//------------------------------//
// 22 - The Return: Finale 
// Story: The Crescent Pact 
// by Chromentazol 
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"Okay... Breathe, Glaze. You got this."

Hidden underneath a kitchen counter, Glaze was trembling in fear. While she had managed to slip away unnoticed just as Aphelion's father arrived, Glaze had no idea what to do next. Everypony else was in a terrible state and, as far as she knew, she was the only one still standing. Her eyes lingered on the door leading to the cellar as she hesitated. Her survival instinct was screaming at her to get out of this mansion and to run away from danger, but she couldn't leave everypony else behind.

"...Well, maybe I could? I wasn't even supposed to be here..."

The thought became increasingly tempting with each passing second. Glaze looked at the half-finished device in her hooves, a glass bottle filled with black powder up to the halfway mark. Above the powder laid a small layer of cloth. The last thing she needed to do to finish the improvised explosive was to carefully add a small piece of enchanted paper. This paper, when pierced or torn, would light up on fire and produce a small flame. Usually, this piece of paper would be used to start campfires in the wild, but in Glaze's mind, it could also be used as an improvised way to 'activate' the black powder. She could finish the explosive and try to find a way to use it to help those she left behind... Or she could keep it with her and run away.

"C'mon, what would I even do with this? It's not like I can shove it down that monster's throat alone! And that other unicorn... If he sees me, I'm toast! There's no way I can help them!"

Glaze tried to convince herself to leave, but her body refused to move. Even the idea of stepping away from that counter filled her with enough fear to prevent her from moving. She felt utterly and completely trapped despite the fact that her exit route was unguarded and only a few meters away.

"I should go... Back to Canterlot and ask for help. Let the royal guards handle this instead of me... Right? That'd be the smart move, right?" Glaze asked herself aloud. "Besides, nothing's preventing me from leaving, so... So why can't I bring myself to run?"

Deep down, Glaze knew the reason behind her reluctance to leave despite her mind telling her to. While she felt an incredible amount of fear and anxiety, and even though her options were severely limited, Glaze still knew she had to do something to help her new friends. She had to at least try to save them, even if she'd have to risk her life to do it... Though, she certainly wasn't happy about it.

"For Celestia's sake... Why did I even let myself get roped into this mess?! I should've stayed in Canterlot... I'd even take an entire day of following Blueblood's orders over this!"

Forcing herself to leave the relative safety of the kitchen counter, Glaze groaned as she carefully stepped toward the door leading to the main lobby. Just as she placed her hoof on the large golden knob, the sound of lightning erupted from above, resonating through the entire manor, causing her to jump and yelp in fear.

"W-What was that? Where did this come from? ...Is it that other mare's doing?"

Steadying her nerves, Glaze tried to calm down. "...I should probably stop speaking to myself. Hmm."

With one last glance to the cellar door, Glaze took a deep breath before sneaking back inside the main lobby, finishing her improvised explosive as she kept trying to figure out her next move.





Apogée was seething with rage and anger. The sight of the two unconscious stallions in front of him was pitiful, furthering his fury even more. That night had been a total nightmare.

Not only had the tyrant Celestia sent her slaves to do her bidding, interrupting what should have been a glorious night for the Pact, his son came back to him just to turn his coat and betray the order. And to think Apogée made the effort to shame himself in front of his own son, pretending to truly regret his own actions just to make sure Aphelion would join back the ranks like a good tool... But instead, Aphelion had spat on him, ridiculing him further before having an outburst about ridiculous concepts like 'freedom' and 'justice'. Apogée knew he had failed his son's education and would need to start again.

Thankfully, there were many ways to reshape the way a pony thinks. As he looked down on the slumped form of his son, Apogée spat on the floor. "...You should've died with your mother."

Apogée knew it was the alcohol talking, though there was certainly a kernel of truth as he spoke. Paradoxically, he also felt a painful pang in his heart, a strange mix of emotions he hadn't felt for years. A part of him still cared for his son, though that part was becoming smaller each day, at Lord Comet's request.

Then, Apogée let his eyes jump over to Steady. The pegasus was slowly bleeding out on the floor from his wounds and some of his muscles were still twitching due to Apogée's paralysis spell. His feelings for Steady were much simpler: Apogée only felt hatred for the pegasus, who had been a thorn in the Pact's sides for years. His capture was shrouded in mystery, as Lord Comet had simply appeared one day with the pegasus in tow, simply ordering Apogée to place him in the dungeon. Of course, Apogée knew better than to ask questions. And still, despite his precautions, Steady had managed to escape from his cell. This meant that Eclipse had failed in her only task... She would have some explaining to do, after this whole mess is taken care of.

