//------------------------------//
// From The Light, Comes The Dark 
// Story: Wrath of Grogar 
// by Israel Yabuki 
//------------------------------//

With all of the demonic powers in his possession, Light Ray fled to a secluded place in the city where he would best launch his final plan. While he might have all the demon powers deep within his very soul and in the palm of his hands, he needed to find a way to control it from another source. And there's only one such being that can help him with that.

So, Light Ray headed back to the warehouse in the northern part of the city… one of the worst parts of the entire city, if not the absolute worst. The entire area is just filled with negative energy, despite it being deserted.

"Perfect…" Light smirked. He walked inside the warehouse and stopped at the very center. "Yes..., now for the fun part," he said in a low tone. He looked around the warehouse to find something and then… picked up a stone just a few feet away from him. He then began to draw a giant circle in the center, then another circle inside… before drawing the goat-shaped upside-down pentagram inside.

The whole time, Light Ray is getting goosebumps… and yet he's excited at the same time. Next, he tossed the stone aside and picked up a broken beer glass bottle and crushed it in his hand, letting his drops of demonic blood seep out and hit the pentagram.

At that moment… The entire warehouse shook and deep within the circle, a black void opened up and inside… he saw a part of two, glowing eyes that pierced through one's soul. Just then… and reached out from within, but it was chained up and pulled back in, followed by an unearthly, vicious growl.

"Who dares to summon me?" this demon snarled.

"Forgive me, my lord. I am Light Ray… I am the one who summoned you so you can finally be free and grant me the full powers of a true demon… and eventually become the true Demon King of both worlds!" he proclaimed ambitiously. "Can you grant me this wish… Grogar?"

At the mention of the name, the demon ram poked his head out of the void, growling. "WHAT UTTER NONSENSE!!! What makes you think a mere unicorn in a human body can tame the powers of a Demon King?! You think I'd trust you with such high-class power? HAH!!! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just pull you into Tartarus with me." Grogar inquired.

Light Ray stepped back a little, surprised that Grogar would lash out at him. Perhaps he's still upset about his loss to those girls and the entire Equestria army. Just then… he came up with a splendid idea… 

"Very well then, I'll tell you." Light began. "If you help me out, I will subdue those girls and their little boy toys whom they stole from your army. And as an added bonus… we can get revenge on the one who caused your ultimate demise together. With your soul inside me and our minds combined, we can turn these two worlds into one whole kingdom… OUR kingdom!" Light proclaimed, staring him in the eyes.

The former necromancer and now prisoner of Tartarus, then inched away until only his eyes were poking out of the void. "A tempting proposition… but what you're seeking is a mere pipe dream… without the necessary items, that is," Grogar said calmly.

"Why? What am I missing?" Light asked.

"You should know by now… you used them yourself… the Demon Crystals… and even the Moon Gem," Grogar specified.

"Those old relics? But they lost their powers the moment I transferred the last of them into those two morons who were teamed up with me! I don't even know where they are or if they're still in one piece or not," Light said.

"Then you'd better go and find them quickly… if you don't… you will have to pay the price for leaving this portal open. You have 24 hours to find at least one demon crystal and bring it back here to keep the portal stable. If you can do this… I will instruct you on how to do the entire ritual properly… and then you will have my soul within you." Grogar said.

"R-Right!" Light said, feeling a bit nervously before leaving the warehouse. "I should've known this plan was too good to be true! Oh well, they never said it would be easy." He said. And now… the hunt for the Demon Crystals and Moon Gem begins… again.





Meanwhile, out in the Camp Everfree Resort, the group met up with Gloriosa, who took them into her cabin to allow them to rest easy. Twilight explained the situation to Gloriosa about their predicament and everything that led up to it, from the resurrection of their fallen friend up to the point where the former Demon King gave his life to save Sunset.

"I see… I'm… so sorry for your loss, Sunset. But, still… I gotta ask, how'd you guys all get here so quickly when I live nearly an hour away?" Gloriosa asked.

"Uh… let's just say we had some help getting here," Flash added.

"Well… okay. Since you're all here now, I think it's only fair that I allow you to stay here and rest up for a little bit. You all look like you've been through hell and back," Gloriosa said, inspecting their bruises and scrapes.

“I personally do not want to speak of it.” Aria responded, crossing her arms.

"I can respect that," Gloriosa nodded. She then escorted the gang into the main lobby where there were soft couches and a flat screen installed on the wall next to the fireplace. "All of you rest and relax in here, I'll go and fetch the first aid kits."

The host then left while the others remained in the lobby, sitting around, relaxing and (not literally) licking their wounds. Sunset still had tears in her eyes, crying quietly to herself, still traumatized by her boyfriend's death.

Flash sat next to Sunset and tried to comfort her, but nothing seemed to work. "Sunset… hey… chin up, I'm sure that "Discord" guy has a plan to bring back Eternal. Just have faith. We're all kinda shook up from today, but he wouldn't want you to give up." he encouraged.

"So, after we finish our rest and recuperation, what do we do next? Go after that demonized freak and fight him head-on?" Adagio asked

“Are you kidding? No way am I going back in that city, not when there is a very aggressive wraith prowling the streets.” Sonata protested.

"That "very aggressive wraith" happens to be our friend. Starlight still saw the man she loves deep within his new form, even when we were all too scared stiff to do the same," Twilight pointed out. 

"Her words cut deeper than knives cuttin' butter, that's fer sure," Applejack added.

"Uh, you're kidding, right? So you're telling me that even though that very same "friend" of yours attacked and ALMOST killed Eternal some time yesterday, you're willing to set that aside and forgive him? Are you freaking nuts?" Aria asked.

"That's something you'll have to ask Starlight about. We don't have a straight answer for that," Twilight said.

"If you ask me, I would probably scold him for attacking Eternal that one time," Rainbow added.

"But he wasn't in the right mind, darling," Rarity interjected.

