"ERAAAAAAAAAHH!!!"
Jerosh bashed the metal shelf of his chambers, clawing his head and screaming relentlessly. He slammed his head into the wall, feeling as if his head was going to split in two.
I can feel your jealousy, Jerosh. The anger and envy you had over your youngest brother. You thought you should have been Doshu'um, yes?
TUVEK JRO! (FUCK YOU!)
Jerosh cried out again, falling to his knees and screaming as the pain increased. His brain felt as though a dozen miniature daggers were splitting it into thousands of pieces. His limbs moved of their own accord, forcing him to his hands and knees. His mark glowed an ominous black, just as his eyes turned the same color.
I can make that a reality. Your brother was weak. Immature. Unwilling. Pathetic. But you… you have SO much power he could never withstand half of it. Imagine the power of your ancestors combined with that. MY power.
You… bastard… I… Minira's grace… the pain…
I can make you invincible. Ichima and Limir would never stand a chance, not even those "Elements of Harmony." You could serve me… serve my master.
You are… a creation of Drepshol… himself… Why would I… ally myself with a m…monster?!
The Iikro's chuckle echoed faintly in his mind. It's voice exploded in volume, almost as if it resounded off the walls… like it was everywhere at once.
Because you have no choice.
Jerosh's scream altered into a more demonic yell, as if his voice was shattering a thousand times over.
"How… did Reku'un… ever fight this?" Jerosh murmured, grunting as he collapsed on the ground, spasming with the pain.
They'll bow beneath us. Helpless, weak, and afraid. No one will stop us. NO ONE!
R…Reku'un… Reku'un will stop you. I… promise… you this.
He could barely handle the Ashla within him. What could he do against the very power of rage itself?
Jerosh chuckled weakly, causing the Iikro to growl in his mind. "He… is the son of Gonak… and Nitera Alamonshuor. Son… of the Makti, Minira's right hand… the warrior who will… end the horde… once and for all," Jerosh strained, fighting mentally. "Even you… Arthanian drek TRARG! AHHHHHHHHHH!"
I've tired of your voice. I'm going to destroy that boy and what remains of your people… and you'll be glad to know I used you to do so.
We'll… we'll see… about that… won't we?
…
…
Yes… we will.
"If you need us before we need you, use this," Agner said, handing Draco a transmission radio. "We'll… we'll see you soon, Reku'un."
Draco looked over the small device, then smiled to his older brother. "I'll keep this close," Draco nodded. Agner nodded, then placed a hand on Draco's shoulder. Draco did the same to Agner, then to Fermot, and then Jaqeluu. Jerosh was needed by the League apparently.
Figanti did the gesture last and motioned for Draco to come closer. "I know you know nothing of us… but please… see our culture as Jerosh did," he said softly. "See what is at stake… remember who we are… remember what our purpose is."
Draco nodded hesitantly, then watched as his family boarded the drop-ship. Agner, Fermot, and Jaqeluu nodded softly to him, and Figanti frowned sadly as he turned to enter the cockpit of the ship. Draco, Ember, Moon, Celestia, and Luna each waited for the carrier to rocket into the atmosphere, then turned to go back into the castle. Ember took Draco back to their room, laying down with him in their shared bed.
"They want to love me… they want me to love them," Draco sighed. "When I was linked to Jerosh… I saw a hundred years of fighting that would have killed a pony hundreds of times. And I saw how much he loved me. Even now he loves me… and so do they. But they're losing hope in me… the fact that I can't love my own family is…"
"Frustrating?" Ember asked, her claws gently running through his ruffled mane. "It's been four months. Maybe… maybe you need more time."
Draco shook his head. "Time isn't what I need," he huffed. "I need to live like them… learn like them… That's the only way I'll ever know what being a Loki'irian is. It's like when I went to the Dragon Kingdom with you. I didn't think I'd like it as much as Canterlot… so imagine what my real home would be like."
Ember smiled as she recalled the days of their adolescence, when they were too afraid to admit their love. "But you had me and Moon, remember?" Ember reminded him.
"And now I have my brothers," Draco said, his hands stroking the spines on her back. "We'll be living close… since it turns out I'm eleven to them."
Ember chuckled softly. "I forgot about that," she smiled, resting her head in the crook of his neck. "Just he careful… okay? Don't change, no matter what happens."
Draco guided her gaze back up to him, locking gazes. "I'd never change. Not when I have someone like you," he said firmly yet soothingly. Ember kissed his lips once more, and as the sun set, she fell asleep in his arms.
