//------------------------------// // Chapter 9 // Story: Friendship is Scaleless // by Limescale //------------------------------// Dear Princess Celestia (do you mind if I keep calling you that? It just seems too weird to not still think of you as my superior), Today marks the end of my third week under the tutelage of Seath the Scaleless, and may I say, this has been some of the most insightful weeks in my life. Seath has not only revealed much to me about the mechanics of sorcery, but also the history of what went into shaping each spell. If I had to use only one word to describe what I’ve learned so far, it would have to be ‘paradoxical’. The mastery of the spells we’ve been practicing is nothing short of magnificent, however the circumstances that necessitated their creation were quite dire (I’ll explain more on that shortly). He’s shown me how to disguise myself like that of the changelings, not just as other ponies but other inanimate objects too (a spell he calls ‘Chameleon’), to alter the force of gravity so if I mess up during flying lessons I don’t need to worry about getting hurt from an unexpected tumble to the ground (‘Fall Control’ as that one is called), and then there’s the one we worked on yesterday. To put it simply it focuses on literally reversing the flow of time on an object while leaving everything else around it unaltered. Seath says this is a common thing in Lordran because the flow of time is distorted there, so he found a means to take advantage of that for the purpose of being able to instantly fix broken items by rewinding time back to the pre-broken state (apparently the spell is just called ‘Repair’, but I’m needling him to try and change it to something more cool sounding). I know this all sounds very exciting (and believe me it is!) but what gets me is what else he’s revealed about what life is like back in Lordran. Really, if you thought we’ve had some problems here in Equestria lately, that’s nothing compared to what he’s had to deal with! In addition to the Dark Sign curse he told us about, it seems most of the major provinces in Lordran have already fallen into ruin, demons spawned from a place called ‘Izalith’ have laid waste to many settlements, and rather than try to help their subjects, most of the other gods he was friends with packed up and left for greener pastures years ago. It sounds like an utter nightmare of a place, but yet it’s produced such beautiful works of magic I honestly don’t know what to think. I mean, I sympathize with him greatly for what he’s suffered, yet I don’t see how anywhere so horrific could be the birthplace of so much incredible knowledge. Seath believes the time of peace we’re enjoying here has colored my expectations of things, and honestly I wonder if he might be right. I know things weren’t always so rosy in Equestria, but I’ve never had to live through the wars and trials you and Luna have. If you’ve got a different viewpoint to offer, we’d love to hear it. Dear me, I’m really starting to ramble now. Sorry, but I’m still reeling from all the incredible things I’m learning. Apparently Seath’s as amazed as I am at how quickly I’m progressing, but honestly I’m noticing a lot of similarities between the techniques he uses, and the ones you taught me. The only difference is your lessons were based on using magic as all ponies normally use it, while his are based on drawing upon the soul and using my mind to shape it into whatever I see fit. To explain what I mean by that, it’s sort of how Starswirl the Bearded described his early spell techniques: instead of using his horn to draw upon Equestria’s ambient magical energy, he used the energy from his own body and directed it through a wand. Seath’s sorcery works along similar principles, using a tool called a ‘catalyst’ and making use of your soul’s power, as well as your mind to craft that power into what spell you want to cast. I aim to tell him about Starswirl soon and see what he thinks. Anyway, this letter has gone on long enough and Seath wants me to try a new technique today. It’s something he calls ‘Homing Soulmass’. If you want, I’d love to demonstrate it for you at Luna’s birthday celebration next week (can’t believe I almost forgot about that). Wish me luck and again, thank you so much for letting me become Seath’s student! Regards from your fellow princess and former pupil, Twilight Sparkle Forking another bite of cake into her mouth, Princess Celestia read the report again and stewed in her whirlpool of feelings. Before her, Luna was pacing the throne room, her eyes red and her demeanor soured from what her sister had revealed to her the previous night, and what had thus left her unable to sleep when morning finally came. Celestia felt sorry for having troubled her sibling so, but honestly she appreciated now having a second informed opinion to fall back on. It certainly wasn’t doing her any good binge eating like this while fretting over how things had progressively gotten both better and worse. “Tia, you’re sure what you’ve told me is accurate? You’re not perhaps confusing this with something you remember from those old pulpy horror anthologies we used to sneak out of mother’s library?” Celestia set down her fork and let the scroll fall to the floor. “I know only what has been passed onto me from the few remaining ancient records, Luna. I can be no more accurate than they were.” The solar diarch replied. Snorting in tiresome worry, Luna ground her hooves against the plush carpet. “But…but it sounds too fantastic to be true! Fantastic and horrifying!” The night princess declared. Celestia sighed and let her head flop against the back of her throne. “A lot of what went into shaping our kingdom as we know it sounds too fantastic to be true if you look at it from the perspective of one who isn’t used to the way things work around here…which ironically is the primary problem that I had when this information was first imparted to me.” Luna fought back a yawn and rubbed her eyes with a hoof. “Do either Cadence or Shining Armor know?” Celestia likewise slumped from her own fatigue, and her cake binging. “Not yet. After King Sombra’s defeat and the re-integration of the Crystal Empire into Equestria it seemed like they had things well in hoof. Granted they technically still do, so far as