Apogée's horn sparked with green energy, a departure from his usual hue. Focusing on a spell, the older unicorn had but one goal in mind: to see Steady suffer before ending him. He needed a bucking bag to vent his intense frustrations, but there would be no fun in beating an unconscious horse. So, releasing his spell while summoning necrotic runes, Steady's eyes suddenly shot open as the pegasus took a deep, sharp breath. Now awake, Steady's eyes scanned the area around him before remembering his situation. His eyes locked with Apogée, who simply smirked.

"Good morning, worm. You should try to run."

Steady attempted to move his legs, to stand back up on his hooves, but his body refused to listen. All he could feel was the pain caused by his previous battle wounds. His wings, legs and mouth didn't budge a centimeter despite Steady's desperate attempts. All he could do was to watch as Apogée's grin grew wider by the second.

"Oh... Can't move? That's unfortunate. I suppose you'll have to watch silently as I tear you limb from limb."

Stepping on Steady's withers, Apogée made sure to put all his body weight as he walked on the pegasus whose eyes began to water from the pain, though no sound came from his mouth.

"You should've stayed in your cell. This whole plan of yours... Did you really expect to—"

Coming from the observatory, the sound of lightning roared through the manor. Apogée immediately turned his head toward the top of the stairs with a raised eyebrow. "...This isn't part of the protocol. Which contraption caused such a ruckus?" Apogée asked himself while stepping away from Steady. The gears in his mind started turning, though slowed by the alcohol in his blood. Then, it hit him. Turning back to Steady with a furious gaze, Apogée shouted.

"There's another?! You... Complete and utter... Idiots!"

Apogée became irate at the realization he had been a fool. With his son's sudden arrival, he must have missed somepony else sneaking toward the observatory. For all he knew, multiple ponies could have gone there to ruin the Pact's plan. His horn glowed in a turquoise hue as Apogée prepared to teleport in the observatory. However, just as he released his spell, a beam of yellow light struck him in the face, causing Apogée to lose focus and to interrupt his teleportation.

Still stuck to the floor, barely able to move, Aphelion was eyeing his father with determination, specs of yellow light still dancing around his horn. Though Aphelion couldn't say anything, his gaze told his father one clear message.

I won't let you leave.





Slowly coming back to her senses, Sandstorm's body was completely numb. She only could see the floor and the broken pieces of the wall she smashed into. Her thoughts were all over the place, still trying to reorganize themselves after such a violent impact. As Sandstorm became aware of her surroundings again, she noticed in horror that she couldn't feel anything.

She should be in an incredible amount of pain. She should be able to feel the warm blood trickling down her legs. And yet, Sandstorm felt as if she was floating in an empty void, unable to move her legs. It didn't take her long to understand that something very wrong had happened to her body. Even more worryingly, she saw in the corner of her vision the massive frame of Dart's Body standing over her, a crazed look in his eyes.

Poison Dart had removed his helmet while she was out, revealing his grotesque face. Many unnatural growths twisted his face into an unrecognizable mess. Black veins pulsed with an irregular pulse and his purple coat had strange chromatic discolorations, going from a sickly green to a blood red at places. Dart's mouth was slightly opened, breathing heavily as he drooled over Sandstorm who was happy she couldn't feel the saliva make contact with her skin.

She attempted to twist her body to better face Dart, but to no avail. Her struggles did not remain unnoticed as Poison Dart began to groan and moan, trying to speak with his mutated mouth. After a few moments, the incomprehensible gargle of sounds turned into words, then sentences.

"You... Are prey?"

Sandstorm managed to answer, though with a somewhat slurred speech. She could at least infer that her paralysis 'only' affected her from the neck down... Which wasn't exactly a reassuring thought.

"Just wait 'til I get back up, big boy. We'll see who's the real prey."

Dart snarled. "No... You lie. You are... You are broken," Dart sounded disappointed.

Dart's words echoed in Sandstorm's head, the slow realization of the consequences from her injuries sending her in a silent panic. And while she feared for her own future, most of her thoughts were dedicated to one pony only.

Misty.

Sandstorm spoke up again, involuntarily, though her voice was barely more than a whisper. "I... I can't protect her anymore..."

