//------------------------------// // The Hunt Begins // Story: Heirs of Grogar // by Israel Yabuki //------------------------------// In the private dimension of the legendary Goddess, Harmony and her lover, Death, they've witnessed the terrible conflict that has befallen the cursed prince and the woman he felt had betrayed him. They didn't like how this was all turning out and feared things were only about to get worse. "It shouldn't have ended like this!" Death said, frustrated. "Why did she have to go and say all that stuff?! And the prince certainly didn't make things any better!” “This is as worse as I fear, with anger now boiling in his blood; the prince would surely turn to the darkness.” Harmony replies with worry. "That's not the only problem. If the human version of his brother doesn't straighten things out, we'll lose him, too!" Death said. "We have to alert the princess about this!" "Don't. We should try and have a little faith in the others. If things get worse, we'll alert the princess right away," Harmony said. “And… Grogar?” Death asked, with a tone that sounds like he’s itching to kill something. "Grogar's still keeping out of the mess he created. And if my hunch is right, he won't have to make a move since he can tell his plan is working in his favor," Harmony said. “And if it is correct, then that means he’ll send his servants to capture the mortal, Heat Blitz.” Death stated. Harmony then felt shocked when she realized something. "Death… Grogar said he'd keep away from Eternal, but there was nothing in the deal that said he couldn't go after Heat Blitz! I think… he's in danger." As the goddess begins to have a panic attack, the Grim Reaper himself, tries his best to console her; wrapping his hooves around her, pulling her into a caring hug. While it did not ease the thoughts in her mind, his show of caring did calm her down a little. “Don’t worry, my love. I will ensure that the mortal will be protected.” He said, The goddess turns her eyes towards his skull-like face, with confusion and curiosity. “What?” she replied. “What do you mean?” she asked him. “I believe I have been on the sidelines for far too long,” Death explained with determination in his voice. And caresses his lover’s cheeks with his skeleton hoof. “You will go and warn Celestia about what’s to come; I shall journey to the human realm, and warn the assassin and the 7 Element bearers about the danger Heat’s in.” "Death, my love… I trust you. But promise me you'll be okay and avoid any confrontation with Eternal Flames if you can," Harmony said. “I swear.” He replied. Harmony wished her beloved with a kiss on the lips before she teleported off, leaving Death to tend to his work. Back in Equestria, in the capital city of Canterlot, Celestia had returned to her leadership duties while also planning out her retirement with her sister, Luna. She was sitting on her throne, going through some important documents. Luna could tell her sister was still heartbroken about her son leaving to spend his time with Eternal. Though she still had Heat Blitz with her, he was mostly preoccupied with helping out Twilight in the School of Friendship. Celestia felt like her children were growing up way too fast. Luna and Celestia are soon interrupted with a bright glow appearing in front of them. Sure enough, they find Harmony has returned. "Harmony? What brings you back here? Is everything alright?" Celestia asks. “I’m afraid not. It's terrible news," Harmony said regretfully. "What do you mean? What's happened?" Celestia asked, growing worried. "Is it about Eternal? Did something happen to him?" “Not yet, but I'm afraid he's going through a phase, wallowing in his anger and sadness after he had a bad argument with the woman he loves… or… used to love," Harmony said calmly. "Sunset? But why? They used to get along so well when they were kids," Celestia said. “Ms. Shimmer, went too far as to uncover Eternal’s secret; however it costed the bonds of their friendship to be broken. And Grogar will seek to take advantage of Eternal’s emotions to convince him… in becoming his heir.” Harmony explained. Celestia gasped. Her heart shattered… "I… can't believe she would do that. I… I trusted her and she hurt him. How DARE she!" Celestia's mane slowly flickered out flames and her eyes were changing from purple to demonic yellow, but she was trying to keep it together. "No! NO! I can't change into that monster!" "Celestia, you must listen to me. My most trusted ally, and the love of my life is already on the move and is going to try