Summoning what strength she had left, Twilight prepared a magical barrier. She didn't know how long it would hold against a full blast from Wrath but it was better than nothing.
The spectral wolf opened its maw. The ball of energy in its mouth built to a climax. She was about ready to cast the shield.
Then, Fallen let out a cry of pain. Wrath shook its head and started to flicker, becoming less substantial. The Amulet glowed brighter, trying to keep him there but it did nothing to stop it. Wrath was fading away.
"What… what is this? No!" Fallen stamped his hoof. "Thou art in my thrall! Obey! Thou cannot-!"
Another cry escaped his throat. Wrath tossed its head back, howling in impotent rage. With one last flicker, it vanished completely.
"Return to me! Return!" Fallen channelled more magic into the Amulet, but Wrath didn't heed his call. "How can this be? What hast thou done?!"
"There's no need to get angry over performance issues, Fallen," Cadence retorted whilst healing Celestia and Luna. "There's actually a special pill for that, especially for more mature stallions."
"Insolent…!" He stopped, angling his head away from them. Gazing towards the forest. "No. How can they be here?"
Without even another glance at the princesses, he shot off into the air and towards the forest.
"Come on, we need to get after him!" Twilight pushed herself to stand and muster energy for a teleport spell. "We have to stop him!"
"Indeed…" Luna was struggling to stand. "We must… we must…!"
"You must stay here," said Cadence. "I can heal you both but I need a little more time. Twilight, here."
Cadence concentrated her magic on Twilight's wings, restoring them to a working state. She also performed a love spell which gave her a new burst of energy.
"We'll join you as quick as we can," she said. "Go, hurry!"
Twilight nodded and teleported straight to the castle ruins. She hovered in the sky above, casting her eyes about for Fallen. She spotted him, careening straight towards a gathering in the gorge. She mustered another teleport and appeared directly in his path, blasting him point blank with a spell.
Caught by surprise, Fallen was shot backwards and skidded to a halt on the ground.
"Twilight!" Applejack hurried up. "When did ya-?"
"No time!" she replied quickly. "Whatever you're doing to stop Fallen, keep it up and stand guard! I'll hold him off."
"No, you won't. Not alone."
She knew that voice and the pony it came from. But when she saw him, she had to do a double take.
"Dusk?" she gasped. "How have you… actually, tell me later. But for the record? Wow."
"My thanks, dearest," he said, drawing his sword. "Now, I believe a matter requires our attention."
Fallen was already back on his hooves, shaking off Twilight's spell. She could feel the anger simmering away inside his helmet as he raised his sword and called on the Amulet's power.
"Oh no, you don't!"
Dusk stepped into a shadow cast by Twilight. He jumped out of Fallen's and it was only the alicorn's quick reflexes that let him block the blade.
"Impressive, young one," he remarked. "But I have no time for this."
"Believe me," responded Dusk, "you'll make time."
He summoned a white cloud beneath Fallen and threw him off balance when he shifted it. An orange hoof punched the alicorn in the face, followed by a bombardment of blue pellets. Fallen summoned Sloth to let the latter attack pass through, then rapidly closed the distance with a series of rapid strikes that Dusk had to work to block. He bounced over Fallen on pink hooves, landing on a white cloud but Fallen took off after him, keeping up the attack.
Twilight fired a spell while he was distracted, throwing him off a little and took to the sky to hover near Dusk, firing spell after spell. The alicorn either let his armour take the hits or used Gluttony to absorb Twilight's magic. He managed this while also blocking or absorbing Dusk's strikes, biding his time before moving on the offensive.
He did this with a sudden blow struck back at Dusk, disrupting his balance and letting Fallen land a strike on his leg. He then used Greed to turn part of the gorge wall behind Twilight into boiling acid. She only just managed to deflect it with a shield but not his follow-up sword strike. She fell from the sky, landing next to Dusk.
"Die now, prodigies of the princesses!" he bellowed.
"Not on our watch, ya varmint!"
"Eat rock candy, jerk!"
Fallen didn't have time to react when some very hard examples of this baked good pelted his armour. This was followed by a hammer blow to his head, then another to his chest.
"Come on, up and at 'em, you two." Applejack hurried over and hauled them to their hooves. "We ain't done yet."
"Too right!" Pinkie was keeping Fallen at bay with shots from her cannon. "I already got the perfect boss music picked out for this meanie!"
"You can't be here," said Twilight. "He's too dangerous for you too."
