//------------------------------// // Chapter 15 // Story: MLP: Darkest Night // by kurusagi16 //------------------------------// Chapter 15 Queen Amalthea was glad to be out of that dismal dungeon, but it still pained her to see the sorry state her kingdom was in. The queen and the rest of the girls headed to where Discord, and a still unconscious Fluttershy were awaiting them. "Ah, Discord, and Fluttershy too." said Amalthea. "It's a shame we had to meet each other again under such circumstances." "Queen Amalthea," said Eve. "Fluttershy was attacked by one of the Tenebris' illusions and rendered unconscious. Could you please have a look at her and see if she's OK?" Amalthea gave an nod and trotted to Fluttershy, carefully eyeing the Pegasus before she turned to the Eve. "She's been through quite a bit, but she should be fine." she said. "Though, I don't think it wise to bring her along where we're going." "But what can we do? We can't just leave her here!" said Twilight. "One of you will have to stay behind and look after her." "I'll do it." said Sunset. "No, I will." said Starlight. "I will." said Discord. Everyone looked at him after he spoke. "You're sure Discord?" asked Twilight. "I'll make sure she's safe until you all return." "Thank you, Discord." said Eve gratefully. For the first time, Discord's mouth curved slightly at Eve. The barest of smiles. "I suggest you all get going." he said. "No telling what maniacal things the Tenebris are up to." "Indeed." said Amalthea. "We must leave immediately." "How?" asked Starlight. "Simple. I still have magic left in me. And now it's time to put it to use." A glow came off of Amalthea, in the form of glittering dust. It lifted her, Twilight, Eve, Sunset, and Starlight into the air. The girls tried to keep themselves upright as the glittering cloud of dust carried them in the direction of the Garden of Shadows. "Wait, we have to go back there?" asked Starlight. "But of course." answered Amalthea. "That is where they are most likely to be gathering after all. They wish to free their king, and even if they manage to break the seal, the king will still be too weak to cause any real damage. We must strike before the king has a chance to feed and regain his powers." "And how are we gonna do that?" asked Eve. "Just leave that to me." said Amalthea. "The rest of you can take care of the royal guards. The king's trusted and most powerful warriors." "Will do." said Twilight. And so, they were carried away to the Garden of shadows, to face their enemy. The Tenebris, in their smoke and cloud forms, gathered around the spot their king was sealed within. They'd worked long and hard in order to dig down to the stone tablet that served as a means of marking and sealing the site. It was here that they would begin the reign of Tenebris and the eternal nightmares that would consume every single dreamer. The four royal guards, still retaining their pony forms, formed their own circle that was closer to the seal. "This is it." said Nightshade. "At last we shall commence our grand plan." He turned to look at the rest of the Tenebris. "Now, give all the collected power to our great ruler, and bring forth his resurrection!!" "Halt right there!" Heads turned to the voice, as Amalthea and the girls descended from the sky and prepare themselves to fight the Tenebris. When Eve touched down on the ground, her eyes widened in shock at seeing Nightshade. "N-nightshade?!" she cried. "What are you doing here?" "You know him?" asked Twilight. "He traveled with me wile I was searching for you girls." "Hmph. Looks like there's no point in fooling you any longer." said Nightshade with a sinister smirk. "Allow me to properly introduce myself." Nightshade transformed into a dark, billowing cloud and hovered high above them. "I am Nightshade, leader of the royal Tenebris guard, and the one who shall defeat you for our great ruler." he said. "No. I-I don't believe it." said Eve in horrified whisper. She'd been tricked once again. "Be on your guard." said Amalthea. "Don't pay any mind to what they say." "Tenebris!" shouted Nightshade. "Give your power to our leader, do not hesitate no matter what!!" The Tenebris in the outer circle obeyed as the royal guard attacked the girls head on. All reverting to their true forms. Twilight, Sunset, and Starlight used their magic to ward off the Tenebris, trying to find some way of defeating them. But the incorporeal forms didn't seem to be affected much by their