//------------------------------// // Rise of Darkness (Edited) // Story: Kingdom Hearts of Harmony // by steel soul //------------------------------// Kingdom Hearts of Harmony By Steel Soul Rise of Darkness Green to start music and red to stop music The wind from the heavy snow storm pummeled the small group of ponies relentlessly, each step taken feeling as though they were walking through heavy lead. The group had to stick together least each one felt that they would lose themselves within the thickness of the snow, never to be seen again. Despite fur covering every inch of his body, Sora couldn’t help but think that pants wouldn’t be the worst thing right about now. Forcing his eyes to look forward, he could see that the others were faring no better, especially the three little fillies traveling as close to Fluttershy as they could. They seemed to be struggle the most, more than likely due to their small size. The Keyblader gritted his teeth as he fought through the sting of the cold. How can anything survive out here? Let alone a whole Empire. This cold is intense. The sound of Shining Armor’s voice drew him from his inner thoughts, though what he had to say was far from comforting. “Something keeps trying to get in. We think it’s the Unicorn King who originally cursed the place!” Sora could hear Twilight’s voice next, though he could barely see the lavender unicorn. “B-But Princess Celestia said we were being sent to find a way to protect the empire. If King Sombra can’t get in, it must already be protected!” Before Shining Armor could offer any response, a loud unearthly sound filled the air around them somehow even drowning out the noise of the snow storm that seemed to rage endlessly. Sora’s eyes darted frantically as he searched for the source of the disturbance. “What the...What was that?!” Fluttershy quickly pulled the fillies closer to her, her all four shaking from both the cold and the foreboding feeling of fear. “I-It’s one of the things, isn’t it!?” Shining stomped his hoof on the ground as he turned to face the group, a determined frown on his face. “We have to get to the Crystal Empire! NOW!!” Before any of the ponies could start running however, a thick cloud of smoke began to swirl behind them, the elements of the storm did little to affect it as it rose high in the sky. As it formed it began to grow dark and the feeling of dread could be felt emanating deep into everypony who looked up at it. When it was fully formed, blood red eyes opened at the top of it and stared down at all the ponies present. Sora, after recovering from the shock of seeing the creature, turned to the girls and yelled one word. “RUN!” And run they did. Scooping up Spike onto his back and causeing him to leave all of Rarity's belongings, Sora kept pace with the mares and the stallion while still staying at the end of the group, ready to defend against any attack that may come their way. He chanced a glance backwards, only to find the cloud of darkness chasing after them without remorse. He clicked his teeth and put on an extra sprint in his step. A Bright dome of light could be seen over the horizon causing Shining to smile with relief. “Look! We’re almost…” His jubilation died on his lips before he could even finish what he started to say. Every pony present behind Twilight’s brother could see what had caused the sudden interruption. Many of the same Shadow Pony’s could be seen rising out of the snow, their beady yellow eyes focused on their targets. “Twilight…” Spike called out pointing a shaky claw finger toward the waiting creatures. “They got…” “Horns!!” Twilight finished. “ They have horns! They can use magic!” Rainbow threw her forelegs in the air. “Aww! COME ON!” Applejack stood in front of Fluttershy and the fillies. “This looks badder than a swarm of grasshoppers in a corn field…” “You’re telling me!” Pinkie said with a sigh. “How can I make friends with the crystal ponies if Meanie McShadow Pants stops us from reaching the place!” Rarity gulped as she made her way behind Sora. “You don’t suppose they would let us through if we asked nicely would they?” Rainbow landed and dug her hoof into the snow growling angrily, answering for the stallion before he could. “These guys only understand one thing, Rarity! A good old fashioned hoof to the face!” Shining Armor gritted his teeth and fell back so that he was right next to Sora. “I need you to take the girls and go on ahead! Find a way to get them to safety!” Sora took not his eyes away from the heartless. “What about you? What are you going to do?” “I’ll take care of the one right behind us!” Before Sora could object to him facing the big bad king alone, Shining would gallop at full speed towards the encroaching shadow, his horn flaring with a readied spell. Seeing that he was left with no other choice, Sora galloped ahead, tossing Spike over to Applejack with a quick buck of his hips. Freed from his burden, the hero ran ahead of the girls, summoning his key blade as he went. “I’ll make an opening! You guys take it when-Woah!!” He yelped as he just nearly dodged a beam of dark energy as it shot past the stallion, nearly clipping off more than just a few strands of his mane. “They have magic Sora!” Twilight called out, summoning a shield to cover herself and her friends as a wave of magic began to assault them . “Uhn! Rushing in without a plan is way to dangerous.” The here gritted his teeth as he watched at Twilight’s shield took on the full blunt of the magic. “Darn it! If only I had my magic then then maybe I could...wait...” Sora’s eyes sparkled and a bright smile played on his lips. “Magic. Magic!!” He turned to Twilight. “Twilight! I Can’t use magic! But you can! I need you to form a shield around me!” Every pony looked at the stallion with shocked expressions, all of them saying the same thing. “What!? He made his way to Twilight’s side and whispered into her ear and, when he was finished, the mare pulled away, looking at the stallion with uncertainty.. “A-Are you sure that will work, Sora?” “Don’t know…” Sora’s smile never left his lips as he turned to face the Heartless. “But it always worked when I winged it before! What's stopping it from doing so now?” “Do