//------------------------------//
// Chapter 4: Formalities Part 2 
// Story: Death Cometh 
// by Dracthul 
//------------------------------//

An interesting turn of events indeed.

There she stood before him, the one for whom he held great malice; the one who had sealed him away for what would have been eternity. Her impudence towards a being she knew had to possess great strength offended him. By breaking through the planet’s barrier, he proved that.

Since his time arriving on this world, he has only heard adoring comments of Equestria’s kind and compassionate leader, and it angered him to his core. But he could sense something within her even when they first met. It was a feeling he had at the very heart of his being. He had felt her natural instincts that day, and they were those of a killer.

The way she looked at him when he first laid on the ground, broken, he could see it in her eyes. Her sister did not have that look, Luna seeming far more innocent than her sister.

So, Celestia stood in front of him. Her golden horseshoes shined in the light and her crown glistened from the sun which she embodied. Part of her chest was covered by the golden piece she wore that was very similar to her other regalia. Her white fur was pristine; not a single speck of dirt tangled into her coat. An invisible wind moved her mane through the air despite the room being completely still, and her tail did the same.

Sorin was broken from his study of Celestia’s form when her student spoke up after getting up from a bow.

“I-I wasn’t expecting you, princess. I’m sorry, maybe I missed a letter, or a notice—maybe I forgot—” she began to rant before being stopped as her teacher chuckled.

“No worries, my faithful student. I came here upon my own accord today without any notice. If anything, I should be apologizing for intruding.”

“There’s no need for that,” Twilight said while shying away.

Figures.

“So,” she started up again, “what brings you to Ponyville?”

A golden glow surrounded the door to the library before it gently closed, Celestia’s horn working its will. She looked around at each of the Elements as she spoke. “I came to see how you and your friends have been doing.” Her eyes rested upon Sorin. “As well as meet your new one.”

She started to trot towards Sorin at a slow pace. “I heard reports that a new—and large—somepony had come to Ponyville recently.” Her eyes met his. “I just didn’t expect you to be quite so tall,” she concluded after glancing at his horn that was slightly closer to the ceiling than her own.

The last thing Sorin wanted was to be near Celestia. While he would eventually face her, he was still considerably weak. Making his spire had drained him of a lot of his newfound energy, and he was still recovering. He could not afford for her to see through his concealment spells and bring half of the Royal Guard to his figurative doorstep.

He assumed she specifically came to meet him since he was new in town. After the Nightmare Moon incident, he could only presume that precautions were at their pinnacle, forcing her to meet such a large stallion for herself just in case.

“A pleasure, Princess Celestia,” he said while bending into a bow, something he did with reluctance. He then rose back to his full height with a smile.

“It’s only fitting I know your name since you already know mine,” she teased before he replied with his name. She found it to be rather exotic for one of her subjects, but she didn’t want to offend him in any way.

Her vision rested on the table that was no doubt being used before her arrival. She motioned a hoof to said table. “Care if I join you?”

“Not at all,” Twilight responded before heading back to her seat. Her friends did the same, Spike getting a beanbag cushion for the princess. Sorin took his place—directly to the right of Celestia—and put a little sugar into his tea. His spoon calmly stirred the drink together.

“I wanted to thank you again for letting me stay in the town library; it’s absolutely wonderful here!”

Clink.

“It really was no problem, Twilight. How have your studies of friendship gone so far?”

“Great! In fact, I was going to write you another letter after our friendly get-together about what I learned today.”

“And what would that be?” Celestia inquired.

“That everypony knows something you don’t,” Twilight eagerly replied.

“Is that so?”

“Yes. I found out today that Sorin here knows how to reset the time flow of an object.”

Clink.

Celestia turned her body towards the stallion in question, fully drawing his attention. He hoped her look of mild concern was not anything to go by for their “first” encounter.

“After many an hour of practice, I learned how,” he quickly explained away. “In truth, it is a simple spell once you understand it.” He knew this to be true based on his translated version of the spell workings.

“I am impressed, Sorin.” A warm smile went across Celestia’s muzzle as she sipped her recently poured tea. “I have only met a few unicorns who can perform such a spell. Even though it is a rather simple spell, it is quite tedious.”

