Of Flame and Shadow

by Garuda IV

Chapter 41- Fall of the Dragon Gang

So many questions were running through the hooded guy's mind right now as he nervously looked at Dark standing protectively in front of Twilight. But besides that, he also wanted to know what was up with his sword to have caused the man that Dark just cut in half to have dissolved into a black mist like that. Granted that he was told that Dark could be dangerous by the one who contacted him prior to Dark's arrival, but he'd never mentioned anything like this.

"Just what in the hell are you?!" he shouted angrily with a hint of fear. "You're not human, that I know damn sure of!"

"You're right, I'm not human," Dark admitted before barring his mouthful of fangs at him. "But despite that, it doesn't mean that I won't fight to stop you from hurting others, especially after what you did to Twilight."

"Well, human or demon, it doesn't matter either way. You're still going to die today, and my men and I are going to be the ones to do it!"

With his free hand, the hooded guy grabbed his other pistol and aimed both of them at Dark. Taking this as a sign, the other gang members all raised their weapons and aimed them at Dark. Just before they fired though, Dark channeled his magic into his free hand and raised it, creating a wall of shadows that blocked the gang off from getting to them, while also stopping all of the incoming bullets. With them safe for the time being, Dark turned around, his blood-red eyes softening as he looked at Twilight.

"I don't want for you to see this, Twilight," he softly, yet firmly told her. "So, with that being said, I would like for you to fall back behind the safety of the guards that you've brought with you."

"But what about- Mmph!" Twilight tried to speak, but her words were silenced as Dark kissed her.

Even though they were both humans now instead of a pony and kirin, Twilight barely noticed the difference as she pulled herself closer and kissed him back. And while she wanted for it to last longer as a way to make-up for lost time, now wasn't the time for that.

"I'll try and be quick with them. Until then, will you please stay back safely behind the guards?"

"Will you promise to come back safe?" she asked.

"Yes, I promise."

"Pinkie Promise?"

Chuckling, Dark said the chant while going through the motions. Once he was done and she was satisfied, Twilight gave him a quick peck as thanks. But before she retreated back to her friends behind the line of guards, Dark quickly casted his Healing Flame on her to help heal her injuries. With her safety and healing secured, Dark used his magic and moved the wall of shadows back until it was between him and the guards behind him, leaving Dark and the gang on the same side of the wall.

"So," he began saying with a smile while rotating his shoulders and cracking his neck, "who dies first?"

"FIRE!"

Hearing their leader's command, the forty-eight gang members all fired their guns directly at Dark, to which he raised his wings in front of him to shield himself. At the same time, Dark was also emanating a black fog from his wings which began to spread-out across the ground, covering even the white snow in his darkness. Once the sound of gunfire had begun to died down, Dark used his Shadow Meld and began sinking into the shadows covering the ground.

Watching as he slowly sank into the ground, the hooded guy began getting an uneasy feeling about this. Once the top of Dark's head had disappeared, he holstered his right gun and drew his sword. Looking frantically around him, he scanned the area for any signs of where he could be. He got his answer soon after when he heard one of his men crying out. Turning over to the direction it came from, he saw that the upper half of Dark's body had emerged from the shadows with his sword impaled through the unfortunate gang member. A few seconds later, just like the one before, his body dissolved into a black mist, not leaving so much as a drop of blood as Dark sunk back into the shadows.

"Damn you! Come out and fight us like a man!" he called out to Dark, just to get a deep chuckle that echoed off of the walls.

"You truly want to watch me kill everyone?" Dark questioned as he rose up behind another one of his men, cutting him cleanly in half like the first one. "Very well then. Just remember that this is what you wanted."

Covering himself in a thin layer of shadows, Dark raised his wings and gave a powerful flap that launched him to the next gang member as he fired at Dark. However, the bullets had no affect on him as the shadows covering his body acted as a thin layer of armor, causing them to lose all momentum and stopping power, and drop to the ground. With the distance closed, Dark swung his sword and cleaved his head off, followed by the next one just a few feet behind him.

Using his wings to help propel him, Dark quickly closed the distance between him and the next target in his sights. After less than a minute had passed, Dark had killed over ten of them as the others tried to shoot him while keeping their distance. Soon they began to fight him back in two different groups. While one of the groups would engage him in melee combat, the other would try and shoot him at a distance. Dark, however, didn't care as to what they tried against him. Although, he did notice that some of the weapons that they had could actually block his sword enough to prevent him from cutting through it.

Changing his fighting style slightly, on the next person, Dark swung his sword down upon him, only to have it blocked. With this going as planned, Dark casted his Shadow Claw on his free claw and impaled it into the gang member's chest, causing his body to dissolve around his claw in a matter of seconds. With another one out of the way, Dark charged between a pair and cut one with his sword, while slashing the other with his claw. While the one who was cut by his sword dissolved like the others, the other was rolling on the ground, holding his chest. Looking down to him, Dark saw a black mist leaking from the wound his claw left instead of blood. His suffering didn't last long though as the black mist from the claw marks quickly expanded throughout his body until he finally dissolved.

"What a waste," Dark solemnly said to himself before turning to the hooded guy. "Is this what you wanted? To see your men fall like this?"

"So long as you're dead in the end, I don't care!" he shouted. "Men! Why don't we give him something to drink?!"

Reaching under their jackets, each gang member brought out a bottle of liquid with a cloth plugging the top. Though confused as to what it was, Dark soon found out as they each lit the cloth on fire with a lighter and threw them at him. While most shattered upon hitting the ground, some managed to break upon Dark himself, spreading the liquid fire all over him.

Seeing him covered in their Molotov cocktails, they all began to cheer, figuring that victory was theirs... until they heard Dark loudly laughing at them. While initially confused at why he would be laughing while covered in the liquid fire, they soon found out as the fires covering Dark and the area surrounding him began being absorbed into his already flaming hair, causing it to flare up with the added fire.

