//------------------------------//
// Chapter 31: Grand Finale 
// Story: Personas of Harmony 
// by EricStarstorm 
//------------------------------//

	The fog came back in full force as everyone walked into the clouds that covered the top of the staircase. Though the cloud cover itself was rather thin, the fog was so thick that it might as well have been all-encompassing.

"Jeez, what's with this place?" Rainbow asked. "The fog's almost as bad as it was before we got our Personas...you could probably cut this stuff with a knife."

"It's probably because there are so many Shadows here," Fluttershy said. "I can't brush off both the Shadows and the fog gathering here as a coincidence. This has to be deliberate."

"Agreed," Rarity said. "Can anyone see through it at all?"

"I can a bit," Spike said, standing up on Twilight's back. "It's still pretty bad, but...I think I can make out some details of what's ahead of us."

Twilight lifted Spike into the air and put him down in front of her. "All right then, Spike," she said. "Lead the way."

Spike nodded and started walking. Everyone followed close behind, keeping themselves from walking at full speed for his sake.

"I think I sense them just up ahead," Pinkie said.

Sure enough, Spike perked up a bit. "Yeah, you definitely do! I see them!"

Spike broke out into a run, and the ponies followed him. The fog made it impossible to see if Spike was right about what he saw, but they simply had to put their faith in him. They didn't have to wonder for long, however--soon, they were close enough to see three small ponies sitting against one another. It was difficult to tell at this distance, but they looked as if they were tied up.

"Hey, do you guys hear that?"

"More hoofsteps...? Please don't tell me he's coming back..."

"No, there's a lot more ponies this time! Can't ya hear 'em?"

"You don't think it's..."

Rainbow couldn't contain herself anymore. She flew ahead to close the last bit of distance between the group and the fillies. Before any of them could be surprised by what they saw, Rainbow had already picked up the three of them and lifted them over her head. "AW YEAH! We found 'em, guys!"

It didn't take long for the others to catch up to Rainbow. Upon seeing everyone and registering what had happened, the girls' faces lit up. "Oh my gosh!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed. "Rarity! Everyone! Is it really you?"

"In the flesh, darling!" Rarity said, striking a pose. "Surely you knew we would come for you, did you not?"

Pinkie jumped into the air, pumping her hooves. "This mission is a SUCCESS!"

"Everyone calm down," Twilight said loudly. "We're not in the clear yet. Rainbow, put the girls down."

Rainbow paused for a moment, smiled sheepishly, and gently put down the Crusaders. Scootaloo almost looked disappointed at that.

"Spike, try to get them out of those ropes. Pinkie, I want you to run a scan of the area. See if you can sense where the Shadows went."

Spike and Pinkie nodded in unison. Spike walked over and started working on the knot that kept the ropes taut. Pinkie summoned Love Bubble again, and she put her heart lenses over Pinkie's eyes. Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom jumped in surprise as they saw her, their jaws dropping.

"What is that?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"We'll explain later," Spike replied. "For now, we have to get you out of here."

"But where's here?" Scootaloo asked. "And what are you guys talking about? I can't see!"

"Uh-oh," Pinkie said. "We have a problem! The Shadows are really close!"

Before anyone could respond to that, the fog suddenly cleared. Everyone looked around, finally able to see their surroundings. They were on another plateau, but instead of being grassy like the last one, this was cold, hard stone. The edge of the sudden clear zone was marked by several crude archways reminiscent of those at Stonehenge. The Crusaders had been placed in the exact center of a white circle with numerous runes inscribed into it, which was surrounded by torches as tall as two ponies.

"Everything has fallen into place," a warped voice said. "It's good that you've finally come. He hungers."

Everyone turned towards the source of the voice. A pony emerged from the fog. He was light-grey with a white mane and tail, a black circle for a cutie mark, and sickly yellow eyes.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "...Wait a second...Bright Side?"

Bright Side smirked. "He's almost here. You can sense Him in the winds...the ground...the seas...soon, He shall return and claim what is rightfully His."

"Whoa, what's with this guy?" Spike asked. "Twilight, do you know him?"

"Well...yes, but he's never acted like this before," Twilight said. "Maybe that's his Shadow?"

