//------------------------------// // The Final Abduction // Story: Pegasus Feathers // by Vanilla Mocha //------------------------------// Scootaloo held onto Ryon tightly in her hooves, shaking from divine fear of the creature emerging from the dark fog in front of her. The fog rippled as the limbs of the beast slowly pierced the dark fog. The young ponies sat in awe as what was once Loviatar rose out of the black and purple mist. The creatures scaly body rose high above them, dwarfing them in size. What stood before them was no longer a pony, but a monstrous fire breathing dragon. Loviatar could feel new power run through her veins that she had only dreamed of. She looked to the ponies below her and could pratically smell the fear coming off them. It made her feel indomitable. They all stared in shock at the beast before them except for Sweetie Belle who could not see her; her eyes were filled with tears as she mourned for Irothrust. "Sweetie, how can you do that?" Diamond Tiara whispered. "W-what do you m-mean?" Sweetie Belle said through her tears. "You hardly even know her... why are you crying?" Diamond asked in a soft voice which seemed weird when compared to her usually rude tone. "You don't have to know somepony very long to be their friend. Sometimes it just takes moments to get to know somepony, even if they're mysterious..." Sweetie Belle lifted her head, and forced a small smile. "She didn't have any friends. So, I decided to be there for her. I wasn't replacing my friends, just adding one more." Diamond paused in thought. "I... never thought of that. My parents always told me to get rid of my old friends to make room for the better, new ones. And, sometimes, I should keep my old friends because they're still good for my image." "That's... weird." Loviatar glanced over at Sweetie Belle. "Yes, it is. I thought that we added Apple Bloom to our little... group." She eyed Diamond. "Now, hold up ah minute here!" Apple Bloom stood up and glared at the armoured monster. "Ah ain't yer friend. Ya thought that I was going to get tricked into this but yer wrong. See, I was blinded from what the truth. But now... I see it. Scootaloo thought we should go our separate ways, Sweetie thought we should stick together... and I thought that when they started arguing, that yall would be a better choice. Boy, was I wrong. Now ah' see what yer doin'. Ya wanted us here! I see why Irothrust was caped, I see why she never talked! I thought she was being horrible, another bully, gettin' me in trouble... But no, it was you!" Loviatar's jaw dropped slightly, giving them a view of the razor sharp teeth housed inside her jaw. For the first time she didn't smile, laugh, grin, snicker... she did not even attempt to outsmart the filly. "W-well, fine! But that is not going to stop me! You all are locked in here, there is no escaping! I have more power than Celestia ever thought I would attain! And now it is almost my time for revenge!" "You want revenge on a pony that you're jealous of?" Diamond asked skeptically. Loviatar lowered her her head so that she was only meters away from them. "I know how you feel," Diamond began. "I know how it feels to want to be somepony else." Silver Spoon looked over at Diamond. "And... it isn't worth it. My parents taught me to use others to lift myself up, but when I saw those that weren't as high class as me... I became jealous. I didn't always want to be the pony I am now... I'm feared, hated, and coldhearted... and I am sick of it! You don't want to be like me. My friend was right, but I did not listen. And now, there's no turning back." Diamond sat down, staring at the dirt beneath her. I wanted what you want too but it isn't like you think. It's painful." Loviatar raised an eyebrow. "Painful? How so?" "It hurts..." Diamond replied. "I don't see any scars on your pink fur." Loviatar's red dragon eyes glowed bright. "It's not physical." "You seem healthy enough." "It's emotional pain." "I do not understand?" "... please, do not do this. I thought I saw a pretty filly in you, I thought I saw a friend but instead you've turned into a monster. You've always been a monster!!" "Oh, but you're wrong. So very wrong! It is worth it, because I want them to fear me... I want them to obey me! Now, I shall destroy you, along with all of Equestria!" Loviatar closed her eyes, but the glow of her eyes could be seen through her heavy eye lids. Standing on her hind legs, the dragon stood tall and opened its mouth. With a mighty roar, Loviator sent dragonfire spewing from her jaws. Blurrs of red, orange and yellow fire flew out of her mouth and towards the ponies. "Ruuuuuuuuunnnn!" Silver Spoon yelled. The young ponies ran as fast as their small legs would carry them. "But what about Irothrust?!" Sweetie Belle, who was still lightly crying, asked as she ran. "Don't worry about her, she's dead!" Ryon shouted back weakly. With his wing over Scootaloo, they kept running. The fire continued to erupt from the dragon's mouth and began to cover the Sorcerer's Field in flames. Devouring the remains of trees, it turned the stumps into ash... If the tree wasn't already dead and recycled. Irothrust lay in the dirt, the fire running towards her with great speed. Sweetie Belle stopped in her tracks, and facing her friend, she exclaimed, "Noooooooo!" Out of pure terror of the pegasus being burned to ashes. The other ponies stopped as well, but to their surprise, something amazing happened. As the fire hit Irothrust, the pegasus filly stood up. Her mane began to wave in the air, and so did her tail. Her eyes opened as blinding white light shone out if them. Her wings unfurled to their full length and as her body was being elevated into the air, the black cape on her back turned to ash, and fell off of her. Her body turned to a bright golden color, and her hair was light orange with red stripes in it. She seemed to be absorbing the fire, taking it in. Ryon's eyes brightened. "She wasn't completely dead!" "But, what's going on?" Belle asked him. "She's getting her magic back, the magic Loviatar abducted from her. She has pheonix powers, remember? She