//------------------------------//
// Chapter 12 
// Story: Bringing Balance 
// by Shumiry 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 12

“Remember blood, remember death, the suffering that bought you breath. For far too long, you forgot, those of us who sit and rot. Died for you, in your wars, wars purveyed by your Princess whores. Now we rise, malcontent, to take back the life which you rent.”	-Chant of the Forgotten


In the months that followed, Equestria experienced events it had never before witnessed. Ponies crept in and out of the palace unseen, and mass teleportations were planned and executed in total secrecy. Luna became the leader of Nightwish, the group that scoured the land for signs of trouble, and stole into Equestria's neighbors as spies. Seeker helped devise a hoofful of useful inventions, working in tandem with Twilight Sparkle, and some of Celestia's personal retinue, which enabled hitherto unheard of stealth communications and defenses.
Elaborate codes which were nearly impossible to crack without some knowledge of the key, audio and video gemstones capable of transmitting across the globe, utilizing what Seeker called “satellites” in space. There were also visual distortion cloaks, which would bend most of the light that hit them, making the wearer nearly invisible, though powering them was a chore, limiting their usefulness.
Celestia did her best to maintain Equestria's other alliances, though it soon became clear it would be impossible to rely on any of them for aid for the incoming invasion. They simply could not be convinced of such a drastic change in standing between the two nations, and so she contented herself with simply confirming that none of them had been turned against her.
In secret, Seeker created a network of underground landing points. Places he could store enough power to fuel two teleports, a receiving one, and a departing one, for even a large group of individuals. He also stored several golems of himself, locking a small sliver of his soul in each, to guarantee his continued survival, should something go wrong in the coming battle.
Luna virtually disappeared from public affairs, her time spent administering Nightwish, and resting to regain her strength. Celestia was growing increasingly anxious. Her sister refused to discuss her pregnancy, which was cause enough for worry, but the impending war, as well as the midnight alicorn's everyday exertions, compounded her concerns. Furthermore, reports had begun coming in of what were likely the first casualties.
A farmer northeast of Trottingham had been found murdered in his shed.
When he hadn't come to market, his friends grew concerned. After the third day in a row, they made the trek to the earth pony's abode, only to find the mouldering corpse. A murder was disturbing enough, but the body, according to some of Luna's informants, appeared to have reached a state of decay more in line with having been dead for several weeks.
Something had sucked the life force out of the poor pony.
A hoofful of other reports came in; a pegasus was found in Windsoar, having been strapped to a table and dissected, a unicorn was discovered in St. Petershoof, its severed horn still missing. Celestia's night terrors had not returned, which, oddly enough, disconcerted her. She wanted to believe it was because the dead knew she was taking steps to rectify the situation. But she couldn't. There was some more sinister reason they had abandoned her.
One night, when the sun goddess couldn't sleep, she stood on her balcony, overlooking Canterlot. The city still bustled, her and her sister's combined efforts having minimized the spread of the stories about the murders, preventing a panic. Still, it was going to get harder and harder to cover them up, and she was growing frustrated that they couldn't seem to locate the individuals responsible...
Her protection runes flared to life as the bolt glanced harmlessly off her shield.
Spinning around, she stared into the dark room, her eyes finding nothing in the blackness. Something about the magic signature was so familiar, and yet... Another bolt blasted her shield, but this one was not repelled. It splattered on the ward, the infectious taint of the curse oozing into the folds of the ethereal wall, splitting it apart like a wedge.
Celestia's eyes widened in horror. She only knew of three ponies in history that could hope to learn and counter her ward that swiftly; her sister, her protege, and a pony who had been dead for nearly three thousand years.
“Rattling Breath?” She whispered, dreading the answer she knew was to come. The green coated unicorn stepped from the shadows, seeming to materialize from the darkness itself. Her yellow eyes glowed with malevolence, and a mocking grin twisted her features. Heart pounding, Celestia dropped her shield before the taint could seep into her power lines, and teleported to the other side of the room.
