The Order of the Celestial Sun

by Blade Trail

Father Fire, The Ascendant

Contrary to what their name implied, the Smokey Mountains were not, in fact, surrounded by smoke. They were instead surrounded by a near perpetual mist. It would perhaps be more apt to label them the Misty Mountains, and indeed, the explorer who discovered them had initially planned to do just that, but his application for the name had been denied. Apparently, that name had already been taken. So he went ahead and submitted the name he considered to be the next best thing to the Misty Mountains: the Smoky Mountains. Of course, it was just his luck that that name had been taken as well. Unwilling to compromise any further, he simply changed the spelling of ‘smoky’ to the archaic ‘smokey’ and called it a day.

General Grey Stone had known all of that going into this adventure, of course, but he still found the lack of smoke mildly irritating. It seemed dishonest. As if the entire mountain range was misrepresenting itself in some grand act of conceit. Deep down, Stone knew this was ridiculous - and also that mist was exponentially better for the environment than smoke - but it did not change his feelings on the matter. Not that any of this showed on his face, which remained as passive as ever as Princess Celestia led the group consisting of himself, General Firefly, Archmage Caduceus, Jack Fruit, Cross Roads, and Packed Lunch up the path to the Order of the Celestial Sun’s headquarters that evening.

“You know, that Stone guy’s expression reminds me a little of you, Cross,” Jack said.

“What?” Cross asked.

“Yeah, don’t you remember? You had that exact same expression pretty much all the time back in high school,” Jack said.

“Except for lunchtime,” Pack added.

“I did?” Cross asked again.

“Yeah. You always looked like you hated everything,” Jack said.

“That’s not how I would put it,” Pack said. “It was more like you didn’t care about anything. Like you wouldn’t give two bucks if a bomb went off during a school assembly and killed a hundred ponies as long as it meant you could go home again.”

“Yeah, that sounds about right,” Cross said.

“What? Seriously?” Firefly asked, joining the conversation. “You hated school that much?”

“Must’ve been terrible at it,” Caduceus murmured.

Pack heard him. “You’d think so, but no. Cross here was a star student. Always near the top of the class. Got a few awards during graduation and everything.”

Cross groaned. “Don’t remind me.”

“Why not?” Firefly asked. “Seems like something to be proud of! Like getting a medal...or getting promoted to Captain! Right, Jack?”

“Damn right!” Jack said.

“Up top!” Firefly called, extending a hoof. Jack flew up and bumped his hoof against hers enthusiastically.

“Man, I still vividly remember the taste of all that sweet booze from the promotion party,” Jack said with a distant look.

“I can’t remember anything from the promotion party!” Firefly said.

“I remember that you weren’t invited,” Caduceus said. “But you showed up anyway because you wanted to meet the heroes of Baltimare.”

“So did all of you! Even Stone showed up!” Firefly countered.

Stone chimed in for the first time. “I would like to point out, Captain Jack, that none of the booze at that party was sweet. It was all fairly bitter, if memory serves.”

“Ah, just hearing it makes me feel good,” Jack said with a small shiver of pleasure. “Captain Jack. It sounds...right, you know?”

“Sounds like a pirate, actually,” Cross said. “And given your affinity for rum, I guess that’s not too far off.”

“I would never raid innocent ponies for bits!” Jack scoffed. He would have joined along with the pirate jokes, but as he was in the presence of two generals, the Archmage of Equestria, and Princess Celestia herself, it just didn’t seem appropriate. “It’s Pack you should watch out for. He’s the one that works for money.”

“I’d take offense at that if it wasn’t true,” Pack said. “Heck, I wouldn’t be here now if I wasn’t getting paid.”

“Where does all that money go, anyway?” Jack asked. “I mean you don’t seem much richer than Cross, and he’s about as broke as a pony can get!”

“Hey!” Cross reacted.

“I’ll never tell,” Pack replied. “But I will say that I still don’t have enough.”

Princess Celestia spoke up. “We have arrived, my little ponies.”

Everypony stopped and examined their surroundings. The mountain path they were on ended abruptly at a large steel gate. On the other side of the gate, there was a large mansion of stone built into the side of the mountain. The Smokey Mountains’ characteristic mist blanketed the area, and, combined with the pale evening moonlight, gave the place a foreboding appearance.

Cross let out a low whistle.

“Well that doesn’t look like an evil lair at all,” Pack commented sarcastically.

“I’m glad we came armed,” Jack said.

The rest of the party said nothing, but they agreed with the three ponies’ sentiments. At that moment, everypony made a quick check of their equipment.

General Stone, as always, wore his full suit of unadorned steel plate armor. A steel shield was strapped to his left forehoof and a round-headed mace hung from his belt.

General Firefly and Captain Jack both wore standard-issue Equestrian pegasus combat armor. But where Jack carried a bow, Firefly had a set of hoof-mounted blades.

Both Cross and Pack were equipped in the same way they had been during the Battle of Baltimare - Cross with his black coat and longsword, and Pack with his mismatched armor pieces, hoof-mounted crossbow, and short sword.

Archmage Caduceus the Magnificent carried no weapons with him but his mind, and wore no armor but his robes. Both, however, were loaded with enough spells and enchantments to battle an army of ponies, or stop a rampaging dragon. For a little while, at least.

Lastly, Princess Celestia wore her ornate set of golden armor. After being reminded of its flaws during the Battle of Baltimare, she had made adjustments - both magical and mundane - to the ancient suit, bringing it up to the standards of the current era. It no longer inhibited her movement and she was now able to channel her own magic through the armor and into her body, as opposed to having it block all enchantments as it did before. Of weapons, she had none, for none were needed.

Before anypony could ask how they were supposed to get in, the doors of the mansion opened and an unassuming red Unicorn with greying hair dressed in white robes stepped out to meet them. He opened the gates with his magic and bowed low.

“Welcome, oh Glorious Goddess of Light!” he said to Celestia. He rose and nodded to the ponies behind Celestia. “And welcome to you as well, fellow servants of the sun. It is an honor to have you all here at our humble abode.”

Celestia spoke, taking the lead. “It is a pleasure to finally be here. You must be Father Fire, correct?”

Fire smiled. “As astute as you are wise, my lady. I am indeed the one known as Father Fire, but please, just Fire will suffice.” He chuckled lightly. “I am hardly a father to you, after all. Ah, forgive me. We should be conversing inside. Follow me, please.”

Fire walked back towards the mansion, and the rest of the ponies followed him.

“How did you come by the moniker of father, anyway, Fire?” Celestia asked as they walked.

“It was something of an accident, actually,” Fire replied. “All the members of the Order were once lost or abandoned ponies. Ponies on the brink of death or despair. It was I who found them and pulled each of them back into the light. I cared for them like I would my own children, and taught them to give proper worship to you and to regard each other as brothers and sisters in your service. It took them quite a while to take to it, but as soon as they did, they started calling me father as well. Even Burn, and he is older than me!”