"What did you just do?!" the hooded guy demanded to know.

"What, weren't you told?" Dark mockingly asked. "I'm able to absorb fire."

"Bullshit!"

Smirking, Dark held out his free claw and used his magic to conjure an orb of fire in the palm of his claw. But he didn't stop there as he sent it orbiting his body before created two more and sending them out around him. With the three orbs orbiting his body, Dark decided to prove his point by using some of the gang members as an example.

Looking over to a group of four off to the side, Dark held out his claw and focused on the spot below them. A few seconds later, a familiar red rune was glowing beneath then, but before they could figure out what it was, Dark detonated it, creating a pillar of fire reaching up above the school rooftops that consumed and incinerated all four of them. And to prove his statement even further, Dark repeated the same act a few more times before the remainder of the gang charged at him.

Giving an amused snort of flame, Dark just stood there, unmoving. When they got close enough to him, instead of moving to engage them, Dark let his orbiting Fire Orbs burn through them and incinerate them upon contact as they kept their orbiting speed. Pumping a little more magic into them, Dark increased their orbiting speed until the became a steady, fiery ring. Seeing that none of them were willing to get any close, Dark pushed the orbs outward, increasing their range until they were hitting them again.

Seeing that there was only the hooded guy and six gang members left, Dark licked his lips in anticipation of ending this. However, that thought was interrupted when he felt a hail of bullets coming down upon him from above. Looking up, Dark saw that the rooftops were lined with more of them.

"Hah!" the hooded guy cockily shouted, "looks like the backup that I called for finally arrived. What? Did you really think that I would just stand here with my thumb up my ass while you killed all of my men?"

"How did they get up there?" Dark questioned.

"Our gang is better equipped than you'd think, almost like a mafia or cartel. And unlike other gangs, we have helicopters, some military grade vehicles, and even military grade weapons. Like those RPGs for example."

Curious as to what an RPG was, Dark looked up just in time to see several gang members firing a large projectile at him. Seeing this as possibly dangerous and not wanting to take any chances, Dark Shadow Melded into the ground before they hit. But to the hooded guy's surprise, instead of them exploding upon contact, they instead sank into the black mist that covered the ground. Rising up from the shadows, Dark looked annoyingly back at the men up on the rooftops. Creating tendrils from the shadows, Dark looked over and saw them holding the warheads.

"You know," Dark said, looking back over to the hooded guy, "I think I'm going to keep these for when I pay a visit to your base later."

Pulling them into his Shadow Storage, Dark looked back up to the men on top of the school's roof. Not wanting to bother chasing after them, Dark brought his three Fire Orbs up above his head and began to mentally take aim. With his targets in his sights, he used his magic to fire out Fire Needles out of his Fire Orbs. However, unlike the Explosive Fire Needles that he used during the invasion in Ponyville, he decided to go with the non-explosive ones so that he wouldn't accidentally damage the building. Though while some of them weren't precise, most of the Fire Needles did find their mark in either a gang member's head or chest, leaving a burnt hole in the spot that they impacted before burning them to ashes from the inside out.

With the rooftops cleared, Dark redirected his attention back to the remaining ones on the ground. But to his surprise, the hooded guy had charged Dark and began bringing his sword down upon his head. Bringing his free claw up, Dark grabbed it and shattered it in his grip before bringing his sword back and thrusting it through his stomach, just like he did to Dark earlier. Spitting out blood from under his hood, the hooded guy looked straight into Dark's eyes with a weak laugh.

"I wish I could be there to see the look on your face of when you learn..."

Having enough of dealing with him and making sure that he would stay dead, Dark pointed the sword skyward with the hooded guy still impaled upon it, and fired a blast of dark magic through his sword, instantly dissolving the man that had just a second ago been stuck on it. With him out of the way, Dark quickly used his magic to impale all but one of the remaining gang members upon a shadowy spike from the shadows beneath them, causing them to dissolve like all the others did. Looking at the last remaining one, Dark flapped his wings and launched himself over to him, causing him to drop his weapons and cower as Dark landed in front of him.

"Look at me," Dark told him as he lightly wrapped his tail around his neck and lifted him up to his eye-level, allowing him to get a good look at the man. "I know you. You're one of the guys who came to tell him about Twilight being here."

"Y-Y-Yes," he stuttered.

"You're also one of the two guys who tried to burn me while I was chained down with my own sword run through my stomach."

"Y-Yes."

"Alright then. In that case, I have one question for you, and you're going to answer it truthfully. Got it?"

"Yes."

"Good. Now, where is this hideout of yours. The one at the junkyard."

"I-It's about ten miles south of here, you can't miss it."

"Good," Dark grinned before quickly swinging his sword across him, causing him to dissolve like the others before him.

With the last of the gang members dead, Dark looked around, seeing that besides some of the weapons that were dropped, and a few burn marks here and there, no trace of them was left behind, nor any damage to the building itself or the school yard. Retracting his shadows and taking one last look at his surroundings to make sure that there wasn't anything left over from the fight, Dark dispelled the wall of shadows that separated him from the others and absorbed his Death Reaver back into his body.

As soon as the shadowy wall disappeared, Twilight and their friends rushed past the guards and tacked Dark onto the ground in a group hug. After a few moments of hugging, the girls began getting out of the dogpile, allowing for Dark to get back up. Once he was back on his feet, Rainbow was the first to speak up.

"Dude, you look totally awesome!"

"Is this what you normally look like?" Fluttershy asked.

"Kinda," Dark answered, his blood-red eyes reverting back to gold and his voice back to normal. "Think of a pony with these black limbs on them and that's what I look like. Although, I don't get why they're black again. I already dyed them to match the rest of my coat a while ago."

"Probably just another mystery of the portal," Twilight said with a relieved smile.