“Well, I have always found the mystic arts very, well… mystifying. I have spent much of my recent time studying its ways.”

The princess seemed satisfied with this because she turned towards Pinkie Pie with a grin.

“I was wondering if I could pick up that vanilla cake early?”

It took a moment for the pink mare to realize what the princess was talking about. “Of course!”

The group giggled for a few moments before silence descended over the room. It was broken again when Celestia cleared her throat in a regal way.

“I must thank you again for protecting Equestria from Nightmare Moon, my little ponies. If it were not for you, I fear what would have happened.” That last remark hung in the air.

“It was nothin’.” Rainbow Dash said in her customary nonchalant tone. “Even if we hadn’t stopped her, you would have shown up and kicked that meanie’s flank!”

Clink.

When everypony looked at her with a somewhat shocked expression, she added, “In a kind way,” with a shrug. This caused the room to break into giggles again.

“What did become of Nightmare Moon?” Sorin asked, curious as to what transpired during his escape.

“Nightmare Moon was purged, but my dear sister survived.”

So, she lives…

Celestia smiled at the memory of seeing her sister for the first time in a millennium, even if it was when she was crying and broken. “I am very thankful I have reunited with her once again.”

Twilight was the first to finish her cup, and that reminded her what they were all discussing before the princess showed up.

“Oh,” she started, “I forgot to ask who this extra ticket to the Gala is for?” The sparkly ticket was in her hoof.

“That,” Celestia’s head turned, “is for Sorin.”

Clink.

“Ooh, ooh, ooh!” Pinkie interjected. “You’ll get to hear the super awesome speech!”

“The what now?” Sorin deadpanned.

“The super awesome speech that Princess Celestia makes every year at the Gala. Not only that, but it always has cool pictures she shows with magic to go with it!” the pink mare stated all too excitedly.

“Why thank you, Pinkie Pie,” Celestia humbly said.

“The speech really is wonderful—or so I’ve heard,” Rarity said.

Clink.

“I’m just glad we all get to go together,” Spike chimed in.

“Yes, thank you so much, princess.” Twilight looked to her friends, who were also smiling in appreciation.

Clink.

“It’s just a speech,” the princess said with the faintest of blushes. Sorin could see through it, though; he could see that she loved the admiration.

“Except that every reporter in Canterlot will be listening to your speech,” Rarity added.

Cling-clang. Sorin dropped his spoon into his cup.

How interesting, he thought while finishing his tea and setting the cup aside. Their unending praise has been most annoying. He pondered this.

If I am to take over Equestria, I must treat it like any other mortal empire. It does not matter how strong an empire is if it is not unified. Without a leader, it will topple with ease. I can not only expose Celestia to her misled and indoctrinated subjects, but I can also send discourse throughout the royal chain in one fell swoop.

“Enough about the Gala, for now, it’s still a ways away,” Celestia interrupted. A maniacal smirk appeared on her face as a folded-up chess board hovered to her side. “Who’s up for a game of chess?” she hummed, practically bursting with excitement.

“I am,” Twilight courageously said.

“Let the games begin!” Pinkie Pie shouted in her party voice, the opposite of the tone Sorin was using inside his head as he said those very same words.





Like always, Twilight was rubbing her horn in frustration as she looked over the battlefield. Her knights had keeled over from the blow of mere pawns, and her queen had been captured by the enemy. Most of her pieces were scattered around the board with no chance of changing the tides. Every time the unicorn had tried to take a valuable unit, her own had been captured within a move or two, crippling her even further. It didn’t help that her opponent was an excellent bluffer either.

Princess Celestia knew every strategy in chess. Being immortal had played a part in that, as well as chess being a staple game of political gatherings. She had seen every opening used by the greats, and more elaborate ones that appeared sporadic but resourceful. From beginners to masters, she had played—and won—countless matches against them all. So, it was no surprise when she finally cornered her student’s king, and calmly said, “Checkmate.”

Baffled, Twilight looked around the board in disbelief. After finally realizing her fate, she grunted in defeat, seeing she had lost. One day, she would win—or so she hoped. One day, she would be able to say “Checkmate!” with confidence, just not today she swore to herself.