"Stay back!" Pinkie exclaimed. "There's no doubt about it...all the Shadows have gone into him!"

"A new age is upon us," Bright Side said. He took a few steps forward. Spike ran around the Crusaders, positioning himself between them and Bright Side. "He shall descend upon us, and He shall recreate us in His image. It will be a glorious dawn for our kind, and for all others."

"What are you TALKING about?" Rainbow demanded. "And WHO, for that matter?! Nothing you say makes any sense!"

"I speak of one of the true gods. I speak of that which existed before the usurpers came to be."

"Ah don't think we're gonna get a straight answer outta this guy," Applejack said. "What do we do?"

Twilight glared. "All right, Bright Side...answer one question for me. Did you bring the girls here?"

Bright Side's smirk grew more malicious. "I did."

Rarity pawed at the ground, her eyes full of intensity. "How DARE you! Why would you do such a thing to innocent little fillies?!?"

"He needs sacrifices...it is the final step towards bringing Him back to this world once more. You proved yourselves worthy of such an honor...but you would never come here willingly."

"So you used us as bait?!" Scootaloo asked.

"I shall give you an unattainable gift." Bright Side stopped walking and straightened up, now standing within the white circle. "Allow yourselves to be sacrificed, and you shall be marked down in history as they who brought salvation to the universe. You will not be alive to enjoy the new world, but He shall reward you, even in the embrace of eternity. Refuse..." He frowned suddenly, looking at the group with distaste. "...and I shall simply force you. I shall break you until you are no longer able to resist, and then I shall sacrifice you myself."

Everyone stiffened a bit at that. However, the threat did nothing to deter them. "I dunno about you, but I like living," Rainbow said.

"Why would we ever agree to something like that?" Spike asked. "You're not so tough. We'll just beat you down the way we have every enemy before you!"

"Don't do this," Twilight said, shaking her head. "It doesn't have to be this way. I don't know why you're acting like this, but you can stop now, and nopony has to be hurt!"

Bright Side, having seemingly ignored Twilight, closed his eyes and sighed. "So be it, then." His horn flared with magic, and the Crusaders were lifted into the air. Before he could be met with any protests, he moved them out of the circle and then gently put them down. A barrier formed along the edge of the circle. "The children shall not be harmed. They are not part of this conflict."

Red light flowed from Bright Side's feet as he closed his eyes. At first, everyone thought that he would turn into a monster. However, their eyes widened as they saw a Magician card materialize in the air. It descended slowly until it appeared just before Bright Side's eyes, surrounding him with familiar blue flames. His eyes snapped open and flashed briefly. "Ifrit."

At first, the only thing that appeared was a golden, ancient-looking, Saddle Arabian-style lamp. However, a plume of flames burst from the spout. A muscular, humanoid torso emerged from the fire, matching its shade of orange. It had large black bands just below its shoulders, and past its elbows, its flesh seemed to turn into more flame. A slightly smaller forearm emerged from these flames. Four large wings spread from its shoulder blades, each one appearing to be made of red smoke and yet more flame. The skin on its neck also flickered with fire, yielding a yellow head with blank white eyes. Resting where eyelashes would be on each eye, as well as on the center of its forehead, were three long and hooked black horns.

"A Persona?!" Pinkie exclaimed. "But...I didn't sense anything like that from him!"

"Never mind that!" Twilight yelled. "Take him down, everyone!"

The group summoned their own Personas, and each one took on their own version of a combat stance. Pinkie stole a glance at the Crusaders and saw that their jaws had dropped once more. Even with the tension of the situation, she couldn't help but smile at that.

"Pinkie!" Spike exclaimed. "Hit me!"

Pinkie snapped back to attention. "Gotcha!"

Love Bubble flew forward and kicked Atlas right in the temple. As Atlas recovered from the blow, a rainbow-colored aura enveloped him, and he started vibrating.

Bright Side raised an eyebrow. "What...is this, exactly?"

Spike suddenly let out an ear-piercing roar as Atlas charged. He threw his globe forward with the force of a supertanker, knocking Ifrit off-balance. It quickly recovered, however, and though Atlas lunged at it with great speed, it held out its hand and grabbed him by the head. It created a hollow fireball around Atlas, keeping him from moving.

