Twilight's Duel School of Friendship: Sophomore Year

by k00l

Chapter 17: Into the Shadow Realm

Yona, Ocellus, Silverstream, Brisk, Gizmo, and Roulette are sitting together in the rec room. They remain silent as the events of what transpired last night was still fresh in their minds. Eventually though, one of them speaks up.
"...You think they'll finally send students home? There are only 2 professors left." Said Ocellus.
"They'll have too, Everyone is catching on that this is no act." Said Brisk.
"Students go home, But Yona and Yona's friends can't." Said Yona
"We have a job to do. We have to make sure the Pony of Shadows doesn't win." Said Silverstream.
"Well I'm not leaving." Said Gizmo.
"You can't Stay here Gizmo, it's too dangerous." Said Silverstream
"I don't care! This is my first year at the school, and I may not be able to finish it. Besides, you guys won't be able to do this alone." Said Gizmo.
"What do you mean by that?" Asked Ocellus.
"The Elements rely on Friendship for them to be at 100%. We are your friends, we can help you." Said Gizmo
"Giz has a point. Plus I don't like to see others fight a battle while I sit on my flank. I'm not leaving either." Said Brisk
"I don't want to abandon you guys either. I'm staying as well." Said Roulette.

The other three students are touched by their friends' bravery and smile at them. Just at that moment, The door clicks open, and Sandbar, Smolder, and Gallus walk in. They all look over at them and instantly perk up.
"YOU GUYS!!!" yelled the Ocellus, Silverstream, and Yona at the same time and quickly stood. They were about about to hug them, until they stopped when they noticed that their heads were hanging and looking at the floor. They soon look up at them with sunken sad eyes, this causes the others to fear the worst.
"What...What happened?" Asked Ocellus.
"....Rockhoof lost..." Said Gallus. This is met with a lot of gasps from the other students. Gizmo begins to look at the floor, Roulette covers her mouth with her hooves and begins to tear up, and Brisk looks on with his eyes widened and mouth slightly agape.
"No...No that's not possible!" Said Yona.
"It is...he lost...He is being taken to the infirmary now." Said Smolder.
"...Celestia help us." Said Brisk.
"What are you guys gonna do now?" Asked Gizmo.
"We are all being called into Headmare's office for a meeting, and to see what we are going to do next." Said Gallus.

As the Six were about to head out, The other three stood up to go with them.
"Where do you guys think you're going?" Asked Gallus.
"We are coming with you." Said Brisk.
"They want to help Gallus." said Ocellus.
"I don't think that will fly with the others." Said Gallus.
"Do we really need to repeat ourselves because they weren't in the room earlier?" Asked Brisk with an annoyed expression.
"No, Just wait outside the office till we tell you too, ok?" Said Silverstream.
"Yeah, we can." Said Roulette.

They all walk out and the six students somberly enter Headmare Twilight's office for their meeting. Everyone looked depressed and miserable. Rarity was trying her best to hold back her tears and some of the Pillars were talking amongst themselves. Starswirl was looking out the window watching the sunset. He turns and approaches the others. He looks around, the absence of the others is painfully obvious. He lets out a long sigh and begins to speak.
"It's just us now, us 13. This is not good." Said Starswirl. "It appears the Pony of Shadows wants to mess with us, play with our emotions."
"He wants to destroy us all! He is a ruthless monster!" Yelled Flash Magnus.
"No, He wants to make this personal. If his true intention was to outright get rid of us, he would not have allowed the train he manipulated to bring us back here." Said Starswirl.
"This isn't fair! it's just me and Twilight left! He has taken everyone else from us!" Cried Rarity.
"We feel your pain dearie, Rockhoof was our friend, and he is gone as well." Said Mistmane.
"So What are we gonna do now?" Asked Mage Meadowbrook.
"....Things have gotten too dangerous, we must send these students home, or we risk the shadows hurting them." Said Starswirl. This will put their education at risk, but lives are on the line in this battle. The pony of Shadows will not hesitate to hurt the innocent just to get to us." Said Starswirl.
"I will make arrangements for that..." Said Twilight.
"Very well, from now on, we 14 will stay at the school and draw all the shadows exclusively here." Said Starswirl.
"14? But there is only 13 of us left." Said Sandbar.
"Yes, But I asked a friend to volunteer to help us." Said Starswirl.

