Chapter 22
The King of Hell
Princess Celestia looked through the rows of ponies. Her sight shifted every few seconds until they finally rested upon Twilight. “You were supposed to take my place. It is sad that you didn't go the way I showed you. You should have abandoned your friends and let the darkness devour you.”
Twilight couldn't believe what her former mentor had said. She gasped in disbelief. “How could you say something like this! Darkness doesn't bring you anywhere, it doesn't make you strong. It only makes you lonely!”
The Princess's eyes wandered to Soul. She pointed her hooves at the turned stallion and laughed sarcastically. “Just like this one? Maybe you should ask him about being lonely and powerless. I think that he could say he is never truly alone with all these souls inside his mind.”
Soul didn't let her provoke him. He just looked at the mare behind this whole dilemma. “You should listen to yourself, Helia. I devoured everything dark and left only the light. I might have lost my friends, but I will forever be the one that defeated the apocalyptic ponies and the one who defeated chaos.”
Even though Soul's expression didn't change, his gaze wandered towards the draconequus. Discord pointed his claw innocently at himself with the most convincing face in Equestria’s history. “Why are you looking at me? You can't be seriously considering to defeat me. There is no way you can do it!”
The newly grey stallion licked sensationally over his lip while he stared at Discord. “You can't run away anymore. I'm not here to protect the weak or even Equestria. I'm just here to take my revenge and take my place afterwards.”
Applejack still couldn't comprehend Soul's appearance. Desperately, she shouted at the changed stallion. “And what is this place? Is it far off from your friends?”
The orange mare almost started to cry, but Soul didn't care. He coldly turned to her and whispered. “I will extinguish the sun and destroy chaos. And after my deed is done … I will become the new King of Hell!”
Applejack gasped, she couldn't understand this thoughts. What happened to Soul that he was thinking in such ways? Princess Celestia couldn't do anything but laugh. “You want to become the King of Hell? Don't make me laugh! What would qualify you?”
Soul walked slowly towards Princess Celestia, his face has became darker with every step. “I defeated you a thousand years ago, even without the power of the apocalyptic four. And now you want to challenge me and expect to win? How pitiful...”
Princess Celestia began to laugh like a maniac. This was the first time Princess Celestia acted like a mad mare. Insanity has clearly taken her. She acted in the same as Lunacy did in the past. “How do you think did I merged with Radiant Flare? By coincidence? No! I needed a thousand years to obtain this ability. It was so hard to copy your ability to tear a soul out of another body and merge it with your own! And this is exactly what I want to do now!”
Soul stopped and cocked his eye at the mad Princess. “What do you want to do now?”
Princess Celestia's horn ignited brightly. Her magic wrapped Discord inside its gentle grip. But the draconequus didn't look pleased with the situation. It seemed like he didn't know what the alicorn was up to. Princess Celestia's laugher became louder and louder with every passing second. “You will fall, moron!”
The bond that held Discord in bay began to radiate in a bright white light and pulled him towards Princess Celestia. Discord screamed and struggled against her force but there no way out. He split up into the different essences of his soul and body. Every single one of them streamed into Princess Celestia's horn. A vast amount of energy built up around the Princess and charged the soil around her with magic.
The other pony's eyes widened in disbelief. They would never have thought that the Princess was capable of such acts. Soul narrowed his eyes when the stream of energy calmed and the Princess was visible once more. Instead of flinching in fear, he smiled at the sight in front of his eyes. “This is so rich! Now I can defeat you both at once!”
Only for a speck of a second there was silence. Nopony cared but Princess Luna. It may have been only intention, but adrenaline shot into her body and she erected unconsciously a barrier around them. Her sister and Soul were excluded of her protection.
A single heartbeat passed when Princess Celestia was already above Soul and soared downwards. “DIE!”
Princess Celestia's hooves raced down but stopped immediately in front of Soul. The magical tension out of his horn stopped her from advancing. Her punch was deflected and the mare was thrown back. Soul's sick laughter ringed through the gorge. “Only because I've managed to defeat War with one single punch, it doesn't meant that you can do something like this to me! I'm still stronger than you Sun-Butt!”
