• Published 8th Apr 2012
  • 6,722 Views, 297 Comments

Horns, Hooves, and Fur - Deyeaz



A teenager falls into a river enchanted by Lyra and ends up in Equestria... as a satyr.

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XXIX - The Price That Victory Comes With

Shadow: Alright, last chapter before the epilogue, everybody. Me and Craimer would personally like to thank each and every one of you for getting this story as far as it has gotten. Sure the favorites are less than the likes (I don’t know how) but at least it’s better than I thought. You guys are amazing and I hope to write more in the future.

Craimer: Yup! Now that the OC Praxis is an Order Reaper, shit’s totally about to go down! This might be the second to last chapter before we decide to roll in our sequel, which shall be known as "Afraid Of My Shadow". Ready to begin, old friend?

Shadow: Hell to the yes!

XXIX - The Price That Victory Comes With

Over the next two weeks in Markarth, Praxis’s training was nothing but strenuous. While he survived the agility test and fighting test, he couldn’t really enter the Order Reaper state itself until about the last day. The sight was the exact polar opposite of Jace’s Chaos Reaper form. The black horns on Praxis’s head widened at the bases, whitened, and curled like the horns of a ram. The eyes glowed a pure white, billowing out thin smoke the same color. The voice sounded like many voices of several men speaking at once; the way he spoke reminded the satyr of the archangels from Diablo III. Like Jace, Praxis was given a Calling Card like Jace, but it was in the form of a silver pocket watch on a necklace chain than an hourglass. Engraved on both sides was the Order Reaper sigil: a balance scale with a skull in each pan.

But what got Praxis excited even more was the scythe he was given.

It was a typical scythe: slightly curved shaft made of sagewood and blade of titanium, rather like Jace’s, and was just as tall, but the blade had smooth edges, unlike Jace’s jagged-edged Chain Scythe, Eclipse. The eighteen seams in the blade, separated from one another by every two inches, are what Praxis raise a brow. “What’s with the ridges?” He asked as they now trekked through the outskirts of Ponyville.

“Hmm... I think I have a clue. Try using your magic on it,” Jace said. Praxis concentrated on getting his light-blue magic aura to channel through the scythe. His hands glowed cerulean, and with a little smirk, he swung the blade at a nearby sapling.

The seams apparently separated pieces of the blade from one another, and were connected with a thin rope of strong metal, like some sort of whip with blades. The tip of the blade diced the sapling to pieces as Praxis swung again and again. Once finished with obliterating the tree, Praxis willed the blade pieces to reconnect.

“Whoa....” he whispered.

“Thought of a name for it?” Jace asked.

“Yeah... Daggertail,” he answered. Jace smiled, impressed with the christening of the satyr’s new weapon.

“Excellent choice in name, my friend.” Jace patted Praxis on the back. “With the two of us together, we’ll practically be unstoppable.”

“Damn straight, man,” Praxis said. “I think we got this in the bag!”

Or so they would like to think.

A week had passed. Praxis, insisting that he see Lyra in her times of need, did just that, all the while helping Applejack with her farm, or hanging out with Spike and helping him find a male role model. Jace and Vinyl, who got engaged and had finally had their son Wubsy, produced more music than they knew what to do with, so they sold it to whatever towns weren’t under Insanity’s control. Jace, Praxis, and Vinyl hung out with the Cutie Mark Crusaders for a little bit, trying to help them get their 'elusive' marks; Jace and Praxis, being fellow bronies, already knew what their talents were, but chose not to disclose it, mainly for what they call 'the lulz'.

The second week, on the Night of Fate, rolled in. The Moon of Destruction was uncomfortably close, being a mile over their head. Someone with an incredibly good cannon could practically shoot a cannonball into the sharp-toothed open maw of the lunar monstrosity and it’d make it in, like some sick sort of basketball game.

The town of Canterlot was under siege by Insanity’s Shadowlings, and had been for three days before the Night of Fate had arrived, but Celestia and Luna’s defenses held firm thanks to their loyal and able-bodied soldiers. Canterlot’s residents were evacuated from the town via Friendship Express, which was thankfully not overthrown, and were sent into a massive underground bunker that Praxis had dug last night with his claws. The walls were lined with stone to help support the soil and prevent it from falling on their heads, and the actual room itself was thrice the size of Canterlot Castle’s Royal Ballroom. Provisions from both Praxis and Jace were provided and placed into the bunker, ranging from sustenance to first aid kits.