Bright Side scowled. "I am insulted that you ever believed this would work."

Spike didn't respond. Atlas roared loudly, dispersing the fire around him. However, before he could move again, Ifrit grabbed him by the stomach, causing Spike to flinch. It lifted Atlas so that the two Personas made eye contact.

"Your attacks are powerful, but they come without any strategy or grace. Do you truly think this an infallible strategy?"

Ifrit's hand started glowing with purple light. Atlas tried to break free, but he discovered that its grip had become ironclad.

"Now...you shall know what you stand against."

Suddenly, Ifrit clenched its fist with such force that Atlas shattered into motes of white light. Spike immediately lost his aura and fell to his knees, screaming in agony.

"SPIKE!" Twilight ran over to the dragon. Before she could try to soothe him, however, he fell unconscious.

Pinkie gasped. "Oh, no...that attack will destroy our Persona instantly if we boost more than one attribute!"

"Are you SERIOUS?!?" Rainbow demanded. "That's not fair!"

"We can still power ourselves up a little bit," Fluttershy said. Sekhmet flew over to Spike and bathed him in warm light, waking him up. "Spike, are you all right?"

Spike slowly got to his feet, holding his head in one hand and grimacing. "I've...been better."

"Do you not understand the suffering you go through as you desperately cling to meaningless lives?" Bright Side asked. "Allow yourselves into His embrace, and He shall take it all away...you cannot do anything to change your fates, regardless of your decisions."

"Meanin'less?!?" Applejack demanded. "Ain't nothin' about life meanin'less! For us or for anypony else!"

Ifrit suddenly pointed its palms forward, letting loose a massive stream of flames from both hands. Before anyone could react, it had already consumed them all. Fluttershy was unfazed, but everyone else staggered. The power behind this attack was greater than they ever would have thought. Rarity's knees buckled, and she struggled to stay on her hooves.

"RARITY!" Sweetie Belle cried. "You can't let this creep beat you! Please!"

Rarity's eyes widened. She looked over her shoulder at her sister, seeing the fear in her eyes. In spite of her situation, she tried her best to look confident for her sake. "N-never fear...I am far from beaten!"

Ace of Spades sprung into action. He raised his sword, enveloping the battlefield in a violent blizzard. Though Ifrit was unaffected, its attack slowly grew weaker until all that was left were a few sparks feebly sputtering out of its palms. After allowing Rarity a moment to sigh with relief, he flourished his blade towards the ground, letting loose golden beams towards his allies. The Personas were enveloped by orange and purple electricity. Seeing an opportunity, Ifrit clapped its hands together, letting loose a barrage of lightning bolts. This time, however, the group was ready for it, and most of them managed to dodge the onslaught.

"Well, aren't you full of surprises!" Rainbow yelled. Not to be outdone by Rarity's display, Hayabusa launched herself forward, poised to strike. Stronghold and Ace of Spades followed quickly, as did Atlas as Spike summoned him again.

"Indeed I am," Bright Side replied with a devious smirk. "Here's another one."

Ifrit clenched its fist menacingly. Suddenly, the electricity dancing around the Personas' forms faded away, as if it had never existed. Rarity's eyes widened in alarm and fury alike.

"Wh...WHAT?!?" Rarity slammed her front hoof onto the stone below. "What madness is this?!? It just took away our charge in the blink of an eye!"

"Well, we can't hold back now!" Rainbow yelled. "Don't stop 'til you hit your mark!"

Ifrit held out its hand as the group advanced, and blazing meteors fell towards them from the sky. Stronghold positioned herself above the others, shielding them like a gigantic, mechanical umbrella. What meteors didn't get smashed to bits on contact with Stronghold's body were kicked or sliced in half by Hayabusa's lightning-fast strikes. Ifrit followed up immediately by conjuring up purple energy from the ground, and although this managed to hit Atlas, they continued onward undeterred.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. "Fluttershy...are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

Upon acknowledging Twilight's question, Fluttershy focused on the fray. She noticed the same thing Twilight had before long. "It looks like Bright Side is trying to keep us at a distance," she replied.

