Datura swore. She swore in multiple languages and then kicked a rock because it was there and in the way. Then she blasted the rock to bits. Of all the things that could have gone wrong having her dimensional slider charm broken was easily the worst possible thing. She knew how to make another one, of course. She even had access to all the necessary and rare materials on E-Prime, but did she have time?
“If this world was not about to burn in entropic chaos I would find that bat pony and turn his guts into jump rope and his wings into a leather satchel! Then I would cut his heart out and feed it to a manticore just for the fun of it!” Much to Datura’s surprise, the bottle at her side thumped. It had never done that before. Ever. She looked down at it as the clouds swirled about angrily. “Did not like the thought of that? Good! Because I’m sure Void will do much worse to him than anything I would have had time to consider. I don’t know how much longer I have before Sunset Shimmer perishes, but it can’t be long. Perhaps he will be kind enough to… oh, who am I kidding!”
Gods and Goddesses were many things, but in all the years of her experience those with the most power often had the least compassion for others that were 'beneath' them. And one did not get much more powerful than the creators of the very universe where she was currently stuck. Datura took a deep breath. Her body did not really need the air, but the sensation was meditative and it calmed her racing mind.
There was time, as long as she could get the necessary materials and sufficient energy to just tear her way into the next nearest parallel dimension. Nothing fancy. Void was powerful, but he was also methodical to his madness. If she worked fast…
Datura’s eyes opened. There was something familiar about this place. She knew these woods. After a few minutes of struggling through the thicket and blasting some of the local wildlife that thought her easy prey Datura found a path that led out of the woods to a clearing. It was there that she spotted a structure in the distance. She knew this rise, this hill… this was old Canterlot… which meant that ruin must have been the old castle.
“But,,, what is that inside of it?” Her curiosity was piqued and she had not skimmed any relevant memories on this subject. At least none that mattered. She did not have much time, but perhaps there was a component or two near she could scavenge and she could both sate her interest and her need. With the decision made Datura made her way across the field and the bridge.
The exterior walls of what remained of the castle were as old as she was. She placed a hoof upon the stone and ran a broad spectrum analysis to confirm such. She gently patted the stone like an old friend. Her old lab was not far from here, but not worth seeking out. She was certain all its content was gone and judging by the surrounding vegetation collapsed or full of roots. What was most intriguing, however was that the scan also revealed that the area was still saturated with magic. Dare say more than had existed before. That fact surprised her.
“What could have… I know old beardo detected a ley line cross junction here, but it never pulsed with this much power. And what is this… thing in the middle. It’s so… bright and… I am actually at a loss for words for once.”
“You do not belong here.”
Datura whipped around and fire her laser cannon. The blast passed through the pony behind her and scorched the ground. The translucent purple unicorn simply scowled at her. It took a moment, but Datura recalled some of Twilight’s memories she had gleamed.
“Ah, the Guardian of Harmony or something like that. I saw you in Twilight’s mind. So, you really do assume the form of a young Twilight Sparkle. How uninspiring.”
“You do not belong here,” Harmony repeated.
“Maybe not, but unless you are going to do something about it I think I’ll just play tourist for a moment longer. I was here, long before you ever came along, little hologram.”
“You are wrong. I remember you, Red Clover. In a memory of a memory. From long ago. When I was whole. When I was more." Datura turned her attention back to the projection, which was examining its hoof, seeming lost in thought before turning hard purple stardust eyes back to the unicorn. "You are not harmonious and are fueled by darkness beyond chaos. You do not seek balance. You take that which does not belong to you. Just as you did before. That is why Samael patiently waits for you at the gates. As he waits for every creature.”
Datura fired at Harmony once more resulting in the same ineffectiveness. She tried to use her horn but that too failed and struck the dirt behind the spirit. “How could you possibly know what happened in Tartarus? There was not a single living soul to witness it.”
Harmony blinked once and cocked her head a bit to the side. It made Datura uncomfortable as if the apparition were studying her. “Samael told me. You had a mutual relationship of fair exchange for a number of years. He is adamant about fairness. But you wanted that which he would not give. Even after he let you take some of the water for your Memory Stone. You wanted the power of souls at your command. Such power is his and Aine’s alone to use, shape, or discard back to the ether. They are the outer circle and it falls to them. So, instead of accepting this fact you figured out how to distract him long enough in order to take a piece from the golden city. The precious yellow golden stone that you transformed into the flask at your hip.”
