//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Upper 1 and Upper 2 // Story: MLP FiM x Fairy Tail: Wizards in Equestria // by SonnL //------------------------------// One day after the battles at the Dragon Lands and Mount Aris… Inside Scarlet Night’s fortress, Dread Lord summoned his fellow upper generals for a meeting. Dread Lord was the first to arrive at the meeting room and he patiently waited for the others. The other upper generals soon arrived and once they took their seats, the meeting began. “Comrades, I thank you for coming.” Dread Lord gave his greetings. “I am pleased to inform you that we have gathered nearly 80% of the negative energies needed to awaken Scarlet Night. The time of our master’s return is coming ever closer. It won’t be long before we reached the endgame. Roaring Blaze and Blade Dancer, I would like to hear your opinions on the wizards you fought.” “Erza certainly didn’t disappoint. And let me be clear on one thing. Nopony lays a hoof on her. She’s mine.” Blade Dancer replied. “The humans are entertaining. That’s all I have to say.” Roaring Blaze said with a shrug. “By the way, Dread Lord. When are you going to finalize your decisions on the replacements for the lower ranks number two to five? Thunder Blast must be feeling pretty lonely being the only active lower general at the moment.” “I assure you, Roaring Blaze. The final choice on the replacements will be made in due time.” Dread Lord answered. “If I may, Dread Lord. I want to go cause some mayhem on a faraway land like Thunder Blast is doing now. I don’t wish to sit around twiddling my hooves waiting for the final battle.” Blade Dancer spoke. “Fine, I’ll allow it.” Dread Lord gave his approval. “I’ll summon you back here when the final battle is at hoof.” “Hey Blade Dancer. Mind if I tag along with you?” Roaring Blaze asked. “I could use some warm-ups before fighting Fairy Tail again.” “Go find your own land to terrorize! And you should ask Dread Lord for his permission first!” Blade Dancer responded harshly. “You may go too, Roaring Blaze.” Dread Lord sighed. Once the meeting was over, Blade Dancer and Roaring Blaze were the first to exit the meeting room. Sapphire Butterfly soon followed and Shadow Mayhem left by disappearing into the shadows. “Soon, master. You will rise again, and we will finish what we started four millenniums ago.” Dread Lord said to himself. As the leader of the Red Moon Generals, Dread Lord took on many responsibilities including overseeing the creation of monsters, deciding where to deploy them, gathering and reviewing combat data, monitoring dark unicorn activity, and evaluating the dark unicorns that are seeking to fill in the vacant positions left behind by the defeated generals. However, after being in the fortress for too long, Dread Lord decided to go on a mission himself. The location of interest is the alternate world inhabited by the human counterparts of the Equestrian ponies. He heard about magical Equestrian artifacts being found in that world, so he figured that there might be something that can help hasten Scarlet Night’s return. Also, he had an interest in seeing that world at least once. He is aware of the existence of portals leading to the alternate world, aside from the mirror portal that Twilight Sparkle used to travel there. After nearly a day of searching, he locating one of these portals and studied its properties. Dread Lord also sent scouts in the form of dark ravens created from his magic through the portal to search for objects that have anything to offer. In the meantime, Dread Lord conducted experiments in the fortress to create his own portal. Several days later, one of the ravens reported back to Dread Lord, saying that it has found an object containing high amounts of dark magical energies. With that confirmation, the general commenced his mission. He successfully opened up a portal and entered through it along with the raven that reported back to him. Where he ended up at was an empty construction site in Canterlot City. He remained in his pony form after entering the alternate world through the portal he created, but that did not matter to him since he could still use transformation magic to assume human form, which he did to blend in. In human form, Dread Lord appears as a muscular young man in his early twenties, and his height is around six feet tall. He has long black spikey hair and pale skin. He still has red eyes with black sclera and the golden number 1 engraved on his left eye. In place of his unicorn horn is an oval-shaped red gem on his forehead. He still wears his light-red cloak and in addition, he also wears black baggy pants and a gray sash around his waist. Before proceeding with his search, Dread Lord put a spell on the portal to make sure no one else go through it. Meanwhile in Silver Shoals, Celestia and Luna were fighting against a group of rock golems. From time to time, Silver Shoals was attacked by dark unicorns and monsters. However, thanks to the two alicorn sisters, Silver Shoals rarely needed Fairy Tail’s help. After destroying all the rock golems, the two alicorns were ready to resume their peaceful hobbies. “I wish we could spend at least a whole week without needing to vanquish any dark unicorns and monsters.” Luna grumbled. “It could be worse, Luna. I heard Fairy Tail had fought more formidable monsters and the