//------------------------------// // Battle for the Crystal Heart Part II // Story: All Hail, Midnight Sparkle! // by MisterEdd //------------------------------// Celestia evaded Midnight's energy bolts and teleported the Crystal Heart over to Luna, diving towards her opponent and releasing some blasts of her own. A wall of cyan blue projected up around Midnight, stopping the blasts in place and redirecting them back at their caster. Celestia was more than ready, deflecting two of the ricocheting blasts and dodging the last, corkscrewing gracefully through the air to evade Midnight's onslaught. The dark alicorn spread her wings and gave a flap hard enough to fracture the ground beneath her, rocketing up to meet Celestia with a hateful fire burning behind her glowing eyes. Familial ties meant nothing; they were simply and purely enemies. Magic flowed from Midnight's horn to her throat, swirling waves rippling across her larynx and taking a deep breath, she unleashed an ear-splitting shriek high enough to shatter glass. Celestia winced at the thunderous noise and clamped her hooves over her ears, finding the pitch akin to a thousand rusty nails being dragged across a thousand chalkboards. Rings of energy burst free from Midnight's open mouth, speeding towards Celestia and striking her in the chest, completely knocking the wind out of her. The collision sent her spiraling head-over-hoof like a pony-shaped arrow and smashing through a nearby tower, a last-minute shielding charm preventing every bone in her body from being ground into dust. Still, it did nothing to assuage the high-pitched, staticky ringing in Celestia's ears or the pounding migraine assaulting her poor head from that sonic-based attack and despite the pain, she had to give Midnight points for the creativity. Meanwhile, Luna was fending off attacks by Midnight, bobbing and weaving between buildings in a high-speed pursuit through the city, evading magic bolts from the infuriated mare. Here she was trying to keep her dead, previously unknown twin sister, who was forcibly inhabiting the body of one of her friends, from snatching the Crystal Heart and using it to create an army of brain-washed love-zombies. If it were any other circumstance, Luna would be scoffing at the ridiculousness of such a notion but this was far from an appropriate time for laughter. Instead, she clutched the heart tighter against her chest and turned onto her back to return fire, hoping to hit Midnight at least once in her cruel face. That happened to be that of her friend Twilight's but then again, it wasn't as though she was in a position to consider semantics. "Give me the heart, Luna! You're only making it worse on yourself!" Making it worse? How could it get any worse?! Luna ducked to avoid smacking her noggin against an outstretched sign. "Bite me!" Midnight's glare was furious enough to sour milk. Why, in the name of her ancestors, did she say that?! Before Luna could properly regret the ill-advised comeback, Celestia sped out of seemingly nowhere, a crackling, fiery corona blazing around her body. Making a sharp turn, Luna touched hoof onto terra firma and watched her sister slam into Midnight, creating an explosive surge of flame and light. She couldn't stay to watch the aftermath, not when she had a powerful relic to protect. She broke into a gallop, stopping here and there to survey the city and decide on a course of action, since she couldn't just keep the Crystal Heart with her and risk it falling into Midnight's hooves. Happening upon a confectionery shop, Luna spotted some rock candy in the window and an idea quickly took root. ~*~ Celestia soon caught sight of Midnight pursuing Luna and this got her blood boiling. She'd always considered herself a rational mare and the public knew of their Sun Monarch as a serene and even-tempered individual, the very picture of blissful grace and calmness. However, deep down, she had an explosive temper, one that only came out on rare occasions, such as in the heat of battle or, in this instance, when somepony was threatening her baby sister. Solar magic surged through Celestia's body, surrounding her in an aura of flames and kinetic energy that she'd dubbed, "the Phoenix Tackle." Rocketing through the city, Celestia charged up her attack and was granted a slice of satisfaction at seeing Midnight's bewildered expression right before the point of impact. A bubble of blue light and flames accompanied the subsequent detonation, the collision forming a titanic conflagration that rarely ever left the other opponent standing. This, in turn, created a shock-wave that tore through the air and blew out the windows of several neighboring buildings and homes, much to the distress and awe of the crystal ponies witnessing the struggle. The blaring eruption was louder than the largest dragon's roar, a sound that could be heard all throughout the Crystal Empire and by the time Celestia herself had recovered, it was over and done with. Those who bore witness to the full might of the Phoenix Tackle described it as being a lot like watching a shooting star: once you saw it, you would never forget it and you'd be forever out of luck should you miss it. In the Crystal Empire's central plaza, a sizable crater had formed, at least thirteen feet in diameter and shaped like a spoon, presumably from Midnight's impact back to earth. Celestia soared down and landed a few feet away, observing the damage that she'd unintentionally caused and thanked Faust that the damage was so minuscule than what it could've been. The last time she'd employed the Phoenix Tackle was seven-hundred-and-seventy-five years ago, during a particularly nasty disagreement with an exceptionally vicious and enormous Dragon Lord. He'd refused to stop kidnapping random ponies and serving them deep-fried so Celestia had to get tough in order to get her point across. To make a long story short, the new Dragon Lord steadily agreed that pony-eating was hereby illegal in the Dragon Lands and the arrangement was still maintained to this very day, along with Celestia's promise to only use the attack sparingly. Celestia's musings were interrupted when a hoof smashed through the rubble, followed by a groaning mare that shook dust and debris off of herself. Midnight coughed and stared gimlets at Celestia, whose jaw dropped in disbelief as the purple alicorn wretched herself out of the crater. To say that Celestia was in shock would be the understatement of the century. Not just anypony could withstand the full brunt of the Phoenix Tackle's might and yet here was one such individual. Apart from her