A Lampent's Lament in Equestria

by Iridescence T Wind

Chapter 23: The Value of a Soul

Soul had a lot to ponder on during his trip toward Basilisk Rock. Judging from the rate his friends had been captured it was obvious that Meowth was a professional snatcher or had way too many resources to waste on kidnapping. Though it was quite clear that he was going to be facing an army alone. He was convinced heading to the rock alone was a trap yet he had to go anyway. What choice was there? Soul chuckled grimly to himself, not to long ago he would of been waiting on the sidelines as similar misfortune had befallen on someone else and ready himself to collect their soul when they died. But now he was at the interesting yet dreadful unavoidable conflict of taking a life intentionally. He saw it as a necessity, not as something he would choose from normal methods. But it was clear to Soul that Meowth did not intend to stop until one of them were dead.

Soul shuddered at the prospect of death. Death wasn't pleasant experience even for one who reaped the souls of the fallen. Soul had purposely avoided killing except in extreme circumstances or when the creature involved had no noticeable conscious mind or reason behind it's brain. Soul also began to worry about how his lord Arceus would view this situation. He must be furious that Soul had ended up risking so many mortal lives like this when the goals of draining was his prior evolution and the form of the law bringer was his future. He was merely a collector versus an probable army of animals and six-to-seven Pokémon. The chances were slim at best, considering the opposition that he had come across that far. He could see it now, the battle grounds far away as he flew over the treetops towards the inevitable bloodbath ahead.

Basilisk rock had to be one of the more infamous spots of the Everfree Forest. While not as widely renowned as the Lunar Republic castle. Which had been so recently reconstructed by Soul's expenses, the rock itself was renowned by the creatures of the Everfree just as the castle used to be renowned by ponies. It's own story was long and terrible. Every creature in the forest knew the stories of the Basilisk that once lived in the broken ruins of a cave that had held a serpent many a hundred years old. The creature who's statues still lay to this day in the Canterlot gardens.

The Basilisk, as it was known, preferred indirect killing through reflections to petrify it's prey rather than outright kill them. Though this one was known as a different breed of Basilisk. The basilisk was said to have descended from Medusa Swirlhoof herself, a monster of a pony who had the upper body of a women, and the lower body of a snake. Her hair a mess of smaller snakes and a face so beautiful that all had cursed her with the eyes of a Cockatrice. Her resulting brood when sitting atop a snake's egg was a Basilisk with all the lethality of it's kind and a pair of mismatched eyes. One that would turn it's victims to stone, and the other that would kill. Countless brave ponies had tried to slaughter Medusa's spawn, sometimes alone, sometimes in small groups. Once even a battalion had marched upon the snake. It was the last that had claimed the life of the Basilisk that had grown to the size of a dragon. With the desperation of a single survivor who had the chance to reflect the stare back into the snake's own eyes petrifying and killing it at the same time into a statue locked in pain that still decorated the middle of the clearing in which it had fought so ruthlessly to have petrified hundreds and leave twice as many dead in it's wake.

That mare had been Starswirl the Bearded's youngest daughter, Night Star. A pony who had a humble origin as a mere maid to princess Celestia had resulted in many speculation and the title of 'Basilisk Slayer' being bestowed to the end of her name. Meowth didn't care for it however, he saw the wide clearing of gravel that may have once been the petrified statues of once valiant warriors as a perfect battleground for the incoming fight that was due today, though his mood was dampened slightly by the current drizzle of bleak grey rain and the low haunting sound of the wind passing beneath the stone solid stone serpent's wide open mouth and reverberating in a strange melody that would do a Ghastly proud. Everything was in place, three squads of Lions neatly organized into battle position, his machine waited to erupt from the most unlikely of places. Looking to his left he could see two of his friends that had long since traveled with, some for years others for shorter. Arbok and Yanmega waited, tense in their new gear that had been developed by Meowth to improve their combat capabilities. Similarly to his right was Wheezing and Wobbuffet bearing their own armor. Meowth smiled, if anything went wrong he had trusted Yamask and Carnivine with the Darkrai machine to erupt from it's hiding spot and load them into it during the fight. Though first it would be a battle of attrition to weaken the soon-to-be-deceased Ghost Lamp.

His gloating was interrupted as a feminine voice spoke up, "Why are you doing this?!"

Meowth sighed, turning around to face the insufferable purple mare who had done nothing but interrogate him with questions since she woke up, "To make sure your friend shows up to die, just like the last thirty seven times you have asked me." Meowth groaned holding up a claw to stop the mare in mid sentence, "Do you not even know what he is?"

"A Pokémon like you of course." Twilgiht responded in a know-it-all manner, "Still doesn't explain why you wish to do ill on your fellow beings."

Meowth sighed, "It would be pointless to try and explain in detail. So I will just say it this way, he is a menace in my way to conquering this world in the name of Team Rocket." He noticed Twilight about to interrupt so he continued on louder, "No it is not a space company, it is a mafia organization of the best type for villainy. I can only imagine how happy my boss will be when I take your 'princess' dictator off her royal throne and claim it for Giovanni, my boss. Now shut up before I gag you like your other unicorn friend."

Twilight promptly stopped talking to Meowth turning around he heard her start quietly talking amongst her friends, but he no longer cared. Let them talk, they can't get out of this one even if they tried. Though he was curious to why the lions were staring so meekly at the giant statue of a snake that decorated the middle of the open field.