"That's no excuse for him to hurt someone who's like a brother to him! He's gotta know about this when all of this is said and done," Rainbow disagreed.

"No! He cannot know about that!" Fluttershy exclaimed.

"I agree! If we told him he almost killed Eternal, he'd be crushed. He'd never forgive himself." Pinkie added, agreeing with Fluttershy.

"I think we can all agree that this day has been nothing but crazy for all of us. What's done is done, the only thing left to do is rest our aching bodies," Frostbite said.

"You got that right. It felt like I was put through World War 3," Israel agreed.

"I'm so gonna take a long-ass vacation after we've stopped that asshole," Blazing Waters groaned, laying against one of the couches.

"Me too, though I think I'd rather take Pinkie Pie to the chocolate factory after this whole mess," Copper Plume said. Pinkie's ears twitched and a big smile formed on her cute, sweet face when she tackled Copper to the floor and smothered him with kisses all over his face.

"Awwww, how cute," Lightning Burn chuckled.

"At least now the atmosphere is a bit more settled," Heat sighed contently.





Meanwhile, with the raging Titan-wraith, Inferno soars above the deserted city of Canterlot, hunting down Eternal’s murderer. The image of Eternal's dying look as he reached out for his sworn brother still burned fresh in his mind. In his mind, body, and spirit… was filled with rage and bloodlust.

As of now, he hunts for his prey, searching every area of the city. His wraith senses were on high alert, aimlessly detecting whatever living thing that was in the area. He halted and hovered above the city a few times, looking around to retrace his steps.

And a few times, his anger rose to great limits as he constantly unleashed a shockwave of energy from his body, while letting out a fearsome roar. 

As for where the citizens have been… Well, due to the "otherworldly" dangers lurking within the city, the U.S military took this opportunity to evacuate everyone over at one of the old abandoned railway tunnels. Of course, the military took precautions to set up barriers for their safety and so far, deep within the tunnel, the military have supplied the people with meals and tent shelters.

The only ones out in the city are U.S Military soldiers in tanks and HAV's. Suddenly, one of them spotted the Titan-wraith in the sky. "Guys, bogey in the sky!" soldier 1 alerted. The others took aim at the monster, loading their weapons at the ready. But before they could shoot at it, another bogey flew past them at high speeds, leaving a trail of black mass.

As Titan-Wraith Inferno kept to himself and paid no heed to the soldiers on the ground; however, his attention is quickly drawn to the trail of black mass, and sensing the similar dark energy he felt a while ago… before Eternal’s death. The Titan-Wraith growled with pure rage after he’s now caught his prey’s trail and without a moment to lose, the assassin sped off towards the direction his prey was heading.

Light Ray looked over his shoulder and gasped as he saw his monstrous adversary catching up to him real quick. Light Ray tried to pick up speed, but his actions were futile. The assassin was easily catching up to him. Even flying at his top speed, the assassin could easily catch him. It's almost like he's toying with him.

'No! I cannot let this freak slow me down! I must get those CRYSTALS!!!' Light thought to himself, struggling to shake him off.

However, Titan-Wraith Inferno was not gonna let him escape, and stayed on him for the entire chase. Soon the wraith assassin sped up, inching closer and closer to Light Ray, reaching out his hand to grab his prey.

But as the Titan-Wraith was just inches from his goal, a projectile came out of nowhere and made impact with the assassin in the air, and denoted with a big explosion that spiraled the wraith out of control in flight and sent him crashing down into a small building, completely destroying it upon impact. And as the smoke cleared, Inferno is seen laying on top of rubble and debris, dazed and covered in dust, but has not been fazed or damaged from whatever shot him out of the sky. The wraith shook his head as dust shook out from his hair.

About 50 yards from where he is, a unit of soldiers were standing by and behind them is an A1A2 Abrams main battle tank. And inside the tank were its operators, with one of them grabbing the radio and reporting to command.

"Positive on hit, base. But the target is not destroyed," one of the tankmen said.

"Then ready another projectile and don't stop until it's turned to dust!" the Commander ordered. 

As this was going on, Inferno shook off the fall and got back on his feet before he lifted himself back in the air. And once he was hovering above the ground, his eyes drifted around, trying to locate his prey once again… but to his frustration, his prey was nowhere in sight. The Titan-Wraith let out an aggressive and ferocious roar into the air after being thwarted from his exciting hunt.

"FIRE AT WILL!!!" the Commander shouted. More U.S readied their weapons and shot at the assassin, even tossing some live grenades at him and flash bangs. But none of their weapons had any effect on him… well… except for making him even more mad.

The Titan-Wraith turned and stared down at the soldiers below, now giving a hint that they were the ones who interfered with his hunt. This fuels his rage as the assassin roared once again as he raised both his hands into the air. And soon, high above the city, large masses of dark clouds began forming in the sky, clearly sounding like thunderstorms. However, it looked to be the largest thunderstorm ever to be seen. This strange activity caused the soldiers to cease fire and stare up at the sky, wondering what was happening.

And what happened next, was that flashes of purple lightning struck out from the clouds, and soon a volley of lightning bolts struck the Titan-Wraith as he was absorbing the energy from them and his whole body emitting sparks of electricity. Inferno’s glowing eyes shined brighter as he turned his gaze back onto the soldiers on the ground, with rage and bloodlust in his eyes.

"What the hell is this thing? We've hit it with everything we've got, but now it's more pissed! What are your orders, sir?" One of the soldiers asked.

The Commander thought about and seeing the potential damage it could cause to his men and possibly the entire world, there was only one option left. "EVERYONE, FALL BACK!!! RETREAT TO BASE!!!"

But it was too late, as Inferno let out another roar as he brought his arms down towards the soldiers as beams of lightning shot out from his palms, and sped straight towards the unfortunate soldiers on the ground. The attack first struck the tank, causing it to rupture and explode, with the blast nearly taking out several soldiers close by. Then the wraith moved his attack over to the evading soldiers, disintegrating many of them, while a few were knocked onto the ground, desperately trying to find cover.