we know.” Luna glared at her sister, wondering if she was mocking her. “So if what you’ve told me is true…why in the name of our mother did you permit Seath to start teaching Twilight??” Celestia looked to what remained of her cake. She’d stopped feeling the cravings several slices ago but only now did the sickness from having stuffed herself start to creep up on her, or was that was her self-doubt gnawing at her stomach instead? The two tended to make her feel similarly nauseous. “From what Seath told us he knows even less than I do, meaning this is a prime opportunity for us to regain the knowledge and power lost millennia ago. Knowledge and power we may very well need soon.” Luna’s expression grew darker still. “Knowledge and power that we know has already turned two souls into a raving lunatic and a tyrant respectively…” “So I was told…from third hoof accounts I remind you.” Celestia replied as she rose and crossed the throne room to stare at one of the windows. “All we have are bits and pieces of the past, told and retold from source to source to go on. Indeed I wasn’t even sure if the ancient records were referring to Seath at all until he mentioned being an ‘undead’, and then demonstrated his control over souls.” Luna strode to stand by her sibling. “And now that you know, you intend to just let him do as he pleases with your prized student?” Celestia remained staring at the stained glass image. It was the one of Luna being welcomed back to the throne, after she was restored from her state of being Nightmare Moon. Such an image of hope it was, a shining confirmation that even the most lost souls could still be brought back from the brink of insanity. Celestia buried the message deep into her heart as she chose her next words. “Twilight is prospering exactly as I’d hoped, and from what her first report indicates she’s as happy to be studying under Seath as he is to be teaching her. I’d rather not upset the balance until we know more.” Luna cocked an eyebrow. “And how are we to know more when you said only mere scraps of documentation remain?” Celestia gave her sibling a tired look that told more than the night alicorn would’ve ever wanted to know. “You can’t mean…oh Faust!” Luna exclaimed. “Yes, trust you to always take the most insane course of action, Tia!” “Seath is an eyewitness and an accomplice to everything I’ve been told of, and whoever sent him here clearly did so with a purpose in mind. He can help us unravel what’s going on, and prepare us for what may be coming so long as we have his trust.” The white alicorn explained. Luna snorted again in frustration. This was so like Celestia, always trying to go for a means that would benefit every party, even if the other party was evil or harboring less than honest purposes. “Tia, how can you even know he’ll be truthful to you? Considering how dark and ominous this bodes, I see no reason why he’d wish to reveal his involvement if he thinks we don’t know about it already.” Celestia cringed as she raised her head, reminding herself to stay resolute. “Because I’m not going to be the one he’ll tell this to. You are.” Luna’s mouth hit the floor. Celestia gave quiet thanks for the silence this afforded as she pressed her point. “Whatever truth a pony may try to hide with their words will be revealed by their dreams. I believe that was the exact phrase you used years ago, dear sister? Seath has to sleep sometime, and when he does then you will be able to know for certain how alike you two are.” Luna’s mouth could not drop any further, but that didn’t stop it from trying. “Twilight and he may be kindred spirits, but you said yourself that you saw a lot of your own traits in him too. I’d like you to see if you can establish a rapport with him, get him to open up about his less pleasant deeds. If there’s anyone who can show sympathy for a devil, it’s you.” Luna stepped back, fighting to remember how her voice worked again. “So you agree, Seath is dangerous!” Celestia nodded sadly. “Anyone who wields that sort of power over life itself is. The question is, is he dangerous by intent, or because circumstances gave him no other choice?” Luna darted her head about as if thrashing against the opposing pull of contrasting emotions. “Tia….you know I would never turn down an order from you…nor would I doubt your logic in how to rule Equestria…but even with that said, this is a very dangerous path you’re treading down…I know, I’ve been there before!” Celestia’s will finally abandoned her and she slumped limply against the window. “And I frankly hate myself for making you tread down it again, but I need to know what we’re dealing with here. Is Seath a monster, or a victim of the most extreme tragedy?” She looked in despair at her sibling. “You also know that I leave the choice of doing it to you. I’ve never forced an order on a citizen of Equestria and I certainly don’t intend to do it to my own sister.” Luna scowled and turned from the other alicorn. This was crazy, there had to be another way…. There had to be… Luna’s mind raced, and what little resistance she had against her tiredness slowly began to crumble as she came up blank. Simply having Seath arrested and interrogated would accomplish nothing other than alienating him, and he’d already stated he had no desire to leave Equestria for the moment. If this was just the first sign of a new threat encroaching upon their world…well, she hated to admit it, but Celestia’s plan was not only the most reasonable option, it was the only option period. Not to mention that, yes, she knew what it was like to fall to evil temptations, and that those that did sometimes could be pulled back from the brink… “No, no I’ll do it, sister. Just….” She turned back to Celestia, no longer angry, just desperately pleading. “Please, whatever you’re hoping to accomplish here, tell me it’s not going to involve more loss. I don’t want to think that one of your most gifted students’ own life may be on the line here, any more than I want to contemplate what may happen if what you’ve said occurred before is now on the cusp of happening again.” Celestia let her mane hide her face, not wanting Luna to see how much wrenching doubt was etched on every line of her features. She didn’t want to lie to her own sister, but she also was basing her actions on what