"So, what happened ta the guys who were tryin' ta fight ya?" Applejack questioned.

"They're gone."

"What exactly do you mean by that?" Rarity asked.

Dark sadly sighed. "There's a reason why I put up that wall between us. A reason why I didn't want any of you to see what was happening on the other side of the wall."

Figuring what he meant, they each looked away from him. Not out of spite or shame, but because of what had happened to them.

"Was it quick for them?" Twi asked.

"Besides one which was an accident, yes, they were all quick and painless."

"That's good to know, at least," Celestia said as she and Luna walked over to them.

"Miss Celestia, Miss Luna," Dark greeted with a small bow. "I'm sorry about what happened."

"While we can't approve what you did here today," Luna began, "we also can't ignore the fact that you also saved the school and everyone that attends it."

"Speaking of," Celestia said, looking over the area where Dark and the gang fought, "besides a few burn marks, I'm surprised to see that no damage is done to the school."

"Yes. I made sure to hold back and be careful with my surroundings when-"

"Hold on there!" Rainbow said, interrupting Dark. "You fought all of those guys and you were holding back that whole time?!"

"Well... yeah?" Dark answered, causing her and the others to stare unbelievably at him. "What? With the power that I have, I need to be careful when I use it. Which is why I use Ghastly Gorge as my training grounds, so that nopony accidentally gets hurt and that nothing of any importance gets accidentally destroyed."

"In that case, I thank you for taking the condition of our school into consideration, even when you were fighting them," Celestia thanked.

"So," Sunset began, "now that they're all gone, I take it that you'll be heading back to Equestria now?"

"Not quite," Dark answered her, earning him a strange look from them.

"Dark, why not?" Twilight asked. "Why can't you come back home?"

"Because, while these guys are gone, that wasn't all of them. From what I was told, their hideout is in a junkyard about ten miles south of here."

"... you're going to fight them, aren't you?" Twilight guessed, getting a confirming nod from Dark. "But you can't! Equestria needs you back!"

"How exactly does Equestria need me? I mean, I know that it's my home and that I've missed you a lot during this last week of us being apart, but I'm sure that Equestria can survive without me."

"No, it literally can't. You see, Dark, since you're the Lord of Death, your presence in Equestria keeps the dead... well, dead."

Dark furrowed his brows. "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"What I'm trying to say is that ever since you were sent here, anypony who's died back in Equestria didn't actually die, but are instead the walking dead."

"Are you talking about zombies?"

Twilight gave an annoyed huff. "Okay, yes, they're zombies. And not only that, but ghosts from the graveyards have started to rise up all over Equestria. So that's why we need you back as soon as possible, so that we can put everything in Equestria back on track."

Dark began rubbing his temples with his claws. "Nocturne and I are going to have a long talk about my responsibilities as the Lord of Death when we get back. But, despite that, I can't go back just yet."

"But why?"

"Because, there are still more of them out there. And from what I was told during our fight, they've got military grade weapons and vehicles."

"That would explain the helicopters that were flying just overhead not too long ago," Luna chimed.

"Please, Twilight," Dark pleaded. "Let me do this last thing here, and then I'll return home with you."

"... I don't like this idea," she unhappily said after a moment of silence had passed. "Equestria needs you back so the dead can rest in peace." She paused as she took in a deep breath. "However, I understand the danger that these people could pose if they were left on their own."

"... so?"

"I'll let you go," she sighed, "but I'm sending the guards with you to assist you."

"Thanks, but I won't be needing them."

"Why not?"

"Look, don't get me wrong here, Twilight. While it makes me happy that you're thinking about me and my safety, I don't want to risk accidentally hurting them."

"But you just said that they have military grade weapons! And who knows how many of them there are!"

"Yes, but I also said that I was holding back during that fight I just had. If I go alone, I can fight them unrestrained and without having to worry about hurting any friendlies."

"And just how do ya plan ta do that?" Applejack questioned, causing Dark to smirk at her.

"Oh, I may have an idea in mind," Dark answered. "And it involves a lot of fire."

"While we do wish you luck, would you mind putting a shirt or something on?" Luna requested, hiding the small tint on her cheeks.

Looking down, Dark saw what she meant as he noticed his bare chest and abs.

"Sorry," he apologized, "but I don't know where my shirt and jacket are. Last I saw them was when their leader took them after he left the room that I was imprisoned in."

"Actually," Twilight spoke, "I know where they are, or at least your jacket. Your shirt was a bit torn with only your cutie mark being recognizable."

"Okay, so where is my jacket then?"

"It's right over-" Twilight paused when she saw that it wasn't where she'd left it before. "Huh, that's strange. Where did it go?"

"Here it is," Pinkie exclaimed as he held it out in her hands.

"Pinkie, how did you get that?"

"Because reasons," she smiled before she started to ogle Dark. "Besides, I don't know about the rest of you girls, but I don't mind him being shirtless at all."

"I would have to agree with the pink party animal," Adagio said as she and her sisters joined in the conversation. "After all, he does look rather... delicious."

"Yeah," Sonata cheerfully agreed. "Like a hot hottie."

"Or like a hot hottie hunk," Pinkie added.

"Ooh, or maybe like a-"

"Okay, he's hot, I get it!" Twilight interrupted, grabbing Dark's jacket from Pinkie and tossing it at him. "Just remember that he's already called for."

"Looks like someone's a little possessive," Aria smirked, causing Twilight to blush.

"I'm not being possessive of him, just defensive."

"I don't know, Twilight," Dark spoke as he put on his jacket and began zipping it up. "I mean, I get where you're coming from, but-"

"Dah!" Twilight warningly said, raising a finger to him and silencing him.

"Yes, Twilight."

Hearing and seeing them interacting like that caused the girls, sirens, Celestia and Luna, and some of the guards to either chuckle or laugh at them.

