//------------------------------// // Dark Side // Story: Blazing Dragon // by Zanem-Ji //------------------------------// Sparks couldn’t believe her eyes. The First Fallen… She had heard about her. She was one of the Princesses that had sealed away the Hell King and saved her friends, but at the cost of her Alicorn Magic. She started to bow, “Stop.” Twilight commanded. Sparks froze. Twilight stared harder at her. There was a flash of lavender aura in her eyes, “You think that I’m some sort of heroine?” she questioned. Sparks nodded, “Well…yes! I mean-” Twilight shook her head, “I will tell you now that I am no heroine to be worshipped.” “But you chased off the Hell King and-“ “Sacrificed my Alicornhood to save my friends.” Twilight finished before letting out a small sigh. “I know that's the story that's being told but...I didn’t sacrifice anything. At least...I don't see it in that way." she glanced around at her friends, "I repaid my debts. Everypony sees me as a heroine. As a goddess. But I never was. Everything that you have been told, is a lie. I was once what the Hell King is; a violent and evil monster. I simply didn’t go as far because I had AMAZING friends who stopped me. Friends that I MURDERED in my cold-blooded, tyrannic rage. Pinkie, Dash, and Fluttershy were killed by my own hooves. I destroyed Applejack’s back and had my brother nearly burn Rarity to death. The scars that they all bear, are because of me.” She pointed at herself. “It was then that the Princess of the Sun, whom I tried to kill as well, nearly killed me to make me stop. Then…the dragon you know as the Hell King…took what was taking control of me, and used his own body as a vessel. The very Gods themselves spared me, and in order to bring my friends back, had the Sun Princess and I give our Alicorn magic to them, as their life source…” she looked over at her closest friends, “Those ponies, and the Hell King, are the reason I stand before you today…” Sparks slowly nodded, “I understand…” she then bowed before Twilight. The Unicorn let out an irritated snort, “I told you that I am not deserving of any worship. Why do you still go against my word?” Sparks stood straight up, “Well…you told me the truth. You told me how you were a murderer, a tyrant, and a traitor. But you learned from it, and gave away a power that many would strive to obtain if it were even possible for them.” She sized Twilight up, “You’re continuously striving to right your wrongs, and that makes you a heroine worth bowing to.” Twilight stared down at her for a few moments. Sparks didn’t avert her gaze. The older Unicorn sighed before turning away from her, “Whatever you girls have planned for her…I approve of.” Twilight looked over her shoulder, “Welcome, Bright Spark. We will speak again at another time.” She walked into a room on the other side of the main room, and closed the door behind her. Fluttershy gave a big smile, her fangs gleaming, “Oh my…you made her smile…” Sparks arched an eyebrow, “Really? That was a smile?” Applejack grinned, “Trust me, ya did. We’ve been her friends fer almost a hundred years, and we can tell.” Rarity trotted up to her, “Quite spectacular, darling! There’s nothing more charming than words spoken from the heart.” There was a rapid knocking on the main door. Pinkie turned to the door, “What is it?” “Fallen Pinkie…Fallen Fluttershy has been requested to come to the Meeting Room for a Dark Hours mission. Its extremely important.” “She’ll be right there! Thank you!” Fluttershy sighed ,”I really hate going out at night…” “But ya have tah.” Applejack replied. “Until Dash finishes makin’ a workin’ set of Dark Hours vision goggles-” “Not really easy to do in a fucking post-apocalyptic wasteland!!” Dash interrupted. Applejack rolled her eyes, “Anyway, ‘til that gets done, ya gotta do 'em." "Yeah, cuz of yer freaky bat powers!" Pinkie chimed in, earning a hard tail smack from Applejack. Fluttershy hid behind her mane, “Its not like I want to be a freak...” Dash wrapped her prosthetic wing around her lover, “Babe, she’s just saying you’re different. Special! Equipped for these types of missions, you know? There’s nothing wrong with that.” Fluttershy nuzzled her cyan cheek, “Oh Dashie, you’re so sweet.” Rarity rolled her