upper ranks of the Red Moon Generals at the Dragon Lands and Mount Aris. There’s no telling what the Order of Scarlet Night has in store.” Luna then looked up into the sky and saw something. “Sister, there’s somepony coming.” The sisters noticed a dark unicorn mare with a pair of large blue glittering butterfly wings flying in the sky and descending towards them. Once her hooves touched the ground, the wings vanished. Celestia and Luna immediately put their guard up. “Face us if you dare, dark unicorn! We already dealt with many of your kind and you will fall as well!” Luna bellowed. “Wait a minute, Luna. This one is different.” Celestia saw the golden number 2 on the dark unicorn’s left eye. “Greetings, Celestia and Luna. We first met at Ponyville when my comrades and I revealed ourselves to Equestria, but I didn’t formally introduce myself back then. I am Sapphire Butterfly, the Upper 2 of the Red Moon Generals.” “What business do you have here?” Celestia asked. “I came here because I’ve been curious about one thing. I’m curious about how will you both fair in a battle against me.” Sapphire answered. “So you are here for a fight!” Luna narrowed her eyes. “But in all honesty, I’m not expecting much from you two.” Sapphire said bluntly. “Don’t belittle us! We’ll show you our power!” Luna growled. “Exercise caution, Luna. She is the second highest of the Red Moon Generals, so she is more powerful than all the dark unicorns we’ve faced before.” Celestia warned her sister. In the alternate world, Dread Lord was searching for a certain magical object while following the directions of his raven. Around fifteen minutes after his arrival, he was walking through an alleyway. Also at the alleyway were three thugs taking a stroll. “Come on! Let’s hit another bar!” The first thug said. “Are you sure you want to drink any more?” The next thug asked. “Of course! I’m fine!” Dread Lord bumped into the first thug as he was walking by. “Hey! Watch where you’re going, mister!” The thug confronted him. “I’m sorry.” Dread Lord apologized and continued walking. However, the thug then grabbed his shoulder. “Hold on just a minute! I’m not finished with you!” The thug said rudely. “Please pardon me. There’s someplace I need to go.” Dread Lord tried to remain civil. The thug responded by shoving him. “Don’t think I’m letting you off the hook so easily! You got money on you? Hand over all your dough and I’ll let you walk away without putting you in a world of hurt.” The thug threatened. The thug made a grave mistake in provoking Dread Lord. The general then grabbed his face and smashed his head into a nearby brick wall. As the other two thugs were startled, Dread Lord threw his victim at the ground right next to them. “What did you do to my bro?!” The second thug snapped at Dread Lord. “He’s dead! This man just killed him!” The third thug shrieked after checking on their friend, whose head is completely crushed. “You bastard!” The second thug quickly took a small knife out of his pocket. Faster than he can blink, the general struck him with an uppercut, launching him high into the air. He coughed out blood right before dropping back down to the concrete ground. As the third thug was shaking in fear, Dread Lord gave him a menacing glare. “Now will you let me pass? Or do I need to dispose of you as well?” Dread Lord asked in a calm yet terrifying tone. “Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Monster!” The thug quickly turned around and ran. With the thugs out of the way, the general continued on with his objective. His raven later led him to a mall. Despite his attempt to blend in, Dread Lord received stares from some civilians. He then went to a jewelry store, the location of his objective. As he looked around, the raven pointed him to the object he was looking for, which is a small crimson crystal placed in a glass display box. He walked towards the crystal and he could indeed feel the dark magical energy emanating out of it. “Hello sir. Is there anything I can help you with?” A store clerk politely asked. “Thanks for asking, but I have found what I’m looking for.” Dread Lord then shattered the glass display box with his hand and grabbed the crystal, not caring about all the witnesses. “Thief! Somebody stop him!” The store clerk screamed. A nearby security guard approached Dread Lord to apprehend him. The moment the security guard placed his hand on Dread Lord’s shoulder, the general quickly grabbed his hand and flung him away. As for everyone else, the general merely ignored them as long they kept their distance and do not give him a reason to harm them. As Dread Lord walked out of the jewelry store with the stolen crystal, a bystander took out his cell phone and called the police. Right after exiting the mall, Dread Lord found himself confronted by a group of police officers. “FREEZE! PUT YOUR HANDS IN THE AIR!” One of the officers shouted as they all aimed their guns at him. In response, Dread Lord conjured a dark magical sphere in his hand and threw it at one of the police cars, obliterating it and any police officers close to it. “OPEN FIRE! OPEN FIRE!” The rest of the police fired their guns, but all the bullets were deflected by a magical force field surrounding Dread Lord. The general proceeded to destroy the other police cars with dark magical spheres. For the officers that were not caught in the