Everyone get in!” He had ordered the ponies in the town, who didn’t hesitate in following his orders. “There’s food, water, and mattresses down there! Quickly!

All the ponies obeyed his mandates, even the upper crust ponies that would rather be caught dead than be seen with even a smudge of dirt on their coat.

All the ponies... but one.

“Praxis, where are you going!?” Lyra asked in fear and concern.

Lyra, I need you to go inside,” Praxis said. “Please.

“No!” She cried, tears of melancholic origins spurting down her cheeks. “I won’t let you go!”

Lyra!” The seafoam-green mare recoiled at the weresatyr’s snap. “Please. Listen. Me and Jace have got this under control. Please stay safe down in the bunker.

“....” The seconds transfigured to minutes, and the minutes evolved into hours. Nothing happened, until Lyra stood up and jumped into Praxis’s arms, kissing him as hard as she could, tears running down her face like vicious waterfalls. The satyr, taken by surprise, returned the kiss to the best of his abilities, arms holding Lyra for the life of him. The unicorn's tongue prodded his lips, begging for entry that he obliged to. Lyra shifted and swirled her tongue inside the weresatyr's mouth, gently stroking the sharp teeth and flitting against his forked tongue in a serpentine manner. They finally let go after several minutes of just standing there, the oral embrace probably being the only thing that will remind themselves of one another.

“Be safe,” she whispered.

I will. Take care of the baby, alright?” He asked when she reached the entrance to the bunker. “Take care of Riku.” She nodded, her lips turned up into a smile at how nice the name would sound for their foal. She descended into the bunker with her friends.

Jace stood near the entrance to the bunker, watching ponies walk by and get into the safety of the underground safehouse. “Let’s go, move it!” He pushed off his post and looked at the wave among wave of ponies that flooded by him. But what caught his attention, was a small voice from next to him.

“Daddy?”

Jace whirled around to the left, seeing Vinyl Scratch with a baby foal sitting atop her back. The unicorn foal, golden-maned and snow-white, looked up at his father with worry in his electric, piercing eyes of yellow. Jace picked up his son Wubsy, and smiled at him. “Hey, buddy. I’m gonna need you to go downstairs, alright, son?”

“Daddy, where you going? Is Uncle Praxis and Mommy going, too?” Jace felt a very rare tear roll down his cheek at his son’s innocent curiosity for the trio’s dangerous endeavor.

“We’re gonna go take care of something, and we’ll be back, alright? Auntie Octavia is downstairs,” Jace tells her. And to speak of the devil, the charcoal-maned, ash gray Earth Pony arises from the bunker.

“Come along, little Wubsy,” Octavia said. “Auntie Tavi’s got you.”

“Take care of him, Tavi, alright?” Vinyl pleaded. The cellist firmly nodded before finally giving up and tackling Vinyl in a hug, one that the DJ slowly returned. Once they break apart, Jace gave Wubsy a kiss on the forehead and placed him on Octavia’s back. Octavia headed back down into the bunker.

Jace stood at the entrance, watching as Octavia’s form moved in with the other ponies that were seeking salvation from the chaos that reigned outside. A tear went down his cheek as a stony expression was worn on his face. He felt someone grab his shoulder and he briefly turned to see Praxis holding his shoulder. “Let’s go rip this motherfucker a new asshole...” he says, a wicked grin on his face at the thought of the murderous rape they will perform on their enemies flittered through his head.

“Hells to the yeah.” Jace puts out a half-extended fist towards Praxis’s direction. The satyr obliged by taking his hand off of his best friend’s shoulder and knocking his fist into Jace’s. Vinyl comes along and puts her hoof in, the bottom connecting with Jace’s and Praxis’s fists.

“Brohoof, bitches!”


Praxis ran a finger over his lips, where Lyra had kissed him. ‘Mint...’ He sighed in content.

“Praxis?” Vinyl said. “You alright?” The satyr was brought back to reality by the question. He nodded, and Vinyl smiled.

In the fields of Equestria, Praxis, Jace, and Vinyl were prepared.