Datura place a hoof over the bottle and waited to see if the spirit would do anything other than stand there and stare. “I wanted more than just a piece, but apparently even serving him up an entire village of freshly slaughtered souls was not enough to keep him busy for long. The first time I underestimated how powerful a god really can be.”
“You stole from him,” Harmony continued. The flat, monotone delivery of her words were beginning to unnerve Datura as if this thing was trying to bore her to death. “Because of you, he erected the unbreakable door and instead of killing you where you stood he chose to wait. To let you stew in fear of the inevitable. You would come to him eventually. As all souls do. But then you cheated. You left our world. He was not happy about that.”
Datura stepped up to the projection and glared at it. “That’s wonderful, thank you for the stroll down memory lane, but why would Death tell you that story? Who are you to him?”
“I am Harmony.”
Datura’s eyes widened and she stepped back horn glowing with a prepared defensive spell. “As in the goddess?”
“I was. I am no longer a goddess. My body and power were disincorporated by Star Swirl the Bearded and the Pillars. I was called forth in their moment of need and my power spread throughout the world to contain a great darkness seeded below. I was reborn a crystal tree as a means to balance the spreading chaos. A fitting symbol of renewal and reincarnation. Regardless, I am Harmony now. And I will say for the last time, you do not belong here in my sacred place.”
“Interesting story. A shame about the losing the body and power, but I can relate. I just use mine as a means of getting around these days. Now that I look at it, I just need a piece of that flawless crystal for my new necklace housing and I will be on my way.”
“No.”
Datura arched a brow and smirked. “Are you going to do something to stop me, dead goddess? Are you even capable of doing more than just being a ghost?” A crystal spike shot out from the ground and stopped centimeters from Datura’s face.
“I cannot harm a living creature, but I will defend this place without hesitation against that which does not have a beating heart, abomination.”
Datura bowed slightly in deference. She then quickly unfolded her hoof, snapped off the top of the spike that had threatened to impale her, and then teleported away. Harmony searched about, but the witch was gone from her sanctum. Frustrated, even if her face did not show it, Harmony reached out through her crystal roots all the way up the Canterhorn. She tapped into the ocular crystals she had provided Sunset Shimmer that were placed throughout the castle to try and find Raven to warn her.
Much to her distressed dismay she found her special friend hurt and on the ground in the throne room. There were many hurt and many dead. How had she not seen such heinous acts? Her hard eyes once again searched about for The Red Clover, but the witch was no longer in the forest proper. A moment later everything went white after Luna did something to Sunset Shimmer. Harmony retreated back into her roots to wait and see what would happen next. It was all she could do for now.
A day had passed.
Datura took stock of what items she still had and what she would need. Not wasting any of her valuable time she had carefully shaped the harmonic crystal into a perfect sphere and rune etched orbital matrix. It had been easier than the first time she had done such with shaking hooves and levitating ancient carving tools. Once again, she was eternally thrilled to have her hooves replaced with something far more useful. Once the crystal sculpting was complete Datura considered the world around her. More so, the fact that there still WAS a world around her and not doom and gloom wasteland of burning rain and boiling seas with clouds of sulfur. And that was just the tip of her imagination.
The only logical explanation she could conclude was that somehow, against all the odds, Sunset Shimmer was still alive. As unlikely as that seemed it was not impossible. She could think of at least three different ways the living golem mare could have survived. However, considering Void had not come to bother her meant that either he still had faith in her to complete the mission, or he was so preoccupied with restraining Discord that he could not spare the time to bother her. In either case that gave her an opportunity to finish her new necklace so as to flee and maybe cause just a bit more havoc on her way out. Would he be furious for her running away? Absolutely. But she needed only to hide herself in dimensions far from his influence and avoid the In Between for long stints where he could reach her.
Earlier in the day, Datura had found herself on the outskirts of what she had originally thought was a farming community. But then, considering some of her stolen memories and geography she was in fact in the small to medium sized town of Ponyville. It was surprisingly cosmopolitan even when she considered the stolen memories. It amazed her to find another Equestrian town with dragons, griffons, yak, zebras, kirin, hippogriffs, and so on living alongside all three tribes. Even after all her travels, to see such with her own eyes was a shock and at the same time fascinating. After all, all these creatures meant they brought all their cultures and knowledge with them. She could spend days here if not weeks gathering all that information and genetic material for study. Too bad she did not have that kind of time.
