______*Dalcorus.*_______
Lyaroa stood up and stretched her limbs, she walked over to the door and opened it after unsealing it, she looked outside and then at the group. "Let's go." She said calmly before leaving.
The others soon followed, they didn't say it, but they were beginning to get fed up with their little trip, they were also losing sight of the reason they came here.
The only one who didn't lose focus was Lyaroa, who was currently keeping quiet, she looked around the corner and looked back at the group. "Clear." She whispered.
The five quietly walked through the halls of the fortress, they did their best to avoid conflict, even if it meant going a different route.
"Why don't we just fight?.....it would be faster than all of this sneaking around." Shade stated.
Lyaroa looked at the Night Wolf. "No, we can't afford being spotted, if the cult finds out we made it inside, it will be too easy for them to trap us here." She said.
"The kid has a point, fighting our way through would be beneficial, because the more we kill, the less we have to worry about later." Golden argued.
Lyaroa looked around the group, seeing Fang agree made her sigh. "And you Roxie?" She asked.
Roxanne shrugged. "It doesn't matter, I'll go with whatever." She replied.
Lyaroa looked at Shade. "Alright, we'll fight, but don't cry to me if something happens." She said, she didn't like the plan, but Golden did have a point, the more cultists they killed, the less they would have to deal with.
The group then made their way through, they tried to be discreet as they killed guards on the way, but eventually, a patrol spotted them in the act and called for help. "Intruders!" They called.
The situation fell apart in a hurry as more and more guards poured into the area.
Lyaroa drew Soul and Spirit, Roxanne drew Life and Death, while Golden pulled out his staff, Fang and Shade however, just readied for a fight.
The group went on fighting for what felt like hours, but more kept on coming, eventually Lyaroa looked around and saw a vacant corridor. "Fall back!" She ordered.
Roxanne threw up a wall of fire in front of the group and retreated.
As they fell back, Lyaroa found further proof that these cultists were either completely insane, or had conviction beyond measure, as they simply jumped through the fire and kept on fighting while gulped in flames.
Lyaora cut the head off on of the cultists and ran off with the others.
The room they entered next was large and easily defended, problem was, their were already about thirty soldiers there, so they were now surrounded as they fought and killed the cultists.
The cultists themselves were not hard to kill, it was just their numbers that made it difficult, for as they killed one, three more came to fight.
Golden slammed his staff down and sent a shockwave of psychic energy around him, the cultists nearby held their head and screamed in pain as they crumbled to the ground.
Shade managed to get a few blasts off now and then, but it made little difference as more showed up to fight, he inwardly sighed. "Son of a bitch, how many are there?." He complained.
Roxanne was easily killing them with her blades, and with Lyaroa fighting back to back with her, it made them incredibly difficult to fight, as when a cultist got near, they would either die from a sword, Roxanne's flames, or one of the ghosts.
Fang snapped a cultists neck and backhanded another, he was steadily fighting the soldiers, but soon they brought weapons against him, so he sighed and kicked one away. "Hydra!" He called out.
Soon the spear appeared in his hands and he used it to impale several of the soldiers, and the more he killed, the more he felt the spear power up, he then held it tightly and his eyes glowed. "Surge!" He then overwhelmed many of the tougher cultists who appeared, namely the ones who had armor and sharp blades.
They went on like this for a very long time, so long that the floor was covered in a layer of bodies and blood, Lyaroa looked as she killed the last cultist, she noticed that there were finally no more, she sighed in relief and used what little power she had and put them in one corner. "Roxanne......burn them." She said grimly before looking away from the pile.
Roxanne looked at the Sentinel and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Lyaroa.......are you sure?" She asked.
Lyaroa nodded and walked out of the room silently.
Roxanne looked at the others and they were speechless as they followed the Sentinel, she shook her head and looked at the pile of bodies, she bit her lip and threw a fireball into the pile, looking away and leaving afterwards, not willing to be there.
The group soon exited and walked to a room without bodies or blood, ironically, the first one they found was a morgue, where they stopped to rest up.
Roxanne approached Lyaroa who was sitting on a gurney looking down with her hands over her eyes. "Lyaroa, what's the matter?" She asked quietly.
Lyaroa shook her head. "It's just.......we were fighting them for hours Roxanne........we spent three hours in that room, killing." She put her hands on her lap and looked up at Roxanne, her eyes were more bloodshot than normal and her fur was stained from the tears going down her eyes. "It hit me just now as to how many people I've killed, and for what?......revenge?.....self preservation?" She paused and let out a breath. "I think I'm just getting tired of killing, or I'm just now starting to feel regret.......how are you not affected by this?" She asked shakily.
Roxanne smiled and wiped the tears from Lyaroa's eyes, she placed her right hand over Lyaroa's left one. "Because I know what I'm fighting for.......I know I've killed and that will haunt me forever or just a very long time, your strong Lyaroa, no doubt about it, but you've been holding all those negative emotions in for centuries." She paused and crossed her arms. "I don't know about you, but it sounds to me like you need to have a discussion with your Soul and Anti Soul......not the ghost." She said.
Lyaroa chuckled a little at that, she stood up and looked at Roxanne. "The second one is a myth Roxie.....you know that." She replied.
Roxanne grinned. "Oh really?....who do you think kicked Fang's ass?" She asked quietly.
_____*a few minutes later.*______
The group left the morgue and began exploring, while it was unlikely that there were any more cultists, the group was cautious in the thought that there could always be more.
They made good progress through the fortress, they hadn't encountered any more guards thankfully, so they were able to approach situations more calmly than before, however, it wasn't that until that changed.