explosions, the general fired dark magical beams from his index finger. The beams pierced through their targets, and they instantly dropped to the ground, either dead or in critical condition. “W-what… the h-hell… is h-he?” A cop uttered before losing consciousness. Dread Lord began walking away from the mall, but he then heard police sirens and saw more police cars heading in his direction. He summoned a flock of dark ravens to deal with the nuisances. The ravens swarmed over the police cars, causing them to crash. With haste, Dread Lord made his way back to the empty construction site where the portal to Scarlet Night’s fortress was located. However, just when the portal was within his reach, a certain group found him. “HEY YOU! HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!” A voice shouted out to him. Dread Lord recognized the voice as Rainbow Dash’s. He quickly turned around and saw Sunset Shimmer and the human counterparts of the Council of Friendship. Soon after Dread Lord left the mall, the Rainbooms went there to hang out and saw the destruction left behind. The nearby birds told Fluttershy what happened and they led them to the perpetrator. “Who are you?! And were you responsible for the incident at the mall?!” Sunset questioned. “Who I am doesn’t concern you, and there’s no need for us to fight. I was just about to leave and I have no quarrel with any of you, not now at least.” Dread Lord spoke as politely as possible. “Too bad we’re not going to just let you walk away!” Rainbow shouted back. Despite being aware of the death of police officers, the Rainbooms thought that they could take him on with their magical abilities. Figuring that the Rainbooms would not leave him be even if he asked nicely, Dread Lord unleashed an intense aura of dark magical pressure as his eyes glowed a brighter red. “I’m giving you seven a chance to keep your lives, but if you insist on continuing this confrontation, I promise I’ll be the last thing you’ll ever see! You’ll all be dead in an instant! So I suggest you think carefully before you decline my mercy!” Dread Lord made his threat very clear. Sunset’s geode reacted to the magical pressure released by Dread Lord. She was able to see into his mind without her hand needing to touch him. What Sunset saw were destruction and death, and that shook her to the core. She fully realized that the person they’re facing is not a foe to be trifled with. Never before has she faced something truly terrifying. All the Rainbooms collapsed to their knees as fear overtook them. They were all shivering not just from feeling Dread Lord’s power but also his murderous spirit. Pinkie Pie’s puffy hair deflated and Fluttershy could not stop crying. Dread Lord then turned his back to the Rainbooms and walked towards the portal back to Scarlet Night’s fortress without saying another word. Rainbow wasn’t about to let Dread Lord go without a fight. She mustered the strength to get back on her feet and prepared to attack him. However, Sunset quickly grabbed her arm, stopping her. “Rainbow Dash… please don’t… he’ll really kill you.” Sunset whimpered. Dread Lord went back to his world without any further interruptions and the portal completely closed behind him, leaving the Rainbooms to wonder who he was. Back in Silver Shoals, Celestia and Luna were battling against Sapphire Butterfly. The two alicorns fired their magical beams at Sapphire in a combined attack, but the general effortlessly blocked their beams with a dome-shaped shield. The sisters put in more power into their attacks, but Sapphire wasn’t budging. While blocking their beams, Sapphire conjured a magical cloud of powdered ice that surrounded the two sisters. Once Celestia and Luna inhaled some of the powdered ice, they could feel their lungs freezing, which caused them to cease their attacks. “Luna, don’t inhale this cloud!” Celestia quickly dispelled the icy cloud with a magical light. Storm clouds then covered the sky, and large forms of hail rained down on the two alicorns. Celestia and Luna protected themselves by using a barrier. “Can she manipulate the weather?!” Luna exclaimed. “Not just the weather.” Sapphire spoke. The ground below the sisters suddenly erupted and they were launched into the air by large geysers of earth. Celestia and Luna managed to recover in midair as they flapped their wings aggressively, but they were then struck by lightning released by the storm clouds above. The two screamed as they were electrocuted and they plummeted back down to the ground. After that lightning strike, the two were rendered immobilized. “Don’t tell me it’s over.” Sapphire expressed her disappointment. She slowly trotted towards them as their bodies were twitching. “It’s a shame that the alicorns of this era are so utterly weak. Scarlet Night and Aura Light. Those two were truly divine beings. You know what, Celestia? I was there at the wedding in Canterlot when you first encountered the changelings, and I must say that I was extremely disappointed at how you lost to Chrysalis. Embarrassing is an understatement. If Scarlet Night was the one who fought her, that bug queen would have been squashed… thousands of times over! And though Aura is our enemy, I still have great respect for her. Long ago, we upper generals, even all five of us together, couldn’t harm her in the slightest. Both of your powers together do