"T...The Elements?"
"Yes Riku. Those six ponies and their trinkets. If you destroy them then I'll tell you everything." Xayir grinned, watching Riku carefully. He lowered his head and tried to think.
NO! I shouldn't have to think about this at all! I can't hurt them! But...he knows what happened. He can tell me why I haven't changed... Riku slammed his fist into the wall in frustration.
"Is it really so hard to choose Riku? You can help them and never know why you have ceased to age, or you can have all the answers. I'll leave the choice to you." Xayir snapped his fingers and vanished through a corrider of darkness, leaving Riku alone in the hall.
"Ceased to age..." Riku stared at his hand for a moment.
Thats all the answer I need...
-----
They smiled, seeing Applebloom and Pip curled around one another on the bed. Sweetie Belle used her magic to lift the blanket onto them, turning to a half asleep Scootaloo.
"We should get back to our room." Sweetie Belle said, nudging her gently.
"I'd rather stay here tonight Belle. What if those things come back? Besides, you remember what happened out there. If we stay with Bloom we might be able to pull that off again. We were invincible like that!" she said in an excited whisper so as not to wake Applebloom and Pip. Sweetie Belle sighed, too tired to argue.
"Alright, alright. We'll stay here tonight Scoots." Scootaloo grinned and lay down on the floor, Sweetie Belle laying beside her, resting her head against her.
"Night Belle."
"Night Scoots..." Sweetie Belle yawned and fell asleep, her chest rising and falling slowly. Scootaloo smiled and looked over at the bed where Applebloom rested with Pip. Her smile faded as she turned back to Sweetie Belle. She sighed quietly and lay her head over the unicorn.
"I hope everything turns out ok..."
-----
Celestia's sun shined through the window, resting on the Unicorn mare. Slowly her eyes creaked open, a hoof raised against the blinding light as she rolled over in the bed, her back to the intruding sunlight. To her surprise she was alone, her eyes scanning the room for the Alicorn who should've been next to her.
"Luna?" Twilight called out as she slipped out of bed. She yawned and peeked her head out of the room, finding guards waiting for her.
"oh...Hello, have either of you seen Princess Luna?" the guards shook their heads.
"Though we did recieve a message to bring you to the library." Twilight smiled a little to herself. Of course Luna would be in the Library, but so early in the morning?
"Maybe she is doing some last minute research...but she knows everything about the seal...what more could there be?" Twilight asked herself as she followed the guards. Twilight gasped as she was tackled to the ground. She shook herself and spotted the filly responsible
"Aunt Twilight!" the filly cried happily, her wings fluttering a bit. Twilight heard laughter from behind the young Alicorn pinning her to the ground.
"She seems rather attached to you Twilight." Luna joked. Twilight shook her head and sat up, her niece sitting in front of her.
"Mia, what are you doing here? wait...where are your parents?" Twilight asked, looking around for her brother and Cadence.
"They had to go help Princess Celestia." The filly gasped, covering her mouth with her hooves.
"Oh please don't tell them I said that! I wasn't suppose to say anything..." Twilight smiled and hugged her.
"Don't worry, I won't say anything. Though I am a little peeved Shining couldn't let me know he was dropping you off here. You'd think he would at least remember something important like that." Twilight pouted a little and sighed, blowing a strand of hair out of her face.
She smiled down at Mia, lifting the young Alicorn onto her back, letting her eyes drift over the books in the Canterlot library and pulling a few down for her. Though her thoughts constantly drifted toward her brother and what he could possibly be doing with Princess Celestia.
-----
The mare yawned and rolled over in her bed, her eyes snapping open when she realized she was alone.
"Pip?" She looked around the room, seeing Scootaloo sitting next to a sleeping Sweetie Belle.
"Mornin Bloom. Your buddy Pip ran off to the training grounds, he asked me to let you know." Scootaloo said with a yawn, stretching her wings a little.
"Did...did ya'll sleep in here last night?" Applebloom asked with a light blush. Scootaloo chuckled a little.
"Yea we did, but don't worry, we didn't hear or see anything that may or may not have happened last night." She said with a grin. Applebloom shook her head and slipped out of her bed.
"Oh yea one more thing." Scootaloo said, pointing a hoof to a box at the foot of the bed.
"He got that for ya." Applebloom slowly opened the box and smiled. Inside was a black stetson hat. She placed it on top of her head and looked at herself in a nearby mirror.
