Four Horsemen Come to Equestria

by Anonomis


New Challenges

As the residents returned to their homes after what transpired Celestia decided to teleport Twilight and the others straight to the castle; much to Pinkie’s confusion.

“But I was going to start on a cake,” Pinkie pouted

“You are permitted to use the castle’s kitchen,” Luna offered

“Why don't we all help out,” Fluttershy suggested "That way it gets done faster."

“This will be the first time either of us have attempted to bake a cake,” Celestia mused

“You've never tried to do this,” Pinkie asked in disbelief

“No. Our servants did everything for us,” Luna said

“On behalf of Bloom, Sweetie and myself,” Scootaloo started “We're going to leave the baking to all of you.”

“Yeah. The last thing we'd want is to destroy the castle,” Sweetie Belle chimed in “Let alone; the pain from my injury still lingers a little.”

FOUR HORSEMEN

“Well; I suppose we should be on our way,” Strife commented

“I'm not in too much of a hurry, though,” Fury retorted

“Something's bothering me,” Death stated

“What's wrong,” War asked

“It's what that creature said,” Death replied

“He said ‘the others will have their revenge’,” Strife pointed out “The question is who are they and how many are there?”

“Well now that one is dead; the rest should show themselves,” Fury said “Let's get going before they get restless.”

With that; each of them summoned their horses as they prepared for the trek to the castle. Despite being able to get there in a few minutes if they desired; they instead arrived at the destination nearly half an hour later.

“It's hard to believe this once busy castle is now completely dead,” Strife thought out loud

“I'm lost as to where to go,” War said

“Check this out,” Fury called

The other three gathered around a glass window that seemed to depict the battle Death read about between Celestia and Nightmare Moon. After seeing the end with Luna being banished; another image showed an enflamed Celestia.

“Let's get to searching,” Death stated “I need some answers.”

“I'll save you the search. The dining room is down this hall,” Strife said “I'll lead.”

Upon reaching the door to the room; Death decided to use the back of his Harvester scythe and pounded on the door.

“It's open,” Celestia called, as they filed in

“Welcome,” Luna said “We'd like to thank you for eliminating Tirek from causing any more problems.”

“There's something I'd like answered,” Death stated “Explain what happened in the glass murals; specifically in this hallway.”

“Those show Luna becoming Nightmare Moon and me subsequently banishing her to the moon,” Celestia simplified

“A story everyone here knows well,” Dash added sarcastically

“And the last one,” Death pressed

“Daybreaker,” Celestia said in a low voice “My darkest point after losing my sister. I thought I managed to purge her from me.”

“Don't tell me that it gained sentience,” Twilight asked in shock

“Indeed. I don't know what happened afterwards,” Celestia finished sadly

“Nothing good,” War stated

“Enough of that,” Pinkie decided “We should be happy right now. Spike; would you do the honors?”

“I'm on my way,” he called

As he emerged from the kitchen; two carts were being held together in Rarity’s magic as Fluttershy, Dash and AJ gently pushed. Situated on top and taking up all the room was a gigantic chocolate cake with the words ‘Thank You Horsemen’ written on top in purple lettering. Looking closer; the writing was situated inside Fury’s whip, designed to resemble a banner attached to Death's scythe like a flagpole. Both the ‘T’ and ‘Y’ were also designed to look like the outlines of War’s sword and Strife’s pistols respectively.

“I gotta hand it to you on the design,” Strife offered “You managed to fit our weapons into the design.”

“It wouldn't be fitting not to have them on there,” Rarity replied “The four of you did save us from further destruction.”

“It wouldn't have been right to sit by and watch,” War said “No one deserves to be destroyed like that.”

“Demons were going to continue to plague this world unless we did something,” Death added

“Let's get this cake cut and enjoy,” Pinkie said enthusiastically

Before they could decide which of the four would do the honors; a rainbow blur proceeded to slice the cake into four pieces designed for the Horsemen and twelve pieces for everyone else. As Death received his piece; an unseen smirk crept under his mask as he figured someone would do that.

“I couldn't wait any longer,” Dash stated

“Um princess; what's going to happen now,” Fluttershy asked in a whisper “There's no guards.”

“We'll have to initiate a mandatory draft for the males,” Celestia said with a large sigh “I'll send the message to all towns. They'll be turned into a reservist military on call whenever the need arises.”

