The Land Before Them

by Fat1thatyoulove

Chapter 16

Chapter 16 – For the better of Equestria

The room outside of the throne room's door is nothing less than pure panic as Sergeant Stone Hooves shouts to the magical locked doors, "Princess Platinum!? Princess Pla-..." The stallion's voice is cut off as a pop of magic rings from behind him.

His eyes turn to a grey stallion with a small white beard as he springs towards him, "Mage Star Swirl, Princess Platinum has been taken!"

The stallion's eyes move from General Stomping who still lays on the ground with a slight groan as he turns his eyes to the closed door. Without hesitation his horn glows a bright gold as the door comes flying open again, as they do Sargent Stone Hooves moves next to the white mare as he speaks, "Are you ok your majesty?!"

Swirl looks around the empty room for a moment as General Stomping starts to stir to his hooves, but he listens to Platinum's voice as she speaks up calmly, "Yes, the spell must have relapsed and sent the doors to close again."

General Stomping groans a little as he rest against the door' threshold, "That would have explained the push back spell that struck me."

The stallion's voice doesn't stop as he holds his hoof towards the mare, "Sargent Stone Hooves, escort the Princess to a-..."

Platinum's voice comes back over the stallion's as she steps away from Stone Hooves, "No, I will not leave until the Crystal Heart has be secured."

To the words Swirl quickly gallops over towards the top of the open dark staircase, his voice is deep and brings a silence over the room as he stops to the first stair, "My Princess, you need to leave this castle..."

Platinum blinks to his stern voice and serious face as she watches Star Swirl quickly moving from her sight and down the stairs.

The white mare's trot finally comes back to her as she turns to the two stallion behind her, "We shall wait for Mage Star Swirl." Her tone is strong as she plants her hooves firmly to the ground.

- - -

Beneath the castle a slight rumble shakes the small stone steps from Swirl's hooves but the stallion keeps his balance as his quick and focused gallop makes quick work of the long winding staircase. Swirl's horn continues to glow brighter as each turn around the stairway brings him further and further from the throne room's entrance.

Swirl's descent of the stairs starts to come to its end as his horn brightens the room to it's liking, but as he nears the last few rounds of the staircase his eyes set to the closed wooden door. His hooves come to the ground as he pants hard, but the gaze stays to the door as his eye begin to drift to the dark green glowing crystal above it.

The glow of the crystal is not very bright but against the dark shine of the stone that layers the room around Swirl he can tell.

His voice comes back as he struggles to control his breathing from the exhausting stairs, "Y-you've created a new spell Sombra?" To the words he takes a deep sigh as he moves in front of the door, "Very well Sombra...Dark magic has created your spell..."

Swirl tightens his stance as his horn's gold glow starts to chime hard, but the chime changes to an almost bubbling sound as a dark green black glow comes over his horn. He struggles to hold the spell as he lowers his head, the rush of the magic burst to the wooden door as Swirl lets the spell free from his horn with a groan.

But as he catches his breath the door opens revealing the lighter stoned room, Swirl waste no time as he quickly gallops through the door's threshold. As he passes through it the door slams shut and a low chime comes over it as Swirl turns his head back to it.

The stare of the closed wooden door only last for a moment as he turns back to the new winding staircase in front of him, but his hooves don't move as he sparks his horn up in a bright gold. The teleportation spell ends quick as the tired out stallion slightly falls to his front legs.

"You should rest Sir.Swirl, this whole chamber was supposed to deter or weaken physically and mentally."

Sombra's echo comes to Swirl's ears hard as the deep and ominous sounding tone runs almost like a whisper, the lost gaze of the stallion is quickly lost as he brings his eyes up with his stance. Only the dark gray stallion is not the pony his eyes meet as he looks over a dark black figure with moonless night mane and tail wearing sleek black battler regiment king armour fitted to a red and white cape like cloak. But the part of Sombra's body that strikes Swirl off guard are his eyes, Sombra's once calm and wise looking eyes have changed to bright green and red glow with a small wisp of fluorescent purple coming from them.

Swirl's voice goes low as his guilt from last night crashes back down onto his mind, "Sombra..."

His voice is cut from his own ears as the dark stallion's echo chimes from his large reddish black horn, "Spare me your words Sir.Swirl...there is much work to be done." At the end of the chime Sombra turns back to face the Crystal Heart as it still sits unmoved from its pedestal.

But Swirl's voice doesn't stop as he moves his trot towards Sombra, "My friend please dark magic has-..." His voice is cut off as a dark green bubble of magic forms over Sombra's figure and knocking the smaller stallion back.

"Sir.Swirl I have spoken and now you will be silent!" The purple wisp from Sombra's eyes glows bright as he turns towards the stallion that pushes himself back to his hooves.