"ABORT! ABORT!!! ENEMY IS TOO STRONG!!! WE'RE LOSING MEN, FAST!!!" The Commander shouted before he was knocked to the ground hard, losing consciousness.

Inferno continued on his attack before he sensed no more hostiles in the area, causing him to halt his attack and observe the area below. And while he sensed a few of the soldiers that survived the aftermath, the Titan-Wraith was confident that he gave them a reason not to interfere. And with that, the assassin turned around and flew away from the scene.





Meanwhile, back in Equestria, in a hidden room of the castle, Discord was using his magic to preserve Eternal's corpse while Celestia, Luna, Twilight and the legendary Starswirl were helping create the remedy to bring him back. One of the ingredients was one of Philomena's phoenix feathers.

"I will say this, princess. Your son was fearless to the bitter end. But you have to understand that this remedy could go either way," Starswirl said.

"As long as it brings my boy back, I don't care." Celestia persisted.

"Not even Eternal deserved to die so painfully," Luna said.

"I agree. So, what are the other ingredients?" Twilight asked.

"We'll need two tablespoons of burdock root skins, crushed of course. Half a cup of hot water and finally… the two drops of blood from a blood relative," Starswirl said.

"I can get the burdock and peel the skin off and get the hot water," Luna said.

"I suppose that leaves me with two drops of blood." Celestia said. 

"What do we do with the ingredients?" Twilight asked.

"We mix them. It should create a kind of golden yellow-ish orange, glowing liquid. If consumed, there's a 50% chance he'll either make a full recovery… or he'll be engulfed in flames and be reduced to ashes. However… the chances of him surviving increase if…" Starswirl read the cure further to understand it more.

"If what?" Discord asked.

"If… his blood relatives happen to be an alicorn, the chances of him living increase by 10%." Starswirl said.

"Well… that does put our minds a little at ease, but still… How could somepony like Eternal, a young stallion who showed no fear, wind up dead?" Twilight asked.

"Living a cursed life comes with a price, princess. But he was a grown young stallion and from what I can tell, he fought the good fight. Now it's time for his friends to pick up where he left off," Starswirl said.

"Please… don't say that. My brother would never stop halfway! He will rise again… I know it!" Heat said, trying not to let the tears swell in his eyes.

"I understand your concern, Heat. But remember… This cure could work either way. You know… your brother's lucky to have such an optimistic young stallion like you. You'll make a fine co-ruler one day." Starswirl said. Heat blushed a bit, but it quickly went away when he stared at his brother's preserved corpse.





Back in the human world, after his encounter with the military, the Titan-Wraith, Inferno, goes on with his hunt for Light Ray. And after losing his prey for a moment because of the mortals, the wraith assassin once again is left on a wild goose chase. He had the tainted man within his grasp, just mere inches away and it was all shot to hell when the military intervened.

With his target gone, his anger was becoming far too out of control. Suddenly, Inferno felt the presence of some more sinister energies closing in. And from what his wraith senses were telling him, they were right behind him. And as soon as he turned around, the Titan-Wraith is then met with a large beam of magic striking him out of nowhere and sending him barreling towards the ground, while smashing through several buildings in the process. Then he fell and crashed onto the streets of the city, with the impact causing a large crater in the process.

The one who shot him with that beam of magic was one of the infamous apocalypse horsemen, War and next to him was Pestilence and Famine. 

"I hope you realize what you've done. He's not gonna take that lying down." Pestilence stated.

"I know what I'm doing. He had it coming for a while," War replied. "Then again… I've been itching for a good fight for so long." Well, he was about to get his wish. A few seconds later, the Titan Wraith emerged once again, shaking off dust and debris from his landing before looking up at the 3 horsemen in the sky. Figuring that they were the ones that attacked him, the Titan-Wraith roared loudly with rage, before he sped towards the 3 at blinding speed.

The three horsemen barely managed to move out of the way, only to be left with a single scratch on each of their cheeks. He was not messing around.

"Well, we've poked the bear with a stick, now we gotta avoid the crushing jaws!" Famine said. And from that point on, the 3 on 1 tussle between 3 of the apocalypse horsemen and the Titan Wraith began. Their epic battle royale shook the core of not just the Earth, not just the entire solar system… but the multiverse itself. The clash of the deities was once again repeating itself. And they fear this might end in the same way it did with the 1st wraith.

However, Inferno was much different from the last one… and far too powerful. And he’s not letting up.

In the heat of the battle, Inferno was tossing the horsemen around like rag dolls, tossing Famine and Pestilence towards nearby skyscrapers before he unleashed his magic beam breath onto the area they were at. The two evaded the attack as quickly as they could. War sped towards Inferno from behind and ignited his sword with his powerful magic and with a swing of his blade, he sent a wave of cosmic energy straight towards Inferno.

Inferno turned around and then raised his hand up towards the attack, and upon doing so, the attack made contact with his hand, and immediately it was neutralized and weakened, before it vanished into thin air.

"Damn it! I forgot, he can negate magical attacks!" War grunted in frustration. "Fine then… How about brute FORCE?!" War yelled out loud. He charged in and came at Inferno, ready to cut him up with his sword. 

As he swung at him, Inferno caught it between his thumb and index finger. But the cut still drew a tiny drop of blood from one of his fingers. War was speechless beyond words. How can a wraith be so powerful as to catch his sword with two fingers?

And before he was given time to react, Inferno then reared back his fist and then slammed it forcefully against the horseman’s chest, and then sent him flying and crashing towards the ground of the city streets. The impact was so strong, it shook the entire city and left a cloud of dust behind.

With the 3 of the 4 apocalypse horsemen getting their asses handed to them, reinforcements showed up to help turn the odds into their favor. From the high above, two more figures showed up and they were none other than Queen Galaxia and King Cosmos.

"You're overstepping your boundaries, young man. Stop this foolish nonsense now!" the king ordered sternly.