was mostly just guesswork. “I promise that I will do everything to prevent either from happening, so long as you agree to help me. I don’t want to have to face another crisis alone, without you by my side.” Though it felt like a major effort, Luna pulled her lips into a smile. “You know I’ll never leave you again, Tia. Whatever may come, we will face it together.” The two diarchs gently pressed their heads together, letting their worries be briefly subdued by the warmth of each other’s bodies. Sadly it was indeed all to brief, as no sooner were their minds finally at peace than they both opened their mouths to let out a massive yawn. “I think we both need sleep now. Give me a moment to tell the guards that court has had to be cancelled today due to extenuating circumstances and I’ll join you in our chambers.” Celestia said. Luna giggled softly. “On that I will happily obey your command, Tia.” *** Elsewhere, while some were finding themselves too worn out to indulge in the beauty of the day, others couldn’t wait to get outside and make full use of the fair weather. In Twilight’s back yard, Pinkie Pie was putting the finishing touches on a nice little party set up. Cupcakes were arranged in a colorful array along a picnic table, drinks sat sparkling and ready to quench the thirst of any parched pony in the vicinity, and the pink mare herself was blowing up a bunch of vibrantly hued balloons. As festive as it was, the set up oddly was not done to celebrate anything. Instead it was to be used as part of the day’s lesson in sorcery. “Now, fair Twilight, while thine control over thine spells hath improved somewhat t’is clear that we will need to improve thine aim. The catalyst may be the focus for which the spell can be channeled through, but it is the senses of the caster that must determine where to direct it.” Seath explained. Twilight nodded as Pinkie Pie tied a string to each of the balloons and stood ready with them all floating gently above where she had the bundle firmly looped around the branch of a tree. “The eye is the most favored tool for directing one’s actions, but it is only one of several thou can use. Through smell, sound, touch and even taste one may hone their aim to be true. This spell focuses on utilizing all five in harmony.” Seath declared. He picked up a cup cake and placed it on the ground, then slid a drink over to the end of the table. Adjusting his glasses he nodded to Pinkie Pie who released three of the balloons. Holding his catalyst with both hands, the white dragon slowly spun it in a circle, causing the tip to glow softly as he focused his power through it. Five orbs of what appeared to be blue fire formed from the catalyst, rising up to hover around Seath’s body until he thrust his staff in the general direction of the balloons and the food. Suddenly each fiery mass locked onto a different target and all were simultaneously obliterated in a brilliant blaze of azure. Twilight gasped at the power of such finely crafted magic, Seath lowered his catalyst and smiled in smug satisfaction that he still had it in him. Pinkie Pie pulled out her party canon and blasted the yard with a confetti ball. “Yipee! Bullseye!” The pink mare cried as everyone suddenly found themselves covered in colorful pieces of paper. Twilight sputtered and sighed in good humor at her friend just being her usual self. Seath rounded on the pink mare and growled with severe malice. “Must thou?” He demanded, much to Pinkie Pie’s shock. “Oh I just thought…it seemed an appropriate reaction.” She giggled with increasing nervous as the great white drake loomed over her. Brushing confetti off his body, Seath glowered at the tiny pony, before a sharp clearing of a throat reminded him he had a student to teach, and a temper to rein in. “To continue…t'is not that a sorcerer’s mind merely be sharp enough to command the power of the soul, but that it also commandeth the input from all of thine senses in addition. This spell serves to see where thou is most attentive, and where thou is least.” Seating himself down by the bonfire, Seath bid for Twilight to do the same. “To begin, take a moment to concentrate on what each sense tells thee, then try to focus it through thine catalyst.” The white drake commanded. Twilight took a deep breath and placed both her hooves on her staff. “Okay…well to start with the most obvious, I see the flames still burning brightly away, which in itself is impressive considering I haven’t added any wood or kindling to them for the last few weeks.” Seath nodded. “Good, now let that be honed by thine hand.” Twilight focused harder on the silent inferno before her, watching how the fire swirled with such hypnotic quality. She repeated the exercise to establish a link with her catalyst, then concentrated on holding only the image of the flames in her head. Presently the staff glowed and a wobbly ball of energy materialized above it. “And now, envision thineself letting the thought loose, as one would an arrow from a bow.” Though archery had never been a strong suit of hers, Twilight at least knew of how the physics behind using a bow and arrow worked. She applied it to imagine launching her thought like a projectile, and the energy ball wonkily rolled towards the fire, dissipating as it hit the flames. “Okay…how was that?” She exhaled. Seath hmmed. “A fair attempt. Again thine skill may be unrefined, but thine raw talent is…staggering.” The dragon mused. Honestly, even if Twilight was going to need a lot of practice, the fact that she was managing to form the spells he’d shown her at all at this point was still quite an achievement. Yes her attempt at repairing the vase he’d broken previously had resulted in it looking more like a very poor work of surrealist art rather than a room furnishing, and when she tried turning herself into a chest she ended up looking more like the shoddy efforts of a first year carpenter (and had then promptly destroyed the illusion by trying to move), but still, most sorcerers at her level had difficulty just trying to create a sphere of light. Indeed the only reason Seath had bothered with the higher tier spells was because Twilight was adamant she could handle them, and so far she’d yet to prove her statement false. Truly, for one so small and so inexperienced her prodigy status