//------------------------------// // Dance With The Devil Pt.1 // Story: Blazing Dragon // by Zanem-Ji //------------------------------// As the others walked up to the castle, they took note of its sheer size. It was a massive black beast, made of stone and hellfire, looming over them, daring them to enter. They stood outside, waiting to get word from the Pegasi that had shot off earlier to investigate. They didn’t want to hit them up on the headsets, in fear of exposing them if they were hidden. It wasn’t long before Fluttershy and Dash landed amongst them. “There’s nopony around.” Dash stated. “Like, nothing. No Hellions, no demons, none of our fighters, nopony.” “We can’t say the same fer the inside though, can we?” Applejack questioned. “There could be a bunch of ‘em in there, waitin’ fer us ta just mosey on in.” she pawed the ground with a heavy hoof, “Ah don’t know about ya’ll, but Ah’m done foolin’ around. Ah say we go in there, hit ‘em fast, an’ hit ‘em hard.” Dash smirked at her, “I like the way you’re thinking, cowgirl!” “Hold on now.” Pinkie intervened. “Does that really sound like a good idea? This isn’t like us just going and fighting a massive horde of them. We’re deep into Spike’s territory. This is his home. There are probably thousands of Hellions waiting for us inside. Not to mention this place is probably armed to the teeth with traps and gods knows what else.” Dash snorted, “That’s what I’m here for, Pinks. You know, top mechanic, weapons specialist, and pretty much awesome in all things that have to do with making stuff?” she threw a hoof over the pink mare’s shoulder, “Have a little faith in me! In us!!” she looked around, “We’re the Fallen! And even if we weren’t, we’re still Element Bearers! It’s our job to put an end to all this!” “Pinkie has a point though.” Fluttershy agreed. “This is still very dangerous. Not to mention…we weren’t prepared to lose…” she trailed off. None of them needed her to finish. Sparks stepped forward, “I understand your apprehension about going inside, due to the fact that one of the Fallen has died.” She started. “Yes, it’s true, there are only five Fallen now…but there are still six Bearers to the Elements of Harmony. Six ponies, who bear magic unlike anything the new world has ever seen.” She stared Fluttershy straight in the eye, “I may be new to this role I’ve had to assume, but it does not mean I don’t understand the responsibility I now bear, and what lies at stake. The fate of Equis doesn’t just rest in your hooves, but in mines as well now. I understand that you all are counting on me just as you were for Rarity. You’re all my family, so even if the world wasn’t at stake, the fact that this puts my family in danger is enough to make me fill whatever role I'm needed to fill” The others stared at her for a moment, eyes slightly wide from her speech. Applejack was the first to speak up, “Wow, ya sound jus' like yer daddy. Ya definitely came from his loins." Dash chuckled and looked over at her, “What the hell is wrong with you? You ruin the best moments.” Pinkie patted Sparks’ back, while Fluttershy smiled at her. They then stepped aside to let Twilight stand in front of her, “You had very good parents raising you, Bright Spark. They would be proud of you…and Rarity would be too…” Sparks smiled, her irises glowing just a bit brighter. Twilight turned to look back at the castle, “It’s now or never. I’m sure Spike already knows we’re here, so if there’s Hellions in there, we’ll have to try Applejack’s method…” she looked over her shoulder, “Are you all ready?” The girls looked around at each other, before nodding at Twilight. Twilight looked back at the castle, then broke off into a gallop. The others joined her. Twilight used her magic to blow the massive doors clean off their hinges, and the others leapt inside. Faces that were once formed into rage and determination, now turned to confusion as they were greeted by quiet halls. Fluttershy transformed into her more vampiric form so she could see better, while Twilight and Sparks used their magic to make their horns glow. “Where…where is everypony?” Applejack asked. Twilight looked around, “I honestly have no idea…” “Maybe the Hell King really did send all of his minions out into battle.” Sparks stated. “He probably thought that he could handle us on his own.” Dash