//------------------------------// // Chapter 26: Heartbreak // Story: Achieving Divinity: Dragon's Deception // by The Joeker //------------------------------// I was ready to leave for Canterlot tonight, as Princess Luna had requested some time just with the two of us. "Wow, you're really lucky to have two Princesses wanting to date you!" Exclaimed Twilight as we stood at Ponyville Station. The other girls were here as well. "Yeah! But he's totally good looking!" Said Rainbow. I coughed slightly... "What? You are! Not just that, but you're awesome as well! Totally heroic and selfless!" Said Rainbow. "Are you hitting on me?" I asked with a grin. "What?! No!" She crossed her arms and looked away. "Really? Cause ya really seemed to enjoy that wing massage he gave you at the banquet." Smirked Applejack. Rainbow blushed and didn't answer... "Anyway, I think the Princesses are the lucky ones." Smiled Fluttershy with a nod. Oh wow... "We know you're not backing out of this one, so you can get there on your own, right?" Asked Pinkie. "Yeah, don't worry." I chuckled. "Well, dear. I think you look dashing! If a little rough. But I understand Princess Luna likes that kind of thing." Smiled Rarity. This is because I'm wearing Ulthring's Armour. Minus the helmet. "Thanks, I think." I said. "Don't get me wrong dear, you still look handsome!" She continued. "Yeah. Thanks." I smiled. "Well, this is it. Good luck." Nodded Twilight. "Heh, cheers. I'll see you all in a few days." I waved. "And Applejack? Good luck with that reunion thing." I smiled. "Thank you kindly. See you when ya get back." She tipped her stetson. I then switched to my Dragon Form and flew off, heading for Canterlot. I enjoyed the view on the way, looking down on the little Ponies living their lives. It filled me with happiness. I continued on the way, wondering where to take Luna. The Hitching Post? It was really the only place I knew... Maybe I could ask Cel? She might know somewhere. I want it to be public, so I can show my affection for Luna. I came up to Canterlot Station and swooped down, landing with little issue. I got there and saw Princess Luna waiting for me. She had a smile on her face, but a sad one. Nevertheless, I was happy to see her. "Luna! What's up?" I asked as she looked away from me... I wonder what's wrong with her... "I..." She began. "If there's something on your mind, please, tell me." I said, my heart was pounding... I was nervous. "Tyrath... I have something to tell you." Said Luna. "What is it?" I asked. I went to put my hand on her cheek but she moved her head away and looked at me... "This is very hard to say..." She admitted, she was acting quite... Aloof I'd say. Maybe distant? "You can tell me anything Luna, you know that." I smiled. I was worried to what she would say, but I wanted to hear it. Very worried. "Well... My sister and I have come to a unanimous decision..." She said, I still had my hand outstretched, but it was hanging... "On?" I asked, retracting my hand and looking at her with a confused look. I already had a feeling... "You. As much as we do love you... We cannot risk our kingdom's safety, nor yours or anypony else's. We also must think of our reputation. We are sorry, but we cannot continue our relationship with you." She said. Needless to say, I was shocked... I felt my heart shatter. "Very well then..." I nodded. I felt as if there was an arrow in my chest. Getting twisted. "You must understand, if these Black Ring we to capture my sister or I and demand you give yourself up, you are the only one that can defeat them. This is in all our interests." She said. My entire mind was about collapse. "As you wish." I spoke... I felt like my entire world had just fallen apart... Like I had just been smashed in the balls with a warhammer... "I am sorry. That is our decision. My sister and I cannot risk it." She said. I felt... Sick, I suppose is the feeling. My heart slowed to a crawl, my mind just came apart... My breathing slowed. I then teleported to the Battle Tower... I needed to not come into contact with them for a while, until the life bond is broken... ;Third Pony POV; As Princess Luna saw Tyrath leave, she hung her head. She didn't want to do that. In fact, every fibre of her being told her not to. But she had thought about it, and that article was enough to force her decision... ;10 minutes later; "YOU DID WHAT!!????!!" Yelled Celestia, after Luna had just told her what she had told Tyrath. They were in Celestia's room after Luna had requested to speak to her. "I did what I had to do sister." She spoke, holding back tears. "How could you do that!?" Asked Celestia, in tears herself. "To me? To us?" She asked. "Have you seen the article?" Asked Luna, bringing a magazine over in her magic. It read thus: Princesses with Alien Fetish?! And it had a picture of Tyrath kissing Luna beneath it. "Luna, I do not care what some Magazine says!" Exclaimed Celestia, tossing it aside angrily. "No, but I do! This can damage our reputation! Not only that, but everypony is beginning to suspect us..." She said. "Luna, I am in love with Tyrath. And so are you." She said. "No. It was a momentary phase. A relationship of lust. Nothing more." She denied. "A phase?! Luna, that is not true!! You had no right to do this!" Exclaimed Celestia. "I have every right to