Praxis was donned in titanium armor in pure white, with a chainmail hood with white cloth over it on his head with enough room for his curled ram horns to have room. The Order Reaper sigil was etched carefully on the chest of his plate armor. His hooves and gauntlets were clad with metal claws to add more damage to his kicks and punches. Praxis had a white cloth pulled up to his face to shroud the lower half of it. He took Daggertail into his hands and gave it a few spins in the air, the blade pieces swinging wildly before he reconnected them again.

“You ready to do this?” Praxis turned to see Jace walking with a helmet under his arm. He had titanium armor as black as the night, with the Chaos Reaper sigil, a bleeding crescent moon turned open-side up, etched into the chestpiece of the armor. His free hand held his chain scythe that revved itself without any help of the magic, like it was alive and wanting the blood that was about to be spilled. “Because I need you to be on top of your game...” He threw up a white hood that somewhat clashed with the black armor, but there was a shine from the mark on his chest and the armor changed to the white of the hood.

“Right... Don’t worry, I was reborn for this... in a way.”

“Let’s hope.” A metallic clang was heard as a metal mouth cover was put over Jace’s mouth. “We leave in five...” He turned and caught the gaze of Vinyl who was standing in the doorway. She was outfitted with armor like Jace and Praxis and she had the Chaos gauntlets donned her hooves. Rather than her usual purple shades, she wore a helmet that had a visor of the same color. “Let’s kick some asses.”

“This is why I love you, you know that?” Jace cooed.

“This is no time for being lovey-dovey, guys,” Praxis tells them. “Right now, we got some bitches to fuck up.”

“You must be new here~." Praxis shot a look at Jace. "Anywho, right. We should go.” Jace scooped Vinyl onto his back before blanketing his feet with his crimson magic aura. Praxis tensed his legs. Within seconds, they were off near the speed of sound, ready to meet Insanity head on, for sources had told them that the deity of madness and destruction were somewhere in the outskirts, right in the between where all the cities were distanced, on his way to overthrow the weakest link town: Ponyville.

They had been traveling for many minutes, not in the least bit tired. Then, right before they could attack head on, they see a sight that makes all their jaws drop.

They had thought that they were only going to face Insanity, and Insanity alone. Instead, they had run into an gargantuan armada of Shadowlings. Praxis, Jace, and Vinyl watched in awe as the golden-eyed, black forms of several dragons, Minotaurs, wolves, cockatri, and many other different creatures marched their way.

“Well.... fuck,” Praxis mumbled.

Jace let Vinyl down and stood to look out amongst the army that laid out in front of him. “I’ve got this... Just try to get in close.” Jace walked forward, snapped his gauntlet clad hand and having a veil of shadow cover his face. The black cape on his back burned lightly with a red light as a new mark shown on it, unknown to Jace. It was a skull with two angel wings spread out across the entirety of the cape with a keyhole in the forehead of the skull. “When I say so, you go...” He stood in front of the armada, not even a single worry in his voice.

“Ready...” He gripped the scythe in his hands and wrung the sagewood. “Set...” His hands glowed with his dark red magic, and a chuckle could be heard from the latter. “GO!” In the blink of an eye, Jace had thrown the scythe into the air, standing with a bored expression as the entire army was fixed on the weapon. He turned to Vinyl and Praxis and held his hands up, “That’s your cue!”

Praxis whipped out his scythe, the wire-connected blades swinging to and fro like a windmill. Vinyl charged up her gloves, and two large crossbows with explosive bolts erupted two feet from their point of origin. Praxis swung Daggertail, the blades slicing the first row of enemies and vaporizing them in a single, magically powerful blow. Vinyl fired the loaded bolts into the crowd, blowing up pieces of random Shadowlings. The gore and body parts vanished into thin wisps of air.

“Hey!” Six new voices shouted. “Forgot about us?!”

Jace turned around and saw Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash standing behind him, all wearing strong gold armor and the Elements of Harmony. Twilight’s horn was charged and ready to fire. Applejack had boots with multiple spikes on them. Fluttershy rode atop a manticore, the very same one she had shown kindness to two years ago. Rainbow Dash held a large sword in her mouth, the blade composed entirely of rainbow colored electricity. Rarity held a large, jewel-encrusted axe in her magical grip, and Pinkie Pie had... several bombs and explosives in a belt at her waist. Jace raised a brow at that, but simply shrugged it off.