The sound of lightning roared through the manor, though neither Sandstorm nor Dart seemed to care about it. The yellow mare was beginning to feel the start of a panic attack, her breaths quickening though they barely brought any air to her lungs. The world around her began to spin as she felt a cold sweat overtake her entire body... Or, at least, what little of her body she could still feel. Her jaw trembled while dozens of scenarios played in her mind, in which she saw her marefriend suffer while Sandstorm could do nothing but watch. Dart noticed Sandstorm's rising panic, causing a hideous sound to leave his mouth. This disgusting noise was, as Sandstorm understood it, supposed to be a chuckle.

"You will... See her die first. You broke your body... I break your mind. Yes?"

Once again, Sandstorm tried to move to cover her ears. Her fighting spirit had completely vanished, replaced by an overwhelming anxiety that overtook her senses. As she couldn't bring her hooves to her ears, her paralysis depriving her of this small mercy, tears began to flow down her face.

"Please... Please, don't hurt her..."

"I will make you watch. You will enjoy. We will have fun... All three of us."

"No... No! Anything but that! You... You can kill me if you want, but please let her go!"

Sandstorm's pleading fell on deaf ears. As the mare could only watch in horror as Poison Dart began to turn around, heading for the observatory, something strange happened. A wave of blue energy came crashing down on the main lobby, passing through everypony inside. And while she couldn't see Steady, Aphelion or Apogée, Sandstorm observed that Dart didn't seem to be affected by this strange energy, though the monster looked confused for a second.

However, Sandstorm could feel the numbness in her body slowly disappear, replaced by a strange tingling, starting from her hooves and slowly rising up her body.

Quickly shaking his head, Dart continued to walk away, still taunting Sandstorm. "I will break her limbs... All of them. Then bring her here, so you can watch. Then, I will make her mine in front of you. Then, I snap her neck. We will have... Fun, Sandstorm," Dart said with a sadistic grin. While his words were meant to shatter whatever remained of Sandstorm's mind, his words instead sent the mare over the edge. Her fears and anxiety turned into a cold, silent rage. Even with his back turned on her, Dart could feel the intense murderous intent directed at him. He turned back, deciding to taunt her even more, but what he saw shook him to his core.

Sandstorm was standing up, hatred in her eyes.





The strange copper sphere started to glow with an otherworldly blue hue, spinning faster as more energy was funneled into the contraption. Arcs of arcane lightning erupted in an erratic pattern, striking the observatory's floor and walls, leaving unnatural burn marks that emitted the same bluish hue. Misty observed the sphere for a moment, unsure of how to even approach it without getting hurt. She felt her heart beat faster as fear and anxiety filled her mind, almost paralyzing her on the spot. Shaking her head to snap out of it, Misty stepped forward with a resolute stare. It was her visions that brought her here and she simply refused to back down now. Whatever needed to be done, she'd make sure to see it through to the end. Misty closed her eyes and shifted her focus inward, letting her subconscious guide her steps. At first, she couldn't feel anything in particular beyond the static energy present in the room... Until a creeping chill appeared down her spine.

Feeling shivers traverse her entire body, from her spine to her hooves, tail and horn, Misty knew she was in the presence of the same entity from her dream. Letting her movements and thoughts be guided, Misty saw a complex spell sigil appear in her mind's eye, the type she only ever saw in old grimoires and forgotten spellbooks. Before even having the chance to analyze this sigil, she felt the thaumic pathways in her body activate, sparking her horn with her familiar gray aura. Her body began to feel cold, as if all her energy was put into this single spell. She had no idea what would happen to her afterwards, but Misty knew it had to be done.

Opening her eyes, Misty was met with a surprising sight. The sphere had picked up an incredible amount of speed, rotating dozens of times per second while hundreds of threads of arcane energy linked it to the telescope. The floor and walls all around her were completely black, burnt by countless arcs of lightning with the exception being the spot where she stood. A faint halo of gray arcane matter had materialized around Misty, protecting her from harm. But even more surprisingly, she saw what was coming out of her own horn.

Bone-white wispy tendrils linked her to the spinning sphere, slowly englobing it as they wrapped around its surface. Misty instantly knew that this magic wasn't hers, but the entity's. She understood that in this matter, she was little more than a conduit for whatever was trying to bring her here, a tool to use to dispel whatever the Pact was doing.

As the sphere kept getting faster, the entire room began to shake. The walls began to crack, dust fell down from the ceiling, the countless contraptions spread across the room fell over and broke on the floor. It was getting increasingly harder for Misty just to stand up, her wounds and exhaustion catching up to her. Biting her tongue, Misty closed her eyes once again, deciding to let the entity take care of this matter. All she needed to do, after all, was to simply stand there and remain close to the sphere.