"How do ah look?" she asked. Scootaloo whistled.
"If I wasn't with Belle I'd be comin after you." Scootaloo said with a laugh. Sweetie Belle pouted and poked her side with a hoof.
"Just don't forget that you are with me Scoots." She said, yawning as she stood. Scootaloo smiled and kissed her cheek.
"How could I forget?" Sweetie Belle blushed and smiled at Applebloom.
"Cute hat, did Pip get it for you?" she nodded and sighed a little.
"It kinda looks like th' one my pa gave t' Applejack." Applebloom said with a smile.
"Ah'm gonna go find him and give him a proper thank you."
-----
The halls seemed empty that day, except for a few guards that walked by, nodding respectfully to him as he passed by. Spike gave a small nod in return as he searched for Twilight. He hadn't seen her in her room and none of the guards seemed to know where she was. He was still worried about Rarity and had to find Twilight. If anyone could help him, she could. Spike sat down and sighed.
"Come on Spike, think. This is Twilight we are talking about. Where else would she be?" he smiled to himself and smacked his claw against his forehead.
"The Library, of course. Its the only other place she could be." Spike turned and ran toward the library with a smile. It didn't take him long to reach it, he had to admit he felt a bit stupid as he saw his friend speaking with Luna and a small Alicorn filly. He should've known from the start where she would be. Twilight smiled as he entered the library, the filly leaping toward him and throwing her hooves around his neck.
"Uncle Spike!" she screamed happily, giggling as he lifted her in his claws.
"WHOA! you are getting big Mia. Wheres your dad at? You know he still owes me those two bits." he said with a grin making her giggle.
"He was hoping you forgot about that." She said, smiling at him.
"Oh I see. So he's hiding from me." Spike laughed. Mia pouted and placed a hoof against the scar that crossed over his eye.
"Uncle spike...what happened to your eye?" She asked with wide eyes. Spike bit his lip and glanced at Twilight who shook her head.
"Its nothing to worry about Mia, I just got in a little accident is all."
"oh...ok..." Spike set her down and she giggled, bouncing around the library. Spike sat down near Twilight who smiled at him.
"You handle her so well, and soon you'll have a foal of your own. You've grown so much Spike..." Twilight hugged him and he sighed a little, returning the hug.
"That's actually why i'm here Twilight..." he said slowly. She pulled out of the hug and looked at him perplexed.
"What do you mean Spike?" Twilight gasped, covering her mouth with her hooves.
"You aren't thinking of not having it are you?" Spike laughed a little and shook his head. It made him smile, knowing that no matter what, Twilight would always be Twilight and that she would always jump to the worst conclusions.
"No Twilight. Rarity and I want the foal, i'm just worried about her though. Surely you of all ponies have noticed that i'm a dragon and she is a unicorn. What kind of foal are we going to have exactly?" Spike asked, some of the fear bubbling in his stomach showing in his voice as the question reached his friends ears. Luna turned toward them with Mia riding on her back and clinging to her mane.
"Perhaps I can help Spike. Twilight, would you mind taking Mia for a moment?" Luna asked. Twilight nodded, the filly leaping from the Alicorn's back and onto Twilights, giggling as she wrapped her hooves around her neck.
"Come on Mia, lets find one of those storybooks I promised you." Twilight said with a smile, walking down the rows and rows of books after one last glance toward Luna and Spike.
"Yay!" she cheered, quickly pointing to the ones she wanted.
"Spike, I understand your concern for your mate Rarity and your unborn foal. I regret that I must say there are certain complications to a unicorn giving birth to such a foal." Luna spoke softly, avoiding meeting his gaze.
"c...Complications? like what?" The dragon managed to ask. In all honesty he didn't want to know the answer and feared what it could mean for Rarity.
"To be honest Spike, such a bond as the one the two of you share has not existed for nearly two millenia. Back then it was more common for Dragons and Unicorns to become close to one another, though many saw it as Taboo. I do not wish to trouble you Spike...but a Kirin is dangerous. Not only to the mother but to those around it."
"A...Kirin? is that..." Luna nodded.
"The Kirin are a hyrbid race, born of a dragon and a unicorn. It is rare that the mother survives Spike..." The dragon felt numb as the words hit him, burying his face in his claws.