eyes, “Cute. Now transform.” Sparks stepped forward, “Is there a way I can come with you on the mission?” Fluttershy rubbed the back of her neck, “It’s not that easy…Dark Hours missions are kind of dangerous.” “I’ve been traveling alone for almost several years now, even in the darker hours of EvenTide. I’m sure that I’ll be safer with a group of fighters and one of the Fallen.” Sparks pointed out. “Two Fallen actually.” Rarity stated. “Fallen never go out alone. “I shall be accompanying Fluttershy on this patrol.” She looked over at the Pegasus, “We could use a little bit extra Unicornian magic. She’s Blast’s daughter for Gods’ sakes! Surely she has inherited some of his magical capabilities. The potential! Ooh, as a matter of fact, I shall make her my protégé! I’m sure she hasn’t bumped into a Unicorn as powerful as I in a long time.” “So humble…” Applejack grumbled. Fluttershy sighed, “Okay then…let’s go and see what’s going on tonight…” Fluttershy started to walk towards the main door, with Rarity and Sparks in tow. They stepped out and into a long, dimly lit hallway. When they stepped into an unlit portion of it, Sparks froze as she heard stretching, popping, and snarling. “Relax dear, it’s only Fluttershy.” Rarity whispered. “She’s just...making few changes here and there.” When Fluttershy stepped from the shadows, her coat was a darker shade of yellow. Her snout was more slender and her long, hooked like fangs protruded from her mouth. Her feathery wings had transformed into thin, leathery bat wings. Her mane and tail had a wilder appearance to them, and her ears had small tufts of fur on the tips. She turned to look at Sparks with her now bright red orbs, “Let’s go.” She spoke in a deep sultry voice. “We’ll probably get to have a lot of baddies to sink our teeth into…” This darker side of Fluttershy slightly scared Sparks. She had heard stories of Vamponies. They were fierce, violent creaturess that would have no problem making a meal out of any unfortunate soul that were to cross them. Fluttershy walked up to her and lifted the younger Unicorn’s chin, “Don’t be afraid. Not all things you hear about Vamponies is true." it was as if she had read the younger mares mind. "However, the room we’re going into will have some, and they can smell fear.” She took a whiff and her snout scrunched up, “And you reek of it.” Sparks gulped and nodded. Rarity leaned in as Fluttershy walked inside, “Forgive her, the personality change comes with the transformation. She didn’t always have them, you know.” Sparks looked over, “Really? How’d she be able to become a Vampony at will? I heard they stay in the same form all the time.” “I'll explain the whole thing at another time. We have this meeting to do…” With that, Rarity trotted in, and Sparks followed. All of the ponies stood up to greet her, “Welcome, Ma’am. It’s always an honor to be in your presence.” One pony spoke up. “Thank you, dear. You’re so sweet.” She waved Sparks to come closer so that she could put a hoof on her shoulder, “This is Bright Spark, daughter of the famous Star Blast.” There were quiet whispers and murmurs of awe, “Yes, quite amazing indeed. She is also my new apprentice! With that being said, she shall be treated with respect and kindness. Is that understood?” All of the ponies nodded in understanding. “Perfect! Now let’s get started!” without looking, she outstretched a hoof to Fluttershy, “Fluttershy dear, would be so kind as to pass a few of the files?” There was no response, causing the Unicorn to look up. A frown was etched into Fluttershy’s face, as she was buried in a particular report. She dropped the file and rubbed her temples, “Gods, are you kidding me? How did this happen?” she looked around at the group, “How did 16 fighters get killed in one night? Who was in charge at the time?” “Pitch Black was in charge, Master Fluttershy. And of course, I went with him.” A Vampony mare replied as she rose to her hooves. She was a black coated pony, with a shaved white mane, save for a strip that hung over one of her golden-amber eyes. She was covered in bandages, wraps, and gauze, and her cutie mark was a crescent moon with blood dripping off of it. Fluttershy looked back down at the file, “What happened?” “It was horrible.” the mare