//------------------------------// // 10- The Platinum Knight // Story: Sun Never Sets // by CrownofDissonance //------------------------------//     Twilight Sparkle guided her hoverboard over the stretch of ruined city, towards the bridge to Canterlot's residential area. Selene followed next to her, riding atop Sombra's back as he glided across the ground, his legs merging against the ground like a shadow would, seamlessly adapting to the rugged terrain beneath him.      "Where is Nightmare Moon headed?" Twilight tilted her head just enough to ask the question in Selene's direction before turning her attention back to where she was going.     "The Everfree Forest. That's where her castle will be raised, and within it, the gate to the demon realm."     "Castle..." Twilight repeated. "You mean the Castle of the Two Sisters?"     According to legend, said castle was once the home of the Sisters of Light and Darkness, before they fell into conflict. After the Dark Sister was banished, the castle mysteriously disappeared. Having studied the legend extensively, she was almost certain there was some connection, but now there wasn't any doubt.     Selene nodded. "The gate is a part of the castle; built into it, if my understanding is correct."     Twilight brought her board to a stop just as she reached the bridge, looking down to the interstate highway it passed over. She would need to take it east to get to the forest, it was about an hour away from the heart of the city. The last Harmonic Demon on her list should be somewhere near the Everfree as well- her magic tracker would be able to point her in the right direction when she got closer.     Sombra came to a stop behind her, his shadowy form solidifying into legs as he brought himself to a trot until Selene was at Twilight's side.      "How will she open it?" Twilight asked, turning her head to meet Selene's eyes.      "She needs the power of the Sister of Light, and the sword she used to seal it."     The power of the Sister of Light? That was the same power contained in Sunset's amulet. Sunset's amulet! Twilight's eyes lit up as her mind connected the dots.     "No..."     "What's wrong?"     She looked back to the Coyote Hotel, where they had left the other demon hunter behind. "Nightmare Moon already has the Sister of Light's power."     Selene's eyes mirrored that concern. "Does she?"     "It was given to Sunset by Celestia, contained in an amulet. If she's defeated by Nightmare Moon..." Twilight's voice trailed off as she became overwhelmed by her thoughts. "Oh, nonononono...."     Beyond her attention, Sombra turned his head back to Selene, glaring at her.      "Yes, you were right, I suppose," She said quietly. Sombra's interest in Sunset was now fully understood. "Not much we can do now though, is there?"     Had Twilight noticed this exchange, she might've asked about it, but she was lost in her thoughts. Her resentment towards Sunset clouded her judgement. Leaving her behind was a mistake, she let the amulet fall into Nightmare Moon's hands.     How could you have let this happen? Her inner voice so cruelly asked. It's words cut deep at her, made her feel humiliation and regret.     “Shut up…” Twilight whispered. She wanted it to be quiet, so she could focus on the task at hand, but no amount of mental pressure she put on the voice would make it do so.     You should've dealt with Sunset when you had the chance. Twilight winced. The more she listened to it, the more she considered it's words, the louder and more painful it became to hear.     And now... You've got even more to make up for. Twilight only closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.     "Shut up!" She whispered again, hushed, but sharply.     Her attention was pulled away from her inner voice when Selene spoke again.     "Are you okay, Twilight?" She asked. Twilight tried to clear the voice from her head, and focused intently as Selene repeated herself. "Twilight?"     She needed something- anything else to listen to, as long as it wasn't a voice in her head.     "W- What?" Twilight replied, a bit dazed. She did her best to sound collected, but her response came out more frustrated sounding than anything.     "You look unwell." Selene’s voice was gentle, understanding, she spoke as if she could see right into Twilight's mind. “Quite distressed.”     "What do you care?" Twilight snapped, quite suddenly, and surprising herself in the process. "It's... just a headache."     Selene didn't react to this, but still explained herself. “You're our best chance of defeating Nightmare Moon. You need to not be distracted.”     “What I need is more power…” Twilight murmured, then repeated herself a bit louder. “More power…”     Selene shook her head, alarmed by Twilight's almost desperate sounding response. She and Sombra exchanged sideways looks.     "I'll need the rest of the Elements of Harmony to defeat Nightmare Moon," Twilight said, the act of planning things out in her head giving her clarity, confidence, and control. "Sunset has two of them, and the last will be near the Everfree, I'm certain. You said you had the means to finish her off?"     "Yes. But I would suggest we track down the sword first? It'll buy us time, and be a powerful weapon against her."     "The Devil Sword," Twilight looked up at Selene. She knew of the Sister of Light's sword. It was a legendary, powerful blade, supposedly lost to time, vanishing into history alongside its wielder. "You know where it is, don't you?"     "Not precisely," Selene's eyes closed, and her head tilted slightly before continuing. "But I know someone who can help us find it."     "Another demon friend of yours?"     "Something like that." -----     Starlight ran as fast as she could, trying to catch up with Twilight and her mysterious companion, but they outpaced her, their hoverboard and unicorn demon respectively providing a much faster form of transportation on the torn up road. She was determined to catch them though, if only to get answers from Twilight.     What happened to her? Among everything else, Starlight remembered Twilight the most for her compassion, for her willingness to save people. She gave Starlight a new life amongst the Order of Light, despite their overall disapproval of her. She became a mentor figure to her, teaching her the value of friendship and how to fight for it, and that it was something worth fighting for. Despite Starlight's personal resentment about being cut in half, she ultimately recognized Twilight Sparkle as a good person, perhaps one of the best kinds of people.     But it would seem that her banishment was a turning point for her. When Twilight was accused of accessing forbidden Order secrets, Starlight was the first person to speak for Twilight's innocence, but... Twilight admitted to her trespassing and accepted exile. The leaders of the Order didn't care about her explanations, her claim of her actions being necessary, her warning of some forgotten darkness returning. Not even her own brother, the Head Paladin, was moved by her plea, he only solemnly recited the rules of the Order. They were clear: for the accessing of forbidden knowledge, she must be either banished, or executed. When Starlight asked about it, she was told to not worry, that Twilight didn't want her to lose her new home in the Order by associating with an outcast.     Then, with a short goodbye, she left.     After all of that time spent looking out for her, training her, and sticking up for her when no one else would, she just walked away. Not just from Starlight, but from her family, who she had a home with and had known for much longer. It hurt, but she thought she understood. Now though, after learning that her former mentor may have had some connection to this demon being summoned, and watching her be so careless and dismissive to those around her, her perspective of her was starting to shift further. The possibility of her being the cause of all of this destruction was not a thought that sat well with her.     Something had changed, and Starlight wanted an explanation. So she ran as fast as she could.     And when she got to the end of the street, Twilight was there, by the bridge to the residential area, discussing something with her companion.     "Twilight!"     She turned, and motioned for her companion to wait before swiveling her hoverboard around, and dismounting it. She took several steps towards Starlight, and stopped at the edge of the sidewalk.     "I told you to go home, Starlight." She said, causing Starlight to slow her run, and come to a standstill in the middle of the street.      "Why are you doing this, Twilight?"     "Because I'm the only one with the power to stop all of this. To save everyone." Twilight's tone was absolute, as if her self-importance was obvious to all.     "You summoned the Tantibus, didn't you?" Starlight said. She didn't want to believe it, but everything she had learned about Twilight's actions pointed to this being the case. She could only assume it was the truth.     "No, I-" Twilight's eyes widened in surprise, but then narrowed, a reaction to the accusing tone. "It had to happen that way, Starlight. You don't understand, nobody believed me when I learned of Nightmare Moon's return. I needed to destroy that part of her early."     "That's no excuse-"     "The Order wouldn't listen to me! They didn't understand how many people were in danger!"     "And here you are, putting even more people in danger? This isn't the way, Twilight, you know this. Look at what's happened!"     "No, no-" Twilight shook her head, both her eyes and her confident tone faltering. "This was unavoidable..."     