not even come close to either of them! I suppose that there’ll never be any alicorns as great as them. I can easily destroy you two right now, but I decided to let you live long enough to see Scarlet Night’s return.” Sapphire then took out two flasks from her cloak. Using her magic, the dark unicorn opened the flasks and they began siphoning the magical essence from the two alicorns. Celestia and Luna cried out as their magic was being drained. After a few minutes, the flasks completely took all their magic. “Don’t worry. Your magic power will be put to better use.” To add insult to injury, Sapphire stomped on Celestia’s face. “Celestia, give your precious successor this message. Tell her that I’ll be seeing her one day. And for her sake, she better be ready.” Finished with her business, Sapphire summoned her butterfly wings and flew away. Fortunately for Silver Shoals, the storm clouds vanished right after the Upper 2 left. Inside the Canterlot royal castle, Twilight’s room… Twilight received a message from Sunset concerning her encounter with a dangerous man. Twilight replied to Sunset’s message and asked her for more details. Sunset mentioned about seeing a number on the man’s left eye. After confirming that the man Sunset encountered was indeed the Red Moon General Upper 1, Twilight was deeply relieved that her friends in the other world are all alive and unharmed. That encounter could have turned ugly if Sunset had not stopped Rainbow Dash. “To think that the Upper 1 went to the other world and stole from a jewelry store. What could he have taken that was so important?” Twilight wondered. She then heard a knock on her door. “Enter,” Twilight said. Spike then walked into Twilight’s room with a letter in his hand. “Twilight, you have a message. It came from Silver Shoals.” Spike showed her the letter. Twilight took the letter with her magic. She read the message and her eyes widened with horror. “Twilight… what’s wrong? What does the letter say?” “It’s Celestia and Luna…” Twilight quickly went to Silver Shoals and visited Celestia and Luna at the hospital. They both received serious injuries but they are recovering. “Celestia… Luna… thank goodness you’re both all right.” Twilight said with a sigh of relief. “I’m happy you came, Twilight. We’re sorry for making you worry.” Celestia apologized. “No need to apologize. I’m just glad you two are still here.” Twilight gave the two sisters a hug. “Twilight, there’s something important I need to tell you. That dark unicorn left a message for you.” “What is it, Celestia?” “She said that she’ll be seeing you one day. So there’s a likely possibility you’ll have to fight her in the near future.” “And her power is overwhelming. Be careful.” Luna added. Twilight began shuddering. She heard how Upper 4 fought someone as strong as Erza and how Upper 3 held his own against both Natsu and Gajeel. Thus, Twilight is terrified of the thought of facing against the Upper 2. Once her visit at Silver Shoals was done, Twilight teleported back to the Canterlot castle. She informed her friends about Celestia and Luna’s condition. She also informed the Fairy Tail guild so they will send wizards to Silver Shoals in case if there’s any trouble. Moments later, a royal guard rushed to Twilight with urgent news. “Princess Twilight! We got a problem!” “What is it?” Twilight asked the guard with concern and worry. “It’s Chrysalis, Cozy Glow, and Tirek! They have gone missing!” “Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!” Twilight exclaimed as her wings spread out. Twilight and Spike went to the prison where the three villains were held at. “What happened here?” Twilight asked a prison guard. “I don’t know your majesty! One moment, they were there and the next, they were gone!” The guard answered. “Do you think the Order of Scarlet Night took them?” Spike nervously asked Twilight. “No doubt about it. And whatever they’re planning with them, it can’t be good.” Back at Scarlet Night’s fortress, Dread Lord has returned after completing his mission in the alternate world. Dread Lord noticed that he was still in human form and changed back to pony form. Sapphire Butterfly soon returned to the fortress after finishing with her field trip. “I see you have returned, Dread Lord.” Sapphire said. “How was your trip to the other world?” “To be honest, I wouldn’t mind going back there to sightsee after our war is over.” “I also went on a little trip outside the fortress. I paid Celestia and Luna a visit at Silver Shoals and I took these from them.” Sapphire showed the two flasks containing Celestia and Luna’s magical essence. “I see…” “And before coming back, I got another gift for Scarlet Night. I acquired a magical artifact from an ancient ruin. The creature known as Ahuizotl tried to stop me and naturally, I entombed him.” “Sapphire, may I see those flasks?” Dread Lord then took the two flasks. “I have an idea on what to do with these.” Shadow Mayhem then arrived. “I have brought these three, as requested.” The Upper 5 presented the stone statues of Chrysalis, Cozy Glow, and Tirek. “Very good…” Dread Lord said as he approached the statues. “Pleased to finally meet you. I have some use for you three.” The Upper 1 said ominously. Dread Lord has a plan for them and he is going to see to it that they help the Order of Scarlet Night in one way or another, whether they want to or not.