The group entered what seemed to be an arena, similar to the one Fang fought in back at Jandoka's temple, but this one had viewing stands all around and what appeared to be a vip box with four chairs above the opposite door.
To no ones surprise, there was the sound of an iron gate slamming behind them, after that, the viewing stands filled up quickly with people in robes, and in the vip box four figures very familiar to Fang appeared. "The Four." He said to himself.
There was an eerie silence until a voice spoke. "Welcome to the arena of honor Sentinel and companions, we welcome you." Said one of the Four.
There was cheering in the crowd until a voice spoke. "Silence!" Said another one.
"You wish to defeat us and destroy our cult Sentinel, we obviously cannot allow this........therefore you shall face our mightiest champions in combat according to our laws." The one on the far left said.
"You shall face five warriors, one for each of you." One of them said.
"These battles shall be one on one, no interference from the others, and the victor may kill the loser if they so desire." Another said.
"If you are defeated in combat, your fellow warriors may attempt to defeat your opponent themselves." The one on the far left said.
"Each champion has an amulet, you must claim them all to be victorious, doing so will unlock the gates, allowing you to proceed." The one of the far right added.
"Be warned if you should all be defeated in combat, you will die, and only those who have an amulet may pass." One of them said.
Lyaroa walked to the center of the arena and looked at the Four. "And if we refuse to do this?" She asked.
The Four all pointed at Fang. "Then he will die!" They said at once.
"He has been affected by a special spell." One of them said.
"If you refuse to participate in ritual combat." Another one continued.
"The spell shall activate, shutting down his organs and then killing him." The one on the far left added.
"There is but one way to save him from this fate, the antidote lies just beyond the gate, if he drinks it, the spell will be lifted." The one on the far right stated.
"Now.....what say you?" They asked.
Lyaroa looked at Fang. "Are they telling the truth?" She asked.
Fang nodded. "They are cryptic, but they don't lie, what we do next is up to you." He replied.
Lyaroa then looked up at the Four. "We will fight." She said.
The Four rested their arms on the chairs. "Summon the champions." One of them said.
"The ritual begins." Another one said.
The group expected the gate to open, but instead, Five cloaked figures stood below the Four. "We answer the summons." They said.
"Let the trial of honor commence." The Four said.
One of the cloaked figures threw off its cloak to reveal a large rat man that Fang recognized. "Neil." He said quietly.
Golden looked at Fang. "You know the rat?" He asked.
Fang nodded. "His name is Neil, he teaches the recruits how to fight.......I'll take him." He said.
The group watched as Fang approached Neil calmly. "I see you finally made your mind up Fang." The rat said.
Fang summoned Hydra and bowed to Neil, who bowed back. "Yes I have." He replied.
Neil drew his sword and took his stance, the two readied to fight, and soon, Fang charged, he swung Hydra skillfully and precisely at Neil, who easily kept the pace with Fang.
The two traded blows a few times, but overall, the fight seemed evenly matched, that was of course, just the warm up.
Neil then vanished, and reappeared next to Fang swinging rapidly and cutting Fang's shoulder.
In retaliation, Fang used Hydra's power. "Surge!" He called out.
The spear overloaded in power, as Fang assaulted Neil with it, it sent out blasts and torrents of shadow and lightning, however, Neil was still able to keep up, managing to land blows on Fang even with the surge active.
Fang knew they did not have to speak, no words were necessary between warriors, their weapons and movements spoke volumes to them.
For instance, Fang could tell from the way Neil was fighting, that he was testing him, seeing how much he had progressed from their sessions together.
The surge ended and Fang was back on the defensive, not that it mattered, as Neil was able to easily bypass Fang's defense with his rapier.
Soon enough, Neil spoke. "You are not fighting at your full potential Fang, unless you do so, you will never best me." The rat spoke.
Fang looked at Hydra and sighed, he dismissed the spear and cracked his knuckles. "Your right, about that." He said calmly.
The two faced off again, and in the sidelines, Shade was antsy. "Why are they just standing there?......and why did he dismiss Hydra?" He asked.
Golden flicked Shade in the forehead his his finger. "Be quiet and watch, you'll figure it out." He replied.
Fang chuckled and held his hand out as he shut his eyes. "It's been fun Neil, but I can't let you win." He said calmly.
His eyes then shot open and he spoke. "Manticore!" He called.
Suddenly, a sword appeared in Fang's hand, it was the green sword from before, except now it had a barb at the bottom instead of a rounded bottom.
The two clashed soon after, and as they fought, Fang could tell what Neil what thinking, and in turn, Neil knew what Fang was thinking.
Fang parried some strikes with incredible speed, and he soon struck swiftly, much faster than he did before.
And as Neil stood there, with Manticore piercing his heart, he smiled. "The student.....surpasses the master.......well done." He went silent.
Fang lowered Neil to the ground and took the amulet after dismissing Manticore, he then walked back to the group. "Don't give me that look, i know I'm using that sword, big deal." He said calmly.
Roxanne laughed sarcastically. "Considering it almost killed Lyaroa?" She whispered. "Yea, pretty big deal." She said.
The next champion threw off its cloak to reveal a large kangaroo, it was welding a katana, and had no armor, the only thing it had on it, was the amulet.
Golden stepped up next. "My turn." He said easily.
The two faced off and soon they clashed, Golden's staff proving incredibly effective against the katana, the kangaroo seemed to be using a variant of the Japanese samurai.
Golden was a skilled combatant however, and was able to match the style of combat easily.
The kangaroo switched styles and lept up to strike from above.
Golden raised his staff and blocked the blow, he then spun his staff and quickly struck the kangaroos spleen and then kicked it away.
The kangaroo quickly recovered, but instead of charging again, it steadied itself and prepared to clash again.