Fire laughed. It was a light, infectious thing. The kind of laugh that belonged to a pony who could do no harm - a pony who cared. It was a very clever lie. Celestia wondered how long he had practiced it.

“As embarrassing as the moniker was, it stuck, and so now here I am, as Father Fire. Coincidentally, here we are, at the dining hall,” he said.

The party had walked into the mansion and through a few sets of doors as Fire spoke. They now stood before a large set of double doors which Fire opened to reveal a long room with an almost equally long wooden table at its center. The room was in the part of the mansion built into the mountain, and was surrounded by carved stone walls with no windows. Several large, sun-themed torches hung from its high stone ceiling, bathing the room in a warm, cozy light. The table was already set with a great feast’s worth of foods along its entire length.

Celestia remembered the letter Fire had sent the moon before and how it had claimed that the Order’s ‘humble home’ would only be able to entertain so many.

‘So many’ indeed, Celestia thought.

“I hope you do not mind, but we have taken the liberty of setting the table beforehoof,” Fire said. “We do not have any servants here, you see, and bringing out this much food as we all settled to eat would have taken far too long. I assure you, however, that it is all quite fresh. Sister Scorch only just finished preparing these delights a short time before you arrived.”

At the mention of Scorch preparing meals, Caduceus’ stomach turned. He still remembered how the last meal she had prepared turned out for those unfortunate enough to have eaten it. He glanced at Celestia. She returned his glance and gave a slight nod indicating that she understood. The entire group had already been warned about Scorch’s actions on the Saddle Arabian ship as part of their briefings on the Order's members. Each of them knew that this was no mere cordial visit, and they were all prepared to fight should the need arise.

“Where are the other members of the Order?” Celestia asked.

“Completing their evening prayers,” Fire replied. “They will be along shortly. In the meantime, might I suggest you all take your seats? There are many of them, but we do not have any designated seating arrangement, so you may sit wherever you please.”

After a moment of hesitation, everypony began moving towards the table. When Celestia moved, however, Fire raised up a hoof to stop her.

“Forgive me, Great One, but we have prepared a separate dinner for you and myself,” Fire said. “As You have no doubt guessed, I had hoped that this was to be more than a simple breaking of bread between us. There were some matters - matters of no small import - that I wished to discuss with you. With no disrespect to your companions, I feel that it would be best if we discussed these matters in private.”

General Stone overheard Fire talking and felt the urge to draw his mace and smash the pretentious unicorn’s face in right then and there. However, he restrained himself. There was no doubt that Fire was plotting something, but it was not his place to decide how this evening would play out.

So it begins, Celestia thought to herself. Aloud, she said, “Very well then, Fire. I shall hear what you have to say. Lead on.”

Fire led Celestia out of the room and shut the doors behind him, leaving the rest of the party in the dining hall. The ponies all chose to take seats next to each other along one side of the long table. None of them, however, touched the food, and it was not simply out of respect for their hosts.

“So are they expecting us to just kill ourselves by eating poisoned food?” Jack asked. “That seems...pretty weak.”

“Too obvious by far,” Stone said.

“Yeah, they’ve probably got something else cooked up. Figuratively, I mean,” Firefly said. “What do you think, Caduceus?”

Caduceus’ horn pulsed several times. When it stopped glowing, he said, “The food isn’t poisoned, at least not in any manner that I can detect, so yes, they most definitely have something else planned.”

“So you mean it’s safe to eat this stuff?” Pack asked.

Caduceus shrugged. “As far as I can tell, but nothing’s ever one hundred percent. There’s still the remote chance that...”

Caduceus trailed off as he noticed that Pack was already eating some of the food on the table. There were a few tense moments as everypony on the table waited for something to happen. Nothing did. Pack reached over to get more food.

“Well I’m not dead,” Pack pointed out before popping another morsel in his mouth. “And this stuff is actually pretty good.”

“Thanks! It’s so nice to hear that my cooking’s being appreciated!” Scorch said merrily.

Caduceus’ entire body tensed and he looked to where Scorch’s voice had come from. Scorch was casually walking towards the table from a small side entrance. She locked eyes with Caduceus and gave a big, friendly smile.

“Hi there, Archmage!” she said. “I see you made it off of that awful boat after all!”

“Yes,” Caduceus said in a low tone. “I did.”

Scorch turned to the other ponies at the table. “And hello there, everypony else! I already know who you all are, and you probably already know who I am, but just in case you don’t, I’m Sister Scorch. Let me just say that it is such an absolute joy to have you all here tonight!”

With that, she sat down across from Pack and began piling her plate high with various food items. “No need to hold back!” she told the other ponies. “There’s plenty for everypony! And don’t worry about waiting for the others. They’re already here!”

Heads turned to see the other members of the Order entering from the same side entrance Scorch had used. Blaze walked in silence and sat down opposite Stone. Singe fluttered to the seat opposite Caduceus and pointedly refused to meet Firefly’s gaze. Burn smiled warmly and sat opposite Cross.

Caduceus noted that each of the Order’s members was armed and armored in their own way. Blaze was in full plate armor of white and gold and had a gladius hanging from his belt. Singe was wearing red and gold leather armor and had a white spear across her back. Burn wore a single greave on his left hoof, and carried his massive battleaxe with him. Scorch alone appeared to be wearing nothing, but Caduceus knew that she was hiding those deadly magical runes somewhere on her body.

So heavily armed and armored just to eat diner? Doubtful, Caduceus thought, mentally steeling himself for whatever was to come.

“Ahhh, my friends! It is so good to see you again!” Burn boomed.

Burn seems genuinely friendly. Then again, so does Scorch, most of the time, Caduceus thought. He remembered his words to Garden: ponies’ personalities are often not accurate representations of their capabilities.

“I knew you weren’t dead,” Cross said to Burn with a smile. He turned to Pack and Jack. “Pay up!”

“I never agreed to that bet,” Pack said.

“Hey, you’re getting paid just to be here,” Jack pointed out. “Don’t push your luck.”

Unable to keep her silence any longer, Firefly flew up over the table and hovered in front of Singe.

“Singe, it’s me, Firefly,” she said. “I know you know it’s me.”

Singe did not reply. Even with Firefly hovering directly in front of her, she refused to look at her former friend. Instead, she reached for some food and began to eat in silence.

“Don’t ignore me!” Firefly demanded.

Singe continued to ignore her.

“Singe!” Firefly said loudly. She hesitated, then lowered her voice and softened her expression. “I...I’m not mad, okay? I just...wanna talk. Please, Singe. We need to talk.”

Singe looked up at Firefly, her expression one of disdain. “The pony you think you are talking to is dead. She died in the badlands, abandoned and alone. And that pony’s only friend? She was cast aside like the useless, uncaring, selfish witch that she was. So, no, we don’t need to talk. We have never even met, General Firefly.”