The alabaster mare wasn't in stress. Instead she laughed and almost drooled in excitement. “You are just like my sister! Both of you are draining the power out of the stars and moon. But I won't give you this advantage anymore...”
Princess Luna's heart ached and tears rolled down her cheeks when her sister's horn lit up. She couldn't explain why she cried but when a terrible pain shot through her body she knew. Blood ran down from the shape of her cutie mark and her knees collapsed. Her gaze wandered towards her beloved moon, and Princess Luna saw what she thought was never possible.
The moon shattered above her head. Rays of sunlight broke through and illuminated the whole gorge. Princess Celestia's laughter never ceased it seemed like both of them screamed and laughed the entire time they talked to each other. “Yield, worthless use of flesh!”
The sun shun brighter then ever before, the heat on the ground increased. If the ponies weren't under Princess Luna's protection, they would have immediately died. The rocks on the ground began to melt. It was literal hell inside the gorge. Princess Celestia's horn ignited in a reddish light, and a beam of sunlight soared down and hit Soul directly in his chest. The ground around him melted and sank into the slightly firmer ground around them. The concentrated sunbeam disappeared and left the spot where Soul stood before empty.
Only a pitch black liquid mixed with the molten soil below. The ponies under the barrier couldn't believe that Princess Celestia already seemed to defeat Soul. The Princess herself just stood there and didn't lower the charge in her horn, as if she was waiting for Soul to reappear.
The sound of flowing lava was quickly accompanied by the glorious laughter of Soul. Not one of them took the other serious. The black liquid rose up and took the form of something pony-like. “Is this everything you got? How pitiful! FRAUD!”
The mass rose up and formed into the frightful form of a draconian being. Twilight remembered this form. Soul looked like this when he and Twilight met for the very first time inside of Twilight's nightmares. But seeing him in front of her eyes while she was fully awake still terrified her. Soul even seemed to have grown in size, even his claws and teeth seemed to be bigger and lusting for more blood. The drool that dripped out of his mouth was concentrated magic. It was simply horrifying to see the obviously two strongest beings in existence.
Princess Luna slowly regained her stance, despite her bleeding flank. She got back to her hooves and leaned against her own barrier. “Tia! How could you do something that awful and merge with that monster? You aren't my sister anymore!” She shouted at the top of her lungs.
While Soul fully formed in his monstrous body, the Princess of the Sun turned around and walked towards the barrier. She pressed her face against the magical glass and breathed against it. “You are right! I'm not your precious Tia anymore. I'm not even Helia, I'm better now. I'm the Princess of Chaos and Destruction! My name is Eris! I've became something new, something stronger, something better! I will not rule in the night, but in the light of the sun with the ashes of this world in my lungs!”
Countless solar flares soared down from the sky and bashed into ground. The molten rocks flew through the air and clashed inside the barrier. Princess Luna had to concentrate upon her barrier to keep it up. She even extended the barrier to a full fledged sphere to keep the molten soil away. Princess Luna pulled the sphere high in the air to keep them out of range from Eris and Soul's furious attacks. Princess Luna's tears collected at the bottom of the sphere. Applejack laid a hoof around the Princess to comfort her, and the heartbroken Princess looked at the also weeping farmer and pulled her into a deep embrace.
Fluttershy was always a pony that showed compassion and understanding, but her next words would ring in their ears for a long time. “Today will be the day where the sun will be extinguished by time and space and a new world will rise from the ashes.”
Everypony looked at her in shock, but Fluttershy just watched into the depth. Soul’s body haf already fully recovered into his draconian form. He licked over his sharp teeth and stared at Eris. “Big words of such a puny pony. Eris, hm? Was that your own idea? Doesn't sound really threatening, you know. “
Eris spoke no words, she just grinned at Soul's new form. Soul felt a sudden heat inside his body, and he looked down only to see beams of light extending out of him. It was a horrific and painful feeling, but Soul didn't wince or scream. The light disappeared and the holes in his body healed immediately.
Right after he regained his ability to move, Soul charged at Eris and stroked his claw across her face. Blue blood ran down her face and made a small puddle in front of her hooves. She looked into her own reflection and hissed at the dreaded scars on her face. “How dare do you molest the face of a goddess? You will pay for this, Soul! You only lived for this moment to fight me! You've always dreamed of murdering me!”