could not be denied! Again Seath felt an odd tingle in his Lord Soul. That sense of lightness that he hadn’t known for millennia. It wasn’t pride, it wasn’t smugness, it was just…sort of relief that for once things were going well. Better than he expected at least. “Now, shut thine eyes, and focus on what the world tells thou.” Twilight did as told, straining her ears and flicking her tail about. “Okay…I can feel the wind on my body, and the heat of the fire.” Her eyes clamped tightly closed as she focused on this new sensation. It wasn’t easy as her mind had already returned to its usual speedy run through numerous different ponderings, but after a moment of intense concentration, she managed to produce another energy orb from her catalyst. “And having eaten one of Pinkie Pie’s cupcakes I can still taste the sugar on my tongue.” More concentrating, and a second orb wobbled crazily up to hover before the alicorn’s mouth. Seath was about to interject that was enough, but it seemed Twilight was going for the record. “And I hear…um…I hear….uhhh…well nothing much aside from my own voice.” Taking that as her cue, Pinkie Pie whipped out a noisemaker from her mane and blew loudly into it. Seath glared at her and raised a tentacle to smack the damn nuisance for her interference. “Wait…Pinkie, do that again.” Twilight asked. Looking from the dragon to her friend, the pink mare shrugged and blew her noisemaker a second time. “Yes, okay I can hear that, sooo…” Twilight grit her teeth, and slowly, oh so slowly, a third mass of blue mana was produced. It swerved and swayed terribly as it left the catalyst but as she kept her mind focused, Twilight managed to keep all three relatively stable. “Now I just…” Seath wisely moved himself back from his student and threw up a magical barrier as Twilight finally let go of her relative thoughts. One orb shot into the sky like a rocket, one sideswiped another cupcake on the table, and the third made a wild corkscrew for Pinkie Pie, incinerating her noisemaker in a small explosion. “Huh? Oh…Oh no!” Twilight’s eyes snapped open to behold her friend with her face now blackened by ash and staring at the melted stump of plastic hanging from her mouth. “Pinkie are you all right?” Spitting the noisemaker out, the pink mare felt herself over and started laughing uproariously. “Whooo! That was a hoot, Twi! Oh I gotta add that to the list of tricks to pull at Luna’s birthday party!” Pinkie bounced and giggled like a maniac. Twilight exhaled in relief that her friend was okay, while Seath quietly slapped a hand over his face. “And thou accuseth me of recklessness.” The white dragon grumbled as he dropped his barrier. “Wha? Hey, I didn’t know that was going to happen!” Twilight retorted much to her teacher’s annoyance. “Dids’t the spell’s title not tell of its purpose? Whatever thou chooses as the focus is what the spell targets when cast!” He said. Twilight raised a hoof, then put it down again as she realized the truth in this statement. Sighing she acknowledged her enthusiasm had yet again caused her to get ahead of herself, and maybe prove she was just a bit of a hypocrite in the process. “Well still…did I at least cast it properly?” She asked. “Yay, thou did. I would, however, advise thou not strive for too much too soon. Harmony between forces is not achieved in a day.” Seath said, carefully choosing his words for maximum effectiveness. Almost instantly Twilight’s annoyance vanished to be replaced with a content realization of her teacher’s point. “Okay, I get it now. Can I practice a bit more?” Seath nodded and reached over to pluck two of the balloons from their brethren. “A nimble foe may be able to evade an arrow of the soul, but with their image firmly rooted in thine mind even the swiftest of enemies will not be able to escape thine spells.” He released them into the air and they duly began to float away. “Strive not to follow their path with thine eyes, guide thine soul to do so in their stead.” Twilight picked the catalyst up with her teeth and took another deep breath. “Right…balloons….pink and yellow…pink and yellow…” She bit down on the golden staff as her targets slowly rose increasingly out of range. Thinking as hard as she could, the mare managed one orb…then a second. With sweat forming on her brow, the alicorn quickly imagined letting her thoughts be released and…. POP! BOOM! The catalyst fell from Twilight’s mouth as she beheld the remains of the yellow balloon now fluttering back down to earth. The pink one ascended safely into the clouds, leaving behind a smoking black scorch mark where the soulmass meant for it had collided with the side of the castle instead. “Mmmm, t’is always a problem should one’s aim be obscured by something…but a master of this spell can find ways around that.” Seath mused. Twilight looked disappointed at having missed a target, but Pinkie Pie still deemed it worthy of another confetti cannonball. Seath, to his credit, kept his reaction to only an expression of utter loathing. “Truly, dost thou have nothing better to do with thine time??” He snarled while brushing himself off again. Apparently not realizing the question was meant rhetorically, Pinkie pulled a pocket watch from her mane and checked the time. “Well I did promise to take the Cake Babies out later on, but for this exact moment…no.” Seath scowled in exasperation, though his loathing did break momentarily when he noticed the pink mare effortlessly store the watch and her canon back in her mane. “Besides this is so awesome! I’ve only heard Twilight’s own stories of what it was like for her to learn magic. Now I get to see it for real! And also make up for not being able to throw you a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party!” The pink mare continued. Seath removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose. “We are barely blessed with hours enough to complete our daily labor. How canst thou bear to squander thine time with such pointless trivialities?” He muttered. Pinkie got an odd look on her face, and her mane wilted slightly as if it were being relieved of air. Noticing these signs, Twilight facehooved and ran over to prevent yet another argument from erupting. “Because it’s what she’s good at, and frankly you’re a perfect test case of someone who needs more