Firefly was visibly taken aback. “Singe I...I…” She tried to find the right words to say, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t bring herself to give up on her friend either, though, so she stayed there, hovering over Singe with a sorrowful look on her face.

The table was silent as everypony looked at the two former friends and waited for something to happen. Everypony except for Blaze and Stone, who were currently staring intently at one another through their helmets. Each armored Earth Pony was sizing up the other, silently analyzing and judging every aspect that they could discern. Both were equally unimpressed.

After a few more moments of tense silence, Burn leaned back in his chair and shook his head. “You could cut the tension in here with a spoon!”

“I know, right?” Scorch said in her usual chipper tone. “Isn’t it great?”

“You would think so, wouldn’t you, you psychotic murderer?” Caduceus said dryly.

Scorch smiled widely and fluttered her eyelids at Caduceus. “Oh, Ducie, you know me so well!”

Caduceus’ eye twitched.

Pack let out an exasperated sigh. “Look, clearly some ponies here have some history with each other. Maybe we should all just step out and work through our differences individually and, preferably, diplomatically?”

No one reacted to Pack’s suggestion.

Cross let the silence hang in the air for a little while longer before breaking it. “Or, you know, we could just start killing each other right now, and save us all some time.”

All eyes then turned to Cross.

Cross shrugged. “What? We all know that’s what it’s going to come down to eventually, right?”

Jack shook his head. “Damn it, Cross! We talked about this!”

~~~~~

Celestia sat seated across a small table from Fire in a much smaller, mostly empty room. Despite Fire’s earlier words, they had yet to discuss anything of importance, and had instead passed the time exchanging meaningless pleasantries as they ate.

“Equestria is such a beautiful country, wouldn’t you agree?” Fire asked as he cut an apple.

“Yes, quite,” Celestia agreed. She had yet to figure out what Fire’s game was, so she forced herself to continue playing along. “This land is rich in many ways.”

Fire smiled. “Very true. But the richness of the land stems from the diligence of the ponies that keep it. And the diligence of the ponies is a credit to the princess that watches over them.”

We have already discussed the weather, our attire, and the food before us. Each time he has turned it into some compliment to me and then moved on to another topic, Celestia thought to herself. This is going nowhere. It is time to make a move.

“I am glad you see it that way, Fire,” Celestia said. “But I must confess that I have found that task to be more difficult of late.”

Fire raised an eyebrow. “Oh? What is it that troubles you, Princess? Tell me, and perhaps there is something that we of the Order, your faithful servants, may do to aid you.”

“I am sure that there is,” Celestia said. “For the actions of the Order itself are what trouble me.”

“Oh my,” Fire said, though he seemed largely unperturbed. “Then I beg you for your forgiveness, Princess. But pray, tell me, how have we wronged you? We have only ever acted in the best interests of Equestria.”

“I am merciful, Fire, but in this case, my mercy must be earned,” Celestia said, adopting some of the god-like authority that Fire seemed to eager to push upon her. “Your Order’s actions have endangered Equestria and brought us to the brink of war. In the deserts to the East, the Royals of Saddle Arabia are outraged at the assassination of their youngest prince, and in the Dragon Lands, the elders roar in rage at their Dragon Lord over the Dragoness of the Everfree’s demise. Both groups cry out for vengeance, for retribution. They demand blood in payment for blood. The heads of your knights in exchange for the deaths of their kin. That, or war between our nations. Tell me, Fire, were you in my place, what would you do?”

For only a moment, irritation flashed across Fire’s features. When he spoke, his face was once more serene, “You honor me, Princess, by asking my opinion. In truth, however, I do not see the cause of your distress. What difference does it make if we cleanse our lands of these lesser creatures?

“The dragons, for all their treasures and their pride, are nothing more than overgrown worms. Parasites feeding off of the life of more productive beings. Every one of Equestria's Earth Ponies accomplish more in their short lives than any dragon ever has in all of the thousands of years that they live through.

“And the Saddle Arabians? To call them ponies is an insult to us all. They have no magic, no flight, and no destiny. They are waifs puffing out their chests in false bravado. Never have they grown a seed or moved a cloud or refined the arts - all that they have is cleverly stolen or crudely copied. All that they are is scum upon this earth.

“You wish to know what I would do in your place, Princess? Simple, I would destroy them all. Not even for their myriad faults, but only for the mere suggestion that one of their own, or even a thousand of their own, would equal the life of a single Equestrian pony.”

Celestia was stunned. Not just by what Fire had said, but also by how he had said it. What he suggested was genocide - an indiscriminate ethnic cleansing of two of the world’s oldest races - and yet he spoke of it with the same calm casualness that one might speak of the time of day.

“Do you truly believe that?” Celestia asked.

Fire ate a little bit more before he replied. “You should try the muffins, Princess, they are almost as divine as yourself. Sister Scorch has truly outdone herself this night. And yes, of course I believe it. Because it is true.

“I love the ponies of the land, my lady. In my long life, I have traveled the length and breadth of the known world and have found none that are their equal. Just look to the wonders that they have accomplished in our land. Where else in the world have the forces of nature been brought to heel? Where else in the world does the storm bend to a guiding hoof? Or the land undergo a season’s worth of growth in a day? Or reality itself shift to do so little as lift a pony’s teacup? Only in Equestria are these things true because only Equestrian ponies can make them true.”

Celestia had had enough of dancing around the issue. She would not play along with this madness any further. “Why have you brought me here, Fire?” she asked directly.

Fire sighed and levitated his utensils back onto the table. He wiped his mouth with a napkin then said, “I had hoped our dinner would last a little longer, Celestia. I find that I do honestly enjoy your company. Quite surprising. I was not expecting to.”

“I’m afraid I cannot say the same for you,” Celestia said coldly. “Now, speak.”

“As you wish, Your Highness,” Fire said. “But first, let me ask you this: do you know what it means to be a god?”

Celestia stared intently at Fire, but did not reply.

Undeterred, Fire continued speaking. “Many ponies would say that to be a god is to be an all-powerful force. That a god must bear divine, ineffable will and speak words both beautiful and true. But they are wrong. Gods do not need strength. They do not need will. They do not need words. Those things are the realm of the servants and the prophets - all those who act in a god’s name - not the god itself.

“The purpose of a god, Princess, is simple: to be the foundation of faith. For faith is what all creatures need to thrive. Faith grants purpose. It grants hope. In a pony’s darkest hour, what is it that lights the way? When a pony is crushed by the weight of failure, what is it that lifts him back up again? His god? No! His god does nothing. Says nothing. Is nothing. It is his faith in that god, that allows him to see himself through. In this way, Faith is the most precious and the most powerful resource, as well as the most resilient. You can take a pony’s life, his livelihood, his very sanity...but so long as he knows the name of his god, you cannot take his faith.”

“Where are you going with this?” Celestia asked.

“Dearest Celestia, you are as blind as I once was,” Fire said. “I have told you of my love for the ponies of this land. Of all that those ponies can do. With all of their gifts, I ask you, do these ponies need a god? No, of course not. For what could a god do for them that they could not already do for themselves? Think on it. You will find that the answer is clearly nothing. Nothing at all. What they need, Celestia, the one thing that they, in all of their brilliance, still lack, is faith.

“The one flaw of Equestrian ponies, the one thing keeping them from attaining perfection, is that they do not, as a race, believe in their own superiority. They do not see it! They have bound themselves to the creed of harmony, of tolerance, and bent to the wills of lesser species! And what is the reward for their tolerance? Treachery and betrayal! By treating these lowly creatures as equals, we have encouraged them to fool themselves into thinking that they actually are. Why else would they dare to do what they do? To argue and bargain and make war with their betters?

“For years, I asked myself, as you no doubt do, how? How could this happen to these Equestrians? How could these magnificent creatures allow themselves to suffer such travesties? But now I understand it all in full. If the ponies of Equestria are to rise up and take their rightful place as the rulers and masters of this world, they must first have faith. Unfortunately, for them to have faith, they must first have a god. For to return to my original question, that is what it means to be a god. A god is a symbol, nothing more. And the best symbols do not speak, but are interpreted. These interpreters must be as farmers tending the crop, planting the seed so that it will flourish, and uprooting the weeds of doubt that would stunt the growth of the harvest. They must be as my Order: enduring, quick, strong, clever, wise, and above all, faithful.

“But of course, one cannot simply make a god. No, a god must be known. Must be loved. Must be trusted and perceived to have all the qualities that the interpreters will one day have. But beyond that? A god needs nothing more. For to have more is to have flaws, and to be flawed is to undermine the faith. And so, while a god must at one point live, so too must they inevitably die.

“Have you figured it out yet, Celestia? Why I have brought you here? If not, then let me make it plain: I have brought you here because I need a god. And as of now, you are only halfway there.”

“You’re insane!” Celestia exclaimed, rising to her hooves.

Fire smiled. “Yes, and you are blind! Thus, together we are perfect for this duty. For in an hour of darkness, what better an idol than the blind mare? And in this age of insanity, where such scum as griffons and yaks and Saddle Arabians dare to rise up against the masters of the world, who better than a pony touched by madness to show the way?”

“I have heard enough,” Celestia said, her horn glowing. “Your mad scheme ends here, Fire. Surrender now or I will be forced to bring you down.”

“Surrender?” Fire asked. He laughed and then said, “My dear goddess, I would never do such a thing. For I am a pony of faith.”

Celestia shot a beam from her horn towards Fire. Fire shielded himself against it, then countered with a blast of flame. Celestia easily blocked the attack, but the fire from the blast spread throughout the room around her. Although the heat did not bother her, the smoke got in her eyes and lungs. By the time Celestia had cleared it the smoke with her magic, Fire was gone. Celestia left the burning room and ran back towards the dinning hall.

What have I gotten my ponies into? she asked herself.

