//------------------------------//
// It Has To Be This Way 
// Story: The Time Has Come 
// by Commissar Rarity 
//------------------------------//

 
 
 For what seemed the hundredth time, the ursa major crushed Trixie under the weight of its paw. And then everything shimmered, and Trixie was whole again, standing on her feet. Except for the bullet hole in her shoulder, which had yet to heal.
 
 Trixie wasn’t sure how long she’d been in this hell. It felt like the ghost of Hastur had mocked her only a few minutes ago, but surely she had been killed by the ursa major countless times over.
 
 A roar cut through her thoughts. Not this time, she thought as she pulled out her sword. She couldn’t remember if she had tried using her sword on the behemoth.
 
 The ursa major towered over her, a bear-shaped nebula of stars and planets. It swiped at her, and she dashed out of the way, taking a swipe of her own at its paw. A gaseous stream emerged from where she had cut it.
 
 The monstrous bear raised its paw to its mouth, sucking where it had been hurt. Trixie slid forward to stab at a hind paw. It sunk in to the hilt, and when she pulled it out, a shimmering star came with it.
 
 The bear staggered, about to fall. Trixie rolled out from beneath it as it collapsed. Looking back at it, she saw to her surprise that Sunset Shimmer was on its back, her spear halfway inside the bear’s back.
 
 
 “Come on,” Sunset shouted as she back flipped off the stunned ursa major. “We don’t have much time.”
 
 Trixie ran towards her saviour, sand kicking up with every step. With a great leap, she barely managed to catch Sunset’s arm. The other girl pulled her up out of the pit.
 
 “How’d you kill it with one hit?” Trixie asked.
 
 “Haven’t you heard of blessed weapons?” Sunset replied, disdain in her voice. “Oh, no, you haven’t. You’re still a newbie, which is why I had to pull your butt out of the fire. Now come on, Hastur’s throne isn’t too far away and we need to hurry before the other demons figure out we’re human!”
 
Practically dragging Trixie, sunset started running at full speed. For the first time, Trixie could see a thorn-like structure in the distance. The curvature of the pit Hastur had trapped her in had prevented her from seeing it.
 
 “Is that his throne?”
 
 “He likes a good show,” Sunset muttered. “If we don’t hurry, he’ll be replacing Canterlot Castle with it in a few weeks.”
 
 For what seemed an eternity, the two girls ran. They passed demons of all shape and size. The demons would pause and look at them before returning to their strange work. Trixie shut her eyes to avoid looking at them. Some of the things they were doing were unspeakable.
 
 Without warning, the throne of thorns was suddenly no longer in the distance, but right before them. Trixie blinked. It hadn’t gotten any closer in their movements, but now it was there, only a few hundred feet away. What a mysterious realm, she thought.
 
 Hastur sat on the throne, goat head clutched under one shoulder. A large tongue of green flame sat where his head had been. A great scythe made out of skulls and bones sat next to him. As the girls drew closer, he stood and set the goat skull on his neck. The green flame flickered into the eye sockets, and he reached for his scythe.
 
 “Sunset Shimmer. We meet again. Was my blessing not enough? Did my blood not sate your thirst?”
 
 Sunset’s eyes darkened. “Hastur. You know what I want. And you should’ve expected this. Celestia did raise me to be a demon hunter.”
 
 A dry laugh reverberated off the throne of thorns. “And what of the whelp? I thought I had her trapped in a pit with her second greatest fear. Perhaps I should have expended more effort and trapped you there with the voices of those who mocked you instead. It’s harder to come back from that.”
 
 Turning to Sunset, he spoke again. “You know I am the Great Corruptor, he who caused the downfall of Sombra, the benevolent King in the North. You know I have already corrupted the man who will change the world. And you know your heart is corrupted as well as your soul.”
 
 Hastur spread his arms out, scythe in his left hand. “Well, what is it? Will you fight the Great Corruptor, Lord of this demon realm or will you leave the world to its fate?”
 