Golden decided a change of style was necessary, so he sent a psychic pulse through his staff and the metal plates merged to form the hammer.
The two clashed again, but now the kangaroo seemed to be fighting more defensively, while Golden timed his attacks carefully.
Seeing as this was getting neither of them anywhere, Golden reverted the hammer back to a staff and tried a different tactic, he parried the strikes from the kangaroo and then threw a torrent of psychic energy at the creature.
The kangaroo struggled to fight of Golden's influence, but very soon, it dropped its katana, and clutched its head, it didn't scream or anything, but if the pained expression was any indication it really hurt.
Golden did not budge, but he simply continued, the kangaroo's resistance to his power was impressive, but Golden decided to end it, he intensified the assault and soon the kangaroo fell down to the ground as a vegetable.
Golden walked up and grabbed the amulet before walking off.
Roxanne watched as the two bodies turned to ash, she shook her head. 'Why is everyone so violent?' She remembered the little fox kit ask. "To defend what we care about." She mumbled.
"What was that Roxxane?" Fang asked.
Roxanne blinked. "Nothing." She replied.
The next champion threw off its cloak and revealed a large Griffin with one wing.
Shade was the next to approach. "This one is mine." He said.
Lyaroa leaned next to Roxanne. "So much for ladies first." She joked.
Roxanne looked at the Sentinel. "Lyaroa......shut up, you are many things, but you are NOT a lady." She stated.
Lyaroa held her arms up and backed off. "Alright, you got me." She replied.
Shade and the Griffin faced off, neither had weapons, but Shade could tell the Griffin didn't need one, so as they engaged in combat, Shade was caught off guard at the ferocity of the attacks. 'Alright, he's viscous, fast and strong, but he doesn't have technique, this can work for me.' He started planning as he fought back the Griffon.
They went on fighting for a while, but it soon became apparent that the battle was a stalemate....until.
Shade was blindsided by a strike to his side, he was then punched in the ribs multiple times and then thrown away like a rag doll, he then felt a claw pierce his chest where his heart would be, he screamed in pain but as the Griffin pulled its claw out expecting a heart but only seeing blood, it looked at him. "What are you?" It asked, clearly male.
Shade then grabbed the Griffin by the throat and choked it. "I'm complicated." He answered as he shoved his fist into the Griffins heart and ripped it out, he then walked away calmly after dropping the heart.
That match was the fastest of them all, and as the next champion threw off its cloak, revealing a Changeling, Roxanne looked at Lyaroa. "Do you want to handle this one?" She asked.
Lyaroa shrugged and walked forward. "Why not?" She asked herself.
Roxanne watched as the two began their fight, she closed her eyes and retreated to her mind, looking to get answers quickly.
_____*in Roxanne's head*______
Roxanne looked around the playground and saw the fox kit playing with other kids, she smiled and sat down on the bench and looked up at the sky.
A shadow covered Roxanne and she heard a familiar voice speak. "Hello love, how are you?" Asked the Nightmare.
Roxanne looked to her left at the Nightmare as she sat down. "What are you exactly?.....and who is she?" She asked.
The Nightmare pouted and looked at Roxanne. "That's hurts me love, asking me what I am, not who? that hurt......but I guess you could say I am your Anti Soul, I'm easygoing, you're a worrier, I love messing with people's heads, you don't, etc." She said.
The Nightmare looked at the kit. "And her?......that is a different story." She said.
Roxanne looked at Nightmare curiously. "How so?" She asked.
The Nightmare smiled and patted Roxanne on the shoulder. "That love, is your daughter, the one you never had." She explained.
Roxanne looked at the fox kit and then at the Nightmare. "It's not possible though, she's nothing like me." She countered.
Nightmare laughed a little and watched the kid. "Your Soul doesn't talk much, but she's kind, you see, I think she wants you to know this kid......do you really see no resemblance?" She asked.
Roxanne paid close attention now, and she soon saw it, other than species, gender and color, this kit had one thing in common with Roxanne, her mischievous side, almost always wanting something fun to happen, or making her own fun....other than that, there was no resemblance.
"I wouldn't be so sure.....she has your eyes after all." Nightmare pointed out.
Roxanne huffed and leaned back on the bench. "My eyes are blue." She stated.
The Nightmare smirked and put her arm across Roxanne's back. "They are now love, but they used to be Amber, just like the kid." She said quietly.
Roxanne shook her head and looked at Nightmare. "And who's the father?" She asked.
Nightmare grinned. "Uh uh uh......that would be spoiling the surprise, you'll have to figure it out on your own, but for now.....have fun love." She waved her hand in front of Roxanne and she vanished.
_____*Dalcorus.*_____
Roxanne opened her eyes and saw Lyaroa walking back with the amulet in hand, leaving a dead Changeling behind her. "Your up Roxie." Lyaora said.
Roxanne approached the center, as the final champion uncloaked and revealed itself, it was a creature similar to Roxanne and the others. only it was a lizard of some kind, it was fully armored in black plate and held a halberd as its weapon, Roxanne drew Life and Death as she readied herself for a fight.
For some reason she couldn't shake, the creature was very familiar, but she didn't lose her focus as she faced off against the lizard, the lizard took its stance, and once again, it was familiar to her, but she couldn't place it.
Roxanne and the creature charged at the same time, it wasn't long before they clashed, and it soon became apparent that the creature was powerful and skilled, it fended off Roxanne's initial assault with a quick block with its weapon and a sweep of its leg.
The creature then charged again as Roxanne backed off, it nimbly wielded its halberd and attacked Roxanne from the side, the strikes came high and low, low and to the left, high and to the left, the creature fought as though it had no coordination or self preservation.