Starlight met Twilight's eyes. There was something about that change of tone, a subtle quake to her voice, and the way she shook her head with a hint of desperation. She was losing her composure. Somehow, she had convinced herself that everything she had done up to this point was justified, but Starlight's objection to that destabilized her resolve.     It would only last a few moments before Twilight regained her delusional grip on herself. "It doesn't matter. I'm the only one who can stop this now. Not the Order, not Celestia, not Sunset..."     "Not like this." As much as she once respected Twilight, any trace of morality that she once had was gone. That coupled with the fact that she was responsible for summoning one of the most destructive demons in history made her a clear enemy of the Order. "You can be better than this, Twilight."     "You say that like you think you can stop me."     "If you'd betray the Order, and everything you used to believe in..." Starlight began. She didn't want to fight her, but the Order's code was clear. Her feelings needed to be put aside right now, but she was still very hesitant in finishing her sentence. "It's... kind of my duty to stop you."     "I turned my back on the Order because of what I believe in, Starlight." Twilight said. "Because I put my principles before their protocol. And right now, you have to make that choice too." Once more, her tone seemed to falter, but only for a moment.      She paused, recovered her composure, and continued.      "So what's it going to be?"     Starlight was tired, and she only had a drop of energy left in her power cells, but if she could do something, she needed to do it now. Her eyes glimmered a soft blue color, and she reached back for her revolver.     Time slowed as she drew, but Twilight still dashed straight into her faster than she expected, knocking her legs out from under her with her katana, still sheathed, before Starlight could even process what was happening. She nearly did a full flip sideways before crashing into the ground, and as time resumed she felt Twilight's boot punting her revolver straight out of her hand to the other side of the street. Starlight's head fell back, and Twilight just looked down at her disappointedly.      A moment passed, and Twilight turned and began to walk away. Thinking she had an opening, Starlight jumped to her feet and ran at her. Her arm reached back to her chainsaber with the intent to draw it, rev it, and strike in a single motion, but again, Twilight moved faster than she anticipated. Without even turning, Twilight thrusted her katana sheath straight back into Starlight's nose, disrupting her attack, and as Starlight so painfully recoiled she swung her undrawn weapon around again.      This time, Starlight caught the sheath in a firm grip, but Twilight drew her sword free and closed the distance between them. The pommel end of her weapon smashed into Starlight's cheek, and Twilight pulled her sheath back in the same moment, only to smack Starlight across the face with it in the opposite direction, laying her out on the asphalt again.      She returned her sword back into its sheath, and seeing that Starlight wasn't getting back up, she only sighed. For Starlight, it was equally as painful as it was humiliating, but she knew she should've known better. She wasn't strong enough to fight Twilight. She never was.     "Just go home, Starlight." Twilight warned. "Don't make me do something I'll regret."     Regret? Starlight would've shown surprise, had making faces not been painful due to bruising on it. Regret didn't seem to be something this Twilight understood. In the strongest voice she could muster, she managed to cough out a question, a question she asked before, but never got an answer to.     "Why tell me any of this? It's obvious you don't care anymore..." As Starlight asked the question, Twilight's expression changed again. It wasn't like before, when Starlight challenged her reasoning. She didn't look desperate, or angered. She looked... almost sad. This wasn't the Twilight she had seen turning her back on her friends. For that brief moment, her mask fell away, and a Twilight who understood the severity of her actions was clearly visible.     And with this new expression came a tone of voice. A calm, quiet, and somber tone, reminiscent of the Twilight she once knew. "I'm just trying to fix my mistakes. I don't want to have to fight any more of my friends..."     Before Starlight could express any sympathy, the cold, uncaring tone returned to her. "So don't follow me. If you get in my way again, I'll- I'll..." As soon as it left, the quiet regret seemed to come back, challenging Twilight's mask of apathy. Her breath wavered, and she didn't finish her sentence.      She had to take a moment to collect herself again. "Don't get in my way."     