smirked, “Well, he was stupid to think that. He’s gonna be dead bef-” “We’re not here to kill him.” Twilight cut her off. The others focused on her. “I’m sorry,” Dash reached up and dug in her ear a little, “I don’t think I heard you right.” “No, you heard exactly what I said.” Twilight replied in a monotone voice. “We’re not here to kill him. We’re here to defeat him.” “Uh yeah, the only way to defeat him, is to kill him.” Twilight spun around, “Why do you think that? Who gave you the right to be able to kill him off?” Dash snorted angrily, “Have you forgotten what he’s done? He’s ended countless lives!” “He’s still my brother!” Twilight hissed. “You have no right to kill him!!” “Oh, and that means you have every right to let him walk away a free dragon?!” Dash retorted. Applejack stepped in between them, “Twilight, ya can’t be serious. Ya can’t really expect us ta just let him live after all of this…” “Spike’s still somewhere in there!!” Twilight shouted. “Don’t you remember the last time we managed to contact him? When I reached out to him and told him I still loved him? He said it back! He’s still in there, and if we have the chance to save him, then we have to take it!” “Rarity was still there when her body got taken over too, and even she knew that his magic couldn’t be stopped!” Dash had jumped back in. “Did you forget that I was once the Corrupted One’s host? I managed to escape from that!!” “NO THE FUCK YOU DIDN’T, TWILIGHT!! You killed everypony, including your closest friends! The only reason you lived is because Spike absorbed that thing into him!! Do you realize that you'd be the Hell Queen, if not for him?!” A mist spouted from Twilight’s nostrils, and her irises glowed bright, “And he proved that not only was he strong enough to even learn the spell to withdraw the Corrupted One from my body, but that he also still has retained enough sentience to speak out against it!!” “That’s fucking great. He managed to talk to us. And then what happened? There was a big ass battle! You know, the one that’s still going on outside?! He sent all those Hellions, and the Elite to fight us! TO KILL US!!!” “The Corrupted One did, not Spike! Spike’s magic doesn’t bring living things back from the dead! Spike’s magic doesn’t corrupt their souls, and cause them to do things they don’t want to do! You saw how some of those Hellions acted. Some of them ran off to gods-knows where, instead of back here! They don’t respect him, they fear him! Spike’s magic DOESN’T DO THAT!!” “IT DON’T MATTER WHOSE DAMN MAGIC IT IS!!” Applejack roared, now back in the fray as well. “Whether it’s Spike’s magic or not, his body is still under the Corrupted One’s control! An’ so long as It has Spike’s body, It’s gonna keep killin’ every livin’ thing ‘til we’re all lifeless bodies buried in the ground! He has ta be put down!!” “It’s not his fault!!” “He killed Rarity!!” “No he didn’t!! Dark Star killed her!!” “AND MY FATHER WAS TURNED INTO DARK STAR, BECAUSE HE WAS KILLED OFF SAVING YOU GUYS!!!” All attention fell of Sparks, as her statement enraptured their attention. Little billows of black wisps puffed from her flared nostrils and mouth, as she stared angrily at the trio of bickering mares. “We can sit her and try to throw the blame at each other all day, but that won’t do anything. All we’re doing right now, is drawing unwanted attention to us, so please, do what you all need to do to decide what we do with the Hell King.” Twilight, Dash, and Applejack looked at each in shame. They weren’t sure what to do. Dash and Applejack wanted to make sure Spike never did anything like this again, but they would need Twilight’s participation as well. And that still didn’t account for how Pinkie and Fluttershy felt. Pinkie walked up to Twilight, and tilted her chin upward so that the Unicorn was looking her in the eyes, “Twilight…” she drew in a deep breath. She knew that the mare was not going to like what she had to say. “We all think it’s for the best to do whatever it takes to end the Corrupted One’s reign. Even if that means…we have to kill our friend.” Twilight moved her chin away from Pinkie’s hoof, “Easy for you to say…you may not have any problems killing off a friend, but I do. And that doesn’t even apply to me. Spike isn’t just my friend. He’s my little brother…” “I don’t think he’d want you to be