Roxanne managed to retaliate when the creature got overconfident with its attack, she managed to evade and then swung her blades at the creatures stomach.
The creature then threw its hand out and grabbed the blades with one claw, it looked silently at Roxanne and threw the blades away, along with its halberd.
Roxanne readied to fight with her fists but as the two fought it became clear that she wasn't very skilled in hand-to-hand combat, as the creature was almost always striking her.
Roxanne decided to go out on a limb and ignited her left arm, she then threw a punch at the creatures overextended right arm while using her right arm to block the creatures left.
In an instant, the creature kicked out to Roxanne's kidneys and uppercut her in the jaw.
Roxanne fell to the ground and the creature stood over her, it knelt down and held her by the throat, saying nothing as it choked her.
Roxanne gasped for air as she tried to get it off, but to no avail as it simply held her one arm down, leaving her with one arm that didn't have the strength to fight it off.
Roxanne quickly channeled her magic and her arms glowed a faint light blue and red. 'I need your help.' She called out with her mind.
A bright flash and the creature was forced off, Roxanne quickly rose and she steadied her breathing.
When the light faded, Roxanne was surprised to see what she had summoned.......no, who she summoned.
A pair of cyan eyes turned to face the fox, and with a grin, the Pegasus spoke. "It took you long enough Fox girl." She said.
It was unmistakable, the blue Pegasus was Inkiza, from the Crystal Empire tournament. "Why are you here?" She asked.
A negative jeer was heard from the cultists watching the fights, but the loudest one was vocal. "She cheats!" Said one.
A resounding crack was heard and all went quiet, even the creature stopped and looked up at the Four. "Silence." One of them said.
"The magic used to summon the Pegasus was Familiar magic." Another one said.
"Familiars have been known to take many forms, and once summoned, they can fight like any living creature." The one on the far left stated.
"The match will continue until one of the fighters die." The one on the far right finished.
Roxanne looked at Inkiza as the creature stood. "Your a familiar?" She asked.
Inkiza nodded and looked at the creature. "I was assigned to you, that's why we fought in the tournament, I had to know what you could do." She answered, though it was through telepathy.
Roxanne looked at the creature. "I need to ask you something." She said mentally.
Inkiza said nothing and listened.
"Can you hold him off for a minute?" She asked.
Inkiza grinned. "It'll be my pleasure." She said as she took her position between the creature and Roxanne.
Roxanne closed her eyes and retreated to the back of her mind.
The creature charged, and as it neared Inkiza, it stopped and threw a volley of energy blasts at Roxanne.
Inkiza's eyes turned white and a barrier appeared around Roxanne, easily blocking the blasts. "Sorry." She said calmly. "That barrier won't disappear until I say so, or until you beat me." She said easily as she counter attacked, she summoned a trio of magical spears and threw them at the creature.
The creature managed to dodge them, but once a fourth appeared, it rolled to the side to dodge it.
Almost immediately, there was another, and another, and another, as though Inkiza could go on all day.
The creature soon got fed up as it grabbed a spear and threw it at Inkiza, the Pegasus dispelled the spears and changed tactics, she summoned a pair of hoof blades and hovered, she then flew at the creature and harassed it.
The creature wasn't hard to make it turn its attention away, however it was not stupid, it eventually managed to reach its halberd and it swung at Inkiza with precision.
Inkiza blocked with her hoof blade but it was lost in the process, she quickly landed in front of Roxanne and changed tactics, she dispelled the remaining blade and summoned a pair of flails.
The flails came to life and attacked the creature of their own accord. "Look, no hands." Inkiza said as she watched.
The creature managed to counter the flails by tricking them into wrapping themselves up with their chains.
Inkiza dispelled the flails and returned to the spears.
The strategy was far less effective than before however, as the creature was able to simply block them.
'What is keeping that girl?' She wondered.
_____*In Roxanne's mind*_____
Roxanne crossed her arms and looked around. "Alright, come on out, I don't have time for games." She said.
The Nightmare walked out with its hands up. "Well now love, aren't you forceful?" She said teasingly.
"I need to borrow your power." Roxanne said simply.
The Nightmare raises an eyebrow. "Why?....that guy isn't so tough." She asked.
Roxanne blinked. "That's why I only need a quarter of it, he's no problem for you, but I don't need all of your power right now." She answered.
The Nightmare bowed. "As you wish love, but I have to warn you, I would do your best to avoid calling for my help after this, even I need to......recharge." She said as she lent a quarter of her power to Roxanne.
______*Dalcorus.*_______
Roxanne opened her eyes and she felt herself changing, she didn't change much, her claws became sharper and her fur darkened a little as it thickened.
She looked around and saw that she was trapped in a barrier. "Inkiza, go on back, I'll handle it from here." She said.
The barrier dissipated and Roxanne heard a voice. "Good luck."
Roxanne looked at the creature who had its halberd, she then ran up to the creature and engaged in combat.
The bold move must have caught the creature off guard, as it was slow to respond at first.
Roxanne also caught it off guard with a general boost in strength and agility, as she was able to block its strikes and hit hard in the process.
The creature threw its halberd away and fought with its claws, managing to hit every now and then but it was much harder now, as Roxanne was more aware and had more speed to fight back with.
The return threw a gut punch at Roxanne, but she blocked and grabbed the creatures arm, she threw it to the ground and kicked it in the side before punching its helmet directly.
Roxanne held the creature down and grabbed its helmet. "Now then.....what are you?" She asked as she ripped the helmet off.
Once the helmet was gone, Roxanne was wide eyed as she threw the helmet away, there was a reason everything about the creature was familiar, it was beacauss it was a drake.