Sorin had been keeping to himself and his thoughts until Celestia had audibly cleared her throat after saying something he had missed. Noticing this, he turned towards her with an apologetic look.

“What was that?” he asked.

“Care to play?” she responded, her hooves alluding to the chessboard.

“Why not.”

He sat down on the opposite end of the princess and helped her to reset the board. “I’ll let you take the first move, princess.”

“I warn you now that when it comes to chess, I am not merciful,” she joked, to which Sorin laughed.

“I only predicted as much,” he beamed as he surveyed the board.

“I feel chess is the most effective way to share ideas with somepony.” She moved a pawn without hesitation. “I mean, it is a universal game after all.”

What she said was true, chess being a game of wits and strategy, deception and manipulation, and emotion and composition. He moved his own pawn, directly blocking hers in an effort to reveal her starting plan.

“I agree.”

Her lapse in expression, while invisible to the average pony, was apparent to him as she saw where he had placed his opening pawn. Her hoof went to her chin as she glanced between her queen and his for a moment before she moved one of her knights into the open.

Her tactic has changed.

He answered her move with one that appeared as a counter to hers, but it was actually a bluff. He hoped to force her away so he could move out another piece, which would create a passage to her queen. Not leaping for the bait, Celestia pushed forward.

Aggressive and aware.

In reply, he moved another of his pawns.

“So,” he said, barely above a whisper, “what is it like to run such a large and influential country?”

She swiftly moved another piece before taking a second to reply. “It’s a lot of paperwork,” she said with a chuckle. “But the real work is Court. Every day, I hear out the issues, complaints, and concerns of my little ponies—no matter how insignificant they can sometimes be. I was hoping things would become easier with the release of my sister, but her adjustment to modern society has had some… unforeseen bumps.”

“I see.” Now was the time to test her. To convey a sense of haste, he moved one of his soldiers into an intricate position. He could take out her knight in the next move, so she moved a piece to take the offending piece directly after. “It sounds like a gift to me. You get to influence every decision in your country, even some of the smallest.”

He instead took a pawn with his knight, to which Celestia froze. She moved her knight out of danger, something she had not been expecting to do. This played directly into Sorin’s predictions, for he had never wanted her knight—not yet anyway.

The princess was confused, to say the least. For some reason, her opponent had chosen to take out an insignificant pawn over her very mobile knight, and to her shame, she had tensed up and donned a shocked visage as a result.

Returning to stone, she reevaluated the board and made her next move in a way that reflected what appeared to be Sorin’s conservative strategy.

“A more unique method,” she glossed over.

She is trying to mimic my move in a way to make me think she has seen my strategy before.

To him, chess’s most important element was deception. The first of his two corrupted rules was that strategy was pointless. He had no strategy, he instead devised a plan in every game he played. He would always offer his opponent the first move, and they usually eagerly accept it. As they made their moves, he would dissect their method until he mastered the perfect counter. If they caught on, he would seamlessly transition to a well-known way of playing to throw them off.

The more he thought of it, his strategy was no strategy. His unpredictability left his opponents guessing, which would leave them exposed to him as they tried to counter his facade. It would be then that he would finish them off.

The second of his rules was that every piece on the board was equal. Not only did that further leave people guessing, but it also helped him win. If you held a pawn in the same regard as a queen, you would only sacrifice it if it was completely necessary and in your favor.

Sorin made his move. She made hers, taking one of his pieces.

“I’ve heard the Gala is a prestigious social event, but what is it like for you?”

Another move.

“It’s actually rather enjoyable. Sure, during the event I mainly have light discussions with the nobles, but I like to see my little ponies enjoying themselves after the months of planning for the event.”

A piece fell.

“Organization can be a headache,” he said before turning to Twilight and saying, “for most of us.”

“It’s an essential part of the job.” The princess had taken most of Sorin’s powerful players, while she had lost all of her pawns and only a couple of her stronger warriors. What she did not know was that she had fallen into his hands.

“I hate to say it, princess, but we are reaching the endgame.” He had been studying her every reaction to his moves to further break down her plan. He had learned that she leaped at the chance of aggression, which left him free to make his moves.

“Check.” In a single move, he flipped the board. She looked to her defenses, only to realize she had none that she could easily afford to lose. She sacrificed a bishop to protect herself.