has the ability to withstand fire." Ryon smiled widely as he watched his cousin. Loviatar closed her mouth; that was all the fire she had. She stared at the ressurected pony in shock. "Irothrust?! How is this possible?! H-how are you-" "Alive?" Irothrust spread her wings, and with a straight face, she said boldly: "Loviatar, listen- as a Sorcerer, you were supposed to be a role model for Equestria. Look at you now! It is done, my cousin. Now everypony knows who you truly are, and what your evil motives were. There is no turning back time. The gears fate have been set in motion. We must only live the present, to change the future. You can accept this and move on... Or, you can remain in your evil ways and be sentenced to Tartarus." Loviatar lowered her head in defiance. "I chose neither!" The ponies gasped. Was she trying to take on Irothrust? "You are rid of the cape I cursed you with. That proves you are stronger than me. I made my mistake, and you were right... We're all just ponies, and we are all just Sorcerers. I shouldn't have been greedy, jealous, rude or any of those things. I want you to punish me, by yourself. Not Princess Celestia's Tartarus punishment, but instead... Your own." "Very well." Irothrust flapped her wings lightly and magic fell from her pegasus feathers. Landing upon Loviatar, it covered her in white light, and when it faded the scaled wings had been torn away along with the reptilians tails and razor claws leaving a normal-sized gray winged filly with faded purple hair. "Welcome back, Loviatar." Irothrust smiled gently, extending her hoof. Loviatar grabbed her and stood up. "I'm not a Sorcerer... I'm myself, from a thousand years ago..." The fire pony nodded. "Now you get to grow up. Now you get to have a cutiemark and now you can be the pony you want to be." Loviatar blinked as tear began forming in the corners of here eyes. "W-why? Why did you do this for me? Me? I-I deserve to be beaten, to be-" "No, you don't. I believe in forgiveness." "After all those times I tormented you?" Irothrust nodded again and simply said. "Yes." "Th-thank you... So much!" Loviatar flung her hooves around Irothrust, hugging her cousin tightly. Irothrust smiled wider and hugged back. Ryon also joined in on hugging, and before long, everypony was in a group hug. Apple Bloom looked down. "What are those?" She asked, pointing at the ground. "I thought all the plants were destroyed by the fire." Loviatar blushed lightly, sighing. She could not believe her greed and jealousy had gotten that far. "It looks like a plant." Sweetie Belle stated the obvious. "I planted them a few days ago," Irothrust explained, "I wanted to bring good health into my home." "They look like... small apple trees? The magic must've sprouted their growth awfully fast..." Apple Bloom added. Irothrust nodded, smiling. "Sorry that I did not tell you why I took the seeds, Apple Bloom. I am a Sorcerer rule-follower; I cannot tell why I need things to ponies that do not know me well." "It's fine... I shouldn't have been so rude about it." Bloom added. Smiling, she asked, "Friends?" "Friends." Irothrust replied. "Friends." Scootaloo added. "Friends." Sweetie Belle chirped. "We're friends." Ryon smiled. "Friends...?" Silver Spoon asked. Apple Bloom nodded her head in response. "May I be your friend?" Diamond Tiara asked. The group stared at her. Sweetie Belle looked uneasy, and Scootaloo looked like she needed to say something, but whenever she opened her mouth, she just closed it again. Silver Spoon glanced at her, but then smiled softly. "Yes, Diamond. We're friends, real friends." Apple Bloom replied. Diamond smiled sheepishly and walked over the group. "Thank you." Her smile grew wider. Loviatar looked up at them with sadness in her eyes. "Well, are you going to be our friend?" Sweetie Belle asked her. "I... I ruined everything." "Sis, everypony makes mistakes. What you did is in the past." Ryon added. "We forgive you, Loviatar. Will you accept our friendship?" Diamond Tiara asked. The group of young ponies looked at the pink earth pony. She extended her hoof, and Loviatar's light grey hoof took hold of her. Diamond tugged her in, and the group was in another hug. Loviatar didn't even know what was happening until moments later. Her mind whirled. Her eyes watered. Countless thoughts floated through her mind as she began to rethink what just happened within the half hour they were in the field. I almost killed Ryon... I thought I murdered Irothrust... I tricked ponies into thinking I was their friend... Irothrust abducted her magic from me... I am back to a mortal pony... They forgave me... Now... Now I have friends... Irothrust tapped Loviatar's shoulder. "Here." she whispered, "You may no longer be a Sorcerer, but I thought you'd like a reminder of who you once were. I kept your magic here, inside me. To promise yourself you'll never do it again, keep this as a reminder." She held out her hoof, and on it was one of her feathers. "It has a little of my magic on it. Here, take it." Loviatar was speechless. "W-wow... Thank you... But, won't you lose magic?" "Nope. Not even when you abducted it from me. I kept the magic hidden underneath the cape you cursed me with- it was hiding in my wings; my pegasus feathers." The grey mare smiled. The ponies finished hugging, and proceeded out of the Sorcerer's Field to the Crusader's favorite valley, which sat by the Everfree Forest-- not too far from where they were now. They laid down in the grass, looking up at the sky. The sun shine down on them, covering them in its warmth. Ryon extended his hoof around Scootaloo's neck; they both blushed. "Loviatar, want to join our crusader club? Then maybe we can all get our cutiemarks." Sweetie Belle asked the pegasus. "Um, sure!" Loviatar smiled. For once in her life, she wasn't smiling because the other pony was not, she was smiling with the other pony. "I'm so happy that we're all friends this school year." Apple Bloom added. "Me too." Silver Spoon agreed. Everypony looked at each other with a smile. This was going to be an amazing year that they'd never forget. ~The End~