Roxanne recognized the drake immediately, the blue scales, the Emerald eyes, the annoyed expression. "Emerald?" She asked quietly.
The drake huffed and rolled his eyes. "Who else?" He replied out of irritation.
Roxanne grabbed the amulet and stood up. "Why are you here?" She asked as she held her hand out.
Emerald took Roxanne's hand. "I don't know, all I know is that after I died, I woke up here." He answered.
Over by the group, Golden and Lyaroa had expressions of shock on their faces, while Fang appeared confused, Shade however was completely lost. "What did I miss?" He asked.
They all heard a loud crack of thunder and they looked to the Four. "You have passed the ritual." One of them said.
"And you may now pass." Another one said.
"Know that after this point, you will be shown no mercy." The ones on the far left and right said.
The Four, along with every other cultist vanished after that.
"If there is an upside to this, I found out I'm a male and my voice isn't easy to misinterpret as female." Emerald walked over to his halberd and sat down next to it, he took his armor off save for the gauntlets and most of the leg armor.
Shade looked around. "What am I missing?" He asked.
Lyaro chuckled. "Emerald, this is Shade, a Night Wolf, Shade, this is Emerald, we knew eachother back at the Templd of Jandoka." She explained.
Emerald looked at Lyaroa. "Wait, I don't know you." He stated.
Fang rubbed his eyes. "Long story short, this is Lyaroa, she possessed me before we met, now I'm back in control and Lyaroa has her own body." He said, summing it up quickly.
Emerald picked his halberd up and let it rest on his shoulder. "Well, now that we are back together again, why don't we go exploring just like old times?" He offered.
Roxanne nodded. "Hell yea." She said in agreement.
Lyaora looked at Emerald. "Are you sure?.....we are going to be killing this cult, the one you spent so much time with." She asked.
Emerald huffed. "Never been more serious in my life, I may have been a champion, but they treated me worse than a prisoner." He replied.
Fang started walking to the door. "Then let's go, the sooner we reach the antidote, the better." He said.
The group of six then walked to the door, and as they passed through, they saw the antidote sitting on a table in the corner, Fang walked over and picked it up.
As Fang drank the potion, Shade looked at Emerald. "I take it you fought with them before?" He asked.
Emerald nodded. "With two of them yes, when Lyaroa was possessing Fang I fought with her and Fang back at Jandoka's temple, was slightly difficult but we eventually reached Jandoka's chamber, we fought the God and claimed victory, but at the cost of my life." He said, he then looked at Golden, who destroyed the amulets. "Though I don't recall the bear at all." He said.
"That's Golden." Roxanne answered. "He was trapped inside of Derpy's mind at the time, Lyaroa freed them after she got her body back." She explained.
Emerald sighed. "I have a lot to catch up on." He said before looking at Roxanne. "How is Firefly?.....is she well?" He asked.
Roxanne nodded. "Yea, she's doing good, she has a normal life, I've been doing everything I can for her." She said.
Emerald cross his arms and shook his head. "I am sorry for what I did, you know that right?" He replied.
Roxanne shook her head. "It's alright Emerald, she's happy, she knows everything, she remembers her old life, we even gave her a chance to return to it, but she stayed a filly." She said.
Emerald was going to talk, but they were cut off as they heard Lyaroa talk. "Come on let's get moving!" She said.
The group continued forward and soon reached a more volcanic environment, the ground was black and there were rocks and mountains everywhere, if there were hell on earth.....this would be it.
The ground even had what appeared to be lava running through it, the group was careful not to fall in as they crossed the wastes. "Be careful, these lands are endless, and the cult had centuries to prepare for this day." Emerald said calmly.
The group eventually found a large fortress imbedded into a mountain, the fortress was dark and had towers along it, they knew that the final battle would be held there, and they were ready.
Lyaroa looked at the others. "You ready for this?" She asked.
Seeing them all nod, Lyaroa led the way to the fortress, it was very far away, but this did not deter them.
_____*fifteen minutes later.*______
Lyaroa and the others approached the fortress, they were surprised to find no guards around and only a small puzzle stood to keep them out.
There was a drawbridge that would take them across the most of lava, but they needed to do something to make it drop.
Emerald grabbed a rock a threw it at a wooden circle near the drawbridge, the bridge dropped and Emerald looked at them. "That was obvious guys." He said before crossing, the others followed.
They were all surprised to find an army of black stone golems and constructs, along with a regiment of soldiers guarding the courtyard.
They fought the small army fiercely, taking them down steadily, but Fang knew that this was merely a ploy to stall for time, as these soldiers showed no self preservation and instead only wanted to kill, this was proven as they were attacking through their allies to strike at the group.
Emerald was easily dispatching the soldiers and golems, he may have been out of the loop, but he wasn't dull at combat, that was evident enough from before.
It took a full five minutes until the courtyard was clear, Lyaroa then led the group forward, they entered a large roommate that was filled with soldiers and constructs, it was clear that they would be getting no rest as they fought.
Roxanne threw up an enormous wall of fire and began fighting, she simply wanted to end this, and go home.
The group fought and fought, they fought for hours as they cleared the fortress, and they struggled to complete increasingly complex puzzles.
Fang looked around and sighed as he leaned up against a wall. "This is it huh?....the end of the road, to been a long ride." He said to himself.
_____*three hours later*_____
Lyaroa looked at the group, they were beaten and battered from the hours of combat, and Shade was on the verge of collapse, Emerald and Golden were alright, Fang was soldiering on, while Roxanne seemed to be on her last legs, she herself was struggling to continue.
The room they were in wasn't big, but it was host to an enormous door that had depictions of a being, standing above the others, rallying them to his cause.