The Titan-Wraith snarled and let out another enraged roar, which stated that he will not take shit from them.

"That was your only warning, you miserable vermin! Now you will pay the price…" Galaxia said in pure anger as she lit up the sky with her magic aura. "THIS IS FOR ATTACKING MY BELOVED GRANDSON, YOU VILE FIEND!!!" With that, she let out her battle cry and charged right at the wraith at blinding speed.

She lit up the magic in the palm of her hands and got close to him and blasted him in the stomach from extremely close range… multiple times. Faster than a gatling. "I'll make you suffer for what you've done! You and that wretched fool who took my grandson's life! You MONSTER!!! YOU VILE MONSTER!!!" she yelled, increasing power in her close-range magical attacks.

King Cosmos helped out by trying to restrain the wraith with magical rings on each of his limbs.

However, all of that was just pissing Inferno off even more, and he wasn’t gonna have it. And so the Titan-Wraith charged up his magic, curling himself up before he unleashed a massive wave of purple energy and lightning from within his body like an EMP, only on a cosmic level.

The force of his attack sent the other deities flying backwards, crashing through buildings and landing flat in the streets. It seemed ultimately clear that despite their numbers, they were heavily outmatched. Inferno Blaze was much too powerful. And it seemed like his power was only getting stronger.





Meanwhile, Light Ray had barely escaped with his life. He had traveled so far, he didn't even see where he was… until he finally checked his surroundings. He was close to CHS and right there… lying in the middle of the streets… were the 5 Demon Crystals and the Moon Gem.

"Yes! YES! It appears lady luck is on my side! At last, my goal will be complete! Alright, you stubborn old ram, you want your demon crystal, you'll get your demon crystal!" Light said, collecting the goods. This time, with the objects in hand, he flew back to the place where the portal was still active. But, he had to exercise extreme caution on the way back. Who knows where that wraith might be lurking.

Little did he know, someone else was hot on his tail; a certain girl with long, purple hair with aqua blue stripes in it and indigo eyes. Yes, Starlight was hot on his tail, trying to figure out what Light Ray's plans were and why he needed the Demon Crystals and Moon Gem. 

"Whatever he's planning, I got a bad feeling about this," Starlight whispered to herself.





Starlight had followed Light Ray back to his secret hiding place, though the long trip on foot kinda winded her as a result. But she had come too far to rest up now. She watched from the corner of the doorway and saw Light Ray approach this dark abyss-like hole in the floor. 

Light Ray then placed one of the inactive demon crystals in the center of the void. There, both parties watched as it faded into the dark portal for a few seconds before reappearing, glowing and fully charged. And the dark magic resonating from the crystal seeped out with magic sparks of lightning. Light Ray laughed, he couldn't believe his eyes.

Starlight watched in horror as to what had just happened. It seems the Demon Crystals are gonna be an issue… a really big issue.

"Perfect," Grogar's voice echoed from inside the portal. Starlight gasped to herself. This couldn't be happening, it just didn't seem possible.

 'But… But how? We all watched Eternal finish him off that day! How is he still alive?' she thought to herself.

"Now… listen to me, fool. Take the rest of the crystals all around the city and when they're all in place, head for the center of the city. There, we will begin the ritual.., and I will finally be free! And all the power you crave will be yours!" Grogar instructed. "Now GO!!!"

"Yes sir, I won't fail you," Light bowed before leaving with an evil laugh. Starlight took cover so she wouldn't be spotted and watched as he took off.

And once she heard him leave, Starlight let out a sigh in relief, knowing she was out of the clear. But a sense of fear rushed over her when she heard…

“Come out, my dear.” Grogar’s voice spoke. “Don’t think for a moment that I couldn't sense your presence. But luckily for you, I just want a little chat. After all, I allowed Light to leave without knowing you were here.” The demonic ram’s spirit explained. “So come out and don’t be afraid. I’m no harm to you, well not in the state I’m in.”

Starlight's entire body received huge chills. She should've expected that Grogar could sense her presence, he wasn't King of the Shadow World for nothing. Well, stealing her nerves, she enters the abandoned warehouse and stops just a couple of feet away from the portal. The very portal where she can see those… eyes. Those piercing, sinister, cold, vengeful red, glowing eyes.

"What do you want?" Starlight asked, staring into the demon's unbreakable gaze.

“Well from the shadows, I heard I’m not the only being brought back from the dead. You know who I’m speaking of.” Grogar replied.

"If you're talking about Inferno, you're right. But I wouldn't come anywhere near him if I were you, since he's more deadly towards creatures like you," Starlight warned, grinning.

“Oh I wouldn’t dream of it. Not even I can match the power of a wraith.” The demon ram responded.

Starlight’s expression turned from confidence to surprise. “How do you know…?”

“My dear, I know everything about wraiths. Especially what they’re capable of.” Grogar said. “Did Harmony or Death tell any of you why I targeted Inferno in the first place?”

Starlight’s eyes widened upon hearing what he said. “Wait… that's it… you weren’t in Canterlot to kill his father? You wanted to kill Inferno!” Starlight responded aggressively.

“OF COURSE I DID! Especially after I discovered what he really is… and of his purpose” Grogar replied. “After all, he is Abandon’s last descendant… the last descendant of the First Wraith.” He stated.

"Inferno? The last descendant? So his resurrection into a Waith wasn't by chance!" Starlight said in realization.

“Of course it wasn’t, did you all actually think that the crystals would summon a wraith?!” The demon laughed. “No… the assassin had wraith blood within him since the day he was born. And knowing that a wraith would stand between me and making Eternal my heir; I had to kill the colt before his dormant powers could awaken!” Grogar snarled in anger.

"That's… That's impossible! The only other wraith in existence was the one the cosmic counsel imprisoned thousands of years ago!" Starlight said, trying to piece it together.

