The War in Heaven

by voroshilov

XVIII. Ablazed Glory

"I took the liberty of providing you with transport," Nicholas said through Rarity's communicator, attached to the armoured vambrace on her left foreleg, "Imperial Overwatch have already been informed of your arrival. Try not to get too close to the locals, they have been known for violent disruption."

Their transport was a ship unlike any they had seen before. It was sleek, like a chrome needle, twice the length of a dropship and with enough room for the two of them. The inside was cosy, unlike the utilitarian grey of the dropships, it had carpet, comfortable chairs, a control terminal implanted into the wall, whose light could be deactivated at any time. There was enough room heightwise for Luna plus another two feet, with more than enough for Rarity. The fashionista pony found herself marvelling at the carpet, which was of an exotic design she had not seen before and felt wonderful on her soles, whose armoured coverings she had removed to savour the feeling.

They had been within for thirty minutes, sitting for most of it, when the terminal flashed up with a picture of their destination, telling them they had arrived. Rarity was somewhat surprised at how quick the journey had been, only slightly unhappy that she did not get to enjoy the comfort of the needle ship for long. Luna, however, had looked at the screen like it had told her she was actually a newt, before worryingly lighting her horn.

She sighed contentedly after a few seconds. "Why didn't I feel us enter the Rift?" She wondered aloud, "I usually can."

Rarity shrugged. "Maybe the ship's well insulated?"

Before Luna could think on it too hard, a transmission came through, sounding silky smooth over the ship's speakers, "this is the Imperial New Horizons Overwatch station, identify yourself."

She tapped a single button on the terminal's side, sending their full identification to the Overwatch. It took all of five seconds for the station to confirm their credentials. "Affirmative, please move to dock 1, we'll have a transport to the surface ready for you."

Luna pressed another button, which targeted the ship to glide silently to the dock, where a platoon of Fusiliers were waiting for the pair. At their head was a uniformed officer, silver epaulettes and a red lanyard marking him as a Captain, he saluted the pair, before walking them further into the surprisingly quiet station.

"Emperor Nicholas had told us to expect you," he said as they walked, "so we took the liberty of preparing a transport and escort to the surface. I'm sure he informed you of the hostility some of the residents of the planet have, but if you keep at a distance they shouldn't be any harm. If you need anything, send out a call on your communicator and we'll give you priority."

"Where are the rest of your soldiers?" Luna asked, "I was under the impression there was a larger garrison force."

All of the hallways were empty save the two ponies and their platoon of guards. No ships moved in and out of the docking ports and no messages blared over tannoys. Everything was eerily quiet and empty.

"Most are on the surface," he said, "we only have a battalion stationed here. Used to have upwards of three divisions, Rangers and all, now they've been called off elsewhere and it's just a skeleton crew to care for the whole system. Believe me, I don't like it, but if those soldiers weren't desperately needed elsewhere, Emperor Nicholas wouldn't have ordered it, so I'm not one to complain."

"Wait," Rarity said, confused, "three divisions? I'm under the impression that's quite a lot."

The Captain chuckled. "I thought so too when I was first transferred here. There were about two hundred settlers at the time, so I thought why the hell would we need nearly thirty thousand troops to garrison this system? We're parsecs from any hot zones and we're so deep in the core if we needed any sort of assistance a WarFleet could be here in an hour. Top it all off, a rebellion occurred, about half of the settlers declaring themselves independent from the Empire. Whole thing lasted about an hour, Rangers deployed in about half an hour after the initial declaration and the rebel leaders were all gone by the end of the hour. So, when the second wave of settlers arrived, I didn't think much of it. Any rebellious sentiment would quickly disappear when the first wave told them about what happened when they tried it, so, command rotated most of the units out, only our battalion remaining behind. Then, another rebellion, about four thousand in all, or about four fifths of the second wave, none of the first you'd be unsurprised to know."

Luna and Rarity passed a look between them - rebellion meant bad news, especially when it came to Emperor Nicholas.