Sunset closed her eyes and opened her mouth to speak. Trixie clapped a hand over it and said, “We fight. You don’t belong in this world, monster.”
 
 “Enough talk!” bellowed Hastur. “Have at you!”
 
 He charged them, sweeping his scythe at their feet. Trixie and Sunset leapt over his clumsy blow. Snapping her fingers, Sunset brought her spear back into existence. Trixie, meanwhile, was coming down with her sword. The blow struck home, carving a deep wound into Hastur’s chest. The demon lord ripped the sword out and slammed the butt of his scythe into Trixie’s wounded shoulder.
 
 She let out a scream of pain and collapsed.
 
 Sunset landed behind Hastur and began to slash quickly with her spear. The blows landed on his back, ripping apart flesh and bone. The self-proclaimed Great Corruptor spun, bringing his scythe up. Sunset dodged it with a flip.
 
 “Show me your true self,” Hastur hissed, twirling his scythe. “The evil within.”
 
 “Fine,” Sunset growled.
 
 As Trixie watched, Sunset’s flesh rippled. Her fingers grew longer and sharper, and her skin turned red. Her ears turned into knives, and wings sprouted from her back.
 
 “Good! You still have it!” Hastur swung his scythe at Sunset’s neck, but the demon-girl flew beneath it, impaling Hastur on her spear. The head of it sunk into his grey skin, black blood bubbling to the surface.
 
 Hastur cackled, and with one hand grasped the spear and plunged it deeper into his middle. Sunset’s demonic face fell into a state of panic. She grabbed the spear and started pulling on it, but Hastur’s strength proved greater.

 With one final tug, the spear’s butt flew through his midsection. He brought the scythe up as Sunset tumbled towards him. The blade cut deep into Sunset’s stomach, and ripped upwards. A gout of red blood spurted out as he ripped the blade from her body.
 
 Her demon form shimmered, and Sunset collapsed to the ground, a girl again.
 
 Trixie stumbled to her feet, leaning on her sword. “Sunset–”
 
 Hastur struck her in the shoulder again, knocking her to the ground. He kicked her sword away.
 
 “What do you think?” he asked, looking over his shoulder. “A slow death or a quick one?”
 
 “Always go with slow,” came another voice. It sounded vaguely familiar to Trixie. She just couldn’t place. “She’s caused too much trouble to warrant a quick one.”
 
 A human stepped out from behind the throne. He was massive, at least seven feet tall. Hastur still dwarfed him, but he was still impressively built. His hood was down, revealing a harsh face and short, slicked back black hair.
 
 She recognised him. “You’re Reasons Fairly,” she gasped in-between spasms of pain. “I voted for you.”
 
“And now look where I am!” Reasons spread his arms out. “I’m going to change the world, starting with one thing.”
 
 His fist rammed into Hastur’s back and came out the other side, clutching a black heart.
 
 Hastur staggered, staring at his still-beating heart. If Trixie didn’t know better, she could have sworn the flames in his eyes were staring at it in disbelief.
 
 Hastur collapsed, leaving Reasons standing over him with a smug expression on his face.
 
 “Never turn your back on a politician,” he quipped. Crushing the demon’s heart, he stepped towards Trixie. “Don’t you hate speeches? They’re always long and boring. But not mine, eh? Short and to the point. Change for Equestria! No more kowtowing to other lands, we do what we want!”
 
 He smiled, and offered her a hand – not the one that was still stained black – and she took it. “Take your sword. I want to show you what’s changed about me. It’s more than just my political views.”
 
 Trixie limped over to where her sword had landed, clutching her shoulder in pain. It was bleeding again.
 
“I was elected on a very simple platform, remember? Equality! No more rubbish about ponies from distant lands being less treated like second-class citizens.”
 
 Trixie winced. Being from Romaneigh, that was exactly the reason she had voted for him. She was tired of being treated like horseapples even after hiding her backstory.
 
 Reasons was still talking. Like all politicians, he loved the sound of his own voice. “There was only one problem I found. Celestia. The old guard. So stubborn in her ways. Even more so when that stupid slut Luna came back from the moon. She should’ve stayed there.
 