and convince your son's friends to aid him in his hour of need," Harmony assured. Celestia's anger slowly dimmed and was able to regain control. "Your ally? Who would that be?" she asked, confused. "I will explain another time. But for now, I just came to warn you about the dangers your son might be in and if you need to take action in any way, then let me know," Harmony said. "I must go now. Good luck, princess," and thus, Harmony teleported away, leaving Celestia to think about what's become of the situation at hand. Meanwhile at the gun store, Inferno tests out his newly added arsenal by the indoor firing range in the back of the store. And he enjoyed every bit of it. Starlight was 5 feet behind him, watching as the assassin was in the zone as he was testing his new Smith & Wesson model 17-8. Just 3 days in this world and already Starlight sees a side of Inferno that she had never seen when they first met. As for the merc, he begins to feel impacted by the girl in ways he cannot explain. Everytime he was around her, he felt the need to express himself more, overstepping the boundaries of his emotionless state. He didn’t know exactly what tothink anymore, more or less, feel anymore. But as he's testing out his gear, "Inferno Blaze. Or should that be Shadow?" a voice called out in his head. The assassin paused for a long minute, trying to figure out what he had just heard. "I would like to have a word with you and your little friend behind you." Suddenly, Starlight heard the voice as well and like Inferno, she was processing about who the voice was. Inferno turns away from the firing range and looked around the room to find the source of the voice. "You must listen. There's been an accident. I'm afraid… the young prince is at risk of… being attacked after he severed the bond between him and Sunset Shimmer," Death's voice echoed before showing himself inside the gun course on the firing end. Starlight immediately jumped after the Grim Reaper had revealed himself. He took the form of a tall man, with dark hair and pale skin. He wore a black tux and in one of his hands, he carried a cane with a black metal skull knob. "Who… are you?" Starlight asked, walking a bit closer, quirking an eyebrow.  "My name is of no importance. I can only tell you this: Sunset's outbursts have broken the bond between her and Eternal. You must keep watch over him at all times, including Heat Blitz. Grogar is sure to send his minions out to take Heat Blitz," Death said. Soon Inferno’s facial expression suddenly switched from suspicion to one filled with rage, after hearing the name the man had just said. Starlight witnessed this Inferno’s change of emotions and questions what caused it. "Shadow, please tell you're not gonna do what I think you're gonna do," Starlight said, worried. “Starlight, you warn Sunset and the others about the danger to Heat’s life, I’ll go after Eternal.” Inferno said as he grabs his gear and leaves the room. "Alright, but… please be careful," Starlight said, relieved he wasn't gonna go after Sunset. Starlight quickly left the gun store and ran off to find the others. "Sunset, why couldn't you have just let it go?" she said quietly. As Starlight runs to find the others, Inferno ran the other direction, searching for Eternal. With anger now burning in his veins, for he also had his eyes on another target. ‘After all these years, you finally reveal yourself.’ he said in his mind. ‘Now I will finally have my vengeance.’ But while he's running off towards the prince, Grogar idly stood by from his castle, watching everything go down in his crystal ball. "It seems to me that a window of opportunity has come to me at last. Perhaps it's time we take action. Mages!" Grogar called out. Right away, his two most powerful mages teleport in front of him. "You called, master?" Mage #1 asked. "Yes. The time has come to take action. Release… the Drakais. And have them find the one called Heat Blitz and bring him to me," Grogar order. "As you wish, sire," Mage #2 said. The two teleported themselves into the den. There, they heard multiple growling noises coming from a certain steel door. "You all have a mission. Find the one called Heat Blitz and bring him to master Grogar." "However, avoid any contact with the one called Eternal Flames. Master has a plan set in mind for him," Mage #1 added. Waving their staffs at the steel door, they casted a double spell that unlocked the door and opened up… letting out the Drakai. The creatures stood 7ft tall, their bodies are slender, with gray skin and six