laughter in their life.” She stated. Seath glared as he put his glasses back on. “I shalt not stand for these repeated interruptions in thine lesson!” He demanded, much to Twilight’s annoyance. “Nor will I. Doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy ourselves. Learning is supposed to be fun, not a chore. Besides, I’d think someone who’s had to deal with the amount of horrible things you’ve experienced would welcome a little merriment.” Twilight argued. Seath snapped his mouth shut as his eyes grew wide. He may have been able to use his words to invigorate the alicorn’s spirit, but he hadn’t expected her to turn around and pull the same trick on him! “So come on, try to enjoy the nice weather while we work on this new spell. Have a cupcake.” Twilight levitated one of the baked treats into Seath’s hand. He looked down at it blankly. She doth find joy in expanding her mind. Pray, canst thou imagine such a time when the same was true for thee? Seath looked up at the sun burning brightly overhead. He thought about one of the covenants back in Lordran, the Warriors of Sunlight as it was called, which had been supposedly founded by Lord Gwyn’s firstborn. While the truth of such origins still remained up for debate it attracted folk from all corners of the land who wished to pledge themselves to the Lord of Sunlight. Fools that they were, but they praised the sun every day it came out, wasted their time trying to master the same miracles as their patron god, and never once contemplated the fact that their entire cause had no basis more than sheer blind faith. Gwyn’s first born hadn’t been seen in centuries, the great lord himself was now nothing more than kindling for the flames, and yet still the covenant warriors took the time to appreciate what they believed to be his work. And yet on faith alone they gain contentment in their lives, more so than thou hast with all thine documented facts… “Seath? I’m ready for another try.” Twilight called back. The white dragon again contemplated the cupcake in his hand. Finally deciding he had no valid excuse to not at least try his student’s advice he tossed the treat into his mouth and chewed thoughtfully. It was a bit decadent for his preferences, but still, he couldn’t deny it tasted pretty good. At the very least he found himself swiping another one from the table as he rejoined the alicorn by the fire. “Very well. For this attempt, we should test how apt thine nose is, as it holds the one sense still unexamined.” He replied. In a flash Pinkie Pie jumped up next to them brandishing a balloon and a perfume bottle. “Easy peasy! I picked this up at Barnyard Bargains yesterday. It smells just like razzleberries!” She sprayed the balloon then tossed the bottle back into her mane with the rest of her trinkets. Seath found his curiosity growing at how she was able to do that. “Huh. Well, works for me.” Twilight leaned over and took a big sniff of the scented party favor, then picked up her catalyst. “Okay, let it go.” Pinkie released the balloon into the air and Twilight concentrated on the pungent scent still tickling her nostrils. With some difficulty she managed to produce a new mass of energy and prepared to launch. Unfortunately, at that moment she sneezed from having spent so long concentrating on the tickling and the shot went wild, zipping into the branches of a nearby tree and depriving two unfortunate birds of their home. They squawked in fear and promptly took the skies as the burning remains of their nest drifted to the ground. “Dammit! Alright let me try again!” Twilight wiped her nose and struggled to find the scent. By this point, however, other smells had already moved in to dilute the essence of the perfume so she finally had to resort to using her eyes to find the balloon and pop it with a second orb. “Dang, and I used to think I had a pretty good sense of smell.” She lamented after putting her catalyst down. “Thine nose is fine, it simply has never had to stand in for thine eyes before.” Seath explained. “A fitting paradox it is, that when blinded one may find many means to envision the world, and yet when blessed with the vision of the gods, one is blind in ways that they never knew possible.” Twilight paused for thought, and her ears rose in intrigue at Seath’s rather poetic phrasing. “Hence why you mentioned harmony before. Just like how my friends and I learned to harness the power of the Elements, I need to learn to how to draw on the power of all five of my senses together in order to master this spell!” She declared. “Precisely….” Seath hmmed in quiet pride. “Thine intellect is very fine indeed.” Twilight blushed then sighed as she looked to the smoldering nest on the ground. “Yeah well, saying it is one thing. Doing it is another.” She cracked her neck and picked up her catalyst again. “Gimme another balloon, Pinkie. I’ll get this right, one way or another.” For the next two hours Twilight diligently practiced her sorcery. It was quickly apparent she needed a lot of work in certain areas such as managing more than two orbs without getting distracted by the conflicting input of information, but the alicorn pursued with cast iron determination. Each time she missed she turned to discuss with Seath what she did wrong and then quickly worked to correct her mistakes. By the end the white drake was finding himself nodding with surprising awe as his student finally managed to get four orbs launched at the same time, with three of them hitting their targets. “Alright, once more Pinkie. Let’s go for the record and do five.” A wildly grinning Twilight ordered. “Coming right up!” The pink whipped out five fresh balloons from behind her back and filled them with helium. She let them float gently up into the sky and Twilight chomped hard on her catalyst, ready to really wow her friends. It was nothing short of a true disappointment when the catalyst then sputtered and refused to charge up like before. “Huh?” Twilight bit down harder and tried again. The crystals decorating her staff merely fizzled. “What’s happening? I didn’t break it did I?” She exclaimed, letting it fall to the ground. “Nay, Twilight. Thou hast expended much energy with thine practice. The catalyst is merely sensing that thine mind is growing weary and now is thus the time for pause.” Seath