“Great timing! Hold on, got something to take care of first!” He raised a hand in the air, stopping his scythe’s ascent into the air and circled his hand fast, making the scythe spin lengthwise and in turn creating a giant frisbee of death. He raised his free hand towards the crowd of Shadowlings, making many levitate at once and all get sucked into the vortex the scythe was creating from the speed it was spinning at. He released the magic grip on the scythe, making it fall and he stood there, checking his fake watch. At the last seconds, he reached out and grabbed the scythe, doing a expert flourish to finish off the confused Shadowlings in front of him. “Come. At. Me.”

AH-HA-HAA! AAAAAH-HAHAHAHAHAAA!” A rather familiar voice laughed satanically.

“Who th’ hay was that?” Applejack asked.

“Praxis!” Vinyl and Jace answered, the two of them slaughtering the Shadowlings before them. They all turned to see Praxis running through the army, swinging his scythe viciously to and fro. Daggertail’s severed blades whipped around like a devastating hurricane had been born, the satyr laughing maniacally as he slashed, sliced, and diced every Shadowling within a twenty yard radius, their black blood splattering in his face.

WAAAAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!” The goat-like Harbinger of Doom hollered into the night as he kicked a fallen Shadowling Minotaur, drove the realigned blade of Daggertail into its throat, and swung horizontally, ripping its head off as the momentum of the swing let Daggertail become a deadly whip once more as he bathed in the ink-like blood of his enemies. They saw his face beneath the blood he was unbaptized in: a wicked, sharp-toothed grin with wide, manic, glowing eyes.

“Eep!” Fluttershy squeaked before ducking behind the manticore’s lion mane.

“That’s... scary AND cool,” Rainbow Dash muttered.

“He’s crazy as fuck!” Vinyl wailed as she blew up another two dozen Shadowlings with her crossbow bolts. “I like it!”

“That crazy sonofabitch is gonna get himself kill-” Jace looked back at his scythe, the ornate demon skull on the handle’s top glowed red with each kill he had succeeded in gathering. “Oh, fuck!” Jace looked around frantically, then his eyes settled on Vinyl. “Vi!” He ran over to her, nearly dodging a slash from a Shadowling. “Give me a boost!” He ran up beside her making sure to stay in front of her at all times. She charged the gauntlets up and spread her forearms out and Jace jumped, letting his adrenaline slow down the scene and having his magic levitate him and make a smooth entry. His eyes slowly closed, and he inhaled deep though his nose.

“SONIC... CLAP!” The eruption of magic made Jace’s eyes shoot open, shining red, and he shot off like a rocket with the combined magics of his levitation and the eruption from the Sonic Clap. He shot by the armada, quickly making his way to Praxis who was still on his wild killing spree. He grabbed the Satyr around the waist, flying up and keeping the momentum going. Though when the two collided the speed he was going at a drastically slowed speed, but he was still going pretty fast.

FOLLOW MY LEAD!” Jace’s voice had gotten deep and demonic as the two red circles in the hood stared up at the satyr. “AND DON’T DO ANYTHING FUCKING STUPID!

YOU RUINED MY FUN, YOU SONUVABITCH!” Praxis complained, eyes glowing whiter and brighter beneath his shadow-cloaked face.

THIS ISN’T ABOUT FUN, THIS IS ABOUT TAKING DOWN INSANITY. QUIT YOUR BITCHING AND FOLLOW. MY. LEAD!

BULLSHIT! YOU CAN’T SPELL ‘FUNERAL’ WITHOUT ‘FUN’!!! AND WE’RE GIVING THEM ONE HELL OF A FUNERAL!!!

Jace’s flight speed was quickly dropping as he slowed down. “GODDAMMIT! JUST MARIO YOUR WAY OVER!” He stopped using his magic and started hopping on each Shadowling’s back or head, the magic he placed in his boots striking their bodies and downing them. Praxis followed suit, yet he threw in a bladed whipping at the nearby Shadowlings. Jace looked behind him to look at Praxis tailing him. He pointed at himself, then at the satyr, then motion his finger to the sky, and put up a second hand, the other index finger making circles with the first. Praxis got his message almost instantly. “ON THREE! ONE... TWO... THREE!