dorsal spins on their backs. They had long arms and legs, wth razor sharp claws. Their heads had 3 long crests and their eyes glowed purple. They had long tails with a three-taloned claw at the end. The mages used their magic to open a portal to the human world once they were free. "Now go forth, all of you!" they said in unison. The creatures gave out a screech and charged forth in large packs, entering enemy territory before the mages sealed up the portal. Meanwhile, Twilight was at her home, texting Heat every 5 to 10 minutes to see if he was still doing alright and was always met with "yes," "I'm fine" or "just peachy." She could tell Heat was still upset and she couldn't really blame him, yet he still made an effort to try and forgive her. But then, on some occasions, Twilight received texts from Timber Spruce asking if she wanted to go out again. Twilight didn't know how to tell him no, so she just stopped answering him. Just then, she received another text, but it was from Pinkie Pie. She was informed by Starlight to tell her to meet her and the girls at Heat's house for an emergency meeting. Twilight didn't waste any time and left her house immediately. No sooner after she got out of the house, she bumped into Flash and both friends fell to the sidewalks on their rumps. "Ow! Sorry, Twilight." Flash said. "I'm fine, but, why are you in a hurry?" Twilight asked. "Sunset and Eternal got into a huge argument. I can't say how bad it got, but I gotta go look for Eternal, he's not in the right of mind," Flash said as quickly as he then both back up and ran off. "Sunset… and Eternal… argued?" Twilight asked, confused. "It couldn't have been that bad, could it?" She would be in for one serious wake-up call when she finds out how wrong she is about their argument. She walked along the path at a fast pace. As crazy as it was to hear about her friend arguing with her long-lost friend, she still had to meet with the others to check on Heat Blitz. She's not sure what the emergency was, but she can only hope it's something she and her friends can handle on their own. In mere moments, she and the other girls arrived at Heat's house along with Starlight. "I got the message, what's going on here?" Twilight asked Starlight. "You said this was an emergency, so what can we do to help?" "Twilight this is very bad news. I think Heat Blitz might be in serious danger.” Starlight said. “Today, Shadow and I were visited by a strange tall man, who warned us that Heat has now become the target of a powerful demon lord from Equestria, who’s name we never ever speak of… Grogar.” "Grogar? How bad is he? We can take him on like we busted countless other baddies!" Rainbow boasted with confidence. "But, didn't she say he's… a… a demon?" Fluttershy asked. “Not just any demon, Fluttershy. He’s what we call, the Father of Monsters; the Lord of Tartarus. Which is basically a realm which you all like to prefer as Hell.” Starlight explained. "Sounds like he's big trouble. But why would he want to come after Heat Blitz? He looks like he wouldn't harm a fly," Applejack asked. “I don’t know, the man never told me or Shadow why?” Starlight replied. "If Heat Blitz is that important to Grogar to want to capture him, then we'd better keep a close watch on him this time. We can only hope that--" Twilight's then cut off by the sound of another voice she hoped not to hear for a while. "Twilight, hey!" shouted a male voice. Twilight turned to see Timber Spruce showing up just as Heat came out of his house when he heard the commotion. "What's going on, I thought we were gonna have smoothies." Heat looked with heartache, feeling his heart cracking even more, almost about to turn to dust and the color in his eyes slowly faded. "Heat, wait! This isn't what it--" Twilight said, "I'm getting back to work," Heat simply said. He went back inside and closed the door, but didn't slam it shut. "Twilight, what's going on?" Timber asked, oblivious to the conflict. "Timber, I… I don't think I can see you anymore. I mean, you're a nice guy, but I've got someone else I need to look out for. In fact, he needs me more than ever," Twilight said. "Y-You don't mean…" Timber asked, catching on. "I'm sorry, but… I'm breaking up with you," Twilight said. "What?!" Timber asked, shocked. "Oh, come on! What about all the memories we made?" He reached in his pocket and took out his phone and showed Twilight all the photos they took some time after their trip to Camp Everfree. "You'll still have those, but we're still done. I have more important matters