Then, a glint of light caught her eye. On the far side of town, a huge, asymmetrical building that could only be a castle, if albeit a strange one, caught her attention. The Castle of Friendship. And not far from it, what she really could use to her advantage. A school. Young creatures had young, pliable souls that were far easier to take control of and manipulate. Not that that should be a problem, Datura thought, as she extracted her last vial of alicorn blood potion just to ensure it was intact.
“One last chance to turn this disaster around and make a fast exit before a certain angry god takes notice.” Datura examined the blood, admiring the quality of her work. Once she started she had no doubt her enemies would know, especially Clover. She would need to make preparations, distractions, and to work unimpeded if she were to have a chance at succeeding. One does not rip a hole in space/time recklessly unless they wish to see what the inside of a black hole is like.
Datura’s eyes turned to the sky that was quickly approaching dusk and smirked. It had been so long since that first time she had left this world behind it was almost difficult to remember it. So much had changed for better or worse, Datura had learned so much more about the universe since then. She would not need the lunar alignment this time.
Much to her surprise, Datura found the school all but deserted. The staff must have sent most of the students home or elsewhere when Canterlot became under attack. The student dormitory, that appeared to be capable of housing hundreds of students, was dark except for a few windows. What was also strange was that there did not appear to be any guards or security. Did they trust these students that much to stay out of trouble? That no outsiders would harm them? The thoughts passed.
Datura wove her spell and reached out to the dozen students that were in the dorms. It took a few minutes but they slowly heeded her call and began to emerge to the courtyard. Just like she had found in Canterlot and Ponyville, these students were a mix of all different creatures and not just ponies.
“Hey, where are you guys going?”
Datura turned her eyes to the young dragon and kirin that had followed the others out. Just as before, she was unable to penetrate the dragon’s mind. The kirin was a bit of a surprise.
“Hmm. Part dragon, part pony. I sense magic attuning within you, but you still maintain the dragon’s natural resistance to magic itself. How conflicting and yet fascinating… I wonder, how complex must your mana and neural pathways be to handle such opposing forces? Do you experience violent energy feedback?”
“Uhhhh…” said the young female kirin, unable to think of anything to say to the strange unicorn that was clearly not a member of the school staff.
“Hey!” shouted the young female dragon. “Did you do this to our friends?”
Datura brushed her curiosity aside and smiled brightly. “I did. And if you wish to see them unharmed I suggest you not do anything s-” The dragon shot a fireball at Datura that she easily dodged. “Something like that.”
“Menna, go warn the head mistress!” shouted the dragon.
Datura was about to comment when a shadow moved, passing overhead. A larger, bright orange scaled dragon landed between the students and the witch. Smolder growled, smoke wisps rising from her nostrils.
“Menna, Sulfite, stay behind me.”
“A dragon in charge of a school in Equestria? Yes, I see it now. The ‘School of Friendship’. Ugh. You truly are full of saccharine, Twilight Sparkle.”
“Who are you and why did you bring my students outside?”
“Oh, I’m sure you have heard of me by now. Spike certainly won’t be forgetting me any time soon… if he is still alive.”
Smolder snarled, but stopped in mid-leap as the other students stepped around her and came to kneel before the ochre pony. Datura relished the confusion and fear that arose in the dragon’s eyes. It was difficult to get one up on a dragon on the best of days, but this one seemed concerned for her students. Datrua could respect that... and, of course, use it at the same time.
“Get back! All of you!”
“They can’t hear you. Well, they can, but they are my creatures now. And if you wish for them to survive the next few hours intact I suggest you keep that fiery temper in check. The minds of children are fragile and can be squashed ro puddy quite easily.”
Smolder took a step back, raising her claws defensively. “They’re just kids! What do you want with them?”
“Honestly, I don’t want them. I detest children, but I need useful hostages to give your princesses pause. Come along everyone. I have work to do and some of the items I need can be found nearby. I do love a well stock science lab, so thank you for that.” Datura turned and led her prisoners back to the castle. Smolder began to panic. “Oh, I know about the baby dragon. Everything these young, little minds know, I know. I will allow you to bring the baby to the foyer with the others, but if you fly away with him I will kill at least two of these creatures. So, think carefully before acting, head mistress.”