They both took to the skies, their magic and stamina combining to let them reach a height at the speeds of a rocket. They met in mid-air and kicked off of their feet/hooves, sending them in opposite directions. Jace tossed the Chain Scythe, Eclipse, at the crowd of Shadowlings beneath him and used his magic to change its flight trajectory, making it spin in a circle that spiraled outward, beheading and slaying any that stood in his path. When he landed, he beckoned Eclipse towards him, happy to see that he had cleared up several yards of room for his landing.

Praxis, after kicking off in the opposite direction, used his cerulean magic to extend Daggertail’s reach once more, the blade pieces covering their usual twenty yards. He spun like a top in mid air, the blade pieces acting as a furious whirlwind of death as he descended and massacred all that was in his radius. He spun Daggertail like a horizontal windmill when he landed, making sure to clear up all that were inside the swinging radius. He stopped the rapid spinning and kept the rotating blades’ speed low.

Vinyl and the Mane Six were battling the front line, using magic, explosives, hoof to foreleg/claw/hoof/fist combat, physical damage, illusions, animal warfare, or, Pinkie Pie’s case, musical numbers and physics ignoration. The seven ponies hacked, slashed, pummeled, and blasted away through the army that put up much opposition, trying to bite, claw, punch, kick, burn, or attack.

As Jace was tearing everything a new asshole, he heard the laugh. The same laugh he heard three fucking months ago. He stopped in in the middle of his slaughterfest to see Insanity in the distance, staring right at him. “You piece of SHIT!” He gripped Eclipse tight and looked at the glowing skull at the top of its shaft. “...Goddammit.” He judged by how many things he killed, that he has at least about a month saved up for Chaos Reaper run.

Meaning he would have to stay that way. For a month.

Praxis heard the demonic laughter as well, and suppressed a shudder that had suddenly decided to make itself announced as he wrapped Daggertail’s bladed whip around the neck of a dragon Shadowling and pulled, decapitating it and causing it to dissipate. “Not this pig-faced bastard again....” He looked around to see Insanity sitting in the back of the battalion, commanding his Shadowlings to assault the nine attackers that were massacring all of them.

As Jace and Praxis slaughter their way into the crowd towards their target, the Shadowlings seemed to be getting stronger. Rather than wolves, lions, and bears like in the beginning of the battle, dragons, manticores, and chimeras made themselves known. They were a bit harder to take down, and actually managed to get in a few hits every now and then, but they were still cut down by the two Reapers’ powers.

At last... at long last... they had reached what they had came for.

Ahh, it’s a pleasure to see you two boys!” Insanity laughed.

As Insanity spoke, Jace had taken the helmet that was hanging from his side and donned it. It was a full plate metal helmet and the face portion was pressed to look like a human skull. “ENOUGH TALK!” He bellowed. Insanity paid him no mind, for he was sniffing the air... and his nostrils led him to look at--

You....

Yep,” Praxis said. “Me. Missed me, motherfucker?

You should’ve DIED! At the river in the clearing AND with the Hydra!

Awww, you mad that I fucked up your plans at killing me?

Yes! As you regular people say, I’m quite PISSED!

That was a rhetorical question, dickface!” Jace stifled an idiotic giggle at the insult he fired. Insanity was fuming.

SILENCE!!!” He roared into the night.

MAKE ME!

In retaliation to this dare, Insanity raised a clawed hand and launched it at Jace, intending to aim for his heart and remove it from his body. Jace dogded and swung Eclipse upwards, the blade passing through the deity's intangible arm. Praxis tried joining in, but Jace held him back. "NO! I'M KILLING HIM!"

And so they fought. Jace swerving, ducking, and weaving to avoid Insanity's wicked-sharp claws, and the deity either dodging or becoming intangible to let Jace's scythe Eclipse simply phase through him.

This would have gone on for many minutes, hours, even...

Until Insanity quickly grabbed Eclipse by underneath the blade and yanked it out of Jace's grip before throwing it away as far as he could. The scythe whizzed through the air. "ENOUGH! IT ENDS HERE! I'll finish you, like I'll finish everyone else, and the only god, the only RULER... will only be me." Insanity lunged again at Jace's chest, straight for the heart... to rip it from his body... to remove his 'powers' and 'immortality'....

But rather than Jace’s body... another had been used....

PRAXIIIIIIIS!!! NOOOO!!!!” Jace bellowed. The satyr had dashed in between the Reaper and Insanity with his arms spread out to stop whatever came his friends away. Insanity’s claw penetrating his chest like an object would when it was placed in gelatin. The flesh and armor seemed to... make way for Insanity’s claw, yet no blood was spilled, no armor was destroyed, nor did the claw come out the other end.