Behind Starswirl, a familiar looking portal opens. Slowly, a familiar face comes walking through, it, was Neighsay.
"Chancellor Neighsay!?" Said Twilight in shock.
"Yes, Starswirl and I have gotten close with both of our knowledge in duel monsters." Said Neighsay, approaching the table and standing next to Starswirl.
"I asked Neighsay to stay and help us, as his knowledge of the Shadow Realm and duel monsters is impressive despite not being an element bearer." Starswirl.
"Not a bad decision, Chancellor Neighsay has a pretty impressive deck. I bet he could beat the Shadow Riders easily." Said Gallus
"Flattering, but we still haven't seen all of the Shadow Riders yet, and their decks seem to get more powerful the more we meet them." Said Neighsay.
"I'm glad you decided to use some outside Help Starswirl, because we have our own friends who would like to join us." Said Twilight.
"Really? Who?" Askes Starswirl.
"Starlight and Discord." Said Twilight. Before anyone could say anything, a big poof of Smoke appeared behind Twilight, and there, out of nowhere, was Discord. In his hand was a very distraught Starlight.
"Discord! Put me down!" Yelled Starlight.
"As you wish" Said Discord Dropping starlight with a thud.
"Guh...Discord." Said Starswirl with a shiver.
"Long time no see Beardy." Said Discord. Starswirl clears his throat loudly again, still not liking that nickname

"So tell me, who do I need to destroy for hurting Fluttershy?" Asked Discord as his eyes flash red for a moment.
"Easy Chaos bringer. You will be able to get revenge soon, only if you follow my lead, understand?" Asked Starswirl.
"Whatever, I got nothing else to do." Said Discord, turning his head away. The students could see that the reason he turned his head was to hide a sorrowful expression on his face.
"Now, we must continue with our meeting, we....Yes Ocellus?" Said Starswirl who sees Ocellus raising her hoof.
"Uh, Excuse me sir. We have friends who want to help as well." Said Ocellus.
"Who could you know who could possibly want to help?" Asked Starswirl. Just then, Gizmo, Brisk, and Roulette slowly walk in.
"Us sir." Said Brisk.
"Absolutely not." Said Starswirl.
"What!?" Yelled Roulette.
"Please! We want to help." Protested Gizmo.
"You three are students. Your lives will be on the line if you stay here. You will all be going home when this meeting is over." Said Starswirl, disregarding them.
"Sir please." Begged Brisk.
"Starswirl, please think about it. They know more about the elements than any other students, they are our friends." Protested Ocellus.

Starswirl looks over at Them, and then Twilight. Twilight then looks at the three other students and approaches them. She looks at them and all three of them give her a hopeful expression.
"Let them stay. Being friends with the others could be of use to us. After all....Spike has helped us out multiple times, if he were here, he would be doing the same."
"Sigh Very well." Said Starswirl. The three smile and then quickly join their friends. Starswirl looks at the new team they just formed and is somehow able to smile slightly, feeling a newfound hope. "Alright. Now for the main reason I called you all in here. Somnambula has something important to say."
"Ahem, When we were out in Baltimare, I had a duel with a Shadow Rider. When he was defeated, Gravekeeper's chief said something to me that seemed out of the ordinary. When the Shadow Rider's soul was being taken from him by the Shadows, he said that he can be saved, but not now." Said Somnambula
"Unfortunately he faded back into the realm of Duel Monsters before he could explain himself. So... because of the dark veil that now separates us from our connection to our duel spirits...I must use Shadow Magic to summon forth Gravekeeper's Chief." Said Starswirl.

This statement was met with a mix of reactions.
"No way! You cannot use Shadow Magic!" Protested Flash Magnus.
"It will corrupt you like it has corrupted others before." Said Mistmane.
"But we must know what Chief meant. If he has a solution then we must risk it." Said Rarity.
"It's too dangerous!" Said Mage Maedowbrook.
"Though rash, it does seem necessary." Said Neighsay.
"What other choice do we have? We need that info." Said Starlight.
"No it isn't you haven't seen the full extent to what the shadows are capable of!" Said Flash. "Think of Stygian Starswirl! STYGIAN!"
"Wait, who's Stygian?" Asked Yona.
"Yeah, that name was mentioned by Somnambula after Rockhoof's duel." Said Smolder.
"Starswirl, who is stygian?" Asked Twilight. Starswirl hung his head, as if in shame.