"Wow, Twilight, you sure got him whipped, don't you," Sunset snickered.

"No kidding," Rainbow agreed, holding her sides. "Not to mention that Twilight has tamed Equestria's version of Death."

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen," Adagio said with false sympathy as she patted Dark on the shoulder. "Don't worry, we know how you feel."

Now completely embarrassed, Dark turned away from them to hide his face.

"Okay, I'm outa here. I'll be back as soon as I'm done," he told them before running a few steps away from them and launching himself into the sky with a powerful flap of his wings.

Once he felt like he was far enough out of their sight, Dark unzipped his jacket to let his chest breathe. While it would've normally felt cold in the cool and snowy air, the fire sac that he felt burning in his chest again after his transformation kept him nice and warm.

I wonder, would this be that 'Pony Up' thing that they talked about? Dark pondered. Or would it be 'Kirin Up' in my case? Meh, questions for another time I suppose. Now, which way is south?

---

Back at Canterlot High, everyone gathered as they watched Dark flying into the distance.

"Umm, excuse me, Twilight?" Twi called to, gaining her attention.

"Hmm? Yes, Twi?" Twilight answered.

"He said that he was going to go south, right?"

"Yes, why?"

"Well, you do know that he's heading in the wrong direction, right? South is that way, and he's flying east."

Looking from her human self to where Dark was last seen heading, Twilight resisted the urge to facepalm. Deciding to shake her head instead, she then turned to address the guards.

"While we're here, we'll be helping everyone get settled back into the school and help clean up the place," she told them. "While there aren't any... bodies to tend to, there are still other things to take care of. I want a group of you to head up to the rooftops and collect what gear they might've dropped while everyone else does the same down here. We'll also try to see what we can do to get rid of the scorch marks on the ground." Twilight paused as she looked over to Celestia and Luna. "That is, if it's alright with you, Principal Celestia."

"Thank you, Twilight," Celestia thanked. "We would be happy to receive the help of you and your, um, guards."

"Alright, you heard her everyone. Let's get to it."

Separating, they went to their assigned stations. While one group followed Luna up to the rooftops, another helped Celestia with escorting the students and teachers back into the school, while the last helped Twilight, Sunset, the Dazzlings, and their friends clean the burn marks in front of the school. Scooting a little closer to her, Twi began talking to her pony self.

"So, Twilight," she began, getting her attention, "can I ask you something and be honest with me?"

"Of course," Twilight smiled. "After all, we are more or less the same person."

"In that case, were you being possessive of Dark, or just protective like you said?"

"To be honest, I really was being protective of him."

"Alright, but why?"

"Well, while the Dazzlings do seem to be on our side now, I still don't trust them entirely."

"Is it because they're sirens?"

Twilight sighed. "While I don't want to judge them just because of what they are and what they do naturally, it does put me on edge a little bit. Especially if it involves them and Dark."

"I understand," Twi nodded with a smile. "You're unsure about them and are just looking out for him. Also, and please don't take this the wrong way, but I think that I'm starting to see why you like him so much."

This caused Twilight to blush. "Are you saying that you like him?"

Now it was Twi's turn to blush. "Well... maybe? I don't know for sure, seeing as how I've only known him for a week. But for some reason to me, it feels-"

"Like it's been for a lot longer?" Twilight finished for her with a knowing smile. "That's exactly how I felt about him before we started dating. Hehe, it's kinda funny how we're so much alike, even if we're from different worlds."

Getting a mischievous ides, Twi smirked. "Hey, Twilight?"

"Yes?"

"Since Dark is your boyfriend, do you like to play ticks on him?"

" That depends," Twilight smirked back, getting an idea of where this was going. "Why? Did you have something in mind?"

"... maybe."

---

"I can't believe I went the wrong way," Dark muttered to himself as he flew towards the south.

After a few minutes of flying had passed, Dark began scanning the area for anything that looked remotely like a junkyard. After flying for ten minutes and getting a little annoyed that he couldn't find it, Dark landed in front of a store and walked inside to ask for directions. Unfortunately for Dark, his flaming hair, pony ears, wings, and tail weren't exactly helping with him getting his answer. Once he was able to calm the shopkeeper down and convince him that he wasn't going to rob him or eat his soul, he finally got his directions. Apologizing to him one last time before he left for accidentally scaring him, Dark walked out of the building and flew in the direction he was pointed towards.

As he continued his flight, Dark began wondering on how to approach them. While he originally thought about going Leeroy Haykins on them through the front door, he didn't think that that would be enough. A few minutes later, Dark caught the sight of a large building in the middle of what appeared to be the junkyard that held their base. Silently landing on top of the building, Dark peeked into one of the windows on the rooftop and saw a few hundred gang members walking around in their leather, dragon embroidered jackets. As he continued to scout the building, he could see several large crates of weapons similar to what the guys he just fought had used against him, along with several dozen barrels of what was labeled as flammable, and what appeared to be a massive vehicle hidden beneath an equally large tarp. Then, finally, sitting up in what appeared to be an office building on the second floor, Dark saw the human version of Inferno.

Seeing enough, Dark figured what method he would take in making his entrance. With a smirk, Dark propelled himself a few hundred feet above the building before hovering in place. Feeling high enough, Dark encased his arms in shadowy tendrils and used them to pull the six RPG warheads out from his Shadow Storage. Taking a moment to breath and steady his nerves of excitement, Dark threw the warheads down towards the rooftops before waiting a few seconds and dive-bombing behind them.

As he dove, he began creating a ball of flame in front of him with his burning hair which grew in size the longer he traveled. After diving the first hundred feet, the ball of flame had grew from a single foot to fifteen feet wide, and would continue to grow as he had another hundred feet until the rooftops, and another seventy-five before he would hit the ground floor of the building. By this point, between the size of the ball of fire and the speed at which Dark was dive-bombing, anyone seeing him could mistake him for a meteorite. And what happened next, only Dark knew.