However, as seconds went on, a thought crept in her mind. Could she really trust this entity? Misty knew this wasn't the same spirit she interacted with in towns and cities. This was something else entirely, something that showed up in a dream and that gave her instructions to be there, in this manor. Was it wise to follow its orders without asking any questions? Did she lead her friends right into a trap? Was it even possible she was doing the Pact's bidding and that this spirit was created by a powerful member of the cult? These uncertainties caused Misty to lose focus for a single moment.

This single moment was the only thing needed for Misty to completely lose focus on her spell.

Instantly, the gray barrier around her body dissipated just as an arc of lightning struck her body square in the chest, sending waves of searing pain across her body. The arc propelled her through the room, sending her tumbling down a group of unconscious ponies. Misty struggled to breathe as her muscles tensed up from the lightning, but from the corner of her eyes, she saw the wispy tendrils tearing off and quickly dissipating, revealing the copper sphere underneath. The orb then began spinning even faster, vibrating violently as it struggled to remain in its axis. As the sphere was beginning to spin out of control, a loud snapping sound echoed through the entire mansion as the entity's last tendril tore off. Just as it did, a powerful shockwave of dark blue energy poured off of the sphere, as if it was spilling out with magic. The shockwave, more akin to a tidal wave of raw arcane power, washed over the entire room before phasing through the walls, bathing the entire manor and its surrounding.

Focusing on her breathing, Misty was able to bring her breathing back under control. She stood up with shaky legs, taking deep breaths as she saw the orb slow down ever so slightly. However, filaments of magic still linked it to the telescope as the contraption simply had a minor set back before going back to accomplishing its true goal.

At that moment, Misty knew she had failed. She couldn't feel the link with the entity anymore and she was unable to remember the complex sigil that had led her to casting the original spell. Even if she was to try and regain contact with the entity, Misty knew she would be too late by then. Her failure was total. Not only was the Pact going to accomplish whatever it is attempting to do, she also knew her friends were risking their lives for her. And here she was, tears beginning to form in her eyes as she watched powerlessly. She felt pain, exhaustion, sadness and regret.

"This is all my fault..."

Her knees buckled from the physical and emotional strain, her breaths getting quicker and quicker by the seconds. Panic washed over her body.

"I... I failed!" 

Misty sobbed. In that moment, it felt like she had let the whole world down, not just her friends. And yet, as she wallowed in self-pity, a strange feeling began to worm its way through her heart.

"...This is just so... So unfair!" Misty felt the kindles of a fire lit up inside her. She stood up, looking at the starry sky and the now barren moon. "I did everything you wanted me to do! I came all the way here, I sent Sandstorm and the others to face a bucking monster, but just because I had a single moment of doubt — it's all for nothing?! Are you kidding me?"

Nopony answered her screams to the void. Gritting her teeth and fighting the tears, Misty laid her gaze onto the spinning orb.

"...Screw you, whatever you are. You think I'm going to give up just because I don't want to blindly follow every order without asking any questions?"

She stepped toward the orb, ignoring the arcs of lightning striking the ground all around her.

"Well, guess what? I don't need you to take down this cursed... Whatever that is! I'm Misty bucking Step and today, I'm the one in control!"

An arc of lighting struck Misty square in the chest once again. This time, however, the mare did not budge, refusing to step back even an inch. Misty sparked her horn, her gray aura forming around it, before she took on the contraption's accumulated cosmic powers on her own.





Aphelion quickly glanced to his side, checking Steady's state. While the pegasus seemed to be in a lot of pain, the color draining from his face as he bled out, Steady still had a determined gaze. Then, glancing back at his father, Aphelion sparked his horn again. Apogée had his eyes wide open, surprised to see his son not only still conscious after his spell, but still fighting as well. This moment of surprise allowed Aphelion to fully focus on his spell, his body burning with arcane energy as he pushed himself further despite his exhaustion. A glowing yellow aura covered Steady and Aphelion for a brief moment, dissipating Apogée's paralyzing spell. The two stallions grunted as they stood back up, Apogée staring at them in surprise.

"But... How? Your magic is supposed to be weak, Aphelion, we made sure of —"

"Shut it," barked Steady while flapping his wings, taking air once again. He aimed his crossbow at Apogée. "You're gonna stay right here 'til dawn."

