//------------------------------//
// Chapter Four 
// Story: Disease of the Soul 
// by Dilos1 
//------------------------------//

	Celestia was lost.

She had become trapped in the rapid and terrifying thoughts of her own mind as she she slowly shuffled into the large room, surrounded on all sides by mountains of the deceased. She tried to stop herself. Her mind was screaming for her to turn around and leave right now. But it seemed that no matter how much she struggled, Celestia was unable to look away from the display.

She glanced around at the bodies in wide eyed horror, and she covered her mouth with the back of her hand to stifle the foul odor of rotting flesh. It was so rancid and awful that Celestia felt the urge to vomit. She was able to keep her stomach contents where they belonged, but only barely. Her thoughts were too busy with visions of Sunset Shimmer's body hidden underneath one of the white tarps, her beautiful face marred by rot and decay.

No heaven, only hell.

Celestia could not stand it anymore. She needed to get out of here. 

Forcing herself to turn around, Celestia was finally able to look away from scene of death and ran as fast as she could out of the room, stumbling a little along the way as she hurried out the door. Once she was outside ran to the opposite side of the hallway, where she leaned against the wall as she gasped for breath that she no longer had, struggling for all she was worth to keep herself from falling into despair. But she was failing badly, as the thought of Sunset's corpse remained a fixture in her mind.

As Princess Celestia sank to the ground, she thought she could hear a voice calling her name. A few seconds later she became aware that the voice belonged to captain Stalwart when he placed a hand on her trembling shoulder. Stalwart spoke again, and it seemed that he was asking her something, but Celestia was not sure what the question was. Still, she managed to answer him in a shaky voice that was most certainly not typical of the Princess.

"I. . . I sent her here," she whispered in a haunted tone, as she put a hand to her forehead. Stalwart asked her another question, and this time Celestia was able to make out his words.

"Princess, what are you talking about?" he asked, looking slightly confused. Celestia looked up at him and straight into his eyes, and Stalwart felt compelled to take a step back from her. He saw that her brilliant magenta eyes, bright orbs that conveyed a sense of serenity and motherly grace, were now filled with absolute terror and despair. He barely noticed when Celestia spoke again.

"I made her come here. . . . I made her come here to die," she said quietly, not bothering to hide the emotion in her voice, and Stalwart's expression became more worried as he watched his Princess fall into an almost torpid state. Before he could do anything to address it however he became aware of the sound of shambled running coming from down the hall. Before long both Aegis Lash and Crimson Arrow came into sight, and the captain noticed the weary and sickened looks on their faces.

"Princess!" they both exclaimed when they saw her, and they rushed towards her, no doubt thinking something had befallen her. "Princess! What happened ?! Are you alright?!" Crimson asked urgently when they reached her, and the guard stooped down next to Celestia to hopefully address whatever was ailing her. Celestia offered no verbal reply, but instead pointed a shaky finger at the room she had just exited. Following where she was pointing, the three guards turned their heads to see what had frightened her so much. When they saw, their faces instantly paled and their eyes went wide at the mountains of bodies.

"What in Tartarus. . . ?" Aegis muttered, looking like he was about to be sick again as the smell began to leak out of the doors, suffocating them. Aegis and Crimson turned away, unable to bear the sight any longer. Feeling that he was going to pass out if he was exposed to the stench for much longer, Stalwart decided that he'd had enough, and the scene was obviously having an adverse effect on Celestia. Fighting through the smell of decay Stalwart got up and went to close the doors, and there was a sense of relief as they were slammed shut.

But the damage had already been done it seemed. 

Celestia had slid down to the floor with her face buried in her hands, breathing heavily as visions of Sunset Shimmer's lifeless body hidden by a white tarp among the other corpses filled her mind. She did not know how long she sat there on the brink of a complete mental breakdown, struggling to keep herself from crying.

"Princess?"

Celestia did not answer the captain immediately, though his concerned voice did manage to snap her out of her thoughts. Realizing how she was acting in front of her subjects, shivering and on the edge of collapse, Celestia took a few deep breaths to calm herself and regain some semblance of a sound mind and picked herself up off of the floor.

"Princess? Are you well?" Stalwart asked again. This time Celestia did answer, but only after making sure that she would not show anymore of her grief, hiding it behind a blank face.

"Yes captain. I will be fine." But even as she said those words Celestia felt that nopony present really believed her. She did not even believe her. Stalwart glanced at Aegis and Crimson, appearing as unconvinced by her attempt to placate them as she felt. But instead of pressing the issue, they seemed to decide against it as Stalwart replied.

"Alright then. . . . What are your orders now?"

Pushing the image of the macabre scene out of her head for the time being, Celestia pondered the question for a moment. Then, turning to Aegis and Crimson, she wondered why they seemed to be in such a rush earlier. "Did you two find anything?" She asked. The two glanced uncertainly at each other, appearing unsure in how to answer her, before they both shook their heads and Aegis said, "No, your majesty."

Celestia of course knew right away that they were not telling her the truth, that they were intentionally hiding something from her. In the last thousand years she had become quite the expert on reading faces, be they pony or otherwise. She wanted to press them for information, but chose not to. She felt that whatever they had seen was not something that they wanted to bring up.