pride, Midnight had managed to survive the explosive display of the Princess of the Sun's power relatively unscathed, though evidently very annoyed by the assault. "That hurt," Midnight scowled and flapped one wing, inspecting it for breaks. "Nice try though." Oh horseapples... "Now if you're done playing, give me the Crystal Heart." Midnight smirked then telekinetically seized a random crystal pony mare and held her up in front of her like a shield. "Do it and she lives." "Stop!" Luna appeared grasping the Crystal Heart, one hoof held out. "If I give this to you, the mare goes free." "Luna, what are you doing?!" Celestia demanded through gritted teeth. "Of course," Midnight beamed, her eyes hungrily taking in the sight of the gem. "Give it here." Giving Celestia an apologetic glance, Luna levitated the heart over to Midnight, who tossed the mare aside and took hold of the Crystal Heart in her wings with an odd sort of reverence. "Finally. At least one of you has...the common sense to..." Midnight peered closely at the heart and sniffed. "What is...?" She sniffed again. "Is that...blueberry?" A cornflower-blue flash of light clocked Midnight on the back of her head, sending the Crystal Heart spinning like a Frisbee and smashing against a newspaper kiosk. Before she could let out a confused query, Princess Cadence nailed her with another magical bolt, this time in the side while Luna delivered a beam that knocked the dark alicorn off of her hooves. Not wishing to be left out, Celestia lifted Midnight up twenty feet and smashed her against the dirt. Then again. Luna shook her head and gave the downed mare a cheeky grin. "Brittle Bright's Rock Candy. The best that the Crystal Empire has to offer." "Nicely done, sister," Celestia beamed before rushing over to Cadence's side. "Are you alright?" Cadence waved her mother off. "I'm alright. It's nothing, really." "It doesn't look like nothing. You need to see a doctor-..." A whirlwind of swirling orbs were jettisoned and pelted the three mares, slamming into them in rapid succession. Each orb delivered a stinging sensation upon contact, the feeling akin to being stung by an entire hive of flash bees. Amidst the whirlwind, Midnight was standing on her hindlegs, horn and eyes glowing brightly as she issued a harsh yell. Celestia tried to focus, to block out the pain but it was too intense and she found herself barely able to keep herself upright. Luna and Cadence weren't faring much better, dragging themselves along the ground, their bodies covered in nasty welts. "I'm through playing!" Midnight screeched, the storm of orbs vanishing. She yanked Celestia up and glared into her eyes. "I want the Crystal Heart! Tell me where it is!" "I don't...know..." Midnight readied one foreleg for a back-hoof when Luna painfully stammered: "Sh-she's telling...the t...truth...." Shoving Celestia onto the ground, Midnight prowled towards Luna. "So where is it?" "Aunt Luna..." Luna placed a hoof over Cadence's and managed a weak smile. "It's going to be alright, Cadence." Midnight's aura gripped Luna around the neck and hoisted her up. "Where...is...it?" ~*~ "Remind me again why we can't just use the Elements of Harmony on Midnight?" Sombra peered back at Rainbow Dash. "The reason is twofold: firstly, given the Elements' rather unpredictable nature, we have no idea if they will free Twilight from Midnight's influence or banish her to another dimension. Secondly, chances are we might just be repeating the same course as last time. The Elements banish Midnight, leaving her weakened but still existent, and she will simply regain her strength and seek out another host. We have to stop the eidolon here and now." To Sombra's utter surprise, Rainbow didn't react in the way he'd come to expect from the hot-headed pegasus, anticipating a bitter retort or complaint. No, instead, Rainbow merely nodded and focused her attention on a nearby cloud. Puzzled, Sombra was half-tempted to ask her about her strange behavior but ultimately decided that he didn't care enough to investigate. Whatever kept her occupied from being a nuisance allowed Sombra to properly keep his mind set on the task at hoof, the knowledge of mind infiltration steadily returning to him. The absence of Rainbow Dash-induced agitation was simply an additional perk that Sombra was all too happy to accept. He was still feeling a bit wonky after his ordeal in the dream realm but was thankfully lucid enough to recollect his training under Grimoire, particularly the usage of psychomancy. Maleficium was the study of suffering and what brought about more pain than the everyday struggles of the mind? Psychomancy was an umbrella term describing magic involving the mind: illusion casting, hypnosis, mind control, thought reading, and oneiromancy, the last of which was the rarest of the arts and not even Sombra was versed in it. He did, however, have experience with most other forms, including mind probing, which was what he was going to utilize in order to rescue Twilight. This would not end like last time, with Twilight still being enslaved and Midnight making Sombra look like a fool. Once the group had arrived at the Crystal Empire's gates, Sombra and Spike split from the rest of the team, finding a safe place to hide and conduct the ritual while still being within earshot of the confrontation. They needed to be ready in case anything should go awry and in their collected experiences, events rarely ever played out according precisely to plan. As Sombra prepared the ritual, drawing a magic circle in chalk and lighting candles while chanting in another tongue, Spike peeked out from behind the corner of the bakery. Midnight Sparkle was ready to seize the Crystal Heart when Princesses Celestia and Luna, along with Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash, confronted the dark alicorn. Midnight, evidently displeased at the interruption, howled at them in the Royal Canterlot Voice before stomping a hoof down and summoning a collection of snow-golems to chase everypony else around. "Spike, I need you back in the circle." The dragon obeyed, stepping into the chalk drawing as the assorted collection of sigils began to glow, burning with magic that visibly seeped into the air. The two were lifted off of the ground and before Spike knew it, streams of dark blue mist curled around the pair of them. "Hold on," Sombra told him, though the vocal warning did little to prepare the drake. Spike couldn't recall if the scream he'd let out actually happened or was purely inside his own head as the duo were violently yanked and propelled into nothingness.