replied. Twilight looked perturbed. “Pause? But I’m not even tired! Well…okay my jaw hurts from holding the catalyst with my teeth, and my neck is a bit achy from looking up for so long….also I haven’t had anything to drink and…” Twilight sighed as she steadily became aware of how many aspects of her were starting to falter from the exertion. “Maybe I do need a break….huh, the catalyst can actually sense that?” Seath nodded. “It is an extension of thine self. The mind may deny fatigue, but the soul knows when rest is needed.” Twilight stared amazed at her staff. “Incredible. So, how long till it’ll let me use it again?” “That is a matter decided by thine experience and fortitude, as well as the required power of the spell thou seeketh to use.” Seath gestured to the bonfire. “In my research did I record that close proximity to Gwyn’s flames seems to expedite the process though.” Nodding, Twilight set herself down by the fire and summoned a scroll, quill and inkpot. “Alright, well while we’re waiting, mind if I ask you a few more questions?” Seath snorted in amusement. “A fool t’would I be to deny thine enthusiasm. What woulds’t thou know?” Dipping her quill, Twilight began scribbling. “Well you mentioned before that in addition to spells there are also numerous artifacts in Lordan that can alternately enhance one’s attributes or defend against certain types of spells. You said rings, in particular, were a favored form for these.” Seath nodded. “As crystals may act as a surrogate housing for souls, jewelry was found to be a fitting vessel with which to harbor specifically attuned energy. Rings were chosen as the common medium due to their size and least likelihood to be lost in the midst of battle.” Twilight’s scribbling increased in frenzy. “Well, there do exist similar skills in Equestria’s version of magic, and seeing as rings are a likewise favored item among ponies, do you think we could try making a few?” Seath stroked his chin uneasily, debating on how much his student could handle of the truths surrounding Lordran’s artifacts of interest. “Such is not impossible, but be thou warned the process by which rings are created is seldom pleasant.” He replied. Twilight looked up. “How do you mean?” Seath gestured again to the fire. “All progress demands sacrifice, young equine, and the art of the ring is no different. The means by which Sir Arstor of Carim created the fabled bite rings, designed to guard against all forms of physical, magical and spiritual injuries required excessive perversion of my own sorcery, joined with many forms of torture, dark rituals and the deaths of many who were not worthy to contribute to the final work.” Seath said with a mixture of malice and pride. Even though his tail had now begun to grow again he had yet to forget how he'd lost it due to his own cursed breath be rendered useless by one of those rings, even if he did secretly admire that such a wonder had been made possible. Twilight just looked sick at his lack of empathy. “And folks just accept this? No protests or anything?” She asked. “Woulds’t thou protest a means to see that no strike of a sword lead to thine demise? Woulds’t never having to fear the lingering effects of a curse fill thee with contempt? Art thou more inclined to suffer the damage from a spell rather than merely laugh it off?” Seath asked. Twilight noticeably did not immediately respond with a resounding no. Indeed she seemed to take all of this on board and contemplate it carefully before answering. “Those are good things, yes, but can they really justify the horrible means needed to make them possible?” She finally asked. Seath held his head aloft and splayed his four wings out with grandeur. “That is the question a sorcerer must answer on their own. Be mindful that thou resides in lands far removed from Lordran, and thus thou knows not of the terrors that threaten to make each day one’s last.” Twilight nodded as she stared into the flames. They seemed so entrancing, so hypnotic, and all it had cost was the life of one old and sickly crow. Was that really so bad? Twilight shuddered that she was actually entertaining such chilling ideas…yet at the same time, she thought back to the previous day when she’d argued about how change could tear down one thing and make something even better in its place. Having to sacrifice for future benefit seemed like a logical extension of that. “Yes, so you’ve told me at great length. Equestria’s lucky to be such a peaceful and happy place and my view on things is probably biased as a result, it’s just…” The alicorn rubbed a hoof across her head, her mind tossing and turning with conflicting viewpoints. “Do all magical rings require such dire measures to be made?” “Nay. Simpler works such as the wood grain rings require only an offering of the trees, the earth and a similar enchantment as to what makes these possible.” Seath tapped his glasses. Twilight looked very relieved and jotted down another note. “Alright, well let’s see if we can replicate one then. If our raw materials worked for making your catalysts they surely can work for making rings too.” She exclaimed. Seath pulled out a scroll of his own and added it to his list of future lessons, again having to marvel at Twilight’s open mindedness. “And in the meantime, while you’re both discussing your RPG elements, who wants another cupcake?” Pinkie popped up again brandishing a fresh plate of baked goods. Finding his tongue was starting to tingle for another taste of the sweet treats, Seath accepted the offer. “RPG?” The white dragon queried. “Yeah, you know, role-playing games! Adventure style epics with dungeons and dragons, and building up your character stats with XP and special items like those rings!” The cupcake promptly halted midway to Seath’s mouth as he turned to look at the pink with a strange new expression. Interpreting it as confusion, Pinkie pressed on with more details. “They’re games you play with a board? And dice? You go around weird magical lands looking for quests to undertake, and monsters to fight, and when you win, it’s a great big fanfare with cries of ‘YOU DEFEATED!’ or ‘VICTORY ACHIEVED!’” Twilight smiled at her friend getting all excited about another one of her own unusual fancies. Seath, by contrast, now looked like he’d seen a ghost. “Anyway, I noticed what you were talking about was kind of similar to that. I’ll let you get on with your studies now.” Pinkie Pie set the tray down and turned to leave, only to find a furry white tentacle blocking her way. “No, fair equine, please. I bid thee, tell me more.” Seath demanded. Pinkie Pie looked back in surprise, and smiled that she’d sparked a new interest for the drake. “Well it’s like how if you took someplace fantastic and unusual, say like where you come from, and turned it into a fictional setting where you’re playing a character who has to brave danger to make themselves stronger and gain treasure and special abilities. Does that make any sense?” All previous thoughts of how annoying the pink pony could be instantly vanished from Seath’s mind. Instead, he now looked at her as one who had come across an old friend they had been separated from for so long that now only their common knowledge could help them remember each other. “Yea, though not how thou may expect. Prithee, cans’t thou tell me even more?” Pinkie Pie drew out her watch again and grimaced. “Well the Cakes will be expecting me to take Pound and Pumpkin off their hooves for a few hours, but you could come with me if you want?” Seath looked to Twilight who was now grinning. “So long as you’re not gone for too long then sure! It’s nice to see you’ve found some common ground together!” She said. Seath fluttered his wings with rampant curiosity. “T’would appear thine acquaintance hath lessons of her own to teach.” The drake said as he broke off another crystal from his midsection. Casting a transmutation spell on it with his breath, he turned it into the much valued cousin of the orange soapstone: the white soapstone. “When thine catalyst deems thou art ready to resume practice, place thine hoof on this and think of me. I shalt be returned to thine side instantly.” Seath said while drawing a summoning sign on the ground. Twilight looked at it with amused curiosity and nodded she’d do as ordered. Turning back to Pinkie, Seath bade her to lead the way as he followed behind, now extremely keen to hear what else her very strange mind held. *** Meanwhile, in another time, and another place, a familiar top hatted phantom was sighing in lament as his target dodged another of his arrows, then whipped around to run the maniacal, sack wearing phantom through with her blade. ‘Tsk, tsk. And to think Leeroy said outnumbering your opponent was unchivalrous.” The feral female dropped to her knees, then collapsed into a lifeless heap as the Chosen Undead ripped her chaos blade from her stomach. Slowly the phantom’s body vanished into nothingness, leaving only the giant butcher knife she’d been wielding lying on the ground. “Ahh just as well I suppose. You two probably wouldn’t have gotten on very well together if you’d been the one to summon her instead.” The top hat phantom notched a shot on his crossbow and took aim as the paladin phantom, the aforementioned Leeroy, bore down on the Chosen Undead with his immense club. The undead warrior quickly threw up her shield, but the drawbacks in its manufacture were already becoming apparent. It had never been designed to repel an assault of the magnitude it was now enduring, and as the blows continued to fall, it in turn buckled and fell apart. When finally the Chosen Undead was forced to discard it, the phantom with the crossbow paid it a sickly tribute by shooting her in the arm she’d been holding it with. “Come now, don’t you think this is a little foolish? I mean granted all of these folk had this coming to them, but still, do you deem this behavior fitting for the one charged with saving Lordran?” The mocking laughter that rang out was all the motivation the Chosen Undead needed to reach behind herself, grab the giant knife and swing it around to cleave Leeroy’s legs as he raised his weapon. The paladin phantom ceased his attack and fell on the wound, leaving Kirk, the thorn armored phantom, to take up the offense. From his perch, the extravagantly dressed phantom sighed and notched another arrow as the battle below him continued. In fairness he’d kind of expected this was going to happen, his employer would not have permitted him the ability to summon others if they did not think it necessary, but that made it no less exasperating that after so many hours of being dog-piled upon, the Chosen Undead was still holding her own. True her armor was broken and falling off, she’d lost her shield, had numerous arrows sticking out of her body, exhausted her estus reserves and her sword was all but dull from having shed so much blood, but none of that changed the fact that one of her opponents now lay defeated, and the other two weren’t doing much better. “Very well, as usual it falls to me to get the job done.” Another arrow skewered the Chosen Undead through her neck, having managed to find a gap between her helmet and the top of her cuirass. She choked out a scream as Kirk tried to add the damage with another slash from his sword. The top hatted phantom had a most impressive aim with that crossbow, but fortunately (or unfortunately depending on who was asked) being undead meant you weren’t as hampered by such injuries. Even with her windpipe pinched shut she managed to parry Kirk’s blade, roll out of the way of his riposte, and then land a hard kick to his shin. The spikes on his armor pierced clean through the undead’s boot but that didn’t impede her success in knocking Kirk off balance, sending him reeling back to the edge of the floor. She ripped the arrow out of her neck and took a painful gulp of air as the thorny knight teetered over the chasm, driving his sword into what remained of the flooring to brace himself and prevent a fatal tumble into the void. Hobbling on her injured foot, the Chosen Undead turned to Leeroy, seeing he’d managed to likewise wrench the giant knife out of his leg and stood unsteadily to attack again. The top hatted phantom sighed at how ridiculous this was getting as the two crippled warriors engaged each other, wobbling crazily on their injured limbs as they parried and countered. Having now gotten back on more stable footing, Kirk grabbed his sword and rushed in to rejoin the fight. Hoping this would be the final push needed to put the damn husk down for good, the phantom up top