hesitating like this. I think…I think he would want us to stop him, no matter the cost.” Twilight looked back into her eyes, “What do you know anyway?” Pinkie lightly pawed at the ground, “Well…you may have raised him, and stuff like that…and believe me, he turned out a lot better than we had all expected. We all thought he’d revert to Dragonian tendencies, but clearly, you had done well. He loves us, dearly. When you were Corrupted One, your consciousness rose to the surface a couple times too. You were hurting, Twilight. When you were talking to us, was that the only time you were hurting?” Twilight shook her head, “No…I felt like I was helpless.” “Exactly. You caused some serious damage too, while the Corrupted One was in control of your body. So…just put yourself in Spike’s situation. You already kind of have, if you think about it. But just imagine…over 70 years of suffering and frustration. And Spike was no idiot. More than likely, he knew full well what he was getting himself into by becoming that thing’s host. Why do you think he was gone for so long after he did that? He probably knew what a danger he would be the moment he activated that spell. As for trying to save him…well…Twilight, you’ve never been the same since the Corrupted One left your body. In fact, you still have some of it’s magic in you. You still suffer from it to this day, over a century later…” she looked over at Sparks, “You’ve even managed to pass some of that magic on to Sparks. You’ve both have been suffering from this. Spike would be going through the same thing, maybe even worse because he’s been the Corrupted One’s host far longer than you had been. Is that what you want?” Twilight looked down at the ground shamefully, “I’d never wish for such a fate upon even the worst of my enemies…” “Then there’s no point in putting our friend…your brother…through the same thing…” Twilight looked up at her. Her irises faded into the blackness of her orbs, and she let out a sigh. Pinkie lowered her head to Twilight’s level, and nuzzled her crystalline cheek. The crystal armor retracted back, exposing her head once again. Twilight returned the nuzzle, then looked at her friends, “Thank you all for putting up with my behavior, after all these years. You girls are the best friends I could have ever asked for. No…the best family I could have ever asked for.” They others softly smiled at her, before getting closer to her for a group hug. A throaty chuckle boomed through the halls, causing them to all jump into fighting stances. “You truly think that you’re going to be able to stop me?” Corrupted Spike’s voice echoed again. “You are in my domain…my magic is floating in the air, traveling through the walls, flowing through the floors…” Bright blue flames came to life in sconces at the far end of the hallway, “Let me welcome you into my home…” The flames shot down the hall towards them, lighting it up in the process. The group’s expression turned into horror at what they saw. Bodies. Countless bodies of Hellions, their husks lying in positions as if they had been scrambling to escape something. Fluttershy gasped and took a couple steps back away from a Hellion whose face was contorted into an expression of pure agony, and had it’s hooves outstretched towards her. Some of them were leaned up against the walls, mouths agape, and faces sunken in more so than before. “You like it? I did a bit of decorating while you were out fighting.” Corrupted Spike’s voice started up again. “They weren’t really all for the idea, but you know…’my house, my rules’.” There was another small chuckle, “But please, feel free to make yourselves comfortable. After all…” A set of bright green orbs with red magic wisp trails stared down at them, ”You won’t be leaving this place ever again…" A jagged pillar of ebony rock shot forth from the ground, and slammed into Applejack. She hit the opposite wall with a heavy thud, before crumpling to the ground. Pinkie wordlessly bounded for her, but shrapnel rained down from the ceiling, “Pinkie!!” Sparks leaped towards her, horn ablaze, as she formed a dome of magic over Pinkie’s body. The shrapnel bounced off the dome, each piece lightly clinking to the ground. Applejack and Pinkie were enveloped in a veil of magic, and whisked over to Sparks’ sides. She tossed the Earth Ponies closer to the