you want me to make you a list?!” “Naw. Never liked list. Too many things to do.” Despite the humorous tone Sora gave off, the look of determination he made never wavered. “We can do it Twi. I trust you. Do you trust me?” That struck a cord with the mare, her gaze wavering for only a moment before she too put on a look to match Sora’s own. “I would have to be close to you. The further away you are with my magic the more I have to produce to keep it together.” Sora smirked as he pointed towards his back. “Then you better hop on and hold on tight. Can't have you falling off mid way.” Twilight hesitated for only a moment before doing as she was told. She wrapped her hooves around his neck as he turned to face the others. “All of you, get behind us but stay close. Me and Twi are gonna smash our way through these heartless!” The girls all complied just as Twilight formed the energy around her and Sora. A big purple orb enveloped the Stallion, encasing the two ponies. “All right Twi!” Sora called out. “Let's show them what we can do!” Like a hamster in a mobile ball Sora began running at full speed. The orb around them glided effortlessly in the snow as it made its way toward the front line of the heartless army. The heartless, seeing this, began to shoot the same dark energy toward the ball, but it had little effect as the it just bounced right off the glowing surface, sometimes sending it right back toward its owner. Disorientated, the heartless could not even escape as the Sora/Twilight ball of energy bowled them over, sending more than a few flying into their brothers. It took little time before Sora and the girls and Spike, made it though near the end of the heartless army. Before he reached the end of the line, however, Sora would jumped in the air allowing the ponies behind him to dash under Twilight and himself. Raising his keyblade in the air, he allowed his own magic of light to mix with Twilight’s own power “Release it! Now!” Twilight felt her own magic strengthened just as the Keyblade’s magic would mix with her own. Deciding to follow Sora’s example, the mare activated her horn, pouring all of the magic she could muster into the upcoming attack. The pair expanded the bubble outwards, hard and fast. The result was devastating as the heartless were sent flying away from the pair in a burst of magic and light. When the two landed, Sora twirled around to see the effects of he and the mare's work. "It worked! Twilight we...Twi?" He felt Twilight slouch on his back, her cheek heavily leaning upon him and her grip loosening. “Twilight!? What’s wrong?!” “I…I used…too much…energy…” She huffed, her grip around his neck slipping more and more. He looked toward the dome which was only a few feet and back toward the heartless blocking his way to getting to Shining Armor. He really didn’t have much of a choice in what he had to do, even if his heart was screaming at him to not do so. “Come on! We need to get you to safety!” Rainbow landed beside him, pointing towards Twilight’s brother. “What about Shining! We can’t leave him here!” You’re weak. Sora stood firm in his resolve. “Twilight is down, we have kids with us! Getting them to safety first is the best thing we can do right now.” “B-But we can’t just leave him!” Rainbow tried so desperately to argue, more out of frustration than anything. You’re nothing. Sora nodded “He can take care of himself for now. As soon as we get them inside then I can go back for Shining!” Rainbow scowled. “B-But...We can’t...I mean...He’s Twilight’s brother and…!!” Always have been...always will be. “Go…” All the mares turned to look toward Twilight, who was raising herself off the stallion. “The fillies…They have to come first…Go...” Rainbow gave a look of defeated as she tried in vain to rebel. “B-but…Twi…He’s your…We can't just...I mean..." She struggled to come up with something but to no avail. The cyan mare would soon feel a tug on her tail and found Applejack pulling upon it. “Come on ya’ll…” Applejack said, lowering her hat over her eyes. “Ya heard Twilight…Applebloom and the fillies first. Trained soldier later.” Rainbow closed her eyes tight and shook before flying upward and toward the dome, the rest following soon after. As soon as they entered they were greeted with a sight unlike any other. Crystals as far at the eyes could see. The buildings, the road, even most of the décor being made of many different crystals. But that was nothing compared to what lay within the middle of the crystal city. Sora gaped at the crystal spire rising higher than any of the buildings he had seen in his life, even higher than the one where he had fought Xemnus before. Its slick crystal exterior would more than likely may make marvel at its beauty and namesake. The most noticeable thing was the fact that it felt like a bright summer day inside the dome they entered, a complete contrast to the harsh winter outside. Though all the ponies gasped in amazement at their surroundings, Sora would not enjoy it with the rest of them. He quickly slipped Twilight off his back, passing her to Rarity as he did so. Quick as he could, he turned to run back out into harsh elements of the snow ready to join Shining Armor in battle. Only to find nothing No Heartless. No Sombra. No Shining Armor. Nothing. “What…no...nonoNONONO!” Sora ran out into the snow, de-summoning his keyblade as he did so. “SHINING ARMOR! SHINING ARMOR WHERE ARE YOU!” The boy yelled out into the darkness of the storm, only to be answered with the howling of the bitter wind. “No...I was too late...” You're nothing but a weak kid playing pretend. Sora slumped into the snow, as the words stuck him. You can ever escape your heart, Sora. Sora raised his hooves to his heart, feeling a tight tingle within. The sudden feeling of his forehoof being grabbed caused the stallion to look behind him, Applejack pulling him back towards the safety and warmth of the barrier. “Sugercube…Come on…Ah…Ah’m sure he’s fine…Come on now…We can't afford to lose ya too.” Sora allowed himself to be lead back to the Crystal Empire, though before he entered, the boy took one last look towards the the raging storm of frost and ice. “I…I’m sorry…Twilight…I was too…” Weak...