The Price of Power

by kingrulerword

Chapter 6

Twilight Sparkle had no time to react as a beam of golden energy flew past her head and into the creature standing in front of her. Or it should have hit the creature. It had disappeared before the beam impacted it.

"Come on, Celestia," Twilight turned around to see Princess Celestia and the creature standing behind her. It could teleport? "Is that how you greet a friend?"

I stood next to Celestia, grinning as she glared at me. Twilight and her friends were scattered around the room, paralyzed by my killing intent.

"You are no friend of mine," Celestia stated flatly.

"Oh come on. After all we've been through together," I teased. "Like it or not, we're homies for life."

"And do 'homies' unleash an unholy and terrifying aura on each other?"

"I knew it wouldn't affect you. It was just to discourage these little ponies from doing anything too... hasty."

"Release them. Now," Celestia commanded.

"I will," I snickered as I cut off the killing intent. "No need to get a knot in your horn."

The mane six all took a deep breath as they were freed from the feeling of death. Rainbow Dash and Applejack took up offensive positions and tensed for attack. Fluttershy sobbed gently while Rarity and Pinkie Pie comforted her. Twilight kept still, her gaze focused on me. I smiled at her and she recoiled as if struck. Twilight broke the silence.

"Princess," Twilight asked, "what is this thing?"

"This," Celestia replied without taking her eyes off of me,"is a human. It is known as Sasuke Uchiha and is extremely dangerous."

"Aww, don't talk about me like I'm not here. That's super rude," I said. "I'd be happy to answer your questions Twilight."

"I've got a question," Rainbow Dash said."How long do you think you'll last when I'm pounding your ugly mug?"

Rainbow Dash took flight and launched herself at me. I stood perfectly still and smiled. Before she could touch me, Rainbow was caught in a golden aura and placed on the ground.

"Stop it. You can't beat him," Celestia said. "Twilight Sparkle."

"Yes, Princess?" Twilight snapped to attention.

"Evacuate Ponyville," Celestia ordered, releasing Rainbow Dash. "You and your friends are to make sure every pony leaves safely."

"And what if I want helpless bystanders to be casualties of our epic battle?" I asked.

All of the ponies except for Celestia had a look of absolute horror on their face.

"Don't worry my little ponies," Celestia reassured her champions. "That's just a joke. If he were really going to do it, he would have attacked already , not stand here talking."

That got all the ponies moving. All but one ran out the door to complete their task.

"Why are you still here Pinkie Pie," Celestia asked.

Pinkie walked in front of me and stood on her hind legs so that she was closer to my eye level. "The deaths of hundreds of ponies is a joke to you?" she asked quietly.

I grinned," Yes, it is."

Pinkie ran out of the library and left me alone with Celestia. We stood in silence, eyeing each other. Celestia didn't take her eyes off of me, even for a moment. Every movement I made caused her to tense. Celestia spoke first.

"Why did you come here?" she asked.

"Are you sure that's the question you want to ask?" I replied.

"It's the first."

"Ok then. There were a few things I needed here. And maybe a pony or two."

"What?"

"You've got a great student. Twilight Sparkle has so much potential. Why are you holding her back?"

"I'm not holding Twilight back. She-"

"Will never realize her full potential if you don't show her what she's truly capable of."

"NO! I will never allow you to corrupt another pony ever again!"

"That's a little harsh. I mean, you and Luna turned out great wouldn't you say, miss unquestioned-ruler-of-Equestria."

"The things you taught us were horrible. Nopony should have that kind of power."

At that moment a green puff of smoke came in through the window and materialized into a letter in front of Celestia. She took one look at it and unleashed a blast of magic at me.

I teleported to her side and kicked her through the front door of the library. Celestia recovered quickly and took flight. Materializing spiked golden armor on her wings, she started dive-bombing me. I dodged her attacks as I ran through the streets and weaved hand seals. Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu. I unleashed a barrage of fireballs at her and hid shuriken in them. Celestia swooped around some of the fireballs but converged them all on her. The fireballs impacted, burning her fur and flesh. The hidden shuriken sunk into her causing her golden blood to spew out. Celestia landed in front of me breathing heavily.

