's face.

"Splendid! Now who might this host be?"

"You're looking at her." Aurora answered.

The Element became silent, as if pondering before it gave Aurora it's response.

"BAHAHAHAHA!" The Element burst out laughing. "You? Worthy? Not a chance."

Aurora became furious. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?!" Aurora demanded. "I saw the past Elementals and I am more than worthy!"

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." The Element of Death slightly shook, as if shaking in disappointment. "It is true that you have potential to be my host but there is just one thing missing."

"And what's that?" She demanded.

"Your connection to others." The Element answered. "You see, Death is singular, unified, and alone. Death has no bonds or connections to others as those connections make you weak."

"I have no connections or bonds to anyone." Aurora stated.

"Wrong."

"It's true." Aurora said. "My brother is a half-wit who spends more time in the barracks with the soldiers than doing anything a royal should be doing, my father is to busy trying to keep the Empire from falling apart he doesn't have any time at all with his daughter, my mother died when I was only ten years old, I have no friends or spend any time with the commoners. I am the definition of singularity."

"Wrong again, it's true the bond you have is weak but it is the only thing that prevents you from becoming my host." The Element of Death said as it began to slowly float away, phasing through the window. "Remember, Friendship is weakness." The Element said as it soared off into the distance.

"No. NO!" Aurora screamed, as she chased after the Element, but the window prevented her, so all she could do was bang against it and scream.

"Your highness!"

Aurora froze, her balled up claws rested against the window's glass surface. Slowly her head turned to see the two maids behind her. Their faces covered with the expression of worry. Slowly, Aurora removed herself from the window and collapsed on the floor. The two maids rushed to her side, hugging her and giving her comfort.

"There, there your Grace." The first maid said.

"It's alright, we're here for you." The second maid said.

"As we always have been." The first maid said.

"And always will be." The second maid said.

Realization dawned on Aurora as her head slowly rose to meet the faces of her maids. Her mind flashed back to when she was five years old, when her mother and father were to busy, whenever she would feel alone or hurt she would cry out, and the maids would be there. They had always been there for her, in times of hardship and times of fright they were there for her. She soon grew attached to the maids, it felt almost like they were her family. No, her family never cared for her, to say the maids were her family meant that they had abandoned her too. But they never did, the maids weren't her family they were something else.

They were her friends.

They were her weakness.

Aurora rose, whipping the tears from her eyes as she faced the two maids. The two maids welcomed their Princesses gaze with a smile. Aurora uttered four words,

"Thank you, for everything."

And then she drove her claws into their chests.

Streams of fresh blood washed over her claws and dripped onto the carpet. The two maids stood in shock and confusion, not completely aware of what had just happened. It wasn't until they saw Aurora holding their hearts in the palm of her claw that they understood what had happened.

Without warning or hesitation, she tightened her talons around the hearts, causing blood to ooze from them. The maids tried to shout, to scream for help, but nothing came from them as they both collapsed, a puddle of blood forming around the two. Aurora looked at the two now lifeless maids, the ones who had been there for her her whole life. All the memories they shared flashed inside Aurora's mind, every detail noticed and seen. 

And as the images passed through her head she felt...nothing. No sadness, anger, joy, regret, or disappointment, she felt...empty, and yet, somehow, she felt complete. As though the feeling of emptiness was the true feeling, the one true thing in this world.

"Bravo."

Aurora looked behind her to see the Element of Death once more.

"You have passed the worthy test." The Element stated. "Tell me, how does it make you feel?"

Aurora looked to her claws, the now silent hearts of the maids in her claw. "I feel..." Aurora paused, thinking of the word to describe what she was feeling. "I feel...complete, but...there's something missing."

"I can help with that." The Element of Death said as it slowly emerged itself into Aurora's chest. "To be completely one with death you must speak the oath. Speak the oath and remove yourself from all chains of the living, speak the words and you will be free." The Element of Death said.

Aurora's eyes became black as the words appeared inside her mind. With her voice and the voice of the Element mixed together she spoke.


"To those with the purest hearts
Know that Friendship is a lie
By my claw of darkness
All of you shall DIE!"