//------------------------------// // Paragons // Story: Launching the Last Star // by The Real Darkness //------------------------------// A couple more bolts of magic were shot his way and each one was knocked aside, "you'll find that I'm far more than you ever thought I was." "Hahaha, but not enough to best me!" She teleported in a flash of light, shooting magic at his back and it was dispersed with his spearhead all the same. "A unicorn tried that trick. You intend to teleport all night? Forever's a long time, Luna," he mocked, stowing his hunting knife and pulling four throwing knives from a pouch into his hand. "There is no Luna. I am Night. I am your worst dreams made manifest!" He threw one of the four knives at her, watching her teleport away. He threw again and she vanished. "I am Nightmare Moon!" Another teleport. But this time, he threw his fourth knife early at the throne and she appeared there, "and I will dest-," the knife lodged into her forehead well enough, she lowered her head, blood dripped onto the stone. Arctus zipped to her, she no longer had time to charge a spell and flash away, but she was forced into dodging his strikes. Slash after slash of the wide spear head sung through the air. Her horn lit and the throwing knife fell out of the wound that rapidly healed. "Better keep dodging, you can't heal if this spear touches you. I'm sure you remember all the soldiers I scarred." He was speaking coldly, almost as though he was using psychological threats to unnerve his opponent. She dodged a swipe and much to his surprise, she threw a hoof at him and he caught it with the rounded boot of his spear and then she teleported, huffing. "You...that look in your eyes, that tone in your voice. You're not natural, no, no creature not evne a wild animal has that look of murder in them." "It's called war, that's what I was made and designed for. That is the image I wished to take for my nation...now I take it for Equestria's sake." He noticed a wisp of magic leave her hoof as her head tilted. "I see, you have other intruders on their way. I hope I can keep you busy until their arrival." He hoped, he hoped that Celestia had some kind of plan, some sort of idea of why she wanted him to participate in this from the shadows. Maybe this was part of it. "There is still more than enough of me to deal with you!" She boomed and ancient stone fell from the ceiling, revealing the night sky as her horn lit again. This time, multiple orbs appeared in the air around him, "try batting these away, will you?" She laughed. "Protector of those in the shadows. Pusher of knives. That which we call murder. Cloak me in your chill so that I may find you in my hand," that was the full incantation, every word. The orbs stayed in the air as he vanished from sight and with the softest of steps, Arctus made his way up to the top of a pillar Nightmare Moon stood at. "Invisiblity will not make me believe you've teleported!" She sent the orbs all over the room, even toward the ceiling, destroying the castle even further. Arctus was not in any of those places. He had sheathed his spear and drawn his greatsword when he reached the top of the pillar, pulling himself up before laying a giant gash and throwing Nightmare Moon off and to the floor. "I am no lesser creature. I am far stronger than you or any ponykind. Do you surrender? Would you accept defeat at my hands a second time?" She telported from the floor, her horn lit and stitching her wounds. She appeared to be under strain while using her magic. "I will not lose, not when I'm this close." "Laiptelis oro skraidyti." "Yes, you will," he leapt from the pillar, walking down on yellow platforms as he put the greatsword away, "I have a promise to keep." He smirked, weakening her magic was the first step of being able to make her more willing to talk, "so would you spare me the next hour and admit defeat?" "Never!" She lit her horn and sent a small laser in his assumed positon. Arctus had summoned and threw a mote of fire at her horn the moment she lit it and it exploded almost directly on her face. He moved his body to the left to avoid the short magic spritz that followed and looked at the now singed and burnt Nightmare Moon who healed herself again while her lungs heaved. Arctus finally dropped his invisibility. "I've got you figured out. I can slay you. You should-." "Then kill me!" He blocked the next burst with his spear in hand again. "No," he could see her eyes from this distance, they held fear. "Then I'll kill you!" She flapped her wings, soaring high before letting out another ray, just like that day she shot it at Celestia in this same room, a thousand ago. His spear absorbed and dispersed it all, she slowly landed, almost hyperventilating from how much she expended, "how are you so strong?!" "I've faced foes tougher than you. I'll face even stronger foes in the days to come," he continued to her, stopping short just in front of her. He could hear the clopping of hooves, signaling a bunch of ponies galloping toward the throne room. "Luna," he leaned over with an eye on her charged horn, "your sister wants you back proper. I need your grand help to find who I truly am. Please consider," he patted Nightmare Moon's cheek and she teleported away. The hooves were almost upon him when he looked about to see the misty form of Nightmare Moon at the location of the magical artifacts, Elements is what Celestia called them. He sprinted, climbing decripit stone architecture to reach the top of the room, standing on a wall, crouching low and looking as he saw ponies enter. Twilight, Applejack, and four others. He needed to stay. Protect Twilight. And he watched the scene unfold in front of him, Nightmare Moon was defeated using thos Elements in a way he didn't understand. Luna came back in a much more unempowered form, likely thanks to him expending a lot of her magic, Celestia was released from a short banishment. Her eye looked up, catching him spying on the actions below. He smiled before he looked up and held his spear with both hands. Asarele swopped down quietly, grabbing the spear and carrying him off, "let's go to the castle. We've done our roles."