group, then sent the dome to hover over them. Dash banged on the dome, “Put this damn thing down!” More shrapnel shot out from the walls. The strands of her crystalline coat tucked close to her body, forming a shield. The shrapnel bounced off of her, and she remained completely unfazed. Twilight cocked her head to the side a bit, “When did you learn how to do that?” Sparks looked over her body, noticing it glimmer from the firelight, “I didn’t…” The eyes at the end of the hall glowed ominously. A massive dark colored, scaly tail slunk out of the darkness. The group immediately honed in on it. “I see that mere tricks are not going to work on you all…” the tail rose up a bit from the ground, “I am waiting for you, right down the end of this hall.” The tip wiggled a bit in a come-hither motion., “You can stand there and let me just kill you off…or you can come to me, and still be destroyed. The choice is yours.” With that, the eyes seem to get higher, before swiveling around into the darkness. The tail soon followed the eyes. The fires in the sconces winked out, sending the hall back into a deeper shade of black. Twilight and Sparks sent glowing magic into their horns to light up the area around them. “Well then…Spike’s called us out.” Applejack started. “No more games…this is it.” She started to step forward. Pinkie grabbed her tail to stop her, then spat it out when she earned her attention, “Hang on a second.” Pinkie protested. “We could be walking into a trap! We could step forward and more of the skewers could turn us into pony kabobs!” Dash rolled her eyes, “Pinks, you’ve had acidic magic thrown on your face, been stabbed, been slammed into the ground, been shot at, been poisoned, and everything else that can happen to a pony under Twilight’s EvenTide. Are you really that worried about another little poke through the gut?” Pinkie let out a tiny sigh of defeat, “Fine…I guess…” Sparks smiled at her, “Then how about I go first, to make sure it’s good to go?” The others looked at her, “That’s too dangerous. You could set off a trap and be killed.” Fluttershy stated. “Yes, but if I die, the Element will find another host, and you will have a new Bearer to assist you.” Dash grabbed a hoof-full of her tail, then yanked the younger Unicorn back. “Sparky, there’s a couple of things wrong with that statement of yours.” The Wonderbolt started, “First off, we have no idea who the next Bearer will be or where they would be in the world. Shit, we didn’t even know it was going to be you. So that’s a no go. Secondly,” she smirked and threw a foreleg over her shoulder, “We don’t want you getting replaced. If you go, we go.” Sparks smiled at her, “Thank you, Rainbow Dash.” “Rainbow Dash is too formal. Just ‘Rainbow’ or ‘Dash’ works fine.” Her expression turned serious, “Alright, nowhere to go but forward!” Dash’s wings snapped open and she launched herself into the air. Fluttershy outstretched her wings and followed suit, while the four Earth-bound ponies galloped down the hall. Twilight and Sparks used their magic to open to the doors, and were greeted by utter blackness. The same glowing orbs from before shined bright across from them, “My little ponies…” the eyes crinkled up at them, “Welcome to…my humble abode…” Violet fire burst to life from sconces on the walls. Just as they did in the hall, they spread from sconce to sconce until they reached the walls behind the Fallen. And just like the last time, they did not light up a portion of the other side of the room. The tail hit the ground with a heavy thud, while the beast it was attached to remained in the shadows that it almost seemed to be producing on it’s own. This room was not littered with the rotting husks of dead Hellions, but was a polished, onyx floor. The smooth floor however, was marred by towering pillars of dark violet crystals and tiny craters that spurted black fire. A long violet rug strip cut the room in half, starting at the doors, before crossing the room and into the darkness from where the eyes stared down at them. Twilight took a couple steps forward, “Show yourself! Now!” A chuckle rumbled through the room, “You’ve done incredibly well to get this far, Fallens. I suppose that you deserve to see the new body of Evil…” There was the sound of a single snap, and a massive pillar of fire rose up on each side of