"Yeah, that has to be it...Ifrit doesn't have any weapons, and I haven't seen Bright Side use a close-range tactic." Twilight's eyes lit up. "That means that if we can keep the pressure on him at close range, we have the upper hand!"

"Then let's go!" Rainbow yelled, pumping her hoof.

The next moments were a blur of action. As the Personas made it to Ifrit, they immediately sprung into action, surrounding it and punching, kicking, slashing and striking with all of their force. Ifrit flailed its limbs wildly, but the clumsy motions were easily dodged. After a moment, it set itself on fire, forcing the Personas to back up.

"It's time to end this," Bright Side said. Ifrit spread its wings, and the fire surrounding it turned into a fiery twister. Ace of Spades and Hayabusa were blown back, and while Atlas and Stronghold were able to hold their ground momentarily, they soon followed. The attack subsided as quickly as it had been launched, but Ifrit wasn't done yet. It held out its hand towards the group, and massive explosions of both fire and lightning consumed their Personas. It relentlessly continued with its assault, leaving the group no time to retaliate. One by one, it became too much for them to handle, and their Personas began to disappear. Ace of Spades and Hayabusa went first, followed by Atlas, Stronghold, Sekhmet and even Love Bubble. Ifrit finally stopped as Star Swirl was the only one left, but any hope that Twilight may have had of it giving up was lost as it let out a primal roar. A massive pillar of flames erupted from under Star Swirl, and he dissipated as well. Everyone was forced to their knees, breathing heavily and struggling to stay conscious.

"This...is kinda...bad," Rainbow said. "What are we...gonna do now?"

"We're not...out...just yet," Twilight replied. She didn't want to admit it, but she strained just to say the words. "As long as we're still alive...he hasn't beaten us!"

Bright Side raised an eyebrow. "You would keep fighting, even when you can't stand up? How foolish."

"Who cares...if it is?" Applejack asked. "At this point...we got nothin' to lose...since yer just gonna kill us anyway..."

"Do you not understand yet? You are being given a great and honorable opportunity to bring salvation to all existence. Does that mean nothing to you?"

Spike gritted his teeth as he struggled with all his might to stand up again. "So what...you expect us to die...just so we can be...some old god's doorstop? Not...gonna happen!"

"I am done...with running away," Rarity declared as forcefully as her fatigued state would allow. "I still have...much to live for...and you will not take it away from me!"

"And yet you are powerless to resist. Face it...I have defeated you," Bright Side said, glaring harshly. "You have made things difficult, but it ends now. All shall be forgiven, as this conflict is insignificant to Him."

"COME FORTH, HAYABUSA!" Rainbow suddenly exclaimed. Hayabusa suddenly reappeared and flew towards Bright Side. Before he could do much more than take a step back, she kicked Ifrit hard in the side. The combined force of the kick and the blast of wind that resulted from it were enough to knock Ifrit on its side.

"Wh-what?!?" Bright Side said, staggering backwards. "But...you were beaten!"

As suddenly as she had appeared, Hayabusa faded away, and Rainbow fell onto her knees again. "Y-yeah, well...maybe I just got tired of listening...to this garbage." She smirked. "Besides...only I can...say...when I'm...beaten..."

Rainbow fell onto her side and closed her eyes.

"RAINBOW DASH!" Scootaloo yelled. "Sh-she can't be dead! Please...don't let her be dead!"

As much as Twilight wished otherwise, she knew she couldn't worry about Rainbow yet. The only way the group was going to win was by pressing the advantage that she had given them. She stood up and pointed towards Bright Side. "RUSH HIM NOW!"

"You're up, Atlas!" Spike yelled, summoning his Persona again. Atlas raised his globe towards the sky, and three familiar orbs of purple light descended from above. They exploded as they touched down, forcing Bright Side onto the ground.

"Sekhmet, please help us!" Fluttershy exclaimed. Sekhmet appeared and spread her wings forcefully, managing to look rather imposing. She then flew forward and, to the surprise of everyone else, dug her claws into Ifrit's flesh before fading away.

"You're all fools!" Bright Side yelled as he slowly stood up. "You would bring countless back into strife with your actions! What about that is just to you?!?"