now." Twilight said. "Twilight, are you sure about this, darling?" Rarity asked. "For the first time, I am," Twilight said. "What? Oh come on! We had it good, Twilight!" Timber persisted, until… "Wait a sec, it's that boy you ran into some time ago, isn't it?" his demeanor quickly changed from desperate to pissed off in a matter of seconds. As Timber marched up to Heat's front door. "Timber, you better not try anything with him! He's a really nice guy and he needs me more than you think!" Twilight intervened, getting in front of her ex. "Twilight, rest assured, I'm not gonna rough him up," Timber said, still tense 'Or I won't rough him up much,' he thought to himself. But when he reached halfway, there was a loud rumble from inside the house, followed by a scream of terror. "What do you want from me? No! STOP! GET AWAY!!!" Heat's voice muffled from inside. Twilight and the others heard what also sounded like screeching. "STOP! STOP IT!!!" *BOOM* The front door quickly gets blown open and the girls see what looks like some sort of demonic creature with Heat Blitz in its razor-sharp claws. Heat Blitz' clothes were shredded and had some scratches on his face. He had his hands against the monster's jaw as if he thought it was trying to eat him. "HEAT BLITZ!" Twilight exclaimed. But soon after she screamed, 4 more creatures bursted into the room; with identical traits like the one that is holding Heat hostage. They all screeched out with a roar that was nothing like any man or animal that is heard of. "Get your claws OFF OF HIM!!!" Twilight snapped. Tapping into the power of her geode to the fullest, the lavender bookworm ponied up and separated Heat Blitz from the monster and slammed the creature onto the pavement using her telekinesis. She also used her magic to put Heat down safely. "Wha-- What gives?! What's going on here?" Heat asked, scared out of his wits. "Just find a safe place to hide, we'll handle this thing!" Twilight ordered. “Darn tootin’” Applejack replied in agreement, just as another one of the creatures immediately jumped at her. But before it could pounce her, Applejack tapped into the power of her geode and the reels back a kick; which sent the creature back and crashing down 10 feet away. "Follow me!" Starlight said to Heat, grabbing his hand. "It's not safe here!" "Wait, what about the girls?" Heat asked, concerned. "They'll take care of those things. But they’re here because they’re after you. If you get caught in the crossfires, you'll just end up getting in the way! Now come on!" Starlight persisted, but Heat yanked away. "No! Not yet! I gotta grab something!" Heat said before running back in the house and into his room, or what's left of it. "Heat Blitz!" Starlight called out, but then the creature screeched again, tackling Starlight into the ground with its maw open up. "Hey, fish breath!" Rainbow called out before sucker punching the one of the demonic creatures at high speeds. The demon slammed against a wall. "Oh yeah! How do you like tha--" the air-headed athlete is then tackled by another one of the creatures. 3 more of the creatures take the liberty of ambushing the girls. Pinkie Pie, quickly gathered up a handful of sprinkles from her pockets and tossed them at one of the creatures, which caused the sprinkles to explode upon impact, agitating the monster. But before the creature could charge at the pink party girl, it doesn’t pay attention to the farmer girl-who it had pinned down-who took the open opportunity and taps into her magic and then kicks the creature off of her; with tremendous force. Which sent it flying towards a lightpost of the streets of the neighborhood. The impact caused the pole bent all the way and sent it falling on top of the creature, inflicting serious injury towards the demon. It roared with agonizing pain and was unable to move it’s crippled body. As for Timber, he sat himself up, rubbing his head after receiving a door to the face. "Ugh, did someone get the license number of that truck that hit me?" he asked. But right away, one of the remaining demons stepped in front of him, blanketing him in their shadow. Timber slowly looked up wide-eyed. He stared in the face of danger and what was his response? "Uh… hi there." he waved timidly. The creature roared, thus making Timber wet his pants and scream in fear, bolting out of there. And who was he to hide behind? None other than his ex-girlfriend, Twilight. "Timber, get out of here!" Twilight ordered. "But please! You've got to save me!" Timber cried out. 