“Who was the figure in the jacket that arrived earlier,” Twilight asked, changing the subject

“What we tell you is to be treated as secret,” Death stated “No one outside this room should ever be told anything about this conversation."

“I speak for everyone here when I say that I promise not to say anything,” Celestia replied, as the others nodded in agreement

“The four of us aren't exactly who we seem,” War started

“We're from an entirely different world and were sent here by that being called the ‘Merchant’,” Strife added

“We're what's known back home as the ‘Displaced’. Humans that dressed up as a character and were sent to different versions of Equestria usually by the Merchant,” Death simplified

“How can we tell if you aren't pulling our hooves,” Applejack questioned

Just as she asked that; a small portal opened up and an object fell onto the table. As Death picked it up; he noticed it was a piece of wood carved to look like a game controller. A voice in his head spoke to him.

I am Deltorix the Gamer. If you seek a friend, ally, or simply wish to train skills, simply say 'Send Invite' and I may come. What you want to do with the skills I teach will determination what skills I will teach you

“Send invite.”

After saying that; they waited for a minute before a golden screen pooped up with an image of a door. The doors started to morph from its two dimensional shape into three- dimensional and opened to reveal a red dragon about twice as tall as Spike. He looked at each person muttering something and had a thick book in his claw before he smiled and waved.

“Greetings to you; princesses and my fellow Displaced. I am Deltorix, the Gamer,” he said with a bow

“Where are you from,” Twilight asked

“I am from another Equestria,” Deltorix answered

“You're from another Equestria,” Pinkie echoed “How am I there? Oh who am I kidding; I'm great anywhere!”

“As an offering of assistance; I'd like to give you four something useful,” Deltorix said, tapping in mid-air “Well this is awkward.”

“What happened,” Strife asked

“I don't have the money,” he answered, rubbing a claw behind his head “I'll have to take you to a dungeon. But first…”

In front of each Horseman a small screen popped up only visible to them. To answer; all they needed to do was tap the screen.

Accept invite from Deltorix?
YES NO

Guessing there was only one option to have him help; each pressed ‘YES’ in order to continue.

“Thank you and welcome to the party,” Deltorix said “Now I can take you to an Instant Dungeon.”

“Two requests with that,” Death asked “One: Unlimited enemies and two: all enemies are available for summon.”

“I can do that,” he replied “Just need to make a custom dungeon. And speak of the Devil; I just received a message that says I can.”

With that; Deltorix set to work rapidly tapping in midair on his screen setting the parameters for the dungeon.

“Gather around, you four,” Deltorix said “Link hands with one another and that should make this easier. Instant Dungeon Create.”

Once that was finished; the five were sent into a huge chamber with a long hallway for enemies to spawn and had to wait to begin.

“Everything has been set. All the enemies can spawn and will continue until you decide to stop. Between each round will be a thirty-second break to collect loot. And speaking of; the loot will have to be turned over as the money earned here will not count as physical currency in your world,” Deltorix explained “I'll stay here in the corner in the meantime. One last thing; there will be a boss after the fiftieth wave.”

“Try not to die,” Strife joked

As they watched; a small horde of twenty zombie-like ponies shambled down the hall and were promptly shot down by Strife. Fury raced ahead and collected the piles of items left over as they disappeared into her in-game inventory.

“And now we just repeat until we're done,” Death mused

“I'm for waiting just a bit longer,” War chimed in “Let them come to us before destroying them.”

“Wave two,” Strife pointed out

With that; each readied their weapons and resisted the urge to attack while the room started to fill up with zombies and a couple timberwolves. Deciding they waited enough; Death had his Harvester scythe in its single blade form and used the increased size to spin it by the bottom of the handle and destroyed all the zombies, while War picked off the timberwolves.

“This is fun,” War mused “I'll have Chaoseater and the other weapons leveled up easily.”

“So far; these others were the toughest thing here,” Fury said, having destroyed the wolves

CANTERLOT CASTLE

“Um; where did they go,” Fluttershy asked

“I don't know; but I hope they are alright,” Twilight replied

“Whoever that dragon was; napped them,” Pinkie said “Kid? No; that's not right. Uh, Horsenapping? No; that sounds dumb; even to me.”