“Well… I don’t have all the answers, my dear. Though if you want some, you’ll have to ask the Cosmic Council for them. but as a helpful hint, you should ask Harmony. But I’m afraid it’ll be too late for the poor fool. The darkness in this world is slowly killing her by the minute, and as for the Cosmic Council… hehe… well your boyfriend is currently beating them to a pulp. I think he’ll kill them before Light gets the chance. And I would love to see that.” Grogar spoke with a sadistic, heinous tone.

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Starlight turned her back and ran out of the warehouse, heading off to find her friends. 'If what he's saying is true, I've got to find a way to save Harmony and get my Inferno back. I'm not sure how I can fix this, but somehow I've gotta try!' she thought to herself.

As Starlight ran out of the warehouse, Grogar’s sadistic laughter grew louder and louder as she ran and ran. And when she got farther enough away, the laughter died down and soon they ceased to be heard.

"Okay… I need some kind of plan. But… what should I do first?" Starlight asked herself. But then… "Wait… Grogar said that Harmony was dying because of the darkness overwhelming her. Maybe if I were to get Inferno's attention somehow, it might be enough to get Harmony back on her feet… or hooves?" she said to herself. "Think… how can I snap him out of his rampage?"

Starlight kept walking while she was thinking to herself. The clock was ticking and she needed to plan this out fast. After walking around some more and doing some deep thinking, an idea popped into her head. "This might be my only chance,"





Meanwhile, in another part of the city, Twilight Sparkle was asked to head out and grab some food for herself and her friends. She scouted the city from up above, using her geode to pony up and fly around the city. But seeing the city she grew up in to be all broken and worn out from this savage war… it just brings a tear to her eyes. But she quickly stole herself so she could keep looking for food supplies.

However, her little errand run was to be postponed when she saw Inferno fighting against a couple of the cosmic counsel and 3 of them were of the 4 apocalyptic horsemen. And from the looks of it, Inferno was giving them a really hard time.

"TWILIGHT! DOWN HERE!!!" Starlight called out. 

The nerdy gal turns towards the voice of one of her friends and she spots Starlight running towards her.

“Starlight? Where have you been?! The others were worried sick of you?” Twilight asked.

“No time to explain! Right now, I need your help to get Inferno to calm down.” Starlight replied.

"WHAT?! Are you crazy? He's fighting a war up there! Are you sure you wanna take that risk?" Twilight asked, concerned.

“Yes!” Starlight replied without hesitation. “Look I have a plan, alright! I just need you to agree that you’ll help me!” She responded. “PLEASE TWILIGHT! SAY THAT YOU’LL HELP ME!!!” Starlight begged while grabbing onto both of Twilight’s shoulders and shaking her.

"A-Alright, alright! I'll help you! If it means helping out a friend, I'll do what I can," she nodded.

“Good. See that tall tower over there.” Starlight said while pointing over towards the tallest building in the area they were in; it wasn’t as tall as the tallest building in the city, but it was a very tall one.

"Yeah?" Twilight nodded, looking at the tower. "I'm guessing you want me to get you to the top of the tower, right?"

“Wow, you really are as smart as my Twilight back in Equestria.” Starlight commented.

"Why? You had doubts?" Sci-Twi asked, quirking an eyebrow suspiciously.

“Nope. Just curious.” Starlight replied. 

"Oh, good to hear. So, how do you plan on getting his attention from high above? I hope it's nothing suicidal or anything." Sci-Twi said. She then latched onto Starlight from under her arms and flew her over to the tower.

As the two gals were flying towards the tower, the ongoing battle between the titan-wraith and the cosmic council raged on above the abandoned city.

Inferno expertly dodged and predicted all of the cosmic gods’ attempts to land a single blow to him before he delivered harsh counterattacks in response. The wraith’s mind was so focused on the battle and full of many possible outcomes and strategies to overpower his foes; almost as if his so-called “Dark Instinct” was granting him thousands of years of battle experience and knowledge in which he could not explain.

And yet… This knowledge gave him a dark sense of superiority. That he has all the knowledge of his enemies. And they were at his mercy.

"This isn't working! None of our attacks seem to be getting through!" King Cosmos said, getting a little frustrated.

“It's as if… He’s predicting our attacks… Before we even make them.” Pestilence responded, while nearly drained of stamina and energy.

“But how is that possible?! He’s never seen what we’re capable of when he was a mortal!” War exclaimed, furious at being powered by the undead assassin.

“It’s like he’s gained knowledge of our abilities every time he grows stronger!” Famine said.

"Perhaps maybe I can take the reins for a while." a female voice called out. The counsel looked over and noticed a female draconequus. 

"Eris? Not that we don't appreciate the help, but where is your brother?" Queen Galaxia asked.

"He's busy helping the prince. He suffered a fatal blow and my brother is helping the princess resurrect him." Eris clarified while staring down her fearsome opponent.

Inferno stares at the draconequus with a petrifying gaze and an uncontrollable rage in his eyes.

It was an epic staredown like no other and both parties waited for the other to move first. At first, Eris snapped her claws and poofed up three firework missiles and ignited them, launching them at her deadly foe.

Inferno did nothing as the missiles made impact and caused a massive explosion where he was. The cosmic gods and the draconequus watched as the smoke cleared away, to reveal the titan-wraith… unscathed from the attack.

Inferno continuously looked at Eris as he was dusting himself off; as a form of mockery.

Eris gave a death grin towards Inferno before poofing up two whips, each one giving off a serious electric charge worth 300 yottajoules. She cracks them a few times before attacking her foe with a sinister, psychotic look in her eye. 

"SHRUG THIS OFF, YOU FREAK!" Eris provoked as she attacked. In that instant, one of her whips made contact with the wraith and bolts of static electricity leaked out in big sparks. She cracks her whips a few more times, then whips Inferno again and again before wrapping one of her whips around his neck to try and subdue him.