'Did I seriously fall for the same guy in Camp Everfree?' she asked in her thoughts. 'Heat, I owe you a lot of apologies for this great big mistake.' But apologies would have to wait. The monster she was fighting grabbed Twilight and slid her against the grass. Its hands and feet pinned her arms and legs, rendering her vulnerable. She stares into the eyes of the creature that’s about to end her life swiftly, as its mouth slowly opened widely; revealing rows of razor sharp teeth, ready to tear into her. "No! It can't end like this! Not now!" Twilight said, powerless to stop the monster. Tears ran down her face as her life flashed before her eyes. "Heat Blitz… everyone… I… I'm sorry." "HEY, OVER HERE, YOU STUPID TWAT!!!" Heat's voice called out. Twilight and the demon turned to the young boy and had a strange glove on which was glowing bright turquoise blue. "Let go of my friend, right now! I'm the one you want!" "Heat! No! Don't do it! These things might kill you! I'll be fine, just run!" Twilight urged. "No… I won't run away. NOT THIS TIME!!!" Heat said, brimming with rage. He ran straight for the creature, screaming his battle cry and upon placing his gloved palm against the creature's chest, he sent out a strong shock wave that blasted it away, loosening its grip on Twilight and lands 30 feet away. However, the glove quickly stopped glowing after that one shot. Heat's adrenaline slowly died down and looked over to Twilight, extending his hand out. "Did that monster hurt you?" Heat asked, keeping his calm. "Y-Yeah… I am now, thanks to you. But… what was that thing you shot out of that glove?" Twilight asked. "I'll explain later, but right now, we gotta get outta here," Heat said. He pointed out the 3 remaining monsters. They growled and closed in on the group, surrounding the girls in a circle and snapping their jaws at them. They were surrounded on all sides, no way to escape. Heat then got a little reckless and tried to use the same trick as last time. However, when his gloved hand touched one of the creatures, it short-circuited and fizzled out. "Uh… what was that supposed to do, tickle it?" Rainbow asked,  "Damn it! My glove is out of power! Without a proper power source, I can't shoot out multiple shock waves!" Heat said before the monster back-clawwed him away from it, making him hit the ground hard. "OOF!!!" He quickly got back up and stared into the eyes of his foes, not knowing what to do. The girls couldn't get out of this pickle and Heat could only see one way out of this. Stepping forth, Heat confronted the monsters with his arms out wide. "Heat, no!" Twilight said. "You win! I'll come quietly. Don't hurt them and I'll let you take me prisoner.” The creatures halted their movement, confused by Heat’s answer. The creatures looked at each other, sending small chittering noises towards each other as if they were communicating. Soon the creatures turn towards the young boy, with the one in the middle walking towards him; about to grab him. As the creature was just 2 feet away from Heat, a gunshot was heard and the creature’s head suddenly burst into pieces, with its blood splattering over the grass, and it’s corpse collapsed to the ground. The two remaining creatures turned their focus from Heat and looked towards the killer of their companion; which revealed to be the Shadow Knight himself–with a Winchester M1887 in his hands. “Did you guys miss me?” he said with a sly tone. The girls didn’t know if he was referring to them or the creatures in front of them. The two demons roared in anger at the legendary mercenary and then rushed toward him with killing intentions. However, they were slow on their charge as Inferno/Shadow reloads his shotgun and fires at the charging creatures. The first shot blew a big hole into the first charging demon’s chest, killing it instantly; while the other two shots, caused carnage into the 2nd demon’s abdomen and blew open it’s head. The corpses then fell towards both sides of the assassin, missing him as they impacted the ground. Before he could take pride in his kills, Inferno suddenly picks up a smell of burnt meat and then turns around to see another one of the creatures lying dead on the ground, across the street, burnt all over its body. The assassin becomes puzzled by this and then turns towards the group of friends and Heat. “What did you guys do before I showed up?” He asked in confusion while pointing towards the burnt corpse behind him. "We tried to get Heat to safety, then all of a sudden ol' pissy pants here, or should I say "Pissed-in-Pants" here tried