"what do I do?" he sobbed quietly. Luna placed a hoof against his shoulder.
"Fear not Spike. In the time that I was...gone...My sister has found a solution. She cares deeply for all the ponies of Equestria and it hurt her to see so many of them fade away when all they wanted was happiness. It took her many years, but thanks to the help of the dragons she discovered something about the Kirin." several books floated towards the dragon.
Some of them were notebooks with scribbled notes strewn across the pages, others were tomes explaining the Kirin in full detail. He flipped through the pages, his eyes quickly taking in each word. His years as Twilight's assisstant had come with years of reading through her books in the late hours of the night. He could finish most books within an hour or so depending on its size. Though as his eyes flew across each page of the book he now held he saw nothing that would save Rarity.
"You say this will help...but I don't se..." he stopped as Luna sat beside him, her magic grabbing hold of the pages and ripping them from the book. He watched as the pages floated in mid-air, piecing themselves together before falling to the ground in front of him. Spike stared at the pages, reading them from left to right as they were connected, a grin on his face. Scribbled down as it was, it seemed like utter nonsense as it was thoughts on paper. But when properlly pieced together, the answer was clear.
"Gems...thats it! Since its a dragon it needs gems! But...Rarity can't eat gems." Spike put a claw to his chin as he thought. Luna held up another book, a diagram sat in the center of one page, the other side explained how to prepare a powerful poultice. Spike grabbed hold of the book, Luna smiling at him.
"I see Twilight has rubbed off on you Spike." The dragon chuckled a little as his mind began to wander.
"Well, I am her assisstant."
-------
Something that nopony ever thought possible made its way down one of the halls of the Canterlot Palace. A simple pegasus, humming and bouncing on the tips of her hooves without a care in the world. Though her mind carried the heavy weight of loss and the impending doom of their world, it also held happiness that removed all her worries. Rainbow Dash wouldn't let anything bring her down today. She had lost someone dear to her, but had gained something more and she couldn't stop repeating it to herself.
"She said yes!" She had been panicking over the fact ever since she had spoken to Granny Smith about it. The wizened mare had told her exactly what would happen when she asked and she had been right. Rainbow was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice as Spike came out of the library with a pile of books, accidentally crashing into the drake. She hit the ground, books bouncing off her head.
"oh that hurt..." Spike chuckled and helped her to her hooves, picking up the books.
"Whats all this Spike? Some early morning reading? These don't look like your type of story." She looked over one of the books. She couldn't even understand what language it was written in.
"Its not really stories Dash. Rarity is depending on whats in these books." The dragon said softly.
"oh. Baby stuff huh?" Spike nodded with a small smile.
"So, little Spike is gonna be a father. Never thought that'd ever happen."
"To be honest, I didn't think so either." Rainbow picked up some of the books, carrying them on her back as they walked down the hall, making idle chatter.
"What about you and Applejack?" Spike asked out of the blue. Rainbow stopped with a light blush on her face.
"What do ya mean?"
"well, do you two plan on being parents?" he asked as if they were talking about the weather. She and Applejack had taken care of Scootaloo for a few years and though the conversation had come up it had only ended in an argument that almost drove them apart. She lowered her head and sighed.
"I dunno Spike...I know AJ wants a foal...we actually got into a big fight about it. She doesn't want to adopt and she doesn't want some stallion leaning over her to get one. I tried to tell her that we had Scootaloo but she said it wasn't the same...and while I love that kid to death, she was right." Spike set his books down and hugged her.
"Whoa, whats with the hug?" She asked, looking up at him. He let go and chuckled a little.
"Well first, I'm sorry for bringing that up. Second, have you talked to Twilight about this? Maybe she has some spell that could help you out." Rainbow's eyes lit up and she began bouncing in place.
"Spike you're a genius!" She hugged him and zipped off for a moment before coming back. He pointed a claw to the library and she smiled, zipping back to the library.
-----
Chrome leaned against the weapons rack, watching as Pip attacked the training dummy again and again. He held one blade in his teeth, another wrapped around his hoof.
"Wow, so that's what he's been up to?" a mare asked from beside him. Mist grinned a little to himself, looking at her from the corner of his eye.
"Yup, he's a determined one. Though he thinks himself useless to you. Keeps sayin somethin about 'i'm not strong enough to protect her' Its whats kept him goin all this time. Nice hat by the way." he said, never taking his eyes off of Pip.