"Stygian was our friend back during our time. He was the one who helped form the Pillars." Said Starswirl. "He brought all of us together, and with his help and friendship. It helped us officially form the Elements." All the others listen closely.
"However, Stygian himself was not made a Pillar, almost like a sidekick. This made him jealous, and he stole all of our ace monsters to perform a ritual to make himself powerful. Because of this, we casted him out in banishment. It was the hardest decision we had to make, but it was a necessary one. Alone, Stygian somehow gained a connection to the Shadow Realm and was transported there. After years of practically fading from existence, Stygian returned. This time, he had the power of the Shadow Realm with him, but it had corrupted him....turning him into... The Pony of Shadows." This revelation was like a bomb shell had just dropped in the middle of the office. Everyone was left in shock and awe except for the pillars who looked away in both disappointment and sadness.
"Stygian, is the Pony of Shadows?" Asked Starlight.
"...Yes, he is. But he forfeited his name a long time ago when he turned to the Shadows." Said Starswirl.
"That is why we refuse to allow you to use Shadow Magic Starswirl! I'll fight you if I have too!" Said Flash.

Starswirl turns to him and gently places his hoof on his shoulder.
"I know you are fearful my friend. But as long as Rockhoof is gone, we cannot access our full power, and you know that. Only these six students are still full, they have their max powers, we don't. When the Pony of Shadows is fully Charged, we will need to hit him with everything we got. If Gravekeeper's chief has a solution to free the soulless, then we must try. I will have Princess Twilight help me with the spell, so that we have two minds battling the shadows." Said Starswirl. Flash lets out a long sigh. After a long moment of pause he eventually relents and nods. "Thank you my friend. Everyone stand back" Everyone gives him some space as Twilight steps forward to help him with the spell. "Somnambula, your card please." Somnambula hands him Gravekeeper's chief who he then lays on the floor. He sits down in front of it and takes a deep breath. He closes his eyes and slowly his horn begins to glow purple with a black shade to it. Just then, Twilight's own horn does the same, and she projects a stream of shadow Magic into Starswirl's horn, which then takes an angle and then strikes the card.

Shadow Magic surrounds the card and very slowly, Gravekeeper's Chief begins to manifest. First in a transparent form, then into a solid figure. He glares down at Starswirl with his arms crossed. Starswirl winces and begins to sweat as it looks as if he is struggling with the spell, so isn't Twilight.
"Duel Spirit, I call you forth to ask you one simple question." Asked Starswirl.
"I will only answer to Somnambula, as I am her guardian, not yours." Said Gravekeeper's chief sternly.
"Very well...Somnambula, step forth." Said Starswirl. Slowly Sonnambula steps towards Chief who then uncrosses his arms.
"Chief, this is important. Please tell us what you meant that night, how the soulless can still be saved." Said Somnambula
"The Shadow Realm feeds off the souls that reside in it, it is how the Pony of Shadows is charging up. Every soul sent there, gives him more power." Said Gravekeeper's chief.
"So it doesn't matter if we win or lose, The Pony of Shadows continues to get stronger." Said Starswirl.
"Correct." Said Gravekeeper's chief.

"The Shadow Realm has been devoid of souls for over a millenia, Not since we all have banished ourselves to keep him locked away." Said Gravekeeper's chief.
"That's not true, Last time we faced the Pony of Shadows he captured many souls" Said Mistmane.
"And those souls were trapped there for 1000 years. The Shadows feed on the souls to power them up until there is nothing left." Said Gravekeeper's chief.
"Are...Are you telling us if we don't save our friends from the Shadow Realm, they will be gone forever?" Asked Rarity.
"That is the painful truth." Said Gravekeeper's chief. Everyone went Silent for a moment until Somnambula spoke again.
"Then how do we save them?" Asked Somnambula.
"There are three ways to free them. One is hard but most effective, and the others is very dangerous. The first way is to defeat the Pony of Shadows in a Shadow Game. His soul will satisfy the shadows for eons, and will gladly restore all the other's souls in return." Said Gravekeeper's chief.
"I get the feeling that will be harder than it sounds." Said Gallus.
"It is." Said Chief. "The second way is very very dangerous, and will come with consequences. There is an ancient spell that I can give you, that will allow you to open a portal to the Shadow Realm itself."