Struggling to stay up, Aphelion remained silent. Due to the complex spells he had casted that night, he felt the limits of his Thaumic Atrophy catching up with him. The world was spinning around him, causing Aphelion to want nothing more than to barf in the nearest potted plant. However, Aphelion knew that right now, he needed to remain strong and to keep his eyes on his father. The fight was far from over.

"You... Insignificant... Fucks!" Apogée yelled, his horn glowing in a sickly green aura. "I will not let you ruin decades of preparations!"

"Drop the spell, unless you want a bolt in your kneecaps," Steady said while aiming at Apogée's legs. Despite everything, Steady was still hoping to leave this mess with no casualties. "Aphelion, make sure he doesn't get away."

The gray unicorn nodded and sparked his horn, pretending to be fine. He knew that if his father was to attempt anything, Aphelion could do very little to stop him in his state. What he could do, was to buy every possible second for Misty.

Apogée stared at his son, ignoring the crossbow aimed at him. He furrowed his brow, silently re-estimating his son's abilities. If Aphelion was indeed capable of preventing him from teleporting, then he'd need to shift his entire focus on him. However, any move against Aphelion would cause Steady to fire at him. Apogée needed to find a solution, and fast. Every second he lost here could cause irreparable damage to the Pact's plan, what with that other intruder holed up in the observatory. "If only Lord Comet provided capable guards..." Apogée thought, hating the fact that he had to deal with complete and utter incompetence from the manor's supposed defenses. He knew he should've raised these concerns with Lord Comet, and yet... He never dared, too fearful to anger the Crescent Pact's most important leader.

Apogée's only hoped to leave this mess was the monstrosity name Poison Dart, though he was busy, hunched over that yellow mare in the corner of the room. He could call for help, but this would certainly cause Aphelion and Steady to attack. Apogée sighed. He knew what he had to do, though he didn't like it.

The glow of his horn intensified, causing Aphelion to tense up. Immediately, Steady glanced at Aphelion while shouting "Stop him!"

However, Aphelion knew he couldn't do anything against that spell. He shook his head and stepped back, the fear in his eyes wordlessly communicating to Steady how much trouble they were in. Looking back at Apogée, Steady fired his crossbow, the bolt aimed perfectly at his left foreleg. And yet, a wall of dark green energy instantly surged from the ground, turning the bolt to dust before dissipating. Then, just as Apogée was about to release his spell, a pure wave of blue energy came crashing down the room, coming from the floors above. For a moment, all that Steady could see was a wall of blue arcane matter, sending him spiraling down, crashing on the floor.

The pegasus felt a strange tingling coming from his hind legs as he hit the ground. The tingling quickly turned to a warm glow, then a seering pulse. He groaned as he felt like his legs were burning. Looking down at his back legs, Steady saw his wounds painfully healing themselves, the flesh unnaturally regrowing in a sickening manner. Deciding to ignore this for now, he glanced back at the other two unicorns around him.

Aphelion was kneeling down, holding his head with his hooves as the younger unicorn screamed in pain. Whatever this wave of energy was, it was doing something to Aphelion's mind. Apogée looked as if he was also suffering from this arcane flow, though he remained much more composed, still focusing on his spell. The sudden pain had delayed the release, however, which Steady decided to take advantage of. He knew that whatever this wave of energy was, it was caused by whatever was happening in the observatory. He could guess, given Sandstorm's presence, that Misty was up there, working to prevent the Catalyst from storing Nightmare Moon's released energy.

His wings spreading wide, Steady lunged at Apogée. Steady knew he was taking a gamble: after seeing what had happened to his crossbow bolt when it got too close to Apogée, the pegasus expected to suffer the same fate. However, with this strange energy healing his wounds, Steady knew he had a chance not only to survive, but to stop whatever Apogée was doing.

As his body got closer to the older unicorn, Steady saw the same wall of sickly green flames appear and begin to melt away his flesh. At the same time, specs of blue light manifested around the burning area, rebuilding his body just at it was getting destroyed. The pain was immeasurable, but Steady knew his plan would work. All he needed, now, was to hold on and let his body fly forward.

Impacting Apogée square in the chest, the two stallions fell to the floor, sliding a few meters toward the center of the room, where the pillar to the underground facilities had retracted. Steady and Apogée stood to the edge, the pegasus writhing in pain while the unicorn was dazed, his spell fizzling out of existence. The sudden loss of concentration caused Apogée to temporarily fall unconscious, his intense focus being instantly dispelled.