replied. “We were ambushed, and they slaughtered us. He fought as hard as he could. You know how he was...A-and he…” she paused to hold back a few tears, “There was a stray round, and he-” “A round?” Fluttershy cut her off. “As in actual ammunition?” The vampony nodded. Fluttershy's features softened, "Oh Dee..." she got up and went to console the smaller mare "I'm so sorry..." Bright Spark looked on silently, as one of the most powerful ponies on the planet comforted what she thought was one of the scariest creatures to exist. "Go and take the time to mourn your brother, Apprentice. Dawn Break is still your best friend, correct?” Dee nodded again. “I’m going to have her get this week off with you as well. ‘Shared joy is double joy; Shared sorrow if half sorrow’ is something I believe in. Now get out of here.” Dee gave a sad smile, “Thank you, Master Fluttershy.” She turned and quickly excused herself from the room. Sparks leaned into Rarity’s ear, “Who was that, and why did she add ‘master’ in front of her name?” “That was Dead Moon, and she's Fluttershy’s Apprentice. She took her under her wing when she was very young." "I see..." Sparks looked over at her, "And now, I'm yours right?" Rarity smiled at her, “That's correct.” The older Unicorn turned back to the group, her smile gone. “Now, can somepony please explain the atrocities that occurred that night?” A dark grey, bandage Unicorn stood up, “Ma’am, somehow, they have managed to get a hold of live ammunition, and weapons that can fire them. As much as we have tried to avoid using that type of weaponry, this event has proven that we have no other choice but to make more and provide them out to more bases." “What’s the closest base that we have that will have a ton of weapons?” “Base A-45, Ma’am.” “Shit…that’s a long way from here.” “We didn’t have a choice, Fluttershy.” Rarity stated, “There’s only Earth Ponies and Griffins there, so we had to give them as many weapons as we could for assistance.” The group sat around in silence, contemplating on how they could get way over there, without getting a vast amount of casualties on the way there. A soft knock on the door caught their attention. Fluttershy looked up, “She never knows when to sit down and take a breather…” she stated quietly. “Who is it?!” she barked out. “Dead Moon, Master Fluttershy! May I come back in?” “Come on back...” The door creaked open and the vampony walked back inside. Fluttershy raised a brow. “You never know when to relax, girl.” Dead Moon gave a small smile, “I’m a tactician, Master Fluttershy. While I plan to take the time off you're giving me, I can at least help. Now, I had been listening outside the door, and I may have an idea that will work…” ~MLP~ He sat upon his throne built of molten rock and bone. The smell of burning, rotten flesh and sulfur hung in the air. The screams of the tormented and damned rung in his ears. His view was nothing but near infinite blackness and fire. And he loved it. He picked up what appeared to be a pony’s skull and looked at it, “It’s a lovely day to be here in Hell, isn’t it?” The skull didn’t reply. “I mean, look at this view! Nothing but despair, fear, and suffering. Oh, and soldiers. Countless amounts of minions who would die for me. Not to mention, I also have thousands of souls to play with when I’m bored. It’s pretty cool, isn’t it?” Still no response. “I don’t know why I talk to you things. All of you seem to be a bunch of little introverts…” “Pardon me, Great Dragon…” The beast looked down at the puny thing speaking to him, “What is it?” “I give you my greatest apology to have to disturb you, but we have received word that some of our soldiers were killed off by the Fallen that were saving a Unicorn. Two of them were sighted near Old Canterlot.” The dragon arched a scaly eyebrow, “Which ones?” “The two known as Applejack and Pinkie Pie.” ‘Thank the gods they are still alive…’ He growled, “So why were they only ‘sighted’ and not ‘killed off’?” “We tried sir, but-” “I DON’T NEED ATTEMPTS!! I NEED THEM TAKEN CARE OF!!! GO AND KILL THEM NOOOOOW!!!!” The tiny creature flinched and took off. The dragon crushed the skull that was in his hand. ‘They’re still alive…and they’re going to win…' “Those fuckers are not going to beat