“It has been a pleasure; well played,” Sorin smugly said before taking the bishop.

Move after move, Celestia watched him somehow gain total control of the board. Only moments ago, she had been the one pushing him back. She took one last look at the playing field before he made his final move, sealing her fate.

“Checkmate.”

“I am impressed by you again, Sorin.”

She was more impressed than she wanted to admit. Not only had he beaten her, but he had played on her emotions to make her think she was winning until the very end. She had seen him perfectly counter some of her moves, letting him take a piece, only for him to retract his advance, leaving her guessing. Never in her entire life had she played chess with somepony like him. It was rather enlightening if she was being honest.

“I have not lost a game in decades, and yet you have shown this mare that she still has much to learn.” She clapped her hooves together a few times in applause of his victory.

“How did you do it?” Twilight butted in, amazed that she had seen her mentor beaten for the first time.

With a chortle, the stallion claimed, “It was all in the patterns.” Or lack thereof, he thought to himself.

Celestia looked outside, only to realize that it was getting late, for she would have to lower the sun soon. She collected the board before it disappeared in her magic glow. She stood up from her cushion chair and adjusted her regalia before clearing her throat.

“As much as I’d love to stay, my little ponies, it is getting late and I must return to Canterlot. It was good to see you all again, and it was a pleasure to meet you, Sorin.” She bowed to signal her exit before heading towards the door. “I look forward to seeing each of you at the Gala!” Everypony waved her goodbye as she left the library with a motherly smile and went into the air with one powerful flap of her wings. The group gathered back to the center of the room, noting the time.

“I have to get back to my cottage; I don’t want to leave my animal friends waiting,” Fluttershy whispered sheepishly. “Goodbye, everyone!”

“I gotta go too,” Rainbow Dash said while going towards the exit.

One by one, everypony except Twilight, Spike, and Sorin left after ushering their goodbyes. As the wooden door closed at the back of the last pony to leave, Twilight let out a sigh of relief.

“I was not expecting that.” She and Spike returned the library to how it was before the social gathering. “I also didn’t think we were going to be here so long.”

“No worries, it was great to meet your friends, Twilight Sparkle.”

“It is getting pretty late, so I’m going to head off to bed.” She went to the base of the stairs. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Sorin.”

“Goodnight.”

Halfway up the stairs, she turned back. “You come too, Spike.” With a grunt, he followed her.

Sorin found himself alone in the library as he heard the upper lock click close.

“Hmmph,” he mouthed to himself. He had felt Celestia prodding at him—magically speaking—throughout the day when she thought he was distracted. His concealment spells had managed to hide his true nature from her, which made him more confident in his Equestrian magic. He still needed time to deal with the orbital cannon that was the Elements of Harmony and their embodiments since he was likely not strong enough to stop them yet.

Speaking of, he would have to prepare for the Gala. The princess’s speech would be the perfect time to sow doubt into Equestria’s citizens. The press would work to his advantage by spreading the story to the far reaches of the land. And if he was to expose Celestia’s darker side that he knew to exist, he would have to know what to use as ammunition.

He looked around the treehouse and briefly glanced out the windows to ensure nopony was nearby. He lifted a foreleg into the air and observed it for a moment.

His razor-sharp horn slid across the inside of his leg as it cut through the skin like paper. He grunted in discomfort as his blood was exposed. The black substance squirmed around within his wound, searching for something to latch onto like a leech. He closed his eyes as he concentrated on controlling his blood.

The mysterious liquid cascaded from his cut and into the air, spiraling around itself in a wicked dance. The metallic-like liquid pooled into a sphere that hovered above his hoof. As he opened his eyes, his skin sealed back up and his coat covered up any evidence of his minor injury.

He extended his hoof, and the sphere of blood floated through the air. With a devilish grin that went from ear to ear, he whispered to his black blood, the words reverberating around the room like a chilling echo.

“Find Princess Celestia.”

With that command, the liquid gained its own will, instantly dropping to the ground and flowing over the wooden floorboards like water. It slipped under the threshold of the front door, exiting the treehouse with a schlick sound and leaving no trace of itself behind.

Maybe he would enjoy the Gala after all…