Meanwhile, Aphelion felt a burning sensation focused at the base of his horn. The last few moments were most strange, as he went from stepping back from his father in fear, to having his vision replaced by a wall of dark blue matter, to feeling the worst headache he had ever felt. The throbbing pain had incapacitated him, and yet Aphelion could feel his body fill up with thaumic energy, overloading his senses. Slowly, the pain receded to a manageable level, allowing Aphelion to take stock of what was surrounding him. He saw Steady and his father, both on the floor and barely moving, near the large hole in the center of the room. Turning his head, Aphelion saw Sandstorm standing up to Poison Dart, a silent fury in her eyes. And finally, coming from the door leading to the kitchen, Glaze was sneaking toward both Sandstorm and Dart, holding a strange vial in her mouth.

Unsure of what to do, Aphelion stepped toward his father. Apogée was slowly coming back to his senses, though it would still take him a while to fully come back in the fight. Aphelion absentmindedly sparked his horn, no longer feeling any form of magical exhaustion. With a quick spell, Aphelion summoned heavy yellow chains around his father, holding him in place. The chains singed his father's coat as they reacted to the magic in his body, burning hotter the more magic Apogée would try to use. He sighed. "Sorry, Princess Celestia. Guess I'm still using dark magic after all," Aphelion spoke out loud. Then, with one last spark of his horn, he teleported to the observatory. With his father no longer able to move and with Sandstorm, Glaze and Steady to take care of Poison Dart, Aphelion decided it would be best for him to assist Misty. He didn't know how long this surge of power would last, but he knew he had to make the best out of it.

With one last glance toward Steady, who simply nodded at Aphelion, the young unicorn disappeared in a flash of golden light.





Hatred.

At that moment, this was the only thing existing in Sandstorm's mind. She stared with pure rage at the hulking behemoth, a second wind bringing her enough strength to fight back. Poison Dart looked down at her before laughing a hideous laugh. It was obvious he didn't take her as a threat at all, the mare barely having been able to harm him thus far. And while he had no idea what caused her to stand back up despite her previous injuries, Dart only felt jubilation at the prospects of a new toy to break. He took one step forward, opening his mouth to taunt Sandstorm.

The words never left his mouth as Sandstorm lunged at him, hitting him in the middle of his breastplate with her signature spinning kick. This time, her strike left a deep imprint in the armor, the mare showing an incredible amount of strength, knocking the wind out of Dart who stumbled back. He looked incredulously at the mare who, until now, could barely even tickle him. And now, here she was, hitting him with enough strength to force him to take a defensive position for the first time that night.

Lowering his posture, Poison Dart prepared to charge at Sandstorm. However, in a blink, the mare had disappeared from his vision. He looked around in confusion before feeling another strike coming directly from under him, sending him flying a few meters in the air before violently hitting the floor, shattering the marbled tiles. Sandstorm had slipped underneath him and managed to buck him away, as if he didn't weigh anything.

Poison Dart's mood turned from ecstatic to sour extremely quickly.

Standing back up, he kept a close eye on the mare as she charged him, aiming to strike him once again in the chest. However, blinded by her unfiltered rage, Sandstorm's move became predictable. As such, with a simple swatting motion from his massive forelegs, Poison Dart was able to strike Sandstorm on the side with enough strength to shatter every rib in her body. Sandstorm yelled in pain and spat blood, but held onto Dart's hoof, refusing to let go. Running to the edge of the room, Dart began slamming his hoof repeatedly against a wall, but Sandstorm held on. The mare ignored the pain and reared one of her front hooves back, before slamming it in Poison Dart's leg.

Her strike was powerful enough to pierce through the armor and the skin, lodging her hoof deep in his arm. For the first time since his transformation, Poison Dart screamed in pain as Sandstorm tore through flesh, muscle and bone. Pulling out her hoof, Sandstorm prepared to strike again before being thrown away by a sudden headbutt, Dart becoming desperate to get rid of her. At that moment, Poison Dart saw Sandstorm as the real monster in the room.

Quickly standing back up, blood trickling down her forehead and her hooves, Sandstorm grinned. "What, can't handle getting your ass handed to you by a mare?"

Poison Dart's temper rose once again. One of the few things that had remained from before his transformation was Dart's over-inflated ego. He could deal with physical pain, but attacks on his character were enough to send him flying in a blind rage. Dart started randomly smashing the floor around him with a renewed intensity, before lunging at Sandstorm. He kept striking blindly, barely missing the yellow mare each time, but it did not matter.