"You ready to stop holding back now?" I asked.

Celestia pulled the shuriken out of her body with her magic. As soon as they were out, all of her wounds healed. In a flash of light, a perfectly restored Celestia stood in front of me.

"Ready?" I asked, drawing my sword.

"I really hate you sometimes," Celestia responded. Golden armor flashed onto her body. She summoned eight gold swords that circled her, points facing outward.

"It's been a while since I've seen the Sun's Rays," I said. "Tell me, when you fought Luna, how many times did you impale her?"

Celestia launched herself into a furious attack, flying at and swinging four of her swords at me. The other four she rained down on me from above. I dodged her attacks easily. My sharingan allowed me to see Celestia's very obvious movements. Every swipe of a sword was preceded by a head movement. I kept taunting her and leading her on a chase through Ponyville. Eventually I had Celestia positioned two houses.

"There's one more thing I wanted to tell you," I said as I turned to face Celestia.

"What?" she demanded.

"I booby-trapped Ponyville."

I grinned as I detonated explosive tags near where Celestia was hovering. The initial impact knocked her out of the sky and into a house. The secondary explosions blasted her into another house.

"That looked like it hurt," I laughed. "Don't tell me that was enough to-"

Celestia burst from the wreckage, her natural healing already pushing the shrapnel from the parts of her body uncovered by armor. And she was absolutely livid.

"SAAAAASUKEEEEE!!!"

Twilight Sparkle stood on a hill overlooking Ponyville with the rest of its citizens. The evacuation had been completed only minutes before she had heard the beginning of the fight. Twilight was not one to doubt the princess. Just the opposite, Twilight believed Princess Celestia to be invincible. But she couldn't help but be worried. This battle was taking a long time. Shouldn't the princess have been able to deal with this creature in seconds? Fluttershy was the first to notice Twilight's stress and moved to comfort her.

"Don't worry Twilight," Fluttershy said, "I'm sure the princess will stop the big bad monster."

"Yeah," added Applejack. "Don't you worry none, Twi. I'm sure Princess Celestia ain't gonna lose to that thing."

"And then we can have a Thanks-For-Saving-Us-From-That-Evil-Monster party," Pinkie Pie exclaimed.

Twilight gave her friends a small smile. "Thanks girls. I just wish-"

"I just wish we could see the princess kick that thing's flank," Rainbow Dash interrupted.

"Of course!" Twilight shouted. "Why didn't I think of that before!"

"Think of what, darling?" Rarity asked as she joined the group.

"Spike, do you have the emergency books?" Twilight asked. She was already in the zone and filtering out "unnecessary" noises.

"Yeah, I've got them right here," Spike said pulling a small wagon full of books.

"Good. I need The Watcher's Journal: A book of Spells," Twilight said.

"Right here," Spike handed the book to Twilight. She took the book in her magic and furiously flipped through the pages.

"What in tarnation are you looking for, Twi," Applejack asked.

"Aha! Found it!" Twilight began charging her horn.

Each of her friends took a step back. They were used to seeing Twilight like this and they knew things didn't always happen the way they were supposed to. Twilight laughed like a madmare and then released the spell. A black sphere surrounded the lavender unicorn. The other mares and Spike were all speechless.

"Twi," Applejack called out hesitantly, "Are you alright?"

Twilight poked her head out of the sphere. "I'm fine everypony. You've got to see this!"

The colorful assortment of mares and Spike all followed Twilight into the sphere.

"Are we... in Ponyville?" Spike looked all around himself. While from the outside, all one could see was a black sphere, inside it was like standing in the middle of Ponyville.

"Twilight, darling, what is all this?" Rarity asked.

"This," Twilight gestured around herself with a hoof, "is a an advanced scrying spell using ambient magic in the air as a medium instead of a crystall ball or pool of water."

"So what does that mean in plain pony, egghead," Rainbow Dash asked.

"It means, that we can view the events in Ponyville without actually being there," Twilight clarified.

"That's great and all," Applejack said, "but where's the princess."