"Ace of Spades, I summon you!" Rarity boomed. Ace of Spades charged forward, his rapier trailing behind him. He slashed forcefully into Ifrit's chest, forcing Bright Side to his knees again.

"Stronghold, it's up to you," Applejack said. Stronghold appeared and slammed her fists onto the ground. Meteors fell from the sky and battered Ifrit from all directions.

"How do you not see it?!" Bright Side demanded. "His power permeates us...it is all around us! Why are you protecting meaningless lives when all of civilization could share in this revelry?!"

Twilight stomped her hoof so hard that the stone under her cracked. "STAR SWIRL!"

Star Swirl appeared and pointed his staff at Ifrit. The fog darkened, taking on the appearance of the night sky. A massive ball of energy slammed into Ifrit from above and exploded into white light. Everyone present was blinded, the explosion brighter than anything they had seen previously.

The light faded slowly, and everyone was eventually able to open their eyes again. The sound of the explosion also woke Rainbow up, but she evidently decided that standing wasn't in her best interests at the moment. In addition, Ifrit was gone, and Bright Side was on the ground. His eyes flickered from yellow to hazel and back again, and almost a dozen black hands seemed to be trying to claw their way out of him.

"This...isn't...happening," he said weakly. "How...when you were so close to death..."

"Don't you get it yet?" Spike asked. "It's pretty obvious when you think about it."

"Yeah!" Rainbow chimed in. "We won because we're all too dumb to know when to quit!"

"Such...foolishness." Bright Side shakily stood up. "Very well...you have your victory. But...I will not accept...failure in my mission!"

Everyone tensed up as Bright Side straightened himself. The stone arches around the battlefield began to glow brightly, and each one suddenly fired a beam of yellow light. Each of these beams hit Bright Side as he closed his eyes, and he rose into the air.

"What's he doing?!" Twilight asked.

"We should run while we have the chance," Rarity said. "Quickly, grab the girls and--"

Suddenly, Pinkie let out a sharp cry. Everyone turned towards her to find that she had fallen to her knees, her eyes clenched shut. A warm trickle of blood flowed freely from her nose, and she clutched at her head with her front hooves. She tried to speak, but all she could manage was more pained cries.

"Pinkie?! What's wrong?!" Spike asked, running over to her.

Pinkie managed to open one eye ever so slightly. She shakily gestured towards Bright Side. "S-s-ssstop...hiiiim..." Her eye widened, then shut again as she fell onto her side, curled up into a ball and clutched her head more tightly. "H-hurryyy..."

Spike nodded and turned towards Bright Side. "ATLAS!"

Atlas drew his hands back, then threw his globe as hard as he could. It slammed into Bright Side at full force. The effect was immediate--he was knocked right out of the air, and the beams of light disappeared as the arches stopped glowing.

"What was THAT about?!" Rainbow demanded. "Pinkie, are you okay?!"

Pinkie opened her eyes and looked around. She looked much more tired than she had a moment ago. "I...I sensed something. Something terrible..." She shivered. "It was...powerful...and just really bad somehow...I don't know how to describe it..."

"Is it gone now?" Twilight asked.

"I...think so..."

Rainbow stood up and helped Pinkie get on her hooves. "Don't strain yourself, okay? Lean on me for now."

A retching sound got the group's attention. They turned towards Bright Side just in time to see some of the hands emerging from him grab onto the ground. Masses of black tar-like substance began pulling themselves out of his body--only a few at first, but their numbers grew rapidly until they were clambering on top of one another. Bright Side's form was completely lost in the mass of Shadows.

"This is bad!" Fluttershy exclaimed. "We need to get out of here!"

"We gotta take him with us," Applejack said. "Rainbow, can ya clear me a path?"

"I can try," Rainbow replied.

Applejack shuffled through her saddlebag for a moment. Eventually, she pulled out her lasso. "All right, then do it now! Twilight, you grab the girls, yer the one best suited to carryin' 'em!"

Twilight nodded and ran out of the battle zone. She picked up the Crusaders with her magic, then turned to wait for the others.

"What's going on?" Scootaloo asked. "I don't get any of this!"