me…” he growled. “Not again. Not with this vessel…” “Calm yourself, Hell Master Spike. There is no power out there that can even come close to challenging your own.” Corrupted Spike still kept a frown on his face, “You say that, but those ponies have proved to be a pain in my ass for well over a century now. I want them stomped out.” “Rest assured, Great Dragon. They will be…” Corrupted Spike looked over at the one speaking to him. He could barely make out the mare’s facial features in the dim light, but he knew that she was smiling. And she was, staring back at him with a smile he knew all too well. He should though. He once wore that smile himself. A pillar of fire exploded from the ground next to the mare, briefly exposing her. She bore the tattered cape that he spoke of, clasped around the shoulder guards of her silver armor, though it had a few kinks and scratches from a battle long ago. Her coat was still a deep, blackish-blue, now marred by large scars. Her mane was still deep and flowing like the night sky that the younger generation had never seen. Her horn was slightly twisted, and her wings were missing a few feathers here and there, but nothing much had changed from that. Her eyes though, were no longer a deep turquoise, but a horrifying black with glowing red orbs. She was a pony that had been feared back in her time, and Spike knew that it was the reason he had taken over her body so long ago. She may not have been as strong as this body, but she was powerful enough to be worth bringing back from the dead. “I figured all those years of Death would’ve taken it’s toll on your body, Eternal Slumber. It still amazes me that you were able to retain your looks.” Eternal gave a small smile, “Alicorn magic can do some amazing things…” Corrupted Spike chuckled, “Yes, but Dragonian magic can go beyond that.” He turned to look back at the view he had come to love, “However, I brought you back from the dead for a reason, and I have kept you locked away as one of my little power houses for quite a while now." Eternal’s eyes lit up with dark desire, “Are you implying that its time for me to enter the fray?” The dragon’s smile disappeared as he rubbed his chin, “I know you want to get out there, but not yet. I need to see if those pathetic little ponies will come.” He looked down at her, “Pass the word though to the others to start attacking more areas. If two will come out for just one pony, perhaps all of them will show up if we kill off a town’s worth of them.” Eternal nodded, “Yes, Great Dragon. I shall take my leave right away.” She turned and disappeared into the shadows. Corrupted Spike narrowed his eyes while he looked off into the distance, ‘Please…save me from myself…’ ~MLP~ Sparks scratched her head, “So what you’re telling me, is that she got her powers because of some ‘unique technique’ and spell? But that doesn’t make any sense.” Rarity smiled, “Fluttershy has a…how to put it…a very special pair of eyes, so to speak. Most Pegasi can only perform magic when it comes to their aerial skills and the weather, but for her, she has a trait that allows her to instill fear into those she stare at. In a sense, she is able to brainwash her victims with this stare. Brainwashing, a spell that under normal circumstances, can only be performed by Unicorns.” They both looked up as Fluttershy flew over them with four vamponies following her, “Fluttershy however, has this ability. We don’t really know anything about her genetic history, so we can only assume that she inherited it from some Unicorn that’s extremely far back in her family tree.” “But Rari-er-Master Rarity,” Sparks mentally scolded herself for not quickly adjusting to the name of her new teacher. “How did Miss Twilight’s spell come into play?” “That, darling...is where it gets a bit confusing.” Rarity began, “The spell that Twilight was using, was a brainwashing spell of it’s own. She wanted to remove all traces of desire to eat the fruit from the bats. However, Fluttershy was using her ‘Stare’ on the bats to keep them from moving. We believe that Fluttershy’s technique caused her to be exposed to the desires, and transferring said desires into her. Unfortunately, she didn't acquire the want to eat fruit but...well...we both know what