Inferno let out another monstrous roar in annoyance and pain as he gripped onto the whip while staring angrily at the draconequus. As more electric shocks were being emitted into his body and inflicting more pain with each shock… until slowly, and swiftly, the pain began to numb. And soon the wraith couldn’t feel any pain, he couldn’t even feel the shocks anymore… instead he could feel the energy from the whips seeping into his body and empowering him. He soon learned that his body must have adapted to block and nullify pain. And that his body was now absorbing the electric shocks.

The Wraith stared directly back at the female draconequus, but this time, he was the one with the wide grin on his face.

"Uh-oh…that wasn't supposed to happen," Eris said, slightly scared.

Before Eris could let go of the whip, Inferno effortlessly tugged onto it and began swinging the draconequus in circles, causing her to crash into a few skyscrapers. And soon the whip loosened around his neck and so the wraith let go of the whip, allowing it to slip free from his neck and letting the draconequus fall straight down to the ground and crashing down hard against the pavement.

"This… isn't… over!" Eris strained as she got back up. Snapping her claws, she poofed up a bag of seeds, then tossed them onto the ground. The seeds sank underneath the concrete and then BOOM, out came some dark vines with thorns, just like the ones from the Everfree Forest when they attacked the Tree of Harmony. "Restrain that wraith at all cost!" she commanded.

The vines shot up in the air and wrapped around the wraith's limbs, then stretched them out in an attempt to immobilize this deadly foe. For good measure, one bigger vine as big as a tree trunk, shot up from the ground and wrapped around his torso. The sharp thorns poked through the fabric of his outfit, but were only superficial stab wounds. The wraith roared in pain.

"Let's see you try and get out of this one!" Eris provoked. The vines would tighten around him if he tried to struggle.

The Titan-Wraith grew extremely furious; if there was a word to describe how beyond pissed he is right now; it would be that. And through that immense anger, the wraith let out a loud, high pitched screech as his entire body engulfs in purple flames, which grew every time he roared. The dark flames that engulfed the wraith incinerated the vines that he was trapped in. And as soon as he was free, Inferno took a deep breath before unleashing a massive beam of dark flames from his mouth towards the dark vine plants below, incinerating them in an instant.

He then ceased his attack before looking towards Eris, along with the other cosmic beings, with a rageful, frightening gaze.

And the cosmic council can help but feel more intimidated than they already do.

“Well way to go, Eris! You pissed him off!” Famine shouted in sarcasm.

"Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence, you sickly old fart!" Eris retorted back.

“Well… I say… You did… your best.” Pestilence complimented.

"Thank you, Pestilence. Now let's hope we can all make it out of this alive, because I think Mr. Cranky Pants is looking to maul us to death," Eris replied, her eyes locked with her potential maker and executioner.

The wraith stares down at the gods and goddesses, filled with rage and killing intent. His hands generate his Dark Flames, ready to smite them right there and then. But before he could deliver the killing blow, a white wave of energy comes speeding behind him and strikes him in the back. Causing searing pain to the wraith and forcing him to cease his attack.

The wraith turns around, fueled with anger with whoever dared to stop him from enjoying his kill. And hovering behind him, was none other than Death himself; armed with his scythe in hand.

Inferno was about ready to attack the Grim Reaper himself, but Death raised his hand up towards as a gesture to have him halt in place.

"Slow down and use your head for a second! I am not here to fight you. I came to speak to you, but you have to calm down! If you don't, millions more lives will be lost!" Death warned.

While a good attempt; however, the grim reaper’s words fell deaf on Inferno’s ears. The wraith was too furious and too riled up from his current conflict with the cosmic council. And since he just had gods try and kill him for whatever reason… The wraith was not in the mood for talking. And he roared in reply to let Death know that.

"I did not want it to come to this, Inferno. But if I have to fight to get through to your thick skull, so be it," Death said, clenching onto his scythe. Inferno made a mad dash towards Death, but the reaper reacted swiftly by dodging and taking a swing at Inferno with his scythe. "Just remember… you're now dancing with Death."

The grim reaper turned over his shoulder, giving Inferno the ORIGINAL death stare. And so, their clash began as they took to the skies. Inferno shot magic blasts at the grim reaper, but shot after shot, Death blocked each of them or dissipated them with a mighty swing that even sliced the air itself.

He retaliates by charging after Inferno. Halfway, Death turns into a black vapor cloud, speeding himself up. At the last minute, he transforms back into his skeletal form and swings at Inferno, slashing open a gash in his chest. Inferno let out another pained roar. Death then sent the enraged wraith flying backwards with a powerful shockwave from his boney hand. Inferno crashed into the pavement, creating a large crater.

As soon as the smoke cleared, Inferno slowly got up from the ground, bleeding from the large gashes on his body, and his armor cracked and shattered. Death slowly floats down, never taking his eyes off his injured foe.

"Now, maybe you'll stop lashing out and start listening to me," Death said, calming down a little. But sadly, Inferno wasn't ready to talk things out. He glared into the eyes of Death, growling while the gash on his chest began to seal itself closed. Not even a scar can be found.

Death was surprised by this scene before him. “What? His wounds are healing?! But no living soul could recover from my attacks? Not at that fast rate.” he thought to himself. “His soul would have been damaged after a few blows. He should have been crippled inside-and-out. Unless…” And soon Death came to a terrible conclusion. “You don’t have your soul.”

Inferno responded with a powerful punch that produced a shockwave so powerful, he sent Death flying 500 meters into the air. But he didn't stop there, for he took to the sky and caught up with Death, grabbing him by his boney neck. He roared right into his skull and then flew through the torn up city, dragging him against the walls and windows of each building before throwing him against one of the taller buildings.

Death crashes through the windows of an abandoned office building, groaning from the impact. Inferno flew inside and landed directly above his adversary, breathing heavily with anger. His eyes glowing purple with vengeance and anger.

"This… can't be… how it ends! Must… stop… him," Death groaned.

But when Death makes an attempt to get back up, Inferno raises his foot and stomps on Death’s chest, pinning him to the ground. Inferno stares down at him with rage and glee. It seemed like this could be the end for the once proud reaper. Then the wraith lets out a loud roar, directly at the grim reaper’s face; displaying his dominance and power.