"Hey now, jus' 'cause we ain't fancy alicorns or magic unicorns doesn't mean we're sittin' this out. Not when our friends need us," replied Applejack.
"So lemme ask you: do ya feel lucky, punk?" Pinkie angled her cannon at him. "Well? Do ya?"
Fallen readied his blade. "Dost thou?"
He took off into the air, avoiding Pinkie's fire and Applejack's swing. But Twilight flew into the air, summoning a chunk of shattered gorge from nearby and holding it aloft to cast a long shadow over them. Dusk coiled the shadows as tendrils, swiping at Fallen from below. He made back towards the crystals holding the Hosts, avoiding or phasing through them with Sloth.
Applejack whistled to get Dusk's attention and tapped the ground. Getting her message, he crafted a tendril large enough for her to stand on and sent her up. She toward shot Fallen, striking him with her hammer before he could move. Dusk did the same for Pinkie while she loaded her bolas into the cannon again, aiming for Fallen's wings.
Just as he was about to cut down Applejack, she landed her shot and the ropes wrapped his wings up. Dusk moved them out of harm's way, just as Twilight hurled the chunk of rock at Fallen. He uses Greed to turn it into molten magma which he coiled and hurled at the two earth ponies. The unicorn and alicorn countered with combined shields, though they were forced to leap back from the lava before it landed.
Fallen turned to resume his advance but once again buckled. This time, it was Sloth who started to flicker and fade. He tried to stand, to power through it but even he was hard pressed as another one of his thralls left his control.
"No! Meddlesome pests!" He rounded on the Element wielders. "Let us see how well thou can stand against one another!"
The toad of Envy manifested and all of their eyes flashed green. Applejack snarled, turning her hammer on Pinkie while she fired her cannon at the farm pony, looking livid. Twilight and Dusk turned on one another, trading spells with matched blocks and counters.
Fallen breathed heavily, turning to make for the Hosts. But something lightning fast struck him with a sharp cut, followed by a few more from behind. He turned to strike but his attacker was already flying out of reach.
"Hey, you clunky jerk!" Rainbow smirked at him. "Forget about me?"
"Brutish cur!" Rarity's fan blade struck him on his exposed parts, the unicorn standing in his way. "Have at you, I say!"
"Be careful, Rarity!" called Fluttershy as the fashionista leaped into battle alongside Rainbow. "Your wound is a lot better, but don't push yourself too much!"
"Don't worry yourself, dear!" she replied, ducking under Fallen's strikes as Rainbow performed a strafe. "See what you can do about the others!"
"R-Right." She flew towards the feuding group of her friends. "All of you, stop! Fallen is making you do this! You're friends, don't do this!"
They paid her calls no heed, continuing to slug it out with each other. She tried to use her healing bracelet but that didn't do anything beyond mending their cuts and bruises, which they readily presented more of them with.
Behind her, things weren't looking much better. Though Rarity and Rainbow were indeed skilled combatants, Fallen was another level. He barged Rarity aside when she tried to cut him with her fan and Rainbow shortly after with a kick and a slash. He made with all speed towards the crystals. The defenders were rallying but she knew they'd be knocked aside.
Doing the only thing she could think of, she ran to move in front him whilst powering her shield bracelet. Rainbow managed to get back on her hooves briefly to delay him again with another attempted hit but she was again kicked away.
It was just short enough. Fluttershy threw herself before Fallen, conjuring a shield. It might not do much but she wouldn't back down. She wouldn't be afraid.
Then, a bright light flashed around her chest. She glanced down to see, with astonishment, her Element of Harmony. Before she knew it, she conjured a shield the same colour as her fur. Just like in the strange dream Dusk had been trapped inside.
Fallen ran up against it. She buckled but it held against him. He conjured Greed, turning the surface of the shield into sparks of electricity that arced towards Fluttershy. She yelped from the shocks, scrambling away as he pressed on towards her.
"Fall to me," he growled, sending the snake at her.
Then, a white colour cloud appeared beneath him and sent him backwards. A barrage of blue pellets followed. Rarity and Rainbow were back on their hooves, still fighting and with their own Elements on their necks.
"Thou thinks those trinkets will serve thee any better than before?" he snarled.
"Seem to be doing alright against your crummy flank," retorted Rainbow.
She wasn't alone. The other four, freed from Envy's influence by their Elements, rallied to them.
While most of them moved to engage Fallen, Twilight flew towards Fluttershy who healed the injuries of the others.