vamponies drink. “I still don’t really understand.” “Basically, her optic senses are spectacular. Again, with the theory of her being a hybrid-” “A hybrid? Like a mix of pony breeds? Like an Alicorn?!” “Shut up! We’re supposed to be quiet!” Fluttershy hissed. “Sorry darling!” Rarity apologized. “She seems to be as excited about magic as I am!” “You sound like Twilight when we were younger.” Fluttershy teased before taking off ahead of the group. Sparks looked back over at Rarity, “So…does she drink pony blood?” “She on very rare occasions, and only from enemies, but she’d prefer not to. She tends to snack throughout the day in her normal form, so that she'd be full in the event her vampony form is needed. A vampony trotted up next to the two, “I’m sorry to interrupt you Fallen Rarity, but something was spotted up ahead.” As if on cue, they heard screeching coming from not too far ahead. All of them turned to it, quickly getting into fighting stances. The screeching and snarling ceased, and for a moment, the world was quiet. And then, it all happened so fast. They leapt out from the darkness. They dug their fangs into the fighters’ flesh. Ponies slammed hooves into faces. The sounds of battle kicked off before Sparks could really process what was going on. Five mutated creatures leapt at her. She kicked one and punched another. She fired a beam at a third one, but was tackled by the remaining two. They pinned her down, and as one clamped down on her shoulder. Rarity jousted the pony in the neck and flung it off of her apprentice. One crept up from behind, but Sparks fired a beam at it, vaporizing it’s head in a matter of seconds. Rarity smiled as she helped the younger Unicorn to her hooves, “Thank you darling. You’re spectacular.” She turned to look at the slaughter of the mutated soldiers, “Looks like our fighters have been taking their training very seriously.” Sparks followed her gaze. The vamponies were proving their ferocity to her, as she watched them literally tear the creatures limb from limb. It seemed as if the battle would be over soon. That they would be victorious. “Fallen Rarity!! LOOK OUT!!” one of the vamponies screamed. Too late. Talons clamped around her throat. A beak pierced the right half of her chest. Her eyes went wide as she felt more talons rip away at her flesh. Without hesitation, Sparks lunged at it. She knew what it was from biology books that she read, but had never seen on in real life. A griffin. It’s eyes quickly settled on her, and it took off before she could attack it. Sparks looked down at Rarity with horrified eyes, as she assessed her injuries. Gashes on the neck, flowing with blood. A hole in her lung, a sucking sound coming out as Rarity struggled to breathe. “Master Rarity!! We’re going to get you somewhere safe!!” she screamed. Rarity tried to speak, but only coughed up more blood. Sparks cupped her cheeks, “Please don’t talk! You might make your injuries worse!” The snow colored Unicorn’s eyes went wide and her pupils shrank, as she looked at something over Sparks’ shoulder. Her horn glowed bright blue, and before her apprentice could say anything, she fired a massive beam of magic. Sparks turned to see the griffin dodge it, and dig it’s talons into Sparks’ side, snatching her off of Rarity. A searing pain tore through her, as she rolled in the dirt. When she came to a stop, she tried to sit up, only to be shoved back to the ground. She looked up at the griffin that was pinning her down. It was a dark green furred creature, with feathers that were a few shades lighter. It had a good amount of scars allover it’s body, but nothing compared to the creatures she had encountered in her travels. But as she looked into it’s eyes, and saw they were the same as all of those monsters, she knew that this thing was no friend of the living. It leaned in close, “You’re going to get yourself involved in something you don’t want to be in, little filly. Go back to wherever you came from.” The Unicorn was shocked. She, now that it’s voice gave it away to be female, had spoken. Before she could respond to her however, a more terrifying creature bit into her shoulder; Fluttershy. She snatched the griffin off of her. The griffin quickly got back up, seemingly unaffected