"INFERNO, STOOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!" a female voice cried out to him. Inferno turned back to see where that voice came from. His enhanced vision zeroed in on Starlight Glimmer, who was at the top of a space tower.

Standing beside Starlight, Twilight grew more anxious seeing that the wraith was now staring at them.

“Okay, it seems we have his attention. Now what is the next step to your plan?” Twilight asked.

Starlight didn’t reply and stepped up towards the edge of the roof and still kept her gaze on Inferno, and the wraith doing the same. Seeing Starlight close to the edge had Twilight worried half to death.

“Starlight?! What are you doing!?” Twilight spoke with worry and fright.

"What I have to do; I'm getting back the man I love," Starlight replied. "Even if… I have to take that one drastic step." She said, feeling her heart about to jump out of her chest. And so, she does the unthinkable and steps off the roof, falling to her death.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" Twilight screamed, running after her.

Inferno sees Starlight falling rapidly from atop the tower. He wasn't sure why, but something deep within him was urging him to save her. And as seconds passed, the urge grew bigger each time. While everything went on normal time, the wraith experienced time slower in his mind as he watched Starlight fall. In a split second, his anger died down and his conscious came back to him. And in that moment, the anger was replaced with worry and fright.

And without hesitation, and ignoring the grim reaper that was at his mercy a second ago, the wraith took off into the air at the speed of light.

Starlight had her eyes closed as she fell, not seeing that she was closer and closer towards the ground. And at the moment before she made impact with the hard concrete and pavement, Starlight felt a gust of wind against her hair and that she was being cradled in someone’s arms.

She immediately opened her eyes and they were met with Inferno’s eyes as he held her in a bridal carry while he was hovering 10 ft. Slowly, and carefully, the wraith lowered onto the streets and landed on the ground before dropping onto his knees. His eyes never looked away from Starlight, as he held her close to him with one hand and his other hand brough up to caress her cheek. The young lady could see the worry and shock within his facial expression. And in his eyes, she could see that it was him… actually him.

That thought in her mind made her smile and shed tears of joy seeing him return to her once again.

“I knew you wouldn’t let me fall.” She spoke with such faith in him.

"Star…light…" Inferno strained in his voice. With the beast tamed by his dame, he came to a slow and steady stop before hugging Starlight. She hugged Inferno back, tears streaming down her eyes like waterfalls.

"I never doubted you, Inferno. Even when you change… I knew you were still in there," she said, her voice choking up before sobbing in his arms.

Inferno was no different, as tears fell from his eyes. His voice choked as he spoke softly to her. “D-Don’t… E-Ever… Do that again. Please.” He spoke with worry and fear. Her little stunt scared the hell out of him and worried him to death.

"I promise… I swear with all my heart and soul… it won't happen again." Starlight replied, still hugging Inferno and nuzzling into his shoulder.

To think, it only took a reckless move from a single human being to tame this savage foe. The cosmic counsel, Death and even Twilight were all left speechless. The council couldn't believe how reckless and bold a mere mortal can be just for the sake of re-awakening a dormant soul they thought would be lost forever. 

Death was astonished himself, yet also relieved. At least her life was spared. Twilight felt like she had lost a couple of years off her own lifespan from having to watch one of her friends take the leap of death.

"It's unbelievable… to think that mere mortals have evolved past their savage ways. Albeit they are still reckless, but… such a selfless act has me baffled," Queen Galaxia said calmly.

"Perhaps we should rethink the way we run things, should a problem like this ever arise again." King Cosmos added.

"Never in… so many millennia… have I seen humans… take such bold sacrifices… since the death… of all the 1st born Egyptians." Pestilence said.

“I say it's boring.” War commented. “Plus Seth still owes me a debt over our bet thousands of years ago.”

"Well… regardless…" Death intervened, floating over towards the horsemen. "...the girl has bought us some time. We have to track down and find the source of the demonic energy that infects this world! And we need to do it immediately!” he shouts at his fellow gods and goddesses.

“Whoa, chill, Death. What’s the rush?” Famine asked.

“Harmony is dying! The great amount of dark energy in this world is killing her.” Death responded with a stern and worried tone.

"Oh no! What can we do to sustain her for the time being?" Cosmos asked.

"Think, dearest. There's an excessive amount of dark, demonic energy that's tipping the scale, we have a powerful being who can absorb and track down this demonic energy. Perhaps if we brought the wra-- I-I mean… Inferno over to Harmony, maybe he can absorb the negative energy that's eating away at her life force!" Galaxia suggested.

"What?! You must be joking! How do we know that cursed beast won't finish her off and put her out of her misery?" War asked.

"I'm having my doubts about this as well. There's no telling what he might do if we let him near Harmony in his current state," Pestilence added.

“Have you all forgotten that he mopped the floor with us a second ago?!” Famine asked.

"I DON'T CARE WHAT THE RISK IS, JUST PLEASE, DO WHATEVER IT TAKES! I CAN'T LOSE HER!" Death shouted in desperation. He then turns and approaches Inferno and Starlight who were unaware of the cosmic gods’ conversation.

Inferno then sensed his presence as he looked up towards the grim reaper, as did Starlight. Death knelt down in front of the wraith as he looked at him straight in the eyes.

“I know it's too much to ask of you… But my beloved is dying. And you’re the only hope she has left of saving her.” He pleaded.

Inferno stares at him with a monotone expression, not saying a word.

“I understand you want nothing to do with us deities. And that you forever despise us for your condemned life. But I know what it's like to live a condemned life. To have others despise you every day. And Harmony was what got me through those dark times.” He stated before looking towards Starlight. “Just as this one has done for you.” He then adverts his gaze back to Inferno. “Please, I beg you… Save her. Please.” He begged.

To have the grim reaper begging and pleading for help, despite everything that's happened, neither Starlight nor Inferno can believe their eyes. Starlight turned to Inferno and vice versa. She spoke not a word to him, but her eyes told all: "It's never too late to help those in need."