"There's no time!" Twilight replied. "As soon as we're safe, I promise we'll explain, but for now, please just bear with us!"

Meanwhile, Hayabusa had dispersed a good number of Shadows using blasts of wind. Several dozen of the creatures flew through the air and off of the mountain, and Bright Side's hoof was just barely visible. Applejack threw her rope and somehow managed to coil its loop around the appendage, then yanked on it hard enough to pull Bright Side out of the crowd. She ran over and caught him on her back, then turned around and nodded.

"All right, let's book it!" Spike yelled. Everyone turned towards the way they came and ran as hard as they could as the Shadows spread themselves around all corners of their home.





It was late by the time everyone got back to Ponyville. Before they did anything else, they thought it would be prudent to turn Bright Side in to Looking Glass. Whether he had kidnapped anyone besides the Crusaders or not, kidnapping three children was still a highly punishable offense. Looking Glass assured them that he would put Bright Side into a holding cell and find out if he was the culprit they were looking for. After they thanked him and left, the Crusaders spoke up once more.

"Okay, now can you PLEASE tell us what happened in there?" Sweetie Belle asked. "I mean...it seemed like you almost died! We deserve to know!"

"Indeed you do, darling," Rarity said. She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Before I begin, is there anywhere you want to go? We can explain on the way over, and it's the least we can do for worrying you so."

The girls exchanged long looks. Despite the innocence of the gesture, it was one that nearly all of Ponyville had learned to be wary of--it meant that their minds were in perfect synch. They turned back towards Rarity, and she tried to hide her apprehension. "Is that ice cream store still open?" Scootaloo asked.

"It should be," Twilight said. "They don't close for another half hour."

"You really want to give them sugar so close to bedtime?" Rainbow asked. "We're never gonna get 'em to go to sleep."

"Rainbow, they got kidnapped today," Spike said, putting his hands on his hips.

"...Yeah, that's a good point."

The fillies smiled so widely that it looked as though their faces would tear in half at a moment's notice. This was the kind of smile that even Pinkie Pie had a hard time perpetrating. Everyone started walking towards the ice cream shop, and Pinkie took it upon herself to begin an outrageously spirited retelling of their adventures, complete with wild, flailing hoof gestures and sound effects.





Rarity settled into bed, shuffling her way under the neatly-tucked blanket. It had been a long day, and a taxing day in more ways than one, but it was finally over.

"I do hope that this ends it all," she said to herself. "I was never cut out to be a warrior...and I've had enough near-death experiences for one lifetime, thank you."

With the final two words, Rarity put on her sleep mask and relaxed, allowing the comfort of the mattress to seep into her muscles. She began to drift off to sleep within moments...until the door opening interrupted her, that is. She tried to ignore it and convince herself that she just hadn't closed it fully.

"Rarity...?"

Rarity sighed. She looked towards the door and lifted her sleep mask, and her suspicions were confirmed--Sweetie Belle was standing in the door frame. At first, Rarity looked slightly annoyed, but that melted away when she saw that there were tears in Sweetie Belle's eyes.

"Can I sleep with you tonight?"

Rarity sat up in her bed, as fully awake as her exhaustion would allow. "Aren't you a little old for that, darling?"

Sweetie Belle rubbed her foreleg. "I know...but..." She hung her head. "...I...realized how close we came to losing each other...and..."

As her sister's voice trailed off, Rarity hesitated for a moment. She knowingly smiled at her sister. "All right. Just don't mess up the blanket, please."

Sweetie Belle smiled weakly back at Rarity and climbed into the bed, gently nestling herself into place. It was slightly sloppier than how Rarity did it, but both could care less right now. Rarity used her magic to close the door, then returned to the blanket's embrace herself. Under the covers, Sweetie Belle wrapped her hooves around Rarity and laid her head on her barrel.

"Please don't leave me behind, Rarity," Sweetie Belle whispered, her voice indicating her own exhaustion.

Rarity wrapped her own hoof around Sweetie Belle's body, somehow drawing her even closer than she already was. She gently kissed her on the forehead before settling on the pillow again. She was about to respond, but there was no need--Sweetie Belle was already asleep. She closed her own eyes and put her mask on again, and she quickly let sleep find her as well.