Twilight felt pain and emptiness since the burning began. Once she stopped feeling anything else, she finally opened her eyes. It no longer hurt to move, or to breathe. Twilight felt cooler, juxtaposed to the searing agony she felt a minute ago.
"What were you thinking?" An hostile voice growled at the mare on the floor, bringing Twilight's attention into focus. She was back at the fountain, with Xbalanque leaning over her.
"Wha-... what do you mean?" Twilight asked, getting to her hooves. "What happened?"
"You insolent mule!" Xbalanque barked. "You got yourself killed! Now Agni is stronger and he's been attacking the middle tower since you were gone!"
Twilight flinched at his words. "I-I-I'm sorry! I could just go back and fight again, right?" But... what was that part about her dying?
"He's stronger than you now! He'll have the power to kill you again, and again. Soon, you'll be too weak for us."
"Hey!" Twilight remarked. "I might've made a mistake, but that's no reason to be so angry! Aren't I part of your team?"
"You are." Bastet answered, from behind Xbalanque. "And teammates don't scold other teammates." She hissed at the jaguar.
"Don't look at me like that! It's not my fault she died!"
"And it's not her fault either. Go back to help Athena." Bastet continued.
"Of course it's her fault! She should have known better!"
"I told you it was a mistake!" Twilight fired back "It's not like you don't mistakes either!"
"Of course I don't! If I did, I wouldn't be here!" Xbalanque snarled.
"Are you quite certain? No mistakes whatsoever?" Bastet asked. With that question, Xbalanque looked puzzled, then sneered. "Go back to Athena." Bastet repeated. Xbalanque's fists balled up, before he turned, and continued back to the left lane.
"What was that about?" Twilight asked. "Is something wrong?"
Bastet sighed. "I suppose that's safe to say. He hasn't exactly been a well-rounded when it comes to being a teammate."
"He seems so angry... what happened to him?"
Bastet paused for a short time. "It's rather personal for him. But I can tell you that before he joined us, his brother was severely injured, and Xbalanque blamed himself. Why he's so cold now, I'm unsure." She looked back down at Twilight. "We should get going. We need to focus on the task at hand."
"But he said Agni was stronger than me. How can I hope to beat him?" Twilight asked.
"Don't initiate him alone. Kill minions on your own, use your skills to keep him at bay. And if he becomes to much, just call for me. I'll help you." Bastet said, dashing out for the jungle.
"Hey, wait!" Twilight called. "Can I ask you one more thing?"
Bastet stopped and turned. "What is it?"
Twilight recalled one name from earlier. One that seemed to stand out to Bastet. "Who's Neith?" She asked.
Bastet held her tongue. An odd expression came over her, and she slowly walked into the jungle. "It's nothing. Do not worry." Within seconds, she was gone.
Twilight made her way back to the middle lane. She didn't understand what was going on, but she did know she was needed. Reluctantly, she wandered back to the middle lane, armed with new knowledge. When she approached the front lines, the tower was cracked and singed, the telltale sign that Agni began his attack on it. He was actually closer to his own tower, following another platoon of minions.
"Ah, you're back." Agni's heads chuckled. "I suppose you can't teach an old horse new tricks."
Twilight had to remain vigilant. Her anger got the better of her last time. She needed a plan... her burst of energy and slowing sphere seemed to help her a lot. Maybe something else could finish this. Minions trailed beside her, who would soon clash with Agni's minions. Twilight attempted to take down as much of the soldiers as possible, but something caught her eye. Agni violently dashed through the minions, setting them ablaze. He reared his head back, ready to send another wave of fire at her. Now was the time to act. She needed someway to get out of his target. She braced herself...
Agni spat the surge of flame, only to see it blast into thin air. "What?! Where di-" Agni stuttered. He spun around to look behind him, only to have Twilight appear behind him and ram two purple hooves into his two faces. The fire god buckled back, his flames searing with rage. He shot one ball of fire straight into the air, returning to the ground seconds later. Twilight barley got of its radius, but she could still feel the heat.
"He has all these strong skills... I can hardly keep my distance. Do I have anything that strong?" Twilight thought. She racked her brain for spells that would work. "Of course!"
Twilight's horn crackled violently with purple arcs of power, causing the very ground around her to vibrate. The air grew hot as space itself was being ripped apart. Agni only watched in shock as a rift opened between them, and a large beast lumbered out. It was big, blue, and would've made a lesser being tremble in fear. It reared on it's hind legs and bellowed at the sky, before slamming it's massive claws on the ground. Twilight had summoned an Ursa Minor. The mare herself was astonished she pulled off such a feat. Agni threw fireball after fireball at the beast, but the giant bear shrugged it off, making headway towards the adversary. It clenched him in its maw, landing one blow after another with its paws. With hardly any time in between, Agni dissolved into a wisp of flame. The Ursa Minor looked around, confused as to where his prey went.
"I... I did it!" Twilight cheered. "I beat him!"
The Ursa Minor faded into nothing, and the spell left her drained. Luckily for her, the minions had pushed themselves to the tower, which creaked under it's own weight. Twilight joined her soldiers, and fired more bursts of magic at the tower. Soon enough, the structure crumbled, and the minions let out a triumphant cry.
"Nice work." A voice said behind her. Sun Wukong, leaning against his cudgel. "I was wondering what that noise was."
"You were watching?" Twilight asked.
"Yeah. I would've helped, but I didn't want to steal your thunder." He said, before clutching his arm.
"Are you hurt? What happened?" Twilight asked, seeing dark blood dab his fingers.
"Oh, it's nothing. Just a skirmish. I was just going to return to the ba-" SHINK!
Wukong froze, and his eyes rolled back into his head. Something protruded from his chest, covered in blood. He fell forward, and Twilight was frozen in horror.
An ornate, black scythe was thrust into his back, which killed him. White smoke curled off Wukong, into a ball, which levitated up. The smoke was then grabbed by a black hand. The owner was a man, covered in black and silver armor. Not one pair, but two pairs of black wings sprouted from his back, keeping him hovering off the ground. Covering his face was a mask. A steely, emotionless mask with empty eyes. He cackled as he gathered the white smoke, and ripped the scythe from Sun Wukong's body.
"Hello, little horse." He spoke with eerie, twisted demeanor. "Your time has come..."