Her strike met the blast she knew would come, anticipating the other mare's anticipation of her move. A shock thudded through her, as she felt the spear slam into her side. Turning her head, she looked at the weapon, held in the mouth of her dead chief commander. The dream roared back to her, as she gazed into his hate-filled eyes.
The runes covering the bone spear were flaring with power, holding her wards apart so that the weapon could pass through undeterred. The black runes of Carryion. With a gasp, Celestia fell to her knees, as the spear pulsed with energy, shattering her ward, and wiping the runes from her body, the ink staining the carpet where it splattered.
Rattling Breath had sauntered over to her, and leaned in, licking up some of her blood from the wound. With a shudder, Celestia felt some of her life force be stripped away. As she watched, the green pony changed, transforming into a replica of the Princess. Suddenly, she knew their plan, and cursed herself a foal for not seeing it sooner.
“The Graveyard of Illeyseus...” she muttered, knowing that she no longer had any hope of stopping them. The mockery's hoof crackled with yellow lightning, a netherblade forming as she grinned wickedly. Tears ran down Celestia's face as she chose her path. Forgive me Luna. I wish I could have done more, been smarter. I've failed you all, possibly for the last time. Her head snapped up as a cold fury gripped her. The mockery stared, apparently surprised, though its features betrayed nothing. They never had, even when she'd been alive.
Forgive me my little ponies, but for you, I willingly make this choice. Power coursed through her, more than she had ever channeled in her long life. Please... she prayed, protect them Secret Seeker. I know you have the strength to face these evils and succeed. Her eyes faded to white, as new runes appeared, smoke rising from them as they were burned into her flesh. Do not fall. If you do, all is lost. With a scream, her spell erupted. The mockery had launched itself forward, blade poised to strike, but was now thrown back, slammed into the wall. Iron Heart was crushed against the wall beside the door. Having no room to be thrown, he was squeezed between the force of the blast, and the unyielding stone.
With a splotch, his body gave, becoming nothing more than a black stain on the marble. Released from his bondage, Iron Heart's soul drifted back to the aether. When her vision cleared, the mockery freed herself from the wall where she'd been embedded. Celestia was no more. Guards burst into the room, and gaped at the Princess.
“Sister!” Luna cried, slowly walking into the room, “Are you alright?” The mockery nodded,
“Yes, I am well. An attempt by our enemies to remove me,” her eyes glanced meaningfully at the black splotch on the wall, “They did not succeed.” The guards smiled, saluting their Princess with pride, as they backed out of the room to let the two speak in private. Luna had walked up to her, and nuzzled her neck,
“Thank you for being careful.” she said, warmth radiating from her. The mockery nodded, and stepped away, surprising the other mare.
“I apologize if I seem distant,” she said, as she made her way to the door, “but I fear our enemy's strike was merely a distraction. They've come for the book, and I don't doubt they can get to it. We must move now.” Luna was staring at her, mouth open as she considered the words, then, with a resolute nod, she followed.
Seeker gasped in his chamber as the words rocked through his mind,
“Do not fall. If you do, all is lost.” He fell to his knees, tears immediately burning in his eyes as understanding tore through him. Celestia was gone. He wanted to just lie there, and mourn her loss. To go to sleep and hope that somepony would make everything right again.
“No.” Who said that? he wondered.
“No,” he said again, louder this time. Rising to his hooves, he felt the rage burn within him. Equestria was in danger. Luna was in danger. Rushing to the teleport node in the adjoining room, he activated the rune sphere and vanished, reappearing in a closet down the hall from Celestia's chambers. Donning his distortion cloak, he exited the room, and whipped down the hall towards the archives. There is still time!
Luna and Celestia finished their trek, coming to a rest before the sealed doors.
“Everything looks to be in order, perhaps we beat them here-”
“No,” the mockery cut her off, causing the other to look hurt at the brusque treatment. Its features softened,
“I apologize, these are trying times. Prepare yourself sister, I know not what we will find within.” Their runes flared to life, as the two sisters combined their powers and opened the massive gates of the Chamber. There, the Necroequicon sat on its pedestal, untouched. With a relieved sigh, Luna dropped her wards and turned to...