The mare smiled as she watched.
"Why don't you go see if he needs a break?" he asked her. The mare walked past him and placed a kiss on Pip's cheek, making him jump in surprise.
"B...Bloom?! what are you doing here?" he asked, blushing slightly. She giggled and lifted her hat a little.
"Ah wanted t' thank ya fer the hat silly. Besides, ah can't have ya out here in the heat killin yerself now can ah?"
"Bloom...we don't have any time to relax. You know as well as I do tha..." she stopped him with a kiss, turning the rest of his words into mush as she pulled away.
"Ya'll know ya can't argue with me, and we'll worry about the seal when the Princess' tell us its time t' break it. We've earned some time to jus' be with each other Pip...besides...if we can't fix it...Ah at least wanna go knowing we had some quality time together..." She lowered her head, tears forming in her eyes. Pip dropped his hoofblade, pulling her into a hug.
"Alright Bloom." Chrome Mist grinned a little at the sight and left them be.
"Bein a bit soft on him aren't you?" a female pegasus guard asked him as they walked down the hall.
"He deserves the rest." he said quietly.
"I suppose you're right. Always have been sir." she said, rolling her eyes. He raised an eyebrow and she laughed a little.
"Sorry Sir" he shook his head and smiled.
"Just keep in mind, if it were anypony else they'd be doin laps." she kissed his cheek
"Understood Sir."
-----
Rarity slowly woke to a strange smell filling the room. As she sat up she caught sight of Spike sitting over a bowl and mumbling to himself as he read through a book.
"Darling...what are you doing?" She asked, surprising the young drake. He raised his head and smiled.
"I had a talk with Twilight and Luna about the foal. Luna gave me this to help us." he quickly explained, stirring something with a claw.
"What do you mean help us? Your not making much sense dear..." She stumbled a little as she tried to get out of bed. Spike quickly helping her back into bed.
"You should rest Rarity, the foal is gonna take a lot out of you." he said softly. She recognized that tone, Spike used it whenever he was hiding something from her.
"Spike. Tell me whats going on." she demanded. Spike sighed and sat down beside her, slowly opening the book. There scribbled notes mixed with a strange langauge Rarity had never seen before.
"Our foal will be whats called a Kirin. Because its part dragon it requires nutrients from gemstones like I do, nutrients you can't give to it. So instead it takes away the nutrients from your body, muscle tissue and bones. Until there is nothing left..." Rarity just stared at him, not sure what to say. She understood now why Spike had been so quiet. She tried to speak, but no words came out. Spike smiled at her for a moment.
"Since you can't eat gems, I've made you this." he picked up the bowl and held it out for her.
"What is it?" she managed to ask, staring at the strange purple concoction.
"Its a special potion. I crushed a few amethysts, mixed in some herbs and a few other things." he didn't mention that they were things she didn't want to know. He knew how she was when it came to 'certain' things she thought horrid or disgusting and she needed this potion to survive. She looked from him to the bowl.
"Rarity...if you don't drink this...you might not survive..." he choked out. Before the first tear could fall down his cheek she had begun drinking from the bowl. By the time he had a chance to realize this she had finished it, a small smile on her face.
"I suppose I'll just have to deal with the...taste of it." he smiled a little.
"I'll do some more research and see if I can fix that. It says you need at least two of these every day." She sighed and sat up, the dragon wrapping an arm around her as she leaned against him. His eyes scanned the pages of the book as they sat there together.
"I'll never be able to figure out how you and Twilight manage to stare at those eyesores." she spoke up, placing her hoof against one of the symbols on the page.
"Would you like to learn? There are a lot of good fashion texts from some famous ponies written like this." Her eyes lit up at the thought.
"Why I could turn old fashion into new fashion!" Spike chuckled a little and began explaining each word.
-------
She sat alone in the garden, staring at one of the trees as her thoughts raced.
"Hey Nyx." she jumped at the sound and sighed in relief.
"Scootaloo, don't scare me like that..." the pegasus grinned and sat beside her.
"Thinkin about Riku again?" she asked.
"Uh..no..well...yes..." she sighed and lowered her head.
"What am I gonna do Scoots?" she turned to her friend with tears in her eyes.
"Hey, just calm down Nyx." the pegasus pulled her into a hug, wrapping her wings around her.
"You like him right?"