Inside the building, hundreds of members of the Dragon Gang were going about their jobs in preparation for their next raid, completely unaware of what was coming for them. A few moments later, all hell broke loose as several explosions came from the ceiling, followed by falling debris. Up in the main office, Inferno looked out the window as it happened before reaching for the intercom.

"What the hell is going on out there?!"

He quickly got his answer as a massive fireball came crashing through the hole in the ceiling and impacting the ground, creating a crater from the impact while the fire itself splashed out along the entire floor, and in the center of it, rising from the sea of fire, was Dark, but not as Inferno remembered him. With his long tail, massive wings, sharp claws, and flaming hair, Inferno no longer considered him human as he grabbed the intercom to relay his orders to those of his gang who weren't injured or killed by the initial explosions.

If he's here, then that poor fool must've been killed by him, Inferno mused before addressing his gang. "Everyone, I want you to kill that demon! Whoever brings me his head will be promoted to my second in command!"

Hearing Inferno's voice echoing throughout the building, Dark began looking around for him and quickly spotted him up where he saw him before. But he couldn't begin to get to him though as right after his message had ended, Dark heard gunfire coming from all around him. Covering himself in another thin layer of shadows to protect him from the bullets, Dark conjured a Fire Orb and began firing out is Explosive Fire Needles in every direction, mainly at the entrances to block them off.

As he began causing destruction unto everything around him, he also began throwing fireballs around while manipulating his flaming hair into fiery tendrils that burnt through anything that they came into contact with. After a few moments had passed, one of his fireballs had accidentally hit a stack of oil drums off in a corner of the building, causing them to ignite and explode. Grinning widely for having more flames to play with, Dark absorbed them with his Amplify and increased his fire magic even further.

As he began feeling like he could burn down this entire building made of metal, Dark heard the sound of a very loud and big engine starting up. Looking over to his right, he saw the monstrous vehicle being driven out from under the tarp that had covered it. While he'd only seen a picture of one, he still recognized it from its large metal body, treads, and most noticeably, the large cannon on top of it.

Huh, that looks like one of those tanks from that history book that Sunset and I studied for that test on the second world war, Dark thought before noticing that the cannon was aimed directly for him.

Eyes widening in what was about to happen, Dark used the shadows covering him to make himself intangible like when Shining Armor leaped over the table to attack him. And while it did look weird as the massive round passed through him, Dark was pretty sure that if he weren't like that, that the sound of the cannon fire might've blown-out his eardrums. Seeing as how most of the building was on fire, and that most of the gang members had been burnt to a crisp by now, this tank became the biggest threat to Dark.

Using his fiery tendrils, Dark launched them to strike at the tank. However, to his surprise, his tendrils didn't penetrate the tough, thick metal plating. Holding a claw out, Dark created another Fire Orb and fired all of his Explosive Fire Needles out at it. But once the explosions died down, the tank remained, its damage being only a few burn marks.

Damn it, it's almost like its fireproof! Dark mentally cursed. Gah! If only I knew how to use the Flare, then I could easily take it out... actually.

Figuring why not, Dark got down to all fours. Digging his feet down into the ground against the side of the crater, he then firmly planted his claws into the ground to help anchor him in place for the possible recoil. With him firmly secured, Dark began to slowly and deeply draw in his breath. As he did, he focused on the Flare, and soon noticed a ball of flame beginning to form just in front of his maw. As he continued to draw in breath, the larger the orb became. Feeling as though he reached his limit, Dark released all of the air in his lungs in one push while also adding his fire breath to it. Unfortunately though, like all his attempts before now, instead of firing a beam of fire from his maw, the spell instead blew-up in his face, causing his head to whiplash from the explosive shockwave and tossing him onto his back.

"Ooouuuuch," he groaned. "That hurt."

Slowly getting back onto his feet, Dark saw that the tank hadn't moved at all, but noticed a crater just above where his head was. Looking between it and the tank, Dark saw that the end of the barrel had some smoke coming out of it.

It maybe tough, but surely it's not as fire resistant as a dragon is, he thought, causing him to have another idea. Okay then. If I can't penetrate its metallic armor plating, then perhaps I can melt it instead. But first...

Channeling his dark magic through his arms, Dark focused on the shadow beneath the tank. Reaching his magic out, he felt the shadows beneath it and manipulated it into a Shadow Spike, launching it up against the underside of the tank. But despite it not penetrating it, Dark continued to focus on it as he created a few more of them and continued to push up on them. Soon enough, the growing Shadow Spikes began to lift the tank off of one of its treads before toppling it over and spinning it around so that the cannon facing away from him. With it immobilized and him no longer looking down its barrel, Dark went onto his next step.

Closing his eyes and holding his claws out, Dark focused his Amplified fire magic onto the flames surrounding him as he began to manipulate them. It started out slow, but over time the speed of the flames rotating around him began to quicken. Pouring more magic into the flames, Dark hastened the speed of the rotation until he could feel the wind starting to pick up around him, causing his waist cape and jacket to flap in the fiery wind.

Peeking an eye open just a crack, Dark could see the ground around his feet starting to glow red from the heat while the ground directly below the flames had started to melt. Feeling completely in control of the flames, Dark began to spread them out while also raising them higher towards the roof. While focusing on controlling the flaming vortex, he was unable to see the damage that he was causing on the outside of it as the metal support beams and other metallic objects started to melt and bend with the direction of the rotating flames. Then, pushing one last burst of magic into it, the Fire Tornado erupted high above the building, now becoming visible from miles away. With the last of his Amplified magic spent, Dark dispersed the Fire Tornado and took in his surroundings, panting for breath.