Her heart turned to ice as she gazed upon the face of malice. Her sister's features were twisted into a lunatic grin, eyes wide with glee as she slammed the lightning blade into Luna's stomach.
“Oof!” she gasped, as the blade was withdrawn, a small mahogany orb impaled on the end. With a sound like rusty wheels grating, the air behind the mockery distorted, and, like a drain functioning in reverse, the griffin and a brown-coated unicorn appeared. Luna could feel the evil emanating from them, recognizing the griffin as Ambassador Taulus, now Agitarius.
She sank to the ground, as the two beings shifted, becoming their true forms. Two great demons loomed over her, Agitarius, denoted by the green glow from beneath his scales, and Mephistopheles, his tell-tale red fluorescence betraying his identity. The Lord of Deceit strolled past her, wresting the book from its pedestal. Turning to face the three creatures, he said,
“Do with her as you please, but be quick about it. Our presence has not gone unnoticed.” With that same distortion in the air, he vanished, leaving them alone. The orb had come to rest in the demon's clawed hand, and it held it before her eyes. As she looked on, helpless, it squeezed, causing the soul to burst into brown fire, and vanish.
Her heart shattered. She had seen the devastation of mothers who had given birth to stillborn foals. Had witnessed, first-hoof the way it tore them apart. At least I won't live long enough to go through that pain... Agitarius' claws were wreathed in black energy as it raised its arm to strike. They whistled through the air as they descended to tear her soul apart.
The mimic of her sister stumbled in the way. With a horrific scream, Rattling Breath's soul was ripped to shreds. The body it had inhabited crumbled to dust as it fell to the ground. Surprised, the demon stood still for a moment. In that moment, Luna saw her salvation.
The distortion cloak fell away to reveal Secret Seeker, his body morphed into an image of his soul form. In his right hand he held a spear made of what appeared to be voidstone, but it seemed to be etched with runes.
That's impossible... she thought. The demon struck, swinging its lightning-coated claws at the human. Seeker casually moved the spear to intercept the blow. When the claws touched the weapon, it sliced through them. But that wasn't the end. A vortex formed at the point of contact, and the severed claws, as well as the arm they had been attached to, started being sucked in. Agitarius roared in pain and anger as it tried to step back from the consuming swirl.
Pckow! Sealing Sight created a second point, pulling the demon's left arm into his eye. The combined force of the two vortexes caused the beast to tear, its skin and scales splitting down the middle as it was ripped nearly in half before they finally ended. Severely wounded, the demon struggled to hold itself together, but there would be no reprieve.
Seeker had seen. He stepped forward, moving the spear horizontally behind him, and thrust his lightning blade into the monster's chest. This struggle was much shorter. Though Agitarius was weakened, he was still a formidable opponent. Or at least he would have been. Apathy rolled off Secret Seeker in waves, thick and suffocating. It was a trial just to care.
As Agitarius struggled to combat the full force of the Lord of Despondence's influence, he felt his essence being stolen. By the time he'd shaken the feeling of unconcern, the majority of his strength had been sapped. It took him only a moment to realize that he couldn't hope to win this confrontation, but the Lord of Dispute wouldn't go down without a fight. If this human wanted his power, he'd have to battle for every scrap of it!
The battle was short, Seeker easily dodging the weakened Lord's strikes, landing absorbing hits of his own. Soon, he made his final move, feinting left, then thrusting forward. The beast fell for it, and was skewered by the blade. With an anguished roar, it was pulled into him, the thread of its being unraveling, and becoming part of his soul.
He turned to Luna, as the guard-pony arrived, his eyes widening in fear when he saw the collapsed Princess. They widened further when he noticed the dual-winged human, recognizing him from the statue.
“Protect her,” Seeker said to him, though he hadn't turned to look. “The others are in danger, I must go to them. It has begun.” When Luna nodded to him, her face devoid of emotion, the distortion of the air swirled between them, and he was sucked inside.
Luna lay her head down, and closed her eyes, as the guard pony rushed over to her, asking what he could do to help. She couldn't do this. Not right now. Sleep came, and she welcomed it.