Praxis's eyes were shot wide open. Vinyl and the Mane Six stopped what they were doing and stared at the spectacle. "Oh, Lord..." Vinyl whispered, tears viciously leaving her eyes. "Please... not that... anything but that...."

So... you wanted to give your pathetic life for your little friend, eh?” Insanity pulled out a massive, grotesque sword from out of Praxis’s body. As the weapon was being removed, the others heard the satyr making strained, painful guttural noises. Judging by the sounds and the tears, the pain he was suffering was tremendous and unbearable. The sword, its flesh-wrapped handle, the serpentine eyeball at the hilt, and the warped, massive edges, were removed from Praxis’s body entirely after several seconds later. How the sword’s wide dimensions managed to fit was a mystery. “And I want my sword back....” Praxis fell to his knees from the pain and the exertion of not screaming out into the night. But rather than just the sword being released, something else came out as well..

A little turquoise ball of light, the size of a grape, with cerulean mist swirling around it from a few inches away. Insanity plucked it from the sword and examined it, the pureness of it burning his hand. “Is this what I think it is....?” Praxis shook his head, hoping against hope that Insanity wouldn’t find out what it was. “Oh, I think it is.” With that, Insanity crushed the strange light in his other claw.

The effect was instantaneous.

The armor that Praxis wore shattered like glass and melted away into nothingness. Daggertail let out a murderous whine, like an occupant that seemed to live inside it was being stabbed repeatedly, before the scythe collapsed into pieces and disappeared as well. The horns on Praxis’s head shrunk back, narrowed, and darkened, becoming that of a regular goat’s horns. The glow in his eyes disappeared, leaving only brown irises. The Curse Seal and the markings it bore were no more, fading away into nonexistence. The Calling Card shook violently and let off a small explosion, leaving an open pocket watch necklace with a broken clock face.

Praxis, standing precariously, turned his head slowly to look at Jace, whose eyes were wide in fear. The satyr flashed a weak grin, and sent a wink his way. He looked back soon enough to Insanity swing Dementia at nearly the speed of sound at his right arm. The limb fell off like it was composed of butter, the bleeding stump firing blood. Praxis screamed bloody murder. The pain was unlike anything he had felt, almost rivaling that of when he tried to enter the room of Order Reapers. Praxis fell to his knees, cradling his missing right arm in his left hand. Insanity kicked him aside and looked at Jace, a sadistic smile on his face.

Jace slowly pulled the helmet off of his hooded head, and threw it to the ground, head bowed. He dropped Eclipse on the ground and closed his eyes, taking in a large breath. Darkness swirled around his feet, slowly ascending up his body. He opened his eyes, and the darkness gushed up at rapid speeds like a violent volcano. Red angry eyes only stood out amongst the black. The darkness faded away, revealing a black humanoid beast. A tail, long and devilish, flicked behind him. Black, tendril-like flames burned on its. The creature had a bloody crescent moon facing up on its chest. The symbol pulsated red, the same color as the all-scarlet eyes that glared at Insanity in pure hatred.

Insanity’s expression flickered to one of apprehension before returning back to pure sadism. “Aw.... are you gonna get mad, little child, because I hurt your best friend?” He mocked.

Pain, Insanity... Pain.” He looked up, the shining in his eyes now increased tenfold. He pulled his hood down slowly to show a demonic face with long, jagged teeth and midnight black skin. It was that of when they first had a standoff at Jace’s house three months ago. “What you don’t know, is the pain that comes with being a Reaper...

And what would you know about pain? When you have been imprisoned for thousands of years, passed on like some sort of sick plague, then you can come back and talk to me about pain. Loneliness. Hatred. Coldness. Feel these, and you will feel true pain. Wounds on the flesh are not enough to suffer true excruciation, boy,” Insanity said.

Pain is all I know. I kill... I take... I steal... I am the one who has to take the souls from loved ones, I am the one who has to carry out the duty of taking away others that I hold dear to myself. Why?” He smiled wickedly. “Because of the pain that occurs when I DON’T.” As if on cue, a geyser of darkness shot up from Insanity’s feet, its black gases acting like rope and ensnaring him from foot to neck. Jace held his clawed black hand out and squeezed it. The darkness geyser tightened its grip on Insanity, making the god growl and bellow in agony. The trapped creature became a large amount of mist and removed itself from the geyser, only to return to its normal form. “Pain... You will never be able to comprehend...