He paused as they walked, shaking his head. "When it started, I thought, ah, easy, we'll just drop pod in and sort them all out. We launch a platoon in by drop pod, thinking they'll secure a landing zone and give us a better idea of the enemy forces," he paused for a moment, before continuing, "three of five drop pods are down before they hit the ground, ten soldiers are living on the ground, number decreases to seven after ten seconds, they leg it into the woods and hide for a whole day, we don't know how many rebels are after them, and we can't help them because the bastard who shot down our pods is also filling the whole sky with flak, if we sent in more pods they'd be ripped to shreds the moment they broke atmosphere, if we sent in dropships they'd be torn up and our stocks were limited as it were."

The captain chuckled, more in self-deprecation. "So, we squawk for help, thinking we'll get a Fleet in or something and we'll fight a protracted ground war. Won't be easy but we'll win in the end. No. Instead, we get a message back five minutes later, it's the Emperor, and he's coming here, right now, with three cruisers and six divisions. Three hours later he arrives, tells us to deploy our troops around the largest settlement. Now, forgive me for saying it, and I meant no offence, but my honest thoughts were: what, is he insane? We told him how our pods got shredded, now he wants us to run at the source of the gunfire? No way. Then, we take a closer look: the whole settlement's surrounded by a purple shield dome. Protecting them from us, sure, but also protecting us from them. So we deploy all our troops, and Nicholas deploys his, we've got some sixty thousand troops surrounding this town of about 4500, so we've got the numbers advantage. I see the Emperor, and ask him what we're going to do about the shield, because none of our guys can get through it. He looks at me and says: 'I will drop the shield, the moment I do, I want you to attack, full force. Try not to kill unnecessarily, but do not hesitate to do so. Once the settlement is clear, evacuate the survivors and burn it to the ground, leave nothing standing'," he did his best impression of Emperor Nicholas, which was surprisingly accurate, all things considered.

"So I nod and leave, honestly not wanting to know what he'll do to open it, we've all heard the stories after all. But no, no weird freaky ritual or magick, just punches it so hard it vanishes. Everyone just stood there, even the rebels inside, nobody knew what the hell had just happened. We're lucky one of our guys was a veteran, said something about a campaign on somewhere called 'Cradle' later on, just opens up with his autocannon, forcing the rebels to duck down so our guys can stun them and move them back. Whole thing's sorted in three minutes, the town's clear and everyone's happy, except the rebels obviously. Only place left to take is this fort-like structure on a hill, so I gather up a party and we make ready to move in. Emperor Nicholas steps in front and he just says 'no, leave it to me'. Believe me, I was more than happy to give the order for everyone to move away because I did not want to know what he was going to do in there. Whatever he did, it was quick, comes out five minutes later, no survivors with him."

The Captain shuddered a little. "There's a lot of reasons he's the Emperor, but that one stuck with me. Anyway, we're here."

The walk had been long, surprisingly long considering it was a relatively small station. "Wy was that walk so long?" Luna asked, before mentally cursing herself for causing the Captain to speak again, as well as hoping he wouldn't write her an essay about this.

"Only got two dropships not in maintenance," he said, pointing to the two dropships in the small hangar bay, "there's troops already waiting."

Luna nodded, surprised he had been so curt, before pulling Rarity to the waiting transport, content in the Captain not speaking again, even if the story was interesting.

Rarity, meanwhile, had been almost shocked that ponies of all creatures would rebel against the Empire, especially in such a brutish manner. Surely if a pony had any sort of problem with the Empire they could sort it with words? And not only one rebellion, but two! Honestly, she thought, why not just try and talk like civilised creatures? Ponies were better than random violence!

Their provided dropship contained two squads of Fusiliers, who all just sat and ignored them as they sat down. There was no report from the pilot or speech from a Sergeant as the dropships lifted off, descending down to the planet and unceremoniously dropping them off at the edge of a small settlement, ringed by hills.