"A spell? To open a portal directly into the Shadow Realm?" Asked Starswirl in amazment.
"Yes, from there you will be able to rescue one soul, and only one." Said Chief.
"Only one!?" Yelled Smolder.
"Yes, any more you take could bring devastation. The Shadows will be agitated, and you all will be marked by them even if you somehow defeat the Pony of Shadows. The Shadows never forget, and will hunt you down till they have your soul." Said Chief.
"They will allow only one then?" Asked Starswirl.
"Yes, only one. It is the deal for opening the portal in the first place." Said Chief.
"I understand, it's like the Arabian Nights story from Saddle Arabia. When you enter the Cave of Wonders, you can only take the Lamp, if you take anything else it will seal your doom." Said Twilight.
"Exactly. Only one soul can be saved." Said Chief.
"Very well, we will take this spell Chief." Said Somnambula.

Chief holds out his hand, and a magic fire ignites in it. Slowly a scroll forms from the fire and he hands it to Somnambula. She Takes it and then stands back.
"I must close the connection, this is getting too intense." Said Starswirl.
"But what about the third way to save them?" Asked Flash.
"It's near impossible I'm afraid. Don't even worry about it." Said the Chief. "Farewell Somnambula, I hope you come out on top in this war. I miss coming to this world."
"Goodbye Chief, We won't stop till we win." Said Somnambula. Chief smirks as he slowly fades away and both Starswirl and Twilight stumble after finishing the spell.
"How do you feel Starswirl?" Asked Flash.
"I'm fine, Somnambula, let me see the Scroll." Said Starswirl. Somnambula hands Starswirl the spell and he begins to look over it.
"I'm a little confused. How did Chief know all this?" Asked Silverstream.
"He's a Gravekeeper young one. They are the guardians of the graveyard, and the Shadow Realm. They contain the evil within." Said Somnambula.
"Well they haven't been doing a good job recently." Said Smolder.
"This is because they are still duel monsters. They cannot stop threats from our world, like the Pony of Shadows." Said Somnambula.

"I believe I can perform this spell, but It is only powerful enough to allow only 2 ponies to enter for only 30 minutes." Said Starswirl.
"Only 30 minutes? What if it closes while anypony is in there?" asked Starlight.
"I don't know, but I fear the answer." Said Starswirl. "before we start, who will be our 2 volunteers?" Almost immediately Smolder steps forward.
"Me!" said Smolder.
"Are you sure young one? This could be very dangerous." Said Mistmane.
"Yes! I want to do this!" Said Smolder.
"...I'll go with her." Said Ocellus.
"Why do you want to go Cell?" Asked sandbar.
"If we run into any danger, I can turn into a Manticore and scare off any threats" Said Ocellus.
"Very well, You two can save anyone you want, But I would recommend Rockhoof, or Applejack. With them gone, Yona is the only one who wields the element of Strength and Honesty." Said Starswirl.
"We understand." Said Smolder and Ocellus.
"Neighsay, I will need your EEA Amulet." Said Starswirl.

Neighsay gives his Amulet to Starswirl who then lays in on the ground. While wielding the scroll, his horn begins to glow.
"A magical artifact will be the key to link our world with the Shadow Realm, the Amulet is the perfect artifact. You two go in, find one of the souls and bring them back. Understand?" Asked Starswirl. Both students nod. Starswirl casts the spell on the amulet, and slowly a large magical circle begins to rise from the amulet. It grows until it's big enough for even the princesses to walk through. The other side is extremely dark. Ocellus gulps hard after seeing how dark it was, Smolder however doesn't hesitate to step through. Ocellus then slowly follows after her.

End of Chapter 17

Comments

[nightshroud96]

Only one soul?

[nightshroud96]

11487641
5Ds?
Don't you mean Arc-V?

[empourer]

There goes starswirl choosing the most drastic measure over trying to find a safer way

[Star Sage]

11488889
I do actually.

[TherealNightblader]

But what about the third way to save them. What would it be if it won't show u later

[k00l]

11489765
it will be relevent again later on.

[BlueStarred Spike]

"But what about the third way to save them?" Asked Flash. "It's near impossible I'm afraid. Don't even worry about it." Said the Chief.

Great. There's goes an insurance.

Just one soul, huh. I was thinking they'd probably choose Applejack, to at least even the groups out, but then I wondered... They're probably gonna bring back Spike. He might know something about the Shadows.