Twilight gave a sheepish smile before lighting her horn. The imagery around them changed. They saw an enraged Celestia healing wounds and crawling out of a pile of rubble.

"Oh my," Fluttershy whispered.

"She'll be fine. Right?" Twilight muttered nervously. "I mean she's the princess, right?"

"I'm sure she'll be fine," Applejack reassured. "See? She's already healed up."

"SAAAAASUKEEEEE!!!"

Celestia had tripled the force of her assault. She kept four swords around me in close combat while she fired golden beams of magic from all directions. It was getting progressively more difficult to dodge her attacks. I needed to take the flight to her.

I led Celestia through Ponyville, detonating more explosive tags as she passed them. After every explosion her natural healing ability to heal restored her wounds. However, I noticed that it was taking her longer and longer to heal. I smiled to myself. Now I could fight for real.

I dashed at Celestia, my sword buzzing with electricity. Surprised by my attack, she momentarily dropped her guard. I seized the opportunity and slashed across her barrel. Celestia yelped out in pain, surprised that I could cut through her armor. She quickly called all eight of her swords to her side and fought back.

Twilight Sparkle and her friends watched as their monarch engaged the monster in battle. As they watched the fight progress, Twilight became more and more worried. Fighting at close quarters should have given Princess Celestia an advantage. After all, she had eight swords. However, the monster dodged and blocked every attack. Every swipe the princess made, every slash, and thrust was easily knocked aside. Then the creature did something that took Twilight (and Princess Celestia) completely by surprise. It jumped back , moved its strange claws in some sort of pattern, and unleashed a torrent of flames from its mouth.

"Is that thing some kind of dragon," Spike asked Twilight.

"I don't know, Spike," she replied. "I don't think so."

Twilight watched as the river of fire engulfed her mentor. After a full minute, the stream stopped. Princess Celestia stood still, taking heavy, labored breaths. She had defended herself at the last minute with a magical force field. But Twilight noticed something strange. There were scorch marks on the princess's armor. The monster talking distracted her from her thoughts.

"Why are you so hellbent on killing me anyway?" It asked the princess.

"I don't want to kill you," Princess Celestia said,"But you are dangerous, unstable, and unpredictable. I can't let you do as you please."

"What did I do that was so bad?"

"You massacred an innocent village, killed a royal family, set fire to a-"

"I've already served my sentence for that stuff. I mean what have I done since I got free?"

"First you left your black fire burning in my throne room. When you let it collapsed and those two guards were covered in it."

The creature smiled sheepishly, "Oops. My bad."

"Destruction of royal property-"

"Is this about your bed? You can totally just buy a new one."

Princess Celestia snorted in anger, "No I can't. It was a special order made over the course of four months with the magic of twenty unicorns and clouds from the Griffon Republic."

"Wait... The griffons are a republic now?"

"You're missing the point. And don't forget about Luna."

"I didn't do anything to Luna," the creature objected.

"Suuuure you didn't. Mr. I'll-Never-Be-Sexually-Attracted-To-Ponies," the princess said her anger rising.

The creature looked at the princess incredulously, "Is that what this is about? You need to get over it. That was like a thousand years ago and I told you it was an accident!"

"HOW DO YOU GET MARRIED BY ACCIDENT!!" Princess Celestia leapt at the creature and they resumed fighting.

"....I'm so confused," Pinkie Pie said rubbing her temples with her hooves.

"I am as well," Rarity agreed. "Twilight, do you have any idea what's going on?"

Twilight was in shock. Did Princess Celestia just imply that Princess Luna was married to that thing?

"Hey is it just me or does it look like the princess is...losing?" Rainbow Dash asked.

Twilight turned her attention back to the fight. Princess Celestia was having a tough time. She was barely blocked the monster's strikes and was completely on the defensive. Every time she moved backwards, another explosion would detonate.The princess was panting; using so much of her magic was straining her body. Her wounds were no longer healing, part of her armor had faded, and she only had three swords left.

"Come on, Celestia," the monster jeered while attacking with... was that lightning? What!?! "I know I taught you better than this!"

Twilight was stunned. Did that creature just say what she thought it did?