Soul didn't bother Eris's whining and roared his battle cry at the sensitive alicorn. He charged and used his magic to bend the space in front of him. Before Eris could react, the dark draconian pony sat on her back, with Soul's claws dug deep inside. He grabbed the bones of her wings and tore them out of her body.
The Princess of Chaos and Destruction screamed in pain but with her unbreakable will, she created another salve of flares that pushed Soul back. The Princess let her tension inside her sunlight fall and absorbed the raw energy of the sun. Her wounds healed and her wings regrew.
Twilight bit her lip but forced words through her gnashed teeth. “This fight makes no sense at all! It doesn't matter how much they hurt each other, both will just regenerate their injuries and go on. Their attacks will just become stronger and stronger until they have destroyed everything around them. They will devastate everything we love... We have to do something! But what can we do against something like them...”
Fluttershy carefully raised her voice, still facing the ponies below. “As far as I see... Soul should be stronger but he is in disadvantage. Princess Celestia... uhh, I mean Eris, still has her sun. But she has destroyed the moon. So we have to do something that raises his power. The apocalyptic ponies were immortal, too. But Soul overpowered them so fast that they hadn't had any chance. Maybe he could overpower Eris as well.”
Twilight looked briefly at Princess Luna but the Princess of the Night hadn't any idea either to obtain an advantage. Twilight looked behind them into the endless rows of soldiers, every of them wore a worried frown on their face. A faint kicking noise was audible from one of the boxes the soldiers carried around. Everypony’s eyes were pointed at the box when the hinges broke open.
A young stallion climbed out of the box and looked suspiciously at his surroundings. Blaze needed his time to adjust to the changed scene in front of his eyes. Everypony looked at him until nopony was fighting. Something drove him to look down. Underneath his hooves he caught sight if the two fighting beings below. His eyes widened at the sight of the pony that seemed to be Princess Celestia. But he couldn't identify the terrifying being in front of her. Blaze gasped at the sight of the Princess being threatened. “What kind of monster is fighting the Princess? We have to help her! Why are you just standing around!”
Blaze raced through the soldiers and ran straight to Princess Luna. He reared up and clopped against her chest. But the Princess grabbed his hooves softly and put him gently down again. Her face was full of worries and sorrow, but she couldn't do anything to change this dreaded situation. Blaze had to know the truth. The Princess breathed one single time greatly before she had to destroy the illusion Blaze had. “Blazing Night, you have to be strong now. Your eyes are lying to you. This pony was indeed my sister Celestia, but she has changed and now calls herself Eris; the Princess of Chaos and Destruction. She is not the one who should be protected right now. This thing that opposes her is … Captain Soul Tearer. He seems to have fallen to his madness and is now seeking for revenge. We have to stay away from them until this fight is over.”
The young stallion couldn't believe what the Princess has said. He ran to the wall of the barrier and eyed Soul's changed form closely. Never before he has seen him in his changed form. Everything the dark stallion stood for was gone in Blaze's eyes. Like he was a whole different pony.
Soul didn't notice Blaze, he only had eyes for the ponification of evil in front of him. He flashed her his teeth while more magic leaked out of his wretched body. “You sick creature... I always wished to fight against you and avenge my beloved Harmony! You destroyed my life and now I will tear your soul apart to throw you into the eternal abyss of hell!”
Eris had to become more careful, she had taken too many hits of Soul's magical claws. Her wounds were healing, but the pain was indescribable. Every single contact poisoned her own magic, and it felt like a thousand needles were stinging inside of her veins. She had nothing to fear as long as the sun was shining above her.
But the fight went on with every spell any every strike as they destroyed more and more of their surroundings. Eris couldn't answer anymore. Soul's attacks were too fast. His sight was blinded, he was driven by hatred and wrath. “Don't run away! Don't be such a chicken and pay for your sins! Just fulfill my wish and die!”