 “Once Luna was back, I found all my progress slipping away! Just like that.” He clenched his fists tightly. “Come at me! Swing that sword of yours!”
 
Trixie gritted her teeth and swung it. Black crystals formed over his wrist and he blocked the blow with no harm done.
 
 “A gift of corruption,” he said, punching her in the gut. She staggered backwards with a grunt, almost dropping her sword. “Anyway, that stupid horse-faced Luna didn’t like what I was doing. She cut my foreign fund. Stupid woman.
 
 “I panicked and turned to something I had dabbled in my wasted youth. The Book of Hastur, which many thought banned. I found a copy in a little shop, next to a powerful-looking amulet. The amulet was worthless to me, but not you, huh?
 
 With another punch, he sent Trixie sprawling. “I was in contact with Hastur himself, like my ancestor Sombra! He taught me things I used to regain my influence in Celestia’s court. I had a new idea.
 
“I would take over the realm and usurp the throne of Celestia herself.”
 
 Trixie took advantage of Reasons’ posturing and dashed towards him, intending to impale him. The black shards of corruption appeared where the blade struck, making it bounce off.
 
 “With the blood pact I made with Hastur, I reshaped my staff into the demons you fought on your way to Tartarus. Vautor was my lieutenant. I hope you gave him the death he so desperately wanted.”
 
 Reasons grabbed her sword with a hand, and squeezing the blade, snapped it in two. He ripped what remained out of her hands and tossed it away
 
 “I dream a dream of a new Equestria. No gods, no masters, just the people, doing what the people want. What the people need. No laws to get in the way.”
 
 Trixie let out a feral yell and punched him in the gut. Corruption embraced her arm, sucking out the life from it. She ripped it free, tearing her sleeve off.
 
 “What do you think? Wouldn’t a world where everyone is equal be the ideal place? A dream that even now will be realised when I take control of Hastur’s dominion and invade!”
 
 “I thought you were crazy,” Trixie said, clutching her wounded fist. “but I was wrong.”
 
 “Ah! So you see what I mean. What I want for the people. A world for the people, by the people.”
 
 She nodded. He took a step over to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Maybe I was wrong about you, Trixie. Maybe we’ll make beautiful things together.”
 
“You’re not crazy,” Trixie said as he embraced her. “You’re insane!”
 
 She brought her knee up into his balls. He had no time to react, and the knee impacted hard. His corruption had no time to block it.
 
 Trixie flipped backwards, and got into a fighting stance. Green fire leapt from Reasons’ eyes and he stood unsteadily, clutching his crotch with one hand. “You’ve got fight in you, still. Shame we couldn’t be friends–”
 
 Something hit the ground in front of Trixie. Sunset’s spear! Sunset stood far behind Reasons, clutching her chest, keeping it in one piece. She nodded before collapsing once more to the ground.
 
 “God, even dead she’s a pain in my sweet ass,” Reasons grumbled. He turned back to Trixie. “So you’re really going to fight me, huh?”
 
 Trixie picked up the blessed spear and spun it, getting a feel for it. “You’re right.” She beckoned him. “You gonna fight or you gonna make another campaign speech?”
 
 Reasons charged her, head down, ready to ram it into her gut. Trixie closed her eyes and jammed the head of the spear into the ground. She used it as springboard to flip herself over Reasons, letting him go past.
 
 Slashing as quickly as she could, she cut through the corruption forming on Reasons’ back, slashing it to ribbons. The blessed blade then met his flesh.
 
 He spun around, knocking the spear away. With all of her might, Trixie held onto it. She smiled. He hadn’t expected that.
 
 She took steps towards him, slashing as quickly as she could. Sunset’s experience flooded into her, teaching her what she needed to know about the weapon. How it worked, how it felt.
 
 Leaping into the air, narrowly dodging another charge, Trixie closed her eyes and imagined a sphere of chains. To be safe, wrapped in chain. The spear reacted to her wish, cloaking her in a sphere of chains. The head darted towards Reasons, an infinite stream of chain following. It wrapped around his hands, clenching them tightly together.
 