Twilight remounted her board, and motioned to Selene that she was ready to go. Starlight rolled over onto her front, and saw the two of them riding off down the bridge to Canterlot's residential area. That was that, she supposed. She thought about what Twilight said. Her mission was finished, and there was nothing else for her to do here. As much as she wanted to fight Nightmare Moon and save the city, she wasn't enough to make a difference. She never was. And now she was here, left even more confused and conflicted about Twilight than ever before, and laying in a useless heap on the ground. Maybe she should just go home.     But if she did, and gave her report to The Order, they would surely take some sort of drastic measure. Letting Twilight escape was another concern, too. This situation was out of her hands, though. Like it or not, she needed help. And either way, she'd need to get up off the ground.     She made an attempt to push herself up, but her head was still throbbing violently and her vision was sent spinning. Fighting through that, she managed to stand, but her body was both weak and heavy, resisting her will to move. Attempting to walk to where her gun landed, she found herself back on her knees within seconds. Even then, she couldn't keep her balance completely, toppling forward as gravity took away any ability to stay upright.     Starlight hated losing a fight. She hated that she spent all of her energy battling Nightmare Moon for it to amount to nothing. She hated that she was dependent on batteries to even move. She hated that Twilight was so much stronger than her, that Twilight would betray her, and there was nothing that she could do about it. That Twilight was the reason she had this worthless body, that Twilight was the reason she was currently face down on the ground, unable to do anything but drown herself in frustration at Twilight.     Except it wasn't Twilight's fault, Starlight knew this. Starlight's problems were Starlight's fault. Always. She tried to fight Twilight before and got herself cut in half. She tried to fight Twilight now and got force fed pavement. She had and still messed things up, because apparently she wasn't good enough.     But she didn't have the energy to mentally beat herself up anymore. She didn't have the energy for anything, really. Her consciousness was beginning to slip, gradually at first, but then extremely quickly as the feeling of immense weight of her body dragged her into a forced sleep.     As she drifted away she thought she heard the faint sound of an engine rumbling, and also of tires on a street. -----     Hurried footsteps echoed through an empty room from a set of tall, wooden double doors on one end. Faint light from the darkened sky above came through the wide windows to the left, illuminating several dozen rows of simply designed pews in a soft, orange glow. They were placed around a center aisle, leading up to a similarly designed altar. This was a place of worship. Not too grand, but sizable enough for the city of Canterlot.     Looming behind the altar, the individual of worship was depicted by a stone statue twice the size of a person. The statue displayed a tall woman, with a slender but powerful silhouette, and hair wreathed in what appeared to be flames. It flowed from beneath a helmet that concealed her eyes and nose with a slitted face plate, but her lips held a stern expression, a steadfast warning. A form fitting suit of armor covered her body, and two angelic wings sprouted from her back, curling majestically up above her.     In one hand, she held a sword close to her chest, pointed down, it's crossguard resembling a rising sun with many spokes, and the other she held outstretched at a downward angle, as if she were offering to help a defeated adversary.     The footsteps continued, until a shadow of a woman crossed through the room's threshold. Then, a heeled boot passed through the door, with a strange clamping mechanism on the back of it. Another followed, and the sound of footsteps continued further as the boots brought their wearer further into the room, until she was past the pews, past the altar, and right in front of the statue.     Celestia eyed the imagery of the Sister of Light with disgust. She felt an urge to destroy or deface it, but upon further contemplation she decided there were more important things to do at the moment. The Order of Light may not have had a presence in Canterlot City, but their religion certainly did. Though small in number and spread thin, legitimate followers of the Sister of Light popped up in all places, though they only had a real presence in Crystal City.      