Soul gave the trembling alicorn a powerful upper-cut. His claws cut through her jaws and made her literally speechless. The stroke threw her on her back. Soul used the advantage and pinned her down by putting his giant claw upon her chest. He lowered his head and drooled at the regenerating mare. “You may be a goddess, but I've become something greater. I've crossed the border of a immortal being and went to the next stage. I'm a being that can frankly travel through time and space. Not even the borders of the realm of the living are restraining me anymore. I have become absolute! Now look upon the first absolute being and weep. It is a honour to be killed by me.”
Eris eyes widened when she was blinded by Soul's shining horn. It even shone through the layers of dark and sinister magic around his body. Black claws reached out of the ground and gripped Eris' forelegs and body. They pulled her into the ground and devoured her body. Her jaws were almost fully regenerated, it was barely enough to regain her ability of speech. “We've played enough. Time to be serious!”
Eris body began to radiate and a blast of solar energy escaped from her skin to push Soul back. With one powerful wing flap she freed herself from Soul's magical grip. She shook the dust off her purely white wings and grinned confidently at the scorched being.
Soul was unable to move. He lay in pain on the ground as his coat regrew slowly. Eris approached him and laid her hoof upon his chest. “I'm still not using my full power and yet I'm defeating you? Don't make me laugh! You are still holding back the power of the apocalyptic four! You are just using the power that you've stolen from Discord! Why are you holding back such vast power? I want a real enemy and not such a puny little colt!”
He knew that she was right. The power of the ponies he had absorbed laid deep within hidden inside his own soul. Soul looked inside Eris's eyes, with every second the urge to tear her apart grew. The dark magic inside of him reached for the outside. It twisted itself around Soul's mind and tried to suppress it. Soul's consciousness faded slowly, the voices in his head became louder and louder. They told him to kill, to rape and to burn. But something hold him sane. His eyes drifted away and caught sight of the young colt inside Princess Luna's barrier.
Tears were running down his cheeks. The captain he has admired so much was now a monster. Just like the beings that Soul used to defeat, he was not a bit better. Slowly Blaze's mouth opened and words escaped through the sobbing. “You were my hero... How could you betray me like this? I always looked up to you. I even wanted to become like you one day! But now I'm feeling nothing but disgust towards you. I promised never to cry since you took care of me. You are seeing me yourself now! I can't take it anymore! I want the Soul I knew back . The righteous and glorious stallion that fights everything evil to prevent his friends from any harm! Do you know what the worst of all this is? I've always seen you as my father...”
Eris rolled her eyes and pretended to vomit. “Aww, how sweet. Sadly, I don't like such sappy things. Sorry.”
Her magic grabbed the little stallion and dragged him through the barrier. Applejack tried to catch him but it was too late. As Blaze raced towards the ground, Eris took off in the air. For a second Blaze felt nothing. He felt weightless. But the feeling would change. Soul's eyes followed the falling stallion but he couldn't react at all. A blazing ball of fire captured him and faded immediately into thin air. Nothing remained of him but ashes.
Soul's mind blanked out, the feeling of hatred and wrath was gone. There was just emptiness, various moments of his and Blaze's life rushed in front of his eyes, from the moment he took care of him until now. Soul never realized how wonderful it was to have Blaze around him. He should have spend more time with the young stallion that always believed in him... But now it was too late.
Eris caught a part of the ashes with her tongue. It was seemingly a delightful taste to eat the remains of the ceased pony. There it was again the moment of absolute silence, where there was no tension the in the air. The moment where the whole situation should change once more.
From the corner of her eyes, the mare of chaos looked at the sudden void of power. Soul couldn't support his own weight anymore and broke down. Just when his power seemed to be finally gone, Soul's eyes shot forcefully open and all of his magic was released. A pillar of pure white energy originated from his body, even Eris and the others had to cover their eyes.
Slowly, the light faded and Eris quickly searched for her enemy. What she saw surprised her. Soul had laid down the skin of dark magic. Once more, he stood in front of Eris in his original form. Soul still wore the pendant of Death around his neck. Eris decided to shoot a solar flare at him, but the magical projectile was easily deflected without Soul's doing. The Princess of Chaos and Destruction cocked an eye at the stallion. “Are you preparing a new fancy trick to defeat me? What pitiful attempt will follow now?!”