“Ridernapped,” Rarity offered

“Yes,” Pinkie exclaimed “They were ridernapped by that dragon!”

“His name is ‘Deltorix’ just so you know,” Spike pointed out

“At least we know they was tellin’ tha truth,” AJ mused

INSTANT DUNGEON

“Now this is what I'm talking about,” Strife said cheerfully “Come at me, you bastards!”

“I think we need to say thank you,” Fury said “You said your name was ‘Deltorix’; right?”

“Yes. I'm a Displaced like all of you but under different circumstances,” he replied “And you're all welcome. I'm glad I can help you out.”

“What are we up to now,” Strife called

“This should be the fiftieth wave,” Deltorix stated “The boss should be arriving any time now.”

“My weapons are finally done,” War stated

“Looking at the prices of a few gifts I wanted to get you; I don’t have the 175,000 bits necessary,” Deltorix said

“What do we have collected up till this point,” Strife asked

“I don't know. I can't see how much each of you have,” Deltorix countered

“Well; I'm up for slaying more,” Death stated

“This looks promising,” Strife mused “A huge horde of zombies approaches. I'll leave it to you.”

“Sis; why don't you take these instead,” Death offered

“About time I get a turn,” she joked

With that; Fury stood at the front of the hallway with her whip at the ready. As the horde started coming down; the whip was tossed from side to side, easily destroying everything. Trailing behind was a series of loud pounding as a big creature started to enter.

“That’s going to be a problem,” Strife mused

Much to their surprise; a slightly smaller version of Tirek had just entered the room. Realizing they were going to lose room to maneuver soon; War decided to wait underneath the centaur and attack his underbelly, slicing it open.

“Damn,” Death offered “That's gruesome; even to me.”

“It does the job and took down a boss,” War countered “Besides; it’s not the real thing.”

“Perhaps we should call it,” Deltorix suggested “It has been a while and you did collect a lot of items.”

“You're right,” Death replied “Mind sending us back?”

“Not a problem,” Deltorix answered “Instant Dungeon Escape.”

To their relief; the dungeon started to shatter as the dining room reemerged.

“Welcome back,” Celestia started

“I hate to break up what I'm sure would have been a nice reunion; but the four of you have been summoned,” Discord said, opening a portal

“The Charred Council wants us,” Death asked

“Yes. Now let's get going,” Discord stated

“I guess I'll wait here,” Deltorix offered

“Nope. You're coming too,” Discord corrected, grabbing him “Otherwise; I fear what Twilight would do to you.”

“Hey,” Twilight complained “It's not like I was going to dissect him or anything.”

Once through the portal; the location changed immensely. Instead of light walls and paintings; rock and lava pools were everywhere. Just a little ways in front of them were three carved totems; the representation of the Charred Council and four recognizable beings; the actual Horsemen. Standing, or rather floating; along side them was a six-eyed creature that looked like a black ghost known as a Watcher.

“What? Do my eyes deceive me,” the Watcher asked “EIGHT Horsemen?”

“SHUT UP,” the eight Horsemen ordered simultaneously

“Why is there another group here,” the actual War demanded “What manner of trick is this!?”

“I sense these four are not entirely like us,” Death mused “Nephilim bodies; with purely human souls.”

“Hold on,” Discord offered “I'll make things easier on everyone.”

Discord snapped his fingers and the four Displaced Horsemen saw their figures start to alter. Their faces started to lengthen to look more pony-like as their feet shrunk into hooves; all the while keeping their armor. Horns started to grow out their foreheads with Fury and Strife having a normal spiral design. War’s was curved, while Death had a twisted and gnarled design. Wings were growing as well with Fury and Strife having regular designs. War and Death had thestral wings with the latter’s being aged and torn in places; but still functional nonetheless.

“There,” Discord announced “Four pony Horsemen against the real thing. Unfortunately; there is one major change.”

“What's that,” the Displaced Death asked

“You can no longer summon your horses,” Discord replied “Being ponies now; you can see how wrong and improper it would be.”

“WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS? EXPLAIN YOURSELVES,” one of the figures demanded

“The four of us are Displaced along with our friend here,” the Displaced Death said quickly “War and I were originally sent to a world known as Equus by a being known as the Merchant.”