"Come on," the creature continued, "you're making us both look bad."

The fight led them to the center of Ponyville, in front of the town hall. Realizing that she was nearing her limit, Princess Celestia put all of her energy into one last attack. Abandoning her defense entirely, she thrust all of her swords into the creature and succeeded in catching it unaware. The monster stood, impaled by three golden swords and coughed up blood.

"Yeah! She got it!" Rainbow Dash half cheered and half gagged at the display.

"Oh dear," Fluttershy whimpered and turned away.

"That was..rather greusome," Rarity agreed.

"I knew the princess could win," Twilight said putting a hoof over Spike's eyes.

Princess Celestia held her head up triumphantly, and limped over to the creature. "You could have avoided this if you'd just listened," she whispered sadly.

"Oh poor *cough* silly pony. I'm just *cough* getting started," the creature grinned as its body turned into white snakes that slithered away.

"Wha-" Princess Celestia had no time to react as the creature hit her from above.

"Rasengan!" the monster yelled as it slammed a ball of spinning energy into the white alicorn.

"Princess!" Twilight screamed. But she could only watch as her beloved mentor's body was smashed into the ground.

"I expected more from you," the monster said. It turned and started walking away.

"Where *pant* do you *pant* think *wheeze* think you're going," the princess shakily got to her hooves.

"That's my mare," the creature smiled. "Now get up and fight!"

Princess Celestia took one step forward and collapsed in a heap on the ground. She lay there, barely clinging to consciousness.

"Disappointing," the creature said. "Oh well. Let's finish this."

The creature reached down and pulled a rope out of the ground. In an instant the princess was lifted off of the ground and tied up in ropes. There were pieces of paper wrapped all around the ropes. Each piece of paper had strange symbols on it.

"Check this out Celestia," the creature said excitedly. "I've been working on this for like ever. You ready?"

The creature stood straight up, rolled back its shoulders, pushed out its chest, and bellowed, "FINISH HER!"

"You're an asshole," Princess Celestia groaned.

"Aww, you're no fun," the creature said. It moved it's claws in the strange pattern again and smirked. "Fatality."

There was a massive explosion that Twilight and her friends could feel even from their distance. When the smoke cleared, the creature was nowhere to be seen. Laying in a crater, covered in her own golden blood was, Princess Celestia. Upon seeing the princess, Twilight used all of her magic to teleport to Ponyville.

"Princess?" Twilight nudged Princess Celestia hopefully. No response. Twilight called out to the princess again and again growing more anxious with each passing moment.

"Twilight?" It was barely more than a whisper but she had heard it. Princess Celestia was alive.

"I'm here, princess," Twilight whispered, tears forming in her eyes.

"Where is Sasuke?"

"It's gone, princess. You don't have to worry."

"And the town?"

"Can be rebuilt. Everypony is safe."

"Good."

Princess Celestia passed out, her injuries getting the better of her. Twilight held the princess in her hooves and didn't let go until medical staff showed up. Surrounded by her friends, Twilight let the stress inside of her out. She sobbed as Fluttershy held her.

"It'll be okay, Twilight," Fluttershy comforted the distressed mare. "Princess Celestia will make a full recovery."

"That thing is still out there," Twilight said between sobs.

"Don't worry. I'm sure it won't come back," Fluttershy reassured.

"Where do you think it went?" Rainbow Dash asked.

All of the mares looked at each other. None of them had a clue.

I watched my shadow clone teleport away and wandered through the museum. I looked at all of the paintings on the walls. the entire history of Equestria, all in picture form. I may have taken a few of the more expensive looking ones and all of the paintings that used my story as inspiration. I walked to the front of the museum.

"Showtime," I said as I pushed open the doors.

As soon as I stood on the stairs leading into the museum, I found myself trapped in a magenta bubble.

"Shining Armor, I'm glad you're feeling better. How's the family?"

Shining Armor stepped into my field of vision. For a monster that I quote 'can't stop' you sure were easy to catch," he sneered.

"One: you thought you caught me last time too. Two: I am exceptionally easy to trap. the hard part is making sure I don't escape. Three: let's talk. Man to horse-man-thing."

