The Darkness among the Stars

by Haseo

Chapter 29 - Demon's Run

Chapter 29
Demon's Run

Twilight and her friends had to make the hardest decision in their entire lives, but it wasn't theirs to make; it was up to Princess Celestia to decide. Her hoof tapped rapidly against the ground. The Princess was well aware of the weight of her following words. Her own student pushed the decision into a dangerous direction. The reasons were obscured but Twilight wanted to go to war against the threat. Princess Celestia inhaled deeply and let out a long sigh. “Everypony, please gather around me. This situation allows only one measure. We will siege the entrance of Demon's Run and keep everything out and if necessary everything inside. There is only one condition that I have to make. Since you are no longer the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, it is too dangerous for all of you to be there. You would be an easy target and possibly hinder us. So the majority of you will stay put.”

The ground underneath their hooves began to shake. It was only a short moment but still frightening enough to scare the ponies. Twilight stumbled from one side to another. “Princess, what are you doing?”

The shaking stopped and stillness turned in. The glorious white alicorn looked through the room before she responded. “That wasn't my doing. These are the consequences of the damage Soul had served to the fabric of reality. The world is beginning to crumble under its own weight. We have less time than I thought.”

Rainbow Dash assertively took off in the air and hovered right in front of the Princess. “Fine, but what was that about us staying here? I won't accept my fate here! I will fight alongside you!”

Princess Celestia shook her head gently. She held up Rainbow's chin carefully with her hoof. “I'm sorry, Rainbow, but this isn't your decision to make.”

Her horn ignited in a starry golden light and enveloped the former Elements. They were lifted in the air and helplessly hovered around. Princess Celestia looked in their eyes and sighed, and her eyes closed while the light around her horn became stronger. “I hope we see each other again.”

The glowing forms of them slowly disappeared into thin air. Nopony mourned, nopony complained, the only ones left were Princess Cadence and her husband, Phalanx, the Princess herself, and Twilight Sparkle. “Princess, why are you sparing me? I've lost my Element as well, so what have you done to them?”

Princess Celestia stroked thoughtfully through Twilight's mane. “My dear Twilight Sparkle, I won't risk any of my defenceless subjects. Despite their heroic deeds, they are the same as every other pony now. I've send them back to their families and freed them of their abilities to fly or use magic temporally. But you are different, even without your Element you are still a powerful magician. Your help will be required if we want stop Lunacy and our darker sides. I've seen your struggling back in the Colosseum, and your magic abilities surpass every other unicorn living in Equestria.”

She turned away from the confused mare and devoted to her niece. “Cadence, I want you to stay here as well. It is possible that we will be able to recreate order even if we are unable to return. That means that after this disaster you could be the last alicorn and the successor to the throne.”

A tear rolled down Princess Cadence's face. She nodded weakly while Shining Armor took her once more into a caring embrace. She returned the gesture of love with a quick peck on his lips.

Princess Celestia watched the remaining ponies. They could understand the hardship she was going through. “I won't, and I can't force you, but if any of you don't want to follow me there will be no hard feelings. I can understand fully.”

Seconds passed and one pony after another stepped with determination in their faces in front of Princess Celestia.

Twilight was the first to show her ambition. “As your fellow student I will follow you to the deepest abyss, the highest mountain, and to the endless ocean without hesitation. Even until the end of this world!”

Shining Armor released the grip upon his wife and nuzzled her a final time. “As Captain of the Royal Guard, I vowed to defend Equestria until my last breath is done, and this is exactly the way it will take place. I will either return as one of the heroes that saved Equestria or die as a martyr.”

So was Phalanx the last to state his mind. “As soldier of the royal guard I vowed to protect Equestria and its inhabitants until my soul is leaving the remains of my body. For Equestria, for the ponies living here, for the future of every little filly and colt, and for the sake of Twilight; I will fight until I can't move, breathe, or think. I will die alongside you or return as a hero.”

Phalanx and Twilight gazes met, neither of them shied away. They looked deep into each other eyes. Confidently Twilight closed the distance to him and swung her hooves around his neck. She closed her eyes and placed her lips gently on his. The kiss didn't last for long but for both of them this magical moment could last forever. She withdrew her lips and slowly opened her eyes. “This may be the last moments we share together after all, but if we all do our best, there is more for you in the future.”

Twilight completely let go of the deeply moved stallion and giggled like a little school-filly. The Princess followed their actions and could do nothing but smile. “Very well, my friends. Come closer, I will try to track my sister's or Soul's magic and bring us directly to them. I'm sure we will find Applejack there as well.”

The ponies gathered around the Princess while her horn ignited in a bright golden light. Fully concentrated she let her focus wonder through the endless forests of Equestria. Her eyes shot open and the brightness increased. “There!”

The squad that is supposed to bring light into this seemingly endless darkness disappeared, leaving nothing behind. Princess Cadence looked into the space where her friends had stood only a second before. “I don't want to rule alone. Please come back to me and bring Luna and Soul with you.”