“While we were there; demons attacked under an agreement made by a being called Tirek,” the Displaced War added

“Apparently; Tirek had escaped from a place known as Tartarus,” the Displaced Death clarified

“WHAT IS YOUR ROLE IN THIS? FURY AND STRIFE WILL SPEAK.”

“We were sent to a different world originally; but taken to the same as War and Death by the creature called Discord here with us,” the Displaced Fury answered

Standing off to the side and minding his own business; Deltorix had started to open an invisible window and look for a few items to purchase for his fellow Displaced. Thankfully; his appearance was largely unnoticed by the rest.

“YOU SAID HE ESCAPED FROM TARTARUS!?”

“What exactly is this Tartarus,” the real Death asked “I have no recollection of that name.”

“TARTARUS WAS A SPECIALLY BUILT PRISON TO HOUSE THE MOST DANGEROUS OF ALL; THE ORIGINAL DAEMON. IN ORDER TO KEEP IT SECRET; IT HAS BEEN WITHHELD FROM ALL RECORDS.”

“If I may ask; why is Equus so young a world,” the Displaced Death asked

“IN ORDER TO PREVENT ESCAPE OF THE DAEMON; EQUUS WAS BUILT ON TOP. A WORLD OF HARMONY SHOULD HAVE HELD THEM.”

“Was this Tirek one of them,” the real War asked "A Dæmon, I mean?"

“NO. HE WAS DEEMED A THREAT TO THE WORLD AND WAS BANISHED THERE.”

“Before he died; Tirek did mention the others would have their revenge,” the Displaced Death commented “Do you have any idea as to who he was talking about?”

“I hate to interrupt,” Deltorix started hesitantly “But do you mind if I borrow the four ponified Horsemen for a moment?”

“WHAT DO YOU WANT FROM THEM?”

“All I'd like is to be able to collect the items they earned earlier,” he replied “There were a few items I wanted to buy for them.”

“VERY WELL. MAKE IT QUICK.”

“Let's step into a side chamber for a moment,” Deltorix offered “We'll be back shortly.”

With the permission granted; the five of them entered the room and were quickly sent into an empty Instant Dungeon.

“Let's get this over with,” Deltorix said “Access your inventories and just hand me everything and I'll sort it out.”

“Alright. We're not going to regret this; are we,” Strife asked

“No. Besides; with some of the money that was earned I promised you I'd get you a few things,” he replied “Wow. From all that was over 500,000 bits; six spell books and a hundred potions. Alright we're done. We go back and you'll get your stuff.”

Having made short work of the loot; they returned to the original chamber. The four items Deltorix bought for them materialized on the floor.

“Death; you have a fully useable Soul Eater Evans scythe from Soul Eater and an enchantment allowing you to turn your existing scythe into the same. War; your Armageddon blade and an enchantment to duel-wield both,” Deltorix explained “Strife; a new set of pistols from the game Batman Arkham Knight and an enchantment allowing your existing guns to become them as well and finally; Fury. Your gift is a charm containing the four Hollows of Flame, Force, Stasis and Storm from the Darksiders 3 game and the ability to switch at any time.”

“Thank you for the gifts,” Death replied

Each of them grabbed their items and hurried back to the main chamber. The next thing was to ask Discord to help store them someplace.

“Finally,” the real Fury commented “We thought you got lost in there.”

“Odd looking scythe,” the real Death said “Harvester is better in every way.”

“There is no reason for that blade to ever be used,” the real War chastised “The Armageddon Blade was reserved for use against one person.”

“Nice pistols,” the real Strife commented as the other three turned to him “What? I know what I like. Mind if I see them for a moment?”

“Not at all,” the Displaced Strife replied

Once they were passed over; the real Strife had started to check the weight and feel of the pistols his counterpart now had. He started to feel giddy with something new.

“Do I detect that these can combine,” the real Strife asked hopefully

“They do indeed. They become a sniper rifle together,” the Displaced Strife answered

“Dragon,” the real Strife addressed “How did these weapons come?”

“They came with an additional enchantment to allow the existing pistols to transform into them,” Deltorix explained “And my name is ‘Deltorix’ in case you need it.”

“My counterpart can keep the enchantment; as I claim these for myself,” the real Strife declared

“WE'LL RETURN TO THE TOPIC AT HAND IF YOU DON'T MIND.”