 The tip sunk into his chest, carving deeply into his flesh, shattering the vile corruption.
 
 Trixie snapped her wrist, and the chains rattled back into their places, making the spear whole again.
 
 Reasons ripped a thorn from the throne, and charged her with it. She dodged it, tripping him. The shard bounced away from him. She drove the spear into his side, and ripped it out again.
 
 He smacked her away, and grabbed her by the shoulders. Pressing his thumb into her wounded shoulder, Reasons smiled. “Looks like your campaign is coming to a premature close,” he growled. “Should’ve withdrawn.”
 
 
 Sunset opened her eyes with a gasp. She could feel something still keeping her alive.
 
 Her eyes widened as she realised that Alastor was lying near her, dropped from Hastur’s hands when his heart had been ripped from his chest. If she could reach it, a binding spell could undo the damage it caused.
 
 Grimacing, she dragged herself over to it. She felt cold inside and knew that her time was close.
 
 Laying a hand on its shaft, she muttered a quick prayer and started to concentrate as deeply as she could. It had to work…
 
 
 The chains rattled, and the butt of the spear struck him in-between his eyes. He stumbled backwards, dropping Trixie.
 
 She rolled away from him, preparing for another one of Sunset’s tricks she learned from the spear.
 
 Producing her catalyst, she slammed the tip into the spear, charging it with magical energy. Thrusting it, she caught Reasons in the chest again, pumping him full of magical. In theory, it would dampen the corruption and allow her to get a final blow in.
 
 He charged her.
 
 Trixie smiled.
 
 “We’re done here,” she shouted, sliding towards him.
 
 The spear drove straight into his heart as he stampeded over her. She lost her grip, and he ran straight past her.
 
 Staggering, he turned towards her. “You’ve killed me.”
 
 “I’m glad we could have a heart-to-heart,” she said, walking over. Grasping the tip of the spear, she drove it deeper. She could hear a crack as the corruption that had eaten his heart shattered.
 
 “You were just like me,” he rasped. “Lost and angry. You realise you’re trapped here?”
 
 “I’ll find a way back,” Trixie said, ripping the spear out of his chest. “And we’re nothing alike. You’re full of greed and anger. I’m… I’m different. I want to fix things.”
 
 “So did I… I guess I passed one final thing to you. The desire… to fix Equestria.” Reasons let out a horrible gargle, and died.
 
 
 Trixie stood there a while, corruption dripping from the head and shaft of her spear. She had done it. She had stopped the demons from invading. She had killed a madman who wanted to reshape Equestria in his twisted image.
 
 “And all at the cost of one girl’s life,” she said softly.
 
 “Don’t count on it,” rasped Sunset Shimmer.
 
Trixie spun around, eyes wide as flapjacks. Sunset limped towards her, leaning on Hastur’s great scythe.
 
“But how–”
 
 Sunset smiled and raised a finger to her lips. “Binding spell. Demon hunters are bound to their weapons and can’t die by their own weapon. Once I bound myself to it, my body started to knit together again. Still hurts like a bitch.”
 
 Sunset’s shirt was little more than rags, barely covering the important bits. She still limped towards Trixie with a smile.
 
“I saw you fight Reasons. You’re even better with that spear than I was. Keep it. I got Alastor to keep me company now. I’ll teach you how to bind it to you when we get out of here.”
 
 Trixie’s eyes flashed to the horizon. “We might not get that lucky,” she said, pointing.
 
 Dust was being kicked up, shrouding a mass of creatures approaching. A veritable army of demons now stood between them and the portal home. They could see the twisted shapes rapidly approaching.
 
 “Oh, come on,” Sunset said, her smirk growing bigger. “You just took out a human with the power of a demon lord in addition to being doused in corruption. We can take this chumps.”
 
Trixie smiled. I guess so… I do feel stronger. She spun her spear. “Alright then.
 
 “Let’s dance.”