“You won’t win. Twilight and Sunset will see to that and I hope I’m there to witness it.”
Datura paused and tapped her chin a moment before shrugging and continuing towards the castle. “You are the second creature to say that to me in so many days. Well, first creature. The other was a machine, but I digress, and you misunderstand. This is not about winning, it’s about surviving and I always survive.”
The sun had set.
While Datura was certain Luna or Twilight were capable of taking care of such a task she felt it in her soul that it had been Sunset Shimmer who had raised the moon. She was not entirely sure why, but some part of her just knew it to be true. Her eyes turned downward to the bottle and the swirling clouds. With a little bit of magic she summoned a soul and leashed it so as to not escape or be taken by a reaper. The cloud formed into a stout unicorn mare that looked about and glared at Datura. It was a good thing the captain did not know how to hurt her, Datura thought, because she had no doubt in the intentions behind that deathly gaze.
“So, that is where my intuition is coming from, you.” Tempest snorted and growled. “You knew both princesses well. I can see from Twilight’s memories that you, your husband, and the princesses were close. Best of friends.”
“What would a monster like you know about friendship?”
Datura shrugged. “Very little, actually. In my experience, others only seek friendship to eventually seek more, be it monetary or physical favor. Sometimes both. Truth is, that is how I ended up like this. A soul piloting a reanimated body.”
“I don’t care, why tell me this?”
“Mostly because I need the ingredients the children brought me to stew for a bit longer before I cast the first part of the spell and the final act is to begin. I also just felt like talking and talking to myself gets boring after a few centuries. Granted, I've had better conversations with the wall than with some ponies, but I figured since you are so very close to Twilight and Sunset perhaps you can give me insight." Tempest said nothing. Datura shrugged. "If nothing else having you will give them pause instead of just trying to incinerate me on sight. They want you back. That makes you valuable and my last defensive card to play if need be.”
“You are a pathetic, heartless, lonely abomination and however this ends I hope you rot in a pool of hydra stomach acid or whatever will dissolve a soul slowly and painfully for a thousand years or more.”
Datura chuckled. “Such a vivid and violent imagination you have. You know, a long time ago now, I did trust a creature, well, as much as I extend trust. He was a lot like you. Angry, spiteful, powerful, a soldier and noble pony. Quite comely as well. He intrigued me in both intellect and physical prowess. I let my bodily desires and loneliness get the best of me and allowed him to bed me. Multiple times. It was… well, fantastic to be honest. I’m… I will never know for certain, but I’m sure he impregnated me, bred me. I felt it.
“I could have stopped it, I always had before. I had full access to my magic in that world. My body was, mostly, pony-like but with hands and we walked only on our hindlegs if you can imagine that… It was the only time in my life that the thought of having a child did not scare me. I wanted it. I wanted it in that place with him. I never felt that way when I was young. Clover prospected the idea more than once, but I was different then. And... Clover is not what one might call 'father material' if you know what I mean.”
“I know what bred means. I have two foals.”
“Of course, apologies." The hollow apology only made Tempest snear more. "You know, it was the last time I was ever touched in such a manner. So intimately, lovingly. I thought or felt he only wanted me for me, not for my knowledge or power or politics or anything from me. Then, Clover came for me, as he always eventually does. Sentimental fool. Things went down hill from there, as the saying goes.
“Venture found out I was married to Clover and challenged him to a duel with swords. But instead of fighting Clover for my love or anything cliché like that he turned faster than I thought possible and stabbed me instead. Impaled me would actually be a more accurate way of putting it since the sword went completely through. He intentionally stabbed me in my gut to kill me and any unborn foal as slow and excruciating as possible. I fled. I was bleeding out, dying, and in soooo, so much pain. That was when I realized that being inside, restricted to this body and its petty wants and such were a weakness. So, I cast myself out and used a spell to bind my soul to drive this body instead. Now I never feel anything unless I want to. Can’t be hurt, can’t be killed. Just the way it should be.”
Tempest shook her head. “If you are trying to get me to empathize with you or something you are talking to the wrong pony. Is what he did to you wrong? Sure, but knowing you and even a fraction of what you have done, yeah, I still want you dead and I would have aimed for the heart or head.”