Insanity swung Dementia horizontally, but Jace leaned back and evaded the blade’s evil edge. “Feel the darkness of your heart, Insanity.” Another geyser shot up. It was as intense, and the pain was all the same. Jace moved closer and closer to the lesser god, who had escaped once again after experience another dose of pain.

“S...stop.” a voice said.

Jace and Insanity whirled around to see Praxis wearily getting to his knees. The Shadowlings from earlier had been vanquished due to Insanity losing his control over them from the pain he was given by Jace. Vinyl and the Mane Six were staring at him in fear and worry.

“Insanity...” Praxis said, coughing a small amount of blood. “Listen to me... take control of me....”

Praxis... what are you saying!?” Jace roared in anger. “YOU FUCKING TRAITOR! HOW COULD YOU?!?!” Jace stopped his rant when Praxis gave him something. Something that no one, not even Insanity, could see.

The subtlest of winks, barely a twitch of the eye... but Jace caught it.

“You take over me...” Praxis continued, wiping his bleeding mouth on his left arm. “...and we can rule the world, baby. We won’t HAVE to destroy all of Gaia... all you have to do... is overshadow me. Think of the POWER.... that we’ll share... We could overthrow the Princesses... and rule this land... FOREVER.”

Insanity raised a brow at this sudden confession, contemplating the possibilities. He smiled after a few moments. “I love the way you think, goat. Very well...” He hovered over to the bleeding satyr and grabbed him by the throat, lifting him up to eye level. “This is gonna hurt you SO much more than this’ll hurt me....” Insanity dissolved into black mist and rocketed up Praxis’s nose and mouth, making it impossible to breathe. The entity smelled and tasted disgusting, the very stench and taste almost making the satyr wretch. The last of the mist entered Praxis’s body, and he fell to the floor on his hooves. The right arm started to bubble grotesquely and it... extended... until in its place rested an arm to substitute the first one. This arm, however, was pitch black, clawed at the end of each fingertips, with an slit-pupiled eyeball on the back of the hand. The eyeball was rimmed with gold, like some sort of Egyptian decoration. The eyeball’s pupil contracted and expanded, getting used to the environment it was spawned in.

Praxis’s hair became a pure white, long and lanky, the skinny legs and arms grew thicker and fuller, the signs of pure muscle. The skin darkened to a tan hue. The horns extended a few more inches and shot up straight to point to the sky. When the satyr opened his eyes, brown irises did not greet Jace, Vinyl, or the others. Purple eyes, glowing brightly and wickedly, looked around to take in their environment. The possessed satyr smiled, and sharp carnivorous teeth flashed white in the moonlight’s radiance. Praxis pointed his tainted right hand at the Moon, and with a grunt of exertion and a glowing of the orange eye on his hand, he slowly sent it back into its original place, with the frightening facial features disappearing. After that had been accomplished a few moments later, Praxis turned to face the eight others that stood before him.

Today... is the dawn of a new era... and era where all shall fear me, and those who ignore this... die in the most slow and painful way,” The voice that came out was a fuse of both Praxis’s and Insanity’s. Praxis, using as much of his own willpower as possible, subtlety winked at Jace again, and the Chaos Reaper got the message instantly.

NOW!!!” Jace yelled. He ensnared Praxis in his strongest magical hold, making sure that Insanity can’t leave him and that Praxis couldn’t escape. Vinyl helped in this endeavor, strengthening the magic by twofold.

NO!!!” Insanity’s voice rang out of Praxis, who was looking for a way to escape, yet found none. The body was shaking as it fought to gain control. “HOW?!

The power of friendship, bitch!” Praxis’ voice rang out from this magically imprisoned body like a gunshot. He looked at the Element Bearers. "NOW!!! DO IT!!!"