Five squads in total left the pair of dropships, ringing Luna and Rarity and walking with them, shielding them from view of most of the inhabitants. A Leftenant emerged from the group. "The mayor of this town should know where you need to go. She's not hostile, a bit weird, but not dangerous. Some of the townsfolk might try and attack you though, just don't go talking to anybody you don't know. I can show you the way to the town hall whenever you're ready."

The pair of ponies nodded, with the Leftenant gesturing towards town. As the group approached town, ponies began to appear just beyond the wall of Fusiliers. There were only a few at first, the odd scattered adult watching them with worried eyes. Luna ducked down slightly, hiding behind the Fusiliers, whilst Rarity held her head high, entirely unconcerned by the gaze of the onlookers. The closer they got, the more ponies arrived, watching on from the road or from the windows of their houses. When the Fusiliers came within 10 metres, they parted, keeping their distance, close enough to see closely but far enough as to not provoke anything.

When the Fusiliers' boots transferred to the asphalt, they paused for a moment, before beginning a thunderous march, their footsteps echoing and drawing even more eyes, though at more of a distance. Eventually, it seemed as though the entire town was out to watch, with everyone from adults to foals barely a year old staring on. When they came to the town square, the group was stopped by a road block of ponies, with a wizened beige mare at the head, three ponies who looked like adolescents with her.

The Leftenant stepped forwards from the group. "Mayor Mare," he said, "the Emperor sends a messenger."

Mayor Mare had a small, but kindly smile on her face. "My ears are open," she said, "may they come forth?"

The Leftenant paused a moment, before nodding, gesturing up Luna and Rarity. The front rank of Fusiliers broke, letting them pass, before reforming again in perfect step. Mayor Mare's eyes widened slightly. "Oh my," she muttered, "Rarity? Is that you?"

One of the adolescents behind her stepped forwards, "Rarity?" Her voice faltered slightly.

"Sweetie Belle!" Rarity rushed towards her little sister, sweeping her up in a hug. "You're here? Oh dear." She remembered back to what the Captain had told her on the station, lowering her voice to a whisper, she said, "you didn't rebel, did you? I would hate for my little sister to be caught up in such, such," she stuttered, looking for the word that wasn't a curse, "barbarism."

Sweetie Belle's eyes looked dead and she shook her head, quite clearly hiding something, which Rarity instantly found out. She stood up, traipsed over to the Leftenant, looked him dead in the eye and yelled, "if," she strained every syllable, "my sister was or is harmed in any way, you can expect far worse than just a discharge, that goes for every single one of you."

The faceless soldiers stood silent, like statues, but Rarity knew they had got the message. If they hadn't? Then, she would give it to them physically.

She turned, walked back to her sister and swept her up again. "Oh, Sweetie Belle, I'm so happy to see you!"

"We bear an order from the Emperor," Luna said, "we seek a pony called Ablazed Glory, may you show us to her?"

Everypony's jaws dropped, with Mayor Mare turning white and recoiling slightly. "Is she insane," one of the ponies asked aloud, with others expressing similar sentiment.

Mayor Mare's jaw trembled. "Oh," she said, quietly, "oh my, oh my. Oh dear, oh my, oh dear."

"Well," the Leftenant said, "can you? Or not?"

She chuckled worriedly. "Anypony," she said, "anypony else. Anypony on the whole planet, just not her, not her."

The previously background mutterings rose to a head, to full on yelling. It sounded like a riot was about to begin.

"Quiet," the Leftenant yelled, "all of you, silence!"

Before he could speak further, Luna came further forwards. "Why not? What do you have to fear of her?"

Mayor Mare laughed in her face. "I don't fear for myself," she said, "I fear for you."

"And why is that?"

Mayor Mare stopped laughing, her face and tone becoming deadly serious. "Because she will kill you," she said, "she will kill you painfully. Anypony could take you to her, there is no problem finding her, the problem comes the moment you enter the gates."