"Very well then," she said softly. Sighing, she then said, "If that is the case, then it is obvious that this place is not going to help us, and we must move on to other areas." 

The three guards all nodded in agreement and offered a quick salute. Retracing their steps they soon found their way back to the entrance of the educational building. Celestia, eager to be gone from this place, pushed open the doors and stepped outside into the gaunt landscape. Almost immediately everpony wrapped their arms around themselves  when they noticed that it had grown considerably colder since they first entered the human world. Walking back to the statue they found Hammer Hoof sitting at its base, shivering quite a bit. She tilted her head up, and Celestia could very plainly see the annoyance on her features. 

"What took you all so damn long?" she demanded in a stuttering voice. "I've been freezing my tail off out here for over an hour!"

Stalwart glared at the guard, and was about to verbally reprimand her for speaking in such a manner in from the Princess. Celestia stopped him, cutting him off with a wave of her hand.

"It is alright captain." Turning to speak to Hammer she said, "I apologize Hammer Hoof. We were delayed by. . . certain events, and they kept us from coming back in a timely manner." Hammer didn't bother arguing with the Princess on what held them up, which was something that Celestia appreciated more than the guard could probably guess. She was not looking forward to recounting the details of what she went through.

"Now then," Celestia spoke up. "Do you have anything to report? Did anything happen while we were inside?"

Hammer nodded, although the action was almost unnoticeable considering how much she was shivering. "Yeah," she replied while rubbing her hands together for warmth. "A little while ago this blue girl came and walked by. I didn't make contact, but I could tell that she has definitely seen better days. She looked about ready to fall over." Hammer paused briefly to breathe warm air onto her shaking appendages before continuing."She kept saying the names of two other humans, Aria and Adagio."

The moment Hammer Hoof mentioned those names Celestia felt herself stiffen from surprise and shock.  Her eyes went wide, and to anypony looking at her it would have looked like she had just seen a ghost. Hammer noticed her expression and asked, "Princess? Is something wrong?"

Fixing the guard with a stern expression, Celestia looked straight in her eye. "Are you sure Hammer?" she questioned in a strange tone of voice that none of the former ponies could place. "Are you certain that those are the exact names that this girl used?"

Unsure what the Princess was suddenly so upset about, Hammer answered almost hesitantly, "Yeah. I'm sure." 

Then to her surprise Celestia's expression turned to one of anger and worry as she considered the implications of what Hammer had just told her. 

So those three were still alive after all this time. Celestia was not sure if this new information would mean anything later on, but it still gave her cause for concern. She doubted that they were behind whatever happened here, as Celestia knew from experience that this was not how they operated. Wherever those three were involved, there was almost always something lying around that at least hinted at their presence. Monuments, statues, banners. But there was nothing that Celestia could see that would imply that the Sirens were responsible for whatever calamity happened here. Cruel they may be, but they were at least smart enough not to kill off their food source. 

Hammer Hoof interrupted Celestia's thoughts on the matter when she then said, "And Princess? I think that there is something else you should know."

Celestia could not help but detect a hint of worry and concern in the guards voice when she said that, and she motioned for her to continue.

"You know those two guards that you told me to wait for? Gallant and Ironheart?"

Celestia nodded, already certain that she would not like what Hammer was going to say next.

"Well, the thing is. . . they never showed up."





No matter how much they searched or how loudly they called out, the missing guards were never found before the sky began to darken, casting the already dim landscape in a pitch black void that seemed to consume everything around them. It was as though immediately after Stalwart had sent them to scout the area the two had just simply vanished without a trace. This set everypony on edge, but none more so than captain Stalwart, who felt that he was responsible for their unexplained disappearance. Celestia and his fellow guards had tried to convince him otherwise, but the veteran guard was having none of it. No matter what they said they could not sway him.

He was also especially adamant when he argued that Celestia should stay inside the school building with both Hammer and Crimson watching over her, even going so far as to make it a "respectful" order, while he and Aegis continued in their search. He had even suggested that Celestia actually go back to Equestria until it was deemed safe for her to return, preferably with more soldiers. But Celestia herself was adamant about staying despite the danger. They did not truly know what had happened to the Gallant and Ironheart. For all they knew they had simply become lost, and it was only a matter of time until they were found again. She also felt that bringing more ponies would only be them at risk as well if there truly were dangers that did not yet know about.

Eventually Stalwart gave up in trying to persuade her to see his way of things, although he at least agreed with her in that bringing additional guards would only add to the confusion, as they simply did not have the time to wait for them to get used to their bodies and surroundings. 

And so, almost an hour after Hammer had delivered the news of the guards disappearance, Celestia stood inside the school, staring out at the dim and dust covered landscape as she waited for Stalwart and Aegis to return. The bleak world world outside the dirty glass doors was growing darker and colder as every second the sun, which was no more than a bright patch of clouds in the sky when they arrived, continued to descend, and Celestia began to feel as though it was taking all the hope she had that Gallant and Ironheart would be found with it. 