do what is best for our Kingdom!" Replied Luna. "Luna, you know Tyrath and I are now life mates! He told us both so!" Argued Celestia. "And he also says there are ways to circumvent it." She told her sister. "All of which are painful for him!" Yelled Celestia. "He's a tough Pony, he can handle it." Luna waved off. "How could you say that?!" Asked Celestia, surprised at her sister. This was not her usual self. "I do not love him, and neither did you. He was simply there." She said. Did she mean it? With her stone face, Celestia couldn't tell... Although Celestia had her own stone face, she used her emotion when not in public. "I know I did. I loved him with all my heart. I was willing to spend the rest of my life with him." Stated Celestia. Her heart felt like it had taken a blade... "How do you know that?" Asked Luna. "Because I felt it. In my heart." She said, putting her hoof to her regalia. "That was just emotion. It may not have been love. Just obsession. He was something new, and interesting. And we let that get the better of us." Denied Luna. "I don't care what you say Luna, I love him. You can be without him if you wish. And I am going to tell him as much." Said Celestia, who was pissed at her sister. She began to walk out. "It is done sister. Let it go. I did this for us, for all our ponies. And for him." Said Luna. "You will have to accept it." Said Luna. "I can't. He is my soul mate. I need him." Cried Celestia, turning to her sister. "You just think you do. Let him go now. Please?" She asked. "You cannot get near the Battle Tower anyway. It's too far in the arctic for us to fly, and I have prevented teleportation." Informed Luna. "Very well. It seems I have no choice. For now..." Said Celestia, reluctantly giving in. She didn't want to antagonise her sister. She would wait it out for now... "If you want a sexual relationship, date a stallion from Equestria." Said Luna and walked out. When she did, Celestia collapsed onto her bed and sobbed, like a little filly, she cried... She hated everything. Everything and everypony. She shouldn't have, but at that moment she did... Nothing was everything for her in that moment, as she sobbed harder than she had in years. Luna then walked to her room, shut her door and repeated her sisters actions, throwing herself onto her bed and crying into a pillow. She wished she were dead at that moment. She did it for her and her sister and her little Ponies. But still... She hated herself for doing it... ;10 minutes earlier at the Battle Tower; As Tyrath appeared in his Throne Room, Creature was there waiting. "Master! It is... Master? What is the matter?" Asked Creature as he saw a blank expression on his Master's face, but he saw his face getting red, his eyes swirling into their yellow form... "Everyone take cover!!!!" Yelled Creature. Everyone in the Throne Room dived behind something. Suddenly, Tyrath let out the loudest, most screeching roar ever heard from a Dragon. The Tower shook, snow melted, pure power was unleashed and it even gave Damian pause, who was also deep in the arctic. Once he heard that roar, he put all Black Ring operations on hold for a few days. No one wants to mess with an extremely pissed off Dragon... The roar was filled with anger, hatred, sadness, sorrow and pure pain... Every emotion Tyrath held at that moment. It was all released. When Creature looked up, Tyrath put his fist through the wall of the Tower... Smoke was coming from Tyrath's mouth as he took deep breaths... His eyes narrow and yellow. He took his arm from the wall and collapsed to his knees, sobbing... No one had ever seen him like that before... Creature knew what it was. He came apart. "Did they...?" He asked. Tyrath just nodded. "How could they?!" Asked Creature. "They were right. I was a threat. My love was a distraction. Nothing more. I must break the bond." He said. It was clear Tyrath was hurt, deeply. This was pain unlike he'd ever felt. It was a deep seated pain, not something that could be healed with potions or magic... This is something that time might heal, but this was no guarantee. That included fasting and trying your best to not think of your life mate... It may also include some other extremes. It depends on the person and the... Severity of the bond you could say. "Rest Master. I will inform the Tower of what is to come." Nodded Creature. Tyrath nodded and took to his room. He stumbled there. Unable to focus. His mind was empty, yet full. There was a fog. He drank a full bottle of brandy in one swig, and immediately wanted more. When he was done, he looked at the bottle, ran his fingers over it and then launched the bottle at the wall with all his might, crying out in rage. His was still crying. He felt as if he were 5 again. "I can't believe I let my emotions get the better of me. They became a weakness. My love became a weakness. Once this is broken, will never love again. Ever." He swore. The pain of losing a love was too great, even for him. He was emotionally crushed. It felt like life had just come crashing down on him. That it had all collapsed. He sat in the chair by his fire and stared into it... He was angry, not at Celestia or Luna, but at himself. He allowed himself a luxury, the luxury of love. And it was like spitting in the wind. He held a glass in his hand and crushed it, feeling