The Mane Six charged up their Elements of Harmony. They took to the sky, Twilight Sparkle’s eyes becoming blank and glowing. They were, however, staring at Praxis in sadness, and a lone tear fell from her muzzle. A few seconds passed, and the double-helix rainbow arcs spun up high in the air before colliding into one another and firing towards Praxis. The satyr saw the complete arc hit him and ensnare him, his hooves slowing turning a grey hue as they became stone. Praxis grabbed his right wrist with his left hand, the two limbs placed in front of them before they became encased in stone. He bowed his head low to Jace and the others, who fought back the tears that threatened to spill. Vinyl was already beyond the breaking point, sobbing heavily as her magic fell away. The Mane Six had tears trickling down their faces at that point.

Thank you....” It was only a whisper. He closed his eyes and let the Harmony Magic envelop him, a lone tear trickling down the right side of his face. The rainbow disappeared, leaving a statue of a heroic, noble satyr where it resided.

“Rest easy, bro,” Jace said, putting a hand around Vinyl, who proceeded to cry into Jace’s chest. As this was all going on, a light came from Jace’s hands. He looked down at then, mesmerized by what has happening to him. “W-What?! What’s happening?!” He turned to the others, before a flash of light filled his vision, and he shut his eyes tight.

Upon opening them, he found himself on top of clouds that were as golden as the sun. Turning behind him, he saw large golden gates and a pathway leading into the distance of the blue horizon.

So... This is where I’m judged...” That... voice. Jace turned to see Insanity in all his not-so-much of a glory, his hands shackled with indestructible chains. Jace smiled wickedly.

“Yes, it is.” Surprise caught him at his voice, for it sounded that of many talking at once. He looked down at his hands and they were no longer in the white gauntlets that he had been wearing all through the fight. Instead, they were that of bone. His armor had been replaced with white and gold robes that covered his face which was skeletal and had two piercing white eyes looking at anything that Jace did.

Balling his hands into fists, he felt the familiar wood of Eclipse in his hand, chuckling as he looked down and saw the shaft made of gold and the blade pure white and gleaming. “Insanity. You have committed crimes against Gaia and its people. How do you plead?”

Insanity remained silent. Not a single word came out of the depowered god’s mouth. “I then take it that your silence means you plead guilty.” Jace walked forward to Insanity, putting a bony hand under his chin and lifting his head to look at him. “I now know what you mean... By Gatekeeper. Only question is... How did you know?”

When one has existed for as long as I have, from nearly the beginning of TIME itself... one knows things such as I,” Insanity confessed.

“You are a wise old entity, I assume. But alas, we are not here for compliments. We are here to decide your fate.” Jace then turned to the Jury, which were the tortured souls that Insanity has sent to Heaven from long ago and from recent. “The Jury will now give their verdict...”

A soul walked forward in front of the gates, announcing in a loud voice, “The Jury finds the defendant, Insanity... guilty as charged.” Jace turned to Insanity, who had returned to bowing his head.

“Then, Insanity, you are found guilty of many things. So many, in fact, that we do not have the time to name each of these atrocities off. I banish you to the deepest depths of Hell. The place that makes Tartarus tremble with fear.” He raised the scythe up, aiming right for Insanity. “COURT IS ADJOURNED!” He slammed the blade down onto Insanity’s head, creating a giant explosion of light that made the evil entity disappear and be sent to the ninth circle of Hell, where he shall forever be imprisoned... for the rest of eternity.

Jace felt the light appear before him once again, and he disappeared from the courtroom in Heaven, only to return to the scene of the battle. While his robes remained, his skeletal features returned to flesh. With his magic, he beckoned Eclipse back to him. Within a few seconds, the scythe had returned to his hand.

Sunlight shined upon the land, and not a single cloud was in sight, leaving a sky as blue as the oceans. The grass was green as ever. Birds, ranging from canaries to cardinals to mockingbirds, sang their glorious tune as they fluttered across the sky.

But this beautiful weather only mocks what had happened here on Equestria.

Instead of seeing happy faces, Jace only witnessed faces contorted into sadness by grief and melancholy. Vinyl and the Mane Six were mourning the loss of one of two heroes. A misunderstood creature, hated for what he was, but continued to spread kindness, love, and happiness wherever he went.

Jace sighed. He enveloped the statue of Praxis Moradov in his scarlet magical aura. The seven ponies jumped in surprise, but relaxed slightly when they saw Jace. The Reaper walked back in the direction of Ponyville, the seven mares following him, and the statue floating behind him. He would have to plan a funeral for the poor guy...

Yet... contradictory to his best friend’s words... there was nothing fun about a funeral.

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