Datura sighed. “Well, I guess that means therapy time is over.” Tempest grunted and screamed as she was forced back into the bottle and sealed away again. She lifted the vessel so that all the souls inside could easily hear her. “Love and friendship are weaknesses. And they will burn with this world.”
Datura passed back through the library, which had been a small pleasure to explore, back past a table that gave her the chills as if it was watching her, back to the foyer and vestibule where her hostages sat mindlessly waiting.
“Let the children go,” said Smolder.
Datura rolled her eyes. “For the third time, no. Stop asking. It is getting annoying.”
“This can’t be healthy for them having their minds dominated like this for hours on end. They have needs even if you don’t.”
Datura quirked a brow. She then took note of the castle walls. “Ah, I guess sound travels well in here and dragons have excellent hearing. Understand that just because I wanted to be a mother once in my life does not change the fact that I have no qualms with killing children to get what I want. I would use them for this next part. While mature souls and lives are less pliable they have more energy and energy is what I need.”
Smolder growled and held her son close. Baby Grunt just ducked his head and sucked on his tail. He did not understand, but he could tell his mother did not like this mare. “I won’t help you take innocent lives.”
Datura smirked. “That is fine. I do not require your help. I just can’t have your interference either.”
With nothing else to add Datura marched out the front door with her young thrall hostages bringing the prepared materials that the witch had ordered them to collect from the castle and the school. Smolder remained seated in the castle doorway, waiting for an opportunity she could do something that did not endanger the others. She had already tried using her SunLight Crystal when she went to collect Grunt, but it had sparked and exploded.
With little effort, Datura had the thralls begin drawing the runes she needed on the ground or setting out the materials. She next retrieved the last vial of stolen and modified alicorn blood, taking a moment to admire it again. It really was a work of potion making art.
Datura popped the cork. “Once more unto the breach.”
As before, Datura spasmed and twisted as the blood magic reshaped and empowered her beyond her normal means. Her eyes burned with dark power and her blackish green ethereal wings sprouted forth. Smolder, who had been waiting for an opportunity just stood and stared. Did the witch just poison herself?? Do I attack her? What do I do, Twilight? What do I do?!
Datura marched over to the bowl that had been placed on a low table by a student and smashed its content. The potion mixed with blood began to spread out and light up the runes that had been carved into the earth. The spell energy shot into the air and formed a shield over the entire town.
With that part complete, Datura next lit her horn and began to take the minds of as many townsfolk as possible. Unlike Canterlot, where she had them attack each other, they marched from their homes, businesses and wanderings to come form defensive ranks at the different avenues of approach towards the castle and Ponyville. That would take some time to complete especially with some of the creatures, more than she expected, trying to stop or wake up their friends and loved ones. Datura shrugged. They were all meat shields either way.
“With that done, now I can focus on what is next most important.” Datura set the necklace down in a new bowl next to a dagger.
Smolder watched in horror as an earth pony she did not know came up to the table, lifted the blade, and cut his own throat. The blood sprayed at first, but then began to pool in midair into a sphere before being added to the bowl. The necklace inside began to glow as it absorbed the blood like a sponge.
“Head mistress?” Smolder used her free claw to block the view from the young dragon and kirin behind her. “What’s going on? Are our friends okay?”
“When I see an opportunity for you to save them I will say so, till then just stay behind me, got it?” She did not turn to look but was sure they nodded at her.
After the third victim willingly gave their life and their blood the necklace charm floated out of the bowl and into the air. The intricately etched outer bands began to glow and spin around the central crystal sphere. Datura’s horn lit up blackish green. The dark energy shot forth and inscribed magical runes into the very air while she mumbled quietly. The necklace flashed and sent out a concussion of energy. Smolder’s bright blue eyes widened farther when reddish yellow cracks began to appear in the sky, spreading from rune to rune.
Sunset Shimmer landed and quickly released Clover who had been dangling high above the world in her and Fog Gauge’s grip. If he had been scared at the idea of being dropped he had not outwardly shown it. They had spotted the energy shield around the entire town from above and landed on one of the main roads leading in from the north. Having dealt with more than one Red Clover shield Sunset knew better than to touch it out of curiosity.