“This ‘Tirek’ mentioned a group of others,” the real Fury commented

“THIS GROUP IS KNOWN AS THE SEVEN SINS. THEIR NAMES ARE: TIREK, COZY GLOW, CHRYSALIS, SOMBRA, DAYBREAKER, GROGAR AND THE BROTHERS FLIM AND FLAM. THEY REPRESENT THE SINS OF GLUTTONY, ENVY, LUST, GREED, PRIDE, WRATH AND SLOTH. YOU FOUR ARE PERMITTED TO DO ANYTHING TO PROTECT EQUUS.”

“These sound nothing compared to the Seven I fought,” the real Fury retorted

“DO NOT TAKE THEM LIGHTLY. YOU; DRACONEQUUS; WILL WATCH OVER THE HORSEMEN AND THEY WILL BE THE GUARDIANS OF EQUUS."

“Yeah, yeah,” Discord replied sarcastically “‘Watch over them’. What do you think I've been doing? Sitting on my backside with my thumb stuck there? Rather uncomfortable if you ask me.”

“DO NOT TAKE THIS AS A JOKE. YOU WILL SEVERELY REGRET DOING SO.”

“What do you think you can do,” Discord retorted “Turn me to stone? Been there, done that; was bored for years in the process.”

Instead of receiving an answer; Discord started to contort himself in agony. The Charred Council decided to punish him by burning him without the flames.

“That's enough,” the real War demanded “This punishment has gone on too long.”

“WAR; YOU WISH TO TAKE HIS PLACE?”

“I'll…do…it,” Discord said through breaths “Watch…over…Horse…men.”

“DISMISSED.”

“Discord; do you have a moment,” the Displaced Death asked, as they left

“Of course,” Discord replied, before snapping his fingers “Your new scythe has been added to your hammerspace and War has his mounted on his back. And War, the non-pony War, I mean; thank you.”

“You're not the first that went through that,” the real War replied “Death did once.”

“Since you're me; have you managed to summon Rampage by any chance,” the real Fury asked

“I have. Is that a problem at all,” the Displaced Fury questioned

“My Rampage was killed by Angelic weaponry and later devoured by Gluttony,” the real Fury explained sadly “He was my closest companion.”

“I'm sorry to hear that,” the Displaced Fury offered, hugging her

“I'd hazard a guess that we aren't entirely like you,” the Displaced Death mused “I did see a moment where the four of you were here, while War and I were in Equestria.”

“Watch over that world,” the real Death stated “You are the Horsemen; after all.”

“It's time we return home,” Discord said “Hopefully; we don’t have to do this again. No offense; of course.”

“Well; I for one have one stop to make,” the real Strife mused “I need to see Ulthane about making these have unlimited ammo.”

Without further issue; Discord opened a portal that the five stepped through before he zipped it shut. Another opened up back in Canterlot Castle’s dining room where Celestia and the others were still waiting.

“Where have you been,” Pinkie demanded “That dragon Ridernapped you. Then you were sent someplace else.”

“Pinkie; let them rest for a moment,” Twilight cautioned

“It's time for me to head back to my world,” Deltorix said

“Thanks again for the weapons,” Death commented “Now unfortunately; our contract is complete.”

“You're welcome. Just attach the enchantment to your person and it will activate,” Deltorix replied “Thank you for summoning me.”

After saying that the same golden screen and door from before opens behind him. Taking one last look, he smiles and waves at us just before he walked through. Finally; the door closes and the screen starts to disappear in a shower of pixels.

“That was some exit,” Applejack said in awe

“Um; isn't anyone going to mention the new appearances,” Rarity asked

“How'd you change like that,” Twilight asked

“I did that,” Discord stated “Eight Horsemen was confusing so I altered them. At least now the guardians of Equus look the part.”

“Even as a pony, you are still scary looking,” Fluttershy commented nervously, looking away from Death

“You said new weapons,” Dash pointed out “Can we see them?”

“We were meaning to test them out anyways,” Strife replied sarcastically

“The courtyard is probably the best place to work,” Celestia offered “And the four of you are hereby granted rooms in the castle.”