~~~~~

Despite Cross’ suggestion, nopony attacked.

Burn looked seriously at Cross. “Friend, you cannot mean what you say. We are, all of us, brothers and sisters in Celestia’s service. Yes, we have our differences, and even our fights, but it is unseemly to suggest that we would ever resort to killing each other out of spite. That would be a betrayal of all that Celestia stands for.”

“Unless, of course, somepony betrays Celestia first,” Scorch said darkly. “Then no pain shall be to great, and no retribution too extreme.”

Stone spoke, “You do not find it at all ironic that in the performance of your so-called duties, you perform acts abhorrent to the Princess who’s will you claim to serve?”

“We spread Celestia’s righteousness through the application of extreme martial violence,” Blaze said. “The servants of the darkness understand no other communication.”

“That is your excuse?” Caduceus scoffed. “That has to be one of the stupidest justifications I have ever heard in my life!”

“Zeal is its own excuse,” Blaze said.

“Hey, dude, do you have a booklet of these lines lying around somewhere, or are you just making them up as you go along?” Jack asked.

“Do not insult Brother Blaze!” Singe said loudly. “He is the most worthy of us all!”

“More like the most crazy,” Firefly said.

Singe glared at Firefly. “You would never understand Celestia’s salvation, for you have never known despair.”

“Not even close to true,” Firefly scoffed. “Get off your high cloud and open your eyes. And not understand Celestia’s salvation? What the hay are you even on about? I work for Celestia! I see her almost every day!”

“You stand so close to the sun that you are blinded by it!” Singe accused.

Firefly landed on the table and looked Singe in the eye. “Alright, I’ve had just about enough of your -”

The door to the dining hall burst open, and Fire staggered in. His robes were torn and singed at the edges, and he coughed smoke before collapsing on the ground.

“Father Fire!” all of the members of the Order shouted at once. They rushed to Fire’s side. Scorch pushed her way forward, her usual smile replaced with genuine concern, and tried to determine the extent of Fire’s injuries, but Fire pushed her away.

“There is no time, my children,” he said weakly. “You must prepare...the Night Mare has returned! She struck down Our Lady, and now comes for us all!”

The members of the Order gasped, but their surprise quickly gave way to resolution. As one, they lifted Fire onto the table and then formed up in front of the doorway.

“A great evil comes, but we will throw it back!” Burn boomed. He turned to the ponies still seated at the table. “Come, my friends, JOIN ME IN GLORY ONCE AGAIN!”

The rest of the Order’s members turned as well.

“He who stands with me shall be my brother,” Blaze said.

“Even together, we are weak compared to the strength of the foe,” Singe said. “But we are servants of Celestia, and we will crush our weakness with the weight of our pride.”

“Though all of us may die, only cowards die in shame,” Scorch said.

Stone was the first to act. He stood and drew his mace. “It is my duty to protect Celestia. Any that would harm her must answer to me.”

“And me!” Firefly said.

“I doubt this is true, but there’s only one way to find out,” Caduceus said, also rising.

Cross looked to his friends and gave them an eager smile. “So, guys, up for killing a god tonight?”

Jack shrugged. “As long as it’s not our god.”

“I’m charging extra for this,” Pack said.

The ponies formed up next to the Order’s knights. Both groups faced the door and waited, weapons drawn. The sound of running hooves came from the hallway, and soon a tall, dark mare came into view. A mare that was easily recognizable from the stories. Nightmare Moon.

Nightmare Moon entered the dining hall and stopped before the armed ponies. “What is the meaning of this?” she asked?

“WAIT!” Caduceus shouted. His companions did not move, but the members of the Order charged without hesitation.

Why do I keep thinking that shouting 'wait' will work? Caduceus thought to himself.

Nightmare Moon cast a golden barrier around herself and the members of the Order were briefly blown back.