Much to Twilight’s dismay, there had been no time to formulate a backup plan. The teams were divided, the support staff and guards assigned, and the rest went to work mixing and weaponizing the sleeping spray in water bottle or canteens or anything that could carry it. Sunset spared one last glance to the mountain behind them and Canterlot above. They would be in position soon, but for now, it was necessary to get the distraction/bait team underway.
“I am, for the record, displeased with you being on the bait team, my princess.”
Sunset shrugged much like how Gauge tended to do. “I make good bait and Clover has the dimensional crossing necklace. We make a great juicy target.”
“And somehow, she managed to say that with a straight face.”
Sunset looked down at her bandolier pouch that had her PAAL in the front. It had been specially designed to be both protective of the small glass device and still allow her camera eye to see out though a slotted opening. It had been a risk bringing Raven, but the AI did not want to be left behind yet again. And, Sunset had a plan Raven would assist with as well.
“Okay, so we know as soon as I cut my way through this she will know we are here. Which is kind of what we want, but at the same time we don’t want to be overrun by the zombie horde that she has no doubt raised again. We want her eyes on us and we want to get as close as possible while maintaining our one advantage.”
“We should have brought Spike,” said Gauge, doublechecking his gear.
“Spike is with Luna on the assault team once we clear an opening and Twilight and Flurry are leading the suppression team. We didn’t have anypony else to spare that I was comfortable with risking. So, we good?”
“Trust me, I know what must be done.”
Sunset summoned her sword and glared at Clover, pointing the flaming tip his direction. “I don’t trust you. You have lost my faith and trust, so I am moving to threatening. Because trust me, if you run, if you try to take her and run, I swear to you that I will find the two of you eventually and Flurry Heart will be recovered by then. And again, trust me, that if you think I have control and anger issues wait until you see a pissed off Princess of Explosions. There won’t be enough left of the two of you to fill a tea cup. The tiny ones.”
Clover grimaced, but nodded. “I understand.”
With nothing else to add and no need to point out that an angry Princess Cadence would probably be the scariest of them all, since Datura hurt her daughter, they continued to the edge of the barrier.
Upon examination it was similar to other barriers they had all seen, pulsating with blood powered magic. It was impressive and made Sunset want to vomit with how horrible the thing was. Like everything Datura created. Sunset Shimmer spread her wings and they lit up the early evening with warm flamed determination. She poured that feeling and the sense of duty to her subjects and her desire to both end the Red Clover and save her friend. into her weapon. All her feelings making Sunset's repaired heart burn with power that channeled into the flaming sword she held before her.
With swift precision, Sunset’s sword slashed through the barrier encountering almost no resistance. Also, unsurprising, the barrier began to heal and close immediately. Sunset jumped through the opening she had sundered and turned to cut it again, but found Clover pulling a surprised Gauge next to him only to disappear and reappear in a well timed teleport. Gauge shook his head and shoved off from the other stallion with a hiss.
The barrier closed. Sunset was not worried though. Twilight and Luna could get through on their ends and they would get all their allies through as well. It was time to rock. And speaking of which…
“Raven.”
“Yes, Sunset?”
“Time to drop the needle, as the old saying goes. Play something loud and obnoxious.”
“You do realize you just summed up forty-six percent of your entire playlist library.”
Sunset paused to lift her bandolier to look Raven in the camera eye. “Really? You really are going to kidney stab me with that, you brat?”
Raven giggled. Genuinely giggled and it made Sunset smirk despite the intensity of the situation... which might have been the AI’s plan. She was mischievously helpful like that. “You know you love me. Playing random playlist track.”
Once the track began Sunset recognized it immediately as the Rainbooms’ own cover they had recorded of Twisted Sister’s “I Wanna Rock” where Rainbow Dash took lead vocals and everyone else did their best to recreate the icon track to RD’s desired taste. In all honesty, Sunset thought, it came out pretty well.
“This seems like a tactical error,” said Clover, cringing a bit at the blaring rock music.
“She already knows we are here,” replied Gauge so as to not distract Sunset from taking the lead. “The sheer audacity of this will give even the Red Clover pause at what we are up to and hopefully give the others the best possible chance of success.”
Gauge could tell from the sandy unicorn’s face he was not entirely convinced. He made a mental note to not let Clover out of his sight. If the hero of old did fail in his task, the thestral silently decided it would be his LAST mistake.