Shining frowned, "Don't talk to me like we're friends. And I'm not falling for your bluff."

I sat down and crossed my legs. "Come on buddy. I know you missed me."

"Stop talking, monster," Shining gritted his teeth. " Do you have any idea how much pain you caused me?"

"Not really," I shrugged. "But I'm just going to guess that the pain of failure hurt worse than the broken ribs."

Shining's eyes lit up with anger. "Do you have any idea what position you're in? I could crush you!"

"Are you sure? Sounds a little dark for you."

"It'll be easy. Like breaking a toothpick!"

"HAHAHAHAHAHA, show me."

Shining Armor glared at me before looking away in defeat.

"That's what I thought," I teased, "Little Shining armor follows orders. Capture the creature and wait for Luna. Am I wrong?"

Shining Armor looked at me with pure hatred. His teeth were clenched and a vein was pulsating on his forehead.

"So while we're waiting," I continued, "we should talk a bit. Clear the air."

"What would I possibly want to talk about with a monster like you," Shining spat.

"Oh I don't know," I grinned. "Maybe... Twilight... or Cadence."

Shining went pale, an impressive feat for an already white unicorn. "I swear if you say or do anything about or to them I'll-"

"Don't get your panties in a twist. I haven't even met Cadence. Yet. And I've got way too much stuff planned for Twilight to-"

All of a sudden the bubble started shrinking.

"Hey buddy," I said, "I'm getting kind of claustrophobic in here."

At this point Shining Armor's mane was starting to flame up. I may have pushed him too far.

"Captain Armor!" I heard Luna's unmistakable voice say. "Stand down."

Luna descended from the sky with Cadence right behind her.

"Two alicorns, huh? I must be super special," I said still trapped.

"What is this thing, Auntie?" Cadence asked fearfully.

"This," Luna replied, "Is a human. He is Sasuke Uchiha and he was once one of our closest friends."

"Two things," I said. "First, aren't we still friends? And second, anyone else getting the strangest sense of deja vu?"

Luna ignored me and continued talking to Cadence. "We brought you here so that you might find the love in his heart and help him to be good once more."

"I'm right here!" I yelled. "And you're talking about some kind of magical lobotomy!?!"

"What's a lobotomy?" the ponies asked in unison.

"Never mind. You want to mess around in my head? Fine. Just make sure to look out for loose screws," I gave them the most maniacal grin I could muster.

"Auntie Luna? I'm having seconds thoughts about this," Cadence said nervously.

"I'm with Cadence, Princess," Shining Armor said. "Who knows what she might find in this monster's heart. Is it even capable of love?"

"Hurtful," I said.

"Do not waver, young Cadence," Luna reassured them. "I can remember a time when he loved us and our sister as if we were his own family."

"You're both still technically my family," I muttered under my breath. No of the ponies seemed to pay it any attention.

Cadence walked up to the force field and looked me dead in the eyes. She lit up her horn and delved into my mind.

As Princess Cadence entered the human's mind she was unprepared for what she found. Cadence had been expecting to see twisted images, terrifying memories, and a wasteland of a diseased mind. Instead, she was greeted by a grassy field with a gentle breeze. In the middle of the field stood a lone tree. The human was laying under it holding something. Cadence walked over to the human.

"Hello Cadence," the human said. "Welcome to my mind."

The human was fiddling with a violin. Cadence was unsure of what to make of this situation. It was obvious that the human had some degree of control over its mind and could recognize her presence even through her spell. But her aunt was counting on her. She charged up her horn and attempted to probe deeper into the human's mind. Nothing happened. She was shocked.

"You won't able to do anything here," the human said as it put the violin in position. "My mind, my rules."

Cadence was worried. She was at the mercy of this creature now and completely powerless. She tried to break their connection but even that wasn't working. Her worries began to fade as the human began playing. But it was strange. Despite there only being one instrument in front of her, it sounded like an entire orchestra.

"Take a load off," the human said. "Sit down and enjoy the sunshine and the music. You won't be able to go any deeper."

Cadence sat down next to the human. "And why can't I go any further?"