“That voice...that magic,” Stone said.

“It’s Celestia!” Firefly yelled.

Caduceus identified the illusion spell, and cast a spell to counter it. The image of Nightmare Moon faded away, and in her place stood a very angry Princess Celestia.

“It’s a trick!” Fire shouted immediately. “Do not be deceived! They are agents of the Night Mare!”

“No mercy for the traitors!” Blaze cried out, changing the direction of his attack and charging towards Stone.

“Dark magic and foul illusions!” Burn yelled. He leapt upwards, ready to bring his axe down. “Fight hoof-to-hoof, you cowards!”

“Sisters! Do not lose sight of the true enemy!” Fire exclaimed. He rose from the table and joined Singe and Scorch. “I shall fight with you!”

“Yes, Father!” they replied.

~~~~~

Stone intercepted Blaze’s charge with a shield bash. Blaze absorbed the hit and punched Stone’s helmeted head with his armored hoof. Stone recoiled and Blaze moved forward to slash with his gladius. Stone brought up his shield in time to block the blow and countered with an upward swing of his mace. Blaze rolled away from the blow and suddenly switched targets, bucking Caduceus in the chest as he was about to cast a spell.

The air around Caduceus seemed to shatter as the invisible barrier around his robes broke from the lethal force of the blow. Though he was not harmed by the buck itself, Caduceus was sent flying and crashed onto the table, scattering food and silverware every which way.

Before Caduceus even landed, Blaze returned his attention to Stone and parried the general’s mace with his gladius. The two Earth Ponies traded blow after blow until Stone was able to use his shield to deflect Blaze’s gladius and counter with a solid mace blow to the knight’s shoulder.

The knight staggered, but recovered before Stone could press his advantage and rolled away. “Burn!” he called out.

~~~~~

“Dark magic and foul illusions!” Burn yelled. He leapt upwards, ready to bring his axe down. “Fight hoof-to-hoof, you cowards!”

Burn brought his axe crashing down on Cross’ position, but Cross dived to safety. Pack fired his crossbow from Burn’s left and Jack fired his bow from Burn’s right. Burn leapt upwards again, avoiding both shots. Jack followed suit.

Jack fired arrow after arrow at Burn while he was in mid air. Burn activated his red shield and blocked every shot. Jack tried to maneuver around Burn, but Burn slammed his shield into Jack, sending him spinning out of control.

A crossbow bolt slammed into Burn’s side and he cried out - more in anger than in pain.

“Got him!” Pack said, lowering his crossbow.

“It will take more than that to stop me!” Burn shouted.

“Nah, you just pissed him off,” Cross commented from beside Pack.

Burn dived straight down towards the two, axe held high.

Cross and Pack dived in opposite directions, and Burn slammed into the floor where they were, cracking the stone with the sheer force of his landing. Cross and Pack attacked immediately after.

“Your mother’s a whore!” Cross said as he slashed high.

“Your wife’s a colt!” Pack said as he slashed low.

Burn took the injuries without flinching and tried to use the opportunity to cleave both ponies, but Jack intervened.

“Your sister’s both!” Jack cried as crashed into Burn’s back and restrained Burn’s hooves.

Burn dropped his axe and rolled, in an attempt to both crush Jack and escape Cross and Pack. Jack leapt off at the last moment and quickly fired another arrow. Burn’s shield was up faster.

“Burn!” Blaze called out.

Blaze slammed into Pack from behind, thrusting with his gladius as he did so. Pack went down, but his armor deflected the hasty thrust. Cross and Jack moved to assist. With his opponents distracted, Burn charged, shield first. Jack was knocked aside again and crashed to the floor. Cross was knocked down and nearly trampled by Burn’s hooves, but he managed to bring his sword up in a stop thrust in time. Burn flapped his wings to stop himself from being impaled and sailed over Cross towards Stone.

Half of the dining table was destroyed in a fiery explosion.

~~~~~

Fire shot a beam of energy at Celestia. Celestia conjured a shield to block it. Singe shot up and around the shield, and thrust her flaming spear at Celestia’s back. Firefly zoomed in, knocked the spear aside with her hoof blades, then kicked at Singe.

Singe darted back. She narrowed her eyes at Firefly then darted behind her with three bursts of speed - first left, then up, then behind. Firefly, however, would not be outdone. As Singe appeared behind her, Firefly shot straight up then right. Singe darted straight after her, stopped just outside the range of Firefly’s hoof blades, then dived downward at an angle, twisting to swing her spear at Firefly. Firefly avoided the blow then dived down after Singe, blades extended. Singe blocked the blades with her spear, threw Firefly off and shot up again. Firefly gave chase.

Celestia locked eyes with Caduceus as he rose from where he had crashed on the table and nodded, trusting him to cover her. She dropped her shield and shot a beam at Scorch, who was trying to flank her. Scorch danced out of the way of the attack and threw a rune at Celestia. Celestia teleported the rune back to Scorch right before it detonated.

Fire tried to shoot at Celestia again, but Caduceus shielded her. Fire turned to face Caduceus and managed to shield himself from Caduceus’ attack. Caduceus released a slow moving orb of energy from his horn and teleported between Fire and Celestia. Fire turned back around to keep Caduceus in his sights and quickly blocked another beam. Caduceus conjured a box of energy around Fire and held it. To Caduceus’ surprise, Fire unleashed a torrent of flames within the box. The amount of energy was too much for Caduceus to contain and he dropped the spell. Fire stood unharmed as the flames fell away.

“I am Fire!” he boasted. Then Caduceus orb of energy exploded into the back of his head.

Singe and Firefly locked weapons in mid air again.

“You’ve gotten better,” Firefly said with a grin.

Scorch scowled. “Do not -”

“But I’m still the best!” Firefly interrupted, breaking the lock with a kick.

Singe was knocked back but recovered instantly. She brought her spear up defensively, but Firefly was nowhere in sight.

“Peek-a-boo!” Firefly said as her hind hoof collided with the back of Singe’s head.

Singe staggered, but stayed aloft. Firefly pressed her advantage, landing blow after blow on Singe, but refusing to use her hoof blades.

“Give up!” Firefly insisted in the midst of her flurry. “Give! Up!”

“NEVER!” Singe cried.

Singe trapped Firefly’s hoof between her body and her spear then twisted, throwing Firefly through the air. Singe shot after Firefly and thrust her spear. Just before Firefly was impaled, Singe was shot by a golden beam. Runes glowed on Singe’s armor, protecting her from the blast, but she was still knocked out of the sky.

“Firefly! Focus!” Celestia called out.

Firefly recovered and took a moment to catch her breath. “But -”

“Do what you must, General. They will not surrender,” Celestia said sternly.

“No, we won’t! We will win!” Scorch said, leaping at Celestia.

Caduceus let out an angry cry and grabbed Scorch with his magic, slamming her down to the ground. “Like Tartarus, you will!”

Caduceus threw Scorch towards Fire, who was getting to his hooves. Both slammed into the side of the dining table. “Auntie!”

Celestia fired a fast moving energy ball at the pair. The ball hit its target and half of the dining table was destroyed in a fiery explosion.