"Take off your bracelets, quick!" she ordered. "We can give them to somepony else and they can help Cadence!"
"I'll take them!" Trixie slipped them on. "It's time I paid her back."
Twilight nodded and teleported Trixie back to Ponyville. She and Flutershy then turned to join the fray.
Fluttershy stayed back, performing a healing wave empowered by her Element and mending all their wounds. Rarity flipped on a white cloud to strike Fallen across the back. Applejack cracked the ground beneath him with orange hooves and smacked him with her hammer. When Fallen tried to take off, Rainbow fired blue pellets to throw him off balance before striking with her blades from above. Pinkie bounced around inside a pink ball, parting to fire and staying on the move. Twilight fired a concentrated beam at him, wearing down his armour while the jewel in her crown shimmered. Dusk, his Element channelling his magic to all of them, came in with shadow, light and blade, hitting Fallen wherever he could.
Then, with a cry of rage, Fallen summoned Pride whose own roar mingled with his own. Whatever illusion they saw was enough to break their attack, enough for him to strike back.
He slashed Pinkie across the chest, then punched Rainbow to the ground when she fumbled in her flight. For Rarity, he kicked her in the face, making her tumble into Fluttershy. He caught Dusk's blade in his own aura, driving it into his leg before punching him. He drained Twilight's spells with Gluttony, flying up to strike her down. For Applejack, he broke her hammer at the handle and struck her with both ends in the head.
But he didn't stay to finish them off. He left them beaten on the ground, galloping towards Sombra while he was still recovering from his last spell. The former king looked-exhausted, though that didn't stop Ember and Thorax rallying around him to give whatever defence they could.
But a burst of fire and a lightning strike cut across Fallen's path before he could reach them. Celestia and Luna, fully healed, descended from the sky and set upon the alicorn with halberd and scythes flashing. Fallen, caught off-guard by their sudden appearance, was driven back on the defensive.
Cadence, carrying Trixie, lowered her down and the unicorn immediately set to work on the Element wielders with Fluttershy's bracelet. She staggered a little when she landed, hurrying to Sombra.
"How's it going?" she asked. "It looks like it's taken a lot out of you."
"It… it has," he gasped. "And… I've only managed two. At this rate, he will… overwhelm us."
"Don't give up yet," urged Cadence. "I can do crystal magic too. Maybe I can help."
"Yeah, you're not looking so great yourself," said Ember. "There's got to be something else we can-"
"GET BACK HERE!"
Luna's bellow made them all look. Fallen had broken away completely from the princesses, darting towards the castle. He used Greed to vanish the stone so he could move through it before reforming it behind him.
"He's going after Samore!" Celestia blasted the rock with sun beams. "We can't let him reach her!"
"Sombra, come on!" Cadence set her horn aglow. "Our only chance is for both of us to do this!"
"We need… much more than that," he said weakly. "More power than… we can muster."
"Then what about all of us?" Dusk hurried up with his fellow wielders. "Let's see if we can give your spell a boost!"
As they moved into position to cast the spell, Fallen Soul moved through the rock and stone with as much speed as he could muster. He could feel her. The others were guiding him to her. He was so close. Once he obtained Lust, it wouldn't matter what they did. They would all kneel before him.
He moved through the last wall, galloping into the room. He could see her, hidden away behind an organ. Shining Armour ran to stop him but Fallen rammed past him, sword at the ready. Samore barely had time to scream before he drove it into her chest.
Calling on the reserves of the crystal magic inside the grafted horn of Sombra, he again created a formation of crystal around her of the same composition as the Amulet itself. Samore was frozen in anguish, her crystal radiating purple light. He could feel that power moving into him and he would corral it as he had all the others.
Then, Fallen Soul screamed.
No sooner had that power come to him, the remaining five were ripped from all at once. He could feel the gaping chasm where they had been. It was so much, he could hardly think. But he had to focus. Just use the power of Lust and it would all be over.
Pain. White hot pain struck him. Something else was torn from him. Cut away by the blow of an axe. His right wing. He had just enough time to see it on the ground before seeing Shining's glare.
"Now, we're even, you son of a bitch," he hissed.
He rammed Fallen with his shield and kicked him in the chest back into the centre of the room. Fallen swayed on the spot, blood spurting where his wing used to be. But before he could even think of countering, a burst of starlight filled the room. Luna emerged from it, scythes spinning and cutting Fallen twice across his chest.