to come after Heat. That's when these weird monsters showed up." Rainbow said gesturing to Timber and the monsters. “Shadow, how did you know we were in trouble.” Starlight asked. “I was in the neighborhood, saw your little tussel, and I thought I could be of service.” Shadow replied before looking at Timber's wet spot. "I, uh… I'm gonna just go now," Timber said before running with his tail between his legs. "Shadow, you made it just in time! You're not gonna believe this, but Heat Blitz actually saved Twilight from one of those monsters," Starlight said. The assassin arched his eyebrows in confusion. “Did he now?” he replied as he looked towards the mentioned boy. “So does that mean he was the one who turned that Drakai over there into a burnt steak?” He asked as he pointed towards the burnt corpse of the creature behind him. “I’m sorry, darling. But, what?” Rarity asked in confusion. “Drakai, which are the creatures that attacked you.” He stated. “Also known as the “Hellhounds of Tartarus”.” "I don't understand. Why were those things after me?" Heat asked. "Perhaps it's better if I explain," A voice echoed to the entire group. Soon, the very same tall man Starlight and Inferno/Shadow met appeared right in the middle of the street. “Sorry, I hadn’t arrive to assist you all, my humblest apologies.” He spoke out to them in a way a gentleman would say.  "Well, on the bright side, no one got--" Heat stopped himself when he saw the minor scratch marks and bruises on his body. "I mean… at least we're all still alive." "And what you did was brave, but I'm afraid there's no time to celebrate. Grogar is sure to keep coming after you and those Drakai were only the beginning," Death said. "But why is he after me?" Heat asked. "I'm just an ordinary guy." "I'm afraid I can’t tell you most of the answer you seek.” The man replied. “However, what I can tell you is that, it’s something that involves young Eternal Flames and the secrets of his past. But that’s all I can say.” He explained. "My brother?! Are you saying my brother is a target, too?!" Heat asked, panicking. “What he meant was, the counterpart of your brother.” Starlight stated. "Counterpart? What do you mean "counterpart?" Heat asked, confused. "We'll explain later. But first, were you able to find Eternal?" Starlight asked Shadow. "Unfortunately, no. I looked all over for him and couldn't find a single trace of him. He's really upset with whatever he and Sunset argued about. What the hell did she even say to him?" Shadow said. “Uhhh hello.” Fluttershy said, only to fall deaf in everyone’s ears. “I don’t know, but it caused Eternal to go missing in whatever part of town he’s in,” Starlight said. “Well, he couldn’t have gone far,” Applejack replied.” "But wait, what about Sunset? Shouldn't we get her involved?" Pinkie asked. “Ooooh No! That girls caused enough damage as it is.” Shadow replied. "If that girl knows what's good for her, she'll shut up and stay out of this mess." “Ummm excuse me. If you can listen to me for a sec-” Fluttershy tried to speak out but failed. But then, Heat noticed how she was trying to speak. "Guys, QUIET!!! I think she's trying to say something," Heat says, pointing to Fluttershy. "Thank you," she replied. "Anyways, look over there," Fluttershy said, pointing at the only surviving Drakai, still pinned under the street lamppost. The creature continued to pry itself free, but every attempt it made, inflicted more pain to it’s injuries, causing it screech in pain. "I got this," Shadow said, cocking his gun, approaching the beast. But Fluttershy’s ‘animal-caretaker’ instincts took over and then rushed over to put herself between the assassin and the injured Drakai. "No! Don't kill him! He's hurt and he needs help," Fluttershy snapped. Getting up close to the Drakai, Fluttershy kneeled down and gave the demon a warm hug, the creature tried to resist and claw at the girl; however, it soon calmed down for some reason. "There, there. No need to be afraid now. Just tell your auntie Fluttershy how she can make you feel all better." “Auntie... Fluttershy?” Shadow said in confusion. "It's one of her best traits. She's a parent to animals and her geode allows her to talk to them, but I'm not sure if it has the same effect on demons," Twilight said. As Fluttershy continued her efforts to calm the Drakai, it eventually paid off as the creature stopped its growls and began to loosen it’s tense body. Not only that, it’s purple glowing eyes suddenly glowed green, as if to show that it has finally calmed down. "She's