The Darkness among the Stars

by Haseo

Chapter 25 - Lord of Equestria

Chapter 25
Lord of Equestria

The sound of eight pairs of hooves and the flapping of two pairs of wings was well audible in one of the countless corridors inside the castle. Rainbow Dash was still pushing the others out of the room. Twilight tried to halt as hard as she could, but against the massive wing-power of the mad-mare, she was powerless. “Stop pushing us, Rainbow! Why are you following his orders anyway?”

Rainbow stopped mid-air and shot Twilight an annoyed look. “Isn't it obvious? He is in the military ranks, if I show him my loyalty and my awesome stunts, he may gets me into the Wonderbolts! That would be so awesome!”

Twilight covered her eyes with her hooves in reaction to so much naivety. “Stop goofing around, Rainbow. He simply asked the Princess for advice and to discuss our further steps. For now, I don't even believe that there is a future to wait for.”

A weak and scared voice slowly roamed up from behind Rarity. Fluttershy sat on the ground with her wings wrapped around her head. “What do you mean there is no future to wait for?”

Twilight realized what she had said right now. Her ears fell and neatly attached themselves to her head. “I'm sorry Fluttershy. I didn't think about what I said. It's just... this spell Soul had used, the Princess said it had damaged the fabric of time, and that it will lead to the destruction of Equestria, sooner or later.”

Pinkie jumped in front of Fluttershy and bounced up and down. “You know, he could just reverse the spell, like Princess Celestia did when you used the 'Want it, need it' spell.”

The lavender unicorn blushed instantly and covered Pinkie's mouth with her hoof. “We agreed that we won't talk about that ever again. And besides, the Princess herself said that nopony was able to perform the spell before. Soul could only do it, because he used the power of Discord, or better, of Lunacy. So even if he wanted to reverse the spell, he simply couldn’t. That means that our fates are already sealed regardless of the potential defeat of Lunacy and the dark Princesses.”

Everypony looked at her with worry in their faces. Twilight stared bashful to the ground. But still there was something that bothered her to her innermost. “And on top of that... I don't trust Soul at all. I think he is the same as Lunacy. He doomed our families, friends, and every single one of us. He may act good, but he is evil in his core. The Princess wouldn't be so afraid of him if it weren't true.”

“I think I'm the one to decide this, Twilight.” Twilight spun around to see Princess Celestia approaching.

Her ethereal mane bounced with every step she took, the expression in her face wasn't quite the happiest that was ever to be seen. “I thought I had taught you better, and that your experience of friendship in Ponyville did better as well. But you're right. I was afraid of him, but not because I feared that he may bring mischief over Equestria, I feared his vengeance for what I did to him, and I have to admit that every punishment that he could think of, I would have deserved.”

Twilight made a rapid step to the front of the Princess and pounded her hooves on the ground. “Don't say something like that! He is a criminal and deserves to live his remaining life inside a prison or asylum!”

Princess Celestia couldn't believe what she paid witness to. Her mouth stood agape. “Twilight Sparkle! I don't tolerate such thoughts that denigrate the pony who saved us! You should be grateful! His actions have changed our destinies and gave as a little more time to spend with our families and friends.”

Twilight stammered incomprehensible words. “But I... you- you said yourself that he is dangerous. What has changed?”

The Princess sighed intensely. “Twilight, he saved us and risked his own life. I've talked to him only minutes before, and I don't think that he will turn on us. He may have a reason to turn on me, but he still loves Luna. And as long as Luna cares for us, he won't harm us. Soul is a pony of right justice, just like he always was. I trust him with my life and so should you.”

Without waiting for a response, the Princess turned to Rarity and puzzled her with her eyes. “So you were looking for me. How can I help you?”

Rarity looked from one side to another in confusion of the quick change in topic. “Well, Fluttershy had suggested that we should ask you for advice before we go anywhere. Soul wants to know the reason for the fading of the Element of Magic before we go to fight them.”

Princess Celestia didn't even answer as she began to walk in direction of the Dinner Hall, where Soul and her sister were still talking. The six friends followed her quickly. From the corner of her eye, she observed her student. Twilight's head hung low, like she regretted what she had said. As well as the Princess, Applejack was observing her friend. She didn't say anything when she insulted Soul, but inside her raged anger. She was well aware of the fact that this might be an effect of being the Element of Honesty, so she put her hooves down, but she was still concerned about Soul.

Rainbow and Fluttershy flew closely behind them. The cyan pegasus gently nudged her timid friend and whispered in her ear. “Don't you think Twilight is behaving strange? I mean, she is always strange, but right now she is even more strange than usual.”

Fluttershy answered Rainbow's question with a worried frown. “I don't know for sure. But I think since the incident with the barrier, Twi somehow changed, she felt so cold. I never felt this way around her. Maybe we should give her a little bit more time since her Element is gone.”

Rainbow nodded in agreement and pointed her gaze forward again. “Maybe you're right, Flutters.”

With quick steps, the Princess and the others approached the hall again. Princess Celestia's horn began to glow gracefully in her fine golden magical aura, and enveloped the doors with it.