"You may know where the Beast lies," she said. "But none know this castle better than us."
She charged Fallen, teleporting him back outside. He fell into a kick from Celestia, one that sent him crashing to the ground.
"No," he muttered. "It can't… can't end like this…"
"It's about to," declared Celestia.
The sisters exchanged a silent look. Their weapons were readied. They had teleported out of sight of the others. They didn't need to see what was about to happen.
"This isn't… my destiny…" Fallen weakly raised his blade in the direction of the sibling princesses. His horn and the Amulet both glowed briefly, but the light merely flickered and went out.
Celestia gave one final solemn look at the stallion she had once dared to call her friend. For an instant, she saw the same pony who had lived all those centuries ago: proud, dedicated, fearless, brave and strong. Then she blinked, and the battered form of Fallen was all that remained.
"...goodbye, Brave Heart," she whispered. Then, her remorseful gaze shifted to one of steely resolve.
She and Luna charged together. Luna's scythes flashed. Fallen brought up his sword, but it was batted aside and his left leg was cut free. Celestia's halberd thrust forward into his chest and straight out of his back. He grasped at it with his forelegs, trying to push it out of him. She pulled it out and with a combined strike, Celestia and Luna cut across Fallen's neck.
For a moment, the alicorn was still. Then, his head slid from his body and tumbled away. The body collapsed to its knees and onto the ground.
The royal sisters panted heavily. Sorrow passed over Celestia's face, looking down at what was left of Fallen. Then Luna placed a hoof on her shoulder, a grim but resolute expression on her face. Celestia sighed and nodded. They flecked the blood off their weapons and stowed them away, Celestia removing the Amulet from Fallen's body. The magic that bound it there was gone.
They rounded the corner to see the others, all hurrying over. Namely the Element wielders, but also Cadence who supported an exhausted looking Sombra. Luna hurried to her husband and captured his lips in a kiss.
"You did it, my crystal king. You did it!" she whispered with elation.
"I did… with much needed assistance," he said. "The Elements… their magic allowed me to sever all the remaining connections at once."
"Unfortunately, he did manage to create one more," said Luna. "Samore is in the same state as the others. Not to worry, Twilight. Your brother is quite well and indeed struck a mighty blow."
"Thank goodness," she murmured.
"We had best be thorough," said Sombra. "If I might… have some aid, I'll go and cut off Samore from the Amulet. I should… be able to perform the spell by the time I arrive."
"I'll take you there," said Spike. "Mind if I carry you? It'll be quicker if we fly."
Sombra smiled fondly. "Not at all. To be held… aloft by Honourable Spike, the Brave and Glorious, is a… great honour indeed."
With an embarrassed, but still pleased laugh, Spike took Sombra in his arms. The former king shared another kiss with his new wife, who warned him not to push himself too much, before Spike flew him back up towards the castle.
"Now that's being a royal assistant," remarked Twilight. An apprehensive look came to her face. "But then Fallen… is he…?"
"He is dead, Twilight." Sorrow came back to Celestia again. "I wish we didn't have to, but he had already begun to claim Lust as his own and the Amulet was magically enchanted to his person. I witnessed it myself, during his battle with Discord. The only way that it could have been removed was by Fallen himself…"
"Or by his death," finished Twilight. She let out a shuddering sigh. "It… it had to be done. Are you… okay?"
"Well enough, Twilight," she answered. "In a way, I mourned his passing long ago. The pony we fought today wasn't the same one who fought with us so long ago."
"He almost seemed sad," said Cadence. "It doesn't diminish all the horrible things he's done, but even so."
"There is little point in troubling ourselves over the matter. What's done is done," said Luna. "Fallen Soul is no more and the Demon Beasts remain confined."
A moment of silence settled over those gathered. It was a strange, shared atmosphere that passed between them. Like Luna's announcement didn't seem completely real. Nopony cheered or whooped for joy. They just… stood there. Taking it in.
"You mean we actually did it?" Pinkie looked troubled. "Wow. It's weird, I expected to be… happier than this. I mean, I'm glad but I should be super glad."
"We've all been through a lot in a comparatively short time space, Pinkie," said Cadence. "Even at the end, it's a lot to process. Especially given… what we've lost to get here."
"Yeah, you're right." Pinkie managed a little smile and gave Cadence a hug. "You did really, really great, Cadence. The Crystal Empire is gonna be back, better than ever. I know it."