~~~~~

Burn sailed over Cross and continued his charge, this time towards Stone. Unlike the others, Stone did not evade the massive pegasus. Instead, he counter charged. The two ponies’ shields collided and they stopped abruptly, neither able to overpower the other. The stone beneath their hooves cracked from the force of their struggle.

“Ha! You are...strong! At last...a worthy foe!” Burn said with a smile.

Stone’s face was still hidden behind his helmet, but it made little difference for his expression behind it remained as impassive as steel. “No...you are...just old…fool.”

Using Burn’s greater size against him, Stone purposely buckled his hind hooves, grabbed Burn’s hoof, and threw Burn to the ground. Burn grunted and tried to rise, but Stone leapt on him immediately and began relentlessly striking mace blow after mace blow.

Burn tried desperately to put up his shield or to block with his hooves - anything to defend himself from Stone’s assault - but Stone was too close, and his blows too precise. Burn’s grunts turned to cries of rage, then soon after, cries of pain. Great pain. Still, Stone did not relent, for he knew that if given the chance, Burn could and would reverse their situations. At last, Burn could take no more and went limp, beaten to within an inch of his life, but not dead.

Stone let his mace fall and rose to his hooves, panting heavily. “Battle is not glorious,” he said to the unconscious Burn. “Merely brutal.”

~~~~~

Cross got to his hooves as soon as Burn was past him. He saw Pack engaged in a struggle with Blaze - a struggle that Pack was losing.

Blaze knocked aside Pack’s short sword and raised his own gladius. Pack grabbed Blaze’s hoof and fired a crossbow bolt at an armor joint. The bolt penetrated the armor and Blaze dropped his gladius in pain, but managed to headbutt Pack before they separated. Blaze grabbed hold of Pack’s foreleg and twisted, breaking it. Pack cried out in pain and Blaze struck him again.

Cross felt it then. A familiar sensation beginning in the depths of his chest and ending in a pounding right behind his eyes. It was a feeling he had felt many times before, and one of the things that had allowed him and his friends to pull through certain death time and time again. It was pure, simple, murderous rage.

“GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM MY FRIEND, YOU BURNT DICKED BASTARD!” he cried.

Blaze landed one more punch on Pack, breaking the mercenary’s ribs through his armor. Pack groaned, but smiled.

“Yeah...you're pretty much done,” Pack said.

Cross charged, sword held high and burning brightly. Blaze dropped Pack to meet the greater threat.

“I am a servant of Celestia,” he said as Cross reached him.

Cross thrust, but Blaze sidestepped.

“I fear neither fire nor darkness,” Blaze said.

Cross slashed, but Blaze ducked.

Blaze moved forward to strike at Cross. “I am invincible, for faith is my - UGH!”

Cross punched Blaze’s helmet so hard he broke his hoof and dented the steel into Blaze’s face. Cross ignored the pain and pressed his advantage. He was a unicorn. He didn't need his hoof to fight.

“EAT SHIT!” Cross exclaimed.

The flames around Cross’ sword burned white hot as he slashed again. And again. And again. With each slash, Cross forced his blade through Blaze’s armor. The metal burned and melted and gave way just enough for Cross to cut into Blaze’s hide, but not enough for Cross to strike a killing blow.

Blaze remained standing, but the bones of his face had cracked and his helmet obscured his vision. The pain from the crossbow bolt Pack had fired into his elbow only got worse as he was forced to put his weight onto that leg. He had stopped fighting. He had stopped being able to fight. But still he remained standing, and so Cross continued his assault. Until at last, Blaze’s strength gave way and fell to the ground.

Cross raised his blade once more and made to finish the job, but Pack intervened.

“That’s enough, Cross. He’s down,” Pack said, laying a hoof on Cross’ shoulder.

“He’s down, but not dead,” Cross said darkly.

“Look at me, Cross. Look at me,” Pack commanded, turning Cross’ head. “I’m tired, hungry, and beaten half to death, but that’s okay. I’m okay. Let it go.”

Cross let out a long breath and closed his eyes. The flames surrounding his sword faded away, and with them, his rage. Without the rage clouding his mind, Cross suddenly felt very tired. And his hoof hurt immensely.

“Ah, crap,” Cross said as he sat down. “I broke my hoof on that guy’s face...why did I do that? Damn it, I have a sword!”

Pack chuckled and sat down next to his friend, “I dunno, man. You get crazy sometimes.”

~~~~~

Jack and Singe got to their hooves. They had both lost their weapons and crash landed next to each other at around the same time. As they stood, their gazes met and they froze. There was an awkward moment of silence as they both realized who they were next to.

“Hey,” Jack said.

Singe punched Jack in the face and took to the air. She immediately dived back down, aiming a kick at Jack’s head. In the few brief moments Singe was diving down at him, Jack’s mind raced as it considered his options. None of them were particularly good. There was no way around it, he was outclassed. He just wasn’t pegasus enough to do this dance.

“Fuck it,” Jack said.

Instead of trying to dodge, he just shifted slightly, letting Singe’s kick hit his barrel instead of his head. He felt his ribs break, and he staggered, but stayed on his hooves.

If I can keep standing after hitting fifteen bars in a single night, I can damn well keep standing after taking one measly kick! he thought to himself.

Singe shot up then right then down to Jack’s other side. She punched him and shot up again. Jack’s vision began to blur.

Come on, Jack. Focus. You’ve fought tipsy before and won. This is nothing! Jack told himself.

Singe appeared in front of Jack and uppercut him. She disappeared again. Jack no longer knew how.

Wait a minute, yes I do, Jack thought in a moment of clarity through the pain. Up, down. Up, right, down. Up, forward, down. Up...whatever...then…

Singe dived straight for Jack’s back, aiming to break it with a single blow, but Jack staggered to the left and she had to correct her course. Then he staggered to the right, and she had to shift again. He staggered one last time as she was about to impact and, to her shock, grabbed her hoof.

“DOWN!” Jack yelled as he fell down with Singe locked in his grasp.

“Let me go, you stupid - AHH!”

Firefly dive tackled the momentarily trapped Singe from behind. This time, her blades were extended. Singe felt the blades slice through her armor and into her back, but they pulled back before going too deep. Firefly released Singe and hovered over her with a sad look on her face.

“You should have killed me, heretic!” Singe exclaimed. “Even wounded, I am - AHH! What...what?!”

Singe felt pain shoot through her every time she tried to move her wings, and her hind hooves no longer obeyed her commands.

“What is this? Celestia! Help me!” Singe cried out, confused.