magic. In the very least, they were keeping them at bay. Meanwhile, Amalthea headed for the tablet, and used her magic to block the flow of power and energy the other Tenebris were releasing. Nightshade reverted back to his pony form and faced Eve. "A shame we must fight." said Nightshade, his tone saying that he was not at all sorry. "But you understand how it is, don't you?" "I can't believe I fell for your tricks again." said Eve bitterly. "You were right there and I didn't notice!" "Yes, in fact, it was much easier than I would've thought. But enough prattling aside. It's time to battle." Two swords were conjured in front of Nightshade and Eve, from Nightshade's magic. "Lady's first." he simpered. Eve gritted her teeth, angry at him for tricking her. She took the sword and the two lunged at one another. Unfortunately, unlike Nightshade, Eve had never used a sword before and thus was very inexperienced. As a result, She spent more time trying to dodge and defend herself than doing any actual attacking. Nightshade could easily kill her if he wanted to, but that would've ended the fun too quickly. So instead he continued to toy with her, and inflicted many cuts upon her body. Queen Amalthea watched as Eve struggled to fight, wishing she too could help in some way, but she couldn't risk letting the king of the Tenebris be freed. Nightshade took notice of this, seeing how badly the queen wanted to fight and defend her dear little Nightmare, and decided to use it to his advantage. With a skillful slice, Nightshade injured Eve's legs, making her collapse onto the ground. "Eve!" cried Twilight, about to rush in to help her. But the royal guards swarmed around her, Sunset, and Starlight, shocks of black lightning sparking from them, threatening to hit them if they tried to interfere with their leader. Nightshade poised his sword to deliver the deathblow. "Goodbye, Moonlight Eve." Eve shut her eyes tight as the sword came down and pierced through the soft flesh. Blood spattered. The girls gasped at the horrible and sad sight they saw. Back near the castle, Fluttershy started to wake up, she turned to her side and looked to see Discord hovering over her. "Discord...thank goodness you're alright." she said in a tired whisper. What happened next took Fluttershy by surprise. Discord pulled her into his embrace and hugged her tightly. "Fluttershy," he said. "I'm sorry. It's because of me that..." Fluttershy placed a hoof onto his chest and looked him in the eye as she smiled sweetly. That kept him good and quiet. "I understand, it wasn't your fault." she said. "You've been through enough, there's nothing else you need to say." "Then...then you forgive me?" "I already have." giggled Fluttershy. She noticed then that they were someplace different, and that the rest of the girls were nowhere to be seen. "Where are we? Where is everypony?" "We're near the castle. And to answer your second question, the queen took Twilight, Eve and the others with her to stop the Tenebris from freeing their king." "Oh my! We need to do something." said Fluttershy, trying to get up. But Discord gently laid her back down. "It's too soon." warned Discord. "You still need to rest." "But we need to do something." insisted Fluttershy. "Since when did you get to be so brave? Don't you know what'll happen if we go and try to help them? I won't let you endanger yourself, even if it is for your friends!" "Sigh! I know that there's a lot of really bad things that could happen. I'm scared of those Tenebris and what they might be doing to everyone. But, if there's a chance that I can somehow help them, then I'm willing to put aside my fear for now and try to do what I can to help.I can't bear the thought of them getting hurt, or worse!" "Discord was silent. Fluttershy was speaking to him with such boldness and seriousness, he could sense how strongly she cared about her friends and wanted to help them in their fight. He exhaled. "Alright, Fluttershy. Let's go." he said, standing up. "So long as you let me do all the fighting." "You mean it?" "You risked your life for me, so I suppose it's only fair that I do the same for them." 'Especially after how decent and tolerable Eve now seems to be.' Fluttershy smiled and stood herself up and said, "Then let's hurry." Discord picked Fluttershy up. "Now hold on tight." he said, and in a flash of light, the two of them teleported away to where everypony else was. Unaware of the tragic occurrence that had just transpired.