incredible. Maybe I can convince her to get the neighbor's cat to stop clawing me every time I go for a walk," Heat said. "Seriously, cat's can be a real pain when they're in a pissy mood now and then." "I do beg your pardon, young man?" Rarity asked, gripping his shoulder, feeling offended. “YEAH! Forget the stupid cats, what we should be focusing on is what are we gonna do about this Drakai?” Shadow shouted. “Cause we can’t just keep it out in the open for anyone else to see it.” "How DARE you insult cats like that!" Rarity said, infuriated. And at long last… "QUIET!!!" Fluttershy shouted. "Look, I'll take this Drakai home with me to patch him up." “Good luck trying to carry a 500 lbs demon back to your house.” Shadow said. "She don't have to. Ah got the strength o' at least 10 bulls," AJ said. Suddenly, the Drakai growls in anger right as Applejack grew closer to Fluttershy and it. Its eyes went back to its purplish glow once again. “Fluttershy! I thought you calmed that thing?!” Twilight said. "I did, but he says he's not letting the "lady with man hands" touch him. Yes, I can understand what he's saying, but these are his words, not mine," Fluttershy said. "Lady with man hands? Just what is that supposed to mean?!" AJ snapped, offended. The demon growled again and Fluttershy gasped. "Do you kiss your mother with that mouth?" she asked, giving the creature the disappointed mother stare.  "What'd that monster say this time?" AJ asked. "OOH! OOH! Let me guess! I think he might have said "Mind yo DAMN MOTHAFUCKING BUSINESS, BITCH!" Pinkie blurted out in a semi-deep tone before squeeing and smiling. "Umm… yes," Fluttershy said. "Okay, now I like this demon," Shadow said. “Even though I hate it’s boss.” He whispered. The demon growled and Fluttershy translated. "He says "who asked you, lover boy?" “WHY YOU LIL’!” Shadow growled as he pointed his shotgun back at the demon, only for AJ and Rainbow Dash to hold him back. “LET ME AT ‘EM! LET ME AT ‘EM!” "Easy there, Scrappy-Doo. Let's just focus on getting this demon to a safe place and then we'll look for Eternal.” Rainbow said. After minutes of struggle, Shadow finally exhausted his anger and gave in. “Ughh… fine. But first.” He said, right before he used his foot to swipe Rainbow Dash on the ground before she could react and then grabbed at AJ’s arm and flipped her over, slamming her to the ground. “Never give your captive an advantage to get free.” He said as he “Ooooh, let’s give him a name!” Pinkie suggested. “Pinkie, it’s not a puppy.” Twilight replied. "If Fluttershy gave him a chance to live, he deserves a name all the same. So… how about we name him… Daris?" Pinkie suggested. "I don't mean to judge but, is she serious?" Heat asked. “Never question Pinkie, partner.” Applejack replied. "When it comes to logic, Pinkie's in a league o' her own. If logic had a law, she'd be a wanted gal." "Noted," Heat said, though he still wasn't sure if he can exactly let it go entirely. "Now back to more important matters." he turns his attention towards the Drakai. "Not so fast there, sugarcube. We still gotta get those injuries o' yers checked out. Don't wanna risk ‘em scratches infectin' ya," AJ said, grabbing his shoulder. The Drakai growled. "He says our fangs and claws aren't contagious. The boy's scratches are only minor. Our master ordered us to bring him in alive," Fluttershy translated. “Alive? Then what about Eternal?” Shadow asked.  The Drakai growled. "He says Grogar won't attack Eternal directly. But hasn't explained why." Fluttershy translated. “Wait, so your big boss won’t even tell you anything else about Eternal, and you just went along with it?” Rainbow said. The Drakai growled again. "He says "My master gives me the orders, I follow. He created me for that soul purpose. We exist only to hunt, not to question. The only time we ever questioned his orders, one of our packs suffered a slow and painful death," Fluttershy translated with tears of pity and sadness. "So you're slaves to that monster and you don't have a say in the matter because he created you all?" Heat asked. The Drakai nodded. "I… I'm sorry. I didn't know. Maybe there's a way I can help." But then, an idea occurred to him. "That's it! Wait right here, I'll be back!" Heat then made a dash for his ransacked house. “It’s not like he’s going anywhere with his injuries!” Shadow called out to Heat. In mere seconds, he came out just as quick as he went in and had another one of his gloves on and this one was at full power. "Okay, whatever's embedded in this Drakai's body, I'll