Everything around the outside of the fifty foot wide vortex had melted into molten slab while everything else was glowing a hot-red. Looking all around him, Dark saw that most of the building had melted enough from the heat and had twisted around and up with the direction of the flaming vortex. Even the office area off to the side where Inferno had occupied was half-destroyed.

Speaking of Inferno.

Wanting to make sure whether he was there or not, Dark flew up through the area of the office which once held the window and saw the melted body of Inferno. While Dark would've just thought of him as one of his gang members at first, what gave him away was the long, burnt, red coat that he wore when he visited Dark back in the boiler room. Seeing that his job here was done with everything in there destroyed, Dark flew up through the massive hole in the ceiling he'd created and headed back to Canterlot High to report to his friends and return home.

---

Over at Canterlot High, Twilight and Twi were both standing on top of the school rooftops, their clean-up finished just a few minutes ago. Once they were finished on the ground, they were called up to the rooftops when her guards noticed a strange glow coming from the south. After they got up to get a better look, Twilight thanked them for their help and sent them back home through the portal. Looking back to the light, she figured that it was Dark's fire that was causing that glow, though they couldn't see the actual fires.

"How can someone have such power like that?" Twi asked.

"You'd be surprised," Twilight smiled to her. "Did Sunset ever tell you that in our world, the princesses control the sun and the moon?"

"What?!"

"It's true."

"But that's scientifically impossible! No one can do that!"

"Land of magical ponies, remember?" Twilight smirked to her human counterpart.

Twi gave an irritated huff. "I'm beginning to agree with Rainbow on the account that we should really come over to your world, if only to have a look around."

"While I have thought about bringing my friends here for a visit to meet you girls, there could be some... complications."

"Such as?" Sunset asked, walking over to join them on the rooftop.

"Rainbow and Pinkie Pie."

"... okay, that could cause a problem."

"I don't think that it would be all that bad with two Rainbows," Twi commented.

"Maybe not as bad, but just imagine what would happen with two Pinkies being together," Twilight told them, causing them both to shudder.

"Yeaahhh," Sunset slowly said. "Okay then, if we were to have everyone meet, then it should probably be done in Equestria. At least there we'll have our magic to help fix anything that breaks. Dimensional or otherwise."

"Could they really do that?" Twi questioned.

"It's Pinkie Pie," Twilight answered her. "And I've learned that with her, anything can go."

"So then, should we make some plans for a visit?" Sunset asked.

"... I don't see why not. Though I'll have to inform Princess Celestia so she won't freak-out when she hears about duplicates of our friends running around Ponyville. Did you have a day in mind?"

"Hmm. What do you think, Twi?"

"Well, while the closest time would be Christmas break, I think that everyone would rather spend time with their families. So the best time for everyone would have to be Summer Vacation."

"Sure," Twilight agreed. "That'll give me plenty of time to get ready for you girls."

"I must admit," Sunset spoke, "it would be nice to see Equestria again, but as a welcomed visitor this time."

"Yeah. I'm sure that Princess Celestia would be happy to see you again. She looked rather concerned for you when I first returned after the crown incident."

"It will be difficult to see her again after what I did, but... hey, is that Dark?"

Looking over to where Sunset was pointing, Twi and Twilight both saw Dark's draconic wings as he flew closer to them. Backing away to give him some room, the three waited for him to land before they made their way back to him, though with a questioning look on Twilight's face.

"Dark, why is your jacket unzipped?"

"What?" he said defensively. "It was getting warm, and I like the feeling of the wing blowing against my chest. It's strange since I don't have a fur coat anymore."

"Dark, you're half-dragon, so you're immune to fire and high temperatures. Hay, you could even jump in a pool of lava if you wanted to and it wouldn't feel any hotter than bathing in a hot tub for you."

"Huh, neat," Sunset commented. "Guess that explains why Dark isn't burnt to a crisp. And I guess that the enchantment on his clothes are still working too?"

"Yes, but enough about that," Twilight said before looking to Dark. "We better get back home."

"Okay," Dark nodded.

"Why don't we all walk back down. I'd like to say goodbye to the girls before we leave. While Equestria does need you back, I guess it wouldn't hurt to spare a few minutes for saying goodbye to them."

Making their way to the door leading them from the roof, they followed Sunset down the stairs and through the hallways before Twi stopped them.

"Umm, sorry about this, but I need to use the restroom."

"Mind if I come as well?" Twilight asked. "I need to go too."

With a nod from Twi, Twilight followed her into the girl's restroom, leaving Dark and Sunset to stand in the hallway. Walking over to the wall, Dark leaned up against it and silently waited.

"I'm actually a little surprised," Sunset spoke, causing Dark to look over to her. "I would've figured that you'd question why they both had to go at the same time like that."

"As much as I want to," Dark admitted, "it would be best for me if I didn't question what you girls do. I doubt that I would be able to completely understand anyway."

"Heh, smart guy."

A few minutes of talking between the two of them later, Twilight and Twi both stepped out of the girl's bathroom and over to them. Although, Dark noticed that Twilight seemed to be squinting her eyes a little bit.

"You okay, Twilight?" Dark asked with a hint of concern.

"I'm fine," she answered him with a slight blush. "My counterpart was just showing me some perfume and some of it got into my eyes."

"Oh, okay."

Following behind Sunset again, the three followed, though Twilight's eyes caused her to cling onto Dark's wing to help guide her. After finding their friends, Dark and Twilight stood before the statue, looking at their friends, along with the Dazzlings, and Celestia and Luna.

"I'm sorry again for what happened here today," Dark apologized to the two adults.

"We're starting to get used to it," Luna told him. "Although, I do hope that the next one won't involve anymore armed gangs."

"So do I, Luna," Celestia agreed before smiling at the two visitors. "Again, it was good to see you, Princess Twilight."

"Thank you," she replied, gaining a strange look from Dark.