Scootaloo, or somepony who looked identical to Scootaloo, spoke up, "we can take them."

Luna looked to her, rising up above Mayor Mare, "you will take us?"

Scootaloo's eyes were oddly dead, her voice blank and expressionless, it was like all the flair she had once had had been taken. "You wish to meet with Ablazed Glory? You do so through us."

"And who might you be?"

"I'm Scootaloo. And we're the Guardians," she said, "Guardians of what? Guardians of whatever reason you seek out Ablazed Glory. We stick it up on a notice board outside of the town hall, there all ponies can read it and your reason won't be forgotten, though you will."

Luna chuckled. "You'll be disappointed then, I'm afraid," she said, before putting on the Royal Canterlot Voice and arising over everypony's heads, "I am Luna, Night bringer, when I lived a thousand years ago, all of Equestria was wreathed in Night, I bring forth the Darkness as herald of The Eternal Emperor, Nicholas The Everlasting. His word is law across the Omniverse and I am but one arm of his justice," she lowered her voice again, "we will not die or be forgotten. Lead, we shall follow."

The three Guardians: Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle and Applebloom, led them beyond the boundaries of the town and up a winding path to the top of the hills that surrounded it. The ponies and Fusiliers all watched as they left, with Mayor Mare lamenting the death of Rarity before it had even happened. Luna had explicitly ordered the platoon of soldiers not to follow, not least because it might anger Rarity.

To her credit, Rarity was surprisingly calm about seeing her sister in such an odd state. If Rarity was anything like Luna, however, who was thinking hard about why the Guardians seemed so dead inside, she was likely only calm without. Luna assumed Sweetie Belle was Rarity's sister anyways, her sense for such a thing had never been honed as much as her others but she could tell relation when she saw it.

Scootaloo was the only one who spoke, as well as the only one who actually introduced herself, with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle both being introduced by Rarity. "I remember when Emperor Nicholas came," she said, "everyone does, though no one speaks about it."

"Why do they not?" Luna asked, though she believed she already knew the answer.

"He was the one who burned Equestria," she said, "then he burned New Equestria. There is a reason the town isn't named, ponies think Equestria might be cursed, or something." She chuckled drily. "It probably is."

"Don't you believe he had reason to do so?"

She shrugged, "probably did. Doesn't change anything. I don't care how good his reason is, he killed millions of ponies. He killed a whole planet. Then repeated it with a little town, they couldn't even fight him. His soldiers? Maybe one or two might have died, but him? Not a chance. It's no surprise the Crystals fled to their little castle, they thought they could just shut the gate on him. We both know how that story ends."

"The Crystals? What are they?"

Scootaloo chuckled again, still as dead as before. "Who were they, you mean. They were a family, from old Equestria, used to rule over some place in the mountains, the Crystal Empire I think they called it. Then a real Empire arrived and burned it all away. They and their infant daughter were evacuated, ended up here, they led a rebellion, Nicholas killed them."

"Do you believe they deserved it?" Luna continued her probing questions, mostly out of pure curiosity.

Scootaloo shrugged again. "Hell if I know. If they didn't, maybe they wouldn't be dead. Or maybe they would anyway. Maybe, it was just fate."

"How did you come to be the Guardians?"

Scootaloo didn't answer, instead pointing to a field of ash and blackened ground ahead. On a small hillock at its far edge stood a small, stone fort, intact but scorched like the surroundings. "There," she said, pointing with a hoof, "Ablazed Glory is in there. We're leaving."

Rarity barely had the chance to say goodbye to Sweetie Belle, before the three Guardians disappeared over the crest of the hill they had just climbed. "This must be the town the Captain was talking about," she said, observing the thoroughness of the burning, "that fort must be the one Nicholas went into. The one with the Crystals." Rarity knew who the Crystals were, though found that she felt no remorse or horror hearing of their death, just a resigned acceptance and an understanding that it was worth it in the long run, which would have horrified her of a year ago.