rip it out so I can seal it back up," Heat said, putting his other glove on. “Is that even… safe?” Fluttershy asked as her arms hugged tightly around Daris. "If he's got anything sharp embedded deep inside him, he won't survive. This is the only way I can think of to help him without killing him." Heat persisted. "O-Okay, if you say so," Fluttershy said. Fluttershy checked Daris for any objects that might have pierced his body. Thankfully, there was only scratches and bruises. "There's no stab wounds, you're good to go." "Good. Now hold still… this may sting a little," Heat said as he placed his hand on Daris' chest. Concentrating as hard as he could, his glove emitted a bright glow. Sure enough, within a minute, a small pulsation coarsed through the demon's body. Not only were his external injuries disappearing, but the internal ones as well. His body was recuperating at a fast pace. And of course, Heat's other glove quickly lost its power and fizzled out. "Heat Blitz… I… I don't know how you did it, but you actually healed him," Fluttershy said, shocked. "I'm a scientist. A beginner scientist, but a scientist nonetheless. And these gloves… I created them with nano-technology. Of course, these were just the prototypes," Heat said, taking off his gloves and tucking them in his pockets. "Guess we've got two eggheads now, don't we?" Rainbow asked.  "Rainbow, show some respect!" Rarity scolded. "Okay, so now that Daris is healed, let's take him home with us!" Pinkie said happily. "Pinkie, not to sound rude, but is your mind made out of cotton candy?" Heat questioned. "No, that's the kind of shampoo I use for my hair. You likey?" Pinkie asked, brushing her hair with the back of her hands. "It, uhh… definitely suits you," Heat says. Rising back up to his feet, Daris growls at Fluttershy. She nods. "Girls, I'm going to take Daris back to my place where he can lay low. And Heat Blitz… thank you," she said before heading off with the demon. "Good luck," Heat said. "Heat Blitz," Twilight spoke up. Heat looked back at his friend. "Listen… I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings back then. I owe you a very big explanation and an apology for not telling you over these past years." "We can discuss it later, Twilight. I know you're sorry, but now's not the time to let guilt get in our way if that Grogar monster's gonna come after me again," Heat said. "And another thing, we've also gotta find Eternal. Now that Heat's with us, we should take him somewhere safe until we've handled the damage done here," Shadow said, gesturing to his damaged house. "I'll ask my parents if he can stay with me. It's only fair," Twilight said. "Right. We'll keep a look-out for Eternal Flames in the meantime. Let's all split up so we can cover more ground," Starlight said. The girls, Shadow and Heat all agreed and split up while Twilight took Heat to her home. Meanwhile, in the busiest part of the city, the heartbroken prince overlooked the city from atop a building, his stare cold as ice. Colder than black ice even. With his ex-friend now out of his life, he had no other reason to stick around, except for the intense crime that plagued this city. "Mother… I was a fool to pursue her. I see no other purpose to pursue her any longer," Eternal talked to himself. He soon picked up the sound of an alarm blaring at a nearby jewelry store. "And now… I'm going to eradicate these vermin." he said before leaping off the building, unleashing his demon powers. "HEY! STOP THAT GUY!!!" the jeweler shouted. "Catch me if you can, bastard!" the thief called out all smug. His crime was then brought to a halt when Eternal slammed to the ground, leaving a small crater, making the thief jump back in shock and fear. The man couldn't see Eternal's face due to his hoodie and his long red hair. All he was were his blood red eyes. "Tch, you think I'm afraid of y--" The thief is then cut off by Eternal grabbing his leg, slamming him to the ground the first three times, then checked to see if he was feeling mouthy still. The thief was about to crack another remark, but Eternal slammed him to more times and left him in the crater, traumatized and bleeding from the heavy blows. Eternal grabbed the bag of jewels from the thief and walked away, looking back at the immobilized thug. "Puny thug," Eternal said in his distorted demonic voice. Eternal returned to the jeweler and handed him the bag of jewels. "You can call the cops now." And with that, Eternal ran off, leaving the owner speechless. "Who was that boy?" he asked himself.