Weird. I thought that Twilight didn't like it when others called her Princess, so what's different here?

"As for you Dark," Celestia continued, gaining his attention.

"Oh, right!" he exclaimed. "The books that you lent me are back at Sunset's house. And speaking of whom..."

Reaching into his Shadow Storage, Dark pulled out his red and gold chest and opening it. Taking out a clawful of bits, Dark sent his chest back into storage before walking over to Sunset.

"Here, hopefully this'll cover my expenses for living with you... and any damages that might've been caused when those guys broke into your house."

Sunset's mouth opened slightly as Dark placed fifteen bits into her hands. "Dark, I can't! It's too much with the exchange rate."

"Sorry, no take backs," he smirked before walking over to Rarity. "As for you, I owe you for that tea, so two bits I suppose would work."

"Please you don't have to- ooh! Is this real gold?" Rarity asked, examining the coin.

"Yep."

"But for a simple package of tea..."

"Hey, it's about what it costs back in Equestria, so it's alright."

"Well... are you sure about this?"

"If I wasn't, then I wouldn't have done it."

"In that case, thank you for this. I'll be sure to use the extra money wisely. Perhaps I'll get some new fabric for my new line of dresses."

Smiling with a little chuckle, Dark was about to wave goodbye to them when he saw Twilight nervously fidgeting around with her hands.

"Is something wrong, Twilight?" he asked, placing a claw on her shoulder, which caused her to jump a little bit. "Okay, what's going on here?"

"Umm... well..." she stammered, trying not to look at him.

Dark was about to question her further when a scent caught his attention. Taking a few sniffs in the air, Dark followed the scent over to Twilight, who looked uncomfortable with him doing so. But, what it was about the scent that caught his attention was that it was lavender, not the combination of lavender and burnt firewood. Giving her an inquisitive look, Dark's nose soon caught another scent, one much more familiar to him. He sniffed in the air and followed the scent until he came face-to-face with Twi.

"Umm," Dark unsurely spoke, looking back between the two. "Why do you have my scent on you and she doesn't?"

This caused her to giggle. "Haven't you figured it out yet, Buba?"

Hearing his old nickname caused Dark to blush. "H-How do you know that name?"

"Because Nocturne showed me you memories, and this nickname from you great grandpa, Pappy, was one of them, Buba."

Dark groaned. "I swear, one of these days we're going to have to sit down and find out just what all that you saw in- wait, Twilight?"

"About time!" The other one said as she walked over to "Twi" and removed her glasses and placed them on herself. "I've been having to walk around half-blind, and let me tell you, you start to get a headache after a while."

"Wait, but what- how-"

"Simple, we switched clothes when we went to use the restroom," the actual Twilight explained.

"Why?"

"I just thought that it would be fun to pull a quick joke on you before we headed back home. Besides, how often is it that you get a chance to do something like this?"

With a groan, Dark lowered his head and began massaging his temples.

"Okay, but while that was clever, I'm still getting a headache from this."

Getting a mischievous idea, Twilight took advantage of Dark's lowered head, and while gently holding him, she quickly nibbled on his ear. Feeing the sudden and familiar sensation, Dark's entire body went ridged, while his wings fluttered.

"Feel better?" she knowingly smirked, causing Dark to slowly nod. "Good. Now then, Twi and I need to go change into our normal clothes, so if you'll excuse us."

As the two walked away, Dark stood unmoving, causing the other to either begin to worry, or start giggling at him.

"Well," Adagio chuckled, "looks like someone enjoyed that. I'll have to remember that for the next time we meet."

"Yeah, good luck with that," Sunset playfully said.

Shaking his head clear, Dark quickly turned around to hide his embarrassing red face. "S-Shut up!"

After ten minutes of waiting, Twilight and Twi came back to them, this time in their proper clothes. But, just to make sure though, Dark sniffed Twilight, making sure that it was actually his Twilight and not another prank of hers.

"Dark, it's really me this time," she giggled.

"Sorry, just wanted to be sure it was you and not another prank," he told her.

"It's alright. Well everyone, it was good to see you all again. I hope that next time we meet will be under better circumstances."

With their goodbyes and waving, Dark and Twilight both turned around to walk back through the portal. However, before Dark could take a step forward towards it, he felt a familiar presence and whirled back around to face it.

"Have you come to face me again, or just to see us off?" Dark asked, looking past the group of friends gathered.

Turning around, the group of friends all saw who Dark was addressing and, with a collection of fearful screams and yelps, they immediately backed away from the one who'd suddenly appeared. Waking up a little closer to him, Dark looked directly into the black hood of Death.

"Just to make sure you're back where you belong," he answered Dark, his haunting voice causing the others to cringe and back away further.

"Incase you didn't notice, I was about to before I sensed your presence," Dark told him.

"I know," Death confirmed before turning his hood over towards Twilight's direction. "I wasn't aware of your presence here, young girl. I suppose that her being within close proximity to you, Dark, Lord of Death, has masked her from my senses."

"It wasn't my intention, but if it'll make you feel better, we'll be returning home now."

Dark turned around and was about to walk away before he was stopped by a skeletal hand on his shoulder.

"Tell me, are you aware of what happens when one of us leaves our world?"

"The spirits of the dead rise, and those who are suppose to die remain as walking corpses."

"And yet knowing this, you're here."

"I was just informed of it not too long ago."

"Tell me, how long have you been doing this job for?"

"A few months, though it seems that there's a lot more to this than what I was told. If you want someone to blame, then blame Nocturne."

"Then a warning from an Incarnation of Death veteran to a rookie: Never leave your world, for without your spirit lingering in it, it'll become a land of undead."

"Noted," Dark said, looking back to him with a smirk. "Thanks for the warning, and I'll be sure to abide by it."

"In that case, I leave you to return home," Death told him as he released Dark's shoulder and looked over to those gathered. "As for the rest of you ladies, I'll see you all... eventually."