by the attack. “Finally, I get to meet one of the Fallen Pegasi.” She outstretched a claw, “The name’s Sheikra.” “I don’t give a shit about your name.” Fluttershy spat. “It’s not like I’m going to remember your face, especially after I tear it off of your skull.” Shiekra scoffed, “Oh yeah? With what, your hooves or your flat, herbivore teeth? I mean, sure, you have some points to a few of your teeth, since you’re a vampony and all, but nothing I can’t handle.” “Oh, that’s what you think…” “NO!!” Rarity squeaked out, barely able to speak from the throat damage. Sparks looked at her, “What? ‘No’ what?” Rarity looked at her with wide eyes, “Don’t let her change! Don’t let her transform into it!!” “What’s ‘It’?” A roar, fiercer than anything she had ever heard before, echoed into the night. She looked over to see Fluttershy transforming again. Her snout got extremely pointed, and all of her teeth turned into fangs. Her hooves split into four individual digits, and small claws appeared on her wingtips. Her mane, tail, and coat got wilder, as the white of her eyes turned blood red. She let out another roar, her jaw unhinging in the process, and her tongue flicked out of her mouth. Shiekra looked at her in terror, “Shit…” Rarity staggered to her hooves, steam pouring from her wounds. Sparks stared in awe as the wounds started healing before her eyes. The wounds on Rarity’s throat closed, and she spat out some blood, “That was amazing Master Rarity! How-” “No time to explain.” Rarity wheezed out. “We have a much bigger issue right now that needs to be dealt with.” “But, she’s going to kill off that griffin!!” Sparks exclaimed. “What’s the problem?” Shiekra turned and took off into the air. Fluttershy took off after her. “That’s not all she’s going to kill.” Fluttershy grabbed Shiekra, and bomb dived back to the ground. “She can’t control herself in this form. She can’t differentiate friend from foe.” She slams the griffin into the ground with enough force to shove her intestines out of her mouth. “She becomes a true monster…” Fluttershy twirled the intestines around her fingers, and yanked them out with a sickening slurping-pop sound. “And now she’s going to come after all of us.” Though Shiekra was dead, Fluttershy ripped out her jugulars with her teeth, spitting them out in the dirt not too far from her. She her gaze settled on Rarity and Sparks. “Shit…” Rarity cursed as her horn glowed a fierce blue. Sparks horn was surrounded with a light green aura, as Fluttershy galloped towards them. She was fast, and on top of them before they could really move. Rarity kicked Sparks out of Fluttershy’s field of view in a attempt to get the vampony’s undivided attention. Fluttershy smacked her to the side, and sniffed the air. She smiled and turned to Sparks, “You smell of fear…so…delicious…” She took off again, slamming and dragging Sparks through the gravel. Sparks looked up at her with terror in her eyes. Fluttershy's jaws unhinged as she prepared to tear her to pieces. A rumbling shook the ground beneath them. A lavender crystal exploded from the ground, piercing Fluttershy’s in the foreleg. Another followed, and repeated the process on her other foreleg. They arched and twisted, digging back into the earth, and pinning Fluttershy down. Sparks' vision took on a lavender hue, as an aura surrounded her and lifted her off of the ground. She floated backwards, and was dropped back on the ground. She quickly got up and started to face whoever saved her, “Thank you so much-” She stopped, as she slowly looked up at Twilight towering over her. The older mare stared down at her, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for you to come out here.” “I didn’t come out here for you. I came here because I felt a surge of dark magic from this area, only to see that Fluttershy has gotten out of control again…” she looked up at the vampony writhing on the ground. The crystals started to crack, as Fluttershy’s strength proved too much for them. They broke under her might, and she tore the shards from her forelegs. Steam poured from holes, and Sparks saw that she too, had this strange power of healing. She leered at Twilight, snorting angrily and licking her lips. Twilight’s eyes glowed violet, “This will end here…”