"y...Yea...but..."
"No buts. You like him and I can tell he has the hots for you." Nyx blushed and sighed quietly.
"Scoots...I can't...I just can't. I'll just outlive him anyway..." Scootaloo sighed and smacked Nyx upside her head with her wing.
"OW! What was that for?!"
"For being an idiot. Nyx, do you think couples just die together? No. One outlives the other and then joins them on the other side later in life. Just like how Granny's husband passed on before her. She stayed happy right til the very end. So I don't want to hear this anymore. You need to suck it up and just talk to him already!"
"Scoots..." Nyx nodded.
"You're right...You're right!" Nyx hugged her tightly and ran off to find Riku, the pegasus smiling as her friend ran off. Sweetie Belle popped her head around the corner.
"Do you think we did the right thing?"
"I know we did Belle."
-------
The two stared at one another for a while, their friends waiting outside.
"Sora..."
"I just need to know Riku...why didn't you ask for help?" Riku sighed.
"Because I couldn't drag you away from Kairi. You'd fought so hard to get her back and I did and said terrible things to you. You deserved a chance to be happy." He said, leaning his back against the wall. Sora sighed.
"Riku, you're my best friend. I can't be happy without you. The whole reason we left was to go find you. But then Kairi vanished and so did the king." Riku sat upright.
"Kairi is missing?" Sora nodded sadly. Riku sighed, burying his face in his hands.
"Its my fault..."
"Riku, you can't blame yourself."
"No Sora, it is my fault. I gave her that keyblade and you know what follows keyblade wielders. She barely knows how to use it and if it weren't for me running off you'd still be there to protect her and she would be ok." Sora tried to open his mouth to argue, but Riku's reasoning just...seemed right. Sora shook his head.
"It doesn't matter Riku. You still should've asked for help. We can do this together..." their conversation was cut short by a knock at the door. Nyx slowly poked her head inside.
"um...sorry...I wanted to talk to Riku but I can see you're busy...i...i'll just go." She started to leave, Riku leaping to his
feet.
"Wait Nyx." Sora called out with a smile. The Alicorn stopped, as did Riku. Sora stood and walked past them both, gently nudging Nyx into the room and closing the door behind him.
Riku and Nyx just stood there for a moment, staring at each other.
"Y...You wanted to say something?" Riku finally said, breaking the silence that hung in the air.
"oh...um...yes." she took a deep calming breath and looked into his eyes.
"Riku...I..." she began, words failing her as he stared back. She lowered her head as she blushed, mumbling under her breath.
"This was a stupid idea..." She almost left then, but Scootaloo's words dug themselves into her mind, reminding her the Pegasus would have more words to say if she backed out now. Hurtful words. She summed up her courage and looked up once more.
"I care about you." I care about you?!?! oh come on Nyx! You can do better than that! she argued with herself. Riku seemed to understand though. He sat down and smiled slightly, making the alicorn blush.
"Nyx...I...well...I dunno what to say. But..." the door burst open, Sora's eyes wide with panic.
"We need to go! Now!" he screamed, a heartless zipping past him.
------
Luna skid to a stop as she spotted Chrome Mist.
"Commander! Take the young princess and guard her with your life." the stallion saluted, grabbing the filly by her neck and running down the hall, his second in command chasing after him. Luna could faintly hear Mia calling for her, forcing herself to ignore the call. She had to be kept safe.
Luna turned back to Twilight who nodded to her, together they ran through the halls, alerting all they passed of the oncoming danger. Rainbow Dash was the first to bump into her, wearing a huge grin. Obviously she hadn't noticed the heartless seeping into the castle.
"Hey Twi I need to talk to you about something."
"Not now Rainbow Dash, we need to get everypony to the seal. NOW! Before the heartless can reach it!" Rainbow nodded and zipped down a hallway to get Applejack while Twilight, followed by Luna, continued toward Spike and Rarity's room.
The drake burst through the doors of the room with the mentioned unicorn clinging to him, heartless and nobodies close on his tail. Luna roared as she leapt over Spike, tackling the creatures to the ground, her magic bouncing between them until they burst. Luna quickly spun, chasing after Spike who ran beside Twilight.
"We need to reach the seal!" Twilight yelled to Spike over the chaos around them. The dragon nodded and took a deep breath, slowly beginning to chant, his eyes began to glow as sparks danced across his body.