Firefly looked away from Singe, leaving her wriggling on the floor. Firefly’s attack had damaged Singe’s wings beyond repair and left the monster hunter partially paralyzed. Singe was no longer any threat to anyone.

Firefly landed next to Jack and looked over his wounds.

“Got banged up pretty bad there, Jack,” she said.

“Captain...Jack…” Jack managed to say.

Behind Firefly, Singe screamed again, and Firefly forced herself to smile to fight back the tears.

“Right...hang in there, Captain. I won’t lose any more friends today.”

~~~~~

Caduceus and Celestia approached the prone forms of Fire and Scorch. Fire managed to roll and was attempting to get to his hooves. Scorch remained on the ground, twitching next to the shattered remains of all her runestones. In a twist of irony, her white coat had been scorched black like her namesake.

Caduceus stopped above Scorch. The mare was crying and mumbling incoherently. He charged his horn and fired one more bolt into her, and she went still. He looked up and found Celestia looking at him.

“She is not dead, Auntie,” Caduceus said. “Though she deserves to be.”

Celestia nodded and approached Fire, who had successfully managed to get to his hooves.

“I shall say it again, Flash Fire: surrender,” Celestia said. “Your Order is beaten. Your mad scheme has failed.”

Fire coughed repeatedly. It took Celestia a moment to realize that he was actually laughing. Or trying to.

“And I shall say it again, my goddess: never,” Fire replied.

Caduceus approached. “Your refusal to accept defeat does not change the fact that you have been defeated. It only makes you look pathetic.”

“You have broken my Order, beaten my body, and ruined my plans, but you have forgotten one important thing: I am a pony of faith. And faith alone can overturn the world,” Fire said. His horn glowed and a book appeared in front of him.

Caduceus’ eyes widened in shock. “That is Star Swirl’s tome! Where did you -”

From one to another, another to one.

A mark of one’s destiny singled out alone,

fulfilled by faith and thus made done!

Fire was suddenly surrounded by an orb of light and lifted high into the air. The bodies of the Order’s knights glowed and streams of energy flowed from them to the orb. The knights all screamed in agony as their very essence was stripped away. The orb glowed brighter as the knights’ glow faded, and when their glow went dark, each knight was left a shriveled corpse. The orb then broke open, revealing a rejuvenated Fire. His eyes glowed pure white and he remained aloft on burning wings.

Behold Flash Fire, The Sun Ascendant!

Caduceus gaped. “Is he...has he...become an alicorn?”

Celestia scowled. “No, merely a monster. Already the power bleeds from him. He will not remain that way for very long.”

“Indeed,” Fire said, his voice now possessing its own slight echo. “The transformation is not yet complete. For my full ascension I require the blood of a god!”

“That’s not how it works, Fire!” Celestia shouted. “You could have all the power in the world and yet still feel it slip through your hooves. The spell was incomplete, and you have failed to finish it!”

“Then I shall simply try again,” Fire said with a smile. “Eventually, I will succeed. I have faith. But let us try my original proposition first, shall we?”

Fire launched an intense beam of fiery energy at Celestia. Celestia brought up her barrier to block it, but the barrier held for only a moment before being shattered. Caduceus then teleported them both across the room and out of harm’s way.

“None can flee the judgement of the light!” Fire declared as he turned his attention to the other ponies. He fired on the closest pair: Firefly and Jack.

Firefly made to pick up Jack and fly, but Celestia reacted quicker. With a burst of golden light, all of her ponies were teleported to her side. Fire, meanwhile, seemed to be overtaken by madness. He blasted the walls of the hall in every direction, reciting:

I wield the fires of the sun

I burn truth into my foes

See me cloaked in radiance

As I banish the shadows

Behold Flash Fire, The Sun Ascendant!

While Fire was distracted, Caduceus looked at the ponies around him, assessing those that might aid in the fight. Stone was strong, but he could not withstand such overwhelming force. Firefly was fast, but how could she harm a foe wreathed in flames? Jack and Pack were too injured to help, but even if they were not, there was little they could do. That left…

“Cross!” Caduceus said. “You’re a unicorn. Can you teleport?”

“No,” Cross replied.

“Transfigure?” Caduceus asked.

“Nope,” Cross replied.

“Conjure a shield?” Caduceus asked, sweating now.

“Never did get the hang of that,” Cross said casually.

“Do you at least know Accelero?” Caduceus asked with a hint of frustration.

“That’s the speed one, right?” Cross asked.

“Yes! So can you cast it?” Caduceus asked, hopeful. Of course he can! He’s a swordspony! That spell would be infinitely useful for -

“No,” Cross replied flatly.

Caduceus stomped his hoof in frustration. “Then what can you do!?”

“I can set my sword on fire,” Cross replied.

Caduceus rolled his eyes. “Oh, yes. I’m sure that will be very helpful in our current situation!”

Pack tapped Cross’ shoulder and gave him two small, hoof-sized pouches. Cross smiled and tied the pouches to the blade of his sword.

“Get to safety, my little ponies,” Celestia said. “I will fight him alone.”

“Just let me thank our host, Princess,” Cross said.

“HEY, JACKASS! LIGHT THIS!” Cross yelled as he launched his sword towards Fire.

Fire turned just in time to see Cross light his sword on fire, igniting the two pouches of Saddle Arabian black powder. The powder exploded, shattering the blade and bombarding Fire with bits of flaming shrapnel. Fire recoiled and cried out in pain as the shrapnel pierced his skin.

“All yours, Princess,” Cross said.

Cross, Pack, and Jack looked expectantly at Caduceus.

“What?” Caduceus asked, flustered. “I said it would be helpful, didn’t I?”

~~~~~

Celestia flew towards Fire as Caduceus teleported the rest of the ponies out of the mansion, taking Star Swirl's tome - which Fire had tossed aside - with him.

“Where is that insolent whelp? Show him to me!” Fire demanded as he recovered from Cross’ attack. His body had healed, but the glow surrounding him had diminished. The pupils of his eyes were also now visible again.

“Your opponent is me, Fire,” Celestia said. “I suggest you focus because this time, I will offer you no mercy.”

Fire laughed. “I never needed your mercy, Celestia! Only your name, and, now, your life! How kind of you to stay and offer it to me!”

Celestia raised her head high. “Not kindness. Judgement. The ponies of your Order once claimed to be emissaries of my justice. They claimed to deliver my judgement to the unworthy. Those claims were made in arrogance and error. I need nopony to deliver my judgement, for I withhold it until all other options have been exhausted. And when I do see fit to bring it down upon a lost soul, I do so myself.”

“Not the finest speech I’ve ever heard,” Fire commented. “Are you certain you want those to be your last words?”

Celestia’s horn glowed a golden red. Her mane shifted to an ethereal fire. Her eyes glowed with a power more intense than that which filled Fire’s but moments ago.