Roxanne sat down and looked to the others. "Do any of you have the strength to continue?" She asked.
Shade rested on the floor, he shook his head. "Not really." He said.
Lyaroa looked around and sighed, she held her hand out and used her powers as much as she could.
Golden felt his stores of energy renew, his fatigue faded away, he felt ready to go on for hours more.
The others felt similar effects, however, Shade got the most of it, he felt his strength return completely, he sat up and looked at Lyaroa. "Are you sure about this?" He asked.
Lyaroa stopped, she had no more power in her for now. "I'm sure, I can't use my powers for a while, but it wasn't enough to do anything big anyway, at least with all of you restored, we don't have to worry about any of us collapsing." She said.
The others stood up and approached their weapons.
Lyaroa faced the door and kicked it open, the group walked inside and saw something familiar.
The Four sat and waited in chairs, they did not move even as the doors flew open. "We have been expecting you." One of them said.
"And now, as our most ancient law dictates, we must tell you the reason for your death." Another one said.
"Well over a thousand years ago, a destructive spell was placed on our world." The one on the far right started.
"One that latched onto the planets core and ebbed away at its very being." The one on the far left continued.
"This spell threatened to destroy our planet, and no matter how hard they tried, the most powerful wizards could not stop it." One of them said.
"However, one of these wizards had an idea, if the spell could eat something else as strong, it would possibly fade before it was too late." Another one continued.
"Therefore he secretly sacrificed powerful individuals to the destructive spell, it seemed to be working at first, but eventually, the others found out, and had him hanged for murder." The one on the far left said.
"However, before he died, he established this cult, and with many visions, he came up with a plan." The one on the far right said.
"If we could kill the creator of this world, the Sentinel, and sacrifice it to the spell, it would hold enough power to destroy the spell, once and for all." One of them all said.
"Now do you see Sentinel?.....why it is that you must die? one life for that of the planet?" They asked.
Lyaroa looked around at the group and shook her head. "It doesn't matter, none of these guys are going to just 'let' me die." She answered.
The Four rose from their chairs and put their hands together. "Then we are afraid, you must all die." One of them said.
The group looked around and saw numerous guards appear around them. "These soldiers are the elite." Another one said.
"You will be hard pressed to find any with better training then them." The one on the far right said.
The battle began immediately, the guards attacked and the group retaliated.
Golden soon discovered what the Four meant, all of the guards were immune to his powers, and he couldn't even land a hit on them, he decided to use his powers to enhance his own abilities.
Emerald was able to fight them on even ground, they could not get close to him with his style of combat, but in turn, he could not break their defense.
Shade probably had the easiest time of all, he was in the center of the group throwing disintegration blasts where he could, and the guards weren't immune or resistant to them either, so it was helping lots.
Lyaroa was focusing mostly on covering Shade, she was also striking where possible to assist Fang and Roxanne, who were working on cutting a path to the Four, who simply stood there watching.
Eventually, the group managed to eliminate the guards, Golden had multiple stab wounds across his entire body, Emerald was pierced through the side but he was alive, Roxanne and Fang had bruises and gashes all over, and Roxanne even had a scar over her left eye now.
Lyaroa was the worst for wear, as she had several burn marks, stab wounds, cuts and bruises, gashes, and even some broken bones.
Shade was the least injured, the most he had were a few cuts on his arm.
The group of Six stood before the Four who simply looked at them. "You have done well to make it this far." One of them said.
"But you are not ready to face us, and you never will be." Another one said.
They began fighting soon after that, and it became apparent incredibly quickly that they were right, Roxanne's fire did nothing, Shade's blasts didn't even impact on them, they were immune to psychic energy, and they were even immune to dragon fire and Fang's time warping.
The Four fought carefully and efficiently, they fought as one, and defended as one, if one of them were threatened, another would easily retaliate, ending in a one sided battle.
Lyaroa couldn't even do anything to them without her powers, it seemed like they were unstoppable, she tried to strike them but she was thrown aside, she had called on Soul and Sprit, but they were of no help.
The same went for Life and Death, their powers were essentially useless against the Four, Roxanne was kneed in the gut and then thrown aside.
Shade felt a magic spear drive itself through him, he screamed in pain as he was then flung away by a powerful punch.
The fight went on like this for a while, with the Four easily defeating the group.
Fang felt his head get slammed into the ground. "You have betrayed us Fang.....we offer you a chance at redemption, kill the Sentinel and her Friends, or you will all die, along with everyone you care for." One of them said.
The Four regrouped as Fang coughed up blood, he wiped it from his face and growled, he looked back at the group and stood up, he faced them and blinked. "I'm sorry." He said.
Roxanne's eyes widened. "Fang, don't do it." She begged.
Fang smirked and winked at Roxanne, he turned around and faced the Four. "My name is Fang.....The Herald." He started.
Fang closed his eyes. "The Herald of what however is another matter, I don't like talking about it however, but I do have a very unique power." He chuckled.
"Enough prattling, kill them!"
"I am The Herald......" He opened his eyes to reveal reptilian ones. "Of Jandoka." He said as he changed rapidly.
Much to everyone's shock, Fang grew in size as he changed, his fur turning to scales, he grew four more heads and they turned to hydra heads, his tail changing to that of a hydra.
Soon enough his appearance changed so much, it was an exact image of Jandoka himself.
"Free at last!" Said the far right head.
"As we agreed, we have arrived." Said the far left head.
"Back from the dead, much like the Judge." Said the middle head.
All five heads looked down to the Four, who stared at Jandoka with blank faces. "So, a bunch of cowards who hide themselves!" Said the middle left head.
"Brother, we will not be questioning them." The middle right head stated.