Twilight stuck by his side, Luna quickly catching up, both mares adding their magic to the dragons spell. In a burst of light they all vanished, leaving a large scorch upon the floor tiles. Together they appeared in Fluttershy's room where Big Macintosh was doing his best to shield the yellow pegasus from the claws of the heartless around them. On the other side of the room Applejack and Rainbow Dash were in much the same situation, though they managed to keep each other safe, they could only hold out for so long.
Twilight gasped as claws reached for her, a black blur appearing before her, landing beside Macintosh for a moment then beside Applejack, the four ponies vanishing as the blur reached them. Soon the blur returned to Twilight, snatching her up as well as the others. As they made their way through the halls of the palace Twilight realized it was two blurs, not one. One was Riku, with Nyx clinging to his back, using her wings to help him keep pace along with Sora in his heartless form.
"Where is the seal?" Sora asked, his voice echoing in their minds. Luna pointed the way as they bounced down the halls, Pinkie Pie appearing beside them with Braeburn running beside her. Pinkie Pie merely nodded to them, holding her keyblade tightly in her teeth. They stopped as they reached a long hallway filled with heartless and nobodies.
"Thats the door! the seal is just beyond it!" Luna yelled. Sora nodded and Riku grinned.
"Call em in" Riku said. Nyx threw her head back and whistled, long and loud, a white bolt landing in the center of the hallway. Three keyblades spun around the Alicorn as it carved its way through the heartless, clearing a path for the others.
"GO!" it called out to them, the voices of the cutie mark crusaders overlapping one another. Without waiting to be told twice Riku and Sora made their way through the hall and burst through the door, leaving the crusaders to the heartless.
-----
Applebloom had really been enjoying her date with Pip and she was glad she had the courage to ask him on it. Because now she was fighting for her life once more, though she had her friends by her side. They had come to get her as soon as the heartless attack had begun.
"Bu...But..this jus' ain't fair!" the farm pony yelled in frustration.
"Look Bloom, its not about fair, we've gotta help the others!" Scootaloo argued.
"She's right Apple Bloom. We need you." Sweetie Belle added. Pip kissed Applebloom and smiled.
"Go on Bloom, I'll be right behind you." She blushed and nodded, her keyblade appearing between her teeth. Her friends pulled out their own blades. They stood in a circle and held their respective weapons into the air, Sweetie Belle letting her magic course through the blades bound to their hearts. A single thread of light spread from the center of their circle, reaching to each of them.
As it connected to their hearts it dragged them into the center of their circle, pulling them together as one. In a bright flash of light the three vanished, leaving only an Alicorn in its place, the keyblades spinning around her. Pip smiled and rushed down a hallway.
"Pip!" Applebloom called out to him.
"I'll catch up! Just go!" he called back, vanishing down a hallway.
"He'll be alright Bloom, we need you to focus!" Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle said together. She nodded, a loud whistle reaching their ears. It was Nyx's signal.
She could only hope that Pip would be alright. She felt her strength giving out as the creatures continued to pile around them, a voice chuckling above them. The Alicorn raised its head to see a figure cloaked in black. It was the creature who had transformed Trixie and attacked the Princess.
Xayir.
He laughed and snapped his fingers, flames growing around them, only to be put out by shards of ice thanks to Sweetie Belle's magic. The Alicorn began to sing, massive musical notes of every color appearing around her, forming several spears that floated around the Alicorn along with the keyblades, slicing through the crowd of heartless and flying toward the creature floating above them. Though he easily swatted away the spears ,his hands enveloped in flames.
Scootaloo roared, spreading her wings wide and kicked off the ground, sending them into the air after the creature. He chuckled, the flames turning into long blades in his hands, clashing again and again with the keyblades. The heartless began to focus on the door, slamming into it as sinking under it failed them. Sweetie Belle felt her magic weaken.
This won't hold for much longer! she screamed to them. Scootaloo quickly tucked in her wings, diving towards the heartless with Xayir chasing after. Applebloom threw her blade back to knock away the flames that he tossed at them, Sweetie Belle holding them back with her magic, her own keyblade chasing after the heartless pounding against the door.
As the Alicorn slammed into the ground, smashing most of the heartless, the form broke, leaving three exhausted ponies in a pile of angered heartless. Before Xayir could crash down on top of them a portal opened behind them, the three ponies snatched up in a magic glow and pulled through it, the portal vanishing before the heartless could react. Xayir sighed and turned his attention to the door, throwing all of his power into it.