Not only that, but also the fact that they had yet to find anything that would help them find Sunset Shimmer made Celestia's heart feel like it was sinking into a pit. Right now she wanted nothing more than to dash outside and begin shouting at the top of her lungs for her former student. But she knew that doing so would be a fruitless endeavor, and would only result in her freezing to death; it was becoming far too cold for much of anything to out right now.

As she thought about this, Celestia was staring to become worried for Stalwart and Aegis. It was now over an hour since they left, and neither one of the former ponies had yet to return from their search. As she anxiously waited, staring out into the gloom, Celestia found herself feeling guilty for letting them come with her. If they had not volunteered then two guards would not have gone missing, and Stalwart and Aegis would not still be out there looking for them.

Celestia hugged herself for warmth, as the temperature in the foyer had dropped considerably in the last hour, and she could clearly see her breath with every puff of warm air. Hammer and Crimson had suggested that they move to another, hopefully warmer area of the school, but Celestia insisted that they wait just a little longer for the others come back first. And so they waited, with Celestia waiting at the entrance while the two guards were huddled together with the fallen tapestry wrapped around them to ward off the chill in the air.

Just then Celestia caught sight of something moving in the distance. She leaned her head forward and squinted to see what it was, and felt an almost immeasurable sense of relief when she saw that captain Stalwart and Aegis Lash were returning. Her relief was promptly cut short when she saw that they were alone.

Quickly she alerted Hammer and Crimson to what was going on and pulled the door open to allow the two entry. The second they were inside Celestia shoved the door closed, cutting off the stream of frigid air, and turned to address the two.

"What happened?" she asked, trying to limit how loud her voice sounded as it echoed around the foyer. "Did you find them?"

But to her confusion, neither one of the guards answered her. Aegis went to stand some distance away with his hands on his knees while Stalwart leaned against the far wall with one arm. Concerned, Celestia came beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder, aware that long ago he was doing the same with her. She then began to speak in a quiet tone.

"Captain? What did you find?"

For a long time Stalwart was silent, and the Princess wondered if he was ever going to answer her. She did not want to press him for information, but Celestia knew that she would have to if he continued this kind of behavior. Then slowly the captain looked up at her, and Celestia was momentarily caught off guard. There was a look in his eyes, haunted and fearful, that Celestia had never seen from the veteran guard in his entire career of service to her.

"Captain," she said quietly. She did not want to probe him, but she needed an answer of some kind. "What did you see?"

Stalwart hesitated, then took a deep breath before he finally spoke to her.

"We. . . we found one. . . . Ironheart."

Celestia dreaded what he was going to say next, but chose to forge ahead. "And. . . ? What happened to him?"

The captain swallowed audibly before continuing. "He. . . Ironheart was. . . . We found him dead, with his back leaned up against a tree." Stalwart turned to Celestia fully. "We don't know how or why, but something had. . . just gutted him. His armor was torn off at the straps, and he was just. . . hollowed out. There was nothing left inside of him."

Celestia felt her gorge begin to rise as the captain spoke, and she understood now what had caused him such stress. Off to the side she noticed that Aegis was trying very hard to keep his stomach contents where they belonged. He was doubled over with his hand over his mouth while Crimson stood next to him with her hand on his back. Hammer Hoof looked just as nauseous, though she was doing her level best not to show it.

"Princess," the captain said, bringing her attention back to him. "I don't know what happened in this place, but I would be a terrible liar if I said that I was not at least a little concerned for your safety. Now, you know that I will follow whatever order you give, but I feel that I must strongly advise that you reconsider the situation. I do not think that we are safe here."

Celestia was silent as she went over what the captain said, recognizing the wisdom in his words. They filled her with a healthy amount of fear and anxiety at what might be out there that could pose a threat to a royal guard. She tried to rationalize but found it difficult to do so as thoughts of Sunset Shimmer's possible fate plagued her thoughts.

"Captain," she said, pushing that thought out of her mind for the time being. "Could you tell what had killed him? Was there any clue in his injuries that could give an identity."

Stalwart shook his head. "No your Highness," he replied. "We could not even begin to guess what it was. I can think of more than a few critters back in Equestria that could do this to him, but that's just it. They're back in Equestria."

Celestia though for a moment. Then, straightening her posture she said, "Your opinion is noted captain, and I myself will argue that it is not without merit. But is my own opinion that Ironheart was attacked by native animals of this world. As much as I dislike saying this, I feel it must be noted that Ironheart was still inexperienced about this world and what condition it is in. Given this information, one might conclude that that it was indeed animals that killed him." 

Stalwart's face seemed to fall slightly at Celestia's statement, and his brow furrowed in obvious frustration. Celestia could not blame him either. She knew that his mission, first and foremost, was the continued safety of his Princess, and Celestia knew that she was doing nothing to make this task any easier for him to carry out. But Celestia was determined to forge ahead in her quest to find Sunset, no matter what stood in her way.

"Come," she then said, hoping to distract them all from the events of this evening. "Let us find somewhere to sleep until morning. It is much too cold out here.

Stalwart hesitated briefly. He gazed at her for a moment before he nodded once without saying anything. Satisfied, Celestia turned and made her way into the interior of the school, with her four remaining guards trailing behind her.