“Thank you,” Death replied

Celestia led everyone through the castle and down to courtyard so none of the Horsemen would get lost. Death made sure to change the smaller scythes into the larger version before attaching the enchantment to his waist. The new blade consisted of a red and black triangular zigzag design traversing the length of the blade ending in a simple metal pole shaft.

“That's so cool,” Pinkie said “New design of your scythe.”

“That's just the beginning,” Death replied “Let's see if this works. Kishin Hunter!”

To his surprise; the scythe did change into a jagged design that still had a angular curved shape.

“Went for the big one right away,” Strife asked “Didn't even want to try the original?”

“I'm about to do that,” Death retorted, as the scythe split back into two “Witch Hunter! Genie Hunter!”

Once the scythe was split in two; one blade was solid red, while the other became black. Again; both followed his command as one altered into a blade with an extreme curve while the other seemed to change into a rounded edge on one side and a straight opposite.

“Not bad brother,” War complement

“Definitely nice,” Strife chimed in

“What about you,” Dash asked impatiently “What do you have?”

“Does anyone happen to have a spare glass,” Strife asked

“Here you go,” Pinkie answered, pulling a glass cup from her mane

“Since you can fly,” Strife started, pointing at Dash “Could you fly up and toss the glass into the air?”

“Let me get this this straight; I take the glass and just toss it in mid flight,” Dash questioned

“Yes. I'm going to use my pistol and shoot it,” he stated

“I can't believe I'm going to do this,” Dash said with a sigh "This is crazy; even to me."

Dash grabbed the cup and took off into the air at high speed. Strife drew both pistols and started connecting them to form a single rifle. After reaching the clouds; Dash decided to keep going through before tossing the cup. Looking through the scope; he waited for the glass to start falling through and found the sign. A glint of sunlight hit the glass, creating the reflection that was necessary for sight. Strife pulled the trigger and waited as the glass shattered. With the job done; she carefully headed down to the castle, making sure not to get hit by any falling shards.

“That was impressive,” she complimented, punching Strife lightly in the arm “Not something I intend to do again, though.”

“Don't worry; I know what this can do now,” Strife replied

“What about you; War,” AJ asked

“Another sword,” War answered “This is the Armageddon blade.”

“Scary looking,” Pinkie offered

“Fury; it's your turn to show off your weapon, darling,” Rarity chimed in

“Fire Hollow activate,” Fury said, touching the red portion of her charm

To everyone's surprise; Fury’s appearance changed as her normally purple hair became a fiery orange color. Drawing out her whip, Scorn; instead turned into a pair of medieval flails.

“Hot,” Pinkie joked “You're on fire.”

“Alright, Pinkie,” Dash warned “No more jokes.”

“Next up,” Fury said “Storm Hollow activate.”

Her second transformation resulted in gaining yellow hair and a lance. Following that; the section for the Force hollow had her with purple hair and a giant mallet. Finally; the Stasis hollow granted cyan colored hair and a sword to use in combat.

“That's interesting,” Twilight commented “Four different changes in one medallion.”

“It makes fighting against me a lot harder,” Fury mused “I can switch at any time.”

“Well; with what's going to be happening soon, our new weapons will definitely help out,” Death added

“What do you mean by that,” Luna asked

“That creature we fought, Tirek; wasn't alone,” War answered “He was one of seven.”

“What can we do about this,” Celestia asked

“You; not much,” Death answered grimly “The four of us should be enough to take care of them.”

“But why you,” Twilight protested “We should help as well.”

“If this group is as much of a danger as we were told, we will have to deal with them the hard way,” War added “By killing whoever disrupts the Balance.”

“You seem to be valuable to this area,” Fury offered “My brothers and I have fought the worst and emerged.”

“I guess we don't have much a choice,” Dash muttered “I hate sitting around doing nothing.”

“As much as I agree with you, Rainbow,” Rarity mused “They do have a point. We aren't prepared to truly defend Equestria, even if we are the Elements of Harmony.”

“There has ta’ be a way,” AJ argued “We can't just sit n’ do nothin’. We were given the Elements for a reason. Why can't we help protect our home?”

“It's not a matter of just protecting this area,” Strife chimed in “We were tasked with Equus as a whole. No matter how much power you have; the six of you need to stick together to use it. The four of us have taken on enemies both together and more often than not; by ourselves. We cannot fail. Hell; I can damn sure promise you we won't fail.”