A sob caught in Cadence's throat as she returned the hug. "I… thank you, Pinkie. You've all been amazing, thank you. All of you."
"Yeah, thanks ta these." Applejack looked down at her Element. "Ya didn't have anythin' ta do with this, did ya Twi?"
"I wasn't exactly in the right mind-set at the time this happened, Applejack," she reminded her. "It's so strange. It's like the Elements acted of their own accord."
"Perhaps it may not have necessarily been the Elements themselves, but their point of origin," said Celestia. "We are close to the Tree, after all. It may have sensed your distress and sent you some aid."
Twilight tilted her head. "You mean the Tree is alive?"
"All trees are alive, Twilight," said Fluttershy. "One like the Tree of Harmony has to be even more so."
"Hey, maybe that tablet was right all along," said Rainbow. "I mean, maybe the Elements actually were the Seeds and they did help stop the Beasts in the end. Just not in the way they usually do."
Dusk nodded. "Perhaps you're right, though technically they were more instrumental in stopping Fallen."
"Eh, whatever works," she shrugged.
"Well, I'm most gratified either way, especially for the opportunity to use Dusk's magic in the waking world and not just in a dream," said Rarity. "I'll miss being able to conjure those clouds myself, they're so soft. It would mean I wouldn't have to bring a fainting couch!"
"It's certainly been really helpful, especially keeping you all healed," said Fluttershy. "How's your neck, Rarity?"
"It still twinges a bit, but you and Zecora did a marvellous job. She said I was quite lucky. If Selena had gotten any closer with her teeth…" Rarity's expression looked fearful, but she shook it off. "Still, I'm fine now. This scar though… I certainly hope it fades."
Applejack nudged her side. "Don't ya worry about it. Yer still pretty as a picture, even with it. Heck, the scar kinda adds to it."
"Oh Applejack, you are a dear," she tittered. "Be careful though. I think you're making Rainbow Dash a little jealous."
"Huh?! N-No, I'm not!" Rainbow's face turned red. "I-I think Rarity's pretty too! Uh, not saying you're not, AJ, you are. What I mean is that… if you think she's… ugh, words!"
Applejack chortled and blushed. "Well thank ya kindly, Rainbow. Yer real pretty too, fer the record. Oh and we're still on fer that date."
"W-We are?! I mean, uh…" Rainbow rubbed the back of her head and chuckled awkwardly. "Sure we are. Cool, yeah."
Twilight looked to Dusk. "Were we like this?"
"Oh, you were both all jittery like Rainbow," said Pinkie at once. "Nopony can pull off Applejack's flirting game."
Applejack's blush deepened. "Hush now, I'm only bein' honest."
"Yeah and it works!" insisted Pinkie. "You don't even bat an eye, just straight in there with all the compliments, even with Celestia! I mean, yowza!"
"I must agree with Pinkie," said Celestia. "You're a lucky pony indeed, Rainbow Dash."
Rainbow was beyond coherent speech at this point, muttering random nonsense. Even Applejack seemed somewhat overwhelmed, hiding her blushing face under her hat.
"And hey, speaking of lucky…" Pinkie raised both her eyebrows at Twilight. "Looks like your future hubby had a big, big glow up, huh? Pretty great, right?"
"Pinkie, you know I don't go for ponies for their physical attributes. Though having said that…" Her eyes travelled up and down Dusk. "I can't exactly say I'm complaining either."
Dusk chuckled. "Darling, my eyes are up here."
"I know." She looked into them, frowning a bit. "It's going to take a bit to get used to though. The eyes, mainly. I assume something happened with Doom that you're like this?"
"Sadly, yes. Though I think, in a way, it's worked out for us both."
"I should say so," said Luna. "My student, you have achieved a true balance between light and dark that could only come from a full understanding and acceptance of both parts of yourself. Needless to say, I'm very, very proud of you."
He inclined his head to her. "Thank you, Luna. That means a great deal."
"But of course. However, I feel we must return to the matter at hoof," said Luna. "Though I'm as pleased as all of you that our enemy's plans have been almost foiled, we must still make a full accounting. We know of Fallen and the Beasts. Dusk, what of his lair?"
"Gone," he replied. "They managed to set off a volcanic eruption that destroyed the whole place. Ligne Grace didn't make it out before it happened."
"Can't exactly say I'm sad to hear about that," said Rainbow, clearly happy at having changed the subject. "All the other bad guys have been rounded up inside. They're being guarded and they pretty much gave up after… well, let's just say something rough happened and leave it at that."