"As you wish brother." Said the middle head.
The Four moved quickly as the five heads of Jandoka fired their powerful beams of energy. "Do not interfere with our battle!" Said the middle head ordered.
Even the combined might of the Four was able to best Jandoka easily, for without the amulets, there was no way to weaken the great hydra.
One of the Four attempted to strike at one of the heads, only for another head to chomp it in half. "Do you truly believe you can kill a GOD!" The far left head shouted.
The members of the Four stood together for a moment and soon the fourth one returned. "We are the Four, we are eternal and undying." They proclaimed.
Jandoka turned to face them. "So are we." The five heads declared.
The battle raged for some time, until the hydra managed to get one good shot.
Jandoka fired all at once and the Four were obliterated by the powerful blast, the hydra then turned to face the group. "Our Herald was correct, this was the only way, I believe it is time for us to leave however.....you will not see us again." The hydra said before fading away.
They saw Fang kneeling on the ground where Jandoka once stood, he got up and faced the group. "Sorry about that." He said.
Roxanne ran up and hugged Fang. "Don't you ever do that again." She said.
Fang broke free of the hug and grinned. "I'm the Herald of Jandoka Roxanne, I can't exactly break that oath easily." He countered.
Lyaroa approached and crossed her arms. "How did you do that?" She asked.
Fang tapped his head. "Jandoka spoke to me before he died, and we made a deal, I would become his Herald, he would get to see and hear everything that I did, he would live on, and in exchange, I would be able to call on him in a time of great need, you didn't hear Lyaroa because he spoke directly to me." He explained.
Emerald sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I gave my life to kill him, only to discover he wasn't intentionally evil, and then to come back, and discover he was alive the whole time?....." He looked at Fang.
"I hate my life so much right now." Emerald said.
The group was so busy talking and celebrating the end of their journey, that they didn't hear the quiet whispers In the air, and soon a voice was heard. "We give our lives." Said one of the Four.
"To finish what we started." Another one said.
"Let the Eternal Four perish." Yet another said,
"So that the Sentinel may die." The last one said.
The group found a rumbling beneath them and they saw the floor crumbling. "Run!" Lyaroa shouted, they ran for the door but the floor collapsed there first.
The group attempted to find a way out but the floor was collapsing far too quickly.
Roxanne looked down and saw that the floor beneath them was collapsing now, and when they were all together, they fell.
____*the fall*____
It was a surprisingly long fall, as they fell, the passed more then the floors they reached, and soon, they saw the bottom.
They soon impacted on the hard ground with a crash, Shade screamed in pain as he felt his bones shatter.
Thankfully, the rest of the group was able to handle the fall just fine, Emerald did it by using his draconic Magic, Fang and Golden were just naturally hard to break, Roxanne didn't do anything, as she felt Lyaroa take the brunt of the fall.
They felt the earth crumble around them, and they soon discovered they were in a volcano, Lyaroa had seen Soul and Spirit fall into the lava, along with Life and Death, she cringed and looked away, not willing to see any more.
They all felt the earth quake around them and they scrambled to get up, Golden rushed over to Shade with Emerald and picked him up to carry him out.
Roxanne got off of Lyaroa as fast as she could, but as the Sentinel got up she looked and saw Fang hanging from an edge as the rock crumbled around them. "Fang!" Roxanne called out as she rushed over.
Lyaroa stood up and saw Roxanne running over, her eyes widened and she rushed over.
Fang looked down at the lava below him and he lost his grip with one hand, he looked down at the lava in fear, he was about to drop when he heard a voice. "Take my hand!" He looked and saw Roxanne reaching out.
Fang attempted to get up, but all he managed to do was barely tap her fingers, he found himself reminiscing all of a sudden, in the face of death, he was going to try to remember all the fun he had with the fox.
Fang watched as Roxanne was pulled away suddenly. "No!.....no no no!.....let me go!" She screamed.
Lyaroa threw Roxanne towards the entrance and barred her from approaching. "Get out!" She ordered loudly.
Fang saw Lyaroa look over the edge and reach out to him. "Grab my hand Fang!" She said.
Fang attempted again to grab the hand, but he once again missed, once he saw the pained look on Lyaroa's face, he decided to risk it, he reached up as high as he could......and felt himself get pulled up.
Lyaroa pulled Fang up and got him moving to the door, she tried to catch up but the rock with crumbling too quickly.
Fang was about to follow the others who were near the door when he heard a voice. "Fang!" Lyaroa called out fearfully.
Lyaroa looked to her sides and saw the rocks crumbling quickly, she looked at Fang. "Help me!.....please!" She screamed.
Fang looked at the other and then at Lyaroa, his breathing slowed and he saw time slow down. "Not now." He said to himself.
_____*the vision*_____
The situation in the vision was the exact same, only in the vision, Fang didn't even blink as he ran away from Lyaroa, he then heard a heart dropping sound. "Faaang!" He saw Lyaroa's face, the expression of pure terror and sadness, it broke his heart, he then saw the rocks around her crumble and she soon fell. "Noooooo!" She screamed.
The vision then moved elsewhere, Ponyville, he looked around and saw himself sitting on the couch in Gwen's house in silence with the others. "It's all my fault." He eventually said. "It's my fault she's gone, and now it's come to this." He said solemnly.
The others said nothing, but eventually Roxanne got up and walked to the door. "I'm leaving with Firefly........I don't want to see you again." She said angrily, though Fang could see the tears going down her face.
Fang cringed away and vision changed location again, but now it was at the cemetery, the earth was dying, and the graves were covered in vines, he saw himself walk up to a grace and kneel down.