The rapid steps of the Princess came to an abrupt end when she could fully look into the room. Soul and Princess Luna stood near a window and they turned around to face Princess Celestia as soon as they heard her.

Her eyes locked upon the table. The shattered and dirty armour that belonged to Soul laid on the table, neatly organized in the general shape of a pony. Some of the parts were still covered with remains of blood and hair. At a few edges of certain parts were even traces of a burning, but that wasn't the point here. Princess Celestia's eyes didn't lock upon them. They locked upon a second armour that laid right next to Soul's.

It was crafted in the same hues of Soul's. The insignia was even more precisely carved than on the other set of armour. The leather was replaced with fine dark blue silken fabric. It looked much more elegant, not resembling armour for close-combat. It looked more like the armour of a range fighter.

The others entered the room while they walked around the stunned form of Princess Celestia. Rarity poked her head from under Princess Celestia's wings and slowly closed the distance between her and the table. “Uhh, shiny... .”

Beside the fact that the armour was crafted from obsidian dragon scales, it was decorated with fine jewelry at some points. Most of them were already lost due to countless fights, that they had to witness.

Soul left his position near the Princess and stayed at the other side of the table. “Rarity, this is the armour that I want you to fix, please take care of Luna's armour as well.”

Rarity's eyes narrowed, she scratched her chin with her hoof, and stared at the armour with a humming sound. “I don't know, it looks so sinister, so evil. When I look at it, this armour tells me that you are very angry, full of rage, and willing to punish everypony that tries to harm you or the ponies around you. May I change the colouring?”

Soul's eyebrows slowly wandered upwards. “Well, this is exactly what it should’ve told a thousand years ago, and if you consider our current situation, I'm angry and full of rage against Lunacy and his minions. Please do not alter it so much. Restore only the protecting purpose of my armour. We will need anything that could help us against them.”

In the meantime, Twilight had walked around the table to face Soul directly. “I don't understand. You said we need help against them, but you've already defeated Nightmare Moon and Radiant Flare, so who is 'them'?”

A dark laughter escaped Soul's mouth. “Defeated them? They are immortal! I've only disabled them for the moment. Even if they weren't able to restore their health, Lunacy lived long enough inside my mind to know how to regenerate a body. It is only a matter of time before they will reappear and force us to fight again.”

Twilight stared at the ground, trying to push out the words that were hard to say. “Time... The Princess said that you've damaged time itself, and that it will sooner or later lead to the destruction of Equestria. Is that true? Can't you reserve the spell or do something about it?”

The expression of the black stallion darkened. He stared at Twilight for a few seconds before he answered her. “Yes, it is the truth. The fabric of reality is badly damaged, and with my current power, I'm not able to fix it.”

It felt like the air was sucked out of the room. Absolute silence had fallen. Applejack followed Twilight and looked confidently into Soul's eyes. “How much time do we have left?”

Soul's eyes were cold and calculating, he didn't even blink. “A few days, maybe more, maybe less. It's hard to say. The thing with the power over the aspect of time is that I can't really see my own future. It is impossible for me to interfere with my own timeline.”

Twilight sensed her chance to shine with her logical thinking mind. “Why don't you just go back to a point in time where you can prevent the events from happening without interfering with your timeline. Everything would be all right then, or am I mistaken?”

A wicked grin laid itself on Soul's lips. “Let me get this straight for you. The fabric of reality is in really bad shape, if I punch one more hole into it, it would most likely crumble and kill everypony. And additional to that, even if I go back, and the universe stays stable, the only possibility is to kill you before we meet. But that's not enough, because you have proposed this option, you made it impossible at the same time. When I kill you in the past you could never make this suggestion, it would create a paradox and cause the universe to crumble as well.”

Rainbow Dash leaned carefully over to Applejack and tipped at her hat. “Hey, did you understand what he said?”

Twilight turned her head slightly in defeat to her friends. “Basically, it means that I've busted this option, because I can't be the future cause for an action in the past if I'm involved.”

Silence turned in again, nopony new what to say in such a hopeless situation. Only Soul remained relaxed. Fluttershy noticed his behaviour and collected all of her courage. “Will… will it hurt?”

His expression changed completely, the coldness in his eyes vanished and was replaced by the caring warmth of a father. Fluttershy's face showed her fear, the fear to die so young. Only for a brief second, a certain memory flickered in front of his eyes. It was Star Swirl's face in the second of his death, caught between the torrent of time and space they had created. He never showed pain nor tears, he seemed to be… happy. Soul will never forget his last sentence. 'Run and never stop! Don't look back! You have to fulfil your destiny!'.

Soul snapped out of his memory and stroked Fluttershy carefully through her mane. “Don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you, or to anypony here. Nopony will have to suffer anymore. I promise that I will end this.”

He felt a weight resting on his shoulder, and he turned around to face the origin of the burden. The orange hoof on his shoulder belonged to Applejack. “When ya will end this... Why are you crying?”

Soul realized that he had began to shed tears when he thought about Star Swirl. He quickly flashed a false smile and brushed her hoof gently off. “I'm just happy that all of you will be safe!”