Sandstorm's body began to approach its limits, even despite the second wind provided by the strange arcane wave that granted her such strength. In the end, her own stamina was lesser than Dart's. And so, as each dodge became increasingly riskier, Sandstorm knew she had pushed her luck too far. Eventually, after dodging what felt like the hundredth strike that night, Sandstorm tripped and fell prone on her back just as Poison Dart was rearing up to smash her torso.

In the middle of the room, an exhausted pegasus finally managed to catch his breath, the pain from Apogée's spell lowering to a more manageable level. Steady had kept a close eye on the fight between Sandstorm and Poison Dart while crawling back to his crossbow. Now, Steady was laying on his back, aiming at Poison Dart's massive body with all his focus. The world stopped existing around Steady: all that remained was himself, Poison Dart and the crossbow. He knew he needed a miraculous shot to save Sandstorm. A regular crossbow bolt wouldn't be able to harm Poison Dart at all, and his armor was simply too thick for the bolt to pierce. However, on Dart's sides, there was a minuscule weak point in the armor, which Steady was barely able to notice. If he could hit that weak point, then...

One thing at a time, he thought. Steadying his breath, putting all his being into that shot, Steady closed one eye and made a silent prayer. Then, he fired his crossbow.

The bolt flew through the air, closing the distance between Steady and Dart in an instant. It perfectly impacted the armor's weak point, shattering a buckle on impact causing Dart's chestplate to slide off his torso. The sudden shift in the weight around his torso threw Poison Dart off balance as he smashed his hoof downward, barely missing Sandstorm's torso by a thread. He turned his head toward Steady with a seething fury as the pegasus couldn't help but smile at such a great shot.

Turning his gaze toward Glaze, Steady shouted: "Go for it, now!"

Glaze, who had been waiting for an opportunity to jump in, rushed toward Poison Dart, leaving her hiding spot amongst the rubble. Surprised, Dart attempted to strike Glaze's body as she got close enough, but the mare slid under his massive hoof before throwing the bottle she was holding in her mouth at Poison Dart's unprotected skin.

When the bottle impacted his sides and broke, a glass shard tore through the enchanted paper which in turn burst into flame. The flames reached the black powder, leading to a large explosion centered directly in Dart's right side. The shockwave sent Glaze flying, the mare heavily falling on the floor further away. Part of her mane was singed from the sudden burst of flame and she yelped as she struck the floor, feeling the bones in one of her legs break.

Poison Dart was in a worse state, however. Half of his body was burning, his coat turning black. Where the bottle stuck him, a massive open wound revealed his flesh, bones and internal organs, all in unnatural shapes and sizes. He screamed in pain as Dart rolled on the floor, attempting to put out the flames. Steady slowly stood back up and watched, hoping for this to be the end of this battle. Sandstorm quickly stood back up as well, breathing heavily.

And yet, this was not over. They all watched in horror as Poison Dart's wound started to close itself, a byproduct of his hideous mutation. Even with the explosion and with destroyed internal organs, Poison Dart still found the strength to stand back up, preparing to finish the job. He grunted, closing his eyes as he focused on trying to ignore the pain before turning back toward the mansion's intruders. He saw a terrified Steady, a whimpering Glaze and... No Sandstorm. Dart looked around before understanding where the mare went as a sudden weight was added onto his back.

Sandstorm had begun climbing the beast, desperate to end this fight once and for all. Once she reached his head, she placed her hooves underneath his jaw and began pulling and twisting as hard as she could, hoping to either snap his neck to decapitate him with raw strength. "Just... Bucking die already!" Sandstorm yelled as Poison Dart felt the skin around his jaw and throat begin to rip. Still reeling from the pain from the explosion, Dart stumbled in dazed panic, impacting multiple walls and statues, hoping to force Sandstorm off of him.

Sandstorm held on nevertheless, refusing to let go. In his confusion, Poison Dart inadvertently stepped toward the center of the room, near the edge of the hole leading to the underground facilities. In a desperate attempt to save his life, Poison Dart pleaded with Sandstorm.

"Please... Please! I will let... You and Misty go!"

Sandstorm's heart skipped a beat. Once again, her exhaustion turned into fury. "...Do not say her bucking name!" Sandstorm yelled, a final surge of pure, raw strength pushing her over the edge. And with one clean pull, with the remnants of whatever strength she had left, Sandstorm ripped Poison Dart's head from his body causing blood to spray everywhere, before finally letting herself fall to the floor as his body fell into the massive hole. A disgusting sound echoed from the floor underneath when Dart's headless body impacted the fine carpet.