-----
Luna sighed in relief as she managed to snatch up the three ponies through Riku's portal. They lay on the ground in exhaustion. Twilight was still in panic as she stared at the seal.
"We don't have all the Elements! how are we going to fix this?!" she paced around in circles, the heartless pounding harder on the door. Riku turned to Nyx and Sora, who had broken his heartless form to catch his breath, Donald and Goofy doing the same on either side of him. They were worn out.
"I'll get them." Riku said, his keyblade appearing in his hand.
"I'm coming with you." Nyx said. Twilight raised her head.
"No, I'll go. I'm the one who forgot my Element." she argued
Nyx smiled a little.
"Mom, we can do this. You need to stay here in case they break through. You're the most powerful unicorn here right now and you're the only one who can shield everypony." Luna nodded.
"She is right Twilight. Not even my power can match that." Twilight sighed, hugging Nyx tightly.
"Be Careful out there..."
"I will mom..." Nyx let go and turned to Riku who opened another Portal, leaping through it with Nyx chasing after him. Pinkie Pie, Big Macintosh, and Spike stood guard at the door, ready to fight if it burst open.
----
The portal opened out into the hall, drawing the attention of Xayir and his heartless. Riku threw his blade into the heartless, using it as bait. He smiled as the heartless chased after him and Nyx, Xayir also chasing after them in his frustration.
"Nyx, I need you to take care of the heartless while I fight Xayir. Can you do that?" he asked as they turned a corner.
"I can try!" she closed her eyes for a moment, splitting into four and skidding to a stop, Xayir still chasing after Riku who flipped in the air and off a wall rushing toward him. The four Nyx's each summoned their magical blades, rushing into the crowd of heartless. Each one took to the air, the heartless splitting up to chase after them.
The clones all smiled to themselves, amazed at how well their plan was working. They easily reduced their respective enemies to dust, hearts floating into the air as they vanished. They came together in a hallway, forming into one Nyx who ran down a hall in search of Riku. It was simple for her to follow the sounds of fighting, her eyes wide as she found Riku on his back, Xayir standing over him.
While Nyx had distracted the heartless, Riku had been busy battling Xayir who had recovered from his previous injuries.
"I'm disappointed Riku. I had really hoped you would've taken my offer." Xayir said, knocking away his keyblade with a wave of his hand. Riku gasped as he was pulled toward Xayir, the man grabbing hold of his cloak.
"You don't deserve to wear this." The man snarled and Riku grinned, slamming his head forward and pulling free of Xayir's grip as he tried to recover from the unseen headbutt. Riku charged forward, his attempt at slicing through the nobody stopped by a swirl of flames.
Riku covered his face against the heat, his guard down as Xayir lunged forward, grabbing hold of his throat and slamming him into the ground. Riku stared up into Xayir's rage filled eyes and chuckled, a smile touching his bruised face.
"Funny...didn't think you nobodies could get angry." he said weakly. Xayir pulled his fist back, a blade of flames forming around his hand.
"Any last words traitor?"
"Yes...Think fast." Riku tossed his keyblade into the air, Xayir's eyes latched onto it as Riku threw his arm forward, slamming his fist across the nobodies face as Nyx caught the keyblade, spinning in the air and stabbing it through Xayir's back. The nobody just stood there in shock, releasing his hold on Riku as he began to fade away.
"you...will pay...for this..." he glared at Riku as he finally vanished in a wave of black flames, the keyblade in his back falling to the ground. Riku sat up and smiled at Nyx as the Alicorn helped him to his feet.
"Thanks again Nyx..." she shook her head and helped him down the hall. It didn't take them long to recover the Element of Magic. Riku opened another Portal and together they marched back into the room with the others smiling at them.
----
Twilight rushed over, pulling Nyx into a hug. The Alicorn hugged her back and smiled as she pulled away, helping Riku to sit down against a nearby wall. Riku handed Twilight the Element of Magic and lowered his head to rest a moment. Luna turned to everyone and sighed. She had hoped Celestia would have been back by now, but they were out of time. This had to be done now or never.
"Alright everypony, we have to act now or it will be too late. Sora, Donald, Goofy, please take your place in front of the seal. Crusaders, I know you are tired but we need your help as well, and Riku. Though it pains me to ask you in your current state..."