Soul shook slowly his head, his gaze was filled with satisfaction despite of his loss just a second before. The pendant around his neck began to shine in dark magic but it was immediately purified by a multi-coloured shine. Harmony's magic was perceptible to the whole gorge.
Twilight giggled like a little filly at the sight. The ponies looked at her in disgust, how could she laugh now? Twilight noticed and tried to explain herself. “Sorry girls, it’s different than you might think. This tiny stallion isn't dead. Just before Eris got him, I shifted him into another realm. I obtained this skill when I studied Soul's magic. I'm glad it worked, usually I'm not able to shift such big objects.”
The ponies gasped at Twilight's plan, only the Princess could offer her a smile. “Twilight Sparkle, I'm glad that you fight for us. But we still can't do anything to help Soul. We restored his sanity for now, but we don't know if he will fall back into madness.”
Twilight's grin grew even wider. She pointed her nose to the sky and looked with determination into the general direction of the sun. “It is simple, we have to rebuild the moon.”
Princess Luna gasped at Twilight's ridiculous plan. “Are you insane? How can we create such a huge object? This is impossible!”
Twilight walked around the Princess and ordered her friends to surround the Princess of the Night. Her horn ignited in faint purple magic. It seemed like the magic formed a crystal in front of her throat. The spark of magic wandered on to her friends and expressed themselves in the form of their cutie marks. Twilight's eyes radiated brightly while the power increased in the circle they has built. Twilight was almost cheerful. “I know this will work... Soul has fallen so deep that Harmony's magic is balancing him. And as long as Harmony's magic is in use, we can use her Elements!”
Soul didn't notice the scene above, his own magic was too strong and covered the in comparison so weak magic inside the barrier. Harmony's magic was brightly shining. “This is what you were seeking for. Every single soul inside my mind is in perfect balance now. The magic that radiated from the core of my horn unconsciously is even more powerful then your attacks. There is no victory against me.”
Eris gnashed her teeth, she felt that Soul was right after all. But she never expected him to wield the power of so many powerful ponies. “How can you control your vast power all of a sudden?”
This was the first time since Soul has defeated Pestilence that he smiled. “I was fighting for such a long time but I never truly understand the meaning of fighting. I was always fighting because somepony said so or to defend what was precious to me. Every single time I was afraid to loose, and so I decided to become the strongest. I've feared nothing to obtain my goals. And today, I'm at the peek of my power. Nothing could possibly surpass me. But not until now I understood the true meaning of my existene. Star Swirl has told me that I was predestinated for something big. It wasn't the defeat of Lunacy or even yours. I was blind all this time, I couldn't see what was important while I was seeking for more power. I gave ponies so much hope, so many ponies relied on my strength but I never had faith in my own abilities. I was always afraid to disappoint these ponies. Over a thousand years I believed a lie that I've told myself. But now I finally realized what I was meant for. No, you're wrong. You never understood the true meaning behind my being. It is my destiny to keep faith for my friends and loved ones. My cutie mark is telling me to keep eternal faith towards my loved ones. I'm the unicorn of faith! The star on my flank is symbolizing the faith I have towards my loved ones and the snake shows that I will eternally have faith in them.
This is my destiny! My star will shine brightly! But to let the stars shine, the sun has to extinguish! Prepare yourself, Eris! “
Soul's eyes shone brightly in every colour of the rainbow. A bolt of Harmony's magic shot towards the barrier and pierced through its wall. It reached the circle of magic Twilight erected, and the power of the Elements rose up and a swirl of the multi-coloured magic wrapped around Princess Luna. Harmony's power shot towards the sky and created a new celestial orb, that placed itself right in front of the sun. Everything turned dark, only a divine shine remained upon Soul.
Eris fell back on her back while Soul walked slowly to her. Her entire body was shaking,but Soul's gentle gaze was filled with forgiveness. His sapphire-blue eyes had returned. Eris did everything to keep distance from him,but she quickly reached the walls of the gorge. “Go away from me! Leave me alone!”
Soul stood directly in front of Eris. His hoof was surrounded by pure white magic. “It is over now. You lived too long in your misery. I will redeem you. You have earned your salvation...”
Eris shook her head, at first hesitatingly but the speed quickly increased greatly. “No... No! NO!”