Sandstorm looked at the ceiling in silence. Steady rushed to her side. "Shit, you're alright, kid?"

"...Man, I hate Mondays."

The pegasus raised an eyebrow. "...It's Friday today, though."

With one last chuckle, Sandstorm fell unconscious, her body completely depleted of any remaining strength. Steady sighed before turning back to Glaze. He was about to fly to her side, to check up on her when he noticed Apogée finally coming back to his senses, looking with a neutral expression Dart's head rolling on the floor. He spoke up with a defeated voice, still trapped in Aphelion's spell.

"...This is a complete disaster. You idiots ruined everything."

Steady scoffed. "...Apogée, you are under arrest. I'd list your crimes here, but we both know there's too many of them and honestly, I can't be assed."

"This is not over. Not by a long shot. If we cannot harvest Luna's powers... Then, we might as well destroy everything."

Before Steady could answer, Apogée's horn glowed in a teal hue as the arcane chains around his body burned his coat. With one final spark, Apogée disappeared, teleporting away. Steady thought about chasing him, but with no indication as to where the unicorn went, his options were severely limited. Besides, Steady was far more worried with Apogée's words and what they implied, especially as the whole manor began to shake.





With a bright flash of golden light, Aphelion appeared in the middle of the observatory. Already, he could feel the added cosmic powers abandoning him, the surge of arcane might only lasting a few minutes. In front of him, he saw Misty standing near a large floating sphere spinning at breakneck speeds. The sphere was covered in a gray halo, pulling it away from its axis.

"Misty! Are you alright?"

The mare took a moment to answer, heavy droplets of sweat pouring down her face. "... As you can see... I'm doing... Just fine! What took you so long?"

Aphelion scanned the room, recognizing many of the contraptions scattered around as his own creations. He felt a wave of guilt wash over his body, before noticing the many unconscious ponies on the floor. "Oh, wow... You've been busy."

"Just give me a damn hoof!"

"Right. Keep doing... What you're doing. I'll try and disconnect the catalyst from the telescope. If we stop the funneling runes from feeding energy into the sphere, we should be able to stop the Pact from harvesting Nightmare Moon's powers."

Misty simply nodded as she pulled on the sphere with all her arcane might. Aphelion trotted to the telescope before sparking his horn. The telescope became engulfed in a golden light as the runes carved along its surface started to vanish, the tendrils of energy linking the sphere and the telescope disappearing as well. During this, Aphelion glanced at the night sky and saw the surface of the moon, void of the familiar face that had adorned it during the past 1000 years.

"...That's new," he muttered. Eventually, both unicorns saw the sphere slow down and the energy tendrils almost entirely disappear. They both knew they were almost done when the entire manor started to shake violently, causing them to lose focus on their spells.

"What's going on?" Misty yelled, struggling to keep her balance.

"I... I don't know!" Aphelion answered before looking more carefully at the sphere. For a brief moment, he saw a faint teal spec of light fly inside the contraption. His eyes went wide at the realization. "...Shit!" He yelled. "It's... It's going to explode!"

"It's going to what?!"

"I guess my father really doesn't want us to win... We need to get out of here, fast!"

"Shit — okay... But what about all the other ponies inside?"

"...Buck. We need to get them all out of here... Now!"

"Can you still use magic?"

"I'm almost out, but I can push myself and teleport some of them out. It won't be enough to —"

"Alright! Do what you can, I'll take care of the others! I have to go and warn the others downstairs, though," Misty said as she ran toward the main lobby. Aphelion nodded, then closed his eyes. The energy surge had now completely vanished, leaving him in the same state he was in before the wave of energy. Aphelion was far beyond the point where it would be safe for him to cast any additional spell, but he knew that he couldn't leave the other ponies in the manor behind. While they were all part of the Pact, Aphelion refused to let anypony die if he could help it. And so, with one last spark of his horn, Aphelion scanned the entire mansion for the position of every living pony inside, expecting to only see those in the main lobby, observatory and cellar. However, Aphelion discovered the many ponies hidden underneath the mansion, in the large complex he had no idea existed until today.

He sighed. Aphelion had very little time to act and wasn't sure if Misty knew there were other ponies underneath. So, pushing himself even further, Aphelion made sure to focus on those underneath, deciding to leave the ponies in the observatory to Misty. He released his spell, his thaumic conduits burning from the overexertion.

The last thing Aphelion saw before falling into a deep coma, was the clearing outside the manor becoming filled with many confused ponies. Just as his consciousness went out, Aphelion saw the sun rise on a bright new day.