the glass slice into his skin. "Gods, yes..." He sighed and closed his eyes in part pain, part pleasure as he felt the pain. It was good. He held his hand over the arm of his chair, as the blood audibly dripped onto the stone floor. It was a nice sound. If he were a selfish person, he may have ended it right there. Hell, could he end it? Can he die? He felt the anger, the pain, the fire before him was how he felt inside. He'd do anything to stop this pain. Anything to forget them. Death, at this point, would be a welcome friend. He held his bleeding hand into the fire, feeling the flames sear his skin. Had pain always felt this good? He doubted it. He wanted to hurt. He took his scorched hand from the fire and stared at it. The wound began to slowly heal. And he hated that it could. He got up and walked out to his balcony. He looked down. Could this fall kill him? He hoped so. What if he jumped head first? Dashed himself on the ground below? Not right now, but when Damien was gone, if Tyrath yet lived, he wanted to die. To be physically what was inside. Dead. He grabbed his knife and jammed it into his chest, twisting the knife. Wishing this, like all other mortals, was all it took to kill him. He pictured death taking him. Breathing his final moments. How comforting it would be. He teleported to the Training Arena. Empty. Good. He got one of the hardest dummies he had and started to punch it. He was out there for hours, destroying dummies. His fists were bleeding, worn down almost to the bone. He didn't care. The pain felt good. Releasing his anger felt good. He felt nothing but hate for himself and everything else. He never wanted to feel anything again, ever. Just the pain. The pain for losing them. For falling in love so easily. For not being enough for them. Not being good enough. Not being what they deserved... Not doing more to keep them. For not doing the right thing. The urge to end it was great, but he would resist for now. Until his task was complete, at least. ;3 days later; Over the three days, Tyrath had been conducting meditative activities, balancing his spirit out. Becoming at one with himself... Almost like a Monk. For now though, Tyrath was sitting on his Throne. He was staring blankly out at nothing. He had to devoid himself of emotions. If he had a little emotion, it was joy of being rid of his other emotion. Only when he had broken the bond, would he snap back. And then, rather than waste time with anymore pointless friendship or lovers, he would track down Damien and eliminate him, even if it meant his death. In fact, he wanted it to. If anyone else could stop him, he might even beg Damien for death. Creature watched his Master draining himself of emotion, disciplining himself and fasting. He was sad that the Princesses had broke his Master's heart. They had no idea what his Master would go through for them, what he was going through. He truly loved them. It was a shame they didn't return the favour... His Master deserved more than that. He witnessed his Master experiencing pleasure. But only when he was in pain. In fact, Creature speculated the pain caused the pleasure. It was the only way he could feel pleasure... Wanted to feel it. In fact, it was the one comfort he had right now. The fact he could still hurt. The pain took his mind off everything else. He had allowed himself to love. He allowed himself one true comfort in the world and it destroyed him. He deserved something more than this, Creature didn't believe you could physically die from a broken heart, but mentally? Sure. The Princesses had slipped past his defences, past the wall he constructed around himself, and it ended up that they inadvertently destroyed him from the inside out. The Princesses brought out a soft side in his Master, a soft side neither Creature or his Master knew he had. But when they saw how sociable and even kinder Tyrath was becoming, they both truly began to see how he was becoming a better person, both due to the Princesses and his new friends. They both were equally responsible for showing Tyrath what it truly meant to have friends and a life beyond his destiny. ;meanwhile - Canterlot Castle; Celestia had had enough. She couldn't take it anymore!! She knew she loved Tyrath, and nopony would tell her otherwise. Not even her sister. Celestia knew what she felt, Ponies knew, better than any others when they were falling in love. Alicorns could be more unpredictable, their feelings and hormones jumping around. If there was ever a constant in the emotion, it was usually permanent. And her love for him had not faded, she knew it was real. Luna was trying to tell her it was her Alicorn emotions flaring up and was trying to pass their love off as such. She needed to act now, before she lost him forever. She couldn't lose him. If she had never met him, she would have been able to cope without him, but the moment they first met, they were meant to be. It was the same with Luna. Now, to act. She contacted Creature at the Tower and hoped to her sun that he would hear her out. "What is it? My Master is not to be disturbed. Especially by you." He stated matter-of-factly. No malice or hate in his words. He was right. Tyrath wasn't supposed to even think about his mate, let alone see her... "Listen, Creature. I had nothing to do with my sister's