began unloading arrows as fast as he could notch them up. The Chosen Undead cried weakly as her body was riddled with bolts, and at last she fell as both Leeroy and Kirk raised their weapons for the killing blow. “Yes, yes alright chaps that’ll do. On second thought it might be better to not have her folding on us just yet. Might upset the one who sent me here. Mwah hah hah hah!” The two phantoms held their acts, pausing to make sure their foe wasn’t about to get up and resume the fight. This allowed them to quickly learn that there was a crucial difference between being down…and being out. Even from where he was perched high above the chamber floor, the top hatted phantom found himself being knocked off his feet as a wall of fire suddenly surged up from below. The heat threatened to cook him alive as he promptly scurried back up the ramp leading to the outside. As it collapsed he dared a look back down, and scowled as he beheld the Chosen Undead slowly struggling back to her feet with pools of lava now surrounding her. “What the? Now what have we here? Playing dead were we?” He demanded. In response the Chosen Undead reached for her pack and withdrew two small black sprites, causing her detractor to groan. “Oh come now! Hoarding humanity and not willing to share? Kirk’s got a lady depending on him who needs that! More than you do at least!” The top hatted phantom scolded. As if to spite the thorny knight, the Chosen Undead crushed the twin sprites in her hand, feeling herself be relieved of the excruciating agony from her injuries. She was in bad shape, that much was certain, but with her body having now gotten a fresh boost of energy she might be able to hold off death a little bit longer. Just enough to vent her fury on these wretched beings and maybe get some answers as to what had happened to the Izalith Lord Soul. Seeing that which he sought be consumed, Kirk charged at the undead husk in a rage. Unfortunately this proved to be his undoing as the Chosen Undead simply let herself fall and roll under his blind attack, then found herself next to a few gifts Leeroy had left behind after being incinerated by the fire. She grabbed his club, felt her rotted arm muscles tear as she struggled to lift it. Kirk by now had recovered from his attack and turned to punish her cruelly for her greed. He never expected to instead be met with a sudden mass of metal traveling at break neck speed. Swinging the club with all her might, the Chosen Undead hit her opponent square in the face. His helmet, and no doubt whatever remained inside it, crumpled like parchment as the knight was sent careening towards another spot where the floor had broken away. Having now been deprived of the mental faculties to save himself, Kirk fell over the edge and tumbled helplessly to what would hopefully be his final doom. “Blast it all! For a piece of fetid meat you are remarkably strong girl!” With rage and the humanity being about the only things still keeping her going, the Chosen Undead grabbed the shield Leeroy had also dropped and stood to face her final opponent. She felt better despite being beat to hell, but then victory tended to give one that momentary high. That or the new equipment she just picked up had some sort of healing enchantment enacted upon it. Whichever, she wasn’t going to complain, just beat this grinning joker till he was begging her to just send him back to whatever shithole he’d been spawned from. “Oh what now? You think this is my fault? How very, very petty of you. Very petty indeed!” The Chosen Undead tactfully slid the club into her pack. It was really too heavy for her to use at that moment, and besides, she had a far better idea for how to bring this maniac down to her level. “Oh…you damn fool!” The top hatted phantom muttered as he found another blaze of fire on a collision course with his body. He jumped to the floor of the chamber as the ramp leading into it was destroyed. The fire obliterated the wall surrounding the entrance and the ceiling caved in having now been relieved of its support. “Sealing me in here with you isn’t going to help. Even if you do defeat me, I have no clue where the Lord Soul has been taken.” The phantom taunted. His opponent leapt over the gap between their sections of the floor, her fist burning with the promise of more pain. “And if it’s vengeance you seek for our little pow-wow, well that too will be in vain. You’ll still be without what you need and the one who sent me will be here to deal with you soon enough.” The Chosen Undead paused. “Oh, left that part out did I? I do apologize! Our purpose here wasn’t to kill you, much as I would have wanted to. Just keep you busy and relieve you of some of that pent up energy so you wouldn’t struggle so much when the time came.” The elegant phantom shrugged. Any thoughts of questioning her detractor left the Chosen Undead’s mind as she prepared to roast him alive on the spot. But then, though her hand burned brightly with fire, she sensed the rest of the room turning dark. Looking up, the Chosen Undead didn’t even have time to scream as a familiar black portal formed and an even more familiar hand shot out of it. There was no question this time who its target was, and even with the boost from the humanity, the poor female husk stood no chance. “Ah a pity that time seems to be now. But what did you expect? This is what happens when you cross Marvelous Chester.” The phantom chuckled as his opponent was grabbed and slammed full force into the wall, then the floor, then the ceiling, then whatever other surface was in reach. Chester laughed and danced jauntily about the chamber as the Chosen Undead was subjected to a whole new sense of agony and suffering, slammed about like a rag doll and a punching bag combined. After finally decreeing she’d been broken up as much as possible without killing her, the hand yanked itself back into the portal, taking its latest catch with it. “Farewell my dear! I’ll bid good tidings to your friends in your absence. Well I would if you had any that is…huh?” The last thing the Chosen Undead saw before the portal enveloped her was the pile of rubble in front of the entrance being blasted open, followed by Chester being riddled with soul spears and collapsing in a lifeless heap as two sorcerers leaped into the chamber.