the eyes, showing the beast that they were attached to. Shock and horror carved themselves onto each of the ponies’ faces. Twilight slightly shook her head as she uttered out a sentence softly. “Spike…what has this thing done to you?...” Corrupted Spike was sitting in his massive throne chair and was much, much larger than they had remembered him to be. His color scheme had changed, his violet scales now a dark silver, and his emerald scales now dark crimson. The bone plates that ran along the top of his head and down his back were dark silver as well, and were longer than before, curving upward like upside-down scythes. Little plumes of black fire burned on random places on his body, each producing a small crackling sound as they devoured the oxygen surrounding him. The magic wisps from his eyes had gotten longer as well, and his pupils shrank to vertical slits as he leaned down a bit, “Do you remember when you were my host, and I tried to make him better?” Corrupted Spike questioned. “Well, it was after I obtained this body, that I realized how pathetic yours was. Your Element of Magic made it quite bothersome. But now…” he extended his claws out to observe them, “I have more strength in one hand, than you have in your tiny little body. And let’s not forget the fact that you were an Alicorn when this all transpired. Now, you’re just an old Unicorn, leading four other old mares and a youngling who probably can’t tell the difference between her head and her own ass.” Sparks snorted angrily, “And you are but a foolish lizard. You claim to be the most powerful being in existence, yet I see otherwise.” She retaliated. “In fact, you are one of the most disgraceful forms of magic that I have ever laid eyes upon. You cannot even bring the destruction that you so crave unto us, without the aid of some unfortunate soul who has crossed paths with you. You are the incessant whisper in someone’s ear, that nagging thought in the back of their mind, and a defiler of pure hearted creatures. You can only strike when someone is at their weakest, and even then, you are still not fully in control. You are so pathetic, that you don’t even have a true body to call your own…” Corrupted Spike roared in anguish and rose from his throne. The crystal pillars rose even higher, before arcing downward, and shooting towards the Fallen. Twilight leapt in front of Sparks, her eyes and horn lit up with magic. The pillars stopped, mere inches from their faces, before turning back to aim at mighty dragon. “I still have some of your magic, remember?” Twilight questioned as the pillars crept upwards towards him. “And these crystals were my creation. I will not let you turn them against me.” Corrupted Spike smirked, “You don’t have it in you to kill me…” he smacked his hands against the pillars, shattering them into massive chunks. His smirk turned into a wicked sneer, “But that won’t keep me from destroying YOU!!!” He quickly lunged towards the ponies. They all barely dodged him, his weight slamming into the wall so hard, that the entire room shook. Twilight summoned black crystal pillars from the walls, giving her friends a place to land. They looked down at him as he rose to his feet. “What are we going to do?” Fluttershy questioned. “I mean, Dashie and I can fly to avoid him, but what about you guys?” Sparks looked up at the crystal Twilight was on, “Do a knowledge transfer spell on me so that I can summon EvenTide Crystals too. I’m afraid I’ll mess it up based on the knowledge Rarity had given me all those years ago.” Twilight’s eyes started to glow, “Step closer to me, the distance is still a bit too far.” Sparks stepped closer to the edge of her pillar. Twilight’s horn started to glow, then flicker, “Damn it. Still too far.” Her magic faded. “Let me try to get closer.” Twilight started to walk towards the edge of her own pillar. Pinkie outstretched her hoof, “TWILIGHT!!!” Twilight looked down at Pinkie’s crystal pillar, only to have something else catch her eye. A stream of fire was screaming towards her at an inescapable rate. The fire consumed her, knocking her off of her pillar and sending her hurdling to the ground. Dash started to gallop to the jump, but Fluttershy leapt before her and dived down for the falling Unicorn. She knew they were too close to the ground, and wrapped her wings around them as she clasped her forelegs around the Unicorn. They hit the ground with a heavy thud, and rolled. Twilight tumbled out of her grip, and smacked into the wall. Spike charged at her, a gleam of bloodlust in his eyes. Fluttershy scrambled to her hooves, but she knew she wouldn’t make it this time. “Twilight, get the hell up, now!!