The idea of worshiping a demon as a saviour, a protector, as a goddess- it did not sit well in Celestia's mind. The legend may have spoke of the Sister of Light as a heroic figure, but heroes weren't meant to be worshiped like this. Respected, maybe. Revered and remembered, but not treated as deities. Especially when they weren't around anymore.     Even if some demons were kind and caring for humanity, the sheer power they possessed was enough to bring out the worst in a human who wanted it for themself. This was why Celestia sought out those with potential to harness their magic and trained them, so they may use their powers to fight evil. But for this she was also branded as an enemy of the Order of Light, because they believed demonkind to be an absolute evil, outside of their saviour, and that humans should not use magic unless it was in the name of their goddess. Or at the very least, unless it was furthering their own agenda.     Celestia found that amusing at the time, as one of their most gifted members, Twilight Sparkle, was also one of her strongest students. It wasn't so much now, seeing Twilight's course of action after being banished from the Order. Twilight clearly was on a dark path, one so very similar to the one the Dark Sister walked. And with Sunset defeated by Nightmare Moon, and Twilight's own student unable to convince her to stand down, it fell upon Celestia to undo what her former student had set in motion.     That was why she was here, in a church dedicated to the Sister of Light, a place she otherwise wouldn't be caught dead in.     She snapped out of her thoughts, looking away from the goddess statue. What she was here for was through the doorways to either side of the statue. They both lead to the same hallway, a long corridor that stretched beyond the main chamber in either direction, but was only a half dozen footsteps across.      Lining this hallway were more statues, smaller ones, all depicting either the Light Sister or various other characters associated with her legends. Each one was just slightly taller than her, and placed between windows, letting light through without much shadow cast. Several doors on the far ends led to offices of the church's staff, but in the center of the hallway, across from the two doors leading to the church's back entrance, there was a sunken in area of wall, where a locked display table showed off a set of relics once belonging to the Sister of Light.     Beneath the glass lay four elegantly crafted handguns, each with two barrels in an over-under alignment. They were made of a golden orange metal, with a red gem in the upper receiver. Intricate silver engravings ran along the slide, all the way to the barrel, and each had handle grips of ebony. These were ancient, magical weapons, the personal weapons of the Sister of Light. Weapons also used by Celestia during her time as demon hunter, she gave them to this church for safekeeping after her retirement. They were what she was here for.     Reaching into her pocket, she produced a small key, which she used to unlock the table, and lifted the glass covering her old weapons. She promised herself that she wouldn't fight again, but she knew it was a promise she couldn't keep.     She reached out, and tentatively touched one of the handguns. The gem on it began to sparkle softly, responding to what little magic she still had. She still had enough power to wield them, good. In her mind, she said their names, taking the first two in her hands and feeling the familiar sensation of them synchronizing with her as she reached down and attached them to the clamping mechanism on the backs of her boots.     Zenith, Nadir...     Taking the second pair, she synchronized with them as well, the feeling of a familiar weapon in her hand giving her a bit more confidence in her ability to fight.     Dusk, and Dawn...     These four pistols were her loyal companions during her younger days of demon hunting. A smile crossed her face as she remembered the excitement and adventure she had in her life before the Order forced her into hiding. All she needed to complete her loadout was her old sword, another relic of the Sister of Light's. It should've been hanging on the wall above the guns, but when she looked up, all she saw was an empty display case. Strange.     A dark, sly sounding voice interrupted her as she began to think of where it might be.     "Silly, silly, Celly..." Celestia's heard it louder on her right side, but when she turned to look, nobody was there. When the voice spoke again, it was behind her.     "Looking for something, are you?" It spoke in a teasing tone. A familiar one. She knew the speaker. She knew him well.     When she turned again, she did so with both guns forward. Nothing was there.     "That beat up chunk of metal, I assume?" This time, the voice came from all around her, but she couldn't see it's source. It was a demon, a demon she knew, and once upon a time she would've been able to sense him, but she wasn't as in tune with her abilities as she once was.     "Awh, what's the matter? Out of touch, are you? How long has it been since the Platinum Knight lifted those guns?"     She winced at the title. It was what they used to call her back in her prime. Celestia, the Platinum Knight. Being called that again felt odd.     Celestia's eyes darted around. The direction of the voice was irrelevant, he could sound like he was coming from anywhere.     "Just show yourself."     "Ugh... You're no fun." The voice suddenly centralized itself. It was close, right down the hallway to her left. "I'm right here, Celly. I've been here. I can't exactly go anywhere..."      It was coming from one of the statues, one of a tall, serpent-like creature with curious features. It appeared to have the head of a horse, but with antlers, one of a deer, and the other a gazelle. It's body was of the same incoherent construction, an unholy assembly of various creatures, all attached to one being. It had an eagle's claw, a lion's paw, a goat's hoof, and a lizard's foot, all attached to a snakelike body and tail, and it held both a sinister looking grin and pose.     By the small plaque in front of him, one would see that this was Discord, the Lord of Chaos, a powerful demon defeated long ago by the Sisters of Light and Darkness, and again by Celestia after breaking free.     "This is you, Discord? The real you?" Celestia asked, surprised. "How did you end up here?"     "Oh, the church needed some statues for their little history museum they've got back here, and it turns out that I'm just the draconequus for the job." He said, rather proudly, but still with a hint of sarcasm. "I've got a lot of experience, I'll have you know. Several thousand years, in fact."     Celestia's expression fell flat. If this is all he was, he was harmless. The most he could do in this state is talk someone to death. "I don't have time to humor you."     "Well hey now, I don't exactly get to talk to anyone around here, especially not anyone I really know... They can't know I'm the real deal."     "Then why tell me?"     Discord scoffed, and sounded like he was rolling his eyes. "I was trying to be helpful. There's a demon invasion going on, and if you're coming to get your weapons it must really be bad."     Celestia crossed her arms, and raised an eyebrow expectantly. "Well, where's my sword?"     "They were using it for some ceremony this morning..." Discord trailed off, his voice suggesting he was trying to recall. "Before the baddies showed up, of course. But they didn't really seem interested in the sword, which was weird, because it's yours. Everyone in the demon realm knows you. I thought for certain-"     A pistol was suddenly thrust in the statue's face, and Celestia's normally patient tone broke into the subtle, angered one. Each word was spoken clearly, and with lethal intent. "Quit chattering. Where is it?"     The demon was not phased by this, rather, he seemed excited. "Ooh, a threat! That brings me back... That look in your eyes, so fiery! Even if you're old and crumbling, you've still got that spark, don't you?"     A moment passed, and Celestia's glare faded.      "Oh, but you're not going to let your anger get the best of you, are you? Of course not, you wouldn't hurt little ol' me, not while I'm in such a vulnerable position..." Discord's voice broke into a short, evil chuckle before continuing. "It's laying on the altar."     "What?"     "Go out there, have a look."     Celestia lowered her weapon, and walked away, but before she was out of earshot Discord told her one more thing.     "Oh, and you're not alone here. Once you get that sword, you better get moving. There's quite a few people out there who want the Sister of Light's blade. And the Platinum Knight's head..."     Her head turned back as she approached the door. She knew as much, but what seemed like an honest warning from an enemy was suspicious. "Why tell me that?"     "Because, between the Order, Nightmare Moon returning, and your runaway student, there's greater things at play here than just you and I. I need to make sure I get through this mess."     "And this involves me, why?"     "Oh, I can't spoil everything... You'll see in time, my dear."     Celestia gave him a smirk. "Hmm. I'm beginning to think you might have a soft spot for me."     Where normally he'd have a snappy reply, he had only silence. That was enough for her to leave.     Back in the main chamber, Celestia spotted her old sword right away, laying across the altar, just as Discord said. It wasn't there when she first came in, was it? It must've been one of his tricks- he clearly still had some of his powers. That was something to be dealt with later, though. Gripping her two pistols tightly she focused on her magical connection to them, and they dissolved into energy that was absorbed into her body. She still had enough power to store her weapons, too. Excellent.     