Zecora had just finished comforting Glacial song and putting her back to bed, Spike had also been a nervous wreck but after a small bit of convincing he was now relaxing in a bubble bath. Though why soul had such a product when his lamp relied on the flame that could be extinguished on water was beyond the zebra. Though the lamp did, oddly enough, have a lot of cleaning products meant for metal as well in a separate drawer. Zecora smiled lightly as little miss song turned in her sleep, hugging a teddy Ursa almost as big as she was tightly to herself before resuming her reading. Zecora had found the most curious book on mythological and magical creatures and had just reached the Basilisk section when something caught her eye. It was the story of Basilisk Rock but there was an addition to it in a margin written in old pony language. While Zecora was no grand master of the language she knew enough to read what was there.

It is rumored that the basilisk can be killed with it's own stare, this is false. Enough strife or force will reawaken a petrified basilisk to the way of life and release it from it's prison. It is for that reason that Basilisk Rock still stands to this day and that none of the creatures of the Everfree dare to fight in it's presence. In case the dreaded monster were to reawake once more.
-D.

Her eyes widening she ran to the desk, pulling a paper, quill, and ink pot out. Scribbling down what she had learned and tying it neatly before rushing towards the bathroom spike was currently inhabiting. Knocking on the door she waited until spike gave her permission to enter before bringing the letter to spike, "Grave new's I must send, so that future events may bend. Celestia must be warned, in case a threat is reborned."

"Huh?" Spike stated brilliantly at Zecora's rhymes.

Zecora sighed, "Send this letter to Twilights mentor, because strife is at the center."

Spike raised an eyebrow but didn't question Zecora further, simply grabbing the letter and sending it off to Celestia.

Celestia stood upon her sky chariot being drawn by four Pegasus type royal guards grandly and majestically, her younger sister, still small as the average mare had timidly agreed to come with her, most unusual of her sister but then again they had missed each other's company for a thousand years. Luna was under her sister's orders to just watch and aide from afar. While Celestia was still at full strength, due to not having to raise the sun for many an hour yet, her sister was still recovering the magical power that had been so previously drained from the Mismia that had formed Nightmare Moon's core. While still stronger than an average unicorn, Celestia didn't trust her sister's current state to allow her to perform in such a scenario. Celestia herself was out of shape from so many years of sitting on her throne. Not that her body showed it. Though she did feel slightly pudgy lately, must be all the cloud cake. Turning the matter of strength in her head she was promptly interrupted by a scroll appearing in front of her before promptly hitting her in the face as the chariot made it seemingly fly into her royal vision. Squawking indignantly she took the thing out of her face with magic and raising an eyebrow as her younger sister giggled still after seeing her sister being hit in the face with a random scroll. Slap stick humor, celestia rolled her eyes, sitting down to read the letter.

"Interesting..." Celestia thought, "Maybe the show won't be so boring after all."

"What is it my sister?" Luna asked once her laughter had calmed down.

"Change of plans," Celestia motioned for her little sister to move closer so she could put a wing over Luna, "Look's like a third side is going to enter the fray. How Twilight's friend, Soul, handles this will be very interesting indeed."

"What do you mean sister dearest," Luna questioned, "Aren't we going to help rescue your student and her friends?"

"If needed, but I wish to see just how this is going to go down before we intervene."

Celestia pondered for a while, she still was trying to create a elite force of supernatural soldiers in case of invasion or hostile actions like Nightmare Moon had been raised again. But so far only Soul had proven as non-dangerous to her ponies. Though this combat would prove if she was right in her assumptions based on her student's reports, "Guards, when we get within five miles of Basilisk Rock, go down to tree lines and land a quarter mile from the clearing. I will want to see this myself. When I give the signal, if I give the signal, that will be the moment to strike."

"Yes My liege" several guards, Pegasus, Unicorn, and Earth Pony alike shouted.

Celestia had a small smile as the guards flew over the tree line of the Everfree Forest.

From the bushes the Fantastic Revolution watched the three forces from a series of tree tops. Their informant had told that the princesses were heading to this stupid looking ugly snake of a rock for some reason, though he would never have imagined the army that was now staring Soul down. Their leader, the Fantastic Pegasus himself, was watching with under anticipation as the chaos unfolded. Such was the way of things, he thought, all they had to do was wait for Princess Celestia and Luna to come before they could strike with their latest secret weapon. Oh no, this was no mere cake or feather. Or even a pie! This was one hundred percent grade A killing machine of a weapon. This time he would steal their soul's with the most brilliant device yet... A CAMERA! custom built with Alicorn soul stealing flashers and special paper that could hold the soul of it's victim forever locked in a moment of time to be disposed or kept at his own leisure. Such a fate would be befitting of the tyrant. Forced to work under his orders until the end of time or have her soul torn up and burnt. Hah!

Soul drew close to the clearing, landing at the edge, or more promptly going to a hover feet from the ground, and moving towards the giant snake statue that he could see many lions in the tree lines around him. The snake itself was horrifyingly realistic in stone, almost as if it still had the ability by appearance alone to petrify it's target in fear. Though he was not distracted by the statue for long. After all it was a statue, not a living being, was it? His eyes widened slightly as he reached his senses out and felt the still living, indomitable inferno of a soul trapped in stone within. But as he strode up towards the smug looking cat of a Pokémon who was standing next to it with four of his friends he didn't expect a shout from a very unexpected source.