Swirl's heart pounds hard as he shakes his head, "My friend please, I can help-..."

"NO Sir.Swirl, I do not require your help this day...and I suggest you leave my sight before my remaining respect for you runs thin." Sombra's horn sparks up in a dark bubble green as he stares unfazed to the stallion.

Swirl's stance has come back to him but nothing in his mind tells him to turn away as he takes a step forward with a louder tone, "What do you intend to do my friend, the Heart will do the same to you."

Sombra shakes his head as his horn chimes out, "Then so be it, I will destroy this a cursed item and I shall save Apatite even if I am destroyed in the process."

To the words Swirl's eyes loosen as he almost pleads to the words, "King Sombra, destroying the Crystal Heart would ruin the empire...n-not just emotionally but physically, whatever magic the Heart possesses has altered this land and its inhabitants...D-destroying it could kill any pony who has been affected by the Heart!"

Sombra's face shows no change as he looks over Swirl, "So be it...A power such as this is nothing but trouble."

Swirl shakes his head as he cries out again, "MY friend, do not punish the many when I am to blame! Punish me!"

Theres a moment of silence as King Sombra stares to the emotionally panting stallion, "Do you believe me so petty? Do you truly believe I blame you when all you have done for me is aid me in my time of need?!" Sombra's tone raises as he strained his stance, "NO Sir.Swirl, I do not blame you nor do I blame you for seeking the comfort of a mare."

Swirl's ear flicks to the words as Sombra's expression turns to a smile, but Swirl's voice doesn't come up as Sombra's horn sparks loud, "Yes Sir.Swirl, I know of your abandonment yesterday, but I don not hold you at fault for your own deserved guilt."

"...My friend...if you know of her than you know I will not let you destroy the Heart." Swirl takes up an offensive stance with his horn sparking up in a bright gold.

Sombra holds his smile as he looks over the smaller stallion, the whisper of his chime comes to Swirl's ears as it chimes, "Tell me Sir.Swirl, if dark magic is generated from fear and hate...How can a stallion standing only a hoof away from his fear possibly lose?"

Swirl doesn't answer as he holds his stare to Sombra.

"So be it Sir.Swirl." At the end of Sombra's words a dark jagged bolt of magic is sent towards Swirl, but the bolt doesn't stick its target as a veil of gold comes in front of Swirl stopping the bolt.

The vail quickly falls as a bolt of magic is sent back towards Sombra, the bolt sticks the slightly confused stallion as he lets out a pained groan, but the groan turns to a wheezing laugh as his horn sparks up once more.

The dark clouds that formed above the crystal castle start to swirl fast as they descend into the area around the Crystal Heart. With the new clouds covering the area the room goes dark as the only light comes from Swirl's horn.

"Tell me Sir.Swirl, Unicorns do not use weather spells because of how hard and strenuous they are to the uses...how am I so easily do this?"

Sombra's echo is unaffected by the swirling of dark clouds as he disappears from Swirl's sight as he swings his eyes around the sightless area, "You can not make me fear you Sombra, I know you to wel-..AH!" Swirl's side is struck with a fast spell as he staggers to the slightly weak spell.

But his moment of recovering is quickly lost as he sees a dim green bolt coming closer towards him, Swirl's horn sparks up as a gold bolt of his own meets to Sombra's and forces it in a different direction, "Y-your powers are weak now Sombra, you can not-..."

Swirl's voice is lost as he barely misses another screaming shot of magic, "You should save your breath."

The quick succession of magic continues as a ever jagged bolt starts to come around Swirl from seemingly every direction.

"AH!!" Swirl's ability to block the magic is starting to fail as he quickly encases himself in a bubble of gold magic, but his horn flickers every time a screaming and ear pounding jolt of magic starts to pound around his small safe enclosure.

The pound of the magic sounds like heavy rain as it's steady stream hammers Star Swirl to his knees as he struggles to hold the spell to his horn, but as it flickers again a bolt strike against him, "AHH!" The burn of the magic causes his focus to shift as he drops the spell for a moment. But all thats needed is the moment, for as the spell drops the quick succession small bolts of magic begin to slam hard into the stallion's fur leaving pained burned marks that now begin to litter his body.

The barrage last only mere minutes as the dark clouds begin to clear in the middle where the Crystal Heart still sits, "You should have known better Star Swirl."

Swirl lays to the ground with hard breaths as he struggles to hold his eyes to the dark stallion that stands over him.

Sombra's expression shows no satisfaction to the downed stallion as he turns back towards the Crystal Heart, his horn holds a faint green glow but the echo comes to Swirl's ears perfectly as Sombra stares to the Heart. "I have been waiting since I came to this chamber for the will to do what I am about to do...But now I have nothing holding me back."