Fang looked at the graves name and he broke down on the spot, the grave read Gwen Dash and Ditzy Dash, gone but not forgotten.
As he wept silently, he heard the other him talk. "I'm so sorry.......how could I have known?......I never should have dragged you into this Gwen, never." He said silently.
The vision changed again but this time the town was in complete ruin, and he saw himself walking by the destroyed bakery and look at it. "I used to bring Spark here all the time, heh, those were the days, I hear they're planning to fix this place up.......not much hope there." His future self said.
The vision seemed to fade away and then reappear. "Come on Spark, don't do this." He heard himself say.
Fang turned around and saw a horrifying sight, Spark was holding a knife to his throat, he was older, but he was still not as big as Emerald. "Why not dad?.......everyone I love is dead, my family and friends are all dead.....all I have left is you, and your the cause of all of this!" He snapped.
Fang's future self tried to inch closer but stopped once he saw Spark tense. "Roxanne and Firefly are alive Spark.....please, don't do this, I know I've screwed up, but don't make everyone else pay for it." He begged.
Spark shook his head. "I'm sorry dad, but I won't let them see what I've become." He slit his throat, killing himself instantly.
Fang watched as his future self crumbled in despair, and as he muttered three words over and over. "I deserve this, I deserve this, I deserve this." He said over and over again.
Fang felt the vision ending as he was dragged back to the world.
____*reality.*____
Fang blinked and ran at Lyaroa, he didn't know what would happen that required the Sentinel to live......but if it kept everyone alive, and Roxanne happy, he would gladly sacrifice himself, while others would see a powerful Sentinel and fierce warrior, he saw a girl who was afraid to die, and an amazing friend, so he would have no regrets in the end, as he was atoning for all of his sins at this moment.
Lyaroa almost lost her grip and she was now hanging by one hand, she slipped and almost fell but managed to grab a small edge in the rocks.
Fang reached Lyaroa and reached as far as he could. "Take my hand!" He shouted.
Lyaroa looked up at him and tried to grab his hand, she barely missed and she heard Fang talk. "Don't you dare let go." He said.
Lyaroa gritted her teeth and she managed to grab Fang's hand with a risky leap, she was pulled up but saw the rocks crumbling.
Fang got the Sentinel on her feet and pushed her towards the door, he himself got up, but it was too late, as the rocks around him crumbled and the platform beneath him gave out, he heard Lyaroa scream. "Fang!" She shouted.
Lyaroa was powerless as Fang fell, she cringed away and ran off towards the door, the tears falling from her eyes all the while, for she felt that her friend died because of her, and for the first time in a long time, she allowed herself to feel regret.
Fang did not feel fear.....instead, he felt peace, he heard a melody in his head that made him smile, even as the lava melted his body, he smiled and closed his eyes. 'Goodbye.' He thought as the lava killed him.
_____*outside the chamber*______
The group ran, they ran and ran from the mountain as it erupted in a wave of molten lava, they eventually found refuge on a high up rock as the lava flowed.
Lyaroa jumped to the rock and landed hard, she was still weeping but the others did not know why yet, they were too busy keeping an eye on the lava.
About five minutes later, as the lava flowed all around them, Roxanne looked at Lyaroa who was still sobbing. "Where's Fang?" She asked.
The others looked but did not see the wolf anywhere.
Lyaroa could not talk, she was mourning the loss of her friend.
Roxanne looked down at Lyaroa and knelt down. "Lyaroa." She said, her voice breaking little. "Where's Fang?" She asked quietly.
Lyaroa looked up at Roxanne and the fox saw the tear stains, she said nothing, but when she shook her head, Roxanne knew......Fang, the man she considered a father, was dead. "No......" She buried her face in her hands and wept.
Shade did nothing, instead he simply sat and tried to comprehend everything that had happened, while he didn't know Fang very well, he did respect him.
Golden bit his lip and punched the rock they were on out of frustration, while he didn't have an emotional attachment to Fang, he did know him.
Emerald didn't know what to do, he didn't know Fang really, so he decided to honor him with silence.
The five didn't do anything for hours, they simply waited and waited on that rock.
_____*hours later.*_____
Lyaroa wiped a tear from her eye and looked around, she saw how defeated the others looked, she had recovered some of her power, so she could do one thing. "I'm going to teleport us to Ponyville, we can rest up there." She said.
Roxanne simply nodded, she didn't have the energy to argue.
Neither did the others, they simply wanted to mourn their fallen comrade.
Lyaroa teleported them to her house in Ponyville, they appeared in her living room, and Wheatley happened to be there. "AAHH!" He shouted out of surprise. "How many times have I asked you not to do that?" He asked.
"Wheatley, we aren't in the mood right now." Lyaroa said calmly but out of irritation.
They then took their time doing whatever it was they were doing.
Lyaroa and Roxanne took a shower, but since Golden was in the other one, they had to do it together, but Lyaroa made no comments about it.
Shade turned on the music and listened to something upbeat, to try and take his mind off of it.
Once they were all back in the living room, Lyaroa spoke. "You can all stay here for as long as you want." She offered.
Hours later, they all went to the bedrooms to get some sleep, sadly, with Lyaroa's powers diminished, there were only three rooms, Emerald didn't mind sharing a room with Shade, while Golden got the small bedroom, Lyaroa and Roxanne shared one. "I can turn the bed into two if you want." Lyaroa offered.
Roxanne shook her head and lied down under the covers. "It's fine." She said.
Lyaroa nodded and got under the covers, she then closed her eyes to get to sleep. "Night Roxie." She said.
_____*meanwhile*_____
Golden sighed as he looked at the photo in his locket, he closed it and looked out the window. "See you pup." He said sadly.