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“That big oaf still hasn't returned yet,” a voice complained

“What do you care; Sombra,” a feminine voice asked

“Chrysalis. Tirek said he had business to take care of and headed to the other location. I just wanted to know what was so important not to let any of us in on,” Sombra answered

“Golly, wasn't that personal,” a child-like voice added “We wouldn't want to upset the wittle guy by snooping in his business.”

“I hate it when you use that tone; Cozy Glow,” Chrysalis spat “It's disgusting to hear. And what about you two? Aren't you going to do anything!?”

“Brother, do you hear anyone,” one asked

“My dear Flam I suppose it was the wind,” the other answered

“Flim old boy; the old windbag does love to hear herself talk,” Flam mused

“That settles it,” Chrysalis stated “I'll pound some sense into you!”

“Which do you want to start with,” one of the brothers taunted

“Whichever will cause the most pain to the other,” she replied sadistically

“My money's on Flim getting hit,” Sombra whispered “Five bits.”

“Golly. I'll take that bet,” Cozy replied “Ten bits on both getting it together.”

“Deal,” Sombra said

Sombra and Cozy dropped their respective bits on the floor of the cave and waited. Chrysalis proceeded to create a duplicate of herself as they transformed into Flim and Flam. Both proceeded to pick the opposing brother and started hitting him.

“I'll take those five bits,” Cozy said proudly

“What is with this infernal racket,” another demanded

“Explain yourselves,” another demanded

“Master Grogar,” Chrysalis answered “I was attempting to beat some respect into those lazy idiots.”

“My dear, we are not lazy,” Flim started

“We prefer the term ‘Differentially Motivated’,” Flam finished

“Call it what you like,” Grogar mused “It's still laziness.”

"It has been a while since Tirek started his personal crusade. Despite being the Sin of Greed; this shouldn't have taken so long,” the last said

“Mistress Daybreaker; what do you propose,” Sombra asked

“Someone goes back to the other cave to start looking for Tirek,” Daybreaker stated “Any volunteers?”

“I'll do it,” Chrysalis said, disguising her voice to sound like Flim

“I'll join my brother,” ‘Flam’ added as Chrysalis mimicked his voice as well

“It's settled,” Grogar stated “Both of you will leave and report back to us.”

“But I,” Flim stuttered

“Nor I,” Flam attempted to add

“Get going,” Daybreaker demanded

“I don't know how’s youse done it, but I know youse done it,” Flam said, turning to Chrysalis

“I have no idea what you're talking about,” Chrysalis said, feigning innocence

Not wanting to anger either of their leaders; the brothers immediately teleported away. Instead of heading to the cave; they instead landed in an old workshop of theirs. Scattered around the room was bits and pieces of various projects along with a huge covered object in a corner.

“It's been so long since we were here,” Flam mused

“Indeed it has. Maybe now we can get project ‘Super Squeezy’ finished,” Flim added

“I'm glad we can be alone.”

“Agreed. Despite us being considered one of the Sins; I don't want anything to do with taking over anywhere.”

“Well; let's get the old girl uncovered and get to work,” they decided

UNKNOWN LOCATION

“Chrysalis; thank you,” Grogar offered

“Whatever for,” she asked

“I know it was you who spoke for them. Honestly; those two idiots live up to their Sin,” Grogar replied

“It's better to get rid of them while we work on planning our attack on the princesses,” Daybreaker added

“I hope we don't run into any problems,” Cozy added sarcastically

“I'm going to be attacking the Crystal Empire,” Sombra stated “We get rid of them and one less ally disappears.”

“With any luck; we could bring that pitiful country under our control,” Daybreaker said “The guards in the castle are more ceremonial than actually useful in combat.”

“What reason do you have for getting rid of them,” Sombra asked "You've never told us."

“I'm returning the favor Celestia gave me,” was the answer, albeit vague

FLIM & FLAM

“Having not seen this in quite some time; it's looking so much better,” one commented

“Indeed, brother. Now that we're rebuilding it; I'm starting to remember what we were trying to do.”

“I just hope we aren't run out of town like last time.”

“We aren't doing anything wrong; just making things easier for others.”

"True; very true. I'd like to stay in peace for once."