A smile crosses his face as he reaches his hoof towards the Heart, but as his dark hoof touches the stone a loud scream of chiming magic rolls from it as it glows a bright light blue.

Sombra takes his hoof from it as he shields his eyes from the light, but Star Swirl from his spot on the ground does not need to as he watches a bright line of magic shooting up through the clouds its parted.

The scene that comes to his mind is almost unreal as he watches two bright glowing figures descending from the what looks like the sky itself.

Swirl struggles to push himself up as he stares to a bright orangey-sun gold glowing pony like figure next to a dark blue star night colored pony like figure. But his gaze comes obsolete as a god like echo comes from the gold glowing figure as it hovers above the Crystal Heart's platform, "King Sombra, we are the keepers of Equestria and the overseers of the land, and your actions on this day have stirred our hoof on this day!"

Sombra squints to the two figure's glowing eyes as he remains speechless.

Swirl watches the two hoovering figure's glowing brighter as a faint chime of magic rolls through the area around him. But the low chime quickly becomes a boom as two streams of light run to Sombra's body.

A yell comes from the dark stallion but it's not of his own voice as the echo of his horn yells out in nothing but a broken spell.

Swirl closes his eyes to the light as he moves his hoof to cover his eyes, the cut world last long as he focuses only on the sound of his breathing. But as the world goes silent he hears a faint flapping of what sounds like pegasus wings as he begins to open his eyes.

The world the was clouded has now become bright with the light of the sun as he stares to a tall white mare with flowing almost rainbow like mane.

Swirl's voice doesn't come through as the mare's sweet face stares to his, his sight of the mare is cut for a moment though as the sound of a teleportation spell comes to his ears.

The spell ends quick as Star Swirl finds himself set to his hooves, but the weight of his pains comes back to him as he slopes a little to one side. The strange white mare's spell has brought Swirl back to the throne room as he looks around the the familiar faces of the ponies around him, only their eyes are not wide to his injury but to the two mare that stand before Swirl.

"Hello, Princess Platinum." The god like voice that Swirl heard earlier has seemingly disappeared as the taller white mare bows her head to the small crowned mare.

"Y-you know who I am?" Platinum holds a slight bit of confusion to the strange mare as she looks over the unicorn with large pegasus like wings folded to her back, a nod of the head comes from the tall mare as the voice stems from her, "Yes, I am Celestia and this is Luna."

The attention goes to the stern faced dark mare as Celestia's voice continues, bring the slightly awestruck pony's eyes back to the tall white mare, "...We have resided in this land that you have called Equestria for many years, and we have watched over every pony that has begun to settle in."

Celestia's sweet voice is strong as she maintains the eyes of every pony around her, "We have always sought not to interfere, but King Sombra's turn and intentions were not completely of his own." The tall white mare bows her head again with the dark mare following her lead as her voice continues on, "...Our stay in this land shall not be long, we seek the cause for this unrest and offer aid in anyway we can for the great good of Equestria while we search..."

Her bow ends as she turns a sharp eye to the smaller white mare, "...We intend to ensure no one pony presides of this land by force or means of deception that would harm the other three." Celestia's tone loses a bit of sweetness as she finishes, "...We have not come to aid any one side..."

Princess Platinum bows her head as she looks over the taller mare with a slightly shaky voice, "A-as the ruler of the Unicorns I happily welcome you to Equestria."

To the words the darker mare speaks up as her own low sweet voice comes to the room, "We would wish to meet the other two as to not cause distress to the land."

Swirl still leans to one side as he watches Platinum bowing her head again, the white mare's strange submissive attitude goes unnoticed from Star Swirl as he begins to move towards the door. But his movement is stopped as Platinum's voice comes directed to him, "Mage Star Swirl?"

To her voice one of the few guard ponies quickly moves to assess him, but he pushes from the stallion as he talks, "I am fine."

Celestia and Luna move to the side for a moment as Platinum moves a little closer, "What has become of the Crystal Heart?"

Swirl speaks up as he shifts his gaze between the two larger ponies and Princess Platinum, "T-The Crystal Heart is safe and needs to remain in the castle."

The words shift Platinum's posture back up to a regular stance as she turns to General Stomping, "We must return to the Unicorn capital we must-..."

Swirl moves from the conversation as he leaves the room not wanting to talk of a new rule or returning to the Unicorn capital...instead his mind only sets to one goal as he stammers towards the door of the castle trying his best to avoid any eye contact from the familiar crystal ponies he passes.

End of chapter 16

Comments

[Leux]

Cellies big entrance~~~