Soul hoof tipped at her horn and the mare began to shine in the same pure magic. Tendrils extended from her inside and concentrated upon Soul's horn. The gentle white light illuminated the entire gorge. The ponies in the barrier watched this beautiful scene in awe. The light concentrated and dispersed with a sudden blast. There was no trace of the mare formerly known as Princess Celestia of Equestria.
The barrier lowered itself to the ground and vanished. Soul walked to the astonished ponies while remains of the pure magic swirled around his body. His gentle smile eased their tension. The swirls around him flew high in the air, only the meet the ground shortly afterwards. The specks of magic formed into the ponies that had fallen before. Big Mac, Bon-Bon, and Spike lay peacefully sleeping in front of their hooves. Even Blaze was idly resting in the middle.
Applejack was paralized. She couldn't believe what just happened. Soul walked gracefully on to the orange farmer and kissed her gently. “You don't have to worry anymore. They are just sleeping from the strain of the recent days. The same for Tia, she may have disappeared, but she is just sleeping inside the magical core of her sun.”
Princess Luna rushed past Applejack and held Soul tightly in her hooves. “Thank you, Soul! I new that you would never leave us...”
Soul strived Princess Luna's hooves gently down and wiped a single tear from her cheek. “Luna... I'm afraid that this isn't the truth. I have to leave Equestria for good. This world won't find peace if somepony like me is running around freely. New disasters will happen. I've lived for too long. I will take my place in Elysium and watch over the ponies I learned to love.”
Small dots of light soared up from his body. Every single of them took a part of Soul with it. Slowly, the stallion resolved. “I have to go now... I will take care of your lives, so that none of you has to suffer a minute longer.”
Applejack dashed forward and leaped at the vanishing stallion but as she made contact the stallion burst into millions of those tiny dots. Tears ran down her face, she couldn't withhold them anymore. The wind carried his last words to her ears.
“I love you, Applejack.”
With all of her will she forced herself to stand up. She walked just far enough to take her sleeping brother in a tight embrace. Still sobbing she wept silently into his coat. “Ah will wait for ya, even if it takes mah entire life...”
The dots of light made a great journey into for Soul completely unknown realm. The dots put themselves together again and Soul's eyes caught sight of his new surroundings. Everything felt bright and happy. There was no sorrow or pain in this world. There were white clouds all over the place and waterfalls of gold. Just like a pony would imagine their heaven; Elysium.
Soul turned and found two ponies approaching him. The one on the right was a grey unicorn stallion with a long beard, while the one on the left was a white unicorn mare with a multi-coloured mane. The grey stallion stopped right in front of Soul and gently smiled at him. “You pulled off quite a show. You simply love these dramatic endings, am I right?”
The darker stallion simply shook his head, a small tear ran down from his eyes. “I've learned this from you, Star Swirl. I've learned so many things from you... thank you... You made all this possible. Now I can finally find my peace.”
Star Swirl just nodded and put for a second a comforting hoof on Soul's shoulder before he went on. Soul was now alone with Harmony. The white mare hesitated but couldn't act different then swinging her hooves around his neck and pulling him into a deep and loving embrace. “Soul... I've missed you so much. I'm so glad that you are finally taking your place next to me! Now we can be always together!”
They released the embrace, no tears were shed by Soul. He turned around and left the mare behind with a disappointed frown. “We will see each other from time to time, but I'm unable to stay here. My place is somewhere else. Where I have to be alone and bitter for the mistakes I've made. No other pony should suffer for my sins. I've given the greatest monsters in history salvation, and now it is my turn to watch over them.
The setting around Soul changed, the clouds and Harmony were gone and replaced by hard and hot soil. He walked up a stone stair until he reached a small plateau. He sat down on the throne made of pitch black obsidian and looked upon his new prisoners. A white alicorn mare with a waving mane and gentle pink eyes lay in heavy chains. A small smile grew on his lips.
This was the moment where the King of Hell spoke his last words.
“Each wielder of time has to approach the eye. Forced to behold the vortex, to be inspired or run.
But as I gazed into the vastness of time. I heard the sound of drums. It was the beginning and the end of my journey... I guess all bad things must come to an end.”