Her gaze fell upon the huge window into the woods, searching for a flickering light of her aunt's magic. Her patience was in vain, the forests remained dark.

Their destination was further away than any eye could look. They reached out for a place where the soil was grey and contaminated with the wretched magic of long gone so called gods. Only the toughest woods could barely survive, other lifeforms had abandoned this area a long time ago. Not even the eternal Princesses had visited this place. Their parents had always warned them about it before they went there for themselves.

The very same place where a left alone orange farmer was waiting on some wooden planks. She was still holding her plushy tight. Her longing and loneliness was quickly interrupted by a bright golden light behind her.

She spun around like lightning and beamed with glee upon her visitors. Applejack still couldn't leave her flat wooden prison, but that didn’t tame her nature. “Howdy, everypony. I reckon ya are finally here to rescue meh?”

Twilight immediately stormed to her former lost friend and stepped carelessly on the wooden planks. “By Celestia, I'm so happy that you’re alright. You have to tell me how you outsmarted Soul's spell and went after them.”

Applejack grinned at Twilight. “Ah'm sorry Twi, but ya stepped on this enchanted wood, you can't leave anymore. And for ya question when Ah woke up I decided to keep quiet and listen. Soul began to talk over his plans, so Ah paused breathing and followed them as soon as they left the room. The wooden planks ya are standing on, were a wooden box before. Ah hid in there and got mah chance to talk to him again.”

Shining Armor and Phalanx watched the girls chatting, but what had occupied the majority of their attention was the struggling of their Princess. The Princess bit her lip and her eyes twitched rapidly. “Soul has never tired in surprising me. He might have guessed that I would search for his magic and enchanted the planks to lead me here. He was always one of the clever kind.”

Princess Celestia closed in to her trapped student and the former bearer of the Element of Honesty. “Applejack, would you please tell me how long Soul and my sister were gone?”

Applejack looked up in the sky to estimate the time with help of the sun. “Ah guess they left around two hours ago.”

The Princess ignited her horn and touched the wood. The grip upon Applejack and Twilight was lifted and the Princess began to search once more for the magic of Soul or her sister. “I can't track them, the ground around here is sucking small amounts of magic so they can travel here in stealth without being noticed despite their almost endless strength.”

She closed her eyes and concentrated more on her magic. Speechless, she hummed some magic words. Twilight watched her mentor and didn't noticed the plushy in Applejack's hooves until now. “Hey Applejack. Where did you get that plushy? I've never seen it before.”

Applejack looked down at the plush pony inside her hooves and flashed a reassuring little grin. “It is a long story, but to shorten the story, it is a gift from Soul, he said I should keep it to remember him and his words.”

Twilight took her friend in a tight embrace and whispered into her ear. “He may deny it, but he seems to care a lot about you. I guess you should consider yourself lucky but still… if he wants to be remembered it means that he might be up to something. And it is probably nothing positive.”

The friendly chatter was quickly interrupted by the raging hoof stomping of Princess Celestia. “The clever little trickster. I can't detect them at all. He did well to hide their presence here, we have no other choice but to follow them until we catch up with them. We have no time to waste. Everypony follow my lead, don't do anything unnecessary as the ground will increase the amount of energy required for any move you do.”

The ponies nodded resolute and in unison. The Princess lit up her horn and shot a bright golden flare up in the sky. This flare didn't remain unseen for long. The intense light almost immediately triggered the senses of Princess Luna, and she stopped in her tracks and followed the flow of light to its source. “They are coming.”

The black stallion didn't turned around as he look at the dazzling shadows in front of him and continued his steady walk. “Don't let them distract you. We are already close to our destination.”

Their environment had become even more life hostile than before. Only a few rotten remains of trees and bones of long dead animals covered the grey and dull ground. Their view was hindered by fragments of ash falling down from the black clouded sky. He looked briefly upwards and nodded at their progress. “We should reach Demon's Run soon. Prepare yourself; we don't know who or what is awaiting us there.”

Princess Luna followed the steps of the dauntless stallion. His hooves left deep imprints on the sooty surface. “Are you happy to be back around me and the other ponies?”

The eyebrow of Soul raised in suspicion, he looked carefully back to Princess Luna. “Of course I'm happy to see you again, Luna. You were one of the things I missed the most in my absence, and I really appreciate the company of Applejack and her friends as well. I'm even finding a liking to your sister, although she is really clingy sometimes. Maybe she is afraid I could do something filthy with her little sister.”

His wide grin was well hidden for the Princess of the Night but she knew him too well. “Your sense of humour is terrible at chance. Like you would have ever had a chance with a classy mare like me.”

Both broke out in laughter, they hadn't joked around this in, frankly, an eternity. Princess Luna wiped the tears out of her eyes and tried desperately to regain her normal breathing pattern. “You know, if it wasn't for Applejack we wouldn't even stand here today. Since she was the one to seek for you after you were gone. In the end she reunited us.”