With her hands now free, she focused on her blade, and reached out for it. It was an ordinary grey broadsword with a wide, double-edged blade, a V-shaped crossguard, and with a pommel in the shape of a familiar sun. It was called the Corona's Edge; a plain and unassuming weapon, not one that would be imagined in the hands of such a legendary figure. It wasn't nearly as fancy as the one the Sister of Light was depicted holding in the statue behind her, but it didn't need overwhelming grandeur to a devastating in the hands of a swordsman goddess. It was imbued with the Sister of Light's power—the power to get the job done—and that was all that mattered to Celestia right now.     The moment her hand reached the weapon, a swarm of black-robed Reaper demons appeared all around her, at least a dozen of them, all swinging their own flaming swords in at her. Of course, she realised, they were waiting for her. Discord must have set her up!     With only a moment to react, she threw her sword up and jumped straight into the air after it, clearing all of the other blades. Looking down, she saw them all strike together in the spot she was just standing, each of the demons were recoiling from the unexpected clash. Perfect. As she began to fall back down she brought her foot down on one of the demon's heads, stomping it into the ground with a shriek, and scattering the rest into a ring around her.     At her will, the pistol on her foot went off in time with her landing, and she stomped down and fired the other one in the same fashion. A moment later, Celestia's sword came back down, landing perfectly in the demon's back as she stepped off it.     "Waiting for someone?" She asked, taking a playful tone, even though she knew the demons wouldn't reply. She slammed a fist down into her sword, driving it deeper into the demon pinned beneath it.     "Surely you're not here for this, are you?" She walked two fingers over her weapon's pommel, indicating it as the other demons closed in around her, waiting for a moment to pounce. Resummoning her pistols, she introduced a barrel to the first one foolish enough to attack and blasted it down into the floor. More followed suit, but she easily danced around them, firing all four of her guns gracefully as she dodged and weaved about. With one pistol, she parried a sword strike, then shot down three demons in three different directions at point blank range, balancing on one foot to accomplish this. A swing came at her leg, trying to topple her, but she shifted her weight onto a hand and split her legs across, putting bullets through two demons on either side, and swinging her arm behind her to line up three more consecutive shots.     Tumbling forward, she landed with her legs still split, and began to fire in all directions, responding to attacks as they came; crossing her arms, spreading them, holding them at specific angles, easily holding back the onslaught of demons circling her. Not one touched her, and as she popped back on to her feet she gave one of the last ones standing a straight kick to the chest. Her boot mounted pistol fired straight through it, then lit it up a dozen more times as she served it a flurry of rapid fire kicks, finishing it off with a roundhouse kick that sent it flying over the altar and into the center aisle.     She sensed another attack behind her, and rolled up onto the altar to dodge the last demon coming at her with a thrust. The guns in her hands vanished, and she finally drew her sword out from the floor, and coming up to a kneel, she took the demon's head with a single swing.      Behind her, out in the pews, she saw several more demons forming out of pools of shadow: a pair of tall Scythe demons, backed up by even more Reapers than before. The skeletal Phantom demons appeared in the furthest rows, flames pulsing in their hands, and near the entrance, a towering, horned, Battlemaster stood, his axe at the ready. Their various battle cries echoed through the room as they swarmed it, flooded it, each one here to shed blood.     Standing over them on the altar, she faced them, again showing amusement at the situation. She was getting back into the swing of this demon slaying thing perfectly fine.     "Hmm, seems like we've got a bit of a crowd this evening..." Celestia said, taunting them with a patient tone as they slowly shambled forward. "But unfortunately there won't be any service tonight."      Celestia readied her sword, and took up a fighting stance, smiling as every demon in the room bolted towards her. This was it, she felt her energy coming back to her, and any hesitation she had with fighting again was gone.     "So you'll have to say your prayers now."     The Platinum Knight was back.