“You used my name, but did not understand it,” Celestia said, her own voice adapting an echoing effect. “So let me show you why they once called me the Sol Invictus!”

Fire attacked Celestia with a beam of energy, but Celestia moved unbelievably quickly. She both dodged the beam and closed the gap between them in the blink of an eye, then slammed her armored hoof into Fire’s neck.

“Accelero for speed,” Celestia said as Fire choked.

Fire gasped through his crushed throat and grabbed Celestia with his magic to hold her in place. He poured a large amount of his magic into the spell, but Celestia casually waved a hoof and shattered his hold.

“Roboro for strength,” Celestia said as Fire recoiled.

Fire was on the verge of panic now. He had greatly underestimated Celestia’s power, but she was right now underestimating his. He gathered all of his remaining strength within him and flew at Celestia, horn first. Celestia stopped him in mid air, but he knew that she had let him get too close. He unleashed all of his pent up magic in one final blast, incinerating everything in the room around them. He was confident that his flames would not hurt him. He was wrong.

There was a spark of golden magic from Celestia's horn, and the flames in the room flew back into Fire. Fire screamed in agony as his entire body burned. His wings disappeared and he fell to the stone ground, breaking his leg as he crashed. Celestia watched impassively as Fire rolled across the ground, still screaming in pain, trying to extinguish the flames that were consuming him. He eventually succeeded, and now lay on the floor, gasping for breath. His body was burned beyond all hope of repair.

“And now, Reciproco for turning your spells against you,” Celestia said, landing next to him. “Three simple enchantments, backed only by the strength of my displeasure. That was all it took to best you.”

Fire groaned pitifully, and Celestia looked down upon him.

“You have not survived long enough to feel more than a fraction of my power. To see me wield the magics of my race - spells, ancient and terrible. In fact, it is not even day time. Had the sun shone down upon us, I could have blasted this mountain apart and buried you beneath it. I could have ripped the very magic from your body and left you an empty husk. I could have ended you, in every essence of the word. In every way imaginable. So let me ask you this, Father Fire…

“What does it mean to be a god?”

~~~~~

One week later, Cross, Jack, and Pack sat at a bar in Canterlot in the middle of the day. They had each been well compensated for their part in the mission against the Order, and Jack had even been given a medal for valor and allowed a moon off to recuperate. Additionally, they had been allowed to stay at Canterlot Castle indefinitely. In short, life was good.

Pack, mindful of the hour, drank sparingly. Cross didn’t drink at all - he never had. Jack, of course, thought his friends were committing some unholy crime, and so drank enough for all three of them combined.

“You know, guys, I’ve been thinking,” Cross said.

“I warned you about that,” Jack said.

“No, seriously, hear me out,” Cross said.

“Just get on with it, Cross,” Pack said. “Before Jack passes out and we have to drag his sorry flank back to the castle.”

“Okay, well, it’s just...Celestia,” Cross began.

“Oh, here he goes again with his crush on the Princess!” Jack said way too loud. Fortunately, the bar was empty at this time of day, so there wasn’t really any harm done.

“Not that!” Cross said, blushing slightly. “What I mean is...she’s pretty great, isn’t she?”

“I thought you said this wasn’t about your crush on the Princess,” Pack said.

“No! No, damn it! Well, yes, I’ll admit it, but that’s not what I’m talking about right now!” Cross said.

“Then what are you talking about, dude?” Jack asked, irritated.

Cross sighed. “Celestia...she’s really strong, and she’s really kind, and she’s really wise. We never seem to see her at her full potential, and even when it looks like she’s in trouble, it somehow always works out.”

“Still not seeing your point,” Pack said.

“I guess what I’m saying is...I get it,” Cross said. “Why the Order worshiped her. Why ponies would worship her. There’s just so much that we don’t know. She’s just so different from everypony else. And she brings us so much without asking for anything in return. Then there’s the whole day and night thing too. I mean, I know she isn’t really a god, but I’m just saying...she’s pretty god-like isn’t she?”

“I think she’s pretty damn scary,” Pack said.

“Yeah, totally scary,” Cross said, nodding.

“I’ll drink to that!” Jack cried. He poured back another bottle, slammed it down on the table when it was empty, and then collapsed on the floor.

“Told you it would happen,” Pack said, putting down his drink and paying the bartender.

“Alright, let’s take him back to the castle. Hospital wing. He’ll want to wake up and see that nurse later on,” Cross said.

“Maybe that’s why he’s been drinking himself under so much lately,” Pack commented. “Alright I’ll take the hind legs, you take the fore. Watch his head.”

Cross bent down to pick up his friend, who just then burped into Cross’ open mouth.

“Agh!” Cross exclaimed. “Sweet Celestia, that’s nasty!”

Comments

[Zwei]

I really liked this story. Just Father Fire was underwhelming. I know he was versing Celestia but come on he seemed so weak, even compared to Celestia's troops. Also saddening that the Children of the Order were sacrificed for but a mere moments of not even god tier magic. I really like Brother Burn . Also i was really hoping to see Brother Blaze, Brother Burn and Sister Singe get back up in one last act of Martyrdom.

[Blade Trail]

8833736
I am not quite happy with the final chapter either. I wrote this for NaPoWriMo back in 2016, and by the time I got to the last chapter, I only had a few days left in the month to finish, so I rushed it. Not one of my wiser decisions, but it is what it is.

Still, I am glad that you enjoyed some of the other chapters! Thank you so much for reading! I'll admit I was shocked when I saw your comments in my notifications. That was a pleasant surprise. I'd given up on anyone reading my old stories, so thank you again!

[Zwei]

8839481
It was a good story of course i'd comment . I reckon you should re-write that chapter, it might give the story some publicity. Also i recommend putting this story into some groups that'll not doubt spike views.

I really did like the story, you don't often see Non-alternative universes were Celestia is worshipped with martyrdom in mind. Also not much martyrdom. I like when someone (pony) is willing to give up there life for what they believe in and i think this really delivered. Though as i said saddening that they died for but a moment of insignificant power.

[Blade Trail]

8841755
I really appreciate the comments

I've never really considered adding my stories to groups...mostly because I haven't joined any myself. It's alright, though. I only write for fun and I only publish in the hopes of entertaining someone. Publicity isn't important to me

I'm afraid I don't have the time or the drive to revise that chapter though. I'm sorry to disappoint, but these days, finding the time to sit down and write (or even read!) has become something of a struggle, and I'd like to use what time I do have on writing something new. I hope you understand.

[Zwei]

8843417
You should feel proud it is a good story, and it certainly did entertained me. Also i agree i suppose you don't need publicity to feel good about your work.

It's completely understandable, i didn't think you'd be willing to re-write the chapter considering it a relatively old story (not that old but still old). It was more of a suggestion. But i still believe you should add it to some groups. You may not need or want publicity but why not share a good story like this to more people, but once again just a suggestion.