"I understand Princess. I've been through worse." He stood slowly, Nyx walking beside him as they took their place. Luna nodded to Twilight and her friends, the Elements beginning to glow. Sora turned to his friends as the six ponies began to float in midair
"We're ready Sora." Goofy said with a grin. Donald nodded with a smile of his own.
"Remember Sora, all for one and one for all." Donald said, his eyes beginning to turn white as he called out to his magic. Sora smiled a little and nodded, turning his attention to the seal. He called out to his magic, letting it flow around him and reach out to his friends, a bright light blinding nearly everyone in the room as they collided with one another.
The light was quickly replaced with darkness and in the center stood a tall pitch black Alicorn. A keyblade with a shield attached to the hilt floated around him as well as a blade staff.
"We're ready." the Alicorn said, the voices of Sora and his friends echoing over each other. Twilight opened her eyes, the Elements glowing brighter and brighter as their magic wrapped itself around the six ponies. The seal began to glow, matching the power of the Elements, cracks splitting the stone and letting the darkness seep through into the world. The stone shattered and the heartless poured out of the seal, drawn to the power of the Elements and the Keyblade.
"NOW!" Riku yelled as Twilight and her friends fell to the ground. Luna threw up a barrier around them and the fight began.
-----
Pip panted a little as he ran, he had to find Chrome. As he turned down a hall he found heartless blocking his path and beyond them he could hear crying.
"That sounds like a child..." Pip realized.
"HOLD ON! I'M COMING!" he called out, charging into the crowd of heartless, a hoofblade nearly slamming into him. He smiled realizing the blade was being held by none other than Chrome mist. Underneath him lay an injured guard and on his back sat an Alicorn filly. The wounded commander smiled at Pip, giving him the hoofblade.
"I can't fight anymore boy..." Pip took the hoofblade and shook his head, turning toward the crowd of heartless.
"Just rest easy Sir." Chrome mist smiled, watching Pip with his good eye as the colt rushed through the crowd, spinning around outstretched claws and burying the blade into the creatures neck. It all seemed like one seamless attack, each hoofstep met another enemy, each spin took out another heartless.
"We gotta help him mister!" the filly on his back yelled out. Chrome shook his head.
"You need to stay safe Princess. Don't worry, Pip is one of the best the castle has to offer." the Alicorn pouted, her horn glowing dimly as she shut her eyes tightly. Pip's sword began to glow, filled with the magic of the young princess.
The magic poured into his body, each hoofstep caused the ground to crack, each and every swing of his empowered sword sent flames through the crowd of heartless until all that was left was fading darkness and hearts in the air. Pip panted a little and sank to the ground as the magic faded from his body.
"I...Is he ok?" She asked as Chrome stood.
"He'll be fine, earth ponies aren't made to handle magic like that Princess. But he's a tough one." Chrome chuckled and nudged the wounded guard who slowly opened her eyes.
"A...Am I dead..." she asked, looking up at him.
"Oh great...I must be in tartarus..." she chuckled as he sighed, wincing as she stood.
"Are you alright?" he asked. She tested a wing and nodded.
"Just a bit scratched up sir." she looked around, amazed to see the hall clear.
"Wow sir, even at your age you've still got the moves." he chuckled and walked over to Pip, helping the colt to his hooves.
"While you're right about that, this wasn't done by me. You have our newest Guard to thank for that." Pip blinked, shaking the magic sickness away.
"Ugh...my head..."
"It'll pass boy."
"Wait...d...did you say...I'm a guard?" Pip asked in shock.
"Not sure, did I say that?" Chrome asked with a grin. Pip leapt into the air with a whoop, suddenly remembering why he had come here.
"Sir, I need your help. The seal..." Chrome raised a hoof to silence him.
"I have to get the princess to safety Pip, I can't help you. In any case, I think you have it under control. If not for you boy, we'd be short a few guards and a Princess."
"Hey, I helped too!" Mia yelled.
"Yes, you sure did Princess. Now Pip, you should get back to helping yer friends. We'll be fine from here."
"Are you sure sir?" Pip asked, not wanting to leave his mentor in case of another attack.
"I'm sure Pip, now get moving, they are gonna need you." The colt nodded, rushing down the hall with the hoofblade strapped to his side.
"Good luck boy."