The wraith took a deep breath before looking up at the grim reaper.

“I’ll… See what I can do.” He replied.

A huge stone was soon lifted off the reaper's heart. Soon, he took his scythe, turned his back to Inferno and with one big swing, he sliced open a portal to the dimension where Harmony is. "Follow me." Death said before flying through the gateway. Inferno went to follow him, but then took one last look at Starlight.

She nods in reassurance, letting him know she'll be okay. The wraith nodded back and jumped through the portal before it closed.

"Good luck… Inferno," Starlight said with high hopes.

"STARLIGHT!!! TWILIGHT!!!" another female voice echoed. Twilight, who had flown down from atop the building using her geode, turned her attention to Rainbow Dash. The speedy rockstar had run all the way from Camp Everfree to the city for some reason.

"Rainbow Dash, what are you doing here? You're supposed to be back at camp with the others trying to recover," Twilight said, concerned.

"I know, I know, but Gloriosa told me to come and get you. She said she found something that might be important! Come on, I'll show you!" Rainbow then grabbed both girls by the hands and ponied up before flying back to camp at light speed.





Meanwhile, back with Light Ray, he had wandered into another hot spot to place his Demon Crystals, so just like before, he drew the same circle on the ground using a stone and placed the 2nd crystal on top of it. Right away, the pentagram glewed before opening up a pitched black portal that sucked in the Demon Crystal and spat it out, full of extremely dark energy.

"Two down… three to go. Soon, there won't be anyone left to stop me, not even you… my dearest Sunset. A shame I had to punish you," he said, thinking back to how he killed the prince with his own bare hands… or claws.

"I could never stand to look at that foul mistake the princess brought into this world. If he hadn't survived that damn accident I staged I would've left happy! And that fool, Blaze Burn… he didn't deserve the princess. I'll show them… I'll show them all!" Light's voice turned distorted and deep while his eyes began to glow bright red. His long hair became messy and unkempt. 

With the Demon Crystal in place, Light Ray left it and moved onto the next best spot to recharge one of the others. And deep down below in the pitch black darkness, Grogar's strength was slowly returning. Even his solid body was nearly beginning to reshape itself.

"Yes. . . it seems my window of opportunity is slowly opening back up. Patience, Grogar. Let the fool do all your dirty. And if it's the last thing I ever do, that demon hunter and his miserable little prince buddy are gonna pay!" Grogar said to himself.





Meanwhile, back in Equestria, Twilight and Heat were almost done with mixing the potion. Once applied through Eternal's lifeless mouth, he'll live again. But…

"Princess Celestia, I have my concerns…" Starswirl stated.

"What do you mean?" Celestia asked.

"Think, should this potion work and Eternal does come back, what's the first thing he'll do when he's brought up to speed of what's happened?" Starswirl asked.

"If I know the boy, he'll probably want to go back and stop that madman from harming others." Discord butted in.

"No… No! That can't happen!" Celestia said in realization, staring at her son's corpse.

"Princess Celestia, I can understand your concerns. Believe me, even I wouldn't dare let him back out there… not in his present state, that is." Starswirl said. "I did practically teach him the ways of magic, but it seems even that wasn't enough. That is why, with your permission, I wish to train the young prince and prepare him for the battles ahead. I will even accompany him on his perilous quest to ensure his safety!"

"You'd keep my son safe?" Celestia asked, concerned. 

"As the Pillar of Sorcery, I pledge to keep your son safe. Of course, I will have to train him first before we can enter the other world." Starswirl said.

"Not a bad plan, Starswirl, but there's one problem: Humans can't use magic. So, unless you got something that can help you channel magic, you won't be able to defend yourself." Discord pointed out.

"I'm well aware of this human dimension not possessing any magic. But you forget that I've created and mastered hundreds of spells in my time. I wouldn't have volunteered to come along if I wasn't prepared. That's why I made this," Starswirl explained, pulling out a golden, magic amulet around his neck.

"That's my teacher… always thinking 3 steps ahead," Celestia said.





Finally, in Death's and Harmony's dimension, the wraith and Death had arrived. Death soon took Inferno over to Harmony's room where she laid in her bed… pale and sickly as she was. She coughed violently, he could sense her magic was imbalanced by the darkness taken over the entire city.

Death felt even more dread to see his beloved’s condition worsening.

Inferno, on the other hand, approached the ill goddess, observing her as he could detect and smell the dark and demonic energy that was infecting her. The wraith stood there, by the goddess’s bedside, in silence as he continued to watch over her.

And after a brief silence, Inferno speaks his mind. “The energy that infects her is the same energy that infects the human world, is it not?” He asked the grim reaper.

“Yes, it is. And the more the darkness grows in that universe, the more her condition worsens. While her powers were able to fight off the infection, the darkness grew beyond our control and became too great for even her life-giving light.” Death explained, with worry.

Inferno takes in the information given to him, silently thinking to himself before he spoke to her again.

“I believe there’s a way I can save her and cleanse the infection that’s killing her.” the wraith claimed.

The words that came from the former assassin’s mouth brought a glimpse of hope and relief to the grim reaper’s hollow heart.

“Really!? Then what can you do?” Death asked.

Inferno turned away from Harmony to look Death in the eyes, as his eyes glowed with a dim purple color.

“To purge the darkness that infects her, I'll have to drain it from the source.” the wraith stated. “Which means… I’ll have to absorb and devour all the excessive dark energy that now engulfs the human realm.”

"Then please, hurry or she'll not have enough time left. I beg you," Death pleaded, holding his dearly beloved’s hand.

There was no time to dawdle. Inferno quickly opened up a portal back into the human world and set out on his quest. But will he be able to absorb the dark energy in time to help Harmony? Will Eternal truly be resurrected? Will Grogar finally succeed in his plans for revenge and inter-dimensional domination? 

Well, let's hope our heroes' sake… things won't turn for the worse.