The grin in his face faded as quick as it came to be replaced with a sorrowful frown. “I will send her a bouquet when this quest is done.”

This time his emotions didn't continue unnoticed by Princess Luna. “Why are you looking so sad and bitter every time Applejack is mentioned. It’s because she reminds you so much of Harmony, right?”

Soul stopped immediately and gnashed his teeth. “She is an Element of Harmony, remember? Any of them reminded me of her for a second ,an additional reason to take the pure Elements with me.”

Princess Luna stepped closer to him and stroked solicitous through his mane. “And now you are wearing her above your heart.”

He turned to the Princess and offered her a warm smile. He pressed his muzzle against the side of Princess Luna and nuzzled her confidingly. “Luna? No matter what will happen, I want to be sure you know that I love you. I can't express how grateful I am that you took care of me and gave me so much love.”

The Princess hugged him tightly and returned the nuzzling of Soul. “I love you too, my son.”

Soul pressed himself away from the Princess and looked straight into her eyes. Tears formed and weighed his eyelids. Once more he fell into the hooves of the Princess and squeezed her firmly. “Thank you… thank you so much.”

Due to their immovability the ashes began to stick on their coats and turned them almost completely grey. They released the embrace and a pile of ashes fell down between them. Both of them followed the falling ashes until they hit the ground. The very moment it happened Princess Luna began to continue her pace. “You know, we never did this since you became almost as tall as I am.”

His dark voice calmly ordered from her behind. “Luna, stop!”

The Princess of the Night turned around and showed a puzzled expression. “I was only joking around, no need to feel insulted.”

Soul gently shook with his head and walked further until he stood directly next to Princess Luna. “Look carefully around you. Up from this point are no rotten trees and no dead animals left. This is the ultimate border. At this point there is no return. I want to be sure you are aware of this.”

Princess Luna only sneered snootily and searched from some other indications. “This is everything? I imagined a more frightful entrance.”

Without hesitation she lifted her hoof and stepped inside Demon's Run. The ground began to shake violently. Soul took the opportunity of entering as long as the chance lasted and jumped at Princess Luna's side. Behind them a massive wall made of blackish looking stone raised to the sky and pierced through the endless layer of clouds.

The stuck-up behaviour of Princess Luna was quickly erased and replaced with respect. “Well, I think that is the reason this place is called the point of no return.”

The very moment she ended her sentence the Elements above Soul's heart began to glimmer. The black stallion began to breathe deeper and visibly struggled to breathe properly. “Soul! Is everything alright?”

He tried immediately to regain his stance and took a few more deep breaths until he continued. “Everything will be fine. The Elements are protecting me, or at least buying me some time. But we should hurry before we meet Lunacy and his minions in here.”

In a slow but steady pace Soul and Princess Luna continued their walk into the seemingly endless emptiness. The raining ashes were becoming thicker and thicker with every step. Only the magical glimmer of the Elements lead their way.

But the thoughts of Princess Luna strived far off, and she was concerned about the well-being of her sister outside the black wall.

Princess Celestia and the others were quickly catching up with them. They trotted quickly through the remains of a forest, Twilight showed a grave frown. “Princess! What’s with these ashes? I can hardly see at all!”

The Princess tried to cover Twilight with one of her wings but she never took her eyes away from the massive black wall that stretched far in front of them to the sky. “Believe me, Twilight, you are happier not knowing. But this means we are close to Demon's Run itself, the black wall should mark its exact border, there has to be a gate somewhere!”

Phalanx rocketed up in the sky and entered the layer of clouds. It didn't matter for how long he tried to pierce through the clouds, they wouldn't end. The ashes burned in his eyes and made it harder to breath every moment. Only for a few seconds he tried to fly upwards before he had to turn around. He rubbed the ashes out of his eyes, and his view became blurry. It was impossible to spot anything. Still, there was something that caught his attention. Inside one of the cavities along the wall was something that didn't match the shade of the wall. A white creature accompanied by a second creature of similar stature, coloured in almost the same colour as the wall himself. Without the movement of the dark mass it would have been be nearly invisible.

He landed softly next to the Princess and looked once more at the wall. “Princess, something is waiting for us directly in front of the wall inside one of the cavities! I can't spot who or what they were, but I'm sure they don't mean anything good.“

Without any response the Princess sped up and galloped in front of them. They reached the shadow that the wall was throwing at the ground. The Princess hit the brakes and came to halt within seconds. “Show yourself, criminal scum!”

From somewhere inside the wall sounded a hilarious, dark, laughing voice. “What a harsh greeting my dear. I'm sure your loose tongue will be fixed after a few of my spells.”

When her voice blended in with the background noise, a white-golden light flashed from above.

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[Applejackderp]

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[Haseo]

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Usually I'm updating the story every Friday. So I'm updating weekly.