With those last words, Death faded from their sights, leaving each of them stunned and worried.

"Well, I guess we better be off," Dark said, snapping them out of their shock.

"B-But, what he said..." Fluttershy stammered.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine."

"But how can you be so sure?" Rarity questioned.

"Because I know that none of you are going to die anytime soon, so don't worry about it."

"And how do you know that?" Aria huffed.

"Just a hunch. Look, I know it's not much to go on, but please trust me when I say that he won't be coming for any of you for a long time. Now, while I do enjoy talking to all of you, I need to get back home."

Giving them their goodbyes again, Dark and Twilight walked back to the portal.

"Hey, Dark?" Twilight called.

"Hmm?"

"What was that look that you gave that guy when he said that your spirit had to say in Equestria?"

Dark smirked. "Remember how my spirit is split into my sword?"

Twilight's eyes widened in realization. "Does this mean-"

"That I can come back here without having another undead incident by leaving my Death Reaver back in Equestria?" Dark finished. "If my guess is correct, then yes. But, I'll need to confirm this with Nocturne first."

"Well, that's good to hear. Here, why don't you go through the portal first?"

"Okay," he shrugged before stepping through the portal without a second thought.

Once he was through, Twilight was about to follow after him, but was stopped when Sunset placed her and on her shoulder.

"Umm, hey, Twilight?"

"Yes?"

"I don't know if I've told you, but when we first found Dark after he came out of the portal, he seemed pretty out of it. Do you know what might've happened to him?"

"Nothing that I can think of," Twilight answered her. "I mean, he does get teleportation sickness, but... wait..."

Realizing what had happened to him, and what's going to happened, Twilight facepalmed.

"Sorry everyone, but I need to go."

With a small sprint, Twilight ran into the portal and soon reappeared back in her castle to see Dark sprawled out on the floor in his kirin form. Walking over to him, Twilight nudged him with a hoof, only to get a dazed groan in response. Smiling at him with an amused giggle, Twilight picked him up in her magic and brought him up to their room for him to rest. Not just from the teleportation sickness from the portal, but also from the day that he had.

With Dark tucked away and asleep, Twilight gently kissed him on the cheek before teleporting herself down to the throne room of her castle and activating the communication crystal to talk to Celestia. A few moments later, the solar princess was looking back at her with a welcoming smile.

"Hello, Twilight," She greeted her.

"Hello, Princess," Twilight returned. "I'm here to tell you that, after a few hiccups, Dark has returned home and is now resting."

"I'm very glad and relieved to hear that. Plus, that would also confirm the reports that I've been receiving."

"What reports?"

"During the last few minutes, I've been receiving reports that the walking dead have started to literally, as they say, 'drop dead'."

"That's... good?" Twilight unsurely said.

"It's alright, I understand what you mean, Twilight."

"Thank you, Princess," she smiled before turning to a serious frown. "Now then, what are we going to do about Blueblood?"

Comments

[Mkchief34]

That. Was. EPIC!

[Rammy]

7047385 nah more like

[Lady Lightning Strike]

I pity blue blood. He's had to face an angry Twilight once already.

[Titan Commander Sebaste]

Holy throne, that was incredible and intense! Worthy of Michael Bay!

[EmberLight]

The incarnation of life contains the lives of those yet to be born, the spirit of death contains all who have died... There is another spirit, one that has mastery over all living things... At least that is what I would guess. Anyway another great chapter!

[Garuda IV]

7047385 Thanks. Btw, nice new profile pic. Gonna miss the old Snivy one.

7047423 Lol. I miss the Incredibles. Wish they would've made a second.

7047456 And now he'll have to face an angry Dark.

7047733 Thank you.

7048581 Thanks. Also, as for your guess, you'll just have to wait and find out.

[Mkchief34]

7048790 Technically, that Pokemon was Servine, Snivy's first evolved form. (Yes, I'm kind of a nerd when It comes to things like that, but this time, its okay.) So, yeah. As I said, great story!

[Kingmoonwar19]

More PLZ more ps for me it's 2:53 am

[Skoll]

if human twilight went to equestria, would she be an alicorn or a unicorn?

[Garuda IV]

7163710 Due to her transformation in The Friendship Games, I'm currently going with alicorn. However, that chapter won't be out for a while, so I'm open for suggestions on which of the two she should be.

[Truthseeker]

What to do about Blueblood? *vengeful snicker* I think we should ask Discord.

[Cosmic Flare]

I was thinking that Twi made a little request of Twilight, and get a sweet kiss from Darky. And with sci-Twi head over heels for him like Twilight, when she comes over and all three will have some really good fun time.

As sweet Lulu Say's, "THE FUN AS BEEN DOUBLED."

Two Twilights, one on each side of him lean in for suggeles. Reading books and relaxing by the fire, with his moms special coco drink. I can see happening, and it will be so cute to see.

[RegalCrescent45]

7483456 re reading and i can think of a few things to do to him... the first things i thought of was hanging him by his dick in the middle of Canterlot... what does that say about me?

[XerainTheBountyHunter]

7768971 First, a decent sense of humor. Second, you really want him to suffer.

I too want him to suffer.

[Void_Walker81]

7768971
I know i am a year late but i think we should ask Nocturne, he is the lord of Death so he knows ways to keep a pony alive.....just barely! hehehehehe

[Icy Creation]

I'm pretty good at thinking of ways to torture people too.

That is probably not something I should be proud of.

[Bronyshot]

I just realized he never used the RPGs he stored away(sry if that causes problems)

[Gboyd]

9898884
Hey, at least you're... creative?

[AstralFlare42]

"Thank you, Princess," she smiled before turning to a serious frown. "Now then, what are we going to do about Blueblood?"

Nothing. I feel that he's already dead.