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. Twilight’s glowing pupils returned once more, and she looked to see a massive hand ready to come down on her. It slammed down on her, each of the other ponies letting out cries of protest and horror. Everything was silent for a few seconds, before a chuckle rumbled out of Corrupted Spike’s throat. He raised his claws up, and looked down at the hand-shaped crater he created. Twilight was motionless, her crystal armor shattered, and her eyes completely black. Corrupted Spike chuckled, rose to his feet, and looked at the others, “Now…who’s next?” A screech emitted from Sparks was let loose into the room. Corrupted Spike turned to face Sparks, who’s eyes were glowing unnaturally bright. Her crystalline coat bristled up, reflecting the flames on the walls, giving her a bit of a glow. “You’re going to pay!!” she screamed out, in a voice that was not completely her own, before charging at the mighty dragon. Corrupted Spike swiped at her, but she moved at a speed that gave the illusion of her vanishing into thin air. She landed on his arm, then quickly galloped up to his shoulder. She fired off a beam of magic that blasted his right eyeball, and made it pop almost instantly. He roared out in rage and pain, before grabbing Sparks and chucking her into the wall. Dash looked over at Pinkie and Applejack, “Pinks, go and see if you can help out Twilight and Sparks. Applejack, you’re with me. You, me, and Fluttershy are going to distract him while she takes care of them.” Applejack and Pinkie nodded in understanding. Pinkie started leaping from pillar to pillar to get down to Twilight and Sparks, while Applejack leapt on pillars to get closer to Corrupted Spike. “Hey there, Hell King! I’m next!! Why don’t you see if you can take me on?!” Dash challenged. “I’m ready to whoop your scaly ass!!” Corrupted Spike snarled and reached out to grab her. But, the loss of his eye had thrown off his depth perception. His ear frills perked up when he heard a whistle from behind, “Howdy there! Ya seem ta be in quite a predicament!” Applejack pointed out. “C’mon now, why don’t ya use that unholy magic of yers ta heal yer eye?!” He swiped for her too. Once again, his sight failed him. “ENOUGH!! THE ONLY WAY TO BREAK YOU PONIES, IS TO BREAK YOUR SPIRITS!!” He turned and looked down at where Twilight was. His eye opened a bit in shock when he saw that she was gone. “Whoo-hoo! Over here!!” He glanced up. Pinkie waved at him, before pointing at the mare that was on Fluttershy’s back, “Is this who you were looking for?” Fluttershy giggled and looked down at him, her red eyes gleaming with delight, “You seem very upset, Mr. Dragon.” Corrupted Spike shot her a devilish grin, smoke billowing from his nostrils as he did. “You seem to have forgotten somepony else.” He stated, small spurts of fire slipping between his teeth as he spoke. He started to turn his head towards his next available target; Sparks. “Her…” He inhaled a big gulp of air, before shooting off a massive wave of black blaze. Sparks struggled to her hooves. She looked up to see the fire coming at her, and knew that she wouldn’t be able to dodge it. The flames swarmed around her, ready to devour her in a never-ending blaze. Suddenly, there was a flash of brilliant white light with sapphire colored magic swirling through it, and the burning fire never came. When the light faded a bit, Sparks opened one of her eyes. Then, her other eye snapped open, and a huge smile made it's way on her face, while tears started to prick the corners of her eyes. She felt a lump in her throat as she tried to get a sentence out, “You...you're here..." The light faded more and more, until the source of it’s glow was visible. It was a beautiful, shining alabaster mare, that stood as tall as an Alicorn. She turned to look over at Sparks, her curled, violet mane bouncing a bit as she did. Her sparkling sapphire orbs gazed down at her, and she gave her a soft smile, “Hello there, darling…"