"So lemme see," said Pinkie, tapping her hoof as she listed them off. "We have big and nasty himself, the terrible twins, the brawny bone boy, the perilous puppet master, the thirsty thestral and the seething cyborg. We still have the chilling changeling and the dastardly doctor."
"Actually, we do have the changeling," put in Fluttershy. "I helped Shining to catch him. He's got him trapped in one of his shield spells."
"Then what happened to Tube?" asked Twilight. "Wasn't he at the base when you were there, Dusk?"
"Well, we heard him over a loudspeaker and plenty of his robots were about, but we never saw him." Dusk frowned. "Come to think of it, Grace mentioned that he was the one who activated the self-destruct that caused the eruption in the first place."
"Now that seems mighty fishy," said Applejack. "Why would he blow the place sky high like that, 'specially if Grace was still around?"
"Perhaps he hoped to destroy a number of us in one go," said Rarity. "A rather extravagant way of doing it, but even so."
"But the Beast crystals were still inside the base at the time. It was only thanks to them being near his teleportation machine that we got them out in the first place," said Dusk. "If we hadn't, I've no doubt the six of them would have been unleashed right there."
"I don't like this," said Luna. "I feel that we've emerged from the frying pan and into the fire. We just have yet to see it."
"We'll remain alert for the moment," suggested Celestia. "Their power base has been destroyed and the majority of their allies and assets are in our custody. We'll begin a search for Tube at the earliest convenience. For now, we need to see to the Hosts and ensure the Beasts are properly secured. We'll also see about securing this too." She brought out the Amulet. "We can't risk it falling into the wrong-"
A hail of small magical blasts shot it from her aura, taking her by complete surprise. Something small and metal darted forward, grasping the Amulet in its spindly metal claws as it zoomed away. It looked like a smaller version of the robots Dusk had fought in the base.
"Stop that thing!" Rainbow yelled.
Those nearest tried to grab it, but it was too small and fast. If they got close, it would fire stinging beams that made them falter. In seconds it was away, making towards the other end of the gorge.
"Get after it, quickly!" Celestia commanded. "We can't let it…!"
Celestia trailed off and frowned. Her eyes flickered upwards, focusing on something in the sky. They all turned to see, just as her eyes widened and she started to cast a shield.
"INCOMING!"
Her cry was drowned out by the roar of multiple explosions sounding off all around them. Dozens and dozens of missiles rained down where they stood, shaking the ground beneath. It happened so quickly and she was still so drained from the earlier fighting that Celestia's shield broke. Those who could perform similar spells did, but it was too much.
Knocked aside by detonating payloads or struck by falling debris, saved only by sheer luck, magical fortitude or what remained of their armour, all of them were knocked down. Helmeted heads and bodies dashed against rocks or the rocks dashed against them, all of them lying and moving feebly on the ground.
Those inside the castle or situated near the Host crystals escaped the worst of it, though they certainly felt the impact. As the smoke cleared and the shaking stopped, those who managed to take cover began to look over whatever shelter they'd managed to find. They ducked under when the shaking started again, but not from explosions. From heavy, booming steps.
From the Forest, two large forms emerged from the treeline. One was conical and walked on four legs. The other hovered on a circular base, large arms at the ready while its head scanned about. The missile launchers in its back had already folded away. Atop its head, a control harness worn over his cranium, came Dr Test Tube. He looked about with smug satisfaction at his deed.
"I knew they would be weakened from their conflict with the rest of those simpletons, but this?" He let out a cackle. "This was too easy!" He moved the robot he stood on to where they lay. "Look at you all. The oh-so superior princesses. The noble Elements of Harmony. Ha! Pathetic, all of you! Still, you got rid of that overbearing oaf for me. He underestimated me, they all did. They all thought they were so much better than me, they forgot that it was by my genius that got them where they were! I was the true power, me! And now, you'll all see it…"
The little robot he'd had spy on them came scuttling out to meet him. Through its eye, he'd watched and waited until the perfect time to strike. See how his patience had been rewarded! He levitated the Amulet from the diminutive robot, grinning with unrestrained glee.
All of his life, he'd been laughed at. Mocked. Ridiculed. Derided as immoral and cruel. Now, he was the one who was laughing. As Test Tube placed the Alicorn Amulet around his neck, he did nothing but laugh. He laughed as the red glow burned in his eyes and the Amulet's power radiated from the jewel set within it.