Working with her father to rule the Dragon Kingdom wore her out to the point where she was napping when he came back to their room. Ever since they returned from the Dragon Kingdom two years ago, Draco started helping his mother with her work with the nobles. The same went for Moon, who kept up with his mother and often visited Fluttershy, as their relationship had entered it's second year. Moon was deciding whether or not he should move to Ponyville to be with her. Going would mean he wouldn't see his mother as much, who he hadn't seen in a thousand years, but not going would mean seeing her less and less. And… Draco had gotten an idea… to move away with Ember. Perhaps in Canterlot… maybe the more rural districts of Ponyville. He told Ember about the idea, but she wasn't sure since her father needed more help now than ever. But she wanted to. Not now, but soon.
As Draco closed his eyes for the night, a knock came to his door, and a very welcomed scent. He carefully worked his way off the bed and went into the hallway, giving Ember a kiss on her forehead before he did. Moon was waiting, smiling softly at his cousin. They gave each other a brief hug before starting to walk, out into the courtyard and to the private gardens of their mothers. Draco didn't need to ask why Moon wanted to talk, as he knew the wolf-pony would tell him soon enough.
"We're going back in," Moon chuckled, bitter and sweet at the same time. "It's strange how we never thought we would enter a war… and here we are entering a second."
Draco nodded, looking up at the night sky. "Well I was born for war, so at least now I know why I'm excited," he chuckled nervously.
Moon nodded, but his smile faded into a frown. "Draco… those things… they smelled like wolves but they weren't," he muttered. "I tried to get the smaller ones to stop… but they had no voice. It was like they were all one and the same, like their only purpose was to kill."
"That's how the story goes," Draco replied, looking at his clan mark. "A deceased god named Anarchy created them to keep his beliefs alive. Minira, who's our moms' mother apparently, made the Elements to beat him, using the Makti's body. When he was beaten, she planted it to make the Tree of Harmony, and we were just mopping up. But they could never pinpoint the home world."
It sounded interesting, that Draco's people actually met their god long ago and helped them defeat an evil god. But it did little to help his concerns. "I slashed several of their throats and they kept attacking, almost like it was against their will," Moon sighed, closing his eyes as he remembered their growls and howls. "They are evil, but maybe they need our help."
His cousin shook his head. "They need to die, Moon. I know they are like wolves… but they're their own race," Draco said softly. "They'll kill us without a second thought… that's what makes it harder for us. But we can do this. We just have to stick together when it all goes down."
Moon nodded, the sounds of wildlife making his ears twitch. The serene nature of the royal gardens reminded him of his love, who was probably asleep at this hour. He missed sleeping beside her. Her warm, soft coat against him, the smell of daisies she emitted, and the soft breaths she blew into his face at night. Moon was sure he had found his future wife, and Draco would be his best… man, they called it. However, he wanted to know if Draco was going to take his relationship further. The Loki'irians only loved once, apparently, and Draco was a common case of restricted love. He found certain traits attractive, and certain beings could be loved. Draco's love was stronger than Moon's, no matter what he said. They had been through much hardships, losing each other but finding one another again. It took them eight years, but they finally had each other. So would Draco do it?
"So… I heard Fluttershy is-"
"Pregnant?" Moon laughed. "No, but it was a good prank. Rarity can be very gullible when it comes to gossip. But… I do hope we can have a foal… if my genes will allow it."
Draco placed an arm around Moon's shoulder comfortingly. "Hey, if anything, our moms could figure out a spell to make one," Draco laughed. "You'd be a great dad."
"I hope so," Moon chuckled, nuzzling his brother. It looked strange, since he was a large, muscular wolf-pony nuzzling a taller and stronger man. But they were brothers, brothers of war, brothers of family, and brothers to the end. Neither of them could care what anyone thought. "If… If I don't survive… Draco I want you to promise me something."
Draco shook his head. "Moon, don't talk like that," Draco said, the thought tearing him up inside. "You're stronger than ever, you'll make it."
"Draco," Moon said firmly. "If I don't make it… I want you to promise to take care of Fluttershy. Help her move on, find another stallion, one who she could have a family with… and make sure she never has to remember me."
The sad but determined look was in Moon's eye again, the one he only had for friends and family. He had always wanted to care for others, as his heart was soft but still just as tough from his millennia of existence. Even now, he wanted what was best for others. And no pony could be better for Fluttershy than him. Draco grasped his paw firmly, shaking it with a knowing nod.
"I promise."
Moon smiled softly and hugged his cousin, then looked up to the crescent moon. "One day we'll look back at now… and we'll remember how worried we were," Moon whispered, closing his eyes as he basked in the moon's beams. "How ridiculous we sound… and how much it meant."
Draco laughed and sat against the tree Moon was in front of. "And me and Ember would totally hit you for bragging that you knew we would end up together." It hadn't stopped, even two years after he and Ember mated.
Moon rested beside Draco, his body weary from the recent days he had been helping his mother. "I'm sure you… would," he chuckled quietly.
Draco's eyes drooped slowly, and he managed to give his sleeping cousin one last smile before wrapping an arm around him and falling asleep. Just like when they were in the mountains.