"New Equestria," Luna muttered, "ended just like the old."

They passed slowly through the ashen remains of the city, not out of respect, but out of a worrying sense they were being watched, like they had just crossed into someone else's domain. The largest structure left in town - aside from the fort - was a piece of wall about three inches high, so devastating had been the destruction the Empire had wrought upon it. Though, Rarity knew full well that New Equestria had gotten off lightly, far worse could have been done.

As they ascended the hill up to the fort, the sense they were being watched became heavier. Luna was, in fact, certain they were, her mind having been honed to detect these kinds of things. There was someone, close by, watching them intently, though she didn't quite know where, because there was something else watching them too, something all around them. The fort's door was closed, guarded by a single sentry.

"Rarity?" Spike the dragon emerged from a divet in the wall, "is that you?"

"Spike?" Rarity questioned, "but, I thought you were with Penumbra?"

"Who?"

"Twilight's new name," she elaborated, "Penumbra. Why, how are you here?"

Spike looked confused. "I've always been here, well, apart from the time when I didn't know here existed. Other than that, I've always been here."

Rarity was almost ashamed in herself, she had spent the entire time not knowing they had left Spike behind. She could have sworn she had seen him with Penumbra at some point, but when she tried to think back to an exact image, she couldn't.

She rubbed the back of her head with an armoured hoof. "Sorry, Spike," she said, awkwardly, "we hadn't noticed."

Spike shrugged. "Eh, what can you do. I don't mind it here, it's quite nice. I get a lot of gems to eat, weather's always good, and I always have company." He cracked a big smile, one which Luna knew instantly was fake.

Fortunately, before Rarity could question the little dragon further, a voice drifted through the wind. "Spike," it said, "let them enter."

Spike laughed. "Whoops," he said, "sorry, almost forgot to unlock the door for you.” He jumped up to where a very crude lock stood in the wooden door - how it had not been burnt to a crisp was unknown - placing a key within and turning it using his whole body as gravity pulled him back down. "There you go," he chirruped happily, "she's ready for you."

They crossed the threshold of the door, with it immediately slamming shut behind them and wreathing them in total darkness. Luna, being Princess of the Night, had no problems seeing in the dark and Rarity had brought a torch. Together, they made their way further within the surprisingly empty entrance hall. There were splotches on the ground where clearly something had once stood, though whatever it was it was now gone. The room was completely barren, not even wallpaper or a carpet, let alone something useful like a light of any kind.

"Ablazed," Rarity said, chuckling to herself, "yet not a candle to be found."

As if on cue, a massive orange light appeared at the end of the hall, lighting up most of the hall. Rarity shrugged. "Well, at least she listens."

Luna knew exactly that Ablazed Glory, or someone, anyway, was listening to them. There was a strong presence nearby for sure, not one like Spike, one far bigger. "Ablazed Glory," she called out, "we come with a message from Emperor Nicholas."

The wind that had brought the voice to Spike rose again, apparently not coming from outside. "Yes," it said, "I am sure you do. Come, further in."

Had Luna not been Luna, she would have been almost worried by the ominous tone of that instruction. Luna, however, was Luna, as far as Luna knew, anyway. Rarity - who was not Luna - didn't seem worried either, she seemed courageous, glad to prosecute Emperor Nicholas' mission to the finish.

They crossed the threshold into the next room, which seemed more in keeping with the former home of a royal family. The floor was made up of a fancy rug or polished wood, with the rooms lined with various gold framed paintings of something and various wooden silverware cabinets, because every royal household always seemed to have far too much silverware to ever feasibly use, unless they threw it all away after the first use. Luna had found out such when she had conquered Canterlot, that or her sister had something for silverware.

The chandelier that hung from the ceiling provided no light, probably because someone had forgotten to replace all of the candles, which had long since burned away. Instead, the light seemed to be coming from the next room, or perhaps the room beyond that.