"You're not strong enough," the human said.

"I'm an alicorn princess. I'm powerful enough."

"I didn't say power. I said strength. You could have all the power in the world and still be weak."

"Love is my special talent. Why can't I find yours? Do you have any?"

The human smiled. "Of course I do. You just won't find anything here on the surface. It's the equivalent of a poker face. And like I said before, you're not strong enough."

"And just how could I get strong enough?"

I watched from my pink prison cell as Cadence's body slumped to the ground. Poor little alicorn. She had made the mistake of looking directly in my sharingan before casting her spell. I had taken the opportunity to place her under my genjutsu. Shining Armor was hysterical.

"What did you do to her!" he screamed.

"I didn't do anything," I lied. "Maybe this wouldn't have happened if you were strong enough to protect her."

Shining Armor looked at me with so much rage I thought he might develop killing intent.

"Shining Armor, calm down. Take Cadence back to the castle and have her examined by the doctors," Luna commanded.

Shining Armor was about to take Cadence in his magic when my shadow clone teleported to my side.

"Mission accomplished, boss," the clone said before releasing the jutsu.

I felt some pretty intense pain as I gained the clone's memories. Celestia really did a number on him. I wouldn't last in a fight with Luna at full strength. I needed an escape plan.

"Well I think it's time I took my leave," I said as I weaved my hand seals.

"I won't let you escape," Luna warned me as she charged her magic. Luna could block my ability to teleport.

"Then I guess I'll need a distraction. Summoning Jutsu!"

I summoned ten bear sized timberwolves.

"Long time no see boys," I said as they nuzzled me. "I've got a present for you. You can go ahead and kill anything that moves!"

The timberwolves immediately started running through Canterlot, looking for ponies. Torn between his duty and his wife, Shining Armor, was frozen but decided to go after the timberwolves. Luna teleported her night guards and sent them to defend Canterlot. that just left me and her alone.

"Why?" was all she asked me as she donned her armor.

"Because I must," I drew my sword and leapt at her. She defended with her signature weapon, shadow chain. Luna could pull the chain out from any shadow and manipulate it as if it were an extension of her body. She was always a much better fighter than Celestia. Even after a thousand years on the moon her skills had not dulled. I was constantly on the defensive, barely dodging her strikes and attempts to ensnare me.

"We loved you," she said without missing a beat, or letting up her attack.

"I know."

"I can teach you to be strong," the human said.

Cadence was conflicted. Here was a monster that had terrorized Ponyville and Canterlot. He was a known killer and she couldn't find a shred of love in his heart. But at the same time Luna had told her that it was this creature, this human, that helped both of the royal sisters come into their own as rulers.

"I don't know," Cadence said hesitantly.

"It's ok," the human said. "You're not ready anyway. I was planning on meeting you at your wedding. You've got some time. Think about my offer."

"I will," Cadence said. "But for now, I just want to stay here."

The human smiled. This had been easier than he thought.

Luna and I had fought through the streets of Canterlot. I was leading her to a wide open area near the castle. I wondered about the lack of ponies on the street but I didn't have time to think about it. Finally we made it to the castle.

"It was foolish of you to challenge us in our seat of power, Sasuke," Luna said. "Please, surrender this battle, and let us talk about this."

"There's nothing to talk about," I said as I weaved my hand seals one more time. Summoning Jutsu

I summoned an Ursa Major into Canterlot. It destroyed buildings with one swipe of its mighty claws and began crawling through the city. Luna abandoned her fight with me and used all of her chains to try to contain the constellation beast. Taking advantage of the distraction, I teleported away.

I flashed into a train car to find a sleeping Starlight in our private car. I used the mark I placed on the back of her neck as an anchor point. I flopped down on the bed next to her and she didn't even stir. Pretending not to get hit while fighting Celestia had taken a lot of energy but it had been necessary to force her to use all of her magic. I was just lucky that the explosion of my chakra earlier in the week had displaced all of the ambient magic in Ponyville. Otherwise there was no way I'd have been able to beat Celestia at half strength. Now that I had my book everything could proceed on scheduele. I was excited as I let sleep take me.