Suspicious, the others watched the older stallion, only the eyes of Princess Luna were turned away. She observed her younger sister, biting nervously on her lips and moving her wings unintentionally. Princess Celestia cleared her throat and caught the attention of everypony. “If I had to judge from the behaviour of my sister, then you already have a plan for that, but it didn't seem to be a harmless one. So please explain, Soul.”

The old stallion snickered with his tongue. “Before we know why the Element of Magic disappeared, we shouldn't do anything.”

Princess Celestia levitated one of the chairs to sit on and pondered for a moment. “My first thought was that the Elements were fading, because they led you back to take revenge on me. But after the latest events, I doubt that. It wouldn't even lie in Harmony's personality to do so. I'm not sure, but I think they faded because their reason to exist is fading as well.”

Soul scratched his chin and wrinkled his eyebrows. “Their reason to exist is fading? The Element of Magic was broken when Twilight fought Nightmare Moon and didn't manage to banish her again. Maybe the Element of Magic faded because it failed its purpose.”

Twilight stepped back in shock, her eyes widened, and her ears began to twitch. “How did you know? You weren't there when it happened! That is impossible.”

He began to laugh again. These ponies were really amusing. “When I left, I saw many things, and this was one of them.”

The moment he talked about his detour to the void, he realized something. “I think I’ve got it. I know why the Element is gone!”

The others looked at him eagerly. Like a little school-colt, Soul began to bounce up and down. Pinkie felt free to join him. “When the Elements protected me in the Colosseum, I saw Harmony in there! She told me that she had led me back on purpose, that she even now can't purge the last evil, the one that I've banished deep down in my heart. I think you are right. The Element of Magic fulfilled its purpose to lead me back and faded afterwards. Maybe this whole chaos will end when all of them are gone. I just hope that they will break all at once, so it will end as soon as I hope.”

The Princess of the Sun nodded in approval. “Now that we have settled this matter, how will we continue?”

Soul turned away and faced the window again. His gaze met something in the far distance. “We won't continue at all. From now on, I will settle this together with Luna alone. We will be heading for Demon's Run!”

Princess Celestia almost fell off from her chair. “How do you even know about that place?”

Her jaws were shaking in shock. Soul's grin became wicked and more sinister. “I wasn't always honest when I said I was studying. You have to understand, there could be the key to annihilate our threat.”

The Princess gnashed her teeth, a faint sign of anger was visible in her eyes. “I should consider you a traitor and send you to the moon. There is no excuse for even mentioning Demon's Run!”

Twilight made a little jump, her eyes lighting up like she had just aced a test. “What’s Demon's Run?”

Princess Celestia hissed dangerously, Princess Luna gulped heavily. “Demon's Run is a haunted place where even immortal beings can die. No pony dares to enter it anymore. There are various legends around this place. One of them tells of our parents, hiding a holy artifact that holds the power of creation there., the very power that had created this world in the first place. There is only one condition, nopony that entered ever returned… including our parents.”

“And I'm going to retrieve this artifact!” Soul jumped on the table, the metal armour clinking from the force of the impact.

The table under Soul's hooves broke and split into two parts. The wooden splinters flew through the air and levitated for a split second in front of Soul's eyes before they fell to the ground. Barely, he managed to escape the fatal cleave and jumped light-hoofed to the ground. Princess Celestia's hoof was heavily brushed by the strike through the table. “You won't bring my little sister to such a dangerous place. You won't go there at all! As eternal Princess over Equestria, I order you to leave out this wicked place. You shall never go near there!”

Princess Celestia pressed her teeth as hard together as she could, they almost broke under the immense pressure. Everypony stepped carefully away in fear of the wrath of the Sun Princess, only Soul remained steady. He walked slowly through the fragments of the destroyed table and pressed his own face against the face of Princess Celestia that burned in anger. “You can't give me orders! I'm no longer the little colt that you could push around! I defeated you in battle a thousand years ago, if you want it the hard way, you can get it! After your loss, I'm the rightful inheritor of the throne! I'm the Prince, no, the Lord of Equestria! So bow down you filthy sinner, and weep! So I won't punish you at the spot!”

The dark stallion's expression turned darker and a single blood vessel pulsed on his forehead. Even without the power of Chaos, he was still one of the scariest things ever to be seen.

Twilight tried to push him away but stepped at the spot and scratched the floor with her hooves. “You… can't… talk like that… to the… Princess!”

She panted heavily until she felt her weight decreasing. She was wrapped inside a golden aura. Surprised, she turned her head to the Princess. “Stop it Twilight. In fact, he is right. He defeated the actual ruler and had a right for the throne. With his return, his right to be the ruler returned as well. This means that we only had stepped up for him when he vanished, we were only
representatives.”

Everypony quietly followed the happenings. Their eyes widened when they saw the glorious alicorn Princess of the Sun kneeling in front of a unicorn. “He is the rightful Lord over Equestria.”

The dark voice of Soul rang through Princess Celestia's ears. “And Luna is my Queen.”