Crossing again the threshold, they found a room almost exactly identical to the last one, except someone had set it all on fire. Everything was ash: the rug, the polished wood floor, the paintings of something, the silverware cabinets and somehow the silverware as well.

"Honestly," Luna thought aloud, "I prefer this."

She swore she heard the wind chuckle at that, but put it down to either her hearing things or Rarity.

They reached the final door, certain that the orange light was coming from just beyond it. The door was heavy, made out of the same seemingly invincible wood as the entrance to the foot, which, on closer inspection, wasn't wood but metal painted to look like wood. It was badly scorched and its two circular handles were covered in a crust of ash. Luna pulled them open, the handles cracking within her magic, though not falling apart as she had anticipated.

She was met with a pony who couldn't have been anyone other than Ablazed Glory.

She was a corrupted alicorn, standing at seven feet tall - so shorter than Luna - with a slightly curved horn of two feet long. Her wings, outstretched, keeping her hovering in place, were feathered like Penumbra's, though shorter at only twelve feet wingspan. Her eyes did not have a visible pupil, rather a thin ring of scarlet surrounding a centre point, with both that and the sclera beyond the ring of identical colour. What set her apart from Luna and Penumbra, however, was the fact she was completely on fire. Whatever fur colour she had - if she even had fur - was completely covered by the constant fire. Her wings' feathers, somehow still staying on, were burning. Her mane was like a candle flame, flowing from her head like Luna's and coloured in a gradient from deep red to yellow. Even her eyes, save the ring of scarlet, were on fire, though their colour could partially be ascertained as the flames were smaller. The alicorn opened her mouth, revealing a mouth that was on fire, with a metre long, serpent-like tongue similarly on fire, with rows of serrated, burning, daggers of teeth.

"I," she said, voice echoing and apparently carried on the wind, "am Ablazed Glory."

Both Luna and Rarity stared, unable to comprehend how she could even function. Whilst Rarity looked on in horror and confusion, Luna thought about her insides: was she on fire within as well?

"Erm," Luna started, "we bring a message, from Emperor Nicholas."

Ablazed Glory laughed, causing small jets of flame to shoot from her mouth and nostrils. "Do you, now?"

Luna nodded. "He says: your Emperor's plan begins, and you will provide fuel for its fire."

Ablazed Glory was silent, save the constant sound of fire crackling and burning. "It begins?"

"Yes," Luna replied, "yes, it does."

"When he first told me," she said, "I didn't think the day would ever come. Soon is subjective after all, a millennia is soon for him. Truly, this is a day of rejoicing!"

She floated forwards, carried by a mixture of heat and her wings. Whilst Luna minded the heat, Rarity was endangered by it, she wheezed something, unable to speak, prompting Luna to pull her back with her magic. 

"She is not like us," Luna said, "she cannot survive the heat."

Ablazed Glory nodded, "I will remain away," she said, "your friend will be better when we are outside anyway."

Sure enough, she was, the fresh, cooler air, as well as the vastness of the outside preventing her being trapped in an oven again. Ablazed Glory ordered Spike to follow, which the little dragon did obediently.

"I will take him to the town," she said to Luna, "he will be safe there, I am sure."

They walked along in relative silence, before Rarity spoke up, "may I ask." She drew the eye of Ablazed Glory. "When did you come here?"

Ablazed Glory chuckled, or, more accurately, the wind chuckled for her. "Some time ago," she said, "I do not remember exactly when. I was young."

"You do not seem young, no offence meant, of course."

"I am not," she said, "I arrived as a little one."

Rarity pondered for a moment. "But, this colony is not very old. Ponies had never left Equestria before a few months ago."

Ablazed Glory shrugged, which her floating allowed her to do without compromising her speed. "Time is not constant," she said, cryptically, before the group fell to silence again, the town slowly coming into view.