decision. She made it herself. I think she thinks she is doing the right thing. But I know it is for the wrong reasons. Tell Tyrath to visit the Throne Room. Tell him Luna and I will not be there, we just need him to fill in for a few hours." She said. "What is your plan, Pony?" He asked. "I want the love of my life back. I want the Dragon I fell in love with back in my hooves." She said, looking at Creature with tear-stained eyes. "Very well. Be careful. He is very fragile right now..." Said Creature and cut off... ;15 minutes later; Celestia made her way to her sister's room, who would be preparing for court. She knocked on her door... "'Tis open!" She called. Celestia entered and shut the door, seeing her sister put her regalia on. "Ah! Tia! What can I do for you?" Asked Luna. The smile was fake. She was hurting as well. Celestia could tell. She looked at her sister seriously, who's smile began to fade. "I know you regret what you did to Tyrath." Said Celestia, sighing with determination to see this through. "This again? Tia, I have told you. It is done." Said Luna, facing away from her sister, looking down. "You broke his heart Luna." Explained Celestia. "I did it for us!" She yelled. "You did it for you!" Accused Celestia. Luna gasped. "How could you say that?!" Asked Luna, holding a hoof to her mouth. "I have to. We have to face up to this. Don't deny it. You did it thinking you were doing it for us, but really you were doing it for you. You had justified it to yourself by claiming it was for us and our subjects." Stated Celestia. "It was!" Exclaimed Luna. "You can keep telling yourself that, but I know it is a lie." Said Celestia. "It is not! I would not have done it for any other reason!" Exclaimed Luna. "I have seen Tyrath sister. He is broken. Have you seen what he is going through?" Asked Celestia. "No, but-" She began. "Then follow me. Please." Said Celestia. She walked her sister to the Throne Room, her expression determined. She threw open the door, eliciting no reaction from Tyrath, but startling everypony else in the room. Celestia marched over to Tyrath, who didn't even acknowledge her. She threw her hoof out, gesturing to Tyrath with it. He looked drained, almost grey. His expression blank. His eyes full of hurt. He was torn up inside. In fact, you'd think he was dead if it wasn't for the odd breath. "Everypony, out please." Said Celestia. Everypony piled out until it was just the three of them. "Oh my..." Luna put her hoof on her mouth, seeing Tyrath like this. She could feel the hate, the anger, the hurt and sadness within him. She had felt it within herself before. She had made a mistake... They saw scars littering his hands, scars he could make go away, but didn't want to. They saw them lead up into his sleeve, and assumed they went beyond that. He was broken. "For us, to break his life bond, he must drain himself of emotions, starve himself and not think about me. I think about him every waking second. I cannot imagine what he has to do to stop himself." She said. "I love him with all my heart and always will. No matter your feelings, I will be with him." Resolved Celestia. "I..." Luna was speechless. "You saw the picture in the article, and you were scared. Scared what everypony would think of you and Tyrath and me together. You didn't do it because you thought it was best for everypony." Stated Celestia. "You're right! I was scared! I was terrified! Everypony was starting to love me again! What if being seen with him pushed them away?! I couldn't bear it... I lashed out." She admitted, crying. "I love him! I love him so much! And I love you sister!" She said and hugged her sister. "Anything else?" Asked Celestia. "I was scared that we wouldn't be soul mates, that I wouldn't bond with him as you did." Luna said. "Worry not sister. I am sure you will." Smiled Celestia. "Very well." Nodded Luna. "Before we tell him, we must make an oath. Without legitimate cause, we must never leave him again. Ever." Celestia told her sister. "He cannot go through this again." She said. "Agreed sister." Nodded Luna. They turned to Tyrath, who was still emotionless. "Is it too late?" Asked Luna worriedly. "No. It is not." Said Celestia, she could feel his emotion still in there, although it was buried deep. "How do we wake him?" Asked Luna. Celestia smirked at her sister and kissed him. His eyes widened and he went back to his normal colour, he grabbed Celestia and deepened the kiss, holding her. He then let go and grabbed Luna, also kissing her deeply. "Why are you here? I thought you wanted to break the bond..." Said Tyrath. He was a mix of emotions right now. "I made a mistake... I allowed my fear to take over once again. Despite the fact I taught Scootaloo to not let hers rule her life not long ago, I have become a hypocrite and allowed mine to control me..." Sobbed Luna. "I never wanted to leave you and neither did my sister. I was just scared. I see now that no matter what, our subjects will accept it. They will have to. Because I am never letting you go again." Promised Luna and kissed Tyrath. "Nor I." Smiled Celestia, nuzzling him. "Good." Nodded Tyrath. "Because I never want to leave you." He smiled. "You cannot do that again, I don't think I could handle it." He said seriously. "Why would we want to?" Asked Luna and kissed him again.