They heard the startled cry of the first pony to see them from a mile away. A group, made up of everyone in town, assembled at the town's edge, watching as the three ponies and one dragon arrived. Mayor Mare's jaw had dropped, looking somewhere between having seen a ghost and just received the biggest surprise in living history. The group parted as they got close, forced to do so by Ablazed Glory's intense heat. Only three ponies didn't part, three adolescents, the Guardians.

All three looked utterly shocked, but Scootaloo was perhaps most of all. "I've seen a lot of ponies go in search of her and not come back," she said, "every one of them had some reason, whether it was treasure hunting or just for the thrill. You're the first to ever return." She shook her head. "Last to ever return, too, I assume."

"Indeed," Ablazed Glory said, causing the townsfolk to similarly reel and wish for more, "I present you a parting gift." She gestured Spike forwards. "He served me faithfully, even when I had not asked him to. Take care of him, I do not need to tell you why."

The Guardians took in Spike, who waved Ablazed Glory goodbye as the floating, burning alicorn, Rarity and Luna with her, left the town. Apparently, the Leftenant and his Fusiliers had already left, leaving them with no way off the planet. Or, so they thought, as the three were suddenly wreathed in a black, shifting, fluid mass. When the mass subsided again, vanishing as quickly as it had left, they were on the Eater of Worlds, on the Spires' main landing platform. Everyone save Nicholas looked at Ablazed Glory with various levels of shock, though the Emperor simply stepped forwards and, planting his sword on the ground, kneeled to look her in the eyes.

"Ablazed Glory," he said, "will you fight?"

The burning alicorn smiled. "I will, my Emperor."

It was later in the day when Penumbra came up to Emperor Nicholas, who had lounged on a freakishly oversized bench, in the shade of a tree she had no idea as to the name of - a little like a strange cross between oak and cherry blossom. The corrupted alicorn had to fly up to sit next to him, but only wished to talk anyways, she couldn't quite relax yet, not after what she had been told.

"Rarity and Luna said you killed Shining Armour and Cadance."

Nicholas, eyes closed, nodded. "I did. They rebelled."

"I know," she said, "and I understand it. Even if he was my big brother." 

She muttered something else under her breath, a line she remembered from somewhere, but didn't quite hold any meaning to her.

"And she was a friend."

She muttered another phrase, which seemed to hold some rhythm to it, but, again, the meaning was lost. 

"What I want to know," she said, "is what happened to their daughter, because I want my theory to be wrong."

"Your perception," Nicholas said, still not even opening his eyes, "is perfect, as usual. When I entered their fort, I prepared to exact vengeance. My methods are brutal, some may even say cruel, but they are not done with malice. If I have to kill three to potentially save thousands in the future, I will do it. If I had to kill them to stop any future rebellion, I would do it." He paused a moment, in what seemed like reflection.

"Oathbreaker, my weapon, I thought its only purpose, its only desire, was to kill. I have had it for millennia, and it has served me faithfully, it has drank of the blood of many enemies and grown stronger because of it. But, when I slew the two parents, Oathbreaker seemed to feel off. Its runes darkened, its power seeming to fade from its killing edge. When I went to slay the child, Oathbreaker cut her skin, only to fill it with power." He laughed.

"I had not thought my weapon would be one for poetic justice. I burned her world, burned her new home and left nothing standing, so she would burn forevermore, but she would never die, she would never fall. There would always be something standing, always something burning." He paused again, opening his eyes and lifting the sword in front of them.

"I have killed countless with this," he said, "yet they were the only ones it ever judged me for.” He laughed again. "Funny, isn't it, how the sword was the one to save her?"

"So," Penumbra muttered, "Ablazed Glory is..."

"Was," Nicholas said, "she was. She is changed now. I recognised what Oathbreaker had intended and trained her, prepared her for this day inside of my Throne World, that is why she is an adult now, time is not constant everywhere. You, Penumbra, must rest. Enjoy the pleasures of the Eater of Worlds whilst you can, for tomorrow is the day."

"The day of what?" She asked, though she knew already.

"The day the finale begins."